Ahhh, summer...

 

What can I say, I love summer!  Sure it gets blasted hot, but I've always loved summer and all the possibilities it holds.  I love being outside, swimming, BBQ's, sports, playing in water, popsicles, camping, gardens, fresh fruit, vacations, long days, reunions, and just the fun and feelings of summer.  I have been trying to make the most of it since it always seems to be over quicker than it should.

The owners of the house we are renting left their grill and have graciously allowed us to use it while we are here.  We have never owned our own grill before and we're loving it!  (We will definitely have to get one of our own when we move!)   A couple weeks ago we tried these chicken and veggie skewers and man did they hit the spot. 

 Like I said before, we have never owned a grill and are, therefore, not very experienced in the primal cooking arts.  However, Ryan has loved watching shows like Primal Grill and BBQ University on PBS for the last couple of years, in anticipation of the day when we could have a grill of our own, so we have wasted no time in putting our borrowed grill to good use.  Like I said before, these chicken and veggie skewers were oh-so delish!  By the way, Ryan proposed that we skewer one food item to each skewer so that it would be easier to cook each item to its ideal done-ness before removing it from the grill.  He got this idea from the show Primal Grill and it worked like a charm.  Each item came off the grill at a different time and each item was cooked just right.  What a man! (Ryan, not the Primal Grill guy)  :)

The boys have been loving the slip n' slide this summer.  Thanks to my mom for the double-sided racing slip n' slide.  The boys talked Ryan and I into a few slides and it wasn't until a couple days later when I finally realized what all those bruises on my legs were from.  I'm only 30 and I'm already turning into the achy grown up!  When Ryan saw this picture he said, "Man, I look like the farmer's tan version of Edward (the vampire)."

Luke looks happy enough in this picture, but actually he is not a fan of cold water.  He absolutely loves taking a bath, so I figured he would like being in any kind of water.  Not so.  Dip this boy's toes into anything colder than 80 degrees and you will be repaid with a look of complete betrayal followed by a cry that starts out low and climbs steadily in pitch until you either take his feet out of the water or you are rendered deaf.  Such a sweet boy!

Funny Faces

One of the boys' favorite pastimes is to confiscate our camera and take pictures without us knowing about it.  They especially love taking pictures of each other making weird faces.  The other day they were doing this and I was too tired to try to stop them.  So here is our weird faces photo shoot.

 

I'm not quite sure why all of our "weird" faces include having our eyes half shut.  Obviously, this isn't my best weird face, but like I said I was tired and doing the bare minimum to appease the kids.

 

Ryan wasn't there but I found this one from a previous Tate photo shoot in Ohio.  I believe Ryan and Tate were taking pictures of each other jumping and shouting. 

Luke even got in on the action with a half squinty eye.  Now where did that elusive Cheerio go?

4th of July, Coeur d'Alene style

We decided somewhat last minute to spend the 4th of July up in Coeur d'Alene, ID, visiting Bart, Cheryl and Farel.  It was a blast!  Apparently, Coeur d'Alene goes all out for the 4th, and it did not fail to impress.  The scenery up there is absolutely gorgeous--it makes one kind of want to live there!  It was also so fun spending time with family and celebrating our great nation.  Oh, and did I mention I have never had a 4th of July with such great weather.  It was a beautifully sunny sky with a high of 72 degrees.  We didn't even break a sweat all day! (FYI, Ryan's shirt collar was up to shield his neck from the sun, not because he secretly wants to be on the cast of Miami Vice.)

 

 We started the day by watching the parade downtown.  The boys were so excited for the 4th of July parade, because last year we went to their first parade in Ohio in which they both came home with a bag full of candy.  They have since associated parades with people throwing free candy at you and had been not-so-patiently waiting for the next parade/free candy event.  Unfortunately for the boys (but fortunately for their teeth), there was no candy at this parade.

Thank goodness for superheros.  What the parade was missing in sugary treats it made up for in men wearing tights.  This picture was actually a blessing because Tate and Grant both saw Spiderman close up during the parade but missed the other heroes.  For some reason (maybe from the disappointment of no candy), Tate was pretty upset about not seeing Captain America and cried for a minute.  After the parade ended and we started walking back to the car, who did we come across? None other than Spidey and Capt. America!  When the heroes walked through the park after the parade, they were mobbed by children who ran up to high-five them and say hello. We convinced them to squat down for one more picture and fulfill a little boy's wish for the day.  They were actually great sports even though I'm sure they wanted to escape the crowd of picture-seeking little boys.

 After the parade we enjoyed lunch in the crowded, but shaded, park and the boys played on the massive wooden castle playground.  After lunch we went back to Bart and Cheryl's for a much needed nap.  In true Cheryl fashion, Cheryl was kind enough to keep Grant entertained while the rest of us took a nap. 

Then Farel and two of Bart's brothers came over with their families and we had a delicious BBQ at a park near Bart and Cheryl's.  Afterward, we went back to their place for s'mores and cake.  It's not the 4th of July without fireworks so we headed back downtown to watch them from the balcony of the resort where Bart's brothers had a room.  Coeur d'Alene had raised around $30,000 for their firework show, so it was pretty much awesome!  It was a wonderful way to celebrate the 4th and I think we might just have to make it a tradition.

Farm Fun

One of the great things about Yakima is how close we are to all kinds of delicious fruit.  A few weeks ago we picked Ryan up from work on his half day and headed over to a local farm for their cherry festival.  We picked a couple buckets full of cherries and then headed over to their blueberry bushes and filled a couple more buckets.  We picked so many blueberries I had to freeze a good portion of them.  In doing so we discovered a new favorite snack for the summer, frozen blueberries, yum! (The trick is to first lay the berries out on a cookie sheet and freeze them.  Then put the frozen blueberries into bags.  That way, you can get out as many or as few frozen blueberries as you want without them being all frozen together in one big clump.)

The cherry festival was at such a cute family-run farm.  They had a great shaded lawn area with tree swings and places to play and run around.  I believe this was Luke's first time in a baby swing (there aren't many swings in the parks in Yakima).  He was happy to ride as long as he wasn't swinging faster than the wind could push him.  He liked it slow and steady.

 There were a few games set up with the winners snagging a free dozen cherry donuts.  Ryan and Grant entered the sack race.  Ryan got second and could have definitely won but wasn't fully committed at the beginning of the race.  We bought a dozen donuts anyway, and they were awesome!

 

I think it wouldn't be a farm party without on of these tractor pull rides made out of old barrels.  Oh, and of course you need a good tractor to sit on!

The kids figured out how to get the goat feed out of the machine without putting a quarter in, so the goats got fed quite a bit.  But they never seemed full...

Enjoying the previously mentioned cherry donuts.  Man, you just can't beat warm, fried dough coated in sugar!

Counter-post to "Yaki-Blaa"

 My mood while writing the previous post was probably not the best for blog updating.  We have since had several fun excursions that have improved my outlook of central Washington.  Most of these took place outside of Yakima, but it still makes me feel better finding things we enjoy doing.  A couple of weekends ago the ward had a campout at Ensign ranch, a church owned ranch in the mountains about half-way to Seattle.  We were all ready to go camp with the boys, until a big rain storm the night of camping made us change our minds.  The boys were so excited about the prospect of camping that we decided to drive up Saturday to experience half-camping (without the tent, sleeping out, rain, cold, or mud).  

There were many fun outdoorsy activities available and we took part in all we could.  We went out in the canoe (without falling in the water), we hiked around and enjoyed the scenery, and the boys and Ryan enjoyed playing on a giant slip and slide set up at the ranch (unfortunately, I have no pictures of that).

I loved leaving the dust of Yakima behind and enjoying being surrounded by greenery.  I love trees!

Luke fell captive to the gentle rocking of the backpack carrier and was asleep for most of the hike.  In this picture he was right on the verge of falling asleep and I could tell he wanted to smile but was just too dang tired. 

Not the most comfortable bed but it will work in a pinch.