Bear Lake 2015

We got to spend some time up at Bear Lake this past weekend. My dad and Quinn bought a cabin up there and rent it out during the summer. Now that rental season is over, they invited everyone up to spend the weekend. It was our Primary Program on Sunday, so we were only able to spend Saturday up there. 

Within minutes of launching the boat, there were problems and the boat was not used for the rest of the day. We made the best of it and just spent the day on the beach.

We got there close to 11am and the water was freezing. Hurt your feet just so stand in it kind of cold. I thought there was no way anyone was getting in the water. But shortly after, the sun started to come out and suddenly the water didn't feel so cold anymore. 

 We blew up some floaties, pulled out the buckets and shovels, and the kids were set for hours. 

 I love how Blake is just relaxing against Will. 

 

 One of my favorite pictures. It started out as Lance just using Josh as an arm rest and noticing height differences. Then on one of the pictures, Lance pulled this stunt. 

 

 I still can't believe my sister is a grandma and that I have a great-niece.

Isn't she beautiful, though?

 

We were there most of the day and the kids played hard. Eventually, Blake wasn't interested in playing and just wanted to be held. She eventually fell asleep in my arms.

 Proof that sunscreen works. Danielle sprayed some on her chest and face and apparently it splattered onto her shoulder.

The boys had a lot of fun digging holes, and burying Will.

It was fun to spend some time with everyone and we all had a good time. Of course, the boat was working the next day and we missed out on most of the fun. But we had fun while we were there and Will and Blake had a blast. 

Summer is Ending

School has started and temperatures have started to drop. Summer is coming to an end. I'm definitely not ready for winter yet, but I am enjoying the cooler temperatures and like the idea of wearing a few more layers. Though it is winding down, we are trying to enjoy it as much as possible and take advantage of being outside while we still can. 

 It's been an odd summer for "yard work". Both Lance and I enjoy doing yard work, but for some reason it just got very neglected this year. After slowly watching the grass in our backyard die and get overtaken with weeds for months, I finally decided to do something about it. When I checked our sprinkler system, one of the main sprinklers had been turned so it was watering only our dirt garden. Think Blake may have had something to do with that. So we've been trying to save our yard and have spent a lot of time doing work out there.

A garden didn't happen for us this year. We intended on planting some things, but just never really got around to doing it. Lance has some big plans for our garden, and one of the things that he has been wanting to do was install a drip system. On Monday, our cousin Gary and his wife Natalie came up and helped to get the drip system in place.

One of our biggest problems was our consistency with our watering and keeping our weeds under control. The drip system should help significantly with both of those. We were able to connect it to our automated system so we can set the timer for when and how long to water. 

While we are doing yard work, the kids are busy being their normal crazy selves.



The kids also enjoy giving their cars a car wash.

Throughout the entire summer, I was looking for a decent pool to purchase. Nothing big or major, I just hate spending $30 on those blow-up pools that seem to pop within a few uses. I never found something that was the right price, and by the time I decided to just get a cheap one to get by for the summer, all of the stores had put them away for the season. We had to improvise.

I'm a Big Girl Now

Look who decided she was done with diapers!

Blake is going on about 2+ weeks wearing underwear and I think she has this whole going to the bathroom thing down. She even survived a trip to Cedar City without any accidents. Most mornings she wakes up dry, but she still has an occasional accident during the night. 

Funny enough, I believe Will did most of the potty training. I decided one day that I was going to do it, but within about 2-3 hours I had given up. Every time I would leave the room it seemed like she would have an accident. And I wasn't willing to stay within 5 feet of her for several days. I am way too lazy and just don't have that kind of energy right now. So I gave up and decided that I would do it after the baby comes and I was stuck home anyways.

Over the next week, Blake was constantly taking her diaper off and putting underwear on. I would ask her fairly often if she needed to use the restroom and would help her if she said yes. But Will was definitely her biggest cheer leader. He was always reminding her to go potty, and was always right there to help her. And when she was successful, he was jumping around, cheering for her, and running to tell me the good news.

So long diapers! (At least for another 7 weeks or so.)

Grandma Rae Stout Banks

Almost exactly 3 months after my Grandpa passed away, he came and took my grandma so that they could be reunited.

 

My grandma's health has been really up and down for quite some time now, but the last 3 months have been really hard on her. She missed grandpa fiercely and would often ask if she could go and be with him.

A few weeks ago, my aunt Jodi took her to her home in Reno to help care for her. It was there that she passed away. Here is what her obituary said:

Rae Stout Banks passed away peacefully on August 24, 2015 at the age of 87. She was born July 24, 1928 to Mary Crawford and Marion Fisk Stout. Rae was born and raised in Hurricane, Utah.
Rae married her sweetheart William Lee Banks on November 29, 1947 in Ely, Nevada. Their marriage was later solemnized in the St. George LDS Temple. They were married 67 years and made their home in Cedar City, Utah. 
She was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints where she served faithfully in a variety of callings. As a couple, Lee and Rae served 3 missions for the church. They served at both the LDS Employment Center and at the Bishop’s Storehouse. 

Rae was an avid quilter and an excellent bread maker. She loved serving others and volunteered many hours in the community. Rae and Lee loved to travel and enjoyed visiting family and friends throughout the world. She loved her family dearly. 

Rae is survived by her 5 children, Linda (Roger) Strate, Salt Lake City, Gary (Ann) Banks, Cedar City, Joy (Claude) Grant, New Harmony, Bonnie (Rick) Jorgensen, Cedar City, Jodi (Greg) Turner, Reno, Nevada, 22 grandchildren, 43 great-grandchildren, 1 great-great-grandchild and her brother Dell Stout. 
She was preceded in death by her husband William Lee Banks, just a short 3 months ago. Her parents and 13 siblings also preceded her in death.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, August 29, 2015 at 12 noon at the Indian Hills Ward (1120 West Greens Lake Drive, Cedar City, Utah). A viewing will be held on Friday, August 28, 2015 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Southern Utah Mortuary (190 North 300 West). On Saturday, August 29, 2015 the viewing will be held at the Church from 10:30-11:30 am. Interment will be in the Cedar City Cemetery under the direction of Southern Utah Mortuary. 

The funeral service was really nice. I learned a lot of things about my grandma that I never knew. It is sad to have both of them gone, but I truly believe that they are happier now. They did a lot of things in their lifetime and were always going places, so I think it was very difficult to be bed ridden and unable to care for themselves. It's weird to think about going to Cedar City and not stopping by their house and saying hello. I have some wonderful memories in that house. 

We will miss you, Grandma. Say hello to Grandpa for us.

1st Day of Preschool - August 31, 2015

Yesterday was Will's first day of preschool. He is going to this awesome place called Kiddie Kollege. I looked at a few different places when I was thinking about signing him up, and this one definitely felt the most right for Will. 

He has seriously been counting down the days until he could finally go to school. Last week we had a little parent orientation and a "meet the teacher" day. Both times, he was bummed when he learned I wasn't dropping him off for school just yet.

He woke up yesterday ready to go. Unfortunately, he is in the afternoon session so he still had a few hours to wait. Every time I told him we needed to do something, he was worried that we would be late for school. It took a lot of convincing, but finally we got a few things done and it was time to get ready.

Blake and I walked him up to the school. All of the kids were outside playing on the playground. Eventually, a teacher came out and rang a little bell. All the kids were told to gather up and get in lines by their teacher. There are 3 different classes. Will's teacher is Miss Mary.

Will lined up with his class and off he went into his classroom. Blake tried to line up right behind him and follow him in. I had to grab her and keep her out. She didn't like that at all. She kept crying that she wanted to go to school. It was quite a wrestle match getting her into her car seat. She cried the whole way home, but then she eventually calmed down. I will have to think of some fun activities I can do with her and really enjoy some one-on-one time before this new little one gets here.

Will's friend picked him up from school and Will arrived home very happy. He told me all about his day and it seemed like he had a really good time. He is such a smart little boy and is so social. I really think he is going to thrive here.

 *He will be in preschool Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 12:30-3:30pm.