Camping and the Surprise

We decided to go camping with my dad, Josh, Alyssa. And, Josh and Alyssa each brought a friend with them too. We went up on Thursday, and we found a nice big camp site for all of us and got settled. Carissa and Gabe were both very excited to be going camping even though this was their second time. And their first time was two years ago and only for one night. While we were getting the camp set up Alyssa said that my dad had a surprise for the kids/us but she couldn't tell us what it was. Then when we finished getting set up my dad brought out two small helmets and gloves for the kids to wear. The kids were excited about that and we thought that was a very nice surprise. Then my dad opened up the trailer which was carrying the motorcycles and ATVs, and there were two little ATVs for Carissa and Gabe. They each got there very own matching ATV, helmet, and gloves. And, they love them. They rode the camp site in circles as much as they could, and we took them on some short rides on the dirt road. Carissa has a little easier time driving than Gabe, because she is bigger but they both did really well. They even learned to start their ATVs on their own. We went camping until Saturday morning, and they both got a lot of time riding in while we were there. Pretty much all Carissa did or wanted to do was eat or ride. On Friday right before lunch time I was out with the kids on a short ride with the ATVs, and I told Gabe that he needed to slow down because our turn was coming up. But, he went right passed me and turned where he was supposed to. He was going pretty fast, turning and going down a bump. He rolled the ATV right over, and I stopped and went to check on him. He cried and said that it smashed his leg, but he was fine after a couple of minutes and his leg was a little red but it didn't even bruise. As soon as he stopped crying he asked, "Why did it do that?" So I told him that was why he was supposed to slow down before he turned. And, he got back on the ATV and rode it into camp. By the way, he was well covered when he rolled-he had on pants, socks, tennis shoes, t-shirt, jacket, gloves and helmet. Carissa and Gabe both did wonderfully and really enjoyed camping. A favorite moment of mine from our trip was Gabe and I looking at the stars together. He was amazed by how many stars he could see and they were all around us. He told me that he could see shooting stars, and that the stars that were still were just resting. We had a really nice time together.
I tried to load 2 videos of the kids, but this is all that loaded right now.

Dentist and More Construction

This morning the kids had their dentist check-up and they both did excellent. No cavities, and they both just did a wonderful job. Also, they were both chatting up a storm with the hygienist.


Their appointment was first thing in the morning, so when we left the construction workers were just getting started. When we got home we could barely get in our drive way. They have dug a big hole on the other side of the street right in front of our driveway. And at this point it is really good that we don't have any plans to go anywhere, because I don't think that we could leave right now. I told both pictures standing right outside my front door. And one of the pictures shows the end of my driveway, where the big mounds of dirt are.

4 years old

Gabriel is 4 years old now. I can't believe how fast he is growing up, although he is still a little guy. He has always been on the small side, but he is growing. At his checkup today he was 31.8 lbs. and 38 inches tall. And that puts him at the 9th percentile for height and 14th for weight, but I think that he should be getting taller soon since he his height has stayed about the same for the last few months. Gabe will be starting preschool again soon at the same school that Carissa will be going to for kindergarten. Hopefully, this time things will work out better than they did last year. Gabe has grown up and changed a lot over this last year so I think things will go better, plus he really misses going to school. Oh, we went to TGI Fridays for dinner on Gabe's birthday, which was his choice. And, they sang Happy Birthday to him and gave him his sundae which he shared with Carissa. But, every time our waiter told Gabe Happy Birthday, Gabe would tell him Happy Birthday back.

This is what we saw

When we woke up this morning we were greeted with contruction equipment. We had no idea they were coming or why they were here, but it was very exciting for Carissa and Gabe. As soon as they were dressed and feed they were outside watching them work.
By the time they left we had a pile of big pipes outside.

Gabe's Birthday Party

We had Gabe's birthday party today. It was going to be at the park, but we woke up this morning to rain that didn't seem to want to stop in time for the party, so we moved the party to my parent's house. It was the 4 of us, plus my parents, Josh, Alyssa, Brandon and Angela, Gary, and Dan and Kelly. So, it was just a family party anyway. The adults all got to visit while Carissa and Gabe played with Gabe's new toys. It did stop raining and dried up outside by the afternoon, so Gabe could try out some of his new outside toys. Also, I went for my first little motorcycle ride since I got my license, and my dad rode his motorcycle, and the two ATVs also had riders taking turns in my parents neighborhood. All the riding was started by Gabe's little remote controled ATV, which turned into him and Carissa getting rides on the real ATVs. We all got to enjoy spending time together along with some pizza and cake. Tomorrow is Gabe's birthday, so we'll go out to dinner at his choice of restaurant.

Our first Harvest

It was a very little harvest, but there is still more to come. This summer was our first attempt at growing food, and while some plants didn't make it others did. We should have green beans, peas, cucumber, and sage. Today, we picked the first bunch that was ready. We should have enough green beans to have with dinner tonight, but we'll have to save the peas for another day when we have more.

Balloon Glow

Last night we went to the Balloon Glow here in Sandy to see what it was like. It was fun, but much smaller than the one I went to in CO when I was younger. There were 8 balloons there and it was fun to watch them pull the balloons out and then blow them up. Carissa and Gabe were both amazed at how big they were. Also, when we first got there we saw the fire truck and the kids got to get in the truck and look around at everything. That was a lot fun and I wished I would have had my camera with me, but I didn't. We got to get right up under the balloon by the basket and look up in side the balloon and every so often they would blow the fire to keep the balloon up. Carissa was very interested in it all, but Gabe was afraid of the fire and it made him nervous. Then we went over to where the band was playing and the kids danced for a little while before we left. Well, mostly Carissa danced, because it was too loud for Gabe and he ended up hiding between my legs so that he could cover his ears with my legs while he sat down.