Fun at Grandma and Grandpa Farmer's

We had so much fun at Grandma and Grandpa Farmer's house. The kids always get so excited to go, even though that means a very long car ride. They do however love that they get to watch movie after movie in the car - so maybe they don't hate the ride too much. We made it to their house with no problems, and only about 5 stops along the way. The kids had so much time playing with their cousins, and I wouldn't see the much during the day. A couple of nights we put all the kids to bed so we could have adult dinners, which were so nice. All of my siblings were together (minus a few husbands), and we would just talk and have a great time. It was so nice not having to cut any meat, or tell someone to eat 5 more bites. We were able to have a great time, and as always eat some wonderful food - thanks mom for everything!

Target Practice

Last time we were at Grandma and Grandpa Farmer's house, Owen got to go clay pigeon shooting and shoot a gun for the first time. Apparently he did not forget this experience because he kept asking me if he could shoot guns again. My dad didn't get home from a business trip until Thursday, so he had a long time to wait. It was worth the wait. He was so excited to shoot guns. We just set up some cans and had a great time. My dad had is 22 rifle and 22 pistol. Owen could hardly wait to shoot the pistol, and kept asking if he could do the "little gun now." We finally gave him a chance, and he immediately asked to use the "big gun again. The pistol is a little loud. Claire wouldn't hold the gun, but she loved checking out the cans to see how many holes were in them. Thanks for taking us Grandpa!!

Surprise!!

The main reason that Heather and I plus kids traveled home was to throw a surprise baby shower for Cody - our wonderful sister-in-law. She is expecting baby number 6, and it is yet another boy - that makes 5 boys and 1 girl. We decided that it was high time she got some new things. We had so much fun getting ready. My main goal was to keep her away from mom's house while things were getting ready. She just got a beautiful new kitchen and with her round belly, and lots of contractions hasn't been able to put things away, so I spent a few afternoons at her house helping her with that, along with convincing her to take a nap, and going to the beach with her. The best part was that the night before the shower we were getting all ready - Heather was decorating the cute cookies below, and mom and I were making pinwheels, so I went out to the garden to get the lettuce, and here comes Roy, Cody and kids headed out to the chicken house. Cody tells me that they are coming over when they are done. I run back inside, and we just started shoving things in odd places. Most of the food ended up in mom's room, and the cookies were all over the place. We had to laugh about it later, but at the time it was CRAZY!

When Cody walked in on the shower, the kids were all in the kitchen eating, and Claire looks at her and says, "Happy Birthday!" So funny. It made me think of Cinderella and Gus. Anyways, she was truly surprised, and we had a lot of fun. We played a great game at the shower where every team was given an old t-shirt and they had to create a baby outfit and have it modeled by one team memeber. They were given odd things like markers, staplers, tape, rubber band and ribbon. It was so much fun to watch people create, and we had a great time!

Fun in the River

While we were at my parents, it was HOT!! So, we decided to cool off by heading down to the Salmon River (or the beach as my kids call it), and go swimming. Cody's friend Shandra has a private beach by her house, so we were all alone, and had so much fun. Claire is turning into a little water bug while Owen prefers to just dip in a toe or two. The kids had such a great time swimming with their cousins that we decided to go again later on in the week. This time we brought Grant, who preferred to watch, but still had a great time. The new sand toys were a great idea, and the kids played for hours digging and making sand castles.



This is how we all felt when we got home, but only Lilly and Orrin were able to sleep.

The Turgoose Pit Stop

On our way to my parents house, we stopped in Boise to see our good friends the Turgooses. The kids always need a break after being in the car for 3-4 hours, so we are so glad they are right on the way (literally - there is no detour whatsoever!). We had a yummy lunch, with great friends, and then we took the kids to a local park. It is a great place. It has a huge toy for the kids to play on, swings, a section of large instruments they can play, and a part where there is water shooting up from the ground. The kids loved it, and had a great time. It is always hard to leave Debra, Bryson, Carter and Abbie, but we loaded up in the car and headed to Grandma's. Thanks for the fun time!

Island Park 2009

For the Clayson Family Reunion, we always take a weekend trip to Chad's Grandparents cabin in Island Park. As always there is a ton of food - I mean a ton, lots of fun, and water skiing for everyone. It was so much fun this year because Claire got very brave, and got in the water quite a bit. Owen wanted to be brave, but just managed to get close to the water. He did let me take him on the tube, but we had to go very slow. Grant loves being outside, so he just sat in his chair and watched everyone play. We did have a little problem with bats flying over our head at night, but luckily most of us were asleep so we didn't know until the morning. We all went home tired, and ready for a good nights rest. Chad had a little accident with a water ski and well, the picture speaks for itself. We can't wait till next year!

Our Homemade Waterslide

One day Claire asked if she could go swimming, so as I went outside to set up the pool, she had a "great idea." That is seriously what she called it! She decided that we should lift up the bottom of the slide, and put the slide in the pool, that way they could have a water slide. I was so happy that I bought the pool I did at the time, because it actually worked. The kids had so much fun with their water slide, and the next day invited the neighbors over for a turn. It is now our favorite summer activity, and keeps the busy for hours.
Grant watching all the action, wondering how long it will be until he can have a turn.
Claire, the brains behind the operation, showing off her creation.
Owen going for the plunge - he usually doesn't like to get wet, but he loved going down the slide.