Pottery Wheel

We have new neighbors! A lovely newly married couple moved in on Sunday. It is very nice to have a young couple to liven up our block. The wife is a school para-aide and the husband works in archery at Cabelas. We plan on baking up cookies this afternoon to take over. Amelia wanted to get up at 6 am and go help pull weeds from their sidewalk and yard. She was picking all the dandelion stalks. I need to show her what real weeding entails.

Amelia wanted to do pottery on Monday for our arts and crafts project. The kids enjoyed playing with clay and water. I was pleased they could do it outside. Amelia made a rose, Phillip a blob with a middle, and Everett a cup of sorts. We got to use some new clay I found at Hobby Lobby last month. The kids painted their creations on Friday using metallic paint. We had a FHE lesson taught by me on reverence in church. Reverence is a focusing topic of this year. Based on today's church behavior the lesson did not penetrate with Everett or Evelyn. They did improve a bit. We used the kid's $5 DQ cards earned through the library summer program for our FHE treat. The kids all ordered Orange Julius. We sat outside and admired the lovely sunset.

Tuesday morning I photographed a tiny baby boy. He had the smallest head ever! The kids were thrilled to hold baby Eli for a moment of two. Evelyn was very excited to wear her "Let it Go" shirt. She broke out in song at random moment throughout the day. Right after the session we packed up and spent the rest of the day with the Haleys at Bridgeport Lake. Yep, still in love with all the water and sand. Evelyn wore me out as I closely followed her around as she tried to swim in water above her nose. She also learned how to take off her swimsuit and her puddle jumper. There was no keeping either item on her. I wanted a rope to tie under her arms so I could at least keep her head above water. She is a bonified fish. Everett pretended to be a mermaid most of the afternoon.  Ella and Amelia (and Phillip) spent most of the time in the deeper water practicing their underwater swimming skills.

Wednesday we all went to Phillip's ENT appointment with Dr Massey. We got there 10 minutes early at 9:50 to fill out paperwork. We were still waiting at 11 am. Can you imagine waiting at the Dr office for 70 minutes? Torture. I finally left and told the desk nurse I would be back in 20 minutes. She thought that was a good idea as well. I ran a couple errands then went back. We finally got in at 11:30. Several minutes later we were on our way! Dr Massey first had Phillip get a tympanic pressure reading to measure if he had fluid behind his ear drums. Dr Massey suggested he put tubes in and remove Phillip's tonsils and adenoids at the same time. Looks like the surgeries can be done here in Sidney. His nurse is supposed to call me to schedule a time next week. We hope that the surgeries will help restore some of Phillip's lost hearing.

Tessa did a wonderful job planning and preparing for the combined youth activity of water softball. Moments before the activity started a thunderstorm ripped over Sidney. We have a track record for nasty weather and youth activities. The kids played some indoor games until the storm passed. A lovely rainbow graced the sky while the kids played. It was great fun!

Thursday we had Ella over for the afternoon. I set up the plastic used as a slip and slide for the combined activity. The kids played on it for a solid two hours. Even Evelyn was quite amused and content to be outside. After dinner I got the girls dressed up in pioneer clothes and bonnets. I snapped some photos of Ella as Mary Ingalls, Amelia as Laura Ingalls, and Evelyn as Carrie Ingalls. The field I chose was chock full of nasty weeds (cheat grass) that made their way into boots, socks, and dresses. Soon all three girls were squirming and itching. That made it difficult to pull off my vision. Eventually the girls bucked up and enjoyed the moment for a moment. The girls looked so darling! We ripped off socks and boots before arriving at the van. It was bad.

Friday we spent the afternoon swimming at Sterling with several other families from our ward. Amelia and Lily were joined at the hip in the middle pool and on the slides. I hardly saw either girl. It was nice to have other moms around to chat with. We walked over to Sidney's main square after dinner to enjoy some outdoor music concert. One gal brought a cooler filled with water balloons! The kids enjoyed having a water fight. The kids licked Popsicles and danced in the street. Justin and I thought the cool weather was a nice break.

Saturday was quite boring. We did not do much of anything. Too many fights and arguments broke out, mostly over the dang Duplo blocks. SHARE!! Grrrrr. Justin had a speaking assignment in Cheyenne this morning. Going to church with 4 little ones is challenging! I always manage but Justin's extra set of hands always helps to maintain better reverence. He had mac n'cheese ready and on the table once we walked in the door after church! I was a little shocked! Nice play honey.

Amelia is desperately working on no whining for a day, she can earn a girl date with me if she succeeds. So far we are on week 2 of trying every day. That girl has a lot of whine! Maybe I need to set a more attainable goal for her to reach. She needs one on one time.  Evelyn's new trick is to belt out a piercing yell at the end of the "Let it Go" song. It is funny. She looked adorable at church with two pig tails and a pillowcase dress I sewed up last week.