San Diego part one

We started driving as soon as I was done with work Thursday at noon, and stopped to eat in St George where the car temperature read 112, then we pulled in to Las Vegas around 6pm for the night. It was a sketchy part of town but the hotel had a pool!

 

Then the next morning we kept going to California. We stopped at the outlets in Barstow but haven't been in a while, because they had moved and we went to the wrong spot! Then we tried the outlets in Carlsbad, and Max and Ben really got to pondering about which shoes they really wanted/needed, while I made the mistake of taking the three younger kids into the Disney Store "just to look." Big mistake. Big. ("But I WANT that!")

We got to our AirBnB, which belongs to our sister-in-law Collette's sister Alison, and it was so sweet and charming and in the perfect spot - a mile from Tamarack Beach, and we spent the evening greeting the pacific ocean.

Immediately I felt such calm and peace after such a rough time at work in the last few weeks. Waves and cooler weather are very soothing.

The next day, Saturday, we went over to Kobey's Swap Meet. Again we separated, and, as JB put it, "We each took one for the team." JB helped Max and Ben look around, while I talked and talked to these three little kids about budgets and looking for a good price.

Max and Ben found new hats, and the little kids each got a toy.

Then we drove over to Coronado Island.  What a great place! Very busy, with hard-to-find parking, but being around the 4th of July, there were flags everywhere and the red white and blue bunting on upper balconies and houses. Gorgeous neighborhoods, with lots of bikes and golf carts. That's the only way to easily get to the beach.

Here's James after enjoying a treat of some red Powerade.

The kids took turns on boogie boards over and over. 

Then they all got tired out, and took a nap at the same time! (I was constantly sunscreening the big boys if they took off their swim shirts)

Then we picked up some pizza (JB went in to order and I drove around and around trying to find parking) and we found a park in the middle of town with a great playground and shade.

JB took so many great pictures of the trip, and I have to include this selfie as he rested at the park.

We all slept so well that first night!

Fourth of July weekend

I love this holiday, I love how our neighborhood goes all out, and I love that a lot of things were back this year. And I love our new flag for the front of our home!

JB and I find that wearing our school colors works really well together on the holiday.

The children's bike parade was back this year down the main street in our neighborhood.  It happened on Saturday, July 3rd.

After the parade, we volunteered to help at one of the booths and handed out freezer pops in the heat. This was a great job because we could stay in the shade and cool down from the heat.

Then on Monday the 5th, I was sent down to Provo at 4am to report live on the Freedom Festival Grand Parade. It was a busy morning running around getting pictures and interviews and video and doing live reports. But it was so encouraging to see so many people happy to be together and happy to fly the flag! I wished my kids could have been with me to see the floats.

I thought all weekend of the last verse of The Star Spangled Banner in particular, about God's hand in our nation, and about those men and women who protect us. We have freedoms in America like no other country, and we have to make sure we don't lose them or take them for granted. We have to vote like it matters -- because it does. 

Lagoon thrice

(We don't use "thrice" enough.)  Some of us have gone to Lagoon three times so far. 

The first was on Memorial Day. It was packed.  Lagoon-A-Beach has weird new rules they blame on Covid (no coolers?!) and a long line but we managed with JB standing in the spot and the little kids riding some rides first.

The big boys went off together, and I had the three little kids. Here are Andrew and James on Bombora

The kids trying to make me dizzy on the teacups

The new fire engine ride is fun

Odyssea

The jolty jeep safari (Andrew seems a little big for this ride)

 

How it started at the water park

How it ended

Then JB took the three littles one day in early June while I was working and while Max and Ben had tennis lessons.

Then this week we ran out there for a couple hours when we heard JB's sister Sarah was down for the day from Idaho. We got to meet baby Jack!

Rachel and Millie on the helicopters (they are two years apart almost to the day)

James and Kate on the helicopters (they are just a couple months apart)

Harvey and Andrew in front of the others on Puff

Millie with me in the princess carriage part of the carousel

John Byron, Benjamin John, and Jack John!  Next we need to get John Robert into a picture with his three namesakes.

Youth Conference

 Max and Ben went down to Southern Utah for three days and two nights for Youth Conference last week.

Here's what Ben told me:

On the first day we did a huge obstacle course and it was super hot. 

We each had to drink like 7 water bottles. We climbed over 10-20 foot walls and army crawled under rope nets and through tunnels and carry a big log. 

Then we jumped into a lake with a rope swing.

The second day we did a hike called Water Canyon. Four miles and with some spots to splash.

On Monday and Tuesday the leaders had devotionals and the youth shared thoughts. We also played yard games outside.

The third day, Wednesday,  we did Cable Mountain, which has a great view at Zion National Park and is not nearly as crowded.

Here are some pictures the leaders posted

The temperature was triple digits the entire time, but their leaders made sure they had lots of water and shade and activities that started earlier in the day.

I heard great reports of our boys getting along most of the time, except for when they had to coordinate carrying a big log together on the obstacle course. It reminds me of when they were trying out a tandem bike last year in our ride at the Hiawatha.

James is 8

 Jamesy boy is eight years old! 

Here he is, 9 pounds 6 ounces and so much blond hair. 

And here he is on his birthday by the sign I put up from our primary presidency.

Usually we have a monthly stake baptism day, but during the pandemic our stake has been letting families choose the day. So we thought, why not his birthday?

The meeting limits were lifted last month, so we were very happy to invite all the Richards and Deardeuff Utah family members and his CTR 7 class members and some of our dear friends and neighbors. Others were able to watch on Zoom. 

I hope he is able to be blessed by now having the Holy Ghost to comfort and guide him. I hope we can help show him the quiet, sweet and gentle ways the spirit can help him now in his life. That's why I think these little kids are baptized at 8, not because they choose it.

After ward, we had everyone over for food and cake. We set up tables and chairs in our garage, because we don't have much shade any more and it was so hot that day.

Here he is either telling people something funny, or trying to lead the singing.

He wanted a chocolate cake. JB had to take me a picture of me with it, because let me confess I was obsessed with this cake for a couple weeks. I had done a story for the radio with Courtney Rich (Cake By Courtney), and I wanted to try one of her from-scratch deluxe recipes. It took days of steps. First stir up the cake layers, then freeze them, then make the filling with many steps including gelatin and heavy cream then chill that, then the chopping-melting-ganache-stirring-whipping up frosting. Then say a prayer while assembling it.

It was very good.

Back to Jamesy -- he has always been a boy with quick reactions and emotions that are close to the surface. He screamed for the first 12 weeks of his life but then became such a cuddle bug. At four years old, he was called "Angry Richards" at his brothers' soccer games. In his own soccer games at age five, he growled at the other team and called them the bad guys. Once I realize what he's trying to say underneath the rough spots, I remember how precious he is. He loves his back scratched in bed at night. He fights with Andrew but then insists he come down from the top bunk to be with him. He's improving in his reading every night, and is such a creative drawer.  He still loves Batman, Spider-Man, and dinosaurs. 

Oh, he found his presents five weeks ago in the attic behind two mattresses and under five blankets. I re-hid them and the wait felt so long but he was still really happy to get them.

James got to go the day before his birthday to his cousin Phin's baptism. Here are the four cousins close in age.