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.

The end of school

I will be forever grateful that James and Andrew were able to go to school in-person all year long, even though it was in a different school district. Then for the last two days after Memorial Day, they didn't have to wear face masks and could see their teachers' faces and their friends.

Here is James with his patient saint of a teacher, Mrs Barrett.

Andrew had a long-term sub, then finally Miss Jules and he talked a lot about her and her humor and her likes and dislikes and her struggles with some kids who refused to do their work.

If this works, here is the video of his class dance performance on the field.

Here's Millie with Andrew after his dance (it was jammies day, too)

Here are James and Andrew on the crazy hair day that week

The Salt Lake City School District tried to get everyone to go Monday June 7 for the last day. Max and Ben were all done with every assignment and did not go. I didn't even get last day pictures from them, they were off with basketball or tennis or riding bikes. 

But here is a picture of Max at his end-of-year tennis banquet. JB and I called it a "Tennis-timony" meeting, when the coaches got emotional looking back over the year as they talked about each player. Max was recognized for his hard work and dedication and being such a great team member and being kind and encouraging.

We put the two little boys into the morning summer school program at their school (it's a little like a summer camp, with art and activities and some reading/math). They'll go through the end of June. I figured, why not, it may prevent some summer slide and keep them from wanting to watch TV all day.

The importance of family

 JB's dear Aunt Becky passed away from cancer last week. I remember how kind and funny she always was to me since I met her. I pray her sweet husband and children and grandchildren will feel peace. I admire the closeness of the Richards cousins, and give a lot of credit to my in-laws for working hard through the years to keep the families connected.

Many Richards family members came into town for the viewing and funeral. My little kids all had no school and I had work that day to juggle, but JB was able to go north to the funeral.  He caught a picture with some of his family members who were there.

The remaining living children of Rulon and Golda: Malcolm, Harriet and John.

I am grateful they were all able to attend and be together, after a year of funerals restricted by the pandemic. 

I am also grateful for Pauline's invitation to have family over for dinner on Saturday to be together again before people flew or drove back home. Here are a lot of the second cousins at John and Pauline's house.

Here is JB with his Texas cousins, Greg and Ryan. They have gotten along really well their whole lives, and we really enjoy their families.

I hope and pray our children will grow up to be close with both sides of our family. I think there is a power in staying connected to your roots and to your family. You feel more of a sense of self, knowing where you came from, and the family who came before you.  We shared lots of family stories and memories with our kids this Memorial Day weekend.

Preschool graduate

Our last baby is done with preschool. Now she wants to know when she starts kindergarten. She does not understand the phrase, "In three months."

It has been the best preschool. We loved Highland High's preschool for our boys, but they were closed for the pandemic. Another parent told me about Magic of Learning in our neighborhood, just a couple of streets over, in a home. We were able to carpool, and Miss Collette was the sweetest, nicest teacher for our girl. 

They did lots of artwork and learned songs about the letters and Millie constantly has been writing her name and drawing our family.

And last month they took a field trip to Wheeler Farm. (It is a Salt Lake County facility, and they were required to wear masks even outside, until they finally relented to the new CDC data.) I went with her. Here is her turn as they walk to shake the jar of cream. At the end they had butter.

Looking at a big cow and telling it MOOOO

With Zoey (bandaids from falling out of our hammock and scratching her head)

With her bestie Penny

But her favorite part was this tiny house

Miss Collette would post pictures a lot of their activities, like working with shaving cream and paint.

"It's so satisfying," she told her teacher.

And here is her last day and art show. It was last Wednesday, so the big boys were remote and were able to come.

She was a little overwhelmed by the end when I wanted to take her picture with Miss Collette so I held her.

When she got her certificate and crown, Miss Collette said Millie's favorite parts of preschool were the babies and playing shopping. All good things, all good things!