August!

How is it August already?! Here's what we each have been up to.

RYAN
Ryan traveled (2 business trips and his family wedding) all of June, so it was nice to have him around again in July. This week he is gone again, but this time he took all three boys alone to his family reunion (since I'm too pregnant now to travel). He still gets up every day between 5:30-6am to workout, and he does 50 push ups and a one-minute plank every night before bed. He and I are actually nearing the same weight, since he keeps going down and I keep going up. He's the skinniest he's ever been and happier than I've ever seen him. He was released in July from being a Primary teacher and is now the second counselor in the Sunday School presidency. Talk about easy street. He loves his job and is usually only gone 8am-5:30pm. Me likey.

LINDSEY
I am 37 weeks pregnant now. I'm hot and tired. My varicose veins seem to be under control though. The baby was breech at my 28-week ultrasound, and each appointment thereafter the midwives confirmed she was still head up. I was in a panic about the version procedure to turn her, but since my doctors' office wouldn't let me attempt a natural breech delivery, I figured it was better than a forced scheduled c-section at 39 weeks. It was my ultimate birthing nightmare. And then the ultrasound at 35 weeks confirmed she had indeed turned, and now all is right in my world again. :-)

This week I have been all alone while the boys have all been with Ryan. They've been in Vancouver, WA with his immediate family until today, and now they are at a beach house on the Oregon coast with his aunts, uncles, cousins and their kids, and grandmother. I'm sad to be missing it all, but I've enjoyed my week too. Let's see: visiting teaching, oil change, manicure, hair cut, my baby shower (at Panera tonight), school supply shopping, school clothes shopping, massage (tomorrow). I could get used to this!

COLLIN
Collin has decided that being six is the hardest year of life. You have to learn to read, play the piano, learn to swim, ride a two-wheeler, etc. Needless to say, we have taken a break from formal swim lessons and piano. He still has to practice piano every morning, and I still challenge him to try new things at the pool, but that's abut it.

As far as 2-wheeler bike lessons - We forced him to try it again last Saturday night (after not touching his bike since his birthday last Dec), and 15 minutes later he was cruising up and down the street. Not a single crash. The only thing he hadn't mastered that night was starting, which he figured out all by himself on the following Monday. Now he's a little speed demon cruising up and down the street. He can't wait to have a choice between riding his scooter or his bike to school each morning in a few weeks.

I really have tried to provide stuff for him to do this summer to keep him away from screens and boredom. We go to a park or the pool almost every day. We even ventured down to Denver to go to the Children's Museum (with my brother's help, of course). We also went to Chuck E. Cheese in the rain once. Ryan took him camping once, and he's been on lots of hikes (3?) and geo-caching ventures (2) too.

He'll be a lot happier when schools starts.

BRENNAN
Brennan would choose to sit in front of a screen in his jammies all day, every day if I would let him. He fights his chore list every day, and it is all I can do to get him dressed and to have shoes on.

Unlike Collin, he is much happier with the summer schedule, since he gets to hang with Collin all day and he doesn't have to be anywhere on time.

The big news about Brennan is that he is finally totally potty-trained. (Yes, I know he's 4-1/2.) My parents - who are now home from their two-year mission to the Philippines! - offered to take him and Collin to Utah to see his cousins for the weekend a few weeks ago. I told him he couldn't go because big kids who go on trips without their parents have to be potty-trained. Though he didn't quite have it down in time for the grandparent trip, he figured it out, and now he's a champ! Hooray!

ETHAN
Ethan started his language explosion the first week of July while my brother and sister were visiting. In one day he said three new words, and it hasn't really slowed down since. He's finally parroting words from us, but also saying things on his own too. Hallelujah. He is the king of mimicking his brothers which is both adorable and difficult. He is quite the wrestler. He still sucks on the corner of his blanket (sick!) to soothe himself and to go to sleep. He now shares his room with... wait for it... BOTH his brothers. That's right: I have all three boys in one room now. It's been a month now, and it has been going rather well. I'm proud of them.

KATELYN
Yes, that's her name... I think. We've gone round and round between Aspen and Katelyn/Katelin, but I think we have concluded it is Katelyn. We'll call her Kate. She's due in 3 weeks - the Friday at the end of the first week of school for Collin and exactly one week before Brennan's first week of preschool. It's a busy time, but I always like to have babies when things are crazy. Ok, not really, but that's what always happens.

My mom and dad are going to come on the 23rd, and hopefully they won't get sick of us before she decides to show up. They for sure need to leave by Sept 15th.

And then I'll be on my own with FOUR kids. Yikes!