1st Day

Taydens alarm clock went off at 7:20 this morning. He jumped out of bed, got dressed and poured him a bowl of cereal. I sat back in awe and watched him do his thing. He has grown into such a sweet and independent little boy. I can not believe he is a first grader!! 

Tayden had a great first day of school. He loved that there were two recesses, lunch at school and seeing his friends after a long summer. I swear he was glowing when he got home. I mean, he was seriously happy. Going a million miles an hour, telling stories, laughing and genuinely happy. The summer was wearing on him and I am sure he'll thrive with the school year schedule. 

We missed him while he was gone, but it was good for Beckett and Cache to have some time together. The hardest part was not having Tayden around to help with baby Ky. I didn't get done near as much as I was hoping for, but I'm sure we'll all settle in soon. 

Good bye summer, hello school year. 

First Day Eve

We roasted hot dogs and chatted about the upcoming school year tonight. Tayden starts school tomorrow and tonight was the perfect end to the awesome summer. 

Bring on the school year. 

Listed Out

Wow. I can't believe its been two weeks since I blogged last. Its weird, because I blog alot in my head. Like, if something happens I want to get in the blog, I narrate it in my head. But the past two weeks have been insane and I am surprised I am able to keep up with life in general. Having four kids, and the baby who is growing every day and needing more, my life is packed to the brim. And I love it. No pictures today, and not a long post either. But a simple list of things that have happened and a hope that when school starts I'll find more time for the old blog.

*4 out of 6 people in our family got strep. Myself and the three oldest boys. Our fridge looks like a pharmacy. Turns out Cache was the carrier and has had it for about 3 weeks. He had a few unusual symptoms here and there, but we never thought about strep. It wasn't until the boys were diagnosed and I tested positive that we decided to check out Cache. Sure enough, strep.

*Beckett started speech in Idaho Falls. We met his therapist, Peter, who is super nice. He was happy with the progress B has made since his last evaluation. I am excited to get things back into motion and working with him after taking the summer off. He said to me the other day, " Mom, will you sign me up for speech again? Then I can say my words gooder like Tayden and people can understand me well." I made the call the next day.

*I turned 29. The real 29. It was a fun day and my friends spoiled me with surprise treats and visits. I am so lucky to have met some wonderful girls here. Scott got me a D&C study guide and I can't wait to read it front to back.

*Tayden had back to school night. It is completely impossible that I will have a first grader. He is excited to start school again, though it breaks my heart to have him gone all day.

*Everyone made a trip to the dentist. All the boys, minus Ky, got checked and cleaned. Tayden and Beckett did great. Cache didn't get the x-rays, but got cleaned and examined by the dentist. He wasn't super happy about it, but got it done.

So, listed out, it doesn't sound like much. However, living day to day is exhausting and four kids is turning out to be the hardest transition yet.  But we are making it. Kids stay fed and happy. Nap schedule is dependable. And I get to shower most days. And for those simple things, I'd say we are winning. Life is good.

Mechanic Hat

Scott is very handy and a man of many trades. Today, he played mechanic. He got a 20 year old hand me down riding lawn mower from his dad and took it to the shop for a tune up. After sitting at the shop for three months, Scott went down, picked it up, brought it home and decided to fix it himself. He has a great sense of common knowledge and what he doesn't know, he you tubes to find out. 

He even multi tasked while learning about how to replace some tube or something. 

There is nothing more attractive than a man that can work. Not only work, but figure things out. I love they about my husband. I'm so glad he's good at being a man. 

Mennear Family Photos 2015

When Justin and Echo were here this summer, we took the opportunity to get family pictures. Our photographer, Molly Landon, was absolutely incredible and our pictures turned out amazing. Believe it or not, this is only half of them. And I had a hard time picking.