Thursday, March 26, 2009

Kids, kids, kids..... and now silence.

Isaac and Sheldon Smith, oldest and youngest.

Gram and Grandad with the Smith kids.

Cally

Cally and Ammon on the tire swing.


Cousins learning to knit. Emily and Jaycee.

Saint Patrick's Day. I need to merge these two. But I don't know how!

The TeePee.

The Da Vinci Experience at Balboa Park's Aerospace Museum. This is a bridge that you put together from a bunch of sticks, copying the one in the background. Wasn't easy but they did it!!

The Skinners at the Maritime Museum in San Diego.
Yes, that's a fried Oreo. Daniel's specialty!!!!!!!!!
Emily, planting lettuce. She's a good little gardener!
Gopher hunting!
Cammy and her kids just left this afternoon. I think we're going to be really lonely! Sadie needs "doggie Prozac" or something. She is so funny. We noticed it first when Amy kept her when we went to Provo last time. When we got home I expected to be greeted by this crazy happy dog. She was happy to see us, but not overly. But then we took her home and she went into this depression! Yes, she sulked and skulked around for approximately three days and then she seemed to be alright. Well, we've noticed it since then, when Leah left with her kids and then a little when Ivy left, although the Smiths were already here so not so much. Yesterday Cam took the kid to the beach and Sadie moped around the whole time. Wouldn't eat. She didn't even want to play ball and those of you who know her know that's REALLY something. When they got home she was soooo happy to see them and later went in and started crunching away on her food. So I'm expecting a depressed dog for a while. I'll have to take her over to the Krause's once in a while for her therapy.

So we've had "guests" since the weekend after Christmas, except for right after Leah left, until Ivy got here, a little less than a week later. (Technically, we've had Brian here, a friend of Josh Smith's, since May, I think it was. He got a job in Clairmont and stayed here while trying to sell his house in Montana. He finally, around October, rented it and he and his family are now renting on the west end of Ramona. So our "empty nest" hasn't been empty much, yet.) Ethan will be home the last part of April and then Cady and Mikey will be here a week in mid-May. I must say, we've really enjoyed the kids.
Some highlights.... and I've already written about Leah's visit.... and Disneyland with the Skinners. Other highlights are Daniel getting a job (yeah!), the Maritime Museum and the Da Vinci Experience and the museums at Balboa Park with the Skinner kids. With the Smiths we went to Balboa Park and had a couple of family get-togethers, the first with the Skinners, Shelbos, Krauses and Miles Family (Brian's family). That's 18 kids!!! And a few others, one last Tuesday where the kids built a TeePee in the field with sticks from the tree trimmings pile, with a little corregated tin from the dog kennel roof (which blew off the kennel in the last wind storm).
And many thanks to the Skinners for all the yardwork, garden work, gopher hunting and house cleaning they did during the two months they were here. And Emily for planting the lettuce! (It's growing good. Not big enough to eat yet.) Weeding at the rental house out front with the whole Skinner family was SWEET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anyway, I sure do miss them.