Day 243: Science is Fun!

August 31

We stopped at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, where the girls earned a badge by completing a marine science class.  They checked out sea life (in the above picture they're looking at a snail - I love how genuinely excited Vicki looks!), looked at different types of sand through microscopes, and trekked out to the estuary to slurp shrimp and clams.  And, yes, slurp is a technical term.

Day 242: Horseback Riding on the Beach

August 30

I can now cross this off my bucket list!

Day 241: Big Bear!

August 29

Our next stop was Wildlife Safari.  We met up with our friends' troop and rode a bus through the park, stopping to watch the veterinary checkups of Victor, Mac, and Oso.  The trainer would say "Big bear!" and put her hands up, which was the bears' signal to stand up so their bellies could be checked for problems.  If they obeyed, they were thrown a piece of donut (you can see the bear about to catch one in his mouth).  After the checkups were over, the girls got to feed the bears chunks of apple.

Day 240: On Our Way!

August 28

Day 1 of our Girl Scout troop's beach adventure!  We drove as far as Eugene and checked in for the night.  I'm not sure what the sign was referring to ("Lions, tigers and bears! Oh my!"), but we thought it was funny.

Day 239: Fan

August 27

Lexi bought this fan at the Saturday Market last summer.  Pretty, no?

Day 238: Soccer Fans

August 26

I'm actually not sure whether these two really know anything about soccer, but they were having a good time watching the game at a local park.  As a side note, tonight marks the last of our summer Friday night picnics at the park with friends.  This is a new tradition that we will definitely be continuing next summer!

Day 237: Cool Air and Duct Tape

August 25

We've gone the entire summer so far without putting the A/C in the window, but today I couldn't take it anymore.  When it's 80 degrees inside the house at 9:00 in the morning, but only 67 degrees outside, it's gone too far.  I had to improvise a board for the rest of the window (we got rid of last year's improvisation), and it was slightly too narrow.  Duct tape to the rescue!

Day 236: So Cool

August 24

I had a meeting at the school and had to drag some kids with me.  Lexi commanded me to take a picture of her with this sign (there's been a Boys & Girls Club program in the school all summer.)

Day 235: Zonked

August 23

It looked like she fell asleep sitting on the edge of her bed, fully clothed, and then collapsed backward.

Day 234: Appleseed Love

August 22

Apparently, camp songs never get old.

Day 233: Perfect Timing

August 21

The air conditioner in the car picked a great day to quit working (again).

Day 232: To Market, to Market

August 20

Vicki and I spent a very hot afternoon at the local Farmer's Market trying to raise money for Outdoor School.

Day 231: Cricket Comes to America

August 19

I'm not sure the game of cricket has ever been played at Knott Park before, but Vicki's friend Johnny (who delivered yesterday's Lion bars) was given a set for his birthday and he and his brother Daniel gave us a demonstration.

Day 230: Lion Bar

August 18

Our good friends just returned from England, and they surprised me with two of these!  Lion bars are my favorite English candy bar.  I shared one, but I'll admit I was stingy and ate the other one myself.  Yum!

Day 229: Everyone Loves Free Ice Cream!

August 17

The girls were given coupons for free ice cream cones from McDonald's when they completed a session of swimming lessons, and we finally redeemed them today.

Day 228: Dinner

August 16

Ellie decided she was going to make dinner tonight.  She wanted to make the pasta sauce in her cookbook, which was packed full of veggies, and which she actually ate.  I may have helped a little bit, but she did a really good job and it was really tasty!

Day 227: Creepy Dolls

August 15

My friend Erica and I took a First Aid/CPR class today so we can be certified for our Girl Scout trip in a few weeks.  These mannequins are useful in teaching CPR, but they're pretty darn creepy otherwise.

Day 226: Remind Me Not to Fish with Him...

August 14

We see some really interesting things while driving 800 miles.

Day 225: Faster, Faster!

August 13

Lexi, Abbie, Ellie and Vicki, having the time of their lives out on the lake.

Day 224: Bear Lake

August 12

Ellie and her cousin Abbie playing lookout at the front of the boat.

Day 223: Nine!!!

August 11

She already had two parties, so her actual birthday wasn't that big of a deal, but we still stuck a "candle" in her French toast (it was a match, because all of Grandma's candles got used the day of her party.)  Happy 9th Birthday, Lexi!

Day 222: Little Ladies' Lemonade Party

August 10

There are only granddaughters on Chris's side, and my mother-in-law started this tradition a few years ago.  She and all the girls dress up in fancy hats and have a little tea party (sometimes the moms and aunts get roped into the fun, as well, but not this year.)  Their dolls usually have a tea party, too - you can see them at the white table in the background, dressed in their finery.

Day 221: Lagoon!

August 9

This picture is a bit blurry, because they were moving FAST and it was too sunny for me to really see the camera screen, but I love that I managed to catch Vicki's expression as she rode The Bat with my sister-in-law!  We took the girls to Lagoon, an amusement park in Utah that Chris and I hadn't been to in about 12 years.  A lot has changed (this particular ride was new to us), but we still had a blast.  We discovered that Lexi doesn't really like fast rides, Ellie loves them, and Vicki, who can lose her lunch at the drop of a hat, can somehow manage to ride Tilt-a-Whirls and upside-down roller coasters and come away feeling just fine.  It was a great day.

Day 220: The Almost-Birthday Girl

August 8

Lexi came away from her early birthday parties with almost $50 in cash and gift cards, so she and I had a shopping spree at Target, where she bought herself a new dress (which she is modeling), a headband, a locket, and very blingy gold shoes.  Happy, happy girl.

Day 219: A Relaxing Sunday

August 7

The entire family made it to my parents' house.  After dinner and an early birthday party for Lexi, we all just chilled.  Lexi found the sudoku puzzle in the paper, and my sister Adrienne (and her pug Simón) helped her work on it.

Day 218: Squirt Guns!

August 6

My mom, in an inspired move, bought the girls a bunch of squirt guns to play with.  Epic battles ensued.  Lexi won most of them.

Day 217: Summer at Alta

August 5

We hiked to Cecret Lake at the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon.  It was bizarre to be standing on the grass in the same place I've skied so many times before.  The scenery up there is absolutely breathtaking.

Day 216: On the Road

August 4

Somewhere in Idaho.

Day 215: Packed and Ready to Go!

August 3

We leave for Utah at 4:00 tomorrow morning, and after a very crazy day full of unexpected sidetracks, we are fully packed, the car is loaded (with lots of room to spare, hooray for bigger cars!), the kids are in bed, and all that's left are the things in the fridge: water bottles, cooler, and Dr. Pepper to keep us awake on the 12-hour drive.

Day 214: Slave Labor

August 2

My car was filthy and my kids were bored.  Perfect combination!

Day 213: Free Jamba!

August 1

A girl at church works at Jamba Juice, and on Sunday she passed out coupons for free smoothies.  Thanks, Katherine!