the sweetest note

On the first day back after fall break, Heidi asked me if she could use one of my post-it notes.  I had no idea what she was working on while I busily made breakfast.  She asked me for Savanna's lunch box and I saw her sneak this note in the lunchbox.  My heart melted.  These two don't always get along.  They go through phases where they are best friends and then they have days they disagree over everything.  The good news is, I know without a doubt that these sweet girls of mine love each other a whole lot.  All three of them have the absolute sweetest, most tender hearts and I love them and their good hearts so, so much.

pumpkin patch fun

 Oh how I love fall.  I especially have loved fall here.  Stunningly beautiful and still warm enough to enjoy lots and lots of time outdoors. 

We have a pumpkin patch ten minutes from our home that we have fallen in love with.  It is so fun and the girls could spend hours there.  Our highlights this year including the jump pad, getting buried in corn, and watching all three girls ride the zip line time after time after time!

Heidi has a field trip there next week and she cannot wait to go back!

a very royal wedding

 My kids are so creative and I absolutely love it.  I love when they play creatively together and it makes me so happy they have sisters to play girl games with. 

Savanna was dressed in her dance dress and said she was getting married.  Heidi said she needed to a boy to marry.  Before I knew it Heidi was making cardboard boys out of a box.  I thought this was the funniest and cutest little activity.  The funniest part was when they were trying to dance with him without his arms falling off.

While I was on the treadmill, Heidi did Caimbree's hair fancy and she had a veil made of paper taped to her head.  It was so funny. 

I was heading out to prune and weed and told them to hold the wedding outside.  Heidi said, "Ummm, we can't do that.  We are getting married in the temple so it lasts forever."  So they went upstairs and then came outside for the reception where they

 exchanged gifts.  It was a very fun game and it lasted most of the day.  After our trip they have just wanted a few days to hang out at home and play together before we get back into a crazy routine again next week when school starts up again.  It has been such a fun break to have two weeks together and it will be hard to send them back to school on Monday!

the rest of our time in utah

Other things we did in Utah included taking the girls to see where we were married in the Mt. Timpanogas temple, playing at some fun parks, eating at some places we have missed, a Pony Express reunion, and visiting temple square.

Monday night was the Pony Express reunion and it was such a treat.  I couldn't believe how many people were able to come.  It was such an incredible place to teach and such a fun time in my life. 

Before we headed to the airport we went to temple square.  The girls have decided that is the temple to be married in because it looks like a castle.  It would have been nice to spend a little more time there but we couldn't find a place to eat and I had the worst headache.  We finally decided it was best to just get to the airport.  Next time we go out we will have to spend more time there because we would have loved a full tour of the conference center and welfare square.  At least the girls got to see the temple! 

It was such a great trip and we were so happy to spend time with friends and family!  Hopefully we will be able to go back out again in the near future!

back to utah

 After we left Wyoming, we headed back to Utah to spend the remainder our trip.  Jeff's sister and her kids drove up to see us and the girls were so over the moon excited to their cousins!  They have been missing them ever since we said goodbye in Nauvoo over the summer.

There is nothing like spending time with family!  That is definitely what we miss living far away!

wyoming

 Our trip to Wyoming was quick and fun.  We stopped in Green River first.  We went to see my good friend Stephanie and her cute family when we got there.  Stephanie was my first friend at church when we moved there and she had her little boy at the same time I had Heidi.  They used to play together when they were babies.  My friend Jaime put together a reunion at her house so I could see some of the teachers I used to work with.  We didn't get a picture until the end when it was just Jaime, Jill, and I left, but it was great to catch up with my teaching friends and let the girls spend time with the
 the kids they played with when they were small.  It was a great night. 

We spent the night in Green River and then we went to Lyman in the morning.  We drove past our old house, stopped and saw my friend Katie, stopped and visited Heidi's first dance teacher, and then a great friend, Amy, made some soup and rolls and had us and my friend Misty and Dannielle over for lunch.  It was a great stop and it was so great to catch up with the great people we met at our time there.  Our street has changed so much and it was weird to see the house we built and thought we would retire in, but talking with people who are still at Jeff's old company gave us the confirmation that we definitely made the right choice when we left.  His new job is less stable in terms of job security, but he is so much happier and less stressed.  We are grateful for our years in Wyoming and for the great people we met there!

snow

 After we left Idaho we went to Wyoming to visit friends.  We found some snow in the Tetons and let the girls play for a little bit.  It was strange to see snow so early in the year, but the girls thought it was really really cool.  It was fun to let them stop and play in the snow in early October!

idaho

 The girls had fun with Melissa and my parents.  They also got to see their great grandma and grandpa Barnard. We also went to visit my aunt Linda and Uncle Steve and we went to my cousin Julie's house and saw my Aunt Teresa and the girls got to play with my cousin's four girls.  It was chilly there the whole time, but it was a nice stop.

bear world

 My parents moved to Idaho about two months ago so we went up to visit them.  The first day we went to Bear World and the girls had an absolute blast.  You drive through the bears and then there is a petting zoo and about four or five little amusement park rides.  The rides were a huge hit with the girls--especially Caimbree.  She was just barely tall enough to ride them all and she was just so thrilled.  The little roller coaster one she would put her hands up.  Savanna was funny because she would scream the whole time and said it was more fun that way.  Every time the ride would turn to face me, Savanna would do her little raised eyebrows.  She is such a hoot.  Another funny part was the little train.  Heidi didn't want to sit in her seat alone but it was my turn with Savanna and Melissa's turn with Caimbree so my dad, who couldn't stand to see Heidi sad, came and sat with her.  The seats were so small there was not much time for Heidi once he sat with her. She wasn't thrilled with the arrangement but was too polite to say anything.  It was funny and the next time she got to ride with Melissa.  It was a fun

 place and the girls could have stayed all day!