How We Pass the Time

Tomorrow will be Snow Day #7, making for an 11-day weekend. We’ve been out on the icy roads once in the last eight days. There’s been a little bit of outdoor play/work every day, but mostly, we’ve been holed up in the part of our homestead that’s NOT -20 degrees--the house. Here’s what we’ve been up do within these four walls:

Tobi:

• sleeping in
• facebook stalking people catching up with family and friends
• Pinning every remotely creative idea known to man
• blogging a little
• blog reading a lot
• prepping vocab cards and unit intro slide shows for the rest of the school year so I survive track season without having a nervous breakdown and/or killing someone
• finding awesome ideas to use in my classroom
• playing board games with the boys (and, before he knew better, Ryan)
• cleaning parts of the house and growling when I realize it’s futile
• organized the pantry
• marveling at how many dishes and articles of clothing we dirty in a day
• writing menu plans and finding new recipes to try; then forgetting to feed my family until 1:00 (lunch) and 7:00 (supper)

Ryan:

• sleeping in
• researching ways to spend all our money on trucks
• writing track workout schedules (we start practice in less than a week!)
• playing Spades on his phone
• yelling at his imaginary Spades partners (or opponents--not really sure), Julie, who always “goes set” and Bob, who’s an idiot
• wrestling so hard with the boys that they have whelps and beard rash
• reading
• finishing the entire series of Friday Night Lights

Munchkins:

• waking up in the wee hours of the morning to watch TV, burn up their technology minutes, and eat 17 breakfasts before they ask mom to make them three more
• talking in weird voices and/or screaming bloody murder all day long
• building a Lego city
• begging Mom to play Heroica with them (the official game, not their made-up version, which I've learned actually wasn't that far from the real game)
• being poor sports when they lose to the ultimate Heroine
• taking “victory laps” around the house, each with a different theme (crab walk, tiger, skip, backwards) after they beat the timer to pick up toys
• simultaneously making similar sound effects (I’m not fluent enough in onomatopoeia to spell these sounds) even while they're all in their own little separate toy worlds
• turning our pillows into potato sacks for a hop race around the house
• begging for more chapters of their latest Wings of Fire books
• having a spank-your-butt-more-times-than-you-spank-mine contest with Mom
• asking to eat all the food, all the time
• pestering each other
• fighting like cats and dogs
• spending a fair amount of time in the time-out chair
• Limbo-ing under a battle axe wedged between hall walls
• inventing new games to destroy the house entertain themselves
• getting whooped up on by Daddy

We may be going a bit stir crazy, and we may be beating the tar out of each other with battle axes, but there’s still time for a few sweet moments. Tonight, Reed and Calvin had were playing some kind of roll-y ball soccer game they’d invented. Max was perched on a stool checking out the situation.

M: Reed, you look awesome! (goes over to awesome-looking brother and hugs him)

R: (to Mom, with a knowing look) Ee’s-hay ying-tray o-tay ind-fay any-hay eason-ray o-tay ive-gay e-may a-hay ug-hay. (translation for those nonfluent in Pig Latin: “He’s trying to find any reason to give me a hug.”)

M: (with a big, sweet smile) Mom, I gave Reed a hug-hay!

Happy Easter!

I'm convinced that every weekend should be of the 3-day variety! This one was great. On Friday, I got caught up on laundry, housecleaning, and grading. The boys got a special delivery from Germany -- a sweet Lego castle (three-direction-books sweet) from Uncle Tarl, who bought it for a fun photography experiment. I'm waiting for my tickets to Venice from another photography experience. (Speaking of photography, my camera has not been the same since it was whacked with a basketball at a school event--hence the grainy, washed out, out-of-focus shots--grrrr!!) 

There was a day full of Lego building, beautiful weather, and a friends' birthday party on Saturday. Then, Sunday brought the usual festivities. Easter egg hunt in our finest, most well-matched attire (only because Daddy is a spoil sport and wouldn't allow undies and a Scooby Doo blanket).

Off to church in just-for-Mom outfits, then on to spend the afternoon with family (after immediately stripping out of "fancy clothes").

Happy Easter, everyone! 

Brown Paper Packages

This morning as I tried to load up the car with Valentines, party treats, backpacks, teacher bags, and little boys, Calvin asked me to reach the "R" magnet at the top of the fridge for him. I gave him the "are you kidding me? Heck no!" look and rushed him out the door. It looked to me like he was just lining up random letters to hold up his most recent illustration. I discovered later I was wrong.

This clearly says, "Jek 14," which to most people is still random letters (and a number). But to two little boys who saved up their money and made their first brothers'-together online purchase it's a very significant string of letters. I can't really explain what (or who?) it is, but I'm sure those two little boys could - and would - for hours and hours. All I know is it is a Lego set that has something to do with Star Wars and it's the only thing on the bigguns minds since they ordered it Monday night. Calvin has wanted to check the mail multiple times a day, even though we've repeatedly told him when the mail comes and that a large Lego kit won't even fit in the mailbox. I prepared them for 7-10 business days, but thank the good Lord in heaven above, it arrived early!

When we pulled into the driveway tonight (after checking the mailbox, of course), it was late and we had four bags of Valentine paraphernalia and trunk full of groceries. But we also had A PACKAGE! A PACKAGE! A PACKAGE! on our doorstep, so I let the monkeys tumble out of the vehicle to check it out. They ran onto the porch and shook the smallest of what turned out to be two packages. When they heard rattling, they started screaming like little girls at a One Direction concert. Even Max chanted, "Jek 14! Jek 14!" over and over. Maybe he can explain to me who that is...

The box was ripped open before I could bring in the first load. Max was ecstatic, but the bigs were not. It was his birthday present - a few days early. Oops! The other two raced for the oversized package and asked me to help rip it open. I knew by it's size that it was my replacement hamper, a purchase Reed had made, but wouldn't be too excited about. I opened the box to find my theory correct. Reed turned away dejectedly, but Calvin, never one to give up (at least not on something he wants), peeked behind my merchandise. The banshee noise started again. Jek 14 had FINALLY arrived.

I made the boys help unload the car and put groceries away before they could open the box. I've never seen such diligent little workers. Within minutes, our house looked like this:

There were many adorable exclamations. Reed declared that it was the best day of his life and he couldn't "believe this!" He and Calvin got along like champs. They agreed to take turns completing the steps from an entire two-page spread in the instruction book. 

Max played with the pieces of his birthday present - a new board game. It was already 7:00 and we hadn't even eaten supper. So, I busted out their favorite fancy meal: popcorn. They had already consumed four times their recommended daily calories at their Valentine parties, so what the heck. I started to play Max's new game with him. That actually succeeded in dragging the banshees away from the Legos. And the game was so adorable and fun (Thanks, Mimi and Papa!) that it kept them away. It's a team vs. bad guys (pigs who try to eat your picnic while you're on your way to it) game with an I spy twist. Anyway, the pigs beat us the first time and Calvin insisted on playing again. I relented, but said it had to be a quick turn because it was almost bed time. "No! We have to play again and again until we win, 'cuz, 'If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.'" Thank goodness we won the next round.

There was still a little "bonus play time" to work on the Jekster in their room before lights out, but only if they rushed the bedtime routine. And rush, they did. Calvin brushed his teeth while simultaneously undressing and finding his jammies.

JIKFQRTN is still under construction, but I have a feeling I know who'll be up at the butt crack of dawn tomorrow. And I'm sure there'll be a few rousing rounds of "Beat the Pigs," too.

My real sweetie has to chaperone a dance tonight, but I sure had a fun date with my three littlest Valentines.

Snow Day Surprise

On snow day #20 (I learned the official count last night), we decided to get the heck outta Dodge! We told the boys we had a surprise for them. Of course the pestering was incessant, but it was kind of fun driving them nuts! We decided to eat at McD's to save time and, since we were spending gift cards for the meal, we let them get Happy Meals. Reed asked, "Is this the surprise?"

This is a rare treat, as we are usually dolla menu kinda tightwads, but, no, that wasn't the surprise. Then, we headed to the big city. At this point, we asked the boys for their guesses. Reed thought we were going to Le Bounce (a bounce house heaven). Max had no idea what was going on, he was just along for the ride. Calvin decided someone had a "whole bunch of Legos and they're gonna give them to us for free." Sorry, bud, but you're closer than you might think...

We were going to THE LEGO MOVIE! But first, we passed up the theater to get candy. The surprise? No, but I was starting to think we could sure get off cheap with our surprises if all they were expecting was Happy Meals and candy...and a bunch of Legos. Ok, maybe not. Legos are most certainly NOT cheap! When we turned around from the candy joint and headed back toward the theater, the boys figured out that we were going to a movie, and they were excited. But they thought they were going to see Frozen, which their aunt and uncle had taken them to see recently (and then kept them overnight - HALLELUJAH!) It wasn't until I purchased the tickets that they knew what they were in for. I had hoped for a great response, and I wasn't disappointed. "Oh thank you thank you thank you thank you!!" Reed proclaimed. Calvin made similar exclamations. Max was giddy, and kept bouncing around while we made our pre-movie drainage trip to the bathroom. When I showed him to a stall, he said, "You give me some privacy," and loudly added, "and den we're gonna see the LEgo Movie!"

The movie was adorable. Since we practically live in Lego Land, Ryan and I got a kick out of several of the little "inside" jokes. The two bigs were so into the movie, they hardly touched the candy. Max and I totally made up for them in that department.

After the show, Reed said, "Thaaank you, Mom and Dad! How can we ever repay you?" I totally should've taken advantage of that question, but their reactions were payment enough.

Back Among the Living

We ventured back out into public today.  And, boy, could you tell the boys had been cooped up for a week! Here are the highlights from our excursion to the "big city" to hang out with my sister and her hubs (and, against our better judgement, to eat out at a restaurant):

- I was proud of myself for busting Calvin's brown shirt/brown pants not-quite-matching combo (he's taken to putting his coat on pre-breakfast, resulting in some interesting revelations at school lately).
- I realized too late that I hadn't busted him for leaving his jammie pants on under his pants.
- When I expressed dismay that he'd been wearing his jammies for, like, 24 hrs straight (recall that we Laytons only dress when absolutely necessary), he corrected me by informing me that he's been wearing them, "For, like, four days."
- We jumped out of the car straight into the snow for a quick romp to get good and wet before we entered the carpeted house.
- Three little jumping beans greeted their aunt, uncle, and hyperactive puppy and didn't stop bouncing for a good hour, despite constant barking from parents, aunt, and puppy.
- Three little voices TALKED LIKE THIS THE ENTIRE TIME WE ATE AT THE RESTAURANT.
- After practice and a pep talk Reed and Calvin placed their own semi-complicated orders like champs, causing Aunt Tavia to cry. She's totally turning into our mother. (I've been there for ten years...)
- Max lightened the mood when he placed his order. Instead of ordering a meal, he communicated his desire for chocolate milk instead of white. This lead the waiter to mention chocolate pancakes, which took his mind completely off of the previously decided-upon Lil' Farmer's Breakfast. When I whispered a reminder of his order to him, he began arguing with me. He calmed down when we settled on pancakes and sausage and made his order like a big boy, looking the waiter in the eyes and speaking clearly. Until the man asked for clarification on what kind of sausage. Then he just took a big lick of milk that had spilled on the menu.
- Calvin engaged his twisty straw in an exciting knife fight, complete with sound effects.
- While stopped at a traffic light, Calvin shot who-knows-how-many motorists with his 6-shooter before we realized what he was doing.
- We had a great time with my sister and brother-in-law back at their house -- after we busted out the iphones and Legos.

Epic Board Game

Today was yet another super-relaxing snow day. And the fact that I'm blogging at 3 a.m. should be an indicator that I'm in for another day off tomorrow. So why does my head hurt?

Probably from playing this game with my two oldest.

Game name: Heroica (apparently after a real game)

Set up:
- Make tiny player guys (2 per player) and bad guys (a bunch). Arm each with a sweet Lego weapon.
- Make "hero packs" for each player. This can be any kind of device, but keep in mind its purpose is to hold loot. Weapon hooks and bowls to collect jewels (and cats) are highly encouraged.

Someone is optimistic with his hero pack construction

- Attach two large Lego base plates together, then cover with a buttload of random Lego pieces and bad guys.

Rules:
Disclaimer: I'm pretty sure these rules were mostly made up as we went along, but the boys must have some sort of secret language, because they were able to explain each decree in tandem, complete with laughing at me for not understanding the logic.  Also, be warned that the complexity of this game rivals that of the games my brother introduces my family to every Christmas - the games that take an entire week of playing and discussing among nine adults to begin to fathom.

- Each player takes a turn moving one of their two player pieces. A basic turn consists of rolling dice (or "accepting the offer" of the dice thrown across the room from a neighbor if you like what it landed on) and moving that many Lego dots in any direction. Or you can jump over objects, but not too far. Or you can shoot stuff or buy stuff or trade stuff or blow stuff up, but you don't necessarily have to do it during your turn.
- When you come upon a random item on the board, you get it or fight it, or jump over it, or go through it. Items include:

These items are actually all pictured in the best hero pack of all. Note the game-winning (or not) reachy thingie near the bottom. 

-- food - for energy; You have to have, like, at least two. What happens if you have less than two, you may ask if you've been playing the last 10 rounds with only a banana? "That means that in a matter of time, one of your guys will have to leave," says game master Reed.
-- bad guys - roll the dice. If you get a 4, 5, or 6, you win and get to remove the bad guy from play and keep his weapon. Anything less than four results in moving back one space. There is one ultimate bad guy who has to be beat three times in a row.
--weapons - to add to your hero pack; seemingly useless, until the rule masters reveal halfway through the game that you can use guns or bows to shoot things. They may be used eight times and you may shoot at any bad guy five spaces away (except the ultimate bad guy) or at any item you want anywhere on the board. A hit results in getting that item for your hero pack. (Hint: Don't shoot lava. You don't get lava. And don't ask why, or you'll get this face.)
-- binoculars - can be traded for energy or used to make you see bad guys from farther away (which provides no advantage, btw)
-- jewels and money - to buy stuff at random times for random prices; or they could be ammo, cleverly disguised as emeralds. In this case, you will be mocked for not knowing the difference - or knowing that you could have been shooting things with your cross bow up to eight times.
-- pets - add them to your hero pack; Use them up to three times to move an extra six spaces.
-- dynamite - blow up stuff and keep it; Use it, like, three times.
-- reachy thing - use this long item to possess anything within it's range; Unlimited use.
-- obstacles - lava, fences, etc may be jumped over; doors may be opened if you first possess the key by beating the bad guy who guards it
-- trophies - for bragging rights - and to hold your jewels/ammo

Winning the game:
- The player who kills the final bad guy by rolling three successive rolls greater than three, wins...
- ...the chance to get the map. The player who acquires the map, wins...
- ... the chance to race to the pole that just got added to the game board by the battle winner who got beat to the map by another player who cleverly used her reachy thing to capture it first. The player who gets to the pole first, slides down it and claims victory, which results in an arm-wrestling competition to distract the sore loser, who may or may not have won before the pole element was added to the game.

Confused? So was I. But I'm not outlawing the game until blood is shed. That sucker kept them entertained half the day. I was only in on one round, then found convenient excuses to bow out of future sessions. My last distraction was inviting them to participate in a whole-family Zumba  party. Everyone, even Daddy, joined in the 20-minute series of routines. But that is a post of its own...

Lego Table

If you know our boys, then you know there's not much they like better than Legos. The two bigguns, especially, are obsessed! As a result, we have mountains of the tiny pieces. When Reed started becoming interested in Legos, largely due to an impressive collection at Mrs. Pam's day care, I decided to copy Mrs. Pam's organizational strategy for the plastic pieces: store 'em all mishmashed together on a Lego table. I took two end tables, set them side-by-side, hammered a little trim around the surface and, voila, an instant surface to play and store Legos. 

This did not last long. I swear Legos multiply at night (oftentimes on the floor). We soon had two  large storage tubs filled with the bricks under the end tables. The tabletop was still constantly loaded. The only purpose it served was a good place to aim when putting toys away Calvin-style (chucking them in the general direction of some receptacle).  So, this year for Christmas, I made a new, improved Lego table for myself the boys. I basically copied the table top for my pallet desk. I used two 1"x 12" boards, following the same painting technique I used on the pallet desk (red craft paint, sanding, stain/black paint mixture) to achieve rustic, barn-looking wood. I used mending plates to fasten the two boards side by side. Then, I nailed trim on the outside edge of all four sides so there would be a ledge to keep any rogue Ninjas from jumping off unassisted. The table is about eight feet long, so there's plenty of room for all three boys to play.

Whether there's plenty of room for all of their Legos remains to be seen. We still have the two storage tubs under the end tables. At this point you can see some of the surface of the table, which is more than you could say for the last one. However, they still have Christmas money to burn and I know what they'll spend it on. 

I'm not too worried, though. The boys received about 10 Lego sets for Christmas. Guess where they assembled nine of them?



All over the floor...


Linking up to: Hunt and Host: boys' room tour

Better than Legos

Sometimes I wonder if anything we say will ever get through the thick little skulls of our children. We try to "train up our children in the way they should go," and it feels like we're constantly teaching little lessons about kindness, sharing, generosity, and gratefulness. And then Christmas happens and it's like they've never even heard of those concepts!

The boys had a slumber party in one bed on Christmas eve and were up so late giggling that they let us sleep in to a decently reasonable hour, as far as Christmas mornings are concerned.

They enthusiastically opened their presents, then spent the rest of the morning feverishly assembling their favorite gifts, the Lego sets they'd received.

The boys were so thrilled with the Legopalooza at our house, that one little gentleman didn't even want to leave to go to the Layton Christmas that afternoon. He was whining that he wouldn't get any Legos there. Insert big speech about nobody owing you any gifts at all, being grateful, Christmas is about Jesus, not you, etc. etc. In one ear and out the other, with a quick trip around the eyes to make them roll. But he got over it, put on a good face, and ended up opening some great  presents, including a Lego set. And he seemed to be genuinely grateful for and happy about all of his new loot. But when I asked the brothers to pose in their new deer hunting get-up, this is what I got:

A mini political statement? Surely not!

Fast forward to the Raney Christmas. When Uncle Trey showed the boys around the playroom, occupied by his cousins, a 2 year-old girl and a 6 week-old baby boy, they found a vanity, dress up clothes, and a million baby dolls and accessories. Calvin took a quick tour of the joint, then announced, "Can we open presents now?" I coulda killed him!

But a few days later, Mr. Selfish redeemed himself and all three boys gave me hope that maybe a little of our instruction is sinking in. My dad had a significant birthday which I will not divulge (I'll just say that it rhymes with pixty). We threw him a little party and after he opened presents, he took the opportunity to share his heart with his family. He told us about how he went to a Bible study with someone years ago and learned about Jesus. When Max heard that name, he piped up with, "Jesus can save you!" Interrupting? Yes, but also true--and cute. My dad (a.k.a. Papa) described how when he accepted Christ he literally felt a warmth crawl up his body and settle in his heart, to which Reed interjected, "That must've been the Holy Spirit!" (I gotta admit--I was sorta bustin' my Sunday-school-teacher-mom buttons right then...) Then he went on to share that from that moment on he knew that God was real. Then, he said that God has communicated to him at various times in his life, including when he told him to marry Mimi. Calvin had to get his two cents in to this speech, so he said, "I'm glad He told you that, cuz' (big eyes and big finger point to Mommy)," which of course elicited an explanation by Reed and random chatter by Max. After the speaker got his audience back under control, he warned us that Satan is spreading two big lies: that God isn't real and that the Bible can't be trusted. Then he encouraged us to seek God and try to learn more about him because He's real and He loves us. "So, I guess that's my gift to you," he concluded. And how did my selfish, toy-obsessed child reply? He perked right up and said, "That's better than Legos!"

That'll preach.

Snowed

I just got the call that we're off school again tomorrow. This'll make the 7th snow day, which means we've been full of family togetherness for 10 1/2 days (we dismissed early when the storm started brewing). Here's a breakdown of our time.

Mommy productivity:

- Sewed 5 stockings and made each a monogram tag

- Made a new garland for the Christmas tree
- Decorated the tree
- Wrapped all of the presents - even adding "cuties" on a few

- Kept up with the laundry (a monumental accomplishment!)
- Graded all of my papers
- Redecorated the living room and bedroom
- Made a picture frame and a lamp shade cover

- Started on two top-secret Christmas presents I'm crafting
- Tried out a new cookie recipe by myself and baked 43 billion cookies with my sister- and mother-in-law

- Sorted through our DVD collection
- Finished Christmas shopping


Mommy counter-productivity:

- Kept up with the laundry (seriously! I think they sneak drawer-fulls in the hamper when I'm not looking!)
- Broke up 7 billion fights!
- Made huge decorating and crafting messes.
- Ran the dishwasher at least once a day.
- Declared I was NOT going to try to keep the house clean.
- Still felt like I cleaned constantly!

Boys' activity:

- Made 1000 Lego inventions, complete with vivid and detailed oral descriptions for any willing (or unwilling) ears
- Helped decorate the Christmas tree, which basically involved making the entire house look like a North pole raid

- Emptied the entire contents of every toy receptacle in the house
- Whined about having too many toys to pick up
- Engaged in 7,000,000,001 fights.

- Begged for snacks and "K-O-O-K-E-E"s nonstop
- Played in the snow twice a day.

- Begged to play on the Wii or Kinect or watch a movie 58 times a day.
- Watched at least 1 movie ever morning and played on the Wii or Kinect way over their regularly-scheduled 20 minute turn (survival mode, people, survival mode)
- Acted like they were mad when I chased them down to kiss them after seeing them under the "mistletoad," then taunted me 42 more times to try to get me to do it again.

I ran into my principal at the grocery store a few nights ago and asked him if he could arrange it so that students had to go back, but teachers didn't. I'm still crossing my fingers for Tuesday...

Eight

My biggest little baby turned eight today. EIGHT! I can't believe we've been parents for almost a decade! I can't believe this hairy little baby...

...has grown up to this handsome young man!

He's definitely in the in-between stage -- sometimes acting/looking like a little boy, but more and more seeming like a young man. So grown up, in fact, that I can no longer tell stories on him, as per his recent request. So, hypothetically speaking, if he saw a shaggy fur vest in a girls' juniors section and thought it was cool and wanted to spend his allowance money on it so he could dress up as a Barbarian and then his dad, who didn't hear his awesome plan, revealed that it was a very girly clothing item, I couldn't tell anyone about it, because that would be embarrassing. For example.  

But I can tell you what he's into/good at at this age. So I will:

1) Talking! He is very verbally verbose! And he can knock your socks off with some of his deep thoughts, too! 

 2) Engineering-type things - particularly building with Legos. Dude can build! Not only can he follow those crazy 80-page Lego instruction manuals, but he also freestyles with the best of them. This week he was making tiny Christmas packages complete with bows and decorative wrap-around ribbon. Next week it'll be some submarine/airplane concoction.

3) Socializing - Whether it's a little old lady in the nursing home (for real) or a little baby, he knows how to talk to his audience. He's very charismatic! We're just working on when to let others get a word in edgewise.

I'm so proud of my eldest and can't wait to see what kind of a man he grows up to be. Just not yet. Let him innocently wear teeny bopper Barbarian vests for a few more years...

Random Memories

It's been a wild and crazy first three months of school. Life has gone on in a whirlwind, and blogging has been the last thing on my mind. But I jotted down a couple of memories I wanted to preserve and today unearthed them from under a pile of randomness.

Random memory #1:
Sometime in September, Reed and Calvin were deeply immersed in their world of Lego Starwars. In between surprisingly realistic light saber sound effects the boys were trash talking Jedi-style, Reed in a squeaky Yoda voice, and Calvin in a deep warrior tone.

R: Very strong, they are. Fight them, do not.
C: Yoda! You're not our boss!


Random memory #2:
I didn't write the date, but it was apparently a momentous one:

Reed blew his first bubble with bubble gum.
Calvin read his first book.
Max pooped in the potty!

We've had potty training down pat since school started (God bless you, Mrs. Pam!), but we're still on a poop-training roller coaster. We're close though--down to only night-time and nap-time filling of the pants, and no other diapers! Hallelujah!

Camping in Legos

For the Fourth of July, we camped at a friend of the family's awesome place. Apparently, when they sold the family farm, they kept a portion of land for a family gathering spot. Since then, they've built a pavilion, dock, diving board and shower house on the property. They already have part of a water slide they intend to build. Ryan and I talked on the way home, and hope we can do something like this for our boys and their families. We asked the boys what they thought about that idea. Calvin was pretty confused by the whole "your wife and kids" part of the idea. When I explained that he would be an adult, he said, "I would like it if we had it while we were kids." I told him that probably wouldn't be financially possible for several years. To which he replied, "I wanna get eight and then stay that old forever." Me too, buddy. 

When we got home, we were greeted by a new issue of Lego magazine. The building contest for this month was a summer fun scene. So instead of showing pictures of our camping trip, I thought I'd let Reed and Calvin's creation tell the tale:

We jumped off the dock a bajillion times. Uncle Paul jumped off the diving board. Max jumped to Mommy, who apparently has black hair. 

Calvin made a big splash when he did a cannon ball. 

Grandma and Great-Aunt Sue sat and talked, as did Great-Uncle Roy (who looks very much like our blueberry-picking buddy). There was a campfire. And a barrel full of apples surrounded by cups. (?) Also, Daddy picked carrots. (OK, the apples and carrots totally didn't happen, but they were inspired by our apple tree and garden at home)

 While this was all going on, Grandpa fished, while wearing a sweet skeleton shirt.

It was a great experience. And now, for Mimi, some real pics: