This is where the boys ended up. Breathtaking, isn't it? It looks pretty refreshing compared to a house with no air conditioning full of 9 kids and lots of boxes!

There're my brothers Matt and Swimmin' Willy up at Jewel Lake

Hangin' around the campsite

More brothers--Michael and Sam--taking it all in.

Amazing Circus Willy

The Boys at the TOP!

Can you find Drew and Sam in this picture?

Saturday Sunset

Matty making breakfast

Rich, Michael, Drew, Willy, Mike, Brent (kneeling), Sam, & Matt with Black Mountain's peak in the background.

Sam was almost too big for his tent!

Wild flowers along the creek.

Michael, Willy, & Drew coming down...

...from where Pine Creek begins!

Pioneer Day Campout (not!)

Sunday was Pioneer Day (in case you're not LDS, July 24th is the day the westward-migrating pioneers reached the Saly Lake valley and it's sort of a holiday for us) and it was nice to be in church with my sisters and with all my Young Women (the YW had just returned from a 37-mile trek in Wyoming, recreating the deadliest part of the pioneers' journey). Also, my neighbor and friend, Tanaka, was baptized after church. We were so happy for her--it made the day even more special. While we were at church, the boys all came home and we loaded up and went down to our ranch to camp out as families. The night before, we girls had made 25 foil dinners and planned a nice campfire with s'mores and dinners and all the kids and pioneer songs...but alas! Mother Nature conspired against us and it poured rain all evening and through the night. Jill and her kids, Dad, and my family all came back into town to sleep at home, while Willy, Sam & Matt kept their families out there and just bought dinner in town. It was fun to hang out there for a little while, even though our plans changed. And hey--I've got about 20 foil dinners in the freezer if anybody gets hungry!

Three Posties

Isabelle, Jill, Jack, & Papa Post

Dusk at the ranch--if you look closely, you can see 4 little people and one big one; that's Brent taking Ally, Melanie, Addie, and Liam on a walk to pet the horses. Ahh, Brenty Poppins, we love you!

Jake sure was glad to see his Daddy! Matt joined the backpacking trip after graduating from army jump school at Ft. Benning on Friday morning. He had been in Georgia for 3 weeks!

Aunt Amie and Heidi just chillin'

My Favorite Ranch Pictures

I am sad that I didn't get any pictures of Willy's cute family, but it started raining and the camera disappeared for a while. But here are two great pix:

Rich showing Sam the ranch--the arrow at the top shows where the boys had been the night before.

Heidi was so happy to see her daddy! She really loves the wind, little chairs, and ice, so you know she is in HOG HEAVEN in this picture!

To all our guests this weekend: We apologize for the chaos and for making you help us move--poor timing all around--but thank you so much for coming! It is always good to see you guys and I love you so much! Next time you come, your rooms will be ready with curtains and sheets and even some more bathrooms!

ON THIS DATE IN HISTORY: 20 July 1993...

My cute nephew, Cody Oslin, was born after his mom had been in labor for like 11 days or something. I was right in the middle of my mission, serving in Rockingham, NC with Sister Wood. It was probably the best month of my mission (even though it was hot and muggy and hurricane-y), topped off with a cute new baby! I wanted to see "Code-Man" so bad, but it would be another 9 months until I came home and spent a few weeks with the boy.

One of my sweetest homecoming moments was a few days after I came home, I was watching Cody and I put on a children's CD and laid down on the couch with him. He fell asleep on my chest, humming the song to himself, and that's the moment I decided that I did want to be a mommy afterall.

So HAPPY 12th BIRTHDAY, CODY!!! I'm moving, but I'll try to find a good picture to post today, hopefully a picture of your GIANT BABY NOGGIN!

PS: Supreme Court Justice nominee John Roberts reminds me a lot of Elder Bednar, in that he is very young, handsome, and in for a looooong term of service. Good choice, although I will miss my even-handed, level-headed, fellow Arizona girl, Sandra D.

MY FAVORITES: JULY 1985

SONGS
1. Take On Me by Ah-ha
2. Sleep by Til Tuesday
3. Freedom by Wham
4. St. Elmo's Fire by John Parr
5. Over & Over by Madonna
MOVIES
1. Real Genius
2. Back to the Future
3. European Vacation
4. Cocoon
5. Follow that Bird
FRIENDS
1. Susie Shanks
2. Ben Turner
3. Karen Murray
4. Susie Guard
5. Eleah Smith
MUSICIANS
1. Til Tuesday
2. Wham
3. Aha
4.Ron Williams
5. Bryan Adams

...oh, my! Promise you'll still talk to me after reading those! Imean, I was only almost 14 that summer, so gimme a break. Know what else reminds me of that summer? Klondike Bars and St. Ives Swiss Formula Collagen-Elastin lotion in the jar.

Improvements

Hooray! It's been almost a month since Blogger Images was launched and I tried intermittently to use it and got empty posts. Last night I got an email from Blogger support that said it was fixed, and lo-and-behold---IMAGES! Here are my girls at the fireworks on July 3rd (check out the awesome bike trailer/ double stroller I got for Mother's Day). So I guess I won't need to use Picasa anymore for photos--goodbye, Hello, and HELLO BLOGGER IMAGES (can you believe all this stuff is FREE!?! I heart technology).