To the Zoo

A couple of days before our Talbot reunion we decided to cash in Violet's Christmas coupon and go to the zoo!

So relieved I don't have to be pregnant as long as an elephant does.

The highlight of the trip was when Violet was called on to be the special helper at the bird show. A dove landed in her hand and started eating out of it.

For her help she got a free ticket on the animal carousel.

I thought it was a perfect way to help make up for some of the fun she had to miss out on over the summer because of her arm.

Talbot Family Reunion 2019

We had a second family reunion this

summer, this time with my side of the family near sunny St. George.

It was a great few days in the sun, pool, and late nights talking. And that's all I wanted to do at 36 weeks pregnant, especially considering I was getting some false contractions on the drive down.

It was a very relaxing vacation before school started the next week. The kids had so much fun with their cousins that they didn't want to leave!

The Day to Day...

This has definitely been a busy summer for us. Aside from the Anderson and Talbot reunions, our weeks have been full of... 

Doctor's appointments! Violet got downgraded from a full arm cast to a short arm cast a couple days before our reunion. We still go in regularly for x-rays. 

Fourth of July and Free Slurpee Day...

 Birthdays...

Swimming lessons...but only for Jaxon this year with Violet's mishap. :(

Saturday visits to the laundromat. Jaxon works every Saturday for two hours emptying machines and doing other things. He really enjoys it. 

And we love going to the library. It is not unusual for us to check out 50+ books at a time. Mostly because the girls are bookworms. It's a miracle we haven't lost any.

It doesn't take Violet long to plow through several books

Ginger often falls asleep reading

And finally, Jaxon had a Chinese tutor this summer. Not because he needed it, but because he didn't want to stop learning Chinese over the summer. Mrs. Ge was amazing.

And that was the jist of our summer!

Anderson Reunion 2019

It was time for another Anderson Family Reunion this summer, and this time it was our turn to host! We chose to have it at Bear Lake and Lava Hot Springs. It was short and sweet, but we all had fun!

30 weeks pregnant- we kept it simple. ;)

We rented a circle of cabins at a KOA where we could have our own space and privacy.

We enjoyed the amenities...

Since Stetson had just left on his mission the week before the reunion (the first grandchild), we decided to make both night's firesides about missionary work. I loved hearing everyone share a story from their mission.

The next day we spent the morning at Bear Lake. Travis likes to call this creature "The Beast". I prefer to call it "Placido Flamingo". Either way, it was certainly a hit.

 Violet couldn't get in the water much but she made her own fun. :) She got into the habit this summer of showing off her cast for every picture.

We finished the day with the play "The Little Mermaid" at Pickleville Theater in Garden City. We were a little nervous with how the play would be (we've never seen one of their productions before) but we were impressed! They did a great job!

The next day we stopped for yummy raspberry milkshakes before heading up to Lava Hot Springs for some fun tubing on the river. Now THAT we've done before and we knew would be fun for everyone.

And that was our Anderson reunion this year! My goal for this reunion was to make sure people had plenty of time to sit, chat, and relax while taking in some of the local fun spots. I think it was a success! Everyone pitched in to help, and we couldn't have done it without them.

Violet Turns 5!

Despite the difficult few days we've had with her broken arm, Violet was all smiles for her fifth birthday! She got a new summer dress to wear to church.

And picked funfetti cake with pink and purple frosting. Oh, and neapolitan ice cream in ice cream cones. Very important.

Opening presents proved no challenge- she quickly improvised. The only sad part is that her presents were already bought before the accident, and most of them require the use of her arm (t-ball stand, baseballs, basket for her bike...).

But she sure does love books.

 

And she got her nails painted with new fingernail paint by daddy before going to bed. I just wish I had gotten a picture of it. She probably hugged and kissed me five times, saying "thank you for my birthday!" before going to bed.

For her daddy-birthday-date Travis took her to the Butterfly Biosphere at Thanksgiving Point. She originally wanted to go ice skating, but again, we had to improvise.

Such a sweetie. We love our Violet. Happy birthday!

Ouch!

Our summer seems to have started off with a bang, or more like a "crack!" The kids were just getting used to their new summer schedules and working on their summer goals when it was all interrupted with a trip to the ER.

It was a pretty traumatic experience

Poor Violet was sitting on the edge of the tramp (in the entrance of the safety net...of course) when Ginger unexpectedly pushed her from behind. A mere three foot fall and both bones broken just below the wrist. She and Travis spent the next five hours in the hospital, narrowly avoiding surgery (it was a pretty ugly break).

So unfortunately, Violet's summer will now look a bit different than originally planned. Now is the time to be creative!

School's Out!

Can't believe summer vacation is already here. Violet finished a fantastic year at preschool (really, this preschool was just perfect for her) and Jaxon finished first grade.

Violet was pretty devastated when she found out none of the kids in her class would be going to the same kindergarten as her. But it seemed like an ice cream party the last day of school was all that was needed to lift her spirits. ;)

Violet also finished this year's creative dance program and they had a spring dance concert at BYU. She did so well! It's been so much fun for her to have the class with Laykin.

Jaxon finished the school year with a two short class plays (one in English, one in Chinese), and a beautiful "Chinese Fan Dance" for the school's dance festival. He was much more excited for this dance than last year's hoe-down fiasco. The kids did a great job.

Back row, center

(You can't really see him in the dance until they spread out.)

To celebrate the last day of school, we went to Brick Oven. Always a favorite.

It will be nice to get the kids on a steady summer schedule and for them to work on some personal goals.