See Ya Later Braces

On the way  to the orthodontist I told James we needed to take one more picture with his braces on. Then we pulled up a minute late and ran in and I totally forgot. Here is a picture from his trip to Wind Rivers and shows his braces well.

It has been quite the ride with him and his braces! He started with them 3 years ago! Then got them off 5 months later after having an allergic reaction to the latex and nickel. Nine months later he got ceramic braces and latex free bands put on. He did great after that but it took forever to get everything into place.

There is an episode of The Middle when Sue has worn braces for years and years. Every time she thinks she will get them off the orthodontist says three more months. Check up after check up he tells her that. I started to feel like that with James. His last appointment was three hours and then he was finally done! 

 

He's entering 9th grade brace free!

Cousin’s Bake Sale the 2nd and Fair Days

We had a 2nd bake sale at my parent's so Katie's kids could participate. We added more baked goods hoping to attract more customers. Unfortunately it didn't quite work but they still had fun. 

We went to the farmer's market and concert in the park that night. My dad's band played.

The kids had fun shopping at the booths.

I went to work after I dropped off the kids earlier that day and then met up with them at the farmer's market. Sid was a huge help to them for the bake sale. The minis love her so much. Especially Taggart loved spending time with her.

We had a lot of leftovers since the bake sale wasn't as successful as we had hoped. We decided to do a bake sale at home the next day. Their is a busy street near by but it would have been a lot of work getting everything set up there. We decided to set up right in front of our house. Sienna passed out flyers and I posted about it on Facebook. Within an hour and a half we sold out of almost everything. I loved that it was all in the comfort of being in front of our house. We have the best neighbors and friends!

Lagoooooon

We went to Lagoon while Katie's family was here. It's funny to think that at the beginning of the season I was regretting taking my kids into getting Lagoon season passes for Christmas. I regretted it that day because I was stuck with Taggart on kiddie rides. I thought it was going to be a long summer. Thankfully he started going on all the big rides after that day and I have since been so happy we got the season passes for Christmas!

Hatsuki enjoyed Lagoon as well.

August Birthdays

It was fun having Katie' family in town for August birthdays! Hatsuki got to see our fun but loud family gathering. The cousins loved learning some Japanese words from her. 

 

My dad is the sweetest. Kade took his remote control shark to show everyone. My dad wanted him to have a place to play with it. He came up with this pool using a slip n slide and curbing. He and Kade had fun driving the shark around in it. 

These three were the honored August Birthdays. 

My pictures are out of order. We drove the Alpine Loop to go to Heber. We walked around Cascade Springs.

Timp 5k

Lynnlee’s heart journey has been themed “treat her like she’s a normal kid.” The cardiologists have always told us that she will pace herself. Exercise and being active is a good thing and not something that she should shy away from. 

So with that advice we have let her play soccer but we struggle on what level and intensity. She really enjoys soccer so it has been hard to keep her at rec level where the team is constantly full of brand new players to the sport. Last year she moved up to AA and it worked out. More intense but not too much. 

She is staying with her team at the AA level. Her coach changed and her new coach recommended the team train and run a 5k to help condition them for the fall season.

At first I thought Lynnlee wouldn't be able to do it but decided to take her for a mile run before deciding. She did great running a mile. It was a slower pace but she did it. So we signed her up for the race.

I trained with her 3 times a week for a month. She had no problems adding distance but her pace was pretty slow. After the first two weeks of training I decided to try a different approach. I had her do a run/walk and her overall pace was way faster. It was perfect for her. She ran a faster pace for about 300 yards and then speed walked. When she speed walks it gives her heart and lungs a rest but she’s still moving forward. 

She did that strategy for her 5k and she finished a minute or two after her teammates.

I wanted to run it with her but my stupid glute and hamstring injury kept me from being able to. Marshall was her race partner and stuck with her.

Her time was 34:21. The clock in the picture is from the start of the half marathon. The 5k started an hour later.

Chillax

Marshall had a great idea to set up this triangle of hammocks. It has been a popular hangout every night. 

We spent some time shopping for school clothes at the Outlets. It was a very hot afternoon so we cooled off with some ice cream.

We had a cousin sleepover. It was a fun night! They played night games for hours.

Chewie loves Hatsuki!

We took Hatsuki to two of our favorite parks.

J

We ended the week with an afternoon at the Lehi Outdoor Pool. Friends came along. We also brought another exchange student who is staying with my friend's family. 

Hatsuki is very easy going, she loves all of my children. She plays with them and is kind and funny.