The Perfect Memorial Day

Today the Foys:

Straightened up the house

Sold ALL of the chickens we didn't need

Went to WalMart

Then my best friend and her boys came over and we swam, ate, BBQ'd, and had chicken races (I told you they were great pets)

We did all of this for hours until the kids were wiped out!

Hello Summer

Congrats Grad!

Backyard Clippings

Successful Frog Hunting

Last Day of School Swim Party

Backyard Camping

Princess Shows

End of Another School Year

Yesterday Nathan graduated from Kindergarten. We're very proud of his hard work. Buddy struggled with reading in the beginning. But, he decided it was time to learn. He put in extra time practicing. Now he's an ace reader (and a first grader!)

Sophia is sure that today (the last day of school) is another pajama day. She insisted on wearing her ill-fitting Scooby Doo pajamas. These are her favorite jammies and it doesn't bother her one bit that they are too tight or too short. She and I waited outside this morning to watch the other kids as they walked to school. We were looking to see if it really was jamma day. She grew impatient and ran off to school.
Please bless that today really is pajama day.


David and I have been sprucing up the backyard and the pool. We even turned the heater on! We're having some friends over (about 20 kids and their moms) for a Last Day of School Swim Party! It's gonna be insane. I'll post pics later.

Homestead Update

Our salad bowl

We've been enjoying a fresh, yummy salad everyday. It's interesting how the spinach and different lettuces we eat from the garden taste completely differently than the same thing from the grocery store.

The corn is getting taller!

We love our chickens!

We still have 25 girls. I know we'll have to start giving some away.

I just can't imagine who I'd let go. They have been wonderful pets.

Yes, they can be a bit smelly. But, they are so interesting and fun to watch.

We've started to let them walk around the backyard.

Harold, the bunny, also lives in the backyard now. He's an illusive lil bugger. We usually find him hiding under the rose bushes. When the sun goes down Harold graces us with his presence. He loves to romp around the yard in the twilight.

SWAGGER WAGON

This is perfection! Only, now I really want this stupid car. Just kidding. Not.

Dave Bryant

We love this guy and are so grateful for his visit.

Dave Bryant has been a VIP to our family forever. When David was 15 years old Dave Bryant took took him in. He gave David more than a home, he raised him up and taught him to work hard and be responsible. Dave Bryant is a man whose heart over-flows with love for other people. He inspires us.

My kids have Dave Bryant to thank for them being called "knuckle head" all day long. If you know Dave then you can hear his words echoing in your head, "You knuckle head, somebody done tol' you wrong."

He left yesterday and we miss him terribly already.

Now who's gonna call me homegirl?

Post Deleted

I bet you've gone back to this blog once or twice and noticed that one of the posts was no longer there. No, you're not crazy, a few other posts did exist. But, from time to time, I have to delete my words.

I have an issue with transparency. I love the idea of revealing to you my true daily struggles. I get caught-up with the notion that we can all band together and encourage each other in the fight to become better people and making it through this life. However, just as soon as I post something, that might reveal a little too much, I regret it and need to remove it. Remember the post about me not being motivated enough to get anything done (complete with pictures of me with messy hair and no make-up and pics of my messy house?)


I totally admit it's lame. But honestly I embarrass myself sometimes. I would love for you to know all my dirt, faults and messes.


I'll resolve, with myself and you, to continue to share my quirks and mis-comings. But you'd better read it quickly cuz I'm gonna delete it. That's just how I roll.

Another thought is that I truly keep this blog to record my family's journey. I plan on having this blog archived into a book at the end of every year. I don't want my little people to have record of what maybe frustrated me (about them or myself).
Don't worry, I'm not misleading my family or close friends. They certainly know that I'm a goof. They know I try my best and fall short. So don't be fooled by my fancy pictures, recipes and ideas (joke).

Fair Enough?

Baseball

*David multi-tasking (helping on the field and fielding phone calls)*

Nathan "Buddy" started baseball last week. He cried when I signed him up. He kept complaining that the ball would hit him in the tummy. We promised him that if he caught the ball it wouldn't hurt him.

Turns out, Nathan loves baseball. We were all there to watch his first game; Daddy, Mama, sisters, Gigi, cousin TJ and even Sophia's tree frog.

Here's to the next few years of spending weeknights and Saturdays at the ball field.

Dresses for Who?

It's getting warm and I love to wear dresses. The dresses this season are so sweet and feminine. But why the hell are they all so short? I'm the mother of 4 little people and have no business revealing their birth canal to the world. My only option is to wear these dress/shirts with leggings or over jeans. But then I run the risk of looking preggo (I work too hard to allow that). I'm gonna sit this fad out. Maybe next season will offer more forgiving options.

A Country Saturday

On Saturday we went to the Tractor Pull for Washington City's annual Cotton Days. It's a simple concept; the tractor that pulls the heaviest weight the farthest distance wins. This event is COUNTRY! We sat in the dirt on the sidelines. There were no frills or fancy sponsors. Just local farmers bringing in their tractors, mostly antiques. The competitors wore overalls. It was perfect.

After the the pull we headed over to Sonic for ice cream and lime-aide.
I'm feeling like we're pretty country now.

That evening I made fish tacos for dinner and we celebrated cousin James' "TJ" birthday. Cousin TJ is staying with us till he leaves for Officer Training School in the U.S. Army. He's been hanging out with us and we're giving this city boy a dose of country too.

Bringing Dinner

I love to bring dinner to friends and neighbors. Yesterday I was able to bring dinner to two of my friends, one gal just had a baby and the other was sick. It's really a simple concept...Make what you would make for your own family that evening and double it for another family.

But my problem is that I tend to get super nervous about it. How can something bring me soooo much joy and make me nervous at the same time. The problem I have is that my family eats differently than most. I have a picky husband, we don't eat meat, and our dinners are quick and cheap. Food isn't very important at our house. Yes I cook a lot, and my family likes what I make. But the dinners we have are probably not as good to another family.

Last night after I dropped off the dinner to one of the families I prayed that they would like it. What if they were super hungry and hadn't eaten anything because they we're expecting a really yummy dinner. Then when they try the dinner I made they're sorely disappointed. I've often thought that maybe I should just bring pizza, but then I imagine that they would say to themselves "I could've ordered pizza myself".

This morning I thought I'd test out my fear, I asked one of the boys who I brought dinner to last night, if he liked what I brought. He said no. Then the other brothers chimed in, "no, we didn't like it".
Maybe I will just order pizza next time, cuz I love doing it, I just don't wanna disappoint anyone.
What do you think...Homemade or pizza?

An Afternoon in Zion National Park

That's Rachel under the tree (bummed I cut off the tree top)
David and the little people playing catch at the Zion Lodge

Grandpa and Grandma (or as Nathan says, Grandma and Donna) visited us from California last weekend. We spent Friday afternoon together romping thru Zion National Park. I love that place!

IronMan St. George

*This video shows St. George, UT beautifully*

Last weekend our little town in the desert hosted the Ford Ironman competition. It felt like the world was here. We took the fam to the finish line at about 6:00 pm. I snapped a few pics of the women finishing. I couldn't control my tears. I was incredibly inspired and so proud of these women.

This woman just

swam 2.4 miles, cycled 112 miles, and then ran 26.2 miles

So now that I'm so inspired, I need to do something about it.

I've set up a new training schedule for myself:

• M-W-F Spin class at Golds
• Tues Run 3 miles
• Sat Run 3 miles

I want to be strong and healthy. I wanna show my girls that they can be strong and healthy. I want to push myself. When I watched those women I thought about how they are probably mothers and wives. I though about how difficult it is as a mother and a wife to find the time to exercise and eat healthy. It takes EXTRA effort. So, I'll do what I can, when I can.

Weekly Dinners

This week's dinner menu (in no particular order)

• Bean & Cheese Enchiladas with Spanish Rice
• Stroganoff made with Cream of Mushroom soup with Morningstar Crumbles seasoned with garlic powder, salt and pepper over white rice and served with a veggie
• Black Bean Tacos made with black beans and Morningstar Crumbles seasoned with cumin, garlic, chile powder and blk pepper and served with spanish rice
• Meatloaf made with 2 bags of Morningstar Crumbles, 2 eggs, bread crumbs, ground flax seed and wheat germ. Served with mashed potatos and vegetarian gravy and a veggie
• Navajo Tacos - Taco shells made with defrosted, flatened and fried Rhodes Rolls, and filling made with Morningstar Crumbles seasoned with chile powder and garlic powder. Served with refried beans.
• "Chicken" Burgers made with Boca Chicken Patties and cheese on Natures Harvest flat whole wheat buns and served with tater tots and a veggie.

It's Almost Time

This is my favorite summer spot.

The southern Utah desert provides the BEST swimming weather. I can spend hours in this chair, under the ash trees, near the sparkling pool whilst the little people act like fish.