No training wheels!

Caleb learned to ride his bike with no training wheels!! It was so exciting! He is so good at it! He can even get on and get started by himself, stop, steer, and go over bumps! He learned this weekend with Andy and has been so excited about it and showing everyone. He also got a new bike that Andy found at a thrift store and he can go really fast on it. Andy says he's a natural.

Today was a great day! We did day two of 'space camp' with the Cox family. Unfortunately I didn't think to bring my camera. But I will write a little about it. Our fist experiment was rolling up balls of newspaper which we blew with straws into a 'goal' for air hockey. The experiment was to see which type of balls were harder or easier to move. The kids had a really good time with it and did pretty well taking turns. (Annika did not come--she was napping, so by kids I mean Caleb and the Cox's.) Caleb was so attentive and careful. He was happy when Jill asked him a question and answered it well.

Then we did this one where we tied fishing line between two chairs with a staw on it and then taped ballons of different capacities on that weren't knotted. We saw how far each balloon would go. Matthew blew up a really big one and it made us wonder how far a balloon would go so we moved outside and got one from the Cragun's deck to the Cox's backyard. Jill's brother, his wife, and kids were all participating too. It was so fun!

Today I was sweeping off the front porch and Caleb found a spider web with baby spiders in it. They were greenish yellow. At first I didn't think they were spiders but then I looked closer and they were. Then Caleb told me, "I look for spiders in every web." So he continued to find spiders in each web, only I think he found spiders like we find shapes in the clouds and so every web really did have a spider... :)

We've been playing shoot out the last few days and it's been really fun. We just run around and around shooting each other with tinker toy guns that Caleb makes. Today we set up chairs and put blankets on them.

Annika knows what she wants in life. Sometimes it can be frustrating, but I keep reminding myself that it is wonderful to have a person that knows what they want in life. I might have already written about this. Sorry for the repeat if that's the case.

Annika has also been changing her underwear after each potty break. Luckily she has a ton of underwear (I bought two packages and then we have hand-me-downs). She likes to put her underwear and bottoms on herself and changes frequently throughout the day. Only she doesn't always get the underwear right. Sometimes it has GOT to be uncomfortable, but she wants to do it herself. From what I've read in the parenting books it's a good thing. So way to go Annika! :)

Annika says Holy Cow a lot. It's funny. Today we put her hair in a low pony tail.

We also had 'space camp' with our good friends the Cox's. Today was just the first day and all they did was color space pictures on the front of their space work books. Caleb's were pretty good and I like to see him use his imagination and draw things out. He drew a rocket then an astronaut then space ships. However, the younger kids took less time than the older kids to design their covers and then headed downstairs and came up decked out as cowboys and spidermen so that was the end today. We'll do it again on Thursday.

After Space Camp Jill and I talked about the importance of doing a little girls hair regularly and from an early age. If you've noticed from the pictures I've done neither. So I want to try to start to do Annika's hair more regularly. Today it was a ponytail. The problem is she knows what she wants. Now this is exactly the kind of person I like. No wishy washy want everyone else to rule their life. A person who knows what they want is a very good person to have around. However, it sometimes limits options.

Summer fun

Pictures of the backyard that Caleb took.

Annika's favorite foods are watermelon and corn on the cob. When asked if she likes watermelon or cupcakes better she replied, "watermelon" without the least bit of hesitation. We asked her a number of other things and it was always watermelon. Annika loves food. But I think Fourth of July food is currently her favorite holiday cuisine.

Caleb made a secret hideout under the lilac bushes. I took a picture of him through his 'window.'

This is what it looks like from the outside--pretty well hidden. :)

Another trip to the Cox farm.

Our Provo Outing

This past weekend before we met up with Andy in Park City I took the kids to some fun places in Provo. We started out with a trip to Macey's grocery store where I bought many of my groceries while a student at BYU. I remember thinking that store was really great and was happy to find it wasn't all that much better than the local grocery store I now shop from (Boise grocery stores were REALLY good). We got some bagels, carrots, strawberries, and some Utah Truffle bars conveniently places for compulsive buyers by the checkout stand. Then we walked over to the Provo River which passes right by the grocery store. It was so beautiful! Everything was really green, the water was really high, it was shady and pleasant to walk, and there were flowers. I have so many good memories along the Provo River. Actually some of my best memories of our marriage were along the Provo River so I guess it's only fitting that I take Caleb and Annika there. Maybe someday I'll share that with them if it seems appropriate. It was so fun to be nastolgic in Provo, shopping at Macey's, walking along the Provo River. We stopped to have a picnic at a picnic table by Branbary apartments. (They had a bad reputation when I went there but I have no memories of the apartments other than running or biking by them.) We could see Squaw Peak from our picnic spot. It was just a wonderful and lovely picnic and I had such a good time with the kids.

Caleb wanted to take some pictures so the following are his:

Obviously the garbage/lawn man is picture worthy

The Provo River:

After our nice picnic we headed over to the small dinosaur museum that BYU has in connection with it's paleontology program. It was a really nice museum even though it was pretty small. Back in the '60 a professor really did a great job and made the paleontology program at BYU one of the best programs. He collected all sorts of fossils. I unfortunately don't remember his name other than 'Dinosaur Jim' and am too lazy at the moment to look it up. Caleb was so excited to go to the museum and Annika is excited to go anywhere. :)

They have a place where you can watch the students at work on cleaning fossils.

Annika favorites were the ones she could touch:

Oh, I forgot to add these videos:

Proof

that our room is not always a disaster:

I took this video for the 'proof' but you'll also notice that U2 is playing in the background and Annika is singing along. "It's alright! It's alright! It's alright!"

Sunday Evening walk in New Canyon

Maybe it was the hours spent sitting in church or something but Caleb and Annika hiked really well for over a half mile up and then came back down just as well. They loved it and we all had a really good time! I put these on facebook but wanted to record them on the blog as well. I tried to take them up again last Saturday to recapture the feeling we all had on this walk. However, the kids were tired and it was hot and we went with my parents and some of my dad's favorite students so they ended up leaving us behind and I'm just not as interesting for the kids. I kept trying to get them to walk, but I should've just brought a book and let them play in the dirt. Oh, and Annika LOVES peeing in the dirt. Only because she really likes it she says she needs to go all the time. Then I totally didn't think about bringing toilet paper (this was on our really pleasant Sunday walk)...and Caleb had to go number two! I'm sure you all love that information. But it was not cool. How does a mom forget TP? Isn't it like the most important item to carry? No water, no toilet paper, but I did have changes of clothes for Annika should she need them (which she didn't--she's so amazing with her potty training, and again, like I said, enthralled with the idea of peeing in dirt) which I carried around in that lovely plastic bag until near the end when Annika realized what it was an insisted on carrying it on her own. She loved carrying her clothes around in her 'purse.' She is such a funny girl!

They were both really good hikers.

Oh so happy to be carrying her 'purse.'

When we need Annika to get moving we often ask if she wants to walk or run. She always chooses running and she ran a good deal of this little hike.

The kids love this 'blue sand.' It is bluish grey sand and they can play it forever and getting them to move from that spot is really hard. Somehow we missed it on the way up and I think Caleb was so excited about his binoculars and going for a hike in New Canyon with everyone that he forgot about it. But on the way down we had to really coax them away.

This one is terrible of me but cute of Caleb so I will post it anyway.