Around here we tend to flip-flop between being total homebodies and being out on the town every waking moment. As much as I need to do a trip report on Boston still, I’m gonna jump right in to what we’ve been up to the past week or so. (warning: this is the longest, most picture-filled post ever…in fact, it has taken me a few days to compose it)

Last Wednesday

Dean earned Father of the Year points by taking a long lunch break so he could spend an hour or so with Eden at the Hogle Zoo. It’s no wonder that she loves him so much.

Thursday

Eden and I ran some errands while we ‘forced’ Dean into going to the Transformers movie. Sometimes a guy just deserves a bit of down time, and he loved every second of it.

Saturday

In Eden’s entire life I’ve left her at home with Dean or a babysitter less than 10 times so I could just get a break. And I’d guess that maybe five of those times have been doing something other than errands. Pathetic, I know. So after a really rough week, I indulged myself with an afternoon at the Art Fair at Library Square in Salt Lake City, along with a girlfriend who lived in our old neighborhood. Why don’t I do that more often!? I had a great time, and it truly rejuvenated my nerves to step away from responsibility for a bit.

While I was gone Eden napped almost the whole time, which enabled Dean to spend some time building Eden a sand box. She’s in heaven and has already logged MANY hours in her new back yard play place. That night we also went to a luau party at church, hence the funny looking shorts in the photo below.

Sunday

My childhood friend Kami came to town for the weekend, along with her husband and son. We enjoyed the BBQ they hosted, and had a good time catching up. Eden was ecstatic about her first time bouncing on a trampoline.  Also, a few days later we met up with Kami’s sister Karie and her daughter at the zoo. We’ve probably been there 30+ times in the past year–definitely gotten our money’s worth!

Monday

One of my favorite things about living in Utah is that I have a handful of good friends from my BYU days who are still nearby; My freshman roommates continue to be some of my favorite friends. On Monday we met up with Marisa and her kids, Kelsi and Blake, at the petting zoo at Thanksgiving Point. Marisa’s kids were so well-behaved and engaged with feeding the animals. Eden’s highlight of the trip was splashing in puddles on the sidewalks. Running away as I chased after her was a close second.

Wednesday

While we were in Salt Lake City for an eye doc appt for me, and a trip to the zoo, we decided to swing by and visit Dean at work. He has two offices: on in the Triad Center (that copper colored KSL building on 300 W and North Temple), and the North Office Building (a small building that is across the street from the skyscraping Church Office Building on Temple Square). Although the NOB is much more formal and rigid (and Dean prefers it that way), the Triad is casual in both dress and environment. Exhibit A: a photo of Dean wearing khaki pants and playing Foosball.

Thursday

This day was the highlight of my week, as I met up with Marisa once again, and we journeyed down to the Pratts’ house in Mapleton to pick cherries. What a magical day, as most trips to Mapleton are. The Pratts have 18 cherry trees (in addition to their apple/peach/plum orchard), and the fruit is ripe and delicious right now. John drove us down to the orchard in his pickup truck and parked directly under a tree so the children could reach up and pick fruit all by themselves. With every cherry she picked, Eden would take a bite, then put the other half of the berry into her little bucket. It wasn’t long before we had a cute little mess on our hands. (Don’t worry, Marisa, I won’t publicly mention that our kids were also playing in the manure pile–after all, we were on the farm, and that’s just whatcha do.) While we were picking fruit, Barbara was back at the house preparing the yummiest sandwiches I think I’ve ever had. We had a great time with the Pratts, and with Marisa’s adorable little family, then when we got home we visited a handful of neighbors to share our bounty of fruit.

Friday and Saturday

Dean had Friday off from work, so we spent most of Friday and Saturday getting projects done around the house (his idea, I swear!). We’re preparing to have guests come this weekend, so it’s nice to get our work out of the way now so we can just play when Dean’s brother’s family is here.

We celebrated Independence Day with fireworks in West Jordan. The show didn’t start until after 10:30, so we had almost 2.5 hours of playtime at the park as we waited for the big show. I was grateful for Dean’s idea of bringing Eden’s little red scooter along. Once the fireworks started Eden decided it was too bright, so she ended up wearing Dean’s sunglasses and covering her eyes a bit.

Sunday

We love having Mary and Winnie so close to us now that we’re in Riverton. We had them over for dinner on Sunday night, and while they were there Eden gave Mary a special gift: a bird house that she painted the day before. The whole time she was painting it she kept repeating “birds like this, birds like this” because she thought it was turning out so beautifully.

Later Sunday night we welcomed Michael and Sarah Sokiveta and their 2 kids, Titus and Bridgette, for a couple of nights as our unexpected house guests. Eden is accustomed to being the most energetic kid wherever she goes, so she is in awe of the boundless energy that Titus has.

We had a hot day today–94 and sunny–and tomorrow is forecast to be the same. After dinner Dean and Eden suited up and went for a run in the sprinklers in the back yard. How’s that for some good old fashioned fun?

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: life is good. I love this stage that we’re in right now. Sure, things aren’t perfect, but many of the challenges we’ve had are behind us, and we’re just in a truly happy place. The things that frustrate or irritate us are fleeting, but these happy memories that we’re creating truly can last a lifetime.