Busy aka filling every second of the day so I stay sane

Monday Chris told me that he would be spiking out on the fire and I might not hear from him for awhile. At the time I thought no big deal. When he was on the engine he would say that but the longest I ever went without hearing from him was 3 days. I'm now going on 5 days and yes that isn't much longer than 3 but it feels like forever. So to keep from going crazy we did a lot today.

We started off by going to CAL Ranch to pick up some canning supplies. Instead we got side tracked by the huge clearance sale they were having were I picked up a pair of $70 jeans for $17. I look smoking in them and now I just need a husband to take me on a date in them. Afterwards we met up with Aubrey and her boys so the kids could play and she could teach me how to make tissue paper pom pom ball things to hang in the girls room. After I attempted to be crafty I picked green beans at my moms. Yes I'm being quite the domestic diva these days. This was followed up by a trip to the grocery store, Dippidee where we got a free cupcake, and McDonalds with Keli and her boys were we paid in three different transactions and used several coupons in order to feed the seven of us for $3.21. Now I've been snipping green beans and watching Once Upon a Time while I wait for complete exhaustion to take over so I can crash in bed without having to think.

8 more weeks to go!!!

Daily Life

One of the best parts of where we live is our neighborhood. I call it the glorified trailer park because it is a little on the white trashy side but coming from experience you will never meet nicer people than those who live in a trailer park. Two of my favorite neighbors also have husbands who are away from home a lot so we have our own little support system going on. Tonight my one neighbor and I just weren't feeling the regular routine so we packed up the kids and headed up the canyon. It was refreshing. Literally. We played in the freezing cold water and drove through a rain storm on the way home. Plus having kids who immediately crashed in their beds when we got home was a nice bonus.

Plumb-Mater

Today we spent the day canning tomatoes. It went much smoother than my peaches experience. Probably due to the fact it was my mom and I together, Paisley napped, and Huntley was super helpful. Hunt's favorite part was peeling the skin off of the tomatoes. She was very concerned about my moms instructions on leaving the skin in the water and kept asking if it was okay. My mom kept assuring her that it was okay because she had a special sink you could just wash the skins down.

The sink was special alright. Special in the fact it ended up getting clogged and my mom had to then take it apart and we made a rather large mess. Although there is good in all bad and we found out Pais was fascinated with the whole thing. I may have a future little plumber on my hands. Too bad she doesn't share her sisters inability to keep pants on her bottom.

First Day of School

Huntley started her first day of preschool today. I swear she grew up overnight. She looked so big sitting on her carpet or maybe it was the fact her clothes matched and her hair was done. Either way she looked all grown up.

Paisley on the other hand really enjoyed the one on one attention. I didn't know she was so affectionate but the whole time we were playing she would crawl into my lap and give me a hug and then go back to playing. I think I'm going to really enjoy this whole school thing.

Solace....

....comes in the form of Grandpa and cupcakes.

Chris left for Idaho today and after having him home for so long and then on local fires after he went back I started getting anxious tonight. It takes me a few days to get into the swing of single parenting and not getting to look forward to 5:00 and having another adult to talk too. Luckily I have awesome parents who let us chill at their house and provide treats too.

I'm a Robot

Our computer bit the dust. This has actually been three years in the making but this time we decided it wasn't worth it to put any more money into it and to start saving for a new one. It's a little annoying not having a computer but for the most part I'm able to do the majority of things I need a computer for on my phone. Quite handy, except when it comes to blogging. I can blog just fine but the problem is other blogs. When I try and comment on other blogs the dang letters they make you type in "to prove you're not a robot" always get autocorrected right after I press continue. I then have to try again and again and again. If I'm lucky I actually get it to go through but for the most part I get frustrated and move on. I've finally decided to stop testing fate and accept that I must be a robot.

And since I can't do a post without a picture here was our adventure fishing at Cleveland Reservoir where we got skunked but Hunt got to experience her first time "watering a tree.". I'm sure she will thank me someday for keeping such great records of all her milestones.

Shot Shape

The past week with Chris was nice but there was always that little voice in the back of my head reminding me that we still had 9 weeks left to go of the season. It was even louder for Chris reminding him that not only did he have nine weeks left but nine weeks left as a hot shot. Definitely a little more hard core than an engine. The majority of our time was spent hiking but since we all love the mountains it was a small sacrifice to make.

The majority of our hikes were finding random trails up AF Canyon and discovering were they went. Or at least how far we could go before Hunt started complaining that her butt hurt. She is way to big for the backpack but I figured if Chris could handle packing her around then his fire gear would be like a walk in the park. We found a lot of great meadows to have picnics in and it made me want to spend more time discovering everything I haven't seen in my own backyard.

Since we were out seeing things we'd never seen before Chris and I went on a really long and much needed date to hike Timp. I'm not a big fan of the top but the flowers, animals, and views on the way up were awesome. I'm hooked and plan on making it a yearly tradition.

Last but not least we finally hiked the Grotto in Payson Canyon. We actually got lost and went on two hikes up Payson Canyon, hence one of the pictures below of Chris trying to get enough Internet service on his phone to get directions. When we finally did find the right trail all the hype I'd heard about this hike was 100% true and it was the best hike for kids. Huntley loved walking across all the log bridges and the destination itself was gorgeous. It was a little crowded though and I'd love to go back when we could have it all to ourselves. The only negative side of this hike is it is too far of a drive or I'd probably take the girls there on a weekly basis.

Now that Chris is back on call hopefully all of our hard work paid off and he is able to keep up. As for the girls and I we will be taking a few days off!

Dog Days of Summer

Maze and Izzy definitely get the short end of the deal when it comes to fire season. When Chris is gone I walk them on the bike path and call it good. Once they treed a house cat but that is the extent of their fun when I'm in charge. On the other hand when Chris is home they get to go all over the place. The past week they've been terrorizing birds, squirrels, and anything that gets in their path. I think it's safe to say this has been the best week of our summer.

Millions of Peaches

Growing up there are three things I associate with summer.

1. My moms homeschool
2. Camping until softball/baseball schedules took over.
3. Canning

I swear we slaved away in that dang garden all summer long. We had to help or else we didn't get to eat. Although I wonder if I refused to help if my mom really would have made me starve. Anyways now that I'm grown up and a responsible adult I figured it's about time I start dusting off my canning skills.

A friend of mine had access to a peach orchard and I was able to pick as many peaches as I wanted for free. I filled up three diaper boxes and was quite excited to fill up our shelves with glorious peaches. Well not much has changed since I was a kid and I still hate canning. Huntley and I plowed our way through one cooker full and then I got overwhelmed by the amount of peaches I still have left and started pawning them off to people. I still have one box left so hopefully I can have a change of heart over night.

Extended Vacation

Our quick getaway was great and much needed. We swam, ate, shopped, and went on lots of walks to pick lots of flowers.Hunt even tried picking a geranium and instead of pulling off a petal ended up with the whole plant, roots and all. If we would have had something to put it in I would have taken it home as a souvenir but since we didn't Chris can now say he planted a flower on temple square. The best part of the whole thing was the end, or the lack thereof. We got home to find out Chris is going to be on a different crew and gets to stay with us, off call, until Wednesday. Yes I am jumping off the walls right now.

MIA

Chris came home yesterday. Good news. Even better news was the fact he gets 3 days off call. 3 whole days of not having to respond to anything and being able to leave the county. That last part is key. It's going to be nice to be missing from regular life for a little while.

Splish Splash

We had our first encounter with the Highland splash pad yesterday. The girls LOVED it and mom was pleasantly surprised by that.

Little Lady

Huntley has many loves. She can be outside all day looking for worms and then come inside clean up and have to fix her manicure. She hates leaving the house without her makeup. I have no idea where she got that habit because I rarely wear it. Her little traits and personality that make her unique have been so fun to watch develop.

Next month is birthday month at our house. I average every other year in actually succeeding with pulling off a good birthday and this year is a good year. I asked Huntley what kind of cake she wanted, crossing my fingers for something cool like a turkey. She said a princess.

Boring. Cliche. Such a 3 year old girl thing to say.

I've been doing my best to suggest other things but no go, she wants a princess. Last week I had a pure stroke of genius. She wants to have a party at my moms and roast marshmallows. So why not do a whole camping theme. I told her my idea and she was game on one condition. The cake had to have a camping princess and the tent has to he pink. I think I can work with that.

The Party is Over

Tomorrow I have to go to work. It's an extremely weird feeling after having been at home for the past 6 months. I'm glad it's not a permanent arrangement because I rather enjoy spending all my time with my girls. Although sometimes I do enjoy a break.

Last night was one of those nights where I left the girls with my parents and I went to a late night movie with a friend. It was awesome and I felt like a teenager again. Especially the part where I came home and my mom was waiting up to see how my night was. Then she told me how my kids did and brought me back to reality. I really do like reality though.

The girls and I had a quiet Sunday. Church, walk with the dogs, naps, and then much to Huntley's delight I realized I left my phone charger at my moms so we had to go over there and she got to ride in the airplane. Both girls crashed on the way home and are now snug in their beds. Definitely a sign of a good weekend.

Ma's Park

After 10 long years my mom is finally getting her backyard landscaped. It's going to be awesome, pergola, gas firepit, swings, slide, and a ton of stuff to make it her grandkids favorite place in the world. Huntley already loves it and calls it the park and is going to have a party there with all her friends.

Last night they bought the swingset and it came with an awesome airplane. We, as in it took 10 of us, set up the airplane today. At first Huntley screamed bloody murder when Uncle Josh put her on it but after seeing the rest of the cousins playing on it she got over that fear. She is now booking flights all over the continental US.

Donuts

Last night we got to spend 14 hours with Chris. I am so grateful for those 14 hours. Even though he has only been gone a week I needed that to recharge my single mom will to survive. It definitely must be the latter half of the season.

This morning we got up early to send him off again. Pais was ticked but Hunt on the other hand was so happy and talkative it's like she was on drugs. As Chris was giving her a hug goodbye he says "have mommy go get you a donut.". So thanks to his big mouth I was lugging two little shoeless pajama clad girls around Maceys this morning and dying when Hunt announced she had to go potty right now. I couldn't manage carrying them both so I actually had to put Hunt down and let her walk in the bathroom. I'm still cringing with disgust.

After all that I decided I was going to be the coolest mom ever and I let Hunt get the biggest donut we could find. It was as big as her head. Pais also enjoyed her first encounter with a donut even if her face doesn't show the excitement she really felt.