Checkin' Out

The Washington Fosters are off! Utah for a night, Arizona for a week and a half, Vegas for two weeks...lots of cousins, grandparents, friend, family time. Catch ya later!

Farewell, Free Frumpy Fridge

Our fridge died. But it does not call for any sorrow. Not one tear. We were given this fridge when we moved into our home almost 3 years ago. It was the previous owner's garage fridge (read: old and unattractive, but still useful). And when you are buying a home and someone offers something free to furnish it, you take it (as long as it's something you need)! At least that's our motto. It was almond in color, which just wouldn't do. So I researched and then went to Home Depot to buy black appliance spray paint. I gave that baby a good coat of black paint, making it look rather dapper. But that doesn't mean the love was strong. The freezer door did not have bars, making the space in the door rather useless which caused many an annoyance. At one point we had duct tape on there as a makeshift bar (yes, we really are that classy), but duct tape doesn't hold all that well in freezing temperatures. But the thing kept our food cold and that's all we could ask. I was grateful to have a refrigerator.

Over the last month our milk was going bad. Milk doesn't go bad in this house. We are milk fanatics. We were perplexed, thinking that Costco had printed the wrong date on their milk. But after it happened twice I offered the explanation that perhaps our refrigerator wasn't cooling as it should. Sure enough, after a thermometer test, my theory was proven. Tyler thinks I sabotaged it (as in, cutting a wire or some other devious thing to move along the dying process). And maybe I did. Maybe my occasional thought, "I wish this thing would just die" did cause this poor old fridge to give up, knowing it wasn't loved. Appreciated, but not loved. Farewell, to the frumpy free fridge that served us well. We are grateful for your service, but let's be honest, we're not so sad to see you go.

Hello, GE Profile fancy pants fridge! Okay, so you, dear reader, may have a much fancier fridge, but this is about a million times fancier than what we had. It will be delivered on Monday. I will kiss it when it arrives.

Camping and a Classic Fourth

We left on Thursday afternoon for yet another camping trip. I wasn't feeling super excited beforehand, it sounded like a lot of work to get ready....but I am so glad that we went. It was wonderful. We went to Mt. Rainier National Park, stayed at Cougar Rock Campground *although Max was sorely disappointed to not see any cougars*, spent Friday morning at the visitor's center *where Max got a crazy fever and we spent an hour being worried and trying to figure out why and what we could do about it* and playing in the snow. The rest of the time was just us being a family and spending time together. Every camping trip has s'mores, Ty playing the guitar and harmonica around the campfire *this time with cheers from fellow campers in the site next to ours*, mosquito bites despite spraying OFF *mostly for me*, and dirty, dirty faces. New this trip was a hammock, which was enjoyed by all. Not a lot of pictures this time 'round. Ahhhh...I love camping. Such a great way to vacation as a family. No distractions, just us.

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Nisqually River with Mt. Rainier in the background...what the gorgeous!My peeps by the icy cold glacier run-off river

Max and I were walking down to the river and I was about 20 steps ahead of him. He likes to take his time, so I would occasionally turn around and encourage him along. One time I turned around and he was pretty far back *I had to use the zoom to get this picture*, just chillin' on a rock. "Hey, bud, what are you doing?" "I'm just takin' a rest, Mom. I'm just resting my legs." He sat there for another minute and then hopped up, apparently refreshed.

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Narada Falls
*Note the rainbow in the bottom left corner of the picture. Beautiful!*-------------------------------------------------------------------
What's more American than baseball?

We got home from camping around 1:00 in the afternoon. We grilled hamburgers for dinner. For the night of the fourth we attended a local baseball game. I love that we live in a small town. It's not a very big stadium and they had all sorts of things to keep kids interested. At the end of the game Max got to go out and run the bases *somewhat pictured to the right and then the camera battery died*. His shorts are a little big around the waist and so it was a kick to watch him run - 3 or 4 steps and then a grab at the back of his shorts to pull them up whilst running as fast as his little legs can carry him. He stopped about 3rd base. We were told later that it was, again, for a rest. I guess he knows how to pace himself. :) Afterward they turned off the stadium lights and we enjoyed a great fireworks display. Perfect fourth. Perfect weekend. Love my little fam!

Livin' and Lovin' Life

Nothing super exciting to report, just pictures of the cute people I get to hang out with everyday.

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I wish you could see the super thick layer of yogurt caked on this little girl's *thankfully huge* bib. I don't know how much actually made it into her mouth. I think the spoon landed on the floor at some point, but I hadn't noticed. It therefore became a task for the fingers to get the yogurt to her mouth. Much less effective, but no less enjoyable.

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We have been SO enjoying our strawberry harvest this summer! Every couple of days Ty and Max pick a bowl full of perfectly ripe strawberries for us to inhale. You heard me - inhale. They don't last very long. We have shared a little with some neighbors, but mostly we keep them to ourselves. There are few things in life as tasty as a perfectly ripe strawberry from your own garden. Yum.

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If you're looking for a stylish hat to wear this summer, you need look no further than your sister's closet. Turns out, little sister's swimsuits make for some great head wear...----------------------------------------------------------------

I finally did something with Kelly's hair! I have been a little afraid for a few reasons: 1.) she runs even when I try to put a clip in her hair; I never imagined I could get her to sit still for much else 2.) I have no idea what I'm doing. But I tried pigtails and I'm in love. I get to see more of her cute face and she doesn't have hair going every which way all day long. Here are the results:

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In other news that doesn't have an accompanying picture....

• Max has started to just go in and go potty all on his own! As in, while he's playing he just leaves his toys, goes into the bathroom, does all of the business on his own and comes out to resume play, pants and underwear up. No major announcement ahead of time like I was used to *"Mom, I need to go potty!" "Okay, go in and go, Max!"*, just a boy doin' his business independent of me. I love it! He does come out and yell, "Surprise!" every single time. I love that too.
• Ty is workin' it for the Husband of the Year award. Last night was one of those nights where I just couldn't pull myself out of a funky mood. I was irritable. So after dinner Ty pushed me out the door and I was gone for a few hours. Nice. I came home and the kids were all ready for bed. Max told me they had a surprise for me but he couldn't tell me what it was, he just wanted me to come upstairs. As we were walking upstairs Max was saying, "Just come in...and relax...just relax...the bathroom's beautiful, Mom!" I was lead into my bathroom where a bath was drawn, candles were lit, relaxing music was playing, a small bowl of strawberries, some reading material and a homemade card from my little family were on the side of the tub. I kissed my kids and, of course, my incredible husband and then slipped into that magical, 'beautiful' bathroom while Ty put the kids to bed. I know it's early to predict a winner since it's only July, but I'm already putting my money on Tyler Foster for Husband of the Year!