Our Overnight Float Trip

The Wednesday after we got back from the reunion we were suppose to take the kids to Boise to visit Grandma for a few days while we had a getaway.  But, Brayden broke out with Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease so instead Grandma came over here so we could still have a getaway.

Bo has really wanted to float the South Fork Canyon (on Snake River) with me so he planned a trip with two of his other friends and their wives.  Us wives were a bit unsure about everything.  But we had a great time and when you're on the river it is much less intimidating.  The ladies talked and the guys fished.

We saw eagles, pelicans, moose, and many other cool animals.  It was gorgeous and made me really appreciate more the area we live.  I had no idea pelicans were around here.

We spent the night at a campground on the bank of the river and got up, packed everything up, and floated a few more miles down the river and went home.


 This is where we had lunch.  These are the falls at Fall Creek.  One of my favorite parts of the float:

 Here's a picture of Bo doing one of his favorite things :)

We are so grateful for parents who take the kids on occasion so we can have a break or time together...

Christensen Reunion 2012

Every couple of years we get together with my side of the family and rent a huge cabin.  This year we went to Heber, Utah.  It was fun to get together.  We played games, some guys went motorbiking while some went golfing.  The ladies went to Park City and went shopping and had lunch.  It is always fun to get together and get away..

Here's the cabin:

Here was the main room:

  We also watched the kids play, play, and play some more with their cousins.  It is always fun to see what they come up with when they are together.  They put on an air hockey tournament for all of the adults.

We were able to celebrate Mom's 60th birthday while we were there.  It was a lot of fun.  Jeanie put together a book for her with letters from each of us.  It was nice to read and see how much Mom has influenced our life.  Love you mom!  

All in all it was fun reunion!

And Then There were Seven!

Many people know this, but we haven't really announced to our friends we keep in touch with online.  

We are EXCITED to announce another baby on the WAY!  

I'll be 19 weeks on Tuesday and Im due February 12.  We find out what we are having on October third.  As you can guess we are very excited to see what it wil be.  

I copied the following post from http://www.imperfecthomemaking.com.  It's a fun blog I follow.  It totally fits our life (not every scenario fits us, but many do) :)

With five kids so far, I don't feel like we have a big family.  My mother has four, my mother-in-law has five, and I know a number of people with 8, 9, or 10 kids.  So the fact that we all fit in a standard mini-van convinces me that we are just at the high end of normal. Until, that is, we go out in public.  People's leers and comments quickly remind me that, to some people, we are a travelling circus show of cuteness and snot.

This post is called 12 things mom's of big families may want you to know because they didn't hold some big convention and elect me spokesperson. But from speaking with other mom's of many, there are definitely some points that come up again and again.

1) Please don't ask my kids if we're going to have more. We don't consult them!

2)Yes, we know what causes this.  No, we don't want to hear your thoughts on family planning.

3)Please don't stop me in the grocery store to tell me how busy I am.  I know I'm busy.  You know I'm busy.  So can I please get out of the cereal aisle before my 2 year old spots the fruity-o's? 

4)Having a large litter of children doesn't mean I am particularly patient, or organized, or rich.  What I can tell you for sure is that I am far more patient and organized (and slightly less rich) than I was when I started having kids.

5)We don't look down on you for having less kids. You really don't need to preface every comment about how tired/frustrated/stretched to your limit you are with words like "well, I only have 2, but..."   I remember having  2 kids....I was exhausted and it was hard.  No matter how many kids you have, they require everything you know you can give and then some.  
6) Please please PLEASE don't make my children feel like freaks. 

7) Don't compare us to the Duggars.  (Although from what I can tell, it would be a compliment.) Or some crazy hippy family you once knew with eleven kids who liked to dance naked in the woods or some such oddity.  You don't go around comparing families with 2 kids to one another, do you?  Of course you don't!
8) I would like to reiterate: Yes, we know what causes this.  Every time I leave the house I hear this question AT LEAST 3 times. It stopped being funny a long time ago.

9) People like to say "kids are such a blessing" in one breath and "but you're done, right?" in the next.  Don't.
10) Friends: I know you don't have enough chairs to invite us over for dinner.  Invite us anyways.  Please. 

11)For goodness sakes, don't pity me.  This is by far the most mind boggling reaction we receive.  I am wandering contentedly through the grocery store with 5 healthy happy kids and people tell me that they feel sorry for me?  From where I stand, we are pretty stinkin' blessed. 

12)Oh, and Yes....we know what causes this.  See, it starts to lose it's humour pretty quick, doesn't it?

Swim Lessons

This summer I was dreading swim lessons for many reasons.  First, it is at least a 20 to 30 minute drive anywhere to get to them.  Second, the kids are such wimps and cry for the first few days because they don't like to get their faces wet.  And finally, because of this I feel like it is a huge waste of money because they don't learn a thing.

So, this year I had an idea.  I bought a 3 foot pool and some goggles from the business and decided I'd get the kids used to the water and then put them in to swim lessons.  We were in the pool at least once a day and up to three times because they loved it so much (even though it was not very warm).

It totally worked!  Hailey learned how to swim, Conrad was pretty close, and Jack loved going under the water just before we started lessons.  By the end (8 lessons) they could all at least swim a bit and I had a clearer conscience because I know our kids need to learn how to swim!

Forth of July!!!

The weekend before the fourth of July we got a babysitter for Brayden and the rest of us went up to Celebrate America at Huntsman Springs in Driggs.  That was such a great celebration and our first time going.  They had bouncy houses, face painting, a car show, fireworks, an air show, and other things.  Everything was free and we wished that we had gotten there earlier so the kids could have had more fun on the bouncy houses. 

The air show was a lot of fun, but I think the kids favorite part was getting their faces painted.  After we spent some time there we went with the kids and some friends (Kris and Kendra) and floated the Teton River.  Bo fished and we relaxed and played.  It was a lot of fun taking the kids.  I love this river because it is very shallow and small.  We could walk through it.

For the Fourth we went to Menan Day's.  It is a usual tradition for us.  We love it!  The have fun booths, great food, a fun parade, and a great fireworks show.  Bo played in a softball tournament and they they won first place.  Our favorite part was the parade, but it was so hot we sat in the back of the van trying to cool of with cold water from the cooler.  

This picture is Hailey with one of her best friends, Ilzay:

This is Jack with a mouse he picked out from a game:

 This is Conrad and Shane (a friend):

Here they are waiting for the parade to get to us:

Here is a very tired Brayden eating a sucker and waiting for the fireworks to start:

This was a fun day!