Anthony, Clayton and Martin went to the movies Monster's University. It was fun to drop them off and see cousins hanging out. These three got along great.
We spent some time with Grandma Martha. We went to her house while the biggles were backpacking. Nic and Isaak played pool. Matthias and Anna played with the toys. I got to spend some quality time chatting with an incredible woman.
We also met up with Grandma and a couple cousins to see the movie Despicable Me. Hilarious movie. Grandma brought drinks and snacks. She had Cracker Jacks. I haven't seen a box of those in forever. The boys loved their Cracker Jacks and I loved watching them eating a treat from my past.
Our last visit with Grandma was a meet up at Wheeler Farm. Aunt Lena and her two girls joined us. I love Wheeler Farm. I would love to just set up camp there and stay. It's just a really peaceful place. It was nice to walk around with Grandma and the kids and Lena. I got to catch up with Lena. She's doing amazing things. Kjel's siblings are crazy smart and know how to work hard. I always hope the genes ran through to my kids and that I don't mess them up. I come from smart hard working blood but it skipped me and sometimes I worry that I'll wear off on the kids.
My sister and Mom and I spent a few hours as just us. I did bring Anna along but we ditched all the other kids and spent some time shopping and then picked up an ice cream treat. Moments like this just don't happen as often as they should. I wish we all lived within 4 hours of one another and we could meet up monthly or even quarterly to see each other. We had a great time being together. I loved shopping for my new nephew Janek. He was born while we were in Utah. In fact, he was born on July 24th.
On July 24th my phone rang at a kind of silly early hour. I picked up the phone and looked at who was calling and noticed it was my sister, Katrina. My first thought was, oh, it's Katrina, I'll call her back a little later, it's kind of early to be talking on the phone. Obviously, I was still half asleep. As soon as I promised those first thoughts my mind got into gear and I realized, HEY, it's kind of early to be calling me, why is she calling me? I picked up the phone and my sister starts the call with, "Happy 24th of July." It caught me off guard, maybe because it was early in the morning or maybe because I was certain she'd lost it to call me so early and wish me a happy 24th. I replied with, "Happy 24th to you." I wasn't sure what was going on. She then said, 'Just kidding, I'm having a baby!' I couldn't believe I got to start my day with such amazing news. Janek Emil was born just a few hours later. He is beyond adorable. My sister had an amazing delivery. There were many of us praying that her 9 months of preparation would allow for a beautiful experience during labor and delivery. Her hard work paid off.
It was fun to have so many of us in Utah together while she was in labor in Texas. Usually, we're all in different lands. Having so many of us in Utah added an extra level of excitement as we shared the joy and anticipation with each other. That was really special for me.
I'm sure there is more that I'm forgetting. As it comes to my memory I'll be back to post.
In the end the trip was wonderful. It wasn't easy for me to manage the 6 kids without Kjel. There were many family members that stepped in to help me keep track of kiddo's but I felt like I was in constant go trying to keep even half of the kids happy. It's not easy for me to keep my bigs, middles, and littles all content. They are in such different stages in life that finding things to do that pleases everyone is impossible.
I found that there were many things I wanted to do on this trip but could not. It's kind of the story of my life right now. I have to remember that there is a time and a season for everything. Right now, it's not about me. It's about these amazing children. Right now it's about making sacrifices. Not miserable sacrifices but smalls ones. Good ones that allow me to learn to be amazing.