An Afternoon at Silver Lake

A few weeks ago, while scrolling instagram, I saw some posts from Silver Lake, a beautiful spot up in the mountains that was putting on quite the autumnal show. Mr. Boss and I had been up the month before, on an anniversary date, and there were a few signs that fall was coming then, but the pictures I was seeing on ig showed that it had changed a lot. I wanted to see it for myself.

I wasn't sure when I could get up there, but I was feeling desperate. One morning, I shared my feelings with Mr. Boss, and he suggested I go that very day, as soon as the kindergartener was home. So that's what I did! I spent the morning getting myself and the youngest two ready and packing up lunch, so that we could leave as soon as S was off the bus. 

The drive up the canyon was distracting, there was so much color. I wanted to stop so many times, but kept on going until we reached our goal. We had lunch as soon as we arrived, and then started our walk around the lake. I was in heaven, and the kids had a blast, too, climbing on rocks and seeing ducks and fish in the lake. 

We also ended up taking a little detour up one of the more difficult hikes that branches off from the path around the lake. I wanted to show the boys where their dad and I had seen a deer when we were up the month before. We didn't quite make it to where Boss and I had seen the deer, but that was fine because we got to see our own deer! It was pretty awesome. After that, we headed back down to the lakeside path and finished our walk. 

By the end, the kids were done. They had been amazing, walking so much and sitting themselves down from time to time for me to take their picture. Even when their behavior started to deteriorate, I understood and didn't really mind, because of how excellent the general experience had been. 

Now for the pictures:

We got so many comments on her candy corn hat,
which I definitely appreciated!

I shared this one on instagram.
I think it looks like an album cover.
And it's definitely one of my current favorite photos.

The end.

16 Things to Love About Winter

January is a hard month for me. It is generally very dreary here in the Salt Lake Valley, especially because we get this awful inversion. I mean, we get it throughout the winter, but it's the worst in January. The inversion makes it hard to breathe and it traps the cold air underneath this thick, yucky blanket of nasty, smoggy air, and I swear it makes the month last longer. In all our years away from Salt Lake, in all my homesickness and desires to come back, I was always grateful, when January came around, that I didn't have to deal with the inversion.

So, here we are now. It's January. It's cold and dreary. And we live in Salt Lake again. The "fun" part of winter (Christmas) has come and gone, and I feel like it would be too easy to get mopey and let this time of year really get me down. We've made it through the first half of the month, and while the weather has been relatively mild so far, and I know January won't really last forever, I don't want to feel miserable for the rest of the month or the rest of the winter, however long that may be... So, I'm made a list, a list of the things I love about this time of year, the things that make January and the "boring" part of winter bearable.

Real quick, I want to say that I got this idea from a post I saw on Instagram by Lindsay Wilkins, and I loved it so much, I wanted to do something similar. You can see Lindsay's original post here.

Things I love about winter, January onward:

* Watching giant snowflakes gently falling out my window.

* Cuddling under a cozy blanket with a good book.

* The way a fresh blanket of snow makes the world look new and magical.

* All the scarves!

* The muffled crunch when you walk through fresh snow.

* Incredible, vibrant winter sunsets.

* Babies in cozy knit bonnets.

* The mountains covered in white.

* Layers! I'm always wearing multiple layers, during summer it's weird, in the winter it's normal!

* The quiet stillness of a winter night.

* My fingers wrapped around a toasty cup of hot cocoa.

* The random warm days when you can open the windows for a few hours.

* The days getting a little longer, bit by bit.

* So much underrated natural beauty, my photographer-self gets really excited about that.

* Anticipation of what's to come in the year ahead.

* And, of course, the anticipation of Spring!

What do you love about wintertime?

birthday recap 1

Birthday season (June-October, for us) is almost over! While I love, love, love birthdays, I'm also really excited that we're almost done! Because I want birthdays to be special and fun, I end up getting pretty stressed out over them, which in the end is totally worth it, and is also why I'm glad we get it over and done with over 4 short months.

Anyway, because it's almost over, I feel like it's about time I do a birthday recap. Mostly because I want to show off the cakes and pancakes I made (I work hard on those suckers!), but also to have a record of my babies growing. And this year was a big one, my oldest turned 10 and the baby turned 1! (Time is a cruel beast.)

I think because there are so many of them, I'm going to break up the posts, so I'll recap the first two birthdays here, and then I'll share the others in additional posts.

First up was Z, who turned 7 in June. He said he wanted a bat cake this year so, when I made his birthday pancakes, I tried to make him a little bat pancake to go with the standard birthday number pancake. Seven. What is life?

Then there was the actual birthday cake. I ask the kids in advance what kind of cake they want, and then I spend the next little while brainstorming how to make it happen, and then usually end up winging it (ha, bat) the day of their birthday, which was exactly the case for this one. I made a 9x13 yellow cake, and then I mostly eyeballed, with a little bit of help from a make-shift paper template I created, the cuts to make it sort of bat-shaped. In the end, it worked out, so yay!

Along with his bat-shaped cake, we splurged a bit and got him the Lego Batman movie. His face says it all. I love his explosive excitement. Also, that bedhead that he rocked all day. Summer break is the best. (Who am I kidding? He goes to school with crazy bedhead most days. It's fine.)

This was also the first birthday after we moved back to Utah, which meant we were able to invite cousins to come hang out and celebrate with us! Hooray! But I didn't get any photos of our guests that time! Not hooray!

------

In July, I became the mother of a 10-year-old. What the actual crap? I decided I would be funny about it, so I made a special hashtag. You know, because we do that with our brand new babies - #babysfirstbath #babysfirsttooth #babysfirststep - so I came up with the hashtag #babysfirstdecade. I know, I know, I'm hilarious. C was not impressed.

This year, he kept being a sassafrass about me not having him on the 4th of July. Because I was in total control of when he was born, you know? Kids. Anyway, it meant that he wanted this super patriotic birthday, so there was that. I decided I wanted to make it a little extra, so I ran to the store first thing in the morning looking for some 4th of July themed mini M& M's and some whipped cream for inside and to top the pancakes. Except no matter how hard I looked, there wasn't a single bag of patriotic M&M's left in the store. So I grabbed a regular bag and had C separate the reds and blues from the rest while I made the pancakes. #childlabor

I kinda decided, on a whim, that I didn't want to make giant, digit shaped pancakes for double digit numbers, so once my kids hit ten and beyond, their pancakes will be the standard round shape, with the full number on them. I made him a regular one and one filled with M&M's. I liked the look of the plain one better, he preferred the candy-filled one. Whatever. We covered them with syrup, whipped cream, and more candy, so who cares?

Pancake party!!

To go with the whole wish-I'd-been-born-on-the-4th, patriotic theme, he decided he wanted his cake to look like the American flag. Fine. Adding the sparklers was my idea. I'm so clever.

I thought it would be such an easy cake, but let me tell you, it was kinda tedious. Like when I got that bottle of pastel-multi-color star sprinkles and poured the whole thing out so I could pick out the white ones... But as I was sweating over trying to get those red and white stripes, without turning the whole frost job into a marbled pink, I was still happy. Because making a cake that makes my kid feel special feels, well, special.

And would you look at that, a picture with some party guests! I'm telling you, each party through this birthday season has gotten bigger and bigger and bigger. We're having the final party, to end birthday season, this Friday, and it's probably the biggest one yet. I'm pretty excited and also super hopeful it doesn't end up being lame. 

first birthday flamingle

Last year, the wait for our baby girl to arrive was overwhelming. I'd been hoping for a girl, honestly, with every baby since miss E arrived. I have 6 sisters, and always imagined I'd have a house full of girls, but it's been boys, boys, boys. So, finally, I was getting another girl, and I just wanted her here. I mean, I had a timeline, of sorts, because I'm weird and want things to be orderly and patterns and I'm weird. And then she didn't come, was too cozy, each day that passed felt like it was taking forever, each night as I climbed into bed I hoped it would be the night, and each morning I'd wake after a full night of sleep and little miss wiggling around inside and feeling like she'd never come. But she finally did, with some coercion, but she came. Nearly two weeks late, but she came! All that waiting was finally rewarded with a sweet, tiny, perfect girl.

And then I blinked.

Now she's a year old.

And walking like a pro.

She is beautiful and bright, a little ray of sunshine, and a bit of a sassy-pants too, if I'm honest.

I knew the day was coming, but I still kind of let it sneak up on me. Thankfully, not so much so that I couldn't pull together a super cute, flamingo-themed first birthday party.

Number one in my vision was a matching headband and cake topper from one of my absolute favorite bow shops, Fancy Free Finery.

I especially loved how quickly they arrived, especially being a custom order, and as soon as I opened the box I died. They were exactly as I had envisioned, completely perfect. I felt like, no matter how anything else turned out, I would be happy with how the party turned out. Dorky, maybe, also totally true.

(PS - Not sponsored, I just seriously love this shop.)

The only other thing that I was super set on was making a birthday tu-tu for my girl, just like I had for E's first birthday. Of course, procrastination meant I was up until 4:30 am on her birthday making it and was a glitter monster by the end, since I'd gotten glittery tulle, but I got it done!

From there, everything else just came together. Along with sitting up and making a tu-tu, I blew up some balloons and hung them around the living room. Then there were birthday pancakes, once I was awake. A number 1, and a baby flamingo, naturally.

The rest of the day was spent somewhat frantically, as I tried to get a cake and a bunch of cupcakes baked and decorated, as well as ensuring that the house was in shape for guests. It would not have been possible without the help of Boss and one of my wonderful sisters. Not to forget the contribution of food in the form of pizza from another awesome sister. (You guys, sisters are the best. ...I need to have more girls!!)

Most everything was ready by the time our guests started arriving, so I was able to chill out a bit and enjoy the company. And every time I walked in the kitchen, I couldn't help admiring how perfect the cake looked with that beautiful cake topper. Like, I just cannot believe my baby is a year old, how could this happen? But everything turned out so perfectly, so it was hard to feel upset. Haha..

My aunt even got her (us? haha) a pair of flamingo moccasins from Freshly Picked! And grandma Rosie made her a super cozy flamingo blanket. And we were surrounded by family and friends, not everyone, unfortunately, but like I said in my last post, after 6 years away, it just feels magical.

But seriously, why/how/why, why, why is my baby girl already one?!

birthday recap pt. 2

July is extra busy because there are actually 2 July birthdays. C is at the beginning of the month, and N is later. This year, he turned 3 and, because he has been obsessed with Magic School Bus (thank you, Netflix!), he really wanted a Magic School Bus cake. Thankfully, it was good enough to just make a cake look like a bus, and not like the actual bus from the show. Even now, months later, he still talks about his Magic School Bus birthday, so obviously, I did a good job. 

We get a break in August. Sort of. Because we have our anniversary in August, but nobody's birthday. But before I knew it, September had arrived and we were celebrating S turning 5. 

His birthday was pretty exciting because it happened to coincide with some very special visitors. My grandparents were able to visit from Costa Rica, and while they weren't able to make it to his party, it did mean that we had family come up from California, and they were able to party with us.

S wanted a lightsaber birthday, and I'm all about complying with birthday requests. We went with cupcakes, instead of a bigger cake. Not my favorite, because I felt like it looked sloppy, but to my boy, it was perfect, so hooray!

I super love having friends and family over to help celebrate all the bossling birthdays, it was hard to be away from siblings and parents as my children reached milestones and never stopped growing, no matter how nicely I asked. So having all these gatherings with friends and family has been by far one of my greatest joys since moving back to Utah. 

back to school.

5th grade, 3rd grade, 2nd grade

Monday, August 21st was the big day, ready or not. Not for me, I was feeling pretty frazzled and unprepared. Even though I knew it was coming, it felt like the first day totally snuck up on me. Our final weekend before school started was pretty busy as I scrambled to make sure we knew where classrooms were, that backpacks were ready, that there were clean clothes to wear and outfits picked out. But we made it! Phew!

The bosslings were a mix of nerves and excitement to start at their new school. They definitely miss their school, teachers, and friends back in Flagstaff, but they were also excited to have a chance to make some new friends.

C is in 5th grade now. Which is weird. But a little less weird since it's not his last year in elementary like it would be in Flag. He's enjoying his new school, but he also really misses his old school.

E is in 3rd grade. She insisted on doing her own hair for the first day, a low ponytail. Where did my baby go? She's already made some friends and is enjoying the different ways her new school does things, like breakfast and lunch. #itsthelittlethings

Z is in 2nd grade. It's crazy that this sweet boy is already in 2nd. I have several vivid memories from 2nd grade, and it is totally blowing my mind that my third child is in 2nd!!

S has started and online, at-home pre-k course. He is loving it so far and has already learned so much in the week and a half he's been doing it.

N thinks that he does computer school, like his big brother. He doesn't, but he'll get to next year.

Quick throw-back:

Here are the bossling's 1st, 2nd, and 3rd first days of school. These five babies of mine have grown so much! Little N was barely a year old in the first pic, now he's a wild and rowdy 3-year-old chatterbox!

Once baby H woke up, we were able to get a first-day shot with all six!

Walking to the bus stop and waiting for it to arrive. Can I just say that I am so happy that the kids will still be riding a bus to school! Hooray for avoiding the dreaded school pick-up line!

Poor N, he was so upset when the bus pulled away without him on it. The shot of the bus driving away around the corner was taken at such a low angle because I shot it while I was squatting down to give him a hug. 😔💔

After that, we hurried home, loaded the little 3 in the van and drove to meet the kiddos at school. We've done this every year that they've been in school and maybe it's cheesy, but I love it. Plus, it gives me peace of mind to make sure they get where they need to be.

They got to play for a bit, and I talked them into one more group photo against a wall of the school before the bell rang. 

The teachers come out to the playgrounds to collect the children to take to class. We got C and Z to their teachers, but E's had already gone inside, so I walked her and another girl from her class to their room. And that was that. Summer's over. 

I guess I'll take my Ninja (that's what he calls himself when he wears that headband. So cute.), Spiderman, and little lady home. I just don't know what we'll do with ourselves now.

journal 3

We moved! After 6 years away we can call Utah (specifically Salt Lake County) home again. What a wild ride.

I was thinking about some other bloggers who've recently moved or are planning to in the near future, and started wondering what made them decide to do it? Of course, it's none of my business, I just get curious. I don't know why other families move to different places or why they end up living in the same city or house forever. But! I do have the inside scoop on my family and our various moves over the last decade.

(Dood, I've had my own little family for over a decade! Weird!)

Honestly, leaving Flagstaff to come back to Salt Lake was HARD. Not that life in Flag was a cake walk, because it wasn't, let me tell you. Flagstaff is a really hard place to live, it's expensive, it's full of things that make my allergies feel like I'm dying, it's isolated - so isolated. Also, our house was basically made of popsicle sticks and falling apart, Mr. Boss's job wasn't a good long-term choice for us financially, not to mention all the rotten car luck we had and blah-blah-blah... Plus, the nearest Costco was 2 hours away. (#priorities)

BUT! There was also so much good! First off, the people there are freaking ah-mazing. The community there, seriously. (💕) Some of the best, most selfless people I've ever met live in Flag. There is so much I could say about all of the wonderful people who live there, but it would make this already long post even longer. And I'd probably start to cry, so.

Other good things about Flag: it was completely gorgeous (esp. when it wasn't trying to kill me... #allergiessuck). We were surrounded by nature, and our view of the stars at night was unreal. I mean, I'd never seen the little dipper until we lived there, I'd never been able to spot it before, not even when I'd gone camping. Plus, I could watch meteor showers and get pictures of them without having to step one foot out my door. And, even though it wasn't really a great long-term fit, Mr. Boss really, really loved his job. And he loved that elk would walk through and poop right in our back "yard". Not because they were pooping, but because they were so close. And then there was that time we saw a coyote grab a prairie dog right from its burrow, Wild America style.

To be honest, I spent a lot of our time there complaining. I did try to appreciate it, but in the moment it wasn't really an easy thing to do. I'm ashamed to say I spent most of our time there wishing and praying to leave. Not that I wanted to leave all the great things behind, I only wanted to get away from the sucky parts. It was so conflicting, I wanted to get away and stay there forever.

Pit stop in Hatch, Utah.

So, yes. I prayed, a lot, that we could leave. But it didn't happen, didn't happen, didn't happen, and then it did. Suddenly I found myself feeling like "WAIT, I'm not done yet!" But it was too late. Then more conflicting feelings, because, GUYS, I was stoked! But also devastated. I kept asking, "can't I just pack my people into these boxes and take them with?? PLEAAASE??" I wanted to leave but also didn't.

I've dreamed of coming back to Salt Lake a lot over the past 6 years, but I've also been kind of afraid of it. Living outside of Utah was hard, different, weird, amazing, eye-opening, enlightening, life changing, incredible... What if I'm too different to live in Utah again, what if living away changed me too much and I don't fit anymore? Maybe it's silly to think that way, but there ya go.

I am mad at myself that it took us moving for me to realize how much I'd taken the amazing experience of living in Flagstaff for granted. It makes me want to go back and smack myself and tell myself to enjoy the heck out of our time there because it would be so short. But my time machine is broken. I guess all I can do going forward is try my hardest to make the most of our new home, neighborhood, ward, and state. (I mean, I grew up around here, so it's not really new to me but, hopefully, you catch my drift, and by you I mean me. You listening, Cris?!) 

So, here we go. Goodbye, Flagstaff. Thank you for the beauty, for the amazing people, for the memories we will treasure forever. (Just not the memories of how bad my allergies got. 😉)

And hello, again, Salt Lake, with your majestic mountains full of history and memories. It's good to be back.