Rest of trip

Scott decided to show the kids how to do a real fire. He didn't want to use matches to show the kids his Boy Scout skills. So here he is starting the fire without matches. The entire time he was doing this Ashlyn kept saying "So why don't you just get the matches." Even after the fire was started she wanted to know if he was going to get the matches now.
Here is our family sitting around the fire. We enjoyed a fun night of SMORES!!! Yummy. We didn't even burn our marshmallows. We went on a fun hike around Cascade Springs. Here are the kids and their Dad on the hike.
Here's mommy and the kids. We sure had a fun time. It was hot but it was a lot hotter down in Pleasant Grove. We also drove to a nearby lake to play. The kids had to get in the water clothes and all. We had a great time that was until a dust storm hit and covered our wet bodies with a layer of dirt. We hurried and had to take all their clothes off to drive back to camp. The shower was sure dirty the next day.
All the kids in the water.

Camping Trip

Well I changed how the blog looks today. I decided that I am a horrible journal keeper. I just don't find the time to write in a journal. So I thought this was a sense a type of journal where we are tellings what the Grange family has been up to. Okay so not a real journal but as good as it is going to get for us. So I went to print my blog and it keeps not printing right and taking the end of the sentences off. So with this new format I should be able to print the sheets better.

This weekend we headed up to the mountains for a few days of rest and relaxation. It was a fun trip. We packed everything up and headed 15 minutes away. Yep, just 15. We live just 10 minutes from American Fork Canyon. That's where Timpanogos Cave is. They have several camping sites up that particular canyon. As you continue up the canyon it is considered the Alpine Loop and loops around to Provo Canyon. We spent two days up there. We actually came back home Friday night so we could go to a ward party. When you are only 15 minutes away it wasn't a big deal. So we had a yummy BBQ with the ward and the kids enjoyed playing all the games. We came back up camping and all 4 kids slept GREAT!!! Yeah for us.

Here are the kids in front of the river at the campground. Fortuantely they stayed far away from it. As you can tell this is the beginning of the trip. They are still a little clean.

Here's Scott making breakfast for us. Yummy pancakes and Sausage. Okay they all thought the sausage was yummy I'm not a fan of it at all. But Treyson loves the little "hotdogs".

Brielle hanging out in her portable crib. Isn't she a cutie. She did such a great job. She only got up once the first night for about 20 seconds. She slept like a baby. Well I guess she is our baby. She sure enjoys being with her siblings. Just wish they weren't always so close.
The kids explored the camp ground and found rocks of all kinds. They loved exploring and wandering around for treasures.
What a sweet baby.

4th of July

Brielle hanging out on the 4th

Well we had a wonderful 4th of July. We headed down to my parents house early to go swimming in their neighbors pool. The Gustafsons are always so nice to let us use the pool. They were having a party in the afternoon so we were able to use it in the morning. It was warm and we got lucky because the clouds and rain came in the afternoon.

The kids all had a fun time swimming with the family. After that we had a VERY Yummy BBQ with the family. We had Kabobs that my dad made-Delicous. We also had Spinach Salad, Pasta Salad and Homemade Salsa. All which tasted Great. So thanks for the yummy food family.

Ashlyn, Brit, And Trey at the Movies

After the BBQ the kids enjoyed playing with the dress up clothes and just hanging out. The boys all danced to Napolean Music. They are pretty good dancers. We then headed to the Movies "Cars" because we promised the kids we could go. They loved it and of course we had to have popcorn. This was the first time in a long time that I didn't have any. I love popcorn but had eaten so much earlier that it didn't even sound good.

The boys with Kaden dressing up

I forgot to mention that we did the Cousin Picture again of the three little ones. They were all dressed in their 4th of July Attire and all looked so cute. My nephew Parker broke his arm (when he rolled off the bed) but doesn't his little cast look cute. I am glad it matched Whitney!

The three little cousins. The girls picking on Parker

After the movie we headed home. We decided to go to the Fireworks at Pleasant Grove Highschool. We got their and was able to get good seats and parking. The best part of the night was being able to get out of the area without any problems. Yeah!! It was a fun 4th of July. Thanks family for all the fun.

Softball, Baseball, Itty Bitty Ball and Alpine Slide

Scott, Britton, and Ashlyn at the Alpine Slide

We have had a fun week this last few weeks. The kids have been involved in a Park it Program where they go to a different park each day for activities. They go from10-2 and just have fun. This week they had a camp theme and painted t-shirts and roasted hotdogs over the fire. They also had movie day and went to Madagascar. They also had Track and Field Day and other days of just fun.

Britton waiting for his turn

We also had a busy day of Softball, Baseball and Itty Bitty Ball. Britton is loving Coach's Pitch this year. It's his first year playing it and he is sure getting better. Last year at T-Ball it was a little easier but he can now hit from the coach.

Ashlyn getting ready to hit

Ashlyn is playing her first year of softball. When I signed her up the page said 10 and under. So I signed her up for that. To find out for her age she wasn't supposed to be in this league. 7 and 8 year olds are suppossed to play Machine Pitch-not Softball with the girls pitching. So she was a little young for the team. But she did awesome. She is glad I messed up because she didn't want to be in Machine Pitch because they play with BOYS!!! YUCK!!!

Treyson had a fun week doing Itty Bitty Ball. It is for 3-4 year olds. Each day they do a different sport and have fun stations for each sport. The first day he played baseball, then Basketball then Soccer than Golf. He thought Golf and Soccer were cool.

Treyson at Itty Bitty Ball

On Wednesday afternoon we headed up to Parkcity to stay at a Condo for the night with Scott's family. We had a really fun time. We got up there and we decided to take the two oldest on the Alpine Slide. Here they are with Grandpa and Dad and I going up the chair lift to the top. Britton was worried about losing his shoes. Ashlyn was a little worried about doing the slide herself. But in the end we had a fabulous time. It was a lot of fun . I want to go back up and do the Zip Line down the Mountain. It was literally down the mountain. It looked like fun. After that we came back to the Condo and went swimming. The kids had fun with there cousin Carter. That night Jenny, Jason, Carter and Ryland left but Kevin, Chelsey, Hunter and Kenyon came up. We hadn't seen them for awhile so it was nice to see them. Unforunately the next morning we had to get up early to get back home for the activites of the day.

We went back up to the Granges on Friday afternoon so we could go to a movie. We went with Bob, Kevin and Chelsey to Superman. It was an entertaining movie mainly just action packed with an okay plot. The special effects were way cool. It's amazing what they can do in movies now.

Yesterday we spent the day working in the yard and in the basement. Fun for us.

That's what we've been up to this week.

It's been a LONG time

Brielle and her friend Cassidy


Well everyone it has been awhile since I last wrote. We have had so many fun things going on. I don't even know where to start. After school got done on Friday we just had a fun relaxing week. We went to the pool several times that week and just hung out. It was a lot of fun. We went to a family reunion for Scott's family, a baby blessing for Scott's sisters and just enjoyed each other.

The next week the kids participated in Soccer camp. They LOVED IT!!!! They played soccer and soccer games for 4 days for an hour and a half each day. We then spent some of those days at the pool. Oh how fun summer is!!!!

We also celebrated our city Pleasant Grove with going to the rodeo. The kids loved it. It is called Strawberry Days and they have the best desseret of Strawberries and Cream.




In fact the food at most functions like this is outrageous. Not this rodeo. I was able to get 5 strawberries and cream, two huge sugar cookies with frosting, and two waters all for 8 dollars. Wow I was impressed. It was a late night but it was sure enjoyable.







The boys then went to Father's and Sons and Ashlyn, Brielle and I had a girls night. The girls all went to dinner, watched a movie and scrapbooked. Okay, so Brielle just came along for the ride. The boys had a wonderful time at the Father's and Sons campground. They just went up the canyon near our home so it was pretty easy. They enjoyed the smores and just being with all the fun kids.






They got home Saturday morning and we packed up again to head to Manti. We had a blast. We stayed with some great friends that just moved there. We knew them in Colorado. We also had our other good friends drive out from Colorado too so it was a BIG party. We all headed there to see the Manti Pageant. It was awesome. They live about two blocks away from the temple so it was a short and easy walk after it ended. The Pageant doesn't start until 9:30 p.m. because they need it to be dark. But most of my kids stayed up for the whole thing. Britton was fascinated by it. He loved the fights between the Lamanites and Nephities, seeing Moroni on top of the actual temple, and seeing the volcano. If you haven't been to the Pageant lately or at all you should make the effort. We loved it.

We then spent Sunday with our friends visiting. We made yummy breakfast for the dads and had a wonderful lasagna, salad, and bread for dinner. Our kids surely didn't want to leave when it was time. They just keep talking about their friends. They played the entire time and we did very little entertaining of them. They did it all on their own.

Dance Festival at School and Teachers

The Grange Kids at the Dance Festival

Well the year is coming to an end. The end of the school year that is. At Manila Elementary our kids do a fun dance festival every year. The parents all come and each grade does a fun dance. Sometimes they have shirts or different themes. It has been a fun tradition at this school for years. They also announce the top 6th graders and the Student Council for next year. Of course the Dance Festival is always warm. But it is fun.

ASHLYN AND BRITTON'S TEACHERS DANCING
This year the kids teachers all did a dance. I must say that both Mrs. Barton and Mrs. Long have a lot of talent in the dance realm. The kids all thought it was funny.

Britton's Kindergarten class did it to Bearnecessities from the Jungle Book. He was a tiger. Here he is doing a dance move.

Here is also a picture of Britton and his teacher Mrs. Barton

He sure enjoyed having her as a teacher this year. She sure loves the kids

and he loved her.

Here is Ashlyn and her teacher Mrs. Long. Ashlyn thought she was

a great teacher. She loved Third Grade and all the stuff she learned.

Ashlyn's dance was to Grease. They looked like little fifties kids.

Dance Recital

Ashlyn had her Spring Spectacular Dance Recital tonight. It was at a park here in a nearby town. It has a stage and the audience all sits on the hill of grass overlooking the stage. There is a river running between the stage and the audience. It was pretty. I really like it because your other kids can still be loud and it doesn't bother the other people. It was a fun recital.

What a way to celebrate the end of the clogging year. Ashlyn's group performed twice.

She did a great job. She sure loves dancing. At the end they have an awards ceremony. Each year her trophy will get bigger. She was excited to get her trophy this year. She will be taking a few classes this summer and then a new year in the fall.

Ashlyn is in the middle circle on the left side

Tomorrow is the kids dance festival. So we will show you tomorrow how that went.

Hope everyone has a good night. Ashlyn wants to thanks her Grandma and Grandpa's for coming and the rest of the family that came.

Just a normal week

Well it has been a typical week at our house. We have had fun things to do all week. Unfortunately I forgot the camera for some of them. On Monday we had our typical Family Home Evening. The kids actualy still enjoy it. We sang songs, had a lesson and of course had a treat. When we lived in Colorado our Stake Presidency recommeneded that no matter what we should always have a treat at FHE. For one it will always get the kids there. So that's what we always have -a yummy treat.

On Tuesday we had a busy day at clogging. Ashlyn has a dance performance next Tuesday and they are getting ready for that. We then left a little early to head to Softball pictures. Then ran home to eat something fast and went to her softball game. She was walked both times up to bat. But she sure had fun. She is enjoying the social aspects of the sport more than actually playing. But she is doing well.

On Wednesday my in-laws came down to go with us to visit Grandma and Grandpa Granges graves. I didn't know Scott's grandparents but knew Grandpa Grange well. When we were at BYU we went over weekly to visit him. Scott would do the yard work and I would help him cook dinner. It was always a nice time to visit and he told me lots of good stories. It was hard for us when he died. But we will always have special memories of him.

On Wednesday my in-laws came a little earlier so I could attend a Mother Daughter Achievement Days Party with Ashlyn. It was a nice little program and Ashlyn made me a cool oil lamp out of salt dough. I will treasure it. She is getting so big. I just realized how fast the year has gone when I realized she has only 4 months until she is 9. WOW the time flies.

Thursday I went to a women's night out. We had my neighbor a few doors down talk to us about motherhood. She is a mother of 12 and has written several books. I even owned one and didn't realize that she was the author. She was excellent and we enjoyed her. Her name is Jaroldeen Edwards. The book that I own is "Things I Wish I'd Known Sooner." She has written 10 books and some of them were through Deseret Book. She is a good neighbor. We take her little treats quite often. Her husband passed away just a few months after moving into their home. But she is a very gracious women who lets us use her basketball court to play with our kids. It was a fun night and we all were able to socialize too.

Friday was FIELD DAY at the school. The kids were so excited. Britton went to the park and had pizza. Ashlyn had lots of fun with outside games. Thursday she had a read a thon at school and had lots of junk food. The kids then played outside all day.

This memorial day weekend I have thought a lot about my Grandfather who passed away a bout a year ago. I sure miss him. He was a special guy and I admired him greatly. So Grandpa I LOVE YOU!!!

On Saturday we went and hit the Soap sell that my sister in law Heather told me about. We also took the kids to dinner. THey were so GOOD!!! We had yummy food and then went to the mall.

On Sunday we went to visit my Grandma. She is always fun to visit with. Hope all of you had a fun weekend.

Yard Work, visit from a aunt, Mother's Day and Cereal

Well our weekend started out with a day in the yard. Saturday morning we awoke and Scott headed right out to work in the yard. He worked out there all day. I first cleaned the entire house and then headed to the garage to clean it. After that I took the seats out of the van and cleaned the van. A few weeks ago Treyson and his little friend Spencer took buckets of dirt and rock and emptied them into our van. There was about an inch of dirt on the floor. So I did a fast clean up that day but needed to take the seats out to finish the job.

That evening our sister in law Anna, Kristin and my mother in law came for a short visit. Anna was visiting from out of state and she brought her baby Spencer to come and meet baby Brielle. We hadn't seen him since the wedding in December. He has sure gotten big and is such a cutie. It was nice to visit with her. But we sure wish she could have brought her other two kids. My kids were upset that Mackay and Sophie weren't coming.


Mother's Day was wonderful. I got up at about 7:00 to feed Brielle. But she must have known it was Mother's day because she fell back to sleep. I then slept until 8:30 when Scott made me yummy waffles, strawberries and whipcream for breakfast in bed. Here our my sweet kids on Mother's Day.

That evening we had Scott's mother and his Grandma, my mom and dad and my Grandmother for Mother's Day Dinner. Scotts dad is currently out of the country on business. We had a yummy marinated Turkey on the grill, rice, two salads and strawberry shortcake. It was delicous. Scott did almost all of it. What a great guy.

We finished the evening with Brielle eating cereal for the first time. Here is a cute picture of Ashlyn helping her eat. Treyson keeps saying "But she doesn't have any teeth." She didn't necessarily love the cereal but she did eat some of it.

Well that's the past few days at the Grange house.