August 2022

August was a full month.

And it started with a hike. I had to take this picture, because while I love hiking table rock. my children do not. And Emmie actually agreed to go with me on this day!

August was a big month for Owen because he turned 16. But in true 16 year old fashion, he spent most of the day with his friends. Which is great. I'm glad he as good friends. He went to his first cross country practice that morning, and then his friend Logan took him for a pedicure and a couples massage...(hmmm). They said it was super awkward but neither one was brave enough to go into a room by themselves! After their outing we met them at my parents house. I brought over pizza and drinks and there was supposed to be a swim party. The party was a bit of a bust, school sports started that day and between that and peoples work schedules not many people could make it, and those that did didn't bring swim suits. But the kids seemed to have fun eating and hanging out. After that we had some family time, we went with my parents to eat at Cafe Rio and then back to our house for cake and presents. Everyone was so full that no one touched the cake, but Owen did get to open presents. He is obsessed with Nike shoes right now, so he got another pair of those. (Funny story...I accidentally wrapped the wrong pair of shoes. I wrapped up a ridiculously expensive pair that Owen and John won in a shoe drop that they needed to return. So we had to take those away and then give him the right pair. Oops!) He also got some shirts and some bracelets. After presents...I got the stomach flu and spent the rest of the night in the bathroom. But I seem to remember that Owen got back together with his friends at some point. Thankfully I made it through his birthday before I got sick, and thankfully no one else got it! 

The long awaited summer camping trip finally happened the week after Owen's birthday. Sadly, we got rained out. Like torrential and constant downpour rained out! But we were able to have a little bit of fun as well. We left Leo with my parents (thankfully) and headed up to my not so secret Northwest passage campground north of McCall. I've had a plan for this camping trip for a year. Little did I know that mother nature had plans of her own. We got there on a Wednesday night. The weather was gorgeous (and the bugs were thick) but we spent some time on the river as soon as we got camp set up. The river north of the Payette Lake is gorgeous and so amazing to kayak. That night the water was amazing. We had dinner that night and enjoyed playing Sequence, which was a good thing because that was the only game in the trailer and we forgot to grab any others.

The next morning we got up and spent some more time on the river. And then slowly that afternoon the rain came. And then it refused to leave. I have never been in such pounding rain when I was camping. We ended up covering what we could and hunkering down in the trailer for the night. There was so much water that even our shoes that we had put under the trailer to stay dry were soaking wet. The next morning we woke up to a soaking camp. SOAKING!!! But we got dressed and pulled on our wet shoes and headed over to Ponderosa State Park for a hike. The hike was great. We hiked for about 5 miles, and then the rain started again for about the last mile. It started as a sprinkle, and then it POURED again. And we had left a lot of our gear out in the sun to dry when we left...that was a mistake. After an hour of downpour, the clouds parted and we went into town and visited the rock shop (where I bought a pretty white stone bowl to hold my rings and remind me of our wet trip) and got some ice cream at Ice Cream Alley. At this point we decided to call it. We were soaking wet, all of our stuff was soaking wet, our wood was wet, our chairs were wet, and we didn't even have any dry towels. 

So we threw all of our wet stuff into bags and into the truck and trailer and drove home. Where we unpacked everything and set it out in the sun to clean it and let it dry. And then, since my parents felt bad for us, they made us some hamburgers and built us a campfire, since we hadn't had a single one the whole time we were camping. It was a true "Welch Family Camping Trip"!

And then....there was a mad dash to get everyone ready for school. 

The begining of the school year was tricky because Ainsley had to leave for check-in and freshman orientation on the same day thatSchool started. Ainsley and I left for Provo on Owen and Emmie's first day of school. Which was kind of a bummer for me. To be honest, I was a bit of a wreck. Sending your oldest off to college is not for the faint of heart! Everyone says that your 18 year olds are so difficult and frustrating that your ready for them to go. But I never felt that way! I was just sad!

Owen: 11th grade

Emmie: 7th grade

Emmie and Elsie off for their first day of 7th grade.

Emmie, Molly, Aly, and Elsie. This crew walks to the but together every morning.

Ainsley: Freshman in College

Ainsley drove the Scion down to Provo and I drove the van. Both cars were full with all of her stuff. I was a little sad that we had to drive separately, but I think it ended up being a good experience for Ainsley to drive that far by herself. For someone that had previously refused to drive on the freeway...she handled the 6 hour freeway drive like a champ. 

As soon as we drove into BYU we got her checked in and started unloading her things. It took us a few hours and several trips. We were both hot and sweaty and exhausted by the time we got it all up to her room. That evening we were starving and went to get some dinner and went to the grocery store to get her some food. After getting her parking figured out and just a bit settled, I headed back to John's parents for the night and she got to hang out with her roommates. Two of her roommates were staying there that night, Hanna (in her room) and Maya (the self proclaimed sleeper and gamer). They went out that night and got some martinelli's and made some brownies and invited over the neighbors...which made me so happy!

The next morning I woke up early and made a run to Target and Ikea to grab a few things that we realized she needed. I got to Provo that afternoon and helped her finish up her room. She did a good job!

The view out of her bedroom and kitchen window are incredible. I told her to enjoy the view because it might be quite a while (or maybe even never) before she ever has a daily view like that again. 

I took Ains around to find her classes that afternoon, but we were so hot and tired that our hearts weren't really into it. Colin and Melanie were getting there that evening, so we met up with them and went out to dinner. And Ains got to meet Colin's roommates. They are a fun group of guys, who Ains and a few of her roommates had fun with during orientation, but then the fun fizzled a bit after Hannah overstayed her welcome and they weren't really invited back much anymore. It was kind of strange, but Hannah and Colin started spending TONS of time together, even though Colin's girlfriend was moving there from Georgia the next week. But I guess at least they had friends to do things with for the first week of school!

Ains is sitting in the bottom left of this picture. Somewhere in the 'foot' of the Y.

That night after dinner I said my final goodbye to Ains. It was so hard! I was so excited for her and so sad all at the same time. I didn't want her to see me sad, but I failed at that and started crying when I had to hug her good-bye. I was grateful to be able to drive back to Salt Lake with Melanie that night or I think I would have just cried by myself for hours. 

The only thing that has made Ainsley leaving home easier was seeing how much fun she was having...more on that later.

When I got home, we were in full school mode. Cross country and soccer were in full swing and life continued on as normal. Except we were missing someone.

But the good news is that Ains calls almost every day as she walks home from campus. And I love hearing from her! She loves being on campus, is loving her classes, is having fun with her roommates, joined a needle point club all by herself, and has waffles and watches survivor with Colin and another girl every Wednesday. She is thriving!

July 2022

As soon as we got home from the Dinger Family Reunion we dove right into the 4th of July. Leo was happy to be back at my parents...he really likes it there. And we like that my parents will watch him for us when we go out of town. 

It was our smallest 4th of July gathering ever...kind of sad! But we tried to make it fun. We still had the traditional breakfast and swimming, my parents got some fun games for the pool, we made fancy snow cones, played games, and had a bbq that night. We made the mistake of being lazy and agreeing to go watch fireworks at the Markus's (my parents neighbors and family friends). It was super awkward, and luckily the only lame part of the day. Next year we will do better. 

The weekend after the 4th I took Owen and Emmie and Elsie up to the Flake's cabin. Brooke invited us along with some other friends, and it was great. The kids spent hours and hours out on the water, and I enjoyed being at the lake and hanging out with friends. Being at the lake is probably my favorite summer activity. And it didn't hurt that Brooke's cabin was gorgeous. 

Then, mid July, Heather flew to San Diego with me for a little adventure. Heather is a saint. I needed someone to fly down to San Diego with me to buy an old car from Syd and Cy (their old Toyota Scion that Kort and I drove across the country years ago and that Ains and I drove all around New England when I took her there.) and then drive it back to Idaho with me. We spent a few days in San Diego before heading home. We were able to take some walks on the cliffs at Point Loma, and go to the beach to hunt for Sand Dollars, and we even got to go to Sea World!   We also got to help Syd and Cy pack, since they were literally leaving for their move to Michigan days after we left their house. 

Heather was great company, I we talked for the entire time. It was nice, I don't even remember what we talked about, but somehow we managed to visit for 5 days straight!

Syd and Cy stopped in Boise on their drive to Michigan so we got to see then for a few days. We went to Quinn's pond for some swimming and Kayaking, hiked table rock, and spent lots of time at my parents pool. It was a quick visit but nice to see them in Boise for a bit. 

 

June 2022

 Summer jobs of Ainsley and Owen

June got off to a slow start...and if I'm being honest, was kind of a lame and boring month. 

Quinn's pond and a bike ride on eagle green belt at the end of the month to make it feel like summer when it finally started to get warm.

The week after graduation and at the beginning of June Ainsley got her wisdom teeth out. And I am the super lame mom who forgot to take a single picture! She got out of school a week before the other kids, so I figured she had plenty of time to kill and that would be a great time to get them out! While she wasn't thrilled about getting them out, she was super happy when I picked her up! She just kept saying that she was bummed that she wasn't "high" as she kept calling it. Although, seeing as she isn't usually that chipper, I'm certain that she was indeed a little "high". And I laughed our loud when she was trying to drink a smoothie and I turned to look at her and she had smoothie all down her face. When I started laughing she just said, "What?! I thought I was doing so good!" She looked like a toddler with food all down her face and couldn't feel a thing. It was hilarious.

This year brought a cold June. It felt like summer hadn't really started because it was often chilly. The weekend after school got out Emmie and I headed to Rexburg for another soccer tournament. I procrastinated booking somewhere to stay, so we ended up staying with Heather's cousin. I was super grateful! It was a quick trip and a lot of soccer (the girls played 3 games) but I think Emmie had a good time. 

While Emmie and I were in Rexburg, John and Owen were in Salt Lake. Owen and his friend Logan had bought tickets to and AJR concert months ago, so John drove them down for the bug event. Theirs was a quick trip as well. I got home with Emmie on Saturday and we had a girls night of Tin Roof Taco's and the old Top Gun, and the boys were home by Sunday afternoon. 

Ainsley finished her first major cross stitch, which I think turned out awesome.

And then promptly started on her next one.

I was thrilled with my raspberry and blackberry bushes this year. For being in a pot they are doing great and giving me just enough berries to keep me happy.

We spent some time this year putting together this book for my day. And I think my sisters and I spent hours laughing. We filled it with pictures of everyone in the family looking ridiculous. And then we thanked him and told him we owed all that we were to him. The pictures are all horrible and the opposite of flattering and will hopefully bring a smile to anyone's face who might be having a bad day.

Other than that, June was spent working. I continued working for Savvy, Owen took on more hours working at the Grove Hotel and began working on his on-line class, and Ainsley started teaching swim lessons during the week and then worked at the hotel with Owen on Saturdays. And poor Emmie was bored. 

And then finally, the last few days of June summer finally really started. Emmie left for Girls Camp and John, me, Ains, and Owen, headed off to Bear Lake for a Dinger family reunion. I was super sad Emmie wasn't with us, but the dates were exactly the same and so sadly she had to chose. I don't have any pictures to share from girls camp but Emmie came home super excited and had a great time. 

The reunion was a success as well. Melanie found us an awesome house that had private beach access. And she planned a lot of super fun activities. 

There was a Dutch Blitz tournament that took place over several days and got pretty intense since there were gift cards for the winners.

And then there were hours of games played at all hours of the day. The Hunsakers traveled with a full size suitcase full of games.

There were two visits to Le Beau's for milkshakes.

There was a family trivia night.

A trip to the Minnetonka Caves.

And even a power point presentation night where each family shared a power point presentation. Topics ranged from the Bear Lake Monster, to the grandkids as super heros, to insane assylums, and even animals of Australia. However, I have to admit that we might have won (even though it wasn't a competition) with our fictitious presentation about the secret lives of cereal mascots. Thanks to Ainlsley's photoshop skills and John's creative writing.

Somehow I had never been to Beak Lake before this, and now I want to go back! It was beautiful! The water was gorgeous and so fun to swim in (but cold) and the scenery was beautiful. And as an added bonus we got to drive through Lund and see the area where my Grandpa grew up...which was gorgeous as well.

May 2022

May brought with it warmer yet temper-mental weather and a graduating senior. 

Owen was extra busy and finished up his track and tennis season. He also spent a lot of time sleeping. I'm surprised he didn't wear out his mattress. His tennis season started out strong and he won his first match against Mountain View. He played singles this year and did a great job. If he wants to do tennis again next year he'll be guaranteed a spot on Varsity. At his track meets he competed in the 800 and the mile. He loves to run, but he's never at the front of the pack. He wasn't able to beat his nemesis, but he was happy with his times and did great for trying to do 2 sports at the same time. 

Owen also got a job with some friends. He got a job doing housekeeping at the Grove Hotel downtown. He worked with his friend Emma and Clara. I was a little nervous about it at first, but Owen was working with friends and said it was a super easy job...which he loved. But after hearing some of his stories I don't know that I ever want to stay at a hotel again! Ewww!

Emmie created a piece of art to auction off at the YW ward fundraiser with the help of her art teacher. (Spoiler alert...her art piece sold. To her parents, because we couldn't part with it.) Emmie's works of art are slowly but surely filling up our home. Which I love.

We got a late snow this year and I snapped this picture one night while I was walking Leo during Emmie's soccer practice. I loved how we had green grass and snow covered mountains for a few days. 

Emmie ran track and did soccer this spring. However she only got to compete in 2 track meets. We had my grandpa's funeral during one track meet and she had a soccer game during the other. She ran hurdles and seemed to enjoy it. I'm guessing she'll do the same thing again next year.

End of year band concert for Emmie. 

John and I also let Ains and Owen stay home alone while we took Emmie to Idaho falls for a soccer tournament. And this was the only picture I took. I went on a walk one morning with another mom and snapped this picture. The tournament was so windy. SO windy. We lost horribly and spent hours in the wind. But the good news was that we stayed in a big and super fun house with several other soccer families and the girls all had a blast. 

I also attempted some yard work. This photo is proof that I am my father's daughter and can't seem to leave bushes and trees alone. My pruning efforts often end in messes like this. 

The good news is...somehow this bush grew back beautifully. So maybe my pruning efforts are actually more skilled than I realize.

And finally graduation. 

Ainsley graduated from seminary with 2 other kids from our ward. Ainsley was a bit of a lone wolf in our ward youth program. She was the only active senior girl and didn't hang out withe the only other senior boy. To be honest, she really didn't like going. But she did it...and now she get to move on to bigger and better things in college!

John's parent's were in town for Zach's mission farewell, so it was a nice treat to have them here. We went to his farewell that morning, Ainsley's graduation that afternoon, and then Zach's open house that night.

And then finally on May 27th graduation day came. And from what I can tell it was a success. Ainsley had to go to school that morning for a rehearsal with all of the seniors. Then she came home and had time to get ready for that night. 

The ceremony was at the Ford Center in Nampa and was pretty good for a graduation. The speakers did a good job and the ceremony was over in less than 2 hours. 

After graduation we all went to a Japanese steak house for dinner. Which is always fun because its a dinner and a show. 

Then we came home and Ainsley opened a few gifts and we watched a video that Owen and I made of her whole life. It was LONG! But super fun to watch. And after that Ainsley headed out with her friends to the Senior all night party. This year the kids went to Wahooz and had food and played all the games until about 4 in the morning. And with that...Ainsley's high-school journey came to an end. Which is completely bitter-sweet.