Saying goodbye

We've had a week of packing suitcases, packing up the house, cleaning the house and wrapping things up for our move and in the midst of all that, we've had to say goodbye to people we love.  This weekend is one of the last weekends we have in Utah and we saw Uncle Greg, had dinner with the Swensens and saw all the Beutler family all in a couple days.  It was so fun to see Greg and catch up with him.  We're going to miss him when we're gone!

The Swensens have become like family to us and we just adore each of them.  They are our go-to Tilly sitters whenever we needed one and Christine and I were in the young women presidency together.  We have grown to love and rely on them so much as friends and neighbors and I'm so glad we got to spend an evening together before we go. We love each of them and hope they can come visit us while we're gone.  That would be such a treat for us!

And Robin hosted a last family dinner for all of us to gather together.  Almost everyone was able to be there so it was a great going away party.  We loved being together.  And hated saying goodbye :(

So many good people that we are going to miss but will be so glad to keep in touch with them while we're gone!

 

One last ski day

We know that our time on the lake is coming to an end, and part of the family was busy today.  But those of us that were available snuck up to the lake one last time while the weather is still good and summer time hasn't run out.  We got there just as the sun was rising and the morning was a beauty.  We only stayed for a few hours, but it was enough to get us all in the water and do something that we wanted to do to end the ski year.  What a day!

 

Girl's trip

I snuck down to St. George with my besties this weekend for a much needed girls trip!  I say much needed because:

1) We're celebrating two of these ladies' birthdays in a few weeks so why not do it in trip form?

2) It has been a whirlwind summer and sometimes we need to get away to actually see each other

3) I'm moving away :( And what is the very hardest part for me to imagine is living my life without these 3 women in it. 

So...off we went for a few days to unwind, catch up and enjoy some good company.  And along with that we saw Joseph at Tuacahn (which was absolutely amazing), got pedicures, went to the temple in Cedar City, ate delicious food, laughed and laughed our heads off, and cried a little bit when we got to the subject of me moving away for a while.  These ladies are some of the most important people in my life and I am trying to be strong when it comes to leaving them behind for a period of time.  We see each other almost every day and at the very least I'm on the phone with each of them every single day.  When I say they're a big part of my life, I mean it.  They are who I turn to for advice, for guidance, for unconditional love, for workouts, for laughter, friendship, cups of sugar or anything else I may be in need of.  I am going to miss them dearly.  This weekend was such a perfect time to be together and kick off our year of being apart.  Love you all to death!

 

Staples

Desh is my tag-a-long to basketball almost every time I go.  He is always the one who wants to go and hang out at the church with me while I play.  Today he was playing with the other kids and tumbled off a table they were playing on and his his head against a ladder standing next to them.  It was unfortunate placing and timing to hit just the right way to open up a big gash in the back of his head.  After getting the blood slowed down a bit, we took off to the instacare to see what they had to say.  After some numbing gel and a little down time to lay on the comfortable doctor's table he was feeling good enough for the doctor to look at it and put 3 staples in to close up the gash.  He did great and even walked out of the office with a smile on his face!

 

Oakcrest

Rhen headed off to Oakcrest camp this morning with her friend Claire.  Oakcrest is a camp for 7th grade girls and they spend a week together with hundreds of other 7th graders sleeping in cabins, learning, playing games, singing, and doing all sorts of fun things with awesome counselors in charge.  She has been so excited to go and I'm so glad she gets the chance to do this with one of her darling friends!

 

Trip to Washington

Josh and Dixie took a last minute trip to Washington this weekend and took Liev and Keen with them on the roadtrip.  Our nephew Davis was having his mission farewell and they really wanted to be there.  So off they went and were so excited to be on a trip together!  Mostly they were there to see family, but of course did some other fun things while there.  They picked blueberries at a blueberry farm and got bags and bags full of berries.  Josh took the boys to visit some of his old favorite spots where he used to live including this little gas station/ice cream shop called Buds.  They ate at Burgerville (of course) and jumped from the bridge and rope swing at Lake Merwin.  It was the perfect trip to take these two older boys on and I know they will remember it forever! 

 

Nightgames

Tonight we had an epic game of Fugitive with lots of neighbor kids, cousins and friends.  I somehow always say yes to being the driver and I always have fun doing it! Quite a crew and quite a night.

 

Pokemon

Our boys loved Pokemon.  They're totally into trading, playing and sorting their cards all the time.  Desh decided that I needed a binder of my own with some starter cards.  So he sat me down and gave me his old binder and a few cards and then explained them all to me.  How to sort them, which ones are good, which ones I should try to get and all his secrets.  It was the most adorable thing for him to take the time to teach me about this thing that he loves.  I was so honored to get him as my personal pokemon coach.  

 

Boat week Day 5

We knew today was our last day on the lake and we wanted to make it a good one!  Bright and early like usual we pulled into the marina and got out to Baby's Bottom before any other ski boats were there.  Josh had an awesome run and Rhen got back up on the ski for another day - and of course got better as the day went on!  Liev continued his quest for a wakeboard jump and looks so good and comfortable on the board.  

The kneeboard is a favorite afternoon activity and all the kids can do it easily.  They love to battle with each other or try new tricks or just see how long they can ride without falling.  It's so great to see them all out there having fun!

We took a break for a "family swim" and got into a jumping competition.  Everyone tried new and crazy jumps while I caught them all on camera!  It was a blast to see what everyone came up with!  We swam and jumped and ate snacks and suntanned until late afternoon.  It was the best day to end our ski week on. 




We LOVE our days on the lake and especially this week that we get to stay at the cabin as well and just be together.  Our kids are getting so big and grown up and we've almost outgrown this boat!  But to think of getting a different one makes my eyes tear up just a bit because our kids have grown up on this boat!  We have so so many memories made here.  Who knows, maybe we'll keep it forever!  For now, we just love the time we're on the boat at the lake.  It's my favorite family time!

Boat week Day 4

I love being on the lake on "off days" for everyone else.  Monday we had the lake basically to ourselves as everyone else headed back to work!  The water was great for most of the morning and we got lots of time to ski and wakeboard, even for those that were just learning.  Rhen got up on the slalom and did AWESOME!  She got to have good water to help her try to get up and after a couple tries she did it.  Then she caught the bug.  She's hooked!  Rease is looking so good on the slalom too and gets better and better every time.  She out-skis all of us except Josh.  She'll rip through any type of water, but today she got some really smooth water to show off her skills!

Keen and Beck both wakeboarded and did great!  Keen was getting really good last summer and picked up right where he left off.  He looks more comfortable every time he goes.  And Beck tried for the first time this year and got up and held on for a good little run!  I love to see my kids try new things and catch on to something that they really want to do.  Liev loves to wakeboard and this year his goal is to jump.  So that's what he worked on all morning and is getting pretty good at it.  He's also taught himself to switch feet mid-ride and can switch back and forth like a champ! Mid afternoonish we pulled out the small skis and let Desh try to ski for his first time.  I was in the water with him to help him get up and it took a minute for him to figure out how to balance things.  But after a try or two, he did it!  And then skied and skied for a couple of minutes all on his own!  What a day for the Beutler boys!!

And then I found these pics of this beauty.  What a crazy girl!

Boat week day 3

Today we took a break from the boat for Sunday.  Church and resting was on the agenda and we got a surprise visit from Aunt Hayley, Uncle Caleb and the kids!  We played games, walked to the park, played on the hammock and enjoyed cousin time.  So fun to have them!

We had planned on having dinner with mom and dad up at Heber Valley Camp today so we all headed up together and enjoyed a great Sunday afternoon on the mountain.  We had dinner out on the patio by their trailer and then Papa took us on a nature walk down to the lake and on the trail around it.  It was a great way to spend our day and, again, we're so happy to have them close enough that we can visit easily!

Boat week day 2

Chad and his boys came up to meet us at the lake today and it's not always in the cards to have them with us.  So we're so glad that timing worked out to have them join before they head back to Boston.  It was a gorgeous morning and getting out first thing is always the key.  Chad had a picture perfect ski session with the sun just rising on him and the water.  Rease rips it like usual and I just try and keep up!  Wyatt tried out the wakeboard and did a great job!  He had some good long runs and kept looking more and more comfortable as the day went on.  

Rhen, Nolan and Liev all took their turns on the wakeboard and Josh got in a great ski run before the water got choppy.  Then of course we had to the tube out and for the rest of the day it was Josh's goal to dump as many kids from the tube as possible.  He managed to get Rhen and Wyatt off on one turn and did pretty good at making it hard for Rease and Nolan.  I just always hurt when I watch kids on the tube.  I don't think my body could handle it at my age!  

Such a fun day with the Losee's with us!  I'm so glad we got to be together one last day!

Boat week day 1

Our most favorite week of the year is here and we can't wait to spend it on the lake and at the cabin which is our happy place away from home! Today was our first day on the water and we got there early enough that Papa could sneak down from camp for an hour to get the first water of the day.  It's always a pleasure to have him with us and I'm so glad he's close enough that it worked for him to meet up with us.  Smore's in the evening around the fire is a must and we are just looking forward to the down time that this week affords us!

Girls Camp

Girls camp 2022 was at Camp Haven and what fun it was! I was recently released from young women's so wasn't sure I would be going to camp, but was called shortly after to be the assistant camp director so camp was back on the schedule!  I love camp and I always love being with my own girls so I was so happy to be there.  Camp Haven is fun! I've never been but it is a bit like a small Heber Valley Camp.  Missionaries run all the activities but on a much smaller scale.  There were 10 couple missionaries there and they were all so awesome.  We just fell in love with them being there! We had such fun activities planned for the few days we were at camp.  We did the giant swing, the high ropes course, the hatchet throw and also had a confidence course that was really great for the girls.  

One night we had a special speaker come join us and he was a darling boy that shared such a great message about self love and confidence.  Not only did he have a great message but he also happened to be really good looking, so of course every girl fell instantly in love with him! Jaden was all we heard about for the rest of camp!

One of our favorite courses was the archery course.  We all loved learning how to shoot and seeing how close to the target and bullseye we could get.  Some girls got really close, but most of us were just happy to hit the target at all!

We ended with a really powerful testimony meeting and faith walk that was just amazing for all of us that were there.  I am so grateful I got to be a part of this with my own girls and all these incredible women that came!

 

Family Reunion

This year our family reunion was stay-cation style and turned out to be super fun!  We're going to join mom and dad up at Heber Valley camp for the weekend, so decided to stick around the valley and do some things from home until then.  The week started out with a movie to see the new Top Gun.  We all grabbed tickets and loved sitting together and sharing popcorn and treats!

Chad and Britt were in charge of the activity the first day and Britt set up a private tour of some of the church sites in Salt Lake.  Her parents are missionaries downtown and give tours to guests that come to visit the state, so they gave us their best tour!  It was super fun.  We got to see welfare square, the main bishops storehouse and the dry canning center.  It was really pretty incredible to see all that the church does by way of welfare for so many around the world.  Very eye opening for all of us and made me so proud to be part of such a great organization!

Hayley and Caleb hosted the next day and organized a water kickball game in the field by their house.  We had a blast!  The bases were swimming pools and to get home we all had to slide down the slip and slide.  It was a perfectly hot day so the game was just what we all needed.  Such a fun time!

Josh and I planned a trip to Seven Peaks for our day.  I haven't been to seven peaks for such a long time and I'm not sure that our boys have ever been.  It was so great for the cousins to be together and ride all the big rides with each other.  Some of us adults rode along with the kids but mostly I loved seeing them group up with different ages and just have fun together!

Saturday morning we headed up to Heber Valley and got checked into our cabins for the night.  Then mom and dad took us to do all the fun things throughout the camp.  We did the zipline, the giant swing and the ax throwing.  And of course, spent half the day at the lake which is the area they are zone leaders for.  They have done such a good job making it fun and exciting and we had the best time being there with them!  We soaked each other with super soakers and tipped canoes.  We chased after each other and some adults tried to hide behind little kids so they wouldn't get wet.  But in the end, we were all wet from head to toe and happy about it!

Saturday night we had smores and woof em's and ate and ate and ate until we were stuffed.  We loved being outside in that gorgeous spot and taking in all the things that mom and dad have been up to on their mission.  They are certainly loved up there and we're happy to loan them to everyone for a short time so they can have that experience!  Such a fun family reunion even if it was a different style than normal.  Just a blast to be together!

Beck's birthday

This boy turned 8 today!  It's great to be 8! Beck always seems to have his birthday right in the middle of something going on.  This year his day was smack in the middle of our family reunion.  Good news? He gets all his cousins to celebrate his birthday with him!

My favorite things about 8 year old Beck:

1) Beck has a brain in that head of his!  He is smart and does really well in school, but is also very logical and thoughtful about all he does.  He can figure things out in an instant and sorts through riddles and puzzles and story problems easily.  Twists in movies are easy for him to see coming.  Multiplication and division? A cinch.  He is just brainy and I love it so much!

2) Beck is quiet and keeps to himself a lot of the time, but always has time to hang with his mom.  He gives me a hug every day after school and will kiss me square on the lips still.  He is sweet and kind when he wants to be and I try to remind him that his mom always wants him to stay that way.

3) Beck is competitive!  It's almost a given, with 3 brothers.  But he wants to win and HATES when he doesn't.  Card games, video games, bike riding, coloring contests...no matter what it is, he wants to be the best. I'm really trying to teach him to not be quite so intense sometimes, but that competitive spirit is built inside him.  I kind of love it :)

8 year old stats from Dr. Erickson:

Height: 4'8" - 98%

Weight: 72 lbs. 9 oz. - 90%

BMI: 16.5 - 65%

Happiest birthday to my sweet Mr. Beck!

 

Black eye

Desh took a head to the eye today and got the bad end of the deal with this cool black eye.  He's sad but I keep telling him how tough he looks with it.  

 

Trek

We got home from Puerto Rico just in time to get ready for Trek!  Josh and I were called as Ma and Pa and Rease and Rhen went as trekers.  It was THE COOLEST experience to be a part of.  The girls each got put into a different family and as Ma and Pa we had a family of our own with 8 other kids from the stake.  We ended up with kids that we didn't know but very quickly got to know each of them and love them for who they are.  We were also given a baby doll right from the beginning that we were supposed to treat as a real baby.  One of our girls Elise took charge of that baby (Johnny) and was the best little mom.  

The trek part was hard and hot and dusty but we had plenty of stops and lots of water and food to go around so it was definitely manageable.  Some of the kids struggled more than others but for the most part our family was amazing.  One of our boys got blisters the first day and then kind of spent the rest of the trek in the medical tent being treated for those and soaking in all the attention he could get :)

Each family was given a huge, and I mean HUGE, tarp which was how we made out shelters at night.  We learned quickly that we had to work together to get that thing put up and taken down every night but we figured it out.  We would prop our wagon up and tie one side of the tarp to the wagon then stake down each side and the back to make this cool tent to sleep in.  

We had fun activities all week but by far the most fun was the square dancing night!  All the kids gathered in a huge circle and danced and danced into the evening.  It was a gorgeous night to sit out and watch them all together.  

We had family time, spare time, sleep time, and social time when we got to camp and we were able to see Rease and Rhen really often throughout the week.  

There was a kite flying day which was super fun and the women's pull that was such a sweet experience to be a part of.  The girls in our group were just amazing and just kept going when it was hard.  We learned a lot about ourselves during that pull.  

We also ended up with a real life experience that was crazy.  That last afternoon when we pulled into camp to set up our tent for our last night over,  Josh said he wasn't feeling well.  He laid down for a bit after the tent was up and just continued to feel worse.  The medical team took him in and let him rest in the med tent for a while and then decided that they probably better test him for covid just in case.  Sure enough the result came back positive!  They asked him if there was anyone that could come get him so he could leave camp THAT NIGHT so he didn't get anyone else sick.  Isn't that the craziest? Josh's parents drove up and picked him up back at the parking lot that we started at and just like that, we were without a Pa.  It was so crazy to relate that experience to real life pioneer stories about families that really lost a parent on the journey.  Our kids stepped right up and didn't miss a beat making up for Josh being gone.  I truly truly felt the Lord with us that last night and the next day as we treked home.  

We had an absolutely amazing time on trek and feel so grateful that we got to be a part of that.  It is something I know we will never forget!

 

Boondocks

Boondocks for the annual work party is always a blast and great fun for the kids!

 

Stitches

Keen had his stitches taken out today by none other than Uncle Ty with his pocket knife! Steady hands and a sharp knife did the trick and saved us a trip to the instacare...

 

June in PR day 18

This morning we got up early to head to the airport.  Our flight left super early so we had to be out of the house by 4:30.  We had one last hoorah last night and pulled our new mattresses out to the family room upstairs and slept together in the air conditioning for the first time!  It was magical.  For the first time since we've been coming to the house here, we had a small glance of what it may be like someday when the house is actually done.  It was so fun to sleep together and enjoy that! The kids are excited to be back in Utah for the summer and fit in all the fun summertime activities before we make the move down in August.  So excited for what lies ahead for us!

 

June in PR day 17

Today we did a few last minute things that needed to be done before we head out early tomorrow.  One thing we did was meet with the railing guy Carmelo and walked through the plans to get new railings put in when we get back in August.  He is a great guy and does really good work and we trust him completely.  He walked through the whole project with him and he showed us how and where he would do that railings and we even added a little gate and a ladder up to the water tower on the side of the house.  It's going to be so great and look awesome to have the new rails done! We scheduled with him to have them put in just a couple days after we get back in August.

We went to the ward party tonight and played chair soccer out on the blacktop.  The missionaries and a few of the other members were there and we had a great time with them tonight.  We have grown to love these people so much and can't wait to be a part of the ward permanently.

We have had such a great month and gotten a lot done while we've been here.  I wish we could say that we could live upstairs when we move back, but unfortunately there are still a few things to be done before we can do that!  But it's getting close.  I can feel it!

June in PR Day 16

This morning Josh and I took some time to visit a bunch of schools and finally get down to deciding where we’re going to send our kids in the fall. I’m not sure why we’ve been so slow getting this done but it’s probably because we had know idea where to start with the whole process! In the end, we finally just decided to take a day and go look at our options. We visited a few private schools close by, which were nice but not exactly the feel that we’re going for. Part of the reason we want to be down here with the family is to get into the culture and enjoy all the island has to offer. Most of the private schools teach in English and we’re hoping that the kids can learn Spanish while we’re here. Plus…I don’t want to lay for private school! Anyway after visiting a couple schools we decided to go away from that route and try some of the public schools close by. There is a school that we pass every time we go down the hill from our house but we’ve never known which type of school it was. We stopped in there first and it turns out that it’s the middle school for 6-8 grades. We talked for a long time with the secretary and principal and even though it was all in Spanish and I didn’t understand everything being said, we both felt really good about the wohoo and the administration there. We walked around the courtyard and asked lots of questions while we toured the grounds. The principal is a really nice woman who seems really patient and kind but firm and we really loved her. As hard as it will be for the kids to jump right into a Spanish only school, we really felt like this was more of the route we were hoping to go with schooling. The principal directed us to the elementary school and the high school which are both just down the road as well. We stopped in to both of the other schools and had really similar experiences while visiting those. All three of the schools our kids need to go to all have great administrative staff who are friendly and helpful and have a good feel about the schools. Not that the schools themselves are super fancy, opposite actually. All concrete with doors that open to an inside courtyard, some peeling paint here and there and a little run down on the edges. But that’s what we’ve come to love about this island is that we can take it the way it is and just love it anyway! We feel good about this direction we’re headed!

Part of going to public school is that they each require uniforms, and different ones for each school. So we took some time this afternoon and tried to find a few uniforms that we could cross off our list before we head home. Rhen was less than thrilled when she learned she has to wear jumpers to school. Rease also has to wear jumpers or skirts and the boys all have to wear pants and collared shirts. It will definitely take some adjusting to this new set of school rules!

Tonight we had the missionaries over to help us with a service project (hauling all our newly delivered tile up the stairs) and then dinner after. We sure appreciate and have grown to love this set of elders here!

We stopped at the beach this afternoon after we shopped and ended up at Luquillo Beach this time. It was really calm with barely any waves or wind but really fun too! Any beach time, whether its short or all day, is a good time for us! We have sure fallen in love with this place and know there may be some growing pains when we actually move over. But in the meantime we’ll try and enjoy the moments that make us smile!

June in PR day 15

For Father’s Day yesterday we gave Josh and the boys matching swim trunks. Most years he gets matching ties with the boys but I thought this year swim suits would fit the setting a bit better :)

We spent some time at Hectors again today and swam for a couple hours before their renters checked in today. We always love some good time with Kim and Hector when we can get it!!

We’re trying to finish up a handful of projects this week and get a few loose ends tied up. We know that we are in a time crunch to get things done since the next time we come it will be for real! Josh worked on fixing the stucco on the water tower to prep it for a new coat of paint, we primed the back wall of the house and had to reach with our longest extendable handle to get up there, finished putting handles on the cabinets upstairs and the boys made homemade sling shots!  All in all a day full of lots of successes!