"Mommy The Sirens Are Scaring Me!"

That is what Braxton said as he sat next to me while I was laying on the couch. I told him to stop and get over it figuring they weren't anywhere close by. Dave came down the stairs and went outside and came to get us. We went out and this is what we saw:
 


This lumber supply store right next door had flames shooting out of the air vents in the roof. The spindles were spinning out of control as the flames blasted out of them and then they began to catch on fire and fall off. We continued to watch as the whole building became completely engulfed and the roof caved in! Within 45 minutes of it starting there was a police officer evacuating our building and we had to leave. I grabbed the formula and some water and a few jars of food for the baby and we walked out to leave. We were going to take the car, but realized that our driveway was blocked and the only thing we could grab was the stroller. We were without anything else. We stood around for hours watching, waiting, hoping that our house wasn't the next to go. The police officer told me that if the winds changed (they did) that it would be in danger. Nothing like worrying your house won't survive the night!

This picture is from our back yard.
 

This is out at the main road across the street from our neighborhood.
 

If you look closely you can see our silver van in our driveway that the police car is parked at! Pretty intense moments......
 

This is what it looks like today, a total loss. They were able to keep the wood in the lumber yard from burning which was wonderful.
 

View from our back door.
 

View from the end of our driveway.
 

This was such a devastation! Our maintenance guy is a nephew of the owner and also works there during the day. Another friend of mine is the owners niece. The owner was out of state at a funeral for his sister's daughter when the fire broke out. He got here when there was nothing left. Two weeks before his niece died, his only daughter's husband died of a heart attack at the age of 28. This family has had much heartache this month and I hope you will all keep them in your prayers. They have it cleaned up so much already today! They've been out there for hours working.

We are thankful to have our home and that it was spared. It really made me think of all the things I should have grabbed in the moment, but didn't. Maybe if there is a next time I will be more prepared!

The Distraction of my Week!!!

This past week I was working on a very special product! Dave's aunt and uncle are adopting an adorable 3 year old girl from China! We are very excited for them. I decided to make her a blanket. I was up until 2 in the morning a few days and put on the binding twice. I finally decided it was ok the way it was and finished it! I hope she likes it!!! Here is the finished product :
 

Pioneer Day Celebrations (There were 2!)....

In Utah we have Pioneer Day on July 24th marking when the pioneers reached their destination. It's a really big deal here! They do fireworks and have large parades. We went to Dave's parents the week before for their towns festivities. These were the fireworks Friday night! We were SO close the ashes were falling on us.

This is the parade Saturday morning. This is the "Pioneers of the Future" float!
 

These pictures are from the next weekend in our town! These are a few of the festivities before the parade. The parade lasted HOURS and there were more than 100 floats. WAY TOO LONG!!!
 

Yes, these are sideways pictures of the boys rock climbing and bungee jumping! They had a BLAST!!!
 

These were the fireworks later that night!
 

An Update...

So I have no idea where the summer has gone! I have thankfully not gone back to work yet since Dave has finished his masters degree and that has been so nice! I don't think we've ever had time where we were all home at night together and weren't rushing away from each other on our way to other destinations. It's been a rare occasion in our family that we haven't both had to work. I do however need to start looking for a job again, I think I've just been stalling hoping that Dave can find bigger and better things first!

Braxton is doing well. He started having some problems toward the end of the school year with being scared of things all the time. He wouldn't go upstairs alone, wouldn't go to the bathroom alone, wouldn't sleep in his room, etc. We finally sought out a psychologist and have been taking him to therapy. They diagnosed him with an anxiety disorder and recommended medication. We started him on meds and they were awful! He was on an EXTREME high during the day and would crash hard at night and cry for hours! The last night we gave him medicine, he was worried about if our parents died and we didn't have any money that our family would be homeless. He wanted to get online and start looking for a job! Yep, 7 and he wanted to find a job! It took a while to calm him down and the next day we talked to the doctor and decided that wasn't the medicine for him! Since he's had a week break from our house and me, he's doing great! He isn't scared all the time and will go and do things alone in the house. He still comes in our room almost every night, but he has a bed on the floor and can't sleep with us anymore.

Braxton's front teeth are FINALLY coming back! He lost them what seems like forever ago and they are starting to come in! He still LOVES games and that's an understatement. He loves to watch Phineas and Ferb on Disney and anything else for a good laugh. We even got him to watch a few scary movies this weekend and to our surprise he actually liked them!

Cole is crazy like ever! He has so much energy and keeps us busy with wanting all the attention and doing whatever he needs to to get it! He likes to pretend he can read, wants to learn to box, wants to become an air bender, and also wants to play basketball professionally when he grows up!

Porter turned 8 months last Sunday! He is getting so big! He army crawls fast everywhere and gets into everything! I'm having to learn how to change a diaper while baby is on the move all over again! I have found him a few times at the stairs trying to climb up them! I think he will fit in well with the other boys as far as energy is concerned! I lasted 7 months nursing him and stopped so I could take some medication that was much needed for my sanity and theirs! He is gaining weight a lot faster now it seems! He LOVES food, but would rather feed himself than have us feed him! He is so fun and most of the time is happy beyond belief! He also LOVES to be held and makes it difficult for us to get things done. If you come over and our house is filthy sorry! I'd much rather have a happy baby that I get to hold than a clean house. Someday......

Dave is glad school is over and is enjoying a nice break! He continues to look for a job anywhere in the U.S. and hopes to find something he likes in the near future. We are thankful for all he does for us and his willingness to support our family!

Sorry for the long post, I'll try not to make them often! Hope you are all doing well and that life is treating you good!!!

Wildfire Anyone?

Yesterday afternoon Dave went to pick up some dinner for us and called to tell us there was a fire outside. Yes, we had been inside ALL day and hadn't noticed that outside just down the road a fire was brewing! Someone shot a gun and it ignited the flames. Today they are still fighting it, but this is what it looked like looking out Braxton and Cole's bedroom window! No homes have been harmed, today the fire is 45% contained.

4th of July Weekend!

Two weeks ago I had surgery to have my gall bladder removed. It was an outpatient surgery, but my in-laws wanted us to leave the boys in Logan for a week while I rested to recover. I couldn't leave the baby and didn't lightly agree to leaving them. I knew that for my sister-in-law, who has 4 small kids of her own, it would mean having two more to watch during the day. We went back on July 1st to get them and stayed for the weekend. On Friday night we went to watch fireworks!
 

Porter waiting for the show!

I'm sad I guess I need to learn how to shoot fireworks with our camera. They didn't turn out good and we have a nice one! 

  

 
 
  On Saturday we helped Dave's dad pour a retaining wall in their back yard. For a few hours that morning I helped! Yes, one week out of surgery I was building a cement wall. It was fun!

 

Porter was helping us that day too!
 

In the afternoon Dave's brother and his wife took us out in their canoe. I went out later with just Dave, but didn't last very long for fear of the canoe tipping. I didn't even think about my stitches and what would happen if we did fall in the yucky water!!!

 

 

Before we left we also got to visit Dave's aunt and uncle who were visiting from Michigan! It was fun to see them for a few minutes! And thanks to everyone who helping in my recovery process! I feel great now!!!