Unloading my phone pictures:

We finally started to feel better around here but really only just.  The kids still have nasty coughs and Charlie still wants to take a occasional just before dinner nap.  When he does that it seriously messes him up for the night but when he doesn't he's a monster all day.  Lately he's asks me about a million times a day, "mom, can I punch Wren just a little teeny tiny bit?"  "just a little punch?"  Um, no Charlie!!  At least he asks first I guess?

We've just been hanging out in the yard most the time since it's taking the kids forever to get their energy back.  That's ok with me.

Jack and Charlie play this game where Jack fills up water balloons and throws them at Charlie and they both laugh.  That's a symbiotic relationship..

 

 One day after we'd started getting really tired of being home I went with my brothers kids to Trafalga.  Ugh, that place is super fun until suddenly it isn't.

That moment usually happens in the arcade area and it's usually when Lottie wins big on the ticket wheel and Jack doesn't and the tears start coming.  That's when I know that we are absolutely positively NOT ready for Disneyland!!

A few days after that my mom went to girls camp.  That was a loooooooong week.  I just like having my mom around all the time that's all..  Lottie feels the same way and when she fell and scraped her nose on my nieces long board she kept crying for my mom.  Poor Lottie.

I was so desperate for some amount of control that week that I came up with a new reward system.  They have to do these 5 things every day and if they do they get 5 tickets.  They can earn tickets for doing other things too like extra chores or just being found doing something extra awesome.  We call the tickets wallywoggles by the way.  Then once a month I open the wallywoggle store and they can use their tickets to buy things.  The things range from a piece of candy for 5 tickets, to new Wii games for 150 tickets.  So far it's working great.. We'll see how it goes.

Also, I just love my Wreni.  She is the sweetiest, easiest baby I've had yet.  Such an angel..

Last weekend we took the kids to Orem's Summerfest.  The kids had tons of fun although it seemed to me like a very long, very hot, product placement parade. 

The stuff we do for our kids...

Then we got to see the fireworks which are always really good.  Here's Wren with my beautiful niece Lexy.  She's going on a mission in September.  I'm so proud of this girl!

Everyone loved it except for Ivy who seriously didn't.  She is such a drama queen. 

The next day was fathers day.  Amazingly this is the only picture I have of John on his special day and it's just of his arms.  After a very long and frustrating morning and early afternoon with our kids we went over to his parents house and played the rest of the day away.  Ugh, my kids.....

Then wouldn't you know it, Jack woke up this morning with some kind of stomach bug.  I spent most of the day cleaning up all kinds of horrible things from the bathroom and some from his bedroom and some from my bedroom and some from the Chevron station on 800 North.  I had to run a few errands this afternoon and this happened in the back of the van.  This is unheard of from Jack and Charlie.  Also, a side note about Jack, today I noticed that a big, thick scab from his knee had finally come off and I said to him "cool Jack, you lost your scab!"  "I pulled it off " he said.  That made me curious and I asked "where did you put it when you pulled it off?" "In my bugger stash under my bed!" On my, I hope to never have to see that!  Boys...

Last but not least, John and I finally did it.  We bought our very own house!  It wasn't at all like I thought it would be, or how it's portrayed on HGTV's House Hunters.  We didn't have a realtor showing us stuff, we didn't have a bidding war with another family and finally get that call that it was ours.  What actually happened is John's sister noticed the family setting up a garage sale one night and she asked if they would be selling the house too.  They said they would and she looked at it, heard the price and came and got John and I right away.  John handed the guy some earnest money right there and we closed about a week later. 

A retired couple has been living in it for the last 35 years, so although it's not exactly my style and everything a little outdated it's spotless and well taken care of . 

We're going to replace the flooring and paint everything and we plan on moving in by the end of the summer.  We're going to have so much fun making this place our own and giving our kids a nice quiet street to ride their bikes on.  It just so happens to be up the street from Johns parents house so that will be fun too.  Lot's more pictures (before and after) to come!