Busy Busy

What a weekend! We're trying to make the most of July 2009 before it ends. We started at Hogle Zoo with BFF's Rachel and Henry. I kept my eye on Henry who kept putting the moves on Gracie. I don't want any funny business until the we sort the dowry out. Anyway, the kids had a great time, even if ours were whiny. Isaac asked for days to see the kangaroo, but the darn thing wasn't out and about. On the ride home, I asked if he had fun, he replied, "didn't even see the kangaroo." He was also disappointed he couldn't kiss a snake, don't ask me where that came from.

Then Justin took off with his brothers and some friends to Causey Reservoir for a quick canoe trip. They canoed to the far side of the lake and camped a night. While there, they did some cliff diving. Brian was the most ambitious, but they all went off the "high one." Trying to make them jealous for leaving early, Randy J. sent the best shot of the bunch on a cliff they missed. Yikes!

Last but not least we made it to the fireworks at Weber State in Ogden (our alma mater). We gave Isaac the full tour and promotional brochure; we hope for the sake of our pocket book he becomes a wildcat. We couldn't believe the scope of campus improvements, its beautiful! For those of you that don't live in Ogden, Weber puts on a symphony by a large pond with cannons out on an island. The lead-in piece to the fireworks is the 1812 Overture, with canons to finish it off. Grandma "Suz" and Brian joined us. Needless to say, our kids have NEVER been up anywhere close to that late.

We may need next weekend to recover!

The Lodge

We spent last weekend in Victor, Idaho at "The Lodge." The Lodge is a huge cabin on one of Great Grandpa Johnson's old farms. He gave the land to his 12 kids and their spouses so that family would have a place to gather. As a kid, I spent at least a week every summer sassing Great Aunts, fishing in creeks, hunting mice and causing trouble with my cousins.

The weekend was full of cool mountain air, sports, greasy hamburgers and screaming kids. There were 10 kids under the age of 5 - Isaac was in heaven. He has begged every day to go back. We all decided that next year needs to include a few extra days. Sorry for the picture overload, but cousins will want to steal pictures!

The great part about The Lodge, but more about our family, is the complete lack of pretension. No one is shy to pick up a guitar and start a song or participate in activities. No one worries about make-up at breakfast or a flawless golf game. Or more likely, we all lack a measure of inhabition that results in our mutual embarassment. I don't really know, but I like it.

Ripeness is All

This is why we LOVE having a garden! I know, there are a lot of pictures here. So, we'll just let them tell the story.

Mmmm...homemade raspberry ice cream!

Peasant or Pioneer Explained

So, I've been trying my hand at sewing cute little girly dresses for Grace. I think they've turned out cute. But, Justin, on numerous occasions, has mentioned that several look like pioneer dresses and Grace is a 'cute little pioneer baby.'

I was starting to get a complex. Perhaps I thought they were cute just because I was the seamstress, but really they were pioneerish. Thank you friends, now we know that not all handmade clothing looks pioneerish. Justin admitted that he's got no clue about the difference between pioneer and peasant, he just liked to push my buttons.

Another Rammell Family feud settled on the blog. THANKS :)

Peasant or Pioneer

Peasant or Pioneer dress?
I just want and/or need your opinions about this dress. Leave a comment. I'll explain later.

4th of July

We spent the 4th in the Uintahs, in a meadow near Middle Beaver. Isaac had an absolute blast riding the 4 wheelers, roasting marshmellows, and going on walks with Uncle Wayne. We did a short hike to a lake where Di perfected her fly cast (she's a natural). We had an afternoon hail storm that brought a river through our tent cutting us a night short and made getting back to the road a little difficult. But no worries, we still had a great time. The best part of the trip for me was the 4 hour nap I took in the tent, joined half-way through by Gracie. The best part of the trip for Di was getting the kids in a post-camp bath.

We unfortunately forgot our camera but the iphone saved the day once again. And as a bonus, the phone records location of the picture by GPS. If you click a picture, the photo location map shows right where it was taken, COOL!