Memorial Day in Idaho

The day after school got out, we headed to Idaho for a fun vacation. My mom had knee surgery at the beginning of May. The bone tumor that she had removed two years ago came back, and they had to operate again. It was frustrating and sad to get the news, but I knew that she could handle it because she already had once. It took a lot of work to rehabilitate it the first time, but they were catching it earlier, so we were hoping it would be easier this time around. I wished I could be at home to help her during the first few weeks, but couldn't get away. When school finally ended, I thought maybe she could use a pick-me-up after being mostly confined to the house for a few weeks. After I told my siblings that we were headed up for Memorial Day, the idea started to spread, and nobody wanted to miss the party. It ended up that my entire family (minus Ben on a mission) spent the weekend on the farm. Even Uncle Grant and Aunt Sharon came up for the weekend to attend cousin Taylor's mission homecoming, so it was a full-out party. It was so fun, and I think mom was really happy to have everyone home. We made sure to help with all the meals, dishes, cleaning, etc. so that she wouldn't have to worry and overdo it and could just enjoy time with her kids and grandkids.

We had a hot dog roast outside, played lots of games, rode the Mule (like a golf cart), went on a bike ride, went yard saleing, flew kites, blew bubbles, and went swimming. It was a great weekend, and I'm so glad everyone was able to get together. My kids love their Grandparents and love the farm.

Jonathon had to get back to work, so he went home with Uncle Grant's family on Monday afternoon. I decided that I would stay with the kids for a few more days. Since we had nothing planned, it was nice to just play it by ear. My mom was so happy to have us their for a few more days. It was much quieter after everyone left, and it was fun having more time for the kids to spend with Grandpa and Grandma. Our days were spent jumping on the trampoline, collecting chicken eggs, and riding in the tractor with Grandpa. We also redecorated the living room, went fishing at the Snake River, went to McDonald's for the kids, played more games, and taught Christian how to drive the Mule.

The one downside to my staying longer was that I had to drive home by myself with the kids. I was nervous about doing it alone, but in the end everything went smoothly. Hyrum and Andrew had a bit of a meltdown just before Burley, but we stopped and ate lunch, and that quickly improved their moods. We made it home in 6 hours with no problems. Thank goodness! We all missed Jonathon, so it was a happy reunion.