Happy Fall Y'all!

This! The kids wanted to get a final camping trip in. So Chad, being an incredible father, planned and executed a backyard firepit, marshmellow roasting, camping adventure. And that night we had our first freeze. Just a couple weekends after our Labor Day adventure, we woke up Sunday morning to ice on the ground and all over the tent! 

Fall! I love fall so much! And it has been a beautiful one! Full of LOTS of soccer! Oh my goodness there has been so much soccer! Ebony played on a competitive team through Bonneville Youth Soccer League. They played in Pocatello, Rexburg, Blackfoot, and clear across town. She had 2 practices a week with a game each week on average. However she sometimes had 2 games a week and even once had 3, ending the season with a 3 game tournie on Saturday. McKinley also played and had a practice and game each week. It was nuts! But so fun. Chad coached McKinley's team and it was fun to see them doing something they loved together. Mickey got a little distracted on the field which wasn't his favorite thing LOL but she loved being out there and it is fun to see them sharing an interest, we will see how long it lasts! Ebony actually maintains her same team for Spring which will be great! They didn't win any games this fall but they sure played hard and they improved so so much!

Jaedyn is experimenting still with photography and I love how she captured the bee with the flowers!

We had a ward peach fest party and Chad and I won the cornhole tournie... that had everything to do with Chad and very little to do with me LOL. These were our trophies, aren't they so cute?

We picked apples and plums at the Decker's house and came home and made plum jelly and plum syrup. We also canned cinnamon applesauce which turned out so yummy! The kids loved the process of making the applesauce and were all eager to take as many turns as they could on the Victorio saucer!

Fall always brings General Conference and the Allreds invited us to their cabin this year again. The Fall colors were so beautiful! The talks were so inspiring! And all the TV was exhausting! LOL So in between every session I put on my hiking shoes and took off to get fresh air, increase my heart rate, and enjoy the beautiful crisp fall air and colors. The pix just don't do it justice but trust me, it was jaw dropping. 

We have so much fun with the Allreds. Our kids have been friends since they were babies and it is so fun to see them pick up and rekindle relationships now that there is distance that separates us. They just get along so well and seem to have a lot of fun together. We really enjoy the get togethers and wish that life allowed them to happen a little more frequently!

Lilia has been doing baptisms at the temple as much as she can and I love that she has good friends who feel the same. Here she is with one of her besties, Audryn. We live on the corner of the school boundaries so a lot of my kids friends end up split and going to a different middle/high school. Audryn was supposed to. When I found out she had gotten a boundary exception I was so excited and reached out to her mom in grateful surprise. Her mom responded, "She wasn't about to do middle school without Lilia". I love the love!

Spontaneous photo shoot of this gorgeous cowgirl. Chad and I were out doing yard work when she appeared all gussied up. Chad quickly took advantage and I was so grateful for a father turned photographer who recognized and captured such a precious moment.

Soccer. So much soccer! LOL We had to get out a few times and cheer on the girls high school team who stars our friend and neighbor Brinley as a freshman! And her father, our bishop, as coach.

Fall is a very good time to get out and enjoy The Greenbelt. And we wanted to take Ane to experience and enjoy it too. 

So one Saturday afternoon we went out with our roller blades and then Chad surprised them by renting some time on the scooters. Jae and Ane cruised with huge grins for as long as they could.

This was my photo shot... right before my blades decided to swiftly travel down the slight hill without my consent and land me flat on my back. If you look closely you might see my shadow shift to that position... I swear it was right as I clicked the pic.

I love our property, the established trees, the space, it is wonderful! But it is SO MUCH WORK. And there are SO MANY LEAVES! Ha! But this year, this year I had so much help with the leaf clean up! It was so very very lovely! These 3 girls worked for hours looking forward to a trip to Bath and Body Works to each pick out a thank you gift. So worth it! Plus it was a fun trip! But I really appreciated all their hard work and positive attitudes! Many hands really do make light work! But they also make the work more enjoyable! I love adventuring with these kiddos. But I'm also rather fond of working alongside them too!