That is about all that we have to report! Hope that you all have a great week!!
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Flake Foursome
It has been a fun week spent in Smithfield. We have had fun watching the hummingbirds and orioles on the birdfeeders, playing on the grass, toddling around the house and going on walks. The highlight was seeing so many of you while we were here. Thanks for making the effort to come and see us. A special thanks to Joe for being Rand's special buddy! And a huge thanks to Emma for helping with getting us up here. Just so everyone knows, she is now a pro at driving a stick shift - after only 2 lessons!!
Sunday, May 24, 2020
Smithfield Scoop
Well, I did write a couple of weeks ago, Ruth, but didn't finish or send it until today. That is why it is a late Mother's Day post... Oh well...
Things have been going forward here. We have been working on our GoalIt goals. It is quite helpful to have an accountability group to report to. Helps us remember to do what we really want to do, but forget about sometimes. Dad is working on some photography, which is SO great! He's trying to capture the perfect photos of birds and clouds and landscapes. I'm focusing on catching up with my extended family and contacting aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, sisters, cousins, etc. Someone every day. It's been a blessing to speak with or text with or email with them and find them all well.
Besides that, and lots of baby deliveries, we are making an effort to improve our landscaping. Thanks to Elise and Lauren for the ideas and labor help! Ian is a rock star at wheelbarrowing loads of rocks, which was a saving grace around here! Lauren, along with Wesley, also is a marvelous rock hound and expert creator of dry river beds. So nice. Elise can tell you about any plant you wish to know about and has been so helpful as we've shopped for just the right plants to put in the yard. We were so grateful to have them all come and help us design the yard, remove rocks, and get things going. It's going to look so different when you come visit again! You're going to love it! Lots of planting, watering, chopping, tending going on - "and loving it!"
We thoroughly enjoyed having Joe and Lori's family drop in on their way home from Bear Lake. It happened to be Joe's birthday that day, so we enjoyed the ice cream cake they brought with them - YUM! We visited on the little deck and were entertained by the humming birds and playing on the hill in the back. We loved having them, even for a little while!
As this is being written, Emma and Jenn (and babies) are driving from Snowflake to Smithfield for a week-long visit! We are very excited to have them come! We even bought a baby gate to put up in front of the stairs to keep our newest walking babies from tumbling down the stairs while they are here.
We spent some time in the cemetery today, taking flowers to Grandma Larsen's gravesite. It's always an interesting thing to contemplate the brevity of life when all is said and done. Speaking of that, we passed one large headstone that had simply the name "DONE" on it. I guess that says it all!
The forecast promises summer temperatures coming up! That will be lovely after the snow we had yesterday. Now the hope is that we can acclimate to a 40+ degree jump in temperatures in just a couple of days.... ☀ It shouldn't be too hard after waiting this long for spring to kick in! We'll just go straight from winter to summer now!
Things have been going forward here. We have been working on our GoalIt goals. It is quite helpful to have an accountability group to report to. Helps us remember to do what we really want to do, but forget about sometimes. Dad is working on some photography, which is SO great! He's trying to capture the perfect photos of birds and clouds and landscapes. I'm focusing on catching up with my extended family and contacting aunts, uncles, nephews, nieces, sisters, cousins, etc. Someone every day. It's been a blessing to speak with or text with or email with them and find them all well.
Besides that, and lots of baby deliveries, we are making an effort to improve our landscaping. Thanks to Elise and Lauren for the ideas and labor help! Ian is a rock star at wheelbarrowing loads of rocks, which was a saving grace around here! Lauren, along with Wesley, also is a marvelous rock hound and expert creator of dry river beds. So nice. Elise can tell you about any plant you wish to know about and has been so helpful as we've shopped for just the right plants to put in the yard. We were so grateful to have them all come and help us design the yard, remove rocks, and get things going. It's going to look so different when you come visit again! You're going to love it! Lots of planting, watering, chopping, tending going on - "and loving it!"
We thoroughly enjoyed having Joe and Lori's family drop in on their way home from Bear Lake. It happened to be Joe's birthday that day, so we enjoyed the ice cream cake they brought with them - YUM! We visited on the little deck and were entertained by the humming birds and playing on the hill in the back. We loved having them, even for a little while!
As this is being written, Emma and Jenn (and babies) are driving from Snowflake to Smithfield for a week-long visit! We are very excited to have them come! We even bought a baby gate to put up in front of the stairs to keep our newest walking babies from tumbling down the stairs while they are here.
We spent some time in the cemetery today, taking flowers to Grandma Larsen's gravesite. It's always an interesting thing to contemplate the brevity of life when all is said and done. Speaking of that, we passed one large headstone that had simply the name "DONE" on it. I guess that says it all!
The forecast promises summer temperatures coming up! That will be lovely after the snow we had yesterday. Now the hope is that we can acclimate to a 40+ degree jump in temperatures in just a couple of days.... ☀ It shouldn't be too hard after waiting this long for spring to kick in! We'll just go straight from winter to summer now!
Smithfield Scoop
Happy Mother's Day to the wonderful women in the Belliston Family!!! How I love and admire all of you sweet, devoted, amazing, remarkable mothers of our grandchildren! Your examples of love and thoughtful mothering inspire me daily. Thank you for all the good you do for so many within and without your family circle. We pray for each of you daily and see the Lord's hand strengthening and inspiring you. It's an overwhelming responsibility, sometimes, to be a mom, but you all do a beautiful job of navigating the decisions and bumps and bruises of the journey. I hope you know how you are loved and appreciated!
Here are some of my favorite things about Mother's Day....
Here are some of my favorite things about Mother's Day....
I had more photos to include, but thought I'd better just get this sent! Sorry to leave Harts, Flakes and T&T out! I didn't have any photos of your families ready on the computer and can't get them to download right now :( I will send them when they finally find their way to my email...
Nilsson News
Okay Lauren, there may be some perks to living further south but there are a lot of perks to living in the far, far north. Okay, yes, there are perks... It's totally and completely unpredictable. Some of the most awesome people you know live here, namely the Harts. And like you said, we like to keep the seasons simple and nice and cool.
This is the snowman the kids built and properly named Olaf. I guess snow does happen in summer just like Olaf dreams and sings about! Thankfully after getting a good two inches of snow, the rain moved in and melted it all. It was so soggy and mushy but by the end of the day, the storm headed on and the sun came out.
Last week we enjoyed some time down by the river and enjoyed seeing a lot of goslings. We have also had fun picking lilacs and tulips from our yard. The last semi pleasant day of the week, we went up to the BUYI gardens and walked around and the kids had a blast as did the adults. This next week we will be tackling our garden. All of the plants have been living in the greenhouse and many of them are becoming root bound. Ground, here we come! Hopefully, we have put winter behind us!
Addy started going to actual clogging class again which she was super thrilled about. She also started horseback riding lessons. Emerson is always working on some invention. He is really trying hard to find all the parts and pieces to build a go kart. Eliza is doing amazing things on her fiddle and is preparing for her first competition the end of June. Henry loves to be outside banging or digging something. Millie does everything she can to keep up with everyone else.
Can't wait to see the little Flakes walking all over! Hope you are all enjoying the summer. We will be soon, I just know it!
Addy started going to actual clogging class again which she was super thrilled about. She also started horseback riding lessons. Emerson is always working on some invention. He is really trying hard to find all the parts and pieces to build a go kart. Eliza is doing amazing things on her fiddle and is preparing for her first competition the end of June. Henry loves to be outside banging or digging something. Millie does everything she can to keep up with everyone else.
Manning Moments
It has been too long since I wrote but here I am finally. It has been a very eventful and fun lockdown I must say. I am such a homebody and can't complain about having Nick home all day! If we get back to "normal" it will feel very strange.
Some of the things we have done during this time are:
Minimizing!!!! I am loving it. Thanks Ruth! My life is forever changed.
Wesley learned to ride a bike and is learning how to read and write. He is amazing.
Chet is learning how to yell even louder. That is the normal volume when talking. It can be anxiety promoting but it is still cute. He tries to keep up with Wesley in every way and keeps everyone laughing. He is obsessed with the lawn mower and weed eater.
We have had mud fights, pillow fights, water fights and flour fights. I am getting used to parenting boys and I love it.
Nick took his hunter's education course and is dreaming about it all the time. His passion is to become a mighty hunter. He and his friend went coyote hunting and they were both clueless. When they came home empty handed they were deflated and I had to chuckle. But they will get the hang of it I'm sure.
We planted our garden and have loved the beautiful weather. It does pay to live a little further south.
Nick got me a really nice bike trailer/stroller for our anniversary and it has been a blast to ride and walk with it and the boys love it too!
We have gone the Manning's cabin a few times and have done lots of family things.
It was great to see Jenn and her cute family! We have seen mom and dad a few times and had a blast working on their yard! Good times!
I think life is very nice in the slow lane, just focusing on the essentials and being with family.
Hope you all have a wonderful Sabbath and I can't wait to see you soon!
Some of the things we have done during this time are:
Minimizing!!!! I am loving it. Thanks Ruth! My life is forever changed.
Wesley learned to ride a bike and is learning how to read and write. He is amazing.
Chet is learning how to yell even louder. That is the normal volume when talking. It can be anxiety promoting but it is still cute. He tries to keep up with Wesley in every way and keeps everyone laughing. He is obsessed with the lawn mower and weed eater.
We have had mud fights, pillow fights, water fights and flour fights. I am getting used to parenting boys and I love it.
Nick took his hunter's education course and is dreaming about it all the time. His passion is to become a mighty hunter. He and his friend went coyote hunting and they were both clueless. When they came home empty handed they were deflated and I had to chuckle. But they will get the hang of it I'm sure.
We planted our garden and have loved the beautiful weather. It does pay to live a little further south.
Nick got me a really nice bike trailer/stroller for our anniversary and it has been a blast to ride and walk with it and the boys love it too!
We have gone the Manning's cabin a few times and have done lots of family things.
It was great to see Jenn and her cute family! We have seen mom and dad a few times and had a blast working on their yard! Good times!
I think life is very nice in the slow lane, just focusing on the essentials and being with family.
Hope you all have a wonderful Sabbath and I can't wait to see you soon!
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Flake Foursome
It has been a crazy couple of weeks. The weather has gotten warm so we spend as much time as we can outside...without too much sun burning. It is a delicate balance.
The big news is that Rand is walking
He is still a little shaky but he is quite happy to be walking. Robin is more cautious but is standing and taking a few small steps from time to time.
Rand also has 4 teeth which he now likes to show off.
Scott started his new job and seems to like it. It is a little weird to start a job when all of his coworkers work from home for the most part. But he is getting things done which is fun.
The big news is that Rand is walking
He is still a little shaky but he is quite happy to be walking. Robin is more cautious but is standing and taking a few small steps from time to time.
Rand also has 4 teeth which he now likes to show off.
Scott started his new job and seems to like it. It is a little weird to start a job when all of his coworkers work from home for the most part. But he is getting things done which is fun.
Nilsson News
Where is everyone? Shouldn't we be posting on this blog like crazy since all we are doing is sitting at home quarantined? Totally kidding. I can hardly believe that May is halfway over! We are enjoying an actual springtime with temps mostly staying in the 60's with an occasional 70. We haven't planted much in our garden but we may be brave and plant our watermelons this week. I discovered a new way of propagating plants and that is through tip cuttings. Something totally new to me and I am super excited to try it!
About a week and a half ago, we flood irrigated for the first time this season. The kids always have a blast playing in the water and it brings back all the good times we flood irrigated growing up. Do you remember the scuba flippers, Lauren? It was epic. The kids played out there all day and were soaking wet by the end of it. Fast forward one week and Millie started acting not normal. She had no energy and wanted me to carry her everywhere. Then, she started having the most severe case of diarrhea I have every seen and that last for four days. She had no fever but started throwing up. After putting all the puzzle pieces together, we realized that she had giardia from playing in the canal water. This conclusion was confirmed when Emerson and Henry both got some symptoms as well, though not as severe as Millie's. It was NO FUN! Sometimes it's rough to let kids be kids. Anyway, that has been our week and Millie is now on the mend and doing so much better.
Addy had her piano guild yesterday where she played seven memorized pieces for a judge, played any kind of major and/or minor scale that was requested and had a two page sight reading piece she had to play. It was an intense 45 minutes but she did great and felt really good about it. She was very concerned about it, not having had live piano lessons for over a month.
We are gearing up for summer with a long list of projects. We have been working really hard to get our farm put together and more manageable. We have had a lot of people contacting us about purchasing some donkeys and had a few stop by for a visit. I wish we had more foals available because right now we have about six people on a waiting list. Some want to make a deposit on foals that haven't been born yet! It is a good dilemma. Addy is going to help make some videos about the farm and miniature donkeys in particular. We will try to post some when we get them done.
Well, we hope you are all staying healthy and well. Enjoy the sunshine and summer that is well on its way!
Our neighbor's cats are reproducing like crazy and they have made their nests in our hay stack. They are kind of cute and the kids have enjoyed playing with them. There are three new litters and when all is said and done, there will be around twenty cats next door and they don't know boundaries very well. We may need to get a dog...
About a week and a half ago, we flood irrigated for the first time this season. The kids always have a blast playing in the water and it brings back all the good times we flood irrigated growing up. Do you remember the scuba flippers, Lauren? It was epic. The kids played out there all day and were soaking wet by the end of it. Fast forward one week and Millie started acting not normal. She had no energy and wanted me to carry her everywhere. Then, she started having the most severe case of diarrhea I have every seen and that last for four days. She had no fever but started throwing up. After putting all the puzzle pieces together, we realized that she had giardia from playing in the canal water. This conclusion was confirmed when Emerson and Henry both got some symptoms as well, though not as severe as Millie's. It was NO FUN! Sometimes it's rough to let kids be kids. Anyway, that has been our week and Millie is now on the mend and doing so much better.
Addy had her piano guild yesterday where she played seven memorized pieces for a judge, played any kind of major and/or minor scale that was requested and had a two page sight reading piece she had to play. It was an intense 45 minutes but she did great and felt really good about it. She was very concerned about it, not having had live piano lessons for over a month.
We are gearing up for summer with a long list of projects. We have been working really hard to get our farm put together and more manageable. We have had a lot of people contacting us about purchasing some donkeys and had a few stop by for a visit. I wish we had more foals available because right now we have about six people on a waiting list. Some want to make a deposit on foals that haven't been born yet! It is a good dilemma. Addy is going to help make some videos about the farm and miniature donkeys in particular. We will try to post some when we get them done.
Well, we hope you are all staying healthy and well. Enjoy the sunshine and summer that is well on its way!
Our cute little foals that will be going to new homes in June.
Here is our new farm logo!
Love you all!
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