I read through your posts and feel like our weeks are so boring! But, boring or not, here is our report. Our garden is finally starting to sprout and we are pretty excited about it. We have lettuce, spinach, carrots, broccoli and some cover crop outside. The greenhouse has tomatoes and peppers sprouting and almost ready for transplanting to bigger pots. We also have a rogue onion that decided to finally emerge after a year or two! And we planted some turnips on a very hard spot of ground to see if we can break is up at all. We'll see! Scott has been learning a bit about no-till gardening and we may try our hand at it next year.
We did some branding on Saturday which was fun. One of Scott's 7-year old second cousins came with us and she was a hoot! She was quite concerned for the calves and didn't like the smell of the branding but she was a trooper and helped out.
On Friday night we had a couple of other second cousins come visit and that was also really fun. They are 11 year old twins and kept us laughing the whole time they were here. When their dad came to get them they ran away & he stayed and played games and chatted with us for about an hour! Good times.
I think that's about it for us. We are excited to see everyone in a couple of weeks!
Monday, April 30, 2018
Sunday, April 29, 2018
Hart Happenings
Hey all!
My apologies for our too-long hiatus. It took me quite a while to catch up on all the blog posts we've missed! Never a dull moment in this clan, I swear.
This week has been full! We started off celebrating Alex and my anniversary. 13 years. And with three boys the perfect way to celebrate is to have your oldest child split his chin open and have a member of the bishopric stop by on his way home from work (emergency room doc) to stitch him up on your kitchen island. Then watch the next son kill it at his soccer game, and finally end the day on a helicopter ride with the best ministering brethren the world has ever known. Unbelievable! I couldn't make this stuff up people.
Compared to that Monday, the rest of the week was tame. Play day with the cousins, moving the chickens out of the kitchen (praise the Lord), prepping the yard of the airbnb houses, and hosting a baby shower for a friend who is pregnant with her 5th baby (after 4 boys finally a girl) definitely worth the celebration!
The weather was spectacular this weekend so we spent the bulk of it outside. We got the sprinkler system up and going again. We trimmed up all the tall poplars on the perimeter of the property and had a commercial chipping machine come and chip up all the branches. The boys were freaking out! It was an amazing piece of machinery! We began ripping out the hedge on one side of our garden. It lets in so much more sunlight!
Ian had fun playing night games with his friends on Saturday night after we attended our first ever gender-reveal party for our friends' kittens. Yes, that is right, and heavy on the irony. It was HILARIOUS! I'm still laughing about it. You would love the couple that hosted it. They are probably the funniest, best people I have ever met. And the wife is from Cove. Not surprising, right? So fun!
We are reading Summer of the Monkeys right now and laugh our heads off through every chapter. So great to revisit those classics that I remember Mom reading.
Can't wait for the Gathering and we are also super excited for all of you entering new chapters of your lives. Thomas (new job), Joe and Lori (new job and house), Mom and Dad (for real empty-nesters, new house, retirement). Big changes like that can provide so much impetus and momentum into whatever lies ahead. Lots of positive vibes and energy coming from us to you guys!
See you in a couple of weeks......
My apologies for our too-long hiatus. It took me quite a while to catch up on all the blog posts we've missed! Never a dull moment in this clan, I swear.
This week has been full! We started off celebrating Alex and my anniversary. 13 years. And with three boys the perfect way to celebrate is to have your oldest child split his chin open and have a member of the bishopric stop by on his way home from work (emergency room doc) to stitch him up on your kitchen island. Then watch the next son kill it at his soccer game, and finally end the day on a helicopter ride with the best ministering brethren the world has ever known. Unbelievable! I couldn't make this stuff up people.
Compared to that Monday, the rest of the week was tame. Play day with the cousins, moving the chickens out of the kitchen (praise the Lord), prepping the yard of the airbnb houses, and hosting a baby shower for a friend who is pregnant with her 5th baby (after 4 boys finally a girl) definitely worth the celebration!
The weather was spectacular this weekend so we spent the bulk of it outside. We got the sprinkler system up and going again. We trimmed up all the tall poplars on the perimeter of the property and had a commercial chipping machine come and chip up all the branches. The boys were freaking out! It was an amazing piece of machinery! We began ripping out the hedge on one side of our garden. It lets in so much more sunlight!
Ian had fun playing night games with his friends on Saturday night after we attended our first ever gender-reveal party for our friends' kittens. Yes, that is right, and heavy on the irony. It was HILARIOUS! I'm still laughing about it. You would love the couple that hosted it. They are probably the funniest, best people I have ever met. And the wife is from Cove. Not surprising, right? So fun!
We are reading Summer of the Monkeys right now and laugh our heads off through every chapter. So great to revisit those classics that I remember Mom reading.
Can't wait for the Gathering and we are also super excited for all of you entering new chapters of your lives. Thomas (new job), Joe and Lori (new job and house), Mom and Dad (for real empty-nesters, new house, retirement). Big changes like that can provide so much impetus and momentum into whatever lies ahead. Lots of positive vibes and energy coming from us to you guys!
See you in a couple of weeks......
...And Loving It
What's up what's up what's up?? How's it going family? Anything crazy happening?
Crazy thought - I leave in 16 days! How cool is that?? I finally have my flight inventory and everything, so I fly out of SLC to Mexico on the 15 of May at 9:37 AM! Woot woot! It'll be great! I'm taking all the advice I can get so if you have any more, send it my way :)
Hey y'all, thanks for all the birthday wishes! They were awesome. Also, happy 2nd birthday to Wesley! I heard he got some pretty legit "baketeball" stuff so I'm sure he's happy about that :) My birthday was pretty great. Mom took me out to breakfast, then I went to Olive Garden with my roommate and some friends, then me and the girls went and got pedicures! Sista's, we've got to go get pedicures! I love them so much! Overall it was a pretty great day until we played Secret Hitler and I lost :( Jk jk jk, it was great ;)
This past week was dead week and it's now my favorite week of the school year. SO nice. Except I still had tests so that wasn't so great. But I think I'm passing all my classes so that's a blessing! This weekend, I saw Infinity War and it was............ UGH if I say anything then I'll spoil it all. Let's just say it made me super mad and it's in two parts so I won't be able to see it until I get home. Alex and Thomas, don't you dare spoil it for me while I'm gone.
On Wednesday, I had a great conversation with an institute teacher, Brother Winward, about my mission. I mean, most of you have served missions, so I hope you remember that it can be pretty nerve wracking to go! I'm super excited but it's still kind of scary. Mostly I'm just concerned that I won't live up to expectation and that would be super super awful. Anyway, he gave me a book by Sheri Dew titled "Amazed by Grace." I'm sure most of you have read it, but if not, you should! It's so great! I feel like we talk about grace a lot, and some people make it more complicated than it needs to be. One thing Sister Dew says is that grace "is never dormant. It is not suddenly unleashed when we sin or need help." That reminded me of what President Monson said about Heavenly Father's love. He said something to the effect that though we may not feel that we deserve His love or presence, it is simply always there. It's also the same idea of the Atonement and repentance. Christ has already paid the price for our sins; it's already been done. Anyway, it's so great and the gospel is amazing. You all have at least 7 years of experience on me, so just let me know your thoughts and such. Love you all. Hope you have a great week.
Also, sorry for the super annoyingly long post. My bad.
Crazy thought - I leave in 16 days! How cool is that?? I finally have my flight inventory and everything, so I fly out of SLC to Mexico on the 15 of May at 9:37 AM! Woot woot! It'll be great! I'm taking all the advice I can get so if you have any more, send it my way :)
Hey y'all, thanks for all the birthday wishes! They were awesome. Also, happy 2nd birthday to Wesley! I heard he got some pretty legit "baketeball" stuff so I'm sure he's happy about that :) My birthday was pretty great. Mom took me out to breakfast, then I went to Olive Garden with my roommate and some friends, then me and the girls went and got pedicures! Sista's, we've got to go get pedicures! I love them so much! Overall it was a pretty great day until we played Secret Hitler and I lost :( Jk jk jk, it was great ;)
This past week was dead week and it's now my favorite week of the school year. SO nice. Except I still had tests so that wasn't so great. But I think I'm passing all my classes so that's a blessing! This weekend, I saw Infinity War and it was............ UGH if I say anything then I'll spoil it all. Let's just say it made me super mad and it's in two parts so I won't be able to see it until I get home. Alex and Thomas, don't you dare spoil it for me while I'm gone.
On Wednesday, I had a great conversation with an institute teacher, Brother Winward, about my mission. I mean, most of you have served missions, so I hope you remember that it can be pretty nerve wracking to go! I'm super excited but it's still kind of scary. Mostly I'm just concerned that I won't live up to expectation and that would be super super awful. Anyway, he gave me a book by Sheri Dew titled "Amazed by Grace." I'm sure most of you have read it, but if not, you should! It's so great! I feel like we talk about grace a lot, and some people make it more complicated than it needs to be. One thing Sister Dew says is that grace "is never dormant. It is not suddenly unleashed when we sin or need help." That reminded me of what President Monson said about Heavenly Father's love. He said something to the effect that though we may not feel that we deserve His love or presence, it is simply always there. It's also the same idea of the Atonement and repentance. Christ has already paid the price for our sins; it's already been done. Anyway, it's so great and the gospel is amazing. You all have at least 7 years of experience on me, so just let me know your thoughts and such. Love you all. Hope you have a great week.
Also, sorry for the super annoyingly long post. My bad.
Monday, April 23, 2018
Flake Fun
This week was fairly normal but our weekend was amazingly productive! Scott did some plumbing fixes on Saturday morning & then hit some of the weeds with weed killer. We stopped at the cousin's house but they had people doing professional insulation so we didn't stay long. Then we worked on our front island (it is getting closer to completion!), took a long bike ride and planted potatoes. By that time it was dark so we relaxed for the rest of the evening.
The weather has decided to warm up a bit so we enjoyed being outside quite a bit. It did freeze a couple of nights last week though. We're not sure if our apple trees survived.
Funny story of the week: We went on our Sunday morning walk through the back field. The cows were kind of bunched together and didn't get out of the way very much. And they were being quite noisy. We walked past them & headed up a small hill. I turned around & looked back and the entire herd was following us! It looked like we were taking our cows out for a walk!!! They followed us all the way around the field and back! Quite the sight I am sure!
Our fish survived the winter and are quite big. It is fun to watch them and they are quite the attraction to visiting neighborhood grandchildren.
I had an interesting scriptural insight yesterday. I was actually reading the Ensign & came across a scripture about pruning the olive trees. It said something about not cutting off all of the bitter branches at once lest the root overtakes the branches. The article interpreted this to mean that we need opposition so the Lord won't remove all of the hard stuff from life. But the thing that came to my mind was that we don't have to tackle all of our sins, shortcomings or flaws all at once. Take them down one branch at a time & make sure that they are really gone & that your tree is still strong before you tackle the next one. Sometimes I have a habit of looking at everything that I want to change about myself & getting overwhelmed by the size of the task which brings feelings of worthlessness, self doubt & despair. That is definitely not good for my "tree". Interesting thought.
Anyway, love you all! Can't wait to see you in a few weeks! There are plenty of nice big houses for sale in Snowflake if anyone is interested! (And housing is significantly cheaper here!!)
The weather has decided to warm up a bit so we enjoyed being outside quite a bit. It did freeze a couple of nights last week though. We're not sure if our apple trees survived.
Funny story of the week: We went on our Sunday morning walk through the back field. The cows were kind of bunched together and didn't get out of the way very much. And they were being quite noisy. We walked past them & headed up a small hill. I turned around & looked back and the entire herd was following us! It looked like we were taking our cows out for a walk!!! They followed us all the way around the field and back! Quite the sight I am sure!
Our fish survived the winter and are quite big. It is fun to watch them and they are quite the attraction to visiting neighborhood grandchildren.
I had an interesting scriptural insight yesterday. I was actually reading the Ensign & came across a scripture about pruning the olive trees. It said something about not cutting off all of the bitter branches at once lest the root overtakes the branches. The article interpreted this to mean that we need opposition so the Lord won't remove all of the hard stuff from life. But the thing that came to my mind was that we don't have to tackle all of our sins, shortcomings or flaws all at once. Take them down one branch at a time & make sure that they are really gone & that your tree is still strong before you tackle the next one. Sometimes I have a habit of looking at everything that I want to change about myself & getting overwhelmed by the size of the task which brings feelings of worthlessness, self doubt & despair. That is definitely not good for my "tree". Interesting thought.
Anyway, love you all! Can't wait to see you in a few weeks! There are plenty of nice big houses for sale in Snowflake if anyone is interested! (And housing is significantly cheaper here!!)
Sunday, April 22, 2018
Manning Moments
The last little while has been pretty low key. We built a little fence around our chicken coop and we will be putting our chickens outside because they are getting so big! Nick is quite the handyman and he figured out all the little particulars.
We have been taking a hypnobirthing class from a lady in our ward and she is a hoot! We just laugh the whole class which is really fun. My favorite quote from last week was "labor doesn't have to be a fish flipping experience people!"
Wesley is a basketball nut. I have never seen anything like it. We take the basketball everywhere with us: the store, the library, on walks, to bed, etc. We have only gotten basketball books from the library lately and he just pores over them. He notices everything that slightly resembles a ball or a hoop. It is so funny! We are getting him a little hoop for his birthday this week and I am so excited I can hardly wait. The only problem with the obsession is that he doesn't sleep well sometimes. He wakes up crying for his ball or really early because he wants to play ball.
Life is good. Can't wait to see you all!
We have been taking a hypnobirthing class from a lady in our ward and she is a hoot! We just laugh the whole class which is really fun. My favorite quote from last week was "labor doesn't have to be a fish flipping experience people!"
Wesley is a basketball nut. I have never seen anything like it. We take the basketball everywhere with us: the store, the library, on walks, to bed, etc. We have only gotten basketball books from the library lately and he just pores over them. He notices everything that slightly resembles a ball or a hoop. It is so funny! We are getting him a little hoop for his birthday this week and I am so excited I can hardly wait. The only problem with the obsession is that he doesn't sleep well sometimes. He wakes up crying for his ball or really early because he wants to play ball.
Life is good. Can't wait to see you all!
HP HQ Highlights
Today I had a few mini-meltdowns. Seems I couldn't control my sudden weeping moments. They just came, uninvited and unexpected. I will blame most of that on lack of sleep due to allergies that keep me up much of the night. I suppose most of the distress came because of the realization that not only is Dad retiring soon, and not only are we moving to who knows where, and not only is Emma (our baby) leaving for a year and a half, but they are all happening simultaneously - and 2/3 are happening without our planning for them. Makes for some excitement and anticipation, but today it only made for some fairly melancholy feelings.
We are still driving around every day to look at homes and lots for sale and for places to rent. We think we may have a rental lined up. We just have to check out the particulars. Whether we build or buy, we will likely need to rent for a short time (or perhaps a long time). That takes up several hours some days. But we are also cleaning things out and getting rid of some stuff, packing other stuff. It is a big, big job to clean out and pare down 30 years of accumulated belongings. Thank goodness I'm not a "keeper" of lots of things. But I have kept more than I thought!
The weather is delightful and Dad spent yesterday mowing and tilling and I weeded a bit in the front. It feels good to be outside without a jacket. It's just a teaser, I'm sure, but we are enjoying it!
Plans are brewing for our Gathering! Please let us know when you plan to arrive and leave so we can pack the activities into the time when most of us will be here. You won't want to miss some of what is on the schedule.... :)
We are still driving around every day to look at homes and lots for sale and for places to rent. We think we may have a rental lined up. We just have to check out the particulars. Whether we build or buy, we will likely need to rent for a short time (or perhaps a long time). That takes up several hours some days. But we are also cleaning things out and getting rid of some stuff, packing other stuff. It is a big, big job to clean out and pare down 30 years of accumulated belongings. Thank goodness I'm not a "keeper" of lots of things. But I have kept more than I thought!
The weather is delightful and Dad spent yesterday mowing and tilling and I weeded a bit in the front. It feels good to be outside without a jacket. It's just a teaser, I'm sure, but we are enjoying it!
Plans are brewing for our Gathering! Please let us know when you plan to arrive and leave so we can pack the activities into the time when most of us will be here. You won't want to miss some of what is on the schedule.... :)
Nilsson News
I think that spring has finally found Idaho Falls! This weekend we have had temps in the 60's and everyone is looking a little more pink cheeked now. It is funny to me that as soon as the weather hits 60, all of the sudden people are wearing flip flops and shorts and are buying burgers for grilling. And yet, when we went to Arizona and the temps were 60, everyone was wearing a jacket saying how cold it was. Perspective.
Things with our little goat are looking up. It has been a wild ride, but he is now out and about kicking his feet and jumping all over the place. I keep thinking about when Joe broke his femur how long of a recovery it was and if only he had the hardiness of a goat, he would have been back to playing basketball in no time! Cookie's femur broke in two places resulting in three separate pieces of bone. Ouch! It's crazy that it can heal itself.
Millie is now a walker! She is so excited about it and it is very entertaining to watch her accomplishment. She walks down the hall looking like she is cheering with her hands held high above her head for balance. Adorable.
All the other kids are super excited about this springtime weather and have been putting the treehouse and swingset to good use. My mind has begun spinning with all the projects that continuously appear. Why is it that on a projects list you write down five things and only get to check off one before adding another five? Currently, a chicken coop is a top priority since our chicks are growing way too fast.
It is hard to believe that we will be seeing all of you in just a few more weeks! Family Gathering time already. I think most or all of our activities should be at the house because this will be our final shin dig there. That is kind of a sad thing to think about so I think I will stop thinking about it. We should definitely have a night for reminiscing on all the wonderful memories we have made there. Nothing can replace our HP HQ!
Things with our little goat are looking up. It has been a wild ride, but he is now out and about kicking his feet and jumping all over the place. I keep thinking about when Joe broke his femur how long of a recovery it was and if only he had the hardiness of a goat, he would have been back to playing basketball in no time! Cookie's femur broke in two places resulting in three separate pieces of bone. Ouch! It's crazy that it can heal itself.
Millie is now a walker! She is so excited about it and it is very entertaining to watch her accomplishment. She walks down the hall looking like she is cheering with her hands held high above her head for balance. Adorable.
All the other kids are super excited about this springtime weather and have been putting the treehouse and swingset to good use. My mind has begun spinning with all the projects that continuously appear. Why is it that on a projects list you write down five things and only get to check off one before adding another five? Currently, a chicken coop is a top priority since our chicks are growing way too fast.
It is hard to believe that we will be seeing all of you in just a few more weeks! Family Gathering time already. I think most or all of our activities should be at the house because this will be our final shin dig there. That is kind of a sad thing to think about so I think I will stop thinking about it. We should definitely have a night for reminiscing on all the wonderful memories we have made there. Nothing can replace our HP HQ!
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