Manning moments

 It is so fun to hear from you all. It is especially good to hear from Emma so far across the country!

This week was interesting. I started having signs of labor at 34 weeks so I tried to some things to help slow it down. Nick worked from home and took days off to help me get some bed rest. My goodness that is not fun. But it seemed to work and things are going well.

The boys have been playing a lot with neighbors. It is quite a gang of boys we have and it is fun to see all of them racing bikes, sword fighting and acting like boys. Gus really likes being part of it all and has taken to his strider bike. All the boys are really good to him and he loves the attention!

Nick is getting really to teach FSY in a couple weeks. He will do a great job!

Ever since Wesley's birthday, Chet has been asking when he will have a birthday. It has been on the verge of annoying, so right after Gus' birthday we had a surprise party for Chet and it was a lot of fun. The grandparents were there, some cousins and some neighbors. 

That is about all to report. We are taking things a little slower right now!

Hyde Happinesses

 Hi there and happy independence!! The Hyde’s LOVE the Fourth of July. It’s a little intense but oh so fun! On the third we went to a baseball game and watched the fireworks. On the fourth, Cam and his brothers and dad ran a 10k and we watched a parade in downtown Lexington. Luckily this year it wasn’t Pride themed. Then Cam and his siblings played volleyball for hours, watched Top Gun Maverick and had a bbq. Stetson and I enjoyed watching all the happenings from the sidelines, although I did play a few games of volleyball to please my hubby 😅 why is it that volleyball is Cams most favorite and beloved sport and it’s always been my least favorite and hated?! Anyway… for the fireworks and the parade, we bought Stetson the cutest headphones and it was awesome. He seems really sensitive to noise, loud or otherwise, so we decided to get him some to see if they would work. Luckily he was distracted enough by the fireworks to not care much that they were on his head, although we were slightly less successful at the parade. All things considered though, he did fantastic and enjoyed the festivities. 

As you all know, we are planning on opening a soda shop next year. We plan to buy an old camper and renovate it, and Cam is very excited to have a little fixer upper project. If you have any ideas for names, slogans, logos, menu items, or any other general advice, send it our way! We are excited but we are definitely amateurs at this whole entrepreneurial thing. We’re sticking mainly to soda, we don’t want to complicate it with treats and snacks and things. Since Lexington doesn’t have anything like it, we’re hoping it does well and that people enjoy it, if not just the members that miss their soda shops in Utah. The downside of this is that we have to buy and try lots of soda. Needless to say, I’m sick of it already 😂 I usually make a soda, try it, then let Cam drink the rest because it’s too much for me. It will be a fun adventure for sure!! 

We are coming to Utah in August for Emilee Bennett’s wedding! I am very excited for her, even if she is marrying a man named Spencer. With the last name of Palmer (oh yes, as in Joe Palmer, the infamous ex boyfriend of Ruthie - it’s his uncle). Stetson and I will be in town from the 12-23, and Cam will be with us until the 16th. So if you want to see your favorite brother in law or uncle, you gotta come party before he takes off on the 16th. 

Cam and I both got new callings in the ward. They released us from nursery which was a real bummer but I’m not too sad about leaving the germs behind. Cam is the ward executive secretary, and I’m in the primary presidency. It will be fun and hopefully help us to get better acquainted with the ward. We’ve been in nursery ever since we moved in, so we haven’t gotten to know people very well. 

We sure love you all! Hope you have a great week!

So Stetson has always had a dimple on his right side, but I noticed this cute little guy on his left the other day! Isn’t it the cutest??! 

Hyde Happinesses

 Hello hello! Not much is happening over here. This week we have been pelted by thunderstorms and they are pretty epic to say the least. Stetson keeps us laughing as he grows into his personality. He’s hilarious. He has decided he has some preferences and has more emotional outbursts lately, which I shouldn’t think are funny but I do 😂 today we were at church and there were two babies there as well. One of them is a girl and is a couple months older than Stetson. Guys. She stayed in her car seat almost the whole time, content as could be. It was weird. The other was another baby boy, and he might’ve been a little younger than Stetson. Regardless, I couldn’t help thinking how baby he looked and acted. I mean, he didn’t smile or interact with anyone! And he was fussy. So strange. Haha I just think our little Stetson boy is pretty socially aware and we have some pretty awesome conversations and that me think he’s not really a baby…

His face after not sleeping all night. Thinks it’s a pretty fun trick.

He doesn’t seem to appreciate any of the food we give him, but at least he’s happy about it! 

After work shenanigans with dad

😍😍😍

The cool kid on the block

I adore him. Even when he doesn’t sleep. Ever. 

Flake Fun

Well, summer is here. I don't remember the end of June being this windy but windy it is.  When it gets down to 10-15 MPH we venture outside.  The chickens are losing their feathers, the plants are all growing crooked and everything is horribly dry (including lips and skin) but we are surviving. 

We are getting back into our routine after Nauvoo.  Although, the day after we got back, I was trying to get a few things put of the suitcase.  Robin watched for a few minutes, picked up her stack of clothes and  put them back in the suitcase declaring, "we need to pack because were going back to Nauvoo for 90 days!" Wouldn't that be fun? 

We went to a local balloon festival this weekend.  The kids thought that the balloons were pretty neat.  

Our library hosted a dinosaur encounter for the summer reading program which we attended.  After assurances that the dinosaurs weren't real the kids enjoyed it. 

That's about all that we have to report.  We love you all! 

Hyde Happinesses

 Hello hello! Obviously we were all together for Nauvoo so there isn’t a lot to say except that I think you’re an exceptional group of people and I love hanging out with you. We should definitely do it more :)

He missed his grandma 

Happy boys

Thanks for the memories!

Hyde Happinesses

 We are getting so excited for the reunion!! I can’t wait to see everyone in a week!!!!

This week was pretty normal. Stetson is army crawling around so that’s crazy. He loves his door jumper and it has been a life saver for me 😂 this kid never stops moving!! He just goes and goes all day long! He’s so fun but so exhausting. We’re excited to have a few extra hands to hold this squirmy guy for a few days.

 Cam went to stake camp with the young men (he’s the stake camp director) and enjoyed his time there. There were about 70 young men that attended. They caught him talking to me on the phone one night and teased him about his girlfriend and thought it was pretty crazy he had a wife and baby. Needless to say he was the youngest and coolest leader there ;) 

Teething troubles

When you wake up from a two hour nap! They’re usually only 20-30 minutes long

😍😍😍

He loves his toes 😂

Hart Happenings

Our fun succulent arrangement

Post storm chaos

3rd place in Boise Major

Canyon Rim trail ride

The remains of the garden

It's Ian under there!  So cool huh?

Flooding in the underpass.  10 feet of water there.

Judah singing Benjamin's Calypso

Loving on the bunny

Ian's biggest fans!

What a week!  I tell you what.....it has tested everyone's limits.  We had a brutal storm that completely wrecked anything I had planted in the garden.  All my cut flower plants that I had started, all the beautiful basil, onions, cabbage, and lettuce.  And it left everything else looking really sad.  I can hardly bear to go outside right now.  Luckily we had our coop raising project to distract me from my distress.  

Not to dwell on the war zone that is our yard right now, let us chat about other things and get y'all up to speed on what else is going on in these parts.

Ian's show finally started!  It was held up by a really obnoxious inspector for a week or so, but they finally got cleared to open and perform.  We got to go FINALLY with Ruth's family and Dad who came up for the show and then stayed to help with all the projects we have going on right now.  He also brought me some hellebores to plants which soothed my wounded heart mucho.  Anyway, the show was fantastic!  The costumes were awesome, the theater is so cool, and the cast brought so much energy and talent.  We had a great time!  Ian also had the chance to team up with a local party company to do a photo shoot as Spiderman.  He had a blast interacting with people and looked so convincing!

Jack's soccer season ended but he still has a few tournaments to play.  He is playing really well and thinking about trying out for the high school team in the fall.  He also took 1st in the Spikeball tourney that Alex hosted last weekend in Rexburg.  He played with one of his soccer teammates and they won pretty handily.  This was on top of a 3rd place win in a higher division the weekend before in Boise.  He loves a good game!

Peter also placed first in his division at the Spikeball tournament.  He is by far the youngest player on the field at any event but he can definitely hold his own against adult players.  He is a little worried now because he can't play in the 3.0 division anymore because he has won it, so he has to move up.  He is also still working on his flips and makes his mom so dizzy watching him.  Taking care of so many chickens keeps him busy and happy and he is really looking forward to having the new coop finished and has all kinds of plans to trick it out.

Alex runs circles around us as always.  I don't know how he keeps all the balls in the air, but he does and he manages to squeeze in time for extra projects around the house and yard.

Counting down the days until we see you all in Nauvoo!