Shinedown

Went to my first concert in FOREVER and Shinedown always does such a good show. It was Beck, Paul, Michelle and me. They are a band I would go to every time they are in town. 

First Day of School

We only have a few of these left but school started this year. Jackson is in 10th and this is Emery's last year, she's a senior. The end of the school year Jackson was maybe as tall as Emery, he grew so much this summer! I think they were both ready to go back. Emery can't wait to  be done and move on to bigger and better things. 

"High school has been a 'peach' b 'twix' your 'fruity mix' of friends, the 'Air Heads' and a few 'rotten' teachers. Don't be 'Sour' it's over. Senior year will be better than 'Junior'. You are 'Mega' smart and will be 'satisfied' by your accomplishments. 

Welcome back to school! 'B-ready' so you don't get 'rotten' grades. Try not to 'Takis' to the other 'Nerds' too much or your teachers may get 'sour'. You are growing into a  young man that's 'hubba bubba'! You can 'Pepper' the 'Air Heads' with your Riz. Here's a KitKat. (we couldn't thing of something)

Kids Happenings

This group that Jackson is in for mutual is really good. They do a lot of fun things he loves. This past week they learned to make sushi. A few weeks ago they went shooting. I love that he has leaders who can show him gun safety. They all said he was a good shot and hit most of the clay pigeons. At my Grandma Arrington's funeral one of my Aunts said that she was a good shot, I had no idea this was true, but if it is, maybe he got his good shot from the Arrington side. 

The seniors can pay for a parking spot and paint it. So for the year they have their own. Emery and Jenna did spots by each other and they did a scene from Five Nights at Freddy's. They took them a long time but they look cute. 

Turning 40!

 Well it happened, I turned a new decade. You really can't stop it from coming but it came quick. My mom never made getting older a big deal, so I really have never cared to age. Not everyone gets to age, so I don't let it bother me. I have heard and seen a few things that say 40's are people's favorite age and I really hope that is true. All in all 30s weren't bad, but I am very glad to leave them behind. 

Brad got me a few books and a book nook Lego. They are perfect. Here is to the next decade, I hope it really is the best. 

Camden made me a card and had all the kids sign it and he made dirt cake. It was a very good birthday! 

Broken Tree

A few weeks ago we had a short but loud thunder storm. One of the lightning strikes was really loud and felt close. Well it possibly was very very close. We noticed about a week later that a part of a tree in our yard was split and dead. Not fully sure if it was the storm, but it if was, its kind of crazy. 

Grandma Grandpa Camp 2-26

I love that there is still a camp for the grandkids. The numbers this year were small, I still love that all those who can make it go. One bad part about having some of the younger kids (mainly Jacks) is he doesn't remember some of the other family things as well as the other kids do. Our kids don't remember the Barnes New Years Parties much. Jacks doesn't remember the Easter Parties or the few Arrington Reunions we had. I love that they are keeping it going for the younger kids to have those memories. 

This year they were in Twin, they did a cook out, played games like reverse charades, got ice cream from a truck. 

They split into teams and did an escape room. My kids all love them, so it was fun for them to do. 

Grandpa's team was the winning team. 

Saturday was a day of service. They helped at the Soup Kitchen. Then they were supposed to go the animal shelter to help out, however whoever took their reservation did not write it down. So they were unable to do that. 

Mini golf and Pizza Pie instead. 

They were tired when they got home, but they all had a lot of fun!

Bachelorette Party

 

I have kind of loved being apart of a bridal party like this. It's such a new world that I've never been apart of. I am a little too shy, nervous, weird, introverted and didn't know how it would go. Thankfully the rest of the bridal party is so welcoming. They all know each other for a bit but we've gotten along so well. 
This weekend we had the bachelorette party at Tamarack resort in Donnelly. Katelyn, the bride, tends to be late. It's known and always happens. We left Boise about 10pm and got to our destination (ish) about 1 am. The GPS took us to a literal dirt lot. Then Vrbo couldn't find the reservation (they did O not 0). After a call to the host, we could the cabin. It was super cute and perfect for our group. We all didn't go to bed until about 2 am. 

Woke up to some cute gifts from the bride and maid of honor. 

Katelyn's hat was amazing. 

The scenery was amazing. I would love to see it in the winter. 

We walked around the resort, then went to McCall and walked around there, got some food, then went to Cascade lake. We went into the water a little bit then sat in the sun. It was a beautiful day. 

That night we watched a chick flick and made bracelets. Then we played a game that was a lot of fun and ended up being a way to get to know them all so much better. We laughed so much. 

We got up, drove home and had brunch. We were all tired but all had a good time. Now about 20 days until the big day! It's been such a different experience but one I am so blessed to be apart of. I am beyond excited for Katelyn and her new journey. 

What did Brad do while I was gone you ask....?

All the boys were the only ones home for dinner Saturday, so they did a burger eating competition. They told Brad how many McChickens and Cheeseburgers they could eat. Only one succeeded, if that's what you want to say, They are all over McDonald's for a while.

Beck did 8/8, Cam did 4.5/5, Jacks did 3.5/4 and Brad did 3.5/4

Second Drive

 

It took a bit but Jacks has driven to church a few times. I feel bad, with training I've been working about 100 hours every 2 weeks and each weekend I have something, so any downtime, I don't want to go anywhere. He's doing well, taking turns a little fast, but he's learning still. I do feel more nervous with him, but it's been about 10 years since the first, so maybe I'm just old. 

Some News

The other night Cam and Cailey came to us and told us they just found out their tuition and housing went up each by $1800 a semester. They also lost a scholarship that was only for their first two years, so paying for college seemed to be out of reach. They went through a lot of ideas and choices, from taking out loans, taking a gap year, going online. In the end they decided to stay here, get more work time jobs and do online. They have to stay full time, so a few of the classes may not be super helpful but they will take the year to save up more. This will add a semester to graduation (so 2 years left vs 1.5) but it will be worth it to not take loans out when they don't need to. 

They spent the weekend making the loft more long term livable for them. 

AJR Take 3

 Friday Cam, Cailey and I went to see AJR in Nampa. It was outside so it was super hot, but it was still a lot of fun. Cam loves to dance around; Camden and I are a little more stiff, but we all had fun.