July 24th... to August 20th..... Mandy's Visit......

I'm getting quite used to flying... at least the short little flight to 

Arizona... I ALWAYS get a window seat....and I LOVE the view out the window.

This time the entire sky, as far as I could see, was covered in amazing

fluffy white clouds.  I could see nothing in any direction but clouds!

I wanted to get out and touch them!!  I want to know what they feel 

like.  Could I sit on them?  Would I fall through them?

I hope someday to get answers to those questions...

and to understand how they are made and why and on and on??

So many things about this fantastic world that I don't understand!

The best part of the flight was what was waiting at the end of it!!!!

I flew out on Friday, July 24th and then we left Arizona the next morning.

Below is Reesie Bear watching her movies in the back seat as we drove.

She was NOT about to look away from the screen to smile at me for a picture!
Both kids were super good during the drive.... amazingly so.

We drove to St George Saturday and went to see "When You Wish

Upon a Star".  It was fantastic!  Reese is so fun to take to these musicals

because she just eats them up!! She was so tired and really struggling to 

stay awake... her little head kept flopping back in the chair... 
but she fought through it .. to the bitter end.  

Our night in the hotel was not such great fun.... Jensen did not

want to go to sleep... He kept us up most of the night......and mauled
Mandy to death... So lots of caffeine on the way home! 

We got home late on Sunday afternoon..... 

The rest of these pictures are in no random order... Just 

a picture menagerie of the great weeks they were here....

Mr Wiz Kid on the iPad... I could NOT believe how smart

he was putting puzzles together, playing match games, 

naming the letters and saying the sounds they make... counting...
He really is super smart!

We made snow cones our first night at Cortnie's

Played with Gma's race track for hours.... loved it!

The biggest reason they came to visit now was because

Gpa and Gma Frischknecht came home from their mission.

Everyone was so glad to see them and have them home safe.

I love and admire John and Susan so much and am so grateful

my kids and grandkids have their influence in their lives.

We went to their homecoming and enjoyed a few hours

in their home afterwards.  Reese was so glad to have them home.

Jensen was a new born when they left so they were 

glad to have a chance to get to know him.  

Jensen really liked sleeping on Mom's bed....

Didn't love sleeping on his mattress on the floor.
He really didn't let Mom get much sleep while they were here.

They came to visit Gma at work. Reese loved looking at 

our X-rays.  Jensen loved running in the long halls.
Below we are going in to meet Gma's friends Ralph and Curt.
Jensen LOVED Ralph and went right to him and sat on his
lap... and Uncle Curt gave him some Swedish Fish and won him over.
Isn't he just the cutest in that hat!?

Cute little shit!  Here he is watching TV...

The kid LOVES puddles.  Never passes one without

having to splash in it or in this case, drag his blankie

through it.  

So fun to play at Cortnie's.  I can be a cowboy ....

and then a doctor....

Pancakes for breakfast.... Reese wanted her whole

name... and Jensen got his initials...

We went for a walk on the trail and stopped and fed the goats.

Reese thought it was hilarious the way the nibbled the weeds... 

More snow cones... Zoom in and notice the chipped front

teeth...  This kid is a monster... 

Playing at the Discovery Park...

Oh my!!! this was one of my favorite moments!

We were playing at the park.  Mandy was out to dinner

with friends.  This family came to the pavilion and were

having a bday party and Reese saw the cotton candy

machine.  She wanted some really bad so I told her she could

go ask.. thinking she NEVER would... but she did!

And they graciously gave her some... Who could tell her no?

Jensen wasn't sure what to think of it and wasn't sure how to eat

it.  But he figured it out and thoroughly enjoyed it after he

got the hang of it!!  I love cotton candy myself... so it 

was fun to see them enjoy it so much!

We went to Thanksgiving Point and went on the wagon ride...

and of course, the girls rode the ponies.  

Jon came for a few days.... He has been doing an audition in Las Vegas,

and got away for a weekend to come see his parents and Mandy

and the kids.  It was good to be able to see him for a while.

This is Reese's first time on a horse.  She was a little frightened.

These two are pros.....

We went to the water park.....

This was the BEST part of the whole visit.... The last night

they were here Reesie wanted to watch a movie.

She chose the "Wizard of Oz" and I told her that it 

was kinda scary but she said "I'll be brave!"

So we watched it.. and she wasn't scared at all...

(what the hell?  I was scared to death of that witch

until I was an adult!) It was so fun to watch it with her.  
She totally understood the plot ... and asked a million
questions about everything that was going on. 
But she LOVED it! and I LOVED that she loved it!

Lexie and Reese had so much fun together.  It is so great to see how much

they love each other!! Above Lexie is driving them around in the John Deere

and below, Aunt Cortnie took them to get matching pajamas for their

sleepover.  Reese loves her Aunt Cortnie....and her silly Uncle Bryan.

Another fun day at the water park....complete with a RAINBOW!

Mandy and Dylan.... Dylan, Gavyn and Lexie love their

Aunt Mandy so much!! She is always so fun and takes such
a great interest in their lives. 

Mandy and I made this cute little road quilt thingy

for Jensen to play with complete with pockets along

the bottom to put the cars in.

Our last day.....

We drove to Canyon Glen and then hiked up to Bridal Veil Falls

and then on to Vivian Park.  It was such a beautiful day and so fun

to be with my two daughters and the little ones..... 
Just Reese and Jensen...the rest were all in school!  

Feeding the huge fish at the base of the falls....

Jensen would have played in the rocks and dirt all day

if we would have let him.  

Funny thing.... We were walking on one of the bridges along the path

and Reese looked over and saw her shadow.  She was a little

frightened by it and wanted it to go away.  I explained it was 

her shadow and it was stuck to her.  Then we played around stepping

on each other's shadows... but she really didn't like it when I stepped on hers.

She really didn't like her shadow hanging around at all.

She would have liked it to go away :)

I love this picture!!! Mandy is much smaller and much prettier and

just all around much better in every way than me... but

she is a mini me in many ways... 

I love her so much and hate that she is going home!

She left on Thursday August 20th... Drove to Vegas and spent

a couple of days with Jon before heading back to the Arizona heat.

The week before they came, I got shingles and didn't fell well for several days.  

I still wasn't feeling great when I left to get them... 

and after they came I got quite sick with a sore throat, chills, 

aches, etc.  They stayed at my house for two weeks and then 

went to stay with Jay. for a week.  And then their final week

they came back to my house.... and I was so glad they did cause I finally

felt better and could really enjoy them.  

I love how smart Jensen is! and how athletic and coordinated. 

  One night when he was bathing in my tub, he discovered 

that he could climb up on the back of the tub and

slide down into the water.  (Mandy took some great videos)...and he 

had a great time doing it... splashed water ALL over the bathroom...

but the fun ended when he hit his teeth on the edge of the tub

and started bleeding... It didn't phase him much.... or for long.

He is a goer and a doer but he is such a sweet, snuggly, fun

boy.  And so very, very smart!  He knows all his alphabet...

Went to Hobby Lobby one day..... he gets out of the car....looks up 

at those big letters on the store front... "B!" "H" "Huh" "Yuh" saying

both the names of the letters and their sounds!

We drove by Applebys and he hollers "apple!"

But when he gets doing something he loves......like playing in 

the water at the falls... and then you take him away from it...

he does not like it!!! (He screamed all the way to the car and 

most of the way home.)  But it was so great to get to know him

better and I feel like we finally bonded and he knows who

Gma is and how much she loves him!! He actually would come grab

my legs and want me to pick him up sometimes... Oh my heart!

Even when Mom was right there!  Love it!

Mandy and I had some really good talks, we watched Scandal

and Blacklist, worked on crafts, made lots of trips for caffeine and 

treats and ate way too much! She is such a GREAT mom!

Always so kind and patient! She certainly did not learn that from

me but I am so proud of her and how dedicated she is to her 

responsibilities as a Mom.  

And Reese.... well, she is just the best!! Love everything about her.

Sadly she had a UTI the whole time she was here and had to go

to the doctor a couple of times.  She is a strong willed, strong minded, 

smart, creative, fun, adorable little girl and I just LOVE being with her.

So fun to talk to her about everything.  She has such a great vocabulary

and understanding of the world.  She is a great conversationalist ...

especially considering she is only FOUR!

Oh yeah... and this happened while they were here!!

So excited!!!! 

Number three.... due in April 2016!