Random Notables from The Summer...

Here are some memories from this summer that I don't want to forget!

Late in July Bekah got a small break in her elbow. A casualty to the Wipeout (a TV show filled with crazy obstacle courses) Craze that ran its course through our house this summer. Yup... you guessed it. She wiped out on the obstacle course the kiddos created in our very own living room. Tumbled from the arm of the couch. But it didn't slow her down a bit during the 6 weeks that she wore the cast.


She loved random people, "I falled off the couch and broke my elbow." Abby even had a few moments of empathy pains with a pretend broken elbow, too. :)

July 24th... Pioneer Day in Utah... is one of the most celebrated holidays in the Frandsen Family. Unfortunately, this holiday came right at the time I was really sick, so there weren't many pictures of the festivities. I did, however, make it to part of the rodeo where I got a few pictures.

The Rowleys, our California friends, joined in for most of the festivities that day. Michael was soooo happy to see his best buds, Caleb and Emily.


Abby and her Daddy...


Grandpappy held Bekah, who fell asleep on him...

After which she joined her sister on daddy's lap...


Paul and Michael joined the Rowleys at Seven Peaks the next day, which I hear was fun.

During the summer, we had many trips to Thanksgiving Point, where we got a pass... we consider it our new Disneyland. Still missing that about California... :(


Matt and Angela and their kiddos (all the cousins on my side of the family!!!) came to see us, and we spent an afternoon at the Discovery Garden at Thanksgiving Point.


Their children are beautiful, aren't they?? The kids' ages align perfectly... within three months of each other... and we love, love, love getting together with them. We even got a few hours of purely adult discussion/hanging out time... which was so fun. We can't wait until our next get together with them!

Cute Will

Michael and Brinlee

Max and Abby

Paul and Ella

Bekah-Boo

Michael and Uncle Matt

We LOVE our new neighborhood, and had many fun walks through the neighborhood, complete with rolling on the steep hills.


We're thinking this is going to be a pretty rad place to sled in the wintertime!

Ella became quite the walker, and loves toddling all over the place, trying to keep up with the constant action of her older siblings...


The Tour of Utah was a fun time, as we spectated a few of the stages. Paul and I watched the end of a stage on our anniversary where Paul met up with Dave Zibriski, which made his day! (Paul's, that is...)


Paul toted the kids along with him on another day of the Tour, where they got loud cowbells to ring and enjoyed cheering on the riders. They love cheering things like: "Good job biking!" "Good luck on the climb!" and "Go, go, go!!!"

And speaking of biking, Paul and his brother Jonny snuck in rides here and there. Jonny is now a roadie, and got his first road bike at the end of summer. Paul is looking forward to lots of biking bonds with his brother.


And then there is Michael's massive amounts of bike riding. His love of biking required us to pack the bike along almost everywhere we went this summer. He loved making new challenges, keeping track of his time, and breaking his own records again and again and again.


And at the end of August, we enjoyed a weekend in St. George with Paul's family... the first official "reunion" we have had. Libby took these fun pictures...




There was biking, plays, lots of good food, good conversation, competitive games that were really... competitive, swimming, Footloose, and my favorite part... a women's conference--just the girls--where we each taught a "class." It was completely uplifting and I really enjoyed having some real time with these women I love so much! We'll be doing that again!

So that catches up some of my favorite parts of the summer that somehow fell through the cracks of business and didn't get documented. Now I just need to catch up on September and I'll be current in this here month!

Phew.

Wedding Week...

Since they started dating in high school 5 years ago, my brother AJ and cute Chelsey have been inseparable. It was no surprise to anyone that they decided to get married. We all just had to count down the days until Chelsey officially became a Risenmay.


We are so happy to have her as part of the family! As said in a toast given by the best man... AJ and Chelsey are two of the most genuine, honest people you will ever meet. AJ has always been one of my favorite people to be around. Seeing how happy he is with Chelsey makes me happy for him. Chelsey is such a cheerful, thoughtful, and heart-felt compliment to AJ's quick wit and fun. I'm so glad they found (and kept) each other!

There were so many fun moments about this week... which started with Paul leaving for the Bachlor Days with AJ and my brothers and the groomsmen. I'll spare you the details and the pictures (be grateful!), and we'll just say that they did many manly things and had a blast. Mary Ann (who is like a second mom to me and my brothers) flew in from Kentucky and spent some time with us in Utah before we headed to Oregon for the festivities. Thank you Mary Ann for spending time with us!!

In the time preceding the wedding, we enjoyed spending some relaxed time with my family at the house, Todd's Eagle Court of Honor (congratulations again, Toddus!... we're so proud of you!), a wedding rehersal and rehersal dinner (fine dining with young children ends up being a bit chaotic...), and swimming at the hotel with cousins.

Here are some pictures of the kids with Grandpa on his "tractor."
They took turns all afternoon riding with him, then jumping into the pool.

Here, Mary Ann is filling the pool/hosing down the kids.
They sure love her!!

We had so much fun getting all dressed up for the wedding.

We tried... without much luck... to get a family picture...



Perhaps I'll try to get us in these outfits again and try another day. Blargh.


As evidenced by these pictures, Abby and Bekah felt so pretty in their dresses...




Here is Ella before she ripped the outer layer of her skirt off by stepping on it. So sad! I ended up just ripping the whole thing off... luckily the layer underneath was pretty!


AJ and Chelsey asked Michael to be the ring bearer. What an honor!


Cousin Brinlee was a flower girl. They were so cute and excited to be a part of the wedding. I loved seeing Michael all snazzed up in a tux.





My handsome men...


It was at the Boise Art Museum... which was a fun setting, and they had a children's room where we spent much of the time before the wedding while pictures were taken on the grounds.

The wedding party...



With the cousins...

(It's the best we could do... and Ella is showing you how she ripped her skirt!)

Dad and Mom...

The wedding was wonderful, beautiful, and... well... I just wish I could have heard more of the ceremony! Thanks to a few restless, hungry, and tired kiddos... Paul and I spent much of the actual wedding behind glass doors looking on from afar. We did get a glimpse of Michael's moment of truth walking with the rings...


I just wish I had my camera as I watched from the back of the aisle. It was truly picturesque as they joined hands under a canopy of white roses. At that point, the gravity of the vows they were making reminded me of the importance of marriage and my gratitude for my own husband. Marriage is such a blessing!


There is something so refreshing about a wedding. It always reminds me of my own strong feelings of love, admiration, and infatuation from my own wedding. It all holds so much promise and potential at the beginning, and I always come away thankful for the reminder that a marriage is what you make it. With work and selflessness and fun and LOVE... it is grand!

After the procession, we rounded up our posse and scurried back to the hotel ASAP where we handed the care of our girls over to a babysitter while we rushed back to enjoy a wonderful dinner and a SUPER fun night of dancing. It was a fun reminder that Risenmays really know how to break it down...

Matt and daughter Brinlee, Paul and me

Matt and Angela

Matt and Brinlee

Mom and Dad, Paul and Alfreda

Michael and Brinlee

Cute Michael breaking it down

From heretoforth, all Risenmay weddings shall involve a heavy element of dancing.

Thanks to my family for such a fun week. Thanks to everyone who helped, herded, and had fun with us! Thanks to AJ and Chelsey for getting married!!! We are so excited for you and your new beginnings! We can't wait to have you all to ourselves... so come to visit soon. We've got to start making some fun memories together! I know our families will have many happy and memorable moments in the years to come.

Bachelor Party Packing List...

My brother, AJ, is getting married this weekend. !!!!! To celebrate and send him off in style, about 10 of his friends and brothers are hosting a 3-day bachelor party filled with outdoor activities, camping, and other various manly stuff. Paul left for Oregon this afternoon to join the crew.

While cleaning up the house tonight, I found his packing list, and have been giggling ever since:

• computer and speakers
• power cord inverter
• golf clubs
• guns
• bikes
• bike clothes
• ipod
• swimsuit
• movies
• basketball shoes and shorts
• tent, bag, and pad
  

Sounds like 3 days of pure fun, right?? Camping, boating, shooting, biking, golfing, basketball, tons of grilled meat, movies, movies, movies... he was excited to go and completely deserves some real time off!

I am so glad he gets to go. But I think I'm even more glad that I don't have to be there to witness the average behavioral age drop to about 13 years old. Hopefully by the time the women and children arrive, they will be fit for the civility and refinement of the wedding festivities.

If not, at least Chelsey will know what she's getting herself into.

But something tells me she already knows...

... kind-of.

New Beginnings...

I love the start of the school year, with all its new beginnings and promises of growth and learning. With the beginning of the school year, life has gotten a little busier around here... but I am enjoying the beginnings of a routine and schedule.

We've had many "first days" around here lately... here are a few.


Abby and Bekah started Preschool on Tuesday. They are so proud of their backpacks, and talk about their school all the time.

Abby

Bekah

On Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, they go to preschool with Miss Katie... who has a preschool set up in her basement, and is in our ward and lives close to us. They love Miss Katie...

At this age, it is so much about the social interaction and discovery. I am glad they get to interact and discover together in this new setting.

Abby and Bekah also started "Let's Play Music" classes each week. They LOVE this class, the music, and the "homeworks" and practices. I love that they love it. They have already learned so much. I love, love, love the program... and love, love, love Melissa Lunt, their teacher. We drive all the way to Spanish Fork... 2 times in one day... for her to teach Abby, Bekah, and Michael. It makes my Tuesdays a little long-ish with lots of time in the car... but still a really fun day.


And here is our Mr. Kindergarten, Michael. Anyone who talked to me this past Spring knows what a dilima we went through trying to decide whether to do kindergarten or 1st grade for Michael, whose birthday is at the beginning of July. Should he be the youngest in his class or the oldest??


Strong feelings have led us to have him do another year of kindergarten, making him the oldest in the class. My only reservation has been that I don't want him to get bored this year... I want him to have fun and be challenged. After meeting his teacher, I feel like she is a perfect fit. She talks to him in a very grown-up way, waits for his thoughtful answers, and has a sense of humor that matches Michael's. She's already given me many good ideas about things I can be doing at home, and talked about how she can focus his classtime toward his strengths. AND she's a major Cougar fan... which is a major "plus" in Michael's book. He was really looking forward to starting school. It is fun to see him go into this year with confidence and excitement.


He loves his football backpack, to which Paul attached a BYU patch this morning. Of course.

Michael is also doing Let's Play Music each week. He started cello this summer, and loves it a lot. I'll have to post more on that later. And last Saturday he had his first soccer game of the season... pictures to come! He is enjoying each part of his days... and we are enjoying this new, fun, busy time of life.

I guess this is just the beginning of the "taxi mom" phase of life as the kiddos get more involved with various things. It is fun to see my kids enjoying more of the joys of this life. I love to see them learn and grow in different ways... it brings them so much joy and their confidence shines! I love that music is filling my house with happy songs and rhythms. I love the girls kick the soccer ball with Michael, and that Ella rolls it while exclaiming "baaaaa!" I love that they are all so excited to do little pages of homework, to read and read, and that they have so very much to tell me on the way home.

And my fall resolution?? Go to bed before midnight. It would help to have some extra energy to make it through some of these long-ish days...