School Started!

It's actually been going on for a couple of weeks now, but obviously, I need to post our back-to-school pictures here!

My kids leave for school at wildly different times, so they're never all ready for school when the first contingent leaves!  So here we have Camille all ready to leave (at 7:15!), and everyone else still in their pajamas (Ryder can barely open his eyes!)

Camille is a big 5th grader now!  My last year having a kid in elementary school!!!

Colton left next at 8:10, beginning 7th grade (and our only Smith at Walton!) but I totally forgot to take his picture, so this is actually him AFTER surviving his first day!

And finally, Ryder and Kendra head out to the high school around 8:40!  That's an hour-and-a-half of goodbyes!!!

Look at this cool senior all ready to rule the school!!!!!  How did we get here???

And this is how Ryder feels about being a freshman!

Just kidding, here's his real smile!

The first couple weeks have gone very well and everyone seems happy and like they're adjusting to their new classes.  Whew!  And I am having NO PROBLEM keeping myself busy while they're away, whether I'm meeting up with friends, hiking, prepping seminary lessons, going to the temple, or occasionally even going to my job!  The only thing I still don't seem to have time for is cleaning my house!  😂  But honestly, where's the fun in that?

Shortly after school got going, we also said goodby to Bentley.  After much debating, he decided to go live in Seattle with Tracy and Adam (and Cora!) for a bit while he gets ready for his mission.  It was getting harder and harder to juggle four drivers and only three cars, so there's at least one perk to him leaving, but I'm still really sad that he's gone.  Sending your kids off is so bittersweet.  But I am truly grateful to Tracy and Adam for welcoming him into their home at this time!

Saying good-bye to his siblings (and dressed very appropriately for his new home!)

Everything went very smoothly with his flight, and he even got a gorgeous sunset as he rode the ferry to Bainbridge!  

So this is our new normal-- until everything changes again!

Unrelated, but this seems as good a time as any to share this gorgeous picture that my Mom took of the ferry!

Ryder Goes to Cousin Camp

Ryder had barely gotten home from YMs camp, when we put him on a plane and sent him to Seattle!!!  Alone!!!  AND, we couldn't get a direct flight, so he had a layover in Denver, too.  This is the kind of thing I would NOT have tried before cell phones, but in this day and age, it felt do-able (if a little scary), and everything went very smoothly!  Huzzah!

Right before he boarded his flight.  I hadn't known you could get a gate pass to accompany a minor to the gate, so that was really nice!  And added bonus-- I remembered I had my pocket knife in my purse before I tried to go through security, so I was able to run it back out to the car!

The reason Ryder was going to Seattle was so he could enjoy Cousin Camp at Aunt Tracy and Uncle Adam's house, along with Caleb and Eliot!  

It's so funny to me how these boys don't really look alike, and yet, they do look related, right?

Taking the ferry back to Bainbridge with Tracy and Cora

I wasn't there, so I don't really know any of the stories, but I think the pictures speak for themselves!

Hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa

Playing pickleball (invented on Bainbridge!)

And just playing!

They kayaked/paddle boarded across the Sound from Crystal Springs to Ilahee!

Picnic dinner at the Car Show!

The Bainbridge Troll

A beach near Tracy's house

No boy can resist a chance to throw rocks in the water (most girls can't resist, either, come to think of it...)

Visiting the turkeys at Bay Hay & Feed

And the pirate ship at Fay Bainbridge State Park

And Grandpa Rex's hot tub!

Taking out the boat

Ryder hiding in the shade so as not to get any more sunburned

Wing Point

Old WWII bunkers

Picking blackberries

Playing chess

Spray painting an already graffitied wall

Batman!!!

I love how Cora's dress matches her spray paint color!

Ryder did a hand holding four aces

So tough

I think this is at the Japanese Internment Memorial?  It looks like they've been folding paper cranes...

Rolling a large piece of driftwood into the water (natch)

And here Adam's nephew Jack joined them!  I think this is the observation deck of the Space Needle?

And I'm pretty sure this is a display at the Bill Gates Foundation about clean water...!

Playing duck duck goose at Aunt Natalie's

With the Richards cousins, too

We picked him back up on Sunday, and were very glad to have our Ryder home with us again, but so happy that he'd had such a great time with his cousins-- what an amazing week for Ryder!!!  I'm a little jealous that I didn't get to go, too!

Also, there was a super pretty sunset for the whole drive home!

Thank you, Tracy and Adam (and Cora), for making this such a fun week!!!