Brian's first visit to Israel

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My ink sketch while waiting for shabbat to begin. One of my favorite views in the Old City.

Cousin's Camp + JFR 2017

My kids look forward to cousin's camp for two loooong years (its held bi-annually), so when the time came for this summer's camp, they were beyond excited.  My sister, Jessica, and her husband, Dave, run the entire thing and they do such an amazing job.  Its stuffed full of fun lessons, games, obstacle courses, s'mores, cousin buddies, trips to the hot tub, ping pong and pool, campfire chats, crafts, cooking and so much more!  It always starts with an opening ceremony, awards to earn during the week, and some fun camp songs around the fire.  Every individual family--at our first camp 8 years ago--painted a family banner to represent themselves and those are hung for all to see.  We ate lots of really yummy food and my parents even rented an ATV so the kids could have some crazy rides captained by their crazy uncles, sprinkled in throughout the week.  They also have the sweetest Father's Firesides as well as devotionals where really heart-felt lessons are shared.  

The kids roasted regular s'mores as well as s'mores in an ice cream cone with foil wrapped around it.  They loved choosing what would go inside the cone and then wrapping it all up tight to throw in the fire for a few minutes.  Most of them charred pretty quick, but those resourceful kids just figured out a way to eat them anyway :)

They had an obstacle course one morning where the kids got wet and loved running around playing games.  A little friendly competition is always welcome in the Jewkes Family.

The boys took off really early one morning to go fishing at a lake far away that they'd heard good things about...too bad they didn't catch anything ("snaked" as uncle Jim called it), but I think they had a great time hanging out either way.

Following cousin's camp, the Jewkes Family Reunion started!  We began with a session in the gorgeous Manti Temple- which was about an hour away from the cabin we rented.  This temple is so stunning as you drive up and it is set high on the hill.  We took some family names with us, so that made it all the more special to attend.  All of the 12-and-up kids got to go as well.  It was probably one of the best parts of the reunion.

Cutest Tenny and his marshmallow face!

We got a LOT of really good family time in- our cabin was pretty secluded, so we didn't leave the premises often--other than morning runs with some of the adults. ;) . 

We had a lot of great meetings around this perfect set-up 

"Shoop on" was Caroline's favorite sentence...she wore this swimsuit every day.  And, we love her so much, swim shoop and all.  

The cousins got awards at the end, honoring my parents as well as grandparents.  These kids are so fantastic and we had such a great time all week with family in the mountains.  We are the luckiest!!

Utah Summer

These pictures are a VERY small taste of our Utah summer.  Rebecca and Christian generously let us stay with them in their home for an entire month during July...how nice is that?!?!  Brian had to stay in NYC and work for the better part of the month, but came out just in time for our Jewkes Family Reunion. The girls and I went out early July so that Lauren and Amelia could go to BYU gymnastics camp, and Taylor and Kate could go with Oliver to BYU soccer camp.  They had been looking forward to this for months and the time had finally come.  Kate and Taylor stayed on campus, but Lauren just spent the day and was picked up at night.  So we got them all checked in on Monday morning with all of their stuff in their dorms (which was really cool because they stayed in Helaman Halls- where I lived my first year at BYU).  After dropping the younger girls at gymnastics, we grabbed some lunch and headed back to Holladay, where Rebecca lives.  Rebecca and I had a lot of fun working out together almost every morning at her gym near her house.  It always throws people way off to see two adults look so much alike after they've really only met one of them.  Tons of staring and questions- its entertaining.  

We went back to Provo that evening to get Lauren and Amelia and hear all about their first day!  They had a great time and were so excited to tell us everything they'd eaten (lots of sugar when no one is there to limit your intake!) and all they had learned.  It was a great week for all of the girls at their respective camps and they were tired and grateful to have been able to attend.  However, it wasn't so great for Oliver, who ended up breaking his wrist on the morning of day 1, and then had to forfeit his spot at camp.  We all felt so bad for him!!

The remaining weeks at the Bells were spent seeing some of the SLC sights as well as a lot of time in their fun backyard playing- we even snuck in a tough hike one afternoon up Alta with a few people from her ward, as well as Dagmar and her kids.  The girls had a TON of fun having non-stop cousin time.  From the get-go, Caroline had a hard time telling Rebecca and I apart, and it was (selfishly) really great to have a sweet little toddler to help take care of.  She's the cutest- even in her swimsuit that she wears all day every day.  ;) Look at that cute face...

We spent a lot of time outside- swinging in the hammock, running around, playing on the trampoline and kicking a soccer ball around.  The kids put together a cookie and lemonade stand one of the days and had the best time selling and making some money.  The Bells also organized and took us camping up near Alta one night over the weekend.  The weather was perfect and it was so nice to be outside and in the mountains- love the fresh mountain air and the smells of camping.   We made tinfoil dinners and roasted s'mores over the fire.  The next morning, despite a non-working generator, Christian pulled off pancakes over the fire too.    

Right before we left, the Bells bought a dog- which was really fun for them and for our kids as well.  

Once more family got in town, and before the reunion, we all went up to Sundance to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in the mountains- such a gorgeous setting!  The show was great and we a great time altogether.  

Can't wait for our family reunion to begin!  Our girls had the time of their lives living with their Bell cousins and I am so grateful for Rebecca and Christian opening up their home and not once making us feel like we had worn out our welcome.

Happy 4th from the UWS

A few friends from church planned a 4th of July parade and get-together right here in Central Park.  We all brought food to share and then had the kids wear their best red, white and blue, as well as decorate their bikes/scooters/strollers in the festive colors.  We all ate, hung out, talked and then it was time for the parade to begin!  It was made much more legitimate by the balloon arches as well as the American flags and streamers that my deeply creative friend, Lesley, brought over for the morning.

I'm really grateful for moms who are creative and love to throw parties---I am not the most creative.  They brought popsicles and tattoos for the kids too.

The Fourth is such a fun holiday-- I love that we got to celebrate it with so many friends and in such a beautiful park.  The kids had so much fun...the highlight was definitely the dads who let the kids throw water balloons at them for the finale (they were armed with small water guns, to be fair).  

Sailing and the Bucket List

Every spring in our stake, the youth hold a gala to raise money for their summer camps.  The Ortons, a totally awesome family in our stake, not only have a sailboat, but are also certified captains!  They auctioned off a trip to Fire Island from Long Island, captained by themselves!  Our friends, the Polls, won this item at the gala, as well as a spot for another couple and they generously invited us to come along at the last minute!  Man, this was one of those really cool memories that was so awesome and so very different from any other experience we've ever had- a bucket list item that we didn't even know existed.

We stopped and grabbed a bite to eat and some snacks for the ride.  It was a gorgeous day...until it wasn't (more on that later).

The Ortons are some of the most interesting people ever- they sailed all over with their 5 kids for 6 months on one little boat and homeschooled them!  Impressive stuff.  They were so kind and generous and interesting to talk to!  It was so inspiring to hear their stories from their months at sea as a family.

Hiccup #1- we accidentally sailed onto a sand bar!  We thought we could get off, but after getting out and pushing, we didn't budge.  Thank goodness there was a police boat right there that attached us to his rope and pulled us off the bank.

The Ortons taught us all a little sailing vocabulary and let us handle the ropes for a few minutes at a time.

Hiccup #2...out of nowhere came this crazy squall that pretty much dumped rain and chopped up the water really bad.  It was super windy, and even though we were headed back at the time, it was really hard to get our boat to do what we wanted it to.  We had to maneuver it for a good while, and finally when the wind calmed a bit, we made it safely back to our slip.

Love learning new things and meeting new people...thank you, Polls, for letting us tag along!

Taylor's Graduation from Elementary

5th grade graduation in NYC is on another level- I have really never seen anything quite like it (outside of a high school graduation, but it wasn't too far off).  They held it in a huge theater and had several graduation speakers and had all of the kids walk.  It was a really great program and I'm glad they did it because its a milestone in NYC due to the crazy, intense middle-school process.  School went until June 28, so it felt like ages after the rest of the country got out for the summer. 

Taylor loves a good celebration. In fact, she pretty much lives for them, so this was right up her alley.  Afterwards, a big group of the parents met at a fun restaurant along the Hudson and ate lunch altogether.  It was so fun to see Taylor and her cute friends that she's met this past year all move on.  Most of them are at different middle schools than she will be at, but still live really close to us, so we are going to make sure they stay in touch.  Taylor has made the  best friends this year and has probably thrived more than any of my kids- its been really fun to witness. 

We got a small group of her friends together at our house earlier this week to make candy graduation necklaces.  Still can't believe I have two middle schoolers...I love my girls getting older, but also really hate it at the same time.  

Love these 3 amigos so very much.  Kate couldn't miss school on this day, but I'm sure she would have loved to be there.  

Tessa's last year "at home" with me...next year she will be off to kindergarten, so its kind of a graduation for her as well!

Taylor got into West End Secondary for middle school (they'll be transitioning to a high school there as well, so she can stay for the next 7 years--hooray!!).  We were able to get Kate transferred from her previous middle school to WESS as well and I am really looking forward to having them together at the same school next year.  Congratulations sweet Taylor!!

Loire Valley, France

La Product Conf

Paris, France

Brian was in Paris for a few days speaking at a product conference about this. He had a few hours to explore on the Friday before he left so he spent some time in the Loire Valley. We get to go next time :) 

Kate's Scary Night...

On Friday night, I was running Activity Days at our church building in Lincoln Square from 7-8 PM.  I didn't have my phone on me because of this.   Kate was at a birthday party for a friend in New Rochelle- about 45 minutes north of the city.   They were celebrating at a trampoline park- you know, one of those places that you sign your child's life away before they can get in the doors?   Yeah, those.  No biggie.

Well, I was chatting with a couple of moms after the church activity, when I thought to check my phone and realized that I had several missed calls and an ominous "911" text from Brian.  Nervously,  I called Brian, and he explained that Kate had had an accident where she incurred a massive cut on her face, and was in an ambulance on her way to the hospital.    I was terrified for her and felt so bad for how scared she must be!  And I was also at a complete loss as to what steps to take next.  Brian was all the way in Brooklyn picking up my race bib for the half marathon early the next morning.   It would take him at least 45 minutes by subway just to get back to the UWS.  Kate was 45 minutes away in a town only accessible by car, which we don't own.   I had Tessa, Lauren and Taylor with me, who needed to get home for the night.   I was a mess- totally didn't know where to begin to get to Kate and make sure my other girls were taken care of.   My dear friend, Lynda, happened to be there when I got the call.  She could see right away that something was really wrong and offered to get my girls home, so I ran back to my apartment, trying to get ahold of myself to make some big choices.   I called Brian again to try and see what could be done.  Lynda got there with my girls, offered the use of her car and then Brian, who is waaaay more calm and controlled than I am in situations like this, decided to get back from race pickup, drive Lynda's car up to the hospital in White Plains and take care of Kate and relieve the sweet parents of the birthday girl, who were total champs and rode in the ambulance and stayed with her the entire 3 hours before we were even able to get up there! I am just so so so grateful for good people and they are some of the best (we hadn't even met them before this incident!).  It was so tricky trying to figure all of this out without the car, and we are also so grateful for Lynda, who offered her car without even thinking twice about it.  

Kate was so brave- both Brian and I talked with her on the phone while she waited to be seen and she was in such good spirits.  You'd have thought she'd been through this before??!! ;)    Turns out she was doing a flip off a trampoline into a foam pit "one last time" before the party ended and her knee collided with her head at such an incredible rate that it blew a hole in her forehead.

Once Brian arrived at the hospital and told the nurses that we'd like to have Kate stitched up by a plastic surgeon versus an ER doc, seeing as the injury was on her face and was quite severe (thank goodness it narrowly missed her eye).  That also meant a really long wait, as the surgeon on call lives on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and had to drive up.  When all was said and done, Kate and Brian didn't get home until 5:30 am.  The surgeon was amazing and put 61 stitches in over 5 layers of skin.  Brian took lots of pictures, but I still haven't been able to look at any of them- and probably never will.  Our poor Kate has just been through so much already in her short life, and it makes me ache so much to see her in pain again.  I cannot do it.

So, this picture is going to be as good as it gets for now.  I really debated whether or not I should run the half early the next morning, as I didn't sleep well at all waiting for them to get home.  But, when my alarm went off, I was able to get myself up and out the door for the train to Brooklyn.  This race was different in so many ways, but the biggest part was how torn up I was on the inside.  That made more more determined than ever to run hard and get home to see my girl.  The first half of the race was great- felt easy and the run was through Prospect Park and charming areas of Brooklyn.  The second half was BRUTAL. It was a 6 mile highway that was more boring than anything I'd ever run on before.  It was mind-numbing.  And, all I wanted was to be doooone and home.  It was a really mentally tough half marathon, and I'm not sure how I pulled off a PR, but I felt SO MANY emotions as I thought about what had happened to my sweet Kate and how much braver she is than I ever hope to be.  There was just no way I could let up on my run, no matter how mentally or physically painful it was, if she had to go through what she had to go through the night before.   Tough is what she is and tough is what I was going to be- no matter what.  This run and my medal were all for her because she pulled me through it.  Just so grateful for the body's ability to push past pain and overcome, and the lessons and strength you get from it when all is said and done.