Pre-Ky-goodbye July

Various and sundry things occupied us as the days sped by toward Malachi's departure! We went to the new "Inside a Temple" Experience at Temple Square. It was really good. They have built a sort of mini-temple under the visitor's center and you actually get to go through it and see what the different rooms look like. We loved it! I'm so glad people who have never been inside a temple will get to see it! (You can even take pictures inside, but I didn't.)

Temple Square is looking really pretty. I haven't been there for at least a year and they have done a LOT since then!

The temple looks so pretty with the scaffolding gone!

We stopped at our favorite little Mexican place (99-cent mini burritos!) before we went home. Teddy was present but being punished for some argument or other, so he was sitting sadly alone at the next table. Ziggy was watching with relish as a policeman pulled a guy over outside (for going the wrong way…those one-way streets downtown will get you if you don't watch out!)

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Elephants eating the peanut butter (tsk tsk)

Sleepy

Clementine wearing a dress my mom made for me when I was little. One of my favorites!

Here's Goldie in the same dress

Ice cream date with the two littlest

Making these "domino" sets (or sort of Rube-Goldberg-ian contraptions) has been a popular pastime for the little boys this summer.

Elephant parade

A spiky weapon truck

Fourth-of-July-themed cookie pizza and layered jello for Family Home Evening

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On the actual Fourth of July, the kids all stayed overnight at my mom's, leaving Sam and me and Malachi alone at home. It was so weird!! So quiet! Sam did make me this delicious breakfast of toast and omelet and cocoa, so that was nice.

Ziggy played with cute baby Parker at my mom's house

The new Arts Building at BYU is almost done. Sam has been moving into his office there for the past little while. Sometimes I go in with him and we unpack a box or move a desk or two. It's kind of fun to be in there before anyone else can go in! I could make more comments about this building but should probably not do so in a public forum. At any rate, we went there on the 4th of July because Sam had a HUGE animation desk that needed moving from one side of his office to the other, and the holiday meant there were several extra able bodies available to help him!

The aforementioned able bodies, doing their good work

Twins plus a Junie-wraith

Fireworks

You may not be able to tell what's going on in this picture, but look at the three bowed heads and you will see that it's a bout of hysterical, helpless laughter. I don't know what set it off but I love to hear it among my children.

Daisy always makes sure everyone is appropriately dressed in red, white, and blue

(evidence of our delicious dinner earlier)

And fireworks to end the night, as there should be!

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We learned that shipping things to New Zealand is VERY EXPENSIVE. (Like $150+ for a shoebox size…) So we did what my friend whose son went on a mission to Africa did: made up little packets of presents for Malachi to take with him for little fun surprises during his mission. Each person in the family (plus my mom to make 12) was in charge of two months of the twenty-four months. People could draw a picture or write a letter or card and include a teeny tiny present if they wanted to. It was actually super fun to think of tiny presents. Stickers. Pins. Chapstick. Getting more creative—book lights, tiny puzzles, sticky notes, pens, shaped paper clips. We hunted for tiny things wherever we went and we found them!

While Malachi was out of town for a few days at the end of June, we pulled out everything we'd collected and wrapped everything and packaged it up with labels ("Birthday 2027" and so forth). Everyone had such good ideas! Goldie made a tiny recipe book with his favorite recipes. That inspired Gus to include some recipes too, for his months:

Here are his useful instructions on how to make bread. Get the bread dough out of the fridge. Make little cuts on it with the razor blade. Cook for 30 minutes (in the MANY-buttoned oven). What could be simpler?

Rice and Lemonade, that's what. Malachi will be able to whip them up anytime!

With his cooking situation sorted out, we could turn our minds to Malachi's emotional support. Since he wouldn't be able to take Bally Leopard on his mission, Daisy took it upon herself to crochet a tiny bally leopard for him. Isn't he the CUTEST ever???

I cannot believe how well she made him. She drew in all those spots with fabric marker. Here he is with his big counterpart:

Exactly the same!!

That inspired Junie to make a similar tiny animal version of Malachi's stuffed platypus, Wad. (Malachi actually DID take Wad with him on his mission, for reasons known only to himself.) Wad is pictured above.

And here is the tiny Wad. How do the girls come up with these things? How??

The only sad thing is that Malachi won't have all these cute things right away on his mission! He'll have to have them spaced out and some of them, he won't even see till next year or the next! But it was fun for us to make them all, anyway! And already every week when we talk on the phone everyone asks Malachi, "Did you open the August package yet?? Did you??"

Here's a picture Sam drew for Malachi to go in one of his packages. I love it so. (You can see Wad in there too, riding an owl.)

And here are some of the packages all ready to go. I was afraid they wouldn't all fit in Ky's suitcases! But they did, with room to spare. Malachi had so much space left, he was even able to put in his big soft blanket! And he says he is glad to have it.

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Last Mission things. Ky getting set apart the night before he left. (Barefoot. Just to prove he could, I suppose.)

Lunch with friends and family after his farewell talk. It was like the loaves and fishes, as the enormous amounts of chicken and beans I'd made disappeared MUCH faster than anticipated and Sam was frantically raiding the cupboard for anything else he could find before I even got home from primary! Somehow we found enough to keep feeding the multitudes.

A good group of friends. These boys were all my little Cub Scouts!

Seb was able to fly in for the farewell and say his goodbyes to Malachi in person.

Last dinner before Ky left

Ky cleaned out his room and boxed everything up. Got rid of a lot of stuff too. It had to be done, but it was sad to watch. This was a little bird home Junie made him for Christmas several years ago. I couldn't let it go without taking a picture. There were plenty more sentimental things too, but I mostly stayed away for the sake of not forcing all my sad and sentimental feelings onto Malachi!

We had to get some New Zealand dollars for Ky to take (for renting a bike when he arrived). Aren't they cool? I love the look of them. Daisy was happy to know the five-dollar bill had a penguin on it! The money is plasticky, like Canadian money. I like it.

Coming out of the temple on the morning Malachi left

Last lunch at Red Iguana

Bye to Abe

Airport goodbyes. These were the worst! I feel sick to my stomach just thinking about it. I don't know why it was so hard! I am so GLAD he's going on a mission! I know it will be wonderful! But this day just about did me in!

How much bigger will all these kids will be when Malachi gets home? Gus will probably be almost unrecognizable.

Will Teddy be as tall as Malachi in two years? Could be.

Daisy was okay all the way up till this picture and then she lost it (and then I lost it. I can't bear seeing her cry). It will likely be three years or more till these two get to meet again in person. And they are such good friends! Always have been. I still feel like they should be this age: