July 2017

July started off with a week in McCall. Summer is no longer summer without a trip to this low-key, beloved place. We had never been there for the 4th of July before. It was perfect. We are so grateful for Ingrid and Trent who so generously share their home with us.

On the fourth we took the kayaks and paddle boards up the Payette River, which is smooth and serene, and went to a rope swing. I'm pretty sure everyone jumped in to that icy water. I didn't have my phone, so the few pictures we have of the outing are thanks to Trent.

We came home for a quick BBQ with the traditional flag cake then headed lakeside to watch the fireworks.

Somehow we ended up with several extra boxes of jumbo sparklers from Britt's wedding. A group of cousins sold them for a dollar a piece, and they made twenty bucks or so! Love our little entrepreneurs!  

Bombs bursting in air!

Much to the demise of our summer, in general, we have spent the majority of our days getting our lives in order. Geoff and I have been taking a Financial Planning class every Wednesday night. As a result we have been crafting budgets, setting financial goals, meeting with a financial planner, organizing and getting our minds around several neglected assets and putting ourselves on a strict spending freeze to become aware of what and when we spend. It hasn't always been easy, and we've eaten more than our share of rice and beans this summer, but we have learned a TON, and we feel more in control of our finances than ever. It feels good. We have been decluttering, taking load after load to DI, and Adele and Ceci have sold several of their toys making close to $100 each! The house has generally been filled with piles and bags of STUFF, but we made a lot of progress. In the cleaning out we came across these old passport photos. Classic. Ceci wins the prize.

We parted with a bunch of homeschooling materials from the elementary years. This was a bit heart-wrenching. Here are the "brain gym" exercise cards we used to choose from throughout the day.

 And our Family Home Evening and morning devotional charts:

I've also been gathering all important documents to scan into a password protected online site. This takes a surprising amount of time! I'm going through files and cleaning out and reorganizing as well.

We've been scheduling all sorts of neglected medical appointments for Geoff. He's been to the chiropractor for some aches and pains, the ENT to remove wax (which was pretty gross, if you ask me), and set a slew of other appointments through the rest of the summer.

We spent hours getting ready for Ceci to go to Korea (a post on that when she returns!), trying to find hot and humid-friendly clothes and shoes, all on our spending freeze. We got her off, though, and are all missing her because of these kinds of random injections of fun and joy:

Tennie has been studying daily for the SAT, working a few shifts a week at Zuppas and spending any other spare moment with friends. We see her SOMEtimes.

I went to St. George one weekend to help my mom move into her beautiful new home. Moving in 109 degree weather wasn't ideal (!), but she got mostly settled, and it was fun to share the new home with her.

Mitch and Joann and boys spent July in Park City and we went up for a few visits. During one visit they showed us the arcade and we swam and chatted. It is always fun to see them.

Taeya was in town for a week and she and Bailey stayed a few nights. We swam at Britt's pool, they made movies and sold lemonade, they went to the mall and played Cops & Robbers, they did baptisms at the temple, and all went to a Superhero Training YW Activity, where certain of the girls dressed up for the occasion.

Geoff and I ran into our dear friend Saydi Shumway downtown one day, and she invited us to visit her parent's family reunion home in Bear Lake. We had never been to Bear Lake, so we went up for a night and a day. It was so beautiful, and we met many amazing Eyre families, in additional to catching up with Saydi and my old D.C. roommate Saren. It was a fun little road trip.

Saydi (on the left) and her husband Jeff served in the Spanish ward YW presidencies when Geoff and I were presidents of the organizations in Northern Virginia, during our single days. Our young women felt sorry that we in the presidency were in our mid to late twenties and not married; they prayed for us to find husbands. In the end, three of the YW presidency married three of the YM presidency, Geoff and I getting married first! Saren (on the right) and I were roommates in D.C. for 2 years (I think). They are both amazing and inspiring women.

Geoff went back to the Dominican Republic where he is running a pilot for the Self-Reliance Services department. He visited homes of the local members, visited many Self-Reliance groups and fit in some beach and boating time.

Geoff got some tickets through work to go on a tour of the new MTC. He, Adele and I loved seeing all the missionaries, and it brought back many memories of the incredible time Geoff and I spent at the MTC. The new section is beautiful. Afterward we spent a few hours visiting Erica and kids. It was a good Provo day!

And that is wrap for July.