Being Aunt Shawnee

I love being an aunt. I have the cutest nieces and nephews in the world! When I come home for breaks, they are always so eager to see me and yell "Aunt Shawnee!!!" while running towards me. It's one of the best things about coming home. I haven't gotten to see them all as much as I'd like, but that's how summer goes. (Plus, I haven't felt all that well, so I haven't made much of an effort to get out as much as I usually do.)

Some of my favorite things with the little ones:
-snuggling on the couch or in Grandma's chair while watching TV.
-unexpected squeezes from Wilson (a boy who doesn't stop for much) and snuggling on the yard swing under a blanket
-watching Hayden and Wilson try to sign 'I love you'
-receiving bouquets of picked flowers (dandelions)
-eating lunch with Sariah after summer school
-feeding Heidi fries at McDonald's (she's only 9 months old but grunted a lot until she got what she wanted)
-watching Hannah and Hayden make friends with all of the animals at Linda and Richard's house

Whitney wearing my USU sweatshirt with Wilson watching.

Heidi at McDonald's, happy because she finally got her french fry.

Bryan, Hannah, and Hayden in the tent. Bryan set it up in the living room and they all slept in there one night.

Ethan and Heidi. He is 3 months older than her, which you can't tell because she's a bit bigger than him. (Just found out that he's in the 5th percentile for height and weight for his age...small boy.)

Wilson and Mike on the yard swing watching a pumper suck sand out of the water system.

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity of watching the 3 H's for a few days while Bryan got lasik surgery. I took them back to Mom's house. I was feeling a little under the weather so I wasn't as happy as I usually am with them. Hannah kept asking me what was wrong and I would tell her my head hurt. At one point I smiled at something she did and she said, "Your head feels better!" I felt so bad that I wasn't as fun-loving as I usually am. I'm sure they think I'm a grumpy aunt now.

While they were here we went out to Linda's house so they could see McKay's ducks. They ended up seeing Karren's dog, Richard's bird, Linda's chickens, McKay's ducks, Erik's horse, and McKay's lizard. (A regular farm!) I think they really enjoyed themselves. I have pictures, but they are on my cell phone. I'm still trying to figure out how to upload the pictures to the blog. We also went to the library and the park. We didn't stay at the park for very long because it was too cold. The kids were so good the whole time. I just wasn't ready for how much time Heidi, the youngest, required. She wanted to be more mobile, which required me holding her. Good thing she's so cute. ;)

On the way back to Gillette it PORED rain the whole way. When we got back, Bryan's basement was flooded. He had to get fans and all sorts of water-removing things. Poor house. He also had about 3 inches of standing water in his back yard, which he was able to pump to the street. So much water! Anyhow, I was grateful that I could be with the kids. They're so entertaining and I love 'em!

And finally, here is a picture of Bryan in his sleeping goggles that he had to wear after Lasik. Doesn't he look handsome?