Poolside at the Devereaux House

Tomorrow playgroup is at our house, and we've decided to play outside in the pool. So today we had to fill it up and test it out. I love that our pool does not require being blown up, it is a decent size, and it folds up to store.

The boys just love that you can fill it with water.

They were having a great time in the pool this afternoon playing with various toys. I was enjoying the shade of the back porch.

Jacob started pouring water over Ephraim's head, and I asked him to stop. When he didn't, I poured a little over his head to show him why Ephraim might not like it. His reaction was so dramatic that it seriously cracked me up! Just look at this face!


You would think he was seriously injured right? Sheesh!

Summer Sprinkler

Is it just me, or is it getting HOT around here?

It seems like we went from clouds and rain to baking hot sun! Weird weather this year, no?

Anyway, it has been warm enough this week that Monday I decided to get out the sprinkler for the boys to play in. They had a great time, as you can tell.

First they were trying to figure out if they could drink the water without getting to close to it.

Then they finally decided to go ahead and get wet. Of course Ephraim loves water, so he didn't mind getting it in his face or anywhere else for that matter.

I love this little swimsuit that Ephraim has on. It is so nice not to have to put sunscreen on him absolutely everywhere. Now I just need to figure out what to do about sunscreening his scalp!

Soon enough the boys figured out that they could pick up the sprinkler by the hose and direct the water wherever they wanted it to go. This brought on whole new avenues of fun.

Jacob decided that he needed to wash all of his sandbox/outside toys with the sprinkler. Then he would spread them out on the lawn to dry. He was seriously cracking me up.

Then Ephraim decided to try to pick up the sprinkler too. He discovered that it is a bit harder than it looks to control where the sprinkler is spraying!


Of course he didn't give up after getting sprayed in the face the first time! He's not a quitter!

They both had a great time playing in the sprinkler, and I am sure that we will be getting it out more often this next month. Besides, aren't they super cute when they are wet?

Ephraim's hair sticks up even when it's wet.

Here's Jacob, cleaning off more of his toys.

Huck Finn Day

This year as part of the Strawberry Days celebration we went to Huck Finn Day. I went with Jacob last year and he had a good time, so I thought the boys would love it.

We got in line for the pony rides first, which was a good thing because we didn't end up waiting too long. Then we did the fish pond, bean bag toss and the donut walk.

The main attraction for the boys was the area of the park that they filled with water to make a pond. There were fish in there for people to catch if they were interested, but my boys were really more entranced by the water:

They were doing such a great job wading in the water and they were loving every minute of it. I was having fun snapping cute pictures of them in their overalls. Aren't they just adorable?

I knew that the boys would get a bit wet, but for some reason I didn't really anticipate this (though in hindsight, I should have!):

Well, that's one way to cool off Ephraim! Needless to say, Ephraim was completely soaked! So I let him play around a bit more... it's not like he could get any wetter!

Luckily Brenda and her kids were there and saved my bacon. Brenda had an extra pair of shorts that I could put Ephraim in to take him home! Good thing, or the car seat would have been SOGGY!

So we had a good time at Huck Finn Day. Next year I will remember to bring a change of clothes... just in case!

Strawberry Days Carnival

This week has been the annual Strawberry Days celebration in Pleasant Grove. This year I decided that the boys would enjoy going to the carnival downtown, even if I was not that interested in it. So we scheduled a day to go with Melinda and her girls.

Unfortunately Melinda wasn't feeling well, so we ended up going to the carnival ourselves. She was nice enough to give us some tickets for the rides, which was great!

First, Jacob went on a couple of rides by himself. He went on a little train and on some Jeeps that went around a track. I would have let Ephraim go too, but I didn't really trust him to keep his hands, arms, or himself inside the ride at all times.

So he spent those rides something like this:

Poor kid. So we found some rides that we could go on together. Ephraim and Jacob both thought the carousel was great fun.

They also both loved taking a ride in this little hot rod. Aren't they the cutest?


Jacob really wanted to go on the Ferris wheel, but there was no way I was going to put him on it by himself. I was pretty sure that he would get scared once the wheel got to the top. Since we were there alone I didn't have anyone to leave Ephraim with and I didn't really want to take him on the Ferris wheel either. That would have been 12 tickets for the Ferris wheel, which is a bit much. So I conveniently ran out of tickets. Don't tell Jacob, ok?

How does your garden grow?

The beginning part of June has been super-rainy this year! Nearly every day we have had big thunder clouds rolling around and rain off and on.

It has been a bit of a bummer to have so many grey skies, but our plants in the garden are doing well!

We have had a bumper crop of strawberries this year, which we are enjoying. They taste great plain, with sugar, or as part of strawberry shortcake. Yummy!

Our cherry tree has finally produced some fruit this year as well. We haven't gotten tons of cherries, but they are pretty tasty too.

And then there are the things that you don't want to grow. Our entire lawn has been full of mushrooms! It's like a miniature smurf village or something!

This next week is supposed to be sunny and gorgeous, and I'm sure that the mushrooms will all dry up soon! Pretty soon I will be wishing for some rain because it's going to get HOT! (well, not as hot as Tucson :o).

Around Utah Lake

Yesterday Joe drove to work rather than riding his bike. The weather has been rainy off and on, so it has been hard for him to decide if he should ride or not.

Well, after Joe had been at work for a while his boss showed up in his riding clothes and told Joe he was going to take the day and ride around Utah Lake. Of course Joe was itching to go to.

So he called me up and we chatted about it. I could tell that he really wanted to do it too. So I told him he should come home and get his bike and go find his boss on his route. So that's what he did.

I wasn't even home with the boys when Joe came to get dressed and put his bike in the car, but he called and updated me periodically. First Joe drove his car out to Goshen because he knew his boss would have to go through there and he was pretty sure he would be ahead of him.

Joe managed to catch his boss there and they headed out together. They went around the west side of the lake (heading north). Joe called me when they were getting close and I told him that I would be happy to run him out some sunscreen and more snacks.

So I put the boys in the car just before naptime and we went and found Joe. At this point I think he was a bit more than halfway done. We loaded him up and put sunscreen on him (I didn't want him to get burned like I did!). Of course I also brought the camera and drove with him a bit to take some pictures. Aren't these nice photos?

Joe and Kevin took a road that went behind Geneva Steel, right next to the lake. That's where I took this nice picture. The boys had fun seeing Daddy for a minute riding his bike.

Shortly after I left him to put Ephraim down for his nap, Joe and Kevin made it to UVU. Joe stopped for a bit and then headed out to the car in Goshen. He called me a couple of times and I talked him into stopping at Arby's to get something to eat, since he basically hadn't even had lunch... mostly just energy food the entire time!

Joe finished his ride, which was 96.75 miles. He did it in 5 hours and something like 13 minutes with an average speed around 18 mph. He is so fast! He was pretty wiped out when he got home, but I don't blame him! There was no support at all on his ride, and on the back side of the lake he ran out of water for a while. Towards the end his legs were cramping a bit as well.

I guess this was good practice for ULCER (Utah Lake Century Epic Ride), which Joe will be participating in sometime in August. It should be a little easier since he will have regular rest stops with water, and food!

Great job honey! We are proud of you.

Sunday Afternoon Nap

Earlier this year Jacob mostly gave up afternoon naps. Now instead he has an hour of quiet time during Ephraim's afternoon nap so that mommy can still have some time to herself and get stuff done.

It is rare that Jacob takes a nap, but sometimes he decides that he is tired and he goes to sleep. On Sunday we got home from church, Jacob ate dinner with Joe and I while Ephraim was asleep and then he just disappeared. We noticed the house got really quiet, so we went looking for him. Here is how we found him:

I guess the long weekend and all the traveling was a bit much for him and he just needed some more sleep. I took several pictures of him and he didn't even flinch! Sleepy head!

Little Red Riding Hood 2009

After Joe's parents left on Friday, we headed north ourselves to spend the night in Logan so I could go participate in the Little Red Riding Hood Ride with my sisters the next day.

I planned on doing the 100 mile ride and I actually did it! I completed my first ever century bike ride! Saturday I rode a total of 103 miles in 6 hours 26 minutes, with an average speed of 16 miles/hour.

Sometimes when I think about how far 100 miles actually is, I am still amazed that I did it and I am pretty proud of myself. Especially considering the fact that in the end I basically did it all by myself!

Joe and I got up early, packed up the boys and went to the start of the ride in Wellsville. I started out at about 7:30 am with the group of girls that talked me into doing the century ride with them. We were rolling right along, and I was having a great time even though the weather was a bit cloudy and we were in our warmer gear. Here I am with one of the ladies in my group (and a SAG car in the background, that's Support, Assist and Gear for those of you who don't know!).

I was amazed by the number of cyclists who were participating in the ride. There were around 2600 ladies out on the road that day!

So I was rolling right along with my group, when I noticed around mile 10 that my rear tire didn't feel quite right. I asked one of my riding buddies, and she said it looked fine to her. I told her that I was pretty sure I was going flat and that I needed to stop and check it.

At the next intersection I stopped and my rear tire was completely flat. Unfortunately, none of my group stopped with me! I was a bit annoyed, but determined to continue with my ride. Since I am not that great at changing my own flats, I called Joe and he turned around and headed in my direction even though he was headed back to the beginning to take pictures of my sisters as they started their ride.

I got my tube replaced with the help of one of the support cars, and Joe showed up just as we were getting it back on. I gave him my flat tube and a kiss and headed out on my own. He met me at the next rest stop with the boys to cheer me on. Here I am with Ephraim at my first rest stop.

After the rest stop Joe let the boys play for a while because they were being so good! Here they are on the merry-go-round (Joe says it's the only thing that wasn't wet!).

Then Joe headed back to Jeanette's house for a while to resupply and see if the boys would rather stay with Grandma and their cousins at the house.

But then at mile 26 I got another flat on my rear tire! At this point I was really annoyed. I didn't see a support car in sight, and I had already used my spare tube so I called Joe. He turned around even though he had two tired boys in the car with him. A nice rider stopped and gave me a spare tube and I started to replace my rear tire again.

Two other cyclists stopped to help me with my tire as well as a highway patrolman. Then Joe arrived and helped me get the tire back on (thanks, Love!). At this point I had probably lost almost an hour with flat tires... so I knew there was no way I would ever catch up with my group. But I kept on rolling.

Joe finally got to go to Jeanette's house for a while, but then spent most of the afternoon following me around. So even though my riding group left me, I was never really alone. Joe and the boys were there at many of the rest stops to cheer me on. Often they would pass me in the car and Jacob would yell out the window, "Go, Mommy, Go!".

It was fun to see them stop on the roadside in front of me to take my picture too. They are definitely part of what kept me going through two flat tires, miles and miles of farmland, some huge hills, and a 20 minute downpour in Preston. Joe even came and spent my lunch rest stop with me while the boys napped in the car. They were all awesome and I was glad to have them there.

Honey Daddy took some pretty great pictures of me too! Here are some of my favorites:



Yep! I was out in the middle of farm country in Cache County.


Then just before mile 80 I stopped in Benson at one of the last rest stops. I was getting tired, but doing pretty well. It was fun to ride up to the rest stop and see Joe and the boys out playing on the ball field. Both of the boys were happy to see mommy, so I stopped there for a bit.


Then just after the rest stop I was coming down the road to find my mom, my sisters, Joe and the boys all there cheering me on. It was awesome and made me feel so good!


With such a great crew, it is no wonder that I was able to finish. I didn't roll into the finish until just before 5 pm, but I did it! My family was there to cheer me on at the finish line and it was great.


Surprisingly my muscles are doing really well following my epic ride. I actually haven't been that sore! The worst part has been the wicked sunburn that I got on my knees and upper calves because the sun finally did come out towards the end of the ride and I forgot about sunscreen.

Next year I will be sure to remember the sunscreen! That's right... I think I will be doing this ride again next year. Maybe I can beat my time and average speed... and hopefully get less flat tires!

More fun with the Devereaux's

It's always fun when Grandpa and Grandma Devereaux come to visit! The boys have so much fun playing with them and all the fun stuff they bring.

This year Grandma and Grandpa brought Jacob a whole stack of Lincoln logs, which he had a great time playing with. Grandpa and Jacob would make the most fun-looking buildings.

More often than not the buildings would end up looking something like this:

So we had to try to teach Ephraim not to touch the buildings because it would upset Jacob when they got knocked down (by someone other than himself!). Or we would get Ephraim to play with the blocks that Grandma brought just for him.

Jacob also enjoyed all the hats and dress-up clothes that Grandma brought for him. he had fun pretending he was a mailman or a fireman or a doctor. He was absolutely adorable! I need to take some pictures of him in all his fun gear!

The boys also enjoy helping Grandpa and Daddy with projects. I don't know how much help they were, but at least they had fun! Here is Jacob and Ephraim helping Grandpa put an outlet in the ceiling of the garage:

If you noticed, both Jacob and Ephraim are in the picture above. In the picture below Ephraim decided that he wanted to climb the ladder too!

I also know that I will always have clean cars as long as the Devereaux guys are anywhere near my house. It is so nice!

Devereaux and Son Car wash

Devereaux and Grandson Car wash

I think it is great that Grandpa and Daddy are teaching my boys to be such handy little men. They are going to know how to fix just about everything!

Joe and I got to go on some nice bike rides while his parents were at our house. We went up Provo Canyon, which was a ton of fun. We also went out on a group ride with the Trek store.

While on the group ride I found a couple of ladies who were doing the Little Red Riding Hood ride too and they invited me to ride with them. The only problem? They were planning on doing the 100 mile ride, rather than the 62 mile ride I planned to do.

Then on Monday morning we went for a really long bike ride (57 miles) to see if I could handle doing the 100 mile ride for Little Red Riding Hood. We went down south by Springville, Lakeshore and all the way around West Mountain.

Apparently while we were gone Ephraim one again decided that Grandpa's are where it's at. He was having a great time with Grandpa Devereaux.

It also seems that we were not the only ones riding our bikes that morning. Do you think Jacob is going to turn into a little cyclist too?

It was so nice of Grandma and Grandpa to watch the boys for us. We knew they were in good hands, and Jacob and Ephraim had a great time!

More fun in the sand.

Check out that tunnel in the mountain of new sand!

No you can't play with my cool, new popper-toy!

We also made it to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house with Joe's parents and Great-Grandpa Sabey. It was neat to walk around the inside of the temple and on the grounds. Did you know that Jacob has now been inside 2 temples and he's only three?! Ephraim has been inside 2 temples, and he's only 14 months old! How cool is that?

Here is a photo of the temple from that day (Tuesday, June 2).

We had so much fun with Joe's parents at our house, and we definitely wish that we lived a little closer together. We will miss having them around and spending time with them.