Swimming Pool

So, I've had my eye on this pool at Target all summer ... Every time I saw it I would think how much fun it would be to have in the yard with the kids, how they love the water, how this one is big enough (since I always end up getting in with them anyway) that I don't feel like a whale in a fishtank. And I think it's just a beautiful pool, anyway.

Well, the problem was, I wasn't willing to pay $30 for the thing, so I kept passing it up. Until, as I was looking for a printer the other day (mine went completely kaput, and since I'm working on submitting my manuscript to different publishers, now, I kinda need a printer) and when the Target home page opened up, there was my pool, on sale for $14.99!

I was so thrilled. It was like it was my birthday or something! Hey Honey, I'm running to Target, I'll be back with my pool and a new printer (which was also on sale, Yes!).

So, S woke us up at six o'clock on Saturday morning. My hubby went out and set the pool up so the water could start getting warm. S watched out the window, and she nearly crawled out of her skin, she was so excited! "Seemee Pu, seemee pu, seemee pu!" When she thought I wasn't listening to her, she would grab both sides of my face to make me look at her and say, "Mama, Swimming Pool!"

L didn't see it until after breakfast, and then we had to wait until after we'd gone to clean the chapel, and come home and eaten lunch before we let them get in.



L got in just fine, but I was worried S might have trouble with the height of the walls.



She climbed right in. I should have known she'd be okay - she's a little mountain goat!



We also picked up some friends at the chapel, so we had some of the kids who go to the park with us each morning there.



It was still pretty cold - in spite of my hubby's efforts. He used my electric tea pot and started boiling water to add to it to warm it up. We probably wouldn't have ever gotten in without his help, but it was still a bit brisk. You'll notice the kids climbed in and sat down ... and then immediately stood back up!

But, in spite of the cold, we had a blast!

S in my old dress

S in her dress - I finally put S in my old dress. L wore it quite a bit when she was little, but I kept thinking it was still too big for S. Boy was I wrong. I took pics, since it looks like she just might never fit into it again.



I had a hard time getting a natural smile out of her. My hubby has taught her how to smile really big and squint her eyes, and that's all she does anymore when you tell her to smile.

That's L trying to slide into the side of the picture ...

Oh say where is Wal-mart?

When we moved to Culpeper, VA, my hubby and I quickly discovered the most important landmark in the city: The Walmart. Living on the Southeast side of town, we asked directions to the city offices. The city offices (we now know) are located in the middle of town, the Walmart on the Northwest end of town. Yet, the directions we were given went something like this, "You know where the Wal-mart is? Head in that direction ..."

For the first three days in town, while we visited the DMV, got the car inspected, and went to numerous offices to get a windshield full of stickers, each and every time we asked for directions, the answer started with, "You know where the Wal-mart is?"

We thought it was just a funny joke between the two of us until some of our family happened to be in church with us the Sunday our ward was split. The announcement was made, the leadership sustained, and then the nitty gritty of new ward boundaries was brought up. "If you live on the same side of 29 as Wal-mart, you're in the Piedmont Ward. If you're across 29 from Wal-mart, you're in the Culpeper Ward."

My poor in-laws! They tried to keep their faces straight, but we couldn't help laughing.

Well, now we've moved to Idaho, to a town that, according to new friends here, has been fighting to keep the Mega-store Giant OUT for years. Their fight eventually failed, and the new Wal-mart opened just this last week. I'm so excited! I can't wait to just go walk the aisles and see what it's like.

I've restrained myself, though, and I even went shopping at my usual store this last weekend in an effort to avoid the crowds. I made it half-way through my shopping list when I realized I wasn't fighting traffic and having to wait to get to the eggs and milk. In fact, the store was rather quiet.

That's when I realized, "Oh yeah, we have a Wal-mart, now."