The Pollard Place: September 2022

I can't believe that September is already here! At the beginning of the month, always during Labor Day, Midway celebrates Swiss Days. They set up booths with things to buy and food to eat and then have some live entertainment. We had never been before, but Henry's class said that they needed some chaperones to help walk the class over to Town Hall for a play and a choir performance. I went with Amelia and it was so cute and fun!

Chicago! This trip actually happened toward the end of the month, but the pictures ended up here and I'm not redoing it haha.

Towards the beginning of the year, like in April, Rusty told me that the Motocross Des Nations was in Red Bud. I knew he’d always wanted to see that track, and had been dying to get back to a des nations so I wasn’t surprised when he said that he wanted to go. I started looking into it ace realized we’d need to fly into Chicago for the race and thought it would be awesome to spend some time there beforehand.

Day #1:
We flew in on a Monday afternoon and landed with just enough time to get to the hotel and go to bed.

Day #2:

On Tuesday we started by getting donuts from Stan’s Donuts. I had found that people either claimed Stan’s Donuts or Do Rite Donuts we’re the best in the city, and donuts in general are a big deal in Chicago. So naturally we had to try them both it and decide for ourselves. Stan’s was good! We particularly liked the Nutella one, the buttermilk one, and the maple bar.

Henry got in trouble for speaking rudely to Della, so for his consequence he wasn't allowed to speak for 5 minutes. He was trying to mime something to Della and she brought me this to read so she could know what he was talking about. He wanted to tell her that somebody could walk up the windows of the hotel with suction cups. I laughed so hard and asked him why and he wrote what suction cups are, and then I asked why he wanted to tell her that. I am so happy with these notes! I love my Henry boy.

After that we went to Field Museum. This place was amazing! We saw dinosaur fossils, huge gemstones, lots of taxidermies, and played in the play lab. We also watched a 3D movie about the dinosaurs of Antarctica. I didn’t even know there were dinosaurs there, but it turned out that one of the giant ones we saw in the museum was taken from Antarctica over 20 years of removal!

Because we had the City Pass we got access to some "extra" exhibits that the museum offers. One of them was being "shrunk" and going underground. So everything was huge, including bugs. Della was absolutely terrified the entire time hahahaha. And honestly, I was pretty grossed out too.

Sue- the largest, best quality T-Rex specimen ever found! This is really the skull.

A replica of Sue!

While we were in this section Amelia wanted me to take pictures of her. Lots of them. And she posed so stinking cute.

The Egyptian section was cool and the kids got to see a real mummy!

After the Field Museum we went to try out our first pizza place: Lou Malnatis. It takes a long time for the pizza to cook because it’s so deep, and they put all the toppings and cheese under the sauce. The sauce here was incredible, and I really did like the crust. But the pizza itself wasn’t anything crazy and we left feeling pretty disappointed.

Our next stop was the Lincoln Park Zoo. Sadly, we were a little behind schedule and only had about thirty minutes before it closed. This zoo is free to the public and was actually pretty impressive.

When it closed we went over to North Avenue Beach. The kids loved the beach so much, and Henry just can’t help but go in the water. I rolled his pants up and told him to stay dry because we had dinner after the beach but he got soaked all the way up through his shirt.

We headed over to the House of Blues where we had dinner and watched an artist play blues music. We had fried chicken and mashed potatoes and I think it was the best fried chicken I’ve ever had (Sorry Kansas City). It was really fun to listen to the music. Chicago has a huge Jazz/Blues influence because of all the people who came from the South to find work in the factories. We were so tired after this and it was way past bedtime!

Day #3:

Wednesday morning we woke up and had a slow morning at the hotel. We went to have lunch at Portillo’s. We grabbed two Chicago style hot dogs, an Italian lunch meat sandwich, a piece of chocolate cake and a chocolate cake shake. It honestly wasn’t that great, except for the desserts, so by this time Rusty and I had pretty much given up on the Chicago food scene.

After Portillos we went back to the beach so the kids could really play in the water. The weather was beautiful and the kids had their swimsuits on and were thrilled to be able to be free and play. Lia loved chasing the birds but was so sad she couldn’t touch one.

We got cleaned up and then went over to the Architecture Boat Tour. We got there 20 minutes early but it wasn’t early enough because all of the seats were taken on top. We went down to the bottom on the left side but the guide only ever pointed things out on the right side haha. It was kind of a bummer, but that river is so pretty and the buildings are incredible!

Rusty ran into some Italian people here for Des Nations!

It had already been a long day, but we had one more stop! We went to a White Sox game against the Cleveland Guardians. Wet only stayed for a few innings because everyone was so worked, but it was really cool. The kids got to throw pitches, and got fun certificates for it being their first game.

That night to get everyone calmed down and ready for bed after such a big day we sang some songs together on the bed.

Day #4:

Thursday morning we took it easy and then went to get breakfast at Wildberry Pancakes. Our opinion of Chicago’s food changed here! This place was delicious, and had awesome views of the city.

After breakfast we walked to see The Bean and took some pictures. The kids thought it was funny, except when we went underneath it Amelia said “It’s scary!”

We had a short walk over to the Art Institute of Chicago. Rusty and I were both very excited about this museum because it has some really important pieces! It has also been a really long time since we went to an art museum and it was really exciting. It was fun to get the kids excited about it, but they weren't super into it haha. But Rusty got to see some of his favorite paintings and so did I!

Georgia O'Keeffe

One of Monet's Waterlily paintings!!

This is one of my favorite paintings ever. It was amazing to see it in person and I was so excited!

A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte by Georges Seurat

This is one of Rusty's favorite paintings. He loves the pointillism and how much time it would take to accomplish something like this.

Henry loved this painting of boats

I didn't know that American Gothic would be there! So cool!

Van Gogh's self portrait

I actually really loved the Picasso art. I think being able to see it in person makes a big difference!

Andy Warhol

After the Art Institute we walked over to Millenial Park to let the kids run free and play! It was a pretty cool park, and it is amazing that it was tucked away in such a big city. You would never have known while you were in the trees! The kids loved the pirate ship and sail boat the best.

We had a five minute walk to have dinner at Giordano’s. When we got there the wait was pretty crazy so we put our names down and then walked around the corner to another stop we wanted to see after dinner: Garrett’s Popcorn Shop. This is apparently a big deal here in Chicago and we got the recommended weird sounding mix of cheddar and caramel. Like usually happens, the risk was worth it! It ended up being delicious. Then we went and got pizza from Giordano's and the Chicago pizza scene was salvaged for us. This pizza is UNREAL. It is absolutely scrumptious.

Waiting for our pizza to be ready while we eat our popcorn!

Everyone was freaking out when we were walking back about the sun being in this exact position. People had a lot of fancy camera equipment and had been standing there for a long time. I googled it and they get some really fantastic pictures. This is what I got as I walked past haha.

On the way to the hotel Rusty dropped me off to pick up some cupcakes from Molly's Cupcakes. I actually have regrets that we were not hungry enough to fully enjoy these because they were so good. Truly some of the best cupcakes I've ever had!

We went swimming at the hotel that night because we had promised the kids that we would take them and time was running out at the hotel haha. I didn't get in because I was so cold and the water did not feel inviting at all.

Day #4 Friday

Today was our last day in Chicago! We checked out of our hotel and then went over to Willis Tower to see the observation deck. Down in the lobby we got some Do-Rite Donuts. Just like with the pizza, this rivalry was quickly solved by my crew haha. Do-Rite Donuts are better than Stan's and Giordano's is better than Lou Malnati's. We got absolutely the best donuts and I was so happy.

This Boston Cream Pie was heavenly

Then we went upstairs to the Skydeck at Willis Tower. First of all, these elevators were nuts. We went up the elevator to the 103 floor. Even just looking out the windows here is impressive, but the kicker is when your group gets to go out onto the glass bottomed deck. You only get a few minutes to be out there, but that was enough for us. Della was really freaked out, and poor Amelia had a bad experience. I was holding her and I set her down so I could take a picture and she froze stiff and started crying thinking she was going to fall. My poor baby!

There was a cool wall here with sequins that the kids played with

We had a little bit of time to kill before we headed over to Michigan so we decided to go to the Shedd Aquarium. It was included in the City Pass so we went with it, and I'm glad we did! It was a really fun option for us and we all had a great time. We saw amazing animals and even saw a dolphin show! The kids also loved playing in the play areas and the touch tanks.

Amelia was pretty obsessed with the penguins

Della's creepy eyes... I can't

There was the coolest underwater viewing for the dolphins

The 3D show we saw at the aquarium

A few hours spent at the aquarium tired everyone out, which was great because then we had the drive to Michigan! Everyone slept but Rusty (poor driver) and in a few hours we made it to the AirBnB. It was stunning outside and I immediately fell in love with all of the space you can feel here. The inside wasn't anything crazy, but the kids loved seeing the horses.

Day #5: Red Bud!

Today is the day! The whole reason we even came on this trip: Red Bud! Rusty was giddy excited all morning which was adorable. I honestly don't remember all the things that happened today. I'm pretty sure it was all just practice, but I can't remember haha. We saw a lot of bike riding happening and Rusty was really happy. I thought it was a little rough to have the kids because there was so much second hand smoke and bad language and drunk people that it stressed me out.

One happy boy

I love this picture of these two!

Della found a four leaf clover!

When we were done at Red Bud we went to a little town called St. Joseph and ate at a seafood place right by Lake Michigan. I got scallops and they were some of the best I've ever had, easy. There is a beautiful beach right across the street so when we were done eating we walked over there. This beach was so cute I absolutely fell in love with it! There was even a big carousel, and the whole vibe made me think of Seaside- only warmer. I would LOVE to come back here and just stay in this town!

Day #6 Sunday: Red Bud #2

We went back for the second day of Red Bud! We saw lots of good racing and ended up being able to watch USA pull out a win! In a strange turn of events, Amelia started puking towards the end of the day and it was not awesome. It also was really rainy which was kinda cold but we had these awesome ponchos to stay dry. Very classy.

Day #7 Monday: Flight home

Today was the last day of the trip. We had to leave Michigan at around 3 in the morning, and I didn't get any sleep because I was having a panic attack. I had one every night we were here except for the first night, so by now it had gotten way less intense and I just stayed up and watched a show and was anxious, but I never threw up. I got to sleep in the car on the way there and a little bit on the way home. The flight was fine and everyone did great!

Back home I had my first primary presidency meeting! It was so much fun and absolutely adorable. Amy planned a whole tea party for us while we planned the program.

Rusty finally gave in to me and we went to the Storytelling Festival again! I loved it so much and had such a great time. We met Jessica and Aaron there and had a great time! Bryndee and Kyle took the kiddos for us. That day they had been out at our house for Amelia's birthday party and then they took all 5 kids with them to their ward party (brave haha!) and then we picked them up from their house after.

Amelia's face when they cut her off from the desserts

I spent quite a bit of time holding my baby for the last night that she was one. I love watching them grow up but I really hate when they grow up too.

The Orem house sold- officially! That was such a blessing and a weight off. We listed it on a Friday and had showings on Saturday and a full price offer on Monday. It was amazing, especially because the market had really slowed down by this time. We were very blessed!

So one day Rusty came home from work and saw that his trailer was off of the blocks and all crooked. Then he saw that there was a big gash in the back. Turns out a giant truck that was pouring cement next door backed right up into the trailer. Ahh. Rusty talked to the company and they got it all taken care of. We'll take it back to the place we bought it and have them fix it all up. It's so sad because we never buy anything new and we've had this for such a short time haha.

Rusty went on a bike ride with Shane again!

The house is making progress! Slowly but surely. It is so hard for me to be patient with this project but I'm trying haha. We have made a ton of progress with the backyard though! They moved out 1,000 tons of dirt! Crazy!

On a weekend Rusty went on a trip to Colorado to check out a new building that we got there. It's called the Fox Building, and I'm trying to remember to call it that because we have always referred to it as the Ugly Building haha.

My baby turned one! I can't believe it. September 11 was on a Sunday this year, so we did a little party for her on September 10. My family was all out of town so we just had the Bartons come over and party with us. Amelia is obsessed with Baby Shark so I decorated with that. She loved carrying the balloons around.

Amelia kept calling Mommy Shark "Pig Fish" and I don't think I'll ever recover

The next day was Amelia's real birthday. We had pancakes for breakfast, went to church, and then she played with her new toys. We went for a bike ride to the park across the street and Amelia wouldn't take her new beautiful dress off.

One morning I woke up and my back hurt so bad. Like, incredibly bad. I spent the whole day trying to stretch it out and push through it but by the next day it was awful. I went into Orem to my old chiropractor and had them pop it and it got a little better. But for a few days I couldn't really walk straight up haha. Amelia started to copy me and it was so cute. "Oh! My back!"

Rusty and I enjoy going to the house to see the progress, and towards the end of the month some more things had been completed. And as an added bonus, the kids got to sit in the cool vehicles that were there! I am so excited about being able to live here... some day. But being able to envision living here makes me so happy!

Rusty went riding with Shane again!

One day we got some tickets to a BYU game and invited my parents to come too! It has been ages since I've been to a football game and it was really fun! The best seats were closer but only had four seats. So we gave those to my parents and the older kids and Rusty and I went up higher with Amelia. We got a cougar tail and some yummy Hawaiian food!

Cougar Tail!

Lia and I made puppets out of her socks haha

The day after the BYU game the kids' school did a cute activity called Dads and Donuts. They went into the cafeteria and read books with Rusty and Papa while they ate donuts and chocolate milk. I love the things this school does.

There is a beautiful mountain biking trail in Midway called the Wasatch over Wasatch Trail. We got a babysitter for part of an afternoon/evening and went over to it! Normally you get shuttled up to the top but we didn't have any way up to the top but we just rode our e-bikes! It worked well but I was still pretty tired haha. This trail is 13 miles downhill, and downhill is my least favorite part of mountain biking haha. I ended up taking a really time to get down and it got dark and our babysitter was supposed to drive to Logan at a certain time. We still had a few miles to go and it was dark and we were past when the babysitter needed to be home, so I just called her and then I started running with my bike down the path. It was getting harder and harder to see, so we ended up ditching my bike in the bushes and then Rusty came back for it the next morning. I sprinted like five miles down the hill in the dark absolutely terrified that I was going to get eaten by a cougar. We got to the house and I was apologizing profusely to that girl that we were so late and she just nonchalantly says, "Oh that's ok. My brother is still at a stake dance." UM WHAT. I almost killed myself sprinting down the stupid mountain to get here as quickly as I could and your brother is still at a dance?!?!? No.

Rusty getting the bike the next morning haha

Della did gymnastics this month! I let the kids each pick two things to do when we moved here to help them be excited and adjust. Della chose dance and gymnastics and Henry chose soccer and art. This month Della got to do gymnastics for four weeks at the Rec Center in Heber and she had such a blast! It was really cool to see her face a new challenge and take it head on.

Henry and Della loved playing on the things while the kids were on other pieces.

Our backyard is really tiny, but we are able to use the space in the back. It is a really beautiful space even if it's not fenced in. The kids love playing out there and making soups. I do look forward to having a yard of our own again, but in the meantime this really is a beautiful area.

Labor Day weekend we went camping at Currant Creek! Jessica had gone earlier this summer and recommended it to us and it was really fun. We got to take the camper out again and that was wonderful. I love that thing so much. It feels so homey and cozy and I always think I want to live in it for a few months while we drive across the country but Rusty disagrees haha. We got up there as early as we could because we knew with it being Labor Day weekend it would be busy. We ended up finding a spot that was secluded but it was kind of on a hill. Okay it was really on a hill and even after we did all we could to level it we were still very slanted haha. And getting back there was really rough; if we hadn't had the Baja set up we wouldn't have made it.

Day #1- Friday:

Today we got back to our campsite and got all set up and then had dinner!

Day #2: We were going to go home this morning so that the kids could ride their bikes in the Swiss Days parade, but nobody wanted to leave. So we got to stay up here and relax and enjoy being outside! We explored down the hill and found a really cool teepee!

Then we went to Currant Creek to go fishing and play in the water! We played on shore for a little bit but it was so rocky and there were lots of people, that we enjoyed being out on the raft more. I took the girls out in the raft and left Rusty and Henry on shore to fish and I laughed so hard as I watched the wind carry me further away from them even while I was paddling haha.

We came back to the campsite for dinner and s'mores. One of the treats I had bought at Swiss Days was these delicious cookies. I decided to try them instead of graham crackers on the s'more and it was delicious! We also played around with Rusty's dart gun he got for his birthday. It is really fun and just chill to do.

We played some fun games!

Day #3: Sunday

Rusty and Henry got up early this morning to go out and get some good fishing in! They had good luck and met a man who told them about the best kind of bait to be using there. Henry absolutely loves fishing so this was heaven for him to be out there with Rusty.

After they got back we had breakfast and played withe the dart gun a little bit more. The kids loved just roaming around free and Rusty and I enjoyed the down time. Then we got ready and drove over to Strawberry Reservoir to go swimming and play in the water! I don't know if it was the wrong area or if it's always like that, but the beach was mostly just muddy which wasn't super great. But we did swim out to the docks out in the reservoir which was fun! Henry was really brave and jumped in.

That evening was more s'mores and getting the kids to bed so Rusty and I could sit outside and look at the stars. It was so beautiful!

Day #4: Monday

Today we went home, but before we did that we made sure that Henry and Rusty got one more good fishing trip out that morning!

Sophia got engaged! She is getting married in September and asked me to be one of the bridesmaids. One of the things we got to do was go wedding dress shopping! We met at a place in Lehi and she tried on some dresses and it was fun! I brought sparkling cider and cups for all of us.

So, apparently Midway is a great spot for hot air balloons. A lot of mornings we've seen hot air balloons outside our house and Amelia particularly is in love with them. She freaks out when she sees them!

Before the weather cooled off too much I wanted to make it to the zoo at least one more time. I invited McKayla to go with us and it was so much fun! A lioness had her paw on the glass and the kids loved touching it!

Midway Elementary School is the cutest. A few weeks into the school year they threw a school carnival. The kids were able to go and play some games and eat popcorn. They also were able to earn enough tickets by playing games to earn a free book! They even got their faces painted which always has the longest line at other carnivals.

Henry is playing soccer this month and he is doing great! One of the games was absolutely pouring rain. Jessica came out to watch his game and we brought the tent so that they could stay dry. But they mostly wanted to stay out of the tent anyways haha.

When I was looking through the activities at the Rec Center they offered a really cool ceramics painting class. Rusty was going to stay home with Amelia so that I could take the older kids but he had a work thing pop up so I took her with me and it ended up being just great! I thought she might be too young for it but she did a fantastic job and really was into it. She was quiet and concentrating the whole time.

Midway Elementary also did a Walkathon for a fundraiser. I went and met up with some of the moms at school and I had fun! The kids had fun running around- Della was not interested in running so she went slow, but Henry was trying so hard to win one of the top spots in his grade so he was booking it.

Apple Cider Day came! It is always fun, and this time didn't disappoint. It wasn't very cold which was nice, but I forgot the kids' jackets so we borrowed some from Alyson. They got to ride the horses and go around in the trailer. Amelia was particularly in love with the horse and didn't want to get off.

Apple Cider Day ended and we went up to Stringtown and rode dirt bikes around. It was nice to have a chance to just get away from things and have some space. Della loved riding with Rusty and me on the dirt bikes, and Henry loved taking off on his own!

On our way out of Morgan we stopped by the cemetery and said hi to Beckie and Grandma and Grandpa. It is bittersweet every time, but going consistently is always nice.

Autumn came and brought beautiful fall colors to Midway! I took the kids up a drive that goes over the mountains into Park City. I love fall colors!

Henry's Highlights:

He loves soccer!
We had parent teacher conferences and his teachers said that he was respectful, obedient, kind, and ahead of all of his learning goals. He's doing so well and we're so proud of him!
He has recently become obsessed with having a worm farm. He's been collecting worms when it rains and putting them in a pot of dirt.
While we were camping we got to a dead end road that had a sign that said, "Government Property". A truck drove past us and Henry yelled, "Wait guys! It's government property! .... Or are YOU the government??"
Still camping we went swimming at Strawberry Reservoir. Henry and I were walking in and he says, "It's super cold when it gets to your privates."
Lost a tooth at school!

Adeline's Adventures:

Della is just thriving at school! She has a lot of friends and truly misses school when she doesn't get to go
Della had gymnastics this month and she was a natural! She loved it so much she's considering dropping dance so she can stick with gymnastics. We'll see!
I've been talking with Della's speech pathologist at her school and they will be starting some speech therapy!
Della had a funny interaction with Rusty while we were camping.

Lia: "Plane!"
Della: "Oh yeah I see the plane!"
Rusty: "That's just a fluff from the flower floating, it's not a plane."
Della: "Dad! I'm choosing to believe what Lia believes."

While camping we were blowing up the raft (our yacht) and Della says, "Um. Do we have pillows for this craft?"

Amelia's Updates:

Amelia follows us around the house shutting doors behind her. She closes every door!
She is talking up a storm! It is amazing to hear her vocabulary.
She loves to use the word "mine" now.
She's obsessed with baby dolls and rocking them to sleep. A baby can be anything: dinosaur, spoon, brush
Amelia puts her finger on my lips and says "shhh" if I talk while shes video calling my parents
She is OBSESSED with hot air balloons

Extra Pictures: