Ballet!

Mom, will you PLEASE sign me up for ballet? {pronounced: bal-la-lea} I've been procrastinating this day for a FULL year now. Her cousin, Sam, and friend, Carly, started last year. My patient Madi waited (until 2 days before she started) for me to sign her up and go shopping for the oh so coveted leotard and slippers. She was tickled pink. The boys waited in the car for all of this - on purpose; I'm preparing them for dance recitals. She looks so cute with her ballerina buns and outfit - I'll have to take more pics of her soon. I'm rather surprised I like it so much, but when your darling daughter is in love, it's hard not to smile.

Could it be?

We've been wondering whether or not Cael would be a "lefty." As of now he's eating mostly left, kicking left and throwing ambidextrous. We have ZERO idea what the recipe is, but there is definitely something in the mix.

LEFTY KIDS: 3 RIGHTY KID: 1 (Jono)

I can tell when Cael hasn't had enough to drink in a day. It's amazing that it's actually captured in a picture. He leans in, closes his eyes and darts in for a one second gulp! Hot water, it must be yummy because it happens over and over again!
{as a side note: Can you say "little Mark!"}

CRAZY!

Last Thursday we headed for a late dinner. I had the three non-football players with me (common place), which means we all were going in. Unbuckling and the other menial tasks associated with getting out of the car took longer than "shot from a gun" Jono could take. When Madi, Cael & I walked in to an exceptionally busy Little Caesars, I was greeted by Jono at the cash register with a proud face. He cooly says, "I've already ordered," like this was normal... So, I paid for his order and we left.

Crazy Little Caesars for letting a six year old order after standing in "the shortest line there was" without even seeing an adult with whom he belonged.

Next time, I'll just send him in with the money!
My independent son leaves me feeling like he just might do okay with out me. I've heard mom's lament this as their children grow up, but I've racked my memory and I don't think any of them were talking about a SIX year old!
I couldn't find him at the church the other night. Everyone was asking if they needed to start a search party. They chilled when they could see I truly wasn't worried. He's so confident that I can't help but be confident in him. I said he's smart and I'm not worried - I'd just REALLY like to find him. So, our constant goal is - DUDE, just tell me!!!
I love this boy!

Football Season

A Daddy's dream comes true.

First time in pads and a helmet.

First real game.

A real smile even after losing for the first (but definitely not last) time.

They are 1-2 on the season, but Payton's having fun none-the-less. Mark is helping coach which is a 10 hour a week commitment. When people give me the "What? and you're okay with that 'look'" I let them know I signed up for this 10 1/2 years ago. I couldn't be happier Payton gets to share this with his Dad. Mark is passionate about football being a good experience and teaching the kids more than just the plays. He knows who he is has a lot to do with what he learned on a football field. So, it's a guaranteed in our life for many, many years - fall means football. It's a good thing we all love the sport.

First Day of School

Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself. ~John Dewey

My boys are growing up! I'm nearing a mix up between mine and Payton's shirts and socks in the laundry. Ask him who's flip-flops I wear on quick trips out the door! His!
Payton started Third Grade and is keeping up just fine ;) And I assume he's happy there with Mrs. Kimber because when I ask him how school was everyday he says, "good." That's a period there at the end because that's really ALL he says. Some days I pry for an ounce of news, but mostly I move on to Jono. "How was school, Jono?" 3/5 days: "Bad!" I've figured out that this isn't in reference to the work or the teacher, Miss Jorgensen, but how the football game went at recess. All parents should have psychology degrees.
Madi started preschool this year. She doesn't travel far because I had a first day of school this year too. I have eight students (+ Cael, until after snack when I happily put him in his crib). Madi loves having her friends come to "play." I've enjoyed teaching again, but am glad it's only two days a week. I love preschoolers - life is so simple to them and happiness comes easily. Watching them learn and light up will never fail to put a smile on my face.

Alaska

Mark's in Alaska for work, or so he says :) We'll trade him being gone for a few days for the 50 lbs. of Halibut I hope he brings home!

House PROGRESSion #2

My awesome kids unloaded TWO monstrously heavy boxes of cultured stone that couldn't be budged until they were 90% empty. I borrowed Tom Page's truck and wanted to get it back to him asap, so I put the only available workers to work. I don't remember what I promised, maybe it had something to do with McDonald's. Anyhow, we were all mighty impressed with our muscles after we got the pallets unloaded.

We're getting closer on the house. A couple more weekends with our part-time contractors and we should be ready to hunker down for the winter. The lights have gone up since I took these pics and I need to post a dark picture because it's my favorite part. The railing and raw wood will be painted white next week.

We've heard we should take down the front trees so you can see our beautiful house, but I disagree. We think they add to the charm, knots and all. Maybe they just need a good trimming.

We love the new green board and batton siding and faux shake shingles.

Oregon! Zobrist Ranch & the Redwoods

We spent a wonderful week in Oregon with our friends, the Conk's, from Las Vegas. Kristin's parents have a place in White City, Oregon on the Rouge River. They invited us a few years ago, but one baby led to another and finally...this was our year to go! We drove the 13 hours there with an overnight stop in Reno. At the ranch the kids loved to roam on the Mules (the motorized variety :) ), swing by the river, follow the deer, visit the Llamas, play tennis for hours and hours, the list goes on!
The must have experience was rafting the Rouge. We all loaded up, minus the babies, with four blow-up Tahiti boats. We had seven minors amongst three adults. Mark ended up with Jono and Madison. Right away Madi was nervous. This was warranted as I watched she & Jono separate from the raft running the first little rapids. I screamed from behind thinking for sure they were overboard. Luckily, they came back down IN the boat. From then on out it was petrified howling. Poor Mark was sitting back so low, his boat looked like it was submersed on the puniest of waves. After his tailbone took a beating he attempted to ride it out on his knees which didn't work any better. When they made it to the ranch it was discovered that the bottom of his raft was completely flat and the sides weren't all that inflated either. Needless to say, 2nd time around: Mark had an inflated boat and Madi road with Kristin. They played like the rapids were the buckin' bulls she's so fond of and then they weren't so scary.
We took a side trip to the Humbolt State Park just East of Cresent City, CA. We walked through The Stout Grove and stood in awe of the redwoods. The kids loved this Paul Bunionish playground; they ran the highways of fallen redwoods and climbed and crawled through burned out trees. The way there was eventful in the car sick category, but I'm sure Payt and Madi (and Mark who hates cleaning it up) would agree- the experience was worth it. We continued onto the Pacific Coast and the dads and big kids SLID down to touch the ocean. The tide pools held treasures of star fish. It was 55*F there on the coast and as we climbed East to Medfore it was 95*F; Mother Nature's A/C.
To get the local's experience, they took us to Mill Creek Falls. We found a GPS "GeoCache" there - a first for us. The falls were breathtaking, but The Avenue of the Boulders was where the fun was. A rock you could slide down, tens of "slip and you're a goner" perches and a raging river with a man-made wading pool accented by a black sand beach. It was just our style.
I can't wait until we get to Vegas and slideshow Kristin's photomemoir and relive the whole trip. My pictures of Oregon are so sub-par! I became lackadaisical the moment I saw Kristin taking pictures. It was a vacation to remember for sure. Thanks Terry and Kristin for the good times!!! And thanks to the Zobrist's - we love your patch of paradise!!!

Where Cael lived; chasing balls from sun up till sun down

Pacific Ocean

The Stout Tree

How's that for tree climbin'?

Friends from Vegas Past

After the 4th of July we were lucky enough to see lots of our Vegas friends who we really miss!!!

Jared came to stay with Payton for four days! They had the greatest time. We kept busy at Cherry Hill, Egbert Park & Eccles Dinosaur Museum. The best things about best friends is that no matter how long you're apart - you can pick up right where you left off. Laura met us at Gateway to pick him up. We had a good visit and weren't ready to say goodbye. We'll hope for next summer!

Blake and Jono got two play dates out of their trip to UT/ID. While I was trying to take their picture they could barely stop talking and joking long enough to catch 'A' shot. The rest of their pictures of them include stick poking, wrestling, laughing...What good buddies!






Heidi and Gabby visited us at the Discovery Museum (no picture?! - maybe Heidi has one...) Gabby was darling with the kids and kept hollerin' "Nono," which Jono loved.

Matt & Lauren Bishop & crew...Reilly, Thai, Racer, and Jet were in Utah for a Summer vacation from Saudi Arabia. (It's cool to have friends that live in SAUDI!) We got together for dinner and an evening at the park. (No pic?! I USUALLY carry my camera in my purse)

Our friends from Vegas past wouldn't have been complete without our perfect summer vacation with the Conk's in Oregon...on to the next post!

Who needs a Summer Job?

PAYTON and JONO!
So, I "suggested"picking and selling cherries from our trees in back. (Do mom's really ever suggest anything? Or is it more of a mandate posing as a suggestion :) ) They were really pretty good workers for 8 and 6. Mark sprayed to eliminate the nasty worms with spray the boys bought. Then they picked, washed, weighed, bagged and sold their cherries for $3/lb. The sold part was definitely the most enjoyable. I think they sold 15 or so lbs. But as I said to - many a mom - "I don't care if they make a penny, I just hope they learn a little something about work." I believe we don't see the fruits of our labor immediately with this kind of stuff, but I HOPE the payoff will come as they grow!

House PROGRESSion

This is our old house the day the pine tree was coming down. Mark's brothers Matt and Mike helped him out by insuring the tree didn't land in our living room :) Thanks! It was all in preparation for what we call our "Curb Appeal" project. Matt was the architect on the project and Mark was the visionary. Aren't they good?

Our new house is coming along. If you look close you can see the stone wainscoting that will go on the columns too. The house color is the green/gray around the windows. The initial part has moved very fast the breaks are pressing down as our part is coming into play. We'll get there and have a pretty house for all our efforts! I'll update again when it's closer to finished.

CAEL TURNED ONE (last month :) )

July 2nd we went to the Rodeo in Oakley, UT with some of Mark's brother Bob's family. He was on call with Justin Sports Medicine. We spent the night literally about 8 sleeping hours at the Larsen's cabin before heading to Richfield. We went straight to my Dad's cabin on Cove Mountain to help with a concrete pour and celebrate Cael's birthday. My so sweet sister made THREE cakes so everyone could enjoy. White, chocolate and Cael's very own. He ate a good portion of that cake systematically and quite seriously. He barely smiled - but we know he enjoyed it. Right after, we headed for the Richfield 4th of July celebration. The evening of his birthday he flat out flew to win the DIAPER DERBY at the city park. With his Mogli crawl, he beat out 45 other diaper wearing crawlers for the grand prize ($100 Savings Bond). A great weekend was had by all. Hopefully Cael likes having busy birthdays because 7-3 is bound to always be a travellin' party! We can hardly believe our baby is ONE! He's walking everywhere unless he needs to get there fast and then he runs on all four! We love our Cael and his zest for life. He's a climber (no surprise), a smiler, and a good sleeper (finally!)

WARNING - NOT FOR WEAK STOMACHS

Payton had an adventure last night. About 1 0' clock he comes stumbling upstairs. He tells me he's fallen off his bunkbed. He tells me his arm is hurt...I lay him down on the couch and tell him I'll be back with a blanket. I went to wipe his tears before I went and noticed in the darkness that his eyebrow was black... "oh great, it's blood!" I called for reinforcement and two seconds later Mark says, "We gotta go." So, Molly (our so sweet sister-in-law) came up and off we went.
On the way to the ER, Payton let us know he woke up and was getting out of bed to check what time it was. If it was in the "5's, 6's, or 7's" he was going to stay up and play. Me: "5's?!!! - go back to bed!" He obviously takes bing a morning person to the extreme. Anyhow, he didn't realize how close to the edge he was when he rolled over, fell and cracked his head on Jono's nightstand.
He was a brave dude and was pretty calm through the whole ordeal, minus the shots. But a minute worth of shots in an open head wound would get anybody ornery. He yelled, "You're touching my brain!!!" Which is probably what it felt like :) After he was well assured he was numb he lay perfectly still for his 6 inside & 10 outside stitches. 2 hours after it began, he was resting on the couch, doped up on Loritab, looking forward to his vacation from school and promised sports cards.
Battle wounds are part of growing up. He's got his first good scar comin' on, but hopefully he'll leave his face alone from here on out!

I [HEART] NEW YORK

In an effort to reciprocate for all of you whom I love to read about on your blogs. I figure I may as well go back and catch up (mainly because I haven't downloaded recent pics). I'll tell you about our trip to New York way back December 10th through the 17th. Yes, Christmas was a rush and yes, I planned this trip unprovoked. Call us crazy, it's just the way we seem to roll.
We flew into Albany where we fought with the rental car company who let us reserve a 7-passenger 4X4 Explorer or the like for the week. That like part ended up to be the kicker - "like" in which category? Oh yeah, they get to pick. They tried to give us a five seat Trailblazer - um... hello? Do you see each of our "precious cargo?" They don't fit! We ended up with a van... The weather spared us and it ended up perfect, but I'll NEVER admit that to Alamo :)
We drove to Palmyra the next day where we took in all the Church History sites and met Mark's parents who are serving a mission in the area. As we were walking to the Peter Whitmer home, Jono commented, "Oh, we get to go in the barn!" "Jono, that's the house." Jono: [stunned]. About dark, we walked into the "Sacred Grove" for a unique experience. We were alone in a wintery freeze, three deer came bounding through the grove and into the old orchard; it was serene - until we showed up. We did our best to have the conversation you always wish to have with your family in that grove. But if nothing else, we'll all remember Jono freezing his hands off after falling on ice and crying that he was going to die. Mark & I will remember the workout of carrying Madi/Jono and Cael at a "let this be over" pace. We'll all remember we've been there together, but the warm fuzzy memories might take another trip. On a warmer note, the kids loved showing off for Gpa and Gma while "swimming" in the giant hot tub.
We visited Syracuse and Watertown with Robert and Susan. We got to see their town and and meet some of the people they are serving. It was delightful to see how happy they are and how much good they are doing. The members there just adore them, which was no surprise. We stayed at the Fort Drum in and ate breakfast with the soldiers in the commisary.
After spending every possible minute with Gpa & Gma, we left for Uncle Don's in Rock Tavern. He was a fabulous host and we all enjoyed our visit. He was kind enough to take us into the city, sparing us the train with the crew and bags. We stayed at the Sheraton Times Square for two nights. NYC is a highlight in and of itself; however, the kids loved the famous toy stores, Statue of Liberty, Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular and the subway. It was 60, YES 60, degrees our morning in Central Park which made the Carousel so pleasant. People have wondered how the kids were viewed and treated and our answer is "neutral +." Little kids were the minority for sure, but they received plenty of smiles. We stuck to mostly kid friendly places, so that helped. We were a bit over-the-top in keeping them out of peoples' way (mostly for our kids' safety :) ) We also stuck our phone number in Jono's sock for obvious reasons...we like him. FYI we never lost a one of 'em, can you say HIGH-ALERT?
We're training travelers, but something tells me they come by it naturally because they are SO good. We drove all over the state (totaling over 15 hours) and Cael only cried 30 minutes of that - and no, the rest of us didn't cry at all. We all did okay on the flights (ask us about Chicago sometime :) ) with one exception...being ON our 2nd plane of our return for EIGHT hours because of delays and yours truly not reading the fine print about did us all in. A "touch down" aka an hour and a half on the tarmac somewhere in middle-America isn't considered a layover on the reservations...I learned my lesson.
I've smiled again and again at our MEMORIES that will last a lifetime (because I made them write them down in their books). And just like every trip we take together, worth every ounce of energy & effort.

Back on the Bandwagon

Well after a three month hiatus we are finally making time to get back to the blog. Winter has been full of lots of snow, friends, cousins, school and fun. Here are some new pictures of the kids from Winter, Christmas, Mark's Birthday etc. Enjoy.