The Poppleton Family

Ba, ba black sheep!

2010-05-07T09:15:00.006-06:00

The kids have had their lambs now for about a week and I am thinking this 4-H project was more for me than them! The kids do love their lambs, but I find myself making my way out to pay them a visit several times a day. As the weather starts to warm up and the sheep become tamer, I think we will find it extremely hard to say our good-byes by the time fair time rolls around.
Alyson has named her sheep Jessyp, Cody's is echo, and Justin's is Pepsi! Rylee was too young to participate in 4-H this year, but she is anxious for her turn. She still helps the kids with all of their duties happily.Justin's lamb has taken a liking to chicken feed and suprisingly we find him in the little chicken coupe hording all the feed he can get. It is pretty amazing to watch him squeeze his body through the little chicken door, but he manages quite well. He is actually sick today from it and Justin has quite the mess to clean up after school today!

New Site

2009-12-04T09:34:00.002-07:00

Alright, the (Ethan) Poppleton Family has finally created their own website/blogsite. Our updates and additional posts will now be found at http://www.popfam.com. From there you will find links to our kids own blog sites where they will hopefully be recording their lives as they grow up. You can also find other Family and Friends sites. So come visit our new site.

Thanksgiving "Oh Nine"

2009-11-28T20:10:00.004-07:00

This is simply a post for posterity's sake, a journal entry of sorts, a description of what our Thanksgiving holiday has been like for about the past four years, this post should about cover them all (with minor specifics to this year).

The relatives who attended this year, and most of the past three years have been Papa Magic and Grandma, Adam and his family, Ethan (myself) and his family, Travis and his family, Tauni and sometimes a guest, and this year we were able to add Megan and her family, making a grand total of 22 under one roof for an afternoon and evening of Thankful bliss. Everyone brought pieces of the grand meal and dessert, and everyone also participated in games together afterwards.

Shannon had the idea of us making a posterboard with a naked Turkey on it, and those attending could write things they were thankful for on paper feathers and pin them to the holiday representative. I am not sure that any of the adults feathered the bird, but the kids had a good time filling it up, and yes, "Pizza" made the list.

We had a wonderful spread of food that would rival the best of most Thanksgivings. Thanks to everyone who came and contributed. After dinner, the older boys started in on a traditional game of four man chess, the girls visited patiently waiting for the four hour game of four man chess to come to an end, the kids played outside, inside, upstairs and down, burning off all that food.

We then gathered everyone together and enjoyed a game of boys vs. girls Disney Scene It. I have to say, I was a little worried at the beginning because Aly is pretty dominate at this game when it is just our little Poppleton family. However, my good brother Travis introduced us to true Disney genius and completely obliterated the girls, almost single handedly.

We then topped the evening off by enjoying some great Marie Calendar pies that our wonderful sister Tauni provided, (thanks Taun). It was a great time we were thankful to enjoy with our parents and 5 of the 8 Poppleton kids and their families. There weren't any arguments, fights or disagreements amongst the kids or adults, or at least not any that I am aware of.

I really feel blessed and appreciate the wonderful opportunity we have to live in this beautiful area of the country, close to family who at this time are all healthy and happy. We all have jobs to provide for our families and roofs over our heads, and really, that is pretty incredible considering the current financial circumstances of our nation. We missed seeing the sisters who couldn't, or should I say "wouldn't" come and be with their family. Just kidding, maybe next year we can get everyone together for a reunion, hahahahahaha. Like that will ever happen, (a little inside family joke there).

I hope all you out there in blog land enjoyed a happy, healthy family filled holiday as we did.

Eat More Chicken

2009-11-22T10:05:00.003-07:00

Okay, a couple of reasons for the title of this post.

1. Mrs. Patty has attempted to take the life of yet another chicken. Fortunately this time, Shannon and I were able to intervene and the chicken rose from the ashes to live another day, and to tell the story of when she was in the jaws of the beast. So, as you might have guessed, Mrs. Patches (or Patricia as Milo like to call her) is on the shopping block once again. Yes, this time Shannon is ready to finally say goodbye to what is really a great dog, if you aren't a chicken owner. So if anyone out there in BlogLand wants a great indoor, kid friendly, obedient potty on demand dog, just let us know.

2. Have you seen those Chick-fil-A commercials or the billboards where the cows are encouraging us to save a cow and eat more chicken. Well, here on the Poppleton Farm, we have a case that might be compared to the Lion and Lamb, okay, not really. You see, this past spring, my parents, my brother and us decided to go in on a cow so that we can get a junk of meat to fill the freezer at the end of the year. He has been happily playing and growing in my brothers pasture all summer long. Well, as it is close to the time when we will say goodbye to our black and white friend, we brought him over to our place to feed him hay and oats for about a month before he is picked up for (gulp) processing.

So as we released our black and white friend into the fenced area of our backyard (not quite a pasture), I asked my good friend who helped me, and who is an experienced cow handler, "Will he bother our caged chicken area?" His response was simply "Nah". Well, less than 24 hrs later, I was chasing the cow out of the chicken area that was now completely turned upside down, (in pretty cold weather mind you) and moving it to a new location outside of the newly acquired Cow Territory.

Well, even though the cow and the chickens relationship started out a little rough, they seem to have reconciled their differences and now live quite happily with each other. And this cow now has a huge bubble over it's head that says, "Save a cow, eat more chicken.

Quick Sneak Peak

2009-11-17T18:35:00.007-07:00

Six "free range" chickens about to lay eggs at any moment

Aly and Ethan at combined YM/YW Thanksgiving Dinner with the elderly in our ward

Cow in the pasture ready for slaughter in 36 days, but who's counting

Cody on his way to 11-year-old Scouts

Justin helping Rylee with homework (miracle)

Dog listed in the classified ads for sale, almost about to be free

Me, making progress

Anxiously awaiting Stolworthy's to pay our town a quick visit

Prepping for a big Thanksgiving Day Celebration with the Cache Valley Poppleton's, SLC Poppleton and Thune Family from Washington

Keeping busy and loving every moment of it!

Cali 09

2009-09-28T10:16:00.005-06:00

Alright, so this may end up being a long post, so I decided to do slide shows rather than just adding mucho photos. The family went down to CA for our first real vacation in a long time. Before I get going on the recap, let me first give props where props are due. Thank a ton to Milo and Jan for everything, including taking the kids for three days while Shannon and I escaped, then spending all week with us, it was awesome. Kudos to my third brother Reed Chu for buying the family dinner at his restaurant, it is great food. Big props to my good friend and former Balboa Blvd sprinter Robby Cuillard for the day of golf at Wood Ranch.

Alright, here we go. So Shan and I dropped the kids off at her parents house last Friday and Ventured down to Long Beach where we boarded the Carnival Paradise for a three day fiesta to Ensenada. We got a much needed rest and rejuvenation. To our surprise, when we woke up Saturday morning, we were pulling into port in Ensenada right next to the most famous ship in the Caribbean, or Pacific in this case. That’s right, The Pearl. I forgot that is where they filmed all of the Pirate movies, and will film the upcoming movies. We couldn’t get close, but our tour guide got us as close as he could.

So, you'll see a picture of our waiter entitled "Check Check". You see, our first night on the ship at dinner, they seated us with another couple, and the waiters all started saying check check with a quick Asian accent. We asked what it meant and they said nothing. We determined that because there were two pretty girls sitting at our table, it was "Waiter Code" for check out the girls. That said, he was the best, most entertaining waiter on the cruise. Sunday was spent out at sea, so we sat by the pool and watched the drunk get more drunk, played a little miniature golf, (yes Shannon won), ate good food and watched a musical show the cruise employees performed.

We got back Monday morning and raced to Disneyland where we met the kids, Grammy, Poppy, Jess and Tammy for a fun filled day of Magic. Note: The term Magic used in this blog refers to long lines, closed rides, bad expensive food, bad parade, early closing time and hot sun. That said, we did have a good time and the kids really enjoyed the rides and for the older kids, revisiting the place they only had foggy memories of. It really was a good time, despite all the Magic. In fact, I almost got a little emotional when I was on the Nemo ride with Rylee as I thought about how lucky we are to still have her with us to enjoy that time, and that she now had a piece of Disneyland in her very sharp mind.

So, on Tuesday we head over to California Adventure, and I think it was decided by all a much better day at the parks. Rides were better, lines were shorter, more to do, more characters out, better food and way better parade (thanks to Milo we had VIP seating for the parade). The older kids really got into the rides and couldn't get enough. I think the next time we go to CA, we will need to introduce them to some real rides at Magic Mtn. Rylee loved the Playhouse Disney show and all of the princesses walking around. It was also fun to see all of the kids just being kids and happy to be doing things together.

So, Wed and Thurs I worked and Shannon and the kids went on shopping and beach excursions with Grammy. We were able to stop by Reed Chu's store in Westlake for dinner, it was great to see him and his beautiful wife again. I'm sorry, but we totally forgot to snap pictures while we were there, but Reed still looks the same. The food was great and the company even better. Afterwards, we went up to Valencia and saw Jess and Tammy's place, then back to Ventura.

Friday, I escaped with Milo and a couple guys from Hayward Baker to play some golf at Wood Ranch thanks to Robby. I was hoping Robby could play with us, but that just didn't happen. Thanks for the round Rob, and because you didn't play, I won.

Here's some beach fun.

On the way home, we stopped and saw my Grandparents in Lancaster and shared a Pizza. I think it is cool that the kids have a chance to know their Great Grandparents. And again, we were losers and didn't snap any photos. Anyway, we are home now and life is good. Chickens are alive and the dog is back, yippy. Until next time, peace.

02:11:51

2009-08-31T13:05:00.004-06:00

Yup, that is my time - I did it, I completed my goal and a check off my "bucket list" (that I don't actually have)!

Saturday morning at 4:45 AM my alarm went off - I got myself all dressed all the way down to my fancy running "smart wool" socks and shoes, ate my banana and my last dose of water. At 5:15 AM I starting loading the Expedition up with people as crazy as me and off we went to finish line, there to be bused 13.1 miles up to the starting line of the Top of Utah Half Marathon.

My only real goal was to run the whole way. I really didn't care how fast, but I did not want to stop and walk. Deep down though I really wanted to finish with about 10 minute miles, but was hesitant to set that goal for myself with this being my first attempt at such a distance. Coming across the finish line w/ thousands of people everywhere and seeing my time on the clock I was pretty overwhelmed with a sense of accomplishment! The best was seeing Rylee's little head above the crowd on her dad's shoulders and then I had a visual on my little cheerleaders. Thanks guys!

Here a cluck, there a cluck, everywhere a cluck, cluck

2009-08-27T07:22:00.006-06:00

The kids did a great job painting the coop and getting it all ready for the chickens (with a little help from mom and a lot of help from dad)

Cody is the chicken master with all of his experience this summer helping Bob with his garden and with chores around his farm!

All the kids love to hold and carry around the chickens. I think these might be the most loved chickens in the world.

I must admit that Patty got a taste of the chickens first off, literally, but we keep an extra close watch nowadays.

School has begun....

2009-08-27T07:04:00.003-06:00

And there you have it!

Poor Rylee...you see, they do things a little differently here than we are used to. Rylee got to go to school on Tuesday of this week (almost a week later than the other kids) and then she has had to wait until today (Thursday) to go again; however, she is SICK with a fever and all the other things that come with it. Poor little thing, she was so excited to go back to school too. The teachers have half of the class go one day and half of the class go another day and then finally they put them all together. My guess, a break in period for the teachers!

Just like their dad....

2009-07-19T21:41:00.003-06:00

This summer the boys have been able to participate in some golf clinics at Logan River Golf Course. They just finished their first week and are anxiously awaiting their next week coming up in August. The first few days they work on the basic skills of putting, driving, sand shots, etc. and work mostly at the driving range. The final day of clinic they get to split up into groups of 3-4 and they golf several holes on the course. They LOVED it!

In the meantime, Rylee and I were enjoying the nature the golf course had to offer!

George Washington

2009-07-19T20:57:00.002-06:00

5/21/09 (Mrs. Merritt's 5th grade class)

As you can see, I am quite behind; however, this was a huge project that Cody worked on at the very end of fifth grade. He typed a 6 page report, created a home-made puppet, brought a WOW factor (something to hand out to people coming to observe the fair, which was the bowl of cherries), and had to dress up as his famous person! He got an "A"...way to go Code!

Arrow of Light

2009-07-19T20:50:00.001-06:00

May's Pack Meeting, Mr. Cody did it! He earned his Arrow of Light and a few months early at that. We are very proud of him. He worked very hard and proceeded to accomplish this goal a few months early. Good work Codester! (5/21/09)

June Wrap-Up

2009-07-01T22:14:00.002-06:00

I know I know, we are pathetic bloggers, but here is a summary of our June 09 highlights. I think there may also be some May 09 in here as well.

Cody dressed up like guess who for an end of the year school project.

Rylee introduced her head to our coffee table.

We had some visitors from AZ.

We celebrated Tauni’s birthday in Logan canyon with a moose.

We found out someone is expecting.

Juice earned his wolf.

He also earned some stitches like Rylee.

Shannon and Helene took the kids to the American Heritage Center. (this pic may be from April)

Rylee and Ella jammin.

Cody and I went to his first campout, which turned into a trip to the emergency room. You see, he didn’t always attach himself to the harness when climbing the rock wall.

He is now limping with a broken foot.

I started a fence for who knows what animals.

And we end June with a good o’l night on the trampoline.

July is ramping up to be even busier, so you might here from us at the beginning of Aug.

Freckles

2009-05-25T06:46:00.002-06:00

Rich - Rylee, how did you get a freckle on the bottom of your foot?

Rylee - I don't know...I stepped on some freckles!

Oh man...

2009-05-22T13:52:00.003-06:00

As I am laying on a massage table with the sounds of relaxation all around me (okay, it was wonderful, but I was really getting massage therapy on my shoulder so it was a bit painful, but relaxing all the same) little did I know my children were frantically trying to get a hold of me. Wouldn't you turn off your cell phone if you were getting a massage?

As I am sitting waiting for my chiropractic appointment to follow my therapy I decided to check my phone - 6 missed calls and a text message from Ethan saying "Call me now."

Ethan was just finishing up golfing when he got the call from Alyson that Rylee had split her head open. Alyson did such a great job in taking care of Rylee. She took her right across the street to our wonderful neighbor who comforted Ry with songs and prayers together until her slacker parents got there.

I met Ethan and Ry at the urgent care where Dr. Esplin (our neighbor and friend) was on call. She was a brave girl and got stitched up without a wimper. She had split her forhead to the skull, which was more than I needed to know at the time, but at least her scar is close to the hair line so her bangs should cover it right up.

When we got home I had learned that Sharon had already been over and cleaned up all the blood out of the carpet and the trails of blood that connected our homes.

I am so grateful for wonderful friends and neighbors, doctors, anesthetic, and for a wonderful daughter who took all the right steps in taking care of Ry.

Quite the gentleman.....May Day 2009

2009-05-22T13:51:00.007-06:00

This year for our town's annual May Day celebration, our family got to go to the town's family dance. Normally we don't attend this event and just go and watch the little girls dance the May Pole on Saturday; however, this year, Rylee was performing with her preschool class so we went.

Little did I know how much my kids would love it. As we were wrapping it up, we turned around and saw the Code-man dancing with a cute little girl, doing the box step. What a gentleman! He even thanked her for the dance when it was over.

All the kids had a wonderful time and I am wondering if we will be there every year now that my
kids have been exposed!

Baby Animal Days

2009-04-26T18:41:00.007-06:00

This year at Baby Animal Days the boys did some Mutton Busting. Usually when they do this it is at our town's May Day Celebration and the sheep are much smaller. If you watch Justin's sheep, he sort of does a victory jump afte he sits on his head! I know, what are we becoming....quite the country folk I should say! Baby Animal Days is one of my favorite things. So many baby animals to hold and touch. Rylee got to hold a little black duckling this time and oh how she loved it. The piglets are my favorite I think, but this year they weren't as tiny.

Cody even ate a crispy worm.....GROSS!

I think Aly and Hannah's favorite thing was the giant ox, or at least that is what I think it was. When we went into the barn loft we could feel the floor vibrate when it would let out its deep, bellowing MMMOOOOO!

Easter at the Poppleton's

2009-04-26T18:15:00.007-06:00

It was a beautiful Easter Sunday I must say. Oh how I love the springtime! Saturday night was filled egg decorating and Sunday morning the Easter bunny paid a visit.....

The kids looked great and off we went to church. We had a little change up in the Primary Presidency today as well. I think I needed a little more practice because I got to stay. Now 1st Counselor, hopefully I can get it right this time!!! Regardless for the reason I get to stay, I am glad. I love Primary and am going to love working with the new group of women and as always the wonderful children.

Happy late Easter to everyone! I am grateful for our Savior's atoning sacrifice, available to us all, and for his perfect example.

Been a while, so here it is….

2009-03-23T15:06:00.002-06:00

Alright, I think this is going to be a huge post, so if you need to get through it in shifts, feel free to stop and come back later.

We’ll start with Alyson and her adventure to Utah State to writers fest. She won the opportunity to go with a story she wrote about Oreo’s, I’ll see if I can get a copy of it to post later. Below is a picture of her with the author of Fable Haven, a popular book series out right now. In case some of you don’t know, she is also a published poet. I think she gets her talents from me, don’t you Shan? Congrats Aly, we love you. You always do a great job at everything you do.

Next we’ll move on to a day with cousins. My brother Adam brought over his two sons and two step sons to have a little fun with Justin and Cody, and of course Papa. They all brought their BB guns and Papa gave them proper gun handling 101 in the backyard.

As you can see, Uncle Adam got into it also.

Shannon started out scoopen poop, but then she got into it.

And of course the boys had a blast shooting for a few hours.

After they had enough, back inside they came for a little rock band with Uncle Adam/Bon Jovi.

Finally, we move onto the one thing comes around once a year for boys of a certain age, the Pinewood Derby. You see, growing up I can remember participating in this event, but never even coming close to placing in the top 100 cars. I have a friend in AZ who talked a lot about what you needed to do to the cars to make them a top 2 or 3 finisher every time. Despite all the wise advise and counsel, last year Cody’s cool looking Bat-mobile didn’t place very high, although it was the best looking car there.

This year, Justin joined the cast of cars and it was going to be Brother against Brother. I allowed them to pick out their designs from some online photos (very similar designs by the way), and we went to work making the cars. I cut them out, the boys sanded and painted, then I added the wheels, weights and designs. Justin's was a little under weight, so we ended up taping some pennies to the back end.

We got to the big event, and we were two of almost 40 cars that were entered to race. That is a pretty big race, and so they divided it up so that each car would race 5 times against different cars. After it was all said and done, Cody got 5 first places, and Justin got 4 first places and 1 second place. The only person that Justin lost to was the car that always wins first place every year because the dad is ultra competitive in the derby. Which gave me great satisfaction when Cody’s car beat his, not only once, but twice. After the races were over, there was only one other car that won first place all five times, and that was Cody’s friend Clayton. I convinced the race director to allow us to have a race off of the two fastest cars. Cody’s car came out in first, barely, but first. They tried to use the excuse that he was in the fast lane, so we swapped lanes and had them race again, and wouldn’t you know it, he won again.

Here are the two cars that kicked some derby butt. And it isn’t usual to have a race with 40 cars, so that makes it even more impressive. Good job boys, only one more year to go.

Cody’s is the Yellow Hornet and Justin’s is the Black Widow.

Spring is here (finally), so we will have some posts coming shortly of our “get out of the house” adventures, including our garden progress as we are going for year 3 of the Garden De Poppleton. This year Shannon wants to add chickens to the mix, we’ll see how that goes. I say, I say, I say that may not be a bad idea.

Sound clip, click here.

I remember…

2009-02-23T18:17:00.002-07:00

I remember the first day I saw him, standing in the doorway of the Stake Dance. My night was made, my eyes were fixated on this gorgeous hunk of a guy. Yes, I do dare say that he was the hottest guy in the Stake and he was going to be mine! I sent my friends over to catch his name and then he asked me to dance. It was then that I found out his real name! After the dance I believe I stayed the night at my best friend’s house and it was then that I noticed I had his scent on me somewhere, I could smell him and oh how wonderful that was. The dress I had worn that night to the dance had somehow gotten the scent of his cologne on it and I must admit, it took me awhile to finally wash the dress!

Years and years later I am still as in love with that same guy I spotted so long ago standing in that doorway. The best part is he has only gotten better! He is my life. He is my stabilization in my crazy, chaotic brain. He is my spiritual strength and so many times the physical strength I need quite frequently. He can do anything or fix anything, or at least I think so. He doesn’t always love that I feel this way. His kids think so too…I always hear them saying, “Well, Dad will fix it, or Dad can do it!” He is a leader. He serves others in so many ways. He is an over achiever. If something needs to be done he does it better or improves how it can be done for the next time. He is ambitious and a go-getter. I could go on and on I am sure. I love this guy!

Happy Birthday honey!

A Few Days Late

2009-02-09T17:37:00.002-07:00

Well, I am late a couple of days, but we had a pleasantly busy weekend, so I figure I need to post now while I have a quick second. I just want to let everyone know what a lucky guy I am to have a best friend named Shannon. She celebrated her thirty (cough) birthday last Friday, and I just want her to know that the over priced gifts that she received were but a small inkling of the love that I have for her. She doesn’t deserve me, she deserves so much more. But I am glad that she has a mental impairment that allows her to not see what a raw deal she got when she married me.

Shannon is a great everything, (wife, mother, daughter, aunt, etc). She makes everyone around her smile, which in turn uplifts and supports everyone. I am so honored to live this life with her and hope that I can return even a small amount of what she offers me. I love you Babe, Happy Birthday.

Just a sweet thing…

2009-02-03T18:26:00.001-07:00

I have a dear friend that lives behind me. She was my Visiting Teaching companion for a short time before she had to have back surgery, which has prevented her from being able to go out during the winter months especially because of the dangers of falling on ice. She called me one morning out of the blue to inform me that she had a gift for me. She proceeded to say that it was truly a gift where it was the thought that counts, but she just had to buy it. I was already tickled that she even thought of me to begin with. Later that day she had someone bring her by and she handed me a card with the following picture -

As you can tell the little girl in this picture resembles Rylee. She went on to express how it touched her to see how Jesus was holding her and how much he must love this little girl who in her mind was Rylee. As I was listening to her I couldn’t help but feel her emotion and I was absorbed into her moment.

The amazing thing about the whole experience was, I had never told her about Rylee and her life so far on earth. I was able to share a little bit with her and it was neat to share in a moment with her.

As we were talking outside, Rylee was just getting back from her friend’s house. She came bouncing up to the car door and we showed her the picture.

She smiled and just said, “That’s me!”

Debbie asked Rylee if she remembered taking this picture and she replied, “Yes.”

Later that day and on several occasions Rylee would ask me where her purple dress was!

Angels among us!

2009-02-03T17:23:00.003-07:00

My heart is full and I am so full of gratitude for the many small miracles that occur through others. I will be eternally grateful to those who are in tune with the Spirit to bring blessings into others live. I truly believe that Heavenly Father answers our prayers through others and I hope that I can be worthy and sensitive enough to the Spirit so that someday I will be able to return the favor.

0 to 70……

2009-01-28T08:57:00.001-07:00

So, I caved in and agreed to take my wife and kids to Gilbert Arizona to see her family this past weekend. Now, I have to confess that this wasn’t a completely selfless act, but realize that if I had my druthers, I wouldn’t be driving 24 hours to stay somewhere for only 48 hours. Having said that, I seized the opportunity to to line up a couple of tee times so that I could enjoy a few hours of good weather in January.

We left Thursday evening around 5, which put us in the East Valley at 5 AM the next morning. I grabbed about 10 minutes of shut eye and then headed up to see some friends/colleagues at my former place of employment. After a few minutes of catching up, I was off to my first tee time. My friend Dave was able to find us a deal on a pretty nice course which I had requested because I had always wanted to play it while living there, but never took advantage of the opportunity. I think it was one of my worst rounds ever, but hardly noticed because I was wearing shorts, walking on green grass, and the temperature was a cool 70. I use the excuse that I played horribly because I was working with no sleep in two days, I’d never played the course, never used those clubs and was suffering from dramatic altitude change. Thanks Dave for yet another good time on the greens.

After we finished up there, we headed to my sister Rachel’s house to meet up with my parents and other sister Heather. Then we left the kids there to completely obliterate the house as the adults headed to one of my favorite watering holes, Serrano’s. I think I could survive on the chips and salsa alone.

The next morning, my phone alarm went off at 6 and I headed outside where I would be picked up by another friend, and we headed to another tee time. This time, it was under much better conditions. I had a decent night’s sleep, I had played with the clubs once, I was familiar with the course, I had adjusted to the altitude, and most importantly, it was free. The course was in even better shape then the last one and yes, the sun was once again shining on me. I can’t say that I had a great round, but on one particular hole, I found my stroke again, and was able to make some confident iron shots. Those of you who golf can understand the huge hurdle that is. I had it once, lost it for a long time, and have once again found it. I am just upset that as I look out the window now, there is another foot of snow I will have to wait to melt off before I can play again.

The picture below is of my friend Jeff and the vicious dog that took a club to the jaw as it came after me. Really, the dog was pretty aggressive and could get out of that backyard. Jeff took three shots to recover from that area.

We spent the rest of Saturday hanging out with Shannon’s family, eating pizza, banana splits, playing games, Wii and just visiting. We finished off the trip with a quick trip to church on Sunday morning, celebrated birthdays and bbq’d afterwards, and then packed up for what would become the trip home from @#$%. Not really, but it snowed, and I mean SNOWED from Kanab on. It got to a point that we had to just stop on what we hoped was the side of the road, and wait until we could see. We were struggling to even see the reflective markers that line the road. We spent the next 8 hours praying we would make it home without incident, and fortunately our prayers were answered.

So we went from 0 degrees to 70, and back again in just a few short days. All in all, it was a good trip. Good to see everyone, spend some time with friends, eat some good food, and say hello to an old friend named “Sun”.

Here are a few pics.

REJUVINATION

2009-01-19T10:43:00.001-07:00

Okay, I admit it I have not run for, well, oh, let’s say about three months give or take a few weeks I suppose. Over the last couple weeks I have had an itch to get going again seeing how I really do have a rather large goal that I have set rapidly approaching and sitting on my hiny is going to get me nowhere close to reaching it. Reading Heather’s blog was just the last little push I needed to get me back up and going.

Why, oh why, did I wait for so long? I LOVE to run. I love the energy it gives me and how it makes me feel. I will admit I don’t love the treadmill. I would much rather be outside in the fresh air of Mendon jogging around the town, but unfortunately I can’t do it when it is so stinking cold outside. I did think about it seeing how the snow is about melted at this point and there really is no ice for me to slide on, but I don’t think my ears or my lungs could handle the bitterness. So, it was me, the treadmill and my new running shoes this morning and we got along just fine. Sigh!

The excitement of a trip

2009-01-18T19:14:00.001-07:00

I love the anticipation of leaving for a family trip whether the trip planned is BIG or small. We are getting ready to head to Arizona to see some family and friends and enjoy some warmer weather. The kids are already asking if they can start packing, planning what they want to wear and planning what they will be doing. Sometimes trips give me a great deal of anxiety, but this one is different some how and for that I am grateful.

We have learned that traveling at night is essential on trips as long as these and thank heavens for a husband who can handle the tediousness of this task. I last about an hour on any drive before I have to ingest something to keep me going, which really doesn’t have a lasting effect. Ethan knows as well as I do that I could never make this journey alone!

Arizona, here we come!

Winter Shoot - Jan 09

2009-01-11T18:10:00.009-07:00

My brother Travis is really good about getting out and taking pictures of his family during different times of the year, and as usual, we love to join him with our family to capture a few moments in time. This time, we decided winter pictures were good, and we have this cool old barn not far from our house, (we have several of them in Mendon actually - ye ha), so it made for a nice backdrop. Also, rather than posting a bunch of pics, I put a quick video together for you viewing pleasure. Enjoy.

If you would like to download the full size movie, right click this link and click save target as. Allow for a little time to download, it is big.

The BIG Party!

2009-01-01T19:11:00.001-07:00

We did it, we had a party and it was SO fun, or at least I thought it was fun!

We started out small with games on the hour for the kiddos (thanks Rachel), which was really fun.

The kids played a little Guitar Hero World Tour while the adults played a game or two… We even had some chiropractic adjustments going on!

We had a snowman bonfire outback!

Confetti anyone? How about fantastic fire works (I didn’t get any pictures of those, Rylee was having a meltdown from all the noise)? Thanks James for those.

How about a food fight?

Happy New Year!

Sigh…..

2009-01-01T18:58:00.001-07:00

Well, it has happened…Alyson officially is 12 and yes, she wears make-up! Watch out world. She is beautiful!

Alyson is not only beautiful on the outside, but on the inside as well. She excels at everything she does. She is kind and compassionate. She cares about others, especially those who might not feel included. She paints and draws, plays piano and guitar, sings and dances. She is a fantastic babysitter and helps her mom beyond measure. Her brothers and sister look up to her and love her. She is a straight A student and still keeps setting academic goals to be better. How about this for example – this last semester of school in all of her classes, but two, she got above 100% so naturally this just did not cut it…..her goal was to get all of her A’s to be either 100% or above. I haven’t seen her report card yet, but I will update how she did! What an example to always be moving forward and to be setting goals. I know I learn more from my kids than they do from me that is for sure!

Alyson your mom and dad are very honored to be your parents. We love you.

My Girl

2008-12-30T11:16:00.001-07:00

Alyson turns 12 today. Holy Cow. Did you hear me? 12! She will now be going with me to mutual every Tuesday, going to firesides, YW activities, girl camps, and will have more opportunities to be around BOYS. The good thing about that is that I am involved with the young men in our ward, so they all know that they have to deal with me if they like my daughter, and they know what kind of crap I’ve given them without that being the case, so they will have a pretty big hurdle to get through to get to Aly.

This is the sunrise I woke up to this morning and I thought I would snap a quick shot so that Aly can remember what it looked like on her birthday. She has already opened presents, and is now going to head out with Shannon and I for lunch and some shopping for her big party tonight. We will finish the party tonight just in time to clean up for the New Years bash we are throwing tomorrow. We will have a great time and have a few that are coming with some Pyrotechnics for the 12:00 o’clock hour.

Happy Birthday Alyson, your Dad loves you very much, and I know your Mom does as well. You have been a great blessing in our lives.

Early Bird Gets the W….

2008-12-25T13:31:00.001-07:00

Well, after a great night at my parents house last night for a little family (Christmas Eve) get together, we got home safely before the storm hit. A storm that is still hitting by the way, and is forecasted to hit for a while. We had a little family fun as we opened some gifts and tracked Santa on Google Earth. Let me tell you, I haven’t seen Rylee that nervous about making sure she was in bed before Santa came. Every time Google Earth updated Santa’s position, she would look at me and say, “He’s still far away?” “Yep, he’s still far away, we can stay up just a little bit longer”.

The kids went to bed and Tauni, Shannon and I stayed up to make sure Santa was able to get to our house safely. While we were getting the kids to bed, we found that the dog, (Patches), found where we had left cookies for Santa. No big deal right, wrong. They were Oreo’s, and obviously didn’t make her feel good, as we heard her crying all night. After getting to bed at 12:30AM, I figured I might get an hour or two of shut eye before the kids began knocking at the door asking if they could go downstairs. To my surprise, when I woke up, it was almost 6:00AM. Can you believe the kids actually slept that long?

Well, we quickly went downstairs and the kids dug into their stockings because there really wasn’t any “Santa” gifts for them other than a really soft blanket and a empty box with the letters W-i-i on it. They got so excited about the Wii, that they ran into the family room to see that Santa had already set it up and it was ready to go, they almost forgot that there were other gifts to open.

Wii’ve been playing all morning and I have had to resort to the bedroom TV to watch the Suns game because the kids won’t let me turn off the game. As mentioned before, it snowed most of the night, and continues now. Shannon was in the front room trying on her gift from Sanata, so I mentioned that our driveway was probably steep enough to give it a go, so out we went, the video below is how that went.

The house now smells great as Shannon’s is cooking a turkey and all the trimmings. I will get to enjoy a great meal before I have to go out and clear mucho snow. Merry Christmas everyone. I hope everyone has a safe, happy and meaningful Day.

Christmas Fun

2008-12-20T18:13:00.001-07:00

We had the chance to go over to a friends house last night and have some good food and play some fun games. It was a relaxed, just hang out type Christmas party, (the kind I prefer). Two of our kids (Aly and Justin) decided that they didn’t want to attend the party, so they stayed home. The other two kids (Cody and Rylee) decided to go, but were a little hesitant about what was going to take place.

We started out with some French Dip, a great salad and some yummy appetizers.

Very shortly after we were done eating, the kids were running downstairs to start playing Rock Band, which is where they stayed the entire night. The adults went down and rocked out to some 80’s music for a little while, then went back upstairs for a good old fashioned game of Pictionary.

Rylee found a little friend that she hung out with, shared babies, read books and rocked out. Towards the end of the night, Rylee came upstairs to where her mother was and said that her little friend’s dad was reading a book to her, but she didn’t want to, so she left. Who is the little girls dad, just the short stop for the KC Royals, Mike Aviles.

He was downstairs with his little girl and watching the kids rock out. He is engaged to my friends niece, who was there visiting for the holiday’s. He is a genuinly nice guy. We didn’t hang out with him much, but he and his fiance were very nice. I can be a fan of a guy like that.

After we were all funned out, we ventured back out into the crazy snow that has been coming down for the past two days, and will continue to fall all week long.

This morning we went to our ward Christmas breakfast for what was hopefully the last party we have to attend this Christmas season, other than the annual manger reenactment by the grandkids at Papa and Grandma’s house on Christmas Eve.

I don’t know if we are getting out Christmas cards this year, so watch out for a Blog Card coming your way.

such a big miracle in such a little girl

2008-12-20T17:59:00.002-07:00

Born with an uncertain future, Rylee turned “5” yesterday and is quite the normal 5-year-old at that. What a miracle she is and a constant reminder to our family of the Power God on the earth. She has a quite grown up personality. I don’t know if this is because of her older brothers and sister or just her strong spirit. It is probably a mix of both. I must admit she is a little sassy as well and doesn’t generally let anyone step on her toes, including her Dad!

Rylee’s favorite things in life right now are “lips” and babies. She has more lip gloss and make-up than I do that is for sure. She gathers trinkets from around the house, lips, baby items, whatever she can find from around the house and stashes them in whatever bag-like item she can find.

Another true love of Rylee’s is her friends. She has so many little friends in the neighborhood that she gets to play with on a regular basis. They love to play babies and make-up together as well as puzzles and “camping.” Camping is NOT my favorite as they gather all kinds of things, large and small and head either under the trampoline or into a closet for a nice little camping trip.

Rylee also loves to read. She loves to snuggle up on the couch with me or anyone for that matter and read a book. It can be one we have read a million times or a new one she finds in the back of the book closet. After the book is read to her she really likes to read it back to you, which is very cute to see what she absorbed the first time through!

We are blessed to have Rylee as part of our family. She is an example to many and a treasure!

We love you Rylee.

The one leopard…

2008-12-04T20:11:00.001-07:00

Rylee – Mom, can you please put her clothes back on (handing me a baby Bratz doll)?

Me – Sure.

Rylee – Thank you.

Me – Your welcome. Thank you for saying thank you.

Rylee – I am the one “leopard”, I said thank you.

Even at such a young age it is amazing how they recognize and put into action stories from the scriptures.

Luke 17

12And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were ^alepers, which stood afar off:

13 And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.

14 And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the ^apriests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.

15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,

16 And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him ^athanks: and he was a Samaritan.

17 And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten ^acleansed? but where are the ^bnine?

18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.

19 And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

A new meaning….

2008-11-27T11:10:00.001-07:00

Well, it being Thanksgiving, I should probably let you know what I am thankful for. First off, in response to Shannon’s earlier post, I too am incredibly thankful for my bride, and all that she does for me and our family. My kids are also due a little gratitude.

Now, this morning Shannon and I have a new meaning of the word thankful. You see, I didn’t sleep much last night because I have acquired a head cold that kept me up most of the night. So I spent most of the night on the couch watching animal planet. Finally, around 6:00 am, I start to get into a sleep when I hear a text message on my phone. Honestly, who in the world sends a text message at 6 in the morning on Thanksgiving. Well, I stumble into the office where my phone was on the charger and look at the message. A friend and colleague of mine was arranging a search party at 8:00am to look for her daughter who had been missing since the day before.

My eyes, opened a little wider now start directing me back upstairs where Shannon had enjoyed a blissful night of warm, comfy sleep. I show her the text and we start to get up and ready to go and help look for this girl (young woman). As you can imagine, you start to think of all the reasons why a 16 year old girl might take the car and not come home for the night, you know, you try and downplay the situation in hopes that it is more innocent than serious.

Well, to make a long story short, we spent the morning looking all over the county for her, and when Shannon and I had searched our area, we went back to the Mom’s house only to find out that the missing girl had called the Mom and was okay. It was not an innocent situation, but a rather serious situation that will hopefully turn out to be a wonderful reunion with a lost family member, and on Thanksgiving appropriately.

On the ride home, Shannon and I were very grateful that we were able to assist in trying to find this girl, and that our family was all healthy, safe and together. So today, that is what I am most thankful for. And for anyone who can’t be with your family or loved ones today, I hope that you can be soon, regardless of the circumstance. Best wishes to all, and Happy Thanksgiving, or to be politically correct, Holliday of Gratitude.

Just so WE don’t forget…

2008-11-26T18:44:00.002-07:00

Picture this, two cute girls playing all day and coming up with all kinds of creative things to keep themselves busy. They decide to do makeovers on each other, make-up, hair, etc. You know, the typical girly things to do. After they are all dolled up they decide to get the camera out, which of course is a great idea, but oh no….it does not stop there. They decide to be runway models down our long hotel-like hallway upstairs, but still not enough. They didn’t seem get the effect they were looking for so they decided to put a fan at the end of the hallway and that seemed to do it for them! Take a look.. .

Oh yes, I am SO thankful for him….

2008-11-26T18:16:00.001-07:00

Words cannot express how truly thankful I am for him. I couldn’t function or be where I am today without him. I love you Ethan!

I am thankful for my kids….They ALL make me smile!

2008-11-26T18:04:00.001-07:00

It is funny how you can sit and look at individual pictures of your kids and think of all the many things you love about them.

Inside Out

2008-11-13T19:19:00.002-07:00

So, this past weekend we had the opportunity to head to SLC to check out Body World. I remember this coming to Phoenix and wanting to go, but we never made it there. This time, our bishop was in SLC with his wife celebrating her birthday and invited to go down and spend some of the day with them, and this was part of our day.

It was very interesting to go through and see every part of the body up close and read different facts about each part and the entire body as a whole. They had the bodies in just about every position and displayed from every perspective. They had them sliced, opened, deformed, EVERTHING. I have selected the more appropriate ones for this post.

I would recommend this to anyone. Shannon and I enjoyed it and it really opened my eyes to just how incredible this life is. Not so much at the physical human body, but at how the spiritual and physical body are separate and yet rely on each other to give us the life we know. I won’t get too deep on you, but I have spent some time really thinking about how our body and spirit communicate with each other. It’s Masterful.

There was one exhibit that showed the difference between a smokers lung and a non smokers lung. This is all something we have seen before, but when you really see the actual lung, it opens your eyes a little.

The funny thing was that as we walked out of the building, there was quite a few people out there enjoying a death stick after being trapped in that fresh air controlled building.

And to top off our evening, we got to enjoy a little P.F. Chang’s where Shannon enjoyed a lettuce wrap for the first time.

Oh, another quick note, my dad was on his way home from the hospital where he had his pace maker worked on, and we were at body world looking at a heart with a pace maker, it was a little weird.

The rest of them……

2008-11-02T13:13:00.001-07:00

Halloween Costumes…..so far!

2008-10-31T09:09:00.001-06:00

Our Little Bobcat!

2008-10-29T14:15:00.001-06:00

Justin earned his Bobcat and Mom got to paint his face! Way to go Justin!

The Prank

2008-10-28T20:07:00.001-06:00

Justin – Mom, I played a prank at school today. Do you want to hear it?

Mom – Sure do!

Justin – I was pretending like I was moping around and all these girls surrounded me and then….I busted up laughing and they all started chasing me!

What is a girl to do?

2008-10-24T10:44:00.002-06:00

What is a girl to do when her husband is gone for the weekend? Be depressed, Cry, party, go spend $$$, get organized, clean the car……..I tend to be in the depressed area (who am I going to follow around all weekend) so to get out of the rut I get high hopes of getting all kinds of things done!

Tonight is the Fall Festival, which should be fun and exciting and then after that….kids and I hard at work! I will keep you posted on how it all goes and how much we really get done.

Honestly this post is for the sole reason of trying out Windows Live Writer and I actually think I really like it.

Lunch Week

2008-10-24T09:43:00.009-06:00

This week was lunch week at the kids' school. Rylee and I joined Justin on Monday for hamburgers (if you really want to call them that), Cody on Thursday for chicken poppers (not too bad) and today we will be joining Alyson at 12:01 for I don't know yet!

I have to admit I really didn't want to participate in this event, but decided it I better take advantage of the memory because who knows when the the time will come when they may not want me to be eating lunch with them and their friends.

It sure brought a smile to my face when the boys were excited to see me! I will admit that Justin scarfed his food ever so quickly so that he could head out for valuable recess.

Weekend Wrap Up

2008-10-20T19:00:00.001-06:00

Well, time to catch up on what’s been happening around here. With the lawn in and sprinklers working, I’ve been trying to catch up on work. I am still behind and will hopefully be back on top of things by weeks end. Shannon is still wonder woman, taking care of the kids, cooking, cleaning, working and taking care of the misc items that go with all of those things. We did however find some time to spend some time with my good friend who came by to visit for a couple of days from AZ, (Dave Bennett). I took him for a little quad ride on Friday and took him to meet hundreds, if not thousands of hunters on Saturday as we made our way through the canyon and over to Bear Lake. While we were doing that, Shannon took the kids to Idaho to a jump rope workshop. They seem to have had a great time and learned a lot. It is good for them to be around the nations best, it motivates them to continue trying to improve. Dave then came with us to a BBQ at my parents place Saturday night, along with my sister Tauni, and my brother Adam and his family. We then came back and Dave had the kids captivated as he told them very animated police stories of when he worked for the Phoenix PD. It was fun to watch the kids as they listened to him and when he finished one story, they demanded another.

Dave left early Sunday morning, and we went to church and had an otherwise uneventful Day. We’re back at it today and Shannon and I have both had a full day of work. I know, a short post, but now you know what we did this weekend, and 10 years from now, we will remember what we did.

Thanks for coming by and spending time with us Dave, we enjoyed it and you are welcome to come back anytime.

FHE Success!

2008-10-14T09:04:00.006-06:00

I love it when you have family nights that are just overall a success. I know we all have some Monday nights where it doesn't matter what is planned or how much effort is put in, they just aren't what we were hoping for.

Last night, SUCCESS!

Rylee was our conductor this week or as she would say "the gardener". She did a great job and even lead the music as well!

Justin had a lesson on safety, which he did a great job on. He was able to pass off some Scout Achievements as well. We talked about different things we can do around the house to keep it safer.

Alyson had sharing and we are so proud of her for getting 100% in all classes except two which were 98% and 99% (isn't that awful)!

Dad had scripture and we talked about 1 Nephi 1:1. It is amazing that when you really read and discuss a verse how much meaning there really is in it.

I had treat and we tried out Sara's pumpkin cookie recipe and they were delicious. Thank you Sara for sharing!

Finally, Cody had activity. We made creepy spiders to hang outside for Halloween. The kids had a great time. There are definitely times when I get to see how having regular FHE sure pays off!

OOOOOOOH Man!

2008-10-14T09:00:00.002-06:00

Well today happens to be pay back from a nice work-free weekend! It was sure nice while it lasted, but on to typing, typing and more typing, some kids home from school w/ friends, parent/teacher conferences, and who knows what else. Think positive thoughts and the day will go smoothly and well, right?

Refreshed!

2008-10-13T12:46:00.002-06:00

It has been a LONG time since I have had a weekend without any work waiting for me on my desk. I am happy to report that this was the case this last weekend. My sister didn't even have any files on her desk. I must admit that we both had to prep ourselves for today because when this happens usually Monday doesn't look so good!

It is Monday and look at me, blogging at 12:49 in the afternoon! I do have a few files on my desk that I am plugging away at, but NO stress! My boys just got home from a 1/2 day at school and are playing with Rylee so nicely in the other room (see side note on this one). They don't have school the rest of the week and Alyson has Friday off. My floor is mopped, carpets are vacuumed, I dusted and even washed a few windows! My laundry is just about caught up and Ethan is off to work again after a long three weeks of creating our yard, which I love. Scripture study is done for the day and I finished up the last of the canning for this season, boy, life is good. I can't believe it. I love today!

A lot of people would probably think I am crazy loving a day full of chores, but not me. Sometimes I wish I could just get to them and today I did! I will admit that I do have more chores to do, but at least I have a good start.

Enjoy today!

Side Note - Today is an example to me at how a mother's or father's attitute and stress level can affect their children. I know that when I am positive, upbeat and cheerful it is reflected in my childrens' behavior. I am convinced that generally kids will be kids it is just a matter of what your mood is whether they are being good or not so good!

The Grass is always greener…

2008-10-12T10:42:00.001-06:00

It has been a while since the last time I blogged, and for somewhat of a good reason. I figured for this post, I would try out Windows Live Writer, which was introduced to me via a friend of mine who happens to work for Microsoft. From what I can tell, it is like blogging using a program like Word. It isn’t a web base program, so it is a little bit faster and more user friendly than blogging using the web interface on most blog sites.

Moving on, as I sit here trying out this new app, and watching some October snow fall out the window, I am feeling pretty fortunate to have finished the project that I did on Friday. Three weeks ago, we decided that it was time to put in our yard, well at least our lawn. We have lived here two years and I have been pretty adamant about not just throwing down grass seed without a sprinkler system, as so many people do here in the Logan area. Also, since we have a larger than average yard, it was going to cost a good chunk to put in a more complex sprinkler system than usual due to the secondary water system we have for irrigating. So three weeks ago, we were finally ready to make this happen, and the goal was to finish the lawn before the winter hit.

Having already had a long time to somewhat design how we wanted it, I took some additional advice from my friend and neighbor, who happens to also be a landscape architect and son of greenhouse owner, and was ready to get started. I rented a trencher and got most of the main trenching done. I had quite a bit to do by hand to get around utility lines and other obstacles. Once that was done, I went to The Sprinkler Store, (that is the actual name of the place) and spent a small fortune on materials. Having done a sprinkler system or two in my day, I knew I wasn’t going to get everything on the first trip, and I didn’t. I spent the majority of the next two weeks, running pipe, electrical lines, and other material that is needed for the yard. My dad was a huge help throughout the process and did a lot of running back and forth to the store grabbing things that were either forgotten or unplanned for. Seeing how I live about 15 minutes from the closest store, it wasn’t a convenient quick trip to the store.

You would think that after all that was in place, I would be pretty close to being done, right? Well, remember the yard is pretty good size and there were a lot of trenches that needed to be backfilled, compacted and graded. My four wheeler which has a snow plow attachment, turned into a great grader and compactor. I had at this point only one day to finish everything off before the sod would be delivered. With the help of some neighbor boys and Shannon, I was able to get things finished before the truck arrived.

Finally the day came to lay sod, and it was supposed to be a rain/snow filled day, so I was not looking forward to a long, wet day of hauling grass around, and neither were those who were coming to help. I had some good friends and family who came to help lay the 10,000 sq/ft or 20 pallets of sod. We did all of it in about four hours which to me was a small miracle. All the while I was happy as a lark that the rain/snow decided to hold off for a day and we were able to get it done with good weather. And even the pictures make it look like a great sunny day, it was still pretty cold, (high 30’s/low 40’s).

Rylee had a great time and was pretty excited to finally have some grass to play on. She even helped lay little pieces of grass in places they weren’t supposed to go. It was nice to lay sod also, and not seed and worry about it taking, or getting washed away with rain, or eaten by the birds. The rest of the yard will have to wait until spring, as it started snowing the day after we finished. Many thanks to everyone who helped, (Dad, Mom, Shannon, Kids, Adam, Travis, Bret, Raistlin, Burke, Darrel, Michelle, Kenzie, Michael, Devin, Jaron, and anyone I may have forgotten.

Oh, and in the end, all of the hard work and the majority of the money spent is now below ground and unseen. It isn’t anything I’m not used to, in fact, the slogan for Hayward Baker, (the construction company I used to work for) is “You Never See Our Best Work”, because it is all below ground. This has been a long post, it is still snowing, the fire is on and I’m feeling a nap coming on. See ya.

Johnny Appleseed?

2008-10-03T23:08:00.005-06:00

Yes, today was apple picking day. Grandma came with us to Idaho and we picked apples for good ole fashioned applesauce. You can't beat free apples! We had a good time. Thanks Grandma for going with us!

You say tomatoes, I say tomatoes!

2008-10-02T20:36:00.003-06:00

We eat them constantly, we bottle them, we turn them into sauce, we give them away, and yes...we have even thrown them away! These are the ones we picked yesterday and turned into tomato sauce. This batch yielded 7 quarts of sauce and a double batch of spaghetti sauce. We will have another batch yet again in a few days. Now I know why people look forward to winter...the harvest is over!

Last night for dinner Alyson got the carrots ready. She picked them, cleaned them, peeled them, cut them, and cooked them. As hard as this is for me to admit, I actually really like them. Rylee couldn't wait for dinner to eat them.
The joys of a garden and a little help!

The Baptism Boy

2008-09-30T10:06:00.003-06:00

I haven't been blogging much lately, but so much has been going on (that is probably why)! In fact, Ethan just asked why I haven't blogged about this and that and this and that.....

The highlight of the month by far was Justin's Baptism Day! What a day of gratitude....

- Grateful for the choice that Justin made and for the special spirit that he is.

- Grateful for a worthy husband who was able to perform this sacred ordinance.

- Grateful to family who were able to come and support Justin (Grammy and Poppy, Grandma and Papa Magic, Tauni, Adam, Jen, Brackston, Chandler, Madison, Travis, Helene, Abby, Ella, Liam, Lucy, and Joyce).

- Grateful for good friends on the Jump Rope team that showed their support to their tiniest team member!

- Grateful for good neighborhood friends and home teachers.

- Grateful to Jen who made a fabulous Baptism cake.

- Grateful for the opportunities I have to feel the spirit.

- Grateful for Ethan's and Merlyn's testimonies that were shared as well as my Dad's that was shared the following day. I am still getting comments on how cute my dad is!

- Grateful that my Dad can wear khakis to church and still bear his testimony when he feels promted as well as share how life presents change. He shared that he has had to deal with some change. He realized that his suit no longer fit when he went to put it on Saturday morning!

There are so many things to be grateful for. Thank you Justin for making the decision to be baptized.

Little Juice!

2008-09-16T21:09:00.006-06:00

Wow, time just keeps on moving. Justin just hit the magical age of eight and what a little man he has become. Although, you will still find him in any costumes he can find with swords and guns, masks and capes!

Justin has a sweet spirit and is truly kind to all he meets. Well, that is usually! Lately him and Rylee seem to know the right buttons to push, but hey they wouldn't be normal if they didn't!
It is fun to watch him as he learns and grows. We love you Justin!

Only Six Minutes....

2008-08-28T11:19:00.002-06:00

The best six minutes you will spend today, will be watching this video.

Heather, get out your pen, quote after quote for your business.

PROGRESS?

2008-08-27T09:01:00.002-06:00

I really thought I was making progress physically, running several miles a day, lifting a few weights, walking the kids to school.....not bad, I thought!

The last two days I have decided that it would save me time if we road bikes to school and it does, but boy oh boy....I am pooped! The way to school is basically downhill for a little over a mile (one way). You know what that means don't you....up hill on the way home. Rylee rides behind me in one of the seats that attach to the bike and the whole way up the big hill she is cheering me on, "Your almost done Mom...just a little bit further...Good job Mom!"

Bear Lake!

2008-08-23T11:14:00.006-06:00

Last weekend, last minute we decided to go on one last adventure before the kids started school. We headed over through the canyon to Bear Lake. Now, I am not a lover of camping and nor do I usually enjoy it, but this time was so different for several reasons....

1. Ethan had everything packed and ready to go, including food. All I had to do was gather the kids and their clothes and we were out the door.

2. It only took about an hour to an hour and a half of a pleasant drive through the beautiful Logan canyon to get there.

3. We were basically the only ones at the spot Ethan picked out for us and the weather was PERFECT (well, during the day it was)!

4. Papa and Grandma Magic joined us for some relaxation on the shore and then a little camp fire later on.

5. The kids played and played and played and I was able to be right there with them, talking, digging, laughing, and playing.

5. Last, but by far not the least, I was able to spend time with my best friend, away from work and computers!
Okay, I know I shouldn't add any negative parts, but for memory sake....during the night the wind picked up pretty good. I don't know if anyone but Rylee and Justin got any shut eye at all. We had left our canopy on the lake shore with some tubes and things. I knew they wouldn't be there when we got up, but first sign of light Ethan headed out to assess the damage. Rylee still talks about how much she misses her aligator (float). It seems that this and one other float are the only things we lost thanks to Papa Magic having Justin put rocks on all of the stakes to the canopy the day before just in case!

Ward Camp out!

2008-08-23T10:53:00.009-06:00

Last night we headed down the road about 20 minutes (I know, the great outdoors is just a stone throw away, scary) to a nice little spot tucked away in the mountains with the rest of our neighborhood for our ward camp out. Ethan had to work this morning so we thought we would just hang out and let the kids play in a little bit of nature for a few hours.

It didn't take long before Ethan had Cody and Alyson back in the deeper trees scouting out the deer. Apparently they spotted a LARGE buck with a rather large rack on his head! If there weren't three witnesses I am not sure I would have believed them.

Rylee and I also got a little ride with Dad as well. We spotted a few babies with their mom's, which seemed to be Rylee's favorite and there were a few dads out there as well.

After playing in the hills, there was a lot of dutch oven cooking going on and oh my, who would have thought you could cook that much stuff in a dutch oven. Delicious! Up in the amphitheater area a big outdoor movie was put on for the kids (Apple Dumpling Gang) and a gigantic fire for those who wanted to chat.

The memories that are made doing these kinds of things are irreplaceable. And to think we almost didn't go at all!

Blog Tag

2008-08-13T18:23:00.007-06:00

I thought I would copy a few other taggers and post a childhood picture! This is me and my sister Julia, isn't she cute!

I have been tagged by Rachel. I don't usually do these, but I will give it a shot!

Ok, here's what I am supposed to do:

List 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 obessions/colletions, 3 surprising facts and then tag five other people. Leave a comment for the people you tag so they know they have been tagged.

Joys

Ethan - I really have a hard time when he is gone, especially since lately I have been lucky to have him right nearby

Fresh garden vegetables or melons

When all of my kids are smiling and playing together

Fears

Hurting someones feelings and having no idea I did

Not doing all I can to be a good mom and wife and falling short in the end

Picking all my eyelashes out!

Obsessions

Having a door or window open in the room I am in (I know, strange)

Jamba Juice

Running

Facts

I follow Ethan around when he is home, not intentially (if he goes upstairs I will find myself in the laundry room doing laundry just to be close to him)

I can't bring myself to bite into a tomato as much as I would really like to

I am an ice cream addict (I think my dad is to blame)

I tag:

Ethan

Alyson

Megan

Shelley

Helene

Beans, beans the magical fruit...

2008-08-13T16:26:00.005-06:00

I have found a new love of fresh green beans and am still loving watching my kids hard at work!

Look at all these beans. The older kids picked a basket and Rylee and I picked a basket or two. Rylee was eating them right off the bush. I love that she is learning to love raw veggies!

We found that we had so many that some needed to be canned. Now all I hear is how dangerous it is to can green beans for fear of botulism, but people around here and my grandma tell me I should be fine as long as I follow the directions. As a matter of fact, the neighbor tells me they are the yummiest beans I will ever have. So, if we are not dead after we try them in a few months (when all of the fresh ones are long gone) I will let you know how they turned out!

Still....

2008-08-12T18:25:00.008-06:00

Today Shannon and I celebrate our 13th year of marriage. It is hard to understand how fast time goes by and how much of life seems to just disappear in the dust kicked up by our busy days. I will say this however, I have never regretted a single day I have been able to spend with my beautiful and caring best friend.

Shannon has always been the one I can go to when things are tough, or I've had a bad day and just get a good hug, and I feel so much better just knowing she is there and that she is such a happy, fun loving person. She has never said a bad thing about anyone, and except for someone who isn't in their right mind, I have never heard a bad thing said about her. Every one of the guys below have told me on separate occasions that I was a lucky guy to have found Shannon.

I couldn't agree with them more. You've heard the saying "I married up", well that is an understatement for me. I feel like the queen fell in love with the court jester, not realizing what a chore he was going to become.

When I think back to all of the things that Shannon and I have been able to already do in this life, it is pretty amazing. We have been very blessed. Like the 4th of July on the beach of Santa Barbara, (top 3 firework shows of all time), hot air balloon rides in San Diego and Arizona, endless trips to San Diego where we have toured or been to just about everything, trips up and down the coast of CA, trips to see Phantom and Beauty and the Beast, and sooo much more. There are still so much I want to do with her and I can't wait.

If anyone deserves a mother of the year award, it is Shannon. Not only does she manage four rug rats, but she maintains the house, runs her business, is in the Primary Presidency and takes on additional responsibilities anytime someone asks. Not to mention she has to deal with all I throw at her. To put it simply, she is awesome.

I hope to one day live up to all that Shannon deserves in a husband. I have a long way to go to be to her what she is to me. Well, I guess I better go and help her make dinner, hopefully we will escape later in the week and go out to a nice dinner to celebrate. Shhhh, we already did, but I think she deserves another one.

I love you Shannon, thank you, for being the person you are and for sacrificing your wonderful life to endure a sub-par one with me. You are STILL my true love, and always will be.

The Late Night Project!

2008-08-09T08:39:00.006-06:00

At 9:30 PM Rylee and I decided to tackle the room of no return! It just so happens that my youngest daughter has a mind of her own and when her best friend joins her they go crazy! There is something about finding every bag you can and putting random things in it from all around the house and in the process dumping everything else out to find the random stuff!

Can you even see the floor? Can you tell if I have carpet or wood flooring? It really gets bad when the bedroom mess starts trickling out into and down the hallway!

It actually didn't end up taking as long as I thought it would and I sure had great company. Ryle managed to talk to me about all kinds of things the WHOLE time. I didn't know this child had so many words in her. It was so fun to hear about what was going on in her little mind. As the hours passed on she did get a little loopy. She helped me out a bit, but most of the time, this was her position....

At the very end of our project as we were walking out of the room, I said to Rylee, "I think you owe someone a BIG thank you!" Her response was, "I did it all!" Oh well, as long as she is happy! I know I am happy when I walk by such a sparkling room.

Now, all I need is a bit of paint and I should be good. This room really only bothers me when I see pictures of it and they reveal the whiteness of the walls.

Wheat Bread

2008-08-08T20:21:00.006-06:00

3 C HOT water

3/4 C butter

3/4 C honey

3 tsp salt

1/2-3/4 C gluten

1/2 cup powdered milk

3 Tbsp instant yeast

3 eggs

9+ C whole wheat flour (I also added 1 Tbsp dough enhancer)

I did it, I finally made a VERY successful batch of whole wheat bread. From the grinding of the wheat to pulling it out of the oven, oh the reward of smelling this wholesome aroma!

I have learned that the key is extremely hot water and just when you think it has risen enough, let it rise a little more! Oh, and one more thing...I also learned that a lot of the times it needs to be kneaded a little longer than I would have normally thought. This gets the gluten to activate. This recipe also makes fantastic rolls.

I won't bore you with anymore details (email me if you want the detailed instructions). I was just so excited that it worked and it was delicous!

School Shopping!

2008-08-08T18:38:00.005-06:00

I keep hearing of all these kids who have already started school and a part of me is a little bit jealous, but today I was grateful to keep them all.....

Ethan headed off to Bear Lake for Youth Conference and believe it or not for a short period of time today I was all caught up on work SO, I decided to be brave and venture out with all four of my lovely darlings and attempt a little more school shopping.

I thought lunch would be good to start with so we got a little lunch and headed for Shoe Carnival where we completed the shoe portion. I managed to get all of my kids school shoes for approximately $25 each (not bad for some good lookin' shoes)! Oh and Ethan and I got a pair too, but unfotunately ours were a little more.....oops!

We finished up some shopping at good ole' Ross and I was about done after that. We have a few loose ends to tie up as far as clothes go and I haven't even started the supply part. I love to buy school supplies, I just hate paying for them. They seem to be so cheap as I start throwing them in the cart, but by the time I am done, holy cow!

All-in-all, I have to say I had a wonderful time with my kids. I thoroughy enjoyed being with them! I can tell that most of them are getting older and it is so much easier taking them all together than it was years ago.

Go To Phoenix? In August?

2008-08-04T20:05:00.007-06:00

That's right, that is what my wife wanted to do, and that is where we went last week. We had planned to leave early on Wednesday, but at the last second we decided that it would be a good idea to drive through the night so the kids could sleep and save us the insanity of kids wide awake for a 12 hour journey. It worked out pretty good and the trip down went by fast. We had a couple of close calls with a few deer as we approached Kanab, but we were able to avoid any serious damage due to my advanced driving skills, oh, and Shannon's last second screams from the passenger seat. It was good to finally get there and see everyone. We had a chance to unwind from the drive before the entire Osmun Convoy pulled into town. Oh, and I should probably mention that we weren't in town two hours before I had a Double-Double in my possession.

Thursday was a day of eating, swimming, shopping, eating, visiting, planning, eating and resting.
I had a chance to get away and visit some old friends from work and go to lunch. Where did we go you ask? Only the best Mexican Restaurant ever. Some would disagree, but for me (a person who loves Mexican food and has eaten his fair share of it), I could eat at Serrano's everyday.

Afterwords, Shannon's brother and I met up with the girls for a little shirt shopping for family pictures. It was decided there that the girls would continue to frolic, shop, dine, party, enjoy blissful pedicures, all the while skipping and singing down the streets of Gilbert and having little blue birds land on their shoulders; all the while her brother and I went back and ate pizza with 7 little, loud, messy, fighting, spilling, complaining.......wait.......I mean our wonderful kids. The kids in all seriousness were really good the whole trip.

Friday morning intailed me hitting the golf course with another old friend from work. The course was beautifully manicured, we were given mango scented, ice cold towels and it was a wonderful day. That is until we hit the back nine and it was after noon. It was like the Sun was looking down at us and said, "Ha, they think that is hot, well watch this." The hole shown below was surrounded by an army of sand, literally. I felt like I was trying to get my little white, innocent ball into Guantanamo.

Despite the temps, which registered at 114 on the car thermometer, we finished the round and had a good time doing it. Thanks Dave for a great 18, let's do it again, next time at a little higher elevation.

After the golf, I went back and met up with Shannon, and then my sisters and their families. We visited for a while and decided it was time for another good meal. Have you figured out that since we have moved to Logan, we have been quality food deprived. I mean, you can live on the food here, but ........well, you know what I mean. Anyway, we ended up at Texas Road House and enjoyed a nice meal and the waitress was about as good as they come.

Did you hear that Logan, good service. I digress. Back to the trip.

Saturday morning, before the Sun figured out where we were, we went to a park for family pictures. For the most part, everything went great. A few bumps and bruises from kids playing on rocks or running and falling, but for the most part everything went great and turned out for the pictures.

Then back to Milo and Jan's for more swimming and a little BBQ. Shrimp, Chicken, Salmon, and all the extras. Good stuff, and yes, more food.

That about wraps up the trip to Phoenix. We came home Sunday and found all is well. It's good to be back in cooler weather and sleeping in my own bed. Now if I can just figure out how I could get Serrano's to open a store here, or fly me up some chips and salsa.

To the fam in AZ, thank you for a wonderful time. We really enjoyed seeing everyone. Thanks to Jan and Milo, and Chris and Jr. for opening up their homes to us.

I did it!

2008-07-28T10:18:00.004-06:00

I did it, I finished my second 10K! Part of the run went right in front of our house and Ethan was out on the front porch to cheer me on.

I came in after one hour, four minutes and 50 something seconds. I know, I know, slow, but I finished and I didn't stop running. That was my goal was to finish and surprisingly enough I wasn't last either! I have every intention of making this a yearly event for myself, but there is a little part of me that is pulling me towards a half marathon. Scary, I know, but how cool would that be! I need to work on picking up my pace just a bit, but after that I think I am game.

After my race they had a race for the kids. Cody did one mile, Justin did a half mile. and Rylee didn't have her shoes or she would have done 1/4 mile. Alyson chose not to participate this year, but I think next year I am going to encourage them to work for the 2K!

Bruce the Moose!

2008-07-25T14:38:00.006-06:00

I have been working hard the last few weeks to get myself ready for the big race tomorrow morning and this morning on my final training run I came across this little fellow....
Being near the end of my run, I ran as fast as I could back up the hill to get Ethan to show him my find for the day! We jumped on the four-wheeler and "Bruce the Moose" became the exhibit of the morning. It is amazing how fast word spreads in such a small town.

Hill - Pro Bono

2008-07-24T18:41:00.008-06:00

I had a chance to take the jump rope team to yet another performance. After meeting them at the park and ride, we headed out to Hill Air Force Base which is about an hour away. As I’m driving there and watching my $5 dollar a gallon fuel gauge drop, I’m thinking “This is getting old”. Well, we arrived and went into the building where they were to perform at intermission of a pro bono magic show.

As the kids were getting ready and getting used to the stage they were to jump on, the magician was walking around setting up his stuff and talking about what was to happen. I heard him say that they weren’t going to be performing for men and women in the Air Force, but for their kids, a lot of which haven’t see their dad or mom for up to 2 years.

As I sat in the back of the large theater and watched these kids walk in with only one of their parents, I had to actually hold back some emotion as I watched their excitement and anticipation for the show. Having worked a year or six for Hayward Baker, and done a little bit of traveling away from family, I can only try to empathize with these families on a much smaller scale.

Now going back to my earlier comment about my $5 a gallon gas gauge dropping; I would have gladly paid $10 a gallon if it meant giving these kids a little enjoyment and taking their minds off their parents serving in Iraq so that I can sit in my air conditioned home and enjoy all the luxuries of life.

Unfortunately, it was a pretty bad show because the kids were pretty rusty from taking time off of practice since nationals. However, the kids seemed to enjoy it anyway and I hope that the jumpers felt good about doing a little service for those kids who serve us every day. God bless America, and the families that serve it.

Service!

2008-07-22T16:24:00.006-06:00

Justin's lesson for FHE last night was on service and then we served mom by helping to pick the peas! I am wondering if it is worth it to just pay the $$$ at the store for them. It takes a long time to take peas out of a pod! I guess nothing compares to hard work though and memories made. I can't forget to mention the lovely mosquitos that we conquered either, or did we?

One note at a time!

2008-07-20T20:50:00.007-06:00

I have always thought that Ethan would be a fantastic pianist. For his birthday I bought him this book. I was informed by a dear friend and excellent pianist that this was a great book and a great way to learn the basics of piano rather quickly. I believe he looked at it once or twice so last week I decided to give it a whirl. After all, I have always wanted to play. Well, I can now play (with two hands) a few "easy" songs and for quite a while this evening I have been plunking away at some Primary songs. I am loving the piano! Hopefully I will be able to set aside some time each day to develop a new talent. It is actually easier to get Alyson to practice if I can show her I am practicing too! A big thank you goes out to my mom as well who has shown that it doesn't matter when you start to learn, you can still learn! She has been playing for awhile now and is getting rather good. She is an inspiration to me.

Ethan has found a love for the guitar instead of the piano, although I still think one day he will make an excellent pianist. He is becoming very good at it and it is always nice to hear him playing in the front room. It looks like the legacy will live on and Ethan will be playing for his kids and his grandkids just like his dad!

My Code-man!

2008-07-16T15:26:00.003-06:00

It is hard to believe he is "10" today! Oh how I love this kid. He is so full of life, energy and love. It never fails when I am feeling down that Cody will come over and tell me he loves me or give me a back scratch! He has found a new love of skateboarding and is working at hard at trying to be like his cousin, TJ. We went to the skate park today and they had a good time. He had a few really good falls, but after a little limping and rubbing he was up and at it again. (His Aunt Heather took some really great pictures that I will post soon!)

He loves to play his harmonica with his Papa Magic and has made some attempts at guitar playing. Most of all he just likes to play and have a good time. He loves the phone and phone calls. His most favorite person to call is his Grammy. I think he could talk to her for hours!
Looking back at old pictures, it is hard to believe how the time has gone, but he is growing up to be quite the young man whom I am very proud of.
Tomorrow he will be receiving his Bear in Scouts and he has been one diligent kid in earning it. He is excited about moving on to Webelos.
What a kid! I love you Cody.

Varsity Camp

2008-07-08T22:40:00.011-06:00

Alright, I finally got some pictures from camp and so I figured I better recap some of our experiences before they disappear forever. We left Mendon with 14 boys and 6 adults and headed towards Moab, UT. My co-pilot handed me a couple of CD's that he was given from our scout master to introduce to the boys. The entire 5 hour trip there, everywhere we went while we were there, and the entire trip back was spent listening to CW McCall. Now for those who don't know who he is, look him up and find a song and you'll have a tiny glimpse into the hell I endured for a week. Actually it kind of grew on us and we all had our favorites. Anyway, Wednesday was our day to raft the Colorado River. Now Justin Hambly, Scott Hambly, Steve Stout and myself know all about the Colorado from when we did it as kids. Another story for another blog. We had a blast. Most of the adults were on a big raft we named The Pearl and they would attack the smaller rafts and throw everyone overboard. The kids seemed to enjoy that.

We also stopped and did a little cliff jumping.

The next day we had repelling on our agenda and our scout master is a pretty awesome guy and is an expert at these things. We were able to get some boys who were scared out of their minds to overcome that fear and go over a cliff. They felt so good about themselves when it was done, you could just see the energy they had and we as leaders were pretty proud of them. Other boys who weren't scared had a little more fun, like Cody below who went over commando style.

Of course after we all got down, it was time for some fun, including a faked injury that had the boys in a panic situation. Our scout master pretended to take a fall and had blood and everything there to make it real. It was tough though because we as leaders were trying to play along, yet allow the boys to take control of the situation and fix things. Let me just say it is a good thing it was a drill because those boys weren't prepared for it. They did okay, but it took a lot of leader direction to get them calm and thinking.

After we ended the drill, we had a good discussion with them about what we did right and what we could have done better. I think it was a good experience for them to learn how to calm down and control the adrenalin that comes with something like that.

Then, we once again had some fun. Our scout master rigged up a pulley system and created what is called the "Flying Squirrel". Basically, there is a rope through a pulley and one boy or leader is tied to one end, and everyone else is tied to the other and well, you all run in different directions, causing the one person flying through the air like so.

On the last day of camp, we went mountain biking on a trail called Slick Rock which was pretty fun. Only a few boys went over there handle bars, but all were safe.

We ended the trip with a pretty neat fireside that I think the boys will remember for a long time. I haven't had a trip like that in a very long time, and with those kinds of activities, we usually visited the hospital a time or two, but not this trip thank goodness. I really love working with the young men.

By the way, the bike I am on is about a $2,500.00 dollar bike, it was like riding a Cadillac. Good thing we rented it and returned it in one piece.

Pub

2008-07-03T14:01:00.004-06:00

So, Alyson has had quite the summer thus far. She started out being featured in a pretty big newspaper article, went to FL to compete in national competition along with some Disney fun, comes home to Fox News coming out and doing a morning show with her team. I am sure we haven't heard all of her stories from nationals yet, but she is having a blast and I know someday she will come down off the cloud. I will let Shannon blog about her nationals trip as I know that guys don't tend to share the news as well, but if you want to check her team out on the news, click here.

She had some close up time here.

I made her a little image for her computer background that I think fits her nicely.

Oh, and I will report on my adventurous varsity scout camp when I have some pictures for you to enjoy.

OOOOOOH YEAH!

2008-06-27T21:08:00.004-06:00

I am a very proud mother today. I know I shouldn't be proud, but pleased was just not good enough!

Alyson placed 7th in 1-minute speed today. She got 151 (only counting when the right foot hits the ground)! I know that generally you would probably think to yourself 7th, that is not even a place, but in jump rope they take the top 12 and she was up against around 100 other jumpers in her age division. Way to go Alyson! I also have to add that for 1-minute speed that is her ultimate high score. She also did her single freestyle today and a few other events that she was paired up with other members on her team, such as speed relay and I believe double dutch speed was today! I was informed that she did very well on her freestyle and most likely was in the top 15, but not quite the top 12 on this one. We will know for sure when they print out the scores!

Tomorrow is a new day and she will be doing 3-min speed, freestyle pairs and I forgot the rest. We have high hopes for her 3-min speed though. She is amazing and has such great endurance! Go Aly!

She got to take a picture and talk with the JR Champ, Nick and she was able to meet the famous (in the jump rope world) Tori Boggs. Alyson's goal is to be able to go as fast as Tori is all speed events!

Sniff, Sniff!

2008-06-26T08:44:00.004-06:00

I don't know how I used to manage for week after week without a husband. I guess it just became normal to me. Well, now the normal is having a husband home all the time and even in and out throughout the day. This is a good thing, but not when they have to leave for a week for Scout Camp. He left on Tuesday and won't be back until Saturday afternoon/evening. That is way too long for me. I think he is having a good time and I know he needed the time outdoors. He has been river rafting, mountain biking and today, repelling!

I had high hopes of getting so much done, but after finally getting Alyson out the door and moping around feeling sorry for myself I still find a huge list of things to be done. I am hoping for more productive days to come. The boys, Rylee and I are hitting the pool today after I get my work done so that should be fun and then we will see what the next few days will bring!

Florida, here she comes!

2008-06-26T08:32:00.006-06:00

I find myself sitting here this morning wishing I got to go to Florida too! Alyson left this morning (6AM) for the airport! She is so excited. What an adventure this will be for her! She has worked very hard this whole year in preparing for this competition and I think she is ready. The last few weeks have been early morning practices every day. My parents will be anxiously awaiting her arrival at the airport and then, let the fun begin.....Cocoa Beach, Disney World, Jump Rope, The Gator Park.....and who knows what else!

The BEST news ever!

2008-06-16T21:13:00.003-06:00

So, we had the greatly anticipated "neurosurgery" appointment today and I am ever so pleased and thankful to be able to share with you that we are just going to watch Rylee's cyst! He wants to do another MRI in a year to monitor the size, but hey, if no symptoms, no MRI in my opinion!!!

Thank you for your prayers in her behalf, I am thinking they have been answered! Yahooooo!

My Pa...

2008-06-15T08:02:00.005-06:00

So, I want to get some thoughts down on Father's Day. When I think of my dad, I think of a person who is big and strong, who was always there to protect and comfort us. I think of someone with great wisdom and integrity. I think of someone who is loving and generous. I think of an eagle, I don't know why, but I do. My dad loves eagles and did an incredible painting of a couple of eagles with their nest of youngsters. But I think that the eagle symbolizes all that my dad is and all that we should aspire to be.

Having become a father myself and feeling the pressures and responsibilities that come with the title, I can obviously appreciate my father more. The sacrifices he made, the hard work he performed, the time he spent serving not only us, but others, the time he spent teaching his kids the importance of scripture study and prayer. These are things that my dad did with us growing up and even though scripture study was at 4:00AM before he went to work, the principle of having it was embedded forever.

I can remember scout trips, basketball, baseball, football, homework, magic tricks, church lessons, home teaching, blessings, working, hiking, fishing, camping, movies, boxing, arm wrestling, trips to the prison and many other things that are forever ingrained in my memories. I hope my dad knows how much I love and appreciate all that he has done for me and my family. A very big, heart felt thanks to my dad on this spacial day. You are my hero, and I love you.

P.S.- The title of this blog comes from a cartoon that they used to play on fathers day about the three bears, and the kid bear was this big clumsy kid who was always messing things up for his dad, but thought the world of him. This is one of the funniest cartoons I can remember watching with "My Pa". That is what the kid bear always called him. Here is a link to the spanish version.

...how does your garden grow?

2008-06-12T19:00:00.005-06:00

If you ignore the weeds, the garden is doing swell! So far we have our strawberries, peas, onions, tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, and beans well on their way. We are anxiously awaiting our corn to sprout up. Oh, our watermelon, cucubers, squash and pumpkins just popped out the ground as well!

Can I just say that for me, gardening is very therapeutic. It is so relaxing to me to be outside sitting in the dirt and pulling weeds or planting seeds!

I am starting to gather some tried and true recipes for canning my produce from friends and am getting excited about that part as well. I guess it all just gives me a sense of self reliance!

I can't not mention how excited I am about some blackberry starts I just received from Max and Flo (Poppleton)! They are in the ground and starting to pull it together. I have one surviving rasberry plant that made it from last year even after an accidental tractor till. After the snow melted I would go out to the back fence and scan for anything, anything that might be left and one day, there it was a lonely survivor. It was transplanted to a new location and it too is doing well! Can't you just taste it, blackberry pie or rasberry jelly!

The apple trees can't go in until after the sprinklers I am told so I am anxiously awaiting those! For the next few years, I am just going to have to mooch off the neighbors for apples!

As I am typing this out it is hard for me to believe what I have found interest in. Next on my list of things to do and learn, CHICKENS! Oh yes, fresh eggs right from the back yard! We will see how far I get!

The Neti Pot

2008-06-08T21:04:00.004-06:00

I know, I know, this sounds disgusting, but it has been my saving grace! I have been sick for the last couple of weeks and unfortunately it hit its worst this weekend. When I discovered that I probably had a sinus infection I did a little research online for some natural remedies and this is what I came up with, "The Neti Pot." For those of you who don't know what this is, it is a way of flushing out your sinuses. If you really need a visual you can do a google search and there are a million demonstrations out there for you.

Basically you poor saline solution up one side of your nose and it comes out the other side along with all of the garbage that is not supposed to be there. They say it is very beneficial for people with allergies as well to maintain good health of the sinuses.

I have to admit this has not been the only thing that has made me feel better. I was blessed with a donation of some antibiotics as well and even though I am totally anti antibiotics I was so sick that I caved and am currently on them as well. After a full day of sleeping today and the help of my dear family members serving my every "whispering" need I am on the road to better health.

In the news....

2008-06-08T13:27:00.001-06:00

This story was published in our local paper today. Enjoy.

You can see it here as long as they keep the story on the site.

Just Jumpin’
Published:
Sunday, June 8, 2008 4:57 AM CDT
Story by Jacob Fullmer - Photos by Alan Murray

Toad and rocker may not be familiar athletic terms like touchdown or dribble, but that’s just part of the peculiarity of jump roping.Cache Valley’s own competitive jump roping team, Just Jumpin’, is the only of its kind in Utah. Team members are as young as 8 or old enough to be enrolled in college. It requires a special kind of individual to enjoy skipping rope for two to three hours a day.According to 13-year-old team member Kelsee Nelson of College Ward, someone needs to be “not normal - not normal in a good way” to enjoy their sport.

With all their uniqueness, the team’s performances are in high demand around the state. Just Jumpin’ recently performed during a halftime show for the Utah Blaze. In tahe nearly five years they’ve been together, the team has grown to almost 40 participants.“In that time, we’ve become amazing,” said coach Patrice Winn of River Heights.Early on, Winn hired members of the ICON-sponsored Proform Airborne team from Rexburg, Idaho, to show them the ropes. Since then, Just Jumpin’ has been to the regional competition three times and the national USA Jump Rope competition twice.“When we went the last few times (to regionals), we were OK,” Winn said. “This year, when Proform saw us, they thought, ‘Whoa, this is a team to be reckoned with.’”At regionals, the team and its members participated in more than 90 events. They qualified for nationals in almost half of their events, according to assistant coach Matt Bemer of Logan. Qualifying events include one minute speed, double Dutch freestyle and group show, which incorporates at least eight people jumping at the same time.Though the Proform team is now considered competition at various events, one jumper’s parent, Ethan Poppleton of Mendon, said something that makes jump roping different from other sports is how helpful the competition can be. He has seen opposing teams share tricks and moves in between events.“All the teams ... they want the other team to be the best they can; even if it’s going to cost them a place (at competition),” he said.Poppleton’s 11-year-old daughter, Alyson, got involved in team jump rope when her family moved to Cache Valley in 2006. She received a flier at school for a jump rope workshop, a major fundraising tool for the team. She participated then and hasn’t stopped hopping since.Two of her younger siblings are now working with the team as well. Cody, 9, is on the performance team, and Justin, 7, is working his way through training workshops until he can make the team.The workshops are available to any child regardless of which school they attend. They teach three difficulty levels of skill sets. When jumpers can execute each skill from each level, they get the chance to be on the team.Poppleton said he loves how the sport teaches his children to set a goal and work towards its completion.“It really makes them feel good when they get their own shirt and they’re on the team,” he said. “You can see it in their face when they think, ‘Hey, I did it.’”Winn said most kids take two years to pick up the skills required to be on the team, but Alyson “got on real fast.”Even though Alyson has only been with the team a short time, she took a fast jump to first place in her age division of the “3-minute speed” category at regionals held in Boise in April. In three minutes, she took 394 right steps separated by the quick whipping sound of her rope. In her next practice, she said she counted a few more.Her father participated in more traditional sports when he was younger. He would jump rope to improve his vertical jump. In his workouts, he did 400 to 500 jumps in almost double the time it takes his daughter.“I keep asking them if they want to do other sports and they keep coming back to this,” he said. But he’s proud of them in their sport.Katelyn Schiffman doesn’t want anyone to think jump roping is easy.“This is a real sport,” said the Providence 13-year-old. “People don’t believe what we can do. They think it’s a little recess activity.”Coach Winn said audiences are frequently surprised when they see what the kids can do. At performances, she usually hears, “No way are they really jumping.”Poppleton calls that the “wow factor” of his kids’ sport.And just like any sport, there are certain risks associated with it.While some moves sound cute, like frog and J-Z (not the rapper), the suicide is a front flip that lands the jumper on the seat of their shorts with one leg extended, the rope barely pausing.“I don’t like that one. It hurts,” Poppleton said.And serious injuries can and have happened in Just Jumpin’.“People didn’t believe I broke my arm jump roping,” said Abby Wright of River Heights, 12.When she tells the story of how she did a leap frog over someone during a performance, she wears it as a badge of pride. And she ought to — she completed the show, and then practiced for a total of four more hours.“She was in so much pain,” Winn said.Just Jumpin’ started when Winn, who teaches physical education at River Heights Elementary, needed new jump ropes for class. The American Heart Association was willing to pay for jump ropes if she began teaching jump rope during school time. Some of her students performed for AHA events but nothing serious until one student approached her about starting a competitive team.“We thought, ‘We’ll see how far it goes,’” Winn said. “And it hasn’t stopped.”

QUICK UPDATE!

2008-06-06T07:10:00.005-06:00

We received Rylee's latest MRI report and we are happy to say that there is no other tumor involvement per the report. Thank you to all who have kept her in your prayers.

Although we are still not super thrilled to have to deal with the cyst at least it is just the cyst! We will have further information after the middle of this month. She has a neurosurgery consultation then and at that point we will most likely map out her future course!!!

That sucks......

2008-06-03T14:00:00.005-06:00

So, today was Rylee's second MRI, and this time she had to have a shot to inject a pigment so that they could see some contrast in the results. Once again, Shannon did a good job in preparing Rylee days in advance so she could handle it. The doctor's were still amazed that this brave 4 yr old could hold so still in the MRI machine. Anyway, part of what made it worth while for Rylee, was the promise of her very own vacuum.

And as promised, she got her vacuum and is a happy little girl. We should have the results of her second MRI sometime soon, (hopefully). We will keep you all updated. A very heart felt thank you to all who have fasted and prayed for our little miracle. I hope you are all blessed as we have been.

Thanks Trav.

2008-05-25T21:29:00.005-06:00

So, today while in church, I get a phone call from my brother (Travis). I look at Shannon when I see who is calling and she said I better answer it because he knew I was in church and it must be an emergency. Well, I choose not to answer and get a voicemail. So I excuse myself and go to an empty room to listen to the emergency. Well, it happened to be that Travis saw a perfect opportunity for a photo shoot with the kids and the weather was cooperating enough to pull it off. So, after church we went with Travis' family and had a nice time taking some pics with the kids. Thanks for the call Trav, we need to do it again. Maybe next time we can do it during Sunday School, (oops, did I write that out loud?).

P.S. You can click on the photo slideshow to see a larger version.

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It could be worse, but....

2008-05-22T11:29:00.002-06:00

We just received the information that Rylee has an arachnoid cyst in her brain. We are still gathering information and have an appointment at the beginning of next week to discuss this with her doctor. They are faxing me over the actual radiology report so I can look at it more closely. Unfortunately Rylee's regular doctor is out of town and I am having a hard time getting any information at all.

ONE BRAVE GIRL!

2008-05-21T14:47:00.004-06:00

Yesterday was one big day for one little girl! Rylee had an MRI to evaluate some symptoms that she has been having and she did amazing. We prepped her for it by talking about her getting to go inside of a big camera. We practiced holding still as a statue and she said, "like a curling iron!" The radiologist looked at us like we were a little crazy when they saw how little she was and asked us if her doctor had talked about sedation! Apparently when the MRI was in progress, Ethan and my mom were able to watch the screens and the radiologist said it was VERY rare that a child under six-years-old could hold as still as she did. I was able to be in there with her and boy was I a proud mother. I had to make sure I controled my emotions as I sat and watched her through the little mirror. Her sweet little face looked back at me the whole time making sure I was not going anywhere. We cracked a few smiles as the machine made all sorts of funny, very load noises. Still no results as of yet, but we are anxiously waiting to hear what they have to say about her little head.

The other half...

2008-05-18T21:15:00.003-06:00

Okay, so in my previous post, I mentioned that half of a busy weekend was over. Well, here is a picture of what happened today.

No one knew that Shannon has been pregnant for the past nine months and finally gave birth today. That is the real reason her mom is here visiting with us. Surprise...

Okay, Not Really, this is actually Shannon's nephew who was born last weekend, thank goodness.

A new appreciation.

2008-05-17T20:23:00.006-06:00

Well, a long weekend is halfway through and I want to get some thoughts down before they disappear from my inherently dementiated brain. Last night was my Grandfather's viewing and there weren't too many people who showed up for it which allowed for the family that was there to visit and reminisce. Afterwards we went to eat and watch the Jazz lose to the Lakers, which was only really enjoyable for me, seeing how I was amongst an entire table of Spazz fans. Anyway, we went to the funeral today and enjoyed a nice service. Tauni, Monty (a cousin), and myself offered the prayers; My uncle Max, cousin Jason and cousin Brandan spoke and the kids sang I Am A Child Of God which was followed by the choir singing. All in all, it was nice to hear some of the stories that were told and to see how others remember Grandpa.

I learned some things that I didn't really know about him this weekend. When I was younger, I had heard bits and pieces of him being hurt in the war and his service there, but what I didn't know was that he had been awarded the purple heart and that he was on a ship that was heavily hit with gun fire and he had to watch a ship close by go down and he witnessed those men die, all the while trying to stay alive on his own ship. He sustained wounds from schrap metal and a broken leg as a result of the battle. Now, not really knowing all this until recently, I hadn't thought about the fact that he would have a military graveside service. WOW, I get emotional just thinking about it. As we were getting ready to load the coffin into the hurst, we laid the flag over him. When we got there and my uncle Max prepared to dedicate the grave, the military men held the flag over the coffin and the color guard brought the Naval flag forward to be along side the American Flag.

I am pretty emotional at this point as I watched this respect for our country being displayed. After the dedication of the grave, they folded the flag and presented it to my uncle who represented the family in receiving it. The military men were all older men who fought in the war, which brought an even greater appreciation for their service, at least to me. As they handed the flag to Max, they talked a little bit about the flag and counseled to take care of the flag. Others spoke of different patriotic moments in our nations history and they prepared a gun salute and the playing of TAPS. I think my Grandpa would have been proud of the way he was honored today, as anyone would be by that awesome display of patriotic symbolism.

I have thought about my Grandpa from many different perspectives over the 32 years I have had to know him. But I never really thought about him from a patriotic standpoint. I am the type of person who gets emotional during the singing of our National Anthem, so this service was impressive and memorable for me. I know my Grandpa wasn't perfect, but in staying with the positive, he gave great service to many during his life, he did it with a smile, and he served our country, and for that I am grateful.

Crazy Hair Day/Field Day!

2008-05-16T08:45:00.002-06:00

I am wondering, could this possibly be my kids favorite school day of the year? As the school year comes to a close I can't believe how fast the time goes. Alyson will be going into 6th grade, Cody 5th, Justin 2nd and Rylee will be in her second year of preschool! Crazy! All of my kids have done amazing in school.

Alyson's goal this final quarter was to get 100% or better in each subject. She never seems to settle on just good. Even though she has always gotten straight A's, she is always wanting to improve herself, setting goals and achieving them.

Cody is doing amazing. He has improved all of his grades to mostly A's and a few B's! I am so proud of him. He has been the friendly kid of his class and tries his best to stay focused and on task. His teacher has told me that there are some kids that can't focus and just don't care, but Cody, you know he tries his best.

Justin, my social butterfly! He is always last tothe car because everyone just wants to talk to him, boys and girls! He is doing amazing in school and is also straight A's. What a kid!

Here one day, gone tomorrow

2008-05-14T20:15:00.005-06:00

Well, once again it has been a busy week, and as I look back on how it started and some of the feelings I have had, I feel blessed to have what I have and to be here to love my family another day. I read about the earthquake in China and the number of people that were killed, missing, injured etc. Having lived through a couple good sized quakes in CA, I can only imagine the devistation those people must be facing, and the challenges ahead. This story of course follows closely behind the horrific situation with the Myanmar. The number of people that have lost their lives is beyond my ability to comprehend. Well, yesterday I was working late and found myself at the office around 8:00PM trying to finish up a few things when I got a call from my aunt informing me that my Grandfather had passed away. This wasn't something that was shocking to me because he had been on the decline since my Grandmother passed away last summer. I have however had 24 hours to allow this news to sink in and I find myself in a sullen mood as I drive around the place I have had so many fond memories and experiences with him.

As a kid, I always looked forward to our summer vacations when we would come to Cache Valley and spend time with my grandparents. There was always something fun to do here and we were always outside in what I consider to be one of the most beautiful places to live. As I reflect back, I remember being tied to my Grandpa's hip as we did everything together. Things like bowling, fishing, hiking, hunting, jeep rides, service, working on cars, riding horses, home teaching, yard work, boxing, shooting guns and marathon nights of shooting pool until 3 in the morning. I remember him always having this charm about him, kind of like Crocodile Dundee, where he always seem to have everything under control and managed it with a cool smile.

Well, I never imagined I would some day be living in Cache Valley with my own family and building similar relationships with my own kids, (or trying to anyway). I am glad that my kids are old enough to have a few experiences that they can remember with their Great Grandparents. I look back on my times and experiences with my Grandpa with fondness and thanksgiving. He wasn't a perfect man, as none of us are, but the times I had with him were good. He will be burried this weekend next to his wife in Wellsville, UT, as he should be.

This also makes me take a step back and think about what memories I am creating with others and how they will remember me when I pass on. I hope to improve my life and become a better person. I don't desire praise or a glamorous life, but I do hope that when I am gone people will say, "That Ethan was alright". I hope to have done more good than bad. This experience of losing my Grandparents this past year has allowed me to grow in so many ways. But mostly I think I have made some spiritual leaps with regards to understanding who we are, why we are on this earth and the kind of people we need to be while we're here. My Grandpa was 90 when he passed, but I don't aniticipate to be on this earth that long. If I died tomorrow, I think I would be disappointed with what I have done with my life. Not that I haven't had fun and been successful, but I think I can do so much better and give so much more to others and really make a difference, if even only in one person's life. Well, I probably haven't made much sense and seem to simply be rambling on, but I wanted to get some of my feelings in writing at this time for sake of posterity.

We'll miss you Grandpa, and thank you for a few good memories. And Dammit Frank, say hi to Grandma for us.

http://www.allenmortuaries.net/

A Few Gems

2008-05-13T15:54:00.004-06:00

Alright, here are just a couple of recent things that have happened lately that you might enjoy/find funny.

First off, I would like to congratulate Aly for being the first published Poppleton. Her poem below will be published in a book of poems written by kids. Here it is:

Candy!

Candy, oh delicious candy,
You always make my mouth water.
You make my life oh so dandy,
How I love you, delicious candy.

Lollipops so big and round,
You make me want to scream and pound!
And chocolate, oh that’s even worse,
It makes my body want to burst!

M&M’s they’re oh so good,
I’d steal them all, I would, I would.
Bubble gum, pink and chewy,
Stuck in my hair, it’s just so gooey.

I lay in bed, awake at night,
The ceiling was a boring sight.
I hopped out of my comfy bed,
And had that scrumptious candy instead!

By: Alyson Poppleton

Second, we went to Tucano's in SLC to have a Mother's Day dinner with Shannon's Mom. It was a nice time and the kids really enjoyed seeing her and having as much meat as the guy would cut for them. Well, on the way home Shannon and I can hear Justin in the back singing Mr. Tambourine man, or trying to anyway. He likes that song because Jason sang it on American Idol, not because his Dad and Grandpa play it on the guitar all the time. So I start singing it with him and realize that he doesn't know the words. So he asks me to teach it to him. Alyson wrote down the words on a piece of paper for him and after we all sang the songs a few times, he had it down. He then tells us that he is going to sing it in his class at school. I didn't really think he was going to, but after school today, he informed me that he asked his teacher if he could sing a song in front of the class and she let him do it. So either we have the biggest dork son on our hands, or the next Bob Dylan. Mr. Tambourine Man is my music selection for this post.

What a wonderful day!

2008-05-12T10:28:00.005-06:00

Before my day unfolded and I got consumed with the tasks at hand, I wanted to make sure I took the time out to jot down some thoughts from yesterday. I love Mother's Day, a day set aside to reflect and appreciate our own mothers and for me, being a mother and what an awesome responsibility that comes with it. I know I posted last month thoughts on my mother and she hasn't changed one bit. She is still the one example to me that she has always been. I love you mom!

I have a wonderful husband and wonderful children. They treat my like a queen whether I deserve it or not! Here are a few memories for the day....

- Breakfast from Ethan and the kids (applesauce, peaches, Cherrios, and hot chocolate)!

- iPod nano! (added bonus)

- Judie, Merlyn and Tauni joining our family for church.

- Talk in sacrament meeting completed (phew)!

- Egg bagel sandwich made by my husband for lunch (divine)!

- Nice little bit of relaxation on the couch with a book that I borrowed from a friend "I am a Mother".

- BBQ at Merlyn and Judie's house.

- I watched the kids thoroughly enjoying the fire in the pit with sticks and marshmellows, playing tag and playing in the shed that papa cleaned out just for them to have a playhouse!

- Delicious Hawaiian chicken made by Ethan. He really is a good cook!

All-in-all, it was a wonderful day. Thank you to my husband and my children for making me feel special!

We are sowing......

2008-05-06T10:03:00.004-06:00

Last night for family night we began sowing our seeds! My initial intention was to have each of the kids have their very own section to plant whatever they liked, but in the end we decided on a "family garden" with everyone helping with everything.

Aly so kindly and patiently helped plant the "pink" peas with Rylee. They were so careful as to not let one seed touch another and they made sure they had just enough space between each other.

Justin, got a little exited at first, but eventually caught on and did a great job.

Cody, my little farmer, he thought it was a race to see who could get to the end of their row first, but after a little practice he had it down!

Last night we planted peas, red onions, regular onions, carrots, and broccoli. Within the next few weeks we will move on to the corn, potatoes, pumpkins, watermelon, beans, and tomatoes!

Our Own Woe's

2008-05-04T20:37:00.012-06:00

Well, with things warming up and us getting ready to do our garden and make plans for how we will finally start landscaping our yard, Rylee and I were having a little conversation about the garden. She has been really excited about the garden this year for some reason, and she told me that Mom said we all get our own woe's this year. I chuckled and repeated it and she said "yep, our own woe's to garden". I know Shannon wanted to give the kids their own area so they could grow whatever they wanted, but apparently she has decided that woe's are a better idea.

In other news, we had a productive and enjoyable weekend. I got to escape for a couple of hours on Saturday to go riding with a few neighbors, (I almost died on one hill, a story to share next time you see me), washed the car and did a few other things around the house, (honey dues). Shannon took 3 of the 4 kids to May Day and we went back to the park that night to enjoy a bonfire with some of the people from the ward.

Tonight we went over and saw my parents. We went up to the dam and let the kids feed the ducks, seeing how there weren't any in my parent backyard. Usually there are plenty of ducks that come down the river to mooch off of anyone willing to feed them, but not tonight. We returned home and Shannon BBQ'd up some delicious chicken while I loaded some items in Dad's trailer to return to him tomorrow.

So until the next time I feel like blogging, Peace....

May Day!

2008-05-04T14:28:00.002-06:00

How can anyone not fall in love with this? Every year, on the first Saturday (rain, snow or shine)in May @ 10 AM our sweet town holds a May Day Celebration. All of the girls from 1st grade through 5th grade participate in a dancing of the May pole. It is absolutely adorable. This year Alyson was not able to particapte but we went and watched anyway. Aly was able to do it last year and these girls work for several weeks learning the cute little dance that braids the May poles. This year marked the 146th year of this celebration of Spring! In just two years Rylee will also get to participate. Each of the girls wear a dress made by their mother or family friend. The older girls wear one color and the younger girls wear another.

Happy May Day everyone!

"I got the last one!"

2008-05-01T21:28:00.007-06:00

Cody was so excited to have found a lingering Easter Egg from our Easter Egg Hunt several weeks ago! As he comes running into the family room Dad attempts to swindle some candy from him with no success. After Cody happily heads off to enjoy his find, Rylee casually asks, "Wasn't that an easy one?"

Rylee knows that we always tell the kids before the hunt that easy ones are for Rylee and this year Rylee and Andrew! What a smarty pants!

The "Feeling"

2008-05-01T20:58:00.003-06:00

While making my rounds and gathering stragglers for bed, I passed Justin in the hall after his nightly ritual or my rule rather of bathroom before bed. He somewhat secretly told me that he had a "feeling" in the bathroom. Being somewhat confused and watching my mother approach the bathroom, I quickly advised her to hold on one second so I could inspect and try to make something of Justin's comment. You never know with boys what could present itself in the bathroom after a slight bump or miss of the toilet. Justin assured me that everything was okay so I proceeded to continue tucking children in for the night. While giving Justin his kiss and cheek hug, he went on to inform me once again that he had a "feeling". He must of sensed my confusion and went on further to explain that while using the bathroom he had a feeling that he was not done so he stayed and finished. Still confused, I asked him what feeling? He said, "You know Mom, the feeling." Still confused, I asked if he was talking about the Holy Ghost and right then I knew that is exactly what he was talking about. His face lit up and yes, he said he felt the Holy Ghost tell him he was not done going to the bathroom. Trying not to giggle, we were able to have a nice little talk about the Holy Ghost and his promptings!

It is so fun to see that as Justin approaches the wonderful age of 8 that he is becoming so intune to the gift that he will receive. Although he does not quite understand it fully his little mind is being prepared. I love that Justin is already trying to recognize the promptings of the Spirit even if they are a little silly!

Oh, it is that time of year again!

2008-04-20T13:30:00.005-06:00

I am so excited for the upcoming season. It is G-A-R-D-E-N time! I have to say I never thought I would enjoy this as much as I do. Preparing the ground, planting the seeds, watering, weeding, watching it grown, and finally reaping the harvest!

Yesterday, our dear neighbor/home teacher dumped a load of manure next to our garden and then Ethan I proceeded a few hours later to start dispersing it over the garden spot. It just so happened to be a windy day and Ethan happened to be standing down wind! Last year was not such a bad garden considering it was our first attempt, but I have high hopes for this year. About five minutes after the first picture was taken, this is the second picture! Yes, you are looking at SNOW!

I will try and keep an updated picture gallery of our garden. This year my kids are all going to have their own small squares to plant seeds of their choice. I am hoping that they can learn to be good little gardeners long before I did!

The Religious Knot

2008-04-20T13:22:00.006-06:00

On Thursday night Cody was awarded his Religious Square Knot that he worked so hard on by Brother Montgomery (a member of our Bishopric). We are so proud of him for being so involved in his scouting. I have to say if it were not for his persistence, he would not be as far along as he is. He is continually hounding me with that Scout book of his, "Mom, can we do Scouts now?" He is just about done with his Bear and is such a good boy. He cares about everyone and everything and is always smiling. Time seems to be flying by. We love you Cody.

The joy of Sunday!

2008-04-20T13:09:00.004-06:00

What a beautiful Sunday afternoon. Alyson and Cody playing together, Justin upstairs playing creative make-believe and Rylee dozing in la-la land! Ethan is just getting home from an after church meeting and I am supposed to be make cookies for some Primary visits this afternoon, but instead am enjoying some church music and finally blogging after quite sometime!