Why WE go to church...

I've been thinking so much lately about the process of life. We learn as we go - meaning that it doesn't all come to us at once. We continue to go to church each week and have family home evening each week, gaining little bits each time. We read our scriptures as a family nightly and then as adults we study on our own as well. Sometimes I struggle in getting everything done that needs to be done in a day - do I chose the better part? Sometimes I wonder if I am making a difference in my children's lives. And then there are days like these when an inspired Primary teacher did make a difference and made my life better because of it. Today they taught Haeley about sharing. She came out of her class with two homemade chocolate chip cookies and immediately handed one to her brother Coleton. And then she said, I want to SHARE with Coleton. She handed me this picture she had colored and we talked about it. I hugged her and told her it made my day that she was so willing to share with her brother. It's been a crazy summer with lots of whining and hitting and arguing between those two, so hopefully this is a breakthrough. I am going to post this photo on the wall in her room and hopefully this will not be last time we talk about sharing and how great she did today.

Memories

I wasn't feeling too hot yesterday (or for the last few weeks for that matter) and the medicine they put me on is pretty yucky but I am just starting to feel better. Tyler has strep throat again! He just went in on the 4th for it. And it's the 3rd time in about 2 months. He meets with a specialist tomorrow and they are probably going to yank those tonsils out. Anyway, CJ took a nap and Hk played at her cousin's house in the afternoon. I tried to take a nap but the phone rang several times just as I was drifting away and so that was the end of that. But I stayed in bed and picked up a book by Becky Higgins on Family History Scrapbooking. So I got the bug. I've been working on scanning tons of old photos I found recently - after organizing them in white notebooks with page protectors (thanks Becky). I've been doing family history scrapbook pages as a Christmas gift for my family and I am behind - as in I haven't made a single page this year. This photo is one of only a few I have with my Grandpa on my Dad's side. I was curious about it because I remember that Viking hat. My dad didn't remember anything about the hat, but he did remember so many other wonderful things like the veggies at the fair in Fairbanks - they measure the zucchini in TONS! Can you believe that? Anyway, my Dad told me so many wonderful things that I moved the pattern paper on the right under the cream paper and put the rest of his journaling on there. I'm keeping my family history pages very simple and although I had made this page yesterday I quickly browsed the gallery at the Simple Scrapbooks Magazine Site and then I added the 4 little flowers. This is all digital of course and all the paper is from the LaCreimerie Citro Kit by Katie Pertiet of Designer Digitals. I've been dying to use the kit and it is perfect with the barn, my red dress, and my mom's red hair.

Memory

First, Hk got to be responsible today. Earlier this summer HK dumped her bike helmet on the floor in the garage. Unfortunately, that spot on the garage floor was under the rear tire of my car. So, today she payed for her own bike helmet with money she earned from doing chores. I am really hoping this helps to teach her to take better care of her things. "Ownership does wonders" as my MIL says. Hopefully this is true.

MEMORIES:

This one's going around. I thought it'd be ... interesting to read some memories. And it fits because I went visiting teaching the other day to a lady whose daughter was back in town. I could clearly remember when I met her daughter, at a church activity, about 12 years ago and I could tell she couldn't remember me at all (that's because she had her eye on Ry* P* the whole time - they later married). My memory is hit and miss sometimes too. What about yours?

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments

Haeley's iPhone

Before you freak out, just know that this version is very very cool and totally set up for a 6 year old. She customized it herself. And since I can't figure out where iMovie saved the video, go check it out at this link:

Haeley's iPhone

I can't wait to scrapbook this!

upcoming county fair - I need your input!

First, I have to admit something...yesterday was one of those days. Cj didn't want to be in the water for swim lessons, Hks teacher wasn't teacher her anything new, and I was feeling exhausted. We came home, showered, ate microwaved chicken nuggets, and I sat down on the couch, then I had to get up to put a very fussy Cj down for a nap, and then I took a nap myself while Hk listened to her hand-me-down ipod. I made dinner (spaghetti) and Tyler got home and I crashed on the couch. I spent just a few minutes retouching a few photos and uploaded them for printing. Then it was off to never never land for me. Oh and there was that one moment when I had to answer the door and I looked far from my best (at least I had washed my hair and brushed my teeth but that was the extent of getting ready for the day for me). My FIL said, "not feeling good today?" to which I replied, "I still have a few of those days now and then." At least it's been a while.

Today Cj enjoyed swim lessons and actually laughed a few times. Hk swam all the way across the pool doing the crawl, breathing on the side and everything, without flippers. She was so excited. She is 6, I wish I could have been that good at 6. It took my breath away to watch and this amazing feeling filled my heart as I watched her conquer the water with determination and without complaint. Oh and I made death by chocolate (wheat free) and that makes my day better all by itself.

Oh, we got a new niece on Sunday - 8 lbs 15 oz and 1 day early. My kids now have 12 cousins on one side of the family. I had a total of 3 growing up so this is pretty cool stuff.

The County Fair is coming up in August and I am going to enter a few print, my husband, and my daughter are going to as well. There are 5 catagories and each person can only enter one in each catagory:

Portrait/Wedding
Scenic
Animals:wild or domestic
Still Life/Architecture
Black & White

I have to decide right away but I can't decide and need some input. I've only printed 2 of these so far.

If I enter this one in portrait (I've already printed this one)


then I can enter this one in black and white (not printed) - I'm thinking 16x20 to put in our studio because I just love this photo!


or if I enter this one under portraits I could enter the HkCJ one under black and white - but I don't know about the black glove...I think the parent's hands with baby feet are better...


I am going to enter this one into Scenic (already printed)


and what about this one for Still Life although it is wedding but not a portrait with a person in it?



or architecture instead of the still life. Hmmm, I think the shoes may be calling my name or am I crazy???


I know this is probably not the type of Architecture they are thinking about, but maybe, but I still like the shoes (I am biased as I love weddings)...SEE I really need your help!



I don't really have anything in the way of Animals...hmmm, I need to go on a sunset photo safari...

ANYWAY, YOUR INPUT WOULD BE MOST HELPFUL. THANK YOU!!!

and now I better go fold the laundry and wipe down the kitchen!

garden info

I have to put on a warning (like the one you see on the side mirrors of your car) about my garden photos - those were taken with a wide angle lens. That means object may be much smaller than they appear. Love that wide angle, it's very cool, but it LIES!

Melynda - thanks for the info about your brother's curbing business! Do you think he'll want to drive all the way up here though? We'll call him... Oh and let him know I really like his website! perfect

Earwigs and corn - traps: tip a can a little on it's side and place a few tablespoons of vegetable oil inside with a bit of bacon grease to attract the earwigs. Or place folded newspaper in the garden and dump it out each morning into a bucket of soapy water to kill the earwigs - remove all mulch from the veggie garden as it will be a place for earwigs to rest during the day, making your garden very attractive to earwigs.

broccoli
It may be necessary to presoak broccoli in salt water for about fifteen minutes to rid any bugs that may be hiding in its tightly packed flowerets. According to researchers at Cornell University, blanching broccoli in a microwave oven in preparation for freezing, (2 c. broccoli in 3 tbsp. water for 3 min. at 600-700 watts) nearly doubled the retention of Vitamin C. Frozen broccoli cooked in a microwave kept 90% of its Vitamin C compared to 56% for broccoli cooked in a pot of boiling water on top of a stove. For large infestations, permethrin may be used, a very effective chemical derived from a common garden flower - which even if you drank a gallon of that stuff you'd only get a tummy ache.

garden info

remember the sprouts post?

First of all, I got published again and I just received a copy of the issue in the mail along with my mini album return. I am so excited! It's the 3rd one featured and on page 14, it's my Alaska Vacation 3x3 inch accordian mini album. Besides the fact that I got published, this magazine is packed with so many great ideas! My favorites were made by Cathy Z and Rebecca Cooper. I'm excited to help Haeley make a mini album about what she did during her summer vacation. So keep an eye out for the Simple Scrapbooks special issue - Mini Albums in an Evening.

Cj really likes the water, AS LONG AS IT'S NOT IN HIS FACE! One more week of torture for him and I'M DONE! But we do have a good teacher and he does like to jump in. Maybe next year will be better.

Here's Hk doing the backstroke...

I actually planted 4 flowering plants that bloom in the summer months. Wow!


Okay, onto the sprouts...they are not tiny sprouts anymore. I guess maybe they are in the teenager stage. My carrots are growing really slow - hmm. Oh and once the brocolli begins to get ready for picking, how does one keep the bugs out of them? I just thought the brocolli plant was really kind of pretty looking. What can I say, I am having so much fun with the camera!

Check out the corn - wish I'd planted 2 more rows - oh well, there is always next year. Any good tips on keeping the earwigs out. Oh and does anyone know how to take corn all the way to seed? I know vine plants are next to impossible, is corn any easier - especially since the price is increasing all the time.

This is actually the baby pumpkin plants - they said I could grow 3 plants per mound. It's almost the same size as the giant pumpkin plants. Although the fruit will be completely different. We'll have baby pumpkins lining the sidewalk and probably all the way down the driveway this year. I planted more than I realized! When do you cut them from the vine? Or does the vine sort of shrivel up on its own?


We just put the stakes up and Haeley helped me put the twine on the stakes. I am excited to eat fresh slender green beans this year!


Having fun with the camera and lens flare and trying to keep my messy yard out of the photo. This is a pepper plant. My mom gave me 4 peat pots with something in them - 2 turned out to be pepper plants and 2 turned out to be cilantro!!! Except for garlic I have planted everything I need for a salsa garden! I LOVE fresh salsa!


Last night Neil came over and moved some of our dirt from our pile of topsoil to various parts of the yard with his tractor. He even took two loads up to my MIL's house. He even dug this great big hole in the office flower bed and dumped a huge load of our gravel in it. Then Tyler put the drains from the roof down into the hole. Now as long as something doesn't get lodged down in there causing it to get dug back out of the ground, we'll be okay! He wouldn't take any money but at least he took the Thank You card I made for him! Now we just have to finish leveling and then we'll be ready for grass around mid-August. We are going to call around about curbing for the garden areas but I think that is way out of our budget this year. It's been all about manual labor and help from family and friends. We couldn't have done it without all the help!

clematis, family home evening, swim lessons

I added two new plants to our landscape. If anyone has any tips on clematis, let me know. I know it will be a few years before they really take off. It's nice to be back to a point in my life where I think I will be around for that and can plan ahead a little more. I did buy two really cheap little trellis things and realized I should have bought one more plant and one more trellis. In fact I have 4 plants that I still need to buy (this year), but I have to save up. My neighbors J* and M* are pros when it come to gardening and he was telling us all that has gone into their yard. Amazing! And well, the cold winters really kill off a lot, so we'll see how it goes this winter.

Last night we had the best family home evening ever. We ate dinner with our neighbors and Tyler's brother's family, also neighbors, and then we went on a treasure hunt. We hopped on a few borrowed 4-wheelers and drove all over our neighborhood and through the fields. There was the gate, R* Point, the old stone house (built by a pioneer), an old grave site for a baby boy, and then home. Each place there was a lesson and a clue to the next place. R* Point was about avoiding pitfalls. The pioneer's stone house was about honoring our ancestors and who we are because of them. The grave was about eternal families and looking to the blessings of the temple - we could see the L* temple from that spot. The last was the second great commandment - Love thy neighbor as thyself. Everything was quotes from the Ensign magazine. It was really a lot of fun. And Aunt A* made her jello cake and I ate the topping off of it since I can't eat the rest. The kids however pigged out totally- especially CJ.



Last of all, this is one of those photos you show at your child's wedding or college graduation party. My visiting teachers were here this morning and CJ went down the hall. I realized it was too quiet so Haeley went down to check on him. He had put my swim suit on over his jammies and was wearing HKs flip flops on the wrong feet. I though they were both going to fall off the couch. One teaches him in Nursery class and knows his personality. He's getting more and more stubborn all the time. Luckily I got him to give me my swimsuit back in time to take him to his very first mom and tot swim lesson this morning.

3 things

Often I wonder if my kids are really picking up on what goes on at church. Coleton is finally starting to show signs that he is learning from church and from the things we do at home. He like to say dinner prayer now. It's so sweet. I say "please bless the food" he says 'foos" and then waits for me to help him with the next thing. So today at church during sacrament meeting during the last hymn of the meeting he picks up a hymnal and opens it - upside down - and starts to sing while getting pretty close to being in tune and singing every 4th or 5th word. It was darling. Tyler and I just smiled.

Second thing - remember this past week when we went swimming at a neighbor's house along with most of the neighbors. Now I knew that she invited us because Haeley asked her weekly at church once things thawed out here. And my kids stayed in the water to the last second. They wouldn't even let us help clean up, although we did what we could. So today we gave them a Thank You card that I had made. I love making them and it just took about 2 minutes to print and write a little note and seal it in the envelope. I handed it to her before church got started. She came up to me after church and said that in all the years they have had that pool and with the hundreds of people they've invited over, mine was the first Thank You card she ever received. Now I know we shouldn't and she doesn't do things expecting a thank you and she did receive verbal thank you's. But can you believe that? All the work she goes through each time and they've had that pool at least 2 or 3 decades. It made me realize just how important thank you CARDS really are. It touched her heart. I need to continue to show my gratitude to others because it can and does make a difference, even if just for the day.

Last of all, I just got my new visiting teaching assignment and I am excited. A huge burden has been lifted there and I really hope that I can get to know these sisters and enjoy being around them. I have a great group of women that I get to go visit including one who I've just gotten to know at church and really like.

Wow, a lot is happening around here and I haven't the brain power to record it all. I went swimming with my little family and I was nervous. Although I was a lifeguard and swim instructor for 7 years, I haven't been in a pool for 4 years and I don't think I've done a single lap in about 7 years. I remembered a lot easier than I thought I would. I did the crawl perfectly. Then I tried the butterfly - uhm, that explains the migraine I woke up with on Tuesday. Coleton enjoyed being in the water but didn't get the idea that he wouldn't float on his own. We kept him in his boat most of the time. He LOVED the water as long as his ears didn't get wet. We might have to get some silicone plugs for him next year.

We went to the nursery last night and bought some plants. We found that we can get trees for a reasonable price so when they rip out our front walk this next week, we'll have him dig 5 or 6 spots for trees. I really wanted to get them in the ground before this winter so that their roots will get established and also so next summer they will really be able to grow. Every year counts and I really want a few trees around this place. We bought a few plants for around the house and got 5 into the ground last night. Remember those Day Lily's my MIL let me rip out of her yard. Well, I found some at the nursery that are red instead of yellow and I can't wait to mix them in. I asked about a vine that would grow tall on the side of the house and not hurt the stucco. Duh! Clematis! And it flowers all summer long with the most gorgeous flowers! My MIL has one and it took hers 2 years to really get going but she already has to buy another trellis for one of them this year. It's quite tall and beautiful! So I bought a purple one Jackmanii (the tallest and most vigorous grower) and a pink one for near our back porch. We had the car so we'll have to go back and get a trellis or two. I bought a few plants for the spot near the front by the garage that gets very little sun. Tyler has strep throat. He's been out for 2 days. I haven't been able to scrapbook. Sleepy brain. So today I worked on an old scrapbook that I designed digitally while looking at my friend's paper album (she was so nice to let me borrow it! thanks again Krysta!) all while I was going through chemo. It's extra simple and not entirely my style (oh, I love symmetry) but I like it. I finished 9 pages then and it's just been sitting - FOR 2 YEARS! I finished the rest today. I love it even more now that it's finished! Here it is:

thankful...

I was looking at our schedule and stressing out a bit over the lack of photo shoots, until this week that is. It seems Heavenly Father was giving us a break during the time we needed to work on our sprinkler system. The whole yard thing has been a little overwhelming but with all the help from family and tips from a neighbor, it's been a task worth conquering after all.

I have another page getting published - this time the Nov/Dec Issue of Simple Scrapbooks Magazine. I just received the call and I am so excited! They want to know all kinds of things about me and what inspired the page. I made every last bit of it, the paper, embellishments, illustrations, and took all of the photos. It's 100% digital - okay so 99% of my stuff is...what can I say?

I also have a birthday invitation and party favors being published in one of the fall issues of Digital Scrapbooking Magazine - look for Coleton's sweet face.

Also, be on the watch as I have a page with our family photo in it, the one on my purse, being published in the September Issue of Creating Keepsakes Magazine along with a free digital download, a first for me.

I met with a Bride on Tuesday to pick photos for her custom photo guestbook. Tyler photographed a bride on Wednesday. I photographed a baby last night and the photos are gorgeous and Tyler photographed a baby tonight and the photos are amazing! And tomorrow Tyler gets to photograph a family. In the morning though we are helping an older neighbor who needs some yard work done. I'm excited to teach my children (especially Haeley) more about kind acts of service.

There is a call for winter cover pages for a scrapbooking magazine and I am so excited. It was just the motivation that I needed to get these 5 favorite winter photos that I love, scrapbooked. I looked for ideas online, a jumping off point sort of thing and I found it! I am so excited I can hardly stand it! I wanted to make the pages for my family, but if they get published, then I will also be able to get the three copies of the 2008 family scrapbook that I want to have printed in January - I know thinking ahead, but I HAVE to! Besides, I got the idea that I needed for the month marker pages in those scrapbooks as well! YES! Anyway, I better go to bed or I will be singing the Sleepy Monster tune in the morning instead of being happy to be awake.

it's officially summer around here

We went camping on Friday and that means that it is officially summer around here! Haeley really wanted to go. We took time off from working on the sprinkler system to have some FUN with the kids. After shopping, I needed new sunglasses and jeans and eye liner, we loaded up the Jeep and headed up into the mountains. We didn't have to go very far. We camped by R* Creek and enjoyed a secluded spot not far off the beaten path. We walked down to the creek and the kids had a blast watching the dandelions float down into the creek. Then we played frisbee.



And I got a few photos of the kids.





I am really grateful for a husband who takes the time to be with his children, and not just be next to them, but to interact with them. I've seen the joy that this has brought into his life and into the lives of my children. That, in and of itself, brings me joy. He is also a great husband. We work great together as a team. We are far from perfect but very in love and we are learning together.



Today was stake conference. Well, last night was the 18 and older session and today we went as a family. I took a few notes when I went last night. Tyler watched the kids and his brother and their kids came as well. I received many answers to my prayers last night. I went with a prayer in my heart that I would be able to know what to do next to help me to be a better mother. I learned just what I needed to hear right now. I wrote down my impressions as well, the little thoughts of things I could do. Really, there is so much to do, and I decided that I will keep a journal, loose leaf, that I can write down those impressions and then when I do something that pertains to those, then I will write down what I did and what occurred. I felt a little overwhelmed, but felt that by doing these things, I will be prepared when the more difficult problems come around and I will be able to keep track of my progress as a mother and a daughter of God. I learned from listening to another's experiences, my neighbor's actually, more about my own experience with severe illness.

sprouts

last year, when I bought this plant I got 3 buds - this year we have plenty and it's beautiful. I spent $30 on plants last year so that I'd have something okay to look at as I sat and ate breakfast and looked out my kitchen window. The rest of the plants in the yard are starts from my mother in law's. In fact, she just ripped them out of the ground when we were getting the yard ready for her youngest's wedding. I asked if it was okay to try to get them to grow at my house. She was just going to throw them away. I got a bunch more this year and by next year, they'll be doing great. I found out you have to transplant them when it is cold and wet which we had a lot of this spring. They are all doing great and my front rocks around the driveway will look so much better come next spring. Needless to say, my yard is 95% dirt still so this photo of the few plants we have growing, really make is look great!



this is one of those rescued pieces from the over grow stuff at my MIL's house.


We actually got the garden planted. It is 15x35 feet. I think I planted way too many tomatoes but I want to learn to can this year, salsa and other such stuff. The funny thing is that we ran out of glue for the sprinkler system one night and still had 3 hours of good light left. Our neighbor let us borrow his tiller and Tyler worked for 2 hours on our solid hard ground. My mom gave me most of the seeds. I bought the tomato plants - the ones she gave me died because I planted them about 1 week too early. Sad! I think one might make it though. Anyway, I also bought the pumpkins seeds, corn seeds, and the onion starts. I spent just a few dollars on veggie seeds thanks to my mom's help. Most everything has sprouted, now we just have to see if we can keep it growing!

corn sprouts


pumpkin sprouts


bean sprouts:


Coleton sprout!


the one who brought it all together, my sweet husband.

people, people, people

can we all just be a little less judgmental? Today Coleton was laying on the floor of the bleachers and kept fussing and crying. I did what I could to help him calm down, but I still struggle with my energy level and my blood sugar is whacky since the chemo days and today it was low. Besides that, I've given all of my energy the past 2 weeks to the sprinkler system installation and I am exhausted. This mom kept giving me 'the look' and I was ready to pop off and tell her that she can judge me after she has gone through what I have gone through, but I didn't have the energy. Sheesh, swim lessons are only half an hour and he wasn't hurting himself or anyone else. He was just laying there fussing and I tried to hold him and tried to get him interested in his toys and I tried to feed him a snack. Can you all do me a favor today? When someone is doing something obnoxious, will you just please look away, say a little prayer in your heart for them, and send good vibes their way INSTEAD of giving them 'the look' and passing judgment. Whether this is for a complete stranger or a family member, you just never know what is going on for sure and maybe all they need is a kind thought, a bit of concern, and a lot less judgment.

By the way, we installed wire last night so we are almost done with the sprinkler system!!!

things in common

I met another mom today at swim lessons. Today is the first day of Session #2 - Level 3. We started talking because Coleton was being fussy after being up with allergies most of the night. Anyway, she has 3 kids - an older daughter and then boy/girl twins in the class next to Haeley. Her husband is from H*, my husband is from H*. They live in Prov, we used to live there a little over a year ago. She is from Tooele. I graduated from Dugway and used to drive to Tooele, the closest town with fast food, for real grocery shopping, walmart, and church dances. At the end we exchanged names finally. Her first name is my middle name. We'll at least get to be friends for the next two weeks. Session #3 and #4, we are going to go to a later time but still in the morning. The kids want to stay up late and I want us all to sleep in. Today I wanted to tell the teacher that he can let go of Haeley and let her swim by herself across the pool, but I think he'll figure it out in the next day or so. If not, then I'll let him know. Nothing like a bossy mother staring down at you from the bleachers upstairs. Years ago I taught swim lessons and out at Dugway, the parents had to leave completely while we were teaching, except on the last day. Anyway, I better get this house clean (beds made, dishes done, bathrooms done, still to go - counter tops, laundry) and get the sprinkler heads put together and in piles for which ever zone they'll go to. I promise to take photos of our yard - 3 zones completely done, pipe, drains, heads, and all. 3 out of 16 - not bad. I mean considering that we just have to put on a few drains and only have funny pipe and heads to install on the rest.

dirt, dirt, and more dirt...

This morning Haeley had her final day of swim lessons for Level 2. She even got a nice Swim America Award of Advancement. I think she'll do well in level 3, which starts next week. Not sure on level 4 - it is pretty advanced for a 6 year in her first year of swim lessons. She has a really good kick and confidence in the water which really makes me happy. She really enjoys the water and it makes her happy.

As far as our yard goes, I think things are coming along and I feel like I can finally say that I think we are over half way done with the sprinkler system. We've been working our fannies off and we're tired but we are starting to see it all coming together. Today I realized that we have two zones that need to be completed - weird things like digging under the front steps and stuff - as well as two smaller zones that need to be started. That means that we have 12 zones totally completely piped. I marked where all the heads need to be cut in on 11 zones this afternoon while the kids watched a movie. They were helping me at first but spent the whole time complaining. I know, the dirt is starting to get to me too. It's a lot of work, but kiddos, we have to work now in order to be able to enjoy our yard later. Besides, doing it ourselves means saving thousands of dollars. That means we'll be able to put in grass this year. Now it is nap time and I am going to relax and enjoy some time by myself for a few moments.

weather - do you see what I see?

If you squint really hard maybe you can see what came half way down the mountain side this morning. We are experiencing an unusually cold spring. Everyone said wait until June 1st to put your garden in. I waited until the 9th. We've had lots of rain the past few days which my garden is grateful for. But it will probably be grateful for the sunny weather at the end of the week too. I'll be grateful that it will allow Tyler to get the sprinkler system done - which you can see a little part of in the bottom of the photo. I, however, am enjoying the cooler weather as much as I can. Although it is June I had to turn the heat on this morning and warm us up a degree or two. The house was 64 degrees this morning.

Haeley loves swimming lessons. Aunt A* is there with her kids at the same time too and she said it sounds like Haeley is taking after her mom. She pushes off the wall and the teacher swims next to her all the way across the pool. He helps her turn around and she swims back. She doesn't like the side stroke - neither did I. I can't tell you how much I'd love to jump in and swim laps for an hour. It was such great therapy - both physically and mentally. I used to teach water aerobics at that pool oh let me see, about 12 years ago. Yikes, time flies! Have a great day and I hope that you enjoy your day and find all of the good in it.

there's a lot goin' on...

to start things out, my family arrived on Tuesday night for dinner and a movie. We grilled steak and shrimp and asparagus and had strawberries, oranges, apples, and bananas with fruit dip. (If you marinate petite sirloin in Kraft Zesty Italian salad dressing for 24 hours it is as tender and yummy as any expensive steak you can buy). My mom brought the fruit and I made the fruit dip - 2 packages philadelphia cream cheese and one LARGE jar of marshmallow cream - tastes best cold. Then they watched Pirates 3 in our theater room. My mom had been waiting all this time because they missed it in the theater and couldn't bare to watch it on their tiny tv. My mom wanted the room to rumble and it did - thankfully that room is under the garage and the rest of the house stays quiet. My sister and I sat and talked while she gave her baby a bottle and Haeley and Coleton and their two cousins played down in the toy room. Our toys are suddenly more interesting when someone else likes them. Early the next morning after the rain backed down to a drizzle the Guys including my husband, my dad, my sister's husband, my husband's brother, and my husband's dad got to work in the mud. My sis and her husband just put in their sprinkler system last Saturday so it was fresh in their mind and they drove 2.5 hours each way to help us with ours. I wish I had taken more photos but I was busy cooking and washing dishes. I ran the dishwasher 7 times in 2.5 days and we even ate lunches on paper plates.


Since my family is small and my sister has 3 kids, Haeley and Coleton got to play with their baby cousin all by themselves and they loved it. Coleton loved her soft hair but he didn't like it when she grabbed his clothes. Haeley played patty cake with her feet. It was sweet to see them interact with her so well. L* does this cute thing where she reaches out with straight arms and grabs your cheeks with the flat of her hands. It is so cute and they gave her the cutest nickname because of it.


After taking their photo with the baby, I switched to the wide angle and Coleton was wondering why I got so close to him with the lens. The kids piled onto my tummy and tried to find my eye through the lens. I was laughing so hard I could barely breath.


And then last night after my sister's family left for home, we had the full time missionaries over for dinner. It was the first time since we've lived in Utah that we've had them over. Growing up in Alaska and Alabama we had them over quite often because my dad was usually the Ward mission leader. After they left we went out in the back yard and started working on the sprinkler system some more. Haeley was throwing a fit about her loose tooth but wouldn't pull it out. We knew at this point it wouldn't be long. While Tyler and I were in the middle of gluing some pipe together she starts yelling about her tooth which she had finally pulled out all by herself. Everything stopped so we could get photos of this special little moment in time. She made it the entire year of kindergarten with all her teeth and one week to the day later she lost her first tooth. She's growing up so fast now! I know, braces are right around the corner. Thankfully we are stashing money away for things like braces because it's very likely that she will need them.

Swim Lessons

This is Haeley's first summer doing swim lessons. She has no fear of water and as long as she keeps paying attention to the teacher, has confidence in her teacher, and keeps practicing, things will go well for her with swimming. I took these yesterday morning. The teacher used the noodle behind her back to teach her to keep her tummy up and her legs straight at the same time. Today she was able to swim half the width of the pool and back on her tummy and her back unassisted. Her teacher swam right next to her. That was just kicking and not using her arms. I am sure it will take some time to get the timing right for arms and legs at the same time. Then there is that whole turn the head to breath thing. But I am so pleased with her progress in only 4 days. The teacher told me today to put her in the next level for the next set of lessons. I was glad because I wanted to get signed up in time. We still have 4 more for this set. The last 5 minutes of the lesson they tie the noodles around the kids and let them have free time. They get to kick and move all over the pool. The whole time we sit in the bleachers upstairs and Coleton eats his sandwich and watches his sister. He is surprisingly quiet the whole time.

last day of school

this is a momentous day. It's haeley's last day of kindergarten and tomorrow is her first day of summer break ever. If the rest of school goes this fast she'll be graduating in 3 weeks. where did the school year go? wow! she is already reading chapter books! I am so glad she goes to a school where they teach phonics (all 71 of them).

Another momentous thing happened yesterday. Haeley and I did hand stands in the basement. she did great. I on the other hand need my arm strength back. How I wish I could start lap swimming again. Maybe when Coleton goes to school - preschool - but we are still a long ways away from that since he is just barely 2. Anyway, Haeley and Coleton and I got a good laugh about it all.

Anyway, congrats little girl. I love you and I am grateful for your desire to learn.

memorial day family time

I am working on a family album this year. So I had better keep up with the new stuff and catch up on the old stuff (January - April). I am keeping it kind of simple. It's so much fun preserving these memories and it is so nice to be able to sit and relax while still getting something valuable done at the same time.

oh, have you seen the movie p.s. i love you? if not bring a box of tissues. I cried through the entire movie. I am not one for tear jerkers but I loved the romance in the movie. I am so glad I didn't see that one in theaters because I would have made a fool of myself bawling. anyway, the kid's movie is almost done so I had better turn this computer off!

trapped in my office...

There is often fought a battle between doing things with my kids and doing things for my kids. Last week I went with Haeley's kindergarten class to the local pool to learn about water safety. I loaded CJ into the stroller and walked from the elementary school to the high school with her entire class. It really was fun and the kids were well behaved. No, they didn't get to go in, just a hand or a foot. One of the lifeguards demonstrated different strokes for them. The other talked about safety.

This week, it's been about doing things for the kids. I finally got iMovie to do what I needed to do to make a slideshow for the kindergarten graduation this week. I made the sleeves for the DVDs and the teacher brought over a 50 pack of DVDs - the slide show is only 250 mb but the 600 photos are what took up all the room. I also had to decide which photos not to include in the slideshow because at 3 seconds each it would have been about 30 minutes but I succeeded and got it down to 11 minutes! I have been burning DVDs all day. And guess what, the last one just finished. I did get some folders organized on my computer and I made a two-page LO spread for Haeley's birthday. Well, I better go cook dinner!

Crazy day!