Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to Dusty, Ashlee, Alyssa, and Josh!  We hope you had/have a great birthday and wish that we could be there to celebrate with you.  We can't wait to see you in a few weeks!

A Day at the Beach? and Spring Break

K loving the beach and the sun!

J enjoying herself in the sand.

'G' braving the ice cold water, notice the ice bergs in the back

Well, spring break came!  K was SO excited to get out and do some fun things, and then J and G came down with horrible fevers..so we waited and waited and waited. K kept saying that he was tired of being stuck at home with 'two sickos'.  Finally on Wednesday, their fevers broke and we were off.  We spent time at the park, going on walks, and playing with friends.  The weather couldn't have been nicer!  On Friday, it was 76, so we decided to head to a State park.  There is a lake there, but we had no intentions of the kids getting in the water-we thought bikes, baseball, soccer, playing at the park, etc.. We pulled up and notice HUGE ice bergs all over in the lake-bbbrrr!  Where do you think the kids wanted to play?  In the water-of course!  G got in just up to his ankles and when he came out, his feet were purple, the water was SO cold, but it didn't deter them from wading in it and playing with the sand on the beach.I had no idea what fun ICE water could be to play in.  Saturday we went to the temple and stopped at the Hill Cumorah Visitor's Center to see the Dead Sea Scrolls.  There was a senior couple there who called K over and asked if he was going on a mission, K said, 'yes' and the senior missionary ripped off a dollar bill and gave it to him saying that it was for his mission.  I then saw his tag and recognized him immediately-it was Ed Pinegar.  Those of you who went to BYU or UVSC or have read many church books, probably know who he is.  Anyway, I talked with him for a minute and we headed off-it's such a small world!  The weather couldn't have been nicer the past couple of days-we have truly been soaking in the sun!

Dollar Days at Botanical Gardens

A couple of Saturday's ago, the weather was far from warm so we decided to warm up-inside.  We went to some botanical gardens near our house-and it was only a dollar to get in-even better!  The kids had a ball, J wouldn't hold still long enough to let me get a picture of her, she kept running around from flower to flower, it was so fun.  They had a room with carved dinosaurs around and the kids had fun picking them out.  It was a nice retreat and we didn't have to freeze while we enjoyed the flowers!

J's Hairdoo

We attempted to put J's hair into pig-tails for the first time ever.  We got the two back one's done, but the top was still sticking up like a mo-hawk, so we decided to do pig-tail on the top too.  She didn't love it, and pulled them out in a matter of minutes, but at least there's hope!

Fire Station

Every little boy's dream!

Wednesday we had a fun play group and went for a tour of the fire station.  They taught the kids how to stop, drop, and roll and also how to dial 911.  Funny though because most of the kids were under 3, I don't know how much they retained (or if I want a 2 year old knowing how to dial 911), but it was great! The highlight was actually letting the kids get in the trucks and play in them.  G and J had a great time!  

Here Comes the Sun!

Nothing says summer better than a popsicle and G was more than happy to volunteer!
J loving being outside, notice her lip-she tripped and fell and landed face first on the sidewalk-we should have named her Grace.

K on his bike, which he refers to as 'The Blue Bullet'

The past couple of days have been FANTASTIC!!  With weather that hasn't gotten above 35 for 5 months, we couldn't have asked for a nicer past couple of days!  The kids took full advantage of the sun and spent most of the afternoons outside!  SO FUN!

Don't Touch That!

How many times as a parent do you repeat this phrase?  Obviously, for us, not enough!  C was talking online with his parents and J came up and was mesmerized with a lamp.  C said, 'Don't touch, it's hot."  J repeated, 'hot' and then proceeded to try and blow on the light bulb to cool it down.  Within seconds, C turned his head and J reached out and touched the light bulb.  Needless to say she had a huge blister on her finger and kept walking around whimpering and showing us her finger.  C tried to put a bandage on that she couldn't get off--at first, she thought it was pretty neat, but then it started bothering her, and she bit if off!  Hopefully she will learn and not repeat it again!

ONE WHOLE YEAR

Well, it's official, we have been here a year.  We have really enjoyed it and can't believe how quickly the time is going.  We have made some great friends and been to some amazing places. I think the hardest thing about being away is not being able to see family and let the kids be able to see their cousins and grandparents.  The kids have adjusted well and are really settling in.  We hope this next year will be just as enjoyable and that we will be able to visit some new great places.  

Chatty Cathy

Those of you who haven't been around K, don't know it, but he is preparing to be a talk show host, a great debater, or to be on the radio-he is NEVER quiet!  C and I can hardly get a word in edge wise.  Sometimes it's funny and sometimes it's just down right frustrating.  Let me give you an example.  The other day was the primary activity day.  I took K while C stayed at home with the other kids, this was the extent of our conversation.  (He asked these questions as fast as you will be reading them).

K- Mom, how long ago did Jesus live, like in the 20's?

Me- No, about 2000 years ago.

K-  How hot is lava?

Me- I don't know, really really hot.

K-  Well, hot enough to melt a house?

Me-  I guess, if there's enough of it.

K- Well, there's not enough lava to cover the whole earth.

Me- well, no, probably not at the same time.

K-  Well, what about the dinosaurs?

Me- What do you mean?

K- Why didn't all the dinosaurs die when lava started covering the earth?

Me-  Well, all the dinosaurs weren't in the same place at the same time, so the lava couldn't kill ALL of them.

K-  How old are the dinosaurs?

Me- (thinking it's a bit of a tricky question)  Millions and Millions of years.

K- So, like 10,000 years?

Me- No, more.

K- Where do trees come from?

Me- What do you mean?

K- Who plants ALL the trees?

Me- (Grateful to have taught a 2nd grade math unit on how seeds are released) Well, there are lots of ways seeds are released and planted. One way is by themselves.  When there's a fire, pine trees can throw their seeds about 30 feet. 

K-  Well, how do they get into the ground...........um maybe by the rain and the dirt covers them.

Me- Yup.

This was only about a 10 minute drive and I was glad it wasn't any longer, I don't know if I could have withstood any more questions, they were getting harder.  The other day I took G to the doctor and K wanted to come.  The doctor was trying to tell me something and K just kept talking to the doctor, telling her about what a great 'eater'  he is and how G is THE WORST!  and J is pretty good....He went on and on and on, I had to kept trying to kindly shush him, but he wouldn't.  I have never met a child who loves to talk as much as he does.  It is thoroughly entertaining.  We love him because of it!