What Did I Learn Today?

I learned that my 2-year-old is on to me and he is not having any of my evil nap-taking plans.
I was driving home from Bountiful where I had spent the morning with my mom and two of my sisters. Isaac, or course, was about an hour and a half past his nap time and I was plotting to get him to sleep in the car on the way home so I turned on some soft music and asked Will not to talk to Isaac and I was hoping he would be out before we hit the freeway. About 5 minutes into our drive Isaac said "Mom, turn off the music. It's making me sleepy." It was so funny because he knew what I was doing and he was not going to play along. I left the music on, but he did not go to sleep. I'm dreading the time when he is past naping.

Robby's Birthday Weekend

We were invited to go up Farmington Canyon to a cabin with some friends of ours in our ward last weekend. It was so much fun! Tyson and his wife Diane were the hosts and our friends Rob and Julie came with us too. Tyson is a firefighter/EMT and somehow had access to the ranger station cabin. We went to Bountiful and dropped off the kids (thanks again mom and dad for watching the kids so we could go) and then we met the others in our group at the mouth of the canyon on Friday at about 5:30. It was kind of foggy, but not snowing or even raining so getting up to the canyon was not a problem. It was pretty dark by the time we got there and we had to park by the cabin and transfer our stuff inside and then park the cars a couple miles up the road. Luckily Tyson and Diane had a snowmobile and it didn't take long to get that taken care of. We got our stuff put away and the guys got the generator started so we had electricity.
It was a pretty nice cabin. The kitchen had a stove/oven and a microwave, there was a large room full of couches and a desk and then there was a small bathroom. Upstairs was a large loft full of bunk beds and single beds with pads on them so sleeping was quite comfortable. In the basement was a stove which kept the whole cabin warm all night.
We had pizza and breadsticks, chips and candy and we ate and talked and played Phase 10 Dice. It was really fun! We went to bed about 1:00 and slept until about 9:15 the next morning (well, most of us did. Tyson was up a lot more than the rest of us making sure that the fire didn't burn out so we were nice and warm all night.) It rained all night long, so that kept some of us awake a bit too.
We had a nice big breakfast of pancakes, eggs, bacon and juice and then we went out to try snow shoeing. Most of us had never been before and it was a lot of fun. It was really foggy in the morning, but the rain had stopped so that was good.

Robby had a bit of trouble keeping his snowshoes on.

Mine worked great! It was a very good workout too.

Our friend Tyson taking a picture of us at the same time. Don't you hate those pictures of someone taking a picture?

Our friends Rob and Julie. Julie had a bit of trouble with her snowshoes as well.

Robby at the top of the hill.

The fog really started rolling in and then a few minutes later it started to rain and then it started to really snow. We could hardly see the person in front of us. We decided that it might be best to head back to the cabin at that point.

The cabin from the back in the snowstorm.

Robby and I about to head inside and get dried off. I couldn't believe how wet this snow was. We were all soaked!

We got changed and packed up to leave and by then the road was pretty much covered in snow. We were waiting for the others to be ready to leave when our windshield wipers stopped working. Luckily, Robby is always prepared and he had some spare fuses to fix the problem. I don't know how we would have gotten down the mountain in that storm without windshield wipers. It was a stressful ride down, but luckily we all made it safely.

We headed to Bountiful to see the kids and to have a birthday party with my parents. Robby's birthday was on Sunday, my dad's birthday was on Monday and my grandma's birthday is today so we had pizza and cake and celebrated with them. It was good! The kids especially had fun because they got to play at my aunts house, at Grandma's house and at Grandma Great's house. They were in heaven! I wish I would have taken some pictures . . .

Sunday was a bit stressful for me because I was singing in Sacrament meeting with the Young Women, Savannah was giving a talk in Primary, I was teaching in Young Women's and then after church I had a meeting at 12:15, choir at 1:00 and I somehow had to bake a cake and make a turkey dinner for us and Robby's family who were coming over at 5:00 to celebrate with us. Luckily I made it through without too much stress, and Robby was good enough to help with the kids a lot even though it was his birthday. Dinner turned out great and we had a good time visiting with Robby's family. The kids were running a bit wild though. Too much excitement is not good for them.

Robby opening his presents from me and the kids.

A new shower bag and a new wallet.

The orginial Indiana Jones Trilogy (not the lame new one)

35 candles to blow out, well 8 anyway. (3 and 5)

Robby and the kids excited for chocolate cake!

Robby, I hope you had a great weekend. Happy Birthday and I love you!

Does Anyone Want Some Fish?

Yesterday I was talking on the phone and I left Isaac in the kitchen eating his snack. I came back a few minutes later and this is what I found.

Fish food everywhere! The poor algae eater is all covered in it in the fish tank.

I was upset with him for getting into the fish food when he knows he is not supposed to, but mostly I was upset that I had to clean the tank (even though it needed to be cleaned before he dumped half the bottle of food in)

So, I got the fish out of the tank and got it all cleaned up. I had the tank filled with clean water and was just putting the filter back on when it got wedged between the tank and the cabinet above it. I pushed a little too hard trying to get it unwedged when I heard a loud crack. I don't know if you can see it very well in these pictures, but there are three large cracks running down the back of the tank. For a minute I thought that maybe it would still be OK, but then it started leaking all over the counter.

So, the fish are currently in a bowl and we are not going to buy another tank. So, if you know of anyone who wants some free fish send them my way. We have a very large algae-eater (he is really good at keeping the tank very clean) a neon tetra, a glass fish, and a yellow guppy. We also have half of a can of fish food and all the supplies (minus the tank) all for free if anyone wants them.

Draper Temple Open House

On Saturday we took the kids to the Draper Temple Open House. It was a good opportunity to teach the kids about the Temple and they were excited to see the inside. The whole thing took about three hours though and it was hard for them to stay quiet for that long.

We started out at the church where we were told to park and we waited for about 20 mintues in the gym before they led us to the Relief Society room and showed us a 12 minute video on temples and on the history of the Draper area. It was interesting and the kids were good for this part. Then we walked outside and boarded a bus which drove us to the temple. This was the kids' favorite part. They were very excited to ride on the bus. The bus dropped us off outside a tent which led to the temple and we waited. And then we waited some more. I couldn't believe how many people there were! What is the point in making people sign up for a specific time if you schedule so many people at the same time that you have to wait for an hour to even get inside the temple?



Luckily there were warm tents to wait in, but it was a very long wait.

Once we were inside it was better, and Will and Savannah did great, but Isaac was pretty tired of standing in line and being quiet and he wanted to get down and run around once we were inside. He had a very hard time being forced to either hold my hand or be held. I don't think I would take a 2-year-old if I had to do it again. It was just too long for him.

It was, of course, very beautiful. Savannah and Will's favorite part was the Celestial Room. They both loved the chandeliers and the high ceilings. Isaac's favorite part was the baptistry. He kept asking to go back and see the water. I enjoyed the opportunity to talk to the kids about the temple and helping them understand that it is a very special place. They both were very quiet and good the whole time and they seemed interested in what every room was for.

Eventually the line led us through more tents to the church building right next to the temple where they had water bottles and cookies for us to enjoy. The kids really liked watching the lady play the harp.

They had pictures of Christ and of all the different temples around the world set up for people to see.

We ate our cookies and got in line again to get back on the bus and go back to our car.

Overall it was a good experience, but it was hard to feel the peaceful feeling you usually feel in the temple with all those people crammed in there at once. I am glad we went and I'm glad the kids got to experience what the temple is like and it was a good experience to be all together as a family in the temple.

(By the way, I didn't take any of the pictures on this post. I found them at drapertemple.blogspot.com)

Too late for Christmas, but she still wants her two front teeth

Savannah has had one front tooth barely hanging on for the past several weeks. Robby and I have both begged and pleaded and threatened to get her to let us pull it out, but she would not even consider it. She even turned down $10 from Uncle Tyler to let him pull it out. That one really surprised me because that is way more money than she would get for the tooth itself. But, nope, she wanted to wait until it just fell out of her mouth. So finally, last week she pulled it out herself at school because she said it was bleeding during lunch and it was bugging her so she went to the bathroom and pulled it out. She said it didn't even hurt. (Hopefully she will remember that the next time and not wait for so long!) The tooth fairy brought her a whole dollar for this tooth and we think it is because she was brave enough to pull it out herself. So there she is with her cute new smile! (And a little pizza sauce on her face, oh well)

Craft Day

I love to use other people's good ideas to make things, especially things for my house. I can't come up with these ideas on my own usually, so I just look around and see what I like and then I find a cheap way to duplicate it. These things don't always turn out perfect, but most of the time they end up being "good enough for who they are for" as my dad likes to say.
Here is my latest project. I went to the dollar store and bought clear glass plates for a dollar each and then I got some cute scrapbook paper and some mod podge (the greatest crafting invention ever) and the end result was:


Cute plates for my kitchen wall! Total cost: Under $5.

The kids love to make things as well, especially if it involves paint, markers, cutting and/or making a big mess. On Saturday morning we went to Home Depot to buy a new ladder and we found out that every 1st Saturday of the month they have a free Kids Workshop and the kids get to make a craft for free. We were very excited about this. This time they were making football helmet bookends. We made them at Home Depot and then yesterday the kids painted them. Home Depot even gave them free aprons and a little pin for their apron after they completed the craft. Next month they are doing these cute heart boxes for Valentines Day. Savannah can't wait!



Savannah and Will happily painting their bookends

Will wanted red for the Utah Utes, but unfortunately I was out of red so he went with green instead for Green Bay Packers! Savannah's (of course) were pink and purple. She made them opposites so that one helmet was pink and one was purple.



I didn't want Isaac using the regular paints so he got to use his watercolors in his new Wall-E coloring book. He was just as happy about that too so it worked out great.

Snow!

So, I'm not usually one to go play in the snow. I really hate to be cold. Thank goodness Robby will get out there in the cold and play with them so I don't have to! A few days ago the kids got to enjoy Robby being home with them in the middle of the week and they played outside in the snow for hours building a snowman and a snow fort. The kids loved it!



Yesterday, when the movie didn't work out in the morning, we decided to spend the money on a tube and we went sledding instead. We went to the Junior High by my parents house in Bountiful which has a great sledding hill. The kids were very excited about it. We stopped at Discount Tire first and got a tube and then we borrowed a couple of sleds from my aunt and uncle and we headed to the hill. I've got to say, I wasn't terribly excited to go, but I knew the kids would love it and Robby really wanted to go and it was much cheaper than taking the whole family to a movie so I decided it was worth it to get all wet and cold for awhile. I don't know why I didn't want to go because it was so much fun!! Will had absolutely no fear, and Savannah was much braver than I thought she would be also.


Will with a look of pure delight on his face.

Savannah falling off her sled, but still happy and laughing at the bottom of the hill.

Isaac really liked it at first, but he was the first to tire of sledding. Luckily my mom showed up to watch the kids sled and she took him to warm up in the car. (I wasn't too sad about this because it was really tiring holding him and the sled and trying to climb back up the mountain, I mean hill.) I accidentally went off a jump with him on the sled and we went flying. Luckily I was able to hold him up and I took the worst of it. I thought he would start crying, but he kind of laughed and said "We fell down in the snow." I thought he wouldn't want to go with me again, but he was fine and we went a few more times after that. What a brave kid!

Isaac warm in Grandma's car.

Robby trying out the tube.

Robby carrying Isaac and the tube up the hill.

Savannah and Will climbing up to go again.

It was really slushy snow, and it was actually raining for most of the time we were there, but it was free and the kids (and me too) had a blast!

My mom braving the cold to watch for a few minutes.

Afterward we drove to my parents house where my dad had hot chocolate, sugar cookies and caramels waiting for us. Thanks again Mom and Dad!

Living on the Wrong Side of the Tracks

We decided at 10:30 this morning to take the kids to see the Tale of Despereaux at 10:55. We hurried to get everyone dressed and in the car and got some snacks packed so we wouldn't have to buy any. We were in the car on our way with 15 minutes to get there and I thought we would make it just fine since we were only going to the theater over by the mall about 7 minutes away. We were almost to the railroad tracks when the lights came on and the arm came down preventing us from crossing to the other side. No problem, I thought, maybe it will be Frontrunner and we'll be on our way in 2 minutes. Nope, it was "a slow one" as the kids call it. They like to count the cars so we began counting. Two engines and 105 cars later followed by another 2 engines the train had finally passed, but at about car number 98 another "slow one" came by on the other set of tracks and it was barely moving. Just our luck. I looked at the clock and we still had about 5 minutes to get to the theater and with the previews we should still be OK. The problem was as I looked down the tracks I couldn't see the end of the train and it was slowing down. After sitting there for 15 minutes (I have never had to wait so long for a train!) the train came to a complete stop in front of us. We had to go ask the people in the car behind us to back up so we could turn around and go home. Who knows how long it would have taken for the train to pass once it started moving again. What a pain! We are going to try to go see the movie again this afternoon, hopefully we'll actually be able to make it to the theater.