Dinosaur Park

Right when we got into Utah, we headed to the Dinosaur Park up in Ogden.

D and Ja immediately gravitated toward tormenting the ducks wandering around the park.







The older kids loved running around checking out all the huge dinosaurs (and their TEETH!)










The little kids really enjoyed the playground area, and dragged the adults with them quite often.








There were slides galore, and various play structures dotting the area - plenty for everyone. It was nice letting the kids wear themselves out after being stuck in the van for 2 days!















Many picture opportunities, but again,... not many taken of myself - i really need to pass the camera off more often ;-)

Rest Areas

A BIG highlight of our trip were the many rest areas we saw! An unfortunate necessity in traveling with kids, but we made the best of it.





The kids enjoyed climbing on anything and everything!! And of repeatedly losing their flip-flops. (especially E - him and ANY kind of shoes do NOT mix!)












On rare occasions i managed to get a picture of cousin Ja (he persisted in being quite elusive throughout the trip - but on this occasion was proud of his climbing accomplishment!)




I attempted to get all the kids together for a group pic,... without much luck, so i took those who came and went on with candid single-shots (MUCH easier with the number of kids we had!)

Utah Trip - in da car

One of the activities we did in the car was molding sheets of tinfoil. I honestly thought the kids would get tired of this one pretty fast - but it turned out to be one of the best-loved activities of the trip. D's favorite to make were swords and star-ships.




All of the kids enjoyed the wikki sticks that i had bought for them, but A was the most creative with them - she made pictures on the lid, twirled glasses, complete jewelry sets, and model animals of all shapes and sizes. My main issue with the Wikki sticks was that the kids fought over them - they all wanted MORE!






You've always got to get a good pic of the St. Louis Arch; the kids loved seeing it!









E and C slept a fair amount on the trip out - and they really enjoyed wearing their tye-dye shirts that they made at the library. Cousin L helped me out a lot on that activity; picture my 4 munchkins chomping at the bit, surrounded by oodles of permanent dye. I did pretty well in keeping the kids clean, but managed to dye my own hands quite purple.

Camera fun

The kids REALLY enjoy goofing off with the camera, taking their own pictures and movies, etc. They spent quite a while doing that once when Cousin L was watching them. D decided to 'do' his hair, and then they set the camera on timer and went totally picture happy. They had a LOT of fun!

father's day pics

Knowing we'd be on the road during father's day, we celebrated it the weekend before. We started it with breakfast in bed - eggs, sausage biscuits, and OJ. A gifted M with a sprig of flowers to decorate his had with (and M's such a good sport about it! - he's awesome!)





We did church in the mid-day, and then came home for our early supper: venison and vegetable red curry.








For desert (i do enjoy an excuse to bake!) we had carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. I LOVE my dear hubby, and he's a wonderful father! Happy Father's day, babe!!

My daughters... the rockers.

A and D have had these cheap play guitars for a while. They bring them out every now and again to play and goof off. The strings were beyond cheap, and so i had to replace them - but it'll at least make sounds (even if it isn't really in-tune) so the munchkins just love playing with them.


I think A is going to be my main acoustic flower-child girl.



C, however, is destined to be a radical punk-rocker, leaping and head-thrashing across the stage.... naked ;->

Family Get-together pics

We had a family get-together at Dave's house last month, here are some pics from the festivities!

At the end of the slip-n-slide.

my bro. D's fast moving munchkin wanting to get in on the action.

One of the many biff-sessions.

D really enjoyed playing with his uncles - he ran after EVERYTHING!!

It always seems like i'm playing catch-up

We had a wonderful trip out to Utah and a reunion with everyone out there; it was awesome to have an opportunity to see some of my own siblings out there also. We don't get together very regularly, and so i loved the chance to see and spend time with them.

I'm going to back-track a bit and toss out the pics that i'd meant to get out there back when summer started:

A really enjoyed her dance class this past year. She had her recital right before school ended. She's been in the Latin and Ballroom class which she has enjoyed more than the ballet/tap combo. Her class did a jive number to "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." She wants to take a musical theatre class next year. Being the little drama-queen that she is, i think she'll do an awesome job!





This would be my little E-munchkin. His hair is getting a little scraggly, but i haven't bothered to get out my clippers and scissors. Cousin L wants me to not cut it and just let it grow. Hmmm... we'll see. :-)










This is C reading her book to A's dog, Tiny. C really loves stuffed animals, and will borrow everyone's whenever the opportunity arises. She loves reading books on her own even more than she enjoys us reading to her (apparently we don't flip the pages fast enough for her ;-)




These are some pics of the kids when they went to the free fishing derby up in Richmond. Only one tiny fish was caught, but there was still fun to be had by all. A was the brave one to hold the fish and then throw it back.

end of school and random pic

A couple of weeks ago i took E and C up on a hike and picnic on the trail behind our house. They had an awesome time, and particularly enjoyed the hike, and trying to feed raisins and cheerios to the ants. If you look closely, you'll notice my loving munchkins dressed themselves quite without help on this day. They did great except when it came to the shoes - C is sporting 2 of a kind, and E's shoes are on the wrong feet - but, HEY,... they did it 'THEMSELVES!' (very important in their lives right now ;-)



This is A on her last day with her teacher. Mrs. Miller is having a baby in august, and A is afraid she won't see her again for a while - amazing how attached they can become in one short year.







This is D and his teacher; she and I worked quite closely together with D this year. He enjoyed her and is looking forward to 4th grade!



I am looking forward to summer - i've got a whole LIST of things we are going to work on, and now need to schedule it all in, and make sure it happens before school starts again. Summer may seem like forever to the kids (A's complained already about being bored ;-), but it'll really zoom by.

fun with cardboard boxes

I love my kids' imagination! They are so adept at making something out of the simplest things and then playing with it for hours. Case and point - this is a box i happened to pick up at Lowe's last time i was there - just a basic free-bee box that had been left next to the cart carrel. First it became a bus.




After the kids had played with that for about a day or two, and it was falling apart around their ears, they modified it into 'storm-trooper wear.' Complete with guns, swords, and armor.









And then we also had to include antennas and jet packs on the back :-)


They're cool kids; i think i'll keep 'em.

More Scintilating conversation...

We were in the front room, just having finished scripture reading and family prayer:

A: I smell something like dirty socks

Me (having smelled the same thing and KNOWING what it was): C, do you have a messy diaper?

C: Nope!

Me: E, do you have tracks in you underwear?

E (resignedly and with big sigh): Yes.




We all just crack up laughing, he is just SO honest and straightforward! even when he doesn't want to be,... and he's such a cute little kid!

Field Day

Wednesday was field day for the oldest two munchkins, so our morning time was spent out and about, hitting school at two different times for their field day, and going to the park in-between them, and having a small picnic to keep the hunger at bay.

Lest you forget my loving oldest (who has been avoiding my camera recently) I got to see his 'bat-spin' relay race; he maintained his balance quite well!
C was VERY happy to see A, and about tackled her to the ground with her enthusiasm! I got to see A's three-legged sack race with her friend - they only biffed it about 3 times in the whole 25 feet out and back ;-)

Louisville zoo fieldtrip

A was SO excited to go on her field trip. It was all she talked about for weeks before it finally happened. We bought her a cheap one-time camera to take with her, and she took along a pad of paper and pencil to 'take notes' on the animals.



It was a drizzly day, but rather than cancel, they just had all the kids bring those cheap emergency ponchos. Despite the weather, she had a wonderful time, and wants to go again,... like TOMORROW!


When we finally got the pictures back she was so stoked! Half of her pictures didn't turn out (she'd forgotten how to use the flash for indoor stuff,) and so they gave her a photo album along with the 10 pictures (outside ones) that had turned out well. She immediately borrowed my collection of permanent markers and made the album completely 'hers.' I thought she did an amazing job free-handing all the animals!

little mice.

So, we've got a minor mice problem we've been working on for a while. My dear hubby had bought some big 50 Lb. bags of rice, with the intention of putting it into 5 gallon buckets, but we never quite got that far. Well, we had a small family of mice move in to start in on the rice bags,... and we set out traps. Well, i guess the mice family invited all their friends, and they've all gotten trap savy. So, we are still setting out (and re-setting the sprung) traps. I've been researching other types of mice traps, and i'm leaning seriously toward the electric ones that just fry the mice to death. (yes,.. i'm THAT sick of mice!!)

I came into the kitchen the other day to find i've got a MUCH larger mouse than what i expected, who has gotten fridge savy and will steadfastly and innocently say, "I didn't do that." Never mind the cheese leavings all over her face, and the evidence in front of her. (take a GANDER at those bite marks - crazy!!)

fun in the sun!

The little kids have been doing a lot of backyard swimming lately. They had a friend over the other day, and they ended up swimming in the morning, going to the park for a picnic lunch, and then swimming again in the afternoon with D and A.

It was a pretty hefty dosing of sun and fun. I made sure to coat the kids with sunscreen, but i think it was still a little much for C. She didn't get sunburned, but she woke up that night at 4AM throwing up with a temperature of 103degrees! Poor girl, i think she has that same sensitivity to the sun and heat that i have. If i'm in the sun too long, and don't stay hydrated, i get headaches and am just miserable through the night and the next day.

I got sun poisoning once while living in Arizona, and had the same stuff - nausea, vomitting, fever, headache, etc. I'll have to be cautious this summer to make sure she stays hydrated. Still, they definately had a blast, and she seemed to be feeling fine the next day ('course i did keep her inside the whole day - paranoid mommy that i am ;-)

Baptism

A's friend in the Richmond Ward, Naomi, got baptized this past week. It was right after Berea Branch meets, so i packed a lunch for the kids, and we stayed for it. After the baptism itself, when we were waiting for them to get changed, A came up to me and said wistfully, "I want to get baptized," to which i replied: "sure, you're turning 8 in less than a year." She turned around, put on her pouty face, and said, "NO! I want to get baptized right NOW!!" Ah,... the impatience of youth.

Painting Paper Plates

I guess i'd gotten into such a kick out of my painting that the kids wanted to join me to! So, i got out my acrylics as so many of them are YEARS old (inherited from mom), and let them have at it! They definitely enjoyed themselves, and went through quite a few of my paper plates before i finally started putting a cap on the number of plates they could paint in each session ;-)

painting!

I had the WONDERFUL opportunity today to drop my kids off and go help a lady in the ward paint her house. They will be moving to Virginia, and we're going to miss them SO much. They sit with my kids during sacrament so i can play organ on my sunday, and they have 2 girls in young women's who are incredible babysitters. They're an awesome family; and the branch won't be the same without them.
On the plus side, i had an INCREDIBLE time painting! I really enjoyed the break for my kids, and they love going to someone else's house to play, so I don't feel bad about neglecting them. And i actually ACCOMPLISHED something!! I finished the entire hallway - edging in 5 doors! And started on their stairwell, finishing up 2 walls. It's so nice to 'SEE' a difference with what i've done - not just the perpetual doing dishes, washing clothes, wiping counters, sorting clothes, cleaning house, making lunches, doing the dishes AGAIN, washing the floor,... the list goes on and on, and on...
Oh, i know it's important, it's just that,...
it. never. ends.
Anyway, i've set up to be albe to paint tomorrow and wednesday also - i am SO looking forward to it!

spring plantings

Now that most of my spring tree and bush planting is finished, i was finally tabulating up what i had managed to get planted this year. I've been awfully busy trying to get everything in the ground as soon as it gets here, and things stayed dormant for a bit longer than normal due to the late ice-storm coming through. However, now i'm at least getting to see the budding and get confirmation that the plants are, in fact, still alive! A watched me plant the apple trees, and comment that she didn't think it was a tree - it just looked like a stick to her ;-) She's highly impressed now that there's actual leaves forming on it. And yes, as you can see, it's a shrimpy little twig, but at least it'll be easier to acclimate to my hillside, and won't go into quite as much shock as a large transplant would.


I've still got my strawberry bed growing, it's almost time to gut it and put in all new plants,... but i'm trying to eek one more year out of the current plants, which are runners from 2 years ago. AND,... i haven't had any problems with the kids picking the 'flowers' this year!! (they've got plenty of dandelions to spend that urge on!)


The biggest project this spring was tilling under the front area along the house and the sidewalk, and then planting blueberry bushes both there, and next to the retaining wall, and i even planted some ground-cover blueberry shrubs on the back hill. All total, i planted 16 blueberry bushes!! We'll see what kind of return we get though, with the wild-life we've got around here. My vegetable garden this spring has been getting decimated by the rabbits - it's almost incentive enough to get a dog!


I also got quite a few trees planted - 2 apple trees and 2 pear trees in the front side yard. And then 2 walnut trees and 2 hazelnut trees in the backyard. I don't know how the ones in the backyard will do with the clay soil we have, and also being in the midst of the area where the kids play, but they at least seem to be leafing out. Their leaves are an interesting thing to watch form and unfold. I love going back there to see the new growth.


The last planting project for this spring was for that strip of ground behind the garden. It was a royal PAIN to plant, as i had to dig and trace back the thorny bush/tree that kept coming up back there. It had a strong root system that just permeated the whole area - it took me hours to dig it out and trace it back through the ground. It'd been trying for the past 3 years to get rid of that thing: cutting it back everywhere it came up and then using stump and vine killer - but it just KEPT coming back! Hopefully i've taken care of it now - but it was a vicious battle. Anyway, once i got out the roots, i planted 9 cherry bushes back there - 5 Hansen's Bush Cherries, and 4 Sugar Sweet. They had buds and sprouts on them when i put them in the ground, however, we had a late freeze that shriveled them up, but they're coming back now. I'm very thankful for reisilient plants!! Now we'll just see if i can maintain my upkeep on everything. Maybe i'll start farming off some of the tasks to the kids - It'd be good to teach the kids where their food comes from!

A's family birthday

A started off her birthday celebration with a delivery from daddy. A just LOVES flowers, so he went and got her some 'REAL' flowers from the store, and we put them in a vase for her.







Then we headed into the cake festivities. I'd used the leftover cake batter from the party cupcakes to make a couple of heart- shaped cakes, and then used them to make a butterfly; A LOVED it, and enjoyed it even more when she figured out that i'd hid her age and name into the patterns. And,... YES, that food tray should look VERY familiar to the siblings - and NO, to all you non-siblings, i DIDN'T take it. (my PARENTS did! ;-)





We let D light the candles on the cake, which really made HIS day!

[sigh] My little budding pyromaniac ;->





A got 3 cards on the day of her birthday - one from the primary presidency (YEAH! - my counselors are AWESOME!), and one from each set of grandparents. All of the kids are ecstatic when they get a piece of mail addressed just to 'them,' so A was appropriately excited. Inside the envelope, Grandma Rose had included a necklace. A, of course, had to immediately put it on and ogle herself in the mirror. I'm glad Gram R had thought of that - i'm not much into 'pretty' jewelry, so sometimes i neglect that in my gift giving. A was pretty enthused about the necklace and had to wear it to school the next day (waking me up at 6:30am so i could help her put it on!)






We had to teach Grandpa Paul how to do the 'heavy, heavy hang,' although i must admit, A was quite un-inventive in her wish-giving. Paul got wished good health, but i think all the kids got 'grow up big and strong' :-)








Paul and Linda had gotten A the stuffed animal from the feature films for families -'Tiny Hero'; she snuggled right up with it the whole evening, and kept it in her arms throughout the night-time rituals and into bedtime.

EVERYBODY needs a stuffed animal!