First and Last

It's been a couple of weeks since I first noticed Grace watching me eat (there are a lot of opportunities there).  She has grabbed my hand a few times and pulled it to her own mouth.  I was hesitant because I didn't like her growing up on me.  

But I relented on Tuesday, May 26th and mixed up her first batch of rice cereal. 

She loved it.  No surprise there.  

May 29th was the last day of school.  They all passed. They all grew.  

We enjoyed the end of year whipcream fight.  Most of our whipcream was

used for eating, not fighting. We're lovers of high fat dairy around here.  

Lots of fun in the sun with good neighbors and friends.  It was a good way 

to break in summer break. 

Simple Summer Fun

I loved summer as a kid.  

Minus my pasty white skin that would burn with little or no effort.

Summer was freedom (after your chores were done of course!)

Sleepovers at Shannon's or Tonya's, sleeping out on the tramp with my siblings, 4-H camp, the fair, gardening, running through the sprinklers, my birthday!, a trip to Disneyland, Yellowstone, fireworks, popsicles, and watermelon.

Summer has begun in the hearts of my children.  They are leaving little signs all around.

Here are some grapes out basking in the sunshine on a towel  in the driveway.

This was Aidan's attempt at making some raisins.

The dog kennel has become a neighborhood fort.

It is a mess, full of "junk", but I cannot bring myself to tell them time's up, clean up.

This is a picture of a couple of tables the kids built with neighbor friends.  They used some of Scott's old wood and a couple cans of spray paint and built these.  They even used a tape measure and asked the neighbor to do some cuts with his chop saw that he had out.  

The fort also has some of my old pots hanging on the fence, a watering system in the corner, old rugs, a bulletin board with a hole in it, and on and on.  Every day after school and especially on weekends it is full of kids, hanging out in their own little space.  

It reminds me of the forts we would make in the weeds as kids. Those weeds were as tall as we were!

And lastly, here's baby Grace chewing on my finger.  I love this picture. Her big blue eyes checking out my camera. And Cole in the background laughing his head off at his little sister who likes to chew on people's fingers.  

Ha!

Happy Summer people.

Molly and the Marathon

We got to go watch Molly run her first marathon in Ogden on Saturday.

What an event!

I was teary-eyed from the beginning as we waited on the bridge to see her cross @ mile 23.

Watching an event like this is always so inspiring.  I love watching people push their physical bodies to perform in ways you may not expect to be able to.

My mind always tends to think of my husband and the disability he now deals with.

He use to be a runner, a biker, a hiker, a rock climber, a skier, a waterskier, a rollerblader, a golfer.  His body use to perform- and at all of these things it performed very well.  

Now it takes effort, thought, strength and courage to make that body stand at the walker and balance, maybe daring to let go for a few seconds.  But just like these marathoners he is pushing his "new" body to  it's limits.  Retraining.

I think what really makes me weepy at these events is knowing that these people are conquering the physical with so much spirit.  I love it.  

You were inspiring Molly.  What a way to stick it to the 30's! 

Mother's Day 2009 & 200th Post

Happy Mother's Day!

10 Specific Suggestions for Mothers from 

President Ezra Taft Benson: 

1. Take time to always be at the crossroads in the lives of your children, whether they be six or sixteen.

2. Take time to be a real friend to your children.

3. Take time to read to your children. Remember what the poet wrote:

You may have tangible wealth untold; 
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold. 
Richer than I you can never be— 
I had a mother who read to me. 

4. Take time to pray with your children.

5. Take time to have a meaningful weekly home evening. Make this one of your great family traditions.

6. Take time to be together at mealtimes as often as possible.

7. Take time daily to read the scriptures together as a family.

8. Take time to do things together as a family.

9. Take time to teach your children.

10. Take time to truly love your children. A mother’s unqualified love approaches Christlike love.

I appreciated these suggestions.  It's good to re-center myself and remember what is truly important in my life. I want nothing more than to raise happy children who know who they are, know they have a family who loves them and will always be there for them, and love their Savior.

So, on the topic of Mothers here's a picture of my fine bathrobe.  

You may notice something odd.  

The tie to this bathrobe serves multiple purposes.  Of course it holds my bathrobe together but it also:

Is a great dog leash

Ties up bad guys

Tethers stuffed pets to the bed post

Lowers baskets of "food" over the railing to waiting hungry prisoners.

A really weak bike "chain"

Is used  ninja style to hold swords just right

And now you know why it is grimy, and I know that a bathrobe tie is priceless to little boys.

I hope you all had a great Mother's Day!  I received (among other great things) a box of Gas-X.

Oh that husband of mine, he just loves to make me laugh!  The children presented it to me and told me it was for my "allergies".  (That's an inside joke at our house).  

Also Happy 200th Post to me!

Soccer Season

Soccer season has begun.  Scott & I take turns going to either Aidan's game or Chloe & Asher's game.  This week Aidan's game was canceled because the field was flooded.  However, Chloe and Asher's game was still on.  I brought my camera, but I had no idea how fun this was going to be.  It had poured rain through the night and into the morning, but the clouds broke and the sun came out for their game.  Needless to say the field was like a soggy sponge.  Each step we took the water surrounded our shoes. 

The whistle blew and within 5 seconds, (no exaggeration here) Asher slipped and fell.  The grass was slippery, they couldn't predict the ball because it didn't travel well on the soaking wet field, and there were even a few actual puddles.  

Both my children fell a number of times. Once  I expected tears but got giggles.  I just stood on the sideline and cheered between laughs.  I took a picture of Chloe wringing out her pants at half time. 

I think Asher was proud to be covered in mud, and  I was proud that they all kept playing, no complaining.  They had no substitutes and that is a huge field.