nine months

She is nine months old today.
She loves to stand on tiptoe and plunk at the piano keys.
Sometimes she even "sings" along.

Mothers & MIlk

Our home teachers came yesterday.

Brother Fox delivered a lovely message about the influence of righteous women.

 Being the only woman in the house he brought my name up.

What does your mother do for you?

She cooks. She cleans up stuff. She cleans our clothes.

What does your Mom do when you are sad?

She says, "Cry me a river."

(trying to save it) And then what does she do?

Um. Walks away.

IN MY DEFENSE.  You knew this was coming.  I only say "cry me a river" when there is a lot of unsolicited whining going on around here, not true sadness.

And I've learned it's best to walk away after you say "cry me a river".

Anyway, we learned about real righteous women after those beautiful comments, and then we proceeded to dive into the delicious cookies and quick breads that the righteous women who are married to our home teachers sent.

However, we were completely out of milk.  Who eats warm pumpkin chocolate chip bread and warm snickerdoodles without cold milk?  Not us. Not ever!

So Scott suggest pulling out our food storage milk.

DUN. DUN. DUN.

That's right. Powdered milk.  I mixed up a gallon per instructions on the bucket and we put it in the freezer to get real cold, as that is the way all milk is best served.

After about an hour we pulled it out and drank up.

It was great!  Really. Honestly.  This is not your mother's powdered milk.

It was even, shall I say, creamy?!

The kids really liked it.  Scott said he couldn't tell the difference between this and real milk.

In conclusion and to get to the point;

 I would highly recommend Morning Moos powdered milk for your own personal food storage.

 They also have chocolate which would take your enjoyment to the next level.

Taking it Back

I was trying to think of a blog title that would accurately express my emotions about this day. While rock climbing was never "taken away" per se, it has been something we haven't felt we could attempt for several years. At some point along those years it actually did feel like it was taken away, and we'd never be able to enjoy it again. I guess that was just my perspective. Today we took it back.

Scott circa 1997 climbing a 5.12b

Scotty was an awesome rock climber, just like he was awesome at all sports he tried.  As his girlfriend I, of course, took it up too. I wasn't awesome, but I enjoyed it and I got to spend more time with him in the beauty of canyons and cities of rocks.  After our breakfast in the canyon last week that we enjoyed so much as a family we talked about what we could do the next weekend together.  Rock climbing came to my mind.  Scott has all the knowledge and could safely belay us from a seated position with all his upper body strength.  So I mentioned it.  Scott thought it was a great idea.

I purchased a kid's harness and we headed up Rock Canyon early this morning.  It was full of BYU kids.  I have to admit I had a few moments where I felt out of place; herd of children, power wheelchair, baby in a stroller, certainly not at my physical peak. I put those thoughts aside, and we had a great time.  Scott has always done the lead climb to get our rope to the top, but it was me today.  Luckily I could climb around the backside of this mountain to thread the rope, it wasn't too treacherous, but it had me sweating.

As I headed up the mountain for the first time in about 9 years, I remembered all the things rock climbing can teach you.  Number one would have to be trust.  You have to trust the person belaying you, the rope, your gear.  As each child took a turn and we cheered them on past their fear and pushed them a little farther than they felt they could go I realized their sense of accomplishment when they achieved what they thought they could not.  Chloe particularly had a lot of fear at a certain height.  I told her to trust her Dad, he wouldn't let her fall.  She made it to her goal, and we all cheered for her.  Good life lessons taught on the mountain.

I'm so glad we took this back into our lives today and challenged all of us to step outside what's comfortable.   And really, nothing looks so awesome as a picture of yourself clinging to the side of a mountain!

What's in a name?

COLE:
From a surname which was originally derived from the Old English nickname Cola "charcoal", 
denoting a person with a dark features.

All of my babies have been named months before they were born.  Each time I felt that the name we'd chosen was exactly what it should be; it felt right.  It's something I stew over for quite some time. I've heard mother's say "The baby didn't look like it's name".  I would say this boy was Cole long before we saw him and it's a match made in heaven. 

That's My Man

There are a lot of things I love about my husband, but right up there under his Dashing Good Looks would be his Sense of Humor.  I love that he is not too proud to poke fun of himself.  He can come up with some pretty funny stuff, he'll go along with some of my crazy ideas for a laugh, and he thinks I'm funny too (really he does). Those times that we've made each other laugh so hard we cried, or wet our pants, are some of my favorite memories.  He's one funny dude, and he's mine, all mine. 

He was invited to go boating.  He hasn't been boating since he's been in a wheelchair.

So we thought it would be fun to suit him up for any impending danger.

 This is how he met his friend out on the driveway.

Recipe to Get Away From It All

If you are feeling overwhelmed, flustered, bombarded,

 pulled in too many directions, shut in, then here's a quick fix. 

1. Alert the family that they will be arising early the next morning.
2. After all the little ones are tucked in their sweet beds, mix up a batch of yummy buttermilk pancake batter and put it in a ziploc bag.
3. Gather all needed cooking utensils/matches/newspaper and place in your van/car/bus.
4. Place about 400 wet wipes in the car.
5. Don't forget the camera to capture the joy.
6. Get some sleep and get up early the next morning.
7. Wake all the children and instruct them to get dressed and get in the van/car/bus. If any child appears grumpy encourage them not to talk to anyone.
8. Drive up to American Fork Canyon in the early morning light.
9. Find a secluded spot to make a campfire (this should be fairly easy considering what time it is).
10. Set the children free.  Run. Gather rocks. Dig. Climb. Find firewood.
11. Whip up a tasty campfire breakfast. (Google "ash" at home to find out if it causes cancer)
12. Sit and enjoy the quiet and beauty in the crisp air.

The Lone Chicken

Cole is home with Grace and I for 6 hours while the kids and his Daddy are away at school.  When this new schedule started he would very often ask throughout the day, "Where's Dad? Where's the kids?"

What's a boy to do?

Well, I'll tell you what he does: He plays on pbskids.com, watches shows, cuddles with me on the couch, calls friends to come over, helps me cook, does some chores (great at using the vacuum hose to suck up things on the kitchen floor), takes bubble baths, practices writing his name, dresses up, makes forts, pretends to play the piano to earn a treat, and anything else his little 4 year old heart desires.  He is a lot of fun to have around.  My favorite thing to do is lay by him on the couch and watch Curious George.  He still holds onto my hair and snuggles into me.  He's always loved to snuggle with his Mom, and I"m gonna keep that going as long as I can.

I know I just need to soak in all this time I have with him, because before I know it he will be running down the street with his backpack on headed to school with the big kids.  And then I'll cry in my quiet house.

p.s. If the chicken sees his shadow it means Fall is on its way!

Sponge Aidan Spiky Hair

This is the hair-do Aidan asked for the other day.  

           A mohawk.   

He's really not worried about other's interpretations of who he is.  

I could learn a few things from this kid.  

Aidan's teacher is a real gem.  I absolutely love her and evidently so does Aidan.  He is soaking up knowledge every day.  He loves to come right in the door and share the interesting things he's learned.  Today he told me about beavers and their dams. What I really enjoy about him sharing stuff with me is the details he remembers. There's no doubt that he is really listening and thinking about what he's hearing.  

What a boy. What a joy. 

Hand Wash in Warm water...........for 2 hours

Dance In the Rain

Have you ever wanted to dance in the rain?

In your underwear, with your footies flying?

Me too. 

Proud to Be Americans

September 11, 2001.

It's one of those days I'll never forget.  I remember just where I was and what I was doing when I heard the terrible news.  I remember the subsequent days of numbness, fear, anger, tears, sadness, and pride.  I think it may be similar to our parents & grandparents emotions on December 7, 1941. 

As this anniversary approached I spent time wondering how to make it significant to my children- some who were very small and some who weren't on this earth yet.  I decided to make it a simple family affair.  At dinner I asked the kids about September 11th.  Only the oldest knew what happened on that day, so I explained what happened on September 11th, my feelings about that day and how I felt about being American.  Then I put out the idea that we get up with Daddy at 5:30 and take our breakfast up to the top of the mountain behind our house.  

This morning we were all up early, dropped Scotty off at the bus and got ourselves some "breakfast" at the store. Then we loaded up on our bikes and headed up the steep hills as high as we could go.  We went to a great overlook point and laid out a blanket, enjoying the beauty of the lake, the mountains, and the sunrise.  What a beautiful world we live in.  Then we sang the chorus of Proud to be An American, and I reminded the children of the significance of this day.  It was a good way for our family to remember those who died that day, those who sacrificed their lives for other's, those who are still making sacrifices for our country, and the freedoms we enjoy as Americans.  

And I’m proud to be an American where as least I know I’m free.

And I won’t forget the men who died, who gave that right to me.

And I’d gladly stand up next to you and defend her still today.

‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land God bless the U.S.A.