Mini Vacation

We scheduled a few days off in September for us to have a little family time, booked a hotel and spent some time in the big city with just us and the kids.  Usually when we get up to KC it's to spend time w/ family or run errands or go to meetings.  But this time it was just about the kids and play time.  It was a nice change up!!!  We started out w/ lunch @ Costco 'cause we're weird like that, then went to the new Lego City downtown.  

 We had the place pretty much to ourselves - just the way I like it. :)  We built race cars, little models of the Plaza, towers, houses, even cupcakes.  The kids enjoyed trying out their race cars on the tracks...

 (Do you like Girly-A's game face??)

And we had a little fun w/ the karaoke a'la Glee...

(Joseph doesn't know I'm posting this....)  K-lady LOVED the karaoke.

We'd just finished reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory so we watched the Johnny Depp version that night at the hotel.  Gotta love a little crazy Tim Burton.

The next morning we headed to Union Station and Science City.

Then played @ an indoor water park for the afternoon.  And finally the last day we hit up Kaleidescope @ Crown Center and a Hallmark Employee craft fair.

Oklahoma Joes (our favorite BBQ) on the way out of town made it all complete.  Oh yum.
Joseph and I took turns reading a really interesting book while driving (in case you're in need of a good read....):  The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot.  It's a fascinating story about the history of modern science, cell research and the evolution of ethics in medicine.


We had a great time just enjoying the city and each other - it was fun to have it all be about our little family.  These kids are a blast! :)

Spring Break

 Back in March we decided to go camping.  I am not a big fan of midwest camping at the height of summer - 104 degrees + 95% humidity = very unhappy momma from the Northwest!  So we went in March!  And we went south, hoping to catch a little more warmth than we were getting here.  We landed in Devil's Den State Park where we enjoyed hikes, crawdad chasing, paddle boats, and a ginormous new tent (car camping just got way more comfy).  Spring was just around the corner - there may not have been many leaves on the trees, but the grass was green, and there were no mosquitoes, no ticks, and no humidity!  And there were beautiful hills and valleys and rivers and lakes.  Here are a handful of pictures from our little adventure.

 Baby A is such a big kid (she needs a new blog alias - "Baby" is just wishful thinking @ this point) - she tore off her shoes and socks and followed K-lady and J-boy right out into the stream.  Joseph tried to get them to herd some crawdads into captivity, but it didn't quite work. :)  They still loved it.  This was the evening of the first day - right after we took these photos, we hopped back into the car and drove a half hour to the nearest town w/ a sports bar - we watched the last BYU March Madness game over dinner.  :)

That's Joseph' pop can stove on the top left, and J-boy looking for fossils on the bottom right. :) We went to one of the park ranger classes at the visitors center on fossils.  5 minutes into the 1/2 hr. presentation, the ranger asked if any of us had any questions up to that point.  J-boy raised his hand politely, and asked, "When is this going to be over?"  :)  Love it.

"I haven't had anything yet, so how can I have some more of nothing?"  "You're killin' me, Smalls!"

 Baby A was in HEAVEN when it was finally her turn on the paddle boat.

 Cheese whiz & crackers, granola bars & lemonade for lunch.  All the essential food groups, right?  K-lady was thoroughly grossed out by the cheese whiz texture.  Can't say that I blame her.

 Devil's Den was built by the CCC back in the 30's - beautiful trails, cool old caves (closed down so the bats don't all die of some weird bat disease spreading across America that makes them wake up from hibernation early, then starve to death because there aren't enough bugs around to eat), amazing stone shelters & dams.  In the Visitor's Center they had some of the old original CCC newsletters from the camp titled The Voice of Satan.  HA!  Cheeky little Depression boys, right?  :)

The day we got there was beautiful - sunny, about 70 degrees or so.  The next day dropped down to the 50's-60's and drizzled a bit, and that last night we had a HUGE thunderstorm - the kids slept through it alright (amazingly enough!), but Joseph and I stared at each other wide eyed for a couple hours.  It cleared up enough in the morning for us to get up and make breakfast and pack up camp.  The temperature kept dropping and by the time we got home, it was just cold (that's frost on the window on the way home - she was very protective of her junk food even in her sleep :).  That night we slept snug in our beds while it flurried outside. 

Yay for the first camping trip of the year! :)

Summer @ a Glance

So what do I do when I haven't blogged about anything that's happened in the last 3 months?  Why, a collage parade, of course!  Because I am incapable of skipping the pictures that I love, but I'm equally incapable of staying on top of blogging in the middle of bedlam.  And I'm also incapable of actually remembering my past without visual proof in the form of pictures.  So here's June:

 

Wow, wasn't that a fun month? I think you should be able to click on the collages to make them bigger.  It really was a great month - trips to the park & library w/ friends, a baby shower for Heather, COSI with big machines and cousin L (see the pic of Baby A fighting J-boy for the steering wheel?  I love that one), the last day of school for K-lady, Father's Day, a chance meeting w/ Heather & Ryan at music in the park (lucky!), temple visits, a day trip south to Hocking Hills (WOW!), and an quick campout in Northern Ohio to visit Kirtland (you'll see a little more of that trip next month, since we woke up in July)

July saw the end of our Kirtland camping trip including fishing and Amish country on the way home, a gorgeous 4th of July celebration that lasted all weekend, a beautiful new niece to adore, K-lady twisting her ankle and breaking our last stroller (I've given away 3 in the last 2 years, and go figure the trusty indestructible umbrella stroller just couldn't take it anymore and gave up the ghost on the way home from the 4th of July parade), my last Sunday in Primary, Joseph's birthday (we love you!), loading up a moving truck, Baby A turned TWO, we unloaded a moving truck (my parents are amazing - that they can even stand to be around us after the torture we put them through year after year is nothing short of amazing....), we hopped back in the van for another 18 hours for a family reunion with nearly 100 cousins, and finished the month in lovely Cache Valley.  

And August!  We had a couple extra days to spend in Utah - we ran down to Provo for  a quick trip down memory lane and to catch up with some more cousins and old friends, we spent more time w/ mom, dad, Kendra, Grandma (happy birthday to you!), Dave, Angela, Bailey & Matthew, we crashed the Bill's family reunion, and when we could stall no longer we went back to our new home, woke up and took the kids to the first day of school, and started unpacking.  We went to a Ranch Rodeo - that's a talented bunch of cowboys up there.  Our 9 year anniversary was nearly unnoticed - I hadn't unpacked the calendar yet.  :)  

So I think that brings us more or less up to date!  We're getting settled in our new digs - I sure miss our old beautiful neighborhood and my wonderful sister and friends in Ohio!!!  And I miss my wonderful parents (with whom we spent almost a month and a half by the time we dragged ourselves out of the mountains). 

But we are getting to know our new town, and Joseph LOVES his new job (it's so happy to see him enjoying it so much!).  We're two hours from a bunch of friends and family, and that's perfect for a quick getaway.  So life is good.   If you want a more drawn out version, you can check out my picture-a-day blog (the perfectly ordinary days button in the side bar there).  I'm giving myself about 2 weeks to get a little more organized here before I go completely insane.  :)  And hopefully I'll be on here a little more often.  Happy blogging everyone!  Thank you, and goodnight.

Spring Break in Jeresey!!

Get ready for a LOT of pictures (5 adults + 5 cameras + 5 days = 459 pictures!)

We decided to hit the road for K-lady's Spring Break this year -- Joseph couldn't get time off, but my sister and nephew came along to keep my children entertained so we could all meet this wonderful little man:

my new nephew!  Isn't he handsome?  Dave, Angela and their kids live in New Jersey, about a 10 hour drive.  We had such a good time visiting with them and just loving up the time we had together. 

 Dave is such a good uncle -- he even set up a tent for a camp out in the back yard one of the nights we were there.  Baby A and I opted for beds inside, but Dave and the older two slept out there all night (with the electric blanket plugged into the house).  Cousin Bailey started out with them, but apparently she was too much of a party animal and got banished to the master bedroom.  :)

We spent the first day of Spring on the Jersey Shore -- Baby A and J-boy's first time to the Atlantic ocean.  It was COLD, but that didn't stop my kids from getting wet!  :)

 My wonderful mom was there, too -- bonus!!!

 

We got to visit Dave's "office"

This little guy is such a sweet sweet baby!  And Angela is such a sweet sweet momma.

all the cousins!  It's a good bunch.

The whole crew (minus mom, who is taking the picture).  There are always a few moans when we announce that it's time for a family picture, but I never regret having them. 

Tara Runs Into a Tree

Because I promised and Dave asked for it.  

I'm wearing the camera on my goggles, following my sister in law (in the blue coat).  

Silly Tara.  Stick to the courderoy.

Road Trip, Anyone?

Life is slowly finding some semblance of normalcy around here. My wonderful Mom and sister were here for nearly two weeks while Joseph fixed smiles in Honduras. It was so nice to have another mom around! It's like having a vacation in the comfort of your own home. And I'm a home-body, anyway, so this was GREAT for me!!
We stuck close to home for the most part, but over the weekend we decided to take a (very) impromptu trip to Nauvoo to visit my aunt and her family. They had been in Nauvoo for 6 weeks working on the Nauvoo Pageant, and that Friday was the last night. So we loaded up in mom's van (fondly referred to as Van-essa), and took off! Baby A did wonderfully well for her first road trip (at almost 3 weeks old!), and K and J-boy did pretty well, too (midnight as a bedtime does get old after a day or two, but they had fun with their cousins!). We saw the pageant Thursday night and Friday night, and got to visit a few spots in Old Nauvoo Friday during the day. The weather was lovely, which is quite unusual for August in that part of the country!!
I was humbled and moved as I thought about the Mormon Pioneers. I strolled down Parley Street, my newborn in her comfy carseat/stroller, and read about Pioneer women giving birth in their covered wagons. While watching the pageant I caught a glimpse of the sacrifice and consecration required to build the Nauvoo temple, the intense desire the early Saints had to be obedient and serve God. And the next day I attended the temple; the only effort I had to expend was getting dressed and asking my mother to watch my kids for 2 hours.
I have no idea why I've been so blessed - driving in an air conditioned car! Sleeping in a bed! Giving birth in a HOSPITAL! All these things that I constantly take for granted.
I pray that I will remember. There's no way I can earn the blessings I've been given. But I can try my best to do my best, and thankfully, because of our Savior, that is always enough.

My wonderful aunt & cousins with my sister, my kids and I

K & I in front of the temple

Dowsy Baby A - she's such a good sleeper!!

K-lady doing the little Scottish jig dance from the pageant - she wants to be ON STAGE next year. :)

A trip to Utah

Joseph had a little bit of time off between semesters at school, so we took off to Utah for a fun visit with family the 2nd week of May. We also wanted to check out Cache Valley and the Ogden area -- possible locations for Joseph to buy a practice and set up his clinic next year (dah! all this time it's been in the far distant future, and now that it's almost in sight I'm kind of freaking out about it! At what point do you finally start to feel ready for grown up stuff like that? I've been putting it off for about 10 years now...)
Anyway, we spent a beautiful wonderful week with my fabulous parents - I so love being in their home! They help me feel so good about life in general - the atmosphere is just home. The downside of that comfortable atmosphere is that I didn't take ANY pictures while we were there. I just decompressed the entire time -- after all the work of moving and end-of-the-year stuff for preschool and music classes and piano lessons and music recitals and being pregnant for a 16-hour drive I suppose I just needed to breathe slowly and deeply for a little while. And I needed to play mom's 7 foot grand piano. Amazing how healing that is! :)
My kids had free reign of the house -- 3 floors, so much room (we're not used to that here at home!), 3 dogs, a cat, a fenced backyard, a few of my old toys and some new ones that a smart grandma keeps handy, 2 loving and patient grandmas, a grandpa with lots of fun tools, funny Uncle Scott, fabulous Aunty Kendra who patiently played with a worshipful neice & tag-along nephew, a trampoline, a quiet cul-de-sac.... sigh. Good times! :)
Joseph's brothers in Kaysville had a Father/Sons Campout over the weekend, so he & J-boy got to go play. They had a great time -- I know because they lingered for 7 hours longer than they thought they would, and J-boy was utterly EXHAUSTED when they finally made it back to my parents. :)

More Thanksgiving Pictures

So, I just couldn't not post these, even though Dave & Angela have that fabulous video. So you get to enjoy them AGAIN! :) (I know I will enjoy them again and again and again and again -- there just aren't quite words to describe how GOOD it feels to be with family. Especially when it's been too long since the last visit!) Dave & Angela were wonderful hosts -- we came home feeling so good about life in general! Just what a vacation is supposed to do for you. Thank you so much!!!

Catch-up part 2

Okay, so we left off mid-November...

We enjoyed Pre-Thanksgiving play time with the L's -- all 7 of the L siblings were in town, making for a grand total of 32 (spouses, grandkids and grandparents) for the full family picture.

We played at Paradise Park (a big play place with all kinds of fun things to do -- batting cages, go carts, foam-gun wars, ball pit, kid kitchen, water tables, playgrounds, make-believe town, face painting, etc etc etc), went to Kaleidiscope (Hallmarks' free art studio 'experience' for kids using their left over papers, ribbons, stickers, etc & all the Crayola markers/crayons you could ever need), visited Union Station to see the mega model trains and Christmas tree displays, played games, did puzzles, went to the Independance Visitor's Center to see a display on the Dead Sea Scrolls, fried Joseph's wild turkey (the flavor was great, but it was a little chewy....), and had a girls night in at Jen's (such great sister-in-laws!!). Whew! That was just Sunday, Monday and Tuesday!

(This is J-boy playing in the baby play place at Paradise Park...you'd think we didn't get out much)

On Wednesday we made the 11 hour trek to Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi where my brother and his wife and their beautiful little girl live. Heather and Ryan met us there, and we had a wonderful, relaxing, enjoyable Thanksgiving weekend. Dave, Joseph & Ryan fried store bought turkeys (fabulous flavor, minus the weird texture), the boys played a good game of football Thursday morning, we made (and ate) WAY too much food, and generally basked in each others' presence. It was so fun for my kids to meet their first A-son cousin! Joseph was inspired by Survivor Man to build a pop-can stove. Tara and sisters made a Christmas countdown candy adventish thing. We went bowling, and now Kaitlynn asks every day when we can go again (mom, I've been WAITING to go bowling! WHEN can we GO?) I have to say my favorite part was using the bumpers with a good excuse. :) And the little baby bowling shoes were too cute! (those are J-boy & my feet in the pic) For the complete Thanksgiving photo review, visit Dave and Angela's site (link to the left). It was so good to be with family! It's always a good sign when the time feels too short and you want to linger longer.

For you readers, we read a great book on the way to/from Columbus -- just a lucky find at the Borders' Bargain table from a couple months ago that I finally got around to: Wish You Well by David Baldacci. Both Joseph and I enjoyed it, which is important on our road trips! It's about a young girl growing up in the Appalachian Mountains after her father dies. I don't know if I'm just really touchy or what, but he had me bawling after the first two chapters -- I had to stop reading out loud and just sum it up for Joseph. He's such a good indulgent husband! :) Maybe somethings a little messed up in my brain, but if a book can make me cry, I generally love it. Call me masochistic.

So that brings us (almost) up to date!

Busy and Fun -- it's a pretty good life!

Love to you all!!

Tara