The Monstars

Walk the Line

2011-03-03T22:12:00.000-07:00

Sophie is determined to do it. Walk the line, that is.

We went to pick up big sister from an after school activity the other day. I had a hard time containing Sophie for ten short minutes while we waited for Lil to be finished. It was finally time to go, and Sophie actually held my hand through the school (for a change!). But once we got outside, it was a different story. As soon as we went through the front doors, she took off like a shot, as fast as her little legs would carry her, straight for the parking lot. My heart jumped into my throat as she headed for the asphalt. I knew I'd never catch up with her before she got to the curb, and I've told her a MILLION times not to go out into the street alone. She has a mind of her own, that one! So I watched helplessly as she got closer to the end of the sidewalk and then all of a sudden....she came to a screeching halt, toes literally hanging off the red curb. She knew where the boundary was, and she ran straight for it and didn't even slow down until she got there. And even then she barely stopped in time!

I couldn't help but think this had to be a metaphor for her life. Sophie is my child who likes to push the envelope, all day every day. She generally knows where the boundary lines are, but she likes to walk right up to them, tiptoe along the line, jump back and forth and back and forth, and occasionally take a GIANT leap across. It definitely makes life interesting and sometimes entertaining, but man, she is something else. I don't know what I'm going to do with her sometimes! I just hope we can help her learn to stay on the right side of the line. I have a feeling she is going to spend her life running full speed for the red curbs, landing with toes hanging off, and she's going to take us along for quite a ride as she does it!

It's Official!

2011-02-25T10:30:00.000-07:00

Today was a very big day! I registered my baby for kindergarten! She told me a million times yesterday, "I am so excited for tomorrow!" I don't know if filling out paperwork met her expectations for an exciting day, but she was very good. She picked out a dress to wear and even brought her own camera so I could take some pictures for her. She was too cute!

Here we are at the new admissions office.

Class of 2024!?!?! That sounds so crazy to me! (I was the class of 1994. I am getting old!!)

Here she is inside the admissions office. She was so well behaved, despite the fact that she told me on the way there that she was "full of wiggles". I was proud of her!

In a strange twist for the day, I didn't shed a single tear! I was proud of me too! However, Lil shed enough tears for us both this morning. Lil told Sophie she was getting too big and she should stay in preschool forever. It was so sweet. I then mentioned to Lily that she would be the big sister next year for Sophie instead of the little sister, because her brother is heading to middle school. She looked me in the eye as her little lip started to quiver, and then the tears just started to roll. Until that moment, I don't think she had ever stopped to realize that big brother won't be at school with her next year. She was devastated. I had no idea that it would affect her so much to have Hunter leaving for another school, bless her sweet little heart. She just sat on my lap and quietly cried her eyes out. I feel very blessed that she and HK share a special bond, and I have no doubt that big sister will step up next year and help Sophie every bit as much as her big brother has helped her.

Love is in the Air

2011-02-18T17:47:00.000-07:00

"I don't understand why Cupid was chosen to represent Valentine's Day. When I think about romance, the last thing on my mind is a short, chubby toddler coming at me with a weapon." ~Author Unknown

I was thinking the other day how Valentines Day has changed its meaning for me over the years, from romance to chubby toddlers. It was always fun in elementary school because everyone brought valentines and candy, and everyone was your friend. Then I got a little older and the success or failure of the day depended on whether or not I got noticed by a boy. I was watching a middle school aged girl walk home on Monday this week carrying a single red rose, and in a flood of memories I thought about what Valentines Day was like when I spent the whole day waiting for recognition of my existence by a single other person.

By the time I got to college, I was pretty apathetic about "heart day". (I guess I hadn't received enough single red roses in my younger years to care one way or the other!) But then in January of 1997 I met Tyler and had my first Valentines with a REAL valentine who wanted to be mine. We visited my parents that weekend and they met Tyler for the first time. (We'd been dating less than a month and I was bringing him home to meet me parents! And they didn't even panic! At least...not that I know of.) At any rate, I truly enjoyed that Valentines Day and the next few after that with my true love.

Then once the kids came, Valentines Day became less and less about romance and more and more about "chubby toddlers with weapons". And I decided that I am totally ok with that.
I have a valentine who is mine every day of the year, not just on February 14th. And I have three beautiful kids to go with him. This year Valentines Day was all about family, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

So, I guess that was just a really long way of saying....here's what our Valentines Day looked like this year. I hope your day was as filled with love as mine was!

We started the day with heart hairdo's for the girls.
It's become a tradition.
Even the kids at school waited to see Lil's heart shaped hair!

Sophie had heart hair too. I can't believe

that I haven't learned by now that I have to take a

picture of her before she plays all day!

My three "little" valentines!

We enjoyed a glamorous candle lit dinner together.

There were lots of homemade cards and handmade hearts,

just the kind I like best!

Our glamorous dinner: heart shaped pink pancakes with strawberries and

whipped cream. It may not be gourmet, but everyone at my house eats it

without whining, and that makes mom's heart day dinner a truly happy one!

Lunch of Champions

2011-02-13T14:33:00.000-07:00

The perfect lunch for discerning four year-olds? Hot wings and pistachios, of course! Sophie had this more than once for lunch this week. She wanted it again today. She just walked into the kitchen and said "mom, I want the lunch of champions". You got it girl!

For my little Bieber Fan

2011-02-09T15:48:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist this. I can't believe my seven year-old is already boy crazy! (Just a little...)
You'll have to pause the music player at the bottom of the page.

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Late Start Limbo

2011-02-08T13:37:00.001-07:00

What do you do when it's snowing (again!) and school is delayed?

You do the Late Start Limbo, of course!

You gotta do something when the kids are up and you have extra time before school starts!

Yummy!!!

2011-02-01T14:55:00.000-07:00

A four year old's dream....

When Aunt Tonya was here in December, we had to take her to a new fun spot...Yogurtland. If you haven't tried it yet, you really should! You get to fill your own cup, pick whatever flavors you want, and then top it all off with whatever looks best! What's not to love?

The Museum

2011-02-01T14:31:00.000-07:00

Over winter break we took the opportunity to visit one of our very favorite places, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. There is always something fun for the kids to do there. I found these cute pictures on the camera today.

The Amazon Voyage Exhibit - Who wouldn't love to put their kids is a fish tank?

Lobster Sophie gettin' down. This was also in the Amazon Voyage exhibit.

Lobster Lily

Look at that pirate scowl!!

We really enjoyed the temporary exhibit, "Amazon Voyage". HK especially is looking forward to the new pirate ship exhibit coming next.

New Year, New Look, New Start

2011-01-23T16:12:00.003-07:00

Well friends, it's been a while. I have contemplated just letting this blog go "the way of the world". As 2010 progressed further and further, I could see the missed blog posts stacking up in my mind until I was positively drowning under them. Well, feeling overwhelmed tends to make me freeze in panic, like a deer in the headlights. And before I knew it, 2010 had passed without a single blog post to mark its coming and going. So instead of trying to catch up, I have given up on 2010. It will forever be the "black hole" of this blog, and I have decided that I am ok with that. I just couldn't face the monumental task that I created for myself of catching up, and in the interest of trying to retain my sanity, (which is already questionable at best), I am moving on.

However, since I am not good a keeping a journal and many of our loved ones live miles and miles away, I have decided to give this blog another try. I'd like to put the year's events I blog about into a book eventually so I have something to keep and look back on when I am old and gray and all my kids have left the nest. (Wait, I am already old AND gray. But I still have kids in the nest, so I think we're ok!) So, here's to 2011 and a whole new year of blogging. I hope you'll join us.

December 2009

2010-09-13T15:18:00.006-06:00

Has it really been that long since I blogged?!?! December seems like a very long time ago! For the sake of my very linear brain, I am picking up right where I left off...in December.

Sophie got to go on a field trip with her preschool class to sing for the "grandmas and grandpas". It was so cute to watch them all, and to watch the residents as they sang. It was a very cute performance!
It was such a joke trying to take this picture. I can still remember that eight months later! It would have been nice if my own child would have been paying attention, but hey, at least she's in the picture!!

Here's the cousins...Liz, Marlee, and Sophie with teacher Ms. Jenn

December also brought new church clothes of course. I admit it, I love to dress the kids up at the holidays, especially the girls. Unfortunately for us, I think they love it even more than I do!

And a picture with mom. Following the example of a friend, I am trying to include myself in pictures more often, whether I like it or not! (Photography by Hunter)

Ok, Ok...I get the hint!

2010-09-13T15:10:00.003-06:00

So...I'm not sure if anyone even reads this blog anymore. Probably not, since there hasn't been anything new to read in about a billion years. The more behind I got, the more I dreaded getting caught up. Then I signed up for a scrapbooking weekend in July and planned to spend the whole time blogging, but the weekend fell through. It felt like I was destined to fail. But, after some "gentle prodding" from family members, I have decided to climb back on the blogging horse and see what I can do. Over the next few weeks, I will attempt to get caught up on what's been going on around here, and even if I'm the only one that ever reads it, at least I'll know I'll have made the effort for my posterity!
So...here goes nothin'!

Paint the Town December

2009-12-18T11:30:00.005-07:00

Before the winter break rolled around, the first graders at Lily's school put on a holiday performance. Lily is our little star. Standing up in front of a gym full of people doesn't even seem to faze her! Plus, she loves any excuse to get all dressed up! (OK, let's be honest, I love any excuse to get her all dressed up too!)

When we got to the school on the night of the performance, Lily was thrilled to discover that her picture had been chosen for the program cover! I love how the simple things mean so much when you're a kid.

When Lil's turn rolled around, she stood up and gave her lines like a real pro. She said them loudly and clearly with great expression. She even got a laugh from the audience. And yes, I AM a proud parent, and I am not ashamed to admit it!

After the show, a few parents told me that Lil was the highlight of the show. (OK, too much bragging?) Plus, she had her own fan club there for the show:

On an unrelated note, I was also quite proud of her hairdo that evening. I just had to have a picture for posterity!

For Your Viewing Enjoyment

2009-11-19T12:51:00.008-07:00

I am getting better at keeping track of the important moments, but I need to remember to savor the small things as well. So, here are a couple of small things that I don't want to forget.

Hunter brought this poem home from school the other day. It's priceless because it is so "him" at this point in his life.

If I Were In Charge of the World

By Hunter Monson

(Inspired by Judith Viorst)

If I were in charge of the world

I'd cancel Barbie

Dora and Boots,

pills and also,

vegetables.

If I were in

charge of the world,

there'd be no vegetables,

no vegemite, and

everything for me would be free.

If I were in charge of the world

You wouldn't have pink.

You wouldn't have shots.

You wouldn't have bedtime

Or "Don't go outside it's raining".

You wouldn't even have rain.

If I were in charge of the world

A chicken fried steak dinner with mashed potatoes

would be healthy.

All movies would be PG.

And a person who sometimes forgot to clean,

and sometimes forgot to do homework,

would still be allowed to be in charge of the world.

And as an added bonus, here's a picture of the Bug that totally cracks me up. She is such a ham!!

She came up with this outfit, and the pose, all by herself. Maybe she was supposed to be alive in the 1970's!!

WiCKED

2009-11-17T13:53:00.007-07:00

Last week was a week for making memories with my kids. Last Thursday, after many weeks of waiting, Lily and I went on our big outing to the theatre. Let me rewind...

I LOVE the musical WICKED. I've seen it four times now, and I love it every time I go. My sweet husband let me buy tickets yet again when we found out the show was returning to Denver. After some discussion, we decided that the time was right for Lily to have her first "big girl" outing. Since I love the music from the show, she knows a lot of the songs. She had asked a few times if she could please go see the show if it ever came to Denver again. So Tyler took one for the team to stay home with the other kids, and Lil and I had a date.

I wanted to make the evening as special as possible, so we dressed up in our best clothes and went to dinner before the show.

Here is Lil at Bubba Gump Shrimp Company. She has a new found love for seafood, and the restaurant is only a couple of blocks from the theatre.

It's hard to tell in the dark, but that's the theatre in the background. Didn't she look pretty?!

This was really a special evening for both of us. She acted like such a lady the whole night. I can't even count how many people told her how pretty she looked. She was one of the only kids there, and people kept stopping her to tell her that she looked like a princess and that she was so pretty. The usher even thanked her for putting on her best clothes to go the the theatre. It was absolutely perfect. She loved the show and was mesmerized by her first real stage production. I was so afraid that she would get tired and fall asleep, she is definitely my biggest sleeper and the first act is rather long. But she didn't. She made it through the whole show, and then she fell asleep in the car not five minutes after we left the parking lot. I was very proud of her, and it's a memory I hope we can both keep forever.

Chalk Talk

2009-11-17T09:51:00.011-07:00

Last week, Hunter and I got to go to this cool event sponsored by ESPN called "Chalk Talk". It's a program ESPN puts on in cities when they are in town for Monday Night Football. My ESPN Insider husband got the tickets, and then he had to leave town for work. So I did something that I never do. As the teacher inside me was screaming "NOOO!", I went and pulled Hunter out of school for the rest of the day and we headed down to Mile High Station for the event. There was a fancy catered lunch and a program. (And if you're not a football fan, you can stop reading here, 'cause I'm about to start dropping names!)

This is Hunter on the second floor looking down on the set before the program started.

Here is Denver Broncos owner Pat Bolen, (left), NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, and a big wig from ESPN whose name I don't remember.

These are the hosts of the program, EPSN MNF reporter Michelle Tafoya and ESPN analyst and former Bronco Mark Schlereth.
This picture was from the "Legends" portion of the program. You might recognize (from left to right):

Former Bronco Safety Steve Atwater, former Bronco wide receiver Rod Smith, fomer Steeler great Jerome "The Bus" Bettis, and former Bronco Guard Mark Schlereth.

It was SO fun to be in the same room with all these guys, and listen to them talk to each other and answer questions. Then, on the way out the door, we all got handed a gift bag, complete with Monday Night Football cooler and tumblers, plus a Broncos yearbook!!

It was really a fun afternoon, and you know how I LOVE football, but the best part was having some fun one on one time with Hunter. He and I don't get to do that very often, and it was special to take him to do something that he and I both thought was exciting. It was a good day!!

Pirates and Skeletons and Ninjas, Oh My!

2009-11-17T09:21:00.010-07:00

Now that Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I guess it's time to post the Halloween pictures. I'll catch up someday...maybe!

This year we had a pirate, a skeleton rocker, and a ninja. Halloween gets more interesting around here every year. I kinda miss the days when the kids were little and would wear which ever costume I deemed adorable. Those days are gone! I can remember my halloween days as a kid. Every year, all I wanted was to be something beautiful and sparkly...an angel, a fairy, a princess. Apparently, my girls don't feel the same day!
Sophie loved wearing a costume that allowed her to say "aarrghhh!" and swing a sword. As a bonus, she got to have red streaks in her hair and wear a cool hat.

Lily was a "Skele-Rocker" this year. She LOVED this costume, from the pink hair spray to the dog collar and the pleather skirt with a ruffle. This was SOOO Lil, pink and ruffly, but big and bad at the same time. She is something else!

Ninja Hunter. A nine year-old boy with multiple weapons. Enough said!

And just for fun, here's a picture of the kids with cousins. What a crew!! I am so sure that the big boys are standing behind the little kids threatening them with their weapons. Yep, that sweet ninja is mine!

Historic St. George

2009-11-10T14:07:00.008-07:00

The weather threw us a curveball the day we left St. George and we had to leave early, so we didn't get to see all the things that we wanted to. We did get to visit a couple special spots though. We took the kids to the temple and the visitor's center, which they really enjoyed.

We also took the kids to the St. George tabernacle. It's abeautiful building, and fascinating to think how the saints built that building with the technology they had at the time, and in that climate!The cute senior missionary who gave us a tour of the building was very sweet. We were the only tourists there at the time, so we got some special attention. The missionary told the kids that every president of the church from Brigham Young to David O. McKay, along with some others, had sat in that front pew and spoken at that pulpit. He asked the kids if they wanted to sing in the same microphone that prophets had spoken in. Then he turned on the sound system and they sang "I am a Child of God". It was a very sweet moment, and pretty incredible for us to hear their little voices reverberate through that entire tabernacle.

And just for fun, here is a bonus picture of Lil having lunch at Marv's. She was so impressed by this corndog, and she ate every bite of it!

The Glitter Hole

2009-11-10T14:01:00.006-07:00

"The Glitter Hole". All you had to do was say the name, and my kids were hooked. The Glitter Hole is actually just across the border from St. George in Arizona. It is basically a huge hole in the ground in the middle of nowhere where gypsum was mined. Now you can go there and "mine" it yourself! Here are the kids with their mining tools. For some reason, we didn't really trust Sophie with the hammer or the pick.

Here is Sophie on "her mountain". She declared it was hers, and none of the rest of us were even allowed to get close.

Love this picture of Jackie and Lil

It was really interesting to see how the gypsum had been buried under layers of another kind of rock. It's the white stuff at the bottom.

It's hard to tell, but that's Hunter way up there!

We packed up two boxes of the "glitter rocks" that we mined and hauled them all the way back to Colorado. So, if you need some gypsum, just let us know!

Lunch Time, Mateys!

2009-11-10T14:00:00.003-07:00

While in St. George, Grandma and Grandpa wanted to take the kids to lunch at Pirate Island Pizza, the coolest kid restaurant in town. I thought it was so sweet they wanted to take the kids there. Just to take our three kiddos we had Grandma and Grandpa, Jackie and her two sisters, plus Tyler and I. I am sure that all the adults really loved their pirate lunch!

Actually, the restaurant is pretty cool. Cannons fire and pirate songs play. Plus, the kids got tokens to play in the arcade after lunch. Pretty sweet deal!

Sunny St. George

2009-11-10T13:41:00.010-07:00

Well, I am finally getting around to posting the rest of our pictures from our fall break trip. After our whirlwind Saturday in Provo, we set out for Sunny St. George on Sunday morning. We were so grateful to be able to stay with Tyler's grandparents for a dew days, and we got lucky enough to be there at the same time as his mom too! She played tour guide for the day on Monday and took us to some really cool "hidden" places.

Monday morning we put our tennies on and headed for the petroglyphs.

pet⋅ro⋅glyph [pe-truh-glif] –noun
a drawing or carving on rock, made by a member of a prehistoric people.

There is this really cool area in Ivins, not far from St. George, that was home to a native tribe over a thousand years ago. On the top of a huge hill overlooking a little valley, they left behind a record of sorts carved into the rocks. It was really fascinating. We were the only people there, wandering on the edge of the hill, looking at glyphs carved over a thousand years ago. So cool!

Jackie and the kids

Provo in a Day

2009-11-03T10:27:00.023-07:00

If you know me very well at all, you know that Provo holds a special place in my heart. I am true blue through and through, a Cougar heart and soul. Not only did I love being a student in Provo, but I met Tyler there. And of course, there's Cougar football. When we decided to go to St. George, we also decided to squeeze in a day in Provo. It also happened to be homecoming weekend, so how could we say no? So, we decided to spend one day in Provo and do it all! How, you ask, can you do it all in one day? Well, here's our attempt!

6:15 am Leave the hotel in Green River Utah

8:30 am Arrive in Provo and drive straigh to Lavell Edwards Stadium, where they are shooting College GameDay live. You have to understand, we are BIG sports fans, and this was a big deal. We watch College GameDay every Saturday morning. Those Provo football fans are crazy!

This is a crappy picture from our crappy camera, but if you look closely and use your imagination you can see (from left to right) Desmond Howard, Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, and Kirk Herbstreit sitting behind the desk.

The surprise guest "picker" on GameDay was none other than Mr. Lavell Edwards himself!

It was especially fun to take Hunter to Provo. His is SO into sports, and he really enjoyed the atmosphere. He's actually old enough to start forming opinions about where he'll land for college some day, (heaven forbid!) Let's hope its Provo!

Here's a better picture of Desmond, Chris, Lee, and Kirk!

We waited until the end of the broadcast to see if Coach Corso would pick BYU or TCU, and then we ran to the other end of campus...

10:05 am Homecoming Parade!

We met Tyler's sister Tiff and her husband Brian and their two little girls to watch the parade. We literally crossed the street to our seats in front of the first float, just in the nick of time!

11:30 am We decided to squeeze in a quick visit to the Bean Museum with cousins Megan and Emily, which the kids loved.

Hunter's class is doing their Colorado history unit right now, which of course includes the Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep!

Somewhere around lunch time...we headed to the heart of campus. We, of course, had to stop for the obligatory "standing under the Y picture" on our way to the bookstore. We caught up with Tyler's youngest brother Trent, who accompanied us to the bookstore. I love the bookstore. Every t-shirt, sweatshirt, souvenir, and knick knack you could ever want, all in Cougar blue. Plus, chocolate covered gummy bears and mint brownies! Not to mention the creamery ice cream in the Wilkinson Center...but I am getting ahead of myself.

Once everybody had a BYU souvenir, we headed out for lunch.

1:00 pm (maybe?) J Dawgs!!

I have only had these excellent dogs twice now, but they are awesome! You've got to love a great hot dog on a sunny fall day and playing in the leaves with cousins!

After our JDawgs we walked back up to the Wilk to get everyone a creamery ice cream cone. Roasted almond fudge is now officially my favorite new ice cream.

2 p.m. (ish) We took a few minutes to walk over to the Hickley Alumni Building, which I had never gotten to visit before. It is absolutely beautiful. Apparently so beautiful that I forgot to take any pictures.

3:30 p.m. We headed for another building I had never seen, the UPC (University Parkway Center). The McKay School of Education was holding a Homecoming Gathering, and I was actually in Provo to attend! We got a free dinner, door prizes, and had our family picture taken. Too bad everyone was tired and dirty by then! They're still pretty cute though, aren't they?

5:30 pm Finally, we headed to one of my favorite places on earth, Lavell Edwards Stadium. My SIL Tiff, BLESS HER, kept Sophie and let us use her ticket, she is a rock star! I admit it, I got teary when I walked into the stadium and saw the crowd. I love the smells, the sounds, the ROARRRR from the jumbotron, the fight song, ALL OF IT!!

Now, we aren't going to waste time actually talking about the game itself. It's too painful. However, it was still so good to be there.

9:30 p.m. We wound up our day at Magelby's to have dessert and see some old friends. We got to meet up with a couple of Tyler's old roommates and their families. We also got to try the buttermilk pie, which was very good!

We finally got to our hotel in Sandy a little after 11:00 pm. It was a very long day, but very worth it!

A Whirlwind Trip

2009-11-03T10:22:00.002-07:00

What do you know, we actually left town this year for fall break! We decided it was time to go visit Tyler's grandparents in St. George, and October seemed like a great time to do it. So we packed the car, pulled the kids out of school just a little early, and hit the road. On Friday we drove from home to Green River Utah on the way to Provo...which is a whole post on its own! Little did we know that we would miss a lovely October blizzard, I guess our trip was an even better idea than we realized!

Race for the Cure

2009-10-04T21:01:00.002-06:00

Watch for my grandma, Audrey, and my mom. (And me!) More on this tomorrow...

Sophie goes to School

2009-09-27T20:28:00.004-06:00

Just after Labor Day, my "baby" started school! It is so weird having three kids in school! Sophie is going to Smarty Pants Preschool this year with Miss Jenn, (a.k.a. my sister Jenn). She is absolutely loving going to school. She goes two mornings a week.

Here she is on her very first day. She was so excited, I am surprised that she even stood still for any pictures. She was SO FUNNY that first morning. Tyler and I joked that only dogs could hear her talking, because she would get excited and start talking really fast in this REALLY high pitched voice. It was like she was on fast forward all morning.
She was SO excited to wear her new dress to school.

And she was even more excited about taking her new backpack to school with her!

And off she goes!! She doesn't need us anymore!

And here are her dear cousins, and classmates. Do you think they learn how to spell T-R-O-U-B-L-E in the three year-old class??

Party Like a Rock Star!

2009-09-27T12:03:00.011-06:00

On August 30th our "little man" turned nine! In keeping with his love of all things Jonas, we threw him a Jonas Brothers birthday party.

Of course, a party for Hunter included a lot of sporting equipment!

The highlight of the party was Hunter's new golfclubs from his awesome parents! ;) He has been asking us for his own set of clubs since he had a golf unit in PE early this year. As you can see, he was pretty excited!

No rock star party would be complete without an electric guitar birthday cake. (I made it myself! I know you don't believe it, but it's true!)

We are very proud of the young man that Hunter is becoming. We, of course, have our struggles, but for the most part Hunter is a great kid. I feel very fortunate that he was my first, and I often tell him that I know that Heavenly Father sent him to us first for a very special reason. I know he is here to pave the way for his sisters, and I appreciate the example that he sets for them. Hunter is so bright, I know there are great things in store for him.

We've got talent!!

2009-09-25T15:33:00.007-06:00

At least the kids do, that is! At the end of August our ward's primary sponsored a talent show for all of the primary age children. I was very proud that my kids both wanted to be a part of it!

Lily and cousin Tori performed the song "Popular" from the musical Wicked. In my totally unbiased opinion, they were spectacular! They sang and danced their little hearts out, and they did it all with smiles on their darling little faces.

Hunter opted to be a "Jonas Brother" again, this time performing "That's Just the Way We Roll". He jumped and sang and strummed his "guitar" like a rock star!

Hunter enjoyed his rock star status immensely. A lot of the little kids enjoyed the performance as well! I felt a tad guilty that his song resulted in small children running and jumping all over the gym with reckless abandon, but they sure had a good time. At least they didn't start a mosh pit! ;)

First Day of School

2009-09-25T15:13:00.003-06:00

The end of August of course brought with it back to school time. This year, I actually wasn't really ready to send the kids back yet, but back they went.

Lily is a first grader this year. Her teacher's name is Carla Dougherty. Hunter had her for first grade also, and we absolutely love her! Lily was very tired the first few weeks. but she has adjusted well to being at school all day. She is also thrilled that she gets to go to P.E., music, and art this year.
Hunter is a fourth grader this year, and is in Karin Alfonson's class. I think she is going to be good for him, helping him get organized and keeping him challenged. Hunter is still an avid reader. He is looking forward playing imtermural sports this year, and has been selected to be a tutor in a program called "Reading Together".

Sophie handled the first day of school a little bit better than she did last year!

Lily and cousin Tori, who started kindergarten this year

We are looking forward to a great year!!

HKM Family Reunion

2009-09-25T14:52:00.003-06:00

Aren't we a good lookin' group??

The weekend before school started, we gathered up the Monson Clan for a family reunion. Tyler's youngest brother Trent returned in July from a mission in Puerto Rico, so it was the first time in two years we were all together. We had SO MUCH FUN! We went to a Rockies game on Friday night all together in our matching shirts. (It was pretty funny. Some lady behind us asked if we were a day care center. RIGHT! On a Friday night! It totally cracked me up! Like three kids per family is SO many!)

Saturday morning, all of the adults got to go to a session at the temple together. (Except for my BIL Brian, who wasn't able to join us for the reunion.) What an awesome opportunity that was! It's like getting a little tiny glimpse of what it will be like when we are all together after this earthly life. We spent Saturday afternoon picnicing at the Aurora Reservoir. Saturday night was the highlight of the weekend, the family talent show. (I call it the family spectacle!!) I am hoping to get some pictures of that, but apparently I forgot how to use a camera that weekend, so this is it for now. (On that same note, if you are a Monson and are reading this, could you email me some pics from the reunion?)

On Sunday we all went to church together, and then had a family dinner, family home evening, and a presentation from Trent about his mission. It was a wonderful weekend that went by all too fast.

Adventure!!

2009-09-25T14:38:00.004-06:00

In August, we got one more chance to ride to the mountains with Tyler. We visited the Glenwood Springs Adventure Park while we were there. We went there for the first time two summers ago, and the kids had been begging us to take them back. We stopped in Glenwood Springs for some ice cream and found some passes at the visitors center to ride the gondola to the Adventure Park for free. So, off we went and the kids got their wish!

Riding the Gondola is Sophie's absolute FAVORITE part!

The views once you get to the top are amazing

Lily took a turn on the bungee tramp, and she was FLYING!!

Lily and Hunter also went for a ride on the mechanical bull. Too funny!

We have sure grown to love summer in the mountains! We have found a lot of beautiful and fun places to spend time, in bigger cities and in tiny towns. If you ever need a mountain tour guide, just let us know!

A different kind of Summer

2009-09-22T14:54:00.013-06:00

This year, we had a different kind of summer than we have ever had before. The kind where naptime is flexible, (if not nonexistant), there are no diapers or a diaper bag, and everyone can walk all by themselves. The kind of summer where you feel like doing something, and then you do it just because you can! It was so much fun to just load up and go, we ran ourselves ragged this year! It was great!

One of our favorite places to venture this summer was the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. (It's air conditioned!) There is so much to do there we can never get to it all in one day.

We especially enjoyed the new permanent exhibit "Expedition Health". If you haven't seen it yet, you should! My little scientists got to conduct their own experiment.

Hunter and Lily using their balance to "cross the river".

Another one of our adventures this summer took us to the Botanic Gardens. We were there on a free day, so it was a zoo! I had only been to the Botanic Gardens once for a wedding, so this was a treat for me too. We could have spent the entire day wandering the MANY different gardens.

The kids especially liked the Japanese Tea Garden.

We were there for the "Jurassic Gardens" exhibit

And of course, Lily was in a flower garden where she belonged. We took a lot of pictures of Lily with lilies.

Water lilies

Day lilies

Our day in the sunny gardens was enough to exhaust even my most stout hearted little adventurer!!

Casa Bonita

2009-09-22T14:04:00.005-06:00

Ah, Casa Bonita. I hadn't been to Casa Bonita since I was a teenager, but on the last day the Monson reunion ended we met up at "North America's Largest Restaurant" for crappy food and lots of fun!

Here is Lil again, always muggin'

She really is smiling, I swear! It just looks like she is being tortured.

Look at that handsome face!

All kidding aside, we had a really good time. The kids had never been to the "Pretty House", and they couldn't have had more fun! The food was mediocre, the soapapillas were awesome, and the ambience couldn't be beat! Even Sophie ventured into Black Bart's Cave, (only once though!), and Lily got picked to help break the pinata. We watched the cliff divers and the mariachi band. If you haven't ventured to Casa Bonita yet, you really should try it. (Just once might do it!)

More Summer Fun!

2009-09-22T11:36:00.002-06:00

The Monday following the fourth, we headed to the Estes Park to spend the afternoon at the Monson family reunion. On the way, we stopped in Boulder to wander the Pearl Street Mall. I haven't been there in a long time, and it was a lot of fun!

We found a spot with movie theatre seats to sit in at the candy store. What did we watch? Willie Wonka, of course! This candy shop was seriously the coolest. They had all kinds of candy that I haven't seen in years. I felt like a kid again! We came home with Cherry Mash, Idaho Spuds, strawberry Charleston Chew, Beeman's gum, and of course, a Wonka Bar.

Here we are at the YMCA in Estes Park with Nana and Papa Monson

And here we are with Aunt Tonya. I love that we are surrounded by beautiful scenery and we are standing on asphalt in front of a building and a car. No one over said I was a photographer!

Here is the reason for the reunion, and one of the coolest people you will ever meet. This is Tyler's ninety-five year-old Grandma Monson. She is "famous" for her silly glasses. Oh, and her maiden name is Campbell. Get it?

Fourth of July!

2009-09-22T10:53:00.004-06:00

Well, I have finally blogged my way through June and into July. We had the good fortune of having Tyler's parents and sister Tonya join us for the weekend of the fourth this year. We also tried a new fourth of July celebration this year: soccer. All the Monsons got together and celebrated the fourth at Dick's Sporting Goods Park to watch the Colorado Rapids play the Chicago Fire.

My SIL Tonya knows one of the players on the Fire, so we were actually cheering for Chicago this time. (It felt SO weird to sit in the stands and not cheer for the Colorado team! I am a native and a sports fan you know!) There was a little festival with activities in the parking lot before the game. The kids got to make necklaces and get their faces painted, and they scored some flags and footballs and soccer balls. We love the free stuff!
At half time, there was a mascot soccer game that was pretty hilarious. A lot of the local mascots were in attendance, including mascots from CU, CSU, and the AFA. Also in the background you might be able to spot that world famous mascot - the moose from the Smiling Moose Deli.

Once the game was over, we donned our glowing jewelry and waited anxiously for the fireworks to begin.

And once they did begin, we waited some more. They were experiencing some technical difficulties with the fireworks and the music, and the show was pretty much a dud. However, we still had a lot of fun together. Plus, we got to go back to another Rapids game three weeks later, free of charge, and see the fireworks we were supposed to see the first time around.

All in all, a happy fourth of July!

Happy Birthday Lily!!

2009-09-21T11:13:00.006-06:00

On June 26th Lily celebrated her sixth birthday! It's hard for me to believe that she is already such a big girl! When she woke up on her birthday morning, this is what she found:

She couldn't wait to ride her new bike!!

On the evening of her birthday Lily got to party with a couple of friends.

She got the girls together to have makeovers, eat pizza, and watch the world premiere of "Princess Protection Program". (Wait a minute! Makeup, pizza, and a movie? She thinks she's 13 already!) Here's the before picture....

...and here's the after! Aren't they glamorous?

Here's Lil getting her makeup done. She was so excited. The girls got to choose their colors, and all three of them chose pink and blue eye shadow. Lovely!

She got a phone call during the party so her cousins could sing her happy birthday. (Tell me she doesn't look like a 13 year-old? Scary!)

And here's the birthday girl, muggin' for the camera. Lil doesn't just stand and smile, it's always about striking a pose!

The partygoers eating their pizza and watching the movie

It was a very fun party, and a very great day! It's hard for me to believe that beautiful big girl is the same one who spent her first eight days in the NICU. We waited for what seemed like forever to bring her home, and she was so sick. And now here she is, growing, smiling, playing, laughing, and causing all sorts of trouble. We wouldn't have it any other way!

June Birthday Girls!!

2009-09-21T10:34:00.003-06:00

Since Lil and Soph both have June birthdays, we celebrated with one big fat family birthday party of the two of them. I probably won't always be lucky enough to have them want to share a party, but it sure works for me!

Look at Sophie sitting just like a little lady. She sure is a convincing actress!

Blowing out the candles on their cupcakes in ice cream cones

And of course, lots of presents from all their "adoring fans"!

Our baby is three!

2009-09-09T22:10:00.008-06:00

While we were out of town in June, we got to celebrate Sophie's third birthday. What birthday is complete without a huge chocolate dessert to kick off the festivities? This was actually Sophie's birthday eve.

Our "baby" was thrilled to wake up on her birthday in a hotel room.

On the way home, we stopped at Colorado Mills for a special surprise for the birthday girl. It has become a tradition in our family that when you turn three, you get to go to Build-a-Bear and build a special friend. Sophie chose a pink unicorn, which she bestowed with the moniker "Pinkie". She lovingly filled her with fluff... and then gave her a bath.

She named her and made a birth certificate.

Then she picked her out an outfit and a travel bag to bring her to her new home. Sophie was SO stinkin' cute, dad suckered for the "pony purse".

It was such a busy day, the birthday girl totally passed out on the way home with her new friend.

On a somewhat separate note, I can hardly believe that our baby is three! Sophie has definitely challenged us over the last three years, but she is an absolute delight. For the first year of her life, Sophie was a very mellow, sweet, quiet baby. I don't know what happened after that! She can be such a handful, but she gives us reasons to smile and laugh EVERY single day. Sometimes I call her "little Sophie Sunshine" because she truly lights up our lives. She tries hard to be like her big sister, sharing many of the same interests, (like the color pink, High School Musical, and the Jonas Brothers!) In fact, Sophie can name most Jonas Brothers songs in the first two measures, no lie! Sophie is a social butterfly and a good friend. We are very lucky to have Sophie in our family.

On the Road

2009-09-09T17:09:00.005-06:00

The one advantage of having a daddy that travels a lot is getting to tag along with him when he travels in the summer. This summer, we hit the road with dad and headed for the mountains. If you ever need to find a park in a small mountain town, give us a call because we probably know where to find one!

Our first stop was Idaho Springs where we found...a playground!

Then we spent some time in Telluride...

enjoying the beautiful views!

Notice the name of the mountain range!

We rode the gondola from Mountain Village into Telluride and found a yummy ice cream shop.

Then we played in Winter Park.

And played mini golf in Glenwood Springs.

It was quite a trip!

Take me out to the Ballgame

2009-08-27T16:53:00.010-06:00

One of our favorite things to do as a family is go to the Rockies game. Our kids love to be "Rockies Rookies", and let me tell you, it's the best deal in town!

Waiting patiently outside the field

As a part of their membership, there is a special day they get to walk around the field and have a "parade". This year, it was in June. Even as an adult, I am awed by being down on the field and looking up into the stands. After quite a rain delay, it was finally our turn to take the field!

So happy to be on the field!!

They had a GREAT time! On the way out, we passed through this doorway under the stands:

Doesn't that just say it all?

Something's Missin'

2009-08-27T16:47:00.003-06:00

My Bug lost her first tooth today! Isn't this grin adorable?

She was so anxious to loose her first tooth, she actually pulled it right out of the gum on our way home from school. That's my girl!!

The Melting Pot

2009-08-14T23:06:00.004-06:00

We actually got to go on a REAL date in June! We were invited to celebrate my sister's and my parent's anniversary at The Melting Pot. My folks were there of course, as well as all of my sisters and their husbands, plus a couple of friends. We had a WONDERFUL time. The restaurant definitely lived up to all the hype. The food was absolutely delicious. It was fun to sit over a long, drawn out dinner and just chat and laugh and have a good time.

Yummy chocolate!!

Day Camp

2009-08-14T23:01:00.004-06:00

June brought Hunter's first chance to participate in Cub Scout Day Camp. Having four sisters, this is a foreign world to me! Hunter was very excited about it and had a great time. Of course, archery was the highlight of the camp.

Day camp was a three day affair, and one of the days was cancelled because of bad weather, but Hunter still got to do a lot. Best of all, Tyler signed up to go on one of the days, so I didn't even have to be a chaperone this year! ;)

School's Out for Summer!

2009-08-14T22:31:00.006-06:00

Hunter and Lily both wrapped up successful school years at the beginning of June. The year seemed to pass quickly, but I was VERY ready for summer vacation to begin. The second to last week of school brought Lily's first field day, and she was thrilled.

The three legged race (with a boy!)

Lil was good enough to include little sis in the activities

Lily and her teacher Ms. Sonja

Hunter finished out his year by participating in the third grade talent show on the last full day of school. He talked about participating for several weeks, but I wasn't sure he would actually follow through. Even after plans to prepare a talent with friends fell through and he was left to go it alone, Hunter decided he wanted to participate. I was SHOCKED! (And proud!) Hunter is SO smart, athletic, and competitive, but he is also more introverted than the girls. But he got up there and played the part of Nick Jonas and sang "Australia" by The Jonas Brothers. He was so darling!!

I am so proud of what the kids learned and accomplished last year. Lily is a good student and a great friend. She is very social and knew eveyone in her class and most of the kindies in the other classes too. She was a good example for her classmates. She liked to talk about her days and share with us what she was learning. She is a blooming reader, getting better at it each day. She brought home good report cards and overall had a great first year!

Hunter continues to be our learner. He is so curious and passionate about new subjects. He is a voracios reader, sometimes reading at least one chapter book a day, even when he is in school. He was already reading at a high school level at the beginning of third grade, so who knows where he is now! He also loves math and catches on very quickly. He participated in before school intramurals this year and absolutely loved it. He is also a quiet but loyal friend. He had a friend in his class that was diagnosed with diabetes this school year, and Hunter was assigned to be the one to take him to the nurse every day because he is very dependable. Hunter would come home and tell me if his friend was doing well, or that his blood sugar was high and that he was concerned about him. He knew what this little boy's blood sugar levels should be, and he would try to help him stay healthy. I was really proud that Hunter took such an interest in this friend's health and was very supportive of him. I had the "privelage" of being the room mom for Hunter's class last year, and it was fun to be at their parties and have a good time with the kids in his class. I can hardly believe that he only has two years left in elementary school! I hope they're great!

How Time Flies...

2009-08-14T22:25:00.002-06:00

They say that time flies when you are having fun, so I guess that means we have been having a BLAST this summer! I knew it had been a while since I posted, but I didn't realize just how long until today. May seems like a LONG time ago, and a lot has happened since then. So, in the interest of my record for our posterity, I have some catching up to do. If you want to read along, good luck!!

Field Trip!

2009-05-06T14:14:00.004-06:00

Last week I had the opportunity to join Lily and the rest of the kindergarteners on their field trip to the zoo. We had a really fun day! The absolute highlight of the day for Lily HANDS DOWN was riding the school bus. She had never ridden the bus, and she was so excited she was counting the days.

She told me on the way to the zoo that she'd been to the zoo "a hundred times", so the bus was WAY cooler.On the way home she decided that she didn't even need to sit with mom any more. I am already uncool, and she's five. Boy am I in trouble!Our little group enjoyed the pachyderm show.And of course, we all had to play the bongo drums.I loved this baboon! She just sat and put her hands on the window, and the kids would put their hands up to hers on the other side of the glass. She sat there for the longest time, it was like they were having a little upspoken conversation that I wasn't in on.

All in all, we had a great day. I was exhausted! I guess chasing five and six year olds at the zoo is good exercise!

Animal in the House

2009-04-28T22:09:00.003-06:00

A wolf, to be specific. Hunter earned his Wolf in Cub Scouts, and it was awarded last week at pack meeting.

He worked hard, and if you have a Cub Scout, you know that mom and dad worked hard too! We are very proud of his first big scouting accomplishment.

Better Late Than Never

2009-04-26T14:52:00.006-06:00

Ya, I know Easter was two weeks ago, but better late than never, right? So here are a few pics of the kids in their Easter duds, minus the ones where everyone was yelling, screaming, and generally causing chaos. (That would be most of them.) WHY is taking pictures of children so hard?

Lil's hair is a mess because we had to try a second round of pictures after church, but hey, she has a great smile!

The kids got Sing Star for the PS2 from the Easter Bunny with High School Musical Sing It. It has quickly become the favorite activity at our house.

Sophie CRACKS ME UP! I had no idea she actually knew so many of the words to those songs. Watching her perform is worth the price of admission!

As you can see, Tyler really gets into it.

Just let us know when you feel the need to bust out a few HSM tunes, you're welcome to join us!

Why?

2009-04-21T13:58:00.012-06:00

I ask myself this question hundreds of times a day. Kids have a way of making you go "hmmm??". More often than not, my why's are in reference to my sunshine, my youngest child, my Sophie. For example:

WHY are you obsessed with stickers, and WHY does every single sticker have to go directly to your face? It is a very strange phenomena, like they are caught in a tractor beam and dragged to the end of her nose. The first sticker always goes right on the end of that little button nose, and she can walk around that way for hours. I don't know how she stands it, it drives me crazy just looking at it!

Here are a few other why's I want to record. Someday, I hope I'll laugh about them.

Every time we get in the car, I find myself wondering, WHY do you have to remove your shoes? Every shoe, every time we go anywhere. I told her today that if she took her shoes off again, I would leave her in the car in the garage.

WHY do you have to eat everything with your hands? My beautiful verging on three year-old does not use utensils. She eats salad with dressing with her fingers when she can get away with it. And WHY does everything you eat end up all over your face? No lie, I can give this girl ONE M&M and she will become an absolute chocolate-faced disaster.

OK, I know this it TMI, but WHY do you have to poop your diaper EVERY SUNDAY during Relief Society? It has gotten so ridiculous that when the nursery leader opens the RS room door and Sophie walks in, everyone starts to chuckle. (Great, thanks guys). And if that isn't bad enough, WHY do you announce in full voice every time, "Mommy, I'm poopy!"

WHY do you currently answer every question with the answer "I think so"? Do you need to go potty? I think so. Did you hit your sister? I think so. Did you make that mess? I think so! Either you did or you didn't, just fess up sister!

Oh, and WHY did you feel the need to get out of your bed two nights ago, sneak over to your sister's bed, and remove her socks from her feet while she was sleeping?

Most of all, WHY, despite all of the chaos you bring with you, are you so adorable, loveable, huggable, kissable, wonderful? It's a good thing you are. Kids are like that, aren't they?

Pinewood Derby Pro

2009-04-09T21:51:00.005-06:00

OK, so really he's a Pinewood Derby rookie, but he sure acted like a pro. Tonight was the much awaited night to race that little wooden car we have spent so much time building!

He had the best car before the race even started, because it was painted in Cougar Blue with a BYU logo. That's my boy!

Here he is waiting for his next heat. He raced sixteen heats, and he won more than he lost. Way to go bud!

That's his car on the left (in front!). Doesn't it just look fast? We had a lot of fun at the derby, and most of all, I was proud of what a good sport Hunter was. He can be pretty competitive, but he didn't show it in the least. Maybe I should find out what his secret is!

Don't look now...

2009-04-09T21:46:00.003-06:00

but she's still in her bed! Sophie, that is. We finally moved our little tornado into a big girl bed today.

I know, the kid is almost three. But having her in the crib was so much easier. It was the only time I EVER got a break from her constant craziness. Anyway, I tucked her in a while ago and haven't heard a peep since. It's a MIRACLE! (Knocking on wood right now...) Here's hoping for sweet dreams and uninterrupted sleep!

Safe and Sound

2009-04-04T11:34:00.004-06:00

The weather when we set out yesterday was beautiful, and we decided we wanted to take advantage of it while it lasted. We kept checking in with our "people" in Denver and in Chicago who were keeping tabs on the weather for us. The reports remained discouraging, so we decided to continue to press forward as long as we were able. We had mostly dry roads until we hit northern Colorado, and the snow was coming down hard and straight sideways. We didn't want to get stuck, so we decided to keep ourselves up and go all the way home. We got here about two a.m. and beat the blizzard. And then we woke up this morning and discovered a small skiff of snow. The streets were barely wet. Some blizzard. At least we're home, and watching general conference in our own warm abode in our sweats. I'll take it.

Travelogue, Day Six (Friday)

2009-04-04T11:34:00.001-06:00

As I type, we are back in the car headed west towards home. I'll post tonight or tomorrow when I have internet access again. Saying goodbye is always the hardest part of the trip, especially with kids. Ours are old enough to understand that they won't see Nana and Papa for a while, but young enough to be absolutely heart broken when we go. We left Chicago with heavy hearts and teary eyes, but we had a wonderful week. We were planning to split the trip into two days again and spend the night in Nebraska, but we'll see. The weather reports from Colorado aren't good, with six to twelve inches of snow forecast and a blizzard warning in effect. So, we are going to drive as far as we can and see what happens. We might try to keep driving to beat most of the storm. We'll let you know.

Travelogue, Day Five (Thursday)

2009-04-04T11:07:00.014-06:00

Out trip is quickly drawing to a close. It never ceases to amaze me how fast the time goes when you are on vacation! I wish I could slow it down and enjoy every last minute. Thursday began with a little shopping trip so the kids could finish spending their special trip money. Hunter is coming home with three new baseball caps to add to his already immense collection, one from the Lincoln Park Zoo, one for the Bulls, and one for the White Sox. Lily bought a shirt and hat at the zoo, and then found a White Sox t-shirt today. Sophie also bought a stylin' hat at the Zoo complete with matching scrunchie, and then spent the rest of her money on a Cubs t-shirt to make Nana proud.

After naps we ventured back downtown to go to Navy Pier and visit the Chicago Children's Museum. The kids could have stayed for hours. The museum was a madhouse, so poor Sophie spent the evening seeing the sites with her friend, "the monkey on her back". For the uninitiated, it's the friendly version of two year-old on a leash. You may think it's cruel, but we'd rather come home with Sophie than without her, and she wouldn't think twice about bolting. Anyway, there was so much to do at the museum that we couldn't even visit all of the exhibits, but the ones we did see were fantastic.

We got to play with shadows butterflies and the "rain" in the Big Back Yard exhibit.

This rain was so cool. It was projected onto a big screen on the wall, but when you would put an arm out or put up an umbrella, the rain would go around it.

Sophie loved "Kids Town", where she shopped for groceries, cooked in the kitchen, drove a bus, washed and filled up a car, and did many other important jobs around town.

Hunter and Lil loved the climbing schooner. They got to get on the deck of the "schooner" on the second floor and climb the nets through up to the third floor and across to the other side.

We also got to go digging for dinosaur bones and meet a T-Rex up close.
Hunter had a great time in the Inventing Lab. He got to design an airplane, and then send it up to the ceiling on a pulley system and release it to see how long it would stay in the air. He also got to make an invention on the computer, and play on the musical slide.

Sophie also loved playing in the Nature area, where she got to go "fishing". Of course, in true Sophie fashion, she had half the pond on her shirt by the time she was finished.

Before we left, Lily and Hunter spent time building with wood, nuts, and bolts. It was so fun to watch Lily and Papa working on their contraption together.

Of course, the very best part of the outing was spending all that time with Nana and Papa with smiles on our faces. It was a true joy to watch my kiddos with Nana and Papa, who they adore, making memories and having fun together.

Travelogue, Day Four (Wednesday)

2009-04-02T13:49:00.006-06:00

Wednesday was a downtown kind of day. It was pretty chilly down by the lake, but we had a great time and packed in a lot of action. Our first stop was a premier picture spot. This is Lake Michigan behind us and the Chicago skyline.

Our next stop was a rally for the Chicago's MLS team, the Fire. Here's the kids with their mascot Sparky. We all got to try our hands (or our feet!) at kicking a soccer ball into this huge net to win a prize. We all know how athletic and how coordinated I am, but the fam talked me into giving it a try anyway. I stepped up, took a kick, and ....won myself a Chicago Fire t-shirt on the first try! Yeah me! I was so shocked, but Hunter thought I was pretty cool at that moment. It was fun.

Next we walked down to Millenium Park to see "The Bean". This thing is so cool! It's shaped so that you can walk all the way around it and see the Chicago skyline reflected in its entirety. It's really quite fascinating.

After Millenium Park we went to Al's Roast Beef for lunch, a Chicago specialty. If you haven't had Al's Italian Beef, you are missing out!

Our last stop on our downtown tour was Lincoln Park Zoo to visit some furry friends. Here's the kids riding a hippo.

I know Hunter feels misunderstood sometimes!

Of course, we had to visit my favorite friends, the giraffes.

Needless to say, we were pretty tired out on the way home, but everybody had a great time!

Travelogue, Day Three (Tuesday)

2009-04-01T21:53:00.006-06:00

IKEA. Need I say more? Tuesday was a day for me. I had my very first visit to IKEA. Now I guess I know what all the fuss is about.

I could've wandered through that enormous store all day long. Especially since Hunter and Lily were in the play area being supervised FOR FREE! We even had lunch at the IKEA Cafe - thanks Nana! Yummm....swedish meatballs. Shopping, lunch, babysitting, all in one place! What a store!

Travelogue, Day Two (Monday)

2009-04-01T21:27:00.008-06:00

Monday was a day for new friends. Aunt Tonya is a nanny for four young kids, and they got to spend the day playing together. I love the way that kids make new friends, it comes so easy to them. They had so much fun. They started out in the backyard on the trampoline, another one of the fun things at Nana and Papa's.

Then we went for a walk to the park down the street, where we slid on the slides...

swung on the swings...

climbed the rock walls...

and generally played and had a great time.

One of the highlights of the day was visiting Colonial Cafe for FHE dessert. Aunt Tonya treated us to a "kitchen sink"!

Monday ended with a relaxing dip in Nana and Papa's hot tub. We could get used to this!

Travelogue, Day One (Sunday)

2009-04-01T21:17:00.004-06:00

Sunday dawned bright and cold. Even though it was snowing outside, the girls donned their Easter dresses a couple of weeks early, and we headed off to church with Nana and Papa. The kids also discovered a wonderful new thing at Nana and Papa Monson's house: the player piano.

Sophie tried her hardest just to reach the pedals to turn the drum to play the music. Even with her short little legs, she insisted on doing it herself. It turns out that Lily is surprisingly adept at playing the (player) piano! She would sit on that bench and work those pedals all day long. I think we heard "Climb Every Mountain" at least ten times today, but hey, she was happy! This piano used to belong to Tyler's grandma and they used to love to play it when they visited her in Colorado. I love that the piano that Ty grew up loving at his grandma's house is now something that my kids are learning to love at their grandma's house. What a wonderful family tradition.

Goodbye Blizzard, Hello Windy City!

2009-03-31T18:25:00.005-06:00

Ah, spring break. This year for spring break, we actually decided to pack up the car and hit the road. We're usually the family that doesn't go anywhere, but not this year! We actually made it out of town the day after our "blizzard" and covered the 1,000 miles it takes to get to Chicago (Naperville) to visit Nana and Papa Monson. We had a surprisingly easy trip, considering the weather and the length of the drive. So here we are enjoying out spring break in the Chi-town. More exciting details to come!!

The Hundred Dollar Sticker

2009-03-24T13:46:00.002-06:00

This might look like an ordinary sticker, but it's not! At our house, we call it the "hundred dollar sticker". One Sunday morning in February, Hunter and Sophie were horsing around on my bed while I got ready for church. Sophie tried to get off of the bed, and Hunter tried to keep her on the bed by pulling her up by the wrist. Next thing I know, Sophie is screaming in pain. I didn't take it lightly, because Soph is fairly indestructible. She continued to cry over a period of time and complain of pain in her arm, and I became concerned. She wouldn't let me move her arm at all. Tyler was being dilligent and wasn't answering his phone because he was already in meetings at church. So I called Nana, and dropped HK and Lil off with her while Papa rode with us to the emergency room. I could tell that Sophie was in pain, but she was a trooper. We arrived at the Children's Hospital urgent care and the triage nurse told us it sounded like something called "nuresmaid's elbow". I had never heard of that, but now I wish I had. Apparently, in children under six, the end of the bone in the lower arm is not completely formed, and if you pull a small child by the lower arm, this can cause the tendon to slip off the end of the bone and in to the joint space of the elbow. (Or something like that!) Anyway, we waited to see the doctor, but by the time he arrived Sophie was no longer complaining of pain, and somehow she had managed to slip that tendon back into place herself before the doctor even came in. Usually, the tendon has to be manipulated back into place by someone who knows what they are doing. Unbelievable! So, after all of that, all we had to show for our Sunday morning visit to the ER: a hundred dollar copay, and a sticker!

February in review

2009-03-24T13:33:00.003-06:00

Let's fast forward just a little bit more to February. . . .

Lily's class celebrated the 1ooth day of school

Lily and friend at the Valentine's day party

HK at his Valentine's party, singing karaoke

For Hunter's class Valentines was also "crazy hair day". Luckily, aunt NeeNee had an Elvis wig in her costume closet! Here he is getting into character.

The Stock Show!

2009-03-24T13:23:00.004-06:00

Every January Papa Whitmill takes all of the grandkids to the Stock Show. It's a little glimpse of farm life for our little city kids, and they love it!

We love being with the cousins!

Sophie even got up close to the animals this year

Aren't those just the greeatest hats?

Lily driving, a truly scary thought!

He looks a little too much at home behind the wheel for my liking!

Wild Lights!

2009-03-24T13:20:00.002-06:00

We look forward every year to our holiday visit to the Zoo to enjoy Wild Lights. This year, we even rode the carousel.

Lil and I cheering for the COUGAR, of course!

December...in a nutshell

2009-03-24T13:09:00.004-06:00

December brought us all of the things that we could have hoped for: Christmas, presents, parties, family, snow, and of course the Savior.

Lily's holiday party at school, complete with SUGAR!

Hunter's school party. I got to be the room mom this year, WOO HOO!

The Sunday before Christmas. I hate to admit it, but I do love dressing them up!

Christmas morning

My goobers in their new jammies!

HALLELUJAH!

2009-03-24T13:04:00.002-06:00

I have finally gotten the pictures from the camera to the computer! (Thanks Jenn!) I am a lost blogger without my pictures! Technology is great, as long as it is working in your favor. Between computer virus problems and camera/computer issues, I haven't been able to get pictures on the blog in a while. I am not sure anyone even reads this blog anymore besides me, but if for no other reason than to document our comings and goings, I am going to summarize the last few months in a nutshell. Here we go!

The Luck of the Irish

2009-03-17T13:43:00.006-06:00

This holiday holds a special place in my heart, and it certainly is a lucky day for me, (even though I'm not Irish!). Twelve years ago today, I became a fiance. It went like this...

Tyler and I went out on our first date on January 17, 1997. In February we drove from Provo to Denver for President's Day weekend, an excuse for Ty to meet my family. And then in March, we used his dad's birthday as an excuse to fly to Chicago together and meet his family. At the time, I don't think either of us saw this as crazy, it felt exactly right. I am sure everyone else thought we were crazy though! On March 17, 1997 Tyler took me to downtown Chicago, where they dye the river green for St. Patrick's Day.

We went to the Art Insitute together, and then he took me down to lake Michigan. We walked to the end of a pier, and he knelt down and read me a poem that he had written, and asked me if I would marry him. It had been two months to the day since our first date! Obviously I said yes! It was a picture perfect day.

Little did I know then what our future would look like, and much of it still remains to be seen. However, the last twelve years have brought us three beautiful children and many smiles. I feel extremely blessed to be married to such a wonderful man, a great father, a loving patriarch, and a man who honors his priesthood. I am so grateful that he asked, and that I was smart enough to say yes.

Happy St. Patrick's Day sweetheart!

Spreading Sunshine

2009-03-12T15:25:00.002-06:00

Thanks Allie for passing this on......The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me! Made with tons of love just for you! It might be a fun sewing project, a sweet letter to you from me, or some yummy goodies, you might be surprised what you get! Give it a try! The catch? You must re -post this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. The first 5 people to do so and leave a comment telling me they did win a lovely little treat for themselves! Have Fun! Ready........Set............Go!

February's recipe...a few days late

2009-03-03T21:21:00.002-07:00

This month's recipe was Hunter's choice. It's one of his new favorites, and easier than it might look!

Cheesy Sausage Stromboli
(From Taste of Home magazine)

SERVINGS: 16
CATEGORY: Main Dish
METHOD: Baked
TIME: Prep: 30 min. + rising Bake: 20 min.

Ingredients:
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast
1-1/2 cups warm water (120° to 130°)
1/2 cup warm milk (120° to 130°)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 pounds bulk pork sausage
4 cups (16 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
3 eggs
1 teaspoon minced fresh basil or 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
1. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Add water, milk and butter; beat on low until well combined. Turn onto a well-floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
2. Meanwhile, in a skillet, cook sausage until no longer pink; drain and cool. Stir in mozzarella, 2 eggs and basil; set aside.
3. Punch dough down; divide in half. Roll one portion into a 15-in. x 10-in. rectangle on a greased baking sheet. Spoon half of the sausage mixture lengthwise down one side of rectangle to within 1 in. of edges. Fold dough over filling; pinch edges to seal. Cut four diagonal slits on top of stromboli. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
4. Beat remaining egg; brush over loaves. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Slice; serve warm. Yield: 2 loaves.

Note that the recipe makes two loaves. One will feed my family dinner, and this works great when you are taking dinner to another family!

Must Read!

2009-02-25T15:45:00.002-07:00

In the absence of the cord that connects the camera to the computer and continued virus problems on the laptop, my posts so far this year have been few and far betweem. However, Ty emailed me this link today for an article at ESPN.com by Rick Reilly. I know you don't all love sports, especially football, as much as I do, but read it anyway. He expresses the way I feel about professional athletes being role models, whether they like it or not. And it doesn't hurt that the article is about our very own #7, Denver Bronco hero and legend, and my personal favorite, JOHN ELWAY! It only takes a minute or two, and it's totally worth it. Oh, and grab a tissue.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3930609

Recipe of the month

2009-01-29T20:02:00.006-07:00

One of my new year's "resolutions" (for lack of a better word) this year is to be better at getting a good dinnner on the table for my family each night. I am becoming a really great recipe collector, and love recipes that are practical, feed my whole family, and don't use a lot of exotic ingredients that are not found in my pantry. Since I have collected some great recipes lately, and to help you all get dinner on the table too, I have decided to post at least one dinner recipe each month. I won't post them unless we've tried them and my family actually eats them. And of course, I will give credit where credit is due! I'd love to get your feedback if you try them! So, without further ado, here is a great January recipe to keep you warm. Kudos go to my mother-in-law Jackie for this awesome recipe.

Comforting Chicken Soup

2 quarts chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 cup sour cream

4-6 cups dry noodles (country pasta)

2 cups cut up chicken or turkey

sliced carrots

sliced celery

small onion, diced

parsley flakes

Boil 4-6 cups dry noodles with 2 quarts chicken broth together with carrots, celery, and parsley flakes and cook until tender. DO NOT DRAIN. Add chicken. Cream together the cream of chicken and mushroom soups and the sour cream, and add to the soup. Mix into the noodles. Heat until warm but DO NOT BOIL!

I use the "Country Pasta" from Sam's, it comes in a big bag and the noodles are very good. My MIL says they are only available in the winter, so go get some! Add some warm rolls and you have a happy family! My SIL tells me that leftover turkey is great in this soup, we've only had it with chicken. Happy eating!

Seriously?!?!

2009-01-20T16:18:00.003-07:00

He's eight. My little man, that is. And it's January in Colorado. And it was like seventy degrees outside today. Playing outside is a given, right? His aunt called to invite him to the park, and I had to say no. He's EIGHT YEARS OLD, and he has been doing his homework since we got home at three. And he's still doing it. And he's not close to finished. And he is a quick study. I feel like the worst mom in the world, denying him of this beautiful afternoon. And I am really starting to wonder about this CSAP crap. You see, he's a third grader, so this will be his first year taking the test. The overabundance of homework is attributed to the test. I would like to strangle the test! My little boy, (who I am admittedly trying to keep young as long as possible), doesn't get to be a kid today because he's got way to much freakin' homework. AAHHH!! I guess I am a little more bitter about it than I realized. And don't even get me started on my tirade about how the district has decided he no longer qualifies for services with the speech/language pathologist. The kid is working his tail off, heaven forbid they give him a little bit of help. Oh, and by the way, he hasn't uttered one word of complaint about not getting to play outside. What a kid.

P.S. Forty-five minutes later...he is finally done. He came racing down the stairs to ask permission to go out back. He's been looking forward to it quietly all afternoon. I just told his sister no, and when I told him this he just sat down on the stairs and started to cry. So I said, "Hurry up, put on your jacket, and go shoot some hoops. And oh ya, I'm proud of you."

Leave of Absence

2009-01-15T20:21:00.002-07:00

Well, that's what I am calling it anyway. That sounds better than "unintentionally failing to pay any attention to my blog whatsoever for almost two months". I am not exactly sure what happened, but December FLEW right by, and here we are. You may have wondered, but we are all still present and accounted for. Our holidays were wonderful, although they sped by much too quickly. My computer is having some serious issues, so I hope there will be Christmas pictures sometime soon, just not today! Meanwhile, life goes on as usual. So, a belated happy new year to all of you, and here's to catching up! I'll put blogging on that list of resolutions I am so great at keeping...

A request from Tyler

2008-12-24T08:23:00.002-07:00

Wow, I had no idea it had been so long since my last post! I guess we have some catching up to do. In the mean time, Tyler has asked me to pass along a link to all of you. It is, of course, sports related. And it's a great story. It's full of the spirit of the season. So, when the presents are opened and the new toys are assembled, and you get a minute to yourself, use it to read this story.

Pump It Up!

2008-11-24T15:44:00.002-07:00

Coming in from the car the other day, Sophie stops, grabs the air pump, and says to me...

"Just a minute mom. I gotta pump up the party real quick."

No lie. I have no idea where she comes up with this stuff!

Girls Midnight Out!

2008-11-21T09:14:00.004-07:00

I don't know what anybody else thought of the movie, but I had a great time last night! For a little while I felt young again, seeing a brand new movie in the middle of the night. This morning, I feel dang old. But hey, you only live once, right?

The movie wasn't my favorite ever, but I definitely enjoyed it. I wasn't sure about the cast from the photos, but they definitely grew on me, especially Edward. I won't say more than that for the slackers who haven't seen it yet. I mean, it's been out for like nine hours now, get with it!

I will be anxious to hear from my fellow fans what you all thought of the flic!

I am actually not sure what was more fun, watching the movie itself or listening to all the hoots and gasps of the female teenage fans in the theatre. Talk about feeling old! It was SO funny listening to all of those youngins' panting over Edward and Jacob. It was also funny because it was one in the morning! But I have lived to tell the tale, so thanks for a really fun night, Jenn, Allie, Nikki, and especially Mom!

Twilight at Midnight!

2008-11-20T20:20:00.004-07:00

Technically, the movie actually starts at 12:01 a.m. Which makes me...officially crazy. I'm too old for this stuff! And I know I will be sorry in the morning, but tonight I am pretty dang excited! I'll let you know what I think tomorrow...if I can stay awake long enough to post!

True Blue

2008-11-18T08:38:00.010-07:00

(Warning: picture overload below!)

Saturday was a GREAT day. I had been waiting for it for weeks. Saturday was the day I got to see the BYU football team on the field in person.

The game was at the Air Force Academy, and we had great seats six rows up thanks to my (former Air Force football player) BIL. Thanks Trav!!

We arrived in all our BYU blue a couple hours early to tailgate...

...and we got to go meet Cosmo!!

(I think I was more excited than anyone else about this!)

Lily got to have her face painted.

Trav got randomly selected to attempt a forty yard field goal to win a new truck! He missed, but it was a valiant effort. (Let's be honest, who would make a forty yarder in front of all those people!)

We had a wonderful time sitting with and family and friends, (even though half the family cheers for the wrong team!!) ;)

But all's well that ends well, and the Cougars came out with the victory in the end!!

A Self Fulfilling Prophecy

2008-11-13T20:43:00.003-07:00

Gee, thanks for the shirt Aunt NeeNee! ;)

Heartbreak

2008-11-09T10:38:00.003-07:00

I think I might have the sweetest eight year-old boy in the world living in my house. As I mentioned, today is stake conference, and Hunter woke up sick. I thought he realized that he wouldn't get to go to Stake Conference today. He refused breakfast, (a total anomaly), and then went back to bed without mention of a book to read or asking to watch TV. He is most definitely not feeling well. He watched Tyler put on his suit and tie and head out to the church alone. But then at 10:02, (Conference started at 10:00), he looked at me absolutely horrorstruck. He said "Mom, its' 10:00!!", and I said I knew. He started to panic and said "But Stake Conference starts at 10:00!!" He was absolutely devastated. He started to sob. He told me he could get dressed so fast, and asked would I PLEASE load up the girls and quickly drive him to the church. He told me I wouldn't even have to go into the building or get the girls out of their seats, he could do it all by himself as long as I would drive him there. I told him he was too sick to go, and with tears streaming down his face, he begged me to let him go to the church. He assured me, through his half closed, glassy eyes and tear stained, fever reddened cheeks, that he felt better. He promised that he felt fine, even though I could tell he didn't. He was absolutely beside himself. We had to sneak upstairs and have a prayer together so that I could get him to settle down enough to speak again. He was heartbroken, and so was I. I had no idea that he wanted to go so badly, or that he didn't understand that he had to stay home. What a wonderful child. I was truly humbled by his sweet spirit, his tender heart that longs so completely to do what his Heavenly Father wants him to do. I am awestruck by his faith, his dilligence, and his obedience. And I am eternally grateful that he is my "little man".

Sick and Tired

2008-11-09T10:25:00.002-07:00

Well, those of you in the vicinity know that I should be at Stake Conference right now. But I'm not. Because the kids are sick, and I am tired. It started with Sophie vomiting at bedtime Tuesday night, and then proceeding to throw up literally all night long. (Of course, when hubby was out of town!) She felt a little better the next day, but has been just a little "too quiet", if you know what I mean. She was fine until she woke up early Saturday morning, again with a bed full of yuck. What the heck?!?! I thought the other kids were going to skate by, but no such luck. Sophie was up five times in the night, Lily three, and Hunter once. Lily is now tossing her cookies, and HK is running a fever. You gotta be kiddin' me! I am not sure I can handle another week of this. But they say there's always a silver lining, and I can think of a couple. One: I have gotten lots of snuggles and quality time, holding and rocking kiddos who would otherwise be too busy for me. Two: they are sick this weekend and not next weekend, when we have tickets to the BYU/AFA game at the Academy. THAT would have been terrible. Now, if I can just get some sleep...

Leaves are Falling

2008-11-03T09:23:00.006-07:00

I can't believe what a wonderful, beautiful fall we have had this year! I always say that fall is my favorite season, (well truthfully football season is my favorite season, but they happen to coincide!), but this year has been exceptional in my humble little opinion. We trick or treated without jackets, we wore sandals to church yesterday, and raked leaves on Saturday in our t-shirts. I could do this all year! Anyway, we piled up the leaves on Saturday for our annual Monson leaf jumping extravaganza! The kids look forward to raking up the leaves every fall for this very moment, and they didn't let it go to waste.

Much to our chagrin and the kids delight, we came home from church yesterday and the winds had blown...and our lawn was covered with leaves all over again. Anybody got a leaf blower? ;)

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-03T08:45:00.003-07:00

Halloween was very happy this year, (at least for he kids!), even if it did last for almost a week at our house. We decided to make the most of the unseasonably warm weather, as well as the fact that the kids were on fall break, and pack in as much Halloween as we could. Besides, I actually made costumes for the girls this year, (YES! I know it's hard to believe, but it's true!), so I figured that they better get their mileage out of them. Just in case you can't tell, Hunter was a mobster this year, Lily was a ladybug, and Sophie was a blue butterfly. We had a fun if not exhausting week! In between Halloween festivities, we also crammed in fall break trips to the library and the museum, the eye doctor, and lots of visits with cousins! Whew!! There were too may pictures, so here they are in a slideshow for your viewing enjoyment!!

I am a REALLY nice mom, and I mean REALLY REALLY nice.

2008-10-17T14:57:00.004-06:00

Why, you say? What would make me so puffed up and sure of myself, so confident in my parenting prowess that I would make such a claim? This is why:

For those of you who haven't been educated in the ways of the third grader yet, this lovely bowl is the result of the life cycle unit at school: MEALWORMS. And I am pretty sure they're an insect, becuase it says worm in their name. And, as Hunter has informed me, once they come out ouf their chrysalis, they are referred to as a beetle. Yep, insects for sure. I HATE insects. Some more then others, but I am pretty comfortable saying that I hate them all. So, when the note came home a couple of weeks ago asking for permission to bring the creepie crawlies home, I had to think REALLY hard. But Hunter is an eight year-old boy, so he had his heart set. We came to a compromise, and I told him the mealworms could come home... as long as they stayed in the garage. (Hence the car tires in the background and the lovely cement floor! Aren't I a great hostess?) Well...as you can see, the mealworms came home today. And he was SO excited that he took me to the garage to see them the second he got home. And my skin crawled and I wanted to scream, but what I did was smile and enjoy his enthusiasm. I listened patiently even though I wanted to run away as fast as my little feet would take me. He told me all the things he had learned about their life cycle, and I must admit that I was impressed. He must really be listening in class! So you see, I let the mealworms come to live with us, albeit in the garage. I really am a nice mom, aren't I?

"Potty Training"

2008-10-15T09:33:00.004-06:00

Sure, it would be great if Sophie could get out of her diaper and onto the toilet and take care of business all by herself. This wasn't exactly what I had in mind!

(And for all you out there asking the big question, the answer is YES, she is sitting IN the water!)

"One Song Snuggle"

2008-10-09T17:09:00.002-06:00

Well, don't get me wrong, there are a lot of things that I really love about being a mom. Like my "one song snuggles" with Lily. Occasionally, Lil will still take a nap after morning kindergarten. She likes to listen to my iPod, and after she chooses something from her playlist she always requests a "one song snuggle". That means that I get to climb into the bed with her and snuggle her for the duration of one song. And let me tell you, Lil is a great snuggler! This occurred today, and I realized that I needed to write it down, because she is five and I don't know how many one song snuggles there are in my future. This is definitely a sweet memory that I want to keep! It's one little thing that makes the whole day brighter.

I Love You Too!

2008-10-09T17:02:00.003-06:00

I went in to get Sophie up from her nap today, and the conversation went like this:

Mom: Hi sweetheart! Good nap!
Soph: Thank you. Where my daddy?!
Mom: He's at work. It's time to go get brother from school.
Soph: Where my daddy?!
Mom: He's at work. Let's go get your shoes on, ok?
Soph: Where my daddy?!
Mom: Daddy's at work. Let's go get Hunter and you can bring a book in the car and I will read to you. You have such a nice mommy.
Soph: I have a nice daddy.

Ah....the joys of motherhood. I'm off to cook dinner for kids who probably won't even eat it!!

Having Flashbacks

2008-10-09T09:24:00.003-06:00

We were at my mom and dad's for Sunday dinner this past weekend and my mom pulled out a dusty box of old books from the basement. It was like finding buried treasure! I have always loved to read, and some of the books in that box brought back such memories. Among them were The Babysitters Club, Sweet Valley Twins, Choose Your Own Adventures, and Encyclopedia Brown. But the real treasures were the two series of books that delighted me as a kid. I can remember reading for hours and being as happy as could be.

I absolutely LOVED the Anne of Green Gables series when I was young. If you have never read these, you might think about it. I have decided to reread these treasures twenty something years later and see if I love them as much now as I did then.

The Little House on the Prairie books were my other favorites. I've read them over and over. Thanks to the Hallmark Channel, Lily has recently been introduced to the Little House tv series. When she saw the books she was so excited and immediately asked if I would read them to her. Absolutely!!

OK, this CD wasn't in the box of dusty books, but deserves a shout out from my childhood. We had Power Tunes on a cassette tape when I was a kid. I am sure I played the tape in my rockin' purple boom box. Ah, those were the days. Anyway, if you haven't heard these songs they are worth a look for your kids. They are cheesy, corny, dorky, and goofy, and my kids LOVE them just as much as I did. The songs have titles like "Attitude", "Determination", and "Family". When I saw this on the Deseret Book website last fall I knew my kiddos had to have it.

So now, when you leave me a comment, tell me one or two things that give you flashbacks!

Sophie Adventures

2008-10-03T10:28:00.004-06:00

There are so many Sophie adventures, I dare say they are a daily occurence. And they aren't always the good kind of adventures! But this was one of my favorites from this week. The kids were playing in the back yard and Hunter and Lily felt the urge to tattle (once again) on their little sister. Apparently she was eating fresh vegetables, straight from the garden, again. The kids know this drives me nuts, because we don't have that many vegetables in the garden to begin with! So I went out back to check things out and found Sophie playing happily after ingesting not a tomato or a bean, but an entire jalapeno pepper, all but the stem.

Mom: Sophie, are you ok?

Sophie: ya

Mom: Do you need a drink or something?

Sophie: (thinking...) um, ok

So she heads in to get a drink. Thirty seconds later she is screaming at the top of her lungs. I head to the kitchen and find this:

She got to the milk, but then she couldn't get down. Talk about doing things the hard way! (Ignore the DDP on the top shelf. I really have no idea who it belongs to.)

I'm Raising Her Right

2008-09-29T22:25:00.003-06:00

Lily was so excited to take me outside today to show me what she had created on the back porch all by herself.

That's my girl!!!!

Homework!

2008-09-22T15:53:00.002-06:00

After school is seriously not my favorite time of day. It seems that is when the bedlam really begins. Snacks, stories of the day, all the kids back together...and homework. Hunter is at that blessed age where I pretty much hand him a snack, he downs it, and then off he goes to do his homework on his own. I give it a cursory glance when he's finished, and in the mean time I start dinner, vacuum, chase Sophie, whatever needs to be done. Lily, on the other hand, is a different story. She has started bringing home her once a week homework- get it on Thursday and return it the following Wednesday. It's so enriching...(not!) Maybe for a kid whose parents don't pay any attention to them whatsoever. Furthermore, I have become convinced that the homework is conceived of by some pencil pushing workbook writing ding dong who has never had children. Our assigment today was to walk around the house finding everything we could with a number on it. Seriously?!? I want her to take her homework seriously, so I kept my mouth shut and didn't cut her off as we wandered the house. But do you have any idea how long it can take when you tell a five year-old to find every number in the house??? Every electronic appliance, every remote control, phone, calendar, food package, shampoo bottle, medicine box, magazine, book, UPC code, CD case, clock, measuring cup, piece of mail...you get the idea. I thought it would never end. Needless to say, we'll be having dinner late tonight. You gotta love homework.

Rise and Shout!!

2008-09-19T15:05:00.004-06:00

The Cougars are out, and they are awesome! I hope you all are loving this season so far as much as I am. Bronco Mendenhall was on the Jim Rome Show this week, and gave what I think was a great interview. You can listen to it here. Enjoy!

i couldn't resist!

2008-09-17T19:10:00.001-06:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

2008-09-17T16:12:00.012-06:00

OK, so I admit it. My kids are counting the days until HSM 3 comes out. (It's 37, in case you're wondering.) Hunter even asked me if I would let him camp out for tickets on a school night. (Yeah right!) So when I saw this JibJab, I knew it had to be done. Enjoy, my little HSM fanatics! And if you haven't gotten on the bandwagon yet, (Nikki and Jenn!!), there's still time to borrow our DVDs before October 24th arrives!

(Make sure to pause the player at the bottom and turn up your sound before pressing play!)

Lily's Salon and Photos

2008-09-16T20:31:00.003-06:00

It's a full service establishment offering a new 'do and pictures to go with it. Says the owner: "You're going to look so pretty, you're probably hardly going to recognize yourself." Thanks Lil!!

(Can you tell this picture was taken at the end of a VERY long day?)

Help Yourself!

2008-09-16T20:24:00.003-06:00

About 9:00 this morning I finally got around to making myself some breakfast. I parked Sophie at the kitchen table watching "Curious George" so I could make my toast, and I grabbed a yogurt from the fridge in the garage. I got my toast made, then went to sit down and I couldn't find the yogurt. I thought I has lost it!

I looked everywhere, and finally realized that Soph had helped herself to my long awaited breakfast. She poked a hole right through the foil, and was eating one fingerfull at a time. I hope she enjoyed it!

A Real Cub Scout

2008-09-16T20:11:00.004-06:00

I can't believe that we have a real Cub Scout in our house! But doesn't he look grown up and handsome? Yes, I cried when he left for his first den meeting. Lucky for him, I was not the one that took him to the church that night! So far, he is having a lot of fun! Bless those poor, dear Cub Scout leaders!!

Smarter Already

2008-09-12T15:29:00.002-06:00

Lily has now been a kindergartener for three full weeks, and she already knows it all. We were sitting in the car today waiting for Hunter to come out of school when this conversation occurred:

Lily: Mom, did you see that boy running down the sidewalk?
Me: (thinking, of course he's running, it's Friday afternoon...) Yes
Lily: You shouldn't run on the sidewalk. If you have to run you should do it in the grass.
Me: Really, why?
Lily: (exasperated with my obvious stupidity) MOM, because if you fall the grass is a lot softer than the sidewalk.
Me: You're right about that
Lily: Plus mom, you know it's called a sidewalk and not a siderun

Wow, if only I were as smart as Lily.

Hunter's Special Day

2008-09-11T12:57:00.015-06:00

Hunter was baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on August 30th, his eighth birthday. Every time I look at the pictures, I think of a song that I learned as a kid:

"This is my day, my baptism day.

Jesus was baptized the very same way.

Maybe I'm little and maybe I'm young,

And maybe my learning has only begun,

But Heavenly Father, I'm doing my best,

Just lead me and guide me, and I'll do the rest."

In some ways, he really did look young to me that day. The last eight years leading to this milestone have flown by so very quickly. And in some ways, he looked so grown up to me that day. He was so excited. We had his birthday party the might before so that it wouldn't detract from the importance of his baptism day.

This is just a little piece of the journal entry that I wrote the day after the service. I don't know why, but I feel compelled to share it.

He really did seem little and young to me yesterday, but so handsome and wondeful. Ty and I gave him new scriptures yesterday morning as a baptism day gift, and he treasured them. It made my heart swell to see him so excited about that blue leather quad. He took them to the church for the service, and wouldn't let them out of his sight. He took such good care of them. He was so excited to be baptized, and he was ready. My favorite moment of the morning was watching him with Tyler in the font. The water was sparkling, and Tyler's face looked so peaceful and strong and righteous as he recited the baptismal prayer. And then Hunter went under the water and it was done! After he changed into his dry clothes and came to sit with me I asked him how he felt. He beamed at me and said "Happy!". I was happy too.

My two handsome men. Hunter was baptized and confirmed by his dad.

On the steps at the church. Eight years ago we stood on these same steps for a family picture when Hunter was blessed.

We were blessed to have many people at the baptism that are important in Hunter's life. Thanks to Mandi for getting all the family pictures.

Nana and Papa Whitmill

Nana and Papa Monson

Great Grandma Klaversma

Chris, Nikki, Jake, Brayden, and Logan

Travis, Allison, Shane, Jace, and Brett

Tom, Jenn, Tori, Lizzie, and Owen

Mandi, Marlee, and Makenna

Hunter-Man, we are so very proud of you! Thank you for setting the example for your two little sisters, and for being such a good friend at church and at school. We know that you are on the right track, just keep holding to that iron rod. We love you!!

Eight is Great!!!

2008-09-11T12:47:00.003-06:00

I can hardly believe it, my "baby boy" is eight! I am finally getting around to posting these pictures. We celebrated his birthday on the 29th of August, the night before the real thing. It was so much fun to have a houseful for this special birthday celebration.I love the look on his face in this picture. He had just opened the life size vinyl "poster" of Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki (below) that Nana and Papa Monson brought for him.

Lookin' good in his new Cub Scout gear

The alligator cake! I was pretty proud of it, especially for someone as "cake retarded" as me. Special thanks to Nana Monson and Allie for their help!

Sophie...sitting?!?!

2008-08-27T09:31:00.003-06:00

It's such a rare occurence that I actually had to take a picture. And then blog it. This NEVER happens.

Of course, the reason she was sitting is seen here. Oh well. When there are bathrooms to clean, carpets to vacuum, floors to mop, and in-laws tomorrow, I'll take it!

Of course I cried!

2008-08-25T10:13:00.008-06:00

It's the first day of school. Of course there were tears involved this morning! Fortunately, none of them were from Hunter or Lily, they were ready and excited for school to start.

Of course, first day of school pictures are mandatory. I think I have one from every single school year growing up. (And let me tell you, there are some real doozies in there!) Anyway, the kids humored me even though I think Lil was still half asleep.

We set off for school right on time and arrived in the chaos! I forgot what a mess the first morning of school is. Parents EVERYWHERE!

Hunter assured me that he did NOT need me to walk him to his line. I know he didn't need me to, but I would've done it out of the kindness of my heart. Actually, I had a really hard time letting him just walk away. We waited in line with Lil, and at one point I sent Tyler to make sure Hunter had arrived safely at his destination. Tyler told Hunter that Sophie wanted to say goodbye again so that he wouldn't know it was really me checking up on him!

One of the great delights of the first day of kindergarten: finding familiar faces! Lily was thrilled to find a couple of friends in line this morning. She walked into the building with her head high and a smile on her face. I was proud of her!

It was all going pretty well and I was managing to keep the tears back, that is until the kindies started filing into the building and Sophie absolutely fell apart. Lily turned around to walk away and Sophie started screaming "I wanna go school! I wanna go school!" Tears were absolutely streaming down her little face. She was breaking my heart! She sobbed all the way to the car, and then just when I thought she was calming down, it started all over again. I buckled her into the car and she panicked. She started screaming for Hunter and Lily and was so worried about leaving them behind. Oh, my Little Sophie Sunshine.

Like the good mom that I am, I stopped to take pictures of Sophie in her misery and then tried to calm her down. Can't miss that kodak moment!

Changes

2008-08-17T08:56:00.005-06:00

Those of you who know me know how much I love change. And by that I mean, I absolutely hate it! But at times in our lives, it becomes necessary to make a change. And as my dad always used to say to me, "If you live through it, you learn from it". Well, the last few weeks have brought a lot of living and learning to our house. Let me start at the beginning...

We got back from our reunion at Snow Mountain Ranch and had messages from a counselor in the stake presidency and from the stake executive secretary. In my opinion, that is never a good thing! When Tyler returned the calls, they asked if he could meet with them that night and bring me along. A call was extended, and that Sunday on July 27th Tyler was sustained as the second counselor in our ward's bishopric. The timing of the call was a great blessing, because Ty's parents were still here in town and his dad was able to ordain him to the office of High Priest before they left to go back to Illinois. I know that was no coincidence. I also know that Tyler will be great in this new calling, and I have all the confidence in the world in him, probably more than he has in himself!

Tyler's new calling, of course, meant that I had to be released from mine, a fact that I know to be true but that has nonetheless brought me much heartache over the last three weeks. I have been serving as the Young Women President for almost three years. I have seen the ward change, soemthing that I struggled through along with my girls. I have become very attached, for better or worse, and don't even think twice about referring to them as "my girls". I love each and every one of them! Many of us have had the blessing in our lives of having a calling where you pour in hours of work, as well as heart and soul. This has been one of those callings for me, and it makes saying good bye that much harder. However, after having our family do "double duty" for just three weeks, I know why it needs to be this way. The kids have been with Nana every mutual night, and got farmed out for Tyler and I to both go to ward council last week. They are ready for someone to stay home with them when the other has to go attend to church responsibilities. My sweet Lily bug has been especially tender lately when I leave on Tuesday nights, with many tears, and I know that she is ready for mom to come home.

So, today our lives will change again when I am released. I won't post this until tonight after this has taken place, but I had a minute this morning and was feeling introspective in anticipation of the changes to come. Now, if I could just fly under the radar for a while before a new calling is extended, I think I could handle that!