Tripped Out

Finally back from our second vacation in three weeks... we packed in quite a bit.

Observations:

#1. It is SO nice to sleep in one's own bed again.

#2. I don't want to take 5 kids on any flight longer than two hours any time soon.

#3. Since Mike's only been into work about a week and a half this month so far, I doubt that I'll see him for the next week at all.

#4. My kids miss their cousins in Michigan.

#5. My kids miss the non-stop entertainment of vacation life.
#6. We packed too few pairs of pants for the California trip and far too many for the Michigan trip.

#7. Charge the iPod BEFORE getting on the airplane.

#8. Don't try feeding the kids dinner in the airport 30 minutes before your flight takes off.

#9. Pack tools in the car when you go on a road trip. (Or keep your brother in law within radio range.)

#10. Blowing a tire at Donner Pass isn't so bad - as long as it's not winter.

#11. BIG RV's don't mix with narrow, windy, terrifying roads out of Yosemite.

#12. Put my kids in pull-ups diapers before putting them in the RV to ride with Grandma and Grandpa (you'd think with a bathroom on board they could make it in time).

#13. Screen Tillman's responses when a living history museum volunteer asks for any questions. (Instead of "How does a pit saw work?" the guy got "Do you play flag football?" - Come on man, the bright red bandanna hanging out of your pants like that? What did you expect?)

#14. Sully likes the wind.

#15. Babies LIKE to eat sand.

#16. With a cool name like Battle Mountain - why would a town shame themselves by painting BM on the hillside for everyone to see?

#17. Snobby historic hotels charge A LOT to take tea ...don't make promises to a 7 year old girl unless you plan to improvise.

#18. My Grandma Gertie and her sister Patsy are cute.

#19. Tami is the best family vacation coordinator I know. (Thanks Tami for everything!)

#20. I'm happy to be at home for a while.

Weekend blur

An action-packed weekend. I know we're not the only people out there with too much on the calendar - all it takes is a couple of kids - and pretty soon you find yourself double and triple booked. We managed to make it to everything...only because of family and friends. Thanks. Friday night we dropped Jessie and her stuff at Sullivans so she could sleep over and my parents could take her and the horse over to the arena early Saturday...that way we could be up and make it to Noble's piano recital at 10Am (Jessie missed for the second year running because of a scheduling conflict)...had lunch with Mike's parents......after which we traveled to the arena to watch Jessie for an hour or so (just enough time for Tillman to swell up from exposure to horses and dust)...then I rushed off with the boys to make it to Tillman's soccer game at 2PM (trying to dilute the allergens with bottled water along the way- he drank almost a whole liter)...the "Black Widows" came away with a tie and Tillman with wet shorts (we didn't make it to the potty in time after all that water) ...sent Tillman home with our friends rather than have to drug him up with Benadryl, and returned to the 4H show in time to see Jessie compete in her last speed event, which she handled well ...helped clean her horse's stall... ...gathered everyone up and made the trip home ... the realtor called during dinner to ask if people could come look at the house this morning (Sunday) while we'd be at church. (Do you know how hard it is to keep the house perpetually perfect with 5 kids, animals and all the stuff we have going?) I had unfinished laundry (we're leaving on a road trip through No. California on Tuesday for a week) & a messy house. So I stayed up folding laundry...but I should have checked on the cat because she was "queening" (giving birth) to 4 kittens out in garage sometime during the night. Noble found them this morning and ran into the house to announce that Pluto had her kittens (later he told us that at first when he saw them he thought that she had mice).

I'm reminded of that children's book: Meanwhile Back at the Ranch. All in a day's work. No wonder I get so tired.

As a side note: there was a polo match going on at the same time as the 4H show on Saturday at the equestrian complex. Our usual parking area had been reserved for the upper classes attending the polo match (I think we actually parked in Prince Charles' spot - Mike stuck it to "the man" and parked there anyway). I couldn't resist taking this picture of the label on the gate and of the RED CARPET (I'm not kidding) leading from the parking lot to the covered seating area with medieval flags along the way. Don't get me wrong, polo is fun to watch (they play at the equestrian park all the time), but I thought this was hilarious.

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Celebration

The Temple Celebration went really well. I was really surprised at how GOOD they were. These kids were very patient and cooperative - with the marathon dress rehearsal (8 hours - we were out until 11:00 PM - on a school night) and with the demands of the performance. I couldn't believe that a bunch of teenagers would go so many hours without food or water and NOT complain.
The result was pretty amazing. With the dress rehearsal I'd seen it twice already but I was still glued at the performance. Pres. Monson talked for a few minutes to the kids and Pres. Eyring was there too. That was definitely a highlight for everyone. It kind of made me wish my kids were a little older - just because I know they'll probably never get the chance to do something like this.

Here are a few photos posted by the Church News.
http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/57417/Oquirrh-Temple-Youth-Celebration-Photo-gallery.html

And - here's another article with lots of pics just about the Oquirrh Mountain open house. Mike's up there today parking cars.
http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/57353/Media-tour-Oquirrh-Mountain-Utah-Temple.html

Sweet, Sweet Grace

Happy 7th Birthday Grace!!!

(I couldn't resist posting this baby picture of her - oh my goodness, she was cute!)

Part of what made Memorial Day so much fun was celebrating Gracie's birthday. She turned 7 - I can't believe it! For about year she's been after us to take her up to the Historic Pioneer Village at This Is The Place State Monument - because she loves dressing up and pretending. So a while back I told her we'd take some friends and go for her birthday. We all had a fantastic time (thanks to Mike's parents for back-up crowd control) - only wish we could have stayed longer...as it was, we got our party guests home about an hour late. It happened to be baby animal day - and that was a big hit. But seriously, the best part was watching four little girls in pioneer bonnets (thanks Mom for the help in sewing them up!) so happy and excited about everything - thoroughly

in the moment.

Grace is our sunshine (and she looks it in that bright yellow jumper she insisted on wearing - she thought it looked "pioneer").

Grace and Emory - inseperable

Mike and the girls on the train

Ducklings!

Well-behaved at school

Matisyahu - "One Day"

Mmmmmmm. If you have 8 minutos to spare....
This is a live version - so you can expect long instrumental interlude - but it's so nice. Hopefully this is a harbinger of coolness for the rest of the album (upcoming this year). This is why he's my fave- and why the family vehicle carries just one window sticker.

Memorial Day

It was THIS great.

.... later.

This is going to be cool.

Less than a week to go before the big Temple Celebration at the Conference Center. The kids had their final "small" rehersal (only 3 stakes?) this past week. They made an appearence up the road at the grounds of the Oquirrh Mountain Temple for a photo shoot and then performed a few of the numbers right there with the temple in the sunset as a backdrop. It was pretty... peaceful. I brought my own kids up to see and hear.

Poor Mitch-Darling

On hold with the doctor's office...

I'm trying to get Mike in to see yet another Gastroenterologist about his lethal GERD. Last night/this morning Mike suffered his worst episode ever. Almost 11 hours uninterrupted. That was rough. I really felt for him.
Years ago we went and had some extensive testing done - which only resulted in a diagnosis - and very little in the way of treatment (a lifetime of Nexium pills - which haven't helped). Granted, Mike has some unusual symptoms. One good thing came of it though - amidst all the tests Mike may have accidentally received a colonoscopy instead of an endoscopy (to this day no one really knows ) and Mike has gotten SO much mileage out of that story.
I'm hoping this doctor will be more helpful... I mean he did save my dad's life last year when he had that nasty bleeding ulcer- and he is my parents' neighbor. Maybe that will earn us bonus points.

Noble.

Those of you who know our family well will understand - he is one of the great challenges and joys of my life. ONE OF A KIND. When he was born, along with the bond I felt, I had a strong impression about his purpose in this life. I've often wondered about that, and tried to reconcile it with the aggravation I so often feel at his choices. Sometimes I think that the reason I had those impressions was because I would need to fall back on that assurance in moments when I just feel hopeless with him. Frequently.
If you don't know him - let me explain. He's very clever (case in point: he named the Space Donkey) which can be a delight when he uses his powers for good (see photo - One of his many Noble-isms. We liked this one so much we put it on a t-shirt)He has a good heart - though I think he leaves his "heart" out on most of the decision making. He always seems to be at the center of trouble around here (and wherever he goes) - so that whenever something is amiss we instinctively yell out, "NOBLE!!!!". I sometimes feel guilty that he gets profiled like this - but then again, 99% of the time the assumption is accurate... like the other night. After a LONG day (don't ask) we were FINALLY eating dinner at like 8:00 and I walked upstairs to see the tub filled almost to the brim. The big frog bath-toy holder had been disassembled and used (along with the bathroom stool and about 50 Star Wars guys) to construct a water city. I think I turned purple yelling for Noble.
You'd think after so many years with him I'd be patient. The hardest thing is when I get in trouble because of him. (grrrrr.) A month or so ago I had a talking to by one of our neighbors (the latest in a series of complaints) about something(s) Noble had done or instigated (because he's ALWAYS leading others down the dark path - right?). I tried to smooth things over - and had another talk with Noble. Then half an hour later I look out the window and he's built a GIANT catapult on our front lawn with the hammock and he's explaining to a crowd of neighbor kids about fulcrums and levers and hurling rocks and other stuff across the front yard. One kid is actually straddling the catapult arm as Noble explains about what will happen to the rock when he lets go. And I'm thinking - "He's going to injure someone and then my neighbor will never talk to me again." At the time I was too frazzled and discouraged to see the genius in it. I should have taken a picture - because, as usual with Noble, it was SO cool.
I keep hope alive that he'll one day learn to live up to his potential. Until then I really need to work on my sense of humor.

A couple of updates and one big Bombshell

No updates for a while - because we've been a little preoccupied. BUT - I had to post a few pictures.
Sully started climbing the stairs a few weeks ago without warning.

Sully also received his first real haircut last week. That was traumatic. But I managed not to injure him - even if he did pretty much come away with white-walls.
Here we have the before and after. (Please ignore the disgusting breakfast bib in the first - I figured as long as he needed a bath I could sneak in a haircut.)


But the BIG news is that we put our little house in the Shire up for sale this past week. We've been thinking it over since Sully arrived - and we're finally doing it. We have really loved living here - but I think it's time. The hardest part is facing the neighbors, some of whom I REALLY hate to leave. I don't know what to say. Some of our friends have had a little advanced warning thanks to our kids - but overall I think everyone has been pretty surprised. The next question is - "Where do we go?" Don't know the answer to that yet, but I'm hoping to stay in SoJo. We're looking for more land for our kids and the hyper donkey - and more square footage. And horse property would be a plus for Jessie (can't believe I'm entertaining this idea) just in case we can't just always mooch off my Dad for her 4H stuff.

So - we'll see how it goes.