Putting Out Fires...And Starting Them SPECTACULARLY

Being a mom you get to contend with a lot of crazy scenarios. Take today. Right after I got off the phone with Poison Control (The little boys had managed to get into a bottle of Children's Tylenol while I was cleaning. No worries. I found out they could have safely downed twice as much as they did. Good to know for next time. Plus I am now on the radar of DCFS again. It's been a few years, but they know me. ha ha ha.) I had to break out the steam cleaner (best investment I ever made) to sterilize the rug in the little boys' room because Sully has a thing lately with peeing in random spots. I discovered this latest deposit while wrestling with the boys in their room, and I rolled face-first into urine-dampened carpet. That was awesome. Earlier this week he used the garage as his personal latrine, and then the bathroom garbage can. He doesn't seem to have a preference, except that it NOT be a toilet.

Then there was yesterday.

As the kids piled into the car after school, Noble launched into a casual story from the back seat about how their Science teacher had mentioned that it was possible to make PLASMA - the cosmic, state of matter kind - with a grape and a microwave. To which I responded in disbelief, "Whatever. No way."

Turns out it's a real thing.

** I have to say right here, that telling a pack of 6th Grade boys how to create plasma in a microwave is about as responsible as telling them how to build a bomb with household chemicals. They will be compelled to try it...especially when they have lunch immediately after, where someone is bound to have grapes in their lunch box,  in a room with microwave ovens.**

Apparently, Noble and his friends gave it a shot, with great success and peer-adulation....... and then spent the remainder of their lunch period in the office with the Principal. I am glad she took it so well, and refrained from calling HAZMAT (creating plasma like that produces toxic fumes). She told them she could understand their innocent curiosity,  but expected them to never do it again.

So, I can't say I didn't learn something new yesterday. We all did. This video will give you an idea of the type of fireworks Noble & Co. created in the school lunch room yesterday.
Pretty impressive.

Making Our Way the Only Way We Know How...

Tagging along with dad one day on his commute

Life can be complicated. 

I started to post about the life-changing events of the past several months that have completely preoccupied us...and then I realized I was writing a book. And I thought, "They probably don't want to know all the details, and if they do they can call or message me for the extended version." 

Long story really short: For a while, Mike has felt prompted to make a really risky move with his employment, and recently a series of unfortunate events has been a POWERFUL (kind of frightening) motivation. 

The thing that makes this all so difficult to express is that it has not been just one big profound experience, but years of prayer and struggle, culminating these last few months in hundreds of mini-experiences, impressions, revelations, mercies, quiet kindnesses, prayers said in our behalf, mental and spiritual work, small steps of faith, and miracles. 

Let me just say this has been a watershed experience for us & we have gained a deeper understanding of many things... FAITH, patience, hope, persistence, courage, trust, the power of heaven ... you name it, all things we thought we had a good grasp on... It turns out we didn't know what we didn't know. That's life.

In the past several weeks doors have been miraculously opened & Mike is moving on in a new job. We aren't out of the woods yet, but we have watched in astonishment as the way has opened up before us. 

This is what I know: There IS a God in Heaven, and He is good. He is more aware of us and our needs than even we are. He knows what we lack in terms of character, faith and capacity for happiness (i.e., living in gratitude and communion with God), and He gives us each personally-suited opportunities to help us change. I know this more profoundly than ever. He knows my heart, and how it has changed. Miracles come after the trial of our faith, and He is the one who knows, not us, when the lesson is learned. I don't think I really understood what that meant before. Trials will always be a part of life, but I know more than ever that these experiences are a means for the Lord to, as David says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting."
-Psalm 139:23-24 

This has been an AMAZING experience. All of it. I can truthfully say that I am grateful for it all...because of what I have learned, because of the closeness I feel with God after all, because of how it has changed my family and my relationship with Mike, because it has made me happier. And that is what Father in Heaven is interested in: the realization of our potential and our complete happiness.

All is well.

Short and Sweet

I haven't been in a blogging mood for some reason. Well, I guess part of the reason would be that we've been preoccupied with some stress with Mike's work... Helping out some friends with some hard things going on....my mind has been turned to other matters. More weighty matters.

Suffice it to say, there's been a lot of prayer, time in the temple, family history work, long talks with family and neighbors, some tears and laughter too. It is a growing time.

In the midst of all these cares of life, we had a short over-nighter to the yurt in Goblin Valley (our place of respite) planned.  It seems like the last few times we've gone, we have been in desperate need of solitude and perspective. Those hours in the desert are like medicine. Or, as Mike repeatedly commented, "balm of Gilead".

We left Friday morning as early as we could...9:30 was the best we could do after Mike worked all day, and late into the night Thursday. We got to Goblin Valley about noon, and headed straight to Crack Canyon on the north side of the reef, eating lunch on the trail. It was a bit chilly, only in the low 50's, but with the sun and a little exertion, that wasn't too uncomfortable. We met a group of family and friends on horse back in the canyon, which surprised us, because we had passed through some tricky stuff. We had a pleasant conversation with them about where they were from, how they had come into the canyon, etc. Cool people.
The wind REALLY started whipping up after a few hours, cutting right through our layers of clothes. The last mile of our 5 mile hike, facing into the wind, Abner started to cry a lot. So we took him out of the packer, wrapped my fleece around him, zipping it up around his face, and Mike carried him in his arms shielded from the wind. All in all, it was an amazing hike. Not as difficult as Little Wild Horse/Bell of last year, but challenging enough for little feet (Sully walked pretty much the whole way).

Heading back out of the canyon

In one of the tight spots. (Abner was starting to melt down, mostly because he'd just had his head dinged on an over-hanging rock. It's tough for little guys.)

 Some of Jessie's instagram shots from Crack...

After the hike, we drove back to the yurt and got settled in. The wind was pretty much howling by this time. So the kids didn't do much exploring around the cliffs, as they always do. I needed some coals to warm up our empanadas for dinner, so I set to work lighting a fire in the fire pit in hurricane-force winds. Mike and I would crouch, eyes tightly shut, next to the fire pit, trying to shield our tiny flame as the wind came roaring across camp, sandblasting us, and nearly knocking us down, electrical sparks shooting between us if we touched. We finally got a good fire going, and soon had a warm dinner.

Sully and Mike did venture out before dark to do some quick exploring...long enough to take this picture.

The rest of the night we hunkered down in the yurt, cozy with our fireplace heater. Mike worried about the kids having to stay cooped up all evening, and wondered if we should have brought some games or something. But it turns out, we had more than enough to entertain ourselves with...

Abner was entertained opening and closing the door about 500 times...

The rest of us were happy sipping hot chocolate and joking around, & laughing at the pictures we'd taken... as long as you like each other, you don't need much.

The wind had died down (mostly) by morning. So I was able to light our propane stove outside and cook up some Ziploc eggs.

Abner venturing out first thing

Noble lighting a small fire in the morning.

Getting in a little journaling/thinking time while breakfast cooked. Just what the doctor ordered.

 We visited the Valley of the Goblins proper after breaking camp, but within about an hour and a half, the wind had kicked up again, making things uncomfortable. So, I made a tail-gate lunch there overlooking the Valley of the Goblins, the Expedition facing into the wind, to shield us as we ate at the back end. The kids huddled in the shelter of the family car, eating as fast as they could, so they could get out of the wind and back in the car. Other than the wind, it was a gorgeous day. Clear and bright. The kids laid claim to an amazing castle in the valley. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of exploring the goblins this time. Too busy having fun, I guess.

The view from the yurt....the reef way out there, with Crack Canyon beyond. 

So glad we got to go. On the drive home I was thinking how really sad I was to have to leave. But that's alright. I came back with a better handle on life. We all need things like this.

Everyday Life

Here's a little behind the scenes snap-shot into the magic of living at our house. ha ha ha... 

The bread winner...hard at work as usual.

Stripey legs...Ab in the morning.

...Monster Foods....

A mutant GIANT carrot that came in our food coop

FAT bread. This batch might have been a little over-leavened. ha ha ha ha...we laughed at the super muffin-topped loaf. Not pretty, but, OH-SO-YUMMY,

Speaking of bread...an early birthday present from Mike. The "BOTCH", as it is affectionately known around here.

A Sunday morning in February...

My kids came through on my birthday when Mike had to work late. While I was at pack meeting with Tillman, they made a cake, cleaned the kitchen, decorated the house for a totally unexpected surprise party. It was just what I needed. I LOVE these kids (including the little neighbor friend who was hanging around and got roped in).

And, for your viewing pleasure, a few recent videos.... this first one is Sully discussing Chemistry experiments with a neighbor friend. (He looks awesome in those upside-down goggles.)

science experiment from Angie Melton on Vimeo.


This one is a vid the Young Men and Elders made for our committee for the RS Birthday Celebration that we just wrapped up. It was a hit with the ladies. Check out Mike's sweet moves. (He's the one with the sunglasses and bow tie...with the YM) Enjoy.

VTS 01 1 from Angie Melton on Vimeo.

A Fine Day for a Blizzard

Mitch-darling, the snow man.

We had made plans with some friends to do some snowshoeing on Saturday. So when that storm rolled in, we weren't about to throw in the towel. We did, however, compromise and head for a lower canyon.
It turned out to be one of our best snowshoeing excursions to date. We decided to leave the little boys at home for this one (something we've never done...but may again, as it turned out). Grace enthusiastically volunteered to babysit. (You would think trudging through the snow in a blizzard with the family wasn't her idea of fun or something. Go figure???)

It was really coming down. We all  had to keep brushing the snow off as it piled up on our jackets and back packs, to keep from being buried in it, or getting too wet as our body heat melted it. The melting snow froze zippers and pack straps. But it was BEAUTIFUL. I kept thinking how so many people would be hunkering down indoors on such a day...and how much they were missing.

We snowshoed farther up Neff's Canyon than we have ever gone in the past...which was awesome, since we brought some sleds along, and Mike and all the kids had a nice long ride back down. It was so much fun to jog along behind them, chatting with good friends, listening to the kids yelling and laughing ahead of us.

Ang looking surly

Thanks to J. we have a couple of pictures. We didn't bring a camera, but luckily, she had her  iPod.

Afterward, we loaded up kids and gear and headed to my new FAVORITE Vietnamese restaurant, which Mike and I discovered the night before, for some warm Pho ..and the best banh mi EVER. (You've got to try it.)

All in all, it was a great day to be alive.

Rites of Passage

We finally bit the bullet and put braces on 2 of our 6 kids. (I am hoping we don't have 4 to go.) So last week there was a lot a drama at our house about sore teeth and not being able to chew. Thankfully, that's ebbing.

J. just wants to make sure it's all over before high school.

Potty Talk at Target

Hopefully, we won't offend anyone with this post.  It was too good not to share. Let me just preface with this: kids are skilled humiliators. If you don't know that before you have kids, they will waste no time teaching you.

Out shopping with Sully, he frantically told us, " I have to poop!" So, I walked him into the women's bathroom at Target, and got him situated in a stall to do his business. He started chattering away about this and that. A few seconds later a lady walked in and took the stall next to Sully, and he really launched into his commentary. (at FULL volume)

Sully: (grunting) "I just have one more big poop!"

Me: (hoping this will be the end of it) "Let's hurry and get done, buddy."

Sully: (more grunting, louder than before) "It's a really big poop. It's hurting my bum when it's pushing out!"

Me: mortified silence...hoping the lady next to him will not be embarrassed by all this potty talk...but Sully saved the best for last...

(**As the lady in the next stall started doing her business**)

Sully: (after a  pause to consider, & directing his remarks to the occupant of the next stall)  
"Is that me peeing or is it you?!"

Oh, yes he did.

I had to hold my hands tightly over my mouth to keep from laughing out loud, tears welling up in my eyes.

I am so glad the lady was a good sport. As she left she grinned at me (while I stood there sheepishly) and said, "Aren't they so funny at this age? I don't know how you kept from laughing."

I will miss moments like this when they are all old enough to know better.

How Did You Spend Valentine's Day?

I spent it shuttling children to and from lessons and stuff. And making heart pizza -- from whole wheat natural yeast dough, of course.. :) -- for the kids' dinner.

The kids spent it learning at school, piano lessons, basketball games, and delivering cards to their friends around the neighborhood.

Grace kept asking me, hopefully, if I had anything special planned. I mean, I tried. I did make valentines to put in their lunch boxes, and  special valentines cupcakes for dessert...but I felt a little guilty telling her that we weren't making Valentines Day THAT big of a deal. She was bummed that they did not have the day off from school, feasts and presents and ceremony Anything more exciting than the nearly normal day that it turned out to be. Sorry G. You'll survive.

My parents spent Valentines exploring the wilds and legends of Death Valley, and other desolate places on their first post-retirement vacation. A little bit ironic. Retire, and immediately make tracks for Death Valley. To each his own. They played some golf in Death Valley and toured Scotty's Castle and visited the Ale'Inn (read: "alien") Cafe near Area 51 in central Nevada, drove through deserted mining towns, hiked around weird geological features (my dad loves a good geology trip)...all the stuff that dream vacations are made of.

Mike spent Valentine's Day evening working. He had to teach that night. (He did call me. And he brought me an awesome, clever, personally-authored card when he got home later.) Mike and I went out to breakfast the next day for our official Valentines Day observance. After which, we dropped over to the kids' school to watch my Russian sister, Elena, talk to Jessie's class about growing up in Soviet Russia. They have been studying the Cold War. That was fun. Mike was impressed with some of the kids' questions, especially the one who asked about inflation and currency exchange. He wished some of his adult students were as bright.

Bendy and Roy spent part of their evening doing a good deed. That is, they took pity on me slogging it out at home alone, and brought me chocolate covered strawberries and grapes and half of Beth's giant heart shaped cookie to share. How cool are they?! Thanks, guys.

Hope you all had a good one too. :)

A Boys' Day on the Slopes and Our Past Returns

I felt bad about not posting these pictures earlier from Mike & Noble's father & son day on the slopes...more than a week ago. It was definitely worth mentioning. Here you go.

Mike had promised Noble a snowboarding day, just the 2 of them,  if his grades were up to standard. So, Noble worked hard, and 2 Fridays ago Noble was excused from school (legitimately), for a more important pursuit: a day of snow and sun with his dad. Mike said Noble was greatly improved from the last time he went snowboarding (a couple of years ago), and crossed an important threshold in his snowboarding development: HE WORE HIS DAD OUT.  Noble went all day without even stopping for food (it was a good thing Mike had a few Cliff bars on him), riding every lift and run he could get to, even tackling some blacks. The snow was great, and they made some priceless memories.

Speaking of memories...
Saturday evening Mike and I got together with some of our high school friends (actually mostly mine) for dinner. This was an historic event, as many of us hadn't seen each other in almost 20 years. Some of them I have met up with from time to time, some I had reconnected with on Facebook, and some were MIA.  It was kind of surreal because in many ways it felt like nothing was different. We seemed to have the same dynamic together as ever: the same jokers, the same edge-sitters, the same senses of humor, same mannerisms...in some ways I felt like I was sitting back at the lunch table at Bingham High School all over again. That part amazed me. Even with the baggage (and added inches) of 20 years, we could still connect so easily.
It was a LOUD, happy 3 hours. Lots of hugs and raucous laughter. I told Mike that I just felt super pleased and content watching these people with whom I shared so much all those years ago totally enjoying each other's company again. Like a family reunion. The funny thing is that back then we actually jokingly referred to ourselves as the Family Tree. That's weird.

 We had so much fun, everyone wanted to get together again soon...this time at Tadd's Splash Lab at BYU. That should be awesome.

** photo creds, Annie's phone **

Patches

Yesterday (among other things) I kept more than busy patching stuff.

For starters, several pair of pants. Noble is HARD on school pants, and I can't bring myself to buy a new pair every time he rips a knee. So I keep one old pair (left) for cutting patches from. If they aren't really bad I can usually patch them up well enough so you can't tell without a closer look. Now, they'll last a few more months, maybe long enough to get us through the school year. (...if I could keep him from outgrowing them before then...) Thanks to my mom, who had the right color of Salmon thread, I also patched a little hole in Jessie's favorite pair of pants.

After spending several (VERY frustrating) hours attempting to remediate a few Abner-initiated disasters in the basement, I finally finished and came up to make the little boys a late lunch. TWO MINUTES later I heard Abner crying...the REAL kind of crying. You know what I mean, like you-might-want-to-get-911-on-the-phone kind. According to Sully, and consistent with the evidence at the scene, he had been running laps around the playroom, and pummeled head-first into Grace's doll house. I put lunch on hold for another hour while I tried to wrestle a screaming toddler, clean up the blood, scour through my cupboards and closets looking for the butterfly bandages I thought I had, put a band-aid on it only to be promptly ripped off... twice....Finally, I just threw my hands in the air and called it good, oozing gash notwithstanding. I was tired. So tired. Later, after a quick run to Walgreen's for butterfly bandages, in between getting Jessie to guitar lessons... Abner is all patched up. Good as new. Maybe there will be a scar to remind him. That's ok too.