Family Update

My poor blog must be feeling pretty neglected these days.  A lot of things have been going on and life goes and on and then the blog gets left behind. I have been keeping my Instagram updated so I can keep a record of all those little things I like to remember. But I do want to give my blog some love again.

Sometimes when I have writers block, the only way to get out of it is to just write my way out of it. I really have no idea what to write at the moment, but I am writing.

My life right now is revolving mostly around Zach.  A few months ago, we decided to have him do a program called Brain Balance. It is a lot of work and time and money and has really thrown our family into a different kind of rhythm.  He goes to the South Jordan center three days a week and has to do home exercises three times a day, six days per week.  We have also put school on hold. No school for the past two months for him.

Ever since I put him in public school last year, it became apparent very quickly that something needed to be done. School exposed all of his weaknesses and I just couldn't ignore it anymore. The more I thought about it, the more it dawned on me that Zach probably has Asperger's. He has never been diagnosed or anything, but when I looked up all of the characteristics of someone with Asperger's, he fit it perfectly. I could think of a specific example for every characteristic. So what was I supposed to do for him? He was really struggling. He knew he was and didn't like it either. But he just couldn't help some of the stuff he was doing that was driving all of us crazy and really causing him to clash socially with people at church and in the neighborhood.

I then heard a commercial for a place called Brain Balance. When I looked into with Rinar, it just all made perfect sense. It was applicable to him in every way. I knew I was at the right place. He does exercises to strengthen his right brain and isolate his left brain as much as possible. Zach's left brain is very strong and his right brain is holding him back. We have been working on developing his right brain. He is on a special diet (no gluten, sugar, dairy, soy, peanuts) and is doing things to get him physically stronger. We now go to the Treehouse Athletic Club as much as possible, he plays basketball, racquetball, lifts weights, and the like. I also have him working on a needlepoint project to  help him develop better fine motor skills. He plays the piano a lot, as well and has restricted screen time. I also try to have him go outside as much as possible.

So, you can see I have been sucked into a Zach vortex a bit. But it does seem to be helping and I am seeing changes in him. It is a lot of little things, but I know that those add up to big things.

Raef continues to go to the middle school and really seems to enjoy it. He seems to have figured out the system and his grades have improved a bit. Raef is fascinated with figuring out what makes a person popular. I get almost daily reports on his observations. I think he may have a future in sociology. One night I was diligently working on a puzzle that Harry had left undone on the dining room table. Raef plopped down next to me and just started talking and talking and talking about every thing that was happening at his school. I think he talked for about an hour without barely taking a breath. When he got it all out of his system, he thanked me for listening and then went to bed. It was so cute.

Eli is such a smart boy. He amazes me daily with the things he learns and retains. He is now working on Perpetual Motion, which is song 9 in the first Suzuki book. It is mostly done. His teacher Trina C. switched his thumb to the grown up hold, and he does not like it at all. He has really been fighting me on it. I have now resorted to threatening an allowance deduction if he doesn't hold his bow correctly. That seems to help keep him moving forward. He is reading well and his speed is increasing nicely. We are reading the Magic Tree House series. We are almost finished with book 7, "Sunset of the Sabertooth". Eli's math skills are phenomenal. We are now going to start learning multiplication. I already did a lesson and it is clear that he has a good grasp of it already. I have a feeling we will be out of multiplication by the end of April. I know I learned multiplication in 3rd grade. That kid. Holy smokes.

Harry is chomping at the bit to do school. I usually run out of time before we can do anything, but I know he is learning stuff all the time. He is halfway through the "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" and seems to remember everything, even when I go a long time between each lesson. I am not worried about it, since he technically does not start Kindergarten until the fall. He is also a voracious puzzle solver and can get on some serious puzzle kicks. And he is really good at them.

Julia just loves having friends and going to play anywhere. She also loves to watch this show called "Monster High". I am sure it is trashy and she probably shouldn't watch it and I am gonna have to stop it, but I admit that I am being a lazy parent. But I do make her play outside as much as possible, which does cut down on TV time. Yesterday Julia and Harry went over to Amanda B.'s house to play with her kids. Her kids weren't home and they played there anyway. I didn't know this until they came home. It made me laugh so hard just thinking about it. Amanda is a saint. Sheesh.

Noelle is my heaven sent little girl. She is growing so fast and is hitting the cutest age of all. She walks and climbs and explores and is pretty mischievous, in the cutest way possible. When I pick her up she will give me the most meltiest, cuddliest hug ever and tap my back. She gives kisses and so full of love it makes my heart burst. She absolutely loves to take baths and showers, ride her wiggle board in the kitchen, and go bye-bye. If she could live outside, she would.

Life just keeps marching on around here. We have been really busy and I am hopeful about the things that we are working on and the way my kids are growing up.  Things are good.

Crazy Busy Saturday

Saturday was a crazy busy day. In the morning, Rinar and I went to the furniture store to buy a couch. Then we hurried home to get all of the kids and take them to their sporting events. Zach had a wrestling tournament at Brighton High School and Raef had a basketball tournament at Rowland Hall.

Whew, was it eventful. I stayed with Zach and the girls and Rinar took all of the rest of the boys to the basketball game. Luckily, all the little kids had some kind of electronic device to keep them occupied.  The wrestling tournament was bananas. It was packed and chaotic. They run the tournament with computers, so I had to watch carefully for his name to come up for his matches. Matches could go very quickly so I was paranoid about missing it.

Zach's first match ended quickly, and not in Zach's favor. He was pinned in about 30 seconds. He tried really hard but the other kid got the upper-hand on him, darn it.  The next match was a forfeit. But the third match was much better. It went two rounds and he fought hard and in the end, pinned his opponent. I was so darn proud of him! And he got a second place medal. When he saw the medal, his face was priceless.

Raef is on a competitive basketball team called the Alpha Dawgs. We have to go downtown just about every time for practice. It is a commitment, but I am grateful we found a team and that he has such a good coach. Unfortunately, they lost the first game, but did win the second. At this point, Raef is a benchwarmer. But I hope that he will have a desire to work hard so that he can get more playing time. We shall see.

In the evening, both boys had their birthday parties, since they are now 13! I have teenagers now. We decided to have them both do their own thing. Zach went with Caleb S. and Teancum M. to Airborne, a trampoline park. Rinar went with them and then took them to get food at Wendy's. I then dropped off Raef and his friends Matt D., Ethan, Ethan's friend (can't remember his name), and Talon A. and they went to see Night at the Museum 3 at the movie theater. When I got home, Rinar went to the movie a little late and then he took this group of boys to Chick-Fil-A. Both of them seemed pretty happy and they got along splendidly with their guests. 

It was a crazy, fun day.

Trek

Our stake sponsors something called Trek once every four years for the youth. It is an amazing opportunity for kids 14-18 years old. My two are too young to participate, but they were asked to help out with the send off. Trek is a re-enactment opportunity to get a glimmer of what it was like for the handcart pioneers so long ago. I did not even realize that one of my ancestors was a handcart pioneer and successfully made it to the Salt Lake valley. 

Anyways, my boys were asked to play the part of Jon Chatterly and his cousin, two kids who sailed with their families from England to come to America and Zion. While they were waiting for the boat to sail out of Liverpool, Jon's dad told them to take the dogs for a walk because it would be many months before they would be able to do so again. When the boys came back, the ship had started to set sail and was ten feet off of the dock! Yikes!! They had to hire a smaller boat to row out to the big boat. It was quite a story. But these boys were musicians who would entertain the sailors and passengers on the long voyage. Hence, Raef and Zach entertained the kids going on Trek by playing different fiddle songs. It was a fun morning.

And while they played for the youth, my little kids stayed entertained by playing on the swing set, eating donuts, and playing on my iPhone.

Then I had to run Raef and Zach up to the school where they were participating in a LEGO robot camp. After that, I took the little kids to the skate park. It is our new favorite thing to do. This was our second time going. They brought scooters and scooted around the obstacles. Every time they get a little more brazen and coordinated. It is fun to watch them grow and develop new skills.

From Philly to Maine

Saturday was a rode trip day. We headed to the beautiful Pennsylvania countryside to Lancaster County, and then on to Gettysburg. We left pretty early, so it afforded us time to take the long, slow, scenic way. I am glad we did. As we were driving to Lancaster, we saw a yard sale and did a little bit of shopping. I found some darling artwork and Rinar rounded up a couple of pairs of shoes that Raef and Zach could wear. 

Then we went to the Lancaster farmer's market. It is the oldest farmer's market still in existence and the place was happening. Pretty much all of the vendors are Amish or Mennonites. We bought some raw honey and various jelly assortments from this nice Amish gentleman. There were lots of samples and things to see and smell. Rinar also made it a point to a get a little explanation of the difference between Mennonites and Amish from the lady at the candy counter.

 Outside was a Mary Poppins street musician. You know what I am talking about? He had a bass drum stuck to his back, cymbals, ukulele, harmonica, horn, etc. It was fun. There was even a bucket of various improvised percussion instruments so that othes could play along with him. Fun!

From Lancaster, we made our way to Gettysburg. We took our time doing the auto tour and looked at the many details of the battle. I tried to explain it the best that I could to two uninterested kids. Oy! But I got a lot out of it and I think that Rinar learned a few things as well. In this picture the kids are standing on Little Round Top, a critical moment and turning point in the battle and hence, the war. Gettysburg is just a very special place.

Raef was obsessed with the idea of finding bullets and artifacts, even though he knew that it was illegal. He tried to think of umpteen different ways around the laws and all. It was a nice consolation that there was a gift shop where they sold actual bullets. We also made sure to pay our respects to the greatest president ever to live, Abraham Lincoln. We stopped at the cemetery to see where he delivered the Gettysburg Address. Like I said, Gettysburg is just a very special place.

Sunday was definitely a day of rest for us. We all needed a break from all of this larnin'! We went to church in Moorestown, New Jersey. And by the way, that is a beautiful little town. It is absolutely idyllic. After church was over, I thought it would be nice to go and see Valley Forge, but we modified this plan when the bishop invited us to his house for dinner. It was pretty darn cool. We ate random stuff for this impromptu dinner party and then they were incredibly gracious and spent valuable time with my kids playing Apples to Apples. Raef and Zach really had a wonderful time. Thank you Bishop Rigby and Sister Rigby.

To wrap up the Philadelphia portion of the trip, we went to The Franklin Institute. I thought it was a science museum, but it is really just a glorified kids museum. More than half the stuff is broken and the place was a zoo because we landed in the middle of field trip hell. In addition, it is really expensive. Holy cow. Let's just say, I really would not recommend it. But at least there was this sweet statue of Benjamin Franklin, one of my favorite founding fathers.

And Zach got to ride the Sky Bike.

I suppose it was not a total loss. There were a few surprises along the way. The Philadelphia LDS temple is getting built about two blocks away and that was an inspiring site. Plus, the boys were able to run the Rocky steps. This is something Rinar really wanted to do. I waited by the car because I really did not want to get a parking ticket!

We were able to get out to Valley Forge before rush hour traffic and just before the visitor's center closed. Good thing, because it allowed us to get another stamp for our NPS passport. Before we got there, we stopped for lunch at the Shake Shack. Holy moley, that place is delish. I would say it is the eastern equivalent to In'n'Out, only way better. Plus they have a whole bunch of shake flavors, which made the kids pretty darn happy.

I am grateful we could go to Valley Forge. The name is appropriate because it is where farmers were forged into soldiers. To understand Valley Forge is to understand the terrain there. It is on a hill and easily fortified. At the opposite end of the visitor's center several miles away is the house where Washington had his headquarters. There is a park ranger there and you can tour the house, which has reproductions and period pieces. Once again, I was just awed to walk in General Washington's footsteps.

We packed up Wednesday and got on the road early so that we would have some time in New York City before we got to our hotel in the Boston area. We parked in Staten Island and took the free ferry to the city. It was seamless and worry-free. Plus we got a great view of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I had originally planned to take them to Ellis Island, but we canceled that plan because most of it is still closed because of Hurricane Sandy. But we still kept the Empire State Building on the agenda. The ticket price it very expensive, so I decided not to go up because we could save some money and I had already been. While they went up, I headed over to the NYC Public Library for the exhibit they had on children's literature. It was an enjoyable solo excursion that I am sure the rest of the crew was happy to miss. But once we reunited, we headed out to the ferry and our car again.

In the afternoon, we went to Coney Island. I had never been there before. We made sure to ride the Cyclone, a brain-rattling wooden roller coaster from 1927. It was fun and I hope to never ride it again. We had eaten pizza in the city and then opted for a hot dog snack at the original Nathan's on the boardwalk. And yes, the hot dog was yummy.

In the evening, we went to my cousin Lindsay's house in Brooklyn. The plan was for our boys to babysit her little ones and then the adults could go to dinner. Mission accomplished. We bought some mac and cheese, blueberries, juice boxes, and got the kids going and then we split.  Since it is their town, we had them choose the dinner location. They did a great job. We went to Giacomo's, an Italian place just around the corner. It was a darling restaurant and a wonderful time with them.

And can I just give a shout out to my cousin. She is the most amazing woman! And she has a blog if you want to check it out. Lindsay just gave birth to her fourth son. She lives in the craziest, busiest city in the world, their apartment is tiny as you would expect, her husband is the bishop, and some how or another she is keeping it all together. I mean, the laundromat is a block away people. She is definitely a tree growing in Brooklyn. And she has the most darling children. My boys were amazed at her oldest son Garrett. They couldn't believe how smart he his. Zach told me that he thought Garrett was a genius. But I was proud of my boys. When we got back, the kids were in bed, the apartment was quiet and Raef was finishing up the dishes. Way to go, boys!!

We actually made great time from Brooklyn to Boston. And on Wednesday, we went to the Plimouth Plantation, a living history center. They have a Wampanoag village and a Puritan village. The Wampanoag are actual Native Americans and a lot of them are descendants of the Wampanoags. They encourage the kids to ask lots of questions and learn stuff.

The Puritan village is fun because the settlers there are reenactors and stay in character faithfully. We came across a man talking to a group and as I listened to him, realized that he was Miles Standish. Man, was he spot on. I thoroughly enjoyed it. He just acted like we were one of them and was a garrulous guy. There were probably about five of them throughout the village and they really look like they live there.

After Plimouth, we made a quick stop at Plymouth Rock and saw the actual rock they landed on. We also ate lunch at a place called the Lobster Hut. Raef ordered lobster mac and cheese. Let's just say, it was not his favorite. But he ate it because that was an expensive lunch. Every. Bite.

We also made sure to visit Cape Cod National Seashore. And like the last time I was there, it was cloudy, misty, and a little bit dreary. But it was still nice and the kids were able to play on the beach for a while and comb for rocks and such. Rinar and I also stopped and talked to a few random couples. One was from Australia and the other was from Connecticut. I tell you, people are so interesting.

It was a downpour Thursday. We made an attempt at the Freedom Trail in Boston and I just was not up for the struggle with the boys. It was clear that they had reach the limit to all things historical.

And just like the esteemed James Otis, I think the history lessons died that day.  We waived the white flag, went back to the hotel, took hot showers and relaxed for the rest of the day.

We drove to the scenery of New Hampshire and Maine on Friday. Rinar wanted to stop at this house for some reason.

Hi Ken! Do you still read my blog?

 We went to the coast and as we were driving towards Portsmouth, New Hampshire, I realized that Maine was just on the other side.  We had never been to Maine and thought, hmmm, why not? We found a lighthouse in York, Maine and took some pretty pictures. We also met the lighthouse keeper and a local artist with a genuine Maine accent.

The kids played at the beach some more and an old-fashioned arcade and then we headed home. There was a lot of packing to do.

 

I would say that the thing I enjoyed the most was talking to the many people along the way in each area we visited. People are so interesting. I learned so much more about where we were by talking to the locals. The trip also reminded me of the beauty and majesty of this great nation. I can really say that I am proud to be an American.

12 Years Old

I don't think I ever really saw it coming. Pow, wham, zap!  These boys are now 12!!!

Whaaaaa?!??!

When did that happen? It was just minutes ago that I was looking at the in their incubators, tubes everywhere, monitors, so tiny and fragile.  And now, they are twelve. I get a little bit weepy-eyed just thinking about it.

And 12 is such a milestone year for them.  On Sunday, they are going to receive the priesthood and will be passing the sacrament this month. They can go to the temple now. They won't be in Primary anymore. And they are becoming more and more independent on a daily basis. I marvel at all of the things they are able to do.

On Monday, we took the kids out for an early birthday celebration because Rinar was heading out of town this week for work. We let them all get shakes at Iceberg. It was a hit. And for the record, Zach got a banana shake and Raef opted for Butterfinger. 

Combining their birthdays with Eli's, we are going to take the family to Legoland in California in February. Rinar made a paperchain and they unwrapped that for their present.  The paperchain helps us count down to our fun trip and gives everyone something to look forward to. It helps to make the trip a tangible thing. 

Yesterday was a regular school day. I did do a history lesson on Lewis and Clark and then I had the boys make red face paint as a relevant activity. Lewis and Clark to paint to be able to trade it with the Indians on their journey. After we took this picture, we realized the red paint didn't come off so easily. So I took everyone to the pool at the Treehouse and after an hour of swimming, all traces of red were gone.

For their birthday today, I let them do minimal schoolwork and then play electronics. It was a big treat for a school day. Electronics are usually a no-no. Then I took Zach to lunch, just him and me. I let him pick any restaurant.  Hence, we ended up at Chick-Fil-A. He spent the whole time talking to me about video games.  It is all over my head. It is almost like he is speaking a foreign language.

Afterward, we went to Walmart so that he could spend his allowance.  It was fun to hang out and talk. He told me that he wants to ride the top 6 scariest rides in the world for his bucket list.  What a crazy kid. I told him I would take pictures, but there was no way I was riding with him.

Raef and I have a lunch date tomorrow. I look forward to it. I think he wants to go to Arby's. He has some coupons. These kids have expensive taste.

Camp Tracy

What would summer be without Boy Scout camp, right?  July was also the month for the boys to go to Camp Tracy. It is an awesome, permanent Boy Scout camp in Millcreek Canyon. They went for three days and I was able to take all the scouts from our troop on the last day of the camp.  That equals four boys: Raef, Zach, Matt D., and Caden C. 

They were able to pass off a bunch of stuff for their rank advancement. I helped them do the compass requirement. Actually, I just helped Raef and Caden. Matt and Zach finished before us.  They asked if they could go do rock climbing while we finished. I told them they could and then about 15 minutes later I went to look for them.  But, of course, they were not there.  Then the hunt began. It soon ended at the pond and canoes. I saw them out there and waved for them to come in. Matt and Zach came right back and when they came to dock the boat, Zach was really upset and crying.  I was a bit taken back by his emotional state. They both got out of the boat and Matt took off.  Zach proceeded to tell me that Matt was keeping him hostage on the canoe because Matt wanted to canoe, and Zach did not. Matt is much bigger than Zach and so he was pretty much powerless.  Zach begged him to go back to shore but he wouldn't.

Oh the drama of an 11 year-old mind.

Then they went swimming and everything was okay again.

Diving boards can make everything better.

***
It has been nice to have Rinar around more. Even though he travels a lot, he is able to work from home when he is in town.  That means we have been able to go on a lot of lunch dates together.

One of our lunch dates was to the Serving Time Cafe.  It is a cafe at the prison in Draper. It is run by female prison inmates. They get release time and work at this little cafe.  Rinar and I tried it out and were pleasantly surprised. The food was darn good and it was a neat little place to eat.

We will definitely be going back again.

Intermountain Suzuki String Institute

Another year, another wonderful week of Suzuki camp at Juan Diego High School.  Raef and Zach continue to progress in their musical studies and Intermountain Suzuki String Institute is an integral part of their development.  I am always amazed at the growth I see after just one week of playing. It is fantastic.

Raef started the week before because he was able to play in the Chamber Days. It started on Thursday, June 13 and was three days of intense chamber training. He played in a string quartet with Emma T., Anna R. and Thomas, the cello player. This go around Raef was the oldest. And he did fantastic. They worked on a rather difficult Beethoven piece (Op. 18 No. 2 4th Movement) and I was so amazed when I heard the final product. 

Then on Monday we started camp.  It was the 35th anniversary of ISSI and they decided to perform an original piece by Michael McLean. It was 700+ students playing in the auditorium. It was quite the spectacle and it took all week, with lots of hard work, to pull it off.

Zach had 5 great classes: Performance (Solomon), Master Class (Johansen), Technique (Meyer), Chamber (Johnson), Orchestra (Becker).  His master class teacher focused on his head and holding the violin correctly. He tends to slump down when he plays.  It is something he is going to have to keep working on until it becomes second-nature.

Raef's schedule looked like this: Chamber (Waters), Technique (Steun-Walker), Repertoire (Richardson), Orchestra (Bayless), and Master Class (Smale).

Raef really loved his repertoire teacher Robert Richardson. Robert would let Raef play lots of harmonies and even taught him some new ones. He had a lot of nice things to say about Raef which made me smile. Raef is such a special kid and quite a talented violist.

This is Zach with his chamber teacher Matt Johnson. Zach got to play first violin and he just loved it. I think this was his favorite class.  They performed a Rondo by Mozart and it was quite lovely. Zach is a very confident performer.

This is Zach's performance teacher Nicolette Solomon. She is from South Africa and it did not take her long to learn Zach's name.

We look forward to another year of ISSI.

Birthday Boys

Guess what? My little boy are now 11.  I just can't believe it. I am very proud of my boys and all of the things that they can do. They are smart and funny and very talented. But above all of that, and most importantly, I have been blessed with two little boys who have the most tender and loving hearts a mom could hope for.

The first subject we always do in our school work is to study the scriptures. Right now, we are reading the New Testament. Yesterday, I had the most amazing and spiritual experience with my boys. We were reading Matthew 27. This is the chapter where Jesus is condemned and beaten and humiliated and then crucified.  I explained all the aspects of the scriptures we were reading and what it all meant.  Then we came to verse 46. It reads...

"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

I explained to my boys that Jesus was all alone, that even his Father had to turn away from him, even the Holy Ghost was not there to comfort him in his hour of greatest need. Jesus had to be all alone. He had to carry the weight of the entire world on himself. 

I looked at my two boys, with their tender hearts, and they were both in tears. And we cried  buckets together, thinking about the most heart-rending, yet necessary moment in the history of the world. They just cried and cried. It was such a genuine and raw moment. It touched me to my very soul. I don't think I will ever forget it, even until the day I die.



And so after a no-school day, lunch with dad at BJ's and an awesome performance by Raef at the Reno Philharmonic with his teacher Dustin, I am just excited.



I am excited to see my boys transition into manhood. They are growing roots of testimony deep. They are starting to see all of the possibilities that are in their grasp. They are blossoming into incredible human beings. They are my sons but I know that they are always going to be my friends.

When I count my blessings, I start with these two.

Gymnastics

Now all of my kids are doing gymnastics. Raef and Zach have been going Deltchev Gymnastics for the last month. It is an early afternoon class for homeschool boys.  This place is great. It is real gymnastics and they work hard.  Raef and Zach have even complained about being sore the day after a class. I am always happy to hear that.

 

 

Harry was having a hard time on Friday. He was doing a whole lot of whining and crying. I realized that the poor kid just needed some individual attention. So I took him shopping with me. We also stopped to get a little lunch together. He was an absolute angel and it was just what he needed to reset himself. The whining and crying stopped and I got my little boy back. I really need to do this more often. I think he would agree, too.

 

Pinewood Derby

Well, here is our adieu to the Pinewood Derby. At least, for the next four years. Raef and Zach competed in their last one a couple of weeks ago. It was rough getting there, as we were frantically putting the contraptions together a few hours before the race started. Mama was not too happy.

But somehow it all worked out and the wheels stayed on for all of their races. And amazingly enough, they even won a few.

The boys had a lot of fun.

An Ill-Timed Yawn

It has been a long week.  Rinar has been elk hunting since Monday. When we were in Europe he found out that he had drawn a bull elk tag. Apparently, this kind of tag is a once in a lifetime opportunity.  He has been so excited to go hunting. Lyf and Nordel went with him and he hired a guide to help track down an elk.

But things did not go as he had planned. Day after day he would call in and tell me the news: NO ELK.  It got a bit harry, so we really started praying that he would be able to fill his tag.  Saturday was pretty much the last day, and what do you know?  He did it.  Rinar killed a really big elk.  It is probably one of the hardest things he has ever done. It has been cold with lots of snow.  There was a whole lot of walking and not a lot of sleep.  I haven't seen him yet, but I am sure the guy is looking pretty haggard.

Rinar did not expect to be gone this long, so we had to make some adjustments at home.  The main one had to do with Stake Conference. Rinar was supposed to accompany Zach and Raef on a vioin/viola duet for the adult meeting last night.  That meant that I had to accompany them.  {deep exhale}  I could play the song, but I knew I was going to mess up.  I just know me.  Luckily my friend Larae offered to play it for me.  And that is a good thing because then I was able to watch and enjoy instead.

And here is the best part.  They played "I Know My Father Lives", "I Am a Child of God", and "O My Father".  In the middle of the second song, Zach (who was looking a little bored), did a huge yawn.  It was about the funniest thing ever.  In his defense, it was pretty late, right?

When it was done, President Farr had a couple of funny things to say. He didn't see the yawn but he did mention that the boys thought they were playing at the beginning of the program, instead of an hour into it.  He said that they had to sit through a talk about parenting and then get to hear the temple president swear (he had said hell a couple of times, in reference to the scriptures). It was pretty darn hilarious.

But the boys played an absolutely beautiful duet. There is so much more maturity and musical understanding in their performances these days. I think they are starting to get it.  It was just pretty darn cool.

It's Playoff Time

Raef and Zach and their team, the Galena Grizzlies, made the playoffs. They had their first playoff game on Saturday at Sparks High School.  And guess what? They WON!  The final score was 32-12.  It was a great game and the team has really improved this year.

 

But the real trick when you go to a football game is to keep the little ones entertained for about 3 hours.  This is accomplished with lots of food and candy, a train caboose, and cool bleachers you can jump on, climb on and under, and, oh... silly neon glasses.

Julia, Harry, and Eli did great! 

Since the boys won, they get to play again this coming weekend. It will be against the #1 team, who has annihilated all of their competition this year, including us.  I am not holding my breath, but I hope they can at least make an improvement from the last two times we have played this season.  We shall see.

Kokanee Salmon Run at Taylor Creek

It has just been too beautiful this week to sit behind a desk.  Bad weather is on the horizon and I didn't want to wastedthe day away studying.  Therefore, we did a field trip yesterday!  I took the boys to the salmon run at Taylor Creek in California, via a stop at the Genoa Courthouse Museum.

Genoa was one of the settlements on the Pony Express.  The town was settled by Mormons and was a trading post on the California Trail.  They have a neat display about the Pony Express.  Riders were between the ages of 11-18.  They preferred orphans, because it was so dangerous. Can you believe that someone would sign up for that? Look at my boys.  They will be old enough for that job in 3 months!

 After a turn around the museum, we hit the road again for Lake Tahoe. It was an ideal time to go.  The leaves are changing colors and it was pristine and beautiful. Taylor Creek has a short trail loop and on the back side is the creek. Once a year, the Kokanee salmon come back to the creek to spawn and then die.  They estimate 70,000 fish make the trek.  The creek is very shallow and you can go right up to them. There are dead fish everywhere and tons of fish just floating there in the creek.  It does attract a good amount of bears, though I didn't get to see one.  Boo.

A funny moment happened when we were standing on the bridge by the main road during our leisurely hike.  The creek was just filled with tons of fish.  Our bodies cast a shadow on the water where they were floating. Raef would do a large wave with a stick he had found, and like a computer game, the fish would move away from him.  Then he would go to where there was another clump of fish and do the same thing.  Then Raef and Zach both got in on the action, making the fish move on command. It was pretty darn funny.

I am so glad I was able to experience this cycle of nature.  I learned a ton and I hope my kids did too. It is one thing to read it in a book.  But to actually be able to see it is priceless.

Chugging Along

I checked here on my blog and then was like, holy crap! I haven't blogged anything in a week.  I guess I have been a bit busy.  It has been a good week for me.  First of all, I get to taper on my running, because the marathon is next week. It is great to look at the schedule and see that you only have to run 3 miles. It is a nice change. I need to get an 8-miler in tomorrow and then I really just have 26.2 next Saturday. I am ready and glad to be done with it.

 

And mark my words, this will be my last marathon!!  Tie me up and send me to the looney bin if I even flirt with the idea of doing this again.

 

As for the rest of this week, it has just been school, school, school; a whirlwind of a week.  The boys continue to progress nicely in their studies. They also are plugging away at football. There are four games left on their schedule.  They probably have one of the toughest schedules. in the league.  Regardless, we are  thrilled they got a 'W' last week.  I hope they play well tomorrow. The game is in Fallon.

 

Playing with some masks we got from our travels. The left one is from Nicaragua and the right one comes from Hawaii.

 

 

Harry and Julia continue to grow and I can feel a certain level of maturity starting to settle into our lives. And let me insert a heavy exhale right here.  Thank goodness.  It still is craziness in these parts, but I feel that I have definitely gotten over the worst of it.

 

When we do homeschool co-op on Thursday, Julia and Harry go to a preschool class and they are doing great in there. Eli has been bumped up to real classes. He takes Music in Motion and a manners class.  I am still teaching a history class for boys called Horrible History: Tudors, Explorers, and Pirates.

 

I also realize it is about time to start teaching Eli how to read.  I am not that concerned about it right now, but the time is fast approaching and I think he is ready to start.

 

 

Julia still loves it when I take her picture. She is also obsessed right now with a Disney Princess sing-along DVD.  She watches it all the time and then asks me to sing a specific princess song, like Pocahontas or Ariel. And she still gets wistful when she thinks about the color pink.  Just the other night we saw pink clouds in the sky, and she tucked her hands under her chin in a demure pose and smiled so happily at the pretty pink clouds.  And she still loves to pick flowers, especially pink ones, from the neighbors yard.

 

 

Harry is really growing up. His obsession with cars is fading a little, but he always finds something to fill the void. Right now, he really loves coloring. I am surprised at how good he is at it.  He will sit at the table for long periods of time to color.  It is even better when he does it with Eli. The two of them are light years ahead of where Raef and Zach were back then, when it comes to coloring.

 

And just the other day, Harry was talking to me about hair. I asked him where all of his hair went, since he just got a haircut a week ago or so.  He told me that it went into the garbage.  What a smart boy.

I guess we will just keep chugging along.

Condo on Wheels

The condo in St. George has been sold.  We are now out of real estate for the time being. But we did get a new "condo" of sorts. We bought a camping trailer!  This toy goes well with Rinar's new truck he got a few months ago. 

 

Finally, we were able to take it out for a little spin and give it a try.  We went to Prosser Reservoir in California. It was fantastic.

 

 

It was a beautiful Labor Day weekend. There were many simple, wonderful moments that we shared together.  We went down to the reservoir and the kids had tons of fun chucking rocks into the lake. There wasn't any sand, but we always enjoy rock-chucking.  Zach and Raef did a little bit of swimming also.

 

 
Here, Eli is showing off his muscles.  Nice, huh? And, of course I forgot Julia's swimsuit, so she did it European style.

After our visit to the lake, we came back and the kids played keep away with the football, they took turns riding on the skateboard, they jumped on rocks, and built a big fire.  It was fun feeding the fire with pine needles. 

Then it was story time.  Eli listened to Zach's impromptu story, and then he told a story of his own.  It was hilarious.  He started making up a story and then Zach continually tried to mess him up.  Eli would say  something like, fire and then Zach would say, "wire? tire?" etc.  They were laughing and thought it was the funniest thing ever.

At night, the highlight for the little ones was the head lamps. Harry, especially, was in heaven.  It got dark and they whipped out the lamps and walked around and looked at stuff.  It was the bomb-diggity.
 

After the babies went to bed, we stayed up and played a couple of games of Yahtzee.  The boys loved it.

In the morning we ate pancakes and bacon, played outside some more, and then wrapped it up for our short ride home. 

I am excited about this new chapter in our lives.  In the future, we will be planning a lot of family vacations and activites around camping and our condo on wheels.  There will be many wonderful memories made together, and I can't wait.

A Blind Adventure

As the summer is winding down, I am trying to think of things to do with the kids that capitalize on outdoor adventures. Yesterday ended up being one of those days.

 

After we woke up yesterday, it was time to hit the road because I think we were all going house crazy.  We headed south on the newly opened freeway to Carson City.  Then we stopped at Mill Park to play for a few minutes. After the slide and swings, Zach got everyone, including me, to play Duck Duck Goose. It was a lot of fun.

 

We  then stopped at Raley's to get some food and continued south through Genoa and then up the Kingsbury Grade (which has incredible views of Gardnerville) to Heavenly and Lake Tahoe.  Finally, I found a little treasure at Taylor Creek.  There was a neat walking trail that was about a mile, if that. It wound around a wetland area. At the back of the trail was a building that was half in the ground. When we went inside, it was an aquarium of sorts, where the glass exposed the pond.  We could see trout swimming around and the kids loved it.

 

Here they are splashing sticks in the little pond.

 

 

As we continued on the trail, a bit of it was a boardwalk where the ground was too marshy.  But Raef spotted a frog, so we stopped to take a look.  We finally started to realize that there were 3 or 4 dozen frogs right there. That was pretty cool.

 

At the end of the trail, we enjoyed this view.  Emerald Bay is in the background.

 

 

We continued on our journey and did stop at the vista point at Emerald Bay for a few minutes.  It is spectacular. If you are ever in this part of the world, it is a must-see stop.  Of course, I didn't take a picture, but trust me. It is incredibly beautiful.

 

With the help of lots of treats and crunchy things, our little surprise expedition was a success.

Tahoe Rim Trail at Mt. Rose

One of my bucket list things to do this summer was to take my boys on a long hike.  I finally made it happen on Tuesday.  We drove to the summit at Mt. Rose and did a loop hike on the the Tahoe Rim Trail.  The boys were happy to go.  We brought a lunch and lots of water and set out on a wilderness adventure.

 

I made sure to wear my GPS watch so I could see how far the hike was.

 

At first, Raef was thrilled to be on the trail, and Zach was not so happy.  It might have been because I made them both carry the backpacks.  I didn't realize that Zach had the heavy one, as I had inadvertently put all three waters in his pack.  I kept telling him to quit whining and keep going.

 

Yes I really am a slave driver.

 

At the junction where the trail splits at 2.5 miles, there was an awesome little waterfall.

 

And the view was fantastic!

 

 For some reason, I thought the waterfall was the halfway point.  As we headed back, there was a deer in our path.  She winked and said hello and then sauntered down the steep hill after another deer came out of nowhere and shooed her off. It was really quite bizarre.

 

After most of the water had been consumed and the pack was lighter and cookies were in the belly, Zach was in a lot better frame of mind. He was telling jokes and saying funny things to me, as Raef was lagging behind, sulking because it was just too far. It was a complete reversal.

 I could finally see the road and realized that we probably had at least another mile to go.  I thought it was going to be a medium 5 mile hike, but I knew we were not going to be that fortunate. 

And then, kersplat!  Zach completely biffed it and did a face plant into the gravel.  Then it was just all over.  He was miserable and couldn't go on another step.  I really had to put on the mean, suck it up and quit whining face with both of them.  There was no way I was going to carry either one of them back!

Luckily, when the GPS clocked in at 6.08 miles, we were at the car. 

Now, if I want to strike fear into the hearts of my dear boys, all I have to do is say the H word, and they are begging for mercy.