Bocce Anyone?

One last entry about Memorial Weekend. While the children swam in the pool; Steve, Mom, Dad and I played a couple sets of Bocce. I relinquished my camera responsibilities to play the game and let Zack be the photographer.

I won one of the games and Steve's Dad won the other one. It was a fun way to hang out together.

Memorial Day at Silver Lake

Steve's Mom and Dad spent last week in Glacier National Park and worked their way through other National Parks until they got to Utah and stayed with us for a couple of days. The kids were thrilled to spend some time with "Papa" and "Gramma".

Memorial Day, we woke up and were treated to an IHOP breakfast to celebrate both Zack and my upcoming birthday's. BTW-the stuffed french toast with bananas and caramel were DELICIOUS!!!! After breakfast we came home and grabbed our light weight jackets and changed into shoes to walk in and the packed into our van and drove up Big Cottonwood Canyon. Wow!!! That was a BUSY place. We made our way to Silver Lake, parked and as soon as we got out of our van could see a moose standing near some shrubs. We walked over to take a few snap shots when we saw another moose standing on the other side of the boardwalk.

The park ranger that was there told us the 2nd moose was a little skiddish so we took a few more photos and decided to start our walk headed in a different direction. It was beautiful up there. We walked through some left over snow and the kids scaled a some cliff of rocks. The lake was beautiful and it was fun to watch the few fly fisherman as they cast their lines out. It was a great way to spend the holiday.

Zack's New Ride

While we were at Papa and Gramma Sansevero's house last week Zack got to "drive" the rider lawn mower. He was a little nervous and his legs were just barely long enough to ready the gas pedal. It was cool to watch him maneuver the lawn tractor. I think if he is old enough to try to ride the mower and Papa's he is definitely old enough to push the lawn mower in our front yard.

FOUND:Baby Lamb

Thursday morning I was at my parent's home in Ferron. Pop was mowing the lawns in the back yard, the kids were in the front yard playing and I went upstairs to get dressed. I could hear a lamb bleeting and it sounded so close. I looked out the window and there in the driveway was a little lamb surrounded by my 4 very curious children.

So, of course, I grabbed the camera and dashed outside to get some more pics for the blog. The kids were so excited. They tried feeding the little lamb pieces of alfalfa and various weeds. There was a big white dog that obvious was in charge of tending sheep and would not leave the sheep's side.

Eventually, Abby's; that was the lamb's name; owner showed up and took her back home. That put and end to the petting zoo, but the excitement of having spent 15 minutes with the little lamb carried on through the rest of the day.

Just 4 Fun

" SWINGERS"
Lucy Atkin
Dayna Duve
Nikki Weber

Today was the banquet for for my bowling league. Lucy, Wendy, Dayna and I all drove together. We had lunch with the rest of the ladies on our league at La Caille Restaurant. It is right near the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon and is just beautiful. Unfortunately it was overcast and rainy, but I would have liked to walked the grounds. We saw a peacock and geese out the windows as we ate our lunch. The food was quite yummy: salad, rolls, choice of chicken, salmon and beef, but more importantly there was chocolate cake in a pool of chocolate sauce.

Once the eating portion of the day was done they had drawing for some different prizes. Wendy won a body butter gift set and Dayna won something, but I did not get to see what it was. Then they got to prizes for bowling scores. Wendy won a cash prize for the highest scratch game and I actually won $10.00 for the "biggest increase in my average". On September 11, 2006 (my first day bowling) my average was 68 and by May 7, 2007 (the last day we officially bowled) my average was 109.

I truly had a great time these past few month getting the kids off for school on Monday mornings and dashing off to the All Star Lanes for bowling. I think I am going to kind of miss it in the next few months and wll be looking forward to September when we start off again.

Pancakes for Dinner

I forgot to put anything into the crockpot today before church. Steve stepped up and decided to make a BIG BREAKFAST for dinner. The kids love these dinners. This menu consists of:

• blueberry pancakes
• scrambled eggs
• sausage links

Steve decided to ask Katie for a little assistance. She manned the scrambled eggs. All the kids love to have the opportunity to lend a hand in the kitchen.

After we finished our "breaknner" and cleaned up the kitchen we all decided to go out to the front yard and just enjoy the evening weather. After a few minutes of watching the kids rollerblade I decided we should play a game. Out came the soccer ball and some makeshift goals. Steve and I were team captains and chose our teams: Me, Zack and Becky vs. Steve, Belle and Katie. It was a blast!!! Lots of laughing and team work.

Swimming

A hot day in Utah...
20 minutes until piano lesson...
And a pool calling your name...
WHAT IS A BOY TO DO?

JUMP IN OF COURSE!!!!!

Belle was at her piano lesson, Katie and Becky were off playing with a friend, so Zack thought he would take advantage of little free time alone in the pool before he had to rush off to piano. On went the snorkeling mask and into the pool the noodles flew and then Zack joined them both. He somersalted, kicked, and swam...blew water out of the top of the noodle, hammed it up for the camera.

So I guess it is officially summer in our house, the pool is open and the kids are swimming.



BTW...don't be shy, feel free to leave a comment. Just click on comment below and let us know what you think. It would be nice to see who is visiting. Thanks!!!

RED BUTTE GARDEN

We have lived here in Utah for 3 1/2 years and I have not ever been to Red Butte Garden. Little did I know what we were missing. Yesterday the 1st graders from Elk Meadows took their field trip their and I had signed up to chaperon. There were about 80 of us if you count the adults. We broke up into groups of 12 and were lead around the park by a guide. Our guide's name was Miriam. Before we started our mini trek we had to give our group a name. We decided on "Squirrel Scouts" So anytime Miriam wanted to get the kids attention she would say, "HEY SQUIRREL SCOUTS" and the children would answer back, "HEY MIRIAM".

Most of the trails are paved, but we started our walk off the "official" trail which took us to a magpies nest. We learned that magpies make 2 nests, the real one and a fake one to throw off predators. The children also got to see a squirrel up in a tree and we watched a snake slither out of site. As we walked along the trail she would stop and talk about the importance of plants: their stems, the leaves, she even had the children dissect a flower to see all the different parts. The best part was watching all the children be so drawn into it all.

We walked by a little pond where we saw a mama duck with baby ducks and a bunch of Canadian geese that put on quite a show for us.

When we got to the herb garden we were allowed to walk around and rub with our "butterfly fingers" the different plant and see what the smelled like. Then all the children sat down and they we given a little piece of fresh chive to taste. Some children thought it was yummy, but most of them spent the next few minutes trying to spit it all out .

There were so many beautiful flowers that we got to walk by and smell. I wish I had time to take pictures of them all, but I had to remember I was there to help take care of the children. As we left the park we were handed a pass to return. I have already told Steve to plan n doing that for one of our date afternoons while the kids are in school, so I can take some more time REALLY looking at everything.

Update on My Birds

My little birds outside the laundry window are getting so big. I took this picture of them yesterday. The finally really look like birds. You can see their wings and their bodies have fattened up. Today they were frightened by me. When I opened the window to take my photos they kind of ducked their heads. It kind of made me sad. I guess in couple of days they are going to leave the nest. They certainly are going to have to purely out of necessity, it is getting so crowded in there.

My Last Few Days

A couple of months ago my BFF Shawna emailed and asked if I was planning to attend Women's Conference in May at BYU. I had done Education Week a few years ago and so enjoyed myself. I signed up and convinced my mom to also come along. Mom and I got to BYU at about 9:00 am on Thursday and headed to the Marriott Center where we heard Wendy Watson Nelson speak. She was great. The main theme was that we were saved to be here for this moment in time. She was an incredible speaker. Once that concluded we headed over to Wilkinson Student Center for classes we had chosen. My classes on Thursday were titled:

Preparing for a Responsible Future:The Value of Education for Teens and Young Adults Raylene Hadley and Donna Newbold
Great Literature: Seeking the Virtuous, Lovely or Praiseworthy Marilyn Arnold and Richard H. Cracroft
Women of God:Joint-Heirs of the Kingdom Linda H. Christensen and Laurie Swim

Once we completed our classes we had to hustle to the van so I could gt home. I did not want the children to have to be home alone for too long.

The next morning we met up again at the Marriott Center. Luckily mom and I got there a little earlier and were able to get some better seats. Which we were so blessed because, just as I sat down I realized how impossible it was going to be for me to find Shawna. (we had been unable to get in touch with each other) I turned to my right and there about 15 seats away from me was SHAWNA!! I yelled for her and we hugged and visited for a minute and then decided we would try to hook up later in the afternoon. How lucky was I. After Shawna returned to her seat the program began. It was the most moving show I had seen in a long time. It was entitled "Arms Around My Sister".

This is how the program explained the production:

A special musical presentation
In an original musical presentation commissioned for this year's
Women's Conference, we look inside the hearts of women from the Old Testament
times, early nineteenth century, and our present day. Each addresses the
timeless question: Was I sent to the kingdom for such a time as this?

The whole presentation was so moving. There were 8 women dressed in black that told the different stories and sang beautiful songs an then young women that danced in between each story. It was BEAUTIFUL!!!

I attended another class at Wilkinson Center named:

Making Family Mealtime the Highlight of the Day Susan W. Robinson and Michelle King

After the class I met up with mom and we had lunch together. Once we were done we decided we would miss our second class and go to the bookstore and shop a little. As were walked over there someone tapped my shoulder. It was my friend Sandy Pingel who I had not seen for a couple of years. She use to live in Maine and moved to Utah and then to Idaho. I was thrilled to see her. And visited for a few minutes. As we stood there and talked a man walked by me and as I looked at him I realized I recognized him. It was Kerry Muhlestein. He is the missionary that baptized me nearly 18 years ago. I was floored. I knew he taught at BYU, but did not think I would run into him. He actually remembered me which was very cool. Shortly after he walked away and I continued visiting with Sandy, Shawna walked by and I caught her. We all: Mom, Sandy, Shawna and myself talked for a while. Then Mom went shopping and Sandy left and Shawna and I walked to our last class at Smith Fieldhouse:

Time Management for the Chronically Overextended Stacie Clements Lindsey and Ann Cannon

We spent the time prior to the class talking about kids, husbands and being mommies.

I value my friendship with Shawna. For those who don 't know, Shawna is my dear friend from way back to my years growing up in Riverside. When I investigated the church it was her kind mother Mona that opened her home up to me and the missionaries so I could receive the lessons. When I had to write my first talk in sacrament meeting I came to Shawna's home and Shawna helped me know how to go about this. We got in some trouble together, but overall just had a GREAT time. She was my maid of honor when I got married and I was her's. I never missed much when I moved from California, but I did regret that our children would not have the opportunity to be friends or play together. She was there at the Salt Lake Temple when Steve, the kids and I were all sealed together and when my dear Gram passed away she made a special trip to be there for the funeral. It does not matter how long it has been since we have seen each other, we seem to just pick up where we left off. I just love her to death.

This morning I woke up and had to return to my life...Recharged and Ready to be the best Mom and Wife I can be. That is how I feel after I spend a couple of days at something like this. I feel inspired and proud to be a mom and wife.

So I decided to make breakfast a little fun and pulled out the Hello Kitty Waffle iron the kids got from Aunt Mabel for Christmas. The kids love Saturday mornings getting to stay in their pajamas for as long as they want, sleeping in and chocolate milk day. As we sat there eating our Hello Kitty Waffles and the kids drinking their chocolate milk...I did count my blessings: Steve, Zack, Belle, Katie and Becky. I am truly blessed.

Michael Buble

I have a short entry in my blog today. Tuesday morning, Michael Buble was on the Today Show. I saw one performance and decided I would go and get dressed when my phone rang. I was surprised to hear my friend Wendy on the other line when I answered. She was in Chicago on vacation. She was just calling to tell me that I should tune into the Today Show at 9:40ish am my time when Michael would perform again. I thought it was pretty cool that he took the time to tell me. Now that is a friend!!!


Later that afternoon I went to Target and bought the new CD, which is WONDERFUL. Now I have all 3 of his CDs and he has the longest playlist on my iPod.
Just thought I would share what my baby birds look like now. I would really like to get a shot of the mama bird in the nest feeding them. I sat on washer/dryer for 30 minutes, but she never came back. Maybe I will catch her in the next few days. Wish me luck!!

A Walk in the Woods

Utah has been blessed with some beautiful summer like weather. So after I got home from bowling I asked Steve if he would be interested to go up to the mountains. And as you might expect, he said, "YES". So I packed up some sandwiches, bananas and trail mix and we climbed into the truck and began driving up Little Cottonwood Canyon.

There is a trail that we have hiked several times when we would go up with Katie and Becky while Zack and Belle were in school, but this was our first time being up there without kidlets. It was a nice little walk together.

The trail ends next to a stream and on the other side of the stream is an old, dilapidated building. Steve thinks it was probably on old mill. You can see where there use to be a bridge that crossed the stream, but has since collapsed or been removed. We ate our sandwiches and listen to the sound of the water rushing against the rocks. That is one of my favorite sounds. Once lunch was done, my camera came out, of course and I took a few snap shots of my favorite subject, STEVE.

As we walked back down the trail Steve pointed out these yellow flowers named "Creeping, Oregon Grape", which were very cool looking. They actually remind me of "Grape Hyacinth". Then just on the side of the yellow flowers I saw this one and just couldn't resist taking a picture of it, "The Water Leaf". I have enjoyed using the macro feature on my camera this spring.

I think we might go back in a few months and see if we can get to the other side of the stream and spend some time poking around the old building.