I got a few comments that people liked the pictures of my house so I took my camera around the house for a virtual tour. My camera doesn't have sound so all you can hear is a clicking noise. ANNOYING! I'd rather listen to the music on the sidebar any day. I hope the virtual tour isn't too fast.
There are some dark closets you couldn't see inside. That's probably good since our game closet is The Leaning Tour of Games at the moment. I will have to take a picture of the closet. It's so deep that when we first moved in, Brian hid in there and when I asked Nathan to put something away in that closet, he yelled "BOO!" It was so funny!!
You'll notice the boys' room has a cot set up. That's because we didn't have time to get Nathan's clean sheets on last night before bed so he just slept on the cot. He prefers that anyway because it's much cooler than his bunk bed. I tried to show you the boys' comforters. Nathan's is space. HE LOVES Astronomy!! His actually glows in the dark which is fun for both boys to see. Marshall's is of course, Thomas and Friends. He loves Thomas trains! My room has a lot of stuff in there. I have 2 dressers, 2 bedside tables, and a sewing machine in addition to the bed. Don't be fooled by the presence of a sewing machine in my room. I don't sew very well or very often!
In the kitchen, you'll see I finally did my dishes. YAY!
My Mother-in-Law's favorite thing about our house is our pictures going down the stairs. I put a picture of each boy as a baby, then a step down from that is their current photo, step down for a picture of the 2 of them together. I think it's rather nice myself!
I took pictures of the outside of the house for you. Marshall was not happy with me for going across the street. I couldn't go much further or he would have run after me.
Here are pictures of my backyard and the front of my house.
I finally got this done! I have been challenged by a blogging buddy to do a photo tag so brace yourselves people..here goes.
1. Your Dream Vacation- I want to go to Curacao. It's in the West Indies. My mother-in-law was born there and lived there until she was 12. I would love to see where she lived and played and went to school. That would be neat. I'd have to take her along too of course. I'd have to take the kids too because I want them to see where she lived.
2. A Self Portrait- I just woke up and checked my blog and since the kiddos are still sleeping, I needed to get this done now. I don't look much different later in the day except my hair does get combed and I get dressed. :) I don't wear makeup so what you see is what you get.
3. What are your kids doing now? Sleeping!! YAY!! They are actually sleeping in lately and I love it!
4. Favorite shoes- Well, I only have 2 pairs of shoes 1 pair of sandals, and one pair of slippers. Here are my favorite shoes. They are my favorite because my feet don't hurt when I wear them. I'm not supposed to go around barefoot. I still do but I'm not supposed to. :)
5. Favorite Room. Well, I would say the backyard but that's not a room so the Family/Living room is my favorite. My apartment isn't that big so the family room and living room are really the same room. We play games, sing songs, and sometimes watch movies together. Marshall can't sit through any movies so it's really rare that we do.
6. Bathrooms- I only have one and here it is. Marshall likes to flush stuff and recently tried flushing an ENTIRE ROLL of toilet paper. We usually keep it up on a shelf but he has been better lately. I hope it's not the calm before the storm. My poor hubby does NOT want to take the toilet off the floor again!!! He's already done it 3 times..Thank-you Marshall!!
7. Laundry Room. While this is tiny, I'm SO THRILLED to have a laundry room. A year ago, when we lived in our other apartment, the laundry room was in the kitchen. The washer and dryer were part of my counter space, which was already really limited. I LOVE MY LAUNDRY ROOM!!!!! Lest you think I'm good at keeping up with my laundry, I included the dirty hamper which I put in the hallway last night so I could put clothes in the dryer. The hamper takes up all the available space in there but I love that it fits in there at all! Again, if you knew what I had, you'd know what this tiny thing is HEAVENLY!!!
8. My closet. One half of my closet has Marshall's church clothes in it. The other half has my hanging clothes. Yeah, I don't have that many clothes but it's OK because I have all that I need.
9. The fridge-
10. The Kitchen Sink- I'm not doing too good with keeping my sink shined as you can tell. Last night I chose to fold the mountain of laundry instead of doing the dishes.
Well, there you have it folks. My messy house! Yeah, I call it a house even though it's only a 3 bedroom apartment. I think the backyard is bigger than inside. :)
In RS we are making and filling diaper bags for a local charity and so I took the pattern to my mother when we visited ~since I am clueless when it comes to sewing and she is an amazing seamstress, I'm serious, we have enjoyed many quilts, pj's, dresses, crib bumpers, etc. made by my mother's hands. Needless to say, I showed her the pattern and within a few hours she had whipped one up. Then I told her I wanted to adjust some things and make one for myself and viola... it was done and look how cute it is. It is great to have such talent in the family. Thanks mom!
If you know me at all then you are shocked that I left this header and background on as long as I did. What can I say, I've been busy. But, it's time for a change and since in a few months it will no longer be "the five of us" I thought I'd change the title while I'm at it.
Together... it's our favorite place to be
That fits our family perfectly... at least most of the time ;)
We started gathering Saturday to Debby & Jim's home in Spokane. As a starter, we attended a Kit Kidderich movie about a girl who lived during the depression or WWII, I can't remember for sure. While we were in the movie, someone buglarized Todd's car and stole a hand gun, IPOD, and money. Not a good start for him. We attended church and came home for a traditional roast dinner for 32 people. Jason organized some treasure hunts and kept the kids entertained with other games such as high jump (jumping over his leg). They all colored and played other games. I don't know the schedule, but I am sure I will find out as the week goes by.
We made it to Utah and what a great trip we had! Trevor could only get 1 week off and I wanted more time there with the kids so we left a week earlier and Trev met up with us. It was great to see so many family members and good friends.
Here is a pic of my two dear friendsTiffany and Angie. So fun to sit down with them and visit and our kids were thrilled to play together! As an added bonus I finally talked Tiffany (still working on Angie) to starting her family blog so now I can keep up with her cute family better. YAY
I feel so blessed to have such amazing women in my life.
We enjoyed a yummy lunch at the Olive Garden with a few aunts and a cousin which was fun and I also got to spend a morning at the park for West Bountiful 10th ward's "storytime" and catch up with some greatfriends and neighbors. So fun to see them and all the sweet new babies. Love you guys!
There are just too many things to write about...
We were so blessed to be able to attend my families annual trip to Bear Lake. It was the first time in many years (if ever) that all of us were there. We had a blast swimming, wave running, playing the wii, golfing, hot tubing, eating, and playing card/board games late into the night. Hallie and Megan were in heaven with so many cousins to play with.
I just love these people!
Melissa and Jeff (aka. Howie) planned a fun surprise for all of the kids and each grandchild got to play "Deal or No Deal" with the chance to win up to $20.00!!! Makenna was the grand prize winner with $20 but Hallie and Megan (and the rest of the kids) didn't come out empty handed. Hallie won $8 and Megan $8.50. It was a lot of fun. Thanks Melissa and Jeff, hope we didn't put too big of a dent in your wallet. ;)
Lot's of fun in the sun at Bear Lake then we were off to Trev's parents home. Trev took the girls up to Causey for the "Cousins Campout" (sorry, he forgot to take pics) and we enjoyed visiting with family and attending a new nephew's baby blessing.
Kaye made a fun little hideout for the kids in the old hot tub and even Julie climbed in and read stories to the girls. They love their aunt Julie, she is the best storyteller around. We also got to attend our old ward... so many good people.
My favorite part about the trip was just the little moments of visiting and enjoying being close to people we have missed.
Unfortunately we spent the last 2 days with the stomach flu so we didn't get to spend time with some of our dear friends which totally stunk but there is always our next trip.
I just want to thank everyone who housed us and fed us and spent time talking to us and letting us be a part of your lives even though we live way out in Kentucky. It was a memorable trip and we are just so thankful.
I am so blessed to live in this free country. I'm thankful that the founders of our country did not back down and did not quit. We are so blessed to live in this land where we can make choices and worship how we choose. What a wonderful blessing!!! Happy 4th of July (2 days late)
Our trip to Spokane has begun...as you can see, the Grubbs' spare no expense when it comes to traveling and eating out. Nothing like a peanut butter sandwich, nibs and good old cement seat.
This is the only picture I have so far. More pics and fun to come.
Also, I had to post this one about Miley Cyrus. She came to Provo's Stadium of Fire. Did we go to see it?? Nooooo. Did we want to? Not to see Miley. We wanted to see Glenn Beck and The Blue Man Group. Anyway, here is a great video to watch.
So it all started several years ago. I told my wife that I wanted to build the kids a playhouse. Initially I wanted it to be a tree house in the old cherry tree out back. As I planned and evaluated it though, this seemed to be a bit more complicated and would most likely turnout less than desired. So I pressed on looking for an alternative.
As we looked at different plans and kits it became apparent that we just might not build a play house. The ones we liked gave us a bit of sticker shock. They ranged from 4,000 to 20,000+. Yes we were quite taken back. Our favorite were the crooked type as seen below, built on top of a large hollowed out piece of a tree stump. The entry door is cut into the tree and has a ladder leading up into the playhouse.
These were great, but for our backyard and budget, we needed something a bit different. So I went down the path of creating my own plans. After months of tinkering, I came to the conclusion that this simply wasn't going to work. I really didn't have the time to create the plans, and needed to make my life easier by finding something as a compromise.
Several days later I came across Woodmanor Play Houses. They have a long list of play houses and they provide them in three options, pre-built, kits or plans. I chose to purchase the plans for their Mini Country Cottage. I was able to download the plans immediately after my purchase, and the price seemed right.
After another year. ( I seem to have a little too much on my plate these days.) I decided that my kids weren't going to get any younger, and if I waited too much longer, I might as well just keep it a dream and never build it. I thought I might regret not building it so several weeks ago Natalie and I went off to purchase the materials.
Here are some pictures of it's progress.
We obviously have a long way to go yet, but it's coming along.
Here are some pictures of last Thursday's adventures in the backyard. I'm a little slow. First, Nathan and I went to Cub Scout Day Camp and had so much fun! Then the boys wanted to play with their boats in the water (we did Raingutter Regatta at Day Camp), and then the boys played basketball with the soccer ball. We had a great time! One picture in here is not related to the others. It's kind of like that old Sesame Street game where they sang "One of these things is not like the others. One of these things is not the same." I put one picture of Marshall eating corn on the cob because it was the FIRST time he has ever tried and successfully been able to tolerate eating corn! It was a big milestone!! WAY TO GO MARSHALL-MAN! I just realized the pictures are out of order but I don't have time to fix that. Oh well. Enjoy them anyway! :)
I've had a lot of people comment on my post about Marshall's test results from the UofU Autism Research Project. The big question from everyone is "Where do you go from there?" I'm wondering the same thing myself. First, let me clarify something. Autism and Asperger's Syndrome are not the same thing. So, although we have ruled out Autism, we have not ruled out Aspgerger's Syndrome. This website has a good definition of Asperger's Syndrome. Click on this link: Asperger's Syndrome This website gives you a rundown of all th Autistic Spectrum Disorders: Understanding Autism
The most important thing to do is to get a proper diagnosis. This may prove difficult because Marshall is so young still. We are working on getting him a Neuropsychological Evaluation through the BYU Comprehensive Clinic. This means that a Grad student will do the eval but he will be under the supervision of the professors. I hope we get something out of this. It would be nice to quit guessing.
This is Marshall's phrase today as he was jumping and going under water in our new pool. We bought a big pool for outside and the boys have been having a great time. We usually put Marshall in his wet suit because he's so skinny he can't keep in his heat. Well, we'd been swimming for a while when he had a "potty emergency" as I call it. That's when you gotta go potty and you gotta go NOW!!! So after he went potty, I didn't want to put him back in his wetsuit (they are hard to get into when you're wet), so I put him in his new swimming suit. He was excited to be wearing it but he kept shivering and getting purple lips. Nathan taught him to swim under water and got him to go under a lot more. They had a wonderful time. Grandma Judy (Brian's Mom) and Grandpa Jack (Brian's Step-Dad) paid for our pool when they came to visit us this weekend. They said it was their pleasure since they stayed with us and we fed them for a few days. It was nice! :)
I have always enjoyed pumpkins as you can see from the picture of Stefanie years ago, but I have never grown any giant pumpkins. Last year a neighbor had a pumpkin vine that came over the fence and grew a huge pumpkin in our yard. You can see the results in the picture with Diane. We collected some of the seeds and have planted them in the garden as you can see in the last picture. Now will be the test to see how big of a pumpkin we can grow. There won't be any competition because no one else planted one this year, but it will be fun to see how big they will get. We have the right seeds, plenty of space, lots of water and lots of sun. What else could a pumpkin want? I will keep you posted with future Pumpkin Journal Updates!
I was getting settled into my work day this morning, when all of a sudden I caught a streak of movement across the floor in my office. When my eye finally caught up with the moving object, I realized it was a mouse. It ran behind my filing cabinet, then it continued out the other side, and then ran behind my credenza. As I'm sure you can tell from my other critter stories, I don't deal with mice very well. I calmed myself down, and told myself not to worry because he was probably afraid of me, and would try to stay out of sight. Just as I started to function again, he ran out from behind the credenza right behind my chair. That was just too close for comfort. I quickly removed myself from my office, and stood outside my office door waiting for reinforcement. My boss was the first one to discover me standing outside my office. I told her there was a mouse in my office, and she of course laughed, and went into my office to try to find the mouse. She tried to convince me that the mouse probably slipped into the office next to mine through a space between the wall that divides the two offices and the window that the two offices share. I wasn't convinced. She told me to work in her office while she was gone to a meeting. I called Peter to get some consoling, and he told me to quit being a wuss, and go back to my own office. He then proceeded to tell me that he found a mouse in his office just yesterday, and he just chased it out of his office. One minor detail, he wears combat boots, and I wear high heeled strappy sandals. I finally got the nerve up to go back to work in my office by convincing myself that the mouse had probably moved on to terrorize another co-worker. I nervously worked for a few hours with my feet off the ground of course. Well, lo and behold, he had the nerve to show his face again. He jumped out from behind my file cabinet, and when I screamed, he ran back behind the file cabinet. When my boss heard me scream, she came to check on me. I told her the mouse was behind my filing cabinet, and just then, he jumped out on the other side, and ran across the floor under my chair. At this point, I was slightly freaking out. I immediately vacated the office, while she continued to look for the mouse. I moved to another office for the day with the promise that the janitor would set a trap in my office this afternoon. I had to go back to my office several times to get different things to be able to get any work done. I was a little perturbed because when I left the office at 5:30pm there was still no trap in my office. Needless to say, it was a stressful day, and if that mouse is still in my office tomorrow I'm seriously considering quitting my job due to hazardous working conditions.=) I haven't even mentioned the cockroaches that turn up dead all over the office. Disgusting! After work I went to Wal-Mart to see what kind of mice deterrents I could find. I was fully prepared to purchase and set up my own mouse trap, but I know I couldn't handle disposing of it if it actually caught something. So, instead, I discovered these things you plug into the wall, and they emit ultrasonic sound waves that are supposed to deter mice, cockroaches and spiders. What a great invention (if it actually works). Black & Decker is my HERO! Let's just hope this little contraption is worth the $10 I invested. Oh yes, and I definitely intend to turn in my receipt for reimbursement. Wish me luck tomorrow. I seriously need to get some work done considering I'm leaving in two days for a 2 week vacation.
I logged onto Brigham Young University's (BYU) website to get some information and I saw a link to a video about how students from the BYU Engineer and Technology department developed a fun way for children in Ghana can light their school room. This is a link to the story on BYU's website. You can read the story and watch several other news stories about it. What a great idea!!! Click HERE
We are anxious and excited to see everyone that can make it to the reunion this year and will miss those who cannot be with us.
If you haven't already, let us know if you are coming and when you will be arriving.
So far, this is the information I have received:
Dad, Mom, Tiffany & James - 7/5 thru 7/17
Bill & Diane - ?
Aprilyn & children - ?
Mack, Kaye & Julie - 7/4 thru 7/13
Kimberly - ?
Todd, Natalie & children - 7/4 thru ?
Jason, Angie & children - 7/1 thru 7/16
Peter & Lindsey - 7/4 thru 7/15 (split w/Rabers)
Camron, Angela & children - 6/26 thru 7/13 (split w/Wagners)
Brandon & Karen - 7/8 thru 7/13
Don & Paula Grubbs - ?
(The ? means I do not know time or if you are coming)
We will canoe the river. If you have life jackets for little ones and room to bring them that would be great. If not we will work something out.
There will be biking. If you are interested in this activity and can bring bikes and helmets that would be great. If not we will see what we can come up with.
Temple Session - If you are interested, bring Recommend and Temple Clothes since clothing is not available at the Spokane Temple.
Flying remote control planes. If you have a plane and room to bring it, please do so.
Geo Caching - If you have a GPS we can use for this activity, please bring if possible.
Shooting - If you are interested in this activity and have a gun you would like to bring that would be great.
Singing w/Bill on guitar - Bill please bring your guitar
Movie Night - under the stars if I can come up with a projector
Games - if anyone has a game to share and would like to bring it that would be great.
We have other ideas of things to do. Let us know if there is something you would like to see take place while we are together.
I was talking to a Scott, a friend at work the other day who goes golfing once or twice a week. He had just returned from a trip with his two brothers where they golfed 172 holes together in one weekend. I began to wonder where he found so much time to golf. As I was out working in the garden after work, I realized just like Scott, I was doing what I enjoy and that is gardening. I don't know why. It is hard physical work and takes a lot of time and energy, but I find it so rewarding. We have a "family garden", a term I use loosly. It was supposed to be a family garden, but it is basically a garden where Mack and I labor with a little help from Diane. It is 30 x 100 feet and you wouldn't believe how many weeds can grow in 30 x 100 feet. I expect it is something like 30x100x100 or 300,000. I feel like I have pulled at least that many weeds single handed.
As a child, I thought it was cruel and unreasonable punishment to be forced to work in the garden or flower bed pulling weeds. Of course, pulling weeds is not the part I enjoy. There is something about the law of the harvest you can experience every year as you plant, tend, harvest and eat the fruits of y our labors.
In a similar way, Heavenly Father has planted, continues to tend each of us each day. Someday it will be our time for the harvest and hopoefully we will be consider part of the good fruit of his labors.
Brent Morris, a neighbor is one of the most original people I have ever known. While the confernece center was being built, he went to the quarry where they were cutting the granite (same quarry used for the SLC Temple) and bought some of the left over pieces. The two pieces he is pointing to are located in his front yard. They are positioned at exactly the right angle so on the longest day of the year, the sun shines through the small slit at sunrise. Each year, he has a ward party at sunrise and everyone gets to see this event.
Now that is pretty cool if you ask me. Who except some of the ancient cultures would ever think of that? Way to go Brent!
I am grateful for Jenny and Brandon and Stefanie and Will who helped me with Marshall this week. I went to Cub Scouts Day Camp on Thursday and Brian had to teach so Jenny picked up Marshall and took him to her house for the day. He had a great time playing with Jenny and Brandon, James and Sara.
Friday, we went to the first annual "Cousin's Campout" at my Dad and Diane's cabin up Ogden Canyon. Marshall LOVES Stefanie and Will and he spent a lot of time talking to them. I wish I had written it all down but I do remember that he told them he was go on a mission to "Hexaco. That's in ourspace (outerspace)." He makes me laugh so hard!! I'm grateful for sisters who are patient and loving with my extremely bright, extremely demanding little boy.
I found this on YouTube. If you can stand to sit and listen to the whole thing then you are a much more patient person than I am!! Nathan was asking me how they make their voices so high. Well, here ya go--
We returned home last night after spending a great weekend in San Antonio. It serisouly felt like we spent the weekend back in civilization. There were so many great restaurants to eat at (I gained 2.5 lbs), and so many great stores to shop at (thank you honey for letting me blow the budget this month). We have determined that we are not small town folk, and we hope that our next transfer takes us to a bigger city with great restaurants and shopping.;)
The real reason for the trip to San Antonio was to attend the Rascal Flatts concert. We used to attend concerts quite often back in high school because I could get awesome tickets before they went on sale to the public through the company I worked for. We were shocked at how much ticket prices have gone up since then. Also, did you know that they wave cell phones in the air now instead of lighters?
The concert was great! Taylor Swift was the opening act, and then Rascal Flatts put on an amazing show with lots of lights and slide shows. The concert was outside, so it was a little hot (it's been consistently in the high 90's and pushing 100 degrees down here). It was great once the sun went down, and there was a little bit of a breeze. We were glad we paid the extra money for reserved seats, so that we didn't have to be there two hours early to claim a patch of grass in the general admission section.
Here we are before the concert, waiting for the sun to go down, or at least go down enough so that we are in the shade.
This is the most expensive water I've ever had. It cost $4 per bottle. Another change since the last concert we attended, when you purchase a bottle of water, they take the cap off for you, so you don't throw it at anyone.
"Bless the Broken Road" is one of my favorite Rascal Flatts songs. This is one of the songs on our wedding DVD.
It was a great weekend, but I think we ran ourselves ragged running around trying to accomplish everything on our running list of "Things To Do When We Go To San Antonio."
We will be blessing Andrew William Hoskins this Sunday, June 29, at 9:00 and would love all to come who can :) The address to the church is 1930 N 600 W in West Bountiful. We will meet at our house afterwards for eating and visiting. We hope to see you!
I am grateful for my Mp3 player. I have the one in this picture and I love it!! I put the Book of Mormon on it and the Church's Worldwide Leadership Training. I don't have much time to sit and read these days so I listen while I do dishes or clean the house. I even listened while I was grocery shopping the other night. I love it!! What's on your Mp3 player?
Back in January, we took Marshall up to the University of Utah to participate in the Utah Autism Research Project. We finally got the results 6 months later. They performed a few tests and this is what they told us. Differential Ability Scales- Lower Preschool Version (DAS) The DAS is a standardized test of intellectual functioning. It was designed to cover a broad range of ages and abilities, from individuals with intellectual impairment through individuals who are intellectually gifted. An average score is 100, and the standard deviation is 15. Marshall's overall score was 108, which falls at the 70th percentile or Average range compared to other children of similar age. Individual subscale scores are as follows (average subscale scores are 50, with a standard deviation of 10):
Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals- Preschool (CLEF-Preschool) The CLEF-Preschool measures basic language use. It yields an overall Total Language Score and 2 subscale scores:
Scale Standard Score Precentile Level _______________________________________________________________________________ Receptive Language 110 75th High Average Expressive Language 118 88th High Average Total Language 114 82nd High Average
Marshall's CLEF-Preschool subtest scores are presented below. Average subtest scores are 10, with a standard deviation of 3.
Receptive Language Score Expressive Language Score ----------------------------------- ------------------------------ Linguistic Concepts 13 Recalling Sentences in Context 16 Basic Concepts 13 Formulating Labels 13 Sentence Structure 9 Word Structure 10
So, what does all this mean? Marshall doesn't have Autism and he doesn't have a speech delay. Nothing we didn't already know but it is interesting to have the numbers.
We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We're not scared. Uh oh! Grass! Long, wavy grass! We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it! Swishy swashy! Swishy swashy! Swishy swashy! We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We're not scared. Uh oh! A river! A deep, cold river! We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it! Splash splosh! Splash splosh! Splash splosh!
We're going a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We're not scared. Uh oh! Mud! Thick, oozy mud. We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it! Squelch squerch! Squelch squerch! Squelch squerch!
We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We're not scared. Uh oh! A forest! A big, dark forest! We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it! Stumble trip! Stumble trip! Stumble trip!
We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We're not scared. Uh oh! A snowstorm! A swirling, twirling snowstorm! We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it! Hoooo wooooo! Hoooo wooooo! Hoooo woooo!
We're going on a bear hunt. We're going to catch a big one. What a beautiful day! We're not scared. Uh oh! A cave! A narrow, gloomy cave! We can't go over it. We can't go under it. Oh no! We've got to go through it!
Tiptoe! Tiptoe! Tiptoe!
What's that? One shiny wet nose! Two big furry ears! Two big goggly eyes. IT'S A BEAR!
Quick! Back through the cave! Tiptoe! Tiptoe! Tiptoe! Back through the snowstorm! Hoooo woooo! Hoooo woooo! Hoooo woooo!
Back through the forest! Stumble trip! Stumble trip! Stumble trip!
Back through the mud! Squelch squerch! Squelch squerch! Squelch squerch! Back through the river! Splash splosh! Splash splosh! Splash splosh!
Back through the grass! Swishy swashy! Swishy swashy! Swishy swashy! Get to our front door! Open the door! Up the stairs! We forgot to shut the door! Back downstairs! Shut the door! Up the stairs! Into bed! Under the covers! We're not going on a bear hunt again!
So as some of you know, Aubrielle and Benson have been on vacation in Spokane without us for the past two weeks (yes, I do have THE GREATEST in-laws and parents in the world!) So I'm sure you've been wondering what the heck I've been up to with just Jaycie.
So, here it is:
#1: What I'm always doing.......
Taking a million pictures of my little Jaycie (who is 8 months now!) and enjoying her. She has really enjoyed being the center of all our attention these past two weeks. The day we got home from Utah and she realized she had ALL our attention she seriously just started hamming it up. Even friends from church have commented on the change. I'm not really sure what she's going to do when the others get back.
#2: Helping Camron assemble his Father's Day present
Don't be decieved by the smile on his face....this is HARD work. The hardest part you ask? Reading the instruction manual. Don't believe me.....here is an example:
Enter and wood screw lock with rubber grommet hole till not too tighten state of affairs is the best efficacy of prevent quake.
I still have yet to determine what that one meant....
I must say though, this has been a dream of Camron's for about 5 years now, so seeing it all come together is so exciting. I think he's hoping we'll finish the assembly on it tonight or tomorrow. The only downside is, the remote control he bought on Ebay got shipped to our old address in Idaho. As Benson would say, "Bummer Dude." So looks like we won't be flying this bad boy until we recover the goods (which shouldn't be too bad since Camron's brother lives close by and can go get it and re-ship it to our correct address).
#3: Baking delicious desserts
Camron thought these had gone out the door with baby #3, but low and behold, to his joy, I still now how to make them (I could just never find the time)!
#4: Waiting, and waiting and waiting....
Yes, that's right, my furniture has been stacked in the kitchen awaiting the carpet cleaners since Monday night. And guess what? It's Friday afternoon and they are just now cleaning it. Let's just say it's been a LONG week. Especially since I can't open the oven or the dishwasher due to the entertainment center that is stacked in front of them. (When I put it there I was under the assumption it would be there one night!)
However, I'm sure my neighbors who unexpectedly got their carpets cleaned on Wednesday afternoon when he cleaned the wrong aparment are sure happy, so I guess I can take joy in that. (And now I can rejoice that my carpets are finally clean, and I've had a great excuse to not cook for the past week!)
Alright, well I better peace out now. If anyone actually read that whole thing, props to you. I better get back to life now that my carpets are clean and I can begin that long list of things I wanted to get done while the kids were out of town (but couldn't do due to my furniture being turned inside out).
While we were in Utah for Brandon's wedding, we were able to go to the Dinosaur Park. The kids had a blast (especially after Aubrielle realized the Dinosaurs weren't really going to eat her.....the animated ones at the beginning of the park were very real to life).
Here are the kids with their cousins (Angie and Jason's kids + 1 extended cousin on the end)
This was the "Camarasaurus" dinosaur, so of course, I made Camron and the kids pose for a picture!
As if Benson needed anything else to have nightmares about at night......thanks Dad!
Anyway, it was a great time, especially since we got to spend it with family. Check out all those cousins!
And of course I took a million more pictures than this, they are located here for those interested!
Yup, I'm still here but it's been a busy week. We had a great time swimming Monday at the Scera Outdoor Pool. Marshall realized he can swim in his life jacket and had a wonderful time. I think he likes his new found freedom.
I'm still going to water aerobics every morning and I've lost 6 lbs in less than a week!!! WOOHOO!!! I feel good, albeit tired, after 1 hr of water aerobics every day but it's SO good for my body!!
Nathan is going to start a Science class at the library tomorrow. Unfortunately, he only gets to go once. It's a 2 week class but next week he has Cub Scout Day Camp. That should be a lot of fun though!! We're excited for Day Camp. He is also reading a lot and just enjoying lazy days spent with me and Marshall.
Marshall is his cute self. He loves playing with Nathan. They are really best buddies. We make it a point to read 1 or 2 books at bedtime. He LOVES the book Going on a Bear Hunt. He always wants that one. :)
So we took our first beach trip of the year a few weekends ago. Brandon and his fiance (now wife) Karen were in California and met up with us. It was great hanging out with them and meeting Karen for the first time. Of course I didn't get any pictures of them though...sometimes I amaze myself. It was lots of fun though and Brandon and Karen even found a baby seal on the beach that they then took the kids to investigate (from a distance of course). We love living near the beach and especially love it when Brandon comes to visit because we actually go to it!
We've had a crazy Father's Day with sick kids and chaos as I'm trying to get ready for our trip to Utah but I have to take a minute and just thank my dad for being so great. I feel so blessed to have him in my life and so grateful that my kids get to enjoy my dad as their loving "grandpa".
We love you dad and can't wait to spend some time with you in a few days!
This Fathers Day I would like to post pictures of some of the men in my life who have made a difference to me. I'm grateful for my Grandpa. He stayed with our family after Mom died. He makes delicious Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies and was always serving our family! He is not a man of many words. Every day before I went out the door for school, he would tell me to not forget I'm a queen. It used to bother me because I felt NOTHING like a queen but he knows my worth. He sees what I can become.
My Uncle Mack is a great guy too. He is kind and loving and listens when you talk to him. He is always busy serving others. He is usually the last one to eat at Family Dinners because he's taking care of Grandbabies and making sure the Moms get a chance to eat. Actually, both of these people influenced my life but since today is Father's Day, Judy will get left out. Sorry Judy! Randy was not only my Bishop, he was my Dad's best friend. He was/is a good example of service and love towards others. He cares about people. Last but not least, my Dad. I can't find a recent picture of him because he's always photographing everyone else! He has a talent for Photography. He is good at many things. He took up gardening and is referred to as the Master Gardener of the Grubbs Family. He taught me to work hard and get the job done right the first time. Do you know how much I WHINED about working all the time? Now I am so grateful that he put up with my whining and made me work anyway. He loves his family! He and Nathan have that special bond that only Grandfathers and boys can have. They love camping and hiking together. I'm so lucky that my Dad takes Nathan on so many fun hikes and camping trips!
There are several other men I could list but I don't have a picture of them. Randy Feil influenced my life. When I was so sad after my Mom died, he took the time to talk to me and comfort me.
One of my Bishops in Bountiful was John Stringham. He showed love and compassion to all he came in contact with. I'm privileged to know these wonderful, righteous men. They hold the Priesthood of God and honor it. They are wonderful examples to me.
This week I finally got motivated and started back in Water Aerobics. I go every day except Sunday from 8:30-9:30am. I'm loving it! It's a lot of work but it's exercise I can do!! My foot is still bothering me a lot and I know part of the solution is to lose some weight. I REALLY REALLY want to lose weight so I'm going to work hard. Wish me luck! Once school starts again, I still want to go but I'll have to wait and see what Brian's schedule is like.
Today (and tomorrow) was a free day at the BYU Museum of Art. It was called, "ANNUAL FAMILY ART DAYS TO CELEBRATE MEDIEVAL THEMES OF VICTORIAN ART." It was free even!! WOOHOO!! They did face painting, medieval dancing, castle building, a story hour and something else that I forgot. You even got to look at the art while you were there! That was great with the exception that I had Marshall running away so I didn't really get to see any art. Nathan and I liked the documentary on Geneva Steel. It was a picture documentary. It was interesting because he could relate to it. He knows where it was. We live pretty close to it still. Anyway, Marshall shocked me by getting his face painted. He watched Nathan get a dragon on his face and then when Nathan was done, Marshall just hopped up in the chair. At first he asked for a butterfly but then changed his mind to a dragon. He has NEVER liked people touching his face so that was a big step for him! WAY TO GO MARSHALL-MAN!
Today was quite nice. Not too warm, not terribly cold either. The boys got some good Daddy time in on the trampoline after dinner. I played for a little bit but my foot is still hurting so I couldn't jump. I could tickle though!!! It's hard to choose which pictures to put on this post because I took a ton and I love them all! :) Brian loves to wrestle with the boys and they absolutely LOVE IT!! Every time Nate gets pinned, he yells for Marshall to help him.
March 15th 2007- I'll be honest, tears were shed that "match day". Louisville, Kentucky was not my first choice in a residency. "Do people really live in Kentucky?" I wondered.
I wasn't thrilled about living in a huge city full of strangers while my husband worked at a crazy ER downtown with metal detectors and gang violence (talk about education). Honestly, I was terrified but I put on a happy face and stepped forward because I felt the Spirit assure me that the Lord's hand was in it all.
This week marks a year since we moved to Louisville and as I write this post my eyes are clouding with tears... I wouldn't trade this year for anything.
Leaving the comforts of home, family, and friends was (and still is) often so hard to bear. Feeling alone and vulnerable... it has caused some painful but much needed growth.
The experiences we have had here as a family are invaluable. Who knew that residency would be so tough?! I am in awe at my husband's strength, even in the darkest hours.
We've had to lean on each other more and that has united us as a family.
The opportunities we've had to share our testimonies have been so sweet and caused me to look at the Gospel differently. It really is "Good News" and we are so blessed to have it.
The friendships I have gained here... honestly, this is where I see the Lord's hand in my life the most right now. It's like he knew I needed these women in my life and that's why he brought me all the way out to Kentucky. I'm so very grateful.
And so, I've learned in this last year that people DO live in Kentucky... some of the best people I know, and my life will be forever changed because we have this time here.
Moving in -June 2007. Our kids have grown and changed so much in 1 year (and I think Trev might have a few more gray hairs thanks to residency). ;)
Marshall is not one to sit still for Family Home Evening. What 3 yr old is?? Nathan was doing the lesson and it was taking far longer than he had patience for. Ok, so he was already upset when the lesson started. Marshall just wanted to go for a family walk...in boots. Yup, he told us we all had to get our boots on so we could go for a family walk. I told him my foot hurts so I need to wear my shoes. He said "But Daddy and Nathan have to wear boots." Dad talked Marshall out of it too so Marshall decided just he and Nathan would wear boots whether Nathan wanted to or not. For the FHE lesson, Nathan had us all write down our testimonies. It was such a great idea but poor Marshall had zero tolerance for sitting still today. I gave him a piece of paper to color on and he decided to make "Another path to the Spirit World." I asked him who is in the Spirit World and he said "President Hinckley." He's absolutely right. I told him his Grandma Helen is there too and he gave me a funny look. He's such a darling little boy. Here is Marshall with his boots and swimming suit on. Isn't he such a cute little boy? I think so, but then again, I am biased.
I just returned from my trip to Salt Lake City for Brandon and Karen's wedding. It was a beautiful wedding. I didn't get to meet Karen until after the wedding, but I knew she must be a special girl since Brandon had asked her to marry him. Welcome to the family Karen!
Marshall says the funniest things. Today after Primary, he came running up to me to show me the picture he had drawn in Primary. The paper says "My Favorite Food" and he drew some squiggly lines on it. His teacher wrote at the bottom, "The Path to the Spirit World" and the back side said "Lasagna". He said his picture is the path to the Spirit World and Lasagna. I asked him if you have to eat Lasagna to get to the Spirit World and he said "Only one bite." Hahahaha. We've had such trouble getting him to eat lately that we tell him to just take at least one bite! I guess he's listening after all! This boy makes me laugh so hard!!! I love him to pieces!
I'm very blessed to be a Cubmaster. This picture was at our Pack Meeting Thursday. We were Survivors who had to get out of our camp because a volcano had erupted and lava was pouring in our camp. The boys are trying to do cooperative skis. It was so hard but so funny to watch. They kept falling over. We had a great time. Anytime you can play games for pack meeting is so fun. I think it's even better when you stay outside so you don't have much mess to clean up! :)
We took Nate to a Hobby Shop today and he had the HARDEST time making up his mind on what he would get. He finally settled on a Electronics kit. It has equipment for making a simple motor, a light and some other stuff, all powered by a battery. He spent a few hours playing with it and has already completed everything in the book that came with the kit. Now he wants to use this stuff to make other things. We also went to the library and got some books on inventing. Nate is such a thoughtful little boy! He said you have to think of a problem that you want to fix and write that down. He hid in his
Anyway, it was a great time, especially since we got to spend it with family. Check out all those cousins!
