c'est chic

This was a busy week. Our primary program was on Sunday and went fine. Everything feels like a blur at the moment. I either have horrible allergies or am getting a head cold, so I'm going to be brief. The boys got their soccer photos (and team photos) this week so I'm posting photos of the photos (the originals look a bit better of course):

And just so Liv isn't left out, here is a festive one of her:


The highlight of the week was a "Disco Skating" party that Rob and I planned (ok, it was really just me but I'm happy to share the credit). Rob has always talked fondly of dressing up to go disco skating while he was at BYU, and I'm sorry to say that we have never gone roller skating together. So after years of talking about going (for what, 15 years now?) we finally decided to get a group together and go. We invited a bunch of friends and left the invitation open for people to invite others. We were pleased with the turnout and are planning to make this an annual event around Halloween. Next year: 80's theme and music. You are welcome to join us!

So here are a few photo highlights from the night. Prior to hitting the rink, we grabbed some dinner with our friends Alecia and Rob (this is the doctor I referred to in my last post and Alecia and I run together).

Getting warmed up at the rink before the others arrived:

I'm glad that I'm married to someone that makes me laugh... Rob was the hit of the night. He really is great on skates and spent most of the night skating backwards, weaving in and out of other people and he even can do the thing where you squat down holding on to one bent leg with the other extended. Such a show-off! :)

My favorite photo of Rob is actually one where I happened to catch him in the background of this next one.... Hilarious!

'Elvis' was a big hit and highly entertaining:

And I about fell on the floor when this dude made his grand entrance (this is Alecia's little brother!):
Here is a group shot taken before we got skating so not everyone had shown up yet. It was a total blast and we can't wait until next year!Happy Halloween!

a visit from good friends (and an ER visit)

This was an eventful week. We unpacked and cleaned up some on Monday and met friends at the park on Tuesday. The kids started talking about what they wanted to be for Halloween and got into dress ups: We had a little excitement on Tuesday. Rob was at the church for a youth activity and I was upstairs vacuuming the kids' rooms right before bedtime. I had just finished with the vacuum, and we were all in Burke and Hewitt's room. While I was setting out clothes for the boys for the next morning (school started on Wednesday), Liv fell off of Burke's bed (maybe she was jumping? I didn't see) and I heard her scream/cry. When I turned around, she was between the bed and the window and I'm guessing that she hit her mouth on his bed frame/bit through her lip. Her mouth was full of blood and when I cleaned her up it was obvious that the hole would need stitches. I called Rob to tell him to come home and also called our friend Rob (a doctor) to come over while I waited for my Rob. (Dr.) Rob told me that we were probably best off going to the ER because they would need to make sure to line up the "vermilion border" of her lip just right (where the red part of the lip meets the skin).

Liv actually calmed down pretty quick and was pretty sleepy when we got to the ER (way past her bedtime at that point). She actually got super smiley and animated and posed for this photo when we got back to her hospital bed:

They put some sort of medication up her nose that made her "pleasantly stoned" as the ER doc put it and once she got very loopy and relaxed they wrapped her up, numbed her, and sewed it up. She fought and screamed, but calmed down fairly quickly after, although she was very irritable and couldn't sit still for the next couple of hours and didn't get to sleep until after midnight (she was still making up for lack of sleep on Thursday and took a five hour nap!). I was thrilled to get in and out of the ER in about two hours. Her stitches come out on Monday morning and I'm not looking forward to that. I hope that she will relax and that they won't need to wrap/restrain her to get them out (they had to do that to Hewitt to get stitches out once).

So the highlight of our week was a visit from some of our friends from Utah. Heather and I were roommates for two years in college (95-97) and then she married our friend Dar (Aaron) from our ward right after I left on my mission. When Rob and I moved to Riverton in 2005, we ended up building in Heather and Dar's ward! It was great to have such a great friend just one street over and a blessing to move into an area already having good friends. I didn't take one photo of Heather and me while she was here, so I had to pull out an oldie from 1996:

Pretty awesome hair, huh?

We had dinner and played some board games after the kids went to bed on Thursday and then hit the zoo on Friday morning (minus Hewitt and Burke). Here is one of Liv and Lindsey taken right before we saw a sweet giraffe gallop across the grass in the background to make sure that this ostrich didn't mess with his buddy. It was seriously cool. It was a warmer than average week, and the kids dared to swim both Friday and Saturday afternoon (although Hewitt didn't swim--too cold for him). The kids had a great time together.

It's become somewhat of a tradition to get a photo with guests jumping off of the wall:

After swimming we got ready for the annual Harvest Party at our church. We tend to have some last minute costume changes... Tosh decided to be a pirate:Liv did better wearing this cute bee costume than I thought she would--you never know what a two-year-old will do (I was losing my light in this photo):

Weeks ago Hewitt declared that he wanted to be a ghost, and Dar helped him design the face:

We moved all the kids outside for a group photo:

I couldn't resist posting this hilarious candid shot I caught of Tosh:

Thanks so much for the visit guys! Come back again!

fall break: week two

We loaded up the kids and drove to Utah a week ago Saturday. We actually made our very best time and arrived in 9 hours and 50 minutes. We literally stopped only once in Page, AZ for only 20 minutes to get gas and to use the restroom (I had packed food in the cooler). Way to go kids! Liv even napped for about an hour. Amazing!



We were able to spend the week with my parents in American Fork. I took some photos of my parents on Sunday. Doesn't my mom look wonderful, not to mention beautiful? You're looking good as well, Dad :).

I've gotten lots of e-mails and calls regarding my mom's health lately. Thank you for your love, prayers and concern on her behalf. My mom seemed to have more energy last week than when I last saw her in August (she is eating more), which was a very good thing. I was able to go and sit with her for chemo on Wednesday, and it was just great to be with my folks in their home and to spend time visiting.

I haven't gone into much detail on my blog about the specifics of what is going on with her medically. Who wants to talk or write about yucky cancer?! She has Stage IV pancreatic cancer, and they discovered on Friday that she has blood clots in her leg which has been causing pain and swelling. My folks are troopers and are maintaining a positive attitude and sense of humor.

I love you, Mom!!!

We were able to visit with Rob's folks and two of his sisters and their families on Friday evening before we returned home on Saturday. The kids had fun playing with cousins and going fishing with Grandpa Pete. Unfortunately we got stuck in traffic for an hour just outside of PHX and so the ride home took 12 hours.

One funny thing from the trip: Hewitt discovered Grandma Sycamore's Bread at my parents' house and fell in love! Once when Rob offered him a second piece he said, "I just can't get enough of it!" Thankfully my mom sent us home with an entire loaf and on our drive home Hewitt called out from the back seat, "Can I get some GSB?"

fall break: week one

Our kids have been on fall break since Hewitt's birthday. We stayed very busy on week one and spent lots of time outside (it helps that the weather had cooled considerably).

Here is a pic I took of Liv with my phone at the park:

And one of Hewitt taking a break for a snack at the zoo:

I brought my camera to the park one day and got some cute ones:

The boys passed off the words to all of the songs for the primary program in church, so their chorister (aka "the balloon lady") came over to make each kid a balloon of their choice as promised.

Tosh and Burke requested swords:

(Burke in "Gryffindor" colors)

And Hewitt wanted a big cupcake:

Brenda was nice enough to pose for a picture and to make (napping) Liv a dog on a leash. Thanks, Brenda!

Liv was very happy to not be left out in the balloon fun:

A very busy and successful start to our break!

memory monday: old funnies

On my old blog I had a sidebar where I would write funny things that the kids said or did. I never copied these quips into a post (and thus these funnies were not printed when I made my old blog into a book). I re-read these when I accidentally went to that blog instead of this one today, and thought I better get get these down for posterity! It's so fun to remember what the boys said and did when they were younger. They grow up so quick!


Hewitt was just telling me about a new game he created where you can't touch the ball with your hands or feet. He said, "You can only hit the ball with your leg or foot-wrist." And so I clarified, "You mean your ankle?" (10/8/09)

Me to Hewitt: Whatcha doin?Hewitt: Arting. It's making art.(10/2/09; Hewitt's 5th b-day)

Two jokes by Burke:What does a storm wear?Thunderwear!What do you call King Kong's feet?Big Foot!(9/26/09)


I had the following conversation with Tosh:
Me: Are you a boy or a girl?
T: BoyMe: Is Livvy a boy or a girl?
T: Baby
Me: Yes, but is Baby Liv a boy or a girl?
T: Girl
Me: Is Daddy a boy or a girl?
T: Big boy
Me: Is Mommy a boy or a girl?
T: Mommy a babe! (Not prompted, I promise! 9/3/09)

Hewitt had set up a bunch of toy figures and Tosh was trying to play with them... Hewitt was telling Tosh not to touch them and I asked him to share the toys or to go and get some more figures for Tosh to play with. Hewitt said, "These are not toys! They are art!" (9/3/09)

We were driving along a road near our house (a rather quiet highway, really) and Hewitt suddenly exclaimed, "Mom! I just found the road to our old house! Keep driving straight!" I looked up and realized there were some big mountains in the FAR distance. Hewitt clearly thought he was staring at Utah. (8/28/09)

Hewitt brought home a little "Groundhog's Day" craft that he had made at preschool and kept calling the groundhog a bear. When I tried to tell him it was really a groundhog he looked at me like I was very silly and said, "It's a BEAR Mom, not a CORNDOG!" (2/2/09)

I explained to Burke about the recent airplane crash into the Hudson River and knowing that he would be very concerned, I quickly told him that all of the passengers were just fine. He looked at me with a worried look and said, "What about the birds? Are they okay?" (1/15/09)

I have a trunk full of old performing costumes from when I was a kid. Hewitt saw the trunk in the basement and told Rob that he wanted to open up the "treasure chest." Rob asked him if he knew what was in the trunk/chest and Hewitt replied that it was full of clothes. When Rob told Hewitt that he didn't want him to make a big mess Hewitt said, "I won't make a mess, I will just get out one clo." I guess that "clo" would be the singular form of clothes... (1/13/09)

Burke is always mentioning how he wants us to have lots more babies because he wants "hundreds" of brothers and sisters. I was explaining to him this morning about how it gets harder and more dangerous to have babies as a woman gets older...he looked at me and said, "Well, you look young Mom, like 19!" Then he leaned in closer and said, "Well, I do see some indents in your skin around your eyes (those would be wrinkles--thanks for noticing)." (12/26/08)

Hewitt blew his nose and must have accidentally gotten some snot or tissue in his mouth because he said, "Yuck! That tastes like cow dung!" (12/24/08)

Tosh got to Hewitt's cup of water at the table today and dumped it all over Hewitt's lap and onto the floor. Rob asked Hewitt, "Are you a little wet?" and he said, "I'm a BIG wet!" (12/24/08)

Rob was playing "Memory" with the boys and when Burke got a few matches in a row Hewitt said, "Wow Burkie, you're on fire!" (11/08)

We just bought some sod for our park strip and while Burke and I were looking at the pallet, I mentioned that some of the pieces looked like crabgrass and that we needed to find the best pieces of grass to buy. Burke looked at the sod for a little while and said, "None of it looks like crap grass to me!"While I was flossing Burke's teeth he said, "Wait--I need to tell you something." I paused flossing and he said, "You sure know how to be a good mom!" (now there's a treasured compliment!). (2008)

Hewitt watched Rob kill a fly in our kitchen and then asked, "Did he cry? Did he want his mommy fly?" (2008)

I told Hewitt that I was going to get Tosh a snack and asked if he would like one. He paused and then said, "I'll take a milkshake." What am I, a drive-up window? (2008)

Hewitt was asking for toast today and when I pulled out the bread he said, "No, the 'letter O' toast!" I finally figured out that he wanted a toasted english muffin. (2008)

Burke came down for breakfast and said, "Mom, it might not look like my bed is made and you might not like it, but it's really stripes that I did as a design on my bed." (2008)

Hewitt has really liked eating plain tortillas lately. When I asked him if he wanted one he said, "Oh. Sure. I'll have a mamma mia." (2008)

Hewitt understands things very literally. When Rob told him that he "needed to fly" this morning (go to work), Hewitt asked, "Where is the fly? In the house?" When Rob asked him if he had a runny nose he said, "No. It's just boogers." (2008)

When Rob was leaving for work he hugged the boys and told them to "be good for Mommy and do exactly what she says." Burke said, "OK bye Dad, you be good at work and do exactly what your boss says." (2008)

We were discussing prophets in the scriptures for Family Home Evening and when Rob asked Burke which prophet(s) wrote the Book of Mormon Burke said, "Nephi, Jacob, Enos..." and continued to name the books in order. Rob and I were pretty surprised and couldn't help laughing. (2008)

I was just eavesdropping on Hewitt while he was playing with his toys and heard him say, "Ladies and jumpingmen..." (2008)

Burke was heading off to a neighbor's house to play and stuck his head back in the door and called, "I'll be traveling by bike." (2008)

When the garage door opens for us to drive in, Hewitt will pretend to be scared and say, "Oh no, it's the garage mouth! He's going to eat us!" (2008)

Hewitt got distracted and starting playing with his toys during lunch and when I reminded him to please keep eating he said, "But Mommy, I'm working." (2008)

Our three musketeers back in 2008:

happy 7th, hewitt!

Hewitt had a busy week; he lost his first tooth and then turned seven today!

On Monday night I noticed that he had an adult tooth growing in behind a semi-loose tooth. Hewitt worked on wiggling it all evening, and then Rob popped it out right before bedtime. He was so excited to get a visit from the tooth fairy, and sounds so cute with a slight lisp now.

Our tramp is finally in the ground, with the retaining material around it. There is still some work left with getting gravel, building up gravel/dirt around the tramp and finishing everything up, but we can finally get a sense of what having a finished yard might look like!

Rob used metal roofing material as a retaining wall between the tramp frame and dirt:

Hewitt seems to have had a nice birthday. We didn't leave the house once today which was nice. We watched General Conference on the computer (Hewitt liked that he didn't have to get dressed up for church today!), played together as a family, and ate Hewitt's favorite foods: Waffles with fresh berries and whipped cream for brunch, and then homemade spaghetti and french bread for dinner.

I gave Hewitt a fresh raspberry with a bit of whipped cream on it while I was working in the kitchen and he said, "Wow! That is like a miracle!"

Hewitt got some nice gifts including Harry Potter Legos, the Harry Potter Lego Dictionary, a scooter, field hockey set, camera, and a jump rope from his siblings (possibly the favorite gift):

Testing out the jump rope:

A week or two ago I was talking with Hewitt about his birthday and asked him what kind of cake he would like. Hewitt's choice is always chocolate cake, but I asked him to think about what he might like on the cake. He's had a pirate, Star Wars, and cool robot cake among other things in previous years and I told him that we'd have to come up with something that he really likes. He thought about it for a few seconds and then said, "I want our family on my cake!" Sweet Hewitt. I am enjoying what I refer to as a "sweet spot" with him lately. I appreciate that our challenging toddler has grown into such a laid back and great kid in general. I feel so thankful to have him in our family.

Per Hewitt's request, here is his "family" cake:

He thought I was going to draw stick figures on the cake and was surprised and pleased to see our "bobble head" family when I revealed the finished product.

Happy Birthday, Hewitt John. We love you so much!