nine days down...

I'll admit that it's felt like a long week.  Last Sunday we had some friends over for dinner.  Liv was really messy after eating dessert so I started the tub downstairs so she could take a bath.  She was excited about the bath (would bathe several times a day if I let her) and she started jumping up and down (outside of the tub) and she fell down and hit her chin on the side of the tub.  I picked her up and gave her a hug and put her in the tub...that's when I noticed the blood.  I knew it wasn't necessarily the "rush to the ER" type of injury.  I made a couple of texts/calls to get an expert opinion.  To make a long story short, my visiting teacher's husband is an ER doctor and was on his way home from work and kindly stopped by and glued Liv's chin shut.  Obviously I was so thankful not to have to go to the ER on a Sunday night, especially while Rob is in China!   On Tuesday, I got a babysitter for a couple of hours and Liv peeled off the glue while I was gone--that stinker!  I've tried to keep her out of the water this week which is a REAL challenge as swimming is about the only thing to do in the summer.  Anyway, I've also prayed that it would heal quickly and not get infected.  At Liv's three-year-old well check up on Friday, her pediatrician told me that it looks great and not to worry about it any more.  What a relief. 

Liv makes me want to pull my hair out at least once a day.  I mean, I adore her to no end and she is a cutie pie and all that, but that girl is like a tornado.  I asked Burke to watch her while I showered and got ready for church today, and at one point the boys called up to me, "Mom, Liv made a peanut butter sandwich all on her own and is eating it in the family room."  Not sure if I ever mentioned this, but a couple of months ago Rob and I woke up in the middle of the night to noise in our kitchen--way freaky!  I told Rob to go check it out and it was Liv up getting herself a drink from the fridge.  None of our boys would ever do this!  They would call from their beds for one of us to come and help them.  It is somewhat frustrating that Liv is so independent, yet I kind of like her, 'I'm thirsty and I'm going to help myself' kind of attitude. 

I noticed this on the back of one of our magazines this week (Hewitt's handwriting).  Thought it was so sweet:

I've been trying to work on my family tree as much I can this week, although I have been totally exhausted by the time the kids go to bed, so I'm not moving as quickly as I had hoped.  This is random, but I noticed in the shower this week that the font I am using for the family names matches the font on my BED HEAD brand shampoo and conditioner ("Moisture Maniac" and "Self-Absorbed").  Look familiar to any other BED HEAD users? 

Here is a close up on Rob's grandma Ruby's leaf:

Other highlights (or 'low' lights as the case may be) of the week include:
*Going to the summer movie, "Rio" (I even sprang for an x-large popcorn to share-- that's a first). 

*We babysat for some friends one morning (my friend Alecia was at girls' camp).  Bella did Liv's hair and (play) make-up which Liv loved, of course.  You can't really see the sweet pink eyeshadow so you'll have to take my word that it's there:

*All four kids had cleanings at the dentist. 

*Our May birthday kids (that would be three children) had well check-ups at the doctor.  Burke's BMI is in the 3% (most interesting stat to share)...

*My temporary crown fell off (big groan), so I had to drive the 30 min. up to Mesa (again) to have it glued on.  I'm really hoping the permanent one gets here before we leave for Utah on Wednesday.

*Got some cute video footage of the kids dancing in the play room one night after dinner (a common activity).  I love some of Tosh's moves!  So funny (well, at least I know Rob will enjoy watching):

Here is a cute one of Hewitt and Liv dancing (to Rob's funny 40th b-day song written for his cousin).  The funniest part of this video (to me) is watching Tosh and how he says, "Excuse me" to the other kids.  That kid is a hoot.  I also laugh that Liv dressed herself in long pants and long sleeves and it is well over 100 degrees every day right now: 
 

ONLY TWO MORE DAYS AND NIGHTS UNTIL ROB IS HOME!!! Not that I'm counting or anything. 

happy father's day!

Before I give an update on our family, I thought I'd give a special shout out to my Dad! 

This is a photo from Christmas 1977.  What I love about it is how cute my Dad is smiling at me with my new baby doll (that I absolutely loved!):

This isn't very good quality, but this is my baptism day in 1983:

 Daddy/Daughter activity in 1987 (we "shaved" our dad's with whipped cream).  Such a good sport:

My Dad and me just a couple of weeks ago on my 37th birthday! 

I am extra grateful for my dad this year.  We've been through quite a bit, and I feel closer to him than I ever have.  I love you, DAD!!!

Also, Happy Father's Day to my awesome husband and father-in-law, Rog.  We are saving that Symphony Bar for you, Rog  :). 

Now for the update...

Liv has taken swimming lessons for the last two weeks.  We found a way to protect the tubes in her ears-- this adorable hot pink swimming cap!

She doesn't like putting it on, but once we get it on she usually forgets about it.  I love this next photo of her talking to her friend, Seven.  The kids were all lined up on the wall to do "Humpty Dumpty" when the teacher pulls them into the water and they have to turn around, find the wall, and climb out.  Liv improved so much over the course of two weeks.  She LOVES going under the water now!

Another new 'love' of Liv's are these red cowboy boots (thanks for the awesome hand-me-downs, cousins!).  They are too big, but that doesn't stop her. 

Can you tell that Liv picked this entire outfit all on her own?

Last weekend, our good friends, the Haynie's, came to town for a visit.  Here is a photo of Abbi, Burke and Zac making homemade ice cream.  It was delicious!

Tosh and Carter:

We spent a lot of time swimming!  Gavin LOVED the water and would float around for hours:

My kids were excited to try out their cool pool toys:

We went bowling one day.  Our family hasn't gone bowling since Burke was two (and Hewitt was a tiny baby!).  Liv looked so cute in her (too big) bowling shoes!

 The kids all ready to get started!

Tosh celebrating!

Rob helping Liv a bit:

Rob and the kids dancing to the music:

I love this shot of Hewitt bowling.  He was very entertaining to watch:

The kids (minus Liv who wouldn't come out from behind a chair) just before the Haynies headed home for Utah:

Zac and Burke.  Still best buds:

Tosh and Carter:

Gavin joined Liv (still behind the chair) for a photo:

Abbi and Hewitt (I LOVE this photo!  Favorite shot of the week):

I got a pretty bad cold this week (now has moved into my chest and I am coughing).  I've been feeling a little "old" this month as I had to have my first ever crown on one of my teeth (and still have another one to do on the other side of my mouth) .  I've also discovered that I am lactose intolerant.  I try not to eat a lot of ice cream anyway...  I feel a little off of my normal exercise routine with school out, and with my body not feeling very normal all month (throbbing mouth, sinus problems, sore throat, stomach aches, etc.).

Rob left for China on Friday and will be gone for ten days.  I have created a very detailed schedule for the kids and me, and am excited to get to it tomorrow.  We are having my friend Brooke and her daughter over for dinner tonight (her husband and boys are out of town).  I thought it would be fun and something interesting for the kids since neither of us have our husbands here on Father's Day.

On Thursday, I had allowed the kids to play the wii for a bit while I made dinner (and got the house and everything ready to host a bunco party that evening).  Rob came home from work and said to the kids, "OK guys, time's up on the Wii. Turn it off and come outside to swim."  Hewitt laughed from upstairs and said, "Ha!  'Turn off the wii and come outside to swim.' I love living!"   Rob and I got such a kick out of that "I love living" statement.  This was the first week of summer when the older boys have gotten to hang out and "veg" a bit.  The first week of summer both Burke and Hewitt attended "Camp Invention" at their school which was an all day science-type camp where they did all sorts of creative projects and experiments.  Total bonus that the camp was completely free to me (including breakfast and lunch!) and the kids had a lot of fun.


Yesterday, we went swimming and Liv was finished and asking to get dressed before the boys were done.  I got her dressed and set her up to do some coloring while I stayed out with the boys.  After a while when I went to check on her, I couldn't find her anywhere.  I had the radio playing (loudly) on the intercom system and finally turned the music off and was yelling her name and checking in the garages, etc.  I FINALLY checked behind the closed door of the guest/project room (I had closed it earlier and had asked Liv to stay out of there).    I found Liv sound asleep in the porta crib that was still up from Gavin sleeping there.  She must have been very tired (love that she threw the pillows in)!

Not sure if I've mentioned that Rob has moved all of his music stuff (including drums) to our play room.  We have two couches in there as well, and it really is a better place for him to work on music and still has plenty of room for the kids' toys.  The good news is that with Rob's stuff out, it gives me a place to work on sewing projects without having to put everything away constantly.  It's been a month since I've worked on my Family Tree!  I put it out on our guest bed last night and got all of the fabric pieces ironed into place.  Next step is transferring all of the names.  I hope to do that tonight, and then I can get stitching around each leaf and on each name.  I'd love to make a lot of headway on this while Rob is in China. 

This will sound super cheesy to some of you, but I used the "Wonder-Under" transfer paper to stick the fabric onto the canvas, and I spent extra time making sure my mom's leaf was sealed on snug next to mine.  Some good friends of mine lost their father to brain cancer this week (Craig Pace, our former Bishop in Fort Collins) .  It made me realize how much better I am doing emotionally than I was just a few months ago.  I listened to my mom's memorial service while I cleaned up my laundry room on Friday night.   I still miss her like crazy, but I'm so thankful that I'm feeling much happier on the inside. 

Here's to a good and productive week.  We miss and love you, Rob!  Hope they find your luggage (there may be a surprise or two in there).

going public

I just returned from a very nice weekend in Utah.  The wedding I attended was beautiful (for my good friend, Jessica Lesser) and I was able to reconnect with lots of old friends from Colorado.   On Sunday (my birthday) I was able to visit with Rob's youngest sister and her family for a couple of hours and then my nieces and their husbands came over for dinner.  I was able to get together with a group of good friends (from Riverton) for lunch on Monday before flying out that evening.

What I haven't mentioned yet is one of my main purposes in going to Utah for the weekend--to spend time with my dear ol' dad and to meet Helen. 

Helen and my dad met 52 years ago at BYU.  They dated for about a year, were in the same ward, and Helen was actually my Aunt Sandie's roommate for a semester. 

My dad with 'Helen Farsworth' back in the day:

*Helen married Milton Sharp in 1963 (he was also in the same ward and knew my dad).  My dad graduated from BYU and moved to California where he met my mom in 1964 (my folks were married in 1965). 

Here is a recap to bring you up to speed:  My dad attended a presentation one of his neighbors did in early April where this neighbor mentioned that her maiden name was 'Farnsworth.'  This reminded my dad of Helen Farnsworth (he knew of her husband's death to pancreatic cancer 12 years ago).  He also knew an 'Elder Sharp' from his last mission and thought to call Helen to catch up and to see if this could be one of her grandsons...  He left a message (April 10th) and she had the guts to return the call :).  They met for dinner on Friday, April 13th and had a great time visiting.  My dad then called to see if she wanted to go out again that Monday before he flew to Houston on that Tuesday.  They again had a nice time catching up and he played my mother's memorial service for her that Monday. 

My dad spent about three weeks in Houston and spoke to Helen daily (for about 2-3 hours a day--no joke!).  They've spent just about all of their time together for the past month or so and I had spoken with her on the phone a couple of times before going to Utah.

I'll just jump to the punchline and announce that my dad and Helen officially got engaged yesterday and will be married on July 13th!  (I guess that meeting me sealed the deal, right guys?)

It was a very emotional weekend for me on many levels.  There is much to process with these changes and what is going on with my dad, but also in being my first time back to Utah since losing my mom.  I miss her every day and my heart aches to see and be with her. This being said, it is so important to express that I feel so good and peaceful about my dad's decision.  I know with all my heart that my dad loves my mom and will love her forever!  I don't feel that his feelings for Helen and their future together threatens my mother and her memory in any way.  He will always love my mother and will be sealed to my mom for eternity.   It is obvious how much my dad and Helen enjoy each other's company... It is interesting to watch my dad vacillate between the laughter and fun he is having (it's like they are teenagers!) and then how he will get teary and express how much he misses my mom.  This is a new thing for all of us and will take time and have it's challenges, I'm sure. 

I've told my dad (and many others) that I trust my dad's judgement (hey, he picked my mom!) and I support him completely.  Helen is a wonderful woman and was so easy for me to talk to and cry with!  I was able to meet her youngest daughter (a year older than me) and her darling girls, and these are all people I could see being good friends with.  I am happy for my dad, and he and Helen are just as shocked as everyone else about how this has all fallen into place and moved so quickly. 

Our family had already planned to be in Utah the week of Independence Day, so we will just be extending our stay until the 14th.  That gives us lots of time to see and visit with friends and family!  Helen will be moving into my Dad's home, so it also gives me some time to go through more of my mom's things... 

Congratulations, Dad and Helen!  Welcome to the family.

tosh 5.0

Tosh is five!  Tosh's birthday was on Wednesday, the last day of school.  He was excited to have a friend (Wyatt) over to play that morning and to bring Tootsie Rolls to his preschool class that afternoon.  He requested that our family go out to pizza (Barrow's) for dinner that night and was thrilled that we even ordered some root beer! 

Funny side note:  While Tosh's friend Wyatt was over, the kids (Tosh, Wyatt and Liv) were sitting at the bar having a snack and somehow the topic of camping and hunting came up.  Wyatt said something about his dad's gun in passing and Tosh looked so impressed and said, "Your dad has a gun!?!  My Grandpa has guns."  Liv then piped up out of the blue and said, "My dad has a microphone!"    I laughed my head off!!!

So, Tosh changed his mind about what kind of birthday cake he wanted several times, but he finally settled on a race car.  It took me the entire three hours of preschool to make, but turned out pretty cute:

Present time!

Cool new LEGOs from Grandma and Grandpa Pete:

Tosh was so excited to get lots of "Cars 2" cars:

A new basketball!  I love that Tosh's tongue is sticking out in this photo (kind of hard to see...):

Tosh giving us "Five" with Grandma and Grandpa:

Cute birthday boy:

Tosh has been talking about 'making a wish' for weeks and then forgot to make one when he blew out the candles (he was going to wish for some electronics that he isn't going to be getting so it's probably just as well).

Tosh with the race car driver on the new birthday plate that Rob made at a work team builder a month or so ago:

Up close shot of the cute driver:

Happy Birthday, Tosh!

In addition to Tosh's birthday, we've done a few other things of note. 
Rob hosted a dinner about Spain for some of the young men and leaders in our ward as well as one of the missionaries.  He made paella and tortilla (two Spanish dishes).  I made a little display in our dining room of some of his things from his mission:

While Rob was busy hosting dinner, I was at the school with Hewitt for his class violin performance at Arts Night.  He insisted in dressing up in his jacket and got lots of nice compliments.  What a cutie pie. 

 Of course I sat on the opposite side of the auditorium from where Hewitt was and forgot my camera so these are from my phone. 

It was great having Rob's parents with us for Memorial Weekend and T's birthday.  The guys all went on a hike at the Superstition Mountains on Monday and had a great time exploring:

Liv, Patti and I did some shopping and then met the boys for lunch at Joe's Farm Grill in Gilbert.  There were some interesting people there with about five Macaws.  The kids had a great time watching the birds. 

The gang finishing up lunch:

Burke's Cub Scout pack went to Day camp Thursday-Saturday of this week.  Another mom and I were with the Webelos on Thursday.  We left at about 1:30pm and got home after 10:30pm.  They do it late here because of the heat but it was still about 110 degrees.  The boys have a blast though and it was my first time going (Rob has gone in the past). 

A pic of the Webelos and their flag:

A shot of Burke at the archery range:

I drove with Rog and Patti (better known as Grandma and Grandpa Pete) to Utah on Friday.  I was able to see their remodeled kitchen and bathrooms (look great!) and visit with Rob's sister and her family before heading to my Dad's for the night.  I am in town for a friend's wedding and it's fun to be here 'by myself.'  It's been a good week and weekend. 

p.s.  Goodbye 36!  It's been one of the hardest years of my life, but I've grown and learned a lot.