'Twas Halloween!

We had a wonderful time on Halloween. It was nonstop fun, with parties and parades at school, a visit to Gram's, Trunk-or-Treat at the church, trick-or-treating at the neighbors' and our friends' homes, visiting our cousins', and chili and a healthy dose of "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" (our traditional Halloween movie) at home.

Jessie was a pirate princess:

Jer was a ninja:

Jennifer was a witch:

Jonathan was a "nerdy" mad scientist:

Jeremy finished up the holiday with a final decoration (on my office door):

Well, that's our report. Hope everyone else had a fun day, too!

Notes...

I got home from a cub scout field trip tonight, and I was greeted at the door by a very satisfied Jeremy. He had created this fully-functioning well, and he was glad to demonstrate it (if only a little timid about talking on camera...) Here is his materials list: "4 tape, 2 papr klip, 1 bent papr klip, pensl, 1 cup, 1 box". (Of course, his materials "list" was actually printed in a book he made and illustrated with the various parts!) We love our little engineer!

Jer's at it again...

Celebration!

Today, somehow, I managed to change a flat tire by myself...and I made two loaves of wheat bread from scratch!!

Now, as a disclaimer, I have to say that 1)Mike had to help me get the hubcap off the tire and 2)the wheat bread is only because I'm totally out of groceries and 3)my house is a complete disaster because I haven't taken the time to clean or even straighten it, but hey--why not celebrate this very, very, very, VERY rare event!?!

School has Started!

On Monday, August 18th, we started school. Jonathan is in 5th grade, Jen's in 3rd, and Jer is in 1st. They are all in full-day school now! All three were so excited to start the year. Jonathan has been looking forward to it since the first day of summer. Jeremy even made a "countdown to school" chart to mark off each of the last 7 days... We've been blessed with wonderful teachers...again. We're so lucky!

Here are our "first day" pics. Note Jessie, who also wanted to wear new clothes and go to school. She couldn't understand why she didn't get to stay when we dropped off the kids ("But I am ready to go to school!?!") and she kept her little backpack on the ENTIRE day!

Musical Wonders

Summertime provides opportunities for all sorts of pursuits... This is our local band performing Ernie's "Put Down the Duckie" song (from Sesame Street) for Jessie and I.

Our Vacation

This last week (over Pioneer Day weekend), we decided to take a trip. Mike actually had a couple of days that he could take off, so we headed down to Moab (a trip we've been wanting to take for a long time). We stopped first at Goblin Valley.

We spent the night in Green River, then continued on to Moab the next morning.

Day #2: Arches National Park. It was beautiful. We were able to see many of the famous sights, and we took several of the short hikes, too.

Day #3: Canyonlands National Park. This was also an amazing destination. We spent the afternoon on the Island in the Sky. We scrambled over slickrock up the trail to the Upheaval Dome overlook. We also drove through the park, taking in so many beautiful views of the canyons.

Day #4: Before checking out and heading home on our last day, Mike and Jonathan ran back to Arches National Park to hike up to the Delicate Arch. For them, this was the highlight of the trip!

Our Techie

Not to leave out Jonathan... Here he is at the cabin with his cousin Dubbie. They're concocting a blend of semi-creepy, semi-silly music (from his World of Warcraft game soundtrack) for their sisters' dancing presentation. (Not your typical ballet music, I agree... We work with what we have, right?)




The girls loved dancing to Jonathan's music...



This position (in front of the computer) is a familiar one. This summer, Jonathan has spent a lot of time on his computie, designing new pages for his website, doing all kinds of research on all kinds of topics, and, yes, entertaining his cousins.

p.s. Jonathan would like me to invite everyone to check out his website: http://grovecreekmill.com/jonathan

Mike visits Wisconsin!

Okay--I'm just trying to catch up on my blog, so this is a little out of order, but I HAVE to include this: In June, Mike was flown out to the Sub-Zero/Wolf headquarters in Madison, WI. He enjoyed a cool 2-day tour of their facilities, good training on the newest products, and AMAZING food in their kitchens. His favorite part of the trip, though, was a 4-hour tour of Frank Lloyd Wright's home, Taliesin!

The girls...

The very first babysitter we had here in PG, Jessica Francis, got married this week. She babysat Jonathan and Jen when they were just babies! Here's a picture of the girls (Jen and Jessie) at her wedding reception (this is at the Bungalow in Pleasant Grove).

Jer's Entrepreneurial Spirit

We've had a fun summer so far, filled with travels, swimming, and play. Some of my favorite adventures, though, have been the kids' spins on the traditional lemonade stands. To date, we've had gatorade sales, cookie sales, rock sales (inspired by the kids' cousin Haylie, who successfully sold $4.50 worth of rocks to her neighbors in St. George), chocolate milk sales, paper helicopter sales, and (my favorite) bug sales. Jer actually started the adventures in marketing research with his bug sale, and now the other kids have caught on, trying all manner of variations. Here's a picture of him on the first day. May I add that he was very successful, selling $1.50 worth of bugs!

Adventure Pics

I had trouble inserting photos in the last entry, so here are a few:

Niagara Falls:

Kirtland Temple:

Smith Family Log Home & The Sacred Grove:

Mike on the Hill Cumorah:

The Cabin at Completion: Wintertime at our Cabin:

Chicago (Robie House and Wright Home):

Our Adventures

Here's just a quick sampling of our adventures over the past year:

In August, Mike and I took a trip to upstate New York, Canada, and Ohio for our annual anniversary trip. We visited Buffalo, both sides of Niagra Falls, Kirtland, and Palmyra. We experienced the fun of Bed & Breakfasts for the first time, and we saw some amazing church historical sites. It was a wonderful trip!

In October, our cabin was completed. We spent quite a bit of October there, furnishing and decorating it. We had so much fun, because we got to play lots, too. We've discovered the joy of hiking and 4-wheeling as a family (as well as the joy of excusing our kids from school over and over again)!

Over the winter, we changed our focus from selling the cabin to managing it as a vacation rental. Because we've kept it, we've had many fun trips down there in the snow! (The snow is now very nearly gone...almost!) For pictures, take a peek at the link to the right...

April came, and Mike was invited to Chicago by Asko, the Swedish appliance manufacturer. He was a finalist in their annual kitchen design contest, so they flew us out for KBIS, the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show. They also treated us to a special party and tour at the Sears Tower and an amazing private dinner at the Ritz Carlton. While we were in Chicago, Mike and I rode the "L" and the busses all over town. We got to explore some cool territory and see some awesome architecture, but the highlight was a visit to a couple of Frank Lloyd Wright homes (the Robie House and Wright's own home and studio). They were incredible!

Well, there you have it. That's our year. Maybe I'll keep up a little better this year! Greetings to all!

The Kids' News...

Jessie turned two this last December. She now talks all the time, she knows her letters, and she dances everywhere she goes! She's an absolute darling!









Jeremy is almost 6. He's graduating from Kindergarten this week, and he has loved his first year of elementary school. He loves trucks and tractors, and he's quite the engineer--he spends most of his time building and creating things!





Jen is finishing second grade. She's still dancing (she's been in 3 major productions since the last blog), and she also loves reading and playing the piano. Jennifer was baptized in January!









Jonathan is completing fourth grade. He's had a fantastic year this year at Foothill Elementary. He loves math, magic, and (newly discovered this year) reading! Jonathan is also doing well on the piano and creating amazing things on his personal website!








Well, there you have it...this year's update on the kids! Next up: Mike's and my adventures...

Update?!?

I've been inspired to do an update! Yes, I know it's been a year, but... My dear friend Jenny has been doing a major overhaul on her blog, and it looks like so much fun! (I guess I'm just ready to be distracted for a little while.) Well, here goes. I did, as Jenny so aptly put it, a little "tinkering" with the format, and soon--no deadlines here--I intend to do a quick "catch up" on our year. Then we can continue on...

p.s. We still have Bob.