Farewell 2010

It was just us. Together. Eating, playing, laughing.



The boys chose crepes and ebelskivers for dinner and then volunteered to make them. With an offer like that I can overlook the lack of nutritional value those intense carbs and sugars hold, at least for a party night. I added hibachi chicken and pineapple skewers to the menu to provide at least a little protein in an attempt to balance the blood sugar. (It didn't work, video to follow). After the little boys went to bed we also roasted marshmallows over the gel burner that we borrowed from LeRoy's 72 hour kit and we made s'mores. The blood sugar was a gonner at this point.


MmMmMmMmMm!
Ebelskivers: apple spice, banana carmel, egg and cheese. Crepes: raspberry, apricot. Hibachi chicken and pineapple skewers. Chocolate milk.

We set up a game tournament and though we had all of the games sitting out, the card games were the chosen ones. After each round or hand the winner would get a point and a single treat (Rolo or Starburst). The person with the most points at the end of the night would get the final prize of a Jamba gift card and a Jamba water bottle. I was concerned that the gift might have been a little lame for the boys but their competitive attitudes showed otherwise. When I explained the set up and the prizes LeRoy teased me that I was trying to sneak a Bunco night in (since I have missed 3 months in a row!) but there were no dice involved so I am obviosly innocent.



Nathan and Hyrum provided plenty of entertainment while playing Aye! Aye! Nephi. Nathan caught on rather quickly and actually won 2 games but Hyrum thought that when he was told to discard that he could pick any card on the table to put in the pile. The more we laughed the sillier he got and then he won. Never underestimate the poker face of toddlers! We couldn't get him to quit yelling "Aye! Aye! Heephi" which could have been brought on by an overdose of sugar, the thrill of the game, and his inner comedian.

LeRoy played while the little boys were up but had to go sit in his recliner after we put them to bed around 8:30. Standing at the table for games and leaning over for each turn was almost as painful as actually sitting there so he lasted as long as he could and retired to his sports den. The timing worked out really well though because Erika got home from work just as LeRoy pulled out. And then the real insanity began.

After rounds of Aye! Aye! Nephi, Wackee Six, Racko, Garbage, Blink, Uno and 4 hours of gaming (drum roll please) . . .



Derek won the Jamba prize . . . and a date with me since I am his ride to cash in that gift card.

Around 11:30 we finished our tournament and had a little lull time. You know, that weird silence that comes after one activity is finished and you're not quite ready for the next one. Well, Erika decided that we each needed to find our natural laugh. To do this (according to Erika) you lay on the floor on your back with your arms folded over your chest in an X. You take a deep breath in and another person pushes down on your arms forcing the air out and Voila! you get to hear your natural laugh. Not only did we hear our natural laughs but we laughed until we were crying and our sides and faces hurt. It was the perfect way to ring in the new year!



LeRoy played the part of responsible adult when he headed to bed shortly after midnight but in a complete sugar rush I stayed up until almost 3 am with my teenagers watching Psych episodes through Netflix instant play. Even though I was still wide awake I knew that I would be the one getting up in the morning a few hours later with the little boys so I went to bed and was up again at 7 am. I felt torn between two time zones as my little boys were gearing up for the new day and my older kids were heading to bed. Nathan thought we should pick up game playing where he left off the night before so I snuggled in my blanket in front of the fireplace and half played half slept through Buzz Light Year Uno with Nathan and Hyrum.

Another Year Done

Dear Mr. Sun

I miss you.

I miss the light you bring to my life.
I miss seeing the sky and birds outlined by your glow.
I miss your warmth on my skin and hair. Grilling on the frozen deck is not enjoyable.
I miss waking up to your rays beaming through my window calling me for a new day.

I miss watching the kids run around drenched in your balmy heat.

I miss the color that only comes when you are shining.
I even miss your bright glare in my eyes.
Please come back. Soon

P.S. Attached is a picture of the kids eating cereal for dinner during one of our last warm days together. It was such a happy, beautiful day that you provided. I remember not wanting to lose my time with you, knowing that it was coming to an end for a few months, by baking in the kitchen and I couldn't refuse the boys requests to eat outside with you. Wasn't that a fun day? I can't wait to have days like those again.

Family Pictures 2010

It is only December 23rd and I have EVERYTHING DONE for Christmas. I don't think I have ever said that in my whole life! Well, the housework isn't done but come on, it would be undone as soon as I finish so I'll let it go for a few more days.

The key to my survival over the past few months has been to simplify and do only what feels 100% needful. So, to all of my neighbors who didn't get a clever gift; to my wonderful circle of friends that I haven't seen in a few months; to my extended family that won't get a Christmas card/picture/letter this year; to those who have sent personal e-mails asking for a blog post to know what is going on in our lives . . . I still love you and we're still here (just a little less public).


I did want to share a family Christmas card like in years past but I'm settling for the backup plan (since this method can be done between 11pm and 6am without any offspring interruptions and it doesn't need to be picked up, addressed, stamped or put out in the mailbox.) Actually, my lack of enthusiasm for getting cards out prompted LeRoy to do it himself, which he did all by himself like a big boy without any secretarial help! For the rest of you who didn't make the 12 count cut, here's the blog version of our Christmas letter.



The Edwards Family 2010

~ 20 years ~



I have BEAUTIFUL children!

Each one of them has a piece of my heart.



I love my teenagers!

Yes, LeRoy is on the teenager page.

Sometimes I want to give them away.
But, I do share some really great, silly, fun times with them.

No, Levi is not engaged. Caytlyn just spent almost 10 months worth of daily visits with us so I count her as one of my own.

Then Levi moved out.

Now I miss both of them.


Playing in "Heavenly Father's yard".

That's what Nathan calls the temple grounds.

It is one of the places that we like to run away to.

We love each other. Everything that has happened this year
(the good, bad, happy, sad, easy, difficult, extremely hard to handle)
has led us to a greater love for one another; sometimes through pure joy and sometimes through forgiveness. Faith, patience, love and tolerance are the attributes that we are growing the most in and with hope as our anchor we have survived and enjoyed 20 years and look forward to 20 more. With Christ as our strength and focus, we want to wish everyone

A Very Merry Christmas!

Surprise Utah Trip

On a whim, LeRoy and I decided to pack up our family and leave town. We didn't tell the kids any of the plans we had and that turned out to be a great way to avoid the "uhh, that sounds boring" reaction. I also wanted to spend the night in a decent hotel (since the one in Vegas was less than stellar, okay, it was laaaame . . . free 2 nights remember, there's a reason it's free) so LeRoy searched around online and we were able to get a Hilton family suite for less than it would have cost for 2 rooms at the Best Western. And let me tell you a stay at the Hilton out shines the Best Western by a galaxy of stars! I think I'm becoming a hotel snob.

Our first stop was in our driveway. Weird, I know, but it really took some creativity to fit 7 of us comfortably in LeRoy's truck (did I mention we sold the Yukon in October?) and we weren't used to the fact that we would need to cover our luggage in the bed of the truck. We ended up laughing at our lack of preparation for this part and by the time we got on the road it felt like we had visited a mini circus but on the road we were.





Our official first vacation stop was at the Hill Air Force Base - Aerospace Museum. Derek was so excited when he realized where we were going that he looked like our neighbors little poodle who shakes with uncontrollable excitement until he piddles. Luckily, Derek didn't piddle but he sure was out of control with excitement. The next 2 hours were full of exclamations from all of us.





Nathan and Hyrum were in heaven (or space) when we found ACE - the Aerospace Center for Education. Basically a hands on, huge playroom. Hyrum wanted to try on every helmet there and once Nathan had his NASA suit on and was sitting in front of a real/mock cockpit he really thought he was going to fly that plane out of the room. They were very patient to have their turns with the kid sized airplanes that they got to pedal around the museum. If we lived closer we'd probably be there once a week. Did I mention the whole thing is FREE?!?!?!




We did not have near enough time at the museum but at closing they kicked us out and we vowed to go back, someday. Even as we were being shoo-ed out of the building the kids were still stopping for pictures and hollering "did you see this", "holy freak, look at those missiles" and much more. It's a good thing they didn't have recruiters there. Derek would have used his height to lie about his age and signed on the spot.

Our next stop was a surprise for Nathan. He is a Narnia fan - or fanatic. He watches either the Lion, Witch and Wardrobe and/or Prince Caspian at least once a week. With the release of The Dawn Treader this week we couldn't imagine not taking him to the theater to see it. We asked the clerk at the museum where the nearest theater was and ended up in Layton. Little did we know that tickets would be $2.50 cheaper there than in Rexburg (Yay!) so LeRoy splurged and let the kids get popcorn. I wish I had a picture of Nathan watching the movie. He was mesmerized. He didn't touch the popcorn and would only lean over to say "there's Lucy, there's Edmund, I love Reepacheep". The movie even kept Hyrum's attention.



Our final adventure of the day was to see the Christmas lights and nativity at Temple Square. Don't get me wrong, it was beautiful. But it was really hard to see the beauty beyond the bazillion people that were there. We made it just in time to hear the nativity story being told with spotlights on the stable, shepherds and manger. Again, very well done but packed with people! Then we walked upstairs to see the Christus statue and Hyrum would not quit staring. As soon as he could see it in full view he reverently whispered "Jesus" before anyone could ask him who it was. I was humbled to see the reverence that Nathan and Hyrum both showed as stood at the figure representing our Savior.

We finally ended up at our hotel and it was a refuge from a packed day of sight seeing. It was practically an apartment with so many amenities that I wondered why I had packed more than the diapers and pajamas. The pool was open 24 hours so LeRoy, Derek and Justin went swimming until 1 am and were at it again (with Nathan and Hyrum) at 9 am clear and they didn't get out until time to check out at 11:00.



We had 3 rooms and 4 beds so we were able to put the little boys in a room sharing a bed and it proved to be quite entertaining. First, they wouldn't stop giggling like little girls until I had them each face a different wall and after about 45 minutes of that they fell asleep sometime around 10:30. Then they provided us with a boxing match all performed while they were asleep. During about a 10 minute period (around 1:30am) they switched positions at least 4 times - each time with someone getting a hand in the face - and the rest of us laughed through the whole thing.