Halloween 2011

Halloween is not my favorite holiday. Some years I manage to pull out a few decorations, some years they don't even make it out of the basement. I don't like the pressure of coming up with costumes. I don't like having tons of candy for the kids to hype up on, destroying any efforts and successes that I may have made attempting to keep my family healthy. The older kids do costumes on their own. Nathan and Hyrum have worn the same Tigger costumes for the last 3 years. Trick-or-Treating is LeRoy's thing (I don't go) and it usually doesn't last long because of the cold.

BUT, we do have a couple of traditions that I love.

I love carving pumpkins with the family. I love watching the kids take a large vegetable and create a masterpiece with it. I love laughing with them over the squishy pumpkin guts. I love watching the kids all help each other, especially with the sharp carving tools.

I love seeing their excitement of the glowing faces and creatures as we gather around the frozen porch to admire our work.

I thought that we were making these ghosts just so I could have another project with the kids but, according to Nathan, we made these ghosts to "scare away any Halloween monsters".

I also love making a huge, creative mess in the kitchen with my kids getting ready for our yearly "Boo-ing" of the neighbors.

I love bundling up in dark clothes, balancing plates of scary goodies while driving without the lights on and sneaking around the neighborhoods to leave a big "Boo, we love you" on their porches. I love the kids' adrenalin rush from knocking and running and hiding and hearing the yells of "thank you" as the neighbors find their treats.

I love the laughter and retelling of the experiences as we gather again at home with hot cocoa.

So, even though I don't really like the traditional Halloween activities, I'm glad we have the excuse to do these once-a-year fun things together.

Tidbits

Fall 2011

Spring and Fall mark the time for dentist appointments. This was a first for Hyrum and Nathan's second time. I didn't know that Nathan liked the dentist but he filled Hyrum in on all the details. He explained the gloves, the bib, the drill sounding cleaner that polishes the teeth, the "sucky air" thing, the "water squirter" and of course the "duck lips". During Levi and Erika's first visit the hygienist labeled the fluoride treatment as duck lips and now it has been passed on to all the siblings.

Nathan went first and showed Hyrum that it doesn't hurt at all and how to hold the sucky thing between the duck lips and how to open his mouth reeeeally wide. Hyrum jumped up in the "magic chair" and did exactly as he was told, the way Nathan showed him. They both walked away with prizes, balloons, cool new toothbrushes, and their very own toothpaste and floss.

Nathan did have one cavity that needed a filling so on a follow-up visit he got to experience the excitement of laughing gas. He was a little more nervous this time but took Lambie for comfort. They put the gas on him and he laid there quietly for a few minutes. As he raised his arms up and said in a blubber "my arms are floating" we knew that the gas had kicked in. He giggled as he played with his fingers and tried to talk. Then came time for the work. He didn't flinch through the two shots, he didn't whimper during the drilling or placing of the new filling and he didn't squirm. He was quite happy.

They let him take home his laughy gas nose piece which he bragged about at home while asking when he could go back. He also got to pick another prize. He certainly picked one that marked the event.

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Our cat and bird have made friends. Well, mostly. The cat likes to sleep on Erika's bed during the morning hours while the boys are wound up and crazy. Then he moves to Hyrum's bed for nap time. For those hours while Harrison is napping on Erika's bed, the bird cheerfully welcomes in the morning with his chirping and singing. However, Harrison just wants to sleep so he has been known to meow his annoyance at Barbados (the bird). It has happened enough that Barbados now meows back at Harrison but Harrison has not picked up on the hint that Barbados wants to play. So, Barbados has started diving at Harrison while he is asleep. It's really quite funny to watch. Harrison lazily lays there and bats at him as he circles. Barbados is pretty darn lucky that Harrison is too fat and lazy to move from his napping position and he is de-clawed.

Harrison had finally had enough. As I walked past Erika's room one morning I could see Harrison and Barbados both sitting by the cage having a staring contest. I wasn't sure where it would go from there but I watched them for a minute. I couldn't tell who blinked first but eventually they both just stared out the window and seemed content to just be together. I quickly grabbed my camera to have a picture to show Erika after she got home from school. I took one picture and then called out "hey guys" and they both looked for the next picture.

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After reading about Lehi's vision in the Book of Mormon the boys were in a path making phase. They would use books, blocks, toys, and towels. They always had their "iron rod" and worked together.

My favorite was when they were taking a bath in the big tub and built a path to the promised land with their bath toys. When I asked where the tree of life was in the tub Nathan responded with "the tap of life water".

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Our neighbor's daughter got married so they decided to take down the loft bed that her dad made for her when she was 12 and they brought it over to us. Derek took the wood from an old bunk bed that we had and built a frame for Hyrum to have a bed underneath Nathan.

That lasted for about 2 weeks until a sick night when, in the middle of the night, Nathan was disoriented and couldn't figure out how to get off his bed and vomited ALL OVER THE PLACE. It was everywhere! Derek and I had to carefully lift the mattress over the side and set it on the floor to clean up the mess and then I had to wipe down the entire bed and change Hyrum's bedding as well. That experience, coupled with the fact that I couldn't tuck Nathan into bed very well or occasionally snuggle with him, put a temporary end to the bunk bed and it became a loft.

The boys have enjoyed that even more than the bunk bed. We have since added walls (sheets) so that it is their own private clubhouse. There is room enough to have the small table and chairs for activities and lunches or we can clear out the space and throw in a ton of pillows to have movie time with the travel DVD player. One night they even had a "sleepover" in their fort with their beds right there in the same room with them.

Sightseeing with Vivien

We had a few reasons to go on a couple of day trips.

We wanted to show Vivien the beautiful nature around us.

Vivien needed to take outdoor pictures for her photography class.

Derek needed the driving hours to fulfill his permit requirements.

Mesa Falls
August 2011

Vivien had been with us for one week

LeRoy, Derek, Nathan, Vivien and I took a Sunday afternoon to go up to Island Park to look at a cabin that LeRoy was going to be working on Monday morning. While Derek and LeRoy made a parts list for the cabin Vivien took pictures of Nathan and I enjoyed the peaceful calm around me.

On our way home we stopped at Mesa Falls.

Vivien was good to capture pictures of ALL the creatures around her.

Can you see LeRoy in the picture?

I love Mesa Falls! I wish it was in my backyard but I'm grateful it is only an hour away. I love the sound of the crashing water that drowns out the rest of the world. I love the drifting mist that rises up to gently coat the hot air with a cool breeze. I love the sound of the birds singing joyfully in their beautiful home. I love the smell of pine and wild flowers and the gentle rustle of the leaves on the trees, especially the quaking aspens. When I am there I can't help but sing softly to myself one of my favorite songs that seems so appropriate for how feel.

Whenever I hear the song of a bird, or look at the blue, blue sky.

Whenever I feel the [mist] on my face or the wind as it rushes by.

Whenever I touch a [pine tree branch] or watch as the [squirrel jumps trees].

I'm glad that I live in this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for me.

Jackson Hole

October 2011

Again, Derek needed drive time and Vivien needed to take pictures so Derek, Vivien, Justin and I took a day trip to Jackson Hole. We laughed so hard I about wet myself. I love hanging out with these spontaneous, witty teenagers!

We had to stop at the top of the pass to let the car cool down for a few minutes which gave us the opportunity to view the valleys below and the awe of being up so high. Once in town we wandered the square and browsed through shops, finally arriving at the Ripley's Believe It or Not museum. We spent a couple of hours shocked, amazed and disgusted by all the random stuff around us.

Our last stop was at an ice cream shop. We could not stop laughing at the cookie jars sitting on the counter.

Vivien's Birthday

Vivien had only been with us for five weeks when her birthday came. It had been a very stressful month for her trying to adjust to the language, a large family, the school, and trying to do homework in another language. She was still very quiet, kept to herself, and didn't eat much. Knowing her birthday was coming up, I made an even bigger effort to get to know what she DID like. I found in that month that she loves purple, fuzzy blankets, socks, Superman, strawberry ice cream and Peanut MnM's, and cheese pizza. I figured we could work up a party around that and really hoped that it would help her feel more a part of the family and for her to know that we were glad she was with us.

During the day, Hyrum and I went to the school to decorate her locker. Erika and Derek skipped out of class for a few minutes to help and leave her notes.

When she walked in after school I could see that something was different. She thanked me for doing the locker and was happy to toss around a couple of the balloons that were decorating the kitchen for her. We all enjoyed the cheese pizza. I enjoyed seeing her finally eat something.

I didn't know if she even liked cake but we stuck to American tradition and I tried to make one with things that I knew she liked. Rather than just to cake I layered cake with strawberry ice cream and topped it all with Peanut MnM's. The combination was a little odd to me but she was very pleased with it.

The boys went in together to get her a superman shirt and some fuzzy socks to match. Erika got her a purple fuzzy blanket and LeRoy and I got her a BIG pillow pet from Costco.

It was the first time in five weeks that we saw Vivien really relax, laugh and smile. It really helped that Erika, Derek and Justin were sucking helium from the balloons, filling the night with high pitched entertainment.

A few days later she got a package from her Mom and sister. She kindly shared Slovak, Hungarian and European treats with us. The giving on all our parts seemed to draw us closer together.

"I'm gonna live forever. So far, so good"

~Vivien

You Have To Be There

I cannot say it better than the lyrics already do. Thank you, Benny and Björn from ABBA, for this emotional cry that I can belt out in all the unprofessional bellowing of my soul since it is written, like most of the ABBA songs, in a range that I can reach.

You Have To Be There
You have banished me
From the land where I was born
Here upon a foreign shore, forsaken
I have followed you and done thy way
Should I kneel to you?
When I rise, you strike me down
Once again, a little one you've taken
Everywhere I turn it's darker still

What is it Lord that you want
And that I am not seeing?
What in my innocent prayers
Am I failing to say?
Never before have I questioned the truth of your being
Never once have I dared
Never until today

All of a tremble
I stand on the edge of confusion
Who is to save me
If into the darkness I fall?
Now that I need more than ever my God to be near me
Do you hear when I call?
Are you there after all?

You have to be there, you have to
My life I have placed in thy keep
And without you I am drifting on a dark and rising sea
You have to be there, you have to
Without you I'd drown in the deep
Too far, too far from land
The waters drag me down

I reach for your hand

Who when I die will throw open his arms to receive me?
Who will believe me and take me into his embrace?
When I go to my rest, who will watch me and wake me?
When my time comes at last, will you grant me your grace?
I am so small on this Earth, I am nothing without you
Daring to doubt you at all turns a knife in my heart
Little by little I'm losing my way in the shadows
I am losing my hold and the world falls apart

No, you have to be there, you have to
My life I have placed in thy keep
And without you I am drifting on a dark and rising sea
You have to be there, you have to
Without you I'd drown in the deep
Too far, too far from land
The waters drag me down
I reach for your hand

And without you I am drifting on a dark and rising sea
You have to be there, you have to
Without you I'd drown in the deep
Too far, too far from land
The waters drag me down
I reach for your hand

Cabin-ing

This was our first time staying in a cabin instead of a tent to "camp".

September, 2011

LeRoy was asked by a friend do some electrical work at a cabin in Island Park. Instead of doing it as a paying job we opted to trade for a weekend stay at the cabin over Labor Day weekend. After the kids got home from school on Friday and we got everything loaded up we started our weekend away. We got there after dark so didn't get to take in our outdoor surroundings until the next morning.

The inside sent me right back to the 80's with the baby blue and light pink floral decorating most of the rooms, needle points framed in ruffled hoops, floral hats on the walls and the green couch that welcomed us in the entry way.

The kitchen was great! I was told that the kitchen would have basic supplies in it but that thing had all condiments in the fridge, the cupboards had all baking supplies and there were even crackers and cereal. I found out later that the cabin is used nearly every weekend by someone in their family so they keep it full of supplies throughout the summer.

The next morning we woke to a beautiful sunrise, took a quiet morning walk down to the lake and enjoyed the peaceful calm of nature waking up for the day. The kids were happy to see the swing and trampoline near the cabin. I was thrilled to not have cell service or electronics interfering with family time.

We are not really a water family but it is still enticing when only knee deep. The boys had fun wading in it and the older boys entertained us with their karate kid impressions on the lone rock.

It was so fun to have Kate, Korben, and Logan join us for the weekend. I love watching the cousins play together and the older boys watching out protectively for all of them.

After a day of wandering and playing we let the boys choose a movie to watch before bedtime. Of all the movies we had there they chose Tangled. The perfect boy movie. The boys didn't even notice Kate taking pictures of them but Erika and Vivien did their best to hide from the camera.

Since we were "camping" we had to have a campfire to cook marshmallows over. Vivien had never had marshmallows before and decided after one sticky, crusty, hot blob of straight sugar that it really wasn't her thing.

Two of my favorite pictures from the weekend:

My teens

My man

It's a Girl!

After years of wishing and waiting and begging, Erika finally has a sister.

Vivien's first night in the USA

It began a couple of years ago when my cousin asked us to host an exchange student. The timing wasn't right in our family and to be honest we never thought it would be to add another teenager to the mix. Then we were asked to host for the International Dance Festival which we thought we could handle for a week but they had only given us 2 weeks notice and we couldn't clear the entire week to commit to just the dancers so we turned the offer away with a "maybe next year" response. We went to the opening night of the International Dance Festival and afterward spent time on the field with the dancers and other host families and committed that next year we would host, making sure that we could clear a week to just party with the dancers.

That was Saturday night.

On Sunday, after church, LeRoy saw that he had another text from my cousin concerning hosting an exchange student. It was the third time he had asked this year. LeRoy called to tell him it still wasn't a good time but while they were on the phone the thought came to my mind, "trust me". I paused just long enough to hear it again and then wrote down a bunch of questions for LeRoy to ask about hosting. After nearly an hour on the phone we told him we would talk to the kids and get back with him that night.

The kids were immediately excited. They probably thought hosting would be a constant party like we had had on the field the night before so we discussed the realities of adding another teenager for the whole school year. In reality, we had no idea what we were in for. We had a family prayer then called my cousin back to have him send us the profiles of the students, with the commitment that we would be a "welcome family" which meant we would pick up the student at the airport and keep them until a permanent host family could be found. At the most we were looking at about 2 months.

We read through 8 different profiles, all girls as we had requested. They were from a variety of countries, had a variety of religious preferences, some liked animals, some didn't, all were from small families, most from split families. We went through a bundle of personal letters from the students and their parents trying to pick a student that we thought would blend best with our family.

After reading all eight profiles on my own I narrowed the list down to three, but I felt very strongly about one girl in particular. I gave those three profiles to Derek and Justin and asked who they would choose. It didn't take them long and they chose the same girl that I had. After Erika got home from her friend's house I gave her the three profiles and she too chose the same girl. Later that night LeRoy and I read through those three together, with me trying to keep my personal preference to myself and he also chose the same girl. The next day we contacted my cousin again and told him that we would like to invite Vivien to stay with us. His e-mail back was just the confirmation we needed. "When I kept contacting you to host, this is the exact girl that I had in mind. I think it will be a perfect match." He even tried to bet us that we would end up keeping her for the whole year instead of just being the welcome family. We were still unsure.

Over the next 2 weeks we "met" Vivien through e-mail and even more pictures. She made her flight plans and arrangements to leave home for 10 months. We reorganized the guest room to be her room and went through a bit of training to know the school policies and ICES rules for hosting a student.

And then August 20th was here. The day we were to meet our new (temporary) family member.

Erika was very antsy as we waited at the Idaho Falls airport. We had decided to just have Erika and I pick her up since she didn't have any brothers and was from a small family. After 24 hours of travel and an 8 hour time difference we didn't want to overwhelm her from the start. I had to hold back tears as we recognized Vivien through the sliding doors and Erika went right up to her and gave her a hug. She looked exhausted, with a touch of excitement. The trip from Idaho Falls was rather quiet. Vivien was unsure of the language. We were unsure what questions to ask or information to give. She was surprised at the size of the school as we drove past it and even more surprised when we got to our house and suddenly she had 5 brothers.

It took us a couple of weeks to get acquainted. There have been some jealousy issues from our kids, some homesickness from Vivien, some awkward moments, days of crying and uncertainty and all of that has turned into a whole lot of laughter, friendly banter among all the kids, and so many wonderful memories.

The struggles we had overcome during the first two weeks had molded us together as a family and we couldn't imagine her being anywhere but with us. We officially changed our status from welcome family to host family, also changing Vivien's status from temporary family member to life long family member. It will be a very sad day when she boards a plane to go back to Slovakia but in the mean time we will live it up and enjoy the 10 months that we have together. It turns out that hosting IS a constant party. Wackee Six, Apples to Apples, the Tootsie Roll Game, Farkle, In a Pickle, and even Saturday chore time all give us hours of entertainment, side slitting laughter, practice with colors, numbers, vocabulary, story telling and finding that working together can actually be fun.

The best way to relax and laugh without any language barriers during the first week was to play Wackee Six. Vivien got so good at it that she beat us nearly every time.

Even doing homework together has become a party. It's good to see the kids rally around Vivien to help her with US Government, English, Health, Adult Roles, and even practicing lines for Drama.

Another School Year

August 2011

Nathan is ready for kindergarten!!

Nathan has been so excited for school to start. During the month before school started he often requested in his prayers, "please let time go fast so I can go to school and learn everything." He has come a long way from the socially shy little boy that couldn't leave his mama's side and didn't seem to have an ounce of anxiety as I dropped him off with his class. He was even excited for the daily bus ride, loving the 15 minutes of social time with all the neighbor kids.

Waiting for the kindergarten carpool. He was pretending to be pouty because it was taking so long for his ride to come.

Justin is starting 7th grade. This year the 7th grade was moved from the Middle School to the new Jr. High (the old high school building) so preteen Justin is being thrown in with all the teenager hormones of the 8th and 9th graders. Yikes!

Before school started we spent a day at the High School getting Vivien registered and helping Vivien and Derek get acquainted with the layout of the school.

Erika Jo is a senior. Senior-itis hit when she was a freshman so this could be a long year for her. Derek is a sophomore. This will be his first year in the new High School and he seems most excited for his building and science classes. Vivien is registered as a senior so that she can take advantage of all the senior activities and experience crossing stage as a graduate even though her year here will not count towards any of her schooling in Slovakia.

Erika, Derek and Vivien rode the bus on the first day of school mostly because Vivien was excited to ride the big American yellow school bus. One morning was enough experience and now they ride with Erika's friend Ali every morning. After school Derek and Vivien still ride the bus home even though it is, according to Vivien, "crowded and loud". Erika usually wanders her way home with a friend.

And what does Hyrum do while the others, more specifically, his buddy Nathan, is at school?

After running errands with Mom, eating lunch and reading stories there's always time for a nap with Harrison.

Blown But Not Beaten

August 2011

We have lived in this house for three years now and the outdoor garbage can has been in the same place all three of those years. Mr. Wind seemed to have quite an attitude this summer, nearly taking our trampoline to the neighbors yard, knocking in part of the playhouse, blowing our electrical dump pile all over the fields around us, ripping several shingles off our roof (which the boys didn't mind at all replacing), and he seemed to have some trashy vendetta against our garbage can. Several times he blew it over while it innocently waited by the road for the garbage man to come, but even more annoying than that was when he dumped our garbage can into the window well, not only once but three times! He couldn't ever do it on a Wednesday after the garbage had been picked up. Nope, he always chose a Sunday or Monday when it was chuck full.

Big Blue now lives in the garage.

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Getting a we've-been-in-an-accident-and-I-need-a-phone-number phone call leaves plenty of room for panic. Luckily, the one to call was LeRoy, not an officer, and he quickly told me that he and Derek were okay but couldn't give me details right then. It was a long 2 1/2 hours before I got the full story and could see both of my boys to know they were for sure doing alright.

LeRoy was pulling a rented mini excavator home after a day's work, moving slowly because of the winds. Even with all his caution the trailer carrying the mini started fish tailing. The area that he was in had a drop off on one side so he did his best to control the truck to the opposite side of the road and told Derek to hold on as the trailer and mini went on it's side first, pulling the truck over as well. The trailer and mini continued rolling, crushing the cab of the mini and destroying all it's controllers.

This experience could have turned out so differently and as I think back on the finer details it is obvious that the blessings far outweigh any hardships that came from this. Sure, we were without a truck, we were suddenly in an insurance battle over the repairs of the mini, the truck was eventually labeled "totalled" and we had to find and make purchasing arrangements for a new truck before the whole thing was settled BUT

1) they didn't go over the side of the mountain.

2) There were no major injuries - Derek did have sore knees from being thrown into the dash and a seat belt burn from hanging in his belt until LeRoy could climb over him and out the passenger window - they didn't want Derek to go out first in case he fell on LeRoy while trying to get out.

3) I was so grateful to be fighting the insurance, or rather, having LeRoy make all those necessary phone calls with the insurance and attorneys, instead of me making major medical decisions or funeral arrangements without LeRoy.

3) The mini only had minor damage to it so the cost to us was minimal. Certainly not cheap but it could have been a whole lot more.

4) Our insurance reimbursed us enough for our truck to pay off the mini and still set us up to get another truck that left us with a lower loan balance and monthly payment.

5) Derek drives with a caution that I have yet to see from my other teen drivers. He doesn't drive with fear but with awareness, knowing full well how quickly something can happen.

It's still a mystery how LeRoy walked away with no injuries. His window was knocked out as it hit the road but his head did not hit the window or the road. Even with the shattered glass around him he did not have one cut. The driver's side dash and floor area was compressed into an A and yet LeRoy's hands, legs and feet were unaffected. Our biggest concern was his back. He did feel a little sore and we weren't sure if it was a new injury or just from being jarred around and then climbing out the window like a contortionist. After an MRI scan we were relieved to find that his back is in a lot better shape than any of the previous scans before his three surgeries.

Two weeks later:

LeRoy's Birthday Highlights

Happy 44th Birthday

August 3, 2011

With a ping pong table in the basement LeRoy has become quite a competitive ping pong player. Of course, pool still holds the number one spot for his favorite game but ping pong is a close second. When Erika and I were in Chicago we went to the Bubba Gump Shrimp restaurant and as soon as Erika saw these she knew that's what she would do for her Dad's birthday. They had watched Forrest Gump earlier in the year so it was like sealing a memory for them.

I wanted to give LeRoy a couple of pictures of myself. He has one on his nightstand but it's from 10 years ago and he had hinted that he needed an updated one. I went all out . . . way out of my comfort zone. I called Michelle, my photographer girlfriend, and arranged to have some pictures done. I think he liked them, even though I hadn't made the time yet to get frames (it gave us something new to do on a date).

The first one got an "ohhhh" reaction. It was a nice picture, the more quiet side of Kimber.

The second one got a big old "ooh, la, la" reaction. The kids and I were a little embarrassed.

I have never don't usually pose like this but Michelle made me do it. It was worth a lot of good teenager-ish, yeah-I'm-pretending-I'm-hot laughs, a fun afternoon with my friend and sister, and it did get the reaction from LeRoy that Michelle had promised. Just the boost I needed as my biological clock ticks awfully close to 40.

I did peanut butter cupcakes (peanut butter is his favorite) and decorated them as pool balls. For the pool rack I shaped no-bake peanut butter cookie dough and framed it around the "balls".

After each of us ate a section of rack and a ball we headed to the basement to play ping pong and pool. I'd like to say that we let him win since it was his birthday but in reality he creamed us as usual.