Bragging Rights

The end of the 2008-2009 school year brought some new friendships, great memories, and fun awards. We got to attend an awards ceremony, BBQ, and reader's theater on the last day of school. Since this is our family blog and I can write whatever I want, I'm going to brag about my sweet children's accomplishments.

First, Clark received the "Great Stamina" award for the Art Quest in being the last standing for third grade. For this award, he got a ream of paper, colored pencils, a cartoon drawing book, and some other art supplies. He received straight A's in all subjects and excellence in the "specials" classes. Other certificates received were for Children's Choir, Honor Roll, Citizenship, and being an "Excellent Gladiator" for exceeding standards on his CRT state assessment test. Great job, son!

Clark made a really good friend this year named Roman and as luck would have it, they are in the same class next year. They can't wait and are so excited! During this past year, they would get in a little bit of trouble because they liked to talk. Ms. Broadus would have to separate them a few times because they would talk Pokemon instead of focusing on her directions. So one day while in line for lunch, Ms. Broadus overheard a little "plan" they were working on. They were going to pretend not to be friends in fourth grade so that their new teacher would put them together in their desks and lining up for the "specials". When Ms. Broadus asked them about this plan, they made her promise not to tell their new teacher. She agreed but told me about the plan and we couldn't help but giggle. Very clever boys...

Ms. Broadus

Katelyn also received some awards. She got straight A's and certificates for Honor Roll, Citizenship, and Children's Choir. Great job, sweetheart!

Katelyn had a little posse this year. She made several great friends and they all got along really well and played together. They made up cheers, secret handshakes, and danced and sang to their own songs during recess. We received several phone calls almost every day after school from her friends that wanted to talk. If we weren't home, they left messages on the voicemail with a little "BFF" and "Hugs" at the conclusion of the message. Isn't that sooo cute?

Pauline, Katelyn, Gwen, Keyla, Megan, Lilu (Roman's little sis)
Ms. Roselli and Mrs. Leavitt

Moving on to the next big year!!

Swimming Lessons

Every summer since we have lived out of the state of Utah, we have been busy either vacationing, travelling to visit family, or going on medical rotations out of state. Thus, my children have never gotten the opportunity to take swimming lessons. Being in year-round school and "forced" to stay home and go to school during the summer has finally given us this opportunity.

Jacob was able to take 2 sessions in a row so he got a month of swimming lessons and it was so great for him. He has loved the water...as long as he can touch the bottom or wear a life jacket. Joe and I have tried working with him in our own pool but he gets scared, won't trust us, and it usually ends up in fits of crying and yelling. The first couple of weeks, Jake was a little timid and didn't want Miss Janette to let go of him. After teaching him to hum under water, float like Superman, use "cookie arms", "draw hearts", and make a "chicken, scarecrow, person" (elementary back stroke), she made him swim across the length of the pool as she was walking in front of him. He would swim as fast as he could so he could reach out and grab her at any time. Several times I heard her say as she would pull him into the water, "No negotiations today, Jake. I'll be right here to grab you if you need help but I want you to swim without holding on." (It's nice to see that I'm not the only one he tries to manipulate.)

After 2 weeks of timid swimming, Jake finally gained some courage and took off one day. He was a new man. It was so funny to see him just swim anywhere, anytime. I couldn't believe it. It had come completely out of the blue. He actually got in trouble several times because he was supposed to sit near the wall but kept heading for the deep end while the other kids were swimming. I was proud of his new courage but had to maintain the discipline of following Miss Janette's instructions. He now swims like a fish and loves it. He tells me, "Mom, I only need to wear my life jacket when we go to the lake because it is REALLY deep there and you never know when the boat can tip." Way to go, Jake!

This picture says it all

Carlee took a 2-week session as well. She watched Jake in the first 2 weeks and was dying to get in so I signed her up. She loved dunking her head in the water and would open her mouth as big as she could to take her breath before diving in. She also learned to hum underwater, "take a nap" on her back, "fly like Tinkerbell" on her belly, use "cookie arms", and "draw hearts" while kicking. Carlee was really good at making a "chicken, scarecrow, person" and would scrunch up her face as she was concentrating on her arms. It was too cute. Two of her favorite things to do was dive for rings on the step and jump to Miss Janette. Although she still gets nervous if she can't hold on to us, she loves playing in the water and practicing her hums. She is already talking about "swimming at Miss Janette's next year when she is 3".

My little Tinkerbell

Taking her nap

Miss Janette was nice enough to open a session after school for Clark and Kate if I could recruit some other kids to join. So I talked to a couple of friends and off we went. Clark is the only one that actually has no fear of the water and can swim pretty well but hasn't been taught the proper technique so this was really good for him. He loved learning the strokes and participating in the relay races with his friend, Mitchell.

Katelyn has been nervous in the water as well. Of course she is fine also as long as she can touch the bottom. She has learned some of the strokes but will doggie-paddle in between and start to panic. By the end of the 2 weeks she had gained a lot of confidence and can now keep up with Clark.

They learned front crawl, back stroke, elementary back stroke, breast stroke, side stroke, the butterfly, flip-turns, and diving. They were able to do a couple of relay races and have done a great job learning these strokes. I love watching them practice in our pool and see how their confidence has grown. Great job, kids! You'll be even better next summer.

Happy Independence Day

For the fourth of July, we met Joe's parents, Steve, Shelly, and the Allred cousins in Kaysville for their city parade.  It was so fun and the perfect day for a parade.  The weather was overcast and just the right temperature.  We got a front-row seat at the beginning of the parade and the kids couldn't wait to catch the candy being thrown from the parade.  They gathered handfuls of taffy, shoved them in their grocery bags and waited patiently for more. 

 

I love small-town parades.  It brings back so many memories of when I was a child excited and ready for Alpine Days every year.   Getting up early to set out your blanket on the curb to save your spot and feeling the anticipation of a fun day ahead was the best.  The day consisted of the parade with ward members, city officials, and friends walking by and waving and then all the concession stands and small carnival rides in the city's park afterwards.  Those were great times and Kaysville's was no different.

After the walking parade, they did a water one where the fire trucks would drive down the streets squirting everyone down with their big water hoses.  We headed over to the jumping inflatables and concessions.  The kids jumped on the inflatables and got cotton candy and sno-cones.  The girls got bracelets from Grandma and the boys and Alyssa went rock climbing.  

Then we drove up to Brigham for some boating, a barbecue, and fireworks.  Joe bought some fireworks at the Indian reservation in Nevada so we had some great ones that we lit ourselves and then we watched the city's fireworks from Grandma and Grandpa's backyard.  They were great and we could even hear the music playing from the park.  

Sunday we enjoyed going to church and visiting with Marci, Justin, their boys, and Carrie and Megan.  

Monday morning we got up early and had a reservation to see the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house.  The kids loved learning about the temple as Joe and I explained the rooms and their purposes.  Clark kept saying that he was sitting on a holy couch or chair and Carlee exclaimed, "Mom, there's a swimming pool!" and "Look at all those pigs! (oxen)"  She was a little tougher to control as she was "hopping" on one foot through the halls but most of the guides smiled politely because she was still quiet, just a little bouncy.  She did enjoy the pictures of Jesus and talking about the temple non-stop.

We then grabbed some lunch at Chick-fil-A (Yummm!) with Kyle and Jenn and started the drive home.  We stopped in St. George for dinner with Jim and Steph at Mongolian BBQ, hit some of "my stores" there, slurped ice cream at the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Parlor, and continued on our way home.  Early bedtime and quick unpacking for school tomorrow! 

It was a wonderful weekend.  I have to say that I am so grateful for the United States of America.  Being a military wife and having a husband that served in Afghanistan for a few months has made me more appreciative of the freedoms that we enjoy and take for granted. Obviously, there will always be political issues and differences but I am truly grateful for the rights that we enjoy in this country.  I am touched by the military men and women that fight for those rights every day, sacrificing their own lives and families to do so.  Tears always come to my eyes when I see our flag raised, our national anthem sung, and our military heroes brought to their feet or coming home from deployment.  I am grateful for a husband that believes in this country and thinks it is worth fighting for.  Although he doesn't fight in combat with a weapon, he does fight for the lives of those soldiers who do and stands by their unselfish service.

Happy Independence Day, America! 

Birthday Surprise

My ruggedly-handsome father celebrated a special birthday on July 9th this year.  It was the big 60!  For months we have been planning a special surprise to help him celebrate.  Due to work and other commitments the best weekend for all of our family to get together was July 4th!  This happens to be my dad's favorite holiday (next to Christmas) so it worked out perfectly. 

Our family drove up on Thursday with the Quarnberg clan.  We met at Goodwood BBQ in Orem.  My mom had reserved a room for us so it was great to be all by ourselves.  About 20 minutes after we got there, my parents walked in.  Mom is not very good about keeping secrets and if she is hiding something, it is very obvious and written all over her face.  She was nervous about coming up with an excuse to go out for dinner so she decided to have my sis and bro-in-law invite them.  It was a fabulous idea that worked perfectly.  When Dad walked in and saw all of us there, he got a huge grin across his face and was very surprised and excited to see us.  He had seen the Willes' car in the parking lot while walking in so he thought that since Jenn and Kyle had invited them as well there would be a big announcement.  No announcements yet but we're anxiously waiting!!!  But I do have to say congratulations to my mom for keeping the surprise!!

Dinner was great and everyone enjoyed their meals.  We all headed back to Mom and Dad's for cake, ice cream and presents.  Dad's cake had so many candles, the flames started the cake decorations on fire.  Luckily there were enough little mouths to blow it out.  I'm sure Grandpa loved all the help and birthday wishes.  He got a nice new grill which the menfolk gladly put together.  We played some games and then it was off to bed.

Three little gaming musketeers!

Two little loungin' divas!

Friday morning was spent shopping (I always have to hit "my stores" when visiting) and preparing food for our afternoon and evening in the canyon.  We headed up American Fork canyon early afternoon following Geoff and Alanna.  They found the perfect spot just above Tibble Fork by the Horse Trailhead.  There was a picnic table, a fire pit, some hiking trails, and the perfect tree for climbing.  After unloading everything, Grandpa took us on a hike through the mountains.  I love my dad's hikes.  They are always full of adventure and information.  He loves to point out animal tracks, types of trees and plants, and tell stories of Bloody Bill and Ol' Ephraim.  We always have to cross a stream while walking on a slippery log and at least one child always lands a foot in the water.  This time was no exception and Joe lost our lens cap as well while he was taking "action shots" of the kids crossing the log.    

Katelyn and Uncle Kyle

Crack kills, Carlee!

Yes...this is my ruggedly-handsome father!  

He also tells stories of Bloody Bill, teaches songs of refreshing Coca-Cola, and throws grandchildren into the air endlessly.  What a man!

Our cute family enjoying nature

After our hike and finding "Ol' Ephraim's belt buckle", we headed back to our camp for dinner.  The food was delicious and the kids couldn't wait to make s'mores.  Clark kept burning his marshmallows and was dared to eat an extremely charred one for $2.  He ate it and everyone groaned.  His reply was, "It's actually not too bad!"  EEWWWW!

Earning his $2.00

Carlee and Aunt Jenn

We then got into a huge marshmallow fight and everyone was ducking behind the trees and each other to avoid getting hit.  Steph had brought up some water balloons and Geoff had brought a launcher so he, Alanna, and the girls started filling those up while Jim, Kyle, and Joe launched balloons at Jay and the little boys.  The water fight started soon after and Grandma was up and headed for the hills when Joe picked up the cooler full of water.   Nobody got too drenched, just wet enough to feel refreshed.  

The kids enjoyed climbing trees and rocks and Kodi's leash made the perfect rope swing.  It was a beautiful day in the canyon and the weather couldn't have been better.  Being up there really made me miss the mountains and summers in Utah.  It is amazing how beautiful this world truly is and how much I love spending time up there.  I'm so glad that we live a little closer so that we can make little weekend trips up north to be with family and celebrate a wonderful man's birthday. 

Let's Get It Started

Katelyn had her dance recital at the Clark County Library on June 27th.  She was a cute and great little dancer as she performed a tap number to "Let's Get It Started" by the Black-eyed Peas.  Several of her friends from our ward were in her class and they were so cute smiling and giggling at each other as they danced across the stage.  Way to go, Katie-bug!  We love watching you wiggle!

 

Mia, Aspen, and Katelyn