Our Crazy June

If there was one word to describe the month of June for our family it would be Crazy. June started with Tara having her all day marathon to get her appendix removed, it ended with an all day marathon in the backyard to get the dog run removed. In between we had: Kennedy getting herself 90% potty trained - she still has an occasional accident, but nobody's perfect! Alex has moved from crawling to standing; he's found it's a much better view. Two new teeth have also made their appearance. I've been totally immersed in work (training almost everyday, the college class twice a week, summer rec basketball) and church (in addition to the normal meetings, we had Youth Conference this month). All in all, it's been a month of ups and downs (and a lot of really hot temperatures). Mostly, it's just the start to this year's hectic summer season!

Summer Fun

Summertime is in full swing and the thermometer is definitely proof of that. We've been making the most of the warm weather and spending lots of time outside. We've already been swimming several times and today, we headed to the Murray pool with some neighbor friends for another round in the water. We had lots of fun and too much sun. Kennedy and Alex both love swimming. Kennedy would stay all day if I let her. She loves to jump off the edge of the pool, as long as I am there to catch her. She likes to pretend she is swimming. She will tell me "look mom, I have my eyes and mouth closed." Of course she is still above the water, but at least she's trying. I haven't been able to talk her into going down the water slide this year-something she did many times last year. I'm sure she'll do it eventually. Alex likes to chew on the water toys and chase after them when they get away from him. He is becoming quite the fast crawler, so we have to keep a close eye on him. We are having a great summer so far. We love summer!

95th

Kennedy went to the doctor today for her 30 month checkup and let's just say that she continues to be above normal. We already knew that she wasn't an average child, but the numbers continue to prove it. She is still in the 95th percentile for both height and weight, as she weighs 36 lbs. and is 39 in. tall. To put Kennedy's size into perspective, Chloe weighs 35 lbs. as a 5-yr-old. I don't know if she will always be big for her age, but if she wants to hang out in this family - the trend should continue. Let's just see if Alex can ever catch up!

Standing Tall

Alex has moved from simply crawling around the house to finding things he wants to play with and climbing up to see what's going on. Lately one of his favorite items to explore is Kennedy's kitchen (much to her displeasure). This morning Alex was boiling some water and frying up some bacon. Who knows - maybe he'll end up on the Food Network someday?! Alex and Emeril, could be a winning combination....

Summertime Blues

I don't know if I'm the only one, but it's so hot around Utah right now that it's almost impossible to spend much time outside. I have a whole list of things I need to work on in the yard, but I can't drag myself out to do them. The swingset project has been placed on hold, the sprinkling system still needs to be adjusted, the lawn needs to be mowed, and the patio needs to be cleared off - and yet, I'm just relaxing in the air conditioning, looking out the window.

I think this week has been particularly challenging because of sleep deprivation from Youth Conference - it took me until yesterday to finally start catching up. I heard a great line once about camping/sleeping outside. A man was asked to become the Scoutmaster, to which he replied, "I've never slept in a sleeping bag." When the issue of never camping was investigated further the man stated,"No I've been camping lots of times; I've just never gotten any sleep in a sleeping bag!" That's about how I feel. I love to camp. I just know that I'm only going to get a couple hours of sleep per night. It's impossible to get comfortable when you're laying on the ground. And once you find a good spot, it only lasts for about 45 minutes before you need to readjust. Still, it's the price you pay to be in the Great Outdoors.

Know Thyself, Control Thyself, Give Thyself

I just got home from a fun filled three days at Youth Conference. Instead of going to the far ends of Utah, we spent our time at the DDD Ranch in Herriman. It was such a cool place and only 30 minutes from home. Because we only had 14 kids go with us this year, we had plenty of time to get to know one another. My favorite "Get to Know You" moment came at 1:00 AM courtesy of Brandon. He was feeling sick and came over to my sleeping bag to get some aid. After running around for 30 minutes, and going from tent to tent, we finally found some Pepto Bismol and Brandon went back to sleep. Problem is, I was up. I think I ended up getting about 2 hours of sleep that night, between talking teens and midnight commuters, it was too noisy to sleep much.

Tuesday was great. We had some great speakers, fantastic food, and plenty of free time. In fact, Kennedy, Alex, and Tara came out to the Ranch for the afternoon. We had fun with an Armour of God activity where kids were under attack from vicious marshmallow shooters. Kennedy absolutely loved it! She was running around, trying to load and shoot whomever was in her path. Alex had a great time too. He vacuumed up all the leftover ammunition, regardless of it's sanitary condition. I know, great parenting skills!

After the gooey fight, it was pool time. We all had fun as we hung out in the water for a couple of hours. In spite of my good judgement, the kids somehow convinced me to do a cannonball. Not my best moment. For the record, moments after my thunderous splash, another leader actually broke the diving board! I am so glad it wasn't me! Tara and the kids headed home, all exhausted but glad for a fun afternoon.


As we wrapped up the Conference, our final activity fell under the theme, Give Thyself. We went out on the ranch and cut down thistle for a couple of hours. I was glad to give the kids something meaningful to do. I don't know if they liked it, but it was an important way to close our Youth Conference. Overall, it was an awesome experience! One of the best parts of my calling is the chance to hang out with the Youth. They are great kids and I hope they had a meaningful time to grow and learn about themselves at the Conference this year.

A Day to be Dad

Father's Day was a lot of fun this year. The kids in the ward got together on Thursday and made personalized ties for all the dads. We all donated a few of our old ties and came away with a priceless memory. My tie came courtesy of Cole Orgill and I was proud to sport the JareJare's tie at church today. However, this classic tie will now live forever in my closet.

Yesterday my mom sent me a little present to commemorate Father's Day. It was one of those dollar store special books entitled, "The World's Greatest Collection of Quotes for Dads." Tara and I spent the drive down to visit her parents reading from its pages. Here are a few of the gems inside:

"When I was a child my family's menu consisted of two choices: take it or leave it." Buddy Hackett

"To be in your children's memories tomorrow you have to be in their lives today." Anonymous

"To her, the name of Father was another name for Love." Fanny Fern

Isn't it great to be a Dad?

Extra, Extra

I guess it's a slow enough morning that I've decided to post twice. Summer's here and it's time for an update to Alex and Kennedy's photo pages. You'll see pictures of our trip to Park City, Alex's Adoption, playing outside, and a sexy swimsuit shot - ok, so it's just Kennedy getting ready for pool season. Enjoy!

Saturday Mornings

I love Saturday mornings. I think it's the only real chance I have during the week to sit down and explore/read various blogs on the web. Sure, I check friends' blogs throughout the week, but Saturday is when I look at the rest of my favorite blogs. One of best blogs on the web belongs to David Pogue, the technology writer from the NY Times. He always brings out the most entertaining and innovative new websites and technology tools. This week he shared a fun new site called Videojug, the world's first how-to video website. You can watch "how-to" videos on about every topic imaginable. This week: How to Give a Great Man to Man Hug. Enjoy!


VideoJug: How To Give A Great Man To Man Hug

Back to Work

I have to admit that the week I had off after having my appendix out was pretty relaxing! I wasn't in too much pain, and Jared was very protective of me. He wouldn't let me do anything . We had dinner brought to us every night and my mom and sisters helped do laundry and clean the house. I caught up on some much needed sleep, read a lot and enjoyed some quiet time while Jared took the kids. Kennedy was very conscious of the fact that I had surgery. I would ask her for a hug and she would say "but mommy, you can't hold me because your tummy hurts."

It was fun watching Jared with the kids while I was down. He did a great job with them and it was interesting to see how they would be dressed and if Kennedy's hair would be combed or not. It usually was not combed, but in Jared's defense, combing Kennedy's hair right now is a battle for even the best. Even when we get it combed, within a couple of hours it looks like she just got out of bed.


The kids now think of Jared as the "fun" parent. He got off easy last week because as I said, we had dinner delivered every night, people helping with the house. He was able to play and wrestle with the kids all week. Now that I'm back on duty, I still have to keep the house clean, fix meals, and keep the kids happy. Needless to say, the kids seem more excited to have Daddy around now. On my first day back, Kennedy woke up and asked where daddy was. The rest of the day pretty much went like that, her asking for daddy, especially when she was in trouble with mommy.

It has been good to get back to normal. We have spent the week playing with friends, going to the park and playing in the yard. I have been feeling pretty good and was even able to jog a couple of miles this morning with Kennedy in the stroller. It was nice to have some time off, even if it was for a minor surgery, but it's good to be mommy again.

Life in Suburbia

There a lot of different ways that you can tell we live in a crowded world, where everyone is caught up in the hustle and bustle of daily life. Overcrowded freeways, lining up at the pump, even long check outs and the grocery store all tell us that we need to take time out to find those who are important to us. Yesterday I realized just how large the superstore Costco really is. I had stopped by the warehouse to pick up a new card and get gas for $3.09/gallon (I guess that's a bargain). After parking the car I called Tara on her cell to find out how her day was going. Here was our exchange:

So, what's going on Tara?

Not much, just shopping at Costco.

Costco, that's where I'm at. Where are you?

I'm near the milk.

You can find me at customer service.

We better stay in contact, so we can find you.

10-4.

A moment later, there they were. It's not often you can find a moment of peace and clarity at a superstore, but I found my favorite people at Costco yesterday.

Dead or Alive?

I never thought I'd be asking myself this question about my lawn, after having a new sprinkling system installed last month. We were sure that after years of messing around with a manual set of sprinklers our problems would be solved with the help of an automated system. Here's the problem: it doesn't get the coverage we need to keep the lawn healthy and green. We've tried to fix the spray on the heads and it seems to be getting worse. I know that it's getting warmer and we need to have realistic expectations for what the lawn will look like - still, when almost 1/3 of your lawn is moderately brown - how low should your expectations be?

In spite of the problems with the lawn, the best new addition to the backyard is the drinking fountain we had installed with the sprinklers. Kennedy absolutely loves showing her friends how to get a drink. It's still a little too tall for her, but with the help of a well placed stump, it's water time! Anyone want a drink?

Stay at Home Dad

Since Tara is recovering well I feel it's a good time to discuss several things I have learned during my week as a stay at home dad.

#1 Kids do not like to take naps. At least my kids do not like naps. Kennedy and I had a three hour battle of wills on Tuesday. Generally, it went like this:

Kennedy, it's time to take a nap.

No. I don't want to take a nap.

Kennedy, You need to take a nap.

No, I'm not tired.

After the battle had ended and the dust had cleared, Kennedy had prevailed and Dad had to pick himself up off the mat.

#2 Alex eats everything. Kennedy eats nothing. So far this week Alex has eaten a jar of pears, four waffles, a slice of pizza, a bag of peas, and a cookie. Kennedy only eats pizza.

#3 You can get by on a lot less sleep than you expect. I haven't slept at all this week. From the all night marathon surgery to kids getting up throughout the night I've only gotten a few hours of sleep. The worst part is, if I do get the kids to take a nap, I'm no longer sleepy and there are things to do.

#4 Tara really runs the show around here. I haven't gotten anything accomplished this week. Tara manages to take care of the kids, fix meals (I haven't made dinner once this week thanks to meals coming in), do laundry, work on the yard/garden, and clean the house. I've made sure the kids have clothes on every day. That's it.

#5 Everyone loves Mom. Everyone tolerates Dad. As much time and attention as I've given this week and every time I turn around I hear the same thing: Where's Mom?

ER

As soon as I left the bedroom I knew that yesterday was going to be a long one. Tara was doubled over on the couch, complaining that she was having some pretty serious pain in her abdomen. It was to the point that she couldn't sit up or stand. We made a few calls to cover the kids and work and headed off to the emergency room at St. Mark's Hospital. On the way Tara said that the pain was beginning to level off and that she probably didn't need to go inside, but we thought we'd check out what was happening just to be safe. About five hours later, the results came back - Tara's appendix appeared to be inflamed and she was going to need surgery.

The surgeon said that the operating room was backed up and that it would be a while before they could work Tara in. So, we waited, and waited, and waited. Finally, around 11:30 pm they came and got Tara for surgery prep. Two hours later the surgeon came up to tell me that he had removed Tara's appendix, as well as some pretty major scar tissue (endomitriosis) on her ovaries. In fact, he said that the reason Tara was in such pain earlier in the day was probably due to a ruptured ovarian cyst and not as much with her appendix. Still, he felt that everything was fine and that recovery would be complete and fairly quick. The marathon day ended with Tara being wheeled back to her room around 2:30 am, groggy and tired, but grateful that we were able to catch things early.

Demolition Man

About a month ago Tara decided we should take out the "dog run" in our backyard and put in a swing set for Alex and DeDe.

"No Problem," I thought. I didn't realize what kind of a job this would end up being. Apparently this was a dog run built for the next millennium - galvanized steel pipes for the framework, and an 18 inch cement footing around the entire foundation. So, I started out using a sledgehammer - that didn't go very far. Next, I used a chipping hammer - that would have taken forever. Finally, I moved to the heavy equipment - a jackhammer, complete with a diesel powered compressor. Now we're talking! It took a few days, and some pretty serious pounding on my body, but in the end the dog run came down. I still have to take the remnants to the dump, but we're getting a lot closer to a playground!

Munchkin on the Move

The little guy has started crawling and life has changed for both Kennedy and me. Alex is into everything, especially anything Kennedy is doing. She hasn't quite adjusted to Alex being mobile and still freaks out from time to time when he touches her or her toys.


As you can see from the picture, Alex is a human vacuum and eats anything he can find on the floor. This isn't all bad-it might help me keep the house a little cleaner.

It's fun to see Alex growing up. I can't believe he will be 1 in less than 2 months. He is as cute as ever and a little mischievous at times. He likes to pull hair (especially Kennedy's) and when we tell him no, he just giggles at us. That probably won't change much anytime soon, if he is anything like his big sister!

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