Home Sweet Haven

Buried Treasure

2012-02-15T22:09:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of you know (because I've complained to every single person I talk to lately) about the GREAT AND TERRIBLE PICTURE PROJECT that is going on at our house. The attempt to rescue 15 years of pictures that where languishing in Rubbermaid in the garage is taking a very long time to complete.

But it is not with out it's moments of surprised and joy as I come across forgotten but love pictures from the past. Here are a few of my favorites.

First, there are pictures from our trip out the the Sun Tunnels.

This is one of my all time favorite family adventures.

Here are my all time favorite pictures of my boys.

Connor dancing to Christmas music at the Gateway fountain.

At a birthday party

Perrin at Randy and Laura's wedding.

And my favorite pictures of the Jeep, for which this blog was once named.

Here are some shots of our build.

This is my Auntie K, who loves me enough to drive in from California and spend 5 sweltering days wiring my house.

This is the crane lifting our trusses onto our walls

Building garage shelves

And some of the strange and amazing places life with Shane has taken me.

Random Shots of Happiness

My Boys in Willard Bay

A rainstorm in Alaska, aboard The Golden Princess

Randy and Laura's wedding; one of the happiest days of my life.

2012-01-23T11:56:00.000-07:00

Well I can’t say the water came in epic proportions, but I can say it came in annoying proportions. Ultimately, any amount of water where it doesn’t belong is obnoxious.

This weekend we removed 6 inches of water from our crawl space and then dug a trench in the back yard to convince the river coming off the mountain behind us to flow around the house instead of thru it.

I’m too tired to write about it now AND I still have to de-mud the house. So I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Our Fantastic Fall

2011-11-28T09:31:00.002-07:00

Autumn always brings to mind long walks through falling leaves and evenings spent by the fire, sipping hot cocoa. Peaceful days and cozy nights.

LOL! In my DREAMS!

Fall is such a busy time for us! As the temps starts falling we go into overdrive, trying to soak up as must sunshine as we can.

We always do our best hikes in the Fall.

Garden of the Gods

Colorado

And of course, I spend tons of time preserving our garden's harvest.

Lavendar Pear Jam

Huckleberry Vinaigrette

Apple Ginger Jelly

All in!

We have been working the yard,

Tilling the garden

Raised flower garden

Building a raised herb garden

We also finally finished Perrin's closet insert.

That's about it.

Bring on the Holidays!

"What I did this summer." by Jammie Gundersen

2011-08-29T12:09:00.003-06:00

I witnessed the miracle of life.

Aurelia Sabine Hutchins was born 8 June 2011 at 11:41 am.

She was 7 pounds 10 ounces 19 and a half inches.

I witnessed the miracle of nature.

Yelowstone

Grand Tetons

Inspiration Point

I spent time with my first best friend.

My Mom and I hiking with my fam in the Tetons.

I held tight to my eternal best friend.

ROAD TRIP!

I helped build a bookcase.

Laura and Randy's floor.

And a boy.

Connor, receiving his

Weblos Award, 20 Patch

and Arrow of Light.

I said goodbye.

God be with you til we meet again.

Rose to new heights.

Hiking in Emigration Canyon.

And conquered a wild horse!

Little Wild Horse-Bell Canyon Hike.

As you can see it was a pretty full summer.

We spent more time away from home than at home.

I'm glad to have all the memories.

But I am also glad to be home.

4 Awesome Days!

2011-07-26T09:21:00.000-06:00

If I took the time to tell you all the amazing things we did on our family vacation, you would still be reading by next spring. So I'll just share the highlights.

Hands down, the coolest thing that happened,

was my Mom came on this vacation!

She is such a blast to hang out with!

The first day we went river rafting. Shane, Perrin and my Mom all sat on the edge of the boat and paddled like champs! Connor and I sat in the middle and cowered. We spent that evening hanging out in Jackson, WY.

The next day we spent in Yellowstone. One day, is in no way enough time to spend in Yellowstone. The park is HUGE! We focused on the Old Faith section and saw as many geothermal features as we could.

We spent our last day in the Grand Tetons. We hiked around Jenny Lake and up to Hidden Falls and to Inspiration Point.. The pictures don't do it justice. The Tetons are taller than you can imagine.

On the trail to Inspiration Point

Perrin: Basking at 7200 feet!

Connor: Taking in the view.

We are home again at last...at least for this week. This weekend we're camping with friends and next week we'll be at Shana's!

Summer Fun

2011-07-12T18:11:00.002-06:00

Now that our boys are getting older, we’ve been able to trade up our “family fun” hikes for more adventurous outings. Don’t get me wrong, we still love the relaxed feeling of taking a hike that is more about goofing off and less about staying on schedule so we can make camp.

Like our walk along the Pioneer Trail up Emigration Canyon.

The wildflowers are so beautiful this year.

And the weather has been nice and cool.

That's our truck wwwaaayyy down there.

And the view from the top was pretty great.

Earlier this summer Shane, Perrin and I got to go on the

Little Wild Horse/Bell Canyon Loop in the San Rafael Swell;

an 8 mile hike thru two slot canyons.

(Connor was at Grandma Jeanette's with a terrible sunburn)

It was a little late in the season to make this hike.

In retrospect we should have gone in early spring

or even early winter, and not in June.

It was one heck of a hot day!

Hiking a slot canyon can be claustrophobic.

A lot of the path was very narrow!

Looking up

Half way!

We ended the day with fresh limes
at The Grub Box in Ferron.

2011-03-16T09:26:00.001-06:00

Look! I'm tall enough to ride ALL the rides!

(Barley)

Connor & Aidyn

Autsin

Perrin

Shane & Connor

Shana & Sean

Skunked at Causey

2011-02-22T14:16:00.000-07:00

LUCKY US!

We all had Monday off, so we headed up to

Causey Reservoir for a day of fishing and snowmobiling.

We all had a blast on the Snowmobile!

Shane and Connor

Perrin

Wahoo!

We didn't catch any fish, but it sure was a fun day!

2011-01-24T12:36:00.008-07:00

We had a wonderful weekend, fishing and snowmobiling at Bear Lake!

But I did have a strange realization on the sled hill.
With all my gear on, and being as short as I am, I look like a chubby 5th graders...lol

Hope your weekend
was as fun as ours!
Happy January!

Pinewood Derby 2011

2011-01-21T07:13:00.004-07:00

My cupcake race car!

Connor helping us decorate

Connor's car

The race is on!

Connor's car was given
"The American Dream" award!

Finally! New Years Day Pictures!

2011-01-13T10:42:00.004-07:00

We spent New Year's Day with Shane's fam, trying out the new snowmobile!

Karla

Cori

Perrin and Connor

Connor

Me!

Snow Man! (Perrin)

Shane and Perrin

Bart

Shane and Kendall

Got Stash?

2010-12-07T04:30:00.005-07:00

My goal to deep clean stalled out at the master closet. It's not that I stopped working. It's that I got...distracted...which come to think of it, may be why I am not the best housekeeper.

My master closet is where I keep my stash. Which means I had yarn hidden everywhere it could possibly fit. In an effort to organize the closet I pulled out aaaaalllll that yarn (mmmm yarn) and made a "stash chart", listing amount, weight, color and the fiber it is made of. MAN! I have a lot of really GREAT yarn! I also have A LOT of acrylic (acrylic, a-CRY-lic, acryl-ICK)

So there I sat in the middle of all that yarnie goodness. And I thought, "Well, deep cleaning often includes de-cluttering. I'll start the purge by using up all this yarn!" And I've been crocheting ever since. It's been hard to stay so focused, but I am sacrificing my time for the good of my family. We will all benefit from a cleaner, more organized home...really, I'm doing it all for them...

"The Deep Clean" has moved forward however! Shane spent last Saturday cleaning out the office closet. (Something I secretly never intended to do.)

So the effort continues. "The Deep Clean" moves forward and all my Cub Scouts have new beanies. Everyone's happy...

A house of order

2010-11-17T10:11:00.003-07:00

I am not a good house keeper. It's a fact. I'm just not good at keeping up on housework. I am however, a really really good procrastinator. I love to read...and crochet...and knit...and facebook...get my point? I also live with 3 very, um untidy, boys.

Well, now I have this new house. A new house that Shane and I built. Actually built, with our hands and sweat and blood. This house took (and is still taking) a lot of work to build. And I would love for it to stay as nice as it was the day we moved in.

Since we moved in, I have been a lot better at keeping up with all the everyday stuff. That's not to say things don't get messy around here. But it usually gets cleaned up in a reasonable amount of time. What is bugging me right now are the storage spaces. All the drawers, cupboards and cabinets that get filled up with random stuff. I feel cluttered and disorganized and I am no where near using my space to the best of it's ability.

So this is the beginning of the end of clutter in my home. (stop laughing, I know I'll have to do this again in the future) My goal is to clean out all our nooks and crannies before 2011 starts.

I started with the Media Room. We don't spend much time in there, so it was pretty easy to tidy up and vacuum all the dust that, for some reason, clings to electronics. My brother once told me, the most important rooms to keep clean are your bedroom and bathroom, because you relax in those rooms. I think he's right so I moved on to my bathroom next.

I NOW HAVE TWO COMPLETELY CLEAN AND CLUTTER FREE ROOMS! YAH ME!

I got my bedroom all clean, but the master closet is scaring me so I decided to skip that and move on to the kitchen. Before I deep clean the kitchen I had to make apple juice.

Now I can put all the canning supplies away for the season and get to work!

Wish me luck!
I'm gonna need it!

Billy Joel - You're My Home - 1976

2010-11-12T15:20:00.000-07:00

ONE MORE BRICK IN THE WALL

2010-11-07T07:51:00.008-07:00

Building our 1st retaining wall was fun, and dare I say easy. Sure it was hard work, and the blocks where pretty heavy. But it only took us about 3 hours to build the whole wall. And we spent the whole time joking around and feeling proud of ourselves for this great accomplishment. I’ve decided to call that wall

“The Great Wall of Deceit”

I've dubbed the 2nd retaining wall

“The GREAT wall of SHANE”

It has gone up only because of Shane’s force of will. 1st of all the wall required A LOT more blocks. Like 6 truck loads. These blocks had to be loaded into the truck and trailer and later had to be unloaded. These blocks are VERY heavy, so heavy that the boys and I can not lift them. Now we did have a lot of help, from the guy who we bought the blocks from and some neighbors. But for the most part all block transferring was done by Shane.

Then there was the digging. We hired a guy with a tractor to do the lion’s share of this work. But we (by we I mean Shane and sometimes Perrin and more sporadically me) still spent hours digging down the last few inches and making the ground smooth and level.

Then we (again Shane) placed the rocks. Perrin was able to help more with this step and our neighbors helped A LOT! It took one full day and several nights after Shane got off work to place all the blocks.

We (Shane) did it! The wall is up! It won’t be complete until we can pour the cement pad in the spring, but the hard part is over!

2010-10-14T06:21:00.007-06:00

Spent yesterday building our first retaining wall.

2010-10-14T05:55:00.003-06:00

Our new wall!

The Parlotones opened

2010-10-02T08:56:00.003-06:00

Ryan Delahoussaye of Blue October playing with The Parlotones

Seeing Blue October live was AMAZING!

2010-10-02T08:47:00.001-06:00

I guess I forgot

2010-10-01T07:40:00.002-06:00

When we began the count down to the 1st day of school, I began to mourn the lost of Summer. Then I started work again AND it was harvest time at the garden. Top that all off with Shane's busy schedule and gathering wood for our winter fire. I've been so busy with all our Fall activities, I forgot to notice the weather has been AMAZING!

Well! I finally stopped looking down at my feet long enough to notice the blue sky, sunshine and warm, but not too hot, temps. WAHOO! Bring on a day at the lake!

2010-07-25T07:42:00.003-06:00

When you start planning a 4 day backpacking trip you begin by choosing a destination and calculating mileage. Then you start to make careful lists of all the things you could possibly need to take. You must keep in mind the at times you’ll be a 2 day hike away from any source of Advil or Oreos.

The amount of stuff you’ll need is staggering, considering you have to carry it all on your back. And all that stuff takes up a lot of space, not to mention it’s all just plain heavy! You start to make justifications for leaving things behind: “Do I really need that extra pair of jeans?” “Is it really necessary to carry all that rain gear in the middle of July?” (and my favorite) “I could totally go four days without a toothbrush!”

Some things are negotiable. Some things, like a camera, are as important as your sleeping bag and clean water. Personally, I’d consider giving up all my extra socks to cram in a good book, and have been know to take a knitting project on a hike.

You have to be concerned about every ounce that goes into your pack. And perhaps more important, every ounce that goes into your 9 year old’s pack. Because if you get this wrong, at some point, your going to be carrying his pack and maybe even him!

So here we go. Today we start our hike into the Uinta back country. Along the way, we’ll get to see the Timothy Lakes, Bluebell Pass and 25 miles of high mountain wilderness. No knitting this time, but I do have the camera and did manage to fit my book in.

2010-07-20T16:02:00.003-06:00

We had SO much fun spending the weekend up Paris Canyon with Shane's co-workers! I spent the first morning hanging on to the back of a dirt bike. What a blast! It made me feel like a teenager again, although not many teens worry that their childern are lighting fires back at camp.

We had a day at Bear Lake's North Beach and a day for hiking to and hanging out at Bloomington Lake.

Mantua

2010-07-14T09:44:00.001-06:00

We took the boat out to Mantua yesterday and had a great time. It's so nice to have the boys back!

BIG Fish!

2010-07-06T09:47:00.003-06:00

Connor and Shane had a great time at scout camp. Then they had a great time fishing! Check out the pictures on the bottom of the page.

The great room floor

2010-03-20T16:33:00.001-06:00

Shane is amazing! Nough said...

My new best friend

2010-03-20T15:03:00.003-06:00

I used to have this imaginary best friend named Rachael. Rachael and I would hang out in the kitchen all the time, where she taught me all kinds of recipes for quick easy dinners. She also taught me that if I added enough garlic, onions and cheese to any recipe, people would say "yum-o" when the ate my food.

When I went back to work, I lost all interest in cooking. I haven't seen a whole lot of Rach, since I started making salads and hamburgers for 8 hours a day.

My new imaginary best friend is named Brett Bara. Brett hosts the PBS show "Knit and Crochet Today" And thanks to Brett I know all kinds of new stitches. Just the other day she taught me how to crochet babbles! I don't know if you can see this way cute babble pattern. But I'm super excited that I can do it! (It's okay if your laughing at me, I'm laughing too)

The project I'm trying to get the nerve to start is a knit and felted flower pot. It involves 2 knitting techniques I've never tried: short rowing and felting. Someday soon, I'll get the guts to try something really challenging. And believe me, when I succeed you'll hear about it!!!

Pictures At Last!

2010-03-06T08:46:00.002-07:00

I haven't posted any pictures of our new house because my camera disappeared half way thru our build. But I FINALLY figured out how to get the pics off my camera...enjoy!

Chunky Water

2010-02-06T08:44:00.002-07:00

I am quite certain Thatcher/Penrose water compares to Magna water! The Water Master (sweet old guy) said there are "dissolved solids" in the water. Which I've discovered is a nice way to say the water is chunky.

Just spent the morning scrubbing hard water off our fancy-dancy oil rubbed bronze bath fixtures. Lime-a-Way is my new best friend.

Oh, and for those of you who have jetted tubs, here's a little trick I learned. Fill your tub about half way and while your half in half out scrubbing down your ginormous tub, turn on the jets...go ahead, do it...it's awesome!

2010-01-23T05:45:00.004-07:00

If 2009 taught me anything, it taught me the meaning of the phrase "blood, sweat, & tears." Building our home was the most crazy, exhausting, fun, emotional, scary, amazing thing I have ever done. I honestly had a blast, and I honestly can't understand why I didn't have a nervous break down :o)

I can't write about the whole build in one post. I don't have the time or emotional fortitude to go thru it all. So I'll have to give it to you in chunks.

We spent a lot of time researching the materials that went into our home. What we wanted was an affordable way to build a super efficient house. In the end we chose to build our home out of Insulated Concrete Form Basically they build the walls out of hollow forms that are made of anything from concrete to foam to recycled newspapers. Then they fill in the forms with cement.

Choosing to build with ICF had a lot of consequences that we didn't recognise when we started. The most surprising was our general contractors reaction. When we told him we wanted to build with ICF he pretty much broke up with us. He said it would be impossible. And if we could pull it off it would be outrageously expensive. We really wanted to "general" our home ourselves, but it was a challenge finding funding for a construction project that "couldn't be done"

The ICF added a lot of stress to our build, as most of our contractors had never heard of the stuff. We were surprised to see how many people were nervous to work with a new product. The ICF added a lot of time to the build and really annoyed our framers. The funniest consequence was the way our neighbors reacted. Most thought we were flat out crazy.

After we bought the land and pored the foundation, we waited and waited and waited. The EZ Block people, who where in charge of building the exterior walls, didn't show for almost 2 months! Their web site claims their product is "Easier, Cheaper, Faster." This is clearly not the case.

We are fairly happy with the end result. EZ Block did in fact offer a product that is "extremely strong, virtually fireproof, super-insulated, and nearly sound-proof. The block is also impervious to vermin and rot.

ICF is supposed to be super green, which is probably true in the long run. But having a green home is about being efficient and choosing a responsible way to leave the home's footprint. I'm not sure I'm buying all the green claims the ICF sales guys are pushing...oh well, we got what we wanted in the end. Our house is really easy to heat and will be even easier to cool. It is pretty much sound proof and the exterior walls are really thick (a full foot) which makes for awesome window sills.

OH HAPPY DAY!

2010-01-08T21:06:00.000-07:00

WE CLOSED ON OUR HOUSE TONIGHT!

Camera

2009-06-27T18:00:00.003-06:00

08/09 has been hard on our cameras. When we went to Virginia last Nov, Shane used about 3 rolls of film on our "oldie but goodie" 35mm. When we developed the film, one of the rolls (our day in DC) was completely blank, thus ending our film picture taking.

Imagine my surprise (while I was in Alaska) when my digital started acting funny. 2 cameras in 2 vacations? Seriously?!?

Well last night, my good ol' Olympus took it's last picture. I lasted almost 24 hours w/o a camera. :o) Then ran down to Inkley's to pick up my new Olympus. What is the first thing I pointed my new camera at? Thing 1 and Thing 2 of course.

Below Grade

2009-06-23T06:12:00.002-06:00

For the last 2 weeks we’ve been working on all the stuff in a house that gets buried. Although most of this will never be seen, it’s all pretty important. Remember that “the wise man built his house upon a rock.”

We had subs help with the excavation & pouring the foundation. Once our cement had “cured” for a few days, we sealed it. This was a project that was UNBELIEVABLY sticky!!! To do this, you thin a bucket of tar with paint thinner and then paint it on the foundation. Doing this seals out all the moisture that could creep in thru your foundation.

While working on this, I learned if you give a 10 year old a paint brush and ask him to cover the spots you miss, there is NO WAY said 10 year old will not end up covered in tar. Surprisingly, an 8 year old will fair FAR better.

While I was sealing the foundation, Shane was laying the conduit and pipe that would need to be buried in the cement of the crawl space and garage floor. Let me just take a moment here to stand in awe of Shane’s capacity for detail. He has an amazing attention span and can achieve a level of precision that most of us don’t know is possible. Shane is the one and only reason I believe I can build a home.

Yesterday we installed an outdoor faucet and built our vent wells. Yes, we could have bought wells instead building them. Building the wells did take all day but we save $600 and they’re pretty, so I think it was worth it.

You’ll notice in the picture, my first well was a little off center. I had to take that one apart, but we got it right in the end…the level is my friend…

So that’s it for our work below grade. Next week our exterior walls will start going up.

There’s dirt under my fingernails…& in my shoes!

2009-06-23T05:46:00.001-06:00

When most people decide to build a house they visit a nice sub-division or look up a builder they like. They get to pick a floor plan & tile and carpet color. They chose a lot and visit a few times thru out the build to see how their house is coming on. This is called a” turn-key” project. For these smart people owning a new home involves, well, turning a key.

Some people, we’ll call them the “DYI” people, are more involved. They do all the painting. They may put the roof on or hammer in some nails…these are smart people as well.

My darling sis, once said (in exasperation) about Shane and I: “You never do ANYTHING the easy way!” I now see that she is right! We are not like the smart people I just told you about. For us, building a house is far more complicated.

We’re pretty much building this house on our own. We will hire (and supervise) all sub-contractors. And even more time consuming, we’ll be arranging for all materials to show up on time. And we will be doing A LOT of the work ourselves.

So here we go: For the next 6 months this blog will be about the blood, sweat & tears shed while we build our home.

Wish us luck!

I think my brain is melting...

2009-06-17T12:19:00.003-06:00

Knitting Monogamy: the state of having only one knitting project at any one time.
ie...Knitting monogamy is soooo boring, I think my brain is melting.

I'm a loyal girl. I met my best friend when we where 5. I've been married to the guy I dated in high school for 11 years. So why do I have such a hard time with project monogamy?

I currently have 4 projects on needles right now & we're just talking about knitting...leave my crochet hooks out of this... I have enough yarn on hand to keep me busy for a long long long time.

Here's my problem. I love the yarn shop, I love yarn shopping and I love love casting on a new project. I don't always love finishing what I have cast on...it's a sickness. Seriously, there should be a 12 step program.

So now I am TRYING to finish all old projects before starting anything new. So far I'm doing pretty good. 4 is actually a good number for me. (And lets face it, I'm never going to finish those socks, until I see Heidi again.)

I'm hoping this public announcement will keep me honest. It's getting pretty dicing...all that beautiful linen I bought in Alaska is calling to me from the closet

We have a foundation!

2009-06-17T05:22:00.001-06:00

Just wanted post some cute pics

2009-06-15T09:48:00.002-06:00

2009-06-12T13:51:00.002-06:00

Brandon Sanderson's latest book is now in stores!!!

Got Dirt?

2009-06-08T18:26:00.006-06:00

Our View

Our Street

I think everyone knows we are planning to build a house this summer. We FINALLY closed on our property in Thatcher and hopefully the excavator will be there this week so we can pour the foundation next week.

And away we go...

Summer Saturdays

2009-06-01T17:43:00.002-06:00

Cousins at McDonalds

I think my favorite thing about summer is the Saturdays. Summer Saturdays give me so many fun ways to hang out with my favorite people.

Today the boys and I started out at Logan's farmer's market. Perrin and Connor did a craft, and I got some greens and some yummy cheese for our dinner salad. I learned a funny thing about myself...I am a sucker for handmade soap...I came home with way too many bars :o) I also learned that if a nice lady (who doesn't appear to be selling anything) offers your kids a pickle, smile and say "thanks" But under no circumstance should you drink her (free) mushroom tea. She will say it's not alcoholic, but trust me, she's crazy!

I always find it relaxing to wander around a farmer's market. The music and the artsy booths and eclectic people create an air of...oh I don't know..."green" is the word I want to use. Everyone there is trying to buy local and fresh. And so many of the booths are run by the kind of creative people who can make a living growing flowers or making pottery. How cool would it be to be able to do that???

After the market, we meet Jessica and her girls at Macey's for an event to raise money for our library. There were games and balloons and face painting. The whole reason we went was so P&C could meet Matthew Buckley (one of their fave authors) To tell the truth the whole point of getting out of bed this morning was the book signing. It was way too cool for them to meet the guy who wrote "Chicken's in the Headlights." (for more on that, read the last post)

We ended the afternoon at McDonald's for lunch. Please tell me why those frys are sooooo good? Why can't broccoli taste like that???

The coolest thing happened today...

2009-05-30T18:35:00.007-06:00

Last year P&C and I picked up Matthew Buckley's "Chicken's in the Headlights." We later read "Bullies in the Headlights" as well. These books tell the story of a family of 7 (yes, seven!!!) boys growing up in a pretty small house...let's face it, any house is small when faced with that level of little boy energy!

Five of the seven brothers share a room and the pandemonium that this causes is hilarious. At the beginning of the first book the frazzled parents decide that what they need to tame their troop is good old fashion hard work. So they give their rowdy boys goats and chickens to care for...hehehe...

For me, the funniest part of this book is the concept that adding chickens and goats to this family would somehow bring LESS chaos. Perrin and Connor love all the little boy craziness. As soon as we finished "Chickens" they started asking me for more brothers. When that didn't work, they wrote to Santa to ask for a transporter, so they could transport into Mr. Buckley's book.

I was beyond excited when Mr. Buckley announced on his blog that he would be appearing in Logan. And the whole reason Perrin & Connor got out of bed today was to meet the guy who wrote one of their favorite books. Mr. Buckley was very nice to P&C, and even to me...I must have seemed like a crazy lady, standing there, telling him how much my boys liked his books. :o) Most of you know that I would do back flips to get Perrin to read. And books like the "Headlights" make my job that much easier.

What Happens at Grandma's...

2009-05-24T20:07:00.007-06:00

While I was on my cruise, Perrin and Connor went to stay in Emery Co. I figured between my Mom and 2 sisters, they'd be well taken care of. I'm pretty unclear on the details of their visit...I guess what happens at Grandma's, stays at Grandma's.

I do know there was a trip to Goblin Valley. And that there was much ado about the catch and release of 3 horny toads. The boys also got to go to work with my Mom, which must have been really cool. Lacie really wanted to take the boys to the new pool while they were there, but Connor had an ear infection and they both had a pretty bad cough all week, so they missed out on that.

There are so many pictures I wanted to post (thanks Lacie!) that I put most of them at the bottom of our blog. The pics posted here are showing them letting the horny toads go. I would like to point out the hilarious look on Kaydence's face. Paige doesn't seem to mind holding the lizards, but Kaydence looks like she's in pain...hehehehe. BTW, Kaydence and Paige are Velvet's daughters (she also has a son named Vance) And Jayda is Lacie's daughter.

How has it come to this?

2009-05-22T17:59:00.005-06:00

Who ever said Working Moms have it all was an idiot...

The other day, Perrin & Connor (who are 2 of the 3 loves of my life) asked me to make pancakes for breakfast. No big deal, right? This should not have been a crisis. I love my boys AND I love to cook. Until this year, I made (from scratch) all the food they ate.

It's not that pancakes are even hard to make...it's the cooking AND the clean up that drives me to serve Campbell's and cold cereal over and over. Let's just say, a lot has changed since I started working.

I just can't keep up with all the things I used to do. I gave up my book club and can barely remember to show up for my beloved knitting group. We can get Perrin and Connor to scouts, but not to archery. And poor Shane hasn't read a book in months.

Don't get me wrong...it's not all bad...it's just different, and much much busier. I am so looking forward to the boys summer break.

So, back to the point of all this ranting...what did I do when my darlings asked for such a labor intensive meal? hehehe Did you know McDonald's serves pancakes?

"Sea Socks"

2009-05-11T13:39:00.004-06:00

Last Tuesday Heidi and I left on our "Jammie's going to learn to knit socks" cruise. We flew from SLC to Vancouver where we boarded "The Golden Princess." It took us a REALLY long time to get thru customs and an even LONGER time wait in line for a "swine flu" check. But all the pain was worth it.

Stepping aboard that boat was like being transported to another world. A world where no one needed me to do anything for them. A world of no stress...a magical place of beauty, where delicious food appeared out of no where. You all know how up tight I am. The constantly anxiety in my life. This cruise was so peaceful that I COULD NOT worry about anything.

Truth be told, I got very little knitting done. I was hoping to knit a whole sock, but didn't get that far. I was just too relaxed to care :o)

It rained for most of our trip. Which was really kinda nice. It gave a me a cozy feeling to bundle up in my favorite hoody and sit at the back of the boat to watch the Inside Passage slide by. Alaska was cold, but beautiful. Being a Utah girl, it always surprises me to see how dense a forest can be.

Ketchikan was very pretty and a fun place to hang out. We did a lot of shopping, mostly in the Mission Street Arts & Fiber store. :o)

So, now that I've been on a cruise, I might be addicted. :o) The whole trip was simply amazing. :o)

5 Fat Files

2009-04-27T10:54:00.005-06:00

My darling sister Velvet told me about advice she was given. Every woman should have "5 Fat Files." That is 5 subjects that she spends her life becoming an expert in. Now these 5 things need to be of real value, since your going to spend your whole life learning about them.

One of my chosen subjects is knitting. I have had a great time learning how to knit, and last week taught myself how to combine colors. I'm very pleased with the results. What do you think?

Pictures from Virginia

2009-04-23T18:39:00.004-06:00

I have a little free time (thanks to a bout of bronchitis) so I am FINLAY posting our pictures from Virginia.

Can't blog...gotta work...

2009-03-31T12:30:00.002-06:00

Since starting my job in Sept everything has gone a little crazy. I just don't have time to blog anymore. After this summer things should (I hope) slow down and I'll be able to get back into the swing of things.

I hope your all well and happy.

On to Virginia...

2008-11-29T02:50:00.004-07:00

We left Missouri at about 4 in the morning, so I got to see my first prairie sunrise as we where entering Illinois. Ya know what, the mountains really are in the way. :o)

We were in Illinois for long enough to see the big arch and to cross the Mississippi & Missouri rivers. Then we drove across the bottom of Indiana.

Shane loved Indiana. Wooded, rolling hills scattered with beautiful (very well taken care of) farm houses. How could my farm boy not love it there? Kentucky was a lot like Indiana, lots of hill, lots of trees. Just a bit rockier and full for signs advertising distillery tours :o)

West Virginia is mountain country. Not the towering Rockies, but smoother, rounder mountains. The West Virginia cities we saw were crammed into smaller valleys than Utah cities are. The houses are built on the mountain benches and father up the mountain. It was surprising to see how much city they could fit into such small spaces. By then it was getting dark. I can't wait to drive thru again, in the day time to see West Virginia better.

We've had a great time while in Virginia...but I think I'll save that for another post.

The Girl From Utah...or Geographically Challenged

2008-11-25T06:57:00.005-07:00

*So I grew up in Utah. I have always lived in the Rockies. I have listened patiently while N-B (my college roommate) described prairie sunrises and complained about the mountains getting in the way of the view. And I listened with amusement as she talked about claustrophobia and the fear that the mountains would someday come crashing down on us. I have read Willa Cather’s description of a charmed childhood on the Plains. But I could never believe that anywhere could be as beautiful as my mountain home.
*My education began on Friday, when Shane, the boys and I loaded down the old Saturn and headed across this great wide US of A.
*I have always felt like driving into Wyoming is like coming to the top of the world. You drive up up up until you come out on top of the mountains. It feels like your above everything. As you continue across WY the feeling fades, especially as you climb “The Sisters” in between Evanston and the Bridgerland. Keep going east on I 80 and pretty soon all you see is sage brush and the big beautiful sky.
*Most people think that that part of WY is ugly. Since my view of the sky has always been obstructed by the mountains I find WY to be stunning! The stillness and the size of the sky are unimaginable.
*Nebraska is big and flat, and kind of boring to drive across. I did find it interesting that the cities and towns aren’t right off the freeway. In Utah our cities are hemmed in, between the mountains and the lake in Provo and SLC. Or they’re crammed into a valley, like in Logan. We have serious space limitations. On the Plains, with unlimited space, nothing is against the freeway, because nothing has to be.
*We did all this driving in one day. From Logan, thru WY and NE, into Missouri, for a visit with Tara and Kent and their girls. We were on the road for 19 hours!!! (I can’t describe MO because it was dark for all of our driving there)
*We had a great time at Tara and Kent’s. We finally got to see their VERY cute new house. We also got to see Kent’s school. I always love when my kids get a chance to play with Ali, Bri and Madi. They always have fun and I always hope they are build friendships that will be with them into adulthood (like I have with some of my cousins)
*I love to spend time in the kitchen with Tara. I think it is because we are the same kind mom. We both strive to find balance between our home and the world. We are both interesting in learning new ways to be self-sufficient. And we (Tara much more than I) are trying to break out of our “raised on a farm” “white bread” “meat and potato” eating habits. Tara is a great example to me in this. She always has good ideas on healthy eating habits.
*I have much more to write about our drive across this GIANT glorious country. But this post is already too long. I’ll post again soon.
*Happy Thanksgiving. I hope your all well and happy.

Our (crazy) new life...

2008-11-08T18:26:00.003-07:00

Most of you know by now that the boys started public school this year so that I could go back to work. Our new life is crazy busy...

Perrin and Connor are really doing well in school. We just had our first conference. Perrin received the highest grade for math and Connor received the highest grade for reading and spelling. (I guess they don't use A, B, & C anymore, now it's 1 thru 4.)

My new job (yeah Wendy's) is crazy hard and a ton of work!!! Man! Am I wishing now that I had gotten a degree in my 20's.( Dad, it would be okay if you say "I told you so.") All-in-all, it's a pretty good place to work and sometimes it's even fun :o)

Shane is still doing what he does best: working hard and taking care of all of us. He really is the light of my life.

Our fam is preparing for our big Thanksgiving trip to Virgina. We got a new car stereo (cuz Auntie Joyce's old Saturn didn't have a CD player.) And we now have an on board DVD, so the boys can watch movies and play Play Station on the road. I'm so so so excited for this trip!

I hope your all well and happy. Write to me and tell me about your Thanksgiving plans.

Adventures in a minivan

2008-08-04T10:42:00.003-06:00

Vance Anthony Farley came into the world on the 4th of July weighing 4lbs 12oz. Everything went pretty well for such a tiny baby and he only had to stay in the hospital for one extra day. I got to Velvet's just after they brought him home

Staying with my sister was pretty educational. The first thing I learned is that anyone who has more than 2 kids in insane! As soon as there is more than 2 an enormous amount of energy goes into feeding them, cleaning them, and cleaning up after them. Not to mention keeping them all happy! WOW!!!

The second thing I learned is I grew up in a very tiny town! Okay I knew that...but I forgot how small CastleDale is!!! Double WOW!

Having that many kids to care for did let me live out the ultimate "Mormon Girl Fantasy" (Cruising down the road in a minivan full of kids, jamming to Kids Bop 12!)

Have a good summer...

2008-06-21T14:05:00.001-06:00

The boys and I are going to Castle Dale for a while. My sister, Velvet, is having a HARD pregnancy, so we're going to stay til the baby comes. I won't be posting til we get back. I hope you all have a good summer.

Jammie

Why I homeschool

2008-06-16T11:42:00.003-06:00

After my last post, my friend Shelly asked why we decided to homeschool. Well, there are so many reason, my answer got too long to leave as a comment. So that's why I'm making this post...

In 2005 Perrin came out of 2nd grade with a Kindergarten reading level. Kindergarten and 1st grade where a challenge for him. But 2nd grade was brutal! He was the kid in class that couldn't read. Instead of pulling him out of class for in school (free) tutoring, we chose to find a private tutoring program. It worked well, but at $20.00 an hour 6 hours a week, we couldn't keep it up for more than a year.

Connor had the opposite problem. He was the bored kid. We spent so much time practicing reading skills at home with Perrin that Connor went to Kindergarten reading at a 1st grade level. All of Kindergarten was a repeat for him. He is also a really fast learner and spent most of his public school time driving the teacher crazy.

When it was time for Perrin to start 3rd grade, we had to make a change. Deciding to homeschool wasn't easy. This was the year that both my kids would have been in school full time. I had been looking forward to getting a part time job and doing more volunteer work. When we started I committed for no more that 2 years. I thought I'd get Perrin back on track and chuck them both back into public school. :o)

In the fall, we will start our 3rd year of homeschool. Perrin's reading is getting better everyday. He is still not at grade level but is much closer. His math skill have increased as well as his knowledge in history and science.

Connor soaks up everything I teach! He is a very good reader and can remember science and history facts with ease. He is also very good at math, he has caught up with Perrin, so I teach the same grade level to both my boys.

As for the future...I don't know how long we'll keep homeschooling. My vague plan is to teach core curriculum at home for Jr High and High school and have them attend public school for extracurricular activities. Many high schools offer college courses now, so it is my hope that my boys will leave me at 18 with an Associates Degree. You never know what the future will hold, but this is what I'm planning and hoping for.

I'd also like to say, homeschool is not for everyone! It is a huge (and hopefully prayerful) decision. There are not only academic but social issues to think about. I often tell people the hardest thing about homeschooling is just doing it. Getting up everyday and having school when no one else is telling you to.

Anyway, I hope I answered your question Shel. If anyone else has questions just let me know.

Saxon Math

2008-06-10T08:03:00.006-06:00

For those of you that are currently homeschooling or thinking about homeschooling, I'd like to share my thought on Saxon's Math program. All in all I'd have to say Saxon Math is the best curriculum (for any subject) I have ever come across. It is a complete and intense system.

But 1 warning: Saxon is not for the faint of heart. It is not the kind of program that has you hand your kid a worksheet and walk away. Saxon Math is very heavy on parental involvement.

From the reviews I've read, people either love Saxon or hate it. Here are a few links for Saxon Math reviews:

http://www.illinoisloop.org/mathprograms.html#saxon

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxon_(teaching_method

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/30937/saxon_math_review.html?cat=4

While I'm at it, I thought I'd throw in some links to homeschool artices:

http://parentzone.babyzone.com/school/homeschooling/a935/1

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/368590/home_school_why_one_mother_wont_put.html?cat=4

http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/zysk1.html

Summer School

2008-06-09T21:27:00.007-06:00

I am officially the "meanest mom in the world!" I am making my kid do (gasp!) summer school. I tried to tell the boys they'd thank me when they get into a good college. But they aren't buying it. :o)

Our summer subjects are Reading, Math and Language Arts (which includes Grammar and Explode the Code) We are also going to send some time studying The Sermon on the Mount and Christ's visit to the Americas. All in all it only takes about 4 hours out of our day. By lunch we're free.

One thing Perrin and Connor are really enjoying this summer is piano. They are just getting to the point where they're adding the left hand to their songs. We just had a recital . They each played 4 songs and did very well.

Fire Pit

2008-06-04T14:21:00.006-06:00

My handy hubby built a fire pit up at Grandma and Grandpa Gundersen's campground. He did such a good job, I couldn't help but share the pictures!

How does your garden grow?

2008-06-04T14:13:00.004-06:00

It finally warmed up enough to put the garden in...I hope :o) We spent most of last week tilling, fertilizing and tilling again. All so we could plant beets, beans, squash, peas, carrots, spinach, radishes, pumpkin, zucchini and my favorite the salsa garden. I realize that I am basically posting pictures of dirt. But maybe you can see the vision too.

Tag! We're It!

2008-05-27T09:30:00.006-06:00

Zack (and Jill) tagged Perrin, wanting to know 11 things about Perrin. So here goes...

1. Perrin is a very hard worker. His current job is mowing Grandpa's lawn. He is very good at saving his money for important things. Along with Connor, he has saved for many computer and play station games and a very special Mother's Day present for me. This week he'll have $40.00 to go toward the laptop they are dreaming of.

2. Perrin loves books! He is forever asking me to read. So far his favorites are "Chickens in the Headlights," "The Hobbit" and "The Sea of Trolls."

3. Perrin loves fishing. He never gets tired of waiting for a fish to bite.

4. Perrin is a good brother. He is very thoughtful toward Connor. And wants to make sure Connor has everything he needs.

5. Perrin loves geocaching. And he's very good at finding tricky caches.

6. Perrin is Dad's man. He loves following Shane anywhere, doing all that Dad does.

7. Perrin is good at math.

8. He is also good at remembering history and science facts.

9. Perrin is brave. Last year when we went sledding, there was a pretty good hill right next to us and a giant hill (that we later named "Mount Doom") farther away. Perrin didn't even try the easy hill. He went strait for "Mount Doom"

10. Perrin LOVES sushi!!! When given a choice of where to eat, he ALWAYS asks for sushi.

11. Perrin's prize possessions are his 4-wheeler and his BB gun.

Okay, this is us tagging Bern, we want to hear 11 things about your beauties. And Stacie (hehehe) we NEED more Terry info! It would also be fun to hear from Colleen, Jeanie, Chrissy and Jill about their other kids, if you have time and room on your blogs.

Surrendering to the mundane…

2008-05-26T18:35:00.002-06:00

We had planned to strap on our new backpacks and spend most of this 4 day weekend hiking. But that was before pouring rain AND a broken Jeep got in the way. So we spent Memorial Day weekend doing something we rarely do…watching movies. I finally got to see “I am Legend” (thanks Laura) and the boys rented a Shrek video game that they had fun with. All in all it was pretty fun, even if I didn’t get to wear my hiking boots.

What did you all do this weekend?

My Pal...

2008-05-14T22:34:00.003-06:00

Tonight we hiked up Little Mountain. (Sorry, no pictures. I forgot the camera.) Little Mountain is basically a big hill of lava rock in the middle of the valley. There are lots of cool caves, which we didn't really get to explore. (forgot the flashlight too) And there is a great view from the top.

So I was a little tired tonight and lagging way behind. Connor came back to find me and we had this little conversation:

Connor: "Want to hold hands, Mom?
Me: "Sure Connor, are you my pal?"
Connor: "Yes! You can always rely on me. When ever you call I will always come. When I'm a grownup, and you feel lonely, you can just call me and I'll come over."

How's that for a Mother's Day treat! Connor is a sweet, sweet boy and I am lucky to be his Mom!

Mud in a CRD!

2008-05-10T14:41:00.001-06:00

The cold weather has hung on for a lot longer than we thought it would. It is already May and we still have snowy/rainy days and nights. But the calender and the Gundersens say that it is spring! :o) We are grateful for all the moisture that we have received, but it has been a very muddy spring for my poor little Jeep!

Last week we decided to go for a little drive. Well, the little drive turned into a 2 mile hike up a game path. We ended up at the head of Trout Creek. There was a beautiful little pond. It was incredible to watch as the water bubbled up from the earth.

Big Fat Fish!

2008-04-30T18:03:00.000-06:00

We set out to fish the Bear River. We fished til the snow started to fly, and we caught a Utah Sucker Fish.

Dutchoven Chili

2008-04-30T17:58:00.000-06:00

I decided to make dutch oven chili last night. Never mind the fact that I had never started a fire by myself. And that I had never cooked anything but the cliche hotdog and marshmallows over a fire. I was a little worried, but it turned out to be really good chili.

Just wondering...

2008-04-25T13:52:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I learned that the Trojan War wasn’t started by Paris at all. It was started by Zeus! Poor Paris was just a pawn!

So I was wondering, what have you all learned lately?

Kendall's Wedding

2008-04-13T15:58:00.000-06:00

On Saturday the 12th, Shane, Grandma and Grandpa Rawlings and I drove out to Kendall (Shane’s brother) and Jessica’s wedding. It was a lovely day for a drive and a lovely day for a wedding. A bit cool, but the sun was shining. It was very nice to see them finally married!

Taking the back roads...

2008-04-11T14:31:00.000-06:00

So Tuesday we had this crazy idea. I guess that cabin fever set in and we all got tired of waiting for spring. So we set off for the Oneida Narrows...the back way.

We only got stuck once. And heck, my Mom always says, “Your not really stuck til you can't get yourself out.” We were wet and muddy and have a new scratch in the Jeep, but we made it through.

We found the "Bear River Boulders" and "Riverdale Look-Out" geocaches and ended up climbing up a mountian to check out a cool cave.