Nothing Going On

This is a bit of a strange post to write, considering that we've had SO MUCH going on that I haven't even posted in awhile. Someday I hope to figure out the balance between living life and recording it. Both are important, yet can't very easily be done at the same time...

As I exercised this morning with my friend, Ginger, we shared some of our "mom feelings" about home life, specifically about family time. Of course Monday nights are SACRED; we count on having that. But there are other times that often need just as much priority, yet are very lacking in structure (at least at my house).

It may be that little while when the kids have just gotten home from school. Or it might be a Saturday morning when the calendar is actually blank. What defines these times isn't exactly clear, but as a mom I sometimes get a strong urge to lock my doors, unplug the phone, and simply "be together," for whatever amount of time it can last.

It might not even be that we actually gather for a meal, or gather at all. To a fly on the wall it would appear that there is "nothing going on." But in my eyes countless things are taking place.

In one corner of the couch two kids are talking about something that happened at school. Another child might be sitting quietly, working on homework. Another is scaling the kitchen in search of a snack, which he will then take to the table for a moment of much-needed "down time." (He'll likely be joined by at least one other soon.) On the floor a smaller one might play with blocks. Someone might go sit at the piano and play a song... And it's quite likely that, somewhere in there, at least one teaching moment will occur.

Of course the two on the couch might find something to argue about--but they'll work it out. The one doing homework might get distracted and off-task. The snacker(s) might come, begging and pleading, to ask for something not-so-healthy. And the blocks will be scattered across the room.

So what makes this time so important? Which of these activities could we absolutely not have lived without? Should this time be more "structured" and "productive"???

Well, no two days are exactly the same. Teaching moments occur spontaneously, and sometimes the lessons are simple: Relax. Sit for a bit. Enjoy each other.

As a mom these times are ones I soak up. When my kids are grown and gone I know I will have fond memories of these rare times when we had "nothing going on."

Something as simple as the TV being turned on, or a neighbor friend coming over to play, can change the whole dynamics--which makes these moments even fewer and farther between, and therefore even more cherished.

While these thoughts were on my mind I wanted to jot them down. Thanks to Ginger, I know there's at least one other mom who feels this way.

But I also need to get off the computer, since I'll soon have nothing going on. ;-)

Special Firsts

Spencer has recently experienced two new "Firsts" in his life, and it was extra-special that they both took place during trips to St. George, Utah. He turned twelve in December, so April 3rd was his first time attending the Priesthood Session of Conference. Since we were on a trip and therefore had only one car, we drove around the town until we found a church building where people were going inside. The girls and I (and Chase) dropped our men off and smiled as we watched the three of them walk in together. Spencer was so excited for his first General Priesthood meeting.

Sitting there in the parking lot I couldn't help noticing the colors in some of the trees. I don't ever remember seeing colors like this all together in the same tree before. I had to get a picture! Now tell me that doesn't look like General Conference!!! =)

The second "First" Spencer got to experience was doing Baptisms for the Dead in the St. George Temple. On April 29th we headed back up for Rob's Ironman, so the day before the race we took our three oldest into the baptistry to do some temple work. Spencer was beside himself with excitement!!!
Since our younger ones weren't old enough to go inside, Rob and I traded off: I went in with the older ones and did some confirmations while Rob walked around outside with the others; then he went in to perform the baptisms and I took the little ones to the Visitor's Center. We were reminded that this temple is the one in which the Founding Fathers appeared to Wilford Woodruff. I know that story is one reason this temple is one of my very favorites.

I hope Spencer will always remember these "Firsts," and the special feelings there.
Great memories!!!

Reality

Our trip to St. George was very wonderful and spiritual--centered around General Conference, Easter, and the beautiful temple right down the street. We loved watching Conference in our hotel room, sitting on the beds, all together in a small space, soaking in the goodness of the inspired messages. In-between sessions we'd go down to the pool, get lunch, or walk around the temple grounds. It was such a great weekend.

Of course besides the special, spiritual experiences of the weekend, we were, nonetheless, still us; fortunately or unfortunately, there's no escaping that. So as much as I don't want to detract from our experiences at the temple (therefore I'm making this a completely separate post) the reality of it all requires me to also include some of the not-so-spiritual aspects of our trip, like:

Blake super-gluing his finger & thumb together... (not one of the most brilliant activities he's found to do for fun). These are his attempts at pulling with all his might to get them apart:

















There was also the training, of course (the initial reason for the trip). On Friday Rob took Blake and then Spencer along as he ran the course. In the Ironman this 13-mile course is run twice, but for today's training once was sufficient. So each boy ran 6 1/2 miles with Papa. (Only got pics of Spencer though...)

We also went through Colorado City on our way home, and took the opportunity to observe the lifestyle of the polygamists. Very interesting. And we saw an old Hopi Indian Village that dates back several hundred years and is still occupied.

Last but not least, a family trip would not be complete without some level of teasing/terrorizing. Somewhere around Colorado City, the boys needed a pit stop. Just as they got out of the car and "got going," Rob drove just far enough away to expose them to all the highway passersby.

Here they go... ;-)

Their shock as they realized we weren't hiding them anymore...

Blake finishing up quickly...

And heading back to the privacy of the car... And finally Spencer gets outta there!


Thank goodness they're such good sports!!!

As We Touch the Temple...

We spent General Conference weekend in St. George. Rob wanted to practice on location for his upcoming Ironman, and Conference weekend was the perfect time to go: The kids were out of school for Good Friday, we didn't have to take care of our usual Sunday responsibilities... and the fact that it was Easter weekend was just frosting on the cake!

As we found our way around this beautiful town all weekend, we often quoted, "You are never lost when you can see the temple." No matter where we went in St. George, we could almost always see the temple. It really impressed upon us the feeling of surety that came with knowing that the temple--our source of guidance and direction--was always within view.

"As we touch the temple, the temple will touch us." --Pres. Thomas S. Monson

We walked around the grounds, took some pictures, smelled flowers, talked about how sparkling white this temple is... and just enjoyed the whole feeling of it all. We found a spot on the perfect grass to sit and talk about Easter and the Atonement of our Savior. Everyone contributed and bore testimony of the things they have known and felt about this wondrous Gift. It was the perfect Easter/Conference experience.

Crushes

Last night as the kids were in bed but not yet asleep I heard a little bit of a conversation going on. The first part I tuned into was Spencer jokingly saying, "I have a crush on girls." Then Kaybree said, "I have a crush on boys." Then Chase said, "I have a crush on Mom." Spencer and Kaybree then quickly took the opportunity to tell him he shouldn't have a crush on his mom... but before they could get very far I decided to join the conversation. I called to them (from my bedroom), "It's okay, cuz I have a crush on him too."
{{{Giggles}}} I'm sure they hadn't realized I was listening, but they liked my response. Chase especially liked it. =)
I remember similar conversations with Blake and Spencer when they were little--and even my own little brother, who's now in his 30's. It seems to be a normal occurrence for little boys to have crushes on their moms/sisters/aunts/cousins, and for little girls to also love their daddies/brothers/uncles/cousins when they're young and innocent. I don't remember hearing of too many who don't eventually outgrow it. ;-)
So, while it lasts, I'll choose to be flattered and honored to be the "current crush" in my little boy's life. I know the day will come all too soon when he'll find it's time for an "upgrade"!

What a Way to Start the Day

A friend of mine mentioned this video awhile back. She said she watches it first-thing in the morning, almost daily. After watching it myself, I understand why. It's so full of good stuff; reminders of all that is truly important.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2AibapAJfE

Enjoy!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!

I don't believe in trying to improve upon perfection. In fact, my sis-in-law Shari is so on-the-ball I went this whole trip and didn't take a single picture myself... I knew I could just wait and steal hers (and they'd be better anyway)! She's already written a post about our trip, so she has once again made my life very easy. Click here to read about the FUN!!!:

http://seanandsharitate.blogspot.com/2010/02/girls-only-prescott-trip.html

I'll include last year's trip here too--(again, courtesy of Shari):

http://seanandsharitate.blogspot.com/2009/01/girls-prescott-scrapbooking-trip.html

Thanks, Shari! =)

Mr. Tough Guy

This is how Blake went to school today. It was Crazy Hair Day, and he decided to go ALL OUT. (For this picture he also had the face to match--man, if I didn't know him I'd be terrified! He looks like the kind of kid I tell mine to stay far away from!)

Rob buzzed the sides of Blake's head last night, leaving the mohawk for him. I don't know how many times I looked at Blake and thanked him for not really choosing to look like this on a regular basis!

As we drove to the bus stop this morning Blake was slowly sinking lower and lower in the seat, hiding himself behind the dash. As the bus came closer and I told him to have a good day, he looked at me and said, "Do I have to get out yet?" He was definitely questioning himself at that point. He reluctantly walked over and got on. The bus driver had a pretty good smile on her face as they drove away. I was also smiling with relief at the fact that this look is not a comfortable one for him.

After school he'll get the mohawk buzzed, and of course, wash out his red, green & blue. And out of this we're getting him a much-needed haircut. (Yay!) I'll have my normal kid back by tomorrow--Hallelujah!!!

Bowling, Anyone???

For our Family Night activity we headed out this afternoon to find the Coke Ovens, down past Florence. Rob wanted to check out the area as a possible place to take his scouts anyway, so we set out to make a hike out of it.

Long story short, the amount of hiking we did ended up being about zero, but we definitely weren't lacking adventure. As we drove through a canyon, trying to wind our way through, we came to a spot that looked impossible to drive through. Unfortunately, Rob saw it as a challenge.

As we started driving over the boulders (not exaggerating--they were BOULDERS!), we soon found ourselves high-centered and in a dilemma. Rob started to get out to evaluate our situation and Ashlee commented, "You know, some families go bowling and stuff..." This was her way of letting us know that she apparently finds our family activities to be out-of-the-ordinary. Strange.

Well, we made it through and got to go about another 1/4 mile before we were truly at a dead end. Which of course meant... we got to go BACK over the part we had just come through. This time, knowing what we were in for, I got out to help guide from the outside (and snap pictures!), Ashlee stayed in the front to guide from there, and we let the other kids out to play around while Rob worked through it.

Here they go over the boulders...

Rob would drive a few inches, get out and strategically place rocks as needed, get in and drive over those rocks, get out and place some more rocks...

This went on for quite awhile...

I cringed watching them as they finally got through. That big rock behind them was stuck underneath the car as they came down off the boulders. The scraping and grinding before it finally worked its way out was physically painful to watch (and hear)!!! =/

This is what the other kiddos did while Rob & Ashlee were having their fun:

After we got out of that mess, we drove another way and found some railroad tracks to play around. We never made it to the Coke Ovens, since it was getting dark, but had a good time nonetheless.

Of course no family outing would be complete without Rob terrorizing the kids...

Chase loves having big brothers to swing him... 1... 2... 3!

Rob told Kaybree to see if she could hear a train coming...

Just hangin' out...

We thought this place looked like something out of a movie. It even looked misty back in there. It was really cool.

Had to snap a couple pictures of the scenery as the sun went down.


The night was complete after stopping to find a quick geocache on the way home:

Ashlee would still have preferred bowling... ;-)