Absolute Nightmare

Although I think that I have cute kids, who take good photos I would absolutely not describe us as a photogenic family. Why? Because being photogenic implies that you are good at, or enjoy, or for the very least sit still while your picture is being taken. Not so in our case. It took us two different photo shoots and some impressive photoshop skills to have everyone smile at the same time.

The day of our pictures I thought that things were going really well, I had talked to Oliver about getting pictures and he was super excited about it. He was even excited to get dressed up. It turned out however that he thought I was talking about a baseball pitcher and when there was no ball and bat, just a guy with a camera things went downhill fast. I had such a humiliating experience that I haven't even bothered to pick out or order any pictures yet and we got them taken almost two months ago.

All I can say is kudos to photographers, it can be a rough job.

Donut Falls

On Saturday we decided to hike to Donut Falls up Big Cottonwood Canyon. I went several times as a kid, but Sam had never been there and we thought it would be a good hike as it is easy enough for Oliver.


"Hiking" for Oliver pretty much meant take ten steps and then crouch down to examine rocks, dirt, leaves, bugs, etc.
It also didn't help that he found his "special" rock at the bottom of the trail and insisted on lugging it up to the top to throw in the waterfall.
Eventually we did make it there. When I was little I remember going up to the "donut" where the water falls through a big hole in the rock, but there seemed to have been a landslide or something because getting to the top required some pretty technical skills that we didn't quite have -at least not while toting kids.

We opted just to throw rocks into the river for a while. That has always been one of Oliver's favorite past times and Ruby seems to be picking up on it pretty quick.

To avoid another drawn-out hike down Ollie got to ride on daddy's shoulders for the return trip. They took turns making up songs about hiking and playing "I Spy With My Little Eye" all the way down the trail. At the bottom Oliver refused to get into the car because he wanted to do it all over again. We promised to do it again. So, if you know of any other easy hikes around here let us know.

The Children's Museum

On Friday we went with our friends to the Salt Lake Children's Museum. We got there at the same time as a huge preschooll fieldtrip so the place was crazy but the kids didn't seem to mind. They both loved it! In the past when I have taken Ollie there he gets stuck on playing in the water and we never get to try anything else - boring. This time though he explored everything, (except for the girly playhouse).

He spent quite a while operating the crane in the construction area. He took it so serious - he refused to smile.
Ruby on the other hand was all smiles a giggles, she loved the baby area.
This week was "farm" week at Oliver's preschool so he has been pretty stuck on farms. I don't know how many renditions of Old MacDonald I have heard from him this week, usually he calls him "Cowboy MacDonald" (I guess that is why he thought the above outfit was appropriate while playing farmer at the museum.) One night this week as Sam and I were laying in bed we heard a very lively "E-I-E-I-OOO" coming from his room.


Ruby loved to drive the cars, should I be nervous about her turning 16?

All in all it was a super fun day and if we find another half-off coupon we will try it again!

Preschool Begins

Oliver officially started school last week, preschool that is. He goes to Mrs. Karie's preschool and he absolutely loves it! He already had his first field trip (to Wheeler Farm) and his first experience with show-and-tell. He asks everyday about going to school and it is a rare moment if I can get him to take off his backpack. I am so glad that he loves it, but just a little bit sad that he is getting to be so big. He was definitely ready for school. He has become so inquisitive lately, everything is "why this" or "why that". I am glad that Mrs. Karie gets to field the questions for a few hours a week. My brain needs a break!

Grandma's Hat

Grandma Ross got Ruby this adorable hat for her birthday and I promised to take pictures when she wore it, ta da! She left it on all day long, I was amazed.

We jumped the gun

With the colder weather and the start of college football Sam and I are getting excited for fall and sweaters and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. We got really excited this past weekend to go and see the leaves turning colors so we loaded up the kids and drove to Cascade Springs. Unfortunately our enthusiasm was ill timed as all of the leaves were still green. Oops. We did find a few red leaves (five to be exact). Either way we had a good time and are glad we went. We will try to see the leaves again in a few more weeks, perhaps we will consult mother nature before we take off next time.

Rubykins turns one

Our little angel turned one on Friday. We can't believe it has been a whole year since she entered this world at the same time we can't imagine life without her. She is just such a precious little ball of energy and she keeps us all smiling all the time. At one she is not quite walking yet, just a few steps here and there. She doesn't say any words, but she has no trouble making her wishes/demands known. She has recently started to pick up on a few signs, she would probably know more if I could remember them to teach to her. Her favorite things in the world are playing with her brother, wearing things around her neck (necklaces, vacumn cords - she is not picky), being held upside down, and eating chicken nuggets. Happy Birthday Ruby June, we sure do love you!

Labor Day Weekend

We spent our Labor Day weekend camping with some friends outside of Tapioca (aka Tabiona). We had a great time which included lots of relaxing, throwing rocks into the river, some off roading and hiking, exploring the culinary offerings of Duchesne (yuck!), chasing little girls out of the dirt and toddlers away from the fire, and just hanging out. It was great!

Father and Son

Sam and Ollie were not able to make it to the Father and Son's campout this year so they opted for the next best thing. They spent the evening up Little Cottonwood canyon roasting hot dogs and marshmellows and then camped out together on the living room floor. Oliver was thrilled, especially since he got to use a flashlight and sleep in his sleeping bag, life pretty much doesn't get any better than that.

Happy Birthday Oliver

I can't believe we have a three-year-old, but it is true. Ollie wanted a barbeque for his birthday so we had the grandparents over for hamburgers and cake. Since Oliver is currently obsessed with tractors - he can name every kind of tractor, what their parts are and what they do - we had a tractor themed party.



He helped make the cake and all he can talk about now is turning four so he can have another birthday. It could be a long year...

The Backyard Makeover

In a brief moment of insanity we decided to put sod in our backyard/patio area. I took the initiative the next day of ripping out all of the plants and raking off all of the wood chips. Then we sat and stared at the mess for a couple of weeks wondering if we really wanted to do it. In the end we hauled out two trailers-full of gravel, brought it two more trailers-full of fill dirt, moved an entire retaining wall, built a new set of stairs, and finally laid sod. We are so happy with the results and I am kicking myself for not having taken a "before picture". We love to play on our little patch of grass and it makes me happy to look out the window and see green

Here is our work crew, we definitely would never have gotten all those boulders moved without the help of our awesome neighbors.

Who's the man! We have a rule at our house, I can tell Sam what I want done, or how to do it, but I cannot tell him both. In this case I said I wanted sod, he took care of all the rest and he did a beautiful job (much better than if he had listened to all of my suggestions, which obviously he didn't because I wasn't supposed to be making any;)
The front retaining wall in this picture used to be placed about three feet further back, we moved it to get the biggest patch of grass possible.
Of course, daddy had lots of helpers. I am surprised that he got anything done with Oliver's tractors always being in the way.

Ruby June didn't miss out on any of the fun either.