Fun in the Sun!

I don't know what the actual temperature was today, but wow...it was beautiful! In fact, we were actually hot sitting outside on the patio! What a perfect day for getting together with friends!

Front: Ian, Isaac, Ezekial, Colby
Back:Nathaniel, Josiah

This picture of Colby reminds me of the classic elementary school yearbook line:

U.R.

2 cool

2 B.

4 gotten

Isaac, sitting in the tree

We have this great pine tree in our new backyard and the boys are having so much fun thinking up new ways to ummm... make us look the other way!

They have all kinds of creative plans for making good use of it...from making slides and houses to somehow launching rockets! One day they were actually trying to put a chair up in the tree...

Josiah, standing in the tree

Zane is sooooo loved by his brothers! Nothing makes Ian happier than getting to hold his little friend!

Sunday Surprise!

Sunday was our last day in Salt Lake City and the weather continued to be beautiful!

So, we took a walk/ride through the neighborhood and found...

...Santa Claus!

Did you know that Santa lives in my parent's neighborhood?

What a fun surprise for the boys!

The Whole Shootin' Match!

Saturday, we spent the afternoon in the Cabela's wonderland of live fish, life-like taxidermy, everything outdoors you can imagine, and yes... fudge (quite excellent fudge, I might add...with fun names like "porcupine drool")

One of Cabela's younger customers...

The boys all loved the aquarium with the sunken Cabela's fishing boat!

The shooting gallery and the zoo were the two requests from the boys this time. They had heard what fun Brenna and Riley had had there and were just itching to go. It was great! I'm not sure who enjoyed shooting things up more, the boys...or me! It was a lot of fun!

Ian just couldn't get enough! I think Isaac and Ian probably would have stayed there all day if they could have... boys after Uncle Don and Mr. Sweeney's hearts!

Even Colby got in on the act!

Zane wants to get in on the Mario Cart action with Isaac, Ian (behind the plant) and Colby!

Zane and Great Grandma Shaw

Great Grandma Shaw and four of her exuberant and loving great-grandsons.

It's a Bit of a Zoo Around Here!

On a bit of a whim, Scott and I decided to pull Isaac out of school and Ian out of homeschool for a couple of days and make good use of these last weeks of unbelievably beautiful fall weather! So, the boys and I drove to Salt Lake City on Thursday to enjoy a long weekend with Grandpa and Grandma Shaw and Great Grandma Shaw! Ian had been asking just recently, "When are we going to see the red rocks and dirt again?" (which is what we drive through the closer we get to SLC).

Isaac, Ian and Colby were pretty excited to see both the Wasatch mountains and the Oquirrh Mountains!

Oquirrh!

On Friday, we went to lunch at the new Cottonwood Hospital facility. Their cafeteria is called "The View" for good reason...the view of the Wasatch mountains is fantastic! I was glad the boys and I were able to see where Grandpa spends some of his work days.

Grandpa and Ian

It was also fitting that after lunch, my boys, who were acting a bit (possibly more than a bit) like wild animals in all of their excitement, got to go to Hogle Zoo afterwards, where they could mingle with real wild animals! They've been wanting to go to the zoo for a long time!

Some "turkeys" watching some turkeys!

Ian and Isaac, on the Hogle Zoo train.

The insect exhibit was one of Isaac and Ian's favorites! Ian was pretty excited to see a beetle from Thailand, a country we've been studying recently.

The reptile house was another big hit!

We were sure glad we weren't meeting this (possibly very hungry) tiger in the jungle with no fencing option available!

I love the graceful giraffe!

Zane fell asleep on Colby's lap. He just couldn't be bothered with the sweet baby giraffe and ferocious, roaring tiger!


The boys got their choice of whatever animal they wanted to ride on, since the zoo was so uncrowded! They were thrilled! The zoo has graciously added this fine feature in order to a) provide deeper enjoyment of our zoo experience and/or b) reach deeper into our zoo-lined wallets!

Isaac has been so excited to come home and build up his "Zoo Tycoon" zoo to look just like Hogle Zoo! What a beautiful day to spend in SLC with Grandpa and Grandma!

This Is What Happens When We Fool Around At Nap Time!

8 Months!

October 4, 2008

Another big month for Zane! He is now on the go! His first crawl was actually on the floor of the (I'm sure very sanitary) pediatrician's office while waiting for our pediatrician. Now that he has a couple weeks of crawling under his belt, he has adopted a very distinct style... He tends to crawl with one leg bent and one leg straight (reminds me of a hermit crab!) like he just can't decide whether to crawl or sit or try to pull himself up! He is also the proud owner of two cute, (very sharp) bottom teeth!

A Month of Days!

Whew! What a month of days! I have to say that I am so glad to see it sliding by. This was quite possibly one of my worst months ever...full of introspection and sadness and grief, moving and chaos and dirt, allergies turned into sinus infections, and to top it off... for most of the month I couldn't wear make-up (which I love) or my contacts (which I also love!) and Zane slept erratically!

I have definitely been living through a season of neediness and I'll tell you what! I am definitely ready to change seasons!

I am so glad that God always has his arm around us and is never surprised by anything, aren't you!?!