Giving THANKS~

I love this time of year... and this holiday.  It's like Christmas without the commercialism or the greed.  This year we went to Ephraim to Hayden's parents house, since the kids had never been to their house for Thanksgiving.  We had alot of fun.  We knew Grandpa Bob would be waiting and ready to take out the ATV's out the next day, and sure enough, he was.  Hayden, Bob, and Brenden drove up on the side of the mountain to one of those big white reflectors, and my 2 dare-devils decided it would be great fun to climb it.  The higher they climbed, the more Grandpa expressed his concern for their safety.  If he wasn't there, I think the two boys would have climbed to the top.

Wade brought his new slingshot he earned from his Uncle Nate, and he and Hayden spent part of the morning shooting it.  (I think Hayden is still living the inner child inside himself)

Doug and Kari came down for dinner and brought Austin.  Wade and Austin are 2 peas in a pod.  The boys stayed up half the night laughing and telling stories.  Hayden got Austin in a tight hold and started tickling him.  Aspen goes CRAZY when people start teasing or tickling each other.  She thinks the laughing and wrestling is scary, and starts to cry.  This was no exception.

Last time we saw Doug, Aspen looked at him for 3 seconds and started SCREAMING.  She apparently did not like his beard.  This time we expected the same reaction but got quite the opposite.  She followed Doug around, trying to get his attention and pulling on his legs.  Wherever he went, she would follow.  We joked that she had a crush on him.  He sat down on the couch and she would sit at his knee and "talk" to him in jibberish.  She would bring one toy after another over to him to hold.  At least this way she might not freak out when she sees santa this year.

We had a great weekend.  Wade and I worked on our Christmas cards, we all played Apples to Apples, and ate more food than we should ever be allowed to.  We love Ephraim, and I love running there.  There is always a new route and scenery to be discovered.  

A fun little rivalry

So I teach in Provo... 3 blocks from cougar stadium, so obviously I'm in the middle of BYU country.  Not sure why, but I love antagonizing my poor students.  This year my entire room is done in red and black.  Even my little vinyl sayings on my walls are in red and black.  At the back of my room is a big University of Utah sign hanging, which most all of the students moan and groan about from day one.  

Truth be told, I'm really not a big U fan, I'm an Aggie (Utah State).  The colors of USU, however, are way to close to that of BYU, so I had to pick the next best team that had totally contrasting colors, just to harass the poor kids.  The build up to this year's BYU/Utah game was PERFECT. The week before the game, I printed all my worksheets and test on fire-engine red paper.  They were not humored.  I had one student take his worksheet home, retype it on his computer and print it out on BYU printed paper.  Even the equations with "y"s in them had the byu Y logo inserted on each equation.  Got to give the kid props.  I was impressed.  He said his dad and he noticed that my worksheet needed fixed.

So now, after the weekend, its game, and the aftermath... I'm sitting in class with my big red shirt on with the big UTAH logo on the front.  I have one student who has to wear red today, and a couple others who will be bringing me treats later on this week.  I think I have more fun teasing the kids  and them razzing me than I really care the outcome of the game.  It makes my job that much more enjoyable.

Gotta love a good rivalry!

A little thinking... maybe too much

Whoever said being a parent was easy, obviously wasn't a parent! I think I've grown up with an "ideal" of how my life would go, and when I had kids, I envisioned just how their life would go too. Everything from going to basketball games, watching them play in the school orchestra, dance/piano lessons, to someday having their own kids. It's a hard thing to digest for me today realizing that my dreams for my children are sometimes not shared by them. I had hoped that my oldest going off to college would mean GREAT times, meeting new people, celebrating in a class finishing after having done well in it, and getting go to great sporting events with friends... just like I had done. Apparently it's not the same idea that she shares with her mother. There isn't really a solution, I suppose... more like a realignment in my thinking. I still love her, and I still am proud of her accomplishments... but today, I'm kinda sad about "losing" out on the "ideal"

Busy Body

I had forgotten what having an 18 month old was like...  13 years without one will do that to a person.  I just love watching Aspen learn and grow.  She cracks me up.  One of her new things is to push things around the house: garbage cans, boxes, lids off of plastic tubs... anything is fair game.  If she can then get IN the item she has been pushing, it's even BETTER!!  She loves carrying things with a handle on them.  At her grandparents house the other day, she found a bottle of dishwasher detergent... with a handle, of course... and she lugged that around the house for an hour.  The crock pot has handles and so she tries to carry it around the house as well.  

She loves her daddy.  When Hayden is almost home, he will let us know, so that Aspen can be waiting at the door.  She gets so excited to see him pull up.

She is growing way too fast.  I watched some old home videos from 12 years ago, and realized how fast time flies.  I wish I could just keep her little forever.

Ephraim... the RECESSION version of a "weekend getaway"

When times are tough, and money is tight... we get more creative in our ways to get away to relax.  This weekend before this one was no exception.  We packed up Aspen, Hayden and I and headed down to visit with Hayden's parents.  Aspen loves having run of the house, and has 4 adults to dote on her.  Her favorites at Grandma Deb's are the rocking chair and the stuffed cat that sits on it while Aspen is away.  Grandma's big bath tub is another favorite.  She will sit under the water spout as it slowly fills the tub.  By the time she gets out she is a prune over her hands and toes.  While we were in Ephraim, I took the opportunity to go for a run both mornings we were down there.  The first day was down and around campus and back: 4.5 miles.  It was going great until I got close to my old stomping grounds between Snow Hall and the Noyes Building.  WOW... memories hit me like a wall.  The silly awesome gals that I roomed with, the volleyball and basketball teammates, the "ring ceremonies" that we did for some of the girls who got engaged, sneaking in my dorm window when I would get back too late to get in my front door or too late to wake up my roommate.  Afton Hansen's science class final had me SKIPPING down the sidewalk, past the tree that is still growing sideways to this day, and to my dorm with elated JOY!!!  Not because I did so well on my final, but because it WAS OVER and I was still alive to tell about it.  It came to me, as I stopped and stood at this place which a crossroads (literally) of my life for 2 years, how quickly time goes.  Here we are 20 years later... almost exactly, and instead of me off to college it is Morgan, and my friends that were so special to me then, I have to sadly say, I have not kept in touch with that well.  So, I ran home, and then called some old teammates and friends and decided to do better at keeping in touch.

 Aspen and Hayden... on our walk... Aspen started in the stroller, but can NOT resist DEMANDING to be let down so she can walk!

She's an ALL WEATHER gal

Aspen is not shy about letting it be known that the PARK is where she wants to be.  The recent snowfall and turn of cold weather hasn't changed anything either.  The park is still across the street, and she can STILL see it from the front door.  Occasionally, when she isn't sick (like she has been this week) we take her over and let her have her fix.

The 1st REAL Halloween

Last year Aspen spent Halloween recovering from a less than fortunate spill... not to mention the fact that she was a little young for knowing what was going on.  This year is another story.  After we convinced her that her costume wasn't trying to attack her, and she figured out the "knocking on the door=candy" thing, we were good to go.  Wade went trick or treating with Morgan (yes... one of those wierdos that are 18 and still think that begging for candy is cool), and Hayden and I took Aspen.  Wade was a Roman and Aspen was a lion.  She had a blast!

Provo River Trail

The coolest running trail I have found is on the Provo river trail.  We decided to make the most of one of the last days of warm weather and drive to Heber.  On the way back we dropped Tonia off at Vivian Park in Provo Canyon, and let her run.  Hayden, Wade and Aspen went to a park several miles down the trail to wait.

The trail was so beautiful~ The leaves were falling, the trees hang over the trail, and it went right by Bridal Veil Falls.  Very cool.

Aspen found a water fountain at the park while waiting for mom to come.  She did NOT want to get off.  She was wet, but she had LOADS of fun.