Crazy Wind

Someone at Church today gave thanks for the precipitation we received today, and I chuckled to myself in thinking of the delivery of that blessing.... crazy wind!

Minus the precipitation chart, here is the evidence of a March blizzard.

Note the wind chill, right around 13 degrees. And the gusts were just about 50 mph. I think I saw a flock of grocery bags storming the skies. Now they are safely roosting in the tops of the nearby trees.

World Down Syndrome Day

So, World Down Syndrome day was yesterday, but it took some time to get these images all together. This is just a small selection of our joys with Sammy, but each one of these pics has its own story attached. We are so glad that we have been blessed by Sam's sweet spirit.

Just a quick story... the other day Spence was feeling pretty upset over something during dinner. Immediately Sammy stood up in his booster seat from across the table and reach for Spence to give him a hug. He is so sensitive and loves to hug daddy multiple times before his going to work.

Here's to you Sammy!

beware, some of these images may be a little graphic due to open sores and post surgeries.

Zoo Day

If the thermometers we read were correct... it hit 70 today! Wahoo! It was a beautiful day at the Hogle Zoo and there was hardly anyone there. Lots o' fun. And we enjoyed our visit with the Nordgrens! And our dinner at Thai Spice.

the occasional video

This video is really great! Note it is mainly European... I think American's drive this poorly ;-)

Springtime early!

We love going to St. George. Thank you for the use of the condo. We had a wonderful time... It was in the 60s each day (contrary to forecasters, fortunately) and we enjoyed our time with the Wheelers and the James. Spencer and Camille esp. loved the pool, the hikes, and the playground. Tyler esp. loved the temple, the bike ride, and the hikes. And Amber esp. loved it all.

enjoy the show...

Sunday Mornings

So having church at 1:00 is a mixed blessing... we don't have to race to get everyone up, showered, dressed, eaten and ready for church by 8:45. But we also have the nap-time dilemma where the two youngest can be really fidgety during sacrament meeting. We are very glad that our children enjoy going to church and we especially appreciate their teachers who care for them and teach them.
What to do with the time prior to church... The two oldest kids wanted to paint today. And I have dreams of sitting down with my kids and drawing/painting. So live the dream. We went to the internet and talked through the drawing process and different ideas. And then we looked at some examples of watercolors. We talked about the basics of using minimal water, dabbing the brush on the paper towel, and most of all, have a lot of fun! I think art really teaches kids to have patience with themselves and their work. It's creative, it's productive, and it's rewarding. And the kids did very well. Camille lasted just under an hour and Spencer just over an hour. Here's what we created.

Camille did a still life of a sippy cup on the right... and then just had some fun on the right side. Entitled "Sippy cup"


Spencer went for the mental picture and created this, with an explanation of the king and the princess with the sunlight being seen around the drawbridge. Entitled "Princess and King Castle"


Here is Tyler's first real attempt at a watercolor. Now we just need to get Amber and Sam involved in the fun. Entitled "Passionate about Mango"