Greek Banners 11-12-14

For the 2014-15 school year, I was the Room Parent for Mrs. Martinez, Bonneville Elementary's amazing 6th grade teacher. Walking into her class is an educational experience in itself. There is a suit of armor, Roman pottery, mosaics, world maps, models of medieval castles and more. She taught history from ancient Egypt, Rome and Greek, through the Middle Ages and up through World War II. Those lucky students!  She opened up the wonderful world of  history to both Talmage and Cole. I also knew Mrs. Martinez personally as I was the cub scout leader for her son for four years and I adore her. When Talmage was in 6th grade he demanded that I make an Athenian Flag as he was part of the Athens vs Sparta rivalry in the classroom. It is the second flag from the left. Cole's year Mrs. Martinez requested flags for the other city states, so I made a banner for Argos (The eyeball which represents Argos Panoptes the 100-eyed giant), Athens (the owl representing Athena) and Corinth (Pegasus was the symbol of that city). I told her it was super easy, no problem and that I had all the materials on hand. But it took the most part of two days to complete the last three flags. I really enjoyed it though. I rarely do anything artistic and it was so much fun!

Trace's Campground Birthday April 15, 2014

Trace turned six while we were camping at Kodachrome State Park. The ant farm was a perfect camping activity, the stomp rocket was fun and the giant gummy bear managed to stay clean and he chomped on it for days. We love this big guy.

 

 

Halloween 2014

 Cole's suit says "Ebola Containment Crew"

Trace is Star Lord from Guardians of the Galaxy 

Jack is Groot from Guardians of the Galaxy 

 Trace and Dylan

Sam our backyard neighbor on Yalecrest and Jack

 Tal stayed home for the first time and gave out candy

A lovely night... 

 for trick-or-treating in the lovely Yalecrest neighborhood.

Headquarters Canyon October 18, 2014

Over UEA Weekend, while the men were scouting for deer, I took some Cresap and Malmborg kids on a hike off of the Burr Trail. We took the long way round by way of Boulder and the entrance to the Grand Escalante Staircase National Mounument. The two-hour drive could have been a one-hour drive, but the kids didn't complain (I think we had a Harry Potter book playing) and I loved every minute of that magical drive.

We finally made it!

The kids couldn't resist digging in the sand and everywhere they did their fingers found these perfectly round sandstone rocks about an inch across.

 They were all over the rocks as well.

The following spring when we were in a natural history museum in Delta, Utah, we learned that they are called Moqui Marbles.

 It was the perfect hike for kids. Only a quarter mile to the mouth of the slot canyon, which had this gorgeous welcome mat.

 Here is Charlie walking into the 100-foot long slot canyon.

 Narrower

  and narrower!

 Love the chin pose, Jack!

  

Another fun day in our favorite playground.

Fairmont Penguins October 11, 2014

 It's always easy to spot Cole in his neon green shorts.

 Jack in the fourground, finishing the freestyle.

Jack, hopping in.

Chess October 6, 2014

Fairmont Penguins Swim Meet September 16, 2014

 Cole at the starting blocks

 Cole coming into the end

 Jack Waiting to start 

Jack ready to start the backstroke

Sisters Retreat - September 25, 2014

This Sisters Retreat started at the Ogden Temple which is so beautiful and still feels a bit like the old temple inside, beleive it or not! It was a wonderful time hanging at the cabin and gabbin. I love all my sisters dearly. They are the smartest women I know.

Puck Preview

I took this grainy picture from the second floor window that looks down into the Bonneville Elementary gymnasium. I had to catch on film that I influenced my child! The 6th grade was gearing up for Mid-Summer Nights Dream. The night before I told Cole that he should try for the part of Puck because he has such a perfect elfish face and he is a good memorizer. So when the directors were introducing the characters to the kids Cole volunteered to hold the Puck sign! This is notable because Cole is not one to raise his hand and be heard. He mostly quietly and quickly goes about his academics. I was proud of him. He later did get the part of Pip which was half of the Puck part, which you will hear about all in good time :).

Take a Picture, Mom! September 10-11, 2014

And I'm glad I did! They seemed like not very important moments at the time. But, Wow, this was a year ago and you can hardly recognize these two boys. No one warned me that when boys hit puberty they change as much in a year as they did in the first year of life. Talmage sprouted Hale curls and grew 4 inches and 6 shoe sizes. Cole grew 3 inches and is getting so muscular. They are both smart and funny. 

Trace just wanted it recorded that, indeed, he did climb up and stand on this wall. It doesn't seem like much but some of my most vivid memories are walking on the cement wall at the Weber County Library that started at the ground at the parking lot and grew up to four feet at the door. I wonder if Trace will remember this wall outside of the Fairmont Aquatics Center where we spent soooo much time ---one to three times a week for five years!

LOTOJA 2014

 Heather Hayes, Rachael Sharp, Me and Rebecca Anderson

 I took the first leg. It was a flat 36 miles from Logan, Utah to Preston, Idaho --with a stiff head wind! I ended up with a family team that had more than 50 members. It was in honor of their late patriarch, Tag, who had died while training for his 5th LOTOJA. I'd never ridden in a paceline before and it was a real revelation! I was riding with these "Tag Team"ers and I kept on having to pull on my breaks! And we were only going 17 on a flat! I thought - this is for the birds! I'm going to ride on my own! So I pulled out into the wind - and suddenly I had to give 100% effort to maintain that same 17-miles per hour! Ok! Lesson learned. I pulled back into the line, but as the lead rider tired I rode ahead and pulled the line for the last several miles. I felt like a She-ra because they were all guys - very large guys, but still.

 The leg ran through endless farmland. Way to be beautiful, Utah.

Here's Rebecca!

My second leg went through Star Valley, from Montpelier to Afton, Wyoming -- 33 miles. Rachael started out with me. It was beautiful! We tried to catch a couple of pacelines. The first one was too slow, so I went ahead without Rachael and caught another paceline. I could see them ahead of me but it took me almost two miles to catch them. They were booking at 23-24 miles per hour! There was no putting on the breaks in this line! But with them I was able to go far faster than I could have on my own and it was a rush. They were all men as well, but they were not shabby. They gave me the last mile pull up the biggest hill and I was so sorry that I couldn't pull as fast as they were going, but they were very nice about it. When I got to Alpine the ladies were nowhere in sight because I was 20 minutes earlier than expected, so I went and found them in the parking lot. After that leg, I was spent! It had been the plan that we would ride together for the last leg, or at least the last half of the last leg but I was still wobbly for a couple of hours. I really went too fast on that leg. I'll know in the future -- it's an endurance event, not a sprint!

I really enjoyed hanging out with the ladies and their husbands. It was Clint and my 20th anniversary and we had reserved a room in Jackson, but in the end we decided Clint would stay home and babysit and Rebecca and I shared the room. Clint and I got our trip the following October.

You can see our time below, we are the VCBO Diva Cutters. Our sister team was the VCBO Rochester Cutters. They were all medical wife friends of Yalecrest friend, Arriane Dansie.

They were honored at the awards assembly as the most inspirational team because one of their teammates had terminal cancer.

She is the cute Strawberry blonde with a bob in the middle row. The gal in the wheel chair crashed on the first leg and broke her pelvis! I rode by her sprawled out on the ground not moving with people attending her. And judgemental me actually thought, "Boy, she's being a bit melodramatic. Stand up, lady!" She went to the hospital and was released the next day. She had many weeks of recovery ahead of her. Just one more incident that has me a bit paranoid about becoming a hard-core street biker. Everyone I know who has been riding for a few years has been hit by a car or had a serious crash.

I signed up with these great ladies again for 2015, but then we bought our house in Farmington and I knew that I'd be away from the great rides up Salt Lake's seven canyons (boo hoo! I miss them!). And 2014 was the year Clint was home full-time, paid, but with no job. Being Clint he was more than happy to watch the kids while I tackled 5-hour bike rides. But 2015 is the year Clint has a job in Wyoming and we moved and I really could not leave my kids alone for five hours at a time. Maybe another year. Meanwhile, I'm back into running again and I love the flat West Farmington terrain with the towering hills to the East and the horse fields that smell just like my old 4-mile run back in Huntsville.