New Windows! April 12, 2016

We had all the windows on the south side of our house replaced. They had no solar coating and they were of such poor quality that when it rained, water dripped through the windows! We immediately felt a difference inside and were able to postpone turning on the AC for another three months. They used to be divided vertically and were cheap looking and had broken brown blinds. I like this a lot better! Yay for blue sky! Here's how it looked before:

Farmington Cabela's Grand Opening - April 21, 2016

Farmington just keeps on getting better! We took the shuttle bus from the Legacy Center to the store, but we could have walked. We got there right at opening and happily let all the campers from the night before enter the store and get the free stuff. But we still scored because Clint got some primers, which are hard to find, and we got samples of jerky, cinnamon nuts and fudge. I call it a win, and a fun activity for one of Jack and Trace's day's off school.

Talmage Honored at FJHS - May 27, 2016

We got an invitation to a breakfast awards assembly at Talmage's junior high and we invited Grandma and Grandpa Hale to come. It was a superlative awards assembly where kids were honored for being "Wonderfully Wonderful at Math" and "Trying Hard in Science." Some were really funny like, "Feel Free to Leave Your Stuff in My Room Because You're a Great Student Award" And "Water Cyclation Award," -- I guess someone was going to the bathroom too often? Talmage got the Encyclopedia of Mythology Award from his resource teacher Patty McCarthy, which of course was very apt. His friend Jared, our backyard neighbor, got the "True Gentleman Award," which also fit perfectly.

Farmington Bay Bird Refuge - May 12, 2016

One of my favorite things about Farmington, is a bird refuge that is just a mile away. It makes my early morning run breathtaking. I've seen blue herons, a muskrat, yellow-winged blackbirds, red breasted blackbirds, loons and many birds I cannot identify.

These are all Blue Heron.

I don't have a good camera, so I'll share pictures others have taken. First, from our neighbor Spencer Bawden. This one is called "Fire and Ice"

Jack's Spring Recital- May 19, 2016

I really enjoy Lori Kellet's piano recitals. This one should have been a bit rough as she had had shoulder surgery and no one had had lessons for three weeks. But it was fantastic! She really gets accurate timing out of her students. She told the parents at the recital that as "The truth shall make you free,"so also does "Timing Make You Free." Once you master the timing in a piece, you are free to play expressively!

Clint flies over Farmington - May 25, 2016

This was the second time that Clint flew over our house since we moved to Farmington. I need a better camera!

M

Sarah Does Construction - May 25, 2016

We have about 10 projects going on right now: building the shop, installing new windows, installing a hot tub, putting in a patio west of the shop, building a gas fire pit, repairing all of the sprinklers that keep on getting damaged in the process, removing two flowerbeds, digging out 6 inch borders to all our boulder-edged flowerbeds, putting cement rings around all our trees and finishing three rooms in the basement! We made a pre-drywall inspection appointment right after we had our four-way inspection, so that we could do the insulation in the few days it usually takes to get the appointment. As luck would have it, Clint's work called and asked if he would ferry a helicopter from Ogden to Winslow, Arizona. It meant two extra days of pay and eight hours of flight time, which was too good to pass up. So I ended up doing the insulation solo. It took me two-and-a-half days to do the first room, and I only had two hours to do the second, larger, room before the inspector was to show up. Luckily, the staple gun ran out of staples, so I skipped that step, and went factory style for the rest. I did all the measuring, then all of the cutting, then stuffed all the bales into the spaces in the final 10 minutes. When the inspector showed up there were still two empty spaces, but he said it looked fine and that it was better to not use staples as the exposed 2x4s are better in case the drywallers use glue. I was mighty proud of myself!

All Five Voices! May 23, 2016

Michelle Conrow came to town to run the Ogden Marathon. Who would have guessed that my model friend would become a runner at 45?! Gina texted us all: "Let's do this!" We met at Jenny Julander's mom's house, as Jenny was recovering from a bug and was buried underneath wedding prep for her daughter Maunia. We had not all been together in the same place since Haley's funeral in 2000. We talked till after midnight and got caught up in Michelle's life in Washington where she moved to be near her birth father. It turns out it hasn't been without bumps which which broke my heart. But it was nice to be together and enjoy the easy, funny, supportive conversation that makes us lifelong friends.

Jack Gets His Arrow of Light - May 26, 2016

On to real boy scouts!

 But first, I have to share the play that Jack wrote to illustrate a gospel principle as part of his Arrow of Light requirements.

In Genesis it says that God created the earth in six days and on the seventh he rested. The seventh day was Sunday so that's why we try to keep the Sabbath day holy. Here's a small play/skit.

Bob: Hey Mom, can I play video games?

Mom: No, Bob, it's Sunday. Go read."

Bob: Aw man! It's a weekend. Can't I have a break? Didn't God rest after his six days of creation? So why can't I have a rest, like, from five days of school?

Mom: How about you read Genesis. It will help you understand.

Bob: Fine.

A while later...Mom goes to check on Bob.

Mom: Hey you're reading. Good for you! Did you like it?

Bob: Yeah. It's great. I'm gonna read on Sunday now.

The End

Jack Turns 11! June 6, 2016

Jack was extremely specific about what he wanted for his birthday: a skateboard and helmet from the local skate shop. Jack informed me that because his birthday was on Monday, we would need to go shopping on the weekend. So on Saturday, Jack and his bud, Ollie, and I went to Zumiez and picked out a skateboard and helmet. They assembled the skateboard from components right there in the shop.

Kitties, pizza and galaxies. It's all the rage in skateboard decor.

Next, Jack began to list everything I needed to put on my shopping list for his birthday breakfast. He wanted waffles with berries and whip cream, bacon and orange juice for breakfast. He began to be alarmed as the weekend wore on that I had not gone shopping yet! I began to get the feeling that Jack didn't think I would come through for him :) and I worried that Jack would be somehow disappointed when the day came. But, true to his nature, he was cheerful the whole day and thrilled with a Jack-centered day.

The Breakfast (hard to navigate on the top bunk!)

This was a really special birthday for Jack because for the first time, thanks to year-round-school, Jack got to celebrate his birthday with his classmates. He asked his teacher if he could have a birthday show-and-tell of his rat, Scruffles, followed by homemade cookies from me. I have to hand it to Ms. Ott for being so laid back!

Jack's only disappointment was that none of the girls were grossed out. He'd really hoped for a negative reaction! Both Ms. Ott and I made sure they all washed hands before they ate the cookies!

Brownies, were requested, in lieu of cake. Dad was in Wyoming - :(

It was Jack's second cake as he had shared a Birthday cake with Papa and Tyson after Tyson's baptism on Saturday.

By the end of the day, Jack had mastered the "Ollie", a trick he'd been trying on his old board for weeks. This is one boy whom I don't have to encourage to go outside! Jack is still our engaging, exuberant boy. And now he gets to be in real boy scouts! Happy Birthday, Jack!

Yalecrest Ave Flyover - June 18, 2015

Some medevac pilot called from the roof of Primary Children's Hospital and told us he'd be buzzing our house on his way back to Wyoming. So close, but so far away...:)

Jack Turns 10 - June 6, 2015

I always think of Jack as a year older than he is, because he's always the last in his class to have a birthday. I could have held him back for kindergarten, but he was so socially ready! He still is the most social boy. He is a fun, creative friend and very inclusive. He had his last Salt Lake City party at Laser Quest. Man we've done that a lot!

Colby, Nyk, Malachi, Kion, Rocko, Jack, Jaydin, Darian and Avery. Not pictured but present: Scout, Trace, Zach and Max

Random Pics from June 2015

 Trace loses his first tooth! Finally! He was the last in his 1st grade class.

 I've heard of packers packing dishes with food on them, but live boys?

Yep!

Trace Turns 7 - April 15, 2015

He's pretty darn adorable. We're glad he's our caboose.

Random Pics from April 2015

 It was Fill-Your-Own-Container-For-The-Price-Of-A-Regular-Slurpee at 7-11 Day! I saw one guy bring a gallon ziploc bag, then hop on his bike to ride home. I don't think that ended well!

Literature Fair in Ms. Okabe's 1st Grade Class with Trace's Bestie, Luke. Trace was the last minute sub for the lead of a reader's theater and he aced it.

Great Basin RV Trip: Spring 2015

I was a little leary about being cooped up in an RV with six crazy Cresaps, but it was great! The novelty of it all! The doors and buttons that could be pushed! The cabinet doors that could be opened and shut! The comfort and convenience!

Our first stop was Delta, where we visited the Topaz Japanese Interment Camp musem. It's only been open a year.

They had a "replica" of the houses where the residents lived.

One of the residents was a Berkley art professor. He began a art school with over 100 pupils of all ages. The museum had an exhibit of their paintings. I think this one is amazing.

Also in Delta, was a Natural History Museum. I was stoked about this exhibit of Moqui Marbles as the previous summer we had found some of those on a hike to Headquarters Canyon in Capitol Reef and were really curious about them.

The only downside of being in an RV, was that we were not allowed to drive off the pavement and Delta was surrounded by amazing rock hounding sites. We will go there again with an off-road vehicle! There are great places to find geodes and topaz, apache tears and even garnet.

Burning off some pent up energy!

The favorite spot in the RV

As it we continued our journey towards Great Basin (2 miles west of the Utah/Nevada border) it started getting dark and so I started making dinner as we traveled along! When we arrived at our campsite we immediately sat down and ate our flanksteak, salad, biscuit and brownie dinner. We played some dungeons and dragons and then went to sleep and were happy to be inside our RV as there was snow on the ground and it was brrr out there!. In the morning we had several feathered visitors a few feet away from the RV. There were 10 of these typically shy creatures. They must have known they were in a National Park! I doubt they would ever have come this close to tents, but the RV kept all of our people scents and people noises inside.

As per usual, we celebrated Tal's birthday while on our Spring Break vacation. He's a good sport about that!

He got a kindle.

We had planned to drive through the park but all of the roads except the road to the campsites and to the Lehman Cave Visitor Center were closed due to snow. So all we saw in the park was the Lehman Cave, but it was awesome. Not only did it have the typical (and some atypical) cave formations, but there was actually a lot of history! In the Depression the cave served as a speak-easy and later they had friday night dances with live bands and Hollywood movies have used the cave for a set. And one interesting factoid: the ranger said that during an earthquake the cave would be the safest location as nothing would be desturbed inside. That kind of defies logic, but, ok!

This is a the graffiti room where a lot of early visitors left their signatures.

These are rare shield formations.

This is called the Angel's Wing. It was in a room that was 60 feet high!

It was nice to see the scenery in the daylight as we drove home. I'm a sucker for desolate beauty. You can see Sevier Lake here. It's about 25 miles long and is more salt than water.

A tuckered out traveler

Playing video games--not easily done in a car!

Comfy master suite! Thumbs up on the RV vacay! We'd do it again!