Clint's Getting Older and Stronger

We were having a Family Home Evening about the things we appreciate about our birthday boys, Dad and Cole. And we got to wondering...with Dad getting old and all, could he still do a push-up with the boys on his back?

Yep! And come to think of it, last time Trace wasn't up there. That's more than 170 lbs. of boys! We're going to make this a yearly tradition.

The night of Clint's birthday we had the Strongs and Nielsens over for the cake ceremony.

It looks like Clint doesn't like boys spitting on his cake. Happy Birthday, Clint! 42 looks great on you!

Christmas in the Glen

This year we were so excited to go to the live Nativity in the Glen because Clint was going to be in it! He wouldn't tell us which part he was so we were in suspense. Cara and her kids came up from Lehi, and luckily the Pulsiphers and Browns arrived at the same time and helped Cara and I keep track of our seven kids, which can be a trick in a massive crowd lit only by candlelight! It was magical as last year, and this year we were layered much better and were comfy in the bitter cold.

BYU Basketball beats the Oregon Ducks!

Talmage is not mad. He's trying to look like the fierce BYU fan he is. We got free tickets from our friend, Dave Nielsen, who works at the Church Office Building. Tal and Jack were stoked and spent the hours prior making fan flags and designing their face paint. What you can't see in this picture is that Tal's shirt could fit a 300 lb. man--it was the only one for sale at our local grocery store. It's time for a trip to the BYU Bookstore!

The game was in the Jazz' home--the Energy Solutions Arena. I'm such an alien to Salt Lake City I thought it was a new name for the Salt Palace and I took the boys on a hike around four blocks before we ended up at the arena, which was exactly across the street from our parking lot! It was about 30 degrees with a chilly wind! The boys didn't whine much at all, but I'm sure that this experience will increase their mistrust of my sense of direction! At least the parking attendant liked the boys' face paint and let us in the lot for free.

Festival of the Trees

I haven't been to the Festival of the Trees since 1987, when my Laurel class put together a tree, under the artistic direction of Lorna Rich. I was so excited to take my boys! We probably saw about 20% of the thousands of trees, then we were pooped! The boys favorite were the Lego trees, no surprise. Jack also liked the Plaid Christmas, as he's really into the Irish these days!

Welcome Home, Elder Jacob McKay!

It was such a treat to be at the airport to see Jacob put his feet on home ground. Any time my boys spend around the great McKay boys (and girls) is time well spent.

This is what we've been listening to around our house. Our family is working on memorizing the 23rd Psalm, so I was poking around You Tube to try to find a good vocal rendition of it. I like this even better than the John Rutter version, forgive me, but it really is beautiful and the 70s rock edge makes it attractive to the boys. The boys have been singing it around the house. It's especially hilarious to hear Trace sing, "The Lord is my Scheffner."
Keith Green! I'd never even heard of him, but what a beautiful talent and voice! I bought his greatest hits CD.

Old Fashioned Cranberry Relish

Clint's Mom was reminiscing about a cranberry relish that she remembered making as a girl. It had a whole orange with the peel and everything. Magical Google found it for us. It is wonderful. 

Cranberry Relish Recipe

Prep time: 15 min.

Ingredients:

            2 cups washed raw cranberries

            2 skinned and cored tart apples

            1 large, whole (peel ON) seedless orange, cut into sections—remove green stem.

            ½ to 2 cups sugar

Grind it all up in the food processor (or an old-fashioned grinder, if you have one). Be careful not to over-process, or you will have mush.  Mix in the sugar. Let sit at room temperature until the sugar dissolves—about 45 minutes. Store in the refrigerator.

We did one cup of sugar. Next time I'll only do 1/2 cup. 

One day I'll get some good skiing shots

But until then... here are the boys skiing this Thanksgiving weekend. They are using poles for the first time.

Jack

Tal

Happy Birthday Haley

It was Haley's 13th birthday on November 13th. We celebrated with cake and invited the Pulsiphers over to share it with us. Then we had our annual watching of the Haley video. The boy's favorite part is when she is hunting for eggs in the playground behind our house in Maryland. Trace has been talking about Haley a lot lately. He tells his friends, "Don't do that or my big sister Haley will beat you up!"

Jack Has His Two Minutes of Fame

It was Jack's big day in his homeroom and he got to read a book he created all about himself. Afterwards he asked if there were any comments or questions. About seven kids raised their hands and said, "I've been to Jack's house and held Jack's rat." The teacher finally said, no more comments like that. But there were at least four other kids who could have said the same thing. Someone said, "Man, you have a lot of playdates!" Jack is a very friendly boy.

Why We Had Kids

A little higher, Trace.

Halloween

Trace chose to be a skeleton! Luckily I'd made this for Cole years ago.

Talmage is Aries, the God of War. You know he loves Greek Mythology, right?

  

Cole was a ghoul, because his Mom was too cheap to make him a new skeleton costume.

Jack is an Irish Warrior. We had to google reenactors for this one. They wore animal skins and plaid, or went naked with blue face paint. We chose the clothed version. He's wearing a "coonskin" hat under his helmet with the tail tucked in!

Here are the boys at their school parade.

Tal's best friend, Isabella, went as Demeter. They share a love of mythology.  Her mother is a clothing designer.

I talked to the mom who made this from scratch. It's paper mache on the head, an elaborate cage and strap system to attach it to the head, all covered in feather boas!