Thanksgiving in Utah

Walking in Goblin Valley

Liberty Aaron

Roland found some of his Scouting paraphenailia and dressed up Aaron.

Nate and Heidi

Springer clan watching the WVC parade.

Cousin Scott and Aaron

Sledding with the American Fork Springers

Aaron and Grandpa Springer

Aaron taking advantage of the one snow storm that came through while we were there.

Goblin Valley

While in Utah we spent a day in Goblin Valley (down by Moab). Aaron was being a super spy. He stood on top of the goblins like he was in charge and had so much fun running through the area. I highly recommend the place to people with children. There were no signs telling us to stay on the path, don't go here or there. We had complete freedom to climb, scoot down on our bottoms when we got too high and run all over the place.

Peter wasn't so hip on the idea at first. Roland packed him in but as it warmed up Peter came out of hibernation to walk all the way out. What a tough kid.

Roland's parents came with us. Kurt took so many pictures that I think we've finally convinced them to go digital so he can shoot to his hearts content.

We had a great time in the Valley of the Goblins.

Aaron is in the middle of the picture in a yellow coat. Can you see him?

Peter all warm in Grandma's scarf.

Our Bed and Breakfast

We had a slew of visitors come through in October. First there was cousin Megan. Then Roland's sister Charlene and her husband Jason. Then came Roland's brother Marlow followed by a visit from my brother Nate.

At the Pumpkin Patch

Photos by Charlene

We tried to get to the Tomb of the Unknowns but the Marine Corps Marathon was happening. Apparently, they need a lot of port-a-johns. Roland with Aaron. Jason and Peter in the background. Peter wouldn't let Jason out of his sight the whole trip.

At Udvar-Hazy with Nate.

Nate is striking the Tom-Cat pose in front of the Tom-Cat.

Once again Peter was attached to Nate. Peter is a guy's guy.
Peter decided we were taking too long at each exibit and strikes out on his own.

I started out pretty good. Megan had clean sheets and a sparkling bathroom as did Charlene as Jason. Marlow said he didn't care if I didn't wash the sheets after Charlene. Yeah! But, then Charlene being helpful stripped the bed. Darn! I did go over the bathroom with clorox wipes. But to be honest I shook out the rug on the floor and then laid the rug right on top of the dirt! Eeek! Same for Nate. By the time Nate got here I was done. He didn't even get a home cooked meal. Poor guy. Good thing his sweet wife takes good care of him.

We had a great time with all our visitors. The boys really want Jason, Marlow and Nate to come back. Me, I think the B&B will be closed for a month or two.

Trike Ride Down Constitution

I found this great old Tricycle at a Toy Sale. I don't think I've ever seen one with a crank chain. We were down at the Art Gallery and the trike was still in the van so we had Aaron take it on it's maiden voyage down Constitution Avenue.

My Friend Samite

First off let's make sure everyone knows how to say Samite's name. Most white people slaughter it which has become a running joke between Samite and me but I would like all of you reading this to be saying it correctly in your mind. It's Sam - E - Tay. Not Saaw - Mee - Tay.

This past long weekend (Thursday -Saturday) I was kid free and got to go to 2, count them, 2 Samite concerts! How lucky am I?

I met Samite and his family while Roland was at Cornell. The RS President asked that I go over and clean their house. Samite's wife, Joan, (her name is pronounced JoAnn) had been diagnosed with a brain tumor and Samite along with his family had taken on full time care of her. So being the Relief Society we decided to provide some relief. I came away with a greater blessing then I ever provided for them.

Words cannot express the love that I have for this family and the pure love of Christ that was ever present in that home. Samite put his career on hold to care for his sweetheart. Joan's daughter, Ana, put her schooling on hold to care for her mother. One by one, I met Joan's children as they came home. Samite wrote beautiful music to express his love and sorrow. They let me into their lives at such a tender time and I witnessed the veil slowly thin as they helped their loved one move on to live with our Father again.

Samite and his family gave me an experience that I will treasure for the rest of my life. I look forward to talking with Joan and getting to know the woman that her family tells me about, but I never had the opportunity to talk to before the tumor took her speech.

I'm grateful that I was able to spend time last weekend catching up with my dear friend, listening to great music and remembering such a meaningful time in my life.

Mirembe, Samite!

Pictures

Guess Peter isn't ready for size 18 mo. shorts yet! His favorite thing right now is for someone to read him a book.
Playing in the Kiddie Pool.

My New Tag Line

We just returned from dinner with friends. Wow, can they cook up a storm. Speaking as a complete carnivore I came home satisfied. Our kids played well together so we were able to enjoy good uninterrupted conversation along with excellent food.

At one point during the evening the hostess said while speaking of herself, "It meant something to this Starfish." LOVED IT! That is now my new line. I told her I was stealing it, she didn't seem to mind.

If this saying means nothing to you, ask the nearest Mormon, or motivational speaker, to tell you the story. They've probably heard it 10 times.

One of Aaron's Favorite Bedtime Stories

Once there was a Big Brother and a Little Sister.

Little Sister was in the front yard playing with the next door neighbor. He wasn't being very nice and he made her cry. Big Brother saw what was happening through the front window. So, Big Brother opened the front door, jumped over the porch railing, jumped over the bushes and ran over to his Little Sister's side. Big Brother said to the neighbor boy, "Don't you be mean to my Sister!".

The neighbor boy went home and Big Brother said, "Come on Little Sister, I'll play with you". That made Little Sister so happy. Little Sister loved her Big Brother.

Then I'll ask Aaron, "You're a Big Brother, aren't you Aaron?, You're good at protecting your Little Brother aren't you?" Aaron always says yes, and he is good at protecting Peter from OTHER people. Although, he is getting better at always being a nice big brother.

P.S. Little Sister still loves Big Brother. Both of them actually. Wait till you hear what they did to the kid that was mean to me on the playground!

Ida Hone

My Grandmother on my Pappy's side is Ida Hone. She was born in Idaho. Whenever I tell people this I wait for their reaction. I NEVER get one. I on the other hand am always trying not to laugh.

Anyone? Anyone?

Am I the only one that finds the similarity between the two names amusing? It would be like me naming a kid Verge Henyon. Except my last name isn't Henyon so I couldn't make it work.

Anyone? I'm laughing right now. Anyone else laughing? Am I totally alone in this? Roland? Marlow? Anyone?

It Will Be A Sad Day

The other night we had the kids in bed, or so we thought. Roland and I were talking when we hear Aaron "sneaking" around the basement. We stop and listen then Roland says, "It will be a sad day when he really learns how to sneak around".

The Marriage of Aaron

We are Pleased to Announce the Marriage of

Aaron

to

Hazel

on

September 3, 2009

In attendance were the couple's siblings, Peter and Ginger. The groom's mother only found out about the marriage due to the door of the 'Temple' (playhouse) needing to be put back on the hinge. The newlyweds were going to kiss on top of the slide but were interrupted when they learned that the groom's mother had finally agreed to push whomever wanted to swing. So they opted for an underdog instead.

Goldfish and pretzels with water were served after the wedding party finished with the swings.

Labor Day Party!

Roland and I decided to host a party. Invited twice as many as we could handle knowing that most of the people would already have plans since we do every thing last minute.

Roland heads off to do the shopping, I do minor house cleaning since we'll be outside for the party. Spend most of the day doing yard work, wiping down toys, chairs, tables, slides, etc.

Noon hits and so does a migraine. I take one of the new Rx that the neurologists wants me to try. Wow. It got rid of the migraine, but it condensed the thing into an intense hour of pain.

After an hour in bed it's back outside to help with more yard work. My, my, the yard looks much better with the lawn edged. You just have to beware of the edger. About took off my leg.

3:00 hits and it's still raining. Guess all that time spent getting the yard ready wasn't the best use of time. So it's off to try and clean the house. I shove all the stuff in the basement into the boys bedroom and lock the door. Do a quick check of the bathrooms (something you have to do every 10 minutes with 3 boys in the house), put a cloth on the dining room table and call it good.

4:00 guests start showing up. Still raining. I'm wondering how 43 people are going to fit in my little house, how many things are going to get broken with 24 kids running around, how many people are going to notice that Roland made homemade root beer with maple extract instead of root beer extract, who will notice I never got a shower, never changed into my party outfit, and had rocks and dirt in my hair from that blasted edger. I didn't even notice that until I took my hair down at bedtime!

All in all I think it was a fun time. My sweet friend Jean said to me just as I'm realizing that I never even brushed my teeth (eek!) "Genevieve, how do you make this seem so effortless?". Got to love Jean. Everyone should have a Jean in her life who makes you feel good about yourself even when you have rocks in your hair and fuzzy teeth.

Obama Llama Where's My Mama?

Most Moms have read Llama, Llama Red Pajama to the their kids. I personally haven't. My friend Shanna read it to me when she found out I hadn't read it yet. She's very good at reading out loud. :-) She made the freaked out little Llama looking for his mama sound really freaked out.

With all this news coverage of Obama urging Moms to go back to school I keep thinking it won't be long until we see the book rewritten with the new title Obama Llama Where's My Mama?

Now, I've no problem with Mama's going back to school. I will become concerned, however, if we get a bunch of freaked out little llamas running around, in red pajamas, wondering where their Mamas are.

Someone should start working on this rewrite. Not me, but someone....

Post Update

Mom called to let me know that Howells went out of business after she read my post titled 'Pappy-Chapter 2' dated 8.13.09.

I guess they couldn't get the cameras back together. So sad.

My Pappy - Chapter 2

After Pappy died my brothers and I were down in his shop. We stood there looking at two Hasselblads that were completely torn apart. Pappy had started the repair job for a local photo shop named Howells.

Wes, Nate, and I looked at the cameras then looked at each other. Then looked at the cameras, then looked at each other. "What do you think?", "I don't know, what do you think?", "Can you fix that?", "Hh, NO!, Can you?", "Nope", "What should we do?", "No idea", "Hmph". We walked out shaking our heads thinking "Sure glad I'm not Howells".

Wes got the fun job of bagging up the tiny pieces and taking them back to the owner. Wes handed over about $60,000 worth of itsy bitsy torn apart camera pieces with a "Sorry, Jim died. Hope you can find someone to put these back together for you. Have a good day."

The image of that poor man standing there in what must have been stunned silence still makes me laugh. Not many people have the skill to put a $30,000 camera back together these days. Pappy was one of a kind. He is missed. Wonder if Howells ever got the cameras put back together....

Photos From the Past Month

I need to be better at posting pictures as they're taken. Here is a photo of Aaron from Roland and Aaron's Adventure to Southern Virginia. Two dirty kids getting a bath before dinnner.

Treats after playing in the water.

Playing Candyland with Dad.

Some of our friends.

Roland and Aaron going for a run in the rain. Aaron's face after one week.

Aaron's face the day after.

Foamhenge. Ha, Ha.

Kids at the Natural Bridge gift shop. Yum! White Tiger at the Natural Bridge Zoo. My favorite zoo!
Feeding the animals.

Wish I had her eyelashes!

Monkey House

A Goose in the Tub...

We had a fun day of playing in the water with friends. The kids were a mess so we came in and I plopped them in the tub. Peter stood up for a few seconds to play with the downspout just as Aaron stretched out. Peter sat down right on Aaron's toes. I don't think I've ever seen him stand up that fast.

As a plaque that's in my brother's shower says, "A Goose in the Shower is Good Clean Fun."

The Adventures of Roland and Aaron

They made it home safe and sound, although tired (I expected the tired part).

From what I can gather from short bursts of information they didn't see the race because of rain. They camped on Roland/Aaron Mountain. They did a 6 mile hike that Aaron did amazingly well on. While hiking they skinny dipped in the river and ponds, and ate sardine sandwiches for lunch, still can't believe that one. Listened to Bluegrass music in Buena Vista, and had dinner with some friends that moved down there a few years ago. All in all they had a good time being together.

Peter and I had great naps and a quiet house. It was a good weekend for all of us.

P.S. We just discovered that Aaron brought home a friend. Too bad the deer tick had to die....

What A Cool Dad

Roland and Aaron are off on another weekend adventure. I'm not sure what they've decided to do. These things get decided on the road with these two. Possibly a racetrack down in Lexington or a concert at the Carter Family Fold. I DO know that they'll come back smiling with tales to tell.

The other morning Roland sheepishly told me that he woke Aaron up at 11:00 pm to show him Jupiter through the telescope. They decided to go for a drive to somewhere a little darker so they could see it better. I've no idea how late they stayed out but Roland gave in and came back when Aaron said he needed to go back to sleep.

I don't know what Roland thought I would think of that. Obviously, he was a little hesitant to tell me. Between you and me, I thought it was really cool.

A Memory

I took the kids out for a bike ride. Yes, I survived but I did make Aaron WALK his bike down the hill that he crashed on. Actually, now that I've seen it again it wasn't the hill that got him. He was about 20 feet from the hill. (That's one playback I don't need to see when I get to heaven).

Anyhoo, we ended up at a park with sand. We typically don't go to parks with sand because the other Moms don't like it. I personally don't care. (My peeve is bubbles). Wow, I'm distractable today. Is that even a word? I'll try to stay on topic.

Back to the park with sand. Peter loves the sand and today he really dug in. He had at least a tablespoon in each shoe and who knows how much down his pants and shirt. It reminded me of the first time Aaron started in on the sand. We were visiting a park down in Old Town Alexandria by the Real Estate company I worked for. I bent down and played with him. You know how the pants these days that sit on your hips open up a little in the back when you bend? Well, Aaron was playing with a borrowed scoop and decided that that little opening would be a perfect place to dump his sand. I didn't see it coming. I would have loved to be the Mom sitting across from us watching that happen. It's very hard to get sand out of your pants without undressing. It was a long ride home.

Aaron vs. THE SIDEWALK

I knew the day would come. I just didn't think it'd be so soon.

My family rode our bikes over to a friends house to help with a move. Roland needed to stay so I headed home with Aaron on his bike and Peter on the back of mine. Just up the road is a steep hill that we had to go down to get to the bike path. Aaron, being Aaron, took it at full speed. I looked down for a moment then looked back up to see my dear little man face down on the sidewalk not moving or making a sound. He had somehow gone over the handle bars and face planted it on the sidewalk. He didn't even get his hands out to break the fall.

I rode up and debated what to do with Peter. Keep him strapped in and lay the bike down? Not so nice to him. Take the time to unstrap him? No!, I needed to get to Aaron. He laid crumpled on the ground with his arm at a weird angle and blood was coming from his nose and mouth. Luckily another biker approached and took my bike.

I sat down by Aaron and he started crying. I felt around then slowly turned him over. His front tooth was dangling and he had road rash all over his face and the front of his arms and legs. His face was getting swollen and I couldn't get him to open his eyes. Oh my.

I called Roland and it took him an hour to get to us even though he was 100 feet away. I tell you when you're with a hurt child 30 seconds feels like five minutes, so he didn't really take that long, but if FELT like it. He picked up Aaron and took him back to our friends house to clean him up. I caught a ride back to our house with another friend to get the car then went back to pick everyone up. Another friend met us at the house and helped Roland give Aaron a blessing. By this time Aaron was calm and sleeping.

We called our Pediatrician and he spent 15 minutes with us on the phone talking through all the things to watch for and getting a good understanding of what injuries Aaron had. We decided to let Aaron sleep in our bed then took him the next morning to the Doctor, Dentist and for a Cat Scan. All said he was a lucky little man.

I'm so thankful for helmets and a son who doesn't care that he no longer has both front teeth. Aaron wanted to get right back on his bike. Roland had to do that with him. I couldn't handle it. I think it will be quite awhile before I'll feel comfortable on a bike ride again.

The next day I fell down the stairs. The day after Peter did. Quite the weekend!

What I learned this Sunday

Did you know that Jesus and Heavenly Father live on the sun? Or that the reason Jesus could walk on the water and help Peter from sinking is because Jesus had a cape? I didn't either! I'm so glad that Aaron explained these things to me!

What Have I done?

My friend "Shae" joined my gym. Her very fit sister-in-law was in town for a visit so we all went to the gym a few days ago so the sister-in-law, we'll call her SiL, could set up a work out routine for us. Now, SiL knows what she is doing. I could tell that in the first 10 words out of her mouth. No messing around with SiL. She was having Shae lift as much weight as she could in one rep to find her maximum and then SiL would do some math and tell Shae what she should lift for each rep/set. Like I said, no messing around with SiL.

Next was my turn. SiL could look at me and determine what I could lift. No wimping out with her. She KNEW I could do more. While she was positive and very encouraging I knew she was going to make me hurt. Nope, no messing with SiL. She's out to get me.

SiL leaves town and Shae goes at me. Holy cow. Quiet, kind Shae is a mad woman. Watch out for her. She'll bench press you to next Friday. There is no stopping this woman. She wants to be in better shape then when she was 16. Keep in mind that she's now a mother of 3. Those of you who are mothers KNOW what that means. Our bodies are completely different. I'm sure I walk different. My hips will never be right again. But she's determined and honestly my money is on her doing it, literally.

Guess I need to buck up. Shae's on my tail. No wimping out, she might tell SiL. Who's idea was it to have Shae join my gym anyway? Next time I need to think things through better.

My Pappy

My dear sweet Pappy has been gone over 5 years now. I'm sad that he and Aaron can't go train chasing together but I am happy he's not in pain anymore. My Pappy was the best. He had a look that completely conveyed how much he loved me.

I've a new hobby that makes me think of him every time I sit down. Some friends and I are making jewelry. Started out as a fun one time get together that has turned into more. We gather at one house, put the kids in the basement to destroy, and bead for a couple of hours. I found out early on that I had a hard time seeing the tiny pieces I was working on, so I went out and bought a pair of magnifying glasses. Pappy worked with his hands on tiny parts of camera's my whole life. He'd come to dinner with the magnifying glasses on his head and was very adept at getting them to land nicely on his nose by raising his eyebrows. I can't sit and concentrate on putting things together, with tools in my hand, without seeing a picture in my mind of my Pappy doing the same thing. Never fails. I wish we could sit down together and do our crafts. How I would love to be in his workshop with a comfortable silence while we each worked. He'd hum something from the Messiah from time to time and I'd cringe. What joy that would be!

Uhh...Thanks?

We got a call yesterday from Roland's brother. He let us know that they are now the proud owner of chickens. I've never understood the need myself. Who wants to get attached to later whack off a head? Anyway, the American Fork Springers called to let us know that they named one Genevieve. Um....Thanks? Roland is the blood relative. I didn't hear mention of Roland the Chicken. Not sure how to take this honor....

What I've Learned this Week

1- Aaron learned to ride his bike without training wheels. Roland ran beside him for several days until he could stop and start on his own, even on hills. What I've learned is the little man has better balance then I do. He can go really slow and not lose his balance. As I ride behind him with wiggle worm on the back of the bike I cannot keep my balance going that slow. (Nice that I blame it on Peter, huh)? There must be something in the physics of a 12 inch wheel verses my big one.

2- I really need to back off of Aaron as he rides because he can stop FAST. I about dumped me and Peter in the gutter trying not to hit Aaron as we crossed the street. I was paying attention to oncoming traffic not Aaron. He managed to do this to me several times. But it's so hard not to ride close when he goes SLOW. See above.

3 - Even if Aaron can't see me he has the uncanny ability to move to where I'm heading. If I go right he drifts right. I go left he goes left. Once again see #1. I can't move to either side of him to pick up any speed without him blocking my way.

4- Even with all I just mentioned I still love going on bike rides with Aaron and Peter. Aaron may be slow but he can go far. We did a three mile ride this week. He's four. I'm not. :)

5- Peter is better with the cell phone then I am. He managed to send a text message to my cousin Megan. It was a rather urgent sounding message that had her worried and I'm sure made her late for work as she frantically tried to get a hold of me. I finally heard the cell ring. Peter had put it in the shower stall. How does a 1 year old compose a message that makes sense?

6- Peter likes to play in the sprinklers if he's fully dressed. Put him in a swimsuit and for some reason he's no longer interested and rather mad.

7- I've a problem with my C1 and C2 vertebrae. I have to go in for x-rays. Don't mind x-rays. Better than getting blood drawn.

Blog to Read

I love reading my cousin Melinda's blog. Just about every post makes me laugh, unless she writes about riding along with the Police, then I just wonder about her. :) Once again her latest post has made me laugh out loud because I love Neil, will run at the sight of swarming bees and think marathons are insane. Take a look at it. http://melindabrimhall.blogspot.com/

This is a picture of her and Aaron. She lived here for a short time and I'm lobbying to get her back. I need more people who make me laugh. Roland can't be the only one responsible for that. Too much pressure for one person. Let me know what you think of her blog. I can't wait for her to do new posts.

Did I just say that?

There are some things you think you'll never have to say. As an example; Aaron likes to help me clean. He'll do dishes, sweep and likes to vacuum. But I never thought I'd have to say, "Aaron, don't dust your Brother".

Sweet Brotherly Moment

Aaron had to spend some time in time out yesterday. He felt the need to tease and harass his brother non-stop. So off to time out he went. Peter, being a sweet little soul, did his monkey scoot over to where Aaron was sitting and put himself in timeout too. They sat there for awhile laughing......then Aaron pushed Peter onto his head. Moment over.

Unsupervised

You would think I would learn that if Peter isn't complaining that his brother is doing something to him that they're in some sort of conspiracy. Peter made no sound as his brother painted him so he could be a "cat". Aaron also did a fine piece of artwork on the dining room floor.

A few days ago I once again left them unsupervised while I looked at email. I came back to my curling ribbon wrapped around the central wall -dining room, kitchen, living room and bathroom, three times. Aaron was trying to make a spiderweb. Nice. Took forever to wind it back up. Lesson I still need to learn: quiet is bad!

Only Roland would think of doing this.

Ah, my husband. What will he think of next?

Ok, I need help!

How do I post pictures? I'll need a lesson or two. Stand by until I find someone to sit down and explain this all.......

Can I do this?

I love reading my friends blogs and sweet Kathy set this one up for me months ago. Never used it. Let's see if I can figure this out!