Double Take

Yesterday Chris was running errands; we didn't see each other for much of the morning. So he hadn't seen my sassy new denim capris from Heather B's boutique. The reaction of his eyes was better than any compliment. It made my day and probably my week too!

Olive Land

Last night Chris and I went out together, dining at Olive Garden. This morning Kristen saw the take-out bag and enthusiastically asked, "Did you go to Olive Land? I wish I could go there."

Elitch Gardens

All Misha wanted for her birthday was to go to Elitch Gardens and Water Park with her friend Jonah. We only do birthday parties on certain birthdays and Misha opted for no party this year. Fine by me. Her birthday was back in July; she patiently waited (hoping) that we would get to spend a day at Elitches but never begged to go. In fact, one day she said to me, I guess I could have my party next year. Love her.

We finally planned to go to Elitches last Saturday-turned out to be one of the hottest days of the summer. Crazy for August. Jonah arrived at 10 am with his swim suit ready for a day-o-fun. We packed up lunches, swimming gear, a stroller, sun screen, hats and were off. As we neared the turn off to the amusement park, we realized that A LOT of other people had the same idea for an end of summer activity. Our big expense for the day--parking--the girls earned free tickets to the park with their summer reading program (and a kind friend--thanks Angela--gave us three more that her family wasn't going to use). It took me longer to get through the admission gate because of the stroller and backpack, so the others headed to the merry-go-round inside the front gate.



The swimming area already looked packed so we decided to go on the rides until lunch time. The lines weren't too bad the further we walked into the park. We stood in line for our first ride, some whirly turning thing, for maybe five minutes and then it was our turn. It takes longer for the workers to make sure everyone is safely buckled in for the actual ride itself! Kristen was just tall enough to ride the "family" rides. Woohoo. She wouldn't have had so much fun sitting out watching.







Our second ride was a water ride. Not a good choice for your second ride. Kristen and I were drenched and I hijacked my child's hat and wore it for the rest of the day. We had a picnic lunch then came back to ride some more. By about 4:00 pm we decided to check out the waterpark side of things. IT WAS PACKED. We only stuck around for a little while until the kids were bored of all the waiting and headed back to the amusement park side.

Jonah was a lot more brave than my girls and went on a couple of rides with Chris. We went on one spooky ride and Kristen burrowed her head in my side and never peaked once. Good thing. She doesn't handle scary very well. I'd rather not have the nightmares for weeks after.



Finally around 7 pm we were all getting hungry and tired. Chris and I made an executive decision to leave the park and get dinner. The kids protested a little but not too much. We were all pooped. We ended our day at Chili's for a yummy dinner. No singing to Misha though. She wasn't too keen on that idea. Happy Birthday Misha!

First Day of Preschool

Ahhh, the long awaited day finally arrived. Kristen was up and dressed right on time and so excited. She could finally wear her "school" clothes and fill her Tinkerbell backpack. She attends the same school as my other two girls and normally they will walk her to class two days a week, but this morning, I wanted that honor. I signed Kristen in, helped her find her cubby, snapped a few pictures, gave a quick hug (not giving in to the small urge to cry), and walked out. Hard, yet I am so excited for all the fun and learning to come.





When I returned to pick her up, she was the first one out the door and so close to tears. Oh sweetie. "What happened?" A little boy hurt my leg. I hugged and kissed her, reassuring her that it would be okay. That was all she talked about the next few days when she was asked about preschool, and I hoped she would still be excited to go.

A new four-year old catastrophe Thursday morning: Hello Kitty shoes were lost! Tears and tears, and I sent her crying out the door with Amy and Misha. I ran back into the house to grab a kleenex and decided to walk her to the crossing guard at the corner, hoping that she would stop. "My legs are cramping. I can't walk." More tears because Mommy wasn't going to drive her the short distance to school. Amy and Misha looked at me as if to say, "Are you serious? You want us to take her like this?" I watched as they walked across the street hoping that she would be happy by the time she reached her class. Too much drama.

Preschool Orientation

Kristen was thrilled that she was finally on her way to school. She had Preschool Orientation and loved it. I stayed with her while she hippity hopped from one station to another in her classroom--cubbies for backpacks, puzzles, blocks, painting, books--so much fun. That was last Thursday and she kept hoping that Friday was Tuesday. It is hard to wait five days when you are four.

You Know It Is Time To Go When....

Your four-year old has played quietly for an hour and begins to use her mother's legs as stamp pad material. Kristen came visiting teaching with me and was really good coloring for about 45 minutes. But then she got bored, and I went home with stickers and stamps all over my legs.

She had her Preschool Orientation earlier that morning, and I had originally thought I wouldn't have to stay with her and could go visit my friend without a child. Turns out I needed to stay.

School Nurse

Every year Amy begins the school year with the lofty ambition of NOT going to the school nurse--at all. She made it six hours this year. The nurse called five minutes--FIVE MINUTES--before school was out to say that Amy was nauseous and would I please come get her. Since you can't really tell the nurse to tell your child to toughen up, I drove over to the school and picked Amy up. Granted she was a little green around the gills. Could that be because she is our resident worrier and didn't eat much breakfast and apparently not much lunch either? And then had a cupcake for a classmate's birthday celebration. Hmmm. Maybe next year....

Snorkelin' Misha

So, Misha used some of her birthday money to purchase a snorkel last week. She has asked everyday if we could go swimming (took them all on Monday), and wears the silly thing around the house.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Back to School. Need I say more? We went to the back-to-school night last night to meet Amy and Misha's new teachers and drop off their supplies. The girls were most excited about the new climbing wall in the gym and both hoped they would be having PE today.

I am back to making lunches, getting after Misha to eat faster, and scooting them along to be out of the house on time. Tomorrow we'll add Kristen in to the mix. She has her orientation tomorrow and then on Tuesday and Thursday needs to be at the school at 8:45.

It is so wonderfully quiet around here this morning.

Misha's Baptism Picture from Utah

Misha

I only caught the last part of Amy and Misha's conversation where Misha said, "This is why I don't want to grow up. I'm having a great time as a kid." Don't you just remember those days as a kid when you hoped you never got bigger?..or maybe you still wish as an adult that you could relive your childhood again.

Boss Hierarchy

It is always interesting to hear the things that come out of my girls' mouths. On the way home from Loveland this afternoon, Kristen was trying to tell Misha to do something. Misha quickly replied, "You're the youngest, you can't boss me." The hierarchy seems to work itself out.

Just one word Jonah

"No." That's what I said when I saw this scene out my kitchen window yesterday.

Looking at the photo now, I realize I should have zoomed out so that you could see a little more of my backyard and the three-foot drop off from the retaining wall that he was considering. There was a piece of plywood for him to drive down, but still, I said no.

Blackout

My girls created a band and named themselves Blackout. Misha is the lead drummer (her drum set is fashioned from her laundry basket, garbage can, a toy stool, and small trophies), Amy is the guitar-playing lead singer, and if Kristen is allowed to be a part of things she can be the dancer. Kristen wants to be the drummer. Yesterday they were rocking to some of their faves. Can you guess which one this is?

Dirty Face

Kristen walked in to the office tonight with the telltale signs of having eaten a chocolate doughnut (instead of her dinner, mind you). I looked at her and almost laughed, "Kristen, your face is dirty." She ran her pink little tongue around her upper lip and tried to reach as far as possible on her chin and then replied, "But, I can't taste anything."

Do Boys Whine When They Hike?

So that's the question I want an answer to. 'Cause you can bet your life girls do. Chris and I hadn't taken the girls hiking for about two months and decided to enjoy a beautiful Colorado summer day in the mountains. The whining started before we even left the house! I think the trail head is called Cevan St. Vrain, but Chris can correct me on that later. It was 60 some degrees and perfect for hiking, and yet all we heard was whining and complaining from the two older kids.

Best Friends

My girls were happy to be reunited with the Wasden kids after not seeing them for weeks. They had a play date last Tuesday and then talked me into a sleepover for some of them later that evening. I didn't mind since there's a lot of play dates they want to fit in before SCHOOL STARTS IN A WEEK AND A HALF! I'm cool with that because SCHOOL STARTS IN A WEEK AND A HALF!

Crazy guy

Last night I was waiting for Amy while she had her last dance class of the summer. The windows in the van were rolled down for maximum air flow, and I heard many interesting conversations as the locals sauntered on by to the corner bar. One man in particular was interesting, most idiotic, and had probably started imbibing long before leaving home. He walked down the middle of the street with his arms lifted as though he were driving. "I'm a Hummer. You can shoot at me, but I am bullet-proof so you won't hurt me. I'm a Hummer dude." Meanwhile his friends on the sidewalk are laughing and trying to avoid being too closely associated with him. Cars are backing up behind Mr. Hummer. He finally turned around, noticed the cars which amazingly enough hadn't honked at him, and raced over to the sidewalk. I thought, "Idiot."

Kristenisms

I offered to take the girls to the library after lunch today; they wanted to go, yet Amy and Misha were squirting each other with little water pistols in the back yard and were not quite ready to come in. I knocked on the window signaling that it was time to go then returned to the computer waiting for them to come in. Kristen, always one for getting out of the house, had her shoes on and peeked out the office window to see her sisters still outside. She turned to me and said, "They're not hurry upping."

As we drove to library, Misha began to lament that she missed being on vacation, missed Aunt Lori's ranch, missed Aunt Lori, etc. Kristen, lending a sympathetic shoulder, replied, "Boo hoo, so sad." I chuckled as she repeated herself. Then Misha said it back to Kristen, and I instantly heard, "Mom, Misha said 'boo hoo so sad' to me!" Crazy kid. You said it to her first.

Wrong Answer

Kristen just asked me if she could play on the computer. I responded that she needed to clean up her painting stuff at the kitchen table. Her reply, "Nooooooo, that's the wrong answer."

Rice Family Reunion

Wade and Misha

We headed to Utah on Tuesday via airplane (woohoo) for the 3rd Annual Rice Family Reunion. This year was a little different than years past where we rented a cabin in the mountains and spent a few days having fun. This year, my brothers, Brad and Dallin, who are both Optometrists, needed help as they were moving their practice from its present location to a larger store front. They have outgrown their current location and are looking forward to a more spacious and efficient office. If you live in the Draper area, look for Hidden Valley Eye Care right next to Treehouse Athletic Club.



We knew my brothers wouldn't be able to get away, and instead of time away in the mountains, we decided to spend time helping get their office ready to go. There was a lot to do. My sister was kind enough to watch ALL of the grandkids on Saturday after the baptism and Rochelle Allred offered to watch the kids on Friday afternoon. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! to both of you.

We met as a family on Saturday evening at a park nearby for a little BBQ beef and beans hosted by my two youngest brothers, Mitch and Shane. Then, Sunday evening, my sister, Susan, reserved a church building near to their home and provided a roast beef dinner. Both meals were delicious and thank you to all for your efforts.



Mitch



Brad, Dallin, Mom



Shane, Mom

As per previous years, my mom put together a Grandma's Fish Pond, my dad helped the grandkids put on a play, and we had a white elephant gift exchange--always fun. As an added bonus, we shared information on genealogy. The kids got to play and run around while the adults enjoyed each other's company.



Dad introducing his play



Grandkids acting out the play



Susan

Grandkid Photo Shoot

So, I mentioned that my sister offered to watch our children as well as my brother's children on Saturday afternoon while Chris and I and some of the other adults helped out at "The Practice". Susan had a lot of fun activities planned for the day, the first involved taking all twelve grandchildren to BYU for an afternoon of picture taking. I think they took 150 pictures, and they are so much fun to see. Far too many to post all of them, so I'll pick a few.







Susan said it was pretty funny because they had all the kids ranging in age from 19 to 3 dressed in white shirts and denim. As the kids were nearing the end of their smiling and happy capacity, they took them to the hill beneath the bell tower and let them roll down the hill. People driving by slowed to a crawl to watch what they might have perceived as a family of 14, with twelve of them rolling down the hill--those crazy Mormons multiplying and replenishing the earth all by themselves!



All of these fun pictures were taken by my brother-in-law Carson. Nice job!

Misha's Baptism

Because we knew that we would be in Utah for a family reunion, we made special arrangements to also have Misha's baptism in Utah as well. It was a great experience to share with family and a few of our Utah friends. Thank you so much for coming.

We were amazed to see that Misha was one of fourteen children to be baptized that day. Crazy! The chapel was full of families. Like most baptism programs, there was a talk on baptism, music and a talk on the Holy Ghost. Then they started taking out the children in small groups for their actual baptism. Those remaining in the chapel watched church videos until it was their turn.

When it was finally Misha's turn, our family moved to the Relief Society room where the font was located. There were lots of little children who moved to the front of the room to get a closer look. Misha now has the distinction of being baptized three times. Lucky!

I helped Misha as she stepped out of the font. Tears came to my eyes as I hugged her wet little head. Quickly we got her dried off, dressed in the beautiful dress made by her Grandma Ball, combed her hair and returned to the chapel to wait for her confirmation. As we entered the chapel, we were given a piece of paper and pen to write a note to Misha on her special day. It was a nice touch. They also took a picture of Misha and Chris before the baptism--we are hoping they will send us a digital copy to post and keep.

Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple Open House

Our family had the amazing opportunity of visiting the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House on Friday morning, July 31st. The girls were excited because this was their first opportunity to see inside a temple. We arrived at our appointed time, but so did hundreds of others. We were lucky and were able to hop into a golf cart for a short ride from the parking lot to the temple grounds--probably one of the more memorable moments for my girls! That, and they were looking forward to the refreshment tent after the tour. Our experience began with a short video which explained about temples and their purpose. We then were able to walk through rooms within the temple--so beautiful. I think it helps to give our children an idea of what the temple is like and why their parents like to return to the temple often. Following the tour, we headed over to the refreshment tent for cookies and water. My brother, Mitch was with us and kindly took a picture of our family. We were lucky enough to spy an empty golf cart and hopped in for a return trip to our vehicle.

Celebrating Early

Chris has a client through work who also owns a Spa and Retreat in Stansbury Park, Utah. Last month, Chris' employer encouraged him to stay at the Retreat. I know, he's got a hard life. He enjoyed his stay immensely (along with a one-hour massage) and decided that it would be a perfect place for an anniversary get-away.



Now, Stansbury Park is close to Tooele (pronounced Two-willa) and like my aunt, many of you might wonder, what on earth would make you want to celebrate your anniversary in Tooele? Well, let me tell you, Millpond Spa & Retreat is a wonderful, hidden treasure. The website does not do it justice. It offers a full-service salon, massage therapy, esthetician services, manicures and pedicures, six beautiful rooms, and a continental breakfast. The service is fantastic--every time I turned around, they were bringing more food--and the ambiance is amazing. I highly recommend it.



Christopher arranged our night away as an early celebration of our 12th anniversary later this month, and scheduled me to receive the Millpond Signature Package which included a manicure, a pedicure and a massage. Delightful. On Monday afternoon before we left for Utah, they called and offered him a massage for half price, and he was quick to say "yes"!

My sister, Susan, kindly agreed to watch our kids for the night; my kids were excited to spend some time with their cousins. Susan took them for huge ice cream cones at Macey's and then they had pancakes with ice cream for dinner. You can see why she jumped to favorite aunt status! My girls, along with their cousin, Melissa, got to have a slumber party on the living room floor. So much fun.

We arrived at the Spa at 3:00 pm for my manicure followed by the pedicure. Chris took our bags up to our room and then came back to the salon to sit close by working on his laptop while I enjoyed some pampering. But they weren't going to let him sit unpampered for long. When I moved over to the pedicure station, they set him up in the chair next to me, filled the basin with hot water, and let him soak his toes in the water while eating fruit, crackers, cheese, nuts and chocolate. I tried to eat a few grapes and smudged my nail polish, so Chris had to pull the grapes off the vine for me and unwrap my cheese. I think I could convince him to get an actual pedicure without the colored polish someday.

Ellen, one of the owners, and Sharon my manicurist gave ideas for dinner. I'm always up for Mexican food so they suggested Casa Del Rey in Grantsville. It wasn't fancy but the food was delicious. After returning for the evening, Ellen traded off hosting duties with her husband, Scott, and he heated up the jacuzzi outside for us. We were the only patrons staying for the night, so we were extra spoiled. I, um, forgot my swimming suit but Chris didn't seem to mind.

Before returning to our room (in our plush, comfy robes mind you), Scott offered some sparkling cider and cheese cake. Ugggghhhh. More food! But, I sacrificed my no-eating-after-7:30 rule and had a bite or two or three.



On Thursday morning, we meandered downstairs to the breakfast room around 8:30. We topped off breakfast by sitting in a Eucalyptus Steam Room and then a Redwood Sauna. And then....a couples massage. I have a picture, but I shall not post it. To my wonderful husband, you scored more "wonderful husband" points. Thank you.

So, I highly recommend Millpond Spa & Retreat. And just in case you want to visit, I recommend going during the week when it is quieter and less busy. Pamper yourself. And just in case you have now decided to call them, here's the number: 435-843-8800