Flooding in Montucky

Everyone in Utah has been all abuzz about the potential of flooding due to snowpack and rain issues. The river near our house has been rising, but I hadn't really thought that we might be in danger. And then my Mom e-mailed me these pictures of our back yard.

For those of you who have been to our house, this "creek" used to sit about 10 feet below the bridge that is almost covered, on the left side of the picture.

This is just insane. I've suddenly become a bit wary, and decided to move the important things up off the floor at least, and organize things I might need to grab in a hurry.

With all the flooding and tornados in diverse places, I'm thinking it's about time to prepare for Utah's big earthquake.

Here's a picture to give you an idea of what the creek "before" was like.

When I was a Kid...

I was looking through Father's day cards and found a silly one that talked about the "olden" days. Something about walking to school uphill both ways. It made me think about how much things have changed when I was a kid, and what I'm going to someday be telling my kids...

When I was a kid, we rode the bus to school, without an ipod.

We had to stay outside the entire time at recess, regardless of rain, snow, hail or sleet.

If baseball practice was canceled, we had to sit at the park and wait until it would have been over anyway, and Mom came to get us. Because Cell phones didn't exist.

When we went to the mall we had to be waiting on the curb at exactly the time we told our ride we would be there, otherwise our parents would call the police to report a missing child.

Pagers were the cool accessory in High school, don't ask me why.

We wrote reports and papers the old fashioned way, using the library and books. We actually had an assignment to use Google, and learn how to use the internet. I thought it was ridiculous, when it was so easy to walk over and use the card catalogue.

When I was a kid we had card catalogues.

When I was a kid we waited all week for the Saturday morning Cartoon binge, because cartoons were worth watching. Sometimes we were so TV starved we would watch the infomercials afterwards.

When I was a kid Remote controls didn't exist, or at least for our TV. If you wanted to change the channel you had to stand up, walk over and turn the nob, clicking through the static channels until you hit one of the 4 that came through clear. Same with the volume.

When I was a kid we bought cassette tapes and played them on boom-boxes.

We were fascinated with the new Laserdisc technology, and watched educational films in school on those giant CD's.

Phones were attached to the wall by 10 foot coil cords, and 3 way calling was the big thing.

That is, before caller ID came along and therefore the end of prank calls.

I don't ever remember sitting in a car seat, or a booster seat. I only vaguely remember my younger brother (10 years my junior) riding in one as an infant.

I remember visiting the NOVA site on the internet and playing the most pixely terribly animated games in the world, but it was amazing.

When I was a kid, if you wanted to hear a song, you had to call the radio station and request it, or if you wanted to know the name of a song, you had a call the radio station, sing a line or two and hope they could tell you.

In high school if you put $2 in the gas tank on the way to school it would actually get you somewhere.

Crazy how things change.

The weekend revisited.

This weekend we were bound and determined to suck up every ray of sun that was offered. Tyler and I spend the days landscaping and the girls made plenty of messes and ate their fare share of dirt and rocks.

Our landscaping involved tree disks, so Tyler spent awhile cutting up a tree he had felled earlier at his Grandmother's house, while I flew a kite and the girls ran through puddles.

These two ran back and forth through those puddles until there was hardly any water left.

Alex couldn't believe I was letting her get away with it.

It was a beautiful day, warm, but gusty enough to fly a kite. Alex was very excited at the kite idea, until she flew it and realized that unlike the cartoons, in real life kites don't actually make you fly. I caught on to this when she told me something about holding on tight to the kite string and not letting go until she was back on the ground.

Grandma's place is just beautiful.

It wasn't long before Heidi tripped, and then all hopes of staying dry went out the window. Alex was already soaked from all the splashing she had done.

I don't think Tyler could believe I was letting the kids get away with it.

Watching them reminded me of when I was a kid and the excitement that came with downpours, splashing through puddles, umbrellas and playing in the dirt.

Everyone had a good time.

Here's my logger, cutting up something special for me.

It was fun to daydream about all the things I could make with such pretty logs. Tyler did wonderfully at humoring me and trimming things to perfection. I'll post pictures later.

We drive around the dike a bit and Tyler snapped this wonderful picture. It was a great day.

I got a mini muffin pan for Mother's day and will admit that I'm addicted. Everything cooks in 10 minutes!!! Talk about instant gratification. Plus, a normal cake mix will make just about 50 mini cupcakes, enough to share with some neighbors and indulge more than you should. Alex helped. She has become quite a little helper in the kitchen, and not in a bad way. Heidi on the other hand discovered where I keep the pots and pans, and now can be found walking through the house with a frying pan in tow.

Tyler cut up some adorable little chairs for the kids! Heidi loves climbing on and off and standing up. Since they weigh 50 lbs there is no way she can tip them over when she stands up and rocks!!!

I've tried to get Alex to flip through the National Geographic subscriptions I ordered for Tyler's birthday. She could care less until she saw daddy reading on the couch. So she grabbed one, climbed up, and joined him. Precious.

We made good use of all the Dandelions Sunday and made Alex a crown.

Alex is very interested in the idea of gardening this year. She's been planting rocks though, so I think we need to have a lesson and give her a patch of dirt of her own.

Rain Rain Go Away

The weather in Provo has been taunting us for weeks. We get a few nice days and then a week of rain, over and over again. I've been dying to get out of the house and let the girls run wild in the backyard and finally on Saturday morning it happened.

We have a strip of gravel next to our driveway which we noticed last year grew these awful pokey balls of thorns. It caused quite a few tears from little barefoot neighborhood children, and I promised myself that this spring I would take care of them early.

Well, this year the little patch exploded! These things are EVERYWHERE! Tyler and I have been weeding like crazy to get rid of them before they dry out and cause problems. While we were on our knees brainstorming if there was a quicker way to do this, Tyler came up with the great idea of just digging up the gravel and planting some flowers instead! The Landlords approved the idea and so Saturday morning we started!

Tyler is a super hard worker, and if he is going to do something, he is going to do it right and do it nice. With this particular project, doing it right and nice ended up being a LOT of work. We had originally thought of building planter boxes, putting down a barrier and dumping fresh compost in. But because we don't really have 2 pennies to rub together we decided to dig the gravel out and replace it with different dirt. Tyler spent hours digging up the gravel, putting it in his Dad's truck, driving out to Grandma's property, dumping the gravel dirt and then digging a hole in the field to get some new dirt. Over and over. I'm exhausted just thinking about it.

The neighborhood kids loved it. Alex was in heaven and spent the day running around with handfuls of worms playing in the dirt.

The project probably still wouldn't be done, but we had some surprise helpers. My brother and sister in law came and put in a few hours work, watched the kids so we could go on a date in the afternoon and THEN took us out to dinner! Amaizing right?

Tyler's Dad let us use his truck and trailer and then helped Tyler do some digging. We even has some last minute compost donations from a great neighbor and Tyler's Dad, so our little garden strip looks super healthy and rich.

The only trick now is going to be planning what we want to plant and where. I can see us running off to the greenhouse and blowing our grocery budget on all the beautiful flowers and plants! I'm already set on Basil and green onions. We have a few packets of wildflowers to plant and with my mother's Day flowers, plus the ones Danielle gave us, we already have a few things in the ground.

There is just something so satisfying about growing and building and doing things with your hands. Last summer I spent a lot of time sitting in the yard with an infant on my lap, watching kids play. This summer I anticipate each day's agenda to be about the same, except I'm so excited at the prospect of playing in my garden while the kids run around and laugh. Once I eradicate the patches of prickly thorns that have spread to the yard in patches, I'm taking on the Dandelions. I'm wondering if it's been all the rain, but I've seem more Dandelions in Provo this year than ever before. So if anyone has any tips, i've got my work cut out for me!

Spring picture of the girls: Attempt 201

I love pictures, I love taking pictures, and I love being able to capture those perfect moments on camera. It's easier with a digital camera, but I've found it's hard to capture those moments, especially it seems with my own family.

I am cursed when it comes to family pictures, and it's because of this that I'm secretly plotting and saving up to hire a professional to take our family photo this year. Not just any professional, THIS lady. Something about her photographs are so whimsical and lovely like a fairy tale. I figure if I actually pay someone to take our pictures, they sort of have to deliver and get us at least one good shot to take home.

I tried to take the girls pictures today, I've actually been trying for weeks with NO success whatsoever. I dressed them up in white and took them outside, just the three of us.

This was the only moderately cute picture I got of the two of them.

Most turned out like this, neither child looking anywhere near the camera.

We got a few action shots. Thats an entire dandelion in Heidi's mouth.

Heidi rarely stands still anymore, and never obeys my commands to look at the camera.

I tried for candid.

This is how the shoot ended. Me losing my temper in the front yard, telling the kids to smile and look at the camera or else.

We moved things inside, and with the help of some marshmallows, I was able to get 1 cute picture of Alex. The only other time she smiled the entire shoot was when I told her it was over. She was so gleeful, if only my camera had been turned on.

Monday we went to Temple Square after Tyler interviewed with a Fire Department in SLC.

It rained and poured the entire visit.

Alex couldn't get enough of Jesus. She just sat there forever and then begged to go back again and again. It was the moment of the week.

I've decided to take a picture of the girls in front of every temple we see, and then display them on their bedroom wall. So far we have Vancouver Canada, Seattle Washington and Salt Lake City UT. So far in every picture it is raining.

I tried to get Heidi to model the new bib I made her. It's wonderful, it covers her from neck to navel and all the way to the sleeves. Plus she can't rip it off! You can find the pattern HERE.

Birthday cakefest

Try as I might, I just couldn't cut it down to one picture of Heidi destroying her cake. That is the problem when you take 200 pictures of your child on their birthday, how to you choose?!

We celebrated Heidi's birthday twice. Tuesday, the actual day, we played, slept, ate her favorite foods and then when Daddy got home we celebrated!

Macey's grocery store offers a free birthday cake on your child's 1st birthday! I didn't plan on cashing in, but we were at Macey's, and we walked right by the counter, so I couldn't help it. Poor Alex had a blueberry muffin with dyed whipped cream for her first birthday, Heidi got to destroy and entire cake.

Before we did cake, Alex helped Heidi open all her presents.

I was so proud of her, we has spent days talking about how it was HEIDI'S birthday, and so Alex would not be getting any gifts. It must have sunken in because she was very well behaved.

Heidi didn't care much for most of her gifts. Alex was more excited about the great book we got her.

She was mildly entertained by the wooden bead toy, but what she LOVED, was the plastic rake Alex picked out specifically for her, after looking at every possible toy, and spending 30 minutes at the doller store. I couldn't believe it, it was all Heidi wanted to play with. Alex knows her sister better than any of us.

Heidi was a bit confused as to our intentions. We usually keep big, potentially messy foods away from her at the table.

Alex helped out, showing her the deliciousness that awaited.

Heidi tried to play the "cake" game. Dropping a handful of frosting onto the floor to see if gravity still worked. It did.

This was the moment when I realized that letting Alex pick out the chocolate cake with green frosting might have been a bad idea. You will see why.

Heidi as a pirate.

Alex couldn't believe we were letting Heidi make such a big mess, and wanted in on it.

This might be the best moment of Heidi's life thus far.

We couldn't sit by and watch her waste the cake anymore, so we cut ourselves pieces and gave Heidi a chunk as well.

She was in heaven.

Turns out when you have a chocolate cake, with chocolate, light pink and green frosting, it makes your child look like you painted her camouflage when she is done. I thought it looked army, Tyler said it looked like poop. Either way, not quite what I had pictured when I thought of a cute frosting smeared first birthday picture.

Wednesday we celebrated Heidi's birthday all day long and in the evening had a party with the family. Here is Heidi with her rake.

I still can't believe she is one year old!

I helped Heidi open her gifts from the family, she got all sort of wonderful things, adorable outfits, books, toys and a movie! Alex was in heaven! My sister in laws mother, who we visited in Canada, got the girls these cute bunnies. They are so soft, the girls love them! This is the face Heidi gets every single time she sees that bunny.

I made cupcakes for desert.

This was my chance for a cute, colorful birthday picture.

Alex loves cupcakes.

It was fun celebrating the birth of our wonderful little girl! She is growing up way too fast.