Just hanging out...

Meanwhile back at home...

This is what we have been doing... Dragon potty training.  Ugh.  Might as well be training dragons.  We started on Monday August 12th and deemed 100% successful on September 22nd.  Good thing I read "Toilet Training in Less Than a Day"...  6 weeks is pretty close.  Actually, he got down the peeing in about 3 days or so.  The first day was full of apple juice and taking him to the potty every 20-30 minutes.  He didn't do too bad that first day.  The 2nd day was awful.  The 3rd day was significantly better.  He almost had the peeing down by the end of the week.  He would NOT poop on the potty, unless we happened to catch him working on it.  He did #2 a couple of times when we put him on there.  He got to pick out a toy the first time he pooped in the potty, hoping that would be motivation to do it again.  However, for the next 5 weeks, we changed poopy underwear.  It was so frustrating.  Weston got so accustomed to seeing me dump out and swish the underwear in the potty that he started doing that on his own.  There were times when he came to me completely naked, with a guilty look on his face, wanting me to help him clean up.  I said, "Oh no. Where are your underwear?"  "In the trash," he said.  One time he rinsed them out, getting water all over the bathroom, and then threw his underwear in the trash.  I was starting to think that he thought rinsing out his underwear was the standard procedure.  

Next we tried rinsing him off in the cold shower, kindly saying that he was dirty and had to be cleaned off.  He didn't like that at all, but it wasn't enough to keep him from going in his pants again.  Luckily we only had one outing where he went poop in his pants.  I had an errand with Owen, Weston, and Savannah to K-Mart.  I asked as soon as we got there if he needed to go potty.  We had been at the park just before that, so I figured he might need to go.  He said no, even after I asked a couple of times.  I didn't insist that he try to go.  Five to ten minutes later, he had pooped in his pants.  Ugh.  I hadn't brought the diaper bag in, so we headed back out to the car.  I switched Savannah to the stroller and had Owen push her around.  We wheeled Weston in the cart back to the bathroom.  We waited about 10 minutes for the big stall and then got Weston changed.  I talked to him sternly through clenched teeth, expressing my frustration, trying to hold myself together in the public restroom.  Chucked the dirty underwear in the trash on the way out.  Not fun.  

Two days later, he said he needed to go poop.  He went to the potty and did his business and hasn't had an accident since.  I guess he just needed to decide to do it.  He got to pick out another toy.  The first time he picked out a blue dragon from "How to Train Your Dragon" and he wanted another one.  He chose the green one - I think it's named Gronckle?  Weston talks about "my Cronkle".  He hasn't had any problems through the night, and he goes on his own when he wakes up in the morning.  Most of the day he doesn't need help either except for going #2.  Sometimes when we're outside, he takes the liberty of just going wherever he is... he pulled his pants down at the park the other day right in front of other people.  Sigh.... That's Alex's fault for letting him go in the backyard...  

Anyway, I am so happy we have moved past diapers and potty-training for him (hopefully he doesn't have any more accidents...)   

Four down.  One left to go... the end of diapers is in sight.  Potty-training is still one of the worst things ever.

So... there was one day early on in our potty training adventures when I walked in to Weston's room.  There was pee on the floor with his animals all lined up around it... apparently he pulled his pants down and peed on the floor, and then thought that his animals needed "water"...  

"Weston, why did you do that?!" 

"My animals were thirsty."  

Nice...

Thankful for wood floor!  Highly recommended for parents with young kids.

What Alex has been doing...

One of Alex's trips was back in May.  The jeep was their transportation while on the island.  Alex said the road was pretty scary (narrow) in places.  They found a Chumash skull while out there - they left it in place for the archaeologists to check out.  He took another trip in August.  Rough job.  Someone has to do it though.  :)    

One of my favorite times of the year...

The summer really wasn't too bad, but I was glad for school to start again.  I like the routine, and there is less fighting during the day.  Nathan and Jared got new backpacks, new shoes, and a couple of new shirts and shorts.  They got to pick out their clothes, and they both picked these bright sports clothes.  I guess the neon is the latest fad?  I don't really care, as long as they're comfortable.  Besides, the shoes will only last a couple of months... we go through those fast.

Nathan and Jared both seem to like their teachers.  Nathan has 2 teachers again this year.  One comes on MTW, and the other on ThF.  Jared has a new teacher to the school - she seems to be a good.  They both have a pretty appropriate homework requirement so far.  Reading time and about 20 minutes of work M-F. Both of the boys were disappointed that their best buddies are in a different class this year.  However, they do see them at lunch, recess, and in GATE class (gifted & talented).  Nathan qualified for GATE due to getting a 100% on the math on the standardized test.  He did really well on the other areas too.  Good job Nathan!  Nathan comes home talking about what happened in "the game".  He loves playing sports.  Often I find he hasn't eaten all his lunch, which for Nathan means a lot.  He is usually the one to clean up whatever is left on anyone's plate after dinner.  That just tells me that he is so eager to play sports at recess that he doesn't want to take time to eat.  Nathan chows down when he gets home from school.  It's not uncommon for him to eat a whole container of raspberries or blueberries, plus an apple, goldfish, and bread & butter.  
Jared comes home talking about lunch - being able to talk to his good buddies.  They both love lunch/recess.  Can't blame them!  I liked those things too.  Jared also loves art.  He seems to have a more artistic side.  Nathan and Jared love school, and I love how independent they are.  They prepare their own lunch and snack, and they walk to and from school together.

Owen and Weston are also doing a little joy school at the home of a couple of ladies from church.  They go on Monday and Friday from 9-11.  They both love it, and it is a nice little break for me with just Savannah.  It's especially valuable time when Alex is out of town.  You better believe I use every minute of those 2 hours productively!

Hooray for school!  And hooray for good teachers and friends teaching my boys! 

Swimming lessons

Nathan, Jared, and Owen took one week of private swimming lessons the week before school started.  They all need more practice, but they all did well on their level.  Of course Owen was just excited to have a pretty girl helping him... he said he was glad that he had a girl teacher.  I think she was happy to work with him too - he's quite the charmer.  Most of the time he just had a big grin on his face and excited about swimming.  

And here is the swimming lesson cheer squad...

Weston was bored.  Luckily we only had to hang out for about an hour.  Savannah did pretty well - she enjoys being outside.   

more cousin time!

We enjoyed a quick visit from Mike, Carrie, Nicholas, Ryan, Cheerio the Westie dog, and their pet bird (can't remember its name).  It's always a crazy fun time when these kids get together!  

Alex's new hobby

Alex has been busy this summer - canning, freezing, and drying things from our yard and garden.  He canned applesauce, peaches, salsa, stewed tomatoes, grape jelly, plum & apricot jam, dried apricots, and froze zucchini and squash.  I think he has done 6 more jars of stewed tomatoes since this picture was taken.  I don't know if he particularly enjoys the work to do it, but I know he is proud of the results.  It feels good to bottle up your own food and not see your produce go to waste.  Well, at least not for another year... will we eat our canned items?  I tend to forget about them...

Getting bigger and bigger...

When we got back from vacation, we had a huge zucchini waiting for us - biggest one I have ever seen.

Savannah found her toes!  And she finally figured out how to roll from her back to her tummy.  She is not too interested in sitting up, although she can at times.  She's a bit behind in her motor development, but she's getting there.  She may not want to sit up much, but she does have 4 teeth... 

I guess she may be lounging around, but eating hamburgers by one year old...

last hurrah in UT

After leaving Ashley's place, we had one more day with Alison.  I shared part of that day with one of my college friends, Beth, who I hadn't seen in 13-15 years.  I can't believe it's been that long since college!  Beth and I became friends my freshman year of college.  She was at OSU for a couple of years (maybe even only 1.5 years?) and then headed to BYU.  We weren't roommates - not even in the same dorm.  And we didn't have any classes together.  We met through church, and I am happy that we still share that in common.  Although I only got to hang out with Beth for less than 2 years, she was one of those people who make a lasting impact on you in a short amount of time.  Beth is a fascinating girl - I love her genuine personality and how friendly and accepting she is of everyone.  I was really shy - still shy now, but not nearly as much as I was when I got to college.  Beth didn't seem to mind.  She was outgoing enough for the both of us.  She called me to hang out, get chocolate banana malts at this place on campus, work out at the gym, or eat meals in the cafeteria.  Beth had lots of friends, and I couldn't believe how easy it was for her to talk to people.  She could talk to anyone and overlook any faults as well.  In my English class, we had to pick a person and write about them.  I chose Beth, because she was just a really cool person.  I bet I still have that paper somewhere... 

Anyway, Beth moved to UT before Alex got back to OSU, so he never really knew her.  We went to her wedding reception - she got married the same year as us, in 2000.  That was the last time I have seen her.  (I think the last time we were hanging out at OSU was in 1998.)  I lost track of her after she moved, and didn't find her again until a year ago, on FaceBook.  

It just worked out that we were able to squeeze in a quick visit during our Utah vacation.  It was great to see her and meet her kids (at least 3 of them).  She has 3 girls and 1 boy, nearly the same age as my kids.  (Her oldest girl was sick that day, so we didn't get to meet her.)  Beth and I are both stay-at-home "Mormon" moms - both of us still active in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and love our jobs as moms.  Beth is still just as outgoing and beautiful as I remember.  It was fun to see our kids together - although they didn't really interact that much... boys play with girls??  Eww. Girls.  Ha ha.  Weston had a buddy...

We took a fun short hike to a little waterfall (I think sometimes it's fuller than when we saw it).  The kids enjoyed playing in the water.  The hike had these logs and bridges to walk across along the way.  Just right.    

    

I found and scanned the few pictures I had of Beth and me, from my scrapbook.  We didn't take pictures back then like we do now...  they're a little blurry and with scratches, but they're all I've got. 

Beth probably has never seen these... 

 (Jerushia is in this one.  She was one of my roommates - another good college friend.)

Alison didn't mind sharing the day (at least I don't think she did).  We had a fun little group for our outing.  Alison and Beth discovered mutual acquaintances.  

I love how adventuresome Dallin and Emmy are - such active little minds.  Fun day!  

We went out to eat that evening with Alison & Micah, followed by movie & popcorn.  Thanks for letting us stay and hang out with you!  We had a great time!