Our Family Here on Earth

Daniel's big day

2011-04-18T21:07:00.006-06:00

We went to court with Daniel today, and yes, if you are thinking that the judge looks vaguely familiar, its because he is the same judge that we saw in October with Isaac. Always great to know that things are final, as far as the courts are concerned, but then again, it really doesn't change our relationship or how we do things. Besides, all the pomp and circumstance lasts for all of ten minutes!

This is our wonderful social worker, Morgan. We have gotten to know her, or should I say, that she has gotten to know us very well. We will miss seeing her every few months. She loved our boys.

Here is our lively family. Never a dull moment, or a calm picture.

(And just so you can relate to our crazy life, here is an inside look into our family....)

Isaac woke up this morning with a very gooey eye. Fearing that it was pink eye (yuck), I called the doctor. So running to the doctor became my new morning activity. I gathered our "court clothes" and made a mad dash for town. At this time I started to think I had over reacted and why was I doing this.

Isaac was diagnosed with pink eye and also double ear infections. Really? And here I thought I was over-reacting. After leaving the office I called to let Mat know what we found out. Because of time, we were in the process of figuring out who was going to pick up children from school and where we were going to meet up. Before those pertinent facts were decided, my phone battery died. Ugh!!!!! Do you ever wonder how we survived before cell phones? Amazingly enough, we met up, everyone changed into their "court clothes", with nothing forgotten and left at home, and we even made it to court on time.

At the end of a crazy day, I look back and laugh about all that goes on and what we survive. But I am so grateful for families and the many blessings that a loving Heavenly Father has given to me and to our family.

A touching poem

2011-04-17T20:41:00.004-06:00

Just the Same

by Diana Lynn Lacey

Ensign April 2011

Sometimes-

God sends rain

Straight from the sky

To nourish the young flower

and it grows.

Sometimes-

God sends rain from the sky

To the mountaintops,

Then over hills and through valleys

Until it reaches the flower

and it grows, just the same.

Sometimes-

God sends a child

Straight from His realm

Into a mother's arms

and love grows.

Sometimes-

God sends a child

From heaven to another's arms,

Then over hills and through valleys

Until he reaches the arms of his mother

and love grows, just the same.

What's Up?

2011-03-28T21:22:00.002-06:00

Someone added a hat to Daniel's head. It was several minutes before I noticed, and he didn't seem to mind at all. And yes, if you are thinking he is rather rolly polly, you would be correct. Six months younger than his brother, but as of today, only one pound seperates the happy and much loved brothers.

Isaac turns 1 year old!

2011-03-26T21:31:00.000-06:00

Can you believe it? Time has sure flown by!

Having his first taste of Creamy.

Realizing that he doesn't like frozen sugary items.

Enjoying presents.

Loves the oversized ball.

Isaac's New Look

2011-03-05T09:41:00.000-07:00

So for awhile we have been thinking of cutting Isaac's hair. We had thought that we might try and keep with tradition/culture and not cut his hair until he was a year old. We almost made it!

Here is a picture of it all matted up and rather bad looking....

Here is Isaac after his bath and his hair all combed out, notice the bald spots running down both sides of his head? Natural mohawk!

And finally his new look....

I have to admit that it has taken me about a week to adjust to his new look, but he looks so much better, and just look at that adorable face!

Washington DC Trip

2011-02-13T21:15:00.008-07:00

Recently Joseph and I had the opportunity to visit Washington DC. We had a great time and were able to visit many sites. Joseph picked out most of the places that we went and had a great time. He had so much fun riding the subway, taking a taxi for the first time, staying in a hotel and visiting lots of historic sites. Here are a few of our pictures along the way.

We visited several Smithsonian Museums (did you know there are 19 museums?). This is the Museum of Natural History, by far Joseph's favorite, and his next favorite was the Postal Museum.

This is Arlington Cemetery. I have seen pictures, but this was incredible. Do you know that they still bury people here? Between 18-22 people a day. We even saw a black wagon with black matching horses with a coffin in the back. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and also the graves of President Kennedy and his wife and two children are located here. It was freezing cold but well worth the visit.

Now we come to the reason of why we came to DC. This is my little brother David and his beautiful wife Betsy. David has been back East for the last five months. He graduated from his training and my parents and my siblings all were able to attend his graduation.

He was voted by his classmates to talk at graduation. He gave an excellent talk and we are all very proud of him. Congratulations David, we are so glad that we were able to be there with you.

Look-a-like

2011-01-09T21:06:00.001-07:00

Look closely at the hair ... what (in)famous celebrity does he resemble?

From Our Family Here on Earth

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.

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First name Mister. Second name Period. Third name...T!

Eating habits

2011-01-09T20:59:00.001-07:00

Issac has learned at an early age the importance of eating vegetables:

From Our Family Here on Earth

We all love a good apple pie, especially when our friend Sarah comes over to bake the pie (with the help of her assistants):

From Our Family Here on Earth

The power of the Book of Mormon

2010-12-05T20:32:00.001-07:00

A counselor in our bishopric served as a missionary in Taiwan many years ago. He shared an experience about a fifteen year old girl who read the Book of Mormon and wanted to be baptized. Her father was a Baptist preacher that led a congregation of approximately seven hundred people. Being a preacher was not just a religious expression, but it was also his livelihood. He would not give permission for her to be baptized. As her birthday approached, she told her father that the only birthday gift she desired was for him to read the Book of Mormon. He had great disinterest in reading the Book of Mormon, but after her persistence, he reluctantly agreed. He read the book in a short time and was overcome by the Spirit that testified to him of the truthfulness of the book. After reading the Book of Mormon and feeling its power, he stood before his congregation and testified of his experience. He then opened his pulpit to the mission president and missionaries, who proceeded to teach the gospel to the congregation. Over five hundred members of that congregation were eventually baptized because of the faith of a young girl and the power of the Book of Mormon.

Just for fun...

2010-12-01T20:40:00.002-07:00

Here are some recent pictures.....

Daniel....seven weeks old

He's already showing personality..

Isaac...eight months old

It has been snowing here ALOT, one day recently the horses were running around like crazy. I tried to get some good action shots, but it was way to cold to be standing outside, so these were taken through the window. Notice the snow? We now have about 18-20 inches of snow. It will definitely be a white Christmas.

By small and not-so-simple things

2010-11-07T20:23:00.007-07:00

We had a visitor at church today who stood and shared an experience that was very moving. His name is Ernie and he is from the Ivory Coast in Western Africa. He now lives in Logan with his wife. They have seven children, but only the youngest few are still at home. Ernie works as a janitor at Mountain Crest high school, as well as another job in the evening.

Many years ago, Ernie and his family lived in the Ivory Coast. Ernie was a college professor and also owned ten different restaurants in the city. They had a large home and several nice automobiles (with drivers). They lived near several other family members, including Ernie’s parents whom they helped in various ways. They were very well off and they were quite happy with their lives. Ernie had a friend, Charles, who decided that he wanted to go to the United States. Ernie wished Charles the best, but indicated that he had no desire to go to the United States. He was quite happy with his life and family in the Ivory Coast. Charles went to the U.S. Embassy to apply for a visa to enter the United States. While completing the application, Charles felt like he should also apply for a visa for Ernie. Unbeknownst to Ernie, Charles obtained a second application and filled in Ernie’s information.

Weeks passed, and Charles finally received notice about his visa application. He visited Ernie and explained that his own visa application had been declined. Charles then proceeded to tell Ernie that he had completed a second application for Ernie, which had been accepted. Ernie had been granted a visa to enter the United States without any knowledge of or desire to obtain the visa. Ernie explained to Charles the he did not want to go to the United States. He did not speak English, nor did his family, and they had no reason to go to the United States. Charles replied that he did not know why he had completed the application for Ernie, but had felt something prompting him to do so.

Ernie explained the situation to his family and they all agreed that they wanted to stay in the Ivory Coast. They had many blessings and a comfortable life and were not at all interested in going to the United States. Ernie’s parents were aging and need help, and his sister was ill. It was important for them to stay with their family. Ernie continued to think about the visa and wondered why Charles had filled out the application. After a few weeks, Ernie’s family was having family home evening and discussed the story of Lehi in the Book of Mormon. Lehi led his family out of their comfortable circumstances, even though some of them really did not want to leave. Ernie mentioned this to his family, but they replied simply that Ernie was not Lehi and they reaffirmed their desire to stay in the Ivory Coast. Shortly thereafter, Ernie had a dream that left an indelible impression upon him. He still did not know why, but he knew that he needed to take his family to the United States. Ernie soon bought tickets for himself, his wife, and his children to come to the United States. The only person they knew in the entire United States was a missionary that they had come to know in Ivory Coast. This man was living in Salt Lake City, so Ernie called him and explained the situation. The man offered to have Ernie and his family stay at his home. With much trepidation, Ernie and his family boarded a plane and began their journey to the United States – leaving all that they knew and loved behind.

The family had a difficult time adjusting to a new country, a new language, and a new culture. None of them spoke English, and they were very discouraged and lonely. On more than one occasion, Ernie found his wife and children in tears wishing that they could return to their home in the Ivory Coast. Ernie felt sorrow for their despair, but he knew that, despite their challenges, the Lord wanted them in the United States. It was only a short time later that Ernie received news that a civil war had begun in the Ivory Coast. His parents and sister had been killed, and much of their city had been destroyed. Had Ernie and his family dismissed the prompting to move, they also would have been killed. Ernie immediately knew that the Lord had led his family from destruction to salvation. They continued to have challenges, but they now knew that they were in the right place and that the Lord had blessed them immensely. They still do not have all of the material things that they had in the Ivory Coast. But they are alive and they have each other and they have a knowledge that the Lord loves them.

The Lord works is small and mysterious ways to bring about much righteousness. We need to be willing to receive blessings from the Lord, even if doing so means that we experience some discomfort. We do not understand all things, but we need to have faith in the Lord and lean not unto our own understanding. Ernie is a great example of faith and courage.

A Name and other exciting events

2010-10-24T21:22:00.005-06:00

The official release of version 6 is:

Daniel JaKwaun Edward

(Yes it is a bit unusual, but sometimes situations call
for a bit of compromise, and this is one such time!)

Notice the tongue, he really does keep it out like that most of the time.

We came home and this little guy has learned the army crawl! He doesn't do it very often on his own, but his siblings sure like to tease him and when that happens he can sure crawl a long way!

Here is our first picture taken with all the children. Daniel is almost a week old.

This is what our children do on a Saturday afternoon, in the rain. They put on
winter coats, life vests, goggles, and hats. As accessories they carry around
floating devices and marshmallow guns. And don't forget Joseph's wings!

By small and simple things

2010-10-14T09:40:00.002-06:00

Here is an excerpt from a favorite poem entitled The Weaver (author unknown):

Not til the loom is silent
And the shuttles cease to fly,
Shall God unroll the canvas
And explain the reason why.

As we look back at the last few weeks of our lives, this verse rings particularly true for us. A few weeks ago, we traveled to Louisiana planning to adopt a baby. Within hours after we learned that the birth mother was planning to keep the baby, we received word about another baby that needed a home. Given our recent experience, we decided not to say anything about it to anyone - not really sure what might happen. The baby was supposedly due on November 4th in Dallas, so we thought we had a few weeks to think about it. But, much to our surprise, we got a call on Monday (Oct. 11th) saying that the baby had been born at 2:37 AM that morning. We were still recovering from our family festivities last weekend, but we packed as quickly as we could and flew to Dallas Tuesday morning.

The birth mother's name is Tamika, and she is a great person. We spent time with her on Tuesday and much of the day Wednesday. Despite her love for the baby, she is not able to provide a stable family life for him. She signed papers yesterday and placed the baby with us. We are so excited to have him in our family. He is a tiny baby boy - he was 5 lbs. 6 oz. at birth and 5 lbs. 1 oz when released from the hospital.

We are still working on a name, so stay tuned ...

Families can be together forever

2010-10-09T19:52:00.004-06:00

On Monday, we went to the court house and Isaac was added to our family by legal authority.

On Saturday, we went to the Lord's house and Isaac was sealed to our family by priesthood authority.

What a Day!

2010-10-04T22:24:00.000-06:00

This little guy is officially ours!

Aren't they cute?

We went to court today and went through the official proceedings.
The people who are not familiar to you are the judge and the lawyer.

Such interesting questions that the lawyer asks: mainly to me and then they ask Mat if he heard, and if he agrees. Some of the questions I was asked were:

If the baby has been in my home six months
If I am at least 21 years of age and ten years older than the child (ha, ha)
Are we (individually) capable of providing (emotionally and physically) for the child
If Mat is willing to agree to the adoption (like it was all my doing!)
In the event of divorce or death, that we are still to provide for this child
Do we feel like we have established a bond of love and affection for this child, and other such interesting questions.

A picture of our happy family!

Afterwards we went to a well known local restaurant and had
THE SINK.
It was great fun. The adults had lunch and the kids gorged
themselves on ice cream. This thing must of been at least
ten inches tall with ice cream and toppings.

They ate and ate and ate........

and then they were sick.....

yet they kept coming back for more, and eventually
resorted to eating strait out of the sink!
They never did finish it completely but they sure enjoyed themselves.

It has been a great day. We look forward to this weekend when we
are able to take Isaac to the temple and make him eternally ours.

There's no place like home

2010-09-27T20:59:00.000-06:00

We talked to the birth mother and the agency again this morning. The birth mother has decided to keep the baby. While we are disappointed, Katie and I both support her in that decision. We wish her and the baby the best. We have no regrets about how things have worked out. Since we are not going to get the baby, we decided to come home as soon as possible. We drove from Shreveport to Dallas then flew back to Salt Lake City.

On the flight home, I was reading the April General Conference Ensign and read Elder James B. Martino's talk entitled "All Things Work Together for Good". In this talk, Elder Martino says:

We may never know in this life why we face what we do, but we can feel confident that we can grow from the experience.

We are not sure yet what all we are supposed to learn from this experience, but are grateful for the opportunity.

We got our baby...

2010-09-27T07:22:00.005-06:00

....just not the one we were expecting!

Its rather fun to go into Walmart down here and see lots of black baby dolls. This one doesn't look to girly.

On an even lighter note, I had promised my children some pictures and these are what we have.

This picture is for Joseph, he has been fascinated with golf carts and this one has four benches! Imagine the possibilities! It was parked out in front of the hospital.

This is our rental car. Rather nice I must admit. I was telling Mat that if we ever try this adoption process again, we just might end up with a Lexus or Mercedes. The cars just keep getting nicer!

Yesterday we took a bit of a road trip to see Aunt Betsy and these cute guys. At first Harrison wanted nothing to do with us. After a while, as you can tell, he couldn't stay away from us.

Benjamin was lots of fun and is starting to say a lot more words. It was alot of fun to see them and we hope that all goes well with you in the next several months. Thanks Betsy for a great afternoon.

Mat and I are doing well. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers and we will keep you posted with what is happening.

Lean not unto thine own understanding

2010-09-25T18:59:00.000-06:00

We spent most of the day with the birth mom and the baby at the hospital. We got to hold him and got to know her a little bit. She is having a hard time making the decision whether or not to place the baby with us or to keep him. She was discharged from the hospital this afternoon and ended up taking the baby with her. She cannot sign adoption papers until Monday, so she is going to keep him at least until Monday and make the decision. Katie and I have done a lot of talking and said a lot of prayers. We are still hopeful that she will place the baby with us, but we realize it is her decision. We tried to encourage her to make the decision that she feels is right. She asked how long we will be here and says she will call us soon. So, we do not know whether we will come home with the baby, but we do feel peace about the situation. Either she will end up keeping the baby and we'll know that we did all that we could, or she will end up placing the baby with us and she'll know it was her decision. At this point, all we can do is pray and hope for the best. We appreciate any thoughts and prayers you may have on our behalf and hers.

Over the river and through the woods

2010-09-24T20:45:00.000-06:00

The flight from Salt Lake City to Dallas was fairly uneventful - which is good as far as flights go :). We rented a car, ate lunch with Katie's brother, then motored our way across eastern Texas and into Louisiana. There are a lot of trees here ... I like trees. We have not yet had the opportunity to communicate with the birth mother directly; all communication has been through the agency. That being the case, we did not quite make contact with her tonight (we made it as far as the hospital parking lot). We look forward to meeting her and the baby tomorrow.

Our new addition!

2010-09-24T07:49:00.003-06:00

We have a new baby! On the 25th of August we received a phone call from our adoption agency. They inquired as to how life was going for us and if it was crazy enough. My reply was that I like to refer to life as "organized chaos"! Our agent then told us about a baby boy that was due in two and a half weeks in Louisiana. As you can imagine the last couple of weeks have been crazy. We were told that the birth mother was due on the 14th of September and with her previous pregnancy she was a week early. So we have been expecting her to come early and then she was late! Not just a day or two late, but eight days late and then they did an emergency c-section. The baby was born on Wednesday. Yesterday, being Thursday, we found out he was 6 lbs. 2 oz. We have had to wait for approval from the agency before we could leave. So here it is Friday morning and we are sitting at the airport waiting for a flight to Dallas and then we will rent a car and drive the rest of the way. As we find out more info we will let you know, and of course post pictures when we have them.

My Favorite new thing to suck.....

2010-09-05T21:47:00.002-06:00

Jacob's new way to play piano...

2010-09-03T18:53:00.001-06:00

First Day of School

2010-08-26T16:05:00.002-06:00

Isaac and Spencer waiting for the bus.

Jacob and Matalyn waiting for the bus.

Jacob's first day of 1st grade.

Matalyn's first day of 4th grade.

Joseph's first day of Middle School, 6th grade, picture taken at 6:45 am.

So once again school has started.
The children are all excited to start,
so we hope that we will have a great school year

2010-07-15T16:47:00.001-06:00

Jacob and Joseph at Bear Lake

A few pictures

2010-07-13T18:23:00.000-06:00

Here are a few pictures of Isaac (and Spencer) from Grandma W:

Satuday activities...

2010-05-15T21:28:00.001-06:00

We began the day with soccer, the last games of the season, then we did a few chores around the house, this is how Isaac spent his chore time....Notice his cute hat? Thanks to Aunt Betsy.

Then we went down to Grandma H's, afterwards we took a short walk around the lake. There is a really nice path around it now. The kids had a great time and Jacob is so excited to go fishing. It was a beautiful day and we are looking forward to nice weather!

Soccer, Soccer, and more Soccer..

2010-05-12T21:04:00.000-06:00

We have spent many hours at soccer games the last six weeks. We have three children playing, and they each have two games a week. That means six hours a week at soccer games. Over all the weather has been great this year, usually we have lots of snow and cold but not this year, thank goodness.

This is generally how Isaac spent his time...sleeping :)

New pictures

2010-04-25T22:03:00.001-06:00

I have added a few more pictures, so scroll down and enjoy. Some are pictures of seeing Justin and then the post just before that.

A few more pictures

2010-04-18T22:12:00.001-06:00

We have been sparse on pictures lately, so here are a few more to catch up.

All dressed, hair done, and ready for church.

One of these kids is really sleeping, the other two are just pretending ... can you tell which is which?

Jacob thought Isaac might like to try his 3-D dinosaur glasses ... they make you dream in 3-D.

Thanks, Help Desk

2010-04-18T21:53:00.001-06:00

Isaac received a gift from the best Help Desk I've ever worked with.

Hhm ... what is this ...

... a gift? for me? Can I open it? ...

... thanks for the gifts, Help Desk!

Have you wondered where we have been?

2010-04-11T21:03:00.003-06:00

So have you checked repeatedly to find out how we are doing? Have you been disappointed that there have been no new updates? Well, now I remember why I haven't kept up on my blog! Being home and having four other children, well, there is a lot to do in life and unfortunately, keeping my blog up to date, is not really high on my priority list. Sure I want to, but it just doesn't happen:) Does anybody else struggle with this? Or is it just a personal thing? But never fear, I am going to try and update you on the last couple days of our trip and then continue to tell you how life is going with our new addition.

We have really appreciated your love and support during this entire process.

Baby Doll

2010-04-09T09:50:00.001-06:00

Remember the doll that I mentioned earlier, that Kenya bought for us? Well, here is a picture of the doll. The doll measures 13 inches long. Just an idea of the size of Isaac!

Home Again

2010-04-03T20:04:00.003-06:00

The paperwork is going faster than expected, and we were able to come back to Utah. Our original return flight ended up not working out, so Scot was very generous and used his frequent flier miles to help us get home. We were able to fly first class (I've never done that before, it was nice) and we had a layover in Dallas so we got to see Justin and Hallie, Katie's brother and his daughter.

We arrived in Salt Lake about 3 PM. We had a few family members there to meet us and of course meet Isaac. Not alot of pictures were taken, but here are a few....

We will probably not be back to our own home for a few more days (we are visiting family), but it is nice to be back with our kids.

2010-04-02T21:30:00.001-06:00

Really tired. More tomorrow.

Day Nine: Meeting up with old friends

2010-04-02T21:13:00.001-06:00

Today we took a trip to Lancaster County, Pennslyvania. It is well known for the Amish community. This was also the area that made the news a couple of years ago, when the man went into the school house and killed several students. We met up with an old roommate of Mat's from college. Gary and his wife Chantel and children traveled from Maryland to meet us for lunch.

We ate lunch at a family style restaurant (http://www.goodnplenty.com/). It was amazing food and so much of it! We all literally waddled out the door. It was wonderful, and it just kept coming!

We had a great time visiting, in the last ten years, we have seen them twice. We followed them through the country side and enjoyed the sites. I loved the clean farms that they had. It was beautiful country. The horse drawn buggies were fun to see driving down the road, and then the small children that were dressed in simple and cute clothes, complete with hats and bonnets. I wonder how I would do living in a time like that?

On the way back to Philadelphia, we spend a good part of the trip on the phone trying to figure out how we were going to make it home. We were able to use my brother David's buddy passes on the way out. But due to Spring Break and the airlines weekend ban on buddy passes, and my brother changing jobs, we were stranded for an undetermined amount of time. But not to fear, we used more family connections and Mat's brother Scot was very generous and let us use some of his numerous flight miles to get home. As much as he travels I am sure that he has a few extra. Thank you Scot, for being very generous and allowing us to return home with very little expense involved.

We ended the day by going to dinner with Kenya and her son Jamir. We went to a Chinese buffet, one of Kenya's favorites. She brought her four year old son with her. He was really quiet for awhile, but soon Mat had him laughing and having a good time. At this point, Jamir does not realize that he is a big brother to this adorable baby boy. Hopefully later on in life Kenya will tell him and there will be no hard feelings. This picture was adorable with the three of them together. Kenya held Isaac the entire time, fed him, and yes, changed his clothes twice, since he kept peeing through everything. The picture was taken during one of those naked times.

We then went across the parking lot to Walmart and bought a black baby doll. Kenya probably thought I was a bit weird, wanting a doll for a baby, but black baby dolls are rather hard to find here in Utah. (More to come about the doll.) She wanted to pay for the doll, which we let her do. We walked out to the car and Kenya buckled Isaac in, kissed him on the forehead and turned and we parted ways. To say it was a bit heart breaking is a bit of an understatement. We were glad that she had Jamir with her to keep her busy. We are so grateful for Kenya and her generosity. She is a wonderful person and we hope to keep in contact with her in the years to come.

0.4 score days into our trip (i.e. day eight)

2010-04-01T19:50:00.004-06:00

Isaac and Mat

The three of us: Mat, Isaac (in the baby sling), and Katie

When we were discharged from the hospital on Sunday, the nurse told us to bring Isaac to the pediatrician's office today at 8:45 am for a follow up appointment. We had already planned to take Isaac to see our pediatrician in Logan, but Kenya wanted to go with us to this appointment, so we went ahead and went to the appointment. In order to avoid commuter traffic we awoke at a not-so-bright-and-early 5:00am and left the house at 6:00am. We arrived at the hospital before 7:00am, so we had time to go to the cafeteria for some breakfast. Some things came up for Kenya, so she did not come with us. We went to the pediatrician's office early to checkin. Upon arriving, we were told that they had no record of our appointment. We were also told that they would not see the baby if we could not provide custody/adoption papers. We do not currently have the papers, but our agent did email me some of the paperwork late last night. So I told the receptionist that I had the paperwork on my computer and tried to show her. She said it would work if they had a hardcopy, so I emailed the file to her. She tried opening it on her computer to print it, but it wouldn't open. She sent it to someone else, who also couldn't open it. After three of them tried, we finally asked if we could cancel the appointment and see our pediatrician when we get back home. So, it was probably the quickest doctor appointment we have ever had :)

After the appointment (and a trip to Kinkos to print/fax paperwork), I went to visit Peter Guy at Golder Associates (one of EarthSoft's clients). I visited with him for a couple of hours, then Katie and I (and Isaac) spent the afternoon at Independence Hall and thereabouts. We had several comments on how cute he is and asking how old is. As you can see in the picture above, the popular opinion is that he looks more like me than Katie :)

After some quality traffic time in downtown Philadelphia at 5pm, and a stop at the huuuuuge King of Prussia mall for dinner at the food court, we made it back home.

Day Seven: (has it already been that long?)

2010-03-31T19:59:00.010-06:00

This morning was rather quiet. We just stayed for a couple of hours and then we left to go to Newtown so Mat could visit with a client. It took us about an hour or so to get there. The weather was beautiful, it hasn't been this nice since the very first day we were here.

Newtown was originally established by William Penn, who obtained the charter for the town from Charles II. We are talking 1862. The town had a walking tour that I enjoyed, Isaac also enjoyed it, wrapped up in the sling, he slept the entire time. Just being outside in the sunshine was wonderful. Hence the pictures of flowers and such. On the way back to where we are staying (Dennis and Ruth, wonderful people, thank you so much!), we decided to take the back roads. It took us about two hours, but we saw some wondrful country and some really old farms and houses.

We appreciate everyones input on what to see and do, we hope to see some of those sights in the next couple of days.

Finally, we finish up with a few pictures of Isaac, having his pre-bed time nap.

A day in haiku

2010-03-30T19:31:00.003-06:00

Rainy Windy Sleep
Mat works - Katie, baby drive.
Day closer to home.

Day Five..............

2010-03-29T19:34:00.004-06:00

This is Isaac's temporary bed for our stay in Philadelphia. It is a top drawer from a dresser, with a blanket for padding. We told Matalyn and Jacob about the bed last night, and they thought it was hilarious.

Today was a rather boring day, and to think that right now we are just wasting time until papers are signed. That will now be on Wednesday that Kenya signs over the baby. As of right now we are baby sitting.

Isaac slept very well during the night. Even today, all he has done is eat, have his diaper changed, then he pees all over everything while having his diaper changed, change of clothing, and finally he goes back to sleep. Mat and I keep thinking that this can't continue forever, but we will sure enjoy the quiet while it lasts. He hardly cries at all. I keep joking that he better enjoy the quiet now, because it won't be all that quiet once we get home!

We did make it out of the house for a short outing to have a bite to eat. It has been a rather rainy day and lots of flooding around Philadelphia and New Jersey. It will be rainy tomorrow and then by the weekend it should be almost 80 degrees. That sounds great and I can't wait to see the sun again and enjoy the nice weather.

Here is a picture of Isaac just before we got ready for bed. (Just another picture to post for your enjoyment.)

One more question (if you are still reading), if you have been to Philadelphia or the state of Pennsylvania what have you seen and done? What is fun to do and see and what is not worth it? We plan on spending some time down in Center City and seeing all of the history, but what about Lancaster (Amish country)? What about Hershey, PA? Any input would be great, since we (meaning mostly me) have alot of time to fill.

Day Four: Lots of Emotions

2010-03-28T14:49:00.003-06:00

So today can be split into two parts: before baby and after baby.

Kenya called first thing this morning saying that they were going to release her today. Keep in mind that she just had a c-section two days ago! So when we left this morning, we made sure to pack baby clothes and blankets.

We found a chapel to attend sacrament service at, so we were there at 9 am. It was just half a mile or so, down the street from the hospital. Being the very inner city part of Philly, I have to admit that I was a bit leary. The chapel was just like the ones that you see throughout the US and different parts of the world. The only difference would be the lack of parking, gated fences all around the church and white bars on the windows. There was a really good mix of people attending. It appeared to be about half locals, and maybe about half young families (they are here attending school). Of course everyone knew that we were not a regular and were hoping that we had moved in. The friendliness of people that you don't know, but you have the common bond of the gospel, is often amazing. As usual, Mat found someone that he knew! What are the chances of that happening? Amazing. The meeting was very good, they changed the Bishopric and the new Bishop was someone that Mat went to high school with. Isn't it amazing that the Lord trusts someone with so much responsibility, when that individual is barely thirty?

We got to the hospital at 10:30am and Kenya was dressed and ready to go. We had to wait around for just a couple of things to be finished up, but we were all out of their by 1pm. I called Jane (our adoption agency contact) when we got to the hospital. I was a little concerned with not knowing exactly how things were going to work out. Jane was really surprised and a little annoyed that the hospital was releasing Kenya, and we had to do several back and forth phone calls. Kenya has still not signed the papers, and won't be able to until Tuesday. The social worker at the hospital kept saying, "I don't want to know the plan, don't tell me a thing". So we essentially handed the baby off in the parking lot. Just kidding. We took Kenya to get her prescriptions and then took her home. It seemed to pass in such a rush and before we knew it, we had a baby!

It has been a rather emotional day for me. I am now ready to head home, but since Kenya can't sign papers until Tuesday, the official papers that we are waiting for, can't start the long process until Wednesday. Those are the papers that have to be signed by the state of PA, sent to UT, and then sent back to PA. We have been told to expect 10 business days, and with the state of Utah having a four day work week, that could take even longer! So pray that it will hurry up and that things will work out so we can come home soon!

Another reason I would like to come home is: that I miss my children! Yesterday Matalyn asked if we knew when we could come home. Joseph didn't miss a beat and told us we could stay another month or two! Can you believe that? You would think that he is enjoying time with the Petersen cousins.

So here is another round of pictures for the day. We love you all and are grateful for your prayers and your support.

Look what we found on our way home from the city? The country is a wonderful place!

A Name, A Name, He has a Name!

2010-03-28T13:33:00.001-06:00

After months of discussion, and several rounds of QA, we are pleased to announce the release of Isaac James:

Day Three: Another day with Richard, Kenya and Baby

2010-03-27T19:59:00.006-06:00

We got a good nights sleep, first one since we have been here. I am sure that our nights of good sleep will soon come to an end. We got to the hospital about 10 am and stayed until about 7:30 pm. For lunch, Richard bought us Caribbean food. Mat and Richard were going to get curry goat. They couldn't figure out if that's what they actually got, or if it was chicken. I guess there is something to be said about "it tastes and looks like chicken'. Kenya and I got jerk chicken. It was really good, but spicy. To obtain the food, they ventured off the campus of the hospital by a block into inner city life. It was quite the experience for Mat. We spent an enjoyable day with Kenya and Richard. It is amazing to me how open they both are about this whole adventure. They are wonderful people and we look forward to continuing our friendship with them. I found it interesting how many little odd things that I had in common with Kenya. She is amazing and I worry about how she will handle life when she hands over her baby. She has never wavered on her decision, but it will be very difficult for her. We pray for her often, and hope that by spending time with her, that it will put some of her concerns to rest.

So for those who are tired of words....here are some pictures.

Look at that hair!

Tiny Feet

Isn't Kenya's hair cool?

He's already giving Mat the "eye"

What is his name?

2010-03-27T14:18:00.001-06:00

Many people have asked us what we are going to name the baby. We just wanted to let you know that we have a couple of release candidate names, but we are still doing QA. We hope to have the final release within the next 24 hours or so.

Pictures of Kenya, Richard and Baby

2010-03-26T19:55:00.005-06:00

Kenya and Richard

Baby

Baby (with hair)

Kenya with baby

Kenya with baby

Kenya and Richard with baby

He's here!

2010-03-26T10:50:00.006-06:00

He was born at 10:39 am. Kenya is doing as well as can be after having a c-section. He have seen the baby through the window. He is 6 lbs. 13 oz. 18 inches long. More to come.

Still Waiting...

2010-03-26T07:50:00.002-06:00

For those of you following our adventure, here is an update. We have been at the hospital here in "Philly" for almost three and a half hours. Kenya has been waiting and starting to feel a bit frustrated with all the wait. Every doctor and nurse that comes to see her tells her something different. The hospital will only allow one visitor in with her at a time. I was able to spend about half an hour with her. Hope fully with in the next hour or so we will have news.....

Dinner with Kenya and Richard

2010-03-26T07:31:00.002-06:00

So the next big step in this entire process was going to dinner with the birthparents. Let me be the first one to tell you how involved and nerve racking this entire process is. We met at Richard's apartment and had a good chat with him while we waited for Kenya to come.

Richard is about my height, medium skin color. He was really friendly and between him and Mat, kept the conversation going on several occasions. He is a sanitation worker, which he enjoys, he says it gives him quite the workout. He has two children. A 16 year old girl that lives with her Granmother and a 13 year old son who is also named Richard. Both Richards live together. Just a fun side note: the elder Richard has a four foot long Python.

Kenya is about 5"1'. She was rather reserved, which I can understand. Because she is so small, she really looks pregnant! Although from the back, it is hard to tell. She has worked as a CNA at a nursing home and is planning on starting nursing school in July and returning to the nursing home. She has four children, two girls that are older and no longer live at home. She also has two boys, a 12 year old and a 4 year old. She really enjoys spending time with her boys and doing lots of fun activities with them.

At dinner we gave Kenya a bag that I made that was full of goodies from Utah and a few supplies for when she starts school. She seemed to really enjoy it, and was very appreciative of the gesture.

After we left to take them back home, we all started to talk and laugh about how nervous we all were. Thank goodness that is over! It went well, despite everyone being very nervous.

Now its back to our room and an early morning to the hospital. For all of you curious minded people, we do have pictures of these wonderful people, we will post them later.

First Day in Philly

2010-03-25T11:47:00.000-06:00

We made it on the flight from Salt Lake City (we were flying standby). The flight was rather uneventful (which is good as far as flights go). We did not get to sit next to each other, but we were only a few rows apart. As we were waiting to get on the plane I saw a guy I new from OGI (Mark Wong) and chatted with him for a few minutes. Katie had a good chat with the lady sitting next to her, who lost a 7-month old baby about a month ago.

After getting our bags and rental car, we made our way to the hotel (near the airport, but not the Airport Tower :)). It was close to 1:00am EDT by the time we got to bed, but with the time change, that wasn't to bad. The time change in the evening won't be too bad - its the mornings that are hard :).

More later ...

Learning new things....

2008-08-12T16:43:00.002-06:00

I am going out on an Emotional Limb here and sharing something with you. Several weeks ago I signed up for a digital photography class. As part of the class and the assignments, we are supposed to have our own blog on which to post our pictures. I thought that I would share them with you. Keep in mind that I am far from being a professional, and I do not have a fancy camera, just a nice point and shoot.

So here is the link.....

http://kawpictures.blogspot.com/

Enjoy!!!

Spencer's Enthusiasm

2008-08-12T16:35:00.003-06:00

Saturday night we were getting ready to do tubbies. I had taken Spencer's shirt off in preperation for his bath, Matalyn was still getting out so he wasn't completely ready to get in. Within two minutes of me taking his shirt off, we heard a commotion in the bathroom. Apparently, Spencer had taken a head dive, right into the tub. Shorts and diaper still attached!! I have to admit, that he is the first one of four that has done this!

Compound Interest

2008-08-07T06:51:00.002-06:00

I was reading in C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity (Chapter 9) this morning and found a quote that I think is quite profound:

"Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the
little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance.
The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which,
a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed
of. An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a
ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an
attack otherwise impossible."

The Crofts Cousins

2008-07-30T13:15:00.003-06:00

This past week we were able to get together with all my siblings. After one of our many get togethers, Mom (or Grandma in this case) had the idea of putting all of the grandchildren in red shirts that she had gotten ahead of time. Let's just say the we all enjoyed about ten minutes of hilarious and comic confusion as we tried to get seven little boys and one girl, all under the age of eight, to sit still long enough to take a picture. This may not be the greatest one taken, but it is the one that contains all eight bodies, and they are all somewhat looking at the camera!!

Spencer turns two

2008-07-22T13:02:00.000-06:00

Spencer turned two years old on Tuesday the 22 of July. We had a birthday party for him in Sandy with both sides of the family being there. He sure had a great time, playing with cousins, opening presents, and especially with Elmo cupcakes!

Family Home Evening by an eight year old

2008-07-14T22:29:00.005-06:00

Yesterday I returned home from a Scout meeting and had the idea that Joseph should do something for FHE to pass off something for Cub Scouts. I suggested to him that he prepare a short lesson on the food pyramid and teach us about it. Today I reminded him a couple of times and was surprised that I did not meet with much resistence. When the time came for FHE, he was prepared. Not knowing what he was going to say or do, and not having any help from Mat or I, I have to admit that I was curious. As he started, he pulled out this large poster of the food pyramid that he recieved in 2nd grade. He went through each section and asked each of us what is in the grain group, etc. After everyone knew and understood, he then got out paper plates that he had written one food group on each plate. He then passed around a can that he had pictures of various food items in, we each took two pictures. We then put our pictures of the food item on the correct plate. He had gone through an old stack of Reader's Digest magazines, and found pictures of food to use for his activity. Matalyn and Jacob really enjoyed it, I was surprised that he kept their attention. I have to admit that I was really impressed by the whole event. He presented the information, asked follow up questions and then ended it with an activity that we used the knowledge that we had just learned.

I Can Draw Dinosaurs

2008-03-29T12:08:00.008-06:00

Hi. My name is Joseph Weaver and I like drawing dinosaurs. I Can Draw Dinosaurs is a book that tells about drawing dinosaurs. It is a fact book about dinosaurs and a drawing book about dinosaurs by Terry Longhurst. I like this book because it has easy to understand steps. If you had this book I think you would really like it.

Here is a poster that I made about this book:

The First Day of Spring -- Oh the Irony

2008-03-20T09:58:00.005-06:00

Yesterday I had thought of starting to compose an entry that went something like this:

Despite having at least a foot of snow, if not more in places, and about 80% of our yard still covered in snow, it is starting to melt. Having spent last weekend down in Salt Lake and Cedar Hills where there is no snow, some of you might find this a bit difficult to imagine. Even the drive into Logan, most places have much less snow than we do. But that is usually the norm at this time of year. The kids played outside and had a great time. By the time they came in they all needed a change of pants, and socks, having soaked through everything. I even opened the windows for quite a while. It was wonderful. After having run the usual activities in the evening, I was coming home and saw the very first flower of the season in the flower bed! Spring really is coming!!

So back to the irony...we woke up this morning to about three inches of snow, and by the looks of the weather, the possibility of more to come today. I just had to laugh. I ventured out and took some pictures for those of you who may have already have forgotten what winter looks like. Please keep in mind the date, March 20th, when you look below. :)

View looking Northwest (normally you can see the mountains)

View looking directly West.

View looking directly East.

Last but not least, my first flower of the season, surrounded by the snow.
If you look closely, you can see several other buds.

Early Morning Wake-up

2008-03-13T18:07:00.004-06:00

We came down to Sandy to visit Mat's Mom. As usual we had several interruptions during the night....children waking up to use the potty, crying of course, children crying because they are wandering around being very disoriented, etc. But the best interruption happened early this morning. Jacob came in the bedroom to ask where his backpack was. Waking up from a deep sleep, I was confused as to why he needed his backpack when it was still dark. He then went on to say something about how everyone (Joseph and Matalyn) was awake and upstairs. Worried that they had woken up Grandma, I quickly jumped out of bed and ran upstairs. When I got upstairs I noticed the time, to my amazement, the clock said 4:30 AM. Three of my children were up and going for the day! I quickly explained to them that it was NOT time to get up, not even close! I was also worried because they had gone to bed so late, close to 11 PM, and getting up that early in the morning was going to make an extremely long day. I told them that they needed to return to bed and to my surprise, not a single one of them complained or even made a sound after I helped them back to bed and tucked them in. Thankgoodness all were able to go back to sleep and all was quiet for several more hours.

When I grow up...

2008-03-08T18:47:00.002-07:00

I want to be just like my Mom. Well, in one sense I have accomplished that task. For several years, my Mom worked for a company that made very high end baby products. She would sew quite a few of these products and has learned a lot. Here a while ago, the company she worked for went out of business and the owner gave her thousands of dollars worth of fabric. One of the things that she would make is a baby blanket called a swaddler. It has a strip of chenille around the outside and then the rest of it is made of a coordinating gingham flannel and a percale flower print. Well, I have finally learned to make these from some of the scraps that she has given me. I have to admit that these turned out so well, even my corners match perfectly, if I do say so myself...thanks for being such a wonderful teacher, Mom!

The pink one below is for Mat's sister Wendi, who is having her second girl.

The blue one came about as a last minute baby gift for someone in my ward. This one doesn't have the chenille around the edges, just flannel, but it will be perfect for summer.

Where's my best friend?

2008-02-23T16:35:00.001-07:00

So I was doing the dishes and Joseph comes running in and asked "where is my best friend?" Thinking that I had misunderstood him I was sorting different ideas out in my mind...What's a best friend? Who is my best friend? Having none of that really make sense to me, I asked what he had said. His response was "where is my best friend?" Being that the only people in the house were immediate family his question confused me. He finally answered by replying "my football!" He had misplaced his football and was trying to find it. He got a nice leather football from Grandma Crofts at Christmas. Needless to say that he loves it. Every night we find him tucked in bed cuddled up with his football. After all, what more could an active eight year old boy like than a football?

The fun of having children

2008-02-11T22:00:00.000-07:00

Does this contraption look familiar to anyone? If you know what it is, and have used it before on a child, then I have sympathy for you. In the past seven weeks, we have been to the doctor with Spencer a total of six times. If you take the time to do a quick bit of math, that almost averages out to almost once a week. Between the co-payments for the doctors office and antibiotics we have spent lately, we have spent a small fortune. So you may be wondering what is wrong with Spencer. Our first visit was on the Saturday after Christmas and we took both Jacob and Spencer into the doctor because of pink eye. Turned out that Spencer had ear infections in both ears, and continued to have them every time we went in. It was seriously looking like we were going to have to put tubes in his ears. Amazingly enough, or just enough serious prayers, we went back last week and were told that his ears are clear. (For the first time in almost two months.) I was shocked. I was finally coming to accept that we would have to have it done. The doctor then went on to tell us that the next time he gets sick he will probably end up with another ear infection and that is it. We will then be making an appointment with an ENT. So pray for no more ear infections for the little guy! Now returning to the picture. The second visit we paid the doctor was because of extreme wheezing. His oxygen level was borderline (not good). We were sent home with a nebulizer. We spent the next week giving Spencer treatments with albuterol. Lets just say that holding an eighteen month old for seven minutes is definitely not my idea of fun. It took both Mat and I to do the task. Doing it four times a day for several minutes was hard on all of us. This picture was taken about five days into his treatments, he started to pick up the top part and play with it, when it was not on. One night I was not home to assit Mat in the actvity before bedtime. Mat gave him this little pep talk about how he could do it, etc. He entertained him, played, sang songs and from then on it was amazing. After being on the nebulizer for about nine days, we finished it, returned it to the doctors office and all was well for a week or so. Then he started to wheeze again. So once again we took a trip back to the doctors office. This time he wrote us a prescription for one and told us to go purchase one. Chances are that his respitory problem will happen every time he gets sick this winter. So if anyone out there needs a nebulizer in the future, we have one! I truly hope you never will need it! Spencer does so well with it now, will sit and will even turn it on himself! It has also been a great time to just sit with him and play and sing songs.

Joseph's first Pinewood Derby

2008-01-29T22:24:00.006-07:00

What boy doesn't dream of his first Pinewood Derby? Okay, I don't know about if the boys really understand the joy, but the fathers sure enjoy the event! Mat and Joseph spent several weekends sawing, sanding, and painting the car. The evening came and fun was had by boys big and small. There were a total of eleven boys that participated. Awards were given to all, Joseph received the "Most Futuristic" award.

Christmas Letter

2007-12-15T16:01:00.000-07:00

December 2007

Dear Family and Friends,

Most of my family has been fairly busy lately, as I am sure most of you are. Being nearly 17 months old, I have a little extra time between naps and meals, so I thought I would take a minute and write a short letter to everyone. I cannot yet speak intelligibly, but I finally started walking last week. Even though I am still a bit wobbly, I enjoy the new perspective of walking upright (the view is much more enjoyable than while crawling).

I am starting to figure out how things work here in our family (although I still have a lot to learn). Most days, Joseph and Matalyn get on the school bus after breakfast and it does not bring them home again until the afternoon. Joseph is in third grade and Matalyn is in first grade. They both enjoy school and like to read (although I find their taste in books a little beyond my taste). In the spring they both played soccer, and now they both take piano lessons. I can’t imagine having to do everything that they do … it wears me out just sleeping, eating, and walking.

Jacob and I stay home with Mom and do all sorts of things. Jacob and I get along pretty well most of the time (with the occasional brotherly skirmish). On some days, we go to the town hall and sing songs with other kids. Occasionally we drive into town and go to the store. Dad spends most of the day downstairs in his office working … I guess he accomplishes something worthwhile. He goes to the church on Tuesday nights to meet with the young men, and Mom and Dad both help with Cub Scouts on Thursdays. Dad recently got elected to the city council, so he is gone a couple of times each month to council meetings. He also helps coach and referee church basketball.

On Sundays, we all walk to church together. I sit with Dad during Sunday School while Mom does a great job teaching the class. I am looking forward to next month when I can start going to nursery. Jacob really enjoys nursery, but he will start going to Sunbeams a few weeks before I start going to nursery. Matalyn and Joseph both enjoy Primary. Joseph was baptized a few weeks ago and he is pretty excited about that.

Every once in a while we all pile in the van with lots of stuff and drive somewhere. Since I’ve been around, we’ve been on trips to Colorado (Yampa), Arizona (Page), and various places in Utah (Sandy, Murray, Lehi, Cedar Hills, and St. George). This summer we took our first family vacation to Yellowstone. It was really fun to see all of the animals and geysers.

We are grateful for all that the Lord has blessed us with. We hope that everything is going well for all of you. We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Sincerely,

Spencer

Joseph's Baptism

2007-12-01T21:22:00.000-07:00

Today was Joseph's baptism. We awoke to SEVERAL new inches of snow this morning. So much so that none of Mat's family from Sandy, Lehi, Eagle Mtn, were able to come. His brother Scot and his family were able to be here. Most of my family had come the night before so they avoided the storm. It was a new experience to have your first child baptized. I didn't think that it would be very emotional for me, but I have to admit that I did tear up and feel a bit emotional but it was a great event. Our ward was in charge of the Stk. baptism, so Mat and I both had the opportunity to participate. Mat was planned participation, he was asked to give a talk on the Holy Ghost. He did a great job, kept it simple for the children, there were six of them, and threw in a bit of humor for the rest of us. I had the opportunity to fill in and play prelude and the first couple of songs on the piano. The pianist ended up getting stuck in new snow and was very late. When I first started to play prelude music, the only Primary book I could find was the Spanish version. Well that worked just fine until they started the meeting. When they announced the opening song I panicked, not reading a word of Spanish and not knowing what page the number it was on. I was even getting to the point that I was going to get my Dad from the audience and have tell me, he speaks Spanish. I ended up telling the chorister about my predicament and she let me use her hymn book and she led without. Something I will always remember. Well enough of my memories....here are a few pictures of the great day.

Joseph turns Eight

2007-11-05T21:18:00.000-07:00

Joseph has turned eight years old. Sometimes you think that these occasions are far from happening, but as many of you know, time has a way of creeping up on you. Because he will be getting baptized, we decided to celebrate this event with the purchase of his very first suit. He looked so cute wearing a real suit and a tie (that he is learning to tie himself). He was so excited. I snapped some photos of the lucky birthday boy with his wonderful father, and let me tell you, that the two of them look adorable.

Here Joseph celebrates his birthday with a giant cookie, ice cream and toppings. The best part of it all? The children enjoyed it for breakfast!! What better breakfast could you have on your birthday? Joseph, Matalyn and Jacob thoroughly enjoyed it and we look forward to doing it again.

Halloween 2007

2007-10-31T22:06:00.000-06:00

Here is a cute picture (maybe?) of the entire family on Halloween. It was a busy day for us. We spent the afternoon visiting Grandma Halling, Aunt Marlene & family, and Aunt Darlene & family. We finished the day by attending the community trunk or treat (trying not to freeze), and then spent an hour or so trick or treating around the neighborhood. We have learned in years past that the older people love to have the little children come to visit. In fact we had one couple in our ward remind us to come visit at least three weeks before Halloween. As usual the kids loved dressing up and getting buckets full of candy.

National Hot Lunch week at Canyon Elementary

2007-10-15T21:08:00.000-06:00

We had the opportunity to go and eat hot lunch with Joseph and Matalyn. The children all enjoyed it greatly. Joseph and Matalyn loved having Mom and Dad come to eat lunch with them and Jacob spent the entire time looking around with large rounded eyes, trying to take everything in all at once. The lunch menu for today was Mac and Cheese, which is a big hit in our family, Spencer especially enjoyed it. Mom and Dad enjoyed spending time at the school and the playground with Joseph and Matalyn.

Family Outing

2007-10-13T20:51:00.000-06:00

Katie decided to take us all on a family outing today. While we could have been home cleaning the house or doing any number of other things, we decided to carpe diem and spend some time together on a family outing in the great outdoors.

We drove up Logan Canyon and parked at the Spring Hollow Campground. We hiked the Riverside Nature Trail which heads east from Spring Hollow Campground and follows the Logan River for 1.4 miles to Guivanah-Malibu Campground. It was a beautiful hike with leaves of many colors and nice views of the river and the canyon. The kids had a great time stopping to look at plants, picking up leaves and sticks, and throwing rocks into the river. When we reached the Guivanah-Malibu Campground, we stopped for a short rest. It started to rain, so we headed back down the trail towards the car.

As we started the return trip, we turned on the GPS to locate a geocache that was hidden near the trail. We were completely unsuccessful on our last geocaching trip, so Katie and I were hoping that we would find this one. After some looking, we found the geocache hidden at the base of the tree just a few yars off the trail.

After a much quicker return trip, we arrived at the car (a little tired and hungry). We drove down the canyon a ways and stopped for a picnic in the park near 1st dam. After the picnic, we attempted to find another geocache. This one was located up the hill from the park. We probably looked a little funny dragging the stroller (with Spencer strapped tightly in) up the side of the mountain. The area we were in had been burned in a wildfire earlier this summer, but the grass has just started to grow again. The shrubs were completely burned and the larger trees where still black and leafless. After some investigative work, we finally found the geocache at the base of a tree.

It ended up being a very enjoyable outing and we are glad we went. We probably do not do things like this often enough. The kids all enjoyed it and it was great to spend time together.

David, Betsy, and Harrison

2007-09-30T21:03:00.000-06:00

Katie's youngest brother David and his wife had their first baby the end of July, one year after Spencer was born. Here is a picture of the happy family on the day that baby Harrison was blessed.

Joseph gets glasses

2007-09-29T20:40:00.000-06:00

Mat has been dreaming of this day for years, and the time has finally come. He had the opportunity to take Joseph into the eye doctor to have his eyes checked. Sure enough, the diagnosis was positive - he needed them. His parents decided that between Mat getting glasses in 1st grade and Katie getting them in 7th that our childrens average would be 3rd or 4th grade. Sure enough, 3rd grade is upon us, so let the glasses come. Lets just say that he will be the first of many children to visit the eye doctor and get glasses. Lets hope that we won't have a lot of trips for repairs and such.

Doesn't he look so cute? He picked them out all by himself.

Missing teeth

2007-09-28T20:53:00.000-06:00

Joseph and Matalyn have both lost teeth in the last couple of days. Matalyn has lost her first one on the bottom and Joseph has lost his first one on the top. They have sure enjoyed sharing this unique experience together.

Spencer's New Toy

2007-09-15T21:44:00.000-06:00

By far, this has been the most expensive toy that we have ever purchased for our children. Lately Spencer loves to play the piano. He will crawl over and try to reach the keys, hoping that the piano will make noise (it is digital - therefore electrical and needs to be turned on to make noise). He has even been known to dance which is very cute. On the rare occasion that he gets to sit on the bench, he is thrilled. In fact, the other day, Mat put him in his high chair, lowered it to the lowest setting, and put him in front of the piano for several minutes. He loved it, and we loved not having to worry about him falling off the bench.

First Day of School

2007-08-23T21:28:00.000-06:00

Joseph started third grade this year. He is excited to get back and to continue to learn. He is also excited that Matalyn will be starting this year. He has been great to tell Matalyn all of the fun and exciting things that happen at school.

Matalyn started first grade this year. She is so excited to start school and make new friends. She is very social so we have no doubt that she will have many friends by the end of the day. She got on the bus for the very first time and didn't even look back, it made it a bit difficult for Mom as she walked home, sending her second child off to school and Matalyn having no fears or regrets going. She is glad that she will get to sit by Joseph on the bus and see him at lunch time and recess.

Trip to Lagoon

2007-07-24T23:30:00.000-06:00

Shane and Brenda invited us to go to Shane's company Lagoon day. All we had to pay for was parking, so that was nice. Grandma Weaver came with us. We played in the water at Lagoon A Beach for while. I was surpised that Joseph, Matalyn, and even Jacob, had a great time going down the water slides. Spencer is still a bit water-shy so he only put his feet in the water.

After the water, we starting going on the rides. We were surprised at how much the kids enjoyed the rides. Joseph and Matalyn even enjoyed some of the big rides (such as Tidal Wave). Jacob did not like the rides that went up in the air, but he (and Spencer!) really enjoyed Speedway Jr. (little cars) and Baby Boats.

We were all tired when we got home, but it was a fun day.

Spencer's First Birthday

2007-07-22T21:02:00.000-06:00

Spencer celebrated his 1st birthday while at Grandpa and Grandma Crofts house. We celebrated the day with playing blocks, with Katie's cousin Aaron, . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . and then having cake with fresh strawberries on it, which he loved.

Hiking in the Wind Rivers

2007-07-20T20:29:00.000-06:00

This past week I got to spend hiking in the Wind Rivers with our Priest Quorum. This is the first hike of this magnitude that I have ever attempted - so I was a little apprehensive. We started early Monday morning and drove to the Scab Creek trail head in the Bridger/Teton Wind River Wilderness area. We donned our packs and embarked on our 14-mile, 6.5 hour hike to base camp at South Fork Lake.

We camped, hiked, and fished. Seven of the nine participants took fishing poles (including myself). Over the course of the week, those seven fishermen caught a cumulative total of more than 400 (yes, that's four hundred) fish. Guess how many of those I caught? I wopping 4 (that is 1% of the total). I was using the same lure as everyone else, and fishing in the same lakes, but for some reason I did not have much luck.

I did, however, have one good catch on Wednesday at Bob's Lake. One of the priests, Robert Howlett, was fishing a short distance away from me. Somehow, on one of his casts, his fishing pole came apart and his line broke. Lo and behold, the top half of his pole was floating precariously about fifteen feet from shore. One of the other priets tried to snag it with his hook, but succeeded only in dragging Robert's pole under the water (so it was no longer visible). Not wanting to miss the rest of the week of fishing, Robert decided to go in after his pole. He jumped into the water ... and quickly discovered that alpine lakes at 10,000 feet above sea level contain very cold water (even in July). The temperature of the water and his inability to see his pole thwarted his rescue effort. Since I was not having any luck catching fish, I decided that I would try fishing for his pole. I stood on the same rock he had been casting from and started casting and reeling. I aimed each cast just beyond the spot we last spotted his pole and then reeled slowly so as to allow my lure to sink near the bottom (hopefully without catching a snag myself). To our surprise, my endeavors were successful - I somehow hooked his pole and was able to reel it to shore. He was able to reassemble the pole and continue fishing. So, while I did not catch many fish that week, I was pleased that I caught his pole :).

With all of our hiking, we figured that each of us hiked over 60 (sixty) miles that week. If you multiply that by nine people, that was over 500 miles hiked! There were times that I wondered if I would make it home, but I prayed for strength and was blessed accordingly. On Friday morning, we broke camp and headed back to the trail head. The same 14-mile that took us over 6 hours on Monday was traversed in 3.5 hours. We averaged over 4 mph all the way back.

Despite my initial apprehension, I did enjoy the trip. I enjoyed being with the boys and getting to know them better. I enjoyed the beautiful wilderness. I am glad that I went.