Observations of an Everyday Mom

The BEST Family Home Evening in a long time....

2012-01-09T22:09:00.004-06:00

Someday I'll post about our wonderful Christmas vacation to Sacramento, but today I'm just going to do a quick post about our Family Home Evening lesson tonight...

Five year old Christopher was in charge. He loves legos. I mean LOVES legos. I don't know that he got more than a present or two for Christmas that didn't have something to do with legos. Sooooo... for FHE tonight we dumped out the lego bucket and told everyone to make something that had to do with a scripture story. We all guessed the stories and then discussed them at the end.

JJ and his lego scene... The apostles didn't catch any fish. Jesus told them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. The nets came up full of fish - so many that the boat almost sang.
Kelly illustrated the story of Jesus traveling to the temple with His family and being left there. When Mary and Joseph went back to find Him, Jesus was teaching in the temple.
Christopher built a wall and had Samuel the Lamanite on top. The other two people threw rocks and arrows at him but nothing ever hit Samuel (see the "rocks" on the green ground?).

When Kelly gave the closing prayer she was thankful for the best FHE. Success!

Logan Temple

2011-11-24T11:40:00.002-06:00

For FHE one night we drove to Logan. Among other things, we walked around the temple and took some pictures.

Final Picture

2011-11-24T11:37:00.002-06:00

Final picture with Grandma and Grandpa Fewkes before they left to go home. We had so much fun with all of the activities we crammed into the weekend they were here.

Syracuse City Pumpkin Walk

2011-11-24T11:33:00.001-06:00

The first thing we did with Grandma and Grandpa Fewkes was attend the Syracuse City Pumpkin Walk. There were so many carved pumpkins. All the activities (except the hamster balls) were free. It was great!

Grandparents

2011-11-24T11:21:00.001-06:00

We couldn't pass up taking a picture of the kids with both sets of grandparents.

Bison on Antelope Island

2011-11-24T11:16:00.002-06:00

While Grandma and Grandpa Fewkes were visiting we drove out to Antelope Island (where Christopher Layton - great-great grandfather ran sheep in the 1800s). We got there too late to go to the museum or tour the ranch house but we did see lots of buffalo - including a painted buffalo for our Fargo friends.

Hill Aerospace Museum

2011-11-24T11:00:00.002-06:00

One stop we made while Grandma and Grandpa Fewkes were visiting was the Hill Aerospace Museum. We took lots of pictures and had lots of fun. We found a C-130 airplane - the kind that Grandpa flew on in the early 70s.

Halloween

2011-11-24T10:56:00.000-06:00

Halloween - choosing and carving pumpkins and going trick-or-treating.

John's 13th Birthday

2011-11-24T10:51:00.002-06:00

John turned 13 on October 20th. He wanted to go to Lonestar Steakhouse for lunch. He remembered it from when we used to go on kids-eat-free night in Hutchinson, KS. His friend Dallin went with us. Leslie learned to use a straw while we were there. He chose sopapilla cheesecake for his birthday cake. It is sooooo yummy and so easy to make!

On the Move Again...

2011-09-18T18:04:00.004-05:00

Yes, that's right. We are moving again. Here's the abbreviated version of the story...

On Wednesday, when the kids and I were in town for Activity Days and Scouts, John called and told me he had been "let go." It came as a shock because all day long, Fred, the Oklahoma City boss, who was visiting, kept calling John to tell him what a great job he had done on getting things lined up for harvest and on getting the farm cleaned up. John said he'd gotten about 10 calls that day. Also, just minutes before he was "let go", Fred told John some things that he wanted John and Brian (the other manager) to do after harvest was over.... and then Fred fired John. The official reason? Someone mis-calculated the amount of herbicide to spray on the potato vines. The funny (haha???) thing is that it has NEVER been John's job to calculate the chemical to be sprayed. That's always been Brian's job. Brian calculated the mix, passed the paper to John. John gave it to Rodney. Rodney mixed as it was written and sprayed. The potato vines died, no potatoes were hurt in the process. John found out about it two weeks later, on the day he was "let go." The real reason??? Fred needed to cover his backside in case one of the Connecticut or New York owners had a problem. Fred used John as the fall guy. (Incidentally, John was the third manager to be "let go" in four weeks, the fourth manager in six months.)

In case you are wondering, we were shocked and surprised on Wednesday. Thursday morning Heavenly Father showed us again and again how much He knows us and how much He loves us. On Thursday morning, John talked to the recruiter who brought us here. By Friday afternoon John had a very good phone interview and will be headed to Plains, Kansas, (30 miles north of Liberal, Kansas) for a face-to-face interview. We'll see how it goes.

This morning John said that he felt like he should be more devastated than he was. Even though we absolutely love North Platte and the friends we have made here, neither of us has been too sad about this. We are fine. And we have hope.

(So even though I haven't caught up on the blog, it's going back on hold while I pack again. Thank goodness I never really felt like I should completely unpack. It's proved to be a blessing.)

Visitors!!!

2011-08-25T08:21:00.003-05:00

On Friday, July 22nd, we had our first visitors since moving to North Platte. John's sister, Jan, her daughter, Jessica, and Jessica's two daughters, Morgan and Rebekah, drove from North Carolina to Nevada. They were on a tight schedule so rather than making them drive all the way down to the farm (it's 30 minutes one way), we met them at McDonald's for lunch - everyone's got to eat, right? We had a good visit and the kids played a bit (North Platte doesn't have a playland at any of their fast food restaurants - what's up with that?). Then Jan, Jessica, Morgan and Rebekah were on their way.

Jessica and Rebekah.

Jan, Jessica, Morgan and Rebekah.

Kelly and Morgan playing with their Happy Meal toys.

All the kids.

John, holding Leslie and Jan - with her diet coke, ready for the long drive to Salt Lake City.

The Pool

2011-08-25T08:08:00.003-05:00

One thing we really loved in Pratt were the swimming pools. In addition to the big pool ($1/person and had a ton of lifeguards on duty at all times) there were two free wading pools at a couple of the parks in town. JJ & Kelly would spend the afternoon at the big pool while I sat in a lawn chair, in the shade, visiting with friends while Christopher and Leslie played at the wading pool.

Christopher and his best friend, Allee, having a water fight. Don't worry, she got him back!

There was a little tub for the kids to wash their feet before they got into the pool. It was the perfect "pool" for Leslie. She spent a lot of time in it.

Last few days in Pratt

2011-08-23T11:47:00.003-05:00

Here are some pictures from our last few days in Pratt... John and Kelly with Mrs. Fisher, their piano teacher. She also taught music at the elementary school so the kids knew her well. The kids really liked Mrs. Fisher. (JJ didn't like taking piano lessons - still doesn't - but liked Mrs. Fisher.)

Christopher with the story time librarian, Miss LeeAnn. Chris LOVED going to story time and often asked if we could stop at the library to visit Miss LeeAnn.
Just a couple of pictures of Leslie. You can see the ever-present necklace. She always has a "pretty" around her neck. Looking at these pictures, Leslie looks so young. She's a big girl now compared to six weeks ago.
I think I took this picture because she climbed up on the couch all by herself. Again, notice the necklace - but don't notice the baby-barf marks around her neck. She still chucks a little bit but not nearly as much as before.

Today...

2011-08-23T11:03:00.001-05:00

Now that the kids are back in school, I'm going to work on getting the blog updated. I have months and months worth of pictures to blog. I'm also going to get my house clean (we get company tonight!!! Yay, Tim R.) and hopefully it will stay clean all day (except that I have Leslie but she only makes smallish messes right now - but the kids do get out of school at 1:00 so we'll have to see how clean it stays). Anyway, I'm on the timer today - 15 minutes for cleaning, 15 minutes for blogging. We'll see how it goes. Check back.....

Swimming Lessons

2011-08-23T10:48:00.002-05:00

Clear back in June, when we still lived in Pratt, Christopher took swimming lessons. It was called "Splash Class" and was geared toward younger kids who had a bit of fear of the water. It was perfect for Christopher. Most of the time he just held on to the kick board and walked from edge to edge, but that's more than he did the previous year. One day he actually put his head in the water. That was HUGE. I loved Splash Class - private lessons, five days for $7. Can't beat that!Walking...

Walking...

Walking through a hula hoop...

More walking...
(That's his teacher next to him. I think his name is Josh but it might be Justin. I know it's a fairly popular J name, though. I'll have to ask Christopher if he remembers.)

The First Day of School...

2011-08-23T09:01:00.008-05:00

Or, as I like to call it, MOTHER'S DAY!!!

The kids started school today. It was a short, mental/emotional trial to figure out which school they should attend. We live in the Wallace District but are 30 miles from that school (and they don't bus). I thought about sending them to North Platte Schools since they are closer (20 miles) but then found out that North Platte does not bus either - not even the "country" kids. That doesn't work for me. (They were willing to pay my gas one way, to the farthest school from the house, but I would still be in the hole about $12 each day in gas, not to mention the 30 minutes each direction, twice a day... Again, that doesn't work for me.) So, we decided to try Maywood School in the town of Maywood. Maywood is about 25 miles south of us but they bus. I just have to drive the kids six miles on the dirt road where the bus will pick them up on the highway. That part is still not ideal, but the rest of it is... The school (K-12) has only about 150 students attending. They do not combine grades so each class is VERY small. JJ is one of 11 students (10 boys, one girl). Kelly is one of 10 students (five boys and five girls). There are eight students in Christopher's class (seven boys, one girl). I am excited that they will get so much individual attention with such small classes. JJ has to take band and 7th grade Ag.

John - 7th grade - can't get the dang kid to smile, but at least he posed for a picture.

Kelly - 4th grade - she's been wanting a John Deere shirt all summer now because, as she says, "We're farm people, Mom. We're farm people!" Kelly slept in sponge rollers last night so she could have curly hair for the first day of school.

Christopher - Kindergarten - He has been waiting FOREVER to wear his new shoes and his Lego Star Wars shirt. His backpack has been packed FOREVER and he was excited about his Lightning McQueen lunchbox.

The whole group - Leslie wanted to get in the picture, too. She kept walking over to JJ, asking to be picked up.

JJ in front of the Junior-Senior High School part of the campus.

Kelly, in front of her classroom. She is in a permanent "portable".

Christopher in front of his classroom. The sun was in his eyes so I had to step in front of him and block it with my shadow. He has his resting mat under his arm. School is going to be a shock to his system. He is used to sleeping in until 9:00, grazing all day, watching TV and playing whenever/whatever he wants. Now he'll be on the bus by 7:30 and off about 4:15. I think he'll love it, though. (I did tear up for just a minute when I gave him a hug goodbye.)

For the grandparents... This is a picture of the whole campus. JJ's classes are in the brown building on the left. Kelly's classroom is in the white building in the middle. Christopher's classroom is behind the trees that are just to the right of Kelly's building. The big brown wall on the right is where the cafeteria is. The playground is to the right of the cafeteria. The football stadium is to the left of the Jr/Sr High. The grass you see is in the middle of the drop-off driveway loop.

You can have your cake...

2011-06-19T20:23:00.003-05:00

and eat it, too!

Kelly and I made ladybug cupcakes for Leslie's birthday family celebration today. I stole the idea from my friend Debbie Kirby. Imagine that the ladybugs have antennae made of black licorice and you'll get the full effect - unfortunately, black licorice cannot be found in Pratt. Still, I think they turned out very cute. When we put the cupcake with the candle on her tray, Leslie grabbed for it (of course). Kelly stood behind Leslie and held her hands while I snapped the picture.
Laughing at Daddy.
Her expression just makes me crack up. She's giving her siblings "the look".
Just a little exploring

and a little taste.
She tried the oreo right away but took a while to eat the cake.
Looking at the mess she made on the floor.
I don't know that Leslie actually got any of the cake in her mouth, but the frosting is all over her face and up her arms clear to her elbows.

The Big ONE!!!

2011-06-19T20:12:00.005-05:00

Leslie turned ONE on June 14th. Because it's in the middle of wheat harvest, we celebrated on Sunday (that will be the next post). Here are some pictures that we took on her birthday.She's "talking" on the phone to Grandma and Grandpa F. The picture I took of her actually holding the phone was deleted off my computer when I tried to rotate the picture from horizontal to vertical. UGH!

We love Leslie. Now that we have figured out what her stomach issues are, she is all smiles! She loves necklaces and hates shoes. I think she's going to be left handed because she usually reaches with her left hand and holds things more with her left hand. We call her Doodles and Missy Magoo. She can walk around furniture but shows no interest in letting go and taking off on her own. Someday... She weighs more than 27 pounds and is a total chunky monkey. Leslie has eight teeth - four on the top and four on the bottom. She still drools a lot but the throwing up has slowed considerably, even when she hasn't had her medicine.

Guess what!!!

2011-06-09T13:51:00.003-05:00

The word is out....

We are moving

to

North Platte, Nebraska!

John has to report as the Assistant Manager of an 18,000 acre farm (that's 28.125 square miles) on June 20th. The kids and I will probably go the week after that.

(Note to all my ND friends.... North Platte is a great stopping point between Fargo and Salt Lake City!!!)

It's been a long time...

2011-06-07T19:57:00.001-05:00

... since I posted anything on this blog (or my other one, for that matter). There's a good reason for that and I'll share the exciting news soon - hopefully in the next few days. Stay tuned.

And NO, I'm not pregnant. This factory is C.L.O.S.E.D!

Leap-up Day!!!

2011-04-29T10:05:00.003-05:00

Today is Leap-up Day! That means that Christopher gets to experience kindergarten for a couple of hours. They will go to music and PE and have a snack - sounds like a great Leap-up Day to me, but he's going to be really disappointed when real kindergarten isn't like that (and it's ALL day, not just two hours). Last night, when I told him about going to school today, Christopher was excited. He woke up early this morning and got dressed without much fuss (a first!). But as the time got closer to the time we needed to leave, Christopher did NOT want to go. I was afraid of this and kept telling him the fun things he would do. By the time it was time to go, he was fine and excited to go.Having his name tag pinned on.
Playing with the Star Wars stuff when he first arrived.
Posing with Mrs. Navotny, one of the kindergarten teachers (and a friend of mine - I really hope he gets her next year!!!).

It Must be Spring!

2011-04-29T09:58:00.003-05:00

It must be Spring because we are doing Spring things!

Yesterday the weather was so beautiful that JJ spent the afternoon on a tandem bicycle with his friend, Jackson.

While JJ was touring the neighborhood, Kelly and Christopher (but mostly Kelly) planted flowers in one of our front flower beds. (Actually, it was the dad's idea. He's tired of looking like white trash because we have a boy who likes to farm in that flower bed - see the post here. The dad is hoping that the flowers will keep the boy out of that "field" and into the sandbox that we've had in the backyard for TWO YEARS.)

We will probably add more flowers eventually and we will plant the flower bed on the other side of the steps sometime next week, we hope.

Easter

2011-04-24T21:33:00.005-05:00

We have a family tradition of making a bunny cake on Easter. Sometimes it's a sitting up bunny and sometimes it's just the face. This year we made the face bunny. (Christopher took this closeup picture of the face.)The whole bunny.
The cake decorators, Christopher and Kelly. Christopher was in charge of putting the polka dots (M&Ms) on the bow tie. Kelly was in charge of the piping. Dad frosted the blue bow tie and I frosted the white.

JJ & Christopher in their new Easter tie and vest/tie, respectively.
Kelly in her Easter dress.
Kelly holding Leslie in the "Kelly chair".
Leslie in her Easter dress and John in his new tie. Leslie hates the headband (she must be related to Grandma Layton) and you can see in the next two pictures that she is taking it off. We didn't even take it to Church because it would have ended up in the diaper bag before we even got in the doors. It's still a cute picture, though. (Kelly loves Leslie's dress and wishes there was one in her size because it's blue and it has butterflies on the fabric, little ruffles around the bottom and two flowers on the bodice.)

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-24T17:13:00.005-05:00

On Saturday we were invited to the Hopkins for an Easter egg hunt. It was very relaxed and absolutely perfect! The weather was a bit chilly and there was a little bit of wind but otherwise it was perfect.Kelly, getting ready for battle.
Christopher finding eggs - an action shot!
JJ had the choice to hide the eggs or hunt for them. He's 12 now so he decided to help hide the 300 eggs. He hid some of them in the rim of the trailer. Silly boy! (As "payment" he got his favorite candy - that he didn't have to share with anyone!)

Leslie enjoyed the hunt from the top of Daddy's shoulders. (Notice that they have the same hair growth - or non-growth - patterns. Leslie looks like she has a mohawk all the time.)
I wanted to get a picture of Kelly but they had just announced that there were still more eggs to find. The kids had each already found the limit set at the beginning of the hunt and had been told to go find more. She didn't want to stop for a picture and told me we could do it later. One of the eggs Kelly found had also been "found" by a squirrel. The egg had been chewed open and all the goodies were gone. The eggs had only been hidden in the yard about 30 minutes before the hunt began. Those are fast squirrels!

3rd Grade Music Program

2011-04-23T12:24:00.004-05:00

Kelly's third grade program, "Musical Bits & Pieces", was Thursday night. She did a great job!You can see Kelly, waiting in the back to go onto the stage. Her teacher, Mrs. Gilpin, is in the front of the line.
This picture was taken during the afternoon performance for the rest of the school.
Kelly played the boomwhackers during one of the songs (see the video below).
All I can say is thank goodness for iTunes and the free episodes I downloaded of Curious George, Jimmy Neutron and Chuggington. Between the iPod and an occasional jelly bean, Christopher was perfect during the whole evening performance!

Kelly's speaking part - "The main focus...is an exercise...for the tongue and mouth...thanks to the syllables...dee and deet."

(I can't get the other two videos to load right now. I've been trying all afternoon. I'll try it again later.)