Outnumbered

Christmas 2017

2017-12-28T14:37:00.000-07:00

Well, Christmas has come and gone and so has 2017 (almost). We had a great Christmas at home, with my parents here to help celebrate.

Here are a few of the highlights.....

Of course we've already been to see the new Star Wars movie, The Last Jedi. I don't have a picture of that, but I do have a picture of the boys opening their new X-Wing drone!

And this is basically the best gift opening face ever.....

What was inside the box, you ask? The LEGO Saturn V Rocket. A replica of the same one that launched Apollo 11 astronauts toward the moon in 1969. So of course it has 1969 pieces. And it's over 3 feet tall!

C's favorite gift was easily a new 3D printer. It's the only thing he really wanted, and he even helped save up to help pay for it, because those things aren't cheap!

I have to say, it's pretty awesome! His first project was this cute little lucky cat.

Of course, the best part of the day was getting to Skype with Ethan in Florida! He has just over 5 months left to go on his mission, and he looked and sounded great!

It was a wonderful day spent with family. Here's to a wonderful 2018!!!

Where in the World is Elder McCollum?

2017-12-28T14:26:00.001-07:00

I know I haven't posted many pictures of E serving his mission in parts of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia, because......well, he doesn't send me many pictures.

However, he does send enough for me to do a quick recap of the places he's been the last 18 months. Starting in Thomasville, Georgia, home of CSU football coach Mike Bobo.

On this particular occasion they were cleaning up after a tornado.

Next came DeFuniak Springs, Florida. A little closer to the beach, and the place he ate raccoon for the first (and hopefully last) time.

I'm not 100% sure where this next photo was taken, but let's just say it rains a lot in these parts.

While serving in Pascagoula, Mississippi he got to visit an alligator farm.

Back in Niceville, Florida, the beaches along the Emerald Coast are beautiful!

And now he's in Quincy, Florida. A tiny rural town about 30 miles from Tallahassee. With just under 6 months to go, he has made lifelong friends, served so many people, and had countless amazing and wonderful experiences.

Oops! I Forgot!

2017-10-06T20:17:00.003-06:00

I was going through my phone deleting old photos when I realized, to my horror, that some of those old photos had not seen the light of day.

It's okay, I only forgot about a few important things. Like the first day of school.....

His first day of school was the same day as the solar eclipse.

His was not.....

I also forgot about that time we went to a football game at the fancy new college stadium.

I should probably also mention the time I took T's senior pictures. Which I'm pretty sure I just did for my firstborn, and he's like, 20 years old now.

And last but far, far from least (this is really embarrassing), there was that time C became a teenager. To think, the evidence was almost kept hidden on my phone forever.

Also, if you forget to buy candles for the birthday cake, there's an app for that.

May the force be with you.

San Francisco!

2017-08-09T11:22:00.002-06:00

Although it pains me to take a vacation without E, we decided to spend a few days in San Francisco last week. The kids have never been there, so it was fun to show them around such a great city!

We started off taking a tour of the city on this refurbished trolley car on wheels. It was an awesome way to get a feel for what we wanted to go back and visit on foot.

They even stopped at the Golden Gate Bridge so we could hop off and get a picture!

Of course, Chinatown is a must when visiting San Francisco.

Everyone was impressed with the Palace of the Fine Arts. It's enormous! Look how tiny they are!

C really loved seeing the sea lions at Pier 39. And T was thrilled to finally find something with his name on it.

The Alcatraz tour was really cool. I highly recommend it!

We ate way too much seafood, chocolate and pastry, but thankfully walked off most of the calories getting to Lombard Street, Fisherman's Wharf, and more.

And just when we thought it couldn't get any better, G found socks featuring his dear Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau!

He was 16, Going on 17

2017-07-01T14:31:00.003-06:00

This guy turned 17 today! Which means in one short year, I will have two adult children.

I hardly feel like and adult myself most days. I'm certainly not old enough to have adult children!

But seriously, T is one of the best kids I know.

If I never said a word to him, he would still get up every morning and go to school, church or work, do all his homework, get good grades, be nice to people, stay out of trouble, run the Robotics team, help others, be super responsible, show up on time, say "thank you," and "do you need help with anything," remember every single thing he has ever seen, heard or read.....

and patiently explain Schrödinger's cat to me, no matter how many times I ask. I ask a lot.

Happy Birthday T!!!

National Science Olympiad

2017-05-26T11:21:00.000-06:00

C's middle school Science Olympiad team recently attended the national competition in Dayton, OH.

In order to document this important event, I have borrowed the teacher's pictures from the team Facebook page.

They got all fancied up for the awards ceremony. C competed in Meteorology, Roads Scholar (it's about map reading.....get it?), and Dynamic Planet.

Notice in the above photo how he strategically positioned himself front and center, between all the girls.

He had a great time.....although I think he probably enjoyed the day at King's Island amusement park most of all!

FIRST World Championships!!!

2017-04-27T09:50:00.001-06:00

T and I returned Sunday from the FIRST Robotics World Championships in Houston, TX. We traveled with nine team members and five mentors in a whirlwind trip that we planned in one weekend!

Why such short notice, you ask? Well, we didn't win a spot at the championships, but there were quite a few wait list spots to be had. The head mentor thought he signed us up for the wait list months ago......

But T decided to check on our registration Monday morning. We were never registered! So he took the liberty of registering the team himself, since he'll be the captain next year and all. On Friday morning, the call came inviting us to Houston!

We were invited so late, we had to write our team number on the drive team buttons with Sharpie. We weren't even in the program!

Here are a few highlights.....

That tiny little guy down there is will.i.am from the Black Eyed Peas. He loves FIRST Robotics!

"If you can read this, we're doing it right." T wrote this on the bottom of the robot at the Colorado Regional. The team definitely did something right this season.

Including making this 50 point climb in every single match at World Championships!

We finished in Houston with a 7-3-0 record! We beat World Champions this season, and at this competition, defeated several #1 ranked teams that went on to the finals!

T's face after winning the last match of the qualifiers. Priceless!

T has been living and breathing robots since January. There is not a rule, regulation or robot that he is not familiar with. There is not a strategy for winning he didn't visualize.

And then he, the drive team, and our alliance partners executed those strategies in match after match for some amazing and unexpected victories.

T says he isn't surprised we didn't get picked for a finals alliance--even though Hugh is the team's best robot in years, he knew we couldn't compete on the same level as the robots than moved on to the championship rounds.

I know I'm biased, but I think that makes his robot driving even more amazing! Because we did compete with them!

What a season! Congratulations Alpine Robotics!

Meteorology Gold!

2017-04-16T07:24:00.000-06:00

C participated in the Colorado State Science Olympiad this weekend. His team came in first in the entire state. Which means they're headed to the National Competition in Dayton, Ohio next month!

C and his partner took home the gold medal in Meteorology! So perhaps he has a future as a weather man.

At any rate, he knows more about meteorology than any other 7th grader in Colorado.

We also found out that T's robotics team received an invitation to the World Championships in Houston. As in, the ones that start in less than a week. So we are scrambling to make travel plans to get the team there.

But WOW! I can't believe they're going. What a weekend it's been at our house!

Colorado Regional 2017

2017-04-05T08:02:00.000-06:00

Yes, it's been over a week since Team 159 returned from the Colorado Regional in Denver and I'm just now sharing. These robots are exhausting!

I'm so proud of this amazing drive team and all their 159 teammates.

We were eliminated in the quarter-finals by the alliance captained by our brother/sister team at Fossil Ridge High School. We eat lunch together. We cheer for each other. They are our robotics BFF's and there's no team here we'd rather get beaten by.

But I have to say, having your kid drive the robot sure is nerve-wracking!

What a season for team 159!!! We haven't seen anything even close to it since 2012. You guys! These kids built a robot in 6 weeks. From scratch. And took it all the way to the finals in Lubbock, TX and the quarter-finals in Denver.

I leave this competition every year in awe of what everyone here is doing.

This year's robot, Hugh, was named after the team's computer programming mentor, who passed away unexpectedly over the summer. I know he would be so proud and excited about Team 159's great season.

Way to go T and team!!!

Robots and Science

2017-03-05T12:09:00.002-07:00

Moms with kids in sports, I don't know how you watch them compete on a regular basis. I've never been as excited/stressed/nervous as I was yesterday!

C was super excited to get a medal of each color at the Regional Science Olympiad! He took gold in Dynamic Planet, Silver in Meteorology, and Bronze in Roads Scholar. And his team came in first overall!

T's Robotics team was selected for a finals alliance at the Hub City Tournament in Lubbock Texas!

They made it to the final game of the final match and lost by 20 points. He was thrilled!!! Considering their goal was to make it to the quarter-finals, which they haven't done in 6 years, they far exceeded expectations.

He traded his team jersey for an inaugural year t-shirt from one of the teams he competed with in the finals. I think he was almost as excited about his new shirt as he was about being a regional finalist. They'll be competing again in Denver the third week of March!

Whew! What an exciting day!

What A Kid!

2017-02-22T07:14:00.003-07:00

In preparation for being named the official team captain of his Robotics team next year, T has taken on a LOT of responsibility this season (Exhibit A: the "Things To Do" whiteboard, written entirely in his hand).

Every day after school for the last 6 weeks until 8:30 pm, and Saturdays from 8 am - 8 pm, he has been in the shop, working on the design and construction of this robot. During that time, he has maintained a 4.0 GPA and continued to attend his early morning scripture study class at 6 am each day (only missing once or twice during the entire 6 weeks).

Tomorrow at 10 pm the robot will be bagged, tagged and locked away until competition begins in March. For the first time in the 6 years we have been involved in Robotics, his team will end the build season with a second robot (identical to the first) that they can use for practice between now and the start of competition.

T was instrumental in making that happen. He has also been chosen to drive the robot in this year's competition. His teammates and coaches often refer to him as "da real MVP."

When you see your child for less than an hour a day for over a month, you don't always grasp what amazing things they are accomplishing. Today as we served lunch to the team, we heard many comments from fellow students and mentors about how much they like and respect T, and what a great job he's done leading the team this season.

The moral of the story is twofold: first, as G reminded T last week, you don't need an official title to be a leader. Second: "Don't let yourself become so concerned with raising a good kid that you forget you already have one."

May the Force be with You.....in 2017

2016-12-31T17:27:00.002-07:00

A nice lady in Georgia texted this photo to me recently with the message "Merry Christmas!" And indeed, it was merry, because we got to Facetime with Ethan!

We haven't actually seen his face in almost 7 months, so it was easily the best Christmas gift ever! He looks great, is happy, and has gained 20 pounds eating Southern food.

Don't worry, it's not like you or me gaining 20 pounds.....now he weighs a whopping 150. And being about 6' 2'', he could probably stand to gain 20 more. When the above photo was taken, he had just eaten a fried OREO, which explains how this all happened.

Besides getting to Facetime with Ethan on Christmas day, today was the best thing (in a very distant second kind of way) we've done during Christmas break!

There is an exhibit of Star Wars costumes at the Denver Art Museum--as in, they were worn in the actual movies--and you know we just had to see that!

Here are a few, by which I mean "a lot," of our favorites.

Obi-Wan Kenobi's costume from Star Wars: A New Hope. The one worn by Sir Alec Guinness.

Young Obi-Wan Kenobi's (Ewan MacGregor) lightsaber.

Princess Leia's costume from The Empire Strikes Back.

Tusken Raider.

Boba Fett. My husband's favorite.

Chewie and Han Solo costumes. The wookiee costume was made from aprroximately 15 pounds of yak hair.

Stormtroopers.

Our favorite droids.....

The C-3PO costume weighed about 90 pounds.

As you can see, may of the original concepts for Star Wars characters looked nothing like the final product. Take Darth Vader, for example.

Hope everyone had a great 2016. May the force be with you!

My Son, the Hacker

2016-11-10T10:24:00.001-07:00

This is one of those moments where you don't know whether to be proud, or worried. But my son is a champion hacker.

I'm going to go with proud, since he was using his "hacking" powers for good. C entered a school district hackathon this past weekend with 3 classmates.

They had to create a mental health solution to help kids manage their homework and schedules, so they began development of an app using C# and Unity that rewards you for completing your tasks each week. Your app includes a virtual locker, and when you earn enough points, you get items to decorate your locker. And of course, there is a parental password so your mom and dad can verify everything you've done.

Well, they WON! Which is super-exciting when you're a 7th grader and you get 30 whole dollars!

I believe that children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way.....

Fortress of Faith

2016-10-17T12:49:00.004-06:00

Wow! Wow! Wow! Where do I even begin to tell you about our amazing weekend?

Yesterday, the Fort Collins Temple was dedicated by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf. And on Saturday, T and C (and 4,000 other youth from Colorado, Wyoming and Nebraska) participated in a Cultural Celebration to highlight the history of the region and share inspiring stories of faith through song and dance.

They have been preparing for this moment for nearly two months, and waiting for it for over 5 years, ever since the Fort Collins Temple was announced in April, 2011.

The theme of the celebration was Fortress of Faith. It began by recalling the earliest settlers of the area, including Chief Washakie and the Shoshone and Arapaho Indians.

A scale model of a fort served as the backdrop as kids danced dressed as buffalo, pioneers, trappers and cavalry from the American west. Prepare to be amazed when later in the performance, the fort transforms into a scale model of the Fort Collins temple!

A traditional Mexican dance was chose to represent the variety of cultures that contribute to this region.

The kids from Fort Collins and Loveland, including T and C, participated in the final dance number. Before they performed, young people talked about their challenges during the Windsor, CO tornado in 2008 and the terrible flooding we had in 2013.

They are wearing the Mormon Helping Hands vests that we don when we go into areas to provide disaster relief. It's one of the things we do best!

And behold! The fort is now the temple!

What a wonderful thing for the kids to be a part of! I think their favorite thing was having Dieter F. Uchtdorf there to watch them perform.

And who is this Dieter F. Uchtdorf, you ask? Well, the Mormon church is organized just as it was when Jesus Christ was on the earth. Which means we have 12 Apostles, and Dieter F. Uchtdorf is one of those Apostles. He is a favorite of many, but especially the young people (he's the one waving).

He is German, and was twice a refugee during the World Wars in Europe, so he has been instrumental in encouraging members of our church to support refugees, and the church has donated millions of dollars to refugee efforts around the world.

But I think the kids really love that he was once a fighter pilot in the German Air Force. Because being a fighter pilot is the epitome of cool! But he is truly beloved for his humor, loving heart, and the many airplane analogies he shares when addressing us. But I think the talk we all remember most is when he said:

When we feel hurt, angry, or envious, it is quite easy to judge people. This topic could actually be taught in a two-word sermon. When it comes to hating, gossiping, ignoring, ridiculing, holding grudges, or wanting to cause harm, please apply the following: Stop it!

For the final number, all 4,000 kids sang a song written just for this occasion, called Fortress of Faith. What a great moment, to hear all of these young people sing "Armed with power, and filled with light, we will defend what's true and right. Though the battle may rage outside this place, we will stand, strong and safe in His fortress of faith."

C was front and center during the final number. Grandma and grandpa even saw him on the live feed!

These kids worked SO hard! They are simply amazing! Really, there are no words......so I put together a little video montage of the evening. I promise, you will be impressed.

If you are feeling a little down in the dumps, what with this ridiculous election going on, and other such madness in the world, just take a look at what these fabulous young people did and it will restore your hope for the future.

Colorado Rocky Mountain High

2016-09-24T13:32:00.001-06:00

The boys had the day off of school Friday, so G took the day off too and we all headed up to Rocky Mountain National Park!

We only live an hour away. So I can't figure out why we don't go there more often. Especially when you get there and see all the out-of-state plates. People drive a looooong way to see this place, and we can't be bothered to drive an hour?

As C would say, "It's majestic! It's Coloradical!"

It really is beautiful!

And this is definitely one of those situations where a picture is worth a thousand words. So I'll stop talking now.....

First Day of School.....Sort Of

2016-08-31T09:37:00.000-06:00

Why yes, school has started here. Over a week ago, as a matter of fact. But I could not get my act together to take pictures that day, or the day after that, or the day after that, or......

It's just so early. You understand.

But like I always say, better late than never!

T is a junior this year and driving himself to school. Hooray! And he's the Captain in Training of the robotics team. Next year, he'll be in charge and get to really exercise his leadership skills!

C is a 7th grader at his new middle school (did I mention that we moved across town so he could attend a different middle school?) and loving it so far! His new school is a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) so it is right up his alley!

In other news, the Fort Collins Mormon Temple opened last weekend for public tours and we have been busy taking many, many friends to see it during the open house. It is amazing and beautiful and I will share more pictures later, so stay tuned!

I only wish Ethan were here to see it! He seems to be doing really well, and shared this helpful information in his email on Monday:

People in this area think putting dryer sheets in your collar works like bug spray, but better. I forgot to put bug spray on a few nights ago and was given a dryer sheet by a member; I can now personally testify that this belief will be the cause of a Zika outbreak in the southern United States.

So, if you see something on Pinterest about using dryer sheets in place of bug spray, DO NOT repin that thing! You're welcome.

Random Goings-On

2016-06-24T21:46:00.001-06:00

To say things have been a little crazy around here would be an understatement. We've been packing for the move, T got his wisdom teeth out on Tuesday, and E left the missionary training center in Utah and arrived in Florida--also on Tuesday.

There he is (bottom/far right) with all of the other missionaries who arrived in Tallahassee with him.

The mission "mom" posted these pictures on her blog Tuesday evening. All I can say is that I am SO thankful for the Internets, since missionaries can only email once a week. Back in the day when my brothers went on missions, my parents had to wait for a letter to arrive in the actual mailbox to find out that they were still alive and well.

And then on Wednesday morning, we got an email from the mission mom along with a photo of E and his new companion.

They will be serving in a little town in Georgia about 30 miles outside of Tallahassee called Thomasville. I guess we'll find out how E likes it when we hear from him on Monday!

In other news, this also happened on Tuesday.....

T had his wisdom teeth removed. E never had to have his out, so this is our first wisdom teeth removal experience (aside from having our own removed). T is a big rule follower, and executed his post-op instructions with exactness. He's doing great and has graduated to eating mac and cheese and pancakes!

And tonight, we saw this.

It's a double rainbow....all the way across!!! It's so beautiful! What does it mean?

I Hope They Call Me On a Mission

2016-06-02T16:42:00.001-06:00

Well, we did it! We dropped E off at the Missionary Training Center in Provo, UT. He'll be there for 3 weeks before heading off to Florida for 2 years. We just pulled up to the curb, grabbed his suitcases from the back of the car, and off he went.

Of course, we took pictures and did all the hugging and crying before-hand. I think C cried more than anyone. And then, after the 8 hour drive home, he got in bed and cried himself to sleep. Poor kid.

Of course, I am worried and scared and hoping there are no seizures for the next 2 years. But I'm also really excited and happy for E. He is going to be an amazing missionary. And I'm not just saying that because I'm his mom.

This is a kid that totally, 100% has his act together and believes in what he is doing. If you know him, you know what I am talking about. And maybe, if you live in Florida, you'll get to meet him!

Just before we let him go, a nice missionary at the MTC took one last family photo for us.

Let the countdown begin. One day down, 729 days to go.

The Robots Are Coming

2016-04-08T07:51:00.001-06:00

Yes, I am posting about things that happened 2 weeks ago. Because we've been trying on suits and buying 500 white shirts and sturdy shoes and making doctor's appointments and filling out forms etc., etc. getting Ethan ready to go on his mission. So I'm a little behind. As a matter of fact, Ethan turned 19 this week and I didn't take a single picture. He probably thought that was the best birthday present he's ever gotten!

Now, let's backtrack a bit to March 24-26 and the Denver Regional Robotics Competition.

See that kid in the middle wearing the crown? That's because he's the King of Robots! And I'm so glad he got to be part of the 159 drive team because he totally deserved it. He's worked harder than anyone on the team this year (and they have some pretty hard workers). And I'm not just saying that because I'm his mom. One of the mentors told me he was their MVP.

I am so proud of these kids. Especially those two boys wearing blue crowns, T and our fearless captain C. Team 159 is the oldest robotics team in Colorado, so there is a lot of tradition there. But our captain was never afraid to step up and say, "This isn't working for our team anymore. We need to try something different." And T was always right there to support him. After their build season was officially over, these two (and a handful of other kids and mentors) stayed after school almost every day for another month (after 6 weeks of staying after school already) to build a second robot so they could practice driving and so the programmers could test their code. And by staying after school, I mean until 8 or 9 o'clock, and coming in on Saturday too.

Last year Team 159 came in dead last at the Denver Regional. This year we ranked 19 out of 48 teams. We weren't chosen to participate in the finals, but we handed the team that went on to win their only defeat of the competition! And we did well enough to be one of two alternate teams who needed to be ready to compete in the finals if a robot malfunctioned. Every team sends a representative down to the field for the finals selections. As a captain, C could have easily been the one to go. But as a Junior, he opted to send a Senior--someone who wouldn't have that opportunity again. That's what being a leader is all about! I hope all the kids who worked so hard this season are SO proud of how far they brought their team this year.

And this......

These 159 alumni have been photographed together at the Denver regional since they were freshmen in high school. Now they're all freshman at CSU and they were all at the tournament to cheer the team on. They came and asked me to recreate their annual photo, minus the award they are usually holding. I'm supposed to Photoshop that in later.

But they took care of it for me! You can hardly tell it was Photoshopped.

But seriously, here they are has high school freshman, alongside the photo of them all as college freshman. How adorable and nostalgic this is!

Just one of the MANY reasons I love FIRST Robotics. Because this is where my boys have found true, good, lifelong friends!

Washington D.C. 2016: Part 4

2016-03-21T19:22:00.001-06:00

My fellow Americans, this is the post where I share the rest of the vacation with you. Starting with our tour of the Capitol. Courtesy of the office of Michael Bennet, U.S. Senator from Colorado. Who we did not meet during our tour, but who was, coincidentally flying home to Colorado on the same plane as us. And yes, he flew economy class with all of us common folk.

The Capitol rotunda is undergoing some serious renovations, both inside and out, so I didn't get any good photos of that. But how about the original Senate chamber? We've outgrown it now.

We got to visit the House Chamber, where the President gives his State of the Union address, but no photos were allowed. We also had passes to visit the Senate, but the line was too long.

Say hello to the Speaker of the House.....

Of course, it wouldn't be a visit to D.C. without a stop at the White House.....

Or the U.S. Senate.....

Or the Library of Congress.....perhaps not the most beautiful building on the outside, but easily the most beautiful on the inside.

And who can forget the National Archives, where Nicolas Cage stole the Declaration of Independence.

But seriously, they have the original Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of rights in there. No photos allowed.

Look! They still had the decorations up from Justin Trudeau's visit the week before.

We took a tour bus out to the National Cathedral. The second largest church in the United States.

The tour bus also took us past Embassy Row, the emergency room where Ronald Reagan was taken after being shot in 1981.......

and the Vice President's house.

We also got in a quick visit to Arlington National Cemetery.

It was such a great trip with so much to do and see! With Ethan leaving on his mission soon, it will be our last family vacation for a while.

Thank goodness we got C the Spongebob ice cream thing with the blue gumball eyes. It was the highlight of his vacation!

Washington D.C. 2016: Part 3

2016-03-21T18:57:00.001-06:00

As I mentioned before, there's a lot to do in Washington D.C. that's free, but we also opted for a few paid attractions that were really cool. Let's start with the International Spy Museum. They had all kinds of interesting espionage related artifacts, like this German Enigma machine.

And all kinds of other old school spy gear and equipment.

But the best thing about the Spy Museum was the James Bond exhibit. At least, that's what the men in the family tell me.

Next up, the Newseum. Yes, it's a museum about news, and it was my favorite. Since my degree is in Communications (broadcasting, journalism, advertising, public relations, etc.) it was right up my alley. My favorite part was the gallery of Pulitzer Prize winning photos.

They also had part of the Berlin Wall.....

and the radio tower from the World Trade Center.

How about the most famous newspaper misprint of all time?

While we were at the Newseum, we saw something else newsworthy. The President's motorcade came by!

How that for some D.C. sightseeing?

Washington DC 2016: Part 2

2016-03-20T18:42:00.002-06:00

One of the great things about Washington DC is that there is so much to see and do that is free. Which is good, because everything else is expensive. But seriously, all those Smithsonians--American History, Natural History, Air & Space, the National Gallery of Art and more--all free!

The Air and Space Museum was naturally a big hit in our family. They have the Apollo 11 Command Module. When you live with a bunch of computer, robotics loving boys, it doesn't get much cooler than something that helped put a man on the moon.

There were all kinds of fascinating, spacey artifacts, like these giant rocket-booster-part-things from a Saturn 5 rocket. Look at that tiny man in the bottom left corner. That's how big these are!

I also learned that I am totally unqualified to be a 1950's stewardess, as my ribbon is not new and trimmed, and my purse is far from being orderly and polished. Also, my smile is only friendly and sincere some of the time.

One of the museum highlights for me was seeing Julia Child's kitchen at the American History Museum.

One of the locals we talked to described the American History Museum as "what it would look like if the nation had a garage sale after 400 years." A very apt description, as evidenced by this statue of George Washington that once sat in the Capitol rotunda. But apparently people weren't too fond of the shirtless Washington, so here it is in the America History Museum.

They also had some other amazing items, such at the top hat Abe Lincoln was wearing when assassinated, and Michelle Obama's inaugural gown.

We also saw the original Star Spangled Banner. The actual flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the national anthem. It was so thin and frail, we weren't even allowed to take pictures. Definitely one of the coolest things we saw on our trip!

We also love the National Gallery of Art. T has been a Vincent Van Gogh fan since elementary school, so he was pretty excited to see one of his paintings in real life!

We saw works by so many great artists, including Monet, Cassat, Degas, Rodin, Rembrandt, Seurat, Picasso, Manet, Cezzane, Renoir, and the only Da Vinci painting on display in the U.S.

Last, but not least, we visited the Natural History Museum.

Stay tuned. Next up, the not free, but very cool museums we also visited while in Washington.

Washington DC 2016: Part 1

2016-03-20T10:20:00.003-06:00

This year for spring break we headed east to Washington DC. I know, not exactly the first thing that comes to mind when you think "spring break destinations," but we were in the mood for something educational. We saw so many things, I don't even know were to begin.

How about we start with what DC is probably most known for: the monuments.

Back when I visited DC in 3rd grade, they didn't have the Vietnam, MLK, WWII, Korean War, or Franklin Roosevelt memorials, so it was pretty much like seeing everything for the first time.

The World War II Memorial was a favorite with the boys.

As always the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials were among the most impressive.

And if you've ever been to DC, you know the Washington Monument seems to be pretty much everywhere. Did you know it was complete in two phases, with granite from two different quarries? That's why the color changes about 1/3 of the way up.

Stay tuned for more adventures from our nation's capital.

The Call!

2016-03-04T13:06:00.001-07:00

At the beginning of February, E submitted the paperwork to serve an LDS mission. Yesterday, the letter we've been eagerly awaiting arrived in the mail, telling him where he would be going and when he would be leaving.

There aren't many moments in life I've dreaded and looked forward to at the same time, but this was definitely one of them.

Drum roll please..................he's going to the Florida, Tallahassee Mission (also covering parts of southern Alabama) and he leaves on June 1. He'll be gone for 2 years! And I'll only get to email him once a week and talk to him on the phone twice a year. That's the part I've been dreading. Who will remind him to take his medications?

But of course it's such an exciting time, and so wonderful when your child decides he wants to go and do something challenging to serve other people.

I'm sure you've seen Mormon missionaries out and about in your daily life (and probably hoped the didn't come knocking on your door). You can learn more about the whole process of getting a mission call and serving a mission here.

But here's what I really want you to know. Whether or not you care to hear the message they have to share, somewhere out there those missionaries have a mom, or a dad--someone who is worried about them, and praying for them, and hoping they are healthy and happy and well. And that people are being nice to them.

So just be nice to them. And if you happy to run into that missionary pictured above, could you also remind him to take his medicine?

And They're Off

2016-01-29T07:17:00.001-07:00

I was sitting around last night thinking about how 2016 has gotten off to a slow start. How I haven't written a single blog post yet this year, and January is almost over. And then I remembered.....

T got his braces off!!!

Technically, this happened back on December 31, 2015, but it's a fine way to start a new year, if you ask me. He got balloons! He got a water bottle filled with all of the candy he supposedly never ate when his braces were on! The bad news is, he has to get is wisdom teeth out ASAP, or all those years of supposedly giving up Snickers and Skittles will be in vain.

So that's something to look forward to in 2016.