painting

light. water. color.
the little brain-sponge looks on as the brute illustrates.
the little mind sees big things in little places.
life.

little moments

when their toes start peeking out from their jammies and teeth emerge from the gummy smile.
when their tongue starts twisting to form new sounds and the bangs grow over those mischievous eyes.
when the simplest upset brings a high-pitched scream that makes your hair stand on end,
and everyone's lucky to be alive when it's over.
legs grow longer, fingers grow more nimble, humor grows more sophisticated, tantrums grow louder, and will grows stronger.

but each night it's nearly the same.
eyes closed, heavy breathing, body sprawled over the mass of blankets necessary for slumbering companionship. the door slides open and the hall light illuminates the cherubs safely sleeping.
we look on and like to think we have something to do with their brilliance and beauty.
the door slides closed and dreams take the little souls away until the sun wakes up.
and we do it all over again.
for moments like this, i'd do it forever.

dynamic duo

we recently learned that aaron's nick name as a baby was "poop" so, obviously we have come to call eliza "poop jr."

eliza is a mommy's girl and is not apologetic about it. daddy has gone to great lengths to win her over but her crocodile tears and heaving sobs abruptly turn to cheerful bobbing and cooing when mommy rescues her.

eliza, i appreciate that you openly acknowledge what i mean to you. just don't forget about daddy's tender little heart. 

love these two.

fits, futures and feats

fits

jade turned exactly 2 1/2 yesterday. the sass that comes out of this girl is uncanny. she took her first fishing trip with daddy and grandpa hone saturday and found the greatest entertainment was in throwing the collection of fish on the stringer back into the water, then pulling them back to the shore "i got a fish!" 

apparently you can the same fish twice.

and when she was done, she got up from her chair and started walking back toward the parking lot. "where are you going, jade?"

"i'm going home, daddy."

apparently you can drive yourself home at the age of two.

she never quits, and we wouldn't have it any other way. 

futures

daddy makes us laugh each and every day, which is a good thing for three overly-emotional, young ladies. he's working so hard to finish up school and work his way into the park system. the future has so many possibilities; our adventures have only begun. 

feats

our blue-eyed girl - well, blue-eyed for now. we'll see what the next few months bring us. 

rolling over, grabbing, jabbing, poking, pulling, whining, screaming, laughing, joking.

these are only a few of the things that make us all smile and drive us crazy. 

we welcome this little passionate and vibrant spirit into our circle. 

she fits right in.

#24 start a diet to help aaron

aaron has crohn's (for those of you who i have not informed). we started a strict regiment on january 1st in attempt to diminish the symptoms of his disease. no grains (including rice and corn), no milk, no starches and of course no refined sugars. yes, just as you are wondering now, we also asked ourselves what would be left to eat; lots of healthy foods that come in their natural, God-made form. hooray for us all, he is responding remarkably well:) and i am finally cooking more than once a month. rather, i am cooking multiple times a day and always trying new things so i don't hear complaining that it is chicken soup for dinner AGAIN. this week is sprouted grain sourdough bread. sprouting my own grain on the counter next to sourdough starter from my blessed neighbor.


a few other goals i've accomplished - -

#25 have a game night with gideon and katie (charades...need i say more?)
#26 go to bed before midnight for a week (amazingly difficult, but so rewarding)
#27 drink 8 glasses of water in one day (tap water tastes so gross)
#28 use clothe diapers for a week (three weeks now and going strong)
#29 make a book for my blog 2008-2010 (actually went all the way through 2011 and was a christmas gift to aaron's grandparents)

daddy time

and you laugh so hard.
today you cried when daddy left the room because you love it when he plays with you. i'm no match for yours or daddy's energy.

winter and daddy love

it's cold outside. then it's warm but then it's cold again.

the sunshine and the snow make a beautiful icicle decoration on your window.

and here we are enjoying the beauty of the earth as it follows it's natural course of life.

we follow our natural course of life too.

sometimes it's a beautiful moment of laughter and treasured love.

other times it's teaching our four month old daughter to watch tv.

clarification

for the sake of the many confused responses to the last post -

after being jobless for over a year and searching since early summer, aaron was finally given a job at the new 7eleven opening in american fork. so sorry to disappoint you, it's not his new poker shirt...

hallelujah

november 1st, 2010

a belgian waffle-maker, daddy-daughter tshirt, pumpkin pie, whipped cream, eggnog, sour patch kids, swedish fish and two great new movies. even skipped class all day. yet I think his favorite part of his birthday was holding his baby boogs all day long.

you might be a red neck...

...if you get rid of mice in your house using a .22.

it's true ladies and gentlemen. aaron shot a mouse inside the house using a .22.

skinned it and ate it too. ha ha, just kidding - about the skinning and eating that is.

rocky gap rage

dad and aaron went to rocky gap.

all of us who have been there know the beauty and lush, green terrain of the redwood river.

only those who have been there too early in the year have had the experience that dad and aaron got.

here's dad ditching the shirt and pack to make the swim to the shore.

here's the top where usually we are basking in the sun and jumping into the swimming holes...but again, when you go too early in the year...this is what you find.

aaron's first baby...but not his most important...

72 toyota land cruiser

the recluse

aaron took another solo trip to the mountains saturday morning, leaving me to sleep in after a long week of being sick. after too may hours of being without my husband, this studly guy showed up at the door, hair disheveled, skin burnt to the crisp, back sweaty, and a happy and proud smile on his face. it was good to have him back. before the shower he sat me down and showed me all the pictures of his wild adventure.

here are some excerpts as follows:

i got a text just before noon, a few hours after he left, reporting that he had begun digging a hole for our new tent. It wasn't until at least 2 or 3 in the afternoon that he that he started back down the trail to come home. this photo is the result of aaron's dedication to hole-digging. a truly impressive sight! the opening in the hole at the bottom of the photo is where he dug in some steps so his wife could get into the hole without complications...we plan to take the tent up there and test it out in the deep snow overnight. wish us luck!

view from slide canyon; located just to the south of the y mountain.

here is the view looking west across central provo and utah lake toward the snowy mountains behind west mountain.

aaron's solo adventure

so aaron began his ascent out of the nasty utah valley up on y mountain.

there was a warning against going outside again today because of air pollution. sad, but true. one can see the layer of brown air covering the valley. pretty nasty.

this is Aaron; as though he was deep in thought and the photographer interrupted him prematurely...except he is the photographer...

great views