Bag Fight!

Jack has some pretty creative ideas when it comes to entertainment and the plastic bag fight was no exception. About a week ago on a miserably snowy day I was trying to get some cleaning done, and suddenly I heard two sets of foot steps running into the kitchen, opening the pantry, and then rustling, lots and lots of rustling. I ran downstairs expecting the worst. Usually the rustling of bags means chips or crackers being dumped out and smashed all over the floor. I ran into the kitchen but the boys are gone but from the basement I hear giggling. So there they were, Jack and Gus had gotten every single grocery sack from the pantry, taken them downstairs, and were jumping off the stairs into the them like they were a pile of leaves. Carefully monitored so there wasn't any suffocating, Jack and Gus threw the bags at each other then scooped them into a big pile, jumped in, and swam around. I realized two things that day #1: I really need to start using reusable grocery sacks, and #2: Toys are totally unnecessary.

Do Your Funny Face!

Classic pictures of Jack and Gus showing their stuff.

Hitting the Slopes at Full Speed!

After trying to teach Jack to ski on our own last year we decided to call in the experts this year. We put him in lessons this year and oh what a difference. Like every other aspect in his life Jack is also crazy on the slopes. It's hard to say who he takes after because when I was 6 my family was up at Beaver Mountain skiing together. I remember vividly Shannon and I tucking down the entire hill and hitting some small jumps at the bottom. It was all fun and games until one run I hit the last jump going a little too fast causing my body to flip upside down. My skis flew off and one of them sliced the back of my head open. Needless to say I was a bit of a daredevil and continued to be really until I started having kids and realized it probably wasn't worth the risk.

I definitely had my day as a crazy, but that is not to overshadow Devon who is the king of going big or going home. Devon's mom tells stories of when he was young and they lived on the lower part of Princeton Ave which is super steep. Devon would go out every day with his big wheel, push it all the way to the top of the street, lift up his feet, and fly down the hill as fast as he could. Basically our kids have crazy genes from both sides of the family.

Jack did a ski camp this year at Deer Valley which was the best thing we have ever done for him. He developed a love for skiing that I hope he never looses. We also took him to Park City so he could show off his skills and he did not disappoint. Watching Jack go around every pole on the side of payday looking for jumps to hit brought back many memories of my days up at the Beav. I will never forget teeny Jackers flying down the hill in a tuck with balloons stuck on his helmet and a huge grin on his face.














Bobo and Grandma joined us at Park City.














Jackers after the Deer Valley ski school parade.

Halloween Pheasant Hunt!

6:00 a.m. Halloween morning we all dragged ourselves out of bed for the phantom and ghost pheasant hunt in Lehi. We arrived at the hunting club to find over 100 decked out trucks with gun racks, dog kennels, and ducks unlimited stickers galore. Here we come in our Honda Pilot with our two little kids and our dinky little Springer Spaniel. We felt a little out of place, none the less we walked right in shotguns pumped ready for the great phantom hunt. To begin the hunt they had a pow-wow where I have never seen so much camo and florescent orange in my life and then they let a pheasant go to signal the start. Immediately there were orange men running every which way to their trucks ready to get the best spot for finding the prized phantom and ghost pheasants. We finally made it back to our car and waited for the dust to settle before heading out to find our hunting spot. With Gus on my back and Jack hoofin' it, we lasted a little over an hour before wandering back to the car where we hung out waiting for Devon and Grandpa Wood to make it back with pheasants in hand. Jack and Gus had a great time playing in the dirt and hitting weeds with giant sticks. It couldn't have been a prettier day so it was a great experience and we will definately be taking the whole fam (minus Stella our gun shy Springer) out pheasant hunting again!

And the Flake Award Goes to...

ME!!  Recently I was called out for being a flaky friend, and after looking back on the past 29 years I now know that I have spent most of my life making, breaking, and avoiding plans.  I don't know if there is a true diagnosis for what I have but it is definately a case of Commitment Phobia.  I have always been afraid of making plans because once you commit you're stuck.  (At least that was my mentality)  When a friend says "let's do something on Thursday" and I say "Ok" what I am really thinking is "ummmm......ok........but.........well.......what if Thursday comes and I don't want to go."  So I sort of make plans, never mark it on my calendar, and hope that they forget until Thursday morning when I can decide if that works for me or not.  Don't get me wrong I have really fun friends who I love hanging out with, I think I just got so used to making plans with every intention of breaking them just because that is what I do.  I have always had a fear of hurting feelings by saying "no" but by not ever truly committing I have inadvertently hurt people I love more than I ever knew.  Thank you dear friend for bringing this phobia to my attention so I can deal with it and change my ways.  From here on out I am completely committed to... committing.  Love you all!    

Halloween

This is the one and only picture from Halloween! (What a horrible mother I am). I was too busy trying to get Gus to keep on the hat that went with his scarecrow costume. Jack was an "Engine Turtle"again. Yes that's right an "Engine Turtle". This is the same costume from last year which made things really easy. The funniest moment from Halloween was when Jack was ready in costume for his preschool party and was explaining his duds to me. "See mom, this is my engine pack" he said. "You're what?" I asked with a concerned giggle. "This thing back here is my engine" pointing to the giant shell on his costume. I couldn't help myself, I busted up laughing. All this time we thought he was saying "Ninja turtle" the wrong way, but for two years he truly believed that he was an "engine turtle" and that the shell was his engine. Jack is obsessed with the generator and engines on everything like the houseboat, four wheelers, trucks, planes, etc. which makes things even funnier because he was so proud of the engine on his costume. Devon told all his friends at work and all of our family that story so when anyone saw him in his costume they would all ask "Jack, where's your engine?" Just another Jackism to add to the books. Happy Halloween!

Check Please!

Dining out with kids these days has proven to be disastrous.  Last night was especially horrible when we went to Trio for aunt Brynnie's birthday dinner.  The moment we sat down at our table Devon and I looked at each other and through our expressions said "what are we doing here".  There we were in a restaurant filled with couples or groups enjoying expensive glasses of wine, hoping to have a relaxing dinner meanwhile Gus is hanging on his highchair, jumping on the benches, climbing under the table, squealing, and throwing his food.  Jack, on the other hand, was at the other end of the table by cousin Tate.  Jack and Tate decided tonight would be the night to scream pickle bum and all other manner of potty words across the table.  Oh, they were having a great time!  Jack and Tate were laughing so hard they had tears in their eyes which continued to fuel the fire.  We couldn't help but just laugh at the fiasco going on at our table even with the incredibly dirty looks we were receiving from the other diners.  To make matters worse, after we were finished eating our dinner we all ordered dessert.  Seriously WHAT WERE WE THINKING!  That...needless to say...was our last time eating at Trio with the kids unless of course we get the food to go and eat on the lawn outside the restaurant.  They have a statue and some tall curbing we used as a playground for the kids to burn off some energy after dinner.  CAN WE GET THE CHECK PLEASE!