Merry Christmas, 2011!

Well, it was a fun December - parties, santa and presents. We are grateful to be able to fill our lives with 4 kids who are so excited for Christmas. We had so many countdowns, service charts, secret santas, and more planned by our kids during the season. It was fun to share their excitement. Chad always does a daddy date and takes each kid Christmas shopping and to do a fun activity. It is one of our highlights to see what they buy for each other. It is all so cute.

Anyway, we have enjoyed a little winter swimming, a trip to the new Natural History Museum of Utah, Kate's dance day, class parties, and fun family parties.

Christmas was pretty magical. Santa was able to fulfill most of the kids wishes, and that was really fun! Anyway, it is hard to believe that another year is drawing to a close. I am just really grateful for this time I have to be a mom to these wonderful kids!

Gnarly November

Well, November has been great. We had several noteworthy events, but mostly just good family fun. We have been using our new passes at Trafalga - fun for a couple of hours on a Saturday!

Carson has earned his yellow belt! He started in August, and has been pretty dedicated to practicing. We are proud of his progress. He now gets to be in the same class as his friend, yea!

We had a fun family adventure - Layton Surf-n-Swim with the whole Iverson clan. Weeze and family we love you!

We also went to the new children's exhibit at the church history museum with the Halls. That turned out to be more adventure than we bargained for. Graham got lost - and their were about 20 people searching for him. We looked for over 10 minutes (no idea exactly how long, it seemed like an eternity). No sign. I was starting to get pretty scared. Finally, someone followed a prompting to look on the elevator. Sure enough, he was locked inside with the doors closed. What an elevator ride, we were all so relieved!

Thanksgiving was wonderful. We hosted my sister's family and the Iverson parents. Here are the kids enjoying their turkey dinner! We had a wonderful day - very low key and good company.

Now it is Christmas time!

The Warm Sun and Blue Skies of October

We went to several parks in October. We loved the fall weather, the bright sun, and the general peaceful feeling everywhere. Fall is so beautiful! We had several days off of school, and we made the most of the Indian summer we have been having. There are three park finds in this picture: West Jordan City Park (amazing toys!), Memory Grove in downtown SLC - it was like a nature hike in the middle of the city, and Scera park in Orem with Jen's son Joshua. What a great way to spend the fall.



In a creative burst, we thought of the idea of doing the "domino effect" with books. We built several designs, but our favorite one was this spiral design. It worked perfectly, spiraling around into the center when we started the effect. It also kept several active boys amused! Just what we needed during one nap for Graham.




We took Audrey and Carson to a football game - and it was once again beautiful weather and a great day to watch the BYU cougars. It was also nice to get a win. They have been a little sparse this season.

And - got to love Halloween. Our kids have been on a sugar high for days. They had parties and parades all day, trick-or-treating at dad's office, and then the main event that night. It is amazing how quickly Graham picked up on how to score candy. The kids were so excited, and it is fun to do Halloween with them! Graham was a football player, Kate a fairy, Carson a mummy and Audrey a rock star.

One of my favorite everyday good times as a mom includes our hiking and exploring this fall in the perfect fall weather.

Big Sun and Fun in September

Wow - it's been all sun for weeks. It has been wonderful. That made every fun activity even more enjoyable. We have had Audrey's birthday party, school events, and fun fall outings.

Kate started Kindergarten this fall - what a crazy change for all of us! She LOVES Kindergarten! She has so many friends already in her class - and she has made more. She is leaning so much - and sweet to everyone. Everyday she wants to play with one of her friends after school.

The biggest event of the month was Kate's broken arm . . . She fell off of the monkey bars at recess - and got a brake in her elbow. We found out it needed to be pinned - so we spent the afternoon at the primary children's surgical center doing anesthesia and bone setting/pinning. She is so sweet. Even though she has been in pain off and on through this process - she always has a good attitude. She will get the cast off in two more weeks!

Audrey is now 10 years old!!! She is getting so independent and wonderful. I really have appreciated her increased helpfulness and good attitude. She is a pleasure to be around. She changed to a new school, and was really worried about the "mean" teacher she was assigned there. Instead, she has really thrived and done well in school and with friends. We are all grateful to the easy transition. Her birthday party was the LOUDEST one yet. That was a learning - older is also louder!

Carson and Chad did an epic hike up to the outlaw cabin. It is found along the trail to the top of lone peak, and is about 5 1/2 miles straight up the mountain. They started hiking at 6 am, in the dark. They reached the cabin around 10 am. They didn't return until about 2 pm. Along the way they saw a dead deer tied to a tree, cool views and sunrises, and an awesome old tree. The best part was the cabin and the baby skis they found inside. Good work, boys!

We have had fun doing family activities, football games, soccer games, school events like the jog-a-thon and egg drop, and watching Carson exhibit his new Karate skills. Fall always feels so wonderful - the sun is warming and bright, the air is a little cooler, the colors are vibrant, there is a sense of contentment in the air. What a wonderful world.

Lazy Days of Summer

It has been the easy slow days of summer! And I actually have ENJOYED taking it all a little slower than usual. We have gone places and played when I had time, but there have been plenty of days of being home all day - playing with friends, and kids busy creating projects and fun. This is more like the summers I remember. Here, Carson is swinging on a rope swing we found in the Dimple Dell. What a fun surprise! A little adventure close to home.


It was $2 Tuesday at Thanksgiving Point again - and of course, we couldn't stay away. We love the flower gardens - and everyone always wants to stay longer than we can. We were sad that the lighthouse was gone. We loved the children's gardens, as always. It is so fun to feed the fish and play by the water fountains. What a neat get-away.

We got the library city pass this month and enjoyed the Art museum, Red Butte Gardens and Discovery Gateway (we can't wait for the Natural History Museum to reopen in their new building!). After playing for literally hours in the giant dominoes at the Discovery Gateway, we hit the fountains as well. It is so fun to have the weather hot enough to enjoy the refreshing water.


We visited Red Butte Gardens just as a very wet thunderstorm arrived. We hid under cover for about an hour while the rain just poured in sheets. The kids still had fun performing on "stage" and marveling at the water pouring off the roof. After the rainstorm ended, we were pretty much the only people in the gardens for our entire stay. Even the workers had cleared out during the storm. We played and played until Graham was too tired to go on and needed a nap. Very good day.


The kids all ran a race this August - we joined the Lindon Days Festival for their 5K and kids race. Audrey and Carson ran the kids race. They both finished the full 3.1 miles!!! Very cool to see them accomplish something hard! Kate ran the kids race, which was a 1K. She did amazing - I couldn't hardly keep up for a lot of the start, and she kept going when she got tired. The big surprise was that she got a blue ribbon for finishing first in her age division (5 and 6 year old girls). That was a very fun reward for her.

One of our favorite things, and according to Audrey, a sign summer is about to end: The Sandy Balloon Festival. We ate doughnuts and watched balloons fill and launch. While waiting for the launching, we sat and read books, one of my favorite things to do with the kids. It was a great morning, and a good send off to summer!

July Waves

One of the best things about July has been the fun water play!

We celebrated July 4th at Cowabunga Bay! We put in a long day there and had a blast. The kids loved the slides and we also spent a ton of time in the lazy river. Good fun!

So many family members came visiting this month from Texas!! It was so fun to hang out and do things with them. My kids' favorite part was the swimming pool at Nanna's hotel. We played there several afternoons. Here is Audrey playing hard.

We attended a little bit of Draper Days for the first time this year. We went to the Treehouse Swimming Party - and had a great time. And then we went to the party at the park for a couple hours. The kids loved this walk on water game. They played so hard for the entire time they were inside the ball. It was hilarious watching them try to get up and fall. I want to try it too!

I did my first Triathlon this month!!! It was the Echo Tri - I did the sprint distance. Chad came along and did the Olympic distance. I cannot believe how tired I got over doing just the sprint!!! I was not fast at swimming, very slow at transitions, and I was biking against several of the Canyon Bicycles' team - so pretty hard there. BUT, I rocked it on the run. It is hard to figure out how fast I did it, because the transition time got messed up and was included in the run part - but, I think I was running about 7 min/miles and ran past all of those bike team members! It was soooo fun to come on strong on the run like that! I ended in 2nd place in my age (me in the red shirt) - and it was pretty cool to get to stand on the podium!!! Anyway - I think I am hooked, at least on the sprint distance.

We always do swimming lessons in July at the Draper Pool. We have loved enjoying the summer weather in a great pool. Here is Carson actually swimming. All of the kids have made so much progress this year, I am very happy for them. They are getting independent and grown up.

We went to the float preview of the 24th of July parade. The kids always have a blast looking at every float and picking their favorite. They also always enjoy a balloon twist from a clown. We found the best balloon twister ever - and his creations are amazing. Fun day.

Yes, Chad is another year older! The kids were so cute planning his birthday party. We filmed a movie for him - and I learned how to edit movies. We all had a good time putting it together as a surprise while he was up at scout camp. He had a lot of loving presents from the kids and they all expressed their love for him. He is a wonderful man and we are so lucky to have him.

We also celebrate Chad's birthday by going to Lagoon every summer. Here is Graham - now 17 months old, riding the steam train around Lagoon. He is so grown up! He is suddenly trying to talk to us and finally enjoys some books read - but mostly he is just on the go all day long. What a fun little bug.

June Fairies and Fun

Okay - June has been great - school ended, and then we had a whirlwind of things to do.

We have found that Chad has ancestors from Draper! We spent a little time researching, and found that there were several buried in the Draper Cemetery. One Sunday, some of his family got together, learned about them, and then found them in the Cemetery.

Next - Kate's birthday party! We had 8 fairies come visit us during her party! The girls were so cute in matching wings and tutus. What a fun party! She is now 5 years old. I can't believe my little girl is growing up so quickly.

We had the Iverson Family Campout this month - and here we are at our campsite. We had a blast boating, swimming, fishing, biking, and talking. The weather was beautiful, the scenery amazing, and the company priceless. What a fun trip.

The next day was the Wasatch Back Relay race. This is my 4th year and Chads' 6th year. He always organizes a team - and it is a pleasure to run with them. They usually are pretty fast and competitive - and once again we finished in the top. (72nd of 1062 teams). As usual, there were struggles to get through. Chad got sick and we had to shuffle around a little. But, everyone came through. I had my toughest year - my set included a 10 miler and the hill known as "You Got to be Kidding Me". I climbed 1500 ft in around 3 miles. My biggest thing was that I didn't want to walk it - and except for about 10 steps, that is true. It was very tough, but you get such a rush from finishing an uphill run!!! Anyway, tons of fun, can't wait to do it again!

May - If April Showers bring May Flowers, what do May showers bring?

Okay - it has been the wettest May and Spring in Utah's recorded history. So, that makes for some cold soccer games and cancelled practices. However, we have managed to have a good month, anyway.

Kate had her first dance recital! She was so beautiful. She knew her dance really well, and was adorable doing the moves. We love this cute little girl. She was so excited for her recital. We had a recital countdown for the last 6 weeks. What a fun day.

This month was also Kate's preschool graduation. She did her parts so well, and it was fun to see her excited to be old enough for Kindergarted now. I am just not sure that I am ready. I can't believe that our little girl is getting so old.

We went to Arches for our annual Memorial Day camping trip. We went a few days early, and we managed to get pretty good weather there. We hiked to so many arches. But, I still get tickled to see us posing at the Delicate Arch. It is so famous, but there we are! Our favorite hike was to the Tower Arch. It was a little used trail at the end of a dirt road. But the arch was amazing, and so was having the whole thing to ourselves. We really had a blast. The kids are good hikers, and we managed to finally wear Carson out! The kids loved scrambling over the red "slick" rock around our campsite as well. We would hike all day, and then they would keep on hiking back at the tent. We camped across from the famous slick rock trail. What a cool world it is down there. Graham was a trooper. He managed to survive the sandy world, and he actually slept okay at night.

Can you believe Graham is walking!!! This is the day we got home from camping. Oh, boy! He is trying to walk more and more. Watch out world!

On Memorial Day, we visited the peace gardens in SLC. It was a pretty interesting garden. Chad found it on a bike ride, and we finally took the time to explore it. We all loved going to the different gardens and figuring out what country it represented. Here are the kids in front of the Chinese Garden.

Hopefully May showers bring exciting June fun.

April Getaways

So, the weather hasn't been all that great! We have had to really improvise to do the normal spring activities! This is the snow from the first Sunday in April - it was beautiful, but we would have rather had green grass and blue skies. Then, the second weekend in April, the soccer games were cancelled because of rain and snow. We are all itching to get outside and play!

Carson celebrated his 7th birthday this April. We had a blast with a Ben 10 party - complete with a glow-in-the dark alien shooting/ obstacle course in a dark basement. The boys loved it - they were so hyper it was hard to think. We love Carson so much, and we are proud of the smart young man he is becoming.

Luckily - Chad and I went on a cruise for a week in the middle of April. So, we actually saw the sun and enjoyed HOT Mexican beaches. We snorkeled and mountain biked in Cabo San Lucas, and zip-lined and para-sailed in Puerto Villarta. What fun adventures - got to love the tan we came back with!

It has been spring break this past week, and while most days have been cold and rainy/windy, we did do a bike ride on a day that was just cold. The temperatures are only in the 50's, but when it is sunny, you can fake it a little. Here is Carson getting ready to ride out on the trail. Chad pulled Graham in the bike trailer and I brought up the rear with the slowest of the kiddoes. They are all so full of energy - it is fun to wear them out a little outside.

Now for Easter - we celebrated Easter at Grandma's house yesterday for her annual party. We found eggs and had dinner. Everyone loves the Easter Party. Today, has been great. Easter Sunday is always special and I am so glad that we can remember the new hope that Christ's Resurrection brought the whole world - and us.

Well, still wishing for less clouds and more sun, but overall, we are loving our time together.