The Whole Crayon Box

Only on Halloween do you get to wear cones on your head and coordinate your outfit to be matchy-matchy with the rest of your family.

Don't we look fabulous?

Baby Ghost (or Thank You Target Dollar Section)

The Hunt

Our family's "hunting grounds" is a beautiful place. It's hard to believe it has been 10 (maybe 9?) years since my first official hunt with a tag. And it's probably been 6 years since I've been to camp.

Sam and I met up with my family at camp on two separate nights. On opening day we arrived shortly before the crew came back to camp with their first kill.

Doesn't he look fancy all dressed up? (The deer, not my brother.)

We had a good time around camp. Sam went hiking with Winston, rode horses with my brother and his kids, and even did a little tracking.

Last Saturday was the first time that I can remember all of my siblings and my dad being at camp at the same time. I don't think it has ever happened before.

And once you hear us around the fire, you can probably tell why it doesn't happen very often.

I should have had the camera 2 minutes before this film--everyone was rowdy and much louder than this. You should have heard Sam laughing at the scene.

It was pretty funny.

Maybe next year we'll camp out with them.

No Seat Belt Scenario

I had to take a defensive driving course a couple of weeks ago. (No, not because I'm a bad driver. I had to take it in order to get reimbursed for travel expenses with my job.) A new insight about not wearing seat belts was shown to me.

There are probably many of you who knew this, but I had never considered how dangerous someone without a seat belt is to the other people in the car. Check out this video.

It's sickening, but WOW. I have always worn my seat belt, but now I will never start my car until ALL other passengers are belted--and not just for their safety but for mine!

Pass it on.

How Running is Like Unto Labor

About 5 summers ago I really got into running. Meaning that I ran probably at least 5 times a week and worked up to running 45-50 minutes without stopping. I LOATHED it in the beginning, but eventually grew to love it (who wouldn't grow to love running in Logan?).

But then I started having terrible knee pain. The doctors told me (basically) to stop doing what made the knees hurt. So, I stopped running and took up swimming. I now really enjoy swimming laps for exercise (I'll admit, though, it's been a while--Duchesne doesn't have an indoor pool and I haven't worked out a schedule with Mr. Little Baby since being in the SL valley).

The other day, however, I really wanted to go running with the boys. Sam had gone with Winston a few times, and it just sounded like fun.

Ha! How I fooled myself. :)

I soon remembered how much I hate running (until I get used to it, again, anyway). After my short non-stop 12 minute run (at a surprisingly good pace--not bad for not running in years), I thought about how running is like labor (or at least my labor with Winston).

1. They both are things to look forward to at the beginning.

2. During both you wonder what you got yourself into and can't wait until it's over.

3. During both you wonder how much longer you have to go

and how much longer you can make it without taking a break.

4. Both make you breath in out-of-the-ordinary ways and make your mouth and throat sore (I'll blame the cold weather while running and the moans and groans while laboring).

5. At the end you think, "That wasn't so bad, I could do it again."

But really, it was kind of nice. Hopefully we can fix the slow leak in the stroller tire soon, and bundle up the little dude again for another jog around the [big] block.

Maybe in a few months I'll be up to 45 minute runs again.

(But am I really that ambitious?)

I'm a "super human"

Since I started teaching I have played several instruments during class, including the trombone, trumpet, horn, and clarinet. Next week I plan to play the flute and eventually the saxophone as well.

Today while I was teaching, some of my students responded to me in Spanish saying: "Sí", yet they were not Latino. So I responded back to them in Spanish and one student then said: "Yo no hablemos español."

Then another student said the following:

"Wow, you're like a super human. You can play all the instruments and you speak Spanish."

Squawk, Squawk, Squeal, Repeat

I had a conference/training today, and this is just exactly how Winston acted all day long.

Yep--All. Day.

It started before he even got out of bed this morning, and he's still doing it now.

We stood outside the conference room for probably 90% of the meetings (the other 10% he was sleeping or eating).

It was very cute, and oh so very distracting.