one step ahead of santa

masterpiece

Of course we just had to do the obligatory annual gingerbread decorating with the cousins! Who wants to miss out on that?

We had the usual chaos that accompanies any activity involving 11 kids all 12 yrs. and under (most 8 and under). Much running about and excited voices (read: LOUD). This year, though, Taylor deemed himself officially too old to care about decorating. So he patiently just hung around. This left Gabriel to skillfully decorate a gingerbread man and the entire house all for Paige!

Unfortunately, the madness demanded some attentiveness and I didn’t get to my camera until everyone was pretty much done. Be assured it was fabulous!

Paige was very meticulous, but there was plenty of taste testing throughout the process. Mmmm… thick, glue-like icing…

not it

We recently attempted our annual family photo op. We try our best to coordinate clothing, put on our best smile, and find a different backdrop to pose. This year, our chosen day was cloudy and rainy and the mountains picked for our background were hidden by clouds. So we took our fake smiles and headed for my dad’s backyard. Everyone did a good job of cooperating, even Gabriel. He followed Grandpa’s lead to the letter – everything Grandpa did, Gabriel did. Had we noticed this trend earlier in the photo shoot, we would have positioned Grandpa a little closer to the camera. Regardless, we had a brief and successful shoot which resulted in a suitable picture for the Christmas card.

This is not it:

DNA

This was my family circa 1984 (give or take a year).

Now: I find this picture very endearing.

Then: Not so much. Make a 10 year old walk the streets in a “Merry Christmas” shirt, along with 3 matching sisters – in October - it’s humiliating.

Enough time has gone by since this photo op that each of us has managed to reproduce.

Is it obvious to everyone which child belongs to each sister?

answer:

A = 3, B = 2, C = 1, D = 4

scrooge who?

Last year I was pretty much dragging my feet when it came to holiday cheer. This year, I’m determined that not a single soul will hear me utter one “Bah, Humbug!”

The day after Turkey Day, we dragged out the Christmas boxes and mentally prepared ourselves for Christmas. December 1st, we officially began our decorating. Feeling a little under the weather, I even let the kids choose where to hang the ornaments on the tree. My OCD doesn’t often allow that to happen.

Paige found several flattering ways to wear and model the tree skirt.

Taylor pounded out some Christmas carols on the piano (I love his face in the pic – like he’s really feeling the music).

And Gabriel found alternative uses for the Christmas stockings. I think I almost prefer his way…

desert happenings

Taylor has been dying to get out to the desert and shoot with his daddy. They made plans for a Saturday morning target practice. Feeling left out, the rest of us decided to crash the party.

We drove far out into the desert and Daddy let Paige take the wheel from his lap. Best thing EVER according to Paige. I used to do this in the country with my dad so I could relate.

Once we were deep in the desert, we set up the targets.

With Gabriel sheltered from the wind and the noise in the back of the car with his favorite iPod apps, we got started. Taylor and I were up first with a friendly challenge. He feels he has a certain degree of skill and I rarely go shooting, so it was on.

Take a close look. I nailed it! He even took more shots than I did. [Not that I’m rubbing it in.]

Next, Paige got a turn.

Daddy is always very safe and super careful and clear on how a gun is to be handled. I’m paranoid enough for all of us, so his level headedness is necessary and appreciated. Paige was so excited! At this point, I feel the need to point out her smile in the above right photo. Thrilled!!!

She fired off a few rounds and did pretty good.

Then she reloaded. She was again instructed to hold on tight. I think she forgot that part.

Without a firm grip, the gun kicked back in her face:

For her, that was it for the day. We sat and cuddled in the car with a wet cloth over her eye while Gabriel felt some sympathy pains.

I guess that as the mother, I should have known better than to have my accident-prone daughter operate a gun. Just this past week, we’ve used up half a box of band-aids on Paige alone. Sweet girl.

Our morning was topped off with more underage driving through the desert.

I also brilliantly left my cell phone on top of the car and forgot about it until it toppled onto the highway.

It was a successful family outing, I’d say.

say hi to your mother for me

Gabriel had a field trip to the dairy a few weeks back. He LOVES the farm. He just HAD to touch each and every animal he could. One time, this got him into trouble with a little, mad hen. (Or chicken? I don’t think it was a rooster… I’m not as familiar with my farm animals as I should be, I guess.)

That bird just wasn’t willing to be trifled with that morning. When Gabriel invaded her space, she jumped up and "tickled" his neck a bit – causing quite a shock and momentary tears!

Other than that small incident, it was all good. He fed animals & held the ones that appreciated his attentions. It was a good day all around.

Just for kicks, I can’t see a goat or donkey without thinking of this:

[for the life of me, i could not figure out how to get the clip without the ad first. i looked and looked. sorry.]

H.P.O.E.

We made a last minute decision to spend the kids’ Fall Break at the happiest place on earth (h.p.o.e.). (I, for one do not buy into this claim, but whatever.) Three days of un-interrupted family fun and sheer bliss. (Sure.)

This is our family during one of our more behaved moments:

We usually looked a little more like Paige in this pic:

(To be fair, this was taken at the end of the day. We were all exhausted, and Paige seemed to be coming down with something. But, we must. take. a picture. with the Halloween decorations!)

1- Gabriel just cleared the height requirement for all the rides. Not so lucky for him. He held the golden ticket (that being the pass to get to the front of the line, a.k.a. best thing EVER). We took him on everything from Space Mountain to Tower of Terror. He loves speed and dips, just not in the dark. We don’t think he’s scarred for life. Don’t worry, he had his share of It’s a Small World and Peter Pan, too.

2- Buddies. Gabriel was painted up as a fierce lion.

3- Paigey’s MUST HAVE Minnie Mouse ears. We gave the kids a spending allowance for each day and she was perfectly willing to blow her money on these babies. (Taylor preferred to spend his wad on churros.)

4- A drizzly day at Disney means no crowds! Disney is so much more enjoyable this way. By our third day we were fighting our way through a crazy sea of people.

5- Cali!!

6- I dragged Taylor along with me as I chased down Mr. Incredible. He obediently posed for a picture.

7- Beautiful walk to DL. Funny story. When I booked the hotel, I thought it was directly across the street from the Disney entrance. Not until we’d been walking for 5 minutes did I realize I was wrong. We were about a mile or so away. Kids were not happy. Mommy was not happy. We took the shuttle after that. Okay, so it’s not a funny story.

8- Paige had a fever all the first night. So Miss P and I spent the bulk of day 2 in the hotel room watching Disney Channel. Some time after lunch we couldn’t take it anymore, met up with the boys, and went to a couple shows. She was perfectly fine by the next day.

9- All my kids. Smiling. No whining. Although, I can’t promise that it lasted long after the shot was taken.

Oh… it was a good time. The kids say they had fun. The Halloween decorations were fabulous, the fireworks show was amazing. I just don’t think we’re due for another Disney vacay for at least 5-10 years.

…give me something good to eat

Adventures in trick-or-treating: Running door to door at insane speeds, Gabriel sneaking into any open door, pillowcases full of teeth rotting candy.

Gabriel made it around one full block and then preferred to aid in handing out candy.

Paige couldn’t get enough and she was able to con her friend’s dad into making the rounds some more.

Taylor promoted himself from secret agent to a MIB (Men In Black) along with some friends. They took off, and I didn’t see or hear from them again for a while.

Gabriel wasn’t phased a bit by all the “tricks” around the neighborhood. He’d just get right up in there and check them out – screams, knives, masks and all.

annual halloween bash

1 – Faith multi-tasks: throws a party, dresses festive, and makes a baby – all at once
2 – Todd & I a.k.a. Sick & Tired. Clearly, we left our pride at home.
3 – Ted came as someone from The Clockwork Orange. I have never heard of it before. I only know I felt like I should look the other way.
4 – The best Anakin I’ve ever seen and his witchy mommy.
5 – Our cutest real life jack-o-lantern (actually the only j-o-l this year).
6 – The most serious secret service agent around.
7 – There was bound to be an M.J., right? Who knew it was possible to have one even whiter than the real thing?
8 – NASA bound, for sure – framing my picture.
9 – Short and Shivery stories in the backyard play set – nice and dark. And spooky!!
10 – The tooth docs – complete with tooth necklace.

The Basts always know how to throw a spook-tacular party – and this year was no exception. Good food, creepy decorations, fun family, and impossible games:

down by the bay

I recently accompanied my sweet grandmother to the Bay Area. Many years ago, she and my grandpa raised their family there. Only one of the five children stayed put. My Uncle Steve and Aunt Pat graciously hosted us for a weekend - and cousins Jennifer and Steven gave up their bedrooms to camp out in the family room.

We had no agenda and only one objective – enjoy ourselves. We spent an afternoon driving around the old ‘hood in San Leandro. I loved hearing Steve and my grandma reminisce about old acquaintances and memories of their growing up years.

Of course we couldn’t be there without heading for San Francisco! The drive was beautiful and I found myself, once again, wondering what the heck I’m doing living in Arizona. Once talk of earthquakes started up and we were crossing the long, long Bay Bridge and driving in congested traffic, I was able to appreciate the desert again.

We wondered around the pier until we found what I wanted – clam chowder in a sour dough bread bowl. Yum! We took a cruise around the bay and got a closer look at the Golden Gate Bridge:

I was really thinking that the fog could cooperate better for our little boat cruise. Doesn’t the fog know I’ve never been there before?

{The sights of Fisherman’s Wharf}

{One of my favorite signs}

{The view of Alcatraz from Pier 39}

{I can’t understand the people that do this in a freezing ocean with crazy currents. Surely there’s a better way to get an adrenaline rush}

{Crab.}

{Does anyone else hear “mine.mine.mine.” ? Or are we watching entirely too much Finding Nemo around here?}

{Sailing. A new addition to my bucket list.}

{So many loud, large seals}

{The bridge [sorta]}

{Granny, Steve, Jennifer and Pat}

We fell victim to the $20 picture taken in front of the green screen. At least we got a good look at the bridge this way.

Steven played in a soccer game [scored a goal like the athlete he is], we hung out, enjoyed the weather, did a lot of reading, and enjoyed our break from the heat. All too soon it was over.

I can’t wait to go back.

flagstaff with g&g

I’m really not on the ball as far as blogging goes. But, I did want to go back and share a little bit of our trip to Flagstaff from the end of the summer.

Grandma and Grandpa Yancey treated the kids and their mommies to a few days in Flagstaff. Gabriel got to stay behind to hang with his daddy.

Some highlights include:

• Riding the ski lift up to the amazing views – the girls wanting to ride lopsided with Grandpa – the boys insisting they needed to be on their own
  
• Walking the pitch dark lava tubes armed with headlamps and flashlights
• Weather that actually allowed for outdoor activities
• The girls following their Grandpa around everywhere – Paige especially hung on every word, enjoying his stories and explanations
• 
• Lunching in the forest
• Touring Riordan Mansion – the kids actually enjoyed this and the girls were pleased when they could come up with questions to ask the tour guide
• Lowell Observatory – even though that one night there were clouds that prevented us from looking through the huge telescope – the clouds parted enough to see the moon and Jupiter and it’s moons through a smaller telescope – also learning that flash photography is frowned upon at the observatory (duh!)
• Walking the 240 steps of the Walnut Canyon National Monument – the kids finishing up their Jr. Rangers packet
• Shopping in downtown Flagstaff – lots of neat stores, a “haunted” hotel, hippies and incense
• Sitting lakeside during a on again/off again rainstorm – the lone fisherman who parked his chair lake side only to be swarmed by inquisitive, unreserved children

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for treating us to so many great memories!

summer fish

I sooo wish I had taken video at the beginning of swim lessons so that I could show his progress. But it proved to be a bit tricky to hold a camera and attempt to pry a screaming boy off of my leg and then throw him in the pool. It went that well. It went that way for at least a week and gradually improved. By his next session he was almost jumping to his teacher on his own (which he would do at home). We loved Miss Shelley. She's getting him all ready for the Special Olympics - which he can start at age 8. Won't that be fun!?

Anyway, now Gabriel is one of the happiest little swimming fish around. He still struggles to take a breath on his own, but can hold his breath a shockingly long amount of time.

the hog

Taylor is sporting a new ride these days.

He saved up and bought it himself. A tiny electric motorcycle. Suddenly, he’s quite willing to run errands around the neighborhood. He puts on a mean biker facade, but he’s not fooling me. He’s even been known to share “the hog” with his sister!

one thousand eight hundred and twenty-five days

Gabriel, how old are you?

I’m bore! (he says emphatically, while holding up four fingers)

Just as we’ve finally got that down pat, he’s gotta go and have another birthday.

Today he is five!

This year has come with some progress:

• working on talking.
• becoming more independent minded. “I try” is said a thousand times daily.
• counts to 10, recognizes the letters of the alphabet, knows his colors and shapes.
• becoming familiar with the bathroom (still trying).
• going to school all day, every day.
• swims like a ‘lil fish (video to come soon).

More than all these things, he’s a lover. This boy spreads his love around abundantly. To everyone. Friends, family, bus drivers, strangers at the store. One of my favorite things is to watch him greet people at the door. As soon as the door chimes alerting us to a visitor’s arrival, Gabriel stops whatever he’s doing, runs to the door, and proclaims the visitor’s name. “Daddy!” “Taylor!” “Paige!” Should the person exit and return momentarily, it’s as though they had been gone for a long stretch of time, and Gabriel will still exclaim their name a second time with as much enthusiasm as the first.

We love our Gabriel right back and wish him a very very Happy 5th Birthday!

the birthday of a thousand celebrations

{Maybe not a thousand…but more than one}

Not only did Paige have the Best Party EVER!!… she was also ready to be baptized!

Something that we’ve talked about for a while was turning this:

into a super-special-baptism-dress for Paige. [try to ignore the super cheesy bridal pose]

Paige pleaded with me to not use my wedding dress, because she wants to wear it one day for her wedding. It was futile to try to explain to her that she would most likely change her mind by the time that day comes. We were able to compromise by using only the detachable train from my dress. My sister’s very talented sis-in-law, Lu, transformed it into this:

Paige felt like such a princess. She didn’t even complain about her photo shoot in 110 degrees - just smiled and kept getting sweatier. Funny how much easier that becomes when it’s all about you.

Her baptism day went nicely. Paige was thrilled and all smiles and said she “felt good” about being baptized. We had gobs of family come to support her and join us for a luncheon at our house afterwards. We’re so proud of our Paigey!

eight is great

We gave out beach balls with the invitation for Paige’s “dive-in” movie birthday party. Paige had been planning her party since April and could barely contain her excitement. So we planned to swim and swim and swim, and while we were swimming, would watch Aquamarine on the big outdoor screen.

Hitch One – July 23rd seems to be a poorly placed date on the calendar. With the start of school looming, many of Paigey’s little friends were on vacation. And it is all. my. fault. for having her in July. We did manage, however, to wrangle in a couple gals that were still up to party.

Hitch Two – Mother Nature decided this would also be a perfect week for monsoons. One of the only weeks, in fact. So, after about an hour, when the dark clouds started to roll in, we made our way inside for cake and ice cream.

Operation Plan B was officially underway and we headed for the bowling alley. The girls were surprisingly thrilled about it and had a really great time. It took almost 90 minutes for the 5 girls to bowl ONE game. The overhead monitors clocked some of the girls balls at a whopping 3 mph! Thank goodness for bumper bowling.

It was really something special when the front desk called Paige up to the front. They made an announcement over the PA system and everyone in the bowling alley wished her a happy birthday. She was presented with a bowling pin that everyone in our party could write a birthday greeting on. Talk about spoiled! :)

first day

Ahhh… the first day of school.

The excitement.

The nerves.

No sleeping in.

First day to get back on a schedule.

And that’s just me.

I took a whole slew of darling first day photos. Unfortunately I took them without a CF card in the camera. By the time I realized my mistake, we were running the risk of a dreaded tardy. I grabbed my other camera and snapped some pictures in the car. Paige and Gabriel hurriedly got to their classes and not a tear was shed. Not. One. Hoo. Ray!

Taylor was able to move at a more leisurely pace than his siblings. He’s a big junior high school student this year and school doesn’t start for him until 9 o’clock.

He barely showed any nerves. He went was armed with his schedule, a map of the school, a lunch, and and cool attitude. We attended the orientation the day before, so he’d done a bit of a “dress rehearsal” already (meeting the teachers and walking his route).

I drove Taylor and his friend to school for the first day. I thought briefly about making a tiny scene by sticking my head out the window, waving goodbye, and taking pictures – but good sense took hold and I settled for snapping a couple from the car. Ahhh, my junior high boy… I remember my first day of 7th grade like it was yesterday.

if you can’t stand the heat…

[beware of picture overload]

This summer we decided to head North to Utah. As a kid, Todd and his family would go up and stay in a rustic little cabin in the woods – built by his great grandfather around 70 years ago. He’s been anxious to get back there as an adult and show his children a little family history. This year, the pieces all fell together and we caravanned on up with his sister’s family.

I always love the drive on our way TO a vacation. Everything is new and different and we’re all excited to be on our way.

We stopped at Glen Canyon Dam to run around a bit and then made our way to Zion’s Park.

It was a beautiful day. Coming from Phoenix, just about anything is beautiful compared to our 100+ degree days.

We did a short hike to Weeping Rock. The kids thought it was super funny to stand by the Weeping Rock sign and, well, weep with one another.

Our plan was to camp at the park and continue North the next day. Unfortunately the park was full, so we headed down the road until we found a suitable camping spot.

That night I spent sleeping in the same sleeping bag as Paige. It was on the cold side for us warm-blooded folks, and a darling princess sleeping bag wasn’t making the grade for our darling princess. Crowded, not super comfortable, but warm. Poor Gabriel made a little fuss in the night and woke up with popsicle feet. Note to self: be more prepared.

On our final leg, just as our 12 hour journey appeared to be over, Steve and Sommer’s car broke down. They took the car to the repair shop, we rearranged the vehicles and continued on.

At last, we made it to the family cabin! It’s a small, lovely little out-of-the-way place in the middle of the forest, along the Provo River. I love the family history that goes along with this place. Todd’s great-grandfather built it with his own two hands.

But…… being the first visitors there after the long winter and weeks of rain, we had a few surprises. The cabin lacked hot water (due to a busted water heater), water pressure, there were traces of critters being in the house, and tricky indoor plumbing. These were things we as a group decided we didn’t really want live with for an entire week. We thought about pitching tents on the lawn. But, as we learned from our chilly campout previously, we knew we were ill prepared for that. It also didn’t solve our hot water issue.

We traveled back to town and got ourselves a room at the nearest resort. This place has a natural hot-springs crater where you can snorkel, scuba and swim. The kids loved it! (That includes the grown-up kids.)

The next day, we went back to the cabin and hung out. We read, napped, stressed over Gabriel’s close proximity to the river, tried fishing in the much too swift river, explored, the kids played cards and were generally tortured by the lack of tv and video games. We cooked hobo dinners over the fire and enjoyed our day.

Then we packed up and said goodbye to the cabin.

The remainder of our trip consisted of bouncing from one hotel to the next, city to city, and basically winging it.

We hiked to Timpanogos Cave:

I might have had 18 panic attacks over people getting - what I deemed to be - too close to the edge.

Cascade Springs:

Park City, Olympic Park:

The kids all had a blast running from ride to ride. Taylor and Austin rode the coasters 1,000 times and the zip line. Paige and Amber preferred to jump on the trampolines with the bungee cords. Gabriel LOVED the coaster – going full speed! My favorite part of the day was speeding down the track and hearing him yell “awesome!” and laughing hysterically.

We took the gondola to the top of the mountain for lunch. Gorgeous!! I’m gonna need a summer home here.

Salt Lake City and accompanying Mormon hot spots:

We finished our trip with some of my most favorite people ever – the Mortimer family. They graciously put all 9 of us up at their house, fed us, entertained us, took us for Harley rides. Emily and I stayed up til all hours discussing the deep, important things in life. ;) Our kids had a great time with their kids once they re-acquainted themselves with one another. I would have stayed a week there if it were up to me [and they could tolerate us that long].

Phew!! The End.