Final Walk Throuh Complete

Yesterday we all went to THE house -OUR HOUSE- for the final walk through before closing ToMoRrOw.  Other than a lot of snow still in the driveway the house looked perfect and I am getting so excited that it is going to be ours.

We had told Sam that we were going to our house, and he had been there before when we did the inspections last month, but when we got inside he came up to me and told me with a concerned look that the house was Patrick's (our real estate agent).  The poor kid is so confused.  For a while he kept thinking that our house was going to be next to Grammies house, now our house is Patrick's, and I'm afraid what's going to happen when we have to switch wards again.

The kids were right at home running amuck in an empty house.  The quickly took off their socks and shoes.  A while later we heard them yelling somewhere in the house, nothing out of the ordinary but it went on long enough that Josh eventually went to check it out..  He found the boys stuck in one of the closets together.  Apparently they weren't distressed about being stuck but Elijah accusingly asked if we had heard them yelling and why we didn't come to help.  Hmm... I wonder why?

Anyway, enough babble.  I've got more pictures to share.  (They were taken pretty quickly beause I forgot my spare battery charging at home so some of them aren't very good.)

View from front door with sliding door in back and the front door with stairs down to FR

Kitchen bar with dinning area in corner and view from sliding door

Lower level family room

Master Bedroom with double doors and lower level bedroom

Other two upstairs bedrooms

I've got so many plans buzzing around in my head.  I can't wait to actually spend some real time in the house plotting it all out.  First things to tackle are the window coverings!

The Melting Pot Experience

Yesterday was Josh's birthday.  To celebrate we were able to go out for a quiet evening together.  We had some generous friends offer to watch the boys for us and we were off.  We had heard about the restaurant The Melting Pot while we lived in Colorado but never took the opprotunity to go.  Apparently they are a chain and there is a Melting Pot here in Columbia.  The Melting Pot serves fondue and it turned out to be a fun, though rather expensive, experience.

The atmosphere was very intimate.  The tables were secluded and the lighting dim.  Each table has its own heat plate intigrated into the surface and the food is mixed and cooked right there in front of you.

We started with a cheese fondue.  We chose the spinach and artichoke fondue.  The waiter/chef comes out with a tray of ingredients and proceeds to mix our cheese right there.  He made it look SO simple and it was really good.  The ingredients he used were chicken broth, minced garlic, chopped spinach and artichoke hearts, and cheese (some white soft cheese) grated.  He mixed that all in the pot (double boiler) then added a bit of parmesan cheese (fine grate) and a titch of tabasco sauce.  The cheese fondue came with bread cubes, tortilla chips, apples, celery, carrots, and califlower to dip. 

Our dinner consisted of a broth mix and a platter of raw meat.  The broth started with a chicken (maybe it was vegetable) broth base and they added some fresh orange juice, fresh lime juice, garlic, and cilantro.  The meat platter was a wide array of options including lobster, shrimp, chicken, brautwerst, and steak- all raw.  There was also a vegetable platter that included broccoli, red potatos, and mushrooms.  They also provided us with 7-8 different little dishes of dips.  The idea was to stab the raw meat and place it in the broth -that was at a rolling boil- and leave it in there for 2-3 minutes until it was cooked then dip it in one of the sauces and eat it.  It was a really fun way to cook and eat your dinner!  My favorite dip was one that had sour cream, cream cheese, chives and maybe garlic in it.  It was super yummy on the vegetables.

Dessert consisted of chocolate fondue - of course!  We got the turtle mixture which was chocolate, carmel, and pecans.  The dippers included strawberries, pound cake (white and chocolate), rice krispie treats, bananas, and marshmallows. (Sweet memories!)

I'm going to be keeping my eye out for a fondue pot and figure out how to do all this at home!  It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed my evening with the birthday boy.  Happy Birthday, my love!  I love you so much!

Toys worth having for a LONG time

A lot of thought went into what were were going to bring in our suitcases to Maryland to live with for these first two months while our apartment is in storage.  A good amount of room was set aside for toys.  Toys are my sanity!  They are also a big investment.  So far we have been surviving well on what I was able to pack into our suitcases but tonight I got to thinking about what toys we own that stand out to me and why.  Most of them had one or more of the following qualities: 

Durability- something that doesn't break or come apart easily is a must for mommy's sanity and pocket book;
Creativity- has more than one use and allows the boys to use their imagination in different ways;
Longevity- I want a toy that we will go to again and again that also interest multiple age groups (me included).

Here is my list (what comes to mind right now) and suggestions on where to find them.  I would love to know what toys you have that fit one or more of the above qualities.  Please share!

• Kid K'nex - don't confuse them with K'nex which is geared toward the older crowd with LOTS of tiny pieces (and are also pretty cool, we have the dinosaur set).   Kid K'nex is the younger brother.  They are bulkier, sturdier, and very versitile.   They stick together easily and aren't frustrating for Sam (3 yrs) to put together and take apart by himself.  There are a plethura of different kinds of sets, each with their own set of instructions.  They come with quirky creative pieces in addition to the standard pieces.  Elijah is notorious for making guns, swords and aliens; can you tell he is five?  Kid K'nex are great toys to get second hand because the are so durable.  I got most of my Kid K'nex at a consigment store or garage sales.  You can also find them at your local stores though the selection is very limited.  You can see more at Kid K'nex's website. (I am not familiar with the new blocks sets)
• Fisherprice GeoTrax- If your boy loves trains these are totally the way to go (sorry Thomas wood trains, you don't even compare).  Again very durable with so many options.  You can make a different track every time you get it out.  The options are endless.  The electric trains are also really nice though they do take 6 (yes SIX) AAA batteries each.  Older kids 4+ can build their own tracks without help from mom (yay!) though I've found that building the track is actually a fun mental challenge.  GeoTrax can be a bit pricy but because they are so durable they are another toy that is excellent second hand.  Consignment stores are likely your best bet.  Also watch http://www.craigslist.com/ or http://www.ebay.com/ for local sales.
• Legos and Lego Duplo- depending on the age of your child these are a staple building block to have.  We are just getting into the standard sized legos and Elijah is eating them up (not literally, he is 5).  Legos call back to my own childhood and my sisters (10 and 12) are even still playing with the legos I grew up with.  Legos don't die! Plus the creative possibilites are endless!  Duplos are the bigger blocks for smaller hands but their size doesn't limit the creative possibilites.  New Lego sets are nice in that the come with instructions for the kids to study and follow.  You can also find patterns online.  Buying secondhand is the economical way to do it though you will find that legos maintain their value.  Garage sales are a good bet.  Always keep your eyes out for them, you will not regret it.
• Wii- I know, I know... it's a video game system not a toy but right now it has saved me many a painful afternoon and it is something we enjoy playing.  Our family focuses on games that are multi-player and are active.  Many of the games teach sharing, turn taking, rules and mechanics of sports, thinking, team playing, etc... So maybe one paticular game doesn't fall under my list of qualities but the system itself is ingenious and not completely pointless fun.

Limbo

I thought being in Limbo was a familiar feeling as we tredged through last year with job searches and graduation, but that had nothing on the limbo I am feeling now. 

Everything worked really smoothly to get us here to Maryland and I am ever so grateful for that.  Josh's job is paying for us to live in temporary housing while we work on getting into a house.  They have us covered for the first 60 days of room and board.  This is a pretty nice set up and is saving us money but has proven to come with some unforseen "costs".  We pulled up our roots in Colorado and because we are in temporary housing I have yet to be able to really put our roots back down.  It's an aweful feeling.  I don't know if, where or when to put the boys in preschool, I'm afraid I'm getting attached to our ward, I haven't changed my address with anyone (it's all just getting forwarded), I'm excited about our house but afraid to get too attached in case it doesn't end up working out, etc...  I'm pretty much just existing and living off of high calorie restaurant food.  Blehh!  I'm going to have to break down and stock the kitchen.

I kept saying if I could make it through graduation and the move all would be good.  Well, now I'm saying if I can make it through to the end of February...  I wonder what it will be next.

Could it really happen?

I've had a few questions about our house hunting process.  It is quite a rollar coaster!  Housing prices are quite a shock coming from Utah and Colorado.  We finally found a house we like and just recently got our contract ratified.  Inspections were done today and everything seems to be good (still waiting on the official report).  Next step is to get the appraisal done and we are also working around a silly FHA loan rule which supposedly won't be a problem come Feb 1.  Anyway, it all looks promising for closing the end of February.  I'm excited!

Here's a quick picture of the outside.  Hopfully I'll have reason to share some of the inside soon.

Valentine's Day is just around the corner...

It's hard to believe that January is soon to end and February is just around the corner.  Now's the time to start plotting and planning if you are going to be doing the 14 Days of Valentine's.  I've moved my Mother-in-law's Valentine's Day blog link back to the top.  Be sure to take a look.  There are some really fun and creative ideas on how to express your love to those around you.

Private Showing

The boys got a doorway puppet theater for Christmas and finally got the chance to try it out today.  They haven't quite figured out the whole storyline/conversation process.  Mostly it was just puppets popping up and making funny sounds and then disappearing again.  Elijah kept asking me what time it was and how to change the clock on the front to match the time.  I think it's a hit and look forward to many more private shows put on by the cutest boys I know.

First time on the Metro

Despite my dragging my feet, Josh got all of us out the door and onto the METRO for the first time on Saturday.  It was a bit too spontaneous for me but Josh was very determined and in the end I was happy that we all went.    It turned out to be a quick afternoon trip to the Museum of Natural History at the Mall that we all enjoyed and are sure to repeat soon.

My boys infront of two Giant Sloth skeletons.  I've heard of giant sloths but didn't realize the "giant" was ment in relation to humans.  Wow!

Sam wanted to take some pictures of a massive whale that was hanging from the ceiling.  While I was helping him I turned the camera and grabbed a shot of the two of us.

Alive and Well in Maryland

I thought I would have more spare time on my hands to finally catch up on my blog, but find that most of it is either spent researching houses on the internet or actually seeing them.  House hunting is a process! 

Josh and I made it safely to Maryland.  The move with surprisingly smooth.  The moving company got everything packed up and loaded on the truck without a hitch.  I was amazed how many boxes it took; they tagged 370 items including furniture.  There was a lot crammed into that little apartment.  Having someone else do the packing is certainly the way to do it.  I was able to clean the bathroom and the kitchen while they were packing.  By the time they were done loading everything up the apartment was clean.  Wahoo!

The only hitches in the whole process have been related to our apartment.  The first night it took us 30 + minutes of walking around to find our apartment.  Finding stairs to take us down to the second floor was a trick and the parking garage is a nice feature but we got lost thoroughly the first night. 

Josh had his first day of work on Tuesday.  Went out to get in the car and came back in a minute later and said the cars were gone.  I was shocked and didn't believe him and had to go see for myself.  Indeed our Sienna and our Prism were not where we had left them.  Talk about a pit in your stomach!  Josh scrounged to get a cab to work (he was late) and I was left to figure out how in the world to get our cars back.  The temp housing company was a lifesaver.  Turns out we had put the wrong parking passes in the windows  (they gave us two white and two green and didn't tell us which to use where) and our cars were towed.  They found out what company had towed our cars and an employee was even gracious enough to drive me to the boonies (lets say gheto/white trash area in the middle of nowhere) to get my cars.  The operation was a man sitting in his SUV on a gated lot full of 20+ cars.  He had a laptop in his car took my drivers licence and my credit card, took my thumb print twice and $420 then let me take my cars.  Insain!  The lady from Oakwood was a lifesaver!  Prayers are answered.

House hunting is a rollercoaster ride.  We've adjusted the area we are looking in.  I saw one yesterday that has a lot of potential and I'm going out to see more today.  If only I had a million dollars!

I'm missing my boys.  I am grateful that we were able to leave them in Utah during the move.  Things would have been very difficult with them around (can you imagine if I had them on Tuesday with the car towing?).  I look forward to seeing them on Sunday.  It's cute to talk to them on the phone.  Most of the time I'm on the other end listening to them talk to someone else.  It melts my heart to hear their little voices on the on end of the line.  Man, they are cute buddies!  Sam is excited to get a house.  I'm afraid he will be disappointed when we get him here and we are living in a pretty minimal apartment but I'm sure working hard to find him a house.

Something else I'm very grateful for... GPS!  And I'm grateful we got two of them for Christmas.  I don't know how anyone can survive without them out here.  I am so turned around without the mountains.  It doesn't help either that all of the roads are curved and windy and that none of them are on the North/South East/West axis.  Everthing is either NW or NE or SE or SW and then they call them North or South when really they aren't.  Arrgh!  I'm going nuts!  It also doesn't help that the GPS map turns so you are always driving up.  I think I'm doomed to be GPS dependent as long as we live here.

Ramble... ramble.  I'll see if I can find my camera cord and put up some pictures of Josh's graduation.  The rest of my pictures are all on our portable hard drive and that will take some time to set up.  My goal is to do better with the blogging even though I'm being slow on the start.

Happy New Year, everyone (who hasn't given me up for dead and still checks my blog)!

Dr. Strong

Josh Passed!

Josh had his doctorate defense yesterday.  It was a crazy day with a few technical bumps but despite it all Josh passed with flying colors! There are a few changes to be made in his paper by December 2nd and then we are officially done.  Woot Woot! 

A few of the bumps:

• We missed the IT people with the projector and had to call them back up to the room (11th floor tower overlooking the stadium).  They were late.
• Two of Josh's committee members were late.  One eventually responded to a phone call and made it but the other had made a schedualing error and couldn't come.
• Josh didn't have a laser pointer and ended up using a fire poker (a lot heavier and more menacing than a little lazer, to say the least).
• Because of the late start they got kicked out of the room before they were done questioning Josh and they had to all squeeze in an ancient small elevator and go to a different room.
• The whole process took longer than expected so Josh and I didn't get to go celebrate like we had planned.  I had to run home and get the boys from my friend and Josh had a group meeting at work.  We still haven't been able to properly celebrate but are very relieved and excited that he passed.

Thank you for your support and prayers.  We have felt of your love and greatly appreciate it.

From one Stress to the Next

Phew!  We all survived the wedding.  Everything came together really well in the end.  The bride and groom were married and happy, my mother did an AMAZING job decorating the cultral hall, and everyone had a great time at the reception (especiallly Elijah and Sam).

I will admit it was VERY stressful trying to get everything finished.  It didn't help that I was really missing my husband too.  It was all worth it though to be there for my sister.  I am so happy for her and Bryce. 

Well, now we can focus on the other things that are stressing us right now...

Josh has officially submitted his discertation to his defence committee members.  He's working on setting up his defence for the 18th (in TWO weeks!).  He is stressed trying to make final changes and get all the paperwork in order to graduate.  It's created a lot of tention having us be so stressed about it.  We will be SO glad when it is all done.

On top of that Northrup Grumman has hooked us up with the relocation company that will be taking care of our move to Maryland.  They have been emailing and calling trying to get us set up with the moving company, temporary housing, a trip to MD to look for housing, etc.  Apparently I don't have to pack a single box, they'll do it all for us, but it is stressful getting everything coordinated and I still have to go through everything and get rid of what we don't want/need.  I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed.   I will be very grateful when January rolls around and all of this will be behind us, but then there will be more adventures in store for us, to be sure.

(oh I do have a lot of pictures on my camera but the camera cord hasn't turned up yet from our trip to Utah... I'm still trying to dig us out of mounds of laundry etc... I'll get them up eventually!)

Busy Beautiful FALL

I am currently at my parents' house helping with the final plans for my sister's wedding (or "wetting" as Elijah often calls it).  I haven't been here during the Fall for a few years now.  The beauty of the area takes my breath away.  My parents live on the side of a mountain in a thickly wooded community.  This week the leaves have been peaking in colors of yellow, orange, and red.  It is absolutely stunning!  The sun would reflect off of the golden leaves into my mother's kitchen and make the whole room glow.  My brother Mat took Anna's bridal photos Saturday amid the beautiful trees.  The pictures are gorgeous!  I'm jealous!

 Last night a strom blew through and this morning the whole scene was changed with the ground coated with crunchy golden leaves, the dark bare branches silloetted agaisnt the gold of the remaining leaves, and the wind churning the leaves into the air around you.  I am jealous of those who get to live here all the time and are able to view the changing of the seasons is such an intimate way.  (Granted there is the leaf clean up that does come with it.  My dad is not looking forward to the hours it's going to take him to collect all the leaves.)

My mom, Anna, and I are all feeling overwhelmed with the wedding plans right now.  I'm confident that things will all come together though.  I'm excited to see it all come together.  It's a beautiful time of year to get married though it comes with more than its share of stresses.  I'm not sure Anna would recommend getting married in the middle of a school semester and marching band commitements.  She is stressed enough without the stresses that come with getting married.  Well, we each have our lists and slowly we are working through the final details.  We get excited everytime we get to cross something off our list!  Tomorrows another day with much to do!

(I have cute pictures of the boys on my camera.  I'll get them up when I get a chance!)

ABC's

Sam has been singing an abbriviated version of the ABC song for a few weeks now, over and over.  It goes something like this:

"ABCD F a G next a sing with me"

This morning he got past the letter G and actually sang the whole song totally surprising Josh and I.  Sam's version now goes like this:

"ABCD F a G HIJK L a P QRS TUV WX Y and Z, now I know a ABC's next a sing with me"

I'm going to try and catch it on my camera but I have to clean off some pictures first so I have room. 

DINOTRUX rule our world

Sam and I have been spending a lot of time at the library since school started.  On our first trip we found a book we fell in love with, DINOTRUX by Chris Gall.  If you have boys this is the book for you.  It is a very creative mix of dinosaurs and trucks.  Sam begs to read it every day, often more than once.  Now when we are driving down the road and pass a truck Sam and Elijah get all excited and try to figure out which DinoTrux it is.  Sam will even quote parts of the book back.  It will be a sad day when we have to take Dinotrux back to the library.  I think this one will shortly be added to our permenant collection.

I was looking for images to put on the blog and ended up finding a "book trailer" for Dinotrux.  I didn't know such things existed.  It's even done by the original author/illustrator.   Sam is now begging to watch it over and over.

Riding Bikes

My blog has been notably lacking pictures lately.  I made a point of grabbing the camera today when we took the boys out to ride their bikes in the parking lot.  I found Sam a bike at a consignment store last week and he is loving it.  He is SO proud of it and is doing really well at learning how to pedal and steer.  Elijah is quickly learning how to ride his bike too.  (We've been slacker parents and haven't given him many opprotunites to ride).  The boys had a great time riding around and around the parking lot.  Eventually they got tired.  Sam stopped his bike and I offered to help him get going again, because he often gets stuck and can't turn the pedals and start again, but he said "Mo my bike is resting." 

Officially Kid FREE!

Today is Sam's first day of preschool!  That means that for 2.5 hours twice a week I will officially be kid free! I am just in awe. 

Sam has been SO ready to go to school and this week we got word that there was grant funding to pay for him to go.  He just went trotting into class today so excited to be there.  He was tripping over himself being shy for a minute or so but as soon as he got over to the sensory table he was all in.  My baby is all grown up! [BIG SIGH]

Research Mode

Well my brain is in overload.  With the job offer from Maryland Josh and I have been doing a lot of research about the area and the offer.  I came out of the library the other day with a big arm load of books on job offers, credit scores, morgages, house hunting, etc.  We've also been doing a lot of research online.  I have learned A TON but I know there is so much more we need to figure out before we dive into anything. I've got a lot of reading still ahead of me.

Some of the websites that I have found very helpful include:

http://www.zillow.com/ is a real estate website that gives you the values of surrounding houses and lets you search a map for homes for sale in your price range.  It also gives a simple overveiw of the area.  It is a very user friendly site.

http://www.homefair.com/ I have yet to explore all that this website has but today I used their salary calculator which showed me what the median salary was for a job nationwide compared with a specific area. (I was able to compare salaries between here and baltimore).  They also have a cost of living calculator and school reports.

http://www.city-data.com/ has a webpage for most every city in the country.  Includes statistics about the residents, cost of living, income, schools, etc.  There are a lot of graphs and charts.  They also have a helpful forum.

Are there any resources you have used and would suggest to hlelp with buying your first home, relocation, etc?

He got the JOB!

Josh got a job offer from Northrup Grumman this week!  They called last week out of the blue and said they were interested in Josh and would be sending us a job offer.  We are very excited.  It is really nice to be wanted.  We are waiting to see what happens with IBM but more likely than not we will be moving to Maryland come January.  (SCARY!)

I'm feeling SO blessed

Some many things have started to come together this week and I am feeling overwhelmed with gratitude. 

I have made contact with a fellow genealogist who is breaking down walls and filling in holes for me on a line that has long been my "problem child".  I am so grateful that she is willing to share her information, scan her documents and pictures and email them to me.  I am so grateful that we have made contact and that the Spirit of Elijah is touching both of us.

Yesterday morning (at 5:30am to be precise) I was able to go to the temple with a group from my ward to do baptisms for the dead.  We were on the road before the sun came up and it was just beginning to shine as we entered the temple.  With my recent research I have been able to fill in some holes and had prepared names to take to the temple.  (If you have new.familysearch.org active in your area look at it, use it, it is an amazing tool to see what work has been done for your ancestors and what work still needs to be done.  It makes it so simple to then take their names to the temple.)  I chose to do the work for my great aunt and saved the other cards to take to Utah so that my family can share in the blessing of doing the work.  As I was doing the work for my great aunt and names for a friend in the ward the sun started to shine through the stained glass windows into the baptistry.  ...  The Spirit of temple work is so real!  The Spirit of Elijah is real and guides us and urges us as we search out our ancestors.

Things are starting to work out for where we will be after graduation.  I still don't have details but things are beginning to solidfy amid the haze that is currently our future.  Hopefully we will know in the near future.  

I am grateful for a Heavenly Father who is mindful of me, who loves me, who knows my future and has a plan for me, who gives me strength inspite my complaining.  I really am so blessed.

For those not on Facebook...

Josh finally got a bite from one of the dozen + jobs/post docs he sent is CV (aka resume) to.  He is flying out to New York on Tuesday for an interview with IBM in Yorktown Heights.  Wish him luck! We are pretty excited.  We'll see what happens and I'll be sure to keep you posted.

(and yes, we still haven't had word from the job at Northrup Grumman he interviewed for back in July :S )

1st day of School

Elijah was super excited to start up school again. He gets to go four days a week in the afternoons. His class is once again all boys and he actually ended up having the same teacher as he did last year, Miss Sarah. Sam was convinced that he would get to stay and go to school too. Needless to say he melted when we dropped of Elijah and he realized that wasn't the case. Luckily he hasn't melted everyday.

I got the camera out to catch a picture of Elijah all ready to go to school. Pretty soon the other boys (Sam and Josh) joined in the fun of taking pictures. It just happened that our clothes all matched that day. I have some pretty cute, goofy boys.

Family Photos

My brother Mat took some family pictures while we were out there last month. I'm excited with the way they turned out. I offically have the cutest family!

How could I forget?

I forgot to mention two big milestones that are going on right now. Elijah is learning how to read and Sam is potty training!

Elijah is having a lot of fun learning to read. He has a chart that he puts stickers on as he finishes a book. I went out and got him a prize for when he finishes the chart. He wanted Star Wars Legos. It is so hard to believe that he is bridging into Star Wars and Legos. Those are things for big boys. I guess my little boy is growing up. He can't open the box until he finishes his reading chart but that doesn't stop him from playing with them. He will play with the box making shooting noises and fly it around the house. He's a pretty silly kid with a good imagination.

Potty training Sam has been a night and day difference than Elijah. There hasn't been any fighting, crying, screaming, etc. that was part of the LONG potty training saga of Elijah (oh the nightmares!). Part of it is that I have learned to be more patient and part of it is just Sam. He's doing pretty well though we are still a ways from declaring him potty trained. His big triamph was going poops in the potty last night! The thought of no more diapers is so exciting!

Goodness... Time has flown

It's been in the back of my head for a while now that I need to update by personal blog but I didn't realize that I haven't written since the 10th. Goodness, what have I been up to?

Thats a good question and the answer is nothing much. If you follow me on facebook you probably know that I really hurt my back (probably a herniated disk) and was in a world of pain for a couple weeks. It pretty much knocked me out and everything was back burnered. I'm finally feeling a lot better now, though not quite back to normal yet.

The boys have been troopers keeping themselves occupied and making a disaster of the house, which I have finally caught back up on. Elijah started preschool yesterday and gets to go four days a week this year. He is super excited to be back and see his friends from last year and make new ones. The challenge is that Sam is DYING to go to school too and melts every time we have to drop off Elijah. I hope he gets over that soon or its going to be a L-O-N-G year.

Still no word about jobs for Josh. He has contacted a dozen or so groups doing quantum computing and has gotten a few maybes back but nothing solid. AHHHH! I'm going a bit nuts! I want something, anything, anywhere (within the US), and I want to know yesterday. It has been a true test of my patience and faith. I know things will work themselves out but I'm having a hard time with the timing. Deep breath... things will work out. Meanwhile Josh is steadily working on his dissertation and he will be graduating in December (Hallelujah!). We just don't know where we will be after that. :)

I've been keeping myself busy with crochet projects, family history and long distance wedding planning. I've actually made contact with some distant cousins working on the same line (all three of us)! I am very excited to collaborate with them. I'm hoping to break through on the Daniel and Daniels lines soon. I've also been posting pictures and information from my trip to my grandma's on my family history blog.

Well, I think that catches us up. I have a few pictures on the camera to upload, but that will have to be later. Sam is craving some attention.

Have a happy day!

The Long Awaited Beach Party

Elijah has become quite a party planner. If you have talked to him recently he has probably talked you ear off about plans for his beach party. He has been talking about it since April planning games, invitations, decorations and even the food.

While we were in Utah we finally had the long awaited and anticipated Beach Party. Elijah was in heaven. I don't think he was disappointed. Thanks Mom for all your help!

First we all got dressed for the occasion. Even Abby the dog got her hula skirt on.

Then it was on to the games. Thanks to pandora we were able to find some good hula songs. Bekah and Rachel taught my boys how to dance. We also played

coconut bowling (which turns out to be a good way to crack a coconut), musical towels (where you lay out the towls on the grass and walk around while the music is going and when it stops you race to find a towl to sun bathe on), water gun fight, and beach volleyball.

After the fun and games it was time to light the VOLCANO Cake. This was a big part of Elijah's initial plans. I have seen many pictures of volcanos over the past few months. Grammie and Elijah made it together with some help from Sam. It was a white cake with pineapple added, cooked in a bunt cake pan. Chocolate frosting turned it into a dirty mountain and white frosting dyed red and orange became the lava. A bunch of candles in the middle and we had an erupting volcano cake. Elijah was very proud of the end result.

Elijah is already throwing around ideas for the next party. He hasn't settled on a paticular theme yet but I'm sure he will soon enough. My kid knows how to PARTY!

Sam Man Says...

The other day Sam brought up his teeth. For some reason he was talking to Josh about going to the store and buying teeth. Josh explained to him that we didn't buy his teeth he grew them. Sam misheard him and thought he said "glue" which when Sam says it sounds more like "blue." Sam then said. "You don't blue your teeth, that would be yucky." Josh needed an interpreter for that one. Toddlers think the funniest things.