Picking Wishes

While we were in Provo, Gracie and I dropped the boys off in the canyon to do a little fly-fishing. While they were gathering their gear Gracie and I were exploring. All around us on the floor of the canyon were these enormous "WISHES". That was what Gracie called them. Of course they were just HUGE weeds, like dandelions on steroids. Her whole face lit up when she saw them. Gracie asked, "Mommy, will you PICK ME A WISH?". We would pick a WISH, the BIGGEST one we could see. She would prepare her WISH by carefully peeling off any leaves attached to it's stem. She would then take a deep breath and blow with all of her might. She would have to blow on her WISH several times to remove all of the seeds and sometimes had to resort to using her little fingers to pull them off. Needless to say, she made hundreds of WISHES that day. And the city of Provo will be thrilled to know that millions of those little seeds were blown all over the canyon that day. There will be plenty of more WISHES growing within a few weeks.

Hey Batter, Batter.... Touchdown!

Baseball season ended two weeks ago. However, with a funeral, a wedding, and a mission farewell we hadn't noticed that life was slowing down. Last week we finallly had a chance to RELAX? That is if you call taking Garrett to swim Monday through Friday at 7:00 am, unpacking and doing all of the laundry in one day, 6 days of work, a Huntsman presentation, haircuts, more meetings, pack meeting, and an orthodontist appointment RELAXING. For us- that is a good week.

I was looking forward to this "down time". It was going to be so great not to have baseball 3-4 nights each week. Yet, I find myself missing those games. I do not miss shuttling the boys back and forth to games/practices with gas prices OVER $4 per gallon. I do not miss washing baseball uniforms everynight and having RED dirt all over my house. I do not miss searching for misplaced ball caps, mitts, cleats, and batting gloves.

However, I find myself aching for that nervous feeling I have each time my boys are up at bat just hoping to hear that metal bat make a "ping"... contact. I miss praying that nobody will hit the ball to where my boys are positioned on the field. I miss the chatter from the boys' dugout cheering on their teammates. I miss sharing in the excitement of a well fought victory. I miss watching Grant take every pitch in the facemask when he played catcher (without ever moving his mitt- which was securely held straight out in front of him). I miss Garrett seaching the stands to find me and make sure I saw his big hit. I miss eating Dill Pickle Spitz at the games. I miss Grant's batting routine (pictured below)... DUST off homeplate, beat the crap out of the base with the bat, assume hitting position, smack the ball (with his tongue out of his mouth pointing up at his nose).

Sports has become such a big part of our weekly routine this last year. We went from tackle football for Garrett and AYSO soccer for Grant straight into basketball. Basketball and baseball seasons overlapped one week and then we were full throttle into little league. Last week was our first week since last August that we haven't had some type of practice or game.

I stop and ask myself often if we are doing way too much. Probably, but the boys love it. And after having them home for one week with no structured physical activities, I completely understand why it is we have so many outlets. They have SO much energy. They cannot sit still for longer than 20 seconds. I am physically exhausted each night from just having watched them move. They cannot walk from point A to point B without running and jumping off of three things to get there. They are up/down, roll across the floor, jump as high as you can, do a cartwheel, and run as fast as you can ALL DAY! My next thought becomes, "When does football start"?!

GO WARRIORS!!!

One Day...

Two words I find myself using to begin too many of my thoughts these days. One day... when I am rich... I will. One day... when I have a minute to myself... I will. One day... when my kids are older... I will. I have decided to make a list of my One Day's and start converting it into a list of my Two Day's (today's)

One day...

1. every room in my house will be clean for 24 hours.

2. more than just my calf will fit into the clothes Kami gives me.

3. there will be more than one color of paint on my walls, ceilings, doors, baseboards, etc.


4. I will read the entire Book of Mormon in 1 month or less.

5. my children will go to bed before 10:30 p.m. and realize the value of sleeping past 6:30 a.m.

6. Garrett will teach me how to use all of the cool programs on my computer... he is amazing!

7. I will cook delicious/nutritious meals.

8. I will learn how to apply my make-up and have stylish hair.

9. I will become an efficient swimmer (right now I am more of a drowner).

10. I will say "no" and not feel guilty.


11. I will become a savvy fly-fisherman (if you can't beat' em, join 'em). Someday I might even touch a fish (yuck).

12. I will speak Spanish fluently.


13. the things in my home will be organized, and I will know exactly where to find them without seaching for hours on end!


14. I will learn how to use the 100 adjustments on my nice camera so that I can take some really cool pictures... Val?, Russ?, Grant?

15. I will love to do laundry and scrub toilets.


16. I will go on some of the cool hikes so close to where we live (Rim to Rim in the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, or Bryce)


17. I will NOT PROCRASTINATE!

Adios y te amamos!

This weekend we traveled to Lovelock, NV (yes, this is where Russ grew up) for a mission farewell. Russ' dad, Bill, and his wife, Connie, are leaving on June 30th to serve a mission in Mexico City, Mexico... we think! Their mission call has already been changed 3 times so we are not really sure where they will end up. Their original call was to the Monterey, Mexico North mission. It was later changed to the Monterey, Mexico West mission. The most recent e-mail has them teaching at a school in Mexico City. We are all anxious to see where they actually end up. We are excited for them and so grateful for the example they are setting for our children.

While we were in Lovelock we were able to get to know Connie's children and their families a little better. Our children were so excited to get to know some new cousins. We were able to spend the most time with Michael's family (wife- Emily and children- Braxton, Zach, Sadie, and Bailey) and John's family (wife- Stefani and children- Kiara, Whitney, Amanda, and AJ). As well as Marianne's oldest daughter,Aubrey, and her new husband, Jaren (SO SORRY if I have spelled any names wrong!!) Later, on Saturday, the rest of Connie's children and their families arrived, along with some of her siblings. It was great to get to know her wonderful family.

On Saturday afternoon we went to the Lovelock city pool. We had so much fun swimming, jumping from the high dive, racing, playing Marco Polo, etc. Our family then visited some of Russ' old stomping grounds. Like La Belle's (the local brothel), the courthouse (where Russ had to go after being arrested for skateboarding in the pool pictured above... only it was empty at the time), Two Stiffs (the gas station that made Lovelock famous), and some of his old hunting and fishing spots. Other highlights of the trip were riding grandpa's HUGE dirt bike and motorcycle, eating a ton of food, seeing Russ' old friends and neighbors, and just hanging out with everyone.

The actual mission farewell was very nice. Bill and Connie gave great talks and all of the grandchildren that were there sang the Army of Helaman. It was great to hear grandma and grandpa bear testimony of our Savior and His gospel. Grandma shared stories from the Book of Mormon and related them to our lives. She shared the story of Amalickiah a wicked Nephite who revolted against Helaman and sought to be king over the Lamanites. She told of how the Lamanite army was hiding at the top of a mountain and Amalickiah called for them to "come down, come down". Eventually they came down and were tricked into having Amalickiah as their king. Grandma compared this to Satan calling to us to "come down, come down" and lower our standards. She also told the story of the 2000 stripling warriors. Grandpa talked about the 6 B's (Be Grateful, Be True, Be Prayerful, Be Smart, Be Clean, Be Humble). We were so glad that we were able to be apart of this special day.

Adios! Buena suerte! Te amamos!

Presenting: Mr. and Mrs. Brent Ellsworth

On Saturday, June 14th, 2008, Kami and Brent got married. (Kami is Kori's sister) We are so excited for them. They were married in the St. George temple at 10:00 a.m. The sealing was wonderful and everyone looked beautiful. We were grateful to have been a part of such a great day. After the wedding we had a luncheon/reception at Entrada (where High School Musical 2 was filmed). It was beautiful there. It was fun to get to meet so many of Brent's family and friends, almost all of which traveled from Arizona and northern Utah to be there. Brent is lucky to be loved by so many great people. Anyway, welcome to the family Brent! We feel very blessed to have you with us. You truly are an answer to many, many prayers!

This is a picture of the wedding cake. It was my favorite part of the wedding. My dear friend, Carie Homer, made the cake. She also was the hair-stylist for Kami and Savanna. She is so very talented. I feel so lucky to know her!


This is a picture of Kami's bouquet. Another friend of mine, Lindsay Madsen, designed the floral arrangements at the wedding. She also is very talented and did a wonderful job. The name of her business is Orchids and Co.

Grandma Hyde's funeral...a family reunion

Russ' Grandma, Ruth Ann Dolan Hyde, passed away on June 7th, 2008, at the age of 92. She was the mother of four children and grandmother and great-grandmother to many. Her funeral was this last Thursday in Monticello, UT. We were able to hear wonderful stories about her life. She was a school teacher most of her life and good friend to many.

After Grandma Hyde's funeral we had a lovely luncheon at the church (Thanks to the relief society sisters in Monticello for your hard work). We were a large group to feed! After the luncheon, Russ' cousin, Gary Black, invited us up to his cabin for a BBQ and fun. There was so much to do up there. The kids had a blast on all of the homemade toys (tire swings, teeter-totters, zip lines, rope swings, bouncy toys, etc. Gary and his boys, Nolan and Hayden, brought their dirt bikes and a four-wheeler for everyone to play with. Gary and his boys took turns guiding the Hydes on cool trails through the beautiful mountains. Kate Black, Gary's wife, cooked hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill for everyone to enjoy. (Thanks Kate- you made a great camp cook). It was so much fun to be able to hang our with Gary, Kate, Hayden, Nolan, Cousin Loyd Black, his son-in-law Levi, and Levi's two boys and all of the Hyde family.

Splish, splash- who needs a bath?

This last weekend we watched two of my sister's girls, Morgan and Allison. We tried to think of something fun we could do with 5 kids on a hot sunny day in St. George. We decided to go to the park in Washington, UT. At this park there is playground equipment, big open fields for baseball, football and frisbee, tennis courts, and best of all... a Splash Pad. When we first got to the park the kids wanted nothing to do with the splash pad because the water was "too cold". However, after eating some pizza and playing some baseball in the HOT sun, the once "too cold" water at the splash pad was no longer a hinderance to fun. Here are a few action shots of the fun.