The Zoo again and a growing James

Last week we had the chance to go to the zoo again with our friends from the ward.

The Alligator

Christopher, Michael and Emma

We got there early enough that the cats were still awake. Yeah!

The Leopard

The Tiger

A miracle - all four kids looking in the same direction.

Emma's favorite - the big ball with water.


James is growing bigger everyday. He weighs over 18 pounds and he is not even 6 months yet. He has Emma beat when she was this age. He is such a good mellow baby. He loves to be talked to and played with and rewards anyone who does such with a huge smile.

Ready for football season.

Big smiles!

James was very jealous one night while we ate dinner so I tried some pears out on him. The doctor said we could skip cereal and go straight to fruit so we can avoid any constipation issues but I think he was not quite ready for the flavor.

Cute but we will try again in a little while maybe with something a little more tame like oatmeal.

Double Rainbow

I should have posted this a couple of weeks ago when it would have been slightly more relevent.

You probably remember the Double Rainbow video that went viral a little while back (if you don't, click here and get with the times, man!)

Well, not long after that, we had our own beautiful double rainbow experience at quaint Mosquito Park.

Enjoy!

Quinn

Our growing 2 yr old!

Emma is growing so fast loves life. She finally decided to let me take a picture of her winking. She has been able to do if for several months but usually hates the camera.

Cheese!

Trying.

Success!



Emma found a curler the other day and asked me to put it in her hair thinking it was a barrett. I was really surprised when she let me put more in and kept them in for several hours.

When we took them out she ran to look in the mirror and immediately burst into tears. It took me a few minutes to understand why she was crying. She finally let me know that she was upset that her hair was stuck together. I could not stop laughing. She was crying. It was so funny and cute. I finally got her calmed down and let her know that it was okay but she would not let me do anymore to her hair that day to make it look cute. After her nap they were pretty much gone.

Asleep in front of a movie after a long day at church.

On the go!

Celebrity Lookalike

I usually get home from work shortly after Emma has woken up from her nap. She's usually having a snack and watching either Arthur (channel 7) or Curious George (channel 11). As much as I love those shows, occasionally I will try to distract her and change the channel to see what else might be on.

A few weeks ago I failed miserably at my attempt. Emma noticed immediately that I had changed the channel, and every time I'd go to a new channel she'd shout "No, I can't watch this!" I started flipping through the channels more quickly.

"No, I can't watch this!"

"No, I can't watch this!"

"No, I can't watch this!"

"No, I can't watch Uncle Jeff!"

"No, I can't watch this!"

Wait, what? Something about Uncle Jeff? I flipped back a couple of channels to find out what she was talking about, then started laughing out loud.

I had flipped past KSL, where Jed Boal was delivering the 5 o'clock news.

You tell me, could KSL's Jed Boal and Uncle Jeff be distant cousins? Emma seems to think they look the same...

You'll always be a TV celebrity at our house, Jeff!

Quinn

A Playdate

Last Friday Jessica and her boys were in town so we had to get all the kinds together for a playdate. We met at a park because trying to get 4 adults and ten kids into one of our houses seemed crazy. The kids had a blast and got along reaaly well.

Eating a treat.

Remember this -well here are the babies.

Daniel (Jessica's), Lilly (Melissa's), James and Dax (Brooke's)

What cute babies.

The rest of the kids - Dallin, Emma, Dawson, Raiden, Emily and Johnny.

Ireland, Part 3

Part 3 in a series of increasingly boring narratives regarding my trip to Ireland in June.


On our way back from the Cliffs of Moher, we stopped in the town on Doolin for lunch. Most people got their taste of an authentic Irish bar:

But not me. I got a taste of an authentic Irish....pizzeria.After lunch I looked around for a restroom. All of the buildings on this block were connected by a back hallway kind of like a mini strip mall; I figured that there must be a public restroom which served them all. I ended up at the end of the building, and (finally!) found a restroom, only to discover very prominently-lettered above it: Restrooms are for hotel guests only. Apparently the last building on the block was an inn, and I had just wandered into the lobby. Man, I really had to go, so I non chalantly turned around to see if anyone from the hotel desk was watching. The guy there was watching alright. He kind of squinted his eyes a little, to let me know that he was on to me -- almost daring me to pay no heed to the sign and take my chances at using the restroom. But I just couldn't do it. I casually walked away and looked for another restroom. For the sake of my own dignity, I will not publish the rest of my bathroom exploits during lunch, but feel free to ask me the next time we talk. No recording devices of any kind will be allowed.

We made another stop at the ocean before departing. This picture best potrays The Burren. It's just so rocky, but what soil there is, combined with nice temperatures, high humidity, and regular rainfall, is amazingly adept at growing vegetation. Anywhere a half an inch of dirt sat, there was something growing, despite the rocky terrain.


On the way back, we stopped at a fully-restored castle, Dunguaire Castle. Here's what the sign said:

But here's what it should have said:

It was open all day, but closed at 5 PM for a private medieval dinner. What time did we arrive? 5:05 PM. So if we'd stopped on the way past in the morning, we could have gone inside, but since we stopped on the way back, it was closed. Hrumph.

Just after we arrived, two of the cooks came out for a break, complete with lunch lady hairnets on. They fed some bread crumbs to the swans. Which reminded me that I had some cookies in my backpack.

One thing you need to know about the Irish is that they take their workbreaks seriously. They faithfully have "morning tea" and "afternoon tea," even if there is no tea involved. I appreciated this during my audits because they always brought tasty little treats and something to drink. But one set of cookies I threw in my backpack rather than eating:

Yeah, these are "Digestive" cookies. I thought it was a funny descriptor for a cookie package to have.

Marketing: "The name of the cookie should be descriptive." How about "Yummy?"

Boss: "No."

Marketing: "Okay, then, something a little more concrete....how about "Sweet?"

Boss: "No. I want it to be something more factual."

Marketing: "Sugary?"

Boss: "No. Tell me, when you eat these cookies, do they go through your digestive tract?"

Marketing: "Well, sure...but..."
Boss: "Then that's it! Digestive! What a brilliant name! And you're fired."

I didn't dare eat these things, because how bad does a cookie have to taste when the biggest thing going for it is its digestability? Still, I was sure the swans would love it, so I fed it to them. They seemed to enjoy it, and the cooks on break seemed to enjoy watching me nearly fall in the pond as I was taking video with my camera.

In the end, I did take a taste of those cookies. And you know what? They were quite good. For both my mouth AND my small intestine.

One last thing about Ireland is the road signs. When the owner of a business sees an Irish street sign on the road, he takes it as an open invitiation to post his business' sign nearby. It can get out of hand and make things difficult for people who aren't familiar with the road.

I was sad to leave Ireland. Everyone I met was great. The country was beautiful. I would kill a leprachaun to go back there.

Quinn

A Growing Boy and a Messy Girl

James is now 5 months old. I can't believe how fast the time is going and how big he is getting. He is so fun right now. He is moving more and more and loves to play peek-a-boo.

This is his first time in a swing. He was not really sure what is going on.

Our boy is so good in the stroller. I looked back at our pictures the other day and realized just how many we have of him in the stroller. Poor guy. I bet he can't wait to grow up and run after Emma at the park instead of just watching her.

He is getting up on his arms and ocasionally on his knees.



He still loves his toes.

Big blue eyes.

This is how I found Emma after a coloring session with her new markers even after she was told to only draw on paper.

At least she can now help clean up her own mess. A bath was definatly in order.

Enjoying our tent!

Family Home Evening

Last Monday after a short lesson on Heavenly Father's creations we headed out to enjoy some of them. Grandma and Grandpa Lavender joined us for a trip to Bountiful Lake to feed the ducks and then took us out for ice cream.

Emma was very excited having waited all day.

Our cute and very patient boy. I have looked back at our pictures and it seems we have a lot of pictures of James in the stroller. I sure he can't wait till he can run after Emma.

Feeding the ducks.

Walking the path through the very tall grass.

What a great Grandpa.