November in a Nutshell

 

Christmas came early when Daniel won a contest!  He won a Strider bike for himself and SIX more bikes for our local chapter of our state’s Down syndrome foundation!

 

He’s not a huge fan right now, unless someone else is touching it.  Then he’s more than anxious to go for a drive around the house!  For now we’re keeping it inside, but come warmer weather we’ll be moving to the great outdoors.

 

In case you’re wondering about the contest: I saw a link for it online and just couldn’t resist.  I had to submit a picture of Daniel and tell a little bit about his story.  I don’t even remember what I wrote!  Here’s the photo I submitted.  How could anyone possibly resist that?!?!

 

We invented our own version of cleaning the sink.  (Daniel is enjoying his own little bowl of ice cream next to where I’m standing.)

 

We took goofy selfies.

 

The weather was so nice for so long that we were able to get the front door painted the weekend before Thanksgiving!  Obviously we still have some work to do with the frame and the sidelights…but I’m still not sure how I feel about the door.

 

Rachel participated in the Veterans’ Day program that the 2nd grade puts on every year.  Made me all teary-eyed!!

 

And I worked on some projects.  This one is the finished drapes for the sliding glass door.

 

Thanksgiving mantel.

 

Fall centerpiece.  Jared cut the wood and assembled the box.  I sanded, stained and did all the foliage.

 

We also hosted Thanksgiving for my side of the family.  We had lots of fun, ate lots of good food and yummy pies, and enjoyed the day.  We only had 12 people total so it was actually kind of quiet.  I was not very good at taking pictures.  But we did get these few phone pics.

Caleb drinking his M&M water and an “M” that floated to the top of the water.

 

Daniel really enjoyed the pie.

 

And the day after Thanksgiving (thankfully), Daniel started the puke fest.  It made its way through him, Caleb and then Rachel.  So glad it didn’t hit any sooner!

The last project for the month was putting up the Christmas tree, which I did in between rounds of puke with Daniel.

Happy Halloween!

 

I’m trying desperately to get caught up!!

We had a great Halloween week, with lots of preparations and lots of partying.  Over the course of 4 days I made a tutu, a skirt, leggings and a hooded robe. I also crocheted a hat, dyed a shirt and overalls, reconstructed and embellished a shirt for Emily, created an Olaf face shirt for Rachel, and made a ninja turtle shirt for Caleb.  And I don’t even like Halloween!!!!  Maybe that means I’m a nice mom after all!

We partied with Grandma and Grandpa Beckstrom and lots of cousins and aunts and uncles.  We partied with our ward and even got to take part in the shooting of a candy cannon.  And of course we trick-or-treated until we just couldn’t take it any more!

Here are Olaf and Anna.

 

Next up are Leonardo and the Grim Reaper.

 

And last, but certainly not least, the most adorable minion you’ll ever meet!

 

Hope your Halloween was as delightful/frightful as was ours!  Time to start planning the next round of costumes…

Emily Turns 14

 

Emily had a birthday, shout HOORAY!!  She loves a comfy seat and German chocolate cake…a girl after my own heart!!

 

What can I say about this girl?  She’s beautiful, smart, awesome, persistent, talented and lots of fun.

Here are a few things you may or may not know about her:

She loves beef jerky, especially the peppered kind.

She is a super speed reader.  She got Michael Vey 4 and the Blood of Olympus books for her birthday and she had them both finished within a couple of weeks.

She is becoming an awesome piano player.  She plays most weeks for opening exercises in Young Women.

She loves being outside, away from all the boring stuff of life.

She recently started Winter guard (color guard) at the high school.  She is a natural!  She participated in Christmas Fantasy and did a great job!

She is an animal lover through and through.

She’s pretty good with a set of tools.  She got rusty bolts off her bike tires, replaced the tubes, and got everything in working condition all by herself.

She wants to be an architect.

She is really good at math and science.

She is a great helper with younger siblings.

She is very creative and artistic.

Preschool Adventures

 

In early October we learned that Daniel would not be able to continue attending his preschool at Sound Beginnings.  It is a long and emotional story, and involves decisions and processes that are likely not legal…but we decided not to fight the system and conserve our emotional and physical energy for our family.

So Daniel moved to the preschool at our elementary, right in our backyard.  It is nice to have him close (but sure wish he could get more hours of service) and Rachel and Caleb love being at school with him!

 

The change happened so quickly that he wasn’t able to ride the bus for the first couple of days.  WHAT?!?!?  He rides the bus??  Yep, all 200 yards to the front door of the preschool!  We were told it’s a good experience for him to ride the bus, and it helps him practice some of his language and social skills.  Whatever.  All I can say is he looooooves it!!  The first day was a little scary for him, because of the noise and unfamiliarity.  Since then, it has become the highlight of his day.

Is it coming yet??

 

Here it comes!!

 

Bus #61.

 

Daniel has been thriving (but sometimes being a wee bit naughty) in his new school.  He has a great teacher with lots of awesome aides and therapists.  I was lucky enough to get to go on a fieldtrip to the pumpkin walk with his class.  It was so fun to sit next to him on the bus and see just how excited he is to be a big kid.  We passed Jared’s work and he knew right where we were…

 

The pumpkin walk was fun, but a little overwhelming for his little legs and attention span!  He was NOT a fan of the character cut outs!

 

We are happy with the progress this kiddo is making.  He is using more words (over 60 words/approximations!!) and even signing more.  He is generally a happy and thriving kid who learns pretty quickly and captures hearts wherever he goes.

UEA Adventures

 

We took a little trip to Thanksgiving Point, Fillmore, Cove Fort and Provo for our UEA break.  Who knew being so close to home for vacation could be so much fun??

We stayed at a hotel next to Thanksgiving Point.  It was a great location and it had a swimming pool.  ‘Nuff said!!  I managed to forget Daniel’s swimming suit, but we were close enough to Walmart that we were able to get him some shorts and swimming diapers.  Whew!  Thank goodness for modern conveniences!

We explored a volcano in Kanosh and had fun looking through the hole in the rock.

 

We drove through Fillmore and stopped at the cemetery to see the gravesites for Grandparents and other ancestors.

Of course we stopped at the Finlinson wall.  And we even located some bacon!

 

We went to Cove Fort and explored the wonders of a real Pioneer settlement.

 

On our way to Provo, we passed the Payson and Provo Town Center temples (both under construction).

 

We went to BYU and ate at the CougarEat, explored the Bean Museum, and had ice cream at the Creamery.

 

Whew!  That was all in one day!

Then we spent a day at Thanksgiving Point’s Museum of Natural Curiosity and petting zoo.  I happen to know some people who were in heaven!

 

We ended our vacation with a stop at the cemetery to see Grandma F.’s gravesite, as well as other ancestors.

 

We had so much fun!!  We are thinking that a UEA vacation needs to become an annual tradition.  Wonder where we’ll go in 2015?!?!

Since Our Last Post…

 

Wow…I can’t believe it has been more than 2 months since I posted anything!  Here’s a super quick synopsis of the last two months.  And a promise to get back in the groove of blogging!

Daniel finished summer school, and at the same time said good-bye to his beloved aide, J.J.  I almost cried, and it’s a good thing Daniel didn’t know what was going on, because I’m sure he would’ve cried too.  Daniel has been making great strides in so many areas.  Hearing aids are definitely helping!  We have also started giving him gingko biloba twice a day.  I don’t have any science to back it up, but I am convinced it is helping him. His teachers, who are unaware of us doing this, have made many comments about the good things that have been happening the last couple of weeks.  He is now going to school from 8:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. and doing well.

I had a birthday, and a mystery person paid for our family’s dinner!

We planned and pulled off a great family reunion with Jared’s family.  Note to self: don’t ever forget to check the gas gauge again!

Josh turned 12.  Holy cow, two kids in mutual now!  How is this possible??!!?

We enjoyed free rootbeer floats at A&W on Rootbeer Float Day!  (For future reference, Aug. 6 is the day.)

Jared and I went to see Paul McCartney in concert at Energy Solutions Arena.  Best anniversary celebration ever!

We attempted a spur-of-the-moment camping trip.  We were rained out before we even got our tent set up and went home!

Jared and I had our 15-year anniversary.  I love him more than any words could ever express!

Josh was ordained a Deacon, and it happened to be on our anniversary!  Another great anniversary gift!  Josh is a great kid, and it has been a joy watching him pass the sacrament each week and step into his other duties as a priesthood holder.

We spent the entire summer (seriously) working in our yard.  We got an addition to our patio, a sidewalk from the driveway to the patio in the backyard, landscape curbing, an awesome sprinkler system, a fence that we share with our neighbor to the south, and GRASS!!!  It was so much hard work (and we’re not quite done yet) but it was worth it to have all the green!

The kids went back to school.  Emily is in 9th grade and taking seminary, Josh is in 7th grade, Rachel is in 2nd grade, Caleb is in 1st grade, and Daniel is rocking preschool!  No major changes this year, which made sending them all back a little easier.

We attended the Buddy Walk for our state (instead of the smaller one for our area).  We had to do it without Josh (merit badge pow wow), but still had a great time.  Grandma and Blake attended with us too.  Emily and Blake ran the 5k and my Mom and I walked it.  We saw just about every superhero you could think of, ate snow cones and cotton candy to our hearts’ content, met more police men and cheerleaders than I ever thought possible, and had a great Chick-Fil-A lunch.  AND…I finally got to meet a friend in real life that I’ve been connected with since before our babies were born.  It was an awesome day!

Phew!!  I think that about covers it!  Hopefully I have not forgotten anything significant.  And now I will be better about staying caught up!

Our Ingredients for an Awesome Summer

 

Popsicles with a home-made spill catcher.

 

Movies on the floor with the portable DVD player.

 

Emergency room visit for a broken wrist.  It doesn’t even look broken!  (OK…not so awesome, but a big part of summer, for sure!)

 

Homemade bread by Josh…a few short hours before the broken bone!

 

Homemade granola, eaten right from the bowl on a makeshift seat.  It tastes better that way!

 

Lots of dirt and sweat…and a few tears for good measure.

 

Fireworks selfies.

 

Post-swimming baseball snoozes.

 

Indoor s’mores on fondue forks.

 

Impromptu dinner in the canyon, with pre-roasted hot dogs in the crockpot.

 

Fun on the neighbors’ toys.

 

 

Dirt by the mouthful.

 

Visits with cousins.

 

CMP Lagoon Day.

 

Don’t forget about trips to the splashpad, the pool and the park; family get-togethers; preschool drop-off, pick-up and observation; and plenty of time on bikes and scooters.

Oh, and a whole lotta’ happy!!