First Day of School

Well, the first day of school has come and gone,... two days ago. This summer has absolutely flown by, especially the last half of it. What's even better, we are still in the same place a year later. Vanessa gets to attend the same school, with many of her friends from last year, and new ones she has made over the summer. She was actually excited to start. In fact her words were, "I am bored with summer." She is starting the second grade.

Evan on the other hand is starting a new year at a new school. The class he was in last year was not quite the right fit for him, so we are starting him in a different class in a different school, but in the same school district. I hope things will be better. Unfortunately it just doesn't seem like the school district really has a place for him that would be ideal. The upside is that Evan just started an all inclusive autism therapy program that I take him to once a week (I wish I could do more, but it's just so dang expensive as all his therapy treatments are.) This program is supposed to help me with Evan at school, home, and in the community. So far, I have been very impressed with them, and the progress he is already making. I am confident things will be very different with Evan in a year from now (in a good way). So anyway,... here is Evan bright and early before his bus picked him up at 7 am! It was cold and windy, but at least he had a smile on his face.
Because he left so early, I didn't get a picture of Evan and Vanessa together. Oh well,...

So, I look forward to another crazy and busy school year. It should be lots of fun, and hopefully I will get to see a lot of progress with both kids.

Oh, and our trip to Ohio was great. We really did have a lot of fun. I will post a slide show of pictures soon.

Updates are coming soon!

Well, I know it's been a long time since my last post. I plan to update soon. I have been in Ohio visiting my family for the past two weeks, and still have one more week to go at this point. It's been almost 3 years since I have been back here. So far, we have had a great time and we have been super busy. So many places to visit, and just barely enough time. I will post pictures as soon as I get back to Utah.

Twelve Years and Still Counting...

Yesterday was one of those "Two For One" holidays. Yesterday was Father's Day, of course, but it was also our anniversary. We have been married for,... any guesses? Well, we have been married for a pretty darn long time,... TWELVE YEARS!!! It's been quite a ride. We have had some amazing times, and some amazingly difficult and trying times, but we have survived. It is crazy to think where twelve years has taken us and it is really mind-boggling to think where we will be in another twelve.

Twelve years ago we looked like this (and we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into :)

And now twelve years, 3 kids and gray hair for some (me), and less hair for others (not me), later...


We are still happy, and together,.... for forever. :)

Our First Baptism

Well, my oldest was baptized on Saturday. It really was an amazing experience for all of us. Of course, we couldn't begin the occasion without a little drama first. We needed to be at the church a half hour early to get Vanessa and Marty fitted into their baptismal clothing. We asked Marty's parents if they would watch Evan and Ben at our house so we could do this without them running around the church. Vanessa's baptism was to begin at 9:30. At 9:25, Marty got a call from his dad telling him that Evan was lost and that they and some of our neighbors had been looking for him for the past fifteen minutes. Well, needless to say, we had to drop everything and rush out of the church in a bit of a panic. Just as we were pulling out of the church parking lot, we got a call again saying that they had found him. So, we got started a bit late, but hey, I guess the incident just makes the day all that much more memorable. Sigh....

In all the craziness, I didn't get a picture of Vanessa and Marty in their white jumpsuits. I have been a bit bummed about it since, but I know I will have the image of my little girl dressed all in white engraved in my head for the rest of my life. She really did look like a little angel.

I hope Vanessa will remember her special day. I know I remember mine. I am the youngest in my family by about eight years. My dad is a convert. I actually got to witness my dad being baptized a year or so before my own. Consequently, I was the only one of my siblings who was baptized by my father. I also remember one of my older sisters giving me a yellow rose that day. It was just a few months later, that she passed away unexpectedly.

It is so strange to me, to now have my own daughter being baptized. It really doesn't seem that long ago...



Time sure does fly! I am not sure if I can see a resemblance or not. I had some crazy permed hair back then!

The rest of the program was wonderful. She had some amazing talks by her uncle and grandfather (Capa) and her dad gave her a beautiful confirmation blessing. Afterward, we took Vanessa out to lunch with her Nana and Capa to one of her favorite restaurants.


Anyway, it was an amazing day for our entire family. And luckily by the time it was all over, we still had every member of our family present. (no runaways! :) )

My Little Helper

In between the rain, and cold spells we have had this spring, I have tried to get a little work done in our yard. It's a good thing I have Ben around to pitch in...

He takes his work VERY seriously.

But no picture captures his true personality like this one does...

He is all boy, and so much fun! I am so glad we have this little guy around.

My Oldest is Eight!

Vanessa turned eight on Monday! I just can't believe it! We gave Vanessa a choice of having a birthday party with her friends, or going to a special day camp called "Kid vs. Wild". She chose to go to the camp and she had SO much fun. It was right up her alley. They went to Cabelas and learned about wild animals. She got to explore caves, and build a shelter in "the wild", where they had lunch. She also got to do some rock wall climbing, which was her favorite. She really loved it, and it was also a great learning experience for her as well.

On her actual birthday, we left Ben and Evan with a babysitter, and took Vanessa out to dinner. She really seems to love it when we just take her. We love Ben and Evan, but they aren't the most fun to take out to a restaurant.

She enjoyed a big platter of shrimp. She is such a seafood lover! Later, we had the servers come and sing her happy birthday, and they brought her a big ice cream treat. She was pretty embarrassed, but I know she loved it.
Later we came home, had cake, and opened her presents. There is a long story that goes along with the cake she asked me to make her. Let's just say a caterpillar she caught last summer on a camping trip made quite an impression on her.

She loved all her presents. She has not outgrown her love for stuffed animals. She sleeps with about 20 of them every night. And of course, she loves her video games.
Overall, I could tell she really loved her birthday this year. In her prayers that night she thanked Heavenly Father at least 3 times for giving her such a wonderful birthday.

A Lesson in Art

I've started a bit of a new hobby and it has taken up a big chunk of my time this past month. I've started to sell a little on ebay, and so I have found that it has been harder than usual to keep my blog updated, but I will try to do a better job this month.

Marty's clinic is building a new clinic that should be opening within the next month or so. It should be quite a bit of an upgrade from the building they are in now. On Saturday, his clinic offered their employees kids ages 5-12 a chance to create new artwork that will be framed and displayed throughout the new building. "Real" artists were there to assist the kids and show them new techniques for creating their artwork. At first, Vanessa was the only kid there, but soon after the table was filled.

Every child was supposed to complete two paintings, however Vanessa was the only one who barely finished one. Ahhh, that is how she is about everything she does. She is a bit of a perfectionist. Hmmm,... I wonder where she gets that from?
In the end she came up with a beautiful jungle-themed picture. It will be really exciting (especially for her), when she gets to see it framed, and hanging on the wall in Marty's new clinic.

National Autism Awareness Day

Today is National Autism Awareness Day, and April is Autism Awareness month. Families all over the world struggle with autism everyday. You may wonder at times what you can do to support this cause. Of course there are ways you can help financially by donating to autism research and various autism charities, but really there is a much simpler way you can help.

I came across a statement from a women named Dara Michalski, who is the author of a food blog I follow called Cookin' Canuck. She also happens to work with children with autism. She wrote in her blog today how others can support the cause of autism.

"Whenever you see a child out in public, whether it's at the grocery store or the park, who is clearly having a difficult time behaviorally, be gentle in your judgment. While it may just be a typical child throwing a tantrum over a coveted candy bar, it is also possible that this may be a child with autism. Be aware that the parents are doing the best that they can do and that the child is NOT just being naughty. Don't watch them with judgmental eyes. All they ask for is a little understanding and acceptance."

I could not have said that better myself, (that's why I quoted her) :). We all need a little more understanding, kindness, patience and a lot less judgment by others in our lives no matter what our current circumstances may be. We never know what personal struggles anyone is going through at any given moment.