Fishing Derby

For Pack Meeting this week they had a fishing derby. We grabbed our stuff and took off for the fishing pond. Ethan was super excited because he knows how to fish and enjoys doing it. They had a short program where gave out awards and talked a bit about fishing. Then they let the boys loose.

We got Ethan all set up and he cast out but it wasn't working. After trying for a few minutes we realized that something was wrong with his line. We spent the rest of the time trying to fix it but couldn't ever get it working properly. So he ended up fishing with a pole someone else had brought.

Courtney played with some older girls who kept good track of her. No one caught a fish but they all had fun casting and playing around.

Playing in the Water

There is a splash pad and lazy river..more like stream...in the center of downtown St. George (in Heritage Square). It's so much fun for the kids to play in because the stream is really shallow and there are things to climb on. We decided that it was hot enough (102 degrees) to go down there.

We packed a picnic lunch, took loads of water, grabbed the umbrella and we were off. Ethan had a great time laying in the stream to block the water and make a tide pool. Courtney loved climbing on everything and just splashing. We stayed for about an hour then ran over to Bryan's office (about a block away) to say "hi!" Actually, the kids just wanted some of the candy that is all over the office.

It was a fun day and we are trying to get everything packed into the last 2 weeks of summer vacation. I can't believe it's time already!!

How old is she?!?!

Courtney had an ear doctor appointment yesterday to have her tubes checked. The doctor walked in and asked Courtney how old she is. She promptly said, "5 1/2 and 11/12ths."

The doctor paused for a minute, looked at me and said, "What?!"

So Courtney said, "I am 5 and 1/2 and 11/12ths."

I had to explain that she is going to be 6 years old in about 3 weeks and is counting down the days. He was pretty amused and went into the hall to tell some of the nurses how old Courtney was. It was hilarious!

By the way, everything looks great with her ears and she is doing fantastic with the tubes. He said that they don't look like they are going to fall out any time soon so we are in great shape. They even did well during swimming lessons. Yeah!

Cars 2

On Monday, I took the kids to see Cars 2. I have to say that this was a good movie! It was a great story about friendship and accepting your friends how they are without trying to change them to suit your desires. I thought the spy stuff was cool and my kids really enjoyed it! I can't wait for it to come out on DVD so Bryan can watch it.

Day 11...He has earned his name.

Bryan has earned his last name. He packed our van so tight that it was amazing!!! We got all our camping stuff (even the things my parents brought with them) in our van. I couldn't believe it! The name isn't named "Pack" for nothing. The trunk even shut without a problem. I couldn't believe it. I'm only mad that I didn't get a "before" picture so you would really be impressed.




Anyway, we are home now and happy to be here! We had a great time.

Day 10...Driving Around and Relaxing

This day was great because it was really relaxing. We spent the morning around camp reading, playing/napping on the hammock, watching movies (yes, my parent's have a TV and VCR in their motor home and they brought videos for the kids to watch) and generally just relaxing. My dad taught Ethan how to make a whistle using a piece of wood and they had fun doing that.



After lunch we loaded into the van and drove up to Wheeler Peak. It was a lot cooler in temperature up there and it was really nice. We tried to go on a hike up near Wheeler Peak. Grandma and Ethan stayed with the van while Courtney, Grandpa, Bryan and I went for a hike...but Courtney was tired so we did a really short loop hike. It was okay because we all had fun. Then we played games in the shade of the tree until it was time to go back to camp.



That evening Bryan and I went to another star show lecture that was near our campsite and it was really neat. There were a lot less people so we could ask questions and see a lot more stars. It was fascinating!

Day 9...Lehman Cave, Junior Ranger and Camp

Thursday morning we woke up, ate breakfast and then went to the Lehman Caves Visitors Center to get our tickets to the 9 a.m. cave tour. I was pretty excited but a bit nervous that the kids would be afraid of going inside the cave but they didn't have a problem with it. They were a bit nervous when the ranger turned out the lights and it was super dark but I think they enjoyed being in the cave.



After the tour, Courtney worked hard and became a Junior Ranger. There were some activities she had to do before she could earn her badge. When she finished her activities the ranger on duty swore her in and then announced to the crowd in the Visitors Center that "Courtney Pack is the newest Junior Ranger at Great Basin National Park!" Courtney was so excited! She wore her Junior Ranger badge proudly and wasn't afraid to tell anyone that she is now a Junior Ranger. It was hilarious!



Here is our campsite:

Day 8...Logan Temple, Great Basin Nat'l Park and the Star Show

When we woke up, we loaded the van, went to Bob and Lorri's and then said goodbye to everyone. We were on our way to Great Basin National Park for our family camp-out of July. This camp-out was originally scheduled for the week after but, because of the side trip to Logan, we figured we could just hit Great Basin on our way home and it would make more sense. My parents, thankfully, were persuaded to go along with us and take their motor home.

Before we left Logan we drove to the Temple so the kids could walk around it. Ethan took the digital camera and started taking pictures. He is very good, actually. He took some quite nice shots of the Temple which I put into a collage.

We then took off and left Logan. We did take a little side trip to see the Heber City Temple under construction.



We were pretty happy when we finally got to Great Basin National Park. We found my parents, set up camp, ate dinner and then went to the Star Show at the Visitor's Center. Courtney got to help by being the Sun and Ethan got to help by being the Earth. The ranger who did the lecture did a great job getting us excited about the stars. At the end we got to look through a telescope at what he had been telling us about. It was great!

Day 7...Hiking and Swimming

Courtney had a rough night. I'm not sure if her allergies are flaring up again (she has been on medication since the Monday before we left to try and get them cleared up) or what, but she was coughing and not feeling well. She cuddled in our bed with us but soon Bryan had to get up and share a bed with Ethan because...well...Courtney is quite a bed hog!

We woke up, got ready and went to Bob and Lorri's house. They took a bunch of us on a hike in Logan Canyon to the Wind Caves. It wasn't a bad hike and Courtney did...okay. She was a bit crabby on the way up and Bryan had to take it really slow with her but she made it. Toward the end I began playing "I Spy" with her and Bryan let her use the GPS to keep us on track. We had forgotten that we have to distract her to keep her hiking but once we remembered that, she was good to go.

The cave was pretty cool. Ethan loved exploring. It wasn't really a cave like you normally think of them. It was just a hollowed out part of a rock that has bats in it at night.

On our hike down the mountain a man told us that there was a big rattlesnake by the side of the trail near the river. When we got to that place everyone slowed down and Ethan wanted to try and find the snake. I wasn't too excited about this and tried to get everyone to go faster. I have had my fill of rattlesnakes and didn't want to see another one!! It was gone and so we didn't see it. I wasn't too disappointed but others were.



That afternoon we loaded up and went back to the hotel to swim. Everyone came and it was fun to watch the kids play around. We were there for hours and it was great fun. I even got to practice my laps, although the pool was really small. It was fun to watch Carter (Lisa and Mike's little boy) jump into the pool to Uncle Andrew.

We went to bed very tired.

Day 6...Driving to Logan and Fireworks

We woke up Monday morning, packed the car, ate breakfast, cleaned the house and were off to Logan. It was an uneventful drive. We stopped when we needed to put gas in the vans and then we got lunch at Subway (did you know they sold pizza?!?).

When we got to Bob and Lorri's house we got to visit with everyone including Great Grandpa Pack (Bryan's grandpa) and Uncle Brent (Bryan's uncle). It was fun to see them and see what they have been up to.

After dinner we got a hotel room in downtown Logan and then visited until we were all too tired so we went to bed. The kids loved the hotel room and were excited to use the pool the next day!

Day 5...Andrew's Talk and Church

We woke up and went to Church to hear Andrew's talk. He did a great job and it was fun to see how he has changed. The kids loved hearing stories and actually sat still. I was starting to get my voice back a bit but was still really hoarse.

Courtney decided that she didn't want to go to Primary so we convinced her to go with Ethan to his class so she wouldn't be alone. He wasn't too excited about going either and wanted me to tell them not to sing to him in Singing Time. He hates having attention directed at him like that...but I forgot and they still sang to him. Ooops! He said he actually missed his Primary class at home.

During Relief Society I looked over and there was Courtney on Grandma Pack's lap! She hadn't wanted to go with Ethan to Singing Time and Julie had been passing by. So Julie brought her in to Relief Society and she got to hang out with us. Personally, I would have gone to Primary!

Then we had a great family dinner and played games. It was a relaxing day...except that we were all doing laundry and packing in preparation for our drive to Logan on Monday.

Day 4...Family Pictures and Swimming

We haven't had a family picture taken in over 2 years so it was time. There have been 3 new additions to the family since the last photo. We all got ready and went to a park. The photographer was really nice and made us all feel comfortable. We haven't seen the pictures yet, so we'll see how that goes, but he was a really nice man and the kids loved him. We all goofed around and tried to get kids/people to smile when it was time.

Ethan got to babysit (hold) Ally, who is only 6 weeks old. He was in heaven! And Courtney got to play with Brooke between pictures. There was a stream that the photographer used and so they got wet.



After photos and lunch, we went to the APEX Center to swim. The kiddie pool was closed for a bit but we played in the larger pool and went around the whirl pool. The kids loved playing with Uncle Andrew and Uncle David.

Day 3...Train Museum and Baseball Game

I had a horrible night!! When I woke up I didn't have a voice...at all!! And my throat and ear had been hurting. So I decided to run to the Urgent Care in Arvada. It didn't take very long and the doctor concluded that there wasn't anything wrong except that I had laryngitis. She said that my throat and ear didn't look very red and weren't infected, but she gave me a Z-Pack prescription anyway, just to make sure nothing would crop up. The doctor said that the sore throat may have been from the strain of trying to speak. I went to the store to fill my prescription and then got back to the house in time to go to the Railroad Museum with everyone.

We go to the Railroad Museum every time we go to Arvada and this time was no different. The kids had a lot of fun playing around the trains and my kids especially like seeing the model trains run around the track.

We didn't stay too long, because the kids were pretty tired, but we had fun while we were there.



Friday evening we all loaded up to go to a Rockies baseball game. We were going to sit in the Rock Pile (cheap seats) but they were sold out!! So we ended up getting some more expensive tickets. We were at the stadium pretty early so we had a picnic lunch on the lawn in front while listening to a band play. The kids had a great time playing dog pile on Ethan, tag and being twirled upside down by Uncle Mike.

When it was time to go in, Bryan took a bunch of stuff back to the van while the rest of us went in to find our seats. They were up high but not too bad. It threatened to rain on us, and even sprinkled a few times, but nothing major. We did have a great lightening storm.

I still didn't have a voice which was, by this time, pretty annoying to everyone. If I wanted a child's attention, I would have to get Bryan to yell at them for me. Ethan told me that he couldn't wait to have my voice back. He even said he missed my yelling. ;)

Day 2...Andrew's Home!

When we woke up on Thursday morning Ethan felt a lot better. His throat was still a bit sore but he felt okay. We got ready for the day, loaded the van, ate breakfast and got on the road to Denver.

I wanted to find out the results of Ethan's Rapid Strep Test from the night/morning before so I called the hospital to find out. Turns out that they won't tell me or Ethan the results because they can't verify who we are but "if you want to pull over and find a fax machine, I would be happy to fax you the results." I don't understand how they can verify who I am at a roadside fax machine when they can't over the phone, but I guess that's red tape. After yelling at a few people and loosing cell service in the canyon, I decided to give up. UGH!!!!

We got to Arvada in time to fill Ethan's prescription and then get back on the freeway to drive to the airport. Bryan's family members were already there waiting for Andrew's flight to come in so we met them there and the kids held up signs we made to welcome him home. He took FOREVER to deplane. But it was worth it to see his face when he saw all of us there to welcome him home. We took pictures and then loaded in the cars to go back to the house where we had a dinner and then got to hear all about Andrew's mission and see his pictures. It was so good to see him and the kids were so happy to see him home! What a great example he has been to them!!

On a side note: I lost my voice that afternoon. I felt just fine, didn't have a sore throat or anything, but I didn't have any voice. It usually happens a few times a year. I think it's Bryan's reward for his faithfulness. ;)

Going to Denver...Day 1

Last Wednesday we left for our trip to Denver, Logan and Great Basin National Park. It was going to be crazy!

I spent the morning cleaning the house, packing and keeping the kids occupied so they didn't ask me every 5 minutes "when are we leaving?!". After I finished teaching piano lessons I loaded the kids in the van and we were off to pick up Bryan.

We had a hotel reservation in Grand Junction, Colorado, so we only had to drive 6 hours. We left St. George around 3:15 and made good time to Grand Junction. We checked into the hotel and went to bed.

A little after midnight I woke up to Ethan screaming and crying. Bryan was trying to calm him down but he was in so much pain that he was just hysterical. Ethan had a really bad sore throat and his ear was hurting. So we logged onto the internet to try and find someplace to take him to a doctor. There isn't much in Grand Junction so I ended up getting dressed and taking him to the emergency room of a local hospital.

It was empty when we got to the ER so they took Ethan right back while I filled out paperwork. By the time I was finished they had already checked him out and taken a Rapid Strep Test. A few minutes later the doctor came in to tell me that Ethan did have a slightly red throat but that it didn't look like strep throat to him. They gave him a dose of Tylenol with Codine, for the pain, and gave me a prescription for a Z-Pack. The doctor wasn't sure what was wrong but he wanted to stop whatever it was. Then we left the hospital for the hotel.

Ethan is pretty funny on Tylenol with Codine! He was so happy to see Bryan and kept talking and hugging Courtney (who was asleep). It was funny but he finally settled in for a good nights rest.

Hair Cut!

Courtney had her annual haircut today. For some reason she has something against getting a haircut. But she decided that it was about time but made me promise that she wouldn't get bangs or have it cut short. I promised. She really wants to grow it out. My friend around the block has a salon in her house and we always go there. Courtney really likes my friend so she very happily jumped into the chair and got her trim. She played Ethan's DSi while she got her cut. It was a fun girls day at the salon.

She's a cutie!

Before:

Getting a shampoo:

This is her "please Mom, enough!" look:

Loose Tooth!

After years of watching everyone else lose their teeth and fretting that it would never happen to her. Courtney can now proudly tell everyone that she has a loose tooth!! I noticed yesterday that one of her front teeth looked a bit odd but I didn't say anything about it. This morning Ethan noticed the same thing and mentioned it to Courtney. It actually looks like her tooth is gone because it has moved forward and is kind of sticking straight out from the front of her gum (I hope that makes sense). She told us that it wasn't loose but I asked if I could check anyway. And it was really loose!!

She is so excited and can't wait for it to fall out.

Robot Camp

A few years ago we saw a newspaper article about a robot camp offered by the USU Extension Service in St. George. Ethan really wanted to do it but you have to be at least 9 years old. The man who teaches/runs the program for the Extension Service is in our ward so I asked him when Ethan would be allowed to do it. Finally, this year Ethan was old enough so we signed him up.

It was so much fun for Ethan!! They were split into partners Ethan was paired with the only girl and had a few conflicts. We need to teach him the phrase, "Yes dear." Anyway, he and his partner built a robot and learned how to program it so they could accomplish different tasks. He had a great time and really learned a lot.

The best part is that he can now check out the Lego Mindstorm kits from the Extension Service because he has taken the class. Yeah! Because those things are expensive!!

Swimming Lessons Again...

The kids just finished another session of swimming lessons, the last for the year. Courtney really improved on her swimming and passed off almost everything this time. Ethan did spectacular, just like last time. He passed everything off with style.

They are both little fishes and I love that we go to the pool every week and play as a family. It is a lot more fun now that they can swim on their own too because we can swim laps with them and play games without one of us having to hold on to Courtney all the time. We are still there for her to grab, but it makes it more fun to dive with her.

4th of July

We woke up and went on our traditional bike ride to Snow Canyon State Park. It isn't far from here so we loaded up the bikes (Courtney was on the tag-along with Bryan) and we rode up. It was uphill and a bit rough for Ethan but we made it to the sand dunes where the kids got to play. They ran races with Bryan and played in the sand. It was fun. The ride home was fast and easy because it was downhill!

We ate breakfast and then Bryan ran to work to get some things done. I took the kids to anti-gravity arena. It's a huge warehouse that they have filled with bounce houses and trampolines. It was so much fun but after an hour we were pretty tired.

After eating lunch and calling Bryan to tell him all about our fun, we had lunch and relaxed for a little while. It was a strange day because it was cloudy and wasn't as hot as you would expect.

At 3 p.m. we met Bryan at the St. George Pool and Hydro-tube for some swimming. Courtney went off the diving board a bunch of times and we all went down the tube. When we were waterlogged and tired, we went for ice cream!

That evening we had a BBQ and watched some firework specials on TV until it got dark enough to do sparklers. Then we all went to bed and listened to neighbors let off their own fireworks.

It was a good day!!

Swimming Lessons for Me!!

I never learned how to hold my breath underwater without holding my nose. I took swimming lessons as a kid but I always held my nose. The teacher told me that I wouldn't pass unless I could figure it out so I quit lessons. Bryan has tried to teach me but it just didn't work for long. I was just really scared.

Last year I asked the kid's swimming teacher if she would hold an adult lesson. She told me she would if I could get at least 3 students to take it. I had 5 people ready to take it but one-by-one they dropped out and she didn't offer the class. This year I tried and tried to get people, the teacher even offered it in her schedule, but no one signed up but me...until my parents decided to take it with me! They were life savers.

We started with bobs, holding our breath (which I finally, kind of, figured out), floating and then we moved on to strokes. I even learned to dive. We did so well that she only gave us 4 lessons (instead of 8) and refunded our money.

On the last day of lessons we got to show off and it was fun. My mom got smooth with her front crawl.

Diving (I didn't realize that I pull to one side):

After I dove in:

My parents and I (I'm the splash between them by the slide):

Me and Mom: