"I Swimming Mommy"

Why? Why? Why? In the middle of packing to go to Utah for Christmas I found Dallin in the tub. And of course when I asked what he was doing he informed me that he was swimming. Occationaly I have people ask me what I do all day, and after today I realized that this isn't too uncommon. I'm either cleaning up water, mud, marker, or play doe. I just can't seem to keep up with him long enough to prevent the mess!

Keys...yes they are important!!

So yesterday was a pretty crazy day. I had been trying to get tons of laundry and cleaning done all morning so that during the kids naps I could actually finish our Christmas cards. I got a lot accomplished, but in the process the kids went nuts. Dallin and Brooke desperately needed to get out of the house so I took them outside to look for lizards. (Madeline, Dallin's friend came along too). Our neighborhood has a couple of little ponds and during the heat of the early afternoon you can see lots of them sunbathing. We had a great trip, but all the kids were ready to eat lunch and go down for a nap so we headed home.

Doug had taken the car to school, and in his rush out the door he took my keys as well. So as I walked out the door with the kids I took a set of spare keys. Needless to say, I could not find those keys anywhere when we got to our front door! I searched all through the stroller, my pockets, and then backtracked back to the pond. Without any luck we headed back in hopes that Staci, Madeline's mom, would have a spare key. Brooke was bonkers by this point and I felt like I was going to lose it as well. That's when Dallin calmly asked "Doing Mom?" I explained that I could not find the key. He then said "Mommy, Me Throw in Water"! It took a minute to process, but then I realized that he had just told me that he threw our spare key in the pond. I normally would have questioned the truth of his statement, but Madeline quickly confirmed that she had watched him throw it in the water.

Needless to say, I spent that evening explaining to Dallin the importance of keys and why we don't throw them...especially in nasty, murky, ponds! What a day!

Thanksgiving

My sister Julie and her family moved back to Florida this past summer, but unfortunately our husbands have been so busy in school that we haven't had a chance to see them. So Doug and I took the kids on the 5 hour drive north for Thanksgiving. It has been a long time since Doug and I went on a road trip and I think that we both anticipated it to be a lot easier than it was. It is 14 hours to Nebraska, so we thought a little over 5 to Jacksonville would be a cinch. Unfortunately we didn't factor in the kids!!!

After stopping three times for diaper changes, gas, and leg stretches we finally arrived in Jacksonville 6 long hours after leaving the house. At our first rest stop Doug was looking at a map posted next to the restrooms. When I came out of the bathroom Doug told me that Jacksonville wasn't even on the map but he thought we must be getting close. I then pointed to Jacksonville...about 200 miles north of where he was looking. He gasped and we dragged our bodies and the kids back to the car. Doug admitted when we got to the car that he thought Jacksonville was either close to or before even Orlando, not 2 1/2 to 3 hours beyond it! I'm glad he didn't look at a map before we left the house or I'm afraid he would have wanted to celebrate Thanksgiving at home.

Our first outing in Jacksonville was to the zoo...but this was not just any trip to the zoo. Julie and Russ live right on the water and were able to purchase a small boat right after moving to Jacksonville. While purchasing the boat they were told that the zoo offers free boat parking and admission. So not only did we get into the zoo for free, but we also got to take a little ride across the water on their boat. It was a lot of fun and now Doug seems to think that we need a boat. He must be dreaming!!

For me, the highlight of the trip was going into downtown Jacksonville. The city has waterways running all through it and the lights that reflect off the water at night are incredible. We walked through the city and then ended up at the center of town for the lighting of a huge Christmas tree and for fireworks on the water. The kids had a great time and loved the lights! It has been hard to get into the holiday season with 80 degree weather, but this was a great start to making us feel more at home.

It was so much fun to see Julie, Russ and the kids. Julie and I were able to spend time working on crafts and gabbing, the big boys got to watch two entire days of football, and the kids had a blast playing with each other. It was a great trip for everyone!

Dallin was so excited to see the cousins and ever since we have been home he has insisted on calling "Colon", "Parkin", and "Meeson" (Colton, Parker, and Mason) everyday to make sure they are "Happy". They also enjoy asking each other what they are eating for lunch, and singing the ABC's over the phone. We miss them and can't wait to get back to North Florida!

Company!!

We love having company come! It is always a special treat when we live so far away from family to have some visitors. Doug's Dad came down to visit a few weeks ago and we all had a blast! The first day he was here he took me and the kids down to Key Largo. It was a lot of car time for the kids but we had fun seeing the sites and just being with Grandpa.
On Saturday Doug was able to come with us to Sanibel Island and I think everyone would agree that it was the most beautiful place any of us had ever been. We drove across Florida to the gulf side and then headed north toward the island. It took about 3 hours to get there, but we saw a ton of alligators on the drive which kept us all entertained. Once we arrived we couldn't believe how beautiful it was. The water was clear and from the shore we saw dolphins, jelly fish, star fish, and millions of shells.

We all had a great time with Grandpa and we were so happy that he could come visit. Dallin was so sad to see Grandpa go, but luckily Christmas is just around the corner!!