May, Family Camp

Reunions in my mom's family have always been camping.  Therefore: Family Camp.  There were even some tents involved (the teenage boys slept in tents in the back yard).  Naturally I took a thousand... or so... pictures.  Here is a small sampling of the pictures featuring my little family as part of my big family!

We met at SUU (local college) where my brother in law teaches.  We had lunch and the kids went on a crazy campus-wide scavenger hunt.  The smallest kids even got a Dora themed (their favorite) smaller version of a scavenger hunt.

Then we played a series of "Minute to Win it" games.  The teams were planned ahead of time to make even groups with old, young, gimpy (that was me), and from each family. Everyone had a chance to play, right down to the youngest who wanted to play!

The church building where we played the games was just on the other side of my sister's family's yard.  They set up a ladder to make the trip shorter for those who were walking. :)  After dinner we drove up Kolob Canyon.  It was gorgeous!

I nabbed some pictures of the group up a small trail.  I was doing far more than I should have so my pain and stiffness was pretty intense.  That meant that I couldn't scout out any more ideal location for the shot.  It seemed to work okay, though.  I also caught each of the families on their own.  Unfortunately, the picture of our family didn't work out, so we had to catch ours at a different location when we discovered what had happened.

(This picture needs some editing, but that's just how it is today.)

Michael hung out with me while everyone else was on a short hike.  I wish I'd been able to go with them, though, since I saw some fantastic pictures from up there!  At least we had the tripod and a lovely backdrop from the parking lot too.

Sunday we all went to church together.  In the evening we had a nice meeting where the teens took turns talking to us about things they have learned and how they have handled challenges in their lives.  It was impressive.  They're great kids.  In the evening most everyone went up the canyon again to have a campfire.  Lizzie was very proud to have learned how to use small rocks to split a log.  Apparently she used the method to split an impressively sized log all on her own!

After tidying up on Monday morning, we all went to a fun park.  We played, ate lunch, flew kites, shot water bottle rockets, and generally had a really nice time.  Gradually we made our way back and headed home.

Chinese kites are the absolute best!!!  They work even in low wind conditions!

Our drive home: the girls watched a movie, curled up in blankets and pillows, and snacking.  It was a very proper road trip, even if it was only a few hours long.

Happy Vacation!

May, The Cattery

In May the litter of kittens continued to grow.  The became very curious.  The living room couch used to be in a home with adult cats who had scratched on it some.  It really attracted the kittens.  They managed to pull open a worn end of the couch and started disappearing into the couch for kitty-parties.  When we found a staple gun and closed it back up there were several instances when various of the kittens was playing and went to jump into the couch... forgetting it was closed.  Bonk!  Oops!

Photos to have posted to list the kittens as "available for adoption".  Except the upper left corner picture. That picture of Thomas was just too sweet.  Below Thomas is Shuri, then on the right side, top to bottom are Priscilla, Felicia, and Thomas (again).

Cats love boxes.  That's very true.  But they also love a good basket!  Even if it gets a little crowded at times.

Felicia hiding under the Pack-n-Play, Kate cuddling Priscilla.  Kate with Thomas in her bag., Shuri sitting with a paw on my shoulder to make sure I stayed put.  Shuri's chocolate colored markings in the sunshine.

Before the kittens did much climbing we would take them out and let them play in the Pack-n-Play .  With a blanket in the bottom they would nap, play, and get used to new areas of the house.  As soon as they learned to climb, though, it was a whole different story!  There was no keeping them in one place any more!!

Thomas was the most determined to get along with the adult cats.  He is the first one who got Ginger to break down and start being friendly to the kittens.  Sierra never did get around to anything beyond ignoring this batch of kitties.

Felicia finally grew out of being able to curl up in one of my shoes.

The kittens absolute love each other!  They like a good cuddle with litter-mates.  Especially if sunshine is nearby.

When we went to Family Camp in Cedar City the kittens were kitty-sat by another CAWS foster.  They were very happy to come home to a familiar place after the couple of days visiting.  Unfortunately for them, they went on another trip just a day or two later.  It wasn't overnight, at least.  The "he" and "she's" here all became "they's".  Another round of shots and getting spayed / neutered.  We were told they might take up to a day to eat well, but when we got home they dug right in!  They were still pretty sleepy when we picked them up, so they got some cuddles.  They never seemed to be particularly uncomfortable or scared or worried.  She slept and took it easy a bit more than usual for a few days, then were good to go again!  Time to get them listed for adoption.

May, part 2

Just after the end of the school year we went on the most serious vacation we've ever been on as a family to date.  It was 3 days in Cedar City with most of my family at my sister's house.  It's only about a 3 hour drive, but there were several Dairy Queen restaurants along the way, so we indulged on our way home.

Later in the months I'd had a rough day and Daddy took us out to dinner at Cracker Barrel.  Michael got me a chocolate truffle.  I apparently dropped it on my seat in the car, then forgot.  It was pretty bad to get out of the car at the store on the way home and realize how horribly unfortunate the placement was, and even worse: what a waste of a truffle!  Fortunately I noticed the disaster *before* going in to the store.

In the never-ending saga of trying to manage my severe case of fibromyalgia, I was sent to do an overnight full polysomnogram (sleep study).  It was pretty interesting.  Especially when it comes to sleeping in a room with video cameras on you!  It took ages for the techs to get all the sensors on my scalp and my hair gathered so it would be out of the way.  It took ages again to get it all out!  It was a lovely room, but it was also hard to sleep with so many things stuck to me.  The result is that I have pretty mild sleep apnea.  I'm supposed to sleep with a dental appliance that pushes my lower jaw slightly forward to open up the back of my throat.  I can't say I feel like I sleep any better, but I'll take any edge I can get to feel better.

May, part 1

We were asked to come help clean the church building one Saturday.  I wasn't able to do any of the work, so instead I pointed out spots for the girls, carried a few pieces of paper towel for them to swap out, and took pictures (of course).

The last week of school: crazy hair day!  After Halloween we picked up several cans of colored hair-spray for about $0.25 each on clearance.  Best idea ever.  It was fast, easy, and very fun for crazy hair day.

Author's Day at school, where the girls get to share their portfolio of writing from the year.

The last day of school I waited for the girls to get home on the bus.  They each got some balloons to celebrate.  6 for Kate since she's going into 6th grade, 4 for Lizzie, and 2 for Sabrina.

...and, of course, more pictures.

In case Kate ever decides her mom and dad *aren't* cool, here's proof that she once did.  Also, a clematis bloom off the vine out back; Lizzie and Sabrina trying out the unfinished dog houses at Home Depot; Sabrina making slippers for her cousin Eliza L's birthday.

Going into summer was wonderful.  I love having the girls home.  And I *really* love not having to wake up to an alarm, make sack lunches 5 days a week, or be responsible for signing homework packets and reading logs.  Huge sigh of relief to have 10 weeks off!

Cats and Kittens

Happy 2nd Birthday to Ginger and Sierra!

We got them a new couple of toys.  Unfortunately we discovered, at home, that the mouse toy was possessed.  When it was moved it would make terrible noises and its eyes would flash demonically.  The cats loved it, except when it made noise.  We finally gutted the mouse and all was well.

After a failed attempt at fostering an adult cat around the end of last year, we decided to try again, but with kittens this time.  This litter of four was dumped at a shelter at about 5 weeks old.  They didn't even know how to eat on their own yet.  We got them within 24 hours of the time they were dumped.  Since they were new we got to name them.  We chose their names from the secret identities of cat-themed superheroes.

The all-black kitty was named Shuri (aka Black Panther.  Tabby with white was named Priscilla Rich (aka Cheetah.  Cream with chocolate points was the only male, named Thomas Rich (aka Catman), and cream with dilute tabby points Felicia Hardy (aka Black Cat).

This is trying to teach the kittens how to eat warm, slightly liquid canned food.  It resulted in a number of nips on my fingers, but all but Felicia caught on to it pretty quickly.  We had to get some baby food (smoother texture) to finally get Felicia to catch on.

 Aunt Janice and Aunt Jenny came to visit and cuddle kittens.  

Easter, Part 2

Easter, Part 1

These two pictures just had to fit in somewhere.  Some of the Easter related fun that happened around bigger events:

Pre-party visit with some long-time family friends Eric and Sheri.

I love the way the older kids did a good job helping the youngest ones.  The teenagers set up the candy search, then mostly just watched and helped a bit.

  
Sorting the candy out is busy work!  Not bad practice of division either.  The plastic eggs are filled with homemade marshmallow eggs dipped in chocolate, made by Grandma.  They were amazing!  Meanwhile some of the teenagers were sitting on the couch nearby.  The kids kept trying to share with the older ones.  They'd graciously accept the candy, then when backs were turned they tossed them secretly back in their baskets.

Yes, this is pretty much how we all feel after a good, thorough chocolate crash ;)