Hogle Zoo

In the beginning of July we stopped at the Hogle Zoo, in SLC, on our way down to Cedar City.

 We had a lot of fun, and the boys LOVED the dinosaur exhibits.

Here are some pics from our stop at the zoo. 

We Hate the Flu, We Love the Lake

Last Monday around 4:30 PM Angus barfed onto a big pile of legos that were sitting on our rug. Our house is 90% hardwood floors, it is ironic to me that vomit landed on the tiny bit of carpet (rug) we do have. He threw up 3 more times before 7:00 PM, one of which times the stuff landed all over the front of me. The next day he had really high fever, then he got the runs. Those lasted for 4 days, and I must mention that he made it to the toilet every time. Good poop control Angus! Oh and did I mention that my ($50 craigslisted) dryer stopped working in the middle of it all? Oh my heck.

On Thursday I was going batty, so the boys and I hitched a ride with my Mom up to the Cabin on Cascade lake (thank you for taking care of us Mommy). Angus only seemed to get better once we got there, however on Saturday Oscar became stricken with the devil flu. There were a few moments/hours/days where everyone was physically/emotionally healthy, and those times were fabulous! It is so beautiful and calming up there, very re-energizing.  I am so grateful for it, and for the people who I share time up there with.

We got a HUGE surprise up there on Saturday night. Julia came home a week early from Thailand! She surprised my Dad earlier that day at his work (kudos to Marn and the Darger clan for helping with the secret). Then they drove up to the Cabin together and surprised us. It is so good to have her home. We really miss her when she is away.

Mother's Day

You are the trip I did not take;

You are the pearls I cannot buy;

You are my blue Italian lake;

You are my piece of foreign sky.

-Anne Campbell

This quote has been running through my mind this Mother's Day weekend. Especially when I think about the sacrifices my Mother, Grand-Mothers, etc., have made throughout the years so that my life would be enriched. I also hear these words of Anne Campbell when I look into the beautiful blue eyes of my own two pieces of foreign sky.

This Mother's day has been very sweet and very simple. Which for me has been very perfect. Last night Bryan fixed my cruiser bike so I can ride it again. We took the boys on a bike ride around the block (they biked, we walked next to them) every time Oscar found flowers he would stop, tell me to close my eyes, and pick the flowers. He presented me with a lovely bouquet this evening. He said, "Mom, I think tomorrow should be Mother's day too, so that I can pick you more flowers."

 

 

This morning I got to sit next to my wonderful Mother in law during sacrament meeting in our ward, she is a great example to me and I respect and love her a lot. 
 
My Dad spoke in his ward, I felt lucky to be able to go and listen. I sat next to my handsome younger brother and my cherished Mom. It was a real joy to listen to my Father, a man who I love so dearly, speak so eloquently about the special gift women have to nurture those around them. A choir sang the song I Often Go Walking, and I got teary eyed remembering all the nights when I was little that my Mother would sing me to sleep with that song.
 
My mother is one of my closest friends, and I talk with her multiple times a day. I can always count on her. She is one of my greatest sources of strength, and I consider her one of God's greatest blessing's in my life.



Oregon Trip: Part Two

Here are a few more pictures from our Oregon adventure. We really did have a lot of fun!

We all went crabbing together. Which was cool, and stinky. Have you ever been crabbing? Holy cow, the bait that is tied to the middle of the crab cage is putrid. Real "knock you out" sort of smelly stuff. However, listening to the kids giggle and shriek while watching the crabs scurry across the dock was worth it. Most of us wimped out after a couple hours, but Bryan, my Dad and Mom, Sam, and JR  stayed there crabbing for a few hours longer. They loved it! They (minus my Mom) even went to a local spot afterwards to harvest muscles (like the ones you eat) off of rocks. I think they enjoyed finding the muscles more than eating them. Muscles are pretty nasty to eat, if you ask me.

Here are some more pictures. The third and final spring break installment is coming soon,



A few days late doesn't make it less true.

Dad.

I hope you know I love you. I tell you often that I do, so you should. I am glad you were always vocal about your love for me when I was growing up, because now I have no problem being vocal about it too.

I am a confident person. I know I learned a lot of that from you. You have an innate confidence that exudes from you. That is one of the many reasons why it is so simple to look up to you, and to trust you.

I think that you are one of the most capable and intelligent men I know. Really. I have needed your help often through out my life with various issues. Issues that ranged from helping me with math assignments, resolve problems I created, or even how to cope with and understand loss. You have always provided me with sound steps towards practical solutions. You are a busy man. However never, ever, have I felt that my needs were an imposition to you. You always help (and not just me).

Thank you for loving me.
Thank you for complimenting me on my successes.
Thank you for being understanding of my failures.
Thanks for teaching me to enjoy (dare I say crave?) exercise.
Thank you for naming me after your Mom.
Thank you for referring to farts as "barking spiders", or blaming them on "the bear hiding in the bushes."
Thank you for being the devil's advocate at times when more than one viewpoint is needed.
Thank you for knowing what is really important in this life.
Thank you for having a good sense of humor.
Thank you for eating cookie dough out of the mixer, and peanut butter right out of the jar.
Thanks for all the vacations, the memories are priceless.
Thanks for being Papa to my boys. You are a great one.

Thank you for being happy and content in life. I think that is one of the most beneficial gifts parents can give to their children, and you give it well.

I am proud everyday that you are my Dad.

Helen.

Stars.

There is something about a clear sky full of bright stars that really gets to me. It makes my spirit tingle to think that this sky and these stars I look at, are the exact same ones those who came before me gazed at, and will be the same ones those who follow me will see too. It makes me feel mysteriously connected to all spirits who walk this earth. I can feel it as though it were electricity running from my fingertips to my toes.

***

Tonight I was doing the dishes. I had just cleaned out the fridge so I had a few suspicious looking Tupperware to dispose of. I knew if I left the inhabitants of those Tupperware lingering in the trash can all night long, in the morning my house would be dripping with stench. So I took the bag outside to the trash cans.

As I stepped out my back door the stars nearly knocked me over they were so beautiful. The air was cold, but so incredibly refreshing. I stood in middle of the yard for awhile with my head and eyes pointing up. I swear I could feel the fresh brisk air cleansing my throat and lungs. The moon looked like a juicy lemon wedge in the dark night sky, and Orion greeted me so boldly I literally felt I could touch his belt.

As I spent these moments out in my yard adoring the sky, my mind flooded with memories. Memories of me as a kid doing the exact same thing with my Mom and Dad. I would often beg them to go on night time walks with me.

Walks which in summer we would feel the warm air on our arms, and smell the sweet scents of laundry exhaust and freshly cut grass. Walks which in winter our noses inhaled crisp air, and we could see our breath as we exhaled. Walks where we always spent long moments staring up at the stars. Walks were my Dad would help me find Orion and the big and little dipper, and my mom and I would look for the north star. Walks where we too, felt connected to it all.

"Keep it simple, stupid."

"Keep it simple, stupid."

These words have been going through my mind quite a bit over the last couple weeks. It is something that my Dad says lovingly to us kids, when finding a solution to a problem becomes harder than it should be. Whether in our school work, our daily lives, our relationships, or really in any circumstance a predicament may arise.

I really appreciate and love my Dad. He is someone I can count on for nearly anything. Good and solid advice is definitely one of those "anythings."

Just, "keep it simple, stupid." :)

Happy Birthday Grammy!

Happy birthday Grammy!

We love you and are so thankful for you.

Hope it was a great day!

Christmas 2009.

There were a lot of good moments this Christmas.

We each received a lot of things we are excited about.

Although I must say,

I wish we had had more time to spend with our families.

(Between strep throat, and the flu, a lot of us were not able to fully embrace the celebrating spirit)

Here are a random array of photos that in no way do the magic of Christmas justice.

But they will just have to do!

Lullabies.

Oh Oscar and Angus,

Thank you, thank you, for always letting me sing you to sleep. It makes my heart happy that this tradition I relished so much when I was little is being perpetuated.

I have such tender and fond memories of Papa singing your Aunt Lula and me to sleep. He often laid on the floor between our beds, both arms outstretched in opposite directions as he held each of our hand. He would sing the most beautiful renditions of Edelweiss, Oh What a Beautiful Morning (Oklahoma), There Were You and Try To Remember (The Fantasticks), and countless others. Nana also played a big part in this beloved bedtime routine. I remember how she would stroke my forehead with her soft hand and sing to me; I Often Go Walking, A Bushel and a Peck, and Spiders Web. (Thank you a thousand times over Mom and Dad.)

Every night that I get to sing these (and other) songs to you boys, I am able to joyfully relive a bit of my own childhood. My only apology is that my singing voice is more like listening to the croaking of a toad, rather than the warbling of a bird.

Sleep tight my love bugs,

Mom

So that our children will know.

Dear kids,

This is a small list of things I want you to know about your Grandpa Max. I know my list is lacking (I am sure I am forgetting some), and your Dad could write a more complete one. But for me, these things were important qualities I grew to love and appreciate about Max in the 7.5 years that I knew him.

He was:

One of the hardest working men we knew. He never said no when something needed to be done, or someone needed help. As you look around our home boys, you will see Grandpa Max nearly everywhere. For he helped immensely with the remodel of this home, in every stage. His service and hard work were one of the best ways he showed us how much he loved us.

Jovial, happy, friendly and kind. He was a friend to all he met. I remember being drawn to his friendly and accepting personality when I first met him 7.5 years ago.
A great giver of hugs.

Always ready and willing to give us a blessing if one was wanted, or needed.
Never on time, but rather ALWAYS early. He often said, "You can call me lots of things, just don't call me late for dinner."
Exceedingly complimentary. Max never failed to compliment me on every dinner or dessert that I made. He never forgot to do it, even when my cooking probably did not deserve it. He was equally apologetic for his own cooking, which was rarely ever needed.
Always joking that his hair, which was slowly turning to a handsome shade of white, was scaring the grand kids. Not so, Max, not so.
Could often be heard referring to your Dad as "Maynard." Not exactly sure why, but he did it nonetheless.

Quick to smile and quick to joke, it was a very endearing quality. What a great laugh he had.
So kind to our dog, Reece. Max would always talk to him, and give him a a good helping of pets and back scratches. Sometimes Reece got more attention from Grandpa Max, than Reece got from us.
A master at moving things. Whether it be packing our car in the most streamline way possible (watching this was often like watching a game of Tetris), or figuring out the best way to get a fridge down our awkward basement staircase, he was the go to guy.

I know that he still is all of these things. We just have to wait a while until we get to enjoy these qualities about him again. So here's to memories, right?
We love you Max.

Learning it too.

Max, thank you for teaching your son the importance of hard work...

Now our sons are learning it too.

Papa has a ponytail.

My favorite stolen moment of Halloween 2009...

Papa Robison (and his ponytail hat) tuckered out from too much trick or treating.

Honk.

We were all bowing our heads and closing our eyes (well, most of us) while Bryan was saying the dedicatory prayer at the graveside service. He was about half way through when all of the sudden we heard a car horn honk. It was sort of odd that it was just one honk, and not a series of honks like from a car alarm.

My dad came up to me after the service. He told me that he had taken Angus to sit in Grandpa Max's truck (Bryan and his mom drove in it) to get out of the wind. It was incredibly windy at the cemetery that day. Apparently Angus was playing with the steering wheel and hit it hard enough to make it honk. Need less to say, they exited the truck immediately. It was just like Angus to be loud, and just like a child of mine to be irreverent.

We all got a good chuckle out of it, and agreed that Max probably did too.

Those darn cats. (Picture addition)

There was a black cat at the graveside burial. It was kinda weird. The cat kept wandering around our feet and under the chairs, as Bryan and his sisters shared some thoughts about their Dad. As Bryan was saying the dedicatory prayer, the cat kept went right up to the casket, and looked down into the grave below. Almost as if it was planning on jumping in. Luckily, a co-worker of Bryan's grabbed the cat and sent him away before the prayer had ended.

Yes, I know this because my eyes were open during the prayer. And to be quite honest, my eyes are pretty much always open during prayers.

After the graveside service ended Oscar and my Dad (Papa) followed that cat around for a good twenty minutes. Oscar hates wearing jackets/sweaters, so my Dad kept throwing Oscar's sweater on his back as he walked. Oscar would shimmy it off his body, and my dad would throw it back on again. It was really a sweet think to watch.

We were getting ready to leave Grammy's house a couple of nights ago. It was a bit chaotic, with kiddos everywhere. A little ash gray cat snuck in the front door. By the time we detected it, it has already made it's way into the front room.

Grammy is not a fan of cats, Grandpa Max knew this. We all kept saying that maybe he was trying to play a little joke on Grammy by sending all these cats to visit.

Grandpa Bear.

The night before Max died, Oscar and Angus could not get enough of him. Usually Oscar is pretty shy, even around his grandparents. This particualar evening his behavior was out of the ordinary, and I am very grateful that it was. Oscar wrestled, and played silly with Pops (or Grandma Max). Angus only wanted to be held by Max all evening, and kept almost leaping from our arms to get to him. Oscar wanted to sit by him at dinner, and amazingly enough (for Oscar) he wanted Grandpa Max to read him BOTH of his bed time stories. One of the books he chose to read was entitled Big Smelly Bear (by Britta Teckentrup), which was particulary fitting since Grandpa Max absolutely loved anything with bears. (As you can imagine, we will be reading that book to the boys often over the years to come.)

As Grammy and Pops got ready to leave, Oscar gave them big bear hugs and kisses. Not a common interaction for this sweet boy, unless you are his Mom or Dad. He yelled "I love you" to them as they walked out to Pop's Truck. As they were about to shut the car door, Oscar yelled, "WAIT! You forgot your special treat!" He then ran to the pantry and pulled out the box of Goldfish, exclaiming, "Grammy and Pops need some of these." We put them in a baggy, and handed them off with lots of love.


Grammy later told me that some of those special fish treats from Oscar, garnished Grandpa Max's roasted red pepper and tomato soup the evening of his passing. Proudly I will tell Oscar for years to come, that Grandpa Max was literally filled with love from Oscar as he went to Heaven.