Turning 92

Pictures taken May 19, 2012

My Grandpa turned 92 and Grandma threw him a big party.

She worked hard to make his day special.

Andy and I went over early to help her get ready.

I was exhausted just watching everything she did to make the day as perfect as possible.

At one point, we had a chance to just sit down and rest.

She started to think back to some of the other birthday memories she had created for him.

One of her favorites was an old memory - from more than two decades ago.

It was his 70th birthday party.

I was so impressed by that.

Life keeps going.

It 's never too late to make great memories.

It 's never too late to learn.

I feel so blessed to have Grandma and Grandpa in my life.

I still have lots of lessons to learn and am thankful for the ones they teach me.

Solar Eclipse

Pictures taken May 20, 2012

We were invited to Peggy and Derrick's eclipse party.

They invited all the neighbors.

The telescope was all set up and we got there just in time to see the eclipse start.

Then it clouded over.

We still had fun hanging out in the street.

The clouds cleared a time or two for more viewing opportunities.

It was a fun way to spend a Sunday evening.

Last Day of School

Peter has had two years of preschool and loved them both.

This year was especially fun because he had a close friend in class with him.

On the last day of school they had an art show.

He also came home with TONS of prizes he scrambled to get from a pinata.

After school we at graduation cupcakes to celebrate.

The next day he was already bored.

Peter LOVES learning and playing.

He can't wait for Kindergarten!

Personal Best

Pictures taken May 12, 2012

Andrew kicked off the 2012 triathlon season competing in his 10th tri.,

Andy is a triathlete recruiter.

He raced with his Dad, who has been with him from the beginning, his friend Spencer who was racing for the second time, and his friend Alberto who was new to the sport.

This was his best race yet.

And, as always, he had a blast!

Mother's Day Pictures

Pictures taken May 8, 2012

My Grandma has us all keep wish lists around for birthdays and holidays.

With Mother's Day coming up we checked my mom's list and saw she wanted updated pictures of the grandchildren.

Easy enough.

I decided to take the easy way out and delegate the responsibilities.

I asked Katy to arrange for a photographer.

I asked Krista to plan our outfits.

And I said I would do my best to show up...

Katy and Krista did awesome.

Katy found an old friend of ours who was running a steal of a deal.

Krista gave us great color suggestions to keep in mind while we shopped for coordinating outfits.

We went to DayBreak Lake to take the pictures.

Mom also needed an updated picture of my brother.

This meant that the kids got to have fun with Uncle Danny in between photo ops.

All of this just happened to take place on Carolyn's birthday.

So after the pictures were done we played at the playground and ate cupcakes.

It was a fun night.

Date Night

Pictures taken May 5, 2012

As soon as we had a second car again we started doing date night with the boys.

Each parent had one date with each boy every month.

It was lots of fun - for that first month.

Then Andrew's schedule changed and he's working nights.

We haven't really gotten the date routine back into the schedule very well at this point.

But on this particular Saturday night Peter's soccer league was attending the Salt Lake Real game.

So we made it our date night.

Peter and Andy had lots of fun.

Their previous date night together had involved Red Mango.

Peter was dying to go back.

He even made up a song about it.

They went to the soccer game where the kids were able to walk out onto the field.

Cousins Isaiah and Michael are in the same league as him and were there as well.

The parents had to wait somewhere else.

Andy never saw Peter down on the field, but figured he must be in that swarm of children.

Turned out he was wrong,

Peter was tired and cold and had opted to sit it out.

At half time they came home.

We thought Peter was just having a hard time staying up past bedtime - he's like that.

The next morning he woke up throwing up.

He had a terrible 24 hour bug that just hit him hard right after he got to the game.

Luckily it passed quickly and it's just funny to look back on these pictures and see how he started out so cheerfully and then slowly digressed throughout the night.

Ammon also wanted a repeat of our previous date.

He has had his heart set on Jamba Juice.

I really want these kids to branch out and try different things.

But they are just like their parents.

They like to stick with the tried and true.

It worked out well for that night and I enjoyed Ammon's company.

He loves sitting in the front seat of our new car.

The airbag turns off, so it's safe for him.

But he only gets to sit there on date night.

It's so fun to be able to have him right next to me while I drive.

It makes conversation easier and more enjoyable.

I love getting to spend time individually with my boys.

Hopefully there will be many more date nights to come!

Grandma Lynn's Birthday

Pictures taken May 6, 2012

We had a fun time celebrating my mom's birthday this year.

The weather was slightly cooler than we would have liked, but we enjoyed a great family gathering.

I love my family.

My mom created this great group and has given me an amazing legacy of love and service to try to live up to.

I try my best and hope to live up to her example.

The best thing is - I think I'm on the right track.

 But only because of what she taught me.

Happy Birthday, Mom!

From Father to Son

For some reason, watching Andrew teach our son to mow the lawn really touched me.

It was a beautiful afternoon.

The weather was perfect.

Ammon was blissfully happy learning to operate the lawn mower.

And I felt extremely blessed to have such a wonderful family.

My little boy is growing up.

But that's OK because he has a wonderful Dad to help him learn how to become a man.

And at eight years old one of the best lessons in manhood is learning how to mow the lawn.

Peggy's Graduation

Pictures taken May 3, 2012

A few years ago, my one week old nephew was in the hospital having surgery on his brain.

My mother-in-law spent some time with her daughter and grandson while they stayed at the hospital.

After that experience, my father-in-law suggested to his wife that she return to her nursing roots.

She had been a nurse in a former life - the one before having children.

Over the years she had done a lot of amazing and impressive things.
One of her many successes was raising her children into adulthood.
They were all married and having families of their own now.

The time was right, the promptings were there - both tangibly by her husband, and spiritually.

So she did it!
She returned to nursing school.

She spent a year working on the pre-requisites while winding down her existing business.

She was admitted into the very competitive nursing program at the U.

And she worked.

She worked and worked and worked and worked to learn everything she could and keep her grades high.

And finally, two years later, the pay off came!

She is still finishing her final semester over the summer, but there's no doubt she'll get it done.

She has been an amazing example.

Congratulations, Peggy!

Happy Graduation!

Peter's Birthday

Pictures taken throughout April, 2012

Peter was able to have several different celebrations for his 5th birthday.

One things that he looked forward to and included in  his prayers for weeks was his special lunch with Gramma Peggy.

She took him to Red Robbin, and then to the store to buy the toy of his choice.

Weeks earlier he had decided to "save all his nickels" to earn enough for a double-sided light saber.

It was amazing to him that Gramma would buy it for his birthday.

This countdown was bigger than Christmas!

They had a great time together.

I love the picture of him just gazing up at her with those adoring eyes.

The Saturday after his birthday was his first day of soccer.

That made it difficult to have a birthday party with our neighbors and friends.

But we were able to gather together the extended family on my side and they helped us celebrate.

He had fun opening presents and eating more cupcakes!

Towards the end of the month, we signed Peter up for Kindergarten.

He was able to ride the bus home with Ammon.

It was so precious to see those boys walking home from the bus side by side.

They (along with their handsome dad) are my greatest treasures!

It's hard to believe that my baby boy is already five years old.

He's an amazing kid.

He loves to run and always has tons of energy.

He still has funny anxieties that are just so typical of who he is.

He is smart and social.

He craves attention and gifts.

He adores his big brother, but is also confident on his own.

I can't  imagine life without my "little" Peter Joseph.

(Who really isn't that little anymore...)

Cookie Chaser 2K/5K

Pictures taken April 28, 2012

A few years ago Peggy invited Ammon and Michael to run this 2K race with her.

This year Peter and Sophia were old enough to join the fun.

In the past it conflicted with a triathlon Andrew and Derrick liked to do.

But this year the conflict didn't happen.

Peggy and Derrick ran the 2K with the Grandchildren.

Afterwards, Peggy Derrick, Andrew and I did the 5K.

Of my two boys, Peter is definitely the happier runner.

But coming up the final stretch Ammon decided he couldn't be beat by his little brother.

He sprinted ahead and came in before Peter.

That said, Peter was the only one of the four children to place in his age group.

He got a medal for 3rd place!

We also won lots of girl scout cookies!

After the race, the four of us went to Village Inn for breakfast.

Then we went to Peter's soccer game where he ran even more.

2nd Grade Concert

Ammon spent two years at Indian Hills Elementary.

It has been a wonderful school.

For the second grade program they were "habitat hero's".

They sang all about taking care of the earth and the animals.

It was fun to see Ammon.

He is a very deliberate child.

Where it was intended for children to get into the music and sometimes dance, he would take it very seriously and work very hard to get the steps "right".

As always, he interacts with the world more through thinking (or over-thinking) than just by being.

I also spent this whole night thinking about how much Ammon reminds me of my brother David.

I came away thinking it must be in his expressions.

I have been seeing glimpses of David in Ammon for a few years now.

But no one else really does.

Seeing him on stage, with certain looks on his face and reactions to things, I thought that was it.

But looking at these pictures now, I see David in that profile shot.

I am always bursting with pride at my sweet Ammon boy.

I love him so very much!

Neighborhood Olympics

Pictures taken April 20, 2012

One of the best decisions we ever made was to move to the married student housing at the U.

It has been a wonderful place to live.

We've been surrounded by amazing friends and neighbors.

The kids have been spoiled with easy access to fun activities and lots of playmates.

One of our fun activities was the Olympics.

Both Ammon and Peter participated in the potato sack races for their age groups.

Peter had fun with the hula hoop, too.

I think we will always treasure the time we spent here.

Scout Advancements and Awards

April 18, 2012

One evening while Andrew was working, Peter and I went to Scout's with Ammon.

He had earned all sorts of awards and was even advanced to the rank of Wolf.

We were super proud of him and I was sad that Andy couldn't be there.

Even though I get a "mother's pin", it is really the dad in this house that makes scout's happen.

We were so excited to tell Andrew about Ammon's achievements.

We were surprised to find that Andrew was upset by the news.

Knowing much more about scout's than I do, Andrew knew there were several at home requirements that we hadn't worked on with Ammon.

While he didn't want to take Ammon's sense of success away, he also wanted to make sure Ammon felt pride in working for his rank.

This was an experience I hope Ammon always remembers.

After fretting over it for a good time, striving so earnestly to do the right thing, Andrew sat down with Ammon to have a talk.

Andrew explained that Ammon hadn't done anything wrong.

He hadn't been deceitful in obtaining his rank.

But we also showed him that there were things we still needed to do before it was truly earned.

We had recently asked Ammon to read a children's book about integrity.

Drawing on that, he understood the concept and agreed that he wanted to have integrity with his rank.

And so despite having the badge in hand, Andy and Ammon went to work on meeting the remaining wolf requirements.

I couldn't be more proud of both of them!

The Red Dragons

Pictures taken April 14, 2012

My sister organized a fun little soccer team that included Peter and two of his cousins.

A third cousin was invited to join but opted against it.

Peter LOVES soccer.

He played last fall and was thrilled to be back in the action for Spring.

Peter's team, the Red Dragon's is very young and inexperienced for their league.

They are playing against kids as much as 2 years older than them.

Peter was the first member of his team to make a goal.

It was such an exciting moment!

He kicked and down the field and into the net.

Immediately cheers erupted on the field and off.

His arms both shot straight up in the air to signify victory.

And then - the sweetest thing.

In his glorious delight, he ran straight to me and gave me a high five.

I was so excited to share in the moment.

Sadly, Andrew was at the temple with the Elder's Quorum, so he missed it.

But Peter was happy to tell the story over and over again to all who would listen.

I love seeing the way his face lights up when he's out on the field.

5 for 5!

Pictures taken April 12, 2012

Every time I asked Peter what he wanted to do for his birthday, he had a different plan.

So, despite my best intentions, we went another year without a well-planned party.

But of course we woke up the morning of his birthday and wanted to celebrate.

We picked out his favorite cupcakes from the store and invited several of his friends to come share them with us.

I realized that five year olds don't need you to plan games and activities.

These boys spent hours just running around, playing, and having fun!

Chili's

Pictures taken April 10, 2012

My brother is a waiter at Chili's.

They often have coupons for kids to eat for free.

When they do, my sister and I like to take our kids there.

A lot of time Dan is our waiter.

This time he actually came in on his day off work and ate with us.

We had lots of fun.

The kids got balloons, loved their meals and then dog-piled on Danny when it was all done.

Sadly, this is where Ammon lost his pocket knife.

But other than that, it was a great night!

Natural History Museum (II)

Pictures taken April 9, 2012

My sister arranged for the family to go to the Natural History Museum together.

As it turned out, several family members weren't able to make it at the last minute.

But we had fun with my mom, my sister and her kids (including two extra foster kids) and us.

On this trip I was really struck with Ammon's love for learning.

He is so at home in a museum where there is so much to see and discover.

Peter had fun too, and enjoys the hands on exhibits.

It was a great outing.

(And did I mention we went for free?  My sister always finds the best deals.)

Easter

Pictures taken April 8, 2012

Easter morning was filled with fun family time.

The Easter Bunny thought Ammon was getting old enough for some trickier hiding places.

But it's true what they say - people don't look UP.

He had a hard time finding some of the eggs that were put up high.

It was fun.

Peter was excited to get a compass - he'd been asking for one.

Andrew was excited to give Ammon his first pocket knife.

Both presents turned out to be a disaster.

Peter broke his compass at my parents house later that evening.

My mom happened to have another one she was planning to give him.

He broke that one too.

The next day or so we went out to dinner.

Ammon left his knife in the restaurant and we never saw it again.

So basically, Easter had some awesome gifts, but ultimately, they were both a bust.

After church my Grandma hosted a dinner at my parents house.

I was relieved since I had been so busy the previous week I hadn't planned any food.

My brother David came with his wife.

It's always fun to see my brothers.

The kids always climb all over them!

It was a fun holiday!

Getting Ready for Easter

The day before Easter was a fun, but busy day.  Andy spent the morning helping my brother move into his new house.  The boys played while I helped unpack the kitchen and then we headed out to a birthday party for my cute little nephew Quincy.  From there we rushed to my mom's house where we hurried and colored eggs before the annual Easter Egg Hunt began.  I already missed carving pumpkins for Halloween, I couldn't skip the eggs!  Fortunately for me, my Grandma was planning to make deviled eggs so she bought the eggs, boiled them, gave them to the boys to dye, we took them home for the Easter Bunny to hide, hunted them, peeled them, and brought them back in time to make the deviled eggs for Easter dinner.  It worked out quite nicely.  (Thanks Grandma!)  We got done with our eggs just in the nick of time and all of the cousins arrived for the big hunt.  We had all the grandchildren plus two foster care children that were staying with my sister.  My mom did 28 eggs EACH which added up to a LOT of eggs all over her yard.  In the past, the eggs have always been hidden in the back yard, but this year we overflowed into the front yard as well.  We had tons of fun and the kids all LOVED the prizes my mom had for them.  (Note the picture of Peter blowing bubbles and wearing sunglasses - both items courtesy of the egg hunt!)

One thing my aunt did this year for Easter was provide her twin boys (who are preparing for their missions) with eggs containing testimonies of family members.  Here are the testimonies my boys contributed:

My Testimony

By Ammon Shadel

A testimony is something you know is true.

I know that Heavenly Father and Jesus live.

My Testimony

By Peter Shadel

I know that the Holy Ghost will come to you when you are eight years old.

I know that President Monson is a true prophet.

(I think he will be our prophet forever.)

and last, but not least, here is the testimony I shared:

I know Heavenly Father is real and He loves His children.  He is aware of us and knows our name.  This sounds so simple and yet when you consider the intimate knowledge He has of EVERY person who ever has and ever will live on this earth, it is astonishing.

I know Jesus is our Savior and Redeemer.  His obedience and sacrifice makes it possible not only to gain eternal life, but exaltation as well.  Through the power of His Atonement, my heart has been healed from pains and struggles.  Through Him I can be sanctified and justified.  The power of His love is miraculous.

I know Joseph Smith restored the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints is organized through revelation and the laying on of hands.  He translated The Book of Mormon which testifies of the Savior’s divine mission and His will for us.  It is true scripture.

I know that President Monson is a prophet of the Lord.  He has heard the call of our Heavenly Father and obeyed.  He leads by example and most importantly through revelation as He fulfills the will of the Savior.  Ours is a church guided by our Lord and Savior.  We are blessed to have His guidance and teachings made clear through modern day revelation.

The church is true.  Living the teachings found therein brings joy, peace and comfort regardless of the trials and circumstances in life.  In my life I have been strengthened and healed by the power of the Atonement.  I have been led by the Holy Spirit and guided as to the things I should be doing by a Heavenly Father who knows my situations intimately.  I love the gospel!

In the name of Jesus Christ,

Amen.

Patient/Family Liaison

It's only been a few weeks since I've felt compelled to find volunteer opportunities.  I just happened to stumble upon two things that sounded like a great fit for me, but I didn't know what would come of them, so I didn't want to say anything too soon.

The first opportunity that got the ball rolling was to become a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA).  I just found out more about that today and am excited to get the process started.  It will entail a background check that is expected to take 6-8 weeks as well as a series of training classes that don't start until May.

The other opportunity I wanted to pursue is with Primary Children's Hospital.  The first time I went to their website, the only volunteer openings they had listed were for Hospice.  I thought that was something I could do and considered signing up.  But by the time I went back to their website, many of the other positions had opened up.  I looked through the various descriptions and was really excited about the possibility of becoming a Patient/Family Liaison.

The practical functions of this position is to meet with newly admitted families and let them know about the showers, beds, cafeteria etc to help them know the resources available to them while their child is in the hospital.  The sideline function of this position is to be there to ask how they are doing and lend a listening ear to a family who is probably dealing with some pretty emotional and overwhelming circumstances.  I am really excited about being involved in this way.

I had to submit my resume and it was very nerve wracking.  It's been more than five years since I applied for a job. Fortunately I had to update my resume for a class earlier this semester so with just a few minor tweaks it was ready to go.

I heard back from Primary Children's Hospital immediately (the next day) and was scheduled to go in for an orientation/interview.  It really was much more of an orientation.  The only real question that seemed to potentially disqualify the candidates was if they lost a child in the last 12-18 months.  Obviously that could be really triggering to be at the hospital watching families going through difficult medical issues.  Fortunately, I haven't had to endure that sort of experience, and I was cleared to go forward with the volunteer process.

I need to finish some online training, get a drug test, and show evidence that my immunizations are complete.  I was told to expect the process to be 2-4 weeks.  Once I finish those steps, I'll be working Monday mornings from 9:00 AM until 12:00 noon.  I was kind of nervous about what kind of time commitment to expect and was thinking that I really didn't think I could do much more than one shift a week.  I was excited that the weekly three hour shift was exactly what they schedule.

It is amazing to have these things really happening.  This has been a crazy busy week with the two different meetings for my volunteer opportunities as well as the General Training for Relief Society downtown.  Juggling all this with the regular school responsibilities and my family has been fun.  (My house has been a wreck all week despite being cleaned really well on Monday morning.)  I'm looking forward to the experiences these opportunities will bring into my life!

Cooking Contest Practice

Ammon's scout troop has been working on their cooking badge.

They are just about finished, and to celebrate what they learned they are having a cooking contest.

Ammon is taking this contest seriously.

The rules say that he has to make something completely by himself.

He decided he wanted to practice cooking alone.

He took on the task of making chocolate chip cookies.

I showed him where to find the recipe (on the back of the chocolate chip bag) and got out of the kitchen.

He did everything!

He set up the BOSCH.

He measured out all of his ingredients.

He mixed the dough and put it on the pan.

He preheated the oven.

He timed them and got them in and out of the oven.

Oh, but wait.

I did help.

I helped EAT them.

His cookies came out completely delicious!

I hope he makes more soon.

I was so proud of him for taking on the challenge and doing such a great job!

He is my amazing Ammon.

I so totally adore him!

Hot Dogs and S'Mores

The weather this weekend was absolutely beautiful.

We decided to take full advantage of it.

We borrowed my parents fire pit to roast hot dogs.

My brother and his family were there as well.

My grill-master husband also cooked up hamburgers for the adults.

After dinner, Andy helped the kids roast marshmallows to make s'mores.

We had great weather, wonderful family memories and good food. 

Life doesn't get  much better than this!

New Car

In a decade of being married, Andy and I have only ever had one car that we didn't own outright.

We made extra payments on that car and owned it before the five year loan was up.

Unfortunately, Andy was in a car accident with that car.

It was totaled.

As we tried to figure out what to do,

recognizing that we value not having a car on debt,

we started to see things a little bit differently.

We noted that the interest on car loans were cheaper than the student loan debt we had recently accumulated.

And that the interest on a car loan is simple vs the student loan complex interest.

Although it took a minute for us to wrap our heads around it, it actually seemed to be more financially savvy to put our insurance payout into our student loans rather than towards a new car.

We decided to go for a while without a second vehicle.

But the time has come when a second car seems like the best situation for us.

We began to ponder how to make this happen, and the solutions came.

We were so happy with our last car purchase, that we mimicked it.

Andy did a great job finding a wonderful deal on a 2010 Hyundai Elantra.

We are excited that it also happens to have some great perks - especially the sun roof.

After spending all day at the dealership, the first order of business was a family drive to Park City.

We stopped at Taco Bell for dinner after securing what we came for - 

Oakley stickers for Andy to put on his car.

(Yes, he is THAT crazy about Oakley!)

It's only been a few days, but we are already so happy with the flexibility of a second car.

And we are loving that Andy is back in a "commuter" vehicle for going to work

rather than guzzling through insane amounts of gas in the Explorer.

It's been fun!

Spring

 

Well, I've been waiting and waiting for Winter to hit.

I finally realized it's not just late like last year.

It just really isn't coming.

And suddenly it's Spring.

Bring on the neighborhood BBQ's!

 

Peter loves to be outside.

He has a lot of energy and likes to have room to run and play.

 

Ammon decided he was hungry while we were all out playing.

So he went inside to make himself a snack.

He returned, quite pleased with is new invention:

Peanut Butter and Ritz sandwich.

He loved it!

Both boys have had several PB&R sandwiches since then!

 

And we've continued to enjoy our time outside.