Monday, December 26, 2016

Brown Family Party

12/26 Jodi and Buzz had a fun idea for our gift exchange this year. All the kids sat in a circle with a gift under their chair and Jodi asked a question, if it applies to you then you have to find a different chair to sit in. When she ran out of questions everyone got the present that was under their chair.  It was a super fun way to mix up the gifts. After they opened them there was a little bit of exchanging.  One of the funniest moments was when Jodi asked, 'Have you ever... Run in a race?' A group of people stood up exchanged seats and just after the last person had sat down Cole jumped up and shot his finger up in the air, "I rosed!"  What? We couldn't figure out what he was talking about. It didn't occur to us that it had anything to do with the question because it was all over.  He explained he did the race at the park and I realized he was saying he raced. Funny learning this crazy English  language.  Cole was saying rosed instead of raced.

Thursday, December 1, 2016

Aircraft Carrier

12/1 (add pic)Cole was so cute today. I heard him say, "I'm an aircraft carrier." I looked over and he was flying his plane down his belly. Such a cutie.

Monday, September 12, 2016

Webelos Woods

Sept 12
Kade just really loves most everything about scouting. It really is a program that is just designed around his personality. Today he had Webelos Woods, basically a day camp. They left at 6 am and got home about 6 pm. When Kade arrived home he bursted through the door and announced, "Best day ever!"  I love that he has something he finds so wonderful.

Friday, September 9, 2016

Inmates are Everyday People

Sept9th.
We had a terrific Young Men and Young Women activity tonight. We got to tour the county jail and then hear from two inmates. It was eye opening for many of the kids to see that the inmates weren't scary looking or didn't seem "evil." The inmates talked about how they were so similar to each of the kids there but then they started dabbling with drugs and it was a slippery slope from that landed them on an undesirable course. They talked about how hard it is to stick to living the life they really want to live because the drugs have such a hold on them and once they use they usually end up doing something to get themselves locked up. One of the jail wardens told us a very sad statistic. He said that even though the inmates seem to be thinking clearly now and are very determined to never do anything that would get them in trouble with the law, they have a 86% chance they will be back in jail within six months after their release. I think that was surprising to the kids because the two inmates that talked to us seemed like they were genuinely fixed and they didn't seem like repeat offenders. Before tonight I think in the kids minds, they thought people in jail were just worthless human beings. After tonight I think they saw that it's just someone like them that made a bad choice.  One of the inmates talked about how his drug addiction stemmed from him feeling worthless and now he realizes the worth he does possess. I hoped all the youth really heard what he was saying and realized their own worth, and not to underestimate it.  One of the most powerful messages the inmates shared was that after they had messed up they felt like they were completely worthless. They said if they would have realized that their worth wasn't determined by their mistakes, and just dealt with their choices, they would not have turned to the drugs and become dependent on them.  I hope the youth know that they will make mistakes, because we all do, but one choice isn't all you get--you get trillions, if you choose to keep going!  It was such a great night and I'm sure those immmates shaped the lives of many who were there.

Monday, September 5, 2016

Theater Junkies

Sept. 5thYes, we went to another play with the Goodes tonight. We had our date scheduled at the Hale long before we knew about the play we went to last night. :-)
We love a good show and so we didn't mind going back to back.

Sunday, September 4, 2016

TVT's The Curious Savage

Sept. 4thWe love a good play and The Curious Savage is one of our favorites,  so we couldn't pass up watching Timpanogus Valley Theater's production tonight. The Goodes love any chance they can get to go too so they came along with us. It was a fun show and spending time with Darryl and the Goodes made it even better.

Saturday, September 3, 2016

Special Moment

Sept. 3rd
Tonight Wendy and I went over to my old neighbor's house, the Chavez'. Their son was murdered in Mexico and they were having a service of some sort and she invited us to come. We didn't know what to expect. It ended up being a 2.5 hour ceremony of everyone chanting in Spanish, but it was pretty special to be apart of it. I really think it meant a lot to Maria to have us there and so I was happy to be there for her.  Turns out they do the ceremony for 9 days and so she invited us to come back but there was just no way I could do it this week. I hope she receives peace soon.

Thursday, August 25, 2016

Lake Powell

Aug.25th
I got to fly to Lake Powell this year! They had an open spot on the plane that was taking the staff down. So I got to go down and help get all set up for the Lake Powell trips.  I don't mind the work. Everything is enjoyable in paradise.  Man that plane ride might have spoiled me! To be in my sanctuary in about 45 minutes instead of 6 hours, man was that nice!
This year's trip was wonderful, as always. I learn so much, my mind gets stretched, and I feel like I am a more enlightened parent. My most favorite thing about these trips though is meeting so many wonderful people! I've decided everyone is fascinating with so much to offer everyone so I get so excited to discover new people everyday!  This group was a little more laid back and so there wasn't a lot of high energy or late nights but we still had a lot of fun. We got to slip in a little rappelling in Labrynth, which was fun to see others who have never tried it do it.  I also tried and went a ways on the Aquaskipper this trip--that was fun!  Another big moment this trip was, after a little coaching from Justin, I improved a lot with my wake surfing. 

Sunday, August 21, 2016

Unplugged 2015

Aug. 21st
We had a great time being Unplugged again this summer. Tonight was the end of the season party. It was neat to see that there were about a dozen kids that got all 101 tags this year--that's pretty amazing. We love this program! This year the tags we did were:
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Sunday, August 14, 2016

Fishing with Friends

Aug.14th We headed to the Unitas with the Goodes tonight to do a little fishing at Mill Hollow.  The kids had a great time. Fishing was okay but the kids didn't seem to mind. They each got to reel in a fish and there were plenty of rocks to skip and trails to explore. For me it was just fun to get out in the mountains and take advantage of the few hours after work to do something memorable.

Keeping it Real

ÎComments from the boys today. 
Cole comes in this morning and says, "You should take a shower two times a day if you sleep because your bed smells bad--well these blankets smell and so then you smell like them." I don't respond because if I open my mouth I'll likely laugh. Before I can compose myself he says, "Do you see how I said that so I didn't hurt your feelings? I said the blankets smell bad, not you."  Again trying to compose myself. I was so impressed with his awareness of what would be hurtful but it was so cute I wanted to laugh. Anyway, guess I'll be washing sheets today. ;-)

Later this afternoon Kade and I are talking and he begins to study my face and says, "You don't have anymore makeup on your zit." Nice. Yes, I've got a zit, and yes, it is a beauty.  :-( Feeling pretty good about myself.

Love that I have these boys who keep it real around here. 

Friday, August 5, 2016

Neighborhood Party

We've been wanting to host a neighborhood get together ever since we moved in but it just has never worked out.  We finally got it planned and decided to do a dessert get together. I was going to make a bunch of cobblers but decided to just make one and invite everyone to bring something to share. We had quite a few people show up. I was particularly excited to see a few people I didn't really know. I enjoy getting to know other people.  Everyone seemed to have a great time--success!

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Clintopia

Ben Chappel, Sam, Bailey, Gabby, Clara Dahl, Peter Bringhurst, Ashton Jones, Parker Mayne, Preston Heath, Micha Morgan, Jace, Drew Anderson, Tommy Myers, Luke Wilson, Zach, Davis Judd, Collin Judd
Wild Times games
Nocturnal maze, upstream(salmon catch), Cheetah run, cake Clint Barnes brought or cookie pizza cake, open gifts, movie with popcorn, laughs taffy, and water

Friday, February 26, 2016

Holistic Holiday At Sea


Feb.26-mar6Darryl was invited to be a presenter on a themed organized cruise. He, like most people, was excited for work that involved a cruise. I was excited to be able to tag along with him. We flew to Florida and spent the night there. Then we boarded the ship the next morning. I was excited to be in a tropical climate I gain. When we boarded the ship all of the people that were part of the Holistic Holiday at Sea were ushered to a dining room for lunch. They had a 5 course meal prepared for us and it was fabulous! I didn't realize it before today but the group is a vegan and or macrobiotic group. They had 20 chefs to prepare just the food for the participants in our group. The meals were great, but I am a vegetable love her so I my have been a little biased. I do enjoy meat and dairy but would pick veggies any day. After we explored the beautiful ship, the MEC Divina, we attended the introduction to the speakers. They spotlighted each speaker on stage and let them give a little synopsis of what their presentation would be about. Daryl did a fantastic job. Soon after that it was time for dinner so we headed to our rooms to settle in and get ready. After dinner we enjoyed the first show put on by the MEC entertainers. They had a singer that was just as marvelous as Frank Sinatra and another singer that was the voice twin of Celine Dion. The singing, dancing, and acrobatics where terrific! We're looking forward to wonderful show this trip! One thing that was interesting about this cruise was they didn't have many options for entertainment in the evening. We think it is likely because the majority of the people on the cruise were with the holistic group and most of them would be attending presentations. There were still things to do, and there is always sunbathing! :-) I love the sun! We only had 3 ports on this week long cruise , so there were many sea days.  It was nice to be stuck at sea when there were presentations you wanted to see. The presentations were great to attend. Some were much more informative and fascinating than others. One of the presenters was a doctor that said we should cut all salt out of our diets. He said Americans have way too much salt in their diet. This is true--sort of. Everyone should try to cut processed salt completely out of their diet, but everyone needs salt in their diet--just not processed salt because it is what is harmful to the body. It is this salt that gives all salts a bad name. Americans do have way too much in their diets thanks to processed foods, but along with that salt are getting other chemicals the body doesn't need. We heard in another presentation they talked about how these vegans should salt the food they cook, so apartment it was clarified a little. On Tuesday we had a our first port, St. Thomas. We scheduled an excursion to go snorkeling and to a beach. It was the same Cove we snorkeled at with the boys on the Disney cruise. We saw turtles and stingrays and many fish. The beach we went to was nice. It was a little chilly but if you laid in the sun it was perfect. Wednesday we were ported in San Juan. We walked around the old part of the city making plans for when we are there in May with the Goodes. Then we got back on the ship so Darryl could get ready for his presentation. Even though we were in port he had a pretty good turnout, about 40 people. He is an excellent presenter and did a great job educating people about salt and clay. The next day was another day at sea and then on Friday we were in Nassau. We found directions to a fort and another place called Castle Garden so we did a self guided walking tour of the south. We ended up in a Daughters of the Bahamas museum, an old home that is now a museum called the Balcony House, the pirate museum, the slave museum, Fort Charolette, Fort Fincastle, and Queen's Staircase(which was our only initial intended destination). It was worth seeing but nothing much there. It was near a couple museums so it worked out perfectly. This was such a great day! It was so interesting to go to each site and learn about its history.  Each day on the cruise was great. We spent most of our time each day in the gym, in the sun, in a presentation, or in a show--so great! There were a few moments that I spent studying a book for one of my Master classes and Darryl studied as well, the backs of his eyelids. :-) It was really am awesome trip. On Saturday when it was all over, we got off the ship and headed to the airport. We were able to get off the ship much earlier than expected so we were at the airport way before our fligh. We were so early we couldn't even check in. Darryl, with all of his traveling expertise, got on the phone and got us switched to an earlier flight. It was so wonderful because instead of hanging out all day in an airport and getting back home at 1 in the morning we were able to jump on a flight and be back home by 7:30 that night. The boys were excited to have us back and we were excited to see them. Darryl's cousin Beci had been watching them the first part of the week and then my mom came on Friday and took over. The boys love Beci, her husband Will, and their little boy Austim. Unfortunately, Beci didn't have the best time because she is pregnant and very sick. I felt so bad for her. I wished it would been better for her. She said the boys were wonderful but it was just hard to deal with her little guy because she was feeling so awful. My mom took Kade and the other boys to Kade's gym meet in Saratoga Springs. Kade said it wasn't his best meat but after the meet he had his best day ever. Wendy took Kade and Abby to a climbing place for Abby's birthday. They had the time of their lives climbing rock walls and other obstacles. 
So there you have it, a quick rundown of a glorious time in our life.

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Leader In Me

 It was the Leader In Me programs today at Heber Valley Elementary.  Clint was chosen to be one of the emcees. He did a spectacular job.


Sunday, February 14, 2016

Feel the Love

 Darryl gave me this beautiful bouquet today.  Happy Valentine's Day!


Saturday, February 13, 2016

The Candy Land Classic Gym Meet

 Kade did a great job at the meet today.  He always has a fun time hanging around with the kids from other gyms across Utah.


I love the last 4 photos.  His face tells a whole story of the phases of emotion he goes through just before his pass on floor. 





















Friday, February 12, 2016

Kade's 11th Birthday












It was Kade's special day today! We started the day with presents: a Boomco gun from our family, a gift card from Grandma and Grandpa Bosshardt, and  $30 from Grandma Brown. He was pretty excited about all of that; as evident in all of the photos.  Then Grandma and Grandpa Bosshardt called him to sing Happy Birthday to him before he headed off to school. This year the Valentine's party at school coincided with Kade's birthday and so he felt like it was a big party day for him.  When Kade got home from school he was thrilled to see a sign the Spencers had placed in front of our house that said "Honk it's Kade's Birthday!" They had written a little birthday wish in it and attached markers for others to write on it too. It's such a cute idea!  It was the perfect gift for Kade; he loves to get notes.  This year Kade chose a family party and he wanted to go ice skating so Darryl came home early from work and we headed over to the Midway ice skating rink.  Kade is a pretty good skater and is a little bit of a speed deamon.  Darryl had a fun time getting back in the ice again. He's still got skills. Cole was content to skate this time because he had a little walker to hold on to.  Clint and I enjoyed skating too. Clint did take a couple of hard falls on his wrist and so he was ready to be done earlier than the rest of us.  We were all ready to go to dinner so we had to pry Kade off the ice. He probably would have stayed all night.  Kade's dinner request was sushi so we headed to the local Japanese restaurant.  The sushi wasn't the best I've ever had but Kade still liked it. Clint and Cole didn't love it. We ended the night with a "paintball" splattered cake.  Kade loved the cake and thought it was just perfect. It was such a wonderful day and the best part was knowing Kade felt special today.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Ice Castles in Midway

 Tonight we went to the Ice Castles in Midway. It's so incredible the structures they have built with ice cycles.  They "farm" the ice cycles by placing a board horizontal and then dripping water down in a few spots and then they spray it with sprinklers through the night so the get larger and larger.  Once they are ready they take an ice cycles and place them where they want to start forming something.  They have many rooms and quite a few bridges.  They don't let guests walk on the bridges in case they aren't stable.  It's a pretty awesome sight.




Sioux Chef Cole

 Cole was my helper in the kitchen today.  He did such a great job of cutting the asparagus into smaller pieces for our Asian Asparagus Bell Pepper Salad.



Saturday, February 6, 2016

"I Can Go Backwards!"

Cole was so proud of himself today. We went to Park City and played on the magic carpet and he figured out how to go backwards.
Just taking a break. :-)


 

Thursday, February 4, 2016

Sock Hop Pack Meeting

Tonight was pack meeting and the theme was a Sock Hop.  The leaders definitely went all out.  Everyone was dressed up for the time period which was fun.  The awards they gave were made from real vinyl records.


 

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Kade the Bowman

Sept Tuesdays 2015- Feb 2016 Kade joined the archery club this year. He goes every Tuesday morning at 7 am until school starts(8:40ish). He has loved it. He seems to be pretty good for a first time bowman. As part of practice they play against each other tournament-style. Kade beat out many 6th graders and ended up taking 1st place. Pretty impressive!  He had a gym meet on the same day as the state archery tournament so he never ended up competing. :-( What was even sadder was the team took state and so Kade didn't get to ride on the fire truck when they did their celebration parade down Main Street. 

Sunday, January 31, 2016

Sacrament song

The ward music coordinator called and asked if our family would do a special number for sacrament meeting this month. She left it up to us to decide if we all wanted to sing, play piano, or whatever.  Kade was pretty excited to sing and wanted to sing "Gethsemane" written by Melanie Hoffman. It's one of those songs that makes it hard not to cry when someone sings it. Thankfully my nerves were fired up for him so my eyes stayed dry. He did a wonderful job and received many compliments on what a great voice he has and a true talent
he possesses. Many were so grateful for the spirit he was able to bring to the meeting. Such a neat experience for him.

Masters Degree here I come!

I officially started working on my masters degree classes today! It is very exciting, scary, fun, and frustrating all at the same time. Exciting, because I have always wanted to earn my Masters Degree. Scary, because I worry my math brain is too rusty to function at full capacity. Fun, because I get to play with fun math problems. Frustrating, because I am
reminded of all the information I use to know and have forgotten.  It is going to be so great to be fresh on all of my upper division math again!!! Wish me luck!

Saturday, January 30, 2016

Spontaneous Service with a Smile

Jan 30 It has been a slow paced Saturday. We had planned on taking the boys skiing today but it was a stormy windy day so we opted to go another day. The boys had mix feelings about that. They were disappointed but they know how miserable it can be in the frigid wind. 
In the afternoon the boys were trying to figure out what to do, I was working on one of my Master's Degree classes, and Darryl was napping.  The boys finally decided they wanted to go outside and play. I knew I needed to go out and shovel the 3 inches of freshly fallen snow but I wanted to just finish the chapter I was working on so I stayed a while longer at the computer.  Kade came down to check-in about 45 min. after he'd gone out. He announced he had just shoveled our driveway and the neighbors.  After a few questions I discovered he had some help from our neighbor Clint and his snowblower. Kade headed aback out to help shovel another few driveways.  As I watched him shovel I was impressed with how hard he was working. The best part though was how happy he was.  He went from being so bored that he thought his life was over, to being so pleasantly happy that he wanted to keep shoveling. There is a happiness pill for you: service! It's cheap and has very few adverse side effects.

Friday, January 29, 2016

Date Day


Jan 29 Last night Darryl's buddy sent him a text and said he had a couple lift passes to Sundance Resort for today if he wanted them. I made arrangements for Cole to go to a friends house before he had to go to school and it was planned. The morning was beautiful! It was cold but sunny so it wasn't too bad.  It was nice to have a day where Darryl and I could just got hang out together. We skied until 1ish and then stopped for lunch. When we came out of the lodge the sun was covered by grey skys and the wind had arrived. We decided to be done and head back to get work and schoolwork done. We skied the way down and hit one run a couple times before leaving the resort. It was a great day. But it didn't end there. We had our date with the Goodes to Hale Theater planned for tonight too so after a few hours of business, dinner, and kids we headed out to see a funny play, The Nerd.  What a great end to a wonderful day with my bestfriend--love him!

Thursday, January 28, 2016

Redmond made Forbes Magazine

Redmond was picked as one of the top
25 small companies in Forbes magazine. Though the bit about Redmond was small I still thought it was a great compliment to an amazing company.  Darryl nominated the company a while ago and he was pretty happy when he found out Redmond was chosen. Forbes

Redmond

  • REVENUE
  • $65 Million
  • As of January 2016
INDUSTRY
Materials
COUNTRY
United States
CEO
Rhett Roberts
EMPLOYEES
320
SALES
$65 M
HEADQUARTERS
Heber City, Utah
Redmond on Forbes Lists
When a 1958 drought decimated their farm, brothers Milo and Lamar Bosshardt turned to mining the rich salt beneath it. In 1992 the family brought in Rhett Roberts, who repositioned Redmond’s reddish-hued salt as a premium product, emphasizing how it melted at a lower temperature than conventional white salt and boosting efforts to market it as superior for the dinner table. In 1999 Roberts bought the company and became CEO , doing away with titles and instituting a profit-sharing program that divvies up 10% of the firm’s net income among employees. He also opened up the company books, informing all employees about sales and profits Jan 28th.

Bosshardt Shareholders Mtg

We are not Bosshardt Inc. shareholders but since one of the couples couldn't make it to the meeting Uncle Jay invited us. We were excited to spend the evening with Darryl's relatives. The itinerary was a fabulous meal, business discussions, and an entertaining play.  How could we turn that down? Plus we got to spend some time with Darryl's parents. It was a fun opportunity. Jan 28

Friday, January 8, 2016

Cole B-day

Jan 8th It was Cole's special day today but all he wanted to do was go swimming at, "the place with the green and blue slide," aka Provo City Recreation Center.  We opted to celebrate on Saturday so we could ha e more time at the pool. We all went and had a great time. Kade, Clint, and Darryl and fun climbing the rock walls and diving into the pool. Cole had fun racing anyone that would race down the green and blue slides.  After we were waterlogged we headed to find somewhere to eat. We agreed on a Mexican restaurant and ended the night with ice cream at Farr's.  Cole hasn't changed much over the past 6 years. He's always been our entertainment.  Everyone loves to just listen to what he's going to say next and watch for what he'll do.  We love this little guy and can't imagine our family without him. {Sorry Cole, I said little again! He hates that.} 

Thursday, January 7, 2016

Kade Arrow of Light

Jan 7th. Tonight was Kade's Arrow of Light ceremony. He just loves everything about the scouting program so it wasn't shocking that he completed all his requirements to earn his Arrow of Light, Webelos badge, and Religious Knot.  He's such a great kid and so it was nice for him to have the spotlight on him--especially because he loves when it is. :-)

Kade Arrow of Light

Jan 7th. Tonight was Kade's Arrow of Light ceremony. He just loves everything about the scouting program so it wasn't shocking that he completed all his requirements to earn his Arrow of Light, Webelos badge, and Religious Knot.  He's such a great kid and so it was nice for him to have the spotlight on him--especially because he loves when it is. :-)