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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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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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. 

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!

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

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.

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.

Feel the Love

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

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. 

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.

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.