Family Reunion part 1 & 2

July was one long family reunion for us. It's hard to get everyone in the same place all at once, so a big-group love-fest just didn't happen. But we still got to spend time with everyone, even if some people didn't get to see each other. Having family in town also gave us the opportunity/motivation to do some of the things we wanted to do this summer but maybe wouldn't have done on our own.

The Barneys
We had a great time at Lagoon with my sister Lara and her family. We weren't sure how much Atticus would be able to do, but there was plenty for him. The best part was that Sarah became Atticus's "best-friend cousin." She felt bad for being mean to him on their previous visit, so she brought him a present to apologize and spend a lot of time with him. Atticus was very sad to see her go.

My niece Mary convinced me to go on the big coasters with her, earning me the title "Best Aunt Ever." I screamed the entire time and got a headache, but she didn't make me go the second (or third) time. Her brother, Sam, spent most of the day on the big rides with other cousins, so I don't have any pictures of him. Sorry, Sam!

Poulsons at Bear Lake

The Barneys spent the rest of their vacation with my sister Kristin and her family at Lake Powell while the non-skiers went to Bear Lake: my parents, my sisters Erin and Heather, my brother Mike and his kids, and us. We stayed in cabins at the KOA and loved it. We will definitely stay there next time. In addition to clean cabins, there's a pool, miniature golf, and a playground to keep the kids occupied when we weren't at the beach.

 Atticus was really excited about the bunk beds. 

He slept the first night on the top and the second night on the bottom.

My cute parents and brother Mike.

The cousins: Atticus, Henry, Ella, and Aubrey

So it's not La Jolla, but you can't drive to your spot in La Jolla

The water stays shallow for longer than you'd care to walk (I got up to my neck). 

Not too cold, just nice and refreshing.

Atticus preferred the sand.

We spent Friday at the beach, just enjoying the sun, sand, and water. We rented a Sea-Doo for a couple hours and got nicely fried. The whole trip was mellow and relaxing. Not too long a drive, but far enough away that you feel like you're somewhere else. Stop in Logan for lunch at the Bluebird and cheese curds, and you're only a couple hours from home.  

We had a few days to do laundry and catch our breath before the Evanses and ThAdam arrived. But I'll write that up tomorrow. 

My Faves for Today

• Dinner I could make/eat every week: Sauteed boneless chicken thighs in mustard cream sauce (click on photo for recipe). I actually leave out the cream, though last time I added a tablespoon or so whole milk. I have tried this with grainy Dijon and smooth; I think my favorite is a combination of the two. Most delicious leftovers EVER.
• Homemade ice cream. I tried a fancy custard variety yesterday but got scared when the custard seemed a little curdled, especially since we were making it for a party. I mixed up a second no-cook batch, which was tasty. I just froze the curdled version, and DANG it tastes like creme brulee minus the brulee. Maybe I need to get out the silpat and torch to burn some sugar...
• "My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark" by Fall Out Boy. It's a perfect workout song. When I listen to it I imagine myself sprinting over the finish line with my fists in the air. I'M ON FIIIAH!!
• The other song I listen to at high volume over headphones is "Don't Let Go Yet" by David Roch. I can't find a sample online, but here's another great one from him: "Skin and Bones." I have his album in pretty heavy rotation in my work playlist. Haunting and beautiful and heavy on harmony. And I swear it's Neko Case doing backup vocals on Skin and Bones. Love her.

That's all I can think of right now. My big accomplishment for today was finally hanging pictures in our bedroom. James hung curtains yesterday, so after two years our room is starting to feel complete. And with blackout curtains in both bedrooms, I got to sleep in until 7:30. Woo hoo! 

Anthropomorphism at its finest

"Mom, take a picture of me with Blankie and Passa where we're all smiling." I should note that the string coming out the top of Blankie is her hair. Yes, Blankie is a girl. 

She used to be an actual blanket, but Atticus rubbed the corners enough to break them free from the center, and the "spicy corner" became a long string, so we wrapped her up with the string. Now Atticus has something to snuggle AND something to rub between his thumb and forefinger. (When we left blankie home from church the first time, Atticus got panicky and said, "what are my thumbs going to do??")

"Mom, take a picture of me and Mona." Now, Mona IS real, at least in this household. She's been my friend since I was nine, and now Atticus has fallen in love with her. She can be a naughty monkey sometimes, but we still love her.

"Mom! Come downstairs! I have something to show you!"

 So I rush downstairs and encounter this:

"I'm Han Solo in carbonite!!"

 Without the blanket for the full effect. Atticus insisted on doing it again because Han doesn't have his mouth open big like that:

You'd think it was a still from the film....

May Update

 Atticus made me a birdhouse for Mothers' Day. We hung it up in the back yard. He's pretty proud of it.

 He insisted on helping James replace the parking stops. James appreciated the help, I'm sure.

 Preschool "graduation." He gets shy in front of crowds. Each child was invited to say something nice to his or her parents. Atticus said he liked it when I co-opped. His best buddy, Austin (with glasses), had both sets of grandparents and an older sister there, and he chose to say something nice to Atticus instead. He said that Atticus was his best friend, and he liked how Atticus made a book about him. Atticus and Austin are always the heroes in Atticus's books, and they're always playing Super Hero Squad.

 We have LOVED his teacher, Miss Stephanie, and are very sad to lose her. She is the rare combination of being excellent with the kids and with the parents. 

 Atticus finished his first round of swimming lessons today. He's come a long way in just a few weeks, from refusing to put his face in the water to floating/kicking on his stomach under water by himself. The goggles made a huge difference. Once he could open his eyes under water, he was unstoppable.

I love this kid.

In other news, James has finished his serious teaching for this school year. Next week he's showing a movie, and the week after that it's just cleaning out lockers and signing yearbooks, so even though he has to be there, he doesn't have to coerce students into caring about anything. Then he's FREE for two months. Yea!

Our only big plan for the summer is our family reunion in July. We're really looking forward to that, especially since all the out-of-towners will be here. James's mom will be in town for a few days in June, and it will be nice to see her and Grandpa Clarence. Other than that, we plan to visit lots of local parks and pools and spend time with friends. Maybe James will finally make it to the zoo. We do plan to hike, but we probably won't spend as much time in the big canyons. We're still a little freaked out by canyon driving. I also plan to pick up more hours at work if I can. We're planning to buy a house within the next year, and every little bit counts.

Here's to summer. :)

Atticus quote of the day

At a BBQ with James's coworkers:

"I don't know how to play baseball. Nevertheless, I'll try it."

May Update

I have a food hangover. I ended a low-carb diet a week ago, and though I was careful about reintroducing grains gradually, I've gotten back into bad habits. So instead of doing the dishes, I'm drinking "detox" tea on the couch, watching Highlander (the series--soundtrack by Queen!) on Netflix, and updating my blog. Not a bad way to spend my few childless hours.

Highlights from the last week or so:

Family: Saturday was a family party to celebrate two of my sisters receiving their masters degrees. It was a good party, with family members who don't normally spend much time together getting along really well. My dad grilled carne asade, and my mom made Riley cake. It was all delicious, and I ate way too much.

Work: Yesterday I kind of got promoted at work. I've been working as an independent contractor with the Missionary Department, writing for historic sites and visitors' centers. Now I'll be doing the same thing, just as an "on call" employee for the Publishing Services Division (PSD). The benefits of this change is that I'll get involved in more projects, get more hours, and get a small raise. I'll also get more training and networking opportunities, which will help if I eventually want to go full time.

Atticus: He's started taking swimming lessons. It took us two weeks to get him to put his face in the water, and now that he has goggles (reward for putting face in water), he's willing to put his head all the way under the water. He's gotten good in the tub, so we'll see how he does in the pool Saturday.

The biggest event of the past couple months was, of course, Atticus's fifth birthday. My boy is 5! At first he wanted to stay four, but now that he's older than some of his friends, he thinks five is pretty cool. The day of his party started with the St. Patrick's Day parade. His preschool had a float, and James brought the pram. I think Atticus would have rather stayed on the float, but oh well.

 

I wanted to keep the party fairly small but still fun, so we rented a bounce house. It was a hit.

The boys. Atticus's best buddies, Caleb and Austin.

The girls: Sonora, Clare, and Ellie. Clare is his Scooby-Doo playmate. He's Fred, and she's Velma.

The cake. Atticus requested chocolate cake with blue frosting and pirate candles.

He was really excited about this present.

He told me several times that day that is was his best birthday ever. And I'd have to agree. I wouldn't say the party was mellow, but it was definitely low stress. A few of the parents hung out, so we talked while the kids played both outside and in Atticus's room. 

So life has been pretty good. Daily life, ups and downs. The usual.