Shiny and New

Something fun is waiting for Jens in the garage . . .

We decided it was time to upgrade the wheels, and that it needed to be done before our big trip so Jens could ride bikes with his cousins.

He was pretty excited.

And he felt pretty big.

This morning he rode with me to pick up the mail, which is just a few houses down from us. We had to go to the mailbox "the long way" aka, around the block. He is pretty fast!

Little Love Notes

The day after Father's Day, Jens was very industrious, cutting small pieces of paper and doing writing. He wanted to write "Jens loves Dad" but ended up with DADJens instead. I asked him why he was making these little papers and he said because he loves dad so much.

I live for these redeeming moments.

Happy Father's Day

Mike had what I hope was a lovely Father's Day, featuring a real breakfast, even though it was Sunday and we have 9:00 church, a two hour bike ride in the afternoon, and a steak dinner. We sure are lucky to have such a nice, caring dad at our house!

Blueberries, blueberries everywhere.

Today Jens, Sylvie, and I went blueberry picking on Apple Hill. It was a gorgeous day and we went early before it got to hot (Mike wussed out and went on a 50 mile bike ride instead). Jens was the best blueberry picker in the world! He was very careful and only picked the biggest, bluest berries. I decided blueberries are perfect to pick with kids because they grow low and don't have any thorns. The berries were perfectly ripe and are so sweet! I am already planning on a blueberry buckle, Gingery lime blueberry pie, and blueberry pancakes.

We might have gotten a little carried away (8 lbs. worth of carried away).

Recycle, Reuse, Repurpose

Yesterday was sunny and hot and I wished that we had one of those little kiddie pools for our backyard. So Jens and I did a little project together and turned his empty but dirty sandbox into a clean water feature. He was a great help with the scrub brush and enjoyed cooling off afterwords.

Goofy Kids

So I was trying to take a picture of Sylvie because she looked so cute in this little outfit, and who should come and help but her friendly older brother, and we ended up with some funny shots.

And at the end, Jens wanted to help me get a picture of Sylvie's new tooth. So there it is.

June 18th

This week has been fairly foggy. I don't remember much of it except that Sylvie has gotten tooth number two and Jens has been exceedingly loud.

Saturday Mike went for a marathon bike ride in the morning--almost 50 miles. He is going to be ready for that 100 miler next weekend! I stayed home with Jens and Sylvie and we had pancakes. That night we went to the ward party which was at an amazing house about 20 minutes away. It feels like it's in the middle of nowhere, but the house is beautiful and has all sorts of fun things--pool, playground, volleyball court, fire pit etc. It was fun to socialize with our friends.

Sunday was church and that night we met up with the Littles and the Harrisons for cupcakes at the park. They were chocolate.

Monday I did my last story time at Jens's school. I have enjoyed doing that so much, and the kids are so cute. Sylvie came with me and sat angelically by my side the whole time. What a doll.

Tuesday we had the two youngest Achees over for the afternoon. Jens thinks Jared (who is almost 6) is awesome, but sadly, the feelings are not mutual. The kids had a good time, though, and watched Cars and ran through the sprinklers. Anita and Jared witnessed a 45 minute screaming Jens tantrum, (he really needed a rest time that day but didn't get one) but I think they were fairly engrossed in the movie, so hopefully it didn't leave too much of an impression on them. Jens sort of short circuited after that and the rest of the day was a nightmare--he couldn't follow even the most basic directions and made a lot of messes. I was really grateful when the day was over and he went to bed. In retrospect, he probably should have gone to bed an hour earlier than he did.

Today we went to the park with lots of friends and had a good time. Sylvie wore such a cute little halter sundress--it is a 12 month size and I just barely squeezed it on her. It actually fits well when she is standing up, but when she sits down it sort of bunches around her middle. Also, she has no idea how to use a bottle. I keep trying to help her learn how, but she isn't catching on.

Look at her up on tippy toes, like a little round ballerina.

Tonight we went to the mall and took Sylvie's 6 month pictures, which was sort of funny. Jens's 6 month pictures were so fun. I remember that he loved every minute of it--he just smiled and smiled and it was so hard to choose pictures. Sylvie did not take so warmly to it. She sat there looking very suspicious and sucking in her bottom lip. My favorite moment was when the photographer, who was really trying hard to cheer her up started tossing a block in the air and catching it and smiling and talking to her in a very cheerful tone and she melted into tears. He felt very bad! Luckily she did finally warm up and we got a very cute one of her.

In Sylvie news, aside from cutting her second tooth, which certainly must be painful and hard, she has a terrible rash on her neck and spreading up her right cheek. It is very sad looking and I wish I knew how to get rid of it! She also tried puffed rice cereal this week, which she actually seems to really like but which she cannot transport to her own mouth. She tries, but I have to help her out.

I think that's all from us.

Undercover listening

Tonight after Mike tucked Jens in, we suddenly heard Sheryl Crow blasting from Jens's room. Yes, it was the ever popular Cars Soundtrack, which he can't get enough of. Mike quickly went into his room and turned it off, reminding him that it is bedtime and he needed to go to sleep.

Within minutes I heard Sheryl again, much softer this time. I went into Jens's room to investigate and found him hunched over the cd player, which he had put on his bed, covered with his blanket. It reminded me of a kid who reads under the covers with a flashlight, but this time it was stealth listening, which isn't quite as sneaky.

Last Day of School

Today was Jens's last day of school. He has had a great year at Sundance and has learned so much from his teacher, Ms. Dina. We feel lucky that he had such a kind teacher this year to ease the transition from home to school. We will miss her and wish she could come with us to Jens's new school next year!

As for his class, they were a funny little group and Jens learned a lot from them, too, although unlike with Ms. Dina, we didn't always like what his classmates taught him! I enjoyed spending time in the classroom doing storytime and getting to know the kids.

I know, not a good picture of Jens, but I only took one and this is what we got.

Things I love about Jens right now

Jens is, of course, my child, and so I love him all of the time even when he is naughty (see the entry about peeing on the floor of his room for details about that). But right now there are a few things I particularly love about him as well as things he says or does that make me smile.

1. How he pronounces picnic "Pickinick"

2. How excited he was when he discovered the cache of new picture books I put in the office to pull out as special surprises and treats. He stood at the top of the stairs shouting "Dad! Look!" and he would hold up a book. Then he said "There are more!" And he brought the whole stack downstairs exclaiming about each one and took two of them to bed with him and one to school with him today for sharing time. And he read one on the way home, having already memorized large chunks of dialogue from "Melvin Might?" And then he read them with me when we got home from school and while he was having a snack. So much for my bright idea of getting out one at a time . . .

3. I also finally broke down and got him the Cars soundtrack. He has listened to it almost without interruption, and the glee he felt upon discovering that the cd player has a repeat button that plays a song over and over was almost more than he could bear. Not only does he love the songs, he can also tell you what is happening during each one. Not only does he tell you, he also acts them out with his cars in his room. Mike peeked in at 7:06 am Saturday morning (Oh yes, it went on as soon as he got up and went potty) and Jens was driving his cars in race formation to the opening song. Also, he is starting to memorize the lyrics and sings along. Also, this afternoon he had me bring Sylvie into his room so he could play the songs he likes best for her.

4. He is learning how to skip. It is hilarious.

5. He likes to run through the sprinkler sans clothes.

6. He tells people that "Sylvie is fun to play with" and "She is so soft' and "She is a pretty cute sister!" The first is pretty much a lie--he doesn't like playing with Sylvie, who doesn't really know how to play, the second is very true and he knows it well from squeezing her arms so often. And come now, we all know the third is right on. I just think it is cute that he tells people that.

7. He holds imaginary conversations on a regular basis. Just a few moments ago he shouted "Come on, guys!" and he raced to the bathroom. No one else is here.

8. Sometimes when he tries new food he says things like "Mm, that is very good" all the while making what I call his "squiggly face" which means he is shuddering and trying really hard to choke it down.

9. He has started having very thoughtful little prayers where he comments on things like having a delicious dinner and being thankful for his sister.

10. Yesterday while we were driving to church he remarked that "Church is the best place to go."

11. Sometimes he eats things he isn't supposed to (granola bars, fruit snacks). He usually eats them in multiples (3, 4, or 5 at a time) and he always "hides" under the kitchen table while committing these crimes. Usually he leaves the wrappers there for us to discover later if we don't catch him in the act. Also, he always opens them very neatly, using scissors to cut the tops off.

12. He is thankful for the rain because it makes the trees and plants grow, and he reminds us of that often.

13. He is learning to write. It is very fun to see him make letters.

14. Sometimes he still snuggles with me.

15. A few nights ago Mike sang "My daddy is my favorite pal . . ." with him at least 7 times (practicing for Father's Day, you know) before bed. Mike tucked him in and went out and a minute later Jens started to cry. Mike went to check on him and he was crying because he couldn't remember the words to the song and he wanted to sing it again.

June 12th

I am listening to my new favorite cd by Elizabeth and The Catapult. I love NPR. It tells me about all sorts of fun things. And I love itunes, which makes things immediately available.

Well, our big thing this week was obviously our trip to Yosemite, which I already wrote about. Our other big thing was having Uncle Loren stay with us for a couple of days, which I think was very boring for him. We were so tired after camping that on Monday we didn't do much except laundry, and on Tuesday Jens never actually got dressed. Monday night we did go for pizza at the park by the river, which was fun. We live in a very pretty place. Loren departed on Tuesday after another lazy morning. In fact, I don't think Jens got dressed at all on Tuesday. He likes staying in his pajamas when he can.

Don't worry--Sylvie can't really stand up at all. I had to prop her up to get this picture--I wanted the full effect of the overall shorts. Sylvie has been sick since we got back, which is very sad. I took her to the doctor who said it was pink eye, so I have been treating her for that since Monday, but the eye drops don't seem to be helping. She rubs her eyes and face so much that she is sort of pink and puffy and scratched looking, plus she has a terrible rash under her chin and on her arm.

Plus she is teething, which I am sure is uncomfortable. I keep expecting her second tooth to break through any day. All of this is a shame because I wanted to do 6 month pictures with her this week! Fortunately she is still pretty cheerful and sleeping well, although she is fussier than usual and has developed a very loud screech to show her displeasure. We call it "the pterodactyl," a term we borrowed from the Johnsons because it is so descriptive. But I still feel bad for her, cute little infected bug that she is.

Jens has been up to his normal tricks--making mischief and in between being cute. We have been enjoying gorgeous weather, so he has been so happy to play outside this week. Yesterday he came running in to get the bathroom stool which immediately raised my suspicions. He REALLY needed to cut a branch off of our tree, apparently. He is getting dangerous! And why did I think now was a good time to landscape the back yard? I am glad we let that dream go temporarily--I have a feeling if we had done it it would be dug up and chopped to pieces immediately. Last night he developed an alarming cough and runny nose--I am hoping for a miraculous healing today.

Wednesday we got really brave and decided to try the two kids together in the trailer. You all know that this required tremendous faith in Jens, and it was, shockingly, justified. He was so good and such a nice brother. He didn't poke or bother Sylvie at all. Of course, Mike had told him that if he made Sylvie cry he would have to walk home, but I like to think that he was so good just because he is a nice boy. We took the kids to the park and had a nice family night together. Notice Sylvie has moved along to her finger--she alternates between sucking her thumb and her finger, which I hope means she won't ever get overly attached to either and it will be easy for her to drop the habit. Also notice that Sylvie's hair has gotten long enough that we have to style it now--otherwise it hangs in her eyes.

That's all from us for this week.

Boys

Last night Mike noticed a wet place on the floor in Jens's room. Had he been playing with water? Did he have an accident? No. Mike asked Jens what it was and Jens responded cheerfully "Pee." When we asked why he had peed on the floor he answered "I thought it would be funny." ARGH!!

Have I mentioned recently my gratitude to our carpet cleaner? It has definitely earned its keep.

We had a picnic by the river Monday night. The trail down to the water was pretty steep.
Jens said "We have to be careful and go slow because the trail is trippy and fally, right?"

Get out of here, Bear!

or
What a beautiful view!
or
It is raining.
or
Our camping trip to Yosemite.

This weekend we went camping with our friends the Littles and Uncle Loren. We are glad we are friends with the Littles--they like to do fun stuff, which gets us to do fun stuff, too. We made camping reservations in January, which was very intense--Mike was ready at the computer at 6:55am to reserve at 7am as soon as sites became available, and in spite of constant clicking we thought we didn't get a site until we noticed that somehow something had gotten into our shopping cart. Anyway, after months of anticipation, the time finally came. Sadly, the weather forecast was rainy and cold for the whole weekend. But we went anyway.

The drive down was gorgeous but very twisty and turny. Jens was extremely car sick and puked at least 7 times. I hurt my knee and hip lunging into the back seat to help him. But we made it. We saw a baby bear on the way in, really close to the road. We didn't take a picture, but Sophia did!

The drive in is amazing. You drive along this beautiful wooded road, then you go through a really long tunnel and come out of it and:

Cliffs and waterfalls and clouds made for a beautiful entrance into the valley.

Of course once you drop lower in and start to drive towards the village, El Capitan catches your eye. It is kind of hard to miss. Even though it was cold and rainy, there were climbers on the face. They had their tents set up, which is how we were able to spot them. They are nuts, I say.

Loren happened to pull in right behind us as we got to the campground. He spent 9 hours trying to get into the park--all of the passes on the east side closed just as he reached them because of snow. We set up camp to the beats of the drum circle camped next to us, had dinner, then went over and had marshmallows with the Littles.

In contrast to Big Trees, the night was so quiet. Everyone was very considerate, but that didn't help me sleep well. I felt like I was up all night, and I kept worrying about what I would do if a bear tried to eat Sylvie, who kept having stinky carrot farts. Fortunately, no bear was tempted by her. We were up at 7 but stayed hunkered in our tent until almost 8 because it was so cold.

Can you tell we had hot chocolate for breakfast?

Finally we were ready to go hiking. The Littles waited very patiently for us in spite of our slowness. Our first hike was to Vernal Falls, which is on the way to Half Dome.

The hike was pretty up-hill, but the kids were champs all the way up. They were so excited to be out and doing things.

At the top we had lots of snacks and enjoyed the view. The kids chased a squirrel around. Let me just say, we saw some of the fattest, sassiest squirrels ever. They were very well fed!

The hike down was not easy. Jens somehow burned out a lot of energy (hmmm--all that squirrel chasing perhaps?) and was very draggy all the way down. We had to stop a lot and take MANY breaks.

After this stop, I wasn't sure we were going to make it. Then we realized that "Hot Olives" (Hot Tamales) were the key. I gave him one, he ate it while we walked, when he finished it we counted to thirty (while still walking) and then he ate another one. We finally made it to the bottom and went back to our site to rest and have some hot lunch.

Sylvie, who was a champ on the hike, alternately dozing and staring off into space, fell asleep in the tent. Loren did his best, but suddenly all of Jens's energy returned and he was ricochetting off of every tree in our site. Loren got him to sit down for a while, and there were a few long moments of silence (maybe 30 seconds), but that was all we got.

We reconvened with the Littles and rode the shuttle planning to stop at the lodge and hike to Lower Falls. As soon as we got in the shuttle, it started raining. We rode around in the dry warmth, bought a few things at the general store, had hot chocolate, and generally stalled hoping the rain would stop. It didn't. We decided to go back to the site and have dinner, but as we pulled up to the Falls stop, we all looked at each other and simultaneously decided to just get off and run to the Falls, carrying the kids. It was kind of a funny spontaneous moment. We made the right decision! The falls were so amazing and beautiful. Loren found out for us that the Yosemite Falls are the highest falls in North America and the 5th highest in the world. Each adult took a kid piggy back and we jogged our way in.

THEN we took the shuttle back to our camp site and had dinner. The rain continued through dinner and slowed down just in time for us to have a good fire, try making popcorn, and make s'mores. Jens continues to enjoy each component separately, and I enjoyed them all together. If you ask Jens, his favorite part of camping is definitely marshmallows.

Sunday night after the kids were all tucked in, Loren, Mike and I sat out by the fire enjoying the quiet and the warmth. Suddenly, a white unmarked truck pulled up on the the road next to our site, which bordered the woods. Two guys sprang from the cab carrying super bright flash lights and went charging into the woods yelling "Get out of here, bear!" We sat parallyzed, then decided maybe it was a joke. Loren examined the truck and saw that it was definitely government issue, and as the guys ran around in the woods yelling, we realized they were wearing ranger hats. Then another ranger truck came. And another one. And there were all sorts of people running around in the woods yelling. We decided to thoroughly check our campsite for food and put everything in to our bear box. The hoopla continued for maybe 15 minutes, then the rangers got in their trucks and drove away. We were very sad to see them go, but it made for an exciting night. Then we went to bed. We did not get eaten by bears.

We all slept like rocks, but Sylvie woke up at 6:15 because she was under so many blankets that she couldn't roll over, which made her cranky. Sunday was just gorgeous. It was so beautiful out!

We got up and had a leisurely breakfast and enjoyed the morning. Sylvie was our best little camper. She was so easy going and cheerful, even though she felt terrible and wasn't getting any naps. I took her to the doctor yesterday and we are treating her for conjunctivitis. She didn't let it get her down, though.

We broke camp, which was made much easier by being able to throw a lot of stuff into Loren's car. I don't think we ever would have fit all of our stuff back into just our car. Good thing he was there! Then we hiked up to Mirror Lake, which is a bit of a misnomer. It is more of a little pond, but the views of Half Dome are amazing, and the walk up is beautiful, next to Tenaya Creek.

Jens was brave enough to go wading even though the water was so cold. He actually managed to keep his shirt dry, too.

We finished up by going to get lunch at the pizza deck where Jens drove everyone nuts by screaming and spitting and chasing squirrels under other diners' tables and refusing to follow directions. It was time for us to come home. We stopped at Bridal Veil Falls on the way out and hit the road. Both boys took Dramamine for the ride home, and it knocked them both out, so I enjoyed a quiet and very beautiful scenic drive for the first half.

I would like to go back to Yosemite. We didn't get to see everything, and I would like to spend more time at Bridal Veil Falls, sit in the meadow and watch climbers on El Cap, walk to The Happy Isles, and maybe hike up to the Upper Yosemite Falls. Would anyone be interested?