Lego Robotics Camp

Jaxton went to a Lego robotics camp at science center museum. He loved every minute of it. They got a base robot called and EV3 and they added on with Legos to make it look however they wanted. Jackson had one teammates to work with all week.  They named their robot the battle bot.

They got to program different features to their robot. The tournament ring was to have a white ring around the outside of a black circle. So Jaxton and his teammate programmed the robot two cents the color white.if it sensed the color white it would back up and turn around to go a different direction. This would avoid the robot from falling off the tournament ring. They programmed other features such as speed and pressure when it came into contact with something they programmed the amount of force it would use against the opponent.  

At the end of the week they were able to compete to robots at a time. It was a full on tournament. Jackson's robot made it through three brackets of the tournament before another robot beat him on the last two brackets. After the tournament the kids robots got to attack the teacher robot one teacher robot to eight attacking robots.  It was so much fun to watch. It was even more fun to see Jaxton so proud and totally in his element.

Happy Birthday Nathan

Nathan is One Year's Old.  Here are some fun things about Nathan at his 1 Year Mark:

1.  Nathan loves oatmeal mixed with bananas.  He doesn't prefer to be fed with a spoon.  Rather, he prefers to eat a bowl of oatmeal himself.  If I try to feed him, often he will shake his head and wave his arms as he hits the bowl and makes it all go flying all over the place.  Instead, if I give him the bowl and spoon on his tray, he will eat every last bite of oatmeal, some with the spoon, most without.  But that entire bowl will be eaten, minus the handfuls that land in his lap or on his belly or wiped in his hair.  After this adventure he usually has to be stripped and sprayed off in the kitchen sink before getting dressed for the day.  So cute!

2.  Nathan is a climber.  He is a risk taker.  He climbs up on the fireplaces and digs inside the fireplace.  He loves to climb the stairs.  He will look at me, knowingly that I disapprove, and up he will go as fast as he can till I catch him.  I had to lower the crib once and I need to again because he, of all the kids, might be the one to climb out.  

3.  Nathan has a funny raspy voice sometimes.  He will make these raspy sighs that are just so darn cute.  It makes me wonder if he will have a raspy voice for real someday.  He also has a grunt grumble he makes too.  He makes the funniest noises.  His screams are the most piercing loud screams you've ever heard.  The worst is when he does one of his screams in the middle of church.  That would make one turn their head.

4. Nathan has so many little protectors.  Dawson especially is out to protect his little bro.  He will alert me when Nathan is headed up the stairs or if he is climbing somewhere or headed in to play in the potty.  He's like my little Nathan Alarm.  Kaylee loves him to pieces.  She plays with him and he loves her attention.  Jaxton loves to set him up at the piano with him and they play piano together.  It is awfully sweet.  Cooper is always so helpful to him and helps to move him away from danger and set up gates for him to be safe.  

5. Nathan is crawling very fast.  He is so close to walking it will be days before he's doing it.  But for now, we can hand him a toy he is interested in and he will stand there holding the toy with both hands, not realizing he is standing and balancing.  Once he realizes he is standing, he will lose his confidence and squat down to the ground.  All he needs is a little confidence and he will be off!

6. Nathan has a sound he makes a lot. It sounds a lot like "yeahhhhh". It almost sounds like he is saying yeah to something. It is the sweetest sound.  I don't want to ever forget that cute voice. He also can say "mama" and "dada" and he says "bah!" whenever he's talking about Bella the dog.

7. When Nathan goes to sleep at night he is so sweet and usually always predictable. He drinks his milk while I rock him. Then he takes that pacifier and his blanket and he snuggles up in fetal position on his side in his crib. He just gets cozy right when I put him down. And he lets me walk on out and close the door. He is such a good sleeper. I hope he keeps it up!

8. Nathan loves pushing his bike around outside. He loves to push it across the driveway and then will get stuck at the edge and not be able to turn around. So we turn him around and off he goes until he gets stuck on the other side of the driveway.   He loves to be outside and he loves bikes.

9. Nathan loves water. He lives for bathtime! Whenever he has an opportunity to play in a faucet, a sink, a bathtub, or even the dogs water dish, he will find that water and make a splash.  He climbs up to our tub and turns the water on and gets everything wet including himself. The other day he actually climbed into the kids bathtub upstairs and managed to get the water turned on a small trickle. So of course he had to take a nice long messy drink from the water in the tub and in the process got himself soaked. He knows he is not supposed to touch the dogs water dish, so he will look at me and then bolt to the water dish. He will look at me again and put his hand in when he sees me running after him. What a little stinker.  In the pool he has no fear. He sticks his face in the water and laughs. He also makes a funny face when I bob him underwater. But he doesn't mind it at all. If he had his way he would let go of me and just go swim.

10. My Nathan loves to give hugs. Especially in the morning when he wakes up, and we get him out of bed, he just snuggles. He lays his head down on our shoulder and just gives love. It is so sweet. It melts my heart and I find so much Joy in my baby boy.

Happy Birthday Little One!

Nathan's First Birthday

Nathan is One!  I can hardly believe it!!  Our little guy is growing up way too fast.  We celebrated with Melissa and John and Nate's mom & dad in Noblesville at Melissa & John's house.  Madison used her cake decorating skills to make a cake for Nathan that resembled Bella.  He loves Bella and all dogs.  We sang to him and he got to dig into that cake.  He wasn't sure what to do with it.  He dug his fingers into the sticky frosting and the crumbly cake and just started shaking his hands in the air to shake off all the goo.  So it went flying everywhere!  Some did get into his mouth, but more than eating it, he was interested in the texture, the feel, and they way he could shake it all over the place.  Cute boy!  He got a little kiddie pool from us and some new shoes to start walking around in.  Grandma got him a standing toy with gears that spin.  He will love it.  Happy Birthday Little Nathan!

Cousin Jared

Our nephew Jared just returned from his mission in Russia at the end of June.  He decided he wanted to come work for Simplx.  So he has been staying with us and will stay till he leaves for BYU at the end of August.  It has been so much fun having him.  He still characterizes so many attributes of a missionary, that it is so much like having a missionary in our home!  He is on fire spiritually.  He is so mature, responsible, and determined and goal oriented.  It is such a great example for my kids to watch.  The kids have all loved having him in our house.  They ask for him when he is not home, and they are playing with him every moment they can when he is home.  He is a hard worker at work and willing to work hard.  He is willing to serve others and wants to spend time with the missionaries a lot.  We have really enjoyed having him in our home.  

Mesa, Arizona

We drove about 11 hours to stay with Nick and Carissa in Arizona.  The kids got to know their Arizona cousins , Kipton and Aria and they had a lot of fun.  The boys would ride each other around in these toy tractors all around the house, and Kaylee enjoyed Arias little girl toys and her barbies.  We went to Organ Stop Pizza for dinner, where an amazing organist played songs which resonated with drums and whistles through the whole building.  She would take requests and could pull off any song!  It was amazing talent and so fun for the kids to watch.  

The next morning we went to Carissa's parents house to swim in the Arizona heat.  That was tons of fun.  All the kids enjoyed swimming.  The kids spent the afternoon napping and playing together.  We went to dinner that night and Nate & Nick went to the movies.  The kids slept in Kipton's room and on the couches.  The two little boys slept in our room downstairs.  We have done FaceTime with Kipton and Aria since, and the kids hopefully will be able to remember each other and continue their bond as cousins being long distance.  The next morning we got up before the rest of the house was awake and set off to the airport to head home.  Home sweet home.  What a wonderful fun filled trip.  But we are just a little impartial to our own home in good old Indiana.  

Good Old Provo

Provo holds a very dear spot in Nate & my hearts.  This is where we met, this is where we dated, this is where our lives began.  This is where I moved away from home for the first time to.  This is where I really grew up into the person I decided to be.  Provo means so much to me and to Nate.  We went to Provo several times because we just couldn't stay away.  

We took Jaxton & Cooper to hike the Y on the mountain.  They were very excited about this.  It's been years since Nate and I had done it.  Jaxton purposefully packed his hiking backpack to take up the Y mountain.  It was a steep trail, and the kids got tired, but they kept going.  We totally missed the trail going to the bottom of the Y, and we went all the way up to the tip top of the Y.  We sat up there for a few minutes looking out at the valley.  It was beautiful.  We got up there before the sun came shining over the mountain, so we hiked in the shade all the way up and most of the way down.  What an accomplishment.  

We also took the kids to the CougarEat of course just for memories sake and to show the kids where they would be eating lunch someday when they came here for college.  We got everyone some BYU shirts and a sticker for our car to sport our favorite college.  

Nate and I drove around provo on memory lane, showing the kids were we used to live, we took them around campus showing them the business building, the math building, the english building, and the library where he and I had our first class together.  Nate and I also stopped at Mama Chu's Mexican restaurant, our own favorite place in Orem to eat.  The same owner and the same waitresses were still there serving us.  The owner even remembered us!  That was pretty awesome!  

Cassidy, our niece was moving into her apartment in Provo, so we stopped to see her new place and spent some time with her as she was getting accustomed to her new surroundings.  We love Provo.  Such a fun place!

Salt Lake Valley

When we finally arrived in Salt Lake City, we were thrilled.  The drive had been manageable.  My family was there to greet us.  We were glad to be done traveling for a while.  The kids immediately picked up right where they left off with their cousins, Amanda, Dillon, Spencer, & Bella.  It was fun to get to know the younger cousins again, who have grown up 2 years from when we last saw them.  Amanda is 9, Dillon is 8, Spencer is almost 5, and Bella is 3.  My mom's basement has been converted into a preschool, so it was decked out with activities for the kids to enjoy every moment we were there.  I enjoyed spending time with my parents, and my sisters too.  

We had a barbecue the first night.  Marcos, Melissa's husband did a chilean barbecue, the same we remember from when we used to live in Utah.  The kids played and played and played.  Everything from soccer, to sprinklers, to magnets, to buildings, to dress up, and everything in between.  We spent some time at the park with them and spent time at Melissa's new home just a few minutes up the road from my mom & dad's house.  Becky came also to visit, and it was so good to catch up with her.  She is doing so well, and seems so happy, it is so great to see her with confidence in her eyes.  She is so talented at her work and is doing such great service to the young girls that she leads and teaches.  She is doing so much good in the world with her efforts.  

We spent time with Lindsay, my old roommate, at Legacy Park in Salt Lake City.  Lindsay and her family recently moved back to Kaysville, UT while her husband Kris is going to nurse anesthetist school.  She has 2 darling daughters and a little 2 year old boy.  

We also spent time with the Glausers, Melissa & Steve.  They have 4 kids now, and it is so fun to catch up with them.  We always enjoyed spending time with them and could talk about all kinds of things we had in common.  

We also spent time with Johnny and Jamie and their 2 little blond boys in Cedar Hills across the street from our old house.  Johnny, Nate's best friend, hasn't changed much, and the two of them got to catch up quite a bit.  

One morning we went to temple square to see the temple and eat at the lion house.  We took the kids to the Church Office Building where we knew President Monson works.  We walked around the temple and in the visitors center.  There is such a neat spirit there.  The kids are 2 years older than when we were here last time, so they could understand more and enjoy the experience more.  

Salt Lake City is such a neat place.  We will never tire of visiting there.  So much to see and do, so many memories, and family of course.  

Utah cousins

St. George

We arrived in St. George after a nice 7 hour drive.  The red rocks and cliffs and mountains appeared quickly as we approached St. George from the flat desert of Arizona.  It was magnificent.  The red rocks and cliffs and caves everywhere were such amazing sights of nature.  We stayed in a condo on the west side of the city where the kids got to swim and play outside. The condo had a room with 2 sets of bunk beds and the kids each got their own.  That was pretty fun.  Little Nathan slept in a pack n play in our big closet.  We got our own groceries to feed us breakfast lunch, and even dinner.  We had a barbecue the second night out on our large deck that overlooked the park and pool.  It really was super fun staying there. 

In St. George we visited a few places that are rich with our own ancestry.  My moms grandmas house is still standing on the corner of 2 roads.  My mom remembers staying there as a child and playing in the water ditches along the road.  

The Daughters of the Utah Pioneers museum had a room that held the tools of one of our relatives, and the photos of 3 or 4 of them hung on the walls.  Brigham Young's winter home had an office outside of his home where our ancestor, James Godsen Bleak, was his office assistant.  He had been unable to work in the fields because of his frostbitten toes, and instead was hired by Brigham Young to work the finances of the church in that office.  His picture hangs in that office building on the wall.  I remember taking a picture of me and my sisters underneath that picture.  Someday it will mean just as much to my children as it does to me. 

Before we left St. George we visited the caves.  That was really really fun.  A simple "hiking" experience for the kids.  The red rock caves were molds of nature that we could climb up on top, climb under and inside.  The kids loved all of it.  Definitely a sight to see.  The nature of that city is just incredible, the lines in the rock cliffs created after billions of years of water levels rising and falling.  Evidence of the earth's creation right before our eyes.