Sweet Abigail....

Many times on Sundays I arrive at church later than the rest of the family because I've let Ben finish out his nap. This Sunday didn't seem to be any different. Ben went down at 11 (church starts at 1) so by noon, I was deep in getting the girls ready for church. I was just getting lunch on the table when Ben woke up more than an hour early. Needless to say, I just finished getting everyone else ready and had Joel take everyone to church and leave me to try to get ready as fast as possible and meet them there.
Victoria, our neighbor and friend, was sitting behind Joel and the kids during Sacrament. She leaned forward and asked Abigail where I was. Abigail responded, "She's still at home getting prettier."
Thanks Abigail.

Visit to Estes Park during Heritage Days

Saturday, we were going to make our first trip up to Rocky Mountain National Park. Well, we didn't quite make it. Though, you'll see the mountains in the background of some of these pictures. We decided to stop in Estes Park and stayed there. The lake was a beautiful, windy site. A goose lingered close and both girls were interested. I got a few pics of the girls and Ben huddling together at the lake. 

Below you'll see Collette stalking the goose.

Everyone (with Dad as photographer) stopped to take some pictures by a creek (Big Thompson River? - more like a creek to me).  I love some of the expressions Ben is giving below. 

Just before dinner, the kids stopped off at a petting zoo. 

My two favorite You Tube Videos

Okay~ I just want to share my love for these two videos. If anyone else gets a laugh out of these like do, it was worth putting them up. First we have my absolute favorite right now. I watch this thing way too much. It reminds me a lot of the city I grew up in. Yes, there are girls JUST like this that I went to high school with. Please enjoy the show:



Next we have the video that was brought to my attention by my friend Alisa. As soon as I saw this, I called my sister and made her watch it. For those who haven't enjoyed this video on Alisa's blog, please enjoy it here:

An afternoon at the movies

I took the kids to see the new 3-D movie Fly Me to the Moon. The kids enjoyed it and I semi enjoyed following Ben around the theater. I wouldn't normally even put these pictures in here but I have to point out and make sure everyone else laughs at Abigail in these pictures. Do you notice anything about her pose? She is literally posing the same in all, on purpose. She never even takes a bite of that popcorn she keeps pretending to put in her mouth....

Boulder Reservoir

Yesterday we went to the reservoir. We did not have a very summer like weekend so as soon as it started to warm back up~ we were outside, in the water. Here are some shots of the kids and their friends playing at the "beach"

He was so fun to clean up after this~



Here's Collette and her friend Braia


Abigail and her friend Zeke~


Abigail trying to warm up after a long stay in the water~

Headley's visit

Joel's parents came to visit and I thought I'd just post some of the highlights of their trip out here. We've had a great time and we LOVE when people come to visit (Tammy~we're ready for ya!!). Anyone who's interested should make a trip out!! Thanks Steve and Vicki for coming!

We took them hiking~


They took us to Costco where Ben had a great time~


We went to downtown Boulder to play around in the water~


And to climb on the rocks~


Took us to the waterslides~


And the amusement park~


They took the girls to gymnamstics~



And to Chuck E Cheese~


Oh Yeah~ they also turned my daughter into a playboy model. Wait....that's just Abigail being herself. Nevermind!



Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for a great time! We love you!!!

Good hygiene or bad parenting? You decide...

So this is Ben's new and favorite thing to do:







So I don't really stop him~ that's why it could be more than good hygiene. If he's doing this and I pull him away so he doesn't fall off~ he throws a huge tantrum. So often I just leave him on the step stool while I'm in the next room and so far so good. So for now~ it's just clean teeth!! Funny guy. He just tries so hard to do whatever the girls are doing.

Crazy kids

I've been meaning to post for awhile now about the crazy things my kids do in their every day lives. Nothing spectacular but things that make me laugh and, of course, take a picture.

Ben decided to crawl into the fridge one day.




Abigail decided to pose, too:



Collette decided to show off her funny side with these:





And just because he gets spoiled (or neglected, whichever you prefer) b/c he's the third kid, Ben has already had popsicles. And loves them as you can see!





Lastly, Abigail decided she wanted to play photographer for awhile. Some of you may know of her obsession with her piglet. These were some of the funny pictures I found when we put the camera into the computer~ these may end up being funny only to family and close friends. For the rest~ humor me.

Our hike in Boulder

Last night we decided to go on an evening hike in Boulder. It's a nice time to go because it's so hot during the day and it was beautiful last night here. The girls loved hiking around and Ben loved the ride!



Here are the girls getting ready to start. They were seriously excited about this. You can tell~ they even hugged for the picture.


Nothing special. Just stopped for a picture on the bridge.


I was so proud of the girls for climbing up this to take a picture. It was Abigail's idea and I didn't think Collette would be on board at all....but she was. Scared as all get out, but she did it!


Right before we left we went down by the water so they could throw rocks in. They had been asking to do that the whole hike. Funny how throwing rocks is so entertaining for kids.
On our way out of Boulder Creek Canyon we saw these deer just hanging out on the side of the road. The kids thought it was cool for like 10 seconds. I was sure we were going to witness the beginnings of a dead rotting deer carcass but they seemed comfortable with the cars whizzing all around them. Good for them. And for us.

Computer literacy - what does it mean?

I think Abigail is well on her way to computer literacy. Why? Because she called the computer 'stupid.'

Some background:

I've been really happy to let my kids play with the computer recently. Both Collette and Abigail have improved their ability to, not just recognize letters, but also spell. They've been mostly using flash games on PBS Kids, especially, Super Why!

We're quite impressed with Collette's improved skills. Not only do they know how to navigate the games, but they can follow the blue "OK" menu options to get stuff printed. We have lots of printouts hanging up on the fridge.

Back to calling the game 'stupid.'

Abigail couldn't get to the next step in the game. I thought maybe she lost window focus or accidentally opened another program from the dock (OS X). Nope - that wasn't the problem. It was the beach ball of death. The application wasn't responding. Just like so many adults on computers, Abigail thought it was stupid the program was giving the 'Application Not Responding' message.

It's sad that we have to explain the colorful spin wheel means the computer is 'thinking' and she should wait or just start over.

With the kids at the office

They love playing with all the toys around here. I went without mom, and they wanted her to see how much fun they're having :-)

Video Chat

I'm in SF, and the family is in Boulder.

And I had a great conversation with the family last night. We used the video iChat. Very nice to be able to see the family and have the see me back, even though we're so far away from each other.

Benjamin was blowing kisses for the first time (hand to mouth + smooch sounds). It's great. I would have missed that with just a phone call. And I don't think he would have recognized my voice anyway.

"I love technology"

Benjamin's Birthday

We had a small party for Benjamin's 1st birthday. Check out the slideshow below with Ben eating cake and opening a few of the presents he received.

Benjamin update - nothing out of the ordinary

Just wanted to let you all know that we've got results from the pathologist regarding the biopsies taken on Friday.

No results (a.k.a. all samples appear normal) - so, no news. On the other hand, Ben is eating well and gaining weight again, and it may not be that important anyway.

Some background: 

For months our pediatrician was convinced Ben was thin because he was just a kid that got sick a lot. She (and we) assumed once he stopped getting sick, he would gain weight. At one point, Ben got so thin, the doctor wanted to make sure we didn't 'miss' anything (anatomy, genetics, immunology, etc...). That's why we've been doing all these tests. After all this, it seems like the original assumption is true - Ben doesn't have 'deeper' problems. All sicknesses have been just a bunch of bad luck. We may pursue other tests, but if Ben keeps putting on the pounds, there's not much to get worried about. Hooray!

We're very grateful to everyone that keeps Ben in their thoughts and prayers. It has been difficult, and all your loving support helps - thank you.

Ben is up and better

Just a couple of pictures - Benjamin is awake and seems to be in a better mood. He is drinking apple juice and playing with a toy the nurse gave him.

Also he has an ET-like red finger that fascinates him and Laura.