Lake Powell Week #3

Ah, Lake Powell. The water and weather are so warm this time of year. I love it! Going as a single mom was interesting... not too bad. Luckily my family is really helpful! It was somewhat quiet since we only had 3 kids there, ages 3 and under. It just worked out perfectly that my parents were going to Powell the week after Bethi's wedding. I have so many pictures (thanks for the dvd, Jare) but here are a FEW.

Here's my bro, Jared, carving it up on the ski. He was rippin' back and forth.

Monday before we went, Jare, Amanda, and I went to Oak Creek to pick blackberries and hike around. It was lovely. The water was brown from recent rain, and FREEZING, but we had fun. We found lots of ripening blackberries and a few ripe ones. It was fun. We stopped at Midgley Bridge (sp?) and hiked down a bit to this natural water slide. Like I said, the water was freezing. Jared was brave, then convinced Amanda and I to go for it. The creepy part was all the big fish trying to swim up the stream. They'd hit our legs and we'd squeal (well, not Jare). It was fun! We made it back by about 2, loaded what was left to load, and headed for the Lake. 

We were going to have a leisurely dinner and sleep in the slip, but it ended, of course, in yet another adventure. Forgotten ski boat keys, multiple trips to Wal-mart, only half the stuff to make dinner on the houseboat, the other half and the kids beds with the ski boat. It ended when dad's boat storage friend jimmy-rigged our boat to get it to start. We put the kids down at 10:30 and ate at 11pm. Late night. 

Everything else went perfectly... nearly. One wave runner had a dead battery, but we ended up on a gorgeous beach with no pokeys and plenty of space for the kids to swim and play. The water in our cove was calm and it was pretty private. Thanks, mom and dad, for a fantastic trip!

Jare and Manda before hiking down

Amanda and I testing the water

Alright, Jare, I'll go for it!

Notice Amanda's scream

My brothers helped Jake catch the hugest catfish in the Lake! Pierced his eyeball.

Horse balls on the beach. That's what we call it, anyhow.

We hiked to this hole in the rock. It was really fun and amazing what the water's done to the rock. This is the back side. 

My brothers alternated doing pull ups whenever they got a chance. I did two half-pull ups. Doesn't that equal a whole? Can YOU do a pull-up?

Alisa loved to be drenched by this squirt bottle.

Alisa and Lisa on the Sea Wasp--she was really chill about it. 

Tarah and Josh picked up a bow and arrows for Jake. Thanks, guys!

The bow and arrows for Jake came after Jake saw the mighty hunter, Josh, practicing his skills.

Here's the front view of the hole in the rock. We missed you, Scott!

Jared sprinted to get this family picture to work. Thanks, Jare!

I actually caught a little air this time--getting bolder by the year!

Josh and Jake driving the boat.

Nudist at bath time. If I kept Jake from taking a nap, he was down and out by 7pm. Let me just insert here I had two lovely POOP incidents. First, mom put Alisa down for a nap with just a diaper on. Please refer to the BYU nude sleeping pictures from a month ago as to why this could be, and was, bad. 

She was still whining 15 min. later. I went down and saw a wet diaper outside the pack'n play. First bad sign. She had poop smeared from her chin to her toes and poop in both fists. Sick! I had to scrub her down with soap and fine sand as far from the houseboat as I could. SICK. 

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for a great trip! This is a view from the top of a hill across from our camp. We were way back in this channel.

Jake, Me, Josh. Jake took a bad fall last time and was hesitant to ride again. 

Here's Jake's dive (I did not teach him to do this, he did it himself. Alisa LOVED the sand. She dug like a dog, wallowed like a pig, and created her own slide down the sand. GREAT BEACH.

The Wedding--Lake Powell to follow

We had a whirlwind weekend as we drove 8 hours to Scott's sister's wedding. Bethi looked lovely and Derek looked so happy! It was a beautiful day. We blew into Snowflake in time to change at the hotel and book it to the dinner, which was fun. Bethi kept up the tradition and sang a song for Derek. So sweet! (You sounded great, by the way!) 

The next day was the wedding in the Snowflake Temple. There was a little panic as the grandparents got lost, but I don't think the happy couple even noticed! It was beautiful and I was so grateful to be a part of it! 

Here we are outside the temple. It was uncharacteristically calm weather. No wind! Hooray! 

Scott and his sisters: Kelsi, Bethi, and Jenni--what a beautiful family!

Jake and Alisa entertained themselves by re-doing the landscape. Definitely too many rocks right here. They had to dig them up and throw them.

After the wedding and pictures, I was blessed to be able to see my sweet and wonderful Grandma and Grandpa Hunt, along with my aunt and uncle. It was a great visit. I miss living closer to them! I have such great memories with them and love them so much!

We planned outdoor pictures before the reception, but true to the monsoon season in Flagstaff, it poured all afternoon and evening! Les saved the day by moving the pictures inside the new fancy hotel built for the university. Great idea! Here's Jenni (caught off guard), Les, Kelsi (with dazzling smile) and Jenn the photographer who is seriously so talented! I'm sure the pictures will be amazing! Wish I could rewind and bring her to my wedding! Check out her other work here.

Bethi and Derek--so in love. Notice the amazing bouquets. Bethi's taken a bunch of floral design classes and knew exactly what she wanted. They're gorgeous!

Scott and I. Scott's mom gave us all a treat--we got our hair done for the reception. I don't think I've ever had my hair done professionally. It was a lot of fun and I picked up some good pointers, too! Much better than the result of my previous boredom! (I did fix that hanger strap thingy--hate those!)

What a doll! Good thing that dress was a rental! It was filthy by the end of the night!

A lovely view on the way to Scott's house. Isn't my future hometown (and past hometown) gorgeous?! This was just out the car window.

Grammy and Papa to the rescue! I was waiting all night for my parents to show so I could get relief from my kids-- well, mostly from Alisa! She was wiggly all night, and I was wearing these really cute but HIGH heels. Not the best combo. Thanks, mom and dad, for taking the kids home for a slumber party with you! What a relief not to worry about them, and to sleep in until 8 am the next day!

Jake with Derek's niece and nephew: Emma and Russell. Cuties!

Jenni, looking smashing, and Alisa. Thanks for feeding her! 

Isn't that a lovely cake? 100% edible. Each layer was a different flavor (almond, molten chocolate, cheesecake, etc.) The top was orange chocolate and we really had to control ourselves not to dig into it after the reception. It sounded divine!

Jake spent all night sliding on his knees on this dance floor. At the end of the night, we found him putting the moves on this little girl. How sweet is this? He would stand up, fight with the two other little boys (pretend sword fighting, of course!) then hurry back to her side and put his arm around her. Later he told my mom and dad that he was slaying the dragon and coming back to rescue the princess. He said that's what I do. Slay the dragon and rescue the princess. He also said, "Grandma, I love Naomi. I told her that I love her because I love her." What a sweetie!

On a side note, Jake has also been saying, very humbly and apologetically, "I'm so, so sorry, mom! I am really so sorry!" It's pretty funny! Last picture is the set up of the reception hall. It was perfect. 

For the Locals on Proposition 8

Support for Proposition 8!!!

Here is some information for anyone in this area who wants to help support Proposition 8. In order to get the word out for the support of traditional marriage as an amendment to the Constitution, people in the community are going to registered voters houses and distributing information on the proposition. This will be going on 8/16, 8/23, and 9/6. Pass the word along! Hope to see you there. Let me know if you have any questions. You can also visit protectmarriage.com for more information.

Informing Nieghbors in Support of Marriage
8:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Those in support of Propostion 8 are asked to meet at 8:30 A.M. at Community Park at the corner of Church and Pennsylvania Avenues (-- off San Bernardino Avenue, next to Clement Middle School) in Redlands. Each volunteer should be at least 18 years old and dressed casually. Each will be fully trained then given a list of streets and households to contact. The volunteers are then to return their materials to the park by 12:00 noon. If you can not meet that early or work that long, it can be adjusted to your schedule. You only need to help for as many Saturdays as you are willing and able. 

To find out more about the views and official statements from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, click here. This takes you to a news article about the issue, the Proposition, and a document entitled "The Divine Institution of Marriage." It discusses the repercussions of recognizing same-sex marriage with regards to religious freedom and society in general. VERY informative. Here is a link to "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" from the leaders of the LDS Church in 1995.

Classic Jake

We were talking about being helpful and kind in our families during Family Home Evening. We can be like Jesus, etc. and of course, Jake 

J: Can I live with Jesus?

Me: Yes, someday we can live with Jesus. That's why we have to be nice and helpful and be like Jesus now.

J: But does Jesus live in the clouds?

Me: He lives in heaven. We can't see him, but we know he's there.

J: But when can I live with Jesus? Today?

Me: No, when we die.

J: Can I die now?

Me: No, we are sooo lucky we get to live together as families right now. Then someday when we die, we can live together with Jesus. 

Hopefully I convinced him he doesn't want to die now! :) After all, he still has to marry Jonas...

It's been awhile... I know. And nothing to report. Here's what we've been up to...

We play cars on the too-short boards from Jake's bed. We play all day, usually, with an occasional break to go swimming. Jake loves the track and I am happy he rediscovered his cars at last. And no, he is never dressed in more than his undies. If he gets a drip of water on his shirt, the clothes come off. It's probably because it's hot and I am too cheap to run the wall AC units all the time.

I was bored and decided to try an up-do before bed one night. Yes, it was one of those nights when the hubby was at lab until midnight. Like I said, I was bored. So here's a sloppy Cinderella bun. I was surprised it was so easy to do. 
Today the kids are trying my patience. We were up late because Scott and Mark did their musical presentation as a fireside last night (which went well and I wish more people came!) so they are whiners today. Big time. I heart 7 pm bedtime.

Sorry for the lack of pictures. How 'bout a conversation instead?

Me: Jakey, are you getting married someday? (after talking about Scott's sister getting married)

J: Yep. I'm gonna marry Jonas!

Me: Jonas! You can't marry Jonas! He's a boy. You have to marry a girl. Are there any girls you want to marry?

J: Yep! How 'bout Jonas?

Me: A girl, Jake! Who are some girls you could marry?

J: (whining)But I want to marry Jonas!

Oh, Jonas. How Jake LOVES you!

Jake the Baby-sitter

This morning Jake stumbled in my room at 5:50 am. I was going running at 6:30 but was sad to be awakened so early. I got ready to run, got him milk, then heard Alisa awake, too! I got her milk, got them both some dry cereal, put on a video of Teletubbies from the library (scary, I know, but Jake really wanted it). I left at 6:30, giving them instructions not to wake dad up.

When I got back, Scott was barely up. My kids totally let him sleep! The house wasn't even trashed! I noticed Alisa was missing her shirt and Jake was in his undies. Here's our conversation:

Me: Where did Alisa's shirt go?

J: I taked it off! We are both nakie! (followed by hysterical laughter and Jake jumping off the couch)

Scott: Jake, you're a great baby sitter! Maybe you should babysit more often.