Monkeys and Blossoms

These two monkeys are really keeping us on our toes lately.  After spending a day cleaning up flour from someone stabbing it with a pencil, erasing pencil off the walls, breaking up fights and hugging them when they fall out of the trees, it's nice to take a moment and enjoy the beautiful blossoms coming out all around us.  Dad asked me to put on a few pictures of the flowers as they appear, so here's a start.  The cherry blossom trees just opened up this week, and our greenery in the front patio has little purple flowers peeking out from under the leaves.  It's a real breath of fresh air in March when even the plants are ready for spring. The landscapers were even mowing the grass this morning!   

Seeing Double

For three weeks of every year we have two boys who are the same age.  This year they happen to be three.  What a crazy time!  For anyone who has twins, I feel your pain.  It seems the minute Spencer turned three he became three times as stubborn, three times as cranky and a whole lot more independent.  We've been dealing with this with Mac for a year now, and we thought we had it figured out.  But Spencer has spent the year watching and waiting - and he can lay it on pretty thick.  Malcolm, on the other hand, has let Spencer fill that role and has reverted to wanting help with everything.  He apparently can no longer get dressed on his own, his legs no longer work and he can't manage to lay down in bed and go to sleep alone anymore.  And this was our best sleeper!  We, of course, will ride it out and see if things get any different once Malcolm turns four on the 19th.  Some people say change is gradual with age.  I don't know.  This time feels like we were hit by a truck and it just keeps going!  We love them though.  All I can wonder about is what it will be like when they are teenagers....HELP!

Dan's Seven on Sunday

Dan is this week's guest writer.  Let's see what he found good in this week...

1. Having two three year olds at once.  It gives me something to look forward to for age four knowing that three will end.  Of course, one day they will be two fifteen year olds...
2. I can ride my bike in February.  (motor and pedal).
3. Grateful that children forgive easily and are resilient.
4. The canadian women honored our canadian pastime by kicking american butt.
5. Grateful for the olympic hockey tournament format.  It's nice to be able to lose a game and still take home the gold.
6. I'm grateful I haven't been admitted yet due to my stress levels with school.
7. Parents who drive their children to 6 am hockey practice so they can grow up to score game-winning goals in overtime in the olympics.  (Heck yeah!)

Date with Stanley

Here's a photo that Dan is very proud of.  He considers it the "best day of his whole life".  He was able to visit the Canada Exhibit downtown in the Olympic hooplah and he thinks he's figured it out - this is the only way the Canucks could get the cup here.  LOL. 

He and his clients visited all the festivities today and had a fab time.  I think he will take the older two down on Friday so they can have a taste of all the fun.  It is almost over, but what a good time it turned out to be. 

"I BELIEVE"

Seven Again

Wow, this week went fast.  I can hardly believe it's time again for Seven on Sunday.  I have decided to invite a guest author for this week.  This is Madison's seven things that are great:

1. Receiving a beautiful, white, cross-stitched pillow from Grandma Cooper to commemorate my baptism day.

2. Receiving a fabulous package from Grandma Shideler with a pretty box of stationary supplies so I can write all my family and friends.
3. Watching the Olympics
4. Playing with my friends outside in the almost summer weather.
5. Watching Canada win three gold medals.
6. Dad brought my bike back from Alberta.  I love it.  I got up and dressed and out the door by 8:30 on Saturday to get a head start on riding and I was out til 4!
7. Celebrating the 100th day of school. 

Thanks Madi!  Those were awesome things to be grateful for.  Dan went to Alberta last weekend to pick up the van and had the chance to visit with family. 

It's amazing how big these girls are getting!  I think I've only really seen Abbey as a baby, so it's fun to see her growing up.

This was the scene Dan arrived in and left from.  It's hard to wrap my mind around the fact that it was like that over the mountains, while here it has been 14 degrees and sunny.  I do miss it though.  My body still thinks we haven't had winter and is waiting for it to come.  I miss the frosty trees and snowy days and bright sunshine in the cold.  I know everyone in Alberta thinks that's crazy, but there's something to be said for four distinct seasons. 

Hope all is well with everyone.

Seven on Sunday - or Fourteen

Hey all.  Here it goes for this week.  Of course, Inalee reminded me that I did not do them last week, due to my cold and my parents being around and I just kinda forgot.  If I can get to 14 then I will as penance LOL. 

1. Our hometeacher was willing to drive Dan to the airport anytime, and did on Saturday afternoon.
2. Dan flew out to get the van, and is now approaching Revelstoke.  Halfway home.  Now we can try to avoid the Royal Rumble in the back seat of the car that occurs every Sunday on the way home from church.
3. Dan is coming home.
4. The kids were pretty well behaved at church today which made flying solo a lot easier.  Sorry mom and dad, it was about polar opposite from last week.
5. I worked two days this week.
6. Our neighbor Katie was willing to come help us out with the kids both days.
7. Dan has a schoolmate, who is actually a Lowrie from southern alberta, who is only taking classes on Fridays and otherwise distance, who has offered to be available to babysit whenever we need her through the week in order to free up some different temp days so I can get more work and keep my license.
8. Madi and Clay got to go play at the Keeler's house on Friday, which was a pro-d day.  They were so excited!
9. Malcolm and Spencer were invited to a birthday party last night for the other sunbeam in the ward.  It was at a gymnastics club.  Madi and Clay were happy because with Dan out of town, Kieran's mom said they could attend too.
10. Spring was in the air today.  I know the groundhog says 6 more weeks, but it was a little taste of what's coming.  The sun was warmer, the breeze had no bite to it, the smell of flowers was all around and the songbirds were singing.  What a great Sunday afternoon!
11. We watched the opening ceremonies of the Olympics together and really enjoyed it.  What a good show!  It took the edge off of the negativity swirling around the event here.
12. My relief society class on long distance grandparenting went surprisingly well.  I felt a little unprepared, but the ladies kicked in with some great ideas and more of them were internet literate than I had expected.  We had a good discussion and it inspired me to try harder to keep those far away connections.
13. Inalee called this week for our unplanned-but-about-every-two-weeks-half-day talk.  We talk too long and laugh a lot, but it always make me feel better.
14. I managed to find fourteen things, and I think I could even keep going.  Life is good, even with the rough patches.  I was looking at Great great grandma's journal this week and was struck again by the simple profoundness of the statement, "Sunshine After Rain".  This afternoon was a perfect example of that - bright sunshine set against stormy rainclouds in the distance.  Things always turn out for the best.

the olympic torch

We got to watch the olympic torch pass by our house this morning.  We all got up at 6:30 to walk down the hill to the main road and see the runners exchange the flame and take it away.  It looks pretty neat in the dark.  The kids thought it was cool, but they got to see a real torch up close at school yesterday.  Not too much longer til the opening ceremonies.  A fun time to be here!

Madi and Clay waiting for the runner to come...

...and there he goes!

Dan got to see the relay again at work, and he even had the chance to see the Young Women running from our ward!  Pretty exciting.  Happy Thursday!