Lessons learned

Many people during the summer are grateful for a change in routine.  Teachers are grateful to be freed from their classrooms and the task-master of the clock.  Parents are happy not to have stressful and chaotic mornings on a daily basis.  Children are happy to not have homework.  Our little family is a little.  We try to keep to the same basic schedule year round (our boys do much better with routine and stability) and encourage learning moments even during the summer.  As the boys and I were reviewing some of the things we have learned this summer, we thought we would share a few of them with you:

Fire makes everything better.  This cake was deemed boring at the store and became a "flaming" success later at home

Animals are cute. Deer especially seem to have something endearing about them.  Moose, on the other hand, are just different. Cute will never be an appropriate adjective for them, even when they are still in their infancy

This summer has provided ample opportunities to learn different scientific principles.  First- reproductive biology:

What would the hypothetical offspring of THE BLOB and a SMURF look like?  Here was our answer

I suppose you can imagine I am feeling pretty big right now :-)

Second- physics: When there is a positive change in direction and acceleration of an object and  then it encounters a static mass of liquid,the said liquid will be dispersed in direct ration to the mass and speed on the object.  In simple english, if you crash into water going fast, be prepared to get wet!

Third-Mendelian Genetics: This monk got it right.  Besides looking so much like their father, the boys have inherited so many of his traits.  Even some of the smile inducing ones

Bryant and I have learned (or relearned) that apparently baths are much more fun when there is more than one person in the tub

And then the world is shrinking.  When Gordon and Marba came to visit this summer we introduced them to the boys "Canadian Grandparents, Cyd and Gwen.  We love them to death.  Of course, in little time, the two sets of grandparents realized that they shared a lot in common. 

These girls are some of Cyd and Gwen's grandchildren.  Our boys are enamored with them and refer to them as the sister girlfriends.  I think we might have a bit of a problem...

Driving lessons here in Canada can begin quite early in life.  Bryant seemed all for it as our boys received driving lessons for automobiles, airplanes and motor boats this summer.

Sometimes it's tricky having two drivers

Nathaniel was intensely focused on driving... or ignoring the squished "backseat" driver

William was convinced he was using his "mind magic" to make it go faster

After proving they had learned how to drive, Bryant thought they were ready for the real thing.  I don't know if I was, but it sure was fun!

Here is our merry band of Pirates.  Don't they look fierce?

And our very own Captain Jack. (he's a little loco, too)

The boys have also been interested in mastering the technology in our house.  Sometimes it is a little scary just how comfortable the older boys feel on the computer.  Nathaniel, however, still needed to master the basics, and has done so with flair.

He's so proud of himself

Ethan is also proving he is picking up kung fu skills rather quickly.  He loves to demonstrate that he cannot be stopped... even in the car on the way to church

Generally the faces we see on Sundays unfortunately look more like this:

I am SOOOO sad

Don't you dare make me laugh , Dad

Now I am sad and MAD.  You guys are so mean!!!!!

William, besides instructing us in fine dramatic techniques during sacrament has also taught us a beautiful lesson this summer:

Even big boys ready for kindergarten still love and want kisses from Dad

The summer has also taught us that our children have some amazing secret talents.  One of them is the art of the photobomb.. They are quite good at it.

While spending time in Vancouver we still managed to learn a few things.

1- if a forest smells stinky, then it must be a boy forest.  

2- totem poles are AWESOME!

3- Canada is definitely different than Arizona

I also realized this summer that we really are starting to become acclimatized to living here.  Finally I am starting to appreciate Canadian humor

\

This was in a window of a house in the one of the flooded areas of the city.  Even in chaos Canadians have a good
sense of humor

Bryant learned about the "sleeping sickness" that frequently attacks Dads:

I, on the other hand, am just plain tired all the time.

I guess as you can see we have learned a lot these last few months.  Perhaps Bryant and I have learned the most.   We have learned, and relearned, just how much we love our boys.

There is no doubt we think they are pretty amazing and are beyond special to us.  Collectively they take our breath away -sometimes literally :-)

Each one is unique and their potential astounds us.

 And there is no doubt, none what so ever, that our little GIRL will teach us as much and steal our heart as completely as her brothers.

a daughter ;-) How much we have to learn

Summer in review

 How is is possible that it is the middle of August already? It feels like the time since April has just flown by so fast that we've barely even had time to breathe.  Here's what we have been up to the last 4 months:
          -  In April we had some legal issues with our landlord and the town home/condo where we were living. So we had to quickly find a new place to live.  3 scary and tense weeks later we found a house to rent and then planned a move.  The new house is older but it has this:
                             

I am so EXCITED to have an apple tree in our back yard

           - We moved into the house just as the massive rains hit Calgary. Not so much fun. These rains led to the incredible floods that devastated Calgary and much of southern Alberta.
                               

This is downtown, before it was evacuated for 10 days

This is the neighborhood of the boys' school.  It was pretty scary

            - Here in Calgary the school year runs from September through June.  The flooding cancelled many of the year-of-year events but thankfully the schools were able to end on a good note.  Here's a look at Seth and Jeffrey and the beginning of the year and then at the last day.  They survived their first year in a foreign country and still found time and energy to grow :-)

The boys truly enjoyed this year

             -The best part of the year then happened.  Seth celebrated his eight birthday in May.  He had decided and prepared to be baptized and become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  We are proud of the choices he is making and the preparations he made in order to have this day come to pass.  It was also wonderful that some of our family could join us as Seth made this first important covenant.  He was thrilled to have Robin and Grandma and Grandpa Andrus with him on his special day.

Seth was very excited that day, even for him!

            -The summer has been busy but fun.  Naively I thought that after Seth's baptism things would calm down. The joke has been on me.  Between playing with the boys, trying to make a house a home, Bryant's work schedule, and the addition of scouts once a week, we have non stop running.  But it has been great- a summer full of memories.

What Bryant's breaks at work look like (he's at home a lot)

He is always this happy

The boys keep petitioning to have one as a pet.  I don't know...

nathaniel likes to take pictures on the phone

              

catch up

The last four months have been quite a doozy for us.  We celebrated Nathaniel first birthday and Bryant's 31st.  We played in the snow and then played some more.  February brought an unexpected trip to Arizona.  While the reasons for the trip were not the happy ones, I came home more determined to be more grateful and to allow myself to be more fully present in each day.  My sister in law and her family have shown grace and composure during a very challenging time. I hope to be able to emulate those traits and live by faith as they do.

Do you mean the brownie and the fire are for me?

the boys love to tag our car after a snow storm

can you tell who is not on the brothers' favorite list this day?

 When we drove to Mesa, the next two pictures were the best things about Montana.

typical sunday morning calmness

351

                                      

Three hundred and fifty one days.  That's how long we have been living here in Canada.  It definitely has been an adventure in more ways than one.  There have been lots of really hard, dark and difficult periods.  And the moments of joy and light have been unbelievable. But as we approach our one year mark in Calgary and begin the next rounds of adventures I have been reflecting on our life in Arizona.

When we moved we had been living in our home in Tolleson for about four years.  Those four short years brought many blessings and great memories to our family.

 William was only two months old when we moved into the house.  He was such a delightful little guy. In very little time Bryant and I realized that while we throughly enjoyed having three sons, we were outnumbered and the boys were quickly going to take advantage  realize that fact.

Our dog Charlotte also adopted us in roughly the same time period.  I never would have imagined us owning a dog, but I can honestly say it was a true pleasure having her with us for the time that we did.  William especially has a fond spot for animals( extra soft spot for dogs).

 Being the impatient type of people that we are, it wasn't long before Ethan joined our growing family. He has been hands down the best Christmas present I have ever received.  He has made our life richer and more exciting and with out a doubt, much louder :-)

One of the reasons we bought the home that we did was because of the yard.  It was perfect, well, except for the 10 million tons of rock that was implanted in the back.  For nearly two and a half years we work on transforming the yard.  Sometimes moving the rock felt like punishment, but with the boys and Bryant, somehow it always ended up being enjoyable.

The biggest project was when we laid sod.  It was hard and sweaty work, but the finished backyard was a bit of paradise for us.

While in Tolleson, we learned to love doing things as a family.  We camped, went exploring, enjoyed Grandmas and Grandpas and mastered surviving the Phoenician summers. The boys were also beyond excited when cousins began arriving to the family. They sure do love Reed and Jameson and Elizabeth.

Then our family learned something very important.  Kids grow up fast- Faster than I thought was possible, and before we knew it Seth had started school and Jeffrey followed one year later. 

Jeffrey didn't like the idea that school couldn't wait for him to finish playing in the yard.  But he was just as excited as Seth, perhaps even more because that year we explored the exciting world of homeschooling.  Quickly the boys learned that Mom+homeschooling+expecting baby boy number five= lots of silly mom moments.

Nathaniel arrived in January of 2012 and we could not have been happier to welcome another wonderful little guy to our tribe.

Perhaps our most favorite thing about living in Tolleson (besides friends and family, of course) was the privilege of being so close to the Mesa Temple.  The boys and I usually went and visited every other month or so, but in the beginning of every spring we would spend an entire day there as a family. It was one of our happiest family traditions.

I don't know what life will look like when we have completed four years here in Canada.  But I do know that the time will shape and mold our family, provide us joyful memories to wipe away the sad and painful ones.  If the next four years are and good as the four in Tolleson, then I am looking forward to the adventure!