Back to School 2010-2011

We are having so much fun hanging out at Grandma and Pappas house. She makes really yummy frosting!! We feel so blessed to be able to camp here and are making up for not seeing them for 2 years.



The kids started school last Monday. They are going to the same school that Matt went to. They even get to WALK. They have always rode the bus to school. We have a tradition of having a first day of school party so we invited some new friends over. It is a great way to meet our new friends.

I am so proud of my kids for being so brave. I can't imagine how hard it would be to get dropped off in a room full of strangers. It has been hard for them, but they are doing their best. It is also hard for them because they know that this is all temporary. They are TROOPERS!!!!

GGP's, Legos, & Cecret Lake

Growing up, I just had my Grandma Lee around until I was in 4th grade. The other 3 died before I was born. My kids are so lucky, they have 2 grandpas, a grandma AND a set of Great Grand Parents (The Riches). Rocky got to meet them for the first time. Don't you think Grandpa Rich looks like Colonial Sanders, he is darling!! They are amazing, they send a card for every birthday and anniversary in the family! Sure do love them! Don't mind Coop, I think he was possessed by a demon during this photo.
Rocky is on team Edward!

Cooper's wildest dreams all came true when he got a massive amount of Lego's as a hand me down. He calls them the MOTHER-LOAD! He had a couple instruction books and a heap of Lego's. He went through the pile and created 2 giant Star-wars creations from the instruction book, sounds easy but let me assure you it was not! We went through and sorted out the ones that we knew belonged into the above sorted pile. I would hand him what he needed and would send me to find the missing pieces in the above UNSORTED pile of MAYHEM! He would give me a hug as payment for finding missing pieces.



One of the best things about being in SLC is hanging out with old friends. We hiked up to Cecret lake with my dear friend Jen and her little tribe. We used to do this when our girls were tiny. I LOVE these mountains!! Rocky had things pretty easy in the pack except for the fact that he was almost carried away by giant squirrels!

The new do...

So I went to my favorite hair gal the first chance I got for a new do. I was thinking of just a trim or my old style, or possibly SHORT. After Ruby pleading with me to NOT go short, I went short. I think I was having a mid life crisis and we all know I can't afford the Ferrari I was thinking of, sooo....

I came home and Matt gave me a strange look, Ruby started bawling, and Cooper ran away and hid. Ruby told me that everything in her life had changed and now even I had changed. She told me not to worry because it would grow back in a few years.

I loved it when my hair magician did it. Now I am trying to figure out what she did. The last time I put "product" in it and blow dried it, I looked like a frightened cat. Oh dear! And NO I am not posting pictures until I figure out how to do it ;)

Snowbird

Most of my growing up years, Saturdays in the winter meant one thing: skiing at Snowbird! I have great memories of skiing with my Dad, brothers, and friends. The most vivid memory is when I went DOWN the Chickadee lift (for those of you non skiers, you are supposed to ride up, ski down).

It was so fun to bring my little Chickadudes to Snowbird. Wow, I forgot how HUGE these mountains are! I LOVE them!!! We went on the Alpine slide, bouncy toys, and Rubes and Coop rode the mechanical bull.

We are having a great time in SLC. We feel so blessed to be staying with Grandma and Papa, they are so good to us. We have partied like it is 1999, gone swimming, played with old friends, and eaten lots of apricots!

Even though we love being among friends and family, we feel pretty lost. We miss Bloomington and wonder what is next. Life is a roller coaster so we are just trying to enjoy the ride!

Last stop: Driggs, Idaho

Our final stop was the Christensen (Grandma Rich's family) reunion on the Idaho/Wyoming border. It happens every year the first week of August. We learned all about what it is like to live on a farm. Matt is ready to trade his business attire in for some jeans and a pair of cowboy boots.
A few of our family members run in the local race every year. We decided that it would be fun to run the 10k. To our surprise it was a 1/2 marathon and a 2 mile fun run. Matt ran the 1/2 and I did the fun run plus the last 4 miles with him for my own 10K. My MIL bought me this fun running dress.

We stayed in a beautiful home with a good chunk of the Riches. It is so great to be with family, especially with the Tetons as a backdrop.

Now we are back in SLC staying with Matt's parents until we have a plan. We are having a great time and feel so blessed to be here in the valley-o!

Jellystone!

Old Faithful
We met my family in Yellowstone for our annual Peterson trip. It added some time to our already long road trip but was oh so worth it! We almost had the whole clan there. It was so good to be with family. Rocky was in heaven because someone always wanted to hold him. He was so excited to meet his kinfolk. Here are some of the highlights:
Yellowstone Falls
Stinky Mud Pots: Ruby let the group know she was already used to the smell because she lives with me!
Yellowstone Lake
Fire-hole River


Midway with most of the cousins.
The Peterson Clan

South Dakoty

Corn Palace
Craziness

Wall Drug: Holy Smokes there were a lot of billboards for this crazy place. They did make a mighty fine homemade doughnut there!

Badlands

Sturgis:
With the motorcycle rally being only a week a way, there was a lot going on in Sturgis. We got stuck there in a giant rainstorm. We ate at a biker burger joint. Remember in Pee Wee's Big Adventure when he walked into the bar and the music stopped and everyone starred at him? Well, the same thing happened when the Mormon family with 3 kids walked in.

An older biker (65ish) came up to me as I was holding Rocky and told me that he looked just like Rocky when he was a baby; big blue eyes and big thighs. I didn't really know how to respond so I told him that I hoped Rocky turned out as handsome as he was. His response was, "Honey, I am old enough to be your father!!!" He totally thought I was hitting on him!


As we were driving, we saw a couple on a motorcycle with their dog in a passenger car. The dog had on a windbreaker and "Doggles" as we like to call them. Awesome!

The Mighty Mississippi

Our first day we made it from Bloomington to Davenport, Iowa. We crossed the Mighty Mississip! We couldn't find a hotel so we ended up staying at what Ruby named the Uncomfortable Inn. NASTY!!! Unfortunately I have passed my fear of lice, bed bugs, and other icky creatures to my daughter. Dead cockroaches in the bathroom, ketchup on the counter, stains on the walls and mattresses, etc. We were on the verge of a panic attack...YUCK! Our boys thought we had lost our minds. Let's just say we were all happy to get back on the road.

The D-R-I-V-E

We left July 31 (exactly 2 years from when we left SLC!) and made it to SLC on August 8. We went the scenic route so we could meet my family in Yellowstone and Matt's family in Driggs, ID.
There are so many amazing things to see as you drive across the country. This was just one of my favorites, it reminded me of Straight Story. I loved to watch all the corn, soy beans, alfalfa as it wizzed by my window. My dudes did a great job for being in the car that long. I bet Rocky only cried an hour total. We played the Liscence Plate game and ended up getting all but 2 states!

Indiana, Our Indiana

"Indiana, Our Indiana"

Indiana, our Indiana
Indiana, we're all for you!
We will fight for the cream and crimson
For the glory of old IU
Never daunted, we cannot falter
In the battle, we're tried and true
Indiana, our Indiana,
Indiana we're all for you! I-U!

"Indiana Fight"

Fight for the Cream and Crimson,
Loyal sons of our old I. U.
Fight for your Alma Mater,
and the school you love so true.
Fight for old Indiana,
See her victories safely through,
GO! I.U! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!
For the glory of old I. U.!

"Indiana"

God crowned her hills with beauty,
Gave her lakes and winding streams,
Then He edged them all with woodlands
As the settings for our dreams.

Lovely are her moonlit rivers,
Shadowed by the sycamores,
Where the fragrant winds of summer
Play along the willowed shores.

I must roam those wooded hillsides,
I must heed the native call,
For a Pagan voice within me
Seems to answer to it all.

I must walk where squirrels scamper
Down a rustic old rail fence,
Where a choir of birds is singing
In the woodland... green and dense.

I must learn more of my homeland
For it's paradise to me,
There's no haven quite as peaceful,
There's no place I'd rather be.

Indiana... is a garden
Where seeds of peace have grown,
Where each tree, and vine, and flower
Has a beauty... all its own.

Lovely are the fields and meadows,
That reach out to hills that rise
Where the dreamy Wabash River
Wanders on... through paradise.

by Arthur Franklin Mapes

Good bye B-Town!

Ruby sent President Obama a letter containing a silly band. He sent her back a letter! I have never seen a kid so excited, it was awesome! She will always cherish this letter.


It was really hard for us to say goodbye to all of our great neighbors. We have been so blessed to be surrounded by amazing people. We will really miss them!
So the last week of July we packed Monday, Tuesday, and Wedneday.
Thursday we loaded all of our belongings and stuffed them in a storage shed in Bloomington. Friday and Saturday we cleaned. We loaded our car with ourselves and our clothes. When I say our trunk was jam packed, that is an extreme understatement. I am so thankful for all the people that watched our kids, made us food, helped us, etc.


This picture doesn't begin to show how packed our car was. I hope I didn't stunt my childrens growth by making them sit in our cozy little Saturn for over 2000 miles! Good bye Bloomington. Thanks for the memories!!!