Capturing a Smile

Sometimes it can be so hard to capture a smile on camera - especially if you're the only one home and you're holding the smiling child. That makes for a photo that's a little too close up!

We hope you're not too tired of pictures of Logan, but he's pretty much what consumes our time, thoughts, and energy. He's doing much better lately. We're thinking we need to change our monthly budget to include extra gas money (for trips to get him to sleep or just to stop crying) and Mylicon drops (gas relief that's safe for babies). Both seem to be helping! In addition, mommy has wondered if her diet is affecting the little guy. So, at least for now, she's off of chocolate and citrus fruits. Do you know how hard that is? I made Oreo truffles the other day (3 batches) without eating a single bite! Not to mention, it's orange season, and Costco oranges are awesome! I may try them out again before too long. We'll see...

Famous

Dad and I went to the Blazer game the other day, and we managed to get on TV. Check it out.

My Best Night!!!

I had my best night of sleeping on Sunday night. Guess where I slept...in my carseat! I slept for 3 hours, then got up to eat and slept 3 more hours. Mom was loving it! This is how I felt about it...
- Logan

Baby Blessing

Garrick blessed Logan on Sunday. It was beautiful. We were grateful to have the Joneses, the Knoxes, and Garrick's parents and sister there.

Isn't he cute in his little outfit? Logan had some serious dry skin on his scalp last week. I bought a baby brush and brushed it and put lotion on it. The result: the dry skin is finally gone, but so is his hair. He aged about 40 years last week. :)

Almost Ready to Babysit

Just thought I'd post these cute pictures of the Jones kids holding Logan. I think they're just about ready to be babysitters. : )

Babysitting Anyone?

Kaysha, Are you still interested in babysitting while we're in Oregon? Any other takers?

Our "Little Man"

Any Guesses?

This isn't the greatest picture, but at least you get the idea...I had a nice cut above my eye and a little bruiser underneath. Does anyone want to guess the cause?

* Logan is quite a strong little boy, and yes, he can really get his arms going. (This is usually a sign that he's about to cry.) But, he is not responsible for my owie.

* I haven't been to work in nearly 4 weeks, so the jr high kids can't be blamed either.

* All right. You give up? It was a self-inflicted wound. Garrick came home from work for lunch on election day, and I was going to run out to vote. I went into the garage, walked up to the car, and opened the door right into my head. Lovely! I can't blame my stupidity on being pregnant, but can I at least use the lack of sleep excuse?

Greetings from Eugene

Hey everyone, this is Stephen and I posted the funny clip below. I thought it was funny but also kind of profound in a way. To think that people used to just stop doing things when they ran out of money! That is kind of a strange concept in this day in age, when credit card companies are anxious to give you money for doing nothing. The temptation is always there to do more than you can afford, to live just a little bit outside of your means.

Things in Eugene are going ok. I really like school. I probably wouldn't mind just staying in school forever, except it really doesn't pay very well. This probably means that I'll end up being a professor someday, since professors get to study whatever they want, when they want. They get paid to take time off to study. Awesome!

The rain has official struck, which is kind of crappy, but I keep reminding myself that at least it's not snow! One thing I don't really miss about Utah is the constant struggle to stay warm. Gloves, hats, sweaters on top of sweaters, big poofy jackets, etc. and yet you still feel cold.

Oksana is still working part time at Bath and Body Works (which we are having a hard time not calling "Bed Bath Body Works and Beyond," for some reason) while looking for something more permanent and full time. Job searches are never fun, and she is learning all about what a frustrating experience it really is.

I hope everyone is doing well, and let's see some updates a little bit more often!

Stephen

Be grateful

I have had a few requests for an updated picture (just what everyone wants to have taken in their last little bit of pregnancy). I have been fortunate to still feel pretty good in spite of feeling BIG and less mobile. It is getting harder to get a good night's sleep, but I really can't complain. We are starting to count down by days now (12 to go). We do realize that little Logan could come at any time, though. We hope we're ready. : )

Now for an update on the Petersons... We have been able to do some fun things lately, in spite of my current state. Just over a week ago we took a Friday off and used a gift certificate that we had to a bed and breakfast in Midway. We had a nice, relaxing time.

After that nice break, we only had 3 days of school before fall break. Every week should be a 3-day week!

On Wednesday night we enjoyed a free dinner & lecture on fire safety at Carraba's Restaurant.

Garrick spent Thursday working on his dissertation while I painted the bathroom. (Thank you, Kaysha, for your suggestion of the $5 paint samples from Sherwin Williams. It only took us 2 tries to get a color that we liked. Hooray!) We were excited for BYU's big football game on Thursday night, but it turned out to be quite a disappointment. Garrick had a softball game, and we were sad that we were going to miss the 2nd half of the football game, but it turned out that missing the 2nd half wasn't a big deal.

On Friday Garrick did more work on his dissertation while I worked on random projects. I did decide that I needed to make some sort of blanket for my baby since I tend to make them for other people's babies. Anyway, a worker at the fabric store told me about a receiving blanket that she made, and I copied her idea. I think it turned out pretty cute. I stitched along all of the squiggly lines with white thread, so you can see it on the plaid back.

Friday night we went to the musical "Aida" at the Hale Center Theater. They did a great job.

Yesterday I coached the YW volleyball team while Garrick worked even more on his dissertation. We also did some shopping, cleaning, working in the yard, etc. It was nice to get so much done this "weekend" while also doing some fun things. Tomorrow we're back to work...

So, there you have our little update. I also thought I'd send along a few pictures of our nursery. The pictures will be much cuter once there's a little guy in them, but at least you can see what it looks like. Thanks to Stephen for the cute dinosaur pictures and to Kaysha for letting us use them and to mom for getting to the post office and sending them!

Away with the big Car Seats

We have finally all moved on to booster seats!! Now we look forward someday to no car seats at all!!

Fluffy 'Salads'

So, I thought I'd pass along a couple of yummy fluffy 'salad' recipes. Sharon brought both of these to my baby shower, and I had to get the recipes. We made the first one a week or two ago and loved it. I will warn you - they really qualify more as desserts than salads. But, hey, if you want to feel better about eating them, by all means, call them salads.

Fluffy Jello Salad (needs a new name in my opinion)

1 lg. box vanilla cook & serve pudding
3 1/4 c. water
6-oz pkg raspberry Jell-0
12 oz. container Cool Whip
1 bag frozen raspberries

In saucepan, mix water and pudding. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in Jello-o powder. Cool overnight or until set. Beat pudding with a mixer. Fold in Cool Whip and fruit. Refrigerate.
Note: I used Oregon boysenberries, and this was fabulous. I think it'd be fun to experiment with different flavors and fruits, too.


Mello-Jello
bottom layer: 1 lg. orange Jell-o. Cook as directed.
1 lg. lemon cook & serve pudding. Cook as directed.

Mix these two together while hot. They won't blend completely. That's ok. Put in a 9x13" pan. Refrigerate 3-4 hours or overnight.

top layer: 1 sm. lemon instant pudding
1 c. milk
2 c. Cool Whip
1 can mandarin oranges

Mix lemon pudding with 1 c. milk. Blend in Cool Whip. Spread on top of refrigerated bottom layer. Top with mandarins.

Bend

Grandpa had a cist taken off his spine yesterday. He is back home and doing fine. He has changed a lot-had quite a spiritual experience with some prayer a while back. He doesn't think he can ride again, well he could probably ride but would have trouble with getting the saddle on. It was sweet tonight because he wondered what he could do to take the g grandkids for a ride when they come if he doesn't have a horse. He thinks he knows where he can "borrow one for a day or so. He is anxious to build memories again with the great grand kids. I told him the Brent and Dustin could saddle a horse (hope that's right). Anyway, I wanted you all to know that they are welcoming family (as long as you help cook and clean). They are a lot of fun. Lucille has filled a spot in Twyla and My hearts since mom died--and also supplied us with much needed information. I hope you all learn to love her as we have. Grandpa is very happy and very much at peace with life. I'm sure they would love notes, calls and or visits. Love you all, MOM

Falling off the face of the earth

It seems like forever since I have done this... oh wait it has been. Our shutter on our camera broke so instead of paying the money to fix it (which was about half of a new one). We decided to upgrade of course it took me many months looking for the right deal and deciding what I really wanted to do. So in August I finally bought a camera, but still have not put any pictures up so here I go. Dustin and I took the task of hand painting the house this september. Two coats!! I will post pictures soon. It's grizzle grey!! Anyways we finished that about a week ago. I am officially sick of painting, but it looks great. I am busy running kids what seems like a hundred different directions. I have the three boys going to 4 schools. Braden is enjoying 1st grade. Ashton is at Santiam christian this year 3 days a week. Cody is attending Crescent Valley preschool this year again 3 days a week. I figure the more social interaction for him the better, and also going to Dixie school 3 days a week. So we are busy but doing great!!!

Family trip to Bend

Ok so I have to laugh at this picture for the only fact that dawn your family pictures always look so perfect all the kids looking at the camera and smiling so this is what I usually get!! And you just deal with it :)

To think this stallion needs a wheelchair who would ever know!!!

Here is a picture of Mom and Braden in bend. I thought it was a cute picture.

We went to Bend in september and stayed a night with Grandpa, Mom and Dad, and Aunt Twyla and Uncle Bob. We had lots of fun. Here is grandpa giving the boys a tractor ride. They thought this was the coolest!!

Pictures from the homestead

Some Pictures of the new pavers by the woodpile. It is awesome!

George checks things out

Here comes George

one of the SMALLER potatoes from our garden this year (just kidding) this thing is HUGE.

I threw in the bowl and glass for perspective.

Almost There

No, I'm not referring to the birth of our baby boy. I'm talking about our kitchen. We are still waiting for the installation of the drawer fronts and handles, but our cupboards have doors for the first time in months! It's quite exciting. Steve is supposed to come tomorrow to finish the job. Hooray!

Of course, we still have to finish the touch up on the red paint and on some of the cupboards. Someday we'll be all the way done!

Embarazada!

Lower Salmon River

So today Melissa and I ventured to the Lower Salmon River for a little hiking/swimming. My hiking book said the the river is "suitable for a chilly summer swim." Um...I think chilly is an understatement. I'm pretty sure the water was snow melt off from today - it was SO cold. Anyway upon arriving at the swimming hole Melissa saw a pop can in the depths of the river and dared me to put my goggles on and fish it out. You know me...can't pass up a good dare - so I went for it. Good news is I was able to retrieve the pop bottle, bad new is that I'm pretty sure I froze some serious brain cells in the process!!

Preparing for the big dive.

Going for the gold.

We've got a winner - mission accomplished.

updates

My new kitchen at school (not a very good picture)

Great food supplied by ward members and Valentina

The Worthens from Albany

Valentina made this beautiful cake. A friend added the flowers

Stephen and Oksana's Utah open house

sunriver & etc.

We are booked next year June 15-20. --same house for one more year.

Also, we didn't do any family name drawings for Christmas. Do you want to do that again this Christmas. Since we may not all be together for Christmas, I don't know what your feelings are on it. If you will each e-mail me, then I can kind of compile everyone's thoughts. Sorry, I should have taken care of this at Sunriver.

You are all welcome to come for Christmas, or anytime, but I won't count on you unless I hear from you---Love you all, Mom

Albany

I will title this one: "Deena's Legacy". Stephen and Oksana moved today. After we came back from Eugene, we took the stereo cabinet out of the closet in Stephen's Room (Yeah!). In order to do that we had to take the closet door off. Other than the 31 years of dust on the inside ledges, which never occured to me to dust, there was this interesting ribbon tied to the inside with several knots. Those of you old enough, may remember when Deena went through the knot tying stage. She tied ribbon, string, thread, whatever, to doors, etc. Obviously this is one that we never saw. It has been there for a lot of years. Who else would have done it?

Look alikes. I think Ashton looks a lot like Jeremy, Jason and Talana's son. We had a great time when they visited for a night this week. I took a family picture of them but somehow it got lost in the camera or ???

Kelly, Audryanne, Stephen and Oksana went for a hike at Silver Creek Falls. I sat by the creek and read National Geographic.

Dad and I took a stroll--I strolled, he rolled. It was a beautiful day.

Trekkers

So I guess you can't get the full effect of our pioneer outfits when my bonnet is down, but you can probably use your imagination. I think this picture was taken at about 5 am in the church parking lot. We are both showered and clean at this point. These clothes had only been worn for a few minutes, which was nothing compared to the 3 days that we would spend in them. : )

Other than the stinky clothes and the lack of a shower, we had a great experience on trek. We felt like we learned a lot about the pioneers, we were able to experience the winds of Wyoming (and could only imagine how it would feel if they were blowing cold air and snow), we appreciated the efforts of the rescuers from Salt Lake, and we felt the Spirit as we worked with the youth of our ward.

Even though we weren't hard core trekkers (apparently the Lebanon stake was), we are grateful that we had this opportunity.

- Deyce & Garrick

To Watch or Not to Watch

Just wanted to pass along a neat website that I ran across yesterday. We were looking for a movie to watch, and I was interested in why a few movies were rated the way they were rated. This website www.kids-in-mind.com gives very detailed descriptions of occurences of sex & nudity, violence & gore, and profanity in movies. It rates the movie in each of these three areas on a scale of 1-10, with a 10 meaning that it is very prevalent. Anyway, I spent a few minutes looking up some movies, and then I discovered that you can also search for movies based on your criteria for cleanliness. For example, you can say that you are looking for a movie that is a 3 or less in sex & nudity, a 4 or less in violence & gore, and a 2 or less in profanity. It will then pull up all of the movies (in their database) with those numbers. Pretty cool! I thought it would be especially helpful with kids. So, check it out!

Sunriver II

Sorry about the grammar error in there

Just wanted to give you the directions:
Take the Cottonwood exit

At Circle 10 take the Circle 9 exit

At Circle 9 go on Gray Birch to Circle 6

At Circle 6 Take the Kinglet exit and turn on Red Wing

It is 2nd or 3rd house on right--#9

Redwing #9

Sunriver

I was in Bend this weekend so I called the real estate people and since the house was empty I drove down and took a tour. There are some pros and cons.
The kitchen is very nice but maybe not quite as awesome as the last two years. There is a fridge and an extra one near the garage. The seating for meals is fantastic. There are two tables and a bar. The total seating is 21 + a highchair. The garage has 6 cruiser bikes, all in good condition with what looked to me like new tires. There are two children's bikes and a tandem bike. The garage is HUGE.
The house seems a little less private than some. I'm not sure if the houses are closer together or if there are just a few less trees around. On the main floor is three bedrooms and three upstairs. Dad and I need the first bedroom to the left as you walk in. It is handicapped equipped. There is a very nice master suite downstairs for someone with many children. The problem with the bedrooms is there is not as much floor space as we've had in the past. I wrote down who I thought would go in each room, but you are welcome to do as you wish. If the Joneses take the downstairs master, either the Dittos or the Burgesses will be a little crowded or some kids may have to come sleep with Grandma and Grandpa.
The bunk room would work well for the Burgesses or Dittos. There is a double bunk for parents and then the three beds, one down and two up. The Petersons get a room, the Stephen Robbins Family gets a room, Kelly gets the loft, which I think we can make a little private by moving some furniture and Valentina has a hideabed in the game room--I hope this is OK. There is a game room upstairs with a foosball table and a pool table, TV and Valentina's bed. I know this isn't perfect, but I think we will do fine. They have a 5000 sq ft, 8 bedroom house we could get next year but we would need some contributions. We could also go back to the Conifer Lane house, the one by the park, which has 7 bedrooms. The beds look great, it is just the floor space that is skimpy, and those big log beds look a little heavy to move. Hope you are all anxious to come--sorry about the gas prices--We love you all.
MOM

QUACK QUACK!

For those of you who haven't heard, I was accepted into the University of Oregon school of law! It was hard to pass on Santa Clara. It would have been fun to go some place completely new, and I think the Bay Area would have provided a lot of good opportunities for us both. But U of O is close to home, and a heck of a lot cheaper! Oksana and I are both excited to move to Eugene and start our new life together.

My biggest dilemma is wondering what to do with my Duck/Beaver loyalties. Do I embrace Duck-hood, and cut ties to my Beaver past? Or do I continue as closeted Beaver fan? Suggestions?