Brett quote of the day

While in the car with Brett this morning:
"Sometimes I dream that I am having a dream that I am having a dream that I am having a dream that I am having a dream...then I get tired of dreaming and wake up."

"I like buffets because they have lots of good food and you can go back for more and more and more and more."

"Why do people think Jesus looks like that...maybe he is bald."

A Christmas Eve Snitch

I can't believe we did it. Both Dave and I said it would never happen. I think the kids were even resigned to the fact that we would not be getting a pet...ever. But, somehow I (yes it was my idea) talked Dave into it. "The kids will be so happy and surprised...shouldn't every kid have some kind of pet at least once in their life...it won't be so bad!" Then the discussions about what to get dog? cat? what? I wouldn't say that we had strong opinions either way. But, a cat seemed less needy and much more available. So, on the afternoon of Dec. 23 Dave and I went out looking. Unfortunately, the parish animal shelter closed for adoptions 30 min before we arrived. So, we headed to Petsmart. We found a friendly 3 month old gray cat and some how got him home and kept it a secret from the kids. Although Dave wanted to try to keep it a secret until Christmas, I thought Christmas Eve was good enough and would keep the kids occupied during the long day of waiting for Christmas to arrive. The kids were speechless. They spent the day playing and annoying the cat and discussing what to name him. After much discussion and disagreement the kids settled on "Snitch". So, we are pet owners, weird isn't it? Paige, especially is in heaven!

Loony Moth

A few months ago Paige and Brett found a catterpillar making a cocoon right against our garage door. Of course, when the garage was opened it fell, so we put it in a jar not knowing if it would try again. Surprisingly, it made another cocoon. That jar sat on the counter for weeks and weeks. We almost tossed it out several times. We even opened the jar and poked around at it. We had really forgotten about it and did not expect anything. Then one day, there is this huge, bright green moth in the jar. It is now November and we are not sure how a moth is going to survive the cold weather.

We put it in a bucket in the open garage where he sat for hours...and then was gone! We found it in our gardenia bush. It sat there for days and days even through the snow. We were sure it was dead. After all this time we did a little research and found out it is a Luna Moth. It should stay in the cocoon all winter. I guess being in the warm house confused it! The Moth does not eat and has a life span of one week. After days in the same spot we started to find it in different spots in the bush and even on the side of the house. It is now gone, we can't find it, but it did survive for more than a week and although its short life was spent in the cold wet bush instead of a warm springtime we enjoyed watching it!

Brett quote of the day

While watching "Prince Caspian": at the very beginning when the baby is born and his mother is screaming, Brett said, "That cry is just disturbing!"

Brett quote of the day

"Is the equator a real line or just something that splits the world?"
"It is an imaginary line."
"Oh, so it doesn't really exist?"

Snowfall

We did get a little snowfall last week. The kids were really excited about it. They even let school out at noon. The snow didn't show up until after dark. Brett was really excited to see it falling, because he has seen snow before, but can't remember ever seeing it fall. They were hoping to get to play in it, but the ground was too warm and it melted quickly. Later that evening the boys did go out and play in the slushy stuff on the trampoline. They got wet and cold!

Pet Peeve of the Week

It really bothers me when people use the word "just" as they pray. Like, "I just want to thank You." Mostly I hear this from people who belong to different religions than I do. (the "You" bothers me too).

Snowball Fight!

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Our Student of the Year

We knew that Paige would be eligible to apply for student of the year this year. She has awesome grades, but I worried that she would not want to do it. Happily, she suprised me and was excited to fill out the application and write a life sketch. We were so pleased when she was named a finalist (one of seven out of 36 applicants!) This was on a friday, that day all of the finalist wrote an essay at school. One of the topics was to present an award to a member of your family. Paige chose to award her dad the "Best Builder" award and wrote about all of the things he has made recently. Then came the long weekend of worry and sleepless nights. Monday morning was interviews. She did not want to just give up, because she wouldn't be able to talk to the interviewers, but we weren't sure what could be done about it. Dave gave her a blessing Sunday night and she was able to sleep and was much less worried, I, on the other hand, didn't sleep well at all. First thing Monday morning I called the school and talked to the counselor. She agreed to let Paige write her answers in the interviews. I was so relieved. Paige wanted so badly to do well and my only hope was that it would be a good experience for her. One of her best friends was chosen as Student of the Year. Paige was so happy about how she had done and was so glad she had done it.

Brett quote of the day

Brett: "I keep getting a bad word stuck in my head."
Mom: "Well, do you try to think of good things, or sing a song or something?"
Brett: "It doesn't work cause I can think of more than one thing at a time."
Mom: "Okay, what is the word."
No response.
Mom: "Will you spell it?"
Brett: "I can write it."
Mom; "Okay."

Any advice for my sweet boy who is feeling bad because he can't get this bad word out of his head? He didn't like any of my advice and says he has prayed about it! He is so good, I hate that he is feeling like he is bad.

Don't Bug Me!

I recently got to go on a field trip with both Paige and Brett. Their spark classes made a long awaited trip to the "Insectarium" in New Orleans. They have been learning about bugs and doing all sorts of projects for a while now. Although, I must admit some of the bugs were just gross. Most of them were really cool. They also have a cafe where you can eat a bug! Chocolate chirp cookies with crickets and flavored mealworms...we all passed on that. The butterfly room was fun. There were so many kinds and colors and sizes.

There were lots of really big bugs! Walking sticks and millipedes, beetles and ants.

A question from Paige

If Spongebob's last name is Squarepants, why are his parents round?

Bryce quote of the day

Dave and his family are not known for doing things the easy way. This often leads to frustrating, annoying and definitely funny occasions. This is how Dave's parents drove from Utah to Arizona to Louisiana to Maryland. The back seat and trunk are stuffed full, so everything else got strapped and taped under a tarp to the back end of the car. We laughed so hard when we saw it! Bryce said, "How did they not get arrested!"

Gone Crabbing!

Grandma and Grandpa Anderson came to visit us last week. They are on their way home from serving a family history mission in Salt Lake City. We get very excited when we have visitors, because it doesn't happen often. We try to think of fun and different thing to do when we do have visitors. A few weeks ago the boys had a scout camp out at the beach and they went crabbing. They loved catching, cooking and eating them. So, we thought we would all try it with grandma and grandpa. We did not go clear to the gulf. We stopped near the Wetland Walkway of the Creole Nature Trail. Several other groups were there and all seemed to be having success. We got out our supplies (Chicken and String) and got started. We got lots and lots of nibbles. But, getting the crab in the net was not so easy. At the beach the boys could see the crabs in the water and scoop them up. Here we could not see them and they kept getting off before we could get them in the net. I think we just needed some instruction and advice from someone who has actually done this before. But, we did have fun and caught 3 crabs, 2 of which were too small so we threw them back. Some fishermen caught a couple on their lines that they gave us, but in the end we just didn't have enough to worry about. So, we didn't eat crab, but I think we will give it another try sometime. And grandma and grandpa got to try something new and have fun with their grandkids!

Paige caught this one! She was the most patient and had the best luck.

Prehistoric Halloween

Paige and Brett wanted to dress up together this year and decided on Cavemen. They had fun making the huge teeth and loved playing with the club. They collected tons of candy at the trunk or treat.

Bryce was the only one who carved his pumpkin all on his own, but everyone tried!

Pumkins carved by:Ty, Paige, Brett, and Bryce.

Brett quote of the day

Brett, Paige and I were discussing Math today. Brett claimed that there was no need for math so, Paige and I were giving him all sorts of scenarios for using math. He kept saying, "That's not math." I told him he was stubborn and asked, "Do YOU think you are stubborn?" He said, "No, I am right!"

Brett quote of the day

Ty: "You guys don't have any sense!"
Brett: "I have 25."

Soccer

Brett wanted to play soccer again this year. We were a little worried, since he moved to an older bracket. But, he has had lots of fun. He started out the season on offence, which means he ran around following everyone else and rarely touched the ball. He said, "I am good at the running part of soccer, but not the kicking part." Then he started playing defence. He knows exactly where he is supposed to be and what he should do. He gets to kick the ball much more often. He said, "It is easier and funner."

Brett quote of the day

Last night we were all playing "Scattergories" . We did not make Brett follow the rule of everything starting with the same letter and he did really well at filling in all of his catagories. The rest of us enjoyed snickering at his answers. But, then he came to his answer for "something you save up for" He seriously and matter-of-factly said, "Gumballs!" We laughed so hard we cried!

Big Smiles

Bryce got his braces off!!! He was quite excited and loved that his orthodontist gave him a bag of gum and sticky candy, all the things he has been so good at avoiding for the last two years. Isn't that a great smile?!

Pet Peeve of the Week

I guess I have not been too hard to irritate lately, but two bus route/schedule changes in two weeks will do it. Both changes have inconvenienced me. First, the boys(middle school kids) were switched to another bus. It picks up really early. So, I now take the boys to school, not a huge deal because it is close and doesn't take me through all the other school traffic. Then most days they walk home. I don't mind that, it is good for them! Then Paige and Brett were switched to a 2nd load after school, meaning they have to sit in the hall and wait for the bus to get back, and they would get home pretty late. So, now I pick them up. This takes me through the school traffic of all three schools (or two if I take the long way). I really enjoyed the time of convenient bus pick up and drop off times, while they lasted!

Happy Halloween!

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Teenagers!

This evening Bryce was doing homework and taking turns with Ty mowing the lawn. At one point he thought he was done and Dave sent him out to take one more turn. He stomped off and slammed the door on his way out. His homework was an essay about how to impress your parents and make them happy!

Brett quote of the day

"I wish I had a time machine."
"How come?"
"That would seem cool and I would go see what you did when you were younger. And I would be invisible like a ghost."

Pioneers

One of our new Sunday activities is learning about our pioneer ancestors. There are ALOT of them. We made a big pedigree chart that is full up to the kids great, great, great, great grandparents (that is 64 4th great grandparents). We highlight each name after we read from their history. We are hoping to find out something about all of them!

So far we have learned about Jefferson Hunt and Celestia Terry(pictured): They were married at 19 and 17. As a child Jefferson and his brothers once "escaped" an indian as two of them rode on sheep while their little brother ran behind as fast as he could go. Jefferson and Celestia had 9 children before Celestia became ill and died at the age of 39.

Pehr Pehrson and Christina Beckstrand: Pehr and Christina lived in Sweden and met while working "bound out" to wealthy families. In 1861 they heard the gospel from missionaries and in 1863 they sailed to America. They crossed the planes and arrived in Salt Lake on August 29 1863. For a time they lived in Orderville, living the law of consecration. They had 2 daughters who died as children and one son and one adopted daughter.

Anson Call and Margaretta Unwin Clark: Anson grew up in Geaga County, New York. After visits from LDS missionaries he was converted and later baptized in Kirtland, OH. After arriving in Utah Anson was instrumental in settlements in Iron. Millard and Box Elder Counties. Margaretta heard of the gospel from street meetings in Nottingham, England. Alone, she sailed to America. She joined the Martin Handcart Company which ventured out on their jouney west much too late in the summer of 1856. Anson lead a group sent to rescue the company. Margaretta became a passenger in his wagon. Here the half starved girl found a frozen squash, which she began to eat. Anson saw this and although she said she was feeling better, he knew that she was freezing to death and walked her around to induce circulation. Anson later married Margaretta and they had 6 children.

Brett quote of the day

"Would it just be hard to walk if you had 2 left feet?"

Check this out!

This is an article about the father of one of my best friends when I was a kid. He was also my bishop at one time. He also has a blog, check it out!

Kid Vid

The song Brett wrote and performed for Dave for his birthday. Kind of hard to understand him, but cute, nonetheless!

"Hey, Dad, it's your birthday

Did you know that?

Of course you did!

Let's see a movie.

It's your birthday, Yeah!"

Brett quote of the day

Brett sometimes gets red, scratchy eyes. So, the other day I was putting drops in them and he said, "Wouldn't it be cool if they made eye drops that when you put them in your eyes you could taste a flavor!"

42 Adjectives

In celebration of Dave's 42nd birthday-42 adjectives to describe him...
affectionate

artistic

attractive

careful

caring

clever

considerate

creative

cute

dedicated

devoted

devout

fascinating

frugal

funny

giving

grateful

handsome

happy

hard-working

healthy

helpful

imaginative

industrious

ingenious

intelligent

interesting

inventive

loving

particular

persistent

playful

productive

protective

religious

sensible

skillful

smart

successful

teasing

thoughtful

thorough

Brett quote of the day

"Pretty much the bigger your hands get the more stuff you know. If that's not true then your brain is not the size of your two fists!"

I am still laughing!

Brett quote of the day

Brett was reading one of his favorite books, "Diary of a Whimpy Kid: Do it yourself" book. It has all sorts of things to write about and fill in. He was looking at a page with a list of favorites. One of the choices was villian. So, I asked, "Who is your favorite villian?" He said, "The Green Goblet!"

Back to School!

Even if they won't admit it, the kids were glad to be back at school. Brett and Paige really like their teachers and Bryce and Ty are pleased with their classes and teachers. Everyone has a positive attitude to start a new year! Hopefully the great attitudes will still be here when the homework starts coming!

Boys in Braces

Ty got braces this week and is still getting used to them. Bryce's will come off in the next few weeks.

Brett quote of the day

"Mom, you shouldn't be in Young Women any more."
"Why?"
snicker, snicker
"Hmmm, why not?"
snicker, whisper, "Cause, you're old."

Summer Vacation #2: Family and Friends

The main reason we travel to Utah every summer is to spend time with family and friends. This year we got to see Grandma and Grandpa Anderson while they were serving their mission. We had lunch in their tiny apartment and then drove up to Snowbird. We rode the tram up to the top. Then, while Dave and Bryce hiked down the rest of us rode the ski lift down.
Ty and Brittany-the "Grumpy" cousins!

Ethan and Brett are both in need of two front teeth.

Paige, Brett and Alex checking out the dinosaurs.

From water parks to walks around the block we love spending time with family. Of course, with so many family members living so close together it is so hard to spend the time we would like with all of them! We were glad to see so many friends this trip (sorry no pictures)! We had ice cream with Dave's college buddy Burk after a full day at Lagoon. Pam and I had ice cream with Barbara. Michelle and Eli fed us dinner. I had a great visit with Debbie and Danielle. I finally met my new sister-in-law Sarah. It was so great to see everyone!

Summer Vacation #2: Fishing

A long time summer tradition is the "Guy's fishing trip". Bryce joined Dave, Grandpa, Uncle Wayne and Uncle Kelly for the first time last year. Ty went along this year. They usually go to Yellowstone or Colorado. This year was Colorado. It seems like 1/2 of the stuff we pack is camping gear for this trip. Dave caught a huge rainbow trout. He always seems to catch the biggest fish!

Ty reeled in a couple and enjoyed his first fishing trip.

Bryce is becoming an old hand at the backpacking, hiking and fishing.

What a great father and son experience.

Summer Vacation #2: Dinos and Rhinos

We spent time at the Museum of Ancient Life and The Bean Museum. Brett didn't really remember the last time we went to the dinosaur musuem, so we thought that would be a fun thing to do, for those of us that did not go fishing. Brett is not into dinosaurs at all like his brothers were at the same age, but he still enjoyed digging in the sand, pushing buttons and seeing the dinosaurs. Paige bought "Larvae Snacks" at the gift shop. No one wanted to share with her.

She tried to look scared of the shark, without success.

Brett under the Brachiosaurus with the Supersaurus in the background, they were huge, but Brett thought that most of the dinosaurs would be bigger than they were.

The kids and their cousins enjoyed all of the animals at the Bean Museum. They have everything from a huge elephant and rhino, to tiny birds and bugs. The boys seemed to enjoy the big wild cats. Brett was better at looking scared than Paige was!

Summer Vacation #2: Rockets and Reptiles

Bryce and Ty bought this cool, inflatable, model rocket and were dying to launch it. It went about 300 ft in the air and was very easy to recover. It was as Ty says "ridiculous" but fun. Paige caught a great picture of it launching. We laughed every time they launched it!Dave's rocket, on the other hand, goes about 3000 feet in the air. He has had this rocket for a while but, could never find anywhere open enough to launch it. So, we drove out to Elberta, Ut (AKA the middle of nowhere) to try it out. He got it launched twice and surprisingly, recovered it both times. We had to drive down to pick him up after the second time because it landed so far away. Paige was the photographer who caught it launching!

We went to a Reptile show at the Bean Museum at BYU. They had cool tortoises, lizards and snakes. After the demonstration we were looking at exhibits and ran in to the girl who did the show. She kindly, brought out several other snakes and lizards for us to see!