Calf Roping

I knew that when becoming a mom I would take on many other titles as well, such as cook, chauffeur, teacher, maid, etc. However, I never once thought that calf roper would be added to my repertoire. Giving Ethan a bath is a lot like roping a calf.

When we go into the bathroom and he hears the tub filling up, he gets so excited his whole little body just vibrates with energy, I can barely get the pajamas and diaper off before he dives in with his clothes on.

Once he is in he frantically crawls from one side of the tub to the next, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth - the tub gets churning like a whirlpool he goes so fast. Once he has been back and forth about 90 times he settles down and finds the toys.

He then shrieks and plays and splashes until both of us and the tiny bathroom are thoroughly wet. When he gets bored with his toys he trys to climb everything in sight...and with his slippery little body he's hard to catch.

When I finally get my little calf out of the tub I wrap him up tight in a towel, and he finally gives up because his little teeth are chattering and he is shivering. Then since I'm already soaked anyway we cuddle for awhile until he warms up.

I think we both burn about 500 calories at every bath!

So clean and cute after his bath this morning.

Happy Trees!

There is a street here in Des Moines that is my favorite to drive down. It is lined with big trees and big, older houses that have interesting architecture. It was beautiful in the summer, and especially in the fall. Clark drives down this street daily on his way to school.


A couple of weeks ago someone made smiley faces out of snow balls on 23 of the trees that span a 3 block distance. It has been so cold none of the smiles have melted. It makes my day everytime I drive by, and I always wish I had my camera.


Today the sun is really shining and when I drove by I realized part of the faces are starting to melt. When I met Clark at the school for lunch I told him I was sad the smiling trees were melting, he had no idea what I was talking about - I seriously don't know how he hasn't noticed for the past 3 weeks of his daily commute. So we got in the car and went on a little field trip to see, as the late Bob Ross would say, "the happy little trees."


So thank you to the snowball tree artist whoever you are for brightening my cold winter days.





On an additional note, the economy must be really bad in Iowa. Last night I went to the movie with 2 of my friends, on Tues. they give free popcorn if you bring your own container. We learned though that the price for the popcorn is that they turn the heat off in the theater. It was so cold by the end of the movie we could see our breath, my glasses had fogged up, and we couldn't feel our toes. We were wrapped up in scarves, coats, and even blankets that Margaret had in her car! It was hilarious! Remind me again why we didn't we go to the school in Miami?

Elder Vaterlaus

Here are a few pictures for the Vaterlaus family!

Tonight we had Elder Vaterlaus, Elder Johnson, and our friends Bryce & Jessica over for a dinner of Cafe Rio pork salads. Elder Vaterlaus is from Boise too. We aren't officially related, but pretty much our families have been tight enough through the years we definitely are at least cousins. He is serving in a Spanish speaking branch that meets in our building, so I get to see him on Sundays. You never know who you might run into 1,000 miles from home. We had a really fun night.
He is a great teacher and a wonderful missionary...you can all be proud of him!

Oh what do you do in the winter time...

When all the world is ice?

The last week and a half has been cold in Des Moines. Last week there were a couple of days where the wind chill made it cold enough that school was canceled (for everyone but Clark). It was too cold to go outside so little Ethan and I spent a lot of time in our little family room. There were 2 days in a row when I didn't leave the house. By the end of that 2nd day the walls started to feel like they were closing in on me, I think both of us were a little punchy by the time Clark got home from school!

Here are the ever so exciting highlights!

Ethan spent a lot of time looking out the icy windows! The big excitement was when the mailman walked by!

The day it got really cold our house felt chilly so we spent time cuddling under a big quilt, reading stories, and playing peek-a-boo. I actually loved this a lot! He normally only let's us cuddle with him about 30 seconds.

Ethan has mastered pulling himself up on anything, and also pulling everything off of shelves, out of cupboards, bags, drawers, and unrolling entire toilet paper rolls in just seconds. He is also getting better at walking behind his little toy.

We learned some new games: hide and seek (Clark hiding in the dark closet will scare a small child to tears), crawl around the room chasing each other (please watch out for the hard plastic star shaped block - my knee is still bruised), sing-a-longs (when I sing to him he gets a really high voice and sings along with me)...to name a few. I think this age is so much fun!

Day 1 Ethan said, "I love this weather, staying in my pajamas all day is great!"

Day 9 Ethan said, "Winter winter go away...I want to go outside and play."

And then the miracle occurred! Today it was 40 degrees!!! Heat wave! I was leaving the house to drive to the school's gym and I was shocked by how nice it felt. So I decided we were going on a walk instead.

Ethan a little shocked by the bright sun. (In the cute little sweater Kristi knitted him!)

I was loving being outside - but quickly realized that the 4 feet tall frozen ice berg snow drifts presented some obstacles to the stroller. They need to make one with 4-wheel drive and a HEMI. In order to cross the busy 4 lane street I came to I had to lift the stroller onto one of the ice piles, and hike down in knee deep snow to push the crossing signal light. Once I made it safely across the street I realized no sidewalks had been plowed, but the parking lot entrances had been. So I would wait in the parking lot entrance until traffic slowed down, then go into the car lane and sprint as fast as I could to the next parking lot entrance, then wait for traffic to slow down and do the whole thing over again. I felt like I was inside the Frogger game. I realized perhaps walks in January are not the best idea...but it was so great to be outside.

We stayed out so long Ethan fell asleep!

Definitely the best part of both of our days is when Clark comes home. Ethan gets his second wind and is a ball of energy for a couple of hours before he crashes in his crib (no wonder the kid sleeps 12 hours every night)

Grateful!

The events of the past 2 days have made me feel really grateful for a few things I defnitely have taken for granted.
I am so grateful for good health. I'm grateful that Ethan has been such a healthy baby!
On Tuesday morning he had to have a little surgery to fix 2 clogged tear ducts. The worst part of the whole procedure was when the nurse came to take him to the OR and we had to go to the lobby. He was looking at us over the nurse's shoulder with a confused look, like "hey guys...where are you going?" It made me so sad.
The procedure took longer than the doctor expected because both of his eyes were clogged pretty bad, so I was watching the clock full of anxiety - just sure that the doctor had found something more, or sure that something had gone wrong. When we finally got to go see him in the recovery room he was hysterical. He is a really easy baby and I had never seen him cry like that. His right eye was pretty much swollen shut and bruised. I'm sure he was scared, in pain, and still having the effects of the anesthesia. It took him a little while at home before he finally stopped crying. Then after a little food and a good nap he seemed to be back to normal...just a little bruised and swollen around his eye.
Anyway, the whole experience just made me so grateful for his overall great health. I can't imagine the stress that parents go though who have sick children that undergo several surgeries and treatments. I'm also grateful for all of our family members and friends who have been praying for him. I'm also grateful that Ethan has a fantastic Dad that is willing to miss a few classes to be there for him (and mostly for his mom)!

These are 2 pictures before the surgery...trying to keep a hungry Ethan contained for 45 mins. while we waited for the doctor to come.

This was after the surgery, after he had taken a nap.

The second blessing I am so grateful for that I often take for granted is a safe home to live in with heat, and at least one car that is reliable and has 4-wheel drive in the snow.

Today with the windchill the temperature has been as low as -20 degrees. That's a little too cold for me. This afternoon around our windows, base boards and doors I have found frost inside the house and ice that will not melt. It is crazy! I can't imagine not having a house or a heater right now. I'm so thankful to be wearing my fuzzy socks and sweater and staying where it is warm today.

Where the wood looks lighter colored is actually frost on our kitchen window.

Everyday there are so many things to be thankful for!

Christmas Break Continued

My mom shipped me my camera that I had left in Boise. So I thought I would share a few more pictures from Christmas Break that I considered worthy of the blog!

Ethan being a big boy on the bar stool!

In our Merrit's outfits...all courtesy of my Dad's hat closet.

The Newly-weds!

Emily's hat actually had a really bright LED light that kept blinding people.

Clark & Weston at the Humanitarian Bowl with the Maryland mascot...the Terapin.

Ethan getting lots of coaching for his first successful trip all the way up the stairs!

Weston & I didn't bring snow clothes so we made due with what we could find in the garage. I thought we looked stunning.

Ethan enjoying a little drink at the Steelhead's hockey game.

Happy Birthday Dear Grandpa!

We think of you from far away,

on this your very special day.

We would like to be there for the cake,

but the journey we cannot make...

so we send this birthday post,

for Grandpa Turpin whom we love the most!

Grandpa - since you are turning 73 today I thought I would just quickly list 73 memories I have of you! But then I realized that would take you a really long time to read, and Dan would probably miss you too much if you were in on the computer that long. So I decided to add the digits of 7+3...and write down 10 memories I have of you!

1. I remember when I was younger riding in the car with you and hearing you sing along to the old cowboy crooners. I always thought you sounded way better than Willie Nelson. I also remember doing a little harmonica duet with you at the annual Christmas Party.

2. I remember many fun boating trips. Some fun trips to Flaming Gorge, and a few summers ago to Lake Powell. You are the best boat captain of Notayot and look so official now that you are part of the Coast Guard.

3. I remember watching excitedly for the UPS truck to deliver birthday and Christmas presents from you. The presents were always so fun because you wrote creative little riddles that rhymed to give us clues on what was inside the packages.

4. I remember being in on the secret magic trick that you used to do for Weston and James. You would sit on your black leather chair in the family room and somehow transport little objects to other areas of the house with your magical powers (or me as an assistant).

5. I remember how you are constantly helping people. I don't think I could remember all of the times you have been there for us. We used your home on way too many occasions for a recovery room, wedding headquarters, and a hotel. You helped Clark & I move from Provo to West Jordan using your trailer and truck. You've helped fix my car, stored my boxes, driven us to the airport more times than I can count, and fed us dinner. It has always meant a lot to me that you make special efforts to support us by attending events that are important to us.

6. I remember your beautiful yards and garden every year. I like how you keep a salt shaker in the shed for when you find a good ripe tomatoe. I loved living close by the last couple of years and always being sent home with yummy fresh produce.

7. I remember being a really little girl and having terrible leg aches. I remember sitting on your lap in your big chair and having my legs rubbed and feeling so good.

8. I remember you volunteering to hold Ethan during Weston and Erica's wedding open house so that I could run around and talk to everyone. I remember you gently walking around the yard for several minutes until he fell fast asleep in your arms.

9. I remember a few years ago when I asked you to perform your rendition of "Sam McGee" for my 5th grade class. You always do every job right and make things memorable. I remember the hours you spent altering the shopping cart with your welding skills to make a sled fit for a classroom. I remember laughing when you referred to the shopping cart as the "biggest waste of time" (or something like that). I know the 5th graders loved seeing you come in dressed in your full snowmobiling suit!

10. I remember many fun 4th of July Pig Pickins! I remember what a privilege it was for me and Missy to get to spend the night on the 3rd of July to help the next morning with the decorations and set-up. I also remember seeing the pig for the first time before it had been cleaned up and made presentable and how I didn't want to eat any that year.

These are just a few of my many memories. All of my memories of you are filled with love, kindness and fun! I am so grateful to have you as a grandpa!

We sure love you! We hope you have a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday!