Our Epic trip to St George

This past week Brandon had to go attend a Director's Meeting in St. George. We decided to tag along with him. Since we had a free night hotel stay to use up before May, we drove down an extra day early.

This time I made a list of things I wanted to do while we were down there. Brandon also came up with a few things he wanted us to do. It made for a very enjoyable weekend where we did many things that we have never done down there before.

On our way down we stopped at the LDS church site - Cove Fort. Since we have been learning all about rocks this month, I knew it would be a great way to reinforce some of the things we have been learning. Sadly, it was very windy and cold when we arrived, but we made the best of it and it was nice to get out of the car for about an hour.

The boys thought it was pretty cool that the rocks they used to build the fort were made from a nearby volcano - in other words, they were igneous rocks. Living in the West, it's difficult to find this type of rock, but today we checked them off our bucket "rock list".

As soon as we arrived at the hotel the boys just wanted to go swimming. We know from experience that if you want the boys to have a good time staying at a hotel, it's gotta have an indoor pool since you never know how warm it will be. Brandon was a good sport and he got them ready for swimming literally 30 minutes after we checked in.

This next school year, we are planning to enroll both of the boys in swimming lessons so they can manage their own way across the pool. I grew up terrified of water (and I sometimes still am), and I'm hoping to prevent that with these two. Plus, Peter needs to learn how to swim for one of his cub scout requirements.

Sunday morning we took a drive to the city of Toquerville. It's a tiny town about 20 minutes from St. George. My great-grandmother was born on the family farm here and I have many fond memories of her telling us stories about Anderson's Ranch. While we weren't able to find out precisely where the family farm was, we found a little stretch of road called Anderson Junction in memory of my 2nd great-grandfather (Peter Anderson).

It was fun to walk around it a bit and look at the scenery. I might have even gathered up a rock or two and some dirt from the area. I'm really am quite sentimental, and you never know what you might want to use for a craft.

Then, we headed into town and managed to find a cute city park just off the only main road in that town. The boys were thrilled to be able to get out and play at this play area. I was excited to see a very nice park bathroom. We even found a darling brown fuzzy caterpillar while we were stopped.

 

The next morning Brandon had his meeting at the University. While he was gone I took the boys to the Brigham Young Summer House. What a crazy time. We were 20 minutes into the tour when Luke loudly announces he needs to go potty. So we sneak out, sneak back in, and it went downhill from there. Luke just isn't willing to sit nicely and listen to anyone, at anytime. Peter was upset he wasn't able to see the upstairs area of the house, but I promised him next time we go down to St. George Luke will stay with Daddy and he and I can go on another tour.

We also went up to the "hill" in St George and played around on the red rock. The boys loved hiking all around the rock. I might have freaked out just a little bit when Luke decided he wanted to climb a huge rock with a precipitous on the other side. After my freak out, we all had to go back to the car and calm down. I do not do well with heights, and it gets even worse when Luke is around to scare me with his antics. It was fun though to talk about what it might have been like back when the Native Americans were the only ones here. The boys found some great holes that would make a perfect bed.

 

We also spent time at the Children's Museum, the Thunder Junction park on the west side of St. George, more swimming, walking around the Temple, riding the carousel, playing in the splash pad, playing at another city park that had a sandbox (extreme joy for Luke). 

Scouts - Germs Alive

This was a fun requirement. We, of course, didn't have balloons in the house. So, we ran to the local Dollar Store and ended up getting 4 bags. LOL. We will use them for other things....right?

First, Peter had to draw a target on a big piece of paper. He was so funny about getting it just right. 

Thankfully, the new expanded patio in the backyard was the perfect setup. This experiment was representing the way a sneeze can project germs super far. Before we popped the balloon Peter thought that it would probably go 35 inches. 

We then popped the balloon and discovered that germs can fly a whole lot farther then we both thought. They traveled an astounding 85 inches. Now, I cringe whenever someone around me sneezes.

Another part of this requirement was aimed at teaching you how quickly germs can spread on your hands. Technically, you are suppose to use glitter when you are shaking hands (see video), but since we have a strict no glitter policy at our house we used black craft paint instead. It did a great job and I think the boys now understanding of how germs spread. I just have to remind them about the "black paint" and they go running for the soap/water in the bathroom.

Another fun part in this section of the cub scout manual was the project of growing mold. We tried two other attempts before this one, and I so thankful this one finally worked. I had my doubts, particularly around Day 4 when I didn't see anything, but by Day 7 it was looking really gross.

It was interesting to see the different spots where it grew first. The banana went first, then the cheese, and last the bread. I have a feeling we'll be doing this experiment again when we are ready to pull out the microscope and look at rapid mold growth. Now, that will be cool.

Scouts - Planting Stuff

We are in the midst of scouting with Peter this month. We have been working on his 'Grow Something' belt loop. The weather has been absolutely perfect, and we've done many fun projects together.

This next pictures is when he planted peas seeds in a clear cup so we can track it's growth pattern. He doesn't naturally enjoy planting things, so this requirement has taken quite a bit of encouragement from Mom.

This picture is the weekly update of the growth of our pea seeds. I love how he made sure that the cup is represented by black, and the seed/plants is green.

I absolutely love how the second picture here turned out. We decided to plant a terrarium, but it was impossible to find small plants. So, we made due and used a mini fish tank that does an adequate job at holding the plant. We were lucky enough to find Captain Hook at the local Dollar Store. It has been a fun addition to our home.

Then, on a Friday after P.E. class, we drove over the the nearby Botanical garden (Central Utah Gardens). Once again, he wasn't too thrilled with this trip. His favorite part was kicking the pine cone he found. But, then we discovered a plant called 'Dragons Blood Sedum' and he thought that was pretty great......BOYS!

 

He also found this plant and thought that it was pretty amazing too. Here he is trying to stomp around like a Native American doing a traditional dance. Seriously, he is so hilarious sometimes.

Yearly Pruning

A few weeks ago I pruned the fruit tree in our yard. It was a satisfying job, and I felt accomplished once the task was complete. As I began cleaning up, I paused and looked at the many limbs scattered on the ground. In one brief nanosecond, I saw the potential beauty those small limbs still had. While they looked quite dead, I knew their potential could be magnificent.

I quickly walked into the house, located a vase, and scurried outside to collect my harvest.  Since then, I have been carefully watching over them. Every few days I replace the water. Every few days I change the angle they face the sun. To be honest, I've even chatted with them a time or two.

As I've been in the middle of this experiment, I've often thought about the parallel's between my limbs and life. At times, I've been dried up and not worth much. I've had doubts, I've felt afraid, I've been discouraged. Yet, despite those times, I still knew I had incredible potential.

Through countless experiences, I have learned that with a little bit of love, daily drops of nourishment, many flickers of sunshine, and persistent patience, incredible beauty can happen. Often times, we just need to "keep on, keeping on". Then, on one ordinary day, we suddenly realize, what we once thought would never bloom, has now become a strong, vibrant flower. 

An Adventure called sledding

One morning we woke up to giant fluffy snowflake coming steadily down. I quickly texted and friend and told her of our plans to get sledding at a great park nearby. Off we went with high hopes of having a blast. We did have a wonderful time together, and with our friends. The boys are now experts at sledding and so am I.

However, on this trip I thought it would be amazing to injure myself....but I didn't do it on purpose. I was attemping to walk down the sledding hill so I could get some dry gloves that were in the car. My left leg slipped out from under me and down I went. This was my view once I realized I had done a good job and I didn't want to move. My friend was a lot more prepared then I was and she went to her car and got pain reliver and a bottle of water. Somehow we managed to still have fun for a while, and then safely drive home.

Over the next several days I dealt with a very, very sore foot. The damage ended up looking like this:

It has been sad because it's been difficult to do yoga with my foot like this. It is impossible to cross my legs because of the bruise on this side of my foot. Hopefully, I'm over the worst of it now and it will just keep getting better.

While I was staring at my foot day after day and watching the bruise change colors I couldn't help but think of the many women who are physically abused all the time. I can't imagine trying to cover up bruises while trying to act like everything was normal. It made me very thankful that I am not in an abusive relationship. I can only imagine how awful that situation would be.

Luke starts Piano

This is a HUGE milestone for this little guy right here. When the kids were babies, Brandon and I agreed that he would teach them to play when they were "old" enough. Brandon taught piano before he went on his mission, so he is familiar with teaching young children. He told me it would probably be around the age of 8 when he started the boys.

Fast forward a few years. We started Peter when he was 5, and now Luke at the age of 6. If I was being totally honest with myself, we probably should have started Luke a few months ago. He had been begging and begging to start, but we wanted to wait until after his January birthday. This picture makes me so happy. I hope it will be a common scene in our home for many years to come.

I love how his little fingers are carefully playing the kids. I hope this will be a way for him to use his creative energy in a positive way. He is such a talented dude when I find the right ways to teach him.