A Little Late...Identities Being Formed

Sorry this post about the kids last week is so late. Things have been a bit crazy around here (although there is nothing unusual about that.) Anyway here goes:

Allyson learned that she has a lot of confidence on stage, even if she is a little nervous before the show. She also is starting to learn that Daddy does some things "just because he is a man!" That was a direct quote from her explaining why Daddy takes such sharp corners when he drives.

Ryan learned that not only did he know his lines for the play, but he knew others' as well and corrected them when they were wrong or prompted them when needed. He also learned that love can be difficult at times (this comes from a sad, and teary-eyed on his end, conversation at the breakfast table with me, but confidentiality rules the day).

Isaac learned that both Mommy and Daddy were little like him once, and that we also got into trouble and made messes. He loves to ask questions now about when we were little. He even asked if some bad guys got into trouble for wearing their capes and jumping off the couch. It is nice to know that he thinks that is the most terrible thing one could do.

Evan learned that he can move his thumb independantly from the rest of his hand (which he was happy about) and he learned that Mommy will not let him bite when nursing (this he was not so happy about, and neither was I.)

A Night of Theatre

For the past few months, Allyson and Ryan have been in a theatre (note the pretentious "re" spelling) club after school. Their efforts came to fruition last Thursday when they performed.

Ryan's troupe put on "Hansel and Gretel in the Big Woods," in which the hapless children are captured by a wizard and finally saved by a ragtag group of elves (or dwarves; I couldn't tell). Ryan was Smelly the dwarf--fitting enough...Here are two pictures of the show:

There was a brief intermission before Allyson's show, during which time I got a picture of the two cutest audience members:

Allyson's show was "Jackie and the Chilestalk," a sequel to the more famous tale of Jack and his beanstalk. Here Jackie buys magic chiles that lead to a trip to the giant's cloud castle where all the wrongs of the first fairy tale are righted. Allyson played Jackie's mother. Here are two pictures from the show:

Here are the young thespians after the performance:

Denver Art Museum, or "DAM, That's Good Art"

A few weeks ago, Summer's mom emailed her to tell her about a trip she and Phill were planning to Denver to see a travelling exhibition on Impressionist art. Her devious plan to get us to tag along worked, as we took the bait and asked if they would mind us joining them. So Friday morning we hit the road.

After negotiating some rush hour traffic, we reached open road, but being in the fray made me a bit aggressive behind the wheel, and I was going about 90 when, just north of Santa Fe, I spotted a State Trooper going the other direction. She quickly crossed the median and pulled us over. It had been a good 8 years since I had been ticketed, so I suppose I was due. The funniest (or perhaps the only funny part) was when Isaac asked if I was going to jail...

Our first planned stop was an Evan feeding at a rest stop north of Las Vegas, NM. Here the kids ran around and burned off some energy. The rest area has no water, so the vegetation here is apt:
The rest of the trip was uneventful, and we arrived in Denver late in the afternoon. We went downtown for dinner with Phill and Pat, who were staying just blocks from the 16th Street Mall, a mile-long, pedestrian only promenade. The downtown area was bustling, indicative of the vibrant metropolis that Denver has become. It's also a very clean city with lots of parks and attractions, not to mention Major League baseball (albeit National League). Summer and I commented that it would be a great place to live, but it's certainly too big for our taste.

Saturday was museum day. After meeting up with the Catheralls for a brunch-like bite, we proceeded south to the Denver Art Museum. (As a side note, the museum has a lot of fun with the DAM initials, inviting visitors to buy a membership and become a "DAM good friend.") It was chilly Saturday, and while we were inside we even saw some light snow flurries.

Our walk took us past the Civic Park, which is itself across the street form the State Capital building. Here Isaac pauses for a photo:

The exhibit itself was great, showcasing how artists such as Renoir, Monet, and Cassatt were trained in the artistic traditions and began their careers copying the old masters and then went on to experiment with the themes and techniques of previous eras. After an hour or so in the exhibit, we decided, due to the aforementioned snow, to stay inside and eat lunch at the museum restaurant. To get there, were took the pedestrian bridge connecting the north and south buildings. Here the kids pose, seemingly floating above 13th street:

After lunch we split into two parties; Ryan wanted to see African and Oceanic art, so he and Isaac came with me. On our way to meet up with the rest of the group, we discovered a room where an overhead lighting system projected bubbles (about 2-foot wide circles) onto the floor. When you stepped on a "bubble" and got between the light source and the floor, it "popped," splitting into a dozen smaller circles that expanded outward and disappeared. The boys took to this and popped bubbles for about 15 minutes. Afterwards, they looked like this:

It's been a long time since I spent all day in a museum, and it was great fun. The DAM has great pieces of art and a number of interactive features that make it fun for the kids as well. But perhaps their favorite was this sculpture outside of a broom and dustpan:

Altogether, we had a wonderful time. Our initial plan was to hit the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, but we never got around to it, so I promised Ryan we would go back and do that and a Rockies game. Anyone who wishes to come along is invited...

And in closing, here are the kids with another outdoor sculpture:

I Had to Share This...

You know the semester is winding down when I started posting inane items more often. A few weeks ago, Summer had a dentist appointment and I went with her to watch the little boys. On the way we tuned into NPR and caught the tail end of the Writer's Almanac, one of my daily podcast fixes. The poem for the day was baseball-themed (Pat later emailed the link to Summer, who sent it on to me). At the risk of copyright infringement, here is the text of the poem:
Poem: "Assignment #1: Write a poem about Baseball and God" by Philip E. Burnham, Jr. from Housekeeping: Poems Out of the Ordinary. © Ibbetson Street Press, 2005.
"Assignment #1: Write a poem about Baseball and God"

And on the ninth day, God
In His infinite playfulness
Grass green grass, sky blue sky,
Separated the infield from the outfield,
Formed a skin of clay,
Assigned bases of safety
On cardinal points of the compass
Circling the mountain of deliverance,
Fashioned a wandering moon
From a horse, a string and a gum tree,
Tempered weapons of ash,
Made gloves from the golden skin of sacrificial bulls,
Set stars alight in the Milky Way,
Divided the descendants of Cain and Abel into contenders,
Declared time out, time in, stepped back,
And thundered over all of creation:
"Play ball!"

A theology centered around baseball sounds pretty good to me...

Another Week Another Tired Mom

Evan started actually clapping for the first time (he used to do a funny sideways clap with his hands). This was just in time for a baseball game on Monday. Now I get applauded when I change diapers, sing songs, or play games. It's about time I get rewarded!

Isaac has decided he wants to grow up to be a grandpa. He has described in detail the house he will have when he has grandchildren, it has lots of stairs. Apparently we have disappointed him in our one story home.

Ryan decided he wants to get married in the Mt Timp temple. Although he is willing to consider another temple if his future wife wants him to. Are we raising him to be a good husband, or what?

Allyson was the best helper this week. She helped both the boys make their beds, without being asked. She was also spectacular at church today when Roy was speaking in another ward, and I had four children by myself in our ward. She even picked the boys up from Primary and found me in the RS room, where, of course, I was chatting away.

Tattoos?

We'll get to the tattoos in a bit, and, no, neither Summer nor I got body art. But first, a fun day on the town. On Friday, the kids got out of school early, so Summer picked me up and we all went to lunch at Bumblebee's, a fun Baja-style Mexican place in town. Summer and I had a taco combo plate and fell in love with the special sauce on the fish and shrimp tacos, respectively.

After running some more errands, we stopped by our favorite bakery, Just a Bite, and got some mini-cupcakes. In December I bought cannoli for Summer's birthday here, and we're planning on an anniversary cake to celebrate 10 years of bliss next month.

Now for the good stuff. While we were at Bumblebee's, the manager asked if we wanted any temporary tattoos for the kids. So after we got home we applied them to Allyson's ankle and Ryan's arm:
Now we can easily say no when teenaged children ask for tattoos--"We already got you one."

The Best Field Trip Ever

On Monday the kids had a field trip with the classmates from the gifted program to the Isotopes' afternoon game--a pretty wonderful idea, if you ask me. The ballpark is a five-minute walk from my office, so I was able to sneak over after I was done and enjoy a few innings with the kids. But before I got there, Summer was caring for four small children at a baseball game. That's Mom-of-the-Year style stuff.

The seats were on the third base side, about halfway down the line, two rows back. After Dad's tale of foul ball-catching, this had the air of history. Ryan and Isaac had both brought their gloves, and foul balls came close, but no cigar.

The day itself was spectacular--65 at gametime, 77 at the final pitch. And the game was great. When I was able to, I checked the game log from work, and after 7 it was tied 6-6. I arrived around then to see some great ball. Both teams made some fielding errors and got some hits, but kept leaving men in scoring position. In the bottom of the 8th, the 'Topes stranded runners at 2nd and 3rd.

After a solid half inning of pitching and defense in the top of the 9th, the home team took the field. Soon there were runners on 2nd and 3rd again, this time for the player who had hit a home run earlier in the game. The Redhawks wisely walked him, but the intentional pass, which loaded the bases with one out, seemed to rattle the pitcher. His first offering to the 'Topes catcher was hit to right-center for the game-winning RBI single.

After the game Ryan was able to join other kids for the running of the bases, a nice treat for kids ages 5-12, who can do a quick circle of the field. The smile on his face was a mile wide. The camera was stowed in the diaper bag at the time, so there's no photo proof, but you can use your imaginations.

As we walked back to the car, I thought, "This is how it's supposed to be." A beautiful day at the ballgame.

Such Silliness

Evan started sleeping on his side and tummy. He sure looks silly sleeping this way. And, although he is not actually crawling, somehow he is getting around a lot more.

Isaac turned everything into some sort of weapon despite my best efforts to guide him in another direction. He evan made a bow with arrows and a quiver.

Ryan casually mentioned his invisible girlfriend. She happens to be a squirrel who ate 50 crayons in January and consequently is suffering from a fever of 101*. He also decided he wants 3 bottles of mouth wash for his birthday.

Allyson finally decided (after years of me begging and pleading) that it was okay for mommy to do her hair. And now I get to do it every morning (not just the past agreed upon Sunday).

Play Ball!

Friday was the home opener for the Isotopes, so we got seats and ventured out on a rather blustery evening at the ballpark. This game marked the beginning of the 'Topes' sixth season, and, since we've been in Albuquerque for every season, it's clear we'll been here for a while.

Our seats were on the upper deck on the third-base side. I love these seats; they've got a great view of both the action on the field and the Sandias in the distance. It really is one of the best views in all of baseball.

Anyhow, on to the pictures. Here's the crew all bundled up for the 48 degree weather:

An important part of baseball is food. Before the game we ate at a diner on Central (great place; we're eating there next time family's in town), and each of the kids ordered a ridiculously large hot dog. Allyson ate all of hers and got her own bag of cotton candy, and the boys shared a second bag with the parents. Evan for one thought highly of cotton candy:

Opening night includes a rather lengthy bit of pomp and circumstance; we got there early for our free hats, but by the time the game began (at about 7:20 pm), Isaac had fallen asleep in a heap:

As I mentioned earlier, it was a chilly night. By the time we left (we lasted four innings--longer than either starting pitcher), it was pretty cold. Here's a view of the Sandias; if you look closely you can see snow on the mountains from a storm earlier in the week:

We plan to go to games for my birthday, July 4th, Ryan's birthday, and Evan's birthday. There's also an afternoon game on Monday that the kids are going to as a field trip (I'm in class), and another when I'm off in May (I'll take Isaac). Play ball...

A Sunday Hike

Sunday was a gorgeous spring day in New Mexico, and after the morning session of conference, the older kids and I headed off for a quick hike in the Sandia foothills. As faithful blog readers know, we have done very little hiking this year, and I have decided to repent. To that end, we drove to the eastern terminus of Copper Avenue to the southernmost trailhead in the city's foothills open space area. There we headed due east, following a series of switchbacks, to the crest of the first major hill, an ascent of a few hundred feet over a mile or so. On the way up, we paused for a drink, and the kids found an enormous Juniper (the plant that is most likely causing my terrible allergies this season):
The trail crests at a pass between the bulk of the mountain to the southeast and a small point called U-Mound (I think named for a tendency among UNM students of yesteryear to cavort here) that rises to the west. We thought briefly about making an attempt to scale it, but decided better. Anyhow, here is U-Mound seen from the south:

On the way back down, we took a side trail that ran parallel to the contour of the foothills. A few spots were rather tricky, but the kids showed their stuff by handling all of it. At one point, Isaac, who has been attacked by cactus twice in his short life and is therefore wary of them, had to pass near a cactus on a downslope. The result is this:

He came away unscathed. The return trip took us across the scrubland that characterizes the flatlands near the trailhead. Here the kids caught a second breath and ran ahead:

This Week in Our Life

Evan recovered from his very first bout of pink eye. Is there some reason that at least one of our children get said malady when we take a trip to Utah/Wyoming?

Isaac argued about taking a nap everyday, and yet still took a nap everyday.

Ryan found out he loved April fools day. He got to lie to his parents all day as long as followed it with "April Fools!"

Allyson smashed her finger while playing with our adjustable basketball hoop. She vowed never to go outside again, quickly forgetting such things said in haste. We worried that it might be broken (what with the swelling and bruising), but luckily it is only badly bruised.

Our Most Recent Trip

Here are some photos from our trip to Utah/Wyoming over Easter, and the past week. In reverse chronological order, we have Ryan and Evan playing catch this past Monday, after we had returned home:
Next, during the week Summer and the kids spent in Utah, we have Isaac, whose long hair required a shot with the blow dryer:

And from Easter Sunday, at the Turner cottage in Evanston, here's our family, all dressed up:

The trip was a lot of fun. We got to see and spend time with a number of family members, and Nathan's ordination was an especially good experience. We will see you all again in a few months.