Scott's 15th Birthday

Scott turned 15 on September 17th!  Here is what we did for Scott's birthday this year:

Friends Party

We celebrated Scott's birthday by having a party on Saturday, September 15.  Scott made his own invitations and designed his own birthday cake (VALVe style).  Scott's  best friends Jordan, Brett, Jacob, and Quinn came over, as well as his cousins Michael, Jason, Brandon, and Ryan.  We had pizza and cake, and the boys enjoyed playing video games downstairs in Scott's big bedroom.  It was very enjoyable having a house full of geeky boys.

Family Party

We had a small party for Scott for Family Home Evening on Monday, September 17th (Scott's actual birthday).  We sang Happy Birthday to Scott and had yummy banana cream pie and presents.

Scott's 15-Year-Old Interview

Here is what Scott has to say about himself this year:

What makes "15" such a special age?

I guess I get more privileges with my age.

Who are your best friends?

Brett, Jordan, Jacob, Quinn

What do you like to do when you are with your friends?

Play Video Games or talk about them.

What makes you laugh?

Just random things like Gravity Falls (TV Show) or Nyan Cat

What is your favorite class in school?  Why?

Art, I guess I've just always loved it.

What are your favorite books?

The Last Dragon, Harry Potter, Dealing with Dragons Series

What are your favorite movies?

Star Wars, Indiana Jones, same ol' same ol'

If you had a million dollars, what would you do with it?

Buy Art Supplies, Buy a Computer, Buy some Music, Buy other awesome things typically to a teenager.

Describe your perfect day.

Sleep in until maybe ten o'clock, draw/video games, visit my friends, stay up until one o'clock, stay up some more, repeat.

What do you want to do when you grow up?

Be a Graphic Designer or work at VALVe with one of their jobs, like an artist.

What is your favorite family activity?

Probably going to the library or visiting my cousin's house.

What is your favorite holiday?  Why?

Maybe Halloween, it's just fun to dress up and be someone that you're not.

The Highlight of My Day: August 2012

Something good happens each day. Here's what happened in August 2012:

Wed 8/1/12: We drove to Idaho today. I enjoyed swimming with all the kids while Brad rested and watched the Olympics. He came down later and took pictures of us. Fun times!

Thu 8/2/12: We arrived in Oregon today! It was fun seeing all of the younger children interacting with their cousins. I loved watching Lizzy and Binny playing together with their swords. It's so nice having the babies together.

Fri 8/3/12: It was very enjoyable watching my family members playing soccer in the large backyard this evening. I loved watching David and Eric chasing after balls, too. It was a perfect evening.

Sat 8/4/12: Today we made a trip to the Lego Store and Powell's Bookstore. Scott and Emma were very pleased with the purchases they made, and I found some cool things, too. In the evening we put the littlest children, minus David, in a small kiddie pool on the deck. Lizzy had a blast!

Sun 8/5/12: Rachel and I made dinner tonight for the family: Pizza casserole and orange ginger salad. I like spending time with my sister. I wish we did not live so far apart.

Mon 8/6/12: We went to Cannon Beach today! It was a lot of fun window shopping and getting candy at Bruce's Candy Shop. My favorite part of the day was taking the kids on the beach. All the kids had fun, including David. He loved the water the best.

Tue 8/7/12: Laurie, Binny, and Aunt Wendy went with us to Wilsonville Memorial Park, so the little ones could play in the water fountains. It was so cute seeing them play in the water! I took lots of photos.

Wed 8/8/12: We left Oregon today and stayed the night in Boise, Idaho. My favorite part of the day was spending a little one-on-one time with Brad. I am so grateful for my husband. He always knows the right things to say and ways to make me happy.

Thu 8/9/12: We made it home! It was so nice being back in our space again and feeling the normality. Sushi was very happy to see us, too. I love Utah.

Fri 8/10/12: Brad and I went on a date to see "The Dark Knight Rises." I thought it was cool that I was not surprised by the twist near the end of the movie. I blame that on Emma's Batman obsession. Batman the Animated Series has played many times in our home.

Sat 8/11/12: We enjoyed another fabulous pool party at Aunt Marian's house. Lizzy almost drowned when she took her wings off at lunch time and sneaked back into the pool, but luckily we were not too far away and saw her. My favorite part of the day was playing Nerts with Brad and Marian.

Sun 8/12/12: We watched the closing ceremony of the Olympics tonight. I enjoyed some parts of the ceremony more than others. I liked watching Eric Idle sing "Look on the Bright Side of Life." I made David bounce on my lap for some of the music. He loved it.

Mon 8/13/12: My favorite moment of the day was dancing in the kitchen with my husband while the love song "More" played in the background. I love my husband.

Tue 8/14/12: We bought a new computer today to replace our old Dell desktop. Brad had been very stressed about it, but when we actually got it, he felt much better. Hooray for new computers!

Wed 8/15/12: I love hearing David laugh his Ernie laugh every time Sushi walks by him. It's so dang cute! I love my little happy boy.

Thu 8/16/12: I love that Scott and Emma are going to Entheos Academy! Tonight was their back to school night. We saw the Baum family, as well as Loralee and the cousins. It was nice meeting the staff.

Fri 8/17/12: I love being my husband's wife. He makes me feel loved and needed. I'm grateful we have each other.

Sat 8/18/12: Scott and Emma got to spend time with their cousins today-- one of the only times this summer-- while Brad and I got done some shopping. We bought "The Hunger Games" on BlueRay from Sam's Club. Good movie! I enjoyed watching it this afternoon.

Sun 8/19/12: 4 pounds in three days. Wowza! I love seeing the pounds shed off like this.

Mon 8/20/12: It was fun having the girls come over for sleepovers tonight. Baby D received a lot of attention, and Lizzy was very distracted which helped me get done other things. Emma seemed thrilled to have her cousins with her.

Tue 8/21/12: School uniform shopping is officially over! YAY! Scott and Emma tried on their clothes and everything fits right. Tonight Scott asked me to cut his hair for the first time, which completely surprised me! He said he wanted to "look good" for his first day of school. Way to go, Scott! You're turning into a man!

Wed 8/22/12: Emma was very excited to give me a verbal report of her first day of school. She enthusiastically told me her new classroom pet was an eye-dropper. What the...

Thu 8/23/12: Brad and I took the little ones for a walk around our neighborhood tonight. I love spending time with my husband. His companionship always makes my heart happy.

Fri 8/24/12: Brad and I went to the cemetery tonight to visit his mother's grave on what would have been her 67th birthday. We brought some small shabby roses from our yard and placed them next to the nice roses Brad's dad left there. Lizzy loved seeing all the flowers.

Sat 8/25/12: We saw Rosie and Tricky today! It was nice having lunch with the family and spending time with them. It's been awhile since we've all gotten together like that.

Sun 8/26/12: My sunbeams were very well behaved today! I'm grateful that I have a new teaching partner now.

Mon 8/27/12: We talked about work and self-reliance for FHE tonight. It's a topic I always need to hear and work on.

Tue 8/28/12: I took Emma, Lizzy, Rachel, and Kaylie to Walmart tonight. We bought some pillows, baskets, band-aids and fabric. Lizzy loved having her cousins with at the store and was very disappointed when we dropped them off at their house afterward.

Wed 8/29/12: I finished making my homemade child-proof gate for the stairway. I used PVC pipe and furniture fabric. It looks so much better than the old screen door we were using!

Thu 8/30/12: Scott came back from his 9th Grade Adventure trip this afternoon. My favorite part of the day was sitting on the couch with him, talking about a wide range of topics he and I were interested in. I love that boy.

Fri 8/31/12: My highlight of the day was cuddling on the couch with Brad while watching three episodes of "Merlin." Thank you, babies, for going to sleep early tonight!

Uncle Tricky's Visit

We love it when Uncle Tricky comes to visit, especially when he brings Rosie.

First Day of School

Scott and Emma started their first day at Entheos Academy today! They are thrilled to be attending the same school as their cousins as well as going to the same school with each other again (it's been a couple of years).  Entheos Academy is a small charter school that promotes expeditionary learning and offers unique experiences that students don't typically experience going to a traditional public school.  Scott and Emma will be involved in a lot of outdoor excursions as well as participating in fun out-of-class and after school activities, such as swimming and Lego Club.  They are both excited and are looking forward to fun days ahead.

Scott is a ninth grader this year and Emma is a sixth grader.

Sushi got a makeover today, just for the occasion.  

(Lizzy's doing, by-the-way)

Family Camp 2012

The six of us went on a 13 hour road trip to Oregon during the first week in August to spend time with my aunts, my sister, and their families.  We divided the long drive in half by staying a night at a Best Western Inn in Boise, Idaho, which was very nice after a long car ride with the kids.  We had a large family suite this time, with four beds and a crib.  We enjoyed swimming in the hotel's indoor pool and watching the Olympics.

I ended up catching a cold while we stayed in Boise, so I was feeling rather poorly by the time we reached my aunts' house in Wilsonville.  It was so darling seeing all of the little children together!  Binny, Lizzy, David, and Eric looked so adorable playing together in the family room.  Binny had lots of neat toys to play with, and Lizzy took a fancy to them right away.  She and Binny had a sword fight with pirate swords in Binny's large toy boat.

We enjoyed many fun family activities while we were in Oregon.  We played some soccer in the backyard with the little ones chasing after balls.  We did some shopping at our usual fun places:  the Lego Store and Powell's book store.  Lizzy, Binny, and Eric enjoyed riding the little Merry-Go-Round inside the mall.  The weather was unusually hot for Oregon, so we took advantage of that by having some water-play.  Aunt Laurie filled a little wading pool with water and placed it outside on the deck.  The kids had a great time splashing and playing with water toys.  We, of course, went to Cannon Beach as well.  We love going to Cannon Beach!  We had a very enjoyable day window shopping at all of the cute little tourist shops before we headed down to the water.  Scott and Lizzy liked playing in the sand the most, Emma went hunting for seashells, and David thoroughly enjoyed crawling into the ocean-- he LOVED the water!  Binny and Eric had a wonderful time playing on the beach, too.  Binny threw a big fit when we had to leave.  He spread out his arms toward the waves and shouted, "No!" as Laurie pulled against his baby harness.  At the end of our stay in Oregon, we went to a nearby park and enjoyed some more water-play.  Lizzy and Binny had lots of fun playing in the water fountains together.  David thought getting wet again was great!

I love capturing these moments with photos.  Here are my favorites: