The Leavitt Family

Highlights Spring-Summer-Fall 2009

2009-11-13T23:45:00.001-08:00

Yes, I know it has been over 6 months since my last post. Life sometimes gets in the way. So...here are the highlights of the last 6 months. Reader beware that 6 months is a long time so get comfy it's a long post. (Lindsay's self serve haircut is at the end.)

Halloween 2009

Even Lindsay carved (with help.)Final creations...Shane Loves, and I mean LOVES Halloween. He gruesome up the front yard last year for the trick or treaters and it was a hit. So, this year he went bigger. A moving bloody manikin stuck under a tractor, a snow blower with bloody body parts coming out of it, a fog Machine, moaning crystal skull, giant ghost over the light post, and a scary noises CD. I wish I'd taken a movie or something in the dark it was pretty gory.The part I love about Halloween...Emma and Lindsay had very specific requests for their Halloween costumes. So I hit the drawing board and enjoyed getting creative.

Emma: Rosella the Island Princess Barbie
I had a pattern for the bodice and skirt but the rest I made up as I went along with the movie cover and a doll as a guide. It was really fun. (But I am kinda geeky with the sewing...I love it.)

Lindsay: Alexa from the Barbie Diamond Castle Same thing with this one...Pattern for the bodice and skirt with a doll and movie cover as a guide. I'm kind of a perfectionist with it but this time I was actually happy with how they turned out.

Most of all the girls Love their dresses and will be dancing around the house in them all year long.

Brad: the grim reaper or unknown phantom By the time I was done with the dresses I could not find a pattern in stock for the Reaper. So, we bought his this year. Also pictured here is Brad's best bud Hunter. This year the two boys went out on their own and came in with a load of candy and had an awesome time.

Family Time Flash Backs

Ski Day Last Spring...We took the whole family up to Beaver Mountain, Lindsay included. Uncle Mark came along too. Shane, Brad and Emma skied. We borrowed a pack for Lindsay to ride piggy back with Shane while I stayed at the bottom this time for the girls to trade off turns with dad down little beaver. (I'm not skilled enough to get Emma and myself on and off the lift so the girls had to take turns with dad.) Oh boy did Lindsay love it. She had a hard time waiting her turn. When she is just a bit bigger we'll slap some sticks on her feet too. Emma is improving and Brad is doing so well. We are coming on the ski season again so adventure awaits.Camping, Camping, and more Camping...

We finished "Eddie" (the Motor home) just in time for spring. Here is Eddie on its maiden voyage up Logan canyon by the girl scout camp. We stayed nice and toasty that night in the Eddie mobile. It has a thermostat that cycles on and off throughout the night, so, camping in the spring was way fun. The kids just can't wait to go camping each time we go.
We camped quite a bit in the summer so here are just a few of the trips with "Eddie".

We ventured out and took "Eddie" to Star Valley Wyoming. What a ride that was, but "Eddie" was a champ. We stayed on Uncle Terry's land by the "condo" (Shane's family named the place that because he has an old trailer on the land they affectionately refer to as the condo.) It rained and rained that trip, which helped us find a few more leaks that needed attention. ( Remember the camper is circa 1976.) Many of our "Eddie" camp outs were joined by Shane's parents. We always enjoy their company and they know how to camp!

They brought their swing and we had no trees to attach it to. So we rigged an apparatus out of spare wood and attached it between the campers. Lindsay was so happy...as long as it wasn't raining.
Snug as a bug. The kids sleep well in Eddie.

They ride pretty well too (although with the Van they have space between them so in the camper the "she's breathing my Air" becomes a factor.)
We stayed in Wyoming all weekend that trip and so on Sunday we went to a sacrament in Fairview. It was kinda fun to use the Camper shower and get all dressed up for Sacrament meeting. Lots of great memories. We also visited Uncle Terry's Cabin up Elbow Canyon on more property he owns. It is a fun little rustic place.

Later in the summer we camped at Chesterfield, Idaho. Uncle Jeff came up and brought his daughter Nina and Joel's (Shane's other Brother) son Addison. Shane and his dad both have pontoon boats and Jeff has a float tube so...yes you guessed it...Fishing! Uncle Jeff caught the most. It was amazing. All trout. He must have some ancient secret because I think Shane only caught 1 or 2 at the most. Nanny always comes prepared with crafts for the kids to do. They are painting little wooden reptiles. Way fun.

Yes I was in fact at each of these camp outs I was just usually the one behind the camera. So here is the proof that I am actually at the events. Shane and Jeff are manning a great cook out at Chesterfield Dam. Jeffs famous buffalo chicken wings. Mmmmmm good!

We also Tent Camped this summer...

The Wirthlin family camp out was in June down in Green River, Utah near Arches. We ate, played, laughed around the campfire and just enjoyed the whole family together for the first time since, um, I think Dave got married.

Bradley had brought his metal detector and the kids kept finding change all around the campsite. Brad and Kellie were inseparable. They even went running in the sprinklers at the nearby golf course after the sun went down one night. All the kids played well.

One of the activities we did is travel to Arches National Park. So beautiful. Amazing these rock formations. All of us hiked Grandparents, Kids, Grandchildren. It was fun. I only wish we'd had a few more days in Arches. We barely scratched the surface. I have a billion pictures though. Too many to put on the blog.

Lindsay is amazed at everything.
We hiked as a family into the double arch. It was amazing to be inside this.

Behind us is the Landscape arch at the end of the day. It was clouding up and we were lucky to make it back to the car before the down pouring of rain.

Shane...

Shane has been busy. In the spring he finished fixing up all the last mechanical touches on the Motor home. He even got the generator running again. He was pretty excited. In April he turned 36. We register the camper so that it was legal. Thus the camper Cake.

Work has kept Shane very busy. Paragon built a new facility and started moving into it toward the end of Summer. Shane being their in house electrician was kept quite busy with some late hours. Around the same time, Shane got a new calling in our ward. He had been serving as the Young mens president but in August they called him the serve as the 2nd Counselor in our bishopric. He is not over YM though. He is over primary. Quite a different turn. When he is not at work he is often away for Bishopric stuff. We knew it would be busy but it has taken some time for our little family to adjust.

Becky...

Well, I'm still at home with the kids. What a blessing it is in this day and age to have that privilege. Mom means more than just nurture and care though...I am a chauffeur, cook, secretary, tutor, accountant, and much more. So, yes my Halloween costumes are a little insane, but that creativity time is my outlet. I am grateful for my calling too. I get to teach Relief Society once a month. It is a good place. I need Relief Society to spiritually rejuvenate each week with Shane gone so much...sacrament meeting should be that but it has turned into a battle to keep my children in line, alone, with dad on the stand. We will get the hang of it eventually.

Brad...
Brad finished out his 6th grade year on the honor roll. His first year in middle school. We are so proud of him. In July he turned 12. A milestone Birthday. We had told him all year long that if he did well all year long in school that for his birthday he could get a TV for his room. He had been asking for one for a year.

Well, since he honored in school, we had no choice but to follow through. So he got his TV.He was ordained a Decon in the Aaronic Priesthood. What a special day that was. This is in the Bishop's office right after. He is growing up so fast. He went to his first scout camp this summer and he earned his 2nd and 1st class. Plus, he earned 6 merit badges. He enjoys the scouting program.Emma...

In early spring Emma lost her first tooth. She was pretty brave and let me pull the tooth from the thread it was hanging from.

She also finished out her preschool career. She graduated from Mrs. Megan's preschool ready to move on to Kindergarten.

At the end of August Emma began Kindergarten. She was so ready. It wasn't hard for her or me. Maybe that is because she isn't the oldest or the youngest in our family and she was really ready. Here she is with Mrs. Schmidt her teacher on the first day.And at her desk for the first time. She said, "you can go now mom." It is Lindsay who is having a hard time with it all. But Emma is a champ. Lindsay was so happy when Emma came home from that first day of School!!!!Sisters Rock! That is all about that.

Lindsay...

Lindsay turned 3 in October. My baby is 3. She is so animated and full of life. She is just fun. She got a "real bike" (as opposed to a trike.) She was so excited.

The pink and purple, I admit, might have been a bit much but she loved it.

Take notice of her hair at her birthday, because it is the last pictures of her with long hair.

Our latest adventure... November 4th, I had a shower while she was watching a movie. Not unusual, she watches a movie in my room with the door to the bathroom open so I can hear her. But this time, something felt wrong. I called her into the bathroom (from my shower) and she says..."its okay I will clean it" and walks back out. I call her back in...wait clean what... Next she says "its okay it will grow." Wait, WHAT? I peek around the shower curtain and just screamed "Noooooooo". She had climbed on the counter and gotten the kid scissors. I actually think she was looking for gum, but found the kid paper scissors instead. Kid scissors ARE in fact sharp enough to cut hair pretty crisply. I was crying. She was crying. I'm just glad she didn't hurt herself. But, Oh her long curly locks. She had never had so much as a trim before. Her hair just grew perfectly from the time she was born with wavy curls in the back.

She clipped a little off of the left side but masacred the right. My only redeption was that she did't have bangs to begin with so, she didn't cut anything right to the scalp. She gave herself bangs. Snipped a chunk at her ear level (you can't see it because the longer layer she cut is brushed forward. The most salvageable level was at least shoulder lenth, but she layered above that. So, In tears I called my good friend and neighbor Nikki who does my hair. She saved us. Lindsay got her first official hair cut. Nikki did an amazing job especially considering what Lindsay left to work with. She blended it all pretty amazing.
With enough mousse and spray I can plaster it into piggys. So, I asked her why she did it. Her reply, "I wanted to be Mulan." (That is the movie she was watching.) Boy do we have some adventures ahead with our Lindsay.

UPDATES!

2009-04-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it's been a while since I've posted anything so here are some updates...

The Dermoid Cyst
Lindsay's recovery from her Dermoid removal (see Jan.26th) went so well. She is such a champ. I got a copy of the pictures they took in surgery and this is what they removed. It was much larger than it appeared from the outside. They got the whole thing in one piece and sent it to be biopsied. The tests came back completely free of cancerous tissue and confirmed that it was skin tissue that had formed a ball. Also that it would have continued to grow if we had not removed it. Anyway, It was such a good decision to get it out sooner than later.

Here she is now and you cannot even tell that anything was there... Umm... and I might be biased but isn't she gorgeous! Becky turned....37 years OLD in early February
Yes, I admit it, I'm only 3 years from that monumental birthday!So, for my Birthday Shane got me (well, us) a new Nikon D60 Camera. ( I say us because he loves photography too and I'm sure he will get his turn now and again.) I must also interject that he gave me this awesome gift the day our computer died and two days before the washer and dryer went on the fritz. (see post "They come in three's") So, we almost considered taking it back...but we didn't. I'm so glad as it is such a fun camera.

Update...They Come In Three's Shane fixed the washer. A piece had broken in the motor and he found the replacement part in town, in stock, for $18. So glad to be married to such a handyman. The Dryer he fixed but it still has a few issues. But it will do. The computer, well we owe a HUGE thank you to our friends Cameron and Lindsay. Cameron for his hours and hours of work fixing it and Lindsay for her patience with him away at our house fixing it. Anyway, we think he's a GENIUS! He saved all our info, pictures, etc., wiped our hardrive and reloaded everything. Shane and I realized how computer illiterate we still are. So, All worked out and we feel pretty blessed.
Emma Turned FIVE

Late in February Emma turned 5 yeard old. She will start kindergarten in the fall. We are so excited for her and she is excited too.

On her Birthday, Daddy brought her home her first bouquet of flowers which made her feel so special. She was beaming. My first attempt at creating a Barbie princess cake. It was fun. I used my Kitchenaid mixer bowl to bake the cake dress plus a single layer 9 in cake to make it long enough. Used the second single layer for the happy b-day message and candles. Emma was so excited to have her cousins, Aunt and Uncle and Nanny and Papa there to celebrate with her. She got a Fur Real puppy toy from Mom and Dad. A Barbie microphone and music belt from Uncle Mark, Aunt Carrie and cousins. A princess Artist activity set from Nanny and Papa.
A few other trinkets and clothes. All that was left was a card... what no bike? that is all I asked for... I'm sure she must have been thinking this. In the card was a note that lead her on a treasure hunt.

It lead her to the basement guest bedroom...but nothing apparently visible....
Ah, the closet...and there it was...the pink and purple princess bike with stickers and flowers. Just what she wanted. She has really enjoyed it even in the cold. She is so girly it is cute.

Happy birthday to our Lovely little Emma. She is a joy. We're so blessed to have you come to our family five years ago. She says thanks to all for the gifts. Grammie and Grampa sent her a new blanket which Grammie made for her (she loves it) and some money which she spent on a new baby doll and carrier. Thank you all.

More updates to come... Like Easter and all... But for what has been going on in March and early April See Shane's Garage... It was just updated again with more pics of the improvements on our Motorhome.

HOLY SHNIKIES! Shane's garage is updated!

2009-03-05T22:15:00.000-08:00

They Come In Three's?

2009-02-26T08:03:00.000-08:00

Our computer crashed and has been down off and on for about 3 weeks now and I'm still not sure it will survive. ( We have saved all of our photos so at least that is good.) The same week end that our computer died (while our friend was working on the computer for us) the washer died. It just stopped churning. While Shane was working on the washer the Dryer Died literally within a half an hour of each other! So, the out come of the computer is still in the air (functional and yet not.) Our friend has wiped the hard drive twice and reloaded everything. The washer needed a plastic piece that had snapped in the motor (So glad that Shane is such a handyman!) So he found the piece at a local appliance store for $18 in stock! Hallelujah! The washer was a quick fix thank goodness! The dryer he fixed that night, I'm not sure of it's problem...but now it seems to only dry everything on high heat. He needs to recheck that one. Okay...so they are supposed to only come in three's right? Not! Yesterday my battery in the van died in the parking lot of the post office. Now, we knew that it was having trouble holding a charge for very long and that we would have to replace it eventually, but to inch it along we had kept a self contained battery jumper pack in the trunk. I even know how to work it. BUT, Shane had taken it out to use over the weekend on something in the garage and did not return it to my car. I came out of the post office ( after dropping Brad off at school-in my pajamas, the girls in theirs too) to find the battery dead as could be. Shane to the rescue again...He took his break at work and came to jump start the van. Then we went to Autozone had the battery and alternator tested (hallelujah again just the battery as we suspected.) So, we did buy a new battery for the van. We are trying to follow the adage "use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without"...but there are just some things you can't do without!

Surgery

2009-01-26T00:15:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Lindsay was born with a lump beside her left eye. We were told it would eventually have to be removed. Well, it has grown over the last two years and is quite noticeable. We took her to an E/N/T specialist, recommended by her pediatrician, as they specialize in facial reconstructive surgery. He diagnosed it as an "ocular dermoid" meaning a cyst by the eye resembling skin tissue. By the nature of the dermoid it would grow until removed. (I pictured a large marble by the side of her eye by age 5 and a golf ball by 16...but that's just me...always the what ifs.) Anyway, Just time to have it done.
Before Surgery...Some pictures it is quite noticeable and others not so much. It just depends on the angle you are looking from and if she is smiling or not.

A couple of days before the surgery, Lindsay started to show signs of a sinus infection. The afternoon before surgery her doctor put her on a one day dosage of Zithromax just to be safe. She did not react well to the meds. By bedtime she was throwing up. ( Not what you want to see happen the day before your daughter is going to be completely sedated. ) The doctor on call told us the medication was most likely the cause. She fell asleep right after throwing up with a completely empty stomach. She had to fast after midnight, no food or liquid. She woke up at 3:30am "I want juice, mommy" and all I could give her was a binky. Poor thing. She was awake until 5am but did not continue to vomit... so, surgery on.
Surgery Day...
We had to be at the hospital to check in by 8am. Lindsay had no idea what was about to happen. She loved the special treatment, hospital gown and booties. Once she was changed we moved into the private child/parent waiting and recovery room. We then had to just wait and wait and wait. Good thing we had brought a bunch of things with us to do in her Dora Backpack. They gave her a Hop on Pop Bear to keep and she sure liked that. Finally at 9:20 it was her turn in surgery. We had to walk her to the doors of the OR and give her to the Anesthesiologist. She was so brave. We don't know what happened from there...if she cried much? That was hard for Shane and I. After a few minutes of composure we got some breakfast at the Hospital Deli. The nurses told us to bring it back to the room to eat as her surgery would most likely be short. (We were originally told an hour at the most.) So, an hour goes by and then 15 more minutes. So, naturally I was just beginning to worry. Finally, Dr. Blotter came in to tell us she was waking and to show us a picture of what he removed. It was over a centimeter in diameter...over a centimeter marble! A bit bigger than it looked from the outside. He got it all in one smooth piece and said he found no feelers so it should not grow back. They are sending it to be biopsied, standard procedure. She has three stitches, but he made the cut in her eyebrow, in a few years you won't even be able to tell.When she came in she was still quite out of it and mellow. When she noticed the IV it kinda concerned her but all she really wanted was to drink some juice. And when all was said and done with her safely in our arms all Shane and I wanted was a nap.

A Few Trips to Beaver Mt.

2009-01-25T18:58:00.000-08:00

Beaver Mountain here we come. Season passes again this year for Shane, Brad and Emma. I think Shane has been 7 times this season, Brad 4 times, and Emma twice so far. I have even been once. So, here are a few highlights of a few of those trips...

December 26th (or was it 27th) Shane and Brad joined his friend Steve and his son Bentley. It's been too long since they have just hung out, life and such, you know. I hear they had a great time (just like old times) and by the looks of Brad on the way home he played pretty hard too. (Thanks Steve for the pics.) December 31st with Emma Back in Action

Emma was afraid her skis would fall off on the lift...So, Brad made her feel safe.

Flying like a bird and stopping like a pro. Not quite ready for the steep stuff but making progress.

Brad giving Emma thumbs up, Good Job.

January 10th "Just Me and My Dad"

Brad and Shane went up and Brad really enjoyed the sunshine. (Not so enjoyable though was the out of control snowboarder that plowed into him from behind. No picture, but it sure scared him. We're just glad no one was hurt.) January 17th ...Mom Dusts off Her Skis

It was a beautiful, warm, sunny day. Emma was happy to have mom come too. Uncle Mark joined us and it was fun to have him along. The snow was a little icy, which made for more snowplowing and some funny stories. First run off the bunny hill on a cat walk to the next lift Shane and Emma got their skis tangled and fell. It looked like they had been through a blender or were playing ski "Twister." No one got hurt but Emma took some coaxing to get back to ski mode.

Another run, I had gone ahead of Shane and Emma just a bit and had stopped to give Emma encouragement. Emma began to turn toward me and looked a little panicked having trouble stopping. (Again the snow was icy.) So I moved forward crossing her path to leave her room. Shane was backwards and started to ski backwards into me. I yelled "wait, stop, I'm behind you, I'm behind you," but it was all too late and I was not quick enough to clear his path completely. So, Shane plowed into me. I fell forward, my skis/legs doing complete splits (and not popping out of my skis.) Face planted, spread eagle in the snow. Shane landed on me on his back and Emma on top of him. So, dog pile on the icy snow and all I could do in the predicament I was in was laugh! Shane had to snap me out of my skis so I could get up. It must have been hilarious to watch! BUT the fall was murder on my knees. I had a hard time after that with my knees hurting. Emma is learning to turn. I think she'll do even better when she agrees to take the pink ski tip clamps off so that her skis can move freely. She and I took a little break in the lodge after lunch. She was ready to leave. We had a little mother daughter bonding time. Then she was rejuvinated and ready to go some more. At the end of the day she was upset with Shane for taking a final run without her. We are so glad Brad loves to ski. I think he was just a bit more cautious this day after the experience last trip being plowed into. He is really doing well and Shane could not be more happy to share his favorite sport with his family.Brad was so good to me. I think he was worried about my safety toward the end of the day. He said, "I think I will follow you, your path seem safe." Mind you at that point I was making small slow turns at the pace of a snail so as not to blow my knees out. I think Bradley just wanted to make sure I was safe, even though he could have gone ahead. What a good son. Even with the mishaps it was a great day. It was so warm and beautiful. Oh, one final thing... wow am I out of shape! (I think I need some time on the eliptial trainer before I can go back.)

New Years Tradition...in the making

2009-01-23T12:15:00.000-08:00

The last few years for New Years the Utah Wirthlin siblings that can make it have gotten together. We go out for dinner New Years Eve and after gather for visiting, games, movies, snacks or whatnot and watch the ball drop at midnight. Then on New Years Day we gather at lunchtime and each family brings a soup to share. We ended up sledding sometime after our soup lunch last year. This year we celebrated in Cache Valley and the sledding was a natural fit. The Ball's, Wirthlin's (Mark and family that is) and Leavitt's carried on the New Years traditions this year. Even uncle Brad and aunt Emily's little baby Garrett was bundled and brought with us to the hill. So, here's to fun traditions in the making...New Years 2009!Emma LOVES the snow! Ryan and Miles brought a snowboard and had a blast. Em and Parker Got to tear it up. Everyone was having a great time. Although our 2 year olds all needed a little coaxing to enjoy the sleds. But once we got them started it took the wind and some frigid weather to get them off the hill.

Brad, Becky, Emma, and Parker ready to slide.

Becky, Lindsay, and Emma ready to go. Lindsay liked the sledding, but she doesn't like being cold. Although not pictured the men folk had their share of sled runs too.

Cache Valley sunsets. So beautiful against the Wellsville mountains.

Christmas 2008

2009-01-23T10:21:00.001-08:00

Trim Up The Tree...
Emma's helping Shane pull the wrapping off of the tree. Always a real tree at our House. We picked this one up from Home Depot this year on Dec. 5th, a nice and green Noble fir.

Bradley helping me with the ornaments.

Christmas Eve Dinner...

Our traditional Hovik family Christmas eve dinner...ribs, rolls, potatoes, corn and Martinelli's cider. This year a twist, ribs-BBQ baby backs instead of just baked spareribs, rolls-Nanny's famous Orange Rolls, and corn- creamed Corn Gulliver. Mmmm Yumm. So good we didn't get a picture until after the meal.

Christmas Morning...

Looks like Santa came. Brad in front of his loot.

Emma finally has a prince for all of her princess barbies.

Santa Came through. Emma wanted a Barbie computer and a Island Princess Rosella doll that sings when you push her necklace. That big guy is amazing.

Lindsay got a princess Aurora purse and all the play things to go in it.

Maisy is wondering if there is anything for her...bummer, nothing but a bunch of paper. Brad is playing with his Newtons Cradle and in the background is Bradley's main gift, Rock Band...So fun for the whole family.

Lindsay got a radio flyer 3 wheel scooter just her size.

Shane got a Milwalkee Sawsall, a propane heater for the garage and a new set of screwdrivers. Among my gifts were the design studio, jukebox and another cartridge for my cricut expression machine (I got last year for my birthday.) So much fun!

A Very Merry Christmas...

The gifts go on from relatives near and far. They are all enjoyed and loved. We thank you all. We have been blessed so much this Holiday Season and have been so grateful to celebrate our Savior's birth in the comfort and warmth of our home. We are grateful to Our Savior for His love and sacrifice for us that the plan of our Heavenly Father, the plan of Happiness, could go forth. We hope everyone had a Merry Christmas.

Sunday After Christmas we took a family picture in front of the tree before it was time to take the tree down. It was a good tree, it would have lasted another couple of weeks probably.

Thanksgiving Vacaction at Grampa and Grammie's

2008-12-12T23:24:00.000-08:00

After 12 hours total in the car with an overnight stay in St. George we were so relieved to arrive "home" in Southern California at Grampa and Grammie's house Saturday evening. Sunday we got to visit Shane's old Ward that he grew up in and had dinner at Uncle Joel and Aunt Sandy's house. Jeff came by too and it was fun for the cousins to visit. Monday, Grampa and Grammie took us out to dinner at Ruby's Diner on the end of HB pier. We always love to visit this spot when we are in California. (Thank you Dad and Mom.)

Tuesday, we went to Disneyland. Rain was in the forecast but that didn't scare us away. We actually didn't see the rain until late evening but the park was relatively empty. Our longest line was for Space mountain at 30 min. but everything else was no longer than a 15 min. line without the fast pass. It was a great day to be there.

Disneyland was all decorated up and ready for the Christmas season.

The girls couldn't resist the Princess Castle.

Dumbo...Lindsay ran into his ear before we got on the ride so it took a bit for her to get excited about the ride. ( You can see the fresh red mark on her forehead.) She also had a hard time with the concept of waiting in line for her turn.

Lindsay and Emma enjoyed the merry go round the best. Hum... could have gone to South Coast Plaza for that.

Emma's favorite all time ride was the Buzz Lightyear ride. We rode on all the kiddy rides in the morning with the intention of taking Lindsay back to Grammie and Grampa's at her afternoon nap time. We were going to go back and introduce Emma to the fast rides, but she protested and asked if she could stay with Lindsay at Grammie's and Grampa's. We tried to convince her to come back with us to no avail. So, Bradley, Shane and I all went back and had a blast riding all the fast rides that made Shane and I feel like kids again. We were able to go on everything at least 2-3 times. We had SOOO much fun. Emma and Lindsay were happy to be with Grammie and Grampa. ( Big thanks to Grammie and Grampa for watching them and helping them be happy.)

The Castle looked amazing at night, the girls would have loved it. We stayed until about 10:30pm although Brad and I would have stayed until midnight. The rain had turned into a down poor and Shane threw the towel in. All in all it was a great visit to Disneyland.

Wednesday we spent relaxing and recovering from our long day at Disneyland. Thursday was a great Turkey day. Good food, good visiting with the family.

On Black Friday we stayed as far as we could get from the early morning shopping scene. We slept in and then went to the Discovery Science Center in the afternoon. Here the girls are destroying a tornado.

Brad and Emma are making clouds.

Emma and Lindsay playing in the aqueduct tables. Sand and water, always a fun combo.

Brad is lying on a bed of nails. Pretty cool.

On the way out, the girls wanted to try to launch a tennis ball with the suctioning of a bowling ball. It was a fun experiment.

Saturday the Girls helped Shane wash the car. Not something we can do in Nov. in Utah.

Then on to Huntington Beach. It was sunny and about 70 degrees. Too cold to swim in the frigid water but perfect for playing.

Lindsay wasn't too sure at first.

Shane and Brad dug for sand crabs... Looks like he found one.

Once she was comfortable in the sand Lindsay just dug and dug and ran and ran. She chased birds and waves. We had to pry her away from the Beach.

Emma has always loved the Beach. She collected shells all day. Here she is posing with the HB pier in the background.

Brad with the sand castle he and Shane built.

The Leavitt's posing in front of the sand castle.

After HB we went home and got all cleaned up to go to Little Corona to have Aunt Jill take pictures on the beach for our Christmas card. She did a good job. (See top picture of post.)

Sunday, we went to the Ward I went to growing up and saw Uncle Dave and Aunt Jill's baby Olivia be blessed. Afterwards we had a great dinner to celebrate her blessing day. Then we had to prepare for our return trip. It was a great vacation and we truly enjoyed our time in between the outings just visiting with Grampa, Grammie, and GG (Grandma Hovik.) Thanks again for the great stay.

Halloween Time 2008

2008-11-07T11:57:00.001-08:00

Carving Pumpkins the Monday before Halloween. Everyone is all smiles until they figure out they have to be gutted first.

Lindsay enjoyed making hers with dad.

Emma..."are you kidding me...I have to put my hand in there?"

Brad..."almost done here, just a little bit more...yuck."

All finished, L-R: Brad's, Mom's, Emma's and Lindsay's (with dad's help)

Halloween Night: Ready for Trick Or Treating

Indiana Jones (Brad), Belle (Emma) and Cinderella (Lindsay)

I finished the girls dresses long before Halloween and they played in them everyday before. Brad's costume I was sewing on the jacket, shirt and pouch until the literal last minute. Next year I'll get them all finished early!

"Erella" as Lindsay fondly refers to her. All ready for the royal ball. Added touch the turtleneck to keep warm.

Belle has been singing her little heart out and loves to pretend she is a princess.

Indiana Jones ready for adventure. He went out with his friend Hunter to their neighborhood and then ours. He had a blast.

I took the girls out and Lindsay was so cute... she would say "an treat, please." And then follow with a "thank you" and "bye" with a princess wave. Emma was darling helping Lindsay along the way. Emma also wanted me to tell every house about her thumb. (See previous post.) I wonder if she was subconsciously playing the sympathy card? Hee, hee. Shane stayed home to give out candy. He set up the yard this year with some scary monsters and our girls were afraid to come home. (No pictures of the yard this year, but I'm sure he'll do it again next year with more added.)

Emma's Thumb And Brad's Door Hinge

2008-11-07T10:16:00.000-08:00

Disclaimer: The following post is NOT for the squeamish, faint of heart, or little children...injury images ahead. (You have been warned.)
On Oct. 23 a little while after school, Bradley accidentally closed Emma's thumb in the Hinge Side of his door. It smashed her thumb pretty tight and did some big damage to her nail. Poor Emma was so brave and poor Bradley felt so bad. Just Awful. Right before we drove her to the doctor Brad was in tears and Emma just says, "Oh, Bradley, don't worry, it will be okay." We took her up to her pediatricians office and this picture sums up all Emma was feeling. She was so brave but in some pretty bad pain. Here she is soaking her wound to clean it. Dr. Jorgensen was on duty for the evening appointments and she did a great job. She discovered after soaking and cleaning it that her nail base had come completely out of her nail bed. Protocol for this would have been to give her several shots in the thumb and then to stitch down the nail into the bed again. There was not much left to stitch the nail down to and it was still attached at the tip. So, She pressed it back into place as best she could, wrapped the dead tissue around it and steri stripped it all in place. The main thing was to get connection reestablished for a new nail base to grow. We did not get a picture of it on the first day, but day 6 and 7 were bad enough (see below.)

She had to go back twice (every other day) for redressing and to check for infection. She was also put on an oral antibiotic to fight infection.

Day 6 She was turned over to us for her wound care and we clean and redress it every day. She will eventually loose that nail, but we need it to have contact with the bed for a week to establish a new base. If not she will not regrow a nail and just have a stubby thumb. Even at that we won't know if her nail has regrown for about a month.

Pre-cleaning day 6... Post-cleaning day 6...

Day 7 on 10/29 Looking less swollen but quite a ways to go and again eventually that whole nail will fall out.PS... Big thanks to our neighbor and friends the Fitzgeralds for all their help the day it happened.

Grandpa and Grammie's Visit

2008-10-26T23:55:00.000-07:00

Grampa and Grammie came to visit for a week and it was so fun. They arrived on the 10th of Oct. We have missed them so much as they have served faithfully on their mission and we are glad to have them back. We were so busy having fun with them that the camera just sat on the counter. So very few pictures... what a shame. Grammie and Grampa gave Lindsay her b-day present which was a little cradle for her new doll and a back pack just her size. (She is always trying to put on Brad or Emma's and falling over -kinda too big for her.)

We enjoyed having them stay with us...playing, visiting, shopping, eating, relaxing. It was a pleasure to have them here. This is the morning that they left and we had to pry the girls out of their beds at 10 am (ha, ha -what princesses they are) to say goodbye. They were quite sad to see Grammie and Grampa go. I think the kids were hoping they had moved in. Only consolation was that we will see them in Nov. in California. Thank you for your visit Dad and Mom. We love and appreciate you both and all you do.

Happy Birthday!

2008-10-26T23:32:00.000-07:00

Lindsay turned 2 on the 9th! She was so excited to see all her gifts on the table and the kitchen decorated after her afternoon nap.

Emma wanted to get in on the picture action...hamming it up for sure.

Dinner we had one of her favorites...grilled steak. Brad is always the tease but a cute one.

We had Nanny, Papa, Mark and Carrie with the boys come over for cake and gifts. We should have saved her new doll for last. She opened it first and loved it. After that she wanted no other gifts. She wanted to just play with her new baby. We had to coax her to put it down long enough for me to get it out of the box and then also to get her to open her other gifts which she loved too.

Her sister and cousins were willing to help. Lindsay had a great Birthday. She got the new Ariel movie and gift set from Nanny and Papa; Mark, Carrie and boys gave her a cute doll set with interchangable snap on clothes; we gave her a Baby Doll, a Stroller, a Disney princess phone, music player, slippers and chair and some new outfits. She loves them all. (And not spoiled in the least bit...Ha, Ha.) Thanks everyone for coming and for your gifts...you made her day great.

My First Tag (or so I thought)

2008-09-29T23:21:00.000-07:00

Cally tagged me with this one thinking I had never been tagged, but little did I know Marci had tagged me 3 weeks ago (see last post.) So Cally's tag...

6 Quirky things about me...

6- I have not read a fictional book cover to cover since I got married (over 12 years) until now...despite my amiable protest I was sucked into the Twilight series and read all four books in 2 weeks. Now I need something else to read...what a great escape from normal everyday life fictional reading is!

5- I was born with blond eyelashes on my right side and brown on my left. So, NOBODY see me without mascara on in public. You might catch me at home though but I usually have my prescription glasses on as a "mask" -Ha, Ha like that hides it.

4-I robbed the cradle. Shane is 1 year and 2 months younger than me.

3-I have epilepsy. But it has been controlled with medication and I have been seizure free for 14 years. I feel pretty blessed there.

2-My hands sweat for no reason and have all my life. Occationally they will be dry, but usually not. I probably need to have some nerve or gland removed to stop it all. So, If I don't shake your hand willingly, I'm not snubbing you. I'm just a bit embarassed by this condition. Good thing Shane doesn't mind. ;)

1-I love to sew. My mom taught me to sew when I was 9 years old, I had my own machine by the time I was 12 (Or was it 14.) Anyway, by the time I was in highschool I was taking different patterns and mixing them up to make my own creations. I just don't have as much time for it with 3 kids...So, Halloween I usually go big and make everything.

Now I tag Jen O, Emily H. and Bonnie (Oh, yeah sis, I'm going get you posting somehow- Kiersten if your mom doesn't you have to. Hee, hee)
Hum, I think I want to tag Shane for his "Garage" too.

I Missed Marci's Tag

2008-09-29T22:42:00.000-07:00

Okay, So I was telling my friend Cally that I had never been tagged and so she tagged me, only as I checked her comments on her blog noticed that my friend Marci had tagged me on SEPT. 9th and I missed it. Sorry Marci. Okay so hear is my Reply to Marci's tag and the next post will be Cally's.

How long have you been married? Over 12 years

Where were you married? Los Angeles California Temple

Honeymoon? 3 nights Newport Beach, 2 nights Laguna Beach (And we never touched the sand/ocean...but we grew up there so the sand was not as, um, inviting)

How old is your spouse? 35

Who eats more? Shane

Who said I love you first? Me

Who is taller? Shane

Who sings better? Me, definitely

Who is smarter? Depends...Book smarts:Me, Common sense/logical thinking smarts: Shane

Who controls the T.V. remote? Shane

Whose temper is worse? Could be either one, depending on the situation

Who does the laundry? Mostly me but Shane does his share to help

Who does the dishes? Mostly me, but again Shane steps in to help

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Looking at the headboard, I do

Who cooks dinner? 90% me, but when Shane does cook it is usually pretty tasty =)

Who is more stubborn? Shane would say me, but I think it is a TIE!

Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Um, hum... We both take a bit of persuasion to admit it

Whose parents do you see the most? Shane's, they are only 10 Miles away, mine are in California

Who has more siblings? Me-4, Shane- 2

Who wears the pants in the family? I think we each have one leg, sometimes it is a bit hard to walk that way Ha, Ha

I Tag Bonnie, Emily (my Sis) and Jenn Luce

One Last Trip...Brrrrr!

2008-09-19T07:54:00.002-07:00

Sept. 12 2008 we ventured off for one last camping/fishing hurrah. We went to Chesterfield reservoir just past Grace Idaho. Mom and dad brought their camper (which they did a great job restoring this spring) and we brought a large tent. Next time we are putting the babies in the camper to sleep with the bigger babies so Becky and I can get some sleep and keep the covers from being kicked off in 30 degree weather. What were we thinking!

Papa kept Lindsay safe from the fire ring that night much to her dismay.

The whole clan chillin by the fire. Little does Lindsay know that my small bite means Half..... Like stealing Zingers from a baby!

Happy campers.

Becky and Emma were in charge of dishing out Smores.

After our frigid night sleep in the tent, with the sound of elk, coyote, and other various animals tromping through the water, we welcomed the morning sun. Papa on his and Brad on my pontoon. It was such a great day for fishing.

The catch was alright...enough for a good fish fry!

"Oh, Papa...eew, the fishy." Papa gutting the fish just blew Lindsay's mind...She wasn't meant to see that.

The view from our lakeside camp spot.

Going home.

"Squishies"

2008-09-19T07:54:00.001-07:00

Lindsay is such a funny kid. She has this thing, um, well, maybe obsession with squishing my arms. She prefers the soft part of the bicep area and it has to be bare skin. NO LONG SLEEVES. She started this shortly after I weaned her. I thought... well, for now it's a security in her time of change, but it stuck with her month after month. If she is sad, or hurt, the first thing out of her mouth is "Squishies, Mommy, Squishies." She wants to snuggle up and squeeze my arms. When I am not home she will "squishy" daddy's arms but if I am home she will take no other but me. Her ultimate favorite is the "double squishy" where she sits on my lap and squeezes both my arms at one time. It just makes us all laugh and brings a huge smile to her face.

A Late Summer Visitor

2008-09-19T07:54:00.000-07:00

Shane was cleaning up our window wells from trash that had drifted in over the summer. Low and behold in our north window well we found this Gigantic...FROG/TOAD. We don't know if it started out that big or if it was just down there so long living off of the summer bugs and sprinkler water that it became huge. So we moved it to an easier to access window well and kept it for a week. It just kept hopping around in there feeding off bugs and sprinkler water.

We eventually decided to let it free in the ditch by the dirt road behind our house. We thought it would be more humane to let it be free. The kids were a little sad to see it go- even the girls. Lindsay loved to touch it. (Not to worry, we washed her hands every time.) Lindsay liked to go into the basement and look into the window saying "froggie...ribbit". So, I think she is the most bummed out that we let it go.

Welcome Back Dad and Mom

2008-09-11T23:43:00.001-07:00

Hurray for Mom and Dad. My parents have been serving for 18 months in the Geneve Switzerland Mission. They are on their way home today! We could not be more pleased with them for the service they have given and the sacrifices they have made. What an amazing experience this has been for them and a great example for us. We love you Dad and Mom. We look forward to seeing you soon.
Dad and Mom entering the MTC. It seems like yesterday. But Lindsay was only 5 months old. Bradley was in Elementary school (4th grade). Emma was not even in preschool yet. So now that Lindsay is almost 2, Brad's in Middle school and Emma's starting her second round of Preschool, I know that the time has passed and we have all grown in leaps and bounds. I know that the blessings of their service extend beyond just the two of them and that we too have been blessed by their service and example. We love you tons and hope you have a great trip home.

Mount Logan Middle School Mountaineers

2008-09-11T10:46:00.000-07:00

August 20th, The First Day Of School. Brad is a big kid now. Middle School crept up so fast. Totally wild for me as a mom to send him off to a much bigger pond. He was so excited, I was just nervous. I'm sure he will do just great as he has grown in so many capacities in the last few years. The Sixth Graders all have 8 classes each day. So, tons to take in and get used to. Brad and Hunter ( his closest friend) do not have any classes together (which might be good- you know goofing off and not listening and such) , but we are carpooling with him. The boys have lockers right across the hall from each other and they eat lunch together too. (Mostly Pizza from what I hear.) So, neither of them is totally alone in this endeavor. Looking forward to a good year.

Cabela's

2008-09-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

On the day of cousin Valarie's wedding (August 16th) we went down to Sandy area to attend. It was a neat day to visit with our relatives. Afterwards we were so close to Cabela's and Shane had never been, so off we went to the "man's toy store!"

Everyone was in awe at the vastness of the store. Huge. Tons to see and do. Brad and Emma were charged by a big polar bear. It was a bit scary. I grazed with the bison (er, ah, something like that.) Those who know Emma, know she is petrified of raccoons. (This is due to a story Papa has told about a raccoon stealing his jacket out from under his head while he slept camping when he was younger. He had candy in his pocket I think. Any way, just the mere vision of a raccoon sends Emma squirming.)

We stopped upstairs for a snack at the restaurant. Lindsay can't believe any of it is real.

Shane, well, Shane almost got us kicked out as he tried to fish for some trout in the store aquarium. Just kidding but is sure was tempting.

What a cool store it was. Every man's dream store. We all had a great time too.

Emma's Run in with the Concrete

2008-08-28T10:59:00.000-07:00

July 27th, Emma fell off of her Scooter in Nanny and Pappa's front yard. Her scooter and arms went to the side and her face went forward as she was chasing Bradley on his scooter. So sad. It knocked her two front teeth loose (almost out- one was hanging by the root.) We immediately Shoved her teeth back in place, which we later found was the best thing we could have done. The dentist confirmed that one of the teeth had it's root fractured. So, now we are waiting to see if if heels or if it will die and have to be pulled. That is a whole other story in and of itself. Poor Emma she was hurting for a while. This is a day after the injury so much of the swelling was gone.

The 29th...Brad's 11th Birthday

2008-08-28T09:53:00.001-07:00

In our family we don't do big birthday parties every year, just the milestones like 5, 8, 12, 16. You get the idea... Anyway, we still want each birthday to be memorable. This year we told Brad he could have one friend join our family for a bunch of fun festivities. His closest friend Hunter Sanchez came along. We started at the Movies where we saw "Wall-e". Pretty cute movie. Dad arranged with work to get off early and met us there. ( You can see his Bike in the background.) Then on to the Golden Corral Buffet (as per Brad's request) for dinner. Nanny and Pappa joined us there too.

Then back to the house for Presents. He wanted a good metal detector. The scientist in him has been asking for one for years. Emma had to help open at least one gift or she was going to have a spasm of some kind...Ha, Ha...but Brad was good to oblige.

It is always to fun to capture the moment when they know what the gift is. This one was a special tube to put on a 2 liter bottle of diet Coke....to then release about 7 mint Mentos with at trigger into the cola creating a geyser taller than the house ( an outside activity of course.)

He also wanted a new watch. It is just too funny, when he ask if he could get a watch for his B-day he commented "and not one of those cheep ones that breaks after 6 months." That is what he used to have because he was younger and not as careful about loosing stuff, so the $6 Walmart special was fine. But he is older now and going on to middle school, must have a watch that works well. Anyway, We got him a nice Timex digital with the indiglo feature.

He got a new video game and movie for his PSP. Hunter gave him a Bionical toy that was pretty cool. Nanny and Pappa gave him a new video game controller that is cordless for his playstation 2. Mark and the boys came for cake and brought a gift card to best buy for him. He got a gift check from Grammie and Grandpa. All in all....SPOILED. But grateful. He says thank you to everyone who helped to make his day great.

Next, the cake... Miniature Golf theme as that was our next activity. It was Yummy.

We ended the night with some mini golf at the Willows. Super fun. (Yeah, left the camera accidentally in the car, so you'll have to take my word for it that we had a blast. ) And after that Hunter spent the night. A great 11th Birthday for our Brad.

Leaving Cub Scouts

2008-08-28T09:29:00.000-07:00

July 17th...Brad's last pack meeting. He has graduated from Cubs to join the 11 yr. old Boy Scouts. Hard to believe how time flies! Wasn't he just baptised? Nope that was 3 years ago! Now on to a new phase in life. Brad had this amazing scout leader in Cubs. Nancy Lorrigan truly deserves kudos and credit for Brad's accomplishments.

The Order of the Arrow came to present Bradley with his Arrow of Light which he earned. It is the highest honor in the Cub Scouting program. We are really proud of you Brad.

The 11 yr. old Boy Scouts leader Bro. Barker came to welcome Brad into the Boy Scout program. It was an emotional event for me. My little boy is growing up.

The Brent and Annette Leavitt Family Campout 2008

2008-07-14T13:21:00.000-07:00

June 24-27 we loaded the van and packed up the trailer to meet the rest of the family up Grey's River in Star Valley, Wyoming for some camping, fishing, food (dutch oven), crafts, campfires and just plain fun. What a beautiful land it is. After we got settled we went further up Grey's River Rd. to Murphy Lake to check out the fishing spot for the next day.

Here are the cousins (left to right: Andrew, Monet, Matthew, Emma, Addison, Tiana, Lindsay and Bradley)

Lindsay says its all about "ME"

Okay we could not get Emma with her eyes open, but look at the mirror reflection in the lake. Just gorgeous.

Our new tent, we finally had to get a bigger one. We love it. It will sleep 8 and as we learned from the rain one night, it is nice and water proof. The rain fly kept us nice and dry!

Emma is sporting one of the craft project necklaces that Nanny had brought for the kids.

Jeff brought his paint guns and we all had fun taking turns shooting at targets. We tried to get one of the older kids to be our moving target but no one was game. I can't imagine why.

Lindsay's favorite past time was Nanny and Papa's swing which we had attached with rope to some large trees. I think she is about to fall asleep here.

Shane brought the Tote Gote mini bike and besides the swing that is all Lindsay wanted to do..."a ride, Daddy vroom vroom, Fun, WEEEEEE!" She had a hard time taking turns.

Lindsay reluctantly let Monet have a turn. Everyone enjoyed the mini bike.

Tiana and Lindsay just relaxing with Nanny and Papa in the background.

Tiana, Monet and Emma...boy Emma was hard to get looking at the camera.

Lindsay Loves her Uncle Jeff.

Papa brought his Washer game. Lindsay tossed this one and it was still rolling in the picture.

Earlier in the day the boys went fishing and caught a few good fish at Murphy lake in their float tubes and pontoon boats. So, this night we had a fish and chicken fry with dutch oven potatoes, corn on the cob and cobbler. MMMMMMM Yum!

Shane on potato duty.

Jeff frying fish and chicken.

Joel prepping the corn.

EMMA EATING CHICKEN!

One day we drove into Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The whole crew:

Front Row L-R: Lindsay, Emma, Becky, Tiana, Andrew, Monet, Nanny, Papa, Joel, Matthew, Bradley

Second Row L-R: Shane, Jeff, Sandy, Addison

The girl cousins...Lindsay, Emma, Monet, and Tiana at one of the antler arches.

Bradley on the Tote gote for his first solo ride. He had a Blast.

Round the campfire telling stories. The trip has come to an end and here we are striking the camp. It was an awesome 4 days with Dad and Mom, all the brothers, the wives, and some cousins together. Everyone had fun, the cousins all got along, there was plenty of food and activities and oh, yes DIRT. We hope to do it all again in the future.

Last stop, Shane and Becky, dirty and weathered from camping, pose at a Scenic Overlook on the way home from Wyoming. The scenery was just beautiful.

Buddy, NO....Betty?

2008-07-14T12:54:00.000-07:00

Well, we thought we knew our pet Cockatiel pretty well after 2 years of caring for him...Her? Wait, What? Yes, what they told us when we bought her was not true...She is not a Boy or a Buddy but our lovely little bird is in fact a Betty and quite the little nurturer. We woke up one morning to her sitting on two little eggs. At first we thought our kids were playing a joke on us but, no joke just yoke. Our bird is female and now we need to watch out for the occasional laying of eggs. Of coarse there will be no babies as there is no Buddy for our Betty, but we might be able to make an Emma size omelet occasionally. Ha, Ha, Ha. (Emma hates most foods for those of you who don't know.) Since these photos were taken she actually laid one more egg. The pet shop told us to remove the eggs so that she would not become aggressive and that it might happen twice a year. So we'll see. Life is full of unexpected surprises. Aren't these little eggs cute, they are about one inch long.

Back In May- Good Job Brad

2008-07-14T12:20:00.000-07:00

At Bradley's May pack meeting he received his Webelo award. Hurray, he finished all the requirements over 2 months before his Birthday. He has some amazing leaders who have helped him along the way. We are grateful to them. He has just finished all the requirements for his Arrow Of Light and will be receiving it this month at July pack meeting. Next step...11 year old scouts. He has met with the Scoutmaster to learn about the Scouting program, so as soon as he is 11 (July 29th) he will no longer be a Cub Scout, but a Boy Scout. He is growing too fast.Here Brad is putting the mother's pin on me.Good Job Bradley, We love You.

Happy Father's Day

2008-06-16T20:38:00.000-07:00

Shane was beaming Saturday as we went to Brigham City to purchase his brand new Motorcycle. Shane says he's never had anything BRAND NEW just for him, so I think he was feeling pretty special. Those of you who know me, know that I am petrified of motorcycles. Those of you who know Shane, know that he has always wanted his own hog. So, with gas prices the way they are and Just Because I Love Shane now was a good time to spoil him a bit. So...HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to the one I Love and Adore.
We have been searching for a used cruiser bike for some months now and most of the ones he was interested in were not much less than the new one he finally decided on. So, we went with new, which has it's benefits: you know its never been laid down or in an accident of any kind and it comes with a warranty. It is a 2008 Suzuki Boulevard C50 (800 cc engine) and was taken out of the crate and assembled the day before we picked it up. The odometer had 0.4 miles on it (only because they have to test drive it after they uncrate it.) We have been too busy to get more pictures taken and now Shane is in Indiana with work for a few days. So, more pictures to come. (Don't worry Mom, Shane only takes the kids around the neighborhood SLOWLY and they love, I mean LOVE it.)

Smooth

2008-06-05T10:55:00.000-07:00

May 17th, we went down to Salt Lake area to a HB Stake Youth (now Adult) Reunion for those of us who settled in Utah. It was really fun and I am amazed at how many of us have settle in Utah. We stayed with Brad and Emily for the weekend. Their little Parker is so cute. We tried to get a picture of Lindsay and Parker hugging because it was adorable. This is as close as we could get. Parker says with all of his smoothness, "HEY BABY, HOW ABOUT A LITTLE KISS...
Lindsay says sheepishly, "I DON'T KNOW ABOUT THIS, I'M A LITTLE SHY."
Honestly they are too cute!

New Table

2008-06-05T10:07:00.000-07:00

Well, we bit the bullet and finally bought ourselves a new dining table about a month ago. Our old one (which I failed to take a picture of before we sent it packing) was over 11 years old, scratched and stained beyond repair, and made of veneers therefore unable to sand and restain. Our new table is counter height, has a collapsible leaf (that stores inside the table) and includes 8 chairs. Seen here with the leaf opened up the table is 60x60 inches square and can seat 8. Since the table is counter height we can also use the chairs at our peninsula bar. We've needed new bar stools for years, so convenient.

A Hair Raising Experience

2008-05-29T07:57:00.000-07:00

Bradley got a new basic digital camera for Christmas and he is now trying his hand at Photography. His favorite subjects to photo are his sisters...probably because they are so cute (okay so I'm a bit biased!) They were all out jumping on the trampoline together and Brad called in for his camera. He had them do "snow angels" on the tramp' to make maximum static and then just started shooting photos. Pretty cute if you ask me. Looks like Emma's been playing with one of those static balls.

Lindsay in action bouncing on her bum.

Sisters... Nothing makes better friends than sisters. Loads of fun! Good job Bradley.

Three Weeks in China

2008-05-03T04:30:00.000-07:00

After many weeks, a couple of threats, and a kick in the pants the long awaited pics of my business trip to China are here. Above is outside my hotel in Shanghai.

I don't think I could handle working as an electrician in China because of the high wire act that has to be performed. One of the things I have immediately learned about our Chinese brothers and sisters is that they are eager to work and are all about getting the job done.

For those of you who know me well, I got a little week in the knees and had to shed a tear at the sight of the Coke bottle god that stood before me. Too bad it wasn't Diet Coke. HAHA. an interesting thing about soda pop in China... It was hard to find cold ones there. Warm pop was a hard thing to get use to but our friends there made sure we had a awsome supply all the time. thanks again guys.

Some of the older spots of Shanghai were a sight to behold. From the neat buildings to the awsome shopping areas, Shanghai had a lot to take in. Speaking of taking in, I think the dude behind me took in too much bean curd. What the heck is he doing?

Bikes, Bikes, Bikes, everywhere! I have never seen so many bike in my life before. My mind was kept busy by thinking of a million ways to adapt a motor to these bikes. (see Shane's Garage) I was told by one of our many new friends there that there was over 9 million bikes in Beijing alone. ( that's also a song )

Many of the bikes were of a more classic style and were used as daily transportation.

With the up coming Olympics there is a massive rush to freshen up the buildings. It was very common to see bamboo scaffolding used.

This is the entrance to the Paragon Medical facility in Changzhou. Oh yeah, I was there to work too.

I had alot of help with the installation of the cnc lathes. Everyone was eager to learn and excited to get the facility up and running. This transformer was grounded out on the casing due to shipping and when we threw the switch it was Chinese new year all over. We got it adjusted and pressed on.

Birds eye view of the awsome facility from the up stairs offices. As you can see, lots of room to grow.

When our first weekend came we lucked out and got a three day weekend. China has a holiday kinda like Memorial day called Tomb Sweeping Day. Anyhow, Tom, the manufacturing manager arranged it with the director of operations to send me, my boss Jeff and the company's secretary Jane, to Beijing for some sight seeing. We had to take an overnight train ride that lasted about 12 hrs. We sleeped most of the time.

Just outside the front of the forbidden city.

One of the many spots inside Forbidden City.

This granite slab featured 8 dragons. It was so heavy and large, the had to drag it in by waiting until winter and dropping water on the ground and making an ice sheet to slide it on.

This sight was called temple of heaven.

After a great day of touring we ate at the world famous Roast Duck Restaurant. 5 star.

The roasted duck was amazing. Even the feet which was served cold was quite interesting. Yeah, I ate some.

And for desert....

The Great Wall will never be forgotten.

We started out in small gondola.

Oh yeah, we found out after we got to the wall that the return ride was going to pick us up at a sight 10km away.

I called my wife from one of the 7 wonders of the world and she wasn't there.

Many parts of the wall are falling apart.

I KNEW IT!

This clock was counting down until the Olympics begin.

The Nest will be hosting the many of the events.

Our last place to tour in Beijing was the Garden Palace.

A lot of women were posing in front of this beautiful tree and Jane, our friend thought it would be funny for me to pose too. Thanks Jane.

Beautiful bridge in the Garden Palace.

A shopping area in the Garden Palice the was built for the emperor's family so they could shop within the safety of the protected grounds. It was really huge.

One evening we were invited to eat dinner with all folks at one of their apartments. It was a great time and the hospitality awsome. Thanks again Mark , York, and Tom!

During the time we were there 3 of us including myself had a Birthday party thrown for us. The cake was huge and very tasty. It was quite the surprise. Thanks everyone.

I was even prompted to give a small speech at the end. A couple days later it was time to go home. We spent one more night in Shanghai before our 11 hour flight home. All I can say is that my trip truly was a chance of a lifetime and will never be forgotten. All the friends I made there and the hospitality shared will always be cherished.

Need Sleepy

2008-05-03T04:12:00.000-07:00

Well it is super early in the morning and I have been up for 2 hours. Lindsay is sleeping, Emma's not calling for me. So, why am I up. Well, Allergies! Cache Valley is supposed to be one of the worst places for pollen right now. Before bed my eyes were so itchy and swollen. Shane lovingly got me a claritan-D. I said it usually doesn't work for me and his reply just try it- as it's been a long time since I have taken anything...due to babies and nursing. So, I wake up between 2 and 3 am tossing and turning with eyes still itching. Body and mind tired but no sleepy. So, I got up and read the medicine box. At first it says over medicating can cause sleepiness. But reading further it says if sleeplessness or nervousness and dizziness occur discontinue use until seeing a doctor. Okie Dokie, definitely sleepless but what do I do for the remainder of the 12 hours. ( 12 hour tablets). By About 10 am I am going to crash! Well, Lesson learned...no Claritan-D for me right before bed. Since I'm up I'll start loading Shane's China trip pictures. So, after Shane's awake I'll have him help me narrate the pics. Be watching for the China post.

The Hair Cut

2008-04-20T23:05:00.001-07:00

While Shane was gone Brad was in desparate need of a haircut. We decided to surprise dad and get a new cut from our neighbor who does hair. Bradley has had the same "Moe" Bowl cut all his life and he decided it was time for a change. So take a good look at the before, because when we were done he looked like a different boy, all grown up. So, April 4, 2008 Bradley got his new look.....
Before

After and Spikey!

Parted and done up for Church What a handsome kid we have. We love it and he loves it. When Dad got home from China he hardly recognized him and loves the change.

Boy Have We Missed Our Dad

2008-04-20T22:52:00.000-07:00

Boy have Brad, Emma, and Lindsay (Mom TOO) missed Dad while he was gone in China for 3 weeks. We are so glad to have him back home, but also glad that his time there will be cherished for a lifetime. He had such a good experience with the people there. This is a picture of the kids monkeying around while dad was gone (Before Emma and Lindsay got sick). Lindsay had Chocolate cookie on her face and loved it -what a goof. More pictures to come from China as soon as we can get them from his work computer to our home computer.

EASTER AND MORE...

2008-04-13T09:48:00.000-07:00

Well, it has been a long time since my last post again...My only excuse is that Shane has been in CHINA, yes, China for almost 3 weeks now for work. They have him and his boss setting up the machines for a new plant there. It has been long, what with more sickness...(yes it seems to never end here) and just everyday life without dad. We miss him tons but we are at the tail end and he will be home Wednesday of this week. When he gets home we will post pics from China.

EASTER 2008
Well, the Easter Bunny came. Fun Stuff. Emma got Bell Barbie and horse set. Lindsay got a Ballerina Barbie of her own- less fighting over Emma's now. Bradley got a new electronic bank that requires a pin # and you set all the settings. Boy the Easter bunny has gone all out this year.
Empty Baskets ready for the hunt.

Lindsay loves her dad and boy has she missed him these last 3 weeks.

"You mean to tell me that there is CANDY in each of these 'balls'?"

Emma in her springy yellow dress. What a sweet smile.

Our handsome boy is growing up. Bradley with his cutest grin, he might need a haircut though. Hee, Hee.

The three cuties in their Easter best, but woo, woo Emma's slip is showing. Lindsay can't believe that her eggs are filled with candy. She might already be working on a sugar buzz.

LAST TRIP OF THE SEASON

March 22,2008

Shane, Bradley, Emma, Uncle Mark and I all went Snow riding for the last time this season as Shane would leave for China the next week and we would miss the Closing day at Beaver. What a beautiful day it was, the sun shining bright. A perfect end to such a great season. Shane, Emma and I sitting on the lift headed up to Gentle Ben. Emma's skis are so little.

I have found my skiing buddy! Actually Emma is sometimes faster than me. Ha, ha. I like to take my time and it is so peaceful when I do. Emma, good "pizza" stop!

Uncle Mark and Bradley on the lift ahead of us. They teamed up all day. Bradley had a blast!

Emma is just doing so great and we look forward to next season. Uncle Mark, Miles, Ryan, Shane, Bradley and Emma all have season passes for next year to Beaver Mountain, so it should be another fun season.

Everybody Poops!

2008-03-05T07:30:00.000-08:00

Okay, so this post might make some laugh and on the other hand just plain gross others out, but any mother who has had little ones will empathize with my plight on Monday, Mar. 3rd. So, Bradley had the day off of school and we were taking the day rather relaxed. About mid day the girls and I were getting ready to have a shower downstairs (it is a big shower with two shower heads, one of which is a movable sprayer, and it has a bench seat for Lindsay to sit on.) Meanwhile, Brad was playing video games on the downstairs TV oblivious to what would lie ahead. I got the girls stripped down (including Lindsay's diaper) and placed them in the dry shower while I got ready to join. The phone rang and it was Shane. I had a 2 minute conversation with him on the phone in the room next to the bathroom in my robe. The girls were waiting in the shower for me to start up the water. Next thing I knew as I was hanging up the phone Emma came out and said, "hey, mom, I got poop on my feet." "WHAT! Where did it come from?"........Emma then said "I think Lindsay Pooped in the shower." "I THINK LINDSAY POOPED IN THE SHOWER" ....UNDERSTATEMENT!!!!!! So I entered upon the crisis to find Lindsay had discovered that poop was squishy. There on the floor of the shower was the culprit and LINDSAY had it all over her hands, had stepped in it, had stepped out of the shower onto the rug and towels, had put her hands on the walls and door.... and all in a matter of 2 MINUTES! So at this point Lindsay didn't have a clue what she'd done and I was screaming to Bradley "get the wipes FAST, no, not just the wipes get the CLOROX WIPES...GET BOTH!" So as I was trying to first get the poop out of the shower (so that I could then rinse down Lindsay) she realized that something was not right and began to cry and try to hang on to me...Mind you the poop on her hands, now on my robe. So I flushed the poop from the shower down the toilet and was screaming "Ahhhhhhhhh!" So now Lindsay was really crying and I was wiping her with baby wipes to get the bulk off so as not to spread more poop in the shower. I wiped her down and then start in on the surfaces with the Clorox wipes to clean what she had touched, because just as Midas turned everything he touched to gold, Lindsay turned everything she touched to poop! So, the rug , towels and my robe got thrown in the wash (for several cycles) and I rinsed down the shower and the girls before we even began our regular shower. What a mess, a stinky, icky mess. But with a little elbow grease and a lot of cleaners we got the place spic and span clean again, along with my girls. Poor Bradley's friend kept calling in the midst of all this to see if he could play and all I could say to Brad was "not now we are having a crisis!" (Brad eventually got to go play at his friend's house so all was well in the world again.) What a joy motherhood can be....just not in the midst of this mess. Actually that is not true, even in the middle of all of this as Lindsay was crying she was still trying to give me kisses. Thank goodness she didn't touch her face!

First Tracks

2008-03-03T20:31:00.000-08:00

Ok, maybe not first tracks....but we were the first ones on the Face Lift.

In this picture Mark and I were both thinking...... Gosh, I wish I was working today. Yeah...

The whole mountain was groomed this trip and it made some nice smooth rides.

These pics of Mark and myself were taken on the Ted's Rock run. Beaver Mountain added the Marge's Triple lift a couple years ago and made all this pretty terrain possible.

Mark on Ted's Rock run.

Mark scored some sweet bindings the night before this trip. It was a real nail biting experience as the UPS truck didn't show up until 7:00pm .

One last pic before we left for the day. Now on to Fredrico's for ham salads, garlic bread, and calzones.

Catch Up Day- 5 New Posts

2008-02-24T23:18:00.000-08:00

Well, we have been hit with our share of sickness this month. 3 weeks now we've been battling illnesses. I have had a fever for almost a week and the doctors just say its the flu. It has wiped me completely out. My fever finally broke today and so things for me should start to get better. Before me, Shane was wiped out with a high fever and the flu. Before all that it was the Girls and myself again. And oh now Emma has come down with a fever again today and Lindsay has a second ear infection...Needless to say this is why there have been no posts for a while. So I have caught up and there are 5 New Posts in one day, so bare with me and read through them if you have the time.

A Princess Party

2008-02-24T22:30:00.000-08:00

Emma turned 4 and what a special Day. Since I could barely lift my head due to illness, Dad took charge and picked out all the Decorations and then put them all up. It truly was a princess party. Dad is the Best!

The one thing I did do was make (on the Cricut) the Happy Birthday Emma that is on the wall.

The loot waiting to be torn open. Emma and Bradley had a sleep over at Nanny and Papa's the night before. What a fun treat. The house was all decorated and ready for the birthday girl to arrive.

Her first view of the Party (Just Family because I was sick.) She got these sunglasses from Nanny and Papa along with a butterfly Barbie. She was so excited as she walked through the door.

She's checking out the spread.

Opening presents she got a Barbie house. She Loves Barbie anything. Nanny looks on in amazement.

Extra furnature for the house...a couch.

And a Bathtub.

She also got a Cinderella play set, Cinderella princess wand, Hanna Montana slippers, Birthday Barbie, and a new outfit from Old Navy. She also got a Card in the mail from GG and a card in the mail with a gift check to spend from Grandpa and Grammie... So, the Birthday continues.

The Cake, Shane ordered it all by himself. What a good job. Emma had a great birthday and will look back with some good memories.

Valentines Day 2008

2008-02-24T21:59:00.001-08:00

Shane started the day with these Beautiful Roses. I love roses!

I made all these little bags with my Cricut. Brad asked me to make his valentines for his class. This is his last year in elementary school and I could not say no.

Close up the card glued on was cut on the Cricut and stamped with my stamp collection.

Emma's Bags for preschool were a little bit larger but she did most of the stamping. It was fun to do together.

Detail stamped by Emma. How cute.

Brothers from another Mother.

2008-02-24T21:20:00.000-08:00

Brad, Mark and Shane Hit Beaver Mountain for some Boarding. Yes even Shane sometimes abandones his sticks for a board. Cheesing it up for the camera the Brothers in law are ready to go.

Burrrrr it looks like a cold ride.

Shane's easing back into a different mode of snow riding (Ski's are his favorite medium, but after a bit he was at ease again on the Board.)

Mark stikes a pose for the camera.

Brad tears it up.

What started out as an icey day turned out to be beautiful!

The Master Igloo Builder Came to OUR House

2008-02-24T20:45:00.000-08:00

While Uncle Brad and Em were in town Bradley was eager to get an igloo built. Our original igloo melted down quite a bit so, they demolished it and started fresh. Brad is stacking bricks and Bradley is packing snow into the cracks to make it solid.

Shane's making bricks, snow bricks that is.

Shane laughs as he notices that our igloo has a few polka dots courtesy of Maisy (our Dog) Ha, Ha.

Bradley is instructed to pack more snow especially covering the a...Polka dots so that maybe mom won't notice. Nice try Dad.

In the end it was a beautiful and sturdy Igloo. Bradley had a blast with his Dad and Uncle Brad.

February 6 Becky's 36!

2008-02-24T18:57:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm closer to 40 yrs than 30 yrs now. It was a good week though. Dispite the girls being sick, uncle Brad, Emily and Parker came up to play and Snowboard. We always enjoy their visits. Shane gave me a Cricut Expression 24" Cutting Machine.(Die Cuts.) So much fun! My cake this year was not made by me...this year Sam's Club took care of it for us. They actually make a pretty moist cake. Yummm.

Not my best photo ever, but I had to use something for posterity sake.

Mark, Carrie and the Kids came over to wish me well and we all enjoyed the cake. Brad and Em gave me a gift certificate to Bed Bath And Beyond to get some new dinner glasses that I wanted- Thank you again, we love them.

January 24th Pinewood Derby 2008

2008-02-10T17:27:00.000-08:00

Well it has been an eternity since I have posted anything...so behind. The girls and also myself have been sick. No fun. Anyway, some who have read Shane's Garage will find the pinewood derby old news so bare with me. Also of note, one may have noticed that I had a playlist of music on this blog that I have removed. We were looking at our blog one day and heard a whole different playlist instead of mine...it was all Hispanic music. I don't know if it was a glitch with Playlist.com or if someone was playing a joke, but until I can figure it out, I'll be leaving it off.
The Official Race:
Bradley was eager to get his car racing. He and Shane had so much fun building it. (Again Shane's Garage has more of the technical end of the building process if that interests anyone.)

Emma had an old car of ours to race in the sibling, free for all races. (We made this car in 2000 for a family pinewood derby.) Shane refinished it for this competition with new wheels and better weight distribution.

I don't have any still shots of the races, but Bradley took first place. They did not share the placing and gave a best at award to every scout. Bradley won each race he was in and the award he got was the most coveted Fastest Car.

The Free for All Races: This was supposed to be a dad's competition, but only Shane and one other dad made cars so they combined the siblings and Dads and any scouts that just wanted to race again into one whole. Then they let everyone race at random. Shane's motorized car with remote control was at least 5 car ahead of everyone. All the scouts thought that it was great. Shane let our nephews who came to support and all the scouts take turns trying it out. Everyone enjoyed it.

Shane's car charging in the cultural hall before the races.

Getting ready to race. The Car was amazing. I could not help but laugh!Motorized remote controlled wheel.

Battered after all the racing was done Shane's Car was a hit.

Two More Trips to Beaver

2008-01-27T22:00:00.000-08:00

Alright, I think you are all going to get the idea that all we ever do is ski... partly true for Shane and Bradley every weekend. But really, I came out of retirement after over 11 years not skiing and it was just like riding a bike, you never forget. Emma has made amazing strides in just three trips total skiing, she can do it all on her own on the flatter stuff. She's only 3 and it was amazing. Most of our shots were videos so the still shots don't do it justice. (I've tried to upload videos several times and they never work out.)
Day One:Saturday, Jan. 19, 2008 started out with one potty trip after another and we thought we'd never get Skiing. First Shane, then Me, then Emma (Bradley and Uncle Mark went straight to the lifts) but we got our business taken care of and it was finally off to the slopes.

I got the pleasure of riding on the lift with Bradley. It was so fun to chat with my son in the stillness of the mountains. It was snowing and with black gloves on we spotted some amazing, huge, perfectly formed snow flakes landing on us. Bradley is so observant of things in nature.

Emma's first attempt at skiing on her own, she kept yanking her hand away from Shane as if to say "let ME do it." She wants to learn so much.

Emma was ecstatic at the end of the day. She had so Much Fun.

Day Two:
Monday, Jan. 21, 2008 Bradley was out of School for Martin Luther King Day and so Shane took a vacation day. We dropped Lindsay off at Nanny and Papa's again (Thanks again Nanny and Papa) and the four of us went up to Beaver Mtn. Again. This time we skipped the bunny hill and headed straight for Gentle Ben (over a mile long green run). Emma learned to snow plow ("pizza shape") and parallel ("french fry shape"). She was loving it and never wanted to go back to the bunny hill again.

I wish I could include a video, but she really was amazing. She even got to where she could turn slightly to aim herself to you.

Waving to her public. She is addicted to the slopes and there is no stopping her now.

Next year maybe Lindsay will Join...Oh wait she'll only be two, well, we'll see. Ha, Ha.

Check Out Shane's Garage

2008-01-23T07:29:00.000-08:00

Shane started his own blog for his projects and such. He set it up a while ago, but he is finally posting. The first one is about Bradley's pine wood derby preps. This year they are having a scout division and an adult division. The Scout division has to fallow all the rules but the senior division only has the weight and dimension requirements. Modifications and additions are encouraged. They turned in the cars yesterday for registration and the race is tomorrow. We have yet to take some pictures of the finished products...so stay tuned for the Race here at The Leavitt Family and look at Shane's Garage (See Family Links) for the prep and eventually finished products.

There's One In Every Family

2008-01-22T09:12:00.000-08:00

Our kids have each probably been caught doing this at least once, but Lindsay was caught and she knew it. That didn't stop her. She yanked down the princess potty seat and continued on her quest to unroll a roll of toilet paper. Mom finally had to stop her. Boy was Lindsay mad.

A Work In Progress (at Uncle Brad's Request)

2008-01-22T08:10:00.001-08:00

Uncle Brad (Ball) heard us tooting our horn that we also had begun to make an igloo. We wanted to wait until it was finished to post about it but not sure when that will happen. Brad requested our work in progress so... here it is.Well, Bradley started out making little bricks with a toy truck and frustrated at the time the little bricks take to stack he scrapped the whole thing and started over.

This time he used the dog's water bin to make the blocks. Much bigger and sturdier.

Once Dad got involved it went even faster. But the sun was going down and the snow began to get crunchy from the Cold.

This is where we have left it for over a week now. The weather has been too cold making the old snow crunchy and the new snow has been too dry not good for making bricks. Also Shane and Bradley have been working on their pine wood derby cars instead. So the Igloo waits...

Just Me and My Dad at Beaver Mountain

2008-01-13T20:55:00.000-08:00

First run up the Dream Lift, Bradley is excited and ready to go, all nice and warm, in his new ski coat he got in West Jordan over the New Year holiday.

A neat shot just out side of the bathrooms on the Gentle Ben run. Look at the over hang of snow/ice accumulated on the roof! It hung over a couple feet and was 3 feet high!

Bradley has really made some big advances in his skiing ability, from stepping into his turns to bravely choosing more challanging runs to try.

Just a quick pic off of the Dream lift. The conditions were awsome with about 3 inches of fresh velvet.

Bradley is doing so well he has graduated from the green runs and is on to the blue. This is the back side of Beaver Mountain on Marge's Triple. This ski lift was added a couple of years ago opening up hundreds of acres and tons of powder. If Brad keeps this up by next season he'll be skiing the black diamonds.

Snow too tall, Shane says "Bradley carry me to the Jeep I'm too tired." What a great day.

After a long day of skiing an exhausted Bradley makes good use of the snow mountained up from the freshly plowed parking lot. It was a lot of snow. Season Passes Rock!

Emma Learns to Ski at Beaver Mountain

2008-01-08T15:53:00.000-08:00

Emma is a quite a bit apprehensive for her first trip skiing. When we got to Beaver Mountain (a 35-40min. drive) she said "I don't think I want to learn to ski anymore," as she looked up at the menacing mountain.

Shane offers Emma words of comfort in final preparation for the lift line. "Emma don't worry, this is fun and Daddy will hold you the whole time."

Bradley is a pro now with his skiing and offers moral support to his sister.

Uncle Jeff looks on offering support as Emma gets locked into her skis for the first time.

Mom was there to take pictures, but really she just wouldn't have missed it for the world. Next trip mom will ski but this time she and Lindsay were inseparable. Lindsay took the cold (about 17 degrees) like a champ.

Still quite nervous in line for the lift to Little Beaver her first run. Shane ended up just skiing with her like this all the way down the mountain. When ever Shane would stop Emma would say "well, get going!"

When Emma got to the bottom of the first run being helped by Dad the whole way the first thing out of her mouth was "I WANT TO GO AGAIN!" A Happy Camper Now! Even through the falling snow you can see the smile on her face. She said she wanted to ride that ride again as if she were at Disneyland.

Shane is in Heaven and Emma is hooked. She said she wants her own skis that she can keep and not have to take back to the store (rentals.)

Lindsay warming up in the lodge kept trying to crawl under the tables to get candy that people had spilled there... Yuck!!! Luckily for us Lindsay was too puffy from head to toe to actually reach anything and grasp it.

A tired Emma after at least 6 runs up and then down the mountain with Dad warms up in the comfort of the heated van. She and Lindsay (not pictured) relaxed in front of a movie as they snarfed down some Cheetos. We are so proud of her for being so brave.