More Hudson

This picture is of Hudson's new trick, the "pffffft" spitting noise with his mouth. He chooses the most inopportune times to make this noise. For example, we'll start saying a prayer and all we hear is, "PFFFFTTT". Thanks Hudson. The other night I was lecturing Jack... and Hudson starts in. Then Brian says, "See... that's what Hudson thinks of what you're saying."


All bundled up for winter.




Yumm... cookies.
So cute when he's asleep.

See Amanda... I stopped crying.


All my boys in bed.

Halloween

We started our festivities 2 weeks ago at Hee Haw Farms. We did the corn maze, rode the hay ride, saw Leroy the 1200lb pig and other various things.







We made Tristan and Jack's costumes this year. The Friday before Halloween was CRAZY! I got Tristan ready and drove him down the hill to school. His costume was too bulky for the bus. I stayed at school and watched him parade around then drove home, got Jack ready and took him to school. I watched Jack's parade and then helped in Tristan's class for his party. I drove home... 6 miles up the hill again and when I got home I got a phone call from a lady that was helping at the party. "Hi Allison... remember when I put my keys in your purse? Yeah... they're still there."
So, back down the hill to the school. This time I had Hudson because Brian had some stuff to do. I found my friend and she was helping in Jack's class party. Hudson and I stayed and helped until school was out. I drove my kids home, but we had to go to the bus stop to pick up the 3 other kids that we take home. We stopped by our house long enough for me to run in and pick up a birthday gift and we were off to W. Jordan (40 minutes away) to take Tristan to a birthday party. I had a bad address so we took an hour to get there. By the time I got there, I realized I might as well wait another hour and then take Tristan home. We blitzed out of there in an hour and got home at 6:30. We had a neighborhood party at 6. I fed the baby, put on his costume and we were off.
The party was fun and some different neighbors invited us back to their house to play a board game. (You know how much Brian likes board games *snicker*) We changed the kids at home into their pajamas and went and had a good time. Thank goodness the next day was Saturday, we were beat!
Trick or Treating was fun. It wasn't too cold and we went until the robot costume became unbearable to wear. Apparently it's not ideal for long-term wearing. You can't scratch your nose or even touch your hands together.

Brrrr.....

We woke up to a non-working heater this morning. We suspect that it has something to do with the fact that the power was out for 4 hours on Saturday. Brian, who is very handy, said he can't fix it (we tried the obvious things) and now I'm waiting for the repair man to come. It's very chilly inside my house. It's 40 degrees and VERY FOGGY outside. I tried to take a picture of it... but... it just comes out white and it loses some of the effect. You can only see a few feet in front of your car when driving. scary.
It's a balmy 60 degrees inside my house. I'm wearing 2 shirts and a sweater. I was thinking of some good things about the house being so cold: 1. Hudson has a fever... maybe the cool air is helping?, 2. The Diet Coke I left on the counter for 2 hours was still cold when I finished it off. Ummm... that's about it.

Fancy jacket

So, I got a new fancy jacket from REI last week. Brian says the new jacket is essential for the weather here. The jacket claims to be windproof (to 57mph) and also breathable. Hmmm... how can this be?

More fall color

Bridal Veil Falls. Provo Canyon



We drove the Alpine Loop yesterday. It was really pretty, but we missed the height of fall color. Quite a few of the trees had already lost their leaves. I guess we'll go earlier next year.

Hudson got a new toy

Isn't he cute?!

Our pictures

Check out our pictures on Rogerruthphotography.blogspot.com.
Thanks to Caitlin who recommended the photographer to us. He did a great job. I'm really happy with the pictures.

Not to be outdone...

Hudson's trick is just as good.

Look what we can do...

The kids came home very excited that the neighbor boys can do the armpit farts (excuse the term. Do you know a euphemism for this?).... They were desperate to learn how. Brian, Jack and Tristan had Man-education tonight. I mean... they can't be only boys at scout camp that don't know how to do this.

To clarify:

1. The pistol shaped hand is essential. According to Jack it helps you successfully do the trick. It also, complete with the pull-back action, looks and sounds like you're shooting a gun.

2. Licking your hand can help get better noise effects.

3. Jack mastered this before Tristan, though Tristan's catching up.

4. Taking your shirt off is also essential... according to Jack. He has been practicing with his shirt on, however, because he wants to show everyone on the school bus. great.

Not going as planned

So, Brian's been sick since we got back from California. Two weeks ago I ripped out all of the nice bushes out of our front yard and gave them to the neighbor. I had purchased 27 new plants and 50 bulbs from an online gardening website. I think I thought they were all going to show up as little plants. Not too little either, because they promise that they were all at least a year old. Soooooo..... on Tuesday all of my plants show up. Brian called me because I was up the street "at the mailbox". I accidentally turned the mailbox trip into a visit to my neighbor's house. Anyway, he called and said, 'Your plants came."
I raced home and there was a single green bag, about 1'X3', on the porch.
"Umm... where are the rest of them Brian?"
He said, "That's all that came."
Hmm. Surely there is some mistake. Maybe just the instructions are in here. Yeah. They were all these tiny, bare-rooted plants. Three of them were sticks with small roots on them.
Wednesday I couldn't plant because the wind was blowing 40mph, so on Thursday I started. In my mind Brian was going to be super helpful and help me amend and turn over all the flower beds. First though, you have to move the 1-2' deep bark mulch that's there. Did I mention Brian's sick? Ugh! It snowed Wednesday night so I felt like I had to hurry and get it done.

Apparently when one is sick... one doesn't feel like gardening.

I've worked at it for a long time. I have it 3/4 of the way done. I've worked while the baby fussed, in a snowsuit, in the stroller. I've worked at it while the snowsuited baby was strapped to my chest in the Snugglie. Try sweeping with the baby in the Snugglie... "Oh sorry Hudson I hit you in the head. Oops. Oh sorry... did it again." I'm running out of steam. I totally rely on Brian to do the difficult manual labor chores. He doesn't get tired. I, on the other hand, poop out.

It's also very unsatisfying. I took at nice yard, ripped it up and planted bare-root plants that don't show above the ground. So, now it looks worse than before. I also don't know how the plants will look next to each other AND I can't tell where I've planted stuff. Hopefully the spring will make it all worth it.

I also was shamed in California when I saw the purse that Amanda had made for Anne. Amanda and I bought the pattern for the purse and the fabric many moons ago, and Amanda has made 2... whereas I've made 0. I told Anne that I was going to finally tackle the purse and she said, "I don't know that I would make something Amanda already made. She's got mad skills with sewing." Ugh I know! I only have mad skills with unpicking... and breaking needles. But... much unpicking and 4 broken needles later... I made the purse and it's SO CUTE!


We've also been trying to finally move in. We re-organized the filing cabinet, moved Tristan's dresser, moved Jack's dresser, moved Hudson's dresser, put the cradle away, set up the crib, put away another box of books and various other household jobs.

While I've gardened, kept house and made a purse this week, oh and I worked in Jack's classroom, I haven't run on the treadmill or gone to exercise class. Oh well.

Winter... the day after fall.

Good thing I took the video early because it's blowing so hard I can't film outside. The deck is also completely covered in snow now.

Fall

The first glimpses of color. These are taken from my front door. I should really wait until afternoon because it's noon and they're a little over-exposed.

Crazy Weather

These have no color retouching. I don't know how to do that anyway... the sky was just spooky.

First Day of School

Jack getting on the bus.
Jack's friends (left to right) Kai and Will. Jack plays with Will almost everyday.



School is going well for both boys. Tristan is still struggling to make friends, but I think it's getting better.

I will get caught up.

I promise to get caught up on pics. These are from the Kennecott/ Bingham Copper Mine.

Catch up

I'm super tired today. Hudson got shots yesterday and now has a fever. All my kids have had that reaction, fortunately it's short lived. He was up most of the night and now I'm tired. I LOVE the new baby advice that says, "Sleep when the baby sleeps." HA HA HA. "OK, now Jack, I'm going to take a nap, because the baby is taking a nap. Please don't use your pocket knife, destroy anything, ride your bike off into the nether-reaches of the neighborhood, etc." Yeah... that would work.

We are adjusting. School starts for Tristan on Thursday and for Jack, 1 week later. They both already know a couple of kids in their school classes. We know several families in the neighborhood and are making friends. While I was in California visiting we had 4 messages from different people to have playdates. I also got a call this morning from two different people for playdates and a different call to see if Jack wants to be on a soccer team.

I got invited to be in a book club.. my first... we'll see how that goes. We're reading Prayers for Sale.

We had Amy and Family and Mom visit last week. We had a lot of fun and wore ourselves out sight-seeing. Brian's grandma is coming to stay for a week. She is having some tests done at the Huntsman Cancer Center to see if they can offer her anything more than she is currently getting from her Oncologist.

Dad and Jeri are coming for a visit this weekend and we're looking forward to seeing them. We also have a ward BBQ on Friday night. Brian is flying home a day early so we can go to that.

The kids have done so many funny things, but I think with my extreme fatigue I can't think of any. They are fascinated by speaking Spanish and want to learn. They have been making up their own Spanish words by adding "ita" on the ends of words. It's pretty funny.

Day 4 or something

So I didn't "Shred" yesterday. I was grouchy and sleep deprived. I thought I would give Amanda a day to catch up to me. Thoughtful of me, I know. I did it today though, so I'm back on.

Two nights ago I reached the end of my rope with Hudson. I need more sleep. Last night we moved him out of our room and he slept all night! I didn't, because I kept getting up and checking to see if he was still breathing. I also swaddled him, I think that helped. I went out today and bought a swaddling blanket to put him in tonight.

He's also slept almost all day. It's 2:45 and he's only been awake for about 1 1/2 hours total today. It's a little disturbing. I had to wake him to feed him.

Day 3

I woke up this morning thinking that a 30-day shred is stupid. Why can't it just be a 2-day shred? I am motivated though because I know Amanda is doing it and I'll feel guilty if I don't do it too. I did it with 5lb weights. It's harder, but the workout is actually kind of getting easier. Our bodies have an amazing ability to adapt.

Chantel

I feel bad even writing about mundane things when my sister-in-law, Chantel, is dealing with the loss of her mother. I just want her to know that my heart is with her. I pray for her and her family every night in my prayers. The burial is today and I will be thinking of them.

Day 2

I woke up yesterday and thought, "I'm not that sore." I was just a bit stiff, but as the day wore on I got progressively more sore. Not unbearable, but stairs were not my friends. Brian made the comment that I wasn't going to transform myself lifting cans of corn. Jeri has 5 lb weights I can use, but I was sore enough that I think I'll use the cans of corn for a few more days.

I didn't eat before working out this time. Much better. I did most of my workout talking to Hudson about not crying. "Oh, look at you in the swing... You're a good boy. Oh.. don't cry. It's ok you have the hiccups, etc." He made it until the end and I did the last couple of moves with him in my arms.

Day 1

OK... I'm really sweaty. Note to myself, don't eat 2 bowls of frosted mini wheats and a handful of wheat thins prior to workout. I might be sick... I think I might throw up.

Also, I'm going to buy a tape measure today so I can take "before" measurements. Oh I'm serious about this.

I would also like to mention that I had to do the first day with Brian as my audience.

Me: "Don't you have something else to do?"

Brian: "Nope."

You also need hand weights. I didn't have any, I used two cans of corn. That didn't help me look good or professional.

Jillian Michaels 30 day shred

So, today is my birthday. For my birthday I'm going to officially commit to doing the Jillian Michaels 30-day shred. I'm opening this up to anyone who wants to do it too. I know Amanda is on board. I think you're supposed to do it everyday for 30 days. I'm going to skip Sundays, so it will be the 34 day shred. You need light hand weights and I think that's all. I bought the DVD for $7 on Amazon, or it's $15 at Borders and there's a coupon for $5 off in my email if someone wants it.

Who's in?

Little Boy's Creativity

We were at Ikea and found this mobile thingy. I bought it for Jack thinking that he could hang his artwork or toys from it. He had other ideas.



There are exactly 16 clips on the mobile. Turns out... Jack has exactly 16 pairs of underwear.

Cascade Springs- a calamity of errors

So, it's Sunday and Jack doesn't want to go to church. I mean REALLY doesn't want to go. Full tantrum and crying. I told him if he went we would go somewhere he would like after church. (bargaining) He said that he wanted to go back to the waterfall (Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon) and this time ride bikes by the waterfall. I said, "ok."

After church I was thinking that Provo canyon was a bit far. We live very close to American Fork Canyon. Surely there is something we could see there. So I went online, on my phone, and looked it up. Sure enough, Cascade Springs. Just go up AF Canyon and follow the signs. Sounds easy. Done.

We load up both the kids' bikes. Now there's no room for the stroller. No prob I'll just carry the baby in the front pack. We head out and it starts to thunderstorm. I've noticed, since living here, that the storms don't last long, so we persevere. We start up the canyon and the storm is already petering out. Every sign we see, we check for Cascade Springs. Nope... not yet. Keep going. Oh, now we're at the Alpine Loop, a one car road that goes from American Fork Canyon to Provo Canyon. "Should we go back kids?" "NO! Keep going" I have to mention that it's kind of sketchy on that road. Especially when you meet someone coming down, like a truck. Like the part where you're driving next to a cliff with no guardrail. I loved that. So... we drive for another 20 minutes and then see a sign "Cascade Springs 7 miles." Do we turn back? NO! We've come this far, what's another 7 miles?

We finally get there and the first thing we see??? A sign that says "No Bikes." Great-- now Jack's upset. I also realized that I didn't bring the camera, so all of the pictures are taken with my cell phone. Arrgh.


Cascade Springs is an Artisan Spring. It is where the groundwater meets up with the ground. It's crazy. There is so much water and it doesn't appear to come from anywhere.





We walked all over. The kids really liked it and it was very beautiful. Totally worth the hour drive. Just next time, I'll ditch the bikes and bring the stroller. My arms and back were killing me.



I asked a couple of people if there was a faster way to go home... Like maybe just continue on to Heber and drive from there. Uh... no. The way we came was fastest they said. Lucky I brought a bottle just for the ride home so Hudson wouldn't scream. As it was he didn't start screaming until we were about 2 miles from home. We hurried.

We are here.... we are here... we are here

We are finally here and trying to establish some semblance of a routine. We arrived late on a Saturday, much thanks to Anne, Andrew and Danielle who helped us get here. The Elder's Quorum helped us unload and the bishop brought us dinner. We appreciated all of that because we were really tired. We unpacked for a few days and then headed to Idaho to spend 4th of July with Brian's family. It was nice to see everyone. The boys rode their motorcycles everyday. They can just ride around Brian's mom's house, pretty much unattended.

Amanda and Tyler made the very long trek from Tucson to spend the holiday with us. It was great to spend time with them. Tyler went shooting with the boys the first night they were there. Brian and his brother weren't expecting much from the city boy. There was none of the requisite bragging out of Tyler, so they were shocked when he not only shot better than anyone there, he was one of the best they'd seen. I asked if there was some sort of contest we could enter Tyler into and make some money off of him.

All the boys rode their motorcycles in the parade. I'll post a picture later. Lillian caught all the candy that the parade participants threw. She took her job very seriously.

Brian blessed the baby on Sunday. It was really nice. Tyler and Brian's cousin's husband, also named Brian, were able to participate.

And now to the baby... he cries.... A LOT. I'm pretty sure he has colic. You can even ask Amanda, she was a witness to this. He fusses and wants to eat, but then spits up because he's overfed. It's mostly in the afternoons, but can spill over into the morning, or night. He is an ok sleeper. He usually goes for about 3-4 hours and then is up every 2 hours from when he last woke. Meaning, if he's up at 2 and goes back to sleep at 2:30... he's up at 4, not 4:30. I'm still trying to nurse him, but it's frustrating with him crying so much. When Brian's gone, and I'm here alone... I may have to put him down and go outside. The crying can really been overwhelming.

We haven't yet been able to go to church. The kids are still desperate for friends. There is a primary activity this Sat. that they're going to go to. Hopefully it will result in friends.

I have met some of my neighbors. I was invited to go to the movies with a group of 10 women that go every month. Brian let me go and I had a good time. We saw The Proposal. I thought it was super funny. It was nice to get out. I wish it was to dinner instead of the movies because I didn't get to talk to very many of the women. The movies aren't conducive to talking.

The house is nice. The view is unbelieveable. We are trying to unpack one box a day. We're babystepping. We miss everyone. We have not found replacement friends or family yet. Please come and visit.

Hudson

Born 06/01/2009 9 lb. 9 oz, 21 in long