Halloween Activities and Games for All

So I have already decorated our house for Halloween (mostly). I LOVE Halloween and enjoy scaring the snot out of myself and others. Here is a list of activities that we will be participating in for Halloween:

1. 31 Days of Family Film Frights  This is easy for us to watch after Packer goes to sleep, and it helps keep the anticipation of Halloween up. I have found that when I don't 'feel' like it is a certain holiday or season it is because I haven't put in the daily work to make myself feel that way. Movies are an easy way to do this.

2. Witch Festival at Gardner Village I actually love going to this with all of Jameson's family. It is super fun and the kids love to see the witches all dressed up. It is REALLY crowded though. So keep that in mind and be prepared to battle crowds.

3. Haunted Village This is not the scariest thing out there. However, the first time that I went, we went on a weeknight just as they were closing. Let's just say that the workers really put a show on for us. I may or may not have gotten trapped in the haunted asylum while mad scientists were calling my name, given to them courtesy of Taylor Christensen. Jameson was no help.

4. Family Halloween Party. This is a tradition that I want to start this year with our family. On the Monday night before Halloween, we will have a family home evening that includes all of the classic Halloween activities such as bobbing for apples and carving pumpkins. We will also learn about the history of Halloween, and how it has changed over the years (it doesn't hurt that I have extensively researched witches due to a book that may or may not be in the works).

5. Ward Halloween Party. This is our church's Halloween Party and involves a trunk or treat and some games in which Packer can show off his cute Lion costume to maximum benefit.

6. Halloween Lights. There is a house just up the street from us that does a Halloween light show similar to the Utah Christmas house (also near us). He has lights up all over his house that are timed to spooky music. Super fun, and we went last year. Really excited for this as well.

What are your Halloween traditions?

Living With Myself

I understand that the title to this particular post may be a tad confuzzling. Let me define: I mean living with myself as actuality, not metaphysically.

Those who have been my roommates (from parents to college to husband and everything inbetween) know that I am a hoot to live with. I am a riot with so much charm and charisma it figuratively leaks out my giant brown eyeballs. That said, I have lived with myself for a very long time, and I have found that sometimes that charisma pools up and makes the kitchen floor sticky. I rarely clean that up. So here is a top five list of all the things that I don't like to clean in my house, but I have to because I live with me.

1. The Dishes. Oh. My. Goodness. It is a daily battle with the inner me to complete this chore. I try to pass it off to my husband, but it totally doesn't work. I regularly miss days because 'I just can't face it' -- then I have Mt. Dishmore to climb for the rest of the week. I hate this.

2. My Bedroom. This has been a struggle for me since I was small. I would rather my mother give me ANYTHING else to do -- besides cleaning the dishes.

3. Re-Organizing Anything. Let's face it, I am a driven person. Ambitious to a fault. I often take on organizational projects that are just plain beyond me and my minor skills. Thus we end up with a pile of boxes that has yet to be a. used or b. thrown away because I am going to use them.

4. Doing more than one chore in an hour. I hate this chores are the pits. I have read multiple parenting books that talk about being positive about doing chores and your kids will enjoy doing them. HA! They will not. No one would rather mop the floor than read Hidden Order by Brad Thor. 

5. Decorating. I actually love to decorate my home. Unfortunately, I share that with my husband, who has definite ideas about what does and does not look good. These ideas often clash with mine and what results is little to no decor in our home.

What are your least favorite chores?

Good Series to watch: Melissa and Joey -- only watch this if you loved Sabrina: the teenage witch. If you did not, you will simply never appreciate the humor used.

Autumn Blues

I love autumn. As a season, it just has it all. Pretty colors, figure hiding sweaters, crisp (not frigid) air, and lots of apples for homemade applesauce.

This year, however, I am so sad to say goodbye to summer. I think it is because I finally have a kid and see the world through a smaller person's eyes again. Today we walked up to the pool area of the apartment complex that we live in. Packer was babbling to me in his sweet little voice about Lord knows what, but it was nice to hear all the same. Suddenly, he stopped cold and looked at the pool. It was covered for winter.

I then started to tick off in my head all the fun things that we had done this summer that we wouldn't be able to do now. Swimming, popsicles, camping, frolicking through meadows is kind of on it's way out. It just gave me a moment's pause to welcoming my beloved fall. So here is our sweet send off to summer:

April Come She Will by Simon and Garfunkel

April come she will
When streams are ripe and swelled with rain;
May, she will stay,
Resting in my arms again

June, she´ll change her tune,
In restless walks she´ll prowl the night;
July, she will fly
And give no warning to her flight.

August, die she must,
The autumn winds blow chilly and cold;
September I´ll remember.
A love once new has now grown old.

Overall, it has been a wonderful summer -- so here is to remembering in September, and looking forward to a wonderful fun filled fall!

Good Show to Watch: Derek -- I am fairly leary of Netflix Original Series. They are like HBO Original Series, super dirty and gross. However, while Derek does have a bit of language, it it fantastic. The story centers around a nursing home in England. More serious than funny and very touching.

Living Planet Aquarium

This past Monday, Packer and I went to the Living Planet Aquarium in Sandy Utah with my good friend Jane Butters and her rambunctious twin boys Alex and Beck (named after the music artist). Jane is a Kindergarten teacher, and consequently has been to the aquarium on many a field trip. It was my first trip . . . to an aquarium of any kind.

I know, could he be cuter or more BA, looking that that mad awesome shark swimming by? I don't think so.

Jane and her twins (this is how they are often seen) watching the same tank.

I had my hopes set on these massive tanks with large whales and sharks in them (I think I got this from a hodge podge of popular cinema). What I got was even better! Smaller tanks, lots of animals. Some small sting-rays that feel oddly like velvet, are VERY friendly and prone to petting (not the naughty kind, the pet a dog kind). 

This makes the little stingray look kind of crazy, but they were just so friendly!

This picture was taken for Jameson. It is NOT a crocodile, but some sort of relative - I forget which.

Packer went everywhere and really fell in love with the clown fish, the otters and the tree frogs. I think he loved the clown fish because their tank was close to the ground, and he could stand on his own and climb about without too much risk.

Here is the clown fish tank in the kids play area. We tried crawling through some of the crawl spaces, but that was a little too much for a little Packer.

Here is a close up of him -- he tried all different ways to touch the clown fish -- including digging his fingers under the tank. Fortunately for them, it didn't work.

Overall, we had a GREAT time!! Thanks to Jane for inviting us -- it was totally a blast, and I love exposing our family to educational and fun opportunities.

Good Book to Read: I broke down. I am reading Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin. I know that it has been the popular fiction piece of the decade (I mean, an HBO series, really?) but I didn't want to throw myself into something that I couldn't put down. Let's be realistic, I'm a mom who's time to read is minimal. I am not the teenager that stayed up every night a Harry Potter novel emerged to get the novel and then read it all night until it was done. That isn't an option anymore for me, and I don't have any amount of self control. What this boils down to is that I really need to be careful if I think I will love a novel. Fortunately, I don't really love this one. Don't get me wrong: FANTASTIC writing, amazing characters. Too much blood and swearing and sex for me. I want my fantasy of the Blue Sword variety (i.e. very PG).





 

Natural History Museum

My good friend, Dana Hicks and her daughter, Reagan, invited us to the free day at the Natural History Museum. It was a day filled with learning for all of us.

This is where kids can dig up 'dinosaur bones' It wasn't even real sand, but tiny pieces of plastic. Yeah, that's great Natural History Museum. I would much rather he eat tiny pieces of plastic than dirt.

He enjoyed pushing his stroller everywhere.

His very own dire wolf . . .

This was by far the most popular for Reagan and Packer. They could probably have splashed for hours here.

My sweet little monkey in a T-Rex footprint.

Looking through the glass at a dig site.

Up at the top of the museum they have a fantastic overlook of the whole valley. Two thumbs up!!

One of my favorite things about going places with Packer is the time limits. As I have stated to before, I have about a two hour limit on any activity. So an all day trip somewhere is usually VERY taxing on my limited attention span. Therefore, it is nice to have a little body that also has a short time limit. Then we can pick a few things to look at, and be okay to catch the rest on a different day.

Good Book to Read: I may have to slit my wrists for saying this, but Friends Forever by Danielle Steele. Seriously?!? Yeah, I decided if everyone loves her, there must be something to her work. It was in no way realistic and definitely had a heavy dose of rich people's problems, but it was an entertaining read, and it broke my slump.

Family Reunion

I just want to note that there were many events that happened in the last few weeks. I will be chronicling them in order over the next few posts.

First of all, we attended a family reunion on my mothers side located near Kanab Utah at a family ranch. It was in southern Utah over the fourth of July. Needless to say, Jameson was sorely disappointed that we were blowing things up in honor of our country in Wyoming as per usual. Southern Utah was far too dry for fireworks, but we did spend some time with family that I really only get to see at reunions, so it was time well spent. And it wasn't even that hot -- it even rained!! We went down early on the morning of the 4th and then left late on the evening of the 5th.

As we were driving the short dirt road to the ranch, we pulled Packer from his car seat so he could get behind the driver's wheel. It may have simply been the means to help him to stop crying for pity's sake!

Packer with his Great Grandfather Warren Foote. For those that don't know, he is a particularly  interesting,  kind and generous man.

We slept at a cabin that my parents were kind enough to share with us. Packer really struggled through the night until I let him into bed with us. He and Dad slept well. JUST he and Dad.

This was a large reunion including my mother's uncles and cousins. The night of the 4th we had a big program that my Aunt Roxy did a great job with! This is a picture of my Dad, cousin Shane and Jameson and Packer.

Here is my cute mama with Packer Man.

My mom and her sisters also put on a program about my Grandmother and her family, the Haycocks. It was very enlightening. My great grandmother was on an all woman city council in Kanab. It was very empowering!

Everyone was really interested in what was going on . . . 

A few other notes are that I became the historian for the Fall Canyon Ranch -- which really just means what the history and such is for the Ranch that we have now, which was only built a few years ago, although the land and some other ranch houses have been in the family for generations. Overall, it was great to spend some time with family and friends.

Good Book to Read: Girl With the Dragon Tatoo by Stieg Larsson -- To be honest, it is a little bit heavy for me, especially since I want something light so that I can get back into the swing of things with reading my 52 books for the year . . . but I got to admit, I am thinking and I am not too far into it!

Good Series to Watch: New Girl -- now I am a huge Zooey Deschanel fan, so this was a no brainer for me. But I love how happy she is just to be wierd and awkward and herself. At least her character Jess is.

Spartan Race: A Testiment to Jameson Jackson

This last Saturday, Jameson Jackson was totally a hero and finished the Spartan Race. For those of you who are unfamiliar -- it is a 13+ mile run with at least 28 obstacles to complete. Here is a link to give you a better idea.

Oh. My. Goodness. There is some serious hotness going on in this picture.

Jameson did it with some friends at work, including his good friend Taylor Christensen.

Jameson and Taylor getting ready. Notice the white shorts. Really, Jameson? Really?

 Taylor's wife, Tiffany, and I went and sat in the sun for 6+ hours to watch. It was surprisingly fun. We didn't have a good idea of where and when to watch for the guys, so we missed some stuff (including the finish line) but I am so proud of Jameson. This was really difficult and he really did well. I can't believe how fast he shimmied up that rope!

Ready, Set, Go!!

This 30 foot rope took him like no time at all. I think he was just showing off for the hot chick watching him.

Triumphantly emerging from the mud pit/rope climb.

I really am so proud of my honey bunny. He trained and worked really hard to be able to do this race and he conquered! Way to go my Spartan Man!!

I still have nothing to recommend here. I have been swamped with Church, Trips and Birthday Parties. Perhaps later . . .

Why We Hate the Water

Summertime if full of wonderful things. Barbeques, hikes, and any form of fun in the sun. We have been partaking liberally of all of these things. However, the water part of summer (my personal favorite, despite swim suits) has been a huge struggle for Packer.

I have been implementing 'Fun Friday' in our household. Pretty much, we just do something fun that wouldn't happen on a normal day. It's the day I plan fun stuff for us to do, usually free. We went to the free day at This is the Place Historic Park. Last Friday we attempted to visit the splash pad at City Creek (by 'we' I mean my Sister-In-Law Beth and her two girls and myself). This is how it went:

This was our first attempt. He didn't even get a squirt in the face, he got a light smattering of water. It was evidently traumatizing.

We tried again about 10 minutes later. Did NOT go well.

So, all in all, not well. We also have a pool at our apartment complex that we visit at least once a week. It is a struggle every time. I don't know if the pool is simply too vast (maybe I shouldn't force him to put his head underwater or float on his tummy) or the splash pad too surprising (water to the face is disconcerting). But this veteran swim team captain (ha ha -- it was only because I actually stuck it out 4 years, not because of talent) will not give up!

Good Book to Read: NO IDEA -- I honestly have not made this summer the awesome reading thing that summers usually are for me. I will work on this. Plus I am in a downward spiral on Netflix. I need some good movies to watch as well. 

Father's Day Post Script

Yesterday I was watching Jameson play with Packer (because my patience had run out and let's face it -- I am just not quite as good at playing as Jameson Jackson) and I was thinking about all the things that Jameson is better at as a parent than myself. I decided to make a list.

This is from when he was like 6 months -- but you can see how happy he is with his Dad.

1. Chasing Packer around on his hands and knees while Packer laughs uncontrollably.

A lot of these pictures have nothing to do with Jameson -- but this is a cute picture from a few weeks ago when we went to the zoo with our friends!

2. Playing with various sports equipment and demonstrating how to be active.

Another cute pic from the zoo. My little bird man.

3. Not letting Packer eat dirt.

I was letting him play with dirt next to a stinky sheep at This Is The Place Monument.

4. He set up our whole family prayer/scripture reading system. I know -- right? You would think it was me. But you would be wrong.

Me outside the Relief Society Hall -- because I love Relief Society!

5. Acrobatics in general -- various 360s and such that make Packer squeal in delight.

We had lots of fun at the petting zoo this last Friday at This Is The Place Monument

 Anyway -- this is just a quick om age to Jameson since my little epiphany of how much Packer needs him came around the same time as Father's Day.

Good Book to Read: The Magicians by Lev Grossman. Here's the thing: too much swearing/sex and the story line meanders pointlessly too much for my taste. However -- lots of fun references to Harry Potter and Narnia.

A Much Needed Break

After taking a few weeks of a break from informing family and friends of my every thought on everything, I needed a bit of a break.

Consequently, a few things were missed. This post will mostly just be a deposit of our visit with my parents and grandparents at the ranch in southern Utah as well as a few notes about my sister in law Lisa and her visit to Salt Lake for the day.

Southern Utah:

This was a visit down to the ranch to actually do some chores for my grandfather and to help out the family to accomplish what needs doing at the ranch. My Grandfather (bless his cotton-pickin' heart) really just wanted us to enjoy some time together. So, it was more fun with family and less hard labor.

Packer, Grandma Becky and Great-Grandma Foote -- lots of fun!

I had so much fun sitting and watching my mother and Grandmother put this puzzle partially together. We laughed and laughed. I hadn't done that with my sweet Grandmother very often, and it was a blast (mostly fart jokes).

Both Packer and my Dad enjoyed being outside and looking at everything in the morning light!

Packer, Dad, and Great-Grandpa Foote -- we all had fun working and playing together.

Alycia and Steven (Jameson's sister and brother-in-law) also drove down to see the beautiful sites and a few of the easy day hikes on my grandfather's land.

Jameson didn't tell me there was a snake a few feet away from me slithering it's slimy devil little body through the water. Good move, Jameson. Good move.

Walking into Twin Hollow -- Packer loved the sights.

This is the sheer red cliff and blue sky only to be found in Southern Utah in Fall Canyon.

These two are such photo nerds - so glad they could come.

We found a tidy little spot to leave Packer in Twin Hollow if the going ever gets rough . . .

This was taken at Denny's Wigwam in Kanab. We took a trip in and thoroughly enjoyed this location as well as 3 bears sandwich shop. Super yummy -- totally recommend!

On a log over the north fork of the Virgin River (it is more like a small creek) running through my Grandfather's land.

A small family picture in a small nook in Twin Hollow

Lisa and Kaleb:

Lisa and Kaleb came the day before we left for Southern Utah. It was pretty fun to see Kaleb and it was the first time that anyone from my brother Chris's family had seen Packer since they live so far away.

Lisa and Kabeb in our small kitchen

Cute little cousins having a blast! Packer may have been bowled over a few times, but what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and he needs to learn to fend for himself!

Lisa and Packer -- it was so much fun to chat with Lisa and she was so good to my little guy!

Kaleb was a very sweet, very busy little body and Lisa was a wonderful, fun and patient Mom!

Good Book to Read: The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanan -- I really enjoyed this young adult book. It is about a young track star who gets in a traffic accident and looses one of her legs below the knee. Since I have tragically become a runner since I graduated college, it was great motivation for me to get my rear in gear and work harder toward my fitness goals. I also learned a thing or two about running technique from the book. For those who aren't runners, it is also just a wonderfully inspirational (if totally fictional) story that highlights overcoming obstacles without the usual teen drama that accompanies young adult novels.

Good Series to Watch: Alphas -- this isn't actually my favorite, but Jameson loves this show. It should have all the makings of something I love, but I think I want a little more 'clean' heros. This is a little too nitty gritty for my style. Still a fantastic and well thought out idea that has great acting and a fascinating plot.