Our great friends, Ken, Kim, Caden, Ella, and Claire moved here from Vegas last weekend. It is so great to have them here. Their home is beautiful and their kids so cute. It's fun to have some family close.

Memorial Day

Last year on Memorial Day we went looking for some ancestors blindly at a cemetary I found that day.
Well, this year we had better luck. I found an alphabetical list online of people buried in a cemetery in the town where Ken and Kim now live.
Kim's mom, Joyce came along with all of us and we started looking for the ancestors we knew were buried there SOMEWHERE.
It was not well taken care of and as most headstones 300 years old, they were fallen and some were even buried in the trees that have grown into them!!Joyce had the best eye and found 2 Barnums. Ken found another. None of which were who we were looking for- however, this picture of us next to Keziah Barnum was the right name- only the birth date was what the death date was supposed to be.
I've looking this woman and can't find her. Now I am determined to find who she is and where she belongs in this Circus of a family:)
Thanks so much, Joyce for being so excited. Thanks Ken and Kim for looking and trecking in the overgrown mess of a cemetery. You were all troopers!!

"Hand Painted", etc

Today I was painting a wall in the kitchen and Ryan helped me, then went on to his own painting. When he was done with his paper he moved onto his hand. He said, "It's like I am face painted. I'm HAND painted." That comment made me stop painting and grab the camera. You are hand painted, Ryan by the master artist! And I can vouch that you are a work of art!!

The Fathers and Sons campout was rained out. Shawn and Ryan made up for it with building LEGOS. This is Ryan's "Vacuum Cleaner Speeder Racer" then he added later, "It's a flyer, too." He has been into Star Wars just the last week or so.
Shawn made this creature a few weeks ago and was modifying it tonight. He was a good sport about the campout. He is counting down each "last" with his buddy Alex who is moving away at the end of next month.
Cara had Dad all to herself tonight. The rain kept Nate from splitting his time between the Father Daughter Dance at school and the campout. She was VERY excited!

Fire up your engines....

Shawn had his first Pinewood Derby last night. We are so proud of him. He and Dad worked so hard on it last weekend. Nate had to go out of town this week, so he missed the big event. But all payed off and Shawn won the race. They payed special attention to make it exactly 5 grams- the maximum weight. Every heat he got so excited when he won. The thrill never wore off.
It was a fun event, and fulfilled its purpose in my mind of time for Shawn and Dad to create something together and build confidence in our Cub Scout!
I love Scouts!!! I never thought I would say that, I was quite overwhelmed with it even just a year ago. But it teaches boys how to become men while enjoying the time they have now. When I am stressed about not handling different situations the appropriate way, I just hope that somewhere at home, church, school, scouts, baseball, etc. he will find the support he needs to help him become the man he dreams of and is meant to be! So thank you to all you out there who add your bit to the building of this young man! I need every bit of help I can get!


Jen

Happy Mother's Day

I had a wonderful Mother's Day. I woke up to a breakfast sandwich made in a new pan for me from the kids and Dad. Then we went to church and I was Mystery Mom #1 in Primary where they asked us questions as we were hiding behind a chalk board and sheet- then the kids guessed who we were. I didn't do a good job at disguising my voice. The first question was, "How many children do you have?" I answered and Cara said, "That's MY mom!" I'm glad she knows me:)

After church I took a nap with Ryan while the kids played with Dad. Then we headed to one of our favorite spots for Sunday afternoon, Eisenhower Park. It a hundred acre with endless trails surrounding a pond, river and a huge chain of power lines. We found some trails we have never crossed before and came to one of our favorite spots from the other side of the river which we have never done.

This is the spot where we threw a frog back into the water only to see it eaten by a larger fish! The same spot was the location of Cara's first caught fish last summer and Shawn's catching of the SAME fish a few minutes later. Going back a few more years and the reason this spot is dear to our family... Shawn fell in the mud off the swinging rope and was covered and Frozen!!

I love watching my kids play together, discover new things and enjoy being together! Happy Mothers Day!!