Thursday, June 28, 2012
Museum Day
I took the kids to the Bean Museum today at BYU. It's closing for renovation so we wanted to catch it before then. And of course while we were on campus, we had to go see the Dinosaur Museum. It's nice that we can go to both museums in one afternoon trip.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Sleeping peacefully...and mobile blogging
This post is actually an experiment to see how hard (or easy) it is to post through my iPhone. I'm crossing my fingers! Maybe I'll actually post more often.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Our Newest
Welcome to Porter Alden Radke!!! He was born March 2, 2011 at 12:11 am. He was 7 lbs 7 oz, and was 18.5 inches long.
The induction was scheduled for Tuesday March 1, but the hospital was extremely busy that day. With previous inductions, we've gone in early in the morning (like 6 am). This time they didn't have room for us until 8:30 pm. It was a long, drawn out day, just waiting for the call to come in. Once we got in there, he was born fairly quickly. He is the only one of the kids to actually come on their due date. The delivery was uncomplicated and I recovered quickly.
The kids just adore him! Lander loves the "baby, baby" and Sumner corrects me when I refer to him as "the baby"..."It's Porter, Mom".
The induction was scheduled for Tuesday March 1, but the hospital was extremely busy that day. With previous inductions, we've gone in early in the morning (like 6 am). This time they didn't have room for us until 8:30 pm. It was a long, drawn out day, just waiting for the call to come in. Once we got in there, he was born fairly quickly. He is the only one of the kids to actually come on their due date. The delivery was uncomplicated and I recovered quickly.
The kids just adore him! Lander loves the "baby, baby" and Sumner corrects me when I refer to him as "the baby"..."It's Porter, Mom".
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
The Swim Suit Dilemma
So Mattie and Halie both had a swimming activity this week. Somehow between the time we came home from vacation on July 11th and now, they have both outgrown their swimsuits. So, off we go swim suit shopping. What a pain!! Apparently the first week of August is a bad time to look for swim suits. The stores that still had some in stock were already selling theirs on the clearance racks. The pickings were slim to say the least. My girls are hard to fit. They have longer torsos, so one pieces don't always fit right. They are usually too tight through the torso, even if it is the right size for their upper bodies. Most of the two pieces I found were either bikini style, or tankinis that were too short. So, after checking 5 stores, I last checked Walmart. They hadn't put theirs on clearance yet, but their style selection wasn't too great. The one pieces they had were outrageously immodest. No sides or backs. We didn't even try those on. The two pieces were the same as before...either bikini style or too short tankinis. This time, I decided that the particular one they had might be able to be added to. So, here is the result of an afternoon of sewing:
Thanks to my sister Elizabeth who had given me some swim suit fabric. I added a ruffle to the bottom of each top piece, and added an insert piece in the bodice area. I think they turned out well!
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| Halie's before |
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| Halie's after |
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| Mattie's before |
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| Mattie's after |
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Our Summer Vacation 2010 Day 10
Day 10-Sunday July 11
Had breakfast at the hotel before going to get the kids. I swear I could tell we were close to home. This was the first hotel we’d stayed in where there were more than 1 or 2 other kids. I counted 18 kids at breakfast, not counting the 3 we had there. I was glad we didn’t have all of them there for breakfast. It would have been a nightmare!
We picked up the kids from Buffy’s and tried to see Rex’s sister Andrea. We were never able to get ahold of her, and we swung by her house but she wasn’t home. (Turns out she was in Island Park...which we had already driven by...too bad) While we were sitting in her driveway, we got a call that we had left some stuff at Buffy’s. What a surprise. We headed back there to get the pillows and jewelry, as well as the tooth that Halie lost, that had been left behind. And on we go. The kids are very excited to be heading home.
Had breakfast at the hotel before going to get the kids. I swear I could tell we were close to home. This was the first hotel we’d stayed in where there were more than 1 or 2 other kids. I counted 18 kids at breakfast, not counting the 3 we had there. I was glad we didn’t have all of them there for breakfast. It would have been a nightmare!
We picked up the kids from Buffy’s and tried to see Rex’s sister Andrea. We were never able to get ahold of her, and we swung by her house but she wasn’t home. (Turns out she was in Island Park...which we had already driven by...too bad) While we were sitting in her driveway, we got a call that we had left some stuff at Buffy’s. What a surprise. We headed back there to get the pillows and jewelry, as well as the tooth that Halie lost, that had been left behind. And on we go. The kids are very excited to be heading home.
Our Summer Vacation 2010 Day 9
Day 9-Saturday July 10
Left Cody WY and went to Yellowstone Park. The kids were very excited to be able to see Old Faithful. We entered on the East side of the Park. The kids got a paper with pictures of wildlife to watch for. We saw a few of the things on the list, like ravens and Canadian geese. We watched and watched for bears, but never saw them. The kids were disappointed about that. We did get a close up view of a bison and some elk. We stopped at a little cafe in the park for lunch. The kids behaved very well. Bridger was very excited to have his hot dog and fries. The rest had either Chicken Noodle Soup or Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. Bridger snuck away at the end and managed to get his hands on a big sucker, and used his teeth to open part of it. So, we bought a sucker. Next we went to Old Faithful. By the time we got to that area, it had started to rain. We were woefully unprepared for rain. The kids were cold and grumpy while we were waiting. The sign said it was supposed to go off within 10 minutes of 4:10 p.m.. We got over to the waiting area at 3:55 p.m.. Keeping Bridger corralled while waiting for Old Faithful, was kind of a pain. It finally started to start to erupt, but didn’t go off fully until 4:18 p.m., so we had waited out in the rain for 20 min. The rain stopped right around when the geyser was going off. Then the kids piled into the car, while Rex and I went to the gift shop and got some souvenirs.
The we drove out of the Park. Saw lots more beautiful scenery. Yellowstone is a beautiful area, and we should come back another time and maybe camp out.
We drove to Rexburg and stopped by to see my sister Buffy (Elizabeth) and her family. We dropped by unexpectedly. We weren’t sure what time we would be coming through and if it would be too late to stop by, so I didn’t call ahead. Luckily, she didn’t seem to mind. The kids played together and we visited a bit with Ryan and Buffy. She offered to let the kids stay the night so Rex and I could have a hotel room with just the babies, but Conner wouldn’t stay at her house. It seems that he thought he’d be able to go swimming and stay up late watching tv. WRONG! Too bad he didn’t tell us that before we had to find a room with 2 beds. lol. Oh, well.
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| Old Faithful |
Left Cody WY and went to Yellowstone Park. The kids were very excited to be able to see Old Faithful. We entered on the East side of the Park. The kids got a paper with pictures of wildlife to watch for. We saw a few of the things on the list, like ravens and Canadian geese. We watched and watched for bears, but never saw them. The kids were disappointed about that. We did get a close up view of a bison and some elk. We stopped at a little cafe in the park for lunch. The kids behaved very well. Bridger was very excited to have his hot dog and fries. The rest had either Chicken Noodle Soup or Grilled Cheese Sandwiches. Bridger snuck away at the end and managed to get his hands on a big sucker, and used his teeth to open part of it. So, we bought a sucker. Next we went to Old Faithful. By the time we got to that area, it had started to rain. We were woefully unprepared for rain. The kids were cold and grumpy while we were waiting. The sign said it was supposed to go off within 10 minutes of 4:10 p.m.. We got over to the waiting area at 3:55 p.m.. Keeping Bridger corralled while waiting for Old Faithful, was kind of a pain. It finally started to start to erupt, but didn’t go off fully until 4:18 p.m., so we had waited out in the rain for 20 min. The rain stopped right around when the geyser was going off. Then the kids piled into the car, while Rex and I went to the gift shop and got some souvenirs.
The we drove out of the Park. Saw lots more beautiful scenery. Yellowstone is a beautiful area, and we should come back another time and maybe camp out.
We drove to Rexburg and stopped by to see my sister Buffy (Elizabeth) and her family. We dropped by unexpectedly. We weren’t sure what time we would be coming through and if it would be too late to stop by, so I didn’t call ahead. Luckily, she didn’t seem to mind. The kids played together and we visited a bit with Ryan and Buffy. She offered to let the kids stay the night so Rex and I could have a hotel room with just the babies, but Conner wouldn’t stay at her house. It seems that he thought he’d be able to go swimming and stay up late watching tv. WRONG! Too bad he didn’t tell us that before we had to find a room with 2 beds. lol. Oh, well.
Our Summer Vacation 2010 Day 8
Day 8-Friday July 9
We had a late checkout, so I got in another load of laundry while the kids played on the hotel’s playground, before heading out of Billings heading toward Yellowstone Park. Rex wanted to go over Beartooth Pass (10,947 feet above sea level), since he has vivid memories of going over it as a child. The kids will hopefully have the same kinds of memories. Its very scary to look over the edge and see how high you have gone and how steep it is over the side. They also didn’t like how the elevation messed with their ear pressure. Stopping at the scenic overlook near the summit didn’t help them feel better! They were all amazed, but in a scary kind of way, at how small the cars below looked, and how far away and small the road was. They used the word “terrifying” and kept asking if we still had to go higher. We could see snow outside the car window and the kids wanted to stop and go touch the snow. Bridger wanted to stop and ski. They were amazed to see snow in the middle of July. There were herds of Bighorn sheep on the Wyoming side.
Took the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway to Cody, WY. Yet another Indian Grandpa Harker gave me a book about. Lots of dozing of kids and mom, but there are some beautiful views.
Arrived in Cody, Wyoming. We first stopped at the Cody LDS Chapel which has a beautiful mural and Visitor’s Center. There is a small display of old artifacts from the LDS settler’s who settled in the area, and there were some bronze sculptures. One was of some horses pulling a plow and one was a family pulling a handcart. There was also a miniature log cabin with a family in it and hand crafted western style furniture. Bridger loved it. He really seems to enjoy the miniatures. The missionary couple who was there was very nice and the sister took the boys to the gym so they could run around. They were a bit wild after having been cooped up in the car all day, and had a hard time settling down and being reverent in the building. Next we went to find a place to stay. Either Cody is especially rigid on occupancy limits, or other hotels have just not cared. 2 different hotels wouldn’t rent us a suite because the limit was 8 people. The other suite we stayed in didn’t even ask how many people we had. Oh, well. We would just get 2 rooms, like most other nights. We found a hotel called King’s Inn, that had an African Safari theme. It was amazing. The lobby was full of stuffed animals that the owner had shot and killed himself. There was a rhino, a lion, some gazelle like animals, and a huge elephant. Unfortunately we forgot to take pictures! I am so mad at myself. The kids did takeout, and while they ate and watched Harry Potter, Rex and I ran immediately next door and had bbq at Bubba’s Bar-B-Que. It was very good. We had talked about going to the rodeo, but the weather was looking bad. There was lightning and a light drizzle, so we decided against it. Rex took the kids swimming before bed. The kids were fine with that. They made sure we found a hotel that had a pool. We attempted to get up earlier in the morning than we had been, so we could get out earlier. It sort of worked. We ended up having breakfast in shifts; Mattie, Halie and Annie went down first, then I took Bridger and Sumner down just as the girls were finishing up. Mattie and Halie helped Bridger and Sumner, and by the time they were done, the boys and Rex came down. It actually worked better than any other breakfast we’d done. There was quite a bit less chaos, and a lot less mess. I guess the kids usually feed off each others messes and it normally explodes. I’m wondering how I can apply this at home? The getting up earlier didn’t get us out earlier, just helped stretch out some of the chaos.
Cody had lots of things to do, but we just didn’t have time. We may come back another time and go to the rodeo and some of the Wild West museums.
We had a late checkout, so I got in another load of laundry while the kids played on the hotel’s playground, before heading out of Billings heading toward Yellowstone Park. Rex wanted to go over Beartooth Pass (10,947 feet above sea level), since he has vivid memories of going over it as a child. The kids will hopefully have the same kinds of memories. Its very scary to look over the edge and see how high you have gone and how steep it is over the side. They also didn’t like how the elevation messed with their ear pressure. Stopping at the scenic overlook near the summit didn’t help them feel better! They were all amazed, but in a scary kind of way, at how small the cars below looked, and how far away and small the road was. They used the word “terrifying” and kept asking if we still had to go higher. We could see snow outside the car window and the kids wanted to stop and go touch the snow. Bridger wanted to stop and ski. They were amazed to see snow in the middle of July. There were herds of Bighorn sheep on the Wyoming side.Took the Chief Joseph Scenic Highway to Cody, WY. Yet another Indian Grandpa Harker gave me a book about. Lots of dozing of kids and mom, but there are some beautiful views.
Arrived in Cody, Wyoming. We first stopped at the Cody LDS Chapel which has a beautiful mural and Visitor’s Center. There is a small display of old artifacts from the LDS settler’s who settled in the area, and there were some bronze sculptures. One was of some horses pulling a plow and one was a family pulling a handcart. There was also a miniature log cabin with a family in it and hand crafted western style furniture. Bridger loved it. He really seems to enjoy the miniatures. The missionary couple who was there was very nice and the sister took the boys to the gym so they could run around. They were a bit wild after having been cooped up in the car all day, and had a hard time settling down and being reverent in the building. Next we went to find a place to stay. Either Cody is especially rigid on occupancy limits, or other hotels have just not cared. 2 different hotels wouldn’t rent us a suite because the limit was 8 people. The other suite we stayed in didn’t even ask how many people we had. Oh, well. We would just get 2 rooms, like most other nights. We found a hotel called King’s Inn, that had an African Safari theme. It was amazing. The lobby was full of stuffed animals that the owner had shot and killed himself. There was a rhino, a lion, some gazelle like animals, and a huge elephant. Unfortunately we forgot to take pictures! I am so mad at myself. The kids did takeout, and while they ate and watched Harry Potter, Rex and I ran immediately next door and had bbq at Bubba’s Bar-B-Que. It was very good. We had talked about going to the rodeo, but the weather was looking bad. There was lightning and a light drizzle, so we decided against it. Rex took the kids swimming before bed. The kids were fine with that. They made sure we found a hotel that had a pool. We attempted to get up earlier in the morning than we had been, so we could get out earlier. It sort of worked. We ended up having breakfast in shifts; Mattie, Halie and Annie went down first, then I took Bridger and Sumner down just as the girls were finishing up. Mattie and Halie helped Bridger and Sumner, and by the time they were done, the boys and Rex came down. It actually worked better than any other breakfast we’d done. There was quite a bit less chaos, and a lot less mess. I guess the kids usually feed off each others messes and it normally explodes. I’m wondering how I can apply this at home? The getting up earlier didn’t get us out earlier, just helped stretch out some of the chaos.
Cody had lots of things to do, but we just didn’t have time. We may come back another time and go to the rodeo and some of the Wild West museums.
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