Friends

Sometimes reality has a way of slapping you in the face when you look at something as simple as a photo of your kids. :) I was going back through photos of the last couple of months, and when I saw Ben and Zach with Jonas it just hit me how special those photos are.

I remember when Brandi and I reconnected after losing touch for a number of years. It was 2007 and Bea was pregnant with Jonas, and I was soon to be pregnant a few months later. I was living in Florida and she was here in Utah. We kept in touch over email over the next few years, and we were lucky to be able to meet up a few times before we moved here last year. Our friendship just seemed to go dormant during the time we lost touch. Once we resumed it was easy, and although a lot of time had passed, it didn't feel like it had.

It feels really special that we live close to each other again after all these years, and that we happen to have boys the same age. I know in time we may find ourselves living far away from each other again, but for now I'm thoroughly enjoying each time we're able to get together.

I think so very highly of my sweet friend, and I'll spare most of the mushy sentiments only because she already knows how I feel about her. She is not only a very thoughtful and kind friend but a truly beautiful human being. I consider myself lucky to have her friendship.

Hello Summer.

Technically the calendar hasn't declared it to be Summer yet, but I think it's safe to greet it early. It's hot, school is out, road construction is in full swing, and BBQs are a plenty! This past week/weekend we did our part to welcome in Summer with a picnic in the park and back-to-back BBQs.

Late in the week the boys and I joined Carrie, Archer, and Joy for some top secret Dad's Day gift making which we followed up with a picnic lunch at Sugarhouse Park. Despite the hot temps, we found a nice shady spot under a tree and enjoyed some face time with each other.



Ben has been trying his had at picture taking lately. The only photos from our picnic were the ones he took.

I love Ben's shot of the coolest picnic blanket ever! I so need to make one of these.

The boys and I headed to the Bruhn backyard the following evening for some tasty kebobs and a fruit-tastic pitcher of Sangria. Yum! Joy came over with Courtney, Josh, and a recovering Ulli. It was just a super chill, relaxing evening with some of my favorite people.

There are not enough words to describe how stinkin' cut I think this boy is! Love him!

The following day Zach did some cute harassing and scored us an invite to Jonas' house for dinner. There are very few days when I don't hear frequent requests from Ben and Zach to visit Jonas. It doesn't even matter if we just visited him the day before. They'll ask, and ask, and ask when we're going back. I'm so glad that they have as good of a friend in Jonas as I do in his mom!  Brandi prepared us a delicious meal, which was followed up by a water balloon fight amongst the boys, and some pie later on. It was a treat that Darius was off from work that night and was able to join us.

I knew during the hour + time I spent filling water balloons that they would be gone in minutes...about 2-1/2. It was all worth it! Ben handed me balloons and kept telling me that he loved me as I filled them, and it was lots of fun to watch the boys launch them at each other.

We're very grateful and extremely happy to have family and friends with grills...especially when they're nice enough to have us over!

Thank you BBQ hosts, we love you!

Birthdays & Banana Peel

It's January and that means lots of birthdays! I love it! Carrie kicked off the month and enjoyed a quiet day at home with her new little guy. I would have gladly spent the entire day with her, but my gross little boys were still off limits from Archer...and I totally get it now why little kids shouldn't have much contact with babies. For example, as I sit here and write this, Ben is next to me on the couch with his big toes (yes, both of them) in his mouth. The list of other gross things they do is long....they lick things which have no business being licked, they chew their toenails, stick their hands down their pants and then sniff/and or lick them, dig around in their noses and lick their boogers or wipe them on things. Little boys are gross!

The following week was full of birthdays...five of them! Celebrating were my siblings Eric and Michel; niece and nephew, Karissa and Ian; and my very dear friend, Brandi. I had plans to make Brandi a cake and thought she would be busy most of the day, so I was only planning on a quick visit to drop it off to her. I was happy that I got a little more than a quick visit.

The boys and I met up with Brandi and her three men at Jump Around a/k/a the Banana Peel which is where her oldest, Ian, works. When I told the boys where we were going, Ben kept asking me when we were headed to the Banana Peel. It took us a while to get it out of him, but apparently Ben calls it that because there's a huge jumping pillow there that he thinks is slippery like a banana peel.

Brandi and I enjoyed a little birthday breakfast and a nice visit while the boys had fun being boys! I loved the opportunity to spend part of her day with her. There was a time several years back when we had lost touch with each other, and it feels wonderful to have her back in my life! She's a wonderful friend, and is such a positive influence in my life.

There are more birthdays coming up...my brother James celebrates this month as well as a delightful little girl who will be turning one. The boys and I are excited to be heading out to Florida next week to celebrate Emma's first birthday with her family and friends.

To each of you with a birthday this month, Happy Birthday! What better way to kick off a new year each year than with so many beautiful individuals starting a new year themselves! Love and best wishes to each of you for a wonderful year, and many more happy and healthy returns!

This, That & D's Birthday

The past week has sped up considerably from the week following Thanksgiving. The boys and I were cooped up for the better part of a week with colds, and since we've been feeling better there's been a lot going on. I wish I would have remembered to take more pictures!

 

Last Saturday marked our first Family Game Night! Growing up games were always a big hit with my family. After talking with some of my siblings, we thought it would be fun to plan a game night every month or two. With busy schedules it's hard to find the time to see each other, so this was a fun way to be able to get together, catch up, and have fun playing some games.

I must admit that I was a little worried Saturday morning! I didn't think anyone aside from Carrie was going to make it, but as the day went on a few more confirmed they were coming, and we ended up with a great turnout. Michel came with Elisabeth and Jarom, Eric came with Ian, Saffy, and Nigel; Clair came with his three girls, and Carrie came with her ninja baby in utero. We played some games, the kids made some crafts, we ate some pie and snacks, but mostly we visited with each other.

Coming from a big family there's a wide variety of personalities, and it's really nice that we genuinely enjoy each other's company and have a good time when we get together. I'm hoping that our game nights will continue on a regular basis. It almost feels like a holiday when we come together.

With Carrie quickly approaching her due date, she has entered into the nesting phase (at least in my opinion). Her list of things to do is still a little lengthy, and I'm super proud of her for asking for help! It's hard enough to put on shoes, bend over, and waddle up the stairs in your last month of pregnancy, so needless to say, it's definitely not an easy task to clean house. I spent Monday cleaning the cleanest house I've ever cleaned! She claims it was gross...I say gross will take on a whole new meaning when little Archer starts leaving his mark!

After playing Mrs. Clean for the day we enjoyed a girls night with Joy. We stayed up late and talked like we usually do when we get together. This time it was different though. I didn't feel that underlying sadness and panic over the thought of leaving the next day because I knew I was only a short drive away. It feels so great to live nearby.

Joy and I played dress up courtesy of Carrie's closet the following morning before we headed out. Joy had class and I had a birthday hubby to attend to. Darius had been busy the day before with the boys while I was at Carrie's, and I came home to a beautiful Christmas tree that the boys had picked out and helped decorate. The apartment and boys were clean and we all headed out to meet up with Brandi and Jonas for story time and gingerbread men at their local library.

 

The boys had fun listening/participating in stories and songs which was followed by decorating gingerbread men. What little kid doesn't love to frost a cookie and stick on a bunch of marshmallows and candy? It was cute to watch them.

 

After story time Brandi was super sweet to watch the boys for us for a few hours. D and I enjoyed lunch together and a little thrifty Xmas shopping for the boys. The boys love playing at Jonas' house, and as soon as we leave they're already talking about when their next visit will be.

The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent at home. Joy came over and joined us for dinner and birthday pie. Unfortunately D's birthday dinner left some of us with upset stomachs which seems to be a growing trend with his birthday. Sore stomachs and all, we're glad for a reason to celebrate D. We love him!

"Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone." - Gladys Browyn Stern

The last couple of weeks have been stressful and delivered us blow after blow of unexpected crap to deal with. It happens, and I know we're not the only ones who struggle. Despite our less than desirable situation and what we may not have, I'm still acutely aware of how much we do have, and I'm grateful for those things. For those people who have listened and offered their love and support, thanks so much.

It's hard to focus in on the great stuff sometimes when we're worried about finding solutions to deal with the challenges we're facing, but we have two great reminders that greet us each morning with smiles on their faces, and they're the best form of motivation to keep us going.

To all our friends and family we may not have reached out to this past week, we hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving and the people you shared your day with. We're grateful for each of you, and to the Bruhn & Canfield families/members we shared our day with, thank you! We enjoyed a relaxing day with great people.

And to my family (specifically my husband) I'm blessed for each day we have with each other. I have not shown you that gratitude and support lately and I'm sorry for any hurt that may have caused you. We're a team and that's what I signed up for 5 years ago, and it's team JD-RA-BD-ZM for life. Love you.

Pre-Thanksgiving day of fun was spent with Bea and her handsome boys. Ben and Zach had loads of fun with their friends Jonas and Damon, I was treated to my annual haircut and other assorted goodies, and we wrapped it up with feeding the birds at Sugarhouse Park. LOTS of birds! (Thanks for the photo and awesome day Bea!)

Post-Thanksgiving Day fun continued at Carrie & Bobby's house (my memory card was missing in camera on T-Day). We helped put together Archer's room and their Christmas Tree. Ben organized his bulbs like he organizes everything else...tight and in a line.

Zach mostly followed Uncle Bobby and Skoog around but got in on a little tree fun.

 

Friends Interrupted

Our visits to Utah over the past few years have been sporadic and are usually last minute. Surprisingly enough, we manage to get around and see most of my family, but the last couple of visits I have struck out with friend visits. It's no surprise really given short notice and busy schedules, so I was really excited that I was able to make plans with Brandi and her son, Jonas, while we were in Salt Lake.

I was prepared to take the Trax again to meet up with Brandi, but Carrie insisted on giving us a ride downtown. She dropped us off at one of Brandi's new favorite downtown spots, City Creek. I can see now why Brandi enjoys this place so much. I'm not a big fan of shopping centers, but this one definitely doesn't have the feel of one.

The first thing I noticed about City Creek was that it was open, but Brandi informed me that it is actually equipped with a retractable roof, which definitely makes more sense when it comes to the winter months. Another cool feature is the creek that winds through the center of the  main walkway on the lower level. There's even fish in it! Big ones! And of course no respectable shopping center is complete without fountains and City Creek has some really unique ones. Another fun fact Brandi shared with me was that the fountains were designed by the same people responsible for the Bellagio Fountains in Las Vegas. The fountains were definitely a big hit with the boys.

We spent some time over lunch catching up while the boys played in the Dino Children's Play Area in the food court. Our conversations are familiar in the way they are constantly interrupted by the needs of our kids, phone calls, potty breaks, etc. They're kind of all over the place, but we just seem to pick up where we left off last. It's so easy to be around Brandi, and with her home full of men and mine, it's nice to be able to relate and compare notes!

After leaving City Creek we rode with Brandi and Jonas to pick up Ian from school and then after dropping him at home, we made our way to the Natural History Museum of Utah. I was immediately impressed by the exterior of the building and how it blends into its beautiful surroundings. The interior of the building is equally as stunning. We barely had time to really explore all that it had to offer, so this museum will definitely be on my list of places to return to on our next visit.

We pretty much let the boys' interests dictate our path through the museum, so it was no surprise that we spent most of our time exploring the Paleontology Collection. On display there are over 30 skeletal reconstructions and a great spot where the boys could "dig" for bones. The boys also spent a good bit of time playing in a couple of the museum's Learning Labs, one of which was a dinosaur themed room and the other a backyard theme. It's so nice that Jonas is the same age as Ben and Zach. Aside from Zach being a little territorial with toys, the boys seem to get along really well!

Our visit was over far too soon as they usually are, but I'm always very grateful for whatever time I have with Brandi, especially when she met us when she and Jonas weren't feeling well. That's a really good friend! As usual, I was already looking forward to our next visit as soon as we parted ways. 

Big Mouth, Big Head

Time runs out much too quick when visiting with a good friend....at least on my end anyway. I wouldn't be too surprised if my exits were welcomed.

I'll explain.

I know I have faults at verbal conversations...several. I tend to ramble and easily stray off subject. As quickly as I intend to make a story, it just never works out. I can't always get out the right words I'm looking for, and I know I tend to interrupt people so that I can squeeze in another string of random thoughts I feel relate to the conversation (so rude). I know all these faults I have, and I can't tell you how many times I've stepped outside myself during conversations and silently screamed at myself to just shut up. I'm baffled why people can tolerate talking to me.

So this was the case again today. I got together with my good friend Brandi, and I found myself unable to heed my warnings. I guess the only thing I can possibly say in my defense is that there just wasn't enough time to talk about all that I wanted with her, so I just let spill out of my mouth whatever my crazy brain could generate. Maybe it was a good thing our time was limited. If I had to talk to me for a lengthy period of time, I might find myself wanting to bang my head against the wall. I seriously need a filter installed which limits my ability to talk more than what's necessary.

So now that that's all out of the way, I had a wonderful time "visiting" with my friend today. I love being around Brandi. I feel at home when I'm around her, and I can talk about anything with her, which I do a little too much. Ben and Zach absolutely loved playing with Jonas and Damon's toys. When I asked Zach to tell his aunts what toys he played with, he excitedly told them about the excavator, cement truck, and trains. I knew Jonas wasn't used to the boys' manner of playing and sharing all his stuff with 2 extra sets of hands, but he did so well with them and was super kind.

I forgot to take pictures until we were all ready to head out the door...maybe next time I'll remember to talk a little less and snap a little more.

Ben, Zach, and the top of Damon's adorable head.

Ben and Jonas

I tend to forget what a large head I have until I take a picture with someone with a normal-sized one.

Brandi, Damon, and Jonas: Thanks again for lunch and the lovely visit! We had an awesome time and wished we could have had more time with you. Thanks for making time for us with your busy schedule, and Brandi, sorry for talking your ear off. Feel free to tell me to zip it next time when I get out of control!