Grandma and Grandpa are going away on a mission

My parents decided that they were going to go on a mission.  They first mentioned it maybe nine months ago.  Honestly, I don't remember.  At the time it seemed so far away and unimaginable I didn't think about it much, but now here we are and I feel both prepared and unprepared for what it actually means.

They went into the MTC on April 30th and left for Vancouver on May 11th so now they have been gone almost a whole month.  The day before they left was their farewell.  They both gave wonderful talks and it was great to hear their testimonies.  They had all of us participate in a family choir and we sang Come Follow Me which went well, despite being somewhat chaotic.

After the meeting we got together at their house for lunch.  It was great being with everyone and there was a lot of tasty food and desserts.

We also attempted a family picture.

I love this picture of my dad trying to direct everyone for the picture.

 Not bad.

Don't they look cute?  We're so lucky to live at a time when it is so easy to communicate with others all over the world.  We've been able to talk with them through e-mail, of course, but also Skype.  It can't compete with the real thing, but it really goes a long way towards feeling connected with those you love.  I also worked hard helping my mom feel comfortable with using her blog, of course, Blogger immediately changed everything.  Hopefully, this new Blogger format will make it easier.

I will be hard not having them around, especially in regards to free baby-sitting, but I was reminded that Heavenly Father blesses the families of missionaries while they're in the field and so now I know that this is going to be an awesome 18 months.

Pinewood Derby

This was our first Pinewood Derby.  Since Nathaniel got a late start to scouts, he never participated in one.  So, Jonathan's first was ours too.  He and I were both excited.  Grandpa Bill was happy to help us make the car with his cool woodworking equipment.  Jaaromy and Jonathan spent an evening with Grandpa making the car.

Unfortunately, the day before the derby, Jaaromy's work made him take a trip to California and he would be leaving early in the morning on the day of the derby.  Jaaromy was really disappointed.  I wasn't planning on being there because I had orchestra rehearsal and our concert was next week and we were getting a brand new piece that night.  Well, plans had to change and I stayed to go to the derby.  I'm glad I was able to be there, though I really didn't like choosing between the two in the first place.

 When we got there we checked the car in and Grandpa and Jonathan looked at all the other cars.

Grandma Patti came too.  I'm so glad, because I knew Brigham would be a handful and I wanted to be able to take pictures.

Brigham didn't disappoint, he was immediately interested in the track.

 He wasn't shy about going where he wasn't supposed to go.  Only the scouts whose cars were racing at the moment were allowed beyond the flags.  As soon as I took his picture I got him right out.

Finally it was Jonathan's turn.  He made sure it was on the track right.

 Then ran to the end to watch the race.  There was a strict rule about not stepping over the track.  The guy who owns it said that anyone caught stepping or jumping over the track would have to pay him $5.  I think Jonathan owes the guy at least $25.  In the first heat he got 4th place.  He was really disappointed, I was really surprised at how competitive he was.  For the rest of the race he sent his car down backwards.  After that he did much better.

 Since this was our first Pinewood Derby, my expectations were kind of low.  Not that I didn't think Grandpa Bill could make a good car, it didn't have anything to do with that.  I just wanted Jonathan to have fun. Turns out his car did really well and he got 3rd place.  Interestingly enough, the top three cars we all from our ward.

 It was so much fun and I'm thankful that Grandpa Bill could help with it.

I'm so glad I could be there, even if it meant Jaaromy couldn't be there.  I'm proud of Jonathan.

Fun with an old toy

I debated posting this because it was just a little bit of fun, not a major or even semi-major event.  But isn't that what life is really made up of?

My mom gave this helicopter launcher to Nathaniel for his 8th birthday, almost 4 years ago.  We brought it out again recently because Brigham had taken an interest in a smaller, manual version of the same kind of toy.  Not really a fan of being in charge of making a toy work, I remembered this toy.  It has three different size helicopters to launch and it only takes the simple push of a button to make it work.  Brigham loved it, and I was free to take pictures.

 I've never been so happy that we had vaulted ceilings.

 Jonathan had a lot of fun with it too.  We put it lower on the stairs because the orange one would always hit the ceiling.

 It was fun to look over the railing and see the helicopter coming up at you.

Jonathan would push the button and then hurry and run upstairs to catch the little helicopter.  They did this for hours.

So, not a major event but it was a fun night.  The launcher itself entertained Jonathan and Brigham for several days.  Good times!

Nathaniel's Blue Belt

Nathaniel tested for his blue belt last month.  He hadn't tested in a while because his instructors wanted him to have more power behind his moves.  So he practiced with Jaaromy a little and worked harder in class and he was finally ready to test.

 

He did a really good job, I was impressed.  It was a lot of fun to watch him.

We didn't get a picture of the belt ceremony because they normally don't hand them out until at least a week later.  This time they handed them out during the next class time but there was no way for us to know that.  But we got this picture anyway.

Good job, Nathaniel!

Aquarium, finally!

So, our family was given a gift certificate for the Living Planet Aquarium for Christmas two Christmases ago and we finally used it. So, if the gift giver is reading this, I'm sorry it took so long. On the plus side, it was awesome!

So many cool fish to see. Since it was really dark inside, getting a good picture was going to be challenging. If I didn't want any actual fish in the picture, though, it was easy.

The otters were a recent addition and they were sure fun to watch. There were lots of people crowded around the glass. Luckily, it was a fairly large exhibit so there was lots of room.

They were so playful. It was actually kind of hard to get a good picture of them since they were always moving.

These two were wrestling all over the place. All the kids watching thought they were hilarious.

Brigham hoped right up to this computer to play for a bit. He felt right at home.

We took a short fish-watching break in this play area. The boys liked it.

It wasn't entirely fish-free though. I'm really happy that I could get Brigham to sit still long enough for this picture.

This is a pretty good picture of the boys. I'm so used to Brigham being uncooperative that I took this too soon. Right after I took it he smiled so sweetly for the camera. But, it was too late to get another one. I guess I'll have to be more patient in the future.

The shark tank was particularly mesmerizing. It was so dark though that it was really hard to get a picture unless they were sitting really still. This sea turtle had been hiding in the corner the whole time and came out for just one lap around the tank.

This little shark held still long enough for me to take his picture. This was Jonathan's favorite part.

They had penguins too, but the picture I took isn't very good since the glass was all steamed up. But this height chart was informative. I had no idea that emperor penguins were so tall. You can't see it in this picture but they're almost as tall as Jonathan.

I got a kick out of these alligators since I could see them so well in and out of the water.

This fish was so freaky. It was underwater but it's eyes were huge and poked out of the water while it swam. Weird.

This was a lot of fun and there was so much to see. One of my favorite parts was the octopus and the Jelly fish room. It was really dark in there and I didn't even try to get a picture of them. We'll have to go back sometime. It was super fun.