Monday, November 16, 2020

       School was back in full swing.  All kids were going 4 days a week.  Tim was way excited  because it was quiet while he worked at home.  Unfortunately the COVID cases has spiked and so the junior high and high schools are now online for the next two weeks.  That means that Jacinda and McCabe stay home for learning.  This is unfortunate because they do much better learning in person.  We are all trying to do our part to stay safe and well but this pandemic is really taking a toll.  I am ready for things to go back to normal.

     I love all my kids so much.  I am very proud of their accomplishments.  Xadia decided to enter the reflections contest by singing a song.  She did a great job.  However, we were not able to be an entrant because the song is copy righted and not her own.  Oh well, at least I have the video of a beautiful young girl singing.

     Tim got a new toy, a massage chair.  Of course we all use it.  I love resting in it while attending Relief Society.  Originally we were going to put the chair in our room but decided to leave it in the front room so everyone can use it.  I have walked by a few times only to find a child sleeping in it.  Nothing better than having a nice massage to put you to sleep.

     Oct. 27th was a big day for McCabe.  He got his braces off.  He looks so handsome. 

      Xadia had to do a report on a famous person.  She asked who was famous when I was young.  The first person that came to my mind was Christa McAuliffe, the teacher who died in space.  We read her biography together and then Xadia did a poster to resemble Christa and left a hole for her own face so she could give the report as if she was Christa McAuliffe.  It was a special experience.  Christa was an adventurous person and died way too soon.  I admire Christa's vibrant spirit and zest for life.  She did not let many barriers stop her.

     Halloween was so fun.  The kids got a lot of candy.  After 2 hours of trick or treating, they were begging to go home because their bags were too heavy to carry and they were tired of walking.  Tim and I had a good time because it appeared that the homes with a "Biden Harris" sign for president canceled halloween.  They were not having any visitors because of the pandemic.  Other homes were very creative with the distribution of candy and social distancing.

     The fall weather means it is time to get out and enjoy the beauty before the snow comes.  We love taking hikes or walks around the town.  Here we are in Mueller Park Canyon.  We brought Fozzie along for the exercise.  He loves to be with the family and we love him.

     As the weather turns colder, I get motivation to bake.  Our latest creation was baked pumpkin spice donuts.  They were quite tasty.  The kids did not like them because they were not as sweet as store bought donuts.  Tim and I really liked them.  I would make them again, however, the next go will be baked caramel apple donuts.  I can't wait to see how they turn out. 

Monday, October 12, 2020

             I had a fun birthday.  Tim took me out on a date in our neighbor’s Tesla.  Before we took off in the car, the Murdock’s 3-year-old son, Max threw a rock that hit the back passenger’s window.  It left a scratch but nothing serious.  Driving down the road was fun because it is an electric car with a lot of zip.  Tim liked pushing on the accelerator making the car go really fast.  Funny thing, because it is electric there is no revving noise so I could not prepare for my head to hit the head rest.  I kept telling Tim that he is going to get a ticket if he keeps doing that.  He loved it.  He loves going fast.  Anyways back to our date.  As we accelerated on the freeway, I heard a loud bang.  It sounded like a gunshot.  I looked back and the passenger back window shattered.  That little chip from the rock hit the window just right to shatter it.  I told time we should take the care back but he said that there was nothing the Murdocks could do and he was just going to keep driving it.

                We drove to Layton to eat at Outback Steak House, but the wait was 45 minutes so we decided to go elsewhere.  While driving through Layton, a street sign caught my eye.  I told Tim to go back just to make sure I was not seeing things.  Sure enough the street was named “Nalder.”  How strange to see my maiden name on a street sign.  I got out and Tim took a picture.  We then went on a short walk and talked and then he took me to Chopstix for dinner.  We went home and vacuumed the shattered glass and returned the car.  It was fun being with him. 

                We celebrated Xadia’s 11^th birthday over the weekend.  She had a party with some friends.  They went on a treasure hunt, played a ring toss game, and Gang Beast.  We also had lunch and cake and ice cream.  It was such a fun and easy party.  She is at the age where the kids don’t need a lot of adult interaction to be entertained.

                Sunday was beautiful.  We had to go on a walk.  Xadia and Teagan rode the kick bike scooters while Tim and I walked near the temple.  The fall colors are so gorgeous, especially after the rain.  Unfortunately, Teagan crashed on his scooter.  It was nothing too serious.  A cherry milk shake took care of the pain and the rest of the evening was spent talking about patriarchal blessings and watching the Prince and the Pauper with the family.

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

     Super fun weekend.  We went geode hunting in Dugway, Utah.  The kids each took a friend.  Xavius and Canda (cousins) also joined.  There was so much to do.  We went dirt biking, blueberry riding, and geode digging.  McCabe and Teagan stepped in quick sand and got all muddy.  Fozzie sneaked out during the night and helped himself to another camp’s left overs. We brought the telescope and saw Saturn and its rings (it was so neat!).  The weather was perfect.  On the way home, the trailer blew out a tire.  Fortunately Tim was able to fix it.  There was tons of junk food for everyone to eat.  Everybody had a good time and the only broke item, besides the tire, were the blueberry’s side mirrors.  They got cracked from rocks on the road flying up and hitting them as we traveled to our camp site.

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

             

 Kids are back in school.  They go twice a week.  Starting September 28, 2020, they will go 4 times a week (Monday through Thursday).  The Pandemic has made life really odd.  We are finding out that the kids do better when they are in school full time.  They rely heavily upon the teacher’s instructions.  As a parent, I try to help as much as possible but sometimes it is not enough or the kids don’t want to listen to a parent.  Tim and I have also learned that the kids need social interaction.  They like being with their friends. 

                I try to take advantage of spending time with the kids.  Last month, Jacinda and I made a vest.  It is based off a character, Divus Crewel, in twisted wonderland.  Originally, Jacinda tried cutting and sewing together two different shirts.  It was not working very well so I stepped in and taught her how to read a pattern and how to do a few stitches.  A few hours later,  viola!  She has a new vest for her cosplay wardrobe.

                We are so excited to get our backyard done and a pool installed.  Unfortunately it is taking a long time.  We have been patiently waiting for the engineer to come on site.  It has been 2 months since the deposit has been cashed.  I have been told that the landscaping business is very busy this summer.  Of course it does not help that we had a horrible windstorm last week.  The storm knocked down trees and blew off shingles.  It has been a real mess.  We have an adjuster coming out Friday to look at our roof.  Back to the point I was trying to make.  In lieu of a real pool, the Johnsons were kind enough to lend us their water trough.  The boys absolutely love playing in it.  I don’t know who has the most fun, but I am willing to say that Tim is near the top and enjoys swimming with the boys.

                Teagan has taken a liking to doing hair.  When there is a moment where the family is sitting together, he will get a spray bottle and a brush and start doing hair.  He likes to make sure the hair (and shirt) is saturated before brushing.  He goes from person to person doing hair.  It is so fun.  Just the other day he learned how to use an elastic.  Now he can style the hair with an elastic.

                Fozzie has been such a fun dog.  He does not lack attention.  The kids love him.  One of his favorite games is to play chase.  Xadia likes to tie a stuffed animal to a fishing pole and then cast it.  She then wildly reels in the toy as Fozzie chases it.  This is a simple and fun game for the one casting but Fozzie has to do a lot of running.

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                McCabe could spend all his time fishing.  He has met a friend (Sam) at school.  He and Sam like to go pond hopping.  The other day, they caught some trout and brought it home to cook.  Unfortunately, he accidentally battered the fish with powdered sugar instead of flour because he thought the container was filled with flour.  He said the fish was a little sweet but tasted good anyways.  What a funny incident.   

                Jacinda just got her driving permit on Friday, September 18^th.  Six hours later, she hit our mailbox and took the bumper off our Honda.  Tim and I knew this day was coming but we did not know it would be on the day she got her permit.  Thankfully no one was hurt and the mailbox still stands (it is covered in brick).  However, there are some repairs needed to the car.  Jacinda gets to help Tim fix the car so she can take it back out driving.  It is like I have entered a whole new level of parenting.

 

Jacinda, Kate, and Abbey at Evermore.

Sunday, August 2, 2020

This summer has been super busy.  We went to Texas in June.  We had a lot of fun visiting the Stubbs and swimming.  Kade and McCabe were busy skinning snakes and hunting wild pigs.  The rest of us were busy visiting with other family members, cooking, and painting their fireplace wall.  It was such an enjoyable visit but it was hot.  Thank goodness they kept their air conditioner running.  Fozzie got a few ticks from walking in the tall grass.  We had to pull them off of him.  Tim woke up one night with a tick crawling on his arm.  That was pretty gross and prevented me from sleeping well the rest of my time in Texas. 

                Tim and I had a nice visit with my sister Natalie.  We saw her condo and helped her install a light and her stackable washer and dryer.  We went out for lunch and then later met her friend Fadi.  I liked visiting her.  I hope she gets the rest needed to continue at her job.  Covid has caused some lay-offs and as a result, Natalie has more work put on her.

                Flying to and from Texas was different.  We had to wear masks to whole time on the plane.  The middle seat was empty as to comply with social distancing.  They only served canned water and pretzels.  It was totally a no frill ride.  But hey, it beats driving.

                The fourth of July was fun.  We swam at the Squire’s house and had a BBQ.  This summer has been very hot.   The kids have been doing a good job at keeping their lawn business going.  Jacinda works twice a week at Lagoon, which is perfect!  She would like to work more but Covid is taking its toll.

                School will start Aug. 25.  The kids whose last name start with an A-K will go Mon. and Wed. and then remote learning on Friday.  The other kids whose last name start with L-Z will go Tues. and Thurs. and then remote learning on Friday.  I am curious to see what happens when school starts.  I am wondering if the Covid cases will spike and it will end up being total remote learning.

                I am fortunate enough to still have my job.  Many people are being riffed.  The airports have seen a severe decrease in advertising.  I am grateful to still be at my job.

                I need to mention one funny thing Teagan does.  When he wants Fozzie’s attention, he will lift up his shirt and hit is belly repeatedly and call Fozzie’s name.  When Fozzie starts toward Teagan, he will run off so that Fozzie will chase him.

Sunday, June 7, 2020

      May was a busy month.  At the last minute, the Stubbs joined us during the first week and we had a baptism (May 2nd) for Teagan and Elise.  It was thrown together 2 days in advance.  It was very different since we could only meet in groups of 20 due to COVID.  We  had talks by Lowen and Xadia and people watched via Zoom.  I am so proud of both Elise and Teagan.  They made some very good choices.

      It was so fun having the Stubbs at our house.  We went hiking, dirt biking, and watched the Back to the Future series.  We also did some baking of course.  I took lots of pictures during their stay.  Unfortunately my phone reset and I lost all the pictures including Teagan's baptismal pictures.  That made me very sad.  I really do not like the phone I currently have.  Anyways, Amy had some pictures so I have a few that she sent.
     While the Stubbs were here, Chris and Tricia's family along with Kari and Linda joined us.  It was so fun having everyone here.  It was a busy and crowded house.  The nephews were constantly on the dirt bikes.  I got Tricia to take a ride with me on a dirt bike and Amy.  They really liked it.  Having Tricia ride a dirt bike was a big deal and she did a great job.  Amy seemed very comfortable and was ready to try the pit for more riding.  It was hard saying "bye" to family.  We hope to got to Texas this summer to see the Stubbs again.
      We had  a girl's night out last night.  I got to take Jacinda, Xadia, and Canda (my niece) to some fun places.  We went to Farmington Station.   Our first stop was Ulta.  Jacinda got a James Charles make-up palette for Cos-playing.  I got a few things myself.  Then we went to "It's Sugar" for some sweet tooth goodness.  After that is was off to Claire's where Xadia got a floral hair clip and a shiny bag.  Canda got sparkly unicorn headphones.  It was a down pour by the time we left Claire's so we hurried to our car and made our last stop at Chick-fil-A.  The girls got criss-cut fries and chicken nuggets.  During our outing, the boys mowed the Rafferty's lawn and then got milk shakes at Artic Circle.  I think they had a good time also.

Thursday, April 23, 2020

               Even if we are stuck at home due to the corona virus, we still make the best of it.  We have started and completed some fun home projects.  One of them is the fireplace.  We remodeled the fireplace.  

The stone from the fireplace was re-used as a landing in the front of our house.  I am pleased with the results.

                Tim thought it was time to get a dog.  So we got a whoodle, half Wheaton terrier and half poodle.  His name is Fozzie (named after the Muppet Fozzie Bear) and he has taken a liking to me (mom) for some reason.  He likes to sit under my desk as I work.  He is a cute little guy.  

The kids love him.  He is only 3 months old.  Tim installed a doggy door and he has gotten very familiar with using it.

                Being in a health pandemic for the first time in my life is very weird.  We went shopping and the store shelves were nearly empty.  When buying eggs, the only eggs left were free range organic eggs.  We paid a premium for those little things.  Usually we buy a box of 60 eggs for $4.00.  We spent $12.00 for 36 organic eggs.  Here are some pictures from March 14^th.  It has gotten a lot better a month later.  There are more items on the shelves but I was shocked to see so little back in March. 

                The kids have taken a liking to cooking.  Xadia made this cute smiley face cake.  I think she accidentally doubled the baking soda because it tasted a lot like baking soda.  However, the lemon frosting was yummy.  

        Jacinda discovered a copy-cat recipe for Chick-fil-A chicken nuggets and they were really good.  We (Xadia, Jacinda, and mom) enjoyed making them.  We used 9 chicken breasts and every one of the nuggets were eaten.  If I had grilled 9 chicken breasts, I guaranteed that there would be left overs.  It is amazing how kids will eat food when it is made the way they like it.  

         Teagan has started cooking also.  He likes frying eggs and making French toast. In fact, Teagan said to me, “I am in my environment.  It used to be jumping on the tramp but now it is cooking.”  Here he is with a plate of French toast he made for me so I could eat at my desk.  The stack is a little large for my appetite but I did enjoy the one slice I ate.

                The weather has been beautiful so we have been taking advantage of walks and bike riding.  The kids like to ride to Wal-mart or Maverick.  It is about a 5-mile trek.  I get a little worried but they have proved to be champs.  So far there has not been any bodily injuries.  Teagan lost a pedal when it hit a rock.  He just kept riding.  I had to tell him his pedal broke.  He did not know because he was cruising along and I was behind him when it shot off his bike.

                Easter was not the same this year.  The kids were really sad that the egg Olympics were canceled.  However, we got a surprise visit from the Johnson family.  They brought candy filled Easter eggs.  After they left, we hid the eggs and the kids enjoyed an Easter Egg hunt.