Boston

Nicole turned 9 this Fall.  As part of our established tradition, we took her on a surprise trip.  She loves American Girl dolls, and I wasn't sure how to fit that into my life, when Nathan and I had to travel to Boston for his ICMA conference.  Then, I suddenly had a spark of inspiration and googled to see if there was an American Girl Doll store in Boston!

Success!  The morning after her birthday we woke up before the crack of dawn to take a plane to San Francisco and then on to Boston.  We got settled in that night and then the next morning acted as proper tourists.  We took a trolley tour through all the main sights in Boston.  I have to say that Boston is my new favorite!

Though we aren't huge baseball fans, we still couldn't miss historic Fenway Park.  We also loved seeing all the boats against the backdrop of the city.

We got to go on a tour of Paul Revere's house.  I always find history so much more interesting when it is placed in context of a particular location. 

The North Church was much closer to where he lives then I had before thought, and I can see how it was a perfect signal.

We got to make requests from a woman playing Benjamin Franklin's Glass Harmonica.  It was actually quite lovely.

We had a lot of delicious meals including in the Italian district where we had some amazing, authentic pizza!

It is one thing to read about the USS Constitution and another to climb aboard.

The trolley itself was a lot of fun, hearing the colorful stories in a B"ah"ston accent.

One of my favorite spots was the actual garden depicted in the famous book, "Make Way for Ducklings."  We absolutely loved it!

We were also blessed to be there during some fabulous weather, which we heard from many sources is not the norm.

There are even statues to memorialize McCloskey's famed book.

What came as a big surprise was that this was literally across the street from the famed park:

The next day was reserved for going to Natick mall and scrutinizing every detail of the American Girl Doll store.  It was a treat!

Nicole saw everything in person that before had only been perused in catalogs.  She had a little birthday money that she spent on a couple outfits.

The day was a success!

Including sushi for lunch. Our favorite!

Our hotel room was really comfortable, and we hung out there most of the next day and had time to chill and relax while I did a little schoolwork, and she played and watch T.V.  The best meal of the trip was our last night at Atlantic Fish (http://www.atlanticfishco.com).  I wanted an authentic bowl of Boston Clam Chowder, and I wasn't disappointed!  What a great trip!  One of the highlights of the trip was watching as Nicole read Harry Potter #6.  She had to wait till she was 9 to read it, and she loved it as much as I did.  She is a special and wonderful girl!

New Home

This is our third house we have bought, and I have learned that the first year in a new house is always expensive.  It seems like there are several pressing and time-consuming jobs that can't be put off.  The biggest one in our new home has been the deck.

Amid my unpacking, classes, and internship I have also managed to sand and paint our deck once Nathan rebuilt the balusters.   This weekend I have 56 more balusters to paint before Nathan puts them up, and I can call it good for the year.  And just in time, because winter is getting close.

We took a couple trips out to Crater Lake, but I am yet to see it up close.  There is only one trail down to the lake which is quite steep.  The first time we went, it was too cold for our little ones.  I came completely unprepared not even thinking that we would need jackets in July.

The second time we came, Danielle and Nicole were done only halfway down, so I hiked back up with them, leaving the boys to go on.  Nathan was kind enough to take pictures for me.  Next time, I am leaving the kids at home, so I can actually make it to the lake.

That won't be happening this year, though.  Snow fell in September and the lake is already closed.  I didn't realize till we went to the visitor's center that Crater Lake is the 5th deepest lake in the WORLD.

Connor was the only one crazy enough to swim in the snowmelt.

It was more than a little invigorating.

Nathan celebrated his 39th birthday.  He had his traditional enchiladas, refried beans, chile rellenos and for dessert:  carrot cake.  We had a great time with the Garretts that weekend.

Amid everything, we worked on the deck in all our spare time.  It has the same square footage as our first house.

I did it in sections, and finished the side by our bedroom first.  This picture really doesn't do it justice, but it did look a lot better.

And what a view we have every morning.  This fall has brought fog over the lake nearly every morning.  The leaves have been turning, and I count my blessings every day when I look out from our new home.

I will have to take an after picture on this side.  We are close.  We should be done this Saturday.  Then I can put my attention to other matters.  Like finishing my Lifespan paper or taking a few quizzes.

Connor is 11!

Connor's 11th birthday was the first one that we celebrated in our new home.  We were just barely moved and not even unpacked, but I managed to get the kitchen unpacked enough to bake him his requested poppyseed birthday cake.  I tried to make this cake several times in Alamosa, but every time it over-rose and then fell.  I finally gave up.  I was so happy to finally be at an altitude that I could start baking cakes again, and it turned out perfectly!

Connor has matured so much over the years.  He is such a good reader and is curious about so many things.  He also is thoughtful and thinks of things that he can do for others.  When we go to the library, he makes sure to find books for Brandon, he cooks for us constantly.  He made us dinner tonight and last night and is great at cleaning up as well as cooking.

He is persistent even when some parts of school come a little harder for him.  He has such a good heart and prays for those things that he sees around him.  He is talented musically.  For his birthday, we got him a guitar, and he has been taking guitar lessons.  He does this, partly in his grandpa's memory, though we bought it for him before he died.  One of his sorrows was that he could never show his grandpa his new guitar and play for him. 

Connor likes to go outside and explore.  He also loves to help with outdoor projects.  He spent many hours fetching tools and helping rebuild our deck as well as painting the fence.  He is a very loyal friend.

Connor has a strong sense of right and wrong and is a rule follower.  He is bothered when other people don't have that same sense.  He is interested in architecture and spends a lot of time building things out of legos, cardboard, paper, wood and whatever else he can get his hands on.  He is the designer on he lego robotics team and loves to design bridges with blocks.

For his birthday we took a few of his new friends here in Klamath Falls to the Lava Tubes.  He has quite a sense of adventure and loves to explore caves.  The harder they are to climb, the more he likes them.  He is a wonderful boy, and I love him.  Sadly, he won't be a boy much longer; one more birthday will introduce him to the Young Men's Program.

My dad's funeral

My mom's 60th birthday was the day before my dad's funeral.  We had a lot of family show up for the "celebration."  The kids had a great time playing together, and it was nice to reconnect with family, even under the circumstances.

How are they growing up so quickly?

Garrett and I pushed swings for quite some time.

We barbequed sausages and had a huge spread of food that everyone contributed.  The weather was nice for July.  My mom was named Julie, because she was the third daughter born in July.

I was glad that my mom's sister and sister-in-law were there to give her support.

I saw people step in to the role that my dad would have taken.

It was a great comfort to see my Uncle Wes, because he reminds me so much of my dad.

The funeral itself was absolutely perfect.  There was a huge crowd who came out for it.  They set up enough extra seats for 800 people, and they still had to set up 5 more rows for the overflow.

I loved seeing my Grandma Teddy.  I'm sure she never expected to attend this funeral of her step-son.

I am thankful for my own dear, sweet family.  They were and are a huge comfort to me.

This was the hardest part for me.

I still loved seeing the cousins together.  They reaquainted themselves this summer.

Somehow time passes.  My mom came to visit for her first time last weekend.  It was very peaceful and restful for all of us.  I am grateful for both my parents.  I had to write a narrative this weekend for my Life Span class about my early childhood years, and I recognized that I am who I am today, because of them.

Accommodation

I've been reading in my lifespan texbook about some of Piaget's theories of development.  One idea in layman's terms is basically that we form a belief about something in our lives based on our experience.  Rather than reform the belief when we are presented with new information, we tend to bend that new information to match our current belief.  It is only when we are hit hard enough with a new belief that we we step back and adjust our beliefs to a new idea.

The theory is called Piaget's Constructivist Theory.    As an example, I had a belief that my dad would live to his 90's.  This belief was created by years of watching him go play racketball with his friends, jog in the mornings, eat lots of vegetables, live a worthy, productive life and by the stories he told of great-aunts and uncles who lived well into their 90's.  Through the years, any fears I had of my dad dying were adapted as I assimilated new information.  All facts pointed to him living a long and healthy life.

He was soon approaching retirement, and I expected that he would take a year to do some family history and woodwork a little bit, before heading off on a mission with my mom, just as he had always talked about doing.

In Nicole's adapted world, she expected that they would attend the Reno Rodeo on Friday night in the box seats, he acquired annually.  This was a treat that would be as much fun as the past four days had been buying surprises at the Dollar Tree, going to Paper Doll camp with Eva, and walking the golf course with Grandpa and Garrett before coming home to a berry pie made by Grandma.

In my mom's adapted and assimilated world, she expected that after coming off such a wonderful Alaskan cruise, she would celebrate her 60th birthday with her partner of 40 years and would probably enjoy a barbeque meal made by my dad that included many grilled vegetables and a Costco purchased cake.

"Children learn by a process of adaptation.  First, they interpret new stimulation in ways that fit with what they already know, sometimes distorting it as a result.  This aspect of adaptation is called assimilation.  As the new information is assimilated, the child's existing knowledge may be modified somewhat, providing a better match or fit to what is new.  The latter process is called accommodation."-Lifespan p. 78

Sometime between June 25, 2013 and July 5, 2013 my family came to a point of accommodation.  Past beliefs had to be replaced with new ones.  Past expectations were substitued by new plans.  Some of my siblings and our kids made our way to the Reno rodeo, though our hearts weren't all the way in it.  We wanted to have our kids make some new memories and knew that my dad would want us to be there.
 

My mom sat in numb shock as we celebrated a "brutiful" 60th birthday surrounded by people who had flown in or driven out.   Life has a way of rearranging "real fun," which is our expectation to "funeral" which is our accommodation.

Most of the time my life goes on with the distractions of children, callings, school and mundane chores, but every once in a while a glance at his picture, or a fleeting thought bring me back to the implications of this new great accommodation, and I find myself sorting through what this means in the long run.  Even today, while I was substituting for the primary chorister, Nicole broke into tears after a verse of Families Can Be Together Forever.  During a quiet conversation on the chair, Connor wept at all the things that he misses.  And I find myself in grief in front of my computer screen.

We smile and move on through our pain, and our pain is a steady tutor.  The waves of grief ebb and flow, and I plead with the Lord to please be with my mom and help her get through this time.  I strain to feel close to my dad and at times feel his spirit near.

There is comfort in knowing of all the people who reach out to serve our family through small acts or through their own prayers.  It has already gotten easier for me, and I have found great peace in the temple.

Fortunately, my core beliefs remain unscathed and are, if anything, now stronger.