Since the beginning of this pregnancy journey we knew we were expecting a very special little person. I have written down many thoughts and feelings that I want to share, but for now I will just share this...

Welcome to Holland

 ~Emily Kingsley~

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......
When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.
After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."
"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."
But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.
So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.
It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

I have been to Italy 5 times now, I am actually very excited to experience Holland!

Pintrest vs. Hoarders...

So this morning at 8:52 as I was racing down the stairs (tripping over the dirty laundry from our camping trip last weekend) trying to get Tuc out the door to school.  I saw the note reminding me that Briggs had his SEOP that very morning at 9:00. As we rushed to the car I was contemplating what was more embarrassing for a 14 year old boy... having your mom show up to your SEOP in your brothers, friend's shirt reading "speed kills" (thanks Alec) and shorts and flip flops, with no makeup and bed head, she was planning on pulling weeds in, orrrr.... having your mom not show up for your SEOP at all??

Sometimes I look around at the darling moms who always seem to have makeup on,  perfect hair, wearing an outfit (size 2) that looks like they just stole it off a mannequin in the mall.  With spotless homes and manicured yards and little girls with braids criss crossing across their darling heads. And wonder how??

I'm not complaining to be honest I have gotten to the place in my life where I accept who I am and who I am never going to be, and don't even want to try :) So I have decided I need to watch more Hoarders and spend less time on Pintrest...

Pintrest says I should have a  magnetized and alphabetized spice rack....

My spice cupboard...

Pintrest laundry room...

My laundry room...

So if watching Hoarders makes me feel good about just getting my dishwasher loaded and clean socks on my boys.... Annnnnd getting on Pintrest makes me feel like I should be making my family's grilled cheese into ice cream cones....

 On a scale of Hoarders to Pintrest...

I'd say I'm just right! :)

The Sociable...

For as long as I can remember Grantsville has had it's Old Folks Sociable. I've heard it is a great time with good food, good friends and awesome entertainment. I wouldn't know! I've never been.

Then why am I mentioning it? My fav part of the Sociable is the talent show for kids to show off and perform for their peers and the whole town.  When Dev was in Kindergarten I decided to put a little number together for him and a few of his friends. 

1st children's sociable # we took the handle bars off of their bicycles and duct taped flashlights to them and did a skit to Leader of the Pack. Do you recognize anyone?

*forgive the photo it was 14 years ago!


After that it was history.... my kids have tried out and performed for the Childrens program EVERY year since. It would take forever to post all the pics so I was just going to try to add a few.

1998 Leader of the Pack
1999 If Bubba can dance.
*2000
*2001
*2002
* I can't remember or find pics :( Can anyone help?
2003 I won't grow up (Peter Pan)
2004 A Knights Tale
 2005 How I Beat Shaq
2006 MIB
2007 Hey good looking
2008 Step in Time
2009 Hammer Time
2010 The Matrix
2011 Synchornized Swimming

Which brings us to this year Childrens Sociable 2012.....

Party Rockers!!

Theres gold in them there hills!

After watching the Discovery Channel all winter and Googling the value of an ounce of gold. Brennon decided to rig up his own system to find gold. 

They started out in the back yard with this set up...

After deciding their technique  was sound but, there is probably not any gold in our backyard.  They decided to head up into the mountains. Of coarse I had to follow....

 We should be rich any day now!!

I have not been a very good blogger this year. I really don't know why (insert sarcasm font here) maybe between trying to raise five boys, run a household, and manage a growing business, my blogging has taken a backseat. But this morning as I sat down to do something I have been putting off for 4 days now.  I found myself inspired to blog.

I put the "pro" in procrastinate!

Todays assignment? Write a letter to my grandpa who passed away on Tuesday.  Instead I find myself looking back at photos and remembering great rememberings. (Thats a word right?)

Not everyone gets to spend their summers in a vacation home on a river. But I did!

I loved going for rides on the motorcycle with grandpa and later when I was older he would let me take it out all by myself!

I have so many great memories of my grandpa.... I few things he said..

Your name is mud!

When asking for a drink of water.... Do you want wet water or dry water?

I'll give you $20 if you can catch big Moe with your hands.

I love you grandpa! I will miss you.

There is comfort in knowing he is with my mom now :)

 The boys & I at the river 2003. Good times :)

Where have I been?

Check here....  http://www.kimberphotos.blogspot.com 

I am loving the sunshine and have been working diligently on getting skin cancer.

RELAX just a joke!

(yes Kacee I have been wearing sunscreen, spf 8 right? )

With the nice weather comes a few other things in G-ville can ya guess?

Yep, our good friends, the Parana of the insect world....

Do you think if our ancestors had moved here in the spring with the gnats

 they would have packed up and left? I do!

I also think if we made the city folk hang at the ball park for a few day before they

were allowed to move here, we might keep G-vill small town ish ;)

But the fun spring activities far out weigh the nasty bugs...

Dev just wrapped up his 4th and final season of Cowboy soccer!

It makes me sad to think about not going to anymore games :(
*maybe I can talk Tuc into playing?


Luckily there is no shortage of kids in my life, mine and everyone elses. So even though I don't have any playing baseball this year, I have been hanging out at the ball park and having a great time taking pics. If you would like to see them visit my other blog  http://www.kimberphotos.blogspot.com

I guess what I am saying is...

I am going on a major rant!

I have been contemplating this topic for a while now, and have avoided it because it is a little touchy, but after the last few weeks I have decided to go ahead with it. At first I thought I would approach cautiously and avoid naming names. After further consideration I decided what the heck, I can name all the names I want. There is this little piece of paper called the constitution that says I can! So please feel free to agree or disagree or call me names. I can take it!

I have watched a lot of sports over a lot of years. I have watched one of my boys win a state championship and I have watched another play four years on a GHS team and NEVER win a region game.

In January I was at Wasatch High School for Divisional wrestling when I noticed this sign and felt compelled to take a picture.

So yes now I am getting to my point....

I watched Brennon step off a wrestling mat with tears in his eyes. NOT because he had lost but because the other young man was saying vulgar things (while they were wrestling!) and calling him some of the most horrible names I have heard in my 37 years! When Brennon informed this boys coach, he just blew Bren off and hugged his wrestler.

Last week after watching our own GHS Soccer team suffer a hard loss (with a few questionable calls, ok ok they just sucked!) A few of OUR boys refused to shake a particular refs hand.

I wont go into to many details but after some stomping, screaming, and crying. I made it very clear to my family that I will not tolerate this.

There will always be a winner

There will always be a loser

There will ALWAYS be bad calls!

I remember Bear River for turning car lights in our boys eyes during football games, and more recently when they were beating us at soccer with a score of 8-0 they were still cartwheeling and honking after EVERY goal. And never once did they pull out their 11 senior starters.

I remember Ben Lomand for yelling and taunting their own players because they were only beating Grantsville by 4. And parents yelling that they expected the score to be 15-0 by the time it was over. And even after they were up by 9 they were still trying to "take out" our goalie.

I remember Juan Diego for getting up by a few goals and then taking out their starters. I remember them for helping our players up and asking if they were ok!  The only other thing they could have done was given one of their boys a Cowboy Jersey and sent him out to help us! ;)

Now I know some of you are saying... sure it's easy to be a good sport when you always win. NOT TRUE they rarely won a wrestling match and still helped boys up and patted backs and encouraged our boys!

I remember Devon telling me after a hard loss to Judge "mom, it's really hard to hate them, even after that big guy layed me out, he helped me up and said "wow that was a great hit dude"

I am all about healthy competition, and winning whenever possible,

but I would like to encourage all my Cowboys.... No matter what team you are on....

your name...

your team...

your school...

your community...

with...

1.Furniture. Ever since our flood last summer this is what our front room looks like.

2. Brennon and Briggs both need braces soon.

3. I really need someone to come in and finish caulking and painting my baseboards.

1. More Dr. Bills!

2.Grantsville Cowboys T-shirts or Hoodies.
     (I could have taken a pic of our closets but this one was much cuter!)

3. Any more sock without mates.

4. A Puppy..

After all we already have....

but.... How do you say no to this?

* anyone considering turning my name in to an insane asylum to be committed, this is probably considered proof!