Jump!

The boys were having so much fun launching themselves off of their little stool that I had to grab the camera. They had even more fun striking a pose in the air!

Chit Chat

I gave Nolan a squeeze after school today and told him, "I miss you while you're at Kindergarten." (This is a self-esteem booster; Kindergarten isn't actually long enough to truly miss him!) He smiled and accepted my hug.
But Ezra was in the other room listening and he said, "Mom, I miss you when you're in my tummy."
I chuckled and said, "You're funny, Ezra." He looked a little embarrassed and then said, "I mean... I miss you when you're at Zumba!"

October

Here's what has been going on around here during the past month:

Nolan has worked hard on two Reflections contest entries. He loves to use the sewing machine so he decided to make a magic carpet. And he also practiced his picture-taking skills in the backyard. He captured some great up-close pictures of bees, bugs, and flowers. You might be wondering what happened to Nolan's head... we were at a friends' house and they had a neighbor boy visiting. This boy was going through some hard things and threw a heavy, wooden toy at Nolan's head. It was bloody and traumatic (as head wounds are), but he got over it quick. It only shows much when he's had a fresh haircut. 

We went to the rainy pumpkin walk but the boys still enjoyed the blow-up slide immensely and I didn't have to make lunch. 

Ezra had a field trip with his preschool class to the dentist. Ez almost volunteered to have his teeth x-rayed but then changed his mind. He was happy to just watch Sophia get checked. 

Nolan scored the most awesome goal at his soccer game a couple of weeks ago. That means that he has now scored more goals than his parents combined! Yeah, Justin and I are definitely not sporty so we were surprised and thrilled when Nolan made a goal. And the best part was that he was so proud of himself. He looked over at us with double thumbs up. Later, he walked over and said, "What do you think of me now?" Soccer is winding down, with only one game left, but he's really done so well. He may not be the most aggressive but we'll work on that. We were afraid he'd decide he didn't want to play, but it turns out that he might have some talent. 

The boys have been bringing home some fun projects. Ezra always runs out of preschool with a huge smile on his face, ready to show me what he's done that day. They love arts and crafts. Ezra is even starting to love drawing. He's really good at drawing circles! 

Ezra was invited to a Halloween party at our neighbor's house. He insisted on being a skeleton even though I prepared a different costume for him. It was a lively event with ten toddlers running around. It was fun to have an event just for Ezra while Nolan was at school. 

And this morning we woke to find the first snow of the season. I'm never ready for the snow to fly, but the boys were so excited! Nolan wouldn't get ready for school because he just wanted to sit in front of the window and watch the snow. Mind you, it wasn't snowing anymore, he just wanted to stare at the dusting of snow on the grass. They were disappointed to find that it had melted within an hour. 

Sometimes the boys like to fall asleep cuddling together in Nolan's bed. We move them later, but sometimes I can't help snapping a photo. I don't think I could sleep like that. Too many arms. Too little space. 

 Nolan has recently made a new friend. When we got back from our cruise, he was telling his grandmas that he's in love and that this girl has changed his life. Come to find out he was talking about Jadalyn, a girl in our ward. They had never met until kindergarten because she's in an older primary class. They've only played outside of school one time, but it turns out that their relationship has gotten more serious. I got a note from their teacher saying that there was a little too much hugging, hand-holding, and even kissing going on. I guess when asked to stop, Nolan would say, "But we love each other!" I had to have a little talk with him that he needs to cool it and keep his hands (and lips) to himself. But really, I think it's pretty funny. They're so young and innocent and I'm happy that Nolan has a good friend in his class. And can you blame Nolan? She's a lovely little lady!

  And last month (I forgot to ever post this before), Justin was part of the regional conference choir that was held at the Conference Center. He was really excited to be a part of the big event. We left Ezra with Aunt Lacey during the meeting, but it was fun for Nolan and I to watch Dad way up in the choir seats and see him on the huge screen. They sounded really good! Here's the group from our ward that participated.

 And last of all, we got Nolan's school pictures back. I was thinking that we wouldn't even bother buying them, but when I saw how important it was to Nolan I realized we should. He told us that he wanted to look his best. He made sure to put gel in his hair that day. We asked, "Are you sure you want to wear your church clothes?" He said, "Yes, I have to be handsome for picture day!" Well, he really he a handsome kid. I'm so glad we have record of that big kindergarten smile! 

Ketchikan Off-Roading

Ketchikan is such a cute little town. It was fun to see Creek Street even though we only had about 30 minutes to look around. Luckily we came across some seals (or are they sea lions???) that were having some fun. One was mercilessly chasing around a fish, catching it and letting it go. I thought humans were the only ones that play with their food. And another one was basking in the warm sun. So cute! In the background you can Dolly's house. Back in the older days, Dolly and her gals were there to meet the needs of all those hard workin' men, if you get my drift. I wish we'd had more time to stroll around. We were so thankful for the 65 degree weather! Even though I was feeling bad that I bought rain jackets for the trip. We didn't use them once!

 

Then we were off to do some off-roading in the wilderness. This shore excursion was a splurge, we'll admit. But there's something about driving fast through potholes and rocky terrain that Justin can't resist. And I actually did some driving and it really was fun! We took a 30 minute bus ride to a more remote area of the island and got all buckled into these Tomcars. We would ride caravan style, following a guide and being brought up in the rear by another guide. Well, they gave a brief little lesson about how to start and then we'd be off. As I looked to my side, I realized that an older man (maybe 60) was having trouble listening to the directions, "Put your left foot on the brake." I realize that most people don't drive with the left foot on the brake, but he just wasn't getting it even after repeated directions. I knew this might be a problem. But we got started and were having a great time! Here we are:

After about 10 minutes, we pulled up to our guide and waited for everyone to catch up. It turned into a long wait. Sure enough, that couple from Hong Kong were THE SLOW CAR! We ended up spending a significant time waiting for them. Our guide told us not to slow down for bumps and potholes but this didn't sink in with them. We were disappointed that we had to spend so much time waiting for them to catch up. While we were actually driving, we did have a great time. We stopped at some gorgeous view areas, one atop a hill and the other down near a lovely waterfall. Unfortunately, it was time to head back all too soon. One of the guides confessed that they usually take two other side roads and do a brief obstacle course at the end, which we didn't have time for. It's painful to pay a lot for this kind of thing and then realize you didn't get  to do everything. On top of that, we ended up getting back and waiting 20 minutes for the bus to take us to the ship. Grrrr! We had to keep reminding ourselves that what we did really was fun, and that we shouldn't focus on what we didn't get to do. While waiting, I did get to pet this cute dog, Shadow. I knew the boys would have loved this friendly pup. We made it back to the cruise ship with no time to spare. In fact, on the bus ride back our driver was radioed and asked when we'd arrive. We walked on the ship and 5 minutes later they pulled up the gangway. We were off to Victoria, B.C. where we actually didn't get off the ship at all. It was 8 p.m. and dark when we arrived so it didn't seem that appealing to wander around a dark town. The next morning we enjoyed our last breakfast in the dining room and it was home to our sweet boys!

Sitka Adventure!

Now Sitka is where we had planned some serious fun! We were so excited for our high speed boat excursion. But before we could do that, we had a couple hours to walk around and see the town. Sitka is so gorgeous because there are high snow-capped mountains close by and then lots of little wooded islands right off the coast.  We rode the ship's tenders (glorified lifeboats) to shore and began walking around. The town is pretty. Everyone has lovely green yards (since it's a rain forest). Even their weeds look pretty. We climbed up a hill where we could see the sights really well. It was so beautiful and sunny! Here are the sights we saw:

After lunch back on the ship, we were totally excited for our boat ride! We were a little nervous, too. After all, this is the picture that we had seen on the website for the shore excursion company: 

 But here we are, all suited up in our special flotation suits. They were so cozy. They offered us warm hoods and gloves as well, which wasn't entirely necessary since it was so sunny out.

There was one other young couple with us. He's a physicist and she's a medical resident in California. They were happy to give us the front seats. And thank goodness, because I haven't had so much fun on the water in a long time! Talk about a wild ride. This isn't like your normal ski boat ride. We're talking large ocean waves at about 45 mph. Whoooweee! We were all screaming with excitement (and mild fear). Yes, even the men. Thank goodness we ride saddle style on half-inflated boat fenders, like these. It made for a nice soft landing.

There were many times when the boat was completely airborne because we could hear the roar of the engine as it left the water. Our guide, Gary, even said, "I'm used to older people so I'm glad that we can have some fun today!"  He was not kidding!

We rode 12 miles off the coast to see two islands. One has two dormant volcanoes, and the other is a bird sanctuary made completely of volcanic rock. Unfortunately, bird season had already ended so we only saw a few birds here and there. Normally they get thousands, including puffins and eagles. I'd love to do this excursion again in the summer with my Dad. He's a bird guy. But on the way, we cut the engines and followed a blue whale for a few minutes. It's so amazing to see their tale curve out of the water. If only we had a more powerful zoom. 

It was so exhilarating! And what beauty! It was one of the best 3 hours I've spent in a long time. Gary zoomed around the cruise ship before taking us back. At dinner that night we were talking with the other couples at our table and they mentioned that they had seen a small orange boat just before the ship left Sitka. We said that it had been us. They said, "Wow, you were going so fast!" What an amazing adventure!