Poduncadick 2011

We survived Poduncadick! August 11-13, 2011 (Perseid Meteor Shower), Strawberry Reservoir, Utah.

5 Popes

7 Duncans

5 Fosdicks

2 Days

3 Tents

6 Adults

11 Children

Lots and lots of dirt

We had a blast on our camp out where the children truly relished in the dirt. We pitched our tent at probably a 30 degree angle, amidst trees and stumps, but managed to sleep pretty well owing to our 2 inches of memory foam. Fun, not as relaxing as I had hoped, but I did manage to finish a book. Audrey was the easiest--she slept all night twice, and managed to stay quite cheerful and comfortable in the 80 degree days and 40 degree nights. It helped to have so many willing baby holders. We had only minor injuries and one potty accident. The kids tried all day to catch a pot gut, but in vain. We enjoyed the campfires and board games, french toast and fajitas, shooting stars and full moon, surprisingly decent flush toilets and most of all the company of fun friends. It was really nice to leave my iPod behind for two days and never look in a mirror once or brush my hair. I was the only one to get a lobster red sunburn, lucky me. It took a full week to clean up all the gear and I lost track of laundry loads at about 7. It was a great experience and I'm already looking forward to next year's camp out.

Some photo highlights:

Celebrations, Part 1

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. We are so glad to have Grandma and Grandpa visiting to celebrate with us. After iPod Scrabble wars, we started off the weekend celebrations by attending the Best Neighborhood Party ever, with tons of food and sweets, fireworks, volleyball, movie, and good friends. The kids loved the sparklers and glow sticks, and even Audrey was mesmerized by the fireworks.

On Monday, we enjoyed watching the kids as they enjoyed the parade, (while I not so discreetly wished I could have been selling otter pops at $.46 profit each.)

Then we did sparklers at home and had root beer floats. That's American tradition at its best!

Endings and Outings

May was a big month for Leah. Not only did she become a big sister again, but she graduated from Preschool and finished a year of Ballet!

Preschool Graduation, with Miss Carol and then with friend Julia:

Leah's Ballet Recital, pictured with Miss Jennie and Miss T (Tiare):

To celebrate the end of one season and the beginning of the next, we visited Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point. There is something about that red window pane that lends itself particularly to photographing my not-so-little-anymore girl.

Now for a fun summer and then on to Kindergarten!

Vacation Part 2: Monkeys and Manatees

Brookfield Zoo. We saw so many animals. We especially enjoyed the monkeys jumping and swinging, catching grapes in their mouth from 30 feet away, and playing in the hay. Leah liked the big cats. I enjoyed the underwater viewing of the manatees and seals. The kids also enjoyed the carousel. Samuel slept through half of the day! While Mom, Dad, Frank and the littlest ones got stuck in the giraffe house, Daniel, Leah and I had an adventure getting to the train station during a thunderstorm. The kids wanted to experience a train ride home. A good samaratin drove us to the station, but just crossing the street we got totally drenched. I've forgotten about the spontanous, violent storms and the torrential rain!

At home, my kids were "monkeys" climbing in Grandma's backyard, and then "manatees" swimming in the pool. This is the life!

Kangaroo as Ariel and other disguises

What do Cruella DeVille, Little Einstein's June, Zorro, a monkey, and a mermaid-kangaroo have in common? Almost nothing.

I know its not the most attractive Ariel costume I've seen, but it really works for my three year old, who insisted that Ophie be Ariel for Halloween. It's amazing what you can accomplish with some construction paper and a whole lot of staples. (like the red hair and the purple bikini top???)

On the other hand, I have much more pride in Leah's Little Einstein's June costume, which she donned with perfection. Notice she even has pretend earrings!

Don't let this picture fool you into thinking that these two actually like each other and get along:

Zorro and Cruella were there, too. Can you tell we are recycling costumes here?

(Pardon the camera phone pictures--ran out of batteries!)

Naperville visit in review

So I took several hundred pictures in the three weeks I was out of town, so you can't blame me for delaying so long in posting, and for having a hard time deciding which ones to put up. (Plus I have to argue with Blogger's awful format to make this presentation...presentable.)


Treat yourself to a self-guided tour of some highlights, including but not limited to Chris's big 3-0, a family bike ride, playing in the sand and water (notice the girls both have The Little Mermaid on their suits?), visiting the arboretum with Grandma and experiencing all the fun animal houses, and some general good cousin and grandparent time, etc. And I haven't even posted about the wedding yet!