Ice Skating

Hello!  I hope you are all having a fine week!  This week flew by pretty quickly, but Saturday was jam packed with goodness!  We took Brooke ice skating for her first time, and she was so excited and loved it so much!  Look at her go!

Heading back to the start of the week, Brooke has recently started listening to a song called "Sleeping bunnies," I think she heard it at dance, and loves to listen to it at home.  She loves to go back and forth between sleeping and jumping all around, and stirring up the batter for our FHE treat  was no excuse to take a break!  What was that treat you ask? Homemade twinkies from our corn dog maker!  YUM!!!

Jelly continues to monitor our mail, and make sure everything is processed properly.  After a short inspection she was able to insure we did not leave anything in this box, and that it was indeed ready to be napped in.

On Tuesday night I went to the temple in a snow storm.  Fortunately it never got too bad, and I made it out before the roads got covered.  As I was leaving the temple I turned back and thought it looked really cool lit up in the snow storm.  You can't really see the snow storm in my picture though... but I still like the picture.

Which naturally brings us to Saturday... :)  The rest of the week happened, and was fantastic in it's happening.  Friday was my Dad's birthday, so I sent a video of Brooke singing happy birthday and we called my dad later in the day.  Saturday at lunch Brooke just started to look like she was really enjoying her lunch.  Like REALLY enjoying her lunch!  Turns out she was just dancing to the music with all her heart and soul, but to me it looked like she was really enjoying her last bite.

After lunch we headed out to go ice skating!  Here's Brooke getting her ice skates on.  She did awesome standing and wasn't wobbly at all!

We helped her walk over to the ice and got her a little thing to hold while she skated.  Monica went in with her and helped her for most of her trips around.  She did skate for a little on her own as seen in the first picture, but most of the time Monica was helping her to get around.  Brooke said her arms got very tired and had to stop and take rests frequently.  She had an amazing time, which is all we could ask for!

Winry and I, meanwhile, did everything we could to stay warm.  It really wasn't that cold out, except for the wind.  Brooke didn't skate for terribly long, so we didn't ever really get cold, but the ice rink was right next to the library so I was prepared to head in if need be.

After ice skating, we headed to a crepe place that just opened down the street.  The crepes were good, but we've unfortunately been spoiled by crepe master Niki, and so while it was enjoyable, we're thinking of getting a crepe maker and studying Niki's ways instead.  That said, we had a great time at lunch!  And the owner even gave Brooke a free macaron for being so cute!

And here's Winry, trying to sneak Monica's food!  Caught again!

When we got home it was time for Winry to take a nap, so Brooke and I headed into the back yard to go sledding.  I pulled her in a few loops around the back yard, but lately she's enjoyed sliding down our hill with me more!  I learned a valuable lesson about the placement of the rope on our sled, if it goes under the sled you have a rather slow trip down the hill, while if its on top you can make it down without pushing!  We had a lot of fun either way, and Brooke loves when I tip the sled over at the bottom of the hill!

As typically happens, Jelly watched us from the back door, so we brought her in some snow when we were finished.  Brooke and Winry also enjoyed playing in the snow inside too!  Once snow had been scattered all around the house it was time to throw what was left in the sled back outside!  Practically clean!

This morning Winry and Brooke woke earlier than I was ready for, which means we were looking for an easy form of entertainment and stumbled upon this...  Today is my mom's birthday, I got a video of Brooke singing her happy birthday and sent that off this morning, and we're going to give her a call later today!  Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Well, I think that catches us up for this week!  I hope everyone is doing well and has a fantastic week!

I Choose You, Secret Valentine!

Happy Valentine's day!!  I hope everyone is safe and well!  We had a wonderful week (minus being sick all week)!  We did secret valentines the week leading up to valentines days, which means everyone picks a person and does something nice for them each day anonymously.  I helped Brooke and Monica helped Winry.  Brooke did a great job keeping it a secret that she had Monica until the day after we picked, and while I was at work she said "Mom, I want to make a craft for my secret valentine.  My secret valentine is MOM!!"  Ah, the subtlety of children!  Here's everyone on Valentines holding their new stuffed animal.  That seemed to be popular gift, because the girls love them, and always think "mom" will love a new one. 

Last Sunday after the blog I took the kids out into the backyard to play for a while.  It was pretty cold, and Brooke wanted to swing so we put Winry in her snow suit so she could play in the snow.  Brooke also really loves pushing Winry in the swing, so Winry got turns swinging as well.  While out there, Brooke also really wanted her broom so she could take care of the snow, so there she is sweeping up the snow!  She'll use that broom to help clear the sidewalk when we're out shoveling!  Also, I got a Sunday slideshow from Google that I really liked, so here's that!

On Tuesday Kelsie invited Monica and Brooke over to make some valentines cookies!  Brooke had so much fun!  Here she is cutting out cookies.  After they baked, she frosted them and decorated them, and even made some for me!!  That was the best part!  She definitely made more than I should eat all at once, so I only ate some when I got home from work!  What a sweetie, and she wasn't even my secret valentine!

Winry lately has been obsessed with these little animal things we got for Christmas a while back.  They're called stacker pals, and we looked at getting her some more but apparently they don't make them anymore.  Anyway, Winry basically just keeps a hold of one or two of these all day.  She'll hold one all the way through a meal and only eat with one hand for instance.  She also really likes to chew on them.  They're technically Brooke's, but she's fortunately good a sharing (and there are more than she can hold at one time).

On Wednesday Monica took the kids to the zoo.  It was a pretty warm day, so it was a great way to take advantage of the weather.  Here's a picture of the kids enjoying snacks!  Winry really likes being out of her car seat and having her own snack tray!

On the way home, Winry apparently needed some sun glasses, I mean look at that, the sun is right in her eyes!!  Good thing Monica was prepared.

On Thursday, Brooke's dance class had a special day where a parent could come dance with you.  I, unfortunately, had a meeting during her dance class, but Monica had a wonderful time!  Winry was also very good and did a great job of not crawling out and getting into trouble.  Winry was one of three babies there (and there were 4 girls in class that day!).

During tumbling, everyone got to try a new thing.  Wheelbarrows!  Brooke went first, and Monica said she wasn't quite sure what she was supposed to do, but in the picture it looks like she's doing an excellent job!  She also did somersaults all on her own!  She's always needed help getting up and over before!  Good Job Brooke!!

As a reward for a super great and super special dance class everyone stopped by the donut shop on the way home.  Brooke got a pink "gingerman" donut.  Look's pretty good to me!

Sometime on valentines day everyone headed to the store, and Monica got a card for me.  Brooke decided she also wanted to get a card for her secret valentine, but then when she got home decided she wanted to give it to me as well.  She even wrote a note in it all by herself!

That night as we waited for dinner I was sitting with my leg crossed, and Winry decided it was a great place to pop up like whack-a-mole.  Brooke decided whack-a-mole was a great game, followed by rub-a-mole!

We had a fancy pants dinner of cashew chicken lettuce wraps and crab rangoons, and washed that down with blood orange soda!  We washed all of that down with revealing who our secret valentines were, combined with our final gifts, which was a stuffed animal for everyone but dad!  Brooke was really excited to have the cupcake bear she kept seeing at King Soopers.

The next morning Brooke got up with me to do some exercise!  She likes to try to do the things I'm doing, and on Friday she did both dips and push ups!  I'm grateful I have such a wonderful exercise partner.  Also, you may be wondering about the hat.  When she woke up she said her cheeks were cold, and this was the most cheek warming thing I could think of.  Don't worry, it worked, and her cheeks felt great all morning!

Monica and I waited to do our Valentines date on Friday simply due to it being much easier to get a babysitter on the weekend.  We went to Kurosawa and got sushi!  It was really good, and we tried some new stuff that I at least hadn't had before.  The more we do sushi the more adventuresome we get, and this past time we definitely had a bunch of raw fish on there, but it was all really good!  We haven't worked our way up to eel or octopus or anything else really disgusting, but maybe one day we'll get to the point where those are only mildly disgusting, and still wont get them.

Saturday was a pretty crazy day.  We had a guy come over to look over our basement and help me out a little/get ready to take over finishing up the electrical and framing.  I went with him to home depot to buy some supplies too and it was pretty crazy to see how quickly he could just walk down the isle and grab all the things we needed!  That would have been a half dozen trips for me minimum!

After he left I took the cars to get the oil changed.  Both cars needed it, and Brooke really wanted to come, so I brought her for the second car.  While the car was being worked on, we headed over to Salvation Army to look around.  We had a great time there!  Brooke really enjoyed this trampoline we found, and we even found a few things to buy.  We found a 300 page book of Disney Christmas stories that was 80 cents, and we found Doc McStuffins Operation!  Brooke has been playing it basically non-stop over the past two days.  She was so excited and she loves it so much!  She's already gotten very good at it, though we did have to take out the batteries because she didn't like when it vibrated if she touched the sides.

This past week I was thinking about the Sabbath day, and keeping it holy, and I had the thought "What do I do on Sunday to make it a special day different than others?"  I know there are things I avoid doing, but I also have Saturdays where I don't go out to stores, or similar activities.  I spent some time thinking, and really felt like I don't actually DO very much to make Sunday a special day, and that I need to start trying to do more to make the Sabbath a special day, and to show that I am trying to keep the Sabbath holy through my actions, and not just through inaction.  I would encourage everyone to think about how you use the sabbath to honor the Lord, and try to come up with a goal of something you could work on to improve your worship.  I know that as we honor the sabbath we can come closer to Heavenly Father and Jesus, and we can gain a greater understanding for their teachings.  I also know that the Sabbath can provide a shelter from the troubles of life, and give a chance to recuperate and rejuvenate ourselves weekly.  I know that we will be blessed for our efforts to keep the sabbath day holy.  In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

In Loving Memory, Neil Stanley Harding Sr

Hello all!  I hope you've been having a great week!  Things were good out here.  My Grandpa passed away this past Sunday, and his funeral was on Wednesday.  While obviously a sad time, it was also a joyous time.  It was great to get to be back with my family again, and not just from my parents down, but to see my aunts, uncles and cousins again.  I haven't seen many of them in quite some time.  My grandpa was always happy, and liked to play jokes, so of course it was a blizzard all day with anywhere between 8-18 inches of snow depending on what part of Salt Lake you were driving through!  I'll talk more about traveling out for his funeral later, but I love and miss you grandpa!

Last Sunday Jelly was trying to enjoy a nap when Winry found her.  Winry was very excited to have such easy access, but quickly got distracted by old habits!

Brooke continues to love preschool, and as far as I can tell is doing an awesome job!  This past week they got to make fruit loop quilts!!  She sure looks like she's having a great time.  Also, she's already established herself as the neat one who tries to keep everything organized in her art projects!

On Wednesday morning I flew out to Utah for my Grandpa's funeral.  I did my typical math for figuring out when to get to DIA, but apparently picked a very down morning, as when I got there the security line looked something like this.

And there was all of no one else waiting to get on the train to the gates...

And no one on my train.  So I did end up making it there earlier than needed, but I really didn't mind.  I would definitely rather get there early, and I just spent the time walking around exploring the airport (I ended up through security with 2 hours to go... those were supposed to be the 2 hours you give yourself to get through security and the other insanities of the airport...).  It was fun to walk around, and I found a part of the terminal that isn't on any maps, and actually has a pretty nice restaurant also not on any maps.  So I guess I'm cool and in the know now!

Meanwhile back at home everyone was partying!!

When I got to my parents house it obviously was time to get out my dad's new TV.  Why was that obvious?  Well, because I brought my Switch, and we didn't immediately have a TV available to hook it up to!

Here's my dad giving video games a go... with his razor...  Maybe he'll catch on when the next console comes out...

We didn't have terribly much time before we all had to head out for the funeral.  Remember that crazy snow storm I was telling you about?  Well, it fortunately didn't delay my flight, but it made driving anywhere a real mess.  It took my dad maybe 45 minutes to pick me up at the airport where it is typically a 15 minute drive, so we definitely had to head out early!  We made it on time and, surprisingly, intact.  We started at my grandparents church where there was a viewing and then my dad and his siblings each took a turn talking about grandpa.  I feel like I learned a lot about my grandpa while sitting there.

After that we headed to the grave.  My grandpa was in the marines, and so there were military officers there for the funeral.  They read a military something, played taps, and gave him a 9 gun salute!  I wish I had gotten the salute, but taps was still nice.  They also folded the flag and gave it to my aunt, who was primarily responsible for taking care of my grandpa over the last 5 years.  She did an awesome job, and I know everyone in the family is really appreciative of all of her sacrifices over the years.  Thank you Alyson!!

They also had a moment where all of the pallbearers got to place their boutonnieres on the casket.  After we finished at the grave we headed back to the church for a lunch and that was that.  We had strawberry ice cream and peanut M&Ms in honor of my grandpa, and as I type that I think I might have to go honor him again!!  Thanks Brooke's Halloween candy! :)  Grandpa, I love you, and I can't wait to see you again.  While we will miss you on this side of the veil, I know you have had a joyous reunion with grandma and your sisters, and I can't wait till we can all be together as a family again!

I flew back Wednesday night, and my flight got in just late enough for the snow storm to roll through Denver.  While the snow wasn't as bad out here, or at least not as much, at midnight it really doesn't matter how much snow is on the road, it's all terribly slow...  I'm not sure I ever made it above 35 MPH, and I had to pull off the freeway twice because of all the salt on the roads the other cars were throwing up.  You see, my windshield wiper fluid was either gone, or frozen, so I would drive for a little, suddenly be blinded by the salt on the windshield, pull off the road and smear snow all over my windshield and then I could see again.  I'm glad I only had to do this twice, but I guess those are the benefits of midnight traffic.  By the time I finally got home I'd been up around 23ish hours since waking to head to the airport.  What a day!!

Thursday it was basically all I could do to poke my head out of my shell.  In addition to all of the weather antics and late nights of the day before, I also got sick...  So Thursday came and went, but really I don't remember too much.  The rest of the family still had lives, however, and Monica took Brooke to dance class in the morning.  When they got there Brooke was the only one there, but shortly after another girl made it!  We think people didn't brave the snowy roads...

Friday was a more typical day with actually going in to work and all that, and Friday after work we headed to pick up our race packets for Saturday and grabbed some ice cream from Butterfields!  YUM!!  If you haven't been (and live at a distance you would even consider slightly reasonable to drive for ice cream) you should go!

Saturday was the big day!  Love 'em or Leave 'em!  Here's Monica and I at the start line!

To be honest I had no clue what to expect going into this race.  Monica wanted to run the whole thing without stopping to walk, and she did!  Good for you Monica!  As for me, well I've typically placed in the So Long to Summer 10K in August, but I hadn't done any speed training for this race, and I've spent the past 18 months trying to recovery form plantar fasciitis.  Well, I was still able to put out a good pace (7:50/mile), and at around 4.5 miles into the race I was able to pull into 3rd place in my age division, and never let it go!  Wahoo!  The Parker runs also always have Flippin Flapjacks at the finish line, and they are amazing pancakes.  I meant to get a picture holding my pancake breakfast with my medal so I could show you the "prize" I won, but we forgot, so it's just me and my medal.

This weekend has also been our stake conference.  While at stake conference this morning I was able to meet a sister from Mongolia!  She was called to temple square, but has been on a couple month stint in our mission.  She had breakfast at Tyson and Tina's house right after she got out here, and then she ended up in Parker!  It was a lot of fun talking to her, and while I typically could understand her Mongolian I am definitely out of practice!  That said we did talk in  Mongolian for a bit, and it turns out things have sure changed a lot in Mongolia over the last 10 years!!  I even eventually had to switch to English to make sure I was really understanding!  Sounds like the church is still growing wonderfully over there, and she said they're even building a new stake center!  That is really exciting.  She's heading back to Temple Square soon, so if you want to go say hi her name is Sister Naranbaatar, and She'll be there till July so we'll hopefully even go see her when we come out for Ragnar in June!

I want to close by bearing my testimony of the resurrection.  I know that Christ lives, and I know that because of his atonement we all too will live again.  I know that families are eternal, and that we can live with our loved ones again.  I know that one day I will get to be with my grandparents again, and I know that my children will get to know them too.  I am so grateful for the Gospel, and for the Atonement of Christ that lets all repent and return to live with God.  May we always seek to do His will, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Winry Stands Up

Hello all!  Another fantastic week over here!  Monica was really jealous that I got to lead off the blog last week with a picture of Brooke and I stretching, so this week she made everyone get involved in her stretching to ensure the front and center! (...I, Monica, chose the picture of Alex and Brooke stretching last week...)  On a more serious note, our running has been going well, and we've got a 10k coming up this Saturday!  It should be a lot of fun, and I know we're looking forward to it.

Monday morning Brooke came down with her zebra mask on!  She kept going up and down to her room wearing different masks until she found one she was happy keeping on for a little.  I honestly don't remember how long the zebra mask made it...  but I do have an accompanying video in which I apparently had my finger over the microphone so you can't hear anything... so it's really not any better than this picture...  sad day!

In Winry news, she has started climbing on the couch!!

This past week I ordered Jelly a new toy, because she often gets playful at times when we can't really play with her, like most of the time the kids are awake.  So I figured I'd hop online and see what I could find.  The toy is great, though the results are mixed.  I don't think Jelly can quite get into the playing mode with the kids chasing her and competing for her new toy...

On Tuesday night I headed to the temple, and it was great!  There was a great spirit there, and helped create a very refreshing evening.  On Thursday night Monica headed over and I had some people over for a board game night.  We played Formula D, and everyone had a great time.  Jordan Nichols was coming around the final corner looking to be in top spot when he ended up overshooting the turn a little to much, lost control of his car, and crashed out of the race! 

Winry has really been working on her dance moves.  In fact, on Friday morning Winry decided to show off her new floor routine!  Top notch entertainment all day long!  She ended up winning first place in the 2 and under category, and so was allowed to have breakfast!  Literal breakfast of champions!

Since Winry started climbing on the couch, Brooke took it upon herself to teach her how to jump!  It makes sense as it's one of Brooke's most favorite things to do.  Here they are having a couch party!  We tried to get some videos, but they refused to jump at the right times.  Baby life...  Also, look at those matching skirts and socks!

In other Winry news, Winry also started standing this past week!  I guess that means walking is right around the corner, and I'm not sure how I feel about that yet.  Winry is still pretty mischievous and gets into things... though she has, fortunately, stopped pulling the molding off the wall and pulling the air vent covers out of the floor.

This weekend my Dad was in town because Andrew was getting ordained a priest today.  We headed up as a family on Saturday to spend some time all together, and honestly the day just flew.  We had fun talking and catching up, as well as riding bikes, playing basketball, playing in their back yard on their play set, eating lunch, and taking apart my dad's computer!  When I type it all out we did tons of stuff, but it still seemed like the day flew by.

We headed over to their ward today for the actual ordination and the girls got to sit with their cousins at church.  Matthew was sure excited to sit by Brooke!

And he even slipped his arm around her to make sure they stayed close!  Winry, on the other hand, ended up getting passed down the row as everyone wanted to hold a baby!  Who knew she was such a hot commodity!?  We'll definitely have to go up again soon so all the kids can play together!

Sadly, this morning at 4:30 my grandfather, Neil Stanley Harding, passed away.  He was always happy, and loved to joke around with his grand kids.  I will miss him dearly, but I am glad to know that he is with his wife again, as well as his siblings.  Today in church someone made a statement along the lines of "just as we rejoice as we receive a baby here on earth, those on the other side rejoice as they get to receive us again after we die."  It is a pretty comforting to know, and I'm glad my grandpa get's to be with his family again.  About 5 years ago Monica and I decided to do interviews with my grandparents when we traveled out to Utah for Christmas.  I am so grateful for the recording of our discussion that I took!  It's great to be able to hear my grandpa's voice and to have learned many new stories from his life.  I know that we all will live again.  I know that Jesus Christ suffered the atonement for all of us, and that though the atonement we can be freed from the burdens of sin and death!  In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.