Spontaneous Scotts - to Chicago!

Eric had to go to Chicago to do a training on December 3rd, which was a Friday. He decided to leave Thursday night and before leaving work, called and asked if I thought we should go for a quick family trip. Work was going to pay for the hotel and reimburse for mileage. I remember laying back on our bed and thinking, "Well, they'll miss their spelling tests, but those could be made up. Xela and Graigry would miss their Lighthouse Leader celebration, which is no big deal. We could probably make this work. I'd have to send a few emails and make sure that Robinsons would pick up Julia and Timo after school. Shouldn't be a problem. I'd have to drop off stuff for mutual and bail on them, but that should be okay. Family should come before calling." So at dinner, Eric still at work, I asked the kids if they would like to go to Chicago with Dad and what it would mean if they did. It was a unanimous YES! After getting their opinion, I told them it wasn't a for sure thing, yet, that I would have to talk with Dad again when he got home.

That was around six. He asked how soon I thought we could be ready and I said about 30 minutes. I finished the dishes while Eric got out a suitcase. I gave the kids a list of items to bring downstairs: clean underwear, pjs, clothes for tomorrow, socks, pillow. They moved fairly quickly. I got swim wear as we would play in the pool in the morning to give Eric some quiet work time. We were all packed and in the car in about 45 minutes. I emailed the teachers about the impromptu absence and talked to Robinsons about picking up in the morning and we were off to Chicago.

We actually spent the night in Merriville, Indiana at a Residence Inn. The kids loved watching tv and found a Christmas tv special on. That used to be one of my favorite things to do at Christmas: post the tv Christmas specials listing on the fridge and highlight which ones we were going to watch. But, not having a tv, we don't do that at the Scott Zoo. We called it a night around 11pm.

After breakfast and an hour swim, we got dried off and headed a 45 minutes north to Chicago. Having never been in downtown Chicago, I was a little nervous. Eric hopped out of the van when we reached his destination and said, "Go find something to do for a few hours. I'll call you when I'm done." Me and five kids in downtown Chicago where I'm in completely foreign territory? Yea, I think I made a few drivers mad because I wasn't sure where I was going.

Eric had mentioned something about Navy Pier, so I looked it up on my phone at a red light and GPS'ed it from my phone (I would have been lost without the unlimited data plan and internet access on my phone). We went there and actually had a fun time. We saw one magic act, the same balloon making, balancing act two and a half times and got a free tour of a coast guard boat.

The magic act was cool, but I didn't get any pictures of it. The balancing act guy was funny and the kids liked it, but after a few minutes of standing, I wanted to go see something else, so we wandered to a Winter Wonderland Festival. I thought maybe it would be free to go into. Oh no! It was $15 per person and I wasn't willing to pay that kind of money for something that I knew nothing about. I had prepped the kids that if it cost too much money, we weren't going to do it, so we headed outside to walk along the pier by the boats.

While doing that, someone said the coast guard boat was giving free tours, so that's where we headed. I'm all about free! I think the kids enjoyed walking around a big boat and learning the terminology. We quized Eric when he finally met up with us.

Do you know what stairs are called? A ladder. A door? The hatch. The back of the boat is the stern (at one point when the tour guide was quizing the kids, I thought I heard Xela say "sperm" which inwardly made me chuckle, and she quickly corrected herself). The place where the captain sits? The bridge, which my kids remembered from Star Trek Enterprise.

That lasted for about 45 minutes and then there was a little demonstration on water pollution. When that was done, we went back inside and sat on the front row of the balloon and balancing act. I took several pictures and some video. The kids LOVED it and all but Neta got some balloons. She was the only one that didn't go up. I got video of Xela and Aurora, but no pictures. I got video of Nate and pictures. Then I tried to get more video of Nate and Graigry, but my phone's memory wouldn't save anything else. I only got pictures of Graigry.

After flipping the hat on his head, the guy made him some balloon swords and a holster. Before Nate left the stage, they used the swords.

Nate balloon fighting

Kid juggling
"Do you have juggling insurance?"

"Do you have other kids?"

"Graigry the orange nosed reindeer, because he didn't have any red balloons!"

After that show, Eric called and we waited for him to walk to the pier. After he arrived, it was kind of too late to go to any of the museums (that again were $10 - $15 per person) so Aurora wanted to go up and see the atrium. We went and it was BEAUTIFUL! It has really cool arching and shooting fountains that the kids and I could have watched for a long time. They ran around there and Daddy got them a little wet....

Then we went on the ferris wheel. Everyone liked that, even Eric who is afraid of heights. I love how he looks his fears right in the eye. We had to split up as only six can ride in a car and we are seven.

Aurora and Neta came with me (Aurora wanted to see me puke - where she got that idea I don't know) and the other three with Dad. It was a fun family activity, to be able to look out over Lake Michigan and downtown Chicago at the same time. It was a little cold, but not as bad as I thought it would be. We all enjoyed being up in the air.

After that, it was long past dinner, so we went to the McD's at the pier, then packed in the car for the four hour drive home. The kids colored and worked in the books they'd received from the coast guard until we got out of downtown and then we put on a movie. We stopped to get gas at one point and turned the movie off telling them they had to go to sleep. We got home around eleven, I think and slept in our own beds.

It was nice to just be together and do something just us. Sometimes we let jobs, callings, and other stresses and activities take over our emotions and lives. It takes effort to focus on family and build those relationships. It is these relationships that matter the most and sometimes we put them on the back burner while we busy ourselves with things that seem to be important, but in the eternal scheme of things, really don't matter (I'm mostly talking about what I am far too guilty of). I need to build and deepen the realtionship I have with each of my children and my spouse. Building that trust and feeling that love is what will make us want to be together forever.

Family Home Evening

Eric has had to work some late nights as he is down two assistants and it's just him. So for FHE on November 29th, we took dinner to him downtown and then went for a walk on the canal. The government offices he works in are right on the canal, so it's a fun thing to do with Daddy.

We usually do something short, especially if Eric has to get back to work, but that night he called it quits after six and we gave the kids the option of which direction to go. They picked south so we headed toward the NCAA building. There is a large patch of grass there and as I had been telling Eric how fast Xela was getting, he decided they could race across the grass. Being a wise father, he let them start individually, youngest/shortest legged sibling first. Xela and I were last. Sadly, due to my shoes and having to pee, Xela beat me to the other side.

We walked by some modern art that is on the bridge across the White River and ended up at the back doors of the zoo and White River Gardens. The kids liked looking in at all the lights at the zoo and tried to figure out how they could get in. Yea, it's locked securely; the whole thing with the thick rod iron gate, they weren't getting in. We got to a part by the garden where you could see downtown really well and see part of Monument Circle's "Christmas tree" which one radio station says is "The World's tallest Christmas Tree!' Whatever. It's just strings of lights going from the wider base to the smaller top of the monument. It's not even a tree. Anyway, I decided I wanted a picture to remember this night on the canal. Unfortunately you can't tell where the "tree" is. I still like the picture though.

(I apologize for the lack of white space between the two paragraphs. I can't seem to fix it and I'm done wasting time trying to. How aggravating!!!)

Graigry's first tooth

All of these blogs are out of chronological order, but oh well. At least they are getting recorded in some fashion besides photos in a folder. This is from November 9th.

Graigry lost his first baby tooth at school. It had been loose for a few weeks and I am not one to pull teeth. I don't even like really looking at them when they start to really wiggle (I guess I take after Dad in that aspect). When I picked the kids up from school, Graigry had a little tooth case that the nurse had put his tooth in. He was so excited. I made sure we took a picture and he put the tooth in an envelope and under his pillow. The tooth fairy gave him a dollar in quarters the very next morning (she must not have been on vacation like she has been in the past with the girls' teeth).

Here's one other photo. I guess I wanted a closer look?

I think this is part of why his birthday lasted for about a week. The money was another surprise and was added to his stash to buy himself a present.

Thanksgiving

With no friends or family around for the turkey festivities, we were on our own. I had stuff for dinner and was okay with just us Scotts, then one of our renters accidentally broke their window the day before Thanksgiving. I went to Ace to get glass and then before we could get it into the window, I broke it. So for a date, Eric and I went to Lowe's to get another sheet of glass. As I was trying to set it in the window a little better than I had it, the corner cracked. By now all the stores were closed until Friday. Oh well, they will just have to wait until Friday.

The renters were going out of town and didn't want to leave with just their storm window, so I decided that we would try to get it jerry-rigged until Friday. This disgruntled Eric, who taped the cracked window in (our window glaze was all dried out) so the renters could leave by noon. Eric wanted to take the kids to a movie, but I destroyed those plans by putting the renters first. That put him in a bad mood and we didn't go to a movie on Thanksgiving, that and the fact that Neta didn't get her shoes on an into the car when she was asked (we were pressed for time due to the window repair).

So, I finished dinner prep while the kids played and Eric played a video game. We ate around three o'clock. Instead of candy corn on each plate (I couldn't find any) I put five jelly beans on each plate and for each jelly bean you had to say something you were grateful for, before eating dinner. It was interesting to hear Neta's answers, things like forks and chairs, whatever came to her mind. Eric said something like patience, which applied to our day at that moment.

Anyway, we ate and then continued playing or whatever.

On Friday, before getting the window really fixed, we went to a movie downtown.

Here are the kids sporting their 3D glasses. I'd never seen a movie in 3D before, neither had the kids so it was a new experience for us. I loved watching them when the lanterns started flying on Rapuntzel's birthday because all but Xela reached out and tried to grab one. A very cute movie and I love the actor (from a favorite tv show - CHUCK) who played the love interest (whose name I can't remember now). I highly recommend the movie.

All in all, it turned out to be a good weekend, even though it got off to a rough start. Taking the bumps are all part of the adventure we call life, right?

Graigry's Birthday

This year, Graigry's birthday was about a week long. I took cupcakes and grapes to his 1st grade class on his actual birthday, November 4. The next day, his birthday package from Grandparents Hibbert arrived. The following day, a Saturday, Sister Dunahee and boys came over for cake and ice cream and gave him $10 so he could buy his own present. It was about three days after that when we were actually able to get to the store so he could pick something out. I felt a little bad that he didn't have any presents to open on his birthday, but then, when you get to do something "because it's your birthday" for almost a week, I can't feel too bad.

Here are some of the pictures from the birthday activities:

THE LOOT!

(Thanks Grandma!)

We LOVE Legos!

Birthday cake with best friend Morgan Dunahee

Assorted 2010 Photos

Because I'm so on top of things with my blog, I thought I would put up a few of the pictures that didn't really have to go with any event but I didn't want them to be hidden forever in a digital folder (not that a blog isn't just another kind of digital folder). Anyway, I should have dates on these and I hope you enjoy them. Sometimes you just have to take a picture because the kids are cute.

July 30th. Neta and Graigry making faces in their car seats. I think Neta did it first, as seen in the first photo and then Graigry wanted to be in the picture. They can be so nutty. Apparently this time I thought it was cute, thus the picture.

October 2nd (talk about a leap forward) was General Conference Saturday. We were at Dunahees to watch conference and take care of their dogs as they were visiting family. Between sessions, we played their Wii and worked up a sweat boxing.

It was fun to watch the little kids trying to work their bodies with their cartoon Mii on the screen. Eric and I, when we boxed, worked up a sweat. The kids, not as much, but we all had fun.
October 13th at Parent Teacher Conference. We were waiting for Xela's teacher to finish with a student and Eric had taken Xela to the book fair (which runs simultaneously with conferences). Aurora showed the little ones where her locker is and then Graigry stepped inside and closed it (he can open it from the inside). It became the entertainment for the next five minutes. Once Graigry got out, Nate and Neta wanted to get in. They each took a turn and then I wanted to see if all three could fit. YEP!! They fit, and I can close it. They didn't it like it closed for very long on all three of them. A little clostrophobic I'd guess. The last time Graigry got it, we walked away from the locker to see how long it would be before he realized we were gone. It didn't take that long, while at the same time all the tv and movie scenes of stuffing the little dork in the locker came to mind.

October 15th and in the big green van. We must not have been going very far because Neta is not in her car seat. In the big green van I'll let Nate ride without a car seat (such a good parent with my children's safety top priority), but not Neta (I'll save one kid, but not the other?).

Anyway, they both appear to be buckled and apparently Nate's batteries are on empty. Neta's are either running low or she just wants to snuggle with her big brother. Either one could have been the case. I've said it before, I love that they are such good friends.

October 27th on my bed. Kids in my bed is not anything new. It's a miracle when I DON'T find them in my bed at some point in the night.

I thought this was cute as they were both asleep and facing each other. I can't remember if they were playing and were so tired that they just fell asleep or if one was asleep before the other. Whatever happened, I took a picture and there it is for posterity.

November 16th and Neta was apparently very tired. She had spent part of the day with Sister Heidi Matis and when Heidi brought her home, Neta was upset because she wanted to stay and play. She had also just fallen asleep in Heidi's van and that gave her another reason to be cranky. Heidi put her down and I told her she could go lie down on the couch. Apparently that wasn't where she wanted to finish her nap. Exercise by osmosis??? I walked in and found her asleep on my treadmill (which at the time was stuck on a slant and I couldn't put it up) using her little stuffed animal as a pillow. She was OUT! and didn't care that another 15 steps and she could have had cushions, pillows and blankets. She was done and apparently the treadmill worked just fine.

A lot of these pictures are of Neta, I'm just now realizing. This will make up in part for the gigantic scrapbook that Xela has and the not so well done one that we call Neta's scrapbook. It all evens itself out, right????

Pumpkin Patch

I think this is where I'm at as far as catching up on my blog. Visiting Waterman's pumpkin patch is the on going tradition for the Scott family. As the kids get older I'm not sure how much longer we'll go. Our pumpking picking rule has been that they can each pick a pumpkin, but only as heavy as they can carry back to the hay ride and from the hayride drop off to the car. They all had fun playing on the air things, bumper car things and corn maze. However, as they get bigger, they can carry larger pumpkins and that means more pumpkin for me to cut, blend and use, which can take months. This year, we had volunteer pumpking take over half of the garden so I was pumpkined out before we even got to the pumpkin patch. We ended up with four pumpkins at home and I ended up throwing away Neta's little one and 3/4 of Graigry's because they got nasty.

We have traditional pictures we take while at the pumpkin patch. One is the "How Tall This Fall" picture and here are the five annual updates for my monkeys.

Xela - I caught her in mid word

Aurora

Graigry

Nate - the same height as his big brother

Neta Michelle - trying to smile & shade her eyes

Here are a few pictures of the activities we did at Waterman's.

Aurora & Neta coming out of the hay bail maze

Nate driving one of the "cars" on the "track."
We all had fun with those, including me.

Kids in the bounce house.
Neta didn't want to get out.

Heading into the corn maze.

Each kid gets a turn to pick the direction.
"Which way Neta?"
"That way!"

And they're off!
A run about five to ten feet before the next crossroads.

Nate's turn.
Decisions, decisions.

PUMPKIN PATCH
WHICH ONE! WHICH ONE!



Nate  the Great's pumpkin.
Just a little heavy, but he made it to the wagon
and the car.





Neta trying to pick her pumpkin.



Scott kids' pickings this year.
Bring on the pumpkin goodies!

Pumpkin patch is always fun and this year it was great weather, unlike previous freezing or muddy years. I hope these traditions are things that they remember and cherish into their adulthood. That's why we have traditions, right? To bind us as families and have memories to carry with us into the eternities? I love my monkeys and hope I can be the mommy they need to become the people they need to become.