Tempe Art Festival

Today Jacob & I visited the Tempe Art Festival with our good friends Sonja, Clayton, & baby Leon. The boys had a lot of fun listening to the different genres of live music, checking out the fire engine, and playing in the rabbit fountain. They were so adorable in their matching Sunday Afternoon hats.



Jacob & Clayton posing in front of the fire engine. When I went to take the picture, I looked around & there were like 6 other people taking pictures of the boys too. And the lady from the Sunday Afternoon hats booth wants to put them on her website.

ahh, a cute hug.

listening to the accordian man


The boys loved playing in the Rabbit pond. Even though the water was pretty cold, they enjoyed making handprints on the concrete. I think they spent a half hour doing this.


"what do we do with our wet hands?"

Trip to Utah

Since Jonathan had a conference in Salt Lake City this past weekend, Jacob & I trailed along to visit our good friends the Ruths & to go skiing in the nearby mountains. I did not do a good job taking pictures, so here are some of the few I did take. Thank you so much Alan, ShaLee, Chanslor, & Lily (Bear too!) for a fabulous extended weekend. We had lots of fun hanging out with you guys.

Jacob loved riding the scooter, he was an expert in just a half hour. Guess we'll have to get him one now.

Lily riding her tricycle. Jacob adored Lily & Chanslor :)

Getting psyched in the car before going out into the cold snow to wait for the bus up to Snowbird. Snap peas are a must have! Jacob was a trooper waiting 30 minutes in the cold for the bus to come (even when one full bus had to pass us by).

Cleaning off the picnic benches; always the good samaritan :)




riding on the sled around the Snowbird courtyard.


This is what happens when your mother throws a snowball at you and accidentally hits you in the face. Luckily Jacob was a good sport and didn't cry. Guess you shouldn't throw snowballs when you haven't any coordination.

Pool Renovation - Plastering!

The pool is nearly complete, but I wanted to put up more pictures from the process. Here are some pics from when they were plastering.

Plasters dry, and pool starts filling with water.

We were surprised that it took almost 2 days to fill!

Planting a Vegetable Garden

Over the last few weeks, Jacob has been working on planting a vegetable garden with his Grandma & Papa. They have done an amazing job, and we've already seen some early sprouts. Can't wait for harvest time!

taking a rest after some hard work

Day 2 of pool renovation

The goal of day 2 was to chip off all the old fiberglass and plaster beneath it. When I exited the back door this morning, I felt I was transported back to CA on a low tide day. Dried out green swamp water does not smell good at all!
But the guys quickly got to work chipping away at the pool with drills and a very loud jackhammer. Jacob & the kitties were not thrilled with all the noise.

Jacob the spelunker. Playing inside while the jackhammer & drilling finish up.

At the end of Day 2...no more swamp!

Pool renovation begins

Day one encompassed draining the pool, better known as the swamp. I know Grandpa Chuck will want to keep up on our progress, so these are mostly for your benefit :)

Jacob loved floating dozens of leaves in the stream of pool water travelling to the drain.

Planting snapdragons with Grandma & Papa

On Sunday, Jacob learned how to plant snapdragons with Grandma and Papa. Jacob was so careful watering them all. Can't wait till they bloom!

Painting the slide!

This week we are finally getting the pool redone since it has officially turned into a green swamp with no hope of return. Plus, with the fiberglass peeling away, it makes for an uncomfortable and itchy swim experience. So before the workmen arrived on Monday, Daddy & Papa regelcoated the slide so that we can finally try it out. They did a fantastic job. Can't wait to try it out this summer!