I know it's a lame excuse, but I lost my laptop charger and have had a dead computer for some time now. I just got a new charger, so I have a lot to catch up on! We (the kids and I) are currently in Roosevelt at our own house. It is wonderful. I am really enjoying just being home, and I think the kids are too. I am working on putting things back together and moving things upstairs since we had it rented out while we were gone. Dann is still on the road, and currently in Knoxville, Tennessee. He hasn't had much success with tennis lately but is still sticking with it and hoping things will improve.
We were in Las Vegas for about a week and a half before coming here. While there, I scheduled a dentist appointment for Sam as soon as I could to finish the dental work he needed to have done. It was on my mind constantly while we were in Europe. Before we left he had one cavity filled and a crown put on, and needed to have 6 more cavities filled. I was happy that Dann could take him because I knew this visit wouldn't be much fun. Sam did okay and even got a new train out of the deal.
This is Sam, happy to be done with the dentist and have a new train! Notice the swollen lips
Also, the ward there had a Trunk-or-Treat activity a few days before Halloween (first one I had been to) and we all loved it.
On our trip to Utah, we hit bad weather and somehow got a flat tire. There was too much snow on the sides of the road to pull over, so we were just kind of stuck. Luckily, traffic was moving really slow at the time as the result of an accident ahead, so all the cars just went around us. After a few phone calls and kind people stopping to offer help, a tow truck was on the way. When the guy got there, he hooked up the front part of our van and towed us (while still inside the van) about 8 miles to Cove Fort, which was the closest place to get our tire fixed. The kids loved that part! We ended up getting 4 new tires. It was all quite an ordeal, but we were very blessed that things went as well as they did and that we were safe.
We only made it to Provo that night and stayed at a hotel there. The next day was my birthday, so for Dann's present he watched the kids for a few hours while I went shopping. Then we headed to Roosevelt. When we got here, we found that my family had moved all our furniture back upstairs (my sister and her husband rent the downstairs and had been storing it for us since we had other renters upstairs who had just recently moved out). It was a wonderful surprise! The kids were so excited to see all of their toys and beds and all the things and people they love.
We enjoyed a fun party at my Aunt Lana's house where we played games, decorated pizzas, hunted for ghosts, and drank witches brew.
Halloween was fun for the kids, though I think they actually liked giving out candy at our house better than trick-or-treating. Sam was a frog (the cutest I've ever seen), Lily was Cinderella (of course), and Bella was a ladybug. My wonderful Mom took Dann to the airport that night to catch his 1 a.m. flight to Virginia, and we haven't seen him since.
We own some land near Roosevelt (about a 15-minute drive from our house) with my parents and last weekend we all went out there to feed the animals. The kids loved seeing the llamas and cows and even a stray dog that has made the place his home.
