Thomas the Dork Engine

You've heard of Thomas the Tank Engine, but have you heard of Thomas the Dork Engine? This is what happens when Daddy dresses you after a bath! He thinks it's funny to tuck the jammie top into the jammie bottoms.

Reinforcements Have Arrived!

Yeah!! Daddy is back and Mommy is once again sane (well, sort of)! The kids are always happy to spend time with Daddy, and lucky for me, Tommy becomes a bit of a "Daddy's boy"--wants to do everything Tom does.

Poor kids are being trained in the fine art of R/C flying.

Never too early to bring your kids up with proper Van Halen music--actually, they're not even on GH3! In the words of Nicole, some "idiot-jerk" didn't include them.

Tom's been working with Tommy on the simulator--thinks he'll have him flying those !*$% things by the time he's 5!

Last Day of School

Thursday was Sam's last day of school. Most normal children would be excited. But nope, not mine. She came to the car teary-eyed, sad that her 2nd grade year was over. She even asked her teacher if she could stay if she got all "F's." Crazy kid. Now it's on to synchronized swimming, kid's club/boredom busters, and piano lessons to entertain her this summer.

Adventures in Amsterdam

Before Tom headed back to the States, he had a couple of days to explore Amsterdam. (And keep in mind we're from little ol' Mesa, AZ--no, he didn't explore the city the way Van Halen did in their Amsterdam video.) He did see and take pictures of a lot of the streets and buildings where the video was shot though. One of the first stops, of course, was the Hard Rock Cafe to scope out any Van Halen memorabilia.

Eddie

Eddie's guitar

The Hard Rock Cafe

This parking garage is solely for bikes. Amsterdam is the most bike friendly city in the world. However, you'd better lock up though--nearly 100,000 bikes are stolen a year in the city. They dredge the canals every year just to pull up bikes!

A typical little European car. Guess you'd have to go small when gas there is over $8 a gallon! Reminds me of a Mr. Bean car.

The building in the shadows is where Anne Frank's family hid during World War II. This museum was one of Tom's favorite places to visit.

This photo is an aerial view of the Anne Frank building during the 1940's.

Amsterdam was strategically built around canals and waterways. That was another of Tom's favorites--a boat tour of the city.

Amsterdam is obviously rich in architecture--beautiful buildings everywhere.

The central train station

Catch-up

When life gets busy, I'm not a great blogger, so we'll try to catch up on the past week or so.

Tom is finishing up his last trip as a Stansted-based FO (airplane talk for First Officer). Yeah! He'll now be starting his trips out of the USA (the only bummer is that he's the most junior FO--meaning he'll get the dumb lines that nobody else wants). Oh well, the schedule will still be better.

The cousins have spent a lot of time together too. Ty has even worked on teaching Tommy to sing "Tinkle, Tinkle, Little Star . . ." There have been sleepovers, and since it is hot, Hot, HOT, of course there has been a lot of swimming!

This is what happens when Sister and Cousin Kalia (or Ka-wee as Tommy would say) take over your bedroom. It becomes the land of pink fru-fru.

Sam has had a lot of "end-of-school-year" activities lately. Last Friday at the "Powerhouse Assembly," Sam and Susie Q were both chosen from their classes as a "Kid of Character." Way to go girls! (Hmm, how can we get that behavior to carry on to home life?! That is the question.) Sammie also played the love song from Titanic at the school talent show yesterday. She played in front of the whole student body and did a wonderful job. I thought it was funny how I had butterflies in my stomach more than she did!

As for the terror, oops, toddler, Tommy is bringing the art of tantrums to a whole new level (which brings Mom to a whole new level of insanity!!). Maybe if I show him these pictures of Cousin Grant enough, he'll have it down in no time.

As for me, I'm holding on for the ride, and thankful my husband will be back home in two more days!

My Dad

So today is a little (or a lot) depressing. May 16th is my dad's birthday; if he were still alive he would have turned 60 today. In fact, it has been twenty years now (on May 5th to be exact) since he passed away from cancer. However, I still remember like it was yesterday the last time I saw him at the hospital--I can remember the sounds and the smells. I remember the last words I heard him say before we kids left. I'm sure he knew the time was near, and he hugged us all individually. I remember him squeezing my brother and saying, "I love you son." I still cry twenty years later just thinking about it.

He was born in little old Salina, Utah, on May 16, 1948 (a country bumpkin from the start). Although he finished high school in West Jordan (go Jordan Beetdiggers!), he much preferred the small town over the city. As a child he enjoyed forms of entertainment like playing Cowboys and Indians with loaded BB guns and racing Grandpa's Dodge Charger. (And a word of advice--if you seek to avoid prosecution, don't put M-80s in the blue USPS drop boxes--just ask my dad!)

Since he had always suffered from asthma, he wasn't sent to Vietnam; instead he served a mission in Australia (where he met my mum). When he told his mission president that he had met the girl he was going to marry (mind you, he still had ten months of his mission left), he was shipped to the western side of the continent the next day. Anyhow, ten months later he was released from his mission while in Australia, and they planned the wedding, which took place not too many weeks later.

(I don't know the location, but I'm guessing it was sometime in 1969?)

They made their first home in Sandy, Utah, which my mom loved--loves the city life like me. However, when she was extremely pregnant with me (the third child), he moved her to the middle of nowhere--some place called Aurora (is that in Utah?!). We actually had a lot of fun growing up there. Did a lot of outdoor activities, had every animal under the sun, and were subject to many, many smells (feed lots, turkey farms, pig farms, etc.). Gotta love the great outdoors, right?

(Apparently he thought he was Jeff Corwin--yuck!!)

When I think of my dad, I think first of his love of family. He loved us and wasn't afraid to tell us or show us.

I also think of his love of the Gospel--he loved to share his testimony. Even towards the end when he was so sick from chemotherapy, he would often be found on his knees in prayer.

He also had a very patriotic love for our country and wanted us to understand and appreciate our freedoms.

He also had a crazy fun sense of humor. I think I inherited the fiery temper from the Aussie side, and my whacked-out sense of humor from my dad. Wouldn't he and Tom have had a great time laughing together. The two of them could clear a theater!

Mom, remember the "Spree attacks," or hopping down the boardwalks in Yellowstone? I can still recall the words to many Ray Stevens songs as well. I remember trips to Lagoon each summer. Dad and I always had to lie down after the spinny rides so we wouldn't throw up. I remember him setting off firecrackers to wake us kids up when we had spent the night in the tent--but oops, blew a large hole through the lawn chair instead. Those were the days . . .

I remember a few months before he died when he was asked to share his testimony in Stake Conference. I remember him saying that he wasn't afraid to die--he just didn't want to leave his family. He wanted to be there to send his only son on a mission and witness his three daughters be married in the temple. Those are the things I think I miss the most. He wasn't there when I knelt across the alter from my sweetheart; he wasn't there when I had my baby girl or when baby Tommy was life-lighted away in a helicopter. Those are memories I wish we could have shared together, but I know he was looking down on me from some mountainous area in Heaven.

P.S. Did you happen to notice the hair color of both my mom and dad? So where did my red hair come from, you might ask? Well, I don't know either. But Heather and Aaron used to think it was cute to tell me that I was adopted as a "Wednesday's Child."

For Laughs

Sam shared a little Mother's Day joy with me today by reminding me that I'm getting old! The conversation went a little something like this:

Sammie: Mom, will I ever have to have a retainer?

Me: Probably--once you have braces taken off you'll have to wear a retainer for a while to keep all the teeth in place. I only wore mine at night though.

Sammie: Why? I would want to wear mine in the day so I could sleep better at night.

Me: I felt like I talked funny with a retainer in the roof of my mouth.

Sammie: My friend has a retainer and she talks fine.

Me: Well, it made me talk funny.

Sammie: But Mom, that was in the old days. They're probably better now.

(I guess back when I pulled my handcart across the prairie to school, retainers just weren't what they are now!)

Happy Mother's Day!

Just wanted to wish all you mothers and grandmothers out there a happy Mother's Day!

I especially want to acknowledge my own mom--we've had some great "bonding moments," haven't we? He, he, he. I also want to thank my mother-in-law for being like a second mom to me (and also for giving me her baby boy too).

Tom won't be here to celebrate with me, of course, but I will be able to talk to him, and he and Sam did pick out a gift for me right before he left. I'd say that's a great step forward from my first "official" Mother's Day. You remember, don't you honey, when you waited until the last minute and the only cards left were Secretaries Day cards?! Poor Tommy--he must not have realized that women NEVER forget!

Lessons from Australia

Mom, you would be so proud! Today I had to talk about the Land Down Under with the children at our ward's Primary activity. "Mum," I told those little "blokes" and "sheilas" how the "dills" in Australia drive on the wrong side of the road and how they put "petrol" in their cars (pronounced cahs). I told them that FOSTERS is Australian for beer. I also explained the art of "stoning" an aluminum-lined roof in Broken Hill. And most importantly, I told them that the desert there is like the desert here--"drier than a dead dingo's donger." (Didn't make up the phrase--check the website for decoding Australian slang.)

Just kidding! I actually shared Cadbury fingers with them and showed them pictures of the unique animals and sights like the Opera House, the Space Needle, and the Harbour Bridge. I could even tell you what years they were completed in and how long it took to build them. We also talked about the church in Australia and where the five temples are located--Sydney, Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, and Brisbane.

It was such a creative activity for the kids. They boarded a "plane," complete with a Captain and Flight Attendant, and had their passports stamped as they learned about other children in the countries of Australia, England, Pakistan, Brazil, Samoa, and Taiwan. We then sampled cuisine from each country. Thanks to the Primary Presidency for all their hard work!

A Bit of Good News

An no, the good news isn't that we're expecting (sorry, we're done, done, done).

The good news is that as of June 1st, Tom will no longer be based in Stansted, England. Instead, he'll be flying out of the States--LA, to be exact, which is right next door. Goodbye, 17-21 day trips--you will not be missed!

Mother's Day Tea

On Thursday, Sammie's 2nd grade class held a Mother's Day Tea. It was so sweet-the teacher and the children put a lot of time into it.

Upon our arrival, we were escorted to our individual place settings, where we were welcomed with flowers, a wrapped gift, and a laminated place setting that had a poem written by each individual child. They then served us pink lemonade, a brownie and a cookie (and my little cutie even made it to our table without spilling a thing!).

After our snacks (which the children cleared for us), they put on a little performance, complete with songs and a poem. The only thing that could have made it better was if I hadn't had a mild case of the stomach flu (which of course passed on to Sam and Tommy the very next day!).

Thanks for a wonderful time, Toots!

Who Says Toddlers Don't Share?

You can't tell because of the camera delay, but he's been sharing this drink all morning with his monkey (and while we're on the subject of sharing, it's actually Sammie's monkey--he's just kind of borrowed it, permanently).

He also shares germs, used kleenex, as well as his cars (just ask Sammie as they are flying at her head) . . .

Best Cousins

Yesterday Ty and Tommy had a play date for a few hours. Of course Tommy was thrilled to have his "Ty-Ty" over.

They did really well together (big messes, of course), but no fighting or screaming. I asked Ty if they were best friends, and he said, "No, cousins." We decided they're "best cousins."

It's a good thing my little rascal is cute, because tonight, within a time span of two hours, he nearly made me crazy. He choked on a Smartie (because he was jumping of course!) and proceeded to vomit all over the leather couch (which cleans right up, but not so easy when it oozes down between the cushions!). Next was popping the lid off my 22 oz. soda and spilling it all over the tile, and for the grand finale, he unrolled a full roll of toilet paper in the half-bath. What a gem! Too bad there's not room for him in Tom's suitcase . . .

Busy Week!

So I haven't been the best blogger as of late. Tom has been home, and the pace always moves faster when he's around. We've also had dentist appointments, haircuts, piano lessons, visiting teaching appointments, visiting teaching interviews, the 2nd grade musical, the school carnival, and a piano recital. (And shame on me, I didn't have the camera with me for half of it. Tom gets very irritated that I don't carry it around in my purse with me.)

Like at her piano recital tonight--of course, we left in a hurry and I forgot the camera. And on the merry-go-round at the mall, I didn't have the camera. You get the idea. Here are a few pictures I did catch throughout the past week.

Tommy, Sam and Daddy at the school carnival

Tommy loved looking at the petting zoo (he should have been on display at the petting zoo--much more entertaining than the mellow animals here).

Forgive him for his finger placement--he's only two.

Tommy doing what he does best (running away). Too bad I didn't have the camera with me at the 2nd grade musical. He ran up on the stage twice during the performance, and of course I made Tom get him!

Big T and Little T on the slide

Sam on the obstacle course

Apparently being naughty can wear you out!

The cousins rocking to the sound of Guitar Hero

What could be better than watching "eyecanes" land at Williams-Gateway with Daddy and a Coke? (sorry Grandma)

This boy loves his dad, and Dad's soda.