Turning 10

My oldest niece is turning 10 this coming week. I've always considered 10 a big birthday because you move from one number in your age to two. It's the same when you turn 100. Because of this, I decided to make Sid a special birthday gift. Sometime last year I decided to paint all my nieces and nephews a piece of pottery with their name on it since it's always cool to have something with your name on it. Some got cups and some got bowls (and if I accidentally overlooked any nieces or nephews, I expect their parents to tell me immediately.) As Sidney received a cup last year, I decided to make a bowl this time. Her favorite color is pink so I started with that. I then decided to do white "branches" on the outside with red and purple berries (in a minimalist way.) The inside of the bowl was an accident. I tried to make a cute heart but it turned out horrible. I ended up covering up my mistake but it ended up looking kind of cute (see below.) Here's how it turned out:This was so much fun that I may make another bowl for all the rest of the kids when they turn 10 (or much sooner.)

Emily's blessing

My darling youngest niece Emily was blessed last Sunday, April 11th. I drove to Salt Lake and heard John pronounce a wonderful blessing on his daughter and welcome her into the church. After the sacrament meeting we went to Emily's house where her mother had put together a great spread of food. The kids had fun playing downstairs and outside. Sid borrowed my camera and took some great pictures.

Emily and her paternal grandmother
Of Poppy
Of Aunt Jen

Of her brother

And of Lauren

The slip 'n slide

My parents can create the greatest slide 'n slide in the world with a huge piece of plastic (courtesy of my brother Jeremy) and some hoses. While most slide 'n slides are a few feet wide and 15-16 feet long, ours is 10-12 feet wide and 40-50 feet long. It is completely awesome. Here are a few pictures:(The pictures don't do the slide justice since they only shows half of it.) This is how we celebrated Sidney's birthday (along with presents, dinner, fireworks, and some really good brownies.) Wade, my cousin, his wife, and four kids joined us for the fun. It isn't often we get to see Wade and his kids so it was great to have them up from Arizona. We played on the slide (well, I took pictures, cheered, and held baby Ava while others slid.) Then everyone dried off and ate dinner and had dessert. Then the little kids decided to play in the puddles left on the plastic. It was pretty funny watching Wyatt, Isaac, Tanner, and Aaron giggling and splashing in puddles. I didn't get home until 12:30am on Sunday morning but it was totally worth it.

Gifts for the kids

So I decided to make a gift for each of my nieces and nephews. Here are my first two:


This is Wyatt's mug, which I decided to do in green. The inside of the cup is light green and speckled. I made the stripes by covering the mug with tape.







Sidney's is a light pink mug with a speckled handle and inside. I was hoping it would turn out darker but I don't think I put enough coats on. I made them at a place called Color Me Mine, which is a pretty addictive place.
Anyway, I mailed these out on Friday and I hope to finish up the rest sometime in the next two weeks. I think it's nice to have something with your name on it, especially when you're young. I hope to post pictures of the next 6 projects as well.

Sidney's baptism

On Saturday morning I arose early so I could drive up to Sidney's baptism. It makes me feel so old to know that I have a niece that is old enough to be getting baptized. Anyway, I drove up North and had a great time. Sidney looked beautiful and I couldn't have been more proud of her. I couldn't help but remember when she was born and how small she was. I loved babysitting her, singing to her, and making her laugh. Anyway, I teared up twice and made an attempt at giving a short talk on the Holy Ghost. Sidney was baptized first of the three kids there for the occasion. After the two boys were baptized it was time for Sidney to be confirmed. It was wonderful; luckily, the fire alarm didn't go off until after her confirmation. Apparently a small child not related to us pulled the alarm.
After the confusion, we all went to Sidney's house for food. All the kids ran around and the adults watched the chaos. After the party, Sid, Wyatt, Taylor, and Easton went to the Treehouse Museum. I was so exhausted that I didn't join them. Instead, I went to my parents house to rest. Two hours later I got a phone call from a friend and headed down to Orem. By the time I got to Lehi, my plans were canceled. I spent the night shopping, cleaning, reading, and surfing the Internet. All in all, it was a good day (the best part being Sidney of course.)

Sidney's Birthday

Sunday started out well as Jen, Lauren, and I went to church with Mom and Dad. Lauren was a little mischievous but all went fairly well. When we got home we started preparing for Sidney's birthday dinner. She had requested barbecue ribs (at the hinting of her grandfather,) cornbread, fruit, an Italian bread that I can't remember the name of, and angel food cake for dessert. It was a magnificent feast, as are all of my mother's meals. We had a lot of fun and the little kids loved being outside. I bought two books, Pippi Longstocking and Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, and some stickers for Sidney for her birthday. (The sticker's on account of Wyatt getting a hold of the last ones that I sent her.) I liked both of the books as a child and hope that she enjoys them as well. I can't believe that she is old enough to be baptised. It doesn't seem possible since I still remember the first time that Jeremy and Britnie ever let me babysit her. I held her the whole time and marveled at her little hands and feet. It is strange to remember that memory so clearly and realize that it is over seven years ago. (Wow, look at me waxing nostalgic; I must be getting old.) Anyway, after dinner we all went outside to play. Sidney and I kicked the ball around with Jordan, who realized that we weren't nearly as exciting to play soccer with as Josh is. All in all, it was a great time. I hated to go home and didn't get there until just past 11pm. I did, however, beat Sarah home from her parent's house. I am excited to see Sidney be baptised in a week and a half and have even been asked to give a short talk, which I have been pondering over when I'm not preparing my Relief Society lesson for this weekend. I hope all my readers, few that they are, are having a wonderful week and wish them all a happy 24th of July tomorrow. Unlike other Utahns, I will be working and will not be able to celebrate our pioneer heritage. Even though it is only 10:30pm, I think I will go to bed.

Weekend report

Although it has been a while since this last weekend, a brief report is needed. On Saturday morning, I drove up to Kaysville to help with Josh and Brooke's move. When I arrived at home, I found my mom, Jen, and Lauren. Obviously, Lauren needed me to play with her. Brooke then dropped Tanner off and he needed his aunt to sing to him. After the moving was over, people came back and I was able to see Isaac as well. What a lucky aunt I am. After playing with my kids, I went shopping for a shirt and a birthday gift for Sid. After I got home I got ready for a wedding reception. Jen Taylor and her fiancee Dan got married in the Ogden Temple and had a lovely outside reception. Ryan, Brit, and I rode together. After the reception, the three of us went out to dinner with Jacq, Travis, Hali, and Mark. It was great to get together since it had been almost a year since we had all been together. Afterwards I ended up at Ryan's house and stayed to talk. On Sunday, I awoke too late to go to church with my parents. I ended up at my old singles ward. It was strange. After six months, I only knew a dozen people in the congregation. Apparently a lot can change in six months. After church, the preparations for the birthday celebration of Sidney and Grandma Johnsen began. I ended up buying Sidney a book about being a princess, along with a plastic crown. The whole family had a wonderful time. After dinner we talked and Lauren, Sid, Isaac, and Wyatt played outside with some rather large balls. All in all, a very good weekend.

The parade

On Friday night I went up to Mom and Dad's house to spend the night. Sidney was staying over and I haven't slept at my parent's house in months. I stayed up way too late and was awakened early the next morning by a happy little girl who was excited to be in a parade. We went down to Woods Cross and found Dad next to the fire/foam truck. For those who don't know, my dad drives a truck in the parade for Woods Cross every year. For the past five or six years, I have ridden with him. For the last two or three years, Sid has come along. It was hot but fun. Afterwards Sidney and I threw ice and water at each other while we tried not to get Mom, Jen, Lauren, Jeremy, or Wyatt wet. Afterwards we returned to Kaysville where Sid, Wyatt, and Lauren played in the water. I stayed until late afternoon and then returned to Orem to meet up with an old friend, Jen. We got together later than expected because she was late coming back from a hike. I have always loved talking to Jen. She and I can not talk for months, then immediately pick up where we left off. (I wish she didn't live in Idaho.) Anyway, it was a fun weekend capped off by church and break the fast with the ward.

Saturday with part of the family

On Saturday I slept in until 10 am. I then got up and did some housework while I waited for my mother to call me. Grandma Roberts had traveled down from Idaho and the Roberts sisters were meeting at Aunt Diane's house for food and talking. Sarah and I met up with them at a restuarant at 2pm, then went to Diane's house to talk and watch old family movies. It was strange to see my mother as a three-year-old toddler. She reminded me a lot of Wyatt. I managed to get Lauren to sleep for a half an hour, but then she woke up hungry. Sidney and I took Dexter for a walk. My two beautiful nieces left by 6 pm but I stayed until almost 11 pm. It was nice to see my aunts, mother, sister, grandmother, and two nieces.

A visit to Tahitian Noni

On Saturday afternoon I had the opportunity to go to a wedding shower for Christine, a fiancee of my cousin. They will be married in May. I must admit that I spent most of the time playing with my darling niece and nephew. Sidney and Isaac kept me busy. I most magical moment was when the three of us went outside to visit a dog. Dexter would bark and then Sidney would bark back. Then Isaac would laugh. A baby's laugh is the most magical of all sounds. After the shower, a bunch of the Roberts Clan went to dinner at the Tahitian Noni Cafe. The food was pretty good and Sidney loved the purple rolls. The greatest part about the meal was the garden tour after the meal. While Grandpa and Grandma sat for a while, Diane, Larry, Nancy, Mom, Dad, Sidney and I walked around. Sidney and I had a great time exploring. The streams and ponds were beautiful, and ran around hiding from Mom and Dad. When it was time to leave, Sidney and I threw some pennies into the fountain in the foyer of the building. She made a wish for her little brother and her parents. It was darling. I miss spending time with my nieces and nephews. When I got home I decided to finish preparing my Relief Society lesson. Sarah was supposed to teach part of the RS lesson on Sunday but wouldn't be back from Arizona in time. She asked me to fill in so I spent my Saturday night preparing an excellent lesson on Elder Holland's Conference talk. Camille and Dave came home and I went to bed to the sounds of their voices.

Friday

I awoke on Friday with a stuffy nose and slightly sore throat. I got ready for my interview in Orem and drove down while listening to music. After what seemed like a rather short interview, I stopped at the apartment that I will be living in after February 4th. I measured my room and tried to decided what to take from my current room and what to leave. When I left Orem, I called Mom to discuss the interview and Alison answered her phone. It turns out that Mom and Sidney were still at the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point. They had been joined by Alison, Isaac, Jen, and Lauren. I stopped by for some fun at the museum. I did my best not to touch the babies, although I did hold Lauren for a little while. I was careful not to kiss either of them or their hands. I spent most of the time running around with Sidney.

By late afternoon, I was exhausted and my throat hurt more than it had in the morning. I decided to not go out and play and stayed home, packing up books and some clothes. After watching an episode of Greys Anatomy and taking some cold medicine, I went to bed.

A long update

Circumstances being what they are, I haven't really had the time to update my blog in the past two weeks. I will try to summarize what has happened and hit the high points for my readers.
I got a flu shot on the 17th which caused my arm to hurt quite a bit. On Friday night, the 17th of November, Roberts and Lowe women alike met to help Alison with the Festival of the Trees project. We cut, sewed, and frayed stars. There was good food, good conversation, and two adorable babies to entertain us so the time quickly sped by. The next day I worked from 9:30 to 3 pm, then went to a late lunch with Ryan and John. I went home exhausted with flu-like symptoms. Sidney and Wyatt came over to have fun with their Grandma and Poppy. I spent most of the time upstairs trying to shake the flu-like symptoms caused by the flu shot I had received the day before. I did come downstairs in time to see Wyatt taking a bath in the sink. What a funny boy! On Sunday morning I felt even worse and did not go to church. I slept quite a bit but still managed to get a paper written for my History of Christianity class.
Work and school followed for the next two days. On Wednesday, the 22nd, I was awakened by my darling niece who showed me the hole in her smile since she had lost a tooth. I had breakfast with Mom, Dad, Sid, and Wyatt, then went to school for one class. (My other two had been canceled but Dr. Francis would not relent on his grilling class schedule.) After a rousing class in which donuts were served, I returned home to help with my niece and nephew and clean the upstairs bathroom. Jen and Lauren came out to help with the Thanksgiving preparations and a good time was had by all. I ended up watching two episodes of an interesting show called Numb3rs and cleaning up the basement in anticipation of Aunt Renee and cousin Mark's arrival.
On Thanksgiving the following people came over to eat: Grandma and Grandpa Roberts, Jen, John, Lauren, Josh, Brooke, Uncle Mike, Renee, Mark, Timothy, Roxanne, Doug, John D., Jen D., Jason, Jacob, Emily, Michael, Ethan, RJ, Nathan, Diane, Larry, Amy, Sarah, Nancy, Jordan, Alison, and Isaac. Jeremy, Britnie, Sidney, and Wyatt came over later. We had three turkeys and a ham along with some other great food. Three tables of people made for fun madness. We ate, talked, and then ate some more. After 3 pm, we had a baby shower for Brooke. Jen and I went together on a gift of books and baby blankets. By nightfall, the aunts were in the living room talking while Brooke, Josh, Alison, Sarah, Amy, and I played a game. It was fun. Amy and I were crushed by the other two teams. (It is nice to be humbled every once and a while :) Jordan and Dad went to see Grandma, who seemed to be better and appreciated the Thanksgiving feast they brought her.
On Friday morning, Dad and I went to the temple. Afterwards we went to see Grandma. When entering Grandma's room, a person is required to put on gloves and wear a face mask. Her cough is still horrible but the pneumonia seems to be getting better. After we went home, I headed off the Alison's house to babysit Isaac while she worked on the tree skirt for the Festival of Trees. Isaac had just gone down for a nap so I studied for a while. I finally decided to take a nap myself when Alison's parents arrived. Her dad played with Isaac while the two ladies sewed. I then took a nap only to be awakened by my mother and Aunt Renee stopping by. All in all, I am not sure how much sleep I got. When Alison and her dad left to buy wood for the signs, I took over playing with Isaac. What a darling baby. I helped introduce him to the blanket buddy that Grandma Roberts made for him. It is a bunny. He seemed to like it once he realized that it couldn't hurt him and that he could eat the ears. After putting him down for a nap, I helped Alison and Pat finish the tree skirt and then headed home to get ready for a night out. Ryan and I ended up at Mikey's house where we watched the end of the Jazz game and then hung out for the rest of the night. Once in a while it is nice to just hang out at someone's home and watch movie previews, listen to music, and talk.
On Saturday I was awakened by my mother telling me about a job that Aunt Diane had seen on the Provo Library website. I decided to apply for it because it pays more than my current job and it would be a nice change. I finished the book I was reading, 84, Charing Cross Road, and took a shower. Later that night I went to dinner with Jen Evans and her friend Erin, who seems really nice. We ate at Mimi's Cafe and had fun talking about life, men, traveling, school, and other interesting topics. We then went to the theater to see Stranger than Fiction, which I would highly recommend. Will Ferrell isn't his usual goofball self, Emma Thompson is brilliant as a tortured writer, Maggie Gyllenhaal is great as an angry baker, and Dustin Hoffman is the typical odd literature professor. It follows the life of Harold Crick, an IRS agent who begins to hear a narrator speak about his life. I won't ruin any more of the movie for those who plan to see it. I would give it 4 stars out of 5. Since there are only about 15 movies ever made that get a 5, that is pretty good. As a person who occasionally writes short stories, the idea that a character from my story could be walking around is amazing. Anyway, I got home about 12:30 pm but couldn't get to sleep until about 3 am. Cursed insomnia :(
Today I went to school and work. School was fairly uneventful. I got a paper back that my Victorian Lit teacher wants me to re-write. Grrr. In my History of Christianity class we discussed the beginning of the Baptists and Quakers in the 1600's. Good stuff. Mom took the day off to help Alison decorate for the Festival of the Trees which is this week. I included a picture that Mom took with some of the background blacked out. The stuff in the background was very distracting and I wanted to have the phocus be the tree. Alison, Emily (her sister), Aunt Diane, and Mom were the decorators. The theme of the tree is taken from a poem by Robert Frost. Tonight, work was completely crazy. Mondays after holidays are always insane. I guess I should try to go to bed now.

A fun Friday

Well, it's official: I have had the funnest Friday ever. I slept in until 9:45 am. I picked up my cute niece, Sidney, at 11 am and we went to the Treehouse Museum. After some initial confusion about where it was, we finally arrived. The whole drive to Ogden was filled with "guess what's" by Sid. Her favorite conversation is that phrase. I find it adorable and did my Auntly duty by saying "what." We paid to get in and spent the next two hours running around. I think one of the coolest things about the museum is the huge tree in the middle. It has one flight of stairs in the middle of the trunk and another going around it. In all, I think I counted going up 30 flights of stairs. (I am paying for it today; ouch!) We went to the different stations that included: the medical clinic, the store, the school house, the native American section, the music area, the medieval area, the many different country areas, the Utah area, the American history area, and the dinosaur area. I took a few pictures but Sid never kept still long enough for a good one of her. I guess I was too busy to take very many. She did manage to take one of me in the mock-oval office. After two hours we were hungry. We ended up at Wendy's, were Sid had a kids meal and I had a bacon burger. Yum. After wards, we went to Petsmart. Sid loves to go around and look at all the animals. The fish were interesting and I had to read what each one was. She took particular interest in the crabs, who had brightly painted shells. She also loved watching the hamsters and mice. The birds were also interesting. I managed to take a picture of her with the hamsters, where we spent at least 20 straight minutes. After stopping for bagels, I realized that it was time to take her home. I stayed and played with Wyatt for a few minutes while I talked to Britnie. I drove home to find Jordan, Alison, and Isaac. My cute nephew spit up on me twice. He did it with a smile on his face though. I got ready and rushed out the door with only a brief hello to Mom, who had just arrived home.
I picked up Ryan by his work and we ran to get food at Noodles and Co. in SL. Ryan and I had tickets to see "Thriller" performed by the Odyssey Dance Theatre. Even though parts of it were quite dark, it was still amazing. I would really recommend it. (No, I didn't take the picture, I got it from their website.) Afterwards, we went over to Bryan and Ryan's house for a little while. Ryan, Mikey, and I then went to Chilis for dessert. Our waiters was very odd, yet amusing. They were out of my favorite dessert, Chocolate Moulton Cake, so I settled for a chocolate chip brownie thing with ice cream. Afterwards we returned to Bryan and Ryan's for a little more fun before I drove Ryan to his car. (I finally got lawyer Ryan to let me take a picture of him, even if it was with a dog.) I got home at 12:30 am and slept well. I had so much fun on Friday. I am now ready to face any giant or problem. Today I got a haircut and have a Halloween party later. (I should probably finish my costume.)

Babysitting

On Saturday night I had the honor of babysitting Sid and Wy. Sid started out playing a computer game while Wy complained about the weather and the state of world politics. He then moved on to my hairstyle, then about how he was hungry. Luckily, I could do something about him being hungry. After Wy had a bottle, Sid and I played with her felt dolls. I ordered a pizza. While Sid and I ate, Wy was entertained by being in his saucer. Sid kept making him laugh but eventually finished her dinner. Wy was getting really tired so I changed him into his pajamas, gave him his meds, fed him, sang to him, and put him to bed. Then Sid and I curled up on the couch and watched "The Wizard of Oz." After it ended, she got ready for bed. While she was brushing her teeth, her parents came home. All in all, a good night. I just hope that next time I babysit the weather is nicer. I really wanted to take them to the park. I just love spending time with my nieces and nephews.

Continue

After work on Thursday I went to see my sister and her darling daughter. Lauren is adorable although slightly grumpy at times. Jen and John let me play with Lauren alone while they went to a wedding reception (from which they brought me chocolate.) Lauren liked some of the singing that I did. She did not like me reading to her from my book though. It seems that books without pictures do not interest her. Oh well, maybe in the future. I slept the night on the couch and had more fun the next morning. This includes making a cute video of Lauren with my new camera. The future movie star smiled, cooed, and blew bubbles at the camera. If I had the slightest idea how to load a video (and had her parents permission), I would put it on the blog. At 6:30 on Friday I left Salt Lake to have dinner with my best friend, Ryan. Afterwards, he wanted to go clubbing but I declined since I hate crowded, loud, smoke-filled places. We parted ways am I ended up renting a video and going home. On Saturday I was awakened by my oldest niece and her friend jumping on me and screaming at the top of their lungs. Grrr! Jess was a grumpy girl for a whole ten minutes. After breakfast my mood improved. Later that day, everyone met at Jeremy's house to celebrate Sid's birthday. Fun followed. After leaving the party, Jordan, Alison, Josh, Brooke, Marnie, and I ventured to Salt Lake where they attended the ReAL game (that's our local soccer team.) I took care of J and A's little boy, Isaac. After hanging out on a shady patch of grass, we ended up at Barnes and Noble. I took a picture of Isaac's hand and foot. I was elated to find that my new camera takes some great up-close shots. Later we went to see Jen, John, and Lauren. from the Fellowship Committee (which means I provided after-church meals so that bunch of singles can mingle) and was asked to be Branch Historian. I'm not sure what that entales, but am excited for the chance to do something new. I finished the books I was reading, "Princess Academy," by Shannon Hale.When the soccer game ended, I was there to pick up the group. On Sunday I was released from my calling It was a charming book for older kids.

"A tale of two weekends"

This weekend was an interesting one. On Friday, I went to the birthday party of John. John, “lawyer” Ryan, Katie, Kyle, Curtis, “best friend” Ryan, Doug, Monica and I went to the Skybox at the Gateway for dinner. While the food was good, the waitress seemed to forget about us. We then went to a club that had dueling pianos. It was really cool. With a tip, people seated around the two pianos could request songs. The crowd would then sing along with them. John ended up singing on the pianos for his birthday. We stayed until about 12:30 am, then went to Bryan and Ryan’s house. After eating yummy birthday cake, I began to get tired and slightly annoyed. I witnessed behavior that I hadn’t wanted to see: a very drunk person, a few people who were having a hard time making conversation that didn’t include several expletives, and some people being idiots in the front yard. (I’ll leave the description at that) After leaving with Ryan and Kyle, we all agreed that we were disappointed in the actions of friends and acquaintances. Unfortunately, I stayed out way too late and didn’t get to bed until around 4 am.
On Saturday I worked from 12-4:30. After work I headed down to Woods Cross to be in their parade. My dad drives a foam truck for the refinery every year. Sidney and I rode on the back of the truck and threw candy. It was a lot of fun. After dinner with Mom, Dad, Britnie, Jeremy, Sidney, and Wyatt, I went out with Brittany (friend, not sister-in-law), Spencer, and Michelle. We walked around Barnes Park and ended up talking until they turned the lights out. We talked about funny and serious things. We then went back to my house around 12 and talked some more. It was a lot quieter than my Friday night but not necessarily less fun.
During church the next day, I couldn’t help but reflect on the two groups of people. Both groups have amazing people in them: God-fearing, kind, loving, smart, funny people. But there was a big difference. On Saturday, I didn’t have to worry about what would come out of people’s mouths (or what would go into them.) I thought about the differences between the two groups of people that I would consider friends. I would never expect anyone to change their actions around me. Everyone should be able to be exactly what they want to be. But, I must admit, it is frustrating to see people do things that you don’t agree with and to keep your mouth shut. I would hate to be judgemental. This weekend was like like two weekends instead of two consecutive days. They were so different and yet I did have fun both nights.