Our Quest to do it ALL

Kangaroo Zoo with Rachel, Tanner and Benjamin

Hiking with Mom, Bobbie & Ashton

Huge columbine!


Barbeque with the Staffords (such a cute family!)

Lunch with Carina and Amy (and Jenna the next day!) with their babies
Looks like Noah is distracting his peers.
Madeleine, Joshua and Noah were all born within a month of each other.
The Moab Day Trip Experience. Complete with: silly Isaac,

the hottest time of day,
Balanced Rock,
and a hike to Delicate Arch.
In my 13 years of living in Utah, I had never been here!

We learned a lot, including this equation:

1.5 mile hike up + 1 baby backpack + 1 little dude + oven-like heat + sand in your shoes + 1.5 mile hike back= what feels like a 10 mile hike

We might have been the only Americans there; we're not sure.

Petroglyphs were on our "must see" list

Isaac is saying "boo!" from behind the sign. After the hike, we bagged our plans to run and skipped to swimming in the Colorado River.
An excellent place for an echo What a beautiful place this whole area is!
We even got to watch Peter Breinholt after dinner! He was right there putting on a concert for Raft for the Cure. This made my night.


Up to Kamas, Utah the very next day. Sitting under those trees with everyone, I had to wonder: when will we be up this way again?
The Jackson Sibling Hug
The sandbox and Tanner were, of course, Isaac's favorite parts.Gorgeous Kamas sunset

The "There's Nothing Like..." List

Here are some things that have been on my mind lately and this is how I categorize them: There's Nothing Like...

Taking wisdom from a child. It's amazing how fast Isaac can switch from being totally miserable to deciding "I want to be happy!" I could never be so determined to change my attitude, but I need to be more like that. Suck it up and let it go. Move on. That's when you get a treat, after all.

Taking wisdom from a baby. How many of us smile while we're distressed? Noah is so sweet! He'll be in some crazy predicament and very upset and when I arrive to help him out, he doesn't stop crying, but he does make the effort to be happy in that small but important way.


Words of encouragement. I live for the words, "Good job, Lizzy-Loo!" when we're running (thanks, Jare!), but I also love to hear Isaac's "Good job, Noah! You got it!" and "You're wonderful! You make poop!" The seed is planted. Everyone, don't hold back; say something nice if you're thinking it and it's true.

(Jared photoshopped himself out of this picture)

A new do. Man, this has been way overdue, but what a relief it is! Four braids have made their way to Locks of Love by now and I don't miss them a bit. Thanks, Steph!

Songs of the heart. Isaac has been going around singing two songs and they both make us so very happy. One of them is "Ta-ra-ra-boom-dee-ay" and the other is the "I am I am" song from Nacho Libre. He leaves out one of the "ra's" on the first and he usually concludes the latter with "I am Nacho Libre." Seriously, such good stuff.

Today Isaac made up a new song while strumming on my guitar: "I want to sing a song about candy: When you go to eat candy, when you go to eat candy all by yourself, you have to go potty first, then you get a treat. That was a good candy song!"


Moving across the country to make you appreciate "home." Utah has been my home since 1995 and, to be honest, I'm scared to death of leaving the familiar and starting over. Jared's stoked, but who wouldn't be? He's going to Johns Hopkins! But it will be an adventure, so we're excited. Meanwhile we are trying to "do it all" before we move and make the most of living here until August 16.

(A picture of Baltimore Street)

Our Fast-flying Summer, Part II

Starting from where I left off...

Hanging out in the shade is our specialty. The boys love it.

Check out Noah's tongue! He's always sticking it out.

Going running with the boys in their ingenious stroller by Phil & Ted.

Isaac getting a kiss from Aunt Bobbie, who he adores.

Playing with friends. Gosh, we're going to miss our friends!

Isaac is taking "hiking the Y" literally.

Our crrrrazy family after a crrrrazy hike

Our Fast-flying Summer, Part I

I apologize for my lack of bloggingness. I have had many ideas in my head, but very little time to put it down nicely. To make up for it all, here's a nice long one on what we've been up to.

Making silly faces in "Mac" (a.k.a. the crib). I love the look Noah is giving Isaac.

Helping Noah play

Running in the sprinklers (everyone loves that)

Playing "pirates"-- Isaac is fascinated with killing me with swords and guns now. Nothing I say will convince him it's not cool!

Hanging out with Grandma Laney

Going on hikes in Provo and American Fork Canyons

Isaac watching a caterpillar crawl all over his hands

A classic shot of what Noah thought of the food at the Wagstaff Family Reunion

My two Handymen

Noah is my big, strong baby now. He has been sitting up for almost two months, just splendidly. He can eat rice, peas, green beans and oatmeal. We think he is teething, too. He grabs everything he can...sometimes a bad thing, sometimes a fun thing. He is pretty much an angel baby, though. Just very, very happy.

I would tell you more (I know you're all on the edge of your seats), but I simply cannot take the time. Isaac has just said "I got the hiccup" at least two-dozen times and we would all like to go outside at least once today. Besides, the blogger picture function is no longer...functional. So I'll have to continue with "Part II" next time!

So Here's to You

I am about to join all the father-appreciating fools out there in writing abou the dads in their lives. Since my father probably won't read this, I'll only say this about him here: he is a REALLY great guy.

However, I'm about to say a little something about the father of my chillens. Jared is a "nicey-nicerton" who's almost always happy. Pretty incredible. But wait, folks: there's more! He's a fun dad, always ready to wrestle with Isaac or play with Noah. He is teaching our sons some of the most important principles they will need for life, including patience (by his example) as well as the Gospel.

He's a runner, an artist, and an RN, among other things. He has been accepted to Johns Hopkins for graduate school, so it won't be long until he is a nurse practitioner. Life has never been a piece of cake for him, but he usually comes out of the rough stuff with a smile on his face (or at least a good story to tell--as only he can do).
I think one of his best attributes is that he doesn't mind when I don't meet my own expectations (that's a big deal!).

We really lucked out.

Happy Father's Day, everyone!