Shanley Chronicles

2010-02-18T14:21:00.000-08:00

Kyle had a fun project in school, he had to write a story. Full on rough draft, final draft, pictures, construction paper cover, kind of story. As most of you know, Kevin and I LOVE to read and write. So when Kyle sat down to do this, I sat to help him but Kevin was doing the dishes and was trying to put in his two cents also. I put an end to that! I was the one helping him! So we flushed out a story, and since it had a monster in it I had him create it again in one of his games called "Spore". He printed it out. Then he had to read his story to his class. We went to go listen to it and he did a GREAT job! Very clear, showed off his pictures and he looked very proud. I had a nice warm fuzzy!!

2010-01-27T11:05:00.000-08:00

So Kyle finally had his first Pack Meeting! We all went as a family and he, and two other boys were awarded their Bobcat's. This is the first level in Cub Scouts. The only thing that marred getting his award... the Cub Master forgot to go purchase them! So he technically has it, but we are awaiting the badge. Kyle is also about 1/3 of the way through his Wolf, so we are hitting the scouting and having fun with it. And if you didn't know that we were a scouting family... now you do! Kevin is the 11 yr old. Scout Master so he as fun with that, while Kyle gets to do cubs. Happy 100th Birthday Boy Scouts of America!

Christmas

2009-12-30T10:23:00.000-08:00

So Christmas has come and gone. It exploded in our front room. Enjoyed by everyone, and continually picked up by Kevin and me. Jessica got a lot of Polly Pockets, which I find everywhere, just like Kyle's Legos. So as such I have the same attitude toward them.... pick them up! But if a piece gets sucked into the vaccum, too bad! Kyle got some transformers, Bionicles, and of course we all got a LOT of candy. I'm not looking at the scale to see how much weight all of that lucious candy has put on me (not much happily) and our Christmas Eve tradition of decorating sugar cookies stocked us up in even more yumminess. So Merry Christmas to all, and have a happy New Year!! See you in 2010!

2009-12-14T15:03:00.001-08:00

The Shanley’s Twelve Months of ‘09
(please sing to the 12 Days of Christmas)

On the first month of this year
The Shanley clan did say
“A new year! Let’s all shout hooray!”

On the second month of this year
Our church put on a play
Cinderella for three days!
And a new year to celebrate.

On the third month of this year
Kevin’s ankle got a sprain
Indoor soccer was to blame.
I rehearsed my lines
And January was just fine.

On the fourth month of this year
We sat outside to catch
Kyle playing soccer
Kevin needs a walker
Lauren learns her staging
And a new year that is amazing!

On the fifth month of this year
I met a celebrity
DONNIE OSMOND and me!
Kyle’s got the ball
Kevin can’t play
Lauren’s doing great,
And a new year that simply is great!

On the sixth month of this year
Jessica turned four
Dresses, cake, and parties
DONNIE AND ME!
Kyle gets a goal
Kevin’s leg is sore
EEK! Costumes to sew!
And a whole New Year to go!

On the seventh month of this year
In operas Lauren sang
Carmen was the fun-est
Jessica wants presents
SING DONNIE SING!
Kyle’s getting cold
Kevin can’t run
Lauren’s running late
And a new year, isn’t it great!

On the eighth month of this year
Our big tomatoes grew
Yum! Homemade spaghetti
Lauren sings sopran-ee
Jessica’s big party
DONNIE AND ME!
Kyle kicks the ball
Kevin has a brace
Lauren must rehearse
A new year (crap, what’s the next verse?)

On the ninth month of this year
Bear Lake on Labor Day!
Plus our city party
Produce from our garden
Singing songs from Carmen
Jess plays her new CDs
YES! NOW DONNIE!
Kyle guards the goal
Kevin’s ankle roll
I’m in one more play
And the New Year comes our way!

On the tenth month of this year
Kyle got Baptized
A holiday of villains
At the Lake we’re chillin’
2nd grade was started
Lauren sings her heart out
Presents for our Jessie
Let’s MENTION DONNIE!
Kyle’s kind of done
The other team won
I’m a good fairy
And it’s only January!

On the eleventh month of this year
To CA we did go
Thanksgiving with my siblings
Kyle’s CTR ring
Climbing at the park and
Eating from our garden
Lauren’s shows are playing
SING DONNIE SING!
Kyle kicked the ball
Kevin hit the wall
Lauren did a play
Nothing happened in January

On the twelfth month of this year
Kevin got his big MS!!
Yay! He graduated
Turkey’s over-rated
Kyle now is baptized
Get the kids sanitized
Please no more tomatoes!
Lauren’s singing her notes
Jessica has plenty
CONCERT WITH DONNIE!
Kyle played with friends
Kevin’s on the mend
Lauren sure had fun
And a Happy New Year to everyone!

WHEW! Love you all and please stay in touch!

Veteran's Day

2009-11-13T14:42:00.001-08:00

This Veteran's Day was a special day for us. Kyle's 2nd grade class did a wonderful program honoring veterans and this special country we live in. Kyle got to enjoy his status as a cubscout by leading the flag ceremony. He had it all memorized, spoke very clearly, and did a great job. We were so proud! The class sang many songs about this country, they had a Lt. Colonel come and give a small talk, and did a "photo montage" on the military service of our country set to music. It was very moving. I ended the night by singing with the American Festival Chorus at a tribute to the Veterans which was VERY well attended. I love patriotic music. GOD BLESS AMERICA!

2009-11-11T10:01:00.000-08:00

Kyle got baptized on October 31, 2009. Yes, on his birthday! It was a small gathering, of us, some of his grandparents, a family friend and his primary class. The Bishop gave a wonderful talk, and it was a very special day. Not to mention hectic. The baptism in the morning, his birthday party that afternoon, and trick or treating that night. WHEW!

Fall is here!

2009-10-21T11:36:00.001-07:00

Okay, so I'm sure that you have all discovered fall all on your own, but it seemed almost overnight the tree in our front yard turned yellow, now orange. We are all set for the Halloween season, as you can see, and The Shanley Spider Shack is alive and well! Aside from the usual cough that goes around through the schools, we are rather healthy. We are just looking forward to what the end of the month holds for us....
1) Seeing the Hardy's from Washington - They are coming down to baptize Awsumb and we can't wait to see them!
2) Adult Halloween Parties!!! Yes that is plural, we have been invited to one and we are throwing one!
3) Kyle's Birthday - good thing we bought the presents so I can tune him out whenever he asks for something!
4) Kyle's Baptism - this will actually be ON his birthday, Oct. 31. This plus his party the same day will make for a very busy weekend!

Check in on this to see what happens and if we survive this spooky season with our sense of humor in tact! We will be posting all the wonderful events, plus the picks of our Halloween costumes! Stay Tuned!

Pumpkin Field Trip!

2009-10-08T21:35:00.000-07:00

Jessica's preschool class went on a field trip to a local farm. They were able to pick out their own pumpkins (I got one too!) and we had a good time playing. It was interesting to watch Jess because the two other kids we had in our car were boys. And you could tell that they were her friends. Patty (her teacher) says that Jess prefers to play jets with the boys, than dolls with the girls! Well, she's either going to be a tomboy or just like me because I remember my best friend from preschool... Charlie Nickerson. Yup, you guessed it, a boy! But she has an older brother so it's easy to understand her comfort level with boys vs. girls!

In other news, my mother went in for back surgery. This was to fix stuff from her last back surgery 2 1/2 yrs ago. We used to be the same height, but she couldn't stand up straight anymore and lost about 3-4 inches! So with going back into her back, they cleaned it up and fused many parts of her spine. From her neck all the way to the top of her tailbone was worked on in some capacity. She is doing well and should move to the rehab facitily here in Logan in the next week or two. Now I just have to make sure that my dad gets fed and he remembers to take his medication so he can watch over her when she is better!

Othwise it has been a busy week! We'll keep you updated with all of the Halloween/Birthday festivities for Kyle and us so check back in!

Apple Days 9/12/09

2009-09-18T14:05:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was Apple Days here in River Heights, UT. It's really a cute day, fun for the family. There was a kids bike race at 1:30, then a bike parade at 3:30 followed by the FULL SCALE parade at 4. Kyle had been at a sleepover the night before so he slept through participating in the kids things, but we got out to the street in time for the big parade. It was fun! A fire truck, the Mountain Crest Marching Band, floats, USU cheerleaders and "Big Blue", candy being thrown by everyone, the Hyrum City Royalty, Providence Royalty, Nibley Royalty... but wait.. where is the River Heights Royalty??!!! Oh yeah, they painted faces at the "fair" portion of the day so they didn't have to sit on a float in a formal and wave to people they didn't know! There was a lip sync contest and Kevin and I both thought that the kids who lip sync'd They Might Be Giants deserved to win. They were awesome! THe big attractions for our family though were the inflatable slide, which Jessica and I went down a few times, and the climbing wall. Kevin scaled it once... I swear the man is a spider! Kyle went up it at least 3 times. He did sooo good!! He was about 2 hand holds away from the top of the 2 story climbing tower. So after a day of playing and fun... we went home and hit the sack. Stay tuned for more news from the Shanley clan!

Labor Day - Bear Lake!

2009-09-07T21:07:00.000-07:00

So whenever there is a 3 day weekend, I wait for Kevin to say something that he wants to do since I spend all week figuring things out do to with the kids. And since he makes decisions all the time at work, he wants someone else to make the decision and waits for me to say what we are going to to. Thusly... we don't do anything since we are both waiting for the other to say what we are doing!

Today, we had breakfast at McDonald's as per Kevin's request. And then at about noon, as I was inside in the air conditioning, watching Kevin weed around the strawberries, after mowing the lawn, feeling guilty that I wasn't out helping him but not inclined to ... I hit upon an idea... Let's go to Bear Lake!

Aaaaaaand.....We're Back!

2009-08-29T18:44:00.000-07:00

After a short disruption to our regularly scheduled updates (okay so it was about 7 months!) we are back to show you all the wonderful highlights that our family goes through. To bring you up to date on stuff.. no i didn't lose any weight from boot camp. I'm going to try again as soon as jess starts Preschool in Sept. Around Easter we dog-sat Grandma & Grandpa's little dochaund "Shilo". She was very cute, but kept peeing on my carpet and solidified that fact that I DON"T WANT A DOG! Happily Kevin agreed with me! Sadly he didn't agree to buy me new carpet. A girl's gotta try!

Summertime brought an insane schedule on my part. The Utah Festival Opera Company asked if I'd be interested in being in the chorus for two of their operas. So of course I calmly replied "Hell yes!" and then concentrated on getting Kevin to agree with me! After two weeks of not mentioning it and letting it just stew in his brain, he decided that I needed to be in the operas and committed himself to a summer of being a part time, single father. Can I say how much I love him! So I got to be in Carmen and Cavalleria Rusticana/ I Pagliaci which has been one of the best experiences!

Then in the middle of July, Kevin's niece Emily came and stayed with us for a week, which we loved! During that time we went to see the Harry Potter movie, and she came to both of my operas... so in one week she saw a person die three nights in a row! Aren't we the greatest! Then we all went to Lagoon. It was the first time taking the kids and they had the best time! Kyle was big enough to go on all the rides and he loved it! Jessica was happy with the kiddie rides and had a great time. I considered it a great success in that no one got fried in the sun!

Now school has started for Kyle. He is in the 2nd grade and his favorite thing is recess (of course!) Jessica will start preschool in September with Miss Patty again, who is one of the BEST preschool teacher's around! She actually was Kyle's preschool teacher in Washington, moved here a year before we did, and now gets Jessica. Can we say that I love this woman! We have also been growing a little garden in the big garden plot left from the last owners. We planted peas- that only produced one serving of peas then died, and beans- that produced about two dinners worth. We are waiting on corn, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Kevin and I have never seen corn grow. Sure the stalks, but the whole process.. it's rather interesting and just facinates Kevin. Our tomatoes are coming into season right now, and it looks like I'll be making lots of marinara and homemade salsa! I'm also going to be figuring out how to pickle all the cucumbers because it looks as if I'm going to be swimming in those too.

Boot Camp Update

2009-01-19T10:42:00.001-08:00

Well not much has changed on my stats, but my endurance is better! I can actually make it all the way through without dying, and the next day I can still go up and down the stairs. I'm thinking that I'm going to have to step it up if I'm going to lose weight more effectively. So far Boot Camp is MWF. I think I need to do somthing T Th, so I'm going to check and see what other classes they have those days I can go to. Jessica is in Preschool those days from 9:30-11:30 so I have some time to myself. And knowing me I had better goto the gym instead of trying to do it at home. We ALL know that I will find other things to do at home! Like... oh cleaning the house (why would I want to do that?!) He he he!

It's ALIVE!

2009-01-17T21:43:00.001-08:00

So our computer has been acting very wonky lately. I've had to restore from our back up 3 times. Each time it locked up I'd get the same error message when scanning the disk of, "Invalid Node Structure". After some digging I found that this means the file structure is damaged, and if it keeps happening is a sign of a failing hard drive. So I broke down on Friday and bought a new internal hard drive. Of course our iMac doesn't have what's commonly considered as a "user serviceable" hard drive. But that didn't stop me. It was a little more involved than expected (see photo), but it's all back together and seems to be working better. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for the next few days. Whew!

New Year

2009-01-06T08:51:00.000-08:00

Okay, so Happy New Year! to all of you out there. I have started this year by enrolling in "Boot Camp" at our sports academy here. I gained 10 lbs this holiday season, and that just doesn't fly with me. So I'm going to log my progress over the blog so I have a personal record and you can email me saying "OMG Lauren! Get your but in gear!"

My Stats:
Height - 5'6"
Weight - 202 lbs.
Chest - 47"
Waist - 40"
Hips - 50"
L. Bicep - 12 1/2" (flexed)
R. Bicep - 13" (flexed)
Thighs - 25 1/2"

So I'm going to get this show on the road, wish me luck and I'll mark my progress in a week!

Merry Christmas from the Shanley's!

2008-12-11T22:09:00.000-08:00

It’s been a good year for us, and as you can see, we survived the snow in Logan. Now we are saying “Bring it on!” a little snow can’t stop us! We’ve had a great time being closer to the grand parents, and being able to see them more than once a year. We also had a great time killing a ¼ of our grass in the backyard this year, part of our on-going re-landscaping project. This next year I think I’m going to make Kevin put in a huge patio for me! He always needs a good project to keep him happy, and who am I to deny him?
We have realized that we are actually busy people, but you can always get a hold of us if you need us. Kevin is not only working full time as the Director of Online Education, but he has entered the Master’s Degree program here at USU. He plans on being done by next Christmas, next spring latest. He has been playing indoor soccer and is having a lot of fun with that. I have been teaching private voice and piano lessons. I have also become adjunct vocal faculty at USU, teaching students private lessons. I’m doing the mom thing and I love our kids, it’s pretty easy to find something to smile at every day with them. Kyle turned 7, and is in first grade. He likes school and is great at math, and reading. He loves to draw and it is fascinating the stories behind the pictures he makes! You can sit for 10 minutes to hear about 1 picture. He gets to draw one picture every day at school to go along with a sentence he writes above it. He loves to play with his friends and is just an all around happy kid. Jessica turned 3 this summer, and started preschool with Ms. Patty. She LOVES Ms. Patty, and her chickens. She chatters constantly and you really have to listen to keep up with what she is saying! She loves to play outside, or inside with her dollhouse and whatever game she can get you to play. She is the BEST at making a mess and we are constantly picking up after she has blown through a room.
We hope this past year was a good one for you, and that this coming one will be a treat! Have a happy holiday season and stay in touch! We love email and chat and always want to know what is going on in your life.

Top 5 favorite things this year…

Lauren’s Kevin’s
1. Teaching voice lessons at Utah State University 1. Promotion to Director of Online Education
2. Singing in the American Festival Chorus 2. Started playing indoor soccer
3. Potty training Jessica (okay this wasn’t a favorite, 3. Moved 9 yrs of woodchips into backyard
too messy, but no more diapers!) to re-landscape all that darn grass!
4. Going to Bryce Canyon 4. Went to scout camp
5. Can we say river rafting the Colorado River! 5. Started Master’s Degree

Kyle’s Jessica’s
1. Family reunion where he got to shoot a BB rifle! 1. Turning 3!
2. Trying Karate, Soccer, and T-ball 2. Starting preschool with Ms. Patty
3. Starting 1st grade 3. Playing with Kyle’s new toys
4. Playing Spore on the computer 4. Singing songs and playing mom’s piano
5. Going fishing 5. Playing at the park

Veterans Day

2008-11-10T15:28:00.002-08:00

I had never heard this poem until I sang it in my church chorus. It touched me in a way that I haven't felt in a long time. Please remember our fallen warriors this month and take up their torch so that we may see the options in our future.

In Flanders fields, the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up your quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Dr. John McCrae

Veteran

2008-11-10T15:28:00.001-08:00

Halloween!... and WOW Kyle's 7!!

2008-11-02T14:54:00.001-08:00

So this Halloween was definately a test on how enginutive I could be! For over a month Kyle had said "I'm going to be Indiana Jones" when asked what he wanted to be for Halloween. Then about 1 week before the day he changes his tune to "I'm going to be IRON MAN!!". Crap. You can't FIND an Iron Man costume 1 week before halloween, let alone in Logan! So I did what I could, I bought a red power ranger costume, spray painted the mask to be like Iron Man, and put some gold onto his suit. To complete the ensemble we got a stick on LED light for his chest and two glow disks that I glued onto red gloves to make those glow. Jessica was pretty easy, and she actually liked the dress!! She knows the superman symbol thanks to Kevin and it was a "girly" costume but she could still fight like her bro. I sewed her costume myself in one day and WHEW! Two down... adults to go! I know that most adults don't dress up for Halloween, but this is me we are talking about. I dressed as a gypsy and called myself Madame Zorba, told a few fortunes, and passed out candy. Kevin was a Hawaiian tourist for work, but changed into a pilot when he got home. His mom and her friend, Marty, came up for Halloween and stayed the night to be here for Kyle's birthday party. And speaking of which....

I HAD 9 KIDS FOR THE PARTY! I was whipped at the end. But it went well. We played hot potato, musical chairs, did a balloon relay, had pizza, decorated cupcakes and just played until mom's came. Everyone had fun! Kyle is now 7 and he likes 1st grade. He is into Lego's, Bionicles, Transformers, and his favorite present was a HUGE Nerf rifle that Kevin and I gave him. He also fot some great presents from his Grandmas and Papas. So the chaos is slowing down here, now I just need to get through my choir concerts and then... well it will be the holidays.

Fall

2008-10-24T15:12:00.000-07:00

So Fall was deciding whether or not to make an appearance in September, it did come in October. My birthday in September was fun with the unexpected surprise of Guitar Hero III for my present! I was very stoked! Although as you can see from the picture Kyle has played his fair share! He always asks me before he plays it though and I appreciate that. More will come at the end of the month with Halloween (our favorite holiday!) and Kyle's birthday, so check back now ya hear!

RAFTING BABY!!

2008-08-25T09:41:00.000-07:00

My parents came up and watched the kids for us from Saturday until Tuesday. On Sunday, Kevin and I went to Moab where we met up with an old friend of mine, Harold. We went rafting on Monday and WOW!!! What a blast! We went on a whole day trip. We met at the Westriver Adventure Company and they bused us out for 1 1/2 hrs. I haven't been on a school bus that long since high school marching band. We went down the Colorado River through Westwater canyon. We were in an oar boat, so we didn't have to paddle, just hang on and get wet! And that we did! The weather was great, the water fabulous, the company perfect, and we got back at 5 pm. Just in time for Harold to make dinner (and let me tell you that was just as good as the rafting! I didn't have to cook!) We played Rock Band at night and I had such a good time! We got home Tuesday night, I had an audition for a chorus on Wednesday, and Kyle started school on Thursday. It's been a busy week, but with so many changes coming up it has definately been interesting! Stay tuned for more adventures from the Shanley's =)

Just for fun!

2008-08-14T08:35:00.000-07:00

I saw this on the Lay's blog and I thought it was cute, so I have asked Kyle these questions and here is what he said...

1. What is something mom always says to you? What? (I'm going a little deaf!)
2. What makes mom happy? when you say "I love you"
3. What makes mom sad? I don't know.
4. How does mom make you laugh? when she says stuff that is funny
5. What was mom like as a child? Pretty (awwww!)
6. How old is your mom? 32!
7. How tall is your mom? I don't know!
8. What is her favorite thing to do? play a board game with me
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? uh...I don't know!
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? Money. (so much for American Idol!)
11. What is your mom really good at? gardening, weeding our stuff.
12. What is your mom not very good at? beating me at checkers!
13. What does your mom do for her job? she doesn't have one

There were 20 questions but Kyle couldn't be bothered to answer all of them, especially not with one of his friends calling to see if he can play! Sigh, second fiddle again!

the rest of the story...of July

2008-07-29T16:14:00.000-07:00

So Kevin left on Sun-July 13 for a 5 day business trip to Las Vegas. I stayed home with the kids (again...remember scout camp?) and had a good time going to a friend's BBQ and having my parents visit for a day. We didn't think that we would be driving anywhere for the rest of the month, but there was a family reunion that we were invited to (and then guilted into) down in Escalante. That's in Southern Utah by Bryce Canyon. So we left Thursday (July 24) , camped until Saturday, and did the family thing. Kyle had a blast when a cousin let him shoot with a bebe rifle. The first time it bucked back at him and the scope hit him just above the eye, cutting it and bleeding like a river. He calmed down and tried again. He was a pretty good shot! Kevin & his dad fished, and I had a fun time when the cousins let me ride their ATV for a bit. Ah... freedom! Saturday morning was a small parade in Escalante with a tour of some family sites and the cemetary. Then went to Bryce Canyon and were promptly DRENCHED! It cleared up after dinner so we stayed in a motel, saw the canyon again Sunday morning and went home. We picked up Kevin's niece Emily on the way back so she is staying with us a few days which provides some much needed entertainment in our house! It was a fun family vacation and since we haven't had one in 2 years it was time. I can't wait for next month though... Kevin and I are going RIVER RAFTING!!! So tune in.. same super-time, same super-channel for the further adventures of The Super Shanley's! YEA!!!!!

July...so far

2008-07-11T09:51:00.001-07:00

So it has been a quiet month so far. The 4th of July was fun! My parents came up for the weekend, and we went to the fireworks program at Aggie Stadium. That was the BEST fireworks show I have seen in a long time! We weren't IN the stadium, they had a whole music program and everything, but we were on the lawn outside and got to see it all. Maybe next year we'll go inside. Let's see... in other news Jessica has now had her first bee sting. She handled it very well, and was only whimpering. But we were at Smith's Marketplace (Fred Meyer) in the garden section when she got stung, luckily there was a drink dispenser w/ ice inside by the bakery so I could ice it down. And now I know that she isn't allergic to bees! Other wise we have just been playing at the park and with friends. Now if someone could just turn the heat down it would be great!

Jessica's 3rd Birthday

2008-06-23T15:24:00.001-07:00

So Jessica has OFFICIALLY turned 3! On her birthday (June 20) which was a Friday, we set up the kiddie pool, the slip and slide, and broke out water toys. Some of the neighborhood kids came over (most were Kyle's friends) and they all played for about 3 hours outside. I couldn't just sit and watch, so instead of getting wet, I sat and weeded part of the yard. Not very exciting, but it was a hoot to watch the kids! Jess got some beginner rollerskates, a trunk of dress up clothes, and a playdough set. Then we went down to SLC on Saturday to be pampered by the family! Grma & Grmpa Morris took us to Chuck E Cheese's for dinner (then we went to Fuddrucker's for the adults!), and Sunday we played at Liberty park for 4 hours with the Shanley's. We had a great picnic, fun at the playground, and I was the only one who got really burned. Ouch my shoulders!

It's WARM!!!

2008-06-15T18:44:00.001-07:00

After a freezing week it finally got warm! This has truly been the weirdest week for weather. Kevin was at Scout Camp up at Bear Lake all week, and while we just had hard rain, they had snow...sleet...rain and everything inbetween. Some boys even got 2" of water in their tent one night and one of the leaders drove to Montpilliard, ID (which is close to where they were) to put their sleeping bags in a dryer. Kevin handled the rain just fine, but he wasn't counting on the cold. He said that his feet were cold all week, even though he was wearing wool socks.

Well, we are happy that he is home, none the worse for wear! And now that it is warm, we are playing in the water and getting nice and tan! or in Kevin's case... freckled! He he he Love you hon!

My Awsome Man!!

2008-05-29T17:18:00.001-07:00

Kyle just got his new belt for Karate! He had to show the things he had learned in class. His blocks, kicks, defensive moves... and he was AWESOME!!! I didn't know that he did all the different things in his class. He knew his student oath by heart and could kick 4 times with 1 foot before having to put it down! I was impressed! Jessica was funny to watch through it all, because every time Kyle punched, or kicked, she was doing it on my lap with them and yelling "AIIIYAAA" She even gave him a big hug at the end for doing such a good job! His Karate is now over, and so is soccer and school. Now for T-BALL!! They are a little obsessive about their sports here! But Kyle wants to try, so I'll let him try. If you have any questions give us a call, I usually answer!

Wedding Day

2008-05-09T14:19:00.000-07:00

May is an interesting month so far. It snowed on the 1st, goes between 70 degrees and 38 degrees depending on the day, and while we want to do yard work, it's always a question what the weather will be like. We are going down to SLC almost every week (sometimes twice a week) for weddings, concerts, lunch and while Kevin grouses about the cost of gas... well it has to be done! While we were in SLC on the 7th for the wedding, we caught a break in the weather (and the pictures!) to go up on top of the Conference Center downtown. It was great to see family, and I have to say that if I'm ever feeling a little short... all I need is to get together with the Shanley clan because I'm the tallest female! No, really... our cousins are great and it was an awesome ceremony. It was so nice to see everyone again and it really made my heart swell to see the groom and his bride so happy.

Spring approaches and soccer begins

2008-04-21T07:30:00.000-07:00

Despite the 2 days of snow this past week in addition to the 20 degree temperature this morning, supposedly spring is coming to UT. As evidence the soccer season began this past week and Kyle was ready for it. Decked out in his new shiny uniform with his cleets, his team won their first game 8 to 6. Kyle scored the first goal, kicked-off and did a great job covering the goal. In his league they don't worry about positions, but Kyle was frustrated with the "ball-bunch" and made sure that he got into position.
With the approach of Spring we spent the remainder of the day working in the yard. We're attempting to replace about 1/3 of our lawn with wood chips and playground area. This involves killing a lot of grass and moving some sprinkler heads. I'm tired just thinking about it. Can't I go fishing instead?

Ready for spring

2008-04-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

We're not being very good about updating our blog. Lauren started doing it, so I left it alone. I guess we need to make it a family effort.
We thought that spring was coming. It started to warm up and all the snow melted. We even started planning to do yard work. Then surprise! Monday morning we had snow again. Now it's cold and threatening more snow. Sigh...
In a way it's a good thing. We have so many plans for our yard this year. We even met with a landscaper to make a plan. Of course that always costs more $$ than we have. We'll have to attack it in stages. The first stage is to kill a bunch of the grass. It makes me sad to think that I'm killing something natural, but we're replacing it with native trees and bushes, so I guess it balances out.
For those interested, I've started to twitter. (http://twitter.com// ) This is often refferred to as micro-blogging. I'm doing it mostly for work, but it's a little addicting. If you join, let me know so I can follow you.
- Kevin

Valentine's Day

2008-02-16T11:10:00.000-08:00

So I think that we are getting a hang of the snow! The snow banks on the side of the driveway make a nice sled run and Kyle figured out this year how to make a snowball...so WATCH OUT! Jessica doesn't like her snow pants, but realizes that she is going to get cold and wet if she doesn't let me layer her up. I was having a fun time helping her and Kyle go down the sled run, whe Jess tried to climb back up the side. She didn't have on snow stuff and was having a hard time managing the snow so I stepped on top of the snow bank and helped her up. Well...the snow wasn't packed as much as I thought and my right leg sunk into the snow. And I mean COMPLETELY sunk, all the way up to my hip!

Games

2008-02-15T10:57:00.002-08:00

As you know, we love to play games. And with all of this lovely winter weather we have resurrected one that Kevin used to play called Clay-o-rama. Cheesy name, but fun. You build your monster, have missles to "shoot" and move around, stomp eachother and just have fun! There are rules, but I won't tell them...you will just have to come over and play it! And since Kevin lost, Kyle and Jess ganged up on him!

You envy us, don't you!

2008-02-06T15:53:00.000-08:00

Luckily this was not taken at our house. This photo is from the parking lot at USU. The snow banks at our house are up to my chest though, and as I was walking along the sidewalk taking Kyle to school today, I couldn't see my neighbor shoveling her driveway until we got to her driveway because the snow banks were so tall! We have a small sled run in our front yard, I had a blast making it! You have to test run it before the kids can go down...right?! I have a concession to make when it comes to snow - While you don't have to shovel rain, you can play in the snow - Some might not agree saying that you can play in the rain, but let me just say that intentionally getting wet for 20-30 minutes in the winter rain is not only cold and not very fun...it's just stupid!

!!! Happy New Year !!!

2008-01-02T21:37:00.000-08:00

Because so much in our lives are simultaneously joyful and sad, pleasant and painful, hilarious and humbling, I give you my personal...

~ Top 10 Best/Worst of 2007 ~
1. Pacemaker replacement surgery
2. Moving to Logan
3. Kevin turned 35!
4. Kyle started school
5. Snow
6. Getting together with friends who have known us longer than we have known eachother
7. Being closer to family
8. Getting my Steinway grand piano
9. Moving to Logan

And the number 10 Best/Worst of 2007.....10. That the year 2007 is over!

~Merry Christmas~

2008-01-02T21:27:00.001-08:00

We had a wonderful white Christmas, presents under the tree, and Santa made an appearance without the aid of a chimney. (Kyle was worried about this!) After a great Christmas Eve where we made cookies for Santa and played the night away, we had a fun morning ripping open presents! Jessica got a doll house and even though she opened the presents given to her, she only had eyes for her doll house. We went down to SLC to visit all the grandparents and cousins and stayed for two nights to avoid driving home in a snow storm. The biggest surprise was the gift from Granny Anne...a Wii !!! OMG! This has truly been a FABULOUS Christmas!

Snow Day

2007-12-03T12:13:00.001-08:00

So we actually got some real snow, okay well about 4-6". All I can say is I was happy that I had bought a snow shovel about 2 days before it snowed, and the previous owners had left 1/2 a bag of salt so our steps weren't icy. Jessica just loved it! Kyle wants to play in the snow every day. We will see how long that lasts! But since we don't have any snow pants, Kyle changed his clothes 3 times one day because he kept getting wet. Hmmmm, sounds like my mother... (or me on Sunday morning!) He he he!

November

2007-11-30T12:52:00.000-08:00

I realized that this month just blew past! We had a fabulous fall, the colors have been beautiful and the kids have enjoyed it. Halloween was a blast, and Thanksgiving was small and quiet, but the food and family couldn't have been better! In my mind we have officially started winter. We got our first snow fall, of about 1" that melted by the end of the day. Quite reminiscent of Washington snow, except that they didn't cancel school!

Pests, Presents, Police...Oh MY!

2007-10-30T10:33:00.000-07:00

K...so this has been a really weird week.
Pests - We inherited the previous owners' cat. I found their phone number and called them while Kevin tried to get every dog he saw to come and eat it. They said they wanted it back so I decided not to call the humane society. After a week and a half of this cat trying DESPERATELY to come in the house we met the owner's in SLC when we went to help my parents move, and transfered it to them. Much to our relief since I discovered that Kyle is allergic to cats. Kevin just hates them.

Presents - My parents moved in with my brother so I got my inheritance of her Steinway grand piano!!!! She got my upright. But getting them moved in and stuff transfered has been quite the ordeal. And since I was thinking so much about that...Kyle's party was kind of shuffled to the back of my mind. But we had it Monday the 29th. It went well, but the last 30-45 mins I was out of things for them to do. So I was like "go play!" at least it was warm outside so they could just be out. Kyle was SOOOO stoked about opening his presents!

Police - So as we are in SLC transfering the cat and helping my parents, we stay the night at Kevin's parents. His dad and stepmom are out of town camping. The next morning his step-sister drops by, chats for a second and then leaves. She comes back in to warn us that the neighbor has called the police (because no one should be there). It didn't help that we had a small U-Haul trailer hooked to the truck! So the cops come and check things out, want to call Kevin's dad, but since he is camping we don't know if you could even reach him. Although he probably would have said "Kevin who?" just to be funny.

Pumpkin Walk

2007-10-22T16:23:00.000-07:00

So today I went as a chaperone on my first school field trip. We went to the "Pumpkin Walk". It was cute, a ton of displays using pumpkins, some moved! Jessica freaked out most of the time, she didn't like riding on the school bus. But she calmed down when I let her hold the camera....carefully. Otherwise I was basically holding her for over an hour. (Build those muscles!!) But the kids stuck with me and we even got a cookie. Pepperidge Farm cookie! MMmmmmm Coookie!

HUH??

2007-10-04T12:52:00.000-07:00

Okay, can you tell me what is wrong with this picture?! There is no breeze, and no one was around. I was inside making the kids lunch when I looked out the back and saw this. Weird.

Kyle did ten of his chores and got a "Date Night" with the parent of his choice. But he decided that we should go the the military airplane museum in Ogden. And he wanted the whole family to go. He had a good time, even though it was raining. Kevin thought that we would be able to climb into a few of the airplanes, but sadly it was not to be! The do not allow that anymore (if the did) but it was still a fun day. In other news I think that I got a picture of Jessica, well in "Natural Jess" mode.

Utahn' (Lauren)

2007-09-25T09:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it's official...I'm am now a Utahn'. I now have my Utah drivers licence! That was an interesting experience to say the least. You have to have two forms of ID (no biggie) and two forms of proof of residency. That was a little more tricky because not all of the utilities have my name on them. I had to go back TWICE to get it. Then I had to take a 25 question open book test. WHAT?! I don't see the point in that. In Washington you took a test on the computer and if you failed you could take it again, but no book, and some of the questions were worded a little funny, so yes...I failed the Washington one the first time, by one question. But the other thing about the Utah licence that I thought strange was they asked if I had had a previous licence in Utah, which I had, and they just pulled up my old licence number and gave it back to me. Makes sense, I just didn't expect it. The number is a lot shorter than my Washington one I'll tell you that!

So I'm settled, everything has been unpacked and put away for a few weeks, now we are just shuffling things around. I really like our neighbors and I like the house, but I just feel like I'm still playing catch-up sometimes. Ah, the joy of moving! So don't forget to email or call us, because we still love to hear from everyone!

Kyle's first day

2007-09-09T21:34:00.000-07:00

Everyone tells me how fast kids grow up and here's proof. Last Friday was Kyle's first day of Kindergarden. He was very excited. In fact I don't think he's ever walked so fast. So far, after a week, he still likes school. It makes me wonder how long that will last. Luckily he has a good friend in his class, so that helps.

From fires to rainbows

2007-08-12T19:17:00.000-07:00

After a lazy Sunday afternoon of lounging about, I decided I need some air. I was surprised when I stepped onto our porch and discovered that it had been raining. Even more surprising was the stunning double rainbow towering over our mountain view. Not wanting to enjoy the view alone, I attempted to return inside to gather the family. I had locked myself out. Ringing the doorbell was fruitless, since I knew everyone was in the basement. We don't have the code to the garage door yet, so I was left with taking a quick dash around the back yard to the basement door. Kyle was nice enough to let me in, then we all returned to the porch. We spent time watching lightning and counting the seconds until the thunder. After a particularly close and loud thunderclap, Kyle quickly retreated back to the basement and the comfort of his bean bag chair. Jessica just clung to Lauren with with knuckles.

I wonder what natural phenomenon we'll encounter next week.

FIRE!

2007-08-02T10:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon, Kyle came running upstairs claiming the TV just shut off. I thought he was crazy, so I sent him to get the mail. When he came back he was saying that he saw fire outside. Again, being the doubtful parent I went to check. Sure enough the mountain by our house was a blaze. It started out as 4 fires but soon merged into 2. Luckily the wind was pushing the fire uphill away from our sub division. Apparently the wind had knocked down some power lines starting the fire and causing a blackout for about 8,000 residents, us included. All the neighbors had come out and were watching together so we were able to meet them all. We had to cook dinner on our camp stove and dig through our boxes for candles. Things are relatively back to normal now.

The picture is from our porch, so you can see how close we were!

Time to unpack

2007-08-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

It is done! After two weeks of packing, loading & driving we've finally moved to UT. We got the keys to our new house on Friday, but we didn't have any furniture until Tues. We thought it would be fun (and cheap) if we camped out in the basement. We had sleeping bags and air matresses, but by the 2nd night we were ready for our beds. We love our new house, although it's taking some time to figure out where we want to put everything. Our bedroom is smaller, so we have to find a place for an extra night stand, and we don't have a good spot for our antique mirror or rocking chair. We're also considering getting new appliances for the place. We should have phone, tv and internet connection today. We're feeling very disconnected from the world. Luckily I can get online at work!

No more injuries

2007-07-10T22:54:00.000-07:00

That's the mantra at our house lately. After all, my niece has broken her foot, I had a toe nail ripped off, jessica fell off a chair and bruised her arm, Kyle scraped his finger. Lauren better watch out. So far she's the only one not injured....yet.
We're quickly approaching our move date. We hope to do most of the packing next week. Does anyone want to come pack my garage for me? We'll be getting rid of a bunch of stuff, couch, tv, entertainment center, receipts from 10 years ago. Sometimes moving is a good thing when it helps motivate you to clean house.

4th of July

2007-07-10T22:48:00.001-07:00

Did you know it's illegal to light fireworks in Everett city limits? I didn't. My neighbors didn't know either. So we were a bit suprised when the first cop showed up in our cul-de-sac and gave us a warning. We almost stopped too. But we had too many fireworks left unlit and it seemed like we were in a war zone. All we could do was fight back. At least until the second cop showed up. Luckily we got a warning again. This time we took it all a bit more seriously and looked for a place nearby that was legal (i.e. outside of the city limits). If only we didn't choose private property, the third cop wouldn't have stopped. After 3 strikes we decided we were done and headed home. Unfortunately I was left with about $50 worth of explosives left, which I can't move and certainly can't light in UT. I guess I'll give them to my neighbor.
The odd part for me was considering how in our cul-de-sac we had hoses, water buckets, and were lighting them in the middle of the street. To be legal we would have had to gone out to a field with no running water and dry grass. Now, doesn't that seems a little backward?

Our New House

2007-07-02T23:01:00.000-07:00

It took some searching but we finally found a house in Logan and now we're ready to move. See the photos. We spent two days looking and saw nearly 20 houses. We eventually narrowed it down to two. We decided on this one because of the location. It's close to a school, there are kids Kyle's age nearby and it's on a cul-de-sac. We close on the 27th, which is the same day we close on the house we are selling in Everett. It looks like we have everything scheduled to go straight from one house to the next. Now we just need to pack!

The blog's behind...sigh!

2007-06-19T22:35:00.000-07:00

Oh my, it's been so long, so much has happened. I'm not sure where to start.

Well, for starters, we're moving. Yep, after a mere 5 years in Washington and the previous 6 years in California, we're finally returning to Utah. If you listen carefully you can hear the grandparents crying for joy! Now we will only be 100 miles away, which is totally reasonable for holiday's, birthdays and other family events. I'll be working at Utah State University as an Instructional Designer starting on Aug. 1.

Of course moving for a new jobs means selling our house and finding a new one. Luckily we had an offer on our house within a week of listing it. We're now under contract and are scheduled to be out sometime before July 27. We'll be spending next week looking for a house in UT. Wish us luck!

With the move pending, we're scrambling to visit with friends and get some summer recreation in. This past weekend we went camping at Fort Casey with our friend Ken and Awsumb Hardy. We all enjoyed hiking about the old fort, climgin on things and looking in caves. It was really fun, but a little sad. Who knows when we'll go camping together again. Check out the photos.

With so many friends who have asked to see us before we go, we're planning an open house/packing party for sometime in July. We'll keep you posted.

May 2007

2007-05-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

Kevin's Birthday!!! He is now 35. One of the guys we go to church with just turned 35 two weeks before Kevin, he was telling us how he was freaking out about how much older he is getting, and things that he hasn't done...blah blah blah. Yes, Kevin had a mental list of things he wanted to do by the age of 30, then 35, and while he has done most of them...there are a couple that are being pushed, yes, to 40. But he also realized that he has a lot of things that other guys his age aren't lucky to have. Which of course just gave me tons of warm fuzzies! His birthday was fun, we had a few friends over, barbecued some burgers and I made him a Super Shanley cake. Kevin blew the candles out in one mightly blow! (thus getting some wax on the frosting) and then Jessica decided to help us out by putting back the candles I had just taken out to cut the cake. What a month!

Spring activities

2007-05-09T21:29:00.000-07:00

As Spring moves closer to summer, we are finding ourselves more time to play. We've taken time to go swimming at the local indoor pools and even try a little fishing. The swimming has been mostly successful. Both kids love to play in the water and they seem to float well. We just have to be sure and go to the pool with the shallow area.

Fishing has been a little more challenging. Not only have I realized that I haven't fished from the shore in years, but I've never really been responsible for tying the hooks and preparing the line. I think I'm getting the knots down, but I really have no idea what lures to use or even which bait is best. I guess it will be trial and error. Kyle has been excited to go fishing but loses interest after the first cast. He expects to catch a fish immediately. I'm hoping to do more fishing in the near future, maybe I'll even get some fishing toys for my upcomming b-day.

Super Tuesday

2007-04-10T22:04:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a day! Not only did I get a lot done at work, but upon coming home I was able to run a mile on the treadmill, play with Kyle and work on a long overdue project.
The highlight for me was watching Kyle ride his bike. He's been afraid of it since it showed up on Christmas. I don't know what happened today, but he hoped on and was riding around. He's still a little wobbly and nervous about going fast, but he'll get the hang of it. We set up cones in the driveway and he was having fun riding around them. I'm looking forward to some summer bike rides!

Anniversary

2007-04-10T22:01:00.000-07:00

Lauren and I celebrated our anniversary on Friday. This year Lauren took on all of the planning, all I had to do was take the day off and follow directions. Luckily her plans were simple to follow. To start the day off we went to breakfast at the local iHop, followed by an early showing of Meet the Robinsons. In the afternoon we picked up the babysitter and went out to exchange our anniversary gifts. For dinner we had a nice dinner of Fondu at the Melting Pot. All in all a good day!

The crazy kids

2007-04-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

There has been nothing of significant interest to report this week. Spring tried to arrive so I mowed the lawn and weeded the flower beds in front. The kids have been happy to play outside a little more. We've contemplated a garage sale to get rid of the extra stuff in the garage and misc. forgotten toys. I think we need to wait a few more weeks for warmer weather.
Of course, there's always new photo's to share:

Kyle insisted that I take a picture of his air guitar routine.

This is what dessert time has turned into!

What a week!

2007-03-19T22:39:00.000-07:00

Whew! What a week. Supposedly I was on vacation, but it didn't feel like one.
For starters both kids got sick. They have fevers, vomiting, the works. It didn't last long, but it sure made for one disgusting night and then some mellow children for a few days.

Then Lauren had her pacemaker replaced on Tuesday. We've been anticipating this event for a few years now, and I must say it was a little anti-climactic. We spend most of the day in the hospital. The actual surgery only took about an hour, the rest of the time was spent in sitting in the room while they monitored her before and after. I wanted to get a picture of her with all the wires hooked up to her chest, but she didn't like the idea. It turn's out that the surgery is pretty minor. Lauren was awake the whole time discussing Jazz musicians with the doctors while they did the work. She was in good spirits and has recovered quickly, just some bruising and soreness.

My Mom flew up from UT to take care of us while Lauren was down. It was a quick visit, but we were glad she came. On Thurs. we took her and the kids to 3-2-1 Bounce where we were able to jump around a lot and beat each other up a bit. It was fun, but a little too much for the recently sick children.

To top it off, we decided we were allergic to Shilo (the dog). Both Kyle and I started getting some serious asthma. Once we housed him at a co-workers we both started doing better. It VERY sad not to have a dog anymore. It's also sad that we had to spend over $300 to learn that we were allergic. Sigh!

I suspect this next week will be a little more tame. (I hope).

2007-03-04T21:14:00.000-08:00

Spring is coming and Jessica's ready for race season!. The sun peeked out long enough to work in the yard and play outside. Can you believe that just 4 days ago we had 7 inches of snow? All that water left the grass too wet to play on. Fortunately, Jessica didn't waste anytime in putting on Kyle's helmet and jumping in his car. If only her feet could reach the pedals. Sigh.

Kyle and I spent most of the afternoon covering new found holes in our fence. Shilo (the dog) it turns out, is really good at finding his way out of the yard. So far he's done minimal digging. It should be more challenging now that all of the gaps are closed. Heheheh!

Snow Day

2007-03-01T14:45:00.000-08:00

Surprise! It snowed again. This time we were buried with 7+ inches. It's very odd for this area, but didn't break any records. It was enough to close schools in the area and I didn't have to go in to work until 1pm. It gave me plenty of time to scrape the deck & driveway.

The kids loved it. We spent a few hours this morning playing in the snow and building various snow thingies. I tried for a snow robot, but it didn't work too well.

It's all melting fast and they're predicting we'll be back to mid-fifties in a few days. Personally, I can't wait until Spring!

New family member

2007-03-01T14:37:00.000-08:00

It was inevtibale. I've been wanting to get a dog for a while now, actually ever since finishing the fence around the yard. Lauren was hesitant at first but she made a deal that once we didn't have a baby crawling on the floor she'd consider it. Jessica's been walking well for a month or two now so it was time.

On Sat. I took the kids to the local animal shelter. At first we were looking at a border collie mix named Freddy, but Kyle saw Shilo and wanted him instead. Shilo's a 3 yr. old Beagle who was left by his family because they were moving. Supposedly he was an outdoor only dog, but he seems to prefer indoors. We went back to the shelter on Sunday and had a chance to play with. Before long we were signing papers and BANG! we're dog owners.

We brought Shilo home on Tues. night. He's been adapting well, but doesn't like to be alone. We're trying to crate train him and keep him downstairs only. Nights have been tough, but I think eventually he'll adjust.

For starters

2007-02-28T16:40:00.000-08:00

I've finally been persuaded to start a blog. If nothing else, my wife (Lauren) can now participate in keeping it up to date :).