Idaho

Now I know with that intriguing post title you all just couldn't wait to read what I have to say about Idaho.  Well not much actually.  We visited our neighbor to the north to give us something to do during our kids' Spring Break.  It just so happened that JayDee was scheduled to teach a bunch of landscape design classes in Idaho that week so we decided to tag along.  It turned out to be anything but adventurous due to the very poor weather but the kids loved going from one hotel to another and rating the rooms and pools.  We don't do hotels very often so that was a super big treat for the kids. 

According to the ratings, the Best Western in Pocatello came in first.

If anyone out there finds themselves needing a place to stay in Pocatello, I would highly recommend this hotel.  It is not much to look at from the outside but the inside must have been redone fairly recently because it was really nice. 

P.S.  We spent less than $100 a night in all our hotels.  Bonus! 

 At every hotel without exception, the first thing the kids did when we checked in was to get into their swimming suits to head to the pool.  Isaac was quick and found jumping on the beds to be a good activity to pass the time until everyone was ready.

 The others soon joined him because Mom and Dad are "so slow!"

 They have a nice pool area but this pool only came in 2nd in the ratings.

After a bit of swimming and a lot of Disney channel I told the kids it was time for bed.  We had a suite in this hotel (which is why it scored so high in the ratings) so I told the kids that 2 of them would have to sleep on the couch.  They immediately started arguing over who would have to sleep on the couch until I told them the couch could turn into a bed.  What?! They had never heard or seen anything like it.  (Does that make me a bad mother?)  So now instead of fighting over who HAD to sleep there, they started fighting over who GOT to sleep there.  Ethan and Emma won.  They all thought that hide-a-bed was the coolest thing they had ever seen.
 
Before heading more North to Rexburg, we made sure to visit the world famous Idaho Potato Museum in Blackfoot.  Unfortunately, there wasn't much to see here.  It's a tiny museum and the best thing to see is outside. . .

 Next stop:  Super 8 in Rexburg
We knew what we were getting booking a Super 8.  We weren't looking for the best place just a nice, clean hotel to spend one night.  This hotel fit the bill but did little to impress the kids (especially after coming from a couch bed) so this one rated dead last, in both room and pool.  Not that my kids didn't spend a great amount of time in this pool, because they did, it was just the only thing to do when there is a snow storm outside.

After taking a self-guided walking tour of BYU Idaho, we said good-bye to Rexburg and headed South to Idaho Falls.  Last year about this time we drove through Idaho Falls and stopped to take in the Idaho Falls Temple and the famous falls but I didn't find the city very impressive.  So we decided to stay quite a distance from downtown, close to Ammon, and found that part of Idaho Falls to be great!


We stayed in a Holiday Inn Express.  This hotel was very impressive!  Also, just recently remodeled.  It would have come in first in the kid ratings had it been a suite.  It came in second by just a sliver.  If I was doing the ratings it would have won.  The pool got a first place rating however.  

Isaac loved the hot tubs.  He told me they were his favorites 

because they were just the right size.  He spent most of his time here.

After almost a week, Ethan was plum tuckered out by all that swimming.

Like I said, unadventurous, but if you like indoor swimming and the Disney channel then you would have loved this vacation.  We had fun.  It certainly beat staying home in the dreary weather and being fatherless all week.

Out With the Old and In With the New

It was time.  There were just too many little aches and pains to make me worry.  The road was feeling just a little too hard with every step.  We've been through a lot together. . . summer heat, winter snow and ice, rain, puddles, tendonitis, missing toenails and miles and miles of road - around 350 miles actually.  I hate saying goodbye to a good pair of running shoes but  it just had to be done.

You say goodbye. . .

And I say hello. . .

I changed brands, which scares me a little, but I have high hopes for these new runners.  They've got big shoes to fill.  Hopefully with these babies I will have less aches and pains, I'll be able to keep more of my toenails thanks to the longer toe box and have a bit more spring in my step.  We've got a long way to go together and I hope they're up for the challenge.

You Got Me

I've never been a gloriously evil prankster.  I am always in if someone starts the brainstorming or has a great plan but I just don't seem to come up with the really great pranks on my own.  So needless to say, my children have never really experienced April Fool's Day like they could with a more creative mother.  With that said, I would like to thank a few choice young men/young women in my ward who took it upon themselves to teach my children how April Fool's Day is done.  That's right. . . they got me!

It all started on Thursday night when I get a nice text from a laurel in my ward and one of my daughters on trek, telling me she saw me running that morning on her way to school.  As we bantered back and forth, she asked me if I had any pranks planned for April Fool's (we pranked our Bishop during trek together so we have a good pranking connection).   I told her I didn't and then asked her if she had any planned.  She said no.  Then she starts asking me if I'm going out Friday night. I tell her we don't have any plans and she gets upset with JayDee and tells me I should make him take me out, I deserve a night out.  Okay, I think, this is getting a little suspicious.  Anyway, we end our texting and I go to bed, then wake up having forgotten about the whole thing.  

By sheer coincidence, some friends of ours call us up on Friday and ask if we want to go out to dinner.  So we get our Bishop's daughter to babysit for us and we leave.   As soon as we came in the door from dinner (about an hour and half later), Ethan runs upstairs and says "They messed up the car!"  So I say, "Who messed up the car?"  "Laura and Kortnie and her brother. . . " I don't let him finish because I am pointing a finger at our babysitter Erin and saying "You! I should have known, Erin!"  Erin's role in pranking has always been "the informant."  She's the one giving the all clear so havoc can be made.  She immediately tells us she thinks it's a good time for her to leave and bolts out the door.  

I didn't get pictures of any of their dastardly deeds but here's a list of what we found around our house:
1.  Saran wrapped car (inside and out)
2.  Those little firework popping things under the tires.
3.  Saran wrapped running shoes.
4.  Saran wrapped towels in the linen closet.
5.  Sticky notes with cute notes written one them all over the house.
6.  Monogrammed toilet paper
7.  Short sheeted bed
8.  Feminine pads stuck to our pillows with "Good Night" written on them.
9.  Jello-ed car keys.  (They made jello, put our car keys in a couple ziploc bags then saran wrapped that and put it in the jello.  Good news, I found it before the jello set completely.)

They should have thought through their plan a little more because an even 10 would have been nice.  But then again, maybe they did make sure they had 10 pranks. . .

10.  JayDee was in on it! 

Awww...

JayDee's first day home after being gone a whole week. 
How sweet!  I love these two!

What a Kaleidoscope!

For the past six years, our elementary school puts on some kind of Arts Night.  Our principal is some kind of arts crazed nut and although I am a supporter of the arts in education I can't believe that someone year after year would spend the time to organize such events.  The theme every year is Kaleidoscope something, i.e. Kaleidoscope of Music, Kaleidoscope in Motion,  Kaleidoscope in Motion 2, etc.  This year it was Kaleidoscope of Dance.  And I've got to admit that I wasn't looking forward to it very much.  Do I love watching my kids perform? Absolutely.  Do I love the crowds of crazed and frantic parents? No.  Every year when this night comes around it just feels like one more thing I've got to put on the schedule instead of something I'm really looking forward to.  Maybe I feel that way because the last 2 years they have tried to do this arts night at the elementary school.  So you've got every child that goes to school there along with they're parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles and friends stuffed into the school at the same time trying to maneuver the halls, classrooms and gym to catch a glimpse of their little star.  That is my definition of a nightmare!  

This year the powers that be thought it all the way through and made arrangements for this year's Kaleidoscope to take place at Layton High.  Unfortunately the auditorium was being occupied by the high school's musical so our kids were performing in the gym.  This is an upgrade from the elementary school but I thought we were still in trouble because this little night is so well attended I just knew there was no way everyone was going to fit in the bleachers.  It was a tight squeeze and some parents lined the walls but everyone did get in the room.  Phew!

To make sure that I wasn't sitting in the very back row (like I usually find myself) I made sure to get there plenty early.  I also needed a good seat because JayDee was out of town, so I was doing this event on my own, and anyone that knows my 3 year old knows that crowds and Isaac are a recipe for disaster!  My planning paid off and I found a lovely front row seat right in the center.  It also helped that 3 of my 4 children were participating in the program and I only had to find seats for Isaac and myself.  As I settled in, knowing my children were present and accounted for in their respective meeting spots, I had time to change my attitude about the whole night.  I found myself happily anticipating the beginning of the show and seeing my children perform the dances they had been preparing and practicing for a month.  And it turned out to be such a fun night!  I found myself smiling the whole way through and thoroughly enjoying every performance.  

It helped that by sheer coincidence all 3 of my kids danced right in front of me!  That was amazing!  I didn't have to run to the other side of the gym or even get out of my seat. What are the odds of that?!  So without further ado, may I present the Gunnell children in their Kaleidoscope of Dance.

Waiting for the show to begin. . .

Kindergarteners were seated on the sideline.

Kindergarten presents the 

Dinosaur Boogie 

In honor of their Utah History studies 

the 4th grade performs a square dance.

Here is Ethan escorting his partner to their square.

On the way to the high school that night, Ethan told me that his dance was "really hard, we have to listen so close."  Now that I've seen it I concur with Ethan, it was the most complex dance of the night.  A close second (maybe tied) was the 6th grade Renaissance dance.

Watch out Village People. . .the 2nd grade does a mean Y.M.C.A.

And for the grand finale. . .how about the whole school doing a little Footloose.

Hannah sure does play a mean air guitar.

So for all my crabbing and nay-saying it turned out to be a great night!  A kaleidoscope indeed!

Clusters of Crocus

Spring is coming! I can feel it.

 Clusters of crocus. . .purple and gold.

Blankets of pansies. . .up from the cold.

This song runs through my head every time I see a little cluster of crocus or see the daffodils and tulips start to push through the earth.  I saw these little guys in my neighbors yard as I watched my children ride their bikes up and down the street the other day.  It always makes me happy to see these early signs of spring.  They even withstood the heavy snow that fell this week, hardy little guys.

Yesterday, the sun was calling my name and I couldn't refuse it.  My body was craving that vitamin D so I sat outside and just let my body drink it in.  Nothing lifts my spirits more than knowing that my mommy chores are done and I can just sit in the sun.   

Ahhh...I can't wait for this weather to stick around.

February Fun

Don't you just love how I frequently take a whole month's events and lump them into one post.  I'm glad you like it because here's another one.  :)

With all the frozen yogurt places going up, there's no wonder we've found a favorite. It's close by, it's colorful (which is great to chase away the blahs that winter can bring) and has all kinds of fun seating options which I think my kids like the most about it.  Yogotogo . . . we love you!

 These 3 love the "high seats."

We loved the warm weather that set in mid-month.  The sun was so good for me and I loved watching my kids play outside.  There is something wonderful about watching your children use their imaginations and hearing the delightful shrieks of friends playing.  

Two years ago, JayDee built a barricade to cover the access the to the top level of our playset to keep the myriad of small children in the neighborhood from getting up there and then falling down.  As you can see from the picture below it's not a very safe place for little ones.  Well during our little indian summer, Isaac decided that he was big enough and told Dad it was time for the "white wood" (the barricade was not stained to match the rest of the playset) to come down.  He told us he needed to get up there so he could spy.  How can you say no to that logic? Isaac immediately scaled to the top and began spying.

Watch out neighbors.  You may just want to keep your blinds shut.

Also during our warm weather stint, we got word from Grandpa Gunnell that Newt and Lady (his dogs) had a new litter of puppies.  Puppies! Well nothing calls for a visit to the farm like puppies.  We loaded up and headed up to Idaho to meet the new ones.  7 in all. . .4 girls and 3 boys. Can you tell by looking at these pups what their mom and dad look like?

 

Another plus about visiting the farm is the trip down into the fields to feed the cows.  My kids get a good lesson about life every time they see cows.  There always seems to be a new calf or two every time we visit and this trip was no exception.  But the lesson they got this time was a bit different than most, 2 new calves had been born the day before we came and Grandpa was excited to show the kids, unfortunately when we found them they had died.  Sad.  And apparently it has always been JayDee's job (when he was young and now when he's around) to take care of the dead animals. So off he went, with Hannah and Isaac in tow, to the "bone yard."  I had no idea until then that Grandpa had any sort of thing but he does.  Isaac was quite effected by it and I think Hannah had some nightmares about it later.  When they came back Isaac couldn't stop telling me about the dead babies and the cow fossils down by the river. Like I said, life lessons learned on the farm.

Next was Valentine's Day!!  I really like this holiday.  I love a day all about loving.  We didn't do anything terribly special but I had fun doing little things for my love bugs.

 The Saturday before Valentine's Day I secretly slipped away to break into JayDee's office and give it a little makeover.  I love surprises and wished I could have been in JayDee's office when he came in on Monday (Valentine's).  

Here's the view coming through the door.

 Head on

 Inside

 Half the candy I had for decorating purposes got left in the hiding spot under the bed at home. I was in a hurry to sneak out and didn't make sure I had everything. Next time I'm going to double check my loot.  So picture this with a ton more candy. . . like a candy explosion!

The best part about this little gift is that JayDee hates this kind of thing.  He gets so embarrassed.  But JayDee works with great people and they think it's great so I don't feel bad.  He called me when he got in and asked me how he was supposed to get any work done with his office in this condition.  I told him he'd figure it out.  He also told me he felt very loved and embarrassed at the same time.  Yay me!  Last time I did this, about 5 years ago, he only felt embarrassed so we're making progress.

Valentine's morning I got up and made my kids pink heart pancakes.  This is monumental. . .my kids usually get the choice between cold cereal, eggo waffles or an occasional egg on school days, so pancakes made them feel special.

Yeah I could use a little practice.  

And I promise the batter was very pink.

This is what my kiddos found when they got home from school.

Cupcakes, conversation hearts, chocolate, heart cups and Caffeine Free Mountain Dew.

My kids think they love Mountain Dew because that is Aunt Jana's favorite drink so I indulged them. 

It was Valentine's Day after all.

After Valentine's came the snow.  Knowing Utah as well as I do, I knew the nice weather would not last.  With the snow came the snowball fights.  JayDee can't contain himself.  The kids love it when they are caught unaware and are bombarded by flying snow.  Snowball fights have escalated around here, JayDee decided he needed to be able to throw more snow so out came the shovel.  Ethan and his friends loved it.  They'd scream and shriek and hide behind their sled shields but they didn't want it to stop.  Whenever JayDee came inside they would come in ask him to come back out and throw more snow.  Boys! :)

 

 

We closed out the month with a school project.   In 4th grade social studies they have been doing a unit on pioneers.  All the 4th graders had to do an at home pioneer project.  There was  a list of possible projects, one of which was bread making.  I immediately tried to talk Ethan into doing this one because it is a skill I want to master.  He wasn't sure and said he'd think about it.  Well glory be to procrastination! Thanks to his indecisiveness he ran out of time to do anything else, so bread making it was!  I was excited and nervous about this because my track record for making anything with yeast is awful.  I can never get yeast to work.  My brother actually coined a term for my ONE attempt at making rolls for Thanksgiving dinner, he called them Thanksgiving crackers.  (It's still talked about with fondness at every Thanksgiving dinner.) Yep, that about sums up my yeast skills.  Well I wasn't going to let it get the best of me. Together Ethan and I were going to make bread and it was going to be great!  (I firmly believe in positive affirmations.) 

Step 1:  Wheat

 Step 2: Grind the wheat

Step 3: 1 1/2 hours later. . .flour.  Yeah, not doing that again.

Step 4:  The infamous yeast.  Those positive affirmations worked. . .just look at those bubbles.

Step 5:  Greasing pans while the yeast "spounges."

  
Step 6: Mixing in the flour

Step 7: Kneading the dough

Step 8: Placing in the oven after dough rises.

  
Step 9:  Viola! Finished product

Success!!  It feels good to be a pioneer.  I'm just not sure I'll be able to move my arms tomorrow after all that wheat grinding.  No wonder pioneers were so tough.