cub scouts

I have been cub master in my ward now for over a year.  It's a fun calling, though I don't really like being in charge of everything.  This picture was from a service project we did at camp cedarcrest.  I have a fairly good relationship with the guy who runs the place and we have helped out the last couple of years at their annual clean up day.  So far this year we have gone swimming, sold lots of cookbooks, gone to day camp, earned lots of different requirements, held pine wood derby and blue and gold banquet, helped with a food drive teamed up with another ward's cub program, lost and recruited several new leaders, and had a ton of fun.

It's been fun to get to know these boys and their families and have fun with them.  Cub scouts are great becasue they are usually really easy to please.  As long as you make treats and let them run around at the end, they have a great time. 

Dance recital

 Here are some pictures of Samantha's dance recital back in June.  It was really fun.  Most of the picture are of her ballet piece.  All of the classes did a ballet dance to a beatles song and then they all came together at the end for a really stunning first half finale.  The recital was pretty long, about 3 or 4 hours (no joke!).  Samantha had to leave school early so she could be on stage to rehearse early.  It was pretty crazy, but there were really some great pieces there.  She really loved dancing and the recital.  It was a pretty long weekend though. 

 Here are all of the younger dancers at the dress rehearsal 1st haf finale.  In the real show there were a few other classes that joined.

 Posing in the front yard.

The only picture I have of the dance "vogue/poker face"  It was their jazz dance and was really fun.  Can't believe I didn't take a close up of her.  It was my favorite outfit. 

Samantha with some of her fellow dancers.  She definately wants to do it again!

So  for our Stoker reunion this year we went to Maine!  It was beautiful (but soggy).  The whole family was together.  That was the first time we were all together since Maia was married.  It was pretty crazy.  Usually Danny is the one missing.  He just got back from Egypt and we were able to convince him to come visit for a whole week.  

We began our reunion in Acadia National Park in Maine.  Unfortuantely the day we left it was raining cats and dogs, and Joey had a mysterious rash all over his body.  Justin was pretty sure it was poison ivy, but just to be safe he took him to the doctor and we met up a little later.  After a 7 hour car ride we got out in Acadia and the rain was just pouring.  All of the food was in the car Justin was driving.  We hurriedly put up the tent and decided to go out to eat and get dry.  We went to the Lazy lobster and had pizza and lobster.  The owners were super nice and let us linger until the rain let up a bit.  Justin and Joey and mom met us there.  That night was soooo rainy.  Fortunately some friends had lent us some cots and we had the boys sleep in the van so no one was on the ground because when we woke up there were puddles all over the tent.  We had to take our bedding to the laundromat so we could use it the next day.

Besides the rain, Acadia was beautiful.  We had a great time hiking, rock climbing and looking at tidal pools. It's just too bad that it rained so much.  After Acadia, we went to Fort Knox which was about an hour away.  It is an unfinished army fort.  It was really quite extensive and impressive.  The kids spent a good afternoon wandering through the corridors there.  After that we went to Rockland and spent the morning swimming in the hotel pool and the afternoon exploring the museum of transportation which was pretty neat.  Friday night Justin and the kids came home to Connecticut along with Maia and Kendall and Brigham.   I stayed with mom, dad, Matt, Colleen and Danny and spent Saturday on the freedom trail.  It was great, and fun not to have to chase kids around all day.  Justin was a true gem and cooked and cleaned while we were gone.  It was a great trip with the family.

Me, Kate, Justin, Michelle, Samantha, Nathan, Joey and John searching tidal pools and climbing rocks.

Joey, John, Samantha, Nathan, Justin, Kate, Megan and Michelle in the background.  

father/son campout; mother/daughter weekend

So this weekend has been one of my favorites of the year.  Every year our stake has a father/son campout the Friday and Saturday before mother's day.  Although I think it's kind of a weird choice, it's always one of my favorite weekends.  The boys are always so excited to go camping, and the girls usually have a girls night with friends and then we go shopping on Saturday and have fun together.  As the kids get older and older, it's just more and more enjoyable.

Friday, Samantha was in the Bear path talent show as well, so that added a little more craziness to getting everyone out the door.  Justin met us at the show.  She was in the 5th act of the night so they watched her and then took off.  It was really a fun little talent show.  Samantha and 7 other girls in her class did a dance to the song "Keep your Head up".  Although there was quite a bit of drama in practicing for the dance, including one little girl who quit because she couldn't agree on what to wear or which moves to do with the other girls, Samantha always had a great attitude and I think really enjoyed herself.  One of the other moms bought roses for all of the girls and she felt really special.  After the show, we joined some friends for a girls night and enjoyed pizza and food and socializing.  After the party we came home, got in pjs and all fell asleep watching "We bought a zoo."  The next day we slept in, cleaned a little, took Sam to dance, went to lunch at the glenwood diner and used a coupon Samantha earned for being student of the month for ice cream at Kelly's kone connection.  Then we used a bunch of gift cards she had from her birthday to buy a few things at the mall.    It was great!  We all got some fun stuff.  We came home and crashed, so did the boys.  They had a great time too.  Of course they were dirty and smelly, but had fun.  The weather was absolutely perfect so they slept well and camped well.  The boys had a soccer game at 5:00.  Justin took them and they won 4-1.  After they got home and ate, Justin and I slipped out for some sushi at our favorite little japanese restaurant here.  It was nice. Came home and had to clean a little so I could face Sunday.  Then settled down with Justin to watch a Castle.  It was a perfect weekend.

Today I woke up to not 1 but 2 breakfasts in bed.  Samantha made me toast, cereal and milk, and homemade lemonade.   Joseph made an omelette, an orange (quartered) , a glass of milk and two small bites of cheesecake.  I have to admit to being spoiled (and I like it).  Justin and the boys made lunch, BBQ ribs, rice and veggies.  As I type, John is making cookies (that's my kind of dinner).  Kate has been making sure that I know I am her favorite by climbing on my face while I try to nap.  Justin would try to take her and distract her, but she would just scream.  She is quite the baby of the family and a little spoiled, but we love her anyway.

Michelle was pretty funny during sacrament as well.  All the kids went up to sing and she walked right up to the microphone.  All the kids were crowded around her, but she got right up to the podium and started singing right into the microphone.  Luckily the bishopric were onto her and turned off the microphone so she wasn't super loud, but she sure was having fun playing with it and ignoring my pleas for her to stop.  What a little turkey!

I'm really thankful for my family today.  They have been just really fun and I have loved being waited on.

Belated Christmas present

So, last Friday we had Samantha's birthday party and while frantically deep cleaning I pulled out the piano and found a Christmas present trapped between the piano and the wall.  It was a poem from John written at school and made into a refrigerator magnet.  I was really impressed with it so I thought I would share so that his grandma and grandpa can appreciate his genius as well as his mother. 

                                                          Christmas
                My family is Christmas, everyone jolly adn filled with hope (most of the time).
                My father is Santa, big, jolly, and usually brining good news.
                My mother is warm fire, giving warmth and light.
                My brother is the tree, thinking that he is the best and the strongest.
                My sweet sister is the milk and cookies, so sweet that she is sometimes too sweet.
                My younger brother is the colorful lights, easily put out.
                My younger sister is a stocking, with sweets filled to the top.
                My youngest sister is a present that brings surprise and enjoyment.
                And I am the star at the top of the tree, shining bright with creativity and filling my family
                with light.


               By:  John


Just grateful I got to be the fire and not the grinch as I was on a cleaning tirade when I found it ;)

February break

For our February break this year, we  went to Atlanta, Georgia to visit Justin's brothers Micheal and Ryan.  They both recently moved to Atlanta, Ryan in August and Micheal in February.  Mike and Sarah were very gracious in hosting us just weeks after their cross country move from Logan, UT.  It was great to see them and their sweet kids and of course their new home.  It's huge and I think they will come to love it.  It was a foreclosure so has quite a bit of work to do, but I think they will be able to make it a great home. While there we:  hiked stone mountain, went to the zoo, did some geocaching, went to the park, visited the capitol building and olympic park.  It was a lot of fun, and I know the kids especially enjoyed having a little one on one time with their cousins.    

 The kids at the zoo pretending to be just hatched  baby birds.

 We also had the opportunity to visit some of our friends from the Bronx who moved to Atlanta.  Here is Carissa holding Kate and Me holding Addison.  We met up with them for pizza at kid's planet.  The kids had a blast and the adults got to catch up on all that we've been up to.

On the way back we stopped at Justin's parents home and had a nice visit with them.  We were also able to see Tyson and Janae one last time before they move to Las Vegas.  We had some tasty Cafe rio with them. 

I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus. . . .