Merry Christmas!

We have been truly blessed this year to have
such wonderful family and friends.
We are also grateful for our health, food to eat,
clothing to wear, employment,
and shelter over our heads.



We have had one crazy, busssssy holiday season!
It was nice to take a break on Christmas morning
to have our traditional reading
from the scriptures of Christ's birth.

Hard Working Dad and Very Involved Mom are happy to have happy kids and the opportunity to purchase our first home. If we look exhausted, it's because we are!
However, we are enjoying the time being spent on making our house a home.

Here is a look at some of our
other favorite gifts of the season.

Son #1 was happy to get a pay-as-you-go cellphone.
We were all excited to use another one his gifts last night.....
a popcorn popper.
We'll be using that a lot in the future at every movie night.

Son #2 is pictured with a family gift.
We all got a tennis racket to use on the tennis court
that is at a park down the street from our house.
Though this is NOT his favorite gift.

He was most excited to find that he received
a gift certificate to toonboom.com.
He's a storyteller and an artist.
We hope this website will help
him continue to enhance those talents.

Son #3 loves to use his imagination
to construct amazing objects.
He received a Lego Subscription
that will help him build all year long.

But his favorite gift was the family gift.... Wii Fit.
That is very appropriate since
he definitely has the most energy in the family!

The daughter was excited to get dolls.
Here she is playing with
the Momma Doll
(Belle from Beauty and the Beast)
and the Baby Doll
(Dorothy from Wizard of Oz).



WE HOPE EACH OF YOU HAVE HAD
A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS
AND A GREAT HOLIDAY SEASON!

No Pain, No Game

Camp Nauvoo

The Creek and Rafts (shown are Son #2 & Son #3)

The A Frame where our family slept.

The only clothes Daughter #1 would let us put on her. Quite the fashion statement?

The Lodge

Fun with Rafts & Cousin (shown is Son #1)

On October 16 & 17, our family had the opportunity to attend our final Ward Activity at Camp Nauvoo. Very-Involved Mom is currently the Ward Activity Chairperson. To help her advertise the event through our email tree, Hard-working Dad took a 5 minute break to write this poem.

The sun is shining
The air is cool
Bring your dinner
and socks made of wool.

The directions are easy
Call me if you must.
Many friends will be there,
and this year... no dust!

Breakfast will be provided,
you will get lunch too.
Make yourself available.
There will be lots to do.

So, remember your coat,
your groundcloth and tent.
Allow time for traffic.
Your map is now sent!

We have some wonderful memories of this beautiful place.
Our family will sure miss Camp Nauvoo.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs in 3D

In celebrating Son #2's birthday,
he, his brothers, dad and 6 friends went to see
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs in 3D.

Here is the Son #2's review of the movie:

"On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being A GREAT movie,
I would give it an 8.
It is very inaccurate from the book."

Great for the whole family, adults and children.

Fly on the Wall

(illustrated by Son #2)

Since Kindergarten, Son #2 and Son #3 have attended a Montessori charter school. We had hoped that the "Montessori" way of education would have allowed these children an opportunity to gain some independence and allow them to work at their own speed. Well... after 5 years... we felt that the school was not able to meet the needs of two sometimes lost boys.

So with a huge leap of faith, we knew we needed to move them. We thought about possibly homeschooling. That is always in the back of our minds as a viable option for our children. But this summer, we learned that a new charter school was opening just down the street from our home. The mission of the school and structure in the classrooms seemed to mesh with some of the hopes we had specifically for those two boys. We also knew that this would be drastically different from their former school.

We've seen them grow in these first 4 weeks, but we also see them struggling. Some days they just love the school and other days they just want to quit. The school strongly encourages parents to visit the classrooms anytime (be an observer only and then later make an appointment with the teacher if needed). Tonight, Son #3 was explaining his reasons for not liking this new school. Mom had remembered that Dad wanted to visit his classroom last week, but just could not make it. Mom asked, "Would it help if Dad or I came into your class to see how your class works?" Son #3, "Yeah... but... people that visit our classroom are insulted." Mom being concerned asks, "How are they insulted?" Son #3 replies, "We have to treat the people like they are 'flies on the wall'." Mom tries to explain what that term means even referring to a Hannah Montana song, but his sweet heart is just so distraught about his parents being called "flies". He just bowed his head, walked to his room and quietly shut the door. Later that evening, his spirits were a little brighter after doing a creative homework assignment.

* We love our little larvae. : )

Unplugging the TV

This week September 20-26 is National Screen/TV Turnoff Week

Can we do it?
I know it's going to be tough for this family.
The boys have an addiction to Cartoon Network, Disney Channel & Nickelodeon
Baby Girl is addicted to ANYTHING princess, VeggieTales & Nick Jr.
Mom is addicted to watching HGTV, Project Runway and The Biggest Loser (right now).
Dad usually chooses to watch (possible addiction although he denies it)
ESPN, BYUTV & Cash Cab.

Our hope for this week?
more family time, less contention, more creativity



Berenstain Bears and Too Much TV

Here's a great book that 2 of my boys just happen to read last week!
They must have read the calendar and
chose this book perhaps in anticipation for this week.

Dad & Mom is going to work on lessening their time on the computer as well.
Mom will probably only check emails at the end of the day.
She is going to miss Facebook and checking the many blogs that inspire her,
but hopes that she will get her own inspiration
this week as she betters her and her family's home life.

Our New Bedtime Read Aloud

We've gone through the tollbooth and have already arrived to "Expectations".
"...it is the place you must always go to before you get to where you're going.
Of course, some people never go beyond Expectations..."

Shared Creativity

Hello -

I'm a stranger to the blogging community. But, I'd like to take a moment to say hello to the citizens of the blogosphere. You have a very nice looking community here. The reason I'm here is to tell you about a podcast that both "very involved mom" (sometimes known as VIM), and I enjoy very much. I subscribed because of the creative themes discussed. I got VIM excited about it because... well, I guess because I liked it so much. Anyway, this has quickly become my favorite podcast and I never miss an episode. I try to listen at work, but I have to be careful because some of the stories are so wonderful, they always make me get choked up a bit. It's difficult to explain why you're all teary-eyed while doing business graphics.

I first heard this podcast being broadcast on the Mormon Channel. When I first heard about this I thought, "Do I want to listen to church music all day?" But it is so much more than that. There are some great programs on there. We listened to a very insightful and personal interview with L. Tom and Barbara Perry today. Bottom line is that VIM and I highly recommend this channel for all day listening enjoyment. Just be aware that you may need a tissue (specifically this episode).

Well, it's about time for me to be moving on. I can't stay in the blogosphere more than a few minutes. I have a lot to do and blogging is not usually on my list. So thanks for listening.

- Hard Working Dad (HWD)

Trek 2009 "Come Follow Me"

The first thing we noticed from Son #1 was his great smile
when he arrived back from trek.
He also was dirty, hungry and exhausted.
What a great experience for this 12 year old.
Here he is standing just like Tutu.
Each person was to walk in honor of a pioneer ancestor.
He chose to walk for his Great Grandfather Aina.
He wrote both of their names on the medallion around his neck.

Just a very few of those from the Sacramento East Stake
that welcomed back our Trek family and friends.

Grandma drove us all to Mormon Emigrant Trail.
We arrived 2 hours early.

Here They Come!!!

Welcome Home!

The family minus Mom.

~Two very wacky kids in a handcart~

Son #1 Leaves for Pioneer Trek

We're pleased to see this terrific young man having such an amazing summer. He's experienced the beauty of Yosemite National Park, went to his first Boy Scout Camp and now has this wonderful opportunity to go on a Pioneer Trek with an amazing "family". He'll be missed at home for the next few days, but know that this will be a memorable testimony moment in his life.

Summer Reading

Our summer read aloud book.
"A Long Way from Chicago" by Richard Peck

17 Years

On 07-17-09 , we were to
celebrate our 17 years of marriage.

The actual day was complete craziness!
I was over an hour late picking him up from the SLC airport.
We, as a family, roamed around Wal-Mart
searching for last minute items for camping.
We pitched our tent for one of our reunions.
He chased kids at the campground while I tried to be helpful in navigating the back streets of Salt Lake City with my sister whose husband and son were stranded at a car repair shop.
(I could have done a lot better navigating had I gone with instincts,
but we had an enjoyable time nonetheless!)

oh... well... this is actually quite typical for us...

But hopefully this Friday we'll have a great night out watching
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and maybe even slip in a dinner.

We've got eternity!

Munro Reunion 2009: July 17-19

Ohhhhh, What Do You Do?

Make foil hats, cake walks, and donut contests. Hang out with 1st, 2nd, and even 3rd Cousins.














Participate in the quilt raffle, Bid for items at the family auction, Purchase items at the children's store, & Make your best guess with the Guessing Jars.

How did we do?
Dad: Hot Dog & Marshmallow Roasters (also won a Guessing Jar containing colorful beads and lanyard string)
Mom: Chokecherry Syrup
Son #1: Purchased nothing, but played lots of card games with cousins & hiked the surrounding canyon.
Son #2: Portable Fan, Handmade Go Fish Cards, Glow Bracelet, Homemade Carrier Bag
Son #3: Slinky, Water Gun
Daughter #1: Bracelet, Necklace, Bubbles

Separate Ways from July 12-16

Sons #1, #2, & #3 hung out with Grandparents: Enjoyed 3 Treasure Hunts, Caught 6 Fish (3 released later), Took a trip out on Grandpa's boat, Went on 5-7 Geocaches, Watched Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince at the infamous San Juan Theater.

Hard Working Dad flew back to CA to work for the week.

Very Involved Mom hung out with Utah Sister, Read books and Visited future reunion sites while Daughter #1 enjoyed time with her cousins.

When the Boys reunited with Mom and Sister,
Uncle set up a Slip-n-Slide and all dried off on the Trampoline.

Places to Visit on a Sunday Afternoon in Salt Lake City

Eighth International Art Competition Exhibit:
Door 15 of the Conference Center
http://www.lds.org/ch/remembering/exhibit_2009.html

Museum of Church History and Art:
Found what we believe to be an uncomfortable "Time Out Chair"
& Dress worn by Belle Spafford
(The former General Relief Society president from 1945 to 1974 borrowed this 55 cent dress to wear at a formal dinner honoring her service in the organization. When her colleagues suggested the dress looked as if it cost hundreds of dollars, Spafford baffled the others with her explanation. “This dress was made from a remnant of drapery fabric, clearance thread and a zipper. It is a grand example of creativity and making do with what you have,” she said at the time.)

Brigham Young's Gravesite just east of Temple Square.

























11 Prophet Gravesites in the Salt Lake City Cemetary (Can you guess from the photos who is not buried at this cemetary??)

Drove passed the Utah State Capital on our way to visit the Pioneer Memorial Museum on 300 N Main Street run by the Daughters of Utah Pioneers. (Photography was not allowed.) Very Involved Mom has been asked to join this International Society for at least 12 years now. After seeing the massive amounts of artifacts kept there, perhaps it is time to join?