Not as far back as we would like...

There is a recurring joke in the Fowler family that always comes up around Memorial Day. It goes something like this, "We know that everyone is related, but in our family, it's not as far back as we would like. That explains a lot!". Greg's parents, Dee & Karlyn share a common ancestor, Issac Chilton. Isaac is Dee's great grandfather and Karlyn's great, great grandfather. Every year, the family visits his grave at the Lehi Cemetery, shakes their heads, tells the joke and we all laugh. I guess that's life in Lehi, where everyone is related (or it was that way until about 10 years ago). I personally am thankful for Isaac Chilton and his family, and I think his descendents turned out just fine!

Memorial Day

We had a great Memorial Day (despite the rain) and hope that you did too. We spent most of the day in North Ogden visiting family and graves. Enoch thought all the flags and flowers were great and I just hope we returned them to the right graves. We were able to visit my aunts and uncles and it was great to see them and spent some time with them. They are wonderful people and great examples to our family. My aunts and uncles are quite a bit older than my dad and more like grandparents to the kids. After visiting the Ben Lomand Cemetery, we drove past the old family farm. One of the barns is still standing and it is a great reminder of the legacy my grandparents, Percy and Ada Randall, left us. I love to hear stories about the dairy farm and my grandparents.
After driving home, Greg and the boys went to a barbecue at the Fowlers (Kate was napping and I stayed home with her). They had a great time. It was a full, rainy day and I'm thankful that we could spend it with family, remembering family.

I'm stuffed!

I really don't have much to say, I just thought this picture was adorable. It was taken after Greg had feed her and set her down. Somehow, the snap of her pants popped open. She looks like we all feel after Thanksgiving! What a cute Kate (and getting cuter and bigger by the day).

Gavin Remembers

This has been a great year for Gavin. He is growing into such a great young man and we are so proud of his choices and goals. He's made a list of his favorites from this year.
Fourth Grade: 1. the ski trip to Brighton. In January, the fourth grade classes were able to take a charter bus to Brighton Ski Resort, take lessons and spend a half day skiing. Gavin chose snowboarding lessons and had an incredible time. He is very excited to go back. 2. Gavin picked as another highlight all of the fun books he read. His teacher, Mrs. Williamson, is an avid reader and encouraged reading in her class. Gavin had a great time reading all her books. His favorites from this year were the Alex Rider series and the Artemis Fowl series. 3. Gavin was able to participate in Knowledge Bowl again this year. Unfortunately, he had to put up with Mom as one of his coaches. The only redeeming grace was Sister Cathleen Poulsen was the other coach and she was fun. The topic this year was Science and our team, the Super Scientists, had so much fun doing experiments, playing games and quizzing each other. The kids really knew their stuff and our team placed in the top 10! This picture is of Gavin at the Dance Festival. They danced to Beattles songs this year and Gavin did great (although he said he looked stupid).
Scouts: 1. Gavin's #1 Scout memory from this year was taking 2nd place in our Pack's Pinewood Derby. He won the Bear den and barely missed first place out of the entire Pack. He worked very hard on his car and gave it an extra special paint job (black, gold and silver). Greg helped a bit, but Gavin did most of the work. 2. Gavin also enjoyed visited the Bee Farm with his den. He said it was very interesting and did not get stung. I guess that constitutes a highlight. 3. Gavin's den also was able to tour the Hutching's Museum. Gavin loves that place and he had fun going with his den.
This picture was taken the night Gavin received his Bear rank (May 22). He also earned 1 gold arrow and 7 silver arrow points! Good job, Gavin! We are hoping that next year brings some great highlights as well.

Summer Sanity?

Well, today was the last day of school. I was going crazy about 20 minutes after Gavin got home. I really don't know what I'm going to do with these kids all summer. Yes, I do; I'll be chasing Enoch all over creation, driving Gavin all over creation and hoping Kate doesn't drive me crazy! Gavin is signed up for a bunch of activities. I hope Enoch and Kate like the car because we will be in it a lot. Fun for me, since it takes about 5 minutes for Enoch to buckle himself in (I do it myself! You no help!) and I'm guessing by the end of summer, $4 a gallon for gas. Yikes when did that happen. I remember when I first started driving gas was 98 cents. Am I that old?
Anyway, sorry to all my neighbors upfront. Enoch will probably steal whatever is on your porch and not bolted down. We have Tuttle's decorative wheelbarrow in our backyard right now. I keep having to put back Marsden's house for sale papers back into their box. Also, just ignore the little kid running around in his underwear. Greg bought Enoch some boxers and he is convinced that he doesn't need to wear shorts or pants with them. Again, fun for me!
When I first started this blog, Greg thought it was stupid. Now, I think he sees the benefit of me venting to all of you through my computer rather than complaining to him. I still can't get him to post anything, put I suppose I could say anything about him and he wouldn't know. The only thing I can say about Greg is he will be the only thing that keeps me sane this summer!

Greg's new laptop

So, if you haven't noticed, I just posted a bunch at once. I've been saving up because our laptop completely quit on us a few week ago. I was bummed, but Greg, you should have seen his eyes light up. He had been waiting for that day for years. Now he could finally order a new laptop. He got right on it. He pretty much knew what he wanted and so he ordered it quickly. It shipped from Hong Kong and he tracked it every two hours through Alaska, Canada, Denver and finally to Salt Lake. It arrived in Utah on a Saturday morning and he knew he would have to wait through the weekend to get it. Talk about torture. It finally arrived on our 13th wedding anniversary, May 19; he tried passing it off as my gift, but that was a no go. Greg and Gavin have had a lot of fun with it, especially the finger scanner to log yourself in. I just like the fact that I can take it anywhere like a real laptop and not have to have it plugged in. Also, I can sneeze without it turning off! Hopefully it will last for years to come.

Grandpa's Cabin

A few weeks ago, we slept over at Grandpa Dee's (Fowler) cabin in American Fork Canyon. We had such a wonderful time. Grandpa has built this cabin from the ground up and has been working on it for a few years. It has been a dream of his for quite a while to have a cabin and we are so happy and thankful that we get to reap the benefits. It is beautiful and very comfortable, just like home (even better if you ask Gavin because the cabin has cable!). We headed up Friday evening. Luckily for us the cabin was already warm because Dee went up earlier that day to do some work and left the heat on for us. There was still snow on the ground, but the cabin was nice and cozy. We had a snack of cookies and milk and watched some TV (Man vs. Wild) and then went to bed. Gavin and Enoch slept up the in loft and Greg, Kate and I slept in the main bedroom. Everyone slept great and the next morning we cleaned up and came home (to clean the garage, yeah!). We took these pictures about a week after staying over (we had to go back up and put sheets on the bed after washing them). The weather was much warmer and we went for a walk around the neighborhood. What a beautiful place.

Cookie Monster

Enoch is my total, complete cookie monster. He loves cookies! He's not terribly picky about the kind, just that he gets one (although he is partial to sugar cookies with lots of frosting and sprinkles, especially if he can decorate them himself). He loves Valentines Day and Christmas when we have a family tradition of making sugar cookies. He loves to help Mom make cookies and eat the dough. When we were deciding on names for Kate, his vote was Cookiebaby. Let's not forget eating Oreos with Dad. He loves dunking Oreos into milk and can eat a considerable amount in one sitting. I took this picture after finding Enoch sitting on the couch surrounded by crumbs and watching Word World. After inspecting the cookie jar, I figured he had eaten about five cookies. I guess I'll have to hide the cookie jar while I'm in the shower from now on!
This picture was taken on June 14, while Enoch was helping Mom make chocolate chip cookies for Dad for Father's Day. As you can see, Enoch enjoys the dough just as much as he likes cookies. He sneaks cookies dough balls from the freezer, sits on the couch and reads the same book, Peck, Slither and Slide, every time he eats cookies dough. What a cookies monster!

Randall Fun

On May 17, we had a Randall family gathering at my parents house in Fairview. It was a great day and almost the entire family was able to make it. On the drive down we listened to a John Bytheway CD, Weed Your Brain, Grow Your Testimony. It was great and it is so wonderful to hear Gavin quoting it throughout the next week. I'm glad he was listening! While at my parents home, we had a barbecue, rode the ATVs, played volleyball, threw rocks in the stream, played MarioCart on the Wii and visited. It was a full day. Enoch loved the ATVs and would yell, "Hit the gas!" if Mom was going too slow. Thanks for teaching him that 'Duncle Dave'! Greg loved the Wii, of course (I'm wondering how much longer I can put off getting one). Gavin just liked being with everyone and Kate enjoyed the game of 'Pass the Baby'. I'm thankful for my family, their love and support. We are incredibly blessed.

Katers Update

Just a small update on our cute little Katers (her nickname). She is doing so well. It seems like she has been with us for more than three months and I'm not sure what our family did without her. She loves attention and gets quite upset when she is ignored. If she is awake, she wants to be held. She knows exactly what the swing is for (meaning, she only goes in there when Mom really needs to get something done) and really does not like it. She started smiling and talking to us at about 2 months and you can really have some good conversations with her. Also, at about 2 months (maybe a bit before), she started sleeping through the night. I know, we are spoiled. However, she is not much of a napper and will only sleep for about 45 minutes at a time. She loves to sit up; no reclining in your lap or car seat, she has to have a straight back. At her 2 month check she was in the 75% for height, 50% for weight and the 25% for head circumfrence (a typical Fowler baby). She is so cute and I'm having a lot more fun than I thought I would shopping for little girl clothes. Her brothers adore her. Gavin gets quite upset if he can't hold her all during Sacrament Meeting and Enoch has decided that he wants to feed her now. Her favorites are going for walks and being held by Dad. She doesn't like taking baths and being set down. She is adorable and we adore her! By the way, she can out burp all of us and most of the grown men I know!

Trampoline Fun

For Easter this year the kids got a trampoline (I know, the Easter Bunny went all out). They have wanted one for years and we finally broke down and got one. Actually, the real reason was I needed something fun enough in our backyard to keep Enoch entertained and not wandering the neighborhood while I was busy with Kate. Anywho, our family has loved it. Greg worked very hard to sink it into the ground (my request). His Dad, Dee, brought up his full-sized tractor, ripped out the fence and dug a hole. You should have seen the fun Enoch had in the mud hole in our backyard. All of his trucks were down in there and he would come in covered and caked in mud. I suppose that was what I had to put up with to get the trampoline buried. We are very lucky Dee was so willing to help us. Like I said the boys love it. Enoch asks everyday to jump on the trampoline with Mom or Dad. After jumping for a little while he says "Let's just sit down and talk." We have had some great conversations on the tramp. Gavin loves to take his books out there and read. They can't wait until the weather warms up and they can sleep on the tramp or hook up the hose and jump on a wet trampoline. It has been great fun and just the start to our "remodeling" the backyard. Stay tuned for more progress.

Remembering kids

May, 2008 - Just wanted to remember the cute things about the kids on the side before I change them. Luckily for me, the kids say and do the darnest things, so I have lots to update.
Gavin - I could barely get Gavin's nose out of a book long enough to take this picture. His current read: Fablehaven 3.
Enoch - When you ask Enoch is he is a good boy he says, "No, I'm a dangerous boy!". What a character.
Kate - Kate has three distinct colors of hair - red, blonde, and brown and we love it all! What a cutie.

Enoch Kitty is lost

I haven't seen Enoch Kitty for a few days now. For those of you who have not spend time with Enoch lately, he rotates between being Enoch Kitty, Enoch Robot, Enoch Frog and now, Enoch Doggie. He started with Enoch Kitty - crawling around on all fours and asking to be petted in his high-pitched kitty voice. My favorite part was when he decided that Enoch Kitty's litter box was under the kitchen table - yes, it's exactly what you are thinking! However, I haven't seen Enoch Kitty lately. Enoch Robot was here this morning (his batteries were low and needed recharging by plugging in his invisible cord into his belly button) and I saw Enoch Frog hopping down the hall and ribbiting last night. Enoch doggie is new and only has lived here a few days. I'm not sure how long Enoch Doggie will last because Dad does not put up with eating our food off of the carpet in the family room. Maybe Enoch Kitty is gone for good, who knows. Enoch is having a blast, but I'm not sure if I'll survive his imagination!

Happy Mother's Day

So, I warned you that this blog is my journal; hence, some entries will be boring and only for my benefit. However, I did want to wish all the moms out there Happy Mother's Day (one day late - the story of my life!). I had a wonderful Mother's Day (despite having to do Sharing Time). Greg wouldn't let me do any work and he and the boys fixed dinner (lasagna) and cleaned up (mostly). Gavin made homemade butter to have with our French bread. He learned how to do that at his 4th grade Pioneer Activity Day on Friday. It was great. Greg and the kids (I just typed in boys and had to delete it! Sometime I forget I can't say that anymore) gave me a Cricut machine; I know I'm very spoiled. I actually got it a few weeks ago and couldn't wait to open it, so I've been using it for awhile now. I love it! We went to Fowlers in the evening and had ice cream and cake on the patio. Dee has a soft serve ice cream maker and it was a blast to make our ice cream cones as big or as little as we wanted. I am truly blessed and it is on days like this that I remember how much I have in my life. My family is wonderful and I couldn't ask for a better husband, kids,mom and mom-in-law. I love them dearly and I hope they know it.

Who's Who?

I knew that Enoch and Kate looked alike, but are you kidding me? These pictures were taken when Enoch and Kate were about the same age. Aside from longer eyelashes and a bit of red hair, Kate surely looks like her brother. The other night, Kate was wearing some green jammies left over from Enoch because all of her pink and lavender jammies were in the laundry. Greg did a double take when he saw her. Even Dad can't believe how much they look alike. It's a good thing Enoch is so adorable! By the way, Kate is on top and Enoch is on the bottom.

Gavin is 10!

On May 1, Gavin turned 10. On May 2, we had a hot dog roast in Grandpa and Grandma Fowler's backyard. Gavin had plenty of family there and we had a great time eating dinner, making s'mores, opening presents and visiting. His favorite gifts were Lego Star Wars 2 for his Game Cube and 3 Alex Rider books. What a lucky boy. (Greg's birthday was on May 2, and we celebrated his birthday too. Poor Greg, always gets lumped in with Gavin for his birthday. He's a great sport about it). To get to know Gavin better his favorite things are:
food - chicken enchiladas, cream cheese chicken
restaurant - Arctic Circle
dessert - brownies
movie - Alex Rider
TV show - MacGyver, NOVA, Zac & Cody
school subject - reading, science
candy bar - Mint Three Musketeers
activity - building rockets with Dad
book series - Alex Rider, Leven Thumps, Fablehaven
scripture story - Nephi prophesies the murder of the Chief Judge
place to go - Classic Skating
vacation - Nauvoo, Florida
color - blue and white (for BYU!)