oLd FriEnDs GoOd fRiENdS - great to see Nicole

GiRLs cAMp 2009 The Living Christ

Mindy Wallace was the camp leader - she's the greatest Jill Holt's ward took us on as their buddy camp. Their ward has a large young women's group (ours is all of 7 girls) They made the girls each a fleece blanket and did other nice stuff. My girls probably felt like they belonged to that ward. Jill has been a friend since Ellie & Anna were in pre-school with Ms. Denise. Now Jill does the accounting at Todd's work. Lisa VanT is Libbi's cousin. She was Alec's swim teacher this summer and I (Shauna) have known her since college. Kate is the other leader in their presidency and she is one of Morgan's art teachers at VAI. How fun Morgan did the design for the ward's t-shirt it turned out pretty cool - wish you could see it better Each ward memorized a section of "The Living Christ" so the stake could recite it all together. Pretty neat

tHis IS the pLaCe paRk

fun time was had for all we met several neighborhood families and played at pioneer village the kids got to play with bunnies and little goats they also got to do horse rides unfortunately, it started raining HARD, we dashed down the hill in the rain & mud and went home early. I still believe - A GoOd TiMe wAs HaD by ALL!

Father's day 2009

we wanted to get a current picture of everyone for Todd for Father's day we were ready for church early one week and all happened to be in black & white only problems, no one to take the pictures & it was raining we dealt with it just fine then we were late to church

a few typical days

Grandma was wonderful this week. She stayed with Morgan, Anna, Taylor and Alec while Todd and I went to Moab. Todd had a conference there and I tagged along for some down time. It was a much needed and appreciated break. Note - Grandma and Papa fly to Paris tomorrow and Grandma caught Anna's cold so it wasn't exactly perfect timing but she made it work. *

This is the e-mail that Grandma Kate sent out to all of us (Me, Greg, Lisa and Papa) the second evening. I think it shows life was typical with Mom away. . . . We have had a good week while shauna and todd have been in Moab. They have worried needlessly: * * * Some man brought an oil can and oiled Alec's trike - Alec told me to go home - Alex ate mac and cheese---wouldn't you know he gagged on the 4th bite. - Anna and Taylor have bathed and dressed Alec each nite - I went in to say good nite to him and he turned his back on me - * Anna and I had to get out the owner's manual for the van after Alec had played in it - - . - Taylor packed her suitcase and was leaving when Anna stopped her . I failed to pick up anna at school. We each waited 45 minutes. I tho't I was to pick her up where I dropped her off---not on the other side of the building . Morgan has not given me any trouble regarding go to school. She arrived both mornings in time for third period . We ate free chicken dinner from Kentucky grilled chicken - we got three meals free . Anna and I went to Frank Granados Deli for lunch---the sandwich was disappointing--that's what happens when dad turns his business over to his sons---who are never there . . Anna's dance teacher phoned Shauna cuz Anna didn't show up for class. Teacher told Anna to come sick. Anna is too sick to go. I am not letting her go to school tomorrow either. She is too sick for testing. . Taylor confessed that she was really going to the Grovers next door. She doesn't want to take her suitcase to school tomorrow. - . . Morgan has been really pleasant and I was able to throw away 6 crumbs from her room. . . Anna, Alec and I all took a nap in the sun. Alec and I slept in the car with the windows down the sun roof open. Anna on the lawn. . . Morgan nicely sliced up a watermelon for all of us. . . Guess that is the sum of it. The house is looking alot worse for the wear. . Alec is still awake and still won't speak to me. . I have not gotten cross even once. Love to all, Grandma Kate (if someone knows how to space out text in a blog I'd love to hear the secret - obviously, I don't know how)

Alec - life is race - run fast and have fun then repeat

this was a beautiful spring day and we were the only ones at the park

Alec "played baseball" which means runs all the bases several times being sure to step on each one (finally we start at 1st not 3rd)

At the playground Alec loves to run laps on the cement outside the bark area. Since we were alone today with no one in the way he started this obstacle course - this was probably his 4th time and he continued on

thoughts after reading Amy's post

poor oldest child she's the test rat, poor third child looks at old family photos and says "you went to one of those places with live animals?" by the 4th child they think the park is the playland at Smiths Marketplace. I found myself telling Anna today that you kids may all be in the same family but don't expect the same rules and levels of expectation. No child has ever received as much attention and time from adults as my Morgan did. Cousin Evelyn told me one time that she's sure Morgan will forgive us at some point for having Anna. Luckily Anna loved experiencing life through Morgan's eyes. Morgan is brave and tries everything. Anna can watch, listen and learn and then try the things she decides to try. Anna, Morgan and I played and played for the first 5-6 years of my being a Mom. The sad thing is that they don't remember all too much. I keep telling myself that it's the total experience and time not the specific activity so it's ok they don't really remember "doing" everything. Taylor got lots and lots of my time but we didn't do all of the fun kids things. I still tried to do it all and actually felt like I could do at least most of IT. Anna loves mothering Tay and I enjoy watching it. They are so good together (except when they are being sensitive girls and don't want to be together). One day Taylor looked at an old photo of us at the zoo and was so excited that we have actually been to one of those places that has live animals. Boy, did I feel guilty, we went to the zoo the next day. One day when Taylor was in Kindergarten she looked at me in horror ... "who will take care of Alec when I go to first grade?" Who knew that I had passed on so many mothering responsibilities. I assured her that I would be ok watching him while she was away for the entire day. She is the best friend. She is sensitive to his feelings and very diligent in "watching" out for him. She does the same with the dog, Pyper. Anna, you taught her well. Alec is a joy too. He hasn't found much need to talk with 3 older sisters and an overbearing mother. He mostly likes to RUN FAST and play baseball. Since he isn't talking up to par he gets to go to the district pre-school class early (and for free!). He loves it. The other day Todd picked him up from school and asked what they did today. Alec looked at him and said "I talked a lot today!" Alec believes that everyone loves him - especially girls from 8 to adult given his attention at home. At church one Sunday he walked up to Nancy Baird and expected them to love him too. Nancy said to me that he must be loved lots at home and truly feel loved since he expected that love and attention from everyone around. Hopefully she wasn't finding a nice way to say "YOUR CHILD IS SPOILED" I choose to believe that Alec has the constant love of all of the family. Todd is the ultimate dad/husband. He puts up with me even when I can't put up with me. When the girls need a strong parent to help them work through their girl hormones and difficult times he is there. He is there with good listening ears and a huge dad heart. We love you

DAILY REMINDER - then there's reality

People, even more than things, have to be restored, revived, reclaimed and redeemed; never throw out anyone ... This quote was stolen from Diana White Esplin's Facebook ... Diana also empowered me with one of my best self rules: "Do NOT Engage" ........ Thank you, Lora Bliss Worthington, for this from your Facebook .... IF YOU CAN'T BE A GOOD EXAMPLE, THEN YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO BE A HORRIBLE WARNING!

4th child

come on mom!

Alec in the dino footprint

frog prince .

.

lately, I have been feeling that Alec and Taylor have been neglected when I think of all of the fun places I took Morgan and Anna. We regularly went "out" and explored many places. Taylor asked me last year if we had one of those places in SLC where live animals are. Oh my.

I read in the paper this morning that today was the free Monday at the Utah Museum of Natural History. I've been sick with a cold and sort of feeling better. Alec was bouncing off the walls ready for some action so I decided we'd go explore. Alec is quite different than his older sister Morgan. He ran from place to place looking quickly at everything, crawling under everything and then said "let's go" He did do some great exploring and I'm certain we saw everything. He was not nearly as interested in the live frogs and toads as he was in the paintings and the one you can climb on.

.

.

.

As we left the museum Alec came across his favorite parts of the adventure. There was a bike on the bike rack, big sticks and trees to hit on the lawn in front, and rocks to climb and jump.

Morgan took some great pictures of new cousin Kennedy

Walking home from school

Alec and Pyper got to walk home from school with Taylor and Hannah. Alec was so excited! Notice, he grabbed his backpack to wear for the walk. Taylor is his best buddy - she is great at including him and letting him be BIG.

new cousin kennedy jane

it was fun to have cousins around this month. greg, jen and the boys came to go skiing and it turned out that lisa, ryan and the girls came to get baby kennedy.

Anna and Taylor had a very difficult time going to school before Kennedy was born - especially when the boys were here too. Finally Kennedy was born!

the only downside to having the paperwork go through fast was that the cousins went home

KENNEDY JANE MECHAM

Young Women's Conference Choir

Morgan, Anna and Alexis were blessed to be a part of the choir for the General Young Women's Conference. They had a wonderful experience and sounded beautiful. We saw Anna's forehead behind the organ. It took a great deal of time to commit to the practices but even the practices were full of great inspiration. We're so proud of you

KITCHEN done?

hard to tell how good it looks in just these pictures but things look great! you'll have to come by and check out our new kitchen ... we love the bathroom tile, the lights are perfect and add so much, granite counters simple and much better than ugly yellow formica, the cabinets exceeded our expectations ... we still need to decide on a backsplash for the kitchen - glass tiles ... but so far we have figured out what we do not like but not anything that is just right ... now the rest of the house needs new ...

GRANDMA GREAT AND GREAT GRANDKIDS

EVERYONE WAS TOGETHER IN THE SAME ROOM FOR LONG ENOUGH FOR A CELL PHONE PICTURE. AUNT JEN MENTIONED WE'LL HAVE A GENERATION OF POOR QUALITY FAMILY PHOTOS ALL TAKEN WITH CELL PHONES. BETTER THAN NO SHOT AT ALL FRONT ROW TAYLOR, KASEY, GREAT, REBECCA, CAROLINE BACK CONNOR, MORGAN, ANNA, PARKER, ALEXANDER

Deseret News | Stott's service on Utah bench governed by rules, consequences

Deseret News Stott's service on Utah bench governed by rules, consequences

Always Remember ...

"People, even more than things, have to be restored, revived, reclaimed and redeemed; never throw out anyone."

WORK IN PROGRESS

After 6 years we are finally fixing our kitchen and 1/2 bath. We have had horrid formica and have not liked the cabinets since day one. Around the first week of December we started making arrangements to redo the kitchen. We are getting some new cabinets and refacing some of the old ones. Along with cabinets comes lots of new lighting, Heber Valley Lighting - Char Clarke, mirrors, bathroom floor, faucets, rings in the bottom of the kitchen sink, knobs etc. Todd accuses me of trying to help stabilize the economy all on my own.

We now have the base of all of our cabinets and some of the trim. Wayne Clarke came and installed (with supervision from Todd) our lights and mirror. They are fabulous. Our granite and sinks were installed Wednesday and they are great. Urbano, our new everything else guy, had our tile put in today and the basement was painted last week (everything from the basement family room and the kitchen is in the storage room - we borrowed 2t of flour last week from the Grover's.) Everything is looking great but feeling slow.

Tomorrow is a new day, grout for bathroom floor, possibly set a new toilet, baseboards painted and installed in bath too. Mike, cabinet guy, is coming hopefully to mostly finish. He told me next week we'll be done. (?) Guy, cousin plumber, will hopefully come today or tomorrow to hook up the kitchen and bathroom sinks. Every day I change my mind about the backsplash for the kitchen. I know we are going to have glass tiles, what colors/types is yet to be decided. I think that has to wait for another pay check anyway.

Morgan in the morning

A few things about Morgan ... there are many many more but this gets us to the point of this particular morning. Morgan is an incredible artist, the other students at VAI - art school - like to watch her work. She tackles concepts in unsual ways. Morgan loves reading. She often doesn't go to sleep at night because she's reading til all hours. Morgan loves STUFF - stuffed animals, papers, "things", anything to take apart etc. Morgan loves her room - Aunt Jen painted a great M on her wall over her bed and got some great stuff to accessorize. That being said, her room is a huge disaster by parent standards - mostly because of the stuff. Morgan also loves to hoard candy and to eat in her bed even though there is a rule against food in bed. Morgan DOES NOT DO mornings! Morning is anytime before 2:00 pm. On Monday, when we tried to get Morgan up and going, we were all in for a big surprise! It appears, although denied, that Morgan had chocolate in her bed. Morgan sleeps very warm with lots of "stuff" around her. When I touched Morgan to wake her I knew something was not right. Morgan was a brown topper - like ice cream from Shivers. She had a nice thick coat of chocolate on the top half of her body. We tried to take pictures but they didn't do justice. There was chocolate covering 3/4 of her face, one entire hand, her neck, 1/2 of her hair and her bed and bunny and other stuffed animals. We think that perhaps the Leprechaun's brought the candy since Morgan denies having any.

get away for mom

Aunt Nan provided a great excursion for me, Shauna, aka MOM, for a long weekend.

Nan had a conference in Seattle, she couldn't talk any of her children into going with her so she called me. She knew that we had loved Seattle and figured I'd come along and we could go exploring after her meetings. I had a fabulous time along with a much needed break from real life. I slept in, or at least stayed in bed late, for 3 days, and had no "agenda" and no one that I had to take care of or entertain. The first day I called Barbara O'Brien and asked if we could get together over the weekend. She was busy on Saturday but said we could meet for "coffee" in an hour. She picked me up, we went back to Madison Park and she showed me all the changes and the sames, and had brunch at Tullys. Barbara is wonderful. She is full of positive energy and such a joy to be around. I was lucky to see Doug, he was off to meet another friend, and met their dog. It was perhaps more beautiful there than I had remembered.

After a fun visit with Barbara I walked to the Paramount Theatre in hopes of finding a way for us to get tickets to The Lion King that night or the following one. I had tried on phone and computer and through the consierre but no luck. I asked the woman at the box office, she offered to look but did not sound hopeful. The people ahead of me had had the same request. Two tickets for Saturday had just become available. They were on row L (12th row) center. After completing the transaction the clerk suggested that I now use my luck and purchase a lottery ticket. The show on Saturday night was fabulous! It was a super end to the trip.

After Nan's meetings we wandered downtown Seattle. We went to the Pike Place Market, bought t-shirts for the guys, walked down to the waterfront, had clam chowder and halibut at Ivar's, took an evening ferry ride to Bremerton and back then worked our way back uphill to the hotel. We stopped for hot cocoa, Nan tried a steamed milk with almond (I don't think she was a fan but she did try it). That was a lot of walking!

Saturday, after her meetings we went shopping. Nan was on a mission for new shoes and a white shirt. We found that and a bit more. We then wandered back to the market, then hopped a bus to the International District to explore Uwajayma, the largest Asian grocery store. Here Nan tried vegetable and shrimp tempura and gyozas. I don't think she was a fan of those either.

When we checked in at home we found that everything was running smoothly with Joe and Todd and the kids. Nan and I decided we need to do that more often especially since everyone did so well without us. THANKS NAN for a fun weekend.

"I GO SCHOOL ... I RUN FAST!!!!!!!!"

Alec loves two things ...

He loves to go to school and he loves to run fast

Ok, you're right, he also loves balls, cars, and chocolate, and his sisters, his Grandma (s), his Papa ...

Alec asks daily, upon awakening, "go to school today?"

His backpack has Lightning McQueen on it and it is almost as long as he is tall.

It's very cool to also wear his hat. You can't tell in this photo how fast his feet are moving. The minute he jumps out of the van he is on a run down the sidewalk, to the ramp and into school. He is generally 8 feet or more in front of me and running as fast as he can.

Another fun school thing is meeting the girls at school for lunch and recess. Alec loves to lead the pack in 1, 2, 3 GO. He then repeats and runs back only to repeat again.

One of Anna's classmates, Steven, is Alec's pal. He is always a good sport and runs fast with Alec.

Alec trys to get all involved and believes they are pretty cool and that everyone loves him. It doesn't get much better than RUN FAST at SCHOOL!

on my own clock

life is good as long as I don't have to worry about time

Morgan got out of bed just before 9:00 and made it to school by noon

she looked beautiful and happy

quick note

The "lookers" at our home were only about 20 minutes - doubt any interest However, my house is totally clean (carpets and all) including Morgan's room It has been that way for just over 24 hours Celebrate! But, pick up after yourself

not exactly prepared but ready for some fun

I took the kids to the park on a sunny winter day. We took the naughty puppy Pyper on her leash (she doesn't really like to "come") Anna and her friends, Kourtney and Ju, had been at a 50's birthday party and they came along.

What was I thinking?????

Yes, we had had lots of sun ...

However, we had major snow and it was the end of the day, getting cold and very slippery.

Luckily I was almost prepared, I had an IKEA bag, one pair of snow pants and a stadium cushion in the back of the van, and one child wore a parka. The kids went sledding in the bag, on the cushion, balancing on their shoes, and Anna was lucky enough to wear the pants and slide on her butt.

In the picture of Kourt and Alec they just slid down the stairs on their bottoms. I had perfect timing for once. Anna is trying not to fall

On Holiday in St George - thanks papa & grandma

we had a fun time at downtown St George on New Years Eve! Tay and Alec LOVED the swing ride (similar to the ride at Riverside on Labor Day but more power than desk fan) Dad waited in a never ending line for hot cocoa - or should we say, warm brown water. For those of you familiar with Alec and Taylor, they had a hard time with shoes that night too. We had to finally leave since their socks were wet and frozen. One of our very favorite climbing/exploring spots is Pioneer Park. It's great because we can allow Morgan to leave the group and we know she can find her way to the car eventually. If we need to leave for a while she just waits high on a rock and watches for our return. Notice how strong Taylor is at the top of the mountain (I think that is Morgan in the background on a different hill)

January

The offer on the home we would like to buy expires mid February. I plan on taking our home off the market and doing what we can to continue to enjoy this house. As Todd will confirm, I lack faith. We have money down and have commited the rest for new kitchen cabinets and vanity, we've researched counters and have the paperwork to sign. The wallpaper is stripped, electrical apart and mirror gone in the bathroom off of the kitchen. We received a call from the realtor today, while we're at Homebase buying 10 gallons of paint, someones coming to look at the house on Tuesday.

Christmas 2008

Mom - busier than ever, and better at it than ever before. Constant carpool captain; (our own carpool - too hectic to try and schedule with anyone else). Loves the Computer and still thinks ziplock bags are the world's greatest inventions. They completely contain almost all awful smells and you don't feel bad when they get thrown away - with the clothes that got wet a month ago still in them. Morgan - 14 years old. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH! Someone please tell us that she'll eventually turn back into a form that resembles the child we used to know. The bedroom is unspeakable and school is not a subject of which we speak, unless prayer counts as "speaking." She has found a love for "found items" art sculpture, which means that she collects all manner of junk and then arranges it into the form that most annoys her father. She is also tall, long and beautiful. We adopted to break the cycle of Godfrey legs and we succeeded there in spades. She now looks her father straight in the eye. Her art is truly fabulous and we still believe she will either prove to be tremendous force for good in the world or hell on wheels. The jury is still out and deliberations look to be very long. Anna - Twelve years old. Her mother's child in every way, but definitely a daddy's girl. Succeeding in school. The center of much social attention, and given to fits of laughing that she has no hope to control. Especially at dinner time and when accompanied by friends. She plays the piano beautifully and that pleases her dad beyond measure. She is the neighborhood babysitter and that means is also Dad's cash source all too frequently. All too frugal, she was the bank for Pyper, our new Maltese puppy. Her fronted cash is still earning interest, as Dad hasn't made good on the note yet. Somehow Dad making good for Mom's dog seems odd. Taylor - Eight years old. Still perpetual sunshine and light. Baptized in October. Dad thinks she must own more shoes than anyone in the world because there are always 4 pair in the family room, along with the dirty socks. Coats in season are also abundant. Tay's "I love you" for Dad and Mom is the highlight of every day. We needed this one so that we would feel we could handle one more, AND THAT ONE MORE IS ... Alec - 3 years old, aka Mowgli, aka, "the Beast." both fitting. Has no desire to stay in any "man village." Is very happy when there is no roof and no need for clothes. Mom and Dad still can't find the "off" switch. We beleive he sleeps, but we're so tired and worn out from him every night, we really have no clue what goes on in the room. Throws all manner of balls really well and loves to hit everything with his many bats. Inexplicably misses ball, but hits everything else, including sisters. Loves to torment the new dog (just his size) and those same sisters. Also loves the atmosphere at Aggie football games and is prone to watch, sans shirt, just like the cool guys in the student section. Dad - plugging along, trying to keep his head above water. Loves his Church job and his day work equally (that is really, really good). Still has the handicap hovering around ten, but as in almost every year, is sure he found the secret in the last two rounds of November. Still thinks the Ags can win 5 next year. In this time of economic distress, we've all scaled back on our Christmas giving and our expectations. Kids are disappointed, but seem to understand the significance of all that's going on around us. We continue our lifelong trend of perfect timing. Our house was listed for sale just about one week before the mid-august stock market "correction." Our hope is to move three doors west to the house at the bottom of our circle. We are seeing the lowest interest rates in 40 years and we can't take advantage because the housing market has completely crashed. We're planning on significantly less income next year and feeling grateful for what we have now. At the end of the day, (or the year...) despite all the turmoil around us, we feel great peace in those moments when we allow ourselves to reflect and ponder all with which we're blessed. For unto us a child is Born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. So often, at Christmas, we think of the babe of Bethlehem. May we also remember the majesty and glory of our Savior and the healing power of his life and sacrifice. May we worship not only the Child given unto us, but the healing power of the Greatest Gift our Father could give; the redemption that comes through our Lord and Savior.

December?

I can hardly believe it is December, let alone the 16th day. Grandma Kate put together an advent calendar for Taylor and Alec. It is the very first thing Taylor does when she gets out of bed. She runs downstairs, opens her door for the day, hangs an ornament on her little tree and runs to wake Alec to show him his prize. 8 year olds are delightful! We have a sad tree. For some reason this year, when we put together our fake tree and plugged in the lights we did not experience success. Only one strand of lights worked!?! When we first got the tree I had meticulously lined each branch with lights and woven the cords so they were not apparent. So this year I yanked off every strand of lights, threw on the net lights, that are not on the bushes in the front yard this year. It was pretty fast. We also do not have ornaments or decorations up inside the house. Well, not really, anything that did not get put away properly last year is out. I couldn't muster up the energy to crawl in the storage and yank out all of the boxes and mess so we are doing the minimum. We are NOT Skipping Christmas like the Krank's, rather downsizing decorations. Yes, I am missing many of the favorites of the season but think how happy we'll be next year. One benefit of not putting many ornaments on the tree ... Alec took off every glass ornament (I think 6) and smashed them into little tiny pieces. I was in the shower and I think he possibly hit them off with the new bat his dad bought at the dollar store - it's really long. He and Pyper had a great time running and jumping. Amazing enough, no blood came with the fun. Those ornaments were 21 years old (from our first year married) so they were ready to be retired.

DEER HUNT 2008 We love cousins

Thank you Todd, Greg, Rodney and Grandpa for letting the girls come up and see what it's all about. Taylor loved being with Kasey!!!!!