Catching Up

We've been busy, and I've had a hard time keeping up with the blog. I'll continue to post all the fun we had on our trip, but I have to also start posting the most recently exciting things. Like Halloween. We had such a cute boy all dressed up, I can't very well wait to post pics of all that! So prepare for a scramble of blog posts--some with, some without pictures. Enjoy!

On Our Way to Grammy's House

After much anticipation, we were headed to the airport to fly on an airplane. David was excited for several days to fly, and I dare say that the whole experience did not disappoint! David and I flew to Seattle, then on to Boise. He was a good little traveler, and for the most part stayed entertained by the excitement of being on a plane.

And just for the record, these sugar dots were great entertainment on the plane. Not a ton of sugar, but still fun and they took some time to eat!

David fell asleep for the last 25 minutes before we landed in Seattle.

We had a long layover in Seattle, and a real treat waiting for us.

Our birth mother's parents took half a day off of work and drove a couple of hours to come see us. We went to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory, and had such a great visit! (AP, our birthmother, recently moved across the country with her new husband. We missed seeing her, but so glad to see her parents!)

J was good at keeping David entertained with spinning quarters and ice cubes. T pulled out her camera and caught David buttering his own bread with his knife. I loved being with you, J and T! So did David! Thank you for making the effort and all the arrangements to give us a break from the airport scene. We love you!

 Once we finally landed in Boise, we rented a car and made our way over to a cousin's home in Eagle, ID. Shera perfectly pleased my little boy that had to keep still for so many hours in airplanes and airports. As soon as we arrived at her home (at 10 pm) she asked David if he wanted to jump on the trampoline in the dark. Oh boy, did he ever! His excitement lit up the sky as he went back and forth between chasing the cat and jumping. After I finally got David settled in to bed, Shera and I stayed up chatting like we were school girls. It was 3:15 before we broke up the party--although I could have pulled an all-nighter without regret if I didn't have to drive by myself the next day. Oh, Shera Mae! All of that catching up was sugar to my soul!

Grandma and Grandpa the Great

We recently traveled to Utah and Idaho to visit family--I'll do several detailed posts with all the fun we had there. But first I want to highlight the reason we all came together--it's because of these wonderful people:

 He is 91. She is 90. They have been married 67 years. They have 12 childlren, 88 grandchildren, 187 great grands. They know each of us by name, they love our children and spouses, they know where we live, and they keep up with our lives. We love them dearly.

 

 Grandpa the Great is still strong enough to offer horsey rides to the youngest crowd. David loved it as much as I remember loving it when I was small.

Every year Grandma and Grandpa hold a family gathering around BYU Homecoming. The schedule is always the same--Pizza and chatting on Friday night, Saturday morning devotional, field games up the canyon, then everyone goes to the BYU Homecoming football game. All of the college age grandchildren are invited with their spouses. This year there were over 100 of us gathered.

The Arizona blood runs deep in their veins--thinly, but deep. So any time they are in temps that dip below about 60 degrees, you will find them bundled up like it is the dead of the winter. (It's taken me years to thicken my blood for colder climates--because these are my roots!)

We love you, Grandma and Grandpa the Great! Thank you for the heritage and all the fun memories you bless us with.

Sunday Evenings

Daddy and David have started a new tradition--making cookies together on Sunday evenings.

 This is David's favorite part--

 when the dough is just too tempting to resist taking a nibble.

 After several nibbles, Daddy is trying to keep his composure and let David know he's not supposed to eat all the cookies before they ever reach the cookie sheet. So he tells David to put his hands on his head to take a break. Sam was hoping to get some good non-David cookies on the tray while David did this.

 Here are the cookies David helped put on the cookie sheet:

 Even when his hands were supposed to be behind his back or on his head, the temptation was just too great. He had to lean over and sneak another little nibble.

This is the fun cookie making time that they can't help but repeat almost every week.

Cabin Camping 2011

We went on our annual cabin camping trip with our friends, the Larsens, in the middle of September. It was a wonderful trip--some definite highlights and firsts! Of course we heard the song of the loons on the lake, which has become a favorite when we go on these trips. We also saw a flock of migrating cranes--Courtney and Jessica helped identify the flock by their distinct calls.

The best thing about this trip was that we got to see the Northern Lights for the first time. They were beautiful and awe inspiring. Here is someone else's photo of the beauties:

 While we were enjoying the lake, I heard a loud and distinct sound in the serenity of our beautiful surroundings--I half expected to look up and see a fisherman using a horn of some sort. I was thrilled when instead I saw this--a pair of trumpeter swans in flight, trumpeting! It was beautiful!

Our men went ahead of us to begin taking gear over to the cabin. This year the cabin was accessible only by boat--so we rented a canoe to haul our gear and ourselves back and forth across the lake. (In years past, we have had the option of hiking or using the canoe--but this year we only had access by lake.)

This pile of dirt provided lots of entertainment for two little boys waiting for the boat.

We hadn't even reached the cabin yet, and the fun in the dirt had begun with climbing and sliding.

David and Daddy arrive dry at the cabin--with the last of our gear in tow.

Later on they went for a leisurely ride in the canoe together. It was truly little boy paradise.

David was a hard one to keep seated while we were in the canoe. He of course wanted to lean over the side to touch the water, stand up and wave his arms, sit on the seat instead of the bottom of the canoe--everything a curious toddler could want to do in that canoe. Luckily, he learned the lesson of a tippy canoe when we were on dry ground instead of in the middle of the lake.

On the return trip, we were much better balanced in our weight distribution with all three of us and our gear. We are learning some of the strategies of a canoe to make it a little smoother of a ride.

Just as we were about to climb in the car to head home, we turned around to see David trying to sneak back to the cabin in the canoe.

We finally coaxed David to come home with us, but he really wanted to go back to the cabin!

Every time we have another experience like this one, I wonder if this will be David's first memory.

Pappy's visit

In the middle of September, we had a 24-hour visit from Sam's dad so he could ordain Sam as a High Priest. It was such a treat to have our quick visitor--David especially loved having the time with Pappy.

When Pappy flew in during the middle of the night, David got to get up to greet him. In the hour long visit at the midnight hour, Pappy managed to fit in: reading a story with David, a sucker or two for little buddy, lots of cuddles, and even a few tickles.

On Sunday, we were at the church for Sam's ordination. Here is the Sponseller family's line of oldest sons in the lineup--Nick, Sam, David.

Pappy had to travel for a day, he was with us for a day, then had to travel back for a day--no doubt it was an exhausting trip! We feel so grateful that you made such an effort to come for this special day, Pappy!

Working Buddy

The Daddy and David duo make a great team!

We love to encourage David's willingness to do chores right now--he feels big about helping around the house.

Some of his "chores" are:

• Clear his dishes after he eats a meal. He sorts out the trash from the silverware, scrapes out the food from his bowl, and loads his dishes into the dishwasher.
• Help set the table--he loves to get out the silverware by himself, then make the place settings for everyone at the table. It's the perfect distraction to perk up the hungry-around-dinner-time blues.
• Put his pajamas away from the clean laundry pile while I am folding and putting away the rest of his laundry. The pj's are only folded in half, then put in their own separate bin. David gets good sorting practice in, and we both finish our part about the same time!
• Sort out the lids and put them away while I unload the dishwasher. He also likes to put the silverware away.
• He loves to be part of putting the laundry in the washing machine or dryer. An extra set of hands slows us down a little bit, but I 'spose it's not always a race.
• If the vaccuum is out, David insists on helping us wind up the cord, and even running the vaccuum over the floor. It tips back too far, so it's technically not sucking anything up while he's at the helm--but don't tell our little worker that! He is pleased as punch when he gets a turn with the vaccuum.