Hike up Neff's Canyon

The kids and I went with the Smith's to Neff's Canyon for a little hike. There was a tree swing the kids played on but most of the time they explored and created. We stayed for a couple hours because the kids were having so much fun imaging there was a fairy village, bad guys, animals and a host of other things. I love it when we disconnect and let their imaginations run wild. Sometimes I think I need to keep my kids entertained, but when they're "bored" is often when they have the most fun. (I wish I'd blogged this earlier so I could have written about the story lines they created)

Adam with his Camelback. He insisted on bringing his own.

Happy Birthday Kevin

On Monday the 16th the kids and I went with Mike's parents and Amelia to visit Kevin's grave. Mike wanted to remember honor him on his birthday by doing fireworks at his burial site. Since he was in Guam the kids and I went in his stead.

Amelia built him a little craft as a Father's Day/Birthday gift but we left it as we walked out the door. We're glad she wanted to go with us. 

Next year Andy plans on bringing his grill and sitting at the cemetery all day and Mike will put on his own fireworks show.

A Real Dad

For Father's Day I want to dedicate a post to the man I am lucky enough to call Dad. He hasn't always been my dad, but I'm grateful to know that he always will be.

I first met my Dad, Douglas Evans Stewart, when I was somewhere between 6-9 years old. (I should find out the year to make this more accurate) I know I was young, and one of the reasons I know this is I remember that he would hold my hands and let me walk up him and then flip over backwards. (something I now do with my kids) He and my mom worked together at a computer company named Unisys and became friends. They dated for a short period of time but nothing came of it. My mom was a single mom with four kids and my dad wasn't up for the task. (or madly in love) They remained good friends though.

For the next dozen years I had a less than perfect time with my other "Dad's". My biological father died when I was ~5 1/2 so my subsequent step-dad's all became Dad's. When I was 10 my mom remarried a seemingly great guy and my sisters and I decided to let him adopt us. Ten years later we found out he wasn't that great and he and my mom divorced.

In rides Doug, unassuming knight in shinning armor. He professed his long standing love for my mom, she returned that love, and they started dating. Doug had been a male figure in my life longer than any other but it was still odd to see them dating. My dad is really mellow and calculated in  his actions and my mom, well, isn't. :) I think this is one of the reasons they fit together so well.

After they started dating we all knew marriage was imminent. This would be my dad's first marriage. One of the things I respect about him is that he doesn't throw the word "love" around. If he says it to you, he really means it, because he hasn't said it to many people. He would sign notes with LU and didn't say the L word with great frequency at first. We knew he loved our mom. I looked to him as a father figure but I let him know that I'd never call him Dad. The word had kind of lost it's savor for me. I figured I'd find another nickname like Pops, but as a 20 year old I was over the words "Dad" and "Father". He respected that.

In July of 2000 I left to serve a year and a half full time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Serving a mission is an amazing and rewarding experience and it's also very challenging at times. Although we only talk to our families by phone twice a year, letters received are like gold. My parents weren't married until half way through my mission, but my dad sent me more letters than the rest of my family...combined. His handwriting was hard to decipher, but I was always thankful for his consistency in writing. He always found time to make me feel important.

Like my "puffy" cheeks? :)

I don't remember how long it took me to call him dad, but when I did it felt good. I was 23 years old and had finally found the dad I'd always wanted. I can't adequately express my gratitude for the presence of this amazing man in our family. Even though I'd already been adopted once, he adopted my sisters and me. How many non-orphans can say they've been adopted twice?

Here are some of the things I love/appreciate about my Dad: (not necessarily in order of importance)

1. His love for my mom- He takes REALLY good care of my mom. He balances out her wild spirit and is a constant source of strength for her. My mom doesn't like to go to church alone and even though my dad is a Unitarian Universalist he goes to his congregation every Sunday as well as my mom's. He may not agree with all the tenants of our faith, but he loves my mom enough to pull double duty on Sunday to support her. Pretty awesome. He also supports her in all of her indulgences. He doesn't like horses, but she's building a barn and buying horses that he'll have to feed. He didn't want a boat, but she did, so she got a 30 footer. He does everything he can to make my mom happy and comfortable. He's a great husband to her. (And of course she's a great wife to him.)

2. He's wise- Except in matters of politics and religion (j/k) my dad is a very wise and learned individual. For fun he listens to college courses on DVD. Even though we may be at odds on some of our beliefs I treasure the talks we have and I value his opinions whatever they may be. I always get well thought out responses from him.

3. He's active- I'm grateful my dad takes such good care of himself. Before I left for Mississippi my dad could always outrun me. He has a 3.6 mile loop he runs consistently and mixes that with biking and racquetball. My parents came to visit us in Mississippi and my dad and I ran a 10k. I can now outrun him, but that's probably due a little bit to the fact that he's pushing the big 6-0. (or he's taking it easy on me) :)

4. He loves his daughters- My dad went from bachelor with no kids to four daughters ranging in age from 17-25. My youngest sister made him lose whatever hair he had left. ;) Each of us is very different but we all feel loved by him.

5. He's a GREAT grandpa- His nickname is "Grandpa Bonk" because he gives all the kids little head bonks as greetings. He's a fun grandpa and is always willing to wrestle and play games with the kids.

Happy Father's Day dad! Thank you for being a wonderful father and completing our family. We all love you very much! (despite you lack of hair) (I'm going to try and find more pictures.)

Dressed in white

Although Sarah isn't allowed to date or get married, like all little girls she imagines herself dressed in white. A few years back Sarah begged to try on my wedding dress.  Here are a couple pictures of her in 2009. Isn't she adorable?!

Last time we went to my parents she noticed my wedding dress bag hanging in the guest bedroom closet. The begging began anew. It still drowns her, but it's a better fit than it once was. Maybe I'll let her try it on ever few years and be sad at how much she's grown. She's my beautiful little princess!

When Sarah was baptized in December it was cold and snowy so we didn't get many pictures of her in her baptism dress. We decided to do it a couple days ago since Angelina is visiting. Our timing wasn't great, because the sun was setting, but we got some cute pictures. I think I'll take her back one more time without four additional kids. :)

I really like this one except for the lighting and people in the background. I think we're going to recreate it with her holding her scriptures. 

Here are some of the girls together.

Some of just Angelina

The boys did great "waiting" on the sidelines and we rewarded them with a trip to the park. 

A lady that was visiting with her family offered to take a picture of Sarah and Me. I'm thankful she did. I feel so lucky to be her mom. She is the kindest, sweetest girl in the world and I love her so much!

Zermatt with the Smith's

Just found these pics. Our friend's have a condo in Zermatt, so we joined them for a weekend and went swimming. The pool is only three feet deep outside so it's perfect for little swimmers.

On the way home we went to Silver Lake and walked around.