Air Oliver, et al.

June's new favorite activity is going on motorcycle rides with Dad. Every time we go in the garage she goes straight for the bike.

Brenden settles in to watch Oliver's air show.

Oliver is fearless. The neighbors got a kick out of watching him jump over the bike ramp on his plasma car over and over.


Here he is in action.

a report on our experience at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival

So Scott and I took off around 9am on Thursday and drove to Telluride for a long weekend, heading for the 35th Anniversary of the Telluride Bluegrass Festival. This is the first time we've left all three kids for this long and we both commented as we were driving how weird it was to be on our own. The weirdness subsided pretty quickly and turned into a wonderful carefree break from responsibilities.

First of all, Telluride is gorgeous. The town is quaint and small and nestled in between tall mountains overgrown with very green pine and aspen trees. We enjoyed walking along the streets and admiring the architecture. There was a swift moving river running throughout the area and we got to ride a gondola multiple times every day (from the parking to the festival and back). We had a reservation in a cute lodge with a great restaurant in Placerville (about 15 mins away -- rooms in Telluride were outrageously expensive and camping was out of the question). We ate a lot of great food. And Scott even played a round of disc golf course under one of the ski lifts.


And we got to see some excellent music. I think top of our list would be The Swell Season (Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova from the movie Once) -- one of the best shows we've ever seen. The evening was magical and you could tell the band felt it too. It was just one of those shows that gives you goose bumps and chills. Excellent.



We also saw Glen's other band The Frames, which was also great. Ryan Adams was a riot, and put on a very energetic show -- in sharp contrast to the last time we saw him at Red Butte. I'll leave it to Scott (hint hint) to write a more thorough review of some of the shows, but suffice it to say it was a beautiful setting to hear some great music.


So there you have it. Relaxation. No responsibilities. Nature. Music. Food. Disc golf. Sounds great. Way to put a good spin on it, Sarah.



The truth is, in the midst of all that great stuff, it was one of the most surreal and frankly somewhat disturbing experiences of my life. I don't really know how to describe it. First of all it's enormous. There were about 10,000 people there. The vast majority of them were 100% granola hippies. Every conversation we had with anyone included talk about outdoorsy activities and conservation (buzz word "sustainability") efforts.


We quickly realized we were quite different than almost everyone and there was no point to get in to those differences in conversation. So we took on the persona of mountain bikers/skiers from Salt Lake City who've learned to get around all those pesky alcohol laws. We were surrounded by constant partying from morning until after midnight. Young and old together. Think the grateful dead caravan fans. And they mostly all camp. And it was hot. So add that all up and it makes for a quite odorous environment.

When we first walked onto the festival grounds, we spotted the clearly marked and designated hula hoop area -- full of people who'd brought their intricately decorated homemade hoops. Then there were guards placed in front of every trash can there to inspect what you were throwing away in case you dared to toss something that could be recycled or composted instead. They provided spickets of tap water rather then selling any water bottles (which was actually very delicious, and I'm known to be a sort of water snob). And then there was all the political talk. Scott was proud of me for holding my tongue all weekend.



Every morning there was a modern-day land grab where people would line up (some all night) and at 9am when the gates opened everyone would run and stake their claim with their tarps. Scott and I participated on Saturday morning. We got in line at 6am and got #397. We ended up with a tiny 5x5 spot but at least we had a good view. The convention was once you put down your tarp you could leave it all day if you want (we went back to the hotel for a nap at one point in the day) and if someone wants they can sit there until you return. (To their credit it was a pretty respectful crowd.)

Did you all know that tie-dye is still very much in style?! And the sandals made of hemp rope and the hiking boots and mud-clad bare feet. Scott and I decided we could spot like-minded folks by their shoes. Converse or Rainbows was a good sign. There weren't many. And there were dread locks galore and tattoos and lots of hippie kids too. And then there were the drastic temperature swings. Morning was 40 degrees. Mid day was 90 degrees in full sun at 9000 ft elevation. Evening was very pleasant at 70 degrees. Night was back down to 40. So there was the layering -- leggings under the skirts, down to bikini tops during the day, down jackets at night. People had it down to an absolute science. There was lots of great people watching to do!

Of course I have to mention the bluegrass music. I mean I'm a music appreciator and I can admire excellent technique and musicianship. And there was plenty of that. PLENTY. But after a while I'm just not all that interested in another tune about vegetables or cows. The lyrics and subject matter are so trite. And the songs are so long. And frankly they mostly all sound the same to me.

Unfortunately we didn't take enough pictures. Something about not having kids around or not wanting to look like gawkers. I cannot adequately describe the visual. You'll have to use your imagination.

In the end I like to "chalk it up to experience". It's one of those things we've talked about and dreamed about doing every year when they announce the lineup. Now that we've done it we know we don't need to do it ever again. Think of all the energy we'll save not being disappointed about not going next year. We can see the groups we're most interested in in other venues (should have seen The Swell Season last month in Salt Lake!). But seriously I can't complain too much. It was a wonderful break, great solo time with Scott, and I savored every moment of it.

So how long do you think it'll be before this business pops up in downtown Provo? Oxygen to go?! And this was not the only Oxygen bar in town.

the proper care and feeding of the wiley children

I'm hesitant to post this since it is basically exposing my underbelly -- the inner-workings of our household at this particular period in our lives. But it might also be interesting for us to look back on years later and remember this snapshot. Please hold judgment on what the kids eat -- no, they're not particularly fond of fruits & veggies and I am not a very creative chef. But they do eat Flintstones vitamins every day so I'm sure they'll be fine, right?

Anyway, here are the pages of instructions I left for my mom as we were leaving town for 5 days/4 nights. And from the report from Grandma and the kids upon our return, it sounds like everything went smoothly and everyone was happy and healthy and well entertained and cared for during our absence.

Meals
Here are some ideas of what the kids like to eat. Of course it can be adapted.

June:

Breakfast choices
Oatmeal
Cheerios w/ milk
Scrambled eggs
Banana

Lunch choices
Cottage cheese
Yogurt
Hot dog
Fruit cup
Applesauce
Top Ramen
Mac & Cheese
Avocado

Dinner choices
Usually there’s part of the dinner meal she can eat cut up
Mac & Cheese
Hot Dog
Chef Boyardee mini-serving cups

Snacks
Goldfish crackers
Sliced cheese
Frozen gogurt
Fruit snacks
Fruit loops
Etc.


**She likes to try to feed herself, so let her have a spoon and the bowl on her tray and you can use another one to help.

**She drinks water from a sippy cup. Offer it to her frequently during and between meals

**She takes a bottle of whole milk at night before bed and sometimes in the morning before breakfast


Meals (con’t)

Oliver:

Breakfast choices
Frozen waffle w/butter & cinnamon sugar
Toast w/ butter and sometimes honey
Mini bagel toasted w/ butter
Cereal w/milk
Leftovers from lunch or dinner the day before
Any combination of lunch or dinner choices


Lunch choices
Corn dog
Top ramen
Mac & cheese
Frozen pizza
Peanut butter & honey sandwich
Hot dog w/ ketchup


Dinner choices
Usually there’s a component of the dinner meal he’ll eat
Any of above lunch choices
White rice w/ soy sauce
Plain pasta w/ parmesan cheese
Frozen kids cuisine meal
Make your own pizza


**If you’re going out to eat, it is best to get Chinese food – that is what he will eat the most of. In particular Panda Express orange chicken w/ steamed rice. Also other Chinese places sweet & sour chicken w/ white rice.

** He will occasionally eat McD’s chicken nuggets but not always reliably

**Often I will require the boys to eat a fruit or veggie with dinner in order to get dessert. Oliver always chooses cut up green apples with the skin cut off. Sometimes he might go for watermelon or grapes.

**The biggest treat for Oliver is to get Hot & Ready pizza from Little Ceasars. Or order dominos pizza


Meals (con’t)

Brenden:

Breakfast choices
Scrambled eggs w/ toast
Scrambled eggs in a tortilla (breakfast burrito)
Pancakes
Frozen blueberry waffle
Toast w/ butter & cinnamon sugar
Hot chocolate


Lunch choices
Chicken fingers
Hot dog
Cheeseburger
Peanut butter & jelly sandwich


Dinner choices
He is usually pretty good about eating the meal provided
Or see lunch choices above
Fish sticks
Make your own pizza (he always likes the idea but doesn’t usually eat much)


**Often I will require the boys to eat a fruit or veggie with dinner in order to get dessert. Brenden always chooses to drink a big glass of V-8 Fusion juice. Sometimes he’ll eat some grapes or cut up red apples.

**Brenden is pretty agreeable as far as going out. Usually we tailor the choices towards where Oliver will eat and Brenden is happy to go along. The food court at the mall works well too.


Meals (con’t)

Dinner ideas

There should be fixings in the kitchen for the following meals that generally go over well. Of course feel free to improvise or go out or do whatever is easiest. These are just some ideas.

1. Chicken cordon blue – bake chicken in glass dish at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Make a basic cream sauce gravy or use chicken gravy packet in pantry. Serve with mashed potatoes (there is instant in the pantry or real potatoes in the fridge) and green peas (frozen). Maybe also serve bread – from Pillsbury rolls in fridge make croissants or French loaf. Oliver will eat bread, mashed potatoes w/gravy & green peas.
2. Pigs in a blanket – wrap croissant dough around cheese hot dogs. Serve with apples or grapes
3. Tacos – there is ground beef in the fridge and a taco seasoning packet and hard shell taco shells in the pantry. Also sometimes we like to add some refried beans to the meat – in the pantry. Sometimes I’ll make corn bread to go along (boxed mix in the pantry). Also can serve with Spanish rice. Oliver will eat a quesadilla or a soft-shell taco with rice and cheese and some corn bread with honey.
4. Pasta – Could use angel hair or penne (both in pantry). Brenden likes it topped with a combination of marinara and alfredo sauces (I think there are open bottles of each in the fridge). Sometimes I’ll add some shredded chicken to the sauce. Oliver will eat plain pasta with parmesan cheese. Could add some garlic bread or green peas.
5. Pot roast – The boys actually don’t eat the meat, but like the fixings. But I bought a roast in case you wanted to fix it on Sunday for the girls, etc.

Basic daily household schedule

7-8am – boys wake up (they’ll watch TV and snack on their own for quite a while)

7:30-8:30am – June wakes up (change diaper, give her a milk bottle)

8-9am – breakfast for everyone

9-10am – more TV/video games. Boys get ready to go to Seven Peaks

11am – Seven Peaks opens. Best to be there right at opening time. Rachel said she’d take them for a couple hours every day. (sunscreen, swim shirts, and passes are all in swim bag in laundry room)

June’s nap – sort of flexible, but if you’re staying home, might be good to coordinate it with when boys are gone. Usually she’ll be ready to go down somewhere between 10am and noon. To put her down for a nap, make sure she has a pacifier and blankie and close the doors and put her in her crib. She often will cry for about 5 minutes and then settle herself down.

1-2pm – lunch for boys after Seven Peaks and for June if she’s awake

3pm – probably a good time for an afternoon activity (see list of activity options)

5-7pm – Dinner prep & served

7-8pm – evening play time – encourage boys to go outside

8-9pm – bed

Boys bed routine:
Jammies. Dessert. Brush teeth. Floss. Rinse. Go to the bathroom. Read books. Prayer. Music on. Lights out.

June’s bedtime routine:
Prepare a bottle of whole milk – warm in microwave for 30 seconds. Jammies on.
It’s usually best to just wait until after the boys are in bed to put June down, since it’s virtually impossible for the boys to be quiet enough for her to stay asleep when they’re going to bed. So after they are quieted down (maybe before reading books) go into June’s room & close doors. Get blankie and pacifier and turn on music. Turn off lights. Sit in glider and feed her the bottle. When she pushes it away give her the pacifier and blankie to her face. Then take her over and put her in her crib and walk out. Sometimes she’ll cry a bit when you walk out, but usually she’ll calm herself in about 5-10 minutes.


Other schedule items:


Thursday @ 4pm @ Wasatch Elementary – Oliver’s TBall practice. Take glove (in black baseball bag in laundry room). You could arrange a carpool with Jacob Gates (344-0141) or Preston Lee (714-757-2033)

Saturday baseball games
Oliver’s game is at 11am
Brenden’s game is at 12pm
They are both at Edgemont elementary (on Timpview drive right across from Timpview high school).
Take Oliver’s green shirt, Brenden’s yellow shirts, both gloves, one hat to share, cleats, blanket to sit on, water bottles, snack for June, bat if Brenden wants his own. (most equipment is in black baseball bag in laundry room)
I’d expect them to hand out medals and pictures as this is the last game of the season.


Sunday church
11am-2pm @ 600 E. 700 N.


Monday swimming lessons @ 7 peaks
10:20-10:50am -- private lessons. not sure who their teachers are yet. Monday is the first day of the 2 week session. The staff at 7 peaks is completely inept and disorganized so I fully expect them to not know who we are, but I did call and schedule and pay for the lessons so just persist.
Remember to take goggles and maybe swimming shirts or else sunscreen.


Oliver likes to play with Jacob Gates and Joe B Jorgenson in the neighborhood.

Brenden likes to play with Chandler and Dylan in the neighborhood.

List of possible afternoon activities
The boys might want to contribute to this, but here’s a start

Color me mine (Riverwoods)
Chuck E. Cheeses (Brenden’s been saving his money for tokens or tickets)
Nicklecade
Feed the ducks (pond south of BYU)
Thanksgiving point (June would probably really like the petting zoo and pony rides now)
Bowling (either at Fat Cats or BYU)
Bike ride
Dollar store
Rock climbing @ the quarry (R & C know how to do this with the boys)
Library (I think Brenden has a library card in his wallet)

a horticultural update

Since I know you are all dying to know how our plants are doing, here is an update.

I. The Lemon Tree

Remember how sad I was about my poor struggling lemon tree? And it got worse. Leaves continued to fall until we were down to about 5. But I held out hope. I kept watering it and sending it well wishes. I gave it a bleach bath to kill the root rot and then I replaced the soil - laying a layer of stones on the bottom and then using peat moss for better drainage. Then I wished and hoped some more, put it outside for some serious sun therapy, and look at it now.


Look closer (you might need to click on it to blow it up)...

Yep! Those are new leaves and new lemons and new flower buds! It's alive! It's making a come back. I can't tell you how excited I am.


II. The Vegetable Garden

Our garden starts continue to grow on our dining room table. I continue to be amazed watching how nature works. I am still holding out hope that we might actually have a garden plot to put them in one of these days. We have a rock wall built and gave the go-ahead to the landscaper, but nothing's really happened yet.




III. "It looks like a nursery blew up in our front yard"












These were Scott's words when we pulled into the driveway on our way home from our beach week. EVERYTHING IS IN BLOOM! It is gorgeous but a little overwhelming and frankly a little embarrassing when compared to the rest of the neighborhood.

Case in point... our nextdoor neighbor's house:

And to top it all off our big pots were delivered from the greenhouse (where they've been incubating for the past couple months) and they are overflowing with even more colorfullness. The only down side is there's a ton of work to do all at once staking, trimming, weeding, spraying, dead-heading, and most especially, as I've been trying to teach June, remembering to stop and smell the roses. But it's worth it!


In other news...
Scott and I are heading off tomorrow on a long-overdue (1 year and 1 month, to be exact) 10-year anniversary celebration vacation. We're going to the Telluride Bluegrass Festival to enjoy a little outdoor entertainment by the likes of Ryan Adams, Swell Season, Ani DiFranco, and many more. Oh and hopefully we'll fit in some hacky sack and braiding with fellow festivarians. The kids will be in capable hands with Grandma Z (all cured!) and Aunts Rachel & Christine. Can't wait!

scenes from the beach

Still having a great time. So glad Grandma & Grandpa could make it on Monday.

something's missing

Dear Grandma & Grandpa Z,

We're trying to have a good time here at the beach. We're doing everything we're used to doing.

There's been lots of playing in the sand,

playing with cousins,

playing in the water,





digging the hole,

jumping in the hole,

eating on the patio,

playing games,

and general hanging out.


But we can't shake the feeling that something is missing. Something really important. Something that pulls us all together and organizes us and makes it fun and exciting and special. It's just not the same without you guys. So Grandma, GET BETTER SOON!!! Follow the doctors instructions and stay warm and rested and close to your room. Hopefully they'll let you out soon and the real beach week can begin.

Love,

the [rest of the] JAZBAND