U is for Uno

Congratulations to Kort for winning! And Kendrie for beating Mom and Dad, too!

Apparently, I am not very good at Uno. I was the biggest loser.

V is for...

(W day got postponed)

Veggies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner

Vending machines at the mall

Grandma Vicky

and

Video Games.

X is for Xtreme

To some of you this may not be the essence of xtreme sports, but to us, well, let's just say we had to buy some more band aids. We consider this xtreme because we opted out of using protective elbow pads, knee pads and helmets. Thankfully we only had knees scraped up.

A New Twilight Trailer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCHbGig30GM

Y is for WHY?

Because most of my answers to the question "why?" is followed by "because I said so" or "I don't know", we decided to make WHY? day. The kids were allowed to ask me any question their little minds could come up with and I had to answer with a real answer. If I didn't know the answer, we googled it. It wound up not being as scary as I thought it was going to be. Here are a few of their WHY's:

Why is the sun up when the moon is up sometimes?

Why did we get Maggie?

Why are there clouds in the sky?

Why does rain smell funny?

Why do we get stuffy noses?

Why do we bleed?

Why do people believe in ghosts?

Z is for Zoo

We decided to go backwards - We started with Z

I took a lot of pictures. No worries though, I didn't post ALL of them. Just my favorites.

My favorite animal to watch at the zoo. Why? I don't know. I just really like the giraffes. We had great timing on this exhibit. Just as we got there, one of the zoo keepers was just showing up to give Daphne and her baby boy a treat. We got to be really up close and personal.

Did you know their tongues are that long? We learned that the end of it is black because it doesn't have any feeling. That way they can pull of branches that have thorns on it and it won't hurt them.

The Bird Show

We also got to be on the front row of the bird show. The birds were flying right over our heads. In fact my forehead got clipped by the wing of the Golden Eagle. I held very still. It was very cool. Hard to get in focus pictures, but still very cool.

Kendrie got picked to be an audience volunteer. The trainer asked for a very brave volunteer to help them train a new addition to the zoo. Kendrie was eager enough that he picked her and then asked her if she had ever heard of a California Condor. She had know idea what it was, but it made me nervous. I think a Condor could pick her up and fly off with her. He was just kidding of course. He put some seed into her hand and told her hold very still. And of course he was standing right in my way and I wasn't allowed to stand up and move to get a better shot. You can kind of see her expression when the dove landed on her. She was very good not to move her arm the bird was on, but you can tell she was a little nervous.
This is the bird that clipped my forehead. The Golden Eagle.
Doesn't it look like it is looking right at you?

The majestic Bald Eagle. They didn't let this one fly around, but it still demanded respect and attention. Very cool.

Ok, this one creeped me out a bit. I know it's not real, but my imagination didn't like it very much. Ewwww!

Kortlan, being a log.

THE END

Tune in later for Y is for whY day

Summer Fun

So, the kids and I have found that we are just about out of ideas to keep them busy this summer during their free time. My mom found this article on LDS Living Magazine online. I won't be able to do some of these, but it gives me a start (I will just think of a different activity starting with that letter if I can't do the one listed). If I begin tomorrow and do one letter activity every weekday, I will be to Z on Saturday August 23rd, the Saturday before school starts (YEA!). So here's to the rest of summer, starting with ABC, it's as easy as 123!

The ABCs of Summer Fun

A
American Idol
Let your kids spend hours performing their own songs and routines to their favorite tunes. Really it’s just karaoke with a new twist, but your kids will love to pretend they’re the latest American Idol.

B
Bug Olympics
Have your own Olympic competition featuring those guys in your own backyard. Have each child collect a nonflying contestant, such as a millipede, pill bug, or other harmless insect, from the backyard. Draw two circles on a piece of cardboard, and then put the racers inside the inner circle. The first contestant to exit the outside circle wins. Remind players to return their contestants to the wild when the games are over. Use cups for safe transport, or use vacuum-style collectors.

C
Collections
Start a collection this summer. Find something you have an interest in, research it, and begin collecting. Stamps, coins, rocks, seashells— the sky’s the limit!

D
Disposable Cameras
Give your children a disposable camera and let them take pictures of all of their new discoveries and activities. Then, at the end of the summer have a family friend decide which picture is best without knowing who took it. Award a prize to the winner.

E
Everything for lunch!
For just one day, invite your family to have anything and everything they want for lunch. From Oreos to fruit snacks to potato chips and Popsicles, they’ll think you’re the coolest parent in the neighborhood!

F
Fishing
Grab some fishing poles and head for the nearest lake or stream. This is a great activity to do as a family. It can also help some of your Scout-age boys with a merit badge or two. Even if you don’t catch anything, you can still enjoy some time in the great outdoors.

G
Gifts
Let your family make a gift for someone else. Whether it’s a friend who’s sick or a parent or grandparent they don’t get to see often enough, taking an afternoon to make a homemade gift is a thoughtful way to spend the day!

H
Homemade Salsa
With so many vegetables in season, why not make an easy snack all the family will enjoy. Choose your favorite salsa veggies, add some seasonings, mix it all up, and you’ve got a great, healthy treat.

I
Indoor Campout
Whether it’s rainy outside or not, let the kids go camping—inside. If you have a room large enough, set up the tent inside. Let the kids put chairs in a “campfire” circle, eat their meals in the tent, and tell scary stories at night! They can have all the fun of camping, without having to pack up your house. And best of all: no mosquitoes.

J
Jewelry Design
What girl doesn’t like to make jewelry? Beads, clasps, and strings are fairly inexpensive and can provide hours of creative fun. Boys can also get involved and will enjoy being able to make presents for Mom or Grandma.

K
Kool-Aid Slushies
Put 1 cup water, ½ cup cherry flavor (already sweetened) drink powder, and 1 cup ice cubes in blender. Blend on high until smooth. Add 2 more cups ice cubes. Blend until smooth.

L
Litter Pick-up
Build civic pride with your family. Help make the neighborhood look better by picking up trash that others have left behind. (Don’t forget to wear heavy-duty gloves.)

M
Museums
Going on tours of local museums is fun, educational, and a welcome change of pace. Whether it’s an art museum or a dinosaur museum, kids will love to get out of the neighborhood and will be amazed at all of the different things museums have to offer.

N
Neighborhood Olympics
Get together with other parents and create a Summer Olympics for all the kids on your block. The kids can help create different races and events; let them spend a few days “training” and then let the games begin!

O
Outdoor Painting
Tie up large canvases or old bed sheets, buy some nontoxic paint, and let the kids express their creativity with paintbrushes or their hands.

P
Puppet Show
This activity will keep the kids busy for hours, if not days. They’ll love to make the puppets, rehearse, make programs for the show, and then perform it for family home evening or for their friends.

Q
Queen for a Day
Have your kids take turns electing a member of the family to be queen (or king) for a day. On that day, the chosen person will have his or her choice of meal, will not have to do daily chores, and will be able to choose an activity to do together as a family.

R
River Wading
Kids young and old will love making a trip to a local river or stream. If the river isn’t too fast and if there’s plenty of adult supervision, floating on tubes or even just wading and splashing will make for hours of outdoor fun.

S
Sandbox Fun
Make it large and fill it with toys. For older kids you could coordinate a sand castle contest and award a prize to the most elaborate design.

T
Tie-dyeing
Use nontoxic dyes and let the kids create their own designs. This is a great activity for the backyard and for several kids. Let them make a couple of shirts and then they will have a choice of unique creations that they can wear all summer long.

U
Uno
Make this classic card game a family event. Start a family Uno tournament that goes all week, month, or summer. The kids will have fun playing with Mom and Dad, and even more fun beating them every now and then.

W
Weekly Library Trips
This is a good activity for kids old and young. Local libraries almost always offer summer reading programs or different activities during the week that are fun for kids as young as three.

X
Xtreme Sports
Most energetic kids would love to take a crack at rock climbing, mountain biking, skateboarding, or other sports that require a little spunk, and summer is the perfect opportunity.

Y
YMCA
Older kids will love summer passes that allow them to use pools or workout rooms. The younger kids will also enjoy attending one of their many day camps. This will also give you a little bit of free time to relax and enjoy your summer, too.

Z
Zoo
Going to the zoo is always educational. Take a day to appreciate and learn about some of the unique animals you don’t get to see in everyday life.

A Week of Fun

Last week started with a Kolsen family reunion in Tremonton, Utah. We camped at a church owned camp site and had a great time. (Minus the cottonwood trees that made it look like it was snowing when the wind picked up, very bad for allergies). Kortlan's favorite: the fire and the 4 wheelers. Kendrie's favorite: being adventurous and going for hikes with her cousins, and the 4 wheelers.

Miss Maddie. She would collect all the Bocce balls and then put her legs over them and say "Where balls go?" then she would pull her legs up and say "There they are!" Such a cutie! I could have taken pictures of her the whole time we were there.

Some of the youngest of the grandkids (by their favorite place, the fire!)

After returning home on the 2nd, we cleaned the trailer, did laundry, had a few swimming lessons and then headed up to Pocatello for the 4th.

After recovering from a long night, we decided to go fishing on Saturday afternoon. Grandma Jack knows a doctor who has made a trout farm on his land. So we headed down to Inkom for some fishing. It was a really pretty spot next to the Portneuf River with lots of greenery and bugs. We caught quite a few but released most of them. The kids didn't like Grandpa using their wormy friends as bait. (I think they have attachment issues) And they had a hard time doing the catch and release thing. Kortlan finally had enough and said "What's the point?"

Now it's back to the routine of swimming lessons, golf lessons, house cleaning, trying to stay cool (although it is a lot easier to stay cool in 90 degrees than it was in Mesquite at 115. To my southern friends, I'm sending you cold thoughts.) and yard work. I can't believe how fast weeds grow here. We pull them up one day and the next day they are a foot tall again! Frustrating! But I am getting a nice tan out of it. We have to look on the bright side, right?

Now that that holiday is over, we are now looking forward to Thursday when we get to go pick up Danielle so she can hang out with us for a few days! We can hardly wait!