Napoleon Dynamite Party

Shortly before I left Herriman Smith's-another story-a few friends and their families and Hannah & I had a Napolean Dynamite party. I'm not sure why...we just wanted to. And I'm glad we did. We laughed. We had lots ND food including (of course) Quesadillas, Tots, AND 2% Milk. I miss them! I think Hannah thought we were a tad over the top, but in the end, she had a great time. She made a great Kip!

Here we all are-

Pedro, Deb, ND, Kip, Uncle Rico, Summer

Trevor and his wife, Cheryl aka

Pedro & Summer

Jonathan and Shelly aka

Napolean & Deb

Their two darling girls, Isabelle and Ada aka

Mini-Debs

Hannah aka Kip-LOL!

Kip & Uncle Rico

Our Napolean Dynamite Smorgasbord

State Fair 2008

Waaaay back on the 10th of September, Hannah & I, along with some friends, went up to the state fair. We really do love the fair. One memory I have from my youth...this is really random...I "played" one of those fortune telling booths. I discovered that my ideal mate is/was...drum roll please...Rick Springfield. Hmmm...I wonder if he is still single.
Anyway, one of the reasons we go each year is because we are involved with 4-H. This year Hannah (along with other family members and friends) had a few things on display. Way to go 4-Hers! (And I didn't even get any pictures of her things on display! You can see them in our County Fair post here.) We also love to go see the animals. We went with some friends, Shelly & her daughter, Ada. Ada loves horses. We specifically planned our trip this year so that we could go see the Draft Horse Pull. We didn't stay for the whole show, but it was fun & interesting while we stayed. Hannah couldn't wait to see the bunnies, and I wanted to see the goats. And the big attraction this year? Big Al, a giant alligator. I don't know if he was "giant" (or real, for that matter), but it was worth it for a buck. We saw the butter sculpture...always a hit. And we sat a watched a magician for a little bit...some great tricks, some not so great! Lol. Not a lot of riding rides...at $4 a pop, it didn't seem, well, it was a rip-off! The big roller coaster slide was great though! A nice carnie called out to us and let the girls play a basketball game & gave them a stuffed animal anyway. And I was sooo looking forward to a Navajo Taco-9 dollars made it a little less appealing. Shelly & I split one. All in all, another fabulous state fair. And Shelly even "received" a speeding ticket on the way home! (Couldn't resist!)

Farmer Ada...love the fingers-out-of-the-neck look.

Milkin' the cow...they did pretty good!

These horses were soo BIG!

Wilbur!

That's Some Pig!

More Hangin' in the Hammock

I have been informed by a mother or two that Hannah's friends are actually "following" our blog-probably to catch a glimpse of themselves. I'm glad. So, girls, this is for you!

First Fifth Grade Field Trip

You can never get enough of Timp Cave! School has been in just one week and already a field trip! I had the opportunity to visit Timpanogos Cave National Monument one last time this year with Hannah & the 5th grade. We had a great time, as usual. Those kids are funny. I wish I could explain it better...but I can't. They are just funny! They are at this "I'm pretty smart" stage, but they know they don't know it all yet. And because of that, most all of them can talk a lot about everything, but they are still so willing to listen to what you (or each other) have to say or teach them. It's pretty fun to just listen to them interact with each other. They were pretty well-behaved too! I was impressed at how well they get along with each other too, close friends or not. Hannah even made a new friend. And not a lot of complaining on the way up. And I have to say, every time I go through the caves, I learn something different! I love it! Like I said, you can never get enough of the caves!

After, we walked down the canyon a bit to "Swinging Bridge" picnic area for lunch. While we waited for the bus, one of Hannah's friends, AB, pointed out something on a tree. As we got closer, we thought it had flown away. See if you can see it? Very cool!

The Twins, Hannah, & her new friend

Ms. Washburn & her class if front of a fault line. They were very cute when I took this picture. We took one with Ms. Washburns' camera and they smiled. When I pulled out my camera, they asked, "Can we do silly faces?" ABSOLUTELY!

Inside the "Big Room". LOL. I have forgotten AGAIN what the name of this room is inside Middle Cave. If someone remembers, please comment!

The Heart, of course.

At "Swinging Bridge"-They were "racing" leaves and things down the river!

Here is the cool little "thing" we found...can you see it?

I looked it up when we got home. It is called a Question Mark Butterfly. And it does a very good job of camouflaging itself. It gets it's name because of the little white mark on it's wing. It is supposed to look like a question mark, but I am having a hard time seeing it...maybe a sickle. But that doesn't sound as nice.

Here it is a little farther back & with it wings opened. This is what AB saw first.

We ALL thought this was cool.

Hannah & her friends. (Maybe I will write a book & call it that.)

Habitat for Humanity

I had the fabulous opportunity through Smith's to go do Habitat for Humanity. As I was trying to keep up on company happenings, I noticed a little shout out for volunteers for Habitat. I thought to myself, "Huh, I have never done that & I think I want to." I couldn't convince any one of my fellow employees at my store to go with me, so I called my cousin, Nicole (lovingly referred to as Cole or Coler-up...btw, she is going to kill me for this), who works at another store to go with me. She happily agreed...even after she had worked 84 hours at her store & is trying to redo her own new home. (I felt a little guilty after I found all this out, but she is a trooper!) What a great thing for people to be involved with. As we were pulling out every little staple out of every little floor board, and running across earrings, pennies and playing cards, it made me think about those people and those memories they made in and will forever have of that house. It also made me think of the mom and 4 children that will be moving into this new home and what memories they will make there. And I'm glad I got to make a few of my own with Cole. I hope I get the opportunity again! (Blisters & all!)

Me & Cole...

"Havin' Fun with Habitat for Humanity"...

Besides Cole & I, there were 2 other Smith's non-Big Wig employees, Brian and Alicia, and Jim Halsey, Mark Tuffin, & Peter Barth. I don't know how we ended up being there the same day as the "Big Wigs", but we did. But we had a great time!

Hangin' in the Hammock

I just thought this was cute...Hannah & A wanted to get together to play...but really they wanted to get together to read in the hammock...they are good friends!

Alpine Animal Lovers-Our 4H Group

We have a had a few pretty busy weeks. Partly because of school starting, but partly because we have been busy with 4H & getting ready for the Utah County Fair. A friend of mine & I decided a few years ago to jump on board with our girls into this whole 4H world. It has definitely been one of the more fun decisions we have made. Especially this year. It is always a lot of work. But for some reason, this year it seemed liked we had more fun, less stress & accomplished more than we usually do. I'm not sure why...better 4Hers? Anyway, here are a few pictures of the girls and their some of their projects. We are so proud of these girls. They all had something that "made it to state". That means that it was so awesome, it moves on to compete at a state level. Up til now they have competed at a county level. And you may ask why Alpine Animal Lovers? It's their club and they named it...and it is soooo appropriate. It makes me smile. I often wonder if these same girls will still have the same love for animals 20+ years from now.

Nevada and her super awesome tie-dye shirt & her card book....kind of hard to see in the back.

Cute Brighton and her almost-as-cute as her mirror...she also had some cool earrings that went to state, but we couldn't get a picture of them...locked up in the "super cool stuff" cabinet.

Hannah and her entrepreneurship poster in the back...hard to see...it is all about her cookie business & all her hard work.

Her recipe book & her "Ward Famous" oreos...

Her Moyle Park Book-all about her ancestors and her volunteering at Moyle Park & her mirror...she also had an awesome babysitting kit that went to state...she is prepared to babysit if someone calls!

Here are a few pictures of them loom knitting their hats...sometimes more chatting goes on than knitting...but it is ALL part of 4H!

Dyeing to Go Back to School

We had so much fun tie-dyeing up the canyon, we decided to have a party and invite our neighbors and friends! It was fun to see the kids walking around wearing their shirts over the following days. Anyway, here are some pictures from our "We're Tie-Dyeing to Go Back to School Party". We had a great time-again. We are even thinking ahead to next year!

Hannah and her cousins at the Soaking Station...

Jess at the Twisting Station...

And our good friend Emily helping us out at the Dyeing Station...we underestimated what we were getting ourselves into...Jodi got stuck inside mixing dyes so, thank goodness, Emily filled in. But, unfortunately, I don't have a picture of Jod. :(

But, I do have a cute picture of her Emma at the Drink/Cookie Station.

Hannah's Haircut

Hannah has had long hair for a long time. She has liked having it long, but more than that, she has really been wanting to donate her hair to Locks of Love. I was feeling a little bad for her. You could she her inner turmoil. She wanted to cut it, but she didn't want her hair to be too short. Believe me, I was pullin' for the haircut. And I can remember how cute she is with short hair! Needless to say, she absolutely loves it! So, without further adieu...

Before...

Here is Suzi-Q taking the first "swipe"! The picture doesn't really show Hannah's face, but I really thought she might cry...I almost told Suzi to stop!

and AFTER!

The Locks of Love Donation!