Aspen Grove

If I could recommend a great family vacation ...this is it. Aspen Grove Family Camp just above Sundance ski resort up in the Provo, Utah canyon.


This summer we headed there for the 4th time. We love it. It is all about the beautiful outdoors and great activities with your family and friends. Don't go expecting hotel accommodations and great cuisine... that isn't part of the experience. However, there is a great icecream/candy shop and a few good meals in the cafeteria setting.
The kids break off into their age groups and have activities all day with enthusiastic, fun camp counselors. They are happy, your happy and you get plenty of happy together time too.



Tom grew up going to Aspen Grove every summer. I think the Farnsworths went 12+ years in a row. I just think of his mom packing and getting 12 kids ready for a week long trip. They had to eventually drive up 2 cars because they all couldn't fit in the station wagon. So, when my kids were complaining about the long drive to Utah, as they are stretched out and holding portable devices and watching a DVD, I just about went nuts. I have no patience for complaining.



This is where we stayed with the Barneys, Pothiers, Kroffs, Tanners, Brays, and Simas families.
It was nice to have a gathering room and to hear the creek outside your window at night.




We were nicknamed the "80s Ladies" from the girls.
(Left to Right) Jen Tanner, Shawni Pothier, Amy Kroff, Me, Gale Bray, Tracey Simas, Nicole Barney

About Time

I am a bit embarrassed to admit this....this is our first family photo with Isaac. I know....he's 6...ridiculous. Seriously what kind of mom am I. So we were a bit stiff and out of practice for this photo shoot with our friend Shawni. We were all up at Aspen Grove and she was willing to scout out a beautiful place to take the photos and then nice enought to encourage us to go through with the plan. Thank you Shawni. I almost aborted mission prior to, but I am glad we went through with it.

I also just figured out why I couldn't download pictures...K9 software. Weird problem--- solved.

Ashby Homecoming

It has been 3 years and we have all been anxious to have the Ashbys home. Our brother-in-law, Fred Ashby, was the Montevideo, Uruguay mission president. I captured their homecoming for Tom and my two youngest kids who were out of town. I can't describe the feeling it is to witness families reunited.


The Ashbys have 8 children. 13 year old Annie, their youngest, served right along side them. They have had 7 of their 8 children serve missions. In fact, Ben, was called to serve in their mission when they were there. While they were serving, they had 5 grandbabies born, 2 children married, and graduations from High School, College, and Dental School. Their son, Adam, is currently serving in Spain.

The Highlight of the Year!

Musical Theater has been in full swing the past 2 weeks. Their performance is Saturday and boy will they be sad when it ends. This is the highlight of the year. They always look forward to seeing their friends old and new.
We have been involved in school plays and nothing compares to this format. They learn several songs and scenes from a variety of hit musicals and put it all together in a great performance.


Ike got to join in the fun for just today's lunch break. He knows all the words to every song and wishes he could be a part of it, but he has to wait for 2nd grade. He was trying to lose me today at lunch so that I would somehow forget to take him home with me.

Finally a Friend

A friend showed up at our door last night. Now Isaac has a built-in friend to play Star Wars with all day, if he likes. Already this morning, Han has followed Ike from room to room fighting the evil Clones and Storm-troopers. They have also had a couple of arguments on how to go about their missions. Thanks Janet & Terry, you have no idea how bad Ike needed a friend. (Terry, you about gave me a heart attack when I saw you hiding behind the tree.)

Working Man

Cole landed his first summer job. He'll be doing yard work and clean-up from 7:30-2:00 everyday, in this beautiful Arizona weather. Thanks to his big cousin, Riley, for allowing him to join his crew.

Summer's Election

Summer has braved running for student council a few times. She has experienced winning and defeat. I loved how she handled her defeat, last year. She announced that she lost and would run next time. No tears, no regrets.
She came up with a win last Friday. Its a good thing because I wasn't much help with the campaign ideas. No real creative campaign juices were flowing over here. And then.... I wasn't even there to support her on election day. Tom and I were out of town (planned way before the idea of elections were even thought of). So I was relieved that I got a happy phone call. She'll make a great 6th grade secretary!

A Getaway

Tom and I escaped this weekend for a little getaway to see David Foster in concert. If you don't recognize the name, neither did most of the people I mentioned it to. He is songwriter and has put this amazing concert together to perform all the hits he has made over the years. It was an amazing 3 hour concert. However, there was one awkward moment when Cher came out ( wearing that infamous "If I could turn back time" outfit) and nobody really cheers. Then she makes a comment about how she is too old for David Foster now-- and he is very unconvincing in his denial. Then she leaves the stage and your left feeling awkward.
We had a great time with Terry and Janet as our traveling companions. Janet and I were pretty amazing back up singers throughout the concert....I'm sure of it.
Tom and I are big fans of Bobby Flay on the Food Network, so we wanted to try out his Mesa Grille. Sorry Bobby, we were not impressed. We liked the burger joint we went to the next day a lot better. I just don't like my southwestern cuisine too fancy.
It was a great quick trip and we arrived home for Mother's Day to celebrate with the family. Perfect weekend. Thanks T!

Lots of little Girls

For a little while there, heaven just sent down little girls into the Farnsworth family. 7 of us all had babies and they all happened to be girls. It has been so fun having them all grow up together.













Not quite a year ago, they really started working on singing in parts and learning power tap routines. Thanks to their cousin, Veva, for being such a great instructor!

Cole says goodbye to Gluten

Because Celiac Disease is genetic, I had Cole and Meg tested last week. We are going to wait until Isaac is older or showing symptoms. The tests are not as accurate when they are younger.
Today we found out that Cole has Celiac's too. He took the news like a champ and is willing to do anything if it will help him grow and live a healthier life. We already eat gluten-free dinners, as a family, so I'm not as stressed about it. The junior high lunch options will be trickier.
I am making a trip out to Whole Foods tomorrow. I went to Sprouts and Trader Joe's today. I have to say that living gluten-free is much easier with all the options & food labeling that is out there. Our favorite pizza place...now , Spinato's, has a gluten-free menu.

We will have a funeral tonite for some of his favorites:

1. Taco Bell bean burrito (his all-time favorite food since he was 4)

2. Cole's "No-bake" cookies.

3. Cole's homemade Sunday rolls

4. Blueberry muffins

5. Spinach pasta

He is now going to start learning and perfecting some new gluten-free items. Good thing he has Summer to collaborate with.
Thanks Lori for the flourless macaroon recipe that he loved so much at your house. Those cookies helped soften the blow!

Good Reading

"I find television to be very educating.
Every time somebody turns on the set,
I go in the other room and read a book. "

~Groucho Marx



I love reading. I love to see my children reading. I love to read what my children read, but sometimes that doesn't always happen. Check out the literate mother(thanks Ruth). It provides a rating system from 0-5 based on sexual content, language, adult themes, and violence. It is also a great place to find a recommendation.

What's Going On....

With Easter approaching.....we've been playing rabbits. I am usually the farmer that catches him eating the crops and he scurries away to his burrow. Most of the time I am just the nice mommy rabbit that feeds him carrots.

Successfully made it to our favorite FHE destination "Water and Ice" this week. Last week we did a u-turn and headed back home because apparently it was impossible for all four kids to sit close to one another without bugging each other.

Saturday chores. We had heaps of leaves from all the windy days we've had. Sometimes these big beautiful trees we inherited with this house are a pain. But why complain when I have these great little workers to help clean them up.

Many scooter expeditions. This was the biggest hit for Christmas this year. Cole is good about sharing it with everyone, including his little pachyderm.

We are into cheese egg whites these days. I know.... we replace one cholesterol fattening part for the other. But we are back on an egg and Star Wars kick. There is always a light saber war being fought.

I might go as far to claim that these two can play happily for longer periods of time.

A very sad Meg lost her beloved parakeet to the gift of flight. She is now trying to train her new, very stubborn, parakeet "Fiji."

Meg is a pro at potato peeling and Cole at rolls. They help me out every Sunday.

Neighborhood Hacky Sack

The Smart Girl's Guide

Meg and I are reading this book together at night and it is such a darling helpful book. It takes all sorts of situations and explains the polite way to handle them. It is so cute! I love the American Girl self-help books. They have all sorts of topics ranging from How to get along with my sister, learning how to manage money, standing up for yourself, to clutter control 101. I have found some of them at Target ranging from $3-8.
Thanks to Meg for doing this little reenactment pose.

Summer's Got Her Groove Back

It has been 3 weeks of gluten-free living and what a difference it has made. I just want to shout out my gratitude from the rooftops. I am grateful for a doctor that didn't just dismiss it as stress. I am grateful that we caught it early. I am grateful that she has embraced this new way to eat. I am grateful for restaurants and brands that are offering "gluten-free" options. I am grateful for all the great suggestions, tips, recipes, and support. I am grateful that she looks at some of her "old" favorites and puts a smile on ---"I am strong and don't need that anymore!" I am grateful for the amazing difference it has made in her. If I had any doubts about the correlation between what we put into our bodies and how we feel, those are dissolved.
This picture, although dark, just captures the change in her. She has so much more energy now. She goes out and hits tennis balls every day and up until it gets dark. She has decided to put her new found energy into tennis.

Brian Regan

Last night we got the chance to go see Brian Regan--our family's favorite funny guy. He offered to come support the Steve Young & Anasazi Foundations. (Big fan of the Anasazi program).
My kids were in heaven and our faces are sore from continual laughter. He had a lot of great new material. If you haven't heard him, I highly recommend getting his CDs. My kids love listening to him in the car or on their CD players before they go to bed. He is good and clean.


Thanks to Tom's parents, we had great seats, with the Shills, and could see every contorted facial expression and monkey-like movement he made. He is so funny to listen to, but you have to watch him to get the full affect.
On our way out to the parking lot, I turned around and couldn't find Tom. He came rushing out to tell us he had finagled us backstage to meet him. We ran, me not so gracefully in heels, back inside. Kudos to Tom for being bold enough!!


While we were waiting to meet Brian, Steve Young and Jerry Rice asked Cole if he would like to get a picture with them.


And for curious minds that wonder what Brian Regan's wife looks like.....here she is.

Princess Picnic

My girls and their cousin Cosey invited these cute little girls, in our neighborhood, to a princess picnic today. Summer and Cosey met last night to make a plan and menu. Summer loves to make a plan and prepare for an event. She is my list, goal-making girl.

The invitation asked that they dress up and bring their doll.


Meg offered free airplane rides. We don't want to be "too girly"

I love this girl. She has had such a great attitude with the big change in her diet. She hasn't blinked an eye at ordering her hamburger without the bun and saying "No thanks" to a lot of her favorites. She has done great and kept her smile through it all.

Thank you thank you to everyone that has called and e-mailed me information about Celiac and living gluten-free. I appreciate the network of love & support that we give and get from one another. My mother-in-law brought us by a gluten-free chocolate cake mix (from Costco) and we made it today. It was actually yummy...Yeah! I found a great blog that has gluten-free, healthy recipes that I am excited to try.

Update on Summer

Thank you for the calls and nice e-mails about Summer. Today we got the results back from the biopsy and she does have Celiac's. I was prepared for it, but still shed some tears after I hung up the phone with her doctor. I appreciate those that have offered your help and suggestions for a gluten-free diet. I plan to take you up on your offers.

A Bit of Cozumel

(Push the HQ button for better viewing)

Tom and I LOVE scuba. Before I was certified, I thought it would be kind of scary, always looking over my shoulder for creatures of the ocean. However, after my first dive, I knew I was hooked. You find yourself wishing a shark (not too big) would swim by. There is something about being down below that makes it feel safe. I don't like playing in the waves or swimming in the ocean, just scuba diving.

We look forward to our scuba trip every year. Our destination is always Cozumel (a little island off of the shores of Cancun). We may break out and try something different, but I like that it isn't hard to travel to, has beautiful reefs, and Carribean water--- really clear and warm.
We always go with our scuba group and have a great time. I look forward to when our kids can get certified and join us. I am terrible about picture taking, but this year I borrowed Summer's flip video and captured a few moments. I count on Del and Shawni's photography talent for the rest.

It is a great escape, but I always look forward (just as much) to come back home to my kids. Thanks to my mom , Bonnie, and Janet for taking such good care of them.

Summer

I have never been to Phoenix Children's Hospital, but that all changed this week. Summer and I have been there enough to make up for that and some. Before you think something terrible has occured.....Summer is fine. She is going to school, tennis lessons, and bike rides with friends. She just has been having constant stomach aches for the past 6 weeks. She saw a specialist, took some blood tests and then some more tests on her liver and gall bladder. The above picture was the gall bladder test. The gall bladder test took 3 hours of just lying still under a big x-ray machine. Summer was very patient through it all. Tomorrow we go back for an endoscopy. We are hoping to solve this riddle soon. Our doctor suspects celiac's disease. If she does happen to have that we won't call it that, we'll just say she has to live "gluten-free." I just hate the word disease.
She will no longer be able to eat wheat, rye, barley, or malt. There is still so much that is fine to eat and we will focus on the things she still can have. Like anything new, there will be a bit of a learning curve, but I have already gotten some great advice and suggestions from some friends...thank you. But, for now, we are thinking positive and hoping that the biopsy comes back in our favor.
With all of these long tests, blood taken, IV administered---the worst part of the whole process has been our meeting with the Pediatric GI Specialist. After her long drawn-out explanation on how our GI tracts have evolved from a primitive ape-like system to the one we have today......she lost us. After she left us alone, Summer and I started cracking up.