when lincoln finds the camera

31

Happy 31 years, Jed! We absolutely adore you. But you know that.

welcome home grandma and grandpa!

Two weeks ago my parents returned home from their two-year mission in Malaysia. They flew halfway around the world to New York, packed up a moving truck, and drove out to Utah, stopping to see us in Denver on the way. We were SO happy to see them again! They both looked great and we loved hearing amazing stories from their mission.

our big news

It's official!

Our family is picking up here in Lakewood, Colorado next month, and moving to Missoula, Montana! So we are excitedly and busily planning our future, making our counter-clockwise rounds in the states surrounding Utah (Arizona to Colorado and now to Montana).

Jed was offered a job as a research historian for a company called HRA (Historical Research Associates). HRA is hired by outside companies and the government to research litigation issues and write official reports, mostly about water, land, and environmental issues, right up Jed's alley. Jed will be traveling a lot around the country. He will still be working on his dissertation and will likely finish it next year.

We are super excited about this and know that it is a perfect move for our family. Missoula is about an 8-hour drive north of Salt Lake and is located on the western edge of the state (close to the Idaho border). It is gorgeous country surrounded by rivers and mountains and wilderness galore (think: "A River Runs Through It"). The University of Montana is also located there, called the Harvard of the West. The population is around 70,000 (not too big, not too small) and it has a great community atmosphere. The city has received numerous awards, including an award for one of the top 100 great US cities to raise a family, Tree City award, and recognition for being a very bike-friendly city. They have a thriving music and arts scene and place a lot of emphasis on historical preservation. Missoula is close to Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks, Idaho, Canada, Oregon, Washington. It's not as cold as other areas of Montana (elevation is only 3,000 feet as it's closer to the coast) and gets about as much snow as Salt Lake City. When I talked to one prospective landlord, he told me that people go to Missoula to visit and they never want to leave.

We will pack up the moving truck here around December 18, drive to Utah and spend the holidays with family, then head up to our new home at the end of December. Wish us well!

love to grandma rogers

LaVon Solomon Rogers, Jed's grandma, passed away this month and we attended her funeral in Salt Lake City. She lived a full life and was blessed with a peaceful passing. She was a terrific lady who brought joy to others around her. She loved dancing and even tap-danced in her later years. Even though I personally never got to know her, Jed and I had the chance to live in her home rent-free during the early years in our marriage--a huge blessing to us. We are so grateful for her good life.

With Uncle Steve and Aunt Jana Rebekah, Madison, Henry, Ed, Kristen, Jed, Lincoln, Isaac, and Holly

congrats, ikey!

We're so proud of Isaac for receiving the "Responsible Husky Award" at school. Way to go, buddy!

pottying

It's definitely true what they say. Parenting, in some ways, is easier the second time around. Now I have the retrospective wisdom that the timing of potty training is not about me or whether I'm a good parent, but only about my child and his own readiness. Poor Isaac had to suffer before I could gain this precious parenting gem.

Lincoln has responded well to the 3-Day Potty Training method (let me know if you want a copy of the ebook) and of all the methods I've read about it seems like one of the best. You have to be extremely consistent and vigilant through the 3-day period and you need the guts to go cold turkey into undies (we threw out all the diapers--even at night--but he almost always stayed dry). But it has saved a lot of grief for all of us!

been trick-or-treating like a dog

The boys--as can be expected--LOVED Halloween and trick-or-treating this year! We were overjoyed that the weather--though blizzardy only two days before, dumping two feet of snow--cooperated on the night of, and it was actually pretty warm and pleasant. Lincoln was a trooper, traipsing close behind Isaac despite the cumbersome kangaroo suit. We lucked out in our neighborhood--we didn't even go to many houses but the boys brought in quite a haul, including 4 huge candy bars each.

Isaac was John Lennon--his favorite Beatle. We tried to get him to bring his guitar to serenade the candy-givers, but no such luck.

"It's been a hard-day's night.

Been trick-or-treating like a dog.

And when I get to my home

I'll dump my loot on the floor

And I will eat all night."

Link loved his little Joey and kept trying to take it out and kiss it.

the coyote and the horsie

The other day I heard a sound coming from the top of the stairs, so I grabbed my camera to catch this impromptu moment (I did NOT set this up). Yep, there's a new band around these parts. . . a two-man group that loves to jive to the younger's favorite tunes. After this song, they proceeded on to the other two songs in their repertoire, "Baa Baa Black Sheep" then "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."

welcome, little one!

We wanted to introduce the newest member of our family. . . Evelyn Juliet Rogers, born to Spence and Juliet Rogers!

not your typical harvestival

All fall we've been looking forward to attending Harvestival! It's a fall event sponsored by Grant Family Farms, the CSA (community supported agriculture) we've been members of this year. We paid in advance in the spring and each week for six months we've had mouth-watering local, fresh, organic veggies and fruit delivered to our neighborhood pick-up location. It has also saved on shopping time and packaging. We have really loved being a part of this and the food is incredible! The Harvestival was a big event where we could visit the farm, listen to live tunes, and the kids could pick pumpkins.

However. . . . we were hit this year with an early blizzard--smack dab on the weekend of the event! But we insanely decided to brave it anyway. Kristen was visiting the same weekend and came along (she was a godsend to help out with the boys!). The boys ADORE their Oma. They followed her around like puppies all weekend. Tractor/hay bale ride through a wintery wonderland Pumpkin patch??? Lincoln could have stayed all day at the petting zoo, even if his toes froze. Well, you can't say we're not adventurous! But we might have to hit another fall event later in the month. It wasn't quite the same . . .

jammin' with oma

congrats, grampy great!

We want to send out a big congratulations to Jed's grandpa, Bill Smart, for winning the Evans Handcart Award for a book he wrote about his great-grandfather, William B. Smart, who was a colonizer of the Uinta Basin. It's the same award Jed won last year. We were so happy we could make the trip to Logan to attend the ceremony.

Lincoln saw his cousin Audrey for the first time in over a year! They're the same age. All the cousins on Jed's side: Henry, Lincoln, Isaac, Ellie, Andrew, and Audrey (c'mon Spence, we're waiting on yours! :) Will, Emily, Audrey and Andrew Madison, Rebekah, Henry, and Ellie

granddaughter day

The same weekend we attended Jed's Grandpa's award ceremony, I snuck up to Idaho with my sisters and girl cousins for our annual Granddaughter Day get-together at my Grandma Smith's house. We scrapbooked gorgeous black-and-while heritage photos of Grandma and Grandpa and their ancestors this year. Wendy, Grandma, and Julie Sam, Steph, Grandma, Suzy, Sally, and Skye Sherrie, Lisa, Grandma, Michelle, Kim, me

hooray for ouray

We made our second annual trip to Ouray and Telluride Colorado last month for Jed's Imogene trail race. The race begins in Ouray around 8,000 feet and the racers climb 17 miles up and over Imogene mountain pass at 13,000 ft., and back down to 8,700 ft. at Telluride. Out of 1500 runners, Jed placed 17th overall at a time of 2:41:44. I was proud of him for beating his time last year by nearly 9 minutes.

Jed and our friend, Jeff Roberts, who also ran the race

southern colorado trip

As part of our Ouray/Telluride trip, we decided to travel south through Silverton and Durango (for a research trip).

From Telluride to Mountain Village, CO, there is a free public transportation system--the only one of its kind in the world--a gondola ride over the mountain! The boys loved it. Ouray, nestled on all sides by steep, pictorial mountain cliffs, is GORGEOUS. The famed train that travels between Silverton and Durango Silverton is a quaint little touristy town famous for ore mining of yore and the Silverton train. Link with a Lynx! Wildlife museum in Durango We LOVED Durango! So much that we want to live there. No joke.