The Tooth Fairy Visits . . .

Halle for the first time!  I cannot even describe how excited she was about this.  A few days before her tooth actually fell out, we were at the park eating lunch.  She bit into an apple and started complaining that her tooth hurt.  I asked her if it was loose . . . and all the sudden . . . you could see in her eyes that she made the connection.  Halle said her tooth had been hurting for several days, and apparently she had had no idea why . . . until I asked her if it was loose! Anyway . . . when it finally fell out . . . there was too much excitement to describe!  It's a big deal to loose your first tooth!  

Kids at our house get a quarter from the tooth fairy for their teeth . . . and this has been a prized possession of hers ever since.

Halle is in the Spotlight!

Halle wanted to play soccer this year . . . and finally she is old enough to.   She had her first game last night and  had SO MUCH fun.   She loved being told that she is a fast runner . . . and I think she likes that her team has purple shirts.

Anyway . . . it is fun to see Halle start to do her own things.  We are all so used to going to games and such for Abby . . .     which is also fun . . . but it was fun to see Halle's eyes light  up when she saw it was her turn to shine.

The Search is Over

Ben and I have put this off for a VERY long time.  Up until now, we have  been fitting our family of 5  into a Toyota Camry . . . our one and only car.  This has been fine . . . but a little tight.  We finally broke down and bought a Honda Pilot.  We LOVE it!  It seats 8, has leather and a DVD player.  What more could we want?

Hiking the Y - a rare post by Ben:) - actual date of hike: 8/23/2008

Abby's been begging us for months to hike the "Y" (the mountain behind BYU that has a huge Y on it--made of cement and rock and painted all white). So finally Abby and I headed out early Saturday morning and we hike the 1 mile-plus trail up to the Y.

Abby did great! We hike up to the Y in about 35 minutes and she never really needed anytime to rest. Once we were up there we had a great view of the Utah valley (click on the pictures to see a larger version of each pic). 

We had a great time chilling on the "Y" looking out over the valley, BYU campus, Utah Lake, Seven Peaks (water park), etc. We also had a great time eating peanuts, Ritz chips, and carrots. You see, Abby thought we were only going to be drinking water and eating carrots on the Y--which she was so excited to do. Boy, was she surprised and SO, SO excited when I pulled some peanuts and chips out of my backpack that I forgot about from an airplane trip I took a while back! (Shelley may edit this but it's the truth! The secret is: keep expectations small... :)

On the trail...

Here's a view of the Y from where my office used to be (I'm standing on the dirt that's left...)

One thing I didn't mention earlier was that when we were sitting on the Y--eating our carrots, etc.--a man holding a baby in a snuggly dropped his water bottle and it bounced down to the bottom of the Y. As we were leaving, Abby saw the water bottle and said that we should go get it for him. So we got back on the Y and walked down toward the bottom and retrieved the water bottle. As we were walking back up with the water bottle the man with the baby was walking down (the Y is pretty steep so you always have to be careful and go slow). He was very appreciative that he didn't have to go all the way down to the bottom to get the water bottle. 

Later, I asked Abby if she had fun. She said yes. And then she said, "But the best part was that I was able to do something nice for someone." Needless to say, I had a great time hiking with my little Abby. I love my little girl!

1st Day of School

School started today!  Abby is now in the 2nd grade and has had a countdown all month.  I am happy to see that she is still at that age where she is soooo excited to go back to school. Yesterday we went to the school's open house and met her teacher and saw her classroom.  She found out that she knew a few people in her class . . . which is always nice.  Summer has been so much fun . . . but I am ready for the change . . . and I think the kids are too.

Luckily, I didn't break down like I did last year.   Last year, I sent her off to 1st grade on the bus and about had a break down.  It seemed like she was going to be gone for so long!  I didn't like not knowing who she was talking to or what she was doing or if other kids were being nice to her or not.  It was strange to let her go somewhere and have a part of her life not be under my control.  (What is wrong with me?)  Anyways . . . after about the first week of school last year, I came to terms with it.  She always came back happy, still the same Abby and really liked learning new things.  Hopefully she will enjoy this year as much as last year!

8 Years Ago . . .

and 3 kids ago . . . Ben and I were married in the Portland, Oregon temple. Ben completely surprised me with the anniversary celebrations this year.  All on his own, without my knowledge, he organized babysitters for the kids and planned for us to get away for the night. We dropped the kids off and headed up to Salt Lake.  Ben proposed to me by the piano at the Roof Restaurant which is located on the 10th floor of the Joseph Smith Building by Temple Square . . . and we haven't been back since.  Until now.  I loved it.  I love that restaurant!  

After dinner we walked around temple square.  We did that after he proposed too.  I remember wearing my ring for the first time that night . . . and how I couldn't take my eyes off of it!  I remember thinking how everyone else must be starring at it too.  I mean,  how could people NOT notice the new addition to my hand?  Looking back, I am pretty sure NO ONE else noticed my new ring . . . but it sure was fun to be newly engaged.

The last 8 years have flown by . . . but then sometimes not so much.   I remember being engaged and how I thought I knew what our life would be like . . . but then we started living it and it is different.  I have to say though . . . I would still do it all over again!  

Lisa and Catherine . . . thanks so much for watching the girls!

Righteous Pride

Yesterday a commemoration for John Rowe Moyle, my 4th  great grandfather,  was held in Alpine, Ut to celebrate his 200th birth year.   The city of Alpine let the descendants walk as the grand marshalls in their City Days parade yesterday!   It felt a little strange to be walking/ waving at people  while in a parade because of a relation   . . . but oh well, I loved it . . . righteous pride:).

I'm not sure who was in charge of the Moyle reunion . . . but a lot of organizing was done.  They had t-shirts made, organized a choir, made plans for us to be in the parade, held a commemoration, and had scavenger hunt in Salt Lake, and maybe a few other things.  It would have been nice to be able to do all of it . . . but the parade was all that happened for us.

JOHN  ROWE MOYLE - Excerpt from "Every Window, Every Spire"

for the Commemoration of 100 years of the Salt Lake Temple, Ensign March 1993

"Another Saint who sacrificed much during this period was John Rowe Moyle, an excellent stonemason from England.  It was Brother Moyle's custom to work on his farm in Alpine, Utah, only on Friday night and all day Saturday.  Then each Monday morning he walked from home back to Salt Lake City to work until Friday on the Temple.  Following an accident, Brother Moyle's leg was removed in an excruciating operation.  While recovering, he made himself a wooden peg leg and walked around his farm on the stump until the was able to stand the pain. Eventually, he walked to Salt Lake City - a distance of more than twenty miles - to begin his labors at the temple again.  According to a story told by his family, John Moyle "climbed up the scaffolding on the east side of the Temple and carved 'Holiness to the Lord', as his contribution to the temple building."

Helen Carlisle Norberg 2nd Great Granddaughter