Carpenter Family Reunion

A month of Reunions!

Well, starting with the return of Mom and Dad Coombs from their mission in England, July has been a huge month of reunions for us. Before Mom and Dad Coombs had even left Arizona, Jon and I took off for a 2-day drive up to Washington State for my family's huge extended reunion. It was by far the longest car ride we've taken since we've been married, and we were a little leery of how our Sarah and Aaron were going to handle the trip, but the two 15-hour days of driving actually went really well, thanks in large part to a portable DVD player in the back for the kids and The Chronicles of Narnia book-on-CD for me and Jon in the front.

This was actually the first time we had gone to visit my mom since she moved to Washington State a few years ago. My mom lives on 10-acres of picturesque forest in a small town called Newport, just over the border from Idaho. It was BEAUTIFUL. Literally, every view should be in a calendar. Unfortunately, it did nothing for our discontent with the dry, hot, brown state we call home, but that's a whole other blog.

Anyway, my side of the family (from Grandma Berta down) has a huge family reunion every other year, and this year, my mom decided to plan and host the event. My sister and I arrived a few days before the reunion to help finish all the last minute details (meals, activities, organization, etc.), and by the time all our aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. arrived, the reunion practically ran itself. We were all staying in a fabulous Bed and Breakfast owned by a family in my mom's ward, and it was so fun to reconnect and enjoy being with all my great family. Okay, so my family is crazy, but I guess that's what makes us so endearing.

One of the biggest highlights was Friday, when we got to spend the entire day at Diamond lake, just down the highway from my mom's house. Another family in her ward owns a beautiful lake house with all the toys--kayaks, floats, a dock, a canoe, etc.--and add in my parents' boat, it was a perfect day. Check out all the great pics in the slide show!

Another memorable moment for all of us was the great family testimony meeting we held Saturday night. How amazing it was to hear the testimonies and feel the spirit of my wonderful extended family! It was also a true testament to the power of one righteous example--despite many ups and downs in her life, my Grandma has always been quite a rock of righteousness and has an impressive legacy of stalwart Saints to her credit. I can only hope to one day sit in a room with all my children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren and feel the strength of their testimonies filling the room.

The rest of the reunion was spent with chatting, card-playing, eating (of course!), and exploring the cute town of Newport, WA. We also played a great "Carpenter Family Feud" game, which I hosted, and unfortunately the Parmalees won. (We all know they're just a bunch of cheaters, anyway. =) Hee, hee!)

We extended the trip home to three days, which gave us a chance to stop by Provo and have lunch at Los Hermanos with one of my old college roommates, Missy. It was so fun to see her and catch up with all the old Alta people she's stayed in contact with over the years. (Living in Utah valley helps facilitate staying in contact with people, I've noticed.) We also stayed the night in St. George with Jon's family and had a fun dinner and night of games with all the St. George Coombs.

So, in the course of 2 weeks, we got to see almost all of our family on both sides, with the exception of Mark and Jenn's families, and an old roommate. Don't you just love reunions!

They're home!!!

After a gruelling (i.e. completely idyllic) 18 months slaving (i.e. playing) away in the picturesque British Isles, Mom and Dad Coombs are finally home from their mission! Yes, yes, we have all teased them endlessly about the vacation-like mission they have been serving over the last year and a half, but we are so lucky to have such amazing examples in our parents who are diligently trying to wear out their lives in service to the Lord. And to be honest, they certainly deserved such a fabulous mission experience after their amazing, albeit more challenging, mission to Thailand and Sri Lanka. Now we are all wondering how we can get ourselves signed up to head to England! That's the way to serve a mission!

Anyway, Mom and Dad arrived Monday night, June 30th, and have been staying with us and enjoying their time reacquainting themselves with their Coombs and Brown grandchildren. Unfortunately, with some unforeseen illnesses, errands, and urgent care runs, the week didn't go quite as planned, but it has been fun to spend time with our world-travelling parents, nonetheless.

I'm posting some pics of us picking them up from the airport--a true mission homecoming experience. I'll be sending out some pics of our 4th of July festivities later on. We leave tomorrow to go see my family for a couple of weeks, so I'll have a lot to update when we get back!

First Haircuts

On June 25th, Sarah and Aaron got their first professional haircut! Actually, this was Sarah's first haircut ever, and she did great! (Of course, it didn't hurt that Kayla bribed both of them with lollipops if they did well.) Aaron, who has a deathly fear of all clippers, didn't fair so well (hence the tear-stained face in the pictures), but he was able to settle down a little when Kayla put the clippers away and got out the scissors. They both looked so adorable and are all set to see both sets of their grandparents over the next few weeks!

Six Years!

It's amazing how six years can play tricks on your mind. Some days I can't remember a time when Jon and I weren't together, as if eternity has already somehow squished itself into those few short years. Other days, it still seems like I'm a newlywed, still playing a grown-up version of "house" as I giddily wait for Jon to get home at night. Either way, the past six years have flown by in a whirlwind of bliss and happiness. For those of you who will catch this reference, Jon is definitely my "lobster". =)

To celebrate our 6 years of wedded bliss, Jon and I decided to enjoy a traditional "dinner and a movie" date night. While for many this might not seem that special, but considering we actually make it to a movie theater 2 or 3 times a year, this was a treat. We went to T.G.I.Friday's for dinner (delicious!--especially the Brownie Obsession dessert!) and then saw Prince Caspian, the latest Narnia movie. Movie Review--Outstanding! We loved every minute of it--definitely worth the price of admission. The night was as fabulous as we could have imagined it. Happy Anniversary to us--and we look forward to MANY MANY to come!

Peep's Breakfast Shower

With this being Rebekah's 3rd baby, and another boy at that, she was definitely not interested in having a full-blown baby shower. (What could you really need for a 3rd boy, right?) Well, we friends wanted to at least do something for our dearest friend, so we threw a little breakfast for her, hosted by Tami Dunn. (Thanks Tami!) Yummy food, fabulous friends, and lots of cute little things for baby Jacob to wear when he makes his great entrance. Any excuse to have a party--and Jacob is a wonderful excuse! Now it's just the final countdown for Peep--and boy is she ready. Good luck, Rebekah!!

Summer Fun in May!

May was a jam-packed month of fun. It went way too fast, probably because as school teachers, Jon and I eagerly countdown the arrival of Summer Vacation. Both our districts got out the past week or two, so now we're just getting ready to enjoy the summer. May in Arizona is wonderful--the weather is warm without being hot, and everyone is enjoying being outside. We made a couple of trips to Schnepf Farms to fill up on peaches (I even made fresh peach freezer jam to go on my homemade bread--Mmmm.....), had a wonderful weekend visit from Jon's sister Amy, and had a fun Memorial Day party (complete with bounce house and blow-up pool, perfect for the kids!) at the Brown's home with the Howards. With a couple of trips to the pool, a lot of trips to the gym, and just fun times hanging out, May was a party!

For those who know the game World of Warcraft, I actually started my own character. I know, I know, I never thought I would get into Jon's little secret passion, but when Rebekah joined up to spend more time with her hubby, I thought I'd give it a try. It's been fun spending this time with Jon, who's been helping me out a lot as I play. I'm not the junkie that Jon and his friends are (and admittedly never will be), but I have to admit, I do think my character (a level 12 hunter named Lauryl) is pretty cool. =)

For the summer, Jon will actually be starting his observation hours for one of his Masters classes, as well as taking night classes 2 days a week. So despite being "on vacation", Jon will be gone M/W from 7:30am to 9:40pm, and T/Th from 7:30am to 5pm. At least we'll have Fridays together. Aaron will be starting swim classes 2 days a week at the YMCA this Monday, and I'm just looking forward to spending time with my kids, reading some good books, and getting ready for our big trip to Washington state in July. It's going to be a busy summer, but super fun. We'll keep you posted!

Summer Fun in May

Picking Peaches

Last year, when my sister came to visit, our family discovered one of our favorite things about living out here in Queen Creek--our proximity to Schnepf Farms and its Pick-Your-Own-Peaches time! Schnepf Farms is an actual working farm (it's also home to a lot of outdoor festivals and events, including the 10K run I did in Februrary), and is only about 5 miles from our home. So, upon learning that peach-picking time was upon us, we loaded our family in the car and headed to Schnepf last Friday.

For $1.75/lb., you can have the joy of traversing their acres of ripe peach trees, picking off the perfect peaches to later be turned into any number of peach delights--ours, in fact, became a scrumptious peach cobbler. The best part--as you enter the groves of ripe fruit, the smiling attendant reminds you, "Eat as many as you like while you're out there; we only weigh your box, not you." Woo-hoo! You don't have to tell us twice!

Sarah especially got in on the fun, eating near her weight in peaches that she giddily plucked from the lower branches. Each time we returned to the box with arms laden with peaches, Sarah's eyes nearly popped from her head as she exclaimed, "More Peaches!" But, Sweet Sarah is not without gratitude for such blessings--with a wave of her sticky hands, she loudly proclaimed as we left the fields, "Bye trees! Bye! Thanks for the peaches!! See ya!!" We plan to return next Friday to sample a different variety of peach that will come ripe this week. I'm even considering my hand at canning, but I'm sure a cobbler or pie will also make it onto our weekend menu. I just hope that I remember to thank the trees as I leave next time! =)

So, that is why Sarah is so sweet...

Okay, so I think I might need to be a little concerned. Anyone who has been to any social events recently where food has been involved will understand my dilemma. My beautiful, charming, 2-year old daughter has been body-snatched by none other than...the Cookie Monster. That can be my only explanation for the endless pit she becomes anytime a food substance with a sugar content higher than Cheerios is placed within her general presence. This morning we went to Brooke Perkins 4th birthday party at the park, and my daughter NEVER LEFT THE FOOD the whole 2 hours we were there. No, seriously. A whole park and even her bike were at her disposal, but she was more interested in being a garbage disposal--taking down 2-3 cupcakes (not to mention the frosting off of about 5 others), 3 Otterpops, and more handfuls of a cookie/pretzel/goldfish mix than I could count. And you should have seen her face when I finally put my foot down and stopped Gwen from giving her a 3rd Otterpop! You would think Gwen had kicked her in the face. Poor Gwen, she had to run away just to avoid looking at Sarah's puppy dog pout. (By the way, Sarah ended up getting her 3rd Otterpop by shmoozing up to some of Hilari's unsuspecting children. Sorry Emily and Natalie!) I really do feed my child, I promise!



Maybe other parents have this problem as well, but for the moms who saw my petite little munchkin go at it today (or at last week's Girls' night or at the Ward party on Friday, etc.), it is awe-inspiring, to say the least. Sarah never really had sugar before she turned 1, and Aaron hardly had any sugar at all before he was 2. We rarely even keep sweets in the house. And to think, my girlfriends used to give me a hard time about being such a sugar-Nazi, and of course, this is what I get. Hmmm...maybe they were right.

"Birthday....to you...." =)

Here's a fun clip of us singing to Sarah for her birthday!

Happy Birthday, Sarah!

So all day yesterday as we were driving around in the car, Sarah would randomly break out singing, "Birthday...to you....Birthday.....to you...." at the top of her lungs with a gigantic 2 year-old grin on her face. And if you ask her how old she is now, she'll proudly tell you she's a whopping "Two!" Ya think she knew it was her birthday?

Well, yes, yesterday was Sarah's 2nd birthday, and even though I think 2 is a little young to have a full party, we couldn't help but celebrate at least a little! Since I had to work yesterday (her actual birthday), Kjer (Aaron and Sarah's babysitter extraordinaire), really made sure that Sarah had a special day, from a homemade crown and fun birthday hat, to a picnic in the backyard. After preschool, Jon joined us and we all headed to the park until the almost 90 degree sun chased us away and we decided to go do a little birthday shopping for Sarah. Unfortunately, we're still a little undecided on what to get her (do we go with a trike where she can actually reach the pedals or do we go with the dress-up clothes?), so after about 45 minutes of playing in the toy section of Walmart, we left empty-handed. Don't fear, Sarah, you'll still get something great, even if it's not on your actual b-day!

Because Jon was off today, too, (it's good to be married to a teacher!), we decided to really celebrate Sarah's birthday today, so I made super-yummy cupcakes, invited all the friends, and we headed to a nearby(ish) (nothing is too close out here) McDonald's with a fabulous play area. Despite my overall aversion to MickeyD's, everyone still had a great time, especially the kids, who even after more than an hour had to be torn from the play area. Sarah loved all the attention, the presents (including a fabulous crown and wand from Kjer!), and the cupcakes. Overall, I think Sarah's 2nd birthday was a HUGE success. Happy Birthday Princess!

Mommy's Little Girl

Sarah with her cupcake and birthday loot.

Is that the face of an angel, or what?

All dressed up, and I'm sure she'll think of someplace to go! (Although I may be able to blackmail her with this picture when she's a 'tweener!)

What's Your Personality?

Hey everyone,
Gwen sent me this link to a fun personality quiz. I've taken a lot of these in the past (I used to administer them a lot for my job as a College and Career Specialist in California), but I always think it's fun to get to know yourself a little better. It's a pretty simple test, of course, but I thought my outcome, at least, sounded a lot like me. I'd be interested to hear what other people came out as. If you do the quiz, leave a comment on my blog and let us know!

Here's the link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/whatamilike/index.shtml

Here's what I came out as:
Provider:

• Warm, caring people who value order and tradition
• Loyal workers who follow through on commitments
• Think of themselves as sympathetic, easy-going and steady
• They don't feel comfortable with radical change

More about Providers:

• Providers like to make plans with other people and then to work with them towards achievable goals in a fun, harmonious environment. They support people that are important to them and respect their individuality.
• Providers have traditional values and support order and responsible behaviour. They enjoy social events, particularly family celebrations, and often help plan them.
• Providers work hard to avoid conflict, but they will state their beliefs when they think it is suitable.
• In situations where they can't use their talents or are unappreciated, Providers may doubt their abilities and focus solely on the needs of other people. Under extreme stress, Providers may withdraw completely and become excessively critical of themselves and others.
• Providers prefer warm, face-to-face communication and often express their ideas by telling stories from their own lives.
• Providers are often drawn to jobs in education, health care or religion.

Hilari's Birthday--Through my eyes

Hilari's birthday week was fun for us all. Here are some pics to prove it! Happy Birthday, Hil!

Hilari's family gathering around the cake!

All the girls--Hil, Gwen, me, Rebekah--and Hil's new toy!

The Girls and the Guys--"Happy Birthday, Hilari!"

Girls' Night/Birthday Party at Pei Wei

Outside of Barnes and Nobles--a little post-dinner window shopping

It's Good to Be Me

Happy 30th Birthday to Hil! I'm sure Hil will post all the juicy details of her party-filled week, so I'll let you read her blog for all that. But I have to admit, it's nice to no longer be the only girl in our group over 30. It's weird, but even though I'm 3 years older than most of the girls in the group (and substantially older than some of the others!), I've always just considered myself the same age as all of them (even the 26-year olds.) Could that be because I have younger children than most of them, or because I got married later than most of them? I don't know. Maybe it's because I still find myself learning from all of them so much that it's hard to consider myself older than them. I know...it's simply my eternal youth that makes my age seem so insubstantial. =) Yeah, right. If only that were the case!

Well, whatever it is, I love my age, my friends, and my life in general. As I sit here writing this with my sweet Sarah on my lap, who is alternately giving me kisses and force-feeding me bites of her Cheerios, and Aaron in the background excitedly playing with his trains, I can't help but be struck by how special my life is. I have two amazingly sweet children, I have a husband and marriage that defy most fairytales, and I have a circle of friends that is truly an extension of my family, and I have an extended family on both sides that is truly a circle of friends. I have always had more than enough--without having too much to appreciate what I have. As busy as I get between work, church, family, and life, I love everything I do. And I have the Gospel in my life and in my home, which not only has contibuted to all the above mentioned blessings, but also helps me keep an eternal perspective whenever life does seem a little overwhelming. I feel very blessed and very grateful. Sorry if I seem to have rambled or if I seem at all braggy in this post, but my heart feels very full today. It really is good to be me. =)

April Kids

Semi-Annual Intercession Conference BBQ!

Happy Birthday James!

Fabulous Conference Weekend

What a fun weekend! Not only was it Conference weekend, always a favorite in our home (bonus: I don't have to do anything for Primary!), but we started by celebrating the arrival of Cary's newest little one (her fourth), James David Brown. We got to enjoy Jennifer's visit, as well, as she spent the week being Cary's personal angel and helping her take care of anything and everything during her final week before James' arrival. We visited Cary in the hospital Friday night, and, of course, she looked completely radiant, unlike myself after childbirth where I resemble something out of a Stephen King novel for quite some time. Oh, well. That is why she has 4 children and I only have 2--I can only endure so much pain and humiliation. (I guess it helps that her children literally slide right out of her without even pushing. Way to go, James.)

Conference was, as always, a delight, and we loved being able to sustain Pres. Monson during the Solemn Assembly. I was priviliged to actually be in the Tabernacle for the Solemn Assembly when Pres. Hinckley was sustained, which was an amazing and spiritual experience, but I have to admit that the Spirit was undiminished by the fact that I could only participate via my television this time.

Today we also enjoyed our 12th Semi-Annual Intercession Conference BBQ, (yes, that's an official title), a twice-yearly tradition that Jon and I began the first conference of our marriage back in October of 2002. The "Bring Your Own Meat and Any Side Dish to Share" open invitation ensures that there is plenty of good eats to go around. Some years we've had as many as 30+ people attending. This year we enjoyed the company of the Roses, Howards, Harmons, and Trevor and Chelsey Howard--with kids, our total was 25! (We missed the Browns, Dunns, and Lees, who would have made our total 42!)

I'm posting some pics of all our fun adventures this week--hope you enjoy!

Vegas Pics!

Here's our Vegas pics, as promised. Jen's in town right now to help Cary get ready for the new baby, which should be joining our family any minute! Cary's at the hospital as I write this, so hopefully we'll here some good news real soon! Updates to come!