Back To The Fish Hatchery

We went back to the Fish Hatchery today with Tom, Marci & Jack. Daddy came too! We watched the thousands of fish trying to make it up the river. We walked down to the water again & watched the fish go crazy as they swam up the small river bed. The kids then fed the baby fish in the holding tanks & we brought lunch for the kids so they ate at the picnic tables.

It was bright & warm today; near 70 degrees. So beautiful!

Late Nights

The kids have been staying up way past their normal bedtimes this past week. This evening we were at Mom's house until 11:15pm! Claire was so tired, she fell asleep in the middle of the living room floor. Kate snuggled up with Aunt Kristen on the couch right before we left. We've enjoyed lots of family time this week.

Thanksgiving Day

Our Thanksgiving Day was fairly quiet. Cory put our outdoor Christmas lights up in the morning. We met Mom & Grandpa at the church around lunch time to set up the church. Dinner was good, there was lots of food, but it just wasn't the same without Dad there. We all miss him so much!

Holli did Claire's hair before we went to the church & it turned out so cute!

Carter's Creative Writing Assignment

Carter had a creative writing paper that he had to do for his class & he decided to write about Grandpa. It was pretty difficult for him to do, he shed a few tears while writing it, but he really wanted to do it. I am so proud of him & happy that he has all of these memories of my Dad. They had a special bond & I hope he always remembers & feels it.

My Grandpa

My Grandpa was a great man. On November 9, 2013 he passed away from a heart attack. Even though I miss him very much, I still remember the great memories we had like going on bike rides along the American River and going swimming in his pool with him. 

I have many memories of being my Grandpa's helper when he and my Dad were working on projects. Once the work was done for the day, I would sit on the couch with him and we would read books and watch TV. But my favorite thing was when we would just be funny by making silly faces, telling jokes and making gross sounds. 

Some of my best memories were spending special occasions with him. Thanksgiving and Halloween were lots of fun but my favorite thing was spending time with him on Christmas day. I ate dinner at his house a lot. My Grandpa and I both liked camping and my favorite place to go was to Yosemite. In Yosemite we would roast marshmallows, play card games, and throw a Frisbee. One day we hiked to some waterfalls, which was really cool. My Grandpa was fun, caring, loving, friendly, funny and so much more. I am so happy that he was my Grandpa and I miss him very much.

Park Fun

We met some friends from our ward at Phoenix Park today. The kids had fun playing in the sand & just having fun with their friends in the warm sunshine. It's so nice when there is no school!

Fish Hatchery... Again

Since Carter & Claire didn't get to go to the fish hatchery on Friday, I brought all the kids today. It was so busy, we had to drive around the parking lot 2 times before we got a spot. We ended up seeing 3 families from our ward, so it was fun to walk around with them. There are thousands & thousands of fish out in the river right now.

We walked down to the rocks along the river & there were a bunch of fish swimming up the rocks in the shallow water. The kids touch the fish & turned one around so that it would head back into the river.

Today was an exciting day because they were taking eggs. We watched them slice open the female fish & remove the eggs.

Always a fun place to visit in November!

Getting Ready For The Holidays

We got our tree up & the house decorated & it's looking festive around here now! Gifts are being wrapped & the kids are shaking the ones under the tree! It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Hydrangea Beauty

My friend, Kitty, brought a beautiful hydrangea plant over to our house. Cory planted it & every time I see it I think of her & my Dad.

Looking At Stars

We got home late tonight & the girls piled out of the car, went down to the driveway & layed down on the cold concrete to look at the stars.

Claire's Thanksgiving Play

Claire's Kindergarten class had a Thanksgiving play this morning & it turned out really cute! Claire was a pilgrim & she sang this song with the other pilgrims:

"Five fat turkeys are we

We slept all night in a tree

When the cooks came around

We couldn't be found

And that's why we're here you see."

After the play we enjoyed a yummy dessert buffet.

Fish Hatchery

Kate, Hayden & I stopped by the Fish Hatchery to see all of the jumping fish. The ladder wasn't open but we still had fun feeding the little fish in the holding tanks.

The Sophisticated Cory

Cory & I both went to the eye doctor & Cory found out that he has an astigmatism in one of his eye. The dr said he could get some glasses that will help, especially since he is in front of a computer all day. His glasses arrived today & Cory is pulling off a sophisticated look now.

Claire's Report Card

Claire's parent/teacher conference went really well. Mrs. Benitez loves having Claire in her class. She meets & exceeds all of the standards. She could only say nice things about Claire, which was wonderful to hear. She is learning more sight words & is doing wonderful in Kindergarten.
Way to go Claire!

Carter's Report Card

I went to Carter's parent/teacher conference today & heard lots of great things about him! Mrs. Salituri loves having Carter in her class & he is doing great this year. He recevied all 3's & 3+ (she doesn't give many 4's for the first trimester). He also got many O's (for Outstanding ) and S+ for classroom effort.
Mrs. Salituri wrote the following:
Carter is respectful, hard working and a good friend to all. I can count on him to do the right thing and be a leader in our class.

Artist

Carter has been watching a show on tv in the early mornings (before I'm awake!) that teaches him how to draw cartoon characters. This morning he drew the Mayflower and a pilgrim. Such a good job Carter!

Gutters

The last project Dad helped us with was tearing down the old, rusted gutters in the back yard. They were rusted completely through from the leaking solar panels on top of the roof. On Saturday, October Dad & Cory ripped them down. We had the hardest time finding someone to come out & give us a quote on new gutters. I had guys call & say they would come out & then they never showed up. It was really frustrating!

Cory finally got in contact with a man that  gave him a rough quote over the phone, but they never finalized anything. 

This morning, at 8am, just as I was walking out to the garage to take kids to school, the doorbell rang. A younger guy was there saying they were here to install the gutters. I was so confused because Cory never told me that anyone was coming. I figured we had such a hard time getting someone to come out, so I just let them in the backyard & told them to close the gate when they were done. 

It was so nice to finally have them done & I like to think that Dad had a hand in it & sent these guys over this morning!