Autumn

 Wyatt and cousin Michael

 Wyatt with friends RJ and Graham

 Ghostly at McCoard's Corn Maze

 In the bath at McCoard's

 Birthday dinner at Texas Roadhouse

Wyatt as a low key soldier

 

 

I love fall and most everything about it! Back to school, corn mazes, pumpkins, cooler weather, the colors, my birthday, Halloween and Wyatt's birthday (tomorrow)! Lots going on, and  we've been having a good time. 

Fishing

Daddy sent a present. Technically he probably should've gotten this for his upcoming birthday, but Jason got a gift card from work and decided to get this for him now to cheer him up (he hasn't been able to come back for a visit in 6+ weeks). I need him to teach me how to fish so I can take Wyatt myself. Looks pretty fun!

The Heat

Today I mowed the lawn and wanted to clean up the driveway and sidewalk, but I couldn't get the leaf blower to work and almost had a breakdown. It snuck up on me, and all of the sudden I felt like I was losing it. Too tired, over the heat. And over Jason being gone!!

My little buddy

My pretty girl

Some recent photos of my two lovely kiddos. The past 7 months that Jason's been working out of state have definitely been an adjustment. Wyatt is growing so fast, too fast, because I love this age (4, turning 5 in November). I can't put into words how the little things he says warm my heart. He loves his Sis, her boyfriend Scott and their kitty "Sylbuster" (Sylvester). He loves video games, recently got Cars 2 for the Wii. If we go to an arcade he has to play the driving games, and he's pretty good. He loves mini-golf, and riding his scooter. He's been taking swim lessons this summer. Loves to play with his friends on the street.
We (Wy & I) went down to Vegas this past Sunday to pick up Jason. While we were there we went to the Secret Garden at the Mirage to see the dolphins and tigers (last time it was the sharks at Mandalay Bay). We stayed at the Stratosphere this time, and I do not recommend it. Unfortunately, Jason lost his wallet on the plane so ever since we were scrambling with getting all kinds of wallet stuff cancelled and replaced. There's always so much to do when he gets home as it is.
Briana is living on her own and is working, getting ready to start college this fall nearby.
Me and Jason, just being home together when we can is a vacation now. But I wouldn't mind a real vacation.
To the sea. ;)

Shaggy to Chic

Riding Shotgun

"Before" Shaggy Sheepdogs

Beautiful Mapleton!

Mapleton- Like the Swiss Alps But Closer

Otis "After"- A Lovely Gentleman

Sweet Charlie boy

These boys had not been sheared for over 5 months, but now thanks to groomer Chelsea they are looking good! She lives in Mapleton and every time I drive out there I'm struck by how gorgeous it is.

North Dakota Trip

A couple pretty photos from Pinterest before getting to my less exciting ones:

I did see some abandoned churches
from afar, they are so neat!

A photo on my way out of town, the countryside was prettier than I expected!

 (I wrote most of this post after we got back but didn't finish so it's a few weeks old).

We left on Easter evening around 8:30 p.m. Jason's ride back was having car trouble and we had to get him back in time for work Tuesday morning, so before I knew what was coming out of my mouth I said "I'll just drive you up"! Since Jason's been there I've been wanting to see it, and this seemed like a good time because Wyatt was out of preschool this week for spring break. It was so spur of the moment, I stuck a basket of dirty clothes in the car and grabbed whatever I could and left. Luckily, I thought to grab some ramen and other food that would travel, which was great because we were eating in 90% of the time.
Our first day there I met another Mom with young kids at Walmart who kindly offered to show me one of the local parks. There happened to be an Easter egg hunt going on and face painting with this group called Mothers of Preschoolers (Minot MOPS). Wyatt had a shark face painted on, cute.

Sunset from Jason's apartment balcony

The rest of the week, we went to the local library, bowling alley, Mcdonalds (huge, massive playland), mall, and cooked dinner every night in the little kitchenette in the hotel room. It felt like a luxury to see Jason at lunch and after work each night! Wyatt had a lot of fun, but also missed home and kept asking when we were going back.

Scandinavian Heritage Park, I wanted to
see this but the weather got too cold and windy.
(Photo from Pinterest).

All in all, I'm so glad we went. The drive home was really hard, we didn't stop other than gas and potty breaks, and then when it got late I slept in the car for an hour or so.
Driving back into Utah, it seemed much bigger and more cosmopolitan than I ever would've thought! It's good to be back home.

Cinnamon Baby

I admit I picked up this book at the library more for me than for Wyatt. I read it to him even though he protested. But tonight, he requested it again and so, one small victory for Mom!
Wyatt has been playing soccer twice a week and has loved it. Tomorrow is his last game though, and preschool ends May 15th, so I'm scrambling to find something else for him to do.
Briana has her own apartment now and a new job! This is so great.
Jason is currently in Oklahoma for training. Yesterday was his birthday and we didn't have a chance to talk, but we'll make it up on his next visit home. I hope!
Me, just enjoying the beautiful weather and taking Wyatt and the dogs out as much as I can. Tomorrow I'm going to post the North Dakota trip.

Some recent photos:

Wyatt in his soccer gear

Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Grandma Wall's

Wyatt and cousin Amelia.

Cousin James helping Wyatt hunt for eggs.

Spring Treks

Pure poodle joy! We've gone on some excursions to the river this week with the weather being so nice and spring-like, and the boy and dogs are in boy/dog heaven. It's giving me a glimpse of all the adventures we'll go on as Wyatt gets older. He's scraped legs and hands, cried and whined all the way home, but it's so fun while we're there :)

Recent pic of Wyatt

Missing Mr. W

~Otters hold hands while sleeping to avoid being separated~

An update. Jason is still working in North Dakota, and it's feels like rather than adjusting to it, it's getting harder and harder. It's hard to know how to function when we're divided up like this. We are supporting two households, which makes it expensive to live this way financially. More than that, it wears you out emotionally and mentally. I know in the big scheme of things there are harder situations/problems than this, but knowing that doesn't help reduce the wear and tear we're both feeling. I told Jason it feels like I'm trying to walk with just one leg. Hey, we've been together 22 years! (Yes, we were only 12 when we met!)

Vegas Weekend

Happy Leap Year! Wyatt and I drove to Vegas this past weekend to pick up Jason (he flew in there from Minot). The weather warmed up considerably as we drove south. It was 75 degrees once we got around St. George. (I noticed that St. George is a LOT more crowded than I remembered!) I wanted to make really good time down there since I was by myself with Wyatt. He did great. We didn't even stop between Provo and St. George. He was so thrilled to be seeing Daddy, that definitely helped. Jason's flight was supposed to get in around 10 p.m. We got there in plenty of time, checked in our room, had dinner, and had played cowboys in the hotel room.

The happy boy waiting to see his Daddy.

We stayed at South Point. It was reasonable, clean, comfortable. I liked it. They have a huge casino, an equestrian center, bowling, movie theater, Steak and Shake, tons of restaurants, and Bingo. That was the clincher, on-site Bingo, ha ha!

Unfortunately there was a big snowstorm in Minot, so Jason's flight was delayed. He got in around 1 a.m. (that would be 2 a.m. our time...!) The McCarran airport is set up so that you have to go into short term parking to wait. Once I was in short term parking I couldn't see anything that would tell Jason where I was. I was sooo tired and cranky. I just needed to sleep. I'd gotten about 4 hours the night before. Finally, we made it back and went to bed.

The next day we had breakfast at the Garden Buffet. I figured it would be just breakfast/brunch food, but there were all these people eating corn on the cob and dinner food. Corn on the cob in the morning just doesn't sound good to me, but okay. 

Then we drove over to Mandalay Bay to see the Shark Reef Aquarium. They take a group picture and have you do dorky poses too upon entering. Weird. I didn't even look at them on the way out because A) They cost too much and B) I knew I'd look hideous. It was also very hot, even for jungle animals I thought, but what do I know? As you moved further down into it, it got a little better. Once I was in the areas where the aquarium was surrounding me, I became fascinated and didn't notice the temp. It really felt like you were under water, minus the wetness. I found it very peaceful and serene and probably could've sat there all day.

 That big fish with blue fins was HUGE, bigger than two heads. What I loved about this aquarium was the sheer magnitude, the height of these was bigger and better than anything I'd seen before. Wyatt loved the areas where there were plexiglass floors- it looked and felt like you're walking on water.

Wyatt totally loves sharks right now, I definitely have a new appreciation for them.

So after that, we went back to the hotel (or "apartment" as Wy likes to call it) and took naps. When I woke up I played roulette for a while, and we had dinner at the oyster bar in the hotel, it was so good! We went bowling after dinner and then I played bingo, and that was our big day. The next day we came back to rain and cold. It's good to be home with Jason again though. :)

Man's Best Friend

My dogs can be a pain in the neck, but seriously I feel sorry for people that don't ever experience that connection with a dog. I've had dogs my whole life and I tend to agree with the statement that "the more people I meet the more I like my dogs" (unknown). Does that make me sound like a crotchety old lady or what? But, how can you not love this:

"Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring--it was peace."
- Milan Kundera

I so agree with this quote.

Frost

Weeping Cherry in backyard

Frozen sunflowers plants with poodles in background

Weeping Cherry

View from backyard

These were taken a few days, maybe a week ago? Apparently I was not meant to take Christmas pictures with my camera yesterday because I couldn't find it. (Only to discover today that it WAS in my bag, which I checked several times). So, I'll post these for now. I thought the frost looked magical- and everything was so still and quiet. Especially loved the way the trees looked. Another bonus of frost and snow? The dogs can't track in as much dirt! ha ha! This year I've really started appreciating winter more than I ever have. I'm disappointed it hasn't snowed much yet. I wanted to take Wyatt to see the lights in Spanish Fork, and kept waiting for some snow to go with the lights.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas :)

Wyatt Turns Four

 The excitement!

 Family & Friends

Grandpa Wall & Dad

Halloween/Birthday Cake

It's been a very busy month. Wyatt turned 4 on November 1st. We had a combined family/friend "cowboy" party with the cousins his age, the grandparents, and a couple of his friends that live on our street. The last two years I've intended to make a cake, but waited too late and ended up buying one. Since his birthday is the day after Halloween, I can get really good deals on Halloween cakes, so I think it's sort of becoming a tradition that Wyatt will get one every year. :)

Jason left for North Dakota this month. He drove to Minot, was there up until a day ago and now is in another town. It is lonely for him. He's been waiting for them to give him the many hours he was promised to help him keep busy and not think about home. Missing Wyatt is the hardest because he's at such a fun age right now where he's learning and growing and saying hysterical things every day. Four year old boys are high energy and I do as much as I can to keep him busy, but it gets exhausting. So I miss his Daddy time too. We've used Skype twice. I like that we can see his face and he can see ours while we talk.

Wyatt's word of the month: Flopper (As in "You're a flopper"!) No idea.

Also, tonight when we were decorating the tree he picked up a heart shaped ornament and said "This is the love from Jesus". Does it get any sweeter?

"Peace Garden State"

This is a map/picture of North Dakota. Jason is going to be working here, in Minot. I'm excited he has a job, but, he'll be working 15 hour days, 7 days a week, 3 weeks at a time. I'm concerned about all the unknowns. Will he freeze, will he be exhausted, will he be lonely? Will Wyatt be okay without his Dad around? Will I be okay? The company would like us to relocate to the area. We're going to see how things go, but possibly in a few months we could all be out there.

Question: I wonder where they came up with the nickname "Peace Garden State"? For more info on North Dakota go here.