lulukachoo

Disney World!

2012-01-23T21:57:00.000-06:00

(click arrows for full screen)

2012-01-19T14:58:00.000-06:00

VISIT TO SANTA
So, turns out that Bass Pro Shop is the place to go during Christmas. Who would have thought? There are free crafts, target practice, electric trains, race car tracks to play with and a cool santa with a real beard and a truly jolly nature. He was so sweet with my kids and they just loved him. And they give you a free 5x7 picture too. Luke asked for "Cars with Sleds" (which the only thing that even came close was a specialized Pixar Santacar from the book Mater Saves Christmas. Luke has expensive taste.) And Lucy asked for "a doo hee". (not sure). Santa told both of them he was really proud of them and they just beamed. This was a fun night.

Steak and Shake dinner - they gave us cardboard cars for Luke and cool hats.

CHUCK E. CHEESE'S

Thanks to our visit to Chuck E. Cheese's - Lucy has learned the concept of putting coins in slots to make things go. I think she enjoys putting the coin in more than the actual ride. She now has obtained the important skill of putting her hand out to us and saying (in a very cute voice) " i wan moneeee!"

Luke was practicing for disney world on this simulated roller coaster which was 1 token for 2 kids and lasted about 6 minutes - a total bargain.

UTAH
As many of you know, I spent the last week of the year in Utah - well I spent most of December there actually. It was definitely a different New Year's Eve. We all felt so worn out we celebrated at about 9:30 pm.

Oh and my very sparkliest friend flew in all the way from North Carolina to be there for me. It meant so much to me. Trisha and her sister Kara came up for a visit and we told all our favorite Sarah stories.

me, Trisha, Jenny & Eliza, Kara, Emily and Star

and the pretty version of us... I don't think Eliza likes this version of her mom.

HOME ... FOR A DAY

I finally got to come home. I've been on so many airplanes the last few months, it's all a blur. So, I got to come home.... for one day --before we packed up and got on another plane to Florida. I didn't much feel like going anywhere, but so it goes. Anyway, the one day home was nice. And the trip ended up being a blessing too.

Christmas Eve and Morn

2012-01-15T22:45:00.000-06:00

Caroling to neighbors

Christmas Eve Day - Mary, baby Jesus, a Shepherd with his strange giraffe, a Wise Man and a Joseph

"Oh Come Let Us Adore Him"

Christmas Eve Night - The "dancin lights"

You can't see in the video but there are cars lined up for blocks to see these lights. So on this, our third visit, we brought a portable radio to tune in and we had front row seats and the kids had room to boogie.

Watching "The Nativity"

Christmas Morning!

Luke get's a present "my very own Lucy!"

presents from Joey's brother and fam.

Luke's actual birthday

2012-01-14T18:53:00.000-06:00

Requested German Pancake Breakfast

Children's Museum with Sheri, Graham and Alex

Visit to Daddy's for Christmas lunch and a quick check-up

Nighttime presents and wrestles

Some serious Hop Ons from Lucy

Happy birthday kiddo!

To: Sarah

2012-01-02T22:06:00.001-06:00

From: Casey, Jake, Jenny, Katie and Emily

(click on arrows for full screen)

Our Sarah

2011-12-29T17:53:00.002-06:00

http://forsarahanne.blogspot.com/2011/12/our-sarah.html

Visits with Sarah

2011-12-21T00:06:00.002-06:00

lhttp://forsarahanne.blogspot.com/2011/12/home.html

crazy excited!

2011-12-18T16:05:00.000-06:00

Since we never officially announced it and we probably should - we are having a baby!! He or she will be arriving on or around March 20th. We will take some boy clothes and girl clothes to the hospital and just hope that we get one of those. Why the late announcement? Because we thought it would be fun to go home for Thanksgiving and make it awkward for everyone trying to guess if I was fat or pregnant. Totally great joke. Except mostly just awkward. But we are crazy excited. Or maybe just crazy.

the Lens of Luke

2011-12-18T15:31:00.003-06:00

Let's party like we're turning 4!

2011-12-18T14:56:00.001-06:00


Hieu, Willa, Lucy, Emmett, Matthew, Khai, Taylor, Elora, Luke and Melynn

punch balloon madness

rock n' roll dancing

a little Duck, Duck, Goose action
some Red Rover

and ankle balloon stomp

"Happy Birthday to you!"

"Adventure is out there" -UP

Birthday wish

Elora, Luke, Emmett and Matthew

Melynn, Willa, Taylor and Lucy


Hieu, Dani, Daxton and Khai

...and renegade Josh

"Luke - what was your favorite part of your birthday?" "PRESENTS!"

All things Halloweeny

2011-11-07T21:29:00.001-06:00

For some reason Luke really wanted a sad faced jack-o-lantern this year. And we obliged him. So, I think all our neighbors might think we are depressed or are trying to make a statement about Halloween. But it's just that we do whatever our 3 year old tells us.

My sad, sad kids with their sad, sad pumpkin

Joey even put tears. Oh, the anguish.

Speaking of an awesome Joey. He made Luke a tin man costume out of cardboard and spray paint. Luke loved being a "robot" and corrected people every time they told him what a cute tin man he was. Finally he compromised with the rest of the world and called himself a tin man robot.

Our ward party.

HALLOWEEN NIGHT - Trick-or-treating in our neighborhood....

Sadly, when the tin man fell down - he couldn't get up.
So, his parents did what any good parents would do, laugh and take pictures.
I heard a lot of people had to help him up at our Halloween party. Poor tin man robot.

Turns out - Luke doesn't scare easily.

He wasn't too affected by the scary creatures he met on Halloween night.

Priddy Farms Pumpkin Patch

"Mom! I got to drive the tractor and almost hit into trees!"

First Family Camping Trip

2011-11-07T16:29:00.001-06:00

An October Friday Night at local T.O. Fuller State Park

Luke & Lucy with their new sleeping bags

Trying his first s'more

true to form: luke sleeps in and lucy is up bright and early ready for breakfast

Chucalissa Indian Village - on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi.

Luke and Joey try their hand at the Atlatl. An Indian "spear thrower".

We bought Luke a bow and arrow from the museum gift shop. He was in heaven.

Luke

2011-10-24T20:05:00.003-05:00

So this video is from about a month and a half ago but it's exciting as parents to see your kids learn new things. It's also awesome when tv does the work for you. Joey and I really were surprised that he could do that - but he's been watching Word World and Leap Frog lately so I guess he's been learning stuff without us knowing. That little trickster. He also has learned to write his name.

So, Luke has really become a little person lately. I've loved our conversations because he's so fascinated by everything. He asks me SO many questions and basically says "why?" after everything I say. I'm definitely learning a lot just from trying to answer all his questions. Here are a few recent Luke funnies:

"Daddy will you come potty with me? Then I will have 2 people to protect me, Jesus and Daddy!"

"Mom, when you are done going poo just say (yelling) I NEED TO WIPE MY BUM! (normal voice) to yourself."

"I found a crack in the ceiling mom! And a crack in the wall! Our house is going to hatch!"

Luke: "Who made all the people?"
Daddy: Heavenly Father did."
L: "No dad, ALL the people."
D: "Heavenly Father"
L: "But didn't He get tired?"
D: "Yeah, He rested on the 7th day"
L: "No, He rested on his magic bed with his magic blankets."

Luke: "My show won't work!" Daddy: "should I come and fix it?" Luke: "Yeah! Cause you can fix teeth and toys AND shows!"

Swimming at the lake, Luke kept drifting from the boat. We said, "swim Luke!" He said "I can't! I don't have any batteries!"

Lucy Loo

2011-10-24T20:04:00.004-05:00

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Lucy just turned 21 months on the 21st. She is the funniest little girl and we sure do like her. She is starting to talk a lot more and likes to talk on the phone without hands - cradled between her shoulder and ear. Her favorite joke right now is to pretend she is asleep. She will do it so convincingly and hold still with her eyes closed for so long until we really believe she is asleep. "Yeah, she's totally out." And then she will open her eyes and laugh and laugh. It cracks up the whole family. That trick is a real winner. She has gone potty a few times on the potty! I think it helps seeing an older sibling go. She is very good at giving dramatic hugs. Big wide arms as she goes in for the hugs. Dramatic kisses as well. Very puckered lips and loud noisy kisses. She loves shoes, hats, glasses, zippers, babies, saying "bye-bye!" and "hi" to everyone - her two favorite songs are "itsy bitsy spider" and "pat-a-cake". She is so good at making everyone around her feel happy.

Horseshoe lake with Mike & Vic

2011-10-24T13:37:00.007-05:00

September 22 - 27 (Mike & Victoria visit to Memphis... and a little bit Arkansas)

Oh these guys. What a great couple a kids. They really know how to party

The lake house was really cool. We learned how to play shuffle board and had many a tournament. I think Mike was maybe the overall winner.

And here is the ever so temperamental pinball machine. It would only work sometimes and we would all get excited but it only gave us a couple games and then turn off. I think it playing hard-to-get just made it that much more intriguing.

I don't have any pictures of us back in Memphis. But we basically just watched lots of YouTube and Hulu on the big screen - sharing all our favorite clips. And we watched a few real movies too. We ate lots of candy and desserts as I recall. We showed them some Memphis sights and they were good enough to go on a tour of Joey's favorite grocery store Aldi. I like how Mike and Victoria were both my friends and now we get to be family. How lucky is that? Also, they learned a lot about Memphis. Not from us, from their smart phones. They were quizzing us most of the time. So, if you want to know anything about Memphis - you should probably ask those dudes.

Trip to see Sarah in NY

2011-09-18T18:46:00.000-05:00

click here

My kids are getting older

2011-08-24T07:36:00.002-05:00

This is Sunday afternoon. I was watching my kids run around the livingroom and I just thought they suddenly looked older. Luke did the spotlight in church today and talked about his Wall-E, his family and his dragons. He loved talking in the microphone but was concerned that he was making everyone laugh. I'm trying to explain to him that it's a good thing when people laugh. The Primary presidency say they actually have Luke quotes they say. He is a funny kid.

I missed posting about Lucy's 18 months. (she is now 19 months) She is now in nursery at church and it's so cute to walk by and see her sitting in a little chair doing the hand motions to songs. She cried a little - well, a lot but just for a few minutes. But we found a trick that if daddy takes her, she doesn't cry. She is used to saying bye to him I guess. She weighs 23 pounds and is 32 inches tall. Here is a little of her spunk...

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Summer Days

2011-08-24T07:34:00.001-05:00

ah the days of summer... where you haul hay with your tractor

and run through sprinklers

have scooter races (always making sure your friend gets the sissy one)

splash with friends whose heads glisten in the sun

ride your truck with these faces on

talk your mom into riding a very slow train around the mall

but most of all watch lots and lots of shows (favs incl: Word World, Go Diego Go, Super Why, Busytown Mysteries) If you are a girl, make sure you are multitasking and try on different shoes while you watch.

Meet Me in St. Louis Louis...

2011-08-23T23:24:00.000-05:00

These are our friends the Welshes who now live in St. Louis

We took a little weekend trip to see them and we visited Six Flags St. Louis where Luke rode his first roller coaster. We had to fluff up his hair a bit to try to pull off the 42". He's actually just under 41". He rode "River King Mine Train" which was pretty fast, scary and jerky but he absolutely loved it. That kid is an adrenaline junkie.

Here we are eating our delicious $44 pizza. (I can just see them coming up with these prices, nodding in agreement..."yeah, that seems fair...")

We also visited the St. Louis Science Center

And on the drive home stopped at Lambert's Cafe in Sikeston, MO where they throw rolls at you. A combination of two of Luke's favorite things - rolls and throwing - so he was liking that place.

It was so fun to see our friends and we liked St. Louis. And like we do at the end of every long road trip with our kids we said - let's not do that again for a while.

birthday

2011-08-23T22:57:00.005-05:00

Joey threw a party for me and invited 4 families over for dinner and cake. Isn't he so nice?

The day of my birthday I invited friends over for a movie day - which ended up being kids watching a movie - moms talking downstairs.

Also, tax free weekend happened to be the weekend before my birthday so Joey took me birthday shopping. I got some clothes and this new bedding. Our first ever real set with a bed skirt and shams. I feel pretty grown up now.

Boating

2011-08-23T22:35:00.004-05:00

Pioneer Day

2011-08-23T22:22:00.003-05:00

Pioneer Day is July 24th and it's the day that the Mormon Pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley and Brigham Young said "This is the right place". So, it's a state holiday in Utah. Here we celebrated by having a ward breakfast and singing some pioneer songs. And the kids did a pioneer parade.

creatures in my house

2011-08-23T22:15:00.002-05:00

monsters and elves and bears oh my

Member's Night at the Zoo

2011-08-23T22:06:00.003-05:00

On member's night you get to ride all the rides free and for some reason this year there were no lines. And it wasn't nearly as hot as last year. But we sure all look nice and sweaty anyway.

Update on Sarah

2011-08-02T20:51:00.004-05:00

Sarah is on her way to New York to start chemotherapy at Columbia Medical Center. The doctor treating her there specializes in Mesothelioma and Sarcoma and really knows how to treat this rare cancer. Her cancer has gotten worse and they will be doing systemic chemo for a few months and then move to peritoneal chemo until she is to the point that she can have a debulking surgery done. We are scared for her but know that she is super tough and can fight this. Please pray for her. She will really need help during this hard time.

Also, I am starting another fundraiser - so if you didn't get a chance to donate or if you want to donate again - please do. I will try to get her address soon so you can send her well wishes in New York.

a winkly twinkly smile...

2011-07-27T16:37:00.007-05:00

Grandparents. We are so happy our children have such neat ones. Grandpa & Grandma Hale spent the day with Lucy at the ranch while we did our narrows hike. They experienced her famous finger grab - where she takes you everywhere she wants to go. I think they ended up going on a few hikes of their own. Lucy tries to match Grandma Hale.

Here is a clip of Luke and Grandpa Songer riding their "train horses" on their birthdays while yodeling and wearing cowboy hats. yeah, fun huh? I should hang out with them more.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Utah pictures

2011-07-12T23:43:00.010-05:00

Songer cousin - Truman

Hale cousin - Trace

Fireworks with family and Macdonalds on McKay's rock

Peekaboo and Spooky slot canyons

I have way too many pictures so I'm going to do a slide show. Stay tuned.

Holiday

2011-07-12T23:16:00.004-05:00

We just got back from a little jaunt to Utah and it was fun. The ONLY thing it lacked was my sister Jenny's baby!! She was totally supposed to have her baby while I was home and she is in big trouble cause she decided to have it the day AFTER I left. She had a baby girl yesterday. 7 lbs. 1 oz. and her name is Elizabeth. I'm so happy for her! But I'm just sad that I missed it.

So here is a quick review of the last 10 days. The traditional Songer water slide built by the Songer men and Emily, 4th of July "Hales Angels" float featuring the Hale Family and honoring Nathan Hale who gave his life for our country (he's the one who said "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country" so that is why you see a guy with a noose around his neck on our float), beloved Macdonald family visits on the 4th, indoor sky diving with mom and dad Songer, Peekaboo and Spooky slot canyons in Southern Utah and dad Hale doing an awesome Solleyball header. (solleyball=combo of soccer and volleyball)...

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

3rd of July Photoshoot

2011-07-12T19:19:00.005-05:00

Month of June

2011-07-12T16:31:00.009-05:00

My favorite thing about June was the beginning of a summer playgroup. A couple of weeks ago there were 9 moms and 17 kids. We have 4 new families who moved into the ward and they all have 2 children about Luke and Lucy's age. Here are some of their new friends at Mud Island River Park.

L to R: melynn, dani, matthew, taylor, luke, avary and emmett

Luke is also in a co-op preschool with 4 kids and the moms just take turns at our houses. There is Max, Luke, Charlotte and Halle. (Halle was on vacation) I secretly love when it's my turn to teach. I get all excited about this preschool business. This was 'triangle' day.

(triangle bandanas on their heads)

And then just chillin with my homies. (and by chillin I mean mostly melting)

(feel free to skip these videos - they are just for posterity sake)

Signing Time

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

an old video clip of luke. this was 2 or 3 months ago.

Marshmallow Game

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

memorial day

2011-06-08T12:54:00.004-05:00

neighborhood party at the Walkers

lacy, allison, luke, dawson, amanda, lucy and david

one of luke's favorite babysitters - allison

allison, amanda c. kathy (the hostess with the mostess) and amanda w.

our newest neighbors - josh and drew.

parties and playdates

2011-06-08T11:19:00.014-05:00

A knight in shining armor

who valiantly protects princess avary and friends

A pirate

who jumps to action when Captain Aiden needs him

Luke actually had to say good-bye to Aiden last week. They are moving to TX. Their final play date was Kung-Fu Panda II. 2 years ago they saw Kung-Fu Panda I together.

2009

2011 (yeah, he's wearing the same kungfu panda shirt)

Playing with Avary

Sweet 16

2011-06-08T09:02:00.011-05:00

and ever been kissed

Lucy at 16 months...

(thanks mom for the cute summer clothes!)

i picture her saying in a gruff old lady voice "gotta get this here crab home for dinner" (children's museum)

some clips at 14, 15 and 16 months

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Things we love about Lucy:

She waves and smiles at everyone she sees
She's kissy right off
She gets SOOOO excited when daddy comes home
She loves her brother
She likes to accessorize with necklaces, watches, hats and headbands.
She LOVES shoes, anyone's shoes.
When I fold the laundry she brings me articles of clothing one after another until she's wearing 5 or 6 layers of both her and Luke's clothes. And usually ends up with underwear on her head.
She thinks she can talk. Very eager to communicate. Can only say about 10 words but is very good at getting her point across. She does this funny thing where she says words without opening her mouth. I think she's practicing her ventriloquist skills.
When you ask her if she wants to go sleepies- she nods her head and leads you to her crib.
She is a happy kid and joy to have in our family.

Trip to the Smokies

2011-06-04T14:57:00.017-05:00

We drove 1,000 miles in one weekend on a "little" trip to see the Great Smoky Mtns. We stayed in Nashville for 2 days while Joey did some dental mumbojumbo. We got to stay in his hotel with him.

And see our cool friends the Welshes - who actually just moved from Memphis.

Marissa was a YW leader with me. We miss her lots.

Then, it was on to the Smoky Mtns. And you will never guess who we met there. You are dying to know right? Well, it's my best friend from high school - that's right - it was T-bone Buhrley herself. And she is just as funny as I remember her. So, our kids had fun bonding and bouncing off the walls at 11 pm

next morning. mia meets lucy. they were inseparable the rest of the trip.

first hike: Grotto Falls. trumanlee was a maniac hiker. We could barely keep up with him. (He and Luke are only 3 days apart. He totally showed him up with his mad hiking skills)
looking for salamanders

grotto falls

"hey! who said you could take my picture!"

our king snake friend we met on the trail. (evan, is it a king snake?)

Next hike was to Clingman's Dome to watch the sunset. It's the highest point in TN (almost the highest point east of the Mississippi)
on the way up..

(that says appalachian trail)

at the top:

on the way down:

At the cabin...

The next day we hiked around in Cade's Cove. We just happened upon a cave. So that was fun.

Cade's cove - lunch before heading home.

The Smokies is crazy. I was really surprised by the crazy commercialism in the 3 cities heading to the National Park. It's like the strip in Vegas or something. There are neon lights, elvises singing on outdoor stages, high rise go-cart racing, waterparks, museums, mini-golf and of course lots and lots of shopping and hotels. The streets are full of people. And then, all the sudden you enter the park and there is just quiet beauty all around you. It's pretty wild how it's all there for visitors to the mountains but I feel like it's now becoming a destination and people come to party and shop and forget about those one mountains. But oh man, they are truly a sight to see.

Ok, and the last thing I want to say is how much fun we had with the Lee family. They are so great. Mia was so cute with Lucy. And both those kids are just so sweet. Trisha and I stayed up until 3:00 (our 17 year old selves would have been so proud) and she had so many funny stories that made me cry laughing. I love that friend. So a definite highlight for me was the high school silliness all over again.

Oh and speaking of silliness...

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Robin & Evan

2011-05-23T13:56:00.013-05:00

Our friends Robin and Evan came to play with us in Memphis! We played a good trick on Joey and told him they missed their flight. And Evan got way up on this ledge just below the vaulted ceiling and Robin hid in the kids' toy house. And Joey came home and was just hanging out - bummed that they weren't coming. It's a risky little game to play to have people hiding in your house when you think you are all alone. Then all the sudden he sees a whole Evan perched up on that ledge. It was an awesome reaction. Good times, great trick.

Robin is half a pharmactist - did you know? She's playing it down with her pigtails but her sophistication is obvious. That smile is her "i'm done with year 2 exams" smile.

Our Sunday walk

Looking for frogs and turtles. Evan is good at finding them. He's an aquarist ya know. And he also owns a snake company.

Oh yeah, and Evan's sophisticated too.

They were here for a week and we got to do lots of stuff. They saw Sun Studios, Gibson Guitar Factory, the Peabody Hotel ducks, Graceland, Civil Rights Museum (motel where Dr. King was assassinated), Memphis Zoo (can I just say I love the Memphis Zoo? I have been there 3 times in the last week and I just love that place. It was really neat to go with Evan because he can tell you everything you'd ever want to know about any and all animals. He's a genius), ate Memphis barbecue, ate lots of frozen custard (at my request) and we spent every evening in the home theater catching up on all our shows. And Robin showed us this little gem http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=826PTEuHKhE (filmed at the old Ogden Mall!) Lots of laughs. We just love these two. Thanks for coming!

oh the rains came down and the floods came up

2011-05-23T13:39:00.005-05:00

We had some flooding scares this month. As you know the Mississippi River was crazy high and there was a lot of flooding in Memphis. Our neighborhood is on a flood plain and most people here evacuated. We stayed and waited for the flood to come - we moved stuff upstairs and got everything above knee level. But the happy news is that we stayed dry. Well, our carpets and walls did - we got a little wet.

Easter & Utah

2011-05-15T13:35:00.020-05:00

Easter before Easter

Traveling to Utah
hopped up on sugar

stuck in the Los Vegas Airport in the middle of the night for an extra 5 hours. Luke still talks about this. "Remember when we couldn't find our home? and we were stuck? And we couldn't find grandma and grandpa? And we were so sad?"

Truman and Luke in train and tractor heaven. Rebekah and I took them on the front runner. they are good buddies.

This is our girls night in the studio. Do we look like Michael Jackson? Cause the Wii told us we did.

Easter Egg hunt at the McKays

Beautiful Solenney's Baptism Day.

All 16 grandkids - my kids look the happiest.

One night Luke asked Grandpa to sing him a song about foxes. Grandpa sang a made up song about a family of foxes and said he tried to make it as boring as possible. It lasted like 15 minutes and Luke hadn't moved a muscle. Grandpa trailed off and was about to sneak out of the room when Luke whispered "and then what happened?"

My Sister Sarah

2011-04-28T15:55:00.003-05:00

mud mask facial in the hospital w. Sarah on day 7

I just got home from my visit to Utah where I spent a lot of time in the hospital visiting my sister Sarah. She just had major surgery where they removed a huge tumor from her abdomen. They also removed about a foot of her small intestine and part of her colon. It's so scary and she is in so much pain. The doctors said the tumor was a slow-growing cancer called GIST - gastrointestinal stromal tumor. They said it was easily treated by a low dose of chemo. But I just found out tonight from my other sister that they might have been wrong and it could be a more aggressive kind of cancer. Which means the treatment might not be so easy. So, now I'm back in Tennessee feeling helpless and far away. I decided to do a website for her with updates for family and friends and give people a way to help her by donating to a sarah fund. I want to raise $3,000 for her by June 1st to help her with medical bills not covered by her insurance. I know they have a high deductible and are both not working while they go through this - so this will be a drop in the bucket, but it will still help. Here is is

http://forsarahanne.blogspot.com/

THANKS SO MUCH!!

Pictures of the day

2011-04-06T11:25:00.008-05:00

Here are two of my best friends from high school (I won't name any names to protect the innocent). I was cleaning out my desk this morning and found this wallet photo they gave me of their professional soccer picture. What a treasure huh? I love these dorks.

Ok, while I'm at it I might as well scan a few more...

Here are some 9th grade Huntsville locals serenading me. Do any of them look familiar?

Here are some blokes partying on graduation night.

And I have no idea why I have this picture. But it's so funny.

And here are some fine looking folk on a beach in California back in ... oh I don't know was it 99? Looking good you guys.

Ok, so totally random. And I'm probably going to be in trouble. But fun right?

25 random facts about me... cause rachel is cool

2011-03-30T07:47:00.003-05:00

Rachel is my friend. I will do this to prove I am loyal to the bitter end.

1. I want to go to Australia.
2. I'm crazy about Broadway musicals.
3. I eat spoonfuls of crunchy peanut butter with chocolate chips on it intermittently throughout the day... every day.
4. I do NOT like all-you-can eat buffets. Because I hate feeling like I have to stuff myself to get my money's worth and I feel like you always end up eating alone because one of you is up getting food.
5. I depend on other people (Emily... and Joey) for my opinions about clothing style.
6. My favorite cereal is Grape Nuts
7. My childhood friend ended up marrying my current favorite TV actor - Ty Burrell (aka Phil from Modern Family)
8. We play Red Rover every single Monday night for Family Night
9. I served a mission in Tokyo and rode a bike everywhere and ate vegetables and rice and somehow gained 20 lbs.
10. Joey proposed to me in a cave
11. I've lived in Utah, France, Israel, Japan, Maryland and Tennessee
12. I'm almost blind in my right eye and am terrible at any sport with a racket. Or a ball for that matter.
13. Joey's sister is married to my brother. So Luke & Lucy have 5 double cousins
14. I sang Spice Girl's "Wannabe" on a lit stage to a crowd of Egyptians in a boat on the Nile and I think some of them thought I was a real Spice Girl. What? I could be a spice girl.
15. I wore a pirate patch underneath coke bottle glasses my first few years of elementary school
16. Luke and I both wear a size 8 1/2 shoe (but ya know, different categories)
17. I stopped wearing my retainer a long time ago (sorry mom)
18. Joey's parents have 45 grandkids. They have had a grand child born into the family every single year for 24 years. And I think this is the first year it won't happen. It's up to Victoria and me. So unless Victoria hasn't announced yet - I think we're doomed to break the streak.
19. I put a scoop of flax in my kid's breakfast every morning. That way I can pretend I'm healthy when I feed them mapley sugary oatmeal.
20. I stabbed my sister Sarah in the neck with a pencil when I was little. She still has a little graphite mark on her neck. (what? she wouldn't give me the yellow crayon, what was I supposed to do?)
21. In 7th grade I tried out for every single sport, I ran for class office and tried out for cheerleader. I didn't make anything. I ended up doing track because anyone could be on the track team. And that is the story of how I started running.
22. I can't whistle
23. or blow up balloons
24. But luckily I can rap. I made up a rap for an Elder on my mission when he was going home and rapped my guts out in front of a bunch of missionaries to "Ice Ice Baby". Oh it was smooth.
25. I have to force myself to read books. But I always love it when I do.

And I would like to tag Sarah Cresap - because today is her very special day. And what better thing to do on your birthday than write 25 things about yourself right? Happy Birthday to Sarah!!

2011-03-27T20:10:00.015-05:00

Joey turned 33 (a month ago) . A delicious "3 palindrome 3" cake from Dairy Queen (and They Might Be Giants). I tried out a recipe for his favorite food - Shawarmas. and then some home made onion rings.

St. Patrick's Day

The Leprechaun came for
Breakfast

Lunch

and dinner

Overnight camp-out with the YW

Lucy is officially walking as of a few days ago.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Date with Luke

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Children's Musuem

And last but not least - a broken face

So, last night I was helping a friend jump her car. I was holding up the heavy hood of my car and somehow dropped it on my face. Who does that? There is fracture in one of my face bones that does weird things like let air through to my eye when I blow my nose. And of course this happens late on Saturday night so I get to go to church looking awesome.

The Greenline

2011-02-28T21:40:00.013-06:00

There is this new biking trail through downtown called the Greater Memphis Greenline. They built it over existing railroad tracks in hopes to get a few Memphians off the couch and outside. They even rent electric bikes so that people who don't want to exercise can still enjoy it. We tried it out and it was exciting to see how busy it was. Lots of runners, walkers and bikers. We want to ride the whole thing someday. It will eventually go all the way to the Mississippi.

I like these guys. I think this picture is after a painting at the kitchen table and they both ended up on the table. I was looking at them at eye level just thinking - I love these two crazies.
Lucy is really into putting things on. Shoes, hats, glasses, necklaces.

And this video gets me ta gigglin every single time I watch it.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Music Appreciation

2011-02-28T21:32:00.005-06:00

Luke likes to play with the tempo and volume of every song. After giving all a chance, he usually settles on loud and fast for most songs. For some reason he spent one morning behind pillows listening to songs on our ipod. Learning about "mean" songs and happy and sad songs.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Lucy's First Steps

2011-02-28T20:11:00.003-06:00

Lucy took her very first steps on Wednesday February 16th at 2:15 pm.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

So far she is a lot more cautious than Luke was. So, she seems to learn things without much pain. (like going up and down stairs) But she takes her time. This was two weeks ago and she's taken a few more steps but no walking yet.

Joy School Tagalong

2011-02-22T16:06:00.002-06:00

My friend Lezlie was in charge of her Joy School today and was doing it at the Memphis Botanic Gardens. We got to be guests for the day and it was so fun. So, this is for the Joy School parents: (sorry, this is so random and not the best pictures - but ... it's just for the heck of it.)

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Lucy's birthday

2011-02-03T15:08:00.012-06:00

Your first birthday - January 21, 2011

Making your cake

getting ready to party!!

Jackson and Alex - your buddies

"Happy Birthday!"

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Let them eat cake

watching your movie

good night one year old girl!

the day luke learned his lesson

2011-02-03T14:40:00.005-06:00

Christmas in Utah

2011-01-30T21:47:00.010-06:00

Oh... Christmas. It was awesome. We realized we love our families. That is a good thing to realize I guess. We had a really cool Christmas Eve Eve with my family and a special Christmas Eve with Joey's family. Singing Christmas carols with my siblings and listening to the Hales perform the classic Hale skits were my favorite moments. These two families we belong to are so amazing. We are just in awe of the amount of coolness going on. We want to live closer so some of it will rub off on us. (I don't have pictures of these special evenings but my mom does here and here and I think victoria does. Vick?)

Christmas morning...

The Hale traditional Jingle Bell march

Opening presents. DJ, Wingo, Snotrod and Boost (from Cars). They are now part of the family. Luke had two in each hand at all times. Tragedy struck when Boost was lost at G&G's house. But we remember him and still talk of him often.

Santa Baby

The Songer Traditional Christmas morning omelets.

Later on Christmas...
we visited the Macdonald family... whom we love so dearly.

(don't mind Joey's weird head. He's just all about the jokes.)

It was so good to see my Maryanne & Bradley again.

And now they have a Gabe and a baby Luke!!

and Dave and Liz are just the same funny ones as ever. This is a special cheesecake they made us.

love these dudes.

Senior Cotillion...

So, this totally felt like a high school dance date. It was an all day triple date with our high school friends and their wives. We went to lunch, Speed Street go cart racing and then did dinner and games.

Here's our couple dance picture in our racing gear.

and group picture

(totally nerdy that Jake and I are doing the same thing as each other. I guess nerds trying to be cool think alike)

Dabois.

Joey and Ricky Bobby doing the Shake & Bake

Ready to race. Joey & Jared. And #35 Becca. I think Joey won out of the 6 of us. You can see the fierce look of competition in his eyes.

A lunch with friends. These are actually more my sister's friends from high school. But just like old times, I was allowed to tag-a-long. These girls are super cool. I feel like they are all changing the world and doing amazing things. We missed Victoria and Mike. Who would actually have been on our triple date too, if they weren't partying in Vegas.

Sara, Heather, half an April, Star and Merrin. Hailey & Jenny were also there.

Hickey Bobbing
(To be pulled on a sled with a rope behind a vehicle in the snow or ice.)

The Harrises took Luke hickey bobbing (some call it hooky bobbing?) behind their Excursion. He liked it but didn't like snow in his face. So he didn't last very long. He had more fun playing in the snow with his cousins afterward.

Holding on to the ski rope. In sled with Rachel and Megan.

Shoveling at Grandpa's

Megan and Andrew

My yittle sister and I went Snowboarding at Snowbasin. And it was funny because I didn't have snow clothes, so we met at my parents' house and got ready and borrowed all my mom's warm clothes. We felt like we were little kids again with my mom helping us to get ready to go out in the snow and taking pictures of us before we left. We had a blast. (Before I started throwing up. flu?) But we got a lot of good runs in. And mostly I just loved being with Serber. She is the best.

So, that is the end. We left Utah on New Year's Day. New Year's Eve was less than great as I threw up all night in the back room while I heard the festivities of my fun family going on without me. But I hear it was great. Planned by my ever so organized sister Emily.

Lucy turns one

2011-01-21T23:51:00.004-06:00

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

2011-01-07T22:20:00.003-06:00

get er dun

2010-12-20T23:13:00.009-06:00

Just trying to document the happenings of the last few months before Christmas vacation.

***Warning: Long post, may cause drowsiness, do not read while driving***

HALLOWEEN

The Flinstones and a monster. Pebbles and Wilma. Cute lion Alex Bate. Monster trick or treating with Mulan and Home Depot handyman. (Aiden & Graham)

Headless Horseman. how cool is that? and creepy. Luke loved it.

FALL HIKING & BIKING

One of my favorite days I want to remember -
playing in an old corn maze. stalks became swords and we all took turns dueling, we played hide and seek and even saw some bunnies.

THANKSGIVING

with the Bate, Lewis and Austin families

Wise Owl, Graham and Avary

ZOO ON ICE - Luke's first skate (December 3, 2010)

ST. JUDE HALF MARATHON

before & after. :-)

best running partner.

Christmastime

DECEMBER 20th!!

Happy Birthday to Luke. His party was last week but his birthday was today. He got to go to the Fire Museum with his friend Avary.

and before I finish this monster post, here is a little shout out to my favorite kids. A little time capsule.

LUKE - 3 years old (today!)

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

I think he says "La remote control a So" - what do you think?

LUCY - 11 months (tomorrow)

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

(dates of clips - 11/13, 11/20, 11/25, 12/4, 12/1)

phew! ok, MERRY CHRISTMAS everybody! see you next year!

Party on

2010-12-14T12:09:00.004-06:00

I have so many things to post about but I just loved yesterday and want to hurry and post about that. I will have to leave catching up for another day.

The night before Luke's birthday party

making the dump truck cake (inspired by Hailey)

Waiting for Luke to wake up

Luke's reaction to his cake (translation for ga-cited is excited)

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Luke helped me make the dirt and then thought he should test it just to make sure

THE PARTY
Since Luke is a "bouncing off the walls" type of kid - we thought this would be heaven for him. And we were right. He was so happy. And Joey even took a couple hours off to come and join us
The Birthday Boy

The Partiers

Graham, Addie, Laker, Avary, Max & Aiden

Jana, Jackson, Jerianne, Sheri, Dawson, Lezlie, Addie & Lucy

It was almost impossible to get Luke to leave Pump It Up. But the promise of eating birthday cake was the ticket. When we got home, I was busy getting lunch for our guests and noticed a little sneaky Luke at table. I stopped to watch him. He would look around and then lean over and take a nibble of the graham cracker. I told him not to eat the cake just yet and he looked at me and it was like he had no control. He would just move forward and oops - he was eating the cake again.

Meanwhile everyone else was having a pizza picnic

The big moment came and everyone sang to Luke. He got so excited when he was blowing out his candles that he spit all over the cake!

Waiting for their cake and ice cream

Back: Amanda, Melanie, Jana (and Macie), Sarah (with Calvin and Max) and Joes
Front: Avary, Aiden, Laker, Starley and McKinley

Here are some happy birthday songs and a CRAZY present scene. Ok, so Luke is a pretty focused kid and if he sees something he wants, he has a hard time switching gears. So, he opens a present that he's excited about and nothing else matters. He ONLY wants to play with THAT present. So, his friends were trying so hard to get him to open presents and he just didn't want to. He did this last year too. So, what ended up happening is he let the other kids open the presents for him. It was a little overwhelming for him. But he sure is LOVING all them now. He spent the rest of the day focused on playing with toys. He gave each present a good amount of time and then moved to the next. He went to bed around 10:30.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

love my ma, love my pa...

2010-11-04T08:48:00.018-05:00

...but i just love old arkansas

another great weekend with los burtons / our last voyage with ugly betty

boys skipping rocks

and boys throwing rocks

Luke's boat face / boat hair

nature walk

"yeah, we love wearing these"

story time with eden

sing star hopefuls

Cloud Nine

2010-10-28T15:37:00.013-05:00

Lucy is now 9 months. She weighs 19 lbs. 4 ounces (65%) and she's 28 inches long (75%). Here is a sample of her 9 month cuteness.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

We can't get over how cool this girl is. She's so sweet and always happy. She started pulling up on couches, beds and bathtubs and she now cruises with the best of them.

We love you Lucy! Or as your dad calls you - "McCrawly Culkin".

luke 'news'

2010-10-28T15:32:00.012-05:00

a new look

a new class

a new menu (of spiders, cats, fences, pumpkins, buses, cars and snakes)

a new skill

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Luke is a pretty funny kid. He's really into asking us permission to do something and then saying "or yeah or no?" (his version of "say yes or no") He is still pretty rambunctious but now at least comes up with pretty good reasons why. One day when he was being super loud I asked him why he was yelling at me and he said "cause I want to protect you." hmmm I'm not sure how that works but...

Oh and he's super tough. Since he runs full speed at all times - he falls down on the sidewalk about 4 or 5 times a day. And he says, "that was a hard time" and then gets up and keep running. It always makes me chuckle. One day he sat on the kitchen floor with his legs out in front of him and said "I have lots of owies" as he observed his legs. I went over and he was bleeding in numerous places! He never gets too upset over his lots of owies.
I'm training for the St. Jude half marathon. I get up at the unreasonable hour of 5:00 am and go running with my friend Jerianne. The other day as we were running, I stepped off a curb and fell hard. I thought of Luke and tried to be tough and not cry. If he can do it 5 times a day without crying - I should be able to do it too. "that was a hard time" but I'm ok.

PS - stay tuned for Luke's Halloween. He was a monster this year. And I think he really identified with the costume because he asked to wear it all the time and even wanted to sleep in it. Let's just say it was a good fit.

day of rest?

2010-10-17T22:23:00.005-05:00

today joes was called to be the second counselor in the bishopric. a month ago i was called to be the young women's president. today might have been a preview of what is to come. i've been running full speed until now - and it's after 10:00 pm. that scares me. i keep thinking - how are we going to do this?

but i will say that my feelings ran a little deeper today. i was more alert, had more energy and i would say even happier than normal. joey is feeling overwhelmed but said he feels like when he gets too complacent in his testimony - God gives him a challenge. like in high school how his life was crazy with social activities and playing sports and then he broke his ankle. he now looks back on that as a blessing. he felt like it slowed his life down enough to do some soul searching.

now, he gets to trade in some of his time spent boating and buying mt. bike derailleurs and electronics to working hard,to giving a lot of time and service and just being super busy. but we feel like this will be a good thing for our family. joey and i both agreed we kinda needed a spiritual kick in the pants.

Costa Rica - Sunny Side Up

2010-10-07T14:31:00.002-05:00

the morning we woke up to sun - we opened up all the doors and windows and blasted this song...
click on arrows icon to enlarge

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Luke loved "costawica!". He ran through every airport full speed - knocking into people as he went. We'd try to look surprised like "whose kid is that?"
Here we are getting off the plane in costawica - Luke is super excited.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Costa Rican Crocs: (we are on a bridge looking down. Lucy was being really squirmy and kept trying to dive out of my arms. With that thought - looking at these pictures kind of freaks me out)

along comes mr. crocodile sly as can be

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

We decided to try the beach for some sun. We were lucky and got some slices of sunshine. And even when it rained - it was nice and warm. This is Samara beach on the Nicoya peninsula. It was really beautiful and the waves were perfect.

gracie & jake

horseback riding - jake's neighbor let all the kids ride, lay on and do tricks with his very well-trained horse. Marvin (pronounced marveen) is a pretty entertaining horse guy.

monteverde was founded by quakers who made their living by farming dairy cattle. this is the famous monteverde cheese factory where they make a variety of cheeses and ice cream. Luke's loving the mango ice cream.

monteverde's bat jungle museum. Luke tests his bat hearing.

monteverde's world of insects

One of the best things was the "trainforest" - a ride through the rain forest on a little train. at the end we had a view of lake arenal and a volcano and then took a hike through the dense cloud forest . Then some hot chocolate and brownies and a train ride back. Don't you hear the whistle blowing?

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

And I have to mention really quick how awesome Gracie was with Lucy. See how awesome?

Here is Solenne riding her neighbor's horse, learning spanish and math at school and eating guava she picked in her backyard. She seems to really be in her element.

oh and both of the girls could eat these crazy mamon chino fruits all day. they love them. Luke calls them 'monster fruit'.

One of my favorite things about this trip was just seeing my bro and his family living in costa rica. Speaking Spanish, hanging with the ticos, shopping at the market and making all the local cuisine. I admire their adventurous spirits. I also really loved our late night talks and movie nights. The thing is - their passion for life and fun make every day a party - rain or shine.

Costa Rica - The Perfect Storm

2010-10-05T08:04:00.014-05:00

So - we went to Costa Rica and....

it rained

and rained

and rained

and... yep... rained some more

My brother and his cool family live in Monteverde on a mountain in a tropical cloud forest. And it rains there. Normally just a little every day in the afternoon with sunny mornings. But because of some cheeky hurricane named Matthew - we got about 4 days and nights without seeing blue sky or sunshine. Oh and to make things even wetter - the dryer broke the day we got there. Everything got wet and stayed wet. We did a lot of indoor bonding. The kids got creative.

Dr. Gracie nursing the "sick" toddlers back to health with shots of orange kool-aid.

Then tea and crumpets including delectable loops de frutas

Some education:
Truman doing his best to teach Luke his amazing face-making skills

and Luke & Truman review their letters Uncle Jake style
click icon with arrows to enlarge

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Another favorite while staying cozy inside was eating AMAZING food. Breakfast, lunch & dinner were each a culinary treat. We tried all sorts of crazy new tropical fruits and native Costa Rican dishes with a variety of special sauces.

Weatherman Luke Hale reports live from Monteverde Costa Rica

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Our last couple days were actually awesome weather and we had a blast - so stay tuned for our less rainy tales of Costa Rica.

All squnchified - take 2

2010-09-23T10:51:00.005-05:00

This cute squnchy face reminds me of someone

Happy 8 months Lucy!! Or as your dad calls you - "Smiley Cyrus".

Milky Way

2010-09-23T10:46:00.001-05:00

The other morning I went to the kitchen and walked into a cloud of white powder - that I thought was flour. Oh, how I wish it was flour. It was powdered milk. Sticky and stinky powdered milk. It left a white film on every surface in my kitchen. The kids went in the bath - which of course - water + powdered milk = milk. They were swimming around in a luxurious opaque milk bath. I cleaned and cleaned but our house is still smelling pretty milky.

Quick trip to KANtucky

2010-09-22T12:29:00.011-05:00

Joey's cousin got married and we drove to Louisville, KY to see aunts, uncles & cousins..

and most of all Joey's parents. When Joey's parents asked him how he would like to spend the few hours we had between the wedding and reception - he took us all on an adventure. I'm sure this was just what they had in mind. :-)

The Louisville Skate Park

joey and his mom - enjoying the bike tricks of the louisville youth

luke getting in on the action

dad, joey, mom and lucy watching luke skate with the pros

Bonus Room before and afters

2010-09-22T12:11:00.008-05:00

(long overdue pics as this was finished in may)

before

after

(awesome popcorn machine courtesy of clint & sarah cresap)

Before / After

(movie-esque rope lights courtesy of joey. every time i see them i start singing annie "let's go to the movies...")

so, we have accomplished the great feat of making it EVEN easier for us to be lazy. it's been really great.

ps - thanks cresaps!!

Nursery Before & After

2010-09-21T22:41:00.003-05:00

Guest Room becomes...

Lucy's nursery!

I need to take better pictures so you can see the whole nursery but whenever I think about it, Lucy is sleeping. The owl softies on the shelf are designed by my childhood friend (kindof sister) star. check her out on etsy at mytinystar.
So....Jacob. Isn't he the best? He took such good care of our kids while Emily and I were busy going through clothes. (Emily did a mini "what not to wear" episode for me while she was here.) After our trip to Greers Ferry, Jacob vacuumed out our van and cleaned it. And "while he was at it" he swept, cleaned and organized OUR WHOLE GARAGE! I cried when I saw it. He also did the dishes after every meal. I asked Emily and Jacob to describe their favorite thing about each other in one word. Emily said, "nice". (I agree but there needs to be a word for nice X 10) Jacob said, "passionate". They are such a perfect match.

09 / 22 - here are a few more nursery pics.

Greers Ferry Lake, AR

2010-09-16T15:04:00.008-05:00

my sister and her husband came here and we went on a mini-trip to Greers Ferry, AR

Joey singing "i believe i can fly"

Jacob & Ems

Mama and babies

Our armadillo buddy (Luke's "dinosaur" buddy) - we saw 5 of them on our hike

Luke & Ems. Luke's 3rd or 4th time on the tube. Probably saying "faster!"

adoring auntie ems

captain jake at the helm of 'ugly betty'

a lucyhead tumor

ems - wakeboarding

yeah, we've been to asia.

skiing

happy lulukachoo

ems and kids

friends scene-it game. i think ems is the reigning champion.

that place was pretty magical. glassy water, cliffs, sugar loaf mountain hiking, good company. more on these awesome visitors later.

Lucy - 7 month photo shoot

2010-08-22T19:24:00.016-05:00

Here's some side by sides. It was fun to go back and see Luke at 7 months. He was 21 pounds. Lucy is only about 16. She's got the chub but it's all light and fluffy. He was solid and heavy.
So, see if you can tell which one is Lucy and which one is Luke :-)

Happy 7 month day Lucy!!!

She's on her way...

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

PS - Luke is working hard on his potty skills. He was dry all week - day and night!! When I say dry - I mean, he's good at holding liquid. The solid stuff, not so much. But he did his first #2 on the potty last night and got the coveted pixar toy - Doc.

the 411 on the 4 of us

2010-08-15T22:43:00.013-05:00

1. Lucy is excited...

2. Joey is feeling buyers remorse?

...about...

these two purchases..

(a kia sedona minivan - actually we love that. joey also bought a boat. a crappy boat we call 'ugly betty'. but hey, it pulls a skier. and so far the motor hasn't fallen off or anything.)

3. Katie had a birthday and turned....

(8 x 4)

and got the birthday party of her dreams....

(the best way to feel on a birthday is young. ... oh and hip to the bone.)

and 4. Luke begins his journey to the understanding of all things potty.

(Potty-training notes:

the real "verbal rehearsal" didn't go quite like what was outlined in the book:

me "does daddy wet his pants?"
luke "yes!"
me "no, daddy doesn't wet his pants. he is a big boy. he always has dry pants. you can be like daddy. does daddy wet his pants?"
luke "yes!"

me: "are you a baby luke?"
luke: "yes!"
me: "no luke..... etc."

me: "now you are a big boy and go peepee in the potty. where do you go peepee?"
luke looking out the window: "i go potty in the clouds! i go potty in the trees!"

me: "luke, check your pants. are you dry?"
luke: "are you dry?"
me: "no, i'm asking you. are YOU dry?"
luke: "are YOU dry"
me: "luke, i'm asking you about your pants. please check them for me. are they dry? don't just repeat what i say."
luke: "don't repeat what i say"
katie on the inside: "ahhhhhhh!!! what's wrong with my child!!!!!"

end of day one stats:
accidents: 10
things learned: zero
exhausted, disheartened and worried parents: two

end of day two (today) stats:
accidents: 1
potty successes: 8
encouraged, hopeful parents: two
kid who does things on his own terms: one

potty training saga to be continued...)

the tale of two cousins

2010-07-29T11:23:00.016-05:00

The Cresaps are leaving (sniff). That's right, leaving (sniff sniff). We are sad. Sad, sad, sad. I stood in their empty house crying yesterday - trying to explain to Luke where their trampoline was, their toys, their furniture, etc. It finally hit me. They really are moving.

The plus is that while Clint & Sarah are intensely packing and beautifying their house - we get to have Trace all week. This kid is so cool and Luke has been in heaven having a perma-buddy. Since this was our last week with Trace, I had to make it count. We packed in as much as we could. It's melt-your-face-off hot in Memphis though - so most of our activities included water.

Collierville sprinkler park

Memphis Zoo - Teton Trek's Old Faithful

Barenaked Backyardigans (cleaning them off so they could come inside)

Childrens Museum of Memphis

So, even though these kids have a blast together, they are kind of opposites. Snapshot of a day:

Breakfast: Luke (who is half in his seat, half out) is showing off for Trace (who actually requested to be buckled into his seat) and throws Cheerios all over the kitchen. Trace watches and shakes his head in disapproval.

Getting ready to go: Trace brings me his shoes and sits in my lap. He likes to be fully dressed at all times, shoes included. (right after a nap the first thing he asks is "where's my shoes?") I ask Luke to come so I can put on his shoes - he runs the other way squealing in delight at his funny joke.

Visit the Zoo: Luke will NOT ride in the stroller but wants to run. Not along side us though, it has to be in the opposite direction. (He may or may not have climbed in with the ELEPHANTS! Seriously, that kid plays by his own rules. And sometimes I don't think my heart stopping is so good for me.) Trace, on the other hand, insists on riding in the stroller and reluctantly gets out when persuaded. He loves to be buckled in and have the tray in locked position to feel nice and secure.

Naps: Trace falls asleep on the way home. Luke yells all the way home "TRACE IS SLEEPING!" Luke sleeps for 3 hours when we get home.

Alphabet puzzle: Trace puts the letter piece in the matching shape. Luke takes that letter piece off and throws it across the room.

But I gotta say, they both love to say "MINE!" and love to get dirty. They fight over who gets to do what. One time I said, "okay, now it's Luke's turn." Luke - "MY Luke's turn!" Trace - "no MY Luke's turn!"

We loved having Trace. He's a charmer.

boogie woogie bffs

tracenluke dance from katiehale on Vimeo.

We will miss the Cresaps dearly. You Utah folk don't know how lucky you are.

The Mighty Mite Triathlon

2010-07-27T16:33:00.023-05:00

Forrest City, Arkansas
July 17th 8:00 am.
1/3 mile swim, 13 mile bike and a 3 mile run

We took this cheesy posed picture after the race

But then the race peeps were so nice and took pictures of us in action. As proof that we did it, they even put "proof" on all the pictures for us. How thoughtful.

This was Clint's first triathlon and he totally smoked us. Good job Clint.

DIV   SEX                          SWIM  SWIM   TRAN  BIKE  BIKE    BIKE  TRAN RUN   RUN    RUN   FINISH
PLACE PLC        NAME          AGE RANK  TIME    #1   RANK  TIME     MPH   #2  RANK  TIME   PACE   TIME   CITY     STATE
===== === ===================  === ==== ======= ===== ==== =======  ====  ==== ==== ======= ===== ======= ==============
12 125  Clint Cresap          40   24   12:51  2:10   15   44:14  17.6  1:25   13   24:16  8:06 1:24:55 Arlington TN       
18 145  Joseph Hale           32   19   13:22  2:10   18   44:01  17.7  1:32   16   26:29  8:50 1:27:32 Arlington TN
13  63  Katie Hale            32   15   14:23  2:39   18   53:29  14.6  0:44    9   28:10  9:24 1:39:23 Arlington TN

Lucy is 6 months

2010-07-23T22:19:00.011-05:00

Lucy: 4 to 6 months -

Lucy: 4-6 Months from katiehale on Vimeo.

(added 7/28) Just had Lucy's 6 month doc appointment. She's 26 inches long (65%)and weighs 15 lbs (30%). Head circumference is 43 (75%). So she has only gained 3 ounces in the last two months!!! It's time to step it up and make sure she's getting enough to eat. (doctor's orders)

Garth & Kat

2010-07-19T22:16:00.004-05:00

Here are some great summer tunes. I'm totally going to go to their concert at the arena for the ampitheatre of summer fun and playground time in the park.

feliz 4 de julio

2010-07-06T11:33:00.016-05:00

Meet the Burtons -

Some of my first memories include Spencer. We played together when we were 4 years old and he has been a common best friend of Joey and mine since Jr. High. This 4th of July weekend we decided to relive old times and visit our friend - who is now living in Dallas, TX. We always feel really lucky to know and be friends with Spencer. He's just one of those cream of the crop kids and we feel like we're both better people cause of him.

Here is a recap of our trip -

4th of July 5K

Spencer is an administrator of a nursing home and after the 5K we stopped by and visited with some of the residents there. Lucy and her smiley ways were a hit and one sweet lady said "thank you Jesus" over and over as she held and squeezed Lucy. Everyone there made our visit there so rewarding and it was cool to see where Spencer works.

Back at the Burtons Brenley made amazing Cafe Rio style sweet pork salad. I mean, it was good to see Spencer and everything but that salad made it totally worth the drive. :-) We ended up singing some Indigo Girls and John Denver - just like the good old days. (we missed you Trisha!)

Our kids had lots of fun - Luke is between Eden & Summit in age and he just loved them both.

And Lucy & Everett are 3 months apart

Everett was blessed while we were there. Spencer was called to be in the branch presidency of a Spanish Branch - so the meeting and blessing were in Spanish. Spencer & Brenley are both fluent and Joey too. I tried to recall all that Mrs. O'Hara taught me as a 12 year old but somehow missed a lot. :-)

We went to some fireworks and were so excited for Luke to see them. But as soon as the show started, he jumped off my lap and started running. I don't know where he was going - just away. I got him to come back for a little while and we were both covering his ears. He kept saying "last one, ok?" and "too loud!". Finally we decided to stop torturing our 2 year old and we left. When we told him we could go, he ran, and ran, and ran and I could barely keep up with him. He was yelling "run away! no fireworks!" for blocks. I think everyone we ran by thought it was pretty funny. So, now we know I guess.

However Luke DID like this:

CATCHING HIS FIRST FISH!!

Look at this tiny lizard Joey found. Luke said "a little alligator!"

Our bathing beauty

A Burton tradition - Summit making waffles with his dad on the weekend

Spencer thinking long and hard about his birthday wish.

This is one awesome family.

oh here is a bonus video - don't get mad joey.

come and knock on my door....

2010-06-23T22:17:00.018-05:00

Well, we've been the lucky recipients of some pretty awesome visitors the past month...

FIRST we had MOM & DAD

who, yet again, worked hard while they were here

mom got the job of getting up with Lucy during the night when we went on the cruise. one night she got up to get Lucy a bottle and Luke had climbed out of his crib!! (first time) He was in the livingroom and when he saw grandma - he ran to her saying "i'm scared!! i'm scared! A MONSTER!" my mom could hear a loud snore coming from the direction Luke was pointing. Sure enough they discovered the snoring grandpa monster. I guess it was loud and scary enough to teach Luke his new escape trick.

then our Okie friends - the RICHINS!!!

Happy Birthday Jansen!! These guys drove a long way to see us and we were so glad they did.

Then, THE HARRIS FAMILY EXTRAORDINAIRE!!

they are a pretty excitable bunch...

and so nice - look at these girls. there couldn't be more polite, kind, wonderful girls in all the world. I love this whole family and we had so much fun with them - it was sad to see them go.

(this is my sister Jenny's family. Her blog is hilarious - check it out - belligerentblogging . We were just one stop on their 3 week trip across country)

Next up: Cousin MESHELLE and her kids LILY & KAT...

I haven't seen her in at least 6 years and it was so fun to catch up. She is the kind of person that is so warm and comfortable that it doesn't seem like any time at all. She even made us homemade granola in the short time she was here.

these are her darling daughters that Luke L-O-V-E-D! He is still asking for them.

It was great to see everyone! We would like to petition all persons everywhere who have ever loved us or who currently love us to please come on out to memphis.

the eyes are the window to how sick you are

2010-06-16T20:45:00.006-05:00

Who is this?? That doesn't even look like him.

So, the good news is that last night Lucy slept through the night for the first time. 11.25 hours without stirring. The bad news is that I think I got about 2.5 hours. Too bad I missed out on that awesomeness - hopefully she'll do it again... a lot. This kid (pictured above) finally fell asleep about 1:00 and woke up every 40 minutes. He was sick when the Harris fam visited, got better in 3 days and then a week later got sick again. No fairzeez - it's summer!

In other L&L news, Luke is now sleeping in a big boy bed and Lucy is sleeping in a big girl crib in her own room. She rolled over all the way for the first time on June 2nd. She's been almost rolling over for about a month. So, here's a little snapshot of my kids on this the 16th of June, 2010.

My crusty-eyed talkative boy:
(disclaimer - 2.5 minutes of a 2 year old talking about random things like mean police bugs, firetrucks and dump trucks. it's mostly just for me to remember how he says "forkawift")

luke sick from katiehale on Vimeo.

My giggly baby girl:

50 years of lovely love

2010-06-13T21:18:00.014-05:00

On June 8, 1960 handsome Phil H. married the oh-so-lovely Barbara B. 50 years, 12 kids & 44 grandkids later - we celebrated their perfect (and really it is) marriage by cruisin the Caribbean. All 12 kids plus spouses were there! (a momentous first for me since marrying into the family) These two created an amazing family - such a fun group of siblings and all so different from each other but share the common thread of love for family and each seem to truly have a profound respect and awe for their parents. Which says a lot for 12 kids. Well done Phil & Barbara - well done. I think they've perfected the institution of marriage. And if Hollywood could capture the love they have on film - it would shame all other romantic movies ever made.

Aren't they awesome?

So, -- here's lotsa pictures from the fun...

All 13 rooms were semi-close on the ship and some had adjoining rooms. We were all chillin in Jenny & Mike's room which was adjoined to Wendy & Chad's room and Joey and I demonstrated our bed to bed jumping techniques. Mom didn't even tell us not to jump on the bed. (by the way, it was great being the "kids" of the group. going from being a parent every day to being a kid - look at joey's face. that's not a responsible dentist / daddy face. ahhh, such a nice break.)

First stop: Grand Cayman -

Second Stop: Roatan

3rd stop: Belize (Mayan Ruins)

4th stop: Cozumel (Joey scuba dove and Katie flew home to the kids)

the in-laws

fine dining. i think i ordered the warm chocolate melting cake every single night.

Joey's brother Mike performed as Elvis in the last big show.

Singing "Do you 'still' love me" from Fiddler on the Roof as Barbara and Phil.

The sister-in-laws

Hale Family 2010 (hey fam - do we have a clearer pic of this?)

Favorite thing of the trip was the night we had a program for Mom & Dad. We had family trivia and listened as Mom & Dad reminisced their years together and the kids growing up. When the sisters sang - I looked at Joey's mom's face and her eyes were glistening. What a wonderful thing it must be to have raised such a family. I hope I can gather as much as possible from her example and someday feel a portion of what she does.

Happy 50th Anniversary!!

Lucy Kate is grrrreat

2010-05-25T22:18:00.008-05:00

So, we have this baby named Lucy who is super cool. She is just pure joy. My parents came and stayed with these kiddos while we went on a cruise (next post) and my dad said, "this baby is amazing. she just sleeps, eats, smiles and laughs all day". It's true. I'm not a morning person but when I go to get Lucy in the morning, the minute she sees me she gives me huge smiles and it's contagious. She can cheer even the grumpiest of grumpies.
She just turned 4 months and we had her doc. appointment today. 25 inches long (75-90%) and 14 lbs. 13 oz. (75%)

Lucy 2 to 4 months from katiehale on Vimeo.

Wuv

2010-05-10T21:41:00.008-05:00

I was spying on Luke today as he climbed up on the couch with Lucy. I was about to run in to protect her but thought I would just wait to see how he would handle it without me around. He climbed up and laid down by her and put his arm over her and declared "I love you!" It was the dern cutest thing I ever saw. Then he proceeded to cover her with pillows. ah love.

Untitled from katiehale on Vimeo.

Costa Ricans have more fun

2010-04-19T17:15:00.000-05:00

So, lots has been going on in the Songer family lately. Emily got married, I had a baby and now Jake and his family are moving to Costa Rica!! You know Jake, my super adventurous brother? Well he just took it to a whole new level. He doesn't speak Spanish, he doesn't have a job in CR or a place to live really and he's moving his wife and his three kids to this cool cloud forest area called Monteverde - just for adventure and to give his kids a cultural experience. They will all learn Spanish and he's got some ideas of what he's going to do and will most likely build a house there. Isn't he a fun one?
We're sad he's leaving but lucky us - we got Jake and Rebekah all to ourselves before they move. They came to Memphis once again and although there wasn't a repeat of the snake swim, there was still some pretty burly stuff going on - check this out...

yeah, i probably should have warned you about that video. operation: remove rock from finger. kitchen table surgery. jake had a rock in his finger. ??? he was working on sarah and shaun's house and .. oh i forget the details but something about a rock shooting into his finger. He said he could feel it and when he shone a flashlight - he could see it. So - Joey took it out for him.

After a Stanky Creek mt. bike ride. Even though they came back covered in mud and gashes - they were on a high from the amazing ride through wild flowers and fire flies - er wait, i mean the high was from all the sweet jumps they did.... and landed. that's right.

Jake installed some doors for us and we primed the bonus room

It should be noted that Rebekah is a fitness maniac. Here she is sporting her CrossFit shirt - and we hear she is the CrossFit champion. I took her to my gym with me and she outdanced the instructor at her first Zumba class and upon returning home rocked her Dance Dance Revolution game for a couple hours.

"I want Uncle Jake" - Luke, 2 years old, all day everyday since Jake left.

"Thanks Aunt Rebekah for being the best baby conversationalist I've yet to encounter on this earth" -Lucy Kate, age 3 months, what she would say if she could.

Fun trip. It's amazing how much these guys can cram into 2 days!! We love you - and good luck on your Costa Rica adventure!

awesome eighties

2010-04-10T09:25:00.013-05:00

Joey's sister Sarah turned 40 in style. They threw a rockin' 80's party - I guess to commemorate her teenage years.

I won best hair
and the dude with the mullet won best overall costume.
But I got the rubiks cube - so it was totally worth cutting my bangs.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH!

You are totally radical!

burning the midnight oil

2010-04-08T15:51:00.006-05:00

We stayed up until 3 am swimming in insulation and sawdust last night. It felt just like the good old days in Maryland. We have a knack for setting unrealistic deadlines and then killing ourselves to make them. Like the night before the Elders moved in our basement - we worked right through the night and barely - and I mean barely - got it done as they pulled in to move in the next morning. phew! Today the guys were coming to hang the sheetrock so we HAD to get it all wired and insulated before they came. But at 3 am ran out of insulation - so we went to bed. My coolio sister-in-law saved the day and brought her minivan full of insulation early this morning.

yeah, I taped my wrists with blue tape - i hate that itchy insulation - don't make fun of me.

look at that guy living on the edge all bare armed and such.

So, this is what is happening right this moment...

look at his cool stilts.

Joey's got big plans for this room. All I know is every time I walk by him on the computer - he's looking at speakers, projectors, screens, etc. He used to look at mt. bikes in his spare time but then he got one so now he's moved on to looking at gadgets for our home theater.

Luke's BFF Part 2

2010-04-05T00:10:00.003-05:00

Lucy's Blessing Day

2010-04-04T21:36:00.014-05:00

Sunday, March 28th, 2010

I loved this day. It was emotional for me to listen as Joey blessed Lucy with strengths and attributes for her life. To think of her growing up, what she will be like and the joy and disappointment she will experience. This dear, sweet girl. And I get to be her mom. I loved listening to conference this weekend - so many of the talks were about parenting and how precious these children are. It made me realize my responsibility and what an opportunity it is to be a parent and that I've got to hurry and get awesome so I can be a good example and have answers for these kiddos.

She wore the dress that I was blessed in and all my sisters and all the nieces born into the family. All the names and birthdays are sewn on the dress. Jenny, me, Sarah, Emily, Anika, Clarissa, Meredith, Rosalie, Gracie and Solenne. And now Lucy. She will be the first one without the last name Songer since I am the first girl in my family to have a baby girl.

Here is our 4 generation picture of girls - mom, me, grandma and Lucy Kate

she's giving me the - really mom? that is sooo not cool- look as I try to impress her with some high pitched goochie goos.

The last Songer weds

2010-04-02T15:41:00.013-05:00

that's right - our dear Emzeez got married a week ago...

isn't she soooo pretty? And this is my new brother-in-law - Jacob. He's a charmer. Both of my children absolutely loved him from the minute they met him. In fact, I'm pretty sure everyone who meets him loves him right away. Lucy showered him with smiles and he played with Luke for hours. Luke loves his new uncle Jacob. Here they are singing karaoke

And remember how pretty Emily looked? Well guess who did her hair...

Don't you love him?
The reception was in my dad's art studio. I wish I had a before picture - because this was quite the transformation. I thought it ended up being really classy.

I can't believe that all 6 kids are married now. I couldn't be happier for Ems. She really picked a real winner. Welcome to the family Jacob! And congrats to the new
Jacob & Emily Hanks!

Sunshine

2010-03-12T21:52:00.001-06:00

two to the fifth power...

2010-03-08T14:15:00.009-06:00

... is the secret code for how old Joey turned on February 27. Only mathematicians can crack THAT crazy code. Speaking of mathematicians - Joey's good friend Jim (former math teacher, future pediatric dentist) came all the way from Long Island to Memphis just to celebrate with Joey!! (there happened to be a pediatric dental conference the same weekend but he assured us it was totally secondary.) So, to celebrate - they went mt. biking in the pitch black of night at around 11 pm so Joey could show off his cool new bike lights and Jim could wear stretchy pants - because when you are a man - sometimes you wear stretchy pants.

the crazies:

For birthdayness - we went to Avatar and to Macaroni Grill with the Cresaps and had a leisurely 3 hour dinner without kids. It was so nice. I got him some things off his Nashbar bike wish list (bike tools & a shock pump), some clothes and this picture framed for his office:

Happy Birthday Joes! You are the bees knees.

The Evolution of Lucy

2010-03-01T21:09:00.000-06:00

Lucy changes every day to me - which makes it hard to figure out what she looks like. Here are a gazillion pictures of her. Watch as her cheeks get bigger and bigger.

first bath

1/29/10

2/4/10

2/6/10

2/12/2010 - my favorite hippy pants

2/13/2010 - photo shoot

2/13/2010

2/18/2010 - first walk in the great outdoors

2/18/2010 - now those are some cheeks

2/21/2010 - ONE month old

AND TODAY (March 1st) at approximately 8:40 a.m. - FIRST SMILE!!!!