3-1-2009 Week in Review

Hey!  First of all, if you haven't seen the blog below entitled Help Dade Win, please scroll down and watch his video clip.  He's in a contest and the most views wins!  Okay, now on with our review.  It's been nice lately to have a couple of "slow" weeks.  Thing is, I'd still relish a break!

Monday we headed out to the Dentist for Corben...No Cavities!! Yeah!  Tuesday was busy, busy.  I headed out early to do some Visiting Teaching with my friend from Church.  It took up most of the day but was so worth it.  I love the women we visit!  Wednesday I actually returned all 15 of our library books on the day they were due with NO LATE FEE!!  Go me!  Thursday I started forming a plan.  It's been going for some time in my head but it was time to implement it.  It is officially....Chore Chart time at the Schnegel-kins abode.  You say, "But how have you survived this long without chore charts??!!".  The truth is I'm terrible at keeping up with them so this time I'm getting one, too, so that we can all be working for some great reward.  This will work....I'm sure of it this time!!....maybe....  ANYWAY, to go along with the chore charts I made individual cards for each room that list what needs to be done in that room & how often.  The back of the card has a place where you can check off when you did it.  (Kind of like the cleaning charts on the back of the bathroom door at most stores.  It lets you know what was done when & by who..whom? - I always get that mixed up...)  I'm hoping the cards will remind each child why they're standing in the room they are in and what they're supposed to be doing.  Cross your fingers!  Friday was so nice.  When Ryan got home the house looked great and we were all in a good mood.  (That's not to say that it's not like that most of the time.....lol)  Anyway, Ryan had us all pack up into the van for a surprise trip.  He took the whole family to Dairy Queen for dinner & dessert.  It was great!  The food was good, the kids were good, what more could you ask for?!  Saturday I got the opportunity to see something I have NEVER seen before!!  I was so excited that I took a picture!  You see, my entire life I have been a constant user of duct tape.  I believe that it is the most amazing product ever made....yet, in all my years I have never seen duct tape used for it's primary purpose.....on a DUCT!!! 

So, here it is....duct tape fulfilling it's destiny.  It's actually very good at what it does!  It's gray color matches the insulation covering and it's perfect stickiness & moldability perfectly held the flimsy tubing together.  Amazing.   I am so easily amused.  Anyway, with the completion of the duct work the torn down wall in my kitchen is officially ready for cabinets! YEAH!  Thanks, Honey!  Later Saturday we headed out to my little nieces 1st birthday party!  As usual, it was quite the party and tons of fun.  Corben loved the piñata!

 

    Sunday, we headed out to church.  Afterwards, my SIL, Rachel, came over so we could spend a fun afternoon together.  We always love it when she visits!

Saturday night we finally got back Corben's Flat Stanley!...or should I say Flat SCANley!  Okay, I cheated.  We forgot to send out Corben's Flat Stanley last month when we were supposed to so he could spend 3 weeks with someone so, thinking like I do, we scanned him in and emailed him to my sister Tammy and my brother Jymn!!  Being the AWESOME family that they are they played right along and after printing out our Flat Scanley, took him on MANY adventures!!  Here's his trip log for all of you to enjoy!  I think Corben's class is going to LOVE it!!

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Wow! What an incredible time I had out in Parshall, Colorado! I had the  chance to spend a whole week with Corben’s aunt Tammy and her family! When I first saw how small the town was (only 54 people!), I thought, "What could they possibly do for fun around here?", but I soon found out there is TONS of fun stuff to do in the mountains--even in the winter.

My very first day I went hiking way up in to  the snow-covered Rocky Mountains. The snow was still deep in some areas--up to our waist!--and we had to do a little rock climbing to reach the top, but the views were well worth the trip. This is the time of year that deer shed off their antlers and in these parts, searching for them is like hunting for lost treasure. Finding one is a huge prize--and we found FIVE!! I couldn't believe I found so many on my first trip--and some people search year after year without finding any!

One afternoon I got to go horseback riding and I didn't know it would be so fun! Most people ride with a saddle on the horse's back, but I found my most comfortable spot was right up between the horse's ears--where the wind was blocked and I had lots of nice warm hair to keep me warm (I'll remember to bring my jacket on my next trip back to Colorado!) I felt like a cowboy in the Old West riding on my pony--minus the Indians--but that was okay with me!

I had a blast at a local music jam with a lot of great musicians. I'd never heard Bluegrass music before, but I really liked it! There were guitars, fiddles, mandolins and my favorite--the banjo! I clapped my hands and stomped my feet along with the music and even got up to sing one!  They do a type of strumming called "flat" picking and that was right up my alley--who knew they named a whole way to play instruments after me!

On my last day, I got to see what kind of fun you can have in the snow. You have to get creative when there's 8 months of it every year! We enjoyed makeshift sleigh rides by hooking snow sleds on the dogs and they pulled us around in the snow as they fetched sticks and snowballs. We rode on snowmobiles, built snow people, but my favorite activity was sledding! I could have done that all day! There were hills of all shapes and sizes made from a bulldozer-like machine called a Bobcat that scoops up the fallen snow and piles it in huge mounds perfect for sliding down over and over again.

       I was so thankful to my hosts for showing me  such a fantastic time, I wanted to find a way to repay them. In Parshall, many people hunt for the food they eat in the winter and some do this by using a modern bow with fast arrows. And since it takes quite a bit of repetition to be able to hit your target, I thought I could help with practice--little did I know what I was getting myself into! But after watching the skill of the archer, (the man shooting the arrows), I felt completely confident in his ability and as you can see, it was quite a thrill!

    I had such a great time in Colorado--I hope I can come back soon for another visit, but maybe....I'll see what kind of fun there is to do in the summer next time....can anyone say...... "flyfishing"--or should I say "flat-fishing"?

From Parshall I headed out to beautiful Saratoga Springs, Utah! The mail was a little slow so I parachuted in!! What a thrill!! I thought for sure the wind would carry me off into those great big mountains, but I landed right in Corben’s uncle Jymn’s back yard! I was only able to stay a day with my friend’s there but we made the most of it! They showed me around the house and the yard. We played hide & seek (I thought they’d never find me in those bricks!). I even got to climb a tree! You might not think that’s very cool but here in Utah there aren’t many trees  unless you’re in the mountains. Utah is a desert so a good climbing tree is hard to find! Then I got to take a fun, furry ride on Sensei, their dog!! It was so much fun! I fell off once and he accidentally sat on me, but that’s okay! I

forgave him because we’re great friends and that’s what friends do! I wish you could see this place! The sky goes on forever and only ends at the top of the most amazing mountains covered in snow. It’s pretty cold here but not as cold as it was in Colorado.  I wish I’d brought my coat!

Next, my new friends took me to Salt Lake City, Utah, where we got to visit the Utah Supreme Court!! The Supreme Court is where they decide on really hard cases and help with cases about state law. There are 5 Justices that sit up in these really big chairs! They vote for one of them to be the Chief Justice. The court room is REALLY big!! I felt very small but loved looking at everything around me! It was really exciting to sit up where the justices sit. I felt like a real judge!

 

I hope you’ve enjoyed my letter and all the great pictures. My favorite is the one of me parachuting! I wonder if my mom will like that one! This has been the best trip ever! I can’t wait to go on my next adventure!!

--Stanley

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Can I just say I have the most awesome family EVER!!