July 2nd, 2010 by kami
July 2009 marked the 10th anniversary of our marriage! So we booked a cruise with Royal Caribbean. Neither of us had ever cruised before. We loved it! Left the kids with Aunt Janet for a weekend, and the rest of the time with Grandma Jane (oodles of thanks to both of them!). It was such a nice getaway.
Shipped out of Florida the end of September. First stop was Key West.
Audubon museum in Key West.
Sunken treasure museum in Key West.
“Little White House” in Key West
Second stop was Cosumel, Mexico. We traveled by boat and bus to the ancient Mayan ruins of Tulum. We were already with a tour group, but LDS tour guides spotted us right away (because of our “glow” 
), and gave us some additional insights. We really enjoyed visiting the ruins.
Huge storm blew in. A Carnival cruiseliner actually bumped into our ship because of the wind! We got soaked on our way in from the tour.
Last stop was Belize where we squished on a speed boat and went snorkeling. That was a really cool experience, too, but I don’t have a picture 
.
While at sea, we were well entertained and well fed! There were shows every night, and all sorts of fancy food. Carl enjoyed talking to the musicians, and singing karaoke, of course. We had fun meeting people, and just being together. Wish I had more pictures of the ship’s interior…
Our cabin.
Little bathroom.
Old married couple!
March 29th, 2009 by kami
Alas, our three weeks are up. The boys have been off-track of school, and we’ve been enjoying our freedom of schedule! We’ve visited (with Grandma) the aquarium, the Bean Museum at BYU, the library and the park. Wish I had a couple pictures to post, but I didn’t bring the camera…I guess all you picture-happy relatives aren’t rubbing off enough. James was awarded some restaurant coupons for being Student of the Week, so Carl and I took the kids out to Red Robin. We also got to fly kites, and walk around the lake at Daybreak (among other things)…it’s been fun! We even read the first Leven Thumps together, worked on requirements for the Soaring Eagle Award, and James learned “Amazing Grace” on the piano. (Oh, and Carl and I gave talks in Sacrament Meeting, and survived!) But now it’s time to gear up and get “back to school”! Wish us luck!
October 22nd, 2008 by kami
I’m back–with a lot to catch up on! I’ll keep it simple:
Carl was in Norway October 4-11th, and left for Brazil on the morning of the 13th. He’ll be home next Monday, the 27th! I think I can survive just a few more days… I had envisioned fulfilling solo time and plenty of sappy girl movies, but I’ve been too busy to fit a lot of that stuff in. “Alone” is getting old, and I’m anxious to have Carl back! We got to see him on video over Skype the other day. He’s been growing a beard, and running from thing to thing to thing. (More news on his adventures later!)
October 6 was the beginning of a busy week! The kids had “drug free” activities and school pictures. Joseph lost his first tooth on his Kindergarten zoo fieldrip! We received two treats from the Halloween “Phantom,” and had to return the favor the next night by leaving secret surprises on people’s doorsteps. (Me and all the kids…do you think we were super-sneaky?) I bought out the local Kid to Kid for the kids’ fall wardrobe, and did a bunch of other things. Cousins came to play on Saturday, and Carl returned home for the day on Sunday. What a week!
We had a little cake celebration with Carl, on Sunday the 12th, for James’ and Joseph’s birthdays. Joseph turned 6 years old on October 14th! We had to visit the eye doctor after school, but treated ourselves to Happy Meals after that. The kids were overjoyed to find Hot Wheels cars in their meals. James’ birthday was Sunday the 19th, and he turned 8 years old! We ate chocolate cake and played Monopoly Junior. Simple celebrations, really, but the boys seemed happy, and loved their birthday Bionicles. They’ve been promised some nifty bunkbeds when Dad returns.
We were delighted to have a Fall Break from school last Thursday and Friday! Grandma Jane and Grandpa Dick came with us, on Friday the 17th, to the Scarecrow Festival at Thanksgiving Point. We had a great time with the rocket launch, balloon-house bouncing and slides, pedal cars, barnyard animals, and tractor ride. And we still have two bags of leftover cotton candy! (Grandpa went all-out:)) Then Mom and Dick watched the kids while I enjoyed myself at my Relief Society’s “Fabulous Friday.” I made a bracelet and a magnet board, and appreciated the time out.
Now this week is already half over. Errands, groceries, and James’ homework that just about kills me off! (For a second-grader, he sure has a lot!) As I mentioned, James is now 8 years old, and we bought him a scout shirt and took him to his first pack meeting tonight! He’s really excited to be in the Wolf den, and race in the Pinewood Derby next month. Years ago, I used to dream of the day when I had an 8-year-old child, getting baptized and the like. Well, the day has come! James will be baptized a member of our church on November 1! It truly is amazing how the time flies.
I’m done with the “nutshell.” OK, it’s a little more than a nutshell, and mainly for my own record of our goings-on, but at least it has brought us up to date.
A few applicable pictures:
Joseph’s first missing tooth
Cake celebration with Dad
The boys and their birthday Bionicles
