Team Kess News

Moving on to www.teamkess.com

2009-10-10T18:17:00.000-07:00

If you are one of the very few who happens to read the Team Kess News from time to time, please change your bookmark or RSS feed to www.teamkess.com. Being a technology bigot, I convinced Corey to setup the new blog at the #1 blogger tool, Wordpress. Please join us for more of the great commentary you've grown to know and love at www.teamkess.com.

Boston-Day 6

2009-06-30T16:17:00.000-07:00

Today we went to Copley Square. We went to the top of the Prudential Tower. That was fun

After that we went to the USS Constitution. While My mom and Jordan visited the USS Casin Young me and my dad climbed 294 stairs each way up the Bunker Hill Monument.

This was one the funnest day

Boston-Day 5

2009-06-30T16:13:00.000-07:00

Today we saw Plymouth rock. It was bigger than i thought.

We went to the Mayflower II. It was an exact replica of the Mayflower. Nobody knows what happened to the original.

We went to the Plymouth plantation. The Indians were not very good at acting. The Pilgrims were very good at acting.

Boston-Day 3

2009-06-30T16:01:00.000-07:00

Today we walked the Freedom Trail. We had a tour guide. We saw John Hancock's grave. We saw many things on the Freedom Trail. It was cool!

Boston-Day 4

2009-06-23T18:50:00.000-07:00

Today we went to Lexington and Concord.

In Lexington we saw the battle green. This is where the British shot at the retreing milita men. 8 men were killed.

In Concord the 'shots heard 'round the world' were fired. I stood on the place were they were fired. It was cool!

Boston-Day 2

2009-06-23T18:36:00.000-07:00

Today we went to Fenway Park. We sat in seats that have been there since 1934. The game was good. David Ortiz hit a home run a top the green monster. The Red Sox won in the bottom of the 9th inning.

After the game we walked on the warning track of Fenway. I took some dirt.

On our way to the hotel Jordan cracked his cast. My dad went to the emergency. Jordan got a green cast.

While Jordan and my dad were at the emergency room my mom and me were at the pool chillin'. We stayed there for 2 hours.

We ordered pizza to the room which was HUGE!

All in all we had a great day!

Boston-Day 1

2009-06-20T17:29:00.000-07:00

Today we woke up at 4:00am. Kevin gave us a drive to the airport at 5:00am. The line was really long. We barely made our flight to Minneapolis. The flight was 3 hours and 40 min. We landed one minute before we were scheduled.

We made our flight to Boston easily. That flight was 2 hours 15 min. We flew 2,500 miles. We arrived in Boston at 5:14 EST.

Tonight we checked in to the hotel. It is really nice! We ate dinner at Seaport bar and grill. Then we walked to 7-11 and got breakfast for tomorrow. Now we are just hanging-out in our hotel room.

We won our first game 4-2. It was an exciting game. We were losing 2-0, but then we rallied and scored 4 runs. The losing pitcher was the son of a former Padres pitcher.

We were not so fortunate our second game. We were losing 3-0 in the second inning. We rallied in the fourth and were winning 7-3. They scored some more runs and than in the bottom of the sixth we lost. I hit a foul ball and hit my dad in the calf. I went 0-1 with 2 walks. I got two ground balls and a fly ball. I did not drop one.

Severe Sprain

2009-06-16T09:46:00.001-07:00

Sunday Jordan was climbing a tree. He went to almost the highest branch. Once he got there he could not get down so he decided to jump. It was a jump of ten feet. he was wearing new shoes so it did not break his foot, but it serverely sprained it. He can not move it at all for 48 hours.

Tournament of Champions (TOC)

2009-06-16T09:43:00.000-07:00

My baseball team got first place! We are in TOC. Our first game is today. If you lose one game you are done.

Boston

2009-06-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

This Saturday we are going to Boston. We are all going (except Riley) because my dad has a confrence. He is in his confrence from 9:30 till 4:00 every day. My mom and brother will be seeing places all over Boston. We will do what my dad wants to do in the afternoon.

On Saturday we will wake up at 4:30am and go to the airport. Our plane leaves San Diego at 6:40am. We arrive in Minneapolis at 12:46pm. From Minneapolis we will go to Boston and arrive at 5:30pm.

Sunday we are going to do what my dad wants to do. At 1:35pm we are going to a Red Sox game. After that we will go to Faneuil Hall. Then i do not know what will happen.

Monday and Thursday we are going to walk Freedom Trail. It is 2.5 miles long. There are 16 stops, most free of charge. Every afternoon we will do what my dad wants to do.

Tuesday we are going to go to Lexington and Concord. We will see where the American Revolution was started.

Wednesday we are going to go to Plymouth rock. That is where the Mayflower landed.

Friday all of us will come home to San Diego.

Weekend

2009-04-06T17:32:00.000-07:00

This weekend i went to a lot of places.

Friday: My family left to Bakersfield at noon and i went to a family friends place. There i played on my PSP, watched a movie, and ran errands. Then Deron picked me up and took me back to my place.

Saturday: I went to my friend Cheyne's house in the morning. I played some video games before we went to his practice at 10:00. His practice ended at 12:00 but his sister had a practice from noon till two. We went home and played some before we went to bed.

Sunday: We slept in till eight. In the morning we played a little then we went to laser tag. Then it was time to go back home.

Baseball game

2009-03-28T15:55:00.000-07:00

Today i had a baseball game. I played Cheyne's team. Last time i played them we lost.

I played good in the field, not one ball got passed me. I should have made an out but the first baseman did not put his foot on the bag.

Hitting wise i did not do as good. I was 0-2 with a walk. I scored a run.

We won 10-3. We are on a four game win streak.

Jordan: Today i had game at 12:45. I all most caught 3 balls.We lost 18-6.but i had a great day!!!

Baseball games

2009-03-26T20:01:00.000-07:00

Corey: On Tuesday i had a baseball game against a Point Loma team. This game was played at a Point Loma field. Hitting wise i was 0-2 with one walk. The ump was TERRIBLE! He would call a strike when the ball was chin level. Fielding wise i did good. I almost turned a double play. But i was late getting the ball to first. We ended up winning, 4-1. We are on a 3 game winning streak!

Jordan: Yesterday I had a ballgame at 4:30pm.We got are FRIST home run by are smallest player but it was technically a four base aire.
We lost 17-25 but it was stell fun.I had a good day.

Dead fish

2009-03-18T16:08:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago one of Jordan's fish died. And while we were on vacation on of Jordan's fish died. So two fish died both Jordan's. Then Jordan was picking flowers for their graves he got stung by a bee. Then we went down to the fish store and he could not pick out any more fish because our tank water is not done cycling.

Spring Training-Day 3

2009-03-04T20:38:00.000-08:00

Corey:
Today we went to Montezuma Castle. It was houses built in the cliff. It was COOL!
Then we went to Slide Rock State Park. The water was 43 F. But i went in anyway. It was cold! And there was a rock that you could crawl under.
Finally we went to Red Rock. There we went to a church where you could see the valley. It was beautiful!
It was a good day!

Jordan:
Today i went to Slide Rock.They water must have been like 43 F. If you go in when you come back your feet feel numb. When i went to Montezuma. Montezuma is like a castle built in the side of a cliff. That the Indians built. And last but not least we went to Sedona. Sedona is a place where you look at a lot of colored red rock. One rock is shaped like a eagle head. The places we went to were really cool!

Spring Training-Day 2

2009-03-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

Corey:
Today i saw my second spring training. It was the Dodgers vs. Padres.
MY family and i went the early game early. I got 36 autographs. Some good ones were Tommy Lasorda, Brian Giles, Joe Torre, Kyle Blanks, Terry Kennedy, Kevin Towers, and Bud Black.
The final score of the game was 5-4, Dodgers. The Padres did good.
It was a good day!!

Jordan:
Today the Padres and Dodgers played. The game started at 1:15pm, but we got there at 10:00 for autographs. I got 35 autographs. I used two balls that are both covered with autographs. The players were bigger than i expected. The players were really nice
The Padres lost 5 to 4, but the tried their best!

Spring Training-Day 1

2009-03-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

Jordan: Today i went to my first game, Diamondbacks vs. Cubs. I was the lucky fan of the day. The people put me in a Cubs outfit and hat. They took a photo of me with the hat, cubs shirt, my glove, and my baseball. I was introduced on the big screen. I got sweet tarts, licorice, cotton candy, and lemonade. The Cubs got beat bad 9-1. A lot of players signed my ball. I hope i can see the Cubs again.

Corey: Today i went to my first spring training game. It was the Dbacks vs. Cubs.
My family and i went to the game early. I waited a half-hour to get an autograph of Ryne Sandberg. He is in the Hall of Fame.
During the game the Cubs got creamed, 9-1, at their home field.
After the game i got Reed Johnson, Bob D, Mike Fontenot, Sam Fuld, and Brad Snyder to sign my ball
It was a good day!

I got my ball signed by Ryne Sandberg

Mike Fontoet was signing at the end of the game

Me and Jordan

Opening Day

2009-03-02T18:49:00.000-08:00

On Saturday my brothers and i had opening day.

Opening Ceremonies: The president, Kevin, did the announcing. He announced the secretary and a bunch of other people. Then my friend Cheyne and his sister Peyton lead the us in the little league pledge.

Corey: Our team is the Bruins. On our first game we played the Razorbacks. In the first inning i played second base. In the second inning i played second base again. I got walked and stole second. In the third inning i played shortstop. In the fourth inning i played catcher. I got walked again. In the fifth inning i played catcher and i made two plays at home. A kid tried to steal home but i blocked the plate. And the second one was another kid trying to steal home and i threw it to the pitcher who tagged out the runner. In the last inning i started in center field but our catcher got hurt so i did it one more time. I was up with 2 outs in the bottom of the 6th. I struck out. The final score was 2-1. Oh, yeah i forgot, i scored our teams only run because i stole second and then there was an over throw at first so i ran home!

me and my buddy

Me and Jordan and our buddies

All of us in our uniforms

Jordan and his buddies

Riley was showing off for all of my friend watching him

FISH!!!!!

2009-02-17T19:39:00.000-08:00

Today we got a GOOD fish tank and fish. We put plants and rocks in it, we made a cool tunnel and a cave! We each want to tell about our fish, but here is a chart of the fish we bought

Fish Name: Name given by us:

Marble Molly Molly (Jordan)

White cloud Clyde (Jordan)

Cherry Barb Cherry (Jordan)

Golden Molly Goldie (Riley)

Neon Blue Dwarf Gourami Bluezo (Riley)

Mickey Mouse Swordtail Mickey (Riley)

Flame Dwarf Gourami Flame (Corey)

Zebra Danio Stripes (Corey)

Longfin Serpae Tetra Dot (Corey)

And here are the plants:

African Sword Plant

Anubius Hastifolia

Chyptocorynes (2x)

Java Fern

Jordan:
I got fish today and a fish tank and rocks and plants. Molly likes to eat the algae on the rocks! Clyde likes to hang out with stripes. Cherry likes to hang out with stripes and Clyde. Clyde, Cherry, and Stripes are schooling fish that is why they like to hang out. Molly is a girl and likes to swim at the bottom. Molly could mate with Goldie and have babies, but all the fish would eat the babies including Molly. But Goldie would not. The fish like the babies because they have protein. THE END!!!

Corey:
I got three fish. Dot has a dot that looks like a comma behind his gill. He is from the Amazon River. Flame is really shy, he likes to be behind the cave. Stripes likes to play with Clyde. He swims fast! He is a boy because he has gold stripes. Stripes wont stop moving!! They are cool!!!!!

Soccer - State Cup

2009-02-03T19:28:00.000-08:00

Saturday: I had one game. We played Real So Cal. They are a AAA-A team we are a AA-B team. I played right defender the whole game. I played good. We ended up losing 5-0.

Later that day we had a soccer party at a bowling alley. I played three games of bowling. And then i played in the arcade. There was a virtual jump rope. I ended up with 383 tickets. I got a yo yo, centipede, and a little gun.

Sunday: Today i had two games. The first game was at 8:00 in the morning we had to leave at 6:00am. When we got there there was frost on the ground. We played FC San Diego. They were a good team. I played right defender and forward. I played solid. We lost 4-0.

Are next game was against LAFC. They were pretty good. I played right defender and Center midfield. I think i played the best today. We lost 4-2, but that was the fist time our team had scored in state cup for 4-5 years.

The 25th

2009-02-03T19:23:00.000-08:00

Riley-"I watched Arther. I also watched another Arther. I went to the park. I played Star Wars toys. I rode a go-cart. I played Lego's. I got ice cream. I had a cookie. My day was fun!"

Mr. Benjamin's Party

2009-01-14T09:36:00.000-08:00

Monday night was the first “party” at Mr. Benjamin's. The kids had to dress up, and the boys had to wear a tie and a sweater or sports coat. The kids had to dance more and parents were encouraged to walk right up to their kids in the middle of the dance floor and take photos. Mr. Benjamin referred to our cameras as "Parental Tools of Embarrassment". He also explained to the kids how to properly pose for a photo. They were not allowed to duck, turn away, or let go of each other. And all were required to smile. He did a great job of explaining to them why these pictures would be important to them in a few years.

And the encouragement resulted in this great photo....

Arsenal Winter Classic Photos

2009-01-14T09:30:00.001-08:00

Only one of the dad's on the team was bright enough to bring along his camera. Thankfully, he was able to snap some shots of the team.

Arsenal Winter Classic

2009-01-12T08:52:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I had a soccer tournament in Temecula. It was the Arsenal Winter Classic. I played right defender the whole game.

Saturday morning: In the morning we played CV Manchester. I played good. They had a big boy on their team. He accidentally kicked me in the calf. My calf is still sore right know. We beat them 3-2. I was awesome!

Saturday late morning: Someone on our team has an aunt in town so the team went there. I watched Get Smart at there house. They also brought Subway.

Saturday late afternoon: We played Attack. They were good. I think I played better in this game than in the first one. In this game I got kicked in the ankle. My ankle also still hurts right know. We lost 2-0. After this game we went home. I was disappointed that we lost.

Sunday morning: We played in a semi-final game. We played AYSO Matrix. They were not that good. I played pretty good in this game. My grandma came to watch me in this game. We beat them 4-2. It was exciting!! After the game we went to watch PKs being taken to determine who we would play in the final. The team who won that game was Arsenal. So we would have to play the host team in the final.

Sunday afternoon: We played Arsenal. We did hard warm ups. To start the game they had us parade in from the corner. And then they had us turn and face our parents. OOOOOOOO!! The game started. With in ten minutes we scored. Five minutes later they scored. OOOOOO!! OO! At half time, the score was tied 1-1. OOOOOOO!! The second half started. With in ten minutes we scored. With in twenty minutes we scored again. OOOOOO!! OO! OOOOOO!! We won 3-1!!! We threw buckets of water on our Coach. I was exhausted, but it was worth it.

Ceremony: After we won there was a Ceremony for second and first place. When they called your name you got a T-shirt and a medal. The whole team got a trophy. It was a glass soccer ball on a stand. Winning it was fun!!!

A day with Deron

2008-12-18T19:53:00.000-08:00

Today our friend Deron took us to the Ruben H. Fleet Science Center at Balboa park. We saw an Imax movie. It was called Animalopolis. It was about funny stuff animals do. One of the animals would touch his hip and then the guys who made the movie would rewind and fast forward. So it would look like he was dancing

We also played in the Science Center. I made a circuit work in one minute while this 20 year old guy could not get it to work in ten minutes. He said, "Show off," and then "just kidding." The whole day was fun!!

Thank you Deron!!

Today

2008-12-15T20:03:00.000-08:00

Today i got sick. My head was hurting really bad. Riley went to the doctor because he was wheezing. He got an inhaler.
-Corey

Today my i went to the doctors office because Riley was sick and Corey stayed home. And it rained hard and long. We did a shortened day of school because Corey was sick. I had a good day.
-Jordan

I was sick and i had to go to the doctor. And we got medicine at our house. We went back home. And then i played. And i also took my medicine. I also took a nap. I also woke up and watched Rudolph.
-Riley

Today

2008-12-12T07:48:00.000-08:00

Today i went to a friends house. His name is Sean.
-Jordan

Today

2008-12-11T19:51:00.000-08:00

Today i did a half school day. We watched "The Nativity Story." Later Jordan's friend Sean came over. I drew a castle with a moat. We had fun!

Presidio cup

2008-12-11T15:30:00.000-08:00

Last weekend i played in the presidio cup. We played in Temecula. We played three games. In are first game we won 2-1. In are second game we won 3-1. Are third game we lost 2-0. I played right defender and right midfielder. I played good. On our third game if we scored one goal we would have advanced. In the end the team we lost to moved on. In the end it was fun!

Jordan's school day

2008-12-05T18:21:00.002-08:00

Today i had school. I learned a new concept in math, the mupitpulcation table of five. I had a great day!!
-Jordan

Thanksgiving

2008-12-05T18:21:00.001-08:00

This Thanksgiving we are going to both of my Grandparents house. First we went to my mom’s parent’s house. Then we went to my dad’s parent’s house.
When we went mom’s parent's house we had lots of fun! We saw my mom’s parents, my aunt and uncle, and two of my cousins. We watched lots of football. All the games were blowouts. Then came the best part, the dinner. For dinner we had a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. My favorite food was the mashed potatoes. They were really good. After dinner we had dessert. My mom made these really cool desserts. It was a sugar cone with the tip bent up. Then she filled it with Reses pieces. They were so good!! After dinner we watched more football.
When we went to my dad’s parent’s house we saw lots of people. We saw my dad’s parents, my other aunt and uncle and their daughter, and our great grandma. For dinner on the first day we had Chinese food. I had pot-stickers and orange chicken. Then on the next day for lunch we had our “Thanksgiving dinner”. We had veronica and germen sausage. It was delicious!!

Thanksgiving break

2008-11-26T16:44:00.000-08:00

From Tuesday to next Monday we are on break.

Yesterday my friend, Cheyne, came over. We played Wii and outside.

Today we unpacked all our Christmas boxes. We found a lot of fun Christmas stuff! It was fun

On Thanksgiving we are driving to my mom's parents house.

On Friday we our going to my dad's parents house.

On Sunday we drive home.

Saturday soccer

2008-11-23T18:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Jordan and i had a soccer game. It was our last regular season game.

Corey: We played a team we had played our first game. I played right defender and center forward. When i was forward i....i....i scored a GOAL!! I was my second goal of the year, first goal in the season. In defense i did really good. I stopped them. The final score was 3-2. We won!!

Jordan: "I lost in my soccer game. The score was 16-1. I played right midfield." -Jordan

Jordan's Wednesday

2008-11-19T19:06:00.000-08:00

Today I had a soccer scrimmage against a team from the "Mexico" league. We crushed them 6-0. I played goalie and left midfielder. I got a bloody knee. It felt good.

I had school today. We are going to do a Thanksgiving play. I'm going to be a Pilgrim. Corey will be an Indian. We have to memorize our lines. I cant wait.

The good day

2008-11-10T19:53:00.001-08:00

Today I had soccer practice. A kid kicked the ball, it hit me.

At school I learned a new concept in math. I had a good day.

- Jordan

Videos from Presidential Debate

2008-11-09T08:15:00.000-08:00

I apologize for the delay in getting these videos posted. My wireless disagrees with uploading 500MB of videos to YouTube. Enjoy the debate....

First Question to Candidates

Second Question to Candidates

Third Question to Candidates

Closing Statements from each Candidate

Announcement of Winning President, Concession, and Victory Speeches

The Greatest American President is....

2008-11-04T20:35:00.000-08:00

by a very close final tally of 284 to 254.....Abraham Lincoln!

The debate, concession, and victory speeches will be loaded later this evening.

Mock Presidential Election Speeches

2008-11-02T21:34:00.000-08:00

Please watch the Presidential candidate speeches below and vote for The Greatest American President on the right sidebar.

These are the same speeches you will hear if you attend the live debate on Tuesday night. I cant promise that it will be the same experience, so you may want to watch the videos even if you will be joining us.

At the risk of getting technical on you here, the polling widget that we're using only allows one vote unless you delete your browser cookies. If you have multiple browsers (i.e. Microsoft Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, and Google Chrome), then you can vote once from each browser.

To delete cookies from Microsoft Internet Explorer v6.x, go to the Tools pulldown menu and select Internet Options. Under the General tab, click the Delete Cookies button. Now when you close and open your browser again, you should be able to vote again.

If you don’t have Microsoft Internet Explorer v6.x, the instructions will be a little bit different. You can check the browser and version by going to the Help pulldown menu and selecting About. Email Ryan or Wendy if you need help deleting your cookies.

And now, without further ado.....

George Washington (Corey)

Abraham Lincoln (Jordan)

Election Update

2008-10-31T10:27:00.000-07:00

Due to scheduling difficulties, the candidates pre-recorded speeches will not be posted today. But they will be posted by the morning of Monday, November 1st.

If you are casting an absentee ballet, please vote by 6:00 pm Tuesday, November 4th or your vote will not be counted in the OFFICIAL election results. (The candidates debate and live speeches will be posted following the election.)

Election mailers will be sent out today. CHECK YOUR MAIL BOX!!!

Junior Cotillion

2008-10-23T19:47:00.000-07:00

On Monday i went to a junior cotillion. Then Mr. Benjamen talked about what we would do and what he expects. Then came the horror!!! He said we had to DANCE with a girl. We had to go to them and say "May i please have this dance?." They had to say "yes, thank-you." I picked a girl named Jermey. I picked a short person. That was weird!!!

Weekend

2008-10-13T18:06:00.000-07:00

Saturday: Jordan and i had a soccer game. I tied 1-1. I did pretty good. I played right defender. Jordan unfortunately did not do as good. They lost by a lot. I did okay. He played mid-field and defender.

Sunday: Sunday was a restday. We did nothing.

Road Trip Slideshow

2008-10-07T12:35:00.000-07:00

Pictures from our travels have been posted to our Picasa Web gallery.

Yellowstone 2008

Day 10 - Final Day

2008-10-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

This morning we set out for home around 8:45am, our earliest start yet and only 15 minutes later than planned! We only drove for about 30 minutes to Ryan’s aunt and uncle’s home in Elk Grove for breakfast. It was wonderful to see them and listen to the boys talk about our trip. Lon and Nancy had a delightful buffet spread and lots of treats for the boys to enjoy.

We stayed at their home for almost two hours, and then we set out for the next leg of our journey. We are currently traveling to Bakersfield to watch the pre-recorded Charger game, and have an early dinner with our good friends the VZ’s and the Hunts. We have to finish up our blog during this final leg, because once we return home there will not be any time for travel journaling. Our plan later thi evening is to leave the VZ’s house around 6pm and arrive at our home by 10pm tonight. It will be a welcomed sight indeed!! We all are looking forward to waking up in our own beds in the morning, hopefully not too early.

Before we close we want to give a shout-out to thank those who stayed at our house to take care of our dog Jessie. We offer deep gratitude to Papa Kessler (who also worked on many projects around the homestead), Deron, Kevin (who sincerely wanted to help, but got sick instead), and Ryan’s intern Jessi. It was a gift to us to be able to travel around the western US without having to worry about our dog or our house. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!

So it is with mixed emotion that we come to the end of our “Road Trip Blog 2008”. We have shared an unforgettable trip. Overall it has been a huge success, and met every expectation we had of this journey together. We have all ready started planning our next road trip for Spring 2010. We are hoping to take our boys on a road trip up and down the west coast.

Until then, here are our final thoughts on this wonderful adventure.......

Ryan: 10 days, 3000 miles, and lots of good memories and stories…and this is the end of our amazing race. I look forward to doing again in 2010. It can only get easier, right?

Wendy: I will never forget the past 10 day of discovery and adventure with our boys. I am so proud of how well they traveled, and how easily they endured several hours in the car. They made the trip an absolute joy! The hardest part of our travels was trying to decide what NOT to see and do. There just wasn’t enough time to do everything. I’m also thankful for God’s protection on our journeys, and for the wonder of His creation that we had the blessing of experiencing together. I look forward to doing it again…in the future…after a long rest at home.

Corey: The road trip was sweet! My favorite part was seeing the dead bison carcass, getting surrounded by a herd of bison, and staying in a treehouse. We spent a lot of good time together on this trip. It was nice bonding with my family, but I can use some alone time.

Jordan: I loved spending so much time with my whole family. My favorite animal that I saw was the bison. I think bison are cool because they are so big and they look really strong. I likes seeing the geysers shoot really high, and smelling the stinky mudpots, and seeing pretty and gross hotsprings. I also loved sleeping in the treehouse. I loved this trip. I hope we can do it again.

Riley: I liked our vacation. I pretended to pick up a lot of animals along the way and put them in the back of our car. I am bringing home one imaginary bear (he is dead now), a moose, an elk, a bison, a river otter, a cow a sheep, and a lot of huge elephants and teeny-tiny baby ones. I liked going to a lot of friends’ house and spending my money. I want to go on a trip with my family again.

Day 9 - Sacramento

2008-10-05T16:41:00.000-07:00

Today we finally returned to The Golden State. The sign that read, “You are entering the State of California” was a simply glorious sight! We all woke up this morning excited that we were only going to have to be in the car for 5 hours!

It took a while to get the car packed up, due to the rain and mud. So we arrived in Sacramento later than planned (par for our trip), wearing mud stained clothes. Instead of going straight to the California Capitol for a tour, as originally planned, we had to stop first at our friend’s house to change clothes and freshen up.

We got to the Capitol around 6pm. We missed the last tour by a couple of hours. But it was beautiful to see the Capitol at sunset, against a blue sky with billowy pink clouds. We took some pictures and walked around the grounds. It is an impressive sight, and we particularly liked the tree garden. There was a tree to represent every type of tree grown throughout the entire state. It was neat to see all of that diversity of plant life in one area. We also visited several memorials. The “In the Line of Duty” memorial for fallen California police officers made mom a little choked up and dad found the name of a friend from high school on one of the plaques.

We were also glad to walk around with my college roommate Elizabeth, who lives in the area and hosted us for the night. She has been to the Capitol many times with visiting family and friends and she was a wonderful tour guide. She shared a lot of interesting facts with the boys like, “This is where a man who was upset about parking tickets and drove his car full of explosives into the building.” (Fortunately, the explosives didn’t detonate. No one was injured and damage was minimal.) Other interesting facts that intrigued the boys were the private security entrance for visiting senators and other important political officials, and the hotel across the street where Arnold stays when he is in town. We learned yesterday that there are underground tunnels for him to travel from his hotel suite to his office.

After leaving the Capitol, we drove past the historic governor’s mansion, which unfortunately was under renovation and was shrouded by white sheets and scaffolding. We also drove through Old Sacramento and the boys were able to shop at a toy store for a few last minute souvenirs.

We picked up some Italian food for a late dinner on our way back. A friend of mom’s from high school and his wife live in the area, and they came by Elizabeth’s house to catch up. It was wonderful to see Josh (not to be confused with Elizabeth’s son Josh) and his wife, Jolie. Mom and Josh hadn’t seen each other since they were in college. And it’s always good for the boys to realize that mom really was a teenager a long, long time ago.

It was hard to go to bed on the final night of our vacation. We are all ready to be home, but we have had a wonderful time and it’s a bit sad for it to end. The kids played until after 10:30pm, and Ryan and Wendy were up visiting with Liz and Greg until after midnight. However it was good to be in a nice big comfy bed after 2 nights in a treehouse! We all slept very well!!

Thoughts on Sacramento....

Ryan: It was neat to see the Capitol building again. I am so glad that Wendy insisted that we still went even thought we got into town later than planned! I also really liked their dog spike. He is a black pit-bull, but very sweet and playful. He enjoyed having everyone pet him. I was ecstatic at the end of the day that I could stretch out my legs in the bed and get a good nights sleep.

Wendy: I loved seeing the Capitol. I was surprised how emotional I felt at the “Fallen California Police Officers Memorial”. I felt a powerful mixture of gratitude for my dad’s safety during his 30 years serving as a California Sheriffs Deputy, as well as a profound sadness for the many families that have lost a loved one in the line of duty. I was particularly moved by a bronze statue adjacent to the memorial of a mom hugging a crying child on a park bench. It brings tears to my eyes as I write about it.

Corey: I liked seeing the Capitol. I had never seen it before. Unfortunately, the Governor’s mansion was covered up so I couldn’t see it too. We went to Old Sacramento. There were a lot of old looking shops. I bought fake vomit (which mom told me I couldn’t open until we were at our own house), two rocks you bang together to make a spark (I also have to wait until we are home to open those), and a “brain-buster” puzzle. I want to go back a take a tour of the Capitol someday.

Jordan: I had fun playing with Josh. He is a really cool kid. I bought a lot of cool stuff. I bought two dart guns and a bug that you have to build. It is hard. My guns are really fun. Sacramento is a really fun place. There are a lot of cool things to see. There are a lot of fun activities. Okay, done.

Riley: I wanted to buy another pistol but my mommy said that I couldn’t so I bought a different gun that had bullets. I had fun playing with Abby. I got to play with their kitties for a long time.

Day 8 - Oregon Caves National Monument

2008-10-05T16:39:00.000-07:00

Today we went on a beautiful 45 minute drive from our treehouse to The Oregon Caves National Monument. The older boys and Ryan took a 1 hour and 15 minute ranger-guided tour of the caves. The cave hike was moderately strainuous, and children had to be 42” tall to buy a ticket for the tour, so Riley was unable to participate in the hike. At first he was disappointed that he couldn’t tour the caves with his brothers. However, he was able to go into the first room of the cave with the rest of the group. As soon as he experienced the darkness of the cave, and learned from the ranger about the numerous bats living in the caverns, he was ready to go.  It was too rainy and cold for Riley to want to hike around on the trails, so Riley and mom went into the souviner shops and got hot chocolate instead.

The Oregon Caves National Monument was discovered by a hunter named Isaiah in the 1870’s. His dog, Bruno, chased a black bear into the cave. Isaiah followed them into the cave and discovered a labyrinth of caverns. Isaiah explored the caves, but sadly did not find his dog until he returned to his camp. Bruno was there waiting for him and wagging his tail.

In the cave there were 526 stairs, and for every staircase down there were two staircases up. Some sections of the cave were huge caverns, but some passageways were only 45” tall. There were several rooms in the cave. One room was called the “Miller Chapel”, a couple was married there in the 1930’s wearing animal skins. Their wedding certificate was also written on an animal hyde. The “Ghost Room” was the biggest room, and could contain a football field. We also saw “Angel Falls”, drapery made by pure clean water, so it was bright white. There was also 4-5 times the normal level of carbon dioxide in the cave, making it hard to breathe. We all got winded easily. A small stream ran throughout a good portion of the cave. Corey was the only one who answered the rangers question about how to find your way out if you got lost…follow the current of the stream to the entrance. (He learned that at another cave we toured in the Sequoia Mountains a couple of summers ago.) There were also several fossilized bones in the cave, including 400 year old black bear bones that were on display. The ranger told us that explorers have also discovered 50,000 year old grizzly bear bones in the caverns, the oldest in North America; as well as 28,000 year old jaguar bones. This location is the furthest north that jaguar bones have been discovered. But unfortunately both of the latter sets of bones are still undergoing research, at were not available for viewing. At the exit of the cave there was a huge snail that wore it’s shell on it’s side. It is indigenous to that area. It is also unique because it shell grows depending on how much food it eats.

All three boys completed Junior Ranger packets for their age level, and received a Junior Ranger badge after raising their right had and reciting the oath for the ranger. They were applauded for their efforts by everyone in the visitor’s center!

Thoughts on the Oregon Caves National Monument.....

Ryan: There is a cool chateau at the Oregon Caves. If we return to this area, I think I would prefer to stay here rather than the treehouse. I enjoyed helping the boys complete their junior ranger books and earn their badges.

Wendy: I was particularly amused by the ranger’s safety speech at the beginning when she cautioned everyone not to use flash photography in the caves. The many bats in the cave can get stirred up by the bright light and cause quite a scene. I enjoyed that mental image of people running around in chaos while bats swirled around their heads and the ranger trying to maintain order, all because a clueless tourist snapped a photo. It is an image right out of a National Lampoons movie. My favorite part of the outing was watching the boys, including little Riley, take their oath for their ranger badges. There was also a fun diner with a snake-like serving counter where we ate lunch. Ryan, Corey and I all enjoyed Caveman Buffalo Chili.

Corey: I liked the caves. It was fun. Inside the cave it was 44 degrees. At some points you had to duck down to 45 inches. We climbed 526 stairs in the cave. For every set of stairs you go down, there are two sets going up. There are 8 different species of bats living in the cave. In the caves they found 50,000 year old grizzly bear bones. They also found 28,000 year old jaguar bones. They also found 400 year old black bear bones in the cave. It was so dark in the cave I could not see my hand in front of my face when the ranger turned off the walking lights. I liked the caves!

Jordan: The caves were awesome! It was really dark when they turned off the lights. There are a lot of bats in there the size of you thumb. It would be scary to see a lot of bats. I also earned a Junior Ranger badge at the caves. My badge is really cool.

Riley: I couldn’t go on the cave tour because I am not big enough. I got to go in the first room of the cave, but I got scared that it was dark and the lady said there were lots of bats. I was glad to go back out with mommy. I really liked shopping for souvenirs instead (I bought a geode rock, two magnetic rocks, and a penny smasher). I also liked drinking hot chocolate with mommy while we waited for daddy and my brothers. I also earned my Junior-Junior Ranger badge and took the Junior Ranger oath just like my brothers.

Day 8 - More Treehouse Highlights

2008-10-05T16:35:00.000-07:00

Ryan: I had a lot of fun in our treehouse. I enjoyed climbing the ladder to our bedroom and jumping across the suspension bridge to the boys’ cabin (which also became my other bedroom). The strong gale force winds brought the entire family together the second night, as we all were uncertain whether our treehouse would make it through the night. It was perfect timing that we were able to be there for the first rainstorm of the season!! (Read the last line with sarcasm.)

Wendy: The treehouse was a very unique experience and definitely a highlight of our trip. One of my favorite moments was when Ryan and I sat on the balcony of our cabin room, sipping coffee and reading email on our laptops while the boys played down below. I enjoyed the irony of our rustic accommodations and modern technology. My favorite moment of our stay was the second night when our whole family was snuggled up on our big bed in the parent’s cabin. The storm whirled around outside while we played Yatzee and enjoyed lots of good conversation and belly laughter. It was a great ending to a fabulous vacation!

Hightlight of the treehouse.......

One of the best parts of our stay at the treehouse was the homemade country breakfast served hot and fresh in the main lodge each morning. It was a welcome treat after eating an excessive amount of processed fast food over the past week. Isn’t it funny how much better food always tastes when someone else cooks it?!?!

Note on our time in Oregon:
We stayed at the treehouse for two nights and for the first 24 hours we LOVED it! However since it rained pretty much the entire time we were there, Ryan and I grew weary of everything being wet and muddy. We realized once again that we are truly Southern California people. We enjoy traveling and experiencing other places very much, but being in other places always renews our contentedness with our tiny house in sunny San Diego!

Medical Alert on Riley:
Riley learned a painful life lesson during our stay at the treehous – “Be very cautious when walking by someone playing on a swing”. Corey was swinging on a huge tree swing after his dad gave him a hardy push. Riley walked to close to the swing and Corey’s heels caught the back of Riley’s head as he was swinging backwards. Poor Riley was actually launched into the air and then landed face first in the wet leaves and mud. He stood up crying with a bloody nose and mud and scrapes down the middle of his face. After some ice, a cool wash cloth, and a lot of TLC he is just fine, except for the knot on the back of his head and some small scrapes on his nose and forehead. It is so unfortunate that there are some difficult life lessons that we all have to experience first had on the road to adulthood!

Day 7 - Oregon

2008-10-04T09:05:00.000-07:00

Today we had a 9 hour drive through almost the entire state of Oregon. We had no idea how barren the east side of the state is, and for hours we drove through the middle of nowhere. Thank goodness for our GPS. It has been so wonderful to have this much needed aid.

As we drove closer to Klamath Lake the scenery changed and became much more like the Oregon we anticipated: lush greenery, huge trees, and cooler temperatures. The hardest part of our trip is having to choose to NOT stop at so many wonderful and historically significant sights. There just isn’t time to do everything, so we pressed on to our destination and arrived at our Treesort (near Cave Junction) just after 8pm.

Once again the boys were tremendous travelers. We are so proud of them, and look forward to taking many of these types of vacations with them in the future. Their patience with the long car ride paid off when we arrived at the “Treesort” and they caught sight of our accommodations….

We are staying at a “Treesort”: a collection of several whimsical treehouses, encircling a common lodge and firepit, and surrounded by horse stables and beautiful Oregonian mountain property. We are staying in the “Swiss Family” Treehouse, one larger cabin high up in a tree for the parents, and a second smaller tree house in an adjacent slightly lower tree for the kids, connected by a swinging bridge. Our treehouse also has a fireman’s pole, a climbing rope, and a tarzan rope. It is paradise for a family of three boys!

At first Corey and Jordan wanted to sleep in the smaller treehouse by themselves, Riley was with mom & dad in the bigger cabin. But as bedtime approached, we all agreed that we would sleep best if the parentals split up for the night. So dad and Jordan slept in the kids cabin, and mom, Riley, and Corey slept comfortably in the bigger cabin. It’s hard to say who had the better nights sleep, dad was cramped in a child-sized bunk all night, but mom had to take Riley to the bathroom in the freezing cold at 4am. There isn’t any plumbing in the treehouse!

Thoughts about the Treehouse.....

Corey: The treehouse is sweet! It has a fireman’s pole, a tarzan rope, and a rope ladder. There are two cabins up in some big trees 15 feet off the ground. One cabin is for parents and the other one is for the boys. They are connected by a swinging bridge. I love it here!!

Jordan: The treehouse we are staying in is really cool. We have a tarzan rope swing, and a climbing rope. Last night I climbed up the rope all by myself really fast. Our tree house also has a fireman’s pole that I can go down really fast. The swing is really fun too. Once I almost crashed into a tree. This has been my favorite part of our trip.

Riley: The treehouse is so cool. It has a horsey swing for me. It also has a rope I can swing on. It is really fun.

Day 6 Afternoon - Boise

2008-10-04T09:03:00.000-07:00

Once again we traveled through three states today: Wyoming, the corner of Montana, and Idaho. Shortly after leaving Yellowstone, we stopped in Montana for lunch. We tried to go some where that served a quick meal, but the first place we went to was out of business and the next two were closed for the season. Not a typical dilemma for us city folk! So we ended up going to a local sit-down BBQ restaurant, that was very good but took a bit more time than we had planned.

After leaving Montana, we headed out for Idaho and did some carschooling while our car got pelted by so many bugs it sounded like it was raining. The most interesting site we passed by on our travels today was “The Crater of the Moon”. It is a huge National Park full of nothing but barren black lava rock as far as the eye could see. We didn’t have time to drive through the park, but we did stop to pick up a brochure and junior ranger activity books. The brochures said that several famous astronauts in the late 1960’s did train at Craters of the Moon to prepare for their lunar missions.

We arrived into Boise around 6:30pm and went directly to the home of some friends of ours from college. We enjoyed a cowboy pizza dinner and ice cream, great conversation and lots of laughter, and some much needed time for the boys to run around freely and play with their kids. Even though we were very active during our time in Yellowstone, the time was pretty restrictive. Because of the thermal features that were everywhere, wild animals in the area, and other tourist, we were constantly telling the boys “stay on the path”, “don’t run”, “don’t yell”, etc. On the way to our friends’ house, we did get a bit lost, but we greatly enjoyed seeing a house on our detour in a residential area with sheep grazing in their front yard. Certainly not a sight seen in the center of San Diego!

Our friends also graciously allowed us to do some laundry at their home while we visited. So all of our t-shirts are clean and ready to go for more hiking! Although our next stop is Oregon and the weather forecast there is rainy and windy. It was almost 9:30pm MST by the time we got into our hotel room. We all went to bed shortly after getting settled in anticipation of our 9+ hour drive to Oregon tomorrow. But we can’t wait to get to the tree house hotel, aka “The Treesort”. The driving day will certainly be worth it, and provide plenty of time for more family bonding and carschooling!

Thoughts on Yellowstone

2008-10-04T09:01:00.001-07:00

Ryan: My favorite moment was being surrounded by a herd of bison. Fortunately they didn’t mind us being there. I’d hate to have to return our rental with a hole in the side from being gored by an angry bison bull! I also liked seeing all of the brilliant colors in the hot springs. It was also really neat that you can look down into the hot springs and see at least 10 feet down. It was amazing to see all of the diverse terrain. My favorite sight was the golden meadows with little streams cutting through it. My only disappointment with Yellowstone is that I never saw a moose grazing in the meadows, even though I looked really hard for my moose every time we went for a drive. I really wanted to find one and name him “Magillacuddy”.

Wendy: All of Yellowstone was an unforgettable part of our road trip travels! I’m so glad to have shared this experience with our boys while they are young. It was so fun to watch the wonder and excitement of their words and faces as they discovered all the wonders of this unique park. One of the biggest surprises in Yellowstone was that it was unusually warm for this time of year. In fact we had to buy a t-shirt for everyone at the general store because we ran out of clean short sleeve shirts. We were expecting fall weather, and had packed primarily for cooler temperatures. I hope we can come back to Yellowstone as a family and spend at least a week exploring the back areas of the park with our boys before they are up and out.

Corey: Yellowstone was very fun. This was the first time I have seen Old Faithful. It is a fairly young geyser because the base at the mouth of the geyser is not very tall. We saw others like “The Beehive”, “The Grotto”, and The “Castle Geyser” that have a really tall or large base. The Grotto had several arches and the beehive cone base was over 4 feet tall. We also saw hundreds of bison, 10 elk, and one doe. I liked being surrounded by bison on three sides of our car. They were so close I could have pet one. I also liked seeing a bison carcass. I also got to use a sweet infrared thermometer to check the temperature of thermal area. I learned that you can tell the temperature of a hot spring by looking at the color of it. The hottest water is blue, which is 199 degrees and over. And the cool river water is the coldest water and it is dark green. The other water colors in-between are brown, orange, yellow-pink, and bright green, which goes from coldest to hottest respectively. The colors are caused by little bacteria in the water. The hotter the water, the fewer bacteria that can survive which results in the various colors. I would like to go back to Yellowstone one day. It was cool!!

Jordan: Yellowstone is really cool. My favorite things were the geysers and the mud pots. The bison carcass was one of my favorites too. We found two legs, a spine, and a head. We also saw a ton of bison and elk. I bought a stretchy bear and my first pocket knife. My pocket knife has “Yellowstone” printed on one side, and “Jordan” on the other. So far I have gotten to use my pocket knife several times to open stuff. Yellowstone was fun!

Riley: Yellowstone was really fun. I liked shopping at the store. I bought a bag of animals and a back pack full of tools. My tools helped me work on the doors and closet in our hotel. I also worked on the wooden roads when we were walking. We saw geysers with water coming out of them real high. And animals with big horns. I kept looking for a cow, but I never saw one.

Funny Note on Yellowstone:
On a driving tour around the park, we were all keeping our eyes peeled outside the window looking for wildlife. Mom excitedly yelled out, “Oh look I see a beaver in the river!” But as everyone looked over, she said, “Oh wait, it’s just a gooses’ butt.” The boys (including Ryan) have enjoyed quoting mom’s mention of a gooses butt several times since.

Day 6 Morning - Yellowstone

2008-10-02T07:33:00.000-07:00

This morning we were up again by 7:15a, but by the time we loaded up the car it was almost 9:00. We headed out to explore the lower Yellowstone loop. Again we saw a wide variety of terrain, land features, and wildlife. Our first stop was at one of the many signs we have seen for the continental divide which runs throughout the park. We stopped at Isa Lake, a quaint pond full of lily pads. The lake is located at one of our nations peaks and it drains from both sides so the lake doesn’t flow to either side, it just gets higher or lower depending on the snow melt.

Another highlight of our trip was seeing a herd of bison up close, frighteningly up close. They walked onto the main road as we were driving by at a very slow speed. The bison closed in around us and we could hear the sound of their hooves clomping on the pavement. There were males, females, and several calves in front, on the driver’s side, and behind our car. It was a rare and wonderful experience to migrate at 2 mph with a herd of 20-30 bison. The boys were absolutely mesmerized watching bison that were almost the size of our minivan walking beside our car.

We drove around Yellowstone Lake, which was huge and breathtaking in the glistening morning sun. Our first stop was Mud Volcano. We got out of the car to view some of the most acidic features in the park. We walked past “Dragon Mouth Spring”, a cave with billowing steam, boiling mud, and water that lapped in and out of the rocky cave entrance making the sound of a fire breathing beast. It was AWESOME!! We also walked past “Mud Cauldron”, a bubbling pool of hot mud and water. And we viewed Mud Volcano, a spewing spigot of steam, gas, and mud. The acid in the air was so thick, it was impossible to escape the foul sulfur odor. The smell had even penetrated into our car when we went to leave!

We drove just a few feet up the road and stopped at a scenic viewpoint across the highway, “The Sulfur Cauldron”. A very impressive and stinky sight as well. Unfortunately the tourist at that stop told us that we had just missed seeing a grizzly bear across a wide ravine come out of the forest to chase a bison out of its territory. It is crazy to be that close to the wildlife! Shortly after leaving Sulfur Caldron, we saw a herd of hundreds of bison up in the grassy hills along the road.

We were hoping to view Lower Yellowstone Falls, the last thing on our list of sights we wanted to see this trip, but the road to the Falls we were planning to take was closed and we didn’t have the time to figure out another route. We are having dinner at the home of friends from college who now leave near Boise, Idaho and we needed to begin the long journey to their home. We decided that it was time to just follow the road out of the park and enjoy some final sights of terrain and wildlife from our car windows.

We all hope to return to Yellowstone as a family in the future. There are so many trails and hikes we would have liked to explore. But this trip has provided a wonderful sampling to our boys of the natural diversity of our great country, and also a heightened respect and awe for the creativity of our majestic Creator.

Day 5 - Yellowstone

2008-10-02T07:29:00.001-07:00

Well, even with the alarm set to 7am, we still didn’t get out of the room until 8:45am. At least that time included eating a hearty breakfast of cinnamon and caramel rolls in our room. Our first stop was to pick up the “Young Scientist Tool Kits” at the visitor center. However, much to our delight, we got to watch Old Faithful erupt again on our walk there. At the Visitor Center a park ranger gave Corey and Jordan each a backpack with rock samples, magnifying glasses, stopwatches for timing geyser eruptions, color wheels for identifying the microbe bacteria that create vivid colors in the hot springs, and the highlight for both boys was an infrared-thermometer gun that they could point at the hydrothermal features to get an approximate reading on the surface temperature. It was pretty awesome!

Thankfully Riley had purchased a nature backpack the night before at the general store. It had a several pieces of research equipment designed for preschoolers to use to explore the surroundings. Riley was very proud to be toting a backpack of research tools as well as we set off for Geyser Trail.

Together we walked a 3 mile round trip trail that started behind Old Faithful and looped around several geysers, hot springs, and fumeroles (steam vents). This morning was the first time Riley showed signs of tiring, and he wanted to be carried by mom or dad much of the walk. Actually Riley wasn’t the only one who felt more tired today. We were all dragging a bit. It could have been due to the fact that we were acclimating to a high elevation of almost 8,000 feet or the fact that we had traveled by car more that a 1,000 miles from home.

Nevertheless, we all pressed on because there was much to see and do before the day was through. We passed by many extraordinary earth formations and hydro thermal features, too many to list. However the highlight by far of our geyser walk for the boys was seeing a mostly eaten bison carcass at the side of the trail. To add to the excitement we spotted it’s head and one of it’s legs several yards down the trail away from it’s body. After spending hundreds of dollars and driving thousands of miles, this will likely still be THE highlight of the whole trip for the boys.

After we finished exploring the geysers, we took a drive up to Upper Yellowstone. The scenery is unbelievable! We have never seen an area with such diverse land features. One minute the terrain is a lush forest with a beautiful winding river, and then it is a golden grass marsh, then a field of ancient lava rocks and hydrothermal features (hot springs, steam vents, and geysers), and then a rocky canyon. It is so diverse and constantly changing. Truly an amazing sight to behold!

In Upper Yellowstone we stopped at Gibbon Falls and visited Mammoth Hot Springs. The terrain at that site is like being on the set of Star Wars. We also stopped to see a petrified tree, the first time the boys have viewed this phenomena of nature. There were several large flying bugs in the area, similar to grasshoppers, that were very frightening to Riley. Much to everyone’s delight around us, he would scream and run down the path every time one came to near him. On our drive we also saw 15 Bison, most of them off in the distance, and 10 Elk. In Mammoth Hot Springs we were able to view a family of Elk up close and the boys enjoyed hearing their bugling.

We got back to the Old Faithful Visitors Center just before our science backpacks were due at 6pm. The boys did a great job of gathering data and recording information in their booklets. They took temperature readings of the hydrothermal features, measured and identified animal tracks, and looked for the various rocks and minerals that are common to the area. However we all decided that we were too tired to complete their activity books that night. There were still a lot of sections to complete by the following morning, as well as attending a 7pm ranger show required for the Junior Ranger badge for Yellowstone. We were all exhausted, so we unanimously decided to forgo earning the award patch, but still complete our booklets in the car on our long drive to Idaho the next day for our traveling school work. We were all delighted to spend the evening resting.

We enjoyed dinner together in the hotel dining room and then went up to our room to relax. The boys watched a movie on the laptop, while mom took a long soak in the bathtub, and dad caught up on emails. Unfortunately the movie the boys selected scared Riley, something about big bugs, so he spent most of his evening playing with his toys in the bathroom with mom while she read a book in the tub.

It was lights out by 10pm MST (the boys are still on PST). We are setting the alarm again for 7am. There are still several sights we want to see in Lower Yellowstone tomorrow before we head out for Idaho.

Day 4 - Jackson to Yellowstone

2008-10-02T07:21:00.000-07:00

This morning we all woke up excited to finally see The Grand Tetons and Yellowstone! We wend back into town for breakfast and some souvenir shopping. The boys enjoyed shopping in a “Cowboy” shop filled with stuffed wild animals from the Rocky Mountains and a few other areas. Mom and dad liked eating crepes and drinking coffee at a local café called “Jo-Jos”.

We also walked through the town square, a small park in the center of town with beautiful elk-antler archways at each corner. In the center of the park was an amazing bronze sculpture of a cowboy riding his horse. It was a memorial to veterans from Jackson and the surrounding county.

Thoughts on Jackson.....

Ryan: Jackson was a much smaller town than I remember. I still really enjoyed the four antler arches in the town square.

Wendy: Jackson was very quaint. I wish we could have spent a little more time there. My favorite parts were celebrating Jordan’s birthday and staying at the Cowboy Lodge. It was the perfect setting for our boy family.

Corey: I really liked the four antler arches. They were huge. I also liked the cowboy store. It was awesome. I bought a impressively, hand-carved wooden bison. The ice cream we got for Jordan’s birthday was great too. I got caramel cone and lemon sorbet in the same cup. 10-4

Jordan: Jackson was great. There were a lot of stores. I bought a bow and arrow. It is cool. Going out.

Riley: I got to go shopping too. I bought a cowboy gun and holster. I get to shoot lots of bad guys.

Grand Tetons:

The drive to The Grand Tetons was beautiful. There were so many georgeous trees in various shades of fall. Even Riley noticed the vivid shades of the changing leaves. We also saw an Elk refuge, the only protected land for the migration of Elk in the US.

After a refreshingly short drive, we arrived at The Grand Tetons. They were truly magnificent! We stopped at several viewing turnouts along the way. One of our favorite stops was viewing The Teton Glacier, a large mass of ice in the shaded crevasse of two peaks on the Teton Range.

We also stopped at the visitor center, where the boys received an official Junior Ranger Activity Booklet. After exploring some of the surrounding area, the boys completed their booklets and returned to the Visitor Center to take the Junior Ranger Oath and proudly receive a Junior Ranger pin from the park ranger. It was a very momentous occasion. Their activities also included watching a short film about the area which was very well done and getting to see and touch various antlers, skulls, and other animal skins from the area. It was a very enjoyable afternoon.

Ryan: The Grand Tetons were magnificent! The mountains rose up directly from the earth. This is one of the few mountain ranges that does not have foothills at the base.

Wendy: My favorite part of the whole day was watching the boys take their oath with the ranger for the Junior Ranger Badge. It was fun to watch them earn a special reward for learning about the Teton area.

Corey: The Grand Tetons were amazing. The highest peak, called THE Grand Teton was 13,713 ft. They are one of the only mountain ranges without foothills. I also became a Junior Ranger at the Grand Tetons. I earned a really cool pin.

Jordan: The Grand Tetons are cool. I have never seen something so big. I got a sick badge for becoming a Junior Ranger.

Riley: I liked throwing rocks with my dad into Colter Bay for over 30 minutes while my brothers did their Junior Ranger activities with mom. I also liked sitting inside the podium at the front of the auditorium while we watched the movie on The Grand Tetons. But my parents didn’t see me move in the dark from my seat into the podium. They thought I was lost and looked frantically for me for a few minutes until they found me up by the stage.

Yellowstone National Park:

We finally arrived at Yellowstone around 4pm. We checked into our hotel, The Snow Lodge, across from Old Faithful. After getting settled in our room, we walked over to the famous geyser. It erupted about 10 minutes after we got there. It was wonderful for all of us to see that unforgettable sight shortly after arriving. Seeing Old Faithful erupt was the activity the boys were most looking forward to on our trip.

After watching Old Faithful erupt we walked to the nearby visitor center and talked to a park ranger about earning Junior Ranger badges for Yellowstone. The work required for Yellowstone is much more extensive than The Grand Tetons, and will require the rest of our visit to complete. We also found out that Yellowstone has a “Young Scientist” program to teach kids about the causes of the various hydrothermal features of Yellowstone. So we picked up activity booklets for that as well, and in the morning we can return to the visitors center to checkout a science took kit for the boys that goes along with the booklet.

Much to the boys delight, after that it was time to go souvenir shopping at the Old Faithful General Store!! The boys shopped for toys and gadgets, while mom shopped for breakfast. Then we stopped by a “Mc Faithful” grill, as it is known by the locals, for dinner. It was relatively cheap and quick, perfect for a family of weary travelers!

Following dinner, we went up to our room to put on PJ’s, rest for a bit, and then we got cracking on our Junior Ranger and Young Scientist books, while Riley watched a movie on the laptop. At the end of a long but memorable day, we all decided to go to bed much earlier, because for the first time on this trip we decided to set the alarm for 7am to make the most of our only full day in Yellowstone.

Day 3 - Jackson, Wyoming

2008-10-02T07:17:00.000-07:00

After enjoying a complimentary breakfast at the hotel where Corey made wonderful waffles for everyone, we left Richland around 10am. The time change and the fact that Riley isn’t able to take naps has made it hard to get going early. We had a really long drive to Jackson, Wyoming. Once again, we traveled through three states (Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming) and saw some interesting sights from the car along the way. We saw The Great Salt Lake, the Capitol of Salt Lake City, many Mormon tabernacles, and we stopped at a pretty fishing pond just outside of Logan, Utah.

We had our first traveling mishap today when Riley got car sick when we were driving on a curvy wooded road. But again he impressed us by holding his hand over his mouth until mom could get a bag for him to get sick into. He managed to make very little mess, even though Jordan yelled at Riley to, “Let it all out!” before mom had the bag ready. After getting him cleaned up we pulled over to let him walk around a bit and get some fresh air. We also put Corey’s nausea bracelets on him and moved him from the third to the second row of the car. After that he did just fine the rest of the way. He continues to be quite a trooper!

Happy Birthday Jordan!

We arrived in to Jackson around 7pm. We stayed in a “cozy” one room log cabin at The Cowboy Village Lodge. Our room had queen-sized bunk beds, which the boys loved! After bundling up in our coats we took a short walk to downtown and went to an ice cream shop for Jordan’s birthday celebration. We brought Jordan’s “8” candle with us and after borrowing a lighter from an adjacent store, we lit JP’s candle and sang happy birthday to him in front of the store. Actually, mom was the only one who sang. Everyone else was too embarrassed to sing in public!

Shortly after we started enjoying our ice cream, Riley announced that he had to go poo so we literally had to run back to our cabin. After everyone used the facilities, we all laid on the bottom queen bed and watched “Speed Racer”. The movie was fairly complicated for a kid’s movie and we all had a hard time following the plot. But Jordan had a great time, so it was time well spent. After the movie it was almost 11pm and time for bed. All three boys wanted to sleep on the top bunk, but Riley decided it was too high right before bed time and ended up sleeping with mom and dad on the bottom.

Jordan’s thoughts on his 8th birthday: “It was my best birthday yet. I got to watch a movie that was really cool with a lot of fighting. I loved sleeping in the big bunk bed and the ice cream was delicious!”

Day 2 Evening - Happy Birthday Riley!

2008-10-02T07:14:00.000-07:00

After traveling through three states (Nevada, the corner of Arizona, and Utah), we arrived at the Richland Fairfield Marriott around 9pm MST. We checked into the hotel and got some complimentary chocolate chip cookies to take up to our room for a quick birthday party for Riley before bedtime. The manager was very kind to loan us her lucky lighter so that we could light Riley’s “4” candle. Riley enjoyed having us sing “Happy Birthday” to him in our room. After that we decided to bathe our stinky children and then turn in for the night.

Road Trip Day 2 - Southern Utah

2008-09-28T07:11:00.000-07:00

Road Trip Travels 9/27/08

Happy 4th Birthday Riley!

Our travels from Vegas to Zion were fairly uneventful. Other than the fact that we kept laughing at Corey who spent more time looking at points of interest on our new GPS (an early Christmas gift from my parents – Thanks Grandpa & Grandma J!) than looking at the actual sight out the window. He also gave Ryan minute by minute updates about any changes noted on the GPS, until Ryan kindly told him that that wasn’t necessary. We requested that updates be made at 30 minute intervals instead.

Zion National Park Entry 9/27/08

Zion National Park was beautiful! We enjoyed a scenic shuttle-bus tour of the canyon and then two short hikes. The first hike was to Lower Emerald Pool. There was a waterfall going from the top of the canyon into the pool and the trail went through the mist of the falls just above the natural pool. Our second hike was to Weeping Rock and The Hanging Garden. Also amazing and very misty, much to the boys delight. The boys really like both sights. Corey and Jordan both spotted a bunch of vegetation they have been studying in science (kudos to our science tutor Cody!)

Ryan:
I enjoyed going through a mile long tunnel after leaving the Zion Scenic route and hearing the echo of the Toyota Sienna car horn. (We have a Sienna rental, our family car is still in the shop.) I also enjoyed having my eldest tell me not to brake for the deer that darted across the road the next time. I slowed down so my family could see the deer crossing the road.

Wendy:
Today was wonderful. We saw so many unforgettable sights. I think that God’s creation is a thousand times more beautiful than man’s creation in Vegas. It is quite a profound contrast to go from The Strip in the morning, to being surrounded by amazing sights of nature in the afternoon.

Corey:
Zion National Park was very fun. We had a great time hiking to the Emerald Pool Lower Falls, and Weeping Rock. Emerald pool was cool because you could stand under the waterfall, and the pool was kind of green. Weeping Rock was cool because the water came out of the rock in drops and the rock looked like it was crying. After hiking around Zion all day, up steep hills and lots of different terrain types, we are all pooped.

Jordan:
Zion is huge. I thought it would never end. My favorite part of Zion was getting wet on our hikes. I like to get wet. We also saw a big rock that looked like a checker board. The End.

Riley:
I was in three states on my birthday. We drove through Nevada, Arizona, and Utah. At Utah, I got to wear a ribbon all day that said “Today is my birthday!” Lots of people told me happy birthday today.

Funniest quote of the day:
Towards the end of our scenic bus tour, I mentioned to the boys that we might actually lose weight on this vacation. We have done so much walking and not a lot of eating because we don’t want to take any unnecessary time from our sightseeing. (Lunch was trail mix, beef jerky, and water in the car on the way to Zion.) Corey made a comment about how that would be bad for him because he doesn’t need to lose any weight. Riley then began to survey all of us on whether or not we need to lose weight. After surveying our family, Ryan had to stop him mid sentence as Riley gave a shout-out to the other passengers, “Is anyone else overweight?” Did I mention that we were in the very front row of seats?!?! :)

Good Notes:
The boys have been great travelers! Everyone has been enjoying the sights and lots of family time! Riley has also really impressed us with his stamina on all of our walks. He is quite a trooper!!

One pleasant surprise today was learning that it just happens to be the annual “Federal Public Land Use” weekend. We will not have to pay the $25+ entrance fee for Zion, Yellowstone or the Grand Tetons. Score! I wish we could say that we are smart enough to have planned that, but it is just a wonderful coincidence.

Disappointing Note:
We got a late start leaving Vegas, we slept until 8 because we were all up until 10pm cruising the strip. And we left 45 min later than planned from Zion. We were still planning to do a driving tour of Bryce National Park on our way to our next hotel stop in Richland, until we realized that the time had moved ahead an hour because we enter the Mountain Time Zone. We lost another hour! So at that point we decided to skip our visit to Bryce and just get to our next hotel stop to rest a bit. We have a big driving day tomorrow to Jackson, Wy. Oh well, taking time changes into account while planning our daily stops is a good lesson learned for future road trips.

Road Trip Day 1 - Las Vegas

2008-09-28T07:04:00.000-07:00

Traveling Entry 9/26/08

We stopped for lunch in Baker. The boys had the thrill of eating at Bob’s Big Boy for the first time. They have heard their mom and dad (and Kevin) talk many times about enjoying eating at Bob’s when they were young.

We also got to see the world’s largest thermometer. It was 95 degrees on that lovely afternoon in the middle of nowhere.

Funniest Quote of the day:
As we were entering Las Vegas, Corey was reading our travel book on “Vegas with Kids”. He wanted to know if there was going to be a boxing match in Vegas while we were there. We asked why, and he very seriously read us a quote from the book, “When there are boxing matches at Caesars Palace it sometimes draws organized criminal groups to The Strip”. Ryan and I laughed really hard and “organized criminal groups” has become a permanent and sure to be often used phrase in our family.

Las Vegas Blog Entry 9/26/08

Activities:
* We stayed at the MGM Grand
* Floated on the “Lazy River”
* Spent a brief time in the “Academy Pool Hot Tub”
* We went to a 4-story M&M Store, which is Riley’s favorite candy. He had fun shopping for M & M “peeps” and M & M flavored lip balm.
* We walked through the Paris, Venitian, Mirage, & Caesars.
* We saw the Lion’s at MGM. A lion jumped over Corey’s head while we walked through a glass tunnel and scared him. :)
* We had ice cream and watched “The Atlantis” living statue show at Caesars.
* We watched the fountain show at the Bellagio.
* Unfortunately, the volcano wasn’t working at the Mirage and the White Tigers were closed for the night. Which was okay because you are no longer able to view them for free and admission to see them was pricey.
* And Jordan and Riley did some shopping at the rainforest café gift store in the MGM Grand.

Ryan:
My favorite thing was the fountain show at the Bellagio. The music and the dancing fountains were spectacular! The floating river was also a highlight, especially since some nice tourists gave our cute boys some floating inter-tubes for free. It would have been $16 to rent them.

Wendy:
My favorite thing was also the fountain show at the Bellagio. It is amazing how well they choreograph the moving fountains to the music. The water begins to look like dancers. I also enjoyed the floating river. It wasn’t necessarily relaxing because there were so many people. We had to work at not running into people! Unfortunately, Vegas really isn’t very family friendly these days. It is impossible to avoid the risqué sights, which Corey kept describing as “Weird.” A lot has changed since Ryan and I were there over ten years ago! I’m glad that our boys enjoyed their visit. We won’t be going back as a family. :)

Corey:
I liked seeing all of the themed casinos. My favorites were NY NY, and Paris. NY NY looked really cool from the outside, but we did not have time to go in it. And I liked Paris because the Eiffel Tower was awesome. I liked seeing the Lions at the MGM Grand because they were really active and you could see them up close. I also liked the fountain show at the Bellagio. It was cool what they could do with water.

Jordan:
I liked all the casinos. They had really cool features and stuff. And I liked going shopping because I got to buy stuff. So far I have bought sticky mutant parts that you can put together. It was fun.

Riley:
I liked floating the river. The M & M store was super fun. I have never been to an M & M store before. I got to take my picture with a blue M & M guy.

Birthday Party

2008-09-22T14:44:00.000-07:00

These words are coming out of Jordan's mouth.

It was my best birthday yet! We did a Star Wars training coruse. Corey got the best time. I only ate the frosting on my cake! It was fun!!!!! I got lots of cool toys!!!!!

Soccer Game

2008-09-22T14:39:00.000-07:00

We both had a soccer game last Saturday.

Jordan: He played center defense. We lost 5-1. Our coach said it was are best game yet! He had a great time!!!

Corey: I played in Otay at 8:00am. The team we played was the best team in our league! I played right defender. We also lost 8-1. I did good.

Soccer game

2008-09-19T15:38:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we had a soccer game.

Corey: I played a great game. I played right defender. We beat them 4-3.

Jordan: He also did a very good job. He played forward and center defender. He lost 5-1.

P.S. Jordan's b-Day is this Sunday be sure to check back.

Its Just Another Week

2008-09-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

Sunday (9/7/08) A 19-year-old drunk driver side-swipes our mini-van (which was parked in front of our house) and then crashes into the back of our neighbors suburban. Thankfully no one was injured, but a fire truck, ambulance, and three police cars were all dispatched with lights and sirens to our house. The driver was arrested, wailing and crying, and put into the back of a police car, all while our boys watched from the front window.

Monday (9/8/08) Ryan works from home to deal with insurance companies, having our car towed, and getting a rental car. I begin our second week of homeschooling (and the first week of our full schedule – we didn’t get our text books from the charter school until the previous Friday), way behind because I didn’t get any prep done on Sunday.

Tuesday (9/9/08) I walked into the bathroom to find the hand of a Star Wars action figure in the bottom of the toilet drain. I called Riley into the bathroom to ask him what happened. He tells me that he stuffed two toys down the toilet. By the time we finish our conversation all three boys are in the bathroom, and in a moment of mommy exhaustion, I decided to spare myself the indignity of fishing the toys out of the toilet while the boys watch. So instead I flushed the toys down the toilet to “teach Riley a lesson” about what happens when you put toys in the toilet. They are gone forever, right….

Wrong…late Tuesday night our toilet backs up.

Wednesday (9/10/08) I wake up to a clogged toilet. I valiantly tried plunging the toilet so that I wouldn’t have to involve Ryan in this matter, but to no avail. When he very kindly offers to help me before he goes to work, I have to confess that it is my fault that the toilet is clogged. I have to tell my wonderful husband, who is still in the middle of dealing with insurance companies and car appraisers, that I flushed toys down the toilet. Ryan explains to me, in an artificially controlled voice, how bathroom plumbing works. I honestly did not realize that that big hole in the bottom of my toilet goes to a very narrow pipe before it reaches the sewer. Later that day Deron comes over and attempts to clean out our drain with a 6 ft snake. The toilet works for a short time. But after a few hours it begins to back up again.

Thursday (9/11/08) Deron actually comes back a second time to work some more on our toilet. Before he comes I cleaned out the toilet as best I could so that I could spare him as much grossness as possible. As I’m cleaning crap out of our toilet with rubber gloves, a large Dixie cup, and a zip lock bag, I am struck by the irony that this whole mess started because I wanted to spare my dignity. Deron takes our entire toilet apart and carries it out to our front yard to clean out all the drains. He finds Batman in one of the drains within the toilet seat. Mace Windu is still unaccounted for. We assume he has made it to the ocean by now. Thankfully our toilet is once again working.

Friday (9/12/08) A fairly uneventful day (with lot of homeschooling though because we are now SO far behind what I had scheduled for the week) until Jordan and Riley get it a fight over Jordan’s new Webkins – a cute elephant named “Elephanto”. Jordan and Riley get into their first actual fist fight. Both of them take shots with closed fists to the others face. Both boys are in a lot of trouble. One of Jordan’s consequences is that Elephanto has to be returned to the store. Jordan sniffles and stuffs down his cries all through dinner, until he finally begins to bawl and blurts out, “All my dreams came true...... for 10 seconds and now it’s gone!”

Saturday (9/13/08) After waking up a 6:15a to get Corey and Jordan to their 8a soccer games, Kari calls to tell me that her mail was stolen from her mailbox the night before. A check I had sent her for Mary Kay was in the mail, and they found the envelope I had sent the check in ripped open and empty in the street. Ryan and I drive our rental car down to the bank and spend 1 ½ hours closing our accounts and opening new ones. Although they were able to close our accounts right away, our new ones won’t be active until Monday or Tuesday. It is a very weird feeling to be unable to access our own money. Thankfully our house is stocked with groceries and the cars have plenty of gas for a few days.

Thankfully today is Sunday, and we are looking forward to a day of much needed rest. We just may close our blinds and turn off our phones for 24 hours. We have to get ready for a new week! But at least we have our health....

Update on Car Accident

2008-09-10T12:03:00.000-07:00

It turns out that the 19-year old young lady was a former neighbor who, unfortunately, made a very bad decision on Sunday night. Her decision to drive after drinking has put her entire future at risk. She had plans to complete college, attend nursing school, and work in the medical field. Now, more than likely, she may receive jail time or probation, she may not be able to drive for awhile, she may need to find a different career, and she will have huge legal, insurance, and financial bills.

We are very thankful that no one was hurt in this accident, including the young lady. While we have the hassle of getting a rental, fixing our car, and getting insurance to pick up the tab, our hassle will be nothing compared to the consequences that the young lady will be dealing with for a very long time.

Car accident

2008-09-08T20:40:00.000-07:00

Last night at about 9:30 a drunk lady side swiped our car (it was parked) swerved to the other lane and then hit the back of a neighbor's car. Her car was totaled! Our car needs a new axle, new drivers door, new side door, and the section in the front needs to be replaced! Everyone called 911. There were 5 police cars, 1 paramedic, and 1 ambulance. Today my dad is going through insurance. So we will see what happens next!

First soccer game

2008-09-06T11:38:00.000-07:00

Today Jordan and i had our first game of the season.

Corey: I played in Kearney mesa at 8:00 we had to be there at 7:00 and it takes 20 min to get there. I played right defender. I did pretty good back there. But one break-away and they scored. We lost 1-0.

Jordan: Jordan played in Chula Vista at 9:00 he had to be there at 8:30 and it takes 20-30 min to get there. Jordan played the last defender(sweeper). He did a great job. Unfortunately they lost 10-1.

What I Did This Summer....

2008-09-02T20:58:00.000-07:00

Its the first day of school at the TKA and the teacher asked each student about what they did this summer.

Jordan:

"This summer I had a lot of fun! I went to the night time zoo. I like the monkeys! I had a lot of friends over. I went swimming. I played laser tag. I went to the beach. My favorite thing was swimming."

And Corey:

"We went to the San Diego Zoo at night. It was really cool! We heard a lot of cool noises! I scared a lot of people by pressing a button that makes a tiger roar noise. It was funny!

I turned 11 this summer. I had a sleepover with my friend Cheyne in the back of our car. I got an iPod, iTunes gift cards, etc... We also went to laser tag. I had fun at laser tag because you shoot people and get points for it.

I went to Palm Springs. My grandpa was in Alaska. We went swimming a lot! It was really HOT! My cousins were there too.

This summer I had a lot of FUN!!"

The principal thinks that this work is fine for the first day of school, but he's expecting a significant improvement in sentence structure and creative elaboration.

First day of school already?!?!

2008-09-02T20:42:00.000-07:00

Today was our(Corey and Jordan) first day of school. First we did orientation, reviewed and discussed changes, schedule, rules, etc. Then we did bible, I did a cookie search and got gummy! For Language we reviewed printing(Jordan)/cursive(Corey). We also "wrote what i did over summer". For my paper i wrote 3 paragraphs, my birthday, night time zoo, and Palm Springs. For math we discussed our finance kits. For science we looked at books and kits, assessed our garden, and harvested sun seeds and tomatoes. We also found this awesome bug, he is a Cockchafer grub.

Baby 3-5 years

Adult 4-6 weeks

He is a very freaky bug! And we started reading "Justin Morgan had a horse". We also saw a huge lizard in our backyard(8 in.). I had a lot of FUN!!!!!

last preseason game: football

2008-08-26T19:58:00.000-07:00

On Monday the Chargers played their last preseason game. They played the Seattle Sea Hawks. With-in the first 3 plays Seattle scores. The Chargers get a field goal, so the score is 7-3. Chargers score a touch down 10-7. At half-time the score is 10-10. Again Sea Hawks score 17-10. With under 3min left in the game the Chargers score 17-16. The Chargers have a decision do they go for the field goal and tie it or do they go for two. They go foe two. And, And, they score!! Chargers win 18-17!!

Usain Bolt

2008-08-21T19:40:00.000-07:00

Usain Bolt set two world records. One for the 100m: 9.69sec, he could have shattered it but he was showing off during the race. They say he could have got 9.59sec. Then in the 200m he got 19.30sec. He ran faster then the clock would go. The clock read 19.31. Then he looked right at the camera and said with his huge mouth, he said "I'm number 1! I'm number 1!!". Yes i know what your thinking what an arrogant person! Now he has the Chief of the I.O.C. after him!

Raffle Tickets: Come and get 'em

2008-08-19T21:31:00.000-07:00

I am selling raffle tickets for soccer. They $5 each. The Grand Prize is you can stay in a hotel in Sherman Oaks, Santa Barbara, Newport Beach, or Palm Springs for a weekend. The prizes or very cool too. You can get an iPhone, laptop, Pizza Nova Gift Certificate, two family 4 pack to LA Galaxy. All very cool!!!!!!

We have planed a road trip

2008-08-19T21:14:00.000-07:00

We are going on a road trip from September 26-October 5. Here is the schedule: Fri (9/26) - SD to Las Vegas Sat, (9/27) - Las Vegas to Provo via Zion NP and Bryce NP Sun, (9/28) - Provo to Jackson Mon, (9/29) - Jackson to Yellowstone via Grand Tetons Tues, (9/30) - Yellowstone Wed (10/1) - Yellowstone to Boise Thurs, (10/2) - Boise to O'brien Fri, (10/3) - O'brien Sat, (10/4) - O'brien to Sacramento Sun, (10/5) - Sacramento to SD. I have never seen Vegas, Zion, Brice, basicly i have never been to any of the places. Somewhere near O'brien we will stay in tree houses. I hopr it will be fun!!!!

Annabelle is Coming HOME!!!!

2008-08-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

This is how Annabelle started out. The tubes in her mouth fed her. The circle on her back measures blood pressure. The wrist band on her far wrist measures heart beat. The hump on her back is her spine.

This is how Annabelle looks today. Annabelle was discharged in the late afternoon. She is now a healthy baby. she looks great! She is very cute!

Padres game

2008-08-14T08:20:00.001-07:00

Last night i went to the padres game with youth group. We got on the jumbo-tron(the big screen). We were really LOUD! We made some people leave because we were so loud. But it was fun! We went down to a little baseball field and tackled each other! I had fun!

Soccer Tournament

2008-08-13T15:46:00.001-07:00

A couple days ago i had a soccer tournament.

In the first game we played we did really well. I scored my first goal, which was very fun! We won 3-1 our first win. Our coach thought we did great, he was emotional. We only had 9 players on the field they had 10. You can have 11 on the field. That game was really fun!

In our second game we did good considering we had 9 players and they had 11 on the field. We lost 4-0. They brought in some girls and they were really good! I took a couple shots but the goalie got them. But it was fun.

In our game we also did good considering we had 9 players and they had 11 on the field. We lost 4-0. Their coach said he would play 10 but he saw how we played and didn't think he could beat us so he put 11 on. I took a couple shots but missed. I think i did well in the tournament!

I scored my first goal in the first game. The goalie picked up the and kicked but i got in front of the player and stole it and it was just me and the goalie. I shot it in the top left corner of the goal. And the dived and missed it. It was a goal! It was very exciting!

Smile, you're on Candid Camera

2008-08-12T21:28:00.000-07:00

I had always intended not to contribute to this blog, but to let the creativity and youthfulness of the Team Kess boys serve as the authors. In this particular case, I dont think Corey would accurately recap the events of the day.

While Corey was in Palm Springs this past weekend celebrating his birthday in Palm Springs with Grandma and Grandpa J and Lauren, he purchased a security camera with his birthday money. The security camera has a removable USB thumb drive to record video and then to copy it to a computer. It also has the ability to follow and track movement in a room. Corey was very proud of his purchase. We thought he would just put it on the shelf and add it to his collection of a safe with fingerprint biometric reader, a functional ATM machine, and a door alarm built with an electronics kit (which has since been removed).

This is all background to today's event...while the boys were at a friends house today, Wendy noticed that a power drill was laying on Corey's bed. She thought this was really odd, but didnt notice any holes or new pictures on the wall, so she let it go. The question was posed to Corey while eating dinner tonight, "why is there a power drill on your bed." To which Corey responded with something to the effect of, "To install my security camera of course."

Corey finally filled in the rest of the details. He went out to the shed this morning and got my power drill. He stood on his bed and drilled two holes into the ceiling (not the wall....Wendy neglected to check the ceiling). He tried to screw the security camera into the ceiling, but it looks like the screws didnt hold in the plaster ceiling. He had temporarily given up while he left for a friends house.

So, tomorrow, Corey is going to patch the holes, sand it down, and then paint. And he'll be either setting the camera on his shelf or drilling it into a block of wood. There will be no installation on the ceiling or the walls. I dont know why he thought it would be fine to install a camera in the ceiling. We have also banned the use of power tools without parental notification.

VBS Song Night - part 2

2008-08-05T21:17:00.001-07:00

VBS Song Night

2008-08-05T20:19:00.000-07:00

VBS:Day 3-4

2008-07-31T13:16:00.001-07:00

VBS:day 3

Yesterday we hit kamen balls (they don't go as far as a golf ball) with an iron. Or we could do chipping. I hit the kamen balls.

Jordan worked on for-hand volley and back-hand volley.

VBS:Day 4

Today we had a chipping contest. Or we could hit wiffle balls with an iron.

Jordan i think played some games.

Both days Riley had loads of fun!!

VBS:Day Two

2008-07-29T13:33:00.000-07:00

Today in golf i worked on chipping and pitching. When you are close to the green you chip it in the air, when you are farther away from the green you pitch it in the air. Also Jordan worked on backhand in tennis. Riley had fun too!

VBS

2008-07-28T16:26:00.000-07:00

Today was our first day of VBS. Jordan is doing tennis and i am doing golf. Riley is in Team 45 camp. Team 45 camp is for 3-4 year olds. VBS is Vacation Bible School, you pick a sport. Then you for five days and you play the sport you picked. Also for a little bit you have to sing songs.

Albion Cup

2008-07-24T19:08:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago was the Albion cup. Players come from all over Western US. Jordan and i both played three games. I lost all three. Jordan won one and lost two. We both had fun!

Work

2008-07-17T08:58:00.000-07:00

Today I'm in my dads office because my mom is doing something and Jordan and Riley is somewhere else. I hope it's fun!

Birthday

2008-07-17T08:46:00.000-07:00

Two days ago was my Birthday. I turned 11. I got an iPod, PC games, gift cards, ect. That night my friend Cheyne spent the night we slept in the back of the car (my dad put it in the back yard). We stayed up till mid-night and watched Pirates of the Caribbean 1.

Then the next day we went to laser tag. Laser tag is really fun you have this vest and your in a 5,000sq.foot building and its foggy so you can't see far. You shot peeps on the vest to get points. And played wii, computer, and watched TV.

Palm Springs

2008-07-12T15:18:00.000-07:00

The last couple of days we went to Palm springs. We have done a lot of swimming because it has been in the 100's! It has been fun though. We came home today and got there 2 days ago. Our cousins were there too.

Zoo

2008-07-09T15:59:00.000-07:00

Today we went to the zoo. First we went to Monkey Trails, that's were the fun started! We came to this one monkey cage and there was a net separating you from the monkeys and there's this one spot were you can get 10 feet from them so this one monkey came and me and Jordan were taunting it. He cept showing his teeth and then one time we thought he was walking away and he turned around showed his teeth and hissed and then jumped with incredable speed tward the net. Me and Jordan were really scared! That's enough excitment for on day!

Albion Traning Camp

2008-07-02T14:03:00.000-07:00

Monday we started Albion camp. They work you hard! They also have these Dutch coaches who are tough. It's fun though and and today the was a soccer game: coach's verse kids(U14-U18 all stars). I really like it! Jordan thinks they really push him though.

All-star game

2008-06-27T10:35:00.000-07:00

Today is my first all-star game. I think we have a very good baseball team. We will have to see how far we get!

Our Garden

2008-06-27T10:31:00.000-07:00

We planted a garden two months ago and it has really taken off. We planted a pumpkin from a seed and Some of the leaves are bigger then my das head! Hope we get good pumpkins

The beach

2008-06-27T07:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the beach for the first time. We went to Coronado beach. We went boogie boarding, body surfing(tried to), and played in the water! It was fun! We were a there for 4 hours!

Sleep over

2008-06-25T12:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my friend Cheyne slept over because i went to youth group. We also watched a movie outside with our projector. It was fun!!

Waterfall

2008-06-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

On Saturday a water pipe leading to the washer broke and water was shooting up into the air! We didn't notice it until Jordan saw it coming under the utility room door. So Jordan got mom and asked her what it was so she opened the door and saw a waterfall (It was a hot waterfall, seriously). So my mom told me to turn off the water luckily i knew where it was because my dad turned of the water a couple weeks before and i watched him. Our floors were a mess and water was everywhere. But every thing got dryed. And for the most part everything is fixed.

All-star game

2008-06-25T12:03:00.000-07:00

My first all-star game is this Friday at 5:30pm!!! We play presido. I HOPE WE WIN!!

Palomar Mountain

2008-06-18T13:18:00.001-07:00

A couple days ago Jordan, Riley, my mom, and me went to my grandparents cabin. We went there to work on props for a promotion round up (in church we are being promoted to the next grade and the theme is cowboyish). We also made bird houses. We were there from Sunday to Tuesday. It was Fun!!!

Big Game

2008-06-18T13:11:00.000-07:00

Today is my first Tournament of Champions game. We play Presido. Hopefully we win!!

Tournaments, Tournaments, Tournaments!!

2008-06-15T13:46:00.000-07:00

The Tournament of Champions is where all the best teams from District 32 play to find the best team. My first game is this Wednesday.

Championship Game

2008-06-15T13:28:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I had a championship game. It was do or die. The winner of this game went to The Tournament of Champions!! We played the best team in the league. The score was scoreless till the bottom of the 4th. I played shortstop and cather. I went 1 for 2 with one walk. My one hit was to third base. We won 2 to 1!!! We are in the Tournament of Champions!

And later that day I got drafted to the all-star team!!!

Fort McHenry

2008-06-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

Today Jordan and i did a presentation on Fort McHenry. Everyone who came by spent a lot of time there. It was fun doing our presentation. We had handouts, made a model, and did reseach papers.

Playoff Game

2008-06-06T17:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had a playoff game. Who ever wins this game advances to the championship game. This was one of my best games of the season. I played shortstop and pitcher. I played shortstop 3 and 1/2 innings. I pitched the last 2 and a 1/2 innings. I pitched really well. I went 3 for 4 with a walk. I shamhed one of the pitches 20 feet from the fense. We WON!! So now we are in the championship game!!

Linden Extreme Home Makeover - part 2

2008-06-02T14:21:00.000-07:00

Written by Jordan.

This project is about our friend Annabelle. She has problems with her spine and she might not be able to walk. She is still in her mommy’s tummy and Matt and Holly are trying to take really good care of her. She will be here in August. We hope that she will be able to walk, but if she can’t I’ll be sad but she’ll still be important to us.

A bunch of Matt and Holly and Annabelle’s friends decided to help them by fixing some stuff up at their house. We made them a deck, we painted Annabelle’s room, we fixed the kitchen, we planted flowers, we made them a new TV, we touched up the backyard, and we painted the outside of the house.

I painted Annabelle’s room, I planted flowers, I scraped cement off of the tiles, picked up scraps and threw it into the trailer, I dug trenches, I threw rocks into the junk pile, I banged on rocks with the sledge hammer, and I helped watch the little kids.

My favorite job was painting Annabelle’s room. It was my most important job. But the part I liked the most was helping Matt and Holly and Annabelle. I want them to have a good home because they are our friends and we love them. I also liked watching the workers rip off a big chunk of the house. It was cool. It looked nicer without the big chunk.

My least favorite part was digging the trenches. It was boring. Really boring!

I made lots and lots of new friends. Some of their names are Serena, Elizabeth, and Jen. I played and talked with them. They are nice and they were hard workers.

I learned that it is important to work really hard for your friends. It makes everybody feel good. When everyone works together really big stuff gets done. There were jobs for everybody.

There are still many things that can be done. I can encourage Matt and Holly by helping them. I want to keep helping them with their house. I want to be a good friend to Annabelle. I want to help her and I want to comfort her and love her. I also will pray for her.

Linden Extreme Home Makeover

2008-06-02T14:14:00.000-07:00

Written by Corey.

This project is about Annabelle. Our good friends are pregnant with their first baby and they are having a girl. She will be here in August. She has Spina Bifida and she might not be able to walk. Annabelle’s Circle is a thing about Annabelle and all the people working on fixing up her home. Lots of people helped on Annabelle’s home. Some people flew from Seattle.

Lots of work was done on Annabelle’s home. Before the “Linden Extreme Home Makeover” the front yard looked crummy now it is beautiful with sod and new plants. Everything looks a lot better now. It was all done by the help of friends willing to work. Sometimes people stayed till midnight to work!

At the Linden Extreme Home Makeover I helped lay the sod in the backyard. I helped paint the deck. I dug a trench in the front yard for irrigation for the sod. I cleaned the tiles in the front. I drilled a hole in a rock for the address. I grilled hot dogs and hamburgers for the workers. I helped putty the floors and other stuff.

I really liked watching the making of a BIG hole in the house and watching Sean drill a hole in the rock. I liked watching the big hole in the house because I’ve never seen that done before. It was fun watching the wall fall down. I liked watching Sean drill a hole in a rock because it took a really long time. It looked like it would be an easy job, but it was actually really hard. He would stop every two minutes to take a break and pant because it was very tiring.

Something that was not favorite was digging the trench. The dirt was hard and full of rocks. We had to dig really, really deep and it was like clay. It was hard work!

I learned that hydrangeas need only early morning sun or they will die. Also I learned that people of all ages can come together and build something spectacular. And that the rock in the Linden’s front yard might look light but they are three times your body weight.

Now we just have to wait for Annabelle to come and love her newly improved home.

Soccer Game

2008-05-28T20:20:00.000-07:00

A couple days ago i had a soccer game. We played really good in the first half. Then in the second half we started to lose it. We lost. I played okay. I played left and right defender. Our team played a good game!!