Thursday, September 30, 2010

Bugs!

Don't you just love Biology class?  Feeding mice to snakes, dissecting frogs, examining cow lungs.  Ew!  Chad's latest project is the dreaded insect collection.  Luckily, his teacher wasn't a stickler on pinning the bugs.  So we went with the photograph option.  Let me just say, though, that it is really hard to find 20 different species of insects.  We are still short 4 and the project is due tomorrow.  We'll find a great bug, look it up, and it turns out to be an arachnid or a woodgrub.   It's a nightmare, I tell you.  Here are some of our specimens.
 Does anyone know what this insect is?  I'm sure it's some kind of grasshopper but I don't know what kind.
This picture is actually a shell of a cicada caught in a spider web.  We decided it would have to do, though, because how were going to find a live cicada?
 We found this cricket hanging out on Amber's stroller.  Gross!
 Dragon fly down at the Rio Grande.
You would not believe how hard it was to get this picture.  We have 6 pictures that were supposed to have him in it and do not because he was just too fast.

Amber is loving this whole insect project.  Between looking for bugs and checking out fire hydrants for the eagle project, she has become quite observant.  Whenever we go for walks, she keeps her eyes glued to the ground looking for any creepy crawlies that might be lurking about.  Whenever we pass a fire hydrant, she will either say, "That fire hydrant is pretty!" or, "That fire hydrant is funny lookin' ".  Earlier this week we drove by a hydrant that someone had painted as Smoky the Bear.  Amber started laughing and said, "That fire hydrant reminds me of President Monson."  What?  Funny girl.
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Monday, September 27, 2010

Eagle Project

Attention! Attention! Chad is officially an Eagle Scout! Okay, not officially. He still needs to have his board of review, but still - he's just about there. Yahoo! For his Eagle project, Chad chose to paint firehydrants in our area. Our neighbor Charlie gave us the idea. Thanks Charlie! Chad stressed out about this project more than I thought possible. (If only he would stress out this much about school projects!)  But he did a fabulous job. Here are some pictures to document Chad's triumphant journey into the ranks of Eagle.
Chad planning out the routes.  We had eight groups of painters who painted a total of 50 fire hydrants.
Chad cutting out the card board guards that we put around the hydrants to keep paint from dripping on the ground.

Garrett prepping a hydrant for painting.  We had to wash & dry the hydrants and then brush off the rust before painting.
 
Ty and Miguel with one of their finished products.  Doesn't it look shiny and pretty? Ty risked having yellow hair and skin for his homecoming date later that evening.  He is a trooper!

 Aunt Emily, Aunt Becca and mom working hard.  We got so messy.  The paint we used was terribly sticky and got stickier as time went on.  I think the clean up of the cars/skin/clothes was harder than the actual painting. 

Steven & Sue.  What a great mother/son team.
 
Nate, Chris, Aaron & Larry.  True friends and skilled artists. :)

Ryan, John & Chase looking quite official as they tackle one of the more weathered looking hydrants.

And here is the payoff at last.  Chad finally has his long-awaited cell phone.  He claims it is his treasure and vows that he will not lose it, get it confiscated at school, or get it taken away at home because his grades are not up to par.  We'll see.  For now, though, you have never seen a boy so excited with a new toy.  He has probably sent 100 text messages in the day and a half that he has had it.  Thanks everyone for helping with Chad's project.  He has the best and most loyal friends in the world.  We love you guys!
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Tuesday, September 7, 2010

The Birthday Boy on His Faithful Steed


We went to the mountains for breakfast yesterday and Aaron saddled up Rebecca's dog, Linus.  Okay, not really, but they did have a great hike together.  Aaron will be the big 1-3 on Friday and I will sadly be out of town and not with him when he makes the official transition into  teenagerdom.  I tried to talk Sam into letting me take him with me, but alas, he didn't go for the idea of Aaron missing two days of school.  Do not fear, though. We'll have the party of the year when I get home and everyone's invited.  Aaron, we love you.  You are mischievous and a little mouthy, but you are also a big party in a handsome package.  Our family would not be nearly as much fun without you.   Happy Birthday!
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Thursday, September 2, 2010

15 rocks!

Would you look at this adorable baby?  Can you believe he is fifteen years old today?  It's hard to believe that within a year, he will become an Eagle Scout, aquire a cell phone and learn how to drive (purposely in that order).  Kind of exciting!  Kind of scary!  We love you Chad.  You are so much fun.  Have a great birthday!
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