Labor (I mean "Labour") Day weekend

We're so spoiled here. I feel like we need to take a trip at least once a month. We haven't taken a trip as a family since our vacation to the states in July and I was beginning to feel deprived. Which pretty much means I'm never going to survive real life when we move back. I keep thinking we've seen pretty much everything in the South Island, and then we discover some place new that blows us away. Our Labor day weekend getaway started out with plastic Mario caps in McDonald's happy meals, which is pretty much a good omen if I've ever seen one.

We flipped a U-turn when we saw this bouncy house outside a cute cafe that advertised real fruit ice cream. The kids got some awesome static hair while I sat in the sun eating everyone's ice cream and pondering how sexy Jason's calves looked while he changed the tail light on the car. It was an above average pit stop, I would say.

And the thing about road trips here is that getting there is half the fun. You never know what you might stumble across, like these canola fields for days...

Nobody wanted to get out of the car for a picture. I think Jason felt sorry for me because there were all these other couples taking pictures of each other in the flowers and then there I was by my lonesome taking pictures of empty fields. So he offered to take my picture. Which I always feel awkward taking pictures by myself. So hey. Here's a picture of me standing in front of some flowers. With my hands in my back pocket because I have no idea where to put them.

And then Ryder joined me. He's always up for an adventure. And he probably felt sorry for me too.

Our first stop was Lake Tekapo. We went here last summer and were anxious for an excuse to come back. It's such a beautiful lake that changes colors depending on what angle you look at it. The funny thing is that it was actually warmer this time than it was during the summer months. I'm really hoping this summer is good to us, the weather last summer was just cruel.

The sun was out but the water was still freezing, these are glacier lakes after all. But the kids are always up for a good dare. Jayden and Maddox won an extra scoop of ice cream for going all the way under. I think it took them a good three hours before they finally thawed out.

Maddox learned the fine art of skipping rocks and has joined the ranks with the older kids. It's always a fun way to pass the time.

This area of the high country is known as the Lakes District for all of the incredible blue lakes. Lake Pukaki is my favorite. It is actually one of my favorite spots in the whole south island, and you can imagine how hard that is to narrow down. The stunning snow capped "Aoraki" Mount Cook (the tallest mountain in all of Australasia) is the perfect backdrop to this turquoise lake. It's just postcard perfect.

This cheeky monkey proved to be the best little travel companion this trip. He was always the first to volunteer to get out at the scenic look out points while all the other kids preferred to stay in the car and play their electronics. He was just so happy the entire time, travelling is so much more enjoyable now that he is getting older. I mean, just look at that face.

We picked up some fresh fish from the salmon farm. It was delicious. I still can't believe I like fish. We found a cute little holiday home (they call them a "bach") in Twizel. We always say a prayer before we start a trip and it was Maddox's turn to say it. He prayed that the house we were staying at would be nice. I knew what he meant. He wasn't wishing for marble bathrooms and plasma tv's, he was simply hoping there wouldn't be mold growing in the shower and that no one would walk away with a communicable disease. We've stayed at some pretty sketchy places along the way, but thankfully this one was pretty decent.

After dinner the kids groaned when we told them that we were taking a scenic drive. I know how they feel. I haven't always shared the same interests as an 80 year old grandma. Sure I took up crocheting years ago, but the scenic drives are a new thing. I remember my grandparents always wanting to take scenic drives and I just never understood the thrill. But now I do and hopefully one day they'll at least be able to look back at the pictures and appreciate the beauty.

It was so windy. This lake had some pretty impressive waves, you would think it was the ocean.

And you know I've got to say it..."a perfect ending to a perfect day". You've come to expect that from me by now, it's sorta my tag line whenever sunsets are involved.

Thirty-nine

He's a simple man with simple requests. He never wants any presents so instead I just feed him good (and clean his car out, because sometimes that's better than a new pair of socks).

Enter case in point #1:

Case #2:

Case #3:

Yeah, we  pretty much just ate all day on his birthday. I used to spend so much time pinning these dating ideas on pinterest until I realized that when he says the thought of a backyard prom makes him want to poke his eyeballs out, that is not code for dust off the Depeche Mode CD. That sure takes the pressure off planning that scavenger hunt around the city. Kissing in front of the grocery clerk to get the next clue is probably dead last on Jason's idea of a fun night. So instead, I cook and he eats. And everyone's happy. The night before his birthday we went out to dinner at a Taiwanese restaurant. Jason had a bit of nostalgia from his days of roaming the streets of Taipei as a missionary. It was so cute seeing him get so excited about all of the food. The way his face lit up when I told him I liked the spring onion pancake was just priceless. This may be the first but definitely not the last time that this cute little joint sees the likes of us.

His birthday was on a Sunday and he was sad that the BYU game was on during church. But the heavens opened and granted him a birthday miracle when a little boy pulled the fire alarm during the first talk in sacrament meeting and since they couldn't figure out how to turn it off then they just cancelled the rest of church. Which brought us home right in time for the kick off. I wonder if I should be worried about just how excited everyone was that we didn't have to go to church. When he wasn't watching the game (or eating), he spent time with the kids. Because that's what he does best. He's the kind of guy that when he calls and I tell him I'm having a rough day he tells me to get the kids shoes on, he's leaving work early to take them out for ice cream and to look at nerf guns. It was sort of like the most romantic thing he's ever done. I'm grateful for this man and for the chance that I've had to spend 15 of his 39 years of life right by his side. It's a pretty good place to be. Happy birthday, Love.

Six

For the life of me I can't remember whose turn it is to vaccuum next. But I can still remember what song was played during my 5th grade field trip to the Hanson Planetarium. Great Balls of Fire. I can't remember anything about my baptism, except for the dress I wore afterwards. A pink satin with a ruffled skirt. From K-mart. I can't remember what dress I wore last Sunday, but I remember my exact outfit the first day of 4th grade. Black leggings, animal print button up shirt, black elastic belt with a plastic purple buckle around my waist. I spell "restaurant" wrong almost every single time, but I still remember at 10 years old driving by a billboard next to the Long John Silver that advertised an upholstery company and memorizing how to spell "upholstery" in case it ever popped up on a spelling test. It never did. The mind is a funny thing, the way some moments in life are clear as day while others are so foggy. One of those moments that stands out as if time were frozen is an image of baby Maddox. He was only a few days old, I had just given him a sponge bath and wrapped him in a towel. The green one with a camo print ribbon trim. I laid him on the floor in the family room next to the entertainment center where I kept his diapers. I remember everything in that single moment. His piercing dark eyes gazing up at me, the fuzz on his shoulders, the way his dark hair had fluffed up from his bath, the way he smelled (Johnson&Johnson lavendar) and I distinctly remember feeling so much love for that little bundle that it almost hurt. I'm so grateful that moment is one that has chosen to stay clear in my mind after six whole years. This boy is something special. He loves his mama with his whole heart. He regularly brings me home pictures of us standing together holding hands in a love heart. He's proposed marriage to me on several occasions. He tells me that he thinks of me while he's sitting at his desk at school. I would love to know what thoughts he has, but it makes me so happy knowing I'm always a part of him. He's gone through a bit of an emotional stage this past year, it has been so challenging at times and my patience has been worn past the breaking point. But it's that unconditional love that he has for me that keeps me going. I can completely lose my cool with him one minute and the next minute he is outside picking me a dandelion. I'm selfish when I say this, but I'm going to have a hard time sharing him someday when he gets married. It's a good thing his entire heart will still belong to me for quite some time. These past six years with this boy in our lives has been such a blessing. Happy birthday, Maddox, we love you.

He is officially obsessed with legos now and I love it. I love seeing these two bond together over a Ninjago Thunder Raider. The four year gap between them is finally starting to close in as they are beginning to share interests. Jayden is starting to view him more as a friend and not just an annoying little brother. (as a side note, we were laughing as we remembered that Jayden had that exact same cold sore on his mouth when he came to visit Maddox at the hospital. Six years later and it's still there)

We took donuts to his class during lunch. Jayden said that nobody brings birthday treats here and that it would be totally embarrassing if I brought something. Of course once he saw me show up with donuts he changed his mind.  We had a popcorn bar for an after school snack. Once again, "bar" is just code for loading up on all the junk food that you can. But hey, it's your birthday.

He had to try out is new scooter at the skate park, then we took a walk to the movie store where he picked Rio 2 to watch with the family while we ate pizza that night.

He sure has grown this year, all his school uniform pants are floods.

He had a very specific vision for his birthday cake. A white cake with whipped cream frosting and strawberry slices. That's my kind of cake. Even if the strawberries are $5 for a half pint.

Somewhere along the way we have adopted birthday baths. They get to take a bath in our big tub with bubbles and the jets turned on. I added another element of birthday fun with glowsticks in the water. I knew for sure he would love it, but he thought it was too spooky with the lights off and he couldn't see to play with his legos.

This weekend we had some friends over for his party. Jason decided from now on he'll just give the kids the $100 we would spend on a party and take them on a shopping spree. Parties can be a bit chaotic, but I still think the memories they'll have of them will be worth it. Of course Jason was the one that had to chase them around at Time Zone while I stayed home and enjoyed a quiet house. They are all such cute boys. Maddox actually moved up to a new class last month and I'm happy to see him making new friends in his class and settling in fine. It's amazing how much progress he has made since his first day of school exactly one year ago. My baby is growing up, but he'll always be my baby (I'm totally going to be that creepy mom from that "I love you forever" book that climbs into the window of her grown son's house and rocks him in bed).