Hall Family Musings

Summer's Baptism

2010-03-28T08:18:00.001-07:00

Best Buddies

Happy Day!

I love this little girl. I hope she will remember the sweet spirit we all felt this day at her baptism and confirmation. Grandpa Gary gave the talk on baptism. He told about a man a taught during his mission in Denmark named Olaf Olafson. Grandpa reminded us that Heavenly Father uses the Holy Ghost to help us find those who are seeking the truth of the gospel. David and Collynn played a violin arrangement for the musical number; they did such a nice job. Emily Neilsen (Collynn's future sister in law) played the piano for us; so kind, considering she had never met us before. Summer looked so sweet in the font for the baptism. It was special for me to help her get ready in her baptism dress and dry her hair right after the baptism. She said she felt so happy and she loved Jesus. When we came back into the room, it was just in time to see Ethan bear his testimony. While Summer changed, people had the opportunity to share their baptism experiences and testimonies. I gave the talk on the Holy Ghost; then Dan did her confirmation. It was a beautiful blessing he gave to her. It was a day I'll never forget. I'm so grateful to be a parent. This is one of the greatest joys; to have family gatherings to share testimony and feel the Spirit of the Holy Ghost together.

Grandma Eleanor, Grandma Linda and Grandpa Larry

Summer's Birthday week

2010-03-28T08:01:00.001-07:00

Summer celebrated her 8th birthday on Wednesday this week. Went to Mimi's for dinner, Thanksgiving Point dinosaur museum, then tried to figure out her new iCarly game on the Wii. Squeezed in as much as we could on a school night!

First time ever at the dinosaur museum. Awesome exhibits!

Nice pose, Sum Sum!

February in Utah

2010-02-28T16:27:00.000-08:00

Scout Banquet: Ethan earned his second class rank. Ethan is getting ready to give my my Mother's Pin. I have learned to always wear a scarf to these events. It really decreases my anxiety related to the "pinning ceremony". Dan and Ethan went on their first overnighter this month in the snow! Dan's calling is in the Young Men's organization. I'm so glad they get to do scout activities together.

Summer inside the snake's mouth at the Mayan Restaurant. We had a girls night while Dan and Ethan were camping.

One of the main reasons for coming to the Mayan. Chocolate lava cake with the firework.

Caught picking her nose.

Sledding at Grandpa Henrie's is a great tradition. We've only had a few good snow storms this winter so we were lucky this one hit on a Saturday and we were the only ones there to break in the sledding runs. Grandpa has the best backyard, as we try to get as close to the bank, without falling in the river! That makes me sound really irresponsible, don't worry, the kids didn't even make it close to the edge.

San Diego

2010-02-28T16:10:00.001-08:00

San Diego Temple

Imperial Beach- at twilight. This was our first time being at the beach as the sun was setting. People were having bonfires and it felt so calm. Only stayed for a short time, but it was memorable.

Summer wore her favorite shirt to the zoo - from her cousin Aubrye in Australia, it has koala bears on it. What a great surprise when it just so happened that it was Koalapalooza week at San Diego Zoo and it looked like she planned for it!

Ethan by the freaky needle nose alligator from India. It never moved during the 10 minutes we stared at it, trying to figure out if it was real or just a alligator sculpture.

Inside the Aviary. I don't really like being in Aviaries, since I watched the movie "The Birds". I was putting on a happy face.

We saw a California Condor eat his lunch at another exhibit in the zoo. It was a rat. The kids were mortified to see it tear off the arms and then suck out the insides. We have 2 spoiled pet rats and 2 kids who will probably never take their rats outside again!

San Diego

2010-02-28T15:59:00.001-08:00

At the San Diego Zoo, you can pay $8 to attach your kid to this "jumping tree" with bungee cords. The kids loved practicing flips and acting like monkeys.

So wonderful to be in sunny weather in January! I loved the cool trees. We have decided to plan a trip to sunny weather every January.

My creepy little bugs.

Grandma with all of her kids and her sweet husband.

San Diego

2010-02-28T15:36:00.000-08:00

We had a fun family trip in January to see my little brother Scott's graduation from the Marines. It was so wonderful to see him after 3 months. We crammed in a day at the military base, a lunch served by the missionaries from the ward he attended (so kind of them!), wandered around Old Towne San Diego, 80th birthday party at a mexican restaraunt for Grandma Betty (family reunion with the Robinson side!), day at San Diego Zoo, swimming at the outdoor pool (in January! awesome..), Coronado and Imperial beach (The kids were amazed to see Tiajuana across the bay, and that's as close as we were going!), and San Diego Temple (at night! beautiful...Summer plans to get married there!).

Christmas 2009

2009-12-26T13:45:00.001-08:00

A few Christmas morning pics. We woke up at 7 and played with toys and cooked until 10 AM when Dan's parents (Larry and Linda) and My family (Gary, Janice, Spencer and Kate) came over for breakfast. We had a lot of fun visiting and opening gifts.

We're back!!

2009-12-26T13:03:00.000-08:00

Time for the annual post. I've not done well at all this year with posting blogs. Well, here are a few Christmas pictures and I'll try to do better! We had a great Christmas together and are excited to work on new goals and hobbies in 2010. We are so thankful to have the gospel and scriptures to guide us in our lives. Hope all of our family and friends had a fantastic holiday.

Good Times in December

2008-12-25T17:58:00.000-08:00

Summer is such an eager student! I'm hoping I'll be able to teach her piano myself.

All of the Robinson kids are in town! We had a great tubing afternoon at Grandma Henrie's hill.

First major snowfall! Had to get a quick picture before heading to work and school. Due to unplowed roads, it took me 45 minutes to get from my house to the Riverwoods area that day.

We cook a big dinner like this once a year. The leftovers were great!

Work Social

2008-11-13T14:27:00.001-08:00

These are all the wonderful people I work with: (back row) Victoria Sucher-naturopath, Jenn-office manager, Kindra PA, Carly- medical assistant, Scott-medical assistant (front row), Stacy Kupperman -naturopath, Dr. Pam Vincent, and me. Stacy took a job in California, so this was her goodbye party at my house.

Robinson Halloween Party

2008-11-13T14:05:00.001-08:00

Mom dressed up as Miss Trunchbowl from the Matilda movie. She really got into the character, waving her stick at the kids and making them eat chocolate "Brucie" cake. However, she didn't make them eat until they threw up. If this isn't familiar to you, you should watch the movie. It's very good. I'm Amy Winehouse, if you can't tell. Who else are you going to be with a black beehive wig?

My little cowgirl.

Little Ruthie is only 10 days old. So cute. We were so glad Collynn and Joy came to the party.

Zach is Optimus Prime and Jack is Donald duck.

Scott looks frightening. Fortunately, this picture cuts off his legs because his little nurse dress was super short and I don't think I ever want to see him in white nylons again.

Millie was a perfect fairy.

Spence is Obama, a little tough to see him though. We had a great time together. The kids love the tradition of trick or treating to all the doors inside my parent's house. All the adults hide in every room or closet in the house to pass out candy to the grandkids.

Thanksgiving Point Fall Festival

2008-11-13T13:36:00.000-08:00

The kids loved this dried corn room. I remember playing at my friend's barn when I was 8. We loved to bury ourselves in the wheat. It's very relaxing. There should be a spa treatment of submersion in dried grains.

Who is that bearded man? Oh, it's Dave!

We had a Robinson family night at the corn maze. Dad has the asian picture pose down.

I didn't realize it was so much more than a corn maze. I also didn't know there would be wonderful food there: roasted corn on the cob, chili in bread bowls, pulled pork sandwiches, pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting and hot chocolate. We ate at McDonalds before we got there. I wish we hadn't eaten so many chicken nuggets. . .

Collynn 38 weeks pregnant. I love her style.

Oh, the kiddie maze. We thought it would be pretty simple. But we accidently took a shortcut into the main maze. The picture cut into the field this year was David Archuletta's face. The kid's maze was just the bottom corner of the picture. By the time we figured we were lost, we made our way to a watch tower in the middle of David's face (deep into the maze). The kids thought we were doomed, but we made it out eventually.

Tower of carved pumpkins. It was amazing to see that people are such talented carvers. We liked the one with President Hinkley's face. It looked just like him!

This beast thing was awful. As you walked through, it was pitch black and you could hear, heavy breathing, heartbeat and bowel sounds and it was a maze. Everyone was tripping over eachother. As soon as we got out, Ethan couldn't wait to do it again.

We also loved the haunted hayride. This festival was fun and we look forward to it next year.

Josh and Jenni's visit

2008-11-13T13:04:00.000-08:00

Josh and Jenni (Hall) came to visit in October. It was so great to just sit around and talk and watch the kids. We had dinner and watched the BYU football game at our house one night. Lindsey can't wait to have her baby. I liked this picture of Lindsey and Lizzie.

Quite a sight to see Josh carrying his twins. Lindsey and I went with Jenni to the mall. I didn't realize all the work that Josh and Jenni have to do for an outing. Well, at least with twins you are building your arm muscles equally.

Summer and Parker had fun playing cars.

Jenni is so fun to talk to. Even though I don't get to see her much, it feels like getting together with an old friend everytime I see her. Parker is so sweet and well behaved. I can tell she is very patient and loving to her kids. She is a great mom.

Spotlight on Ethan

2008-11-13T12:36:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Lizzie, Zach's girlfriend, Ethan now has braces! She works for a wonderful orthodontist and she said he probably should get started on braces now to prevent complications later. It makes him seem a lot older to me, more mature.

Ethan before braces. Doesn't he seem immature?

Ethan and Ben making "mice" cream treats for their late night. This "late night" concept is the alternative to sleep overs. I'm finding that most parents I've talked to don't allow sleep overs. I think it's a good thing. During the week days kids are so busy. Friday and Saturdays are the only days Ethan can play with friends. Ethan and Ben love playing Adventure Quest on the computer, playing with Ben's rat, going on neighborhood adventures, and BYU basketball games.

Ethan and Dan went to General Priesthood meeting at the conference center with Larry, Tim, Shae and Zach. Ethan told me he felt "really good inside" during the meeting. I'm glad that he was able to have this experience. Before the meeting all the boys went out to dinner and had a great time.

Definitely time to change your sheets, Ethan. I was cracking up. He was complaining that his room stunk so bad. It was his B.O. in the sheets. I made him change his bed himself and he looked like he was going to pass out.

September

2008-11-13T12:00:00.000-08:00

It was my birthday in September. It was on a Monday. It was a long day at work. Yuck. So, I decided to have a Chuckee Cheese birthday party with whoever could come last minute. The only rule (Robinson family tradition) was that everyone had to donate the tickets they win to me so I could get a big prize, like a lunchbox. And I did get a lunchbox. So, thank you family, for working so hard for me.

She's a winner! You just can't help but feel good at Chuckee Cheese. Especially when your dad secretly asks them to announce "Chuckee would like to wish Lisa Hall a happy 33rd birthday!". You're never too old.

Dan has done a fabulous job as the family emergency preparedness coordinator. This was an FHE activity getting our 72 hour kits packed. We made the kids walk around the neighborhood with the packs just for practice. I decided not to post the picture of Summer crying because her pack is waaaay to heavy. That would just make us look mean.

I love my family. Thanks for making my day special. The Saturday before my birthday we ate dinner at my favorite restaraunt, Pizzeria 712. Every time I eat there I feel amazed that someone can prepare food that tastes so heavenly. Everyone should try this place.

Labor Day

2008-09-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

Dan is in the Young Men's presidency so he had the opportunity of waking up at 6:15 am to prepare and serve food for the ward breakfast fundraiser! The kids and I rode bikes to the church pavillion and enjoyed pancakes, eggs, hash browns and ham all covered in syrup, whipped cream and ketchup. Yum....
This is the beautiful park we get to ride through to get to our church. Now that Summer can ride a two wheeler, we love going on family bike rides to Nielsen Grove park. There are so many dirt and sidewalk trails to follow. Summer loves to be the leader!
A very stormy day. The air smelled wonderful and the flowers looked so vibrant. While I'm enjoying a rare summer thunderstorm, in my cozy loft wearing fuzzy pajames; I'm watching the weather channel tracking hurricane Gustav and praying for those who have evacuated from New Orleans. How discouraging for all of those who have worked so hard to rebuild their homes and now have to leave it all behind again.
I love this guy! I told him I would pay him $1 if he would let me take his picture. He was excited and told me for $1 I would get some awesome poses from him. He was mad that I didn't like his poses of Power Rangers, New Kids on the Block "the sprinkler" moves or the Incredible Hulk. He said I would have to pay $2 to get a boring pose. I think it was worth it. This is one that I could frame.

First day of school

2008-08-23T09:24:00.000-07:00

These kids don't look nervous at all! Ethan is starting 4th grade and Summer is now a first grader. This feels strange to have both kids gone all day. I'm thinking of the Staples commercial showing a father loading his cart with school supplies to the tune "It's the most wonderful time of the year!". While we have had good times this summer, I'm looking forward to the days having more sense of purpose. I have Thursdays off from work and I was all by myself this week. I read, practiced guitar, exercised and finished up some charts for work. It was nice to have that much uninterrupted time. But I also feel like my kids are growing up so fast. They are at the ages I wish I could freeze in time. I need to make the most of the time that I do have with them after school and on the weekends.
Sweet and wide eyed first grader! She is so excited for school lunch and more recesses!

Last hurrah this summer: Dan and Ethan go to Yellowstone

2008-08-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

Moose crossing! What is a Yellowstone trip without a photo of an animal crossing the road?
Dan serves in the Teachers Quorum in our ward. The big camping trip this year was to west Yellowstone. They were able to stay in an old cabin for the week (donated by a kind ward member). They had a refrigerator, stove and beds to sleep in. They planned their meals on the drive up and bought groceries in west Yellowstone. This sounds like the way to do camping! Ethan and Ty ( the 10 year son of another leader) were able to tag along.
I'm so glad Ethan was able to go with Dan for this trip. He saw some amazing sights. They rode bikes on dirt roads and hiked during the day, and played ghost in the graveyard at night. They canoed down a river. They were chased by a coyote. Seriously scary.

2008-08-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

This looks like somewhere in a Lord of the Rings movie. Ethan named this "geeser" (geyser): "Daddy Geeser", because it was the biggest one they saw.
Two elk in a meadow off the side of the road in Yellowstone. Thank goodness for telephoto lens! Dan and Ethan were actually across the river from these elk.
Flying four wheelers! Bear World is the best! This is a small amusement park near Rigby, Idaho on the way home from Yellowstone. Driving through the entrance of the park, bear roam free. Keep your windows rolled up. Ethan saw grizzly bears, black bears and 2 cute baby bears. Ethan cooed about those baby bears like women at a baby shower.
Ethan was through with smiling for his over zealous shutterbug dad. However, Ethan reports he only frowned for the camera, when Dan wasn't wanting him to pose, he had a great time.
This is a picture of Sapphire pool, a "geeser", according to Ethan. The water was very hot, but Ethan could still put his hand in the water.

Last hurrah this summer: Our Pioneer Outing

2008-08-23T07:37:00.000-07:00

While Ethan and Dan played at Yellowstone, Summer and I spent the day at Heritage Village (located at This is the Place Monument). There are 46 pioneer buildings to tour. In most buildings there were people dressed as pioneers to tell the history of each place. Here we learned how pioneer women wove intricate lace and textiles.
In the hat shop. Coon skin hat worn side pony-tail style, very nice look, Sum Sum.
Brigham Young's Hidden Forest home. I think he had 3-4 wives and their children living here. It looked very comfortable inside, but I guess that depends on how many people actually lived here. I loved the lavender plants and English garden style. This home is surrounded by orchards. It was called Brigham's experimental farm because the pioneer settlers had no idea what would grow well in Utah's soil. So Brigham Young planted a huge variety of fruit and nut trees and vegetable gardens to determine which plants would thrive.
Free pony rides. I think this is the first time Summer has been on a horse.
It felt like we were back in the times of Little House on the Prairie. We had fun riding in this covered wagon, enjoying the slow pace of life. Rare for us. The pioneer village felt so quiet and peaceful. While the work of food preparation, bathing, laundry and all the other "inconveniences" seemed daunting to me, the beauty and serenity of the surroundings was so appealing to me.

Some Favorite Family Pics

2008-08-09T10:13:00.001-07:00

Sisters: Krista, Mom, aunt Joy, Lindsey and LeAnn - family dinner in June. What a treat to have LeAnn and Joy there. Now that Lindsey has moved to Texas, I appreciate these family get togethers even more.
This was at Lindsey's wedding May 2007. Ethan was super aggressive and snatched the garter. He wore it like a trophy on his head. His arrogance level raised several notches after that victory.
One of my favorite pictures ever! Summer's 5th birthday at Build-A-Bear. She's very convincing that building a friend at Build-A-Bear is the key to happiness! They could use this picture to advertise.
Dan is a cute dad.

Little buddies. Summer has a vampirish smile these days. I love Ethan's impish look.

Introduction

2008-08-07T17:02:00.000-07:00

Summer has her own style of Yoga

I'm a blogger now!

2008-07-26T20:00:00.001-07:00

This was way easier than I thought it would be to set up! Why didn't I do this sooner? I'm finally ready to overcome some of my fears of technology. I'm in St. George on a week long vacation from work with Dan and the kids. I sorted through all our digital picture files and deleted all the duplicate and crummy pictures. I have all our pictures sorted by events and years all on a portable hard drive. What an amazing feeling, if we had a fire, I would still have our pictures. Because now that I'm getting into this, I'm going to buy a second portable hard drive and make a copy to put in a safe deposit box at a bank. Or maybe, I could just get a fire safe box to keep in my house. Now I'm going to work on getting all our legal documents scanned into the hard drive. And I could learn how to make those DVDs with the pictures that are set to music. The possibilities are so exciting and I'm thinking I just might drive Dan crazy.