"Tweens???? for Halloween"

So I think that I finally figured out that I have tweens. I mean, I knew that Savannah was a tween, or at least getting close, but on Halloween Night when both my kids took off with their friends.....without Shawn or Me, or any parents for that matter, I realized that Shawn and I have become OLD!!!!

Savannah was a Robber and Nicholas was a Gangster. The group of friends is Lacey-a mime, Savannah-a robber, Drake-a prisoner, Alex-Batman, Nick-a gangster, Brysen-a dead prisoner, and Colton-a Police officer.

My little Entrepreneur

So the other day Nick and his friend Drake decided that they were going to make some money. They asked Drake's mom if they could pull weeds for $10. She said yes, they pulled weeds, she gave them the money and we thought that was the end of that. No way. Now Nick and Drake came and asked me if I could drive them to the store. I said "how come?" They said that they wanted to buy some ice and cups for the snowie machine that we have. Again I said "how come?" We have ice in the ice maker in the fridge. I said that they could use our ice. They said that they were going to sell snowies on the corner and they wanted to buy ice and cups for that. So I drove them to the store and they got their ice and cups. We got home and they pulled out the snowie machine, our camp table, an extention cord and all of our snowie syrup. Now they didn't think that they needed to buy syrup, because we already had that, but they HAD to buy ice--which they could have gotten free....go figure??!!?? I didn't think that they would even make the $10 back that they spent. Boy was I wrong. They made $14 the first day and $14 the second day. They paid Drake's little brother Brysen 19 cents for helping and they split the rest. Holy Moly. In two days they each came home with $14. Awesome. Let's hope that this is a prediction of the rest of his life. He will be loaded.

Daddy Daughter Activity Days Event

Hiking to Donuts Falls up Big Cottonwood Canyon. When Kathy asked me if I was interested in taking Savannah up hiking it was like asking me if it’s easy to beat her dad at a game of foosball. Of course. It was a great time. She had a good time hiking with her friend Lacey up to the base of the falls. Once we arrived we enjoyed a quick dinner (sandwiches & chips) and then a few of the dad’s helped their daughters climb the rocks up to where the water falls thru the opening rock, hence donut falls. Savannah and I were the first to make the climb. As you get to the top portion of the falls the area opens up and reveals a small cavern (the water falls from the top) with a shallow pool of water. It was great to see how excited Savannah was that she was at the top and how proud she was that she made the final portion of the climb. It is slippery and fairly challenging in areas. Savannah made the comment “I am like you dad. I’m a good climber too”. I have the best girl ever. Love--Shawn

The Super...Simister...St. George Labor Day Weekend!!!!

So I was sitting on the couch, watching the news and I heard the weatherman say that another cold front was coming in, maybe even some snow. I turned off the TV, turned on the computer and decided to blog about something much, much better than "a cold front, maybe even some snow:(". I decided to blog about St. George. I know that I talk about it a lot, but I LOVE it. I mean LOVE it. This Labor Day, we all went down to St. George to celebrate the holiday together. It gets a little crowded but it is definitely worth it. The more the merrier. So our weekend started out with a picture in front of the Condo. It's amazing how much our family has grown. There are 15 of us Simister's now. Crazy.

Saturday we spent in the pool. I mean the whole day. It was gorgeous and sunny and most of all, WARM, with no cold fronts coming in. I think I hate winter. After a fun filled day in the pool, Mom and Dad took us all out to dinner at Golden Corral. It was so good. I love Buffet's. When we got home we got the kids ready for bed and Mom, Charayne, Camille and I went for a walk over at what we call the Big Park. Guess who we saw there? Madison Clymore. OK, really Aunt Wendy called and told us that Madison would be there with her friends doing some ice blocking down the hills so we decided to crash her party. We had a chance to have a turn down the hill. It was a blast. Walking out of the park, there were frogs jumping everywhere. Charayne caught one and I thought, if she can do it I can do it. I caught a baby frog and held it in my hands for a few minutes. He started moving around though and I adjusted my hands and he jumped out. I never could get him back because he jumped into the rocks. We brought the other frog home and let the kids see it the next morning.

On Sunday we started the day out with Family Pictures. Aunt Wendy was our photographer and Madison was her assistant. They were very professional:) After pictures we went down to the Brigham Young home for a tour. By the time the tour was over, the little kids were ready for a nap. (as well as some adults.) Shawn and I packed up our bigger kids and went over to "The Crack" so the kids could climb through it. Shawn decided to pass this time since he wasn't quite sure he would fit, and I passed because I am very claustrophobic, and its getting worse with age. Small places are not my friends.

We ended our fun weekend with a picnic at Pine Valley Reservoir. Uncle Tom and Aunt Wendy and their kids joined us for dinner. We had fried chicken and salads out on the dock and then the women and some of the kids took a walk around the lake. Half way around we found out where the water for the lake came from when we ran into the river that made us turn around and go back the way we came. After our "half-walk" we let the kids do some fishing. It was amazing. They were pulling out fish after fish. Tony caught the best one though. (See photos at the bottom to see his amazing catch.)

Our Super...Simister...St. George Labor Day weekend was fun filled and exciting and I can't wait to do it again. Love---Kathy
The Simister's in front of Mom and Dad's C0ndo in St. George Utah

The kids having a great time at the pool

Grandpa and Nick....Awesome

I know, it's not very attractive, but I had to show you all how happy I was to be in the pool:)

Grandma and Alana

Charayne and Kelton and Camille and Lincoln

All Bathed and ready for ....Play???
The kids checking out the frog that the moms caught while visiting Madison at the park last night.

The ones who started it all....Mom and Dad
The Simister Family

The Simister Grandkids, Savannah, Kelton, Rylan, Alana, Jaxson, Nicholas and Lincoln

Savannah and Kelton, the oldest and youngest grandkids

The Adults

The Burrell's

Shawn in "The Crack"

Savannah and Nick in "The Crack

The Brigham Young home in St. George Utah

The Simister's in front of Brigham Young's Home

This is the tree in Brigham Young's yard that got split in half by lightning

Pine Valley Reservoir

This is the dock that we had our Picnic on

Rylan, Savannah and Alana during our awesome hike Jaxson showing Lincoln and Alana his fish he caught

Bridger caught a fish
So did Nicholas

And so did Rylan

And I think so did Logan

"Tony's Big catch of the Day"

Lincoln thinks this is hilarious

Oquirrh Mountain Temple

We attended the Oquirrh Mountain Temple dedication on August 23, 2009. Our Bishop offered us tickets as we met with him for Savannah’s and Nicks recommends. Kathy and I previously had the opportunity to work at the temple grounds during the preparation for the Open House. Kathy worked on one day as an Usher in the Sealing Room and a second day at the reception tent as a hostess. I worked cutting and moving the temporary wood flooring material into the Sealing Rooms. I also had the opportunity to spend a day refilling water containers and transporting materials around the grounds. Having the golf cart on this assignment was a nice bonus. Anyway back to the Dedication. In preparation for this special event Kathy and I took opportunities to share information with the kids about the importance of the temples and answer any questions that they might have . It turns out that they actually had a number of questions. We had some good discussions. When the day finally came we were all excited to be a part of this experience. We knelt in family prayer before heading down to the Temple. We were at theTemple an hour early. We were very lucky to get 4 seats together. We initially were ushered down to the Baptistry. The seating was limited so the usher asked us to follow him up to the sealing rooms. We were able to sit together in the sealing room. Nick and I matched in our black suits and blue ties. Kathy and Savannah looked beautiful in their dresses. We enjoyed the ceremony together as a family in the Temple. It was a very special experience. I found myself caught up with the spirit and I was especially emotional during the Hosanna shout. It was an experience that Kathy and I and the kids will always cherish. Love-Shawn

Leapin' Lizards!!!!

So Shawn and my brother Greg caught these 4 lizards at Sand Hollow when they went fishing while we were in St. George. The kids were estatic. We had tried to catch a lizard last time we were down there but we were unsucessful. Shawn and the kids decided to bring them home as pets. The problem was that we have no where to keep them. And I decided they were alot of work after just one day. So I talked the kids into letting them go for the lizards sake. We took Nick and Savannah and some of their friends down to the Daybreak Lake, which is just 3 miles from our house and we decided to let the lizards go in the rocks by the lake. We thought they would be happy there since lizards like rocks and there was some sand by the rocks. Anyway, the kids each got to pet the lizards and then we let them go all at the same time. The lizards just sat on the rocks for a few minutes, and then they scattered off into the rocks. I hope they are enjoying their new home. After we let them go, we played on the dock for a few minutes and then headed home. It was a fun night and I don't have lizards on my kitchen counter anymore, I think it's a WIN- WIN for all, especially the lizards. Love--Kathy

Left to Right, Brysen, Nicholas, Drake, Savannah, Colton and Lacey

Nicholas holding a lizard

Savannah holding a lizard

Let's let them go at the same time!

Our 4 lizards

There they go...into their new home.

The Daybreak Lake at sunset

Our kids out on the dock

Savannah's Hair Salon

Shawn is such a good sport. Last week Savannah and her friend Lacey were bored and didn't know what to do. They kept begging Shawn to get the 4-wheeler out so they could ride it but it was getting dark, and he knew that if he got it out, they would only be able to ride it for a few minutes. He kept giving the girls idea's to do but nothing was exactly right. I was sitting here at the computer listening to the conversation and I decided to put my two cents in. I said, " Why don't you play hair salon?" The girls said NOOOOO. I said " I bet that dad would let you do his hair." Shawn turned and looked at me. The girls got BIG smiles on their faces and said "OOOOO---KKKKKKK". Here is the result of the "Hair Salon." What a good dad Shawn is.

He doesn't look too happy!

They're still working on Shawn.

I don't think he likes his hairdo.
So...Dang...Cute!!!

School.....Again???

It's a New Year, a New School, New Grades, New Teachers and New Uniforms. The kids this year have started attending a brand new Charter School called "Early Light Academy." This school is for K-9th Grade. That is the main reason that we decided to give it a try. Nicholas is in 4th grade this year and Savannah has started 6th grade. Next year my little girl will be in Middle School. AAAAAAHHHHH, I'm feeling really old.

Anyway, we decided that we liked the idea of smaller classes, especially with Savannah going to 7th grade next year. The regular Middle Schools in our area are packed, and this school only has 75 kids per grade. That's only 25 kids per class with 3 classes per grade. The school is also a traditional schedule instead of the year round schedule that we have been doing so far and I think I will like it better.

The Pros of the new school: Traditional Schedule, Uniforms, Smaller Classes, Friends have also made the move to the new school, No Bus.

The Cons of the new school: No school lunch ( I actually have to make them lunch in the morning, No Bus--it has pros and cons, and did I mention no school lunch?

So far the kids like their teachers and we are liking the school. The landscaping still has to get finished but when it does we will post a picture of the school, it's kinda crazy architecture. We are excited for a new year at a new place in new grades and with new cute uniforms- Love, Kathy

Savannah, my 6th Grader

Nicholas, my 4th Grader

Fishin' with Dad

The kids are getting older and I have decided that they should be spending more time hiking, fishing, and becoming more familiar with the mountain ranges that are prevalent in our area. During the month of July we embarked with my friend Mark and his son Caden on a hike from Brighton Ski Resort (located at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon) to Mary’s Lake, Dog Lake, Martha’s Lake and Lake Katherine. We had packed our fishing poles, along with treats, waters, and of course the most important items for the kids, I-Pods and Nintendo DS’s. We stopped at the highest lake which was Lake Katherine and decided to try our luck at catching the Brook Trout which are found in higher mountain lakes. We were very successful. Between the three kids and two adults we had manages to catch roughly 40 fish. The kids tried to catch the chipmunks and explored areas for hideouts. It was great that the I-pods and DS’s were left in the back pack the entire time. In fact, Savannah and Nick enjoyed both the hike and fishing so much that they bragged about the trip to their neighbor friends when we returned. We ended up inviting our next door neighbor and his three children to go with us back up the following week. We were even more successful on the second fishing trip and the hike was an absolute blast. Nick managed to lead the way up to the lakes and he also managed to lead us down on his “shortcut” off the mountain. It was a great time for all. Can’t wait to get them back up on another trail and lake. Love- Shawn

Savannah

Nick and Shawn

Savannah, Nicholas, Caden and Mark

The Fruits...I mean Vegetables, of our labors

So I know I haven't blogged for a while but we have been very very busy. The garden is in full bloom and it's time to make Salsa. This year in the garden I planted corn. It is very short this year, I'm guessing it's because it rained so much in June, it didn't get enough sun early on. It gave us enough for 3 or 4 meals. Which isn't a whole lot but at least I will have the corn stalks to put out on my porch when Halloween rolls around. OK I know corn doesn't have anything to do with salsa but I wanted you all to know that I planted it:) We also planted pumpkins and they are starting to get big. Anyway, back to the Salsa. I planted 10, yes count them, 10 tomato plants. I know it sounds like a lot but last year I did 17 jars of salsa and it was gone in 2 months. This year I am doing MORE. I also planted peppers, green peppers and jalapeno peppers. I did zucchini, dill, carrots, and onions. I moved my herbs over to a separate flower bed and they are doing amazing. We also planted grapes last year and they actually gave us fruit. Yes you can grow awesome grapes in UTAH. Who knew. The garden is so fun for us and the kids, especially when it is time to harvest it. We have been eating like kings the last month, and its all so healthy. I LOVE GARDENING
Here's our pumpkins
More tomatoes in another flower bed
Herbs and Grapes