New Darbyworld

Summer is FLYING by!

2011-06-20T21:05:00.000-07:00

I looked at a calendar today and realized that the summer is almost half-way over! AHHHH!!
It hasn't really felt like much of a break since I still have classes every morning from 7am-11 or 1- depending on the day.
On the up-side, I am getting incredibly BUFF.
Did I mention that I am taking a modern dance technique class?
I am required to take two semesters to graduate and I have been DREADING taking this class for various reasons. . . . mainly because certain modern dance instructors that I have interacted with are not appreciators of my chosen genre- even though I am not a ballroom dancer, I do not think of myself AS a Ballroom Dancer. . . . I am a dancer of all genres who happens to be getting her degree in ballroom dance. . . .
ANYHOW, I decided to take a deep breath and jump in and take my first class this summer.
My instructor is AWESOME!! . . . . and sometimes scary.
She will demonstrate our combinations- ok, a word about her background: she danced in the Diavolo dance company for 8 years- a company that is known for using these HUGE props that they fly off of and roll and land and do all kinds of crazy things that require a lot of strength and just overall amazingness.
She demonstrates a combination and I stare. She leaps in the air, lands, twists, turns, leaps, rolls. . . . inside my head I am screaming. BUT I learned something about myself: I can do it!
I was really afraid to try these crazy things but I made myself do it and now. . . . I like it. No, I LOVE it. It is seriously so much fun and now I love modern dance!
Funny how things turn out.

As for the rest of summer- the children got out of school the last week of May and they have been busy terrorizing the new neighborhood. There are quite a few little friends to be found within a block or two so every day we'll have a posse of children roaming about- or an eerie quiet when they travel elsewhere.

Another great thing about summer- our gardens! Yes, I must say gardenS because we have a spring garden, a summer garden, an herb garden, a corn garden, and a sunflower garden! That's a lot of gardens- not to mention the flower garden that I am reclaiming from the invasive ground-cover some previous owner let go crazy in the front yard!
When I can download some pictures, I will post them.
Or you could look at my facebook page because I can post pictures from my phone there.

That is is beauty and curse of the iphone. . . . I use it pretty much exclusively for taking pictures now but (long story) I can't download them to my laptop and I can't download them from my phone to the blog (unless someone knows of an APP???) so unless we're facebook friends, you'll have to wait until I figure out the deal with my laptop.

WELL, much, MUCH love to you all and I will attempt to get cracking on that picture-downloading thing!

Moovin' on

2011-03-25T21:01:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's been a while- a looong while, since I last wrote!

We moved to Mapleton, UT- hooray! We love the new house and neighborhood- we miss our culdesac, of course, but the extra room and good company are wonderful, too. Stay tuned for pictures of the new abode.

It may be a while since I am trying to figure out how to get pictures on here from my phone. If any of you know how (its and iPhone), please pass the info along!

We are still alive but I must run and do some homework now!

Dancing Monkey #1

2010-10-29T20:11:00.000-07:00

This year after school, Isaac has been learning how to ballroom dance. His first competition was last weekend at Timpview HS here in Provo. He competed with other kids in his age group, "Peewee division". He danced in the triple swing and the cha cha sections. I am so proud of him for working so hard and getting out there! So, here are some pictures from the event. The smaller children, Patrick and I all went to watch.

Randomness

2010-10-15T22:55:00.000-07:00

School has begun and the blog has again been neglected!
We have all been busy as bees over here with our various activities.
Patrick is back at school full-time this semester. He has another semester left and then another of student teaching to finish. He is pretty well-recovered from his clavicle-breaking earlier this year and only whimpers in pain occasionally when a small child steps on his collar. . .
Isaac is now in the third grade! He stays after school twice a week to dance with the ballroom team and is incredibly cute. I make him dance with me and I love it! He has his first ballroom competition coming up this Saturday! Stay tuned for photos! Isaac is also involved in scouts every Wednesday and enjoys that immensely!
Eve is in first grade. Every time I write/say it I feel really old. She is going to have a birthday pretty soon here and be SEVEN!!! AHHHHHH!! Anyhow, she still draws up a storm and is very talented! I will scan some of her recent works and put them on here. She started up gymnastics a week ago and is really liking it.
Esther is a kindergartener! AHHHHH!! (again) My little girls are getting so old. She has been in gymnastics and is loving it. She is perfect for it because she is strong and FEARLESS. I put a video of her below. She likes having Eve in her class. . . when they aren't fighting. .
Ms. Leah is getting humongous. She is rolling like a pro, sitting up, stands with help, and is on the fringe of crawling. She assumes the crawling position but manages to mostly go backwards. No! I tell her that she doesn't have to learn how to crawl for as long as she wants. Once crawling starts, it's all over and the house is done-for!
I am also in school again. I bring Leah to a few classes with me and Patrick has her during others. She is pretty much an angel and has many adoring fans who love to make her smile- which she readily does! I pretty much have the sweetest baby-ever. I am also getting together a store on Etsy so stay tuned for that. . . .
SO, until next time, enjoy the pictures!
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This is how Esther rolls on her way to gymnastics. . . sense of fashion inherited from her father, I am sure. >snicker<

Leah's Newest Trick

2010-08-16T00:54:00.000-07:00

Miss Leah discovered something new!

Where Are Those Pesky Darbys?

2010-08-05T23:24:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's been a while since anything has been posted on here. . .
it's been a busy summer!
We have been to two family reunions and traveled over a thousand miles. . .
SO here are some pictures of a few happenings to tide you over until school starts and I can REALLY neglect blogging!
Esther with her fish pond prize at the Ekstrom family reunion in Pebble Creek.

Eating Spudnuts at the original shop in RIchland, WA
Leah and me at the Ekstrom reunion- Leah got a cute striped onesie and a sucker! I let her have a few slurps. . .
Zee children out behind Grandma Ekstrom's house where the trees were so beautiful we had to take a picture. . . Leah 's grumpy face is awesome.
Isaac at the Dinosaur Park of some small town whose name I can't remember on the road between Richland and Yakima. . .
Eve and Esther in front of Grandma Ekstrom's house on the 24th of July- just as were were setting off for the parade and the Allen family reunion.
And to end, Ms. Leah in her lovely lavendar ensemble- just to show how humongous she is getting to be! She is three months old. How time flies when you're having fun!

Baby's First Flubber

2010-06-13T20:11:00.000-07:00

I was changing her diaper on Thursday and I just couldn't resist. . . .
Loook at that tummy! It was just calling out for a flubbering!
So I had to! . . . I had to.

Love that BABY!

2010-06-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

Caught Up in the Rush

2010-06-04T23:47:00.000-07:00

Thursday evening, Patrick went to kick of the summer in style and go mountain biking with his good friend Steve. . . . a few hours later I got a call from the ER. The picture you see above was taken seconds before a doomed crash-landing that took the life of Patrick's clavicle. Ok, it didn't die- but it sure is fractured. I wish I could scan the X-rays he brought home and put them on here because they are textbook examples of a broken collarbone!
He didn't stick his landing but he survived and that is the important thing. Right now he's on some fantastic drugs and camped out in the swiveling/reclining rocking chair in the living room with water, more drugs, and the tv remote close at hand (in reach of his one good hand not immobilized by the sling)!
It should take 3-6 weeks for him to be healed enough to go back to regular activity.
Hopefully, he'll be a fast healer and be on the short end of recovery time!

Posers

2010-06-01T20:23:00.000-07:00

It was Sunday, they were all really cute. . . . we had to take some pictures!

Too Much Cuteness

2010-05-14T09:50:00.000-07:00

There is a whole lot of cuteness going on here at the Darby house! Here is a picture of the littlest Darby in her first dress last Sunday- so cute!

A cute big brother with his sissy- he LOVES to hold her and constantly asks if he can do so. . . in the middle of Primary. . . . when he's supposed to be getting dressed for school . . .
We caught it! The cutest baby pout face! Ah, sometimes the camera is kind.

Esther's grumpy face- also too cute.
Eve this morning holding Leah- nice bedhead, right? And you may not be able to tell- but Leah has her first Baby Spike hair today!
Leah is growing and developing right on schedule. She had her first visit with her pediatrician at his office on Tuesday. She has gained almost a whole pound- weighing in at a whopping *8 pounds and 4 ounces!* Leah is definitely our fattest baby thus far. She is the 50% for height and weight. Her head, however, is a bit smaller (thank you!) in the 30th%.

Baby Leah Arrives! (finally!)

2010-05-03T16:44:00.000-07:00

Our newest little bundle of joy, a.k.a. "Leah Pearl Darby" finally arrived April 20 at 3:03pm!
Our darling little baby weighed 7 pounds, 6 ounces and was a whopping 20 inches long. :)
Yes, we realize that was almost two weeks ago, but some of us have been busy, ok?
Several pictures of the little bairn have been posted on our facebook accounts- so we thought that it would be fun to put more recent pictures on here.
Here is baby Leah, a mere four days after birth, with her brand-new icky-umbilical-cord-stumpless belly button! (Saturday, April 24)
AND pictures with her biggest small fans!

I hate to be redundant. . .

2010-04-19T19:18:00.001-07:00

but there is still no baby being born over here.

Went in this morning for a visit. Dilated to 3- yea!

They wouldn't strip my membranes because the midwife on call had her hands full of laboring pregos and the other hospital. . .

but tomorrow I shall call and see if things have slowed down a bit. . . .

In any case, I have an induction scheduled for Wed. fun stuff- NOT. SO want to avoid that crappiness but I'd rather be induced than stuck in prego purgatory.

Oh yes, a side note: yesterday I started taking blue and black cohosh and it seems to have kicked some things into gear. . . . .

SO, stay tuned for more exciting info when we have some to share!

Prego Purgatory

2010-04-14T08:25:00.000-07:00

There are no pictures attached to this blog because there is absolutely NOTHING to share.
That's right- it is now Baby Day + 4 and no baby!
Monday we went in to be "checked" and we were starting to dilate. STARTING. Ugh.
Now it is Wednesday and still no good contractions.
It's not that I'm retaining water and horribly uncomfortable- I'm sick of being huge and sleeping on my side and having people ask me when I'm due- yeah, FOUR DAYS ago!!!!!
I should be grateful for being healthy.
Hmph.
Yes, I have been blessed with being really healthy. yea.
Now, can we get this thing out, please????!!?

Hiking the "Y"

2010-04-10T06:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a beautiful day. Sunny, warm. . . my husband decided that a hike up the nearby mountain would be just the thing. When I said I was coming, he gave me a LOOK that said he thought I was being insane and irresponsible. I told him that I was merely planning to go up a bit until I felt that I had reached my maximum capacity for hiking- then I would go back to the parking lot and read a book in the car. . . .
That was the plan- and it was a beautiful one. We brought snacks for me to munch on while waiting, snacks for them to munch on at the end of the trail, plenty of water. . . and so began the trek.
There are 11 turns on the way up. My goal was to do at least 2. After the first turn, I was a little tired but kept plodding on. When we passed 2, I felt fine. . . and 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. . . . and so on. I felt a little winded at times, and started feeling a bit worn out around 8- but then I decided to press on- only a few more turns to go and we'd be at the top! SO, we kept going.
Oh yes, a note about the children: in the car Esther said that she "never gets tired" and Eve and ISaac and she had a whole discussion about how they were "super hikers." About twenty yards up from the parking lot, the whining began. "My legs are tired! Carry me!" hee hee But we, being the evil parents we are, made them walk. After the initial reluctance to use their legs, they were pretty good little troopers. In all fairness, the first leg up from the parking lot is pretty steep and I kind of wanted Patrick to carry me up, too!
Eve was the best little hiker. She was like a tireless mountain goat and kept ahead of the pack pretty much the entire trek upwards- and down for that matter. My personal methodology was to keep that "slow and steady wins the race" mentality going- Eve stayed with me and would scamper up and down the trail while I plodded near her. She even attempted to drag me up the mountain occasionally when a bench was in sight to rest on, "Come on, Mom! There's a bench, let's hurry!"
Isaac did really well, too. Esther was our lagger but Patrick stuck with her and encouraged her upwards and she trooped on- despite the fact that her "legs are soooooo tired."
ANYHOW, we all made it to the top!
There were quite a few other hikers on the trail. AND a lot of them had dogs- and of course, we had to stop and pet the dogs and learn their names along the way. Patrick brought the GPS and timed our upward journey. It took us an hour up- thirty minutes of that moving (at an average of .2mph I think he said) and the other thirty minutes was spent resting and dog-petting.
Funny story: so, we reach the top and we're sitting there having our snack (well, my snack was down in the car since I didn't think I'd make it this far) and about ten feet away are these teenage/early twenty-somethings whining to each other about how tired they were and how worn out they felt, boo hoo!
Patrick and I looked at each other, our small children, my belly, and kind of laughed to ourselves.

So, we made it- up and down!
Down was a lot faster, as it always is. We stopped for a few new dogs but mostly just skipped down the mountain.
As for the baby- we had some really good contractions while hiking. That's about it. Haven't had any really good ones since. Urgh. What more must I do to jump-start this labor???

Eve and me- the "Y" is in sight!
Chillin' at the top- and I do mean chilling. It was a lot colder up there- in combination with us not moving!

Lower. . . lower. . . . ugh

2010-04-08T19:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the park for a couple of hours. I spent about a half hour swinging on various swings and walking about. . . . Today the baby appears to be at least four inches lower than she was yesterday so SOMETHING is going on in there. . . at least things are going in the right direction!
Now I feel like everything in my pelvic floor is being constantly smashed with a hammer when I walk- fun! No serious contractions, though, so who knows???

Oh, and my husband informed me two days ago that he will be gone for the weekend- he must go work in Salt Lake. Fun!
Luckily, my mother is driving down and she will be here Saturday so if I actually go into labor on my due date, someone will be there with me other than hospital personnell!

I decided today that I am officially tired of being pregnant.
So, baby, your eviction notice has been served!!

Oh, and we have a tentative name that we agreed on yesterday:
Leah Pearl
Pearl is a mixing of our mothers' names, hee hee. Ok, we don't use all the letters from both names- but they are all present in one or the other! (Pamela and Cheryl)
So, yea.
Stay tuned for more exciting news. . . .

Any Time Now. . . .

2010-04-07T10:04:00.000-07:00

Last night I finished the baby's afghan. Here is a picture of it. Oh yes, it is bright pink. While wandering about the yarn aisle in Joanne's, I twittered between ivories and sea greens- for Isaac's and Eve's blankets I went with stereotypical blue and light pink. Esther, being a mystery baby (we didn't find out if she was "pink" or "blue" until she was born) got a gender-neutral white blanket. I wasn't sure what to do with baby girl #3 until I saw the hot pink thread- then I knew that it was perfect!
Now that the blanket is finished, she can come any time! Everything is ready. We've got a place to sleep and clothes, food. . . and I no longer fit in the stupid chairs with desks attached to them that make up the seating in some of my classes- so the sooner the better!

So, baby, you can come any time!

Finally Finished

2010-03-21T16:40:00.000-07:00

I purchased the crib last Saturday, had my brother help me get it out of the car on Monday. . . then it sat there. . . and sat there. . . . waiting for someone to take pity on it and set it up!
Finally I called my brother Levi to help me- and he set it up on Wednesday! Hooray!
With that task finished, I started on the crib bumper the next day. I finally finished it last night! Hooray- so here are pictures of the crib and its beautiful bumper.
I found a tutorial online at:
http://www.vanillajoy.com/diy-crib-bedding-part-i-crib-bedding.html
for directions. It wasn't very complicated but it took a while since it is so loooooong. . . anyhow, it turned out so cute!
Esther, my picture stylist, added the frog. What a wonderful helper she is. :)

Baby Shower

2010-03-16T22:58:00.001-07:00

Hello! My good friend Aleisha decided to take pity on my and do a baby shower. It's this Saturday- oh we know, short notice- at 1pm at an unspecified location that will be announced later!

WISH LIST
-a Boppy!
-a baby sling
-Graco Element Pack n Play- Melanie (you can find it at Target and maybe Walmart)
-Fisher-Price Newborn-Toddler Portable Rocker
-of course, we can always use CLOTHES ( ESTHER has been through them!)
- anything that looks like fun- just remember that if it makes a lot of noise you will PAY.
-Diapers are always a welcome addition
-cute nursing tops for me. Selfish, I know.
-One of those nursing cape things. . . can't think of what they are really called. . .
-baby gate
-World Peace!

I also think it may be helpful to know what I already have so here is another
LIST O' WHAT I ALREADY HAVE:
crib,
car seat,
stroller,
bouncy chair,
swing,
blankets,
bike trailer,
infant bike seat. . . . .
There you have it! I hope you can come!!

The Chosen Sleeping Vessel

2010-03-12T17:41:00.000-08:00

SO, I was inspired by the car seat and stroller and when the monkies and I were in Target today I did it- I purchased a crib! I have been looking online at ksl.com classifieds and similary sites to see what was out there and really there is nothing right now that I want to buy. There are some used ones that are ancient, wobbly-looking things that they really should pay YOU for to take off their hands. . . there are also newer ones that were only used for one recent child but those people are asking for about twenty to ten dollars below what you can get a brand new one at- so I was looking online and comparing store prices and the one I got is just what I wanted!

It converts to a toddler bed, which is what I wanted-) oh and a day bed which is the same thing with the mattress at a different level)
ANYHOW, I haven't assembled it yet since I don't want to drag it out of the car myself. . .hmm, note to self: induce labor by moving large heavy box. . . hmmm. . . . Levi is coming over tomorrow so perhaps he will take pity upon his poor fat sister and help! :)
SO there aren't any lovely pictures of it in the girls' room (and I haven't made bumper pads or anything yet) BUT I got the picture from the Target.com site so you can see what it will look like!
Tomorrow I shall sew like a madwoman. I have a few projects I am working on (including crib linens) and now I have motivation for actually doing them!
Hooray for babies!

Latest Arrival!

2010-03-12T12:30:00.001-08:00

The Graco Alano Travel System: Melanie

Esther modeling the stroller.
The beautiful girl carseat- and baby waiting to get in. Patience, baby, you have to come out first!

Yes, I am mean because our newest arrival is NOT a baby. . . yet.
We got a wonderful package from my mother-in-law (THanks, Mom Darby!) while Esther-loo and I were hanging out and watching Jumanjii and making some costume accessories. . . another story-
ANYHOW, here are pictures of the contents!
Car seat, CHECK!
Stroller, CHECK!
And they are the cutest and girliest things, ever.
I have been a bit sad about this baby because it looked like she was going to get everything handed down to her. Not that a baby cares, I know (another subject I could babble about all day like elaborate first birthdays. . . ), but I care. So, at least she will travel in girl-baby style!
Next item:
Crib. The children and I are going to go look at things today. I want one that converts to a toddler bed. . . . we shall see. . . .

Best Laid Plans. . . .

2010-03-04T09:17:00.001-08:00

I have receiving many inquiries about my "plan" for the birth of this munchkind.
"Are you usually late?"
"Do you go early??"
The answer is: I have no idea.
Isaac was about a week early. (He was due Jan 3 and born Dec 24.) My water broke and we were induced.
Eve was four days late. (She was supposed to be a Halloween baby but held out till the 4th of Nov.) She was all natural- but does this count as my first "real" birth since Isaac was induced??
Esther was induced and born on her due date.
SO, basically the answer is: I have no idea, still.

Last night I was actually thinking about what plans should be made.
There are a few other small questions such as,
If baby comes early:
"Will my husband be present at the birth of this child or will he still be Korea?"
"How am I going to pass all my classes this semester?"
Other questions also come to mind:
"What should I wear?"
I have a baby outfit already. No carseat yet though, hmmm. . . working on that.
Since I don't know to plan for early or late or whatever, I decided to take care of the MOST important issue: Who is to watch the monkies while I am giving birth? The other questions pale in comparison to this. . . I can't let them out into the yard or duct tape their limbs and throw them into a closet. . .
There are no grandparents near enough to be called to come over and watch children so THAT's out. . .
SO considering the responsible parties nearby with the ability to drop what they are doing and come:
My dear brother Levi graciously accepted the position. Thank you, Levi!
Now that's one issue down, three hundred to go.
The rest will take care of itself.
I am packing a bag tonight, though. . . . just in case. . . .

Hilary Sighting!

2010-02-25T19:48:00.000-08:00

Stalking your sister on a mission has never been easier! I love the internet!
Here is Hil in a lovely picture from her mission's blog:In case you are Zuster Ekstrom stalker like me and you don't have that address:
http://belgiumbrusselsnetherlandsmission.blogspot.com/
ALSO, there is her current companion's blog:
http://zusterfritz.blogspot.com/
Both have yielded some excellent Hil material!
Soon (March 11, I think) she will have been "out" for a whole year! I can't believe it.
Only six more months, about, to cyber stalk before she'll be home. . . . .

GRUB SPROUT strikes again!

2010-02-23T21:13:00.000-08:00

Or is that Cub Scout?? hee hee
SO, today was Isaac The Cub Scout's first Blue and Gold Banquet!!!
I know, how can he be that old?? I still don't know but here he is posing for some pictures in the kitchen since our camera is being borrowed right now.
The event itself was, er, ok. Our scouting program is in its infancy so things like fluidity of program are in the works.
Maybe I was just overwhelmed by my children sneaking off every second to run screaming and chasing each other around the gymn. . . Esther and the baby insisted on being in this one. . . .

Baby Names Blues

2010-02-17T08:23:00.000-08:00

We have been having some difficulty settling on a baby name for this upcoming arrival. We have a theme of sorts with #'s 1-3: Old Testament names. Now we need another one. . . .
I have just been avoiding picking out a name before now- mainly because I have been extremely paranoid about this pregnancy and I didn't want too much attachment.
BUT the time has marched on, and there is an impending New Arrival on our doorstep, so it's time to choose!
So, I have been looking at various baby name websites and in the Bible itself and these are the names that I like thus far:
Miriam
Naomi
Noell
Miriam is my favorite right now but ask me next week how I'll feel! hah
Anyhow, feel free to offer suggestions. . . . .

Won't You Be My Valentine?

2010-02-13T21:47:00.001-08:00

Despite the blatant commercialism of Valentine's Day, I like the idea of a day celebrating love.
(And since I am the Benevolent Dictator here in New Darbyworld, we will celebrate!)
We want to send love to our grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews, nieces, parents, sisters, brothers, and friends!
So, MUUUUAH! A kiss for you!

And a hug from us to say WE LOVE YOU!!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

My baby: all grown up.

2010-02-08T16:01:00.000-08:00

They start out so small and helpless. . . . . One day they grow up and become Cub Scouts and you wonder how time flew by so quickly!
Here is my little boy, a Cub Scout, at his first Pinewood Derby!
Isn't he so cute?
I was a little miffed at his leaders. They had the boys "do" their cars in scouts so Patrick and Isaac didn't work together to make this at all- which I feel is one of the best parts of doing a pinewood derby car. Apparently there are boys in his troup whose fathers are not willing/able to help so. . . . . I try to be accepting.
Isaac's fans cheered for his car- yes, they even did it sideways.
Isaac getting his Bobcat with the traditional upside-down presentation. :)
Isaac's car did really well. . . I think. They didn't keep track of winners but he consistently beat all but one other car. Here he is with his award for the Funkiest Car.

The Joys of Snow

2010-01-30T16:34:00.000-08:00

I was looking through old pictures and found this one from a few winters ago. It is both disturbing and amusing.
Poor Esther.

Princesses and Fun With Photo Booth!

2010-01-13T15:09:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time there were two lovely princesses who loved to get their pictures taken. . . . .
and they had a lot of fun!

Christmas Celebrations!

2010-01-06T15:30:00.000-08:00

Since we moved here to UT we have been able to go up to my parent's home in Richland, WA for Christmas. It is so nice to relax and hang out with family- and experience a dishwasher for a few weeks! My brother Luke was kind enough to donate his room for the duration of our visit- thank you, Luke! - so we had a room for all the junk of weeks-long travel.

Here we are in front of the Christmas tree in our Christmas Eve pajamas from Grandma and Grandpa Ekstrom. :) Eve looks a bit out of it but this was the best one.

December is a rather busy time of year for the Ekstroms- out of the 17 of the immediate family (my parents, bros & sises, in-laws, and kids) 9 are December babies. Yes, that's a lot of people born in one month! SO, on Christmas Eve when we are all together we have a mass birthday party for my dad, brothers Levi, Aaron and Luke, sisters Hannah and Hilary, sister-in-law Sarah, Isaac and nephew Eli.
This year we made a cake- ok, I made the cake because I wanted to make the same one I made for Patrick's birthday for everyone because it is GOOD- and we decided to make the candles say the sum total of everyones' years- which was 206. SO, here we go:

Impatient scoundrels salivating over the cake while waiting for the herd to gather.
All the present birthday children- minus Patrick and baby Mila.
Isaac opening a birthday present from my parents. Much concentration!
Esther helping clean up the wrapping paper mess.
The matching argyle birthday sweater people- and Sarah modeling her birthday apron!

Another Christmas Eve tradition is for my family to act out the Christmas story while someone narrates from the King James Bible account. Here is a picture of the whole cast- minus Patrick, who was the inkeeper.
Sarah, acting as Mary. . . . found a few shiny bulbs to decorate herself with hee hee. Holding the Baby "Jesus" played by my adorable little niece, Mila.
I am a wise man. . . .
My brother wiseman bearing a gift.
My father playing the last wise man. . . . he looks more like a hit man. . . . I have no idea what's in that present- better call the bomb squad before you open it, Mary!
Two adorable sheep that weren't very good at listening to their shepherds.
And finally, all the stockings in a row- waiting for Santa to come fill them!
Christmas morning aftermath.
Starting with Eve and her new herd of animals.
Ok, these pictures need explaining: the girls got a set of baby equipment and new dolls from Santa. My brother Aaron and I thought we should see if his little newborn Mila would fit into the presents. . . . .
And she did! It was so cute!
More aftermath- with my nephew Eli and Esther-loo.
h

This is the picture we took of me to send to my sister Hilary (on her mission in Netherlands) so she can see how fat I am getting- I must disclaim that I am puffing out a bit for dramatic effect! hee hee
AND finally, the last Christmas tradition- the making of the gingerbread houses!
Patrick's entry was a protestation against the commercialism of Christmas. The crazy face must be his depiction of the zeal of high artists. . . .
My brother Levi and his Pentagon-inspired creation.
Here's my father holding his beautiful creation- my personal favorite. I love the towers.
Isaac pointing happily to his creation.
Here's mine- a gingerbread man Christmas vacation at the beach. . . .
My brother Ben's lovely cabin in the woods- his tree had a terrible accident. . .
Sarah'svery traditional and adorable gingerbread creation. The street lights are my favorite part!
Mom and her pastry shop-looking creation.
Esther decorated hers all by herself!
I helped Eve with her structure then she went crazy with decorating her gingerbread castle!

Christmas Eve

2009-12-28T17:55:00.000-08:00

Eight years ago on Christmas Eve a precious little baby was born.
That night was very special as his mother felt like she could understand, in some small way since she didn't give birth to a baby unattended in a dirty animal stall, how the Savior's mother felt. It was love at first sight for me- as soon as I saw that tiny little baby I loved him fiercely!
Isaac has grown a bit since that night but I will always remember how it felt to hold his tiny newborn body on that special day.
One of the doctors suggested we name him "Nowell" since he was born the day before Christmas- but lucky for him we already had a name in mind!
Isaac has grown into a caring, wonderful little boy and I am so proud of him! He is a great help around the house- the handiest child for chores. He loves his little sisters and while he does enjoy tormenting them at times, he makes sure nobody else does!
Right now his obsession is playing with legos. He is also a great reader- and gobbles up youth novels like crazy! Last night he read the 200 pg. kid's version of Swiss Family Robinson in about two hours- a massive feat for an 8-year old!
Ok, enough bragging-
I am so glad that Heavenly Father entrusted such a special little boy!
Happy birthday, Isaac!

Shoot me now! (The dangers of finals week.)

2009-12-12T21:06:00.000-08:00

So you suffer through an entire semester- finally making it to the last, wonderful day of classes. . . . only to have to return to take huge tests that are a huge chunk of your grade.
You are exhausted, burned out, and out of gas- but somehow you must summon your inner Zen master and overcome.
Or, you can just say, TO HECK WITH IT ALL!!
Right now, I vary between the extremes. I toy with the idea of accepting less-than-my-usual Stellar grades and just ending it so I can REST. Then the annoying other voice in my head brings up the fact that we've suffered through the semester and why on earth would we just kiss our grades goodbye now??
Ah, the inner turmoil.

Concert Pictures

2009-12-09T19:38:00.000-08:00

Monday night was our last show for concert this semester- here are a few pictures for your viewing enjoyment! Look hard to see that baby!
That dress appears again- urgh! This is from a foxtrot called "Who Wouldn't Love You?" It's a really fun number with 20's-ish nostalgia.

This is from our "Una Furtiva Lagrima" waltz- one of my favorites of the show.
Here I am in the Latin Medley with my partner Nick. Aren't we adorable? This was another dress that revealed the baby's presence. . . .
These pictures are from a really awesome Lindy called "Jeep Jockey Jump" that is another nostalgic look backwards- this time at the end of WW2.

This is me in our new foxtrot- the "French Foxtrot"with David, who is awesome!

Out of the Baby Closet

2009-12-09T19:31:00.000-08:00

Sooo. . . . . we have been keeping this secret for a while now but the secret's out- I am pregnant!
Here is the dress that outed me at dress rehearsal! hee hee You can email me for the full story if you really want the gory details. . . .
Anyhow, we are expecting another little Darbita's arrival on April 10 next year! That's right- a GIRL!
We are excited- We told the munchkins the week before the gender-revealing ultrasound- Eve and Isaac were voting for a baby brother but it was not to be. Isaac cried at first but he's happy to have another baby sister now.
We have an ultrasound video but for some reason it won't load on here so stay tuned for boring plain ultrasound pictures.
Oh yes, and this baby's womb name is Lucky Buttercup. Basically, the story is that this baby was conceived right before Patrick's vasectomy and I wanted to also be able to sing the song from Three Amigos. . . . . .

UVU Ballroom Company Concert coming up!

2009-11-15T20:09:00.000-08:00

Our Ballroom Company fall concert is coming up! It starts the Thursday evening after Thanksgiving and runs that weekend Fri, Sat (matinee & evening) - Dec 3-6 and the following Monday evening, Dec 8. I think the evening shows start at 7:30 and the matinee at 1? I could be wrong- check comments for updates. The ticket are $10 and seating is open so get there a bit early. Pretty much all the seats are ok but it's nice to be nearer to the center!

WELL, I hope to see you all there!

Fun With Hogle Zoo

2009-11-09T08:37:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we decided to go check out the zoo before the weather turned cold. It was a perfect day to go- still warm but not the roasting-hotness it was in the summer!
Our number one goal was to see the baby elephant. Oh my GOODNESS, that baby elephant was cute!! Unfortunately, I didn't realize we had the camera with us at that time (she was the first animal we looked at) so we don't have any pictures. Boo hoo. It really is a shame because she was the cutest animal I have EVER seen. So, if you want to see the baby elephant, you are just going to have to come down here and visit us!
Anyhow, after Patrick got the camera out of his bag we got a few fun pictures:

Esther had a very terrifying encounter with one of the zoo animals.

The alligator was still hungry after devouring Esther. . . .
Waiting in line for the train.
The Mamma Tiger with her three babies.
Two giraffes and three monkies.
I think they are looking at penguins here. . . .
Here, turkey turkey, Thanksgiving is coming soon! Yes, keep eating . . . mmmmm . . . . see you on the table later!

#2 turns 6!

2009-11-07T11:23:00.000-08:00

My first view of the little pink baby. (Eve)

Six years ago this week Eve was born! She was a beautiful little baby. She enjoyed using her loyal subjects as pillows. . . .

I can't believe that tiny little baby has grown into such a humongous little girl! Ok, she's not really huge- she's scrawny and little but her personality is huge! Eve loves to draw and play with her big brother and little sister. She loves to sing and dance and run around like a crazy person! She has a big imagination and a big heart. Eve is my best snuggler and she takes care of everyone around her. If someone is cold she'll get a blanket and "snug" them under it. Evie has a spunky side, too- and she's a little bossy. I have no idea where she inherited that trait from. . . anyhow, I am so happy to have such a precious little person in my family! I am grateful for my Eve!

Mary and her Little Lambchop

2009-11-03T19:15:00.000-08:00

My small children have been looking forward to Halloween for the last few months. About two months ago I dragged them to JoAnne's Fabrics to get something and we ended up looking at Halloween patterns. At first, Esther wanted to be Snow White. Isaac wanted to be a vampire and Eve was going to be a fairy. But then Eve found a pattern with a beautiful girl in pink holding a shepherds' crook and everything changed. "Esther! I am going to Mary and YOU are going to be my little lamb!" I cringed in anticipation of Esther's displeasure at being forced into a role chosen for her- but she immediately was enthusiastic and so the deal was sealed! We quickly found a little lamb pattern and went in search of material.
(You may think I am neglecting Isaac- so let me say that he found a Robin Hood costume and was hooked. There are, however, no pictures of him in this post because he refused to stop playing on the computer and put his costume on when I was taking pictures of his sisters and when he finally put it on I couldn't find the camera anywhere! Esther had it and Patrick found it the next day behind the couch. SO you must wait for the story of Robin Hood for now.)
ANYHOW, the little girls were insanely, disgustingly cute and here are the pictures to prove it!
Unfortunately, while we were trick or treating, everyone accused Eve of being Bo Peep- and she was constantly frusterated and corrected everyone who was silly enough to not recognize a Mary with her Little Lamb when they saw one!

32 Years and Counting!

2009-10-19T19:47:00.000-07:00

Today is Patrick's birthday! We won't mention exact numbers- but let's just say that a long, LOOOONG time ago, a little baby was born in the city of Salt Lake City, UT and his name was Patrick Thomas Darby. Some time has passed since then and now he is significantly taller, has a wife, three children, and a cat! Besides being in possession of those lofty achievements, Patrick has developed a lot of fantastic talents that are not generally known. Patrick has the amazing ability to look in the cupboard and the fridge and create wonderful meals for his family! It truly is a talent that amazes me every time because I am a recipe-dependent sort of person! Patrick also has a fantastic sense of humor and comic timing that make him an excellent story-teller! Oh and he has some great voices when he reads books to the children, too! Ok, there are many wonderful things about Patrick and we are so happy to have him as a father and husband!
So, Happy Birthday Paddy!
It's his party and he'll cry if he wants too. . . .
Please don't mention the exact time elapsed since his birth because Patrick is a little sensitive about his really REALLY REEEEEAAAAAALLLY old age.

His birthday cake: Double Chocolate-Praline Fudge Cake. The picture just doesn't do it justice! It was GOOD. mmmm
A good man deserves a good cake! Happy birthday husband!

Toady Isaac

2009-09-15T19:13:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was my ballroom company's social- a picnic at one of the many parks up Provo Canyon. Don't ask which one because I still have no idea! Anyhow, my coach is a photography fanatic and he caught our darling Isaac doing this. Just thought I'd share! (FYI- that is a piece of watermelon in his mouth.)

New Bags

2009-09-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

SO. . . . with these new activities the children are starting, I thought they needed a bag to put things in like shoes and tights and leotards so they don't lose them. I haven't made Isaac his yet because he needs a more manly-like version, but here are the lovely bags I made for the girls!

Ballet/Taekwondo/Gymnastics Kids

2009-09-05T14:33:00.000-07:00

I always said that I wasn't going to put my children into lessons until they were at least six. . . . this year I broke down and put everyone into something because I have no more convictions. . .or something. Anyhow, Isaac is taking Taekwondo, Eve is in dance, or as she calls it, "ballerina class", and Esther-loo is doing gymnastics. This week they had their first lessons so we had to document the moments with pictures!

Eve in ballerina class- you can't see but her teacher is a man. It was so cute to see him teaching his little flock of girls. Eve is actually awesome in her class, despite the plies you see below. (I am trying not to judge on the first day)

Isaac in class. The teacher turns around with the pool noodle and they have to duck or jump over.

Esther in mid-jump. Ok, I think she is incredibly adorable in her gymnastics ensemble! What a little poser.
We'll work on the sickled feet. Ah! Not a show mom, not a show mom, not a show mom. . .

Monkies Go Back to School

2009-09-05T13:12:00.000-07:00

Last week we had the long-dreaded day: the first day of school! Actually, there was no dread present because both Isaac and Eve were really excited to go! Eve went to her first day of Kindergarten and Isaac had his first day of 2nd Grade. Aren't they adorable?

Bye Mom! We're big kids now.

Drowning is the #1 cause of death for preschoolers. We are so lucky.

2009-08-02T11:55:00.000-07:00

This is Patrick's story of what happened on Friday-

Today is Sunday. Life is nearly back to normal. Eve and Esther were arguing over the pink unicorn toy. Emily was frustrated with Esther for not getting ready for Church. Friday is a horrible memory that makes me cry.

Around two o’clock we headed over to my brother Stephen’s apartment complex for a barbeque and pool time. Emily stayed home because she wasn’t feeling too well. The kids were really excited. Swimming is one of their favorite things to do. Isaac is getting braver. He’ll put his face under the water. Eve clings to the wall and the shallow end. Esther is Esther. No fear. With her water wings on, she runs and jumps into the deep end. She loves the water.

When we first get there, Stephen and I try to get the grill going for lunch. The kids run straight to the hot tub. For them, it’s warm and big enough for fun. They each have flotation. Isaac and Eve have float suits, the floatation is around the chest. Esther has good water wings on. I don’t like them playing in the hot tub because I can’t see them very well. I repeatedly tell them to play in the big pool. My threats of leaving wears off when we discover that one of our old neighbors is at the pool. He remembers the kids and the kids vaguely remember him. He starts to play “volcano” with the kids in the hot tub. I find it funny that they are chanting and dancing around the “lava”. I jump out of the big pool and grab Esther. I lift her up and declare that the volcano demands a sacrifice! With that, I toss her into the boiling cauldron. I laugh and jump back into the big pool to play with Stephen. We’re having man contests. Everyone is having fun. I’m not too worried about the kids. They have on their floats and there are lots of people about. The three of them usually run in a little gang, watching over each other.

Stephen and I are a little distracted. We’re having a underwater handstand contest. I win the first round, but there are claims of illegitimacy to my win because I moved to much. I scan for the kids. In my mind, I see all of them. Esther is by the hot tub again. Stephen and I start again. This time, I hold almost perfectly still. I have some trouble with water going up my nose. With my breath almost up, I surface, smiling. Instantly, I notice that Abbi, who was watching our contest, is pointing at the pool. Stephen is running through the water. He dives down and comes up with Esther is his arms. She is totally limp. I start to cry immediately, “no, no!” I start to move towards them as they set her on the deck. But they start CPR and I decide to call 911. I run over to the table where my phone is but I can’t see it. Stephen’s is there, so I grab it. I try to dial as I rush back to where Esther is. The light is too bright on the screen and I can’t see it very well. I try to dial the numbers but I keep doing it wrong. Abbi and Stephen are working on Esther. I finally get the numbers right and try to talk through my tears saying that “a child has drowned at the Crestwood apartments.” The operator has me stay on the line. I think, surreally, that she didn’t ask me for the address. I hear her talking to someone and the phone disconnects. I attempt to call back momentarily, but someone asks who has the priesthood. I swallow all my pride and doubts and grab the vial from his hand. I don’t care what God wants. I don’t let any vague mutterings of God’s will into the blessing. With my hands on her head, I call Esther’s name and tell her to rise in the name of Jesus Christ.

My mind is totally distraught. Esther is so special to me. She is so funny and energetic that to see her lying like that was the worst. Her skin was totally blue. Her eyes were glassy and rolling back in her head. I remember saying “o God, o God…no, please, no.” Stephen is breathing into her mouth when I see that she has vomited into her throat. I interrupt and say that we need to clear her throat. We roll her on her side and I try to finger sweep her mouth but it’s too liquid. We roll her onto her back and I suck the vomit from her throat two times. I take over her breathing. The first breath didn’t go in well. Her chin is down. I tilt her head and close her nostrils. The breath goes in easy. I give her two breaths. Abbi compresses her chest twenty times. I give her two more. There is movement in her eyes and she struggles to breath on her own. I don’t remember if I breathed again because the paramedics arrived and took over. They decide to move her away from the edge of the pool. A cop/EMT (I don’t remember which) pulls me aside to ask what happens. I answer as best I could but I look over at Esther. She is lying there with an oxygen mask on. She’s breathing on her own and no longer blue. I see they’ve prepped her for defibrillation and I ask them if they had to zap her. They say no. I get down and talk to Esther, rubbing her hands and legs. I’m telling her to breathe and that it’s ok. I’m not ok. There is more confusion talking to the medics and the police officer. I ask Stephen to take Isaac and Eve home. I give Abbi a hug because she saved Esther’s life, seeing her in the pool and doing CPR.

I try to call Emily but she isn’t answering the phone. The medics say I can ride in the ambulance with Esther. They have her head in a brace and move her to a board. They ask about the cut on her chin. They’re worried that she hit her head. I tell them that it’s old. But they still take precautions for a spinal injury.

In the ambulance, Esther finally cries a little bit and moves her arm. She didn’t like the IV needle. But then she throws up again into her oxygen mask. The medics work quickly to clear her mouth. I help by holding the board steady in the moving vehicle. There is a moment of levity as the EMT who was sweeping her mouth with his finger asks for the jaw screw because Esther was “biting the heck out of his finger.”

At the hospital, I’m not as worried at this point if she will survive. She is breathing on her own and somewhat responsive. I’m worried that she’ll have brain damage from lack of oxygen. I ask one of the nurses how long can the brain survive without oxygen. The response is a reassuring six minutes. I know that she wasn’t in the pool that long.

She’s thrown up again. It’s cheetos puke, bright orangey. She’s thrown up four times since coming out of the pool and smells like cheetos puke. We’re never buying cheetos again.

Emily finally arrives. She sees her baby in the neck brace and the tubes in her arms. Esther’s not moving so the scene is that much scarier. Sometime during this, Esther has a CAT scan of her head done. There is no damage to her neck or her brain. The x-ray of her chest shows some damage to the lungs, but the doctors aren’t too worried. They decide to send us to Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake because they are better equipped to for children if something did go wrong.

By the time second ambulance shows up to take us to Primary Children’s, Esther is talking a little bit.

Emily tells me that the first thing she heard was Eve coming in the door saying “Esther is dead!” and the Isaac following “She drowned!” Her fears were magnified as Stephen walked in the door crying. That’s a rough way to find out, even if it turned to be wrong.

At Primary Children’s, their specialist confirmed that she was going to be fine. Her lungs will heal perfectly. One of the techs comes by and asks if Esther had been given a “special blanket.” She hadn’t so the tech leaves to get one. She comes back a few minutes later but the hospital is out of cute blankets. Instead, she has brought Esther a neon pink unicorn. It hurts my eyes to look at it but Esther loves it. It is named Sunshine Unicorny.

The doctors decide to keep Esther overnight just to be safe. I stopped worrying about her brain when I read her a book and she perfectly answered my questions about the story.

I asked her what happened. She said that she jumped into the pool and sank. I asked what happened to the water wings – she took them off.

Esther slept most of the day night. On Saturday morning, she woke up around 6:30am and was almost 100% the Esther that we love. They released us a couple of hours later.

Today, you’d never now how close things were. She is the same smiley happy little girl.

I’ve thought about the situation a lot. I don’t believe I was horribly inattentive to my kids. I tried to keep their floats on them. One of the thoughts that troubles me most is that I was underwater the same time she was. While she was struggling to breath and swallowing water, I was playing a game. During the CPR, I had the strange thought that breathing on a child is way easier than the stupid dummies in the class. Drowning in the movies is a big lie. They don’t show the child blue with her tongue sticking out. They can’t portray how lifeless her eyes are. In the movies, the kid coughs up clear water. Real life was full of vomit. Stephen and I talked later that the worst part was how unresponsive she was. We both thought that we were too late.
I made the joke all day somewhat seriously that no one – no one – should have to perform CPR for the first time on their own child. I say that after class everyone goes to the local mall and finds some old guy having a heart attack. You work out the bugs on a stranger, so when your child needs you, you don’t mess up.

We are so incredibly lucky. There is a huge list of things that went right for Esther. First, she was spotted relatively early. We had trained CPR responders right there. The phone was within twenty feet and the hospital was only a half mile away. Everything was in her favor.

I can’t imagine life without her. I love you Esther.

patrick

Come to the Ballroom Concert!

2009-07-29T18:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, so every semester I have forgotten to write something BEFORE concert so those of you who are nearby can actually come watch it. So, next Friday and Saturday (August 7&8) at 7:30 at UVU's Ragan theater, the summer team at UVU will have its concerts.
I hope to see you there!

Happy Independence Day!

2009-07-19T09:32:00.000-07:00

Attempting to hike. . .
Eve with a beautiful flower field we discovered on the hike.
Looking over Provo/Orem and eating cherries grown in WA.

This year my brother Luke was able to come visit us for the weekend. We were so excited to have him here! He was probably bored but he soldiered on and was a great help chasing monkies! We kicked off our celebrations on the 3rd with a hike to Squa Peak. The view from the trailhead parking lot kind of reminds me of the view from Flattop in Anchorage- not the same but still nice. We didn't end up going all the way because we went up the wrong trail that winded forever and the kids were whining about being tired and it was HOT. So we headed back down and ate some snacks as we looked out ove the valley. After we got home we went swimming at the pool behind our house. It was nice to cool off.
The 4th of July started off really early- 6am. We went to the hot air balloon exhibitions at the high school a couple of blocks away. It was really neat to see them all on the ground- and when they took off. Of course, we didn't have the camera with us- but if you look below, you can see one that escaped to float over our houses. Another landed in the park next to our house- one decorated as Tony the Tiger.
The parade started at 9 and we walked around to find a spot to watch. The thing about the Provo parade is that people are insane. THey stake out thier spots two nights before- covering them with shelters and tents and lawn chairs. It's kind of annoying when you are just trying to find a spot to watch at with small children. Ok, the other lame things is that NO ONE throws candy! There was one float sponsored by a local grocery store that had a few people throwing candy- but they didn't do it consistently and our poor children were a little upset they didn't get any. We left early because it was seriously hot and the lack of candy was daunting. That's all I remember as a child- looking forward to the parades because of the massive amounts of candy I could pick up! Ah, the joys of being smacked in the head with peppermints. Next year we are going to my grandparents in Inkom because they throw candy there. Yes, we are motivated by candy. It could be worse like drugs or alcohol or Anime.
That afternoon we went downtown to the Freedom Festival. There were the usual booths but we passed them and went to the entertainment tents (and the shade). The best shows we watched were the Jugglenutz and one with a bunch of huge snakes, lizards and what not that the kids got to pet at the end. The jugglers were great, too. Very entertaining and they even juggled flaming batons and sharp kives. It was nice- but once again, HOT so we went home and feasted on our shrimp salad and hot dogs.

Here are some pics The kids made themselves (with some help from yours truly) Firecracker Hats. Here they are posing with them on the way to the parade.

Anything is possible after this. . . .
Patrick modeling the lovely hat- this one is Esther's.
Me in my 4th of July biker attire and the girls. They are so themselves.

Happy Birthday, Esther-Loo!

2009-07-06T13:11:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago our littlest monkie turned FOUR!! I can't believe she is that old. Seriously.
Esther is such a special part of our family! She has a great sense of humor, boundless, energy, and enthusiasm! She is our family court jester. She has no sense of self-preservation, whatsoever. She is our child that showed her big siblings how much fun it is to launch yourself off the trampoline. I love my little Esther Loo Who.

Here she is at her birthday party at our house. She wanted a Barbie Island Princess party so we make a sandcastle cake and had island-themed decor. It was really cute and Esther love it.

Starvin' kids in Africa

2009-06-30T20:22:00.000-07:00

So, tonight, I made a delicious stir-fry. Isaac scarfed it down. Eve decided that she didn't want to eat any cooked vegetables. Esther was just picking at her food. I decided to lay the law down and told the girls that they had two choices. One - they could go straight to bed or two - they could sit at the table until all their food was gone. I wandered away to the kitchen for a moment. When I came back, Esther was in the bathroom. I asked what she was doing because I thought she was stalling. She said that she was going to throwup.

Ha! I thought and told her in my most manly Dad voice, "then you can throw up at the table. Get back there."

Surprisingly, she came right out, took three steps, and threw up on the carpet.

Yeah, she called my bluff.

Patrick

Update: 1:27 am - Eve also decided to throw up. Much more gross. And no, it wasn't food poisoning from dinner. Everyone who actually ate their food (me, Emily, and Isaac) are just fine.

Creative Eve

2009-05-27T20:26:00.000-07:00

If you know our little Evie- you know that she LOVES to draw! Here is her stylized drawing of "Purple Pie" Esther-loo's pet toy poodle. I love that she doesn't use the exact same colors- she definitely knows exactly how she wants it done- HER way!

It's What's for Dinner!

2009-05-17T17:34:00.000-07:00

Yum.

Dinner tomorrow: already lined up!

Cinderelly

2009-05-17T17:26:00.000-07:00

Last week it was Eve's special day at school. She insisted on wearing her Cinderella dress AND having me do her hair like Cinderella. I thought it was too stinking cute so I took pictures to share with you all!

New Arrivals

2009-05-17T16:43:00.000-07:00

No. You are not hallucinating- those really are chickens.
Patrick has this crazy plan to raise chickens for eggs- and to eat them in the fall. Hmm. . . we'll see about that last part. This is the day we got them when we brought them home in a box from the store.
Three chickens, three children- each kid got to name a chick. Isaac's is the brown one on the right- he named his Francois.
Eve's is the yellow one. She named hers Hannah.
Esther's little black chick's name is Fluffy.

Eve loves to pet the chicks. Here she is holding Fluffy. Oh, boy. It begins.

Right about now,Fluffy is screaming for help!

Help me!

Patrick made them a little chicken wire place where they'd be safe- oh, wait, Esther can still get in! Our cat, however, cannot. Speaking of Cat- she was VERY excited about the chicks and tried to get them a couple times when we first brought them home. Now she'll leave them alone if they are together- but if one wanders off. . . .

Now, it is a few weeks later and the chicks are shedding their cute-fluffiness for grown-up feathers.

AND Patrick is building a new chicken coop for them. Here are the kids painting it.

Maybe if we hide here those huge monsters won't find us!

When the new abode is finished, I'll take some more pictures. Oh, and a note about chickens- you can't tell if they are female or male until they are grown- so we really have no idea what we've got yet! hee hee

Seriously Silly Easter Monkies

2009-05-17T16:40:00.000-07:00

Silly Easter Monkey

2009-05-17T16:24:00.000-07:00

Mothers ROCK.

2009-05-10T19:06:00.000-07:00

This Mother's Day kind of snuck up on me. Last year's video extravaganza will not, unfortunately, be topped by this year's offering. Feel free to look it up in the archives if you so desire.

Ok, if you really need it, here's the address:

http://newdarbyworld.blogspot.com/2008/05/happy-mothers-day.html

I have been reflecting a lot lately on what exactly makes a "good" mother. Some would be horrified at the scene depicted above- a mother with a child on a leash, treating her child like some kind of animal! Others would applaud the safety of ensuring that you won't be separated. What I am trying to say from this small example is that I have decided that attempting to find out the social norm or ideal societal image is tiring and confusing and contradictory!

I realize that I must decide for myself what a good mother is. I am definitely not a perfect mother but I keep trying to be what I think I should.

Luckily, I have always had my mother to look to for a good example. I have also had many adopted mothers, a wonderful mother-in-law, grandmothers. and aunts that have helped as well! SO, thank you MOTHERS!!! I love you.

Tea Party

2009-05-04T23:43:00.000-07:00

Eve picked flowers from our yard and set the table for her and Esther to have a lovely tea party.
Of course it's herbal tea. . . .

Hiking

2009-05-04T23:21:00.000-07:00

Utah is a wonder of strange weather. This hike actually occured weeks ago when I thought that spring had its hold on the world- it was only a few days later when we had a blizzard. It's been an on again, off again kind of spring but during this particular window of warmth we went hiking with my wonderful friend Alayne and her puppy jack. The plan was to go to Squaw Peak but the road was closed halfway up so we went across the highway instead. It was a terribly grueling hike and we had to climb up sheer rock faces several times! Jack "helped" Alayne up the not-so-steep places by dragging her up and Patrick stole Esther's sun hat! What a day. But we survived.S

Spring Concert 2009

2009-04-19T18:13:00.000-07:00

It was another lovely week in Orem, UT as my ballroom team had its concert this last week!
Here are some pictures of yours truly in some numbers! Enjoy.

Sirenes de la Fete- otherwise known as the "hot momma" dance since Kelly and I are featured in the beginning and we are the only two mothers on team- she has an adorable little baby.

Neverland Waltz- a Vienesse Waltz with a random ballerina solo by yours truly. Ok, this picture is kinda bad but it's because I am jumping!

Una Furtiva Lacrima- an American waltz. I am dancing with Ira. We rock this dance!

Being a Girl: our opener- a sort of Broadway-esk number with hats canes, and feather fans- FUN stuff! I am dancing with David and you can see Kelly and Dai in the backgroun d.

Laughter in the Rain- a foxtrot that ROCKS! I am dancing with David again. I put pictures of this dance up in my last concert post so this is it for now! I love these dresses, though.

Below: Latin Medley pics in no particular order. This first two are from a flamenco section that was actually choreographed by me.

The beginning. Can you guess which one is me?

New York Hustle: from Legally Blonde, the musical. I have a lovely featured part in this one as well. We look like alien gogo dancers- but these costumes are better than the pink potatoe sacks we were wearing last semester!

AND laSt- but not least- the Got 'N Ida comedy- it's a quickstep with four couples that all end up being killed. It doesn't SOUND funny- but it really is when you watch it- in a dark and twisted way. This is Nate killing me by breaking my neck.

And, me dead. Awesome. Don't worry- it's just pretend!

Birds & Bees and bunnies

2009-04-13T22:04:00.000-07:00

Patrick says: I had an interesting discussion with the smallest Darbys today.

I have this crazy idea of how to mow and weed the grass this summer. Since the idea of a goat isn't as practical as I would like it to be, I'm taking a another page out of nature. I decided to get a couple of chickens and a rabbit to do it for me. I'm going to build a portable pen and move it every day or so. This would give the animals time to eat some grass and gnaw the weeds down. While they do that, they provide some natural fertilizer and control the bugs a bit. So the idea was to head down to the country store and pick up some easter chicks and a bunny. They eat all spring, summer, fall and when the grass stops growing - they become dinner.
The kids were very excited to get some new pets, but I calmly told them that these were not pets. These are working animals and that in the fall we are going to eat them. Eve got all teary and said,"you're joking right Dad?" "err...no, we really are going to eat them." It was rough. We don't have the animals yet and the drama has begun.
Well, long story short, the store didn't have any animals until Thursday. On the way home the kids were talking about what kind of rabbit they wanted, which means, do they want a boy rabbit or a girl rabbit. Isaac said we should get a girl rabbit so it can have babies. I said that wouldn't work because we were only getting one rabbit and you need a boy and a girl rabbit to have baby bunnies.
Isaac, the clever lad that he is, asks how can you tell if it's a girl bunny or a boy bunny. I ask him how he thinks you can tell a boy bunny from a girl. He gets this deep thinking look on his face.

He looks at me and replies, "girl bunnies have long hair."

Easter 1

2009-04-12T20:29:00.000-07:00

Today was Easter! It began with small children running around and finding eggs- then gorging themselves on candy. Patrick made waffles for breakfast then we headed off the church.
We dyed eggs when we returned and whipped up our assignments for dinner. Patrick's brother Aaron came over with family, Matthew, Joseph and Chiby, and Levi all came over. It was lovely. We decided to be non traditional and have turkey! It was GOOD.
This will be the first installment of pictures since I have a TON. These are from this morning. The Easter bunny brought them all ears so they can look like her. . or him. . .

Easter Egg Slaughter!

2009-04-12T20:10:00.000-07:00

SO we decided that we would go the the city's Easter egg hunt Saturday morning. (There were about five different ones going on- all at the same time.) The event started at 10am sharp so we headed out a little later than planned (as usual) and arrived minutes before 10- like two minutes before. I realized we had forgotten the camera so I dropped the munchkins and Paddy off and headed back to the house to get it- it took me one minute there, one minute to find it- and one minute to get back. Patrick called me as I was approaching a block away to say that "it" was over. "What?! It started a minute ago!" The organizers of the event planned on each child getting five eggs and Patrick said that it took approximately thirty seconds for the egg population to be decimated. By the time I arrived, the masses of children and hoovering parents was diminishing so we did not get any pictures at the actual park- but I have one of them meeting me at the Albertson's parking lot across the street. SO when we got home I made them pose with the catch.

Hooray for Alaska!

2009-04-12T14:47:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago the munchkins got a package from their long-lost grandparents in Alaska! They each got a shirt and they wanted to model them so Grandma and Grandpa Darby can see them in all their Alaska glory!

Just a little creativity from the little people

2009-04-09T10:16:00.001-07:00

Eve's Land of Unicorns

Esther's Alien

Isaac's Argentine Folk Dance

New Headshot

2009-03-27T20:40:00.001-07:00

I saw a poster this week calling for auditions for a production of The Fantasticks this summer by the UVU theatre department. SO I, being the psychotic musical-lover I am, whipped together the required monologue and musical number and headed down this evening for auditions.

I needed a headshot so I created one. It really stinks to take pictures of yourself but this is what I whipped up.

I have no idea if I'll be called back or not- the audition seemed promising but there were about a million people auditioning and only one female role in the entire show. . . . . . we shall see. Either way, I kinda like my new headshot.

More manly - less hair

2009-03-23T10:10:00.000-07:00

This past week I became more manly. Which by definition means getting greasy and dirty and taking apart mechanical things that you don't really know how to put back together again. Last fall I discovered that one of the fork seals on my motorcycle was leaking suspension fluid. The reality is that bad seals/suspension does two things: bumps are bad and if the oil leaks on your breaks, they might stop working. This usually leads to a spectacular crash and an increase in insurance rates or a depressing funeral.

The local bike shop wanted 300 bucks to do the work. I knew the parts would only run me $30. So, being the cheap skate that I am, I decide to do it myself. This past week was spring break and I had a couple of days free. The easy part was taking it the front wheel and the suspension forks off (the source of the problem.)
The next step was to open up the forks, empty out the old oil, and to replace the rubber seal and dust cap.
This lead to the obligatory lego instructions of confusion about which part goes where and of course the realization that there is a special tool that you don't have. But ingenuity and a large rubber mallet tends to fix a lot of mechanical problems...
and then the finished result. It takes a real man to trust an amateur to fix his ride.
P.S. Next weeks project is to update my will.

Hurry up, Spring!

2009-03-15T11:32:00.001-07:00

We at the Darby household are sooooo ready for that wonderful changing of seasons that brings flowers and green grass and the end of the semester! The past few weeks have had quite a few warm and wonderful days interspersed with freezing rain, hail, and snow. Weirdness. I've been told that it's "just Utah" but I am ready for the cold to go and the warm to stay!
I'm not exactly looking towards pruning all the roses around our house- but I'm willing to trade that off for tulips and daffodils!
In general, we are just ready for change. It's been a difficult winter and hopefully the warming and blooming around us will help us out of the gloom a little easier!
Last week my wonderful sister Hilary went into the MTC in preparation for her calling to the Brussels, Belgium mission. It was hard to see her go but peaceful because I know this was a great thing for her to do. I already miss her presence and skills as my number 1 babysitter- but it will be ok.
The week before last my mother came down and did some shopping for Hil so she wouldn't look like a stereotypical "dumpy-looking" sister missionary. (As if she could if she tried!) My mother ALSO bought Eve and Esther-loo realy cute dresses- which they wore today at church. Yes, don't faint, we actually went to church. SO when we got home I marched them to the backyard and took some pictures. Isaac got a cool tee shirt instead of a dress so we just took pics of him in his self-chosen church clothes. SO enjoy the cute spring monkies!

An Evening in Vienna

2009-03-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

or maybe like an evening in Salt Lake City. Emily and I went high class for our date night and got some reeeeaaally expensive tickets...$8 EACH! Student prices - not too bad.
The music was incredible of course but Emily and I both commented that we couldn't repeat any of the musical themes later that night. So it was something of a ephemeral experience. The first piece was a concerto that a had the violinist from Russia. I discovered that his bio said that we were the same age, but Emily said that he looks much older. I guess the Rock Star life of a violinist takes its toll out of you.

Crazy People

2009-02-28T16:55:00.000-08:00

What kind of people like to get up insanely early in the morning and dance for hours?
Me!
This weekend there was a ballroom competition, the Alpine Classic, at Spanish Fork HS. Friday evening I competed in two class events- the gold American waltz and the gold/gold bar foxtrot. My partner (Chad Nelson) and I ended up getting second in both events- which is pretty good since I haven't been to gold bar standard OR gold American for about three weeks!
And now for the funny story of this morning:
Preface: The first time my partner and I have been able to get together was Tuesday. We threw together what we could remember of last semester's gold bar rumba and made up part of a samba. Thursday we got together again and finished our samba.
We met at the comp at 7 this morning- (the event began at 8.) Well, we WOULD have if I hadn't have been delayed looking for my shoes and the camera- which I never found. I ended up getting there at fifteen 'till and I am sure my partner, whose name is Tyler Butler, was freaking out- but he seemed pretty calm. He is a pretty laid-back guy- and a VERY cheesy and good dancer- the perfect combination for an outstanding partner! I threw my costume on and we ran through our routines and before we knew it we were lining up for the novice latin competition.

We said before we went on that IF we made one call-back we would be overjoyed! Just one is all we asked.

There were thirty eight couples competing so we were divided into three heats.
SO, the first dance is the samba and I am totally retarded and cannot for the life of me remember what is coming next- but I fake it with a smile! Tyler was fantastic! He remembered everything. I am totally the weakest link right now.
The other two heats went and then we were back on for the rumba-which actually went really well.

We anxiously wait for results to be posted- just one callback, please!

AND we made it! YEA!! Now we can relax and just have fun because we met our goal! Now there are twenty-four couples.
The quarter-final went really REALLY well- I remembered most of our samba and the rumba went really well once again.

Somehow we made it to the semi-finals- now only twelve couples are left.
This one- not so good. We started our samba on a weird count because the music had an intro with a measure of four so we had to stop and get back on the correct phrasing. Oops! The rest was more like the first round for me, full of brain-skipping moments.
The rumba was much better. . . in the beginning. . . at the end of our routine I do this back-attitude flick that extends to the front. Unfortunately, this time as I passed my foot to the front, the heel of my shoe got itself tangled in my fishnets. I attempted to just yank it out but the yanking motion and the fact that Tyler didn't realize I was stuck and was leading the continuation of the motion, (which is a turn) not to mention my momentum, carried me to the embrace of the floor. That's right- I fell down. Not even gracefully! It was hilarious.
I guess since we had already gone so much further than we had expected, it just didn't matter. I fell down in front of a room full of people and I didn't care. Ah, the gloriousness of overachieving expectations!

So, that's the story.
There are a lot of crazy people in Utah- and I am one of them.
Oh yes, those are pictures of just me at home because I couldn't find the camera this morning. Do not worry, I will definitely get pictures at the next competition we do!

Oh yes, and my dress ROCKS. I call it the Mermaid dress- you can figure out why for yourselves.

If you want to hear the story. . . .

2009-02-25T16:34:00.000-08:00

While at my parents' house at Christmas, I became very suspicious. I was nauseated, nothing tasted right, and I had no desire to eat fudge. I had the creeping thought that perhaps I was pregnant.
The first day of Spring semester I decided that it was time to take the test and the two red lines told us that we were indeed pregnant.
I was a little shook up at first- we hadn't planned on having a baby until I graduated. A baby would put a big monkey wrench in our plans! After a moment of panic I felt peace. Yes, it wasn't what we had planned - it was better.
So we made our new plans. I dropped some classes that I thought would be too stressful on a pregnant body and exchanged them for more prego-friendly ones. I ate food regularly. Patrick started making me a lunch every day. Knowing that I was not going to be full time in school in the fall changed my perspective on life. Things that seemed so important a semester ago were not that prevalent in my priorities anymore. I was happy. Well, as happy as a hormonally-crazed pregnant woman can be.
The Monday before Valentines Day I made an appointment with my midwife because I had started spotting Sunday night. It really freaked me out because I have never had any spotting with my previous pregnancies. Patrick gave me a blessing. It said that I shouldn't blame myself for anything that happens and that whether it was now or later, I would get to raise this baby. Patrick came with me to the appointment. My midwife looked for the baby's heartbeat with the sonogram and thought she had found it but couldn't pin it down. SO she got out their dinosaur ultrasound and tried to find it- again saying that she thought she had seen it but this machine is so old- and sent us to their new ultrasound. The technician measured various parts of my anatomy and then turned to the baby. She found and measured one and then moved to another one. I was so excited- twins! I have always wanted twins. In fact, it was my evil plan to have twins next- I thought it was amazing and I said so out loud to Patrick. The technician doing the ultrasound said yes there are two- but unfortunately neither one has a heartbeat.
I don't know what I felt at that moment because there was too much to feel. All I could do is cry. The midwife asked me questions about what I wanted to do. Your babies are dead- how should we dispose of their remains? I couldn't answer her beyond saying I don't know. When we got home it started to snow furiously. The weather and I were in complete agreement- the heavens were weeping just like me.
Tuesday came and though I did not attend classes, I felt compelled to go to a required dance lab the attendance of which is a huge chunk of my grade. Yes, my drive to maintain my GPA was stronger than my fragile mental and physical condition. Hindsight has 20/20 vision and I know now that I should have stayed home. I started miscarrying in that room full of happy dancing people. I drove home somehow and spent the next few hours in a lot of pain. The midwife said that a miscarriage was "a few hours of cramping and bleeding"- HAH! What I experienced was almost exactly like giving birth- but without the happy ending. Cramping is not true- I had contractions just like the ones that pushed Isaac, Eve, and Esther into the world. Every contraction was a stab to my heart.
Now it has been two weeks. I hate all pregnant women and babies.
I don't care so much about my GPA. I was gone a lot from class and I dropped two classes that were stressing me out way too much- and if I get B's in the others, I won't hate myself too much.
I know this whole post seems a bit cynical and maybe it is but there are bright spots. The monkies have been a great comfort to me. They, thankfully, didn't know I was pregnant and were asleep during the miscarriage. They just know that Mommy is sick and they snuggle me. The fact that they exist is very comforting to me. The blessing that Patrick gave me that day also said that my body is a good place for babies to grow. I can only guess from this that it just wasn't my babies' time to come to earth. I don't know why but I am not despairing. It is hard and I cry a few times a day and, as I mentioned above, I hate the sight of pregnant women and babies, but I know I am ok. Or I will be eventually.
Patrick, too has been a great comfort. He feels very helpless to help but his presence and his solidarity help a lot.
If he put his pictures out- he shaved his head. I have always said that I would buzz my hair off when I have my fourth child. I was going to do it this summer some time so it would be grown in nicely in the fall. Technically, I never would have had four- I would have skipped straight to five- but his hair shaving was a nice comic relief and tangible sign of his love.
Patrick thinks I am morbid but I decided that I wanted the pictures of the babies from the ultrasound so I had the midwife made copies and they gave them to me today at my "follow-up" appointment. They checked my iron levels and I am ok physically. Yea.
So, here they are. According to the measurements, they died at 8 weeks and one day.
I don't know if they are girls or boys or one of each. Either way, I'll be very happy to see them again.

Ode to Eve

2009-02-23T17:22:00.000-08:00

All of our kids are unique and different. Isaac is our resident Inventor/Mad Scientist. Eve is our artistic cuddler. Esther is our climbing monkey with the sense of humor.

This blog is about Eve. (the other kids will just have to be jealous.)
Eve is one of the sweetest little girls. Even though she is a scrawny little thing, her heart is really big. Since day one, she has always loved to snuggle. One of her favorite things to do is to cuddle and "pet mom's hair."
She LOVES animals: Cats, dogs, pink unicorns. They're all good.
She draws constantly. Her teaches say that she is the best drawer in her class. (which is true) Her pictures usually have a theme centered around a princess or unicorn.If she isn't drawing, she's asleep.

Eve used to be our little veggie eater. Then, one day, she decided that she didn't like cooked carrots. That situation has degraded to not eating anything. It's ok to be a picky eater if you got the weight to spare, but Eve would be blown away by a mouse sneezing.
She is very adamant about wearing dresses and skirts to school.

Eve is the girl who will make her bed just perfect before she sleeps in it. We love her.

But for some reason, Lady Bugs freak her out.

Valentine Lovin'

2009-02-16T20:42:00.001-08:00

All our lovin' we will send to you!

This Valentine's Day I wanted to take some cute pictures and send them off to you all. Unfortunately, life got in the way of my beautifully-laid plans and now you get to see the pictures exclusively on the blog! Hooray! It's like a special offer- online only!

I am so grateful for all of you loved ones out there. This has been a pretty crappy week and I want you all to know that your prayers and love are very much appreciated.

So, without further babbling, here they are:
I title this shoot,

Three Monkies and a Pink Sheet

Christmas!

2009-02-02T09:10:00.000-08:00

Christmas was a month ago. . . some people aren't very good at timely blogging. . . ahem- anyhow, I though some few pictures from the even were needed, despite their tardiness.
SO, in a kind of random order ( I still have no clue how to arrange these in the order I want) here you are: Christmas in a nutshell as seen through our camera. There are actually a lot more pictures but we didn't take them since our camera was MIA a few days before and during Christmas. If you want more, check out my mother's blog. SO, here ya go:

First off, a synopsis of our trip: We drove to my parents' house in WA around the 17th of December and spent about three weeks there. We left Provo during a blizzard- go figure- and the crossing of Oregon was also spent with snow billowing around us, though most of that was kicked up by semis driving in front of us. We made it there, about 17 hours after we started out- oh yes, we were all ready to exit the vehicle!

Here is Isaac, a few days after Christmas, reading his new book from G&G Darby. It's the "Dangerous Book for Boys" and he is still reading it. It's basically a smorgasbord of random "manly"-themed entries- sort of like an encyclopedia.
Esther and Eve with thier new and very freaky dolls from Grandma Darby. We are all both really entertained by those dolls and a little frightened.

Eve and Esther with thier second wave of Christmas after a box arrived from G&G Darby. (This picture should have been first in this series)

The fate of gingerbread houses. We all made one- it was a lot of fun! After Christmas, Grandma Ekstrom told Eve she could eat the houses- and here she is.

About the second day we were in WA we went sledding. These pictures are the monkies getting ready to go.

This is a picture of us starting out the journey. The children have their apples, their blankies, and their entertainment!

Patrick is not apprehensive at all at the thought of driving in a blizzard.

Emily Dancing

2008-12-15T21:38:00.000-08:00

Emily had her winter concert last weekend. As usual, she was beautiful beyond compare.

Isaac's Christmas List

2008-12-15T21:34:00.000-08:00

His TWO front teeth!

That's right he lost both bottom teeth the same night.

Cute Little Preschool Munchkins

2008-12-03T19:36:00.001-08:00

Not quite real smiles...but still cute.

Rebirth of Ergonomic Entertainment

2008-11-10T18:28:00.000-08:00

Hey Groupies!

I'd just like to announce Ergonomic Entertainment has come under new management. (ok, the same management.)

I'm going to be posting some random thoughts and short stories that I come up with. Please take a read of my first really short story - Desert Storms.

I'm doing this to improve my writing so feel free to rip it apart. But don't go nazi on the grammar. These are rough drafts.

http://ptdarby.blogspot.com/

warm regards,

patrick

Shed a tear until next year

2008-11-10T17:47:00.000-08:00

I posted this last year on my "other" blog. But I think it needs re-posting.

As I looked out the curtains late Halloween night, I could see a few last hard-core trick or treaters scouring the neighborhood for any fool that was still passing out candy. My own bowl was empty so I reached over and flicked the light switch, banishing ghouls and ghosts for another year. Sigh....in my head I could still hear the happy screams of terror and the excited giggles of three year-olds with a mouth full of tootsie rolls. I paused, before I turned around, to savor the "haunted sounds" soundtrack that we play on a loop. But something was WRONG! The music had stopped! I felt my pulse quicken in my veins. Was this Halloween turning turning into a real nightmare? Without warning, the stereo came back on full force. A low bass vibrated through my bones, while a sharp ringing penetrated my ears drums! It was happening again. Just like last year. I was forced to my knees. Using every bit of strength left in me I crawled towards the stereo. The pain was excruciating. Next to the cd player my wife stood with an eerie smile on her face. She looked at me and laughed. I felt a tear well up in my eye. How could she do this to me? After all these years? I looked at her. She looked at me. Then, she opened her mouth and starting singing along to the music "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas! It's the best time of the year!"

Yes, even before the cobwebs have cleared from Halloween, my wife starts torturing me with Christmas music. It won't stop until after Easter.

Birthday Eve

2008-11-05T14:18:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was Eve's birthday! My little fluffy princess is five years old! AH!!!

She is such a little ray of sunshine in our lives and I am so grateful for her!

Eve loves to draw and dance and just be a little crazy kid!

For her birthday we ate cake and sang the birthday song and she got to open her presents. She had a good day.

Ok, the pictures are in the wrong order- but here are some pictures of the Eve in her new and fantastic birthday clothes! THe pink leo is from us and the blue princess monstrosity is from from Grandma and Grandpa Ekstrom! She is such a little poser. I love photo booth!

This is Halloween!

2008-11-02T18:21:00.000-08:00

Hooray for Halloween!
Everyone wears costumes, eats waaaayyy too much candy, and just has a great time. This year was no exception! The festivities began Thursday with Isaac's school choir performance- a clip of which is below. Sorry, we couldn't get the whole thing. It was really cute and Isaac was awesome!
That night was also my ballroom team party. So we went straight over there, ate pizza, danced like monkies, and went home to sleep off our candy overdose.

Friday was the day itself! Isaac wore his costume to school, (minus blue hair since we'd emptied out the bottle for the festivities Thursday, boo hoo!) and the girls insisted on wearing theirs all day. That night we went to our church's Trunk or Treat, which is basically everyone parking their cars and handing out candy from their trunks. Some people went all out and decorated- one large vehicle had a spook-alley sort of thing in the back. It was awesome. We amassed great quantities of candy in a very short while. Inside the actual church building there were games and food. After that we decided to hit the mall and see what candy was left and then we went to visit Aunt Hil at work so she could see us in our costume glory!

It was a fun night!

World's Most Handsome First Grader

2008-10-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

What more can you say? That's one handsome kid...he looks like me!

OK...I know that he is Emily's clone. I was just kidding.

Black Leather Heads

2008-09-28T10:26:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago- right before BYU classes began- Levi and Hil decided they needed to dye their hair. I volunteered my services as an expertly-trained reader of hair-dye directions. The chosen color was "Black Leather." The weird thing about this dye is that it is a light pink-colored syrup sort of liquid. The is very deceiving because a few minutes after application it darkens into the blackness you see below. It is hard to apply because you don't know when enough is enough! Oh yes, and the other thing is that if you get any on yourself in a place you did not plan you discover it after it is too late to get it off without some major scrubbing!
It was a lot of fun, though!

Here is Hil after application and Levi is getting his beard done. Hee hee. I was laughing a little much and it was quite difficult at time to put the color onto the toothbrush I was using!

Hilary still cooking.

Coloring Uncle Levi's potey face.

The finished product. I don't have a picture of Hil- but this one of Levi is precious. hee hee He looks like an evil Santa!

A NEW NEPHEW!!!

2008-09-18T19:04:00.001-07:00

Last Monday we received an adorable package- a new nephew, care of my wonderful sister-in-law (well, Aaron helped a little) Dine! Little Aaron Darby was born weighing a bit more than 7lbs and with an unlimited supply of cuteness! The cousins were able to go in and visit so we brought the camera to capture the moment.

Eve loved holding the little guy- she held him the most and was so careful and gentle with him.
Esther, on the other hand, expressed a desire to hold him but when it came down to the moment was happy with about five and half seconds of baby holding. hee hee

I stole the baby when the children weren't in possession. He is quite the cute little man.
Isaac loved his fellow manly cousin and even sang a lullaby to him. (Twinkle Twinkle Little Star) It was insanely adorable and I wanted to eat them both.

Embassy Ball

2008-09-18T19:04:00.000-07:00

My summer ballroom team competed in the national formation team competition at the Embassy Ball in Irvine, CA the last weekend of August. It was a pretty crazy weekend full of late nights and early mornings- I spent the day after we got back sleeping. It was a lot of fun and we did really well- especiall considering that most of the people dancing learned and performed the medleys in the past two months! We placed second in our Latin medley and second with our Standard medley. There were a few mishaps- ask me about my partner falling on top of me sometime! hee hee oh well, accidents happen! Anyhow, it was a good experience!

SO, here are the girls in the Latin medley.

and some fun with reflective surfaces in costume before we went on.This is my friend Alayne and me before the standard medley- she is awesome.

This is one of my favorite pictures- Chris and Scott- Chris directed the summer team and Scott is our UVU Ballroom director. They are pretty fun guys.

Here is the team after we competed. My dance partners are on the right end- Daisuke and fourth from the right, Abraham.

Japan photos

2008-08-26T19:41:00.000-07:00

Patrick: Well, I got back from Japan. I don't know how quite to sum up the whole experience. Japan is very very humid. The people are nice but don't speak as much english as I thought they would. In all the countries that I've been in I haven't felt as lost as I did in Japan. In European countries, if you don't know a word, you feel comfortable looking it up. You recognize the letters for the most part. Kanji, or the characters of Japan, look so alien that you just don't know where to start.
The stereotype is that Asian people are smaller. That is somewhat true but they give huge portions of food at restaurants. I thought that was interesting.
All the bicycles have baskets.
The drive on the left, which isn't bad unless you're trying to cross the street and your mind goes blitzo and you don't know which way to look.
Tokyo is like any other big city. Downtown is shiny and modern. Everywhere else has lost its polish.
They don't do dollars and cents (100 cents equals a dollar). 100 yen is 100 yen. It's a better system.
Next time, I'm hitting some hot springs and the beach.

Here's the pictures with commentary if you care.

http://picasaweb.google.com/ptdarby/JapanAug2008

Happy 9th

2008-08-22T16:15:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was Patrick and my 9th anniversary. It's kind of weird because 9 years seems like a really long time- but it doesn't seem like it's really been so long since we were married!
Of course, Patrick is in Japan so I celebrated by myself- but I invited some friends over and we ate left-over desserts and watched "Funny Girl" which, by the way, is hilarious.
Patrick gets home on Sunday and I am looking forward to picking him up at the airport! I've missed him.
We've gone through many things and places together these past few years. We've suffered the humidity of Virginia, become beach bums in Rota, and watched in awe as our children were born. One thing I have learned is that most of the best things we've done are the things we've done together.

Climbing Mt. Fuji

2008-08-17T04:08:00.000-07:00

Mt. Fuji has to be the most miserable climb I have ever done. Let me walk you through it. It's a pretty big mountain at 12,336 feet but it's more impressive because it stands alone and its entire height is from sea level.The Base runs a bus shuttle to the mountain. Unfortunately, the bus leaves at 2am. Luckily, I'm still a bit on Utah time so it wasn't so horrible. I slept the rest of the time until we got to the mountain at 5am. I took off on my own because the only people on the bus that I knew didn't look like they could keep up. ( This turned out to be a good choice as one guy didn't even make to the top and the other guy took forever.)

Hopping off the bus I was awarded one of those amazing views that just scream "Life is beautiful."
The weather was cool and moist. I never would have guessed the misery that was to come. The bus dropped us off at the fifth station, which was at 5,000 ft. This was still below the tree line that ends at 8,000 ft. I took off before anybody else from my bus. After a bit of hiking I felt pretty good. I didn't see any other americans but there some Japanese folk on the mountain that must have started pretty early to already be there.

I think this picture is from above the sixth station just above the tree lines.

As you can tell, I'm pretending to run up the mountain. Yeah, that turned out to be a big lie. What made the climb so tough is that it is constant switchbacks with no break. The trail ranged from packed dirt to somewhat maintained trails with some steps in the beginning. Towards the middle of the mountain the trail was over really rough basalt lava flows.

The whole mountain is just steep. Really steep. I took this picture to show how steep it is. All over the mountain are these signs that say "Don't climb straight." All I can say is anyone who climbs straight up the mountain has legs of steel.

The upper third of the mountain was tough because the trail became loose cinders and pumice. It was like walking through a gravel driveway. Every step was loose and you felt like you couldn't get great traction.

Summit within view.
OK, a little about the hiking stations. There are eight total on the mountain. They are like little rest stops complete with little kiosks that sell food and drink. The eighth station has a "hotel" where people are crammed in like sheep- on the bunk beds and the floor. The prices are beyond disneyland. Like six bucks for a bottle of water or soda. Three bucks for a snickers bar.

So, I wasn't too surprised when the summit had a mini-village.

But I was surprised to see a vending machine.

So the schedule for the bus went something like this. Arrive at 5am - Leave at 6pm. When I got to the summit and looked at my clock and it said 9:45am, I realized that I had some time to kill. I decided to take a nap. You'd be surprised at how comfortable lava rock can be when you're tired enough. This turned out to be a big mistake because I got a major sunburn from it. I also walked around the crater. If you curious, it looks like a gigantic hole. No boiling lava. Yeah, I know. I was disappointed too.

After that I decided to hike down. Going up was hard - going down was punishment.

And so, four 1/2 hours up - two hours down. I've been there done that. I'm one of 200,000 people who climb Mt. Fuji every year....and I'll never do it again.

Fun With the 24th of July!

2008-08-16T13:54:00.000-07:00

For those of you not from Utah/Idaho or not "Mormon" the 24th of July is a HUGE holiday celebrated with gusto. Basically, "Pioneer Day" is celebrating the arrival of pioneers to this side of the country. There's a huge parade downtown and various festivities. We went to the park next to our house with a big Pioneer Day party.
I think this is hilarious- they not only let tiny people handle the hatchet, they encourage them to THROW IT as hard as they can at a target. Hilarious. . . . and frightening!

This was an obstacle course. The monkies all enjoyed it greatly!
Rope toss around the longhorns.
Eve and Isaac with the two-legged race. (Esther and I raced as well and beat them to smithereens! )

I think the gun is bigger than her head.
I love Eve's look of concentration. hee hee
This is what I did all day- hauled those puppies from one even to another.
It was lots of fun!

The Abominable Monstrocity!

2008-08-16T13:35:00.000-07:00

Last year we let a pumpkin (that we grew in our garden) die on the side of the porch. When the snow came, it was out of sight, out of mind! Well, it was until our front flower bed started sprouting little plants and then we put two and two together and voila! We now have pumpkin plants growing in our front flowerbed. The have been slowly creeping out further and further- but I was shocked after being gone for a week- now the pumpkin plants are taking over the lawn and the flowerbed AND the porch! Ah!!!
So, I took pictures. I only have the icamera on the laptop but there is it.
There are even a few baby pumpkins growing that I can see so hopefully we'll have some when Halloween rolls around again!

Uhm. . . I changed my hair a bit. . .

2008-08-16T13:03:00.001-07:00

Ok, I've been threatening to do it ever since I dyed Hil's hair this color last summer. Yes, I am now the proud owner of Cinnaberry-colored hair.
It all started last night when I was reviewing pictures to make a blog entry for the 24th of July- and I looked at a picture of me and my hair was HIDEOUS!!! (See above photo) I don't know if it was because of the many hours I had driven that day with subsequent fatigue- whatever it was, I decided that the minute Hilary got home from work we were going to dye our hair! Oh yes, we both did it- we've been planning to- but not until the school year started so I jumped the gun a bit- but I don't care, I hate two-tone hair! So, here it is. I think I look like Hilary, which is a good thing 'cause she's a babe.

The Belated Party

2008-08-16T12:38:00.000-07:00

We were going to go to WA for Esther's birthday (the actual one) but we ended up not being able to come at that time and the poor little thing's birthday passed without a birthday cake SO when we went up this week we had a belated party for the Esther-loo- with a long-anticipated LADYBUG CAKE. Ok, so the cake is pretty much the center of the party. Here are pictures of its production and being devoured!Esther getting a taste of frosting

Grandma frosting the cake- hurry up!
Ah, the finished product!
Eve helps Esther blow out the candles- yes, I know there are only two- but it's more of a design element than an indication of accumulate years!
Lighting the candles.
Waiting so very patiently
Eve is ready
The cake in its natural element
I think Esther looks more delicious than the cake!

Three Years of Esther-Loo-Who!

2008-08-14T11:12:00.000-07:00

Esther looking at an ant.

Esther at the 4th of July parade

Ok, so I've been a little on the belated posting side lately. . . . So I thought to myself, "Hey, it's been two months, let's celebrate!"

Three years (and some change) ago, a tiny person came into this world. Nobody knew if the baby was going to be pink or blue- but the parents were ready for all contingencies. If the person was a girl her name would be Esther- a boy would be called Shaddrach. Luckily, Heavenly Father didn't want to curse a manchild with such a name so he blessed us with our tiny Esther.

She was born with a TON of hair which her mother enjoyed styling in various creative ways- which led to her being called Esther-Loo-Who. (Well, the stripey outfits helped with her Who-ification as well.)

Esther Loo was such a happy little baby- always smiling. . . and drooling. hee hee
She is still quite the happy little camper- very enthusiastic and with a great sense of humor! Our faithful readers my have noticed references to "monkies" on this blog- but if you know Esther you know that I do not say it wrongly. Esther is a climber, and explorer. She has a great sense of curiosity coupled with great intelligence- a very dangerous combination! You can't hide anything from her and I am constantly answering her questions. She learned to walk and speak with lightening speed- trying to keep up with her big brother and sister. Ah, there's just so much about Esther that is wonderful. She loves her big siblings and follows them around like a faithful puppy. She loves her parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins. . . and, well you get the idea!
I am so thankful to have such a special, precious daughter!
Happy Birthday, Esther-Loo!

Proof that Darbys CAN dance!

2008-08-10T13:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, yes, we all know that Emily can dance. That's why I married her. We needed some musical/dancer blood in the family.

Here is proof that I, Patrick, can also dance. I competed in the BYU Summer Dancesport competition on saturday. I danced in Bronze Quickstep & Samba and Silver Waltz and Rhumba. I had three different partners and basically danced for two hours straight.

Rhumba didn't go so well as we didn't make it past the first round.

Waltz was a horrible mess. Even though I thought that my partner and I were competitive, during the first round we got cut off and ran into so many times that I was sure that we weren't going to be called back. To my surprise, we made it to the semi-finals.

Samba & Quickstep ended up being the best as we placed fifth for Samba and fourth for Quickstep. Yeah for me. Here's the proof.

p.s. Emily's show on Friday was awesome. She finally got the chance to do some solos and she blew everyone away. If you haven't seen her dance yet turn off the computer right now. Go get in your car and drive to UVU. Wait outside the theater until her next show. Yes, I know her next show isn't for several months but you don't want to miss it.

Recipe: Two drops sunshine and a little bit o' rain

2008-07-24T12:53:00.000-07:00

Hot summer days made for a little bit of family bonding as our apricot tree and our plum tree both had ripe fruit ready to pick. We decided to try our hand at making some jam. Emily's first batch was combination apricot-plum...and it was so good! But our little apricot tree doesn't pack on the fruit yet but luckily our neighbor's tree was loaded. On our way we decided ask our other neighbor if we could pillage their plum tree. (last year they just let all the fruit fall to the ground.) We got a huge bucket and didn't even make a dent in the amount of plums still hanging.

Then we attacked the apricot tree. The apricots were so ripe that every time I reached for one, two would fall off. Luckily, Isaac had brought the butterfly net so we held the net under and caught the little apricots that were trying to get away.

Isaac was a trooper. He was a willing picker. Esther made a token attempt on the plums but Eve had better things to do.

Emily became the master jam maker. All the jars were beautiful and set quickly. (unlike last year's grape jelly which is still very sweet juice.)

And the masterpiece!

Tall Tales

2008-06-30T21:01:00.000-07:00

Patrick says:

Eve can be a little tattle-tale once in a while and she definitely will pass the buck if given the chance. So, tonight when she came to me with a giant bowl filled with graham crackers and corn chips and said that Isaac did it, I was a little suspicious. But I gave her the benefit of the doubt and called Isaac. When he came into the room I asked him if he did it. He immediately looked sheepish and I expected him to pull a politician and deny everything. What I wasn't prepared for was his answer.
"Isaac, did you do this?" I asked.
"Yes," he replied. "It came out of my ear."
I was sure I didn't hear him right.
"What?" I said.
"It came out of my ear."
"Are you telling me that this bowl of chips bigger than your head came out of your ear?"
"Yes." He timidly responded.
I was too boggled at this outlandish tale to even begin to be mad, so I decided to play along. "How did it get there?"
"I was born with it." He said without pausing.
At this point I had to call his bluff, but man, do I really look that stupid?

England Mania

2008-06-22T15:52:00.001-07:00

Ok, here we have it, the long-awaited England post! I started out with the definite highlight of my trip- seeing "Wicked" at London's West End. It rocked. I bought a shirt.

Here is me at the Picadilly Circus stop in the underground tube system. It was interesting to see all the stops with the different themed decoration. The ones at this stop were my favorite- huge tile mosaics of hot air balloons.
Here are some of my girls from the team at Hyde Park. It was kind of dark the first time we went there, but really beautiful!

This is my friend Natalie and me on the tube, going I don't-remember-where, most likely Buckingham Palace. . .
This is me outside of Buckingham Palace. The palace itself isn't that impressive. I must be a palace snob now, but really, the palace in Sevilla is WAY cooler-looking than this, so I opted to take a picture by the humongous statues/fountains in front of the palace which were really awesome.

Natalie and me down the street from Buckingham Palace at a plaza with a few war monuments and this awesome arch. . . the name of which I must admit I have forgotten. . .

Well, it was fun, it was awesome, it wasn't long enough, but I am so glad I went! Thanks for all your help!
Oh yes, I have no pictures of the actual competition, let me just say that we won second in our Standart medley and fourth in our Latin medley. It was a great experience and so awesome to see professionals competing and to check out the other formation teams around the world!

Sun, Sand, and Bocce Ball!

2008-06-11T17:08:00.000-07:00

What do you get when you get Patrick, Emily, Isaac, Eve, Esther, Mom Darby, Ryan, Sarah, Aaron, Dine, Jenny, Alyson, Joseph, and Kirsten together for a weekend of AWESOMENESS!!!!

---SUNBURNS!!!!

We all got together this past weekend for a family campout in Snow Canyon, near St. George.

View Larger Map

If anyone wants to camp out in a way more personable location than Zion's National Park, go here and choose campsite 16a.

We all drove down on Friday and spent Saturday hiking around. Here's the overview.

Everyone, except for Emily who was suffering from jet lag, climbed all over the big rock you see on the right hand side. It was a lot of fun.

Saturday evening was loafing and bocce ball around the campsite.

and then the drive home. Esther found her own ways to amuse herself and Eve just adopted the thousand yard stare.

Annual Sheep Shear

2008-06-01T22:41:00.001-07:00

Summer is here and it's time to shear the sheep!

Hogle Zoo

2008-05-30T18:27:00.001-07:00

I (patrick) took the kids to Hogle Zoo today. We had a great day.

here's the link to the bigger pictures

http://picasaweb.google.com/ptdarby/HogleZoo53008

A lone man in the wilderness...with my mom and kids

2008-05-29T22:39:00.000-07:00

Day 5: The natives have become restless. Five days without their mother has left them in a feral state, half-child...half-beast.

I suppose Emily is doing well. I think she is having to much fun to let me know. Her Standard Medley team got 2nd place. Those darn Germans gave a bigger bribe to the judges. Darn dollar isn't worth squat in England.

My Mom has been a huge help with her gone. My brother Aaron got a new camera from my brother Joseph and gave his to us, so I took some pictures. Here they are. Isaac, Eve, Esther with their cousins Jenny and Allison.

Crazy Reserve Weekend

2008-05-18T17:21:00.000-07:00

This weekend we were in Salt Lake City for Patrick's Navy Reserves family week. Of course, I don't have any actual photos of the Navy stuff- BUT I did bring the laptop and take some for other places we went!
Keep in mind that I am half-blinded by the sun while taking these and I can barely tell what I am taking a picture of, since the sun is shining on the laptop screen. We couldn't find our camera before we went. . . . SO here ya go:

This is us resting on our way back from this park-esk location down from the parking lot across the street from the capitol building. The way down was pretty steep and we had to rest often on our way up in the hot, hot sun!

Small monkies outside the visitor's office across the street from UT Capitol building.

A crazy little boy and his mother.

Esther-loo outside the UT Capitol building.

Here is Isaac outside the UT Capitol building. He posed himself.