iowaspuds

2011-11-08T12:13:00.000-08:00

Kell and Abigail

as Cop and Robber

Campbell as a firefighter

Jack-O-Lanterns

2011-11-08T12:00:00.001-08:00

Cole played running back for the 7th grade football B-team. I know he also played one other position, but I can't remember what it was, and I never saw him play it. He had fun and is now going to try playing for the 7th grade basketball team.

Cole keeps us busy with sports, band, and choir.

2011-10-11T10:50:00.001-07:00

Stage III

As you can see in this stage I replaced the baseboards and painted all the trim white. Talk about a pain in the behind. It took me longer than I thought it would take. I think I'll hire out the rest of the house. I am happy with how it is turning out so far, I just can't wait to finish the next stage.

2011-09-28T12:08:00.001-07:00

Stage II

David and Cole put up furring strips for something to screw the roofing into.

2011-09-28T11:52:00.000-07:00

Stage I

As you can see we started by taking down all the chair rail, primed, and painted. Starting

to look more like a pre-teen room.

Cole's Room Makeover

2011-09-28T11:39:00.000-07:00

Before

We're Still Here!

2011-05-03T12:58:00.000-07:00

In case anyone was wondering, we're still here just extremely busy. So much has happened since we last updated, so when I find the time I'll update.

Abigail's 6th Birthday

2010-11-22T14:09:00.000-08:00

Abigail's 6th birthday took place over the course of one week. First, she got to open presents and eat cake and ice cream early because Grandpa and Grandma Bowen were visiting. Second, we celebrated her actual birthday by having her choice of cereal for breakfast (Trix) and for dinner chicken nuggets, french fries, and Jell-o jigglers. Third, she was able to have a birthday party where she invited her friends to a pretend slumber party. For a girl who loves birthdays, the way we celebrated this year was perfect.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-30T17:56:00.001-07:00

Happy Halloween Everyone!

From Mario, Cheerleader girl, Clone Trooper, Buzz Lightyear, and Waldo!

By the way the Cheerleader, Mario, and Waldo had their costume crafted by the famous Sherrie. And yes, Waldo is outfitted by the magic of red duct tape!

Happy Mother's Day - Finally done

2010-09-07T19:34:00.000-07:00

So Sherrie posted back in June about the great Mother's Day present that was in the works in our garage. Well a few weeks later (yeah, weeks... I need to get started now for 2011), here it is.

We had a lot of helpers (I use that term very loosely). Don't let the happy smile fool you. Dad's tools are always more exiting than the ones he has...

Nailing on the facing

Painting. Had a lot of good help on that.

Letting things dry for a last coat and some polyurethane.

And

here is what you (and especially Sherrie) have all been waiting for...

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Now if the kids will use these new shelves/cubbies for their intended purpose...

Thanks to KnockOffWood.blogspot.com for the plans (you'll be redirected to ana-white.com), and a pre-emptive sorry to all the husbands who just got a new weekend project. There are a few things we would do differently, but overall it was a fun project, albeit much to drawn out...

Mothers Day/Fathers Day

2010-06-15T13:50:00.001-07:00

For Mother's Day this year I told David the only thing I wanted was for him to build me some locker cubbies for the garage. Basically a place for the while family to hang coats, take our shoes off, and to sit. He then told me for him to do this he needed some tools. So, for an early Father's Day gift he got a scroll saw.

So here is David using his new saw and what my cubbies look like so far. I'm not sure it's fair that he gets to use his gift early and I'm still waiting. We'll post when they are built and all painted with hardware.

Birthdays #2

2010-06-15T13:35:00.000-07:00

Kell's Birthday

Kell just turned 7. Since he had a friend birthday last year, we just had a small family party this year. We went to Incredible Pizza where we played glow-in-the dark miniature bowling, mini bowling (little lanes, little pins, little balls), played games, and ate pizza (or whatever else was on the buffet). When we got home we ate cake and ice cream. This year I made Kell a shark cake, but if he tells you he didn't like it, he did, just not eating it. He received a butterfly garden before his birthday and was able to watch the caterpillars form cocoons and turned into butterflies and then we let them go. He got a Big Bike and horn, a squishy dinosaur and two Kung Zhu pets.

Birthdays #1

2010-06-15T13:03:00.000-07:00

Campbell's Birthday

Two months ago our baby turned two. He's a very active two year old that keeps us all on our toes. There's never a dull moment in our home, seriously, just when I think I can take a breather, Campbell has made more work for me. He's a very curious little guy, and the kids like to call him Curious Campbell, in fact, they often ask who I think is more curious him or George. This is fitting as George is one of his favorite PBS shows.

I don't know if it's because he's the youngest and watches all the older kids or if it's just his personality, but he seems to be doing things earlier than the rest. To give you an example, He has figured on his own that he can watch a Thomas video on the computer if he just puts the dvd in the computer. When I discovered it was in, I asked all the kids and David if they had put it in, and they told me they hadn't. He's a smartie and anything with buttons fascinates him. I'm interested to see where this will take him as well as us.

For his birthday I made him a train cake, since he loves Thomas trains (Sorry grandpa I'm working on the tractors). He got a Mickey Mouse tricycle that has buttons and makes lots of noise, a helmet, and paly dough that he likes to make his own colors with. For dinner we had Waffles, fruit Kabobs, and cake and ice cream.

EASTER

2010-04-24T05:23:00.000-07:00

I had a hard time getting excited about Easter knowing that it would just be the kids and I. It's not fun celebrating anything without dad, but we had a good time.

The Easter Bunny comes to our house on Saturday morning so as not to distract from the real reason we celebrate Easter. So on Saturday the kids woke up to find their baskets filled with all sorts of things and eggs hiddedn all through the house. They all went searching for eggs. Campbell wanted to open and eat the candy in each egg before he hunted for another. I'm not sure he got it, but maybe next year.

We then went to Living History Farms for and Easter Egg hunt. The kids each got to hunt for eggs and prizes. Then we went home after Cole did a potato sack race. The crowds were outrageous.

Sunday I made ham, potatoes, rolls, corn, and Jell-O jiggler eggs. I admit when I first found out David would be gone for Easter, I didn't want to have a big meal. I then felt bad, because my kids love ham.

We also enjoyed being able to watch General Conference on TV. The kids did a great job sitting and listening to the speakers.

Cole at the Easter egg hunt (he was able to get a bunch because he didn't follow the pack)

Kell and Abigail right in the middle of the hunt

Kids wearing their new shirts from mom

Campbell excited to find eggs

The baskets

Spring Break

2010-04-24T05:03:00.000-07:00

For Spring Break we decided to go to Minnesota. While there we stayed in a hotel two nights, went to Ikea, swam in the pool, played at Nickelodeon Universe in Mall of America, went to Science Museum, and played with friends. We had a great time!!

Who can resist a picture with Blue?

Log Ride was a FAVORITE

Carousel Ride

Kids with their bags from Grandma and Grandpa Bowen

Princess Peepers

2010-03-30T06:29:00.000-07:00

For about a year Abigail was seeing the eye doctor every few months. The doctor detected a slight turn in her right eye that wasn't of too much concern until recently. Abigail started telling me she couldn't see some reds and then she complained about not being able to see the dark TV screen. I talked to the doctor at my visit and he suggested she have her eyes checked again. Sure enough, they had changed enough that she needed to get galsses. Abigail was so excited to finally be getting galsses. She picked out some pretty pink princess glasses with sparkly bows on the sides.

We picked up her glasses and she was excited until just before I took her to school. I was fixing her hair in the bathroom and she was looking at herself in the mirror. She started to cry and say she didn't like how they made her look different. I explained to her that she'll get used to them and soon she'll look different when she takes them off. She went to school and has been okay since.

Finally a Piano!

2010-03-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

David and I have been talking for quite some time about getting a piano, but were never on the same page about what we wanted. I wanted a real piano and David wanted a digital one. Well, after David sent me piano shopping I changed my mind and went for the digital. It had been great and the Kids love it. David also is able to practice at night when the kids are in bed because he uses headphones.

Cole and Kell have sarted taking lessons from a lady in our ward and so far are enjoying it. Abigail is excited for her turn to start taking lessons. As for Campbell, he enjoys sitting at the piano playing his own masterpiece. Of all our kids, he seems to be the one that really enjoys music.

Valentine's Day

2010-02-16T14:42:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is not one of my favorite holidays. Why do you need a holiday to tell someone you love how much you love them? As a kid I did like making cookies for the neighbors and secretly delivering valentines (they don't do that anymore). This year I decided to be nice and join in the celebration with my family. I made each of my kids a Valentine's pillowcase and gave them some candy. For David, I bought him a new snow shovel (wish it could've been a snow blower) and some dark chocolate Dove candies (his favorite). David bought me flowers and Hershey's Bliss candies (another favorite). David and I tried to go out to lunch on Friday, but that was changed due to a certain child's illness. We bought Papa Murphy's heart-shaped pizza for dinner (Saturday night), which was not as good as homemade. The kids all had parties at school and passed out there Valentine's. They each got way too much sugar, but I let them eat it all up to get it out of the house.

Super Noma No More

2010-01-18T12:44:00.000-08:00

When Kell was 4 he lost his first tooth. This is earlier than most kids lose their first tooth, but Kell was born with a Super Noma (what't that?). As the dentist said, basically it is an extra tooth from God. Alright, so now what? Sure enough the extra tooth came in and the dentist kept checking it at his regular dental visits hoping it would come out in it's own, so the permanent one can straighten and come in halfway decent. Well, at the last visit, still not loose, so today he had it pulled. The tooth is huge, but the dentist said that it was normal for a Super Noma. You may notice a lot of empty spaces in his front teeth, this is because this past summer he lost two bottom teeth and one is FINALLY coming in and the other is slowly breaking the surface. Just last last Friday he lost the other top tooth at school. he was excited to tell me he had lost it when I picked him up at school. We got home and he proceeded to dig through his backpack to find his tooth. My first thought was ,"OH NO, he just threw it in his backpack and now it is lost" (if any of you know Kell, you know what I'm talking about). Luckily his teacher put it in a special tooth-shaped necklace to keep it safe until he got home.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-08T11:30:00.000-08:00

Grandpa and Grandma Bowen and Aunt Lisa SURPRISED the kids and flew here for Christmas. They had a lot of fun. Kell had lunch with grandpa and Grandma at school and thought that was pretty cool. Grandma and Lisa made sugar cookies with Abigail. I hope they enjoyed it as much as Abigail did. I really appreciate there patience to let Abigail help, she is always begging me to help out in the kitchen, but I'd rather do it myself. All four kids really liked having them visit, in fact, not too long after they left, Abigail asked David if she could go on an airplane to visit grandpa and grandma.

Grandma, Lisa, and Abigail making sugar cookies.

Christmas Eve

Since we moved far from family we have been trying to make some of our own traditions during the holidays. Every year we try to get together with friends and decorate either gingerbread houses or big snowman cookies. This year we decorated big snowman cookies with our friends, so on Christmas Eve the kids decorated gingerbreas houses with Grandpa, Grandma, and Lisa. another trdition we have started is breakfast for dinner on Christmas Eve. I make breakfast casserole and homemade cinnamon rolls. This works out great for Christmas morning because instead of making a nice breakfast, we eat leftover cinnamon rolls.

Another tradition is the kids ornament exchange. Instead of exchanging gifts, the kids buy an ornament for one of their siblings each Christmas and they get to open it and put it on the tree Christmas Eve. The kids love this, and I really enoy seeing what they pick out for each other. They also get to open there Christmas pajamas, here they are at the top of the stairs Christmas morning sporting there new jammies. We didn't want Grandpa, Grandma, and Lisa to feel left out, so Grandma and Lisa got Mary Jane slippers and Grandpa got Christmas socks. I also got Mary Jane slippers (which I really love), but I forgot to get David some socks, so he'll have to wait until next year.

Christmas Day

We were all very blessed with wonderful gifts this christmas. Cole got an automatic nerf gun, Mario Cart R/C, indoor soccer ball, and a tabletop foosball table. Kell got Star Wars toys, Nerf gun, Toy Story Figures, and a Dragon (he told his class that was his favorite gift). Abigail got digital art studio for the computer, Mulan barbie doll, Londa (18" doll from g-pa and g-ma that she named), and sewing kits. I got Fiesta dishes, shepherds for the Willow nativity, sweater, and perfume. David got a cordless drill (he's already used and loves), cmall camp burner, and a Mario Cart R/C. As a family we got a WII. It was fun to play bowling with Grandpa, Grandma, and Lisa. It was nice to receive all these gifts, but the best gift this year was to have family come visit.

Blizzard of '09

2009-12-14T08:14:00.000-08:00

School out early, school delayed, School cancelled, these have become commmon household phrases this past week. In the last week the kids have had ONE full day of school. They are really loving it, and I think they could almost get used to it. After it was cancelled today, I threatened to put them to work.

Last week during and after the BLIZZARD we were snowed in. It took David around 4 hours to dig us out Wednesday afternoon after it had been snowing since Tuesday morning. Plows finally came around 5 pm after a tractor made a path for it to get through. Needless to say it was nice to have everyone home for a day.

Family Pictures

2009-11-22T17:11:00.000-08:00

Thought you might like the new kid pics. We finally updated the blog stuff to show off the changes.

Happy Birthday

2009-11-09T17:34:00.001-08:00

Abigail had another birthday, she is 5 now. I can't believe we have been here that long. Mom did another excellent job on the cake. Abigail received a little sewing machine and some art supplies, which she is just loving. Happy birthday my little girl! She is really growing up. Here are some nice pics of the presents, the cake, the cheesy smile, and the little girl doing some sewing.

Spoooooky halloween in Iowa

2009-11-09T17:27:00.000-08:00

Maybe not so spooky, but here is the crew.
Cole was a soccer player, not inherently scary, but his hair was sure frightening. Kell was Darth Vader, so that is the man behind the mask. Ab was Belle the princess, and C-man was a scarecrow. He went to a couple houses, got a sucker, then was content to eat that the rest of the time, while dad pushed him in the stroller. Nice weather and a good time.

Funny thing happened on the way to work...

2009-10-04T18:51:00.000-07:00

I posted this on Facebook, but had a request for the long version of the story. So at work we were having a fundraiser and the end of the fundraiser was supposed to feature a special guest. During the fundraising campaign people had opportunities to win a meet and greet with the mystery guest. As the time approached, it was announced that the guest would be Jeff Gordon. Now I'm not a big NASCAR fan, but who wouldn't want to meet him, right. So it turned out that I wasn't picked, but a co-worker, who is less a fan than I am, didn't want to go and somehow I was asked by her to go. I don't know why, but it was a right place right time kind of thing. So here I am with Jeff. He graciously signed autographs for me and one for my co-worker (I had to pay her back somehow!). I didn't get a ride around Iowa in the Dupont car, or any perks like that, but it isn't everyday you get to meet someone who make his living driving around in a fast car!

Summer, School, Family - Chapter 3 back to reality

2009-09-13T19:08:00.000-07:00

Only a 'short' 20 hour drive from Southern Idaho to Central Iowa brought us from time with family and friends back to the reality of life. School started the day after we got back and work was busy as ever. But we did get the requisite first day of school pics of our spuds. You can tell the excitement the older they get!

With school starts new activities. We have a couple soccer players. One for the first season. She is pretty excited, and scored a couple goals in her first game. I think being with brothers has toughened her up for this scrappy sport!

Cole started playing the clarinet in band and is really doing well.

Kell and Abigail also started gymnastics and is something they really seem to enjoy.

We took a little road trip on a Saturday to see Nauvoo, Illinois. It is a special place in LDS history as it was a city built up on the banks of the Mississippi, and was once the largest city in Illinois. Unfortunately, persecution and mobs forced the saints out of the beautiful city. It is about 4 hours from our home, so an 'easy' day trip!
First we stopped in Carthage, Illinois, the place the prophet Joseph Smith and his
brother were martyred. It is a solemn place. Here we are in front of the jail they were held in.

We got to experience a 10 minute ox and wagon ride. What a ride it would have been to Utah on this!

We ended the day up by the rebuilt Nauvoo Temple, the most beautiful part of the daytrip.

With that I end the three part update of the Iowa Spuds. Maybe it won't be so long until I update again, but no promises.

Summer, School, Family - Chapter 2 the Idaho Story

2009-09-13T18:54:00.000-07:00

The second week was spent in Idaho (mainly). It was timed for the Cassia County Fair and Rodeo, and although my cowboy dad was busy for most of it, we spent some great time with them. They spent time on the trampoline, in the trees, riding bikes, 4-wheelers, tractors, and spending time with family.

These pics turned out pretty good. I just couldn't get Campb in the tree with the kids to finish the foursome.

My kids got to be cowboys/girls and enjoy the best small town rodeo anywhere. We also spent some time with the most incredible mustachioed cowboy around.

These 4 are the greatest things in my life, aren't they great!

Summer, School, Family - Chapter 1 Utah

2009-09-13T17:47:00.000-07:00

Well, again here comes the deluge of updates from the iowaspuds...
The big updates was our super trip out west. We went through South Dakota, saw the corn palace in Mitchell.

We didn't stop to see Wall Drug, but we didn't know when to turn off, they could have more signs along the way (note sarcasm)...

We spend a couple nights in Keystone, South Dakota, and saw Mount Rushmore and the beautiful Black Hills. The kids loved it, and it is definitely a place to see again.

From there we went to Idaho Falls to be sure my brother and his family were doing good, and the kids played hard with their IF cousins. We also stopped in American Falls to check on some friends we don't see nearly enough.

Then on to Utah! Sara and her family were kind enough to let us stay there and provide babysitting while Sherrie and I went to the temple.
While we were in Utah we went to two weddings and a sealing. What a great thing to be with family in the temple and see people make eternal promises to love and cherish one another. Congrats Tracey/Wade, Jeff/Allyson, and Kristie/Devin!

We took a sweet hike up to Timpanogos Caves. It was a tough hike, but we all made it. Kell hiked the whole way. Dad carried Campbell, and cousin Matt hefted Abigail the whole way on his back (oh to be 19 again). The boys loved the cave, and it is a neat stop.

We stopped by BYU and the kids got to see the ol alma mater. It was also Cole's Birthday, so we were able to spend that with cousins and family.

Our favorite Aunt Lisa stopped while we were at the temple one day, and the kids got to see her and enjoy being with her. She was also so nice as to let us stay at her house one night. She is the best. See if you can spot the antagonist in this photo...

This picture was from the last wedding, and is a little out of the timeline of events, but is part of the Utah fun. We went to Kristie's wedding in Bountiful. The kids loved it and it was so neat to be there with my little family and enjoy the beauty of the temple and those things most precious to me.

New look to the house

2009-07-26T07:28:00.000-07:00

Most people know that I am not a big fan of painting, and Sherrie knows that to get me to do it, she just needs to buy the paint and have it all ready to go. Here are some shots of the new color we are putting on. In the family room we painted one wall a red, which really turned out nice. The rest of the downstairs is a chocolate milk type color, which is darker than what we had. It is turning out nicely.

The kitchen has become the problem, we just can't decide what color to do, a red. a green, or a yellow. We have tried about 8 different sample colors and still haven't found the one.

Campbell likes to help as well, and he scaled the ladder all by himself while his deliquent dad watched. At least he is not on climbing up the cupboards, yet...

Cool cakes, lost teeth, muscles, and swimming

2009-07-26T07:17:00.001-07:00

Sherrie loves to create cool cakes for birthdays. Maybe her husband needs to show a little more imagination.

Here is David's 'camp' birthday cake.

And Cole had a bowling party complete with this unique creation from Mom's kitchen.

Kell is finally losing some more teeth. He lost his two bottom teeth on the same day, and was pretty proud of himself.

Campbell now knows how to flex his 'guns' I have about 6 more shots of Cam's 'show me your muscles' shot! The expression on his face just makes me laugh.

The three big kids had swimming lessons this month. They had a great time and are progressing well.

Spring and Summertime

2009-06-21T18:00:00.000-07:00

So, where to start... Maybe more frequent entries would be best!

Schools out, summer break

Soccer is over. Cole finished with 9 goals for the season (two hat-tricks), dad was 2-0 as head coach (the team was 2-5-1 overall).

One more game of baseball left in the season, Kell has had fun on the A's

Kell and Abigail are both off training wheels and racing on two wheelers

Kell had a birthday. Mom made a volcano cake, complete with dinosaurs and frosting lava.

Campbell is walking - We'll get some pics of him stumbling as he is getting the hang of it.

We did some camping at Ledges State Park

Iowa storms can be wet and wild! Yeah that is our neighbor's swing set blown across their yard into ours. We missed the excitement as we were in the basement waiting for the tornado sirens and warnings to expire...

Chungara!

2009-05-11T03:53:00.000-07:00

I thought it would be good to share a couple pics of the beauty of Northern Chile. These two pictures are taken from a drive I took from the coast to the Altiplano in Northern Chile, the first is in a city called Putre (about 3600 m altitude), and the other is at the high mountain lake Chungara, and the (dormant) volcano Parinacota. I am holding the GPS unit that says >4500 meters (15,000) feet. It is up there a ways!

Happy Birthday

2009-05-04T03:53:00.000-07:00

My tribute to our one year old failed to include some birthday pics, so here goes

The cake

The birthday haircut. Sitting in the sink is sure a good way to keep squirmy boys contained!

The presents. Campbell got a little walker, a 'old' style Fisher Price Farm, and magnetic farm that makes sounds. He was really most interested in the bows on the boxes!

And the celebration. Here he is ready to dig in. He was tired and consequently pretty crabby, so after a few bites of cake, he took a bath and went to bed while the rest of us enjoyed the treats.

What a difference a year makes

2009-04-26T17:10:00.000-07:00

A Little Spring Break

2009-03-22T06:33:00.000-07:00

We took a little trip to the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha on Friday. It is a great zoo. It was a little cold and windy, but we had a great time. Here are some pics of the trip.

There is a nice swamp exhibit with an albino alligator.

The tiger was watching us pretty closely.

Since they don't let you in the cages to pose with the living animals, we found some more cooperative subjects to take pictures with. Like the orangutan...

The rhino was particularly kind in letting us hang on him. This also has a great picture of a gray hoodie monkey. Can you see him?

And Mom and Dad with the gorilla family.

Were in trouble now

2009-02-15T15:56:00.000-08:00

It was only a matter of time. Campbell isn't quite crawling, but he has become an expert of the floor breaststroke. Now he is standing up to things and is beginning to explore and chew up what he can find. We lost a couple unsuspecting books and are discovering more and more things that need to be moved.

But who can't love a toothy grin like this!

Pinewood Derby Mania

2009-02-01T07:06:00.000-08:00

**Guest Blogger Cole**
I had my second Pinewood Derby on Wednesday, Jan. 27 and raced The Black Knight to some victories. It was a little light, so dad had to tape 75 cents on the back, just to help. I did get some wins in the races. Here is a picture of my car in the lead of the others. I made a win for that one the rest was second or third place. I had a lot of fun even though I didn't win. Then, I had my picture taken with Joshua and Benjamin. At the end, I got my Bear award and bubble gum for good listening.

First Haircut

2009-02-01T06:50:00.001-08:00

Here are some pics of Campbell's first haircut and some other random pictures. I know you missed it, so here was the fun. Too bad Grandpa didn't get in on this action. Most shots are courtesy of big brother C.

Kell's New Ears

2009-02-01T06:18:00.000-08:00

Kell got his hearing aids about a month and a half ago. And yes, I am really slow about getting things updated on our blog. He is hearing better, and we realized this when he exclaimed that he could hear bubbles when went to the bathroom. Those little sounds we take for granted! We can tell an improvement in some of the words and sounds he makes, and he has been very responsible with this amazing technology.

The hearing aids go behind the ear and there is a tube that feeds into an ear mold that is made to fit in his ear. Kell wanted the bright blue ones, like the picture below.

We convinced him that another color might be best, especially since his buddy has the same kind.
Here is a pic of his new 'ears'.

Christmas in Iowa

2008-12-26T18:51:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from the spuds in Iowa. We had a wonderful Christmas together playing and having fun. It was little Cam's first Christmas and like all good babies, we was more interested in the boxes than any of the actual gifts. Merry Christmas to all our friends and family. Since you weren't here, we wanted to include a few pics on how things went.

Here is the family with their new Chrismas PJs.

Proof that Santa visited our home.

Abigail's big surprise, a new dollhouse. She loves it.

The kids and their gifts from the wonderful Aunt L!

New stools for the kids to line up to for breakfast.

What, Huh, What'd you say?

2008-12-14T17:36:00.000-08:00

Whom of you parents out there haven't ever heard those words from your kids, multiple times during the cours of a day? It happens often enough that it almost becomes second nature to repeat things multiple times. We received a letter from the school that our kindergardener had failed a hearing test. We scheduled a time with an audiologist to determine if it was an anomaly or a real hearing issue. The doctor confirmed what the school found and we were sincerely surprised. Obviously this isn't something that happens everyday, but when you look back on things there were some small clues. He has some speech issues (very minor), which we attributed to learing to speak. He often says the "What, Huh, What'd you say?", at home in the car, and elsewhere. So his hearing loss is mild to moderate at high frequencies, and certain sounds like "s", "f", and others are little more difficult to hear. This week we visit the audiologist to find out the next options, which are likely some type of hearing aids. With all of this, the news was not a concern or major worry since we have some incredible neighbors and friends who have dealt with this for two of their children, and have let us know the next steps, questions to ask and worries to be aware of. If they read this, THANKS, little do you know the comfort that has been! So next time you see our K-man he may be sporting some new supersonic ears! We'll let you all know...

Princess Party Details

2008-11-10T06:50:00.000-08:00

Our little party was pretty fun, and I apologize for not including the details. First of all, the boys were at their friends house, because what boy would really want to participate in a princess party. Although Cole did help plan some of the games, Thanks ColE. When planning something, include as much pink as possible. Sherrie did a great job with that. When the princesses arrived we had them decorate their own crowns (foam crowns are so cool). Then they played pin the crown on the princess, colored princess pictures, and played a game to identify the princess 'accessories' (basically a match type game with princess things). Then we did a 'treasure' hunt and all the little girls got a gift bad of princess goodies. They had fun and my wife did a great job of pulling it together.

Princesses

2008-11-09T20:15:00.000-08:00

What is more fun for a little girl to have a Princess party with 4 of her princess friends!

Complete with a Barbie princess cake... What more can I say? (Isn't my wife awesome?)

Where were you a few years ago?

2008-11-09T19:56:00.000-08:00

Seems like gas prices here in the Midwest have been off a few years. Four hours after taking this shot they dropped another 5 cents, and were down another 2 when we drove by the same place this morning. Funny when they started dropping we were excited to see them fall to $3 a gallon, but now they are just dropping like crazy. Why you may ask for the precipitous drop? Well my theory is that somehow energy moguls have tapped into the hot air spewing from the blowhards all over the country during the campaign season, and have found a way to power the country (or at least central Iowa). I'm sure prices will go up as that source as that has all but dried up, but it is a nice temporary reprieve!

Ghosts and ghouls or rather Jedis and princesses

2008-11-02T11:02:00.000-08:00

Thought you might like to see some pics of our not so scary halloween alter-egos. A baseball player, a jedi, a princess/Fancy Nancy (yeah maybe not an alter ego), and our tiger/pumpkin. Not really a tiger-pumpkin, but a tiger one night and a little pumpkin the other night. We went to a outdoor museum place one night and then our neiborhood the next night, so Abigail and Campbell had a couple different costumes. Now we are all on a refined sugar high with candy wrappers everywhere.

Like a weed

2008-10-05T20:04:00.000-07:00

So I have been reminded (again) of the need to update the blog of pics from Campbell. A couple people, I won't embarass them, but their names start with 'L' and end with 'isa' and starts with 'M' and ends with 'other-in-Law' have let me know that it would be important to post news more than once a month. Who knew, blogs should be updated frequently. Here are some pics of the little weed. Sherrie and I commented to each other this weekend about how much he has grown.

By the way, Abigail has given the little guy his first nickname, so for those who don't already know, here is Campbellicious!

Summer time wrap up

2008-08-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

There are too many things to post separately, so here are some summer time highlights.

Now the reason I blog (no pictures of dad)

2008-08-24T20:01:00.001-07:00

OK, for you who have been clamoring for more pics of the baby, here you are! These pics really don't need any captions, you all know, cute babies, what more should I say. By the way, can you tell he is related? He looks a lot like his siblings when they were about this age.

A Budding Hairstylist

2008-08-24T19:49:00.000-07:00

So for you who have read 'Fancy Nancy' books, we have our own little girl, who loves to accessorize. This is our little girl and her skills in hair accessories.

Here she is after falling asleep. Note the number of clips in her hair!

Any good hairstylist has someone to work with and practice on. Here is Kell as a somewhat willing participant. He obviously doesn't know what he is getting into!

Why not try it out on Mom too! Campbell doesn't quite have enough hair. Fortunately dad has avoided her styling!

OK a couple last pics from Puerto Rico

2008-08-15T07:10:00.001-07:00

So Saturday I took a walking tour of Old San Juan. It is an old city (from european colonization standards) and is anchored by a huge fort and walls surrounding the city. The fort was started in 1550s and was in use by several countries (primarily Spain) in several wars (with the British, Dutch, Americans, etc) through WWII when it national historic site. I would recommend anyone visiting la Isla de Encanto to visit the Castillo San Felipe del Morro (the name of the fort).

Here is a shot of the famous 'garitas' or sentry boxes that sit at strategic corners around the city.

This last one is of the city wall, and is about a mile from the first shot. It shows the extent of the fortifications that were built up over the past 450 years. Yeah it isn't all 450 years old and they have done several reconstruction projects to bring everything up to its former glory.

Now I promise not to show any more pics of Puerto Rico, or of me... Probably

Caribbean Sand

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

So I have been informed that people only really visit our blog to see pictures of the kids, and right now, mainly to see Campbell. I will agree, but as I am online today and without pictures of the kids (Campbell), I have to share some pictures of my own. Sorry, I have direct orders to update the blog with Campbell's pics when I return to Iowa. In the meantime, here are some pics of fun in Puerto Rico.

First here is a picture of me in the Isla Caja de los Muertos (Coffin Island) which is a 45+ minute ferry ride southeast of Ponce the city I was staying in. I went to the island with about 50 other people from work who are here for a meeting, so no I didn't leave my family to have a 'break'
This is a 'desert island', yeah I know you wouldn't quite believe it being in the Caribbean and all. If you want to see the cacti on the island I can catch you up on this...

Here is the opposite side of the island from the former picture. There is a lighthouse (no I didn't visit it) and the beach you see is restricted such that only turtles live there.

Train and rains

2008-08-03T16:15:00.000-07:00

For you avid iowaspuds followers, you probably realize that we mainly update when one of you remind us that we should be sharing our Iowa adventures. Here are a few pics of the trip we went to the Boone railroad tour, which took us through some nice country in Central Iowa. Grandpa and Grandma from Utah came out and shared the ride with us. We were super excited to have them with us and to spend some time with them. Here are some of the highlights.

Here is a view over the tall bridge. The track was only as wide as the train. Yeah that was fun!

Halfway through it started raining good, here is a picture of Kell while we were going over the Des Moines River.

Here is the crew after the ride looking down the track.

I thought I would throw this one in too. Here is one of Kell and Grandma while we were going over the bridge.

Lots of fun. Thanks for coming by.

Kell Speaks...

2008-07-20T15:54:00.000-07:00

In the last 3 days we have had about 5-6 inches of rain. So much in fact that my rain gauge is filled to the top. Last night we had a dark thunderstorm that rolled over Central Iowa. It was one of those that made the whole sky get dark very quickly and then the light show began. Our house shook with all the thunder and lightning. I was watching out the front door as the rain rolled in. We had streams on the side of our house and a river in our street. I exclaimed "Holy Cow" as the wind blew the rain in our front door and came down in sheets all around us. Kell was watching as I said that and shut the door, then he ran right to the window and said, I want to see the holy cows!

What a crack up... I tried to get a picture of the rain and rivers in the road, but it didn't quite work. Gotta love Iowa weather.

Blessing Day

2008-07-06T18:32:00.000-07:00

We were blessed today to have Campbell's grandparents, and Aunt Lisa in town this weekend for Campbell's blessing. In our church there isn't a baptism, but authorized individuals (i.e. priesthood holders, of which I am one) are able to present the child before the church to be named and blessed. Campbell's grandparents and some good friends also participated. It is a humbling experience to hold a small child and pronounce a blessing on them. Parents have great aspirations for their children, not the least of which they are able to grow up healthy, strong and wise. I know I pray that they will cultivate their spiritual gifts, that their testimonies will grow and that they will be stalwart and faithful members of God's kingdom.
Here is a picture of the crew (Lisa is behind the camera)

Here is Campbell with the new quilt fom Grandma B.

Here is a pic of Grandma B and Campbell.

On Saturday we went to the Living History Farms and this is Grandpa B and the boys in the trailer going out to the farm.

Random Updates

2008-07-06T18:11:00.000-07:00

Since our blog is less about ranting about the most recent random thought that piques my interest and is more about pictures and communicating to our family and friends about what we are doing. Here is the newest 'random' post.

Our city is like most small towns where once a year we have a city wide party, complete with parades, cheap amusement park rides attached to the back of a semi, and a 'fun run'. In my effort to become more 'fit' I decided to do the 5K, and in doing so signed up some friends and convinced Cole to do the 1 mile fun run. Here is a picture of the crew. You may notice some other famous individuals often featured on the blog.

Here is an action shot of Cole rounding the home stretch, his shoe came untied and he kept running... What a trooper!

My cousin is really connected and was able to hook me and the boys up with some tickets to the Saturday edition of the Iowa Corn Indy race (the Saturday race was the Indy Lights race for you motor heads). It was a 100 mile race, and very fun, loud, but fun. We got a little rain at the end of the day, but we had a real good time enjoying the sights sounds and fast cars.
Here are Kell and Sam ready to race.

And here is Cole and Josh, straight from Cub Scout Day Camp.

Lastly, a neighboring town had their community events on the Fourth of July. Our Cub Scout Pack had an entry and Cole got to ride in the pickup and throw some candy out to the crowds. How much more excitment can you get!

When it rains it pours (literally and figuratively)

2008-06-15T19:32:00.000-07:00

This is really late, but I found that I had written all this up, and when my computer quit on my it automatically saved the post.. So this is from about a month ago....

Well, my blogging mainly happens on Sunday, so I try to squeeze everything in multiple posts. (hence the figurative rain)

Now for the literal... Many people have asked us about our situation with the flooding in Iowa. We, thankfully are fine and nearly all the roads we travel are unaffected (except for the road I take into work). As some background, and I don't have all the details, for the month of June, or at least to date, we should have received about 2-3 inches of rain, and we have probably had over 9 inches just for June. That in addition to storms upstream, and a very wet spring have largely contributed to the flooding. Des Moines is not nearly as bad as Cedar Rapids, a city east of here, where the whole downtown is underwater.

For those of you who want to know what the LDS church is doing, well, we were advised to do a number of things, not the least of which is wait...until the emergency and other workers have done their part. On the news they often caution people to avoid the areas due to the need to have the national guard and emergency workers on the scene. There are opportunities to help out in the relief effort, sandbagging and such. The LDS church has sent cleaning kits (in the form of white plastic buckets packed with cleaning supplies. I wasn't asked to help, but many in my ward did help to unload the hundreds of buckets, and get them distributed through the Red Cross. Also, we were advised that a semi with hygiene kits has been dispatched, and although I have been waiting for a call to help distribute those materials, I haven't heard more today. Really the clean up effort will be the big one.

So the rains, floods, combined with fatal F5+ tornadoes in Parkerbug, IA (north east of Des Moines), fatal tornadoes at an Iowan Scout Camp (no we are all well... I take the troop camping in two weeks, but we will surely review the emergency plan!), and a couple weeks of constant tornado watches and warnings, has made this spring an eventful one. Sitting up all night with the emergency weather radio chiming isn't a real restful one, and having to wake the kids and hunker down in the basement doesn't help either. But it is part of the Iowa Experience, and gives new appreciation for the power of nature, and our own helplessness and frailty in harnessing this power...

Our new pet

2008-06-15T14:07:00.000-07:00

*Caution, the following post contains some images that may be considered graphic by some individuals*

About a year and a half ago Sherrie brought home a new dog, a little black lab, while I was in Georgia on business. The little guy diligently watched over our front porch since then, until he met an untimely demise. Abigail and Kell were playing with the dog when a most unfortunate incident occurred. Kell still won’t let Abigail forget that she broke the dog.

Turns out the little dog wasn't indestructible. But with a broken leg and shattered nose, he just couldn’t do his job, so we had to put him down.

We looked around and finally found a suitable replacement, and he and Abigail seem to get along just fine. Hopefully, he can stand up to the task of guarding the front porch!

Happy Birthday Kell!!!

2008-06-15T13:26:00.000-07:00

I thought I should put together a little post for the birthday boy Kell. He is a good little boy and full of energy, who has only one speed and volume (but he is learning how to be quiet with a baby in the house). We had the greatest compliment today from his Primary teacher. He is reverent, respectful, and helpful in class. Sherrie and I weren't quite sure she had the right boy, as it is not always the Kell I know, but it is nice to know that despite his rambunctiousness, does know when to be reverent.

Kell is a great big brother, and is a caring little boy. Although, sometimes it is a little too much affection

Kell has the unusual ability to walk on his toe knuckles (I don't know the correct term), but is a little strange, and he is the only one in the world that I know who can do it!

He plays hard, and by dinner time can get a little tired out. THis is his most recent sleeping position, at the dinner table. Somehow he had wrapped his fingers around the slats in the chair and was able to fall asleep curled up and sitting up.

Here's the birthday boy with his presents, which included a new kindergarten backpack.

And a zebra tent, how much fun can that be!!

More Random Pics and Update

2008-05-31T20:19:00.000-07:00

Although our lives are really pretty boring overall, we do have moments of excitement and fun. Since most people just like seeing the random pics of our day to day. Here you go!

Here is our girly girl with her nice new purple nails. Abigail loves this type of thing.

Here are the B-boys with some other famous Iowans at the Father and Sons campout. We had a great time, and what boy doesn't like exploring water, bugs, and all that good stuff in the woods.

We weren't able to make any Smores at the campout, so we decided to try it out on the grill after we cooked up some Sunday dinner. Another 'grilling' alternative, especially if you like melted chocolate!

I think I have a napping shot of all the kids at one time or another. Sherrie caught one of me and Campbell and Abigail. Who doesn't love these moments!

Karate Kid Campbell. Honestly, since he was born this guy is always moving his hands and arms. These pictures show it.

Dad being creative - Happy Mother's Day

2008-05-31T20:10:00.001-07:00

After we got 2 week pictures for Campbell, Dad picked up mom's mothers day present, new frames for our living room and our bedroom. This is just a little bit of dad 'trying' to be creative.
Family room pics and frames

New bedroom pics and frames

Campbell update

2008-05-12T17:06:00.000-07:00

Mr. Campbell got to go to the doctor's office for his two week checkup. Here are the stats
6 lb. 10 oz. -- 10th percentile
20 inches long -- 50th percentile
34.5 cm head circumference -- 20th percentile
He is gaining weight and getting on a somewhat consistent schedule with feeding and sleeping. Somehow he is able to nap through the chaos of Abigail and Kell and their love-hate relationship. Frankly I don't know how mom deals with it, but we are all managing. One good thing is that all the kids are totally worn out at the end of the day that they sleep through any of Campbell's midnight sessions.

Here are some pics we are finally getting on the blog, few of which actually relate to Campbell, but are fun nonetheless!

Here is a nice shot of Kell, Campbell and Abigail. They love to hold and love Campbell. Kell will even hold him crying or not. It doesn't even phase him, and he lives for his turn. Abigail is about the same, however, if Campbell is crying, then it is mom or dad's turn.

This was the funniest thing I have seen in a while. After a bath, Abigail was wailing from the bathroom. She had a brush of Sherrie's and had managed to to wind her hair so tightly in it that she could hardly move the brush. And Sherrie was busy so dad had to try to untangle the mess. Abigail's face is priceless!

Here is a nice shot of the kids and Mom to see who had the biggest belly (no comments that dad isn't in the shot). Kell is asking how he gets his tummy to stick out farther. THis was taken about a week before Campbell was born.

Here is our 8 year old soccer star (we don't have any good pics of Kell yet, maybe he is too fast!)

A couple more pics

2008-04-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple pictures I have taken of Campbell. I still need to get the ones of the kids helping give him a bath, but I'll get there sometime...

CJB Pics

2008-04-26T17:15:00.001-07:00

I know the pics are going to come up before the announcement. Sorry, I didn't plan these consecutive posts too well. I love that I can get these new pics out to everyone right away, so all those who want to be here can enjoy some of the joy that we are experiencing.

Mom and the kids

Finally a big sister

The four things that really matter

Me and my little boys (The little elephant is the kid's gift to Campbell, but Kell and Abigail are having a tough time giving it up)

Abigail couldn't get enough of this little guy

The Big News...

2008-04-26T16:28:00.000-07:00

With all the experience that three children gives you, and despite your confidence in your ability to predict and prepare for anything, life always throws curve balls... So for you who like to cut to the chase Mr. Quatro has arrived, three weeks early, but here nonetheless!

But who doesn't like a good story! I'll try to point out the subplots and foreshadowing that run parallel to the story.

Well, Quatro is already a crafty little guy. He has put us through more expectant parent stress than all three of our children combined. I can spare all of those gory details. This past week Sherrie started the once a week doctor's appointments. On her appointment on Tuesday, we couldn't determine his position, so we had to reschedule an ultrasound for Thursday. From that we found that he was breech to transverse, basically upside down or sideways, new territory for our family. So knowing that we had to schedule a time for the doctor to try and get him in the right position. Since Sherrie would be 37 weeks we set it up for Wednesday of the following week, to get him turned and ready for natural childbirth (yeah could it be that easy?). The next complication was that I had the Spring scout camporee this Friday and Saturday (April 25-6, Also Happy 10 year anniversary Sherrie, I'll be spending the weekend with 11-13 year olds). Seeing my track record with campouts and home emergencies during the campouts, I should have known something was coming. However, Sherrie guaranteed me that nothing was going to happen (yeah sure). So cutting to the chase, the campout went well, up until about 12:00 midnight when I got a call from Sherrie that her water had just broke. We called my wonderful cousin who came and watched the kids. I made it home in record time (without my wallet, which I realized when I got home) and headed to the hospital. I was a little worried since the last three went fairly quickly. We determined that a C-Section was the best alternative since after the water breaks it is more risky to try to turn the baby. The main issue was that the doctor wouldn’t be available until nearly 7:00, so we got to wait, and wait. I hadn’t prepared with all the time passing material, so it was a long wait, and resting in hospital rooms isn’t really considered ‘restful’. We did get running about 6:00 (and had a friend from Burley assisting, small world!), and I got involved about 7:00 as they were getting the C-section underway. At 7:22 a little guy finally had his first breath of air, not without some twisting and turning, and three loops of the cord around his neck. Good thing we didn’t try to turn him since he didn’t have too much room to swim anyway. He was 6lb. 9oz, and 21 inches long. He has some good hair (not Lisa hair, but hair nonetheless). His name is Campbell Jex Bowen. The name comes from Sherrie’s great grandfather Campbell, and his dad’s great grandfather William Jex, both pioneer spirited men. So it met Sherrie’s criteria for family reference and a name that works with his siblings. Sherrie has been fighting for that one for a while and I finally came around.
Welcome Campbell to the family, we feel so blessed and privileged to have a new little child of God in our home.

(Props to Sara for the closest prediction, albeit a week off!)

Enter the baby name game

2008-04-14T10:57:00.000-07:00

Sherrie and I have been involved in the debate that all expectant parents deal with...What should we name the baby. We are fairly confident the baby will be a boy (unless she played some great little prank when we had the last ultrasound pictures done), but coming up with the right name has been a trial. You know how it goes, dad likes it, mom knows someone with the name and vetos the decision and vice versa. So we are 1 month away and are happy to hear of any ideas from our friends and family. We won't put any of our candidate names as to avoid giving away any of our ideas. Also, if you want to put down your predictions for when Quatro will be born, I will put it together and list the winner in a post on the blog. And since about 7 people see this, it all but insures blogosphere fame, what better reward can be had?

April (SNOW) Showers

2008-04-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

Hmm, spring in central Iowa... Since winter has held on so long, why not have a big snow shower in April! We had some steady light rain all morning and then about 2:00 it started really coming down. I was in meetings all afternoon, but caught glimpses of the falling snow, at times with huge heavy flakes. I called Sherrie and got home and we finally had the opportunity to make our snowman. Aunt Lisa gave us the EZ Snowman kit a while ago, but it has always been so cold that no one was really excited to bring Frosty to life. Today was perfect so to add to my brothers pics on his blog, here is the creation of the Iowa Frosty and the crew. Complete with us showing off how tough we are! Go April snow!

Easter Fun

2008-04-03T18:49:00.000-07:00

I thought I would let everyone see how Easter went.
Here is Cole, Kell and Abigail after the community easter egg hunt and party. The boys with the hats they won and Abigail with Cole's balloon hat.

Here are the boys with the Easter eggs they colored.

Last but not least, here the kids are with their new Sunday clothes. And yes, Abigail had to have a little handbag with her new twirly dress! Don't they all just look like angels (we know better)!

Hawaii Honeymoon

2008-03-09T16:54:00.000-07:00

Well, here is the much anticipated posting of our 10 year anniversary trip to Hawaii. I had a work trip to Hawaii and was planning on being there for about 2 weeks. Knowing that this might be the best chance we had for a trip like this, we made arrangements for Grandma B to come out and watch the kids for a few days while Sherrie came out to spend the weekend in Hawaii. It was a much needed 'break' for the two of us, and the 70-80 degree tempweratures were a nice relief from the cold and snowy Iowa winter. We went to the Polynesian Cultural Center, BYU Hawaii, the Laie Hawaii LDS Temple, the Arizona Memorial, the Ko'Olina Resort (for dinner and to see the shark pools and beach), and just days free of kids! I did get a chance to go to a quilt store for my mom and Sherrie, so I had to document that. Below are some pics with some of the excitement. Thanks to Grandma for watching the kids, and for friends helping out with snow removal and all that fun stuff. We both hope it won't be another 10 years before we do something like this again, but it was sure worthwhile this time!

Abigail Update

2008-03-09T16:44:00.000-07:00

I though I should give an update on Abigail. The picture below is a week after the incident. Her lip is healing nicely, and there should be minimal scarring.

Emergency Room Excitement

2008-02-17T11:38:00.000-08:00

Well we finally had the 'opportunity' to go to the emergency room. We actually jinxed ourselves by commenting to someone the other day that we have survived for over eight years without having to go to the ER for stitches or broken bones. To make it worse, we jokingly said that Abigail would be our first to have the 'experience'.

I was out camping with the scouts when Sherrie called me in a panic. Abigail had cut her lip wide open and it was obvious that stitches would be needed. Sherrie ran the boys over to our wonderful neighbors, called me and headed to the hospital. I finished unloading my gear at camp and did the same. We met at the hospital, and poor Abigail was quite nervous and holding a wet rag on her lip. Luckily we got right in, and into a room. Abigail was silent and obviously frightened, but was so brave as they gave her an IV. Because the cut was on her lip, it required a plastic surgeon, and as they wanted her to be calm and motionless, they needed an iv with some drugs to keep her semi-sedated. She was incredibly patient and calm, the best the nurses had seen, which was amazing considering what the little 3 year old was experiencing. They got her sewed up without too much problem, and we were able to get out fairly quickly. Thanks to our neighbors and hometeacher who helped out with the boys. It is sure nice to have them close. So without further ado, here is Abigail's new (and very temporary) look. Imagine some women pay big bucks to have such full lips!

Tribute to a Great Man

2008-02-01T20:38:00.001-08:00

Many of you know we are members of the LDS church, and last Sunday the president of the LDS church passed away at 97 years old. I think the news spread quickly, as I found out not even two hours after his passing. I won't go into any details of his biography, as there are better sources for this. Our kids recognized him and loved watching him speak (even as young as they are).

There is little you can say to someone who inspires you to be a better person. He was a unique person who recognized and preached about serious traps in life, among them gambling, anger, pornography, honesty, and integrity. His words were always infused with a deep love and ever present optimism. One would have a feeling that through faith and work, sin could be overcome, and there is reason to hope and work for better things in the world. If ever God called men as prophets to testify of Him, Gordon B. Hinckley was one of these men.

Maternity Update

2008-01-30T13:29:00.000-08:00

So after much prodding from friends and family I realized I hadn't updated people on the newest baby news. So just before Christmas we found out that we will be having a baby boy. Abigail was a little upset as she was sure it would be a girl, but we explained that our family could only have one princess. The boys had a mixed reaction, but now all are happy with things. So we are open to any good boys names, since we don't have too many good ideas yet, and your suggestions are welcome.

Christmas Trek West (then back East)

2008-01-10T18:59:00.000-08:00

So Sherrie has been giving me a hard time for reporing on the overly reported Iowa Caucuses (overly reported in Iowa, but I am doing this for the benefit of posterity and history, right?). I guess this blog is for the family, I should let people know what has been happening.
Since our summer plan are up in the air with the baby coming, we wanted to make our trek west to Utah and Idaho. So with the van loaded with Christmas and the kids all googly-eyed with the pre-Christmas excitement, our trip begain. We headed out at 3:00 AM the Friday before Christmas and made great time...but we ended up in Laramie, hanging out at a truck stop for 4 hours while the roads west were closed. The kids were remakably patient, especially since we didn't move for a while. Our friends the Parks from Waukee were in the same situation, and it is nice to see good friends even far from home. We luckily got a hotel room for a warm night's rest. It was near zero in Laramie, and with the wind this is a real blessing. We made it to Utah by noon the next day. We had a wonderful time with Sherrie's family, and stayed there through Christmas day. We headed to Idaho on the 26th and were able to take some tractor rides play with cousins, and relax. All my siblings were around so it was good to be with them. Suffice it to say grandpa and grandmas house was full and noisy, but they wouldn't have it any other way. We went down to Lisa's on the 31st and passed the New Year's celebrations by resting for a long drive. The drive home was much more pleasant weather-wise and we made it back a day before I had to be at work and Cole had to be at school. How great it is to be with family, but always nice to be home. Happy New Year to you all!

Iowa Caucus in Grimes

2008-01-03T18:36:00.000-08:00

So I thought I would fill you in on the results of my precinct for the Iowa Caucus. It was held in the Elementary school here in Grimes. First off there was about 5 times the expected turnout. They figured 50 people would attend and actually had between 200 and 250 or more. They had a person from each campaign give a two minute speech on why his or her candidate was the best choice. No one was there for McCain, Giuliani, or Duncan Hunter, but a former Arkansas Congressman spoke for Huckabee, a local woman volunteered to speak for Ron Paul, and another Grimes local spoke for Fred Thompson. Josh Romney was there to speak for Mitt, and received the loudest applause from the audience. Then the people filled out little pieces of paper with the name of the candidate and submitted it. In all it took about 45 minutes to complete. The results from my precinct were..
88 Huckabee :(
66 Romney
Some for Fred and McCain
12 for Paul
0 for Hunter
0 for Giuliani
It was a little deflating for a Mitt fan, but for all the Mormon Conspiracy theorists, I only knew of 7 people in Grimes who are active Mormons, and there are alot of people who are not LDS, but support Mitt because he is the best candidate, and does not rely on the LDS congregation network to spread his message and the congregation's leaders to promote his candidacy (yeah maybe a veiled comment on another candidate...) The results look like a Huckabee win with Mitt in second trailing by 8% points. The race for third is a race with McCain and Thompson. All that is on the TV is the Caucus results. Mitt is a little disappointed, Huckabee is promoting his evangelical network, and maybe the biggest news is that Hillary is running in 3rd for the Democrats (albeit a close 3rd).

I hope that Mitt will pull out a good one in New Hampshire, and South Carolina leading into Super Tuesday. Of all the candidates he has dedicated time and resources to all these states and wants people to know that he has the experience and ideas to take the nation in the right direction.

Birthdays!

2007-11-23T17:01:00.000-08:00

Our little girl is 3 years old. Amazing. I thought I had better pass along some choice pics of the Tinkerbell cake, and the birthday festivities. Sherrie did an awesome job making the Tinkerbell cake. Really, it turned out very good. We had some friends over for cake and ice cream and had a good time! Enjoy!

Halloween

2007-10-31T18:15:00.000-07:00

Halloween in Iowa is a little different than the rest of the world (at least the world I know). Here they have a "Beggars' Night", which is the night or so before Halloween, where the actual trick-or-treating happens. I think this is to keep the little kids removed from the older kids Halloween parties. I don't know if that really helps any, it just creates confusion as all the towns possibly have trick-or-treating on different days, Sunday, Monday or Tuesday, and I think some actually do it on Halloween, but that is the exception.
The other difference is that when kids go to the door, they have to tell a joke before they get candy. You get all types of jokes. Cole for instance is finally getting a sense of what defines humor. Last year he mainly took the first line and the punch line from different jokes and combined them, resulting in a confusing and really un-funny joke. He is doing better this year, and is able to recognize when things don't make sense. Regardless, my princess, cowboy on a horse, and Jedi got away with a good haul of candy. Even more, the weather was great, temps in the low 60s and very pleasant, for a Halloween!

Catching up

2007-10-31T17:02:00.001-07:00

I wanted to put a couple of Kell's Soccer pictures up on the web. Here they are. The coach said he was the happiest boy on the team, he never got upset and was just happy to be bouncing around the field. And that is what he did. He didn't really follow the ball to much or really play the game more than he ran around and had fun.

DCG Soccer Fall 2007

2007-10-28T08:32:00.000-07:00

Thanks to a mom with a real nice camera, we got some sweet shots of Colito the soccer star in action. This slideshow module is nice to get them all in one place. Sorry I don't have the same for Kell. I hope to get some pics this week and I'll put them on the blog as well.

Aloha and Mahalo

2007-10-14T20:03:00.000-07:00

I was hoping to get in some pics of my trip to Puerto Rico, but due to camera issues, I don't have any pictures, yet...So eventually I hope to have something out there for you. Anyway, it has been long enough since I have updated things so I wanted to let you know how my trip to Hawai'i went. It is a beautiful place for sure, even if almost all my daylight hours were spent at work (6:30 - 5:00 days). I went to Kaua'i, and Oahu to work with the research centers there. I did find some time to visit the sites such as Captain Cook's landing in Hawai'i (the first European in Hawai'i), Waimea Canyon (the Grand Canyon of Hawai'i), a little seaside action, and that is about it. I did include some pictures from Oahu including a view of Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Waikiki, and Diamond Head (all in the picture behind me), and an incredible sunset from a resort in Oahu called Ko Olina. Anyway it was a productive trip and I definitely need to go back and take Sherrie!

School Days and a New Do

2007-09-01T08:12:00.000-07:00

We have had a lot of excitement the past couple of weeks. We have two boys in school, so here are the requisite 1st day of school pictures. Cole is in the 3rd grade, and really enjoying things.
Kell started the day after with his 3 day a week pre-school. He is really enjoying things there. It is good for him to interact with other kids and get ready to go to kindergarten next year.

And the biggest news. Sherrie finally, after much indecision and debate took Abigail to get her hair cut. Here is the preview of her in braids. She is so cute, but this doesn't show the monster hair she has in the morning as well as the mess she makes with her long hair whenever Sherrie tries to do it up nice.
The picture speaks for itself, she was very reluctant to have anyone cut her hair. This picture was taken as Sherrie was holding her down in the seat.
And the result...Our little 2 year old girl aged almost a year it seems. She looks so much older without the baby hair. She actually likes it, doesn't like to have anything in her hair still, but it stays more in control.

State Fair part 2 - Big Things

2007-08-25T13:39:00.000-07:00

I wasn't able to squeeze all the pictures into one post, so here is part two. I thought I should show the biggest participants of the fair. Here is the Shire horse show, the mayor cart division. We got to go in the horse barn and see them getting them washed and groomed for the show. Definitely 'big'. Kell could have sat there all day and watched them, I could have to for that matter. As an aside Cole was ready to see the Butter Cow and get some ice cream.

Here is the biggest bull. All 3300 pounds of him. In each of the livestock barns they have a pen with the 'biggest' animal. They are easy to find, it is the pen with all the people crowding around it.
Here is the swine barn's biggest boar. over 1200(?) pound duroc cross. This guy doesn't get up and perform very often, in fact I think he just lies around. I mean what can you do when you weigh more than many small cars? Again, you have to be patient to even get close, there is always a crowd.
Last but not least, the big shot farmers. We can't help but go to the little hands on the farm activity, sponsored by none other than Pioneer Hi-Bred, note the super cool bright green Pioneer hats. (Consequently, I was too old to participate, but I could really use a new hat). Sterling, our friend's little guy was also helping out and going though with the kids. This is at the beginning of the little tour, passing in from of corn and soybeans. Then they get to plant seeds, harvest plastic vegetables, and go through little vingnettes of dairy barns, egg-production and such. At the end they all got a popsicle or something from the store by spending the money they earn from working on the farm.

Fun at the Fair, not Cassia, but Iowa State Part 1

2007-08-25T13:15:00.000-07:00

Late post, but here are a few select pics of the family at the Iowa State Fair. First the boys got a picture with BIGFOOT, and it is big.
We went through Iowa's version of the commercial building and Kell got to see Curious George, a PBS favorite. Abigail was a little nervous and admired from Dad's arms.
In the swine barn there was a big corn 'sandbox'. Mom and Dad got to rest while the kids got to play in the corn.
Now for the ever popular butter sculptures. Harry Potter is immortalized in butter, along with his faithful sidekick Hedwig the owl.
And here is the most popular of them all, the butter cow. Apparently this has been going on for >40 years, and Iowa still can't get enough of this. I mean it is pretty cool to see a life size cow made out of butter. Cole is obviously entranced. I didn't show the line behind us to see the cow, really it is a big attraction.

Iowa Straw Poll Survivors

2007-08-15T04:23:00.000-07:00

We braved the Iowa heat and humidity this weekend and went to the Iowa Straw Poll in Ames. It is essentially a GOP fundraiser, and a chance for the presidential candidates to mobilize their supporters. Below are a couple of pics. If you want the scoop on the whole thing, let us know.

Kell's New Smile

2007-08-07T16:08:00.000-07:00

Well, Kell has been nursing a loose tooth for the past couple of weeks, and it finally came out. He is only four, but the dentist has found that he has an extra front tooth coming in, and it pushed out this one. I think he'll have a goofy grin for the next little while.
Sherrie was helping him with some things and he found he had a bloody mouth. Sherrie pulled out the tooth, and now Kell is pretty excited to show off the new smile.

I can't wait until I'm 8 - Baptism Day

2007-08-04T20:27:00.000-07:00

We took a little trip with our visitors from the west to Winterset for a picnic on Saturday. We didn't get to go to Fons and Porters or the John Wayne Museum, but had fun at the park with the hedgemaze and the tower, where the following picture was taken.

Here is the family before Cole's Baptism. He was a little nervous, but was so excited and happy after the baptism. It was a very nice program. Grandpa Bowen spoke, as well as Brother Braden Cannon and Bishop Pence. There was a nice spirit there and it was great to be with friends and family. Although not all our family was able to be there, we could feel that they wanted to be here and their love for us.

Baptism is a wonderful expression of our willlingness to follow Christ. It is the time when we really become part of the family of Christ and take upon ourselves His name, and that of Christian. I am so proud of Cole to take this step and I pray we all have a better understanding of these covenants.

Baseball Birthday

2007-07-28T18:22:00.000-07:00

Cole is turning 8 next Saturday and we had a few of his buddies over for a little party. Cole wanted a baseball party so we played some baseball (wiffle ball) had a baseball pinata, and everyone got some baseball cards. Here are a few of the best pics of the crew.

Final Paper published!

2007-07-16T19:24:00.001-07:00

For what it is worth, I have my gene expression paper published in The Plant Genome, a supplemental publication in the Crops Science journal. It is some real cool reading if you have any time to check it out. I know I'm probably the only one that really cares about this, so you'll just have to let me revel in this. If you want the full text, let me know!

A Low Phytic Acid Barley Mutation Alters Seed Gene Expression
David E. Bowen, Edward J. Souza, Mary J. Guttieri, Victor Raboy, and Jianming Fu
Crop Sci 2007;47 S-149-S-159
http://crop.scijournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/47/S2/S-149?etoc

Little Farmers

2007-07-13T05:18:00.000-07:00

Here are the two 'workers' on their tractors, in front of Dad's Farmall 100. Kell and Brogan think this is the coolest tractor around. There ready anytime Grandpa is ready to fire it up. Here are Sherrie, Abigail, Cole, and myself on a ride in the 'Grandpa' Trailer.

2007-07-09T20:27:00.000-07:00

I thought I should at least post one picture of the kids. I'll try to get more in so you can see how they are doing.

Welcome

2007-07-09T20:06:00.000-07:00

Well we are finally entering the realm of the blogosphere. We thought it might be the most efficient way to keep everyone updated on all the happenings in corn country. No promised that there will be fregquent updates, but there will be a few things come up and I'll try to keep the tiny world of those interested in our life somewhat updated to the happenings here in our world.