Fish Pond Field Trip

This last Friday was Lydia's first Preschool field trip. Friends and family were invited so Ammon and I packed up to come along and we headed out to the fishing pond.

At the fishing pond the kids picked out a fishing pole.

The we started to try to catch some fish!

Basically I did everything - bait the hook, cast the line, yank the hook when we got a bite, and pulled it in - and the kids just held on to the pole too...so they were "fishing".

 

Luckily, I love fishing so it was no problem for me.











Lydia was terrified of the fish and wouldn't even hold the line so we could get a picture with her and her fish.

If you notice, she's crouched up as close to me as possible, terrified of the wet fish flapping in her face. I don't blame her too much...and it was pretty funny.

She was also freezing all morning which is why she has my big, baggy jacket hanging off her in most the pictures. It was actually freezing that day and I was way under prepared in the warm layers department.









Ammon I could at least get to hold the line for a picture, even though he was a bit afraid as well.

I like this shot because you can see the fish coming out of the water.

Ammon with his catch.

Ammon was obsessed with watching the fish flap around in the bucket after we caught them.

After catching the fish, the nice man in the shop cleaned all the guts out for us, ripped the fish hearts out, and showed the kids how they were still beating. It was gross and so cool at the same time.

The kids played on the playground and in the tree house and had a grand time. The kids then gathered with Mrs Feather for a preschool picture before we went home.

The fish we caught sure were tasty that night and we had a good time together.

Washington Welcome

So we are now moved to Washington. Everything went smoothly and we are enjoying some time spent with my family and adjusting to Brigham's training at his new job.

So here's how Washington has welcomed us these past couple weeks:

Walks behind a nearby neighborhood and running into a lake and some cute mushrooms growing on a log.

We had a stake service project cleaning up at a state park. After picking up some garbage and looking at some cool mossy hanging branches, we took a fun little hike to a gnome village.

Lydia started preschool. She's such a smarty and was SO excited to finally go to school too. I love the side by side of her preschool picture, and self-portrait she drew on the first day of class :)

Ammon also wanted a picture, so we got one of him in his backpack too. However, the only school he goes to is exercise class with mom in the mornings.

Washington has some of the best yard sales. For some reason, people in Utah jack up prices, but Washingtonians know how to price their stuff. I knew I was back in business here when I scored by haggling for half price at a yard sale and got this adorable mini rocking chair for five dollars. The kids LOVE it.

And finally the big game day arrived: BYU vs Utah. I had my game day face on, we made and decorated BYU football cookies, prepared delicious game-day food. And then watched as once again my team broke my heart. Never will turn my back on those Cougars, but come on guys, help a girl out!

I am loving being around my football loving family and talking sports with them. I'm loving bike-rides with my mom, exercise class at the church, attending my mom's excellent institute lessons, and getting to know my younger siblings better. I'm loving the nature, atmosphere, and good times here.

I miss my exercise buddies and WAY better Zumba classes in Utah. I miss lots of different and cheaper restaurant options. And I especially miss friends and family and all the cute little babies being born.

So from here we've started on the house hunt, so it'll be interesting to see where that takes us from here.

Life in Limbo Part Two

After staying with my in-laws while waiting to head to Washington, the kids and I then transitioned to my Uncle Dean's house to spend some time with my Grandma Busby and my side of the family before we left. We had a grand old time and spent the whole Labor Day weekend together.

On Friday night, my siblings all came over and we chatted with my Grandma and played outside. Saturday morning we were all pumped up for the BYU football game.

Unfortunately, that turned out to be somewhat of a drama with a two hour rain delay and an almost win followed by a sad, sad loss. (don't worry we beat Texas the next week so that helped ease the sting)

We were supposed to do dinner in the canyon, but with the rain delay it was too late at night so instead we made tinfoil dinners, s'mores, and woofums in the firepit in my uncle's backyard.  It was still a blast.

And we all had matching BYU shirts that day.

What can I say? We're awesome.

Sunday was church with Grandma and then everyone came back again for Sunday night dinner that I made. Then we had a pretty rad game night playing Farkle and Bang.

These boy take Farkle pretty seriously

Monday, Labor Day, my Grandma watched the kids for me so that I could have one last hurrah before I had to part ways with my siblings. First we went hiking at Bridal Veil Falls, then we played a game called Pandemic, had lunch at Zupas, and then caught the movie Now You See Me at the dollar theater. Ah, it was a great day.

I'll tell you it didn't make leaving any easier, all the fun I was having. It probably helped that I wasn't nearly as sick, but mostly I just love spending time with my brothers and sisters. They're my comfort place and I never laugh as much as I do when I'm with them.

After Labor Day I spend a couple days just chillin' with my Grandma and meeting up with Brittany and her kids at the splash pad.

Finally, Thursday, the big wedding arrived.

I was bad at taking pictures this day, but here you can see Lydia and Ammon waiting for the ceremony to begin, and Brigham sitting in a chair in the background. That's right, we finally got to see Brigham again. It was good reuniting with my husband after being apart for over two weeks.

The wedding was beautiful and it was really nice to get to have the family together again (minus Tim and Ashley) before we left.

The scenery was gorgeous and we even got to take a family paddle boat ride around the pond.

After the wedding we packed up and spent one last day with Brigham's family. Dinner at Chili's with his mom and brothers still in Utah, and then a final Just Dance Party at Sam and Caitlin's. It was very bittersweet and my heart hurt the next morning when we said a tearful goodbye to Dan and Nonie.

The ride up to Washington went WAY better than expected. My daughter is notorious for her carsickness and we were prepared this time with medicine. It did the trick and no spewing happened. I also thought we would have to stop a lot to let our kids get the wiggles out, but they did FANTASTIC. We actually only stopped twice: once to get gas, go to the bathroom and stretch, and another time to eat a late lunch/early dinner and refuel with gas for the last time.

The only time any crying happened was when Ammon got mad that he had to wait so long for me to help him with his crayons because I was still helping Lydia. Oh Ammon.

The DVD player sure was nice for Lydia and entertained her for a good four hours of the thirteen hours it took us to make it to Washington. Ammon still doesn't care much for movies and mostly entertained himself by sleeping, sticking stickers to his face, and talking to himself. I was so impressed with these two.

And now we're in Washington. So much to figure out and do with our lives. It's nice to be here to finally start working on it all. And I'm excited to finally live close to my parents and younger siblings and learn what it's like to have them around. It's making everything so much easier.

So, hello Washington. Get ready, the Tappanas are here!

Life in Limbo

So I guess it's time to announce the big changes happening to this Tappana family. In May my husband lost his job at Adobe, I went back to work part-time to try and help make ends meet, and Brigham finished up his master's degree and started back on the job hunt. It was a stressful-very-no-good time for our family. When the months that I was sure he would have a new job by started coming and then passing, I didn't know what our little family would do.

Then our landlords decided we had better leave our place as well and we had a new deadline approaching to find new living quarters. That really strained me because our cheaper rent was the only thing that was saving us. It seemed like so many things were crashing down on us. However, I felt that Heavenly Father was setting us up to place us exactly where he wanted.

It was just taking way too long in my opinion.

At the beginning of August we started finally receiving job offers for Brigham. We were praying hard to know what to do, but being unsure we decided to fast about it. I fasted that the right opportunities and connections, that would lead us to the path Heavenly Father wanted us to take, would present themselves and that we would know that they were right.

Within two days we had contact from a company called Zones in Washington State, two more interviews scheduled with them, and within the week, a job offer...which is mind-boggling fast. It wasn't quite the pay we needed, they wouldn't help us relocate, there were more interviews lined up for much more lucrative jobs, I would have to leave the bulk of my comfort zone, and things would be scary...but we knew it was the right one for us. I consoled myself with the fact that half of my family is in Washington and I would be able to live by my parents and in a state I love. Brigham accepted the job at Zones and agreed to start working in two weeks.

Two weeks to pack up and move our family across multiple state lines. Wow.

Luckily, after we accepted the job at Zones, everything stated falling into place. The timing fit in perfectly with my family coming to Utah to drop my brother off at BYU, and for a quick family vacation in Park City. They were able to cut their stay short to help us pack, load, and drive the moving truck with Brigham and all our belongings to Washington. The kids and I are still in Utah living with various relatives until Brigham's sister's wedding which Brigham will fly back to Utah for and then we will drive our remaining car up to Washington together, where we will live with my family until we can find a place for ourselves.

It's all been a very complicated, stressful, perfect mess. So many small amazing blessings and timing "coincidences" have come our way. I don't know where we will live, how we will afford to live, what we will do without all the family we are leaving, but I do know this is what we are supposed to do.

And that's where we are today. Brigham has already stated his training, I've been living with in-laws, and my grandma waiting for the wedding this week and then our final trip up to Washington. Here are some of the fun things the kids and I have done while we live out of suitcases at the in-law's for two weeks:

We got really, really, really, really sick. I actually was really sick on moving day and wanted to die, but you do what you gotta do. I helped load the truck and told myself to keep it together. I could die later.

Without insurance, I put off going to the doctors for as long as possible but when your daughter has an eye-infection you've got to get some antibiotics, and when you have a sinus infection, you pay just about anything to feel better.

This is what Lydia looked like on day two of her eye-infection, I finally broke down and took her to the doctor on day three and the second picture is after only one day and a half on her $71 antibiotics (don't take your insurance for granted people). So much better. No more bloody mucus coming out of her eyes, worth every penny.

We still have the last bits of a cold lingering on (this was THE worst cold I have EVER had. It stayed for three weeks and was just brutal) but we are better for the most part. And I apologize to my in-laws for my scary zombie-like state for the first week I stayed at their house. I think they'll be scarred for life.

When we weren't dying we've been enjoying time outside:

Meeting my new niece, which I had to wait to do for almost two weeks after she was born so I wouldn't infect her with our disease. Sometimes being responsible sucks. I wish I had taken a picture, but my mind was still foggy and I didn't. She's adorable...let's just put it at that. I tried to steal her and bring her with me to Washington but I got caught and her mom said no.

Ammon kept to his norm of falling asleep at random times...like when climbing onto a chair...

Seriously how does he do it? I watched it happen. He was climbing up to get in the chair and decided to stop midway and just fell asleep instead...blows my mind.

We've watched torrential down-pours that turned the entire front walkway into a puddle.

And then enjoyed a rainbow and mountain scenery on our lengthy walk later on.



We were well taken care of at Dan and Nonie's through our sickness and all and I've been enjoying my roommates.

Now I'm at my Grandma's and I'll update later at what's been going here. I've been having a blast hanging out with the older siblings of my family for our last hurrah until I leave and their school/work starts.

So that's the news from the Tappanas. Exciting huh? I'll try to keep you updated as we transfer from our life of limbo to a new place and adventure.