Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Everywhere

We had so much fun on Halloween, we had to split it up into two separate posts. This first one is all about our holiday pumpkin encounters.

Mama scooped out the guts and Daddy carved. It was Ian's first experience with the versatile gourds. He tried to help, but soon got bored and went to bed to dream about them.

The jack-o-lantern on the left depicts the Ford family as--what else?--pumpkins. Jordan did an awesome job (he modified a design he found in a carving book). The one on the right belongs to the Brenning Bunch.

Kudos to the carvers!

On Halloween morning, Kelly made pancakes shaped like pumpkins, with jack-o-lantern faces squirted on with chocolate syrup. Here is Jordan's best impression of a jack-o-lantern.

Ian can't wait to dig into one of his favorite foods.

And Kelly is pretty proud of her handiwork.

Thanks for the fun Halloween decorations, Mom!

A Very Harry Halloween

It's the moment you have all been waiting for since November 1, 2010--to see what the Fords would be for Halloween 2011! And the theme is...(drum roll, please)...Harry Potter! As you can obviously see, Kelly is Professor Trelawney, Ian is Dobby the House Elf, and Jordan is Professor Lupin. Don't know who the heck those people are, you say? Well, you obviously need to get reading. Prof. Trelawney teaches "Divination" at Hogwarts (basically she is the fortune-telling type). Dobby is the mistreated servant in a wizard household. The only item of clothing he wears is a pillowcase. And Prof. Remus Lupin teaches Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. He always looks a bit shabby because he has a spooky secret! I won't give it away if you've never read the books, but let's just say we were going to tuck some fake fur into his sleeves, but, alas, didn't have any.

Isn't Ian the cutest Dobby you've ever seen? And it was an exceptionally easy and cheap costume: pillowcase, $1 at DI. Kelly would've made ears, but ran out of time, and anyway, Ian would have pulled them off.

We attended the third annual Halloween party at the Collier's apartment with Julie and Kurt. Why do they look so goofy? One word: Muggles. And the most annoying kind of Muggles: perky Hawaiian tourists.

Amy and Steve dressed up as Hogwarts students (Steve makes an excellent Tom Riddle). As you can see, they thought it appropriate to have some Halloween fun with the Muggles.

We had a blast! Tune in next year to see what we come up with next.

A Hobby Passed Down Through the Generations

The image below is of my great-grandfather Marcellus Clark. Above his right shoulder is his son John Clark who is my grandfather. The little blond boy in front is John's son and my father, John Dean Clark. As that blond boy grew up he went shooting and hunting with his dad and granddad.

The next photo is him as a man with 2 of his boys in the early 1980's. Jason holding the gun and Jaren checking out what the dog was sniffing. The shotgun seen here once belonged to Marcellus and then John Clark.

Today we carry on the hobby with the same gun, now in its 4th and 5th generation. Tyler went with us and we all had a great time. Of course Dad, being the most experienced, out-shot us all.

It was a real treat for me to see Dad pulverize the clay pigeons. I hope to go again soon.

Jaren taught taught Tyler how to shoot a hand gun and we finished the activity with a little glass shattering competition... Jaren won hands down since he picked up some skills at the police academy.

Mount Timpanogos - Under My Feet

For years I had hoped to hike Mount Timpanogos and it finally happened last Saturday morning. My friend, Bryce, and I started on the 14 plus mile hike at 2am. We reached the summit just before sunrise at 7 and finished around 11am. We had to cross a snow field in the dark and spent some time wondering back and forth until a fellow hiker found the trail with his GPS device. It was long, high, and rewarding. Spending time at the top of a mountain can be a very inspiring and spiritual occasion but the 2 dozen people at the summit inhibited the solemnity I desired. I hope to scale the great mount again when few will be there, perhaps in the winter time.

View of Utah valley from the summit.

Last stretch of the trail seen from the summit.

Bryce and I.

Headed South down the West side of the ridge.

Looking back on the ridge and shack(summit) from the South.

Looking back on the ridge and shack from the Southeast.

Ridge and shack from the snow field that feeds Emerald Lake.

Using rocks and friction to control speed and avoid danger.

The snow field that feeds Emerald Lake.

Looking up at the shack from the lake.

IT WAS TRULY A GREAT ADVENTURE.

Books and Bricks

Books: Ian can read left to right, right to left, right side up and upside down.

Bricks: Not heavy stone bricks.... Duplo Bricks. He has carried them around for several months and has stacked a few of them before, but now he is capable of stacking the size and color he wants.

The question is, can you guess where these two influences come from?

Ian's First Birthday!!

We had a wonderful day celebrating the first anniversary of Ian's birth. For breakfast, Kelly made delicious sourdough pancakes, eggs and sausage. Kelly and Ian had lunch with Jordan at work. Kelly, with the assistance of Jill, put together a great dinner (overnight macaroni and cheese was a big hit) and party with blue and green decorations, pin-the-tail-on-the-elephant and chocolate cupcakes.

Here is a video of Ian eating his first cake. Yes, this is his first taste of chocolate, cake and frosting. As you can hear in the background, Ian's cousins Lily, Carter and Hazel are just as excited for Ian's birthday as he is. Maybe even more so :) Actually, Kelly says she was more excited for this birthday than any of hers for many years.



And to top off the day, Ian decided he wanted to walk! He has been taking one or two steps here and there for the past couple weeks, but today he just up and took off. Here is a clip of his new walking skills.

Tater Tot

Ian took is own profile picture.