Spring Break

 It's become something of a tradition to spend Spring Break in Arizona. It's the best time of year to get out of Utah and see some sun! We bought into the Marriott Canyon Villas in Scottsdale, and along with most of Jeff's family, we enjoy an awesome week (once we get through the 10 hour drive down there!).

Here are some pics taken with Jeff's new camera. It is amazing.

 Some of the cousins ready for the Easter egg hunt at the Marriott. The three boys in Abercrombie shirts and Damon.

Carter playing a little shuffleboard with Grandpa Fred.

 

Easter Sunday

 

The weather was great for swimming (for part of the week, and then it got a little bit cold and the hot tub was the only "swimming" the kids wanted to do), and Jeff's camera got some good action shots.

Unfortunately, I didn't get pictures of many of the activities, including dinner with Jeff's 259 friends, the Children's Museum with my sister Heather,the Phoenix zoo and dinners with the Trapnell adults only! We all caught a little stomach bug (Carter and I had it the worst--throwing up and stomach cramps--but everyone had it a little), and ended up staying an extra day to make up for the day we lost. It was a great time, it always is, but a lot of work. It's not going to be a relaxing vacation any time soon, but one of the things we all look forward to all year.

We drove through the Blizzard of 2012 on the way home, and couldn't even make it up the hill from Panguitch to the I-15 but had to turn around and head through Richfield instead. Our two wheel drive van with bad tires couldn't handle the snow and we were sliding around. Damon freaked out, crying, "We're going to die!" as we were trying to get out of the way of oncoming traffic. It ended up being a good decision on our part, as the freeway was stopped for 90 minutes because of accidents, and we made it home a good 1-2 hours before the group with four wheel drive that didn't have the same problems we had!

After we got home, the kids got their Easter gifts that I left home (dvds for their Easter baskets. Probably could have come in handy on those two 10-hour drives we took...) and their new clothes.

 

The kids wearing their new Easter clothes a week late. McKay doesn't love pictures...

Last Chance

I'm so far behind...but before I get to Spring Break and all the other things I need to write about, I wanted to post a little about our STEALS from Last Chance in Scottsdale. Last Chance is the Nordstrom return/defect clearance store, and if you know what you're doing, you can find a bargain. We went four times while we were in Arizona, and didn't come out with everything we wanted/needed, but we did find some screaming deals. We didn't even know how well we had done until we got home and checked the retail prices on the website. Here's a sample (some of the stuff we bought isn't on the website anymore, like the Juicy Couture shoes I bought for Kyla for $19.99, so these are just a few of the things you can find if you're patient. And lucky).

Retail: $199.99

I paid: $59.99

Retail $114.95

I paid: $24.00

Retail: $325.00

Jeff paid: $39.99

Retail: $68.95

I paid: $18.99

Retail: $165.00

Jeff paid: $14.97

Retail: $325.00 (Seriously? For a shirt? This isn't the exact one Jeff got, but it's the same brand)

Jeff paid: $19.97

Retail: $49.95

I paid: $12.99

Retail: $43.95

I paid: $18.99

Retail: $19.50 

I paid: $.97

A New Hobby

Ever since we have been married, Jeff has always been interested in something. Buying and selling sports cards, collecting coins and currency, old maps, breeding lizards...there's always something going on. His latest hobby is collecting pennies. But not just any pennies. No, he found out that copper is worth $3.85/lb and pennies before 1982 are 95% copper. His first thought was to try to make some money off of it, buying pennies from the bank, taking out the pre-1982 ones and trying to sell them as scrap copper. He quickly learned that there really is no money in that. Copper isn't worth enough, and since it is illegal to melt US currency, it just wasn't going to be worth it.

BUT, it was still intriguing. Even if he just had some copper lying around, maybe one day the penny will become obsolete and then maybe it will be okay to melt pennies for their metal content. He thought it would be fun to just have some copper. And it would be fun to try to get it. 

So he went to the bank and came back with $25 in pennies. He got Damon and me involved, and we started searching through the rolls for the copper pennies. On average, we would find 18 out of 100. He put all the old pennies in a sack and then we were left with a huge pile of post-1982 pennies. So, he found a solution. He found a coin sorting machine and we started the process of bundling those up.

Damon displaying a couple rolls ready to go back to the bank.

Since then, we have done a couple more boxes, with similar results. We have about 14 lbs of copper pennies and the rest have been deposited back in the bank. It makes me laugh just thinking about it. But I also love how excited Damon has been during the whole process, so it definitely hasn't been a waste of time or money. Even McKay got in on the action, although he was kept far away from the actual coins.

We have been married long enough now that I have just accepted that Jeff will always have some new hobby. At least this one hasn't ended up in injury! And there are SO many things he could be doing with his free time that would be a waste of time and money. So I support him. And I love him. 

I took this picture one night when he was playing the piano. I love how the light is just perfect. It may be my favorite pic of him ever. I'm a lucky girl. And if the penny can ever be melted down, I may just one day be a rich girl...

March Funnies

Kyla-"If someone had a sharp knife and chased dad, he wouldn't be able to run away because of his leg. That's sad."

Jeff and I were watching an edited movie on TV and out of curiosity, I got online to see how many times a particular swear word had to be edited out. When I told Jeff the obscene number, Allie asked, "What was it? H-E-L-L or H-A-T-E?" I'm glad those are the only two bad words she knows.

Kyla, the day after we had eaten at Chick fil A, "I want some more of those pancake fries."
Me: "You mean waffle fries?"
Kyla: "Yep."

I asked Carter what his favorite food is, and his answer was, "lunch."

Allie, looking at a sign at the Seven Peaks Ice Arena that said "Concessions," asked me what it said. When I told her, she said, "Oh, I thought it said 'concussions.'"

Damon: "Did you hear that the Hungry Games movie is coming?"

Kyla has to answer the "question of the day" in preschool. One day, the question was, "would you rather have gold or candy?" Knowing how much Kyla LOVES candy, I asked what she chose. She told me gold. I asked her what she would do with the gold, and she told me, "I would buy candy."

Kyla: "I love you and dad, Damon, Allie and McKay."
Me: "What about Carter?"
Kyla: "No, he poos a lot."

Me: "Carter, when you turn three you can get potty-trained!"
Carter: "Potty choo-choo train?"

Kyla, looking at a picture of Paul Millsap (Utah Jazz player) in the newspaper: "Can I hang this picture of a brown skin BYU guy on my wall?"

Kyla-"Hudson can't have any food, because he only has two pieces of teeth."

Me: "Mama called the doctor and the doctor said..."
Carter: "Thank you."

Allie: "Mom! Damon called me 'Michelle Obama!'"

Carter, to McKay who was trying to figure out how to use his sippy cup, "Tip it, bud!"

A note I found written by Allie. "I'm happy, please don't make me mad. Pose I'm happy, por favor. Don't maki mei madde." Clearly she has a future in Spanish/English translation.

Jeff and I were going away for the night, and Damon wrote a note for the babysitter. Here it is:

Day Report
Arrive at 1:00 at our house on Friday. Babies will be asleep. Wake them up at 3:10. Leave at 3:15 to go pick up Kyla at Orem Elementary. You should be there at 3:20. After you get Kyla come and get Damon and Allie at Cherry Hill Elementary. You should be there at 3:30. Wait for us at the side of the school. Don't pick us up at the front. You don't have to pick us up inside. Just wait for us at the side of the school. We have to drop off 2 other people. Then we go home and play. At around 5:00 order the pizza so we can have dinner. After dinner we go get a red box movie. Carter and McKay go to bed at 7:30. After they go to bed we watch the movie. We go to bed at 9:00. Then you can go to bed whenever you want. In the morning we have Saturday cereal. We play until my mom and dad get back. Then you can go home.

Finally, Kyla made this face and asked: "Do I look like an Indian?"

Birthday pics

Last week, I took the boys to get their pictures taken, because once a year is about all I can handle. It's just too hard! But it must be done. I wasn't super thrilled with the photographer (I felt like she could have tried a LITTLE harder to get the boys smiling at the camera), but for the price, I can't complain. 

Here are the best ones of Carter:

And the best of McKay:

And finally a couple of both of them:

 This one is my favorite. Not big smiles, but still so sweet. I love Carter's little foot sticking out behind McKay. So cute!

McKay's One!

McKay is one. We made it. Sometimes I'm not sure how, because it seemed the days would never end. And while everyone reminds me that I'm going to miss these days when they're gone, I can say with confidence that there have been MANY days during the past year that I won't miss at all. But that said, I have had so much fun watching my baby go from this...

...to this.

What a difference a year makes. In McKay's it makes all the difference in the world. We celebrated McKay's first birthday with Jeff's parents and sister's family on Sunday. Because I really didn't get McKay any presents (besides the new car seat he desperately needed), I decided to make his birthday fun for everyone else. We had yummy food and lots of balloons and lots of people calling him "king."

McKay had no trouble at all putting his entire cupcake away in about 30 seconds. And he would have gladly devoured a second if I had allowed it.

McKay's best new trick is walking. He took steps over a month ago at grandma's house, but has been hesitant since. Finally, a couple of days before his birthday, he decided it was time to walk. And so he did. And now he walks more than he crawls. I can't get enough of it. He was so funny with these balloons. He was dragging them around the house laughing. And getting tangled in the strings. 

Here are some things I want to remember about McKay at one year old:

1. He still has only two tiny teeth. The top ones are close to cutting, and he is a drooling machine, but he's still mostly toothless for now.

2. He weighed 24 lbs (90th) and was 31.5 inches long (85th). He's only 6 lbs smaller than Carter, and their hands are almost the same size, too. He's my biggest one year old, which is fitting, since he was my biggest baby.

3. He figured out how to come down the stairs recently too. He can get on his hands and knees, turn around, and come down backward. It has opened up a new world for him as he has been going down to see what's in the basement (not much, as it turns out).

4. He has transitioned fairly seamlessly to whole milk instead of formula. He still prefers it a little warmer, but will take it straight. He's doing better with a sippy cup (with a soft nipple) and doesn't need a bottle anymore. Thank goodness, because I am down to two bottles and it was getting annoying washing them all the time. 

5. He wants to eat everything we are eating, and lots of it. How else do you think he got to be 24 lbs?

6. He loves his "night-night" and sucking his thumb (which he rarely does outside of his crib), and is still good about taking two naps a day, going to bed between 7:00-8:00 and not getting up until 7:00-8:00 the next morning. Love thumb suckers.

7. He says "mama" when he sees me fairly consistently, and tries to mimic other sounds we make, but I don't think he has any other words yet. I haven't taught him any signs yet, but he has copied me doing "milk," so I think it's time to teach him a few.

8. Carter seems to think he is big enough to wrestle, and is always torturing him, sitting on him or pushing him down. McKay may be big, but he's not nearly big enough to take on Carter. Soon, though. Carter better be ready!

9. He has his moments, but overall, he is such a sweet boy. He is tender-hearted and loves his mama most of all. He loves to laugh with the other kids, although he has no idea what is so funny. 

10. He has recently discovered that there is another world outside and wants to be a part of it. It's been a little too cold (most days), but when we have been able to go out and play, he is in heaven. I can't wait until we can play out there every day. He's going to love it!

I am so completely in love with McKay. He has been the perfect addition to our family. He has made my life so much harder, but SO much better. I am so excited to spend the next 17 years getting to know him, and hopefully staying his favorite person in the world! Happy birthday McKayters! You are our lucky charm!

The Leg

I think I have put off writing about Jeff's leg injury because it's exhausting even thinking about it. But I'm already tired this morning (Kyla threw up in her bed at 1:00 and I couldn't fall back asleep), so why not go ahead and write about it now?

A couple of weeks ago, Jeff went with 94 other men on a motorcycle ride in Mexico. They are part of the Utah Trail Machine Association and drove 16 hours to Baja, Mexico, and were riding 1,000 miles in seven days (I don't know how many days they actually rode and how many were spent traveling, and it really doesn't matter. He left early Friday morning and got home late the next Friday night).

He didn't have any cell phone coverage for the week, but every couple of days I would get a text from a messaging service saying that everything was fine and the guys were great. When he got back, though, I heard a different story. On Tuesday, while he was riding, he didn't see where the road had washed out and ended up in an 8-foot ravine going 40 mph. He bailed off the bike at the last minute, pushing off so that he wouldn't crash right into the bike, and hit his leg on the handlebars before rolling off to the side.

He knew it was hurt, but didn't bleed hardly at all and he felt like it wasn't broken. Just a bone bruise, and he felt lucky that he could continue the ride (considering they were in the middle of nowhere, there wasn't really another choice). There was a lot of internal bleeding, though, because when he got home, his whole leg was purple. It looked like he had sprained his ankle really badly, but he said it really only hurt on the shin, where he had hit, and everything else was just the bruising spreading throughout his leg.

Four days after accident

He sat around on Saturday and Sunday, trying to get the swelling to go down, and once it finally did, it really started hurting him. He saw the doctor on Monday, and he could still barely walk on it. The doctor wanted him to have a CT scan to make sure that it wasn't broken, and that there was no damage to his knee. He also started him on antibiotics to avoid infection and had him wrap it during the day to help with the swelling. He had to work Monday-Thursday, so when he got home at night, he tried to keep it elevated and stay off of it as much as possible. The CT scan showed no break, just a large hematoma right on the shin bone, which was good. He wouldn't need surgery or anything major.

Let me just take a minute and say how hard this has been on me. I'm not complaining, just simply stating a fact. I thought I had done well to survive a whole week on my own, but I've ended up being (basically) a single mom for much longer. Because he has had to lay around and stay off his leg, I have had to do everything. Every diaper changed, meal made, dish washed, child put to bed, nose wiped, floor swept, bed made has been all me. And it's been HARD. And exhausting. The dinner-bedtime hours are chaotic, and I just try to do the best I can.

It's been hard on Jeff, too. He doesn't REALLY want to just sit there and watch me barely keep things together. I know that. But we also both know that he needs to get better, and that standing and walking are slowing down that process.

Okay, enough sob story. Back to the nitty gritty. By Thursday, 9 days after the accident, it wasn't that much better. Jeff felt like he needed to have it drained to help the healing process. The doctor (who is a family friend and works closely with Jeff's mom) said he needed to check with Nancy, and nothing got decided. Then on Saturday, when we were with Jeff's family, they sent a pic to the doc and he said it REALLY needed to be drained. So on Sunday, in Nancy's guest bedroom, he performed the "operation." He numbed a small part of Jeff's leg and drained a couple syringes of blood. Soon, though, it was too thick to come out via a needle, so he made a small incision, and using some large q-tips, and a lot of pressure (really hurting Jeff), he was able to drain a significant amount of old, clotted blood.

Twelve days after accident

Fortunately, there was no sign of infection, but they started him on another antibiotic to help avoid staph and MRSA. He was AGAIN told to keep off it as much as possible. We were sure that he would be feeling a lot better and that it would start healing quickly. And while it did look better, it just wasn't healing very fast at all. He had to work again Monday-Wednesday, so it was more of the same. He tried to stay off of it at work as much as possible, and at home, he would be on the couch for the night. The NCAA basketball tournament started yesterday, which has been a great distraction as he is determined to stay off of it until Monday.

                                                   Seventeen days after accident

The swelling is almost all gone and the wound around his leg is finally looking a lot better. It's crazy how long it has taken to get to this point. It has tried the patience of all of us, and I know that all of the prayers being said in his behalf have really helped. Thank you all so much (and those who would have been praying had you known)! I tend to sort of just turn inward when I need to, going into survival mode. At least now it seems like there's a light at the end of the tunnel and that soon Jeff will be back to full strength. And maybe he'll avoid his motorcycle for a while. We'll see...

Some pics

Before I get to all the craziness surrounding Jeff's recent motorcycle trip to Mexico, and his slowly healing leg, here are a few pictures I took from my phone.

Carter loves doing "fuzzles." 

Carter also loves pudding and kisses. 

Carter also loves his "bubba."

Damon got a little dirt bike. He has ridden it around the neighborhood a few times, but hasn't gone out on any trails yet. He needs Jeff to get better so they can go!

Kyla didn't listen to me when I told her she was going to get hurt laying on the bottom of the shopping cart. She should have. Her finger got run over and infected...

...and then the nail fell off. Weird looking.

While Jeff was gone for a week, Carter started parking in his spot in the garage.

Kyla's school celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday and the kids were supposed to come dressed up as a character. She let me attempt a "Cindy Lou Who" do, but took it out the minute school was over.

During the girls' ice skating lessons, the boys like to climb up and down the bleachers. 

McKay got to swing at the park for the first time since the fall. He was a fan.

February Funnies

Kyla, looking closely at my upper lip, "Mom! You're starting to grow a beard!"

Kyla, climbing up on the counter to where the candles were, "Let me have a smell of that!"

Damon, in a prayer at pack meeting, "...please help us to get our awards safely."

One afternoon, I was making lunch for the kids, and while the water was boiling, I started to play a round of Scramble on my phone. Kyla, anxious for lunch, said, "Mom! What's better, playing a game or making lunch for little persons?"

Damon, to his sisters: "Carter gets the most attention. You have to learn that!"

Kyla, when I told her I needed to clean out her finger with rubbing alcohol: "Good. I love alcohol."

Kyla, counting how many seconds it took us to drive home, announced, "Affinity six! I counted to affinity and then it was six more."

A note I found attached to Allie's homework, next to a problem that was especially difficult for her said, "Dear Sra Revuela, please don't send this hard anymore. From Jeff Trapnell and Krystal Trapnell, Allie's parents. OXOX Happy Valentine's Day! (and on the back) You are nice, you can still send it, but not very hard. From Jeff."

Kyla lost a fingernail in an unfortunate shopping cart accident and lamented, "I miss my fingernail. It was my favorite one."

One night we went in to Damon's room for prayer, and found that he had drawn up a contract for becoming one of his "evil minions." He had convinced his sisters to sign it, which enslaved them to him. (I am still looking for it, and will post the exact words if I can find it).