Oh The Weather Outside is Frightful!

Okay, so maybe it's a step above frightful. It's downright scary. I know I just posted recently, but I thought I would throw this one out there for anyone who was not here for our little wind storm. The gusts were reported at 103 mph in Centerville. I have never driven so white knuckled to work before. When I left our house it was breezy, but when I hit Farmington I had to hold on for dear life. I believe that there were at least 10 reported Semi-trucks that blew over. Davis County Golf Course reported a final number of 419 trees that blew over or were damaged beyond saving. School was canceled, the power was off, and on, and off, and on until 6:30 Thursday night at our house. Others had no power until the next evening. We even had church meetings on Sunday either shortened or canceled with the members being advised to go help get the neighborhoods cleaned up. This was in anticipation of a second wind event that could have possibly hit on Sunday night, into Monday (The original storm was on Thursday, Dec. 1st.) Staci's parents lost 3\4 of their shingles. My mom and dad lost all the siding on their chimney, as well as an apple tree, and my old basketball hoop. Staci's grandparents probably had the most damage, with approximately 20 - 25 trees blown over in their yard. One tree, as it was uprooted, actually severed their sewer line. After all the dust cleared, and the cleanup was underway, it sank in just how blessed we really are. Utah rarely has tornadoes. No hurricanes. Staci and I were extremely blessed to not even lose a shingle. Hopefully this is a once in a lifetime storm. I posted a few pictures of the damage.

It was even scary for my tough Britten. After literally being blown home from school, he was so afraid we might blow away. He sat in our recliner with a book and kept saying, "If I read, then it will keep my mind off the wind." He was afraid the roof would blow off our house. Kameron on the other hand wanted to know why he couldn't go out and play. Needless to say, we are all so grateful to be safe, to have people around us who care, and to have survived the Dec. 1st wind event.

Golf, Harry Potter, and the Rockets Red Glare

Okay, so apparently it is my turn to blog. Staci told me so. It's been a while, but here we go. First off, Halloween came and went. While not my favorite holiday, it was fun. Kameron decided to go dressed as a golfer (you should see his swing). Staci found a nice argyle sweater, he wore Britten's baseball pants, and some tall argyle socks. Look out Phil, here he comes. Britten decided to go as Harry Potter. I tried to talk him into letting me die his hair black, but I think he was afraid it would never come out. He was the best looking blonde Harry I've ever seen. It was a little bit of a sad Halloween though, as Britten was invited to his first Halloween party. First Halloween trick-or-treating without Britten. Kameron and I had a good time though, and Britten had fun at his party. I just wish they would stop growing up.

It seems like I hardly had a chance to blink after Halloween, and Thanksgiving was upon us. I love Thanksgiving. The day was hectic as always. We began by running over to Staci's grandparents church to spend some time with her family. As always, it was fun. Good to catch up with all of her family. We then ran back to my mother's house for the big dinner. Mom had two big tables set up in her family room. Our family barely fits anymore. The food was wonderful and the company even better. Once we were done eating, the real fun began. Two years ago my Brother-in law (Dan) began a new family tradition. After dinner, we head to the field between Columbia Elementary School and Kaysville Junior High, and launch model rockets. We gave Britten his rocket for his birthday, but I think I had more fun putting it together than he did. He was excited for the launch, however. My brother- in -law Spencer and my brother Kevin also made rockets, and Dan brought his from last year. Kevin thought he had to show off his Engineering skills and outdo us all. His rocket was a two-stage rocket (basically that means it goes, splits in two, and goes some more). It was awesome, except for the fact that we never found it. Kudos to Dan for starting this fun family tradition. Later that night, Staci and her mother renewed their tradition of joining all of the crazy Black Friday shoppers. They left around 9:00 p.m. on Thanksgiving night, and she crawled into bed around 7:00 a.m. the next morning. As far as I am concerned, that is one less shopping trip I will have to take, so good job honey!! Keep it up. I'll stay home and watch football. The boys and I also have a tradition to spend a few hours the day after Thanksgiving at the Hill Air Force Base Air Museum. Kevin and Staci's dad Russ joined us this year. It was a lot of fun. Now it is full speed ahead to Christmas.

Oh, to kick things off for the Holidays, I made Staci proud by hanging our Christmas wreath. Now the countdown to Christmas begins. But oh, how I love it.

Birthday Parties Galore!!

When school starts in August, I always seem to breath a sigh of relief.  I made it through the summer and lived to tell about it.  I always envision life slowing down and returning to a normal pace.  Then September rolls around.  I begin to rack my brain with the upcoming birthdays of my boys. 

Kameron is first at the very end of the month.  I swear I spend countless hours trying to figure out what to get a 4 year old that he hasn't already inherited from his big brother, or that he doesn't already have.  Lucky for me, the only thing he really wanted was a new set of golf clubs.  These to replace the old set of the exact same clubs he got for Easter.   His old set had cracked heads, broken shafts, and the duck tape would hold no more.  He  had spend the summer swinging away.  Every ball, tree branch, leaf,  matchbox car, toy, or whatever else he could find, seemed to end up on the tee with Kameron ready so send it into the yard next door.  No kidding, without fail, it will end up in the neighbors yard!!  I will admit, I think we have a golfer in our future, this kid has a killer swing.  He even impressed the guy who does weed control on our lawn and the one who helped installed our central air.  My brother went home with a golf ball in the bucket that he keeps all of his tools in.   With new golf clubs in hand, he was ready to hit the ground running.  Watch out neighbors, here he comes!

While Kameron was relishing in his new clubs, it left me a bit sad.  There was my little 5lb 11oz baby.  Swinging a club like there was no tomorrow.  Kameron will always be the baby of the family.  I can hardly believe how time has passed.  He is my snuggle buddy, my singer, my non-picky eater.  He makes me smile everyday and always reminds me what day it is on the calendar.  How I love this little boy!

Next up is Britten, three and a half weeks later, in the middle of October, we are celebrating again.  This birthday is very much the same in thought, What do you get the the 10 year old who is too little for the "baby toys" and not quite old enough for the "bigger kid toys"?  Like most kids his age, video games are the "thing"!  We do have a Wii and for too long there were just not enough controllers for all his friends to play when they came over.  So two new controllers and a new video game were the perfect fit.  Now it is Phineas and Ferb to the rescue at our house.   Britten is my tenderhearted son.  He never has anything bad to say about anyone...EVER.  He loves to be loved and he loves to give love.  He has always been the apple of his mom and dad's eye.  He is an amazing big brother and lets his little brother tag along.  He teaches Kameron how to navigate the games on the Wii, and lately they can be found in the front yard throwing the football, or playing tag.   How lucky I am to be the mom of such a loving and kind son.  Not a day goes by that I don't think about my little 6lb 8oz baby Britten, and the complete joy he brings to me and to our family.

How fun it is watching my kids grow up and getting to celebrate all the milestones involved with growing and progressing at home, in school, and in the gospel.  HOW GRATEFUL I FEEL TO BE MOM!!

*Photos to come, I promise.*

The Adventure Begins

And so it begins, my sojuourn into the world of blogging.  I can't guarantee it will be the most exciting blog ever written or designed, my amazing writer of a sister-in-law gets that honor.  But, I hope this will allow some friends and family to "keep up with the Krantz's" if they so desire.  You are guaranteed to read a lot about the world of sports, because as a family, that is what we love.  You will hopefully find some humorous events as I think boys are funny, and perhaps some heartwarming moments too.  So here is to my first go at blogging...wish me luck!