Summer Fun part 2

Camping in Drumheller... started out with Sheri and her family! From Friday to Sunday.

Sheri had invited our family to go with her and her family camping in Drumheller for one of the last weekends in August. To be honest we (including Sheri) didn't think it would be that great, but we all went anyways (ha ha). Much to our surprise we had a great time and the campground was nice and there is LOT'S to do in Drumheller.

Our campsites were back to back so it was nice to have such a large area between our families. The 4 boys slept out in a tent together. We really didn't see much of the boys the whole time as they had their bikes. So they would take off and go explore and make friends. Often they would go ask other kids if they wanted to play games and what not. They had a lot of fun they said!

At this campground there were a lot of rabbits running around. The kids thought it was neat. Brynley would get so excited every time she saw one and would go crawling after them. They of course would hop away as quick as they could and Bryn would start crawling faster to try to catch up to them =)

We had a portable DVD player that we would put movies on for the kids when needed. Brynley's movie of choice (and the only thing she would watch at the time) was BARNEY!!! Yes you heard me correctly...the big purple guy is watched over and over and over...very painful I must say. And let me tell you it is VERY hard to get those darn songs out of your head (ha). But, ohhhh does she love Barney! She smiles and dances and points at him...so cute!

The weather was AWESOME in Drumheller. There was a little pool where we were camping so the kids swam a lot. Taylor is so good with Brynley. She has gotten to know Taylor and Josh quite well and loves to go to them. She even points and smiles at there picture on our fridge in our house.

Kent playing with all 4 boys in the pool. They were playing all sorts of games. Very entertaining to watch I must say LOL! I don't know who was having more fun...Kent or the boys!

Bryn swimming with Aunt Sheri. Brynley loved the water and was so relaxed in it.

When Bryn didn't want to be in the water she was on the cement by the pool playing. It was quite the task to get her to keep her hat on her head. Kent and Bryn had a good time in the pool together that day.

Go-Karting!

There was a place just down from our campground that had go-karting so we of course had to let the kids go on it. Sheri went with the 3 boys. Mike and Josh went and played a little miniature golf as Josh didn't want to go go-karting.

We were having such a great time that we didn't want to stop camping. Kent had to go home as he had to work that following week. But we worked it out and we ended up staying there during the week. The kids and I stayed and Kent came out one of the nights during the week.

Niki and Lucas...joined us for the week...from Monday until Friday! We went home on the Sunday to get more things for the week camping...plus we needed to shower =) Niki decided she wanted to come with us as she didn't have anything else to do. I was glad she came as she was great company.

Lucas wearing Cole's swimming goggles...he looks like an alien (a cute alien that is) =) Niki and Lucas slept out in our big tent and the boys slept in a little tent beside her. Bryn and I were in our fifth wheel. It all worked out really well. Lucas and Brynley are so fun together. They both light up when they see each other. Bryn is a little rough with Lucas since she is 2 months older than him and mobile. Poor Lucas!

Brynley watching Niki, Lucas, Cole and Ty swim. She wasn't feeling good (teething) so I didn't let her in the water as she was G-R-U-M-P-Y! She had fun throwing her toys in the water and having the boys get them for her.

Poor Brynley had a nasty fever for 3 full days and nights! Let me tell you I was EXHAUSTED as there was NO SLEEPING!!! She was miserable and not feeling good. One of her top teeth was coming in. She was very cuddly, but couldn't be without me. I had to be within arms length at all times or she would cry and cry!

Rash

On the 4th day her fever FINALLY broke and she was much happier. Only problem was she had now broken out in this horrible rash all over her body and face. It looked like she had a disease. I took her to the Dr when we got home and he said it was a teething rash from her fever and that it would go away in time. It took over a week to go away.

Niki and Lucas were supposed to stay until Sunday, but they ended up having to leave on the Friday. Soooooo....

Jeff and family...joined us Saturday until Sunday!

Bumper boats!

Ok seriously this was SO fun! We all got to go on them and it was a blast. This was right in Drumheller and we passed by it every day. When Jeff and his family came we weren't sure we would all get to go on them as there were 2 babies and 3 little kids. It all worked out good and we all got to go on.

Miniature Golf!

This was right beside the bumper boats so we figured it would be fun to do as well. Jeff and his family did it as well and the kids all had a great time.

Dinosaur

If you go to Drumheller you of course have to go up in the giant Dinosaur. It was quite the hike up the stairs into it. The kids thought it was neat. This Dinosaur is massive!

Going camping with Sheri, Niki and Jeff so spontaneously was what made it all fun! I am glad it all worked out the way it did. Lot's of good memories made in that 1 week.

Little Miss... lot's of changes!

She now knows what the trampoline is and she quite likes it. Whenever the boys are on it and she can see they are on it she squeals until they take her on there with them.
She is CRAZY busy and into EVERYTHING!! She loves emptying out whatever she can....like the cupboards (which all have baby locks on them now) and my magazine rack (as you can see in the pictures). One minute I am cleaning up one of her messes just to turn around and clean up another one she just made. She is a quick little thing =)


Brynley is a blanket baby. Neither of the boys were really into there blankets. But Bryn, always has one and cuddles right into it rubbing it on her face and burying her face in it and she hums as she does it.

This is what I came around the corner and saw. The boys had left the pantry door open and she got into the cereal. She was eating away and quite happy to show me what she was eating (ha)

At the end of July she took 2 steps. Since then we have been walking with her and trying to get her to walk as hockey is starting soon and I don't want her crawling around in those nasty arenas. Just this past weekend she took 4 steps on her own at Sheri's house. She is so close! Brynley now has 5 teeth and 6th one almost out.

Bryn has temper tantrums now and knows what things are...like toys in a store, stuffed animals...animals of any kind! When she sees something she likes she points at it and says "ohhhhh." It isn't that fun shopping with her to say the least as she wants to touch everything and doesn't want to sit in her stroller.

The boys...

They started their hockey conditioning tonight. Jeff came to our rescue and took the boys for us. Our ice in Crossfield isn't set yet so we have to use the Carstairs arena for now. Kent had meetings until late tonight and Bryn goes to bed by 8 so we didn't know what we were going to do about getting the boys there. Thanks again Jeff you are AWESOME! Jeff's son Logan started hockey tonight as well. I can't wait to see him on the ice playing. It is so fun to watch when they are little like that. The boys tryouts start on Thursday. Tyson is an Atom now and Cole is a PeeWee. And so the business starts with hockey...

Where did Summer go? part 1

Is it just me or does anyone else feel like we didn't really get a Summer? It came and went so quickly! Here is some of the fun we were able to have this Summer...


UTAH

We had gone down to my sister (Emily's) house and met most of my family down at her place for the July 4th celebrations. Man the U.S. sure knows how to celebrate...it was SO fun! Since we had missed Canada Day we decided to wear our Canada shirts to the July 4th celebrations. I am not sure if we were brave or stupid for doing that LOL but in the end I am so glad we did. We went to Emily's town clebrations first thing this in the morning for pancake breakfast and their parade. The kids even got to decorate their bikes and be apart of the parade which they loved.

Family fun with Cousins, Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles


Later in the afternoon their town had a fair type of thing with all sorts of booths and activities for everyone. The kids had a blast!

One of the most fun things the boys got to do was fish for a fish with there hands in a fish pond. Yes you heard me correctly...it was nasty to smell, but so fun to watch as the kids were just having so much fun trying to catch these fish with their hands.

They even got to be a part of a basketball group that with their cousins and they had a fun time doing that even though they got slaughtered LOL! Tyson kept trying to check people as he is so used to hockey and not basketball...it was fun to watch!




Stadium of Fire...

Months ago we all bought tickets to The Stadium of Fire in Provo Utah. Wow was that ever a neat place to be for their July 4th party. Glenn Beck was the host, SheDaisy sang as well as the Jonas Brothers. Man it was CRAZY in the stands...not only little girls were screaming...let me tell you there were some grown older women going just as nuts for the Jonas Brothers. Our boys and us had wide eyes with pure shock on our faces as we looked around in the stands (ha ha). My boys had more fun laughing at the girls/ladies being stupid than watching the show.

Fighter planes flew over as well as these massive army helicopters. The dancers were amzing to watch as well. They had this MASSIVE American flag haning during the ceremony. It was held up by 2 cranes.



Boating...

We finally got the boat out on the lake and had a great time doing that. It was Brynley's first time being on the boat and she LOVED it! Within minutes she fell asleep. So we laid her down on the floor and she slept for an hour...it was great! Jeff and his family spent the day with us and we had a nice time. It was fun to have Logan (4 yrs old) and Jade (5yrs old) out on the tube with the kids.

Utah again...Lagoona Beach

Brynley in her CUTE bathing suit and her ohhhh so cute cousin Roel (2 yrs old). Roel was so good to her and they really played well with each other.

We decided to go back down to Utah since we weren't able to finish doing all the stuff we had planned to do the first time we had come down (we went home earlier in July to be with Russ). We went to Lagoon and spent the morning at Lagoona Beach on all the fun water slides and tube rides.

Cole and Tyson on one of the tube rides.

Kent, Gary, Cole and Tyson on some of the may rides at Lagoon.

Once we were done at Lagoona Beach we went and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening over on the amusement side of Lagoon.

Kent and I...Gary took this picture at the perfect time...you can see me screaming and Kent's face is so red from him yelling as well =)

Kent and I decided to go on a ride called The Catapult...yes either we were crazy or stupid that day ha...but we did it and it was fun. We have the entire ride on DVD (to prove we actually did it) as they have a camera set up on there watching you. Lets just say I was screaming VERY LOUDLY and Kent was as well ha ha ha ha.

Tyson and Gary went on The Catapult as well! I was a little concerned about Ty, but it didn't even bother him. There was NO WAY Cole was getting on that ride he said =)

Cherry Hill Water Park...

This is what the water park looks like

This was SO fun! My sister and her family as well as Gary and his family and us of course all went here together. This is really close to Lagoon as well. There is tube rides, batting cages, miniture golf etc... all at this place. Last time I was here was when I was 12 years old...lot's of good memories =)

Unfortunely I could never find the boys to take pics of them. So here is Bryn having fun in the kids area. It was so neat there and we all had a blast!



The Osenbach home...

Cole playing with Bryn...this was so sweet! She loved this little red car and Cole was so good about pushing her around in it. I am not sure who had more fun Bryn or Cole as they were both grinning ear to ear. Cole is an AWESOME big brother!

Uncle Mark playing football with the kids. Mark is such a good Uncle and has always been so good with the kids. Our kids LOVE spending time with the Osenbach family. Nathan was trying to "fix" a bike in one of the pics (he is so cute and I miss him a lot). We also took our fifth wheel down there and camped outside there place. They have a HUGE acre or more lot!

The Osenbach Family!

Mark, Elizabeth (10 yrs old), Emily, Maxwell (12 yrs old), Korhman (8 yrs old), Nathan (2 yrs old), Calvin (4 yrs old)

(This family picture is an older one, but it was all I had with ALL the family in it. )

My sister Emily is amazing with how on top of things she is. She has a beautiful garden...it even made me want to do one...then I thought a little longer about it...and I am still thinking ha ha. I only get to see her once a year so we always do a girls night out while I am there. I am not happy that we don't have any pics of us together from this trip or ANY of our trips. SO next year when we are there Em I want a picture of you and I together FOR SURE!! Love you and thanks for putting up with us in July....twice =)

I have more Summer pics but this post was already toooooo long so I am breaking it up and will do a part 2 post =)

This Summer...it came and went because of everything going on with Russ and we really didn't have that great of weather this year either.

It has been a Summer of learning, a Summer of good times, a Summer of sad times, a Summer of unmistakeable heart break and most of all a Summer of togetherness which is what I loved the most!

The most wondferful time of year...

BACK TO SCHOOL!!!!

OK so I have noticed ALL my pics have a blur on them (which ticks me off royally) so just look past it as it makes some of the pics look funny...but what can I do.

First day of school...
the boys started school on Tuesday, September 1, 2009...the happiest day of the year! =) Truly I like them being in school just because then we get back into a routine and it just makes life easier.

Cole reluctantly started grade 6 at the WG Murdoch High School! Yes the grade 6 kids go to the same school as the junior high and high school kids. They are taught no differently than the older kids as they are taught by the same teachers. I was not happy about this as I feel they are being forced to grow up too quickly. Plus they will be exposed to things they just shouldn't have to be exposed to as such an early age.

Cole didn't get all the options he wanted...for example he was put in dance/drama class instead of computer class (bwhahaha). When we picked up his schedule and looked it over Cole had a melt down when he saw dance/drama on there...I on the other hand thought it was HILARIOUS and had to work really hard at not laughing!! No worries though as we got that class changed and he is happy. He likes having a locker and says his first day went really well. He says the teachers sure talk a lot though =)

Tyson started grade 3! He didn't sleep much the night before as he was soooo excited for his first day back to school (ha ha). At the end of the day he came home happy that he got Ms. Barass and not the other grade 3 teacher. Mind you Ms. Barass is new to the school so who knows what she will be like.

Our boys!

They were both VERY excited to wear their new clothes and use their new back packs. I remember that feeling and it was always so fun!

I was surprised when they stood together for this shot and they put their arms around each other without me telling them too. It was a rare moment that is for sure (ha ha)


The kids!

Kent stayed home to help take the kids to school. Since they are each in different schools it made things a little tricky for the first day. Cole wanted me to go with him as he had NO CLUE where to go or what he was supposed to do. So Bryn and I went with Cole. Once we figured out where he was supposed to go he saw his buddies and I slipped out without as I was no longer needed =) Kent went with Tyson over to the elementary school. Bryn and I walked over there as school hadn't started and I wanted to hear who Tyson's teacher was going to be. So in the end it all worked out really well. Tyson was thrilled to have his Dad there too.

Bryn was so happy to see them when they walked in the door after school. I think she was confused as to where they had been. It was cute watching them come in and her great them with a big smile and them pick her up and give her loves.

Cole so nicely pointed out to me the other day that by the time he is in grade 12, Brynely will just be starting Kindergarten...WHAT?!*&$ Who's bright idea was that ha ha.

Can I just say I cannot believe I have a child old enough that has "options" in school...I feel OLD!!

Russ's Funeral...A Life Well Lived!

These past few weeks have kind of blended into one big blur. It is a very surreal feeling around here! Everyone has left and it is very quiet. Debbie is in Ontario now with her side of the family. They are keeping her busy I am told. She left about a week after the funeral. She had somethings she needed to do before she left and once she got them done they were on there way.

If you are wanting to see any of the pictures bigger then you just double click on them and they should go bigger for you.

This was the front of Russ's funeral program. Russ's life truly was A Life Well Lived! The wheat in the background was something we all thought was fitting for Russ.

This is what you saw when you opened up the program.

Russ's youngest daughter Niki, his daughter in law Barbara (me) and his sister in law Donna all gave the Tribute talk together. I was so glad we had each other up there supporting one another as we gave his tribute.

A family friend (actually it is the father of one of Russ's daughter in laws...Melanie, who is married to Jeff) Noel Burt gave a wonderful spiritual message.

A few people have requested copies of the tribute talk and the spiritual talk that were given. If you would like a copy email me at kbstanf@hotmail.com and I can send you copies.

We also had ALL primary aged children that were there come up and sing I Am A Child of God. It was so neat to see these children all up there and hear there sweet voices sing this song. Russ would have loved it and did love it I am sure =)

We picked this as one (the above song) of the songs to be sang at the funeral as we thought it spoke volumes on how Russ felt about missionary work. He LOVED his mission and so badly wanted to be back with the Malaysian people. He was such a great example to us all!

The last song that was chosen to be sung was Families Can Be Together Forever. This was a hard song to sing, but at the same time we wanted to yell it from the roof tops and let everyone know how we felt. The spirit was strong as we sang this song. We truly believe and know that families can be together forever! We look forward to being with Russ again one day.

This was the back of the program. We thought it was very fitting to have his missionary name tag on there.

Funeral

(Monday, July 13 2009)

These pictures show the table displays we had set up at the church for people to look at. There was our recent family picture, a picture of Russ and Deb on their mission in Malaysia, his scriptures, his mission name tags, a picture of the farm where he grew up and his missionary photo book from when he was 19 years old.

These were some of the table center pieces at the luncheon. The ladies who put the luncheon on for the family did these all on their own without us knowing. They came up with the idea of incorporating red and wheat into them as Russ was wrapped with a red blanket when he was first born and then of course the wheat is something that is just Russ and him being a farmer. We were pleasantly surprised and SO touched that they did this!

The luncheon after the funeral at the church in the gym. We had buns, salads, deli meats and lot's of desserts. We didn't have too long to eat & visit as we needed to get on the road to get to the graveside for the scheduled time.

Flower arrangements sent to the funeral from family and friends

Slide show of Russ throughout his life

(this was played at the luncheon after the funeral)

Sorry I am still trying to figure out how to get the slide show on here. If anyone can tell me how I would appreciate it =)

The slide show was put together by Russ's nephew Dean. He did a great job and did it all with such short notice...he pulled it off! Thanks SO much Dean, you are wonderful and we are so appreciative!

The funeral went as well as can be expected. Deb had a family friend named Donna make the flower spray that goes on top of the casket. Deb and the kids wanted Donna to incorporate wheat into the flower arrangement since Russ was a farmer and all. There was even wheat on the casket...just like Russ's Dad had on his. There was wheat on the corners and a "Dad" decoration as well. Just a little something extra they can put on caskets now I guess.

The corner decorations on Russ's casket

Casket flower arrangement

Russ was buried in Cardston, Alberta where he is from. It is about a 2 1/2 hour drive south of Calgary where the funeral itself was held. On the way down the weather wasn't nice and it was raining. So we weren't too happy about that. But much to our surprise the rainy weather hadn't reached Cardston yet so the grave side went well with no rain. The minute we were done and leaving the drops started coming. Russ's Aunt Jesse told me that she knew the weather would cooperate for Russ =)

The Pallbearers carrying the casket to the graveside.

The Pallbearers were Russ's 4 sons (Kent, Mike, Jeff and Gary) Russ's 2 son in laws (Mike and Darren), and 4 of his nephews (Kyle, Daryl, Derek and Dean).

The honorary Pallbearers were Russ's grandson's:

Cole, Tyson, Taylor, Josh, Logan, Roel, Macintyre, Lucas, Mitchell and Dylan

and 1 nephew:

Dale

Russ's brother Dwight did the dedication of the grave. Russ and Dwight were very close and so were their families. So it felt very appropriate to have Dwight do this for his brother.

You can see in the pictures the weather that was coming. The weather was really calm at the cemetery, a little chilly is all.

Most of the women and grand kids were each given a flower from some of the flower arrangements that were there. We each placed our flower on the casket one at a time as a way of showing our love.

The "GOOD" Family...Deb's maiden name is Good!
We LOVED having ALL of Deb's family here! There was around15 people in our house staying here. And each day there was around 30-40 people here in the evenings. Our ward and friends brought food each day. We were so touched with all the love and help we got from everyone. Each day we had more than enough food for everyone...it was such a HUGE help!

Having Deb's siblings and parents here was such a blessing for us as we needed them more than we realized. Each of them played such a big part in our day to day life and helped in more way than I can even say. THANK YOU , THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

They took over taking care of our boys as well so we could get things done and not worry. We knew the boys were being taken care of and having fun and it gave us such peace of mind. We love that they love them and that the are so accepting of them. We couldn't have done what we needed to and wanted to do if they all hadn't been here...we love them for that! We are so grateful our kids had a chance to get to know them better. FAMILY IS SO IMPORTANT!

I keep thinking back to when they were all here and I am still amazed by it all. I love that they all came and took over and took such good care of Deb, us, my kids and our home. We have been so preoccupied with taking care of Russ and trying to also take care of Deb and be there for them that we didn't realize how much we were needing it as well. They all brought us much needed relief and support!

I have fallen more in love with the "Good" family =) You are and were like angels that swooped in to wrap your arms around us...and ohhhhh did we need it and we felt it! Words can't express how thankful...we love you guys and we SO appreciate all you did.


A big shout out to my family as well...THANK YOU so much for keeping Brynley for the week that you had her! Brynley is a 9 month old busy little girl and we wouldn't have been able to get the things done so easily if she had been here. It freed up us being able to spend all those last special days and time with Russ and come and go as we needed. THANK YOU for taking care of her at the meet the family and at the funeral as well. You were life savors and we LOVE you and appreciate all you did for us. Brynley loved being with you all so much that she didn't want anything to do with us when she was brought back to us ha ha...it is funny now, but at the time it about broke my heart that she wouldn't come to me. She loved her Poppa and they had such a special bond.


Our "new normal"...
We are trying to make a "new normal" around here now that things have slowed down. Kent and I keep commenting on how we feel almost lost like we don't know what to do with ourselves now that Russ is gone. Taking care of Russ kept us very busy everyday and it became such a HUGE part of our daily lives and our daily routine. We miss taking care of Russ and the importance that brought to us each day. Day to day life just isn't the same now that is for sure.

These past few weeks have been very emotional for all of us. We keep being told with time it will get easier. Helping Deb clean out her room and taking all of Russ's stuff out of there was especially hard on us. But on the other hand we were so glad to be apart of helping Deb with it all. When Kent had tears running down his face he would leave the room without Deb seeing him and he would come back in when he had gotten himself back under control. Little things kept setting us off. We didn't want to upset Deb so we didn't let her see us get upset. Seeing Russ's hair on his shirt and smelling him was what made tears pour down my face...also seeing and smelling the lotion that I would always put on his head and ears really got to me. Kent and I would just take turns leaving the room and we would just smile at each other in passing.

Kent and I were driving home the other night from Sheri's when that song by Lonestar came on the radio called I'm already there....do you know it? Tears poured down our cheeks as we didn't need to say anything to each other we just knew what each other was feeling and thinking...we just held each others hand and cried and listened to the song. After the song was over we admitted to each other than when our minds are still and we aren't busy we both are constantly thinking about Russ. Little things trigger the memories and that is a good thing....just hurts the heart is all =)


The tribute talk...
Ever since the funeral there are things I keep thinking of that I wish we had said as well...BUT, that is how it goes. It is really hard to sum up a 58 year olds life when you are only given 15 minutes to do so.

When the family was discussing who they thought should give the tribute at the funeral I was shocked when they brought up my name. Kent was the one who suggested it and everyone agreed. I wanted to kill Kent for suggesting me as he knows how terrified I am about getting up in front of people and speaking. It truly is my biggest fear and I get MAJOR anxiety about it....therefore I don't speak in public normally. I cried when they all asked me if I would help do it as it was what they wanted. I really wanted to do it, but didn't think I could because of my anxiety! I have to tell you a calm came over me and I knew I could do it and I was excited to do it...believe it or not. I felt so honored that they would want me of all people to help give the tribute. It also helped knowing I wouldn't be up there by myself...made it way easier for sure! Amazingly enough when it was time for us to go up there I was pretty calm. I so badly wanted to do this for Russ as I loved him like he was my own Dad! When we were standing up there I was amazed with how comfortable I felt and how at peace I was feeling about the whole thing. He was a great man and is SO incredibly missed already!

Russ was an amazing man! He touched a lot of lives and helped SO many people in so many different ways. We love hearing peoples stories of how Russ touched their lives or their memories of him. So if you have any story to tell us or want to share anything with us PLEASE do as we would love to hear it.

We love Dad very much and we will continue to live our lives the way Heavenly Father wants us to so we can be a Forever family and be with Dad again one day!

Thank you to everyone for all of your love and support!