The haps

Here's what we've been up to lately.

Claire's preschool class had a trip to the zoo and Maddie and I tagged along.

Claire enjoying the beautiful day.


Madeline striking a pose.


Claire on the train with her friends from school.


Viewing the exotic and dangerous "goats."


Madeline kept climbing on every fence she found. I looked away for a second, and she had climbed almost halfway up the fence around the llama enclosure. Luckily I was a responsible parent and got her down instead of taking a picture, so this one will have to suffice.


Maddie had fun rolling down the hill.


A picture with my girls.


It's been fun to visit with Jeff again. We're glad to be a stopping place while he's away from his family. Here's Ryan and Jeff enjoying some quality game time.


It was the last big fundraiser/activity for Malmo School and on the morning of, it was pouring rain and it didn't stop all day! Luckily with some last minute scrambling, almost everything was moved inside and the kids had a blast. They still did the bike-a-thon outside and we raised almost as much as last year when the weather was great, so all in all, it was a fun day.

Here's Claire and dad ready to go!


The four year old PM class, lined up and ready for the signal to start!


Madeline and I getting ready to watch the bikers.


Claire got the royal treatment as Ryan not only pushed her around, but sheltered her from the rain.


Maddie and her lovely face paint at the Carnival.


Other fun haps:

Because of Val's generosity, I got to see Beauty and the Beast at the Citadel with my friend Emily. It was a nice cultural evening but Gaston was my favourite part. So over-the-top and hilarious!

Winding down the preschool year, we had our last executive meeting. It's been fun working with these ladies and seeing how much work goes into running a parent co-op. I will most likely get an even better idea because next year there is still an opening for the president. We shall see what happens!

We had a nutrition/feeding assessment appointment for Claire and routine check ups for the both the girls. Both of them are growing and doing well.

As part of dealing with all the logistics of Grandpa's passing, my dad and his brothers took a trip down to American Fork and sorted through their household belongings and each family took some mementos of them. My immediate family and I got together and further sorted the items, each taking some things that reminded us of Grandma and Grandpa. I thought it might be difficult at first, to see things that used to be in their home, but it was actually a nice experience to be with my family and to share stories and memories about the items and about the fun things we did with Grandma and Grandpa.

The girls enjoying one of the few sunny days we've had recently.


Ryan took "his boys" (as Maddie calls them) to play Frisbee golf, to take a tour of Stephanie's lab where she works, and had a fun games night at our house. He's a great youth leader. He's been busy at school, gearing up for the end of the year, trying to hold the students attention. It's an uphill battle these last few weeks, but he's hanging in there.

I keep hoping that the late arrival of summer means that it will last longer to compensate, but I'm worried that won't be true! Hopefully we can get some nice weather soon.

Mash-up

I stole my title from Glee. Well that's the first time I heard it used. Basically this blog entry is a hodge-podge (I love that term) of random thoughts and happenings from the past few days.

Ryan obliged me by taking a picture of this beautiful pink sunset outside our house. Love it.


We got out for a fun date night with some friends to see this play. Guys and Dolls - one of my favourite. You could tell that the kids must have watched the Marlon Brando version because the boy who played Skye talked just like he did in the movie. The kids were talented!

On the few hot days we had, we spent more time in our cool basement. One of the favourite attractions down there is the "ball pit." Claire actually sits up for quite a long time by herself in there. Sometimes she's joined by her enthusiastic sister.


Here's a yummy meal I tried out from my favourite recipe magazine, What's Cooking from Kraft Canada. Here's the link to the recipe. I know, how housewifey of me. I seriously love when this magazine comes in the mail. But for all of you who do not get it, here's a link to the magazine archives. I would highly recommend trying some of these out. They're usually quick and tasty.


Our garage is now stuffed full of furniture. My Dad brought up a bunch of items from my grandparents home in American Fork. After much deliberation and sorting and hard work, most of their earthly belongings have been redistributed throughout the family. It's really sunk in again that they are gone. It's getting easier to think about it as time passes although it's difficult to have those fond memories mixed up with feelings of loss.

This is a rare sight so I had to take a picture. Madeline was so tired after a day of being outside that she conked right out on the floor. I really do believe that children survive their younger years because they look so sweet whilst sleeping.


As rare as Madeline falling asleep by herself and not in her room is, tandem spontaneous napping is even more rare. I think the heat really took it out of them. Also, this is how our living room looks most days, all day.


Auntie Mel ran over to our house (yes - almost 9km) on the hottest day of the year so far. Luckily we had the pool out and both she and Maddie braved the cold water and had some fun.

Mel's training for the half-marathon inspired me to go running for the very first time and I actually enjoyed it. I just might convert.



Claire had a lovely ride on Babe and they had some fun group and individual pictures taken. I can't wait to see how they turn out.


Here's Maddie, Claire and Hannah as the girls wait for their horses to be ready at Little Bits.


Our Victoria Day weekend was lots of fun. We spent some rainy days inside, but got out for a fun birthday BBQ at Kathy and Peters, Maddie and Ryan saw How to Train Your Dragon with some friends from church, and we had Em and Trevor over for a spontaneous BBQ and ate outside to celebrate the sun finally coming out on Monday.

That's the haps from the Laytons

Things that are awesome

I recently bought a book because the title caught my eye (as well as the 20% off sticker since I am apparently cheap). The Book of Awesome. I haven't finished it yet, but so far, each thing he mentions I have been in agreement with. I'd be interested to see what percentage of people agree. Perhaps we're all not so different after all.

I decided to do my own list of simple but brilliant things I have noticed lately.


1. The smell of clean, hot laundry straight from the dryer.

2. Striking a pose.


3. Mint chocolate.

4. The soothing transition to cooler air as you walk down the stairs to the basement on a hot day.

5. Hanging onto something apparently useless, only for it to actually come in handy! (Story: When we bought our house, the previous owner left this pool skimmer in the garage and we thought, "Why would we ever need one of those?" But we kept it.)


6. Opening up to someone you love and feeling an increased connection with them.

7. An unexpected and lovely phone conversation with someone you don't know very well.

8. Laughing so hard that you cry. This picture was taken after seeing her aunties in their musical revue. Madeline was totally in diva mode. She posed like this for every picture.


9. A fridge full of art.

10. Spontaneous date nights made possible by willing babysitters.

11. A moment of stillness.


12. Racking up Airmiles. Boo yah.

13. Eating on the patio of a restaurant and sitting in just the right spot to catch the sunset.

14. Trying something scary, hard and new. Acro-yoga.

15. Staying until the end of the movie credits and seeing something cool!

16. Summer. Period.


17. Totally rocking a complicated step combo.

18. Hooded towels - why don't they make those for adults? I ask you!


19. Fitting into old clothes from the back of your closet.

20. Contagious smiles.


21. Staying until the coffee shop closes because you lost track of time with a good friend.

22. The unfeigned excitement of a child. (Maddie at the musical)


23. Being COMPLETELY caught up on laundry. All of it washed and dried and put away. No piles anywhere to be seen.

24. A poignant memory of a loved one. In 2 days it will be one year since my grandma died. The last time I saw her, she and I folded fitted sheets together. We didn't talk much because she couldn't speak very well at that point, and today while I was on my way to completing my laundry, and was folding fitted sheets, I had an intense remembrance of that moment and it made me sad and happy all at once.

25. Forgetting you had zoomed in for the last picture you took, and discovering that it was way TOO close for the next one.


Rob and I (zoomed out).


26. Having a window in your shower.

27. Fixing things with zip ties.

28. Spontaneous napping.

29. Coconut lime lotion.

30. Sitting tall. Claire riding excellently on Babe last week!


31. Flowers that last a long time.

32. Motorcycle dates.

33. Friends you haven't met.

34. Talented siblings. These are just two of them, Mel and Nat, after their musical production.


35. Remembering random phone numbers.

36. This picture.

37. Glee versions of songs.

38. The first taste of the hot chocolate as it bursts through the layer of whipped cream topping.


Ryan's contributions:
1. Speeding up until you've reached a previously discovered photo radar trap, suddenly applying the brakes and waving as you pass by at the speed limit.
2. Old school rap, Will Smith and DJ Jazzy Jeff style.
3. Ducati Monsters
4. Knowing all the words to a song on the radio and successfully singing along. (Ex. It's The End of the World as We Know It - REM)
5. 200km/h (bike or car)
6. Being asked to turn to a specific page in a book and opening to the exact page on the first try.


As a side note, if you think my list is long, check THIS out.

This was a fun exercise and obviously not a comprehensive list of simply awesome things in my life. The more I wrote, the more things came to mind. I would encourage you to make your own list. It's very fun. Make sure you leave lots of extra room at the bottom because I guarantee you will find more things to add.