Camping at the Sand Dunes 3/5 - 3/6/10

Camping at the Sand Dunes 3/5 - 3/6/10



So we had an unseasonably warm week in early March and I was a little over excited about Spring and Summer coming, so I started to think about camping. As I watched the weather (with most of the attention being paid to the daily High's) it looked like it was shaping up for a gorgeous weekend. So I decided to go camping early in the week.

We decided to use a site that had electricity and water along with a firepit and little shelter for a picnic table. I had told the kids earlier in the week that we would try to go camping this weekend and they were really excited. Sarah wrote the following little note for me on Thurs: "Dear Daddy I hop we have a fun time together tomorow going camping at the sand doons I hop we have a grate time of corse you now that. to Jeff from Sarah Hamm." What a sweet girl! Nathan was also very excited and looking forward to camping. They were counting down the days all week. Their excitement and anticipation alone would have been worth the trip! They helped me pack some of the camping stuff on Thurs evening and asked over and over why I had to go to work on Friday, because they wanted to camp “all day”. I got home from work early on Friday and we finished packing all the great food that Mary had put together for us and we were on our way. We got out to the camping spot at the Sand Dunes around 5 pm and we set up camp. The kids had a fun time helping me and playing around the campsite. We then went and registered our campsite at the pay-station and the kids found “firewood” (really just small sticks and twigs) as we walked around the campgrounds. A neighborly camper pointed out that there was a horned owl in his nest in a nearby tree so we went over and looked at it, the kids thought that was cool and I answered their questions about what it eats and how it catches it’s food. We discovered that there was no water at the campsite so we had to drive to nearby Bruneau to get some water from a gas station there. The kids enjoyed seeing some deer in the fields as we drove. We got a fire going when we returned and the kids enjoyed helping with the fire. We then cooked hot dogs over the fire and the kids enjoyed eating those and some chips. After eating dinner we just sat around the fire and talked (about owls, fires, camping, etc.). We then made Jiffy-pop popcorn and Sarah and Nathan were quite impressed at how it grew as it was cooked and popped. They enjoyed the popcorn. They were both really excited about eating roasted marshmallows and Nathan, especially, had talked about this all week. However, when they were actually cooked he only had one. Sarah had a couple and then they wanted to go in the tent as it was dark, the fire wasn’t really providing much warmth and it was getting much cooler. They wanted to put on their jammies and get in their sleeping bags. So we went in the tent and we had brought a little fan/heater and that came in handy and took some of the edge off of the cold during the night. We kept it on all night! We played around in the tent a little bit and got them ready for bed. We brought two books to read: The Bernstein Bears “Bear Scouts” and Mercer Mayer’s “My Dad and Me” camping trip book. The kids enjoyed these stories. We then read the Book of Mormon and then we talked for a while. Before they went to sleep, I had them come out of the tent briefly and look at the stars. Unfortunately the Observatory here was closed. After I left I just walked around the camp a bit and cleaned up our stuff and then I joined them in bed. It’s so fun to sleep between your kids while camping. I had enough light to see their sweet little faces sleeping comfortably (and I hoped that they were warm enough with a sleeping bag and blankets). They both slept well – better then me I think… I never sleep good when camping/hiking.



In the morning it was cold and windy as the sun started to come up. They were both tired of being in the tent and wanted to get outside, but I knew they would be very cold as there was frost on the windshield and due to how windy it was. Thankfully, Mary had sent us with some doughnuts so we didn’t have to make pancakes right away for breakfast. So we got in the car and drove about 25 mins to Bruneau Canyon, which is amazing and very deep. It was still windy and cool, but the sun was up which provided some warmth. The kids enjoyed throwing rocks over the fence at the lookout and trying to listen to hear it hit the ground or canyon face below. We probably spent about 45 minutes there and then traveled back. This worked out good because even though it was windy, the sun made the campsite much warmer. I made pancakes on an electric griddle, but it was still so cold and windy that by the time that they ate them they were very cold pancakes and they ate very little, and I didn’t blame them. The syrup was cold and the pancakes were cold. Luckily they had eaten the doughnuts. To get something else in their stomachs we decided to cook the last couple hot dogs, so they had hot dogs and doughnuts for breakfast – what a healthy breakfast!



After “breakfast” we went in the tent and got them dressed for the day and packed up some of our stuff in the tent. Then we got ready to go to the actual Sand Dunes to play. Here’s a funny story. So, apparently on Friday morning while Mary was shopping for stuff for us to go camping at a local grocery store (Paul’s) the kids were telling everybody that they were going camping with their daddy to the sand dunes. When they were checking out of the store, the cashier told Sarah and Nathan to “be careful, last time I was there I saw a rattle snake!” This apparently stuck with Nathan.



When we parked at the bottom of one of the dunes, he refused to come out because he was scared of rattle snakes. I assured him that we wouldn’t see any this time of year and that I would stay with him. He would have none of it! He chose to stay in the car, but it was close enough where he could see us from the car go up and down the dunes. So he stayed behind in the car. Sarah and I walked to the end of the dune and then climbed up it’s spine, rather then hike straight up. The sand was cold on our feet underneath. We got to the top and Sarah enjoyed repeatedly jumping down [“like a bunny – hop hop”] the dune and then climbing back up. She also said that she felt like she was walking on the moon… she seemed to really enjoy this.




After about 30-45 minutes of us playing on the dunes (I jumped down them several times with her as well). I went down to check on Nathan. He was fairly distraught and it looked like he had been crying/upset for a little while. Poor kid! He still did not want to come out and go on the dunes, he just wanted to go back to the campsite. So we went back there when Sarah was done playing on the dunes.


We finished cleaning up our campsite and had a snack. We put the fire out with our remaining water. In the midst of cleaning up the camp, Sarah had apparently been talking to Nathan about how fun the dunes were and that she didn’t see any snakes. She had been so sweet and gently encouraging him to go on the dunes. What a great big sister she is for her little brother (and sisters!). She is so kind and sweet and is such a great example to her siblings. So after we had cleaned everything up, Nathan said he wanted to go back to the dunes. This time we picked a smaller dune that wouldn’t be difficult for Nathan to walk up. He was insistent that I hold his hand while we walked to and then up the smaller sand dune. Sarah ran ahead and we caught up to her at the top. Nathan didn’t want to do any jumping off of the backside of the dune, but enjoyed watching Sarah and I do it (Sarah had to hold his hand while I jumped down). We really praised him for being brave even though he was worried about rattle snakes.



We then drove home. The kids had a great time! I was really glad that we had decided to go even if they were pretty cold at times. It is so fun to see them so happy and excited about things like campfires, tents, sticks, bugs, animals, stars, marshmallows, hot dogs, sleeping bags, etc. Time and money well-spent!


*on a side note, I didn't find the camera in my bag until after our trip to Bruneau Canyon in the morning :(

Molly Svea Hamm

Molly joined our growing family on 4/30/2010 at 12:47 pm (just didn't want to join us on her older sister's birthday!). She weighed in at 8 lbs 2 oz and was 20 inches in length. Mary had her 40 week (exactly) appointment earlier in the day and she was 5 cm's dilated, though she hadn't really had any contractions or anything that would signify active labor. But given that we were only in the hospital for 12 mins before Jane was born, our Doc told Mary that she wasn't going to be sleeping in her own bed tonight. So I worked that day, we went out to dinner together and we checked into the hospital at 6 pm that evening. Because Mary wasn't in active labor, we did some walking for the first couple of hours. Because she had tested + for Strep B she had to be on an antibiotic every four hours. After her second round of antibiotic (started at about 10 pm) she was still just dilated to a 6 or 7 and her dilation was a little off-center, or something. Our doc recommended that Mary spend 10-15 mins on her hands and knees to assist with proper alignment and hoping that it would get things moving along. Up to this point Mary had had some contractions but nothing that she couldn't walk/talk through. Anyway, the hands and knees thing worked. Mary got up from that and began to have some more regular contractions and around 12:15 they started picking up speed and it was clear that things were moving forward progressively.

I was in a reflective mood at this point, watching my wife labor amazingly well and seeming almost in complete control of her body and this labor process. I was so proud of her and impressed at her ability to be so focused and in control. What a contrast from our first one! After our first one I was wishing that I could be back in the old days when the dad's weren't allowed in the room. But this time, I was wishing that I could do more to help her and to feel engaged in this process. I tried to be supportive verbally for her and was informed at one point that it was helpful and at another point that I needed to stop. She knows what she does and doesn't want during the transition point of the labor and delivery process. Anyway, I absolutely loved watching her and I had a good 30 mins of marveling at the amazingness of my wife and her remarkable awareness of her body. She got on the bed to push when she felt that "these are pushing contractions". She pushed through one contraction and on the second one little Molly joined this world and our family. What a beautiful little girl.

I went home around 7:15 am to spell our friend who had put our kids to bed and spent the night at our home. The kids were excited to hear about this little girl joining our family. I made waffles for the kids for breakfast and got them ready for the day. I then took them over to a friends house for a few hours and went to check on Mary. [It is very nice to live about 4 mins from the hospital]. We spent the next few hours together and then I went home and got the kids and brought them home to get them some lunch. We then went to the hospital so some very excited kiddos could see their new little sister.
Here is Sarah holding little Molly. She has been such an excited big sister and wants to hold her and spend time with her a lot. She has been a big helper and I'm sure she will continue to be.

Here is Sarah holding Molly with Nathan. Nathan is pretty excited about his sister and interested in her but not all engaged in wanting to hold her or be all that involved with her yet.
Jane, on the other hand, cannot get enough of her. The picture above is a perfect depiction of their current relationship. The best way to describe it is regularly concerted effort to be pawing or touching her sister in some way. If you don't know where she is, she is probably standing innocently next to a now rocking swing. She is constantly touching her face and head. She loves to point out her eyes, ears, mouth and nose. She's a doll and so excited about her younger sister. See below.


The name was a little bit of a dilemma and much more difficult to decide. Our three other children had names long before they joined our family. This one we just couldn't come to any agreement. Eventually, I kind of won out. We each liked all of our name ideas for this little girl but couldn't decide. I have really liked the name Molly for the last 4-5 years and that is what I really wanted to name her, plus it seemed right to me. I absolutely love her middle name, Svea. I don't really know how to explain by type how it is pronounced, but this is my best guess at a pronunciation: suh (like duh) - vay - uh . The 'suh' sound is really short and may not be completely sounded out. It's a Swedish name, like Sven, if that helps. I don't really know if that makes sense but that's okay. Anyway, we love our little girl and are trying to come to grips with the fact that we are the parents of four children. in our family. and they are ours. and we are responsible for them. four kids. ours.

We'll see how this adjustment and transition goes. Welcome to our family Molly Svea! We love you!

Easter 2010

We are so grateful to celebrate Easter and it is a meaningful and fun tradition in our family. We do the fun stuff on Saturday and the more spiritual stuff together on Sunday. For our spiritual aspect we often read or talk about Christ's resurrection and the significance of this in our lives and in the gospel plan. The kids always have so many specific questions and it is fun to talk about these things.

Below are pictures and brief explanations of some of our Easter traditions.



One of our Easter traditions is to color eggs. The kids seem to enjoy doing it even if the colors don't turn out exactly the way that they were hoping. However, the kids, especially Sarah, are distraught when we start wanting to eat them. They don't like to see their eggs eaten and they don't like the hard-boiled yolks. They get over it.





Easter Egg Hunt! We do the egg hunt (with plastic eggs containing candy) at least as a family and that's what we did this year. The kids enjoy finding the eggs and we enjoy hiding them. Sarah (and Nathan to a lesser extent) were good about letting Jane find some too - often with Mom or Dad's help. The kids very much enjoy the contents of the Easter eggs as well!



For Easter the kids get a basket that they have to find hidden in the house somewhere. They get some kind of a spiritual gift and then some candy and a simple fun gift (like a coloring book or stuffed animal). This year, all of the kids got frogs as they were given to us from a lady in the ward. Nathan particularly enjoyed his and named him Poxy. Sarah and Jane's have kind of been lost in the shuffle (or for good?) of some of their other stuffed animals.