Scout Camp Cole

Last week I went to Scout Camp. Two of the boys in my troop, Seth and Kyle were old enough to volunteer as staff. The left Richie, Callen, Mathew, and I. I had a great time, and the food was definitely better. Here is a little run through of one day's schedule, before you watch the video.

Richie and I did polar bear which is 5:45 am to 6:45 am. Breakfast is at 8:00. After breakfast we head out for our first class at 9:00. Each class is 3 hr. At twelve people are starting to line up for food. The next class begins at 1:00 and finishes at 4:00. We have a couple hours until dinner, although we usually try an arrive a quarter till' so we won't miss the line up. Camp fire and devotional is down by the waterfront and takes place at 8:00. After that is finished, everyone races back up to the cafeteria to get in line for dessert. A couple times we just skipped it because we were a little late in getting up and the line was starting to look scary. Then we would go back to camp and have our own little camp fire, over which we would sometimes roast apples!!! You'll get it in a sec . . .

2013 Alder Family Reunion

Everyone has been very excited about this. It has taken a lot of preparation but it was 100% worth it (I definitely had the time of the year!). We decided to do exactly what we did last year,  which is to co-host with mom's brother down in Wheatland. So half of the families would stay at our place, and the other half at Cameron and Amy's (unfortunately, owing to special circumstances, Mom's sister's family, Mark and Heidi Bigelow, were not able to make it. We definitely missed them). The first day, everyone would come here where we would have activities planned, and then the next day we'd all go over to Cameron and Amy's place and enjoy what they had planned. Some people arrived as early as Tuesday, the 2nd. Even more arrived on Wednesday, but Thursday is when it all began.

In the morning we went to the Colfax ward 4th of July breakfast, that was thrown by someone in our ward. They also allowed the kids to go swimming in their pool. After that we went back home and not long later the families arrived that were staying at Cameron and Amy's home. We had lunch and we all had fun hanging out with our cousins. Then around 1:00 we left for the Bear River Campground. We swam, splashed, floated, drowned (not really!), and played catch with a whisle missile!

Jacob and I wanted to organize a float like we did last year and we managed to get a final crew of six, which was perfect because we had exactly six flotation devices: 2 tubes and 4 surfsters; they're a sort of boogie board that you lay on. It has handles on the sides and blows up to about 4 in thick. I definitely prefer them in front of the tubes. So, about 2:30, Brett, Dad, Doug, Emma, Jacob, and I set off down the river. There were some slow spots but the few small rapids that we hit were a lot of fun. One spot has a sort of cascade and is followed by some white water. That was a lot of fun! We also passed a jumping rock called Eagle Rock. It's about 20 feet high, not to bad, and the part that is right above the water is shaped like an eagles beak; hence the name. We all jumped off a couple more times and then continued down the river. Not long afterward we turned a bend and could see the bridge up ahead; the bridge that we would meet Grandpa at. Dinner was delicious, followed by ice cream with more than enough choices of toppings. That night, owing to Makayla's spectacular imitation of Brian Reagan, we watched one of his shows. Brian Reagan is a comedian. Ha Ha Ha, Hee Hee Hee, Ohhhhh . . . that was a good one! Ha Ha, I get it!!

The next morning, after some plentiful rest and a good breakfast, we chilled out for a little, and then around 9:30, we left for Cameron and Amy's place. I call it place because besides the house, they also have land!! Land covered in bike tracks! I don't know what it is, but I find such a thrill when I'm on a motor bike. Something about leaning back and enjoying the ride, where, instead of pedaling, it takes just a little twist of the wrist. Well I guess I shouldn't say "leaning back and enjoying the ride", because half that precious gas was spent on climbing ramps . . .

Thanks Uncle Scott for all these pictures!!

They also have an amazing pool setup. They've got a slide, a diving board, a small Jacuzzi like thing for little kids, and several lawn chairs along one side for the parents to survey the activities in the pool. Here's me trying to surf:

A Penguin dive:

Swan dive:

They also had an incredibly amazing slip n' slide. It went down one of their hills and ended in a little pool of water. It was so much fun!! This is dad going down on his stomach, which was kind of braving it because there are some rocks and sharp things underneath the tarp. He ended up having some cuts on his bum and back, and of course for him, on the chest area. 

Lots of fun!!! Thanks Cameron and Amy for such a blast of a time!!

A Good Point

Sometimes a short post is all it takes to get a point across. That is the point of this post.

Da-na-na-na-na-na-na-na!!

So, you know we've always had the kittens in a crate in the corner of the garage . . . right next to where dad pulls in. The cats were starting to climb out and move around a little bit. We didn't want them to get ran over by dad's car, so we moved them to the first story of our play ground. They were there only one night, well not even a night, because when we came back to check on them first thing in the morning, we discovered they were gone. We looked every where around our house, except ONE PLACE!! And I kid' you not, three of us, Emma, Sophia, and I, thought of looking there, but none of us did!

The next day, Sophia went out to look again for the kittens, and she ran into Smokey! Maybe Smokey would lead her to the kittens! She followed Smokey around the side of the rock wall and then she saw her jump up behind a big boulder and disappear. Then she heard a soft Meow!! She looked around but could not find the source, neither where Smokey had gone. Just then I came out onto the back porch, which overlooks the rock wall, with my lunch. I saw Sophia peering underneath a flat, precariously leaning boulder. I asked what's up, and she related what had taken place just then. My mind was racing as I though of two caves I had found on the rock wall! I slipped my shoes on and was climbing the rock wall in a jiffy.

One of the caves was near the top and was not as well concealed, so I figured I'd check the other one first. What I saw was the cutest sight! Smokey was laying down with her four kittens all nursing. She would play with the kittens too, as they would nurse. I mean she would grab them in her front paws as she was laying down, and she'd playfully nip them. It was so cute! Sophia was eager to come up and see when I told her that they were there. Here is a video I made. It helps you under stand what their "den" is like. There is like a ledge on the wall and it kind of dips down over the ledge and narrows as it goes deeper into the wall. Here is the video. I kind of turned it into a story so it isn't so boring:

 

The video is the reason I titled this post "Da-na-na-na-na-na-na-na!!".

Fun Swing!!

Not last week but the week before, a couple in our ward, the Clarks, asked us to feed their goats, cats, and birds for a week while they were gone. We had to make three trips over there. It was fun to feed the animals, but when all of the kids were begging to come and "help", they mostly spent there time on the trampoline . . .

and the swing . . .

On the way home I took a video from the passenger seat of our van. It gives you an idea of the scenery here in Colfax. I have it on a tripod, which allows it to sway, but not to bump and shake. That's why it is so smooth . . . well, pulling out of there driveway is a little bumpy, but after that it is really smooth.

Meow!

Last Saturday I was in the garage getting some milk from our "milk" refrigeration where we keep our 16 gallons of milk. As I opened the fridge door, I heard a small squeal . . . and then a "meow". It was coming from the big storage shelves, where our cats like to hang out. The same thought raced through my mind . . . kittens? I shouted something to the kids inside, and then leaped to the first bar on the side of the shelves. I heard another squeal. It seemed like it was coming from the second shelf, about 15 feet up. I scaled the bars up to the shelf and climbed on. Even then, it was hard to tell exactly where the "meow"'s were coming from.

By now all the other kids had gathered around. "In there!" someone shouted. I looked in that direction, between a big cardboard box and a car seat, and could barely make out several dark shapes moving about. For a moment I wasn't sure it they were mice or kittens . . . "Meow!" "Yep, they're kittens". I reached in and pulled out a tiny, grey and white kitten. I had soon handed down 4 kittens, all grey and white and all looking just fine. I cast a quick glance around the storage articles to make sure there were no more kittens. And that's when I saw Smokey in the car seat, above where the kittens had been. I climbed down to the next shelf and then hopped down. We fixed up a soft bed and placed it in a big crate. Soon all the kittens were nursing on Smokey.

This is only three of the kittens. The other one is in the crate with Smokey.

Here are some photo's of Smokey.

And if you'd care to see some photos of our other cat, Midnight. Now that I think about it, I believe I already did a post about our cats.

Puppy Love

Mom took some video of two puppies wrestling together, and then she said she would pay me to make a short movie out of them and put it on her California Bichons site. I immediately set to work, and soon asked mom to visit her site. I would post the video right on here, but I'd rather you use the link above, or if you're to lazy to bring your mouse all the way up there, just go here. Hint: The video's on the main page.

Spencer Learns to Bike

Not long ago we started teaching Spencer how to ride a bike. He started with no pedals and would just coast around, getting a feel for the balance. Soon we put the pedals back on and he would pedal, while mom or dad would run along side him, holding a leash around his waist, in case he had a crack up. One day, when mom and dad were gone, Emma got him to try it without the leash. She ran along side him for several laps, and he never once had to stop. So Emma told him to keep going and pretty soon he was doing lap after lap all on his own. When mom and dad got home, they were amazed to see him riding around with no one at his side! I took a short video:

Two other recent additions to the Hales home are a Teeter-Totter and a Tether Ball Pole:

This is Emma and I on the Teeter-Totter:

BYU Volleyball

Last Thusday Dad, with the oldest six kids, left the house for LA. In LA we rented a room in the Best Western Woodland Hills Inn (pretty good name, eh!). We decided to jump in the pool real quick before heading out for the first Men's Volleyball game: BYU versus Penn State. The water was kind of cold, but it felt nice.  After we dried our selves off, we grabbed some pizza at Papa Johns and ate at our hotel room:

At the game we all had BYU shirts:

After the game, we couldn't find any where to park . . .

. . . so we slid into a "Park n' Pay" lot. The next morning we ate breakfast and went to the pool again. Emma filmed everyone jumping in:

In the Jacuzzi, the girls kept screaming because a bee was flying low over the water and around our heads. Each time it came to me, I would duck under the water and come back up in a few seconds. Soon we were having a lot of fun ducking from the bee! A couple hours before noon we headed back to our room, only to be off again, this time with all of our luggage as we were going to stay with family that night. He had to visit a house that he wants to rent/sell, or something like that. This was the only time Dad wasn't "vacationing". The house was pretty old and shabby looking, but it had a nice view:

It was almost noon, so we soon found our selves pulling up in the mall parking lot. There, we met with one of dad's old friends and had lunch with her. While we were ordering our food, Seth got separated from the group. When we realized he was absent, it was another 10-15 minutes before we found him. I guess it was kind of my fault, and by then I didn't really feel like eating. After lunch, we met our uncle Brett at his office, where we split up again, us heading to the beach, and Brett stopping by his house to pick up the rest of his family: his wife Jenica, and there kids Devin, Shane, Liam, and Katelyn is their cute little baby girl. They soon joined us on the beach, where we spent an awesome afternoon. It has been a long time since I've swallowed salt water! After a few hours  we set up a volleyball net. We played two on two; Brett and I vs. Sam Sr and Emma. That was a blast, although, I still struggle with the after affects of sand in my eyes. Back at Brett and Jenica's (Brett is my Mom's brother) house, everyone enjoyed a nice, warm shower. Dinner was delicious; thanks Jenica. One incident during dinner that we still talk about, is this: Someone asked for the mustard. Liam, who is 3-years-old, looked around, spotted it in front of his plate, and then, what I think is the cutest part, stood up in his chair grabbed the mustard and "Bang! Splash! Clatter! Clatter! Boosh! Crash!" . . . when he swiped it across the table, he forgot to lift it up off the table!!! Opps!! We quickly swiped up the spilled milk and other articles that had been strewn about during the accident. After dinner, the kids also enjoyed holding their pet turtle:

That night everybody got some really good sleep to tuck under their belt. The next morning we went on a hike to Mussel Rock. The trail is called Tory Pines. It's a great hike, and very pretty. Here is a slide show that includes pictures of the ocean, the tide pools, mussels, Sean enemies, and of course pictures on the trail:

After the hike, we said good bye to the Alders and headed straight for the Volleyball game. This would be the National Championship Finals, and BYU is in it, vs. UCI, or UC Irvine! That is pretty good!

Emma took these videos and I put them together into a little movie (that's what Picasa calls them!):

This gives you and idea, not just of how BIG the crowd was, but how LOUD!!!

Medals were awarded to the all the players and coaches of both teams:

Exercise

A couple days ago I printed off some Exercise Logs for me and the kids:

Fliers helped increase the number of participants:

Because of an elbow injury, I can't do weights greater than 8 lb, and I can't do Push-Ups, Pull-Ups, and Chin-Ups.

I kinda' faked that face! (above)

We all look forward to it, which is sometimes hard because it's at 5:00. It is so fun to watch little Seth and Spencer to their push-ups and sit-ups and everything. Even if they don't do it correctly, they have a lot of fun. They can do more push-ups than I can!

More Silly Pictures!

These have been taken by different kids:

Where is he?

I shared this on Google+ too!

Silly Pictures

I think the kids have had too much fun with the photo booth app on our iPad. It's pretty sick! Here are some silly photos I have taken: