Lions and Monkeys and Alligators...TEAGAN IS ONE

Teagan turned 1 on December 3rd. We wanted to have our family there to help us celebrate so we drove to Gridley for the party. I had been planning Teagan's party for months and finally it was party time!! We spent all day getting things ready...hanging streams, blowing up balloons, making cakes, wrapping presents and dressing Teagan in his elephant costume. The party was jungle themed and all the kids were dressing up in animal costumes. The day went by so fast that all of a sudden it was 4:00 and people were coming.

Last minute decorations. IT NEEDS MORE STREAMERS!!!

What's a jungle without the king, zebra, alligator and elephant.

One of the games we played was PIN THE TAIL ON THE MONKEY. We also had a bowling tournament.

Teagan in half his elephant costume opening his presents. He got some fun stuff, lots of books, noise maker toys, clothes and of course a new car seat. What's a one year party without the new car seat?

CAKE TIME!!! Alligator cake.

Teagan's cake was supposed to be zebra print. But when I went to frost it all I had left was green frosting. SO, he got a green zebra print cake with strawberries.

First bite...

Umm, Teagan, you have a little smutz on your face...

That's better!!

I NEED MORE CAKE!!

We had a fun party, but the next day, Teagan's favorite toy was the box his car seat came in.

Happy Halloween, a little late, I know...

Our Halloween this year started on the 30th at the ward Truck and Treat.

Teagan got so excited getting ready to go, he fell asleep.

Bean bag toss...Teagan didn't quite get the toss part, he wouldn't let go fo the bean bag.

Pumpkin bowling.

At the end Klaron and Teagan were in the costume parade. He was the cutest elephant I'VE ever seen.


On Halloween, we wanted Teagan to carve a pumpkin. So we went all over town looking for a pumpkin, ANY PUMPKIN. So who would have thought that every store would be out of pumpkins on Halloween? We finally found a Teagan size pumpkin and took it home to carve.

Teagan loved putting his hands in the guts.

Our Little Monkey

So Teagan still has yet to walk but that hasn't kept him from going vertical...climbing that is. So far this week he has learned how to climb onto his parents' bed, scale the baby gate, stand on his little table and position his wooden cart such that he can climb onto the kitchen table. If you don't believe me look at the photos below:

There was no help given in both positioning the wooden cart and lifting him. I wonder what he will climb up next...hopefully not the bookshelf.

Everything from toilet paper to ginormous trees

There are always lessons to be learned when raising a curious and FAST little teagerator... KEEP THE BATHROOM DOOR SHUT!!! Teagan's favorite place to play these days is in the bathroom. He's tired of normal toys... blocks, balls, music makers... now he likes to play in the toilet and pull all the paper from the roll.

I probably should have stopped him sooner, but it was so funny to watch him hit the roll and watch the paper drop to the floor.

LABOR DAY GRILLING...

The Cramer "Big Jud."

We talked about doing a Triathlon in Daybreak, Utah for about a year. We trained hard (ran MAYBE 5 times a month, biked about once a month, and swimming..."I'll just wing it") and ate a strict athletes diet (like the Cramer Big Jud) to prepare for the race. Four Cramers did the race, Klaron, Kraig, Kent and me. The swim was supposed to be a 750 meter open lake swim, but turned into a 75 meter pool swim after the lake was closed the day before the race. After the swim we ran a mile to the transition area where we jumped on our bikes. 12 mile bike...the first 6 miles UPHILL, about half way through, I was wishing I'd eaten less Cramer Big Jud and more of that strict athletes diet. The last half of the bike was all downhill, going so fast my peddles couldn't keep up. We finished off with a 5K to the finish line.

THE FINISH LINE!!!

Teagan and Mikayla had a blast playing together all weekend. They would push each other on this car.

This last weekend we took a weekender to Yosemite National Park. At the Mariposa Grove we discovered GINORMOUS Sequoia Trees. They were amazing and thought to be over 2000 years old.

THE GRIZZLY GIANT

The California Tunnel. There is a tunnel right through it. We are planning a trip back in June to hike HALF DOME. The big one in Yosemite. 14 miles and 4800 foot elevation increase. Anybody want to come???

To quote a friend, "May was a good month..." but it's time to move on

Where have the Cramers been the last 3 months?

We've had our toes in the Atlantic Ocean and our feet in the Pacific Ocean, seen 2 lighthouses, up to the top of a 630 foot arch, been to the graves of 4 great grandparents, to the airport to pick up a missionary, one of us grew 2 teeth and learned how to crawl, one of us graduated from college with a Master's Degree in Aerospace Engineering, we've been to the funerals of 2 grandmothers, moved twice, seen the temple of "the competition," swam in a lake, walked through a mountain, met a new nephew, crossed the Mississippi River for the 4th time, said goodbye to some really great friends (who I have to call and say CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR NEW BABY), toured a cheese factory, been to the home of Dunder Mifflin and been to the lookout of a volcano. So prepare yourself this could be a long one...

After the death of Klaron's grammy, the Cramer family met in Kittery, Maine for a memorial and grave site service. Most of the family flew from California and Texas and we drove the 12 hours.

Most people have heard of Scranton, Pennsylvania. We drove around a little bit but couldn't find the famous paper company.

This is an important picture because it is one of the maybe five times Teagan sat in his "mommy had to have it, so she paid full price for it" Bumbo.

York, Maine is home to the oh so yummo, Goldenrod Taffy Company. Let's just say we bought a 2 pound box and none of it made it back to Ohio.

THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, at York, Maine. Not exactly the best day for a midday swim but we had to put our toes in.

Lobster dinner on Paul and Pat, Klaron got THE TWINS!!

Kathleen and Klaron anxiously waiting for their lobsters.

Klaron, Teagan and Paul Cramer after the lobster.

After Maine, Teagan and I flew to Gridley, California. The trip for was 2 reasons, 1. to look for a place to live in Sunnyvale and 2. to bring home a missionary returning from Monterrey, Mexico. About 30 days before James came home, Dakota made a chain to count down the days. He's holding the last link!!!

HERE HE COMES!!! We spent all day making signs, getting balloons and sombreros and waiting until 6:00pm to pick up James. My sign said, WELCOME TO AMERICA. When we saw James coming down the escalator we all screamed. Next to James is our cousin Blair who served in the same place and left the same day as James.

Dad, James, Mom and Gracie.

The return missionary, just the way he left.

Leaving the Sacramento Airport, which one is James?

We took the pontoon boat out to Lake Oroville. Our boat is about 20 years old, two toned blue, barley floating, but so fun. You can swim between the pontoons and there is a ladder that goes from the water to the roof so you can jump off the top and get back up. She's an eye sore, but we're humble people.

This was Teagan's first time in the lake and he loved it.

Our trip to Gridley was only supposed to be 2 weeks but I ended up extending it to 3. My grandma Verda Walton Jensen had been suffering from brain cancer for about 4 weeks, then was taken home June 1st.

Grandma loved sunflowers and each person was given a single sunflower to put on her casket.

Teagan and grandpa Craig at the cemetery.

Klaron was happy to have us back after being gone for 3 weeks. It was the longest he'd ever been away from Teagan. We got back to Columbus just in time for Klaron to graduate from The Ohio State University. June 14th...Klaron received his Master's Degree in Aerospace Engineering.

Our future graduate. Just trying it on for size. CONGRATULATIONS KLARON!!! We are so proud of you.

After graduation we didn't stay in Columbus long. The movers came the next day to pack up our apartment. We left for California on Wednesday, June 17th. We stopped in Cincinnati, Ohio at the cemetery where Klarons great grandparents Edward and Bertha Cramer are buried. After searching for about 1/2 hour for them we finally found them.

We stopped the first night in St. Louis, Missouri. The next morning we walked to the St. Louis Arch and got tickets to go to the top of this 630 foot high monument.

Night 2 we stopped in Topeka, Kansas. This is the temple of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ, now the Community of Christ in Independence, Missouri. As Klaron put it, on one side of the street is the LDS Visitors Center and on the other is "the competition."

The original plan was to drive across Nevada on I-50, known as the Loneliest Road in America instead of the well beaten I-80. But at the last minute we cut north to Denver and West to Sandy, Utah to see Kraig and Melissa Cramer. The next day we took the 80 across Nevada. We stopped in Metropolis, now a ghost town about 15 miles north of Wells. This is where my grandma Verda lived until she moved to Gridley as a young girl. The cemetery there is where my great-great grandparents John and Annie Hyde are buried. While at the cemetery, there was another family there who turned out to be cousins.

We stopped in Gridley on the way to Sunnyvale and stayed about 3 days. We took the pontoon boat out again. Here's Teagan modeling his new life jacket. That boy loves the water.

We finally made it to Sunnyvale and moved into temporary housing on June 26th. Klaron started his new job at Northrup Grumman on June 29th. One weekend we drove down to Santa Cruz. Again the water was too cold to swim but we had to put our toes in the Pacific.

Teagan's cute little feet prints in the sand.

At our temp housing we had a big king size bed and every morning Teagan would help me make it.

We bought season passes to Six Flags Marine World. July 17th, we went up to Six Flags. We went to the whale show but most of the time the whale was in time out because she didn't want to cooperate with her trainers.

We saw lots of fish and sharks. We had a fun day looking at all the animals but were ready to go home and take a nap.

After a month of being in temp housing, we moved into our permanent apartment on July 23rd. I didn't know you could fit so much stuff in such a small apartment. Here's Teagan helping me unpack our many boxes.

He is a good helper.

The Sunday after we moved in, I got a call from my brother Joey saying Crystal had her baby the night before at 11:37. Benjamin Allie Walton Dewsnup. So we drove up to Gridley for the day to see him and Crystal in the hospital.

The next weekend, August 1st, we drive to Los Angeles to see the Cramers. Kent and Belinda and their family, Kliff and us went to Newport Beach on Saturday. When we got there, there was no parking ANYWHERE. So we ended up driving a few miles down until we could park. This ended up being a mile down from the good part of Newport Beach, but we still had fun in the waves and sand.

Klaron took a few hits against the sand.

We got home from Los Angeles on Sunday and Teagan and I left for Gridley two days later on Tuesday. I was going down to help Crystal with her kids and the new baby but first we stopped in Santa Rosa to see Dad and James at the Sonoma Fair. I met mom and Dakota in Vallejo, then we drove to Santa Rosa together. We spent the day at the fair looking at animals and eating corn dogs the size of our heads. We stayed the night with dad and James in their trailor and then headed for home the next morning. On the way home we stopped at the Jelly Belly Factory in Fairfield. A KID IN A CANDY STORE, this is the ultimate candy store. We each bought a pound of jelly beans. yummo.

Teagan under mom's kitchen table.

We got back to Sunnyvale, but after 3 days we were on the go again. This time to Portland, Oregon. Kliff and Kevin Cramer drove their motorcycles up Wednesday night then we all drove up to Portland together on Thursday. We spent the weekend with Keith and Veronica.

Kevin kept having trouble with his head gear so Klaron suggested this to help keep the wind off his face.

WELCOME TO OREGON

Friday we took a tour of the Tillamook Cheese Factory in Tillamook, Oregon.

Then drove over to the coast to Cape Meares. The landscape here is so beautiful.

The lighthouse at Cape Meares and the Cramer boys.

We kept driving down the coast to Oceanside. I love the huge rocks in the water.

We found a tunnel that goes through the mountain and comes out at a more private beach.

Teagan loved crawling around in the sand. Look at his cute tracks.

Saturday we drove up to Washington, STATE #46!!! to see Mount Saint Helens.

At the Visitors Center

It was really cold, so we had to bundle up Teagan. He seemed pretty toasty in there.

This is the view from the Visitors Center of where the lava flowed after Mount Saint Helen erupted.

When we got to the lookout point we hoped we would be able to see the crater, but it was so foggy we could barely see the mountain.

Sunday we took the MAX to downtown Portland. On the train we saw our share of crazies, why is it that some people you just can't help but stare at?

The International Rose Test Garden.

On the way home Monday, we stopped by the Portland Temple. I wasn't expecting to see such a beautiful temple. There is a reflection pond similar to Salt Lake, so beautiful.

And the Medford Temple. Wherever we drive we like to stop and see the temple, so far we've seen over 40 temples across the United States and Canada.

We're home now in Sunnyvale. No more plans to go anywhere, until September anyway. I asked Klaron what he wants to do this weekend and he said RELAX!!!

Hammocks and Gigantic Chickens

This weekend we did a suicide trip to Atlanta, Georgia. In college in Rexburg, Idaho, we used to leave Friday, drive 14 hours home to Gridley, spend Saturday at home and then leave Sunday and drive 14 hours back to Rexburg getting there way past our bedtimes. This trip brought back those memories. What should have been an easy 8 hours turned into 12. Don't ask me how. Maybe we were on some sort of freeway treadmill, where you drive and drive and drive and never get anywhere. But like those suicide road trips home, it was so fun and way worth it. And this time we had Teagan to entertain us. I sat in the back almost the whole time with him while Klaron drove. He did let me drive for a little while so he could do some homework, but after an hour of my driving he pretended to have to hit the rest stop so he could drive again. What? I learned to drive in Gridley, no lane lines. You drive in the middle of the road so you don't end up in the ditch.

Teagan has started to suck his thumb, I don't know if that's good or bad but its super cute.

In Jelico, Tennessee we stopped at America's Best Value Inn. No Hilton for us. Teagan liked the sink the best. That boy loves to take a tub.

Teagan is just over 5 months old and has already been to 5 states. This boy is becoming a world traveler already. We figured out that by the time he's 6 1/2 months, he will have seen 19 states.

WHAT IS THAT? Is that a gigantic chicken? No, its the BIG CHICKEN in Marietta, Georgia. This is the coolest thing I've ever seen. The beak opens and closes and the eyes go up and down. Our Georgia source says its an icon and people give their directions from the Big Chicken. Right at the Big Chicken, left at the Big Chicken...

This is who we came to see, our long lost friends from Rexburg!! Chance and Jenny Hammock. Get well soon J, we love ya.

On the way back to Columbus, we stopped at the Kennesaw Mountain National Military Battlefield.

Fun weekend. And like our suicide trips to Gridley, we made it home about 1am just in time to be too tired to wake up for aerobics. This week is being spent doing laundry and packing up again. This time we're headed to Kittery, Maine for the weekend...

Fun in the park

On our walk yesterday, Klaron, Teagan and I found a really fun park. Teagan loved the baby swing.

Klaron and his side kick...

This park had the coolest play ground. Two tall slides, a rock climbing wall and lots of other fun toys.

Whose that cute boy in the tunnel?

Teagan and daddy...

There was a hill with lots of dandelions and blowy things so I wanted a photo shoot with Teagan...

Teagan didn't really like the flowers or the blowy things...

And ended up with dandelion all over his head. When it started sprinkling, we headed home. What a fun day in the park.