Age Old Question Answered

Shel Silverstein asked and we have the answer... somewhere between Newport Beach and the Balboa peninsula in Southern California.

Mind the Gap

Attention Toothfairy... you have a new customer. One who has been waiting a very long time for an "official" visit. Last night, during a rousing family game of Battleship, Romney lost his first tooth (Well, first to natural causes. We don't count the "unofficial" snowmobile accident victim). He looked a bit stunned and excited. We all cheered for him as he went to do the post removal ritual washing out of the mouth with water.

We told Romney that meant he would get a Toothfairy visit and then asked him if he knew who that was. Of course, he did. We joked around telling him it was the same person who shared a room with the Easter Bunny. When it came time to put the tooth under his pillow, he joked back that since he would be sleeping on his top bunk that night, perhaps the Toothfairy would need the Easter Bunny's help to reach the tooth.

Best part of loosing a tooth according to Romney: "Having something to write about during writer's workshop at school."

Year in Review

2009 was a great year for our family. Here is a short recap of some of our favorite moments and memories.

1.) January was a big month for William. He had a story published in a magazine and had his hair changed from "Carpenter-chic" to "Skater Hip". I kept my resolution to give up sugar (a miracle for a Romney) and felt determined to make healthier lifestyle changes.

2.) February William participated in his first science fair and applied to a new school.

3.) March brought good news when we found out William and ALL of his friends had been accepted into his new school and that I would have a chance to hang 2 of my photos in a local gallery downtown.

4.) Leprechaun hunting and London loving were wonderful memories from our April/May trip to Dublin and London. We went sans children and had such an amazing travel adventure just Bill and I.

5.) We celebrated Father's Day with Bill in June in the mountain resort of Snowbird. We had a lovely time swimming and hiking and eating great food-- buffet style a Barber family favorite. Romney finished Kindergarten and William finished 4th grade, ending his time as an elementary school student. We enjoyed the beginning of summer with trips to the park and watching movies on the capitol lawn (and rotunda). The highlight of the month was watching Romney master the art of riding a two wheeled bicycle.

6.) July and August meant family hikes in the mountains to keep cool and a hot and humid trip to Washington D.C. and Williamsburg for a plethora of family fun in museums and pools and beaches and amusement parks. It also meant turning 36 disco style for me. The first day of school brought a new found freedom during the days as Romney started full-day school for the first time.

7.) September was bitter sweet watching both boys struggle to find their footing in new school environments. Both had a rough month, but came through strong and self-assured and ready for new challenges. It also meant more travel for me, as I headed to Southern California to help Anne get her home organized.

8.) Routine started to set in by October, which called for an impromptu trip to Saint George to break the rut we were falling into. It also brought a surprise visit from our friends from Nebraska and William's best birthday party ever at Classic Skating.

9.) In November, Romney wanted to have a great birthday party, too and planned one at the same place William had his. It also brought another bitter-sweet memory: Traveling to St. George and Kanab for Thanksgiving weekend. We had such an amazing time riding bikes and hiking the red hills the first two days and then the second half was spent with Bill's grandmother as she was released from the hospital and spent her last night in her home in Kanab. It was difficult to say good-bye knowing it could (and would) be Bill's last chance to see her alive.

10.) December brought more travels, first to Kanab for Grandma Seager's funeral and later, after Christmas to Newport Beach to escape the snow. Most importantly, December was the month Bill finished his Master's degree and we celebrated his achievements with a party for his friends and family. It was such a treat for him for his entire family to make it out for the event and then to have a Christmas celebration with everyone in town.

As far as years go, 2009 was incredibly good to us. It may have been another difficult year for the country and the world both in terms of economics and peace. We have been fortunate and feel lucky to have all those memories and each other.

Bonus Vacation Day

The drive to Southern California was intense and difficult with traffic and after some thought and consideration, we decided to break the drive into two days on the way home. We were in no hurry to get back to the snow and it would give us a chance to see my sister, Andrea again. So we booked a condo and stayed the night. I am a big fan of the condo as a hotel idea and will hunt for those options every time we travel. We were able to have our own rooms and a washer/dryer, which means no loads and loads of laundry to do after a long drive!


The boys love her dog. They even have been known to write essays about "Bowie". Every time they see him, they beg for a dog for at least a month. This time, they got to spend enough time with him to know that they poop and you have to clean it up (several times a day). That helped a bit. Perhaps we will only be pestered about getting a pet for two weeks this time.

We had a lovely visit with Andrea and then had fun swimming (in the outdoor pool) and relaxing before heading the rest of the way home.

What Are You Doing New Year's Eve?

"...When the bells all ring and the horns all blow
And the couples we know are fondly kissing?" We were in a hotel with Anne, her boyfriend, Sean and Quentin blowing horns and spinning noise makers wearing funny hats. It was warm and lovely outside, and it was pretty low=key but perfect.
The morning consisted of our last California bike ride along the coast from Newport Beach to the Balboa peninsula and back. We packed out of that hotel to the one we had booked closer to Anne's for New Years.




We grabbed Anne and Quentin and took a hike through a nature preserve near her house, while Bill biked around the same park. More of what we wanted out of this vacation-- simply a chance to be outside and warm and active together.




We started the evening at Anne's house, then out to dinner and by the time dinner was over it was apparent that even though Anne had shipped her cat to another home for the week, it's presence had not been fully banished. All 4 of us terrible allergy sufferers were blotching and itchy and we moved the celebration to our cat-free hotel.



We talked and hung out and watched the ball drop and made lots of noise for about 5 minutes until Anne bolted to avoid the drinkers on the road and we put the boys down. Around 3 a.m. it was obvious the party had gotten out of hand for some of our hotel mates. We could hear yelling and screaming and glass crashing and one man's rampage down the hall. The next morning we saw a broken window and heard from the front desk that 3 hotel rooms in this brand new beautiful hotel had been totally demolished and that many arrests from those rooms had been made. It made our tame little "party" seem like a good choice in comparison.