Day at the Park in Provo

We are trying to get caught up with our over-due blog posts. So here is one from early May. When my sister and her family come into town, they make ordinary days so much more fun. While she was here we went to the park and had a blast. Here are a few pictures of the day.

Beth, doing what Beth does, turning the world upside down.

How big is Robert? So much bigger than this!



Maggie, you can make me smile anytime, anywhere.



Are we saying anything particular with the bars in this picture? No, of course not.

It is very hard right now to get Eric to look at the camera and not make a face. I am just happy that we got a shot of him smiling.

We were trying to get all four kids to look at the camera and smile, it didn't work out that way, but if you can see Robert's face, (all the kids' faces, for that matter) it made the pictures perfect.

Thank you Sam and Mary for all the fun we have when you are here!

Another Late Update

 We celebrated Ryan's birthday (last month, but who's counting?). Here are a few pictures from the special day.

He was greeted by his horde of minions first thing in the morning.

Ryan was not permitted to open a single gift without help. I that's standard practice for a Dad like him.

We celebrated with a yellow ice cream cake, Ryan's favorite, complete with M&M ice cream.

Ryan is such an amazing daddy. We're grateful to have a day to celebrate him and all he means to us. You are so very loved, our wonderful Ryan!

Beth's Birthday and a Picture Dump

We have now celebrated the fifth year in the reign of Beth over the household of Alleman. She has been a kind and gracious ruler, full of friendly sass and spunk. A true joy to all who know her. She is quick to ask questions about absolutely everything. Even faster to give hugs when needed or wanted.  She loves to learn and loves to understand all she can (even if it has nothing to do with her). 

We are also sorry to announce that she has been dethroned by the terrorist organization known as Robert. 

For her birthday she wanted curls in her hair so this is the rag curlers the night before. 

All smiles for her special day.

She was showered with gifts that ranged from My Little Ponies to this antique baby carriage from a dear family friend. (Thank you so much Brenda!)

 For her special birthday dinner she wanted scrambled eggs (sorry Ryan), fresh strawberries and grapefruit.

For her cake she couldn't decide between cupcakes and an ice cream cake, so we did both. Chocolate and strawberry cupcakes and chocolate fudge brownie ice cream cake.

 There were very few survivors. 

This is her birthday/Easter dress. She wore it for the first time to the Utah Ballet to see Peter Pan with me. We loved the mommy-daughter date. It was a wonderful birthday and we are so beyond grateful to have her in our lives.

On to the picture dump. 

We will start with Robert. When I baked back when Eric and Beth were small, they would just look through the window and get excited. But Robert just can't leave things alone. He opens the oven - or pounds on it -  until the food comes out. He has even somehow managed to drag the oven away from the wall a good three inches.

Robert wants to start everyday with a banana. Heaven help you if you try to take it away from him. He looks like a grumpy gorilla. 

"You want this banana? You'll have to pry it from my cute, chubby fingers."

                                   

Here is the best of the Easter pictures. Eric has been reading "Calvin and Hobbes" and has picked up on some bad habits where pictures are concerned. 

Remember this?

Yeah, this is what it's like taking pictures of Eric. Bill Watterson, wherever you are, I spit on your shoes. 

I didn't get a single picture without one of the kids making a face. Now I remember why I keep "losing" those Calvin and Hobbes books.

So, without further ado, here are the kids' "silly" faces.

"Beth the Breathtaking."

"Eric the Deranged"

"Robert the... " I better keep my mouth shut on this one.

As many of you heard, we passed a stomach bug around the family for a few weeks. For most of us, it was no big deal. Two days of nausea and not feeling right and then we were done. But Beth, after losing eight pounds in two days, wound up in the hospital with mega dehydration.

After pumping her full of fluids and downing a disgusting amount of popsicles, we were able to come home and finish riding out the sickness. We have also decided that red Crystal Light will NEVER again be allowed in the house if there is even the SLIGHTEST chance of anyone throwing up. Never, ever again! 

                                     

To wrap up the post, here is a video from Beth.

Beth: "Want to know how boys play with girls' toys?"

Much love to you all! -Cassie and Crew

New Nephew, Valentine's, and Ruby Valley

 We know that we are very over due posting here on the blog. I believe this stems from the idea, "what is a blog post without pictures?"  We have been sans camera for quite awhile thanks to Robert's desire to see if cameras bounce off tile. 

They don't.

Anyway . . . we did eventually get a new camera. So here we are, finally doing a post.

We had Mary's family, along with Lela and Papa, for two weeks while we waited for Mary's new baby to arrive. Below is a picture of what happens when you have to invent ways to entertain yourselves. 

This is a rocking horse that Papa made for Maggie. (And Sam, too, I guess.)

 

Robert and Maggie got along really well, once they found a way to share the baby stroller.

 

They also enjoyed eating together, even though their eating styles are very different. Maggie is dainty and clean. Robert prefers the two-fisted approach. It gave me a little perspective into what it would be like to have twins. 

Yeah, no. 

 

   

After lots of waiting, Anson arrived. At a dainty nine-and-a-half pounds, it was a dramatic entrance into this life. He is beautiful and healthy and I am a very proud aunt.

 

Beth was glued to him whenever we would let her. All the kids were super sweet with him and both Eric and Beth have asked me if WE could have a new baby now. I told them to go pound sand.

Due to four kids running around, the only safe place to put Anson down wasn't really down at all.

 

Right after Sam and Mary left for home, we celebrated Valentine's Day. Beth received her first dozen roses. She really does have an amazing dad! She was thrilled beyond words. 

We then had the chance to go out to Ruby Valley for Anson's blessing. Both the drive out and back went really well. (Except for an hour or so of fog that made it feel like we were driving under water.)

Once we got there, we went all over the Ranch and had a great time. The kids loved the new baby cows, and it only took awhile to convince Robert that they don't growl. Eric loved the hay loft in the barn and all the kids loved the swing that was there, too.

 

But I believe that the kids favorite part was visiting the mill. Uncle Sam turned on the conveyer belt and let the kids play on it. Behold, the Ruby Valley treadmill!

  "This is AWESOME!"

Beth was a little more trepidatious.

Robert was just thrilled with everything and everyone.

It was a great trip. We always enjoy visiting the Valley and spending time with Mary and Sam and their kids in their beautiful home.
 

We never make it out there as often as we'd like to, but when we do, it's always a special experience. Eric summed it up best as we were driving back:

"Ruby Valley's the BEST! They have dirt and dogs!"

P.S. We know we haven't posted anything from Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas and all the fun we had, but we'll get to that. (Once Robert learns that the higher he climbs, the bigger the boo-boo.)

Robert's Birthday of HORROR, Favorite Animals, and a Hint of Halloween

We realize we've been remiss in our posting. Our humble apologies. Hopefully we'll make up for it here with a rather lengthy update.

First, Robert's Birthday.

What can we say about Robert? Well, Cassie put it this way: "He's a cross between the Energizer Bunny and a ping-pong ball. He just bounces back and forth between things he's not supposed to get into!"

 You'll soon notice that in most of Robert's pictures, his mouth is always wide open. This is because he is usually emitting some kind of brain-melting noise.

"Yo, yo! It's my birfday!"

Here's Robert waiting patiently for his cake. He doesn't know what he's in for. (Cue dramatic music.)

"You expect me to eat that whole thing?"

 At first all was well. He touched it lightly, testing the texture. 

(Music rises.)

Only then does the HORROR begin, as he realizes the frosting DOESN'T COME OFF! 

(Dramatic pause.)

 But it's too late! He's covered in the stuff! Trapped! The more he tries to wipe it off, the worse it gets! And Mom and Dad just sit there, laughing!

(Full Psycho crescendo!)

 To save himself, Robert mangles his cake into submission and then uses the plate to shield himself from another portion. (Notice the hand prints on his head.)

"If you give me ONE MORE PIECE . . ."

One bath and a few brightly-colored, noisy, flashing presents later and all is forgiven.

"Now this is more like it!"

We have a tradition that each of the kids have their own little puppy dogs. Jason and Ellen started this with Eric on his first birthday and we've continued it. Robert really loved his husky . . . and promptly tried to chew its nose off. Welcome to the family, pup.

Next, favorite animals: So at breakfast this morning, I asked each of the kids about their favorite animals. The conversation went kind of like this:

Me: Beth, what's your favorite animal?

Beth: A unicorn!

Me: What about you, Eric? If you could be any animal, what would you be?

Eric: A whale.

Me: Why a whale?

Eric: Because they're the biggest animal in the ocean.

Me: Cool, cool. And you, Beth? Why unicorns?

Beth: Because they're pretty and girly!

Me: They are at that. But what about boy unicorns?

(Beth sticks out her tongue in distaste. I guess boy unicorns are yucky.)

Since Robert couldn't really answer this question, Cassie and I came up with an animal for him. Maybe you'll recognize this little critter from The Dark Crystal.

Ladies and gentlemen, we give you: Fizzgig

 Lastly, a hint of Halloween.

We figured there's enough from Halloween for another post. But here is a taste of things to come:

Behold, Baby Vader!

 Tune in next time

Hunting Camp Video Re-Post

Ryan here.

It's that time of year again! The mountains turn fiery red and yellow, the air is crisper, and the elk emerge from their mountain hideaways.

Yes, it's opening day for the traditional Clines Family Hunting Camp. To honor that occasion, we're re-posting the Hunting Camp video Cassie and I put together a few years back.

So turn up the volume on your computer and enjoy!

And if this video gets your blood pumping, leave us a boisterous "Arrrgh!" in the comments.

P.S. If you have any particularly fond Hunting Camp memories, I invite you to share them with us in the comments as well. Thanks.

All about Eric

As you can tell by the title, this blog post is all about Eric! So of course we're going to kick things off with a cute photo of Robert (but it was taken on Eric's birthday, so . . .)

Our little monkey-man.

On the Fourth of July, Eric and Beth were enjoying popsicles on the back porch. Unfortunately, their antics stirred up the wasps who had built a nest on the stairs. A nasty one came out and stung Eric twice in the left hand. If you've been following this blog, you know Eric has a pretty intense reaction to bites, be they wasp, mosquito, whatever. 

This photo was taken two days after the wasp stung him.If he had a white glove, he could stand in for Mickey Mouse.

Here is Eric feeling much better, munching on cantaloupe (his favorite) in style.

Here are pictures from our big boy's big day. He asked for waffles for breakfast: chocolate waffles with frosting.

Later we had his birthday cake: funfetti with strawberry filling, blue icing, and gummy-savers. Of course he only a few nibbles from the ice cream and then hurried back to play with his presents (they're featured in the photo: a set of Scooby Doo action figures).

 To wind things up, here's Eric playing with the box from Robert's new car seat.

He's pretty good at it, right? But wait, there's more.

What would we do without this kid? I ask you.