The Pollans Christmas Letter 2010

The BJP’s Christmas Letter 2010

So I have lost track of what annual letter this is. I wish I could say 12^th annual Christmas letter since Byron and I celebrated our 12^th Anniversary this year but unfortunately I think this is more like the fourth or maybe fifth annual Christmas letter, if I am lucky. As I am writing the first draft of this on Dec. 22^nd it is also going to be late for which I would apologize but am consciously deciding not to. Better late than never….which is the option I apparently usually pick.

This year has been another whirlwind of fun and family for us. We welcomed the addition of Chewy our cute shelter rescue puppy into our family and mourned the loss of Ricky the cat that got lost but aside from the pets coming and going we are happy to report our numbers remain strong. Three boys to two girls. The girls will remain outnumbered for eternity but if you know Ali you know she counts for at least two if not three girls so though we are fewer we are louder.

Byron and I have had the chance to do a few get-aways without the kids this year. We went to San Francisco on a fun trip and had a blast seeing the city. We were snowed out of our trip to Yosemite and ended up in Carmel, what a delight it was to end up in Carmel. Yosemite will have to wait for another time because I am in love with Carmel by the Sea. We had fun exploring the California coastline in spring and seeing all the cute new seals pups. We even had a real whale sighting!!! I spotted humpback whales from a little lighthouse we were touring. They were directly underneath us and we got a really good look at them as they rose up and dove back under again. A young one was even doing a little frolicking in the water. So fun and I can cross whales off my life list, finally! It was an amazing experience.

A month later we headed out to Chicago for a work trip. That just means fun for me but not nearly as much fun for Byron. I loved my time seeing the city solo. The art museum was to die for. If you can believe it I went to the Botanical gardens and ended up lost in the zoo. If it wasn’t for Byron’s I-phone I may still be there today. Wait, some days I do feel like I am lost in the zoo. I am fairly certain though that I am not in the Chicago Zoo but the Pollan Zoo that I call my life! Did I mention how much I loved the art museum? I had all the time in the world to absorb the beauty that is impressionist art. They had an amazing collection I thoroughly drank in.

Our family took our annual family vacation to Jackson Hole. The highlight of this year was picking blackberries. How we didn’t know about this is beyond me. We had so much fun seeking out the delicious berries. Thankfully we didn’t have to fight off any bears who also love the blackberries. We spent a few days prior to our annual Livsey Jackson trip with our Reston friends at our annual campout. Though we nearly froze to death, much fun was had by all. We were in Montana and even did a little gold panning which made our boys happier than you can imagine. And yes we got to yell EUREKA! We found gold. So, a few flakes worth but the with the price of gold these days had we found a few hundred flakes we would have made money on the excursion. When was the last time you yelled Eureka?

Byron continues work at CIT Bank; thankfully. They filed bankruptcy in late 2009 but pulled through and are now working hard and hopefully coming back stronger than ever. He is the man of many hobbies and never lets a moment go by when he could be engaged in one of them. The boys are now delighted to be old enough to accompany him on his adventures. They have been hunting and fishing and skiing and golfing…..the list goes one. They acquired a new 22 pistol that is the hit of the arsenal we now own. Apparently if I can collect art then Byron can collect guns. I guess all’s fair in love and war. Byron is having a good time being the Scout Master for our ward. They have many fun camping adventures which I am so happy to not be a part of. Carter tags along though sometimes and is loving being a pre-boy scout.

Speaking of Carter(10) he is turning into quite the strapping young man. If you can catch him in between cartwheels or handstands you would see he has grown quite a bit this year. I can hardly believe how quickly he is climbing up to nearly eye level. He has worked hard this year at his new school and is excelling and loving what he is learning. We moved the boys to a charter school in 2009 and they have been doing wonderful there. Carter likes to play basketball with his Junior Jazz team, he enjoys playing Wii, gymnastics, crocheting and is the best babysitter on the block. Carter is the big brother that dreams are made of. We are lucky to have him.

Tyler (7) is such a cute kid. He is totally into Lego’s right now. He likes building them as much as he likes playing any Lego Wii game he can get his hands on. He makes awesome creations and has a good time with his friends building and fighting with their Lego dudes. They even like to turn them into animated movies taking photos as they move their Legos along an inch at a time. He has helped produce some very entertaining Lego Features. Ty is as sweet, obedient, happy and thoughtful as any Mom could hope for. He is anxiously awaiting his upcoming baptism. We love having him in our family.

Ali (4 going on 16) nobody actually calls her Allison, is that her name? Ali is our doll. She is currently screaming at the top of her lungs in the basement. She told my uncle when she was touring him around our house that the unfinished room in the basement is called the “screaming room” because apparently that is where it is okay to scream and be noisy. Ali spends lots of her time coloring or painting. She wants to be an artist when she grows up. I wonder where she got that idea from? She and her cousin sell their artwork to the adults at dinner on Sundays. She also loves a good puzzle. She will sit for hours and put together a puzzle and then another and then another. Everything is always more fun though when Mom will do it with her. I am trying hard to give her the attention she so wants. She is a blast to have around and if you can keep up with her you won’t be able to help but fall in love with her. We love having Ali’s fun and energetic personality around. Ours lives are definitely more exciting because she is a part of our family. We are grateful to have her.

I have been painting away. Nothing thrills me more than when someone likes my art enough to want to buy it. It is a fun hobby and it is a nice bonus that it sometimes makes a little money. My real accomplishment of the year, and it really is more Carter’s than mine, but anyhow…. I have been going into Carter’s school for a year and a half now tutoring him in spelling and reading. We had Carter tested and confirmed that he is dyslexic, no big surprise, but good to have it documented. So I took the advice of my sister and started a curriculum for dyslexic students with him. His school was gracious enough to let me come in during spelling time to do the program. He has made such great improvements in the past year and a half they are going to implement the same curriculum for all their dyslexic students. Not only were we able to help Carter catch up, now the other students in his school who are struggling with dyslexia will also be able to catch up and become great readers and spellers. I just found this news out a few weeks ago and am happy to be ending this year on a high note. I have been busy being the Webelos leader for our ward and the co-president of our schools parent association.

We would like to send our love to you at this special time of year. We feel very blessed and watched over by our Lord and Savior. We are grateful for His guidance in our lives. Merry Christmas… a few days late.

If this lengthy letter wasn’t enough you can catch up with more of the Pollan’s at www.pollanpost.blogspot.com

Lots of love to you and yours, Byron, Erin, Carter, Tyler, Ali….Jessie (Byron’s dog - 6 birds this season) Chewy (the kids dog) and Lucy (my killer cat - 42 vole kills this year)

Christmas Concert

Tyler in his Santa hat. Tyler and I had a long conversation about whether the Santa hat was expected or not. I got an email that said it was while he was adamit that it was not. So, I had Byron bring it to his class and sure enough, all the kids had their hats on. So he wore it....when will they learn? Mom is always right? Okay so maybe not always, but nearly always. Tyler is wearing a red sweater in the photo above. Their class performed on the bells and did an astoundingly good job. I especially liked the end of each song where the kids all rang their bells together for a few seconds.

The boys after the Legacy concert. They enjoyed their ice cream and inhaled the french fries. They were even talking this morning about how they couldn't believe how fast they ate the fries at dinner last night.

At Nielsen's Custard celebrating the grand performance. Byron was being funny and sneaked into our photo at the last minute, upside down....He was sitting at the end of the booth and didn't fit into either of the photos we were taking, so he just popped on in.

Carter and I have been crocheting like crazy. He has been busy working on this hat that he did by himself. He was very proud of his work and wore his new hat all around the house and then to the concert last night. For Christmas he asked his grandma for some yarn and a crochet hook of his very own. I am not making this up people....of my very own were his exact words. I guess borrowing mine is just not good enough. I think there may be a few homemade hats as gifts this year.

November in Fast Forward

We are going back pretty far here....but time to catch up the blog. Get ready for a long one.
These are costumes number one. It rained really hard on Halloween and everyone went out with friends to begin with. Then we all gathered together later and changed into dry costumes and went out as a family to do a few neighborhood houses. So, it was the Halloween of freezing rain and double costumes. Sweet! Papa had an especially fun time jumping out at every house and scaring Ali, who wasn't really that scared but gave a really good scream every time anyway.

Ali in her pretty Christmas dress. I knew she wouldn't like green but really loved this dress so I bought it and told her I bought her a pretty dress with flowers on it. But then I told her I didn't think she would like it so maybe I would just give it to another girl. I know sounds a little evil step mother here, but seriously this girl is like a teenager already and has to be tricked into liking things that I like. So, after I told her I would probably just give it away she had to see it and LOVES it. A little caniving, yes but the end result is a beautiful darling red headed girl in a emerald green dress. Does it get any cuter?

This is our stylish dog Chewy. Isn't he a darling dog. He has only chewed up two pairs of my shoes so far and three numchucks from the wii. He is well named though, anytime he can he will pick up something from one room and carry it to his pad and either chew on it or leave it there to go get something else. It is just nice we have so many stuffed animals laying around for him to much on. Ali doesn't seem to mind too much. She has even given him a few of his own.

It is snowing in Utah but Ali says she is so hot she has to wear her swimsuit. The boys dared her to go outside in her swimsuit if she was so hot, so she did. She looks a little cold to me though.

So, Carter and his Dad like to go shooting together and Carter and I like to crochet together. He is getting pretty dang good. He knows multiple stitches and is working on a camo hat right now. This is his String Party blanket he is making out of string from String parties his grandma Pollan has thrown us. You have to be seriously coordinated to make corocheting work and I am impressed he can even do it.

Carter is giving a speech to the town during his field trip we took this month. It is called Junior Achievement. They have an entire city set up above the Children's Discovery Gateway in Salt Lake. All the kids are assigned a job and they have to spend the day doing what you would do if you were actually that person doing that job. They have computers set to do invoices, and receipts, they give talks, do advertising on the radio and TV. They even earn paychecks and they go and spend it which is what generates all the activity in the town. It is an amazing field trip and I even learned a lot. Carter loved being the CEO and is now looking forward to a bright future.

Carter is the CEO of Smith's Marketplace on his school field trip. Best fieldtrip I have ever attended. Educational to the max and totally fun for all involved. I really don't know who thought up Junior Achievement but they were a teaching genius!

So Byron and Tyler made a deal....if Tyler could do something for a whole week Byron would let him choose the activity and they would have one on one time. Well, Tyler was not exactly successful in his bet but he got his Dad to believe he was so they went off for their fun day. While sorting through things in the house I came upon the evidence which would have elleviated their fun day together but decided to keep my mouth quiet until they got home. After much, and I mean much deliberation Ty picked shooting as his activity with his Dad. Just the two of them. And of course where else, Five Guys, for dinner. They had a great time.

Tyler is enjoying his day with Dad. Though Byron was conned into the whole thing I just kept my mouth shut and let Tyler have a great day with his Dad. It is not often the middle child can squeak out one on one time with a parent. Good for you Tyler!!! I let Byron in on my discovery after they returned home and the kids were in bed. He was a little distressed he was conned by a seven year old, but we let it slide. Score one for Tyler. He really is such a great kid in every other department in his life we just let this one little slip up go.

This is Carter looking awesome in his ski gear. I am glad Byron remembers to take photos while they are up skiing so we can have these great shots to remember their early ski years by.

Byron and Carter snuck up to Alta for a little one on one ski time. They have discovered new runs this year if that is even possible that are their new favorites. The boys just keep getting better and the hill is now their oyster.

This was Thanksgiving Day for the Pollan's. I stayed home and kept warm but the boys really wanted to go shooting. They just can't get enough of it. Ali and I find fun girl stuff to do while they go shooting though. Sometimes it is so fun we can convince Tyler to stay with us, but not today....and probably not for long. He really likes shooting with his Dad and Carter.

This is what we call brotherly love. If you can believe it, Tyler actually asked to be burried in the snow. Are we missing the beach? We have promised them a trip to CA this summer but in the meantime burying themselves in the snow will just have to do. At least he was smiling so you can see they were having fun.

Is it possible to set up a cuter little tea party than the one in this photo? Ali put this all together herself. She and her animals had a grand time and we had a whole load of cups in the dishwasher after they were done. You wouldn't believe the mess a giant unicorn can make out of a cup. We had to wash everything.

Randy....congratulations you made my blog. This is no small feat. Usually you have to be a child of mine or an endearing pet to make my blog. But this is our rock star friend/ sort of brother-in-law who came to our kids school to do a reward concert. The school raised $2,345.00 for Deseret International Foundation and the band came to congratulate them on their successful service project. It was an amazing concert! The older kids were instantly up on their feet dancing, the younger group took some convincing and it wasn't until their school director/principle Mrs. Hatch got up to boogy did you see the little kids relax and enjoy themselves with some jumping around. Literally, jumping up and down for the whole concert. They were so cute.

This is the backstage party of the Thunderlips Concert that came to Legacy. It was an amazing concert, amazingly loud....I guess you know you have reached adulthood when you go to a rock concert and ask the band to turn it down. Seriously!

Ali the silly girl is being a clown in this photo. She put a lot of though into this outfit and she really wanted to send it to her aunt Hollie. Hollie has a good sense of humor and would also show it to Sadie who would then undoubtedly laugh.

The life of a Four year old through photography.....

The blog you are about to view is no ordinary blog....this blog is the result of a sick Mom and a bored daughter. I have had a cold now for what feels like forever and I was trying to catch some extra sleep one morning. We got the boys off to school and had a few minutes before preschool so I laid down for a quick siesta. Ali came up a few minutes later and really, really wanted to show me something downstairs. I really really really didn't want to get up to go look at it but was trying to figure out how not to be an awful horrible no good mother. So, I came up with the genius idea of telling her to take a picture of whatever it was and bringing it up to show me what she had made. .... What we have here is a short snippet of a view into the life of a four year old girl. She did take a photo of what she had made that she was so proud of....it is the last photo on this post....then she decided it was fun so she went around and took photos of well, everything of interest to her. There were lots of dog photos, and even more photos of the TV playing cartoons, there were three pumpkin photos.....well, just have a gander and take a peek into Ali's mind. I laughed when I loaded my photos, expecting maybe 12 to pop up and it said 85 left to download. She really had a lot of fun taking photos.

There were probably eight or nine like this....this one is fairly cute! You can tell by the hair-do, or lack there of that we hadn't combed her hair yet.

Her coloring book she has been working hard at filling in. She bought it with her own money, so naturally it is better than the others we have around.

I think this lego shot is very artistic.

This is her brothers room....lots of pictures in there.

This is Ali's room. Notice she did not photograph the hand crocheted blanket or the pieced quilt on her bed that I made her....she photographed her art wall which she created one day and proudly showed the whole family. She really is a budding artist. It was so sweet that she set up her own gallery and even cuter that she took a picture of it.

SO, these two guys won the prize. They were carefully placed and arranged just for their minute of fame. Don't they look so cute?

This is the event that started it all. Ali had tucked her bear and Chewy into the blanket for a nap and really really wanted to show me. She managed to get a better photo of Chewy than I ever have, he is looking right at her and holding still, something he does not do often. The question is, was she satisfied with taking a photo of what she made to show me? Actually she was thrilled because I don't let my four year old use my camera...at least not when I am well.

There you have it....the life of a four year old through photography....edited down from about 70 photos. She did a great job for her first photo shoot. Her aunt Hollie would be proud!

Christmas Stockings

These are photos of the cute stocking my mother in law is helping me with. I did the names and foot and heel sequins and then she just did all the decorations that I am going to sew on. I love how it turned out! Well almost turned out. I still need to get them sewn together.

So Laura, the rest of this blow is for you.

I liked the flying angels better than the ones below where they were standing so I adjusted them after I took the first photo.

I will add some of the crystals in as well on my stocking...this is just the layout of the felt.

I took the photo below and then decided the angels ought to be flying, so I switched them around and took the photo above

The wisemen looked best on the white, and the creche looked best against the red so I swapped those two.

I just love the little sheep and shepherd. It turned out so cute.
So, now you have to call me and we can walk through adjustments on them. Let me know what you were thinking...

Pumpkin Carving Family Night!

The kids went to get their flu shots, which actually aren't shots at all anymore. Seriously, being a kid just keeps getting easier and easier. They have a nasal vaccine which squirts up their noses. No shots, no crying but we still went out after to celebrate how brave they were anyway. Can't break tradition, right? We got a new Salt City Burger in Bountiful so we went for shakes and sweet potato fries. It was delicious!!! Aren't they so cute sitting up at the bar, kind of felt like an old time corner drug store. We even bought candy from the glass jars.

For dinner the night after we carved pumpkins we ate pancakes to candlelight. They were enchanted by my creative idea, (thanks Nana Pollan!) Eating dinner by candlelight is a Pollan tradition. It was very important that they all sat in front of the pumpkin they had carved.

We had the Hales over for family night and carved pumpkins together. Byron worked hard to get Ali's Hello Kitty pumpkin just perfect. She was very demanding and we had to send her to her room before the night was over so she could remember how to ask for things nicely. It all worked out in the end though! We are still on the quest for the polite daughter....it takes time but hopefully we will get there before she leaves for college.

Tyler was the surprise of the evening. He turned all grown up on me and did his pumpkin solo. Not even a bit of help from start to finish. He designed his own vampire pumpkin face which looked awesome with it's fangs hanging down. Then he painted with red paint and added the blood accents. Very realistic. He had a fun time and didn't even cut himself. He is growing up faster than Carter did...I am just sure of it.

Carter and Christopher are just getting going. They worked hard on their pumpkins and did eventually get them just right. Carter did a great job making his pumpkin into a skull....it scares Ali and she won't eat unless it is turned around so she doesn't have to see it's scary face.

Sonja and Rachael are digging in....oohhh goooo. Rachael and Sonja carved up a Hello Kitty pumpkin....Ali had to copy her. It is the way with little girls and bigger girls. I know exactly how Rachael is feeling about this or that based on the changes in how Ali is feeling about something. I hope it is not too annoying for Rachael to be so closely watched and mimicked. I am grateful she has picked such a sweet cousin to follow after.

The toasted pumpkin seeds were as always, kind of tasty but also sort of nasty...why do we keep cooking those things? We should really just suck the salt off them and throw them away. Are you supposed to shell them or something? Not so great. Still, you must toast them every year none the less.

Ward Party and Trip to the Moon

So my daughter learns a lot from her cousins. This is the painting that she sold me today for 1 cent. Thankfully she doesn't know current market value. It won't be long though before I can't afford her work. Seriously, can't you see the potential there?

Yesterday we had way too many things scheduled. Ward party, basketball game, two hours of gymnastics....So we ditched it all and went to the ward party. The kids had a great time. Though if you had talked with Ali beforehand you would be wondering, where is her kitty costume? Last minute wardrobe change, twenty minutes of tears, trying on all costumes in the house, and finally we have an Indian Princess. I know, Indian Princess you say? That is what she declared herself as while wearing the pink flapper dress so we just went with it.

Carter happily declared he devoured his donut on a rope faster than anyone else in his age group. The talent of my children will never cease too amaze me.

This is our Jedi Knight Tyler looking much like an actual Jedi Knight. I am not sure if the hand position was intentional or not but it makes him look totally authentic. He does have the power to change your thoughts, unfortunately it is not the force but those lashes that he bats at you while he is talking that usually turns things his way.

So, the going rate of a trip to the moon was $200,000.00 but I read recently there has been a price decrease. Now it is only $104,000.00 for the opportunity to ride along in the space ship and go to the moon. Well, at that bargain of a price we sent two of our kids and a cousin. While they were up there we threw in an extra hundred thousand and had them stop by at Mars. They had a blast walking on the surface of the moon....though you can see that they took it very seriously by the expressions on their faces.

I thought for that price they would throw in space suits, but alas they had to pay an extra fee to stow their luggage and there was no dinner served.

Fall Field Trips and Family Fun

This is the outcome of another successful hunt. Byron is grilling up his teriyaki chuckar. It was delicious! If you have never just thrown your corn on the grill and cooked it husk and all you are missing out. It is delicious!

We are working on an amazing project at the kids school right now. Our service project for the year is to help raise funds for Deseret International Foundation. For $25. they can do a cleft lip, club foot or cross eyed surgery for a child in a developing country. We have challenged the older kids to earn $25 each by performing acts of service for their family and grandparents. So their service is going to bring smiles to themselves, those they serve and new smiles to kids in one of 21 countries they now help in. The foundation has local doctors who they contract with to do the surgeries so not only do they have an operation but they also have someone to look after them post op. It really is an amazing organization. They do Christmas cards where instead of sending a loved on a gift you can sponsor a surgery and the person you are giving the gift to will get a card with a photo of the child your money helped. Think outside the box people. We are trying to teach our kids about how blessed we are living in this country with all the great opportunities we have. Doug Jackson, in the photo above, came and represented their foundation and put on a great assembly for the kids. He did a good job of explaining why the surgery makes such a big difference in the lives of those who get it. It really was eye opening.

This last week we said good-bye to an old friend. Byron was really sad to let his car go, but alas....little blue has left the family forever. Hopefully he has moved onto greener pastures. He was a good car while he lasted. Our neighbors are all so glad to not have it parked in front of our house any longer....really our three car garage can't actually fit three cars.

This was our 10-10-10 celebration photo. We wanted a picture of the whole family together on this day of 10's. Carter is ten in this photo by the way. So, there you have it.....Oct 10 2010....now we just have to wait for 11-11-11.

Ali spent forever one afternoon dancing around our dog Chewy. Boy is he a good sport! They waltzed and sashayed and boggied. It was a fun dance recital. There was kicking music coming out of the CD player and one happy girl.

We found a new park by our house. We can't tell you where it is though, because it is tucked away in a secret location, not to be disclosed so it will stay our little secret park. The kids were more than happy to play mean spiders on this web. There was lots of hissing and web throwing going on. The park is tucked up in the crook of a canyon and the leaves on the scrub oaks are all turning red. It was beautiful to sit there on the park bench with Byron and enjoy the autumn air. Byron took a little hike to see where this path led and brought me back two red fall leaves. Very sweet. Then he surprised the kids with a trip to Five Guys. They were thrilled to end our family home evening park adventure with dinner at their favorite restaurant. It was a fun family night.

We have been going to the same preschool now for four years...so here we area again at the Pack's Farm Fall Fieldtrip. The kids have fun playing in the hay maze and listening to the farmer read them a story about a giant pumpkin. Then they treated the parents with a cute pumpkin on the fence song. The best part though is picking out a pumpkin fresh from the field. There are hundreds of little pumpkins laid out everywhere and the kids get to inspect and weigh each and every one of them until they find the perfect pumpkin. It took Ali about twenty minutes to make sure she had the biggest one with the longest stem. They ended with delicious homemade chocolate chip pumpkin cookies. What a fun day for their little class.

Ali ran in and our and around and through....so much fun in a hay maze.

We had a few days off school this week so we took off to Ogden's Dinosaur Park with our friends the West's. It is such a fun place to visit and it was decorated for Halloween right now so it was even scarier than usual. Lots of human skeletons laying around with the dinosaurs. Spiders coming out of trees....lots of pumpkins everywhere.

They have a great park there with dinos you can fully enjoy. There is also a tree house slide that is pretty cool. I am thinking about having one installed in our backyard. Of course it would take up the whole backyard, but it was really neat.

We had so much fun playing and chatting with our friends. Tyler and Jagger have been in the same class since preschool. They even transferred schools the same year we did so they have been through it all together. It is so nice when your kids have good friends to help get them through big changes in their lives.

We are having a great fall and I am LOVING that the weather has stayed warm clear through to the middle of October. Byron is getting anxious for skiing though. I will continue to enjoy our beautiful weather for as long as we are lucky enough to have it. Did I mention how much I am loving this fall?