The Past Month

The Hough Happenings for May
(having a hard time getting posts written lately...try to do better)

• Lesa-  Mother's Day...I followed the advice of a friend and had Steve take my picture with the kiddos on Mother's Day.  It seems that the moms are always behind the camera and at least once per year we should try to take a mom & kids pic.  Steve scored big points this year by getting me a necklace with the names of the kids on different charms.  I LOVE it!  And another highlight this Mother's Day...was watching my Mom ride her new red cruiser bike that we all pitched in and got her.  I really don't remember ever seeing my Mom on a bike before.  She looks great!  A few weeks later...I ran in my first relay race - Running with Ed.  It was the first annual Park City Education fundraiser....I think it raised around $50k and it was really fun being part of a team.  I kinda choked on the first leg - 7 miles slight uphill...but finished strong on our other leg - 6 miles trail running.  I think the second leg was easier because Steve and the kids were there cheering us on right when we needed it.

 
 

• Steve - Most of you have probably already seen this picture...but this is the aftermath of a fall at the bike park with Jake.  About 15 stitches in 4 different spots.  The chin/mouth area took the first impact and he still has no feeling in his chin.  We learned that the face/mouth heal very quickly.  It really was amazing how much better he looked within days.  He was back on the bike a week later and is LOVING his new bike - a labor of love for him and Duff.  Thank you Duff for all of your connections and help!

• Jake - it seems like this was a big month for Jake.  At the beginning of May, we finally convinced him to try a short haircut.  I actually love the look for him...but it was also hard for me to cut almost all of it off.  It hasn't been this short since he was a baby.  There is a little road rash on Jake's face in this picture.  He took a good spill on his friend's bike and was very brave.  His friend's dad said no tears.  The next big thing for Jake was this awesome birthday party that he went too for his buddy Luke.  He counted down the days and it lived up to the hype.  It was a reptile/spider/insect party and he got to hold several snakes, etc.  That has kicked off a LOVE of bugs and every creepy crawling thing.  When he is outside and off his bike, he is constantly looking for things that move.  The next big thing is that Jake can now make it through the night without a pullup!  For you parents out there who have gone through this...you understand our happiness with this news.  It was been a long road and he seems to be doing great and sticking to it.  Wish us luck going forward :-)  He earned a remote control car.  Spring soccer finished up yesterday.  Jake really enjoys being part of a team and I have loved that about his soccer experiences.  The things that we don't love...it that he is not really interested in kicking the ball too much or scoring goals...even though we bribe him with money.  He did score one goal this year - in the wrong goal.  But we are proud of him none the less. 

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   Stevie Kate - Stevie also did Spring Soccer - but just a skills clinic instead of teams playing games.  She loved it!  And is very excited to play fall soccer on a team.  We will see if she is more competitive than her brother.  We have all been biking...and Stevie took a good fall already on her new run bike.  She created much more drama over this fall than Jake and Steve combined.  School is now out in Park City and I had a parent teacher conference with her teacher a few weeks ago.  I was very proud to hear that Stevie is kind at school and always tries her best.  Shining Stars Preschool was a great experience for us.  She is now very excited to start going to preschool at Miss Sharie's...where Jake has been going to preschool.  Stevie wanted me to post this picture of her face as a dog...she absolutely loves face painting.

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  Kelly - As I have said before...Kelly is the comedian in our family.  She is quite funny and more of her personality comes out each day.  She loves to dance and do silly things to try to get people to laugh.  And I love that Kelly is starting to really enjoy having friends....and she loves to say their names.  "Choo Choo" (nickname for Drew Dustman), Mia, Will, Sophie, Jack, and Riley...all little ones about her same age.  She is also smitten with Aunt Amy "Mamy" (just like Jake and Stevie).  Kelly loves being outside...which is great for us.  She begs to go out first thing in the morning.  I think her favorite thing to do is go down the plastic slide onto the trampoline.  She also loves the swings at the park.

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  Goldie - our pet goldfish.  This was our first attempt at having another pet and we knew the outcome would probably be a dead goldfish.  But we tried....and only made it 3 days.  But in those 3 days...the kids fell in love with Goldie.  We left to pick Jake up from school and when we came back, she had gone to heaven.  I told the kids we should flush her down the toilet and Stevie agreed and didn't shed any tears.  However...Jake was very upset...hence the picture.  We talked about it...said a prayer...etc.  But he finally stopped crying when I asked Stella (4 years old) to talk to him about pets.  Stella lost one of her dogs this past year and she did a great job explaining it to him.  I shed a few tears listening to her say words like "freedom, family, heaven" etc.  So precious...

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  Misc - The brink of summer is finally here and we are looking forward to a great time and visits from some of our Hough family.  I am also excited for two new baby girls that will be born into the Draper clan this summer.