I guess its Avery's turn to be in the paper. We went to the Tea Park and Rec. Annual Winter festival this last Saturday to enjoy the best that Tea, SD has to offer. Some chump by the name Phil Baker performs at this festival every year. Apparently he is pretty famous around here. He has CD's out, writes childrens books and tries really hard to be legit. I've never heard of this Mister Rogers wannabe but the kids appeared to enjoy him. He sang some memorable songs like "scat like that" and "hoedown". Frankly this guy was really, really, REALLY irritating but the kids had fun. I guess its all about the kids right. Any rate they had booths that the kids could go to an play soccer, baseball, face painting, and other kid friendly type displays. Below is the picture that was in the paper. She almost looks like a professional pitcher here. Unfortunately her wee little arms barely had enough strength to reach the net. She put everything she had in that throw....it still only managed to go about 10 feet. I don't think we have an athlete in our midst. enjoy!



Avery Slater, six, throws a baseball at the Tea Park and Rec Board’s Winter Festival on Saturday.
(John Hult/The Champion)

All about Skype!

The kids have found a new passion....Skype. Avery and Scott now are constantly pestering us to let them log onto skype and talk with their family and friends. For those of you who don't know skype, you can log on and network with other skype members and talk via live video feed. The best part is it is absolutely free. The kids love seeing their cousins and loved ones back in Utah. It is a great way to keep in touch with everyone. Any rate, nothing new to report. Just living the dream. Scott continues to flex his intellect and constantly reminds Heidi and I that he is collectively more intelligent than the both of us. Just the other day, for instance, he proved this very point. For the last 3 months he has been asking about the baby and when it will arrive. He sees Heidi's belly grow but cant wait for the pay out of the new addition to our family. Due to his age and where we feel he is developmentally we have told him that the baby will come when it gets a little warmer. For a few months this satisfied his curiosity. However not to long ago he asked the question again about when the baby will come. We replied with our usual response of it will when it gets warmer. Scott sat and thought about it for a moment and then approached Heidi and said, "Mom will you just go turn up that heater so the baby will come out already". If only it were that simple. I guess trying to make things easier to understand by dumbing things down just tends to backfire in our faces. We can't keep up with his reasoning skills. Little bugger is only three and he is already smarter than the old man. I wonder what we will be in for in the future?

Finally....how sweet it is!

Well, the time has come. A day to celebrate in the Slater house hold. I think Scott is finally potty trained. No more diapers, no more accidents, no more of dad going stark raving mad. Yes we are all celebrating in my house. Diaper free for a few more months anyways. Other than that, no new news to report. School is going well, the weather is warming up and the kids are doing fantastic. Below are a few pictures we have taken lately. One is Scott on the pot. The one with Avery is of a valentine box we made for her class. The others are pictures of Heidi's belly. We have a tradition in our house that we take the time to paint and decorate moms belly. The kids loved it. Any rate, hope all is well.



Avery and her Valentine Box (supposed to look like a locker)



Starting the painting project.



The finished product!