The Davolts

We celebrated Nathan's 5th birthday in June. He was excited to invite a few friends to the party and they seemed to have a great time playing with balloons, toys, and in the sprinkler. The kids didn't seem to notice the 100 degree temperatures, but the adults sure did. For this almost summer birthday, I opted for a camping theme, hence the campfire and s'mores themed cakes at the end of the video/slide show below.  I'm sure you noticed the hospital pics at the end. A few weeks after his birthday, Nathan had to have a tonsil and adenoidectomy and tubes put into his ears. After months of wondering if his hearing was an issue, or if he was just ignoring his mom and dad, Nathan's teacher observed that he had a hard time hearing the directions given and was sensitive when he felt he missed something. Another day or two later, while having dinner, I noticed Nathan was turning his left ear closer and closer to me, each time saying, "what?". I asked him

This is the conversation in the back seat while we were driving home today (Feb. 1): Nathan: I'm going to be a teacher when I get bigger. Me: Oh yeah? Are you going to teach big kids or little kids ? Nathan: Big kids. I'm going to teach big kids. Andrew: My teach big kids too! Nathan: Andrew, we have to wait until we get bigger, then we can teach big kids. And I'm going to get bigger first.  The end of August was the start of a new school year, but also a new school for me. It has always been my goal to teach high school, but like most things in life, the journey was not as straight as planned.  When I first started at middle school in the fall of 2008, I was very appreciative for the full time position that would be my foot in the door. I became even more appreciative as the economy changed and school districts starting laying off teachers and reducing their teacher populations. For years, I heard about how my incoming "class" of teachers was &q

In the eighth month of '15, our family was seen:  Exploring the Portland Children's Museum.   Celebrating the marriage of Maria & Jay in Seattle. These lovebirds are truly two of the most generous, inspiring, caring people we've ever met. I feel so lucky to have met Maria (and many mutual friends) shortly after joining the sorority in college.  Ashley matches Maria in her compassion for people! Playing in the "kitchen" at home:   Hunting for BIG maple leaves at Grandpa Murray's house: 

The end of June means the end of another school year. The last few days of the month are sprinkled with meetings and professional development, which often mean a little bump in our paychecks. The same is true for August, only in reverse. The meetings and development opportunities are at the start of the month, as we wind back into school mode. Wedged in the middle, July is a month where we can be certain of our time off, and make plans for travel. Time to hit the road! We started the month by driving the Grand Junction, Colorado, and visiting the King family, as we did two years ago. The family has grown with partners, spouses, children, etc.  Grand Junction had a nice parade in honor of the Fourth of July Just a little accident invited us to visit the local ER The drive across Southern Idaho/Utah is pretty bare.  After CO, we drove back to Boise to visit Jeff's parents. To celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary, we left the boys in Boise while we flew t