The Rose Family

We love this time of year! Christmas is our fav. We're traditionalists. We buy a REAL tree. We try to put up a bunch of lights on the house. Derek cooks his famous turkey for dinner. We love it! So Derek changed the look of our blog to celebrate.

Derek is working on uploading all of our family photos to Picasa. So far, he has completed all of 2004 and is starting to work on 2005. Please note that we've locked all of the albums down. We've gone through Derek's address book and added people we have email addresses for. So if you can't access it, shoot us an email and Derek will add you - derekr44 (at) gmail (dot) com.

Matt has moved on to 1st grade and Joshy has joined the fun by heading to Kindergarten this year. Matthew was excited because this year, he gets to bring his lunch with him. Mom made him a special star sandwich. Joshy was so excited to start school this year. He goes to PM Kindergarten, so he was a little upset when Matthew went to school first. Both of them were up, dressed, backpacks on and ready to go at 6:30AM. Mom is trying to get used to having a lonelier house.

We've had an eventful summer! Patrick came to stay with us for awhile and the girl's got to come down and spend time. The boys had a blast swimming and playing with their cousins. We had a very full house on the 4th of July, with family coming in all the way from Georgia. We know we are loved when people decide to come to Arizona right smack in the middle of summer. :) Needless to say, the kids were in the pool from sunup to sundown, and the adults spent most of the time eating and playing Catan. Summer was fun!

 
 
 
 
We know we are way overdue, but we wanted to share pictures of our sweet Joshy turning 5 years old. He wanted to invite his friends over and have a nice spaghetti dinner. Dad made him a Transformers cake. He got a lot of great presents and got to stay up late. We love you, Joshy!

We just got back from our Nine-Year Anniversary Cruise to the Mexican Riviera! It was a fabulous 7-day cruise out of Los Angeles to Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta. Rebekah and I had such a fantastic time, we were sad to have it end earlier today. Here's a little summary:

We left the kids behind with Grandma and Grandpa Rose. Thanks a million to them for holding down the fort and keeping their house from burning down. Not only did they watch over the kids, but Grandpa had an entire week of activities planned out for them; things like a Memorial Day Fair, beach trips, trips to the park, petting zoo... they even made Rebekah and I an anniversary plate. The boys were in good hands, and we didn't have to worry. Thanks!!! We love you guys.

Like every cruise we've been on (I'm pretty sure of this), Uncle Mike took us to the port on time and picked us up as well. Thanks for taking the time, Mike!

Our first port was the beautiful Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The rusty Spanish from both Rebekah and I kicked in and came very much in handy. We did everything and more for less than half the price everyone else on the boat did. We walked all the way around the Cabo San Lucas bay, took a boat taxi to Lover's Cove and spent the rest of the afternoon snorkeling in the warm sun. We then had the best authentic Mexican lunch (Paul would be so proud) complete with Pina Coladas (virgin of course) before heading back to the ship late in the afternoon.

Our next port was Mazatlan, Mexico. We started out on a 4-5 mile walk from the port to the Lighthouse. If any of you know that hike, you know how steep it is. It's a 515 foot vertical climb across switchbacks that lead to one of the highest lighthouses in the area. We were blessed with a spectacular panoramic view of the entire city of Mazatlan and very proud of our hiking achievement. After that, we ventured out to the Zona Dorada for some shopping and lunch.

Our last port was Puerto Vallarta, Mexico... by far our favorite of all the ports we visited. It reminded us of Hawaii. The mountains were right up against the coast and were a lush, deep green color. The beaches were a sandy white. And some of those houses on the coast were huge. We hopped on a 30-passenger Zodiac boat (the same kind the Navy Seals use) and flew (literally) across the ocean down the southern coast. We stopped off in a small fishing village that was only accessible by boat. From there, we hopped on these old Mercedes safari trucks and drove up into the jungle-covered mountains, seeing tons of coconut and mango trees along the way. Arriving at our destination, we hopped off the trucks, strapped on our rapelling harnesses and rode donkeys further up the ridge to the top of the mountain range. It was there that we began our adventure by strapping ourselves to eight zip lines over the jungle canyons, rapelling twice down waterfalls into pools of water. By the end of the six hour journey we were drenched, tired, sweaty and wanting to do it all over again. Senora Ana greeted us with freshly made quesadillas and salsa. The best way I can describe that trip was that it was an absolute blast. Can't say much more than that.

The rest of our evening was spent in the beachside shopping district of Puerto Vallarta. We picked up some beautifully hand-crafted plates from a local artist. Each plate is different. We can't wait to use them! If you look closely in a couple of the pictures I linked below, you'll notice a guy we could not believe. Yes, those are extremely heavy rocks picked up right off the beach, and yes he is balancing them by hand. The hand-carved sand sculptures were fantastic.

Nine years has flown by. Three kids, a couple cars and a mortgage later, and I'm more in love with Rebekah now than when we first stepped on the boat for our honeymoon cruise. So I've linked our pictures below to share with all of you and hope you enjoy looking at them as much as we enjoyed taking them.

Here it is, 9:00PM on November 18th. Six years ago, Rebekah and I were getting back from chaperoning a youth scavenger hunt at South Coast Plaza. Rebekah had a terrible cough that night, and was getting really tired. Lo and behold, we were up in a matter of hours and on our way to Hoag Hospital at 3AM. Our little Matthew came into the world 9 hours later.

The time seems to have passed quickly. He's been perfect since the day he arrived. So here are a few pictures from six years ago and a few from now. Happy Birthday, Matt! We love you!

We've been keeping busy these last few months, trying to stay cool (the pool has been well-used). Matthew has been enjoying and doing well in school. Joshy started preschool and loves it. Little Jake started walking, loves his PB&J sandwiches and is very good at saying "hot! hot!" and "no! no!". He's fun to listen to. Both Matt and Josh are on the same soccer team this year with our neighbor Bryce. They are on the Hornets. Derek is coaching the team again this year and has a lot of fun with the kids. They get to chase him around the field during practice, trying to hit him by kicking the soccer balls at him. Rebekah started teaching her classes just before Labor Day and loves all the kids in her classes. For the first time in over ten years of teaching, she has a class of all girls. I guess that's her way of making up for the over-abundance of boys in this house.

We've had some fun pool parties, football parties (go cougs!) and our regular Settlers game nights. It's been a fun start of the fall!

We spent a quick weekend in Utah for Amy's wedding. It's hard to believe that Amy is old enough for it. Yes, even with hundreds of pictures, hours of video and months of planning proving that she is, we are still wondering how quickly time flies. Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa Rose for holding down the fort while we escaped the heat. We missed the boys, but it sure was fun to go.

I (Derek) was the designated cameraman, so I spent most of the day holding the video camera in my right hand and digital camera in my left. Rebekah sported her hot pink bridesmaid dress. She spent a lot of time doing Amy's hair just right and prepping her for the big day. It was a lot of hard work. Especially the part where she sat in a nice comfy chair and got her nails done. That was probably the roughest (rolleyes). Thanks for letting us be a part of your day, Amy & Brent! We love you guys.

The night before Kindergarten we made lunch, picked out his clothes and packed his backpack

This 4th was a lot of fun! Thanks to the families who sacrificed their perfect Southern California weather for Arizona heat. We had a blast with you here. There wasn't enough sun block for the many hours spent in the pool. By the end of the day, we had several waterlogged lobsters who wanted to go right back in. While the children swam, we spent our hours playing Settlers of Catan. I think we must have played at least seven games, with Greg "Tall Man" Moon taking most of them. We also managed to get Grandma and Grandpa addicted to Jericho. By the time they left, they were already halfway through season one. More people that need to buy duct tape and plastic sheeting. And Kudos goes out to the Dunns for providing about 10 gallons of home-made root beer and a very tasty berry flag cake.

All fun aside, Rebekah and I have lived in many countries and know how blessed we are here in the United States. We are so very lucky to be able to express patriotism and take advantage of the liberties that thousands of people purchased with their sacrifices. We are grateful to our own family members who have sacrificed of themselves for these freedoms.

David Atkinson - Colonel - US Air Force - Vietnam
Douglas Rose - Sergeant - US Air Force - Vietnam
Florin Rose - US Army - 2nd Infantry - WW2
Garr Rose - US Army - WW2
Douglas Hansen - US Army - WW2

Little Jacob love is 1 today! We had a fun day today. We woke him up with a birthday balloon before I went to work today. Mom made him a birthday breakfast. Grandma and Grandpa Rose sent him a package and he had fun opening the fun presents. His birthday wish (that he told Mom, apparently) was to have Mom read him Wheels on the Bus, twice. That's his absolute favorite book. Happy Birthday, little guy! We all love you!



  
  

Right after we got home from Utah, we decided to go camping that next weekend... the first of many trips we will make this summer. We went up to the Mogollon Rim with a few friends and had a great time. It was really nice to have a fire too! The boys got their first crack at a gun (BB) and decided it was cool enough to get one for dad for Father's Day. This week, we'll be prepping for another run to the rim!

While we were in Utah, Derek went up with the kids and his parents to visit his Grandparents. We were able to get a four generation picture of all the boys. The boys really enjoyed playing with Great Papa Rose. They were so excited that daddy has a grandpa!

So the first month of this summer has been packed with lots of fun. It's about time we sit down together and share some experiences.

Our nephew was being blessed in Utah the first week of June, so we decided to turn it into a full vacation. We spent the first two nights of the week in a beautiful lodge called Flanigan's at Zion's National Park. It was absolutely gorgeous there. The weather was perfectly clear and just the right temperature. We spent our days there hiking up the canyons and counting all the squirrils, stinkbugs and lizards. We counted 9 lizards, 4 squirrils and 2 stinkbugs. The boys had such a blast hiking up the trails. We even hiked a 5 mile moderate level hike, and they didn't want to stop! Jacob even enjoyed all his views from dad's back. He had it easiest.

When we got up to northern Utah, we spent a lot of time with family. We took the kids up to the Discovery Children's Museum and to the Salt Lake Zoo. I was so excited to give a bridal shower to my niece, Amy. I can't believe she is getting married in a few weeks!

We had a wonderful time and we are already planning our next trip (Lake Powell).

One nice thing about living out here in the sticks is the proximity to farms. (Yes, they do have things out here besides sagebrush...) We decided to take advantage of the Peach Festival over at Schnepf Farms and have some fun with the Coombs. We got to ride some rides, eat some good food and pick our own peaches from the trees. Derek made some to-die-for-homemade peach ice cream (I need to brag a little), and Mom made some awesome peach cobbler.

We were greatful that the Moons came to visit us (my older sister). We told them that they were going to come down for a BBQ and swimming, but little did they know they had to work to earn the priviledge to do so. We did some spring cleaning and completely redesigned the preschool room upstairs.

Thanks for the manual labor! The room looks great!