Five Brown Kids

Tyrone's sister got married this weekend. Tyrone had to skip out of the beach house a little early so he could fly home for the party. Congratulations Anesha! 

Dumb cast!

First item on the agenda with the Ricks.  Fresh peaches at the Farmers Market.  Nothing better.

Just hours after we got home from the hospital the Ricks showed up for our annual beach week.  Courtney and Matt spent Friday taking Riley on college tours (he's a rising senior!)  and I watched the kids. We went on a bike ride/run just because I need to.  And then tried out the brand new Defy Gravity right in Raleigh.  It's fantastic.  Perfect place to wear out a bunch of kids. The grownups went out for a late Friday night dinner downtown - Happy Birthday Emily! I'll spare you the details of pack and drive day because it's always mad chaos trying to get 11 people and their clothes, food, linens and beach gear out the door.  But once we got here.  Ahhhhhh......  pictures to come.

Earlier this evening when I first heard the news (that Kate Kelly, leader of Ordain Women was excommunicated from the LDS church) I felt sad and a little sick to my stomach. But it's four in the morning now and I feel angry. The priesthood is the power to act in God's name. Of course we already have it -you just haven't formally recognized us yet.  We are a church with over 50% women and yet men make every single decision- including this one. That's stupid.  Kate was supposedly "leading people astray..."  I get that the protests and demands were more than the church can accept.   But I see it more like she was the first (yes, there have been others, but this time it caught the world's attention) to be brave enough to stand up and say what we all know.  That even if you don't want the priesthood, no one can deny that women do not have enough say, enough voice and enough leadership in this church.  Tyrone and I talk about how all over the...

Tuesday evening I took Blythe to the orthopedic surgeon for a follow up visit. He looked at the X-ray and told me he needed to put a spica cast on in the OR as soon as possible and could I be at the hospital the next morning? After a very long and very late summer swim meet we settled everyone into bed, made plans for the next day and a few hours later were heading to the hospital for 5:30 am check in. Tyrone emailed a favorite co-worker with pediatric experience and asked her to help with the case.  The worst part by far was not being able to give Blythe a breakfast bottle after she woke up. She was far more disturbed about that than she has been with the broken bone.  It was crazy to see the pre-op unit in action. Tyrone knows everyone and they were all extraordinarily kind and helpful. When the surgeon showed up and saw Tyrone - he said, oh I didn't know you were with her  .... And he was much more friendly and talkative than the night before.  ...

Thirteen years of parenthood, two wild and crazy boys and the honor of our very first ER visit and first broken bone goes to...... Baby Blythe! Poor little bunny.  Friday morning when we were getting ready to head to the lake with friends, Taye scooped her up off the floor and she leaned back and flipped right out of his arms.  She landed on a rug on the carpet so after we cuddled her and soothed her we thought she would be good to go.  But I couldn't  get her content again - anytime she moved she fussed or cried.  After the lake I took her to the pediatrician and he couldn't find anything wrong.  Recommended some Tylenol and a nap and then a trip to the ER if she still wasn't happy.  So we did just that. Tyrone was there at work already and since it was his sleep night he was free to come down and hang out with us the whole time.  Everyone was super nice - didn't hurt that dad had his gear on and knew half the people.... ...

We celebrated Taye's 13th birthday today with five of his favorite school, church and swim friends.  We jumped at Defy Gravity and then ate lunch and swam at the YMCA pool.  Despite locking the keys in my car and a crazy mid day thunderstorm it all worked out fantastically well.  Kids had a wonderful time! It's day 9 of summer "vacation".  Day 8 kicked my butt.  It's the first day in six months that I thought 4 kids was too many - mostly just one Taye Brown too many.  When he isn't cooking, swimming, reading or watching TV he just wanders around bugging everyone.  Same as every other summer.  Thankfully summer vacation doesn't last forever.

Taye had the Open Water Swim meet this weekend.  He swam 2 km around a lake and then got out with legs that felt like jelly. Swimming is no joke. Taye turned 13 last week.  He's a teenager!  I can't believe this handsome, hardworking kid is mine. Keep going Taye, don't stop.

I have survived Day 2 of Summer "Vacation". It was alternating boring and busy and messy and loud - but these made it worthwhile: On the way from the library to the farmers market Taye said, "I think the farmers market is the funnest thing to do in Raleigh."  After we taste tested all the strawberries and peaches I'd come close to agreeing if it weren't for those amazing greenway trails. Taye made bagels all by himself.  Delicious!  Scotia and Blythe and I biked to swim practice with Blythe's new bike trailer.  She's a traveling babe! After supper discussing college and careers I said if Taye wanted a super fancy car then he could just skip marriage and family and he'd have plenty of money  - and Taye said very matter of factly, "I want to get married."   Good news that we haven't scared him off.

From May 28 - June 1 Jax and Tyrone were lucky to travel to Iowa Sate University for the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals . It was the same as last year .  A bunch of parents and coaches following the kids around while they pin trade and compete and eat.  It's an easy routine. Tyrone was the only dad on the trip but got along great with the other moms - they have lots of inside jokes now - including a very silly t-shirt that Tyrone now owns. Jaxon has enough OM t-shirts to wear a different one every day of the week, and pins from Poland, Singapore, China, Korea, Switzerland and Canada. He is one lucky kid. The structure held 250 pounds

Just some thoughts about the future.  In just a few years Taye will be heading out on his own.... We go to the beach every summer and I don't think anything will ever change about that.  But once kids head off to school and marriage etc they are still welcome to the Ricks/Brown Family Summer Week at the Beach House.  Bring a roommate, bring your girlfriend, bring a foreign student who needs a summer trip, bring your husband and kids.  I'll rent a house big enough and cook yummy food. Also, as grandkids start arriving Tyrone and I plan to offer each couple/parent one kid free week a year.  Grandkids can come to our house or we'll go to yours.  You can count on it every year and make your plans for world travel early!  Emily mentioned that she has a friend whose parents provide a week of babysitting every year as a Christmas present and I think that's perfect.  Merry Christmas Brown kids!

I'm scanning this picture for my mom and thought I would tell the crazy story of my adventure getting to BYU. Early in my senior year of high school a missionary in my branch mentioned that he thought I would enjoy BYU.  I didn't know much about it but I loved the missionaries and trusted their judgment so I thought I would at least apply. Canadian colleges don't use the SAT or ACT so my counselor scheduled me to take the test one Saturday morning in a town about 45 mins away.  I arrived with a sharp pencil and took the SAT with maybe a dozen other kids considering American schools. Don't have a clue what my score was - I had no one in my school to compare it with. I typed up my application on the electric typewriter in the library at the church and sent it off. Early in the spring I was accepted and started making plans. Somehow - and I still don't know - it was decided that the most economical way to get me to BYU and my little brother John down ...