Adventures of Dillan

Monday we had such a long day. Without telling the whole story about the police showing up, it was still busy. I mowed the lawn for the first time of the year. It was so long since we had recieved so much rain lately. Jeremy tilled the garden (which is way too big) for about 2 hours.

Dillan loved being outside with us all evening. He was running around like crazy with freedom. A dog wandered into the yard while Jeremy was tilling and Dillan thought that was excellent! He wandered around after this dog for a long time...until the dog finally went home I assume. At least that is what I told Dillan. For days now, all I hear is "puppy home." Anywhere the dog ran, Dillan ran too.

Then Wednesday is the day that I get 2 hours away from the house with Dillan. I asked him where he wanted to go. His response, "See the Temple." He really likes driving by it. Sometimes I go out of my way just to pass by when he is with me because I like his excitement for it. So when he requested to go see the temple, how could I tell him no?? It is our time together and I want to spend it how he wants...as long as I don't have critical things to do, which isn't very often.

So we drove to the temple. It is really pretty right now because the gardeners have all the spring flowers coming up and blooming. The fountains were on for the first time that we have noticed this year. Dillan liked to see the water and the bubbles from the jets of water. He adored the tulips. I can't wait until we move back into the little house across the street so that he can see that every day. I really do miss that.

Then I asked him what he wanted to do next. He said, "Daddy work!" So we headed out to Harris Research to see Daddy for a treat. Thanks for the skittles and M&Ms Michael. They were a big hit with Dill.

After that I asked, "where to now Dillan?" His response this time, "Park!" We got back in the car and drove to a small park on 2nd N out on the West side of town. Eliason Park is the name. It is small, but the playground is good for Dillan and there is never anyone else there. So Dillan has free reign. I am impressed with his climbing skills. He gets up things that shock me sometimes. He was even impressed with himself as heard by the "I did it!" once he reaches the top.

Once we left the park and asked him what he wanted to do now. "Chicken and fies Momma." I guess he was hungry. It was 11:30 by this point so we headed to get some lunch and then went home. I really love that he is able to tell me what he wants and that he never asks for anything outrageous (yet). I definitely spoil him on Wednesdays, but that is his day out of the house with me so I don't feel bad about it at all. How could I feel bad about a 2 year old that only wants to see the temple, see daddy, go to the park, and then have lunch?

My Fabulous weekend

Okay, so the title is misleading. It was so NOT fabulous. People are asking like crazy what happened and why I almost got arrested on Monday night. Let me start from the begining...

Two months ago I was pulled over. You can read that story here. I blogged about he great incident back in February. Long story short, in case you don't want to go and read it there, is that I was pulled over for not having the "09" sticker on my back plate even though it was registered and I had the sticker stapled to the registration when the officer asked for it.

I did everything I was told to take care of it and the next week had an officer sign off on it at the police station and he was surprised that I got a ticket for it and laughed when he signed it. He was shocked the other guy didn't let me just put it on right then. Stupid! I turned it into the court just like he, and the officer that wrote the ticket, told me to. The lady there took the ticket and said, "wait a few minutes while I check to make sure we have all the paperwork for it since you are just barely at the 7 day mark." Heaven forbid that I would be right on time to do that right? She came back a few minutes later and said, "We've got everything. You are set and ready to go." She stamped the ticket and filed it. Dillan and I were on our way home.

Well, about a month later I got the ticket mailed back to me...with a post it note on it none the less. It says, "This is a $40 fine not a fix it. Please take care of this. Thank you." No other explaination, no clue who it is from. But it is stamped with the date that I "took care of it" from weeks before. I was upset about it and called my brother Matt(an attorney) who told me to contact the prosecuting attorney for the city and explain what happened and he would probably dismiss the whole thing. I tracked down the attorney, Mark Sorensen, and called him so many times. I left messages and he never called back. So for weeks I am getting no where.

Then on this past Saturday I get a letter in the mail saying that I have a warrant for my arrest! Great right? And it being Saturday, there is nothing I can do. So Monday was busy with yard work galore. I mowed the lawn and Jeremy tilled the garden. I had rented a tiller and the jeep and trailer were parked in front of the house for the evening.

Jeremy and I were loading up the tiller and a cop pulls up. He gets out and says, "You must be Martha." Um, yes. "Did you know you have a warrant for your arrest?" Um, let me explain my side of the story. I explained the whole thing to this guy. Did you know that the officers know you have a warrant, but have no idea what it is for? He had no clue until I told him. Wouldn't you approach someone with gun charges a little different than a traffic ticket? That is beside the point though. He aparently had run the plates on the jeep while it was parked out front when he drove by earlier.

The officer was soooo nice though. He felt really bad and was completely on my side on this one. He said, "In the 17 years I have been an officer I have never issued the ticket. We are told not to. You really need to go down and talk to Captain Budge and tell him what you told me and he will help you. I am going to walk away because I think this is ridiculous."

I packed Dillan up Tuesday morning and headed to the police station...again. The secretary called the Captain down for me and he and one of his officers stood there and listened to my story and their jaws just dropped. He was livid at his officer that issued the ticket, you could see it in his eyes. He said, "I will tell you that this officer has already been reprimanded for this ticket because he issued several the same week. We don't issue this ticket, especially if you were registered and had the sticker for him. That is stupid! I will take care of it. Give me a few minutes."

He came back with the paperwork that I had given him along with the sticky note and ticket. He photocopied everything for his own use and let me keep mine. He handed the stack back to me and said, "Here are the originals for your lawsuit against us. I will 27(run) your lisence in a couple days to make sure it doesn't get suspended and I will call you when I talk to the attorney to make sure everything is done." He apologized profusely and assured me that he will talk to the officer again and that he would take care of everything. He then asked, "Did my officer arrest you last night?" I told him no, but that I didn't want him to get in trouble because he was really nice and helped out a lot. He responded with, "Good, I am glad he didn't. I would be very upset if he did for something like this."

Captain Budge called an hour later on my cell phone and told me that everything was taken care of and that everything was dismissed and there should be no more issues. He apologized again for all the time, stress, and hassle and said, "If there is anything else you need, just come find me."

So, I was a criminal on the run...for a few days. I could sue if I wanted to, but the money I would get out of it wouldn't be enough for the hassle. If I had been arrested...that would be a different story. I have renewed faith in the LCPD. Thank you Captain Budge and the nice officer that stopped by Monday (I wish I had caught his name).

Outside!

The weather, up until today, has been fabulous! Dillan and I have spent a lot of time outside each day. It is good for both of us. Thankfully, Grandma has a nice sized yard that Dillan can play in. Not so thankfully, is that it isn't fenced and on a major street for Logan. He does really well at staying in the backyard and we don't notice the cars out front anymore. The noise when you go out front scares him.


He will wander and wander for as long as you will let him. Sticks are good for banging things. Balls of all kinds are always on the grass. The slide is a nice touch. And of course it would not be a complete backyard to Dillan without a swing. We spend lots of time in the swing.

Dillan is learning how to play baseball and soccer right now. Basketball is still good, but we aren't descriminating against any sport at this point. He can do what he wants. Check out his mad dribbling skills with a soccer ball! I am having problems with the video uploading. I will try again later. Sorry! :(

Dillan also liked playing outside at Grandma Mary's house last weekend. It was so nice to be able to let him out and not worry about him a single bit. With a fenced yard and grates over the window wells, I just let him play without worrying about watching like a hawk. I NEED a fenced yard.

Jeremy's Marathon and Mom's Birthday

We were in Salt Lake last weekend for Jeremy's run. We were able to stay the weekend thanks to Robin! We left Friday evening and got back Sunday morning.

It was my mom's birthday on Friday so we headed to Salt Lake to pick up Jeremy's race packet and met her and my brother's family at Bonsai Japanese Steakhouse for dinner in Sandy. It was alright. Too pricey for my tastes...I would have rather spent the $50 on sushi at Takara. But it was fun to be with family. Dillan was absolutely freaked out by the grill at the table. He literally freaked and started screaming anytime you saw fire. I guess we know not to do that for a while.

Saturday morning Jeremy got up at 5am and made his way downtown to ride Trax up to the U. I told him I would meet him at the finish line at the Gateway between 10am and 10:30 when he was expected to finish.

Dillan loved the train ride downtown. "Whee Fun! Train Momma!" was all he said the entire time down... I take that back. He did pop up with "Ball hoop Momma, ball hoop!" anytime he saw a yard with a basketball hoop in it.

We jumped off the train at ESA/Gateway and we walked to the finish line. We were there just before 10am and expected Jeremy around 10:15 - 10:20. We waited and waited....I was getting worried when it got to be 10:30ish. Dillan was getting restless sitting on my shoulders for a half hour while I stood there waiting with the camera. But just in the nick of time...we saw Daddy! We cheered for him like crazy and I got some pictures.

I think Jeremy did awesome, but he is a little disappointed in himself. Three hours and 30 minutes isn't too bad. He finished, which is more than I can say. He has spent all week recovering and is still a little sore. He thinks he might try again in a few months for the Bear Lake Marathon. He is crazy!

We hurried home afterward and went to lunch with 2 other brothers and my mom. Overall, it was a good weekend. Full of things to do with family because of my mom's birthday. We made it home in time to pick Grandma up from church at noon. The weather has been beautiful so we spent a lot of time outside Sunday afternoon.

Ball Hoop

Everyone that knows Dillan knows that he is obsessed with basketball. If you say "basketball," he says, "Aggies!" If you say, "Go Aggies!" He will reply with, "Ball!"

He loves the basketball hoop in the yard and anytime you are driving in a neighborhood, school, or park and he sees one he will scream, "Ball hoop!" He will shoot baskets all day if you let him. We have already raised the hoop to the 3rd notch and he is only 2. I fear that we will have to get a regular hoop next year.

This is not the intended use for his ball hoop though, but he thought it was pretty fun.

Easter '09

We were able to get down to Ogden for the annual Haddock Family Easter Picnic. We went to the park at the stake center and luckily it never rained on us.

We had all sorts of goodies to eat, hot dogs, chips, salads, and cupcakes for dessert. The kids all enjoyed playing on the playground together as well.

But, the best part for everyone was the egg hunt! Since Dillan and Jonas as so much smaller than the other 3 kids, we let them start hunting a few minutes before the older kids.

Dillan absolutely loved it! It was a hit with him and he would yell out the colors of the eggs when he would see one. He is such a sweet little boy too. I was proud of him that when a cousin wanted an egg he found, he freely handed it over. The hunt was the fun part for him.

Grandma Ellen also did a peanut toss. I guess it is tradition in their family to do that, but I have never heard of one before. Again, Dill liked to collect the peanuts from the grass and put them in his bag. Not so crazy on eating them though.

Then we had Sunday dinner back in Ogden like normal. We took Grandma Alta with us this week to see the family down there. She said she really enjoyed it. Jeremy did a couple of small egg hunts with Dillan in the backyard after dinner again.

Outdoor adventures

The weather was so nice last week and then it rained most of this week so we had to catch outdoor time when we could and wore jackets to keep warm and dry.

Swings are always fun.

Feeding the ducks at First Dam is fun too! "Ducks! Quack Quack!! Silly Ducks."

Adams Park is fun, especially the rock climbing wall. I can do it by myself!

Playing baseball with Mommy and Daddy is fun too! But why can't I have a left handers glove mom? Sorry Dill, the toddler size gloves are only for right handed kids. Arg! He is learning to bat left handed though and that is what is important and will give him an advantage.

Bike rides to the temple are also fun.

Lets face it...being outside is this kid's favorite place to be and it doesn't matter what he is doing!

I love you!!!

I love you too!!!

Treehouse Museum

We were able to get away for the night on Friday. We traded Grandma and Grandpa houses for the night. They painted for us and Jeremy cleaned carpets for them. Dillan and I got to go to the Tree House for the first time in 6 months!!!

He was so excited when we pulled up. He knew exactly where we were and was ready to have fun. We were only able to spend an hour before it closed for the night, but it was worth the trip for him.

Even though he has his own train table at home, the first stop had to be the train tables. He would have spent a long time here if I hadn't convinced him to go upstairs.

He absolutely loves the music room. We spent a lot of time in there. He likes to use the mallets to play all sorts of things. The drums are also a favorite, but I didn't get pictures of that this time.

I have to give props to the staff for updating the oval office too.

He cried when we left, but I am glad we went. Plus! I was able to divert the crying fit once we were outside and he saw the temple across the street. He is fascinated by temples and I love it!