A new nephew!

Congrats to my little brother Michael, now a papa of 3 boys (this makes 6 grandchildren, all boys, for my mom and dad).

Here's the latest sweetheart, born last night:

I think he'll have red hair like Bethany! I love it.

Highlights of our Fourth

Our activities involved wheels, water and fire, so we had such a great time!

First off, was the annual neighborhood bike/trike/scooter/stroller parade. (Here's the picture from 3 years ago. How fast they grow!) I'm glad I brought the frontpack because baby Andrew got restless in the jogging stroller waiting for the parade to start, and Benny got restless on his trike. So into the stroller went Benny, the trike got attached to the side, and the baby went into the frontpack for the long walk. Max did great on his bike.

At the end of the parade, we parked the wheels and went along to the booths getting cotton candy and sno-cones. Then the fire truck that came along hooked up the hose to the hydrant and did a HUGE spray into the air. As it came down, the arc landed exactly on the spot where our stroller and bikes were. Soaked 'em. It was a squishy ride back home. But Max loved the hose-rain-storm.

Max and JB stopped for one more sno-one, as the baby and Benny and I kept trudging along. Then a neighbor drove up in his golf cart and offered us a ride. There was just enough room. I will never forget Max's face as he turned around with his treat and saw me facing backwards, holding his two younger brothers and pulling away in the golf cart. When he and JB got home only 3-5 minutes later he was sooooo mad. "Unfair!" he yelled.

We went swimming with friends from noon to 4PM (the same from this post) This was really fun. Andrew loved splasing in the water in our arms. Benny was brave enough after a while to go down the slide, jump in from the side, and swim about 2 feet to someone else without help. And by the end of our time in the pool Max let go of the side! He still had floaties on and was clinging to a noodle, but it was a big step for him. I think it's time for swimming lessons again....

We had some poppers and sparklers and played with those outside. Max burned his finger -- I think he touched an ember -- and ran inside without me knowing what had happened. JB found him there. I think he was embarrassed about it, because we had given such strong warnings before hand about being safe. It just goes to show how quickly something can happen, but I'm glad it's just a tiny burn and nothing worse.

We had the boys try to take late naps so they could stay up for the Sugarhouse fireworks show at 10 PM. I had to work early so the baby and I went to bed at 8:30 PM, but JB says the boys did great in the evening and loved the huge fireworks in the sky. Benny slept in until 7:30 this morning and Max until 8. A new record!

Me + KSL = 9 years

I know it's not a 10th anniversary, but still, I can't believe I've been at KSL Newsradio for 9 years this July (side note -- on Memorial Day I marked 2 years doing the news for FM 100 as well!)

Almost all of those years have involved producing or reporting for the morning news, meaning a wake-up call between 2:30 and 3:30 AM, depending on the assignment. But I'm done at lunchtime.

I have had such amazing experiences. Here are some of the people I've met and interviewed, or at least been very close to in a gaggle of other reporters. I put a link when I could find it.

(Don't worry, it's not name-dropping if they don't remember you. Seriously Donald, you never call, you never write.)


Michael Phelps
Nick Lachey
Andy Serkis
David Archuleta
Tom Ridge
Donald Rumsfeld
Lynn Cheney
Jon Huntsman Jr
M. Russell Ballard
Orrin Hatch, Bob Bennet, Olene Walker, Gary Herbert, and various mayors, lawmakers, etc




I've done stories in cities from Springville to Layton, from Tooele to Park City -- and Haiti.

I've put my microphone in front of dogs, cats, chickens and sheep. Oh, and reindeer.

The stories that ALWAYS get me: troop farewells and homecomings, and tragedies involving children.

Lately I've been doing more for KSL TV and the Deseret News. I also try to Tweet and Facebook for work. Who knows what new challenges are in the future!

Playing in the sun

These days we spray on the sunscreen and head out to the backyard for hours. We have a new sandbox and a kiddie pool. What could be better?

Here's some video from my cell phone of the boys splashing around. Things to note: Max knew I was recording so he's being a ham, Benny is following Max's lead until he gets cold and comes to me for comfort, and you can spot baby toys on the ground at my feet. Andrew was playing on a blanket by me in the shade.

Have I mentioned Benny loves sports?

I had to copy this picture of 3 generations of Richards boys from my sister-in-law Suzanne's blog from the Utah Jazz NBA draft party last week at Energy Solutions Arena.

JB took Benny for some special one-on-one time, and just look how happy my little boy is. His Papa on one side, his daddy on the other, a big bucket of popcorn in his hands, and basketball players on the big screen.

This boy ALWAYS has a number shirt on -- a jersey if possible. He also loves sports shorts. At night, he sneaks into our storage bins of boys clothing in the closet, and rummages around for more number shirts or soccer shorts. I caught him trying on some that were way too small, and way too big. He has hidden a stash of such clothing at the foot of his bed under his covers, and pokes his head under the blanket to check on them every once in a while. I think it's his happy place.

He's ok to wear his Sunday clothes, or another outfit say to a party (he was invited to his first birthday party on Saturday -- he soooo excited after watching Max go to parties for the past year, and he looked so cute with his combed hair and polo shirt). But as soon as he gets home, he pulls out his sports clothes and asks for help to put them on.

Here he has laid out his outfit at night on the kitchen floor, complete with his football helmet from the thrift store:


It kills me!

My third baby

Andrew loves me.

I mean he's really attached.

If I'm around, he only has eyes for me. And he would prefer it if I would hold him all the time. I've already blogged about how he likes to sleep by me.

He also loves the baby carrier a lot more than my 2 other babies did. That way he's close to me. It could also be because I have a different carrier now and I use it all the time because I love it. I bought a used Bjorn, and it is amazing.

He's probably getting too chubby for my back ("You think?! says my chiropracter) but I have even started putting him in it in order to get work done around the house.

I sometimes just use my toes to pick things up while I'm holding him, too. Then I remember when I was younger and my siblings and I used to change the channel and volume with our toes, and I hear my dad's voice in my head, "Knock that off, you foot monkey!"

My second baby

My cute, funny, precocious, energetic, still-napping, sports-obsessed, 3 1/2 year old Benny has now been a middle child for 6 months. He's not sure how much he likes it. I tell him, he's like peanut butter. It totally makes the sandwich!


Here's a picture of Benji-boy as a baby. Look at those cheeks! I LOVE that I have chubby babies.