july in an instant

July was a moving month. Literally. I moved my body from Florida to Utah to Las Vegas to Arizona to Utah to...Iowa. We partied. We camped. We flew. We drove. 

We...moved.

The impending move was in the back of our minds all month, but we filled the first two thirds of July with as many friends and family as we possibly could. 

It's a strange thing to pack up your little family and move to a place you've never been surrounded by lots of people you don't know. 

But July was also full of hope that that move will create some wonderful new memories for our little family in the midwest. 

Here's to July.

featured angel

Somebody was the 'Featured Angel' on the International Rett Syndrome Foundation website this month. 

(Her name is Leah.)

Go take a look!

(You might have to scroll as they put new angels on top each month.)

Hi! My name is Leah Layton. I was born Feburary 22, 2007 in Palo Alto, California. My first year was a dream. I ate and slept so well and learned to do lots of things on my own, including saying lots of words, phrases, and animal sounds. I fed myself and loved to read books. It took me a little longer to crawl, cruise and walk, but by 26 months I was running. Around the same time I started walking, my mom and dad noticed a few words disappearing. I was enrolled in an Early Start program and Teacher Jan suggested I get tested for Rett syndrome. So I did, and our lives were never the same.

Over the next few months, Rett syndrome took my words and hand use, but it didn’t take my spirit. Mom says my smiles and giggles can still melt anyone and dad says my bright blue eyes twinkle on the darkest of days. 

When I was first diagnosed, we were lucky enough to live close to Katie’s Clinic in Oakland, CA where we received fantastic care and met some wonderful people. When I was four, dad decided to go back to school to get his MBA, so we moved across the country (I was in the car for SIX days!) to New Hampshire where he attends the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. On our way, we were able to meet even more wonderful Rett families. Next month, dad is going to graduate, so we are moving again. This time, we’re just going halfway across the country where we’ll settle in the Midwest (Quad Cities, IA/IL) and look forward to meeting even more friends!!

Last May, my little sister, Kate, was born. She used to be kind of boring and just cried a lot, but she is getting to be more fun every day. And she gives me the best kisses. 

I love spaghetti and swimming, my baby sister and sunshine, playing in the snow and swinging. Kung Fu Panda is probably the best movie ever made and, with my long blonde hair, I look a lot like Rapunzel. I love Taylor Swift and have been a big fan of hers since I was two. We have dance parties daily at our house so I have some pretty sweet moves. I still love to read and some current favorites are The Magic Treehouse Series, books about horses, and fairy tales. 

I’m currently in Kindergarten where I am mainstreamed with a one-on-one aide to help me through my day and keep me safe. I love to learn and be with all my friends. I work so hard at school that sometimes I’m asleep when my mom comes to get me off the bus. I have physical, occupational and speech therapy at school and I get to ride horses once a week too!! I used to have seizures, but haven’t had any since January! And that’s a good thing because they made me really tired. For the past few months, I have been trying out some eye gaze computers too – that’s a lot of fun. 

Last month, my mom and dad ran in the Boston Marathon on Team Rett Fundracers. They didn’t get to cross the finish line (where I was waiting with my little sister and my grandparents!), but they did reach their goal of raising more than $10,000 for Rett syndrome research and they said that makes the whole experience worth it. My mom’s friend Amy also ran the New York City Marathon last fall on my behalf and raised more than $1,000 for the IRSF! 

My mom came up with the logo for the 2013 Family Education and Awareness Conference in Midway, Utah. Mom and dad both grew up in Utah, so they are excited to share their childhood home with our Rett family! Mom said “This is the Place for Hope” was a perfect logo for the IRSF conference because the people who settled Utah had hope that together, they could build a better life and future for themselves in Utah and she has hope that together, we can all build a better life and future for everyone with Rett syndrome! Our friend Laura Clarke Hawkins painted a really pretty picture of Midway with some Sego Lilies (the Utah state flower) for the conference. Sego Lilies were a source of strength and sustenance for the settlers of Utah and mom says the IRSF and our Rett syndrome family are a source of strength and sustenance for everyone who is a part of it. 

My mom and dad say they have learned lots of of patience, kindness, hard work, determination, laughter and love from me. Personally, I think they’re going to have to learn more patience from Kate. Sometimes my days are hard, but I choose to smile and laugh and know that I am blessed!

Hi! My name is Leah Layton. I was born Feburary 22, 2007 in Palo Alto, California. My first year was a dream. I ate and slept so well and learned to do lots of things on my own, including saying lots of words, phrases, and animal sounds. I fed myself and loved to read books. It took me a little longer to crawl, cruise and walk, but by 26 months I was running. Around the same time I started walking, my mom and dad noticed a few words disappearing. I was enrolled in an Early Start program and Teacher Jan suggested I get tested for Rett syndrome. So I did, and our lives were never the same.
Over the next few months, Rett syndrome took my words and hand use, but it didn’t take my spirit. Mom says my smiles and giggles can still melt anyone and dad says my bright blue eyes twinkle on the darkest of days.
When I was first diagnosed, we were lucky enough to live close to Katie’s Clinic in Oakland, CA where we received fantastic care and met some wonderful people. When I was four, dad decided to go back to school to get his MBA, so we moved across the country (I was in the car for SIX days!) to New Hampshire where he attends the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. On our way, we were able to meet even more wonderful Rett families. Next month, dad is going to graduate, so we are moving again. This time, we’re just going halfway across the country where we’ll settle in the Midwest (Quad Cities, IA/IL) and look forward to meeting even more friends!!
Last May, my little sister, Kate, was born. She used to be kind of boring and just cried a lot, but she is getting to be more fun every day. And she gives me the best kisses.
I love spaghetti and swimming, my baby sister and sunshine, playing in the snow and swinging. Kung Fu Panda is probably the best movie ever made and, with my long blonde hair, I look a lot like Rapunzel. I love Taylor Swift and have been a big fan of hers since I was two. We have dance parties daily at our house so I have some pretty sweet moves. I still love to read and some current favorites are The Magic Treehouse Series, books about horses, and fairy tales.
I’m currently in Kindergarten where I am mainstreamed with a one-on-one aide to help me through my day and keep me safe. I love to learn and be with all my friends. I work so hard at school that sometimes I’m asleep when my mom comes to get me off the bus. I have physical, occupational and speech therapy at school and I get to ride horses once a week too!! I used to have seizures, but haven’t had any since January! And that’s a good thing because they made me really tired. For the past few months, I have been trying out some eye gaze computers too – that’s a lot of fun. 
My mom and dad recently ran in the Boston Marathon on Team Rett Fundracers. They didn’t get to cross the finish line (where I was waiting with my little sister and my grandparents!), but they did reach their goal of raising more than $10,000 for Rett syndrome research and they said that makes the whole experience worth it. My mom’s friend Amy also ran the New York City Marathon last fall on my behalf and raised more than $1,000 for the IRSF!
My mom came up with the logo for the 2013 Family Education and Awareness Conference in Midway, Utah. Mom and dad both grew up in Utah, so they were excited to share their childhood home with our Rett family! Mom said “This is the Place for Hope” was a perfect logo for the IRSF conference because the people who settled Utah had hope that together, they could build a better life and future for themselves in Utah and she has hope that together, we can all build a better life and future for everyone with Rett syndrome! Our friend Laura Clarke Hawkins painted a really pretty picture of Midway with some Sego Lilies (the Utah state flower) for the conference. Sego Lilies were a source of strength and sustenance for the settlers of Utah and mom says the IRSF and our Rett syndrome family are a source of strength and sustenance for everyone who is a part of it.
My mom and dad say they have learned lots of of patience, kindness, hard work, determination, laughter and love from me. Personally, I think they’re going to have to learn more patience from Kate. Sometimes my days are hard, but I choose to smile and laugh and know that I am blessed!
- See more at: http://rettsyndrome.org/news-and-media/irsf-features/featured-angel?#sthash.D0QrwXQ3.dpuf

Hi! My name is Leah Layton. I was born Feburary 22, 2007 in Palo Alto, California. My first year was a dream. I ate and slept so well and learned to do lots of things on my own, including saying lots of words, phrases, and animal sounds. I fed myself and loved to read books. It took me a little longer to crawl, cruise and walk, but by 26 months I was running. Around the same time I started walking, my mom and dad noticed a few words disappearing. I was enrolled in an Early Start program and Teacher Jan suggested I get tested for Rett syndrome. So I did, and our lives were never the same.
Over the next few months, Rett syndrome took my words and hand use, but it didn’t take my spirit. Mom says my smiles and giggles can still melt anyone and dad says my bright blue eyes twinkle on the darkest of days.
When I was first diagnosed, we were lucky enough to live close to Katie’s Clinic in Oakland, CA where we received fantastic care and met some wonderful people. When I was four, dad decided to go back to school to get his MBA, so we moved across the country (I was in the car for SIX days!) to New Hampshire where he attends the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. On our way, we were able to meet even more wonderful Rett families. Next month, dad is going to graduate, so we are moving again. This time, we’re just going halfway across the country where we’ll settle in the Midwest (Quad Cities, IA/IL) and look forward to meeting even more friends!!
Last May, my little sister, Kate, was born. She used to be kind of boring and just cried a lot, but she is getting to be more fun every day. And she gives me the best kisses.
I love spaghetti and swimming, my baby sister and sunshine, playing in the snow and swinging. Kung Fu Panda is probably the best movie ever made and, with my long blonde hair, I look a lot like Rapunzel. I love Taylor Swift and have been a big fan of hers since I was two. We have dance parties daily at our house so I have some pretty sweet moves. I still love to read and some current favorites are The Magic Treehouse Series, books about horses, and fairy tales.
I’m currently in Kindergarten where I am mainstreamed with a one-on-one aide to help me through my day and keep me safe. I love to learn and be with all my friends. I work so hard at school that sometimes I’m asleep when my mom comes to get me off the bus. I have physical, occupational and speech therapy at school and I get to ride horses once a week too!! I used to have seizures, but haven’t had any since January! And that’s a good thing because they made me really tired. For the past few months, I have been trying out some eye gaze computers too – that’s a lot of fun. 
My mom and dad recently ran in the Boston Marathon on Team Rett Fundracers. They didn’t get to cross the finish line (where I was waiting with my little sister and my grandparents!), but they did reach their goal of raising more than $10,000 for Rett syndrome research and they said that makes the whole experience worth it. My mom’s friend Amy also ran the New York City Marathon last fall on my behalf and raised more than $1,000 for the IRSF!
My mom came up with the logo for the 2013 Family Education and Awareness Conference in Midway, Utah. Mom and dad both grew up in Utah, so they were excited to share their childhood home with our Rett family! Mom said “This is the Place for Hope” was a perfect logo for the IRSF conference because the people who settled Utah had hope that together, they could build a better life and future for themselves in Utah and she has hope that together, we can all build a better life and future for everyone with Rett syndrome! Our friend Laura Clarke Hawkins painted a really pretty picture of Midway with some Sego Lilies (the Utah state flower) for the conference. Sego Lilies were a source of strength and sustenance for the settlers of Utah and mom says the IRSF and our Rett syndrome family are a source of strength and sustenance for everyone who is a part of it.
My mom and dad say they have learned lots of of patience, kindness, hard work, determination, laughter and love from me. Personally, I think they’re going to have to learn more patience from Kate. Sometimes my days are hard, but I choose to smile and laugh and know that I am blessed!
- See more at: http://rettsyndrome.org/news-and-media/irsf-features/featured-angel?#sthash.D0QrwXQ3.dpuf

Hi! My name is Leah Layton. I was born Feburary 22, 2007 in Palo Alto, California. My first year was a dream. I ate and slept so well and learned to do lots of things on my own, including saying lots of words, phrases, and animal sounds. I fed myself and loved to read books. It took me a little longer to crawl, cruise and walk, but by 26 months I was running. Around the same time I started walking, my mom and dad noticed a few words disappearing. I was enrolled in an Early Start program and Teacher Jan suggested I get tested for Rett syndrome. So I did, and our lives were never the same.
Over the next few months, Rett syndrome took my words and hand use, but it didn’t take my spirit. Mom says my smiles and giggles can still melt anyone and dad says my bright blue eyes twinkle on the darkest of days.
When I was first diagnosed, we were lucky enough to live close to Katie’s Clinic in Oakland, CA where we received fantastic care and met some wonderful people. When I was four, dad decided to go back to school to get his MBA, so we moved across the country (I was in the car for SIX days!) to New Hampshire where he attends the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. On our way, we were able to meet even more wonderful Rett families. Next month, dad is going to graduate, so we are moving again. This time, we’re just going halfway across the country where we’ll settle in the Midwest (Quad Cities, IA/IL) and look forward to meeting even more friends!!
Last May, my little sister, Kate, was born. She used to be kind of boring and just cried a lot, but she is getting to be more fun every day. And she gives me the best kisses.
I love spaghetti and swimming, my baby sister and sunshine, playing in the snow and swinging. Kung Fu Panda is probably the best movie ever made and, with my long blonde hair, I look a lot like Rapunzel. I love Taylor Swift and have been a big fan of hers since I was two. We have dance parties daily at our house so I have some pretty sweet moves. I still love to read and some current favorites are The Magic Treehouse Series, books about horses, and fairy tales.
I’m currently in Kindergarten where I am mainstreamed with a one-on-one aide to help me through my day and keep me safe. I love to learn and be with all my friends. I work so hard at school that sometimes I’m asleep when my mom comes to get me off the bus. I have physical, occupational and speech therapy at school and I get to ride horses once a week too!! I used to have seizures, but haven’t had any since January! And that’s a good thing because they made me really tired. For the past few months, I have been trying out some eye gaze computers too – that’s a lot of fun. 
My mom and dad recently ran in the Boston Marathon on Team Rett Fundracers. They didn’t get to cross the finish line (where I was waiting with my little sister and my grandparents!), but they did reach their goal of raising more than $10,000 for Rett syndrome research and they said that makes the whole experience worth it. My mom’s friend Amy also ran the New York City Marathon last fall on my behalf and raised more than $1,000 for the IRSF!
My mom came up with the logo for the 2013 Family Education and Awareness Conference in Midway, Utah. Mom and dad both grew up in Utah, so they were excited to share their childhood home with our Rett family! Mom said “This is the Place for Hope” was a perfect logo for the IRSF conference because the people who settled Utah had hope that together, they could build a better life and future for themselves in Utah and she has hope that together, we can all build a better life and future for everyone with Rett syndrome! Our friend Laura Clarke Hawkins painted a really pretty picture of Midway with some Sego Lilies (the Utah state flower) for the conference. Sego Lilies were a source of strength and sustenance for the settlers of Utah and mom says the IRSF and our Rett syndrome family are a source of strength and sustenance for everyone who is a part of it.
My mom and dad say they have learned lots of of patience, kindness, hard work, determination, laughter and love from me. Personally, I think they’re going to have to learn more patience from Kate. Sometimes my days are hard, but I choose to smile and laugh and know that I am blessed!
- See more at: http://rettsyndrome.org/news-and-media/irsf-features/featured-angel?#sthash.D0QrwXQ3.dpuf

inspecting the equipment

Since Ryan decided to move his three girls to a strange, unfamiliar place filled with all things agriculture and farming, we decided it was only fair that we gave the equipment an inspection first. No sense starting his job if we didn't give him the go-ahead first. 

We poked, prodded, climbed, cranked, mowed, moved, steered, stood on and sat in nearly every piece of equipment on the floor.

And the outcome was unanimous: It looks like John Deere is here to stay. And so are the Laytons.

(And if you come visit us, we'll let you drive the combine too.)

 

I'm baaa-aaack.

After a 10 week hiatus, I'm back. 

And, for those of you who haven't completely given up on checking for updates, I have 30+ blog posts to catch up on, but I'm determined to do it.

It has been a whirlwind two and a half months with lots of family, friends and traveling. In a matter of five weeks, I packed and unpacked 20 different times, sleeping in a total of 16 different beds. I traveled a minimum of 10,894 miles, and that doesn't include in-town driving, of which there was a lot.

It was a wonderful and stressful and carefree and busy and tiring and relaxing vacation, but honestly we couldn't be happier to be in our own beds, cooking our own meals and driving our own cars. {Yes, that is carS, plural. More on that later.}

Ryan starts work in a few days and Miss Ribbons starts school a few days after that. After I play catch up, Kate and I will try to find things to fill our days. I have a feeling it won't take long. 

So yes, I'm back. We are now officially mid-westerners and can't wait to see what the heart of America has to offer. 

Photo credit: Photo Bambino Studio

May: 
eye gaze trial update
City of Lebanon
piano lessons
Hartland Dam
Ibiza whites
Leah's new gloves (or here)
Portland, Maine
May in an instant

June: 
June in an instant
High Horses show (no. 54)
Covered Bridges half marathon
Family Pictures
Shadows
Canoeing the Connecticut
Our Beloved Blythe
Tuck Investiture
Dartmouth Commencement
Baker Bell Tower  
Simon Pearce Glass Blowing
Hard working artist
Mount Lebanon School
Goodbyes
Rhode Island
Tucket List
Flying
Dad's Day
Wasatch Back Ragnar
Kate walks!
IRSF conference
Giving Hope a Hand
Cure Rett 

July:
July in an instant
Disney World
Great Escape 5: Las Vegas
Tucscon
Camping cabin style 
Utah in a nutshell
Drive to Iowa
Bix 7
John Deere equipment
Featured Angel

August:
August in an instant  
A lawn
first day at Deere
DQ for dad
Tug Fest
First visitor
Kindergarten take two
Chicago
Kindness 
Antique tractor show
Leah in color

September:
20 years
KTG: 15 months (and then some)
Glasses
Mundane
Pavement

 
 

bix 7

Before we moved, I had heard about a race in Quad Cities called the Bix 7. I knew it was a big deal, but wasn't exactly sure why. A seven mile run in Iowa? What's the big deal!?

So, I did a little research. The first Bix 7 was run in 1975 and was started by a Quad Cities resident who had just run the Boston Marathon the year previous. He wanted to bring some of the excitement he felt in Boston back to his home town. So, he found a pair of world class runners (Steve Hoag who finished 2nd in the 1975 Boston Marathon) and Lucian Rosa (would later become a university track coach) to run the race and encourage people to run. The first race had 84 people and only three females. 

Today, nearly 20,000 people run from all over the world, including more than a handful of elites.

And, though it's not a long run, the course is known for it's "Battle up Brady" - a one mile hill right at the beginning. The battle up Brady combined with the heat and humidity Iowa has to offer in late July are enough to deter many runners. 

We moved in three days before the 39th annual Bix 7. I decided I'd go for a test run on Friday, see how I felt, and then decide. 

Well, Iowa welcomed me with a fabulous 66 degree run and rolling hills that reminded me of New Hampshire, so I was in. I registered that night. 

Ryan and the girls came to watch and we all had a great time. The Battle up Brady actually wasn't as bad as I imagined and it was the coldest Bix 7 on record. Running in 60s is pretty much perfection. Because I hadn't run at all since Ragnar, I had pretty low expectations: I just wanted to keep an average of 10 minutes/mile. And I kept my goal.

It was a perfect welcome to our new home with some historic roots to our old one.

three days to home

We took it slow and steady to Iowa, stopping two nights and driving three days. We didn't rush in the morning and arrived in time for dinner each night. Day 1 was Salt Lake to Cheyenne, day 2 brought us to Omaha and day 3 we arrived at our new home. 

The girls did a lot of sleeping on the drive (sometimes in unbelievably uncomfortable positions!) and we did a lot of singing and dancing too. 

Lucky Leah got to drive with dad in the truck on the last leg from Iowa City to home and I'm pretty sure she loved it. 

Because none of our things had arrived yet, Ryan and I unloaded our Utah truck as fast as we could and then we stayed at a nearby hotel. 

The next morning, Ryan met the movers at our house to unload and by the time I had the girls dressed and fed, the movers were almost done! 

The girls were so exhausted, they didn't care where they slept. 

I was so exhausted, I didn't care that my first major shopping trip was at Wal-Mart (don't worry, NH ladies, it was a non-scary Wal-Mart).  

After five weeks of not having my own kitchen, a homecooked meal (no matter how meager looking), never tasted so good!!

 
And now, we are here. Slowly but surely figuring out how to be the best mid-westerners we can be. Tips are welcome.

utah in a nutshell

While we did some pretty exciting things while we were in Utah, we also did a lot of just hanging out. And those were some of my very favorite days. 

We spent a lot of time in the car. 

We played at Grandma and Grandpa Hauley's house (and at grandma's work). 

We were entertained by Kate at Grandma and Grandpa Layton's house. And from what I hear, Leah was grandpa's fabulous assistant every day. 

We spent some time at my brother's house - they were the perfect hosts. We swam and played and watched movies and more. The girls loved having built-in playmates with Arianne and Wesley (and I loved having a built-in babysitter...Arianne was fabulous!).

We played at the Harman's house a few days and nights. We consider them family. And gaming (card and video) was obviously a must.

One of my favorite nights was spent in the food court of City Creek with one of my favorite families in the world. I cannot believe it had been two years since we had seen Jeff, Sarah, Jack and Lauren. And to top it off, we got to see Matt and Eric and their families too! Leah couldn't wipe that grin off her face if she tried. It was so fun to see Jackers and Leah back together again. 

There were all sorts of reunions with New Hampshire friends...

California friends...

BYU friends....

And lots of friends and family that I didn't get pictures of. 

There were also super classy farewells. Like in parking lots of convenience stores on a Sunday morning.

I did miss seeing some people and wish I had planned my time at the beginning of the trip a little better. It got crazy at the end and we just couldn't fit everything in. It was an incredible and busy and happy and hectic five weeks. And then just like that (after a trip to Ikea), we were off to Iowa...

camping, cabin style

When we found out we would be in town for the Harman's family camping trip, we decided to recreate the good old days: multi-family style. 

Harmans, Katz's and Laytons all planned to camp camp (like in tents with a fire and dirt and the whole shebang), but the weather forecast had different ideas. With impending rain, the Harmans booked a fabulous cabin near the Brighton ski resort last minute and we multi-family camped cabin style. 

Our family was only going to stay one night as we had a lot to do to prepare for our move. But we had so much fun the first night, we couldn't bear to leave early. So we stayed a second night, woke up early and drove straight to pick up our rental truck. We sure know how to squeeze in fun until the last minute!

The cabin was perfect and we had a great time eating, laughing, eating, catching up, eating, playing scum (where Maren and Kristen reigned supreme), eating, sitting by the campfire, eating, sleeping a little, eating, dancing and eating. 

Kristen decided to go big or go home and ate the largest piece of beef jerkey I've ever seen anyone consume. AND she learned how to shimmy. It was a big weekend for her. 

Kate was in her element and became one with the rocks. 

The first morning we woke up and had a delicious spread of eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes, juice and more before we headed out for a hike up to Donut Falls. The kids were amazing on the hike. Ryan had Leah on his shoulders and she was flipping out. So he asked her if she wanted to walk. With one piercing look into his eyes, he got the point and put her down. She walked the whole second half (over rocks and logs and up big hills) and almost the entire way down! Go Leah!!

The second night we headed up over Guardsman Pass to eat at a restaurant in Park City and then stopped to take in the breathtaking views of Utah before we headed back to the cabin. (Obviously the boys have done no maturing since 2009.)

It really was a perfect few days with some of our very best friends. Camping cabin style was a hit!

 Past annual CA family campouts: 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011