What I have to work with!

So this is what you get when there is an early basketball game Saturday morning.
Looking Good Billy Ray!!
The Zundel Boys at their best and we love them!

What's Up!

Not my ratings! We all survived the winter illness of February but not without a bit of a worry.
You would think that after 5 kids you would know what you are doing with #6. Not so! Reagan got sick like everyone else. She complained little of her sore throat and more of her headache and fever. She was out of school for several days. I just figured she had what everyone else had. After her fever broke she got a rash. Well, I was sure this was what I had seen many times before as Roseolla and nothing to worry about so off to school she goes. She developed some blisters around her nostrils and upper lip. I figured she had been wiping her nose too much and we put some Vaseline on them. When she developed the lump on her jaw line halfway between her chin and ear, I thought....hmm? Maybe I should take her to the dr. just to make sure this isn't something to worry about.
Yes, I am applying for Mother of The Year and I feel my chances are good. Reagan had Scarlet Fever which is a result from untreated Strep. Very contagious, very dangerous because if left untreated could turn to Rheumatic Fever and permanent heart damage if not death. I hope you will all vote for me in the upcoming Mother of The Year election! WOW!! What a dummy! So more days off school and a huge dose of antibiotics and topical antibacterial cream for the blisters.
Note to self: Remember, sand papery rash following a high fever = Scarlet Fever not Roseolla!! I should have known this...Dalton had this when he was quite little.
Reagan is doing great and back to her normal self.

Hip, Hip Horray!

This is Majerle's relay team. They decided at the meet to run the relay together. Unknown to Majerle, the coach had told one of the girls not to do it because it was too close to Majerle's 800m race. Oops!
The Zundel's are up to a lot of nothing unfortunately. I need to get a garden in but the weather does not cooperate. We are working on getting Dalton's mission papers ready. Just need to get a picture of him after he cuts his hair then I think we are done.
Alan has reclaimed his chair in the family room. Dalton has returned to his own bed after months of sleeping in Alan's oversized chair. He has a stress fracture in his hip and cannot staighten out. I should have taken a picture of him sleeping in the chair...it is quite interesting. He curls up in a ball with one leg draped over the back. We hope he is recovered in time for his mission this summer. In the meantime he is enjoying his temporary handicap parking pass.
Kids won't quit growing. I have tried not feeding them but they are too resourceful and find food anyway.
Alan continues to work long hours. We see him at about 8pm everynight. At least in these difficult economic times the shop keeps busy.
Alan and I are both involved in getting ready for the stake youth trek at Martin's Cove in June. We have the same assignments we had four years ago. This time two of our girls get to go with us...Majerle and Audrey. It will be fun.
Can't wait for camping season! We are all getting a bit anxious. We don't get a Spring trip this year due to my trip to San Francisco for board stuff the same time the kids are out for Spring Break. Bummer!
We are enjoying March Madness at our house. We love Basketball!!
The boys enjoy it more than the rest of us. Now that all my teams are out I don't care much about it all.
Majerle is racing in track for BLHS. Sat at a very cold track meet for 4 hours. Audrey is playing Softball for BLHS. So far all the games have been canceled because of the bad weather. Jackson just finished Basketball as did Audrey. Kennedey was going to try out for Softball at the Jr. High but she hurt her back and is not interested any more I don't think. ?
Reagan is....Reagan. She loves Activity Days in the ward. She is just fun and a joy to have around...as are all of my children.
Can't wait for better weather!

Bleeding Purple!

Dalton signed with Weber State University to run Cross Country, Indoor Track and Track and Field. He has been training with Weber for several weeks and it is very exhausting. He runs all over but most often up in the trails above the University. He was almost bitten by a rattle snake last week. The snake was not coiled so it could not spring far enough and missed his thigh by inches.
He had his first race Saturday, September 4th at Utah State. He was running unattached as his coaches are still deciding whether to red shirt him or not. He ran super! He came in 7th overall among 26 runners. He was WSU's third fastest runner in the race (missed 2nd by 5/10 of a second or something). 6K with a time of 22:46. (not the best time but good for a season opener and a freshmen) He surprised everyone. Mom and dad were jumping and yelling and crying and laughing...yes, we made quite a scene I am sure. Coach Geibel was there with us to watch him run. We were all very proud of Dalton. Sorry about the sweaty watch coach. We need to get Dalton his own watch to keep his pace with.
Dalton was the fastest running freshmen in the group. You can look up the stats on the USU website.
Wish I had a picture! I forgot my camera...the 20 reminders to myself were not enough to remember. :( Maybe it is for the best...his running clothes were a little weird.
Next race, Bozeman Montana on the 18th. Still don't know if he will run unattached being red shirted or for the team. Time will tell.

The Zundel's have Talent!!

It can be said that the Zundel family has talent. To the myriad of sport and musical abilities we now add the crowning jewel...Twinkie eating!! Yes, the Zundel's seem to have a knack for eating twinkies...several in mere minutes! At the annual Medsker swim party we were able to sweep the contests. Jackson was able to capture the junior division while Majerle made herself sick to win the women's challenge. Dalton was able to finish off a whopping 9 twinkies to take home the prize in the men's heat.
Let me put your curiosity at ease by letting you know that no, we do not practice twinkie eating at Family Home Evening, and Yes, we do have big mouths and big appetites.
The fearless leaders, Mom and Dad, are not quite sure where this night's events rank in their list of proud moments. We will take what we can get.

School's Back in Session!

And the Zundel's are every bit as busy as we were last year. Reagan and Jackson are alone at the Elementary School, Kennedey started at the Jr. High with Audrey.
Majerle is alone at the high school. She is a Junior this year and active in Volleyball and Cross Country. Very promising talent in each sport.
Audrey is playing Volleyball on the Freshmen team. She is quite good. All the kids are trying to keep up with their piano. Audrey is playing the flute again this year and Majerle is still playing the violin. Much to her mothers disappointment, Majerle has decided not to play the bagpipes :(
Dalton started up at Weber State two weeks ago. He has been running with them for a while now. Had his first race Saturday and did fantastic.
Jackson has started Scouts and is loving it. Reagan turned eight in May and attends activity days when she and mom remember.

BASKETBALL IS COMING!!!!!!!

First preseason game is November 25th! We can't wait! We just pray that Dalton and his team can be healthy and injury free. Andy hurt his ankle last night at open gym. That is a worry, hopefully he will be 100% by at least January 6th.
The Preseason schedule is as follows
Nov. 25th @BLHS vs Maeser Prep 7pm
Dec. 2nd @ North Summit 7pm:
Dec 4th @ BLHS vs American Leadership TBA
Dec 5th @ BLHS TBA
Dec. 9th @ North Sanpete 7pm
Dec 11th @BLHS vs Roy 7pm (should be a pretty good game)
Dec. 12th @BLHS vs Union 4pm
Dec 16th @ Juab 7pm
Dec. 18th @ OHS 7pm
Dec 22nd @BLHS St. Josephs 6pm
Jan 6th @ Salem Hills 7pm

Region play starts January 8th against Bear River!

I am no good at this!

I can't figure out how to get the pictures I want and in the right order so when you view Dalton's state pictures you have to go backwards starting with the Dalton at State post and view the pictures from the bottom up. I have other talents!!

View pictures in reverse

Dalton at State!

He did it!!! He took 3rd at state today. He did so good, he ran smart and we are all so proud of him. The pictures tell a good story but they don't tell about the tears or nerves or pride of mom and dad.
Thanks Coach Giebel!!
Now UVU is giving him a good look!

Running!

Dalton has had an up and down season with illness but alas he is well and running great. He took 2nd in his region on Wednesday, Oct. 14th. He was hoping for 1st but he got a bit nervous and started out too fast. He ran a time of 16:18.8 minutes. This is a PR for him and so we were all pleased. We cannot get him to put on any weight with all of his illnesses lately and his very active life. You will notice his thin frame in the photos. The pics with black under armor is when he was very ill at the Bear River meet. The white is region at Cottonwood. The man is his coach Kim Giebel and the girl is Heather Houghton. Dalton has some really great kids to run with. Coach Giebel has done a great job with this program. He has taken a boys cross country team from 3 players to 15? They have a great time!! Thanks coach!!!
Dalton has some colleges interested in him running for them. The most action is from Westminster College in Salt Lake.

Volleyball!

Majerle is playing volleyball for BLHS. She hasn't played volleyball before but she is doing pretty good. She is having fun and she is a great example to her teammates. She is a unifier and fun to be with.
Last night's game she served underhand and somehow hit the top of the volleyball instead of the bottom! She usually does better than that.

Football

This year Jackson and Kennedey both played football. Jackson on the Jr. Pee Wee team and Kennedey on the Pee Wee team. Kennedey was not sure how much she liked football the first week and wanted to quit but after mom talked to her about sticking with commitments she continued and ended up enjoying the sport even with the many bruises!
Jackson's team found some success with football this season. He continues to be coached by Sterling Harris who is great and has a great coaching staff. The team's record was 6-1 and the lost in the first round of the playoffs to Kaysville (Alan and Dalton are convinced that the refs had something to do with it).
The family was very supportive!
See pictures

We're still alive!

It has been a while since I posted updates. We have been very busy with camping, girls camp, youth conference, running, football, volleyball....time races by.

Quick update on the Family

On the move!
We are almost done moving the shop. It has been a real chore and a stress for Alan.
Jennifer and the kids have helped as much as possible but Dalton and Alan have done the majority of the work.
The new shop is great! We realized the other day that Alan has been doing mechanic work for 25 years now. We should party!

On the road!
Dalton is almost done with driver's education so he can get his license.
Majerle is doing well with her permit driving and is ready to take driver's ed as soon as mom signs her up.

Summer Fun!
We started out the season of camping at Zion's Park at Easter time with the Zundel grandparents.
May
Majerle went on the Hiker Tour to Escalante (backpacking trip with Highland Jr. High).
We spent some time down by Delta camping, four wheeling, and family reunioning on Memorial Day weekend
June
Majerle went to EFY at USU.
Dalton went to team basketball camp at USU and BLHS won the championship.
Dalton went to position basketball camp at USU.
Jennifer got a new camera so now maybe our blog will have more pictures.
Young women camp was next (Jennifer in charge; Majerle and Audrey attended)
Grandma Toombs had a grand party for her Birthday!
Josh (cousin/nephew) left on his mission to Arizona.
Carrson and Stephanie came home from Alabama for a couple of weeks!!
Kearl family reunion at Cedar Ridge
We were able to spend two weekends at Cedar and then we had youth conference to get ready for.
July
Dalton was sick with H1N1 and still recovering 6/29-7/?
Dalton felt well enough (bearly!)to Bike The Bear (bicycle around Bear Lake) 7/11
Youth Conference is over (Jennifer in charge; Dalton and Majerle attended)
Alan is almost done with the shop so we will be heading for Idaho and Cedar Ridge July 22nd thru the 25th.
As usual the summer is going by too fast.

Springtime in the Wasatch

It is starting to be spring and we are ready!
Majerle has started playing softball with Ben Lomond High School. She made the freshmen team. She seems to enjoy it. Can't wait for that first game.

Audrey played basketball for the Highland Hikers on the JV team. She did great! She exhibits good ball handling skills and is just a bit crazy.

Dalton finished basketball with BLHS and has moved on to Track. He runs the 1 mile, 2 mile, Medley, and participates in the high jump. This is his first year high jumping and is doing quite well. His first meet was Wednesday, March 18th. He took first in the mile with a time of 4:51, first in the 2 mile with a 'slow' time of 10:47, and he took 3rd in the high jump clearing 5' 6"
His high jump was not his best because he had to do it immediately following the mile race and so his legs were not quite ready for jumping. For state competition he needs to run the mile in about 4:33 and the 2mile under 10. I believe he can do both of these. If he can run the mile in 4:20 I believe he can place at state; 4:17 or better and he can probably take first at state. If he wants to place in the 2mile he will have to shave his time to at least 9:40. They say 30 seconds is the time expected to improve in one season. If this is true the mile looks good and the 2mile will take a lot of work. The high jump is harder to tell because this is his first year attempting and he has only been working on it for about a week. He has to clear 6' to qualify for state; I think he is clearing around 5' 6"- 5' 8"? Don't know what to expect with this event.

Mom doesn't run, or play basketball or softball.

You are correct...again no pictures!

That's My Boy!!!

This was heard often from the Ben Lomond cheering section as Dalton Zundel's parents enjoyed the high fives from fellow parents and visiting young men leaders as they watched his fantastic performance during Friday night's game. Ben Lomond High School Boy's basketball team went up against Ogden High in this historic game. This is the last time these teams will meet each other in the old Ogden High Gym. Ogden's new athletic center is near completion and we can't wait for a more accomodating facility.
Ben Lomond came out sluggish and didn't engage truly until the end of the second quarter but more in the third quarter. They almost lost it all in the fourth quarter when they failed to hang on to a ten point lead. This game was not without a couple of poor calls but the Ben Lomond Fans were very pleased with the Zundel's ability to control their tempers. "It's hard to be nasty when your son's young men leaders are sitting in front of you" said Mrs. Zundel. "It was not worth the risk of another repremand from principal Smith, do you know how big he is? He's scary!" remarked Mr. Zundel of Ron Zundel Auto Repair, LLC.
Dalton Zundel had a great game tonight scoring 17 of the teams 45 points. It was a nail biter but Ben Lomond came out on top. Ogden 44 - Ben Lomond 45
Picture from Logan game. Check out who Dalton gaurds!

Oh the noise, noise, noise, noise!

Break out the Plaid!!
She's a wee bit loud and a wee bit offa tune but the Bonnie Lass is puttin all she's got into the bugger. (use your best Scottish accent)

Majerle has a way with the Schottish Highland tradition. Her parents are lookin forward to havin her improvin, however their not to keen on the cost of the old pipes.
Should make for a lively family reunion come summer!! Did I hear someone say Kilt?

Majerle is learning the bagpipes and she is the star student. It has a lot to do with the music experience she has had with piano and violin. Music seems to come easy to her. Anyway, she is the only student that can take her Chanter home because she is advanced. (4 lessons into the program)

Basketball Season - The Most Wonderful Time of The Year!!

Dalton is doing great!
To check out his stats go to maxpreps.com and search Ben Lomond High School. These are Varsity stats only and he did not play a ton of Varsity minutes in the first few games.

Big News!
He is starting Varsity Friday, Jan. 9th against Bear River High!!
We are so proud of him and his hard work to improve. His JV coach, Coach Doolin, says he wishes he had 12 more Daltons. He says Dalton is the most coachable player he has.

Go Scot's!