Heat Wave

 The above picture evokes many memories for me. The primary one being that despite the smile on my face, I was super-duper ornery. It was 9 in the morning after a night of pretending to sleep in a tent with my kids during my family reunion. We were trying to load up the 200 pounds of belongings we'd had to bring and there was no easy way to the parking lot. Plus there were wasps flying around and our van's storage space seemed to have shrunk over night. And the kicker was that it was already about 102 degrees. Maybe my memory is slightly faulty on that. But for storytelling purposes I'm sticking with it.
Enter January 2011. Two weeks straight of temps in the teens, gunky air, inside recess for restless boys on the verge of ADHD. But guess what? Yesterday we hit 50. We pulled the new Christmas bike out of the garage and miraculously none of the other bikes had flats! We hit our favorite drag-- the local church parking lot (Since we are in such a righteous neighborhood we have two churches with adjoining lots--makes for great bike riding). And today is another winner. Give me those ornery hot days of summer anytime over the dreary gray days where your fingers feel frostbitten just opening the car door.
Catch you later---I'll be laying out on the top layer of snow in my bikini.

A Non-Gamer's guide to Games

Now that the holiday season is over and we are partied out, I can offer my expert advice on fun games to play. My disclaimer is that I am NOT your typical game person.  I can’t shuffle very well and I can’t ever remember the rules to most card games but I am an awesome person with perfect opinions.  And with that, here is my guide:

GAMES THAT I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU NEVER PLAY

*Monopoly

*Life

*Settlers of Catan

Nothing personal with the above games (actually it is), but they all require too much TIME.  Fun games should not take longer than 15 minutes and they also shouldn’t require enough brain power that you’d miss something if you had to go change a diaper, make a sandwich, or carry on a conversation with someone across the room.

FUN GAMES I RECOMMEND FOR ANY PARTY:

*25 Words or Less

*A to Z

*Anomia (new find from faraway sis)!

*Catchphrase (wouldn't be conference weekend without it, though I think I have most of the categories memorized by now)

All the above games are fun word-speedy- yell out games that make me break out from my demure nature.  They’re great for a group and can often get those other demure people involved. 

So go return the that Settlers of Catan expansion set Auntie Beulah bought you, and invest in some of my game suggestions. 

(Of course, if you really are angry that I dissed some of your faves or wondering why I didn’t recommend SkipBo, then you and Hub can get together for game night anytime. He’s up for anything.  As evidenced by the fact he played High School Musical Monopoly Jr. with the kiddies…..bless his heart.)

Perfect Timing

How great is it that the MS truck is coming tomorrow morning? Everyone is a little more willing to part with their junk now that they've got some shiny new toys to play with!

We had a fun week-before-Christmas mainly because for once most of my shopping was done in advance. Remind me to do that again next year.
We ventured to our capitol city for a trip to the Planetarium. We walked on the moon.

And we found strange life on Mars.

Then we went to Temple Square for the annual cold walk. We also had a chance to wish Joseph Smith a pleasant birthday and give him a foot massage.

We also enjoyed a trip to the bookstore and a fancy restaurant courtesy of the grandparents. ('fancy' meaning there was no playland and a tip was expected. I was hoping that by calling the place fancy my kids would behave like it was fancy. Unfortunately we will always still feel the need to crawl under tables and dump salt and pepper shakers no matter the locale.)
We visited some relatives, went sledding, had our traditional Christmas Eve pizza and lit candles at the cemetery.  Finally the big day arrived and there was much happiness in the land.  Again, this Christmas was mainly sponsored by the LEGO company. (props to Hub who has the patience to help the younger two boys put their sets together)(but lets go ahead and give me props too for helping Ike do a big boy puzzle. I hate puzzles over 25 pieces.....)

 We'll go ahead and also thank the Disney Princess franchise for coming in a close second and providing lots of things pink this year. (Syd is holding out her sucker stick for me to throw away. Yes, that was her breakfast.)

We've had a wonderful Holiday season with lots of fun activities combined with celebrating the true meaning of Christmas.  I hope yours has been just as enjoyable. Merry Christmas a day late!

Need Me 4-Wheel Drive

School was cancelled today due to the monstrous piles of snow we've received in the last couple of days. This was the last day of school before Christmas break so it's really not like they were going to miss anything educational. However,  I was a little bummed because I spent a lot of time calling around scheduling refreshments and decor for Mitch and Ethan's class singing program and it was all for naught. Plus they were disappointed to not get to do the program they've been practicing for weeks. But all the snow playtime and the relaxed indoor time has made up for it. Plus it's nice to see all the neighborhood come out and help shovel snow and dig each other out.
As far as interesting life tidbits....Hub was at a pet hospital helping with their employee benefits and a lady came in the waiting room with an injured hand and an injured cat. Apparently there was an aggressive dog issue. Anyway, she saw Hub in his business attire, knew she was in UT county and asked if he would give her cat a blessing. And he did. Should this story make me laugh? It did. Hub insisted it wasn't as weird as it sounds.....

Scary Santa Sightings 2010

We had a jingle bell rockin' weekend with 3 Christmas parties in which we graced everyone with our presence. Ethan was so quick to get on Santa's lap that I almost missed the photo op.

Mitch was slightly more reluctant and when asked what he wants for Christmas he mumbled, "I don't know." He only likes to show enthusiasm when computer games or Cheetos are involved.

This is as close as Noelle got to Santa at the first sighting. (he's somewhere on that stage behind her)

By the last party she got a lot closer. You can actually see them in the same frame....

Isaac has not sat on Santa's lap since he was 6 months old.   I'm sure he'll do it by the time he's a deacon and it's considered one of those funny things to do.

And then there was Syd. After the screaming when I got within a few feet of St. Nick, I knew it was a no-go. Her clingy monkey posture during the rest of the party/parties was a good indication that it wasn't happening. No surprise from the girl who has yet to stay in nursery.

In other Christmas news....our ward puts on a creche each year. It's a great production and the choir performs and lots of work and people are involved. This year the primary has a part in it too where they sing and do a live nativity. It was optional so I knew my older two boys wouldn't sign up. Unfortunately, Ethan had no qualms. I got the phone call telling me what part he is and that I needed to get him a costume.  I was hoping for shepherd or wise man or even an angel (we have a Hannah Montana wig that I'd make him wear) But guess what he is??  A cow. Yes, you read correctly-- a bovine. I think someone in the primary presidency hates me.
 He has brown clothes. Can I just call that good??

5th Grade Envy

My photogenic eldest is in 5th grade.  I ain't no spring chicken, but for some reason I have very clear memories of 5th grade. My teacher, Mr Wilson, who didn't appreciate me for correcting his use of the word 'snuck' instead of 'sneaked' (though I think snuck is now an accepted word because everyone else thought like Mr Wilson as well)....there was the Christmas play where I played Mary though it wasn't the Mary you're thinking of...and the general feeling of coolness being one of the older kids in school.
Now that Isaac is in 5th grade I also have realized how much more fun it is to help him get his homework done.  (OK, 'fun' is pushing it. I'm not that lame. Let's just say 'more satisfying') Little kid homework is very tedious, especially after the first couple of kids---handwriting practice, letter sounds, math fact families.....boooring! But Isaac has brought home stuff this year that has tested me. I had to google an e-tutorial on partial quotient division because I'd never heard of it. You should have seen me hunkering down over the laptop trying to figure out what the cute tutor was talking about. But once I got it I felt awesome. Like I won a race or something. Now he gets to write a state report with an outline and notes and everything. 2-3 pages of fun! I'm so excited to start writing this. I mean, to have HIM write it, of course....I hope I get 100%!  I mean, I hope Isaac gets 100%....Dang. This really tells you a couple things about me. I either really need to go back to school (just 5th grade thanks, I'm not really into over exerting my brain by going back for a doctorate or anything). Or somebody needs to start rewarding my daily victories with letter grades and medals. Too bad for my girls that today's lunch is probably going to be in the C- range......

THANXGIVING

Hub started the day off with his annual mental breakdown where he goes and plays flag football in the frigid temps. There were only 6 crazies out there playing this year. When you have to wear 7 layers of clothes and your cleats don't fit with the thick socks you're wearing then maybe it's a sign it's too cold??

Another highlight before the Feast was when Ethan broke his bedroom window by tapping the ice on it with a metal horseshoe thing he had. We love him dearly but would be glad to send him away for a few years until the cause and effect part of his brain clicks in. We nicknamed him The Mischievator when he was 2-years-old and 4 years later it is still an apt name.

On to the big dinner.....One of the great things about coming from a large family is that there are enough of us to constitute a crowd even when most siblings are elsewhere. We had a crowd of 28 for our small dinner this year and though we greatly missed those who were absent it was also nice that for once everyone had their own chair at the table! My sis planned the deets and there were added elements of competition. Who can resist tackling others while hopping on one foot? Not me. Name that tune, hoola hooping, talent shows and games made it a fun family day.

We came home to read from our own thankful jar. I love hearing what the kids came up with  and how poorly they spelled it. Then we had our first video chat with my missionary parents and  my faraway sister....So despite the broken window and the other ornery moments (I really needed to tie some of my boys up due to their incessant need to wrestle each other) I have much to be thankful for. We're healthy, we're warm, we have wonderful family and friends and we're blessed with the knowledge of the true gospel in our lives. The slices of pie I had for dinner, breakfast and lunch are just bonuses.

Got All the Time in the World

Ugh.  A few weeks ago I berated my SIL for not having a blog. ‘It’s a great way to keep family and friends updated on important family events!’ I said.  She whined about the time it would take.  I countered with saying how you could whip out a post in ten minutes and you don’t even need to upload pictures or use cute/colorful fonts (though who doesn’t appreciate that?!)  Then I realized that I have been the most slackerish of slackers lately and those ‘ten minute’ posts  I swore upon haven’t been happening on my end because I have felt so busy. 

We had a sacrament meeting talk today about prioritizing our time and one of the points was that some people base their self-worth on how long their to-do list is.  So I am resolving to not brag about how busy I am. Or to whine about it.  Because either way,  we all have the same 24 hours in a day and are the stewards of how that time is spent.
So yeah.  I’m bringing back the blog.  Look at me now!  Updating you all on the fact that my fam is watching The Wizard of Oz (we have amended our Sunday viewing options to include musicals—genius on my part since we’ve exhausted our library of VeggieTales. Also musicals take twice as long to watch and make me feel like my kids are getting cultured!) We just said farewell to our wonderful weekend guests (former neighbors) and there are some wet snow clothes drying in our laundry room.  First big snow fall and Ethan couldn’t resist running out there in his Sunday shoes…..
I do have one more meeting to go to tonight, but I also skipped one this afternoon. See how I’m the master of my schedule already?
Hope this update was worth the wait. Sorry no pix or fun fonts. Next time, I promise.

Macabre

I'm so excited it's HALLOWEEN TIME so I can say 'macabre' a lot! It's definitely a fun word to say and unfortunately my life is not gruesome enough to warrant using it frequently.....
You may find this image macabre:

Yes, we have lots of strange naked body parts floating around our house. This is what happens when Hub buys the dollar store version of Barbie and not the real deal.

Here is another image that is not really macabre, but a little gross in its own right:

We were trying to teach Syd how to trick-or-treat and for some reason she only wanted to put the stinkiest, smelliest shoe she could find (courtesy of  Isaac) in her bucket. Hopefully she'll get over her foot fetish in time to accept more edible ware.
Here's another winner picture:

We attended a Halloween party where I wanted us all to go with a theme. This was hard since we are not one of those families who actually plans their costumes more than, say, two minutes in advance. So during dinner before the party we came up with everyone wearing old family reunion t-shirts and adding binocs and sunglasses and being a.....wait for it..... Mormon Tourist Family. You may say 'lame' but I say 'awesome!' The macabre part of this picture is that Hub still actually owned two fanny packs that he and I could add to our costume. Don't really wanna know why he was still hanging on to those.....
No more macabre pictures. But my challenge to you is to incorporate the word macabre into something you say today. It'll make you feel like a really creepy French person. And who doesn't want that? ciao.