Sunday, 25 September 2011

A beautiful fall morning with a bit of significance in Daniel's life. It was Daniel's last Primary Program and I wanted to freeze him in time. I had them all line up on the sidewalk. (Well, almost all of them.)
Hmm...too shady. Everyone back up into the sunshine. There, now they are blind. It will be a perfect picture. ;) And we get to include Joseph. (Sarah sees a dog.)

Joseph is really dedicated to tantrums lately (like the past 3 years) and this morning was no exception. Oh well, document it, too!

What a great looking bunch of kids!

Spud Day Parade 2011

Spud Day was September 17th this year. The weather had been a bit unpredictable, but this morning was beautiful. It was also cold. We were bad parents, not far enough out from summer weather, to think about how cold the morning might be. OK. It was my fault. Chad had some of the kids getting jackets and I didn't think they would need them.

Anyway, we survived.

The parade is a huge candy parade. Here are the kids. They are not looking at what is coming down the street, except for to see if candy is being thrown from it. The significance of any parade vehicle is completely lost on them.

CANDY! There they go! The are greyhounds chasing the robot rabbit. As you can see, it is not only kids who get caught up in the action.

Sarah gets to enjoy her prized tootsie roll. Her face is splotchy red because she'd tipped a camp chair over backwards...in the street. No worries...candy helps a lot.

Since this is a parade to celebrate potato harvest, there are tractors. There are semi trucks. There are HUGE pieces of farm equipment. Normal parade participants, right? There are also a few "floats" from religious groups, and local businesses. The parade has a theme every year and judges the entries. But I don't think anyone really cares about that. It's really about the candy.

The local grocery store has a gigantic grocery cart in the parade every year. Joseph had seen it in their parking lot a day or two before the parade and couldn't stop wondering over it. So this picture is mostly for him ;) You can see how far I really was from all the action. It was a much safer distance than the wall of candy grabbers (my own children included) that were so close to the traffic that they had to back up to let the larger vehicles make the turn. I think think the city police should be out there and monitor that all a lot better. I think I was a little too far away, though. :)

State Fair 2011

We went to the Eastern Idaho State Fair again this year. We always go to the fair. Chad and I talked about how the fair is really not very exciting. The fair does very little to really entice us. We are not concert-goers. The fair needs something new and exciting. Something amazing. Anything!

Anyway, here are some pictures that we might have taken any other year in the past or future, but at least the kids are older this year.

Leah is introducing Sarah to a huge horse. Leah is in love with horses. Sarah is in love with Leah. ;)


I don't fully understand the fascination with touching the animals. We are surrounded by them at home! Then again, none of them are this calm or clean. This is really a stretch for Sarah.


More amazing animals. Nathan and Sarah are feeding this goat.


Daniel seems to be pondering this goat. Maybe they are silently communicating with each other.


More goat-gazing. Sarah is offering her finger. :) Joseph seems a little more hesitant (safety-minded).


Incidentally, have you ever been confused by a closely shorn sheep and not sure if you're looking at a sheep or goat? Sheep's tails are down, goats' tails are up. Think of me next time you are walking through the sheep shed at your local state fair.

I know that fair food is a major highlight for most. I would love to indulge, but I can't afford it. With a family this size, we're lucky to pay for parking and get in the gates. But we have just about made a tradition of getting ice cream. These are big ice cream cones, so Sarah didn't get one of her own...she shared with everyone else. :)


Yep. Big ice cream cones. Messy, too.


Before we leave the fair each year, we head to the carnival rides and let the kids walk around to choose one ride. We tally up the number of tickets and buy just the right number. It is very difficult to choose just one ride! We often have to redo our calculations as the kids change their minds with each new ride they find.

This year, we needed 22 ride tickets = $22. Sarah was asleep and didn't know that she was missing out on anything. Daniel was finally tall enough to ride a "big" ride and asked me to go with him. When the ride ended, I was a big dizzy and Daniel wrapped his arms around his stomach. (It cost $10 for the two of us to get spun to the point of nausea.)

So after spending so much money in one place, I was anxious to save it in another. Shopko used to have a Kids Tough guarantee on their kids' clothing. Leah wore a hole in each knee last school year, but by the time I remember to take the pants in to exchange them, I was one month after the time they discontinued the program. Yes. Shopko lost a customer.

Anyway, I got creative. Leah got dots. :) And last week she showed me a new hole in those knees. Argh!

The kids enjoyed a night of sleeping in the living room. They all wanted to sleep in the shark tent. None of them actually did. Rebekah was surprised to wake up under the tent! ;)

Still alive, really!

What's this thing called a blog? I can hardly remember the address for it! We have just survived two weeks of Spud Harvest, including a trip to Disneyland. So you KNOW pictures are coming!

I just spent 4 hours of my life getting the Relief Society blog updated (I had dinner, played a game with the kids and got everyone off to bed during this time), so I am a little "blogged out."

Hopefully, these pictures will keep you satisfied until I can get more time at the computer.

We skipped Fall this year and headed right into Winter. The week after we returned from Disneyland, we were dealing with a blizzard...on October 6th! Oy, our poor garden.

But the kids were ready to play. :)

I'll be back. Don't change that channel! But do get something to eat and use the bathroom...I'm not coming back THAT fast. ;)

What's Up Doc?

Hmmm.  I think we were supposed to pick these before they got this big.  One of those could feed a small family!

Harvest

I picked apples in the rain this morning, hoping to avoid the stinging creatures that are ALWAYS out there.  I didn't do too badly. 

Yesterday, I picked pears...very carefully and slowly.  (Hence the reason for trying my luck at early-in-the-day picking.) 

With all the news of swarming bees lately, I was a little shy of those tiny guys.

I see long hours in the kitchen in my future.

Curse that Independent Streak!

Sarah is keeping up with her siblings and is so helpful (even when I don't want help). She pulls things out of the dishwasher faster than I can put them away. And if she sees me reaching for something, she tries to beat me to it just to hand it to me.

If she starts on a job of her choice, she really does not appreciate anyone trying to help her finish it. (Hmmm...I wonder where she gets that?)

So today when she had a stinky diaper, I should have been expecting something Sarah-like. I was sewing (Halloween pj's) and didn't want my momentum disrupted. When she brought a diaper, but no wipes, I tried to get Joseph to go find them. Instead, Sarah went to get them herself. Since she was in the middle of pulling her little pink pants off, I thought it would take her a while to shuffle there and back.

Next thing I know, she's back, without her pants, but with a second diaper which she was trying to put underneath herself. Her onesie was unsnapped and...sticking to her backside! YUCK! That little stinker (oh yeah, that pun is TOTALLY intended) had removed her diaper and put it into the diaper pail.

Her hands had a little bit of poop on them, but her bum was pretty yucky. Into the tub she went for a straight-from-the-spout shower. That was a dirty (pun intended, again) way to get my attention. And she succeeded in getting me to empty her diaper pail!

Are we ready for toilet training? That would be lovely, since it's starting to travel around the house!

Multi-blogging

I have been working on a post for our Relief Society blog all afternoon and evening. I finally got enough pictures uploaded and everything typed. I checked the spelling and as I was adding labels, I realized that I was working in my personal blog!

I may not be the best person to be holding this responsibility. And you all would have been wondering why in the world I thought you'd be interested in what happened at the church this past Wednesday night!

(But if you are interested in checking it out and finding a few new recipes, you can check it out here.)

Calculating Kindness

As we were driving around town today, we had an opportunity to give some change to the firemen collecting for MDA, Fill the Boot.  I put the money in the boot and the fireman gave me a sticker for Joseph and Sarah.

Joseph was trying to decide what to do with his sticker and hit upon the idea to make a card for another boy in his Primary class.  He is sure that if he makes a "gift card" for someone, they won't, "be's mean to [him]."

Now that is thinking the situation through, Joseph!  Hopefully, that works better for Joseph than it has for the older kids who have been singled out by a cranky bus driver to get in trouble every day.  Killing her with kindness didn't kill her or make her kinder.

Incidentally, Joseph's friend in Primary isn't picking on him.  He's a boy with some developmental delays that bounces around a bit in the classroom.  Compared to Joseph, the boy probably seems like a wild animal.  But that's only because Joseph climbs up into his seat and nearly disappears into his shyness.

Halloween Candy (last year's)

I had my first piece of last year's Halloween candy stash today: a tiny, pink tootsie roll.

I have a strong suspicion that it was a lot softer 10 1/2 months ago.  I could be wrong, but I really doubt it.

Now where are those toothpicks?

Little Parrot

Sarah is starting to talk.  As she just turned two, this may be an underwhelming announcement.  But it is a family tradition to be a little slow to start talking just before becoming a chatter box.  (Remember, Nathan didn't talk until he was THREE.)

Another family tradition is to resist help from others in learning to talk.  If someone tells you to say a certain word, the best response is grunt at them in a way that expresses they are bothering you.

Then there is Sarah.  She has been very willing to try new words suggested to her.  It is so cute to watch her (hypocritical) older siblings giving her talking lessons.  She has been such a good sport even if she hasn't been getting anywhere close to really saying anything. But she's good at getting enough syllables. 

Sarah say elephant.
Ba-ba-ba.
Good job!

In the past week or so, something in Sarah's brain has connected and the words are starting to form.  This, with her desire to speak has created an interesting echo in the house.  Now I hear a tiny voice trying to mimic the last word spoken in the conversations we have.

Let's put the clothes away.  Way?
It's time for lunch.  Unch?
Mommy, will you cut me a Halloween bat?  Baa?

What a fun time we are having and those little echos are etching smiles onto my heart! 

End of "No Candy" Challenge

It's ended.  And it almost seems like a bad thing.

One year ago today (6 September 2010), Daniel made a deal with Chad that if he didn't eat any candy for an entire year, Chad would replace the old bathroom sinks. 

We did not think he would make it.  Daniel is a candy magnet and the schools these days hand out candy like every day is Halloween.  Really, what normal 10-year-old boy makes such a deal?

And then Daniel was doing so well that is surprised me and I told him I would join his challenge if he made it a whole month.  That's when he surprised me again...and I joined.  Chad had seen this coming and had already joined.  (I guess that makes him more supportive of Daniel.)  On October 5th, I binged on candy, hoping to make myself so sick that I wouldn't even miss the candy.  It almost worked.  The next day began my candy fast.

Have you ever gone through Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day and Easter without having even one piece of candy?  Very tough.  Very.

I did stay the rules ONCE when Daniel's Primary teacher presented each of the kids in the class with her traditional homemade chocolates.  Hey, it was Christmas! (And Daniel was in tears.)  But he made it through multiple class parties and random candy gifts with remarkable self-control.  There were many times when both Daniel and I just passed our candy to the person next to us.  It's really easier just to get rid of it quickly.  And have you really noticed how many restaurants give out candy with the check?

Up until a month ago, I was still struggling with not being able to reach for a piece of candy after dinner, or in the middle of the afternoon.  And then it was suddenly easier.  I anticipated this day, but not with the eagerness I thought I'd feel.

Daniel was a little more eager and asked me last night if he could have some when he woke up in the morning.  I said definitely not before 10 AM!  At the top of the hour, Daniel was opening a candy wrapper.  But he impressed me again by sharing it with his brothers and sisters.  (Why didn't he offer me any??)

After lunch, I had my Snickers bar that has been sitting on my dresser since Mother's Day.  I hesitated opening it.  Was I really to the end?  Did I really want it to be over?  Was sitting on the back deck with a candy bar the hoopla I had envisioned?  I was going to only eat part of it, but I wasn't excited about a gooey candy bar sitting around, so I just walked around the yard while I slowly chewed.

It was very good.  It could have been smaller and been just as satisfying.  It was a little sad, too.  And the crazy thing?  It didn't really seem like it had been 11 months since I'd last had a candy bar. 

I don't think I will ever undertake such a challenge again, unless it is to support one of my children.  Even a doctor telling me my life depended on it might not keep me from eating a smartie, but a promise to my child would.

Is it wrong to be proud of myself?  Because I feel like I just accomplished something amazing!  I have new respect for Daniel.  I am definitely proud of him!

Rebekah is SIX!

Rebekah's 6th birthday was last week. She is in First Grade (I think she's the youngest in her grade) and finally turned the age of many of her friends. :) We also celebrated her birthday a day early because of some scheduling nightmares. We can be flexible!

Rebekah really loved the little figure stuck into Sarah's birthday cake, so I made one for her. Unfortunately, it was a day of running around and not accomplishing much, so Rebekah got to decorate her own cake. She enjoyed that so much, I wonder if it shouldn't become a new tradition?

Here is the finish product. It's got a lot of personality! (And frosting.)

We opened presents before cake. With Sarah's birthday having only been 3 days earlier, it was hard to convince the two-year-old that it was the six-year-old's turn.

Rebekah hadn't planned on opening her second present so quickly, but while she was admiring her first gift, Sarah got started on her second, so they both worked on it together.

I think she ended up happy enough with what she got.

And then it was time for cake.

Here is the master cake decorator with her masterpiece.

One more picture so you can really appreciate it's unique properties...totally awesome!

I also made a matching party hat. (Sarah had one on her birthday, but the only picture is on my phone. Rebekah wanted a hat, too.)

Six candles are hard to blow out. She didn't get them all at once, but at least Sarah helped (since she was so recently experienced).

Time to dish up that cake for everyone! Rebekah did a fine job of cutting and serving. It can be a little confusing when everyone is making specific requests. She handled it well.

After an overload of cake last August (and again this past June), I decided to make one cake last for both birthdays. That was so much nicer (and healthier).

For her actual birthday the next day, Rebekah brought these little treats for her class. I had some fun making the tags. Do you notice a theme? :) The kids now know just how yummy Star Crunches are!

Happy 6th Birthday, Rebekah! We are so glad you joined our family and keep us laughing! We love you!

Sarah is TWO!

Sarah celebrated her second birthday two Saturdays ago and we all celebrated with her!

My cake decorating ambitions have suffered a bit and I'm almost embarrassed to show this one at all, but sometimes a gal just has to swallow her pride (and a bit of frosting). I give my thanks to Silhouette for helping me with this creation.


We actually celebrated a day early because we were spending Sarah's birthday on the road and at a family reunion in Utah. I didn't want to mess with cake and presents with a bunch of strangers that are related in some obscure way.


We found a park and whipped out the birthday cake. Sarah tried really hard to blow out her candles by herself. She had some help from behind.

It wasn't that help that she minded, but the help taking her candles out of the cake offended her a bit. Some things should be sacred!

As tradition dictates, our family gives the honor of cutting and giving out the cake to the birthday person. I'm not sure Sarah really understood this, but she wasted no time getting down to business! And then we took that cake mutilating tool away from her and got cake passed around the table.

Things quieted down a bit when everyone had their cake. We all got busy enjoying our treat. (I love taking pictures of Chad when he's making a strange face!)

Come on, Joseph! Don't get distracted!

Daniel is focused on his task and makes that cake disappear with little effort.

Here is a close-up of one of our resident jack-o-lanterns.

Once the cake was eaten, the party moved on to the entertainment: watching Sarah open her presents. She didn't take too long to figure out that there was a real reward for ripping off the wrapping paper. She was also motivated to get the job done before all the others who were sneaking in to try to help.

Sarah got two presents. One was a name blanket. It's yellow and white and has her name on it...hence the reason we call it a name blanket. Every one has one now. ;)

Here's the 2nd present. It's a baby that makes sucking sounds when the bottle gets near her mouth and then coos and giggles. There's something wrong with the fact that your three older brothers are trying to steal the very baby you're trying to bond with!

I got a lot of really cute pictures of Sarah with her new baby. I'll spare you and only share two.

Happy Birthday, Sarah! We love you so much!!

Rain Gutter Regatta

The cub scouts held a Rain Gutter Regatta this year.  This was the first regatta I've ever attended.  Chad said he'd never done one when he was in cub scouts.  Daniel just missed being a cub by 3 months.  Darn.

Anyway, Nathan sanded and painted a little boat and anticipated the event.  The weather was a little warm, so it was a good night to be outside and playing with water!

There are a few differences between a Rain Gutter Regatta and a Pinewood Derby.  The biggest difference was the lack of regulations.  There weren't any serious requirements to building the boats.  No one weighed or measured or qualified the boys' individual boats.  Some of them even had sails made from paper instead of the sail that came with the kit.  They had a rule that you couldn't touch the boat, but when they got stuck, someone usually reached in and freed the vessel for the sailor.  They did give first, second and third place, but I don't think that really represented the boats very well because the races weren't really monitored all that closely. (I don't know if these differences are specific to our pack, or if the regattas really are more just laid-back.)

Another difference in a regatta vs. a derby is that the boys have to do the work!  Gravity and a little skill in building a sleek race car are what make or break a winner.  In a regatta, a strong set of lungs is what really counts!  Unfortunately for Nathan, while he has a strong personality, he doesn't have much in the way of blowing strength.  He huffed and puffed out his cheeks with a steady determination.  I don't know how much
he filled his lungs to do that, though!

Nathan raced several times and got ahead several times, but life on the high seas still waters of a rain gutter can turn treacherous and snag a sail boat in an instant.  He lost more races that he won.

And he usually wasn't very happy about it.  Of course, a younger (7 yrs.) boy had come up to him before the races started and told him that his boat wasn't very good and he wasn't going to win.  That made him feel bad and he admitted that he didn't like that kid very much.  I felt the same!  Some people should teach their kids better manners so my kids don't have to feel so bad!

But Nathan did win sometimes and Chad caught one of those moments in motion.

(By the way, this movie wouldn't load in Internet Explorer, but only took 10 minutes or so in Google Chrome.  Glad to have options!)

And while the real sailors competed, there was a splash pool for the tiny sailors to keep busy in.  They even had little boats to sail.  Joseph really enjoyed himself.  (That little girl in the back is Ady.  Joseph says he'll marry her someday since he can't marry Sarah.)

And then there are little trouble makers like that little girl in the purple shirt.  She was the smallest one there and was getting everyone the wettest.

I don't think she was one bit sorry for it, either!!