Relationship Issues

This is Ethan and his friend Addison. We are watching her for a bit this afternoon.
I was cleaning when I heard Addison singing, "Here comes the bride, here comes the bride." I looked around the corner in time to see her mount the top step on my porch, where Ethan was and announce, "You may now kiss the bride. You may now kiss the bride. You may now kiss the bride!" And what had Ethan's undivided attention? An immense cucumber, stolen from my fridge, which he was holding like a cob of corn, and systematically biting out chunks and spitting them on the ground. I rolled my eyes and made a mental note that there was a new mess requiring my attention. A few minutes later, they came in where I was. I recognized Ethan in puppy mode, as he was on all fours and barking. Meanwhile, Addison is still following, singing, "dum, dum, de dum, dum, dum, de dum". I realized there was great truth in this! Oh! Sister(s)! (a favorite from Pride and Prejudice) While we are busy trying to have a relationship with a man we have identified as worthy of us, he is eating a cucumber and playing puppy! Keep this in mind and it will help you understand that crazy male/female gap. Or at least recognize it!

Founder's Day 2009

Founder's Day festivities started in the afternoon, as the kids are all home early on Fridays! They made a chalk mural over my driveway and front sidewalk of Spongebob's home. When Nathan was able to join us, we went to the local swimming pool for some water play.:)

This is everyone ready for dinner. Chummy-jos (named by Leslie) with Cheetos, grape soda, and some pineapple (of course.)

Our original party plan was for outside, but the weather wasn't cooperative, so we played at the table. This is fingerpainting. We had a great time with it. It is always fun to get in touch with your inner child! The bowl on Caleb's head is supposed to be a Chum Bucket. After the finger painting, we sculpted sea creatures from play dough.

This is the part where we "Party 'til we're Purple"! Everyone fashioned their own Goofy Goober sundae. I love bein' purple!

Wait for it......

It is Founder's Day today. Some of you already know that this is what we call our anniversary. Seventeen years today. Every year we have a family party and the theme for this year is SpongeBob. So, you know that tomorrow's post should include the festivities and raucous behavior. Be sure and tune in then.

Music, Music, Music

For all you fans out there! Camille had her spring recital last night, and I am posting a clip. Sorry about the camera work! Mom is still learning. The piece she is playing is called Horse and Rider.

Jacob's concert band participated in their Spring Festival yesterday too. It is called a festival, but it is really a competition, and WE WON! GO EISENHOWER! Congratulations, Jake!

Just wondering....

This morning, as Ethan and Seth were eating a snack in the kitchen, I hear Ethan ask, "Hey, can you burp louder than Jesus?"

Just sharing the smile!

AAAGGGHHH!

Something woke me up at 4:20 a.m., not sure what, but I can't go back to sleep. Too much on my mind. I am kicking myself though, because I have a big, long list of things I should be doing today, and missing a few hours of sleep won't help with any of that. Oh well. If the rest of the world were up right now, I could get started. Why are you sleeping, people? I must remind myself that many of you are moms, and may be up with little children. How do I know which ones you are? Could I deliver Camille's trumpet to you for repair? Or Jake's trombone? He has festival today, and has to use a school trombone. He is not pleased. What about if I call you about my visiting teaching, one of you could be my companion, and the others could pretend we were visiting you. I could have my whole list taken care of by 6 and we could all go back to sleep. At least until it was time to get everyone up for school.

An Interview

Family and Friends, Nathan has a job interview on Tuesday! (It is the first one since January!) We are pretty excited that he will even have the opportunity to interview. We know there were over 50 applicants for the job. The position is with a new school district in Salt Lake, overseeing and inspecting their construction. I post this asking if you will keep us in your prayers. I know many of you are already praying for us, and we feel upheld by that faith. Thank you.

Scary Goblins

Warning: This post contains a rude word and may be offensive to persons susceptible to rude words.

Some of you know, and some of you don't, that Nathan's last dental visit was a scare for us. They took an x-ray and the dentist's words were something along the line of, "Whoa, that shouldn't be there. That could be cancer." My Leslie and Camille were sitting there in the room, trying to digest those words while Nathan had his teeth cleaned. We spent some time considering what a growth, cancerous or not would mean to Nathan and how it would affect our family. Sobering, to say the least.

Procedure sent us to an oral surgeon to have a biopsy. We waited forever for the surgeon. He had some delay in the surgery scheduled just before us. We bit our nails, read all the magazines--time doesn't fly when you're nervous. When he finally arrived, he looked at Nathan's x-ray and said, "Oh, this is a mucus sac. They sometimes blow up like this, like a little balloon. Lots of people get these, we'll just watch this for a year or two."

So, no biopsy, no cancer. Kind of anti-climactic. But we aren't sad! I was so grateful to pay a professional $45 to tell me my husband has an interesting booger! Nathan calls it his nose goblin. We are so proud!

Happy Easter!

Egg dying is serious business at our house! Four dozen eggs only gives a few to each child, but it is about all I want to invest in.
Seth dyed one egg and then began to eat them. I boiled four dozen, we dyed most of them, but this morning there were only two dozen left.

Miriam was accused of taking all the stickers. :) Maybe there was something to that. Happy Easter everyone!

Just Braggin'

I made Easter dresses for the girls, and we took pictures to show them off. Leslie just wanted a skirt.

Camille

Miriam

Now this gives you a little idea of what our photo session was really like! Fun, silly girls.

Latest Invention

At breakfast this morning, Ethan unveiled his latest invention. In his words (as nearly as I remember them): "Mom, this is my new invention, its a laser. It can bring you breakfast in bed!"

This should sweep the nation! I am taking orders for him!

Weak Stomachs, turn back NOW

Last night, Ethan and Seth had just settled into a lovely bubble bath. It was late, and they were tired. I had promised faithfully that I would be the one to wash their hair, as daddy splashes their faces. I had just wet Ethan's hair, and rubbed the shampoo in, when I look into the water and see, floating among the bubbles, what appears to be chunks of poo! "Everybody Up!" I said, pulling Ethan to his feet and opening the drain. I turned on my hand-held shower nozzle to do damage control, and the panic began. Ethan started to wail and Seth abandoned ship, running and slipping toward the door. Camille was able to head him off, as I showered the soap from Ethan's hair, the din increasing every second. After I cleaned them both and was drying them off, Ethan looked very sadly my way and said, "Thats the way dad does it!" Poor fellow.

As I dressed the little boys, Camille elaborated on the origin of the floating foreign matter. Apparently, last time we had chili for dinner, Ethan used it to fill the toy canteen and wore it about on his belt. We think the chili dried there (instead of molded, lets take a moment to count a blessing) and the canteen was abandoned in the tub. Therefore, Sherlock continues, the reconstituted chili must have been what we encountered. GROSS!! Just our happy thought for the day!

There's a New Red Devil at our House!

I has finally arrived. My new, bright red Dirt Devil Breeze. ("With a compass in the stock and this thing which tells time." A Christmas Story--and another one for the quote board) This photo is the new vacuum staring down its next opponent, the grossy spaces where my kids like to snack in front of the TV. Yesterday, Ethan and Seth were giddy as we put it together, and Leslie had to help fight them off while I inserted the 4 screws. Then, my new vacuum and I tore around scattering cats and children and leaving NOTHING in our wake! Wa-Hoo! Three cheers!

Playing Tag

I have been tagged. I have seen other people say they had been tagged, but I didn't have any clue what that meant. I live here in the city, and that is what the police call it if a gang member marks your fence with graffiti! But now I am aware that I am supposed to pull up the 4th photo in my 4th folder and post it. A sort of random blogging. What if the photo is one of probably a hundred photos taken by my children and LAME? Oh well, this is how the game works, you have been warned, so here it is: Are ya happy?

May be this is more what you were looking for:

There's plenty more where this came from! (Just for the record, these are Jacob's feet, and seemed to be taken as a series of feet, possibly to commemorate the purchase of this pair of kung fu shoes.)

What we have learned by being tagged, is that it is time for me to go through the photos and clean them up. My poor computer has enough to remember with out all this silliness. Nanette, tag, you're it!

Talk the Talk

This morning as I let the carpool kids out into a snowy day, I called after them, "Be Brave, Piglets." Which Leslie recognizes from the Winnie the Pooh movie, but she turned around to make me aware that the other boy with her, "probably didn't appreciate that." Therefore, as an act of kindness to those close to us, I am adding a list to my sidebar of favorite quotes used around our house. Where I actually recall their origin, I'll add that too. Sometimes for our family home evening game, we take turns saying a movie line and guessing what movie it came from. I'd love to hear some of your favorites too!