Happy Birthday, Bethany

She is almost nine.
A very wise aunt told me that the first five years of motherhood drag by at a snail's pace. And then VROOM! Time starts flying. That is exactly how I feel.
Last night we had Bethany's tea party birthday party.
















The preparations were intense. We had outfits picked and laid out 48 hours early.














Beds were made and rooms were cleaned.















The food was prepared and the table was laid.
Bethany decided she wanted to do a tea party and use her Great-Grandma, Beth Clark's, fancy tea cups. (Beth Clark was my maternal grandmother) She passed away in 1985 and somehow I ended up with her china and her collection of tea cups. I don't know much about how the cups were collected. Did she collect them over many years during travels? Or did she acquire them all at once? I wish I knew.
There are 17 of them, all beautiful and all different. We don't get them out very often so it is very special when we do. We got a recipe for delicious tea cakes from Aunt Amy (Abe's sister-in-law). The invitations were sent out and the very well dressed guests arrived.
They were all delightfully behaved little ladies who were brave enough to try herbal tea before having hot chocolate.













Bethany and Elinor loved having Abe serve as "Jeeves" for the evening.















This was the most impressive part of the evening. Clark and his friend London were the hardest working, most polite gentlemen you could imagine. They answered the door, took coats, offered all the food and quickly came when any of the ladies called them.
Now I should mention, that all the ladies were given ample monopoly money that they could tip the servers with when they did a good job. At the end of the evening both boys could trade their monopoly money for real money. ($5 each) Well worth it!
Mostly I was just impressed that these boys would be such good sports and play the part so well. What a fun memory for everyone.
After the tea party portion of the evening the girls all made shrinky-dink necklaces.
Everyone seemed to have a fun time, which is the goal.













But here was a sad little girl when it was all said and done. It's Faith, just in case you can't tell because of the face distortions.
It is a hard thing to be the youngest of three sisters, who all have birthday's within a month of each other, and yours is last. Faith has one week till her birthday and it is a sad thing to have to wait for your presents while your sisters open theirs. So sad-too bad. Hopefully it'll get easier as the years go on.

Just in case you ever need to buy a gift for a nine year old girl. Nail polish was the most popular gift and the girls couldn't be more pleased.
I've said it before, but I'm thankful for good friends for my children. We are very blessed.

Trying New Things

I am a bathroom reader. I always have been. I'll read anything in the bathroom; books and magazines are my first choice, but I have been known to read the ingredients in shampoo bottles and face wash. Right now we have "The Great American Bathroom Book" (summaries of classic books) and there is a section of quotes. I love a good quote book.
Do I have a point here? Sort of, but it's taking me a while to get to it. I think there is some sort of quote somewhere out there, maybe in my quote book, that says as long as you are learning and trying new things, you never grow old. Or maybe I just made it up. I'm not even sure I agree, but I tried two new things today and so I guess I'm young!

We are planning a tea party for Bethany's ninth birthday party and we're having herbal tea. I've never made herbal tea before. I'm not sure I've even tasted it. But tonight it was peppermint tea. The girls were very anxious to try it out, but I didn't think they'd like the taste too much. I had to prepare them by telling them that is was just a taste they weren't used to and it was a little different, but not to be afraid of it. They were all very brave and tasted it and didn't distort their faces in disgust. Faith came back for more. Mostly they just loved dropping sugar cubes.

I know this little boy is too skinny. We're working on it, but you know, if you want to gain weight you have to eat more and move less! Cannon doesn't like to eat and he loves to move, so he's too skinny. But that isn't the point of posting this pic. Look at his diaper-- it's a CLOTH diaper!!!! That's the next new thing I tried today.
What am I thinking? Well, I LOATHE buying diapers. I've been buying diapers for 10 years with one three month hiatus in between Elinor and Faith. A couple of months back I asked a neighbor about the feasibility of cloth diapers. She used them with a couple of her kids and she made them and sold them online. She convinced me to give them a try. Today she brought over a few samples she made for me to try out. Cannon seemed quite pleased with this one. These are not the diapers I remember my mom using with my brother. These are so CUTE and snuggly. I still plan on using disposables at night and on days when we're out and about a lot, but I think we'll give cloth a go for a while. I'd love to only buy disposable half as often! If you think this is crazy, remember that I homeschool my children, so I am obviously okay with crazy.
Elinor got a kite for her birthday and she and Bethany had grand success flying it at the park. I love kids flying kites. I love to see their thrill that they have conquered gravity and made something fly!











I know the Olympics are over and it is for the best, but wanted to show Clark's Lego Olympic ski jump. If you could see into the judges stand below you'd see people in there. Also, their is a lego Bob Costas in a suit in the stands. Clark also made a skating short track, but Cannon destroyed it before the picture.

Ready for Bed

It has been a most productive day and I'm ready to rest.
We pulled off one of our Primary quarterly activities today. I think it went well, but I'm never quite sure. It is no easy task to put together an activity for 40-50 children aged 3-12. The goal is for all of the children to have a good time, hopefully have some spiritual gain, keep tears at a minimum, avoid injury and not lose any children. Easier said than done. I usually end up feeling a big frazzled by the end, even after the best of the activities. My counselors are FANTASTIC and they carry more than their share of the load. But still, I feel the responsibility of so many little ones. That being said, I love our primary kids-- I think they are the best group of kids I've ever worked with. I'm so sad when any of them turn 12 and leave Primary. I know they're ready and rearing to go, but I miss them anyway.

I probably should have stayed home this evening and recovered, but I had told the kids earlier in the day we might go do something fun tonight. I should never make such suggestions early in the day when I have energy. You see, I really needed the kiddos to get on their jobs and school work early this morning so we could do our afternoon activities. And like I said, I had energy and assumed that energy would last. So, I told them maybe we'd go see The Princess and the Frog. The girls and I ended up going out for a girls' night. We did have a fun time and we all enjoyed the movie. The girls chatted away the whole way home about their favorite parts. I don't think I was the only tired one though. The girls conked out the moments after getting in bed. As will I momentarily. Good night.

We Are Down By Two

We are down by two children as of last night and this morning. Clark and Bethany are off on a legislative adventure with their Grandpa Cannon. My dad volunteers up at the the Capitol everyday all day long while the legislative session is in. I'm sorry I don't have the proper name for what he's doing but it involves "The Patrick Henry Caucus"-- a very conservative group.
He kindly offered to give all of us a tour around the Capitol during session. We have taken a field trip to the Capitol in the last year or so and I couldn't think of anything LESS pleasant than trying to keep tabs on Cannon in a formal public setting. So, Dad and I worked out a plan for have Clark and Bethany spend the night at their house and then head in with Grandpa in the morning and I'll pick up my people in the afternoon.

Last night Dad and Bev joined us for Clark's final pinewood derby. I must confess to having very high hopes for a first place finish. Alas, we were greviously disappointed. FIFTH! What is that? We had plans to slash the tires of the winners (if it wasn't us), but we withstood that temptation. Oh well. There's still hope for Cannon. We have six years to prepare.

Poor Elinor. She was very distraught about Clark and Bethany leaving. Mostly about Bethany leaving. I figured she was sad that she didn't get to go. But in all my motherly wisdom I knew it was best that she not go. It is going to be a long day for them and Elinor's not ready for that level and length of boredom. As it turns out, Elinor was sad that she wouldn't get to sleep with Bethany. How cute. We let Elinor have the comfort of watching a movie before bed. She chose "Pippi on the Run".
Maybe you're not familiar with the "Pippi" movies. I watched them as a kid. They were made in Swedish, then voiced over in English. They are no where near quality productions, the material is sometimes questionable and the characters are quite naughty. And I LOVE THEM and Elinor loves them. But, I can't really recommend them.

You Might Have Watched Too Much Olympics

Signs that your family is obsessed with the Olympics to a very unhealthy level:

* On a daily basis you know the exact medal counts for the leading 10 countries down to exactly how many of each color medal they've won.

* Your 7-year-old daughter regales the entire Jr. Primary with a lengthy explanation of the mechanics and physics of the game of curling.

* You get a MASSIVE head cold and lose your voice because you've stayed up WAY too late for two weeks straight watching Olympics.

* You know TONS of Olympics trivia you can spout off about at any given moment. (The last and only time the U.S. has led the Winter Olympics medal count was the 2nd Winter Olympics, 1932 Lake Placid, NY.)

* You can't remember what you used to talk about at the dinner table before the Olympics started.

* You tell your children that any country that comes close to us in the medal count is our sworn enemy.

*You fear being swallowed by the giant void in your life that is sure to follow the Closing Ceremonies.

It all ends today. This is a good thing. Although, I do worry about that last one.

Elinor Turns Seven

Look! We have a curly haired red-headed boy!

Sort of.
This is a true picture with no photo shopping or anything. As Cannon's hair is getting a little longer it has quite a bit of body and definitely a reddish tint. One night after his tubbie I put a bit of curl enhancer in and this was the result.
I think it is so cute! But it didn't last. I still think he's pretty cute.





He was pretty pleased with himself as well. Couldn't you just EAT him up!















Elinor turned 7 yesterday. She's pretty tall for her age. VERY tall. Here she is with a couple of her favorite friends. She is a full head taller than both of them. I hope they catch up over the next few years or stake dances could be very uncomfortable.









Elinor opened her presents yesterday and was delighted with new softball equipment. Bethany will be joining her this season so she got an early birthday present so they could practice together.
These two sisters have very different personalities, but I love to watch them interact with each other. They are best friends who share clothes, shoes, toys, a room, a bed (by choice), books, and friends. They are kind to one another and they include Faith in their games. What a lucky mommy I am.


Today was the party! Elinor has never had her own birthday party. Oh, she has had parties, but they've always been combined with Bethany. We thought it would be good for her to have her own (although, I don't think she cared much either way).
What a GREAT group of kids! We had pizza and cake and ice cream and then lots of fun birthday games--pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs, four corners. It was a very fun afternoon and I am so grateful for good friends for my children. The blond girl on the far left is Elinor's cousin, Gentri.



This is kind of a boring picture, (except for Faith), but our family room works out great for a game area. We just push the couches all the way back and it gives us a good, big area for play.
Abe and Clark were the decorating committee. They did well. We'll just leave the decorations up until Faith's birthday later in March.







Thanks to the dollar store, you can throw a pretty fun birthday party on a pretty small budget!
One girl birthday party down this month--- two to go next month!

Grumpy Hour

I saw a bumper sticker (or maybe it was a license plate cover) that read, "Sometimes I wake up grumpy... and sometimes I let him sleep."

Poor Abe. This is probably very much how he feels about me. I am kind of grouchy in the morning. Well, not necessarily grouchy, but VERY groggy, which I'm sure comes across as grouchy. Then he comes home in the evening in my actually grouchy time. In between 5:00 and 6:30 pm I am frightening. I'm getting dinner ready, and helping straggling children get their school work finished, and listening to music practice, and trying to keep Cannon off the kitchen table, and I'm hungry and tired and I am biting everyone's head off.
So there you have it. I'm not proud of my behavior.

This evening Abe came home to find me asleep. I'm sure he breathed a sigh of relief and threatened the children that they had better not disturb me. As it turned out, I did get a lovely happy nappy and woke up refreshed. I avoided my whole grumpy hour (as opposed to happy hour) altogether. I must remember this tactic.

So lets talk Olympics. Are you loving them?

1. Why do all the luge guys look the same? They all have identical goatees and similar facial shapes. We call it attack of the clones. Actually, luge is one of the few events I don't find that interesting. I am particularly disturbed by double luge. I think it looks unnatural, but beyond that, what is the point? Why don't they have triple or quadruple luge? Why don't we just see how many human beings we can stack on top of each other and send down an ice track?

2. Short track. This is probably Abe's favorite event to watch (although he's gained a new appreciation for curling- not kidding). It is super exciting and unpredictable. I enjoy it also, but talk about anxiety! I almost can't handle it. It's worse than watching "24". In Clark's words, "I can't watch- I'm going to pee my pants!"

3. Iceskating. Who doesn't love iceskating. I guess most men don't particularly care for it, but I love it. What a poor sport the Russian who won the silver is. I think Evan Lysacek deserved to win and was very gracious about it. But did you see his Alfalfa hair when he did his spins. Hee hee hee. The women's figure skating will be near the end of the Olympics and one of our Americans is a girl named Rachel Platt (I think-too lazy to look up for sure). Anyway, when we were watching the U.S. Nationals Faith saw her and said, "She looks like a bunny". It was true. She's cute, but her face does indeed resemble a rabbit. See for yourself.

4. Shaun White in snowboard half pipe. Whoa! How does he do it so much better than everyone else?

5. Women's snowboard half pipe. Come on ladies. I know I can't snowboard at all, but it you can't land this stuff don't do it. They were wiping out all over the place. I suppose that is part of the sport, but I was disappointed.

6. I just told Abe I think I would like to go cross country skiing someday. I want to do the freestyle kind. If you've been watching your Olympics you'll know what kind that is. I think it looks fun without all the risk. Except for avalances. I'd still worry about that. Do you think I have anxiety issues?

7. I don't like Bob Costas. My mom didn't like him either. My kids keep asking why. I don't have a good answer.

I'd better go. Ice dancing is on!

La Caille to DI

Abe and I went on our Valentine's date tonight. Last year in May we purchased a $50 gift certificate for $25 to a fancy-pants restaurant named La Caille (rhymes with La Tie). We'd been to this restaurant once before for a super nice wedding reception for the daughter of Abe's boss. When we bought the gift certificate I thought surely $50 would be plenty to cover a nice dinner out.
I was wrong. Big time wrong. At La Caille $50 will cover one entree. That's it. No appetizer, no drink, no dessert. ONE ENTREE.
When we got there we weren't quite sure how much food we would get, but we had decided we would not go over the gift certificate. So, we ended up just getting dessert. Mighty tasty dessert, I must add. Also, we skipped the valet parking and actually parked our own car. How chinsy can we get? But who cares-- I park my own car everyday, everywhere I go, so it's something I feel very comfortable with. Not to mention my minivan is like a toxic waste dump. Like I'm going to let some young man get in there without a hazmat suit.

We didn't linger too long at the restaurant because we wanted to catch a movie since we had a real babysitter and we didn't have to worry about the kiddos. Besides, when you've sworn an oath not to spend more than $50 at La Caille, you don't really want to hang around watching everyone enjoy their food.

We had a few minutes before our movie to run into the DI just across the street. I was looking for a Little Tykes basketball hoop for Cannon. No luck, but interestly, (or sadly, depending on your opinion) I felt more comfortable at the DI than the fancy-pants restaurant. Talk about your socio-economic spread--La Caille to DI.