Bridges

Much to my dismay, my children continue to remove the couch cushions. They have to make bridges. And now they read on them.

There is a season for everything

We had a great weekend filled with installing sprinklers, cleaning house, baseball games, cancelled church (actually really sad because we were all ready to go and on time), lasagna shared with friends, improptu barbeques and motorcyle riding. Fitting that such a lovely weekend was followed by throwing up and strained muscles.

And Happy Zero Birthday to Baby Lucas! (or Be-be Lulsssss as Handsome Face says)

Baseball Highlights

Last Friday we went to a minor-league baseball game. It was lots of fun, even though we lost. The Rocket Scientist and I enjoyed the game and the kids enjoyed Tuffy the Toro and the cotton candy. Oh, and they also enjoyed the kettle corn and chips that the man beside us kept giving them. After the game there were some amazing fireworks and the kids got to run the bases. Cute Girl wouldn't go alone so the Rocket Scientist got to run them too! Then we had a late-night run to In-N-Out. Yum. Sorry to the family who have already seen these pics on the other blog.

This is Tuffy the Toro. He was pretty much the only thing that Handsome Face liked. That and the food. He was on my lap most of the night and kept up a steady stream of "Mommy, Tuffy down dere. Mommy, where Tuffy go? Mommy, Tuffy bye-bye." It was worse than a broken record. No matter how many times I acknowledged him he just wouldn't stop with the Tuffy. He even got to shake his hand.

Correction

We were informed by Grandma that the lovely, frilly pink dress is, in fact, a nightgown. This would explain the choice of fabric and why I mistook it for a dress-up at first.

Eat your vegetables

Kids and broccoli. They don't always mix. But my boy asks for "Fah-fee, dip" all the time. If they will eat it at all, most kids eat the florets off and leave the stems. But not my boy. He's unconventional. He eats the stem and then discards the floret.

Funny, isn't he?

Surprises

Yesterday the doorbell rang. We were a little surprised because we weren't expecting anyone. When we opened the door there was a Mickey Mouse covered package on the doorstep with Handsome Face's name on it. Yay for surprises!
We all trooped into the family room and grabbed the scissors. Cute Girl seemed to be more excited than anyone as Handsome Face pulled out the contents. Grandma Crapo sent him a super cool St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap. Now he can cheer on the Cards in style! There was also a box of cinnamon grahams that look like Scooby snacks or dog biscuits. I was entertained by that. And Cute Girl was thrilled that her brother had a new hat and a treat to share.
Later that afternoon we all went out to wait for Daddy to get home. Handsome Face helped me get the rest of the mail. When we opened up the box, there was another package stuffed inside! This one was addressed to Cute Girl and she was super excited. We piled back into the house where she opened a new bathing suit and a very frilly pink dress. She loves her presents from Grandma.

In her own words:
Handsome Face just got a hat. And then he got the snack I got today. And then I got my bathing suit. And then I got my dress and my card. That was it. Handsome Face went to the front door and then mine went in the mailbox.

A few random pictures. Here's the baby bunny that was in our backyard Wednesday night. The kids watched him for 20 minutes. It was better than tv.

Last Saturday we had a service auction at church to raise money for Girls' Camp. They were hoping for $500 - they got over $2000. I bought this cute little dress that my friend Erin made. I was the only bidder. We also got this awesome FHE kit on Emergency Preparedness. Cute Girl insisted we use it on Monday and she hasn't stopped playing the game yet.

Life, yesterday

Yesterday I locked myself into my room. That means I locked my children OUT. Do you ever have days like that?
Now here's a disclaimer: we did not have a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. We accomplished much that was good. Cute Girl and I picked up her room and the toy room. I cleaned the kids' bathroom and put away Handsome Face's clean laundry. We managed to keep the downstairs picked up and there was a steady stream of dishes going into the dishwasher instead of piling up on the counters.
And there were those things that were moderately good. I tried to read the kids some books; I think we got through two. We were all in the toy room together but the kids didn't really need me for their games so I ended up reading Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle while Handsome Face played with the Jack-in-the-Box beside me. I made jam. Everyone took a nap.
But the things that tend to stick out from yesterday are the things that truly were rotten. I was on the computer too much. I was too tired to get out of bed and go running yesterday morning. Chicken boiled dry and filled the house with smoke. Cute Girl is going through one of her "wetting the pants" phases as a means of asserting her control over the household. Handsome Face screams all day long, constantly wanting what he can't have and then throwing a tantrum when denied.
And so I ended up in my bedroom, door locked, little kids knocking on the door and Handsome Face calling out "Mum-my! Mum-my!" It really was a miracle they weren't screaming to be let in.
Today I resolve to do better. We've already had one potty accident on the freshly mopped bathroom floor but I didn't have to clean it up so I don't think it counts. I went running. Farther than I went on Monday even. And everyone's dressed, fed, and the beds are made. And now I'm going to turn off my computer and go brush everyone's teeth. Hopefully none of the doors will be locked at the end of the day.

Look, I'm in a picture

I had a lovely Mother's Day. Aside from the tantrums my son had all afternoon. But it was slightly gratifying to have the Rocket Scientist see what I have to deal with everyday while he's gone. It's not pretty.
But other than that it really was lovely. My husband did a wonderful job of making my day special. We got FABULOUS chocolates at church, the Primary sang in Sacrament Meeting (see previous post), and the Primary Presidency got subs so we teachers could go to Relief Society. That was awesome. I miss Relief Society so much.
After a quick lunch I got to sit on the "Royal Throne" (aka blanket and pillow seat) for my gift. The kids made lovely cards. And this was the only way we could get Handsome Face in the picture. Here I am appropriately oohing and ahhing for my kids benefit. They love opening presents.

And I got a KitchenAid! Yay! And not just any KitchenAid. It's the 6-quart, 575 watt professional series that will make 8-1/4 loaves of bread, 8 lbs of mashed potatos, or 13 dozen cookies. It's so cool. And we made the best cookies ever last night. I served them at a party today and they're gone now. So sad.
Here it is in all its glory - the only appliance allowed to sit on my counter (I don't like clutter). But seriously, it has to be on the counter because it's so big and heavy I can barely lift it. And there's no where else to put it.

Happy Mother's Day

Handsome Face is sick today. He has a fever of 102.5. And it's hot here. Really hot. That plus my dirty house makes for a boring day in which we don't want to do anything.

But here's a picture of Handsome Face with our little friend Maleeya. She came to scrapbook last week. He likes to play inside of this bench and got inside. Then he started screaming because Maleeya came too and sat on him!