Daddy's Great

Ah yes, the third Sunday in June has come, and with it, the chance to treat those fathers we hold dear to wonderful gifts and treats. This year Cliff asked for a new set of scriptures and a bag with a handle. Done and done, although there is a bit of a funny story with the bag. The kids originally found another one, with a little cargo mesh pocket and compass on front, which Nadia thought was perfect since daddy gets lost at church all the time. Then Brandon saw this basketball bag and all discussion was over. Even though he prefers baseball, the kids knew he would love it and use it. And he does.
Now besides the scriptures and new case, Cliff also got beef jerky and a nap. These are required to make Father's Day an official holiday. I don't know which one he liked more, but they were both enjoyed greatly. We love you, daddy!

Cars and Camping

The boys recently had two Father and Son outings: one in our ward, and the other with my dad. The first one was a derby for the the males to show how creative and crafty they are with tools, paint, and decals. This is the Sharp car, which Brandon named the Pirate Racer. Arr.
He wanted to name it Speed Racer, but Cliff convinced him to think of a name that went with the pirate theme. Brandon was disappointed that daddy couldn't make it look like the Ferrari picture he found online, and also when it didn't win every time. But he did still have fun.
Cliff was also supposed to make and bring a treat to share, and I am sure that if we looked on a chart, the results for treats would have looked a little like this: 50% chips with some kind of dip, 10% assorted grilled meats, and the rest would be something that the husband had begged and pleaded his wife to make for him anyway. We fell into the last category because I am a sucker, and made banana pudding.

My dad's ward had a Father and Son campout, and since all of his sons are in different states and he likes Clifford the best anyway, he invited him and our boys to come. Brandon was a little worried when I told him he was going on a campout, because it would be in the woods. I told him it would be all right, but he started to get a little scared again after seeing all the trees. Wild animals live in the woods, you know.

However, there were lots of fun games to play, and I am going to brag a little bit now. They decided to do a Highland Games theme, and had a caber toss (a very long and heavy log), boulder throw, etc. Cliff was the champ. And he even has the legs for a kilt, if he wanted to wear one.

Brandon was nervous until he made a friend named Johnny and found some good sticks. Then it was all okay. They arrived in time to eat ribs, made S'mores after games and dinner, and had a lot of fun. He got a little scared during the night when the wind really started to blow, but cuddled up with DanDan which helped.

Hey, I am not the one with the camera here. I just post the pictures. Maybe this was an exceptional port-a-potty. I don't know.

The next morning they had a traditional heart attack breakfast, went for a hike, and then packed up and headed home. Amazingly, Benjamin had no serious accidents or head injuries up there, and really liked camping. Brandon left the sticks there at the campsite for the next little boy to use and play with. And yes, Clifford did come up with that line so Brandon would leave them. Which he did.

Mammoth Cave

Huzzah, the camera is found! Hooray, I can post with pictures! Yippee...oh my goodness, do I have a huge back load of pictures to put on here. Yikes. Good thing someone invented Mountain Dew. But don't tell my new bishop I said that.
Well, first on the list is the visit to Mammoth Cave. This occurred when Jenny and Beaner and their cute kids were here for Caleb's baby blessing. Yeah, that little tiny hole is the opening to the cave. Not named Mammoth Cave for it's size, let me tell you.


This is Braedon right inside the entrance to the cave. The kids hung out in this area quite a bit, especially after the flashlight batteries decided to die after the first 3 minutes. One of the reasons why you go for the name brands in batteries-life support machines have to run longer than 3 minutes.

This is why it's called Mammoth Cave. Apparently, some teenage Neolithic vandals kept telling their parents they were bored and there was nothing to do. The parents grounded them and to take up some time they drew animal pictures on the walls of the cave. Here's Clifford looking at one that says, "For a good time call..." WAIT A MINUTE!

The kids really did have a good time exploring. Afterwards, Brandon told me he'd like to explore caves when he grows up. Only they have to be light. And not have any animals in them. And no, I did not laugh and say "Good luck". Well, maybe just a teensy weensy little smirk of a smile.

I just had to end on this picture. I also need to let Auntie Marlene know that at every prayer there is some variation of "Please help Aunt Marlene to get better". We love you!

Late Night Musings

So it is 11:30 at night and this is the first time since my last post that I have had time to sit and write. This is because school is out and I now have to parent all of my children all of the time, and because Caleb has decided to be like the others and grow.
I have a big problem with both of these things.
Now I have to devise some kind of schedule for all of us that will keep everyone alive and sane until school starts again, because I've already paid the fees which means they have to go back.
The other issue is a bit harder to deal with: how do you keep a child from growing up? Caleb is back to eating at least every 2 hours and will go to sleep at 11 and wake at 4 because he is starving. The obvious thing to do is suck it up and just buy some baby cereal, but then what? Let him grow more? Who will be my little baby then? And why does he think it's okay for him to get bigger, even if I've let the others?
To get off of that depressing subject, I do have a great pic to show next time of Nadia's Sunday dinner. And another of Brandon's wooden derby car. And hopefully by tomorrow evening, I will be able to post all of this and the latest kitchen update from our own house. Cross your fingers and a little nagging wouldn't hurt either. ;)

Books and Reincarnation

I just finished reading "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein. It is a fun and sometimes sad account of a dog and his master, who are both obsessed with cars and racing. The whole book is about the life lessons this dog has learned from the race track, and using them to the best so he can be reincarnated as a human in his next life. It made me laugh. It made me cry. It made me think and look differently at my dog. Until she passed gas and totally ruined the moment.

But it also reminded me of a conversation I was part of back when I was sassy and single. We were on a big group date, and one of the guys asked what we all thought we would come back as or what we were before. It was a fun question and a pretty good way to break the ice. So what did I choose? I kept going back and forth between a giraffe or ostrich. They both have gorgeous eye lashes like me, are tall, and hate to be cold. I think. The giraffe and I also look pretty graceful until we start moving, and running can kill us. Seriously. Ostriches and I share the same skin color of WHITE and our thighs look the same.

So now I am curious: what will you be or what were you? And what are you reading right now?

The Carnage Continues

Sorry it's been so long since my last post. I am waiting for SOMEONE to finish up his turn with the camera, and he is just taking his own sweet time about it. So this will just have to be a regular old post without any pics to liven it up.

You remember how I told you about Nadia's used coupon book? Well, lucky me, there are coupons that go with it! I just got them! As I was looking through to see what kinds of wonderful little gifts awaited me, I noticed a theme: a coupon for cleaning her room, one for practicing piano, several for cleaning up after the dog outside. In other words, they sound exactly like her chores. Hmmm. On the positive side, she also wrote and sang a Mother's Day song for me. So now I know when she is a famous singer/songwriter, not to expect any fancy or expensive gifts. I'll probably get a coupon saying one of her people will be doing her chores instead.

Brandon has freckles on his nose, and they are ADORABLE. There would be a picture here to show you , but we already discussed this problem. And yes, his name is Cliff. Anyway, the summer really brings them out, along with little girls who think he is cute. I am just thankful that he doesn't understand why all the girls chase him during recess yet. And that he is a very fast runner.

Benjamin and I are having a hard time. He has a hard time deciding, and I have a hard time making time stand still while he is deciding. Yesterday, we went to the store to use the rest of his birthday money from Aunt Marlene. He told me he wanted a Gordon train that was smiling. Then he showed me the Gordon smile several times, while saying, "Yike dis, Mama, Gordon need smile yike dis." Once I get the camera back, I will take a picture and show you. We found the Gordon trains only to discover that while they were all smiling, they were all smiling the wrong smile. "No, Mama, not yike dat. Yike dis," and there was Ben's Gordon smile to compare it to. He was right, the two smiles weren't the same. So what did we do? We sat there for half an hour while Ben looked at other trains, and decided they weren't right, either. Thomas and Percy were in the running for less than a minute, but James was right out of competition. Not that I blame Ben for that, James is a little vain and smug for my taste. The rest of the time was spent just sitting there, I think in the hopes that the right Gordon with the right smile would come puffing by at any moment, and say, "Hi there, Benjamin! Sorry I'm late, but here I am! Buy me!" We finally had to leave, and exited the store with the wailing of, "I want my Gordon! I want my toy!" Walmart has very good acoustics, by the way.

There should be another picture right here to go with Caleb's little blurb, as well. He has just found his toes, and you need to see the look on his face when he is watching them. His smile keeps getting bigger and better every week, too.

Well, that was a pretty good recap of the last week or so. I will try to do better about updating and nagging Cliff, so there will be a few more posts on here. That's it for now!

Happy Mother's Day!

Here's how Mother's Day went down at our house. Every gory little detail.

It started the night before with me waking up every time the neighbor's cat meowed in our yard. This cat hates me, and knows that we open the window in the bedroom when it starts to get warmer. Yes, I know some of you are laughing at this sentence, but just remember that "warmer" is relative. Moving on. Every time I hear this cat, I snap to attention, and quickly try to figure out who is crying. Then I realize it is just the cat, and mumble ways to get even with it while I try to fall back asleep. Skipping to the end, I woke up with a monster headache, and Cliff telling me the kids were fed and getting dressed and he needed to go set up chairs for church. I love that man.

So I skipped church and tried to reason with myself that it was okay to take more than 2 tylenol for nasty headaches, but didn't do it, because I am nursing and feel guilty. It was a good thing that I stayed home because Caleb had sour stomach all day, and Brandon wasn't feeling well, either. We stayed in my room and watched a movie, then had quiet time until the others came home.

Oh, the presents. I loved this year's bootie. Or is it booty? This year's haul. How about that.

Nadia made me a used coupon booklet, so I now have a place to store all those coupons I've used at various places. I didn't have the heart to tell her most places keep the coupons so you won't use them again. She also made a mug at school, with a packet of hot chocolate in it. Too bad she forgot to tell the teacher I'm lactose intolerant. Eh, the kids and Cliff enjoyed it, so it worked out just fine.

Brandon made me a recipe card holder. It holds about 5 cards, and he showed me where he wrote his name on it, and how he made it look CRAZY.

Benjamin gave me a flower, and then took it back so he could sweep with it. Yes, it did make a very good broom.

Cliff made me scrambled eggs and toast for lunch and fed the kids. Very sweet. Later, we got a call from my dad that dinner was ready, and headed over to visit with him and my brother who is done with school for the summer. Dad made a lovely beef stew in the crock pot, and my bro made brownies. Then everyone else went for a walk while Caleb and I had some quiet time alone, and then we just visited until it was time to come home.

I loved this Mother's Day. I love being a mom. Even when it means I wake up 7 times a night because of a stupid cat that I think is a crying child, even with sour tummies and cranky toddlers, I love my kids and all the things that being a mother to them entails.

And here's to all the great moms I know who put up with craziness and noise and messes because that's part of the package, and do it with grace and a smile. You are wonderful, and I am glad to know you all and learn from you!