week 8

This week started with Drew pulling an early April Fool's joke.  Every picture of people in the house, with glass on top (thank goodness he avoided the canvas ones) got handlebar mustaches.  

I did this one year, on these pictures.  Jessica did not like hers and wiped it off.

He even got our wedding picture in the curio cabinet.

Every time I turned around I saw another picture with a mustache.

Science Fair time is sort of like Hell Week for me.  Thank goodness it was only one child that had to do one.  Bev chose to test stain sprays.  She tested them on spaghetti sauce, grape juice, mud and motor oil.

In case you are interested, Tide came out the winner.

She decided to splatter paint "stains" on her display board--we had the best time channeling Jackson Pollock.

The kids are a little obsessed with Amazing People on Youtube.  I have to say that those people are pretty amazing--that, or they have a death wish.

Mike took the kids for one last ice fishing expedition.  Jessi opted to stay home with me in the warm house.

Mike got them all packed and I sent them off with some warm oatmeal.

I got a call from Christian at school telling me he needed to "come home and take a shower."  I asked if I should just bring a change of clothes. He said it was probably more of a shower-type situation.  I asked him if had an "accident."  He got offended and explained that he had slid on the wet grass while playing soccer.  He was 75% wet and muddy, and did indeed need a shower.

Sweet Katie called and invited the kids to got to Classic Skating.  They are so lucky.

Mike cooked up some steaks for dinner, and Freddy was right there.  I am trying to not feed him in the kitchen, and make him stay out of there.  I have almost stepped on him numerous times.

Drew was playing the piano in the piano room, so Bev brought her violin out and serenaded Mike and me while we were talking.

I loved this picture of the Nativity in the BYU Magazine.

Doing a little test to see how Little Miss does with a stimulant.  No effect noticed.

Kiki is liking--for as much as he can like a book--the Beast Quest books.

The three youngest kids have these "cubbies" on the kitchen desk.  They are for schoolwork, but without fail, Jessica's (the bottom one) gets filled with wrappers and trinkets and "treasures" that have to be cleaned out after she goes to school.  I have to do the cleaning when she is gone or she goes into hoarder mode and has an intended purpose for every item in the cubby.

Bev went to an ice skating birthday party at the Olympic Oval.  She did a face-plant and ended up with quite a bruise.

She finally decided on a comforter for her new room in the basement. Looks like we are going with bright colors:)

Mike and I battled the rain at Costco and got her new full-sized mattress into the back of the van.

She spent that night in her new bed.  The headboard is in the works.

A co-worker of Mike's gave us this Jasmine topiary at Christmastime.  I just love it.  When I am not attentive for a few days, I all of a sudden notice it growing around the shutters.

In order to improve their writing skills, and keep their histories, I am having the kids write in their journals a few times a week.  I love reading what they write about their lives.  Bev is still soaking those darn toenails.

Sometimes you just have to make sugar cookies.  Thank goodness I have a sous chef to help.

Bev received notice that she made it into the honors program for Middle School and Jessi was the Student of the Week.