2014 week 3

Jazz game with Dad.

Pack meeting and Christian earned his Bear.  I wasn't able to go, but I heard all about how they had the boys who were advancing go into a tent and have a bear fight.  He came out with a dirty face and his glasses all crooked.

1:00 church means Mike makes a big brunch.  The kids love it.  I love not having to cook.

Dejunking Christian's room and we found a stockpile of lego boxes in his closet.  I then got a few more from underneath Drew's bed. Hoarders!

The kids get friend birthday parties every other year, and Jessi missed hers last year, so once Christmas was over, I decided to get a party planned.  We did a Frozen theme and I got the rest of the family to help out.  She is in a pretty small class, so I decided to let her invite all of her classmates, plus two other friends.  I was thinking that a few wouldn't be able to make it.  Wrong.  All 24 kids showed up.

Thankfully, Bev is a master at getting little kids engaged and under control.  She started them out with a few games.

I ran the food table.  We decorated cupcakes, made donut snowman, had fruit, cheese and crackers and blue punch.

Mike ran the minute-to-win-it games.

Drew and Bev did the pin-the-nose on Olaf game...

and the memory game.

Funny side story.  In the background, you see some pictures on the tv.  Well, for my birthday last year, Mike had created an album in iPhoto with a bunch of pictures of me.  He was messing around and made a slideshow.  The night after I got in my car accident, he called me into the craft room to show me the slideshow.  He said he would keep it and use it for my wake.  The day of the car accident was a little too soon to be joking about my wake.  Now with the apple tv, he puts it on the tv so we can all see many close-ups of me.

Ben and Thyme were visiting from Alaska, so they got to participate in the craziness of the party.

Seriously, my kids were pretty good sports to help out with the herd.

Bev and Thyme went to a community dance together. It was Bev's first dance. They only lasted about 45 minutes.

We had a get-together to celebrate Grandpa's birthday.  Most of the Jones clan.

Sweet Grandma and Grandpa.

We loved having Ben and Thyme around.  They live too far away.

I am loving book on CD or Audible.  This is one of my latest favorites.

class store drama...

I don't know who came up with the idea of "class store," and I understand that it gives kids a chance to experience entrepreneurism, which is good.  However, I think a more appropriate title would be "one kid's junk is another kid's treasure."  Christian is so enthusiastic about everything, including class store.

The day before class store, he walked in the house from school and burst into tears.  Apparently his wallet, containing $600 class dollars, was missing.  He said, "I worked so hard for that money."  I had him retrace his steps. He said it might be in his desk.  We went to the computer and emailed his teacher.  The next morning, his sweet teacher responded saying that she found a wallet matching the description.  Christian was relieved.

Christian borrowed Drew and Bev's Claw machine and spent his own money on candy to fill it.  He also made some duct tape wallets and took Drew and Bev's movie-viewing box with his Kindle.  

He had his Kindle charged, and took the charger, just in case.  Drew had helped him with a price list.  This kid was ready.

I was just finishing a work appointment when I got a panicked call from Christian.  The class store had just started and The Claw's batteries were dead. He said, "please bring 5 AA batteries and a screwdriver."  I left work and because I not coming from the direction where home is, I ran in Harmon's.  I paid more than I normally do for some AA batteries and a screwdriver.  As I waited at the light, I opened up the batteries and the screwdriver.  I wanted to be ready to save the day.  Just after opening them, I had a thought.  I quickly texted Mike asking what type of batteries are used in The Claw.  He looked it up online and texted back that it takes 3 D batteries.  Crap! So, I ran into Maverick and paid $12 for 4 D batteries.  This fiasco now has a price tag of $30.

I got to the school and ran inside.  I waved at the ladies in the office and quickly worked my way down the hall.  I turned the corner right before his classroom and as I did, I heard The Claw's loud, annoying circus music playing.  I got in the classroom and saw a herd of kids surrounding it...The Claw working perfectly.  All I could do was laugh.  Christian looked surprised that I was smiling.  He must have thought I would be mad at coming for nothing.

He thanked me very sincerely for coming, and then said that after he called me, he tried to see what was wrong and started to jiggle it and turned it off and on, and it started working.

I am trying to keep in mind the idea that the purpose of any task is to strengthen the relationship (a thought I was reminded of in Relief Society this week.)  Even though I didn't have to save the day, he knows I tried to.

2013 week 46

And this makes the last post of 2013, and it's only February of 2014.

Sunday after church, we headed to Sunset Pond in Sandy and fished.  We didn't catch anything, but we  got walk around and look at ducks.

With all the fishing around here I have had to come up with some new ways to cook trout.  Our latest favorite includes honey and brown sugar.

Cafe Bella Rue with Courtney, Sean and Julie.

Beastie hanging out watching the hamster.  I have never seen a cat sprawl out like he does.

Next thing I know the right side of Jessi's closet is jam-packed.  So I look to see what happened on the left to cause such a mess.  Oh, she had decided that all of her dress-ups needed their own space.

Putting up those darned bats about gave me a heart attack.  Bev and Mike didn't request my help getting them down.  I guess they didn't want a repeat of my panicked squeals and incessant worrying about the stability of the ladder.

Some question whether he has a heart.  I guess this sweat heart puts that to rest.

This happens regularly.  I know it will not always.

I love it when she wears Bev's old clothes.

Jessi made me this stuffed paper doll.

She writes journal entries and song lyrics.

Selina Gomez.

Justin Bieber.

2013 week 47

It's official.  We adopted Blackie.

Found this in Drew's pocket.

The obsession with Risk continues.  The kids set up the old train table for a game at the bottom of the stairs.

Mike and Christian at the Jazz game.

Mike found some crazy deal on toilet paper. I think we are set for a decade, although Mike says I use so much it may only last 5 years.

Jessica had a book report. She read Kitty Corner, which is a story about a stray cat that gets rescued.  I love her artwork.

Bev had her orchestra recital.  She is digging the violin.

Snuggles in front of the fireplace.

Drew waited to have his friend birthday party so he could take them to Catching Fire.

2013 week 48

Christian's teacher was getting married, so my friend Amanda and I planned a "shower" for the kids in her class. Some parents contributed what they would have spent on a gift for her and we got a bunch of camping gear. I made smores' cupcakes for the event.  It was my first time making marshmallow frosting.

We adore his sweet teacher, Miss Dobson.

Between Bev and Drew we are at the orthodontist's often. 

The only pictures I have from Thanksgiving are what we did after the meal.  We pulled out Grandma B's Bonanza tablecloth and played a few games.  My siblings and I have memories playing with my grandma, mom and aunts.  Now we play with our own kids.

Mike took Bev and Kiki fishing on his friend's boat.  Drew, Bev and Kiki love fishing.  Jessi and I enjoy going with them in warm weather.

We were invited by some friends to go to a Jazz game.

Mike puts the kids in rotation to go with him to the Utah games.

Kiki wanted to put the star on the top of the tree. Since we don't have a star, he opted to put the top of the tree on the tree.

The kids each get their own ornament every year.  It's a trip down memory lane as they decorate their tree.

Beastie was in heaven with all the tissue paper and dangling ornaments to attack.

I always put Grandma Peel's nativity above the t.v. so we can see it easily.  It is one of my favorite Christmas decorations.

The kids are so helpful getting the other nativities out.

Jessi is always in charge of the Liberian nativity.

There is no room in the laundry chute for clothing.  It is full of purchases.  I stack them there until I can get them to the hiding spot in the basement.

We celebrated a second Thanksgiving with Mike's family.  There is nothing sexier than a man carving a turkey in a cat apron.

Aunt Karen with the girls.

Christian and Jessi always want a drumstick.

The kids are getting their time in with Courtney before she leaves for China.

We also celebrated Jessica's birthday.  Jessica and Grandma Peel.

The girl cousins making bracelets.