Loving Conference

Everyone,

Today (and yesterday) is our church’s Semi-Annual General Conference.  We’ve spent the day in our pjs (a rare treat nowadays!) and just enjoyed the talks, the music, and each other.

A highlight of yesterday:

It’s my brother!  (Fourth from the left.)  I love love love seeing him on TV doing what I know he loves to do.  Plus it’s pretty cute to hear all the kids start yelling “Unca!  Unca!” whenever the music starts.  They love looking for him too.

To hear one of many good songs he sang in yesterday and today:

Safire

Easter 2010

Everyone,

This year’s Easter was very low key. We spent the day in our pjs listening to General Conference and eating candy. The big fun in the morning was the Easter baskets though!
When Butterfly was the boys’ age, I think I gave her a handful of jelly beans and a few toys/books. The boys got significantly more candy that she did. Juice was not happy with the slobbering sticky chocolaty mess. But I figured it was a win because they almost didn’t fight over the candy. Each kid got 2 toys and I ended up using 2 bags of candy between the 3 of them. I think that was enough.
Butterfly got sidewalk chalk (something I know we will need for the summer and hopefully use up before the summer is over) and a bunny Mr. Potato head. This is our family’s first Mr. Potato Head. I bought another generic Mr. Potato Head in advance to ward of fighting. A good call. Besides the jelly beans and the robin’s eggs (which no one in our family likes…who knew?) she got some pink Peeps and a chocolate bunny.Pirate got bubble solution (also something we will use up before the summer is over) and a pair of sunglasses. They are green. They are funky. They were a dollar. He also got jelly beans, robin’s eggs (which he ate for about 2 minutes and then started to spit out, much to Juice’s dismay), purple peeps and a chocolate bunny. The bunny’s ears were eaten and then he carried it around like a doll for about an hour. By the time Juice wrestled it away from him, it was hairy, melted and dirty. Pirate screamed, Juice huffed about it and I just smiled. Crazy kid!
Professor also got bubble solution (we go through a lot of bubbles here…it’s one of the words that they both will say) and another pair of those sunglasses. The sunglasses are a bit big for him. But he loves them. He calls them ‘eyes’. He also got jelly beans, robin’s eggs (ate one, wouldn’t touch the rest), yellow peeps and a chocolate bunny. He ate his bunny as best he could, starting with the face. Once it fell apart on him (the horror!), we took the rest of the pieces away and he cried.

Bubbles and sidewalk chalk outside in our pjs fixed every one’s mood.

Also Conference fixed every one’s mood. And looking for my brother, Uncle MusicMan who sings in the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It’s pretty cool to hear all three kids cheer and clap when I point out their Uncle. Here, you can cheer and clap too.

Watch about 4:16 on the video and he’s in the back in the middle.
One great Easter here!

Safire

We’re Crabby Here

Everyone,

And no, this is not a Maryland crab joke. I tried one of those on Juice this afternoon and he kind of looked at me funny.

The day started out okay. Juice got up early to go to some sort of skeet shooting thing with the church. He should have checked his email before he left because it got cancelled. He came home crabby because no one was at the church. From there, he hustled us out the door, which made ME crabby. I had big plans this morning. Like resting my aching legs and desperately trying to find some time to do something on line that I want to do.

No go with him. Out the door to the grocery store and to get the boys’ hair cut. This is their second professional cut of their lives. The first one was around their first birthday. And this one only because I’ve trimmed it badly several times in a row and it looked all lopsided.

Half an hour later and three suckers (Butterfly was lucky enough to get one even though she did not get her hair cut) and we were done. They look so old! There was no screaming this time. What a difference a year makes.

Then from there we rushed home for lunch and naps before our church’s big general meeting. We have them 2 times a year (always the first weekend in April and October). This year Easter and Conference landed together. We’re able to watch Conference through the Internet. Sadly, I slept through most of the morning session.

In between sessions (5 sessions total, 3 on Saturday, 2 on Sunday, each 2 hours long) we ran to REI to pick out a big girl bike for Butterfly for her birthday. I am a member and I get cash back for everything I purchase there. And last year I bought A LOT of stuff from them. So I got a lot of cash back. We did not come home with a bike today. But we did come home with a size for her bike. She looks enormous on a 16 inch bike but okay on a 20 inch bike. Seriously, she is amazingly tall! Sadly, this also means we’re going to have to buy special training wheels for her that will fit her bike. And they didn’t have the color she wanted in stock so back home to order it online.

The whole time we’re out everyone is cranky. Professor REFUSES to be put down by me or touched by Daddy lately. He spent the day strapped to my back. Butterfly is whining that she doesn’t WANT a bike (but perked up when I told her she could have a bell on it) and Pirate desperately wanted to be where Professor was.

Several times today I had to count to 10 to keep my temper. Everyone needs to just do as their told! And if I tell you to stop whining, DO IT.

I didn’t buy a one of a kind necklace that I wanted to. I saw it about a week ago and thought I would wait a week to see if I REALLY wanted it before I bought it. That whole, trying to keep impulse buying down to a minimum. I REALLY did want it but as of a few days ago, it was sold. I am super sad about it and am now researching how I can make one of my own.

Juice (happily…too happily in my opinion) went off to the meeting for the men tonight and left me to get everyone in bed. Which happened soon after we had a snack. And during the snack, both boys started signing every sign I know. More, milk, hurt, various animals, sorry, sad, happy, thank you, cracker, cereal, etc. They were having a ball and asking each other for more milk and then passing cups around. Butterfly caught on to what they were signing before I did.

After they were in bed, I spent the evening eating Easter candy, putting some in their baskets, and watching a very girly movie. It wasn’t great but my popcorn was good.

Now if I can get to bed and get some sleep, maybe we’ll all be in better moods tomorrow.

Safire