Ah, the Randomness of My World

So, I am not sure where to start today, so you just get the randomness in random order. (I think that is how it prefers it, after all.)

Let me introduce you to Rocket. She comes with her own jet-pack, 

and helmet. 

She explores the universe and stretching out clothes apparently, but since they were pajamas, her mother didn't mind. She is one cute astronaut.

Baby birds have come to our yard. I am not sure where they came from and it was kind of hard to identify them in the beginning. It was just one bird, at first. One little fluffy bird that sat and didn't really go anywhere. We thought maybe it had a hurt wing. But it turns out it was just hanging out waiting for dinner from Mom. Oh, and there are two of them.

They are more like tween birds than babies. They fly just a tiny bit and today we finally saw them scavenge some food on their own. Mother Robin has been busy though. We see her fly back and forth, feeding these babies of hers. I am very impressed. And somehow they manage to stay out of sight during the day while the dog and kids roam about and then at dusk, they wander around the back yard while we ooh and aah. Today they had more color and less fluffiness. My guess, they won't be here much longer, but it was beautiful to see nature at work.

Pearl is cute, although less cute when she is cranky. (But, aren't we all?) I put an animal in a basket for her the other day and she quickly decided that Claire deserved the coveted position. She dragged that bear around for quite a while. Cute stuff.

Camille came over a while back and taught the girls, Going on a Treasure Hunt, which is this little game you play on someone's back. The girls love it and ask for it all the time. I thought I would write it down so we can remember it some day.

Going on a treasure hunt
X marks the spot
Four big boulders
And one little dot
Spiders crawling up your arms
Blood dripping down your back
Tight squeeze
Cool breeze
Now you have the chills

My favorite is that Daisy calls it, Treasure Humpt. She can almost repeat the whole thing herself. It is these small moments that I want to remember.

Coach Pitch

This summer I was looking for something to keep the girls busy, but wouldn't break the bank at the same time. I stumbled across Coach Pitch, which is basically one step up from T-ball. I was trying to explain to the girls last night that it is nice baseball. 


Everyone gets to hit, and run around the bases. They don't keep score, although I have heard that the really competitive parents still keep track in their heads. (Hah.) They get team shirts and hats, and they get a taste for the game. What more could you ask for? 


Robyn got a good hit.

June did a great job too.

They both got to take a turn at catcher. (Doesn't June look cute with her baseball hat and glasses? Okay, maybe it is hard to see her glasses, look closely.)

Here is Robyn running home. 

The other girls seemed to enjoy watching. 

Okay, not Pearl. She was cranky, but I attribute that to three new teeth coming in at once (she always gets them in sets) and maybe an ear infection?


The team was so cute, although the shirts are way too big on all the kids. June could put a belt on hers and wear it as a dress. (Yes, I ran over to get a picture, but none of the kids were looking at me. I'm sure I'll catch them again at some later date.) It's a regular Sandlot.

Oh, one last picture...I thought they were pretty cute giving their high fives at the end. Good game, good game. And it really was.

Three cheers for softball! 

Because Braces Weren't Enough

Notice anything new?

Yep, June needs glasses. This is not at all surprising to me considering the long history of bad eyesight that runs in BOTH of our families. I would not be shocked to see many more Cazier girls sporting this look in the future.

I think she is cute, and I am certainly glad she can see better. When we took her in for her eye exam, she couldn't read the fourth line. Now, she can stop going up to the board at school to read things the teacher writes.

She seems to be taking everything in stride, considering all the changes she has gone through recently. Here she is showing you that the gold band matches her gold glasses. (And yes, the other rubberband is purple, matching her purple glasses.)

She is still trying to get used to the feel of them on her nose and ears. She told me this morning, "My ears don't like them, and my nose doesn't like them. The only thing that likes them is my eyes. But that makes it worth it."

Temptation

Photos of the week:

On any given day, I am tempted to ignore my children and do this instead,

Or maybe this,

And don't get me started about how much I want to crawl back in here.

But I usually push aside those temptations and clean and play with my children.




 p.s. I should probably have a picture of some baked goods in here as well, because that may be another weakness of mine.




p.p.s. I also think it is amazing how after you make a picture black and white, the original colors can seem so startling. Check it out.

Another Proud Grad

That time has come again. Another smarty pants has graduated from the Itty Bitty Bruins. I love this program so much. Memories came flooding back from here and then. Ivory was definitely ready for her turn. She had such a good year, making friends and learning. And Miss ShayNee was fabulous for her. Check out the thick scrapbook she made for Ivory.

All the girls have gotten a scrapbook (which might be my favorite part of the program) and June and Robyn pulled theirs out today to remember the good ol' days. It was so surreal looking back through the books. Time is surely not slowing down. Daisy will go in next year (2012). I  hope she loves it as much as her sisters.

Yes, June got to attend the graduation this year, but only because she bit through a wire on her braces and needed to get it replaced. I didn't want to go back to the school to get her, so she got a bonus trip with us.

I'm sorry I didn't get Ivory's picture with David and Brooklyn, her buddies, but they are all here if you have forgotten what they look like. We will miss seeing you guys every other day.

Happy Graduation everyone!

Why we don't walk around with blankets over our head and other stories

WHY WE DON'T WALK AROUND WITH BLANKETS OVER OUR HEADS

The end.

JUNE PERFORMS AND DOES A GOOD JOB

The end.

TYLER AND MALEEN PLAY WITH THE CAMERA AT NIGHT

The end.


MULTI-TASKING AT ITS BEST

The end.

MALEEN DOES NOT KNOW WHAT TO PHOTOGRAPH FOR THE THEME OF ANGER

The end.

Vanity, Thy Name is Maleen

It was a beautiful day today.

I was outside for an hour or so.

Yes, I got sunburned.

Sadly, I think it makes me look healthier than my normal pasty complexion.

It's the End of an Era

Pearl is the last baby. So, as she gets older, I have been shuffling off baby clothes here, there, and everywhere. We have gotten rid of our baby carseat, and lots of toys. The bouncer is gone, along with the bumbo. And yes, if we end up with a 'bonus' child, I will laugh right along with you as I buy or borrow all these things again. But, since we are not planning on more, I thought it was time to free up some space.

Most stuff I am happy to get rid of, some stuff is more sentimental and harder to part with, and then there are the things that I don't think anyone would want, and yet they were invaluable at the time. Like my collection of burb cloths.

I say collection, because we have enough that people might think we attempted cloth diapering at one point. As if. I hate laundry enough without loads of...well, you know. I am pretty sure that up in heaven I said, "Oh, you can send me down whenever, as long as they have disposable diapers." Okay, maybe that is a little far-fetched. I'm sure I would have survived in the dark ages before washing machines, but trust me, I am not above enjoying my technological advances now.

When I was pregnant with June, I got some of those cute, fancy, burb cloths. And for those of you who crochet around the edges, I still think they are adorable, but that kind of fabric was not made to soak up the loads of liquid that can come forth from a small body. June broke us in the hard way. Sometimes I wondered if she was gaining any weight, since she seemed to spit EVERYTHING up. Grandma mentioned that she changed her shirt every time she held June. That is just the way June came. And so I stocked up on burb cloths. They were the friend you took everywhere. We put several in the baby bag and cursed ourselves when we forgot them.

So we ordered a different model the second time around. Robyn was not a spitter...Hallelujah. But for some reason she had trouble figuring out the whole nursing thing. She drooled, to put it mildly. So, the burb cloths saw plenty of action, since I always had a few tucked underneath me while I fed her.

Ivory was probably the only one who didn't need the armada of burb cloths, but it was short lived since both Pearl and Daisy were terrible spitters. (Three out of five kids—not the best odds.) There were times that I would look around for a burb cloth and they were all in the wash. That tells you how many we went through, almost daily. I would often do a load of only burb cloths so I could catch up and stem the tide of spit up.

And lucky us, Pearl lasted the longest, well past a year, spitting up. But recently, I found that I don't use the burb cloths anymore. I am not constantly scrubbing the carpet, or changing outifts. So, I guess it is time for them to go. But oddly, it is very hard to part with them. They have been my close companions these eight years. How do I tell them thank you? And will the next person to see them realize their value or just see a bunch of useless white rags. I know, it is strange thing to get emotional about, but I think I will miss all my burb cloths.

p.s. This is my 800th post. Just thought you'd want to know.

Who Needs Ridges

I am a little behind in blogger land. I don't even have a good post ready for you. But I feel the need to stay current, so you get something regardless. And actually, what I have to give you is quite fabulous.

Check out these babies:

So tasty. So easy. So mostly guilt free. (Although, really people, I don't have much guilt to begin with when it comes to eating.)


Here is the recipe:


Microwave Potato Chips

Scrub potatoes, leaving skins on and slice potatoes as thinly as possible into even slices. No slice should be more than 1/16 inch thick (less than 1.5mm). Lightly oil a pyrex baking dish with cooking spray and place potato slices in a single layer. You will probably have to cook the potato in batches. Evenly salt or season potatoes as desired. 
Microwave, on high, for 3-6 minutes.
Most batches took me about 4 minutes, but it is best to watch (just like popcorn) to prevent burning.
Remove from dish and repeat with remaining slices until all the potato has been cooked.

I got this recipe quite a while ago. I found the post here which links back to the recipe above (thank you sister of my kindred spirit sister.) I tried it and it was okay because I didn't have a slicer and I can't cut thin, even, potatoes to save my life. But they weren't terrible even with the different thicknesses. BUT...I bought myself this green slicer at Wal-mart for less than $20 that has three slicer settings. I used the thinnest, and Zow Wee Mama. They were perfect!

I got into a groove. We had two pyrex dishes going and we just switched them out every four minutes. I say 'we' because Daisy was helping and she was feeling very helpful. Although please watch little fingers when you are putting potato slices into the dish that just came out of the microwave, because it is HOT! We could have done a billion, but sadly, my old microwave is good for about five batches (20 minutes) and then it is done. Like, turns itself off for about an hour, done. That is not helpful for the potatoes that are already sliced and ready to go. (Or for a lasagna for that matter. I haven't cooked a lasagna in the microwave for about a decade, but don't they take about thirty minutes?) Anyway, we did two different shifts of chips, with microwave giving out each time, but we ate every chip we made. They were great.

So, if your microwave is not as old as your marriage, like mine is, I recommend you try these.

My Songbird

Robyn is beautiful both inside and out. She has a stubborn streak that I am positive she gets from me. She also has the most tender heart and cries when she feels others' emotions. (She may get that from me too.) Sometimes I feel it is hard to capture these little spirits on film (yes, I know it is not really film, but what else do you call it?) but I love to try. Robyn and I had a good time taking these pictures. And yes, she may have been slightly zapped by the electric fence, but I am not a country girl, and I didn't know it was charged. I know enough to stay away from barbed wire. Anyway, no serious damage occurred, unless you count adding to my permanent guilt. Enjoy.

Up

Yes, I know a house with balloons would have been perfect, but I like these images too.

Photos of the week:

I heard that the steeple on the church near our house is the tallest LDS church steeple there is. Interesting trivia.

I get a kick out of watching June haul Pearl around. Especially when they go up the stairs.

And how can you not love this photo?

If You Ask, Mom Will Do It (Most of the time)

You gotta feel sorry for kids who spend hours creating something only to have parents say, "Okay, time to put that stuff away." My kids have learned not only the regular comment of, "Mom, come see what I made..." but also, "Mom, come take a picture...and then put it on your blog."

It's hard to say no to that. So, here is the castle that June and Anna made the other day.

The 'L' stands for Leana Rella, and I am impressed by all the people who came to the princess' party. (I believe the royalty are in blue, naturally.)

While we are showing off art and childrens' creativity, here is one that I have to take my hat off to. You might have seen the Little Miss books before.

But I am pretty sure you haven't met these characters. Little Miss Dangerous (June's):

Little Miss Talented (Robyn's):

And Little Miss Fancy (Ivory):

And finally, a conversation that makes me laugh. Robyn likes to take things literally to be funny. (It is only funny sometimes.)

Robyn: (reading in a book) Rhinoceroses' eyesight is so poor they sometimes charge at trees.

Me: Do you know what charge means?

Robyn: Yeah, like when you take someone's money.

Me: Funny, I can just see the rhinos now. Hey trees, give me your money...now.

Later in the book Robyn read this: The Indian rhinoceros is killed for its horn, as some people think it can be used for medicines.

Me: Poor rhinoceros.

Robyn: A rhinoceros can't be poor. (See, so literal.)

Me: I guess you're right, especially if he is charging all the trees.

I don't know why, but some of these little conversations really tickle my fancy. I like watching my girls' sense of humor develop. I hope we can always sit and laugh together.