I'm guessing she will always have a soft spot for elephants

Another book report came and went this month. It is so interesting how things change over time. When June was in second grade, there wasn't much competing with her homework. We would spend extra time on projects together. Now Ivory is in second grade, and I will freely admit that there were so many other things happening this month, that I completely spaced her project until the day it was due. And not like the 'where you remember first thing in the morning and get it done quickly.' No, more like the 'I was sitting somewhere in the afternoon and someone mentioned the date and little bells went off in my head and I suddenly remembered that we hadn't even started a book for a project that should have been turned in several hours ago.' Awesome.

I went home and put the book and her project paper on the table so I could remind her first thing when she got home.

She dutifully went to work and happily told me that her teacher had been absent that day, so not everyone turned in the assignment. (I guess that does make me feel a little better.)

When June did the project, I helped quite a bit. But with Ivory, I just gave her paper and told her to go to town. Maybe I should have given proportion suggestions. When I walked past the table, I was startled by the SIZE of her artwork. (Mainly because I had to stuff the thing, and I didn't know how much fiberfill I had lying around.) But I was happy that it was all Ivory's drawing and coloring. I think she did a fantastic job.

Only two months of school left. I can do this. Most of the big projects should be behind us, right? June has been fabulous at doing her own work this year. She uses the internet, she asks for the occasional advice, but I am a bystander for most of it. (Unless you count the science fair, but I still made her do most of that project. Oh, and unless you count the constant nagging. I don't help with the projects, but I am definitely the organization police.) Robyn just doesn't seem to have a lot of projects, or I am woefully unaware of them. There was a cloud project that I helped her with (because she was using my camera) but she did the bulk of the work. (I am much more cloud-savvy than before and I would call that a success. The only hiccup was that Robyn forgot her project and I had to deliver it on the day it was due. But in comparison to the dozens of times I have taken June's forgotten lunch, that is nothing.) There was that big project back in December that I never blogged about...

Okay, I have my topic for tomorrow. And stay tuned for some selfies.

Let's Pretend it's Not Thursday

This week has been eventful. Busyness is our style. I'm looking forward to a calm evening tonight in which we have nothing going on. We may even bust out some 'Hole in the Wall' and let the kids see what people do when they possibly lose all self-respect. Or maybe I will catch up on some reading with the kids. (Take your pick: Land of Stories, Little House in the Big Woods, Ever After High, Radio 5th Grade, all in progress.)

The kids also rediscovered chess. Robyn almost beat me last night and June plays it incessantly. It won't be long before I lose my title of 'undefeated.' (Mostly, because I'm not that great at it. I have some brilliant moves, but my problem is cornering the king. Tricky little devil.)

This week brings the conclusion of the Science Fair. June had a lot of fun taking the day off from school and playing at BYU. She loves climbing walls. This is where I found her when I came back. (Parents were not allowed on sight during the judging.)

Didn't take her long to scale the wall.

She also got to try a flight simulator. Interesting, but I couldn't watch for long. (Darn motion sickness.)

I did not get a picture of her by her project, but they take one for you and post them in two weeks. So, I guess there will be one more picture somewhere along the line. She did not win any awards at this level, but I am very proud of her hard work.

Last night was 'New Beginnings' which is a program our church puts on for the young women. June will turn 12 this year and graduate from primary to the next stage, so she was invited. Their theme was polka dots, and the DOTS stood for 'Depend On The Savior.' It was a really fun evening, filled with many, MANY polka dots. Everyone was wearing polka dots (except yours truly who was not paying attention to the invitation and I was in stripes. Classic.) and all the decor was polka dotted. Check out the refreshment display.

All the girls wrote on a polka dot how they depend on the Savior and taped it on or near His picture. So, I got a shot of June. I think she will really enjoy Young Womens.

I have a lot more random photos, but I'll save them for another post. I really want to go do dishes and laundry right now. (Ha, ha....just kidding. I'm going to go make lunch and read a book.)

Proud of Myself

Yep. Blogged all week, thank you very much. It's about time I got into a groove. New goal: Blog every other day this week. (I know myself. If I don't set a new goal, I will just take a siesta that can last for an indeterminate amount of time.)

Also proud of myself for accomplishing a sewing project. I was looking for dresses for Daisy. Have you heard my dress rant before? I feel like I talk about it all the time, but maybe I haven't been whining on here. (I mean whining about THAT. I know I whine about other things.) Here is the sitch: It is REALLY hard to find cute modest dresses for girls. They are never long enough. And if I get it in a bigger size, so it is longer, then it doesn't really fit my skinny girls. There are some longer dresses, but they are almost always sleeveless. Why? I ask you. Why?? Finally, if you can find a dress with sleeves, and it is the proper length, chances are it is going to be uber expensive. Grrr.

I took Daisy to six (SIX!!!) stores and didn't find anything worth buying. I was so frustrated. So frustrated that the non-sewing me decided that I'd better get my act in gear and think about sewing again. I should say that the non-sewing side of me is very strong. I will usually find a way around using the sewing machine. But my momentum took me to the store and I purchased patterns and fabric. (That is half the battle. Okay, not really. Sewing is pretty much the whole battle.) I lost a little ground when I came home, but it only took me a week to put a skirt together. (Total project hours....about 3. Yes, that is phenomenal for me.) And I did get some patterns for dresses, but I am so nervous that I will mess them up royally. I figured a skirt was a better place to start.

It looked so funny as I put it together. Before I added elastic, it could fit me. So I took a picture. (I am wearing it inside out.)

I will freely admit that it looks much better on Daisy. She is such a cutie. And it fits her really well. Score one for me.

In the meantime, I have lost a bit of momentum. I found a cute dress at Costco for under $20, (Thank you Costco) so I can probably put off the sewing for a bit longer. But I do have a tad more confidence in myself. I can sew. I can sew. (I'll just keep chanting it to myself.)

Found some other pictures on my phone near the skirt one that need to go on the blog. I got a picture of my mom while she was here. I always love a three generations picture. I'm excited for when she visits again. (We can't wait for another fairy story.)

Lastly, my cereal sent me a message the other morning. I figure....when the cereal speaks, you should listen. And bear record.

Peace out everyone.

Socks: I'm on the Fence

I HATE socks. I hate that there is never a match when you need one. I hate that they get holes so quickly. I hate that my kids take them off everywhere and then never claim them. (Hey, whose socks are these...{crickets chirp}...okay, I'll put them in the laundry hamper, AGAIN.) Do I sound bitter? Perhaps.

I LOVE socks when my feeties are cold. I love that they don't have to match. (Since really, the only one who wears matching socks around here is Tyler since his are all black.) I love that they keep kids feet from smelling more than is bearable. I love that my kids wear pretty dresses to church and then ridiculous socks with them. (No one looks at your feet anyway, right? Wrong.)

Ugh. Socks...I really do hate them. But they are useful. Like when Robyn and I went rollerblading yesterday. Quick tangent ---- she is getting really good at rollerblading. I looked like the biggest fuddy duddy next to her. I didn't fall down or anything, but she could skate circles around me. We did races. And by races, I mean that we would pick a finish line and I would skate in a straight line towards it. She on the other hand (on my command) would have to make a significant detour around multiple objects and she still would get to the finish line first. Pathetic. ---- I haven't been rollerblading in a long time. I remembered that my ankles were sore last time (when I was 13 or so) but what I did not recall was the proper attire. The top of the blades rubbed my skin RAW on my lower calf. Sadly, I almost grabbed knee socks on the way out the door, but I didn't. Socks!!! Why weren't you there for me? Is it because you felt I needed to learn a lesson. Okay, FINE.  I KNOW I need you. Can't we agree to disagree, or something like that?

Recently, I was out shopping for something (memory fails me) and I was in Old Navy. I suddenly remembered that it is the blessed month when we buy our flip flops. HEAVENLY flip flops. But I was just too lazy to get back over there with all the kids. But don't you worry. Online shopping came to my rescue. I went to oldnavy.com and brought each kid over to the computer individually. They scanned through the designs and selected the one they wanted. (Out of the cheap ones. Flips flops must be under $5 and preferably $2.50) It was really quite fun. I shopped for myself and bought (gasp) boys sandals because I loved the design.

They came in the mail, and angels sang as I opened the box. Aren't they lovely?

Funny, how my flops aren't much bigger than the ones nearby. This is nice because when I can't find mine and I need to run out to check the mail, it is easy to snag someone else's. However, this also means that sometimes the reason I can't find mine in the first place is because someone is wearing them. You can't win them all.

And yes, I know socks will still be there, under the couch, by the computer, stuffed in odd places, but I also know that there will be less of them. Now we just have to get past the tricky spring weather. You know, the kind where it looks really warm outside so you wear flip flops and then you come back inside with blue toes?

Mother nature...you are such a tease. I bet your BFF is socks.

Living in the Past

June's class has been working overtime on a project called 'Images of Greatness', in which they each researched a famous person from American history. There were many mini projects through the last months, but the culmination of the event was when everyone dressed up as their character and performed a poem (that rhymed) they had written about their subject.

Here is June all ready to go. Any preliminary guesses?

Her hair was tricky, and it is possible this style was more something her mother would have worn, but I think we got close.

Who are we looking at? Why, Laura Ingalls Wilder, of course.

The evening was very fun. Each of the kids had a display board with information about their person. (Across the gym, the sixth graders also were on display, but they had people from outside the USA.)

June had to bring three objects to go beside her board to represent her person. She chose books, because Laura loved to read and became an author. The log cabin was to represent Laura's first home. And the crutches were because her husband became crippled after a serious illness.

It was fun to see all the kids dressed up. It was like brushing shoulders with many great people in history.

After getting to walk around for a while, we sat down for the program where each child recited their bio-riddle. They had to write it, memorize it, and recite it for everyone. They all did a fantastic job. Here is Laura after her piece handing the mic to Juliette Gordon Low. (The founder of Girl Scouts.)

It really was a fun evening. Here you can see most of the kids dressed up in costume.

I think the only famous person still living is Gail Halvorsen (the Candy Bomber), but Shirley Temple Black was close. I didn't recognize Nellie Bly, or Althea Gibson, but I know who they are now.

And lucky us, we get to do the whole project again next year. (Notice the comment about sixth grade....) Wonder who June will be then?

Luck of the Irish

Last Saturday they did the third annual Luck of the Irish 5K. We ran the other two, so we went and supported again. If you don't remember, check out the last race.

This year was WINDY; terribly gusty. We all wore jackets and huddled against the building using it as a shield from the wind until the race began. Naturally we warmed up quite a bit during the run, but even at the end there was a long stretch that was right into the wind. Killer.

Tyler took the stroller. The original intent was to have Daisy walk along beside. (It's about time she did more than ride.) But the wind was so bitter, I tucked her into the stroller with Pearl and a blanket and I told them not to move. (I wish I could remember the days when people strolled me around? I guess there is always the chance that my time will come again, except in a wheelchair. Okay, I don't really wish for that.)

June joined Tyler. They were off like a shot. Ivory stuck by me. I told her that we would keep a good pace and not worry about what anyone else was doing. So I ran, and Ivory talked, and talked, and talked, and talked. I'm pretty sure she didn't stop the entire race. At one point, I interrupted her and told her that one of the ways you can tell that you are running a good pace, is that you can talk at the same time that you run. She clearly was running a good pace. Then she asked if I was running too fast, since I wasn't talking much. (Thanks Ives. I should have told her that I couldn't get a word in edgewise.) I mentioned that I could talk if I really needed to, but since I had already worked out at Boot Camp that morning and was pretty tired, it was easier just to run in silent mode. (This was very true. Going to Boot Camp before the 5K was not my best decision, but I was extra proud of myself when I finished the race.)

Ivory and I kept up our good pace. Eventually Tyler and June came into view. Then we got close, and passed them. I told Ivory that our steady pace was awesome. She was getting tired and sore by the end and she said her legs were crying, but she still didn't stop. I was so proud of her. She was such a trooper. She finished just ahead of me. And Tyler and June were less than a minute behind.

Tyler and I were slower this year, but we were running with kids (and stroller for him). Ivory rocked it. I think she was the first girl in her age group. (Although there was someone named 'Courage' who crossed the line right with her, but I honestly don't know if that is a boy's or girl's name. Help?)  June was the second girl in her age group to cross. Fantastic.

Robyn was running with a friend. She came in a bit later, but she did a great job. She probably ran most of it. The worst part was waiting in the wind for her to come across the line. (Yes, I whine, but it was cold.) I'm really proud of the kids. They don't do a lot of running. But they are active kids and I was super impressed they could keep up a steady jog.

	2012	2013	2014
Tyler	16:55	29:37	33:18
Maleen	41:45	29:35	32:27
June	40:22	39:49	33:04
Robyn	40:43	38:37	48:33
Ivory	Rode in the Stroller	40:57	32:23

It won't be long before the girls take off and leave me in the dust. Ivory was using me for moral support, but I know she had more energy than I did. I was a little disappointed, because they split all the age groups by gender, except for the younger kids. So the three medals for 7-8 year olds went to boys that came in ahead of Ivory. If they had done girls, Ivory would have gotten a medal for sure. Oh well.

Tyler was rocking his viking beanie. I took a picture before hand. He was practically the mascot as he ran, although the beard is not the best to run in on a windy day. He kept inhaling yarn strands, and spitting them out again...only to re-inhale them. 

We didn't take any other photos, but the Vineyard Elementary staff had some people photographing the event. They even referred to Tyler as 2014's Viking Mascot as she snapped a classic Viking Victory pose of "Raging Viking." Here are Vineyard's photos.

After the race, everyone bolted for the car to get out of the wind. I stayed to see if we won anything in the raffle, but as usual they called the number right before and after ours. But I would say that we were still winners that day. Good job Cazier's!!

Love and Pie

Did everyone enjoy the mini holiday that was Frozen being delivered across the nation yesterday. How many times have you watched it again? If you have kids, I'm guessing it is playing in the background right now. I'm taking bets in my head about when my kids will get sick of it. (If ever.)

Today is a day to catch up on a couple things I missed. First, Valentine's Day slid by without too much fanfare. Tyler and I hosted game night at our house and it was a blast. But the kids were stuck upstairs. They decided to put their boredom to good use and they made a heart attack for our bedroom door. I see it every day and keep forgetting to take a picture. Until today.

All the hearts were so unique and cute. This one is winking.

This one has a bow. (Made of hearts of course.)

This one showcases the girls.

They even put a few hearts on the bathroom door and the closet. Three heart attacks in all. I'm not sure my heart can take it. They sure are sweet.

In other news, Pi day happened about 3.14 days ago. (Just kidding, more like 5.65 days ago.) We dutifully had pie. What else can you do?

We had some friends over as well and had a great evening playing games. I had forgotten how to play 'Fruit Basket' but the girls loved it. Everyone chooses a fruit to be. Someone is in the middle. If your fruit is called, you must call someone else's fruit before the person in the middle can tag you. You can also call 'fruit basket' and everyone switches seats. It was a lot of fun.

Good times. Now I think I will go watch the end of Frozen. (Clearly I'm not sick of it yet.)

Battle of the Books

I have mentioned 'Battle of the Books' before. I was happy to go volunteer again this year. The kids do a great job, and I always come away with some good book suggestions. (I currently need to read Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. Many kids raved about that one.)

Robyn's team didn't do as well this year. I don't think they won any battles. But I am proud of her for competing. I think it is just as important for kids to learn how to lose well, as it is for them to win some of the time. Plus, I may have bribed her. (But I bribed her with a new book, so really....win/win.)

Once again I was not able to help out at June's school. But this year they were able to do more battles because the gym was finished. June's team made it to the finals. (Yay!) I sadly failed to find out the time of the final battle, and I missed it by a few minutes. (One more point towards 'Mom of the Year') But I did get a picture of June's team after the fact. By the way....they won.

Tamma, Sarah, Holly, Hannah, June

I'm proud of them. They have done a lot of reading. In fact, June is still reading more of the books since her team is still competing. I hope 'The Bookworms' do well at the next level.

Almost Forgot to Wear Green Today

Really. The hubbin had to remind me. I was all dressed and he looked at me and said, "Where's your green?" Sheesh. Amateur.

I guess it has been weird not having our leprechaun around giving us puzzles and keeping us on our toes for St. Patty's Day. But we dutifully made our wishes and put our gold in the pot. And it wouldn't be St. Patrick's Day without coins on our foreheads.

We added the game of trying to squinch up your forehead and get your coin to drop in the pot. I made mine, and most of the girls got their's in, at least by the second try. Or if they got really close.

And low and behold, in the morning, our gold was gone and we had a gift from our old friend Seamus.

Turns out he followed us after all. He explains in his note why he was neglecting the usual fanfare.

Me dear lassies,

What a ride we have been on this past year. Why'd ye have to go and move on me like that? A leprechaun finds a home and there isn't much to be making him move. However, a steady supply of gold is one of those wee things that tempts a man such as meself. I had to be followin' ye.

I'd be apologizin' for the lack of puzzles this year. There are strict rules about treadin' on the territory of another leprechaun. I could be banished if I stole someone's home, so I've been hiding, waiting to see if another leprechaun already had his abode in this here house. The only way ye can tell, is if he comes to get yer gold.

I couldn't do anything until this day o'green. And what a fabulous day it tis. Turns out, there be no other leprechauns here, and I can be havin' this gold fer meself. I left ye a treat as required. But don't be thinkin' you'll get it this easy next year. Now that Seamus is back, you know what'll be comin'.

I'm not a sentimental ole fool yet, but I'm glad to still be keepin' company with yer family. Yer a right smart group of lassies. Thanks fer rememberin' me gold.

We sure love our leprechaun and I'm glad he's stickin' around for a while. He was a brave soul to follow us, especially if he joined us at the cat pee rental. Here he should have plenty of space to spread out, or whatever a leprechaun does. Happy trails Seamus.

Jinxed

I knew making a goal would get some attention. The universe is officially conspiring against me. Something has happened to my right wrist, making it almost useless for holding anything, but luckily I can still type. At the same time, my computer crashes every time I try to download photos. Having restarted it three times, I figured I would put out this small post in an effort to show the galaxy my true devotion to blogging this week. Can't we all just get along?

In the meantime, we made our wishes on our gold, for tomorrow is St. Patrick's day, but there has been no sign of Seamus? Perhaps he didn't come with us for this move? Is it possible we live in a leprechaunless house? The kids will be crushed.

Either way, don't forget to wear your green tomorrow.

Fun For Everyone

Hmm....I haven't been satisfied with my blogging consistency lately. So, my personal goal for the next week is to blog every day. If I say it out loud (read: write it here) I am much more likely to stick to it. There. With that out of the way, let's do some birthday polishing.

Namely, we finally got over to the Fun Center for Ivory's birthday. Don't judge. It hasn't even been a month since her birthday. (Barely.) So basically right on schedule. 

The girls raced to the climbing wall first. Ivory went up like a pro. 

But the oldest two showed their style by going to the top.

There were many rounds of air hockey. (Parents remain undefeated.)

Pearl was VERY unsure of the Frog Hopper until she saw me grinning at her. Then she realized it was supposed to be fun and enjoyed the rest of the ride. My kids take up almost the whole row.

We did a little bowling. Oddly, I was terrible at it, because the balls were small and had no holes. I can't seem to roll a ball straight without holes.

We even did the inside miniature golf course. I really liked all the black-lit pictures on the walls. My favorite was the 'shark tank'.

At the end, we tried to get a group photo. 

The light was atrocious, but at least you have proof that we all were there. (You have proof that I was there, because who else would be holding the camera??) Trust me, Tyler wouldn't hand over his phone/camera to just anyone. Haven't you seen this skit?

Lovely day together. It was Priceless. (You know, that kind of priceless that costs a ton of money, but makes your kids remember you were good parents who took them places at least three times a year, or so.) 

This Girl is Golden

Ah...the Golden Birthday. Many of you have no idea what that is. If you don't, google it. This post is already going to be long enough without the extra rhetoric.

Pearl had her fabulous golden birthday. Made more special by the fact that she got hers first before any of her sisters. I wanted it to be special. At the same time, I was planning baptism stuff until two days before, so my mind was elsewhere. Needless to say there was one day with quite a bit of scrambling that wouldn't have worked if my wonderful mother hadn't been home to hold down the fort and frankly, Pearl. It is hard to plan a surprise for someone who is always with you.

The night before the big day, we got everything ready. I made a gold tutu and Tyler tried it on to make sure it would fit right.

The table was all set for the morning- golden style.

Streamers hung from the ceiling and above Pearl's bed.

And the presents were wrapped and awaiting the birthday girl.

Pearl was so cute when she got up. Crown went on right away and stayed there most of the day. (She was made for royalty.) I did not make breakfast because she requested pancakes for dinner.

But I did get cereal that fit the occasion.

The day probably wasn't too exciting for the birthday girl. She got some quality time with Grandma and then we went to get Balloons. They didn't have a '4' in gold, so Pearl chose purple. (Yes, that is a '4'. It sure looks bizarre.)

I put together Pearl's "cake". She was watching everything very intently. I should mention that she wore the tutu most of the day as well. And it sprinkled glitter on EVERYTHING and EVERYWHERE. Thank you gold glitter tulle.

She danced for me in her cute outfit.

Then I took a picture of the cake close up.

But someone wanted in on the action.

We knocked over one cupcake, but Pearl was happy to hide the evidence.

One of the things I wanted to get for her golden birthday was a random object that I could spray paint gold. I thought of hitting a thrift store and finding some random object, but at Hobby Lobby, in the clearance section, I found a black '4' for 39 cents. Steal of a deal. And it looks much better gold.

June spent some time playing with Pearl. Then she used the matching pieces to create a message. I had to come take pictures off and on all afternoon. (I try to humor them if they ask. See if you can read the message?)

Sadly, June forgot to make the last word.....girl. But you get the idea. My favorite was when she wrote birthday, it was a longer word so she said she had to make it in a different font. :)

For dinner, sparkling cider. Pearl is digging her own little bottle.

I love sweet sister hugs.

And these two make me laugh. They are both sitting on their feet taking a swig. Matchy, matchy.

Next, time for the candles. Pearl was good at taking big breaths.

And getting one candle at a time.

Finally, time for presents. Pearl was so patient to wait ALL day. Dad came home for lunch and she asked if she could open presents. But I told her everyone had to be there. Then the girls came home, and she asked if she could open presents. But I told her Dad had to be there. She gave this great sigh and said, "What?? He was just here." Poor thing.

She was so funny. She would open something and immediately set it down and reach for the next present. It was like some competition to see how fast she could open everything.

The only gift she really paused at was the pink and purple cheetah. She just had to cuddle it. Robyn (who gave her the gift) yelled, "I win!!"

Mom and Dad gave Pearl her gift early in the morning. In fact, she woke up to someone watching her. (Creepy kind of, but she doesn't seem to mind.) Gotta love the cutout of larger-than-life friends, which Tyler wishes to note was his idea.

Pearl had a great golden birthday, and since she won't remember it, we had to document it well. But I think her sisters will remember it. And the never ending glitter around the house should be a reminder to us all for a while.