Bragging, Pure and Simple

Warning: Unless you are a grandparent, or other high-ranking relative, you may want to skip this post entirely.

So, after the screaming "You're bad!" fit of the other day (most of it, shockingly, aimed at Dad this time), I walked upstairs to find this tucked under Lu's door. It's nice to know that even when we're mean, she still loves us. I truly am loving her new skill of writing.

For the last couple of months we've been making books like crazy. This is a new batch we just made today for our trip out to CO. Lu chooses the colors; I put them together. She fills them up with all sorts of things. Here are just a couple that caught my eye:

Some words she knows, others she sounds out, so we get some funny spellings. The following three pictures are from a little "math" project we did to work on measuring. She measured various body parts and wrote them in a book. Can you decipher them on your own?


She wanted to write a longer story the other day, but got so frustrated writing the first four words that I sat down with her and wrote while she dictated the rest of the story to me.

It was a funny story. One day she'll read it to you no doubt.

She loves doing math problems (go figure), but this time, she made up a list of math problems for me to do.

And finally, I had a funny interchange with Phx this week. He fell off the basement stairs on Wednesday and got a couple of bruises on his head and leg. For a couple of days afterward, he was limping a bit as he favored one leg. When I asked him about it, he said, "My leg is very sore. I think I need to drink some wine." What??!!! After thinking about it for a moment, I realized he was referring to a story we recently read about a young Joseph Smith. His leg needed to be operated on, so they thought to give him wine to drink to numb the pain. Joseph refused. I tried to explain to Phx that the whole point was that he DIDN'T drink the wine even though the pain was severe, but he was having none of it. For the next couple of days, if anyone mentioned his leg, he would remind us that what he really needed was some wine.

Scout Camp or Hey There, Moon Eyes

It's good to look at these pictures right now while the kids are in "quiet time." They look so happy and fun to be around. Unfortunately, at this very moment, they are both sobbing mournfully in their own rooms. A couple of minutes ago Lu was yelling at the top of her voice, "YOU'RE BAD, MOM! YOU'RE MEAN, DAD!" Oh, the joys of parenthood. So here are some pictures of a happier time . . . three days ago, when Lu didn't think we were so bad.

Stayc took the kids to Scout Camp for the day to visit the boys in our ward. I think they had a good time. I know I did. That was the day I made the capes, went out to lunch with a friend, made dinner in peace, and generally enjoyed the quiet.

Surprise!

At first I thought the general ruddiness in his cheeks was caused by the heat. Nope. That's just fruit punch. The really red kind.

Of Capes and Garlands

So I made the promised capes for the kids yesterday while they were at Scout Camp with Stayc (pictures to come). I'm pleased at how much they like them, especially Phx. They went to the fabric store with me and picked their own colors. The green side is Robin Hood, the blue side, Prince Charming. Or whatever.

This picture is so grainy, but it's the best I could get. They did a little impromptu dance after getting into costume. I *believe* it was supposed to be the love dance between Robin Hood and Maid Marion.

Note: I wish I could take credit for the creativity of these capes, but I can't. I used this tutorial, with some minor adjustments. Since they are "fairy tale" capes instead of "superhero" capes, I made them longer and wider (fuller) and altered the shape to suit myself. Oh yeah, and I just skipped the whole decal thing. It took me a total of 2 hours start to finish--and I'm slow.

And here is the wedding garland I made for the two flower girls. We'll see if it still looks like this after sitting in the trunk for 18 hours of driving.

Does This Look Like a Princess to You?

Phx received his very first birthday party invite recently. It's not that he doesn't have friends or anything, but, well, he doesn't have many friends. He's the only boy of his age at Church, which means he's constantly surrounded by girls. Also, Lu is really his best friend. Not a bad thing, of course, but a bit restricting. Needless to say, we (he and I) were very excited for this party.

I actually changed his very slightly sullied shirt for a clean one so he would look his best for the party. When I picked him up, he was smeared from head to toe in chocolate cake and ice-cream. Ah well. We tried.

Healthier Than Otter Pops (and They Don't Hurt the Back of Your Throat)

Summer is here and the kids have been hankering for cold treats. We pulled out this old popsicle thingy that I purchased at Target a couple of years ago and have been making popsicles non-stop for weeks now.

Apple juice popsicles. What? I ask you, What could be better?

If that's not a look of pure pleasure, I don't know what is.

The Great War

We found this picture whilst sifting through old photos at my mom's house. The resemblances are amazing!

Sir Princess

Phoenix has entered the "dress-up" stage. Thing is, the only items around here in which to dress-up are princess dresses, frilly skirts, ballet tutus and high-heeled shoes. It makes for some interesting dress-up play around the house.

Stayc kind-of shrugged it off at first, but I think he's getting more and more anxious as the weeks pass. The other day I overheard him talking to Phx, "Buddy, you're making me uncomfortable." And I thought he was so progressive. I guess when it comes to your own son, even the most latent machismo begins to surface.

If you'll notice, he's wearing different clothes in all these pictures. Really, this is not a one time thing.

So, here's my dilemma. What kind of dress-up clothes do you get for a little boy? He's not into trucks or trains or any type of vehicle. What he really wants is to somehow be a part of the princess stories Lu acts out. Prince charming? I found this, but I don't think I'll be spending that kind of money any time soon (read: never). We just saw Robin Hood for the first time. Maybe I could make him a little green outfit. Any suggestions?

At least the boy still likes to wrestle . . . even if he is wearing a tutu.

And in the end, he's all boy.

From Heat Wave to Ice Age

Yesterday we took an outing to Big Bone Lick State Park. I know, I know . . . what an odd (and suggestive) name for a state park. "Big bone" for the ice age fossil bones found there, "lick" for the salt marshes that drew the animals in the first place. It is the self-professed "birthplace of vertebrate paleontology." Lewis and Clark passed through, and Clark later returned to excavate fossils for Thomas Jefferson. Amazing.

So where do the bison come in? you ask. It is also home to a thriving buffalo herd, one of the survivors of the ice age. They once freely roamed this area of Kentucky. Enough of the history lesson. The kids got a kick out of watching them, and the setting was really beautiful. We were lucky they chose to roam close to the fence while we were there. When we left they had wandered far afield.



Phx kept telling me to take pictures of the replicas. "Take a picture of the mastodon, Mom!" "Take a picture of the wholly mammoth, Mom!" "Mom! Take a picture of the giant sloth!"


I will NOT smile for the camera. Anyway, we had a good time. However, when Lu started asking me 10 minutes into the drive, "Are we there yet, Mom?" (with 1 hour left to go), I began to get seriously worried for our cross-country drive this Summer. Are we crazy? Only time will tell.

Water. It Does a Body Good.

Woo-Hoo!! Water!

Oh wait. That's wet.

Yeah, but it's good. I like it. I do.

I can handle a wet shirt. No problem.

A Bouquet of Summer or Let Me Out!

Yesterday, I had Lu come out on the front porch so I could take a picture of her in her new dress (Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!). Later, as I was looking through the pictures, I noticed my own reflection in many of the pictures. Thank goodness for Photoshop. Now you see me; now you don't.

But when I came to this one, I had to laugh. I just couldn't bring myself to Photoshop Phx out of the picture. He looks so forlorn . . . really trying hard to get out of the house. Mostly I'm amazed that there is still one door in the house he can't get out.

Camping: The Aftermath

Hey. It's raining out here.

Since the tent stayed out in the rain all night, we got a good sample of what camping in the rain might be like. Mmmmmm. Not so waterproof. At least this one wouldn't mind at all.

Dad showed him how to get water from the rain gutter, and thank goodness for the rest of us, it occupied him for quite a while.

But he *did* get a little wet. All in the name of fun.

Camping!

Stayc had the great idea of doing a "trial" camping adventure in the backyard last week. Everyone was so excited, including me, who didn't have to sleep in the tent with the kids, but would, instead, actually get a full night's sleep in a quiet house.


The kids had a BLAST! Until it was time to go to sleep. Lutece came in at 8:15 or so. "I'm just going to sleep in my own room."

Phoenix came in at 9:00 p.m. Wired and tired. He zonked in his own bed too. All of this was a good thing, since the torrential rains started about 2:00 a.m. So much for a good night's sleep. Sigh.

Under Construction

As you can see, the site is undergoing some changes. I'm trying out new things. I'll be putting a new header bar up soon. Change is hard for some people. But since there are only six of you, I figure it's ok. I'll keep posting. Don't be alarmed. So my question for you, my loyal readers, Is this new format too busy? Distracting? Not enough color? What's the *feel* you get from it right now?

Raven Run Nature Sanctuary

Last Friday we went hiking at Raven Run, a short 15 minute drive from here. Our ostensible purpose was to release "into the wild" the moth we had in captivity at home. This poor little moth emerged from its chrysalis just a day earlier, originally having been a caterpillar that we captured from the very same Raven Run on this trip. Ahhh, the circle of life. Too bad the poor little creature was more dead than alive by the time we released it. Anyway, WE had fun.

We took a pretty short trail loop. Phx is in the backpack simply because we cannot trust him to stay on the trail and there is an abundance of poison ivy, oak and sumac throughout the entire wooded area. Poor kid. We let him down on the wider trails.


As soon as we arrived at the Nature Center (a tiny cabin with trail information and various native animals, both dead and alive), Lu had to get out her "Nature Journal" and draw some of the things we'd seen. Here are some of the items she collected in her "Field bag" and then proceeded to catalog:

Oh wait. A quick word about the field bag. Lu and I made it from an old pair of her re-purposed jeans, an idea we got from here. It's made from the entire back end of the old pants. I love that it still looks like a little bottom. So funny.

Ok, so she didn't collect a turtle, but there is one in the Nature Center.

I drew one, she drew the other. Can you tell which is which? (Oh, and there's the compass Lu uses to keep us on track. "We're going directly northeast right now." Thank you.)

It's so delightful to see the kids learn and discover new things. Her writing is getting better and she's started to try to sound things out and spell them on her own.

Welcome to Summer!!