First Foods

And she still pulls this face. And we still just feed her a few bites a feeding before she refuses to open her mouth. And she still has her big sis keeping her face clean.

The Blue Ridge Mountains

Rachel and Derrik are visting family along the Blue Ridge Mountains. Of course, we piled in the van and drove and drove so we could spend time with them too!

We had a great time making oragami frogs, playing checkers, listening to Derrik's concert on the piano (all Brooklynn talks about), bird watching, and chatting.Here is a shot of Rachel with the Happiness and Sunshine. We are grateful to her in-laws who let us stay the night in their house (even though there was a temporary lack of water due to a low water level in the well). They were very gracious.


A big bonus for the kids was attending a new ward, having the primary sing them a hello song, and then when church was over they were given a brand new tub of Lincoln Logs. Jeffrey is already planning our next trip!

Here are some photos off of flickr of the scenery.

Christmas Week

We had a pretty quiet week last week. At the beginning of the week the kids got a new bedroom set. Similar to this, but without the bookcase and a dresser and nightstand instead. They were pretty excited. (I've been looking for one on craigslist for a few months and finally found a great deal before anyone else bought it.) Mark took them shopping to choose their own mattresses. It's been wonderful to have them in their own beds so they cannot complain about who is stealing covers, kicking, etc. (Merry Christmas to me!)

Christmas Eve we had our traditional dinner: ham, funeral potatoes, rolls, Christmas ribbon jello salad, vegetables, etc. (I've never cooked a ham before and it was soooooooo scrumptious!) Then we had the kids act out the nativity (with our nativity set people) while we read it from Luke. We played Cadoo and Yahtzee (thank you to Rachel and Skylar) several times, played the Wii, and ate some munchies. We watched the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert on PBS in the evening. We really enjoyed singing along to the songs we knew!

The kids got their pajamas on and went to bed. By the time they fell asleep (which took forever) and we were ready for Christmas morning, Santa had come. It was 2a.m.

Mark had the greatest idea. If we wake the kids up, and they open their presents, they will probably go back to bed and we can all sleep in!! Sounded great. We woke up the Jeffrey and Brooklynn, who were not excited to be out of bed. They were too tired to open presents, so off to bed we all went and woke up a few hours later to rip open our presents.

Today's Math

I was trying to get Malia to take a nap when Jeffrey came running in, "Mom, I'm done with my math. Can I play now?"
"Okay, what did you do?"
"I made up some really hard adding in my head."
"Alright, tell me about it."
"Well, I did one million plus one hundred plus one million plus one hundred. It's 2,000,200. It took me a few seconds to figure it out. It was really hard."
No matter how hard he tried to justify himself 'a few seconds' of math doesn't count in my book. I made him do his multiplication tables 2s and 10s. Poor thing.

Family Christmas Picture takes 1-4

Make a Smilebox postcard

Chubby Goodness

Bath Time

To prevent fights over whose turn it is to take a bath with the baby, everyone gets a chance... yes, she's possibly the cleanest infant in America. Good thing she enjoys the water.

Happiness and Sunshine

Look at her chubby little feet! I just want to kiss them! She's generally a pretty happy little girl!

Holiday Goody Making

We made these cute Santas out of Nutter Butters and took them to our co-op- not one left on the plate. (Thanks Mel for your post.)

Then we made some oreo balls, aka white trash truffles . Mmmmmmmmm, they were good!

2008 Memorable Moment

The Family Fun Mobile in action. Listen carefully and you will hear the squeaky sound that accompanied us on our trip.

I can use some ideas

We've been asked to speak in church next Sunday on Christmas Traditions that bring you closer to Christ. I need all the ideas I can get!!! Mark and I are the only speakers with no musical number planned. Maybe I should just play a few Christmas carols on my flute. jk.

This week...

has had it's ups and downs. Mark's dad had a mild heart attack on Sunday, a proceedure on Monday and was home from the hospital on Tuesday after a slight set back. We're grateful he is doing well!

Hudson, a handsome and adorable new nephew, was born on Wednesday.

One of my favorite Aunts, Aunt Gail, passed away on Thursday. She faced life with a positive attitude and a smile regardless of her trials.

And, Friday, my Great Uncle Bob died.

Now it's Saturday. And after having someone in the family sick since before Thanksgiving, we are all finally feeling better and almost over our colds. That's been our week in a nutshell.

Welcome to the World!

Here he is!!!

Hudson Hansen

Dec 3, 2008

7 lbs 13 oz

20 inches long

Congrats to Jeremy and Bridget!

Good Eats

During our trip to Costco on Wednesday, one of the samplers was pumpkin pie. Jeffrey and Brooklynn loved it. I knew that Mark and I are good after a sliver. I knew that the kids would never eat the rest, so despite their begging, I had to pass on the purchase. I did, however, promise to make them some pumpkin treats.

Past Thanksgivings we've made pumpkin chocolate chip bread (delicious) and pumpkin cheesecake (delectable). This year we are continuing to expand our pumpkin horizons and made pumpkin pancakes. YUMMY!! Friday morning I made them again without the ginger in the pancake batter or nutmeg in the cream. Much more kid friendly.

Yesterday we made pumpkin swirl bread and a sour cream coffee cake (but with pumpkin instead of sour cream, a handful of craisins, and a handful and a half of mini chocolate chips). They were both successes, perfect with a glass of milk- even Mark liked them.

We still haven't finished our can of pumpkin. Next on my list- pumpkin roll.

Send me your favorite pumpkin recipe!

Thanksgiving

With Mark working and 2 sick girls on Thanksgiving, I was glad we had a simple feast to prepare: crock pot chicken (shhhhhhhhh, aka "turkey". Don't tell the kids.), mashed red potatos, stuffing, vegetables, Costco rolls, and a chocolate pudding pie. Jeffrey was at home in the kitchen as I barked out orders. Brooklynn helped peeling carrots and cutting celery. Both Jeffrey and Brooklynn agreed that this was the best Thanksgiving food ever.



We spent the day like we did when I was growing up playing games:battleship, chess, and Jenga. We ended the evening watching Home Alone. The best part was hearing Jeffrey laughing hystarically and Brooklynn telling me how smart kids are to think of all 'those things'.

/div>

The 3 F's

Mark was scheduled to work Thanksgiving Day, so I had decided that we would go to the Golden Corral for dinner. No fuss. No mess. Perfect.

On Tuesday Jeffrey informed me that Thanksgiving is all about the 3 Fs: family, friends, and fun. His eyes were teary as he told me our family and friends are back in CA and all that's left for his Thanksgiving is the FOOD. I try not to dissapoint, and we quickly made a menu for Thanksgiving at home.

Brooklynn's latest

............pet. We made a trip to our local nature center and found out it's a centipede, a carnivore. Unlike the miliped, which is a scavenger. Who knew. The lady working was full of all sorts of insect trivia for Brooklynn.



A black capped chicadee posed at the birdfeeder for us to view.

Cake Decorating 101

"So good I feel like dancin'! "

Reading Time

Malia loves to have the kids read to her. Here they are sitting in a corner of the toy room, showing off the stack of books they have all read together.

Happy 6 months Malia!

Okay, I cheated. The pic is from flickr.com

The Tale of the Tube Fairy

After Jeffrey lost 4 teeth in just a few weeks, Brooklynn was feeling left out. Jeffrey was quite excited about his many visits from the tooth fairy, and Brooklynn was a bit jealous.

Then something absolutely crazy happened. One day she was playing in her room and I was sitting on her bed holding Malia. She held out a little black tube in her hand, "Mom, is this my tube from Dr. Romeo?" (She had tubes put in 5/07.)

"Yes it is. Look at that!" I was staring at this tiny thing that has been sitting in ear wax since last February.

"Well, do you think there is such thing as a tube fairy? I think there is. I am going to put it on my shelf and he'll come and get it in the middle of the night." She had the most excited sparkle in her eyes because something exciting had finally happened to her.

So of course, the Tube Fairy visited our house in the middle of the night. And, of course, he left a dollar for Brooklynn! She came to wake me up at 5:30 in the morning with the fantastic news!

All was well until the afternoon when through her tears she told me that now that the Tube Fairy had come and taken her tube, she couldn't show it off to her neighborhood friends. Being the problem solver she is, she dictated a note for me to write:

"Dear Tube Fairy,
Thank you for coming to my house and for the money. I was not ready to part with my tube. Please bring it back and my dad will give you a candy bar.
Thank you, Brooklynn"

Luckily, the Tube Fairy could locate the tube and it was returned the next night.

The next level

A few years ago, I discovered that I could request books from my local library and they would be waiting for me at the check out counter. What a time saver! I could take the kids to the library and they could choose a few books and I could pick up books I had already chosen. No more dragging the kids through rows and rows of books, begging them to use a library voice. We were all happy!

The next level...requesting books and picking them up from the library's DRIVE THRU window!!! What bliss. Now I don't have to fight with the stroller and keep track of the kiddos. Just me, the computer, and the drive thru!! Here is one of our local libraries. Complete with drive thru check out, flat screen tvs in the glass walled conference rooms, and a cafe.

Today's Riddle

What can six men create that 8 children can destroy in a matter of minutes?

Opening Exercises

Yesterday was our family's turn to conduct opening exercises for our co-op. Jeffrey lead us in a song, prayer and the pledge of allegiance. Then Jeffrey and Brooklynn recited a poem they have been working on:

The Squirrel

Whisky Frisky,

Hippity hop,

Up he goes

To the tree top!



Whirly, twirly,

Round and round,

Down he scampers

To the ground.



Furly, curly,

What a tail!

Tall as a feather,

Broad as a sail.



Where's his supper?

In the shell.

Snap, cracky,

Out it fell.


I have to admit it was pretty cute- especially since Jeffrey is missing his two front teeth!

Our First...

Yesterday it was sooo cold (in the 30's) that we had our first snow! The earth is still warm, so we caught it in our hair and on our coats to get a good look at it. The rest of it melted as it got close to the ground. We can't wait for more!

Some Body

For the past several weeks we have been focusing on learning about the human body. I had a great book

referred to me by a friend. It includes all of the organs and body parts for the kids to color and paste onto their own body outline. It has been a lot of fun! Jeffrey wants to start on another one.

Autumn

Dinner Last Night

I made Chicken Soup with Black Beans and Corn last night for dinner. Delicious!! I switched it up a little bit and used 2 cans of chicken broth and 2 cans of Costco canned chicken. A definite repeat!

Breakfast-Bill Cosby Style

Dad is great!
He feeds us chocolate cake.
Mom is fab!
She cleans up after Dad.

Malia's milestones

Malia has been quietly doing her thing. This week: rolling over and sitting up by herself!

Soccer

The soccer season has come to a close. Jeffrey really enjoyed playing and looks forward to next season. Brooklynn had fun getting to know the girls on her team. Originally, she had no desire to play. That was until she found a pink soccerball and a pink water bottle. Amazing what little pink can do.

They recieved trophies at a pizza party at the local pizzaria. Yum, yum.

Sorry no kids are in the picture, they revolted after I made them put their Halloween outfits on a week after the fact. Making them put on their soccer shirts to hold their trophies- out of the question.

Falling Leaves

Autumn here is breathtakingly gorgeous. The kids have been hard at work to preserve the colors.

Jeffrey and Brooklynn made leaf presses at Home Depot last Saturday. We've spent the week looking for different shaped and colored leaves. We've made a few crafts with them. We'll post pictures when they're done.

Halloween

For Halloween I got the kids dressed and then we went to pick Mark up from work. Since it wasn't dark yet, we went to Wendy's for dinner. Thank goodness they were packed because the sun didn't go down until we finished eating. Mark asked around at work for the perfect neighborhood to take the kids trick-or-treating: sidewalks, street lights, and houses close together. His co-workers told him of the perfect spot and the kids had their sacks full by the time their legs were tired.

Do Halloween pictures count if I have the kids pose a week late for their snapshot?

Jeffrey's News

I was sucking on a tootsie roll pop and my tooth fell out.

Dressing for Winter

The Children's Place was having an online clearance sale two weeks ago. I was able to purchase winter clothes for both Brooklynn and Jeffrey for $150. Yahoo! Coats from Costco- $50 for both. Perfect timing- the weather has dropped to 40 degrees in the morning.

Prop 8

I know that I'm not in CA anymore, but I can't help feeling passionate about Prop 8. My former roommate, Deborah, has a great blog with a wealth of information. Check it out.
http://www.booksandbeaches.blogspot.com/

Twice Blessed

At our Stake Conference in January (California), Elder Robert Hales came. To make it a memorable experience for the kids we decided our little family would help with building preparations. We were assigned (with a few other families) to polish all of the wood paneling, pews, pulpit, etc in the chapel. We took our time to make it shine.

Sunday morning we arrived just a few minutes after the doors opened- 7a.m. It was extra special to hear conference and have the speakers bear testimony from the puplit we lovingly polished. Jeffrey and Brooklynn were incredibly well behaved during the conference, especially after arriving 3 hours early to get to sit in the chapel. Mission accomplished. They still talk about it.

This past Sunday was an impromptu Stake (east coast) meeting. We met at the stake center to hear Elder Boyd K. Packer address us. We arrived 5 minutes early and the parking lots were full. Traffic was directed 1/4 mile away to the elementary school parking lot. There were only 2 chairs left in the over flow, so we sat in the Relief Society room to listen. It was a great conference. A few topics: parenting- enjoy the time with your children, economic situation- do not fear and move forward with faith, when we try to do what the Lord would have us do we will be blessed.

We feel really lucky to have been visited by 2 apostles in one year!

The Party Girl!

That's the new nickname. Up all night and sleeps all day. Poor little Malia slept until 3:30 pm on Saturday. She's up all night with congestion. Too tired in the day to do much but eat and sleep.

Early American History

This month we're studying Jamestown and Williamsburg. I found this book at the library.

We finished it up yesterday. A biography of a 13 year old who comes to America without his family in hopes of acquiring land and creating a future for himself. He ends up being gifted by a captain to the king of the Powhatan Indians. He learns their language and serves as an interpreter between the Idians and the settlers.It was very informative, but graphic in parts. I had to skip details and summarize the basic plot a few times.

Next on the reading list is Pocahontas.

It should be fun to read about the same events but from a different perspective.

I happened across this at the library

The book is divided up into seasons and has colonial activities for each. So far we have made butter. Next we're going to try dipping candles. Should be fun.