Tax Day at Panda Express

Although our taxes were sent in last week electronically, we did still have to send a check in the mail to the state of Illinois by April 17th, the day taxes were due. Of course, we still needed to send it in.

Before heading to the post office, Clinton checked online to see if there were any places that had Tax Day specials, discounts, or freebies. There were a few places offering freebies or discounts. One of the places he saw was Panda Express had a FREE single serving of Shanghai Angus Steak! It was valid only on April 17th. All you had to do was print off the coupon or LIKE them on Facebook and show them with your phone. That was easy enough.

Neither one of us had ever been to Panda Express, but we did find a location near us, so off we decided to go. We made sure Justin had a little lunch before heading out. We didn't think Justin would like anything there. Clinton and I both showed them our phones and that we did LIKE them on Facebook. I decided I wanted to try a fried rice to go along with it. It was all very tasty. Justin even tried some of both and had quite the fun with the chopsticks, too.

There was another freebie at Arby's. Again, we had a location close by us, but we almost never go there. They had FREE Curly Fries. We printed off two coupons and each used one. We got a little Jr. Roast Beef sandwich for Justin to try, but he wasn't interested in it, so Clinton and I split it. I purchased a Jr. Shake for Justin, but their machine wasn't working. So instead, I got the apple slices with strawberry yogurt dip. He really liked that.

When we had searched for a Panda Express location on the computer before, we noticed that there was another location in Bolingbrook. So, yes, we decided to go to the other location, show them that we did LIKE them on Facebook, and we each received another FREE single serving of Shanghai Angus Steak! It was a fun way to spend a little time together (almost like a date, although we had kids with us) and eat some delicious food. We'll have to remember to check it out next year on Tax Day!

Today was also Clinton's mother's birthday. We called her late that night. Happy Birthday, Sharon James!

The Soccer Siblings

First soccer game of the season and the soccer siblings finished up having their team photos and they are off to play. Benjamin and Emma were the only ones that had games today. Anna's game will be on Wednesday.

I'm pretty sure that Anna and Emma are taller than they appear here, but the ground they are standing on is lower than Benjamin's so it shows a larger gap in height.

Benjamin's team is Blur, Anna's is Cobras, and Emma's is Flames. Emma's team didn't put a team name on their shirt and they just settled on a name right before pictures were taken today.

Their Aunt Yolanda came to watch part of Benjamin and Emma's games with Brenna and Devin. They finished up their games earlier and had a little bit of time to grab a bite to eat and arrive at half time. Emma's team lost, Benjamin's team won, and Anna's team didn't play today. Regardless of who won or lost, the kids had a win-win situation today. Their Aunt Yolanda went shopping to IKEA afterwards and their cousins, Brenna and Devin, came home and played for a while. After the shopping, Anna and Emma went back with their cousins to sleep at their house. I'm sure they had fun.

Since Emma was not here, that left Benjamin more in charge of Cameron while I met Clinton after the Priesthood Leadership Meeting and attended the Adult Session of Stake Conference with him. When Emma is around, Cameron does get looked after and played with a little bit more. Hopefully all was well with Benjamin, Justin, and Cameron.

I loved attending the meeting. All the talks were great. Justin McPheters, a member of our Woodridge 1st Ward, a High Council member, a LDS Family Services therapist, and friend was one of the speakers. This is his last time speaking in the area since his family is moving to Utah on April 27th. I will miss their family greatly.

Cameron's First Easter Egg Hunt

How EGG-citing it was today to help Cameron collect eggs at his first Easter Egg Hunt. He loved looking at all of the colorful eggs that were spread all throughout the gym of the church. It would have been outside, but the high today was suppose to be 55 degrees, so it was held inside.

As I held Cameron with my hands, I tried to lean his towards the ground low enough to reach the eggs. Most of the time the eggs would be bumped by one hand and begin to roll all around and away from the other hand. Occasionally, he would be coordinated enough to grasp it with two hands at once. When he did do this, he was successful in picking up the eggs. Of course, Cameron tried putting all of the eggs he collected inside his mouth. Cameron was fortune to find a "chick" egg. Anna and Clinton helped Natalie Chandler hide all of the eggs and Clinton took pictures, too.

There were a bunch of families at the church today for the Easter egg hunt. The bulk of the children were 4 years of age and under. Everyone was suppose to bring 10 eggs per child. Since Benjamin was involved with track, it was only Anna, Emma, Justin, and Cameron, but that's alright, we have an Easter egg hunt on Friday at the Fishers and one on Saturday at a neighbor's house (Will and Aubrey Potter). Benjamin should be able to get some treats then.

With having three different Easter egg hunts and our own Easter, hopefully the kids can be taught more about the true meaning of Easter and not focus on the eggs, candy, and the Easter Bunny. This is another opportunity to teach our children about Christ.

Track and Field Running

Clinton found out Monday night from some neighbor girls, Hannah & Esther Mitre, that Track & Field practices started that day after school.

We were not sure if Benjamin had wanted to do it, but he had talked about it before. We spoke to him and he said no. We suggested that he go Tuesday for practice and see what it's all about. Well, he went and decided that he did want to do it. He is one of the fastest runners there I believe.

One of the benefits of us living on Woodridge Drive is that the cross country team and the track & field team run right in front of our house. This is one of a few routes they take. This picture is being taken as he is running towards our house and he is second in the front.

His running will greatly improve his soccer ability this season and continuing his soccer will help his running for track. I don't know which category he will participate in, but I'm excited to see what he picks and how he does. Hopefully, too, these athletic sports will instill a love of exercising throughout life as he sees and feels the benefits of doing it.

"Dirty" Old Man

Well, I don't know the whole story behind this one, but somehow Clinton got very dirty today on his 5+ mile hike.

He went on a hike with the YM and some of their leaders at Waterfall Glen. Those that went were Benjamin, Tanner Cameron, Bayley Gaughan, Matt Deem, Brother Adam Froerer, Brother Dan Deem, Brother Jason Cameron, Brother David Ferguson, and Clinton. Following the hike, they ate lunch as a group.

It rained a lot yesterday, so it appears that everything was still wet and other places were soggy. I guess they found one of those spots. Even though Benjamin wore shorts and had less on his legs to get dirty, he still didn't get as filthy as Clinton. Both of their shoes were wet, too. All I can say is that I was not about to clean up that mess. I made Clinton clean up his pants. It seems only fair. He made the mess, he cleans it up. Hopefully they they will come clean.

Swinging in the Sun on a Saturday

Saturday is a special day, it's the day we get ready for Sunday. When the kids first woke up, they headed downstairs to watch tv. I told them they needed to come up at a certain time to eat breakfast.

Following breakfast, they all needed to put away their laundry baskets of clothes before playing any wii games. Benjamin hurried up and did his, so he could go play "How To Train Your Dragon". I thought it was funny that the movie Clinton checked out and the wii game that I checked out where for the same thing. We didn't even plan it that way.

While Benjamin played (and I think Justin watched him play), Anna, Emma and I tackled their room and closet. It was horrendous. We spent quite a bit of time in there. Benjamin ended his game at a certain time and everyone continued to clean up their rooms and have lunch.

Around 2:00pm, Clinton had planned to take whichever kids wanted, and were ready with their rooms, to the park. I didn't figure he would be gone so long, but Benjamin decided to play at home first on the game and bike over a little later. By the time he biked over to Castaldo Park, they weren't there. They had headed to various places and ended up at the Woodridge Community Park District playground. Emma stayed behind to finish up her room. Of course, I continued helping her. Finally, around 4:00pm we finished, so I dropped her off at the playground where Clinton, Anna, and Justin were playing. Luckily, she got the chance to play. She would have been extremely sad if she missed that chance.

Once everyone was home, it was time for taking showers, fixing dinner, and eating. It was an amazing dinner of one of our family's favorites - biscuits and gravy along with potatoes. What a good way to celebrate a productive day. Although I was busy the entire day, I really enjoyed it. The boys' room could still use a little cleaning up, but their room and the girls' room is much better. I have a lot more to tackle this next week. My desire is to get more cleaned up prior to Spring Break, so we can enjoy it a little more. We may also set up a little trip during that week, so it will help if things get prepared earlier.

Hooray, ISAT Tests Are Over For the Week

It's Friday night, Benjamin's ISAT tests have ended, Anna and Emma made it through their week of ISAT tests and have one more day next week, and all they want to do is relax.

I stopped by the library today and checked out a few wii games and a movie. Clinton also checked out a few movies while he was there. The movie they decided to watch was, "How To Train Your Dragon".

It is a good movie. I believe we have all watched it before, but it has been a while. It was nice for them to relax a little after dinner. I'm sure tomorrow they will want to play some of the wii games, so I think a little room cleaning will be needed first. Benjamin and Justin did most of their room tonight.

Initially, I told the kids that whomever would finish up their room first, could play a game. Benjamin and Justin did start on their room right away and once Benjamin was finished (to his satisfaction), he went to play. His room does look better, but it is nowhere near what I want it to look like. :)

Anna and Emma will need to begin their cleaning tomorrow. Hooray to get things clean (or at least cleaner).

Buffalo Wild Wings

Tonight was our school's restaurant fundraiser night at Buffalo Wild Wings. I don't think we have been there in quite some time. The last time we've gone there was probably over a year ago. Prior to that, we had gone maybe a few times a year the last few years. Our school would have fundraiser nights each year, plus we would come on other occasions.

Buffalo Wild Wings use to be under different management and Wednesday night (their Kid's Night), they would have $1.99 kid meals with free ice cream topping bar, raffles, and face painting. I believe that manager has since moved to another location. I don't know if he does the same things there, but it was fun.

Benjamin wasn't sure what to get, but he was looking over the kid menu and noticed that two of the chicken tender kid meals were cheaper than a regular chicken tender meal. I know Benjamin would normally want to seem older to everyone, but this is the only time he is thrilled to be young - he still qualified as "12 and under", so he took advantage of it, but one meal would not be enough for his appetite.

Anna, Emma, and Justin received kid menus and crayons in their paper bag, plus a piece of candy. Emma had a Reese's peanut butter cup, but since Anna and Justin had smaller candy, they actually received two pieces. They thought it was nice.

Clinton tried out the hand-held device that they have. You can login and play trivia games that have the questions displayed on their large tv screens inside the restaurant. I think he won one of the games and lost another. There is no real prize except knowing you did well. :)

Everybody ordered a meal, but Clinton asked if we could try a black bean burger that is suppose to be healthy. He heard about it on the Doctor Oz show. Wow, the things you can see and learn from watching shows during the day when you "work" from home.

We had a good time and ate delicious food, but I think I may have to hunt down that other manager and see if he does a special kid's night. I think it would be more worth it to go back for that.

Family Fun Night @ Meadowview

I'll blog about it in the morning.

The Museum of Science and Industry - Jefferson Pride Team Fieldtrip

I'll let Clinton detail this picture since he was one of the chaperones on the trip. He was the chaperone in charge of Benjamin's group.

Leap Day - Let's Leap and Roll

I'll write about this one tomorrow.

Loveable, Huggable, Handsome Hunks

Tonight we just finished up reading our scriptures and saying family prayer. My boys were giving hugs and kisses to each other before bed and I needed to get a picture.

It has been our tradition from when Benjamin, Anna, and Emma were little, that we would give hugs and kisses (on the cheek) to each other following our family prayer. I figured this would be a nice way for the kids to show love and affection to each other. It is something that everybody enjoys, although Benjamin doesn't care for it as much as he gets older. If the kids went through short periods where they didn't want someone to hug or kiss them, we just told them that if they didn't let someone give them a hug or kiss, that you would have to let that someone give them two. That usually solved the problem!

When my boys were carrying out this tradition, Benjamin and Justin were either next to Clinton or on his lap, and I decided that I needed by fourth boy in that pose. Cameron was placed on Clinton's lap and occasionally I would get him to stay focused on the camera. Many times he kept looking at Justin as he would see him move, smile, and hear him laugh. At least two of my four loveable, huggable, handsome hunks were smiling and two of the four were looking at me. My boys - they're so good looking, especially when they smile. :)

I Feel Like Our Snowman

I hadn't noticed it on the way to church, but coming home I noticed that our snowman's hat, head, and middle section were missing. Clinton told me that they were taken last night while we were at the Chili Cook Off. As if that wasn't sad to hear and put a damper on my mood, I got terribly sick later on.

I felt exactly how I did on July 11, 2010. The only reason why I know when it was, is that it was over my birthday weekend. Clinton and I went out for my birthday Friday, July 9th and we went out again Saturday, July 10th. I was hesitant to go out that second night because I was suppose to give a talk the next day. I was tired, unprepared for my talk, and I woke up at 1:00am and was sick all through the night. The hard part is that I felt nauseous, but I never threw up. I was so sick that I called the Bishop that morning to let him know I would not be at church. There was no way I could stay up front and give my talk when I couldn't stay out of the bathroom for very long. I disliked spending all that time on a talk, only to not give it. I ended up speaking in sacrament a few months after that.

Tonight, I had awful diarrhea or something. The previous time, a friend of mine said that it was probably food poisoning, because it usually hits about 4 hours after eating, and that's exactly what happened. If what I had was food poisoning, it was either some sort of delayed reaction from eating the various bowls of chili Saturday night at the Chili Cook Off, the leftover chicken enchiladas and rice I ate for lunch and dinner (but Friday night when our family ate them we were fine), or I have no idea. Maybe it wasn't food poisoning, but the chili by itself did something strange to me, who knows.

So, nevertheless the cause of my illness, I felt like our snowman - terrible, not quite myself. I was sick for a while, laid down to take a nap around 7:30pm, woke up at 9:30pm, and still felt sick for another hour or so. Eventually I was able to sleep. I'm hoping I feel better Monday morning.

We've Got Ourselves A Winner!

Clinton decided this week to try making chili for the Ward Chili Cook Off. He tested it out a few days ago and we really liked it. He made another batch yesterday so it would be prepared early enough for today.

Our girls are a little more adventuresome trying food, but Justin is a little picky and Benjamin is even more picky. Benjamin won't eat chili, unless it is Wendy's chili. I don't think it dawns on him that he is eating meat.

Well, Clinton desired to make a chili that Benjamin will even eat. He seemed to do that with a similar Wendy's chili recipe. Benjamin ate some of the chili the first time Clinton made it.

Clinton believes that he NEVER wins anything. He watched a Dr. Oz show a while back and they were giving away some free items. He attempted to submit a request on the Dr. Oz website knowing that he wouldn't win. Well, to his surprise, his FREE Comfort-Revolution Memory Core Pillow came earlier this week.

Clinton is also a winner from the Chili Cook Off. His chili won the Ward Favorite Award. It was so surprising to him, but I think he quite enjoyed it. I don't know who all voted for him, but we did have some friends come to the activity, and one of them voted for Clinton. The funny thing was that our friends had no idea what number Clinton's chili was, but once they shared with us who they voted for, then Clinton mentioned that was the one he made. I guess his streak of losing has passed. I'm proud of you Clinton! You deserved it.

Building A Snowman With Dad

It finally snowed again this season. I didn't mind that it hadn't snowed much or that it hasn't been extremely cold, but it was fun to see the great things that can be done with snow.

Clinton was excited all morning about making a snowman with Justin. He told him that after he dropped the girls off at school, they would go play outside in the snow and make a snowman. I had to remind him that Justin had school today, so he couldn't play outside very long. Since he wouldn't have much time before school started, Clinton decided it was best to wait till after school to play. He told him he would pick him up from school and they would go sledding outside. They probably spent about 45 minutes sledding and then came home and went right to work on building a snowman.

The snow was wonderful. It was the best packing snow. I didn't see them roll the first two parts of the snowman, but I did get to see them do the head. It was very cute to see Justin help. He came and asked me for a carrot for the snowman's nose. Unfortunately, we didn't have regular long carrots that would be perfect for a nose, I only had baby carrots, so that's what was used. Justin loves carrots and asked if he could have one to eat. I gave him a few to eat at different times and one time he dropped one on the wet, dirty ground. I told him to wipe it into the snow to get it clean. He decided to drop it in the snow, try to grab it with his chubby mittens, and wipe them off. He had a difficult time picking them back up. It was quite funny to watch.

Clinton and Justin gathered sticks to make the arms and also looked for some good rocks for the eyes. Justin came up to Clinton with what he thought was a great rock, but it wasn't actually a rock, it was a clump of dirt. He put it down and had to look for another one. The snowman was topped off with one of Clinton's hats that is from when he worked at Whittman-Hart.

A great time was had by the both of them. I took a few pictures quickly while the snowman was still intact. The weather wasn't cold enough to keep it from melting. You can still see the snowman, but he has a distinct "lean" to his body. I guess we'll have to wait and see how long he lasts.

Red Rover, Red Rover, Send Cameron On Over

Hooray for Cameron! Today he rolled over for the first time from his back to his tummy. As you can see, he use to be on the blanket, but when he rolled over, he ended up off the blanket.

Cameron has been getting close for a while. He previously would be on his side, bring his legs be up in the air, and he would then tip over onto his side. More and more he has been checking out the toys that have been laid beside him that have been within reach. Clinton was fortunate enough to catch his first time on video with his phone. Maybe he can post it to Facebook.

Once Cameron rolled over that first time, he rolled over a few more times that night. I'm sure he could have rolled over many more times, but it was already close to 8:30pm, so he was soon fed and put to bed. He has been sleeping much better, too. In fact, he slept through the night last night. That boy needs all the sleep he can get if he continues to use up a lot of energy rolling over. I'm all for him sleeping more, really I don't mind.

Justin's On Top of the World

Justin may not physically be on top of the world, but he sure is feeling on top of the world by being up high on his daddy's foot. Clinton was talking and playing with Cameron while lying on the floor next to him. Justin came along and started lying on top of his side. Clinton told Justin that instead of lying on his said, he could stand on top of his foot.

For those who don't know how strange Clinton can lay down on the floor, you can see a little bit of it here. His back leg is resting on the floor while the knee of his front leg is resting on the floor. The interesting thing is that his knee and the foot from his other leg, are not too far from each other. When Clinton attended the yoga classes his work offered once a week, his instructor thought he was unusually flexible in some poses. I still find this position strange to see and very difficult to do.

I can only imagine the look on Justin's face as Clinton told him he could stand on top of his foot. Though I didn't see it, I'm sure he was quite surprised and thrilled. Emma offered to hold Justin's hand while he attempted to step up. He looks as if he is flying high on top of the world. Emma and Anna each had to take their turns next. It wasn't difficult for Clinton to hold them up, but it was tricky for them to figure out how to properly balance themselves.

What simple and interesting things can bring us joy in our day. They all loved it. Benjamin didn't attempt it since he was at scouts, but I'm not sure Clinton would have let him either. :)

Proud of My Boys & Proud To Be An American

This past year, Clinton and Benjamin sold 11 flag services to raise funds for Boy Scout Troop 67 to attend scout camp. For $50, they would set up and take down the 8ft. flag pole which displayed a 3 x 5 ft American flag. Many supplies had to be bought this year so the profit made on each service last year will not be as great as this year. Fortunately, Benjamin was able to completely pay for camp plus earn extra for the troop.

There were 7 designated holidays that the troop would do the flag service for, but Clinton and Benjamin added an 8th holiday. The holidays that they did were Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, September 11th, Veteran's Day, Pearl Harbor Day, and President's Day this year. Pearl Harbor Day was the day that they did extra for their customers.

The commitment they agreed to do for their customers was to have the flags up before 8:00am and taken down before dark. Most of the holidays that they put up the flags, Clinton was home or had off of work. On Flag Day though, Clinton still caught the 6:10am bus that would take him to the train station and go in to work. He and Benjamin woke up real early in time to set up the flags, take a shower, and head to work. It generally takes about an 1 1/4 hours to complete the set-up or take-down, so in all, it takes about 2 1/2 hours each holiday. They really got lucky this year, too, since it has been a very mild winter. They haven't had to drive the stakes into a hard frozen ground covered in snow. :)

Many of the customers have expressed how proud it makes them feel to look out their window and see such a large American flag. I know I love it, too, and I feel very proud to be an American. It looks great seeing the four flags that are along Woodridge Drive. We and three of our neighbors have them displayed at an angle so they can be more noticeable as they hang.

A few of their customers live a distance away, so the setting up and taking down of the flags takes longer than they would like. This year, the troop will be selling flag services again to raise money for camp. Clinton and Benjamin plan to sell to mostly neighbors and only local ward members so the driving distance will be shorter. Hopefully more neighbors along Woodridge Drive will be willing to allow this service. It surely looks wonderful to see several large flags displayed to honor and remember the holidays that our nation holds dear.

Downton Abbey Season 2 Finale

Well, tonight Clinton and I watched Downton Abbey Season 2 finale. I can say that I am glad it ended on a good note where the good guy gets the girl. Yes, Mary ditches Richard and she and Matthew are engaged. Luckily, there is no cliffhanger with their relationship. The show did leave you wondering a bit what will happen with Mr. Bates. We have watched Downton Abbey since the first season and couldn't wait until season 2 started in January. It will be hard to wait for season 3 whenever that comes. Downton Abbey is a wonderful PBS show.

Here is a synopsis of the season 2 finale found on their website:

Christmas, 1919

Christmas reunites most of the Grantham family as Rosamund, her gossipy maid Shore in tow, arrives eager to introduce her new suitor to the family. But neither the Granthams nor the servants can escape into the season's merriment when they are forced to turn against one of their own. Not even games can pierce the gloom surrounding Downton, where downstairs the servants are desperate for guidance. Thomas and O'Brien are up to their old tricks, Daisy tries to make sense of her future, and Anna holds tight to endure the present.

Robert hopes that the annual New Years Shooting Party will lift everyone's spirits, but an ill-tempered Richard resets his sights on a familiar target. His petulant and brutish efforts to dominate Mary do not go unnoticed. But with his threat hanging over her head, Mary must choose between two kinds of ruin.

Anna Meets The Author, Marianne Malone

The author of The Sixty-Eight Rooms and Stealing Magic: A Sixty-Eight Rooms Adventure, Marianne Malone, came to Meadowview Elementary School today. Last year, Anna's 3rd/4th grade Literacy Enrichment class studied and read The Sixty-Eight Rooms book and were also fortunate enough to go visit The Art Institute of Chicago.

There are 68 miniature rooms on display as part of the Thorne Miniature exhibit at the Art Institute of Chicago. The 68 rooms, largely created and commissioned between 1933 and 1937 by Chicago socialite Narcissa Ward Thorne, showcase European, American and Asian interiors and furnishings from the 17th century through the 1930s.

More recently, the rooms have served as inspiration for author Marianne Malone's two books. She shared with us today that there will be a third book coming out next year called "The Pirate's Coin". There will be a fourth book, too, since she is contracted to write that many. I enjoyed attending the school and seeing her presentation.

I purchased both books for Anna so she could have them signed by the author. Instead of having the books written to her, she asked the author to write them to the James Family. So inside each book she wrote, "To The James Family, Enjoy! Marianne Malone".

I love that my children have had opportunities to meet various authors. I know our whole family enjoyed it when Brandon Mull came to Meadowview last year. We owned all of his books and Clinton, Benjamin, and Anna had read most of them. They definitely read all of the books in the Fablehaven series. I took separate pictures of him with Clinton, Benjamin, Anna, and Justin. I don't believe 3rd grade and younger participated in the assembly.