Two Little, One Little, No Little Fishy

These two little fish that Emma and Justin earned at the Jefferson Family Fun Fair on April 20th, have gone to a better life.

Although I didn't want the fish to begin with and sort of hoped they wouldn't last long, I didn't really expect them to die within 1 1/2 weeks of receiving them.

I'm not sure if they were overfed (which is more likely), underfed (a few times Justin and Emma may have forgotten to feed them), the bowl (actually a large vase) ended up too dirty, or some other reason.  Justin's fish actually died on Monday and Emma's fish was gone tonight.  I figured it was best to show a picture of them in their bowl alive instead.

Justin's fish is smaller than Emma's.  So long Nemo, so long "Daph-fin-e."  You will be missed by Justin and Emma.

Those Are Some Dandy Lions!

Anna and Emma were walking home today from school and they decided to pick some Dandy Lions - dandelions!

Everyone's grass has been getting long and the weeds in people's yards (the ones who don't use dandelion or weed killers) have dandelions growing up all over the place like crazy.

I must admit, I was quite surprised when the girls came home with them.  Although, some of them were curved, the longest one was still 20 inches long.  Now that's what I call a dandelion - Dandy Lion.

Jefferson Family Fun Fair Winnings!

Anna, Emma, Justin, Cameron, and I attended the Jefferson Family Fun Fair and this is all the stuff that they won.

Lookie, Lookie, Where We Found Nuki!

Cameron had been laying down on the blanket that I made for him and he was nicely playing with toys and his nuk, the brand name of a pacifier.

We use to use different pacifiers for our kids, but this kind would be given to them in the hospital. I always thought they were rather strange since you could see through them and see your child sucking on the pacifier.

Since the brand name that we use to use was Nuk, we soon stopped calling it a pacifier and would call it a nuk or nuki. I guess out of habit we still call this pacifier a nuk even though it is called a Soothie. I only realized tonight as I was writing this blog. I figured I should check to see if it was called something, and sure enough, it had a name.

The funny thing about this picture is that I had picked Cameron up off of the blanket and sat down with him on the couch. I looked back at the blanket nearby scanning to find his nuk. I couldn't find it anywhere. I asked Anna and Emma if they knew where it was and they started laughing and telling me it was stuck in Cameron's shirt. I searched the front of his shirt expecting it to be there, but the girls helped me find it in back. I'm not surprised that he ended up getting the nuk behind his head when he was laying down on the blanket, but I am surprised that it got stuck there as I picked him up and that it stayed in place. I guess it helped that the nipple part was stuck inside the shirt.

I have come to realize that I prefer these kinds of pacifiers since they are a solid piece of rubber. There is no way for germs to be trapped inside the rubber like it could with the other ones we use to use. Unfortunately, right before we had Cameron, I purchased a package of Nuk brand pacifiers and haven't really used them. I'm not sure someone else will want to use them even if I tell them they have only been used a time or two. Oh well!

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.

Emma's First Non-Family Sleepover

Tonight was the night that Emma had been counting down till, the night she would be sleeping over at Rylan Gaspar's home.

Write more later.

Easter Egg Hunt at the Potters

Once again, another Easter Egg Hunt. This time it was at the Potter's house. They live right behind us in the culdesac.

Easter Egg Hunt at the Fishers

Once the Easter Egg Hunt began, Benjamin took off to help Justin first before finding his own.

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.

Meadowview's Open House & Ice Cream Social

This is Emma's display during Meadowview's Open House and Ice Cream Social tonight. I will blog about it tomorrow. I'm going to bed.

Dress Alike Day/Crazy Hair Day

This week at Anna and Emma's elementary school, Meadowview, is Spirit Week. Today is Dress Alike Day/Crazy Hair Day. I wasn't sure if they were going to coordinate with a classmate, but then I realized they could dress alike with each other.

Anna & Emma have this matching outfit they received in the fall. They also wore their St. Patrick's Day shamrock earrings and necklaces again, just like they did at church on Sunday the day after St. Patrick's Day.

Their hair is put up like Genna Fox's hair was on March 1st, Dr. Seuss' birthday. Her mom, Lisa, put up her hair like Cindy Lou Who from the Grinch. Thanks for the idea, Lisa.

I decided that I would try it for today. I tried putting a red solo brand cup on top and pulling their hair up around it, but it was too big and red. I next tried a smaller clear cup and it seemed to work. I don't know how long it will last during the day, but it will be fun for them while it does last. You can see a little bit in this picture the cup showing through Emma's hair. Hopefully, the kids at school will at least get to see it.

For my daughters who love to fight most of the time, I love to see it when they have fun together and dressing alike is a start. Look at them, they're even holding hands without me asking them to do so. I love my girls! :)

Mr. Fox, Mr. Fox, What Time Is It?

I don't know what got Justin thinking about Mr. Fox, but during dinner the discussion started. He wondered where he had played that game. I remembered it was from swim lessons this past summer at Cypress Cove.

It was a game Justin and his swim class would play towards the end of their lesson. It was good practice for them to be reaching and stretching their arms to catch people just like they would use them to swim. It was a fun way to practice something useful.

Justin enjoyed the game during his swim lessons, so after dinner, the kids began playing. As you can see here, Benjamin is Mr. Fox and he is trying to get Anna, Emma, and Justin. Anna is a little further ahead than Emma and Justin, and probably the only safe one. It looks like Justin has tumbled to the floor and that Emma is about to drop like her brother.

There are different variations online of how you could play, but here's how we played the game based on how Justin learned it:

Mr. Fox starts out at one end of a field, room, or designated area with his back to the group. The group at the other end then yells out “Mr. Fox, Mr. Fox, what time is it?” Mr. Fox then calls out a time that is on the even hour (1 o'clock - 12 o'clock). The group then takes that many steps towards Mr. Fox. As people get closer to Mr. Fox and continue to ask him what time it is, he can answer, "It's lunch time" and begin chasing them to tag them. Mr. Fox can continue to tag everyone, if he wants to, but the first person tagged is Mr. Fox for the next round.

Another variation I saw online is similar to how Justin played, but once people are near Mr. Fox and ask him again, he yells out, "Midnight" instead. Mr. Fox then turns around and chases the group. Those that he catches are to sit out. The last one left becomes the fox. Another variation is to allow each child who is tagged to become an honorary fox and help catch people.

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.

"March Forth"

Today is March Fourth and I decided that we as a family would "March Forth" and do good service each year on March 4th, so tonight it began.

I don't recall where I had heard of this idea before, but it had been some time from when I heard it to actually putting it into action. I felt this was a good way to involve the kids in doing good (not like we don't do it already). I had Benjamin, Anna, Emma, and Justin choose 2 families each to deliver cookies to and share our little idea and say thank you.

Benjamin and Clinton had already been involved in service that day by driving around and collecting fast offerings for church. Benjamin was gone for about 2 1/2 hours and Clinton was gone for about 3 1/2 hours. Since our ward started doing this as an assignment for the YM each Fast Sunday, Benjamin has gone on a route with Brother Adam Froerer and Brother Trevor Ricks. He has a blast with them. I am glad he gets to spend additional time with them outside of Sunday and Tuesday activities. I think because of the time he spent with them today, he chose those two families to deliver cookies to tonight.

Anna selected Amelia Korbitz's family. Amelia is in 5th grade and she is in Anna's class. I would say Amelia is probably her best friend at school and she has known her since Kindergarten. She and her family are very kind. They have another daughter who is younger than Emma, but they have a lot of fun playing together. Whenever Anna gets to play with Amelia, Emma gets to go play with Francesca. It makes the playing so much more enjoyable for everyone. The other family she chose was Lindsay Pluister's family. She has known her a long time and has even had her dad as a soccer coach before. When Anna delivered the cookies to them the dad answered the door and she said, "Happy March 4th. I am 'Marching Forth' to do good service". He said he was very glad to have a treat since their whole family had been ill for a while.

Earlier this evening, Lindsay's mom called to see if Anna told me thank you. She said that was the best thing that had happened to them all week. They had been sick since Monday and they haven't gone anywhere, done anything, or felt great. They are on the mend finally and sure appreciated it. She said that whatever made Anna choose them, she chose the right house. I felt very pleased about that and I shared the conversation with Anna. I told her that I was glad she chose that family and whatever made her think of them was the Holy Ghost prompting her to do so, and that I was proud of her for acting on the inspiration given to her.

Emma chose friends from school, too. The first family was Rylan Gaspar's family. She and Rylan have known each other since Kindergarten and are currently serving together as Student Council representatives for their 3rd grade class with Ms. Brackett. Emma has also had her dad as a soccer coach before. Rylan comes from a great family. The other family she chose was Cady Murphy's. Cady was in Kindergarten and 1st grade with Emma, but she skipped 2nd grade and advanced to 3rd grade. When Anna was in 4th grade, she and Cady Murphy had Mrs. Neylon together for the 3rd/4th grade Literacy Enrichment Class. Even though they don't get together regularly since she is not in Emma's grade, she still wanted to do something nice for her.

Justin selected Will Potter's family. Will is a Kindergarten boy that lives in the culdesac behind our house. His family is very friendly and they had been kind to let Justin come and play for a while, especially after I had Cameron. Will is probably Justin's best neighborhood friend. The other family he chose was Peter Anderson's family. Peter is Justin's best friend/church friend.

Tonight was just a small way we could show our appreciation for the friendship and service these families offer to us.

Family Fun Night @ Meadowview

I'll blog about it in the morning.

Leap Day - Let's Leap and Roll

I'll write about this one tomorrow.

Lucky For Us We've Got A Leprechaun

Justin, Anna, and Emma decorated Justin's leprechaun that is due tomorrow for Totschool (preschool). Justin loved coloring some of the area interesting colors. I told them that if they wanted to find a skinny marker that was similar to a "skin" color, that might look nice. Well, I guess they couldn't find one and Justin started to use orange - the closest color to a "skin" color I suppose. Once the face turned out orange, the hands were left alone to be white.

There were a few other areas that Justin decorated so colorfully, but they were colored a little bit more to not have the areas look so very different than the rest of the parts. The beard is orange construction paper, cut into strips, and taped on. I'm surprised that they didn't use glue. I would have thought they would have used glue. The lacing on the boots are made with orange ribbons.

Hope Justin enjoys seeing his picture hanging up outside of his classroom.

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.