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.

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.

Love Thy Neighbor

The scriptures teach us about the importance of loving our neighbors. Well, Anna had two wonderful opportunities to love (or actually serve) our neighbor. Dr. Murphy (Adrienne Murphy), lives on the side street behind our house. She has lived there ever since we have lived in our home. Her children are grown and out of the house. She lives alone.

On Sunday, February 5th, we returned home from church at 12:25pm. About 5 minutes upon our return, someone knocked on our door. We opened the door and found our neighbor, Dr. Murphy, standing in front of us. She began to explain quickly and with much sadness, holding back her tears, that she was heading to Cicero to stay until Wednesday. Her father was not doing well and she needed to stay with him during the nights.

Dr. Murphy is a retired school teacher and has substituted at the kids' school many times. She has frequently filled in for Anna's teachers. There was a 6 week period that our Principal, Mrs. Innes, was on leave due to surgery, so the Assistant Principal, also Anna's Literacy Enrichment Specialist, Mrs. Neylon filled in for her. While Mrs. Neylon filled in for the principal, Dr. Murphy filled in for her. Since Anna and Dr. Murphy already had a friendship, she felt comfortable to ask Anna if she would pick up her paper daily and collect her mail if her mailbox was full.

Anna was very eager about doing this. She loves to help and I think she felt special about doing it. Anna excitedly gathered her things each day. She did a great job. When Dr. Murphy returned home, Anna made sure she received her items. That following Saturday while we were gone cleaning the church, Dr. Murphy left a message asking if Anna could collect her paper and mail again. She would be gone for a few more days.

Quickly, Anna ran over to her house to pick up the mail, but it hadn't arrived yet that day. The rest of the day was crazy with a baptism and picking up, sorting, and delivering Girl Scout cookies. The thought didn't cross Anna's mind to go back and check. It was unfortunate that we didn't think of it again. On Tuesday, I saw her pull into her driveway and I realized that we failed to gather the mail. Although I would normally remind Anna of her commitment to do this, I forgot, but felt that it wasn't my fault entirely. She should have remembered, too.

Serving is important, needed, enjoyable, and rewarding. We can feel a sense of usefulness, accomplishment, joy, happiness, and love. Though we shouldn't serve with the expectation of someone giving us something, Dr. Murphy did give Anna the cute shawl, shirt, and pants that you see on her from a store called, "Justice." She delivered the box to us today and Anna was able to open it up before bed. I feel that Anna did a small act of service for someone who asked for it and needed it. I would not of thought she needed anything in return. That was thoughtful and kind of her to do. Anna will definitely be hand-delivering a thank you card along with some sort of treat and offering to help any time she needs it. Although it may be a little last minute, we could give her an invitation to our ward Chili Cook Off Saturday night.

This opportunity is just one of many that Anna will have to serve neighbors, I hope. In the Matthew 22:36-40 it says,

"Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

"Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

"This is the first and great commandment.

"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

"On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

Also, in Mosiah 2:17 it mentions who we are really serving when we are serving our fellowman. It reads,

"And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God".

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.

Mother/Daughter Luncheon

Anna, Emma, and I were excited about the Mother/Daughter Luncheon with friends from church. Lisa Fox and her three oldest daughters, Jolie, Genevieve, and Jillian had invited us to their home. Necia Munro and her daughter, Hallie, were able to come, too. A few other mothers and daughters were invited, but their plans changed and they were unable to come.

We ate a delicious meal with sandwiches, deviled eggs (or egg salad that could be put onto a sandwich), strawberries, chips, sparkling pink lemonade, and pink lemonade cupcakes for dessert. Both of these families are new to the ward within the last year or so. It was fun for Anna, Emma, and I to get to know them more. Hopefully, we can have another Mother/Daughter activity soon that includes many more people. The girls love getting together with other girls and I think they need those opportunities outside of church and Activity Days to nourish those friendships.

I also had the opportunity to learn a little bit more about Pinterest. Since I started Facebook January 1st of this year, I have seen many people viewing Pinterest, pinning things to it, etc. I probably glanced at it once, but I am really not knowledgeable about it. I think I will have to try it out. Lisa showed me the things that she found on Pinterest for the train birthday party she is planning for her son, Jacob. He will be 4 years old in April. I know that if I start looking at it more, it will take more of my time, so that's probably why I have delayed starting it yet. :)

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.

Book of Mormon Book Club

Today I attended the Book of Mormon Book Club. Naomi Hanks, a sister in my ward, started this club towards the beginning of the school year. It isn't a ward sponsored book club, but one that whomever would like to join may do so. We meet at the church in the Nursery room and discuss while our little ones play with the toys.

I had planned on attending the first day, but then I forgot. Since I hadn't attended the first day, I didn't think about adding the scheduled day and time to my calendar for future weeks. Again, I kept forgetting. In October, I had Cameron and didn't do much for a while. The list goes on of reasons why I hadn't gone, but a few weeks ago I finally started attending. This was the third time I've attended the group.

I love that I get to dedicate some of my time each week to reading the scriptures on my own, separate than my family scripture reading. It is nice to read and discuss with my peers, my friends, my fellow sisters in the gospel. I love hearing their thoughts, feelings, impressions, knowledge, and love of the gospel. Right now we are reading in 2 Nephi where chapters of Isaiah are being quoted. Today we discussed 2 Nephi 13-14 which quoted Isaiah 3. It takes a little bit more in-depth study and discussion of these to understand what is being said.

I feel that attending this group will motivate me to read my scriptures on my own more, give me a greater desire and determination to understand them and apply what I learn to my life, and to build unity and grow closer with my sisters in the gospel. It is through these connections that we can learn, grow, and help one another progress in our individual journeys in life. Even though we all have our own purpose and plan to accomplish while we are here on earth, it doesn't mean we are meant to travel through this life on our own. Though we may all struggle and/or feel alone at different times in our life, we have scriptures, leaders, prayer, family, and friends that can all be sources of comfort and guidance if we seek it.

Clinton Finally Gets His "Virgle"

For those who know my husband well, he has wanted to name one of our boys Virgle after his father. Well, for obvious reasons, I have not wanted to do this. Clinton's father never went by his first name of Virgle, but by his middle name of Clinton.

Tonight, Clinton attended a Parent/Child Book Discussion with Anna where he made a doll he named affectionately as "Virgle". I think we are done having children, but if the Lord chose to bless us with another child, and it was a boy, Virgle is off the list since Clinton already has one! :)

Mrs. Love, our school librarian, and another Meadowview teacher have started a Book Club Discussion Group this year. Any 3-5th grader could join. They meet every few months. The first book the group read was "James and the Giant Peach". This time they read, "Esperanza Rising". The book deals with different cultures which is appropriate for our school since it is so culturally diverse.

Anna and Clinton both enjoyed the book. The club discusses the book for a short period, they offer a project or two to do, and refreshments. The character in the book is hispanic so the refreshments were guacamole and chips along with a drink. The two project options were coloring a 9-inch paper quilt block about the book and making rag dolls (or yarn dolls), similar to the one the book talks about. Tonight they asked if the group would be interested in meeting one more time this school year and I guess they loved the idea.

I love seeing Anna involved with school, her dad, educating herself, and having fun. Way to go Clinton and Anna. Great job on your dolls!

Happy Valentine's Day

It was a terrific Valentine's Day today. Once Benjamin, Anna, and Emma were off at school, I took care of feeding Cameron and laid him down for a nap. He has been dealing with a cold recently, so I laid him in his carseat so he was more upright. Plus, he tends to sleep better and longer that way.

Once Cameron was asleep, I left Justin and Cameron at home with Clinton and headed grocery shopping. I was gone for a few hours getting groceries and some Valentine's Day treats for my kids and Clinton. When I returned, the preparations for our special dinner began.

The main dish that I fixed is something that everyone enjoys - Lime Basil Chicken. Along with it I fixed green beans with a twist (beans, mushrooms, bacon, and ranch), lemon-pepper broccoli, chocolate covered strawberries, this beautiful fruit tray with fruit dip, and heart-shaped raspberry jello. The jello that I made is not the regular jello, but the one I make for Thanksgiving and Christmas (raspberry jello, jellied cranberry sauce, and sour cream). The kids love it. Everything looked beautiful and tasted wonderful. For dessert, we had chocolate cake and ice cream. I had hoped to have time to make a special peach cobbler, one of Clinton's favorites, but I didn't. I'll have to make that another time here soon.

Benjamin, Anna, Emma, and Justin received their own movie-sized box of candy and a box of Cheez-It crackers. I don't normally buy them, but they had a variety, so everyone would have similar things, but not exactly the same. Justin received Cheez-It crackers with the "Cars" movie cars on them and a box of Swedish fish, Emma received Cheez-It crackers that were Scrabble Junior (they had letters on them) and a box of Junior Mints, Anna received a duo pack of Sharp Cheddar & Parmesan and a box of Cookie Dough balls, and Benjamin received a duo pack of Smoke Cheddar & Monterey Jack and a box of Reese's Pieces. Each of them also received their own movie-sized box of candy.

After the kids went to bed, Clinton and I had IBC Cream Soda and watched the movie "Contact". Clinton said he chose that Netflix movie because that is the movie we watched the night we got engaged. I probably would have remembered that years before, but once he said it, I was surprised that I didn't remember. At first, I couldn't remember what the movie was about, but once he started to tell me about it and we started watching it, I vividly remembered the movie. It is a terrific movie. One that is very touching and thought provoking. I was also quite touched and impressed that he had been thinking of a special movie to watch and how he chose one with significance - one that I hadn't remembered about.

Early Valentine's Day Lunch Date

Clinton and I decided we would celebrate Valentine's Day one day early, especially since Clinton would be teaching and working with the scouts on the Family Life merit badge the night of Valentine's Day. We had wanted to go to Olive Garden, but due to the time crunch that we had, we decided to go out to lunch at Chili's. On the way there, Clinton asked if I would prefer going to New China Buffet since we were close. We could have gone there, but we went there recently for our anniversary, so I chose Chili's.

We dropped the Justin and Cameron off with a friend. Cameron was asleep when we dropped him off, and I figured he would most likely stay asleep the whole time. He takes great naps in the car seat.

Clinton ordered the Over-The-Top Cobb Salad and chose Chili as his soup. I ordered the Bacon Ranch Chicken Quesadillas and chose the Chicken Enchilada soup to go along with it. Unfortunately, Clinton didn't care for his Chili. He thought it tasted like chili powder and water. He said it was very light on ingredients, in fact, there were no beans in it either. I told him he should let the waiter know about it and he could possibly switch to another soup. He was able to replace the soup and ordered the same one that I had. My soup was very delicious. Other than that, the meal was quite tasty. I think Clinton would have preferred going to New China Buffet, though.

I think Clinton and I will have to plan another date soon so we can go to Olive Garden, our first choice. I'm up for going out more with my husband and eating great food! :)

Emma Sleeping Cozy On The Couch

We were off to a late start with dinner, so we read scriptures and said family prayer before we ate dinner. Right after that, Emma told me that she wasn't feeling very well. She didn't have a fever or anything noticeable, but she complained of her tummy hurting her. I told her to grab a "sick" bucket just in case something were to happen. When we did have dinner, Emma ate toast and applesauce instead of the meal we were having.

She asked where she should sleep tonight. I figured it wouldn't be good to have her sleep in the top bunk of her bed if she did get sick, nor would it be good to have her sleep in the bottom bunk where Anna sleeps. Emma set up camp on the couch. I told her we could move a little table near the couch to put her sick bucket on, but I guess she and Anna put two empty cookie boxes down on the floor, set a princess chair (that is borrowed from friends) upside-down on the boxes, and covered it with blankets. Why they did that, I have no idea. She looks very comfortable snuggled on the couch. With the couch next to the large windows in our living room upstairs, it can get pretty cool. I made sure she put down a warm blanket underneath her as well as on top.

So far, she is fine. Nothing has happened yet, and hopefully nothing will. I guess I will find out in the morning or during the night if something has changed. Poor Emma, hope she feels better tomorrow.

Though Emma felt a little yucky for a bit today, the day started on a great note with Ward Conference at church and ended on a good note, too, with watching Downton Abbey. Downton Abbey is a favorite PBS show that Clinton and I both like to watch. Tonight it was two hours long, so I thought it was the season finale, but fortunately they showed scenes for next week's show. I don't know when the season ends, but I don't mind that it has continued.

Lookie, Lookie, Who's Got Cookies!

Cookie pick-up was today! Anna's troop had an assigned time to pick-up the cookies. I offered to help sort them, so when our pick-up person brought them to the "sorting house", Anna and I arrived to assist. Anna had the largest amount of cookies ordered, so we were able to gather up her cookies first and then continue sorting the cookies for the other girls in her troop.

Anna had set a goal to sell 200 boxes of cookies. Not only did she achieve that goal, but she passed it by quite a bit. She did a great job and sold 275 boxes. I'm so proud of her.

Once we brought the cookies home, then our own sorting began. Anna had previously written names and the amounts due on grocery bags which allowed us to easily separate the orders for her customers. We finished sorting around 12:30pm, I fed Cameron, and then our family headed off for Olivia Nygard's baptism at the church at 1:00pm.

Luckily, we were able to ask people ahead of time if they would be attending the baptism and we could deliver the cookies afterwards. We connected up with 7 families at the baptism. I sent 2 orders with Benjamin to take to the Stake Center when he watched our Young Men play basketball. Anna and I delivered almost all of the other orders. We have a few orders to mail to Grandma James, Jawana, Benae, and Jessica, and a few other neighbors and family members to deliver to as well.

I'm glad we were able to accomplish so much, but unfortunately, we spent about 5 hours driving around delivering. It gave Anna and I a nice chance to be together and stop off and pick-up a McDonald's treat. I got a McDouble and a medium-sized Shamrock shake and she got a McChicken and a medium-sized Shamrock shake - YUM!

Clinton's New Secret Reading & Napping Spot

Occasionally, Clinton has read in this spot, but it probably started up again because of last night. Anna had her friend, Lily Kraus, over for a sleepover. Clinton asked Justin if he wanted to have a sleepover. Since Anna and Lily were sleeping downstairs, Clinton and Justin were going to sleep in Anna's bed. Emma decided she wanted to join them both, so the three of them slept in Anna's bed (the bottom bunk in the girls' room). Now that Cameron's crib is in the girls' room, I didn't wanted Cameron to be in there with the three of them, so he actually slept in my bed all night. It wasn't as restful as when he is in his own bed.

In this picture Clinton is sleeping in Anna's bed. He had been reading a book earlier titled, "The Outlanders". This book is Book II of The Lon Tobyn Chronicles by David B. Coe. They have a long window next to the bed, so it provides a lot of light in addition to the comfort of lying down.

After reading a while, I bet he felt a little tired since he got up early this morning and made biscuits, gravy, and potatoes. Besides making breakfast, he has taken it easy today. We had the girls' Parent/Teacher Conferences for about an hour, but other than that and his nap, he has read the day away. I'm sure he has enjoyed himself. Benjamin is currently reading Book I in the same series titled, "Children of Amarid".

Fuzzy Wuzzy Had No Hair

Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair. Today, Clinton, Benjamin, and Justin lost some of theirs. I asked a friend of mine yesterday if she would be willing to come over and teach me how to cut hair. I have had a hair cutting set for many years, but haven't really used it. Clinton has used it more than I have.

I was noticing that Benjamin and Justin needed their hair cut and Clinton mentioned he did, too. I figured it was about time I learned how to cut hair and save ourselves some money.

They each look so much better having their hair trimmed. The small top pile of light colored hair is Justin's. The large middle pile of dark hair is Benjamin's. The pile at the bottom with dark hair mixed with gray is Clinton's. Justin has very fine hair. Clinton has very fine hair, too, but only in the areas where it is getting thinner. Other than that, Clinton has thick hair. Benjamin must get his thick hair genes from Clinton, because mine is very fine, too. You can see that Benjamin had quite a bit more hair cut off. He could probably stand to lose a little more, but he decided he didn't want it cut as short as usual.

It was fun watching my friend and learning how to cut hair. Hopefully, the next time when I do it on my own, I will have good success. If not, they may not want me near their hair again. :)

Justin - What a Little "Bum"

I caught Justin very relaxed watching a movie on our portable DVD player. I can see how laying down and curling up with a blanket or another position might be more comfortable than this one. Who would have thought that wrapping your arms underneath your legs and holding them up with your "bum" in the air would be comfortable.

You can see clearly that he is absorbed into the movie he is watching. The funny this about it was that I took several pictures of him while he was doing it, and never once, did he look over and see what I was doing. He saw nothing and heard nothing going on with me taking pictures and the noise of the flash. I don't recall how long he watched the movie like that, and I wasn't about to stay that long to find out, but I can tell you it was longer than I would have done it, but then again, you wouldn't ever find me sitting like that!

The movie he was watching was a Casper the ghost movie. I don't recall which one, but he and the kids have watched it a few times now.

Hanging Out With Chuck E. Cheese

Tonight we were hanging out at Chuck E. Cheese and having a great time until we were ready to leave and I asked the kids to take a picture with Chuck E. Cheese. I just love the excitement on Anna's face. It was a restaurant fundraiser night in support of Meadowview Elementary School, where Anna and Emma go to school. The school earns 15% of every Meadowview family purchase.

I have tasted better and cheaper pizza, but the kids seemed to have a blast. A few of my kids have been there for birthday parties that they have attended, but honestly, I don't think I have ever paid to take my kids there before. Clinton and Benjamin were not interested in coming, so I took Anna, Emma, Justin, and Cameron. Fortunately, Cameron slept the entire time we were there, even with all the noise and commotion going on. He's such a good baby.

Every student at Meadowview received a sticker reminding them of the fundraiser night, which if they turned it in, they would received 10 free game tokens. We purchased plenty more tokens for Justin and the girls. They loved playing skeeball, going on the rides, crawling through the tunnet, etc. Justin definitely wants to go back there again. I sat at the booth most of the time while Anna and Emma took turns helping Justin with his games, tokens, and tickets. Overall, they didn't earn an enormous amount of tickets, so their prizes were very minimal. I think I would much rather buy the toys myself and skip going there. It would save me a lot of time and money.

Just Call Us "Spaz"tic

Well, tonight was Family Home Evening. I was in charge of the activity or game. I wanted a fun game - one that we hadn't played for a while or a new game - one that wouldn't take a lot of investigation or preparation in order to play. Fondly, I thought back to my younger years with my own family and remembered playing "UNO Spaz". Sounds like a fun and interesting name, but it's even more fun and interesting than it sounds.

With all the new versions of playing UNO, this game is no different. We had a blast at playing. With Justin being the youngest, it would be very easy for him to get stuck getting most of the cards. We helped out a little so that he wouldn't. Being older doesn't necessarily mean you will be quick or you won't make any mistakes, in fact, it is tricky to make sure you are doing the correct action sometimes. Anna ended up winning our game. The kids wanted to continue playing, but I told them we would finish up Family Home Evening first, have our treat, and anyone that wanted to continue playing would be able to do that. I think our family will have to play again in the near future. This is a great game to play with friends.

I found instructions to the game on the internet at http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/393609/uno-spaz AND at http://www.vanillajoy.com/family-games-day-4-gulo-gulo.html. Hopefully, between the two websites it informs you of how to play the game. Here are the instructions from the first website:

First deal out all the cards to everyone playing (the more the merrier). Keep your cards face down without looking at them. Then in a clockwise motion from the dealer you lay your cards face up one at a time in a pile. Everyone takes turns adding to the pile. When two cards of the same color are laid down in consecutive order you have to do one of four things.

1) If Blue: throw your hand into the sky/air
2) If Yellow: place your hand on your forehead
3) If Red: place your hand on your heart
4) If Green: place your hand on the ground/table

We like to think the colors directly correspond with the places you put your hand. Blue for the sky, Yellow for when you have an idea and the light bulb turns on (or when you have yellow fever), red for the heart, and green for the grass.

But wait, What about the wild cards? You may ask. When two wilds are played back to back (a rare occurrence) you have to run your hand through all four(4) positions. That's Grass, Heart, Mind, and Sky as fast as you can. (Our family starts with heart, then head, then sky, and lastly the ground. I find it easier to tell who slaps the table last rather than seeing who raised their hand last in the air.)

Who ever is last to place their hand in the corresponding position (believe me it's not that easy and you'll look pretty funny trying to get there) then has to pick up the entire pile of cards, thus adding more to their hand. That person is the first to lay down a card to continue the game.

Play continues until someone has used up all their cards. Of course you can continue until someone's 2nd or 3rd, or until one loser as the whole deck.

I Always Knew My Family Was Nutty!

Today my family went "nutty" over Clinton's homemade peanut butter. Thursday night, Clinton and Benjamin went to the Bishop's Storehouse with the other YM/YW, parents, and leaders from church to fill orders for customers.

I guess at the end of the evening, they were told they could take some of the extra bread and peanuts home. Clinton and Benjamin came home with some sandwich rolls and 2 bags of nuts. One of the bags of nuts was peanuts. Clinton shelled the whole bag of nuts on Saturday and thought he would make homemade peanut butter with the kids today. They were amazed at how few nuts there were compared to what it looked like before they were shelled. Still, there were enough nuts to make a first-time tried small batch of homemade peanut butter. Justin and Emma both helped him make it. Emma was very cute, she asked Clinton if we needed to get out the "butter" when they were making it. It seems logical to expect that you would add that ingredient to peanut "butter". Clinton was very pleased with how it turned out. Everyone had a peanut butter or peanut butter and peach jam sandwich with their lunch. The family is excited to continue to eat it up. We'll see how long it lasts.

Here is the recipe that Clinton followed from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/homemade-peanut-butter-recipe/index.html. The one difference is that he did not have peanut oil, so he used vegetable oil and a little bit of olive oil. I'm sure it would taste even better with the peanut oil. If there is a next time making it, I would definitely be interested in trying it out.

Homemade Peanut Butter

Ingredients

15 ounces shelled and skinned AB's roasted peanuts, recipe follows
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
1 1/2 tablespoons peanut oil

Directions

Place the peanuts, salt and honey into the bowl of a food processor. Process for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Place the lid back on and continue to process while slowly drizzling in the oil and process until the mixture is smooth, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Place the peanut butter in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 months.

Families Can Be Together Forever

These were the flowers that I bought today to display as centerpieces for the tables at the Maurer's family luncheon. Their son, Gregory J. Maurer, passed away on January 31, 2012. Each bunch of carnations had 10 flowers. I bought two bunches of orange, two bunches of white, and two bunches of baby's breath. Eleven tables were set up with an orange and white carnation inside each small vase with ribbon tied around the outside of them. We used the Relief Society's white tablecloths along with Jacquie Korella's square brown tablecloths over them. It was beautiful.

Since I was recently called to be a Compassionate Service Leader a few weeks ago, I have been able to be a part of the wonderful love, friendship, and service that goes on in our ward. I was so grateful to the many sisters and brethren who helped in every capacity for the wake, funeral, and luncheon.

Having something like a funeral brings to your mind once again the eternal nature of the Plan of Salvation. I am grateful for the love of my Heavenly Father, my Savior - Jesus Christ, my friends, and my family. I love that I have an eternal family that I was born into, a family that has been sealed together with the priesthood power that exists in the temples of Christ's church - The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I'm grateful for having my own eternal family with my husband, Clinton James, and our wonderful five children - Benjamin, Anna, Emma, Justin, and Cameron.

Not only have I heard since my childhood that Families Can Be Together Forever, but I have a testimony of it. I know this to be true, because of a loving Heavenly Father who allowed his son to come to earth, die for each and every one of us, and was resurrected. Without his sacrifice, there would not be a way for us to return to our Heavenly Father, and without the sealing ordinance through the power of the priesthood on the earth today, families would not be sealed forever. I hope and pray that I can live righteously to live with my family forever, and that they do the same.

That's One Tired Little Pup!

I don't know exactly what time Justin fell asleep tonight since I was not downstairs to see it. It was probably sometime after 8:00pm. He could probably use more sleep. Since he shares a room with Benjamin, he usually goes to bed when Benjamin goes to bed. Nobody knew he fell asleep until people were called upstairs for family scripture reading and he wasn't coming up. He's one tired pup! The funny thing is, too, that he has a Scooby-Doo blanket wrapped around him - a dog much larger than a pup.

I attended the wake of Gregory J. Maurer, son of Jim & Denise Maurer, this afternoon and didn't get home until 5:30pm. We finally started making dinner, but didn't end up eating until after 7:00pm. Justin will normally eat spaghetti, but tonight he didn't want it. It was made with some leftover ground pork instead of beef, so that may have been the difference. He had corn and beans that were left untouched before wanting a second piece of garlic bread. It took him a while to finish it up to get another piece of garlic bread, as well as, eating up his dessert. I made brownies and chocolate cake. Justin wanted a little bit of both. Since he normally doesn't get enough sleep and he stayed at the table a long time, it knocked him out.

Time to Take Down the Sign

On Sunday, October 30th, the day Cameron was born, this sign went up on our wall. Since Clinton and I would be at the hospital that morning, we asked our neighbor, Deb Smith, to drop our kids off at 11:00am for church and to pick them up when it was done. During church they would be sitting with the Deem family.

Well, after church, Deb Smith stayed with the kids for a while. She talked to the kids about doing a little project. When we called later that afternoon to see how things went for her, she mentioned she was still here at the house doing a little surprise with the kids. Deb, Ethan (Deb's son who is Benjamin's age), Anna, Emma, and Justin all helped with the sign. I don't think Benjamin was interested in helping.

I think you can easily see where Justin helped scribble/draw on the pages. The fully colored in pages with lots of color were the ones Emma did. Anna and Deb Smith did most of them, and Ethan may have done one page.

It was a great sight to see when Cameron and I came home from the hospital two days later. When I was standing in the entryway reading the sign, all I could see was "Welcome home Cameron". The girls pointed out that it said, "Welcome home mom and Cameron". If you look at the ONE piece of paper that says, "mom and" it makes me believe that I was just an afterthought and Cameron was the important part. It may not have been planned that way, but I think that is how it should be. Regardless of how it was meant to be, I found it funny. Thanks kids for doing something special, I loved it!

I probably should have taken a picture of the sign the day we got home from the hospital instead of letting it hang there and get bent for three months. Oh well. I guess since Cameron is over three months old, it should be fine to take down the sign now, don't you think?

Everyone is "In the Mood"

Attended another great band concert last night, this one was for Benjamin. This picture is of the Jazz group performing first. They were followed by the 7th grade band and then the 8th grade band.

The songs that the Jazz band played were "Caravan", "Blue Trane", and "In the Mood". I hadn't heard Benjamin play this song before, but once they played it, it was very familiar. It's a very popular song.

Benjamin and the 7th grade band played,"Matrix March", "Sakura", and "Calypso Bay." The 8th grade band played, "Prelude and Dance", "Superheroes R Us", and "Black Wolf Run". The "Superheroes R Us" song was pretty funny. Without the band knowing, Mr. Carlson had arranged kids from the 7th grade band to dress up as the superheroes they were playing about - it was comical. They had Superman, James Bond, Batman and Robin, and Austin Powers. The person who played Austin Powers was Ethan Kinnear. We sat near Ethan's mom and she had no idea her son was going to be dressed up like someone else during the concert. It was funny to see how shocked she was at seeing her son. He's a great kid!

It sure is fun to watch my Benjamin play and listen to his music. I'm so proud of what he can do.