Sunday, March 26, 2017

                We had a great weekend.  The girls (Xadia and Jacinda) went to General Women’s conference.  It was very informative.  I liked sister Cordon’s talk about leaning in to Christ.  After the conference, we ate at the Mandarin.  We got egg soup, ham fried rice, egg rolls, Buddah’s Delight, Sweet and Sour Almond Chicken, and plain rice.  The girls loved the sweet and sour chicken.  Jacinda commented, “I am already planning my marriage to this chicken.”  That caught me off guard because she rarely says things like that.

                While we were at the women’s conference, the boys went gun shopping and shooting.  They also stocked up on potato chips and root beer.  It was good to spend time with the kids.

                We went on a hike today in Mueller Park.  Teagan had a great time hiding behind the trees and jumping out and growling.  His hiding was very obvious.  I guess he thought I did not see him because I was wearing sun glasses.  Occasionally the kids would run ahead on the trail and then freeze as they do the mannequin challenge.  I don’t know where they come up with these ideas but they keep for exciting moments.

                Xadia is big into the Power Puff girls (a t.v. show), Clue Jr., and making paper purses.  I spent much time this weekend playing Clue Jr. with Teagan and Xadia.  It is fun to play with the young kids because they constantly make up rules.

                Jacinda loves to draw almost to the point that she is ignoring her homework.  She is learning how to prioritize.  It seems so obvious to the parents what she should be working on but she has a different agenda.  Tim and I are learning to guide her in a loving way.

                McCabe loves playing with Michael Smith and playing on the computer.  He is doing great in school and loves to have a treat every day.  Well I should clarify, he loves to ask for a treat every day but does not always get one.  Yes, that makes him made and so he goes through a fit and I have to remind him to control his temper.

                Teagan is Tim’s helper.  They like to work on the trailer together.  They fixed the valves and got the water pump to work.  I hope we can use it this summer.  When Teagan is not helping Tim, he is watching Gravity Falls or jumping on the trampoline.  The weather had been nice enough for us to spend a few days in the sandbox.

Monday, March 20, 2017

                I got to watch McCabe’s class today do some dancing.  It was great to see all the kids dancing.  Some kids were really into what they were doing and others were pacifying their time.  McCabe had a mixture of both moments.  When he saw me, he tried to hide his smile.  I could tell he was happy to see me but did not want to show it openly.  Too bad…..he was busted.  I took Teagan with me to the performance and part way through he slipped outside the gym.  He got locked out and ended up walking through the door and talking to McCabe during the performance.  At first I wanted to put down the camera, run to Teagan, grab his hand and put Teagan him back in his seat but the wiser part of me took over.  I just sat in my seat and recorded the whole ordeal.  I figured he would make it back to his seat, eventually.  Sure enough, Teagan found his place.

                Today I took Teagan to Pre-school.  His picture was on the wall outside of the classroom.  He was holding a sign that said, “When I grow up, I want to be a dad.”  I am so proud of his choice.  Other children wanted to be a doctor, a witch, superman, or a fireman.  I asked Teagan what he will do as a dad and he said, “go to work.”  Teagan sure loves his dad (Tim).  I am glad Tim is a good role model for him.

Sunday, March 12, 2017

                It has been a busy week.  Jacinda got to perform in the school play, Seussical the Musical.  We, as a family got to watch the play.  It was very cute.  Jacinda got to play a jungle citizen and a bearded circus character.  I am always pleasantly surprised with the production of these elementary plays.  There is a lot of volunteers and it comes together so well.

                The weather is so beautiful.  It is in the low 60’s.  The snow is gone and the box elder bugs are out.  That means the vacuum permanently stays out to suck up all the little bugs.  The kids love the weather and take advantage of it.  They jump on the trampoline often.

                McCabe had to make a bunny celebrity for school.  What that means is that he cuts out a bunny and transforms it into someone famous.  He selected Donald Trump and named his bunny “Donald Jump.”  He is one clever kid.

                Xadia and Teagan sold fuzzies (little pom-poms with googley eyes) and punch on Saturday.  This is always a bittersweet moment for me.  I want them to succeed in selling but at the same time I don’t want people to buy the goods because it only encourages them to sell and to sell more often.  They sold for 2 hours and made $6 or $7.  They want to buy legos with the money earned.  

                We got to enjoy day light savings today.  It was rough for me.  I was tired at church.  I came home, made lunch (which the kids ate….Yeah!) of grilled cheese sandwiches, baked beans, and strawberries, and then took a nap.  After a nice long nap, we made dinner and then went on a walk around the temple and visited the Bountiful cemetery.  We took a moment to look at the sculpture of the forefathers and read about it. After our outing, we came home and ate peach cobbler with ice cream and watched America’s Funniest Home Videos.  I love spending time with my family.  They are great!