brandon and kara and their family and stuff

Disneyland 2011 (in motion pictures)

2011-11-20T15:35:00.001-08:00

Disneyland 2011

2011-11-03T21:15:00.000-07:00

Elsa's Baptism

2011-10-29T21:17:00.000-07:00

We're proud of you, Elsa, and so glad you are part of our family.

pictures i should have posted of iris awhile ago

2011-08-30T22:39:00.000-07:00

one year old!

2011-08-29T20:08:00.000-07:00

It's been over a month now, and I still haven't posted about Iris turning one. She's getting so big so fast. She has so much personality now. She's definitely a girl--which is funny since Elsa has never been interested in girly things. She loves to hug and pat baby dolls; she knows how to put on necklaces and bracelets and rings; she is obsessed with shoes; she got her fancy church dress out of the ironing basket and wanted me to put it on her; and she will even leave bows and clips in her hair most of the time. She has been walking since she was 11 months old, so she's getting pretty confident and thinks she should be able to do stairs and climb up slides and ride on scooters. So, she gets hurt a lot (as you can see from this picture sequence) but she doesn't seem to learn her lesson.

It's a good thing she's so darn cute because she likes all things naughty--playing in the toilet, climbing on the dishwasher, pulling things out of the fridge, etc. She has started throwing things in the garbage like her shoe, her pajamas, and the hairbrush. And, anytime she thinks she's getting her way she starts to chuckle deviously.

But, we all adore her, and she can tell. She's a charmer.

june was brandon month

2011-07-17T06:33:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Father's Day, and 12th anniversary, Brandon! I love you.

will turned 5! (more than a month ago)

2011-07-17T06:01:00.000-07:00

I don't think it's possible for a kid to be more excited for his birthday. Around Christmas time, he started inviting everyone he met--strangers in elevators, kids in the grocery store, etc.--to his birthday party. And, he's been talking about his piñata for longer than that.

He had a dragon birthday party--complete with a dragon piñata that the kids got to slay with a sword. We made blue dragon cupcakes for him. Henry and Elsa cut out the wings and helped me put them on with the marshmallow eyes. Will didn't seem to mind that they looked a little more like bats than dragons. And, Will keeps asking for a reprise of the water dragon game he played at his party.

I can't believe he's already 5 and ready to go to kindergarten. He's turned in to such a good kid. He's come a long way in learning to suppress his wild-man urges and manage his extreme emotions. He's an obedient, intelligent, exuberant, hilarious kid. He keeps us all laughing.

Last night at dinner, his prayer went something like this: "Thank you for my two sisters, my brother Henry, and my other brother Jesus."

Then, after the prayer he said, "Jesus is my brother, you know."

I'm not sure where it came from, because we hadn't been talking about that lately. But then, before bed he couldn't find his silly bands and was trying to hold back the tears while we were praying, so I asked for Will to be able to find his silly bands in my prayer. Afterward he said, "My other brother Jesus is going to help me find my silly bands. He's my only favorite brother. But I like Henry too."

Happy Birthday, little Will! You're a good boy.

trip to zion

2011-06-13T08:14:00.000-07:00

easter

2011-06-13T08:04:00.000-07:00

henry is 10

2011-06-13T07:38:00.000-07:00

I know this is 3 months late, but I'm trying to catch up. I can't believe Henry is really 10 years old. Time goes so fast. I have a hard time not thinking of him as just a little boy, even though he is 5 feet tall and, as he informed me yesterday, going to be a teenager in 3 years.

He loves to dance--"Even if I don't like the music, I have to dance. I'm just a dancey kid." His teacher gave him the "extreme dancer" award for his fourth grade class. I'll have to try to film him incognito some time, because those skinny arms and legs kill me.

He has taken to composing on Garage Band lately and will enthusiastically play you his newest recordings "Synthio" and "Rockboy."

He hit a home run in his baseball game, and he is always up for a game of catch.

He is such a good friend and big brother and such a sweet kid.

the trouble with teeth

2011-05-13T11:44:00.000-07:00

Teeth have been causing a lot of problems around our house lately.

Iris just cut her 8th tooth today. Maybe now that all those front teeth are in I can start catching up on my sleep before we start on the molars. This is the face she makes when her teeth are bugging her. Last night she was chewing on the table top while we were eating dinner.

In other tooth news, Henry got braces. He got them the day of the pinewood derby. So, here he is with the new braces and his car.

Elsa, though, has topped both Henry and Iris. Last month she got 4 fillings in 2 different dental appointments, and she got braces on her front teeth and an expander. She is a trooper about my having to turn the screw in the expander every night and not being able to eat or talk very well. The expander has come unbonded twice now, so we keep having to go back to get it glued in again. She says the glue tastes terrible and she gags repeatedly during the process. Poor girl. She's had 7 orthodontist/dentist appointments in the last month. The school probably thinks I'm making them up.

she can move

2011-05-13T11:32:00.000-07:00

At about 8 months old, Iris began to slowly inch her way across the room. She couldn't crawl, and she stayed in sitting position, but somehow I would find her in different places from where I put her. These pictures are from March 25th. It was one of the first times she made her way to the TV to play with the game controllers and then she made her way to the diaper bag and pulled everything out--spreading her sweet potato puffs all over the floor.

She's a lot quicker now--electrical cords and stairs beware! The older kids were asking about their cakes on their first birthdays. I said I just chose what to make for them, because they were too young to tell me what they liked. They started thinking of what Iris might want for her first birthday cake. They decided it should be made to look like a dog dish and electrical cords. Hmmmmm. That might be tricky.

mothers day

2011-05-08T16:22:00.000-07:00

Will, "I like my mommy tookoo."

Me, "What's a tookoo?"

Will, "That means too cute. I like my mom what is too cute."

Elsa laughs, "I've never heard someone say that about a MOM. But, I GUESS you could say that."

naked baby

2011-04-12T18:16:00.000-07:00

Here she is in all her chunky glory. I was getting out some clothes to put on her, and she just looked so cute I thought I might as well capture the chunkiness while it lasts. Although it seems like she's even chunkier now. This was back in March.

discovering her new love

2011-04-12T17:58:00.000-07:00

Iris loves to swing. She can't get enough. I'm so glad it's finally warming up enough for us to go out in the backyard more often. These pictures are from her first swing almost 2 months ago during the first Utah thaw. She laughed out loud, she was so pleased. And, she still has to giggle with delight every time I put her in the swing. I'm sad that middle picture of her is so blurry because I love when she smiles like that with her little dimples showing.

science fair

2011-03-14T20:26:00.001-07:00

Ah, the science fair. I was irrationally stressed out about Henry having to do a science fair project. Our evenings are busy enough that this science fair project was almost the really big straw that broke the camel's back. But, Henry finished it and worked really hard and got third place for the fourth grade. He was so proud. His teacher said he was really surprised and jumped up and down on his way to the stage to collect his ribbon. I really wish I could have seen that. He built different marshmallow guns and tested them to see which one would shoot the farthest. (The one with the longest barrel won.) As you will see from the pictures, the experiment was a family collaboration.

"About Will" by Elsa Arnold

2011-02-27T21:55:00.000-08:00

Just so you know what real life around our house is like, the following was found in Elsa's mini notebook downstairs:

Will is my little brother. Whenever I tell him to go to sleep in the night he gets mad and crys. And then I tell him to go upstairs and when he walks past my room he still looks at me with an angry face. Will likes to fight after playing video games. When he is don playing video games he fights me and Henry. So now if he hurts us he dos not get to play video games. He is crazy some times he chases me and when he catches me he hurts me. And some other times Will hurts us to. Some times he is mean and gets so mad that he tells on us. But some times he is nice. The End.

I love that Elsa tried to end on a positive note. Oh my little Will--so sweet, so crazy.

6 months old

2011-02-07T22:46:00.000-08:00

At her 6-month checkup she weighed 18 lbs. 10 oz. (89th percentile) and was 28 1/2 inches long (99th percentile). That makes her my smallest child, even though she started out the biggest. Maybe it's because she doesn't like to eat baby food very much and refuses to take a bottle. She got her first tooth last Sunday, though, and she's learning how to use it--biting me and arrowroot cookies and noodles.

She has recently become my newest kitchen appliance. She loves to sit on the counter and watch me bake and wash dishes.

iris at 5 months

2011-02-07T22:24:00.000-08:00

She can sit.

She can roll.

elsa can spell!

2011-02-07T22:14:00.000-08:00

She got second place in the second grade spelling bee after hardly practicing. She was in the top 4 of her class, so we got to go watch her compete in the grade-wide spelling bee. I was amazed at how riveting a spelling bee is. Even Will stayed interested the whole time. She got out on adamant and treachery--third grade words she had never seen before. But, she made it through all the second grade words and even a couple of the third grade words she hadn't studied. I was so proud.

christmas

2011-02-07T21:29:00.000-08:00

It was so good to go back home for Christmas. It had been a year since we'd been there, and there were some cousins and aunts and uncles that Iris hadn't met yet. We got to spend 2 weeks surrounded by family, and it was luxurious. We have very few pictures because Brandon forgot his camera and my new one was set on some weird settings. But, we got to go to the Christmas display downtown--my favorite childhood Christmas activity.

We went to the zoo. Here are the kids looking at the gibbons (my favorite exhibit at the Minnesota zoo). And, the new creature we discovered--a leafy sea dragon.

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve at Chuck and Kris's house--soup, homemade egg nog, treats, songs, scriptures, and stories. A fun Christmas morning with lots of presents from Santa. And, the family Christmas party at Grandma's with amazing food and the kids acting out the Nativity. Best present-opening reaction: Will had been talking about how he wanted a Big Foot since November, and Grandma succumbed to his wishes. When he opened it, his jaw dropped open and then he jumped up and down shouting, "Big Foot. Big Foot! BIG FOOT!" It was a very merry Christmas.

The magic of Silver

2010-12-13T20:36:00.000-08:00

In case any of you haven't seen this yet. A commercial that Jed and I made.

iris is 4 months old

2010-11-29T22:04:00.001-08:00

She had her check-up today. She's 16 pounds 7 ounces and 26 inches long. She's only in the 93rd percentile, making her my smallest child yet. Woo hoo, Iris! She's healthy and happy and only had to cry for about 15 seconds after her immunizations. She's been playing with toys for about a month now, but just in the last few days she has started trying to get whatever is in my hands. As soon as I pick up something, she gasps in excitement and goes for it. She spilled my cereal for the first time on Saturday.

Here she is.
Playing with her turtle:

Chatting up the camera-man:

Smiling at Henry:

Wearing the paper guitar Elsa made for her:

it was halloween a while ago . . .

2010-11-29T21:48:00.000-08:00

And here are some pictures of the festivities.
Elsa and Henry were allowed to use the sharp knives and carve their own pumpkins for the first time.

We went trick-or-treating with cousins Sadie, Brenna, and Myles (not pictured because the camera battery died, sorry Myles).

blessings

2010-10-03T20:31:00.000-07:00

2 weeks ago today, Iris was blessed. I don't remember much about the blessing. It was a lot of the usual, wonderful stuff. But the one thing that I remember was that it said she would bring joy to others through her presence. It seems like this already happens all the time. Everywhere I go, people just see her and smile. A lot of that is her insanely spiky hair and rolls of chub. But, there is something very joyful about her presence.

My life is now a chaotic mess. I really think my mind is going. At Henry's last football game, I didn't recognize a mom that I had talked to for about 30 minutes 3 weeks before. I felt like such a moron. I mix up dates and forget when I tell people I'll do things. I can't remember anyone's name anymore, and it seems like the days are much too short with so much remaining undone. I swear I used to be smart; I used to think about things deeply and have a really good memory and enjoy pondering things of eternal consequence. Now I just crave mind-numbing TV and sleep.

More frequently, I need to take a deep breath, ignore the mess in my house, and enjoy my blessings. Really. Things are very, very good. Maybe all I need is an hour more sleep a night and a good planner and then I'll feel in control. Or not. Maybe the point is realizing that I'm not in control. But, if it weren't for me, car doors would not ever be shut, teeth would never get brushed, homework would never be signed off, shoes would never be put away.

I have 4 great kids who try hard to be good. I have a good husband. I have everything I need, and a lot of things I want. I have so many blessings. I guess I'm just starting to realize that blessings are responsibilities, like the parable of the talents. I've been given so much and that means I have so much to do. So for now, I think I have enough blessings. I just need to relax and enjoy them while I can.

elsa is 7

2010-08-28T22:38:00.000-07:00

Sweet, sweet Elsa. I don't know how I would live without you. You keep the whole family happy. You are the best friend to both of your brothers and the most attentive baby-tender. You have endless amounts of imagination and love. You constantly make life easier. You help me notice the wonderful world around me. You are quietly and sweetly strong. And, now you are 7. Happy birthday, Loie Lou!

one month down, many more to go . . .

2010-08-27T09:17:00.000-07:00

Iris is five weeks old now, and I thought it was time for a little update. I'm pleased to say that she fulfills all of our wishes and dreams. She's a girl, which is what Brandon and I both wanted. She has an impressive amount of dark hair, which is what Brandon has always dreamed of. And, she is not colicky, which is a relief and a delight.

Iris is doing well enough that it gives me a strange sense of foreboding. I feel like something really wrong is bound to happen soon. Garrison Keillor once said that Minnesotans like bad weather because it gives us a sense of security--that good weather makes us nervous because it means something bad will need to happen to restore balance. (Except that he said it a lot better than that, but I can't find an actual quote.) I really am a Minnesotan even though I've spent almost as much of my life here in Utah. In fact, it even seems as if writing that Iris is doing well will jinx it.

Iris can raise one eyebrow, just like her dad. She has just started to make darling cooing noises. She smiles at stuffed animals and humans. She still slumps and sleeps and eats a lot.

I'm exhausted. But, we seem to have gotten through the worst of the recovery period. Hopefully no more trips to the ER, swelling, incredibly high fevers for me and the kids, etc. Now if I could just get a little more sleep. Ha. Maybe in a year.

p.s. It's a day later now, and I think I already jinxed myself. Iris was really cranky this afternoon.

In the darling kimono my friend Shauna made:

Right after pooping all over her clothes and blanket (unbeknownst to me):

Furrowing her brow (her most frequent expression):

With Grandpa Kim at Elsa's birthday party:

watercolor of iris

2010-08-27T09:13:00.000-07:00

Check out what my niece Aubrynne did:

Hello, Iris!

2010-07-21T15:04:00.000-07:00

We just got back from the hospital with our new baby, Iris Grace Arnold. She was born on monday night, weighed 10 lbs 1 ounce, 20 inches long, and is a pure delight. She's excited to meet you!

nesting for kara

2010-07-17T14:15:00.001-07:00

I am officially the mother bird now. I have been working way more than I probably should this last month trying to get everything ready. I needed to make up for 6 months of morning sickness and 2 more months when I was so exhausted I felt like I couldn't do anything. I'm still exhausted, but I finally got panicky about nothing being done and had no choice but to work through the exhaustion.

I'm finally feeling on top of everything. The papers are all organized, every surface of my house has been cleared off and cleaned up, I have all the essential baby things out and in their proper place; my long to do list is as done as it needs to be. Things are seeming in order just in time for chaos to take over in 2 days.

I even got some grown-up furniture. The couch and love seat are my first pieces of furniture that I didn't buy used or have to assemble. As much as I love Ikea, it feels like I'm finally an adult.

So, three cheers for a clean and orderly house, and three cheers for only 2 more days of pregnancy!

p.s. This picture is only to document my truly huge belly and truly puffy pregnant face, for those of you who didn't believe me. Please don't click on it and make it any bigger than it needs to be.

it's birthday will!

2010-06-16T07:59:00.000-07:00

(Will--almost one year old)

Will is now 4 years old, and he couldn't be prouder. I can't even count how many people he has told his new age. He was the last one to wake up on the morning of his birthday. Henry, Elsa and I were all sitting on the couch when we heard his footsteps running upstairs and through the kitchen. When he got in the living room he jumped up with his arms in the air and struck a pose, yelling, "It's birthday Will!"

It was a pretty low-key celebration. We had the family over for pizza and cake that night and gave the kids water guns so they could have a water fight. But, Will was very happy. (Please excuse the lack of pictures. We finally have a new camera, but we didn't get it in time.)

I am constantly amazed by that kid. He has so much energy and passion; he's very loving and social; and he's even starting to be obedient and sensible sometimes.

He's a singer. He frequently makes up songs about how much he loves me, he's the kid in primary who belts out every word he knows, and he gets mad when we try to sing along with him when he's singing one of his favorite songs.

He frequently lives in an imaginary world of video game characters. When it's just the two of us in the car, he makes up screenplays with his favorite characters. If I ask him what he's saying, he acts really put out and says, "I'm not talking to you. I'm thinking about 'puters (computers)."

He's constantly making us laugh (and sometimes yell:)). He is the life of our party, and I don't know what we'd do without him (besides have a lot more peace and quiet). I love my Will. He makes me incredibly happy.

i. am. huge.

2010-05-20T22:08:00.000-07:00

Tonight my back hurts, my belly is stretched to its limit, and I'm swollen and exhausted. But, I don't feel like I'm going to throw up, and the headaches have died down. So I try not to complain, except for when I do.

I'm officially huge. Today a 1-year-old boy was mesmerized by my enormous belly. He couldn't take his eyes off of it and reached his little pointer finger out to touch it about ten times. Then tonight, a 5-year-old boy looked at me and said, "What's that great big thing?" I said, "It's my belly." He still didn't believe it and said, "No, I mean that," pointing at my belly.

Will has taken to lovingly calling me his "big, fat mama."

How can I possibly grow for 2 more months?

easter retrospective

2010-05-09T20:38:00.001-07:00

I know it was a while ago, but I needed to post a little bit about it. We had the annual Easter egg hunt in the cold this year. But, the kids always love it anyway.

Make this next picture bigger and check out Will's facial expression when he saw the egg in the grass:

We decorated eggs and made a peep tree. I didn't take pictures. The camera I know how to operate is not working. So, I'm at Brandon's mercy for a little while. You'll just have to trust me that they were amazingly cute. Ha ha.

We watched General Conference, colored, did puzzles, and folded origami. And, we had Brandon's whole family over for dinner. Once again, no pictures.

The Easter bunny found his way in the snow. Elsa asked a few days before Easter if the Easter bunny was a real bunny or just a person dressed up like a bunny. I like to defer tough questions, so I asked her what she thought. She thinks it's a person dressed up like a bunny.

Enjoying the Easter bunny's gifts:

My favorite Easter conversation:
Henry: What do eggs have to do with Easter?
Me: Eggs are a symbol of life because life comes from eggs, and at Easter we celebrate the resurrection and that we'll live again. Blah blah blah.
Henry: What does candy have to do with Easter?
Me: I think the candy's just for fun.
Elsa: I know what candy has to do with Easter. When you eat a lot of candy, you get sick. And sometimes when you get sick, you die. So that helps us think about the resurrection.

Happy late Easter!

9 years ago . . .

2010-04-25T22:18:00.000-07:00

(plus almost 2 months) Henry was born. He came into the world kicking and screaming. In fact, one of the nurses outside our room said, "I wouldn't want to take that one home." But, his amazing smile always helped make up for whatever trouble he caused. And, he's turned into a pretty great kid.

He suddenly seems so much older to me--he's an inch or so shy of 5 feet tall, he likes to go in and buy the hot 'n ready pizza all by himself, he's even getting a little bit of adolescent moodiness. But, sometimes it seems like he's really not that old after all. When I drop him off for school, he won't go in without blowing me a kiss. And, he still can't always restrain himself from leaping with joy and flapping/clapping when he's really excited.

There's just so much goodness and brightness and lovingness and helpfulness in Henry. I sure hope he doesn't outgrow any of that, even while he's growing so fast. I wish I could keep him small and innocent forever.

Somehow we didn't take any pictures of his birthday, even though we had a family gathering for him and a party with his friends. He wanted an Avatar: The Last Airbender birthday party, so we did activities for the 4 elements--made tea bag rockets and water bottle whirlpools, and blew up balloons without using our mouths, and played a game. Henry loves science and games. But alas, no pictures, just video. And, I don't know how to upload videos--that's Brandon's specialty.

Anyway,
Happy Birthday, Henry! We love you, and we're so glad we got to "take that one home."

it's a big, six-toed . . .

2010-04-18T20:05:00.000-07:00

GIRL!

I know that to many of you this is old news. But, for those of you who are far away, we had the ultrasound a while back, and it's official. We are thrilled to be having a girl. In fact, we wanted a girl so much we were afraid we would jinx it. In retrospect, I think it's more that I just didn't want another colicky baby, and Elsa was our only colic-free baby. I realize now that this baby will probably prove my prejudice wrong and be a really colicky girl. But, we're excited anyway.

She doesn't really have 6 toes, but it looked like it to us from the ultrasound. And, she looked 9 days bigger than her expected due date. I'm trying not to get my hopes up about her coming early, since I'm pretty sure being huge and swollen in July in Utah is going to be miserable. Oh well. HOORAY for another girl!

work

2010-04-14T09:13:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of updating to do, but last night I was helping Henry practice his vocabulary words. I explained to him what a motto was, and then he looked at me and said, "Your motto would be 'I will work for truth.'"

I laughed and asked him why. He said, "Because you're always working."

It reminded me of a prayer he said a while ago, where he decided to be very specific in his gratitude. He said, "Thank you for a little brother who is funny, a little sister who is fun to play with, a dad who is my best friend, and a mom who is workful."

It's a little sad when that's your defining characteristic.

Happy Birthday Kara!

2010-01-24T20:17:00.001-08:00

I had to wait to post this until kara spilled the beans about the our forthcoming little one. Otherwise, how could I write about how she couldn't stand the thought of a birthday cake? Instead we had birthday nachos. Yes, with candles. Sorry, no pictures. Despite the birthday, December was not a very fun month for Kara. So sick, and such bizarre cravings: breadsticks, kool-aid, Twilight novels... But she's been a champion through it all.

Bless you, Kara, for going through this three times previously for our three goofy children, and still being willing to go through it again. You rock my world.

lest you think i've vanished off the face of the earth . . .

2010-01-19T09:52:00.000-08:00

Here's Will's take on what has been going on for the last few months:

First, you eat a baby. Then, it goes in your tummy and makes you sick like this--aauuugh, aauuugh, aauuugh (vomiting sounds).

halloween

2009-11-08T21:02:00.000-08:00

So. Here it is. The Halloween post. Our kids had a great time. There was a church party, a school carnival, and then a whole lot of trick or treating. Brandon's family joined us for trick or treating because our neighborhood is perfect for it. The weather was amazing--warm enough that no coats were needed, since the costumes were pretty warm. And there was a full (or close to it) moon hovering right in between the mountains. It was so much fun to walk around that the plastic pumpkins were full by the time we got home.

Elsa and Henry were Jedi Knights. Not any specific Jedi, just Jedi. Elsa refused to be anything too girly--no Leia or Amidala or anything. Will wanted to be a Jedi too, until he tried on the robe I made for him, and then he immediately wanted it off. But, he was obsessed with the hand-me-down Buzz costume from cousin Brenna. It didn't matter how sweaty he was, how much of a hikey he got, or how much the elastic was cutting off the circulation to his feet--he was keeping the Buzz costume on.

The Halloween fairy came again and left a watch for Henry, slinky dog for Elsa, and green plastic army guys for Will. They were all thrilled, and the Halloween Fairy has gotten a little fatter this week.

It was a delightful Halloween all around.

Oh yeah, Henry and Elsa had to be something curriculum-oriented for school. So, Elsa had to be an Egyptian/Cleopatra and Henry was a skeleton. Like the last-minute costumes? These were done the day before with $1.50 in ribbon and a few pennies worth of masking tape. It was a little ghetto, but it worked. And don't they look happy?

first camping trip

2009-09-30T20:51:00.000-07:00

Here are my favorite quotes from our first family camping trip back in August:

Henry (while roasting his hotdog on a stick, which took a little longer than expected): Is this fun?

Will (first thing in the morning; only the two of us were awake; there was rustling in the bushes next to us): What was that?
Mom: There's some kind of animal in there. What kind of animal do you think it is?
Will: A bear.
Mom: Uh oh. What do you think the bear will do?
Will: Maybe he'll come out and say, "Hi. Can I have some chips?"

Elsa (on a walk around the little lake/pond): Look there's a little hole. I wonder what lives in there.
Mom: I don't know. What do you think it is?
Elsa: I think it's zombies.

And, this is why I'm not super anxious to go again, although I'm sure I'll be dragged out next summer anyway:

she's finally six!

2009-09-13T21:13:00.000-07:00

Little Elsa Loie Lou finally turned six. I say finally because I have been mistakenly telling people she's six for a couple of months now. She suddenly seems to be so old. It makes me a little sad, because she really is so young still.

She's brilliant and determined. She has a champion attention-span. She has her own mind and is not easily swayed. She truly enjoys life--every bird and flower and blade of grass gets noticed by Elsa. She laughs easily and finds humor in many things--especially William lately. She is so loving and gentle when she's not sword-fighting and wrestling with her brothers. She is consistently content and happy. She is completely wonderful and makes my life so much happier.

school's in session

2009-09-13T20:51:00.000-07:00

Time to play catch-up again. I wrote this back at the beginning of September, but I had some picture issues. There are more catch-up posts to follow, as soon as all picture issues are resolved:

The kids have been back in school for a few weeks now. They are all loving it. Elsa was a little nervous upon arrival at the school. But, she warmed up after about 30 minutes, and was really happy about it when she came home.

Check out those long skinny legs!

The best smile a nervous Elsa could muster.

Henry's class got straight to work. That's him front and center.

Will also started preschool 2 days a week. I love Miss Wendy, and she seems to have already worked her magic on him. She actually said she's so grateful for him because he is an example to the other little boys by tracing his letters the way he's supposed to. Go figure. He sits and traces and colors neatly in the lines and does all kinds of things I can't get him to do at home. I'm so impressed. Maybe he'll turn out all right after all.

It is a little lonely having Henry and Elsa gone all day. And, I forgot how crazy the evenings are during the school year: doing homework, going to cub scouts and flag football and dance and meetings. But, busy is good I guess, and the kids seem happy. Goodbye long summer days.

mmmmm . . . cortizone cream

2009-09-10T15:39:00.000-07:00

I was getting the kids ready for bed a little while back, when I heard the following coming from Will in the bathroom:

Aaack.

Yuck.

(Spitting.)

Yucky.

Aaack.

I went in to dicover this:

going back west

2009-08-24T20:46:00.000-07:00

We took a slightly longer road home from Minnesota to go to Mount Rushmore. That part of South Dakota was crawling with bikers because the day we were travelling through was the first day of Sturgis (this huge motorcycle rally, in case you haven't heard.) We stopped at Wall Drug on the way there, and it was one of the most bizarre places I've been.

Mount Rushmore was way more amazing than I remember it being when I was a child. Not that Mount Rushmore itself had changed, but it seems like there wasn't a museum and fancy walkway and stuff when I was little. And, I think I just appreciate the enormity of the undertaking a lot more now. It was well worth the extra hour or so it added on to our journey. And, the Black Hills area is gorgeous compared to the rest of South Dakota (and all of Nebraska, sorry Nebraska).

the land of 10,000 lakes and 16 cousins

2009-08-24T20:08:00.000-07:00

We were in Minnesota for about 3 weeks, and I hardly took any pictures. We spent a lot of time stripping off wallpaper, sorting through boxes, installing light fixtures, and painting at my mom's house. The kids had a blast playing with cousins. They went to chutes and ladders (the sweetest park ever), went swimming, played lazer tag, drove bumper cars, played miniature golf. We went to Valleyfair for a day, and Henry was brave enough to go on most of the big rides, and even Elsa was brave enough to go on the Wild Thing:

We didn't take any pictures of the above-mentioned events or of a lot of the cousins. We were just too busy enjoying ourselves, I guess. We did take some pictures at the zoo. My favorite part was the butterfly garden, or the grizzly bear doing a backwards shimmy into the water.

And, we finshed up the trip by checking out Amy's new digs in Mankato.

So family, if any of you happen to have pictures of our trip, please send them to us. It was so good to be home for a while. The kids were not happy to leave, but Christmas will come soon.

going east

2009-08-23T20:43:00.000-07:00

We made the long drive out to Minnesota this summer. We've never braved it with the kids before, but we felt up for the adventure. We tried to keep the journey entertaining. Here are some of our favorite moments:

Ice cream and tanks at the Museum of Retired Military Vehicles (that wasn't the official name, but you get the idea).

Elsa and Will very excited about sharing the creepy hotel bed.

And, the Winter Quarters temple near Omaha, Nebraska, which was amazingly beautiful but completely unphotographed. This lovely sign was in the next closest town though:

our own private bean museum

2009-08-20T20:06:00.000-07:00

Brandon's friend from high school arranged for us to have a private animal showing at the Bean Museum. It was pretty sweet. I've already posted a lot of reptile pictures, so I'll skip the snake and lizard. But, I feel the need to prove that we were all brave enough to hold the tarantula. Will was the first, and he didn't hesitate one bit.

climbing the trees at great grandma and grandpa's

2009-08-20T13:51:00.000-07:00

I really liked these pictures from our trip to visit Brandon's Grandma and Grandpa down in Price this summer. Will's face is a little chocolaty because he quickly discovered the bowl of Hershey's kisses on Grandpa and Grandma's counter.

4th of july

2009-08-20T13:23:00.000-07:00

I'm really behind on my record-keeping. So, here are the pictures from the 4th. We somehow didn't take any on the actual 4th of July. But, here are some from the big thing they do down on Center Street. Elsa was hard to pull away from the reptiles, she didn't want to jump on any of the bouncy things as long as there were snakes and turtles to pet.

We had a great 4th. I loved that it rained a little in the morning so it wasn't miserably hot for the parade. We had a barbeque with Brandon's family and walked over to watch the fireworks by the Marriott Center. Grandma Cynthia provided more glowsticks than my kids had ever seen in one place. And, the fireworks were great, as always.

june is the month of brandon

2009-07-12T20:55:00.000-07:00

So, I have been terribly remiss in not posting sooner about Brandon month. There are many Brandon celebrations in June. June 11th was our 10th anniversary. I am so glad I married Brandon. He is still my best friend, and my favorite person to be around. Even when we were dating, being around Brandon somehow always felt like being home. I don't know how else to explain it.

To celebrate our anniversary, we stayed up at Sundance for a night. We gorged ourselves on delicious food, sat out on our deck overlooking the trees and river, and hiked to Stewart Falls, almost getting stuck up on the mountain when the chair lift closed down because of an impending thunderstorm. It was amazing.

Next, Brandon turned 32! We had to call off the planned kickball game because of rain, but we had a good time anyway with some of Brandon's friends coming over for dessert.

The next day, Brandon got to celebrate Father's Day. Probably his best gift is that he won't have to sit by the kids in church for a long time. It was his first Sunday having to sit on the stand (he's 2nd counselor in the bishopric now.)

I'm so grateful for Brandon--that he was born, that I married him, and that he gets to be my kids' dad. He makes life so much more fun, and I just wouldn't feel complete without him.

william big boy is 3!

2009-06-21T20:19:00.000-07:00

Will turned three on June 5th. He's pretty sure he's just as big as Henry and Elsa. In fact, anytime someone asks his name he answers either "William Big Boy" or just "Big Boy." Brandon likes to have this conversation with him:

Brandon: Are you a little sweetie?
Will: No. I a big sweetie.
Brandon: Are you a big sweetie?
Will: No. I a BIG BOY!

He is full of life and love and energy and humor (and sometimes rage). Now that it's summer break, Henry and Elsa and I all look forward to his naptime. But, we all love him dearly. He's a very dichotomous boy. He seems like he couldn't ever sit still, but he can sit and do 24-piece jigsaw puzzles for a long time. He has a very short temper, but he is very patient about figuring things out and working until he accomplishes what he's trying to do. He spends a lot of the day either hurting or hugging his siblings. He is the child most likely to make me furious and most likely to make me laugh.

Here are some favorite Will moments from this last week:

I was reading a book to him, and I pointed to the sheep and said, "What animal is that?"
Will: A camel.
Me: That's not a camel, you goof. What animal is that?
Will: A camel.
Me: OK. What animal is that? (pointing to the chicken)
Will: A camel.
Me: No it's not. It's a chicken. What animal is that? (pointing to the cow)
Will: A camel.
Me: What does it say?
Will: Beep beep.
We were both laughing pretty hard at that point. I guess that's what I get for asking him obvious questions.

Brandon: Will, can you stretch?
Will: No. I can punch.

Pointing to the picture of the Emperor covered in his black cloak on the Emperor Strikes Back case, he asked, "Is that married?"

Here are some pictures from his birthday. (Henry is so excited in the background of a couple of these.)

He wanted a Buzz Lightyear on his cake. I did my best, but it was pretty pathetic. Also, the only thing he would say he wanted for his birthday was a Buzz Lightyear toy. Buzz did not leave his side until church a day later. Buzz is definitely too noisy for church (as is Will, but we can't really leave him at home). When we walked in the door after church Will exclaimed, "Buzz! I missed you!"

Happy Birthday, little Will! I mean, William Big Boy! We sure love you.

william dynamite

2009-05-21T21:56:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, Will went through a phase where he would only wear his moon boots. He has shoe issues, so I didn't fight it too much. But, one day he went in the backyard and was playing tether ball in this outfit, and it just cracked me up how much he resembled Napoleon Dynamite. I didn't get the camera out fast enough to capture the tether ball moment, but here he is sporting his ensemble.

elsa lost her first tooth

2009-05-21T21:50:00.001-07:00

She was very proud. This was back in April. (Sorry. I have some catching up to do.)

making people happy

2009-05-21T21:28:00.000-07:00

This is long overdue, but in April when the flowers started blooming Elsa told me, "From now on, I'm going to pick flowers for people to make them happy." True to her commitment, I don't think a day has gone by that Elsa hasn't picked me some "flowers." She also enjoys leaving them on Ruth's doorstep next door. Over Easter, Brandon took the kids hiking up Rock Canyon with their cousins. They climbed up to a cave and discovered that someone was living there. The cave-dweller had stepped out for the moment, thankfully. But, Elsa decided that she needed to leave the flowers she had picked for whoever lived there.

This week, Elsa decided she wanted to give me a surprise party. She spent an afternoon taping streamers to the walls and hauling balloons into the living room. Then she decided she needed to make me a cake. So I let her do most of the work to make an angel food cake. While I was at meetings tonight, Henry and Elsa made some blue whipped cream to put on the the cake with the strawberries. And Elsa made me go out of the living room and not come back until she counted one, two, three. The kids all yelled surprise and then Elsa gave me numerous hugs and kisses because, "Lots and lots of love is your present. And, the biggest hug and kiss ever." She really does make me very very happy.

freezer paper fun

2009-05-20T21:01:00.000-07:00

So, I had a little fun with freezer paper about a month ago, and this was the result. I have plans to do a lot more, but other projects are a little more pressing right now. I let the kids choose what to put on them, and now they would wear these shirts every day if I let them. Here are some pictures of the threesome modeling their new duds. I tried to take some of them smiling and then I gave up and told them to act tough. Those kids crack me up. (Note Elsa's lovely black eye from flipping off the teeter-totter.)

easter with the joneses

2009-04-19T22:53:00.000-07:00

My sister and her kids came to visit over Easter weekend. It was great to have them with us. They didn't get to stay for long, and my kids and I all had to cry about them leaving, but it was fun while it lasted. Isn't family great?

Here are the best pictures we could get of the crew. Mine are particularly hard to photograph. Henry can't make a normal face when he sees a camera, Elsa can't look up at a camera, and Will can't hold still for a camera. (And Brandon and I always look so tired, go figure!) So, here's what we could do. My mom bought cousin dresses for all the little girl cousins. (Thanks, Mom!) Will cracks me up in all the group pictures.

We got some great pictures of Amy's kids:

kickin' it

2009-04-19T21:08:00.000-07:00

Elsa's playing soccer this spring. We tried last spring, and she really wasn't into it. But this year she kept asking me when she got to play soccer again, so I signed her up. I'm impressed at the action shots Brandon got, because Elsa doesn't get in on the action very often. She's pretty timid about it and won't try to kick the ball if it seems like someone else has it. I guess we need to teach her it's OK to be aggressive sometimes. But, she has fun running up and down the field, even if she doesn't kick it very often.

Henry makes a big decision

2009-03-29T11:37:00.000-07:00

Henry was baptized! He's such a good kid, and it was such an amazing day. Here's what he wrote about it in his journal:

Yesterday was my baptism. My dad baptized me. After the baptism, we went to our house. We ate hot dogs and very good food. I got a new scripture bag, a pin, a spinny CTR ring, and a green blanket that says "My Comforter." And Happy Joe, my dog, got to sleep in my room that night.

At the baptism, my uncle Andy sang "O My Father," and he was really good. He sang that song because it was my favorite. My cousin Megan gave a talk about baptism. She said if we get baptized then we can get the Holy Ghost and get on the trail to Eternal life. Grandma Barbara said a talk about the Holy Ghost. Then my dad confirmed me with my teacher and grandpas and uncles. After that, my grandparents said their testimonies to me. It was cool. And when I got baptized I felt really good. The Holy Ghost was saying, "That's the right thing, Henry!"

I'm not sure what Brandon is looking at.

repairs

2009-03-24T23:19:00.000-07:00

These last two weeks, my body has been in the repair shop. First, I got my second root canal in a year. The next day I got a laser procedure done on my leg to get rid of some painful varicose veins I've had since I was pregnant with Elsa. My leg was really swollen for a few days. And, I wasn't allowed to stand or sit. Then I got three blood clots in my leg that were pretty painful. Once again, I couldn't stand or sit. I wasn't so sure the procedure was a good idea. Check out how swollen my leg was:

But, the pain isn't so bad anymore, and I've had at least 2 days of being able to sit and stand now. I feel like I've emerged from a cocoon of sorts. I can finally function again. I was talking to my sister yesterday, and I said that I needed to start cleaning for my mom to come on Thursday. She said, "Is your house really so dirty that it will take you more than 2 days to clean it?" I didn't know what to say at first, but the answer is YES. It really is that dirty. I am so happy to be able to clean again.

making stuff

2009-03-13T15:48:00.000-07:00

Here's some stuff I made for Elsa's room:

And here's what Elsa made for me:

Here's some other stuff I made a while ago, because my sister asked to see it:

I really think they look a lot better in real life. The colors are so weird on my crappy camera. But, you get the idea.

elsa's irrational fears

2009-03-13T14:13:00.000-07:00

Elsa has never been a typical girl. She has never liked princesses, pink, fancy dresses, getting her hair done, etc. She loves snakes, lizards, bugs, video games, swords, etc. She plays video games a lot and loves fighting games--Super Smash Brothers, Lego Star Wars, that kind of thing. However, this week she has been VERY afraid of two things that completely baffle me. First, Wubbzy growing a large, polka-dot nose. (Sorry about the nose-picking quote, it's the only clip of the show I could find.)
Wubbzy's New Nose
I personally thought it was funny. But, she had to hide and try to get me to turn it off. I told her to just stay in the other room, since her brothers were thoroughly enjoying it.

She was also terrified of this book:

It was actually a pretty cute book. I was just picking up books at random at the library and found it. When the Opposite is around, the opposite thing always happens for the little boy in the book. He tries to paint neatly and instead paint gets everywhere except his paper, that kind of thing. The boys loved it. But, Elsa started to frown as if she would cry and said, "You shouldn't have read me that book." She wouldn't go to sleep until Brandon said he would take it back to the library that night. It's probably bad to laugh at your children's fears, but I just really think she's funny. Sweet, sensitve, perfectionist girl.

happy birthday dear henry

2009-03-08T14:41:00.000-07:00

Henry turned 8 yesterday. We celebrated with honey bran muffins from Provo Bakery, a family trip to Chuck E. Cheese for lunch, buying him a new bike, and a family party at night. The next day he said, "You know what my favorite part about my birthday was? It wasn't the presents. It was playing games at my party. And Chuck E. Cheese."

My favorite part was that I got to remember the day he was born and how incredibly grateful I am for him. He is without guile. He's such a happy helper. He tells me he loves me out of the blue at least 3 times a day. He loves his brother and sister, and he loves to pray and read his scriptures. He has so much energy and enthusiasm for life. What would I do without my Henry B.?

Chuck E. Cheese fun:

New bike and birthday soda at Allen's with Dad:

Party games. Henry really wanted to do a relay, and he specified that he wanted to hop with balloons between our knees and do the crabwalk. My favorite is the grandpas doing the crabscoot. Will decided he needed a ride from Grandpa Kim.

Disneyland retrospective

2009-03-02T21:10:00.000-08:00

We took our first real family vacation last November to Disneyland, and it's about time I mentioned it. We had a great time. The kids were in heaven, when they weren't whining about the heat and their sore feet. The lines weren't bad at all, and Brandon and I were surprised at how much we enjoyed it. Many thanks to Brandon's parents who organized and planned and paid and helped with kids. Hip hip hooray! Elsa's favorite rides were the rocket one at the beginning and the Go Gadget Coaster. She wouldn't go near any of the princesses or other people, but loved the animal characters. Henry's favorite rides were the Matterhorn and the Maliboomer. And, he was our most devoted autograph-getter. Will was particularly emamored of the new lightsabers. And, he charmed the princesses by giving them huge hugs. He didn't have anything for them to sign, so Belle tracked down her own piece of paper and asked for his name so she could write him a note. We all enjoyed Tom Sawyer Island and the treats (although those cupcakes were pretty nasty). However, we didn't much enjoy what we came home to. After a long car ride, I carried Elsa to her bed at 11:00 p.m., and it was raining in our basement. But, we'll always have Paris, I mean Disneyland.

from the tongue of henry

2009-02-23T09:25:00.000-08:00

So, Henry has something called tongue thrust, which essentially means that the only muscle in his tongue that functions is the muscle that makes the tongue go backward and forward, like when a baby suckles. His speech has always been pretty messed up, and he's done a lot of speech therapy in the past, but this year we started doing tongue thrust therapy. He hates it, and I can't say I'm a big fan either. It's pretty disgusting to poke a tongue with a stick. But, every day we do tongue exercises anyway.

About a month ago, Henry was having a really hard day. So, I brought him to our bedroom to read scriptures with me (he loves reading scriptures). After a little while, he said, "Mom, everyone's different."
Me: Yeah, everyone is different.
Henry: And everyone sounds different.
Me: Yeah (getting skeptical).
Henry: How would you like it if I hurt your tongue with a stick just because you sound different?

I explained how everyone sounds a little different, but that the way he sounds is even more different than usual, that I want people to be able to understand him, that the way he talks could make it hard for people to know how smart he really is and that I don't want that to happen, etc.

Then about a week ago, we were in the car and this song came on my iPod (or maybe another song by her, but this is the best link I could find).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IYl0uLrXP7U&NR=1
Henry: Her voice sounds funny.
Pause.
Henry: She needs to do tongue exercises.
I started laughing. Another pause.
Henry: Now I understand why I need to do tongue exercises.

mmmmm chocolate

2009-02-15T22:40:00.000-08:00

Every year for Valentine's we feel the need to break out the fondue pot, and tonight we had my niece Megan join us in the festivities. Will wasn't big on dipping things, he just wanted to eat his chocolate with a spoon.

Hooray for chocolate!

Playing paper, rock, scissors with Megan. Henry and Elsa decided it's more fun to make up your own weapons in the game. The winners tonight were dinosaur and bow and arrow. Cause what paper, rock, or scissors can stand up to a dinosaur?

And, here are a few more favorites from the last month or so. Here is Elsa's zoo that she created one morning. That girl amazes me at the amount of effort she puts into her projects. Will left this creation alone for about 20 minutes before he stomped all over it.

The other day, the kids were playing superheroes. Henry and Elsa were wearing too-small Batman and Superman costumes. But Will wouldn't wear any costumes, he just wanted to be "Gunner": the caulking avenger.

catching up with the arnolds

2009-01-26T13:13:00.000-08:00

I'll see what I can do to catch up on all the things I've missed. It's been a long time, so here it goes:

I took the kids to see the balloon launch for 4th of July. They loved it, although Will wanted to be held the whole time. (You would think such a loud kid wouldn't mind loud noises.)

Henry took some pictures of Brandon for promo material for the China International Children's Film Festival (I think). This one's my favorite, although not the one he chose. Brandon's film won for foreign animated short, by the way. Yea, Brandon!

Will getting sugared up on Pioneer Day.

First day of school. Henry looks so tired in all of his pictures. Elsa was a little nervous the first day when it was time for me to leave, but it wore off pretty fast. In this picture, she's just naturally posing like how my mom used to try to get me to pose in pictures when I was little. Somehow that's funny to me.

I caught Henry reading to Will on our unmade bed.

Will location scouting with Dad.

Playing at the park for cousin Brenna's birthday in September.

At the pumpkin patch.

Trick or Treat! Elsa was a queen (not a princess). Henry was King Arthur (not a knight). And Will was a knight with 2 shields because I wouldn't let him have a sword. Cousin Sadie joined us for the trick or treating. It was such a warm night, and a wonderful time was had by all.

As a side note, Happy Joe (the dog) got his first taste of being the Halloween Fairy that night. A friend of Henry's told him that if you leave your candy out in the yard the Halloween Fairy comes and leaves you toys in place of the candy. Elsa put the candy bags out in the backyard unsupervised, so they were in easy reach for Happy. He was one sick dog. I think there were only about 10 small pieces left when I found the bags.

Brandon went to Chicago to see his film at the Chicago International Children's Film Festival. Dave and Sarah were kind enough to put him up for the night. Thanks guys!

Well, I think that's about it for today. But here are a few of my favorite quotes from the kids that I need to write down.

Elsa: I don't like the airplane because it tries to put ghosts in my ears.

Elsa: Sometimes when I swallow, the food doesn't go down. It's like it's hanging on a bar in my throat. Milk never does that though, because it's too slippery to hang on a bar.

Henry praying: Thank you for a sister who is nice, a brother who is funny, a dad who is my best friend, a mom who is workful, and a dog who is really fast.

In the fall, Will got on a kick of saying "never" all the time if he didn't get what he wanted. As in, "Oh, I never eat cookies." Or "I never play star wars." So, we were in this endlessly long line at the Beehive Bazaar, and I was late to bring Elsa to school, and both Elsa and Will were hungry. But, I couldn't just leave the line because I had allowed them to eat this package of cookies, not realizing how awful it would be to try to pay for them. So, they were both whining, and Will said loudly, "Oh, I never am happy!" The lady behind me in line started laughing and said, "if only we were all so honest about our emotions." Then she heard me explain to Elsa and Will how we had to stay in line because we couldn't leave without paying for the cookies they had eaten. And then, that saint of a lady behind me told me to hand her the empty package of cookies and she would pay for them. She said, "Just take your kids and go. I've been there before, and now all my kids are at school and I can shop in peace. You can just return the favor to someone else once all your kids are at school and you're in my shoes." I was so grateful I almost cried. In fact, I think I did once I got in the car.

Elsa's Birthday

2008-08-31T20:12:00.000-07:00

Tonight I was reading Stewart Little with Henry, and then told him to go get ready for bed. I went to help William with his pajamas and Henry came in and asked me where I had put Stewart Little. "Put your jamas on first, then you can read some more," I said.

"But I need to go to the bathroom first." He answered.

"So?"

"And you always read a book when you're in the bathroom."

"oh."

"And I want to be just like you."

Well, I'm honored. Thankfully, I didn't take any pictures. But I did take a few pictures of Elsa's recent birthday party. She just turned 5 and for her party we had a reptile show at the Monte L. Bean Museum at BYU.

Independence Day

2008-07-13T20:26:00.000-07:00

Here's a few pictures from our 4th of July festivities.

So far this summer has been pretty sweet. I've taken Henry and Elsa to see both Wall_E and Speed Racer, and they loved them both. We've done some hiking, some bike riding, and a lot of swimming. All three of the kids took swim lessons for two weeks and are now fearless towards the water. Henry took a big step last time we went to Veterans Pool and went down the big white slide all by himself! Another step on the road to manhood.

will turns 2

2008-06-08T21:41:00.000-07:00

William is 2 years old now. We celebrated his birthday this weekend by going to the duck park and then coming back to our house for pizza and presents. Kim and Cynthia, Grandpa and Grandma Arnold, and Jess and Sadie all came with us. Will thoroughly enjoyed himself--throwing bread to the ducks, climbing and sliding, eating, playing with the new presents. He wasn't too keen on opening up the presents. Not that he didn't love getting presents, he just wanted to play with whatever he had just opened and couldn't be bothered with opening another one. We borrowed a ride-on Thomas train from a friend, and it was pretty entertaining. Will even had to feed Thomas some of his cake, telling him, "cake is nummy."

Will is such a sweet boy, most of the time. He is a sucker for hugs and kisses. If I smile at him from across the room, he will drop whatever he is doing and run to me saying, "Huggy, huggy huggy." He has started putting an y ending on things now. He saw my visiting teacher, an older lady who lives 2 doors down named June, walking past our house, and he ran up to her and hugged her legs. I don't think he even recognized her, but she was pleased. He also spends a good portion of the day play-fighting in a way that hurts Henry and Elsa, so his sweetnes is tempered with a lot of loud craziness. I can almost see the testosterone coursing through that boy.

The day of Will's birthday, I took the kids to the McDonald's playland because it was rainy and cold. They played with their friends, Sylus and Finn, and ate ice cream. There were two little girls that were about Will's age but a lot smaller, and he kept calling them babies and trying to hug them, much to their dismay. His new words for the day were "car" (because he got one in the mail from Chuck and Kris) and "backpack" (because he loves Dora). He was walking around today singing D-d-Dora D-d-Dora.

growing up is hard to do

2008-05-25T20:40:00.000-07:00

This week Henry has had 2 experiences that make me want to stop time so he can maintain his sweet innocence. On Monday, we were on our way home from the park when he told me that a group of kids (one 2nd grader and about four 1st graders) was laughing at him in the bathroom.
Me: Why were they doing that?
Henry: Because I pull my pants down and they can see my butt when I pee.
Me: Well, how do the other kids do it?
Henry: I don't know.
Me: Maybe they just unzip their pants and only pull their underwear down in the front.
Henry: Oh. I wish they just had doors on the bathroom so no one could see my bum.
Me: Me too. But, we can practice having you go to the bathroom the other way.

So, what's the deal with not letting boys pee in privacy? Aren't there enough perverts around that our little boys shouldn't have to expose themselves every time they go to the bathroom? It made me very angry.

Innocence-stealing experience #2: Henry's class wrote story books. They did a couple of drafts in school, and the teacher typed it up for them, and they drew pictures. Then, they got to go read their books to the kindergartners. Henry's story was about a ricken--a cross between a rooster and a chicken. (I guess he didn't understand that that just meant it was transgender.) Henry read the book to me, and when we got to one of the pages, he had crossed out everything the teacher had typed and written something else above it. Henry's original story said, "He went to find a wife to marry. He walked into the woods and found a chicken and they got married. They had 18 children." He crossed that part out and wrote, "He went to the woods. He saw a duck food. He ate it." I asked him why he changed it and he said it was because he didn't want the other kids to laugh at him.

So sad to me that he has to grow up so fast. But, it seems like the other kids in his class really like him--even the ones who were laughing at him in the bathroom. So, he'll be fine. He does have to learn these things sometime. I just wish it weren't quite so soon.

siblings and soup

2008-05-14T21:51:00.000-07:00

Today at lunch, Elsa was excited that Will learned how to say juice instead of just ju. She was thinking he was funny, and she said, "I'm glad I have a little brother, and I'm glad my little brother is William."

Will discovered the cans and packages of soup and was really excited about them, so we had soup for lunch and dinner. Will started eating first, and Elsa thought he might like the talking Eeyore to keep him company. He started telling Eeyore all about the soup and feeding it to him--"n' is soup. n' is hot. n' is nummy."

Anytime I get out the camera, Henry needs his camera too. He is actually a decent photographer if we let him use the real camera.

i'm a little busy right now

2008-05-05T20:40:00.000-07:00

Elsa has become the queen of projects. She always has some creation that she works very intently on for hours. I will ask her to play something or read with me or make her bed, and she'll say, "I'm a little busy right now." (Hmmmm . . . I wonder where she's heard that.) Last week she decided to make a bird house. She planned out the whole thing by herself--made the hole for the door, cut out 4 triangles for the roof and said she was going to tape them into a pyramid, etc. I only helped tape everything together, since someone needed to hold it while the other one taped. I even questioned her roof design, but it worked. Not bad for 4 years old. Each wall of the house had a different bird picture on it, and she gathered sticks to make a nest inside, and made a handle to carry it.

Meanwhile, Will was busy in the sandbox. He loves sand and dirt, as evidenced by the floor always being dirty and the piles of laundry.

fun on the farm

2008-04-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

In honor of Henry's 2-day spring break, Brandon took the day off and we went to the Wheeler family farm. The kids loved it, and I learned to bring an extra change of clothes for Will when we do anything that messy. He tried to throw food to the ducks and got up as close to the fence as he could. But, there was a drop-off before the fence (thanks Wheeler family farm), and he ended up about a foot deep in water. We decided to feed the chickens the duck food instead, as they were much more appreciative. Elsa, the little naturalist, cried when we said it was time to go. She could have stayed there all day.

Will loved feeding the horse hay.

Elsa and Will in the tree house.

Elsa and Henry got to milk a cow. It was the highlight of their trip by far, even though the cow relieved itself while they were waiting in line, so there was quite a stench in the crowded barn.
Henry looks so cute until we decide to take his picture, and then he makes this face.

chapter books and buckles

2008-04-21T20:39:00.000-07:00

This last weekend Henry discovered a love of chapter books. He has been reading simple chapter books for a while now, but he hasn't really gotten into them. But, on Saturday night we took him to the Orem library and asked the librarian for suggestions. He came back with 3 new books, and he had finished the first one by 10:00 Sunday morning. He kept saying, "This is such a good book." (It was the first Secrets of Droon book, if you're wondering.) Sunday he also finished "Stink," and today he started on the first Moondoggle and Me book and is almost done with that. It's fun to see him completely immersed in books.

Will has discovered a love of buckling seatbelts. I thought it was cute at first, but it has become a source of much frustration to us both. Every time I try to put him in the car, he just wants to stand next to his carseat and do the buckles. It takes all my force to wrestle him into his seat. He is amazingly strong. Once he can see the buckles in front of him, he calms down momentarily. He can get the chest buckle, but he still can't quite do the bottom buckle, and he screams for the first minute of every car ride because I do it for him. We have the same struggle over the booster seat at the dinner table, but it's a little simpler because he can buckle himself in that one. I remember dealing with this with Elsa, but I think she was 2 1/2, not 1 1/2. Oh well. He has to get over it sometime.

Henry successfully taught Will how to sing "neener neener neener" at the park today. Elsa has been super sweet with Will today, sharing cookies with him and cheering him down the slide. She read her own "chapter book" tonight before bed by sticking 2 of her Bob books together.

Just so I don't forget some funny things that they said in the last few months, here are some recent gems:

Brandon had made the kids lunch. Elsa sat down to a peanut butter sandwich placed directly on the table and lukewarm tap water and said, "Ahhh, the freshness of lunch."

Brandon was reading scriptures with Henry and it talked about being diligent. Henry asked what it meant, and after Brandon explained it, Henry said, "I'm diligent at playing video games."

halloween pictures

2008-04-20T20:46:00.001-07:00

Wil-bot.

Elsanator.

hal 9000.

3 robots and a cousin named Sadie.

Hi

2008-04-20T20:30:00.000-07:00

Here's some pictures from the last few months.