Potato Head

We get weird on Sunday mornings.

Baby Shower (nope, not for me)

Had my first experience helping host a baby shower this past weekend. Wow. It was a lot of fun, and not too much work. I am always blown away by how generous and kind people are when someone is having a baby. There were people in our old ward in California who were SO generous when I had Brennan and Abby that I really feel the need/desire to pay it forward.

Anyway, my friend and Primary music cohort Camille is having her first baby--a girl--around Christmastime. She was put into the Primary almost as soon as she and her husband moved into the ward, so this was also a great opportunity for her to meet people and them to meet her! And I think everyone had a good time. Of course, the chocolate fountain helped. (Abby's favorite part)(caught you, Michelle!)Just kidding. Although I think Patrick and Kellen were grateful for it. Having a house full of 20 women/moms talking about babies and pregnancy, etc. can be kind of tough for the guys that HAVE to be there. There was a lot of really good food and an absolutely beautiful cake that Camille's mother-in-law and her friend provided. I wish I'd taken pictures of that table. (I forgot.)

If anyone is reading this who was there--THANK YOU for helping us out! The food wasn't exactly all set up and perfect when everyone showed up, so we all hung out in the kitchen/family room and bonded for the first 10-20 minutes or so.

And many, many thanks to Kathy and Amy for helping to make this such a success!

Oh... and this was my first diaper-cake-making experience. Here's how it turned out:FYI it's a cake made out of diapers. (Yep, Cy--this is what I was working on when I was talking to you but not really paying attention... sorry) There's no way I could actually make a cake look like that! (But I bet Camille's mother-in-law's friend Shelly could!) I just hope that Camille does actually take it apart (even though she threatened not to), because there's cool stuff inside.

Chandelier

I have learned that I am not an electrician. Thankfully, it wasn't too much of a shock. (heh, heh)

We had this atrocious (we thought--sorry if anyone likes it) chandelier that came with our dining room. I didn't care too much about it until we got our new dining table and chairs that were totally NOT in the same style.
So on the very day that our table and chairs arrived (about 6 weeks ago), I thought I'd see what it would take to get the thing down and prepped for a new chandelier. I unscrewed a couple of things. But when I saw all the wires in the ceiling, I figured it would be a good thing to find the circuit breaker box and turn off the power to the room so I wouldn't have problems.

Well, I couldn't find the box. So I figured I'd put things back and deal with it later. In fact, I didn't find the box until a couple of hours later, when my lovely neighbor across the street came over and directed me. It's not in the garage. Not in the basement or the crawl space. Nope--on the outside wall of the garage, around the corner from the service door. Weird.)

Anyway, so I rescrewed the chandelier back into the ceiling. Looked great. Thought I'd test it out by turning on the dimmer. And then I heard a distinct "pop". And the light would not turn on.

At this point, I had totally thwarted all of Patrick's plans to study on our nice new big table. Thanks to the time change and the time of year, there's not much daylight after he gets home from work. So this is how things looked for a couple of weeks.
It made a great toy for Sander when I was holding him and on the phone at the same time--he loved to whack the crystal things.

Part of the problem was that I had special ordered the new chandelier from Lowe's, and it was a few weeks in coming. But it finally arrived about a week ago, and we had an electrician come fix whatever problem I had created and install the new one.

Things are looking much brighter these days!

Abby the Determined Artist

Got some poster paints for the kids to try out. They've usually just worked with watercolors, and Brennan totally soaks the paper every time. So I thought he might like poster paints since the color is a little bolder. Instead, I think he felt a need to use up ALL the paint on one piece of paper. It started out with nice patches of each color that touched but didn't overlap. But then he started coloring over the top of the colors. And then it was just one big piece of damp paper that was predominantly brown and black... and took some time to dry. I think we'll stick with watercolors--they're cheaper.

Abby is the opposite of Brennan in this respect (and many others): Brennan piles all his colors on one piece of paper. She uses about 3 colors, and then she needs a new sheet. When she had used up almost all her paints, I took away her brushes, put her paints up, and told her we were done. And then came back from changing Sander's diaper to find this:

Thank goodness she was not on our "bisque" carpet! (yes, that really is the color of the carpet--just learned that)

Adventures in Squash: Part II

After the whole pumpkin experience (which is still ongoing, as I have a couple smaller ones to cook and mash today), I decided to tackle the butternut squash which had been sitting on my counter for a month or two. Usually our strategy with butternut squash is to roast it with brown sugar and butter. We eat it with dinner that night, put the leftovers in the fridge, and I throw them out a week later.

So I thought I'd try to be a little creative. We had some avocadoes on hand, and tortillas and sour cream, so I thought I'd find out what happens when butternut squash meets Mexican food. We ended up with a butternut squash soup that had onion, garlic, carrots, hominy (lots), cumin, some chili powder, smashed tortilla chips... Then I pureed it in the blender and added lots of cheese and a little milk for the right consistency. And we served it with more cheese, guacamole, sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips. (Sander is such a great food model

What amazed me was that my kids actually ate it! ALL of them! (for those of you who don't know, Brennan subsists mainly on a diet of corn dogs, chicken nuggets, mac 'n' cheese, pears, string cheese, and the occasional dinner we make that is acceptable to him--ravioli, spaghetti)

Since the soup was mostly orangeish in color, I had Brennan convinced that it was cheese soup. He even ate it as leftovers the next day! We'll have to try this again...He's way excited, because he knows he's getting dessert!Look who's decided he can feed himself! (I know--I'm either WAY too confident of his abilities or just lazy. He's got no bib on in these pictures. I think I'll go with lazy.)

Kids Reading (sorta)

I came out from putting Sander down for his morning nap one day, and this is what I found when I closed his door ever so quietly. (You can see Sander's door to Brennan's left.) Brennan and Abby had emptied their laundry hampers (yes, dirty clothes onto the floor), dragged them down the hall, grabbed some books and blankies, and set up post. They didn't even notice me taking their picture.

It made me smile. I hope my kids grow up loving to read, because I do!

Abby is surrounded by princess books, and Brennan is immersed in Go Dog, Go!

(Yes, they are still in jammies--I think that was kind of a slow morning... like most.)

Brennan's World

Brennan has become a prolific creator of sorts. Just about everyday I stumble across one of his creations.

This was what he did while we were cooking pumpkin. He says it's "my building." I know--it looks like a mess. I found this one night after they had gone to bed. I think Abby helped him put it together while I did the dishes and put Sander to bed. He says it's a rocket. But the rocket has already gone up "to the air" (in the sky).

This was the following day. (Yes, I try to clean them up on a regular basis. I know--I'm so mean! But it doesn't stifle his creativity--I think it encourages it!) I must have gotten mad about this one, because all he remembers about it is having to clean it up with Abby. And he says he doesn't want to build it again.

Close up. It just amazes me how much stuff he fits together. And it's not like he just throws it there. He places everything individually just so. Detail-oriented doesn't begin to describe the boy...

Brennan has found he really likes playing with the dollhouse people and furniture outside the dollhouse. Here's one. He says they are sleeping (sorry to the daddy--no blankie for you). They might've just had a picnic in the backyard (this was next to the dollhouse--where the boy "Brennan" doll and the cat were hanging out). (It's convenient that the dollhouse family has a mom, a dad, a boy, a girl, and a baby.)

And then this one was last night:
My favorite part was that the dad is in the kitchen, while the mom and the kids and the cat are all at the table. (Patrick does cook a fair amount! Thank goodness!)

I asked Brennan what we were eating, and he said we weren't eating anything. But we were feeding the cat. (Don't know if you can see the cat's purple food dish and the Fancy Feast.)

He said that the daddy was making pumpkin pie.

In addition to these that I've actually recorded, he and Abby (daily) take my pie plates all over the house, and put random things in them, and then stick them in the drawer beneath the oven, saying they're making "Spiderman Pumpkin Pie" or just cookies or cake in general. Is that really what it looks like when I'm baking? I just throw stuff together... (thankfully, it's stuff they can't access--like flour and sugar and butter and such) Sander just constantly rearranges the plastic Rubbermaid leftover containers (i.e. throw them all over the kitchen floor), and pulls bowls, the rest of the pie plates, etc. out onto the floor and bangs everything around. Which would explain why I feel like I spend my entire life cleaning!

Crazy Kids

We were up at Catherine's about a week after Halloween, and this is how the kids (Brennan, Abby, Lucas, Alex) chose to spend their time. Mind you, it was in the 30s or 40s outside. And Lukie did not have a shirt underneath his conductor's vest. Brennan took off all his clothes (almost) before donning the Buzz Lightyear outfit. Hmmm... maybe this is how they cope with the post-Halloween letdown?Alex the spider looks a little depressed here, though.

Even when they came inside, the costumes stayed on. (Abby wore Brett's costume--it was big and toasty warm. FYI Brett and Alex were Calvin & Hobbes for Halloween...)

It's always a blast at Catherine and Steve's house!

Pumpkins

About 4 days after Halloween, we decided to cut up and cook some pumpkin into (real) pies. Brennan and Abby were more than happy to help (Sander was napping)... although in the end, this was the help I got: Abby ended up mushing together the pumpkin top, seeds, and gook into "a pumpkin pie for Lukie." (her cousin)She just kept slapping it all together, seeds and stringies everywhere! And Brennan mostly watched. And posed with his pumpkin for me.That one avoided the chopping block... for now. Since we ended up with 6 cups of pumpkin just from the one big one we cut up--and in order to roast it, it took up the whole oven! I know, I should try the boiling or microwaving method. Maybe this week with the smaller ones I have left. (Thank goodness pumpkins don't go bad on the kitchen counter--at least not yet!)

But the 6 cups of pumpkin eventually (over the course of a couple weeks and after some time in the freezer) turned into 2 pumpkin pies and a wonderful pumpkin cake with cream cheese frosting. With some help from me.

Sour Puss

Abby woke up one morning in a sour mood, so I took her picture.

When I showed it to her, she started giggling. Who wouldn't?

What did we ever do before digital cameras?

5 Things

My cousin-in-law Erika tagged me (I never do this stuff!), so here goes (hope I don't bore you to tears...):

5 things I was doing ten years ago:
in the middle of my sophomore year at BYU
first semester as English major, after determining I couldn't hack it as a piano/organ perfomance major
recovering from breaking off engagement to Mr. Wrong (as in, not right!)
working at the BYU Staff/Administrative Employment Office
living at Sparks

5 things on my to-do list today (I'll do tomorrow, since Sunday's done):
get Brennan to preschool
Thanksgiving shopping!! (and gingerbread house stuff too)
start the next round of laundry (it never ends...)
update the family finances
clean the bathrooms

5 snacks I like:
CHOCOLATE (chips, usually--they're so convenient!)
apples
string cheese
bread
microwave popcorn

5 things I would do if I was a millionaire:
invest!
travel--all over the US and to Europe!
find a cool way to share/give to others--establish a foundation, scholarship fund, something like that
umm... that about covers it

5 places I have lived:
California
Utah
Switzerland
Alaska
Colorado

5 jobs I have had:
newspaper girl (had a paper route for almost 10 years!)
employment specialist @ BYU
supermarket cashier (in Switzerland--at Migros)
sister missionary (does that count? it's more a lifestyle than a job, but...)
MTC (Missionary Training Center) teacher

5 people I tagged:
Catherine
Liz
Kristine
Valeri
Rebecca

Remember This?

I came across the funniest thing in my blog reading... so for those of you who haven't seen this, and need a dose of old-school Nintendo, check this out:

What did we ever do for random entertainment before YouTube?

SUPERDAD

It's not just that Patrick successfully juggles work, school, us, and whatever else he does... but just look at this! Almost 100 lbs. of kids!! (40 for Brennan, 30 for Abby, almost 30 for Sander...)It's all I can do to get just 2 of them at the same time.

Happy Halloween!

Here we are, getting ready to go out trick-or-treating. By ourselves. Patrick had Friday night class, so he missed out on ALL the fun... We finally left around 6:20 p.m.

Can you tell that Abby's supposed to be a flower? And Brennan is the only Buzz Lightyear I know who insists on rolling up his sleeves. Always. Even if it interrupts his laser beam.My favorite part of Sander's costume was the back--the little wings and the stinger coming out of his behind. Here he is attacking Brennan, a.k.a. Buzz Lightyear. (He loves to do that anytime, not just dressed up as a bumblebee.)We made it back home around 7:30 p.m. We only went up and down one street (the one that goes by the side of our house), and that was more than enough for these guys.Here's Sander working through our (small) stash, dumped out all over the floor. Thankfully, he can't open anything. Yet.

They got pretty good at saying "trick or treat" and liked looking at people's pumpkins. They were not very excited about any houses that looked scary. (Incidentally, Abby loved the big inflatable Halloween things at Costco, but in the dark, that sort of thing became entirely different, and she wanted nothing to do with it!)Brennan's favorite candy? Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Takes after his dad. And his mom. He was showing it off to me--the one he found--but failed to look up when I actually took the picture.Sander's favorite post: by the front door taking all the candy out of the bowl. We must've been out when everyone came to our house, because we hardly handed out any candy... until about 8:30, when some teenage boys from the ward stopped by. Patrick poured out the bowl into their bags, leaving about 10 pieces for us. (I was a little disappointed initially, to be honest--I wouldn't have minded disposing of it myself--but this was really all for the best, as I no longer have a teenage metabolism.)

PARTY Time! (for Abby)

Bring on the princesses! (Brennan was "Prince Charming" to them all! Nope, just kidding. Since they all had crowns, he wore his Spiderman hat.) The Saturday after Abby's birthday, October 25, was her long-awaited PRINCESS PARTY.

Really, what more could a girl want than a princess tea party with her friends (complete with chocolate-dipped strawberries)....

... the opportunity to run around crazy after errant pink balloons with those friends... (why did I even try to do organized games?)... a pink castle cake (chocolate inside, of course)......and lots of presents?

(Love all the rings on her fingers...)

It was a heavenly day for Abby, who strongly believes she is a princess EVERY day, and for her friends. We moms had a pretty good time, too. (Thanks for the help!)

(Too bad that BYU tanked that afternoon.)

Abby is 3!

(If you're ever talking to Abby on the phone, this is what she looks like. Unless she's wandering the house with you, which she often does. She loves being on the phone. Already.)

It's happened. Abby is a 3. I know it's cliche, but where does the time go?

She was lucky enough to have her birthday be one day, and her (princess) party be another. I had to relent on the party thing--she'd been talking about her princess party for at least the last 6 months. (My fault--it was the only way I could get her to step away from the princess cupcakes at Sam's Club.)

On her birthday, she got to wear her princess dress all day:Here she is, opening her present from Grandma Susie and Grandpa Steve. She was convinced the the princess riding the "horsie" on the birthday card was HER. She loves horsies.This is Brennan enjoying Grandma Susie' and Grandpa Steve's present later that day. Thanks, Mom and Dad!On the phone with Grandma Linda and Grandpa Paul... with her new purple baby dolly. Abby LOVES her dolly. Thanks, Grandma Linda and Grandpa Paul! And she wore her new dress the following Sunday:She looks so grown up!

And He's Up...

I'm a little late in spreading the news. Sander started walking October 18, and gets more and more independent everyday. Yikes! He's our youngest walker so far, at 13-1/2 months. Go kid!

I love the look on his face... he is so EXCITED to be up and about!

Now he's expanding his skill set by carrying as much as possible while walking. And drinking out of his straw cup at the same time. He also likes to go down the driveway as fast as possible (not Mom's favorite)--or just go anywhere as fast as possible. Thankfully, his speed has not yet arrived. Yet.

(Sorry 'bout the funky audio. Someone was on the piano, and Brennan was talking to someone else. Loudly. That's usually my life.)