The Prodigal Sheep

A few weeks ago Ben leaned over to me during church and told me that he had to give a talk in primary that day. I told him that it was kind of too late to plan a talk but gave him my scriptures and told him to just find a scripture, read it to them, and tell what he thinks/feels about it. He told me he wanted to talk on baptism so I helped him find a scripture on baptism. But after reading it he handed me back my scriptures and told me that he'd decided to tell the parable of the Lost Sheep. I asked him if he knew it and he assured me he did. (I realized he probably did because he reads either the New Testament or the Book of Mormon reader pretty much every day but was still very curious to see how it would turn out.) :)

Rob and I went and sat in the back of the primary room during senior primary opening exercises and waited with baited breath to see what he'd say. When it was his turn he stood up and calmly said, "I'd like to tell the parable of the Prodigal Sheep." He then went on to relate the parable of the lost sheep, quite well in fact. He even included, in his own words, the part where Jesus explains the meaning to the pharisees (I think...Ben could tell you). :) However, at the end of the narrative he looked over at us and so I mouthed "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen" to him because he'd recently born his testimony in sacrament meeting and forgotten that part. Ben divined what I was mouthing to him but must have been not quite sure because he said, "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen" but ended it like a question, and sat down. :)

Despite our amusement we were really proud of him! :)

I Take That Back

I changed my mind again.

No more nicknames or pseudonyms for my blog! :)

BUSTED!!

Last night I really needed to go out. Maybe it was the cleaning all day (and coming home to my own house not being clean AND no dinner on the table)... So my sweet husband fed the kids dinner and then we told them that they could watch a movie while we were out if they promised to turn it off at 8:30 and go to bed since it was a school night. They promised whole-heartedly. (Of course!)

We went to a sushi place and had a great time talking, relaxing and eating California rolls, tempura, and teriyaki chicken. After we ate we walked over to the movie theater to see if there was a movie we wanted to see. We were 10 minutes late for the one that Rob liked so we decided to wait for the next showing in about 45 minutes. Since we live 5 minutes from the theater we decided to go home and check on the kids while we waited.

We got home a little before their 'bedtime' so we decided to prowl around the house and peek in the windows to see what they would do at 8:30. They were both engrossed in the show (you can hardly blame them... I don't watch the clock when I'm watching a show). :P Rob kept joking about pounding on the windows or door to freak them out but we decided that it wouldn't be very nice so instead we decided to just ring the doorbell and see what they did. (We've had a hard time drilling into them that they DON'T OPEN THE DOOR while we're gone.) We also decided that of course they'd open the door if they saw it was us so Rob pressed the door bell and squeezed himself against the wall, out of sight of the window or peep hole. (I was hiding around the other corner on the porch.) Nothing happened so he pressed it again. Again nothing. He proceeded to press it several times in succession during which I looked out to the street and realized, "Shoot!! So much for hiding...our car is right in front of the house!!" A few seconds later we heard the slow creak of the front door inching open and saw "The Avatar" (or BR) peek through. Rob and I laughed, yelling, "BUSTED!" but in the end we weren't sure if it was they who were busted or us. :)

New Nicknames

FYI: as I continue to keep my blog public, I continue to feel compelled not to broadcast too much personal information, especially about my kids. However, I'm needing a change in their pseudonyms so in future posts

MC = Princess Buttercup, Princess or Buttercup

BR = The Avatar or just Avatar

The Three Days of Birthday

I don't know what I started...or in hindsight exactly why...but on Sunday (March 8th) I gave MC the choice about when to celebrate her birthday. I said we could do it Sunday night, Monday night, or Tuesday night (tonight, her real birthday...or as Jan pointed out birth anniversary). Well, what would almost any little girl choose?? NOW!! :) And I asked her if she'd feel bad if she didn't have any presents to open on her birthday because she got them all early and she informed me that she didn't NEED presents...on her birthday that is. ;)

So Sunday evening we had dinner, then had and "Ice Cream Sandwich Cake", then opened presents from

• Grandma Carol and Grandpa Don
• BR
• Grandma Paula and Grandpa Jan (who happened to be there)
• Rob and I

This is what she got:

• ipod shuffle (see exhibit A)
• 8 year old figurine/doll to add to her birthday figurine collection from Grandma Carol and Papa Don
• a little wooden jewelry box with some little glass/stone carved animals (BR came to me Sunday afternoon and started asking if he could give her some of my things for her birthday, mighty generous of him eh? ;) After rummaging around in boxes of storage we found some things he could give her...and she actually seems to like them more than some of the gifts we paid money for!! Go figure.)
• a Cinderella Polly Pocket type doll with a changeable head and lots of clothes and accessories
• itunes gift card
• an outfit (a skimp...which I just learned is one of those dresses that you wear with capri leggings underneath, capri leggings, some canvas wedge shoes...that she just loves...she really likes shoes!!)
• a lamb webkinz...she's been wanting a webkinz so we decided to indulge her :P (See Exhibit A)
• a journal with a locket to keep it shut (one day she was shopping at "Justice" with some of her money and debated between a journal that locks and a bunch of cosmetic type items...she chose the cosmetics but it was a tough choice!
• some walkie talkie cell phones (I thought she would be all over these because she's got all kinds of fake or old dead cell phones that she carries around and pretends to talk on or wants us to pretend with her...so far the people who've shown the most interest in these little pink cell phones are the menfolk in the family. See exhibit B)

Exhibit A:

*she didn't like the ear buds so she's using some old headphones she had instead.

MC can hardly be seen without her ipod these days

and can generally be expected to speak to you at a very high volume.) ;)
She's holding "lamby" her webkinz

Exhibit B:

After the presents "The Birthday Girl", as she began referring to herself, wanted first to put some music on her and listen to it, second to go online and adopt/play with her virtual lamby. Then it was bedtime.

The next day....still not her birthday....I surprised her with another gift. A trip to my sister's salon to get her hair cut/styled and her finger and toe nails done. She loved the surprise and getting all dolled up. At home she piped up at any opportunity with "the birthday girl" ;)

*MC's new outfit and hairdo

Finally today was her real birthday and we wished her a happy birthday and she didn't have to do chores (a tradition from my childhood that I loved) and she got to watch a movie and I played a game with her, but besides that....and the fact that she mentioned that she's the birthday girl at any privilege or opportunity that came up...it was a pretty uneventful birthday.

...I wonder if she liked that it was like 3 days of birthday,
or if she felt the glory of her actual birthday diminished by
the way we did it....hmmmm....I guess I'll have to ask her.

*ready for bed on the night of her actual birthday

A few perks that MC is excited about that come with being 8:

1. She's legally free from the Utah state law of car seat until 8
2. She gets to go to Activity Days (which is like Merrie Miss for those who are just figuring these things out like I am) :)
3. And most importantly, she gets to be baptized (BTW we've changed the projected date to May 2nd due to conflicting schedules for the end of March...but now it seems that May might conflict too...oh well, we try) :)

Also of note for Molly's 8th year:

• we just got her teeth checked and she continues to be cavity free!! (How jealous am I?!?! I think I need another root canal....I'm amazed at my children's and husband's teeth!! I think they're made of ROCK!)
• she's 4'1" tall
• she's 52.5 lbs
• she wears size 7 in almost everything (except her long torso takes a size 8 in shirts)

I'm So Proud of My Kids...

My kids continually amaze me in the things that they know or can do!!

BR wrote a really cute poem the other day for school and I asked him if I could post it and he said I could...

I am
By BR

I am a wonderer seeking to build something new.
I wonder about how phoenixes and dragons are born.
I hear the thrust of jet engines.
I see a jet zoom by.
I want the best family in the world.
I am a wonderer seeking to build something new.

I pretend to be a Thunderbird.
I feel creativity in my mind.
I touch the wonder of imagination.
I worry about my parents’ love for each other.*
I cry when I lose someone I love.
I am a wonderer seeking to build something new.

I understand when my dad gives me advice.
I say what I have to say.
I dream of adventure.
I try to improve my efforts.
I hope I can live with my family forever.
I am a wonderer seeking to build something new.

*This line made me worry and wonder so I asked him about it and he told me that he worries about whether we love each other when we have a disagreement or an argument. :'( We realized that we need to be more demonstrative about our resolutions and makeups, and that the shocking part of the disagreement is what really stands out in their minds and memories.

P.S. There's more to come about my kids but that's all I have time for today. :)

Another Petition To All You Creative People I Know!!

We had our Home study on Saturday for the adoption!! It turned out well and we're so relieved to have it over with!! GM had an interview with our caseworker yesterday and she said we'd be approved by the end of the month!!! I have a good feeling about this, and feel like she's out there somewhere and she'll find us!

We've been working on our website for birth mothers to view once we're approved and it's almost done:

• we uploaded 26 pictures of us as a family, us as a couple, and us individually with our kids
• we answered a ton of questions about our favorites and all that
• we wrote our letter to the birth parents (a LONG time ago) :P

and so now our last step is to write a teaser that will entice birth mothers/fathers to choose to open our profile and look at us amongst the vast sea of potentials!

We have ~200 characters to grab their attention and invite them to see more....

below are a few examples of real life teasers:

• Two Angels have delivered to us gifts from God. Could our third angel be you?
• "Children are like wet cement. Whatever falls on them makes an impression." Haim Ginott
• **** "Where there is great love there are miracles." We are a fun family of 4 waiting for our miracle. Click on us to find out more and visit us at www.earlandkatie.blogspot.com*****

The profiles are on this website.

HELP!! :)

When Johnny Comes Marching Home...

My brother Johnny came home from his mission last night and it turned out to be a rather traumatic experience for BR.

Johnny is pretty much my son's #1 hero/idol/role model, take your pick. BR has adored him ever since their first encounter when Johnny visited BR, MC and GM with me in CO when I was dating my wonderful husband. BR still has fond and vivid memories of that first weekend, as well as a myriad of memories since. Johnny has always been very good to my kids and treated them as equals and made them feel very important. It's no wonder BR adores him so much.

When Johnny left on his mission BR was distraught and couldn't believe that he wouldn't be able to see his favorite uncle for 2 whole years!!!! (And frankly, BR didn't have a very high opinion of missions due to this unspeakable separation!) He wrote him sporadically but spoke of him often and planned from day 1 what welcome home gift he would buy for Johnny!!

The day arrived at last (to which we had a major count down) but alas Johnny got stuck in Atlanta due to weather conditions and his flight was delayed several hours. Consequently the welcome home party had to be delayed until the next night (tonight). You would have thought we were cutting off BR's arm. He tried to be very dignified about his terrible disappointment but you could tell that inside he was simply devastated that he was going to have to wait one more night to see John.

BR was so happy to finally see his hero tonight and rarely left his side. (Although he was tragic again when he wanted to invite Johnny over tomorrow night to play the wii with him but couldn't since BR and MC are spending the night at my sister's house....life can be so tough!!).

November 2006

The Rest of Our Nauvoo/Chicago Story....

We had a few days left before our return flight to SLC so this is what we did:

Friday we hit a water park. It was just the right thing to beat the heat!! BR wanted to invite his new-found friend/cousin: Spencer but they weren't able to make it. We had lots of fun anyway!! :)

On Saturday we tried to take the train into Chicago but alas it was going to eat up our whole day just waiting/riding/walking/returning from the train. We opted for driving and that helped but there were still drawbacks: traffic/propaganda/fog (so we couldn't see the great views of Chicago, ie the Sears Tower). Overall it worked for our good because we were able to go see the Museum of Science and Industry. That place was so cool and so huge that we all want to go back to Chicago just to go see it again!!! We wished we'd had about 2 days to spend there!! (Besides the rest of things to do/see in Chicago!)

The view we missed

*Photograph by J Crocker

Some of the highlights were:

• A scale model of the city of Chicago
• A live glass blowing/making exhibit
• A real German U-boat captured by the U.S. during WWII (Much to the disappointment of all, we didn't get to go inside because the tickets were sold out for the day!!!) :/
• A periscope from a real sub that we could look out of and see what was going on above us (outside the building)
• A submarine driving simulator that MC and BR got to take a turn driving. It was quite amusing to watch them and unfortunately their "mission failed" (they crashed). So that's another reason to go back. They want to try again. :)
• The kid's zone (which we had to race through because it was time to leave). :/

That evening we enjoyed dinner and socializing at the home of another of GM's cousins and her husband. We had a great evening there and the kids were quite dejected when it was time to leave.

Sunday morning we caught our airplane home and all were glad to be home.

*None quite so glad as BR because his grandparents had surprised him by moving out of his room the night before.

Nauvoo Family Reunion Last Day

(last day of the reunion that is)

On Thursday morning everybody who was going to see Carthage Jail had a rendezvous in the parking lot before heading out. On our way GM and I decided to stop at the temple one last time for some pictures.

In Carthage we had the tour with everybody,

posed for a group picture, had lunch and talked and played with cousins for a bit.

*Thanks Julie for the pics!!

After Carthage GM and I had a hankering for Ice Cream, it might have been due to the fact that there was a DQ just across the street. We couldn't help but stop.

With our treats in hand it was time to hit the road and head to Chicago for part 2 of our vacation. It was another long drive back, but thankfully this time it was not in the middle of the night. We stopped at a rest stop about halfway there...some of us were ready for more than a pit stop.

After playing for a while we saw a familiar car stop. It was Uncle Gary and Aunt Tina!! What are the odds?!?! :) They gave us directions to their house but once again we let Tiggy lead us astray and we took the long way. :P

That evening we spent with Uncle Gary, Aunt Tina, Amy and her kids, and Jason. It was a fun relaxing evening and we actually got time to spend talking, reminiscing and getting to know each other better. :P