Iditarod Party

Blythe and Lily Bradford

Today was the culminating event of the Iditarod unit that Blythe has been doing in school.  Mrs. Harrington loves the Iditarod, so her class does all sorts of fun things while The Last Great Race is going on.  Each student is assigned a musher that they follow as they race.  They read stories about the race and watched videos and learned a super irritating song that sticks with you long after the unit is over, the chorus of which says, "I did, I did, I did the Iditarod trail."  So fun!  

Today was the Iditarod party.  The students went after school for a party in their classroom.  They could wear their pajamas and bring blankets, and then they partied.  Here is Blythe's report.

When we went in, we got to play in the halls.  We could either slide on the floor or we could get on a blanket and have someone pull us around the halls.  Then we ate pizza and got juice and chips.  When we were done eating we got to go back out and play a little bit.  Then we went back in our classroom, got cozy, and watched Snow Buddies.  The movie is about six golden retrievers who went into an ice cream truck and then got accidentally shipped to the Iditarod.  We got to eat gorp while we watched the movie.

There you have it.  A super fun evening with school friends, miles from Alaska, celebrating the adventuring spirit of people and their dogs.

Costco Run

Mikayla and I made a run to Costco today.  Brick was in school so we only had two children.  That's still plenty!  Cora likes to get a flatbed cart, but she isn't at all contained when she's riding on it.  In an effort to keep her close by, I had her help me push.  Sort of.  She spent most of the time away from the cart, marching down the aisles.

In looking at these pictures, I can't help but say,

"What the heck am I wearing?  What's up with the running shoes and skirt?"

How embarrassing!

Feeling God's Love

We've been going through a rough patch the last month or so.  There has been great turmoil at work, and Kent has brought that turmoil home, causing unrest, conflict, and discomfort here.  It has been awful for him; he's been disrespected, accused of actions and responses that are completely fabricated, and made to feel that his eighteen year contribution to the growth of the company has been insignificant.  It's been bad.  We have worried that he was going to be fired, or that it was going to become so untenable that he would quit. 

Several weeks ago, when the unrest was at its peak, Kent told me he was thinking of quitting.  But, he said, if worst comes to worst, I could always get a job.  While this is absolutely true, I don't want to go back to work.  I've been out of the workforce for twenty years--TWENTY!!--and the idea of putting myself out there again is very nerve-racking.  It's not that I've been convinced that I'd never work again, but more that I figured I would get a little part-time job when the kids were gone and I needed something to do with myself. 

We had an emotional discussion on Thursday morning, just prior to me going to the temple.  I went very distraught, feeling that my comfortable, predictable, happy existence was coming to a sudden end.  That sounds far more dramatic than it actually was, but I was upset.  As I sat through the endowment session, I wept off and on, trying to compose myself and get control of my emotions.  I had been praying for direction and some indication that God knew what was going on.  During the group prayer, the brother who was praying asked Heavenly Father to let those of us who were in the session might be filled with faith and hope.  As he said those words, my soul was filled with a sense of calm and peace, the assurance that God knows all that is happening, that He loves us, and that I need to be faithful and hopeful.  In my mind, I saw it as faith-FULL, and hope-FULL.  As I sat in the Celestial Room at the end of the session, I looked at the large picture of Christ with his hands out, inviting me to come to Him, to remember his love, and to put my trust in Him. 

We still don't know how everything will play out.  We're several weeks past that incredibly stressful time, but all is not resolved.  We are not sure how long Kent will continue to work or if he'll be forced out.  We don't know what the future holds.  But though we can't see what's coming, we know that God loves us, that we love each other, and that we can rely on direction from the Spirit to help us through life's challenges.  This brings a great measure of peace and reassurance.

DeMartini Easter Party

Although Easter isn't for another week, we gathered with the DeMartinis to have a little Easter celebration as next week is general conference and Christopher and Tysen will be out of town.  We had a lovely meal with lamb chops and steak, beautiful salad and fruit, and rolls which I made that weren't quite what I had hoped, but slathered with raspberry jam were still delicious.  We also had an egg hunt.  The kids played, the adults talked.  And before we left, we read about Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem as it is Palm Sunday.  It was wonderful to be together. 

Dashing out to hunt for eggs.

Brandt found a broken egg, or had it break when he put it in his bucket.

I told Blythe I wanted a picture of her hunting for eggs.

This is what I got.

Brandt looked all over for eggs.  

Each kids was supposed to get 12 eggs. 

He had three.

Turns out, Rowen picked up about 30 eggs, leaving few for others.

Fortunately, Rowen was willing to share.

Food Web

It's August 16.  I'm only just getting around to asking Brandt about this activity from last school year.  When I asked him about it, he said, "We got these papers, and then . . . um . . . yeah."  I know it had something to do with the food web because the caption on Instagram said, "6th Grade Science Fun--learning about Food Webs."  Brandt apparently can't remember anything about food webs, and as I wasn't there, I can't help either.  But it looks like a fun activity, whatever it was.

Pineapple Juice

Today for dinner I made chicken Waikiki, a Merlynn recipe that everyone likes.  We had Richard Ledford come eat with us to celebrate his birthday which was on Friday.  Chicken Waikiki requires pineapple juice, so I bought a six pack of small cans and figured I would use it today and then the next time I made it.  Thing is, pineapple juice is very popular with a certain boy who lives with us.  Not only did he drink my extra cans, he took pictures of the cans and his consumption, just to document how fantastic it really is.

Selfie with pineapple juice

Family Feasting

We've enjoyed spending time with Uncle Charles while he has been here this week.  This evening, Charles made dinner for all of us.  He made his extra special pasta sauce, a mix of Doris', Christine's, and his recipes, fantastic garlic bread, and antipasto.  I brought salad, Mom did fruit and pie, and we feasted together while the children ran around.  Afterwards, we visited as we played cards.  It's been so great to have Charles here, and I'm thinking we need to make a trip to Seattle to see him.  And eat more pasta!

Lyla Gets Baptized

Our very most favorite Lyla was baptized today.  She has been so excited to be baptized, and we've been excited to be with her.  Uncle Charles has been in town this week, and we were especially delighted that he was able to be with us.  It is the first Mormon baptism he's ever attended.  I spoke about baptism, all the cousins sang I Like to Look for Rainbows, and Steve Cox talked about the Holy Ghost.  Kent acted as one of the witnesses and participated in the setting apart.  Because it wasn't on a regular baptism Saturday, Lyla was the only one, so it was all our family and friends, so there was a sweet, intimate feeling to the whole thing.  When Christopher had said the ordinance prayer and was ready to baptize her, Lyla got very nervous and said, "No. I don't want to do it."  She didn't like everyone watching her.  But Christopher convinced her it was okay, and she let it happen.  When the bishop said, "Lyla, now that you have been baptized . . . " she held up her finger, and interrupted him saying, "I was very nervous!"  We all chuckled.  He continued, "Now you get to have a special blessing and receive the Holy Ghost."  "I don't want to have a special blessing," she replied, but she did sit in the chair and was okay.  I was very teary through the whole thing, feeling the Spirit.  I just love going to baptisms because the Spirit is always so strong, and my testimony is strengthened as I remember how blessed I am to have the Holy Ghost.  We all went to Christopher and Tysen's afterwards for lunch, and enjoyed visiting and celebrating Lyla's special day.

This isn't a brilliant picture.

Alas.

Singers Makenna, Blythe, Andrew, Crew, Griffin, Luke, Mila, Blythe, Brick, Brandt,

Collin, Donovan, Vica, Ava, Lucy, Penny, Maizie, Lyla, Clivy, Ellie, Bree, Clivy, Madi

Brick wanted to sit on my lap during the baptism, and Vica wanted to sit next to me.

And Brandt always wants in on the action.

Those are some cute faces! 

Date Night

Uncle Charles is in town, and tonight we got together with him, my mom, Christopher and Tysen, and Mikayla and Guy for dinner and volleyball.  We ate a new-ish restaurant called Block, with a farm to table menu of delicious options.  My only complaint was that there wasn't more of everything I ate.  The volleyball game was fun; BYU won in four sets.  But it was most fun to be together and visit and connect.  Here's to going out!

Hiding Our Imperfections

I've begun having a small "Mom Lunch" on Wednesdays.  I've invited three moms with children still at home to come to a kid-friendly lunch where we can eat and visit and not worry about the kids running around.  I've done three, and so far, they have all been great.  It has been so fun to sit and chat and get to know the sisters in my ward better.  I hope those who are coming are liking it too.

I have found that I can get my house tidied up quite nicely, especially if my cleaning friends have come the day before, but I haven't gotten the dirty dishes cleaned before I've had to start working on food.  So I've just hidden away the dirties, presenting a clean kitchen where only a short time before there was a mess.  Last week I piled a bunch of stuff in the dishwasher, knowing I wasn't going to run the dishwasher with half of the stuff that was in it.  Before that, when I didn't have to use the oven, I hid them there.  Today, I carried a cookie sheet full of dirties into the laundry room.  I welcomed two sisters and their kids for lunch, and the kitchen looked great. 

But I've been wondering if it wouldn't have been better to just leave the dirty dishes out, on the counter or on the sink.  It would have been a truer representation of my life and my comfort level with a bit of disorder.  Would it have made the two sisters who were here actually feel more comfortable that I'm just a normal person with dirty dishes?  Would it have been better to show my imperfections?  I'm seriously NOT perfect in most every way.  I'm struggling with various issues, there are days when I'm a bit lazy and don't want to make much of an effort at anything, and when I'm entirely content letting it all go.  I try to be genuine in my interactions with people, non-judgmental, accepting of others where they are.  As I go into my sister's homes as I visit with them, I want them to be comfortable with my presence and not feel like I am looking around critically, either of them or their homes.  I want them to feel my love.  Love from an imperfect person trying to do good.  And maybe having my dirty dishes on display would be tangible evidence that I'm working on life, just like everyone else.  I don't have it all together, and that's okay.  Progress is good, we're working towards perfection, but it continues to be a work in progress.

Maybe next week I'll leave the dirty dishes in the sink.

Dirty dishes hiding in the laundry room.

Fourth Grade Ski Trip

Blythe and the other fourth grade students and Rock Canyon Elementary got to go skiing today.  They were supposed to go in December but we didn't have enough snow, so their trip was postponed until now.  They left right after school started and rode the bus to Sundance.  It was a gloriously beautiful day, sunny and not too cold.  It was Blythe's first time doing downhill skiing, and she said it was hard at first.  But it got easier, and the tow-rope was really fun.  She told me her ski boots squished her toes, like air was being squeezed out of them and they were losing circulation.  She received some instruction from Alison, who was very nice, and who told her how to do pizza (toes in), french fries (skis parallel), and how to go downhill.  When I've asked for more details from Blythe, said said, "That's all we did.  We learned and then we did."  Mrs. Harrington, Blythe's teacher, sent me two pictures, and I'm glad to have them.

Blythe and Lilly Bradford

Taco Head

Tomorrow evening we are having fifteen fellow ward members join us for dinner.  We are doing adult dinner groups this month, and Kent and I agreed to host one.  I'm really looking forward to it.  I'm going to make enchiladas and we'll have a Mexican fiesta, with other couples bringing chips and salsa, beans and rice, salad, fruit, drinks, and dessert.  I made a stop at Zurcher's today to see if there was anything I might need to spruce up the decor, and discovered for only $9.00, I could become the proud owner of my very own taco hat.  I was torn.  $9.00 is hardly any money at all, and I look really good in hats, but how ridiculous would I look wearing a taco hat all evening (REALLY ridiculous), and what would I do with it once the evening was over?  It stayed in the store.  But I did take a picture wearing it. 

Coming to dinner tomorrow:  Dan and Nancy Passmore, Erin and Brandon Johnson, Beth and Taylor Jackson, Don and Elaine Nelson, Lynn and Jonathan Paulus, Charleen and Eric Doman, Eric and Janine Ruff, Saneh Echols, plus Kent and me.  Should be a good time!

Field Trip Friday #88--A Wrinkle in Time

Months ago we saw a trailer for A Wrinkle in Time which came out today.  I remember my mother reading this book to me years and years ago, and I remembered that I liked it, but I didn't remember much else.  We saw the play at BYU several years ago, but I didn't remember much about that, either.  So when we saw the trailer, I decided that we needed to read it aloud as a family, in advance of the movie, so we could see it and all be familiar with the story.  We have been reading it over the past month or so, and we all really liked it.  Fantasy isn't always my favorite genre, but this one was fun.  It had the added benefit of having won the Newbery Medal, too.  

Today I took the kids to see the movie for Field Trip Friday.  We all liked it, but we all agreed that the book is better.  There is more of a focus on love being the power that can free us from evil and allows us to get out of ourselves and do good to those around us.  But it was a fun movie following a fun read.

Medieval Feast

Brandt has been doing a Medieval unit at school, learning about knights and ladies, warfare, societal hierarchies, and foodstuffs.  This past month he has been working to make a catapult, as well as complete a project of his choice.  He opted to make a sword and shield, a popular choice, I discovered.

For his sword, I saw on Pinterest someone who used a long paint stick, some large popsicle sticks, and electrical tape, plus some shiny silver spray paint to make a passable, non-threatening weapon that would be easy to put together.  Brandt loved it.  I loved the simplicity of the thing, and so we made it.

The shield was a bit more complicated, but not much.  Our very kind neighbor Jeff Niven has a band saw, and he helped Brandt cut out the thin board to a shield shape, curve it, then sand down the edges so nothing would be rough.  Uncle Lee attached arm and hand bands, and then I had him paint.  We used red and black spray paint, and he did a fine job.  We painted a red cross, then taped it off and painted the rest black.  Brandt was very pleased with the way it turned out.  Catapult assembly went quite well, too.  I bought a kit on Amazon, and over several days, Brandt glued parts together.

 

Today was the culminating event of the unit, the Medieval Feast!  Brandt has been talking about it for weeks and has been so excited.  It really was a feast.  Long tables were set up for the kids to eat at, with a kings and queens table set up on the stage.  There were two long tables full of an impressive variety of foods: chicken legs, fruit, veg, sweet breads with butter and jam, dried fruits, scones, pudding, cakes, and pies with either apple juice or ginger ale to drink.  Each student got to make their own place mat and choose where to sit.  There was entertainment at the request of the kings and queens, provided by the kids and Mrs. Neilson.  She danced and got the kids up doing a follow along dance (I've got video!), the Chicken Dance, and many of the students told jokes.  Mrs. Neilson also did the worm.  The things teachers are willing to do for their students.  Brandt wore an old Jedi Halloween costume that doubled nicely as a serf costume.  A ratty brown robe can be the basis for all sorts of things. 

When I asked Brandt to tell me about the day, he said, "While we were waiting to go down and place our food mat (the thing that we eat off of), we watched The Sword in the Stone."  He did seem to have a great time today, and loves being at school.  Three cheers for sixth grade!!

I don't know why this won't turn right side up.

Brandt drew the sword in the stone, the Holy Grail, and two dragons.

The completed sword and shield.

A fun castle made from Legos.

The Feast! 

I spy with my little eye --- a Brandt!

 

Brandt is sitting with Dallin, David, and Quentin.