Brother Doctor

While Adam was brushing his teeth he hurt himself and as I was trying to check things out Andrew came into the bathroom with Dr. gear on and announced "I'm a doctor I'm here to help."  He looked so cute and he was truly concerned for his older brother.  It really touched my heart. 

This weekend Josh and I were reflecting on how blessed we are to have boys with a strong desire to do what is right and genuine love that they have for one another.  It is rare for them to have contention between one another.  We have our own challenges but loving each other is not one of them and for this I'm very grateful. 

 

 

Asop's Fables

After being canceled 3x's for bad weather conditions the 4th try was the charm.  Zach performed with his second grade class in an Aesop's Adventure show.  There was lots of singing and a little bit of acting.  It was a cute little program and of course the most fun for me to watch was Zach.  He had the best facial expressions through out the show he really got into some of the songs.  He is my sweetie. 

Presiden's Day Extended Weekend

This past week had been on the painful side of cold with subzero temperatures and winds that make it bone chilling.  I remember going to Rexburg ID to visit the Bednars for Christmas one year.  It was also really cold in fact one morning it was -40 and Jeff didn't go to school that day because of the cold.  We decided that since it was getting up to -20 by noon we would still go snow skiing.  WHAT?!!  I think what 0 degrees feels like here and ask myself "What were we thinking?" It was obviously cold but a dry dessert cold is so different than the wet cold that is here.  Or maybe I'm older and wimpier with my age.  Maybe a little of both.

Dispite the cold we still have gotten out and had some fun.  Friday the boys didn't have school because of teacher inservice.  I got some friends together and we went to the new SpongeBob Movie.  It is about the only movie that I didn't mind getting up and getting popcorn for.  The rest of the day we hung out with friends.   A new family moved into our ward at church and they have a 7yr old that Zach has become friends with and he played with Zach all afternoon.  It was nice getting to know them better and that Zach has a friend to play with that is his age.

Saturday was Valentine's day.  When Josh and I were deciding how we wanted to celebrate this "holiday" we decided that it would be nice to spend it as a family and have a nice dinner together.  It was just as well that we decided not to go out because there was another storm that came through.  We had a good time playing with each other and making a family favorite meal Alberskiva.  They boys received a Valentine from their Nana & Grandad that made their day because it had $5 bill inside each card.  Adam who has been trying his best to earn money couldn't have been happier about his $5 windfall.  He wanted to deposit it into this account right away so he could see his account getting a little healthier.  Zach thought it was nice too but not like his bro.  In honor of Valentines Day we had a formal dinner at the dinning room table with a nicely set table, candles, and the roses that daddy gave me as the center piece.  Through the course of the meal I realized that I have totally failed to teach my boys table manners.  So it became a teaching moment.  For me to be surrounded by all 4 of my favorite men it was a the best way to celebrate Valentine's. 

Sunday morning was iffy weather or not we wee going to be able to go to church because of the snow that had fallen through the night.  Fortunately our church doesn't start until 11:30 so we were able to go and our dinner guest were able to come.  I was really excited about having the Lasker family over.  They are new, have a boy Zach's age, a cute little girl, from the south, have lots of energy and spunk, and are going to be here long term the only con is that they live on the opposite side of the ward.  They seem cool enough for me to make the effort and it has been a really long time since I have met someone with that kind of energy.  We had them over and it was super nice to get to know them better and I look forward to more time with them.

President's Day was extremely cold but that didn't stop us from going out to the State Theater for "Jack Hanna's Live Animal show".  It was fun taking our kids to do something when their daddy was home from work.  We only parked a block away but none the less the cold bit through our clothes and any exposed skin hurt.  I was grateful to get into the building.  we found our seats and Andrew and I explored some of the activities that were set up in the lobby.  We found our way to a photo booth and had some fun.  The animals that we saw were exotic and rare.  Our favorites were: Adam -wombat that was trained to pee on Jack's hat or the bird that slammed down a lizard on a rock, Zachary, mommy & daddy - bearcat, Andrew- the baby elephant.  There were a lot of unusual animals that I didn't even know existed so it was fun and enlightening.  The rest of the day we played with guns and up in the toy room.   

Long weekend extended one more day because of another big snow storm that dumped 6-8inches.  I enjoyed my boys for one more full day.  I made them French toast, we played in the snow and gave their crazy dog a bath.  Playing in the snow was by far the highlight of the day.  They had fun playing with Tank chasing him, wresteling him, and rolling around in the white stuff.  Andrew really liked getting a "blast off" on the swings and sliding down the slide.  It was a good day. 

 

Benefits of cold weather and Snow

One of the many benefits of cold and snowy weather is getting a chance to play with forgotten of even new toys.  I got this game out for Andrew and I to play with and he really enjoyed beating my guy. Adam and Zachary were building some snap circuit with their dad and after they accomplished what ever they were doing they were quickly distracted by all the fun and Andrew and I were having.  Soon everyone had their chance at "Rock'em Sock'em."

Fasinating ice; looking, touching, feeling, smashing, creating, and playing with the impermanent crystal ICE. Often if the sun is out the boys are captivated by the wonderful snow covered front yard.  Tank comes out too, they run, play and they explore until the cold has cut through all the layers that they might be wearing or we are otherwise obligated to start our responsibilities.  Zach found himself a ice blade which imagination took him away to another land for a space of time.  I love what winter does for the imagination.

 

 

 

Another wonder of winter is snuggling.  Great Grandma Green made and sent Andrew a new quilt made with love, trains, and puppies.  He loves it and really enjoys to wrap up in it.  He comes to me with his blanket in hand and ask "Mommy, I be your baby?" When I hear that it melts my heart and I stop what ever it is I'm doing.  I wrap him up with his blanket give him a huge hug, scoop him up, pretend that he is my baby and set my 40lb. baby on the couch.  I try to soak up all the snuggles that I can get while my babies are willing to give them.  Andrew is still squishy but my older two are not that way any more.  When I can't get a snuggle from them any more I can rely on my giant lap dog. 

Snow Tubing

People often complain about the weather during the winter months but it is so much more fun to embrace it.  As the Alaskans say "There's no such thing as bad weather just bad clothing."  So as long as "ye are prepared ye shall not fear" the winter.  However getting all of those clothes on several people and making sure that everyone is properly dressed can be quite a task.  But alas everyone was geared up and prepped to face our Saturday adventure of Snow Tubing.  It was a really cold day but the sun was shinning and it felt good to spend a few hours outside enjoying the elements.  Andrew was all too excited to be dragged on his tube where ever he went and he loved the tube lift.  While on the lift he became accustom to laying on a tube, making it taxing on the person dragging the item usually me, he carefully watched his mittened hand drag in the snow making tracks all the way up the hill. We alternated going down o single tubes and the big family tubes.  We had fun watching each other get hurled down the mountain.  I really enjoyed seeing everyone having a good time.  At about the end of our three hour lift pass we were getting "done".  It wasn't until I was a few feet away from the lodge that Andrew let me know that he was really cold.  Poor little guy had ice for hands and feet.  He is a tuff guy and for that he should be rewarded (he got an airplane).  Everyone was great and I didn't hear any complaints about personal discomforts until it was time to go.  Perfect day! 

Pine Wood Derby 2015

It is that time of year again for the pine wood derby!  Not our forte.  Josh really doesn't like the whole thing and we really are not equipped with the tools to build a successful car plus it is too cold to be fiddling with this stuff in the garage.   The pack usually plans a night where they bring in saws and sander etc. but I thought there might be a problem with that and so when I was at Hobby Lobby and saw kits with the car already cut out I bought them.  It is a good thing too because Adam's car was cut wrong at the pack meeting and there were tears.  I was able to step in and tell him not to worry because I already had another car for him at home. I felt like a super mom at that moment.  We spent part of a snow day getting the cars ready and went off to the races.  On the way there I prepped the boys on how to win and how to lose so we were totally ready for anything. 

It was pretty official with registration cards and an official weights and measures officer of NJ there to officiate.  Adam and Zach raced their cars and got about middle of the results.  It was nice they won some and lost some and they were very sportsman like about the results.  It was a good experience and I'm really happy that it is over. 

Bring on the Snow

We woke up to a snowy Saturday. Finally this winter got pretty with a wash of white snow.  It was barley cold enough for it to be snow so it was s super wet which made for great snowballs, snowman, and snow fort.  We got all of those in however our snowman fell before we got  chance to take a picture of him.  Making the most of the wet snow we threw on our gear and played in the yard and since we were still relatively dry we decided to go sledding and snowboarding at the local hill.  We all got some runs in and all of us tried our skills on the snow board.  I think that Zach got the gold medal in snowboarding for the day.  He did pretty good considering the board he was riding was something that was bought at Target.  He had good balance and so did Adam.  Josh and I did it too but...let's face it we were too big for the board.  After some time Andrew was wet and I got cold so we went to the car to warm up.  I thought that the rest of the fam would be right behind us after a few more runs down the hill but I was wrong.  When I got out to do some investigation I found them at the bottom of the hill, Adam and Zach behind the cover of a snow fort and totally involved in an epic snow ball fight with Daddy.  What a cool dad!  I think Adam's winter dreams were coming true at that moment; throwing snowballs at dad with no way for dad to get me back.