Fun Fridays

I had a friend at college, or was it on my mission, or was it at work...hmmmm, I can't remember now. Anyhow, I had a friend who introduced me to the concept of Fun Fridays. I'm sure it must've been at work, or maybe it was just a neighbor. It's really starting to bother me that I can't remember.
Oh well, back to the concept of fun Friday. It's pretty self-explanatory. Each Friday we try to do something fun. Sometimes it's as simple as doing nothing but watching movies and making cookies all day. Other times we go to Mugga's house to jump on the trampoline or play in her hot tub. Other times it's something educational AND fun.
We've been to the Hill Aerospace Museum, the Dinosaur Park, the Museum of Natural History, and other places.
Most recently we went to Antelope Island in hopes of finding Buffalo, or more technically, Bison. We picked up Mugga and drove out to the island. Our first stop was at the visitor center. There Franklin found an awesome display of Buffalo bones, including a skull, and some other animal bones.
My son really likes bones. It could be because he has the coolest uncle that has excavated bones in the mountains of Peru for three summers or just simply because we taught him that bones were cool. It was Halloween and we didn't want him to be frightened of bones. So ever since then, he's been fascinated with bones. He has a glow in the dark bones shirt that we bought him last year that he insists on wearing almost every other day. It's too short for him, but he still tries to wear it in public. The only way to stop that is to let him wear his shirt to bed, which he is doing even as I type this.
Back to the buffalo bone's display at Antelope Island...it consisted of a skull and some other miscellaneous bones. I guess Franklin figured if there were bones at the visitor center, there must be bones all over the island. I figured this out after we got back into the car. The employees at the visitor center told us we could find a herd of Buffalo at the ranch clear on the other side of the island. When we took off in the direction of the ranch, Franklin kept asking me if we were going to go look for buffalo bones.
I kept telling him we'd see buffalo, but not so sure about seeing any bones. He really, really wanted to find bones.
It took us about forever to get to the ranch. At least it felt that way. When we got to the ranch, there weren't any buffaloes there. We could see them way, way, waaaaay off in the distance with a pair of binoculars, so we were all a little disappointed. There was no road to get to the buffaloes, so we did a quick tour of the ranch. It had been there since the 1850s and was where the pioneers stored their livestock. I found it a bit fascinating, but neither of my kids really did.
Beatrice just wanted to get on the golf carts that were used by the island employees and Franklin just wanted to look for bones. I love Buffalo and really wanted to see some, so we piled the kids back into the car and drove all the way back the way we came and then turned toward the corral.
We should've just gone to the corral in the first place. There weren't any buffalo in the corrals, but there was a small herd just around the corner. I was so excited that we found some and could see them up close. We drove right up to them, but that didn't really excite Franklin much. Beatrice kept mooing thinking they were cows and Franklin kept saying he wanted to get out and look for bones.
Needless to say, I didn't let my son out to look for bones and after two hours on the island, we finally headed home. I think it was a fun adventure and although Franklin didn't get to hunt for buffalo bones, he said he had a good time too.
It's probably because he got to pretend to be a cowboy and attempt to rope a wooden horse.

Another Fun Friday adventure took us to the Train Museum in Ogden. I had never been there, so why not? We piled into our car and picked up Franklin's best friend J.D. on our way. We first toured the museum. Once again, I was more fascinated by the museum than my kids were. I wanted to read all the plaques displaying facts about each item. The kids just wanted to run and run.
There is one part of the museum where the kids could climb on an old engine and other old train parts and there was a table with large train tracks for the kids to play with. If I had let them, the boys would've played with the toy tracks all day, but that wasn't the reason we came to the museum. So I dragged them away and took them to the portion of the museum where some beautifully restored cars were displayed.
Once again, there wasn't much interest in the displays. Sure they thought the cars were cool, but what they really liked was the tour guide's dog. There was this cute little black dog that sat on a chair and greeted you as you walked through the door. The boys were way more fascinated with the dog than with the antique cars.
I figured if they weren't interested in looking at cars, they surely would be interested in looking at guns. We went to the third section of the museum which displayed hundreds of guns all donated by the Browning family. I didn't know the famous gun creators were from Utah. So once again, I was fascinated by the displays, but the boys and Beatrice just wanted to around the cases and in and out of the halls.
I figured since it is Fun Friday, I oughtta lay off trying to get it to be so educational. The boys are only four. So we went outside where the fun really began. There are rows and rows of trains for exploring. I let the boys climb all over the cargo cars and the passenger cars and the engines.
They kept saying such funny things. Franklin climbed into one old, musty car and exclaimed that it smelled really weird. Of course it does because it's been sitting there for years and years. He said it smelled like Barbeque, which made me laugh because bbq is a good smell, not a weird one. So I climbed up the ladder to check it out. It did smell a bit musty and a bit like smoke from a bbq. He wasn't joking.
I think overall, it was a really Fun Friday. We had to cut our fun short though because the weather was not cooperating. It's almost June and we keep getting rain. That's just no fun at all.

The Belly

With the past two babies, I had my mom paint a picture on my belly because I think the plain, ol', naked belly is just a little frightening. It looks a bit freaky all stretched out. Painting a picture on it doesn't take all that away, but it does make it a little easier on the eyes.
With Franklin we did a sunflower....

With Beatrice we did a watermelon...

With Baby #3 we did a snail. It feels as if this has been a sloooow pregnancy, so the snail is self-explanatory...
I only have four more weeks left though which is an amazing feeling. If this lil' guy comes 10 days early like Beatrice did, than I could really only have two and a half weeks left. Yikes! I better hurry and start getting everything ready and we better come up with a name.

Beatrice

It's been said a picture is worth a thousand words. It's so true! This one picture truly captures my 20-month-old daughter's personality. She is something else. She has more personality than one should at her age. I know it's because my whole life my mom has cursed me that I would have a girl just like me. It looks as if my mom may have gotten her wish...because this girl is cute, just like me. :) I don't really think that's what my mom meant though.

FRANKLIN

My first born turned four in April! He has been nothing but joy since he arrived four years ago. He's such a lover which makes my heart swell, but it is frustrating sometimes when he's playing soccer. He's lovin' on his teammates instead of taking the ball from the other team.
Currently he loves preschool. He loves bugs, and anything mechanical; trucks, cars, airplanes, helicopters. He loves the outdoors. Recently his dad took Franklin on his first father/son campout and from what I hear, it was almost impossible to get Franklin into the car when it was time to go. He was having the time of his life in the dirt, roasting food, and chasing snipes.
I just got Franklin's year-end report from his preschool teacher and was so proud to see that he can recognize every single one of his letters, he can count to 31, and he knows all his shapes and colors. I think he gets all that from the books we read to him constantly. He rarely ever goes to bed without us having read his three or four books.
It's hard to write about how great I think my little guy is. He just means the world to me. I had no idea I could love a child as much as I love him.
I could write pages on all the wonderful things he does and how he enriches our lives and those around him.
He's a great helper. Rarely a time goes by where I bake something and he's not there to help. He's getting really good at cracking the eggs without leaving any shells behind. He'll fetch almost anything I ask him to whether it be diapers or snacks or a blanket. He's done a lot for this pregnant momma.
He still doesn't love to eat. His little sister can eat him under the table at every meal. Franklin would prefer if I just fed him still. That's one thing we can't figure out. But like most every kid, he loves Oreos and milk. He'll tell us he's not hungry, but then he'll eat half a dozen Oreo cookies and drink a glass of milk. Sometimes I've let him do just that because the kid burns every single calorie he eats and then some.
What warms our hearts the most is his affection for his little sister. They are best of friends. It appears that Franklin loves his sister more than she loves him at times because she seems so put out that Franklin is hugging or kissing her. It's either Franklin loves his sister so much, or he's learning the art of antagonizing. I think it's the latter. He is his father's son, so teasing is in his blood.
We are so lucky and blessed to have Franklin in our lives. He truly is special in so many ways.

Spring 2010

It has been quite a few weeks since I last posted. Call me lazy because that's exactly what I am. It such a shame though because we've had such a great couple of months. June will be here in a week and hopefully summer will begin. Today we awoke to snow. Just another crazy spring day in this part of the country.
Some of the fun things we did:

We made Easter Bunny pancakes...I wish I would've taken pictures of the Easter baskets and the Easter egg hunt. Franklin really got into dying eggs this year. He dyed about two dozen. Unfortunately he didn't get to hunt for each of them because he woke up before we could even hide them. So I had to keep him distracted while daddy went downstairs and hid about half of them. We did the Easter baskets and egg hunting Saturday morning as a way to keep the secular separate from the spiritual aspect of it on Sunday.

We had a birthday party!!Franklin turned four this year and we decided it would be fun to have a kid party. We've switched off from family to friend party every other year. Last year was just a small family party with two close adult friends and this year we invited his favorite buddies from the neighborhood and one of his long-time friends from where we used to live.

We sent the kids to the park right behind our house. We hid some small paper bags with some cheap dollar store toys in them for the kids to find. They found the bags within seconds then played for a good half hour. After that we let them come back in for pizza and birthday cake.
I thought kids universally liked pizza, but half of them said they didn't. I think they were saying that so they could skip the lunch and go straight to the cake because when I cracked down on them, they all ate most of their pizza.
We had the most delicious cake. Every birthday I buy the same kind of cake because it is soooo good. It has a custard and raspberry filling in the middle with whip cream frosting. I love it!!
The kids all devoured their cake then they got to watch Franklin open his presents. Boy was that fun for Franklin! He thought everything was "so awesome!" I love that he's turning into a big kid.
The party was over once the presents were open. It wasn't very long, about an hour and a half, but that's perfect for someone who's 7 months pregnant. Overall the kids were well behaved and the party was a success.
For days after we had to do damage control because Franklin kept asking if he could get such and such toy for his birthday and then getting upset at us when we told him he already got all his birthday presents.
He got presents from his friends and we bought him a big boy bike. The last bike we bought him from the thrift store ended up in a ditch behind our house. Some punk kids took it one night and that was the last we saw of it until our friends told us they found it while on a walk one night. We went to check it out and sure enough, there it was, upside down and all bent out of shape with a wheel missing. It was heartbreaking but in a way, I was a bit happy because we have been wanting him to get a bigger bike but he kept saying no.

Brown grandma came to visit...She came for Franklin's birthday and to help with the house because she knows I could use the help. She stayed for three weeks and was able to get a big dose of my little babies. They took naps together and went on walks together and really got to know their grandma. She only gets to come about once or twice a year, so it was really a great visit for all.

We read books in the buff...

We ate ice cream cones...

We posed for pictures and threw tantrums...

Before I Forget

I must be better at writing down the cute things my kids do and say!
The other day Franklin and Beatrice were in the tub together when Beatrice slipped. She caught herself before she went under the water with no harm done. Franklin looked at me and said, "Mom, Jesus saved herself!"
Me: Laugh out loud, "He sure did." Big smile on my face from those unexpected words.
A half a minute later, Franklin decides he wanted to get another smile from me, so he pretends to slip and then proceeds to say, "Mom, Jesus saved MY self."
Me: "He sure did. Thank goodness for Jesus." To which Franklin replies, "Yeah, Jesus is a hero."
Too funny! Where does he come up with this stuff? It made me laugh and then just want to take the kid, dripping wet and all, and just squeeze him.
I know we've talked to him about how Jesus can help you if you are sad or in need of help. I guess he translated that into him being a hero. I'm surprised he didn't say super hero because he's at that age where super heroes are super cool.

One right after the other

Today was a very loooong day. It seemed that my kids were extra busy making messes. There was a new mess every time I turned around. Just one mess after another. On days like today I thank the good Lord above for only two kids.
The main reason why today was so hard was because I didn't get much sleep last night. I get weird twitches in my legs some nights. I don't know if it's restless leg syndrome or poor circulation or too much sugar before I go to bed, I just know it wakes me up and keeps me up.
So I was tired and cloudy when the kids awoke and only became more so when I looked outside and saw the rain coming down sideways. Usually I love a strong rain storm, but today the kids, and I, really needed some sunshine.
So what were we to do indoors all day long? Well, to start, the usual, breakfast and cartoons. We have a ritual where we eat breakfast together then the kids get to watch an episode of Dinosaur Train or Curious George while I clean up and get going for the day.
The first mess occurred during the usual cartoon time. Franklin decided he wanted to be naked and jump on the couch without any cushions. My son has been fascinated with being naked lately. I don't know what has spawned the new obsession of being sans clothes and why he does it at the most random times. I guess it's not really all that random because he usually strips down right after he goes to the bathroom. So he did his customary morning peepee and supposed he needed to take it all off.
I don't mind that he takes the cushions off the couch. It reminds me that I need to vacuum under them every so often and it keeps him in my sight while I clean the kitchen. I just don't like cushions strewn everywhere because it cramps the living room and my style.
Since it was raining I decided to make the most of the cushionless couches by draping blankets over them and making a tent. The fun of that lasted about 45 minutes. The aftermath was blankets and cushions strewn everywhere and a 3.9-year-old boy ready to do something else.
I wasn't in much of a mood for entertaining the kid, in fact, all that going up and down the stairs to fetch enough blankets to make a decent tent seem to put my uterus in a bit of a tizzy. I started having cramps and dull pain. So I had to take it easy for a few hours. I tried just sitting on the couch with even more cartoons on, but the kids weren't watching it. Instead they were busy jumping on the cushions, which had been on the floor for hours now, with cookies in their hands.
Franklin, being the generous big brother that he is, offered his little sister a pink frosted sugar cookie. We made 6 dozen of them the other day when it was raining, again. Beatrice was extremely thankful and made sure she left her mark of both crumbs and frosting everywhere. I know she targeted each cushion individually and ensured that she smeared frosting on each arm of the couch and love seat as well. She had to leave her mark and I just watched her, too tired and crampy to really even bother.
I don't know how anybody could ever be on bed rest, especially with kids.
After watching Franklin sit on his sister a few times and try to put her in some wrestling position his dad taught him, I had decided enough was enough. Cramps, contractions, Braxton hicks, whatever was not enough to keep me down. I was going insane sitting around.
I got up and got busy. I put some rice in the rice cooker and pulled out some chicken I had been marinating over night. Just as I started stirring the sauce that the chicken was to go in, I turn around to see Beatrice tugging on the cord of the rice cooker. No body, no matter how fast, could've reached that rice cooker in time to stop it from tumbling onto the ground, spilling ALL of its contents. No super hero, no wizard or witch, not even Inspector Gadget with his gadget arms could've stopped it from happening even though it all seemed like it was in slow motion.
I feel like such an idiot of a parent! Such a rookie mistake to leave an electrical cord where a toddler could reach it. So it was all my fault and how fortunate we were that things weren't worse. Sure it made a mess, but luckily Beatrice had on long, thick clothing that stopped any hot water from totally scalding her. The water was boiling hot, but, again, fortunately she wasn't close enough to get it splashed on her face and the rest of her body.
I admit, I swore. It was partially because I was so scared by the noise, and partially because I was mad at myself for leaving the cord where it could be reached, and partially because I was so worried Beatrice had been burned, and partially because I was sooooooooo tired at that point and seeing all the rice and the water on the floor just about drove me to tears. There have been studies showing that cursing helps to cope with pain. So it's quite possible cursing tonight really did save me from just breaking down completely.
I left the mess there and started all over again. New rice, new water, new seasoning all while stirring my Trinidadian Curry Chicken and all while the kids were back to their shenanigans. i.e. smearing even more frosting on the couch and watching even more cartoons.
At 6pm my husband finally walked through the door. I had warned him multiple times that the house would be a disaster when he came home and sure enough, the kids made good on that warning. Frank walked into the house to find Franklin naked (for the third time that day) and Beatrice in her diaper (I had to take her rice infused clothes off), and half the kitchen splattered in rice and rice water. The spill was so bad it splashed all over the place.
It splattered the fridge, the stove, the microwave above the stove. It was that bad.
Like a good husband, he changed his suit than came back to the kitchen and started cleaning the floor. Like a typical husband, he didn't quite get all of it, but the effort and the thought did not go unrewarded by a good meal.
My chicken turned out smashingly. It was a new recipe. One which we will keep and use over and over. The rice was ok, but it was the dessert that saved the day. Nothing helps smooth over a rough day like something sweet. I had some dough in the fridge that I cut up and smothered cinnamon, sugar and butter all over to make Monkey bread. It was messy and sticky just like the rest of my kitchen and the kids and the couches for that matter, but it was so good and a great way to end my day.

I sure hope the sun comes out tomorrow.