Scarehaircare

Update to Swimming to the Surface

2011-10-24T17:14:00.000-07:00

I just scored a very decent A- on my huge project #1 for Language Development. Feeling like I am going to survive grad school after all. At least this week.

Excuse me while I do a happy dance. Feel free to dance with me. Pat me on the back. Give me a woot-woot. Its all good.

Swimming my way back to the surface

2011-10-23T08:38:00.000-07:00

Overwhelming. That pretty much sums up the first half of my first grad school semester.I'm still not caught up with all the reading, but then all of my classmates have admitted to the same thing. I love clinic - absolutely love it. The paperwork threw me for a loop. I believe I have the worlds best clinic supervisor because she has been beyond patient with me. My grades aren't stellar. I still have a chance to pull them up.

Finding my balance of school and home has been hard, too. The kids have been patient. The older help the younger with homework. Mr. Wonderful has also gone above and beyond to help this home run. Sometimes we see each other coming and going. At least we still make sure we have date night. We don't even sit by each other in church anymore. I'm at the organ. Since there is always a rest hymn and no special musical number, I stay up by the organ so the transitions are smooth.

We did celebrate Down Syndrome Awareness Month at the Buddy Walk. This year was more special than others. The Love Magnet danced a hip-hop number with a local dance group. She loved it. The best news (and still makes me teary whenever I think of it) is that this particular dance company has asked if she would join them. She'll be put in dance classes with typical kids. We're signing up in November. We had to wait a few weeks because -

The Love Magnet had a tonsilectomy/adenoidectomy. Her tonsils were huge and stinky and starting to cause bad breath. If was a rough first week. I called for help and angels came in the form of my parents and Grandmother. These three angels made it possible for me to make it to clinic while they stayed home with The Love Magnet. They did my laundry, reorganized my pantry, vacuumed, cleaned my kitchen, and spent time with my children. I felt loved and cared for.

I think I will make it through grad school after all. I had my doubts.

First Day of School

2011-09-02T18:37:00.001-07:00

Remember this school picture from 2010?

Check out how much taller they are now. 5th grade and 3rd grade.

This one just won't quit growing. He is in 9th grade and it was his first day of high school. According to Secondborn, it was also the worst first day ever. New school and none of his friends went to this school. (It is an advanced, invitation only high school.) Thank heavens the second day was better. He likes most of his teachers; loves Chinese, Geometry, and American History; still has few friends, but getting them through early morning Seminary and the fact that his classmates are learning his name. His high school shares the same building as my university, so he eats lunch with me if he doesn't have anyone else to eat with (I told him that a cute girl inviting him to sit with her constitutes a better deal than eating with mom). So far, I've only had two lunches with him.

Firstborn is just working and starting his mission papers. They should be turned in by Thanksgiving and hopefully he will have a call soon after that.

No back to school pic of me. I was too stressed to think to snap a pic.

Countdown to grad school

2011-08-11T07:29:00.000-07:00

Titres, skin tests, CPR certification. All the stuff I didn't know I needed to have before grad school is now messing up my trip-to-Utah plans before school starts. Grad school also wants my immunization records. As another 40-something classmate has also found out, we can't get those records because they no longer exist. I've had a few booster shots in the past two years that will count, but it looks like I will need a few more.

I've spent over $500 on textbooks for this upcoming semester, including 5 books for neurology alone. I love neurology but I will admit to some apprehension of the seeming insurmountable workload from that class alone. I need to pay tuition this week, too, and give information on my insurance for my SHIP waiver.

Kids school supplies have been purchased as well as most of the school clothes they will need. Still waiting anxiously for information on meet-the-teacher night as I still don't know who they will be.

Slowly things are being checked off my to-do list. I will admit to a small bit of anxiety in the realm of "Can I really do this?" But I know that this goal of grad school is a righteous goal and I will have all the help I need to accomplish it. God is great. He will not leave me alone.

I've been marveling at all the huge milestones our family will see during my two years of grad school:

* Firstborn has an interview this Sunday to be ordained an elder after which we will start marking off the checklist of everything to be done before his mission. He can turn in his papers in November. He'll leave for his mission sometime in February. He is hoping to serve in Africa like his grandparents.

*Secondborn will turn 16, be ordained a Priest which will allow him to bless the Sacrament. He will also start driving and dating (in my church, dating doesn't start until you turn 16). If you ask him which one he is more excited for between driving and dating, he will certainly tell you driving.

* Thirdborn will turn 12 and be ordained a deacon, which will allow him to pass the Sacrament. This is a big deal and he is so excited at the thought.

These are huge milestones in my church and my kids are really looking forward to them. Here is to the next two years. They will be monumental.

Camping at Horsethief Reservoir

2011-08-06T21:13:00.001-07:00

We went camping up at Horsethief Reservoir. It was too overcrowded. We were lucky to get the last spot available. Since Mr. Wonderful and Firstborn were coming up later, Uncle Nate supervised Secondborn and Thirdborn in the making of fire. They tried flint and steel. Then they tried matches. Thirdborn spilled matches everywhere. It took a lot of tries but they finally got a decent fire burning.

Uncle Nate was so patient with the young pyromaniacs. He deserved a gold medal.

The boys ran to the lake to try to catch fish for dinner while Nate, Eliza, The Love Magnet and I waited back at camp.

Thirdborn came running back to camp with a huge fish. We were surprised he caught one so quickly. He told us he did not catch it, but that he found it. He thought a boat must have hit it. He wanted so badly to cook it for dinner. Mr. Wonderful and Uncle Nate had to point out that the coloring was off and that it would probably make him very sick if he tried eating it. Thirdborn was so disappointed. He really wanted to have trout for dinner. No way. Not this fish.

Finally it was time to cook brats (my back-up plan for dinner) and s'mores for dessert.

Thirdborn LOVED s'mores!

The Love Magnet loved s'mores!

Did Secondborn like s'mores? Not sure.

We kept the fire going pretty late. It was fun to sit around, watching the stars.

Three of the four tents we had between the eight of us. Plenty of room.

The morning was cold. Good thing we had three Eagle Scouts (Mr. Wonderful, Uncle Nate, and Firstborn) who knew how to build fires.

No, Thirdborn did not have a black eye. That was dirt all over his face. He slept with that all night and claimed he had just washed it.

After Mr. Wonderful's fabulous dutch oven Mountain Man breakfast, it was time to go fishing.

Mr. Wonderful bought a pink and yellow little kid's tube for The Love Magnet to play with. Secondborn decided to commandeer the apparatus for the more worthy pursuit of fishing.

Secondborn got pretty far out on that little tube. No fish were biting, though.

Thirdborn had great fun rescuing dragonflies from the water. When I asked him why he was doing that, he replied so he could use them to bait his fishhook. No fish were caught and we had to head home.

We stopped at Fisher Park in Cascade to see if we could catch something. By this time most of the campers looked like they were ready to head home to hot showers.

I just had to compare height between Firstborn and Secondborn. Yep, Secondborn has almost completely caught up to his bigger brother.

The Love Magnet fully monopolized Aunt Eliza. Poor Uncle Nate was trumped by his more popular wife.

Thirdborn had to try one last time. No fish were biting, not even in a small, fully stocked pond. *sigh* Maybe next time.

Fun at the Discovery Center

2011-08-06T21:05:00.001-07:00

Uncle Nate and Aunt Eliza came for a last minute visit. We were so excited to have them over! First we took them to the Discovery Center. Nate disappeared with Secondborn to try all of the cool science experiments. Thirdborn and The Love Magnet beelined to the TVstation exhibit where they played with a green screen and pretended they had Harry Potter's Invisibility Cloak.

Aunt Eliza tried out the bed of nails. Yes, she really is on a bed of nails. It is magic!

The Love Magnet played in the veterinarian's office helping all of the sick stuffed animal toys. After that we headed to the Boise Fry Company for a snack. We loved hanging out with Nate and Eliza!

Finally, the actual birthday.

2011-08-06T16:00:00.000-07:00

Good morning, Love Magnet! It is finally your birthday!

Your brothers all gathered to sing to you.

Thirdborn made you a gourmet birthday breakfast for his gift. Firstborn took you on a surprise date to Build-A-Bear where you made a cute Rapunzel Princess Bunny. (The next day, Secondborn took you on a surprise date to a movie with popcorn and treats).

You wanted a birthday picnic at the local park, mainly because there was water to swim in.

You requested meatball subs, doritos, potato salad, watermelon, and rootbeer for your birthday picnic. You even helped shop for all the ingredients.

Auntie M and Uncle D came to celebrate with us.

Mom made you carrot cake cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting. You weren't sure that you would like them, but after your first bite you declared the, "Delicious!"

Time for one more quick swim before going home for presents.
You decided it was the Best Birthday Ever.

Nine Great Things About The Love Magnet

2011-08-06T15:48:00.001-07:00

1. She refers to her parents as Mother and Father. Not sure how she decided on this moniker as the boys refer to me as Madre or Mom and Mr. Wonderful is called Dad. She is constantly asking "When will my father be home?", or telling me "Mother, I love you so much!" I love it.

2. She refers to everyone by first and last name as one name. Its Janebrown, Johnsmith, Jackjones....you get the picture. We think this stemmed from several kids in her school classes sharing the same name. What she used to separate them, she now uses for everyone.

3. The Love Magnet loves to help with the dishes or laundry. I hope this continues.

4. She prays like she means it. Every prayer is a regular conversation with her Heavenly Father. She blesses everyone she can think of and usually for specific blessings such as they will get better from being sick, or they will be able to sleep, or not be scared.

5. She shows appreciation for every meal multiple times. I get thanked for making a particular dinner the day of, the next day, and possibly several weeks later.

6. Whoever you are, you rank as her best friend.

7. The Love Magnet loves to write letters. I get one nearly every single day.

8. She loves to read to anyone who will listen. Today she read Snuggle Puppy to a van full of sleepy people on the way home from our camp out. Captive audience.

9. Unconditional love. She has it. She is willing to share it. Hopefully she is teaching the rest of us about it.

2011-08-02T12:44:00.000-07:00

Sorry, folks. I'm trying as hard as I can to blog about The Love Magnet's 9th birthday, but for some reason, my pics are not posting. They download fine onto Facebook, just not on Blogger. I shall persevere and hopefully soon you will enjoy the pictures of the girl who enjoys her birthdays more than anyone else in the world.

8/6/2011 - I switched to Mozilla Firefox and everything is working great. Thanks to Marvelle for the tip!

Friend Birthday Party

2011-07-29T19:43:00.000-07:00

Four girls came to The Love Magnet's birthday party. TLM was beside herself with joy.

Four girls included her in all of their games. She was treated just like everyone else.

After swimming came lunch completely planned by The Love Magnet: hot dogs, pasta salad, watermelon, and lemonade. Then.......PRESENTS!

Miss M, who was Lauren's aide a year ago and now still works with one of The Love Magnet's best friends, also came to the party. We were thrilled to have her!

The grand finale of the party was also planned completely by TLM: she insisted on 'Pinkalicious' cupcakes. Not knowing what 'Pinkalicious' cupcakes are, I just made vanilla cupcakes with pink frosting. Completely satisfactory, especially when topped with sparkler candles. It literally took all the girls to blow them out.

The best part of the party was the next day at the neighborhood pool. Some of the girls from the party were all there and greeted TLM as soon as they saw her. Again they included her in all of their games. Inclusion at its best.

1st Family Reunion

2011-07-02T09:19:00.001-07:00

It started out as a plan for 100+ people. Then 50 people. Then 15. Plans had to be changed.

In the end it didn't matter how things had to be changed. The 1st Family Reunion did what it was designed to do. It made tons of memories.

Cousin sleepovers, contraband (at least in my house) cereal for breakfast.

Treats at the Boise downtown farmers market.

Having fun around the fountain with the cousins.

Lots of time at the neighborhood swimming pool.

Eating chocolate cake and laughing.

Watching movies late into the night. We also went to the theaters to see Cars 2.

Getting to know (again) awesome cousins I haven't seen in 20 years.

And cousins we haven't seen in a few months.

Did I mention that I absolutely LOVE my brother and his family?

Final pictures with all of the cousins. Silly.

And trying to be cool about it all.

Tons of fun. And it will happen again next year, same time. Third weekend in June.

This is just going to get bigger and better.

I am not ready for this stage...

2011-06-22T16:16:00.000-07:00

Parenting a young adult will about kill me.

Yeah, I know. Carrie, you always talk about not having a bad attitude...well blah, blah, blah. Sorry, I should not be directing frustrations at you.

I have a Firstborn/highschool graduate/young adult (now referred to as YA) who hasn't quite figured the important things in life. Like letting your parents know when you will be home, or at least coming home before or at your curfew. He thinks that now he is a YA, he shouldn't have a curfew. Too bad, so sad, my house my rules. And, yes, consequences are fair.

Nor does he think that helping out at home is nearly important as helping the cute neighbor two doors down. Yesterday, he needed to be home, preparing to leave for a competition today. I called him three times to get home and get his stuff done. Nope. He felt it was more important to help the neighbors and then go out to dinner with them. This anywhere-but-home attitude has been a recurring theme, happening daily.

To top it off, he missed his ride to the airport this morning and fully expected Mr. Wonderful to come save him........and he didn't know the time the plane left nor the airline he was flying on. We assume he made it to California because he hasn't called since he left the airport. In the meantime, he apparently expects me to finish his laundry, wash his sheets, make his bed since he left it sitting in the laundry (except for what he dumped in the hall just outside his bedroom door) and knowing that I am trying to get ready for guests tomorrow.

He gave us no itinerary because apparently YA's don't need one. At least their parents don't need to know about it.

How you get through to a YA that there are still certain rules and courtesies that must be adhered to? That family members deserve love and respect as much as friends do? That being part of a family means working together, helping out, and making an effort to get along? That family comes first? Sitting him down and trying to explain only fell on deaf ears.

I always thought the hard challenges in my life would circulate between The Love Magnet's Down syndrome, Thirdborn's learning disabilities, and stress such as the current typical balance-school-and-mommyhood. But at this time the hardest challenge of my life is navigating the uncharted waters of Firstborn's YA-hood. Nothing I say or think or do carries any significance.

Praying for help/knowledge/wisdom/patience/sanity is my only recourse.

Father's Day 2011

2011-06-19T17:52:00.000-07:00

The Father of my home

leads my family

with wisdom's light in all that's right;

my father's good to me.

Father's are so special

with a very special love.

They watch us and protect us,

guide us and direct us

back to our home above.

Today I led 175+ Primary kids in singing the song above. As a surprise, each child brought a 5x7 or 8x10 picture of their dad which they proudly held as high as they could. I was overwhelmed with tears as I tried to direct these sweet kids who were grinning from ear to ear at their own dads.

I held my own picture, too. Maybe that is why the tears came so readily. I miss my daddy, I miss being able to sing to him the same primary song I've sung to him for years (even though it might be silly for a 42 yr old daughter to sing that. It probably drives him nuts, but he only has to put up with it once a year.) I am so incredibly proud of him for the hard work he's put into his mission. A lot of good work is being done in Uganda.

Then there is the father of my four children. The man who teaches my kids how to build things, how to problem-solve, math tutor (mine, too!). He shows by example the proper way to treat women, especially moms and wives. He insists that his children learn how to work hard and how to keep their word. He goes to games, concerts, doctor appointments, scout pack meetings, IEP meetings, and parent-teacher conferences. He plans fishing trips, camping trips, skiing trips, hiking trips, and rafting trips. He arranges basketball in the front yard and volleyball in the backyard. He reads them books at night, listens to prayers, and tucks them in bed. He is MegaDad and heavily involved in his children's lives. They have no question of his love for them.

Huge thanks and much love for the dads in my life. Happy Father's Day!

Class of 2011

2011-06-03T09:08:00.000-07:00

Lots of cheering and a bit of shock that my Firstborn has graduated

And really hoping that he keeps in touch with friends

But the proudest moment. Listening to the seniors of the Acapella choir sing The Star Spangled Banner. My boy can sing. I could pick out his voice anywhere.

Bachelor of Science, Communication Sciences and Disorders

2011-05-10T07:44:00.000-07:00

Giving my stole of gratitude to the man who help me the most, lifted me higher, strengthened me, and believed in me. And he is darn handsome, to boot.

Walking across the stage felt like pageant walking (head up, shoulders back, don't forget to smile and make it look natural, DON'T TRIP!).

Lots of cheers and "GO MOM!" and woot-woots.

Being thrilled for myself and my sister CSEDers (Dave, you also count as a sister CSEDer, brother). We worked so hard for this!

In awe of my family's love for me.

In awe of the extravagant flowers they presented to me as I walked out with my fellow students. Whoa, does a tiara come with this?

Wishing my parents could have been there. They will be in two years when I get my M.S.

Advocacy never ending

2011-05-06T18:39:00.000-07:00

Mr. Wonderful gave me a certificate for a spa day last Christmas. Today was the day (I finally have time now that finals are over) and I was really looking forward to some pampering. The spa I went to was voted the best spa in the Boise area. It was beautiful. Incredibly busy (not very quiet) but I expected that since I booked a day the weekend of Mother's Day. That was okay. It was going to be divine.

The manicurist was great. She helped me pick a color (OPI 'I'm not Really A Waitress') and assured me that I could carry off that color on my short nails. Made me think of Dandelion Mama's post about her short nails. We talked about her kids, my kids, cupcakes (she is tweaking recipes to start a side business in gourmet cupcakes) and how to take better care of my dry hands. She told me how great the massage therapist was that I was scheduled to see next (and she was oh-so-right). The conversation was pleasant at my table. Then, during a pause, my ear started tuning into the conversation at the next table.

"She really started making bad choices", the nail tech at the next table was talking about her sister to her client. "I swear she smoked herself retarded." Both started laughing.

I froze.

Normally, I would speak right up to the person who uttered the 'R' word. But I didn't say anything this time. I did not think it was appropriate in this setting. Instead I made a note to email the spa tonight and let them know that while I appreciated their excellent services, there was one thing in which they could improve. That choice of vocabulary is unacceptable.

I know I've said it before (and that I am preaching to the choir). The word "Retarded" is not interchangeable with 'stupid'. Using that word in that context is hurtful and demeaning.

As much as I enjoyed the spa, the memory that will probably last the longest is the choice of words of the nail tech. I wonder if my email will make any difference.

Things To Celebrate

2011-05-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

ISATs (Idaho Standard Achievement Test) was underway last month. Moms know the drill: make sure you kids get a good night's sleep, a good breakfast, and be sure to send them off with a positive attitude.

I remember taking standardized tests by filling in bubbles on a paper test using a #2 pencil. No longer. My kids take state standardized tests on the computer. They are immediately given their scoring when they are done. Not sure how I feel about my elementary kids seeing that score. At least I wasn't sure until last week.

Thirdborn came running home to announce the news: "MOM! I scored 'Proficient' on my Language ISAT!" My jaw dropped. This is the kid who was diagnosed with dyslexia, disgraphia, Audio Processing Disorder, and a Language Disorder. He has been in language therapy with the school's SLP since he was diagnosed. He just scored 'Proficient' and he wanted to celebrate.

I talked to his resource teacher yesterday. She confirmed that he did indeed score 'Proficient' on his Language ISAT. She took him around the school to let him share his news to all those who have been working with him. This is a very big deal. So tomorrow (when we all have an hour) we shall celebrate ISATs. Thirdborn wants to go get a milkshake at his favorite place.

Firstborn competed at the Idaho HOSA (Health Occupation Student Association) state competition last month as part of his Sports Med program. His PSA video won first place at the state competition and will be taken to nationals this summer. If he wins, the award is scholarship money. He is thrilled just to make it to nationals. Also, Firstborn just got a job(!) as a developmental therapist. Turns out, having a sister with Down syndrome, a CPR certification, and experience from all the volunteer work he has done with DS foundations and Special Olympics makes him very marketable as a DT. He is thrilled to have a decent paying job with benefits. He has no time to celebrate, so that will have to wait when he graduates from high school at the end of the month.

I get to celebrate Mothers Day on Sunday, graduate from ISU on Monday, and celebrate my 20th wedding anniversary on Tuesday. Might as well start the party now. Today is Cinco de Mayo. And my twin sister's 22nd wedding anniversary.

What did she say?

2011-04-18T18:04:00.000-07:00

The Love Magnet: "I 8 years old. Then I 9 years old. Then I 10 years old. Then I 11 years old. Then I 12 years old. Then I get to be your sous chef!" (when counting out her birthdays.)

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The Love Magnet: Mom! Look, Mom! Look at that man in blue truck! He have bald hair, Mom! Look, bald hair!

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The Love Magnet (on Sunday when given the opportunity to lead a song in Primary): I know how myself, Mom. You don't help me. (She then helds out her hand like I do to invite kids to sing, turned and nodded to the pianist to start. My daughter proceeded to wave her hand completely off beat. She did cut off at the right time on the finish and raised her pinkie while doing it. Do I do that?)

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The Love Magnet(today at the grocery store): "Thanks, honey." (when I hand her an item for the cart.) "Good job, honey" (as I picked out produce). "You're welcome, honey." (This kept going through the entire grocery store, and shoppers were openly smiling as they watched her help me shop.)

Uncertain Future and Tender Mercies

2011-04-02T20:31:00.000-07:00

I've been quietly avoiding my blog for specific reasons.

Uncertainty. Pity party. Frustration. Worry.

I've prayed for months. I've gone to the temple. I've tried to have great faith.....and then wondered if I didn't have enough faith.

Trying to sell myself to grad schools has been a trial. I sent grades. I sent what I thought was a great letter. I sent good GRE scores. I sent my heart in three cyber envelopes and one snail mail. All in hopes that some university would say "We like you! We really like you!"

Vanderbilt sent a lovely rejection letter. Seriously, it oozed southern charm. I was slightly sad but not too much because that was my long shot. I was over it by the next day.

Florida State sent me a terse rejection email. I was devastated. I thought I met all their criteria. It was a great school and really close to my Georgia grandmother (as in I could head over there for Sunday dinner and spent days off hanging with her. I would have loved that opportunity!) It was a hard blow and I really grieved.

Then I worried. What if no one wants me?

The University of Utah sent a rejection letter. I don't think they ever received my GRE score. I tried to find out what was going on before the deadline, but the secretary I called was rather terse (every single time). I think she was having a bad day (week/month) and didn't want to mess with my problems.

Mr. Wonderful took me to the temple. We talked about what would happen if I didn't get accepted anywhere. After all, if three universities didn't want me, why would my own university want me? What then? Do I wait and apply again? Do I chalk it up to a great experience? We both knew that it was divine inspiration that I go back to school. I finally had to just put it all in God's hands. His plan is the best plan (isn't that what I have to keep learning?) I finally tried to humble myself and say "Heavenly Father, I trust you."

On April Fool's Day this came in the mail. But it was no April Fools:

My university wants me. I am going to grad school to become an Speech-Language Pathologist.

I AM GOING TO GRAD SCHOOL!

I shouted this to my entire neighborhood. Those who were out washing their cars heard me. I'm sure the angels heard me. I called Mr. Wonderful. I called my twin sis. I called my BFF who was so helpful when I admitted that the rejection letters made me feel .......well, not worthless but certainly not wanted.

My university has faith in me and I am so grateful to them for their confidence in me. The program is highly competitive to get into.

This morning I woke up with a reassurance that my Father in Heaven is well aware of me. We are definitely meant to stay here. Secondborn has a wonderful opportunity in an advanced high school. The programs available here for Thirdborn and The Love Magnet are so much better than other places we've lived. Firstborn will be able to leave for his mission from here (ohmiheavens, he leaves in less than a year!) The kids are relieved that we are not moving and that they don't have to leave their friends, teachers, and schools. There is a relief of not having to sell our house. I'm grateful that we'll be staying around our ward family, close-ish to our immediate family (well at least we can get there for weekends away), and I am beyond thrilled to be going to school with my classmates who are also kindred spirits and very much like sisters.

My future is more certain. I can't control much in my life,

but at least I know the direction I am going.

Sunday Gratitudes

2011-03-06T19:42:00.000-08:00

It has been awhile since I listed my Sunday Gratitudes. I've been feeling that I need to start listing all of my blessings again. Here is what I'm grateful for this week:

1. Neurology. Okay, other than the fact that my neurology class this semester is giving me fits, I love it. I want to specialize in geriatric issues and strokes and dementia fascinate me. How the brain works, wires and rewires itself, and how each of us have the same brain is incredible to me. I want to learn more - much more. So glad I bought my neurology texts instead of renting them. I might even be able to understand them better when I finally get to grad school.

2. Scriptures. There has been something wonderful about reading scriptures with Mr. Wonderful and the kids this past week. We switched from being formal in the living room to everyone piling on top of my bed. We've gone from just reading to discussing, teaching, and sharing ideas. Thirdborn and The Love Magnet have gotten excited about the scriptures and make sure we stop everything at 8:00 for scripture reading. I've felt closer to God every day this past week. My prayers are more meaningful. I've felt more peaceful. Heaven knows I need more peace.

3. Sharing. I've been able to share my beliefs about God and Jesus Christ with some friends this past week. Honestly, it was with one person in particular whom I never thought would want to have that kind of conversation. I'm so grateful that she would share her thoughts and feelings with me. She strengthened my testimony in God's love for each of us. No one is ever beneath His notice. He cares about everyone.

4. My classmates. The Love Magnet was sick this past week. My classmates took notes for me. Huge gratitude to them for keeping me afloat.

5. Time alone with my love. Mr. Wonderful had to take a business trip to a small town in Oregon. Thanks, love, for suggesting I meet you there. We stayed in a 110+ year hotel, watched movies, and totally kicked back. Too bad he had to go back to meetings the next morning. I drove myself there and back. Boring ride with no working stereo in the car, but at least I got to spend time with Mr. Wonderful.

6. Family History. My mother-in-love has been helping me with my family history. We uncovered a branch on my paternal side that now goes back another 100 years and found that I had ancestors in Germany. Seriously? Before, I only knew that my paternal ancestors came from England and Holland. Still don't know much of what I am doing, and really wish I had better access to the materials I need. Also, I don't have a lot of time to do any research with school, so I limit my research to Sundays. Still, it has been fun and I'm eternally grateful to Mr. Wonderful's mom for mentoring me. She is amazing when it comes to family history.

7. Organ. My first month of playing organ in Sacrament Meeting is done. I also played today as a sub. I requested an organ workshop of sorts and the stake has put one together to start this month. I'm actually excited to learn more. I've really enjoyed this past month. I haven't practiced that much or regularly in decades - I actually log 1 hr/day for 5-6 days a week. As soon as I get to Utah on break, I want to hit my fave music store for some organ books. I'm determined to get better with pedals and registers.

Scarehaircare: Future Clinician

2011-03-01T16:46:00.000-08:00

After 3 1/2 semesters of observing in clinic (behind mirrored glass so the clients couldn't see me), I did something monumental today.

I stepped into the clinic as a student-clinician and took charge of part of the therapy.

Ohmiheavens

I LOVE THIS PROFESSION!

It was a little nerve wracking. I was more intimidated by the possible people behind the glass (Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!") than I was the kiddo in front of me. I didn't have to plan the therapy (this time). All I had to do was take the graduate-clinicians notes and follow them. Nice ease into therapy. It. Was. Awesome.

Coming up later this semester: I have to plan and implement two half-sessions of therapy for the same kiddo and then one entire session. I'm looking forward to it.

Huge thanks to my graduate-clinician I am following around this semester. Before we went to retrieve kiddo and his mama for therapy, my graduate-clinician shared with me her most embarrassing first-time-ever experience as a graduate-clinician. It broke the ice for me and really eased up nerves I was feeling.

Pssst - I am excitedly/nervously awaiting any word from the grad schools I've applied to. Hopefully three very specific words along the lines of "We Want YOU!" will be arriving sooner than later.

Pssst again - HUGE CONGRATS TO ASH! She received word today that she was accepted to IOWA (only the #1 school for Audiology research in the entire nation!) Woot-woot, Ashley!

14 Days of Valentines: Dinner for your Sweetheart

2011-02-10T16:38:00.000-08:00

(Blackberry Almond Torte)

Okay, I am breaking down meals and recipes ideas.

FOOLPROOF: If you are intimidated in the kitchen, or if you want easy, this is the meal for you. Alton Brown's Pan-Seared Rib Eye Steak. It. Works. Every. Time. Pair this with a loaded baked potato and whatever your lover will eat for a veg. If you have a Costco card, get the Lobster Bisque in the refrigerated section for your first course and then head to their freezer section for their cream puffs (drizzle them with chocolate and top with fresh berries) or the bite size Cheesecake factory cheesecakes. Easy, easy, easy.

(Halibut Oscar)

SEAFOOD WITH AN ATTITUDE: This is Mr. Wonderful's favorite. Halibut Oscar using the rescipe from Utah's Gastronomy restaurants. Add previously mentioned lobster bisque or a green salad topped with shrimp. Dessert is Creme Brulee or the Raspberry Almond Torte (I prefer fresh blackberries). Yes, it requires a little confidence in the cooking department. But this is not rocket science. You can do this. I will - because Mr. Wonderful actually requested it this year! I know! Will wonders never cease? (Okay, I know that pic isn't plated well. Just trust me, this recipe is delicious.)

(Creme Brulee with Blackberries)

CHICKEN UGLY: Actually, it is called Chicken Aglio e Olio and it isn't ugly. It's easy, restaurant quality, and it is divine. Serve it over rice with sauteed green beans on the side. We call it Chicken Ugly because that is what The Love Magnet calls it. She can't pronounce the other. The name stuck.

(Chicken Aglio e Olio)

VEGETARIAN DOES NOT MEAN BORING: Ignore the pork chops in this recipe and make the Pumpkin Polenta. Top with Wolfgang Puck's version of Roasted Root Vegetables. Yes it makes a lot of veg, just half it or love the leftovers. Serve chocolate fondue for dessert. Feed each other. The colors of the veg are gorgeous in this. I would add some sauteed mushrooms.

There you go. A menu you didn't have to think about. Let me know how you like them.

14 Days of Valentines: Days 4 and 5

2011-02-05T20:16:00.000-08:00

The 4th Days of Valentines included movie tix with a note to take me to that manly-man flick coming soon that I know he wants to see. I didn't buy Red Vines since I noticed he had a stash in his truck.

The 5th Day of Valentines was something completely new wrapped around an old idea. A note involving a complicated romantic math equation (new idea) with the solution being the old idea. That's all I'm going to say about that.

Tea party coming soon.....and HUGE thanks!

2011-02-03T21:14:00.000-08:00

I apologize for blogging this so late. This is a huge thanks to Cookie Jilly. She had a tea set from Thailand and knew that somebody was looking for a teapot and a few more items to expand the tea set collection.

Look how gorgeous these are. The Love Magnet was excited as she watched me open the package. She thought is was from a princess.
Isn't this absolutely gorgeous? I've never seen anything like it.

It's being displayed in my double display case near the kitchen. And I am anxiously awaiting an excuse to give a tea party. Which means I need guests. Any volunteers?

Jilly, thanks so much. You are so incredibly generous.

Will the rest of you please pray for Jilly's family? She has loved ones who live in Egypt. With all of the fighting going on in Egypt right now, we are praying for their safety.

Birthday Celebration of Firstborn

2011-02-03T20:49:00.000-08:00

I tried to document Firstborn's 18th Birthday dinner. Unfortunately my broken camera has decided to be really broken or at least contrary to my wishes. Blurry pics. Bleh.

But the memories are there. Secondborn wasn't too thrilled to be relegated to the family table while the other teens sat by themselves.

J, S, A. Oh my heavens, I love these kids. They have been awesome friends.
C, Firstborn, and V. Love these kids. Love, I tell you!

We took everyone out to Brazilian Barbecue. Churrascaria. The best thing (besides the food) is that they make the birthday boy stand up on the bench....

and dance for the entire room. Firstborn was a good sport. 'A' got a great vid of the entire experience and promised to send it to me.

I am thrilled that Firstborn has good friends who keep each other in line.

After consuming mass quantities of meat, and even more mass quantities of pasta salad, beans and rice, and mashed potatoes, The Love Magnet lay back and declared

"Oh, I DONE!"

Firstborn asked if she had a big belly to prove it. She complied. It took some explaining that she shouldn't lift her shirt too high.

It was the boys first time at a Churrascaria. Thirdborn was done, too. Everyone stuffed themselves silly. It was the ultimate carnivore birthday party.

14 Days of Valentines: Days 1, 2, and 3

2011-02-03T20:41:00.000-08:00

Day 1 ended up being a surprise on his truck seat early in the a.m.: a cute box of icecream flavored Jelly Bellys with a cute note telling him that his kisses turn my belly to jelly. I know, corny. But cute. But no picture, a.s The Love Magnet absconded with the jelly beans soon after Mr. Wonderful arrived home.

Day 2 was The Triathlon Training Bible and a stick of Body Glide with a very cheesey poem about how cute he looks in his fit body and the presents are supposed to help him ride and glide. I can't quit laughing over that one!) He thought it was great.

Day 3 is Firstborn's bday. Today I left a note on his side of the bed about the memory of the day our first child was born. Mr. Wonderful held me and cheered me and consoled me when the labor got difficult. Then he named our son after my brother who is now in Heaven. It really touched my heart. He knows how much it meant to me.

Tomorrow will be a very simple creation of our first dance together along with a note of that memory.

Speech, reading, and Down syndrome -or- funny things The Love Magnet says:

2011-01-18T19:48:00.000-08:00

"Mom, I read Poobs magazine. Can we get Poobs magazine?" The Love Magnet looked at me expectantly through the rear view mirror as we drove home from swim lessons. It wasn't her look charming and irresistible so I can get what I want look. It was a genuine I read something that was really cool and I want to share it with you look. But, Poobs? Wait.......MY DAUGHTER READS MAGAZINES?!

"Honey, I have never read Poobs magazine. What is it?" I had no idea. Have you ever heard of it?

"Mom, it Poobs magazine. It really cool!"

"Honey", I answered, "I don't know anything about Poobs magazine. Where did you read it? What was in it?"

"I read it at J's", she said definitively, as if it solved everything. Okay, the family who takes her to school twice a week. The Js are helping me so I can attend my early class.

"Do you want me to call Js and ask them about it? Or you can tell me what you read in it."

The Love Magnet grinned from ear to ear. She tilted her head to one side and put her pointer finger against her cheek. She thinks this is what people do when they are thinking. The kid is literal. "It about Clifford-the-big-red-dog an' Martha speak and dinosaurs!"

Hmmm. My mind tried to find the combination between these odd subjects. Brain cells coalesced ideas until the fog dissipated.

"Love Magnet, do you mean PBS magazine?"

My daughter threw her hands in the air. "That it, Mom! Poobs magazine."

"Honey, its pronounced P-B-S. PBS magazine."

"PBS! That spells Poobs, Mom!"

PBS, you might consider changing your pronunciation. I doubt The Love Magnet is the only child who thinks this way.

14 Days of Valentines - Dinner ideas

2011-01-15T09:46:00.001-08:00

I am narrowing down what I want to make for dinner. The kids always get a pizza early and then head upstairs for a DVD. I think Firstborn will be out on a date and Secondborn will be out with friends.

I've had my eye on the recipe for Lobster and Tomato Fettucine from my favorite restaurant Market Street Broiler. I've never made it before, nor have I ever cooked a lobster on my own. Shouldn't be too hard, should it? The dish sounds divine, but it would mean not doing a cream based dessert and my creme brulee recipe from the same place is my go-to dessert. Hmmm.

There is always my fall-back staple entree: Alton Brown's Pan Seared Rib Eye with roasted garlic mashed potatoes. It's foolproof when you want to make a really good steak. One rib-eye is big enough for the two of us. I like to add caramelized onions, sauteed 'shrooms, and crumbled Stilton. If I do this then I will also add bacon wrapped scallops.

I'm going easy on sides this year since I always serve too much food. Along with a loaf of really good bread from a local bakery, I'm making a simple Pear and spinach salad (swapping out the cranberries in favor of pomegranate).

Dessert will most likely be a Blackberry and Almond Torte recipe, also from Market Street. The presentation is gorgeous and I haven't made one for a few years. It's time.

Other ideas can be found in a previous blog post here. Or get already prepped food from Costco that you only have to heat (the Miso-glazed cod from the freezer section is tasty) or get your fave takeout. For dessert, get brownie bites and fruit from the store and melt chocolate for fondue. Or head to your fave bakery for a cupcakes, ultimate chocolate cake, or fruit tarts. You could layer cubes of purchased pound cake, fruit, and whip cream in flute glasses or those cute mini trifle glasses I've seen at Target and Walmart. Go to your fave chocolatier, purchase 8 different kinds of truffles and have a truffle tasting. (This surprisingly went over really well on a date night I planned last summer. If you don't do it for V-day, plan it for a romantic picnic ASAP).

I've said this every year, but it bears repeating. It doesn't matter what you do. Your Mr. Wonderful will appreciate the effort. Spending time making him feel loved it the only goal.

14 Days of Valentines Plan-o'-Days

2011-01-12T13:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry, this is a bit later than I promised. But here it is (*cue fanfare*) My 14 Days of Valentines game plan:

Day 1 (Tuesday): One gift basket full of all the triathlon and training stuff he keeps meaning to get but never has time, plus a note telling him how sexy I think he looks in his bike gear.

Day 2 (Wednesday): Me and You - a letter with my plans for our special Valentine's dinner.

Day 3 (Thursday): movie tickets and red vines candy. (Remember this is Firstborn's birthday so keeping it low key.)

Day 4 (Friday): 4-ever in love with you (recreating our first dance. Must get CD or MP3 download of Simple Mind's Don't You Forget About Me.) Yeah. That's when I first fell in love with him.

Day 5 (Saturday): 4 beautiful children and one cute wife pictures for his office. Irreverent silly pictures. Or just baby pictures including mine where my mom gave me a flat top. Seriously)

Day 6 (Sunday): Breakfast in bed with Pineapple Rolls, thick cut bacon, and a mushroom and Gruyere omelet.

Day 7 (Monday): One banana cream pie (his favorite) for Family Home Evening treat, with accompanying cheesy poetry.

Day 8 (Tuesday): Madness Make-It-G0-Away. I take the kids out and he gets downtime to do whatever he wants. Provide latest book he said he wanted to read, make sure his gym clothes are clean if he wants to work out. Dinner will be homemade pizza with a pepperoni heart.

Day 9 (Wednesday): Love note about our 20th Valentine's Day together and reminiscing about our 1st one.

Day 10 (Thursday): Ten Things I Love About You (written in calligraphy on a scroll)

Day 11 (Friday) Date night. Trip to the temple to do sealing and remember our own sealing in the Salt Lake Temple. Followed by dessert at our fave place.

Day 12 (Saturday) Valentines Dinner. Put kids to bed early. Menu will be posted soon.

Day 13 (Sunday) 13 Ways to say I Love You written on his truck in those fun window paints. Yes he will have to wash the car but he will have to wait until Monday. *grinning*

Day 14 (Monday) Home Evening about the importance of being a good husband. This is geared towards the boys, using their dad as an example.

I am particularly excited about days 11 and 13. SO EXCITED for V-Day 2011! Tell me about your plans, especially if this is the first year you try it. As always, look on the right side of the blog for the label cloud and click on 14 Days of Valentines for intro to the whole shebang and even more ideas on what to do to romance your Mr. Wonderful.

Real, honest-to-goodness, not-family-but-friends LATEOVER

2011-01-09T20:12:00.000-08:00

Last night was another first for The Love Magnet. Her first lateover. Her first real not-family-but-friends lateover. She has never been that long away from me without other family members keeping track of her. And she loved it.

"Mom. I go in all by myself. You not invited. It's my lateover."

She was determined that I understood completely that I was not welcome.

The one thing I regret from having The Love Magnet repeat first grade was that she didn't continue on with her friends. Those kids really looked out for her. They invited her to birthday parties. They came over to play or to swim. The kids in her current grade haven't done the same. The closeness just isn't there. But one girl in particular who has gone ahead a year still invites her to birthday parties. God bless that family for remembering my daughter.

We went to Wallgreens to get a present. The Love Magnet knew exactly what she wanted to get: 4 uber-bright colors of nail polish (yellow, aqua, fuchsia, and sparkly purple), nail stickers, hair pretties and a matching necklace that changed colors when exposed to sunlight. Girl stuff.

She asked nonstop every waking hour for three days "When we go to party, Mom? Don't forget it at 5:00." I was quizzed to make sure I knew when to go. She made sure I knew where to go. Finally, when it was time, she reminded me for the entire 15 minute ride that I was not to go in the house. I promised that I would stay at the door.

She hugged me goodbye and tried to push me out.

I worried a little bit. I have no problem admitting it up front. The Love Magnet was gone for 4 hours. I trusted the family. I just wondered if my daughter would remember her manners. I worried if she would stay with the girls and not go off on her own to play with toys. I was afraid that she would forget to use the bathroom in all the excitement and have an accident.

When I picked her up, she was disappointed to see me. She must have been tired, because other than the initial expression of not wanting to be the first girl picked up by her parents, she put her shoes on and hugged everyone goodbye. She thanked the mom who hosted the event (and looked her in the eyes while speaking to her! - HUGE VICTORY! My DS moms will understand that.)

On the way home, The Love Magnet announced to her brother and his friends (whom I just picked up at the Y) that she was tired. She hugged her daddy and me and went straight to bed when we got home.

I'm cheering the independence. I'm thrilled about the remembered friendships. I'm at peace with her growing up.

I'm thinking we need to host more playdates and a lateover. Encourage more friendships.

THE 14 DAYS OF VALENTINES 2011

2011-01-06T11:10:00.001-08:00

(psst.....Mr. Wonderful...go away, you are not allowed to read this)

Are you ready for some R*O*M*A*N*C*E?! It's that time of year again (woot-woot!). Get ready to smother your lover/hug your honey/make your man feel 20 feet tall.

For those of you who have never done this, here is the 411 (dude, I am so hip!):

* Think up a little something to do for you Mr. Wonderful for every single day in February from the 1st and culminating on the 14th with you making a special supper for the two of you. (Don't worry if you don't cook. I have advice to make it easy for you.)

*Inexpensive and creative is the way to go.

*Borrowing/stealing ideas from others or past years is perfectly acceptable.

*Jewelry, flowers, or reciprocation in kind from your man IS NOT THE GOAL. This is unselfish, sweet love.

WHY DO THIS? Because he deserves it. Period.

Easy peasey. Check out the right side bar and scroll down to The 14 Days of Valentines for ideas. I will post my ideas by Saturday. Early planning is the key. Ideas can cost little or even be free. Think romantic and fun.

ON YOUR MARK!

GET SET!

GO!

New Years Resolutions thrust upon me

2011-01-05T11:08:00.001-08:00

I wasn't going to make any New Years Resolutions. I have my goals already laid out: make it through my last semester, graduate (!) with my Bachelors in Communication Sciences and Disorders, put my house somewhat in order and hopefully keep it that way, and juggle my schedule plus kids tutoring, swim lessons, climbing lessons....

(Did you know that the YMCA has climbing lessons and a competitive climbing team called The Rock Stars? Thirdborn is swooning. Unfortunately the 101 class is full and he has to wait until next month. But I digress......)

Today I sat in front of the organ at church. Listened to podcast lesson #2 "First Steps In Pedal Playing". Practice my pedal work. Sounded like a first year piano student.

Agony.

The organ amplifies my every mistake. The medial area of my right knee hurts and I wonder why. It's worse when I try to navigate the pedals heel-toe. I have to sit ram-rod straight and barely on the organ bench in order to make that heel-toe motion work. Along with the discomfort, I mourn the straight posture I used to have way back during the Jurassic Period. Before color was invented. Eons ago. It's exhausting to sit that straight for 4 verses of a hymn.

It's hard for me to not be good at something. And this organ playing humbling me. I'm scheduled to play organ in two weeks in Sacrament Meeting and I realize now that it is not nearly enough time. As I told the Ward Music Chairperson "I won't be an organist, but at least I will be willing". I am impatient and want to see improvement now. Uh.......now. No...........now! No improvement after an hour of practice. I pack up my laptop, binder of printed material for the online podcast course, and my brand-spankin'-new huge spiral bound hymnbook. The kind organists use. Because I am an organist. At least I'm trying to pretend to be one.

I need organ shoes.

I said a little prayer yesterday before I started my first practice. I asked Heavenly Father if he would mind loaning me Sis. Larson (my piano teacher for 8 years) to whisper in my ear until I got the hang of this. Its going to take months and I need a mentor.

Magnify my calling. Hope. Believe. Endure joyfully. No bad attitude.

I'm still impatient. Do I need to repent for that?

Believe. Hope. Endure Joyfully. Welcome 2011!

2011-01-03T05:50:00.000-08:00

The textbooks have come. Sticker shock over the $150+ price tag of my Educational Audiology paperback textbook as well as the $50+ price tag of Topical Diagnosis in Neurology textbooks whose size I can easily fit into my purse. I can already tell you that my Neurology class is going to be incredibly tough. Still, I am looking forward to it.

Last semester, blog peeps. I am getting my B.S. in Communication Disorders in May. Twenty years after my original plan of when it was supposed to happen (albeit with a B.A. in Musical Dance Theater way back in the '91) I am going to graduate.

Can you hear the angels singing? Oh, yeah, I can.

Today's plans include more sticker shock as I go pay my tuition for the semester. Then it's off to practice the organ at church. Yesterday I was called to be the Assistant Ward Organist. I have a feeling my old piano teacher, Sister Larson, is up in heaven pointing her finger at me and saying "I told you that you needed to learn organ!" I have downloaded and printed BYU's The New Organist program and will listen to the free accompanying MP3 lectures from iTunes. BTW, those lectures and printouts are FREE if you are interested. 12 lessons in all and the claim is that it should turn me into an organist or at least put me on the path. BYU also has their yearly organ workshops (this year it starts August 2nd) which I am seriously looking into attending. I used to love their choir workshops.

As for the title of my first blog in 2011, it comes from a talk I gave the last Sunday in 2010 in my ward. Mr. Wonderful, Secondborn, and I were asked to focus on the topic of the 13th Article of Faith. My talk was about the middle: "We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things." I took the liberty of changing it a bit to "....and hope to be able to endure all things joyfully". My goals for 2011.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-27T09:52:00.001-08:00

The pure joy of opening a Pillow Pet.

The Love Magnet wanted to help everyone open their gifts.

Seriously, she insisted on helping EVERYONE.

Auntie, Uncle, and Cousins came to dinner after which everyone competed on Rock BAnd Wii. I think Thirdborn won.

Relaxing and watching new movies.

Hanging out and enjoying each other's company.

Christmas Activities

2010-12-23T14:09:00.000-08:00

The annual high schools Christmas choir performance. This year Firstborn was singing in Acapella choir. They were great. It brought back so many memories of high school *mumble-mumble* years ago. Too bad this choir doesn't also sing Hallelujah chorus and O Holy Night with alumni. I'd go up there and sing.

No pics of this, but my stake also had their Christmas fireside. I directed the YM/YW choir in Peace, Peace, Peace and the stake choir in The Hallelujah Chorus. I love my singers - they sounded beautiful. Their singing always starts the Christmas season for me.

We decorated the tree and put up the Christmas village. I'm missing at least three buildings and have no idea what happened to them.

Now the neighbor treats are done, I'm going to make gingerbread and sugar cookie dough for cookie decorating tomorrow. Dinner is simmering on the stove. Fall semester is done so I don't have to stress over studying. Life is good.

The Ultimate, Most Fabulous, Tee-rific, Uber Cool, Awesomest Christmas Gift EVER!

2010-12-22T21:08:00.000-08:00

I know it is hard to see behind Mr. Wonderful and Firstborn - that is a helicopter. I decided that a gift of an experience would be great this year. Since Firstborn wants to be a pilot ( of planes, not helicopters, but that might change) I bought them a helicopter tour to see the Christmas lights downtown.

It rocked.

IT ROCKED!

I thought I would be scared silly due to my fear of heights. It was just incredibly cool. We flew around the capitol building, past the historic area, and around downtown. The view was amazing. So worth every cent to see the look on my son's face.

I am now the very cool queen-mom who won't quit patting herself on the back.

Coming up for air.....

2010-12-21T20:27:00.000-08:00

I'm typing this while laying on the couch. The Love Magnet is snuggled against my side, fast asleep. For once, she isn't snoring. Poor thing, at least her cold seems to be getting better.

I thought that as soon as finals were over, I'd be totally relaxing and posting and baking and shopping and planning and......um, no. Scratch the relaxing part. Other than Mondays epic sleep-in-til-eight-a.m. (which was amazing, thankyouverymuch), I've been uber busy getting together graduate school applications. My Statement of Purpose has been edited (thank you so much, Cousin Anna) and all that is left is making sure the GRE scores and transcripts get to where they need to go.

Baking and treat delivery tomorrow. Wrapping happened this afternoon (I've lost one present already. It can't have gone far since I put everything in my closet and don't bother to hide it).

I prevented Thirdborn from buying handcuffs for The Love Magnet. I knew he would end up handcuffing her to something just to keep her out of his room. Instead, he was very smart and bought her a recorder/tambourine set so she would leave his recorder alone. The Love Magnet bought Secondborn a new wallet to replace the one he lost (it comes with a pocket size pliers/LED light/knife/screwdriver thingamabob that will surely be useful).

I arranged for the most fabulous gift for Mr. Wonderful and Firstborn: a helicopter tour over downtown to see the holiday lights. I figured since Firstborn wants to be a pilot, and Groupon had a fab deal of half off the tour, it would be perfect. Perfect was supposed to happen last Saturday night but was canceled due to weather. Rescheduled for this week. I'm really looking forward to seeing their faces.

I also bought and framed professional pics from Mr. Wonderful's first triathlon. I'm sure he'll be excited to see those. I am so proud of his accomplishments and I wanted the pics to be an ever-present bragging reminder of how cool he is.

The Love Magnet has requested that we make sugar cookies this week. So tomorrow a batch of sugar cookie dough and a batch of gingerbread dough will go into the fridge for Thursday. In the meantime, I have a house to clean. We are hosting Christmas dinner this year. I have new place mats (scored 80% off at Kohls) and a few things to make in advance. Christmas dinner will be ham with a whole mustard and apricot glaze, Grandma S' cranberry sauce, pickles in her cut-glass pickle dish, brie and crackers, hot crab and artichoke dip, and a gingerbread, lemon curd and blackberry trifle along with a place of Christmas cookies. My aunt and uncle will be bringing veg, potatoes, and their famous homemade bread.

Many pics coming up. But right now, my arm is asleep. I've got to figure out how to disentangle myself from The Love Magnet and carry her up to bed.

Extra Happy Birthday News

2010-12-04T20:55:00.000-08:00

Secondborn is less than 2 inches away from being taller than Firstborn. Firstborn is not pleased.

Happy Birthday, Secondborn

2010-12-04T19:32:00.000-08:00

Secondborn turned 14 today. In honor of his awesomeness, here are 14 fab things about Secondborn:

1. This is my generous kid. He used to spend all of his birthday money buying Christmas presents for his siblings (at least until we gently explained to him that it would be a good thing to spend some of it on himself).

2. Secondborn can get along with ANYONE. That is a rare talent, indeed.

3. We think this kid has all the Maori blood from his ancestors. He has the body type and the darker skin that tans easily. If he doesn't need to shave by the time he goes on his mission at age 19, we'll know he truly has the family Maori blood.

4. Secondborn is going to be a great cook. He loves cooking so much that he took the cooking courses at school long after he filled that requisite. He wants to continue on in high school. He doesn't have a desire to make this his profession, it's just something he loves to do.

5. Secondborn loves basketball even more than he loves cooking. He was on the school team last year and it was fun to cheer him on at his games.

6. He loves reading, particularly Rick Riordan, Brandon Mull, and James Dashner. His number one request for birthdays and Christmas gifts is books. (He takes after his mom.)

7. Secondborn still asks his friends to not swear around him. And they are careful to stop. One of them even apologized yesterday the second a cuss word slipped from his lips.

8. He has a quirky sense of humor. Tonight he was making up words to Christmas carols and laughing himself silly. Singing to the tune of It's beginning to look a lot like Chistmas" he sang "You bacon is starting to look quite crispy....". The lyrics didn't get any better, but we had fun laughing about it.

9. He loves the Utah Jazz and quotes stats about them all season.

10. He is his sister's best friend. He reads to The Love Magnet, carries her across icy parking lotsm, picks her up from school, and is her chief chicken noodle soup maker. The Love Magnet often tells everyone how much she loves her big brother.

11. Secondborn discovered girls this year. Unfortunately, his teachers weren't thrilled about it as it affected his schoolwork. Luckily he brought his grades back up and now keeps checking them against mine to see if he gets to pick the family vacay next summer. In the meantime, he now knows that liking girls fine, just don't talk to them during class.

12. He is a smart kid. He has been working on his 8th grade PACE project all year and scoring well with every segment. We're looking forward to his presentation at the end of the year.

13. Secondborn has turned out to be quite the thespian (and I am so proud!) His drama teacher was heaping on the praise during parent teacher conference. Apparently, Secondborn did a project that was stage ready beyond what the other students performed. Secondborn has never performed in front of us. We do get to see him when his class puts on a series of one-act plays in January. I'm so looking forward to that!

14. This kid has a testimony. He is really looking forward to being ordained a teacher tomorrow.

Snow Day

2010-12-01T14:41:00.001-08:00

We got a call at 5:30 a.m. The caller spoke Spanish. Mr. Wonderful thought it was a wrong number, hung up, and went back to sleep.

At 5:45 a.m. we received another call. This time it was in English: our school district superintendent had an automated voice mail sent to everyone announcing schools closed due to weather. I got onto my email and saw the same announcement had been sent in English AND Spanish. So that is what the first call was! My school posted a closure notice, too. Every one of us was excited for real honest-to-goodness SNOW DAY.

The boys trooped outside as soon as they had their bedrooms clean. The shoveled the driveway, threw snowballs to Doggie Girl (she loves to eat snowballs), and then disappeared with their friends to the neighborhood hills for some serious sledding.

The Love Magnet just stayed in her PJs. She doesn't have snow boots yet. She was quite happy to stay on the couch and soak in all the television I would let her. *sigh* I know, I am not winning any mom-of-the-year awards this year.

After lunchtime, the boys trooped in with their friends, drank copious amounts of hot chocolate and ate leftover lasagna, and tore through the house. They played with Thirdborn's new microscope set. Indoor hide-and-seek. Lots of yelling, wrestling, and "not it's".

I made a batch of gingerbread, threw beans and ham hocks in the slow cooker, and kept the hot chocolate maker going all afternoon. The kids left me in peace to finish up a project for my language assessment class, start another one for my aural rehab class, and get a few things done. It was wonderful. My house smells amazing, there are only a few muddy bootprints downstairs, and everyone was entertained all afternoon.

Can we have another snow day tomorrow? Please?

10 Great Things About Thirdborn

2010-11-29T18:39:00.001-08:00

Today my Thirdborn turned 10 years old. To celebrate him, here are ten fabulous things about him.

1. This kid understands gratitude. He is so grateful for everyone and everything. He never forgets to say "thank you".

2. Thirdborn loves learning everything science. He was so excited to receive a microscope/science kit and a crystal-growing kit for his birthday. He loves studying animals and can rattle off science trivia that would astound you.

3. If you are new in school then Thirdborn will be your first friend. He seeks out the new kids and pulls them into his group.

4. This kid can climb. Take him to a climbing wall and he will beat you to the top.

5. Thirdborn is my sensitive kid. If he sees someone suffering, he feels such empathy towards them. Many times I have caught him with tears in his eyes when he sees someone who is hurt, homeless, or just sad.

6. Thirdborn loves Scouting. He never wants to miss a den meeting and comes home full of facts and ideas that he wants to try at home. (Let me just add here: God bless his scout leaders!)

7. He has silver eyelashes. It's really from vitiligo but we tell him that the stars in his eyes caused his lashes to go silver. He thinks they're pretty cool.

8. This kid thinks out of the box. He comes up with the craziest theories and coolest solutions. I think it might have to do with having dyslexia. Some of the most creative minds had dyslexia.

9. He is the spitting image of his daddy. Of all of our boys, he looks the most like Mr. Wonderful. I really should put their pics side by side in another post and let you judge.

10. Thirdborn is my hero. He has really struggled with his learning disabilities, yet I have never witnessed him to have a bad attitude about it. He works hard every single day and stays positive.

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-25T21:16:00.001-08:00

Mr. Wonderful hung out with his little brother...

and Thirdborn played with the train sets, pinball machines, and air hockey table...

(seems more like Christmas than Thanksgiving, doesn't it?)

and the Love Magnet read aloud to anyone who would listen...

Secondborn made a batch of his famous Baconator Deviled Eggs.

Grandma Wonderful told of the lastest in the family history search. We now know that we have relatives who were abducted by pirates and made to serve as cabin boys until they escaped.

(Disney-Pixar will be calling soon for the film rights.)

I made my (famous only to me) Streuseled Sweet Potatoes.

(Actually they were very well received thankyouverymuch.)

Mr. Wonderful played with his little niece. She loved him, of course.

She smiled for everyone. Little Charmer.

Soon it was time to finish the platters and sit down for our meal.

We were requested by Grandma to each say for what we were thankful.

I'm thankful for this guy. Secondborn's sense of humor cracks me up every single time. I am so proud of his cooking. He is always so kind to others.

I'm grateful for this one, too. Firstborn has really shown his leadership skills as swim team captain this year. He is also learning to be more patient and it shows.

Thirdborn is my hero. He has really worked hard this year to do better in reading and math. He will be a great scientist someday.

I am grateful for the Love Magnet, too. Unfortunately, her pic did not load up and I can't figure out why.

Did I ever tell you how much I love my in-loves? Even when they threaten me for taking their pictures. They don't like cameras. Hah! Got Grandpa Wonderful anyway!

And the record-for-future genereations "What did you used to eat for Thanksgiving?"

Later in the evening, we went to another brother-in-loves house for dessert. Grandma played with my sweet niece.

While I snapped Wendywoo snapping. This is the chickie who is AMAZING at decorating. See her decorating blog here. She has promised to come do my house (that is if they ever come to Idaho again). In the meantime, you could hire her to do your house.

My nephew and the boys escaped downstairs to play video games. Mr. Wonderful traipsed off with his brother to try to find a frozen pipe. That left my in-loves, my niece, and I to eat pie.

Happy Thanksgiving! Today I am going to the movies and then off to the Carl Bloch exhibit at BYU. I hope you have a fun day planned, too.

Over the river and through the woods

2010-11-24T19:40:00.000-08:00

Actually, we should be singing "over the snow-packed freeway past dozens of flipped vehicles.." The roads in Idaho were horrible. We took it very slow and were relieved to make it past the border into Utah where the roads were clear.

I have really missed my mountains.

We made it to the Wasatch Front just as the sun started to go down.
The sunset kept changing as the clouds kept changing.

It became dark just as we reached Layton

Smack in the middle of the Salt Lake Valley is the home of the parents of Mr. Wonderful. Grandma Wonderful loves to collect toys for the grandkids to play with when they visit.

She even found a computerized chess board because she knew Secondborn loved to play chess.

We are so grateful we made it safely and are looking forward to Thanksgiving with family tomorrow. I'm making my usual Streuseled Sweet Potato Casserole and brussel sprouts with bacon and mushrooms. Secondborn is making is famous Baconator Deviled Eggs.

GRE panic........and calm.....

2010-11-18T20:55:00.001-08:00

I took the GRE last night. And I bombed it.

Actually, it was a practice GRE, the third practice GRE I had done, and the first one I tried while timed.

I hated that little clock on the screen. It ticked like a time bomb and shattered my belief in myself. I scored horribly low on that practice test. After staring at the computer screen in shock, I started to cry. Hard. Then I got to my knees and started to pray. Hard. The tears didn't stop, they just came faster.

Please, Heavenly Father, I can't fail.

I know the taste of failure. It has happened so many times. My whole grad school future hinges on being able to score well on the GRE. I prayed and cried, cried and prayed.

Mr. Wonderful heard about it late last night after the kids were in bed. He heard me out, let me cry on his shoulder, counseled me, and promised to give me a priesthood blessing the next morning.

This morning, before the kids were up, Mr. Wonderful gave me a blessing in which he reminded me whose daughter I was and blessed me to have a calm spirit and clear recall of the things I studied.

I felt calm. I was so calm during my morning class that my classmates wondered what was wrong with me. Usually I am talkative - not this morning. I breezed through a quiz I had in class this morning, then left to review for the GRE.

This afternoon, I entered the testing center still feeling calm. I filled out the paperwork, hand copied the paragraph stating that I would not cheat, showed I.D., and stowed all my belongings in a locker - including a watch they told me I couldn't wear. They even made me turn my pockets inside out. All I could take in were two pencils and four sheets of yellow paper.

I walked in calmly. My hands weren't even shaking.

Noise reduction headphones - on.

Place paper, pencils, and I.D. just so,

Scroll through the directions.

Deep breath and quick stretch.

Go.

I think I rocked the essays. The quantitative was stressful. The problems I could not figure out in 2 minutes, I did a best guess of elimination and moved on. At least I finished the section with 2 seconds to spare. During the verbal, there were only two words I did not know but I could break them down and make a guess between two of the five answers available.

I did better on the quant than I thought I would but not great. I wasn't sure if I did well on the verbal until I looked up the percentage. According to the ETS website (if I understood it correctly) I did very well on the verbal.

I need to talk to my counselor to see if my scores were good enough for grad school, or should I take it again and hope for better on the math. I won't have my full scores with essays for two weeks.

Overall, I feel pretty good. Calm. Really calm.

Hopefully that feeling will last all through Thanksgiving break.

Trials, frustrations, and tender mercies

2010-11-06T22:36:00.000-07:00

This past week was a short school week for the kids. Parent Teacher Conferences.

I dread them.

It's hard to go in with a good attitude, even though I know that all the adults present are there in the best interest of my children. But it seems that every session is more negative and rarely positive.

This year it was a lot about The Love Magnet's potty accidents that started this school year and seem to be getting worse. There were also behavior issues. Then there was the 'less-able-than-we thought'. I managed to make it through the entire session without crying (a record for me) but still had to mentally steel myself and try to inhale the tears back through my tear ducts.

In Thirdborn's session, it was to see his test scores and the grade equivalent of his reading level. I do not hold much to the grade equivalent. At one point I realized that my body posture was showing my attitude and quickly uncrossed my arms and sat up straighter.

Trials and frustrations.

Thankfully, Mrs. A, the resource teacher, took me into her room and showed me Thirdborn's successes and that told me that she didn't think his grade equivalent was accurate, either.

Tender mercies.

Firstborn's and Secondborn's teachers all had interesting things to say. Some positives, some negatives, and some surprises.

Frustrations.

I spent yesterday working on an assessment project that I desperately need to score well to improve my grade. The teacher said not to stress to much about it. But it is hard writing a diagnostic when I've never done it before, especially when I have to make up some of the testing data.

Frustrations.

Today I stuffed my freezer full of chicken from a fabulous sale. It feels good to know that we have food and food storage. It's my sense of accomplishment this week, where my family is concerned.

Tender mercies.

Today, The Love Magnet helped me plant 60 bulbs in our front yard. We pulled weeds and roots. We found worms. I had accidentally cut one in half. The Love Magnet just thought it was a mama worm with her baby worm and declared "Oh, that is so sweeeet!" We watched them squirm back into the dirt. We counted bulbs. My daughter made sure that each one she placed in the ground had the pointed side up. As we were digging in the dirt, I had a prompting: "Savor this moment". It was the first time I had slowed down all week and did something not involving a textbook. The air was warm and the sun shined on our backs - the last gorgeous day of fall.

Tender mercies.

She finally wants to be a princess.....

2010-10-31T21:14:00.000-07:00

.........an OGRE princess.

Why?

1. Because there is no shiny/scratchy/satiny/slippery/lacy part of this costume at all.

2. Because she wanted me to paint her feet green. Not her face, she only wanted sparkly "really mommy lipstick, NOT CHAPSTICK, Mom, real lipstick" on her face. But she was obsessed with green feet. (No, I did not paint her feet green.

3. Because she wanted her daddy to dress up like Shrek. And Firstborn was supposed to be Prince Charming (he certainly has the hair for it). Secondborn was supposed to be Donkey and Thirdborn was supposed to be Puss in Boots. I was to be the Evil Fairy Godmother. We could have made this work so well......except The Love Magnet did not tell us her complete Halloween fantasy until right before it was time to go to Trunk-or-Treat at the church. Oops. Sorry, sweetie, even the Evil Fairy Godmother can not make costumes magically appear that fast. Maybe next year.

Other oddities:

The Love Magnet had it in her head that it couldn't be a proper Halloween party without a cheese ball. Where does she get this idea? She is not really into them. I don't even think she fully understands what a cheese ball is. But she was determined that we absolutely had to have one for her class party. She had to make do with apples and caramel like everyone else.

The Love Magnet wished everyone a Happy Halloween. The checkout at the grocery store. The crossing guard. The neighbors. All. Month. Long. Do you think she will be disappointed tomorrow or move smoothly into wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving?

Should I be concerned that TLM thought I would be perfect as the Evil Fairy Godmother?

Homemaking grade - F

2010-10-26T14:09:00.000-07:00

I attempted peach butter for the first time. I should have known that it wouldn't work well when I first prepped the peaches. They clung to the pit (whoops, forgot to check for freestone), and they just didn't smell peachy enough. It took twice the prescribed time amount to cook those down in my slow cooker. House smells great. Peach butter only made 3 1/2 pints, too sweet, and it doesn't taste peachy.

I should have stuck with apple butter and pumpkin butter. I know how to make those with success.

May I just add here that I haven't bottled ANYTHING this year? No applesauce, no peaches or pears, not even grandma's salsa. I didn't bother to make strawberry or raspberry jam (still have a little left in the freezer from the previous year.) No one touched the plum vanilla jam from last year- that won't be made again. Grandma S would be rolling in her grave - I haven't even put veggies in my freezer. My garden is a bust. Mr. Wonderful wants to till it all under and forget it next year....until I sung to him the Primary song about planting a garden. I think the song is cheesy. But it got the point across - we plant a garden every year. Period.

I haven't attempted a major new recipe since school started. Most of my cooking has been from memory. Tonight is Dijon Chicken Stew with Potatoes and Kale - perfect for the windy, rainy day we've had. And I can do that from memory, too. At least I still can do nutrition.

Laundry pile? What laundry pile? Oh....you mean that mountain over there?

It's Halloween. Dust and cobwebs are really in vogue right now.......sure.
(psst -I resorted to buying costumes this year, because I just don't have the mental energy to put anything together.)

*sigh*

Okay, so homemaking grade is shot for the semester, but I do get decent marks for mommy-ing. I still read books, check homework, and make sure they are wearing something clean and comb their hair before they leave for school.

Quality (study) time

2010-10-21T20:52:00.000-07:00

The past two weeks have found myself and Thirdborn hitting the books. I have whatever over sized tome open, surrounded with binders full of notes, trying to type furiously on my laptop. Thirdborn has the latest stapled pages of homework. What should take him 10-15 minutes takes him two hours. But I have to hand it to that kid - he buckles down even when he doesn't want to.

Tonight while I am trying to get a project done, he works on spelling words that are in cursive. We have to write them in print so he can read them (remember, I was able to eliminate cursive as part of his I.E.P.). Some of the sentence structures are hard for him to figure out in order to determine the missing word from his lengthy spelling list. He asks for help when he gets stuck (which is nearly every word).

Math goes better this week. Now that he understands it, he breezes through his math pages. Thank heavens. He needs that confidence booster of being able to do it himself.

Huge breakthrough on the reading front tonight. He has a timed reading page he works on every week. At the beginning of this week he was reading 70 wpm. Tonight he read 112 wpm. He has never gone past 80 before. He was so proud of himself. I was proud. Mr. Wonderful was proud. Thirdborn can't wait to tell his teacher and resource teacher because he knows they will be proud, too. It's a huge moment for my kid who has dyslexia.

I feel bad that he has to stay up so late to finish his homework. We've tried working earlier, but The Love Magnet is a huge distraction. It is just easier and better for Thirdborn to wait until she is in bed.

I think that he likes the one-on-one time with me. We cuddle together for reading. We work side by side on our individual assignments. He might stop once in a while to check on what I am doing, particularly if it involves pictures or video.

Last night he became fascinated with the chapter and notes I was studying about craniofacial anomalies (i.d. cleft lip/palate). He asked intelligent questions. I showed him pictures of embryonic development and he was utterly fascinated. He asked if having a cleft lip/palate hurt. We talked about the social and psychological ramifications of having your face look so different from everyone else. He ended up telling his teacher at school and his tutor at the learning center today about cleft lips/palates. Nothing wrong with his brain. Get him curious and he loves to learn.

I think he has now added plastic surgeon to the list of what he wants to be when he grows up; along with forest ranger, conservationist, zoologist (specializing in raptors, of course), and National Geographic explorer and photographer, and inventor.

J'adore

2010-10-17T20:10:00.000-07:00

Mr. Wonderful whisked me a way for a relaxing weekend. No work phones. No textbooks. No notebooks. No GRE. No kids.
The kids were in good hands so off we went. It was quiet.

We dined here. We ate this. (Because my Cookies will want to know these details)

Our room was a bit froufrou for my taste, but it was comfortable. I loved it.

We breakfasted on smoked trout hash on our own balcony...

with this view.

We went hiking. (I really need to invest in decent hiking boots.)

And found our dream spot for our future cabin.

One of these days.....

In the meantime, I am now relaxed and ready to conquer.

Midterms week

2010-10-13T08:25:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe that the semester is half over. This has been the hardest semester ever, not just due to the material, but getting ready for the GRE and applying to different schools. I have not written my Letter of Intent yet and need to get busy. I have 3 letters or rec and need two more. Papers to write. Projects to start/finish. Observation hours to accrue.

The Love Magnet woke up this morning acting ornery. Sign #1 that something is afoot. She has had a runny/stuffy nose all week. Sure enough, she now has a fever on the day I am supposed to take a midterm in my Assessment and Intervention class. It seems like every single virus that comes around the neighborhood hits her harder than anyone else. I emailed my prof, who graciously will allow me to take the exam tomorrow or Friday morning. As long as I don't talk to my classmates about the exam. Not a problem.

I'll have to use this day to work on GRE, catch up on laundry and dishes, and perhaps even put a dent in the office that never stays clean for more than 24 hours.

I can do 'hard' for 2 1/2 more years. My question is: Can my family stand for me to do 'hard' for the next 2 1/2 years?

BUDDY WALK 2010

2010-10-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

Today was the 2010 Boise Buddy Walk. The Love Magnet was so excited to her friends there. Cutie Boy here is in our ward. We love his family to pieces.

And Cutie Boy's sister M. She is another favorite of our family.
We met on the steps of Boise State Capitol to listen to the governor's wife start us off. The First Lady brought the new First Dog along. He was just as popular as she was.

Just a small part of the crowd at the Capitol. It was a great turnout!

The Love Magnet had her sign as was ready to go.

We walked from the Capitol to Julia Davis park. It was so much fun to walk in the middle of the street. See that cute girl next to Mr. Wonderful. Jess is my friend from school. She is learning to be an SLP, too. She brought her boyfriend along. I definitely approve of him, Miss Jess.

We also had Erin from my school with her husband Ian, and Daisy with her friends. I love these girls who will be graduating with me in May. It was so sweet of them to support us.

There were also news people lined up along the side of the street taking pictures.

Thirdborn and Doggie girl took care of TLM and made sure she didn't run to the other side of the street. It was tempting because there were lots of people waving and cheering at us.

Secondborn held his sign up. Firstborn did not. Apparently, waving a sign that says "Spread the Love" is too embarrassing for that teen.

Cutie Boy and his mom offered The Love Magnet a chance to ride. She was thrilled to accept.

(Do you see what I mean? Cutie Boy is CUTE!)

Second and Thirdborn did the best they could to make sure traffic on the cross streets could see the signs. Many cars were honking their support and drivers and passengers waving at the Buddy Walk crowd. For every honk, we cheered and waved back. There were so many smiling people. No one seemed to mind that they had to wait while we passed.

The Love Magnet ended up riding the rest of the way.

We ended at Julia Davis Park with bounce houses, games, entertainment, pizza from The Idaho Pizza Company, and prizes. Many, many thanks to the Treasure Valley Down Syndrome Association for a great Buddy Walk!

Day 3: The Love Magnet teaches gospel doctrine

2010-10-03T16:40:00.000-07:00

(the latest pic of my family)

Yesterday and today we watched General Conference. My fave talks were by Elder Gong and Elder Holland yesterday, and Elder Arnold today (I knew Elder Arnold when I was a child and my daddy called him Merv. I can't tell you how I remember that. Now, Daddy, if you didn't call him that, please let me know.)

We have a tradition in our house: after each talk we pause the DVR and ask the kids "What is your take-away?", meaning 'what can you take away from this talk and use in your life?' After they answer, we throw a couple of pieces of candy at them. (Jolly Ranchers were the popular choice this year.) Each of the boys usually gives us one or two sentences (aka bare minimum) about the general topic or something that resonated with them.

Not The Love Magnet (who is leaning on my shoulder, whisper-reading this as fast as I type, that smart little cookie).

She would insist on getting her turn at "Take-Away". Then she would stand up (the boys never stood up), clear her throat (a-HEM!) and talk as if she were marathoning a gospel-doctrine class.

TLM: "We should choose the right and make good choices because we love Jesus and I am a child of God and we need to help him by having prayers and sing Pi'mary songs at Conf'ence and be nice at school and pay attention and ...."

This would go on for a few more sentences, after which she would in "in the name of Jesus Christ, AMEN!" Then we could hand her some Smarties (her favorite) and start up on conference again.

She also sang along with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, discreetly directed with the conductor (she also does that to me in Primary), and alternated between snuggling up next to Firstborn (because he had the softest fleece blanket), or Thirdborn (because Doggie-Girl stayed close to him for both sessions.

I tried to get her interested in some Primary and Conference games for kids online to help her be reverent while the rest of us watched Conference. It lasted for one talk, but afterwards she preferred to listen to the talks, too. I could tell she was listening: in the midst of her sharing-of-testimony during Take-Aways, she always listed something to do with the speaker's topic.

Never underestimate what a child (who happens to have Down syndrome) understands.

And go check out the talks by Elder Gong, Elder Holland, and Elder Arnold. Better yet, just watch all three sessions (4 if you include Priesthood session).

Saturday Mornings with The Love Magnet

2010-10-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

The Love Magnet: Good morning, Mom!

Me: Good morning, sweetheart. Did you sleep?

TLM: I wake up now . Thank you for dinner last night. Thank you for movie last night. Thank you for bek-fust.
Me: um, sweetie, I'm sorry. I can't make pancakes this morning. I am trying to do my homework. I have a lot. Can you eat cereal or toast this morning?

TLM: Oh, okay. Thank you for toast, mom. Thank you for Pi'cess Fwee-o-nee-ah costume for Hall'ween.

TLM: It Hall'ween today, mom?

Me: No, Halloween is in 29 more days.

TLM: Oh. (looks at fingers and toes) Thank you for nail polish, Mom. Thank you for pajamas. (gives me a big hug and kisses my cheek). I go eat bek-fust now, Mom. Thank you for bek-fust. (she heads downstairs)

This is a typical Saturday morning. The Love Magnet is always in a good mood when she gets to wake up on her own. She then comes in my room, cuddles in my bed, and thanks me for everything that pops into her head.

It's a gratitude fest.

Are you a grateful Love Magnet?

Are you a Love Magnet?

2010-10-01T09:06:00.000-07:00

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October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month. I am committing to blogging every single day this month just to make my life even more chaotic.........no.........to raise awareness of Nondisjunction Trisomy 21. You know it as Down syndrome.

FACT:

Down syndrome is the most commonly occurring chromosomal condition. 1 in ever 800 babies has Down syndrome. That equates to about 500 births per year in the United States.

There are more than 400,000 people living with Down syndrome in the United States.

People with Down syndrome are not always happy. My daughter knows when she is being treated cruelly, snubbed, made fun of, and teased. She is also the most forgiving person I know. The Love Magnet also understands friendship, kindness, generosity, and compassion. Hence her nickname.

Be a Love Magnet this month. (We'll explain more in future posts.)

Exciting things afoot......um....in the air, actually.

2010-09-25T11:58:00.000-07:00

We are finally building the roof to cover our patio. We extended the patio last summer. It's the perfect size now for table and chairs and hanging out.

We've been planning this for three years. I can't wait to hang some uber cool candle lanterns and pick out patio furniture. I also have plans for a giant urn water feature .
Secondborn and his best friend have been a great help.

Mr. Wonderful even got me on the ladder a few times. I kept my eyes shut.

I told Mr. Wonderful that he looks sexy wearing a tool belt. Very Handy Manny. He rolled his eyes at me.

I think Secondborn just likes hanging out above my head. As long as he looks busy outside, I can't put him to work inside.

Self doctoring

2010-09-18T20:28:00.000-07:00

The Love Magnet asked if she could ride in the back of the car on the way home from school. Since we just live one street over in a residential area, I didn't think it was a problem.

Oops. (Mom-guilt! Mom-guilt!)

She didn't put her seat belt on and bumped her lip when we made a right turn. She started bleeding and crying, but told me she was strong as we drove the last 60 seconds to our home.

I asked The Love Magnet to go in the bathroom and wash her lip so I could check it. She was gone a long time (for her) and finally came down the stairs.

The Love Magnet: "Mommmmm, mmm-mf mmmmm-mf."

Me: "What did you say, Sweetie?"

The Love Magnet: "Mommmm, mmm-mf mmm-mf!"

I still didn't understand so I turned around.

Oh.

She fixed her fat lip.

Way to go, Love Magnet. Good problem solving and self doctoring.

It kept her quiet for a good hour. She read books and played with her dolls until dinnertime.

Nine Years Ago -

2010-09-11T13:26:00.001-07:00

Mr. Wonderful called me downstairs to see what was happening on the television. We sat in shock on the couch, hip-to-hip, holding hands. I was pregnant with Thirdborn, who was due to come in 2 1/2 months.

Our two older kids were at school and preschool. We debated on whether we should get them from school. We finally decided to let them finish out the school day since school was just one street over.

I mentally calculated our food storage, 72 hour kits, and stored water. We would be fine if supplies became scarce.

I worried about Mr. Wonderful. Being an elevator man, if there was an emergency he would have to head to hospitals or nursing homes to make sure the elevators ran as long as they could. he would not be able to stay home. We didn't think it would get to that point, but it was constantly in our minds.

Then I noticed on the television screen that one building looked as if it were leaning. I told Mr. Wonderful I feared it would fall...right before it did fall. My pregnant body couldn't take it any more. We turned the TV off and knelt down to pray. We prayed for the comfort of those families who lost or would lose loved ones that day. We prayed for the fire and police crews who were helping. We prayed for the leaders of our country that they would have wisdom. We prayed for ourselves and our loved ones that we would also have wisdom.

When it came time to pick up the kids, I held them extra tight. We spent the evening with the television off. We asked all questions from our kids as best as we could. We put together a puzzle after dinner and homework.

Now we look for a way to give service this day. The rest of the day remains low-key with a family oriented quiet activity and comfort food.

Do you have traditions that stem from 9/11?

It's slowly coming together....

2010-09-06T21:15:00.000-07:00

My school has been back in session for two weeks. I am starting to see that the knowledge of the past year has starting sticking. I understand more. That is incredibly exciting to me.

I've narrowed down all of my interests in order to focus on two: Language development in Down syndrome, and Voice Disorders. I am still interested in geriatric issues but that can wait until after grad school and PRAXIS, when I am required to do CEU's. I still would like to do a grad research project on DS, music, and language development.

I still have not figured out how to balance laundry and house chores when everyone else is running every which way. I have the cooking down (love my slow cooker thankyouverymuch!) and I can juggle chauffeuring when there is time left during kids tutoring sessions and sports for me to open a textbook. I need to come up with some kind of chore chart and teach these kids how to clean up messes as they make them (apparently the past 17 years of doing this doesn't count because it hasn't stuck in their heads.....)

Date night is still sacred in this house. It's not always on our usual date night and it is not always "out" but I still get my datenight with my honey.

This is the semester of applying for grad school. I'll take the GRE in October. I have two groups lined up to write rec letters for me. I am still trying to figure out tuition costs, housing costs and all requirements needed to apply to the out-of-state schools. When I ask Mr. Wonderful how on earth we'll pay out-of-state tuition he tells me to not worry about it.

I had the lovely experience of doing hearing screenings on some elementary kids this past week. The SLP and I sat side-by-side with two screening machines and between the two of us finished the kids in half the time. It was a great learning experience for me.

I have an exam for genetics this week. I have a project to interview a 90 year old woman about hearing and balance issues that I am really looking forward to. Tons of reading.

I wonder if the laundry will ever be completely done this school year. Probably not.

Perfect Day

2010-09-04T19:58:00.001-07:00

We went back to the state park today where Mr. Wonderful and the boys dropped off the turtle.
Labor Day weekend, the nicest day the weatherman predicted all weekend, and yet the park was not crowded. Oh perfect day.

Secondborn and The Love Magnet went swimming in the cold, cold water.

I scoped out the area for our family reunion to be held next summer. This place looks perfect.

Doggie girl had a great time swimming and catching balls.

I laid under the oak tree.

Secondborn took good care of The Love Magnet.

Thirdborn was determined to catch a few of the tiny fish swimming near the shore.

I wondered at the monolith with no name. What on earth is it for?

The Love Magnet decided she was cold and bundled up in swim towels.

We ended the day with a few runs on the water slide before heading home.

Perfect, quiet, sunny, summer day.

Turtle Rescue

2010-09-03T18:37:00.000-07:00

Mr. Wonderful rescued a turtle trying to cross one of the busiest streets in our town. He brought it home for Thirdborn to see (Thirdborn loves animals).
Doggie Girl didn't know what to think of it. She sniffed it, tried to bat it with her paw (and didn't like being told "no") and then tried to chase the poor turtle. We held her tight.

Mr. Wonderful said it was called a painted turtle

After admiring it for a while we decided it needed to be released back into the wild. A safe part of the wild. Where to go?

Thirdborn named the turtle Surfboard. Mr. Wonderful drove the kids to a local state park. The park rangers thought it was cool that they rescued a turtle so the family was let in for free. (Thanks ranger dudes!) Secondborn swam with the turtle to an island in the middle of the lake and let the turtle loose in the reeds. He reported that the turtle was quite happy to be there.

Good deeds were done today.

First day of school

2010-08-30T14:12:00.000-07:00

Up before the alarm rings. Brushed teeth without being asked. Healthy breakfast "because it's important to do well in school, Mom"

$267 dollars worth of school supplies. A backpack found after an entire summer of being lost. Outfits chosen days before. New haircuts. Endless queries of "Mom do I have school today?" every single day of summer vacation.

Lots of practice to say new teacher names. Excitement over having your best friend in your class this year. Determination that "this is going to be the best year ever, Mom."

All I can see are two kids growing up so fast.

High School......Attitude?

2010-08-13T13:40:00.000-07:00

I was shopping at the mall with The Love Magnet today. She has definitely developed her own sense of style and did not want her mom dictating her fashion choices. Neither did she want to hold her mom's hand:

The Love Magnet: "I can do whatever I want because I 8 years old now. I am high school teenager now and you can't tell me what to do. If you tell me what to do I have worst. day. ever.! Don't talk to me! (Shows me the 'hand' in my face.) I a TEENAGER!"

Me: (completely flabbergasted and I'm sure my face showed it. I regained some composure and gave my kid that one-eyebrow-up head-cocked mom look that usually - usually! - works on my sons.)

The Love Magnet: "I just kidding mom! I just like the girls on Disney!"

(When did Disney start showing rude, disrespectful girls on their channels?)

The Love Magnet, (a few minutes later) in her sweetest, 8 year old voice: "Mom, I a good girl? I a good 8 year old girl?"

(Great. I have a daughter with two personalities. Little Miss Independent Streak, and Little Miss I-Want-To-Go-Swimming-So-I-Need-To-Remind-Mom-I'm-A-Good-Girl.)

What is 'high school stuff'?

2010-08-13T13:38:00.001-07:00

Refer back to this post about High School Stuff.

Birthday Beach Party....as beachy as it gets in Idaho

2010-08-06T13:45:00.000-07:00

Pinks, greens, and yellows. Flower leis from the party store. Bonne Bell Lip Smackers (remember those?) Cool bracelets metallic bracelets and funky rings. All the important high school stuff in a convenient party favor bag. We are ready for guests.

Banana Cupcakes with coconut cream cheese frosting. Kahlua pork over rice. Grapes and strawberries and bananas dipped in Danish dessert sauce. We are ready for guests.

One little girl just dying to have her friends sing Happy Birthday. Oh are we ready for guests!

We made rag-tied flip flops (thanks to Auntie Kimberly for explaining the how-to's).

We had fun in the pool.

We started the latest uber-cool birthday party trend - hiring our very own lifeguard! (Firstborn was either very serious.....or very bored.)

9 guests invited. 3 guests came (everyone else was going out of town - that happens at summertime birthdays). 3 guests were all we needed for a fabulous birthday party.

Check it out. Girls hanging out and talking girl stuff. Typical girl stuff.

(I had to zoom in on this one because The Love Magnet didn't want her mom to cramp her style.) This picture made all that planning and worry worth it. Soooooo worth it.

Ego boost

2010-08-04T10:11:00.000-07:00

this morning as The Love Magnet and I are brushing our teeth, she rinses and spits and then turns to me with a toothpaste grin and says:

"Mom, you are one red-hot supermodel mama!"

Where does this come from? Does she even knows what it means? I don't care. I needed that ego boost today.

Birthday invites going out....

2010-08-02T14:57:00.000-07:00

Half of the bday invites went out today. The rest weren't home so we'll try to catch them either tonight or tomorrow. The Love Magnet had a great time going up to each door ("By myself, Mom. You stay in da car.") and hand delivering each invitation.

Firstborn has been hired as lifeguard for our beach party. He might be persuaded to MC some fun water games. Maybe.

Food will be kahlua pork over rice (not authentic, but I don't think 8 yr olds will care), fruit kabobs with dip, pineapple juice, and cupcakes. The Love Magnet loves rice. She loves fruit. She loves cupcakes when they have birthday candles in them.

I'll stop at the party store for leis and beach party favors. Perhaps I'll pick up balloons to tie on everyone's towell with a gator clip. We'll throw in some flavored Chapstick. The Love Magnet thinks that all beauty routines must start and end with flavored, tinted Chapstick. She keeps two in her high school stuff everywhere she goes.

Party planning quandary

2010-07-30T21:29:00.000-07:00

The Love Magnet wants a birthday party. She has the party planned down to every single detail she has learned verbatim from Signing Time's Happy Birthday video. When she describes her party, she even uses the signs she learned from watching Rachel, Leah, and Alex.

Too bad they aren't available to be guests.

I promised my daughter that tomorrow we would sit down and plan the party, print the invitations, and deliver them the next day. But there is a frustrating problem. When I ask her who she would like to invite to her party, she lists all the adults in her life. No kids.

I haven't sought out the Down syndrome community since we moved here so she has no friends from there. I've been too busy with school. She has not been asked to playdates. I haven't set up playdates here because she hasn't really asked for them. Now I'm regretting my inaction when it comes to the social skills of the Love Magnet. Mom-guilt strikes hard late at night when my kids are asleep and I have time to think.

Do I invite her Primary class? I did that last year and the girls had fun at the tea party. Should I try to track down kids from her school class? I don't know most of them, let alone their addresses. This year, The Love Magnet wants a swim party. Will the guests interact with her or just with each other?

The gap between my daughter and her peers seems to grow wider as they get older. If I don't do something soon, the chasm might be too wide to cross. (Okay, I admit that sounds rather drama-queen of me, but it is an honest worry. ) If cousins lived close, I would have a houseful and then some, but that still defeats the purpose.

I'll probably be up all night with this. My daughter is counting on me to come through.

8 great things about The Love Magnet

2010-07-29T15:33:00.001-07:00

Today is The Love Magnet's birthday. Here are 8 great things about her:

1. You know exactly where you stand with her. She loves you. You can't ever question that because she reminds you every single day. She loves her family, her teachers, her friends, the bus driver, the crossing guard, the guy who checks out our groceries at the store, the girl who cuts her hair......

2. She is incredibly brave. She shakes off the stings and hurts of bumps, bruises, and cuts pretty quickly. All she needs is a hug and she'll get over it. If you forget to give her a hug, she will head you off at the pass. She knows hugs are important.

3. She will never be too old to kiss her mom and daddy goodbye or good night.

4. She is one smart cookie. She loves to read, count, and she knows more about how to get around on the Wii game then her mom does.

5. The Love Magnet loves to cook. now if we could just convince her to cook when Mom is around instead of when Mom is not there. Mom is finding all sorts of kitchen chemistry experiments in the oddest places: full pots that have been put back in the cupboard, bowls of strange goo taken upstairs, chocolate mixed with tellicherry peppercorns and yogurt in mixing bowls on the counter. To her credit she is learning that recipes are created for a reason. "I'll get the cookbook, Mom!"

6. She prays to Heavenly Father as if she is talking to him. She tells Him to have a good day. She tells Him that she loves her teachers and friends and family. She lists all of her gratitudes (and that list is very long). If she remembers, she will ask for blessings. That doesn't happen often as she usually just checks in with Him and tells him about her day. The blessings that she never forgets to ask for: "Please bwess GammaPapa Africa on a mission dat dey will be safe".

7. The Love Magnet loves babies. She loves holding them and tries so hard to be gentle.

8. She loves to watch other succeed. Whether it is cheering Firstborn in swimming or Secondborn in basketball, telling Thirdborn he did a great job on his artwork, or cheering on competitors in Wii, she will be thrilled no matter who wins.

2010-07-27T11:57:00.000-07:00

I posted this on my Facebook page last night:

I want to be an archeologist, an anthropologist, an astronomer, a geneticist, a professor, a travel show host, psychologist, chef..........

There are simply not enough hours to accomplish it all. At least I have only 3 more years till I can claim at least one academic goal.

This is the incredible response I got this morning:

Carrie, you are all those things and more, you are a mother. Maybe you don't have the "degree" in those things but mothers handle a little of everything. they dig things out of the back of closets and under beds and try to figure out how they got there and what the "little people" were doing with them in the first place. They look at the stars and point out constellations to their children. They certainly do lots of teaching. You host travel shows every time you go on vacation (or to the supermarket for that matter). Psychologist is a must when dealing with children. Chef you do every day....now of you could just get paid, oh, wait you do, with hugs, and loves and sometimes incredible pay days when you see them doing wonderful things with their lives. So pat yourself on the back and examine the hats you are wearing today.

This sweet note came from an incredibly wise woman, one of the few whom i can truly say has helped shape my life. Bonnie lives in my Utah ward I moved from 4 years ago. She is a caregiver to her sweet husband, famous grandma who constantly has grandchildren over, and she is one of the most spiritual and gratitude-counting people I know.

Much thanks and many hugs, Bonnie. You always had a way to help me keep my head on straight and help me to see the blessings that surround me.

Pay It Forward has arrived

2010-07-22T15:38:00.000-07:00

I got a package! Woot! The Love Magnet loves packages and insists on opening it for me.

So what is in the package? And who sent it?
A purple honey bear? Oh, a Huckleberry honey bear from Logan, Utah! That is just begging for a hot biscuit or homemade whole wheat bread. Mmmmmmmm.
But who sent it? Who do I know in Logan?

Old fashioned cherry candy? From This Is The Place Monument? Or is it from the Pioneer Mercantile at Deseret Book? Who do I know in Salt Lake City?

What is this?Jurassic DNA pop rocks candy that swears to "mutate in your mouth?" Who do I know from Vernal? or is it from the dinosaur park in Odgen? Whatever it is, The Love Magnet wants it. I told her I would share. Maybe.

What else is in this box?

A tiny mouse? How did he get in there? Is it a church mouse? A field mouse?

A postcard of Utah listing a lot of fun places like Big Rock Candy Mountain, Timpanogos Cave, Rainbow Bridge, and national parks. Some places I've been to and some I haven't.

Oh! It's my Pay It Forward package from Sooz, the Laundry Faerie! She knew that I was missing my home state. This was so much fun to open. Thanks, Sooz! Um, what does the little mouse have to do with Utah? You have me stumped there. :)

Now it is your turn to play

Pay It Forward

the first three people to leave me a comment will be my "Pay It Forward" recipients.

You must have a blog so I can read your postings and learn a little bit about you. That way I will know what to send just for you! Then, when you receive your package from me, you post pictures of what you received, just as I have done, and wait for three comments on your blog...and the game continues on.

If there are any questions you can ask me any time. This is a lot of fun. Let's see how far this pay it forward will go!

Summer Art Show

2010-07-21T14:05:00.000-07:00

With the rose garden as a backdrop of inspiration

And the only art critic who has only praise

The artist gathers her favorite medium.

Delicate hues of blue and pink

The evidence of smudged artist hands (and feet)

and chalk-smudged nose and chin

She prepares her show for the opening hour (when Daddy comes home)

Last night

2010-07-10T10:29:00.000-07:00

Late night conversations that are actually not just inside my head:

"Good evening, Carrie."

"Good morning, Mom." (Mom is in Uganda and there is a nine (?) hour difference. We Skype each other when one day is starting while another is ending.)

After the usually how-are-yous, I'm-fines, let-the-kids-talk (even though they should have been in bed hours ago but won't because "it isn't dark yet, mom"), get-the-kids-back-in-bed.....we finally get down to brass tacks:

"Mom, were you worried about passing your nursing exam?" I needed mom-wisdom and mom-understanding. Even though my Praxis exam is still a good three years away, my GRE is looming. I worry that I will make it all through this educating and not pass that all-important exam I need to become a 'MS, SLP-CCC' and whatever other alphabet soup I want after my name. I always wanted an alphabet soup after my name.

Mom told me about being a nervous wreck for the entire two day exam, thinking she had failed the psychology part, relieved that she had studied diabetes when she found there were many questions pertaining, and worried that she didn't know enough about nerves. After all was said and done, she passed her nursing exam (her best score being the psychology section) and became an RN.

Out came the pompoms, and the "you're smart enough", and all the things good to hear from your mom. I needed it.

God bless whomever invented Skype. It allows me to see and hear my mom in Uganda. Incredible, blessed invention.

Nix the fireworks. Please.

2010-07-04T22:30:00.000-07:00

The Love Magnet hates fireworks.

Every year it's the same thing. She doesn't like the lights, the noise, the smoke. She begs to be taken home. She alternates between my arms and Mr. Wonderful, not able to decide which place is safer.

I thought a week's worth of fireworks at Disneyland would get her used to it. It only made it worse. Bad enough, that I was not looking forward to July.

Tonight she worried and fretted. She put her hands over her ears. She put my hands over her ears. She tried every room in our house to see if one would shield her from the noise of fireworks. She wouldn't listen to her brothers when they told her that everything was okay and, look, they weren't scared.

Finally I took her to her room and cuddled on the bed with her. I laid her head against my arm to shield one ear while I covered her other ear with my free hand. Then I sang every lullaby, every Primary song, and added a few musicals in order to drown out the sound of the explosions. It was working fairly well........until a neighbor behind our house started lighting fireworks that would be illegal in any suburbia. The Love Magnet's room lit up as if the sun were at high noon. My daughter kept yelling "I scared Mom! I hate fireworks!" No matter how much I soothed her, she wouldn't be consoled.

Finally we went downstairs to the monster TV. I turned on The Wizard Of Oz fairly loud for our house (especially for 10:30 at night) an hoped that the scenes and the soundtrack would drown out the celebration outside. We wrestled. At least I was able to keep her on the couch. Thirdborn, bless his sweet heart, sat next to us and tried to console her.

It's now 11:38. The Love Magnet finally fell asleep out of sheer exhaustion. Bad backyard neighbor is still setting off fireworks. I have a few bruises from where my daughter elbowed me as she tried to jump up when every pop and boom was heard. She is still mumbling in her sleep when a particularly big one explodes outside the window. At least she isn't reacting to all the firecrackers anymore.

Happy Independence Day. I'll celebrate in my heart, but fireworks just don't make the holiday for me anymore.

Sunday Gratitudes

2010-07-04T15:47:00.001-07:00

Just listening to Macy Gray singing Beauty In the World makes me smile and dance. Gotta love music that lifts your spirits. Much gratitude and God bless Macy Gray for singing a great song.

Just read the latest post on my parents blog. Every time I do, I am grateful for good roads, clean water, schools for my children, healthy food on my table, a job to support us, good hospitals, and a safe place to live.

This past week I signed up for a GRE prep class. I'm grateful to Mr. Wonderful for telling me to do whatever I needed to prepare. I feel that this will definitely help.

Mr. Wonderful was gone for most of the week on a business trip. We missed him immensely. I am grateful that he is finally home.

Thirdborn woke up this morning will an incredible story. It involved a dream of him starting his own amusement park and building fantastical rides that no one has ever seen before: a ride that really goes to the center of the earth, a ride that orbits the earth and makes a pit stop at a space hotel for those guests who really want an out-of-this-word experience, rollercoasters built on invisible struts and so smooth that you feel like you are flying, and boats and planes designed specifically for elementary kids to use. He has spent hours telling us all about it. I am grateful for this kid's imagination.

Sunday Gratitudes

2010-06-27T18:52:00.000-07:00

Today I subbed as Primary Chorister at church. I had forgotten how much I enjoy being with the kids and teaching music. We worked on learning basic signs and words for a song called The Holy Ghost. It's a sweet song with basic instruction of who the Holy Ghost is and what he does for us.

The kids were - for the most part - attentive. They learned my Primary rule "We don't say "NOOOOO" in Primary!" They also learned that I will stare them down if I see them not singing, or not opening their mouths, or turned wrong way in their seats. One arch of my eyebrow and feet are taken off chairs and put on the floor. One tilt of my head and chairs are righted from their tilted position. Oh the power! BWAHAHAHAHA!

Truly, I had a great time and I hope the kids did, too.

We have 200+(?) kids in Primary. Actually I don't have a good count. Let's say that we have so many kids that the Primary Presidency is switching to three Singing/Sharing Times. They will utilize an overflow area of the chapel for Sharing Time, the Primary room for Singing Time, and classroom times will be cut down to 30 minutes. You have to get creative when you live in a ward that took the command to multiply and replenish the earth very seriously.

The best part is that I was asked to sub as chorister next week, too. Here is my gratitude for letting me have fun in Primary. There is nothing better than teaching kids all about music. Primary Chorister is the best calling in the church.

I am also grateful for my ward choir singing today. They sang This Is The Christ. Click on the title to hear Mo-Tab sing it their version of the piece. Ours was similar in feeling and sound, just a slight difference in the same arrangement. My choir sounded beautiful. Their singing strengthened my testimony.

On a side note (no pun intended, ha!) Mo-Tab has auditions coming up. I am eating my heart out - I want so badly to audition! But, I don't live in Utah anymore. One of these days. It's still the #1 on my Bucket List.

Goodbye Happiest Place On Earth

2010-06-21T13:08:00.000-07:00

Goodbye Donald. You're a cool duck, but you're not her favorite.

Goodbye beach. We had great fun boogie boarding and building sandcastles with Grandma.

Goodbye Toon Town. We wanted to take one of your cars home.

Goodbye rides. We were so glad that everyone was tall enough this year to ride.

Goodbye Goofy. You were awesome. But you weren't The Love Magnet's favorite, either.

Goodbye Roger Rabbit ride. We would have loved you if you hadn't broken down right when it was our turn. We had to make do with props.

Goodbye Train around Disneyland. You made it easy to get around.

Goodbye Handy Manny. YOU were The Love Magnet's FAVORITE. She followed you around the park until you stopped for pictures. When she told you she loved you, you KISSED HER HAND. My daughter talked about it for the rest of the day and all the next during the plane ride home. You made her summer, Mr. Manny.

Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa. We had so much fun with you.

Sunday Gratitudes for my Daddy

2010-06-20T21:45:00.001-07:00

I'm grateful that my daddy sat me down for a father's interview one day and told me he liked Mr. Wonderful and thought I should marry him. At the time it made me laugh. I thought Daddy liked Mr. Wonderful because he didn't have long hair or an earring or a band or was in theater. I didn't take the advice seriously. But (obviously) Daddy knew what he was talking about. Mr. Wonderful is indeed wonderful.

I'm grateful that Daddy sang with his kids from the start. Between Daddy singing bass and Mom singing alto, I learned to harmonize by the time I was 10 years old. Daddy played guitar and had us sing at every ward talent show. Now with 7 kids, spouses, and grandkids, you should hear us harmonize when we get together.

I'm grateful that Daddy paid for 8 years of piano lessons. I hope he thinks they were worth every penny. I sure do.

I'm grateful for all the priesthood blessings before school started, the blessing he gave when I had an eye infection and lost most of my vision (most of it came back), the blessings when I was sick/sad/nervous-about-something.

I'm grateful that my daddy taught me to swing dance. And for all those daddy-daughter dances he attended in my pre-teen years. I'm sure it wasn't the most entertaining time for him but he made my twin sis and me feel special. I used to love those date pictures taken at the activities.

I'm grateful for the times he has taken each of my kids out by themselves when they visit. Thirdborn still talks about the last movie they went to together. I know that movies about hamsters (chipmunks? rodents?) can't be high on Daddy's t0-see list (they certainly don't compare to James Bond movies).

I'm grateful for all the vacations to Sun Valley, ward camp out, Denver, Nauvoo, Disney World, and Georgia (driving to Georgia used to take us more than two days). One time, Mom asked me to stay up with Daddy to keep him awake as we drove through the night on our way to Georgia. I think I was 12. The moon was full and red that night. We talked for hours. I have no memory about what we said to each other. I just remember it as being one of my favorite parts of the trip.

Happy Father's Day, Daddy. I'll try to Skype you tomorrow so I can sing to you.

Happiest Place On Earth

2010-06-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

Meeting Minnie (and making your older brothers stand in the picture with you):

priceless.

(The Love Magnet will be talking about this for months)

Spending time with your dad:

priceless.

(very deep conversations about mathematics, physics, and stuff I can't follow)

Hanging out with your grandma, constantly saying "Watch this! Watch this!:

I don't think there is enough money in the world for this woman's patience.

Spending time in what is billed as "The Happiest Place On Earth":
Priceless. But only too a point. After a while, all The Love Magnet wants is to go back to the hotel and swim in the pool.

Multiple people to keep an eye on The Love Magnet:

PRICELESS!

(and thanks to the new leash - which she can not stand - there have been no escapes)

Sunday Gratitudes

2010-06-13T17:43:00.000-07:00

Today in Sunday School we were studying the story of Samuel and Eli, particularly the part where Eli doesn't really make an effort when he disciplines them. The result is that they are destroyed and the Ark of the Covenant is taken. The story started a conversation about how we should not be our children's 'buddy' but really act as our children's parents and use that role to teach and instruct. Other adults were commenting about their children and how hard it is sometimes to be the parent. Huge gratitude to those parents for sharing their stories about the difficulties we face in parenting and disciplining our children. I don't feel like the mean mom, now. I'm not the only parent who insists their their kids learn how to work and do the job right the first time. Nor am I the only parent who gets the eye roll, the emphysemic sigh (I laughed hard at that description - it perfectly describes one of my children), the hunched shoulders, or the "it's not fair!" soliloquy.

I'm grateful for our upcoming vacay with Mr. Wonderful's parents. The kids are really looking forward to spending some time with their grandparents. They are good people. I love, love, LOVE my in-loves.

The Love Magnet took off again today. The front door was locked, as was the backyard gate. She went through the garage door (I didn't hear it with the dishwasher running). My next door neighbor saw my daughter chasing after my dog down the street. Neighbor tried to get her to stop, but The Love Magnet ran faster when she realized she was being chased. Neighbor caught her far down the next street and brought her back. I found out when Neighbor's firstborn knocked on my door to tell me his mother was chasing after my daughter. I'm grateful for my neighbor for bringing my daughter back. I've asked Mr. Wonderful to install alarms to tell me when any door to the outside or garage is open. I also bought a child leash. I hope that teaches her to not run.

I did a record amount of laundry this week. I'm grateful for the smell of clean laundry. I will be more grateful when all of my boys know how to do their own laundry.

My garden is starting to do better now that it isn't raining so much. The corn and peas look happy. The tomatoes look almost dead. Pumpkins and watermelon are finally starting to improve. The herbs are straggly. The strawberries are starting to bear fruit. I'm grateful that I'll be able to provide fresh, organic food for my family. I'm still learning. I wish I had inherited a little bit of gardening talent from my grandma.

Random

2010-06-12T13:07:00.001-07:00

I feel like the general marshaling apathetic troops. Please tell me this is not a precursor to the entire summer.

Trying to study for the GRE during my summer vacay. Wondering if I should take a GRE prep course or just stick with my GRE prep manual (said manual will be taken on all vacays, too).

As The Love Magnet's desire for independence grows, so does her impulsiveness. Escapes are more frequent as is hiding from her mom. Seriously looking into GPS bracelets.

Thirdborn no longer likes his silver eyelashes (silver due to, we think, the loss of pigment in his skin). We've always told him it is because he has stars in his eyes. No longer a cool thing to say.

Iron Man 2 makes for a good dinner-and-a-movie date. Loved it with Kalua Pork. Bet you didnt' know that Robert Downey Jr. and Hawaiian food made for a good combination. Now you know.

Like packages and fun things in the mail?

2010-06-09T18:29:00.001-07:00

Want to play "Pay It Forward"? Go see The Laundry Faerie for details.

What We're Doing During Summer

2010-06-09T09:22:00.001-07:00

Going to a preserve to see these.

Planning a vacation here.

Reading this in 90 days and discussing it at

Family Home Evening.

Printing off chore charts from Free Printable Behavior Charts.

Tracking the Flat Love Magnet on this.

Studying this and combine our findings in a science journal.

Cooking Lessons

Swimming lessons and swim meets

Hiking

Scout Camps

What are your plans this summer?

First Grade Graduation

2010-06-07T19:37:00.000-07:00

Today was the First Grade Graduation Luau for The Love Magnet. The luau was held at Teacher's house. We filled cute little buckets with red, white, and blue Jelly Bellys and a GC to her favorite coffeehouse. I made a fruit salad. We chose to walk to Teacher's House.

The Love Magnet immediately got down to business at the luau. She had some serious talks with her friends (along the line of "I come to your house tomorrow, okay?")

She played on the backyard playground, insisting that I stand back and let her do it all herself. I had no intention of helping her. I was just trying to record the moment.
Mr. Wonderful tried to get her to conquer the monkey bars. She had been talking about it all afternoon, insisting that it was okay for Daddy to help her. But when the time came, she lost all courage. Nothing her daddy could say would change her mind.

Firstborn and Secondborn were good sports. There wasn't anyone their age to play with. They did bring a football, and spent quite a bit of time smacking each other. Thirdborn was moving so fast that the camera didn't capture him.

She ate a good dinner. Well, she ate potato salad. She didn't care for the hot dog. Mr. Wonderful thought it was sacrilege that a luau had hot dogs and not Kahlua pork.

Then it was time to put on graduation hats and have the ceremony. The Love Magnet's hat was too big. It didn't stop her from wearing it.

Graduation included an award. The Love Magnet was given the Sunshine Award for bringing sunshine into the class room. Then she took a bow and Teacher popped a balloon filled with glitter over her head. TLM is now officially a second grader.

Her first act as a second grader? She came to her mom, dumped her diploma and hat, leaned over, and proceeded to shake all the glitter off her head and onto her mom. She didn't want glitter in her hair anymore.

Sunday Gratitudes

2010-06-06T22:10:00.000-07:00

I know. It's been ages since I posted any gratitudes. I have felt the lack on a daily basis. I have no other excuse (and truly, excuses are lame) of being too busy, too bleh, too.....yeah. Lame.

Today I am grateful for the people who caught my daughter in the church parking lot. The Love Magnet ran away from me as church let out. The halls were crowded and she could easily slip past packed bodies where I could not. My profuse apologies to those people whom I shouldered out of the way as I tried to follow her down the hallway and out the door. I gave up running long enough to drop my scripture bag, the Sunday quiet bag, and my purse, kick off my sandals, and book it after her. she made it through two rows of the parking lot without looking both ways and (thank heavens) without getting hit by ward members leaving the their vehicles. When TLM got to the third row, another mother, hearing my yelling, turned around just in time to grab her. I finally caught up to them and swept her up in my arms. As soon as she saw my eyes, The Love Magnet knew that what she did was wrong. I haven't been that scared, ever.

I'm grateful for my Relief Society President for gathering up my bags and shoes and bringing them to me. When she asked me where I was parked, I couldn't tell her. My mind wouldn't work, numb from watching my daughter run. Thank goodness, Secondborn remembered where we parked. R.S. President talked calmly (which helped me immensely to calm down, too) and made sure everything and everyone got into the car before she left. I had enough presence of mind to be embarrassed about the state of my car (sheet music and kids homework everywhere).

I'm grateful that I didn't cry. I know, odd duck. But I cry at everything. I'm been praying for awhile to get a grip on this. For once I didn't get teary during or after an event like this. I consider is a sort of triumph. Or maybe I was just too scared.

I'm grateful that Firstborn made Acapella Choir (the top choir at school.) Yeah, proud mama here.

I'm grateful that The Love Magnet and I are finally over the nasty spring cold going around. Unfortunately, Mr. Wonderful and Secondborn picked it up. I hope Firstborn and Thirdborn avoid it.

I'm grateful that we were able to host family for Memorial Day weekend. My aunt and uncle, another aunt and uncle who live in Oregon, my cousin and his family all came for good food and good conversation. I've missed having extended family around.

I'm excited for our summer plans. Some of that I will blog about tomorrow. Should make things exciting and educational.

Off to research child harnesses for future family vacays (to prevent wandering).

A Lucky Day

2010-05-31T19:21:00.000-07:00

Superstar Secondborn is back for more.
Today we went to Swan Falls Reservoir to catch some fish. No luck. But some really nice guy gave us two fish for free because he didn't have enough for the meal he wanted to make that night. But third born and I weren't leaving until we caught something so we caught a blue-bellied swift [as seen above and below] We brought it home and now it is thirdborn and my pet. We went to the local pet store and bought food and all the necessary things it needs. When we were there a customer service guy named Tyler gave us four free crickets for it to eat. Then he showed us another swift that they called and emerald swift. When I have enough money I'm going to go back and buy it to put it with my other swift.

Superstar Secondborn out for now.

Nachos For A Superstar [ and friends ]

2010-05-28T17:18:00.000-07:00

(this is a guest post from Secondborn)

Superstar Second Born in the house. Today I had to make a recipe that uses cheese for HOME ECONOMICS. I went on Blackle and looked up superstar nachos for fun and because nachos have cheese obviously. Well I found SuperStar Nachos on Lifestyle cooking and used it. My group used it and we decided it was really good and we also won the Best Recipe Contest. They are great for parties or quick family meals.

To make these nachos you must get a cookie sheet or ovenproof plate of some sort and put a layer of cornchips on. Then add any types of cheese you like. Put on some type of bite sized meat and drizzle on barbeque sauce. Bake at 350 degrees for ten or more minutes depending on the amount of the nachos. Superstar Secondborn is not in charge of any food poisioning or serious health problems you have after eating these nachos :) JK

But be warned this recipe must be made only the superstars of the family, like Cousin LB (initials) and cousin KB (also initials), can be the head chef or the nachos will be cursed. But as long as a superstar is the head chef the whole family can help. If you dont know who the superstar is in your family then take a vote. Parents just hope you know who the superstar of your family is otherwise youre up for a long vote. Kids can not vote for themselves in this matter.

Superstar Secondborn Out.

I Spy With My Little Eye......

2010-05-28T12:45:00.001-07:00

...custom jewelry made for an SLP.

a tiny newspaper and A-B-C

a cherry red heart that states kids are my passion

a speech bubble, a message in a bottle, EVERYONE IS UNIQUE, and perfect cupid-bow lips

I asked the Divine Miz V at the Cosmic Fun Palace to create a charm bracelet for me to chronicle my journey to become a SLP. I love the results she came up with. I'm sure if you desire something fun and handmade to show off your love for your work, you can count on Miz V to make it so. Check out her work (and the work of Soozcat) on their Etsy site. Just click on their workplace at the top of the paragraph. I have my eyes on the Yoda Lego, R2D2 Lego, and Harry Potter Lego earrings for my next purchase.

Pinewood Derby

2010-05-20T10:36:00.001-07:00

Thirdborn participated in the Pinewood Derby. Unfortunately, he placed last in every race but one. Someone threw or dropped his car (depending on who is telling the story) and made the front wheels wobbly. The only reason he place 3rd in his last race was because he raced his car backwards. Too bad we didn't think of that sooner.

To make up for the sadness of the day, we took the kids for milkshakes. Odd behavior in the drive thru ensued.
At one point The Love Magnet started to climb out onto the back of the truck. Mr. Wonderful nixed that idea pretty quickly.

Thirdborn got into the act. Doesn't look too sad now, does he?

Heart Check-up

2010-05-14T22:50:00.000-07:00

Two years and 13 days after the heart surgery

we had a visit with The Love Magnet's cardiologist.

We love going to see Dr. Heart. The room is bright and cheerful with pictures of Dr Heart's family and patients.

The Love Magnet loves playing with the toys.

The hospital gown was in her favorite color.

The EKG was a piece of cake. The Love Magnet takes the direction "Now hold very still"

very seriously.

Then there was the ultra sound and the blood pressure check.

Finally we met with Dr. Heart. She pronounced The Love Magnet to have a very good heart. So good, that we don't have to have another appointment until The Love Magnet turns 10.

Did I mention that we absolutely love Dr. Heart?

We'll have to come back to visit just for fun. We would miss her if we had to wait for a couple of years just to see Dr. Heart.

The Love Magnet is officially cleared for Special Olympics. Stay tuned for further adventures.

Lemon Spaghetti with Cauliflower, Asparagus and Good Stuff

2010-05-12T17:39:00.000-07:00

Found a version of lemon spaghetti on Food Network. I took the recipe and morphed it into what I had in the house. Big thumbs up.

Lemon Spaghetti with Cauliflower and Good Stuff
serves 6-8

1 pkg of your favorite spaghetti. We like Ronzoni Smart Taste.
1 head cauliflower, cut into bite size florettes
1 bunch of asparagus, cut 1" diagonal
2 Tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic
1/4 to 1/2 red pepper flakes
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes
2 lemons, juiced and zested
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup shredded parmesan
1 bunch fresh basil, chiffonade (that means roll it and cut it into thin strips)

Good Stuff (pick one):

1 pound shrimp, shelled and deveined
2 cans chopped clams
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 can oil packed tuna, drained

Cook the spaghetti in boiling water. When you have 5 mintues left of cooking time, add the cauliflower and asparagus (or steam them over the top of the pot. I prefer to do it this way so I can take them off if they get done before the spaghetti.)

Meanwhile, put oil, garlic, red pepper flakes, and sundried tomatoes in a pan on med low heat to cook gently while the spaghetti cooks. When you can really smell the garlic, (about 5 minutes)stir in a ladelful of the pasta cooking water, cream, and lemon juice. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring. Add lemon zest and Good Stuff of your choice. When spaghetti is done, stir parmesan and basil into the sauce. Drain spaghetti and veggies. Toss spaghetti and veggies in sauce. Let sit for a minute or two to soak in the sauce. Serve with extra cheese ifyou want.

Depending on how many veggies you have and your preference for sauciness, you might want to double the sauce and spice ingredients.

19 years ago today

2010-05-10T20:50:00.000-07:00

19 years ago today - it was raining. I was so upset that it was raining.
Today - it is raining. I love it.

19 years ago today - I covenanted to love you for eternity.
Today - I love you even more. I didn't know that my heart could expand like that.

19 years ago today - we had a lot of hopes and dreams.
Today - some came true, some didn't, some we just decided weren't nearly important. We've learned that God's plan is more important that our plans.

19 years ago today - we said our first family prayer together.
Tonight - we'll kneel side by side and thank our Father in Heaven for blessing our family for the past 19 years.

Happy Anniversary, Mr. Wonderful. 19 years down. Eternity left to go.

I'm looking forward to it.

I need your prayers

2010-05-03T12:27:00.000-07:00

It's finals week for me. I'm worried about 2 classes, and not so worried about the other three. It is just the stress of finals. Please keep me in your prayers. I'll post big after this week about all sorts of things.

Musings from the playground

2010-04-28T17:31:00.000-07:00

I walk The Love Magnet to school when the weather is nice. I've started to notice things when we walk onto the school yard property.
There are always a ton of boys playing football. Way more than there would normally be on the football field. Each one of those boys are clamoring for that ball. Just once! If they could only get it just once! Yet the same ten boys always seem to get the ball. And none of them want to share the glory that comes with it. So why do the rest keep playing?

There is always a group of girls just off the football field, watching the boys. They are trying to look cool, holding jump ropes but never jumping. They stand close to each other and whisper behind hands, giggling if the boys look at them. One of the girls never has a coat on, no matter how cold it is. Is it cool to not wear a coat? Does she not have a coat?

Another girl kneels on the ground against the school wall. She watches the girls, her hoodie pulled so low over her face, it looks as if she is hiding. I can tell from her eyes that she is begging for one of the girls to notice her, to acknowledge her, to include her. She constantly leans forward, almost to the point of falling over. Other than her lean, she doesn't move.

A boy always stands at the corner of the school, away from the other kids. He usually faces the wall as if he can't bear to look at anyone, or is it that he can't bear to have anyone look at him? My heart breaks when I pass him. He doesn't acknowledge greetings. No one ever goes over to talk to him.

The Love Magnet says hi to everyone. She tells friends she likes their shirt/shoes/backpack/hair. She hugs the teachers and aids out watching the children. She high-fives and fist-bumps her 4th and 5th grade buddies who come help in her class. She yells down the hall to the music teacher, says hi to the janitor, hugs her aide, and playfully avoids the hugs of the head of extended resource for a few tries. TLM eventually hugs resource head and laughs with her over the teasing.

I realized today as I dropped my daughter off, the unspoken social rules of this playground. Those rules that govern every child on who plays with whom, who can be approached, and those self-invented rules that keep children from playing with others.

My daughter knows nothing about those rules.

To her, everyone is approachable. Everyone is equal.

When I grow up, I want to be just like her.

Family Basketball Challenge

2010-04-27T18:21:00.000-07:00

Secondborn aka Mr. Basketball, begged the family for a 2-on-2 basketball game.

Mr. Wonderful and Thirdborn against Firstborn and Secondborn. First to 20 wins. (The Love Magnet stayed wrapped in a blanket on this chilly, windy day. I manned the camera. Everyone was happy with their lot.)
Thirdborn was excited to be included. Everyone worked to teach him how to shoot....

...and how to guard his man.

Mr. W and Thirdborn 20. Firstborn and Secondborn -18.

They already want a rematch. The gauntlet has been thrown down. I'm hoping this will last all summer. It is so rare when the boys want to play together nicely.

Family project: gardening

2010-04-24T13:40:00.000-07:00

Last night I took my daughter to purchase seeds. She grabbed all of her favorites. When I told her it was time to purchase, she told me she was still looking for one more. I asked her "What are you looking for?" The Love Magnet replied enthusiastically:

"Barbecue seeds, Mom!"
Today we planted corn, pumpkins, watermelon, peas, green beans, rainbow chard, carrots, candy-stripe beets, oregano, basil, thyme, chives, cucumber and lettuce. In two weeks we'll fill the fourth grow box with beefsteak tomatoes, pear tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, tomatillos, and jalapenos. We also have giant sunflowers planted behind each grow box.

Secondborn dug around the strawberries, apple tree, plum tree, apricot and cherry trees.

Firstborn and Mr. Wonderful worked on the yard, mowing and trimming, and getting ready for some kind of border.

I sure hope we have a decent grow season. I wish our HOA allowed for chickens. I would love to have chickens.

Does anyone know how to control squash bugs? We were over run last year.

Brain....altered

2010-04-19T21:17:00.000-07:00

I received an order from Amazon today.

I'm literally giddy with excitement. I just finished a test and some homework. As soon as I finished telling you about this, I am going to dig in and read voraciously.

The Syntax Handbook: Everything You Learned About Syntax.....But Forgot!

Oh. My. Heavens.

I think it's time for school to be over for a while. I've officially lost my sanity.

Isn't he handsome?

2010-04-17T23:10:00.000-07:00

How on earth does a tux make someone looks so .........

so............

incredibly handsome?

Wait, it's not the tux. It's those dominant genes of Mr. Wonderful. Firstborn has the same eyes, nose, smile, and height (and still growing). There is one thing of me on this kid. Quirky left eyebrow. Yes, that's about it.

Sure looks good in a tux. Just like Mr. Wonderful.

Randomness

2010-04-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

My head is full of possibilities.

I started this university journey with the specific intent to specialize in language development for people with intellectual disabilities. Then I discovered voice issues for singers - also right up my alley with my singing background. Then I fell in love with seniors and helping with their issues: stroke, Parkinson's, etc. Just this week I found out there is an entire specialty for Literacy dealing with the issues Thirdborn has. So many different ways to go. A professor told me this past week to keep my mind open. She is on her fourth specialty. The beauty of this major is that I can keep going and going and going. I am utterly excited for the future.

*************************************************

I have instructed The Love Magnet on modesty since she was just a year old. She has repeated every single bath time that only Mommy can see her body and the doctor can see her body if Mommy is there. Nobody else can see our bodies. I really thought she had it down.

Today she pulled her pants and undies down in front of everyone at recess. When the kids started yelling and laughing, her teacher immediately called to everyone "Eyes on me!" and an aide told my daughter to pull up her pants. TLM immediately complied.

I have no idea what her thought process was on this. I am completely clueless here. Please keep us in your prayers, particularly mentioning that I need inspiration on how to parent this child.

**************************************************

Secondborn is on the first spring camp out of the year. It's pouring outside. Poor Secondborn.

***************************************************

Now that Thirdborn has his go-kart, is he satisfied with his building efforts? Not in the least. He informed Mr. Wonderful of the next project he wants to build......

(wait for it)

A catapult. Not a mini catapult. A true-to-size war machine catapult.

I have no idea what he wants to launch. I hope it is not himself.

*****************************************************

A Day With Special Olympics

2010-04-10T13:14:00.000-07:00

Special Olympics was hosting a clinic for Summer Olympics. It was a good opportunity for The Love Magnet to try track, and for two of my boys to volunteer with the basketball clinic. Off we went to spend the day with Special Olympics.

The Love Magnet is good at stretching

Then came the jumping and dancing. Oh yeah, baby, this is more like it!

Second born didn't want to warm up. It was cold. I think he felt silly jumping around.

The Love Magnet was taken to the medical area for a screening. All Special Olympians are require to have a screening, which is then good for the next three years to compete in Special Olympics. The Love Magnet was first measured and weighed. Then came a vision screening. Then a nurse checked her oxygen saturation levels and blood pressure. After that we were escorted to a hearing screening. The Love Magnet's ears were checked, a tympanogram was taken to measure pressure in her ears (and I knew exactly what they were doing because we've covered it in Audiology class). Next she was given a hearing screening. I was impressed with the medical personnel. My daughter turns shy when she is around many unfamiliar people. They were still able to elicit responses from her to conduct the required testing. Here she is, waiting to hear the "beep". She would barely raise her hand, but she did respond when she was supposed to.

The health screening also included orthopedic and a physical. All for free. These people are angels for volunteering their time for Special Olympics. I learned during the International Special Olympics, that often these medical professionals are the only ones the Special Olympians see (especially Olympians from third world countries) because medical care is not affordable or because is just isn't available.

We had a good lunch donated by Blimpie. The Love Magnet loved their sandwiches.

Thanks, Blimpie!

After lunch, we went to check out Secondborn who was volunteering in the basketball clinic. He did good work today.

Thirdborn also volunteered for the basketball clinic. He did good work today, too. Thirdborn wants to be a unified partner with The Love Magnet when she competes in Special Olympics.

We met up with our track group again. First the older kids ran a 400m race. Then the younger kids were put in line with some cheerers to run a 50m dash. The Love Magnet was excited and took a race stance the way she saw it done in the Olympics (Wii Olympics, that is). The head coach called out "On your MARK! Get SET! GO!"

The Love Magnet ran.....

......and didn't stop at the 50m mark. She kept running. I called her to come back. Her coach called her to come back. Her friends called her to come back.

The Love Magnet kept on running.........

....all the way around the track for the full 400m. When she hit the finish line, she walked over to the grass, lay down and declared to anyone who would listen "I am DONE!" That was such a long run for a little girl.

She literally was done. That self-imposed 400m took the wind out of her sails. As we left, she declared she deserved a milkshake. We agreed and headed off to find one. After all, a cookie-dough milkshake is the perfect reward for Special Olympians.

If you are ever wanting to find a great chance to volunteer as a family, check out Special Olympics in your area. Find out where at www.specialolympics.org.

Me likey

2010-04-10T07:56:00.001-07:00

Wouldn't this be so much fun for creating darling cupcakes for the Love Magnet's tea parties? check it out here. BTW, you could win one. Or you could win it and then wrap it up and give it to me. :)

PS: I adore Brooke and her Cheeky Kitchen blog. Be sure to pause my soundtrack before you start the vid.