We got RAIN today! As in, actual drops of water falling from the sky!! In truth, the rain lasted about 5 minutes, and was really only enough to dampen the ground, but it was nice for a change, at least. As Mosey and I were driving home from speech, we saw some thunderstorms happening in the distance, actually not far from our house, so some people must have gotten a lot more rain than we had. It got really windy and blustery and I thought for sure we'd get a big downpour, but no such luck. It would have been nice to get a freebie yard watering in the middle of the week! (We're only allowed to water the yard on Sunday morning.)
My friend Caroline from Rice is in town for a couple of days on business and came over for dinner tonight. So good seeing her, and so unbelievable realizing it is 17 years ago that I matriculated at Rice. I was 17 when I matriculated. It was officially half my life ago. That is not possible!!!!
We got to google chat with her husband back at home, who was also a good friend of mine at Rice (and roommate! Yes, the scandal! I had 2 boys as roommates! Well, and one girl, too. :-)), and I got to see their two cute kids. I wish I could arrange reunions with all my friends from my past. I would love that.
When I left to go to speech with Mosey at 3:45, I was not ready at all with my dinner preparations. So I left Joseph and Brigham with a big list of things to do, and they did it all! They were so awesome. Here's what they did:
Peeled 2 lbs of shrimp, mixed in marinade.
Cut up potatoes into bite sized pieces, and boiled for 5 minutes.
Cut up 2 zuchinis and 2 yellow squash .
Washed and cut up a carton of mushrooms.
Mixed all of those up with the marinade and put in the refrigerator.
And then they cleaned off the tables, picked up the playroom, and vacuumed! What good boys.
Brigham was very willing and helpful and made up for the humongous, gigantic tantrum he threw this morning when he couldn't do his morning chore (vacuuming) because the battery wasn't charged. He was trying to vacuum on almost no charge, and was wildly sweeping it across the floor. I made him stop and wait until the battery charged back up. I *thought* it would take 45 minutes. I was wrong. He tried vacuuming again, and I made him stop again. That's when he really threw a fit-- "You can't make me vacuum THREE TIMES!! It was YOUR fault mom, because you LIED! It's like you're a bank and you took my money and you were supposed to pay it back and then you DIDN'T!" (So hard to know if I should laugh or be stern, or what-- we definitely have to have some lessons on analogies and false analogies sometime soon.) "I DEMAND that you pay me extra when I vacuum because you LIED!" This was so out of character for Brigham, I didn't know what to do. My inclination was to simply ignore him and leave the room until he could be rational again. But then, I know how frustrating it is to have someone refuse to engage when you're angry. I tried to be calm and speak rationally, but after a while, I just had to leave. He slammed the door 3 times. And Brigham knows how to slam doors. My eardrums about ruptured from the force of it. I felt bad, because I know that Brigham really, honestly felt that he was being wronged, and that's a rotten way to feel.
Anyway, it was nice to get my kind, willing, helpful Brigham back for the afternoon. :-)
I'll make sure the battery is charged tonight, though, that's for sure.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Monday, September 26, 2011
some pictures
Here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks.
When the twins turned 10, I meant to take a picture of each of them (a nicer, more portrait-style one). I got one of Joseph, but not Brigham. So yesterday afternoon I dragged him into the front yard for a couple of minutes. Here's my handsome 10 year old Brigham!
And here are some other recent pictures.
Brigham making his traditional Sunday night cake. He's getting awfully good at it!
Grooming Tiki before his horseback riding lesson.
The ice cup he made. He likes to put a cup of water in the freezer, and wait until only the outside has frozen, then turn it upside down and remove the "ice cup." Why he likes doing this, I have no idea, but it's cute. :-)
Climbing the pecan tree in our front yard.
And while we're on the subject of Brigham, I have to write down something funny and quintessentially Brigham that he said recently. He said, "I like going to bed early and just laying there. It's the best time to think about things, like how calculators work, and refrigerators." He's such a funny and cool kid. :-)
And here's the 10 year old picture of Joseph that I actually took on his birthday:
I'm not sure which one I like better, so here's both of them.
And these are from yesterday afternoon, when I noticed the light from the setting sun shining through the window in our front door perfectly lit up his face. I told him to freeze while I got my camera.
I think I like the black and white version, but here's the color one anyway.
Here he is, pouring over one of his library books. I try to go once a week, but he finishes the books he gets in about 2 days. This looks like a distinctly uncomfortable position to read a book, but he sat there out there like this for a good 20 minutes. Must be a good book!
And Mosey couldn't be left out of the picture-taking fun last night!
Here he is saluting me. Don't you love the combination of the button-down shirt and the basketball shorts? :-)
And here he is a couple of weeks ago practicing his cello.
He's also usually to be found reading a book (or Friend magazine in this case) in the afternoons after his lessons are done.
And here is one of the favorite activities of our homeschool art group. They built this tower all the way up to the ceiling, and were pretty proud of themselves.
And here's another one the boys made, I believe right before Joseph smashed it to the floor. There are blocks ALL over the play room floor right now. My favorite. :-)
When the twins turned 10, I meant to take a picture of each of them (a nicer, more portrait-style one). I got one of Joseph, but not Brigham. So yesterday afternoon I dragged him into the front yard for a couple of minutes. Here's my handsome 10 year old Brigham!
And here are some other recent pictures.
Brigham making his traditional Sunday night cake. He's getting awfully good at it!
Grooming Tiki before his horseback riding lesson.
The ice cup he made. He likes to put a cup of water in the freezer, and wait until only the outside has frozen, then turn it upside down and remove the "ice cup." Why he likes doing this, I have no idea, but it's cute. :-)
Climbing the pecan tree in our front yard.
And while we're on the subject of Brigham, I have to write down something funny and quintessentially Brigham that he said recently. He said, "I like going to bed early and just laying there. It's the best time to think about things, like how calculators work, and refrigerators." He's such a funny and cool kid. :-)
And here's the 10 year old picture of Joseph that I actually took on his birthday:
And these are from yesterday afternoon, when I noticed the light from the setting sun shining through the window in our front door perfectly lit up his face. I told him to freeze while I got my camera.
Here he is, pouring over one of his library books. I try to go once a week, but he finishes the books he gets in about 2 days. This looks like a distinctly uncomfortable position to read a book, but he sat there out there like this for a good 20 minutes. Must be a good book!
And Mosey couldn't be left out of the picture-taking fun last night!
Here he is saluting me. Don't you love the combination of the button-down shirt and the basketball shorts? :-)
And here he is a couple of weeks ago practicing his cello.
He's also usually to be found reading a book (or Friend magazine in this case) in the afternoons after his lessons are done.
And here is one of the favorite activities of our homeschool art group. They built this tower all the way up to the ceiling, and were pretty proud of themselves.
And here's another one the boys made, I believe right before Joseph smashed it to the floor. There are blocks ALL over the play room floor right now. My favorite. :-)
Sept. 25 weekly letter
Hi everyone,
News from the week! I have no time to do anything more than a boring bullet-point rundown. So, basically the same as usual. I feel like I write by far the worst of the family letters. Sorry!! :-)
Monday: School lessons, then flute lessons. Brigham decided to go along to flute. As I was driving past the house, I saw the front door fly open and Mosey come running out-- he wanted to come, too. "Do you think that baby will be there again, mom?" I can't remember if I wrote about Mosey playing with Joseph's flute teacher's 5 month old baby girl the last time we went to flute. It was so cute, Mosey played with that baby, pushing toys back and forth, for a good 30 minutes, and wanted to play with her again this week. Too bad she wasn't there! Maybe next time.
Tuesday: School lessons, then Mosey's first speech therapy session for the semester. He has a new therapist, and, at least some of the time, will be doing group therapy with another 7 year old boy. It was interesting watching the two of them and the therapists (I watch the video feed from another room). The other little boy doesn't stutter much at all-- I only heard a couple of occasions. Made me wonder why his parents are even bothering. It's interesting to see the differences between Mosey and this other child. In some ways Mosey seems a lot older, but in other ways a lot younger. Or at least less culturally literate. :-) The other kid started talking about Katy Perry and Justin Bieber and Mosey didn't have a clue. :-) It will be fun to see how he progresses and interacts with this other boy this semester.
Wednesday: School lessons, then piano lessons. I went to the Gladys Knight concert that night with my friend Traci, so Ben picked up the boys after piano lessons. The Gladys Knight concert was really fun. I listened to the concert, trying to experience things as someone who isn't a member of our church might (I think a pretty good portion of the audience was not Mormon). I thought it was really great, and I would have no problem inviting anyone, Mormon or not, to this concert. The music was wonderful, of course. Gladys Knight talked a lot about her membership in the church, and was very direct in talking about how she knew people's views of her must change when they find out she joined the Mormon church. But the tone was way more explanatory than preachy, and I don't think anyone would have left the concert feeling preached to, or feeling pressured to talk to missionaries, etc. There was no salesmanship, in other words. But Gladys is genuine enough and engaging enough that I'm sure any non-Mormon would have left with a positive view of the church, and perhaps some curiosity about it. I can see why her concerts generate lots and lots (sometimes hundreds) of contacts for the missionaries. So, if she comes to an area near any of you and you have the opportunity to ask a friend to go, do not hesitate. Afterward, we went to The Cheesecake Factory, and I had the best vegetarian burger I've ever had. It was better than a regular hamburger, I think. If you ever go there, get it!
Thursday: School lessons, then art. Mosey slept in until 9:30 this morning!! I was worried he was sick, since he always gets up with his brothers, so I let him sleep and sleep. He woke up feeling just fine, but was consequently pretty behind in his schoolwork the rest of the day, and into the next. Oops. Mosey and I went to Office Depot to make a bunch of copies for the other kids in the class, and to buy more toner for the printer. I like going places with Mosey, he's such a fun little kid to be around. And he's a very good helper. I know it gives other people a kick to see my boys with me, helping me carry things and opening doors, etc. Our art class went well. I think I'm organized enough now that from here on out I *won't* have to stay up until 1:30 AM the night before pulling things together. :-) At least, I hope so. T
Friday: I woke up to find Joseph and Brigham already up and busily doing schoolwork. They wanted to finish early so they could have most of the day off. I can't tell you how happy this made me! It is awesome to see my boys finally realizing for themselves the benefits of getting stuff done FAST, so they have more time for fun things. And Joseph and Brigham did finish lessons early-- even before we went to Ben's company picnic. The picnic was pretty fun for the boys. There were free snow cones and game booths where they won cheap Oriental Trading Co. prizes. Mosey won a mini beach ball, which entranced one of Ben's coworker's almost-18-month-old, Gabrielle (good name!). Mosey was so cute with her, throwing the ball back and forth, and then going back to the booth so he could win another ball to give to her. I wish so much that I could have gotten a picture of him playing with her, it was sooo cute. Mosey really is good with younger babies, which surprises me because it wasn't long ago that he was pretty intolerant of "crazy babies," not being used to having little kids around him. After we went home, Mosey went visiting teaching with me, and then to the grocery store, and then home for the official start of the weekend!
Saturday: The boys went with Ben to the Tae Kwon Do carnival-benefit thing for St. Jude's hospital. Joseph and Brigham didn't really want to go at first, but when they got home they were all really excited about it. Joseph broke a whole bunch of boards, including several with his hand! I took Brigham to horseback riding, and then when we got home, Ben got the boys involved in cleaning the deck, getting it ready to stain again. I went to the women's broadcast in the evening. As I was heading toward the garage, I looked in the backyard and saw all 3 boys working so diligently on the deck. So maybe, just maybe my boys *are* learning how to work? I enjoyed the broadcast, especially Pres. Uchtdorf's talk. It is well worth the 21 minutes to listen to it. It's always a hassle getting out to the stake center, especially when I get there a couple of minutes late and there are NO close parking spaces. But if I had only heard President Uchtdorf's talk, it would have been worth it.
As I left, I observed how a whole bunch of women from my ward were leaving together, and remembered belatedly that I could have carpooled with some of them. That would have been fun. I have NO time for any social activity to speak of, at least nothing that isn't directly related to my church calling or homeschooling, and I do get lonely for friends. I know I need to try harder to be connected to people. There are occasionally social things I am invited to-- girls' nights out, etc., but by the end of the day, I'm usually so worn out that the thought of driving somewhere, parking, walking who knows how far to who knows where, and then not being able to move around freely, is pretty daunting. There was a reception before the women's broadcast with food, etc., which I thought about going to. But I feel so dumb sometimes at things like that, because I can't walk to the tables and get food for myself (because of the unfortunate fact that I have only 2 arms and 2 hands, and they are both occupied in using my crutches to walk), and so I'm dependent upon asking someone else for help, and sometimes I just am not up to that. I don't like being forcibly reminded of what I can't do. It doesn't make me feel good. And then, when I sit down, that's pretty much where I have to stay. Everyone else can walk around and talk to various people, but I just sit there, hoping people come to talk to me. It makes me feel way too much like a junior high girl, hoping that someone will notice me and come and be my friend. :-) I hate that silly, immature, insecure feeling, and so I guess I too often find some reason not to attend social things like that (unless I'm in charge of them like a Relief Society activity! :-)).
Today: Sunday. Relief Society committee meeting in the morning, planning for activities the next few months. Then home to find Ben making cookies with the boys, a good lunch cooking on the stove. He is such a good dad. Ben had to go to church early to play the organ, so I went in my van with Brigham and Mosey. As we got to the church, Brigham realized he only had one of his Sunday shoes. Oops. So we sat in the foyer for the Sacrament, and then went back home to get the shoe. We got back in time for the last 5 minutes of Sacrament meeting. I felt so bad for Brigham, because he is very diligent about getting ready for church and always wanting to be early, and he felt bad. He had had a sort of terrible-horrible-no-good-very-bad-half hour or so before church as he was rushing around trying to take a shower and get dressed for church. The upstairs shower was misbehaving, and he could only make the shower stay on when the water was on hot-- and it was way too hot. When he tried to make it colder, the shower attachment turned off. So he came downstairs all dressed for church, with some shampoo left in his hair. And I was rushing around trying to get my own stuff together, and snapped at him for not being ready, which made him feel even worse. And then to forget his shoe after that! Poor boy.
After church Ben took Mosey home teaching, Brigham made a cake after which I did an impromptu photo-shoot with him in the front yard.
And that's it!
Have a great week, everyone!
Love,
Gabrielle
News from the week! I have no time to do anything more than a boring bullet-point rundown. So, basically the same as usual. I feel like I write by far the worst of the family letters. Sorry!! :-)
Monday: School lessons, then flute lessons. Brigham decided to go along to flute. As I was driving past the house, I saw the front door fly open and Mosey come running out-- he wanted to come, too. "Do you think that baby will be there again, mom?" I can't remember if I wrote about Mosey playing with Joseph's flute teacher's 5 month old baby girl the last time we went to flute. It was so cute, Mosey played with that baby, pushing toys back and forth, for a good 30 minutes, and wanted to play with her again this week. Too bad she wasn't there! Maybe next time.
Tuesday: School lessons, then Mosey's first speech therapy session for the semester. He has a new therapist, and, at least some of the time, will be doing group therapy with another 7 year old boy. It was interesting watching the two of them and the therapists (I watch the video feed from another room). The other little boy doesn't stutter much at all-- I only heard a couple of occasions. Made me wonder why his parents are even bothering. It's interesting to see the differences between Mosey and this other child. In some ways Mosey seems a lot older, but in other ways a lot younger. Or at least less culturally literate. :-) The other kid started talking about Katy Perry and Justin Bieber and Mosey didn't have a clue. :-) It will be fun to see how he progresses and interacts with this other boy this semester.
Wednesday: School lessons, then piano lessons. I went to the Gladys Knight concert that night with my friend Traci, so Ben picked up the boys after piano lessons. The Gladys Knight concert was really fun. I listened to the concert, trying to experience things as someone who isn't a member of our church might (I think a pretty good portion of the audience was not Mormon). I thought it was really great, and I would have no problem inviting anyone, Mormon or not, to this concert. The music was wonderful, of course. Gladys Knight talked a lot about her membership in the church, and was very direct in talking about how she knew people's views of her must change when they find out she joined the Mormon church. But the tone was way more explanatory than preachy, and I don't think anyone would have left the concert feeling preached to, or feeling pressured to talk to missionaries, etc. There was no salesmanship, in other words. But Gladys is genuine enough and engaging enough that I'm sure any non-Mormon would have left with a positive view of the church, and perhaps some curiosity about it. I can see why her concerts generate lots and lots (sometimes hundreds) of contacts for the missionaries. So, if she comes to an area near any of you and you have the opportunity to ask a friend to go, do not hesitate. Afterward, we went to The Cheesecake Factory, and I had the best vegetarian burger I've ever had. It was better than a regular hamburger, I think. If you ever go there, get it!
Thursday: School lessons, then art. Mosey slept in until 9:30 this morning!! I was worried he was sick, since he always gets up with his brothers, so I let him sleep and sleep. He woke up feeling just fine, but was consequently pretty behind in his schoolwork the rest of the day, and into the next. Oops. Mosey and I went to Office Depot to make a bunch of copies for the other kids in the class, and to buy more toner for the printer. I like going places with Mosey, he's such a fun little kid to be around. And he's a very good helper. I know it gives other people a kick to see my boys with me, helping me carry things and opening doors, etc. Our art class went well. I think I'm organized enough now that from here on out I *won't* have to stay up until 1:30 AM the night before pulling things together. :-) At least, I hope so. T
Friday: I woke up to find Joseph and Brigham already up and busily doing schoolwork. They wanted to finish early so they could have most of the day off. I can't tell you how happy this made me! It is awesome to see my boys finally realizing for themselves the benefits of getting stuff done FAST, so they have more time for fun things. And Joseph and Brigham did finish lessons early-- even before we went to Ben's company picnic. The picnic was pretty fun for the boys. There were free snow cones and game booths where they won cheap Oriental Trading Co. prizes. Mosey won a mini beach ball, which entranced one of Ben's coworker's almost-18-month-old, Gabrielle (good name!). Mosey was so cute with her, throwing the ball back and forth, and then going back to the booth so he could win another ball to give to her. I wish so much that I could have gotten a picture of him playing with her, it was sooo cute. Mosey really is good with younger babies, which surprises me because it wasn't long ago that he was pretty intolerant of "crazy babies," not being used to having little kids around him. After we went home, Mosey went visiting teaching with me, and then to the grocery store, and then home for the official start of the weekend!
Saturday: The boys went with Ben to the Tae Kwon Do carnival-benefit thing for St. Jude's hospital. Joseph and Brigham didn't really want to go at first, but when they got home they were all really excited about it. Joseph broke a whole bunch of boards, including several with his hand! I took Brigham to horseback riding, and then when we got home, Ben got the boys involved in cleaning the deck, getting it ready to stain again. I went to the women's broadcast in the evening. As I was heading toward the garage, I looked in the backyard and saw all 3 boys working so diligently on the deck. So maybe, just maybe my boys *are* learning how to work? I enjoyed the broadcast, especially Pres. Uchtdorf's talk. It is well worth the 21 minutes to listen to it. It's always a hassle getting out to the stake center, especially when I get there a couple of minutes late and there are NO close parking spaces. But if I had only heard President Uchtdorf's talk, it would have been worth it.
As I left, I observed how a whole bunch of women from my ward were leaving together, and remembered belatedly that I could have carpooled with some of them. That would have been fun. I have NO time for any social activity to speak of, at least nothing that isn't directly related to my church calling or homeschooling, and I do get lonely for friends. I know I need to try harder to be connected to people. There are occasionally social things I am invited to-- girls' nights out, etc., but by the end of the day, I'm usually so worn out that the thought of driving somewhere, parking, walking who knows how far to who knows where, and then not being able to move around freely, is pretty daunting. There was a reception before the women's broadcast with food, etc., which I thought about going to. But I feel so dumb sometimes at things like that, because I can't walk to the tables and get food for myself (because of the unfortunate fact that I have only 2 arms and 2 hands, and they are both occupied in using my crutches to walk), and so I'm dependent upon asking someone else for help, and sometimes I just am not up to that. I don't like being forcibly reminded of what I can't do. It doesn't make me feel good. And then, when I sit down, that's pretty much where I have to stay. Everyone else can walk around and talk to various people, but I just sit there, hoping people come to talk to me. It makes me feel way too much like a junior high girl, hoping that someone will notice me and come and be my friend. :-) I hate that silly, immature, insecure feeling, and so I guess I too often find some reason not to attend social things like that (unless I'm in charge of them like a Relief Society activity! :-)).
Today: Sunday. Relief Society committee meeting in the morning, planning for activities the next few months. Then home to find Ben making cookies with the boys, a good lunch cooking on the stove. He is such a good dad. Ben had to go to church early to play the organ, so I went in my van with Brigham and Mosey. As we got to the church, Brigham realized he only had one of his Sunday shoes. Oops. So we sat in the foyer for the Sacrament, and then went back home to get the shoe. We got back in time for the last 5 minutes of Sacrament meeting. I felt so bad for Brigham, because he is very diligent about getting ready for church and always wanting to be early, and he felt bad. He had had a sort of terrible-horrible-no-good-very-bad-half hour or so before church as he was rushing around trying to take a shower and get dressed for church. The upstairs shower was misbehaving, and he could only make the shower stay on when the water was on hot-- and it was way too hot. When he tried to make it colder, the shower attachment turned off. So he came downstairs all dressed for church, with some shampoo left in his hair. And I was rushing around trying to get my own stuff together, and snapped at him for not being ready, which made him feel even worse. And then to forget his shoe after that! Poor boy.
After church Ben took Mosey home teaching, Brigham made a cake after which I did an impromptu photo-shoot with him in the front yard.
And that's it!
Have a great week, everyone!
Love,
Gabrielle
Monday, September 19, 2011
Just for fun
For a little more entertainment value, here are a couple of the songs our homeschool art group is learning this quarter. So fun for a group of mostly boys!
"The Cat Came Back" I learned this song as a 4th grader (I think), and I've never forgotten it. :-)
And another fun one that Ben introduced me to, "The Battle of New Orleans":
"The Cat Came Back" I learned this song as a 4th grader (I think), and I've never forgotten it. :-)
And another fun one that Ben introduced me to, "The Battle of New Orleans":
cheap
I feel like my weekly letters are pretty cheap blog posts. :-)
I meant to write something today, but here's how my day went:
6:00 AM: Wake up, shower, dress
6:45: Wake up boys, get breakfast started
7:00: Breakfast/scripture study/chores
8:00: Schoolwork begins. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays are my "practice with everyone" days, so I am booked solid from the moment schoolwork starts, until it ends.
3:45: Cut Mosey's cello practicing short to drive Joseph to flute
5:45: Get back from flute, get dinner started
6:30: Dinner/family home evening
8:15: Read to the boys
8:45: Send the boys upstairs to bed and finally have a moment of peace and quiet for the first time in 14 hours. Whew!
That's when I should have written my blog post. Instead, I replied to some email, downloaded my Audible.com books ($4.95 sale, yippee! I'm not telling how many I bought...), and read the family letters that came yesterday. I have a very large and very prolific family (I can't help it-- it's in the genes), so this is a major undertaking. But I love it, and it is how our family stays connected. So now it is 10:30, and I should be going to bed. But I still have to clean the cricket cage for the new crickets we got on our way home from flute today, feed the lizards some of said crickets, and THEN get ready and go to bed.
So, instead of a real blog post, here is my blog post which is really my excuse for not writing a blog post. :-)
I meant to write something today, but here's how my day went:
6:00 AM: Wake up, shower, dress
6:45: Wake up boys, get breakfast started
7:00: Breakfast/scripture study/chores
8:00: Schoolwork begins. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays are my "practice with everyone" days, so I am booked solid from the moment schoolwork starts, until it ends.
3:45: Cut Mosey's cello practicing short to drive Joseph to flute
5:45: Get back from flute, get dinner started
6:30: Dinner/family home evening
8:15: Read to the boys
8:45: Send the boys upstairs to bed and finally have a moment of peace and quiet for the first time in 14 hours. Whew!
That's when I should have written my blog post. Instead, I replied to some email, downloaded my Audible.com books ($4.95 sale, yippee! I'm not telling how many I bought...), and read the family letters that came yesterday. I have a very large and very prolific family (I can't help it-- it's in the genes), so this is a major undertaking. But I love it, and it is how our family stays connected. So now it is 10:30, and I should be going to bed. But I still have to clean the cricket cage for the new crickets we got on our way home from flute today, feed the lizards some of said crickets, and THEN get ready and go to bed.
So, instead of a real blog post, here is my blog post which is really my excuse for not writing a blog post. :-)
yesterday's weekly letter
Hi Everyone,
It is 6:16 PM (as I'm starting this). Dinner is the the oven (parmesan tilapia and roasted vegetables), the boys are playing upstairs, and it is *cloudy* outside. Yes, real life, actual clouds outside in the sky right now, and a 30% chance of scattered thunderstorms. Yay!! That still means a 70% chance of nothin', but still, I'll take it. Ben and the boys got caught in a thunderstorm yesterday afternoon in south Austin on their way down to go on a bike ride along a bike trail down there (and nearly got in a car wreck-- after so many months with no rain all the oil builds up on the roadway, and then with any moisture at all, the road becomes extremely slick-- scary!), but there was nothing up here at all. AND, the temperatures are not supposed to break 100 this week, at all, so things are looking up. Maybe fall really will come.
This week has been good. I'm very, very happy with how school is going so far. Our days are very busy, but I'm spending very little time nagging and hovering to make sure schoolwork gets done. This next week we will have another added bit of complexity as scouts start and Mosey starts speech up again on Tuesday afternoons (all the way down at UT, at 4:15 PM, which means we will have the joy of driving back home in the thick of Austin rush-hour. Oh well.). With that, I think all of our weekly activities are underway. Here is how our extracurriculars go:
Mondays:
12:00 PM: Joseph and Mosey have Tae Kwon Do
4:15 PM: Joseph has flute (a little south of Ben's work, about 25 minutes away)
Tuesdays:
3:30 PM: Joseph and Brigham have scouts (I'm assuming they'll get picked up again-- I really hope so, anyway)
4:15 PM: Mosey has speech
Wednesdays:
12:00 PM: Joseph and Mosey have Tae Kwon Do
3:30-5:00 PM: all three boys have piano lessons
5:30 PM: Brigham has violin lessons
Thursdays:
2:15 PM Mosey has cello lessons
3:30-5:30 PM: Our art club meets
Fridays:
12:00 PM: Joseph and Mosey have Tae Kwon Do
1:00-4:00: Homeschool park day. We haven't gone to this in more than a year, but I'd like to start going, as the weather cools enough for me to be able to be outside.
Saturdays:
12:00-1:30: Brigham has horseback riding
So, it is a little crazy, but manageable as long as we (I) can stay organized.
OK, so anything of note this week? Let me think.
We solved the mystery of the missing science book! On Tuesday, I finally caved and ordered a new book. I just KNEW the old one would turn up sometime between then and when the new book arrived. And I was sort of right. :-) On Wednesday, on my way out the door to take Joseph and Mosey to Tae Kwon Do, I reminded Brigham to put his clothes in the washer (he had brought his basket down that morning-- my deal with them is that they bring their clothes down, run the washer and dryer, then I will fold them and they take them upstairs and put them away). My final words to him were, "As you put your clothes in the washer, make sure your socks are all unrolled!" Well, after we got back from Tae Kwon Do, the washer had finished its cycle, so I told Brigham to put his clothes in the dryer. So he went in the laundry room and opened the washer to make the transfer. After a minute, he came back out to the kitchen with a puzzled look on his face. "Mom, look what I found in the washing machine. It's like a torn up clump of paper." And he handed me the soggy, mostly-disintegrated spine of what clearly had been a book. Yes, the missing science book went through the washing machine, and didn't survive. The wet clothes were thoroughly mixed up with tiny shreds of paper. I wasn't sure what to do. I told Brigham to put the clothes in the dryer, and try to pull out as much of the big pieces of paper as he could. When that first dryer cycle was finished, the lint trap was as full as I've ever seen it, with the fluffed up paper fibers. The boys thought it was really cool. They saved it and want to try to make recycled paper from it. The clothes were still covered with bits of paper, so we had to wash them again. After another drying cycle, the lint trap was almost as full, but the clothes looked clean. So, anyway, the mystery of the missing science book was solved. I was right-- it did turn up, just not in any remotely usable condition. I went ahead and ordered another book. Still, I cannot understand how Brigham could have missed dumping an entire BOOK into the laundry basket, especially after I told him to sort through his clothes to make sure his socks were unrolled! (Clearly, he didn't do that).
Oh well, I guess there are plenty of other more expensive things that could have gone through the washing machine. :-) And at least now I know I definitely would have had to buy another book.
Let's see, what else.
I mentioned that Brigham's violin teacher is moving, right? So I'm looking for a new teacher. I've found a few that I'm interested in. Would it be weird to schedule a trial lesson with each of them-- sort of "auditioning" the teachers to see who we like best? Maybe we won't end up with many choices, depending on their schedule of available lessons. Ugh. It's stressing me out.
I gave all three boys haircuts this morning. Is that a bad Sabbath Day activity? Probably not that great. But they look so cute! Joseph and Mosey both decided they wanted short hair this time (the last couple of cuts they've both wanted me to keep it long on top). So all three have the same haircut, and all look more like brothers now. Joseph and Brigham are now both in a stage where they look *younger* with haircuts. A few years ago, it seemed like every haircut made them look another year older.
Today in primary, Brigham and Mosey both got to play the primary song they're working on as prelude/postlude music. Their teacher encourages them to do this a lot, and I think it's good. It helps them get used to playing in public in less high-stakes situations than recitals. Mosey is getting really good on the piano. He's reached the point where he can sight-read a lot of the music in his books, and he likes to flip forward and play the new songs. It's fun to watch the boys make these kinds of leaps in music and in schoolwork.
OK, it's now after dinner, after bedtime, 9:30 PM (never did get any rain), and I need to finish this terribly disjointed letter. I'll finish with a few more random things:
Here are two good, really easy things I've eaten this week:
A cucumber sandwich with whole wheat bread, both sides spread with roasted red pepper hummus, and sliced, peeled cucumber slices. My new favorite sandwich!
Roasted vegetables (had this tonight-- everyone ate it up!):
1 large zuchini, several fingerling potatoes (I'm sure you could use any potatoes), a whole bunch of baby carrots, and half an onion. Cut all the vegetables into bite sized chunks. Toss with italian dressing (not too much, just enough to lightly coat the vegetables), and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet, and bake at 425 for 30-40 minutes (stir once halfway through) until the vegetables are cooked through, and slightly browned.
Have a great week, everyone!
Love,
Gabrielle
It is 6:16 PM (as I'm starting this). Dinner is the the oven (parmesan tilapia and roasted vegetables), the boys are playing upstairs, and it is *cloudy* outside. Yes, real life, actual clouds outside in the sky right now, and a 30% chance of scattered thunderstorms. Yay!! That still means a 70% chance of nothin', but still, I'll take it. Ben and the boys got caught in a thunderstorm yesterday afternoon in south Austin on their way down to go on a bike ride along a bike trail down there (and nearly got in a car wreck-- after so many months with no rain all the oil builds up on the roadway, and then with any moisture at all, the road becomes extremely slick-- scary!), but there was nothing up here at all. AND, the temperatures are not supposed to break 100 this week, at all, so things are looking up. Maybe fall really will come.
This week has been good. I'm very, very happy with how school is going so far. Our days are very busy, but I'm spending very little time nagging and hovering to make sure schoolwork gets done. This next week we will have another added bit of complexity as scouts start and Mosey starts speech up again on Tuesday afternoons (all the way down at UT, at 4:15 PM, which means we will have the joy of driving back home in the thick of Austin rush-hour. Oh well.). With that, I think all of our weekly activities are underway. Here is how our extracurriculars go:
Mondays:
12:00 PM: Joseph and Mosey have Tae Kwon Do
4:15 PM: Joseph has flute (a little south of Ben's work, about 25 minutes away)
Tuesdays:
3:30 PM: Joseph and Brigham have scouts (I'm assuming they'll get picked up again-- I really hope so, anyway)
4:15 PM: Mosey has speech
Wednesdays:
12:00 PM: Joseph and Mosey have Tae Kwon Do
3:30-5:00 PM: all three boys have piano lessons
5:30 PM: Brigham has violin lessons
Thursdays:
2:15 PM Mosey has cello lessons
3:30-5:30 PM: Our art club meets
Fridays:
12:00 PM: Joseph and Mosey have Tae Kwon Do
1:00-4:00: Homeschool park day. We haven't gone to this in more than a year, but I'd like to start going, as the weather cools enough for me to be able to be outside.
Saturdays:
12:00-1:30: Brigham has horseback riding
So, it is a little crazy, but manageable as long as we (I) can stay organized.
OK, so anything of note this week? Let me think.
We solved the mystery of the missing science book! On Tuesday, I finally caved and ordered a new book. I just KNEW the old one would turn up sometime between then and when the new book arrived. And I was sort of right. :-) On Wednesday, on my way out the door to take Joseph and Mosey to Tae Kwon Do, I reminded Brigham to put his clothes in the washer (he had brought his basket down that morning-- my deal with them is that they bring their clothes down, run the washer and dryer, then I will fold them and they take them upstairs and put them away). My final words to him were, "As you put your clothes in the washer, make sure your socks are all unrolled!" Well, after we got back from Tae Kwon Do, the washer had finished its cycle, so I told Brigham to put his clothes in the dryer. So he went in the laundry room and opened the washer to make the transfer. After a minute, he came back out to the kitchen with a puzzled look on his face. "Mom, look what I found in the washing machine. It's like a torn up clump of paper." And he handed me the soggy, mostly-disintegrated spine of what clearly had been a book. Yes, the missing science book went through the washing machine, and didn't survive. The wet clothes were thoroughly mixed up with tiny shreds of paper. I wasn't sure what to do. I told Brigham to put the clothes in the dryer, and try to pull out as much of the big pieces of paper as he could. When that first dryer cycle was finished, the lint trap was as full as I've ever seen it, with the fluffed up paper fibers. The boys thought it was really cool. They saved it and want to try to make recycled paper from it. The clothes were still covered with bits of paper, so we had to wash them again. After another drying cycle, the lint trap was almost as full, but the clothes looked clean. So, anyway, the mystery of the missing science book was solved. I was right-- it did turn up, just not in any remotely usable condition. I went ahead and ordered another book. Still, I cannot understand how Brigham could have missed dumping an entire BOOK into the laundry basket, especially after I told him to sort through his clothes to make sure his socks were unrolled! (Clearly, he didn't do that).
Oh well, I guess there are plenty of other more expensive things that could have gone through the washing machine. :-) And at least now I know I definitely would have had to buy another book.
Let's see, what else.
I mentioned that Brigham's violin teacher is moving, right? So I'm looking for a new teacher. I've found a few that I'm interested in. Would it be weird to schedule a trial lesson with each of them-- sort of "auditioning" the teachers to see who we like best? Maybe we won't end up with many choices, depending on their schedule of available lessons. Ugh. It's stressing me out.
I gave all three boys haircuts this morning. Is that a bad Sabbath Day activity? Probably not that great. But they look so cute! Joseph and Mosey both decided they wanted short hair this time (the last couple of cuts they've both wanted me to keep it long on top). So all three have the same haircut, and all look more like brothers now. Joseph and Brigham are now both in a stage where they look *younger* with haircuts. A few years ago, it seemed like every haircut made them look another year older.
Today in primary, Brigham and Mosey both got to play the primary song they're working on as prelude/postlude music. Their teacher encourages them to do this a lot, and I think it's good. It helps them get used to playing in public in less high-stakes situations than recitals. Mosey is getting really good on the piano. He's reached the point where he can sight-read a lot of the music in his books, and he likes to flip forward and play the new songs. It's fun to watch the boys make these kinds of leaps in music and in schoolwork.
OK, it's now after dinner, after bedtime, 9:30 PM (never did get any rain), and I need to finish this terribly disjointed letter. I'll finish with a few more random things:
Here are two good, really easy things I've eaten this week:
A cucumber sandwich with whole wheat bread, both sides spread with roasted red pepper hummus, and sliced, peeled cucumber slices. My new favorite sandwich!
Roasted vegetables (had this tonight-- everyone ate it up!):
1 large zuchini, several fingerling potatoes (I'm sure you could use any potatoes), a whole bunch of baby carrots, and half an onion. Cut all the vegetables into bite sized chunks. Toss with italian dressing (not too much, just enough to lightly coat the vegetables), and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet, and bake at 425 for 30-40 minutes (stir once halfway through) until the vegetables are cooked through, and slightly browned.
Have a great week, everyone!
Love,
Gabrielle
Friday, September 16, 2011
Idyllic
The boys were so good today.
They all did their schoolwork quickly and without complaint (well, for the most part :-)). Practicing was done promptly. No arguments about going to Tae Kwon Do, or doing chores, or really, anything else. And they got along famously. I had to go to the post office (to mail in my traffic ticket fine) in the afternoon, so I called upstairs to ask if anyone wanted to come with me. "No, mom, we're playing!" came the answer. They were all upstairs, involved in some very intense imaginary play, running from one room to the next, and then running downstairs and into the backyard. Mosey was muttering some spells under his breath, so maybe some kind of magic game? I'm not sure, but I so love seeing them play together like that. They are such good friends most of the time-- and all day today. I worry sometimes about depriving them of the experience of having "best friends" at school, but then I see them on days like today, and I see that they *are* best friends, and my doubts slip away. And they will always have each other-- these won't be schoolmate best friends that move away, or grow apart, or turn mean, or anything else.
After dinner I was reading to them and they were all three in the playroom, building a village with blocks and lincoln logs. Then they went upstairs to go to bed. I heard quite a bit of laughing and talking, so I called up to them, "Time to go to sleep!" Joseph called back down, "We're not tired, so we have to make ourselves sleepy!" I'm pretty doubtful that all the giggling and wiggling was actually helping them to calm down and fall asleep. :-) They were all 3 in the same room, which they still prefer most of the time. These are the days that make up for the fist-fights (not too many, thankfully) and bickering.
Tomorrow we may be back to fist fights and bickering, but today was perfect. I'm so happy I get to be a mom.
They all did their schoolwork quickly and without complaint (well, for the most part :-)). Practicing was done promptly. No arguments about going to Tae Kwon Do, or doing chores, or really, anything else. And they got along famously. I had to go to the post office (to mail in my traffic ticket fine) in the afternoon, so I called upstairs to ask if anyone wanted to come with me. "No, mom, we're playing!" came the answer. They were all upstairs, involved in some very intense imaginary play, running from one room to the next, and then running downstairs and into the backyard. Mosey was muttering some spells under his breath, so maybe some kind of magic game? I'm not sure, but I so love seeing them play together like that. They are such good friends most of the time-- and all day today. I worry sometimes about depriving them of the experience of having "best friends" at school, but then I see them on days like today, and I see that they *are* best friends, and my doubts slip away. And they will always have each other-- these won't be schoolmate best friends that move away, or grow apart, or turn mean, or anything else.
After dinner I was reading to them and they were all three in the playroom, building a village with blocks and lincoln logs. Then they went upstairs to go to bed. I heard quite a bit of laughing and talking, so I called up to them, "Time to go to sleep!" Joseph called back down, "We're not tired, so we have to make ourselves sleepy!" I'm pretty doubtful that all the giggling and wiggling was actually helping them to calm down and fall asleep. :-) They were all 3 in the same room, which they still prefer most of the time. These are the days that make up for the fist-fights (not too many, thankfully) and bickering.
Tomorrow we may be back to fist fights and bickering, but today was perfect. I'm so happy I get to be a mom.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
09/13/11
As part of the boys' school schedule, I'm having them write in a journal for 10 minutes a day. While I was at home going through my old stuff, I came upon a journal I kept for about a year and a half when I was the twins' age. It was really fun reading through it. I was amazed at how much I remembered. I often think I have a poor memory, but I remembered a great many of the things I wrote about. Maybe it's that my memory is fine, but my power of recall is poor. I remember all of those things, but I would not be able to draw them up in my memory except by being reminded by my writing.
Anyway, I loved it, and so I'm going to give my boys' future selves the pleasure of someday being able to read the journals they kept way back in 2011.
One funny thing that I actually do not remember, is how much I hated spelling. There were quite a few entries that went something like this: "Today was a pretty good day at school. Except, we had spelling, and I HATE spelling," or "School was fine. We played prisoner ball in P.E. But we had spelling today. UGH, DON'T REMIND ME!" So funny. I pride myself at being a very good speller, but boy, did I hate it growing up. It gives me hope for another child of mine who does not love spelling. :-)
So, here's today's journal entry, in the style of 10-year-old Gabrielle, complete with prolific exclamation points and capital letters:
Today was a pretty good day!!! We woke up and ate breakfast. The boys had sausage muffins and orange juice. It was GOOD. Then we did chores. YUCK. Brigham got mad because his brothers slept in his room, but didn't help him clean it up. School lessons were fine, except we couldn't find our science book. All of us looked EVERYWHERE, including Ben! But it was NOWHERE to be found!!! So I got pretty mad, but I ordered another one on Amazon.com anyway. But the rest of the day was good. Brigham did REALLY good on his violin practicing. He practiced in the master bathroom to help him play loud. He had to play loud enough to hear the echo, and it worked!!! The violin sounds SO NEAT in the bathroom with all the echoing! He is getting really good. Mosey also practiced cello. He's been practicing hard. He even got a blister on his finger that popped!! The band-aid wouldn't stay on, but he was brave and finished his practicing anyway. We went to the library after lessons were done. I LIKE the library!!!! All the boys found some books to check out. Joseph asked the librarian to help him find some new books to read. All of the suggestions she gave him were books he had already read! That was funny. It's because Joseph is a REALLY good reader. But he found some new books, anyway. Dinner was REALLY yummy. Sister Davis brought over food from Rudy's. She's going out of town, so she brought us her leftovers from the weekend because they were going to go bad. I'm so glad she did, because that meant I didn't have to make dinner!!! And besides, the boys LOVE Rudy's food. Then I went to a presidency meeting. It was good. We talked a lot. I REALLY like the people I work with. Well, I should go to bed now. Good bye!
Anyway, I loved it, and so I'm going to give my boys' future selves the pleasure of someday being able to read the journals they kept way back in 2011.
One funny thing that I actually do not remember, is how much I hated spelling. There were quite a few entries that went something like this: "Today was a pretty good day at school. Except, we had spelling, and I HATE spelling," or "School was fine. We played prisoner ball in P.E. But we had spelling today. UGH, DON'T REMIND ME!" So funny. I pride myself at being a very good speller, but boy, did I hate it growing up. It gives me hope for another child of mine who does not love spelling. :-)
So, here's today's journal entry, in the style of 10-year-old Gabrielle, complete with prolific exclamation points and capital letters:
Today was a pretty good day!!! We woke up and ate breakfast. The boys had sausage muffins and orange juice. It was GOOD. Then we did chores. YUCK. Brigham got mad because his brothers slept in his room, but didn't help him clean it up. School lessons were fine, except we couldn't find our science book. All of us looked EVERYWHERE, including Ben! But it was NOWHERE to be found!!! So I got pretty mad, but I ordered another one on Amazon.com anyway. But the rest of the day was good. Brigham did REALLY good on his violin practicing. He practiced in the master bathroom to help him play loud. He had to play loud enough to hear the echo, and it worked!!! The violin sounds SO NEAT in the bathroom with all the echoing! He is getting really good. Mosey also practiced cello. He's been practicing hard. He even got a blister on his finger that popped!! The band-aid wouldn't stay on, but he was brave and finished his practicing anyway. We went to the library after lessons were done. I LIKE the library!!!! All the boys found some books to check out. Joseph asked the librarian to help him find some new books to read. All of the suggestions she gave him were books he had already read! That was funny. It's because Joseph is a REALLY good reader. But he found some new books, anyway. Dinner was REALLY yummy. Sister Davis brought over food from Rudy's. She's going out of town, so she brought us her leftovers from the weekend because they were going to go bad. I'm so glad she did, because that meant I didn't have to make dinner!!! And besides, the boys LOVE Rudy's food. Then I went to a presidency meeting. It was good. We talked a lot. I REALLY like the people I work with. Well, I should go to bed now. Good bye!
09/11 family letter
09/11/11
All of us will remember exactly where we were on this day ten years ago, won't we? It is the "day that will live in infamy" for our generation. I wore red, white, and blue today to church as my own private commemoration.
Well, it is Sunday night again, time for another weekly rundown.
It was our first week of school! I'm pretty happy with how things are going.
Labor Day was nothing to get excited about. I did laundry, Ben worked at home, and the boys did I don't know what. It wasn't until Monday night that I really had a firm idea of what I was going to do about school the next day!
I still get back-to-school-jitters, as odd as that is, and I didn't sleep well Monday night, in spite of (or maybe because of) going to bed at the unheard-of time of 11 PM the night before. :-) I woke up at 3:00 and was mostly awake the rest of the night. I started hearing strange sounds around 5:45 AM, and then saw flashes of light through the slats in the window blinds, as if someone were prowling in the backyard with a flashlight. I went out into the living room to check it out. See how brave I am? I didn't wake up Ben to have him go out there with a baseball bat, I went out myself! I didn't see anything, though. By that time it was pointless to try to sleep 30 more minutes, so I got dressed and started getting ready for the day. Ben woke up and soon came in to tell me that the boys were awake. It turns out it was Brigham and Joseph who were the backyard prowlers! They woke up early, too, and couldn't get back to sleep, so they dragged some blankets out onto the back porch and wandered about with their flashlights. When I came out to the living room, they were lying, quiet as mice, on the couch on the patio, so I didn't see them. So, we got started 20 minutes ahead of schedule, which was fine with me!
I'm happy with our homeschool program. Brigham and Joseph are doing most of their work independently-- we have "morning conference" where I explain to them what they are supposed to do for the day, and then "afternoon conference" where we go over everything. I do writing with them, and help them with math or spelling, as they require. They have binders with agendas in the front. They cross off each subject as they finish it. They can take as long or as short as they want, as long as all their subjects are crossed off before they can be free for the day.
I think it's gone pretty smoothly for the first 4 days. We have some wrinkles to smooth out-- it doesn't work when all 3 boys want me at the same time for different things. But there are enough things for them to do that most of the time they can move on to something else until I'm free.
One good thing that has come about is that Joseph has caught on, at long last, that the sooner started, the sooner finished. He was quite excited on Wednesday when he was finished with all his schoolwork for the day by 11:45. He starts off practicing flute at about 6:30 AM, so he can get through his work pretty quickly. I think as the year progresses that his schoolwork will begin to get a little more involved, and there is another subject or two that I'd like to introduce after Christmas. So we have room to grow.
We had time to go to the library on Tuesday afternoon, the first time in a long while.
Wednesday was our music lesson marathon-- 3 piano lessons and then straight to violin.
Thursday was our first art club of the year. I'm teaching the first 6 week unit on singing. The first lesson went great-- I held the attention of twelve 6-11 year olds for a solid 45 minutes, which is quite a feat. And then there was the usual manic chaos of swords and guns and chasing up and down the stairs, until we (the moms) kicked everyone outside. Which we could do, since it did not break 100 the entire week! It's not lasting, though. It was back up to 101 today, and 105 tomorrow, and 100+ forecast for the rest of the week. Blah.
We didn't do much this weekend. Grocery shopping, etc. Ben went to the BYU/UT game with some people from work. Ben was disappointed in the outcome, but I think he still had fun. I'm glad I don't care about sports.
Today was church. After dinner we drove out to Steiner Ranch to look at where the fire was. Once we got there, I felt like a jerk driving around looking at other people's tragedy. I probably wouldn't appreciate people driving around looking if it were me. Anyway, it was really heartbreaking to see the houses burned to the ground. The fire didn't spread like I though it would, though. I was imagining a couple of streets where all the houses were burned, but, at least where we saw, there was a house burned down here, then 2 houses that were untouched, then another house or two burned down-- it was very weird. I can't imagine how it must have felt for those people, evacuating Steiner Ranch, and having no idea if their house would be standing when they got back. So sad.
The Bastrop fire is still burning, but it's 50% contained now. I do not understand how this "contained" thing works, but I think 50% contained means that it's definitely under control. Bastrop used to be in the Austin stake not too many years ago, and there are lots of people in our ward who know people out there who have lost homes. It's hard to know what to do to help, apart from donating goods, of which there is a plentiful supply thanks to the generosity of Texans (and Americans in general).
We continue to pray for rain. The irony of the Steiner Ranch members of our ward fasting for rain last Sunday, only to go home to find their neighborhood burning has not been lost on them. The last time we had a big regional fast for rain, a gigantic storm came in the very next weekend, and it didn't stop raining for the entire autumn, it seems. I'm not sure that's going to happen this time. I admit to being a little skeptical of the fasting for rain. I think it's a good thing, in that it makes each of us humble as we realize that we are not as in control of everything in this world as we like to think, so as far as that goes, fasting for rain is valuable. But, just in this particular drought, there have been, I'm sure, hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people who have been on their knees every day, begging for rain-- I'm thinking of the farmers and ranchers all across Texas and Oklahoma in particular. Does God not hear those prayers until the Latter-Day Saints in Austin and San Antionio fast for rain? And none of us should be self-centered enough to think that this is the worst drought that ever has been on the face of the earth. There have been many more droughts with far deadlier consequences than what we are facing here. Did God not listen to all the millions of people who must have been begging for mercy then?
I have no problem at all with the idea of God letting bad things happen. It makes sense to me. I accept it. There is no conflict in my mind whatsoever between the concept of a loving God, and the existence of evil, pain, and suffering on this Earth. What *does* puzzle me is why God ever does intervene. Or does he? Skeptics would say that 2 years ago when we fasted for rain and that big storm came, that we were at the natural end of that particular weather pattern (we were, and meteorologists had been predicting an end to the La Nina weather pattern we were in), and that nature took its course, as it always does sooner or later. Is it totally faithless of me to lean more on the side of the skeptics? I think God does intervene, but only on very rare occasions. I'm thinking of the miracle of the seagulls and the crickets, and other such times when the very survival of the restored Gospel on Earth was at stake. But a drought in Texas, while wreaking havoc on the economy and financial well-being of many people, I do not believe has any eternal significance to the unfolding of God's plan on Earth. So I don't know why God would intervene.
Is this completely faithless of me? Maybe the drought persists because I do not have enough faith (how's that for hubris?). :-)
I still think that praying and fasting for rain is very important though, for the purpose of keeping us humble, and keeping our minds focused on the One who really is in control.
As of now, there is no predicted end to the drought, and many of the computer models are predicting another La Nina developing this winter, which will bring another very dry winter and spring to Texas, the time of year when we get most of our rain. If this happens, the drought will last another year at least. La Ninas don't *always* mean drier conditions for Texas, but about 90% of the time, they do.
Anyway, God, if you want to give me a sign that you really *do* care about the weather in Texas (well, I know you care, but that you are open to changing it on our behalf), then send us rain! Then I will believe, and never doubt your weather-changing inclinations again!
There, now I really have doomed Texas to another year of drought, by asking God for a sign. :-)
(In all seriousness, my faith in God is not at all tied to whether or not we get rain. I submit my will to his, and I also fully acknowledge that my puny human brain has little, if any grasp on the eternal purposes of God. It very well may be that fasting for rain with humility and faith will bring upon us the blessings we desire.)
And on that very appropriate Sabbath-Day note, I will sign off. I love you all and hope you are doing well.
Love,
Gabrielle
All of us will remember exactly where we were on this day ten years ago, won't we? It is the "day that will live in infamy" for our generation. I wore red, white, and blue today to church as my own private commemoration.
Well, it is Sunday night again, time for another weekly rundown.
It was our first week of school! I'm pretty happy with how things are going.
Labor Day was nothing to get excited about. I did laundry, Ben worked at home, and the boys did I don't know what. It wasn't until Monday night that I really had a firm idea of what I was going to do about school the next day!
I still get back-to-school-jitters, as odd as that is, and I didn't sleep well Monday night, in spite of (or maybe because of) going to bed at the unheard-of time of 11 PM the night before. :-) I woke up at 3:00 and was mostly awake the rest of the night. I started hearing strange sounds around 5:45 AM, and then saw flashes of light through the slats in the window blinds, as if someone were prowling in the backyard with a flashlight. I went out into the living room to check it out. See how brave I am? I didn't wake up Ben to have him go out there with a baseball bat, I went out myself! I didn't see anything, though. By that time it was pointless to try to sleep 30 more minutes, so I got dressed and started getting ready for the day. Ben woke up and soon came in to tell me that the boys were awake. It turns out it was Brigham and Joseph who were the backyard prowlers! They woke up early, too, and couldn't get back to sleep, so they dragged some blankets out onto the back porch and wandered about with their flashlights. When I came out to the living room, they were lying, quiet as mice, on the couch on the patio, so I didn't see them. So, we got started 20 minutes ahead of schedule, which was fine with me!
I'm happy with our homeschool program. Brigham and Joseph are doing most of their work independently-- we have "morning conference" where I explain to them what they are supposed to do for the day, and then "afternoon conference" where we go over everything. I do writing with them, and help them with math or spelling, as they require. They have binders with agendas in the front. They cross off each subject as they finish it. They can take as long or as short as they want, as long as all their subjects are crossed off before they can be free for the day.
I think it's gone pretty smoothly for the first 4 days. We have some wrinkles to smooth out-- it doesn't work when all 3 boys want me at the same time for different things. But there are enough things for them to do that most of the time they can move on to something else until I'm free.
One good thing that has come about is that Joseph has caught on, at long last, that the sooner started, the sooner finished. He was quite excited on Wednesday when he was finished with all his schoolwork for the day by 11:45. He starts off practicing flute at about 6:30 AM, so he can get through his work pretty quickly. I think as the year progresses that his schoolwork will begin to get a little more involved, and there is another subject or two that I'd like to introduce after Christmas. So we have room to grow.
We had time to go to the library on Tuesday afternoon, the first time in a long while.
Wednesday was our music lesson marathon-- 3 piano lessons and then straight to violin.
Thursday was our first art club of the year. I'm teaching the first 6 week unit on singing. The first lesson went great-- I held the attention of twelve 6-11 year olds for a solid 45 minutes, which is quite a feat. And then there was the usual manic chaos of swords and guns and chasing up and down the stairs, until we (the moms) kicked everyone outside. Which we could do, since it did not break 100 the entire week! It's not lasting, though. It was back up to 101 today, and 105 tomorrow, and 100+ forecast for the rest of the week. Blah.
We didn't do much this weekend. Grocery shopping, etc. Ben went to the BYU/UT game with some people from work. Ben was disappointed in the outcome, but I think he still had fun. I'm glad I don't care about sports.
Today was church. After dinner we drove out to Steiner Ranch to look at where the fire was. Once we got there, I felt like a jerk driving around looking at other people's tragedy. I probably wouldn't appreciate people driving around looking if it were me. Anyway, it was really heartbreaking to see the houses burned to the ground. The fire didn't spread like I though it would, though. I was imagining a couple of streets where all the houses were burned, but, at least where we saw, there was a house burned down here, then 2 houses that were untouched, then another house or two burned down-- it was very weird. I can't imagine how it must have felt for those people, evacuating Steiner Ranch, and having no idea if their house would be standing when they got back. So sad.
The Bastrop fire is still burning, but it's 50% contained now. I do not understand how this "contained" thing works, but I think 50% contained means that it's definitely under control. Bastrop used to be in the Austin stake not too many years ago, and there are lots of people in our ward who know people out there who have lost homes. It's hard to know what to do to help, apart from donating goods, of which there is a plentiful supply thanks to the generosity of Texans (and Americans in general).
We continue to pray for rain. The irony of the Steiner Ranch members of our ward fasting for rain last Sunday, only to go home to find their neighborhood burning has not been lost on them. The last time we had a big regional fast for rain, a gigantic storm came in the very next weekend, and it didn't stop raining for the entire autumn, it seems. I'm not sure that's going to happen this time. I admit to being a little skeptical of the fasting for rain. I think it's a good thing, in that it makes each of us humble as we realize that we are not as in control of everything in this world as we like to think, so as far as that goes, fasting for rain is valuable. But, just in this particular drought, there have been, I'm sure, hundreds of thousands, if not millions of people who have been on their knees every day, begging for rain-- I'm thinking of the farmers and ranchers all across Texas and Oklahoma in particular. Does God not hear those prayers until the Latter-Day Saints in Austin and San Antionio fast for rain? And none of us should be self-centered enough to think that this is the worst drought that ever has been on the face of the earth. There have been many more droughts with far deadlier consequences than what we are facing here. Did God not listen to all the millions of people who must have been begging for mercy then?
I have no problem at all with the idea of God letting bad things happen. It makes sense to me. I accept it. There is no conflict in my mind whatsoever between the concept of a loving God, and the existence of evil, pain, and suffering on this Earth. What *does* puzzle me is why God ever does intervene. Or does he? Skeptics would say that 2 years ago when we fasted for rain and that big storm came, that we were at the natural end of that particular weather pattern (we were, and meteorologists had been predicting an end to the La Nina weather pattern we were in), and that nature took its course, as it always does sooner or later. Is it totally faithless of me to lean more on the side of the skeptics? I think God does intervene, but only on very rare occasions. I'm thinking of the miracle of the seagulls and the crickets, and other such times when the very survival of the restored Gospel on Earth was at stake. But a drought in Texas, while wreaking havoc on the economy and financial well-being of many people, I do not believe has any eternal significance to the unfolding of God's plan on Earth. So I don't know why God would intervene.
Is this completely faithless of me? Maybe the drought persists because I do not have enough faith (how's that for hubris?). :-)
I still think that praying and fasting for rain is very important though, for the purpose of keeping us humble, and keeping our minds focused on the One who really is in control.
As of now, there is no predicted end to the drought, and many of the computer models are predicting another La Nina developing this winter, which will bring another very dry winter and spring to Texas, the time of year when we get most of our rain. If this happens, the drought will last another year at least. La Ninas don't *always* mean drier conditions for Texas, but about 90% of the time, they do.
Anyway, God, if you want to give me a sign that you really *do* care about the weather in Texas (well, I know you care, but that you are open to changing it on our behalf), then send us rain! Then I will believe, and never doubt your weather-changing inclinations again!
There, now I really have doomed Texas to another year of drought, by asking God for a sign. :-)
(In all seriousness, my faith in God is not at all tied to whether or not we get rain. I submit my will to his, and I also fully acknowledge that my puny human brain has little, if any grasp on the eternal purposes of God. It very well may be that fasting for rain with humility and faith will bring upon us the blessings we desire.)
And on that very appropriate Sabbath-Day note, I will sign off. I love you all and hope you are doing well.
Love,
Gabrielle
Monday, September 12, 2011
The boys' birthday trip to L.A. (bazillions of pictures)
Our trip to L.A. a couple of weeks ago was great-- a perfect end-of-summer, gear-up-for-school vacation from real life.
We did lots of things! I'll post some pictures to tell the story.
My brother Abe was home between semesters at BYU, although he had to leave the very next day. I loved hanging out with him for a while, even though I got no pictures. Argh! He went swimming with the boys, and in the evening he and Eva and the boys played a piano concert for Grandma and Grandpa and me (and Uncle Christian-- Abe recorded it to send to him on his mission). Abraham is amazingly talented.
On Wednesday, our first full day in L.A., we went to La Brea Tar Pits:
A display case of, oh I don't know, a WHOLE BUNCH of dire wolf skulls, all excavated from the tar pits. I remember this display case making quite an impression on me when I was just about the boys' age.
They got to look into the lab where people were actually digging bones out of tar, and sorting and classifying tiny fossils. Interesting!
Another animated display that I remember from being a kid-- the saber tooth cat and the sloth both move.
Here's Brigham in front of the biggest of the tar pits. Water sits right on top, which is how so many hundreds of thousands of animals met their deaths. They went up to drink from the "water hole," and got stuck in the tar. Then predators spotted the helpless creatures, attacked, and got trapped themselves.
A really cheerful scene of a baby elephant (although I don't actually think elephants ever lived around here! Maybe Woolly Mammoths are too hard to sculpt) getting stuck in the tar while its mother watches. Joseph is thinking about jumping into the tar and becoming a fossil himself.
Ahh, beautiful Southern California. California has its own set of problems, but the weather is not one of them.
Posing inside of some modern art on the grounds of the L.A. Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Why did they make these things?" my boys asked. Well, I just don't know. To give tourists photo-ops?
Trying to ascend a giant grizzly bear.
"Look, ma, no hands!"
There were great climbing trees all through the beautiful grounds, just begging to be climbed. On our way out, the boys were each allowed to choose one to climb.
Brigham was seriously so high up. I was nervous.
In the evening, Joseph got out his flute that he had brought along so that he and Grandma Frandsen and aunt Eva could play together.
I had forgotten that Eva even plays the flute!
We went to the Getty Museum on Thursday. This is a really awesome art museum in the hills overlooking the 405 freeway between the Valley and the west side. I had never been here before, but I want to go back every time we go to L.A. Beautiful grounds, and lots and lots of famous art.
I'm not sure what Mosey is trying to convey here. Any ideas?
The museum grounds were just as much a work of art as anything in the galleries.
Joseph contemplating a statue. It had creepy white eyes. Joseph's favorite word these days is "creepy," (everything is creepy), so it was appropriate.
Why is it that walking around art museums always makes your feet tired? As much as I love art museums, my feet would always get tired! Well, I wasn't doing too much walking, but I sure got tired of sitting in that darned wheelchair. Looks like Brigham wishes he could trade places with me. :-)
My mom knows a lot about art and artists, and really, about everything, and she explained a lot of interesting things to the boys. From the Getty website: "The nude woman represents Fortune, or Lady Luck. She holds a cornucopia, flaunting the bounty that she could bring, but sits on a bubble because her favors are often fleeting. The billowing drapery is a reminder that she is changeable like the wind. Her single shoe symbolizes her ability to bring not only fortune but also misfortune.
The man on the left personifies chance. He looks over at Fortune and holds up a stack of lottery tickets, which he is about to place inside a golden urn, a timely reference to the civic lotteries that had just become popular in Italy."
The fact that my boys weren't running screaming from the room in embarrassment from looking at a picture of naked people with their grandmother says an awful lot about the level of interest this museum held for them, and the awesomeness of my mother in engaging and teaching children.
That evening we went up to Chilao to camp for the evening. Two years ago L.A. had a horrible, devastating fire that burned up a great deal of the San Gabriel mountains. La Canada is right at the foot of these mountains (our main street is "Foothill Blvd."), and it was pretty horrifying for everyone to see these beautiful mountains burning up before their eyes. Angeles Crest Highway, the big road that goes up over the San Gabriel mountains up into the Mojave Desert was pretty well wrecked from the fire, and has been closed for the last two years, and just barely opened back up again. We drove up to Chilao with trepidation, wondering what we would find. It was interesting to see the way the fire propagated. There were big swaths of the mountains were everything was incinerated (Tujunga Canyon was decimated), but then there were other areas where the fire seemed to leap from one place to another, leaving little pockets of forest unscathed. We were so happy to see that at least part of Chilao was spared. It is so beautiful up there. I do really, really miss living by mountains.
Our campsite was surrounded by gigantic granite boulders. My boys were in absolute heaven, and immediately went clambering about the rocks.
They did stop by camp long enough to help set up the tents.
Climbing around giant rocks is dangerous business, and Brigham got a bit scraped up. It didn't slow him down a bit, though.
When it was time to build the fire, my dad showed the boys how to make the perfect teepee with tinder and small sticks, and then supervised as the boys lit the fire. They did it without using any of the newspaper!
We kept it simple and had hotdogs and chips and fruit and s'mores for dinner. How I love sitting around campfires, talking and singing. My best memories from childhood involve campfires.
The boys slept like logs (like rocks?), and didn't wake up until the scent of sausage and grandma's fluffy hotcakes wafted over to their tent. During this camping trip, my boys discovered the fabulously delicious elixir known as "Tang." :-) They drank cup after cup after cup of the stuff.
Grandma's hotcakes were good.
Mosey did stop drinking Tang long enough to eat a bit of solid food.
Joseph also loved the Tang.
While we were eating breakfast, a bluejay kept hanging around, scoping out the situation. He was thinking it might be his lucky day, and he was right!
Pretty little thing. Too bad they can also be vicious little creatures.
He absconded with at least half a pancake, when all was said and done. He was amazingly fast, and I had to be quick with the shutter finger to grab this picture.
Joseph drinking more Tang.
Chilao was also a fabulous place to collect rocks, one of Brigham's most passionate past-times. He spent a lot of time that morning agonizing over which rocks he was going to take back home with him. I told him he had to leave at least a few for other campers to look at. :-)
Silly Mosey showing off his Tang moustache.
Mosey looking cute, and Joseph drinking more Tang.
I told you Joseph liked the Tang!
At this point, it was getting to be time to leave, but Brigham still couldn't decide on his rocks.
Here he is showing me the finer points of one of them.
Finally, it was time to pack up. The boys all helped Grandma put away the tent.
Then they went and climbed around some more while my mom packed the car. I sat there uselessly taking pictures. :-)
Look how high up they were!
On the way down, we stopped at Switzer's Falls. This was another holding-of-the-breath moment as we waited to see if this beautiful little gem was also spared. The mountains surrounding the canyon were pretty burned, so I wasn't too hopeful. The road going down is still closed, so I waited up top while my mom took the boys down into the canyon. To our joy, it still looks pretty good down there! I have lots of memories of hiking down the Switzer's Falls canyon when I was a kid, and also when the boys were little. I'm so glad it's still there!
For me, one of the highlights of the trip was the Hollywood Bowl concert we went to that night. John Williams conducted the L.A. Philharmonic in a whole program of movie themes-- most of them his. My boys love and adore and idolize John Williams. His movie soundtracks are playing all the time around here, on the stereo and on the piano. We have a John Williams piano song book, and the boys are working their way through all the songs. And they played every single one of the songs the boys have played in that book, plus a lot more. It was a long program, and he have three encores. It was so exciting, and such a thrill for the boys, and for me.
We got really great seats, thanks to my wheelchair. We paid for the cheap tickets way at the top, but the handicapped seating was down much further, just behind the boxes. We had to get there more than an hour before the concert started, so we could get handicapped parking, but it was worth it.
They only let me bring in my crappy little point-and-shoot camera, so I don't have any good pictures. Enough to jog our memories, anyway.
The Hollywood Bowl has big screens positioned at intervals up the mountain side so that people can see better. That was the only way I got a "closeup" of Mr. Williams. He doesn't have wings, he was just moving his arms too fast for my camera. My shutter speed was way down at like 1/8 of a second or something, and the ISO was super high, so it's a wonder I got anything even remotely passable.
A lot of people brought light-up light sabers, and it was so fun to see the sea of colorful light sabers waving around in the air during the Star Wars themes. Kind of like a much cooler version of waving lighters. :-)
I took no pictures at all on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday morning my dad took the boys kayaking and canoeing out at Santa Fe Dam. They loved that. I wish I could have gone. The weather was really nice when I first got there, but it got pretty hot over the weekend, and I knew I couldn't sit in a boat with no shade for any length of time. The boys had fun! Even Mosey tried his hand in the kayak! In a couple more years, they'll all be experts.
My mom was gone to training meetings all morning long, and I stayed home and continued working on sorting out a few boxes of treasures from my childhood. My mom kept a lot of my old artwork and school papers, and I had letters and journals and all kinds of stuff that I sorted through to take home with me. Talk about a walk down memory lane! I was actually pretty surprised by the emotion a few of the things I found in those boxes brought back to me.
In the afternoon my mom and I went to the L.A. temple, and the boys hung out with Grandpa, swimming and playing soccer and going to eat dinner at In-n-Out Burger.
Sunday we went to church. I love going to church at my old church building. I went there from the time I was 5, till I graduated from high school, and of course every time I go home. There are still lots and lots of the same people who live there and go to that ward from when I was growing up, so it always feels like coming home.
On Monday, my mom had a class she teaches at USC, so she dropped us off at the California Science Center before her class. This is new since I left L.A., and it's another great place. And free!
I'm such a dork-- it took me about 5 minutes to realize that was a cut-out of the shape of California.
We had about a 15 minute wait before the museum opened, so the boys climbed around, chased pigeons, and I took pictures. Of course.
I think Mosey looks particularly adorable in this picture-- I love how he stands sort of pigeon-toed. Don't grow up so fast, baby!
This big dais in the courtyard had interesting inscriptions on the stones--pictures and poems and such. Joseph is examining a giant fingerprint.
Of course as soon as he sensed me with my camera, he had to strike a pose. :-)
Brigham looking pretty happy.
The inside of the museum was great. We stayed for more than 2 hours and only saw a part of it. Here Joseph is saying some sort of spell over this "cauldron" of water vapor.
The infrared camera was a blast!
I even got into the fun!
Mosey serenaded the museum patrons with a rousing rendition of "Book of Mormon Stories" in the sound studio. He's getting good on the piano!
Another favorite place was the Kapla Block station. Because my boys don't get enough opportunity to play with Kapla blocks at home. :-)
The museum employee posted in this area watched with interest as Brigham constructed this dome. Brigham's pretty handy with the blocks.
There were also big foam architectural blocks that Joseph loved. He built several free-standing arches as tall as himself, and then delighted in destroying them with gusto. I tried to get a picture, but he was too fast.
After the museum, our final Southern California hurrah was going to the beach. We ended up going to the beach right next to the Santa Monica pier. A board walk there gives pretty good wheelchair access very close to the water. It was pretty crowded there (Santa Monica beaches are always crowded), but that didn't faze the boys a bit. The weather on the beach was picture perfect. I miss beaches, too. I love ya, Texas, but the gulf beaches just don't cut it. :-)
Mosey found pieces of giant kelp washed up on the shore.
They also found lots of mussel shells. Mosey was very intrigued by the iridescent mother-of-pearl inside.
Pretty crowded for a Monday afternoon, huh?
I really like Mosey's smile here. He's not quite grown into those grown-up teeth yet!
Joseph discovered that the big columns (what are those called?) under the pier were covered with colonies of mussels. He had a great time investigating, and bringing things over for me to see.
Of course, as soon as Brigham caught wind that there were mussel shells to be collected, he was all over that. :-)
One of my new favorite pictures of Brigham. I love your freckles, handsome!
Again, the agonizing decision of which shells to bring home!!
Finally it was time to dry off, de-sand ourselves, and head on back home. It was Eva's first day of school, and I felt bad that Mama wasn't there when she came home, but it was sure a great trip to the beach for the boys.
We went back to Texas the next morning. Our last Southern California experience was our brush with stardom as we were going through security at LAX. We were interviewed on camera for Fox 11's Good Day L.A., talking about airport security. We were on T.V. for a full 20 seconds! We're famous!
Anyway, I loved being home. My mom had ripped out all the carpet in the downstairs, cleaning up the hardwood floors she found under much of it, and it was really nice because I could use my wheelchair a lot more easily. I loved hanging out with Eva and talking to her about high school and studying an offering her all kinds of unsolicited advice. I love you Eva! Thanks for humoring me! I love being with my parents. It's amazing what a few years post-teen years can do as far as that goes. :-) I love that my boys have such amazing grandparents who can do so many of the things with and for them that I can't. I love them so much for that.
We did lots of things! I'll post some pictures to tell the story.
My brother Abe was home between semesters at BYU, although he had to leave the very next day. I loved hanging out with him for a while, even though I got no pictures. Argh! He went swimming with the boys, and in the evening he and Eva and the boys played a piano concert for Grandma and Grandpa and me (and Uncle Christian-- Abe recorded it to send to him on his mission). Abraham is amazingly talented.
On Wednesday, our first full day in L.A., we went to La Brea Tar Pits:
There were great climbing trees all through the beautiful grounds, just begging to be climbed. On our way out, the boys were each allowed to choose one to climb.
In the evening, Joseph got out his flute that he had brought along so that he and Grandma Frandsen and aunt Eva could play together.
We went to the Getty Museum on Thursday. This is a really awesome art museum in the hills overlooking the 405 freeway between the Valley and the west side. I had never been here before, but I want to go back every time we go to L.A. Beautiful grounds, and lots and lots of famous art.
The man on the left personifies chance. He looks over at Fortune and holds up a stack of lottery tickets, which he is about to place inside a golden urn, a timely reference to the civic lotteries that had just become popular in Italy."
The fact that my boys weren't running screaming from the room in embarrassment from looking at a picture of naked people with their grandmother says an awful lot about the level of interest this museum held for them, and the awesomeness of my mother in engaging and teaching children.
That evening we went up to Chilao to camp for the evening. Two years ago L.A. had a horrible, devastating fire that burned up a great deal of the San Gabriel mountains. La Canada is right at the foot of these mountains (our main street is "Foothill Blvd."), and it was pretty horrifying for everyone to see these beautiful mountains burning up before their eyes. Angeles Crest Highway, the big road that goes up over the San Gabriel mountains up into the Mojave Desert was pretty well wrecked from the fire, and has been closed for the last two years, and just barely opened back up again. We drove up to Chilao with trepidation, wondering what we would find. It was interesting to see the way the fire propagated. There were big swaths of the mountains were everything was incinerated (Tujunga Canyon was decimated), but then there were other areas where the fire seemed to leap from one place to another, leaving little pockets of forest unscathed. We were so happy to see that at least part of Chilao was spared. It is so beautiful up there. I do really, really miss living by mountains.
While we were eating breakfast, a bluejay kept hanging around, scoping out the situation. He was thinking it might be his lucky day, and he was right!
On the way down, we stopped at Switzer's Falls. This was another holding-of-the-breath moment as we waited to see if this beautiful little gem was also spared. The mountains surrounding the canyon were pretty burned, so I wasn't too hopeful. The road going down is still closed, so I waited up top while my mom took the boys down into the canyon. To our joy, it still looks pretty good down there! I have lots of memories of hiking down the Switzer's Falls canyon when I was a kid, and also when the boys were little. I'm so glad it's still there!
For me, one of the highlights of the trip was the Hollywood Bowl concert we went to that night. John Williams conducted the L.A. Philharmonic in a whole program of movie themes-- most of them his. My boys love and adore and idolize John Williams. His movie soundtracks are playing all the time around here, on the stereo and on the piano. We have a John Williams piano song book, and the boys are working their way through all the songs. And they played every single one of the songs the boys have played in that book, plus a lot more. It was a long program, and he have three encores. It was so exciting, and such a thrill for the boys, and for me.
A lot of people brought light-up light sabers, and it was so fun to see the sea of colorful light sabers waving around in the air during the Star Wars themes. Kind of like a much cooler version of waving lighters. :-)
I took no pictures at all on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday morning my dad took the boys kayaking and canoeing out at Santa Fe Dam. They loved that. I wish I could have gone. The weather was really nice when I first got there, but it got pretty hot over the weekend, and I knew I couldn't sit in a boat with no shade for any length of time. The boys had fun! Even Mosey tried his hand in the kayak! In a couple more years, they'll all be experts.
My mom was gone to training meetings all morning long, and I stayed home and continued working on sorting out a few boxes of treasures from my childhood. My mom kept a lot of my old artwork and school papers, and I had letters and journals and all kinds of stuff that I sorted through to take home with me. Talk about a walk down memory lane! I was actually pretty surprised by the emotion a few of the things I found in those boxes brought back to me.
In the afternoon my mom and I went to the L.A. temple, and the boys hung out with Grandpa, swimming and playing soccer and going to eat dinner at In-n-Out Burger.
Sunday we went to church. I love going to church at my old church building. I went there from the time I was 5, till I graduated from high school, and of course every time I go home. There are still lots and lots of the same people who live there and go to that ward from when I was growing up, so it always feels like coming home.
On Monday, my mom had a class she teaches at USC, so she dropped us off at the California Science Center before her class. This is new since I left L.A., and it's another great place. And free!
There were also big foam architectural blocks that Joseph loved. He built several free-standing arches as tall as himself, and then delighted in destroying them with gusto. I tried to get a picture, but he was too fast.
After the museum, our final Southern California hurrah was going to the beach. We ended up going to the beach right next to the Santa Monica pier. A board walk there gives pretty good wheelchair access very close to the water. It was pretty crowded there (Santa Monica beaches are always crowded), but that didn't faze the boys a bit. The weather on the beach was picture perfect. I miss beaches, too. I love ya, Texas, but the gulf beaches just don't cut it. :-)
We went back to Texas the next morning. Our last Southern California experience was our brush with stardom as we were going through security at LAX. We were interviewed on camera for Fox 11's Good Day L.A., talking about airport security. We were on T.V. for a full 20 seconds! We're famous!
Anyway, I loved being home. My mom had ripped out all the carpet in the downstairs, cleaning up the hardwood floors she found under much of it, and it was really nice because I could use my wheelchair a lot more easily. I loved hanging out with Eva and talking to her about high school and studying an offering her all kinds of unsolicited advice. I love you Eva! Thanks for humoring me! I love being with my parents. It's amazing what a few years post-teen years can do as far as that goes. :-) I love that my boys have such amazing grandparents who can do so many of the things with and for them that I can't. I love them so much for that.
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