Surprise Photos

"Mom, Ryan was playing with your camera."
"No, I wasn't. Todd was, too."
Hmmm. Ryan, care to change your story?

Ryan has been showing more interest in taking photos. I've found a few surprise photos here and there. The photo above was a nice surprise. I always like photos of my smiling boys.
The photo below really doesn't do anything for me.

Full Disclosure

I feel the need to explain myself. I recognize that I have been neglecting my blogs lately, in addition to neglecting housework and paperwork and sleep. I have been spending almost all of my discretionary time lately watching old Gilmore Girls episodes. It has been a good thing that Brett and I have not had cable TV. Although I always intend to use my time productively, I wind up getting hooked. And now that it is so easy to find TV on the computer, I am just that--hooked. Honestly, I am looking forward to being finished with the series. I am about a third of the way through the seventh and final season. Until I finish, don't expect to see too much of me here.

Why Gilmore Girls, you ask? I don't know if it was that popular with other folks. Somebody must have liked it, because the show made it through seven seasons. However, I haven't heard a single person mention it before. I came across the series in the video store about two years ago. I just love the fast talking and the humor. Please don't think less of me for this. I promise to be back to real world in about a week. Then I'll get caught up with the house, the checkbook, start some more sewing projects, and read a book, just to stretch my brain again.

See you then.

MOPS Tea and Testimony

Every year our MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group has a special "Tea and Testimony" for one of the meetings. It is always a nice event. It is one of those events when women bring in their own dishes from home and dress the tables up nice and fancy. I volunteered (by default) to be the hostess for my discussion group. I brought in my Butterfly Meadows dishes to set the table, and everyone else pitched in with silverware, tablecloth, cloth napkins, centerpiece, serving dishes, etc. I thought our table looked nice, which was my goal. Imagine my surprise when we exceeded that goal and came away with the prize for best table. I was blown away. There were so many cute and very creative tables. I think ours won because the judges liked the traditional look of the table. Personally, my favorite was the birthday-themed table, but I'm not complaining. This is our "Spring" table:

I put some time in the night before getting things organized. I made sugar cookies and decorated them with every one's initials for place settings. I laid out all of the place settings and serving pieces I would need to bring the next morning. I also made sure to have a variety of herbal teas for those of us who don't drink the regular kind. I was glad that I had offered those alternatives. The majority of the ladies at my table chose from the herbals.

An individual place setting:

We had a good time, as evident by my expression. I was sitting by the "mentor" mom for our discussion group, Joy, a very sweet lady.

The ladies in my discussion group:

I volunteered to organize a special musical number for the "testimony" portion of the meeting. I selected a song by Sally DeFord called "Miracles." We practiced almost every Sunday for about a month and a half before the performance. Our practice paid off. I thought it sounded very nice.

Here is the introduction I presented for our song:

The song I selected for our group to sing at the MOPS tea has a message that I felt was perfect for the women here in MOPS. The composer of the song “Miracles” explained that as a young girl she felt love and a desire to help the whole world, yet she would fight with her own brothers. She wanted to “save the whales,” but she would forget to feed her own dog. As an adult she grew to realize that some of the greatest miracles are those that happen closest to home. It is easy to become overwhelmed by all that we think we should be doing as women and mothers. Perhaps we feel like we should be doing more to make a difference in the world. I would like to remind each of you that you are making a difference in the world. Being kind and loving mothers is one of the most important things that you can do. In addition to making a difference in the lives of your children, I know that you are also helping to create miracles in the lives of others around you. It may not seem like much, but the smiles and kind words you offer make a difference. The support that you lend another mother facing a difficult challenge makes a difference. The meals, childcare, prayers, and more make a difference. Do not underestimate the good that you can and do accomplish each day. Our Savior Jesus Christ performed great miracles serving those close to Him. While we can not hope to do the things He did, we can follow His example by loving and serving the people around us. He will make the miracles happen from there.

Ryan took this photo of me with my "prize" after the meeting. It was such a gorgeous spring day.

I must admit that I was exhausted by the time the tea was over. I had stayed up too late for too many nights in a row. I know that I have used the word "heavenly" before to describe a beautiful day in a hammock. It still applies, especially when it includes a sweet, cuddly boy . . . . Heavenly.

Unfortunately, both Ryan and I later came down with a stomach bug. We had about three sick days between the two of us. At one point, Ryan was so feverish and tired that he fell asleep on the couch. He rarely takes a nap anymore; and he never falls asleep on the couch.

Those who didn't snuggle much (Todd and Daddy) managed to avoid being sick. I still say cuddles are worth the risk!

Chicken Jokes

The knock-knock jokes have been set aside for now. In their place are the "chicken" jokes. You know: "Why did the chicken cross the road?" The funny thing about these jokes is the creativity the boys express when sharing them and the creativity they encourage in the person they are sharing them with.

Here's how it works. Todd or Ryan will ask you, "Why did the chicken cross the road?" You must offer an answer. You may not say, "I don't know" or "You tell me." And let me give you a little hint. "To get to the other side" is not very creative and will most likely be met with a rolling of the eyes (if they could effectively roll their eyes).

An acceptable answer might be "Because he wanted to buy a hamburger" or "To rescue the cat in stuck in a tree" (ooh-That's a good one I haven't tried yet. I'll have to remember that one.) Regardless of your answer, it will be wrong. The child will then offer his own answer, which will be as ridiculous as the ones I offered above. Both child and adult will both laugh at the answers and the joke will be repeated with new answers.

Occasionally the child will repeat an answer they have used before ("Because he needed to go to the bathroom" is a favorite of Ryan's. And "because he needed to look for his sock" is also a popular though baffling favorite answer.) To mix things up a bit the child may ask "Why did the turkey cross the road?" Do not be confused. The game is played in the same manner as the chicken.

Doesn't this sound like fun? Though it may sound like it could become tedious, I assure you it's not that bad. In fact, we have found that it is an engaging way to keep the family occupied in the car, especially when there are passengers other than just mom. Aunt Donna and Kellie were able to join in the fun with us yesterday. Try it with your own family. See if you don't laugh!


Speaking of chickens, we recently checked out a great children's book from the library called "Louise, The Adventures of a Chicken" by Kate DiCamillo and Harry Bliss. It was very cute. The boys and I loved it. Anne, I think you need to share it with Maddie and Wyatt. By the way, Todd can't wait to see your own little chicks. He is intrigued that you have little black chicks and not just yellow ones. They just might like this story too.

Baby Wrens

An update on the baby wrens--they hatched about a week ago. They have grown quite a bit, but are still quite ugly. I didn't realize how much time the momma still spent sitting on them after they hatched. It makes sense, considering that they are still so tiny and hairless. The mommy and daddy wrens have been dutifully catching bugs and feeding the little babies.

I think the babies are now able to eat the bugs whole. In fact, Brett bought some meal worms and set up a little tray by the nest. He occasionally puts some worms in there, and the wrens quickly snatch them up and feed them to the babies.

It is so cool to watch the momma at work. She grabs a bug, flits around the garage, makes her way back to the nest, gives a short chirp to wake up the babies (this is when they start squeaking), then she feeds them the bug and starts looking for more food. And I thought nursing a newborn every two hours was difficult. This momma has no me-time.