March 09 Movie

SuperMom Stuff - March

Snow Play (the only time enough snow stuck to actually play with)

Dry-Erase Markers on the Mirror

Stringing Pasta Necklaces (be sure to tape the end of the string so it's easier!)

Reading Time in a Fort

Pudding Cup Building (do you recognize it? :)

Sorting Pasta by Color & Shape (Seara is doing it, just not in the egg carton like I intended)

Bowling with Soda Bottles

The dyed pasta was an awesome idea. Obviously I didn't come up with this on my own, but I've seen it a few different places so it's an idea that's been floating around.

You need:
1. Pasta of any kind (I got big holed ones for stringing and fun shaped ones for sorting)
2. Rubbing alcohol
3. Food coloring (I was ambitious and did six colors, four are pictured)
4. Ziploc bags


Then you:
1. Put the noodles in the bag (they tend to leak so put them inside something)
2. Completely cover the noodles with rubbing alcohol
3. Add in food coloring
4. Let them sit to absorb the color (the longer the brighter, but no more than 8-10 hours)
5. Drain (don't rinse!), spread on cookie sheets, and let dry

Sacrament Meeting

I should have realized that the elements had conspired against me when I walked into sacrament meeting and someone was sitting on my bench. Did they not see my name written on it?? Did they not notice that we sit in that same spot every single week?!

Instead we sat on the back, side bench. The one with the legroom and the easy escape.

Just minutes into the sacrament Elijah began his it's-nap-time-and-I'm-tired fit. I was trying to quiet him when Enoch spit up a good amount of green goop on the carpet in the middle of the walking path. The deacon manning the door laughed at us as we tried to deal with the situation (eventually putting a tipi shaped piece of paper to cover it until we could get out for paper towels). Just as we solved that and got Elijah somewhat distracted, the lights started blinking on and off in the room. I looked around, trying to figure whose kid was playing with the light switches, but I couldn't find them ... until I looked to my left and realized the culprit was my own three year-old. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!

One down, 898 to go until all three kids are out of the house.

ps. For those who did not realize, our names are not really written on the benches. It just feels like they are. :)

Eastern Excursion 33: National Aquarium

the NATIONAL AQUARIUM

According to Wikipedia (which always contains the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth), "The National Aquarium in Baltimore is widely considered to be one of the best in the United States, if not the whole world." I think I agree. As you walk into the main gallery the first thing you see is an enormous centralized pool filled with sharks, rays, tarpon, and a green sea turtle. The pool acts as an atrium as you spiral up four floors viewing various (crazy looking) fish. At the very top is the Rooftop Rainforest, which is a recreation of the Amazon, complete with alligators, birds, and sloths. I took one step in and was immediately transported back twenty years. I managed to whisper, "This is my childhood" and point out which plants I recognized from my homes growing up, before I choked up too much to talk and began to cry. Something is seriously wrong with me. I cry waaaaay too much lately. (And NO, it's not what you're thinking.)

The Rooftop Rainforest. Thanks again, random stranger #79.

Nemo and Marlin were hiding while we visited the coral reef, but Dori came out to say hello.

From the Rooftop Rainforest you loop down another aquarium wing through a 3-story high coral reef, and then a 2-story high separate shark tank. (You can't keep the sharks with all the other fish. Otherwise you wouldn't have other fish for very long!) The kids didn't know to be afraid, although I did have a recurring dream last night that Seara fell into the shark tank and I jumped into save her. Scared the daylights out of me. After the first couple times I dreamed it I started figuring out what was going on and began trying to convince Sam to jump in after her instead. For some reason he didn't want to. Sorry, Seara.

I do not like sharks.

We ended our trip with a dolphin show. The last time Sam and I saw a dolphin show was at Sea World on our Honeymoon. My, how things have changed in the last 4 1/2 years! It was amazing and the kids loved it. Are you surprised?

I only took video footage of the dolphins, so here is a kifed picture of their pool. We had much better seats than this shot.

ps. We are coming to the end of our Eastern Excursions! I think we'll end on number 40, so only seven trips left. Can you believe how fast time has flown since we began this??

pps. If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, my cousin is competing in the iPhone App competition. Go here to download his App. It will give you good karma. :)

An Answer for Paige

(you might want to read Paige's post first if you want this to make sense ...)

Hi Paige. My name is Janae, and I am tall. 5 feet 9 inches to be exact. I can see how being short is hard. I only stare at people's heads, rather than their backs, at shows. My husband and I use the same driver's seat setting to reach the pedals. Due to both my height and my 'monkey arms' (my wingspan is longer than my height - ideally they should be the same), my husband actually asks me to reach for stuff in the cupboards. And I'm tall enough to be a model (although I think I'd rather die first).

But I'd be willing to give all that up. If you'd like some of my inches, YOU CAN HAVE THEM. I hate being tall. And I'll tell you why:

5. I hate that I was taller than all but ONE boy my age by 8th grade.

4. I hate that a lot of boys ignored me in high school because I was bigger than them. (It's a good thing Sam and I hadn't met because he would have been one of them. He was a shorty.)

3. I hate that I have found one - yes ONE - pair of pants that are long enough for my legs. I'm sick of taking out the hem to lengthen all my pant legs so that they don't hang in flood position all the time.

2. I hate that I can never wear heels. 1" is the max I can do. Not only because my husband is short (5' 10.5") but also because in regular heels I hit 6' - which draws all sorts of rude "Aren't you huge?!" comments from people.

1. I hate that being tall makes me feel like a beast. Or a mammoth. Women are supposed to be petite. They are supposed to be enveloped in the arms of the man they love. Since Sam grew up with you as one of his best friends, I secretly think he expected to marry a dainty girl like you. Instead he got stuck with a giantess.

Take the inches, they're yours.

Family Home Flip-Out

Yesterday was a long day. I only got four hours of sleep the night before. My kids were getting over the croup so they were needy. By the end of the day I had a very short fuse. Still, we hadn't done Family Home Evening the night before because Sam was gone all day, and even though he wasn't home again, I figured it would be better to do it alone than not at all. So after dinner I gathered the kids.

Sease and Lije pulled up chairs so they could face Enoch and I on the couch. The first half of my lesson on Being Kind to Your Family went great, but soon Elijah started getting restless and began climbing all over. When I heard scratching sounds from Elijah's boots griding on my new leather couch I decided I had had enough. My patience was waning thin. So I picked him up by the waist and reached to put him in his chair. Except the chair was too far away, so I kinda propelled him forward so that he'd land in his chair. Bad idea. He hit it hard, his neck whiplashed, and his little head whacked the back of the chair. Thus started the pandemonium. He screamed. LOUD. This, of course, scared Enoch who also began screaming. The apartment doors here are thin and their screams echoed through the hallways. Which only made me stress out more. And while I sat there absolutely overwhelmed about what to do, I looked up at Seara, only to see her chewing on a chunk of her hair. I've told her thousands of time not to do that. My patience was gone. So I reached up to swat her hair out of her mouth. But I missed. And I accidentally whacked her instead. She promptly joined the screaming. The lesson needed to end. FAST. So I looked down at my lesson manual and read the last part I had left to do:

"Encourage the children to be loving and kind to their family."

Oh the irony.

Eastern Excursion 32: Maryland Science Center

the MARYLAND SCIENCE CENTER

If we were going to stay in Maryland for another year I would definitely get a membership to the Science Center! Everything, and I mean everything, in the museum is hands-on. In the massive Dinosaur Mysteries hall they have full sized skeletons and dinosaur casts - and when you walk under the casts they growl at you! The kids touched a triceratops skull, climbed into a nest of dinosaur eggs, and worked on excavating real dinosaur bones out of a mass of rock. It was really cool.


Most of our time was spent in the Kid's Room. There were 'science' toys and art projects, an undersea submarine world and virtual scuba diving, and best of all, a gigantic water play area.

Note to self: get large magnet for kids to use with paperclips. They love this.

In case you were wondering, of course they have an entire section of the Science Center dedicated to the oh-so-famous MARYLAND BLUE CRAB.


We ended the night by watching an IMAX movie about Africa. The kids were pretty fascinated, but I got really motion sick. Apparently I need to take Dramamine before I watch IMAX movies. Who knew??

All Things Seara

I thought kids weren't supposed to start dissing their parents until they became, oh I don't know, teenagers or something. Yet this is how Seara reacted to my dancing in the kitchen a couple days ago.

to me: Mommy, no dancing.
to Sam: Daddy, mommy was dancing bad.

Thanks a lot, Seara. I mean, I knew I couldn't dance. But my THREE YEAR-OLD can tell?? I think that just about solidifies my resolve to never, ever, ever go dancing again. But we will still hold Dancing Time every day. Even if watching me is torturous to Seara.

________________________________________


Seara is also starting to take on her roll as being the bossy oldest child. The other day I was opening a door and she was on the otherside, so I accidentally bonked her head with the door. This was our conversation:

Seara: Mommy! No hitting Sisi! Can you say I'm sorry?
Me: I'm sorry!
Seara: Okay. If you hit Sisi again, you go to timeout.

Excuse me?? You can't send me to timeout! Bossy pants.

________________________________________


A few weeks ago Seara started putting eye-like dots on her scribbles:


Then Friday she drew this:



She obviously got the right genes from her daddy - this girl is going places! ;) I mean, she has already surpassed her mother in artistic skill, talent, and recognizability. No seriously, I think she does draw better than I do. I'm bad. I mean really bad. Let me explain. Because Sam is a naturally talented artist he came into our marriage with this idea that everyone could draw pretty well. So one day I was trying to explain to him that I really couldn't draw, but he wouldn't believe me. I decided to prove it by drawing him a picture. I tried really hard to do a good job because I had this secret hope that it might turn out well and that he'd say something like, "See! You can too draw!" His response? "You're just trying to draw badly to prove your point." Um, no honey. I wasn't. But apparently I did prove my point.

the Birthday Stud

I couldn't help but put this shirt on Enoch for Sam's birthday today ...

Nothing to do in Utah

One of my biggest pet peeves is when people complain about there being nothing to do in [location]. I mean, Sam comes from a middle of nowhere podunk town. And by middle of nowhere, I mean smack dab in the nothing-grows-here desert with the nearest malls and movie theaters an hour's drive away. Population: 9,931 (with a longstanding debate about whether or not that includes the inmates in the county prison located within city limits). That was practically the size of my HIGH SCHOOL. Still, we always have fun when we go there. The first time I met Sam's family we dressed in junk clothes and threw mud at each other in the Little Colorado River (which, incidentally, is more like a drizzling stream running through gobs of mud). Later I learned about Indian ruins, Painted Deserts, meteor craters, and Petrified Forests (sounds very Harry Potter-esque, huh?!). You can drive on Route 66, go cliff diving at the creek, or do some star gazing (which is AMAZING when you are that far from civilization. In fact, Pluto was actually discovered at an observatory nearby). And the Grand Canyon is less than two hours away. I mean, even in the boondocks there is stuff to do.

Utah Valley

The 'nothing to do' complaint really strikes a chord when people say it about Utah. You think I'd be more understanding since I once subscribed to that belief, but I'm not. ;) To prove my point that there are things to do in Utah (and fun things at that!) I am sharing a list I made of things to do near Provo for my little brother when he started BYU. Many of you won't care a whit about this, but for those who are curious, here is it:

On BYU Campus

Go to any sports event (Beyond the normal sports, swimming and diving are always fun to go to, as are lacrosse and track & field.)
Attend the Comedy Shows
Watch a movie at the Varsity Theater
Go to the Planetarium show in the Eyring Science Center (Friday nights at 6:30 - it cost $2 a person)
Visit any of the campus museums (Bean Life Science, Peoples & Cultures, MOA, and the Earth Science Museum)
• Go to the Arts and Music Performances (Personally, Sam and I think the best shows to go are the plays, Homecoming Spectacular, Christmas Around the World, Celebration of Christmas, Young Ambassadors, International Folk Dance Ensemble, Living Legends (our very favorite), and Ballroom in Concert.)

Outdoors

• Go on a hike (BYU has a great list of trails)
• Picnic up Rock Canyon or at Rock Canyon Park
• Ice Blocking in Rock Canyon Park
• Frisbee Golf (there are frisbee golf courses at Bicentennial Park and at Rock Canyon Park)
• Ultimate Frisbee (the best field for it is the one east of the Conference Center, just north of the old DT buildings)
• Rent a tandem (double-seated) bicycle from Outdoors Unlimited and go on a ride around the Provo Temple.
• Rent rollerblades from Outdoors Unlimited and ride around Campus (especially up by the bell tower)
• Hike the Y (here is a map to get there. Make sure to bring flash lights if you go for the sunset - another fun time to go is early in the morning, so that you are on the Y when the sun rises over the valley)
• Hike to the Timpanogos Caves.
• Sand Volleyball at Vivian Park
• Bike ride down Provo Canyon (Park one car at Maceys, drive the other with the people and the bikes just above Vivian and ride the bike trail down to end at Maceys. Then you can drive back up to get the car. Unless you are brave and want to ride back up. If you don't have a bike you can rent one from Outdoors Unlimited.)
• Float the Provo River (Once again, you'll need two cars. One to drive the people and the tires to the top, another to drive back up from the bottom to get the first car. You may lose sunglasses, so beware. Start here - the map is approximate. Look for a dirt parking area on your right with a large brown sign that says Provo River. You can either end at Vivian Park, or else you can hop out at Vivian and walk over the bridge (it is too low to float under), and then get back in and end here. That map won't let me get off the highway, so you'll turn left where it ends. You are looking for a small dam on the Provo River and a parking lot just north of the dam. Make sure you park the first car here!)
• Swim and tire swing in the Provo River (You want to swim where the Provo River dam is - at the bottom of the canyon, not Deer Creek dam. Once again, the map won't let me get off the highway, so you'll turn left where the map ends. You are looking for a small dam on the Provo River and a parking lot just north of the dam. This is the same place you end when you float the Provo. There is a tree about 50 feet east of the dam with a huge rope swing that you can jump off into the river. It is awesome!)
• Drive the Alpine Loop (this is best when the leaves are changing colors - so beautiful!)
• Have a picnic dinner at sunset up Squaw Peak (from where the map ends turn right and you will hit a parking lot with a beautiful view of the valley)
• Hike to the Diamond Fork Hot Springs up Spanish Fork Canyon (Enter Spanish Fork Canyon, turn left toward Diamond Camp Ground (there'll be a sign). You'll drive for a really long time, but eventually you'll get to the Three Forks parking lot. The hike is about 2.5 miles and is relatively easy. Be sure to wear your swimsuit.)

Winter

• Sledding in Rock Canyon Park
• Snowman contest (compete to see who can build the best one - bring scarfs, carrots, etc. to decorate them)
• Go snow shoeing on any of the hiking trails (rent from Outdoors Unlimited)
• Ice Skate at Seven Peaks

One Year Ago Today

All my life my hair has hovered between my chin and my shoulders. It got long in 4th grade and short in 9th, but it pretty much looked the same all my life. When I went on my mission I decided to grow it out. (Okay, honestly, I wasn't gonna risk going under the shears in a foreign country. Which is strange cuz half of my life has been spent in foreign countries. But whatever. I reserve the right to be freaked out about bizarre things.)

Notice how my hair is really similar in each picture (minus the 80's bangs) - ages 4, 17, and 22.

By the time I got home from my mission and back to BYU my hair reached my elbows. But then my boyfriend-who-I-thought-I-was-gonna-marry broke up with me. So I skipped straight to the salon. And I chopped it SHORT. It's a girl thing. A couple months later I met Sam.

I felt bad that Sam never saw my long hair, so I cut my hair for the last time just after our first anniversary. For the next 3 1/2 years I grew it out, barely trimming the ends every couple months. Finally, last March, it reached my elbows again. I was 5 months pregnant and I was sick of my hair. So one year ago today, I chopped it SHORT. It's a pregnant thing. A couple months later we moved across the country.

So I put two and two together ... whenever I do dramatic things with my hair, dramatic things seem to happen to my life. Does that mean that if we want to get our dream job, I have to do something crazy with my hair??

Cold Cereal

Confession: I love cold cereal.

I mean *LOVE* cold cereal.

See, growing up our weekday breakfasts were usually oatmeal, cream of wheat, ricesugarandmilk, or cracked wheat. On Saturdays my mom made pancakes, waffles, etc. And on Sundays - those blessed Sundays - we got [this must be said in a wistful, longing voice] cold cereal. When I was really little it was something simple like Rice Crispies (okay, it was actually a vanilla flavored Equadorian version of that, but you get my drift). Boy did I cherished those bowls of cereal! And unfortunately it stuck with me for life.

Winter semester my sophomore year at BYU I made a goal: eat [wistful] cold cereal for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks all semester. The only time I could eat non-cereal food was when I was taken out to eat on a date. And you know what? I didn't get sick of it. But I did gain 15 pounds. So after I completed my goal I reverted back to cereal-for-breakfast only.

Once we added kids to the mix, Sam and I had to make some budget cuts so that I could stay home with the kids. So we [gasp!] went off [wistful] cold cereal. :( Eating oatmeal and cream of wheat for breakfast saved us $100 a month! (It helps when you buy the 25 and 50 lb bags of oats, etc.) But you gotta make sacrifices to be a stay-at-home mom. It was hard. But it was worth it.

And then we moved out here. And I didn't have bulk amounts of oats. And I had a new baby. And for three weeks I had a 2 year-old, a 1 year-old, and a newborn. And I was tired. So we reverted back to cereal for breakfast. And we never went back. (Actually, the kids do those sugary oatmeal packets. I'm mean. Only Sam and I get [wistful] cold cereal.) I have been in heaven this past year. Even if Sam prefers "healthy" cereals to sugar cereals. Personally, I think he's crazy. But hey, who I am to judge? :)

Unfortunately, at the end of May we will be moving. I don't know where. It may be to my parent's basement. But we will be moving. And we just have to cut funds somewhere. So we are going off [wistful] cold cereal again. (I know. I want to cry.) I only have 99 more days to enjoy my beloved [wistful] cold cereal.


Tonight's dinner: Cocoa Pebbles (my personal favorite).
And if I'm not full after one bowl: Cinnamon Toast Crunch (a close second).

Please don't answer his prayer!

We're on the job hunt right now.

To be vague, we are looking at jobs in the East, in the West, one in the middle and one across an ocean.

I really want to get a job. I mean really. So I employed some methods of trickery to ensure that happens. This was my logic: Children are innocent. Children have perfect faith. Therefore, when children pray, their prayers are answered. So I taught my kids to pray that daddy would get a job. It worked perfectly. Until today.

I didn't write down everything Elijah said, but this is the gist of it. With the key part quoted word for word.

Dear Heavenly Father,
thank thee for today.
Thank thee that Sisi goes pee-pee in the toilet. (Yes, thank you for that one.)
Thank thee for Buzz Light-gear.
Please bless daddy to give up.
Please bless mommy to get a job.
Please bless Nephi.
Please bless Jesus. (Um, okay.)
In the name of Jesus Christ, amen."

Oh, please don't answer that prayer!!

Sunday Snowmen

Last Monday we had a huge snow storm. School was canceled for two days. When I went out for my run on Wednesday morning it was 8 degrees outside. (In case you were wondering, I don't run outside. Especially in 8 degree weather. I'm not insane. But I do walk about 20 feet from my building to the apartment gym. Where I watch CNN and FOX while I run on the treadmill.) By Saturday afternoon it was 78 degrees outside. Yeah. We're talking a 70 degree jump in 3 1/2 days. Insane. Anyway, since winter might be over, and since my latest posts have been both huge and beefy, I figured I'd throw this in to lighten things up. :) (As always, CLICK TO ENLARGE.)


First, this perfectly encapsulates my feelings about snow:


Because we all know that these kinds of thing happen:


Then here are some of the comics I accidentally missed in my earlier snowmen posts:


And last, but not least, the beloved Sunday Snowmen: