Fiesta!

Well, I admit that while we have worked on our "theme" this week (Mexico), it really dwindled down to just two days of actual "Mexico" time.
Two productive, very fun days...We finished the bear/not-a-polar-bear-anymore who is red, and while he is adorable and is often confused with a hippo or pig, he is actually very fragile...Beau could punch a hole in him, and would, if I gave him the chance. The kids stopped helping me, so I didn't have the heart to do another layer of paper mache, and thus when all the balloons were popped (that make up his innards) with a needle and holes appear, I just patched the poor guy up with duct tape. Lots of it. And then I spray painted him and gave him his red crepe paper coat.
(For anyone who would like to make their own pinata: Mix 3 cups water with one cup flour in a saucepan. Stir constantly over high heat until boiling and thickened. Remove from heat, cool. Tear old newspapers into strips, dip them into the glue mixture and then apply to a balloon-shaped pinata of your choice. Or your kid's choice. Do about two to three layers to ensure a nice strong pinata. Or one if you're lazy like me. Patch with duct tape.)
We are taking the red guy with us to Flagstaff for memorial day, so he can be strung up and beat by our kids and their cousins.
On another day we stopped at a Mexican grocery store and bought hot chocolate and some chile-spiced watermelon candy. I thought the kids would hate the candy, but they actually did eat it! They also loved the hot cocoa with it's cinnamony spiciness, but I didn't really care for it.
We made corn tortillas..."we" as in "I" made them and the kids played with the dough. I don't blame them, it was cool dough...it would stick together fine until you tried to roll it out and then it'd crumble. We fried our tortillas into tacos that we had for dinner without too much whining (aahhgg! my kids and their awful pickyness!) We made these really fun papel picados for decorations...they are cut out of tissue paper and I really love how they look in my kitchen. I might keep them up all summer! Bekah and Jacob also made their own Mexican flags, and Rus was dismayed to come home and find the US flag placed below the Mexican on Bekah's little flagpole. I can't believe I didn't teach her about true patriotism.
It has been a fun week...Bekah now demands "Mexican music" every time we get in the van and she was scarred for life I'm sure by seeing a whole cow head for sale at the Ranch Market (little Mexico). Oh wait, that was me...

Next week...Transportation!

Mexico Week

Today we began.
After a 6am run.
And breakfast.
And a trip to Albertsons,
and then to Walmart.
And after 2 loads of clean laundry arrived on my couch,
patiently being ignored.

We began our hap-hazardous study of Mexico by filling in our passports with a picture and a name. You can't go to Mexico without a passport! Bekah was very proud of hers and now feels ready to cross the border with it. Jacob drew a very impressive likeness of himself. And don't they both look just thrilled.
Then we made the pinata. The kids decided yesterday on a polar bear pinata. It is not gender-biased, it is free of princess/villain/bad guy tendencies, and it's even politically correct...well not really. They decided today to buy red crepe paper for it. Yep. A red polar bear. You might not be able to tell from here, but according to Bekah and Jacob, one half of this baby bear is a boy and one half is a girl. I know. Creepy.
Personally (s)he looks more like a hippo than a polar bear, but what do I know.

Did you know that Bekah knows the pledge of allegiance in Spanish? Apparently they say it every day at school in both English and Spanish. I didn't find this out until a month ago. Crazy! She feels she has a very strong Spanish vocab, as she can also say "Hola!" Fluently. Too bad her blue eyes and blond hair give her away!

Somehow at lunchtime I wound up with a headache.
Could have been the cookies...or any of the previous activities.

So the kids watched Dora on netflix, which is also based on our theme. Sort of. Vaguely.

Viva Mexico!

Summer Plans to Outsmart Boredom

Bekah gets done with school tomorrow at 12:50, and then the summer will open up like a big gaping black hole...a place where I'll either do too much or nothing at all and my kids will constantly be hungry. It's the hungry part that frightens me, really. Bekah will snack me into the ground if she has nothing else to occupy her time, so I need to be prepared. Part one of that involved Sams club and lots of bulk snacks. Part Two is a weekly schedule of themes that we can learn about and have fun with. I thought I'd let you in on my plan in case you have any good ideas to go along with it, or if you'd like to adopt it and modify it for your family. There are ten weeks between now and the first week of August.

The libraries in ABQ have a summer reading program where the kids get prizes at the end of each week for reading. I'm hoping to make that a part of this whole thing as well and really use the libraries as my main resource for information on all the different topics.

Journals, reading, stories, worksheets, etc. will be included in each week. Also hopefully each day would have some sort of hands on activity.

Week 1: Mexico
Ideas include: Making Passports for each of the kids and stamping them each day when we finish an activity. Watching videos about the culture and history of Mexico, making a pinata, making a large topographical map with wood as the base, clay for mountains, and paint; learning about Mexican money and "buying" groceries with it; learning spanish words, making decorations for a fiesta and then having a fiesta with Mexican food and our pinata; going to the Ranchers Market (lil' Mexico) in ABQ for dinner. I like the ideas on this website. And this page, too.

Week 2: Transportation
Ideas include: Learning about planes, trains, automobiles; watching Monster Truck movies on Netflix; practicing counting with loads of blocks in a dump truck; going on a train ride, drawing a large car map on cardboard or canvas; making model cars; making modern art map drawings

Week 3: Sports
Ideas include: Learning about bones and muscles, the food pyramid; renting exercise videos from the library to try out; learn about famous athletes; go to a baseball game, make healthy foods like granola and smoothies; learning different sports; having a multi-family baseball game

Week 4: Space
Ideas include: Build a model of outer space (diorama, or styrofoam balls or sidewalk chalk outside), lauch a rocket, make cardboard box rockets, draw aliens, go to the planetarium

Week 5: Houses
Ideas include: Draw our own blueprints, visit funky houses in ABQ, make houses out of marshmallows and spaghetti (uncooked, use the marshmallows for joints), make house of cards, learn about different types of animal houses

Week 6: Music
Ideas include: Go to music in the park, make our own instruments, introduce famous artists and music to my kids, dance everyday

Week 7: Camping/Astronomy
Ideas include: Teach my kids all those wonderful skills from girls camp like fire starting and first aid, teach them camp songs; make flower presses; learn about different plants in the wild; learn camping games; learn about constellations, go camping as a family at the end of the week

Week 8: Book of Mormon
Ideas Include: Learn about Nephi (Nephi's bow), Alma the younger, Ammon, Joseph Smith; make our own gold plates, learn Book of Mormon songs, go to the temple grounds

Week 9: Plants/Trees
Ideas Include: Learn about seeds and roots, what plants need to grow; learn about redwood trees and different forests and climates

Week 10: Under the Sea
Ideas Include: Learn about plants and animals under the sea; ships, hurricanes in bottles, make our own sail boats and race them on the Rio Grande

You can tell I haven't given as much thought to the later weeks...If any of you have any ideas for more games/hands on activities or good resources, let me know! I'll update you on my lesson plans as the weeks go along, if you comment and let me know that you'd like me too. Otherwise I'll just leave it at this.

Here's to a happy, fun, adventurous summer!!

Safford/Alpine

This past weekend we made our way to Arizona. We drove south and then headed east through Virden, awed by green fields nestled in brush-speckled hills. It was simply beautiful and calm and peaceful. If Rus could be paid to blow something up there, we'd move. :) We ate a dinner of sandwiches and chips and then moseyed the rest of the way to Safford. The minute we walked into Clint and Nicole's house our kids disappeared for the night - Bekah and Jacob ran off with Marcy and Merry and Beau claimed a big ride-in car in the backyard and guarded it from Marshall. Rus drooled over Clint's baja bug and I chatted with Nicole about her new job. It was like the good ol' days in Flagstaff...there were just five more kids in the mix.
The next day we pried our eyes open at 5:15 am AZ time (6:15 NM time), thanks to Beau, with plenty of time to play, eat breakfast, and say our goodbyes before Clint and Nicole left for work. We got all dolled up (amid Jacob's protests), to go to the Gila Valley Temple Open House. Whenever a new temple is built it is opened up to the public for several weeks before the dedication. That way non-members and members alike can see the beautiful rooms in the temple and get a better idea of what goes on there. All of the temples are exquisitely decorated, and the Gila Valley temple was no exception. I was in awe of how it could be simultaneously ornate and simple...Bekah and Jacob enjoyed it, although the cookies at the end were probably Jacob's favorite part. Bekah loved the chandeliers.
Here she is in a ridiculously fun and fluffy skirt I made her...After the temple we changed clothes and headed out for lunch with the pink haired, short cut Emilee at SuperWok, where the adults enjoyed and the kids suffered through the all you can eat buffet. Then we said our goodbyes (Rus said his "check your oil/radiator/fluids"), and headed north to Alpine. The boys slept, Bekah got car sick, I took a nap, and Rus put up with all of us.
In Alpine we met up with our favorite Hartmans (because they came): Clay and Mary, John, Tom, Dave, Stacie and their kids, as well as Stacie's parents and sister at the Mortensen Cabin. It was a completely relaxing weekend, I think because we were disconnected from everything, we were in good company, there was a tree swing that Bekah and Jacob loved, and Beau would wander off and explore. Oh and we were surrounded by chocolate, sodas, chips, and cookies. Rus and I are still detoxing from that.
Bekah and Jacob both figured out how to jump off the picnic table and onto the rope swing. It was pretty impressive.They played great together until they were just too exhausted to keep up with the niceties. Then they both would storm into the house, saying, "Guess what!! Jacob/Bekah was mean!" I finally made them both sit and hold hands and they were furious...I told them they could get up when they said something nice about each other. So in their crying, angry voices they said, "I love you!" and "Me too!" That's when I took the picture, and that's when Rus rushed them off to beat sense into them somewhere else. It was hilarious.And now because I am running out of time...here are a bunch of pictures Rus took in Alpine. He did a pretty good job, don't you think?!
Thank you Hartmans/Mortensens for the wonderful weekend!

Jacob in T-Ball

Here are some pics from Jacob's last game. I say game...I mean "event" or "social gathering" or "uniting of nations." No one is allowed to feel that they didn't do well, so even if one team miraculously gets someone out, that someone is still allowed to stay on their base. The whole thing is adorable and fun and ridiculous. Jacob is totally in it for the snacks and the trophy at the end. This picture is of him eating the booger he just picked from his nose. Score! And here is Jacob's ready position: Jacob with his power swing...just look at that grit and determination! Some refocusing by his coach:Oh Jacob, I love you! You are definitely my sweetie! Now Angels, Angels, Angels!!

Skid Mark Insurance

Bekah loaded up the bathroom with toilet paper last week, as if to say, "Mom, these six rolls of toilet paper will insure that I will never have skid marks again!"

We'll see.

And here is a bench I made. The plans for it are here on one of my new favorite websites. The cost for it was $9.00. Thank you cull lumber at Home Depot! The only changes I made were 2x4s to replace the 2x12 for the top of the bench, and I shortened the length from 48" to 36". It now sits in my bathroom, the perfect spot to watch my kids while they take baths. Or leave towels and clothes and toys and junk. Whichever.

un Divided Attention

Today may be Mother's Day, but it also happens to be my honey's 32nd birthday. (That's right, Rus, I just ratted you out!) What a horrible way to ruin all pampering, on both sides!
My neighbor was visiting with us as we got home from church...his hair was sweat-matted under a grungy hat, and his holey pants were covered in dirt, all signs of his efforts for a flowerbed for his wife. He thought it was a fabulous idea for Rus to have his birthday on the same day; what a great, valid way to avoid [love induced] slave labor!
So instead of one of us pushing the other out of bed this morning, we both got up at the same time. Rus made me breakfast, I made the kids' breakfast. I decorated Rus's door with candy bars, he gave me an assorted box of Ferrero Rocher chocolates. Yum. I had Rus followed with an annoying singing "happy birthday" card at church; I came home with flowers and cards from my kids. I made him lunch and let him take a nap, and I got some peace and quiet to read a book. We both hit it big at dinner with the Goolds and Kinghorns; Taffy can cook me meat any night of the week! I made the pies for dessert and a cake for Rus, but Rus did make the crusts for me. After he burned the ones I made. After I left them in his care so I could take Jacob to tball yesterday. I couldn't even be mad at the lingering smell of burned food when there were two fresh pie crusts sitting on the stove waiting to be cooked.
Last night Rus and I had an extra special date (not to be confused with the one the night before where we went to dinner and saw Iron Man 2, transported on Rus's motorcycle...Rus learned very quickly how to get me to hug him tighter...). You remember that wonderful Astro van from the last post? Well, would you believe, Rus taught me how to change the radiator on that beautiful beast of burden. I had grease up to my elbows, but the kids were in bed and we had fun together. [Love is someone you'd be happy digging a ditch with, as Taffy says, or in this case, changing a radiator.] Turns out my long slender fingers are good at finding nuts and bolts that Rus drops into the vast abyss of the engine. The guy we bought it from didn't necessarily do us dirty, it just turned out to be good timing on his part and bad timing on our part. As the Payne family will tell you, "Sometimes you bite the bear, and sometimes he bites you."

And to my own beautiful mother...I thought of you today when the men's choir sang this song:

I often go walking in meadows of clover,
And I gather armfuls of blossoms of blue.
I gather the blossoms the whole meadow over;
Dear mother all flowers remind me of you.

O Mother, I give you my love with each flower
To give forth sweet fragrance a whole lifetime through;
For if I love blossoms and meadows and walking,
I learn how to love them, dear mother, from you.

Mom I love you! Thank you for teaching me about charity and love and friendship. As Abraham Lincoln said, "All that I am or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother."

I am not unflappable.

Two days ago we bought a 2002 Chevy Astro van.
Vanilla, Rus calls it, because it is functional as opposed to luxurious.
It can hold eight people, or five people and four bicycles, or two people and two motorcycles, all with a pop-up trailer following faithfully behind. In its downtime it can take Rus and his carpool buddies to work in style.
Yesterday Rus had me drive it to a meeting at the Church ("Try it out!"). My meeting was at 8pm. I probably passed eight cop cars on the way to the church, only 5 (?) miles away. On the way home I passed one cop. He pulled me over and told me in no uncertain terms that I was not to drive the van until it was registered, no matter the bill of sale and faxed copy of insurance that I waved under his nose. He told me what a nice guy he was for not towing me on the spot and rewarding me several tickets. I left trying not to cry. I got home and lashed out on Rus for letting me do something so stupid.
Then I noticed Polly (our rabbit), was in the crockpot with some carrots and onions.
Visions of a dead limp Polly and blood everywhere made me upset (tears, tears, dumb tears) and again Rus got the brunt of it.
He took Colonel on a walk, I went to bed.

Today I tried to get the van registered. Several times. I went to the MVD first thing, kids in tow with only 45 minutes to get the deed done. Forty minutes later it was my turn. I presented all the necessary goods and then happened to notice the sign:
"Debit/Credit NOT Accepted. Checks Only."
I gathered my things (which did not include a checkbook) and left.
Unregistered.
In the Felon Van.
I spent the next 2 1/2 hours helping with different things at the school.
I returned to the MVD.
Computers Down, they told me. I waited two minutes and decided to go to the ASAP MVD. I got there and was told that they couldn't give me my motorcycle endorsement like I also needed/wanted. (Rus and I were going to go for a ride tonight on a date. His birthday date. Like my gift to him was having my endorsement and being ready to ride.) Then the guy proceeded to ignore me long enough that I noticed the sign that said,
"24.95 per Transaction"
Bloodsuckers leaching off the horribleness of the MVD system.
I left.
And went back to the regular MVD, praying for system renewal and overall reversal of the crappy situation. I simultaneously dared any cop within a 100 miles to pull me over.
The computer was still down.
I waited for 15 minutes, exchanging MVD unpleasantries with my few fellow faithful stragglers.
I left a complete and utter failure.
In the Felon Van.

I got home later and noticed the tags on my other van.
APR 10

Better replace those, huh?

Then Colonel did this.I ate too much sopapilla cheesecake pie to feel better.It was oh so good, but didn't help.

I am SO not unflappable.

Art Auction

Last week the PTO at our school hosted an art auction. We tacked it on to the school art night and had an amazing turnout!
The choirs performed, the PTO served dinner (BBQ, $5 a plate), the halls were lined with teacher look-a-like portraits done by the kids, the gym was filled with art projects from all grades, there was a poetry reading in the library, and the cafeteria had artwork hanging to be auctioned off.
We had eighty pieces of matted artwork done by the students, with everything from inkblot-ish paintings (like the one I won above by a second grader), to Star Wars drawings to crayon and ink drawings. It was awesome! We also had big tiles that the students had drawn Native American symbols on, one little sculpture, and some donated pieces from actual artists. I matted all the pictures with my handy dandy mat cutter, and let me tell you, even a crayon drawing looks great when it is matted.
It was a silent auction, so there were bid sheets for each drawing and the people just had to write in their bid. Each piece started out with a minimum bid of two dollars and all of the kids were so excited to make their parents bid on their friends' artwork. To top it off, each time a person bid they got a raffle ticket to be entered in a drawing for a prize - free oil change, free pedicure, $25 to a restaurant here in town. All of the prizes were donated (such wonderful people!) and I think the parents really enjoyed the added incentives. We even had twenty of the mats (all colored ones) donated.
Out of eighty pieces we only had five remaining at the end of the night, and we raised about $250.00. The bids ranged from $2.00 to $20.00.
Awesome.
Don't you think?
This is the kind of fundraiser I love...one that makes the kids feel good about themselves, one that actually involves them and relies on their participation, and one that the parents support because they want to.
I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Backfire

If you happen to have your time-out spot
on the washing machine
like me
and you start using it for your almost terrible-two year old
like me
because he keeps hitting his brother with a tent pole,
just
maybe
screw the lid on your Ultra Concentrated Tide Cold Water
just
a
little
bit
tighter.

It will save you from walking in on him,
mid gulp,
lips blue from the Tide, coughing, pointing at his mouth and crying...
...clothes and washer lid - tide blue...

not even to mention calling his physician
and then poison control

just to find out that he'll live and you need only worry about him
throwing up and having the runs.

Then give him a bath,
hug him tight,
and
enjoy the fresh scent of Tide.