Zoo

Finally we got to go to the zoo. This is one place that we really enjoy and we would like to go more often then we get around to. They have a walking program, and if you walk their mile loop eight times in three months you get behind the scene passes to talk with the care takers and see how they care for the animals. They have a peacock that roams freely and the children were fascinated, at least until he got annoyed and hissed at them.

We also saw an animal show and had the chance to see some up close and pet others. They have an intern program and as the children get older we will keep this in mind. Since they will not be attending PS

we can waiver to have them intern at 16. What a fabulous oppurtunity!!! Hopefully one of them will choose to do this so I can live vicariously through them :)

Dinos....

Seeing if Michael's armspan measures up. Also, a really good shot of Matt's bald spot. :)

Me at one end of the measurement, the kids at the other.

Our Allosaurus measuring line went from the neighbors on the left all the way to the neighbors on the right.

Michael and Seri measuring the Dinosaur length.

We have almost finished with Dinosaurs (at least for now). We went outside and measured how long different dinosaurs would be with sidewalk chalk. We measured an eight foot one, thrity-two feet, and the mother of all Dinos at eighty-eight feet long. It was decided that the 88 foot one would take about five and a half of daddy's car to measure up.

We were going to fill in the measurement with a drawing of the dinosaur on the street but figured that may take up too much chalk, maybe some other day.

We had the children estimate how long the Dino's were before we measured and Daddy's estimation came real close. He then revealed his trick of touching one end of the yarn to his nose and holding the other straight out. On an average adult this length will equal three feet. The kids were so fascinated that he then showed them that their height is usually equal to their arm span, pretty neat information. I am sure it will come in handy some day.

Happy Mothers Day

She came tonight as I sat alone,

The girl I used to be,

And she gazed at me with her earnest eye

And questioned reproachfully:

Have you forgotten the many plans And hopes I had for you?

The great career, the splendid fame, all the wonderful things to do?

Where is the mansion of stately height With all its gardens rare?

The silken robes that I dreamed for you And the jewels in your hair?

And as she spoke, I was very sad For I wanted her pleased with me,

This slender girl from the shadowy past The girl that I used to be.

So gently rising, I took her hand And guided her up the stairs

Where peacefully sleeping, my babies lay Innocent, sweet, and fair.

And I told her that these are my only gems, And precious they are to me;

That silken robes is my motherhood Of costly simplicity.

And my mansion of stately height is love,

And the only career I know

Is serving each day in these sheltered walls For the dear ones who come and go.

And as I spoke to my shadowy guest,

She smiled through her tears at me.

And I saw the woman that I am now

Pleased the girl I used to be

Day at the Park

Sariah adores swinging! She laughs out loud the whole time she is in the swing. We are so addicted to it!

We have always been sort of relaxed parents, and with the fourth even more so. I love the looks we get from other people when they find us doing something that "we shoudln't be allowing that baby to do". There were three different people who made comments as to the fact that she seemed to young to be in the swing. Oh Well, she surivived.

I laughed when I saw what the others were doing, the activities really show

their personalities.

Isaac is hanging out and care free at the swings, talking dad's ear off.

Michael is hanging out in a tree with a bunch of girls.

And of course we found Seri on the basketball court with some guys.

Typical.

She thinks sh'e a big girl

My baby just turned eight months. A few weeks ago she started pulling up on things which has been interesting. It is funny to watch her try to figure out which things are stable enough for her to pull up on. the couch is OK; Boxes, little plastic chairs, and the other babies at co-op are not. Yesterday I caught her standing by herself for a few minutes as she switched from holding onto her sister to a chair.

You would think by the time the fourth goes through these stages it wouldn't hold half the excitement, but it is still brand new. Now it is even better because the sibling are experiencing it to. these moments are much more exciting when it is more than just mom and dad cheering her on and watching in awe.

We have been debating what to do with the stairs. the logical and most ready answer is to get a gate, but I am afraid that would do more harm to the other members of the family as they navigate it (if you know what I mean). I finally told the children that it was time to teach her how to go down the stairs on her belly, so they have commenced those lessons with great zeal, not sure Sariah is up for the intensity the lessons exhibit.

The older two walked at 10 months and it is looking as if she may do the same.

Too bad she couldn't remain this small, then we wouldn't ever have to have another one :)

Come See!!

After much contemplation I have decided to try a new venture. I have started an Ebay store for handmade crafts. To start with I am offering Wee Spy Pillows, here's the description:

A variation of the popular "I Spy" books, this pillow has a fleece backing and a clear plastic front. Inside is a delightful assortment of objects hidden within. Inside the large bag (10 inch diameter) there are at least forty different objects, plus the letters of the alphabet to find. This toy can be used as a quiet toy at church or in the car, as children focus on trying to find each object. Younger children are fascinated by the textures and the variety of objects as well as the hide-n-seek factor. For pre-school and school-aged children the pillow turns into an educational game as they try to find a particular item, "Can you find a duck", or "Try to find me something that is blue". In our family of four children they often like to challenge eachother to find things within their own bags.

I would greatly appreciate it if you would stop by and take a look. Any and all feedback is appreciated.

http://stores.ebay.com/Gifts-from-Nana

Thank You!!!!

Rash

Last weekend Michael developed a rash on his back. Not being the kind to rush into the Dr. we watched it, gave him Benadryl for the itching, washed his bedding and everything else we could think of. It countinued to get worse. I finally conceded and made an appt.

It was strange because usually I dress in jeans and a t-shirt or sweats, comfortable clothing. but for his appt. I felt I needed to portray an educated woman. I knew one of the questions that would come up was going to do with vaccines. When Sariah was born we made the educated decision to not have our children immunized any longer until circumstances require they be, for some reason or other. It was impotant to me to have the Dr. respect our decision and not look down on me as a frumpy homemaker who wasn't educated enough to know any better. Luckily, the question never did come up. I like the Dr. though. He looked at Michael and said "wow, that's impressive. I have no idea." Finally a Dr. who does not profess to know everything! He pulled out his picture books and we looked through them, but still have no idea what caused it. The Dr. did say he could guarantee it was not contagious or a disease we need to be concerned about. Poor Michael. If it is health related it will happen to him.

My boys.....

These two. They are truly a wonder. A large percent of the time they are the best of friends and are inseparable. Where you find one you will generally find the other not far behind. Yet at times they fight like nothing I have seen before. Rolling on the floor with their appendages all entangled. Matt laughs and says they are boys and siblings and this is how they act. Maybe that is true, after all I am an only child and know nothing about siblings or boys. Half the time I can't figure out if they are really angry at eachother or if they are playing.

Yesterday Michael wsa downstairs and I guesse he told Isaac not to follow him. Isaac ame running upstairs and then leaned over the railing and yelled "but I love you, Michael". Michael yelled back "leave me alone" and Isaac repeated, "but I love you!!" This went on for a good three minutes and Isaac is really angry but is still yelling that he loves his brother. All I could do was laugh.

Today I caught them playing in an empty laundry basket. From what I can gather it was really a ship and they were having trouble steering it through a storm. five minutes after I took the picture Michael kicked Isaac out saying it was only big enough for one person. Isaac kept trying to get in and finally Michael climbed underneath it. Not to be dettered, Isaac promptly sat on it so that Michael could not get up. He continued to sit on it till Michael was nearly in tears and mom intervened.

Seattle Center Fountain

In the middle of the Seattle center is this huge fountain, one of the biggest I have ever seen in my life. these pictures do not do it justice.

I remember watching this fountain when I was in school every time we would go on a field trip. The water jets out so high, you can barely see the top sometimes. Around the perimeter of the fountain is a stereo system that plays music and the jets are in sync with it. It is truly beautiful to sit and watch. There are usually a ton of people picnicing, playing in the fountain or on the grass surrounding it. A ton of birds join the mix scavenging for food and dive bombing those brave enough to stand still.

I don't remember ever being allowed to play in it, but I remember being envious watching others. The kids and I are in Seattle quite often and I alwasy ensure that we have a pair of extra clothes in the van so that they can get as wet as their little hearts desire.

This day I sat on the side revelling in the sunshine and watching my healthy, happy children chase eachother in the water. For this moment, everything is right in the world and I am the luckiest person ever to be in it.

Here's to the fountain!

UW Enginering day

The University of Washington department of Enginering had its open house this weekend. I had signed up quite awhile ago and was really looking forward to it. We were not dissapointed. First we went and saw the Rube Goldberg Machines. Some of them were so intricate that they had over 40 steps!!! They were each designed to meet a need and every step described what kind of energy it used to accomplish the task (gravitational, kinetic,) They were fascinating!!!

From there we went to see an exoskeleton robotic suite. A gentleman who had an accident in 86 was told in a few years he would be paralyzed. Turns out he is able-bodied but the experience struck an area of intrest in him and he is now working on building a suit that will allow paralyzed people to move and function. this is prototype 14 and it is able to walk a person forward, backward, up stairs and side stepping.

Ideally when it is complete a paralyzed person will be able to put the suit on and return to normal functioning as the suit will guide all their movement. After 3-5 years of wearing the suit, due to regenerating muscles and tissue they will be able to have normal function returned. He went into a lot greater depth and we were there listening to him for a good half hour. It is a fascinating concept and one I am going to keep a watch on.

From there we saw an underwater robotic fish, participated in a paper airplane contest, spent a good portion of time on the flight simulators, used a radar gun to see how fast we could run, and played with Oobleck.

Taken from a DR. Seuss book Oobleck is a big thing in the PS educating circles. It is a mixture of equal parts cornstarch and water and is said to be a non-newtonian substance because it does not flal under the classification of solid or liquid. They had mixed up a huge batch and let the children play in it, literally. Of course this was the highlight of their day.

It was also an interesting trip becasue we were on the college campus and it gave us an oppurtunity to discuss college and various things with seri. What a great day!!!

My bay girl..........

Just had to share. she is so sweet............

anyone know what this is?

I was out weeding the other day and when I pulled out a clump this creature came up with it. It is about an inch long and has a hard shell. The black thing at the tip moves as if it is the front of the thing. There are no legs that we can see. Any ideas? We are pretty curious but haven't been able to find anything. Of course we put it back and now it is gone. I should have put it in one of the childrens bug collectors and taken it to Michael's science teacher.

Fossils

To continue with our study of dinosaurs we created fossils. Let me try to sum up the experience in just a few words. Plaster Of Paris, Petroleum Jelly, three kids and a baby.........Yeah...........

Banana Splits

Last week for Family Home Evening Isaac was appointed to be in charge of the treat and decided that he wanted banana splits. I set about getting them ready and putting everything on the table with the idea that the children would make their own. I cut the banana's in half and put them in their bowls when Matt inquired as to why I hadn't split them. I looked at him funny and said I was just going to put the bananas in and let them do whatever they wanted. (Think of the movie "your's, Mine and Ours" now) He suggested that if they were going to have banana splits we should make them the proper way. I told him he was being anal and that the children would make them however they wanted to make them. He resigned (mother has spoken) and became intent on making the perfect banana split for himself. So here is his tribute.

Karma

My mother has a reputation of being a practical joker. While I was in highschool she was at the pinnacel of her escapades. Now she often reminisces about those days and we all share a good laugh.

When she was visiting for Easter she again went into story telling mode and told the children about some of her more infamouse practical jokes. Later that evening when she was heading out to go to the store with Matt she thought her shoe felt funny, and low and behold, there was shaving cream in it. Later that night our lovely Isaac who can not keep a secret told her to look in the freezer where she found her toothbrush frozen in a bottle of water. Let me just say that all of this was done without mine or Matt's knowledge :) However if we had known I can't promise we would have stopped it.

So, it is true. What goes around does come around....sometimes many years later from a most unexpected source.

digging for dinos

Michael is doing a unit on dinosaurs and so we pretended to be palientologists and go digging for fossils. We broke up the big German pretzels and scattered them in cake batter loaves. We then baked them and went searching for the "fossils". The children were only allowed to use chopsticks and had to be careful or they would break the "fossil". They categorized the pieces into middle sections and round sections and very small sections. Then they had the hard task

of putting the fossils together. We had a great time and have a better understanding of what a real palientologist goes through. Although I doubt they are allowed to eat the fossils they find or the dirt they dig through :)

How can you tell if a child belongs to our family?

Is there a controller in their hands?

Happy Easter

Yes, I know the post is a tad late, but at least it is here. We hope you all had a wonderful Easter. Our Easter was very nice. We spent Saturday decorating eggs and then Sunday when we left for church I called the Easter Bunny to let him know it was OK to come hide the eggs. This year Michael asked what the Eater Bunnies number was and right on que Seri said 1-800-THE-BUNNY. I taught the lesson in Relief Society on personal testimonie's and it went very well. Then we came home to find that indeed the easter Bunny had visited. The kids had a great time finding all their eggs and then we had dinner, Hamburgers, potatoe salad and deviled eggs, yum yum!!

Cake!!

So, Last night for Family Home Evening Michael was assigned treat. After last week's escapade he decided he also wanted to make cake. This time it went without incident and even Sariah thought the cake was delicious! Serenitie gave a puppet show on the story of King Noah and Abinadi and did a great job! Isaac has treat next week and has mentioned he wants another cake. Mom is getting a little sick of cake :(