Museum of Church History and Art

We had family night on Monday and we talked about Joseph Smith and how he prayed in the grove of trees and Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to him. We talked about the Angel Moroni and the gold plates. We showed her pictures from the Gospel Art Kit and used a flannel board set we bought from Deseret Book. We sang the song about the first vision and Kate's favorite, Follow the Prophet. During the lesson, I remembered that the Museum of Church History has a replica of the gold plates and some other things that might be interesting for Kate to see. So, we planned an activity for Saturday. We had a spectacular time. 

 They have a children's discovery area upstairs. They had cloth dolls of Book of Mormon characters.

 The replica of the gold plates that you can look at mock engravings, flip the pages, and even try to heft.

 Kate enjoyed trying to "abridge" the plates. They had sample writing that the kids could try to copy.

 We had fun. We even saw the children's art in the basement - bright, beautiful stuff!

Scott loved seeing an original page written in Oliver Cowdery's hand from the translation of the Book of Mormon. We were all fascinated with the replica of the emigration ship made in exquisite detail and an actual handcart from 1847. I loved the hall of the prophets with interesting memorabilia from each prophet of the last dispensation. The Museum had a lot to offer! We bought Kate a little Pioneer figurine set of four at the gift shop before we left. Very cool.

After our fun time we made our way to Kodiak Bakery for a cookie.

Our Cocoa and Cookie in the City

 Kate chose the double chocolate, I think Scott did too.

I love this look I captured in between her, "Mmmm, this is sooooo good" and "I love it!"

 Okay, it's hot chocolate with whip cream on top. I should've told the lady I like it RICH! Creamy is good but I'm one of those gals who puts five, heaping scoops of cocoa in a mug - sometimes more! I had a peanut butter cookie that I scarfed down in maybe four bites. LOVED IT! Kate gave me the, "Yucky mommy, you smell like peanuts," speech. She's a regular bloodhound.

 Silly Kate - trying to walk around like Dopey in Disney's Snow White. I love her questions and all the details she brings up. I love that she remembers things and then tells us, "Remember when..." and we look at her amazed because we didn't really remember until she reminded us and then it's back in full color from her description. She always brings up details I never even noticed. I really like her almost five personality.

Fun time in the city! Let's do it again!

Some about Sam

Most people who know me well know that my 17-year-old niece, Samantha (Sami), comes to my house most days after school (M, T, TH, F). She rides the school bus that drops her off near my house. Her mom, my eldest sister, picks her up before dinner.

Lately, I've been "tutoring" Sam in Geometry. Yes, I know, I'm not known for my superior math abilities. Yes, Math is not my strongest or second strongest subject. Math doesn't even make the long list of my skills and strengths. But tutor, I do. I look forward to it, in fact. Helping her with her math is like completing a challenging crossword puzzle, you feel smart afterward. You feel accomplished and have fun in the process.

Unfortunately, Sam gets sick of doing math and retreats into her natural creative self to do artsy things. But this isn't all bad. Sam's most recent procrastination of math gave Kate a most unusual room decoration.

I like the above shot of Kate drawing because it shows her bruised up thumb nail, remnants of the fracture she received a couple weeks ago.

 Here is Sam and Kate crafting and preparing lanterns for Kate's room just like on the Disney movie, Tangled.

 

And the finished product. They made about 8 in all. Hanging together, Kate's room looks like it's ready for a party.

I love having Sam over. She is good to me. She is never painfully rude - only playfully. And I love that I can tease her back and she takes it. She laughs even. I love that she lets me boss her around with her math and she doesn't get all ornery with me like she does with her mother. I love that I can ask her for advice about things and she helps me make difficult decisions. 

Really, I rely on her way too much. What will I do when I no longer have her to keep me on track everyday? Does this look good here, Sam? Can I wear this shirt with these jeans, Sam? Do you think I should color my hair more blond next time, Sam? Someday, when she no longer comes to my house on the buss and she's off at college somewhere, she'll receive a photo text of two dresses in the middle of her World Civ class with me asking which one I should buy for Kate's Christmas Dress or something. 

She is always right about Kate's medical needs like the time a couple years ago when Kate had a horrendous fever and Sam suggested we take her to InstaCare and it turned out to be a bladder infection. Or the time I showed her Kate's thumb after 3 medical professionals had already said it was fine and Sam said, "I don't know, Julie, I think it's broken, you might should take her in for an x-ray." And, looky there, she was right again. 

Sam doesn't make a habit of reading my blog, but I just wanted to put some thoughts down about a few of the wonderful things I enjoy about her coming to stay with me.

Join the Cyber Revolution

After the urging of my friend in the tab choir, I created a profile on Mormon.org just barely. Right now it is in the review stage and will be available soon by clicking on my "I'm a Mormon" button on the sidebar. I'm excited to be a part of it. I hope you guys do it, too. And check out all the other cool profiles on the website, very motivational. I loved reading and watching the videos about Shawni Eyre and Alex Boye. Very interesting and beautifully done. Shawni has an adorable blog too. Anyway, I hope to see a button on your blog sometime soon and some super, cool things about you on mormon.org...

Today it is SNOWING

I wake up slow.
First Scott comes in around 7:20 am, ready for work, to pray with me and say, "Goodbye."
I hop out of bed to take some medicine with a glass of water and use the ladies room.
I grab the timer and set it for 15 minutes - my snooze alarm.
I race back to bed.
I sleep some more.
The alarm goes off. I push the button again for another 15 minutes - YES!
The alarm goes off. I turn off the timer and turn on my lamp. I start reading the scriptures.
I hear Kate playing in her playroom.
As I finish reading the scriptures Kate comes in to ask if she can watch a movie.
I tell her she will need to get dressed and have her breakfast first.
She jumps into action while I say my prayer.
A couple minutes later Kate interupts my prayer to show me her outfit. I acknowlege her and let her know I'm praying and I'll be done in just a minute.
She says, "Oh."
She waits.
I finish my prayer and she exclaims, "It's snowing!"
She opens my curtains a little and then turns the wand on the blinds carefully with her still gimpy thumb.
We behold the magic as the snow falls in big flakes gently to the earth.
Kate decides she wants to call her Dad and tell him about the snow.
I tell her the phone number and she dials it.

Kate: Dad-da, did you realize that there are big, fat snowflakes and that it's snowing right now?

I don't remember the whole conversation but I love the way she asked him that question: "Did you realize..."
He is doing the Plumbing in the Salt Lake Temple right now during the last week of their two-week shut-down so he didn't "realize" the snow was coming down all around us.
Kate told him that the snow was all over the driveway and that he would probably have to "rake it."

We went downstairs, tennis shoes in my hand, a poptart in Kate's.
I turned on ICE AGE for Kate and an exercise program for me in the other room. After I was done with my exercise, I sorted the laundry.
I called Kate to come upstairs and finish getting ready for Preschool: she brushes her teeth; I brush her hair (amid screams); I clean her nose of boogies; she potties; we bundle in our snow coats with hoods; she puts on her pink boots; I grab her pink, princess backpack and we head out the door into the winter wonderland, up the street to Preschool.
The sidewalk is slippery.

Kate: Mommy, isn't the snow magical?
Me: Yes, magical.

 After Preschool, we made a snowman.

Question of the Day...

Kate: Mommy. Why do people close their eyes when they kiss?

Me: Oh, that's a good question, Katie. Well, let's pretend to kiss. {I put my hand over her mouth as I came in close for our "pretend" kiss because I don't kiss anyone on the lips but Scott - even my own child. She gets kisses from me all over her face, but not the lips - I go in close to her face with our eyes staring at each other, super close, so close that her eye becomes one giant, blurry eye.} What do you think?

Kate: {giggles}
Me: I think people close their eyes because it looks so weird to be so close to each other with their eyes open.

I guess I could have given her a few other reasons. But that reason was the most obvious to me at the time. What would your answer be?

Car for Sale

 ******UPDATE*****
We sold our MAXIMA! I just took the $5,000 to the bank! Wahoo! We are so excited! Dinner at Texas Roadhouse tonight!
  ******************
Our 2002 Nissan MAXIMA SE is for sale. We've listed it on KSL for $5,000. If you know anyone in the market for a nice, zippy car, let me know.

 We've loved having a car and will miss this one terribly. Our other vehicle is a HUGE, 4-door, short bed, Ford Powerstroke that has had some exhaust work and a powerchip (for those who don't know truck-ese, what we have is a beast of a truck with a loud, smelly diesel engine that has been souped up quite a bit so it's even louder and more powerful). Scott drives a plumbing van to work so we really don't need three vehicles sitting around and the money will be most helpful with the financially lean months we've had recently.

 The interior and exterior are in good condition and just barely received professionally detailing so the car looks better than ever.

 The car has Automatic Transmission and a V6 engine, has great fuel economy and great power. Plus the regular perks of automatic windows, locks, remote keyless entry, large trunk space, CD player, tape deck, radio, and more.

 Has 126,442 miles on the odometer.

Just thought I would throw this out in case you know anyone who is interested.

Fractured

Kate broke her first bone yesterday! I was exercising with hand weights in the morning and she wanted to join me. She picked up the three pound weights and was moving them around and then started screaming. I couldn't tell how it happened. My guess is she brought the hand weights down and slammed them both into her thumb. First thing in the morning she didn't want to go to preschool but when I advised her that we might need to go to InstaCare to see if her thumb is broken she quickly decided preschool was her out and begged to attend. I kept asking her if it hurt and she kept telling me it was okay. I let her know that the doctor wasn't scary and I explained that they would just take a picture of her hand and put some fabric on it to keep it safe and she didn't want to have anything to do with the doctor. So, I sent her off to preschool and went ahead with the day.

 Her thumb quickly swelled and within a short time was bruised. I kept feeling it and it was rock solid with swelling. I asked a few expert neighbors that I ran into serendipitously throughout the day: the nurse across the street, the pediatrician down the street, the physical therapist on the street up above. Each couldn't tell for sure without an x-ray but they all thought it would be fine and that she just jammed it pretty good. I think because Kate wasn't acting in pain, many thought it was just banged up a bit. She was so tough about it, always telling me it was "okay" any time I put pressure on it or asked if certain positions hurt. I kept checking it and feeling uneasy about it but I trusted Kate, the professionals, and Scott (note to self: never trust Scott with regards to first aid or medical needs he is 0 for 4 so far, not to mention the countless times he should have taken himself to the doctor).

When she woke up twice during the night complaining of pain, I realized her jammed thumb was worse than she was letting on. I needed to take her to InstaCare for an x-ray. I waited until later in the morning. When the nurse asked her if it hurt when she bent it, I looked at her and told her that she could tell the truth, now that we were here. She looked to the nurse and admitted that it hurt quite a bit to bend. Poor girl. Oh, she was so adorable answering questions and letting the nurses and doctors know what happened. I thought it was fun and the Doctor was truly charming with Kate. He could tell right off that it was smooshed pretty badly and guessed it was fractured even before the x-ray. I felt relieved and validated. This was an expensive way to validate myself--our insurance co-pay for InstaCare is a whopping $50 right now! The Doc showed us the x-ray and I could easily see the fracture in the upper part of her thumb.

A nurse put a splint on suggesting that Kate take it easy today and keep her right hand elevated. Kate let the nurse know that she was planning to play with a friend and didn't know if elevating her hand in front of the TV would work so well. The nurse charmingly suggested that she try to work it into her schedule. The doctor prescribed Tylenol with Codeine and recommended that Kate leave the splint on (taking it off only for baths) for a week or so.

I didn't realize until today just what a tough cookie this girl is. I know I should've caught on a few winters ago when she demonstrated her ability to frolic outside in the snow without footwear. I might've even caught on when she was walking barefoot last year through the pointy rocks at Grandma's house. But now, I guess I know for sure.

Over the Weekend

Kate showing off a new dress. She calls it "an everyday dress" even though it is fancy enough to wear it to church but this way she can get away with wearing it anytime she wants. 

On Thursday, my sister, Jeni, took Kate shopping for a special surprise. About once a month, Jeni picks Kate up and takes her on a little shopping outing and she usually buys her a little something special to wear and sometimes feeds her Dairy Queen. Either Jeni feels sorry for Kate because I am so pathetic at choosing clothing or she feels she needs to repay me for taking care of Sam most days after school. This is my third year having Sam ride the bus home to my house. Even before that I picked Sam up from Junior High several days a week. She feels more like my little sister than my niece. I full-on miss Sam on the occasions that she walks home or has other plans and can't come hang out. 

P.S. the plants don't always hang out in the bathtub. I didn't realize when I adopted so many plants over the year that they would be trouble to water during the winter. Once a week they occupy the tub for the better part of a day. 

 My parents bought me my first KitchenAid mixer for Christmas. On Friday, Kate and I made Double Chocolate Chip cookies. They were yum! 

 Seriously, the dough is the best part. Why do we even bake the cookies?

 On Saturday, one of Kate's cousins, Brookelle, was baptized. This was a special baptismal service for me because two of my nieces gave talks (Samantha and Taylor) and their talks were lovely.

Here is Kate showing off the Baptism program with Sam in the background trying to get ready for her talk. Brookelle {I'm so used to calling her Brookey but she likes to go by Brookelle now, which is her given name.} created the artwork for the program. She drew a super-cute picture of her Dad baptizing her. What a wonderful, personal touch. Bravo!

 My brother's family minus Marisa who was sleeping soundly in her carseat on the row behind them.

Taylor, Brookelle, Chris, Presley, and Michelle

 Kate and Brookelle

 Kate mauling Presley {they were both giggling so I didn't rush in to rescue poor Presley who is mostly likely no longer terrified of being mauled by a bear since this encounter with Kate was far more terrifying. Sam took the picture. After a minute or so I snapped at Kate to give Presley "space". I say that a lot. Kate has a hard time controlling her excitement, especially with her cousins. Occasionally, Kate comes off so overpowering with pure glee that some of her cousins get a little freaked out. I gotta love her for it, though. I love that she feels that much joy when she's around our extended family.

 Chris' family outside the church - they woke Marisa so she didn't grow up and wonder why she wasn't in any photos of the big day.

 Sam basically hogged Marisa the whole day.

 

 More proof of said hogging.

 

 Michelle always puts on a beautiful spread. After the baptism we went to Brookelle's house and had a brunch along with Michelle's family. This is Chris and Michelle's ultra sheik kitchen. Little Brookelle is getting ready to blow out her candles on her 8th birthday cake. Her birthday was just the day before her baptism.

 So, I twirl my hair. Big deal. Why does everyone make fun of me for it anyway? My Mom especially teases me about it. When my mom caught me twirling at the party she was so tickled that she up and grabbed her own slice of my hair and began her own twirl and then my sisters and dad followed suit. 

 I love to twirl. I can't stop. I've been caught twirling with both hands on both sides of my head and my mom tells me I look like a mental patient when I do that. I even find myself twirling when I drive the car and it becomes a nuisance to let go of my chunk of hair to, say, turn on the blinkers or turn to check my blind spot. I've learned to quickly save that chunk in my lips or behind my ear so I don't have to prep a section again. This really is a top obsession of mine. I blame my childhood full of neglect. HA! I lie! I was spoiled rotten!

 My brother was getting to know Barbie's "perfect boyfriend", the new talking Ken doll. I had an especially fun time with Kate and Sam picking out gifts for Brooke this year. I am sure this toy will get some use from all members of the family. You push Ken's chest and it records what you say and then it plays it back in a manly voice. LOVE IT! No Barbie lover is complete without one of these hotties.

Cameron and me, blowing up balloons

 Sunday was Jill-Bill's birthday, my sister. We worked it out with Jill's new hubby to leave a door open for us so we could decorate her house with balloons and streamers and surprise Jill when she came home from church.

 Kate and Sam putting up streamers. They weaved them into the banister. The finished product was pretty groovy.

 We hid behind the couch and then we all yelled "surprise" when we heard Jill walk in. Chris leaped over the couch at them. This was our best surprise job ever - I'm certain.

Jill's reaction didn't disappoint. Even Nate, who knew we were going to be there, was surprised and jumped. 

Definitely some good times with the fam' this weekend.