I just like to eat snow

. . .but occasionally I can pull out a sweet-looking sled run.

I do all my own stunts

He lands it! I just love this series of pictures. We had such a fun time sledding on our trip to Lake Tahoe last week.

Thanks

One pound chocolate covered cinnamon bears from the BYU Bookstore. . .

$3.54




Two Tickets to BYU Voices Jazz Concert. . .



$12




Four hours all by myself on campus with no schedule, no demands, and no kids. . .



Priceless!




I haven't taken the time to post a gigantic thank you to my sister-in-law Tal for giving us a few days off from normal life a few weeks ago. Ryan had a conference in Provo, so we dropped the kids in Saratoga and spent two days and two nights with no kids. Poor Ryan still had to conference during the day, but at night we were footloose and fancy free.
It was more of a break for me. I slept in, read my book, meandered over to campus. I spent two hours in the Museum of Art, looking at whatever I wanted to for however long I wanted to. So fun! Then I headed over to the BYU Bookstore and did the same. I'm too cheap to buy many books, but I happily recorded titles in my iTouch to later check out at the library! I did a little shopping and happily avoided all the kid aisles and had all the time in the world to try on as many things as I wanted (though I have yet to find a pair of killer jeans that fits how I'd like--how low can the rise on a pair of jeans be?)
In the evenings, we had quiet dinners and wandered to some of our favorite places. We took in a Jazz concert on campus at the HFAC, highlighted by one of our favorite songs, a Brazillian tune called Desfinado. So soothing.
We were going to be diligent and head to Gold's Gym for a workout, but I forgot my shoes, so we headed to the BYU Creamery on 9th for some ice cream instead :) Ah, the life!
Thanks Tal (and family) for the nice break.

Love this Kid!

My how time flies. My first baby is now 9! It's been a year since he was baptized. I can't believe how fast this life travels by.

It's a mystery to me as a parent how to unravel our kids. I know I spend hours praying for this one, hoping for him, dreaming for him, wondering with him. As our oldest, he has the weight of my evolving expectation and worry on his little shoulders. He does a great job with that burden.

Todd is clever and insightful. He has a quiet and witty sense of humor (he's his dad in so many ways) that some people never get to see.

He is an absolutely amazing and caring big brother. Sometimes I see only the teasing (he's so like his dad), but when I step back, I am amazed at the concern he has for Benny. Todd wanted a younger sibling so badly and was so thrilled when Ben finally arrived. Now they spend their days together learning and playing and I'm so grateful they like each other. Todd is generous and kind, willing to share Legos, and (usually) insisting that Ben be included in the play when his friends come over.

A few months ago, Todd lamented, "I don't even know what my talents are." He's a deep thinker and trying to figure out where he belongs in this world. I told him he definitely has a talent for singing, but he told me, "that's a girly talent." We're working on it. He doesn't necessarily have a talent for the meticulous details of art, but he has a very creative artistic voice and can portray motion and emotion in a fun way.

He is a great impersonator and an engaging narrator (though not so much in public as here at home).

His reading skills have finally blossomed this year and he's finding enjoyment in the new worlds reading has to offer. He is still a student of history and would study solely that if given the chance.

Todd fits the boy mold perfectly. He loves bodily functions and can find humor in any of them. Any time. Any place. We're working on that. . .

What a blessing to have this growing boy in our family.

Y?

Ryan had a conference in Provo last week, so we had the chance to get out of Dodge for the week and spend some time on BYU campus. More to come on all the fun we had. . .I know you're holding your breath. As a teaser, here are the delightful observations of the boys:

Todd: (said as we're driving around campus, showing them our former apartment and talking about all we used to do at BYU).
"I bet all these college students are wondering why these old people are driving around looking at stuff."
Thanks, buddy.

Ben: We were on a self-guided walking tour of campus, pointing out buildings we had class in, when we saw the renovated Smith Family Living Center, complete with playground out back. Ben noticed that and wondered why they had a playground. I said, "They have a whole playground and classroom where students learn how to be early childhood educators. I used to have a class where we observed the kids as they played, but they couldn't see us because it was a two-way mirror. On their side, it looked like a wall of mirrors, but on our side we could see through it."
In response, Ben looked at me quizzically and said, "I think you're making this stuff up as you go along."
Ah, the trust I inspire.

Overheard

I was driving Ben to his Freedom Academy class the other morning and had picked up his friend Baylie along the way. I overheard this conversation:

Baylie: Do you ever just want to hug your shoes?
Ben: silence--I glanced in the rearview and he was looking at her like she was crazy.
Me: What do you mean, Baylie?
Baylie: Well, I love my boots so much that sometimes I just hug them.
Ben: I've licked my shoes before. . .on the bottom.

And there you have the quintessential difference between boys and girls.

Where Have I Been?

I know you three faithful readers who hang on my every word have been positively tortured by my monthlong absence from blogland. Never fear. I have returned. What have I been up to? Here's a quick run-down. I may at some future date expound further upon these topics, but I may not.

Three weeks ago I made an impromptu decision to "take a quick jaunt" to Boise, Idaho with my two little men. My grandfather had been sick in the hospital for over two months at that point so I wanted to visit. I also had an impression that my parents could use a little TLC. And really, that's one of the beauties of this home-schoolin' life. We can pack up our little red schoolhouse and take it along. Man, my boys are great travellers. We drove to our halfway house in Saratoga Springs, where my brother and his wife are endlessly gracious to let us crash in their bonus room. Then we finished out the trip the next day. We had a fabulous time. A mom never really has a vacation when she flies solo with her chillins, but it was nice to visit home. A few things we did:

• Visited Grandpa in the hospital every day. Good news--he had a surgery the day before I left Boise and he's going home tomorrow. I guess Todd was right. He kept saying, "Maybe Grandpa won't die and it will just be a really nice trip to see our family." Way to be, Todd.
• Played host to cousin Kyle, Todd's "twin" who is four months younger. FOUR months, Todd is clear to point out. They are not the same age.
• Went bowling. My first four frames: spare, strike, strike, strike. Do I rock or what? Note that I'm not telling you what I got in the next six frames. Bowling is fun!
• Saw Planet 51 at the $2 theater. Not anything exquisite, but good clean fun.
• Practiced my newfound quilting skills by making quilted pillowtops for my mom.
• Played Ticket to Ride only twice. Sad.
• Saw my baby brother and my sweet twinner nephews for 24 hours at the tail end of our trip. The boys are 3 now and adorable with a capital A. They have tiny southern accents that are so stinkin cute.
• Learned about bones, Ottoman Turks, multiplication, vocabulary, and clever ways of avoiding school work.
• Todd and his Grandpa (my great dad) worked on cutting out his pinewood derby car together. This is a big improvement from last year when Todd and I cut it out by hand with a pitiful saw I don't even know the name of. (Lest you think Ryan is a deadbeat dad--far from it--we just procrastinated it until the last day, literally).
• Grandma made the boys fudge.
• We learned more than we cared to about gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free diets. Sorry mom!
• We had a great time in Boise. It's always fun to go home (even though I didn't grow up there, wherever my parents are feels like home).
• Pictures? On my mom's camera in Boise. Since I owe her pictures from the last ten events we've attended together, she has every right to hold them ransom until I pay up.

I've also been reading the Book of Mormon in 30 days. Finished this morning. Awesome. More on that later.

Then, I came home and was swamped with my own life that just kept going while I was gone. Why can't mommies ever have a pause button?

Here's a shout out to the greatest husband on earth. When we got home the house was spotless. Clean bathrooms, clean sheets, vacuumed floor, clean dishes, dinner in progress. WOW! My friend casually mentioned that perhaps I should go away every other week and then I would never have to clean. There's some merit in that idea. . .

Right after we got home, Todd had CRT testing for two days (the only time we have to go do testing for school outside our house) so we were hanging out in Henderson.

Now I think we're back in the swing of things. For now.