Jacob's talk

Jacob wowed the entire primary today by reading this talk without any help. I'm pretty sure that one day we'll wake up to find that our boys have declared coup and taken over our house, the city, or maybe even the world. We're pretty lucky parents to have kids who came to us bursting with so much ability.

The talk:

One Spring day, Joseph Smith went into the forest to pray to Heavenly Father. He wanted to know which church was the true church so he could go to that one. Heavenly Father and Jesus appeared to him and told him not to join any church. They also taught him important things. When they appeared, they were separate beings, and from this Joseph Smith learned that Heavenly Father and Jesus each have a body of their own that look like our bodies. He also learned that he would be important in helping many people return to live with our Heavenly Father again. I am grateful for Joseph Smith, the prophet, and for the Gospel plan that was restored through him. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Happy Birthday, Jacob!

The Things Kids Say

I'm not very good at writing down all of the funny things my kids say, so I will have to work on that, but last night Michael said something I just had to share. We were talking about our vacation in June and what we would do if it rained while we were camping. So, Michael comments, "Every time I look at the weather in Malaysia it is raining and stormy." Who says that? For that matter, who checks the weather in Malaysia or even knows where Malaysia is? He is definitely his father's son. :)

When the cat's away . . .

James is away this weekend with the choir, so we are home alone. The funny thing is that it is just like every other day, except at night. So, what is different when James isn't here? Maybe I shouldn't admit the following?

1. Breakfast is usually closer to 9 AM than 8 AM. The boys are so patient with me.

2. Everything is just a little bit more flexible. Bedtime was later, we didn't really have lunch today but a couple of snacks instead, I really just don't pay much attention to the time in general. The boys don't care when we do things and so they just happen when they happen.

3. Pizza movie night is every night. Well, not the pizza part but we definitely eat more carbs while watching movies or playing games. Oh, did I mention that we eat more carbs. I'll have to work that off on Monday. :)

4. I get to watch the movies I want to watch. I am going to watch Salt tonight and I'm super excited. I hope it is as good as everyone says!

Well, that is about it. It has been a fun weekend so far. We were sad that our soccer game was canceled and that it rained ALL day. We had to be creative to entertain ourselves but I think we'll make it.

Joshua is having a pain in his mouth-I'm not sure from what-but it makes chewing painful, so we have been having some creative food for him. Ok, not that creative but different from the norm. He eats mostly yogurt and oatmeal. So, we went shopping and found a few more options for him. Hopefully we can get into the dentist on Monday and figure out what is going on, so he can be happier and so we can all sleep a little better at night.

Well, that was a random little update but hopefully a little entertaining. We look forward to James' return tomorrow. I'll even be sure to make some chicken for him and cut back on the carbs. :)

Crazy Pants Weight Loss

Liz and I have been crazy these last few months trying to get ourselves slimmed back down, but as our Florida vacation approaches, we're feeling the pressure. Apparently, it's not enough that we stake cash on our outcomes and have to plan the date if we don't exercise enough, because we've both been in a bit of a lull the last few weeks. So, this week we hit high gear and pushed ourselves, ate well, and made good, healthy decisions in all areas. The results? 11.1 pounds combined loss! I lost more, but her percentage was higher, but only just barely. I thought our sweet victory was worth mentioning for the annals of history. In other related news, I also won the at work weight loss challenge last week, being the employee who maintained the greatest level of weight loss over the course of the semester—11.22%! Honestly, losing weight is super fun, but re-losing weight is a soul-sucking monster. We'll not be re-losing again.

Luckily we still have a month before we hit the hot Floridian jungle, but beach—here we come!

Ready!

This is what we did last week during a lull between storms. We're hoping our dirt is delivered soon so we can get this show on the road! We're rather fond of these things, but we're even more fond of the vegetables that will come from them. Yum!

Family Date

The boys see us go out every week and often want to join us, so we have tried to do family dates. Some months have been better than others but we had a great day together yesterday that I thought was worth sharing. The day started with a great soccer game. Michael scored within seconds of the game starting and Joshua did a great job on defense.

After Marquie finished packing we headed up to the airport. After dropping her off we headed over to the mall for a bite as we would need the calories to prepare us for the task ahead. We then tried to find some new pants for the boys. We didn't realize how difficult it would be to find a nice pair of khakis for Michael, but apparently he is too skinny for his height according to the clothing industry. We were able to get him some jeans (size 14-ahhhhh) and nice corduroys, so that will have to do. I just have to include the fact that the jeans were $10 and the corduroys were only $5. There is something about being a girl and just having to share those facts. :) Also, it is awesome shopping in a place where you have choices and sales!!!

After dragging them around shopping, because well, we have been shopping deprived for just a little too long, we headed over to Borders. I did not realize the riot this would cause. The boys were so excited and asked very kindly if they could come in. The question made me smile because we made them come into every store including the ones they wouldn't enjoy but were then afraid they would miss Borders. The real challenge at Borders is getting them past the vestibule. I am grateful that my boys like books, and boy do they love books! We spent plenty of time just looking around. I did buy a couple of books for the boys for school including a super huge book on animals from the Smithsonian which we just had to have. Funny enough every book we bought was found in the vestibule. Oh the irony.

By then it was after 5 and we decided we should feed the boys, so we looked around for a place to eat. It was a challenge, though, because the first place we stopped had plumbing issues and would not be opening. Then, the next place had a 30 minute wait-with three hungry boys that was not an option. Finally, we opted to eat at the Hy-Vee buffet. I know, you are thinking that is a pretty lame dinner, but it was a pretty impressive buffet. The boys ate everything from sesame chicken to pizza to fruit and everything in between. I'm pretty sure they overate which doesn't happen often. And they loved it which is what was really important.

It was a great day of fun and shopping (and yes we even squeezed in our grocery shopping) as a family and super fun to spend it together!