Dairy Days at the Farm

Back in June, we went to the Dairy Days festivities at Farm Country.

Benjamin and Bekah "rode" the cow

We discovered Farm Country now has an albino peacock. I had never seen one before then and couldn't believe how gorgeous it was.

Free ice cream sandwiches were available and the kids each had to have their own.


Benjamin liked the barn cutout and sadle and insisted I take his picture by one or the other (I don't remember which)

Daddy made us ice cream from cream surrounded by ice and rock salt while the children colored pictures of cows. I can't imagine why they would have cow pictures for the children to color, can you?

We even tried making butter, but it took FOREVER as opposed to just a few minutes to make ice cream. I sure am glad that we don't make butter that way anymore.

We had fun learning more about cows and dairy products. I sure am glad that I can go to the store to buy them now instead of having to do all the work at our home. Whew! What else would I have time to do if we had a dairy cow to take care of?

Printer Problem Solved

I broke our printer a couple of months ago. Yanked it off the desk onto the concrete of our unfinished basement, but at least I didn't drop my computer that was at the other end of the cord. Anyway, I have been too cheap to go and buy a new one (and it hasn't been in the budget with car and medical bills getting in the way >P) and hunting on ebay didn't reveal anything cheap. So I resorted to DI (Deseret Industries) in hopes of finding a working printer that used the same kind of ink cartridges we had just bought a ton of.

By the way, if you have a working VCR and don't mind VHS tapes DI is a great place to stalk up on children and disney movies for $1 a piece.

Yesterday, we finally were lucky enough to find a working printer for $15 that uses the same ink we already have. The bonus was that it was a copy machine as well as a printer and so now I don't have to scan and save things just to print off a copy. So, now that I am no longer over 60 pages worth of printing behind on my blog, I have more incentive to post more often.

Tulle Tutus

Ever since our Young Women sold some tulle tutus at their fund raiser auction I have been trying to get around to finding a pattern and making some. Today I completed two, and I have plenty of fabric leftover for at least two more. The best part is that I made each tutu for less than three dollars and all I needed was a ruler, a pair of scissors, fabric, ribbon, and Bekah.

• Ruler: to measure the 4 inch wide strips
• Scissors: to cut strips after folding the fabric and measuring it (fold the fabric over and over again until it is only a few inches wide so that a shorter, straighter cut can be made the width of the fabric at one time)
• Fabric: to make the skirt (as poofy or as flat as you want; I used about 1 1/2 yards for each skirt) by looping the fabric around the ribbon in a "U" shape and making a not by pulling the ends through the bottom of the "U" around the ribbon
• Ribbon: to tie the fabric onto and to tie the skirt around the wearer's waist (the fabric is knotted around the 2 inch wide ribbon that has been fold in half and pressed with an iron, leaving enough leftover ribbon to tie a bow to join it around the wearer's waist)
• Bekah: to measure her waist and her height to determine how long I want the skirt to be on her (I ended up cutting each strip in half by the width, so I had 2 shorter pieces that were 4 inches wide instead of one long one)

I will post pictures after I try the finished product on Bekah tomorrow. She insisted that she only wanted a tutu if it was completely pink and would not try on the one that was predominantly pink with a few scattered, green accent pieces (I am going to make her a green skirt and hope I can convince her to be Tinkerbell for Halloween). She informed me that the pink and green one was "your pretty dress" and that I had ruined "my pretty dress" (imagine a tearful voice and foot stomping here), so I made her another one that is all pink. And since Benjamin was in on the tulle shopping I had to get him some black tulle to make him a football jersey. Wish me luck on that one!

Gym Rat

I never thought I would say this, but I like going to the gym. I still haven't conquered the weight room, but I like going to the gym. All it has taken was a cute exercise outfit that is modest, a good pair of shoes, a few late night visits when the gym is mostly empty so I don't feel completely lost when learning how to use the equipment, and gym membership that is paid for because we bought it for the use of the indoor pool for our family.

At first I used the gym for the indoor track and realized that I can enjoy excerise if it is in a constant climate. Then I decided I was brave enough to try out the cardio room and try out the machines in there. I now go to the gym for an hour to two hours every day (thus, I haven't had as much time for blogging) and hope that my efforts will start showing up on the scale some day soon.

Milestones for Benjamin

Yesterday was a big day for Benjamin, he hit two big milestones in biking and swimming.

Mom finally was able to spend some one on one time with Benjamin and his bike yesterday. Benjamin finally propelled himself forward on his bike without needing a push from Mom or Dad. Then, after much encouragement and instruction, he conquered riding over the driveway dips without stopping or tipping over. Benjamin also discovered how to steer his bike so that he could turn around in the driveway without getting off his bike. After we conquered riding up and down the sidewalk to the neighbors driveways, Mom took Benjamin on a ride around the block where we learned about road safety and where to ride our bikes when we are on the road. We are so glad that after 18 months of trying to teach Benjamin to ride a bike (he thinks he knows how to do it and won't listen to instructions until he is ready to) he can finally do it, with training wheels.

Later that day we went swimming and Benjamin showed us that he could swim short distances in the pool. Not just a doggy paddle, but actual swimming strokes without a floaty to help him stay above water.

He is our amazing little boy and we are excited he is learning and doing new things!

Return to the Blogging World

I'm back. I can't say that I have worked through all of mmy issues, but I've realized that no matter how hard I try to isolate myself from potentially negative influences and people they still come into my life. So I am out of hiding and back into the world of blogging, and I will try to catch up on the last month of blogging!

Doing Laundry

It is that time of the week again. Okay, so we are a few days late, but the clothes are getting cleaned. Our sweet children are such wonderful helpers and today their help was actually helpful instead of the usual undoing of whatever Mom is trying to accomplish.

Bekah helped sort the laundry into the correct baskets (whites, lights, darks) by asking Mom where to put them and following directions. She even helped push her dirty clothes basket into our room for sorting and pushed back to her room after we had finished sorting her clothes.

Benjamin helped empty the dryer, load the dryer, and load the washer. After we were done switching loads Benjamin helped fold clothes and put them away. He folded all of his own clothes and sorted them into to piles to put in the correct drawer.

Today we experienced one of those special moments when I actually felt like my children are actually learning some of the things I am trying to teach them, and that asking them to help with chores around the house is worth. Such hope means I will keep trying. Oh what am I getting myself into?

The Need to Blog

I feel the need to blog. I don't know what to blog about and I don't feel like downloading the pictures off of my camera. I am typing one handed, definitely not the fastest way to type.

Anyway, I'm alive just being lazy about blogging. I'll be back when I can more fully use my two hands.

Who's Here with You?

I had surgery earlier this week and everything went well. I even have souvenirs I 'll post later after I take pictures. When I was waking up from anesthesia, the nurse says the following conversation took place.

Nurse: Who's here with you?

Charlynn: My dad.

Nurse: Your dad?

Charlynn: No! My husband, Michael. I love him sooo much!

I don't remember any of it, but I do know I have a tendency to say strange things when "under the influence."

Mom, Do I have a Testimony?

A few months ago we were attending our monthly testimony meeting at church when Benjamin leans over and asks if he go up to the stand and talk. Our conversation went something like this:

Benjamin: Can I go up and talk?

Mom: Do you have a testimony?

Benjamin (with concern): Do I have a testimony, Mom?

Mom: Do you know that Jesus loves you?

Benjamin: Yes!

Mom: Then you have a testimony, and you can go up there and share it with everybody.

Now, when testimony meeting comes around each month, Benjamin insists on sharing his testimony with everyone. Michael and I take turns escorting Benjamin reverently to the podium and "helping" him bare his testimony and then sharing ours with the congregation. I guess you could say that "a child shall lead them" definitely applies to the frequency with which we find ourselves sharing our testimony with others because if not for Benjamin's eagerness to share I doubt Michael and I would share our testimonies of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, His life, and His atoning sacrifice with other as often as we do. Thanks for your example, Benjamin.

Aloe Vera Plants Don't Like Sunshine

My mom gave us an aloe vera plant in November. I didn't water it for at least six months. I forget it was in the living room, honestly. After I rediscovered it while rearranging the house I took the plant down to the kitchen so that it could get some TLC. I even put it on the windowsill to make sure it received plenty of sunlight and made sure I watered it every ten days or so. My poor aloe vera plant did not like the treatment it was receiving and turned a yucky black. Worried that I had killed the poor thing I pulled it off the windowsill and put it in the shadows on the counter. Slowly, but surely, the plant regained its vibrant green color. Thus, I have learned that aloe vera plants can survive with next to no water, but they will not do well in direct sunlight. An unplanned, scientific experiment that taught me an unexpected lesson.

The Aquarium at Mandalay Bay

I tried to take some pictures of the sharks but they were moving so fast I couldn't quite catch them. Benjamin and Michael were brave enough to touch the Manta Rays but Bekah and I just looked at the animals through the aquarium glass.

Piranha

Paris Hotel

We took the children to the Paris Hotel so they could get a taste of what Dad's mission was like. Michael says that the shops in the Paris Hotel remind him a lot of walking down streets in Europe.



This is a picture inside the Paris Hotel. The question is, where did the toliet go? I went in to use the bathroom and found myself facing a row of doors instead of bathroom stalls and had to think for a minute to figure out where the toliet was. A little elaborate for a bathroom, but to each his own.

The Bellagio

While we were waiting for the water show at the Bellagio to start we discovered that we had a celebrity with us. A bus load of Oriental people had to keep stopping to gawk at Bekah and call her Shirley Temple. They took her picture so many times that Bekah started pointing to Oriental people and telling us she wanted her picture taken more.

We were able to catch two of the Bellagio's fabulous water shows. Michael really enjoyed these.

Just off of the lobby at the Bellagio there is a wonderful garden with jumping water fountains, animals made from flowers, and an antique ferris wheel filled with sunflowers.

"Tiger" birds as Benjamin called them

Adventuredome at Circus Circus

What have Mom and Dad gotten us into?

Bekah riding the "balloon" ferris wheel with Mom. She was too little (by 1/2 an inch) to ride most rides by herself.

Can you find the dinosaur? Benjamin spied it before the rest of us did.

Have we mentioned that Benjamin likes pirates?

Or is it obvious yet?

This was Bekah's favorite ride, the "Roadrunner."

Bekah wanted to ride the train but wasn't quite sure about it as it kept going around and around really fast. Benjamin had to tell us that the train was one of his favorite rides.

Benjamin riding the frog hopper. When he first saw the picture he said he didn't like that ride, but after he tried it once he wanted to ride it over and over again without interruption.

Here we are in the 3-D theater. The kids weren't big fans but it was a unique experience.

Dad riding the "Roadrunner" with Bekah. Michael did all of the big rides by himself, I decided I liked my stomach better in my gut than the bottom of my throat, and couldn't get enough of the roller coaster. I think he ended up going like 10 times.

We took the whole family on a ferris wheel ride so Bekah could share with Daddy and Benjamin how much fun she had on it.

We even caught a clown act while we were there. The kids thought it was hilarious.

Benjamin "driving" a helicopter.

We completely wore out the kids by playing so hard, but I was sure glad they took an afternoon nap, even for a brief time.