Spring's Break

First, all good things have to end and somethings even disappear. Such is the case with Spring, Spring Break, and even the original draft of this post. (yeah, I often will blog multiple entries and have to use all the restraint I can to not post these extras. So one of these extra posts was all about this past week and I can't find it anywhere. Funny how the internet can make things disappear.)

Mia, who has an endless list of fun ideas, thought that Monday was a perfect day for an impromptu makeup and muffin party. Luckily, we had a few friend's who were available. After making the muffins, the kids headed up stairs to get glamorous. Makeuping was followed by hairdoing. Pretty girls!

Marvelous Muffin Makers

Glamorous Girls

Tiago's reaction to the female manners


Talia getting in on the X chromosome. I think she's trying to eat some makeup here.



Later that day, we decided that it was perfect kite flying weather. With my lack of success in kite flying, I was only willing to purchase one kite as a trial run. If it turned out to be a success, I was willing to get one for each of the kids. As many of you can probably guess, that was a disaster. At the store, I let each kid pick out a kite and we agreed that which ever kite was the cheapest, we would buy that one. Tiago's Thomas the Train kite won and Mia was more than a sore loser, but rightfully so. Luckily, we still had a old kite from our fantastic life in Florida (really, we loved Florida).


Unfortunately, the kite's main horizontal back brace was missing. We had to jimmy rig a strong brace. Mia thought of using some bendy straws and I reinforced those taped together straws with some small twigs from an obliging bush. It made me think of this:



Getting ready to fly kites in the backyard with Talia looking on.



So after all the bragging about the weather. . .Spring had it's own break. The temperatures dropped and rain came tumbling down. Thank heaven for library story times and other indoor events. Mia's tap class kept the girls busy while Tiago and Fernando (who miraculously got off just in time) went to a Fire Engine Special Event at our library.

Mia worked on her science experiment

and we made lots of comfort food. My favorites for the rainy day freeze are inspired by Panera Bread. I'll post those next so this post can end.

Sunday Stations

The LDS church has some awesome resources. Aside from their online site, the church magazines always have something wonderful to read. I have often used the Ensign as a way to keep the fast. Since I take a break from traditional fasting when I am pregnant and nursing, it kind of is hard for me to restart the process every few years after a good 2 year break. So, whenever I am feeling like I can't last the few hours, I bust out the Ensign and promise myself that I can eat after I read the whole thing. By the end, it figure that I can make a few more hours and often find stories I probably would have never read else wise.

The other week we came across a story in the Friend about something called Sunday Stations. It was a divine answer to every mom's question "what do you do with the rest of the Sabbath after church is over?" We try to make some attempt to keep it holy, but staying in our church close and limiting our activities to things that make it feel like it is a different day then the weekdays. I have often taken the easy out and shoved on some church flick. Although it fits the mold, I don't necessarily love using the movie out instead of being involved.

The whole idea behind Sunday Stations is reminiscent of elementary school. My first grade experience was amazing. I missed out on the whole kindergarten experience, but first grade more then made up for it. The day was broken down into various work centers to help keep interest high and boredom to a minimum. The Sunday stations use that same principle. We had to adjust some of the stations to fit our family age groups, but have loved using it.

Our stations consist of several activities. The kids love going to the internet to color online at the church website. Tiago inevitably colors everything red, including the faces and even the Temple. After we color the few online coloring pages, we explore the other options. We have a phone station where the kids can call various family members and talk for a certain amount of time. Another station is the piano where we sing wiggle songs and re-emphasize the music the kids learned in primary that day. We then pick a story from the Friend to read and then use blocks or play dough or coloring utensils to reenact the story. Last week we built Noah's ark out of jumbo legos after singing the Follow the Prophet verse about Noah and reading a story about him. Mia used her animal toys to help fill the ark that Tiago and I built.

All in all, it was a good use of time and made the day fun, but reverent? Ok, I am basing that off of the song:

Reverence is more then just quietly sitting:
It's thinking of Father above.

A feeling I get when i think of His blessings.
I'm reverent for reverence is love.

When I'm reverent, it shows in my words and my deeds.
The pathway to follow is clear.

And when I am reverent I know in my heart.
Heavenly Father and Jesus are near.

(Reverence Is Love, Children's Songbook, pg 31)

Yes I Know Heavenly Father Loves Mia

One of my favorite primary songs is My Heavenly Father Loves Me. I used to drive up to the Provo Temple with infant Mia and sit on the grass signing this and other songs. (Until I found out that sitting on the front grass of the Temple is illegal.) I would always change the last Me of the song to Mia. Over and over again, we have seen that Mia's faith in everything as produced results. Such was the case this past week.

Mia, the TMA in training, has asked relentlessly to be in some sort of extra curricular activity. She has requested everything from Cheer to gymnastics. There are a lot of expensive options that weren't in the budget right now. Especially since we are gearing up for a mini van. Then at a friend's baby shower, someone randomly mentioned this ballet and tap class that was only $25 a month. The teacher was a professional dancer and taught in a makeshift mini studio in a converted garage near by our home. With only one space left in the class we jumped on it.

Mia loved it and did awesome. She stayed with the class as they practiced the dance they had been working on for several weeks. I loved that the teacher actually taught them technique and real moves for a real dance they will preform.

Prayer one answered.

At the class Mia fell in love with a purple leotard that had an attached ballet skirt. She kept asking for us to find that particular outfit or one that looked like it. I was certain that outfit was from an actual dance store and not from a discount retail wonder such as Target or Walmart. We tried those chains with the assumed results. I checked online and wasn't happy that I would pay more to dress her for her class then the class itself. On the way home from Zumba yesterday, I saw a sign for a nearby children consignment store. Low and behold, there was a purple leotard with attached ballet skirt for just $3. She was more then thrilled to see her new outfits sitting on the stairs and couldn't wait to try them on.

Prayer two answered.

Finally the footwear. Tap and ballet shoes were going to cost at least $30-$40. I called around and even the thrift stores that had them were not much less. I had a fit of inspiration and decided to call a few neighbors who had older girls in dance. They sweetly allowed us to use the shoes for free. You kidding me? Fantastic. This happened late at night while she was asleep and dreaming of the potential of buying dance shoes. This made it all the more fun to place them next to her clothes to find in the morning. Unfortunately it made us late for school. And Tiago fell in love with the tap shoes too.

Prayer three answered. Yes I Know Heavenly Father loves Mia.



Whenever I hear the song of a bird
Or look at the blue, blue sky,
Whenever I feel the rain on my face
Or the wind as it rushes by,
Whenever I touch a velvet rose
Or walk by a lilac tree,
I’m glad that I live in this beautiful world
Heavenly Father created for me.

He gave me my eyes that I might see
The color of butterfly wings.
He gave my ears that I might hear
The magical sound of things.
He gave me my life, mind, my heart;
I thank Him rev’rently
For all his creations, of which I’m a part.
Yes, I know Heavenly Father loves me.

("My Heavenly Father Loves Me," The Children’s Songbook, p. 228)

Things I Should Have Learned In High School. . .

Poor America. We are so concerned about out competing and staying ahead that we have concocted an education system that rivals the Leaning Tower of Pisa in balance and poor planning. I remember having x number of free credits to fill the void left over from math and reading and science. These subjects are essential, but need balance. I also remember looking at the various options available and haphazardly picking. I think that I was like the standard teenager who was unaware of the gift laying at my fingertips and the potential advantages that could be had.

BIGGEST REGRET. . .aside from being self absorbed,not taking advantage of all the "free" education such as auto mechanic class and, well others, but right now the auto class is on my mind.

Ever since Fernando showed me how to find and replace my air filter, I have wondered what else I get over charge for. Our Honda Civic is the first car we have bought. (Thanks to Fernando's family for the fantastic freebie of the Corolla.) We started out by religiously getting it's oil changed and doing the various mile marked maintenance. For the first time in the 2 1/2 years of owning the car, a maintenance minder has popped up. This glowing "B1" tells me my car needs a visit to the dealership. I decide to call the service department of the nearest dealer and find out some rather interesting info.

It turns out that this particular Civic doesn't need the standard mile maintenance. This is fantastic news to me since the 30K service costs over $300. I guess I just have to follow the car's glowing lights to lead me in the right direction. So, next question is how much does the "B1" service cost. That also depends on which Honda dealer I go to. It ranges from $163 to $89. In the end, the service provided is an oil change with the standard fluid top offs and rotating the tires. The rest is just looking at the car's various parts.

Now, we can change the oil and top off fluids as well as rotate our tires just fine at home or even on base at the dty car bays. (there are even car mechanics there to gives tips and help when needed) Is it worth the money to take it in?

Dr Seus

Dr Seuss was a genius. If you don't agree, check out the juvenile portion of your local library. Pull out any random book and see if you recognize the name as quickly as you do Seuss. Then pull out a Seuss book with its lack luster art and crazy semantics and realize this man figured out a fantastic way to market his books. As further proof, type Seuss on your computer. Spell check even recognizes it.

Some of his books really do nothing for me and the pictures don't help. Then there are such charmers like "If I Ran the Circus", "Fox in Sox", "I Can Read With My Eyes Shut Tight", and "The Sneetches" (to name a few) that I read over and over again. We even own the Boris Karloff version of "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" as well as the book. My dad introduce the movie and my mom would randomly quote it while we were driving to the various errands in the car. Speaking of cars and Seuss, we happened to check out a audio cd of "The Cat in the Hat and other Dr Seuss Favorites" and listened to it over and over and over again as per the children's request as we drove from MD to TX. And, I would have to confess, I actually liked hearing it over and over again myself.

Many of his books hold profound lessons and moral applications. I often think about Green Eggs and Ham as a metaphor on temptation. In other words, stick with your gut feeling about avoiding the temptation, because it's a lot easier to avoid it without the desirous taste in your mouth.

Now, you might ask, "If you love Seuss so much, how come you spelled his name wrong in the title of this Post?" Well let me explain. This past week was Dr. Seuss worship week at school. His birthday is March 2 and makes for a fun week at school. I thought that it would be fun to spell out his name in Mia's hair throughout the week. I found that fitting since he was notorious for crazy do's. Monday-Thursday sported these looks, but by Friday, she wasn't interested. Part of the disinterest had to do with my over promising of spelling the whole name in her hair. Way too ambitious for my abilities, but I thought I would try. No go with my abilities and her hair texture. Do you blame her for not wanting to downsize? (Sorry if you can't determine the letters. . .I did warn you that I lacked the skill and Mia's hair texture didn't help)




Aside from the hair, Mia sported Seussical outfits such as this polka dot top with striped pants and mismatched socks all week.


Mia's words about Dr Seuss week:

Well, um, Dr Seuss day I ate Green Eggs and Ham and it was so so so so so so good. My friend, Sarah, and Jordan did not like the green eggs and ham. They did not like them like the Sam I am book. But, I liked my fun day of the last Dr Seuss day.

Calming and shrinking effect

Feeling empowered with my spasmodically colored yellow room, I felt the urge to paint my bathroom. I imagined this tranquil beach inspired room that featured a cute print of my kids in paradise aka Destin, Florida. As seen in the undoctored colored version:
Once again, I think that my expectations of the paint were a little over speculated. I wanted a deep color that set off the drabness of bathrooms, but I never wanted it to visually appear significantly smaller then it did with blah beige walls. Oh, well. I think I just frame the mirror with white trim and do the same with the window. Tiago was a big help and even painted a whole wall part by himself. I think my next project is waiting for me to begin.

Happy Birth Day

Congrats to our California family (sorry, they have opted for privacy in blog world)! I hear through the grapevine that you have my newest niece outside the womb and healthy as can be. My kids will have one more cousin they can talk about wanting to visit. Luckily in June, that wish will come true. I can't wait to hear all the details.