Sticky Gooey Yummy Spring Break Smores

Every evening at our resort, the kids were invited to roast marshmallows and make smores.  This was one of their favorite things because it was inside and warm!

Emily loved the idea of eating the smores.  She liked the chocolate bars best however, and spent the better part of 15 minutes digging it out between the graham crackers.  What a mess!  Thank goodness for wipes!
Oops, I think you lost your marshmallow Sarah!
Jacob must have eaten 5 smores every night.  He even managed to make me a few.
Blake caught his marshmallows on fire every night!  I'm not sure you can be an Eagle Scout if you can't roast a perfect marshmallow?!

Spring Break Fun

We had a great spring/winter break this year.  We had a few days of decent weather and a few days of really wet freezing cold weather.  We decided to vacation during the wet awful cold weather because that is what we do.  We still had a super great time and can still feel the pain from the 50 degree water in the pool!!!

We all loved Sea World.  When we arrived at noon there were only 20 cars in the parking lot.  No one else was crazy enough to go in 40 degree weather.  It doesn't matter how cold it gets...the dolphins still need to eat!
Blake didn't get his fingers too close to his mouth!
So this is who Shamu is.  Jacob was unclear of his identity before our trip to Sea World.  After the show however, Jacob was impressed and asked if we could get a real Shamu for our swimming pool at home!
Of course we went on the River Walk Cruise!  It was amazing, but the buffet wasn't as good as I have been told.  The river was an impressive green because it had been dyed for St. Patrick's Day.
We took our kids to The Alamo just so we could be good parents.  I don't know exactly what they were expecting...but it wasn't the long lines and boring grey cement walls.  I think they were expecting William Barrett Travis to be there with his sword or something!
We loved our Hotel.  We stayed at The Hyatt Hill Country.  They had tons to do and the kids never got bored.  It is definitely worth taking a vacation there.  The "heated" pools and lazy river were a bit cold in my opinion, but we all toughed it out and swam anyway.

New Hair Do

I have always been hair challenged.  I've probably had two good hair days this last year.  So today, out of pure disgust, I told the hair dresser to do whatever!  This was the outcome.

When I picked up the kids after school, Jacob said, "UHHH (pause) I think that hair guy cut off too much."  Blake said, " I like your old hair better." and Sarah just kept quiet, smiled, and then asked, "Do you like it?"  Yes actually I do.  We'll just see how it looks tomorrow when I actually have to fix it!

Favorite Traditions

Our family is all about traditions.  Valentine's Day brings about some of our favorite!

Making sugar cookies and decorating them is my kid's favorite.  Emily kept busy in the flour and dusted everything quite nicely.  I always encourage my kids to eat lots of the cookie dough so we don't have so many cookies to decorate!  What a mess.
Jacob managed to spray paint himself, the back porch, and the Valentine box all blue.  Who knows where the adult supervision was...oh yeah I think she was doing yearbook!



Every Valentine's day, we always have a fancy red and white dinner.  We have candles, candy, mostly red and white food (steak, baked potatoes, rolls, corn, sprite - colored red, and strawberry shortcake)  We serve it all on fancy paper plates that have been set on the table underneath a surprise sugar cookie with a message.  Bryan and I were invited to his Aunt Gloria's house when we were at BYU and they did this.  We loved the tradition so much we are still doing it!


And of course, there are all the class parties at school to attend.  This year I made apples with strawberries drizzled with chocolate and heart shaped cheese and crackers.  The other room mom made these fun candy bar sundaes.  The second graders were super impressed...NOT  but I'm pretty sure the other parents were, and that is all that counts!  HA!

It's potty time!

Emily loves wearing her princess panties.  She doesn't even mind peeing in them!
Potty training my children has never been high on my list of things I am good at!  I don't think Blake was potty trained until he was 4 years old.  Sarah took her diaper off in public places and just went naked.  I think she liked to see people laugh and me turn red.  I enrolled Jacob in Oak Tree Academy when he was two and the sweet ladies there trained him in three days flat.  I was hoping for the same outcome at Oaktree with Emily, but it hasn't happened yet!  Just yesterday, after pee came running down her legs, she promptly removed her panties and threw them in the washing machine herself.  She's very helpful!

More Benadryl Please!

It's been a long winter with sick kids.  I credit this to the fact that Bryan brings home lots of germs and I am too lazy to get my kids flu shots.  Sarah takes the grand prize for the most missed school days and the perplexed looks on the doctor's faces.  Poor girl, she really was miserable with her undiagnosed rash.  You just have to see it to believe it!

Any ideas for a diagnosis?  Let me know.

Happy New Year!

Phew!!! Christmas is finally all taken down, packed away and hauled back into the attic.  I narrowly escaped once again killing myself in our multi-level suicide attic.  I'm not sure what genius designed it, but as far as walk in attics go, you can only take two steps before you have to hurdle a giant silver air duct.  Not so easy when you are carrying heavy boxes and hurdling a 2 year old as well.  One day, I am going to put a giant hole in that duct, but I'm not too worried because I know just who to call!!

     The kids went back to school today and when Jacob arrived home, he proudly produced his list of 5 resolutions for the year.  They were pretty basic and mostly genuine.  He said he wanted to practice baseball, basketball, and soccer, exercise more, and save money!  He really is concerned about the economy!  Jacob then went on to ask what my resolutions were and I just shuddered.  I'm not big on resolutions because I hate disappointment.  That's the same reason I never plan more than one day in advance.  But to satisfy Jacob, I thought for a moment and came up with a few resolutions that I think are very realistic and attainable.  First, I will not eat chocolate or any other candy for breakfast!  Maybe after breakfast but not in place of.  Second,  I am going to go to bed before midnight and get up at 6a.m. almost every SCHOOL morning.  Third, I am going to cook dinner at least five times each week.  Cereal counts!  Fourth,  I am saying "no" more often and putting myself first after I get the yearbook done in February.  And lastly, I am going to try my best to be more positive and upbeat after I listen to strangers and idiots make stupid comments about my daughter.   Jacob was proud of me after I listed my resolutions and he was extra excited about the dinners!  I hope I can deliver.  I better get in bed and think happy thoughts!