7 weeks (plus some)

Here are some cute pictures of Kimball. He is now 7 weeks old and very strong. Today I put him on his tummy on the floor and went to get some groceries from the car. When I came back in he had rolled onto his back! He seems very strong.

Ode to Finners

Saturday evening, we came home from running errands and found Peter's beta fish dead in his fish bowl. I guess after having Kimball, I haven't been the best at reminding Peter to feed his fish, and he hasn't remembered to do it himself, so we starved the poor fish to death. We all felt awful, especially Peter. We had a long talk about the resurrection, and how even though we don't understand it all, that we can have faith that Heavenly Father will take care of Finners. It was a hard, but very hopeful, lesson for Peter to learn.
On Sunday he had to make a choice on what to do with his fish. I told him we could flush him down the toilet or bury him in our yard. It was a tough choice. He didn't necessarily want to flush him because he knew what sorts of things went down the same pipe, but it had just snowed 8 inches outside and that didn't look too comfortable for poor Finners either. After hours of deliberation, he decided to finally bury his fish. So, with shovel and pick ax in hand, we went outside and dug a hole. Peter sweetly kissed the special box we found for Finners, and choking back the tears, buried his dear fish. Oh, why do these lessons have to be so hard for parents as well?
I am so glad to know for myself the doctrine of resurrection and be able to teach that to my son. I hope he gained a testimony of faith and resurrection through this experience, because it brings me such hope.

Polar Express Party!

Last Friday we had a Polar Express Party for Peter and his friends. We had SO much fun! Everyone came in their pajamas and we started of singing Christmas songs, dancing and playing train games. Everyone got their own box to decorate into a boxcar and then we went downstairs, put together our train, and read The Polar Express by the Christmas tree. It was magical. All the children were entranced. One of Peter's friends, Stephen, assigned himself as the conductor and he took us on quite a wild ride to the North Pole! After we read the book, who should appear but Santa Clause himself who handed out bells and candy canes for everyone! Peter was beside himself. As Santa left, Stephen started staring out the window and said, "I'm just going to wait to see Santa fly away in his sleigh."
A friend of mine, Stephanie, who helped me with the whole party said, "Well, I don't think you'll see him, he has to fly North." That sparked all the childrens' interest and they all ran outside to catch Santa. That poor Santa was taken by quite a surprise! We all learned that Santa uses a car, probably so that his reindeer can rest up for Christmas Eve.
Afterward we helped ourselves to some hot cocoa and homemade nugats. I told Mike that evening, "I think I've made some happy memories for myself to last a long time." I think I may have had more fun than the kids even.

Gingerbread Houses

Mike grew up making gingerbread houses every year, so naturally, this is a family tradition of ours too. It was a lot of fun, and Elsie especially enjoyed it. We pulled out all the candy and tried to set it aside for the actual decorating. Elsie would have none of this. She wanted rewards, immediately and dived right into everything. There was absolutely no stopping her while she shoved and crammed her mouth full of chocolate and goo. She was quickly a slobbery mess.
My favorite, though was when she found the cinnamon bears and shoved one in her mouth all in one bite. I warned her that it was hot, but she kept chewing anyways. I kept asking, "Is it hot yet Elsie?" Nope, she was not giving me any satisfaction of being right. Finally, after a minute or two, she couldn't take it any more and spit it out in the garbage. I thought this would be a lesson and she'd steer clear of the bears, but she must have tried another, because I have been picking up bits of cinnamon bear throughout our carpet throughout the past couple days. It was fun watching her and building the houses as well. Mike was the expert, for sure!

Christmas Magic!

Oh, the joy of having a 4-year-old for Christmas this year! Peter is absolutely loving Santa Clause. One day out of the blue he says to me, "Mom, do you know who I'm going to marry when I grow up?"
"No," I reply, "Who?"
"Santa's wife!" and then after a moment of reflection Peter added, "That is, if he dies that same day."
This dialog has been followed by all sorts of questions about Santa's reindeer, the sack he holds his presents in, and of course the mystery of the chimney. Well, a few days ago we went to a Christmas party at a friends house where Santa was also visiting! Peter was thrilled to see Santa and sit on his lap. Later on in the evening, Peter must have been thinking. He walked up to Santa, tugged at his belt and said, "Santa, how do you get your reindeer to fly?"
"Christmas Magic!" was the wise response.
Peter then came to me with a grin from ear to ear and I said, "I guess Santa really is magic, huh!" Peter replied, "Then his sack must really hold all those presents!"
A couple weeks ago Peter dressed up as Santa for our ward talent show and he and I recited 'Twas the Night Before Christmas together. He was the cutest Santa, don't you think?

Tradition gone wrong

Well, I know it's awfully late to be blogging about Thanksgiving when Christmas is right around the corner, but this is worth mentioning. This year was the year to spend with my husband's family, which is always an adventure, as there are 9 children in his family (7 of them brothers). So, there Thanksgiving tradition has always been to play a game of basketball while everyone else slaves away in the kitchen. With a bunch of competitive brothers playing to be the victor, it can get quite aggressive. As a matter of fact, Mike came home with a huge, swollen, black and blue ankle. I was just sick, knowing how long those can take to heal. Come to find out later, he actually sprained both ankles. However, as much of a bummer as this was, Mike fared well. Later on in the day, they brought the basketballs out again, only to have another brother brake a rib! So, I'm wondering, was this football, or basketball? I hope this tradition tones down in the future!

Highlight #7 - Halloween!

This is the final highlight I want to write about. I have a friend that says she loves Halloween so much because there is no pressure to find the deeper meaning of this holiday. It is the perfect holiday before Thanksgiving and Christmas, that's for sure. I love Halloween because of all the fun traditions that take place - pumpkin carving, harvest time (as I mentioned earlier), pumpkin and apple goodies, parties, cute costumes (I'm not into the scary thing), and fun paper crafts my kids love doing. Also, in my community they put on a "Pumpkin Walk" we go to every year. People throughout the community create a scene made out of pumpkins and squash. So, we walk around looking at the different scenes and carved pumpkins lining the walk, and at the end we get a little cookie. It's a great family event, plus it's free!
However, being due November 1st, I really did not want a dual celebration of birthday and Halloween. So, I was so glad when he was born on the 28th! Although this Halloween was a bit overshadowed by Kimball's birth (rightly so, too!), I wanted to make sure Peter had a chance to see his friends in their costumes and have some fun. So, on the morning of the 28th, I threw Peter and impromptu Halloween Party. It was so funny when all his male friends showed up in spiderman costumes and the lone female was a princess, or the damsel in distress. We played games, did a craft, and sent them home with pumpkin bread. I had a lot of fun with Peter and his friends. One of the moms offered to take Elsie home with her, which I gladly accepted, which is why she's missing in the pictures.