Aww

I love this picture of my kids. My sister was here for the weekend for her roomate's farewell, so we took the kids to the beach on Saturday. Seriously, I don't know if I've had that much fun in a long time! They had more fun together and with their Aunt Carly, and I probably took 50 pictures - all of them good ones! They sure were photogenic this weekend. These two are the best of friends and Emma is SO protective of her little brother. She's a mommy in training! And Tyler...what can I say - he's such a boy. He likes to be naked and carry a stick.

Word Art by Bethany Harty.

Sticky Lips

That blasted ice cream truck came blaring by this afternoon...Spencer quickly reminded me I had "promised" them that next time we heard it we could try it out. Now, my kids are awesome about not opening the front door or going out without me(they're scared to death of "strangers") but within milliseconds of hearing the music, the door flew open and they were gone in a flash. I had to grab a couple dollars and by the time I got outside they were halfway down the block, jumping up and down like it was Christmas. It might as well have been. I let them pick popsicles based on the picture (laughing inside myself that they didn't have prices listed - such a ploy!). Tyler got some popsicle bomb (yes, it was a monster of a thing) and Emma got some lifesaver-flavored big popsicle. Amazingly my total was under $3 (I could do this more than once!) and we returned to the front porch - while giving and hearing a lecture about not running off - and licked frozen sugar to our lips' content. Nevermind that it was 4:45 p.m. Did they eat any dinner tonight? No. But I'm ok with that. What a lovely way to spend a spring afternoon outside--in the sun with sticky lips, chins, fingers, clothes, and toes.

Phew

We're (sorta) moved in! We loaded and unloaded a 22-foot truck TWICE. No, I don't have a clue how we keep accumulating so much stuff. Two highlights from this weekend:

*When we showed the kids the new house and their rooms with all their things moved in, Emma went right to work as the decorator that she is. The mini Martha found her picture of the temple and hung it up on her wall (with tape, haha). Then she picked a bunch of flowers from the backyard (here she goes!) and put them in vases for the dining room table. Love that girl. Below is a picture of her work.

*Tyler woke up from his nap on Saturday and was a little disoriented in his brand new house. He found me and asked where his daddy was. I told him he was in the living room. A minute later, Tyler asked me again. Slightly annoyed I said, "He's in the living room!" The poor boy responded with "But where IS the living room? I can't find it!"

A few times this weekend I was close to tears because of all those who made this move incredibly easy (especially those who watched my kids for hours and hours). Our ward is amazing and while 12+ guys loaded and unloaded, vacuumed, and found every Hot Wheel car in the backyard to take to the new house, our Bishop and his wife (and my VT) packed up my kitchen and got rid of the piles of miscellaneous items. How often does that ever happen? Other friends had us over for dinner on Sunday (and still others offered to have us over for dinner). I'd love to say we could handle doing it again in another year...but I can't. If we can stay put here for more than a year it will be a record for us. Here is a picture of our family room:

And here is a picture that makes me smile every time I see it. Emma had climbed into Tyler's bed (they're even in separate rooms!) one night; I guess she got lonely. Sorry for the undies shot, but I think the leg on top of him speaks volumes about their relationship. Classic. Gosh I love those two. Life is never boring, even when they're asleep.

Music to someone's ears

Oh, the ice cream truck. I hear the music coming, in the distance, and do anything LOUD I can to ensure my kids DON'T hear it. That music is one of the sure signs of summer, I suppose. My kids have always known that the music represents ice cream, so last summer we took the advice of a friend and told them that when you can hear music playing, the truck is out of ice cream and needs to go fill up again. This summer Emma is too smart for that. The truck started coming around last week, and Emma even witnessed two of her friends exchanging money and ice cream with the driver - darn! She often asks if we can get some; it's not that paying $5 one time for a lame popsicle is a huge deal, but I'm worried it will become something she looks forward to and expects. So...my sweet, resourceful Emma has been collecting money. Not that old PAPER money, since everyone knows that's useless (I'm ok if they continue to think that). She's been collecting quarters, pennies, and dimes. She just brought me her stash and told me that next time we hear the truck, she is going to use her own money to buy something. How can I turn that down?

So now my ears are grudgingly open for that awful music, so we can run out and satisfy the only desire of a frugal 4-year old. And of course I'll have to sacrifice my own money for Tyler's benefit since I know he'll want one too. Too bad he's not yet as resourceful as his sister. All things considered, he may never be as resourceful...she's a tough act to follow. Can I blame Emma for being frugal? I like to think she gets it from me.

I guess if we get to spend lots of time outside in the sun, running around and trying to catch moths, picking flowers, and enjoying ourselves, we're entitled to spend a lot of money on some yummy, cold goodness every once in a while. (I can thank my sweet grandma who just gave us each $1 inside of our belated Easter eggs.) It IS that time of year for ice cream. And my kids deserve it. Packing is not their idea of fun. Ice cream is.

(Is the ice cream truck everywhere? Or just in our state?)

**Update: This just in - I just witnessed Tyler putting a loose dollar bill into his pocket "to buy something at Target." I guess things are taking a turn around here...

80 degrees

Not a lot of time (we're moving in a week and I really do have other things I should be doing! This is more fun)...

We had our warmest day of the year today. My mom flew in this morning and must have brought some Southern California sunshine with her! We filled up the little pool and were outside for a while before it got too hot. Tyler lasted longer than Emma; Emma came inside and wanted to dance. I tried to post a video of the two of them dancing, but it was a little too big (too high of resolution) and wouldn't work. Use your imaginations! I am thrilled it's so warm out and hope it lasts beyond my mom's visit!

Hmmm

Glitch? Or super powers?

283 words

Speedtest

Crawling Out

Today I pulled my hair out of its 4-day ponytail (and then put it back up), and stepped outside for the first time since Sunday. I've been plagued with that awful chest cold/cough/flu? that seems inevitable at this point. Bless you, government, and the jury duty that goes along with it; this has been an easy week for Spencer so he has picked up all of my slack, even teaching part of joy school as I sacked out on the couch amidst crazy children running rampant. (I shouldn't really sing his praises though, as he has just jetted off to Utah for a long weekend.)
Realizing that I needed to get OUT, I figured I could manage a venture to the grocery store for some fruit, and to Target for activities for the kiddos to do during conference. At first it was wonderful to be out...73 degree weather, spring showing itself in many new, beautiful ways, fresh air... We got to Target and hurried through; I only had to say no about 50 times to the Can I have ___ question. Then at Safeway we lost all control. Tyler wouldn't ride in the cart, which isn't unusual, so he followed me around bawling, wanting to be held. Then I didn't have my membership card so I had to pay "full price" for all my fruits. We survived. I got home and have become re-acquainted with having my face in the toilet. It just gets better...