Of Baskets and Hunting-Part 2

We were invited to a fun Easter Egg hunt party on Saturday morning. It was great fun with lots of people and was a welcome relief since we were going to have one, but I was coordinating a Ward activity for that night!









Sometimes you really have to LOOK!!

Of Baskets and Hunting

A little fun Saturday morning after the EB dropped by...

The pre-basket corral



Following the jelly bean trail left by the EB





Andrew counting his green "grass"-a great idea from Matt's mom



Chase with green peep bunnies



Braden with a petco gift card for a new beta fish

And after the zoo..

A little Krispy Kreme bliss-just makes me happy thinking about it!

A trip to the zoo

After our snake experience we visited the Brevard Zoo with my mom. We had a great time seeing new exhibits and watching the feeding of the river otters. A few pics for fun:

Chase in the sand



Delainey playing "pet vet"



Braden in the sand



Random picture of Andrew

Snake Charmer

Nothing like starting spring break with a little excitement!! About a week prior to this picture, Matt discoverd a pair of black racers enjoying a National Geographic moment in the side of our yard just outside the boys' windows. A few days later I found "mama" snake dead-Matt thinks I ran over her with a lawn mower, but that gives me the heebee jeebies just thinking about it. On the Monday of spring break we found "papa" snake in our pool enclosure. Andrew the snake man tried to catch it. It took a bit, but he finally got it on his pillow case covered pool net and escorted "papa" outside.



We tried to force him one way with the pool noodle, but he'd have none of that!

General Conference diversions

Last session, four antsy kids. What do you do? LEGO'S!!

The pain of riding a bike

We took the training wheels off of Chase's bike, but haven't taken the time to spend working with him on how to ride it. On Saturday mornings Braden is playing basketball at a nearby church. I was on a bike ride and Matt was bringing everyone else on their bikes to meet us at the game. Apparently Chase was doing really well on his bike until...CRASH!! And yes, should you all wonder, he DID have on a helmet. Judging by his injuries, he has "earned" himself a new one!



Up close, a bit fuzzy, but you get the color better. The goose egg on the forehead just drained down around his eye.

The death of a bracket

Can you hear Taps playing??? It's playing an ode to the death of my bracket...
You gotta hate it when you go down in round 2. I picked Maryland to go all the way. Yeah, they were a 10 seed and historically that's not a successful number, but hey, Gonzaga was THE Cinderella team one year. I really though Maryland had a little magic going this year. Oh well, I'm still at 8 of 16 for the sweet 16 and still have the possiblility of going 50/50 in the final four.

Let the games play on...I need to go get a tissue.

I tried to open the gate

Soooo, Chase and Delainey went to play outside this afternoon. A few minutes after they went out, the front door opened, and in they came carrying a long object. I was thoroughly confused as they came in since there was a shadow behind them. It looked like a long box that you would put posters in or something. Chase then says, "Dad, I was trying to open the gate, and this just came off!" I laughed, which made Chase cry (he's not feeling well today so he's crying hard over EVERYTHING!!). We had to console him and tell him how cute it was that he brought the actual piece of the fence in with him!!

Cute girls

Delainey's friend Mattie came over for a visit. As they were leaving, the girls beat us outside. When we came out we found them picking clover blossoms. It was sooo cute. I'm glad I was able to catch it on film. I was really glad they did it because the last time we had Mattie she had picked some clover for her mom and I, not understanding fully what she wanted, had her leave them behind. She was devastated when she got home and she didn't have her flowers for her mom. I felt awful. I feel better now!!

I really shouldn't let them do this..

But how do I make them stop??? This is Chase near the top of the loquat tree...

3-2-1- Countdown

There aren't that many launches of shuttles left...le sigh...Fortunately by a great twist of luck we were able to run outside and catch this one-right out our neighbor's front door. I didn't have the camera ready to get the start of the launch, but the reflection of the sunset on the smoke trail was beautiful. If you look carefully to the right of the "trail" you might be able to see the little white dot that is the shuttle. It's right above the right side of the top of the tree. It seems strange to have it in such a different place than the trail, but it's a good lesson on the curvature of the earth for all the nerds out there (and their children..)

Gardening

We're starting a garden! The little kids have had a fun time helping to plant the seeds and watch things grow. It was time to put the seedlings in the ground so they headed outside...


Working hard aren't they?

Reverence Books

No matter what my children might say about how grumpy my mom might be sometimes, she is awesome!! To help the younger kids be reverent in sacrament meeting, she ordered blank books from her favorite Oriental Trading (she seriously may need to attend meetings to help curb her obsession), printed off and clipped a whole bunch of pictures and sat down for two sessions to make reverence books for the little ones. Each one has a picture of them sitting reverently at the end. It's cool and I love it when she does fun things like this with them!!

Deadly Pencil Shavings

So, no srep throat-and I took Braden in too since he's been complaining of a very sore throat for a day or so.

The doctor did indeed say the words "I think it's viral..." but then proceeded to go on and say "I'm going to give you antibiotics anyway because I'm a bit concerned about the swelling of the (right) lymph node." (YES!! Antibiotics-and a Z pak to boot!) He then says "Now if that swelling increases over the next day or two or you develop a high fever be sure to come in before the weekend. And I want you to come back in in a week or two to check in with your doctor." Anyone else feeling all giddy with warm fuzzies yet????

Insert some episode from House....woman goes in with sore throat, gets majorly ill with lots of weird symptoms, biopsies and MRI's are done, and after nearly dying it is discovered that she's having a reaction to the pencil shavings brought into the house by her school attending children.....House saves the day and all is well.

Of course I'm not feeling all THAT dramatic over the whole thing, but I did chuckle as he said watch for more swelling/fever. I SERIOUSLY thought of House.

Just for the record, the right side of my neck is quite swollen, and the lymph node is the size of and feels like a peach pit. And it really hurts if you touch it...

Watch out for those pencil shavings!!

I hope it's Strep Throat

Before you think I'm absolutely CRAZY (probably a forgone conclusion) remember that with something like Strep you get antibiotics and then you start feeling better fairly quickly.

Background...

Friday I went to the gym, hit the treadmill for 30 minutes and lifted some weights. Friday night I took the three youngest kids up to the stake center to play women's hoops. It was a great night for ball. I ran most of the time, except for the occasional fast break when the "younger" ladies had it under control. Felt really good. Made a few good shots, missed a few good shots, and made some good passes. AND since the men's teams weren't there on time we got to play a bit longer.

I then took the kids to Steak 'n Shake for fries and shakes-does it get much better?

Then, after the kids were tucked into bed-WHAMMOOOO!! Enter Mack truck. Long night, felt fevery, sore throat on the right side, up and down through the night. Aches and pains, sweaty at some moments, cold later. It's now Sunday and I can honestly say that I feel pretty much the same. Braden stayed home from church with me today with a sore throat as well.

If I go to the doctor tomorrow and they say "Sorry, it's just the flu and you have to endure..." I might just cry....

Mr.Evil C continued

Chase did actually get up and go to school on Monday. Mr.Evil C did indeed show up, but the kids actually won yesterday!! So it was a good day and we're learning about how to lose-I think!

He may look like a Christensen...

but the Wilson tendencies are STRONG!!!

A little background information. Matt's mother is a Wilson by birth. Wilson's are INCREDIBLY competitive. So much so (no offense to the wonderful Wilson family) that early in our marriage I coined the phrase "Wilson competitive constipation". This simply means that, on occassion (????), the Wilson's are SOOO competitive that they can hardly enjoy the game they are playing.

It seems that Chase has inherited this highly competitive gene. Lately he's been breaking down and not wanting to go to school on Monday's because of Mr.Evil "C". Mr.C is the school's music teacher. Seems like a really nice guy, Braden thinks he's ok, can't really figure it out. So tonight after family games (which he, of course, broke into sobs when he didn't win) Chase is all but begging to stay home from school tomorrow because of Mr. Evil "C". Ok, so now I'm concerned..

To sum up, after many tears and sobs, here's the gist of the problem. On occassion, Mr.C will show up as Mr.Evil "C" and will play the same game of Q&A with the kids that he usually plays, except that as Mr. Evil "C" he usually gets more points than the kids and he wins the game.

Have you caught the problem-Chase is "scared" to go to school and see Mr."Evil C" because the class will not get enough points to win the game.

Classic Wilson competitive constipation disorder if you ask me.

After many hugs and a promise of Wii bowling after school I think he's convinced to go to school tomorrow.

We'll see what happens in the morning.

Are you lunchsmart or gradesmart?

Another of Braden's ever so insightful comments...several times on the way home from basketball practices Braden has discussed the concept of "lunchsmart" and "gradesmart." Lunchtime at this school has not been Braden's favorite thing. At the first of the year he sat near a friend, but was at a table of tormentors. That settled down to where he was no longer tormented, and now he is gleeful because he gets to be the tormentor of the "cool kids" because apparently THEY can't all fit on one table and Braden in his spot disrupts their placement....anyone else confused??

I think the titles he has come up with are pretty self explanatory. He has repeatedly proclaimed that he is happy to be "gradesmart" and not "lunchsmart". Tonight he commented that it is rare to have someone both "gradesmart" AND "lunchsmart" and repeated his happiness at being "gradesmart."

Ahh fourth grade politics..

Andrew's Entertainer

Andrew's piano teacher doesn't have recitals (I think...)but she does video the kids and post them on you tube. Here's Andrew's performance of "The Entertainer"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAUnmoRXYDI

Hoopin' it up

Andrew and Braden are playing rec league baskteball. I thought I'd post a few pictures of them "in action".

First is Andrew-he actually made this shot! He's been playing really well. Good defender, not too bad on offense. He usually has to play trash man since his team seems to play like Duke-live by the three, die by the three. He still manages to score around 8 points a game.



Not a great action shot of Braden, but the boy defending him is the other boy on his Odyssey of the Mind team. His team happens to be one of the best teams in the league, in spite of the fact they are not very good on offense. They've only allowed like 8 points per team. Good defense. Braden is doing well and is learning the game as he whistles and skips up and down the court!!



A few pictures of the onlookers with dad. This was taken the day after the 100th day of school for Chase which inspired the glasses!!



Just a cute picture of Delainey and Dad!! I will mention that Chase and Delainey do NOT EVER sit and watch the game. They are up and down, up and down, over and under, up and down, over and under......it's almost more exhausting watching them!!



Most exciting of all is that I get to play on Friday nights in February!! The men in the stake have an organized schedule on Friday nights, and the women get together and play right before. I'm soooooooooooo excited because I rarely get to play and never with women who know how to play!! WAA-hoooo!

A few of my favorite things...

I've just been thinking about the some of the small things that make my day..thought I'd share a few:

1)Quiet days with no major agenda items-very few and far between

2)Children sleeping in their own beds all night-again few and far between

3)Friends that can come and just hang out

4)Phone calls from friends in other places

5)Comments on my blog

6)Bike rides

7)Songs my family enjoys jamming out to at full volume-preferably while we're working together

8)Nights out with my husband

9)A happy teenager and conversations that help discover what he's becoming

10)Sunshine

OK, so I "Twilight", but this is too much!

We moved to Florida in April. As I started attending park days in the summer and then the fall I learned about the "Twilight" series. Almost all of the YW leaders had read and loved it, as had quite a few others. I borrowed a copy, and sometime in October I started reading. Fell in love, way too obsessive about it, but that's a story for my shrink. ANYWAY, the movie was coming out in November and I watched a few of the trailers. Not everyday mind you, and not over and over and over again. I didn't let my children watch much of it, just on principle.

BUT, one child became a "Twilight"er of sorts. Delainey. Now, I have the original copies of the books. Meaning I don't have the copy with the movie picture on the front. I got the CD for Christmas so that wasn't around. However, that didn't deter Delainey. Sometime in early December Matt dropped me off at Barnes and Noble to run in for something. There was a movie poster for "Twilight". Delainey proceeds to say "Look Daddy, Twilight!!" Stunning.

Today, Delainey and I ran into Kmart for a few minutes. While picking out a snack for Andrew Delainey says, "Look mommy, Twilight!" We were near the posters and they were open to one of Edward from "Twilight." Stunned again. Way too much recognizability for one so young....

SCIENCE FAIR WINNER!!!

This was our first, believe it or not, foray into science fair projects. I'm still in great disbelief that it has taken this long for us to participate...but that's a story for another day!! Our first experience led to a second place winner!! Braden was/is sooooooooo excited about his 2nd place finish. He hoped only for honorable mention so his expectations were obviously met and exceeded! Interestingly enough, his class took 8 of the 18 places in the science fair. In the three catagories they took first AND second in all but one catagory! Not bad for Mrs.Conroy, who I believe is still a "temporary" (for this year) teacher!!!

Yeah for Braden!!

With all the Physical Science division winners



Proud and happy in front of his project "How does a non-Newtonian fluid react differently to a pencil tip, a pencil eraser and the back of a spoon being pushed quickly into the non-Newtonian fluid?"

Happiness is...

Sitting at the computer doing what I want while four children empty the dishwasher with "Supermassive Black Hole" blaring in the background....

aaaahhhhhh

Funny things said in our house today

At our ward building they are clearing out some trees to make room for a bigger parking lot. Matt and Andrew went over this morning to get some of the wood to have for campouts. Matt came home and showered. He came out of the shower shirtless to cool off a bit, picked up Delainey who commented,

"WOW! Dad, your pits are really wet!!"


Later I asked Chase a question and the response was


"No, I don't think so Cracker Jack!!"



Where did these kids come from??

Christmas Eve and Morn

Andrew decided to invite everyone into his room for a Christmas Eve sleepover. That way, the first one up could get everyone up together. Delainey was struggling with a cold, so she coughed most of the night away leaving Andrew with, and I quote, "4 hours and 6 minutes of sleep" but who's counting?

Visions of sugar plums??




The line up



Trying things out




Andrew has declared Wii music the BEST GAME EVER CREATED!!! (many thanks to Jared, Mary and company!!)

Christmas Sunday

I had ward council meeting before church on Christmas Sunday. As I was getting everything ready to leave I felt my inner Southern woman coming on in full form. I turned to Matt and said "You know, it's a great tribute to my faith that I'm actually going to this meeting this morning." He looked puzzled and I explained, "Because I'm leaving you at home to get the kids ready on Christmas Sunday!" He did a fabulous job and even got some pictures in!

In their Christmas finery (all the boys, including Matt and my dad) had matching ties and Delainey picked out her dress. (and oh, the height discrepencies...)




More true to life:

One of those streets...

We are very fortunate-we live on "one of those streets." During the Christmas season quite a few of the neighbors put up lighted arches. At last count, our street had 23. It's so much fun to drive through at night. Then, on Christmas Eve, they light luminaries, walk down the street waving and saying "Merry Christmas" to the people driving by to see the lights. Then, a special person comes and brings gifts to the kids! Lots of fun:

A look at the arches:




Our house:




Santa arrived on his "Deere"



Gifts for the kids: (notice the terrified Delainey clinging to mom!)

Work Christmas party

One thing we used to really enjoy when we lived here before was the Harris Christmas Party. They have lots of fun activities for the family-food, pony rides, crafts, rock climbing, the moon bounce activities, a hay ride, battle of the bands, car show....and gifts for the kids!! Delainey was totally stoked when she saw the ponies. We went at the busiest time so we spent too much time in line, but we still had lots of fun.

A great looking foursome:



Chase gives it a go (he needed just a little convincing)



Need I say more?

The joy of Sunday Movies!!

So, since the beginning of our child rearing life we have had a rule about Sunday movies. The usual-10 commandments type, scripture videos, and movies with "real people and songs" (musicals) A week or so ago, Braden, joined quickly by Chase and Delainey, could be heard singing "matchmaker, matchmaker..." Just tonight as he got ready for scouts, he was belting (and he really can belt, and sometimes on key!) "If I were a rich man..." I love it when my children are affected by their exposure to the classics.

Out of the mouth of babes...

So a couple of cute quotes from our house..

After a dinner time discussion about all the new/coming cousins, Chase seemed a bit bewildered by the sheer numbers of people. He then declared "All our family has been born!!" I couldn't agree more.

Braden, after trying to explain something to me "My brain is too complex for my mouth!!" I don't know if my brain is too complex for my mouth but I certainly have a disconnect point from my brain to my mouth!!