Wax Museum

For the 5th grade wax museum this year, Ethan decided to be Ethan Allen.  At least he knew how to spell the first name already! :)  He did a great job; was sitting just like this (coming up with battle plans, he said), and had his part down pat.  He is an easy kid to have when projects like this come up- he is pretty self-motivated, and can come up with ideas easily, and then he just does it!  I have learned not to tell him that something is too hard or I don't know how to make it, or anything like that, because he is constantly coming up with an idea and making it work!  I'm not even scared for Invention Convention next year, because I know his super-creative brain can handle it.

Eliza at 4 months

 Look at those blue eyes!  What a cutie.

This month she is 16 lb. 3 oz., and 26 inches long!

To document the rolls on her legs: 

(not to mention the cankles!)

We sure love this girl- at four months, she is trying her best to move around- she can roll front to back, and today she scooted herself completely out of her carseat while I was trying to take a quick shower!  She no longer holds still while being held- she climbs up whoever has her.  Also, this week she has decided that sleep is unnecessary.  15 minute naps= Mom not getting much done.  She talks all the time now- although we're not sure exactly what she's saying, and she LOVES her siblings- she is happier when they are home to play with her!

Since we moved into our house 9 months ago, we've thought that our backyard would be great for sledding- we have a long, gradual incline from our house up to the back corner of our yard, and the kids have been excited to try it.  It's pretty amazing that they had to wait this year until the end of January to have enough snow!  The waiting paid off, though, and our FHE activity yesterday was sledding/snowman/snow angel/snowball fun.  It was awesome!  The pictures are awful, since I was trying to capture moving targets in semi-darkness with my lame camera, but here they are:

This is what I found when I opened my bedroom blinds:

the stalker snowman!

 Tim, Eliza and I mostly stayed inside enjoying the fire, but we could watch all of the excitement from the windows, and got thoroughly pelted by snowballs when we taunted the kids from the warmth of the kitchen.  Of course, the snowballs just hit the window- much warmer that way!

It was after 9 when we finally lured the kids in with caramel popcorn and cocoa, and we had a couple of  pretty groggy kids this morning, but it was worth it- awesome family night!

Sunday, January 22

 I just had to record the date, since it was the FIRST time all winter that there was enough snow to shovel!

Heavy rain Saturday turned to snow in the evening, and the boys got to earn their dinner by shoveling our driveway.  :)  Annie helped too, of course- she is always in the middle of whatever work is going on!

 Later that evening, Tim took Rebekah, Price and Josh to the celebration of the 100th year of seminary.  They practically had front row seats (not).

  But they did have a lot of fun, and said it was an excellent meeting.

While they were gone, the younger kids and I had a great time- we played Lego Creationary, made a chocolate cake, watched Veggie Tales, and read together.  What an excellent Sunday!

Ethan's First Ballroom Competition!

Actually, this was a first for all of us- we've never had anyone in ballroom before now, and I've never been to a ballroom competition.  It was interesting- and lots of fun!  I sat up on the very top row of bleachers in the balcony, so I could nurse the baby if I needed to, so my pictures aren't the best, but you can still see how cute the kids are.  Here is Ethan with his cute partner Jessica:

 

 and yes, his shirt is untucked.  What can I say- I try. 

 Ethan and Jessica danced the tango for their specialty dance, and then drew foxtrot for the second round.  They did great!

 When it was all over, their team won a gold ribbon (that means they get to go on to the next competition at UVU in February), and Grovecrest won the sportsmanship trophy!  You can see it in the middle of the scrum of kids in this picture- it's taller than most of them!

 Ethan really came away with a good feeling about ballroom.  When he told me last summer that he wanted to sign up I was a little skeptical, but it has been the best thing- he loves it, and he is doing great!

Babies and Teenagers

 One of my very favorite things about having a new baby around the house is watching my big kids with her- they are in love with her, and the feeling is mutual.  

It is wonderful to have so many capable helpers around!

My favorite part of the day

 Eliza usually wakes up enough to eat around 6 in the morning, and then she goes back to sleep until between 8:30 and 9:30.  It has been awesome to be able to have her sleeping while I get the kids off to school!

When she does wake up, I never hear her crying- I just go in to check on her, and she is looking around the bedroom, totally happy.  When she sees me, she goes crazy- smiling, kicking, and waving her arms.  It is totally my favorite part of the day!

Pinewood Derby 2011

I have to be honest, I do not look forward to Pinewood Derby.  This probably stems mostly from our first year doing it, when Josh didn't win a race.  Not one.  Yes, he had the slowest car there.  I know that it was a good learning experience for him, and it didn't scar him for life or anything, but it was still hard to watch.

He had good experiences with it later, but the whole derby thing still makes me nervous. 

This year, we had Ethan (his first and last time, since 7th ward didn't do it his first two years) and Emma, who did it for activity days.  There were actually way more girls than boys- 28 and 11, I think.

In the past, we've only used tracks that had two lanes- so either you win or you lose.  This 6 lane setup was awesome.  It was electronically timed, too- so you really don't know who is the fastest until the end.  The above picture shows when Ethan and Emma raced against each other- Ethan's is the red car, and Emma's is the maroon. 

 Rebekah and her cute friends. :)  They saw me taking pictures of them from all the way across the gym, so they posed.  There are great girls in this ward!

  Emma waiting for her turn to race.

 Ethan watching a race.

 Tim was sick- good thing he got the cars finished the night before!  I wasn't really looking forward to attending with all 7 kids by myself, so I called Dad and invited him.  It was fun to have him there! 

I think these guys wished, just a little, that they could still race!  They did a good job of cheering for our kids anyway.

Christmas Piano Recital 2011

Rebekah and I started the night with a prelude of "What Child is This" on piano and flute.  This is the same number that she played for sacrament meeting in December.

 Josh playing "The First Noel".

Price and Josh with a duet of "Good King Wenceslas".

 Price playing "Parade of the Wooden Soldiers".

 Ethan and "Snoopy's Christmas".

Annie playing "Jolly Old Saint Nicholas."  This was the first time she was able to memorize her song- something finally clicked!

 Emma and Grandma playing "Do You Hear What I Hear?".

Rebekah and "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear".

Everyone did a great job- it is fun to watch the kids progress and find enjoyment in their music.  And I think it's awesome that they get to take piano lessons from their grandma!  She is a wonderful teacher, and this is something they will remember all of their lives.  Thanks, Mom!

Free Zoo Day

The week between Christmas and New Year's was awesome- Tim had it off, so we had a great time doing things with the whole family.  That doesn't happen very often now that kids are getting older and going their own directions more and more!

  December 28th was free zoo day at Hogle Zoo, so we drove down.  I love when it's free- then I don't feel obligated to spend more time there than I want to!

It was a great day to go- it really wasn't very crowded, and the weather was good.  Cold, but not too cold.

The kids thought it was great that this was Eliza's first trip to the zoo.

We spent a couple hours there, then headed up to Layton to visit our friends from the Azores, the McCools.  We had a great time reminiscing and catching up. Thanks for a fun time and for dinner!