I: Imitation

"Okay family, tomorrow is 'I'. What should my post be?"

"Ice cream!"

"Icicles!"

"Iguana igloo!" (What?)

"Illegal immigration!" (Not gonna touch that one!)

Or how about Claire's cute version of a favorite childrens' song: "Itchy Bitchy Spider"? (I know she'll grow out of it, but for now it's funny to me every time she sings it! And I don't blame that spider, what with all of that rain always washing her out!)

Eh, who am I kidding? I knew all along what I would do. "I" is for Imitation. The greatest form of flattery. It happens all the time around here. "Mo-om! Paige is copying me!"

Me: "Ohhh...what a compliment! Say thank you!"

Just this morning I heard the two year old yell at some offender "Get out! I'm getting dwessed!" (Thank you, big sisters for your great examples.)

Recently, for a project in her "Gifted & Talented" class, Corinne had to choose a person from history, and then learn all about that person, create a display board with some facts from their life and give a short presentation dressed up as that person. Well, Theodor Seuss Geisel ought to feel mighty flattered sitting up there in heaven or on Mulberry Street or wherever wonderful authors like himself wind up, because I thought her imitation was spot on!

H: Happy Birthday!

H is for Happy Birthday Grandma Pat!

Today is her birthday so she gets her very own post. (I'm sure she's thrilled about this.) She's a wonderful Mom/Grandma and we have lots of fun with her. Thank you Grandma for everything you do!



We love you Grandma and hope that your 39th birthday is the best one yet!!

P.S. She reads this blog and the comments, I think. So feel free to give her a shout out! :)

G: Grain, Grinder, Gluten, Goodness & Grandma's

I made bread today. It's a common occurrence these days but it didn't use to be. The first many years of our marriage I tried now and again to make bread but it NEVER worked. Finally a few years ago I took a couple of classes at a local kitchen shop and it all clicked. Now, if we need bread, I start at the beginning.

1. The Grain: Here is a bucket of Hard Red Wheat. Some people say they prefer the slightly more expensive White Wheat but we like them both just fine.

2. The Grinder: A pampered chef I most definitely am with my super duper wheat grinder. I put in the grain and out comes this beautiful, healthy flour.
3. The Gluten: I was actually planning on making bread yesterday but I opened my pantry only to find that I had used up all of my Vital Wheat Gluten last week. I called Matt in a panic. "PLEASE stop at Kitchen Kneads and get me some wheat gluten. It's VITAL!!!" Can you see those perfect little gluten strands formed throughout the dough? "They" say that's the secret. Don't ask me though. I just follow the recipe and hope to get lucky.
4. The Goodness: Even now, after several years of making my own bread. It's a joy to pull these loaves from the oven. I'm a little bit amazed every time that it actually worked. All those failed attempts kind of scarred me for life.
Here are the taste testers with the final verdict! YUMMY!!!

Part II:

As I was writing this post the kids said, "For 'G' you should do 'Grandma's House'!" "What would I write for that post?" I replied. Nicole: "You know, just tell about all the things we like about it." So I asked, "What is your favorite thing about Grandma's house?" And then I typed as they yelled out their responses:

Paige: Um, well. There's cousins sometimes.

Spencer: There's toys!

Nicole: All the fun we have there.

Corinne: The games we play with cousins.

Spencer: (Whispering) Don't forget the candy!

Claire: Uhhh...CANDY?!

Here is a video of some of the "fun they have there". It's long and silly but might be fun for the moms, dads and grandparents of these kids to find out what our kids are doing all those hours that we are upstairs visiting and (ahem) eating responsibly.

Starring: Anna, Jacob, & Corinne

Videographer: Nicole

And lastly, I don't even have a "G" word for this. Unless it's Good Grief! Today is April 8th. Let me say that again...APRIL 8TH!!! And THIS is the picture I took from my back door this morning. It's beautiful, but as Nicole said when she saw it. "I thought it was Spring Break this week not Winter Break!"

You are all welcome to join us for a warm piece of homemade bread today, but if you come, wear your boots because I don't shovel snow in April.

F: Fly Fishing & Fanclub

"There ain't but one time to go fishin' and that's

whenever you can."

It's that time of year again. As the hunting seasons wind down and the temperatures creep up, Matt starts showing distinct symptoms of what he has diagnosed as "the fishing bug". The obvious cure is to spend an hour or two when possible standing in the middle of a stream with his fly rod. But since someone has to pay for our lights to stay on and food in our pantry, that isn't always possible. Fortunately he knows what to do to help him through the long hours between fishing trips. He prepares for said fishing trips. The last few weeks he has spent many evenings (and several conference sessions) filling up his fly box with all sorts of creatures. It's pretty impressive really, watching him take these tiny little hooks, bits of fur and feathers, and turning them into a tasty dinner for some unsuspecting trout. The kids have expressed some interest and almost all of them have had a chance to tie their first fly. I tried it once. It was tedious and frustrating. All the more reason I am impressed with his ability.

F is also for Fanclub. Because last night I looked out my window to see half the neighborhood watching in awe as Matt shot his bow. It was cute!! He even let some of them try a few shots with the kids' bow.

P.S. Regarding yesterday's post, Matt read it and said, "I think "E" should have been for elk. You could have told about all the elk I've shot over the years and made it sort of a tribute to...blah, blah, blah..." I kind of stopped listening about then.

E: Edward

E is for Edward. Yes, that Edward. The one with the smoldering eyes and the chiseled jaw and the wild, sexy hair and best of all, that dazzling, crooked smile. Since I got so serious yesterday for "D" and bragged up my daughters, I thought it only fair that today I let you in on my dirty little secret. I have a wicked crush on a fictional vampire. There, I said it, OUT LOUD. A few years ago I picked up this paperback with an apple on the cover and thought it was a fun story right from the start. But when HE said, "I'm tired of trying to stay away from you." My heart nearly stopped. Little 17 year old Nancy, who had long lay dormant under thousands of loads of laundry, and cases and cases of diapers, and whole trees worth of grocery lists, popped her head out and said, "Oh my."

Now I consider myself somewhat mature and intelligent. I am well aware that the above paragraph falls under embarrassingly pathetic. But here's the thing. I really can't find it in myself to care all that much. We all need our little moments of escape from the drudgery of daily life. Do I mock Matt when he gets up at 4am to hike up a mountain and butcher innocent animals? Yes, yes I do. But my point is: His little escape makes him happy so who am I to judge?

My mother gets me. Probably because she had to expertly guide little 17 year old Nancy through those boy-crazed years way back when. So she recognized the gleam in my eye for what it was. And that is why last year on my birthday, my wonderful mom gave me my very own Edward. Usually, she gives me a book. So the shape of the package had me confused. But when I opened my present and saw my Edward, I was stunned. I looked at the mischievous glint in my mom's eyes and laughed. HARD! Because really if I can't laugh at myself I'm missing out on a great joke! My face went red as I looked around at my loved ones, all looking at me with equal parts confusion and pity. I didn't know if I was more embarrassed at the fact that she had given me Edward or that I was so happy that she did!

It's really quite perfect having Edward around the house. By day, he keeps the Barbies in the dollhouse entertained. And by night he watches over me as I sleep. And sometimes hums lullabies. But that's it, I swear...

D: Daughters

D is for daughters. When asked how many kids we have, Matt and I sometimes reply with a borrowed joke, "Five. And they are all boys except four." I have two older sisters as well, but grew up in the middle of four brothers and Matt has three brothers, no sisters. I don't think either of us really imagined when we started our family that in no time at all we would have a houseful of girls. And I also don't think that either of us could have guessed how much we would love our houseful of girls. The responsibility of raising these girls is overwhelming at times. Especially now as they get older and new challenges come their way. I certainly don't feel adequate. But I am so grateful for the trust that Heavenly Father has placed in me to be a mother to four of his choice daughters. They truly are a blessing in our lives.

In my daughter's eyes I am a hero
I am strong and wise and I know no fear
But the truth is plain to see
She was sent to rescue me
I see who I want to be
In my daughter's eyes

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Nicole is our tomboy. Born with 2 inches of thick, white hair and a very intense energy she was quickly dubbed "The White Tornado" by her Grandpa Bryan. She loves all things outdoors but her passion is and always has been horses, horses and more horses. She is in Young Women's now and last week we went to the General Young Women's Broadcast for the first time. It was wonderful! She was less than enthused about going, especially when she learned that she needed to wear a skirt. But she came around by the end of the broadcast. And when I informed her that it's a tradition to go for cheesecake afterwards, she really got on board! It was a testament to her personality that on the way to cheesecake, in our dresses, she talked me into stopping at the farm store "just to look at saddles for a minute".

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Corinne is our sweet and sensitive girl. And she is ALL girl. She loves pink and ribbons and clothes and talking! Matt says she is a "little Nancy". I'll take that compliment, thank you! She has a great sense of humor and a real talent for story telling. At school recently her teacher had all of the kids write a story. They turned in their rough drafts and then had to revise, revise, revise. Except Corinne. Her rough draft was accepted as her final draft. She has a very creative mind and knows just how to get it down on paper!

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Paige is our little adventurer. She lives for summer vacation and spends every second of it outside wandering the pasture, climbing trees, collecting bugs and getting a great tan! She's a very analytical mind--our little engineer. She thinks things through carefully and only when she's certain that she has something figured out will she proceed. She's our most independent, but also the first to miss me if I'm not home. She was blessed with her Grandma Pat's beautiful eyes, but everything else about her is uniquely Paige!

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Claire is our happy little "life of the party". There is nothing undeserving of her enthusiasm. And her energy is nearly limitless. I say nearly because she does have to sleep sometimes. But when she is awake, she has one speed! She also seems convinced that she is just as capable of doing anything that her older siblings--and even her parents--can do. Life is just so exciting to her and the smallest things make her happy. Last week I was cooking dinner and she said, "What you making, Mom?" I said, "Rice." And her reply: "OH YAY!! THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!"
These beautiful girls, who are growing up to be such beautiful young women, are EVERYTHING to me. And I am thankful everyday that they are ours!

C: Conference & Concerts

C is for Conference. I LOVE Conference weekend! Who doesn't?? A lovely, relaxing weekend with family. Listening to talks from our prophet and general authorities. It's just a very uplifting two days. I think my favorite talks were yesterday afternoon. Elder Richard G. Scott gave an absolutely beautiful talk about the wonderful blessing of being married. And then Lynn G. Robbins (I think?) gave a talk about parenting. His timing was PERFECT! Just before he spoke we had total nirvana going on in the house. The older kids were playing a game while listening to conference on the radio. I was across the room helping the younger kids with puzzles and Matt had sequestered himself in his den with a radio and his fly tying supplies. All of a sudden all hell broke loose. It was like a switch flipped! The kids started fighting and crying and wrecking and so naturally I started fighting and crying and wrecking. Then as I pause for a breath I hear Elder Robbins in the background say something to the effect of "when the kids are frustrating you, what is the proper response...?" It was enough to stop me in my tracks. So I decided to cut my losses and walk away. I grabbed a bucket of candy (absolutely a shameless bribe!) and the main culprits and went downstairs to the TV where I was able to listen to the rest of that marvelous talk in which I was taught that being blessed with less than perfect children is God's way of enrolling me in Parenting 505. And "I need these children as much as they need me." It hit home big time, let me tell you!

C is also for Concerts! Spring is here (sort of) which means Spring Orchestra Concerts. Nicole had hers on Wednesday last week and it was really fun. She's been playing violin for 4 years now and she's really enjoying it.

She performed a solo in this concert and did a great job. Her class decided to add some actions to her "up and down song", Gavotte:

And here is a video of part of one of the songs performed by the whole orchestra:

P.S. "C" can also stand for uConn. I picked them to go to the championship game. So thanks to their win the other night my bracket is not a complete bust yet, but more importantly I am ten points ahead of Matt and that's what really matters, right? Although I will be cheering for Butler tonight!