Keeping Up With the Joneses

I just want to document a few funny things about the kids before I forget: * TMI but. . .last week Myles had eaten a lot of something that made his uh-hum-- bowel movements green. He was in the bathroom and said "my poop is green and it isn't even St. Patrick's Day. Nothing ever works out for me." * A few days ago Mason was watching a movie we had recorded off of the tv. He ran upstairs with a paper and said that one of the commercials said "does your kid whine about going to school? If so, write down this number" so he paused the tv and wrote down the number for us. Later we saw the commercial again and it was for a home school program. * Mason was a little jealous that I made all those Kirbys for Myles, and so he wants me to make him some puffles . He wrote down all the colors he wants and then was a little worried about what to do about the hair. About 10 PM last night he called for me and said he couldn't sleep because he had been thinking about...

Last month when Myles told me that he wanted a Kirby party for his birthday I tried everything I could to change his mind. I suggested Star Wars, Batman, and even a Mario Party.  But nope, Myles knows what he wants. There are absolutely no Kirby party supplies out there, so I had to be a little creative. The biggest thing Myles insisted on was that EVERYTHING had to be pink. He wanted pink balloons, pink tables, pink cake, and pink food. When I was checking out with the pink balloons and tablecloths at Walmart the clerk said "oh, are you having a party for your little boy?" and was pretty surprised when I said "nope, for my little boy." Meet Kirby. We used this picture and a picture of Myles playing his DS to create a cute PINK invitation. When we went to Delta a few weeks ago Myles' cousins were sewing these little Kirby dolls. I made 12 of them to go in the party guests treat bags along with pink bubbles. The toughest task was Myles insistance...

We are trying to take advantage of spring break and the great weather (83 degrees today!) and so this afternoon I took the kids to the Thanksgiving Point Farm. It was a blast and I realized how different my kids are from me--they really are animal people! I only took a few pictures because every time I took my eyes off the boys one of them would be wandering away. Aside from feeding the animals in these pictures, they were in love with the "three little pigs" and Max bent down and said "build brick house." They also got to milk a cow and go on a wagon ride. But by the time we got in line for the pony rides poor little Mason was rubbing his bright red eyes and sneezing like crazy. We tried just washing his face and hands, but it was obvious the allergies weren't going to get better so we went home. Luckily I bought season passes and next time we come we will be sure to remember the allergy medicine! Myles was much more brave this year and loved letting the go...

Saturday we had Marshall's brother's families over for a few little activities and dinner. Max was totally into it, and the bigger kids were great and kept hiding their eggs because they loved helping the little kids find them. Myles was much more into the hunt when he realized that there was candy in the eggs. Dinner with the Jones family. I wasn't planning on having the kids decorate eggs since we had already done it, but I was surprised when the older cousins really wanted to and were sad I wasn't planning on it. So I quickly boiled some eggs and they had a good time. Mason was so excited for the Easter Bunny that I found him asleep on his chair in his doorway when I went to bed. He was hoping to get a peak! Max was so cute. When Mason went in to wake him up at 630 AM he said "no! I'm tired. I need to sleep more!" and rolled over and went back to sleep. He said the same thing when I tried to get him. So we let him sleep and abo...

Last week Marshall's mom took Myles and Max for a few days. They had a blast "helping" grandpa finish cement on one of his jobs. While they were gone I got a ton of yard work done--weeded the flower beds and spread 13 huge bags of mulch. Only another dozen to go! Myles gave it a try. Max was a natural. While I was at work, our awesome babysitter did some Easter activities with the remaining boys (Mason, her son, and my friend's son). The rest of the day Mason couldn't stop shaking his butt for people.

Grandma's Cake For as long as I remember, my Grandma Milne has been making this amazing delight. It is an angel food cake with the most fluffy, minty, sweet, delicious pink icing I have ever tasted. Just about every time I come to visit, she makes her "pink cake" for me. I used to think the very best part of this cake is that the icing flows into the middle, and if you are the first to get to it, there is a delicious spoonful of frosting waiting for you. However, I think I have discovered an even better part of the cake, and it is the legacy it represents. I would guess that there are very few people in my grandma's ward or small town that haven't at one time or another been recipients of either this cake or her equally delicious German chocolate cake. Last summer Grandma gave me her square angel food cake pan that has baked so many of her delicious cakes. This weekend I finally got up the nerve to try to replicate her cake and I am pleased to say it t...

I've never been much of an April Fools Day fan, but it turns out it is much more fun when you are the one doing the fooling! So we had a fun little April Fools Lunch today. Yes, we are still in our pjs. First I told the kids that if they ate 5 bites of their grilled cheese sandwiches they could have a cupcake for dessert. Grilled Cheese Sandwich. . .Or is it? Actually it is toasted angel food cake with orange frosting. Mason took a bite and made a funny face. And then threw it back on his plate. Myles took a closer look and decided it looked safe enough. Took a bite. And made a funny face. Mac eagerly devoured it and thought it was delicious. They thought they were in for a treat when I told them they could have a cupcake. I think Myles was on to me because he ran away and said he wasn't hungry. Meatloaf cupcake with whipped potatoes "frosting." Mason wanted Max to try it first, which he eagerly did. After all, the "gr...