Shoulder Angel

Penny

Sophie: (addressing me one night at bedtime as I helped her put on her pajamas) Thanks, Penny.

Me: Did you just call me Penny?

Sophie: (in an informational tone) Yes. Penny is my imaginary friend. She's a peacock. She's invisible. She wears diapers. She doesn't like water.

My Birthday Events

My birthday was a calm day, which was lovely. Bryan worked from home so I was able to exercise and shower, both in the morning before I had done any chores or put anyone in timeout. Bonus: both happened without the house falling to pieces or the children being maimed in some kind of daredevil stunt that initially seems awesome but really isn't. That's a birthday gift right there.

Cooper used his favorite medium to wish me a happy birthday.

Cooper also employed his newfound culinary skill: he made pudding for breakfast. That's right, for my birthday breakfast, I enjoyed a combination of sugar-free vanilla pudding and sugar-free cheesecake pudding. I added banana slices, for kicks. He was quite pleased with himself.

Not to be outdone, Phoebe quickly built me a few birthday buildings.

I received some excellent gifts, including The Doctor Who Cookbook. It will go nicely on my shelf with the Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook and the Little House on the Prairie Cookbook. I also got a pretty Pioneer Woman Cookbook. I may have a cookbook addiction...

Cooper and Phoebe used their creative brains some more by crafting jewelry for me. Phoebe made a ring and Cooper made a very original bracelet.

For her gift, Sophie sang a beautiful birthday song to me and continued to wish me happy birthday throughout the day. And, in addition to making sure I didn't spend my day on housework, Bryan cooked a delicious steak and mashed potato dinner. Peter joined in on the singing as well as the birthday cake eating.

It was a good day.

Tell Me How You Really Feel

For our family book club this month we read a delightful little book called Parnassus on Wheels. The protagonist was Helen, a self-described middle-age woman, too old for adventure.

She was thirty-nine.

Today is my thirty-seventh birthday.

I feel neither middle-aged, nor too old for adventure. In fact, I think I've had quite a bit of adventure in the last few years and have no plans to retire from it. However, I recognize that I may not have a clear picture of myself and might seem older to others than I do to myself.

On Friday we watched a movie as a family that featured an actress just two years younger than me. It had been a few years since I'd seen her in anything and I was shocked at how much she had aged in the interim.

Bryan: Wow, she has not aged well.

Me: She's only a few years younger than me. Do I look that old?

And then, simultaneously, Bryan and Peter answered.

Bryan: No.

Peter: Yes

Happy birthday to me.

Out of Their Way

This past weekend, my brother Jordan and his wonderful fiancé Leah went camping with her family in the Poconos, about an hour and a half away from us. They detoured on their way home Sunday morning to join us for brunch and Sacrament Meeting. You can tell how much we enjoyed their visit by looking at the expression on Sophie's face. She is not pleased that they're about to drive the rest of the way home because she wants them to stay.

Thank you for driving out of your way to see us! We loved it!

A Snapshot of a Day

As part of our summer schedule we aim to get outside every single day. On Monday we left the house early to be at the library when it opened at nine. Except, when we got there, we were surprised to discover that our library doesn't open until ten. We could have sat in the parking, waiting, but since I knew thunderstorms were forecast for the afternoon, I decided we should take advantage of the unexpected bonus time and go outside.

We were on our way to a park when I realized that we were really close to our church building. I still wanted to be at the library when it opened, and therefore didn't have much time, so I changed direction and we headed for the big grassy field behind our meetinghouse. After a tour of the well-tended garden next to the field, the kids ran races. They were mostly good sports and kept running even when they lost. They ran in the humid air until their hair was sticky with sweat. They ran laughing and grinning and pushing themselves, each trying to be the first to reach my hands that marked the finish line.

It was a good morning.

Pizza Birthday

Bryan's actual birthday didn't have much fanfare other than messages on Facebook and birthday wishes from us. He had to work late, so we didn't get to celebrate. The next day he made time to open the gifts the kids had excitedly wrapped, including one that Cooper had packaged in at least eight layers of gift bags. The kids thought that was hilarious.

We decided to put off the partying until the weekend. When I asked Bryan what he wanted to do for his birthday dinner he said that what he really wanted was Chicago-style deep dish pizza. And so, we turned to Google.

Guess what? Not only did we find a deep dish recipe, we found THE deep dish recipe. Lou Malnati's was our favorite restaurant when we lived in Chicagoland. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, we found the actual recipe from that restaurant. My gift to you today is a link that culinary magic.

We used only cheese and pepperoni on the first pizza. You can see in the final picture that we baked it in our cast iron skillet. I only used half the crust recipe to fit the pan. We used slightly more than half the toppings called for. I also made the pizza sauce that we used.

It was amazing.

We made a second pizza with the rest of the crust, this time with cheese, pepperoni, and bell peppers. I would report on the quality, but we haven't eaten it yet. Instead we experimented and froze it. We'll check tomorrow to see if our experiment was successful.

Bryan doesn't like much of a fuss on his birthday, but he definitely loved this birthday meal.

Strike a Pose

Strawberries As Big As Your Head

Well, maybe not quite that big...

Father's Day in Primary

We had a low-key Father's Day, similar to our low-key Mother's Day. We enjoyed a good dinner and the kids gifted homemade cards and Primary-provided chocolate bars to Bryan.

One special happening was Sophie's first talk in Primary. She and I chatted a bit on Friday about her topic and put together this quick message. Bryan came to watch Sophie deliver it, then surprised me by jumping up and helping her at the podium. She was fearless. She spoke loud and clear and loved being at the microphone.

Here is the text to Sophie's first talk:

I love my Dad. I love playing outside with him and playing pets with him. He shows me love by playing with me and taking care of me when I'm sad or hurt. He gives me blessings when I need them.

I like the words to this song from the Children's Songbook:

My daddy is my favorite pal and I help him everyday

It's plain to see I want to be like him in every way.

He teaches me that honesty is best in all I do.

I'm very glad that he's my dad, and I know he loves me too.

I love my Dad and he loves me too. I say this in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

Acceptance Speech

I would like to take this moment to thank all my ancestors who had strong teeth. Thank you to my parents for passing those genes on to me. Thank you to my grandpa for becoming a dentist and thus ensuring my devotion to excellent oral hygiene.

What award was bequeathed upon me that prompted this speech? I went to the dentist today after an obscenely long absence. After the cleaning, the dentist and hygienist declared that I have beautiful, strong, healthy teeth that require nothing more than continued maintenance.

I don't get a lot of praise in my line of work, so I need to celebrate it when it comes.

Garden Explosion

We were gone for the weekend and suddenly all of our plants got taller!

"I Went to Cornell. Ever Heard of It?"*

About a week ago I realized that the upcoming Sunday was Stake Conference. That means that neither Bryan nor I had any teaching or calling responsibilities. A plan suddenly formed in my head. A few weeks ago, Bryan's sister Melinda and her family moved from Missouri to upstate New York. We'd been trying to find a time to see them and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. They agreed and we drove up on Friday afternoon.

The cousins had lots of fun playing with toys and laughing together.

Then, on Saturday, we walked around nearby Cornell University. Jake, Melinda's husband, knew his audience well and picked the perfect sights for us to see.

First, he took us to this small but beautiful library.

It was seriously cool. 

The kids kept squealing with delight that they felt like they were in Hogwarts.

In addition to being filled with books, it had a pretty amazing view.

After the library, we took a few minutes to rest and regroup.

A highlight of our visit was meeting this bright-eyed beauty. Emma is darling and so sweet.

After the library we climbed more than one hundred and fifty stairs to see the inside of this bell tower.

We had the good fortune of being at Cornell during reunion weekend. One of the festivities was a self-guided tour of the tower and a concert. It was an awesome experience to watch this huge instrument be played. Each song was a workout that required two skilled players.

Did you know that Cornell has a huge chasm running through it? We're talking five to six stories deep. I had no idea. Jake and Melinda took us to see one of the many waterfalls in the gorge.

We did not enter the water, though we saw people fishing and a handful of people in swimsuits.

We also didn't touch the rocks. This sign was on the far side of a chain divider. As we were leaving the gorge, we saw a woman climb over the fence to take a picture with this warning. The kids were all vocally alarmed by her choice.

 

Then we got back to the business of playing. I commented that Sophie's coloring fits with Melinda's kids more than mine. Sophie, Sam, and Emma all have the same shade of blond hair.

Nathan and Phoebe were nearly inseparable. Wherever Phoebe was, Nathan wanted to be. It was sweet to see these cousins become better friends.

As a lovely bonus to our fun weekend, we were able to celebrate Emma's first birthday.

Emma was a big fan of ripping tissue paper out of the gift bags.

 We drove home on Sunday afternoon, glad we had the visit, but happy to sleep in our own beds again.

Thanks Jake and Melinda for hosting and feeding our active and hungry bunch!

*Bonus points if you can name the source of the quote in the title. And no, bonus points cannot be redeemed for cash prizes.

Honesty Above All Else

Me: (with a slightly raised voice, calling to an out-of-sight Sophie) Sophie, what are you doing?

Sophie: (calling from another part of the house) I'm in the bathroom, doing something I don't want you to know about.

Deadpan

"Why are you smiling, Mom? Am I doing something amusing?"

She didn't actually says these words, she simply conveyed them through her expression.

Action Shot

Father Photo Shoot

Bryan spent some of our museum visit on Saturday to stage an impromptu photo shoot. Peter was moving too quickly and sticking with his friend, so he didn't sit long enough to join in on the fun. These were taken in a peaceful Chinese Garden Court.

The End of K, 3 and 5

We made it. School ended for the year yesterday. Phoebe chose to wear the same outfit she wore on the first day of Kindergarten. I remembered the outfit too. But without looking at pictures, I have no idea what the boys wore on that first day. I wonder why that is.

I'm happy to say that Phoebe, who was heartbroken about leaving her beloved Kindergarten teacher, was in good spirits when I picked her up at the end of the day. She got to meet her teacher for first grade, and now Phoebe is excited for the summer to zoom past so she can begin her next school adventure.

Shortly before bedtime on Monday night, the kids asked if I would make bread for their teachers for the next day. One batch usually makes four loaves, so I did a quick count: one for Phoebe's teacher, one for Cooper's teacher, two for Peter's two main subject teachers. Sure, I said, I can do that. Then, after I had started, Peter asked if I would make an extra loaf for another teacher that he works with daily. And then Phoebe asked if I would make a loaf for her bus driver as well. So I made a double batch.

I don't recommend going to sleep at two in the morning before the last day of school. You probably won't have all the energy or patience you need for your freshly freed children.

The bread was good though.

We spent our first afternoon of break going through each piece of schoolwork that the kids have been collecting all year. This is usually a project I do on my own as we prepare to move. But we're not moving this summer, and I didn't want to do this work by myself. Peter said we could throw it all away as far as he was concerned. Cooper wanted me to take pictures of every single piece of schoolwork, so we could have a record. Phoebe refused to throw away anything, each piece is a treasure.

At the end of the afternoon, we had filled one and a half trash bags with papers.

After all that work (and yes, it was definitely work), we finally cleared the great room enough to have a celebratory pizza and movie filled evening. 

The kids are all looking forward to waking up today, wondering what we have planned for summer.

I'm wondering the same thing...