More photos from Rocky Point....

Mary had such a blast hanging out with cousin Perry, even though she is almost 6 years older than Mary. She is such a good pal!

We forgot to bring our kite with us (even though I put it on my packing list). Jay asked another guy on the beach where he got his, in case there was somewhere nearby we could buy one. Later, the guy brought his kite over to Jay and said, "We aren't using this right now. Would you like to use it for a while?" What a nice guy!

I couldn't resist including this photo of Mary and her namesake, my Mom a.k.a. "Grandma Mary." She is rarely included in photos because she is usually the photographer. I suppose that is partly the reason I'm not in very many photos, but the main reason is that I... well, let's just say I'm not thrilled about the way I look. On the other hand, my mom (who has the grandkids convinced that she is "29 and holding") looks fabulous! Can you believe she gave birth to 11 children??? She is the most amazing woman in the world! (And not just because she is looks so good.)

Organic

This video totally cracked me up.

Vacation Reading

During my vacation I read The Host by Stephenie Meyer. It was pretty good. Not fabulous, but entertaining, and actually pretty thought provoking. I have no idea whether the author intended to include any symbolism, but it was hard not to read those things into it when you know the author's religious beliefs. The story is really about what it means to be human. My mom and I had fun discussing it.Next I read These is My Words by Nancy Turner. I loved it! I highly recommend it. It's exciting and romantic, and clean. It's written in diary form, and the character is uneducated (hence the title) so it took a little getting used to, but once I did I was totally into the story. I was excited to find out there are two sequels.

Beach Vacation

We spent a fabulous week at the Mayan Palace Resort in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, courtesy of my parents, who were there with us, along with my brother and his wife and their four children. We had a "houseful" in a two-bedroom suite, but it was a blast.

The resort was great... away from town so it was very private and quiet. The beach was gorgeous, and the weather and the water were perfect. It was very nice and relaxing. I'm not what most people would call "tan" but I do have an actual "tan line," which is a big deal for me!

THANK YOU FOR A GREAT TIME MOM AND DAD!!!!!

FUNNY MOMENTS:
- Jay trying to communicate with the non-English speaking maid who he thought had stolen his wallet
- the look of terror on the kids' faces when they realized they would be attending Primary without understanding a word that was spoken (they were troupers, and it was a good experience for them to realize that the church is the same everywhere in the world, even if they are speaking a different language)

HIGHLIGHTS:
- a wonderful massage at the resort spa
- evening walks on the beach
- delicious fish and shrimp tacos at a taco stand in town
- fun (and free!) activities for the kids hosted by the resort
- yummy half-price tropical drinks (virgin, of course) at the pool bar during happy hour
- collecting shells
- the kids enjoying their cousins and making friends
- not wearing makeup or blow-drying my hair for a week
- watching the kids thoroughly enjoy themselves
- laying around all day by the pool.... long enough to read 2 novels cover to cover!

LOW-LIGHTS:
- almost turning back to go home on the drive there, when we encountered a fatal traffic accident, for fear we wouldn't be able to cross the border before they closed at midnight (the traffic was backed up for at least 10 miles, and the road was closed for a total of 6 hours... fortunately our delay was only about 2 hours)
- having to leave to go home at the end of our trip

(click on photos for a larger version)

The whole gang gobbled up a lot of tasty tacos in Puerto Penasco.


Mary and Jack got a kick out of the parrot at the taco stand....


... and Jack liked the funny sculpture out front.


Mary loved the beach....
... and building sand castles.
Jack had a blast at the beach........ and the pool....... and spent some time relaxing too.
Jack also made a little friend, who conveniently had an extra water cannon.

Collin (far right) had a great time playing with his cousin, Penn (next to Collin), and made some friends too.

We didn't see much of him... he was having too much fun!


The finished product of one of the craft activities


Mary and Jack crashed after a day of excitement.





Jay took the older boys into town one afternoon and bought luchadora masks for all the kids.

Ahhhhhhhh......

We are off to spend a relaxing week on the beach!

Lost Love

I stayed up very late last night to finish reading the novel The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen. Even though I knew how it would end, I couldn't put it down. And even though I knew how it would end, I cried.

The book should probably be classified as a historical novel since a great deal of the book is factual. She writes in the voice of Jane Austen, which makes it a great read, but she fabricated a love story that will captivate anyone who claims to be an Austen fan.

It would make a great movie... much better than the mediocre "Becoming Jane." It would make a great companion piece to the excellent Masterpiece production "Miss Austen Regrets" on PBS.

Summer Routine

A few weeks before school let out, I started dreading the long hot summer during which my kids would inevitably drive me (and each other) crazy in their boredom. So, I decided to create a routine to not only keep our days interesting, but productive as well. (Mainly because I read this excellent book recently and have determined to follow it's advice.)

So, I put together a plan. My kids have been so excited about it. They take it all very seriously and they have been really amazing with it. It is cute that they love it so much. (I was kind of surprised... I thought they would complain.) I keep each activity pretty short so that they don't get tired of it.

Here is our daily routine (times are approximate):

8:00 - Personal Scripture Study
Collin and Mary read on their own and I read to Jack from "Book of Mormon Stories."

8:15 - Exercise
This means we take turns leading a short session of stretching and cardio.... it's pretty hard to not laugh when it's Jack's turn, but they all take it very seriously and love it.

8:30 - Chores
These are simple daily chores... make bed, clean up room, plus one additional chore like wiping the bathroom counter or picking up in the family room.... not the more extensive "Saturday Chores".

9:00 - Mommy School
The kids came up with that name. This is just to keep them from forgetting everything over the summer. We review something different every day.

Monday: skip counting/times tables
Tuesday: phonograms and penmanship
Wednesday: addition/subtraction flashcards
Thursday: miscellaneous math worksheets
Friday: Cubs Scouts (I know it's not school, but I want Collin to do a lot of the achievements this summer, and most of it is fun stuff that Mary and Jack can do too. Besides, Friday should be more fun.)

9:30 - Skills Training
We are learning a different kind of skill each day of the week.

Monday: Laundry (sorting, washing, folding, etc.... ironing is too advanced for them)
Tuesday: Cooking (we are working on bread, cookies, cake, sandwiches, oatmeal, eggs, and muffins)
Wednesday: Cleaning (how to do it RIGHT: toilets, dusting, vacuuming, mirrors, windows, etc.)
Thursday: Art (I'm not very good at this, so mostly crafts... which I'm not very good at either)
Friday: miscellaneous

10:00 - Music
Piano practice and music theory

10:30 - Reading
Sustained silent reading (I read to Jack). Sometimes this gets postponed until the afternoon when they are bored and we need some quiet time.

By 11:00 we are ready to hop into the pool. (Yes, it's just as good as last year.)

What are you doing this summer?

Called to Serve

Just before I gave birth to my first child (over 9 years ago), I was released from my church calling as the Primary chorister. When I returned to church after a month or so, I was called to be the Relief Society pianist; nice and easy for a new mother.

After performing in that calling for just a few weeks, we went on vacation. Our intent was to drive to Utah to visit Jay's grandmother. We didn't make it. On the way we were involved in a pretty serious car accident. I spent the next month in the hospital, and the following 6 months in a wheelchair/learning to walk again. So, of course I was released as the R.S. pianist.

When I finally got back into the swing of things, I was called to be the ward choir director. Shortly after that I was called to serve in the nursery as well. Just before I had my second child, I was released from the nursery, but continued to serve as the choir director until child #2 was about 10 months old, when I was called as a counselor in the Primary Presidency.

At the end of two years in the presidency, my third child was barely 3 months old. The Primary President's husband had been called to serve in the bishopric, so I knew we were getting released. I thought to myself, "Well, since I have a new baby, they will probably call me to something easy, like Relief Society Pianist."

Ha.

No. Instead, to my utter shock, I was called to be the Primary President.

Four years later (with no baby, not even a toddler), I was expecting to be released at any time. This week was finally it. There is no place I would rather serve than in Primary, and the calling I was really hoping for was Primary Teacher.

Nope. I almost laughed when the bishop said, "We would like you to serve as the Relief Society Pianist."

I am sad to leave Primary because I love it so much, but I guess there must be something I'm supposed to learn as the Relief Society Pianist.

(But I still hope I will be back in Primary again before long.)

Driving Skills

I love the conversations that I have with Jack (4) in the car when it's just the two of us. We have had some truly great ones.

Here is how one went recently:


Jack: Mom, bald people can't drive cars.

Me: Oh really? Why not?

Jack: (a sigh that surely included an eye-roll which I couldn't see) Because they can't see! They would crash!

Me: Oh, I think you mean BLIND people.

Jack: What does "blind" mean?

Me: It means you can't see.

Jack: Oh. What does "bald" mean?

Me: It means you don't have any hair on your head.

Jack: (incredulously) What??? (pause) Oh. (pause) So, can bald people drive cars?

Me: Yes.

Jack: So, what do you call it when you can't see?

Me: Blind.

Jack: Oh yeah. Blind.

(pause)

Jack: Well, when a blind man goes to work he goes with a dog. The dog knows where to go.

Me: Yes, that's right.

Jack: But then he doesn't know where he his home is so he has to stay home.

Me: Hm. (huh?)

Kids and TV

My parents were pretty strict about TV viewing when I was growing up. The TV (and I do mean "The TV"... it was the only one in the house) was housed in the basement, but the power was controlled by a switch upstairs in the kitchen. It was a crummy TV too; small and not very good reception. Most of the TV watching I did as a kid was at the homes of friends. (Yes, even "The Wallace and Ladmo Show.")

It drove me crazy at the time, but today I am very grateful that my parents were so strict about it. I have had some shocked responses to the fact that my kids are not allowed to watch television. Yes, it's true.... even PBS. Some have asked how we do it. Here is the scoop.

We have had the no TV policy for many years. When Collin (our first child) was about 2 years old, we started letting him watch PBS... things like "Teletubbies" and "Barney." But that didn't last long because I soon noticed there were some other shows on PBS they we didn't approve of ("Arthur" for one) so we just decided to quit it completely.

On our old TV, we simply deleted all of the channels from the remote control, meaning you had to punch the number in manually... otherwise there was nothing but the channel for watching movies... and we kept the remote in our closet and only got it out after the kids were in bed and Jay and I wanted to watch it. The kids never knew the difference.

Our new TV works differently, but all we had to do was program it so that all the channels (yes, even PBS) and all TV ratings are blocked unless you have the PIN, which the kids don't. They don't even ask to watch TV.... they are just used to it. Mary and Jack have never even watched PBS, and Collin was so young that he doesn't even remember watching it.

I always knew I didn't want my kids to watch commercial television (and not just because of the commercials) but I realized there was a problem with the concept of television itself.... there is always something on. (That's the problem I have with cable TV too.... too many options.) After one show is over, another one comes on, and another and another, and before you know it the child has watched it for hours and hours. A video or DVD has an end. Videos were even better because they had to be rewound before you could watch it again, where as DVD's can start over instantly. But thankfully my kids are beyond that stage where they want to watch something over and over and over and over in the same day.

During the school year, my older kids rarely even watch DVD's... they just don't have time. Sometimes Jack will watch a movie in the afternoon when there is no one else to play with and I'm working on something, or he is just exhausted and needs some down time (since he's kind of old for a nap).

During the summer they seem to watch a few more movies because it's so hot (and we don't have a video game system either, but that's another story), so they will put on an movie on a summer afternoon when they don't have anything else to do. But again, it's just one movie, and kids movies are usually less than 90 minutes, and I'm fine with that.

We have mostly Disney ones (including those great old ones like Pollyanna, Swiss Family Robinson, Darby O'Gill, and Mary Poppins, which are closer to 2 hours). We do own the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies, but the kids are not allowed to watch them except (on rare occasions) with Mom and Dad (those are high up on our closet shelf) and absolutely no PG-13.

Obviously, it would be harder to institute this kind of rule in your home if your children are already used to watching TV. I'm very grateful that I started early. But if you really want to do it, you can make it happen... you will just have to be vigilant. Or you could do what Jay's parents did when he was a kid.... throw out the TV or give it away. Good luck.

The Wholesome "Bean"

Jay and I have a few TV shows that we enjoy watching together, but our children are not allowed to watch TV, period, which they don't, unless it's at a friend's house. (We don't have cable TV.) However, they are allowed to watch G-rated children's movies, of which we own plenty.... probably too many.

(Note: I despise PG-rated kids' movies. I would rather have my children see a PG movie that isn't for little kids, like "Star Wars" or "Raiders of the Lost Ark" than the ones made for kids, which always seem to contain an excessive amount of toilet humor, rude behavior, and back-talking children. ARGHHH!)

With the exception of the Pixar movies, which are great, there aren't really any that Jay and I would want to sit down and watch with the kids. But we have recently discovered that our children love to watch something that Jay and I enjoy just as much.

Mr. Bean.

If you haven't been introduced the joys of "Mr. Bean," then go to youtube and watch any (or all) of the clips of Mr. Bean episodes. You can't help laughing. And your kids will too. You gotta love anything that's funny and clean and that the whole family can watch together.
We purchased this DVD set, "The Whole Bean." We also enjoyed "Mr. Bean's Holiday" which I will probably purchase in the near future (only buy books and DVD's from Half.com... way cheaper!). By the way, don't bother with the "Mr. Bean Animated Series." It's just not that funny. You have to see Rowan Atkinson doing his stuff.

Time for a break

May has been a busy month (does that justify my negligence in blogging?), but now that it's almost over, it's time for me to catch up on other stuff, like this blog. So, here is the month in review.

Collin decided to celebrate his 9th birthday at the Arizona Science Center with a few friends (which is appropriate since Collin frequently insists that he will be a scientist when he grows up). They had a good time.

One of the things that has been keeping me really busy this year has been the music classes I have been teaching.... 2 preschool classes (Jack), and a musical theatre performance group for school age children (Collin and Mary). I only agreed to do it because my own children would be involved. The preschool classes are fun and pretty low-stress. However, the performing group has been a lot of work, and quite stressful. But fun too! We did a performance in December, and did our second one a couple of weeks ago. It was called "Broadway Dreams" and I think it turned out pretty good. I was really worried that it wouldn't come together in the end, but the kids worked hard and did a great job.

Jack finished his first year of preschool (one more to go, and then kindergarten... yikes!) and they did a little program for the parents on the last day. It was really cute. Here he is with his wonderful teacher. Mary had her dance recital this weekend. She did really well. (Here she is with her cousin backstage.) This was her first year at this studio, and I was really impressed with the quality! The recital was fantastic!

Here is a video of Mary's ballet dance. She is on the far right in the beginning, the one experiencing the wardrobe malfunction. (The video is compressed so it's not great quality.)

Other things that happened this month that I don't have photos of:

- Mary received the "Excellent PE Student" award for the entire 1st grade (I know, kind of random)
- Collin finished his 3rd season playing coach pitch baseball
- We attended 2 family parties in the same weekend
- I enjoyed a nice Mother's Day with my family (it was especially nice and relaxing because it was the day after the big show, and I didn't have to attend any early morning meetings so I got to sleep in a little)
- Jay and I celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary by escaping for a weekend to the Mondrian in Scottsdale. We felt really old and "un-hip" surrounded by all the gorgeous 20-somethings. But it was nice to get away. We also enjoyed (finally) eating at La Grande Orange for dinner (YUM!!!), and at The Orange Table (service is very slow but the food is good) for breakfast the next day (yes, Arizona... especially Scottsdale... certainly has the citrus theme going). And when they found out we were celebrating our anniversary, the resort manager gave us a certificate for a free dessert in their restaurant, which was thoughtful.

The kids are excited to be out of school for the summer. I'm excited about having a less hectic routine.... I hope.

My "Charity" roses are blooming, just in time for Charity's birthday this week. My sweet peas are blooming like crazy too.
Not to mention all the other roses, jasmine, orange blossoms and various other flowers. Yes, my yard smells pretty fantastic.

Ladmo Bag

OK. Since I guess there are some people who read my blog who wonder about a Ladmo Bag, I will give you the scoop.

In the early days of "The Wallace and Ladmo Show" they would draw names of children who sent in their name and phone number, and they would get to choose a prize from the "toy wall." But this was live T.V. and it took a really long time for some of the children to decide. So, they got the idea to throw a bunch of junk from their sponsors into a paper sack and just give them that instead.

Everyday there would be 2 or 3 children from the studio audience who would receive a Ladmo Bag, chosen randomly from the seating chart. It always contained the same kind of coveted junk. Jay actually made a list of what was in his:

- Red Vines
- Cheetos
- Doritos
- Lay's potato chips
- peanut butter crackers
- Pixy Stix
- Twinkie
- Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
- Barg's Rootbeer
- Laffy Taffy rope
- Oreos
- Cheez-its
- Butterfinger
- Zinger
- signed photo of Wallace, Ladmo, and Gerald
- certificate for popcorn at Harkins Theatres
- admission to Mesa Historical Museum (where there is a "Wallace and Ladmo" exhibit)

And now you know.

Ho Ho Ha Ha Hee Hee Ha Ha.....

We had a very "entertaining" weekend. Friday night, Jay took the boys camping (Fathers-and-Sons outing), while Mary and I went to a "Family Fun Night" at the school to watch the amazing Craig Davis perform. (Way more fun than camping!) That was my 4th time seeing him perform, and I was just as blown-away as the first time. He combines comedy, magic, and juggling. He is very entertaining. For any of you who live in the area, if you ever have a chance to see him perform, take it! It's a lot of fun. My boys were so sad they missed it, but they had a great time with their dad.

Then on Saturday night Jay and I went to see The Citrus Valley Playhouse put on their "Tribute to the Wallace and Ladmo Show."* It was so much fun! And Jay won a Ladmo Bag! (Finally! He has been griping about that for years! I won one at a book signing a few years ago.) Please post a comment if you are the proud owner of a Ladmo Bag, or if you live with a nagging feeling that you will never be completely fulfilled because you never won one. (I'm truly sorry for you.)I guess you could call CVP the Arizona version of "A Prairie Home Companion"... except that it's way funnier, even if you aren't from Arizona. If you ever have the chance to see them perform, GO! I love this promo for the show. (This is for you Jen!)

* If you have never heard of "Wallace and Ladmo" then you obviously didn't live in Arizona anytime between 1954 and 1989. (Poor you!) It was the longest running children's television show in America. And it was like no other children's show. There has been nothing like it before or since.