Geek!

In our house being called a geek is the utmost compliment, geeks rule the world. So here are our two little geeks in training, our geeklings. Aren't these pictures hilarious? I have ninja costumes for Halloween (I bought them last October when they went on sale) But I am thinking we should ditch the ninjas and go geek, what do you think?

Please pray for her!

Dear friends, can you please do me a huge favor?  My good friend is close to losing her baby   (it would be her 5th in a row)  would you please pray extra hard for her even if you do not know her?  I so want to get her baby here safe and sound. Thank you!

Telling a 4 year old about 9-11

Today as I drove Glen home from school I realized that tomorrow is the 11th anniversary of September 11, 2001, a tragic day.  I want to teach my kids about 9-11, but I wasn't sure how.  So I asked for the advice of some good friends and come up with a plan.
First I am going to check out a book about 9-11 from the children's section.  Then I will sit down and read it to my kids or tell them about the pictures in an age appropriate manner.  I will tell them about that day basically like this:  "One morning some bad guys stole planes and crashed them into buildings and killed people because they didn't like America.  And some firefighters were trying to help and they died, that is what fire fighters do right?  They try to save people.  And then America went to war with the country that sent the bad guys to protect us.  Heavenly Father tells us it's ok to go to war if we are protecting our families,  our lives or our freedoms, and that is what the army does.  That is why they are so important and they are heroes, and so are the fire fighters and policemen that helped out the hurt people."
Benjamin is not yet 3 and probably wont get much of what I say, and maybe Glen won't either, but I really want them to know and understand.  My hope is that telling my kids about hard things in a place where they feel safe and loved will be easier then keeping it from them until they are older, when some people say they are ready.  I think that the earlier kids know about hard stuff and how to cope with it the better they will be bale to cope with hard things when they are older.  I think that right now they will cope on one level and next year when thy are a little more matured their understanding of events will have matured, but so will their ability to cope.  I also think that there is an answer to every question no matter how small a child is.  When Glen asked where babies come from at 3 I didn't give him the birds and the bees talk, I told him Heavenly Father sends them to mommies and daddies.  Now that he is older and I am pregnant he understands that babies come from mommies tummy.  You get the picture.  His understanding now is different then it will be when he is 13, but he still needs to understand at a certain level.
It is important to me that my children are not kept from hard things.  Hard things like death, bullies, bad guys, and pain are a part of life.  They are a part of life now, not just when my kids are older.  So why not bring up the hard stuff in a safe place where they can learn that even though life is hard, home is safe and Heavenly Father will protect them.  As in all that I do as a mother I try to follow the spirit and teach them in a way that would please my Father in Heaven.  I want them to learn to rely on him in all they do.  When grandma's dog died, when Great Grandma died, when friends don't want to play, bad dreams wake them up, in everything I know they can rely on God and I am trying to teach them this, even if it means talking about tough stuff.

So Blessed

Today during church as I tried to get two little, energy filled boys to sit still and be reverent instead of playing, laughing, or running up to daddy who was helping pass the sacrament I started to feel a little frazzled.  I mean that tough stuff.  But at some point they both calmed down and sat quietly next to me, one on each side.  As I sat there holding my boys I suddenly felt so full of love, so very blessed.  I felt like my blessing were overflowing.  Maybe it's because they were finally settled down and quiet, maybe it was the spirit of the meeting, or maybe it was Heavenly Father reminding me to slow down and enjoy them.  Maybe it was all of it.
And so I sat there and just enjoyed the moment.  Lately I have been so busy, running form one place tot he next.  Trying to can, get Glen to school, keep the house clean, have good quality learning time with both kids, bake, serve,...the list is endless really.  I just wanted to enjoy this moment.  I wanted to hug them and kiss their heads and just enjoy how blessed I am.  With one boy on each side and a little one in the middle (sort of :) I just wanted to enjoy it, so I did.  And then it was back to tying to keep the calm and quiet.
Well, as I sat here a minute ago thinking of all the things I have to do tomorrow, finish canning the peaches, clean the house, take Glen to and from school, learning time, make dinner for my neighbor, and finish decorating the cupcakes..I'm sure there is more, I realized I just can't do it all.  I have been so busy that I have not taken the time to enjoy my life, my sweet boys, or see how blessed I am.  I prioritized, and I hope I did it right.  Some things are good, and some things are better.  I have to make sure I have not filled my time with so many good things that I am leaving out the best things.  With soccer starting soon that is one more thing, then a new baby, then I need to start volunteering in Glen's class.  Some of these things are going to have to take a back seat so I can enjoy my life and my boys.  I realized I have stopped reading them stories and playing with them.  How could I let that happen, how could I let myself get so busy that I stopped giving them the time and attention they need?
I am so grateful for that moment in church today when Heavenly Father reminded me to slow down and take the time to love them.  Formal learning time has taken a back seat, but at least now I will have time to teach them about love, and service, and the Spirit.  I truly am so blessed, and I do not want to be so busy that I fail to see all my blessings, especially my two biggest little blessings.  My sweet boys.

Challa!

 Here is the thing, bread is kind of my worst enemy. We are becoming friends, but there are a lot of problems to get over first.  We are getting there, and some day, we will be best friends.  Right now I have made friends with Baguettes, french bread, and now challah.  What is challah?  Well first off I think it's most popular as a Jewish bread.  The straight Challah, below, is eaten year 'round, mostly on the Jewish Sabbath.  The round challah over there has raisins added to it and is mostly eaten on New Years and other special holidays.  It's also know as egg bread because it uses so many eggs, and also has an egg wash over the top for a thin crunchy crust. However, I came across challah in my search for Polish food that didn't involve meat or blood pudding.  :P
My ward was putting on a party where we were supposed to dress in clothes of our heritage, and bring traditional native foods.  As I started thinking of what to make I was trying to decide between Polish food and Jewish food.  My ancestors are Polish Jews, see?  I decided on Polish since I haven't ever made any polish food before, but I have done Jewish food.  All the recipes I found had tons of grease, and meat, and blood.  :P  I'm not vegan or anything, but blood pudding just makes me sick to think about, and making sausage for a large group, like 40-50 people, would be a lot of money.  Then I wound this bread and thought it looked fun.  As I researched the bread I found out it's a Jewish tradition and there you go, perfect, a Polish, Jewish bread.  It took me most of the day to make, mostly because I had so many other things happen, a few emergencies here and there and the bread was put in the fridge til I could get to it again.  The recipe I found on http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2008/09/best-challah-egg-bread/ had really great directions for making the bread, but I was super confused about the braiding part, I've never been good at braiding, so I made up my own braid.  I think it turned out pretty well.
I had TONS of compliments on the bread.  It really is a very pretty bread, it's not too hard to make and it only takes about 3-4 hours, as long as you don't have emergencies to take care of.  :)  The taste was also excellent!  It even passes the picky little brother test.  :)  Give it a try if your feeling adventurous, you will be glad you did.

Glen's first day of school

Glen's "excited for school" dance

 Glen has wanted to go to school for over a year now.  It was the only thing that got him potty trained.  He just didn't want to do it, wearing diapers was convenient for him and he didn't mind, but when I told him he couldn't go to school unless he was potty trained he did it.  That very day he decided he was going to be potty trained and there was no looking back.  It still took a few weeks, but potty training is so much easier when the kids actually want to do it.  Anyway, since I had promised him he could go we signed him up for pre-school.  I've had some people give me grief over this decision, because once you have kids it's the whole worlds job to tell you how to parent, right?  :)  But all that put aside we decided it was good for Glen to go.  We knew he likely would not learn much academically, but he needs friends.  He is such a social child.  Benjamin is content to play on his own, but Glen NEEDS playmates, so we sent him for friends.  But we also sent him so he could learn important skills like working with a group, following instructions from other adults, and all that fun stuff that kids secretly learn in school.
We met Glen's teachers on Wednesday, and his first day was on Thursday.  Embarrassingly I had been told the wrong time and so I picked Glen up 1/2 hour late Thursday.  Can I please have my parent of the year award now?  I was early on Friday and Glen was so mad that he did not get to stay late again like he did his first day and told me he "would appreciate it" if I would not pick him up so early next time. Hehe  He is having so much fun, making a lot of friends, and he loves his teachers.  There were no tears on either side, I had mourned earlier.  :)  Besides, how could I be sad seeing how excited he was and how much fun he was having?  Benjamin is sad he doesn't get to go to school.  We are working on making it a special time for him to have Glen in school, just you and me time.  And next year it will be Benjamin's turn, and I will have just you and me time with this new little one.  Sometimes I feel sad seeing them grow up so fast, it makes me want to sry, but most of the time I am too busy being proud and amazed to feel sad.