Tea with the Queen

By Royal Decree Kate and Brynn were crowned "princesses" yesterday by this lovely Queen with a lovely name like my own. We had a very fun event yesterday for the Liberty Girls, Knights of Freedom, and Little Women in the area and their mothers. We called it "Tea with the Queen." The kids learned about Etiquette and good manners and that what you do and say reflects your heart on the inside. The Young Men were knighted as Sirs for different virtues in a very teary ceremony and the girls each were crowned princesses. Then we feasted on a chocolate fountain with the works. (These are the fun things we do while everyone else is in school.)

With their new titles comes a whole slew of responsibilities such as being kind, courteous, respectful, and not chewing with their mouths open. I hope Kate and Brynn can live up to them at least until dinner tonight.

Randomness

I like this tag because I can talk about myself and in totally random ways!

1. I have a deep down desire to go to Medical School but I'm not sure I have the time or the brains to do it.

2. My perfect church calling would be Ward Music Leader--no talking, just music that I get to choose.

3. I could really use a housecleaner once a week. I'm not exactly on top of things.

4. If I want to be active I like tennis, skiing, yoga, running (after I'm done) and if I wanted a REALLY good time it would be any water activity--like boating or sea-do-ing. BTW I haven't done sea-doing or skiing in like 10 years...waaahhh. Oh and horseback riding...

5. The beach is my heaven. I love walking in the sand right where the waves lap up, I love collecting shells, boogie boarding, or just watching the waves. I never want to leave it and when I'm not on it I like to surround myself with things that remind me of it. I don't know why I live in the middle of UT.

6. If there is any sort of cultural event/musical performance/art exhibit/ or play in town I am so there.

7. I really disagree with all the handshaking at church. Hello, it's flu season?

8. One of the best investments I ever made was a professional "bra fitting" at Dillards. I recommend it to every woman.

9. I LOVE travel and my travel bug especially acts up around Spring.

10. I love a good sense of humor and Brandon has one of the best. He's always making me laugh.

11. Music is one of my passions. I'd make a great American Idol judge and a lousy contestant.

12. Black widows absolutely haunt me and for some reason our part of town is plagued with them....ewwwwww.

13. I would like to adopt a Latino lifestyle: main meal at 2pm followed by siesta. Latin dancing on the weekends.

14. Actually I am fascinated by all cultures. I would like to learn how other people in the world live and adopt what I like best of each. Who has the best food? How about the comfiest seating? Who's got the best language? The best ice cream? (Spain)

15. I want to learn everything and go everywhere and there is just not enough time to do it.

16. I LOVE new clothes. Shopping for them online or in-stores is way too fun.

17. I really want a good set of knives and a memory foam mattress topper but I can't seem to bring myself to buy them.

18. Sleeping in my down comforter and flannel sheets and down pillow makes me feel like a Queen. (Brandon bought those)

19. I am the Liberty Girls Leader in our area. I have fun thinking of crafts and treats and activities the 6-10 year old girls can do to learn about American History. (We use the American Girl series)

20. Some of the greatest inventions to me are toilet paper, toilet, iPod, internet, Motrin, washer/dryer, showers, lotion, chapstick, peanut butter (especially in the form of Reese's)

21. My parents owned a gourmet chocolate store when I was little. I had free reign of the place. (that's why my taste buds are so mature and why I have so many cavities.)

22. I really dread getting up in front of people to speak.

23.My future dream job would be to work in a Birthing Center for Spanish speaking women. one-3 months out of the year I would travel to Spanish-speaking countries to deliver babies and improve healthcare overall. I'd travel anywhere actually. The U.S. could probably use some help too.

24. My worst job would be dentist/or hygienist. Anything that has to do with teeth and saliva grosses me out intensely. I know... ironically the blood and guts of the medical world doesn't...?

25. I don't know how I got such good-natured kids. I love being able to stay home with them and watch them learn!

Year of the Ox: Let's party!

It's Chinese New Year!...and what better excuse to brighten up the month and have a party. You can count on us to celebrate the "lesser known holidays" or the "underdog" holidays as my neighbor put it. Just wait 'til Earth Day--that's gonna be good.
Chinese New Year actually is a pretty darn big deal--just not in the middle of UT. It lasts 15 days (why hasn't America adopted these long celebrations?) It's all about good luck and prosperity, family unity, and lots of food. To get ready for the New Year you are supposed to buy new clothes, get a haircut, and clean the entire house by sweeping out all the bad luck. That is what we did yesterday to get ready for our party (just the all-day cleaning part). Unfortunately, our mop head broke and our vacuum has now ....sucked it's last crumb...officially dead....Good for BD, he mopped the floors Cinderella style. Wouldn't his mama be proud?
We invited a few couples from the ward to join us for either dinner at the Chinese restaurant and or games at our house after. About 8 couples showed up and decided to do both. Our guests indulged me by taking my very educational Chinese New Year Quiz. Here's a sample so you can see how you do.
1. Part of celebrating New Years involves honoring your ancestors by visiting their graves and also visiting elderly relatives. If you do not visit them the Chinese believe you will:
a) drop dead b) get bird flu c) have family discord d) lose money

2. This animal is native only to China
a) llama b) koala c) panda d) dragon

3. During New Year's it is tradition for adults to give decorated red envelopes filled with money to children and unmarried adults. These are called:
a) Buddah's b) gimi gimi's c) moo goo gai pan's d) Ang Pow's

4. The following are Chinese inventions:
a) silk, paper, fireworks, dominoes, toothbrush
b) silk, paper, fireworks, badminton, chocolate
c) silk, paper, fireworks, soap, nachos
d) planes, trains, automobiles, football

We played a numbers game which involves dice, and wrestling pens away from people as they try to write to 100. (Sher knows what I'm talking about) We also played a new game from our family reunion called Hitchhiker. I won't explain in detail--just imagine BD doing a Mr. T impression-- Lots of laughter. I think everyone had fun--at least they didn't join the girls in the back bedroom for some Fairytopia.
Like t said, Gung hay fat choy! Answers to the quiz if you really want them ( c,c,d,a)
Here's to getting ready for Earth Day....and all the birthday parties in between.

Back to American fare, here is a peanut butter recipe we made tonight. It's right up there with gummy peachies in a totally different sort of way :
PB Truffle cookies
1 cup PB
1 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. baking soda

Mix altogether. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet 350 degrees for 8 minutes.
I think to make it extra heavenly you could add PB chips....mmmm.

Wednesday Brynnsday

We all gave birthday tributes to Brynn around the dinner table. Dad said she is almost always in a good mood and she is such a happy girl. Adrie said Brynn plays Barbies with her and is lots of fun and is so pretty. I love Brynn's laugh. It is like a bubbling brook. She is always quick to obey. I usually only have to tell her once to do something--LOVE THAT! Kate was too cool to think of something nice and gushy to tell her sister. She finally came up with, "nice hair."

HAPPY BIRTHDAY #6 TO BRYNN!

Big day #6 started out with breakfast in bed. Waffle crisp. Kate is up the earliest (unless you count Cannon at 3 a.m.) so she was on the job.Brynn wanted an ice cream cake. This one obviously took a mere 30 seconds to assemble. That's my kind of cake!
Brynn's big anticipated gift was the Light up and draw projector on the left. This has already provided tons of fun. The girls declared it "awesome" --and for the bargain price of $19.95 on toystogrowon.com I highly recommend it. She also got a guitar stand (the guitar itself is from the last birthday). Julie the American doll also had a birthday--She got a stylish beanie and purse.

Beginning Scriptures for Non-Scriptorians

I don't know how family scripture study goes at your house but at our house, when Dad's in charge it goes something like this: All the kids gather around Dad to look at the illustrated version. There is really no reading as far as I know. Instead he asks each girl a question. Today Dad used the pictures in the back of the Book of Mormon. Here is what I overheard.

Kate's question, "Is this a picture of Jesus swimming or Alma baptizing people?"

Brynn's question, "Was Nephi's mean older brother named Larry, Frank, or Laman?"

Adrie's question, "Is this a picture of Lehi holding the Liahona or Lehi holding a cupcake with a candle in it because it was his birthday?"

Luckily, all the girls answered their questions right. I've talked to Dad about maybe reading the scriptures and then asking questions but apparently that's old school. For him the multiple choice question method seems to be working like a charm especially, when it produces giggles.

All about a Birthday

Yesterday we went as a family to the BYU Young Ambassadors performance. Yes, they came to enrich our little valley. It was an afternoon full of entertainment with music, dancing, and drama of high caliber. The only thing that would have made it better would be leaving Cannon at home with a babysitter.

There is something about going to a show that makes you want to eat a treat after...it's like Pavlov's dogs. We walked past the candy machines on our way out. Adrie got there first and asked if we had any money. I said I didn't have any. Dad said he didn't have any. And that was that. After our little walk to the car we all got in and noticed that Brynn had curled up and was crying in the back seat. She was looking for compassion and empathy. I didn't have any. Dad didn't have any. And that was that. When we got home Brynn was still sad. Dad took her aside and asked her what was wrong. She really got our empathy when she sobbed,

"You don't have any money to buy me a birthday present."

Dad quickly assured her that we had money to buy her a birthday present (just not for vending machines) and gave her a big long hug.

Brynn's birthday is the 28th of this month and she has been thinking about it a LOT apparently.

At the beginning of the month she said,

" Mom start saving your money so you can buy me a present when it's my birthday."

Brynn had a much better end to the day. Before I left to go grocery shopping she had some requests for her boola boola gifts (If you are not in the C. family I'll explain they are the little gifts that we hide and sing boola boola until you find them.) She handed me a scrap of paper that read:

I wont orngstics frootsnacs gumeepeechis

When I brought home the bags of groceries and said, "no peeking" she was bursting with excitement.

Today, she made this paper chain to count down the 10 more days until her birthday.

Just for the record I ordered her present last week and it should be here in plenty of time for a wonderful birthday #6 for Brynn and boola boola's to boot!

I guess I'm a bit of a glass-half-empty kind of person because when the girls insisted we go ice skating I imagined a lot of falling down, tears, and being cold and miserable. Boy was I wrong!
It turned out to be one of our favorite escapades at this year's winter family reunion in SLC. Dad graciously agreed to watch from the sidelines with baby and Adrie (maybe he was thinking the glass-half-empty thoughts I was.) Kate and Brynn and I laced up our skates along with their wonderful cousin Sami(BYU girl) who secretly knew how much fun we would have. After a few pointers from her older cousin Brynn was off and skating--really. We were like, "hey, wait for us Brynn." Kate also decided after awhile to ditch holding my hand and go off on her own. She did great. The girls and I had so much fun it was hard to get us off the ice! Brynn asked if she could just go around 10 more times and I jokingly said, "If you go REALLY fast." She was off as quick as could be. With each lap she would shout out , "I'm on 8....I'm on 9, etc."
MOVE OVER GYMNASTICS AND SWIMMING--Ice Skating is Brynn's new favorite sport. Kate put it right up there tied in 1st place with soccer.


Our winter reunion ended up being super fun. Here are some of the other highlights:

• Music & The Spoken Word at the Conference Center--breathtakingly beautiful.
• staying up late and playing games
• living the suite life at the hotel with a pool and breakfast. Our hotel was behind the place I am most likely to spend $--Costco. I didn't even plan that!
• shopping with the ladies
• BodyWorlds Exhibit--this is seriously AWESOME! I could go back again. Picture a real healthy lung next to a smokers lung next to a cancerous lung. Fascinating.
• going out to dinner at Spaghetti Factory, Buca di Beppo's.
• Family pot-luck/skit night/talent night/volleyball night and baby blessing of my great-nephew at the church. We did not do the splits this time for our talent--we performed one of my Grandma/Mom's songs.
• Ladies Tea Party at The Bakery
• $2 chocolate truffles by Blue Mountain Chocolates-- food for the gods.
• winter olympics in the front yard: luge (sledding) and snowball throwing contest.
• Boggle tournament. My brother Allen still holds the crown...next year I won't go so easy on him.

Other family members went skiing, tubing, First Night downtown, movies, Jazz game. I can't think of any lows really except that my Dad fell on the ice and had to get 5 staples on his head. Sorry Dad!


It was great to see family we only see once a year. We had so much fun I really wasn't ready to come home yet but we had to beat the storm...and oh yeah...we really should get back into school. Welcome 2009!