the boxes

I love almost everything about Valentines Day.  I love the cute valentines, the parties, and of course, the candy.  I love heart shaped meatloaf and pink mashed potatoes.  I love my kids excitement and I love focusing on love in our home.  But there is one thing I do not like at all.  And that is making the Valentine boxes.  I don't like the pressure since there usually seems to be a contest involved.  I don't like having to be creative when I really don't want to be.  I don't like that I usually have to make 3 or 4 of them. I just don't like Valentine Boxes.
 Never have and probably never will.

 So,  I thought I was in heaven this year when Alyssa set out to make hers all by herself.  She came up with the idea, gathered her supplies, enlisted her older brother for a little technical help and created this beauty.

I didn't lift a finger to help her and she didn't ask me. 

  And she was proud as can be over this little dog.

Bryson remembered he needed a Valentines box about 20 minutes before school started.  He quickly cut and shaped a cereal box, slapped on a piece of yellow paper, cut out some holes

 and Voila:

The big cheese.  

He left pretty satisfied himself.

I could have kissed Ethan's teacher who sent home a note saying they were making their "envelopes" in class.  

Hallelujah!

And then of course there's Kara.  

Yes, she is a Senior in High School.  

And yes, she is still making Valentines boxes.  She worked on hers for days.  The Student Council was having an old fashioned Valentine exchange and so she created her bookshelf box.  She found different sized boxes, cut and shaped and re-glued them to look like boxes, painted them, and then as only Kara can do added a few details.

Her favorite was her triple combination, complete with ridges on the binding, a ribbon coming out of the top for a bookmark and...

...the glittery pages with tabs.  

 Her kids are going to be so lucky on Valentines Day!

If I was really smart I would just save all of these creations and reuse them through the years.  But, I'm  not that smart and where's the fun in that.  So I will continue to stress and continue to sit back and watch in amazement the creativity of these great kids of mine.

cooties

There are certain parts of my kids' lives that I just don't have a lot of pictures of. School is one of those things. Oh, we have pictures of programs and things, and, of course, the traditional first day, but not of the everyday nitty gritty stuff. The classroom, the teachers, the art work, the halls. So this year when SEP's rolled around I grabbed my camera in hopes of capturing some of the magic of elementary school.

After about 7 tries, Ethan finally had his eyes open enough to OK this picture. He is pointing to his snow globe creation.

Alyssa and some art.

Bryson and all the patriotic things he is learning this year in 5th grade.

And I had to snap a few shots of the Book Fair.

The dreaded book fair.

It is not dreaded to the kids, only to me. I hate the book fair. Now, I love books, I just hate how they parade the kids through the book fair all week tempting them and encouraging them to buy buy buy.

We deposit the kids here while we are in the teacher conferences, and with 3 kids at the school, they have plenty of time to browse. After many years of tears and dragging them out of the book fair bookless, they have learned to not even ask anymore

(I can get the same books for a fraction of the cost on amazon).

But occasionally they bring in their own money and blow it on giant pencils or invisible ink, like Ethan is here.

And so, we survived another parent teacher conference and another book fair with glowing reports for each of our brilliant children, a giant pencil and a picture of the elementary school bathroom.

Now that's the nitty gritty of elementary school.

And I don't know why I even took a picture of this because none of my children have ever used the school bathroom before. They absolutely refuse.

Cooties, I guess!

And cooties now documented!

the scout with a spear

Bryson came home so excited from Scouts the other day.

His leaders are his heros because they made spears with real arrowheads as the tips for their activity.

They totally made spears!

I'm just hoping he doesn't use it on anyone around here.

He kind of looks ready too, doesn't he?

12 weeks

4 playing soccer

2 playing flag football

1 playing tackle

that equals

56 games

over 100 different practices

multiple carpools

too many half time and after game treats to count

all in a 12 week period.

I am exhausted

and so are they.

Here is a rundown of our fall sports season.

Ethan played on the Cheetahs . He loves soccer. Every day when he woke up he asked me if he had a game that day. He couldn't wait to get out on that field. And when he did, there was no stopping him. Now that it's over he asks me every day how much longer until next season.

It's not soon enough for him.

Alyssa hung up her dance shoes for some cleats this season. She loved it too! She was on the Sparklers and she truly does sparkle when it comes to anything she tries. Soccer was no exception.

She gave it her all whether she was playing goalie or scoring goals on offense. It was a treat to watch her play.

Bryson was on the Vipers. It was a rough season for this first year competition team. They lost every single game. Their last game of the season ended with a score of 0-14.

With that said, I have to say that I have never been more impressed with a group of boys. This little team never gave up; they pushed forward, they showed up to practices, and they worked so hard. And most importantly, they never blamed each other. They were positive and complimentary of their teammates. They were a true team. It is good to win, but it is also important to learn how to lose and to keep going even in adversity. And my Bryce, he never really let it get to him. He kept on kicking and he kept on smiling. I love him.

This goofball managed to successfully play soccer in the midst of football season. The miracle was he only had to miss one soccer game the whole season for football. It seemed he was at practice or a game every single day since August. But he loves it and thrives on it, so we did it. It was a circus picking him up early from soccer with all his football gear in the car and having him frantically change in the backseat before we got to the field. He was so hot and so sweaty and so so stinky... and so was my car.

Brandon was still on the Extreme soccer team but they moved up to triple A this season. They did well. I don't think I will ever get tired of watching him play soccer.

Bryson lucked out with a pretty awesome coach for his flag football team this year. And he also was on a pretty awesome team. This little group of 6 were amazing. They were the smallest team, but each game was filled with touchdowns, pick 6's, and thrilling wins. His love of this game was evident on his face every time he played. It was refreshing to watch.

He also got to play with his cousin Andrew- heaven for Bryce. And with Bryson's speed and Andrew's arm they were unstoppable.

The Tree Huggers banded together for another unforgettable season. They had so much fun. This year they entered the big league where they played against some teams that were all Seniors. Oh, and they had no coach. They were flying solo.

But Tyler and his team team of all Sophmores held their own. They practiced in our backyard almost daily. Tyler had some great catches, touchdowns, and interceptions. He is in his element when he is out there with his friends playing the game he loves so much. I cannot wait to see them next year-watch out Seniors!

This was Brandon's first year playing tackle football. He started practicing in July, early mornings and hot afternoons filled with running, tackling, and drills. He was a little unsure that this was for him....until he played in his first game. And the rest is history. He was in his glory and all the practicing was worth it. This is where he belongs.

He was a starter on defense and the Cavemen made it to the semi-final game. You really have just got to see this little small fry tackle these big ole kids running by. He did, time and time again. I think it's the socks. (at least they made it easy to spot him on the field)

And now it is over.

Finally.

Until basketball season at least.

Up up and away

I live with a bunch of Superheros!

Really I do.

(And a daughter who is taking digital photography at school.)

Now excuse me as I go help them save the world!

Gone Fishing

See that boy.

The cute skinny one by the campfire.

That is my new scout.

And this was his very first camp out.

The purpose of this camp out was to..... well, camp, but also to learn how to fly fish.


And that's just what this new scout did.
He listened
He learned.
He fished.




My new scout is a very little fish, in a very big pond right now.
He didn't talk much on this camp out I am told.
But then again, he never really does.
And I think you are supposed to be quiet when you fly fish.
I think.




You will not see my new scout in this picture. This is where they cooked those fish that they fly caught. I know Bryson wouldn't be anywhere near cooking fish. And I know he definitely didn't eat any. He was probably huddled in the corner eating twigs and berries, anything other than eating stinky fish.

Despite the eating of the fish, this new scout loved his first camp out. He was with his dad, he was with his brother. He was in the wilderness, just as a new scout should be.
Happy Camping Brycie!

He doesn't make me sick!

When you have a summer birthday, often times you spend your special day while on vacation. This has happened to Bryson several times. This year we were in Park City. And this is how the glorious 11th anniversary of this amazing kid's birth unfolded.

His special day started at, oh, about 12:30 a.m. with a little bit of vomit.

We had all just settled down when I was awakened with a little voice telling me "I think Bryson just threw up."

Yep, he did. He threw up a lot!

It was a heck of a way to start your 11th birthday. Luckily it ended up just being pure excitement.

Pure excitement that only an 11 year old boy could have for the fun day that lie ahead.

In the morning, feeling much better, he jumped onto the ski lift with dad and soared over the beautiful Park City mountains.

At the top he grabbed a slide....



...and sailed all the way down that beautiful Park City mountain he had just traveled up.






In the afternoon he celebrated with all of his extended family around him. To have grandparents, aunts, uncles and especially cousins with him on his birthday, was pure joy to him.

Of course, I had to bring the traditional birthday picture display up to Park City so we could all look at this awesome kid through the years.

I love watching my kids open gifts. I love the looks on their faces. I love the excitement and the joy I see when they get something they really wanted.

Legos does that for my Brycie.

Here is the reason for his nauseating excitement. He couldn't wait for the gifts.

Thankfully he was able to hold down his birthday lunch. Jello, Cheetos, pigs in a blanket and a cactus cooler to wash it all down. Yum!

I absolutely adore this boy.

Every day, every night.

At home or on vacation.

He is so quiet and smart. He loves his brothers, his family, his home. Everything about this sweet 11 year old brings me pure excitement and pure joy.

Eleven years of happiness have come from this one.

No nausea, no vomit, just joy.

Happy Birthday Bryson!

Bob

Let's review.

This boy has had his jaw expanded, braces on and braces off, multiple teeth pulled and major oral surgery. Did I mention he is only 10! And as of last week, we can now add gum graft to the list of ever growing dental procedures this child has endured. Yes, Bryson underwent a gum transplant last week, where cadaver gum tissue was used to fix gum recession caused by overcrowding. My poor boy. He was nervous beyond belief for the surgery, but despite his anxiety did really well. He healed quickly and is as good as new. His siblings were horrified when they heard that cadaver tissue was used and is now mixing around with his own tissue in his mouth. Bryson could have cared less.

So, now a days, around here, we call him Bryce.....

.....or Bob, depending on the day :)

You're right....where?!

A couple of weeks ago we had a really good Family Home Evening. That is rare around here. (And that is why we have implemented our FHE makeover which I will dedicate a post to later.) It was good because everyone came prepared, everyone participated and we felt the spirit. We really did. As we were wrapping things up, I looked around the room and I couldn't find Bryce. I said, "Where is Bryce?! Did he just miss that whole lesson?" I was pretty ticked that he had missed it and that I hadn't even noticed him slipping out of the room. Then all of a sudden we heard a tiny voice say, "I'm right here." And this is what we saw:

Umm, should I be concerned that my child is skinny enough to hide like that? Perhaps. (He was under the cushions, not behind the couch, by the way!) But, I was relieved that he hadn't missed anything. He had been right there all along, listening and learning with the rest of us. Laughter filled the room as we all ran to grab our cameras and it was a great way to end an already great night. In a perfect world every day would end with a family laughing together, and thanks to our Brycie we had that perfect day! And we'll take any one we can get!

Paper clips and Pyramids

Right before Christmas we had a week that every single kid had some sort of project, report, humongo test or something like that due. It was crazy. I try to let them do most of the work, but also feel like it is a time to teach them how to do well researched and thorough reports and projects. And frankly, some of them need my help and guidance and brainstorming to get them started. They are learning and I am helping in that process, that's the way that I look at it. It's part of my job. It can sometimes be a hard balance, of how much help to give, but we are figuring it out together. Here are a few of those projects.

Bryce had to come up with a creative way to do his book report on "The Lost Hero." I gave him a few ideas, proofread his written report and then took pictures of his awesome paperclip creation.

He was so proud of the three heroes he made who were fighting the big giant

he made who was guarding the goddess Hera, whom he also made, who was in prison. There was also a dragon in the corner that you can't see in this picture. It was so Bryce. He loved doing it and he did a great job.

Brandon had just finished a big unit on Ancient Egypt and had to write a report on King Tut and create a pyramid out of anything he wanted. His report on King Tut included, on the front cover, a picture of King Tuts mask with a little sign that said "lift." Underneath the picture of the mask was an actual picture of the mummified king. It was pretty cool and a little disturbing.

We then spent about an hour wandering the aisles of Robert's looking for anything that struck his fancy to make a pyramid with. He had several ideas and then he saw the sparkly glitter paper.

It was perfect.

And so was his pyramid.