Weekly Top - February 23, 2014

1) Monday was the "Family Day" holiday, so the boys didn't have school. Things are busy for Scott at work and he wasn't able to take his vacation day, but he did join us for lunch. The boys spent the day duct taping diaper boxes together and playing with Legos (Ian's had magically reappeared from a long stay in Mr. Gunny's bowels) and I made 6 loaves of homemade, home-ground, whole wheat bread. I broke off one of the handles on the wheat grinder and plumes of wheat flour billowed out the side, even while I tried to hold it together. Half the kitchen was coated in the fine powder. The biggest problem though is that I can't plug my ears from the deafening sound of the grinder while I am also holding the broken lid shut. Helen was mesmerized by the process of proofing yeast and her eyes were so wide when I showed her how the yeast was suddenly high enough to lift the towel that covered the bowl.

This should be a video of Calder's nightmare. (IE Helen screeching his name and inch from his face.)

2) On Tuesday I made a few dozen whole wheat muffins. Even though I'd eaten nearly a whole loaf of whole wheat bread the day before, I was still eager enough that I ate half a dozen whole wheat muffins. The next day, and for two days following, Calder was really congested, and screamed and squirmed while nursing. I've decided to lay off the wheat. (Update: avoiding wheat for 5 days hasn't made a difference. Cal is probably just due for a higher dose of reflux medication.)

3) Helen had her BFF Scarlett Cooper over this week while their family packed to move. The girls played the piano, fought over the same naked doll, and generally had a lovely time together while I cleaned the kitchen. They've played together since Helen was 11 months and Scarlett was 7 months -- I am so glad they have each other!

Moving a load of items to the coopers house with two cute ladies. 

4) Thursday was a snow day. There was freezing rain predicted, but it never materialized. It was a nice, boring day at home.  After delightedly dressing in play clothes, the kids spent all morning doing playdough at the counter. They had a bakery and I purchased their grossly over-priced goods. I even bought the "recipe" for Ian's cookies for $21.50 (I haggled him down from $50). This was especially a bad deal because the recipe was written in Ian's own form of Sanskrit, which I cannot even read. I hate playdough because it crumbles into a gigantic mess, and today was no exception. But everyone had a lovely day and no one even had a time out! That's as near perfect as it ever gets around here!

Making "slinky" apples.

5) I prepared and delivered a talk in Sacrament meeting on why we pray in the name of Jesus Christ. At the outset, I actually had no clue why we pray in Christ's name. It was unique experience preparing this talk for that reason, and also because I found so few resources on LDS.org to draw from. It was a really rewarding experience preparing this talk though, because I got to do a lot of thinking and figuring out based on other truths that I have a testimony of. As always, I'm glad to have it behind me!

6) Calder began smiling! We've caught him looking "pleasantly" at us for a couple weeks, but on three occasions this week Cal was sitting upright on my lap, head resting on my crossed leg, and he opened his mouth wide and then settled it into the sweetest, most sparkly-eyed smile. It looks a whole lot like his "sleeping" smiles and completely melts our hearts. Scott was right there with me twice when this occurred. It's no wonder we anticipate this milestone -- it's magical!

No pictures of his smiles, but check this out! Cal has obviously been focusing on his thighs lately. 

7) On Saturday the our dear friends the Coopers moved across town to their first house! We're thrilled for them, but I'll really miss having them 83 seconds up the street from us. It was fun to have their kids over for a playdate while Scott was helping with the move. Beautiful snowglobe snow was falling outside and they kids couldn't bare to stay indoors. We scrounged up enough snow pants and gloves to go around and they all played out there so happily for more than an hour! The rest of the day was spent playing with Magna Tile castles inhabited by Playmobile pirates while Helen and Scarlett devised ways to sneak brownies from a pan on the counter.

For snack time they all shared the counter stools. 

I stayed indoors caring for Calder, but took some pictures through the panels of glass in the door. 

8) My iPhone fell into the toilet on Friday. After spending 48 hours in a bag of rice, it is working again! I don't think the camera will ever be the same again (it has trouble focusing) but at least I won't have to give up Instagram completely. The upside of this was that I pulled out my nice camera a lot this weekend while my phone was out of commission.

9) This weekend my grandparents moved their belongings from Lake Havasu, Arizona to the SF Bay Area! They recently purchased a house near my parents home, and I am so happy to know that they will be close to family. Now we'll just have to plan a trip out to see their new house!

10) Apart from Calders baby blessing day, Cal has only ever worn pajamas. PJs makes diaper changes easier, are perfectly suited for our climate, and avoid the discomfort of having a waistband when you spend your day folded in half. But today Calder wore real clothes to church. It was fun to dress him up, and he looked adorable.