In the meantime...a food survey

So, I am trying to post about our super-lovely-saturday and blogger is quickly becoming a name on my blacklist by being sketchy with picture loading. 

I know it's weird and out of the ordinary but I had a few pictures to share in my post.

The post doesn't feel right without them, so I am postponing said post (?) and doing something meaningless and fun...also weird and out of the ordinary, right?

With recipe-gathering/meal planning, efforts toward eating right, and food storage as big topics on my 'where to use my mental energy' list lately, I thought this would be fun to do. 

FOOD SURVEY:

1. How do you like your eggs?

hard boiled please...and on salad...mmmm

2. How do you take your coffee/tea?

In the form of water and fruit juice.

3. Favorite breakfast food?

Hash browns...JC makes awesome ones. 

4. Peanut butter...smooth or crunchy?

Smooth, with only peanuts and nothing else on the ingredients list, thank you.

5. What kind of dressing on your salad?

Unfortunately, Newman's Own Ranch. YummMEE.  It may be organic, but I have a feeling the fat content outweighs the benefit of the salad I eat it on!

6. Coke or Pepsi?

...water or...fruit juice? 

7. You're feeling lazy, what do you make?

Deli turkey slices on a plate covered with sliced avocado and possibly some shredded white cheddar cheese. That's for me. If we're talking kids, rolled up turkey slices with pretzels and sliced oranges.  If we're talking the whole family for dinner, Trader Joe's Frozen BBQ Teriyaki Chicken. We always have a couple bags in the freezer for the nights where dinner just won't happen.

8. You're feeling really lazy, what kind of pizza do you order?

Domino's Pacific Veggie Pizza for me.  Brooklyn Style Sausage and Banana Peppers for JC. Pepperoni and Tomatoes with no cheese for the kids. (and no, we don't eat a whole pizza each. We intentionally have leftovers for a couple of days!)

(How fantastic is it that both Papa Johns and Pizza Hut have all-natural whole wheat options now???  And...how sad is it that we still order from Domino's sometimes? Haha..can't help it. That veggie pizza is awesome.)

9. You feel like cooking. What do you make?

Chicken Parmesan or a really good soup.

10. Do any foods bring back good memories?

My mom's black bottom pies (Thanksgiving tradition)...blueberry muffins (Christmas morning tradition)...canned pineapple (lived off of it for four months at BYU)...Hawaiian food (ate it at every luau I danced at for four months at BYU)...Totino's Pizza (ate it on special occassions when I was first married and we had no money! This was our splurge once a month or so!)...Tuna Rice Casserole (ate it growing up), cold cereal (I ate this late at night after I would come home from being out with friends or on dates. Without fail.)

11. Do any foods bring back bad memories?

shrimp (made me sick when I was pregnant)

Applebee's Oriental Chicken Salad (ate it once and discovered that some of the chicken was still raw.)

12. Do any foods remind you of someone?

Tuna Rice Casserole - my mom and my cousin, Emily (I think we ate it a lot together?)

Stir fry - Mason. We ate it so much because it was cheap and he had become part philippino and I had become part polynesian.

Any frozen finger food - the Kear Family. Pizza rolls, taquitos, mini tacos and jalepeno poppers are present at every family gathering. Even (and especially) Thanksgiving. I love it.

Plain bread - my dad. I have memories of being little and him eating, and sharing with me, a piece of bread while we would sit together at night watching tv or maybe just avoiding bedtime. He would tear pieces off and shape it into little cubes for me.

Cherry pie - JC. It's the only kind he likes.

13. Is there a food you refuse to eat?

Octopus that still LOOKS like an octopus. NO thank you.

And anything slimey from a shell. 

14. What was your favorite food as a child?

I have always loved mashed potatoes. I remember always asking for them for my birthday dinners.  My mom might know this one better than I do though...

15. Is there a food that you hated as a child but like now?

Lots of things! But first to my mind...beans. I love black beans, kidney beans, etc. now and I wouldn't touch them as a kid.  My parents even tried calling them "protein balls" and telling me it was a new food.

Lies...

16. Is there a food you liked as a child but now hate?

Not that I can think of...unless I liked octopus-looking octopus as a child...

17. Favorite fruit and vegetable?

Tangelos (yes, specifically tangelos) and cucumbers.

And avocados hover in between because they are SO a favorite but I'm honestly not sure if they're a fruit or a veggie...

18. Favorite junk food?

Ice cream or cookies. or cookies in ice cream. or ice cream sandwiched between cookies.

19. Favorite between meal snack?

Fruit leather or a banana spread with peanut butter

20. Do you have any weird food habits?

Spreading my bananas with peanut butter maybe? Or putting cream cheese (when I allow myself to eat it...ahh...it's been too long...) on anything and everything?

21. You're on a diet. What foods do you fill up on?

Well...since "on a diet" is pretty much the lifestyle I try to maintain as of late, I'd say I try to eat a lot of greens. With every meal if possible. And drink a LOT of water.

22. You're off your diet. Now what would you like?

Hmm...hopefully I wouldn't go 'off' the way I try to eat but when I allow myself a treat (which is probably more often than I should!) it's probably cookies or ice cream. Or...cream cheese on something...

23. How spicy do you order Indian/Thai?

I am not a spicy girl. At least not when it comes to my food.

24. Can I get you a drink?

Umm...water?  Or...fruit juice?

25. Favorite dessert?

I am so boring...but ice cream or cookies never goes wrong. :) ooh...or brownies. Pretty much chocolate.

Well, that ended up being slightly less exciting than I had anticipated. But ah well. Something to relax the brain cells...

and make me really...really...

hungry.

Shoot.

How-To of the Month: How to Be Prepared...

I am embarking on the quest...yet again...to begin and maintain an effort to get our family preparedness in order. Food storage, emergency plans, financial reserve, gardening, 72-hour kits. All the good stuff.

Knowing it's important, I've had it on the brain pretty heavily for the past four or five years. Knowing I would like to not have an implosion of my brain, I have avoided focusing too much on it. Right or wrong...that's where I've been. BUT now I am ready.

I've been feeling ready for so many things lately.

(And NO, that is in no way meant to imply that another baby is or will be coming. End of story.)

Anyway, the point is, with some good advice, tools, and references in hand I am traveling the path of preparedness once again, this time with every intent to master the art. I haven't mastered my master plan yet (I always have a master plan)...it's still in the works...but the gist of it is that I'll be doing a little every month and within a year I hope to have a pretty good foundation and after that it will be all about maintenance and tweaking. 

I like tweaking things to the point of perfection.  My sister and I call this our Monkishness.

It's a gift and a curse.

But back to the point...one of the things on my checklist this month:

Tents. We already have a big family tent (not that we've used it as a family...haha...now THAT would be an emergency only activity at this point!) so I needed small ones to put in our 72-hour kits. 

Apparently, these kinds of tents are called tube tents.  Makes me think of an immodest top.

Said tube tents were ordered since nowhere around here decided to cater to my specific needs and carry them...and one day this week, they came in the mail!

Right after rest time when we needed something fun and sort of quiet to do since Ben was still sleeping.

Naturally, the following:

The packaging said to slip the rope through the tube of...tent...and secure to two trees or two car doors (and I'm thinking...then wouldn't you just sleep in the cars...?).

We chose a door handle and a vacuum.

Don't worry, it's a sturdy vacuum.

It said to (argh! My blog is doing that weird thing where it turns my words into a strange color and I can't figure out how to stop it!)...

Anyway, it said to lay down the sleeping bag or whatever would be inside to hold down the "floor" of the tent.

We chose throw pillows.

For the record, not heavy enough.

But two kids crawling around inside seemed to both hold the floor down and simultaneously bring the walls in in a staticy manner.

Oh, and create a few smiles among all that static electricity.

It feels like a strange place to start...but at least I know if we are ever in a situation where we have to use this strange form of shelter, it will not be an unfamiliar thing to the kids!

And I know that throw pillows have no place in them.

A Humble Easter

Last year I wrote about not giving Easter all the attention it deserves.

How about we make a habit out of that? 

Haha...well, this year Easter approached and I felt pretty good about the whole thing. Decided to choose one special thing to do on Easter Day to start some sort of tradition. Decided we would eat fish and honeycomb (what Christ ate with his disciples after he was resurrected) for dinner that evening. Felt pretty creative and excited about the concept. 

Trader Joe's does not carry honeycomb.

Sprouts does not carry honeycomb.

Whole Foods does not carry honeycomb. 

If Whole Foods doesn't have it, I give up.

Maybe next year I'll have to start making an effort a little earlier in the week and try a Farmer's Market.

Or make friends with a local beekeeper. (One word...?  Two...?)

Decided that if we weren't having honeycomb, fish wasn't worth it. My family was coming over for dinner (Easter just happened to fall on my Mom's birthday this year!) and like, two-ish out of ten-ish people would be excited about eating fish. I'm not even one of them. SO...chicken it is.

Gave up a little on my tradition forming...I'll try again next year.

BUT, I did have Easter shirts for the boys and a pretty new dress for Bethany to wear to church on Sunday. Points for festivity.

**Sidenote**

This is not a competition of any sort...I don't know why I give myself points...I think I'm measuring my effort and reality against my ideal...and I get points for anything that resembles my ideal in the slightest way. 

(So I think I also get points for calling those stores to ask if they have honeycomb.  Except...JC made the phone call. So he gets Easter Festivity Points...which actually count for me too...you share a joint festivity account just like you share a checking account when you get married...but he also gets husband points since I hate making those kinds of phone calls.)

**

Anyway, the point is, I had things planned. Ranging from dinner, dress-up and also an egg hunt on Saturday that was going to be rather fun. Especially with a nice weather forcast. (meaning...cold with rain. Not hot.)

Unfortunately, for that rain to blow in, a lot of wind carrying a lot of junk in it had to come through and our kids woke up with coughs/barks on Saturday morning. 

(Does anyone else's stomach turn to a rock when they hear a baby cough that croupy cough?)

I just knew it was due to all of the junk in the air and wanted to give them a chance to rest rest rest and NOT get horribly ill the way we all did last time a barky cough tore through our family.  So after discussing it with JC we grit our teeth and cancelled egg hunt plans. 

No fun for anyone.

But, lucky for the kids, the Easter Bunny came early! (though that topic has not gotten very much conversation at all...they're not really into it yet...except for Bethany looking at me skeptically when I tried to explain it all and saying "A real bunny couldn't do that...(skeptic look intensifies)...are YOU guys the bunny??"  I just laughed.)

But yes, since they were sick, the Easter Bunny took pity and visited early, hiding all their little treats around the house. We spent the morning slowly moving from one room to another, finding sunglasses, stuffed animals, Freeze-dried Mangosteen (heaven bless Trader Joe's for this one!), coloring books, picture books, etc.  Whatever room we found a new treat in, we just hung out and enjoyed. 

A very restful morning.

But, of course, since it was a Saturday, it was hard for JC to sit still with all the little and big projects around the house that are easy enough to get done while the kids color or are read to, etc.

Here's one he tackled while we took it easy. (Well, we took it easy until the kids got interested enough to get involved...but luckily, they still kept it pretty low key.)

It's time to switch out our ball pit!

We have this little room downstairs (kind of long story why it's there...) that we use for a ball pit for the kids. It's as easy as a swimming pool and tons of balls you can buy at Toys R Us.

It was time to upgrade and relocate.

We moved it out of the little cove it was in and into a bigger swimming pool.

In this picture you can see the old ball pit space behind JC and the new one...taking up practically the whole room.

While it's getting blown up, the kids explore.

The old one got kicked to the curb...or...the hallway...

And here we have an empty ball pit.

Until JC utilizes the kids' easter baskets and starts to fill it up.

Which made it much more enjoyable.

For some.

(Even more than Ben's incredible sad face, I love James' empathetic face!)

Later, hanging out in Bethany's room, Ben is feeling more chipper but a little parched.

So, he steals some of sister's water.

And you wonder why we're always passing sickness around.

Just a really great picture of James.

He spent much of his resting time downstairs poking at Scout. 

Which really really makes him laugh.

But not Scout so much.

That afternoon we settled in for a movie to get some more rest.

The boys definitely benefited.

Of coures, on Easter Sunday, the coughing was still quite intense so our bright yellow polos and lovely floral dresses had to stay hung neatly in our closets.

But there was always next Sunday.

(If I remember right, last year we were sick on Easter too.  Only we wore our Easter stuff the week before because we happend to all be well and I knew it wouldn't last! Should have thought ahead this year to!!)

We really took it easy all day and then that evening my family came over for some dinner and birthday celebrations. Both James and my mom had April birthdays to celebrate so we did presents...which is always fun.

I didn't take any of my mom opening hers.

I forget that grownups are people too.

But here are some of James:

Something that everyone is excited about: boy dress up clothes

I think JC was getting pretty tired of coming home to pictures I had taken during the day of James in Bethany's fairy and princess costumes. 

I promise, he always was the instigator.

But, anyway, now he has doctor, fireman and cowboy costumes. SO cute.

He also got a very special gift...underwear!!!

If we want to start preschool in the fall, I best get him interested soon!  I firmly believe that kids let you know when they're ready but with how badly he wants to go to school...I think he's ready! Haha...besides, little boy underpants are SO cute!!

Bethany gives him the rundown (and my brother quickly jumps on the fact that James is calling them "panties" and gives me a 'you better correct that before it sticks' look...)

Grandma opens them and gives him his first pair (Ben looks pretty amazed)

James apparently decides he can do without them for the moment...

(I want to point out Andrew's 'Carlton' shirt in the background. Like you could miss it.)

Then, for some reason, he spends the next ten minutes playing hide and seek over in this corner.

Ben gives the dress up clothes a go.

My siblings lounging on my couch (Katie! We miss you!)

So, there you have it.  Our Easter celebrations, 2009.  I guess it's always nice to have a laid-back holiday. Even sick.

Have the family over for a couple hours proved to be a nice way to start my week...which ended up involving a lot of humidifiers, pajama days and little to no time outside the confines of our walls.

BUT I rejoice in the fact that we have, in fact, kicked the majority of this sickness out of our home. I like how I always refer to illnesses as enemies to be fought and base my success as a mother on how quickly we fight them off. 

It's a strange world I live in.

Seriously though...Easter. Is there a better holiday?  I think the reason I have such high hopes for having some good traditions and celebrations as a family at Easter time is that the events and doctrine we are celebrating are really the center of all that is happiness to anyone who ever lived.  We celebrate Christmas because Christ came. And we celebrate Easter because he fulfilled his mission on earth - - the very thing that makes our eternal joy full and complete.

On Tuesday evenings I drive to the Mesa Arts Center for my bellydance class. (That's right, my hips are back on the scene.) The past three weeks, as I've driven past the temple I have been overcome with emotion as I see the Easter Pageant waiting to happen. It's never quite going yet. Just people looking for seats and a big empty stage. But I remember being in that audience in years past and the spirit I felt. And I remember being backstage in an oversized white gown nearly shaking with excitement every night while I waited to climb all those stairs. Then, having the privilege of portraying the angels that sang and danced with joy and wonder to celebrate Christ's birth and his resurrection.  My part was small. But the part that experience will play in my life is not.

Whatever else I do or don't do at this or any other holiday, I recommit myself to celebrating the joy of Easter every day.

A flash of memory - - sitting backstage one night...the air dark and spirit-filled...I started scribbling. Whether it's any good, I don't know. And for once, I don't care too much. :) I just remember the feeling behind it and am grateful my heart was able to spill onto paper that night...because it helps me remember how Easter really feels to me.

When the blessed baby came

Layed in a manger in a far away land

I know the angels sang

And even though it seemed a humble birth

I’m sure the heavens shook with joy

As they brought the glorious news

To the earth

And I’m sure their hearts were dancing

As they glorified the Father

As they spoke peace to the shepherds on the hill

I’m sure they hovered over Mary

When she kissed her precious baby

I wish I could have been there

When Christ, my Savior, came

I know the angels sang

 

As Jesus grew into a man

His life was perfect

It was pure and it was sweet

It speaks precious truth to me

Every step He took shows us how to live

His words call us from our hiding place

And I’m sure

The angels walked before those footsteps

Watched Him bring glory to His Father

Saw Him heal the blind and raise the dead

Perhaps even they were filled with wonder

When He walked upon the water

When he held the children dear

I’m sure angels were near.

 

And in Gethsemane

He suffered horrifying things

And when He cried out to the Father

There soon appeared another

An angel to be near

And catch his Savior’s falling tears

 

When the sound of a nail

Being hammered to a cross rang out at Calvary

Did the angels humbly weep?

As lightening pierced through that dark and empty night

Did they long to take Him home

Did their very souls ache

Till they heard

Mary cry out in the garden

Saw her fall before her Master

Run to tell all she could reach that He lives!

The heavens must have burst with light then

Trumps were sounding, voices sang out

‘Alleluia, He is risen’

 

When He comes again

I want to dance among the angels

Sing my love and praise forever

Till then, all I have I will give

For I know my Savior lives.

When in doubt...

So, it's "naptime" around here...

which, these days, loosely translates into Ben possibly napping (today he is!) either in his room (yes!) or on the couch while Bethany and James watch a movie (hopefully...today they are mostly watching and resting.)

For me, this means it's time to decide what to do with my time.  Every day is different but there are some things that hold true on all days.

Cleaning is out. Our wood floors on the second floor make every step you take (even barefoot) echo ridiculously throughout the basement below where Ben is sleeping. (I'll have you know that my mom has managed to clean my upstairs while babies are sleeping below and pull it off...she probably thinks I'm complaining about nothing...seriously though, EVERY time I try, they wake up! What is that??)  Also, any walking around stirs the kids' interest and they lose the will to sit and rest for their movie but instead follow me around with "Mommy, what are you doing? Can I help? What's that? Can I have a snack? Why don't you watch our movie? How long until Ben's awake?..." So, anyway, I opt out of cleaning though it is needed.

Phone calls...sometimes I have these to make. I avoid them if at all possible. But, I do try to return them if I happen to receive them and naptime is my only "guaranteed" time to do it without the world falling apart around me. Tricky part is, the kids hear my voice and venture out to see what's going on, who's on the phone, can they talk to them, how long till Ben wakes up, can I have a snack...etc. Opt out.

Work on all the gazillions of computer stuff, paperwork, planning and filing projects I always have going...or that make themselves go...because I don't recall choosing most of them...?

Food storage planning...makes my head swim incessently today.

Refining our family budget...makes my eyes cross today.

Planning some fun activities for the kids...gives me an ulcer today.

Return emails...afraid I would end up complaining! 

Then there are those few projects that have been "going" for so long I just get dizzy and nauseous even thinking about them.

SO...

A tag it is. :)

I'd like to thank Heidi for this opportunity to completely shirk everything I could be doing (I won't say "should" because I've been told it's a naughty word...) in order to simply give myself a break and think only about me and the more meaningless parts of my life for a little while. 

Ooh...my jaw unclenches and eyebrows un-furrow just thinking about it. So, let's go!

5 THINGS:

5 things I was doing 5 years ago:

1. moving into a studio apartment with Mason as we saved for our house being built out in Queen Creek (oh, the smallness of it...kitchen, living room/bedroom, bathroom, closet. done.)

2. dancing for Evaloha http://evaloha.com/

3. working at DAC. Horrible place. SO much fun sharing a cubicle there with Kristyn!!! We caused so much trouble and laughed so much on a daily basis!

4. discovering the fun of shoes, purses, expensive makeup, celebrity gossip, laying out by the pool and calorie counting (mostly due, I believe, to sharing a cubicle there with Kristyn!! I think that, since, we've both grown out of...some...of those things...haha)

5. thinking about getting pregnant...

5 things on my (trying to be realistic) to-do list today: 

1. be taking full and complete breaths by the time "naptime" is over

2. think of something fun and different to do with the kids this afternoon that doesn't require going outside, moving around too much, (due to colds and coughs had by all)  or locating supplies that are buried in my pantry due to the current project of cleaning it out/organizing the stuff in it. Then do it while continuing to be able to breathe.

3. When kids are hopefully happy and fulfilled after whatever I come up with, bring the humidifiers upstairs to the playroom and settle the kids in with a(nother) movie. Be fine with it. Make dinner involving lots of vegetables to help us kick this thing. 

4. Welcome JC home with a smile and not tears and coughing fits like last night.

5. Yoga

5 things I would do with a million dollars:

1. become self-reliant (pay off our mortgage, start our garden, build up an amazing food storage, etc.)

2. set up an investment to use as an income so JC could have the option of not working or working just for fun (that doesn't seem like the right word but you know what I mean...so he could do something just for the love of it and not ever have to worry about how much money it brings in)

3. get the kids set for their futures

4. buy JC a truck

5. set up an amazing vacation fund so that we could do little trips now while the kids are young but when the kids got older we could take them all over the world to experience it all together

5 places I have lived:

1. Gilbert, AZ

2. Queen Creek, AZ

3. Tempe, AZ

4. Provo, UT

5. Ft. Worth (area), TX

5 jobs I have held:

1. front desk at a chiropractor's office (actually loved)

2. pizza person at Domino's Pizza (hated)

3. discounter at CIT (love/hate)

4. "teacher" at Children's World Daycare (left crying every day after having to witness, firsthand, what being dropped off at daycare every day can do to a kid even when I tried my best to love them and teach them...still, I swear, it haunts me. I really think this is partially responsible for my drive to never ever ever ever give my children any reason to think that anything or anyone comes before my family...because no matter how much they were reassured, I saw those kids question that fact every day when their moms dropped them there...)

5. ...something...? at DAC (love/hate)

5 things I want to be doing in 5 years:

(ooh, I like this one...let's see...the kids will be in 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade...my first year with all three in school all day!!!  woohoo!!! )

(...I love my kids and I will miss them...)

1. gardening, canning, dehydrating, juicing, freezing, making homemade breads, pasta and cereals and living off all of that plus a rotating food storage system. I know that sounds like a lot of things but they are in the same general category...

2. spending a designated time each day cleaning and organizing so I don't ever fall too far behind.

 3. volunteering regularly in my kids' classrooms

4. getting ready to publish a book (and maybe getting back to reading books too!)

5. planning a family trip to Disneyland!!!

5 people I tag:

1. Emily

2. Bonnie

3. Ali

4. Pammy

5. Jamie

WELL!

That was fun.

And look at that...I'm breathing again!

Back to work...movie will end soon and I better figure out that exciting thing that's going to keep us happy, busy and yet still in recovery mode for the next couple of hours!

Darn it, lost the lung capacity again...well...you know, maybe it's just an occupational hazard. :)

James' Birthday Weekend - - the big 0-3!

You've had a birthday, shout hooRAY!

As I alluded to in a previous post, we recently celebrated James' third birthday. Can you believe it? Sweet Baby James is three!!

For Bethany's third birthday, JC and I took her out for a little date with us...lunch and Build-a-Bear...and it was really fun. So, we decided to make it tradition and do the same for James.

His birthday was on a Sunday, so the Friday before we left Bethany and Mr. Ben with my mom and headed out to enjoy the afternoon as Mom, Dad and Just James.

First matter of business - - eat!

Our little boy has a pretty serious tendency to be very specific about what he wants to eat and/or change his mind last minute (usually after preparations are already under way...usually doesn't fly at home...usually leads to a very large fit-throwing marathon...yeah, meal times are awesome at our house right now)...SO, we decided to hit a buffet. We usually avoid them like the plague because it is oh-so-hard to be good when confronted with aisles and aisles of the foods normally avoided. But, our occassion called for one...if we made a plate for him and he changed his mind, we could just go back and get something different!...so we found ourselves at the Golden Corral.  I have many a childhood memory of eating at this place...and now I am understanding why! Five kids to attempt to please, possibility of fits, refusal to eat and money wasted...my parents had it figured out all along...

James doesn't know what to do with himself...Mom and Dad to himself, a plateful of food he hand-selected and actually eating in public! (We NEVER take the kids out to eat...perhaps we should start now that they're getting older...but up till now, never.)

As a side note (as if it could be avoided), look at those EYES! Killer blue for sure.

(It's also worth noting that he was immensely proud of his water cup with a straw. The hostess got it for him herself and he felt very grown up, carrying it to our table.)

And here is the plateful he selected...I thought it would be fun to look back in years to come at what he chose to eat for his third birthday.

Raisins, ham, oranges, pineapple, peaches, corn, pickles and some form of french fry.

And for dessert, chocolate brownie. 

He LOVES chocolate. And hardly ever gets it. This was a grand moment for him!

He gave us some silly faces...

And then stuffed his mouth with ham just in time for a picture with Mom.

Next on the agenda - - Build-a-Bear!

We really have only gone here the once...for Bethany's birthday, so this was our second experience. The only thing I really have to say is that the people who work here must be really REALLY tired at the end of the day. I mean...really tired. I could never be that enthusiastic about anything for more than one hour. Tops. Well, unless it involved some sort of lifelong passion of mine. And I seriously doubt that stuffing bears is a lifelong passion of anyone's. 

Or, in James' case, stuffing Zebras.

He loves animals. The jungle kind especially. Elephants, Monkeys, Zebras. You all know by now that he carries his little plastic animals around in his hands and pockets all day...the little zebra is a favorite so as soon as I saw they had one I knew he's be smitten. As he was.

He helped stuff him.

Warmed the little heart between his hands before they put it in...

Then gave him a nice bath.

Next, it was time for acessories. Last year with Bethany we went through about five different and complete outfits before deciding.

James wanted a hat.

Just a hat.

Yep, looks good.

I'm not sure what happened, but we ended up with a jacket instead. Just as good. Just as simple.

We went through the whole naming/adopting your bear/zebra and thought some specific typing was required, James was convinced the assignment was to pound on the keyboard with his open hand as hard as possible. This is me, trying to keep him from doing so. JC thinks this picture is funny, like I'm trying to make it my own project and not letting James help. 

With some activities, I may be tempted. 

Build-a-Zebra is not one of them.

We gave him his own computer to mess with.

And then it was time to put our new friend in his home.

Who, by the way is named Bambingo.

Which is how James says Flamingo. 

(he can say Flamingo if he really thinks about it...just takes too much effort so usually it still comes out Bambingo)

I'm not sure why a zebra made him think of a flamingo except that they can reside in the same general climate.

We call him Bingo for short.

JC and I mostly just enjoyed the fact that there was this shirt available for purchase for your bear...or zebra.

Third on our to-do: playtime! We used to go to this little play area at the San Tan Mall all the time...until it got hot and Ben started walking...too many kids to run in too many directions at once. Plus, no shade.

Apparently, now there is shade and James had a blast. I want to take them back soon. Probably on the same day as the Farmers' Market. I love those.

Here, James give a special "attempt to smile against the fierce wind blowing this day" smile for his arrival at the park.

Then he just climbed.

And climbed some more.

(You'll notice he has a sticker on his back. He refused to wear his "I'm the birthday bear" sticker on his shirt so when he wasn't paying attention, I stuck it on his back. More for lack of other places to put it..but also because he WAS the birthday bear. And shouldn't everyone know it??

Last time we were here, he needed my help going down this slide. Big boy now.

Fourth item on the agenda: After some playtime, we visited the puppy store. These places break my heart and make it burst with joy at the same time.

We were super lucky and there were some puppies out in the little puppy play area for James to watch and giggle at.

He points out his favorite...

"Hi Puppy"

"Hi little boy."

And we made some more friends...

Last item of business for our afternoon-o-fun: Go to Target and spend some birthday money that was sent from JC's grandparents in Idaho. I believe this is his first attempt at shopping for himself. (Well, beside Bingo the Zebra.)

He was a very determined little James, walking the aisles, waiting for something to strike his fancy.

And then he saw it.

Dinosaurs!!!

And that was that.

A few minutes into the ride home, we had this:

And, upon arriving home, this:

I guess it was a good afternoon to inspire such determined napping!

Really, though, it was so fun to get out and enjoy some time with our middle child. Just him and us.  He was a very happy camper and we got lots of laughs and fun moments out of it.

That Sunday was his actual birthday and it was also...

Conference Weekend.

The kids loved the choir and spent time coloring bingo pages that Grandma Trudie had printed out for them. Bethany actually got the concept and was able to pick out topics mentioned. 

And I would like to proudly anounce that it was the first session we made it all the way through in the past couple of years, hearing much of it and actually being able to internalize some of it!

I can't wait for the Ensign to come out and I really can't wait for October...maybe we will make it through TWO sessions as a family!!

Later in the day, I did some prep work for dinner during which Ben took his usual approach to that time of day:

He hates when I cook.

Not enough attention on him.

He kept pointing at the avocado I was cutting up. So I tried to give him a piece. 

No go.

So, I tried giving him a whole one to hold. He bit into it.

Not such a great idea.

So, I cut one in half, pitted it and handed it to him.

Yep, that did it.

I won't even attempt a story on this one, but I will just say I made a birthday cake for James. Got a little too ambitious/creative and it was nearly a disaster.

Turned out decently. It looked like a huge chocolate donut.

Just about right for James.

Unfortunately, right before dinner was right when his fever showed up and he started feeling really really badly. So, he settled in on the couch with a soft blanket and a movie.  I was sad, offered him anything I could think of to make him happy or more comfortable but he just wanted to be left to his movie. So, we ate.

Oh yeah...it was our monthly Ballard Dinner, just happened to be our turn to host and on James' birthday!

Everyone got more than they bargained for when I tried to bring him in so we could sing Happy Birthday and everyone could have cake. I'll spare the details but I'm surprised anyone had appetites after James' lunch reappeared. I suppose everyone has family gatherings like that...right?

After I got him settled in comfortably again, I made sure everyone was happy and enjoying themselves in the kitchen.

Cousins, siblings, frozen chocolate-dipped bananas and homemade chocolate cake.

...and the boy it was all for, in the next room.

Soon, it was present time. I could barely get any acknowledgement out of him but thought it might cheer him up.

But it just wasn't the right time. Not even for presents.

So I promised him that soon it would be time for everyone to go to bed and I would sit with him until he felt better or went to sleep.

Which I did.

Which was nice.

P.S. The next day, he felt much better.

We love our James and celebrate him every day. He is most definitely coming into his own, discovering his independence and daring the world around him to have boundaries or limits of any sort. I love to watch his personality come out more and more...I love learning about who he is and though he will probably give me my fair share of worry-induced ulcers in his growing years, I know that life with him will always be a sweet and heart-warming adventure.

Happy Birthday, Baby James!