Sunday Summary

Emma's week of domesticity included cleaning: On Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Emma wanted to invite the Daines over. During their stay, I began to walk up the stairs near where they were playing and heard someone say, "oh, no, Jessica's coming." Bad phrase to hear. I looked into the boys' room and the kids were seriously ankle deep in the remnants of my bean bag. You know, the little, static-clingy, spongy balls? They were everywhere. (I have to say...if they are going to make a mess, this is my kind of mess. With liquid messes, you know you'll be re-cleaning any "cleaning" they do. With those little balls, I knew their little fingers were perfect for a complete job. I didn't even get mad.) Once the vacuum cleaner bag got completely filled, they were on their hands and knees for the better part of an hour. I thought it was particularly amusing when Heather came to get them, and they complained, "but we didn't get to play, we had to clean the whole time!"

and cooking: she made us Blankets-in-a-Pig on Monday for dinner (which she, despite being the chef, refused to eat) and sewing: she made this quilt in an Activity Girls' Service Project on Saturday.



Gabe's week of parties started on Monday: a few days before MLK Jr. day, he approached me with the plan to go over to his friend Ryan's house on his day off from school. "We thought we could play the Wii and some games. You know, we thought it would be so we could celebrate Martin Luther King and stuff." Gabe had a dream.

On Friday night, he went over to the Rowell's for Tyler's birthday party. It was a sleepover and we are the mean parents who don't allow them, and so Gabe returned home at 11:00 pm and then went back for breakfast the next morning (he woke up at 6:00 to be sure not to miss any of the pancakes). I'm sure he had a great time, but dealing with him the next day...not so much of a party for his parents. That kid was ridiculously tired. Here he is with both Ryan and Tyler.

Jane had a week of child-care that started on Tuesday when she got the much-anticipated Bunker Bear from preschool this week. If Bunker had been a real child, CPS would have been called, as it got left at Pack Meeting, in the car on a -1 degree day and cross-dressed in girls' clothes. Jane sure enjoyed herself, though. She even suggested that she might be too sick to go to Preschool, so that she wouldn't have to return poor Bunker.

Seth's week of injuries included a climb up this:

because he wanted the exercise ball. Notice the cement floor below. Which he fell on, after apparently hanging for a few seconds by his fingers from the top shelf. (Jane witnessed, but didn't feel compelled to stop him...remember her previously mentioned poor parenting skills?). Later that afternoon, after repeated reminders to STAY DOWN, when Mom's back was turned, he fell from the counter top and garnered a huge "Goose Bump" (as Jane calls them).

Which might have contributed to this moment of insanity: Seth had ripped a page in a book. I admonished him to, obviously, "stop ripping pages." He ripped again. So he got sent to the Not-Listening chair. When it was time to get off, I told him to say sorry to me for not listening to my instructions. He said a very sorrowful sorry and then proceeded to left the bathroom, mumbling something about saying "sah-wy a papers". He headed to the place where the sad little page remnants were lying and, in a very repentant voice, proceeded to say TO THE PAPERS, "Sahwy a wipping you." Thoughtful kid.

Ryan and Jessica had a social week. With 3 lunches, 2 parties (one was DDR party, see below), a temple date, a book club, Pack Meeting, the cannery, being in charge of all carpools, and a basketball game...I wasn't surprised when on Friday night (when I didn't have anywhere to go) Jane said, "I love you, Mom, so I'm sorry you have to go to a meeting tonight." When I replied that I didn't have a meeting, Jane said, "That's weird." We are thankful for fun neighbors and friends, but are hoping for more calm this week!