I love this stage of childhood

Yes, that is a child's pretend ironing board that she's using as a surf board - thank you for asking. ;)

I highly encourage creativity around here. Christian went through the whole Blue's Clues stage where he wouldn't answer to anything but Steve and only wore striped shirts -- for like a year.  Paige was Dora the Explorer 24/7.  No reason to have anyone's feet planted firmly in reality at age 5, I say.  Elle's a princess one minute and a surfing Barbie the next.  Love it!

Stuff that's happening around here

PTA -- I've stayed away from all things PTA until recently. I would rather be volunteering in the kids' classes than running a book fair or something. I've said 'no' to lots of nice ladies and didn't feel badly for saying so. This year, I found myself coerced into doing Red Ribbon Week at the jr. high, which also meant that I was on the PTA board. Kind of took me out of my comfort zone a bit, but then I found that I really enjoyed being on the board because I knew so much more about what was happening at the school. And since Christian is my 1st child there, that's a good thing for the girls who will follow. Somehow, though, I've now allowed myself to be on the PTA board for next year at the elementary school and (**cough, heart palpitations, cough **) am now the PTA President Elect for this coming year at the Jr. High. That means I'll be PTA President the year that Haley & Christian are both in jr. high and when Elle is finally in 1st grade. Huge jump from no PTA to PTA Pres. Hello?! I'll be the one calling all of those other moms who won't get involved in PTA, begging them to come get involved. Don't ask me what I was thinking....

BALLET -- Elle & Paige just performed in their studio's ballet recital, Cinderella. Elle's class were mice (seriously so cute!) and Paige's class had the comical performance of the night. In the ballet, the stepsisters go to dance lessons before the ball to learn how to dance. Paige's class were the dancers trying to teach them the steps. I love the way their studio puts on the ballet recital ... the costumes are stunning and they're beautiful to watch.

SPELLBOUND -- Haley finished in the top 15 or so (out of 80 kids) at the District Spelling Bee and now she's preparing for the County, where she'll be up against jr. high kids, too. Go Akeelah!

HOUSE -- I really like this house. Like, a lot.

40 -- Countdown!! 13 more days until I am the big 4-0.   Cannot wait.

PARKING -- We've been here 6 months and we can finally park both cars in the 3 car garage. The 3rd stall is still jam packed but we're two-thirds of the way there. Progress!

More egg humor from Christian

Some of the scenes I find occasionally when I open the fridge ....

Not to be outdone, Elle added her own egg art.

Visitor

Little Kate is here for a quick visit with her parents. Which means we have little scenes like this ....

Cousin bliss. :)

Entertainment for them all

Haley's class had a field trip to the new Museum of Natural History recently and she's been begging to go back ever since. So the kids & I had a field trip of our own. It was pretty darn cool, I have to admit. The kids liked the clear floors...

I liked the creative display of dinosaur bones. Reminded me of the large stuffed animals at Cabella's that show the creatures hunting each other down.  This little guy had a small army of friends that were taking down that ginormous dinosaur.

And check out the size of this prehistoric alligator, especially in comparison to that kid in front. Talk about ginormous!

Haley is still aiming to become a medical scientist who will cure cancer someday, so her primary reason to get back to the museum was to spend more time in the cell section. It had an area that focuses on cancer cells. She was a happy girl. The earthquake area was cool, too. You could see a current printout of a seismograph and then jump near it to see how it affected the readout.

You know a museum has done its job if my 13 year old was as entertained as my 5 year old. It didn't hurt that they had a nice cafe at the end and we dined on cheesecake while looking out over the valley. Pretty cool place.

Hey, mom ....

The following is a re-creation of an actual conversation.  This is not an actor.

One of my pet peeves is when people misuse the whole hand-quote thing.  But in this case, it just cracked me up.

Tea Party

Nothing says 'class' like a tea party .... at McDonald's.

We got some funny looks and a few moms who complimented me on my creativity, but it was really Elle's idea. Watching them pour their chocolate milk into those tiny cups was the highlight.

Happy Valentine's!

* Check out my other favorite Valentines ...

http://yenniper.blogspot.com/2012/02/harry-potter-valentines-part-i.html

State Hopping

Haley and her cousin, Sydney, are 6 months apart in age and they've been thick as thieves for most of their lives. That is, when Syd's family lived up the street from us. But since moving to California a couple of years ago, the girls' time together is much more precious and definitely more rare. They talk on the phone a lot and play internet games together now. Modern technology is so cool, sometimes.

Sydney's 11th birthday was last month and all she asked for was "a visit from Haley." And then she'd always follow up with, "But I know she can't come here." So Erin hatched a plan to actually get Haley there and surprise Syd. Over her birthday weekend, Haley flew to California with Erin's in-laws, who were also going that weekend. Haley couldn't believe her good fortune! The other 3 kids couldn't believe they weren't going themselves. (I took care of them, though -- more on that in a second...)

On the morning she flew out, Elle & Paige gave Haley cards and paper hugs.

And then I dropped her at the airport with the Millers. Very weird to leave your child at the airport to fly somewhere without you.

Erin picked Haley up at the other end and promptly drove the girls to the beach. Happy Birthday, Syd!!

They built a huge fort that they slept in every night, they played a lot of Wii, watched Toddlers & Tiaras and Dance Moms (cracks me up), played with baby Kate, and just entertained each other.   They also went out for a birthday breakfast,

saw the Hollywood stars and signatures at the Chinese Theater,

and went to City Walk at Universal Studios where there is neon as far as the eye can see....

The long weekend was a hit for both girls. Mike & I took the other kids to a hotel for the weekend where we swam to our hearts' content. Not such a bad trade-off afterall.

Later, Elle told me that all she wants for her birthday is for 2 yr old Kate to fly here to stay with us. Work on that one, ok Erin?

Should I be alarmed?

I found this slightly disturbing scene today...

What the?? Not sure still exactly who the culprit is. Could it possibly be this adorable child?

Or this innocent-looking one?

Christian doesn't generally play with their teddy bears but I suppose he could be sending a message. We'll be having a full investigation at dinner tonight, I guarantee it.

Scary time to be a teddy bear.

Two's

2 things I'm wearing: Black, sparkly Ugg knock-offs and a comfy hoodie
2 favorite addictions: My iPhone (and all that includes) and Diet Coke (as always)
2 things I did last night: Went to cheer on our Young Women at their basketball game, and had a small group of friends over for 'Pinterest Night' where we make a craft we've seen on Pinterest.
2 products I can't live without: lip gloss and dry shampoo (it has saved my oily hair)
2 things I ate today: a bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats and a protein bar
2 fond memories: Our former house (makes me smile to think of all of the memories there) and traveling with Mike
2 things I did this week: Went to Maturation with one of my daughters (she'd be mortified if I mentioned which daughter she is - wink, wink) and went to a late movie with a friend (Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close - liked it a lot)
2 goals for the future: re-landscape the front of our house (namely ripping out all of the evergreen hedges that we're currently blessed with, and take the fam on another cruise
2 people I last talked to: Elle (my constant sidekick) and Steph via text
2 apps I love: Pinterest and Lose It (I'm down 10 pounds and counting)
2 things on my to do list today: clean the house (it's amazing what I've found under beds so far) and go to a work party with Mike tonight
2 things to do tomorrow: Paige & Elle's dance pictures and hoping to tackle the garage and the rest of the boxes
2 things I'm looking forward to: Turning 40 in March and doing so on the beach in Hawaii (thank you, Legal Seminar, for making this possible!)
2 most recent visitors to our house: Nana (my stepmom) who came and stayed with us last week and said Pinterest group
2 things I'm currently involved in: Volunteering at 3 schools (Christian, Haley & Paige are all at different schools) and Young Women's at church
2 books I've recently read: The Kitchen Boy (about the Russian Tzar and his family who were murdered in 1918) and Cutting for Stone
2 things about me you may not have known: I'm an NPR junkie (my kids hate it) and I'm not a fan of any kind of melon
2 favorite foods: sugar and carbs, in almost any variety (hence, the need for the Lose It app)
2 places I want to visit: Alaska via cruise and more of Europe
2 purchases I'd like to make: a piano and bedroom furniture
2 things I'm great at: procrastinating and finding time for a good book or movie

Date night

Christian & I had a date the other night. We went to go see the comedian, Brian Regan, who Christian has loved for a long time. He's very family friendly, which I love. We gave Christian 2 tickets for Christmas, and then Mike & I proceded to try to persuade him which parent he should take with him. He saw right through it, of course, and would play us off of each other. In the end, I scored the 2nd ticket since Mike ended up having church meetings. Darnit.

Before the concert, we had dinner at a nice restaurant. I taught him some restaurant/date etiquette, which every 13 yr old just loves. He was a good sport, though. The waitress even said, "Trust me ... your future dates will love your mom for this."

Tried to get a decent picture of us pre-concert, but right as I took the picture he would pull this face. Every time.

Adorable, isn't he? :)

Smarty pants

Well, she did it. Haley was in the top 3 kids of her class for the class spelling bee so she went on to the school spelling bee, which happened yesterday.  It started out with 36 kids and was quickly whittled down, round after round.  Haley stayed in the running by correctly spelling words like valetudinarian, filibuster, epidemiologist, pharmaceutical and asphyxiate.

Down to the final few...

Part of our cheering section -- the adorable Olsen girls, who are thankfully also our backyard neighbors. :)

Haley placed 3rd in the school, which means that she's off to the district spelling bee soon! She couldn't stop smiling.

And then she promptly had to let out a little steam by rockin' out with Sarah.

Family party

Being in an LDS ward means that you get very close to your neighbors. You see each other multiple times per week sometimes (with church and then weekly church activities), you serve in callings together and so get to know lots of different people that you may not know as well otherwise ... There's book group, play group, craft nights, movie nights, girls night out, etc.

So moving out of a ward is a big deal. We only moved a few blocks away, so we're technically in the same neighborhood ('ish) -- same school, same church stake -- but it still makes a big difference in who you see every week. And while we love our new house and have felt so welcomed by our new neighbors, we still miss our friends from our last neighborhood & ward. So what do you do when you miss someone? You find an excuse to get together!

The kids & I delivered invitations to everyone in our last ward and had a Family Night open house to see everyone. They all brought food to share and it was a fun night of yumminess, kids playing and adults staying and hanging out for the evening.

Loved the pile of shoes at the door. :)

I wish I'd taken pictures all evening because the crowd rotated and changed often. The kids were playing in every room in the basement -- hide & go seek seemed to be the favorite. We had about 70 people and wish we'd had more. We'll have to do it again this summer, bbq-style.

Alternative use for the hall banister...

Notice the ipod set up on the floor. It was quite the dance studio for awhile yesterday.

Nothing new to report

I've hit a blogging wall. I used to blog several times a week and lately I'm good if I blog every couple of weeks. What's my deal, people?

It's funny how much just hanging pictures on the walls makes a house feel like a home. I've had things leaning against the walls to figure out where I wanted to hang them, and now I'm making real holes in the walls to hang portraits of the kids and other cool things that I've been collecting over the years. For example ...

I'm not very scientific when I hang pictures, unfortunately. The first one up is easy -- I just eyeball it. The 2nd one is easy, too, but the others are definitely harder to hang evenly. Hence, this grouping has 2 pictures hung while the others wait patiently on the floor.

When Paige saw me hanging these up, she asked if we were having someone "freakishly large" over for dinner. :)  Mike isn't entirely won over by the giant silverware either but they make me happy every time I walk by them.

I am just barely taking the Christmas trees down today. Why has it taken me so long, you ask? Because I don't have enough furniture to fill this house and so taking the trees down has quite literally left some gaping holes in my decor. Christmas lights just make a house feel magical, too. Don't people decorate with twinkling trees for Valentine's? Easter?

I'm kicking myself for not having taken more pictures over the past couple of months. Pictures of all 36 of our Thanksgiving guests, or of our Young Women's pajama breakfast here the other morning, or of Christmas morning, or of the private Orange Leaf frozen yogurt party that the extended Mayfield clan had. I didn't even take a Christmas pajama picture this year. Probably because I had the flu on Christmas Eve (so awesome), but still .... Here's a few random shots that I did manage to take, though.

My adorable niece, Ali, with my adorable Elle. There's some serious love between these two.

The girls had an American Girl rock concert. They made instruments for the dolls out of paper and then had a lipsync concert to Paige's ipod music.

We had quite a few cousin sleepovers over the holidays.  Lots of cousins running around together is definitely a good thing.

Elle's preschool gave a little concert at a care center for Christmas. Elle couldn't have been more serious during the concert but she sang every note and did all of the actions. For as animated as she normally is, she sure clams up on stage.

There's always lots of playing around with phone apps. There's the 'stachematic' mustache maker app,

... the 'fat booth' app that adds 100 pounds to your face (this is Christian's friend, Ian -- trust me, he's a cute kid),

... and the 'zombiematic' app that turns your precious daughter into this monster:

That's just wrong.

Back to tackling the garage and the remainder of the boxes that need unpacking ....