Playing Hooky

We have continued our Sunday Adventure Days when we can. We are trying to check things off the list now that we haven't seen yet. This time we decided to go see the United States Botanical Gardens. Joseph was very excited, because for school he had just read a book all about killer plants and we got to see some. These are pitcher plants and they drown bugs and then digest them at their roots. By the time we were done walking the catwalk in the jungle and learning about pineapple and potatoes and visiting all the beautiful flowers Washington University's graduation (where Mrs. Obama gave the Keynote address) that was on the National Mall had just concluded. There was people everywhere and no hope of getting home in time to get cleaned up and ready for church, so we played hooky. We went to the Air and Space Museum playing around with the heat sensor. Look how hot headed those children are. And then look at how blue I am. I told you that I was always cold and there is proof!
a picture of the exact calculator Rob owns from college- now that will make you feel old!
and took more alphabet pictures and jumped pillars and went through one of the statue gardens. A cool family photo op!
I just hope we didn't miss Zion.

Mother's Day

We had Mother's day in Norfolk with Rob. We went to the Officer's club for brunch- something we have never done before, because of the fact that it is on the Sabbath. The children still asked why we went out to eat on a Sunday. They just don't understand the whole traveling clause! It was really nice and relaxing. Later we came back to Rob's bachelor pad and played volleyball with the family and watched a movie and ate a Cold Stone ice cream cake. Yum!

For our Mother/Daughter night at Young Women's the week before, one of the questions they asked is why you like being a mom. I had to stop and consider. Why do I like being a mom? Do I like being a mom? The answer to that is, Yes! Here are my Top 10 reasons I like being Mom (in no particular order):
1. My kids are fun. We do lots of fun things together.
2. My kids keep me young. Emma tells me everything like I was one of her friends, just like I did with my Mom. I don't always pay as much attention as I should, but it's fun to hear the latest things the kids are doing. Right now it's, "your mom...." Yeah, like that hasn't been around a few times! "Your mother wears combat boots!" (That one doesn't work so well as an insult anymore.)
3. And besides that I get to hear all about Justin Beavers (or however you spell his last name) and the Jonas brothers and all about hair flips that make you go wild!
4. You learn so much as a parent. Patience being one of them. Lots and lots of Patience.
5. You get to review manners. This helps you remember them as well. Sometimes even adults slip and talk with their mouths open.
6. You learn to be consistent.
7. You remember how to enjoy life and laugh a lot more. My kids are so funny. We laugh all the time- (sometimes when we shouldn't.)
8. God's love doesn't seem so incomprehensible once you have your own children.
9. Lots and lots of love coming your way all the time. I love that they want to give me hugs and kisses still, even when I drop them off at school- they all still say, "love you Mom" and blow me kisses!
10. Watching your kids succeed, hoping they do better than you did, cheering them on and helping them in their goals. It's just all so exciting- where will they end up, what will they do, who will they become? So much potential! Sometimes it makes me burst out and start lecturing them about all that they can become and do if they just put that potential into overdrive. They don't like it when I do that, but sometimes I just can't contain it!
I grew up thinking I would be a terrible mother, because I hated to babysit. I guess it's just different when they are yours. I love being a Mom!

USS Enterprise

We had a wonderful opportunity that we couldn't pass up this last weekend. We got to go on a tour of the first nuclear aircraft carrier and the 2nd oldest ship in the Navy, the USS Enterprise. Being in the Army we have never had that kind of opportunity- that is before Rob got into this joint schooling. You have to know someone on the ships to take you on board. We didn't know anyone, but Rob asked one of the guys in the class. He knew someone who asked someone to do it for us. She was very accommodating and took us all over the carrier. In fact she took 2 1/2 hours to tour us around everywhere. Since they were about to put out to sea, everyone had been given the weekend off and so we got to see a lot more than normal, I think. When we were told about the tour, we were told "no camera's", so we didn't bring one on board. Everyone on board thought that was all silliness and kept saying "you should have brought your camera. That would have made a great picture!" Double Dern-it (as Max says!) Everyone got to "drive" the ship and sit in the Captain's chair. We got to eat cake in the Officer's Mess and run all over the flight deck. I had them show us the infirmary. We saw the anchor room and Joseph did the unthinkable and walked on the chain. We all tried to lift one of the links- they weigh 350 pounds each. Rob was the only one that could move it. We took a little rest on the Captain's private balcony and played with the charts and computers in the control room. The Lt. was very good to ask people who worked at each place to tell us about it, since she wasn't an expert at them all. This made the tour much more informative and interesting! Everyone had a great time. Joseph shook the Lt. hand at the end and said, "thank you for the cake!" Of course that was the best part of the whole tour for Joseph! She says she can now get us a tour on the newest aircraft carrier- the USS Bush. We are so excited!

Teacher's Appreciation Week

I never quite get it together in time to do the one a day thing that they tell you to do. We got a letter sent home that tells you what to do each day- Flowers, note, treat, support the luncheon, etc. So finally I bought some stuff and we did it all in one. Here is our Flower, note, treat all in one day. Aren't they cute! Those are cute thumb tacks I found at Office Depot making up the bud part, a binder clip for a leaf and colored pencils that are sharpened on both sides for the stem. If I had my scrapbooking stuff, they would have looked even better. I could have painted the little Styrofoam balls instead of coloring them with marker (that got all over my hands) and I could have secured them with hot glue. And then I would have cut out a really cute leaf to go on the binder clip.

The treat was dirty white trash. I love that stuff! I don't put the peanuts in it and I melt some chocolate chips and drizzle that over the whole thing to make it dirty! I ate half of it yesterday, so I made sure all of the rest went with the teachers today. I have no self control!

Max wanted to make one too. His turned out to just be an alien guy!

They say...

Joseph says, "I am going to go boneless!" This is when he is tired of walking and just...can't....go...any....farther!

Rob tells me about all the people he knows in the 20 somethings that eat with their mouths open. We find a lot more people are doing it. Rob decided it must be because no one eats as a family anymore and so the children don't hear 10 times a day to "eat with your mouth closed!" Why is it that you have to say "eat with your mouth closed", "flush", "wash your hands", "hang up your towel", "take care of the clothes on your floor" every day, some of them 10 times a day! When do they finally get it without you saying it? And really, if this decline in social society and just plain grossness doesn't show exactly why Mom's need to be around a little more often, I don't know what does!

Max says, "that's our team, Mom" every time he sees the American Flag. He has done that ever since the Winter Olympics. Very cute! Speaking of flags, we went to see Alice in Wonderland at the base theater the other day. Growing up, I thought everyone stood up for the national anthem before a movie. Now that I have lived away from only having military bases to watch movies at I have gotten used to watching 40 minutes of commercials before a movie, instead. I loved going and seeing the National Anthem again and everyone standing up with their hand on their heart or standing at attention. It's the way it should be!

Emma says, "Lies!" all the time now. She used to say, "you have been shunned" a lot, now it is mostly, "I know, right?" and "Lies!"

Seneca said- wait who is Seneca- Oh, some Roman dude who used to work for the Emperor Nero. Anyway, I loved this quote by him that I found in The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society book. "Light griefs are loquacious, but the great are dumb." Isn't that so true. That's how you know you weren't affected for the rest of your life by that so and so who did such awful things to you- you talk about it way too much!

Sam says, "What I want for my birthday is... a cross bow and some arrows, a motorcycle, and a sword." He says this a lot, lately. I am afraid he is going to be rather disappointed on his birthday!

Mom says, "Yellow one!" *punch* Because Mom almost always wins at the punch buggy game!! They have now made the rule that Mom has to wait 2 whole seconds before she can yell this. I think it is rather unfair. Max and Joseph are horrible at this game and constantly scream and hit each other over and over when there is absolutely no punch buggy in sight. This leads to more screaming and more hitting until there are tears. They have been banned from the game!