After dressing as jedi for Halloween, the boys continued their adoration of all things light-saber. Actually, before getting "real" toy light sabers for their costumes, I made some "homemade" toy light sabers out of pool noodles and broom handles that I found lying around in the garage. The best place to battle is the front yard so neighbor boys frequently come over and join in the fun.
I forgot to throw this cute photo into last month's batch. It was taken at one of those fall-festival hay-ride places.
The first real snow of the season (i.e., the first to accumulate on the ground) provided us with some decent sledding and snowman making.
A giant climbing wall compound (Momentum climbing) is in nearby Sandy. The boys frequently beg me to take them there after thei friend, Bleddyn, introduced them to it at his birthday party. One Saturday morning I bit the bullet. Kind of expensive, so it will be a rare treat when we go again.
Thomas has been trying to read his scriptures a lot. He started in Genesis. I found him asleep with his lamp on one night and scriptures splayed out on his chest.
On a day the boys had no school, Erika took them to a dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point. The boys were impressed by the massive dinosaur bones.
The boys continue to enjoy their school in Draper. Matthew gets to attend some advanced reading and math classes. Right now the main thing holding him back from advancing even further is his limited attention span and propensity for pushing the limits. Lately his only infraction has been interrupting class to use the bathroom (they are expected to do that during recess so as not to slow the class down).
After school Matthew usually has some homework that he does in the kitchen with help from mom. Somehow, Thomas usually finds time to finish his at school.
A while back we bought some fun little costumes and masks at Ikea. The boys recently found the bug masks and used them to become luchadors (in the tradition of Mexico's Lucha Libre). Donning blankets as capes, they leapt off the little cabin in their playroom to start their wrestling matches. (A luchador has to make a very dramatic entrance to the wrestling ring.)
Watch out Chuck Norris, it's...Tomas el Toreador
If you thought Nacho Libre was hot stuff,
then you haven't met...Matthew, the Black Widow-Maker
On Thanksgiving morning we worked up our appetite by hiking the Y in Provo, which we also did last year so I think we're starting a new tradition. It helps offset the imminently inevitable intake of calories. As a sign in the Philippines once said, "Calories are inevitable." (That joke only makes sense to a few of my blog readers so move along if you are not one of the lucky few.)
We took a family photo at the top of the Y. It took a few shots, but we finally got Matthew to look at the camera:
Another fun family outing was spent at the Gallivan Plaza skating rink near my office (with my mom tending Emmy for us--thank you!). The boys were ultra excited to go. At first they fell frequently, but they got right back up...until Matthew fell backwards and whacked the back of his head. I took him to a bench to rest up and he began begging me to take him home because he was so miserable. In the midst of that conversation, Thomas came crying because the same headache-inducing fate had befallen him. Erika and I let them both cry for a few minutes and bore their whining patiently. It was looking like we might have to give in to their demands when suddenly they both felt better and wanted to immediately get back on the ice. We ended up spending another couple of hours having riotous wintry fun. I was proud of their grim determination to learn ice skating. Matthew learned that he could stay up if he combined running with skating. Everyone loved seeing his energetic little body swooping around the rink.
Being December, we have many reasons to celebrate in our house, Christmas aside. My 34th birthday, on the sixth, was first on the list.
We enjoyed a Who-ville themed Christmas party with my Mom and her church congregation. The grinch story was reenacted for us while we ate. I particularly enjoyed my sister Alicia's, brightly decorated Christmas tree/red velvet cake.
You might enjoy some recent photos of the new little girl we're crazy about at our house, Emmeline Grace. She has graced us with many laughs, smiles, coos, and raspberries (her favorite trick).
Just a couple days ago we had a celebration for Matthew's 7th birthday (not counting the actual day of birth). His favorite activity is still bowling, but on his birthday we got hit with a giant snowstorm so we waited until the next day (i.e., yesterday) to bowl. He lost his scriptures so one of the top wishes on his wishlist was a new set, a wish we gladly fulfilled. He also loved some little lego men sent by his Tennessee grandparents, in particular a little snowboarding lego man that kept him busy all through sacrament meeting today.
You might enjoy some recent photos of the new little girl we're crazy about at our house, Emmeline Grace. She has graced us with many laughs, smiles, coos, and raspberries (her favorite trick).
Emmeline has a brand new cousin, Elizabeth, born yesterday to my sister Alicia. And with Elizabeth the E-cousin trifecta is complete, my other young niece, Eva, being the first.
