Words and Four-year-olds

Gabe gets words mixed up sometimes, and it isn't surprising when you think how similar some words and ideas are. Here are some he gets confused:

- Dime-Diamond (Both money, one for Americans and one for pirates)
- Light Saber-Life Saver (A light saber is a life saver if you are Luke Skywalker)
- Hearing-Earring (He actually called it his "sense of earring" for a long while. I didn't correct him, I thought it was so cute).
-DI-Library (Don't ask me why Gabe confuses the public library with our local thrift store, except they are both places I bring kids to kill time).

Warning-Warning-Warning Cute Kid Story Ahead!

The other day after sitting quietly for a moment, (SO unusual for Gabe to not talk), Gabe said, "I have three favorite places in the world; Disneyland, DI, and bedtime. Disneyland is fun, DI has toys, and bed is really soft."

Charlie and the Christmas Season

Having kids helps you to remember what it was like to be a kid. Christmas time is just magic. The expectation that precedes presents on Christmas morning is a bottomless well of hope ... you could be getting a pony, you never know what is in that wrapped package.

I recently remembered one time when the magic became real. I was an avid reader growing up, and my favorite author of all time was Roald Dahl, who wrote (to name a few) "James and the Giant Peach," "The BFG," "The Witches," and the pièces de résistance, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." We lived in Rexburg, Idaho, were the winters were long, icy, and painfully cold, so I had a lot of time indoors to pour over his books over and over.

One day I noticed in a Salt Lake Tribune my dad brought home from work, and advertisement for a live performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in Salt Lake City, a good five hours south of Rexburg. I came from a family of six, so we didn't generally get to ask for special trips, but I was so excited by the thought of seeing that book come alive on stage. I turned to my dad in the kitchen, showed him the advertisement.

"That would be fun!" he said. He bought tickets and reserved a hotel, (very unusual on our tight budget). We packed the Chevy van, drove clear to Salt Lake City, and saw the play. It was better than I imagined it to be. A story I loved came alive. That night was magic and has become the epitome of what Childhood Christmas is to me.

Thank You Dad!

Note for Visitors

Blog Readers, please note that I have changed my Blog settings so that you can comment without signing in ... so anyone can comment, with or without a Google account. Please leave your mark! (But keep them rated G, this is a family Blog!)

Our Wilderness Adventure

We were inspired by our friends Mel and Mark's Family Adventure blog and decided to do our own Thanksgiving Wilderness Adventure:
We started in the mountains of Northern Montana.

Look out Jeff, there is a Moose RIGHT BEHIND YOU!

And moved to the African Bush Veldt.

Here are the boys near the water hole.

And then back to a Wilderness trail in Idaho.

Meeting some of the local critters.

Why is Jeff pushing a shopping cart in the African Bush Veldt you ask? Because our African Bush Veldt was actually at the very wildernessy (my spell checker is not accepting that as a word) Cabella's store in Lehi, Utah. We stopped there the day after Thanksgiving in Provo to check it out, which was quite an adventure due to the crowds. They have the above displays with beautiful stuffed animals in very realistic settings looking like they wouldn't be more pleased than if you bought that rifle on the rack behind you and shot them dead. Just kidding, Jeremy, I don't hate hunting. And I'm not going to generalize, although Cabellas does seem to attract a certain kind of person (men who like to shoot animals).

We had a great Thanksgiving at the Palmer house. It was the first time the entire family was together in a decade. We had a family photo taken to commemorate the event, which I will post once I get a copy. There were 30 people in my parent's house in all. It was a good thing the brothers and brothers-in-law were able to get a lot of energy out playing ultimate frisbee before the Big Meal.

The food this year was spectacular. In addition to the succulent honey ham and the juicy turkey (Mom), we had spectacular whipped yams (Bryn) and stuffing with the tang and crunch of apple pieces mixed with chewy whole-grain bread (Channing). And of course, the blue cheese and shrimp appetizers that made the meal a masterpiece (Trieste). Melissa's seven-layer dip was consumed before the meal even began (sorry gentlemen, you leave to play ultimate frisbee, you lose!) and Staci's frog-eye salad was a hit with everyone, especially Gabe who asked if I could call and get the recipe! Thanks everyone for potlucking (once again, not in the spell checker) in such a spectacular fashion.

Around the block

Today I went jogging. I jogged two blocks. I actually did twice my goal, which was around the block. I am AWESOME! Gabe rode along with me on his bike. He is a pretty good pace man.

Jeff and I went on a date yesterday. We've had a drought of good babysitters, then recently we remembered Angela, who moved out of our neighborhood two years ago and is of babysitting age. She is so good and responsible, and the boys like her. I think we'll be using her a lot.

Jeff and I went to Village Inn and then to see Harry Potter at the cheap theater. The food was predictably mediocre, but we were greatly entertained when the waitress dropped a bowl of ranch dressing and the young man at the table next to us was drenched in the stuff. Also entertaining was the conversation of the people behind us who couldn't decide whether the Swiss Miss was Swedish.

We brought Benji with us, and he was quiet (enough) through the movie. I really enjoyed the fifth Harry Potter movie. I thought the book was too long and Harry was a bit of a whiner in it. the movie did a good job of focusing on the good things about the book and leaving out the dull. And that duel between Dumbledore and Voldemort at the end! Cool!

Cold Day

It is frrreezing here today. We had to bring flyers around the block for a church party, so I bundled up the boys and ventured out about 10:00. My hands felt icy and my nose was bright red. I thought Gabe would whine the whole way, he doesn't enjoy being outside very much. Usually when I send him into the backyard, he cries like he is being punished. But to my surprise when we got home from the flyer walk, he suggested we continue on to the bakery, three blocks down the road. I was cold, and suggested we drive, and he said no, he would rather walk! So we did.

Here are some photos from Halloween. I bought Gabe a very cute Dragon costume, but he really wanted to be Batman. So we compromised and he wore the dragon to the downtown trick or treat during the day, and the Batman during the evening "when the other big kids will see me." I can't believe his is already grown out of letting me dress him up cute. boo hoo.

Dentist

I took the kids to the dentist this morning, otherwise known as Dr. Doug. He is a pediatric dentist and his nurses are so cute is almost makes me sick. But the kids both love them, which is why I patronize his office. His waiting room has giant rubber balls and beanbags that the kids can roll around on while they wait. This was Leo's first time there ... he did great, chatting with the nurses and being as cute as can be. And miracle! He had no cavities! Relief flooded over me. Gabe has lots of silver "pirate teeth" as we call them, and had his sixth cavity filled today (thankfully a very small one. It only took 10 minutes). I don't know why his teeth are so bad. Well, actually he drank sippies until he was three and a half, and we didn't consistently brush his teeth until he was three, so I guess I do know part of the reason. I couldn't take him to his previous dental appointments, I was so scared he would cry and the smells made me sick (when I was pregnant) I couldn't stand it. Poor oldest kid. Lucky for Leo and Benji, parents catch on eventually.

I'll be needing to get back to working part time in a few weeks, and I'm not really looking forward to it. I just don't know how it will fit in my day. My boss is very hands off, so it is my prerogative to get going. It is a good tactic, because I'm so driven by insecurity, I do way more on my own then when I am told what to do. Hmmm, maybe I'll wait until after Christmas to start.

For Thanksgiving this year I was appointed to delegate food assignments. All my siblings will converge on my parent's house with their spouses and children ... more than 30 people. We have a few "purists" among us, those who refuse to eat instant potatoes or Sam's Club appetizers. I'm not so picky. I love good food in any form. I actually printed out a recipe for Ratatouille yesterday to try. It looks pretty good ... tomatoes, zucchini, and eggplant with lots of garlic and herbs.

I've been very into food literature these days, and really enjoyed the books by former New York Times food critic Ruth Reichle ("Garlic and Sapphires," "Comfort Me With Apples," and "Tender at the Bone"), and two books by Vogue food critic Jeffrey Steingarten, "The Man Who Ate Everything" and "It Must Have Been Something I Ate." The first for her poetic writing that draws you into her characters and flavors, and the second for his humor and fascinating food facts. He is something of a "Good Eats" on paper (for those of you who watch the food network). I'm looking for a new food book, if anyone has recommendations.

I've found that many mothers talk WAY too much about schedules. I can't think of anything much more dull than another person's child's sleep habits. But guess what -- Benji woke me up only twice last night, rather than his typical three times. Yay! I feel positively invigorated today. I may even (dare I try it?) skip my nap!

Cute Kids ... Ewww.

I remember when I was single and childless how annoying it was to hear endless stories about the cute things people's kids did ... If you aren't a parent or grandparent, it can be hard to hear. So I'll try and give fair warning when I do cute kid postings. But man, my boys are so funny. I was talking to Gabe, who is 4, about Thanksgiving dinner at Nanny's house in a few weeks. We talked about all the food we would be having. Gabe asked, "Is stuffing made out of what is in stuffing noses?"

I was doing laundry this morning (by the way, how does a tiny newborn body double your laundry?) and Leo, who is 2, stepped on the big big pile of dirty clothes I was sorting. "I mountain hiking mommy!" he said.


And by way of introducting, Benji is the youngest. He was four weeks yesterday. For those who missed the flurry of photos after his birth, I'll post some, as soon as I figure out how. Benji is cute by definition of newborn Gilbert. His full name is Benjamin Elliott. As soon as I can innocently do so, I hope to transition to calling him Elliott, which was my number one name choice, and my brother's name. We'll have to wear down Jeff (dad) a bit more before we do.

Journaling in the modern world

Hello Wide World. I've been thinking a lot about journaling ... I didn't keep baby books for my two older sons, and I'm realizing that I don't remember things that I expected never to forget. Life as a mom of three young sons is a whirlwind. I'm going to try and jot down a few things every day as a way of journaling, and so I can let friends keep in touch!