Reasonable explanation for the surprising state I found Eliza and Luke in after the rest of us finished our Sunday School Zoom lessons:
Thanks to my family and friends, I had a great birthday! Ben let me sleep in a little in the morning, then the two of us went on a short (and icy!) hike after Eliza and Luke went to school.
I stayed home with Cat and Jack after that, doing our normal school stuff, and in the afternoon Suz came to pick up those two so that I could have a couple of hours to myself. After homework and piano practice after school, we went out for yummy burgers at Chom, a local burger joint in Provo. Then we went home to open presents. I loved the thoughtful gifts I received, including a cookbook I've been wanting from my good friend and loyal blog-reader Margot, an awesome planter from Suz, and cool homemade beauty products from Cat and Eliza. For dessert we enjoyed the amazing cupcakes Ben ordered from Cravings Bakery in PG. We had fun trying all the different kinds!
I'd told myself in the days before my birthday that I would finish the day off by watching a chick flick, a definite treat since I watch so little TV. But by the time the kids were in bed all I wanted to do was go to bed myself. It's been a few years now that I've placed a high value on sleep, but I laughed at myself for wanting to sleep instead of continuing my birthday celebration. I decided split the difference by watching a show, then going to bed. It really was a great day!
Luke keeps us on our toes (sometimes literally). He's so quick-witted and deadpan that I can't keep track of his quips. Here's one I wrote down about a month ago:
Me, at bedtime: "What was your favorite part of the day?"
Luke: "Staying hydrated, I'd say."
(1/12/21)
 |
| Luke helped Dad put together this fun dinosaur puzzle that he (Luke) got for Christmas. |
 |
| Jack petitioned for his own room when we got back from Florida, and we were able to find a way to make it happen: turn the current playroom into a Luke bedroom + playroom. We did a lot of cleaning out and some rearranging but we made it happen the next weekend. |
 |
| Luke's New Room + Playroom Luke was great about sleeping in a room by himself and only asked for company while he fell asleep for the first few nights. (also, Luke, when told to pose for a picture) |
 |
| He and I tied in chess. I think I need to practice. |
 |
| The week after we got back from Florida, the kids had dentist appointments. The dentist told us that Luke's front teeth would be coming out soon. Luke pulled the first one out the next day. |
 |
| Exactly two weeks later, the second one came out. |
 |
| Luke still loves stuffed animals and he has 2-3 dozen in his room. Once in a while, he wants them to sleep with him. |
 |
| Whit spent the night in Luke's room for the first time! Good times the next morning. |
 |
| A fun geography lesson Luke brought home from school. |
 |
| Luke is having fun doing origami right now. Here, he's modeling a hat he made. |
 |
| When Ben made a remark about Luke's origami ball he replied, "This isn't origami. This is crumpled paper." |
 |
| Luke sculpted this narwhal in art. |
 |
| Trying out Eliza's prop glasses, and holding the huge wad of tape he'd used to tape up the big hairy spider he's been holding on to since Halloween. |
 |
| Luke had a sleepover at Whit's house! Whit had invited him a few times but Luke wasn't ready until last weekend. Here, Luke wanted to try out Suz's new treadmill but said he'd run faster if someone was scaring him, so Whit obliged. |
 |
| And I love this other one Suz sent me - Whit set up a store called "Whit's Power and Things," and Luke set up a store and told Suz, "I sell literally everything Whit doesn't sell." How come more businesses don't use that strategy? |
At the end of January we went on a little adventure to see the sheet ice on Utah Lake that a few people had posted about on Instagram. We chose the wrong time to go - after a few days of warmer weather the ice wasn't as impressive as we expected, and the shoreline was so muddy that it was hard to walk, and more than one of us had trouble keeping our shoes/boots on! It was still cool, though, and we had lots of fun, and I'm glad we got out and saw something new!
When we were in Florida over Christmas our neighbors were kind enough to gather eggs and keep tabs on the chickens. No problems were reported and the flock seemed to be just fine when Ben got home. Everyone was happy to be back with the chickens again, and they seem more attached to us than ever - now hanging out at the glass door off of the family room for big chunks of the day like dogs waiting for treats.
 |
| Together at last. |
 |
| Jack discovered by accident that Hei Hei likes to jump on his back, if he'll just bend over. |
 |
| This time, Bandit took advantage of the distraction and exlpored the family room for a few seconds. |
 |
| And then there was that one time that Dixie ran inside and got as far as the Clavinova before Jack caught her. |
 |
| Cat went outside to check on the chickens one morning and she was concerned that they were too cold, especially Ms. Felix, the skinniest of the ladies. |
 |
| Sometimes it's hard to hold the chickens. |
 |
| Cat also learned that the chickens are so eager for treats that they'll peck at glass to try to get them. |
