Raingutter Regatta

Everyone loves Marcus. The pack leader found out that he hadn't done a raingutter regatta yet and since he has only 4 more months of being a Cub Scout (WOW!) they did one this week. He worked hard on his boat and called it The Flash.

Notice the flash symbol on the mast and the red paint job with yellow lightning bolts.

 The Flash vs. SS Milo

This was his first race part 2. He has permitted me to share this one: (He lost badly in the second race against the eventual 2nd place winner.)

My poor boy is too tall. You have to blow the mast and get it to the end on your own steam. He would blow the top and capsize it. He couldn't blow the bottom of the mast. Incidentally the shortest Cub Scout won the races. (Plus, Mom and Dad dropped the ball. We forgot to seal the paint so everytime he sailed his ship his hands turned red from handling it and the lightning bolts totally wore off.:( ) There were a total of 14 ships racing, too.

First Day of School

My children have been very nervous for the first day of school. They couldn't sleep the night before and were up very early. If you have read this blog for long, you know what my classic first day of school picture is. We have done it since Marcus was in kindergarten, and not two doors are the same. Behold, the first day of school!

Marcus

 (His dad was helping me get a real smile.)

 Anneke

 I love her shoes. They are very her.

 Luke

 Not to be outdone by his siblings, he wanted his picture, too. (I love that he matched Marcus.)

 I debated about posting this shot. I really felt I should share it, though. My 3rd and 5th graders!

Mallory is not happy and Luke is trying to figure his day out. He keeps asking when his preschool is going to start.

The new calling

*This will contain quite a bit of LDS/Mormon terms. If you don't understand please ask questions.

Last Sunday in stake conference Andy was unexpectedly released from his calling as stake sunday school president. We were told how hilarious we looked as the shock registered on our faces. Then, we were asked to wait after and speak with the stake president. The poor stake presidency had thought others had told him of his release. When Andy was extended the call he was never asked. It was just assumed he would accept it. Which is very true. His face was priceless, though.

When we got home we made arrangements for his dad to come down and ordain him to the office of high priest, which he did. Today Andy was sustained as the first counselor in the bishopric. Right after, he kissed me on the cheek and I was a "bishopric widow". It was a very beautiful day.

This is how we all feel now.

 But we aren't all nearly this cute.

Go to my other blog to participate in Daughter of God week, if you are interested.

Last Hurrah

Every year since we moved to Vegas we have gone to the Children's Museum. Honestly, Andy and I are not huge fans. It would have cost us $60 to go this year because we didn't get free passes from the library. (I think it is ridiculous that adults cost almost $10 when it is a museum for children.) Then I got a Groupon BOGO for Bounce U. We had never been and decided to give it a shot. For a mere $14 our whole family enjoyed 1 1/2 hours of sweaty, bouncy activity. (We could have gone longer, but the parents were tired.)

BEHOLD!

Anneke sliding:

 Brothers boxing:

 Mo had the most fun of all. (I love this shot.)

 Andy and I took turns keeping track of Luke and Mal.

 I love that parents are free.

 Marcus made it all the way to the top of the climbing tower. So, Luke and Anneke had to do it, too.

 This boy is active!

Phew! It was fun. We think our next family reunion should be here. ;) (No one got their faces painted. Anneke was worried the paint was "toxic".)

This really was the last hurrah. Andy has training all week and is working graves. I started watching the baby again. School starts on Monday.

Toxiphobia or Toxicophobia

Toxiphobia or Toxicophobia both refer to the fear of poison. My oldest daughter has a whole list of worries. Right now, this is the top phobia on her list. We have to be very careful about what we say around her because she obsesses. The other day I got a severe weather warning on my phone, flash flood. I was very much not worried here in Vegas but she started making plans and asked every few minutes for an update. She is also afraid of dying (thanatophobia) or someone close to her dying, and apparently the main source is poisoning....by cleaning supplies.

Anneke will no longer use the Clorox wipes for anything in case she forgets to wash her hands and is poisoned or it seeps through her skin and she is poisoned. Saturday it was her turn to clean the bathroom. She was so afraid of the cleaning supplies she used the whole bottle of hand soap to clean the counters and sink and she used their shampoo to clean the bathtub. It would be funny, but I am not sure how to help her. I know I am a worrier, but I seriously think this is more like her Aunt Heather.

Supplying School

In two weeks my children go back to school for the first time in 15 months. It is kinda surreal. I am not sure if I am excited or not. Despite the stress of homeschool, it was nice having them around. This week is an orientation. It is coming up quickly.

We purchased new clothes and then bought some school supplies today. Their supply list is interesting. Among the many items is a USB flash drive, one for each of them. I sat and stared at it, then showed Andy. How many are we going to have to buy this year because they misplace them? I put Anneke's on a key chain and have labeled them all over with their names. 

They are excited to go. Anneke is worried she won't make any friends though. Her hope is that Marcus will be popular so everyone will be her friend because she is his sister. Not sure what to think about that.

I wonder how Luke will react to the change... What about Mallory?

THE slideshow

I made a slideshow of Anneke to play during refreshments. I am not sure how this will work, but I managed to figure out how to put it on here. The songs we (Anneke helped) chose were Lullaby by Billy Joel, Beautiful for Me by Nichole Nordman, What a Wonderful World and I Like to Look for Rainbows (I know that isn't the name, but I want people to be able to recognize it). Just imagine those as it plays. It makes me cry each time I watch it. Thank you for being a part of the memories.


P.S. This is very long and not working right. I will try and switch it out for a better version in a few hours.