Thank you Liz for my new sexy hair. I love it. You did an awesome job. I will post pictures when I go back home.

Houston, We have landed!!

We all arrived yesterday at about 1:30 pm. We were actually feeling a little down as we drove into Houston. It brought back so many good memories and therefore reminded us how much we don't like where we live and how different our circumstances are now. We got to see Karen, Neal and all the other Adairs. It was really great to see them. They have been generous enough to host us at there house. We drove by our old house and of course I cried. Sometimes blessings can be such a trial. After that we dropped by Liz's house. She graciously let us in and talked to us for several hours. Then we dropped by Jen's house and she was also kind enough to let us in and chat for several hours. There is nothing like loved ones to lighten your spirits. Today I was going to walk with Liz. Our walk turned into a donut binge and Liz coloring and styling my hair. Way better than exercise. We love all of our dear friends and family in Houston. It has been so hard to start over but so many blessings have come already from our decision to start over. We know we made the right decision. Why is it that the right decision feels so awful sometimes?

Hold on to your hats, this is one long post!

I have been neglecting my blog for a couple of weeks now. We have just been having too much fun. Tomorrow morning we will be leaving for Houston where we are going to have even more fun. The last couple of weeks have been completely crazy. Here are just a few highlights.

1. We cut Brynn's hair! Cutting a two year old's hair is extremely difficult. All the wiggling!!! We were going to "trim" it, but the more wiggling she did the shorter it got. She was not too thrilled at first but eventually she settled down. She loves her hair. To be honest it was hard for me to part with it. I just love her hair color and was afraid of it fading, but her hair was down to her waist and it was time to let go.

2. These are the jewelry trees I like to make. I made five this year. Two were gifts and three were for us. When I was a kid we had one hanging on the wall that my mom had made years before. It was my absolute favorite Christmas decoration. So I decided to make my own.

I made this one last year. It is really big and sparklie. I love it. This one took me a long time. After I finished it I thought it would be fun to make all different shapes and sizes and display them all together.

I went down to the Goodwill and bought a bunch of odd, interesting frames. The little ones were especially fun because they went really fast.

This frame was ugly so I painted. It is very long and skinny and I thought it made for a very interesting shape. I used a lot of darker colors and jewel tones for this one.

3.This is our sorry attempt at a gingerbread house. It is not structurally sound and it is as ugly as mud but we had a blast making it. Ethan would dip his piece of candy in frosting, then lick off a little of the frosting and then put it on the house. Gross!! As we were decorating the front of the house Brynn sat behind it and ate all of the decorations off. We had a lot of fun. Lorin and Dad were the real architects. It was their artistic vision. Unfortunately the laborers were unskilled.

4. Christmas Eve was awesome. We went to the movies and saw Despereaux (thank you mom and dad Bradshaw). We ate a lot of finger food as is usual for our family on Christmas Eve. Then we reenacted the Nativity. Chaos!!! But it was fun chaos.

Here is the innkeeper telling Joseph there is "no room in the inn."

Here is the angel telling the Shepherds about the birth of the baby Jesus.

"And they were sore afraid"

"And ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger." Mary is so beautiful!!Joseph seems to be lying down on the job.
The wise men came from the east. In our version there are only two wise men.

Right before bedtime the kids opened up one gift. It was pajamas (as always).

4Christmas morning we opened presents. The usual craziness ensued. The kids got what they wanted and we had a great time.

furniture store and other stuff

I am starting to feel better and as I am coming out of the haze that is having a nasty cold I notice how filthy my house is. It is so disgusting. I know I am going to be cleaning tomorrow and I am dreading it. I really hate cleaning. I like a clean house don't get me wrong but I don't mind a mess either. Lets just be honest I am constantly fighting my inner slob and when something happens like illness, forget it. It can be cleaned later. The mess isn't going anywhere. When our house was on the market and I had to keep it freakishly clean (no sign that people actually lived there) I did not feel more peaceful or serene. I felt completely anxiety ridden. I was constantly worrying about messes and keeping the house clean.
Anyway, we all know what I will be doing tomorrow, today however I happened upon the coolest furniture store ever. I am looking for some storage furniture because our little house we are renting has almost no storage. Abilene is like a mecca of stores selling other people's old stuff. I saw a sign on the side of the road in front of a shop and decided to wonder in. All I saw were drop clothes and unfinished furniture and thought maybe the store wasn't open so I turned around and left. I guess the store owner saw me and called me back. She showed me to room in the back of the store that was filled with the coolest old furniture. I loved every single piece. I saw a tall antique dresser I fell in love with immediately. It was solid oak. It had a section on top that was narrower than the bottom. It was very funky and had a lot of character. The price tag was 150$. That is thrift store pricing. The store owner then informed me that that was the price if I wanted it fixed up and painted any color I wanted. If I wanted it as is she would take 25% off. I bought the dresser and another piece.
Of course now I am riddled with guilt. In fact I rarely feel guilt except when it comes to money. I can't buy something that isn't on sale, and even if it is on sale it has got to be a mind blowing deal, at least 75% off. And then there is the amount. I have to say it was a great deal I got today but I spent so much money it almost cancels out the good deal I got. I called Gary about ten times because I think a part of me wanted him to tell me not to spend the money, but lets face it, Gary has never in our ten years told me not to do something. He doesn't care what I buy or how I spend money. He doesn't care if the house is a mess or if diapers go unchanged, or if I wear sweats all day. Yeah, he's a pretty cool guy.
Tonight w had activity days. Utter chaos. About twice what I was expecting showed up. so we had half the sewing machines we needed. I think Lorin and one other girl had even ever used a machine before. The girls broke the needles in both of my machines. They lost all of my pins, and the sister that is supposed to be doing it with me also works in scouting so she couldn't be there. when I told the girls they had to help clean up they looked at me like I was speaking a language they didn't understand. They helped clean up after I started using my mom voice. No more sewing projects.
Soon after Christmas we will be going to Houston. Hooray!!! We will be there for New Years so if anyone wants to party let us know.

Christmas decorating picture from previous post.

First of all I look like I haven't brushed my hair all day. Baggie jeans and sweatshirt make it look like I've gained 20 pounds. Also I am extremely bow-legged and it really comes out in this picture. And as I mentioned earlier the looks on my kids faces are hilarious. Oh this is a picture for the record books. It is so awful and funny I love it. It is reality.

Thanksgiving etc.

Now that I am feeling a bit better I better catch up on all that has been going on in our lives.

Thanksgiving was awesome. We love having a day that centers around food and gratitude. We all cooked together, ate together, cleaned up together, and played together.

We barbecue our turkey. I highly recommend it. It is moist and juicy, it cooks faster than in an oven, and it frees up oven space. We threw in a lot of mesquite with our charcoal. When we pulled the turkey out the skin looked very dark but we cut it open and it was moist and tender and had a delicious smokey flavor. I think the mesquite created a lot of smoke and darkened the turkey. Gary also had the genius idea of cutting holes all over the turkey prior to BBQ and inserting whole garlic cloves. It was the best turkey ever!!! We also had sweet potato casserole, roles (Rodes rolls of course. I try to avoid baking whenever possible, especially around the holidays.) oyster stuffing, mashed potato casserole, a green salad, gravy (of course) and corn. Poor Gary had what I have now and would sleep until the cold medicine started working. Once it started working he would get up and cook. Once it wore off he would go take some more and lay down and wait for it to start working. Poor guy.

We attempted to play boccie ball after dinner. Lorin, Gary and I were the only ones who really played. Ethan would throw it at a rock or something rather than the marker. Brynn would throw with all her might and the ball would travel about three inches in the opposite direction. Then she would pick up the ball and putt it right next to the marker. After we had our fill of boccie ball we went on a bike ride. We had such a great time. The weather was perfect for a bike ride and we all enjoyed it. The trees were all turning color. The smell of turkey wafted through the neighborhood. It was great.

the next morning I got up at 3:30 am and got Gary his new mp3. I waited in line until five but then I just walked in grabbed the one thing I wanted bought it and left. I then headed over to walmart just to check it out. I'm sorry for my description but it was hell. It really was. It was packed like a can of sardines. I couldn't even walk through the crowd. People were screaming at each other. Everyone had this crazed, wild look in their eyes. Babies were crying. People had multiple carts full of stuff. I turned around and left. It was not worth it. Liz and Jen, I miss our efficient and highly organized black Fridays. In and out, get the couple things you want and leave. I am definitely going to have to organize something for next year.

On the Monday following thanksgiving we decorated our tree. We got our tree last year at a thrift store for 30$. I had to throw that in there. I can't help myself. When I buy something cheap I have to tell everyone (Liz, Shelly, Mom, you know what I'm saying.) I love it because it is just three sections. It is very fast and easy to set up. We have converted to shatterproof ornaments. They are fantastic. The kids throw them and kick them and lay on them and nothing happens (of course I only get them after Christmas when they are 75% off. I'm sorry I just can't help it). Ethan later asked why we put "bombs" on the tree. He was referring to the round ball ornaments. He is such a boy.

I love this photo because the kids look less then thrilled to be there. In actuality we were decorating the tree, eating baklava and Ethan and Brynn were having fun playing with our Playmobil nativity so no one wanted to stop and take a picture.

I had to hold everyone there until Gary took the picture. I reality we were all having a great time. The cat kept jumping out at us as we decorated the tree. I actually thought it was funny.

As you can see from our tree decorating picture my hair is long and scraggly. I don't know what to do with it. I need suggestions please. I prefer quick and easy. I don't want to get it cut too short because my hair grows fast and I would have to go and get it cut often. Even though I love short hair I can't afford that on a student budget. I kind of want to keep it longer but not so homely. I really am not good with hair and need suggestions. I was also thinking of lightening it some how, color maybe, although I would stick with blond (sorry Gary, no red hair, my skin looks pale enough.)

Sick Again

I will write about Thanksgiving when I feel better. All I've been doing lately is laying around. I got a nasty cold which was gone by thanksgiving and then a couple of days later I got sick again. Usually when i get a cold it comes and goes quickly and I barely feel sick at all. I got two nasty ones in a row and it is driving me crazy. I've got so much to do but i am so tired all the time I just have to make priorities. My priority right now is laying in bed.

We went to the Abilene Christmas lights parade (in between colds). We had a great time. It lasted an hour though and the kids were ready for bed right when we got home (hooray!). We will be sure to post pictures.

Cold

I caught a nasty cold that knocked me flat on my bum. Nothing else to report.

I am really glad you are starting to feel better Dylan. We have been praying for you.

Princess Brynn

So for Christmas I decided to make Brynn some princess dresses. They were so much fun to make! I haven't had the chance to make a lot of frilly, fancy things. Most of the fabric came from the good old dollar fabric shelf at Walmart. Just add lots of lace and ruffles. I just kept thinking about the kind of dress I would have loved as a little girl. Brynn was there the entire time I was making them so when I was finally done I had to let her try them on. When she was done trying on the last dress I went to take it off of her and she grabbed it tight with her little fingers. Gary had to help me pry each finger off of the dress. I think she likes them. Luckily she's two and will forget about the dresses until Christmas. As you can see in the picture they are a couple of sizes too big. I did this so that she could wear them for a long time. You can see in Brynn's face that she is working that dress.

P.S. My nephew Dylan is very very sick. He's got an antibiotic resistant staff A infection in his hip. He is going to be in the hospital for a while. Be sure to check out my sister's blog for more information, boys r us. Prayers would be greatly appreciated. We love you guys.

New Calling.

I am currently a Sunbeam teacher and I love love love it which is kind of surprising considering it was such a struggle to me every other time I've had it (I haven't had that calling since I've had kids.) It's different now though because I have much more experience with kids that age. The chaos doesn't bother me like it did when I didn't have kids. I know that these kids haven't had a teacher that showed up regularly for a while so it makes me want to do the best I can. Plus working in primary is awesome. I am extra blessed because I was given another calling. I am doing activity days for girls too. I am thrilled. I think that has got to be just about the best calling in existence. For some reason I love love love that awkward prepubescent age. When I told my mom my additional calling she said she wanted to trade with me. She is stake relief society president. My response was "No thank you" and I was thinking "heck no". Unfortunately I have zero experience with activity days. I need all the help I can get, so, if there is anyone out there who can give me some advice and ideas I would really appreciate it.

Drive-in

Well I can add something to the pros list for Abilene. Abilene has a drive-in movie theater just a few blocks away from our house. We loved going to the drive-in when we were living in San Diego and we hadn't been since. Last night we loaded the car with blankets, hot chocolate (it was in the 40's), popcorn, and other treats and headed off to see Madagascar 2. We opened the back of the mini-van and huddled inside with blankets and watched the movie. We had so much fun. Ethan was absolutely thrilled with the idea of watching a movie outside. Lorin was the only one old enough to remember the drive in and she liked remembering all the times we spent at the there. Brynn liked being able to run around outside and not be confined to a seat like she would if we were in a movie theater. Gary and I even liked the movie. I really don't like most kids movies, but this one was cute and funny. It was the perfect night as a family. Best of all it was cheaper than a regular movie in a movie theater. I highly recommend going to one if you can. If you don't live near one you can always visit us.

Halloween

It was a blast. After our dinner of coagulated blood, eyeballs and worms jello; blood and guts soup; mummy dogs; and creepy cupcakes we went to the trunk-or-treat at the church and then went trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. The kids had a great time. We ended up trick-or-treating at Ethan's teacher's house. He was beyond thrilled. He kept telling her "Look I'm Ethan" as if she wouldn't recognize him in his costume. Afterwards we all went home and crashed. What can be better than costumes, gross looking food, and loads of candy. I love Halloween.

Jesus vs. Superman

Now that Ethan is starting to get help and has Gary there to shadow him on Sundays he seems to be getting a lot more out of church. He is really into the story of Jesus walking on water. He told Gary today that Jesus walks on water and superman flies. We decided to take this opportunity to differentiate between Superman and Jesus. So at the dinner table today we discussed the difference between Jesus and Superman. Finally we decided that Jesus was better because as Ethan stated it "I could put on my swim soup and go to the beach and if Jesus is at the beach I could see him walk on the water." He also said "If I had a cut then Jesus could make the cut go away." Jesus is also better because He died for our sins and was the Savior of mankind. Ethan did point out that Superman was a superhero. While that is a good quality superman is fake and Jesus is real. Jesus won.

Today at church in nursery it was time to put away the toys. After the nursery leaders and kids put away the toys the kids kept trying to get into them. Brynn designated herself as toy guard and sat her little self on top of the toy chest. All the other kids were having complete fits because they could not get around her. She had all the power. She knew it was not toy time so she was not going to let anyone else touch the toys. The nursery leaders got such a kick out of her. Brynn is a normal two year old. She doesn't always follow the rules. She is a pretty good kid though. Even at this young an age she knows how to press buttons. I'm sure that is what fueled her sudden desire to follow the nursery rules. Also Brynn is intimidated by no one. She is always brimming with confidence and thinks she is ten feet tall.

Today was the primary program. Lorin was assigned a talk. Lorin being the precocious child she is wrote her talk early and by herself. She knew she wanted to write about Noah. I helped her look it up and she did the rest. After about a page and a half I made Lorin wrap it up. I had to remind her that there were other kids speaking as well as musical numbers. In the program Lorin reads a scripture and then gives a talk. At the practice for the primary program the primary leader who was helping the kids with their parts kept trying to help Lorin read the scripture. After Lorin was done with the scripture she pulls out her big talk and reads it effortlessly. She was also assigned to give a talk later that day in primary. OF course she jumped right on it and wrote it herself and gave it without a hitch. AS she was preparing it I had to help her tone it down. If she had her way it would have been ten pages long with several visual aides. We decided to go with one and a half pages and one visual aid. Some day Lorin will be a fantastic Relief Society teacher.

I made the dress a couple of weeks ago. I love it. I like to think of it as my sexy red dress. I love love love this cranberry color. I think it is my favorite. After I finished the dress I realized I had some great velvety fabric that matched (This is fabric I got at that 95 % percent off store closing sale. I made the coat out of it. I love the coat even more than the dress. I love making coats for some reason. They are so much work and a lot has to be sewn by hand but I think there are few things better then having a coat that really fits (having perfect jeans is even better.) The lining in the coat is black and white pin stripes. I like to put in a lining that contrasts with the fabric to add interest. I am working on a gray coat that is similar to this one except the bodice and collar will be different. I love to make clothes and jewelry. I made a really pretty necklace to go with the dress. If only I could make shoes. Wouldn't that be awesome if we could all make shoes? I would never go shopping again.

Sorry about the lack of make up and the ratty pony tail. I just threw on the dress so I could take a picture. I really need to put on make up more often. I can't believe I'm exposing all blog readers to what I look like without makeup. Yikes.

Broken Arm

Lorin broke her arm last Friday and she couldn't be happier about it. I didn't know it was broken until today when I took her to the doctor. She was jumping on her friends trampoline and she fell and landed funny on her arm. It didn't swell or anything but she just kept complaining about how much it hurt. At first I thought she was just whining because I, with all of my medical expertise, did not see anything wrong. So today I finally took her to the doctor. He talked to her for a while and poked and prodded her sore arm. Then he said that Lorin had broken her arm, actually more like a cracked arm. He said that it was a teeny tiny fracture and that I wouldn't even have to bother with a cast or an x-ray. She only needs to have her brace on for two weeks because her little bones heal very fast. In Fact he said it can heal without a brace but the brace helps a lot with pain. Lorin thought it was totally awesome. She loves her brace. We have been calling her captain hook, robot arm, etc. Lorin could not be more thrilled.

AAAHHHHHHH

I've just been feeling lately like I want to wake up tomorrow and not have to deal with my life. I need a vacation. More than a vacation because when you go on vacation you still have to worry about kids, family, money, etc. I want to be five years old. I want to be in kindergarten again. I want to color and play in the sand box and be rewarded with goldfish crackers (I still love them.) Unfortunately those days are over. I have to deal with my life now. I just don't feel like I have the strength to deal with everything. Not that my life is bad. I am blessed beyond comprehension. Sometimes blessings are stressful, worrisome, and depressing. Some times it takes everything you have to even survive those blessings. Sometimes blessings and trials are the exact same thing. But I guess it is those blessing that are most vital to your eternal well-being.
With Gary in school, Ethan's problems (which can be the subject of it's very own blog, mothering three children, a leaky bathroom, not having insurance, not having money, living somewhere i don't particularly love etc. etc. etc. I find myself withdrawing. That is what I do when I'm really feeling overwhelmed. Something has got to go and that is my relationships with other people. I build these big walls and keep everyone at arms reach. It doesn't help that I am already quiet and private (at least I was until this blog). when I am in a large group I would rather just listen and be in awe of people who are witty, funny, and entertaining (Grover girls.) So I have a problem Because I think the next four years will be some of the most blessed/trying years of my life and I am so disconnected and far away from my friends and loved ones. I don't even want to make friends here because I've got too much other stuff to worry about but if I have an emergency or need someone to watch the kids or just someone to hang out with I really don't have any options right now. It's during those moments I realize how totally alone I am and I have got to start making some connections. I need other people. Besides I am developing a strong and unhealthy emotional attachment to my sewing machine (I already had an emotional attachment, that is unavoidable, now it's just getting out of hand. Who needs friends when you can make fabulous clothes?)

Sewing Lessons

I've been giving Lorin sewing lessons as a means to give us more time together. She is at the age where she doesn't need me to do everything for her. She spends a lot of time playing with her friends. I've been busy with to younger siblings that need a lot more attention so I decided to teach her to sew. Also, Lorin is extremely creative and loves any activity where she can use her abilities. Twice a week for an hour I teach her to sew. Right now we are working on an out fit for an 18 inch doll that she has. I have been very impressed with the speed she has learned. Sewing is not an easy skill but she is soaking it all up like a sponge. It seems it is easier for her than it was for some of the adults I used to teach. She really enjoys it. She wanted to make sure I took a picture of her ironing because she thinks ironing is so grown up. When she is finished we will take picture and post them on the blog.

I added this picture because I think Brynn has great cheeks. Sometimes they just don't fit in her pants.

Boring and Mundane

I haven't had much to blog about lately. I noticed it had been a while since I posted anything. I made some cute Halloween slip covers for my chairs. They were super easy. I found the idea at familyfun.com. They are made out of felt but you could also use pillowcases. The pieces that make up the face and the bats are also cut out of felt. They are sprayed with repositionable glue. So you can just peel off the pieces when Halloween is over and put something else on it for the next holiday. familyfun.com has designs for all of the major holidays. When Ethan walked in from school he just started screaming out of pure joy. It was like I had just given him the best Christmas gift ever.




Lorin got straight A's again. Her teacher said that she wished she had 20 more just like her. Every teacher she has ever had has said that about her.What can I say, she is just awesome. She has also perfected the skill of the one-handed cart wheel. She is extremely kind to her siblings. Ethan is also very kind. We worked really hard with him on his temper and by the time we had Brynn he had also become very patient and kind. Lorin has set a wonderful example. Brynn is turning into a little bit of a diva. It's nothing that a few timeouts can't cure. Her diva really comes out when she hasn't gotten any sleep. Most of the time she is singing and dancing. She likes it when I do her hair. She tries to wear a princess dress everyday. She is so precious and beautiful but sometime I can see a resemblance to the Real Housewives of Atlanta. I think it is because she is two years old and most of the time the women on that show act like two year olds. Yes I admit I watched one episode and it actually made me appreciate the fact that I am poor. It made me realize how much I love my life and I am so thankful I am not them.



We put up our Halloween decorations. I love every aspect of Halloween. You get to dress up and eat candy. What could be better. For the last three Halloweens I've been making special gross looking but yummy tasting dinners. The stuff seriously looks like it could be on fear factor. The kids eat it up literally.



This is what happens when I don't have anything to blog about. I just ramble on and on about the mundane (you know what I'm talking about Liz) and boring. I am off to Walmart now, my favorite store to hate, so that I can get some interfacing for a coat I am making. See what I mean, boring.

Ethan got this out of our Halloween box when we were decorating. Nice bod Ethan.

A bit of good news

I know I just posted but, I failed to mention my fabulous garage sale find. If you are like most people and start to nod off when I start to discuss garage sales feel free to skip this post.I went to a rummage sale at the local community center and At first I didn't really see anything. Then I came across a card board box full of vintage buttons. A 90 year old lady decided to donate her sewing stuff. She was a tailor her entire life. There wasn't a lot I needed but I filled several bags with buttons because they were ten cents per sandwich bag filled with buttons. I also got some fabric and tracing paper as well as pattern weights. You can use weights rather than pins when cutting out a pattern and the whole process goes a lot faster. I also found an angora/wool sweater, and a faux fur coat and a couple of princess dresses for Brynn, In all I spent about 3 dollars. It was the first garage sale I'd ever been to where I thought the prices were too low. Did I complain? Absolutely not.

Picture Day

On Monday Ethan started his special ed class. It basically focuses on Speech and Behavior. The lessons are tailored specifically for the needs of each child. There is a regular kindergarten curriculum but everything is based off of speech and behavior. For some kids in the class academics is also a problem but for Ethan it doesn't seem to be. He does have poor fine motor skills and works on that daily. Right now there are only four other kids in the class, all of them little boys. The first day was hard, but any time Ethan has to change his routine it is hard. The second day he tried to bite his teacher. I felt horrible but the teachers didn't seem the least bit phased. These teachers have been working with kids like Ethan for over ten years. They just told me that he could never do anything that they haven't seen before. The next two days were great. Today however was picture day and Ethan basically had a breakdown. He had to stand in line in a stuffy crowded auditorium. After a while he started screaming and covering his ears. One of his teachers had to carry him back to his classroom and hold him. Then they had him rock himself in a rocking chair and hold soft objects to help him calm down. It took him twenty minutes. I felt so bad for poor little Ethan. It is moments like these that emphasize to me that Ethan really does have a problem. I just feel helpless because I don't know what's wrong and I am growing impatient because as a mother I just want to make everything better and I can't. I have to be patient and get him properly diagnosed. At the moment we are doing everything for him that we can. I am so thankful though for his wonderful teachers. They are so patient and loving and kind and understand so much better what is wrong and what he needs.

The Friday before he started his new class I had a teachers conference. I thought it was going to be me, his kindergarten teacher and his new teacher. Well it was myself, the two teachers, plus the school counselor, the principal, the speech therapist, and some other educational professional. They each took turns talking about Ethan's problems. It was not easy having 7 strangers tell you all the thing s that are wrong with your child. And of course I started to cry. I cried in front of seven strangers. It was hard to hear but nothing they said was new to me. I had experienced each of those things with Ethan myself. I know though that they had to do it so they could coordinate their efforts and give him all the help he needs. They do what they do because they love and care about kids and it shows.

Ethan's primary teacher can't handle him. As soon as class starts she sends him out to me or Gary. Last Sunday I was teaching sunbeams when the primary president brought him. I told her I could not take him. I told her I wanted him to be in his primary class and that I had way too much to handle teaching the sunbeams. The primary president took him into another room and taught him herself. I know Ethan is difficult. I know he has a hard time, but I was extremely irritated at her lack of even trying. As I've prayed about it though I've felt that I shouldn't judge her because maybe she has trials in her own life that make it difficult to have to deal with a kid like Ethan who needs extra help. It seems this wards primary is very focused on the kids sitting still and being quiet during primary, and while I think that is great it just seems that there are just as many interruptions from teachers and leaders telling the kids to be quiet and sit still as there are kids interrupting and making noises. I know they just don't know what to do with Ethan because he has a hard time sitting still. I had a long talk with the primary president. She is a wonderful lady who is doing a great job. I told her that Ethan is not going to sit down. He is in a room full of kids who are singing and making all sorts of noise. It is overwhelming and difficult for him. I told her that he is going to wiggle and squirm and stand up because he is stressed out and uncomfortable. I told her that he is not a bad kid and that he has trials at this young age that the other kids just don't. He tries really hard and he is doing the best he can and that is all I can ask of him. Gary decided he is going to sit with Ethan until they find someone to shadow him. If he gets called to something he is going to tell them he can do it as soon as they find someone to shadow Ethan. I want Ethan to have every opportunity to learn and grow at church. I know that the Lord is watching over Ethan and taking care of him. All of these wonderful people have come into his life in the short time that we've been here. I know the same will happen at church too.

Card Table Playhouse

On my favorite website burdastyle.com, I found instructions on how to make a card table playhouse. I just made a mental note of it for a later date thinking maybe it would make a fun family Christmas present or something. Then I read an article in the friend magazine called "Reverence Tent". The family in the article read the scripture story about King Benjamin's talk and how everyone set up their tents facing him. They decided to make a reverence tent for general conference. I decided to do the same but used the idea of the card table playhouse. It turned out really great. I made some slight changes from the playhouse on the website. I made it in colors that are a little more gender neutral and I added tent flaps to give more of the feel of a tent. The original was meant more for a little girl and it had curtains rather than tent flaps. When I look at it, it makes me happy.

I Think I'm Turning Japanese

I finished our Halloween costumes a couple of weeks ago but am just posting them now. I found it hard to round everyone up and put their costumes on so I could take a picture. I made them all Kimonos. Gary was a little worried when I told him I would be making him a kimono. I had to explain to him that men's kimonos did not look like women's kimonos. He still wasn't comfortable with the idea of wearing a kimono so he calls his a samurai costume. Usually for Halloween I throw something together a couple of weeks before. Our costumes usually consist of sweats with felt glued on and/or painted. When you combine living in a small town, not having a lot of friends here, only having one child at home, not wanting to spend any money, and sewing as a means to cope with stress (which we have had a lot of lately) you end up with five elaborate costumes a month and a half before Halloween. I think they turned out great.

I am especially proud of Ethan and Brynn's costumes. I didn't have a pattern for Ethan's so I took the pattern for the girls robe and cut it short. Then I added sleeves from another pattern and made him pants from another pattern. Then I just winged his green ninja triangle things that I saw in pictures when I did some online research on ninjas (yes I actually did research on ninjas and kimonos for authenticity. I'm ridiculous I know). I didn't have a pattern that fit Brynn so I had to grade down the pattern I had so it would fit her and then do all sorts of alterations. Brynn hated my trying it on her over and over again. When I was finally done and had her try it on for the last time she said to me "I don't wike it mama." She was so sick of me that day.

Mine was the most elaborate. I bought it because it was on sale for a dollar. I had no idea the work that would be involved. Well it ended up requiring about 20 yards of fabric. It is fully lined and there is a dickie worn under the kimono. Most of the fabric was from the dollar a yard section at walmart and an old king sized sheet I had. I love it and think it was worth all the effort.

This Halloween we are going to look so good. I wish you all could be here to see how beautiful we all are.