What is a normal routine?

We've had one of those weeks. We haven't had one in awhile. Sick kids. It started on Monday with Sydney. Not sure what is wrong...just a headache and tummy ache. Amanda said she felt a sore throat coming on, but went to school. Took dinner to our friends, Lindsay and Al who just lost their baby at 20 weeks-stillborn.

Tragic. Emotional.

By Monday night, Amanda's throat was severe. Kept her home on Tuesday and went to the doctor. Strep. Wednesday, Sydney and Amanda stay home. I have a hard time getting Brandon to school because he wants to hang with 'the sisters' (I think it's so cute that he refers to them this way) Amanda begs to go to school, but hasn't been on the meds for 24 hours yet, so Mike & I tell her she must stay home. Tears.

I love having the kids home. Don't love having them sick. Who does? But, there is something to be said about a routine. And there is no routine when we have sick kids.

This morning, Sydney not wanting to go to school, but does. Amanda wanting to go to school and does. We'll see how B does going to school this afternoon.

Finally, I can get a little order back into my week. So, this is what I'll be doing this afternoon (after the visiting teachers leave)....

Maybe it would be more fun to have the kids home.....

Mmmmmmm.....

This was a good dinner (aka everyone ate it)....honey walnut (I subbed pecans) shrimp!

Watch out PF Chang!

Arvy Easter Egg Hunt

Saturday was the Arveseth Easter Egg hunt! It was a beautiful, warm spring day. The food was delicious and the company was fun! It's always a great day when we get together with family!

The Dad's always do a good job of 'hiding' the eggs!

Girls finding the higher ground!

Brandon getting an assist from Dad....

Cute Sydney always strikes a pose for me!

Eliza & Brandon...these two were born about a week apart...and now they're almost 5!

B show me your basket!

Hey, Amanda! Cute smile! Cute girl!

Some of the girls surveying the loot! They are probably looking for the 'money eggs' Grandma & Papa are too generous!

I thought this was so cute! Brandon got a chair so he could be like Gregory

while they ate some candy.

The Arvy grandkids! Can you believe we are still missing 7 of them? Quite a crew!

Our girlies....Amanda holding Spencer

Mikey sporting his new look....love him!

Soccer girl....and according to Brandon

Here is a random soccer picture from Amanda's last game. G&G Arveseth came up to watch her and afterward we grabbed some lunch at Maddox's in Layton. It was a beautiful, warm spring day! Amanda's team won. The score was something like 6 to 1. I usually lose track after the first 4 goals. As I watched her play this week, I was just really grateful that she loves soccer, grateful that she has a great coach, and grateful that she had a fun team!

There were a couple of things Brandon said this past week that really need to be written down. This is our family journal/scrapbook, so here it goes:

We were at a family function and I guess Brandon was a little bored waiting for dinner. He sat facing me on my lap and was blowing raspberries at me. Our kids went through a spitting at each other thing a couple of weeks ago. Gross! So, I told him to stop spitting or he'd have to go to time-out. He quickly replied, 'What is time out?' Hmmmm, do we ever discipline this kid?

Brandon has some cute made-up words. He says, 'next-morrow' for tomorrow, and 'fast-record' for fast forward (he's learning how to use the remote...very important skill for a male). The kids have also been discussing the nursery song, 'Where is Thumbkin' and how if you hold up 'Tall Man', then you are swearing because you are 'flipping the bird finger.' So, yesterday Brandon asked me, 'If I hold up my middle toe, is it swearing?'

And lastly, here is a picture of our house this spring. I think the only other picture I have of our house is from right after we moved in....no yard, no neighbors. I love how our hot pink phlox is growing all over the yard! The plants are finally filling in and now we are wanting to concentrate on the backyard. What a process! That's Amanda by the garage. Ciao!

Botany

Brandon's preschool took a field trip to J&J Nursery. We frequent this nursery often during the growing season as we are still trying to finish up our yard.
Whenever we go to the nursery, Brandon loves to go visit the fish! They have two ponds full of koi and goldfish. He could spend hours watching them swim. Luckily, on this field trip, that was the first thing we did. The guide talked to the kids about the fish and then let them throw in some fish food.

Feeding the koi!

Here's where I learned something new. This machine fills the trays will soil! The gal said it saves them hours and hours of time. The kids got to pick one plant to take home!

Brandon, Spencer, Matthew and Camden showing their plants!

Bees and the old people

As I wrote that title, Amanda gave me a look like I'm crazy. Ha, ha....anyway, we took the Beehives to an assisted living center last week. One of the families in our ward owns this facility. It's really nice, like a big house. Anyway, the girls did their own little program..singing and playing the piano. They did quite well and I think the residents enjoyed it. It reminded me of the rest home we visited when I was in Young Womens. The residents of that facility were pretty bad off. Most would come to Sacrament mtg in wheelchairs or rolling beds. It smelled funny and it was quite uncomfortable.

But, I am so glad for that experience! It taught me about getting and being older. Each one of those people had a story. Their story wasn't that they are now in a rest home and can hardly function. They had wonderful and successful lives.

When I talked with the girls about mingling with the folks, they went and they did so great! They introduced themselves and found out about their new friends. I sat and talked to a woman who grew up in New Mexico and there weren't any temples close. She was thrilled that there will now be a temple in New Mexico close to where she lived. She graduated from BYU and told me that she could tell I had graduated from college by the way I spoke. (I did tell her proudly it was from the U!) We talked about her granddaughter that was graduating from BYU this month. She was so proud. I know she would have talked to me for hours, as would any of the residents. I felt bad when we had to leave. But what a great thing being able to step out of our comfort zone and our own lives and reach out to those who have experienced so much more than we.

After, we met the Lucas' in the front yard of the center to celebrate our new Bee to the Swarm! Paige came to the activity even though it was her very birthday! So, her parents brought everyone cute flower cupcakes and we sang right there in the cold! Paige is the gal in the pink with the candle. I am really grateful for this calling. I really am enjoying being with these cute girls! I just love them and think about their futures. I wonder if they will still contact me when they are grown as my other Beehives from previous wards still do. YW is an inspired program and I hope I am living up to what my Heavenly Father expects me to be to these girls.

I also hope that I get to stay in for awhile when Amanda comes in this October. I want to be able to experience these things with her. She really wants to be in right now. She wants to come to camp this summer (the cutoff is Aug 31). I have only been in a short while, but the current president was in almost a year before I was called. We'll just cross our fingers!

More from St. George

The Painted Pony.....right by the restuarant of the same name

Kids and water....little area by the jail at Prospector Square

The kids in front of the old jail where Nicole's great-grandfather once was imprisoned and is said to still haunt it. It isn't opened to the public. Bummer!

We toured Brigham Young's Winter Home and loved it! A great Sunday activity!

The kids at Pirate Island waiting for pizza! left front to back, Spencer, Sydney, Zoe, right side front to back: Brandon, Amanda, Joshua, Taylor

I think Sydney is the photog on this picture....these are pictures of the lizard Mike caught while golfing and gave to the kids. They loved that lizard and named him Spotty. We had them let him go before we left!

The finished Easter Eggs....

Picture post from Spring Break

The Park

Water Park

Sand Dunes