Top Ten--Sept. 2007

10. In all of the millions and gazillions of trips that Zach has taken for work and/or pleasure, he has never been to Idaho. I KNOW! Idaho-for crying out loud. But I’m pleased to say this has been remedied. We went up to Malad (about 15 miles north of the Utah border) to see my parents, who were looking for land to buy. We were there for approximately 6 hours.

9. Zach: Does anyone know what Moroni did with the plates after he wrote in them?
Isaac: I know! I know! He frowed ‘em away.
Me: (Note to self: Tell Isaac the story of Moroni.)

8. Craigslist . . . who doesn’t love it? You can find the best things for such a good price. However, it’s also generated one of my biggest pet peeves . . . people spelling with a Utah accent. Yes, I said spelling. For example, “We are going to sale our table.” (The word ‘sale’ is pronounced ‘sell’ in this state.) I’m not kidding about this. It drives me crazy!

7. “Aunt Sarah, you are the most EXCELLENT cook!” (Compliment given by my niece, Hannah, after I made the gourmet dinner of macaroni and cheese and ham sandwiches.) Thank you, thank you very much.

6. Lucy: “Mom, we’re playing house, and I’m the witch.” Ahhhh, yes, the essential witch in every household. I will hope beyond hope that she isn’t trying to emulate me when she plays witch.

5. Kye has started sounding out words. It’s fun to watch him write. . . especially as he attempted our last name, which is apparently spelled “Bracho.”

4. My parents leaving early for their trip to Idaho, and driving all night to surprise Lucy at her Grandparent’s Day program at school. She was surprised. So was I. Really, really surprised. In fact, I cried, it was so nice. Was it because I am an emotional sap and cry at the drop of a hat? Was it because I was pregnant and slightly over the edge when it came to thoughtful gestures? Eh, who knows? Anyway, thanks mom and dad.

3. The arrival of Adam Delwyn Bradshaw 3½ weeks early. I’d have to say that if you have problems in pregnancy, mine are the best problems to have. You get a few weeks of taking it easy, get to have all your babies 3-4 weeks early, and get to take home a perfectly sweet, healthy baby (though usually small.) Welcome, Adam . . . we are blessed to have you in our home.

2. It took us a little while to figure out Adam’s name. The kids felt the need to share their ideas. My favorite was from Kye: “I think we should call the baby ‘computer’ because you know when you play Fusion Frenzy on X-box and when the player doesn’t have a name, it’s called ‘computer.’ But his nickname can be Jacob.” (And after we told him his name was Adam, Kye asked, “Well, can I just call him ‘computer?’”)

1. I’ve discovered it’s easy to have 4 kids. I mean cake . . . as long as you have full time help. My mom came for a week, Zach stayed home for a few days and then Zach’s mom came for a week. Could I have done it without them? No. Seriously, noooooooooo. Thanks for the help, moms. You have been lifesavers. Back to real life next week, when Zach starts traveling again. I’ll let you know if we survive.