A Year of Dates: Weeks 18, 19, and 20

Week 18: For our Saturdate this particular week, we were working on several projects we were trying to get done around the house, but we managed to sneak in a movie at home. "Believe in Me" was your typical inspirational sports flick with all the cliches in place. Only, as Zach was quick to point out, it was much, MUCH more boring because it was about a high school girls' basketball team in the 1960's. Girls' bball has never been Zach's favorite viewing material (and, let's be honest . . . who can really blame him?) and this movie almost put him over the edge. But still . . . it was nice to have a date.

Week19: We were both bone tired from starting our massive play set project (We cut out our sod, delivered it via 20 wheelbarrow loads to our neighbor, and tried to even out the dirt underneath. ExHAUSTing! But so nice to get done.), so our plan was to see Star Trek in the movie theater and let our bodies' veg and our minds be entertained with no effort whatsoever on our parts . . . BUT it was sold out. So was Angels and Demons. So instead we went to Home Depot . . . again . . . to get stuff for our project. We did find a new hole-in-the-wall darn good Mexican food place ("find" meaning we happened to actually stop and go into a place we pass practically every single day . . . and which our neighbors told us was delish . . . and which we've been meaning to go to forever but never actually made it) called Joe Bandido's and it really was good. After a quick stop at the grocery store and my sister's house, we went home and rested our weary bones.

Week 20: Not the most successful date we've ever had. I know you're wondering how it could possibly be getting worse than our very practical and boring shopping dates of late, but it really was. I arranged to have my sister watch the kids at 7:45 on Saturday morning so we could get to the temple this month. Anyone who knows my Zach knows he is not so much a morning person. But he willingly (I use this word facetiously) got out of bed and got ready. We got the kids to my sister's house just a little late and headed off to the very busy Provo temple . . . where we found out Zach had forgotten his wallet with his temple recommend. So I went to the temple alone while Zach ran errands and picked up the kids and took them to the park and walked around the temple grounds for forever and planned a trip to the Houston temple when he travels there this week.

Seriously people, I need help. Give me date ideas! Yes, I mean YOU.

Apostrophes

What is wrong with these quotes?

"While Principal John W. Penrod was busy during the open house, Assistant Principal's Alan Ashton and RaShel Tingey were on hand to answer a few questions and go over a few facts."

"Kid's and volunteers catch fish and fun at Salem Pond."

"The Kid's Fishing Day at Salem Pond has come a long way in twenty-one years. . . "

I know that I don't live in a big city. I know that I can't expect the New York Times . . . but these glaring mistakes were on the front page of our newspaper. Misplaced apostrophes are apparently one of my biggest pet peeves. Well, that and people spelling with a Utah accent. I know I need to get over it . . . but don't they even TEACH grammar and punctuation anymore?

What We've Been Up To Lately

Who doesn't love to dress up?

Adam at his favorite past time: eating sugar.

A typical conversation with Adam: "Hi! Hi! My! No! My! No! Why-ah? Why-ah?"

Kye as goalie: his favorite position.

He spent most of his time wiggling his loose teeth.
Lucy at her piano recital. Year 2 in piano has been so fun.

Happy Moomer's Day to Me

When I was growing up I often called my mom "moomer." It couldn't have sounded very flattering--I wonder if that bothered her. Mom? Did it? Ah well. Sorry about that. But on to the point--my mother's day. So fun. So awesome.

Really is there anything better than being surrounded by your children as they give you homemade cards and coupons and breakfast in bed? Is there anything better than their promise to love you forever and to be so, so, soooo good and always listen and obey? Is there anything better than the complete devotion and attention you get for the 15 minutes they actually feel that way on Mother's Day morning? Not really. (Which is why I could possibly have done without Isaac telling me on Monday that he only loves me and listens to me on Mother's Day, so that was why he was being such a stinker. Stinker!)

Anyhoo, back to the point--Mother's Day adoration. I'm writing it down for posterity. Here goes:

Happy Mother's Day Mom! BMF (Best Mom Forever) from Lucy
Happy Mother's Day Mom! I Heart You! You are the best! Mom, you're the greatest! Thanks for all you do for me! Heart, Lucy (She told me she couldn't decide which of the sentences her teacher wrote on the board to copy for the card . . . so she did them all.)

I have a present for you. Love, Kye (coupons: do the dishes, clean the floor, make you breakfast in bed)

Happy Mother's Day Mom. I hope you have a great day! L(heart)ve, Isaac (coupon: one FREE clean up after Adam)

Happy Mother's Day Mom! L(heart)ve, Adam!

And from Lucy after church:
M: Magical, Magnificent
O: Only one for me
T: The best, thoughtful, terrific
H: Hollywood, Happy
E: Eternal, Elphaba
R: Read, Reader

It's good to be a moomer.

A Year of Dates: Weeks 16 & 17

Week 16: After meeting up with Ben and Becca, we went to Sam Hawk for some delish Korean food. We always get chop che and the beef bulgogi, which were my two favorite dishes during the summer I spent in Korea. Luckily, we went pretty early on a Friday evening so the wait (which is sometimes horrendous) actually wasn't too bad. After dinner, we went to the mall to pick up a new game called Acquire. We played at B&B's house and I'd have to say I'm really not a fan. I love games and this one just wasn't my thing. In a stunning outcome and complete break from tradition, Zach won. Just kidding. Zach always wins. I did, however, get a pair of jeans from Aeropostale for $7.50 and a couple of Webkinz for a good deal, so the mall trip wasn't a complete waste.

Week 17: Cracker Barrel . . . again . . . a short trip to the store to get some things we needed, and to check to see if our coveted play set was finally in stock (it wasn't). Time spent wondering why on earth Walmart would display a product out front they never have in stock--and actually can't sell for the price they have displayed. (I have a whole story about that one; ask me about it sometime. It's very interesting.) Viola--date done.

In case you can't tell, I'm in need of a little inspiration here, so if you have any good date ideas, please tell me. You just might be lucky enough to see one of your date ideas right here on our blog. Lucky you.

Top Ten--April 2009

And I'm back with the rest of our top ten. You're welcome.

5— Aunt Luanne, famous authoress. While reading some light before-bed fare (cookbooks are all the rage for bedtime reading here), Lucy started screaming. “Mom, MOM! Come down here. Come down here! You’ve gotta see this!” I was expecting blood, or at least a sliver, but instead got one very excited little girl. “Look, mom! It says Luanne Bradshaw! Luanne wrote this recipe. That is so cool, mom. Luanne, mom! Our Luanne!” (I do love my Gilbert 9th ward cookbook, but I doubt it’ll make any best seller lists.)

4—K: Mom, I’ll wash the table off for you.
M: Oh, thank you Kye.
K: (attacking the table with vigor) AHA! I fight food! I’m a food fighter! Get it? A FOOD fight-er!

3—I: Mom, I think I’m allergic to the sun.
M: Huh? Why?
I: Because every time I look at the sun, it makes me have to close my eyes.

2—Lucy, cheese lover. I knew she loved cheese and that she would put it on about anything. Still, I was a little shocked when she threw some shredded Tillamook cheddar on fudge. “What, mom? It’s GOOD!”

1—By far our best this month was our Easter celebration. As we celebrated the Holy Week by reading what Jesus did every day, acting out the Ten Virgins parable, having a Jerusalem dinner, explaining the Passover, singing songs, and writing down things we love about each other, our focus was very much on the Savior. My testimony and my resolve were strengthened and my love for the Savior deepened. It’s my new favorite week of the year!

Top Ten--April 2009

I split this one up in two parts again because of my verbosity. You're welcome.

10-M: Good night, Kye. I love you.
K: Good night, momster . . . momster . . . . hahahahaha. . . You’re a momster. HELP! A momster!! HAHAHAHA!!
Sheesh. Always a comedian.

9-Lucy’s new capris. She wears them every nice day and for the life of me I couldn’t remember where they had come from. I noticed she liked wearing them because they seemed to fit her well, and they weren’t even adjustable-waist. As I was laundering one day, I noticed the tag. Turns out my 8 ½ year old daughter is wearing a pair of 2T jeans for capris. Thanks for sharing your jeans, Audrey-bear!

8-Much to Zach's disappointment, I am not a puzzle person. My brain just doesn’t seem to work that way. (Perhaps lack of video-game playing stunted my hand-eye coordination skills and it came back to bite me in the . . . well, you know.) It took Isaac and I one full hour to complete a 100 piece puzzle. In my defense, we had to stop for snacks and drinks twice, and I had to distract Adam with different activities exactly 7 times. By the time we were finished, Adam had completely destroyed his room, Isaac’s room, the living room, the kitchen and the hall.

7-Latest and greatest Bradshaw vocabulary:
Rooooaaaaaarrrrrr!!!!-- That which every animal on the planet says, especially horses, according to Adam.
Snaining--April storms bring it. To be used when it’s not quite raining and not quite snowing. (Thanks, Zach)
Snailing--Hailing/snowing. (Lucy felt if her dad made up words, she could too.)

6--How to trick your mother—a tutorial. Listen and learn from my eldest. (1) Complement your mom on her cooking. (“Mmmmmm, mom! This is so good.”) (2) Dawdle till your mom leaves the room because she absolutely cannot spend another minute in the kitchen watching you not eat your dinner. (3) Jump up, pour your remaining food in the baby’s bowl, which is already on the counter to be washed. Remember that said baby doesn’t eat, either, so mom will not notice a little more in the bowl. (4) Blush with embarrasment and admit defeat when mom actually DOES notice. Ah, well. Worth a shot, anyway.

Dadadaaaaaaaaaa! Hope you enjoyed. Too be continued . . .

Things I Don't Understand

I am at a loss to understand why multi-billion dollar pharmaceutical companies (that can shell out millions to lobby Congress that the generic Albuterol inhalers used by American asthmatics causes such a threat to the ozone layer that they have to create new non-generic inhalers so that they can make billions MORE dollars from asthmatics) cannot manage to pay a manufacturer to produce a syringe big enough to reach the bottom of a bottle of antibiotics. Flabbergastation, I tell you.