Dancing King

A few weeks before school ended this year, I had a friend mention something about a dance off at school.  Her daughter who is in  Zack's class, had told her about it.  Zack had never mentioned it, so I asked him about it later that day.  (He will tell me every detail of his math test or the book he is reading, but not so much the social stuff.  Derek on the other hand, tells me all the drama of first grade on a regular basis.)

I asked Zack about the dance off and he said, oh, yeah, that was last week.  He said that all the boys had to choose a girl to dance with and then have a dance-off.  He chose some girl in the class to dance with and he said it was sooo embarrassing.  But then he said, " But, I played it cool."  ?!?!??!  Haahaaaa, Matt and I laughed so hard.  It is fun to watch these kids grow up.

Another hilarious story is when Matt told Zack the facts of life.  I will not put it on the blog, for fear of scarring my son forever, but if you really want to know, talk to me in person :)  It is hysterical.

The Pinewood Derby 2013

 This was Zack's third and final pinewood derby.  He was excited!

 We had a crowd.  We got started a little late and people were getting restless. 

 Our neighbor entertained Sydney. 

 Zack and his buddy, Riley, watch the progress of their cars.  Zack's is the one furthest away from him.  Camo. 

 Sydney and Austin were pretty worn out by the end. 

Victory!!  The top four were called out to race again.  Zack ended up with third.  He was thrilled! 

Birthday Boy #2

 We decided this year to throw Derek a real birthday bash.  He invited the boys from his Primary class, and his brothers, of course.  Derek wanted an "Army Man" party.  I decided we would do basic training.  Nothing fancy, I planned all the activities about an hour before the party started.  I painted their faces to make them look tough. 

 We did an obstacle course and then had get through this "laser trap."  I may have slightly injured myself while demonstrating this one.  Then we had target practice with nerf guns. 

 Then cupcakes! 

 Then presents!  Derek loved being the center of attention. 

The party took place on Derek's actual birthday.  That morning before school, he opened up a new fleece sweatshirt in a camo print.  After the party we had the dinner of his choice (pancakes, bacon and eggs). and then opened presents.  Derek received a Lego Star Wars alarm clock, some clothes, books, and seriously, I can not remember anything else, although I bought it all.  hmmm...The boys also received LOTR Legos from Grandma and Grandpa P. and an awesome sled and clothes from Grandma and Grandpa S.  They were spoiled rotten. 

Derek is the funniest kid.  I can not believe he is seven.  He has matured so much in the last year.  He is fun and active and loves to tease.  He wants to be a lifeguard or a computer guy when he grows up.  He is too cute for words.  Happy Birthday Der!

Birthday Boy #1

Zack had his birthday last week.  I can't believe he is ten years old!  All the photos of his birthday are on Matt's camera, I will have to find them. 

The weekend before his birthday, Zack invited the boys in his church class to go sledding.  Matt took them for about an hour while I picked up pizza.  They came home all worn out and starving.  I had made a batch of cinnamon rolls that morning they were gobbled up before I could even get the pizzas in the oven!  They watched Jumanji (none of them except Zack had ever seen it) and played around until it was time to go home.  It wasn't a party, more of a late night and Zack thought it was better than any birthday party around. 

The day of his birthday he had to go to school.  I had promised to make him a special birthday lunch, but in the hustle and bustle of getting everyone off to school amidst birthday stuff, I forgot.  He was THRILLED when I showed up to school with his special lunch later that morning...when I remembered. 

Zack opened up a Lego Idea book before school and everything else after dinner.  Dinner was his choice (Steak and fried potatoes and salad with chocolate cake for dessert).  He also got a backpacking backpack, Webelos stuff, some science kits and I can't remember what else....

Zack is a great kid.  He is funny and kind and always willing to help.  He wants to be an author and a professor of Greek mythology when he grows up.  Happy Birthday Zack!!

Making Bricks the Egyptian Way

Today I hear, "mom, mom!  Look what I made!"  I see my six year old carrying a tupperware bowl packed solid with sand.  He said he was "Making Bricks"

This is what he said, "Look mom!  I made a brick!   And I didn't even use straw!  It is solid!  Well, I added some hay instead, that is why it is so solid.  Is it awesome?"

(He had recently watched the old Ten Commandments movie with Charleton Heston and was fascinated by the Israelites making bricks.  I guess he just wanted to give it a try!  I couldn't stand for him to have to destroy his creation just yet, it is still sitting on the deck, baking in the sun.  He is so curious and independent, he loves to figure things out for himself.  Love that boy!

Birthday Week: Zack

 Zack's last den meeting as a wolf.  He loves his den leaders and was very sad to say goodbye.  When we have our next Pack Meeting....he should be getting 5 more arrow points for me to sew on to his uniform.  Thinking of all the patches I will be sewing on in the next 15 years kind of makes me want to cry. 

 Aunt Kailee made the three birthday boys a LEGO cake.  It was awesome and they thought it was the coolest. 

We had a little Sorensen family birthday party this weekend since we have birthday boys on the 23, 24 and 25.We ate, played hard and broke a pinata...what could be better? 

Zack was thrilled with his birthday.  He woke up early, as always, and instead of sleeping until I heard him on the stairs, I set my alarm and wrapped up  two of his gifts and then went upstairs to hang out with him until he needed to get ready for school.  I told him about the day he was born, he loves that story, and we talked and laughed for a while, just the two of us.  Then, he got ready for school and I made him breakfast and a sack lunch.  He loves school lunch, and only has home lunch for field trips.  I made him a special lunch and he was really excited about it.  He opened two gifts before he went to school and he had a great day.  When he came home, he received many phone calls, which he loves and after dinner, we had him blow out candles on some doughnuts.  He opened the rest of his gifts and I think he was pretty excited.  The highlight for him were the "slip-on shoes!" and the watch.  After gifts, we played his new games together and then Matt took him off to get ice cream and a little one-on-one time with Dad.  He came home late and tired and so happy.  It was a fun day. 

Some things about Zack:
Grade:  3
Favorite color: Green
Favorite Pastime:  Drawing/Creating comic books/Reading/Building Legos
Loves:  Learning to Play the Piano, Mowing the Lawn, Scouts
Things that are special about Zack-Responsible-Amazing Memory-thirst for knowledge-truly desires to be good-grateful-helpful-creative-loves traditions and routines-wants to be exactly like his Dad-

Zack is a great example to his siblings, and parents.  He is always the one to remind us about scriptures and prayers, etc.  Happy birthday Zack!!!

Just like a little missionary

This past Sunday, as the older kids were walking in to Primary, Zack's teacher came up and told me that the kid in their class who was giving the talk didn't show, so Zack volunteered to give it.  He decided to tell a story that his teacher told in class about Heber J. Grant and service.  He went to the pulpit, told the story amazingly well after hearing it just once and then bore a sweet testimony of service.  He is such a confident, faith-filled boy who wants nothing more than to do what is right.  His teacher sent him a note after class telling how great he was and that he looked just like a missionary while he gave his talk.  Zack was so thrilled to get that note and kept it in a really safe place so he never loses it. 

Birthday advide from Zack

Dear Michael,
Happy Birthday. I hope you are having fun. I want you to play with your fun Rescue Heroes. (the guys with capes.) I hope you enjoy your movies over there. And again, Happy Birthday. And, have fun reading books. And, don't cross the street without looking both ways. Listen and learn from your parents. have fun outside. love zack.

Dear Michael,
Happy Birthday.
love,
Derek

Michael,
Bye.
Love,
Austin

Teaching R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Conversation at the dinner table last night:
(Zack is setting the table and sits down in a chair.)

Me: Zack, will you please go sit on the bench seat next to Derek? It is hard for me to sit in that seat right now.
Zack: Is that because you are so fat?
Matt: Zack!! You can't say that to your mom!
Zack: But she is so fat!
Matt: Zack, we do not ever call people fat.
Zack: It's just mom.
Matt: Zack, when you talk about people like that, it hurts their feelings.
Zack: But it doesn't hurt mom's feelings, she is just fat cause of the baby.
Matt: You don't know what hurts people's feelings. Mom will get skinny again sometime, but you don't EVER tell anyone they are fat because that is RUDE.
(I was long gone at this point, hiding in the pantry because I was laughing so hard.)

Today I took the boys to the dinosaur museum while Matt was working. When I took off my jacket, Zack looked up and said, "Mom, that sweater is way too small for you." Thanks, son. I can always count on you for complete honesty.

Because We Have Missionaries on the Brain

Derek (sweetly): Zack, I will miss you when you go on your mission.
Zack: You will?
Derek: Yes. Will you miss me when I go on my mission?
Zack: Sure.
Derek: Will you be so, so sad?
Zack: I guess.
Derek: Will you cry?
Zack (witheringly): Why would I cry?

(Like he didn't sob for days leading up to dropping James off at the MTC.)

The MTC (for Mom and Dad who requested photos)

The very short drive from Lehi to Provo.
We made Jamison wave goodbye to the hospital, his second home away from home.
Getting out of the car at the MTC.
Zack is starting to get worried. (He was the only one who shed actual tears, but he was really tough and waited until James was gone.)
Missionaries help unload the luggage.
Austin, waiting patiently for ANYONE to get him out of the car.
"Oh, really? I did not know that."
One more piece of luggage.
Don't worry, mom, he didn't lift them all by himself. (Austin is finally getting out of the car.)
Zack, Austin, me and a 28 week belly and Jamison.
Post hugs and goodbyes, Matt requested one more photo. We sent him on his way. He was so happy! Due to new regulations, no family members can enter the MTC. It is stop and drop only. We were literally on the MTC grounds for less than five minutes. We are so excited for James, he will be a fantastic missionary.

The Last Night

We (all the brothers and sisters...minus Uruguay Michael) got together last night for dinner and goodbyes. I caught Jamison just about to swallow.
Some game the little cousins invented called " back wrestling."
David, making an interesting point.
Tara (2nd oldest), Chris (4th), Jamison (5th), me(oldest) and David (3rd). (That would be my son trying to squeeze his way into the photo.)
My family plus some brothers. After we ate, James had to say goodbye to Tara's family and David. The rest of us headed back to my house and then on the Stake Center where James was set apart as a missionary!

(Maybe now would be a good time to mention that the Stake President thought I was Jamison's mom. It's true. I guess I should just be proud that someone would think I raised such a great kid, but I am more confused. Since this is the second time this has happened with Jamison, do people think I am a young looking 40 something mom (who is still bearing children) or that I had a child as an 11 year old? Hmmmmm......Matt and my brothers about died laughing as we left and got in the car. Then this morning, Zack woke up early to draw a picture of our family for James to take. When he showed it to me, he said, "Mom, you are bigger than everyone else, but it is just because you are pregnant. If you are not pregnant when Michael goes on his mission, I will draw you smaller." Thanks, Zack. Just so you know, in the picture, I was a foot taller and at least a foot wider than everyone else in the drawing, including Matt and Jamison. Overall not a great 24 hours for my self-esteem. I overheard Matt this morning saying to the boys, "Doesn't mommy look great? Isn't she so beautiful and young?" Thanks, Matt. Nice try.) Jamison moved his mattress into Zack and Derek's room for the night so they could have a sleepover. We didn't stay up too late packing and all got to bed at a decent hour.

Presenting the Dinner at My House After Jamison Speaks in Church Prior to Leaving on a Mission (Not a Farewell)

There were people in every room of my house. Even the unfinished basement.

There were over 90 people here...holy cow.

So many of Jamison's favorite people came.

The line just kept coming and coming. Matt would come and give me updates on how many people were left so I could figure out how much food we still needed.

Some of my parent's missionaries came to say goodbye.

Jamison and some future missionary nephews.

Dave and Doreen, cousins on my dad's side.

Grandma and Grandpa Boothe were sad to say goodbye, but so excited for him.

Breakage

Yesterday seemed like my day for breaking things. When I fist found out I was pregnant, I was perusing the Old Navy Maternity section looking for some jeans on clearance. I found some! A nice looking pair for $1.99. Yes, one dollar and ninety-nine cents. The catch was that the maternity panel had a slight tear in the side where the stitching had not held together. No biggie, I thought, I am sure they will last a little while and they were $1.99!! The jeans came home with me. They soon became my favorite, they were fitted enough to not make me look ginormous and comfortable enough to wear frequently (or daily.) The rip in the maternity panel was right where the panel met the jean fabric. As the months passed, the rip became a little bigger. The other side began to pull away from the jeans as well. (Keep in mind this was along the back side of the jeans. If I ever bent over a little too far I would hear a little rrrrrrrriiip. I always made sure to wear an extra long shirt when I wore the jeans, just in case.

Well, yesterday was the day. I was driving my brother James up to Bountiful to meet my sister and she was going to pick him up for some last minute pre-mission shopping and family visits. Lehi to Bountiful is not very far, only about 40 minutes. I do get really uncomfortable in the car, but as long as I am not driving I can change positions and it is fine. But when I am driving, I get this horrible cramp just above my ribcage. The longer I sit in the same position, the worse it gets. This happens every time I am pregnant, but not usually this early. It started to get really bad in Salt Lake and by the time we reached Bountiful, I needed a stretch. Once I parked the car, we were just waiting for Tara to show up. I first stretched my legs as far as they would reach in the car and then bent forward to stretch my back. That is when I heard a HUGE rip and felt some cold air on my back. I reached back to feel the damage and realized that the entire panel had pulled away and there was no way I would be able to keep my pants up when walking around. So the pants are toast, the fabric is so stretched out I don't think I could fix it with my minimal sewing skills. But that $1.99 did last 6 months!!

The second thing I broke was a lot more than $1.99. This weekend my little brother is speaking in church before he heads off on his mission next week. After church, there will be a humdinger of a shindig over at my house, since that is the day most of the family will be saying goodbye to him. In preparation for the big day, I have been methodically cleaning my house. I had everything fabulously clean last week and was doing a great job of maintaining until everyone came down with ear infections and colds and now it is not looking so good. Well, yesterday, I decided it was time to finally clean the fridge. Not just a wipe down of the inside, we are talking taking every shelf out and scrubbing. I was almost done, the fridge was glistening, all I had left to wash was a glass shelf that is over the vegetable bin. It is the lowest shelf in the fridge and where we usually keep milk. As I was washing it in the sink, all of the sudden it completely shattered in my hands. Glass flew everywhere. I can't believe no one was hurt. I quickly locked the kids in my room and cleaned up the floor first. Then, I gathered the big pieces out of the sink. Then, I spent 45 minutes picking the shards of glass out of the sink with tweezers, to make sure none fell in the disposal. Aaack. I found out today a replacement shelf is $85. Seriously? There is is no way the shelf is worth that much. So for now, my vegetables are getting lots of fresh air and the milk is up at the top of the fridge while I decide how badly we need a shelf there. Kenmore is trying to con me, I know it.

The Birthday Boys....Beginning With Zack

January is a month of celebration in our home. We begin with the New Year, Aunt Meagan's birthday, our wedding anniversary and then have Zack's birthday, cousin Carson's birthday, Derek's birthday and cousin Davis' birthday. Whew! (I should probably mention that Zack, Carson and Derek's birthdays are three days in a row!) Zack started off his day by waking up at 11:30 pm, rushing down the stairs to find Matt and I watching a movie and being bitterly disappointed when we told him he had only been sleeping for a few hours and it wasn't his birthday yet. When he finally did get up for the day he opened his presents and then Matt took him out to breakfast. Zack was thrilled to go do something special with his Dad. As they were waiting for their food, Zack said, " This is such a fancy place. This must be where rich people eat!" (They were at IHOP.) After breakfast, Matt asked Zack if there was anything else he wanted to do. Zack said he we would like to go to a toy store. He looked at toys for a while and eventually asked Matt is he could get a Hot Wheel car. On the way home he said, "That was so fun. I was enjoying myself so much, I just forgot it was my birthday!"

Later in the day, he wanted to go practice basketball, so Matt took the two older boys to the Church to play for a little while. After that, we headed to the dinosaur museum.

We came home and had cake and watched a movie of Zack's choosing. I think he had a pretty fun day.
It is hard to believe that he is seven! He is such a wonderful son and big brother. He is a great example of obedience and kindness. His favorite things to do are:
Draw
Read
Build legos
Happy Birthday Zack!!! We love you!

Overheard.....and Dinotopia

Yesterday, the boys were playing/supposedly cleaning their room, Matt was playing with Austin and I was on the computer pretending to work on Primary stuff. Zack and Derek started to fight, Zack tattled, I told them both to figure it out themselves. Zack walks back into his room and I hear him say to Derek, "Do you have an issue with me?" I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. Where on earth do they get these things?

On a side note, we took the family to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point yesterday and we ended up buying a family pass for the year. I am looking forward to taking the boys there often, they all loved it, even Austin. He kept saying, "Roaaaaaaaaaaaaaar, disoaur!" Soooo, if any of my friends are around and would like to come with us, you get 50% of your entrance fee with a member. (The pass also includes Farm Country and the Gardens....I know a lot of my local friends have been doing this for years, I am a little slow to catch on.) So come play!

Ewwww***Edit***

Zack's spider bite from Uruguay. The infection spread to his nail bed and it was all encrusted with pus. We didn't see the pus until last night. Today when he came home from school, I saw how disgusting it still was and whisked him right over to the doctor. He now has some antibiotics to get it all out of his system. It is even more disgusting in person, believe me.

***Edited to add that Matt forced me to write that post. He and my mom were looking at photos of spider bites online while in Uruguay, so he thought it would be hilarious to trick her into believing this was a spider bite. This really is Zack's finger, although we are not sure what caused the infection. Still ewww.....

Photos Galore....AKA Can you guess what Matt (bought himself) for Father's Day?

We spent Father's Day afternoon out in the country with Matt's Grandpa and family.
Doesn't Austin look excited to be at the hospital? (Visiting Uncle Jamison, of course.) Derek, not so much, that is him huddled on my lap.
Oh, wait, back in the country...Derek and Jordy, bird watching. (Did I mention these photos are in no particular order?)
Ahh...I realized that Austin was thrilled at being at the hospital as much as with the Jamba Juice we gave him.
Zack's last soccer game. He and his buddy have their "game faces" on.


Austin scowling, he does that a lot lately.

The new camera is actually pretty fun to play with. More to come, have no doubt.