Jen took Becca and Dan to the local ice rink for a Mommy-and-Me program so they could try out skating. I wish I could have been there to see them trying to skate. Jen said they all had a blast.

Valentine's Day and Ballet

Yesterday was Valentine's Day. I bought Jen a dozen long stemmed red roses and Dan decorated his face. The WVU Horticulture Club (I am one of the faculty advisors) was having a fundraiser selling roses and they did an excellent job. The roses were some of the most beautiful and perfect that I have ever seen. The buds opened perfectly, even the sepals were nearly perfect.



It ended up being a very busy day overall. We celebrated by running all over town. I took the three boys to a Primary activity where they had a ice cream party for memorizing the Articles of Faith. They received one ice cream topping for each Article that they memorized. Jen took Becca to the mall where they were having a fundraiser for a local ballet school. There were multiple activity stations for crafts and she also had a ballet lesson. She went with a friend and enjoyed the theme of 'Princesses'.



The night before we went to Washington, PA to an outlet store to get new shoes for all of the kids. The best part was that our family assisted in the economic stimulus plan by stopping at a company (Krispy Kreme) which is in trouble of going bankrupt. We wanted to make sure that we support a company that should not disappear because of troubled economic times. We did find out that they no longer give out free donuts even when the 'Hot Now' sign is blinking like they used to. Bummer.

Birthday Time

This past weekend was Sam's birthday. He wanted a bowling birthday party and it was a lot of fun. The best part was not having to plan games and activities at our house. The bowling alley had 24 lanes and all of them had birthday parties at them. It was fun to hear 'Happy Birthday' sung over 15 times in the course of 2 hours. I used a Walmart party cake to make the bowling cake. I used a mini-Lego figure holding a gumball with plastic bowling pins from a finger bowling game. One of the ladies at the bowling alley asked where we bought it because she thought it was the coolest bowling cake she had seen. Everyone really enjoyed bowling, must be the WI (even though they were not born there) blood running through their veins. Dan needed a bit of help to get the ball down the lane. Becca really was the best because her ball rarely hit the bumpers where most of the kids the ball bounced back and forth down the lane before hitting the pins. Sam was a crazy bowler but he had a lot of fun anyway. After we were done bowling we had to follow tradition by stopping in the arcade before we left. It was fun to see everyone enjoying a great game of pinball. Sam had a great birthday!

Church and Cans

This past Sunday morning Dan looked so cute in his jacket that I had to get some pictures. Jen took pictures of me with Dan and Becca as well.






Last night we canned our red wheat for our food storage. We canned 750 pounds (around 120 #10 can) and still have more to go. It was a great family project. Dan and Becca helped me fill the cans. Dan and Becca also helped Jen run the canner. Mike and Sam wrote the contents on the cans and took them to the basement. The missionaries even helped for a bit. Next step is to put them away in our storage room.

Chips and Mohawks

This morning Becca and Sam asked for a bagel with cream cheese for breakfast and then I asked Dan what he wanted for breakfast. His answer was, "Chips". It was a very honest answer.

Later this morning I needed a haircut so I gave myself a Mohawk. The kids thought it was hilarious. Sorry to say, after the picture I finished the haircut.

Teapot and Rocks

Becca loves to sing and dance. Here she is singing 'I'm a little teapot". Dan and Becca also love to paint rocks.

Wahs, Hummus and Missing Teeth

This past week I have been pretty dry with blog material and then yesterday happened, lots of blogging stuff! Sam's front tooth (the first one he lost 3 years ago from an incident with Michael and the hardwood floor) finally was loose enough that Jen grabbed it and yanked it out. It was right before we had lunch and he said prayer over the lunch food and I about lost it hearing him whistle between his teeth.


Dan really cracked me up yesterday as well. He was drinking hot cocoa and he had to have a straw or as he pronounces it, "a wah".

Dan also loves hummus.


We finally had enough snow to go sledding so we headed next door to go sledding on the best sledding hill in the neighborhood. Here is a picture of the gang. Dan still needs more practice with the skis. We all had a blast, it was a beautiful day. We need more Monday holidays with snow!

(See the UPS truck in the background, it was delivering my new tires for the Envoy. Very Exciting!!!)