We be jammin'...or not

Catherine & Chloe's preschool attended a concert yesterday. The girls love music and will dance for hours along with Bella Dancerella and the Wiggles. Of course, that's at home.


Yesterday's concert featured local artist Frank Leto. His music is very interactive. Catherine got into it toward the end but not with the zest she exhibits at home and Chloe sat on my lap for most of the concert. Even so, they both reported the highlight of their day was the concert. The highlight of my day was spending time alone (well, alone for twins) with them.

While I'm on the subject of music, I'd like to introduce you to our favorite children's musicians:

The Green Chili Jam Band introduced us to the world of fun, cool kids music. One of the singers used to be a mentor teacher with me. Madelyn listened to their CD for many hours in the car as a baby. I guess they no longer sell CDs but they're worth looking up.
Mr. Stinky Feet performed at the local library back in 2005. We were hooked! Mark liked him so well he insisted we buy ALL the Mr. Stinky Feet CDs.
Greg Whitfield was Madelyn's kindergarten teacher in Texas. He was a super cool guy. Most of his assignments for the kids featured a song title. He wrote the lyrics for AlphaSongs which we proudly own a signed copy of.
Now, Frank Leto joins the list of our favorite kid's musicians. His songs are rich in culture and like I said earlier, very interactive.

Kung Hay Fat Choy

Happy Chinese New Year...a day late! Our family celebrated tonight with Chinese food and sparklers.






This time last year we had just moved to Lehi, Utah in preparation for our assignment to Singapore. We were five months away from moving halfway around the world. Even though our dream of living internationally was not realized, we are so thankful for the time we spent with the Singaporeans and other Americans we lived among in Utah. Tonight we wish you a happy and prosperous Year of the Ox.

Every little boys dream

Today we finally hired a 'bobcat guy' to rearrange the dirt in our backyard. The boys were quite excited...all of them. The little boys stood at the window saying, "Beep! Beep!" for a while.


Then when our friend the 'bobcat guy' took his lunch break, Daddy took the boys out for a closer look. Quite a load, huh?




Mark reports that Sam was ready to go for a spin. Seth thought they should ask for permission first.

Daddy dance party

I came home from grocery shopping this morning to find our brood parading around the coffee table, singing and dancing as loud as they could to a Disney favorites CD Mark made. I think they looped the table for a half-hour, long enough for a video and photo session.

This is not the first dance party Daddy has organized. One of his favorite things to do is crank the music when I'm out. We have video of Catherine and Chloe as two-year-olds spinning themselves silly to George Michael. Mark is such a fun, creative dad! I'm lucky to have him as my partner in this awesome parenting adventure.

The one, the only....

CHLOE!

Chloe is our 'just-so' child. She likes to eat off of the red plate and drink from the Red Robin cup. She likes to wear dresses with tights and if I say no, she won't get out of her pajamas. She tells me how she wants her hair every day and will practice any new skill until she's perfected it.

So, it should not surprise me that she insists on being the dealer and stacking the deck when playing UNO. Check out this hand...
Pretty good, huh? I got a similar hand. I tried to teach her what a bad idea stacking the deck is by going out on my first turn. She said, "Moooommmmm!" and started to cry. So I took them all back, amended the rules and played out the game. Sheesh, I'm such a pushover!

Another one of Chloe's favorite things is dressing up. Lately, she's taken to accessorizing. Check out these earrings...
That's right, barrettes. Clever, huh? The barrettes make indentations in her ears. She'll be well prepared for a life of control top pantyhose and high heels.

Where were you?

I was volunteering at Madelyn's school on Tuesday when the swearing in of Barack Obama occurred. I assumed I'd miss the live version. Instead, I was privileged to watch the ceremony with sixty children and their teachers. As President Obama was called to take the oath of office I had goosebumps. As we sat in silence, listening, witnessing history, I couldn't help but think what this President, this one man, means to our children. These children who so naturally say his name, without pause or prejudice. These children who look at President Obama as just another grown-up or Daddy, not as the first African American president or as a Democrat or liberal. Their generation will indeed grow up in a world where there are fewer boundaries on their aspirations and dreams. I can't remember a time when I've felt so excited, so hopeful and so protective of a President.

This morning Chloe and I were watching the news after Mark left for work. An image of our new President flashed on the screen and Chloe said, "That's Barack Obama!" This mother could not be more proud that her four-year-old daughter recognizes President Obama but wouldn't know Hannah Montana or the Jonas Brothers if they knocked on the door.

Loophole

Our boys are, for the time being, banned from the cat room aka the kid's bathroom. They like to pull tails and pick up the kitties in unorthodox ways. They have discovered a loophole in this rule under the bathroom door. Punky can fit his paw under the door which delights the boys and they in turn shove toys back to the kittens. It's really quite cute and will hopefully help the kittens not to retreat anytime they hear our overexcited toddlers coming their way.

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

Monday was a bonus 'family day' for us. Madelyn had the day off for Martin Luther King's birthday and Monday is one of Mark's normal days off. So, we planned a day of family bonding in the form of chores. However, before we even got the kitchen cleaned up after breakfast, Catherine comes running from the playroom calling, "Mom, you've got to see this!" A snicker followed. I assumed they had made a monster fort or their brothers were attempting some death defying stunt.

When I arrived on the scene, Catherine pointed out the pot of food melting on the wall heater. After a "What were you thinking?" and "Get your Dad!" and "Go to your room!", I turned off the furnace and Mark proceeded to scrape out the heater. For the remainder of the day, we got to enjoy the fumes of burning plastic.

Our twin girls attempted this little experiment because they wanted to cook like Mommy. Even so, they lost their privileges for the day and now know that the heater heats the room not the objects in it!

Mommy Surprise

Every now and then I get tired of our dinner rotation. The same old stuff is good and the kids are used to it, but it gets boring after a while. So, to break out of the routine we have 'Mommy surprise' nights when Mommy tries out a new dish on our clan. We're not talking about eggplant or chicken livers as my parents liked to fix when I was a kid. We're talking about red beans and rice (tonight's 'Mommy surprise') or snow peas and chicken (which has become a family favorite). Over time the children have learned not to complain until AFTER they've tasted the meal. But their faces say it all, like Madelyn's tonight. She immediately launches into negotiations about precisely how much she has to eat in order to get some form of dessert. Catherine takes a bite and immediately asks to be excused. Everything for her is black or white. Sam spent most of the meal transferring food from his tray to his bowl and back again. Seth stared into space. Chloe, our child who complains about chicken nuggets, is still working on finishing. Go figure!

Amelia Bedelia Moment

On Tuesday, I asked Mark to trim the Christmas tree then left to pick Madelyn up at school. When I return, this is what I found...it's a good thing Christmas is over!

Laundry Day

Saturday is laundry day! Actually, everyday is laundry day but on Saturdays I generally try to get the kids' clothes washed so they're ready for school & dance class Monday. Leave it to our creative kiddos to make laundry day into a theme park experience. First everyone was harmlessly sitting in the baskets. Then a jumprope was tied to one basket and a child or two was whipped across the floor. Next, the jumprope was tied to two baskets at which point two children had to pull the other three in their version of a carnival ride. The game ended when Sam was dumped out the back and hit his head on the tile.

Another favorite game is family hide-and-seek. All FIVE children hide together, then Madelyn calls out, "Mom, Dad, come find Madelyn, Catherine, Chloe, Seth & Sam". By the time she's done naming everyone, it's pretty obvious where they are. I laugh everytime and get a warm fuzzy feeling knowing that all the children are blissfully involved in the same game.

Choo! Choo!

Santa brought Seth and Sam a battery-powered train. Daddy was as thrilled as the boys (probably more so). The boys put together a train track last week and off went the train. Mark tells me Seth was very serious about his conducting job. He watched the train navigate the straightaways, helped it up the hills and kept the track in tip-top shape.

New Year's Resolution

It's time. Time to add words to the images and weave our family tale. Welcome to the Lowe-down...our family journal and scrapbook.