Date Night + Giggling Girls

We did a fun date night recently. We did a 5 senses date Where we went down memory lane with each of our senses. Blindfolds were used a lot, but we used sight too. Poker games and The Office clips were fun to see. Food was tasted, especially the orange julius John made me on one of our first dates. He smelled candles, perfume, and chocolate, but my favorite was when he mistook the smell of bug spray for his aftershave. It still kind of makes me giggle. The sense of sound was enjoyed with sounds of our giggling girls in the videos above. We also listened to the Lost intro sound. What a weird show. We made use of our massage table for touch. What a fun night.

Another favorite date recently was when we refreshed our country dancing skills. This video is the one from the good old days we are trying to follow.

Here is our routine:

Pretzel Transition Behind the back Spinout Trust fall Hip dip Between the legs Fall down dip Flip Basic dip Bend over flip Can opener Table top Barrel roll Airplane Hand slide Triple Window Look behind Front cuddle Back cuddle Spin neck dip Cuddle throw spin Shoulder spin

The Routine Behind the back Airplane Trust fall Between the legs Pretzel Spin neck dip Fall down dip Front cuddle Triple Shoulder spin Spin out Table top Flip Basic dip Cuddle throw spin Can opener Hip dip

 

I like our made up names. :) But I especially like date night with my sweetie!

A day off

I love days off school. On President's day we had a great time--park, makeovers. What could get better??

 The girls did my make up. They have a real talent. :) 

Also, I was paying super good attention during Sunday school! :) 

Our Ugly Corner

 On Friday night John got the idea to make our backyard look better. It wasn't completely out of the blue. We realized the other day that there aren't any pretty areas of our backyard. We want to fix that. We got this pygmy date palm and were planning on getting more plants to plant back in our empty corner with the peeling paint. Then John got the idea to make it kind of a garden bed with the rocks making the hill into more of a ledge. So the next day, Saturday, we went for it. And did that almost the whole day. It was a lot of work, but very satisfying to change an ugly part of our yard into something that we like. Especially it was satisfying because we were able to do it in a single day.
We planted the date palm in the middle back, with a red lantana, bottlebrush, desert rose, and agave. We are mainly planning on the desert rose dying, but it is such a cool plant we had to give it a go. Fingers crossed everything lives!
Also, I hate it when I forget to take a before picture.

Eliza's 9th Birthday

Well, our Eliza is now 9. She will gladly tell you she is halfway to being an adult. What I am having a hard time with is that we are half way done with her being a child in our home. I still feel like there is so much to teach her. Since her birthday we have been trying to help her be more independent. Teaching her a little about cooking, doing her own hair, taking care of herself. I want to also have more deliberate talks with her about life and so many things. 

Really though, Eliza is in a good place. She has a good head on her shoulders and despite being a little absent minded sometimes, she is responsible and smart. She is sensitive and thoughtful. She likes to plan and make people happy. She also has a great sense of right and wrong.

Eliza's first love is still reading. She also has really become interested in embroidery recently. That is why one of her main birthday presents was a bunch of embroidery supplies. She is in tennis this spring semester, soccer, and hip hop. She is also doing piano lessons with John. We are actually quite surprised with how well she is picking up piano. She could have a real talent with that.

Taking pictures is boring.

Eliza is in the third grade gifted class and doing great with that. Her teacher is very nice and isn't too hard this year. She loves school--especially robotics, music, and any chance that she gets to read.

Eliza is amazing at scripture reading. She has already read the Book of Mormon twice since she turned 8. She is also taking it upon herself to memorize the Articles of Faith. I am super impressed with her faith and knowledge of the gospel.

I love how she cares for her little sisters. With us going to Hawaii in just over a week (!), we have been teaching Eliza how to care more for Holland. She does pretty well with it. I can see that in a couple of years she is going to be a great babysitter.

I just love Eliza's zest for life. She still loves reading non-fiction books and learning about the world. She gets interested in whatever project we are doing in our yard or house. She loves learning to cook and so many other things.

We went to a memorial service for a friend's mother yesterday. The mother was Catholic, so her phrasing was a little different than an LDS person, but I love it anyway. She told her daughter (our friend) that she was "God's girl." I feel like that is exactly Eliza (and really everyone), but Eliza just has the love of God shining through her. I truly feel blessed to be her mother.

And what is with her getting so big?! Wasn't she just my little baby and sweet 4 year old just a year or two ago?

Eliza is happy and generous and the best gift receiver. We adore this girl.

Eliza is so smart and bright, but in a lot of ways she is still sweet and innocent. For example, she has told me a couple of time recently that animated movies are scarier that real life movies (movies with people acting in them). "After all, you can only make a person look so scary with just make up."

Another one of my favorite things she said recently to Miriam, "You don't need to act like I am your lady in waiting."
Another classic from this year was when we were walking at Cedar Breaks. We were walking past kind of a rough looking group. While we were right next to them Eliza asked in a loud voice, "Why do some people buy pants that already have holes in them?" The girl with the pants with the big holes said, "Some people think they are stylish."

We had a fun time decorating for Eliza's birthday. I spent a long time on this poster. Calligraphy is fun.

Hi, Eliza here. My birthday was reeeeaaaalllyy fun. My Grandpa came over for dinner. First,we had German Pancakes for breakfast. Then, since it was Saturday, I had to clean my room:(. Next Mommy and Daddy cleaned while my sisters and I played until lunch. After lunch, we went to the pool ( :) ) and the hot tub :). Then, we had dinner (lasagna, steamed broccoli, and salad.) Then, we had Strawberry Dumplings.  Mmmmm.   

Then, I got my PRESENTS!!!!! I got 11 presents. I got a shirt, nail stamps and polish, a mint plant that grows incredibly fast, embroidery hoops, fabric and thread, two dresses, a jump rope, books, two jewelry boxes, and a watch.   

We went swimming. Mommy wore her wet suit. We watched Mary Poppins--the best movie ever!

Birthday dessert time!

This smile is everything.

We love this girl!!!