The Milennium Pancake

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . going to dinner with some friends.

. . . getting an awesome package from my friend Vonnie.  X-wing pancakes--how cool is that?!?  Apparently you can also buy Star Wars cookie cutters.  P.S. Why is Boba Fett so popular?  He only has about five minutes of screen time in the original trilogy (we will not speak of the newer trilogy), and says about three lines.  Do people just think he has a cool helmet??

Stew and Addled Bowling

Today's not-so-favorite moments included . . .

. . .  taking my daughter bowling to a place that has big screen TVs at the end of all their lanes.  Half the TVs showed an NBA game and the rest showed a string of music videos.  For some reason, my brain is wired so that I can't tear my attention away from a television. Even if I dislike what's on the screen and try to focus on something else in the room, before I know it I'm glued to the flickering screen again.  That is one of the main reasons our family does not own a TV, and tonight it put a real damper on my outing with my daughter. I did my best to focus on her and our game, but I felt like half my brain was constantly craning to look at the screen.  I won't be going back to that bowling alley.  Bleh.

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . buying a baseball mitt with Joy after our round of bowling.  She asked to try playing baseball this year, and was so excited about her new mitt that she asked to play catch with me when we get home.  That was a lot more fun than bowling with the Lakers.

. . . cooking some delicious beef stew, then eating sugar cookies for dessert.  Comfort food city.

. . . reading the annual newsletter of a family in our ward whom we love dearly.  Their "Christmas" newsletter is always a few months late but worth the wait.

Cookies and a Tired Dog

Today's not-so-favorite moments included . . .

. . .  working like a dog to wash and fold laundry, prepare and clear away dinner, and do a mountain of dishes, then having Phillip arrive home and say, "Wow--the house sure is a mess isn't it?"  Sigh.  Picking up all the books and toys ranks at the bottom of the Necessity List, but at the top of the Appealing First Impression List.  It ain't fair, but that's life, isn't it?

. . . realizing I am a hypocrite for eating a cookie after I told Joy she couldn't.  O repent ye, repent ye . . .

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . cutting out sugar cookies with the kids. Joy wanted to decorate some for our home evening activity, and we all had a great time decorating and eating them.

. . . playing Uno with Daniel, and seeing him grin.

. . . Anna asking me to read to her.

An Awesome Smoothie and a Reluctant Storyteller

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . husband hugs.

. . . eating sweet potato casserole.  That stuff is so yummy.

. . . playing with the kids.

. . . taking a nap.

. . . Phillip making a delicious smoothie at dinner time.  It was so well-received that he had to make a second batch.

And another thing . . .

. . . is there anything that you love doing but hate starting? Whenever we get in the car, Joy asks me to tell a story. I tend to enjoy the stories while I’m telling them, but I hate thinking them up. Sometimes the job is fairly easy—Joy just asks me to relate a specific scripture story, or part of a movie—but other times she asks me to make up a story about a character or two, and that’s challenge for me. I try to say yes most of the time because I want to support my daughter, and I really do enjoy the stories once I start telling them, but I also strictly enforce my “only tell stories in the car” rule because I don’t want to spend my entire life making up new tales, especially when I need a substantial part of my brain to work on something else.

Flan and a Short Trip

Today's not-so-favorite moments included . . .

. . .  opening my mouth to tell Joy to get off the cultural hall stage just as she tripped over a cord and unplugged some AV equipment.

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . playing "Touched You Last" with Daniel.

. . . eating Bess's delicious flan at a church activity.

. . . finally tackling a bunch of big, nagging tasks while Phillip watched the kids this morning.  Thanks, Honey.

Suspense and Fish

Today's not-so-favorite moments included . . .

. . .  waiting to find out what happens to Shasta because Joy's at a sleepover with Pink Grandma and I don't want to read without her.

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . playing hide and seek with Daniel.  He's so cute when he laughs or gets excited about things.

. . . seeing all the crazy hats at Joy's school in celebration of Dr. Seuss's birthday.  Someone had also drawn  amazing chalk pictures from One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish on the kindergarten playground.  Cool.

Good Morning

Today's favorite moments included . . .

. . . Anna giving me lots of  cuddles this morning.  What a lovely way to start the day.