Hair cuts

For months Beth has deliberated about getting a haircut. Initially she was intimidated by the whole process of going to the salon. Then she decided she wanted long hair so she could do more braids and curls and such. Last week, after a discussion with me about the possibility of bangs, she made her decision and was raring to go! After school we headed over to Fantastic Sam's for her little "make-over." 

Before 

Beth was proud of her long hair, but she was getting tired of combing out tangles and decided it was time for a change. 

During - she groaned and rolled her eyes in mock embarrassment while her mother took pictures. She discouraged me from speaking to her during her haircut as well. A haircut is much too grown-up for that kind of thing. 

After

Beth LOVES her haircut. At the salon she was grinning and giggling at herself in the mirror. When she got down from the chair the first thing she said was, "My dad will be so proud of me!" The puzzled stylist queried, "Does your dad really like bangs?", "No, I explained, "he really likes Beth!" 

When we got home Beth disappeared for the better part of a half an hour. When I finally went to look for her I found her in gazing in the mirror. She agreed to pose for a "photo shoot" and anxiously waited for her dad to come home. She fell apart when he called and said he would be late, and then she slept with a pillow over her head so that when he came in to kiss her while she slept, he wouldn't see her haircut! The next morning she made me hurriedly comb and curl her hair before Luke came upstairs and then she popped out and surprised him. Writing about it may make her sound a bit conceited, but in actuality she was very sweet and cute about the whole thing. 

Now for Mary. As a baby Mary developed an interesting habit of twisting her hair in knots to lull herself to sleep. When her hair was little more than an infant fuzz, we had to cut the knots out each morning, which perpetuated her baby baldness for months. As her hair miraculously managed to grow, we managed on occasion to untangle the knots and spare her hair it's daily trimming. However, just as her hair had nearly filled out to a legitimate head full, she took up the scissors by her own volition and whacked off her bangs back to the scalp. Throughout all of this, she didn't like having short hair and once quietly moaned as we sat in church, "I have a BOY head!" Trying to reconcile not tying knots or cutting her own hair with growing hair long enough to have a "girl head" was a heart-felt conflict for little Mary. Now, her hair is long enough that she can twist knots into it and "tie them out" by herself, most of the time. But, her hair is curly and she likes it "smooth" so the daily trimming has evolved to a daily battle where I try to persuade, cajole, and trick her into showing off her cute curls while she heartily insists that I slick it down as smooth and straight as possible. So, as we took Beth to the salon for her haircut, I offered Mary a trim. She confessed that she was scared of "the black thing." "The cape?" I asked, "That is just a great big apron that they put over you so that your clothes are covered up and the cut-off hair doesn't get on them and make you itch." "Ooooooh," she sighed, "I thought it was a cave with a black bear inside, and then I saw a Beth-head poking out of it!" No wonder she didn't want a hair cut! With fear of caves and bears resolved, she eagerly climbed up into the chair while I explained the knot situation to the stylist. . .

Before

Mary was prone to "crazy hair" in the mornings.

During

She was less concerned with the outcome and more concerned with equality as she proudly announced, "Now Beth AND me got to go in the chair!" Cutting some layers evened out the areas where knots had been extracted . . .

After

The stylist sprayed Mary's hair and used mousse to activate the curls. Mary scowled sullenly into the mirror and refused to speak to her. When we got home and the curls loosened up a bit, Mary relaxed too and let me take her picture. 

I never though taking kids for a hair cut could be so much fun! Between the two of them their reactions had me laughing all day. I'm sure there are bad hair days ahead and lots of drama to go with them, but for this mother of three girls, today was a great hair day!

Aloha!

This month Luke and I spent 9 wonderful days in Hawaii, thanks to Grandma Liz, the Galloways, and the Spanglers, who pulled kid duty for us. 

We had a fantastic time. We spent our first evening there watching the sun set while whales spouted and breached out in the ocean.

                       Throughout the trip, We had lots of golf time, spa time (well, I had lots of spa time), reading time, and pool time. We ate at several great restaurants (Mama's Fish House was our favorite), and spent too much money on presents for the girls (I'm the one guilty of that). 

One morning we did a scooter dive from the beach. Because we held on to scooters which propelled us, we could forgo a boat ride and just leave from beach, but still get far enough out to see cool things. My favorite things from that dive were some spotted damsel fish swimming around an antler coral, and hearing whale song. Just when I thought I was too cold and had to head in, we saw a red pipe fish, which is quite rare according to our guide. Another morning we rented a kayak and paddled around. Just when I decided to  head in, Luke spotted a big sea turtle that surfaced right by us.  A different day we decided to snorkel for a while and, just when I decided to start heading in, Luke spotted an octopus.  I'm afraid I will expect him to spot some grand finale in all our excursions, from now on, just when I'm ready to quit. 

If I had to pick my favorite day, I would say Sunday. We attended church with the congregation in Keihei. For lack of a better description, it was just really nice. The people there were so friendly and listening to them refreshed my perspective. After church we went for a walk in the Iao Valley, checking out the native garden display there and hiking around in the rainforest. Then we met up with our friends for a bit of scripture discussion, and concluded the day eating dinner on the balcony, watching the sun set. 

 If I had to pick my favorite moments they would be seeing a whale breach at sunset, and walking along the beach in the mornings while listening to performances of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on my Ipod- that may not sound like very invigorating music but it fit the scenery perfectly. My favorite activities were the ones I did with Luke, like snorkeling and golfing. I played lousy, but the course of beautiful and I loved it when a little mongoose ran right across our path.  

We slept in in the mornings, laid by the pool in the afternoons, and relaxed in the hot tub in the evenings.  I missed the girls, but I didn't worry about them. I was surprised by how much I missed their hug and kisses, but they gave me plenty of hugs to make up for it when we got home! 

Overall it was just great - great company, great food, great scenery, great weather, and reuniting with our girls was a great conclusion. I'm already looking forward to next year. . .

Christmas Chronicles 2008

On Christmas Eve we had  a "Casserole Christmas Dinner" at Grandma Liz's, where the kids acted out the nativity and we sang Christmas Carols. It was rowdy but wonderful at the same time. Then we headed home to open our "night before" gift - the inevitable pajamas, and to exchange the gifts the kids chose for everyone. Mary was delighted that Madeleine picked out the exact make-up set that she coveted in the dollar store. Mary gave Beth a clipboard to draw on. Beth gave Mary a cell phone that sang songs in Japanese (and drove us nuts the rest of the night).  There were also pink head bands, Barbie Dolls in "appropriate clothes," and a bag of sour cream and onion chips in the mix. Madeleine gave me a notebook "because you're always saying, 'I have to write that down,' " and Beth gave me a little photo album "because you always want to take pictures of us." This is the first year none of the kids gave Luke a bottle of Diet Coke - he's kicked the habit. Then there were cute things that the girls made at school for Luke and I. The kids little gift exchange is one of my favorite parts of Christmas. After the gift exchange we traditionally read a few scriptures from an illustrated book and then listen to "Away In A Manger" while following along with the words in another illustrated book. I was surprised this year by the close attention the girls, even Mary, paid to the scriptures and pictures and I loved when they started to sing along to "Away In A Manager." Mary didn't know the words but she chimed in on the chorus and we ended up all singing together. Then, snuggled up in blankets and laying on pillows, we listened to Luke read "The Night Before Christmas" for our good night story. The girls went off to bed and Luke and I watched "A Christmas Carol". I was caught off guard when I headed for bed after the movie but Luke didn't come with me. What was he up to?

Christmas Morning - poor Madeleine woke up at 6:00 and tried to contain her excitement. By 6:45 she could bear it no longer and woke up Beth and they came to get us. Not wanting to wake Mary and have her grumpy all day and hoping to let Luke sleep a little longer,  I tried to hold the two of them off by reading to them. By 7:30 Madeleine was so frustrated she was in tears, but Mary woke up just after that and by 8:00 we were heading downstairs.  They dashed into the family room, dumped out their stockings, and tore into the presents. Three of my favorite moments: 1) when Mary opened her first present, a book, and said soberly, "Mom, this is not a lipstick," 2) Beth hugging her bear and pronouncing him "almost exactly" what she wanted 3) Madeleine opening her rock polisher and proudly introducing us all to her silicon carbide and aluminum oxide grit.  I unwrapped a box from Luke to find my Iphone inside. His mysterious late night project turned out to be downloading hours and hours of talks from LDS General Conferences and music to my Ipod for me to use in the car. What a husband! I've made good use of the gift since and I love it. 

We had a huge breakfast at home (seriously, I cooked enough for 12 people without even realizing it), relaxed a little bit, and then headed to Grandpa's. We had a truly white Christmas at our house (just what Madeleine had been hoping for), so Luke had to clear 6 inches of snow off the driveway before we could leave, but the roads were clear and we had a nice drive.

On the way we called my family in Maryland and had great visit via speaker phone in the car. They thanked Madeleine for the tree shaped ornament she sewed, Beth for the glittery pinecone ornament she made, and Mary for the wooden Christmas tree that she painted black. 

At Grandpa's, Nina served a yummy lunch, we opened more presents and the cousins ran rampant while the grown-ups lounged and visited.  By late afternoon the whole crew loaded up and caravanned back to Grandma Liz's for more food and more presents. You'd think the kids would've had enough already but within minutes of arrival the family room was strewn with paper and the kids were changing into new outfits and looking at their new  pop-up books. We lingered a bit, talking and winding down, and then drove home through more falling snow. We all went to bed happy, tired, and thankful for family. 

 

Each girl received a range of gifts including multiple toys, books, art supplies, music, movies, board games, and Wii games. However, they spent the vacation days following Christmas playing with broken up bits of styrofoam packaging and shreds of gift wrap, or building "huts" out of blankets and furniture. Remind me of that next year when I'm ready to go Christmas shopping!
On New Year's Eve day, Madeleine, Beth, and I took a ski lesson all together while Luke enjoyed the slopes on his own. I'd always heard how kids learn so fast, but seeing it happen still amazed me. When we arrived at the Brighton Ski School, they didn't even know how to put their boots on. When we left 2 1/2 hours later they were both getting on and off the lift unaided, skiing down the slope, and stopping without effort. I, on the other hand, was being told that I needed to "try going for the extreme and then pull back." Whatever. I wasn't about to ruin the rest of our Christmas break by ending up injured while pursuing "the extreme." I had fun though and I did learn a lot. In fact, I felt like I was just starting to really get the hang of it, which means that we have to go back soon before the girls and I both forget what we learned. 

After skiing we went to the Spangler's for a "New York New Year's".  Amy and Seth treated us to a yummy dinner and a fun movie and kid games. Then we watched the countdown on East Coast time and went home to bed at 10:00. On the way up to bed I explained to the girls how people here were still celebrating until midnight so they shouldn't be alarmed if they heard shouting or fireworks in the middle of the night. Unbeknownst to Luke and I, the little buggers faked going to bed and then spent the next two hours decorating Beth's room and having their own celebration while they waited for the fireworks to start. Madeleine enjoyed them and said they were great. Beth fell asleep at 11:50 and just had to take her sister's word for it. 

The best part of Christmas overall was getting to be together and having Daddy home. Along with activities mentioned above, we spent some time swimming at the rec center, Luke and I had a day-long shopping date, we had a pizza-picnic movie night, and played in the snow. Christmas gives us reason for a lot of excitement and fun surprises, but at this time of year when we think more about the influence a baby born in Bethlehem has had on the world, I am so grateful that He gave us families. To be together, to be secure, and to be able to enjoy fun times are truly blessings worth celebrating. Here's to family and finding joy in simple things for 2009!

Gingerbread houses

Today we did one of my favorite Christmas traditions - gingerbread houses! Thanks to those especially convenient kits you can buy in any grocery store, we've done a gingerbread house every year. We always put it together, go read Christmas stories (starting with The Gingerbread Baby) while we wait the 15 minutes for the icing to set, and then go back and decorate. Today we lit the fire, turned on the Christmas music, and went to it. In order to avoid any squwaks and squaffles over decoration placement, I got three kits and surprised the girls by having them each do their own. 

12 Chances to Regain Sanity

'Twas two weeks before Christmas and mother was busy,

Christmas shopping and cards had her all in a tizzy.

Despite planning and simplifying and cutting things back,

Her list seemed to grow longer with each day that passed.

Bogged down with the parties, events, and gift-wrap,

What she wanted most was a long winter's nap!

She was tired and grouchy from sunrise to nightfall;

And she felt she was missing the point of it all.

Where was the feeling, the joy and the bliss,

The bubbly excitement unique to Christmas?

"Something needs to be done," she decided, "right now!"

"We should start a 12 Days of Christmas countdown.

We'll give small gifts of kindness to each family member,

And my gift to them all will be keeping my temper. 

I'll try hard to be sweeter, more gentle, and calm,

Instead of a frazzled, mean, stressed-out mom.

I'll thank Him for the blessings He sends from above,

by showing my family more patience and love.

Then my preparations won't feel like a chore

but be a lifting reminder of the birth of our Lord. 

With love in my heart and His spirit within, 

Christmas will bring me nearer to Him. 

It's been 8 days since I wrote that, and since we started doing 12 Days of Christmas just among our family members. I assigned each day to one person in our family, and we all do or say something extra special for that person that day. It doesn't cost anything and it doesn't take any time, but it is helping. I really think it is, at least for me. Besides, only four days to go, and then I will be taking that nap!

Spencer Playing Wii Boxing

I've been trying since Thanksgiving to get this video to load. This is my nephew Spencer playing boxing at our Thanksgiving Wii party. He has kind of a 'box dancing" thing going on . . .

Christmas Wish List

For Family Home Evening on Monday night we had a Christmas lesson and then we lit a fire in the fireplace, turned on the Christmas music, and put out our Christmas decorations, but I forgot to have the girls write their letters to Santa. I like to do that right after Thanksgiving so Santa's elves have more time to work away in their magic workshop. I had a few hours set aside today so I could write the letters for the girls and mail them, just to help Santa get going on his work, but I had no wish list. So, I brought it up in conversation this morning. Here's what I got:

Madeleine: I know what I want but I don't want to ask for it because I think it's expensive. 

(Beth interjects) "Santa's going to MAKE it so it won't cost anything."

Madeleine: I know, but I don't want to ask for anything that's too much, so I'll have to think of something else but I don't know what. Maybe a stuffed rhinoceros since I don't have one of those.

Fortunately, I once overheard Madeleine confessing her secret desire for a rock-polisher and I will be sure and notify the elves if she does not come forward in the immediate future. (Catherine and Emma, if you're reading this please don't tell Madeleine that I am going to tell Santa that's what she wants so that he can surprise her, OK?) Moving on to Beth:

Beth: I think I want a teddy bear.

Mom: Really? You have lots of teddy bears. Is this a special kind of teddy bear?

Beth: Well, not really special, but I see it in my mind and I really like it.

Mom: Oh. Uh, what does it look like in your mind?

Beth: Well, it's kind of a lightish dark brown and it's not too big or too small or too medium.

Mom: Hmm, do you have anything already that is the same color and about the same size?

Beth: Yes, it's like my Build-A-Bear bear color, except it's different, and it's about an inch from the size of that bear, but I don't know if it's bigger or smaller.

Mom: Oh. That sounds like a really nice bear. (Mom begins mentally plotting subtle propaganda strategies to persuade Beth to choose a less "visualized" and more widely marketed Christmas present. Those elves may be magic, but they're no mind readers.)

And then of course there's Mary. I asked for her input just as I was about to leave to run my errands.

Mom: Mary, what do want Santa to bring you for Christmas?

Mary: A changing room

Mom: A what???

Mary: A changing room.

Mom: Um, what do you mean, a changing room? Can you tell me what it is?

Mary: ( with tone and expression slightly implying a "DUHH!") It's a room with two doors and it has clothes inside and you go in the doors and put the clothes on. 

Mom: Oh. That does sound like fun, but is there anything else you'd like for Christmas (pleeeaasse?!)

Mary: (matter-of-factly) You only get one present mom.

Mom:  Well, I know, but I don't think Santa can bring a room. I think he only brings toys. So, is there something else you can think of you would like him to bring you?

Mary: Yes

Mom: Really?? What?

Mary: A lipstick room.

Mom (sighing with resignation): Oh. Well, anyway, what do you think Grandpa Dave would like for his birthday?

Mary: A chicken. 

 I think the changing room fascination stems from something in an episode of Dora the Explorer when she changes into a fairy Princess.  If anyone out there is up on their Dora trivia and could elaborate, the elves would appreciate some further detail so as to better prepare them to work out a compromise.

I think Santa has his work cut out for him with this crew this year. I'm looking forward to seeing what he comes up with to make these little girl dreams come true. I wish him the best of luck.