What Jonathan does at school...

First off, I could just kick myself for not taking a picture of this. Everytime Jonathan makes a good mess I'm more concerned about getting it cleaned up than taking pictures.

So it's bedtime last night and I knew something was up when Jonathan refused to take his shirt off in front of me. I totally encourage modesty, but this boy has never been that modest. I asked him, "What are you trying to hide under your shirt?" At this point he tries to convince me that a friend stuck crayons down his shirt and somehow those crayons wrote on his skin. Impressive crayons. I wasn't buying it.

Once I got the shirt off it was obvious that the "crayons" were actually markers, and that those markers were very artistically inclined. Not only had they tatooed his back, they had gotten his chest as well. Finally, I got some of the real story out of him. I doubt I heard the whole truth and nothing but the truth, but it was more believable than markers that draw by themselves.

During reading time Jonathan's friend "B" was able to aquire a couple of black markers. He and Jonathan then used those markers to help each other tatoo themselves. While the friend wrote on Jonathan's back, Jonathan did his own chest. This is where I wish I had a picture because Jonathan gave himself a (can I say this on a family blog?) bra!

I think he was just trying to connect the dots, so to speak, but that isn't what it looked like.

Happy Birthday to Russ!

Happy 39 Russ! Next year will be so much fun.

Christmas getting to know you...

I got this in an email from April...

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? wrapping paper, and sometimes just a plain white box with a pretty bow.

2. Real tree or Artificial? artificial.

3. When do you put up the tree? Usually the day after Thanksgiving. This year I'll probably do it when we get home from Oregon.

4. When do you take the tree down? around new years.

5. Do you like egg nog? Sure, the non-alcoholic kind. But I don't drink it often.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I can't remember. I probably had more than one favorite gift.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, a FP Little People Nativity. I always like to play with the nativity as a child so when I had my own child I got him one that he could play with and not break. I haven't gotten a nice nativity yet, but I would love to start collecting the Willow Tree nativity.

8. Hardest person to buy for? Russell's parents. They always say they don't need anything and then we have to figure something out on our own.

9. Easiest person to buy for? I agree with April here. Anyone who tells you what they want. So, I guess Jonathan would be the easiest because he always makes a big long list.

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? mail

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I really don't remember a gift I hated. Anytime someone puts thought into buying me a gift I appreciate it.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? I love funny movies so Christmas With the Kranks and Elf are my favs.

13. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? I don't think I have.

14. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? my mom's fudge

15. Clear lights or colored on the tree? ours is prelit with clear

16. Favorite Christmas song? I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

17. Travel at Christmas or stay home? This year we are traveling.

18. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? yes

19. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? We let Jonathan open one present of our choosing Christmas eve. This is usually something boring like new PJ's or slippers.

20. Most annoying thing about this time of year? It goes by so fast and then you have the post holiday let down.

21. Favorite ornament theme or color? We don't have a color theme for our tree. anything goes. One year when I was a teen we had a pink Christmas tree. I can't remember if my mom still does that or not.

22. Favorite food for Christmas dinner? Mashed potatoes with cheese.

23. What do you want for Christmas this year? Well, I would like a camera, but I got a laptop which I like better. We got a deal and I was not gonna put it away for Christmas. Plus it was a combo Christmas / Anniversary present.

I tag anyone who wants to participate.

What you're all getting for Christmas...

Another really funny blog post I stumbled upon...

http://www.mormonmommywars.com/?p=1594#more-1594

So proud of my boy

Each year Jonathan's school does Reflections. I think most of you know what this is. The kids can submit work they have done in several categories like dance, literature, photography, visual arts, and more that I have forgotten. This year Jonathan wanted to participate so he wrote a story about our dogs. The theme this year was "Wow" so he wrote a story called Pie and Dolly's Adventures. In his story the dogs do all sorts of crazy things like fly to the moon and visit their doggy cousins in Arizona. So anyway, Jonathan won a medal for his story and it gets to move on to the next level of competition (whatever that is).

I'm so proud of my boy. Not just because he won something, but because he worked so hard on his story. Just to brag a little, he not only wrote it out by hand, he later typed it (all by himself!) so that it would look nice when he handed it in. He also drew pictures to illustrate every page.

Now I need to amend a statement I made in my previous entry. Walmart security is no longer the highlight of my day.

Walmart Secret Agents

I had the opportunity today to watch Walmart security take down a shop lifter. Well, there wasn't really any taking down so much as grabbing by the arm, but still it was the highlight of my boring day. Did you know that Walmart security guards do not wear uniforms? They just look like regular shoppers, until they start chasing you and give themselves away. So if you ever feel like someone is stalking you in Walmart, maybe it's just security thinking you're a thief.

Family pictures

Thanks to Rachel, we now have a current family picture and a picture of Jonathan. I think they turned out really good.

Quarantine

I'm sorry to anyone we came in contact with this weekend. Jonathan said he was feeling sick at church this morning, and it looks like he has the stomach virus that is going around. The funny thing is that he really wants to go to school tomorrow. The reason this is funny is that he is always pretending to be sick to try and get a day off. Now that he has a legitimate reason to stay home, he wants to go to school. Go figure.

Laughing so hard...

I stumbled upon this site in my blog stalking. The first page isn't extremely funny, you have to look at previous pages to get the really good stuff.

http://overheardintheward.com/

A future in used car sales?

We went out to dinner for family "home" evening last night. At the restaurant the waitress asks "How many?" and before we can answer Jonathan says "three". After we order the manager comes by our table and thanks us for eating at Wingers. Again, Jonathan replies for us, "You're welcome". At the dentist last week, I wondered why I felt the need to go back with Jonathan. He was perfectly at ease with the dentist and his assistant, answering all their questions and making polite conversation. There's nothing wrong with any of this and it wouldn't be odd, except that Jonathan is six.

When I was six the only adults that existed in my world were my parents and teachers, and of course aunts and uncles and grandparents when we saw them. My point is that I would never have been as comfortable with random adults as my son seems to be. He's not just comfortable with them, he speaks to them as if he is their equal. At friends' homes he has been known to climb up on a barstool and have a conversation with their parents. I would say that Jonathan's ease with adults comes from being an only child and being around adults more than children, but I've seen this same confidence in the little girl next door who has four siblings. It makes me wonder if our children are now being born with talents and wisdom beyond their years. A confidence and knowledge of who they really are that they will need as they grow up in this world.

Or maybe, we just have a smooth talking salesman on our hands.

This post brought to you by...

my new laptop! That's right, I've finally joined the 21st century. We got a great deal at Walmart this morning and I got the very last one they had. I had to wait in line for a while, but it was no where near as bad as the dreaded day after Thanksgiving. I'm so glad Russ saw their ad online. I think it was only advertised online.

It's like deja vu all over again...

A. Attached or single? Attached
B. Best friend? The simple answer would be that it's Russ. The long answer is that I need girl talk too and one is just not enough.
C. Cake or pie? both!
D. Day of Choice? every other Tuesday because it is Russell's first day of his week off.
E. Essential Item? diet coke
F. Favorite color? I like lots of colors. It's hard to pick just one.
G. Gummy bears or worms? Neither.
H. Hometown? Tucson
I. Favorite indulgence? chocolate
J. January or July? NO contest. July all the way.
K. Kids? one
L. Life isn't complete without? friends and fam (and chocolate)
M. Marriage Date? Nov 6
N. Number of brothers and sisters? 2 sisters. no brothers.
O. Oranges or apples? apples (less mess)
P. Phobias? heights (that's why I'm so short)
Q. Quotes? can't think of any right now
R. Reasons to smile? everything Jonathan says
S. Season of choice? Spring, fall or summer. As long as it's not winter.
T. Tag 5 people: Brook, Adrian, April, Kelly, and anyone who wants to play.
U. Unknown fact about me? I agree with Jenny. Some things are unknown for a reason... Well, there was that time I set myself on fire when I was three. Some of you didn't know that.
V. Verb - warm. Is warm a verb? I want to be warm.
W. Worst habit? How can I pick just one?. Almost all of my habits are bad.
X. X-ray or ultrasound? X-ray. I've had too many unpleasant ultrasounds, and you don't need a full bladder for an x-ray.
Y. Your favorite food? chocolate
Z. Zodiac sign? Leo

Tagged Again...

I got tagged with this a while back and now I'm tagged again. Let's see if my answers are the same...

1. Post the Rules to your blog
2. Answer the six 8 items
3. Let each person know they have been tagged by commenting on their blog.

8 favorite TV Shows:
- Good Things Utah & Studio 5 (they're like the same show and they always have cute crafty things to make.)
- The Tonight Show (but only until Jay Leno leaves. Hate Conan)
- American Idol
- Law & Order (any of them)
- I can't think of any more.

8 Things I did yesterday:
-Woke up to snow.
-cursed the snow.
-Jonathan's reading group at school
-Went to Costco to buy this month's book club book.
-Ran into Brook and Angie at Costco and had an unofficial daycare lunch.
-took Jonathan to Karate
-bought Jonathan new snow boots.
-cleaned the bathroom counter.

8 Things I look forward to:
-our belated anniversary date next week.
-Thanksgiving trip to OR
-Russell's bday
-Christmas trip to AZ
-my anniversary / Christmas present
-spring
-summer
-fall

8 Favorite Restaurants:
-Olive Garden
-Applebees
-Chili's
-Wingers
-Cobblestone
-Cheesecake Factory
-IHOP
-Costco food court


8 Things on my wish list
-a baby
-a clean house
-a maid
-a personal chef
-a dog that doesn't bark
-an endless supply of money
-the desire to exercise
-70 degree weather all year round

8 People I tag
-If I didn't tag you before or if you just want to do it again, consider yourself tagged.

Happy Anniversary to us!

I asked Jonathan how long he thought Russ & I have been married. His answer: "38 years?" Actually, it's just 10.

Winter

I'm not ready for winter yet. I don't know if I can handle another cold, snowy winter. I may just hibernate. You all are welcome to come see me in my cave.

Election Soundtrack

I had a song in my head the other day and I thought, this could really apply to the current presidential candidates. Since I'm not thrilled with either choice, I decided to make a sound track of songs to go along with this election. I know we only have a couple days left, but does anyone have some songs to recommend for my election soundtrack?