How to Make Something from Nothing

Last weekend we got to have both sets of grandparents in town for Eliza's baby blessing. This video is one example of the creative fun we had while they were here.

(in case you were wondering, we ate the soup for lunch and it was almost fit for a king - just a little more salt & pepper next time!)

Rise All Loyal Cougars!

All on her own, before leaving for school this morning, Miriam made "Go BYU" signs for each of us to hold during the game!

During the 2nd over-time, when BYU seemed to have clinched their victory and the stress-level in our house had drastically decreased from the 1st overtime, Miriam began chanting, "Who's winning? BYU!"

No better way to celebrate the victory than with BYU Mint Brownies!

Unbalanced Beam

Today we bring back an old blog favorite...falling children! Well, almost. Let us explain.

When you're stuck inside for long periods of time, you come up with creative ways to entertain yourselves. We decided to play balance beam (yes, we know it's a summer sport), making the balance beam progressively higher and higher...



Yes. Henry did end up on the floor, but he recovered quickly. If Alvin had been filming, you would have seen the whole fall, but Tammy has those darn maternal instincts. Enjoy the Winter Olympics!

Defense Against the Bad Guys in the Snow

This post is for those of you out there concerned about our welfare, and for those of us trapped inside a house all day with little else to do. First, let me say that shoveling 2 feet of snow off of a driveway, sidewalk, road, and car is harder than it looks in these pictures. Thus, on day 1 of shoveling I recruited a 9 month pregnant wife to help, and she did (Yes, she's amazing!). On the second day of shoveling (after a day of rest), I recruited Bruce Springsteen and shared him with the neighborhood. Miriam gave me an award for my hard work.

As you can see, two feet of snow shovel leads to four foot embankments, which leads to your children playing on top of the lamppost.

And when sliding down from the the top of the lamppost gets boring, then you have to recruit Dad to help you build...

Note that construction of the snow fort was often delayed by ever escalating attacks from bad guys, but while the construction in a war zone is hazardous, I must say that I was fed well (a steady diet of snow rolls, snow soup, and snow ice cream).

Apparently, someone doesn't think this record setting snow is enough because forecasts have predicted 10-20 inches (and lots of wind) for Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. In related news, Tammy has felt some tightening in her stomach today, though she swears its not contractions...yet.

Blizzard of 2010

You may recall that 3 days before Henry was born we had a fire in our townhouse. Well now, as we're counting down the days to the birth of baby Eliza, we're in the middle of what may turn out to be the biggest blizzard in DC history. We've gotten 30 inches of snow already, and it's still coming!

We're safely and warmly packed in, and as long as we have power and the internet, we'll be content to spend some extra time together as a family.

Happy Backwards Day!

What can you do with a day off in the middle of the winter with a lady that's 8 month's pregnant and two children? You can celebrate backwards day! The rules are simple:
1. Wear your clothes backward. (It's OK if you don't make it through the whole day, as it is a bit difficult to use the bathroom when your pants are on backward.)
2. Do your entire routine backward: We started with baths and scriptures, then had 'dessert' and family home evening, and ended the day with breakfast. Changing the order makes even the mundane part of the routine more exciting.
3. Always go up and down your stairs backwards. (Going everywhere backwards is too tiresome.)

The kids were overheard multiple times saying, "I love Backwards Day!"

Our normal camera was on the fritz this morning after Miriam dropped it, so we broke out the old video camera when typically we would have taken a still photo or two. (Unfortunately, we did not get video of the reactions of our fellow shoppers at the grocery store.)

Enjoy your 30 seconds of the Beatles...




P.S. Our normal camera has miraculously regained functionality.

The Final Countdown

We invited some friends over on New Year's Eve. We pigged out on delicious food and played multiple games. Our "kid-friendly" New Year arrived around 9pm with a simulated countdown and the Bray tradition of balloon stomping.