Lunch With Daddy

Sue was out and about today on a super secret mission (more on that later) and she stopped by my office just before lunch. I took her and the Crunchers to my favorite teriyaki restaurant. Bryn had just eaten and was on her way to sleep. The boys were fascinated by the chopsticks. After watching me take a couple of bites Cole wanted to try. First the one handed approach. And then the two handed approach. Grant also tried it one handed. His facial technique is perfect. He found success quite by accident when he stabbed the piece of chicken. Success! Naturally, Cole copied this much easier technique, even though he had been quite successful with his two handed attempts. Mmm, meat on a stick. Meanwhile, Bryn sank quietly into the sunset.

Just for Giggles

Family Fun Night

I know everyone out there wants to come on one of the (soon to be) famed Simper Family Fun Nights. (FFNs) But - sorry, it's just the family. We'll let you all in on one, though. They are incredible adventures, and only happen a few times a month - RANDOMLY - whenever someone belts out "Family Fun Night." So far, this spontaneous method of fun has never been thwarted, because no catastrophes can happen that fast, so we've never been disappointed. The only rule to FFN is that, at some point in the night, ice cream must be consumed.

ENJOY!

Gene Pool Party

Lately, it seems like EVERYONE we run into is compelled to analyze who looks like who in our little gene pool. Not that we mind - genetics are inherently (no pun intended) fascinating since we are wired in every way to see that a little piece of ourselves lives on after us. So we really want to know what our loyal followership thinks: Who looks like who, here? (FYI - Cole is on the left, Bryn, then Grant)
Alright, time for the "pool" party to be over, and the slumber to begin. Kisses from Grant...
then kisses from Cole.
Grant begged - "I want Brynie to sleep in my bed!" Trust us, Grant, in literally the blink of an eye (or the flash of a camera), she can go from this....
to this.

Zabriskie Theater

Like most 3 month olds, Bryn is just starting to show emotion on her face. Papa Z tried to help her out. Try to guess what emotion is shown in each picture. That's right: joy. Here's another: Hmm, we think that might be dyspepsia. This one should be easier: Clearly it's some sort of melodrama villain with an under bite. Here's one where Bryn was the teacher: Yes, apathy is obviously her strong suit. Here's another one where Bryn has talent: We think she might have anger management issues. Maybe Mona will be able to elicit some more expression from her. I doubt that terror was what Mona was hoping for. At least Cole knows how to express himself. As long as the subject is trains, he's an expert.

Mona's Musings

Mona Zabriskie is one of our very closest friends, an adopted grandma to our kids, and an amazing writer. Remember, she created an entire musical "With Mine Own Hand."  (well, Nephi helped with the script, too.) So, she started a blog, recently, called Mona's Gospel Musings in which she writes about a topic every Sunday. And when I say "write", I mean "entertains, expounds, enlightens, and pretty much just makes you really glad you read it. I saw Laura is already following it, and wanted everyone else to have an opportunity to do the same - especially since she's giving a CD of "With Mine Own Hand" to all of her followers this week in celebration of her 50th Birthday! Wow!! I checked, and she won't feel abused if you hurry and become a follower, and therefor get the CD. Especially make sure you read "Who's Body is it, Anyway." Really good.

All Aboard!!

The boys have been fascinated with trains lately. Thomas the Tank Engine, especially, has taken a prominent place in their imaginations, as well as on their bookshelf and in their toy box. Somewhat coincidentally, Grant has been going through another phase of interest in using the potty. He's been accident free for two days in a row. Two "perfect days". Tonight, after spending some time at the Zabriskie's home where the boys watched several short Thomas videos and after successfully using the potty we commented that Grant might be getting potty trained. I got up to get him a special treat for having a perfect day and he followed asking, "Do I get a potty train?"

I guess the potty train is something we all get to ride in our lives. And when our children finally take the ride it is the best treat of all.

I'll take my skies gray, just not my hair...

I have been faithful to the hair hi-lighting for a number of years now. Not because I think it looks great, but because it looks better than the gray that normally streaks through (since starting on my mission, and worsening with every year.) A few weeks ago, I mentioned to my hair dresser that it may be getting beyond what hi-lights can help, and time for the full-on dye job. She ran her fingers through it, and said, "oh- it's not that bad, maybe 35%." Haha...WHAT??  But I'm only 36!  So, dyed it is.  Even though gray hair is a "crown of achievement" as my good friend Mona puts it, I haven't achieved near enough for the amount I have, and would rather fool myself into thinking I'm still really young for just a few more years.  After all, have you seen how young my kids are?  Most Mormon women with kids these ages are just a few years out of high school! And here we have my handsome husband, with the same pure color he's had all his life.  I think it's the same color as Brynie's - he just has more. (But that gap may be narrowing...) I don't believe all that bunk about stress causing it, either.  I'm plenty relaxed, darn it!  And I have plenty of siblings to help prove my theory of being a matter of genetics.  So there.

Our Grown-up Friends

(Cole & Grant): Hey, everyone! Look at our cool new friends! They are the Bishop's conveniently home schooled daughters, who happen to live close enough to ride their bikes over to play with us mid morning, and they are FUUUN.  They are artists:
Here are results of the clay sculpturing class: 
"The Cowboy"  by Ma

"Monkey Business"  by Christy

"Scrambled Eggs"  by Grant
Now, moving onto the "mastering modern cell phones" course.

The Answer You've All Been Waiting For:

Exactly, what are the dimensions of a graham cracker?

Now the Crunchers try....
...and it's 5" x 2½", because daddy could never just give the boys a cracker without the proper amount of either harrassment or "edumacation" (as he calls it.)

30 Something

Now, this is a dad who LOVES being a dad.
And he's extremely good at it.
Happy Birthday to the best husband and dad in the world!!!!

Our Baby Loves Us!

Whew! We finally made it to the rewarding stage of smiling, and Brynie has become a real person to us, and she actually thinks we're fun to look at. Go figure.


Oh - and she had her 2 mo. check-up yesterday, and here are the stats:
weight: 12 lbs 10 oz (90th %ile)
height: 23" (70th %ile)
Another scrawny little Simper.

Constructive Deconstruction

What should you do with a rice cooker that suddenly stops cooking rice? Well, if you've got a toddler with a bit of dexterity and a hankering for some screw removal you have a fun evening activity.

Concentration is a must. Voila! And the fruits of our labors: Just remember to safely discard the old cord, lest your boys try to invent some sort of bug zapper... But if you forget and they accidentally trip a breaker while attempting to electrocute a bug, go easy on 'em, especially if they were careful and used electrical tape. Just a little something I learned from my Dad.

Dear Crunchers: The Advice Column

Dear Crunchers,
Sometimes my bath is too hot. What should I do?
Hot and Bothered

Dear Bothered,
We've had the same problem. You could just add some cold water from the faucet but that's a solution that lacks imagination. We recommend adding ice. It's more efficient than plain cold water and has the added benefit of being ridiculous. Just don't add too much or you may have to cut your bath short, before you have a chance to empty all the bath water out onto the floor.

Icily yours,
The Crunchers

Effective FHE

Following our FHE lesson on being obedient (like when Nephi built a boat):

Me: Cole, what are you going to do since Heavenly Father asks you to be nice to your friends?
Cole (with a teasy smile on his face): I will hit 'em!

Do all boys come with this pre-programmed interest in violence or is he just a born tease? Whichever character flaw it is, I say we just beat it out of him.

Our Trip to See Attle

And where is Attle, you ask? It is the city on the shores of Puget Sound, named after the Suquamish chief and somewhat misunderstood by Cole. We headed north as part of our New Year's celebrations. Of course, that's Bucket Head country and they were gracious hosts. The Pacific Science Center beckoned and we headed out to conquer four ferries, two buses and a herd of wild butterflies.

Okay, here's our first ferry of the day with cousin "Juju". One of the ferries was not working so we had some time to spend waiting for the next one. Cole found out that sticky things tend to stick to things. (Yes, that is a berry flavored fruit snack stuck to the window and yes, he did pull it off and eat it immediately following the taking of this photo.) On the big ferry at last and time for the obligatory family photo. It was hot enough to melt a bronze octopus. Or something to that effect. Once inside the science museum deinonychus and his yellow footed protege ponder their next messy kill. Later, Cole emerges from the south end of a north bound caterpillar ... ... while Grant is still working his way through the giant inflatable intestine. Now they pause to pet a millipede. Time for another caterpillar encounter outside of the ... ... butterfly room! Inspired by the metamorphosis of the lepidoptera Grant tries but only manages hymenoptera formicidae. Fortunately, on the ferry ride home we sat next to a video game which kept the boys blissfully occupied. Mark this day down and thoroughly seized!