Rascal

Braden had his primary program at church yesterday which was hmmm... entertaining. Unfortunately, I was so concerned about the silliness that he and the other Sunbeams (his class) were displaying, I didn't get to fully enjoy the rest of the program. Here is a short run-down of Braden's participation: To paint an accurate picture of the greatness of the distraction, I must point out that the Sunbeams (6 3-4 year old boys) were positioned on little chairs that rested on the top of a table which was placed dead center in front of the podium.

Phase one of Braden's participation was pretty good. They all stood up during the song "I Lived in Heaven" and sang approximately 7 words of it collectively. Then as Braden noticed what an opportunity this was to display his amazing skills, he began to shake his hips and dance and wiggle. At the end of the song, they were seated.

Phase two started when the Sunbeam leaders gave each child a notebook and pencil and they began to feverishly draw. This was keeping them quiet pretty well, but as they completed their pictures, they started holding them up for all to see and Braden being the vocal person that he is began to explain his drawing to his teacher.

Phase three began when the notebooks were taken away. Braden instigated an affection fest by bestowing kisses on the Sunbeams that were directly next to him. The one on his right (Sam) responded by kissing back and the one on his left (Kasen) looked very irritated and pushed him away each time. All this produced plenty of giggling from Braden and Sam.

Phase four: It was finally time for them to deliver their parts. Each classmate said their part clearly and without help from the adults. Braden's part was "Heavenly Father listens to my prayers." They did so well!

Phase five: the meltdown ensues... dun dun dun. Excited about their amazing performances, the Sunbeams became even more wiggly than before (a feat we believed to be impossible). Braden proceeded to put his arms around Sam and Kasen showing his pride for a collective job well done. The result was Kasen throwing Braden's arm off of him. Braden, not taking the hint, put his arm back on Kasen about 3 more times, irritating him at a very high level. Then Braden and Sam started tickling each other under the chin and giggling loudly.

Phase Six: The teachers were desperately trying to re-gain control and eventually took Braden off of his seat (as he was the main instigator of all this irreverence) and held him on the bench facing his friends. With this extra room, two of the other classmates started laying down and being very silly. The teachers took them down too. Then one of them began climbing under the table while the other one revolted and did the limp child technique nearly falling to the floor. Spencer and I could see that we were nearing anarchy, so he went and grabbed Braden.

We decided to keep him with us after that. I actually sat with him in the hall and he was very sad that he couldn't be with his class anymore. It was a good opportunity to talk to him about consequences. I felt like I should have been more frustrated than I was about the whole things, but it was so funny, and I know that those little guys weren't trying to be bad. It was just a good teaching time. Also, the rest of the primary did amazing! All the songs were well delivered loud, clear and beautiful. The primary songs have such a good spirit and message. On top of that, Jade has never been so well behaved. She loved watching the children. Another fun thing was that my brother, Allen came. Grandma and Grandpa Lilly also came and Jill had flashbacks of the days Spencer was in primary. Apparently he was quite a rascal.

Little Achiever!

Ahhh! I can't believe I failed to blog about Braden starting preschool. What was I thinking? This is big stuff. He is loving preschool at Arnette Montessori School. He started in August and has been progressing pretty well... especially socially. I have noticed many good things especially the way he plays with his sister and takes care of his needs. One morning I was tired and he woke up super early because as he said, he was "So so so so hungry". I told him I could give him breakfast in a half hour. When I woke up half an hour later, he had already gotten a bowl and spoon, poured his cereal and milk, put the milk in the fridge and the cereal on the counter, and eaten. As I walked in the kitchen, he was putting his bowl and spoon in the sink and not a drop of anything was on the table. Awesome! He's always singing new little songs around the house and today he even learned a new word: esophagus. He's been using it whenever he gets the chance. He's also developed this sense of being invinsible and being able to do anything he sets his mind to. I'm glad we decided to start him in school this year. What an awesome little achiever!

Violence? Video Below:

The kids did something new today. They started wrestling with each other. Usually Jade is really sensitive and suspicious of Braden and just starts crying if he makes the slightest move of "aggressive" behavior. I really don't blame her as he has been a bully in many instances. Today, however, she was being tough, jumping in there and having the time of her life. Part of me thought that I should make them stop, but they were both being pretty careful, nobody was getting hurt, and neither of them could stop laughing because they were having such fun. I've never seen them do this before, so it threw me for a loop. Is this a normal way of bonding between brother and sister? Anyway, they kept this kind of thing up for about an hour. At this point, I could tell Jade was getting tired and sick of the game. Braden isn't the most intuitive about cues that mean she's had enough, so he started pushing it too far. I had to tell him she was not interested in wrestling anymore and that they should move on to something else and then he stopped pretty quickly. I'd love to hear opinions about this. Is it good to let kids playfully wrestle or does this only serve to cloud the boundaries of violence? Video below:

I don't know what is wrong with the audio, but I'm going to bed.

Beliefs

I'm on the social network "Facebook" and today I decided to join the group Arizona Marriage Protection Amendment. I thought it would be good for my voice to be "heard" so to speak. Shortly after I joined the group, an old friend from high school asked me, "Why do you care, and how does it affect you personally? Do you think you'll catch gay if homosexuals want to get married?" I was glad that I had the oppourtunity to express some of my thoughts on why I think this proposition is a good... no, vital... idea. I wanted to write my response on here to share my thoughts.

Ha ha. No, I'm not worried about "catching gay" as you put it. Silly JJ. I'm glad you asked about the why. So, lets imagine that the courts rule in favor of gay marriage (which is possible without the prop 102 amendment in place). A few things that would affect me and my family may then occur. Churches may have to perform gay marriages or loose their "non-profit status" with the government... a huge fiscal punishment to practice what they believe. Schools may have to begin teaching students about gay marriages as a family type... something I think would infringe upon the rights a parent has to teach their kids. Also, adoption services may be required to give children to gay couples. This, I believe, would negatively impact the future of our country. Children need parental influence of both a mother and a father to have the best chance at a balanced view of the world. To deliberately place a child in a situation where they won't receive this would be, in my opinion, a neglect.

That is when I ran out of space on the "wall". Of course, my friend had a response and was clearly not in favor with my point of view, to which I will respond with respect. I'm not very good at debating and I am uncomfortable with most confrontations, but I am really glad that this friend gave me the chance to discuss my point of view. I doubt it will impact him at all, but perhaps it will help me more clearly define my own beliefs.

Green Eggs and Ham

Spencer read this book to Jade yesterday and got inspired. After church he just started cooking up a storm in the kitchen. It smelled like bacon and eggs, but when I walked in, I found a shock. Everything had been dyed green. The eggs were a pale mint color and the bacon had blotches of dark green here and there. It looked so gross, but it was really fun anyway. The kids loved that they were eating "Green Eggs and Ham."

What do You Think?

I don't like to write about the same topics right on top of each other, and I know my last post was completely frivolous too, but I just had to show off my new and improved book shelf. I'm really not trying to turn this into a decorators blog, I promise. Anyway, I found this piece of junk book shelf at the local thrift store. It had whitewashed wood on the sides and a white paint that was sloppy and unfinished on and in the shelves. It was UGLY! But, I loved it at first sight because the shelves were the PERFECT height to hold a DVD, and shallow enough that it wouldn't take up space in the room. After having our DVDs stacked on the TV stand for several months, I was sick of straightening them all the time and trying to keep them off the floor, and this was the solution I had been looking for. My plan was to give it a nice clean paint job in either white or black. However, I saw this cool paper idea on the Better Homes and Gardens website and loved it. So, basically the transformation just took some black paint around the exterior of the unit (to make it pop), some clean white around the inside of the shelves and some varied (but similarly themed) scrapbook paper for the back of the shelves. I also got a few accessories in a lime green (the new accent color I am using in the front room). I am super happy with how it turned out. What do you think?

What Jeans are YOU Wearing?

It is really late and I can't seem to sleep. This isn't generally a problem for me as I normally fall into blissful slumber a few moments after laying my head onto my semi-firm pillow. Tonight, however, my head it throbbing and I wish my pillow was not quite so firm. Anyway, while I am awake, I thought it would be a good time to write some thoughts about designer jeans. Yes, you heard me correctly. It's time for me to voice my opinion on these cotton wonders. Those who know me well know that my "fashion sense is a little whack and my friends are just as screwy as me" (Weezer reference). So, in order for these thoughts to have any sort of basis in my pathetically unfashionable life, I must start with a bit of an explanation:

Several months ago, Spencer and I began selling various things on eBay to supplement the minuscule amount of monetary traffic heading inbound into our account (aka, our state of poverty). We wanted to sell something that would require little up-front cash and would have a fairly large and consistent profit margin. It also needed to be something that would be easy to store and ship without owning a warehouse (or even our own dwelling). After Spencer did some research through library books, and online, we determined that used designer jeans were the way to go. He suggested that we search for designer labels at the local thrift stores, and then sell them online to people unwilling to subject themselves to the shame, inconvenience, and smells of shopping at a thrift store. This was a swell idea, but I had no idea what to look for. Gap is a high end label, right? Ha ha. I was completely ignorant. So, we started to study. I studied fashion articles, stores that claimed to carry designer clothing, and eBay listings that sold for high dollar, and I discovered a whole new world of clothing that I was basically unaware of. Jeans that sold for $150.00? I was shocked. I was also curious. As we searched for these jeans, and through trial and error, a few brands became what I thought of as "money jeans"... Seven for All Mankind, Rock and Republic, True Religion (ironic name, as it is far from true and definitely not a religion), Joe's Jeans, Citizens of Humanity, Paige Premium Denim, Juicy Couture, Diesel (for guys), and Baby Phat (for women).

Naturally, as I have seen these used jeans sell for more than I would ever pay for new jeans, I have wondered what makes them so amazing and worth the hefty price tag. I found myself wanting to get some for myself so that I too could have some of these fabulous jeans. I imagined them to be able to hide all excess fat and to elongate my legs somehow. I figured they probably cleaned themselves too. Well, guess what, friends? I tried some of these jeans on. I was at a mall and went into a store that I've never been in and there they were... all shiny and beautiful on the rack. So, I tried them on. Did they hide my fat? No. Did they elongate my legs? No. Did they look remotely good on me? No. They looked HORRIBLE! They are made for women with no butt and super long legs. The fabric went over my feet and had a couple inches left over. Even if I hemmed them, the flare would have started almost at mid-calf. Basically I determined that the only thing that designer jeans have that other jeans don't is a real waist size measurement. I have to give them props for that. However, I must confess that I don't consider this feature to be worth $100. In the meantime, I have learned that the best jeans are the ones that fit me properly... a good mid-rise (no low rise), straight or slightly flared jean that can be hemmed to hit the bottom of my heal without looking awkward. This is my jean zone, and the shape and fit matters a lot more than the name on the label. That said, here is my confession: I have become very aware of the labels people are wearing. I don't really care, but I totally notice. So, what jeans are YOU wearing?