Daddy's Girl

(A Sunday nap)

Bro. and Sis. Yegge are the lucky couple who typically sit in the pew behind us during Sacrament meeting. They witness first hand our childrens' antics; from Dave-o's wiggly three-year old body to the boys' elbowing, tickling, and singing really loud to embarrass one another. (Their "battles" with one another are well known in our ward. A certain individual actually commented on the "Zinn boys" while standing at the pulpit during fast and testimony meeting. Yes, he had been sitting behind us. And yes, I was super embarrassed.)

Back to the Yegges...Bro. Yegge approached David last Sunday to tell him that he has learned a lot about our family ever since sitting behind us. (I'm thinking, Oh great! Here we go!) But he didn't even mention the boys. Instead, he told David that he can tell that Kirsten is a "Daddy's girl". Boy is he right! Kirsten LOVES being with her dad. She even keeps a framed picture on her dresser of her dad holding her when she was a baby. The bond between a father and his daughter is different from what a mother can give. It is irreplaceable-Something that I can never give to Kirsten.

Learning to Share

Dave-o has not learned to share his toys. There is no need to. His siblings have no desire to play with little toddler gadgets.

This weekend activities gave Dave-o a crash course in sharing with friends. Saturday morning we watched his friend Noah so that his parents could move into a house located around the block from us (which I am SO excited about). Noah walked in our home with hugs of friendship offered to his buddy Dave-o. Dave-o was VERY excited to have Noah over; until the toys came out. Dave-o was worried and possessive over ALL of his possessions-from his cars; to the trains; to his basketball and football; and especially with his red wagon and ATV. Ugh! I pleaded with him to share, but the word has no meaning to him.

Shortly after Noah went to his new home for a nap, a couple of families dropped in to watch the BYU basketball game. One of the families has a little girl Dave-o's age named Sabrina. He was SO excited to see his nursery friend come to our home; until the toys came out. I felt like I was playing referee the entire day. It wasn't until the last hour that they were here that Dave-o finally relaxed and had fun with Sabrina. But by 7pm, he was begging to go to bed. His day-long tantrums and no nap left him (and me) exhausted.

Out of the House

Today was a park day. I was tired of staying in all week while potty training Dave-o and finally felt comfortable taking him out in public while wearing underpants. We spent a couple of hours at a neighborhood park before lunchtime. Dave-o and Kirsten played on the playground, while Justin, James, and Steven hung out on the basketball court shooting hoops.

Then, in the evening, we had a picnic at a different park with two of the kids' friends (Jessica and Ben).

(Jessica, Kirsten, Steven, Ben, James, and Dave-o)

 Dave-o went #2 in his undies, but I came prepared with extra clothing and wipes. (He refuses to go poop in the toilet.)

We played until the sun went to bed, leaving behind a beautiful celestial show. The crescent moon allowed Jupiter and Venus to shine bright as they aligned themselves with one another.

Protecting the Jewels

(Picture taken of Dave-o by my sister, Deborah while visiting her in San Diego last month)

Day two and three have passed by with NO potty accidents! Hooray! Dave-o even asked me if he could wear his car undies right away after waking up this morning.

Three interesting tidbits about this whole potty training experience with Dave-o are:

• Number one- He won't ride his ATV or red wagon while wearing underpants.
• Two-He won't slide down the stairs on his tummy while wearing underpants.
• And thirdly-Dave-o doesn't want to sit in his carseat with his undies on.

I suppose being without the extra padding of wearing a diaper has caused Dave-o to be extra diligent in protecting his jewels.

Bubble Beard

What child doesn't enjoy a bubble bath? Sculpting shapes out of the foam and making face disguises are few of my kids' favorite bubble activities. Dave-o loves watching Kirsten imitate Santa Clause.

But when it was his turn for a bubble bath, Dave-o would not put on the guise. Instead, he told Kirsten and I that he was Mrs. Clause. He did, however, try putting a beard on his monkey.

Round Two

My first attempt at potty training Dave-o (four months ago) was a complete failure. He would hold going to the bathroom until I'd put his diaper on for naps and bedtime. His screams of bloody murder drove me to the edge, so I threw in the towel (or should I say "threw in the diaper").

The schools in our area have this week off, so guess what I'm stuck doing? It is torture for me. Having to constantly be on "potty watch" and staying home all day long is my own personal nightmare. But, it has to be done.

Round two is going better. There aren't screams of resistance. In fact, Dave-o has a positive attitute. This time around, I am having him sit on the regular toilet (which he prefers to the potty chair) and I'm filling his bladder with juice gallore (I had forgotten to do this last time).

I am happy to say that Dave-o has had more hits in the toilet than misses on the floor.

Here's to an interesting week.

The Story of James's LIFE

Wednesday night James had his board of review for his Life, which his dad got to sit in on. He walked away from that meeting victorious. But, apparently there was a moment in the interview when James wasn't sure he would pass. Bro. Judd (who is a dentist) asked James if he brushed his teeth twice a day, everyday. James honestly answered, no. This was almost a deal breaker. The entire board (including his dad) spent a few minutes hemming and hawing about this dilemma before James realized they were pulling his leg.

I am so proud of James's hard work. He is anxious to begin his Eagle project (once he figures out what it's going to be). His goal is to complete it by the time he's fifteen and a half.

Kirsten's Salt March

Last week, Kirsten and Steven spent a couple of days learning about Gandhi's nonviolent fight for freedom and justice. British laws in India made it illegal for anyone to make salt. Ghandi led his followers 240 miles to the coast to collect sea salt instead of buying taxed salt from the British. At the end of the 23-day march, Gandhi boiled seawater and made salt. They walked approximattely 10 miles a day for over three weeks straight. The salt march wasn't remarkable simply because of how far the protestors walked; it was was also a peaceful demonstration.

To commemorate the salt march, Kirsten, Dave-o and I are walking a mile every day for a month. At the end of our march we will make our own salt from the Pacific Ocean. Yes! Another excuse to go to the beach.

Mine! They're all Mine!

Valentine's Day is typically a "couple's holiday", but we celebrate it as a family. It turned out to be a lovely day.

After spending our morning with our ES, we got together with two other homeschoolers (Josh and Matthew) and played some games. They love the "Tower" game. James won by stacking 18 conversation hearts.

Kirsten made a Valentine elephant that loves to gobble up candy. But the favorite activity was building catapults to launch the conversation hearts.

They used Popsicle sticks, tape, cardboard paper towel rolls, dowels, and paint sticks (courtesy of Orchard Supply). Have you ever gotten paint sticks at Orchard? They are twice as big and twice as thick as Home Depot's. Which is great since I'm still boycotting Home Depot.

For dinner, we went out as a family to Wings Stop. It was so yummy!

Then we drove to the empty church and played badminton and basketball in the gym. Dave-o had a blast riding his ATV. On the smooth surface, he was able to go FAST!

We ended the evening with some ice-cream. Happy Valentine's Day!

How to use up my Saltine Crackers

Right now I have a lot of saltine crackers in my pantry. Why? The dreaded stomach flu has been making its way through our family. Today, everyone was healthy (don't know how long that will last) so I decided to try out a recipe that I have always wanted to make, but for some reason or another, never have. It involves saltine crackers. Are you intrigued?

Magic Skor Bars

Recipe by Kim Girgenti

A fun alternative to traditional almond roca

40-48 saltine crackers

1 C. butter

1 C. brown sugar

1 (12 oz.) package semi-sweet chocolate chips (I use the mini ones)

1 C. finely chopped pecans or almonds

Line large cookie sheet with saltine crackers. Boil together butter and brown sugar for 4 minutes. Pour butter mixture over crackers. Bake at 350 degrees for 4 minutes. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake for an additional minute, then spread chocolate evenly on top with a knife or spatula. Sprinkle with finely chopped pecans. Cool a little, but not too much before taking out of the cookie sheet. Place on wax paper to finish cooling.

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They turned out so yummy! I ended up sprinkling only half the crackers with pecans since only half of my family likes them. (I'm part of the "nutty" group.)

Warriors vs. Kings

David took Justin, James, and Steven to a Warrior vs. the Kings game in Sacramento. The BYU Alumni group organized a pre-game event with an opportunity to meet Jimmer. Justin's friend Merek and his dad came with them.

A day after the game, I received contradictory reports on how the trip went. Here was David's run-down of the day:

• The pre-game event was supposed to start at 5:00pm, but the doors didn't open until 5:45pm.
• Because of the late start to the event, Jimmer wasn't able to be there (he had to warm up)
• I won a BYU hat and Marty Judd a BYU shirt from the raffles, but it was a let down after not being able to meet Jimmer. After all, that's why everyone came.
• Steven was chosen to be a part of the "High Five Club", but never got to high five the players when they entered the stadium. The Kaiser Permanente group apparently took precedent to the BYU Alumni group.
• Jimmer was benched for the entire game. We never got to see him play.
• The Warriors won!
• It was a long and tiring drive home.
• It was all a scam!

Here is the kid friendly version:

• We had fun standing in line.
• Dad and Bro. Judd won cool raffle prizes.
• We got to meet Jimmer's brother (and took a picture with him). Did you know he's a rapper? He has an album and everything! (Justin was very impressed.)
• We never got to meet Jimmer.
• While waiting for the game to start, Steven got to sit right behind the Warriors' team during warm-ups. The "High Five Club" all got to do this.
• Steven was given a shirt for being a part of the "High Five Club".
• We ate pizza.
• The game was awesome. During the last seconds of the game, the Warriors scored a three-pointer-tying the game up.
• The Warriors won in overtime
• We want to go to many more Warrior games. It was so much fun.

If only adults could sometimes view life through child-like eyes.

Bubble Gum Day

Homeschooling two high schoolers has proven to be very difficult. I am constantly second guessing myself, which is making me feel inadequate to the task. My mind and energy has been spent on Justin and James's schooling, that poor Kirsten and Steven have, I fear, been neglected. It was time for me to plan a fun activity for them.

A few days ago, I read about February the fourth being "Bubble Gum Day" being celebrated in many schools and communities. What a fun opportunity to incorporate into our studies!

Traditionally on Bubble Gum Day, kids who donate 50 cents get to chew gum at school, with proceeds going to a charity. The holiday was created in 2005 by children's book author Ruth Spiro. I went to this website to print out an activity guide and bought a bunch of different kinds of bubble gum.

For math, I had Steven and Kirsten figure out the circumference of their bubbles. They also had to estimate how many gumballs would fit inside four different sized clear containers.

This is Dave-o's interpretation of a bubble. He has the most serious look on his face!

They also did a couple of science experiments that involved soda, water, and recording the weight of bubble gum before and after it's been chewed. 

For writing, they made a list of adjectives to describe the experience of chewing gum using all five senses. Then they wrote a letter to their favorite gum company, suggesting a new flavor. Steven called his gum "Caramel Blast" and Kirsten's "Peach Cobbler".

For art, I showed Steven and Kirsten pictures of "Balloon Dog" by Jeff Koons (as seen in picture above). Then they drew an animal using this same bubble-y style.

Steven drew a mouse and Kirsten an elephant (of course).

Loved and Treasured

I still have and use my twenty-four year old seminary scriptures. While living in Texas, David bought me beautiful quad scriptures. However, I wasn't ready to switch over to them. My old ones may be falling apart, but they are deeply treasured. I have lovingly written thoughts and testimony within the thin pages of this precious book. The front page still bears the mark of my childhood best friend, Laura Robbins-a lipstick kiss with the works "Take Off" underneath it.

Quite recently, I have finally felt the desire to move on-to get some "big girl" scripures (the one's from Texas are lost). So, David...If you are reading this, I would love to get some new quad scriptures for my upcoming birthday. And if you could get them in a silver color, that would be awesome