The Daughters of Helaman

 
Mia's end-of-year cheer banquet was catered by Costa Vida, which apparently made Rob very happy.

When dinner and dessert, gift spotlights, Senior awards, coaches gifts, and the slideshow were over...

and the girls started hugging it out...

... they spontaneously broke into song.

This song:

"We are as the army of Helaman
We have been taught in our youth..."

Mia stayed a little longer. As Rob and I walked out of the school's main entrance, on the opposite side of the banquet, we could still hear the Lone Peak high school cheerleaders singing loud and clear:


"...And we will be the Lord's missionaries 
To bring the world his truth."

That alone was well worth the 2 hr 45 min banquet.

Bite Toes (is what we call this free-for-all)

One of the reasons the boys love their dad...

Cy: A Month in the Life

Cy was supposed to decorate a cake for a cake walk at the Blue and Gold cub scout banquet.

I'm no Cake Boss—more like this:

But we got inspired on the internet and managed to come up with this "Nest Cake." It's pretty much foolproof for a 10-year-old decorator. Gravy.

Since Easter is around the corner, I could get stuff like edible grass and speckled Whopper eggs. Perquisite! (—it's formal for "perk." Did you know that? I didn't know that.) Peeps were the logical and yummier choice for birds, but Hobby Lobby insisted I come and look around.
(Always obey Hobby Lobby.)

Some of the other cakes at the banquet were store-bought. That's just smart—simplify! (Why didn't I think of that?!)

But take a look at THIS sweet idea:

That one takes the cake!

Cy was supposed to be awarded his Webelos badge at the banquet, but it got overlooked.

DENIED.

Hmmm, what else has Cy been up to?

Oh, so this is Cy's unabashed list of 4th grade girls who like him:

Bailey
Maddy
Madison
Ally
Maggie
Abby
Abby
Megan
Megan
Ellie
Ellie
Jolie
Grace
Marissa
Reane
Kimber

He's also a shoo-in for the NBA and NFL (don't you know ;)


Cy's been playing in a few AAU tournaments lately.

My favorite pic of the games:

And this is Cy making the big bucks from Grandpa in his yard.



You're a champ, Cy. Apparently, you've got quite the fan base, but remember, I top the list!

St. Patrick's Day, 2013

St. Patrick and Ireland masterminded the hunt for "Sammi, who goes by 'Lucky,'" the Leprechaun.

Inside that green box is a gold box, and inside that gold box is an honest-to-goodness Leprechaun trap, crafted by our very own Cam, locked and loaded with a rainbow of licorice, plenty of sparkling green gems, a golden dumbbell for Leprechaun workouts, and a trail of rainbow Skittles to lead Lucky right into our snare (thanks, Emily!).

Everybody knows Leprechauns can smell children (?), so we had to lock them away (with a lamp cord) until we were sure we had caught him.

Waiting for the go-ahead.

Lucky was pretty full of himself and left clues all around Granny's house and yard to tease the kids, certain he wouldn't get caught.

Granny's loft...

The kids followed the clues all the way to the Leprechaun trap, and found...

No trace of Lucky, but plenty of booty.

Maybe next year.

The Jig Is UP

Rob and I decided we'd better get some parenting help with one of our kids (named Mia :), so we spent a couple of two-hour sessions with a wise counselor. Those sessions were a lifesaver. I couldn't have predicted just how beneficial those sessions would be. (btw, Rob and Mia gave me permission to post this.)

Rob told him we were 90% on the same page in parenting philosophy and mostly struggled over the practical application. First, the counselor surprised me by saying, "It sounds like you're complacent about being 90%. That 10% difference can be a canyon when it comes to your kids' ability to manipulate and undermine your parenting. There is tremendous power in being 100% united." Then, through some skillful questioning, it became apparent that although we may have been 90% on the same page philosophically, we were polar opposites when it came to practical application.

I'm the rule keeper, and Rob tends to look for loopholes or exceptions. Whereas I approach situations in broader, more general terms, he thinks each situation is different. It was exhausting to me to discuss each situation and continually re-assess. The kids liked Rob's approach MUCH better, so I was outnumbered and mostly the bad guy. Rob would make some decisions without me, and that made the kids happy, but left me feeling helpless. I felt like we were failing the kids by not being consistent and following through on our parenting philosophy, while Rob was focused on preserving our relationship with the kids and not making them feel shame. We both wanted the same things, but we had a disconnect we just could not figure out.

You know those times that you smile inappropriately, and you try to keep a straight face and as a last resort, hide behind your shirt? As I sat in that first session with our counselor, I could not stop smiling. Inappropriately. (I think I enjoyed him taking Rob's inventory a little too much. Of course, then it was my turn.)

We got Mia involved in the second two-hour session. The counselor talked to her alone for an hour, and then they joined Rob and I in a family room setting. I loved what he had to say to Mia. I think it was eye-opening for her to see his perspective on her within the context of many teens he had worked with.

Since then, Mia decided to break up with her boyfriend (the boyfriend she wasn't "allowed" to have ;) and has been having fun with new interests (like girls' rugby) and more dates and friends. Her life is opening up, just as the counselor predicted as she made those changes.

Just the other day Mia said to me, "Dad's a lot stricter. That counselor guy ruined everything" [as she muffled a laugh]. HA!

Elle's Edition

I just realized my "Elle's Edition" blog had been available online for a time (duh!), and my stomach is in knots. I had posted it only so I could slurp it into a book format and publish it for my family, which I did. It included all of the Elle-related posts on this blog but added some private information and pictures. I can imagine people thinking how inappropriate it was for me to include pictures of her surgical wounds, pictures of our last moments with her, pictures of me dressing her body, people's comments that were meant for our family's ears only, and details about a priesthood blessing. I've deleted the blog, but I sure wish I could delete those details from people's minds.