America's Got Talent!

I once received a blessing in which I was told that I had many talents, but not necessarily the kind you would perform on a stage. I have pondered this over the years, and I have come to realize that I do, indeed, possess some very unique talents.

Take for instance, changing the toilet paper roll. I once thought this was a commonly shared ability, but I now know better. I am--how do I say this without tooting my own horn?--the BEST and perhaps the ONLY person in my household with this ability.

Then, there's also my rare, and I do mean RARE, talent for actually closing the back door!

Add to that my rinsing dishes and loading them into the dishwasher abilities; my toilet scrubbing abilities; my laundry folding and putting away abilities, etc. and it soon becomes apparent, that indeed, I DO have talents. And many of them.

So, what are some of your unique talents? Don't be shy, you won't make me feel bad, afterall, I'm a very talented woman in my own right!

Birthdays!!

I failed to post about Ben's 7th birthday back in April! He has grown SO BIG this year! He has matured physically and emotionally. He is so fun to have around. I am grateful to be his mommy.
We went to Chuck-E-Cheese's to celebrate. Ben had a great time, except for when the staff put the spotlight on him for a little bit. I think he would have preferred to quietly, and inconspicuously celebrate!

One of the great things about Ben is that he makes just as big of a deal about other family member's birthdays as he does about his own. He made this "set up", as he calls it, for Brianna just a few days before her birthday. He made that card for her all by himself. The inside reads: 3 is graet! I wish I culd stay 3. You are princes of the haws! Happy Birthday!

I couldn't get Brianna's birthday pictures in order, so we'll go a little backwards. Here we are at Banana's which is a place with bumper boats, miniature golf, go-carts, big inflatable "bump-n-jump" things, etc. Brianna REALLY wanted to go to "Butt-a-nana's", as she calls it, to do bumper boats. She had a blast! We were blessed to be able to have my brother, James, and his wife Dede and their gorgeous baby, Oliver, join us for Brianna's birthday weekend. Brianna had a lot of fun spraying her Uncle James from her bumper boat!

Brianna received a play kitchen. Oh what fun! I asked her what she was cooking that morning, and she replied matter-of-factly, "Oh, chicken."

Brianna sure loves her cousin Oliver! Of course, how could you not love that cute little guy??!

I am eternally grateful to Brianna's birthmom. Brianna has been a joy to us from day one! She is such a bright, fun, happy little soul! She is incredibly smart, and amazingly coordinated! She does everything with great Enthusiasm! We are so happy that she is our little girl!

Happy Birthday to my wonderful kiddos!

Late Night with Leslie

Last night in bed, James and I had a conversation that went something like this:

Me, while reading my scriptures: Can I share an insight I received recently?

James: Uh-hmmmm.

Me: O.k., well, the phrase, "chastisement of our peace" never really made any sense to me, but I always lumped it in with the rest of the verse that I felt I understood at least at some level; "he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." So, I looked up "chastisement", and an archaic definition is "refinement, purification". Suddenly it became ...

At this point, James interrupts and says: Um, I drifted off there at the end. Something about picking things up off of the ground?

Me: No. ... Not at all.

James: Oh, sorry.

Apparently I am REALLY INTERESTING to talk to late at night. : )

So, for any of you still awake, I'd like to finish my thought.

When I pondered the phrase as "the refinement and purification of our peace was upon him", it became so beautiful to me. He worked at it and sacrificed for us until what He could give to us is PURE peace. So, whatever is standing between us and the peace we seek has already been tended to by He who turned water to wine. We can have pure peace now, through our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Highlights from Our First Swim Lessons of the Season

"I'm NOT getting in!" - Ben

"I DON'T LIKE THIS! I WANT TO GO HOME!" - Brianna

"I DON'T REALLY CARE IF YOU DON'T WANT TO! You're going to do it anyway!" - Me


Perhaps scheduling, and paying in advance for, two two-week long swim lesson sessions was a bit ambitious for this year?

Fun, Fun, Fun, 'til Daddy Takes the T-bird Away!

First loose tooth! (On the bottom, sitting at an angle.) When Ben first noticed his loose tooth, he told everyone! Immediately, Brianna began to tell people that she, too, had a loose tooth . . . in her foot!
Snuggle time.

First black eye. Thanks to a hard bump with a classmate.

At a carnival in town. I thought Brianna would be nervous to ride this little train ride on her own, but she LOVED it. She rode it 3 or 4 times!

Ben's birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese's.

Future American Idol?? (Singing "I Am a Child of God".)

Teaching Ben to "roll with it". (Also at the carnival.)


Even Simon would be enthralled by her! ("Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star")

When Brianna watched herself in these videos, she said, "So cute!" and "I a good singer!"

Backyard Fun

We got a trampoline!! We toyed with the idea of just putting up the frame; the kids were enjoying it so much!

Yesterday evening we finally got the enclosure put up. Ben and Brianna and a neighbor girl, whom we'll call Miley, were playing a game of Tag on the trampoline. Brianna was IT, but her cute little legs couldn't seem to catch the much bigger children. Suddenly, she stopped, and with a slightly plaintive tone said, "Miley, I just wanna hug you. Just wanna hug you, Miley." Well, Miley couldn't resist that, and came toward Brianna with her arms outstretched. As soon as Miley was in striking distance, Brianna's sweet, innocent expression suddenly became very devious, and she tagged Miley and ran off!

Smart Thinkin'

Ben was with me when I clicked on a news link about the derecho. Wikipedia explains a derecho as: a widespread and long-lived, violent convectively induced straight-line windstorm that is associated with a fast-moving band of severe thunderstorms. These straight-line winds can exceed 100 mph (in some cases, sustained wind) in these clusters and straight-line wind gusts of up to 200 mph are possible in the most extreme cases....

There was footage on the clip, and let me just say that this is one terrifying storm to behold.

Ben asked with some concern, "Is that coming here?"

"No," I reassured him.

"Oh, good. 'Cause if it was, I was going to save my money and buy a car and drive to the airport and trade my car for an airplane and fly outta here!"

Some Tips Regarding the Swine Flu

If you are concerned about the Swine Flu, and you are running short on surgical masks to wear around, may we suggest an alternative:

And, should your area be spared the Swine Flu, you won't need to feel that you wasted your money, because these can also be worn as enviably fashionable head wear. You can't do that with a surgical mask.
Our legal department insists that we mention the minor side effects. Occasionally, wearers have displayed monster-like tendencies. And, even rarer, some wearers have lost muscle tone in one side of their necks. These side effects clear up within a week or so following removal of this product. However, we still feel that the benefits outweigh the risks.If you find yourself infected with the Swine Flu, you should remain home and drink plenty of fluids. However, if you simply MUST venture out, we suggest donning a disguise. Over-sized glasses and moon boots, perhaps.

Healthy habits are the best defense. Eat plenty of fresh fruits and veggies; drink lots of water; get 7-9 hours of sleep each night; and get plenty of exercise and sunshine.

Good luck! And remember, we're all in this together!

(P.S. Are you tired of diaper on the head pictures yet?)

When Kids Choose Their Own Fashions

I laughed the whole way to the bus stop this morning. Brianna was wearing a darling pink nightgown covered in hearts, a pink jacket, moon boots (on the wrong feet), and huge 3-D glasses!!
I laughed again as Ben boarded the bus and I realized he was wearing the same exact shirt that he wore yesterday! That, combined with his new "fauxhawk" hairdo is sure to be quite a hit!

An Update with Photos

Spring has sprung here in the desert. I love it! One of our trees out front was full of white blossoms when Brianna stepped outside the other morning. She said, "Mommy! It's snowing!"

We planted our garden this weekend. It feels so good to be doing something that we've been counseled to do. This is Brianna's "gardeen box". We planted flower seeds a few weeks ago, but Brianna kept "stirring" her gardeen box. Hmmm, I wonder why nothing had grown. So, we planted actual plants, and explained that the stirring needs to be done in the sandbox, and not the garden.

Ben wanted me to take a picture showing how huge this branch was. It's hard to tell in the picture, but it starts at his feet, goes a couple of feet over his head, and then it curves back down to about his armpit. I love the adoring look on Brianna's face, as she tries to do what big brother is doing.

I had the privilege of accompanying Ben and his class on a field trip. It was really fun, and I'm glad to have had the chance to go. Afterward, we walked to a park and ate pizza. Ben was kind enough to pose for me. Ben, and a friend on the bus ride. ... First Grade humor.

While we're on the subject of fingers up noses, I caught Brianna with her finger up her nose the other day. I said, "Brianna, don't pick your nose!" She said, "I not picking my nose! I getting the crumbs out!"

Ben, making his birthday wish! That candle didn't stand a chance!

Oh, the entertaining power of a diaper on the head.

Brianna has fallen in love with books, and usually sleeps with several in her bed with her.

Another Ben and Brianna sleepover. Doesn't Ben look uncomfortable?? And, why is his head UNDER the pillow??! If you look closely, Brianna has a book under her left arm.

Ben with his paper airplane collection. He has become very creative and imaginative with his airplane creations!

It's always fun to see Brianna dance and perform for the camera!