Oh, my child.

Bryce joined the Stitches Club on Friday morning. The Boy Who Knew No Fear sat on a weakened cover of a window well at a neighbors home and fell right through.

The plexiglass sliced the back of his head, but thankfully thankfully, he was not hurt in any other way.

After a bloody soaking from the cut, we ended up at the ER. This is Bryce, getting the first numbing solution onto his wound.

Here he is, post-anesthetic shots, awaiting cleaning and the stitches.

***Caution*** slightly graphic image below ***Caution***
He was so brave. He squeezed my hands when it hurt and for some reason, did his best not to cry. Big silent tears still rolled down his cheeks now and again.



Other than heavenly blessings, we also received the tender mercy of....

Phineas and Ferb. It was on the Disney Channel and was just what Bryce needed to stay distracted. It's funny, I know, to be grateful for a cartoon, but it saved us, keeping him calm during the pain and proceedures.

Cam came up with a fun activity for Family Home Evening based on his current televisual obsession: Minute to Win It.

First we tried (with modest success) to thread penne pasta onto a spaghetti noodle, using only our teeth to hold the spaghetti.

Next, we were to place an Oreo cookie on our foreheads, while sitting in a chair, and manuever it down our faces into our mouths, using only our facial muscles and gravity. This was really hard and we have the embarrassing photos to prove it.

I loved watching The Grammys when I was in high school. I always hoped to see my favorite bands in the audience and to revel in their winning some award.
Problem: I was raised on Motown and only listened to alternative music. **

Then in 1992 R.E.M. won Best Alternative Album (the second recipient ever) and I was so thrilled!

This year The Black Keys won for Brothers. An awesome album! Yay!


I really don't watch the Grammys anymore, but then I found a list of why I should this year. It didn't matter what the list said other than that Florence + the Machine would be participating in an Aretha Franklin Tribute. Unfortunately, I missed it (the kids do need to go to sleep AND miss the Grammys), but here is an interview of the performers. Florence shows up at 1:34.

This is a red carpet interview with Florence who was nominated for Best New Artist (she lost).

After I hurriedly tucked in my kids, I ran down to our TV and turned it on.
Who was there? On the screen, right there?
Why, MUSE!!! They sang Uprising on a set mimicking their awesome concert set.
YAY!!!


It was a pretty awesome night. I liked the acts that performed with Bob Dylan. I was sad to see that Barbara Streisand really can't sing like she used to and it was nice to see Lady Antebellum win so much and so graciously. (I could've been spared glimpses of Lady Gaga and her extra shoulder bones)
Even Eminem was impressive in his angry white man energy. I do not know how rappers remember all those words (meaning lyrics are easier to remember when set to music)!
The best part was just watching it all with my husband, relaxing at the end of a nice weekend.
**When I was watching the Grammys Motown was long gone and the Best Alternative Album category wasn't created until 1991

Hello.

I've been sick all week. Why does stuff like this happen? ie you begin a new goal, one that is really good for you and then it gets messed up? I'd been exercising. I was feeling more energy than I had in years and despite hate, hate, hating exercise I have LOVED that. Even my brain feels more alive!

Anyway, so despite hating exercise I got out there in the chilly cold before dawn and did it. I was just a few minutes under my when-I'm-not-sick goal so I was pleased with that.

I've gone back to writing poetry. I am so happy with it and have been quite prolific. (If you have a desire to check it out, click here) It feels like I have a piece of my soul back. In fact, I have entered three of my poems for the Segullah poetry contest. I haven't submitted writing for a contest since I was in Jr. High and was published in the good ole Spanish Fork Press, so this is a big deal for me personally.

I have been laughing a lot lately. Foolishly, I don't do this much. I take myself waaaay too seriously and my abdominal muscles suffer for it, as does my mental health. Thankfully, Cam and I are quite caught up in the sitcom Big Bang Theory. It's nerd heaven and I get all the jokes! We've been catching up on past seasons. Then the other night we watched Arsenic and Old Lace with Cary Grant and we were rolling. Hil-AR-ious!

I talked Cameron into doing the whole Harry Potter event at the District on Thursday. Oh yeah! (speaking of nerd heaven...) We'll be dressing up and doing all the fun stuff there is to do and we're doing it together. That's what's really awesome for me. Cam and I started reading Harry Potter books together (out loud and in British accents HA!) during the second year of our marriage. It's really been a fun thing to share.

My two favorite days of the week are Thursday and Sunday. The mix up of school schedules on Friday and lack of structure on Saturday really irritate me, but Thursday...Thursday is my least busy run-around day and it's just close enough to the end of the week to be blissfully appealing. (Anyone hear me on that?)

Sunday, I am happy to say, has become such a joy to me because of my calling. I love serving in the Primary and even to have people relying on my to do my job so that they can do theirs. Serving has brought me a lot of joy.

Babies seem to be everywhere! So happy about the arrival of sweet little Chloe (see below) and happy to hear about other friends that are expecting. There is a small tinge of baby-hunger, but honestly, when I look at what I have with my kids, I am so happy with them. I love the age that they are all at. I love seeing their progress, what they're learning, how the way they interact with me and each other changes. They are such a blessing and I am so pleased with them.

Oh yeah...a spent a few days as a blond this week. It's part of a very long, not-so-gripping drama of messing with my own hair color and having to bleach out the mistakes and so forth. Currently, I'm back to my normal light/medium brown and as content as a...whatever thing is truly content. Probably nothing getting a few gray hairs. I wouldn't be content in that state.

I'll have to ramble about the kiddies later, but here's an idea of where I am. Thanks for reading, if you got this far, or even if you just read the first stanza, er, paragraph...

I have a lot of pictures to post and thought a summary would be the best way to get them on here.

Bryce has loved preschool so far. Back on the 5th Cameron and I got to present his VIP (which happens in honor of the child's birthday). It was so fun to help our youngest child feel special by talking about him and telling his classmates the things he enjoys to do. He loved handing out a special treat to his preschool friends. When you are the VIP you also get to take the class book home. Bryce looked through it over and over again. It contains a profile on each student and has pictures of things they've done in class up to that time. He took pictures of the book with my camera.

The morning of the 9th we had a long photo session with my parents and siblings and families. I'm really excited to see them when they're done. The kids loved being with their cousins and crazy uncles. After the photos Cameron and Dane had to take off for Dane's soccer game.

Dane thoroughly enjoyed soccer again this year. He gets kind of goofy, not very focused, but the kid has fun!

After the soccer games, Dane had the very special opportunity to go to the BYU game with his dad. I painted the Y insignia on his cheeks and after than, Bryce and Ella wanted in on the face painting.

This is a butterfly...sort of. I think my skills are a bit rusty. Bryce just wanted two lightning bolts on his cheeks.Cam reported that Dane enjoyed the football game (it probably helped that they won), but it's still a bit long for him. He crashed on the way home. It was a long day. While they were at the game, Ella and Bryce and I went to Toy Story 3 at the dollar movie. I had an awesome time watching them watch and I cried again.

A week ago, Bryce and I took a trip to Gardener Village with Angie and Sophie. As Buzz Lightyear he was a CELEBRITY! Every little boy 2 and older were whispering excitely to their mothers as he passed. I told him that any time he heard someone say 'Buzz Lightyear' that he should wave. My son was his own parade. One mother even had her child shake hands with Bryce and got her son's photo with him. The kid was in awe.

Bryce ATE IT UP!

Sophie and Bryce helped their mommies with the Witch Scavenger Hunt that would yield a prize at the end of a 25 cent cookie.
Bryce took a bunch of odd pictures, but this one turned out all right.He insisted on this final one.This past week we watched our final soccer games of the season.

I think Bryce was relieved it was all over.

This week has been an excellent one spiritually for me. I feel so full of gratitude. I am generally more at ease and I'm definitely happier. It's wonderful to see your own efforts pay off and the blessings that come.

Speaking of blessings, yesterday Zealand came to visit. He brought my mom with him. He's at one of those stranger anxiety stages and doesn't much like us, but Ella began playing the piano for him and it really settled him down and he started to babble and crawl around. (He's 10 months now)

At the end, though, Cam wanted to hold him (he's been very wary of his uncle lately). You can see how nervous he is, but he didn't cry.

I hope your Halloween preparations go well. I need to get started on Cameron's. Lots to do!

It didn't look like it would happen on Tuesday night when Simon Cowell all but named David Archuleta the winner, but David Cook came out triumphant and won the title of American Idol!

I just want this out there in cyber-space.
My AI vote is for Mr. David Cook.
Rocker-extraordinaire and a guy putting his heart and soul into his song choices and arrangements.
Bravo, Mr. Cook!
You really deserve to win the season.

Seriously (as will

be heard in the

clip below),

this guy can SING!