DC

Jackie Joe was down in DC for a convention for work and we went to visit. Did I mention that Jackie is my favorite friend in the whole world!! Her hotel was really close to the Pentagon and had a really good view of the whole Mall/Strip (whatever it is called). Jacob kept getting excited when we would see the Washington Memorial - which was quite a lot. We stayed with her in her hotel and went SWIMMING!! The kids were CRAZY for it!!

Here are the kids and Jackie in the Native American Museum. It was kind of awesome! They opened the museum only for J and her convention - there were like 300 of us. When we walked in they had four men chanting along with beating a drum - it sounded like a pow wow - it was really cool. Then we listened to a speaker had some refreshments and had the run of the place. We got to tag along with J, so we felt like celebrities.



One afternoon the boys and I went to the Natural History Museum - we were there for over 2 hours. Jacob really wanted to go to the Lincoln Memorial but we just didn't have the time. We rode the metro which is an adventure in itself. Of course the dinosaurs were a bit hit. Spencer was really loving the sharks and he kept calling me over to see something really fascinating - like squirrel bones!:) Jacob liked everything but really wanted to see some snakes. There were some snake bones and some live tarantulas that kept him happy. We did not go into the butterfly thing - it was too expensive - I plan on going when it is free. We did get to peek through the window and saw a 5 inch wide butterfly - it looked pretty awesome in there.




We were able to visit the temple - next time J and I will get to do a session. This time we just hung out in the visitors center.



Jacobo and Spencer with Helaman's 2000 sons


Friday night we crashed at the McFad's house and K came down. J left early sat morning. I slept in while the men went to play soccer - they took the boys (Joseph does it every Sat morning - what a treat for Michelle). Michelle had arranged for a babysitter so we all went and did a session. We then ate at Cheesecake Factory which was some serious grub. I of course was a huge pig and helped everyone finish theirs - I had to try it all. We left with cheesecake to go - mine was banana and it was really good, k even liked it. That night Michelle and I left the men to naps and movies while we went to visit Cyndi and Calvin (Brandon) Stanford (some things from the mission will never be forgotten). It was a lot of fun, but we kept her up till 11pm (needless to say we did not make the trip home sat night). All in all an excellent week.

K is 32!!

What an old fart!! He even has started complaining about his white hair and how he needs to start coloring it. Please - men look sexy with the salt - women on the other hand. You should all be proud that I remembered K's b-day. I am known to forget them all (including my own) - I put his in my cell phone to remind me. Now the question is will I remember his next b-day on April 6th. For those who don't know - k's b-day was April 6th his whole life. Then at 19 his mom found this document from Vietnam saying it was Mar 11th (some of his legal docs had mar 11th and some April 6th). He then changed his b-day legally, and had all his documents changed. So I am not so bad - I always remembered it as April 6th and he has two we get to celebrate. LUCKY MAN!! WE LOVE YOU KHUONG!!

Boring

I went to a women's conference in the community this last Saturday. I liked most of it. I was sitting there watching the ladies from Ghana and Indonesia in native dress, it was at this point that I realized - we dress really, really boring. Their outfits were amazing - so colorful and beautiful, and their head pieces - it was so majestic. They also looked really comfortable, it made me want to wear them too. I don't think it would go over well with anyone. Did I mention that those ladies could get down and boogie, and they were no young chicks. It was actually a nice break - I also really enjoyed the first lecture on our ecological footprint. It really makes me want to get motivated to integrate less waste into my life. Of course another highlight was the native food at the end. Who knew the French were into chocolate covered strawberries and pineapple - more please!



Now on to a subject that is not so boring - this awesome chair. I will eventually put up pics of my bedroom so you can see how it all works together. This is the first NEW piece of furniture I have bought in my married life (I can't remember before that)!! This is reason to celebrate - besides the fact that it is really COOL!! DeAnn found it (of course) and she called me to let me know she had found THE chair for my room. I definitely lean toward a contemporary minimalistic style in my house - and I LOVE IT. Everything else I have gotten used (we are huge craigslist supporters), or free. What can I say other than I am married to Khuong - the most frugal person I know. (Julie you are a really close 2ND - but I don't live with you:)) Khuong really didn't understand the need for the chair (there really wasn't one - technically) but he supported me anyways.

Today we had ward conference - I felt like I was running a race (it is all mental I am sure). Even after it all I had to force myself to drive calm and decompress, there was no need to be rushed. How can one day be so stressful - it all boils down to mtgs before and after, and kids - it was CRAZY!! The primary kids were asked to sing - it was last minute. Jacob went up, but pretty much refused to sing, he made it very clear he was not enjoying it. Squishing his face between his hands and scowling let everyone know. Spencer sang, it was so cute to watch his little lips and face. I of course got some comments on Jacob's attitude - I should be happy that people thought it was funny. He was in a fine mood - he just didn't want to sing.

Yesterday we bought our tickets to CA for Christmas!! I know a little early, but WE ARE GOING!! Now I just have to figure out how to pay for it? Maybe I should sell the chair j/k.

BEN

This is why my boys want more babies. Jacob has decided that it is his job to make babies laugh - they especially love Ben. This video was taken towards the end of their "make Ben laugh" plan. He was seriously cracking up in the beginning - you can't really tell that here. Jacob still asks when we will be having a baby. Spencer the other day was quite engrossed in watching Ben eat and asked DeAnn if his mommy could have a baby Ben too. That of course led into the question like - will she feed Ben like you are - how does the milk get made, etc.. They will be pros when it is our turn to have a new baby. I almost forgot to explain the video. They are pretending that Ben has an electric force field around him. When they try to touch him they are thrown off him. That stinkin video just won't run - maybe next time.

LAZY BLOGGER!!!

I think I have won that award - I work hard for my titles. We have been busy it seems, and K doesn't like me to blog when he is home - WORD!! The crazy thing is I am thinking he is going to be home more now. He started family practice today and he LOVED it!! I think his exact words were - "today was such a stress free day" - plus he looked super hot with his fresh hair cut and shirt and tie. I thought I would miss scrubs, but I think not!! He is actually home now, but he is studying in bed next to me - that is fair.

On Presidents Day the Whitaker Center was free to the public. We started the day with some Chucky Cheese and then went on to the Whitaker Center. My neighbor and I must have been feeling a little crazy - we took the other neighbors with us - that is equivalent to 5 extra kids. The 10 of us had a ball. The museum had tons to do that was hands on. It didn't hurt that there were a bunch of college kids there with booths handing out candy if you tried what they were doing. We made silly putty, learned about dung beetles (nice), made a light go on with batteries, built a little thing with marshmallows and sticks, saw human organs etc... By the end of the day I was sooooo tired - the things we do for our kids. They of course wanted to stay longer but I was pooped. Jacob and Spencer loved being with their friends. Jacob's favorite part was the human body - organs, bones etc.. He obviously takes after his daddy. Spencer's favorite part was frosties at Wendy's when it was all over. He obviously takes after me.



This picture is just to show that child labor does have benefits. Look at his attention to detail. He also thought that it was a HUGE treat for him to help - plus he got to do it in his dunt-da-dunts (underwear). Jacob had a turn too, but I didn't pull the camera out in time. It also didn't cost a thing - their reward was they got to play in the bath afterwards.