Opera

Daniel had a really great annual review with his boss a week or two ago. We'd been vacillating about buying tickets to see "The Magic Flute" and decided with a recent 25% off coupon, and this good news from work, that we'd celebrate and go for it! So, after our Chicago weekend we had a night out together to see the Opera. I got to wear my red dress from Brian and Amanda's wedding again, which was a treat. :) The opera was beautiful--we loved it. So much so, that we sang most conversations opera style on the drive home. All fun and games until your babysitter picks up the phone (and you don't hear the click) and overhears you singing to your husband about how you should learn to use the shortcuts on your cell phone. Nice.

My kind of town, Chicago is...

Spring break was soon to be upon us so Daniel and I thought it'd be fun to cook up a little surprise for the kids. I left the kids notes, treasure hunt fashion, that said--I have a secret...it's about tonight...we're going somewhere fun... and the last note was on top of a duffel bag. It said "Pack me! We're staying at a hotel in Chicago tonight!" The news was met with much screaming and jumping. They were excited to say the least.

Stop one: The hotel, actually in the suburbs, as it costs at least double to stay in Chicago itself. We got there at 8:30pm and got to the pool asap. (We were hoping to arrive earlier, but what do you do.) The kids loved every second. The pool, the beds, the cool "huge" bathroom, everything. They were definitely bummed when we had to say goodbye.

Stop two. The Shedd Aquarium! We saw tons of marine life and loved it. Amazing place, amazing animals. Oh, they had a "4-D experience" show too--those are hysterical. If you ever get to go to one, do it. But it freaks some kids out--Andrew and Abby were unhappy, Eliza was oblivious.

Love these jellies. Just getting down from her shoulder ride.
Stop three. Millennium Park. What a place! And I finally got to see the famous bean. I honestly did not know what to expect. But it's pretty cool! I realized the whole fascination (besides the fact that there are no seams) is the reflections. When you're under the bean you are reflected so many times in such weird angles--it's cool.

And this lovely art display--the face changes periodically and it also squirts a fire hose worth of water out the mouth every now and then.

We took a picture of these two really odd tourists.

I have to say, it's fun being in a big city again. Chicago has such a New York feel, but it's just not as hectic. We also had incredible weather which made it great to be outside. The drive to Chicago from here (if you're curious) is roughly two hours. It's a great vacation destination...hint hint.

Easter Sunday

Abby's take:

Ya know what is cool? All of the kids got little peeps, but they were actually pink and bunny shaped with little chocolate drops for noses and eyes! You know what we had for dessert, for the dinner, of course? My Dad made a French silk pie and I tried some. And the chocolate was really really rich!

Eliza's thoughts:
Eat candy. I like to eat candy.

Andrew:

On Easter after dinner we were wrestling with my Dad. All the kids and I. It was a blast!

Mom's filling in the gaps:

Easter baskets in the morning, Stake conference next, then home for some relaxation. We had a family over for a bbq ribs dinner. It was so much fun with their energetic bunch! We had a story/Easter lesson and the kids made an "empty tomb" out of paper. They wrestled with Daniel and a couple were later caught reading (Ribsy and Holes). My friend had her mother in town, she came along, and it was clear Eliza enjoyed the "grandmother figure." It was a happy Easter, indeed.

Saturday's Makings

What did we make?
We made messes...

We made colorful Easter eggs...

We made nests...

We made memories.

Baby Nathan

This is one of the most likeable toddlers I have known. He was born to my friend Sheri, who lived below us at the time. I was babysitting him and took this little video. I love this kid. So do my girls!

monkeys....humans....Katie

As long as we are talking about my teeth, you ought to know that I am an evolutionary marvel. I do not have wisdom teeth. (And this does NOT mean that I am not wise you stinkers.) It is simply a matter of evolution. Human beings have been extracting those unnecessary teeth for hundreds (?) of years. As I developed, my DNA realized they were no longer necessary and I was born without the teeth, and have never needed to have the painful extraction. A phenomenon, I know.

P.S. Maryjane does not have them either--aren't your back molars "extra big", Mj? As if they were fused together? Any other Koski's born with no wisdom teeth?











or...after minimal research...I might be a mutant. You pick!

I've never laughed so hard at the dentist

Today my dentist looked at my x-rays and asked me, "Has anyone ever told you you have pulp stones?" I sat there pondering, what on earth is a pulp stone? He says, "Take a look," shows me the x-ray, "See the tooth, the dark pulp in the center, and the white that fills that space? That's a pulp stone." He said that sometimes people have an occasional pulp stone and they are usually small. But you have one in EVERY molar and it takes up the WHOLE space!! He was amazed. (Because I am amazing.) He also said I would be an endodontist's nightmare if I ever have to have a root canal.

Then we just got to laughing (as my dentist is very talkative and jovial) about how funny a thing it would be to brag about. Like, hanging out picking up on people. "Hey there baby, I got some really big pulp stones..." We (with the hygienist) were carrying on and laughing and he kept going and saying things he told us his wife would scold him for when he tells her what we talked about. It was hilarious. Always good to have a laugh at your check up.

Andrew's concert/mini-musical

Here he is with some of his second-grade buddies

try this in 6 months

For General Conference (for friends who aren't LDS, General Conference is a broadcast from SLC where our church leaders speak, several 2-hour sessions, over a weekend. Members watch it in person, on cable at home, or at church buildings) this year I tried something new. My friend, Holly makes a list of words, and has a small snack/trail mix type item for each word. The kids listen to the talks and collect snack items as they go. I took a "bingo" game, cut it up, and attached snacks for each word.

Seriously. My kids listened for two hours straight. They LOVED it! I've never had such success in keeping kids occupied for this event. And they were actually listening, instead of just being distracted with other activities. Definitely doing it again next year!

Brushing Teeth

When Eliza was cranky about this chore I offered to let her brush mine (water only) and it's worked like a charm. If I get my act together I could submit this idea to Family Fun, no? (Do not try this at home if you have a quick gag reflex.)

April fools!

Here, I made you some nice cold Kool-aid...

Ha ha! Got this idea of setting jell-o in glasses with straws and posing it as a drink. It really looks convincing, so it was fun to watch the fam figure out what was going on! The kids proceeded to do whatever they could to drink/eat the jell-o with the straws.

For some fresh-out-of-bed fun I hid Daniel's socks, Andrew's pants, and Abby's pants. They all had a note saying April fools in their empty drawers (and a hint on where to look to retrieve them). Abby followed my lead and proceeded to hide other morning necessities. It was funny--she was cackling all morning long.