National Punch Day

September 20 was National Punch Day.
We had tropical punch color flavored sugar water with dinner.

The End.

Talk Like a Pirate Day 2016

September 19 is International Talk Like a Pirate Day.
We continued the tradition of going to Thanksgiving Point wearing a balloon costume to hand out balloon swords for children who talk like pirates.  We went to the Ashton Gardens this year.
I put up a YouTube video showing our past balloon pirate costumes.  This year's costume was based on the zombie pirate LeChuck from the computer game series Monkey Island.

Jr. Jr. and Lucky had a lot of fun helping hand out swords and having sword fights with kids.  When Thanksgiving Point heard we were going to be coming again for the holiday, they changed their theme for their Tales for Tots story time to be pirate-themed.  It was terrific.  The kids went on a treasure hunt with their pirate swords and made a pirate ship on paper out of cut out shapes.  Good stuff.

Since Jr. Jr. is in kindergarten this year, we told him that this would be his last year to do this for Talk Like a Pirate Day since he'll be in school all day next year in 1st grade.  He seemed disappointed with the idea.  Apparently this is a good tradition for him.  Later he told us that this wouldn't be his last year doing this because he could do it when he's a parent.  Awwww.  
We never have time to get free donuts at Krispy Kreme anymore so I just bought some at the grocery store this morning while I was getting supplies for dinner.  Nichole requested "squid pups," carrot hooks, and cupcakes with skull and crossbones on top.  We also had cream soda.  It's amazing what kind of traditions happen because these kids expect certain things to go with certain holidays.

Jeremy did put together a pirate ship out of furniture again, but it didn't last very long before some of the kids had some trouble with it and we had to put parts of it away.  So no epic balloon sword battle this year. 

It was a busy day and Jeremy and I stayed up late last night and got up really early this morning working on the balloon costume, swords, and that video (while watching Pirates of the Caribbean this morning).
He is currently sleeping on the couch and I am trying to hurry to get this post up so I can get some rest, too.

Ooh, ooh.  And I finally got to wear my pirate ship necklace that my parents gave me several years back.  I keep forgetting about it on Talk Like a Pirate Day but I remembered this year.  Hooray!

Belted Kingfisher

Friday, September 16, I had a chance to try out a new (to me) park.  Bicentennial Park in Provo.  It's a big park.  They have a fenced in dog park (with a fire hydrant in the middle for the dogs- heh heh).  Huge open grassy area and hill.  Frisbee golf course.  Playgrounds.  Restrooms.  Trees.  A duck pond with a bridge over it.  And... and... and... they have a boardwalk that goes through a wetland and willow forest.  :D  Yeah, awesome.

At one point I was walking along an area of the boardwalk and I heard a familiar bird sound.  It sounded like a belted kingfisher.  Jeremy and I had seen and heard some just this Summer while we were in Oregon.
Well, to make a long story short, I found the belted kingfisher that I had been hearing.  So awesome.

And I have to share this because even simple things can make me happy.  I found out looking back at my blog that the last (and first and only) time I saw a belted kingfisher in Utah was... wait for it... September 16, 2015.  Exactly one year before I saw this one.  How fun is that?  I tell you.  It's the simple things in life.

So You're Sick? How About Some Fresh Air?

Jeremy went to a Hawkwatch event this morning up Squaw Peak Road.  He saw lots of raptors flying by.  He even saw a new life bird in a tree- a Northern Goshawk.

They had some injured birds there for education purposes as well.  Always great to see birds close up, isn't it?  But sad at the same time because of the circumstances.

Ho Ho.  That's so funny.  These pictures make the Western screech owl look bigger than the Swainson's hawk, but if you look at the birds in relation to the glove, you can see how small the Western screech owl really is.  It can sit on one finger, but the hawk uses the whole hand.

Jeremy came home and picked us up and we drove out to Strawberry Reservoir area to the fish trap for their salmon viewing day.  The timing was just right this year.  Last year, we did see the kokanee salmon swimming up the river and to the fish trap, but we weren't there for the event.

This was fun... and educational.  The kids even got to feel some of the fish.

Jr. Jr. was excited to let me know, "I got to touch both a male and a female fish."
They also had free hot dogs and cookies at the event which made the kids happy. 

Don't worry.  They washed their hands after touching the fish.

After the event, the kids watched a movie in the van, while Jeremy and I drove up the road a little bit farther and got to do some birding.  We got to see quite a few mountain bluebirds.  It's no wonder people go searching for the bluebird of happiness.  I couldn't help but smile at those beautiful birds.

It was a nice day.  It was beautiful to drive through the fall colors- well, the leaves are just starting to turn- but they're gorgeous.  The kids had a good time and so did we parents.

Yay for fresh air.  Now we just need to get through the rest of the colds that people have and we can celebrate a lot more.

One more thing.  Jr. Jr. was bummed that we missed Collect Rocks Day yesterday, so he and Lucky picked some up to carry today while we were walking back to our van.  As usual we let them know they had to leave the rocks behind, though.

Hooray for traditions, too.

So Busy, Even in Sickness

Poor sick kids but still so much going on.  Nichole had her first dance class of the season this evening.  I took her down and while she was there, I went to a certain place to look for a certain bird.  I didn't find that bird, but I did see some lovely Virginia rails.

After dance class we came home then Nichole and I headed out again to a friend's housewarming party.  We brought Princess Leia buns to share.  We stayed for a while then came home to trade places with Jeremy so he could head out to visit our friends.
Life is busy.

Sickness Strikes Again

Sadly, we're going through sickness in our home again.  So sad.  Poor Jr. has had it the worst.
Earlier today, Lucky was being fussy.  I told him he was tired and needed to take a nap.  He finally decided to lie on the couch and it didn't take long before he was out.
I got Jr. a washcloth to put over his eyes and told him to rest and it didn't take long before he was asleep, too.  They both got a nice long nap.  Hopefully it helped.

So that's what we've been going through lately.  Let's hope it doesn't last much longer.

National Video Games Day 2016

For Family Home Evening activity, the kids played video games on National Video Games Day, September 12.  I didn't take pictures.

Make your bed day.

September 11th is "Make Your Bed Day." I made blankets and wrapped them around little piggies. I threw them in a hot oven and then I ate them. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Catch of the Day

This is what happens when Jeremy has to be down in Provo for work early in the morning.

Alphabet Pizza

September 8 is International Literacy Day.  While menu planning I wanted to figure out what food would work for dinner on this day.  The family helped me come up with the idea for Alphabet Pizza.
Pizza with toppings for all the letters of the alphabet from A-Z.  It took us some time and creativity but we did it.  It also took some time to prepare.  We had some of the ingredients, but others we had to buy specifically for this.

We ended up with 5 pizzas with these toppings/ingredients:

A- Artichoke Hearts
B- Bacon
C- Chicken
D- Dough
E- Eggs
F- Fennel Seed
G- Green Pepper
H- Ham
I- Italian Seasoning
J- Jalapenos
K- Kielbasa
L- Lemon Pepper
M- Mushrooms
N- Nacho Cheese
O- Olives
P- Pineapple
Q- Queso
R- Red Pepper
S- Sausage
T- Tomatoes
U- Uncooked Spinach
V- Very Good Pepperoni
W- White Sauce
X- Xtra Cheese
Y- Yellow Pepper
Z- Zucchini

Some of these (dough) we used on multiple pizzas but here is generally what pizzas we came up with:
Artichoke hearts, bacon, chicken, white sauce, yellow pepper, lemon pepper, tomatoes, uncooked spinach

Eggs, fennel seed, green pepper, queso, sausage

Italian seasoning, jalapenos, kielbasa, mushrooms, red pepper, zucchini

Nacho cheese, olives, very good pepperoni, Xtra cheese

Ham, Pineapple

 
I didn't think about it until today (even though it's on the calendar) and a friend was mentioning it on facebook, but today is also the 50th anniversary of when the original series of Star Trek aired.
Of course we had to celebrate that.  After alphabet pizza, you only have so much energy, though.  So we watched the first episode of Star Trek (the one that aired 50 years ago today) while eating our pizza.
Jeremy also got creative and came up with some Star Trek jokes while helping me make pizza.

What happens to a Vulcan when he gets sick?
He becomes "ill" logical.

Where do Klingons like to fish?
On a Worf.

What is the number one cause of death in the Federation?
Wearing a red shirt.

It was a fun evening.

Read a Book Day

September 6 was Read a Book Day.  Like with National Dog Day, we went with a theme for dinner.  In fact, we had the same dinner as on National Dog Day- spaghetti and meatballs. 

While I was making the meatballs, I couldn't help but sing, "Bella Notte," from Lady and the Tramp.  This time, however, we didn't watch a movie but we read the book, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs.

While eating our meal, we couldn't help but sing, "One top of spaghetti all covered with cheese..."
Nice celebrating.

Be Late For Something

September 5 was Be Late For Something Day.  I figured I'd catch up on blogging about the things we've been celebrating lately- since National Waffle Day on August 24.  I meant to all day, but I didn't.  So here I am a day late for the holiday, finally doing it.
August 26- National Dog Day.  The day started out normally with Jeremy headed to Thanksgiving Point to build a balloon sculpture and Nichole headed on a field trip to Thanksgiving Point.  However, Jeremy forgot an item he needed so after dropping the older kids off at school, the little ones and I went up to Thanksgiving Point to give him the item.  We gave Jeremy the item and since the museum wasn't open yet, the boys and I stayed outside for a few minutes until it did open.  While outside, we saw a school bus that made me think, Hmm, I wonder if Nichole is on that bus, while Nichole, on that bus, looked out and saw the little boys and me outside the Museum of Ancient Life.  Once the museum opened, the boys and I visited Jeremy for a little bit to say, "Good job."

In the meantime, Nichole had a good time on her field trip to the Renaissance Fair.  She brought home souvenirs, such as her name in fancy writing and a mini sword made by an actual blacksmith.  She proceeded to knight her little brother.

On the note of celebrating National Dog Day, we put on the movie, Lady and the Tramp, and I promptly fell asleep since I had gotten up early to go birding that morning and I was tired.
After Lucky (who also fell asleep) and I woke up, I made spaghetti and meatballs to fit with the theme of the movie while the kids watched it a second time.

That is how we celebrated National Dog Day.
August 27- Banana Lover's Day.  I dragged all the kids back to the Museum of Ancient Life for Sharktastic Saturday, a time to learn all sorts of neat information about sharks and to do some shark-related activities.  Jeremy joined us for the first part before he had to head to work again.
We got pictures with the balloon great white shark,

the kids put together a food web/chain,

they made shark tooth necklaces,

learned about shark mouths and egg sacks,

and Jr. Jr. even got to touch I real live dead shark.  That makes it sound like a zombie.  It wasn't.  It was a real shark they had that people could touch the outside or the inside of it (with gloves on, of course- the people, not the shark).
The kids got to compare different shark sizes, living and extinct,

then we met up with some friends from our college years.  They were already planning on coming to Sharktastic Saturday, so we met them there and chatted and did some activities with them.
When we got home, we celebrated Banana Lover's Day by trying a new way of peeling a banana.  Apparently if you squeeze the opposite end from the stem until it split, it doesn't squish the end of your banana like it does if you pull on the stem.  It is also not supposed to have as many of the stringy parts stuck on the banana when you eat it.  Hmmm.  Something I learned from FamilyFun Magazine.  I forgot to pay a lot of attention to the stringy bits, but I did notice that it didn't squish the end as much as the stem end.  Someone else will have to try it and let me know about the stringy bits.

August 28- National Bow Tie Day.  After church I found out that the bow ties were taking over by wrapping around things including people's necks.

August 29- More Herbs, Less Salt Day.  Jr. Jr.'s first day of kindergarten. 

Jeremy suggested we have taco salad for dinner, but I reminded him more herbs, less salt.  So he got clever.

So the kids had chips and whatever for after school snack.  Jr. Jr. got to play a game with M&Ms for "homework" and for FHE activity, the kids drew with sidewalk chalk.

August 30- National Toasted Marshmallow Day.  I made s'mores in the oven again and they turned out well this time.  The marshmallows even turned golden brown.  Woohoo.

August 31- National Trail Mix Day.  We didn't have time to do trail mix for after school snack since the kids went to visit friends while Jeremy and I went on a date to a Volunteer Appreciation Night at a park up Provo Canyon.  We did some birding while we were there and got to see and visit with my brother-in-law's parents.

September 3- Skyscraper Day.  We didn't do anything with skyscrapers, but Jr. Jr. went to a friend's birthday party and wrapped the present all by himself, cutting the paper, taping it, everything.  He's such a big kid now that he's in kindergarten.

September 5- Be Late for Something Day.  I'm celebrating a day late.