New camera and Chinese food

I got an early Christmas present today; a new camera! We ordered a Canon PowerShot SX10. All I can say that it is fabulous! I still haven't got the hang of all the features, but so far it has performed admirably. I'm especially impressed with how well it's done indoors at night with bad lighting.

Our intrepid intelligent instructor
My evil twin; aka 'skinface'


Our reluctant blossoming math genius

Our future video game designer


Mr. publicly taciturn privately loquacious
Shirley Temple has nothing on Saffron

Melinda went with her parents and most of her siblings to the temple this evening while I stayed home with the kids. They dropped by after with Chinese food and we had a little impromptu party.

Wendy and Arden
Karen, Kevin and Lisette

Colorful Brian, Dejah, and Saffron Ian, Scott, and Miles play Blokus
Lisette and Marsha

Fruit royalty

Dejah introduced us to Charlie the Unicorn and his "friends." Who couldn't use a little more absurdism in his or her life? I told Saffron she was the Banana King, but she set me straight; she is the Banana Princess and I'm the Banana King (Ian said he was the Orange Prince).



I think that being the Banana King is slightly better than my last gig as King Of The Echo People.



Who are you!?

Catching up

We've had some very busy weeks lately, so here are some of the highlights:

• We celebrated Melinda's birthday. Her 29th? Maybe not, but she still seems so young and beautiful (just wiser.)
  
• Brian and Dejah got married! The temple ceremony was lovely, and they looked so good together
• Melinda filled many croissants with chicken salad for the reception and I refilled supplies and bussed tables
  
• Melinda and Robin helped put together a baby shower for her cousin Lindsay
• Saffy loved playing with her cousin Rachel

• We've had lots of parties and dinners up and Grandma and Grandpa's house while family has been visiting for the wedding
• I've been working on painting Marsha's basement and coordinating carpet and linoleum to get ready for Brian and Dejah to move in
• All of the kids (even Saffron) helped by painting underneath the stairs

• We all enjoyed having Salena and Ed visit
• Ian was excited to have cousin Teancum to help him conquer the universe
  

• We were glad to see Amy and Miriam
• I got to teach a class on water-wise perennials for Master Gardeners
• Lisette took some great photos of bees in the garden

• I planted the last of my plants (finally)
  
• Melinda has been helping out with Salt Lake Home Educators to see about getting a co-op started
• Lisette has read several novels: The Looking Glass War, The Goose Girl, Twilight, and several others I can't remember
• Saffron loves cooling off in front of the fan

Random notes

• Lisette is enjoying having friends over for their writing club. She's having a writing club party on Tuesday.
  
• Saffron got Willis (our last surviving mouse) out of his cage after spraying him and his whole cage with a water sprayer. Luckily Ian caught her before Willis escaped.
  
• The kids had fun with Grandpa last Friday watching the Peking Acrobats at Kingsbury Hall.
• I'm happy to get a new work laptop, since someone with a newer one than mine quit.
  
• Melinda, Miles and Wendy had a good skiing night at Brighton on Saturday.
• We went to hear Brian and Dejah speak at their singles ward today. We got to meet her mom and her brother, Brad, and sister, Brittany.
• Kevin introduced us to Frets on Fire so maybe we won't have to get a Wii with Guitar Hero.
  

Grand theft poetry

Dejah told Lisette and Melinda about "grand theft poetry." It's basically a mash-up of different poems. Here are some of the results from today's writing club.

The duck-billed platypus isn't easy to imagine
it began to go beserk
break, break, break.
Good bye proud world! I'm going home
I'll detonate to smithereens.
Melinda

She walks in beauty, like the night
Out of the misty eastern cave

beyond this place of wrath and tears.
And up the mountain-sides of dreams
Into a sea of dew
I think that I will never see
the darkest evening of the year.
Melinda

Great is the sun and wide he goes
close to the sun in lonely lands,
the solemn hour of midnight
and the mome raths outgrabe
those that I guard I do not love
on a whitened beach.
Lisette

"The splendor falls on castle walls,"
Said a whiting to a snail
with a cargo of ivory.
I shant be long-you come to
of the straw for a bedding
who'll come a waltzing Matilda with me?
I have spread my dreams under your feet
watch the wall my darling
and they went to sea in a sieve.
Lisette

Sunday dinner

Saffron didn't mind the cold this week. Here she is outside playing with the kids. They took a break from school work one day to go outside and jump rope.

Grandma and Grandpa are in Hawaii so we had dinner at our place tonight. Brian, Dejah, Kevin, Wendy, and James came over and we had salmon, saffron rice, and mashed sweet potatoes, corn bread and brownies for dessert.

John, Emily, Ethan and Eliza came over later and shared cookies with us. We had fun playing games and chatting.
The whiteboard on the easel was a big hit with the kids! It was fun to watch them doing their joint art project.

Counting down the days

Here are some of the highlights of this week:

• Saffy is doing very well using her little potty
• Some of Melinda's cousins came over and sang us carols
• Ruth and Darius got married December 11th on Smathers Beach in Key West
  
• We found out Ruth is having twins (Yeeaahh!)
  

• The kids went to the Planetarium and the Children's Museum
• Miles read 2 Star Wars books
• Ian wrote a story about a time-traveling penguin
• Lisette can now play "Beauty and the Beast" on the piano
• Melinda had Brian and Dejah (who are very happily engaged) over for cooking club; they made jambalaya and pinwheel biscuits

• Melinda and I went to my company party and were entertained by a hypnotist while Connie babysat
  
• I took Lisette, Miles, and Ian for a quick visit their cousins in Roy
• The car windshield cracked (just before safety and registration is due)
• The kids are counting down the days until Christmas
  

Phew! Just one more week before Christmas; I hope you all have your shopping done!

Brian and Dejah

Congratulations are in order for Brian and Dejah! Brian called earlier this evening to tell us the good news of their impending nuptials!

Melinda was just telling me yesterday that she thinks that Brian should marry Dejah. We're so glad because Dejah is too good to let go.

They looked so happy sitting with each other during the family party on Saturday. They are definitely a great match.