My Crazy Wonderful Family

Our weekend was a bit crazy! Amongst a million trifles, I went yard-saling and the kids had a talent show. The yard-saling was fun but a bit stressful as I tried to meander my way around streets I have no knowledge of - next time I'm mapping out my route and plan of attack. My most successful purchases were a Columbia snowsuit for Little E and some long-sleeved (Gap) shirts for Miss J - everything for less than $5. For the snowsuit alone, I felt like my morning out was definitely worth it.

The talent show was announced several weeks ago in primary at church. Mr. Man did a Family Home Evening dedicated to the event where we discussed our numerous talents. In the end, the talents the kids picked to present were not what I would ever have guessed, but were something different from the typical singing and dancing and piano playing that usually monopolize such events. Miss J chose to make crazy bread. And she practiced (yum) and perfected (double yum) her making of it too! I wish I'd taken a picture of the great sign she made for it. On it she wrote what it was, who made it and then: "Don't worry, will not actually make you crazy!" Love it. The boys chose to do a lighsaber battle. Un huh. I was a bit worried about this, and actually worked with them to get a little number figured out, with positions, some slow motion, a closing... and with strict command to NOT hurt each other. Well they got up on stage and the crowd drew their breath and ooohed and ahhhhed and suddenly they were in their own world performing for a crowd a lightsaber battle that, while it looked familiar, was not at all what we had practiced. It ended with one hurt and the other ready to retaliate. But it ended. Little E is a true performer and kept a straight face the entire time, oblivious to the audience. Mr. Man asked him prior to his turn if he was nervous and he shook his head and looked at him like, "why on earth would I be nervous?!" They all made me proud. Crazy kids.

This was bedtime stories last night. A la candlelight. Romantic and cozy, right. Well, not if you realize WHY we had to light candles. Friday night we invited our neighbors over for a little BBQ. With extra kids running around, we didn't realize that Little E had snuck into the house and had been gone for a while. I'm not sure why Mr. Man went in, but when he did the sound of rushing water awaited him. Then the incessant screaming of my name. Apparently Little E either had a rather large excretion or else used way too much toilet paper and had clogged the toilet. Hoping it would fix itself, and being a child, he didn't tell us that the toilet was overflowing. Literally flooded the entire bathroom and started into the (carpeted) hallway. We cleaned up as much of the stinky mess as we could, stopped the flow and then returned to our company. A little bit later, Little E came out to report (since we'd given him the "please tell a parent when something goes wrong" lecture) that there was water dripping from the ceiling fan and light in the living room (directly BELOW the bathroom). Sure enough... poopy water was flowing through the ceiling fan onto our nice light carpet. "How to NOT freak out when crap like this happens" would be a good lecture for me to hear! Ugh. So we turned off the power in the living room (that Mr. Man argues is really the family room... another entry altogether) to let the light and fan dry out safely. Thus the candlelit bedtime ritual! Craziness in the midst of happiness. Or perhaps the other way around...