Meteor Nice to Meet You

Being parents, we have a responsibility to teach our kids to be courteous and respectful. To this end we periodically pull out a favorite family home evening lesson where stick-puppet superheroes representing good manners (Thunder Thank You, Power Please, etc.) rescue a person in different situations.

In last week's superhero-manners lesson we introduced a new superhero. Please welcome...Meteor Nice to Meet You.


"Here's a superhero who knows how to make an entrance. He comes to your rescue when you meet or greet someone."

Oh, we covered all of the basics: shaking hands, looking the person in the eye, not fidgeting, answering questions politely. Mitch and I pretended to be visitors and we role-played the situation with each of the boys. We even took brownies to a friend's house and practiced on them.

Real-life application

Yesterday Mitch invited a friend over for brownies and ice cream. Before he arrived, we reminded the kids about Meteor Nice to Meet You.
"Don't forget to shake Eric's hand and look him in the eye," we admonished. The doorbell rang. Caleb and Adam greeted Eric at the door and did very well with their manners. Before Eric got five steps inside, Dallin streaked in wielding a Nerf shotgun, shot Eric in the leg, laughed, and ran for cover.
Meteor Nice to Meet You was MIA.


(Sorry about that, Eric.)

Frightening Firsts

The other day I was sitting at the computer nursing Brandt and paying bills. Suddenly I heard Adam call,"Sorry, Mom!" Uh-oh. I pushed my chair back to watch him come down the hall toward me. He wasn't wearing a shirt (another story) and his face and chest were just dripping with... what!? I took me about one second to figure out that it was Children's Motrin. Yep. Those so-called, child-proof lids? Well, they're not child-proof.

At this point I made my first-ever call to Poision Control. It turned out Adam had spilled most of the medicine down the sink, and he had not ingested a toxic amount. Thank goodness!

So Adam can claim credit for my first call to Poison Control. On seperate occasions (visits to Urgent Care), Dallin had the first broken bone in the family, and Caleb, the first stitches. Here's hoping this list of frightening firsts is also a list of lasts.

More Pictures of Brandt

Brandt Logan

He's here!
Brandt arrived on Sunday, June 21st at 5:12 a.m. He weighed in at 7 lbs 1 oz, and measured 19 1/2 inches long.

Minutes after Brandt's birth. This is one proud Daddy.

Everything went well for both Brandt and me. It was my smoothest labor.

Coincidentally, Mitch's parents were able to see Brandt just in time before leaving for home, and they were a big help with our other boys.

I haven't seen such a genuine ear-to-ear smile on this kid for a long time. That's the kind of wonder inspired by holding your baby brother for the first time.

Dallin asked me what baby Brandt's superhero power is. I told him that it is super-cuteness. Any evil villans that come upon him would stop short, masks in hand, to exclaim, "Awww!" "Look at his tiny toes!"and every evil plan in their heads would be replaced by a desire to wash with antibacterial soap so as to tickle his chin or hold him. Dallin agreed.

The first time Adam held Brandt, he cried. So for a while, Adam refused to hold him again because, "He cries for me." Finally he consented to hold him with his Dad, and as Brandt lay contentedly in his arms, he lit up. When Mitch asked Adam if we should keep the baby or take him back to the hospital, Adam heartily exclaimed that we should keep him. We agree.

Welcome, Brandt. We're so glad you're here.

Happy Mommy

Sometimes they drive. Me. Crazy. But I wouldn't trade being a mom for anything.



I am so blessed to be the mother of such sweet, wonderful boys. I love them so much.
Including their unborn brother.


And Mom, I love you too. Thanks for everything.

A New Pastime (read: obsession)

To sum up, take a look at something Dallin said at lunch recently:

When I go to heaven I'll take the TV with me.
And the Wii.
And Lego Star Wars.

We got Lego Star Wars for the Wii a couple of months ago and since then it's become the most common topic of conversation between Caleb and Dallin: discussing all the guys, their abilities, and "remember that one part"s. They've picked Mitch's and my memory of who's who in Star Wars, and we've watched the first couple of movies together.

The game got so consuming (for Dallin especially) we had to initiate (drumroll...) the Media Minute Program, where they have a weekly allotment of media minute coins to use during the week. Dallin always runs out and then there's (sometimes fits and tempers) a lot of striving to earn more minutes. It's a constant thing. Sigh. I'm glad they have so much fun, but I hope the fervor dies down soon.

Caleb's 7th Birthday