Parenthood 101

Abby had pealed a hard boiled egg and left the peel on the floor in the living room. I asked her to please pick up the shells. She came in the kitchen, where I was and declared that she had picked them up. Then I asked if she had put them in the garbage. She just looked at me like "Oops, I forgot", she ran back into the living room and gathered the shells from off the piano bench. I just assumed that she knew what to do with them.
I forget that I have to be specific with kids, especially 4 year olds.

More of Dallin's Birthday

The girls and I did this little stop movie for Dallin's birthday, while the boys and Clint went to do an obstacle course for some scouts. I also forgot to put pictures of his cake.....

A birthday wish for Dallin

Well, he did it....Yes, Dallin turned the big 11 today! I think he had a terrific day. He spent the day, after church of course, playing with his new Lego sets. He also was excited to get his new boy scout uniform. Yes, he now gets to go on camping trips and have some "real" fun with scouting. (Not that cubs wasn't fun, just a different kind of fun.) He loves scouts! I just can't believe he's a boy scout already. He's growing up sooo fast! Here are some pictures.......Look at all these people who love you Dallin!

Look! A new scout uniform!Thanks kids for the space patrol legos, I love them!Thanks to all who gave me gifts and who wished me "Happy Birthday"!

Contest at Legocondz

For those of you who don't know, Dallin has a blog for his lego creations. Right now, he is doing a little contest, so go over to his blog and find out how you can enter. You won't be sorry!

Happy Easter

Well, today has been a good Easter day so far. Yesterday, we dyed eggs. (Which was fun!) This morning we woke up to Elsa trying to convince Abby, who was in our bed, to come out and see what the Easter bunny left her in her basket. Needless to say, it didn't take much convincing. The kids had fun looking in their baskets and snacking on them while we watched conference. (After eating a nutritious breakfast, of course). Then, after we got spiritually filled, the kids hunted for eggs outside. It is a good day so far. Next, is the last session of conference, then a dinner of lasagne (we had our Easter dinner last week) it's a good thing too because Clint's not feeling well. Anyway, enjoy the pictures...video soon to come!We love to decorate Easter eggs!
The boys were reading a letter from the Easter bunny, it read;

Dear Kids,
I hope you are doing well and are having a great Easter day so far. I hope you will always remember the real reason we celebrate Easter. Although it's fun to hunt for Easter eggs and receive goodies in Easter baskets. Let's not forget that our Savior, Jesus Christ died for us and was resurrected so that we can live again, and one day, if we live faithful, we can live again with our Father in heaven and our families forever. So as we celebrate Easter today let's remember our Savior, Jesus Christ and ALL that he did for us.
Love,
The Easter Bunny

T-ball anyone?

One day last week, Calvin and the girls were outside playing. When I came out to see what they were playing I was very impressed by what I saw.

Empty shampoo bottle.....$1.97
Spiderman trash can........$10
Having fun with his sister........priceless
Calvin may act tough, but deep down he loves his sisters. It's so good to see that he plays so well with them. We love you, Calvin!

I would've got some video of Abby, but she decided she didn't want to play by the time it was her turn again to bat. (Isn't that how it always goes.)

Update on the kids

I wanted to write about what the children are up to these days. For your sakes, my sake, and our posterity. Dallin is a happy kid most of the time. He puts up with a lot from him siblings. (Teasing, arguing, you know, the normal sibling behavior.) He's such a sweet boy and I can't believe he's going to be 11 in less than a month. He's been working diligently on his Webelos activity pins and Arrow of Light. We both have been so proud of him with that and with his schooling. He's doing school at home through Nevada Connections Academy. He has to really have self discipline and he's starting to show that he understands that and has been trying really hard these past few weeks. He has a report that he's reading up on about the Apollo Missions. As he reads about it, he excitedly tells me about what he learned. It's so fun to be his "learning coach". Also he and Abby are becoming good friends and Abby loves her big brother! They're so cute together.He loves to build creations and make stop animations with his legos. He's pretty good at it too. (For someone who just started). You can go to his Lego site and see his first movie he made if you want. He's a great kid and Clint and I love him very much.

Calvin is such a good boy too. He loves life and when anyone is around him there's always an adventure. He comes up with fun and creative games, even Elsa likes to play with him. (He doesn't mind playing with her either). He loves his sisters and will be an excellent "body guard" for them when they're older.He also has a testimony of the Gospel and always asks the best questions. Today in church he sat next to me in sharing time, (o.k. I sat next to him), and as we were listening to the lesson he quietly pointed out on the bulletin board. The presidency had him and the other kids write down their testimony's at the start of the year. Then they put them on the bulletin board with the primary theme for the year. I read it to myself and realized that not only does he actually listen in primary and home evenings, but he has a tender testimony of the Savior. In it he talked about how he knows Jesus lives and then went on to tell how Satan was cast out of heaven and tempted Adam and Eve to eat the fruit and they were cast out of "heaven". Of course he meant out of the garden. I've been so pleased with him lately and choosing the right. It helps that he has a good group of kids his age who have the same goals in life. I'm so happy with my boys! I love that they love cub scouts. It's hard to get Calvin excited about doing it sometimes at home, but he's loves to go to his scout meetings. I've been kind of neglecting him by the way of scouts, because I've been trying to get Dallin all finished with Webelos. Don't worry, I have every intention to start helping Calvin with earning his Bear as soon as Dallin's done. (Watch out Calvin, here I come!)
He's such a character. Yesterday I helped the boys with their room, to clean it and reorganize it. Dallin and I had been working on it for a while and were sorting everything into baskets. The one with things that didn't belong in their room was getting full. So I called Calvin in to have him take the basket around the house and put things away. Well, he threw a fit, saying it wasn't fair that he should do it and that lasted for a while. Then he begrudging started putting the stuff away. (Which he did actually put everything away instead of just throwing it in the girls room, as he and Dallin usually do.) The rest of the day he was such a pleasure to work with. We, all three of us, laughed and joked about things and had a good time. Now their room is clean and their bunk beds aren't bunk beds anymore. I'll see how long that lasts. It makes their small room seem smaller, but they love it!
On to Elsa! What can I say about Elsa. She is still silent at school and VERY talkative at home. She loves her teacher, friends, and every thing about school. Lately she hadn't been feeling well and she's missed a week of school. She's better now and we're counting our blessings that it wasn't anything more than a head cold. (With having no insurance and all).She can be so sweet when she wants to be. She constantly teases Dallin and Abby, and it drives me crazy. In fact, she teases who ever she's by. At church today, she first sat by Dallin. Then he moved to the other side of his Dad. Elsa was sad, so I let her move next to me and she kept bumping her head against my arm. I told her to stop and she kept doing it, so I pretended like I didn't feel it and kept singing the song we were singing. Guess what? She stopped. (See Dallin and Abby, ignoring her does work.) She doesn't tease Calvin so much because he won't put up with it at all and she doesn't like his reaction.Elsa is so smart however. Clint and I are helping her teacher by assessing her reading skills to see what level she's at. The last book she read, she had no problems getting through it. (She read it like a pro). Her teacher said it was level 20 or where a 2nd grade student should be at the beginning of the year. She loves to read, and tries to read Calvin's chapter books. She's not quite to that level yet, but she's getting close. She also enjoys reading the scriptures with us. She makes us laugh all the time with her funny one-liners and quick whit. She also tries to tell really good jokes, but they usually end only funny to her and their punch lines are always really long and drawn out.She loves her brothers and sister. She enjoys playing with Abby at times and I love to secretly watch them as they make up little games, and stories. I also will catch Elsa teaching Abby things like the school stuff and telling her all about life, as she knows it. It's so cute.

Abigail is one of a kind. She's still keeping us on our toes. She also is very sweet and seems to know just what to say. One night when I was trying to get every one to bed, needless to say, I was a little irritated. They all finally went down and I was tickling Abby's back. (A new night-time ritual). My frustration must've shown on my face because she turned her headed towards me and looked right in my eyes and said, "I like you, Mom!" I couldn't help but smile and I told her that I liked her too. Then she said, "If you like me, then smile." I smiled my biggest smile. She smiled her biggest too. It's amazing how such a little girl can turn my mood around.I can't believe she is going to be in Kindergarten next year. I've really enjoyed having her home with me. She's so fun and says and does the funniest things. Lately, she hasn't wanted to go to bed, what child likes to, right? She will cry and cry. She say anything to have me let her get out or postpone her bedtime. The past few nights I've just stood by her doorway listening to her with my back towards her. (because I'm laughing). She starts out by saying, "I need a drink." Then it goes to, "Momma, help!" She makes herself almost fall out of bed, (I know she's safe.)
Then she cries, "I'm tired! Hurray Mom! I'm tired!" Then she will finally fall asleep.
She loves her big brothers and sister. She also loves and always talks about her friends in her primary class. She was recently invited to her friend, Abby's birthday party this Saturday. She always asks, "Is it Abby's party today?" She can't wait.
She is our little ray of sunshine and we love her!

Flash back!

This is Elsa at age 4, at Legoland. I was finally able to put it on youtube, then here. So enjoy! Oh and feel free to add any commentary as you watch it. I couldn't figure out how to add it or music as I was making this video. I'm still learning this Windows 7/moviemaker program. Anyway, here it is....Clint and I thought this was one of the funniest moments in our kids lives. We laughed so hard. I understand though if it's not that funny for any of you. Usually your own child is more funny to you than someone else's. Know what I mean?! Enjoy!

2010 Pinewood Derby

Yes! It's pinewood derby time! It was a lot of fun this year and ALL the boys had a good time!

I can't believe it was Dallin's last year. In April he'll be an 11 year old scout. (Where did the time go? It seems like yesterday that he was a wolf.) Anyway, here are some photos and video of the derby....Enjoy! The last few videos are Clint's and mine. The Cub leaders made cars and raced against each other and guess who won....that's right...ME. (Thanks Clint for doing my wheels and axles). The young men and women made derby cars for their activity and Clint made one that was fast, but since they could make theirs with unlimited weight, Clint's didn't win. A kid named Joey with a car that weighed a little over a pound won. They all had a lot of fun!Just before the race! Can you feel the excitement?!I love this picture! The car that's in it is the 6th boy over from the right.
I love the boys faces as they watch their cars. So cute!Dallin's car is in the red lane, Calvin's is in the white lane, and their friend,
Brock's car was in the blue lane. Brock's car was pretty darn fast. Dallin won 2nd place! He was happy, yet a little disappointed
that he didn't win 1st. (Ya can't win'em all) He's such a good sport though, and didn't
let it bother him. He knows that it's just a fun race and we're all
there to have fun! He WAS so happy to get 2nd! Was this a happy kid or what?
Calvin won 1st! Next year he'll have quite the challenge,
there were alot of boys, (with Dad's), who are new to cub's, who
worked hard to make their cars fast.
(Between their cars in the first race of their heat, it was about 300th's of a second...photo finish)

My car is the purple car with the #1. (or the leader:))
Clint's car was the one that won, and the one that bounced back and knocked the other car off the track.

Lego man prank call

This is a hilarious, actual, prank call done with none other than Legos. Dallin and Calvin are very much into legos and you tube. We hope you enjoy this....

The Christmas Adventure....The room under the stairs

For those of you, who are not part of the Anderson family, I feel like I need to explain our new Family blog header. At Christmas time in 2008, we, the whole Anderson clan, went to Stonehill, which is what my parents call there new house because it is built on a hill with lots of stones in it. My parents try to write a family story for the the grandkids every Christmas or so. They wrote the cutest one ever this particular Christmas in 2008. All the grandkids in it, were animals. Dallin was a bear, Calvin was a puppy, Elsa was a duck, and Abby was a squirrel. Just for your information, the rest of the cousins consisted of a monkey, elephant, 2 bunnys (the twins), a beaver, a pony, a kangaroo, and a lamb. It was a story of the older "animals" taking care of the younger "animals" and "oh what mischief those babies got into." It's a cute story and my kids LOVE it. They always want me to read it to them. Their grand parents gave them the story book, and the stuffed animal that they were. Except the older boys, they got jean quilts with fleece material on the back with their animal printed on it. Anyway, it's a special and fun story that we all love and the kids always talk about how they are a duck or squirrel or bear or puppy when they see any of those animals. It's fun!

The Family Recipe blog

Our recipe blog has been neglected long enough. I was going through some of my recipes that I printed off of the computer and thought that I needed to put them on the blog and not put it off any longer. So I started to and still have a lot more to put on, so keep tuning in to see more yummy recipe's that we've tried and loved. Also feel free to put some of your own on.

Elsa turned the big 7

Yes, it's true! Elsa is 7 years old. My little girl is growing up way too fast. She had a good day. It started at school. I made cupcakes for her class and then her Dad took them in. Elsa was very happy about that. Then later that night, she wanted to go to Cici's Pizza, so we all went and enjoyed all you can eat pizza and then came home, opened presents, ate cake, and watched the new movie she got. (Cloudy with a chance of meatballs). Cute movie.
Now for seven things about Elsa,
1. She is very creative in her play.
2. She loves to draw and is very good at it.
3. She's a good friend. She has a few little friends at school and she is always talking about them (at home) and drawing pictures for them.
4. She 's a good big sister.
5. She loves to go to primary.
6. She is so happy all the time and makes us laugh.
7. She is a good student and is very smart.

Another great thing that happened on her birthday was that her cousin was born. Uncle Cedric and Aunt Sarah had their baby, they named him Baxter Lewis Anderson. (You can see pictures of him here.) She is so happy to share her birthday with one of her little cousin. We made this cupcake just for him.

Happy Birthday to Baxter Lewis! These were for Elsa's classHooray for presents!
Thanks Aunt Danielle, Uncle Anthony, Aunt Steph,
Aunt Tracy, and of course, James
for the Didj Tinkerbell game!
Also, thanks Aunt Lisa for the gift card!Yeah for new movies!Thanks Grandma and Papa for the cute outfit
and Aunt Hannah for the paper doll! I love them!Hooray for Dora! Thanks for the sweat bands Abby!The cake was a Dora theme and Elsa's favorite, chocolate!

Blast from the past

I was watching some of our videos from a while ago. (O.K. a long time ago). I can say that because I can't believe how fast my family is growing up (and we have a LOT of videos).
This one is of Elsa when she was 4 years old. (I guess it wasn't too long ago). I decided to share it with all of you because she is so funny. In this video, we're at Legoland and she is driving? the little lego cars. She is having a hard time keeping her foot on the pedal and steering at the same time. Anyway, here is the little movie. Don't worry if you don't find it adorable and hilarious as I do. I understand that I might find MY own child more funny and cute than someone else would think of her. I'm rambling now......here it is....Actually I uploaded this one of Abby playing peek-a-boo at Disneyland while we were waiting for the parade to start. She was so cute! The video of Elsa wouldn't upload for some reason. (maybe it is too long). I'll try to upload it to you tube first. Anyway....here's Abby....

Will miracles never cease?!

About a week ago, we were all sitting and watching a movie one Friday night. While we watched, I painted Abby's finger and toe nails. She loved it so much that when I was done she asked her Dad if she could paint his nails. To my surprise he let her. He even let me take this picture. What a good Dad! I guess the power of Dad and daughter is BIG! The song by The Cranberries, "You got me wrapped around your finger" runs through my mind as I think about this.
BTW, Do you love Abby's tongue? She does that when she concentrates. (She gets that from the Singer side.)

Happy 2010!

I know it's been 2010 for a while now, and I am just now updating our blog. I've been pretty busy trying to get our house de-junked. (I still have a long way to go.) Anyway, I had a few minutes, while the kids are sleeping, to blog. So here we go.

For New Years Eve, we had a pretty fun evening. We had pita pockets and all the fixings for dinner, then did fondue. (My favorite). We dipped pretzels, bananas, strawberries, and marshmallows in milk chocolate and white chocolate. MMMM, YUMMY! We also watched one of our new movies we got for Christmas. Monsters vs. Aliens. It was fabulous and we all had fun together as a family. So now here are the pictures to prove it...

Then, of course, we also had cookies and this really yummy pumpkin spice cake. No wonder the kids were able to stay up for the New Year. Well, actually Elsa was the only one who fell asleep before midnight. She did, however, make it until about 11:30 or so. Then Abby zonked out next around 12:15 and then the boys went to bed after the movie was over at 1:00. Needless to say we ALL slept in the next morning.

Our Christmas

On Christmas Eve, when we're are with Clint's family or just by ourselves, we usually will have pizza for Christmas Eve. It was a tradition carried on from Clint's family. I liked it because it was one less thing for me to do on that day to get ready for Christmas. Well, this year we decided that it might be fun to make our own pizza instead of buying it. At first I wasn't sure if I wanted to do it because I knew that I would be the only one in the kitchen making it. Well, as it came closer to the time that we were to make it, I thought of different ways to involve the kids and Clint to ensure that I was not the only one doing all the work. Everyone was happy to help and we all had a blast making our pizza's. A supreme for Clint and me, and a pepperoni for the kids. It turned out a little doughy in the middle, but still was pretty good. Next time I'll leave it in the oven a little longer. Anyway, we then cleaned up the kitchen and then proceeded with our little Christmas program. We sang Christmas songs from the childrens primary song book. Then, the girls and myself told the story of Jesus with the flannel board. I don't know how much of it they actually understood, because they both had to put on equal number of pieces. It was a little chaotic, but Clint and I managed to help the kids understand some of the story. Then the kids opened their p.j.'s (another tradition), then since it was really late, they went to bed before Santa passed by our house because they were not asleep. Well, Christmas morning came and Yes, Santa did come! The kids came in to our bedroom and wanted to go out and see what Santa brought them. I love seeing the anticipation on their little faces. They lined up in the hallway from youngest to oldest. Then, I went out to turn on the Christmas lights on the tree. Then told them it was o.k. to come out now. We all had a wonderful Christmas and thanks to Grandma and Papa, and all their Aunts and Uncles, the kids were spoiled this year. We truly appreciate our family! Here are some pictures of our holiday....

The picture in the middle is the kids and their new p.j.'s. The girls liked their's despite the look on their faces. The boys got cool boomerangs from Abby and Mom that we made with Clint's help. (They drew their names this year.) The girls got got jewelry boxes that Dallin and Elsa made with the help of their Dad. (Dallin drew Elsa's name and Elsa drew Abby's.) Calvin had Clint's name and he made him a coupon book.
Thanks to Ebay and Walmart Dallin got and Leapfrog Crammer, Calvin got a Leapfrog Didj, Elsa also got a Didj, but pink, and Abby got a princess oven that cooks with cool air. It's pretty cool. (No pun intended). The Crammer and Didj's are handheld video games that help them learn while they're playing. They love them and I love them because I can plug them into the computer and track their learning. Also they can put they're spelling lists, or math lessons right on the didj's and they will go right into the game. Awesome! Another great thing about them is they're WAY cheaper than Nintendo DSi's. I love that they love them. Calvin got a Star Wars and Indiana Jones game and Elsa got a Super Chicks game.
The boys got their tools and toolboxes finally. We got them last year and forgot to give them to them, so we saved them for this year. They loved them. The kids also got the movie "Aliens in the Attic". Clint and I thought it would be a low budget film. We were wrong, it was pretty good and FUNNY. The kids were pretty excited to get it. Thanks Aunt Lisa. The girls got Playmobiles that we've had for a long time and managed to hide all this time from the kids. They loved them. Well, we had a memorable Christmas and we all can't wait for the next one. Stay tuned for our New Years Eve!

So much to post.....

As I was doctoring up our photos in Picnik, I realized that I never actually did a post to show you the Christmas dresses for the girls.

I got a Hanna Anderson catalogue in the mail a couple months ago and they had the cutest sweater dresses for prices a little above our price range. So I thought, "Hey, I could probably make these, Yeah, I could make these." So with the help of a couple blogs which posted about repurposing sweaters, (I love the internet) I set to work. It took 1 day to complete both dresses and they were only $3 each. (I got the sweaters at D.I.)Abby's turned out a little too big, but that's o.k. she will be able to wear it longer.

Our Year in Review 2009

First, let me say that we hope that all is well with every one of you who are reading this. We truly hope you are doing well.
I guess I'll start with Abby. She is our little "firecracker". She makes us laugh and crazy all in the same day. She is full of energy and imagination. You never know what will come out of that girls mouth, but whatever she says will either make you laugh or make you go "Oh, my goodness! What did you do?" Like the time when she decided to cut her own hair. Many of you remember that post. Or just the other day she was playing with Elsa and we heard her say, "What is your name, dude?" Or when she plays "house" with her Mom and she proclaims that she is the mom and her Mom is the baby. Then proceeds to play the part and expects her Mom to as well. Abby just turned 4 in September and we can't believe that she is going to go to kindergarten next year. She is growing up so fast and so smart. She loves being a Sunbeam and loves all of her little friends in her class. She is pure joy to have in our family and we are glad she came to us.
Elsa is in 1st grade and is doing so well. She still hasn't said anything to her teacher or her classmates, but that doesn't stop her from making friends and participating in class. She has 3 little friends that love her and treat her as if she talked. Her teacher was telling me that one day she was watching them talk and they carried on a conversation with Elsa as if she was talking to them. At school Elsa is quiet, but at home it's another story. She is going to be 7 in February and she does not let any of us forget it. She is very imaginative and creative in everything she does. She also loves to draw and write stories and poems and is pretty good at it. We love Elsa and are so glad she is part of our family.
Calvin is 9 years old and in 3rd grade. He loves school and is in the gifted and talented program. He has a good teacher this year who is willing to challenge him which is such a relief to his Mom and Dad. (They had a hard time with Dallin and his teachers.) Anyway, Calvin is working on his Bear in Cub Scouts and is loving it. Although he would never admit it, he loves his sisters and brother a lot. When the school year started, Elsa needed help to find her dot where her class lines up to go to class. I secretly watched as Calvin took Elsa by the hand and showed her where her dot was. Also, there were a couple days when I let them walk to school together. I also secretly watched as they walked hand-in-hand to school. Calvin, is such a sweet and sensitive little spirit and we are lucky to have him as part of our family.
Dallin is 10 1/2 years old. He is in 5th grade. Yes! You read right. We have a 5th grader on our hands. He is home schooling with Nevada Connections Academy this year. As I said in Calvin's paragraph, we had quite a time trying to get Dallin's teachers, in years past, to challenge him. This school is working out great for him and he is loving it. It is still is hard to get him to stick to a task, but when he does, he does a great job. He is a Webelos scout and loving every bit about it. He has his Webelos badge and is now working towards his Arrow of Light. He loves his brother and sisters. He loves the gospel and tries his best to be a good example to his siblings. We love Dallin and are glad he is in our family.
Britta is still the Assistant Cub Master. She loves being in Cub Scouts with her boys. She is also the teacher of the Valiant 12 class and loves to teach those kids as they go from primary to young men and young women's. She is a busy wife and mother and loves to do digital scrapbooking, sewing, crafts in her spare time. She loves the Gospel and loves her sweet husband and children.
Clint has been working for American Asphalt and Grading for almost 7 years. He was just recently laid off and is currently looking for work. We are confident that with his skills and knowledge of his field he will find a good job soon. He is still serving as the Young Mens President and loving it. He loves to go on camp outs, hiking trips, mountain biking trips, etc with the Boys Scouts. He just went out to shoot bows and arrows with them and took Dallin and Calvin. They loved it and I know that Clint is thrilled that our boys are old enough to do stuff like that with him.
As we ponder all of the things that our Father in Heaven has given to us, it brings deep meaning this Christmas season. What IS the true meaning of Christmas? It is celebrating Jesus Christ and ALL that he did for us. We are so grateful for a loving Father in Heaven and the gift of his only Begotten. We hope that all of you have a wonderful Christmas. We love all of you!
The Singers
Clint, Britta, Dallin, Calvin, Elsa, and Abigail

Our Family in 2009

On Sunday, we did our annual Christmas pictures. This year we did them after church, so the girls hair wasn't just so. Oh well, I think they still look good. It was an interesting experience trying to get the kids pictures. Abby didn't want to get in the picture and the other kids were goofing around with each other and I was getting frustrated (but not enough to not take pictures of it all), then suddenly Abby got in and they took an Awesome picture.
Not bad huh?