Easter Traditions

Easter isn't easter without thumbprint cookies. It just isn't. And it isn't the same if you put in vanilla as the falvoring, gotta use the anise. Normally I am selfless and make the frosting for my silly non-anise loving family with vanilla, but this year, well, this year I decided to be selfish and I made all of the thumbprint cookies with anise flavored frosting. Now no one will touch them. . . and I can have them all to myself. . . wait is that what I really wanted? Uh oh. I'm in for a fun doctors apt. weigh in.

Recital Number 3

Untitled from Jessica Brown on Vimeo.

The thing I love about having started Olivia out so young with a musical instrument, is that she does not know fear. Every recital she has had she walks up so bravely, and happily plays. We were especially proud of her for this performance.  She is still getting used to playing with a piano, because at home we don't have a piano to play with, so I was proud of how well she did with the piano's accompaniment. Yay Liv! We love you!

Washington Park Arboretum and UW Botanical Gardens

Have I ever mentioned how much I love where I live? In spite of the rainy weather, I really do love it here. One of my favorite things about where we live is how many free and wonderful things there are to do. It's good to know our high Washington taxes are going to something :).


On Saturday we decided to go on a little outing to check out the Arboretum and Botanical Gardens in Seattle. I can't believe we haven't gone yet, having lived here for 3 years! It was absolutely magical. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom. The kids loved traversing the little pathways and stairways through out the green gardens. I felt a little like Alice in Wonderland with all of the rose bushes and trees full of flowers. It was absolutely lovely. We enjoyed a nice picnic all to ourselves on a little bench that was sitting amongst all the flowers and trees in the sunlight. Yay for sunlight.


After our outing to the gardens, we were still wanting more. The kids were being awesome and Jaron and I were having fun exploring so we decided to take a jaunt down to Lake Washington and watch the sail boats launch. "Boat! Boat!" Warner kept yelling. He loved looking at all of the sail boats. And I'm sorry to say, Jaron and I laughed our buns off as we watched the UW class of sailors tip over and crash into the freezing cold water of lake Washington. Are we evil or what? Warner and Liv loved waving at the sailors as they came flying into the doc. And I think the people enjoyed their little audience as well. Warner would scream "Hi! Hi! Hi!" and wave profusely until they acknowledged him.

And now here are some pregnancy pics for those of you who are interested in my new state of LARGENESS.

Baby Brown is sure moving a lot these days. The other day he was punching or kicking or both on both sides and it looked like a wild animal was trapped inside of me. I feel really good, which is such a blessing. And aside from the huge vein that is now decorating that back of my thigh, I have no complaints. I only have 60 days left, if I go full term, more if I go over. Its time to start working on a name, stocking up on diapers and nursing pads, buy a second vehicle that fits the whole fam, organize the baby room, kick Warner out of his crib (that should be fun), and get my house organized! Good luck to us, huh? Its a darn good thing we are blessed with the nesting energy at the end right?


Speaking of names, got any good suggestions? We are stumped. I really like the name Mack. Jaron loves the name Lee Roy Mack Brown. I told him I'd go for Leroy, but not Lee Roy Mack Brown. That's just way too many names for a little kid to keep track of. That's all we've got so far. Your suggestions would be much appreciated :). Happy Tuesday! Stay tuned for a performance video from Olivia's third recital!

Today was a great day (prepare for some rambling)

Some days I love when Jaron takes the car, because it forces me to stay home and just slow down a little. Today was one of those days. We all slept in until about 8:00 which was so nice. I didn't get myself or the kids out of their pajamas until 10:30 or so. I layed in bed for an extra half hour, after the kids woke up, just because I was feeling lazy. Warner layed by me and we sang songs, cuddled, and played I spy, while Liv watched curious George downstairs. After a few hours of not really doing anything besides just hanging out, eating breakfast, and doing some violin games with Liv, we went for a walk outside. It was lovely. And I was so winded, but it felt good to move my body and get out of breath.


After some lunch, me and the kids hopped in the car of my v.t. companion and we went to visit teach a woman who I always walk away inspired and uplifted by.  Aside from the stinky poo that Warner did, my kids were so good the whole time we were there, and I really was able to have a good visit.


An hour later we were home again, and it was time for naps.  Well, it was time for Warners nap at least. I sort of thought I'de never say this, but I actually kind of enjoy the fact that Liv doesn't take naps anymore. Don't worry, I still get my quiet time if I need it, because she is so great about going in her room and just reading books or humming princess songs for an hour or two, but I love that sometimes we can just be together and get some one on one time again. Some days lately she will even come lay by me and play with my hair while I fall asleep. If I fall asleep I usually wake up to find her asleep next to me. 


Today, Olivia decided she could only handle about 45 minutes of quiet time, after which she came out and said "Mom, are you ready to play with me now?" I had been reading and was sort of dozing off when she came in, but was quite comfortable enough to really fall asleep, so I smiled and said "I sure am".  The next hour and a half commenced with reading books, dressing up, doing hair, and putting on make up. By the time I was done with her she was beaming and beautiful.  With a total powdered smile, she looked at her self in the mirror and said "Dad is going to think I'm so pretty". 



Somewhere in the middle of that Warner woke up so we dressed him up too, shhh don't tell Jaron.  When Jaron got home we enjoyed a lovely dinner with the kiddos and by lovely I mean-left over spaghetti from yesterday, which took me approximately three minutes to heat up.  Wahoo for not having to make dinner!


After dinner we had a girl from our ward come over so that we could go to the temple. Wahoo for girls that can drive themselves to our house! We got back from the temple to find our house complety clean, our kids nicely tucked in bed, and a babysitter who could drive herself home. Oh, what a wonderful day. I couldn't imagine a better one actually.  I realize more and more that at the end of the day, what makes a good day is if I have spent some quality time with each member of my family, the son, the daughter, and the husby. That makes a good day don't you think?

A Pink Flamingo Party

Last week my friends cute little daughter had a birthday, and she did a pink flamingo theme. It was darling! Everyone got these cute little flamingo glasses to wear, she had pink flamingo suckers, and pink flamingo toothpicks for use at lunch time. It was so fun. And as most of you know was right up Liv's alley. Thankfully it was good weather and the kids got to play outside.

After a few hours of playing, we left a little early to go visit a longtime friend, Laura Wright. It was so fun to see her and her sis. We grew up with this family and have so many fun memories together. And now she has a little baby boy. He is a doll! And I didnt' even get a picture of us together with our kids, I'm so mad! Oh well, I guess I'll just have to go visit her sometime in CA so we can get a picture together. :) Needless to say, it was such a fun day!

And I like to do my drawrings. . .

Don't worry Tim Burton has already contacted us about hiring her. 

I know its silly the things that I get so proud of. I remember the first time Liv pooed in a toilet. I was so happy I almost cried. 
This is a different kind of proud obviously, but seeing Olivia's little drawings makes my heart putter. Maybe because I know that she hasn't been taught how to do the things she draws, and that they come simply from her own observations of the world around her. I have never shown her how to draw people, I have never shown her how to draw rainbows. One day she just draws a rainbow, or a cloud, and its so cool to me that it makes me want to cry.  And its not that hard to make me cry these days.  Anyway, they come from her little brain and her little observations. And its so exciting to think of the little machinery turning in her brain as she draws her little stick figures. That being said, I really have no idea why she likes to draw lines on the lips, perhaps she dreams of zombies.  

Proof that the sun shines in Washington even if it is only once a month. . .

It has been rainy rainy rainy rainy! And today the sun came out, so even though the War bird was a little under the weather we had to get out. And get out we did, to the beach. Yay for the sun.

 

 

Heard

The other day I asked Olivia to go into her room and play human vaccum to see how many little things of trash she could gather off of her bedroom floor.  I brought her a grocery sack and said that she could deposit the trash in there.


A few minutes later I thought I would go check on my little human vacuum to see how progress was coming along.  As I turned the corner to enter her room I passed the open grocery bag, which hung as empty as I had left it on her bedroom door knob.  Olivia spotted me coming in, and said quickly, "Mom, I need to keep these".  "Keep what?" I asked.  She pointed to her dresser. "These trashs" she said.  I looked to where she was pointing to see  a carefully placed pile that was made up of broken strings, little pieces of miss-matched curly ribbon, and an assortment of colorful, used, and broken hair bands.


"Why" I asked, "must you keep these?"


"Because they remind me to be magical".


Case closed. She won me over with that one. And as far as I'm concerned that little magic provoking pile of "trashs" can stay there forever.

A Fun way to Learn the names of the Apostles