Wild Kingdom

While mowing the lawn I almost ran over a baby snake and two baby rabbits. (This was in the wild, behind-the-fence portions of our lawn.)

To be honest, I would have been more upset to run over the snake since it gets rid of pests, whereas the baby rabbits, while extremely cute, would just be pests.

While in the garage I found a pair of Lightening McQueen underpants in the can I keep all my gardening gloves in. I have no idea how they got there or if they're clean or not. (They're up higher than Spencer can reach, although I'm pretty sure Josh could throw that high.)

To be honest, I was more surprised by the snake and rabbits.

"Happy" Father's Day

I can't say that Father's Day started so well for Lance.

Because it didn't.

Mainly because he had to get up at the crack of dawn (literally!) for bishopric meetings. Then, during the meetings, he discovered he was supposed to speak in Sacrament meeting this week. (The counselor who was supposed to assign it never asked him. Big oops.) So he had less than two hours and two meetings to write a ten minute talk.

And he pulled it off like a champ. It was awesome!

Well, the parts that I heard, anyway. The boys decided to be AWFUL today in church. I mean, just terrible. About halfway through Lance's talk they started throwing punches over a couple of cars. I tried to drag them both out at once, but that's more than 80 pounds of writhing little boys, and I was wearing heels, so I just couldn't do it. So I drug Spencer, screaming, from the room first. He yelled "Don't hurt me, mommy!" as we walked out the door. Then I went back for Josh and pulled him out as well. (He's young but smart - he knows that if he's taken out of church it won't be fun!)

It wasn't one of our finer moments.

But hopefully our Father's day gifts and kisses and hugs made up for it.

Since Lance already earmarked his Father's Day funds, we took the homemade gift route. The other night at the LAN widows and orphans party we made cute magnets for our dads. Spencer decided he only wanted to make one for himself. So I made Lance these magnets:
Cool, huh? (And perfect for an uber-geek like Lance, who reminded me that there are only cherries in Mrs. Pacman, not original Pacman. I stand corrected.) I even made him a couple of matching tie tacks. Because you know that every man wants to have a Pacman tie tack.

I also made this cool Pampered Chef Angel Almond Cherry Roll (or whatever it's called; I'm too lazy to get up and find the real name) for dessert. (At least it wasn't a cake!)
Lance, you rock. You are the world's best husband and dad. I would make a million Pacman tie tacks and magnets if you wanted me to. I love you!

p.s. I also decided that my dad, who is also the world's best dad, needed some homemade magnets, too. Since he's an entomologist, he got bugs. What do you think? Do I have a future career in clay magnet making?

Scary

We just had a pretty scary thunderstorm rush through our area.

I was at the sink doing some dishes. I could see the low, dark, ominous clouds roll in. They were really scary looking. Then, in the distance I could see the big trees, one by one starting shake and bend in the wind. It came fast and strong and literally shook our house (and the neighbors') with a loud bang. I could see the wind! (The news said it was upwards of 70 mph.)

It was one of the most interesting/scary things I have ever seen in my life.

In related news, due to the lovely humidity and the fact that it seems to be getting curly, my hair was extra big today. I mean, extra big.

It was also one of the scariest things I have ever seen in my life.

Come to think of it, my hair seems to get extra big when we are going to have extra big thunderstorms. I have a weather-forecasting station on my head!

Aren't I the lucky one?

Poor Lance

Poor Lance.

He thinks no one loves him because only one person entered the 30 Years of Lance Quiz. I told him that everyone loves him and knows him so much that they didn't feel the need to answer such an easy quiz.

I don't think he believed me.

But no matter, because we do have a winner: my little brother Kevin! (Kevin, I'll bring your prize to UT this summer. Yes, I am too cheap to mail it if I don't have to!)

And no, it's not just because he was the only one to enter.

Okay, yes it is. But he did get eight out of ten correct, and that's pretty good!

So, in case you've been pondering, wondering, musing about the answers, here they are:

1. Where was Lance born?
a. Toronto, Canada, eh?
b. Vista, California
c. Provo, Utah
d. Otterbein, Indiana
Vista is by San Diego. It's also where, by sheer coincidence, my brother Kyle now lives. (Small world, right?)

2. In what was Lance born?
a. The hospital
b. The side of the road
c. In a barn
d. At home
Lance's mom is a much braver soul than I am and had Lance at home. (I, however, am a firm believer in hospitals, doctors, nurses, and, most importantly, epidurals. You know, giving birth the way the good Lord intended.)

3. What is Lance’s middle name?
a. William
b. Bernard
c. Dance
d. Vigo
So is Spencer's, in case you're wondering. It's also his Dad's first name, although he goes by Viggo.

4. Lance is the:
a. Oldest child
b. Middle child
c. Youngest child
d. Only child
Classic, classic middle child. Oh wait, no he's not. And that's totally Lance - disproving any theories.

5. Where did Lance serve his mission?
a. Miami, Florida
b. Hamburg, Germany
c. Los Angeles, California
d. London, England
Yep, born in southern CA, served his mission there, too. But actually, he and his parents were living in Utah when he got his call, so it's not that weird. I laugh every time I picture him as the skinny little white boy that he was in the ghettos of L.A.!

6. What level did Lance get to in Scouting?
a. Star
b. Wolf
c. Bear
d. Eagle
Yep, a card-carrying Eagle scout. Be impressed. (I am - no other male in my family has even come close to that!) (And my dad was a scout master!)

7. How old was Lance when he met his baby momma… a.k.a. Maren?
a. 17
b. 22
c. 5
d. 14
Yep, we met for the first time at a high school football game when we were freshmen. I can still see all 98 pounds of him in my mind's eye. No, we weren't high school sweethearts - I dated his friends instead! (Saving the best for last, right?)

8. What is Lance’s favorite food?
a. Italian
b. Thai
c. Mexican
d. Junk
Every week while I plan my menus for dinner I ask Lance what we should have. He always answers "Pasta". Always. (It should be mentioned, however, that Junk Food is probably a close second.)

9. What is Lance’s all-time favorite TV show?
a. Lost
b. The Simpsons
c. Transformers
d. Desperate Housewives
Homer: Marge, it takes two to lie. One to lie and one to listen.

10. What has Lance never done?
a. Biked through Death Valley
b. Had a gay roommate
c. Built a giant pyramid out of
school chairs
d. Been to the Grand Canyon
He claims it's just a big hole in the ground - what's the big deal? Freak.

Sloganizer

Having been in advertising for several years, I pay closer attention to slogans than the average person usually does.

I came across this fun site the other day. Just type in a word or name, and it automatically comes up with a slogan for it.

My favorites for Maren:

Do it with Maren. (*YIKES!*) (But, you have to admit, funny.)
The Maren look. (That would be the "humidity-induced-bird's-nest-hair" look today.)
My Maren, your Maren, Maren for all! (Yes, comrade!)
Feel the magic of Maren. (Sweet.)

My favorites for 'lurrrve':

Be inspired by lurrve.
Lurrve groove.
There's only one true lurrve.
3... 2... 1... lurrve.

Ah... I need to get off this computer.

Any good slogans for your names?

p.s. I just did Lance's name. The first (and best) that came up was "One goal, one passion - Lance."

Things I Learned Today

1. The harder the boys fight against going to the Toy Room at the YMCA while I work out, the harder they will fight not to leave when I'm done an hour later. Whatever.

2. Never, never, NEVER take the boys to the library without a stroller. I thought they would behave. I thought wrong. They were good in the kid section, but as soon as we tried to get some books for me they started to behave like the little banshees that they are. They ran around, yelling, banging on the (very loud) metal book carts, and shaking all the signs on poles that they could find. I wanted to walk away and leave them there, but all the librarians already knew they were my kids.

3. Lance needs adult supervision when using the freezer out in the garage. He accidentally left the door ajar this morning, and I discovered it about an hour ago. Most of the important stuff was still okay, but we lost a lot of meals I had frozen, the ice cream for bunko this Tuesday, and other random things. On the plus side, I've needed to defrost that freezer for about a year now, and this is certainly forcing the issue!

4. I keep thinking that we're almost out of Worcestershire sauce. Not that we use it all that much, but for some reason I keep buying it. We now have half a bottle in the fridge and 2-3 more in the garage pantry. Somebody stop me, people!

First Days of Summer

Summer has already started as far as we're concerned. Has nothing to do with the weather and everything to do with: 1) T-ball started yesterday, and 2) We went swimming today.

T-ball
Every red-blooded American knows that baseball = summer. (You didn't know that? What are you doing reading my blog then, you freedom-hating commie?)

Spencer is on the Yankees. (But don't let the Y on his hat fool you - that's for YMCA.) His coach is 15 years old (maybe) and wore flip-flops. But that's okay, because it's t-ball for Pete's sake. T-ball is very entertaining; it's something akin to trying to teach a pack of uncoordinated, floppy-eared, huge-footed, adorable puppies how to ballroom dance. (Or just a bunch of four year olds how to play baseball.) It's going to be a great six weeks.

A few pictorial highlights:

Spencer would hit the ball and then chase after it rather than run the bases. (He wasn't the only one, though, so that's okay.) He figured it out by the end, though! Kinda...

Josh just loved watching the team practice. He acted as the first base coach (on the sidelines) and yelled at Spencer and told him when to run. It was incredibly cute.

Lance watching his first-born son hit the ball, run to first base, then to second, and then run to get the ball that the next batter hit.

The might Yankees ball player.

Spencer loved every minute of it and nearly had a fit when we had to leave. (But that's what happens when practice ends 25 minutes after bedtime.)

Swimming

When I was a kid we used to go to the community pool just about every day during the Summer. So this year I've bought a pass to Tropicanoe Cove and plan to take the boys at least a couple times a week. We went for the first time today and even though the breeze made it a little chilly the boys had a blast and I knew that Summer had started. (Thanks for talking us into it, Misty!)

No pictures, unfortunately, but who wants to worry about your camera while you're out swimmin' with your boys? Oh, and yes, this is the same place Spencer nearly died last year. Before we even left for the pool he and I had a serious heart to heart about swimming safety, staying by and listening to mama, and my all-too-serious threat that if I had to fill out an accident report because of something he did, he wouldn't set one foot in a pool until he was eleven.

T-ball, swimming, and threats from your mother? Summer is officially here!