The Bredensteiners: November 2008

Sunday, November 30, 2008

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am so grateful for a healthy and happy family.

I am so grateful for a husband who is alway trying to be a better man and who I am so glad I get to spend eternity with!

I am so grateful for 3 little boys who teach me more than I ever learned in school.

I am so grateful for the Gospel and the perspective it gives me.

I am so grateful for my parents who raised me in the Gospel and taught me to believe in myself.

I am so grateful for 4 younger brothers who were always there to keep in me company and who love me no matter what.

I am so grateful for amazing friends who make me want to be better (you know who you are).

I am so grateful for a country where I am free to vote, worship, and protest as I please.

I am so grateful for this beautiful earth that was made for us.

I am so grateful for a home, food, and a husband with a good steady job.

and I am most grateful for a Savior who made all these things possible!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Sunday, November 23, 2008

In our TJED playgroup we read Cinderella by Charles Perrault with our kids. When we met for playgroup that week the kids made their own "glass slippers" by tracing their feet on paper then decorating them with glitter and markers. The following Saturday I took my boys to see a real "Cinderella" play/musical at the Silverlake Theatre. The play was not actually the real cinderella story but I thought the story was actually better. My boys absolutely loved it! They were actually able to sit for the entire 2 hour show (with a 15 minute intermission). I will have to take them to more plays.

Anyways, as I was reading up on the story of Cinderella on the web I discovered that no one knows who the original author of the story was. There is actually a Cinderella-type story in most cultures; in China it is "Yeh Shen", "The Burnt Face Girl" to the Mik'maq tribe, "Tattercoats" in England, and "Marouckla" to the Slavs. I guess that Charles Perrault was notable in that he refined the story from its origin as a peasant tale to a more upscale version; in the peasant tale there was blood in the glass slipper from the severed toes and bunions of the evil stepsisters-GROSS. Thanks Perrault for making this tale a classic- we have sure enjoyed it!

UPDATE: After the play we had a "ball" at Christina's house. The kids dressed up, danced (well Ephraim did- all the girls loved him; Clay was too shy), played in a cardboard castle, and colored a huge castle wall art. We had so much fun!

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Cardboard Castle

Clay's teacher asked someone to volunteer to make some kind of a playhouse out of a big cardboard box she had from her stove. I decided to jump on it because I can never get into the classroom to help because of Kai and Eph. Clay and I picked a castle design off the web and he looked on while I cut the top and the gate. After that we had a blast painting and making a huge mess. What a fun project!

Friday, November 7, 2008

"Sarah" by Monica Winner

My aunt is one of my favorite artists. She does beautiful chalk drawings, that I absolutely love! She has given me a couple for Christmas and my wedding and they are definitely some of my most prized possessions (along with some quilt work my best friend has given me). My girlfriend recently sent me a picture of this piece that she did of me when I was young on vacation with my family in Phuket! I didn't even know she had done it- I feel so special. Isn't it amazing?

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

My New Favorite Song

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Happy Halloween!

After reading the previous post, I am sure you are not surprised that my boys decided to be ghosts for Halloween. I decided that the costume required for this character would be simple enough for me to sew so I did (with a little help from Chandra). The costumes were basically a simple hooded robe- they turned out great! Kai was a frog because I had the costume from a previous Halloween (not that he would know or care). He was so cute!! When I first put it on him we practiced hopping around and saying "ribbitt". He would say something that sounded like "iggitt" then fall right on his face- too funny.

Because Jon and I were invited to a party we decided to dress up as well. We didn't want to spend too much money so Jon was a sailor (no cost there since he still had his uniform from the Navy) and I was a "desperate housewife" (not the cute TV ones- more the married with children look).

After trick-or-treating at a few houses (which my older two boys are totally pro at this year and Kai trying to keep up with and copy them would yell "reat" (trick-or-treat) at every door and then as were were leaving would yell "ween" (Happy Halloween)-I wish I had a video camera with me!) we headed to our friends' party. Although we didn't know anyone there, it was fun to socialize and see every one's costumes. Clay was on a total sugar high, as he had eaten candy, etc. in school earlier that day. At the party everyone took a family costume picture so when I get it, I will update my post. We were all pooped around 930pm and headed home where baths were required (they all had make-up on) and bed was soon to follow. What a fun night!

Pumpkin Carving

On the Sunday before Halloween we carved pumpkins with our friends: Justin (our home teacher) and his wife Tori Withers. We had a lot of fun! All of our boys are totally obsessed with scary things right now, particularly ghosts. For a craft this year we made ghost cut outs and hung them around the house and also made little fabric ghosts and hung them on our pear tree out front. Every day Kai walks around looking at all the ghosts saying, "woo woo BOO!" It's so hilarious and cute. So, along with this new found love for the dead Clay decided to carve a ghost into his pumpkin (with Mommy's help of course)- he did a great job! I am impressed every day by all the capabilities that he has; he's getting so big.

Getting dirty

Carving it up

Eph and Clay's pumpkins

Ephraim chose a spider with Dad's help. After the boys were done and in bed, Jon and I finished up carving with Tori and Justin. I of course wanted to do something from the ocean so I looked online and found a sea turtle pattern which I printed and used. After I cut out the turtle I decided to add a couple of free-hand jellyfish; I love it! Jon did a pirate's ship, which turned out pretty cool as well. When Josh came over he made fun of us for being "professional pumpkin carvers".

Funny Things my Kids Say

Eph: When we both grow up and live next to eachother maybe when your mother (wife) leaves and my mother (wife) leaves I can sneak up and go to your house and we can play. Clay: Adults don't play and it's not your mom it's your wife.
Mom: Ouch, my foot is really hurting! Kai: You're still alive Momma.
Kai and I were going back and forth with the,"I love you to the moon, I love you to the sun, etc." I said, "I love you to Venus" and Kai responded, "I love you to the penis"...LOL!
Clay: Ephraim, why do you always copy me? Ephraim: Because I love ya.
Kai was playing with his train the other day and I overheard him saying, "You can do it Thomas" and of course I was thinking Thomas the kid's engine, and then I heard him say, " You can do it, Thomas Monson"...LOL!
Kai always sleeps in my bed. One day I asked him why he didn't like his bed and he said,"It's too fluffy."
Whenever asked any question from "What is your name?" to "What do you want to do today?", Kai always responds with "Quesadilla".
Kai spent a couple months calling everyone "boob-butt" (boob was taken from the recent Horton Hears a Who movie).
When Kai wants to be picked up he says, "Grab me".
All my boys sing the song Paradise City by Guns N' Roses...embarassing.
When you ask Kai his name he says "Coc-head"- he means coconut head.
In between Conference sessions they played the movie "The Other side of Heaven" and during the scene where the rats are chewing on his feet Kai yells, "Wake up Dude!"
Ephraim says' That's ridiculous!"
When I ask Kai anything he shakes his head violently and says, "No-no!"
Clay told me that he was making funny faces in his class and that the girls were laughing. I asked him if the boys laughed too; he said, "no, they got mad". He told me he likes girls better then boys because they're "pretty". Oh boy!
Clay had some food stuck in his throat and I told him to drink some water to wash it down. He said, "I think I need to use a screw to get it out"- OUCH!
I told Clay that if he ate all his veggies he would be big and strong like his daddy. He said, " Well, that's not strong enough".
Clay turned to me after a meal and said, "Thanks for making dinner Mom". Then he turned to Jon and said, "Thanks, Dad". Jon responded a bit surprised, "What for, I didn't do anything?" Clay replied, "For working". WOW!
Josh came over and was checking out our pear tree in the front yard and Clay put his face up real close to him and said, "Jesus made the pears, Uncle Josh." Josh said he felt like he was in church! HA HA
Clay was being a stinker and I told him to "please be more obedient Clayton Ryan" and he responded, "I'm not Clayton I'm Nephi" and my mom told him that Nephi would be obedient to his parents. So, after some thought he replied, "Oh, I'm not Nephi".
When they don't like a food the boys say its too "spicy".
When something is too hard for the boys to do they say its too "heavy".
My boys both say, "I don't want that ever ever again, so there!"
Clay informed me the other day that he also liked Momma's milk (like baby Kai). I told him that he drank cow's milk like Mommy and Daddy and after a moments thought he said "No, I just drink seahorse milk!"