So Long

Notice anything new? I have updated the look of Bizzert! Thanks to Rob for helping me with all of the technical junk required!

As a welcome back to the newly redesigned site, I thought I’d try to remember how this all works by posting one of my current favorite songs. It’s called “So Long,” and since it’s been sooo long since I posted, I guess it’s appropriate 😉 You may recognize that this is from the Winnie the Pooh movie and is sung by Zooey Deschanel.

Enjoy:

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Twin T-Shirts

We have a little obsession with getting fun t-shirts. We find them mostly on Woot. Rob actually finds them so he can tell you other sites to look at too. We’re still waiting to get this one. Any Princess Bride fans will appreciate it. One day last week we all had a twin, so we took this picture. The little girls’ shirts are from Walmart or Target- They like to be twinners sometimes too.

See how Emma only has 3 inches until she’s as tall as me? And how Hunter’s passed me and is gaining on Rob? And how Sabrina is gaining on Hannah? It ain’t right I tell you. They grow too fast!

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Little Brothers

Today is my bigger little brother’s birthday. Happy birthday Chris! I heard the perfect song to celebrate months ago and have had this planned ever since. Conveniently enough, my littlest little brother Matt’s birthday comes just 10 days later, so I can get both of my brothers at once with a video soundtrack courtesy of the Phineas and Ferb CD that we listened to so many times over the summer on our various car trips. (I think I love this CD as much as the kids do because of the clever lyrics and catchy upbeat music.)

So a big Happy Birthday to Chris today, and Matt on the 25th. You’re the best brothers I’ve ever had! Without further adieu, Little Brothers:

httpvhd://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mq1xKLL0_Co

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Be A Hero

This is the fourth year that we have done Hero Camp. If you want to see past years here are the links: 2007 Operation Divine Love, 2008 Always Remember, 2009 Feel the Joy.  Because it is so fun and such a testimony builder, I decided that I really wanted the kids to have this experience again this summer, so we commuted the hour and a half drive to participate. We stayed with our good friends on Tuesday and Thursday night to break up the week and it wasn’t bad at all. Totally worth it!

This year’s theme was “Be a Hero.” The Olympics was part of the theme and the social hall was decorated like a stadium with balloon people. So cute. Each day (Mon-Thu) had a focus and a hero and there there are classes and activities revolving around that. The kids also practice songs throughout the week and perform them on Friday morning for their parents. There is a memory book that is put together for each child during the week too. This year I was on the committee for this so I didn’t spend much time involved with the classes, and don’t have as many pictures. But you’ll get a feeling for it.

Monday: Believe – Nephi – “I will go and do as the Lord commands…” 1 Nephi 3:7 – The kids talked about setting worthy goals and believing that the Lord will help you accomplish them. Hunter was a counselor this year and helped with organizing the groups and getting the kids where they need to be. He did a great job!

Tuesday: Train – Missionaries – “Be ye strong therefore,… for your work shall be rewarded.” 2 Chronicles 15:7 –  The kids had their pictures taken in front of a Wheaties box for their memory books, and saw a dog show to demonstrate “the five S’s of training: stamina, speed, strength, skill and spirit.” -K. Doherty

Wednesday: Overcome – Job (Who better to demonstrate the ability to overcome obstacles?) – “And to him who overcometh, and keepeth my commandments unto the end, will I give power…” JST Revelations 2:26 –  A bubble lady gave a demonstration and there was an obstacle course that the kids did with donations going to an Autism awareness charity.

Thursday: Unite – Helaman and the Stripling Warriors (sorry the picture is so dark) – “they did assemble themselves together… and they were exceedingly valiant for courage… they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God…” Alma 53:16,20,21 – Each child had a picture taken with their mother and wrote a note for their memory book with the words “my mother taught me…” Sabrina wrote to swim; Hannah wrote to share and love; Emma wrote to be an example. They all decorated a cardboard shield and got an inflatable sword.

Friday is the most fun for the parents because that’s when the kids perform their songs, watch a slide show from the weeks activities, and get a memory book. Then everyone heads over to the lagoon to swim and play with their new and old friends. This year there was a sno-cone machine and nachos which Hunter hovered around much of the day. The girls swam and played for hours and then we left for home. I heard many times that week why did we have to move mom? I wish we could stay… I’ve heard a rumor that there will be a sort of manual made so others can start Hero Camps in their areas. I would be nervous to head it up, but it would be so fun to start it here next year. Something to think about…

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Lunch Transformation

Packing school lunches- so glad we don’t have to do that again for a while. School is out, and I meant to post this when it was more relevant, but now is when I have the time. So here we go.

Here is my wonderful, lunch-making husband. When we moved here we were disappointed that we could no longer walk to school, but had to drive. And on top of that we had to be out the door 45 minutes earlier. Since neither Rob or I are really the type to jump out of bed in the morning, making lunches was almost impossible to do while getting the kids breakfast and ready for school. So we decided that I would be the driver and Rob would be the lunch maker. He decided that it was easiest to prepare a weeks worth of  shelf-safe-starter-lunches on Sunday night and put them in a cupboard. Then each night he would make sandwiches and add in just the refrigerated items. The finished lunches were put on the top shelf in the fridge and we could just grab and go in the morning. (Notice the beautiful homemade bread for sandwiches?! Rob made that. I love it when we run out of bread on Sunday!)

When we made up so many lunches at once we realized that we went through a ton of plastic baggies and paper bags. I don’t count myself as an environmentalist, but it was a surprise to see how much trash we were generating.  As I was contemplating this, I came across a great deal at Easy LunchBoxes.com through Jasmere -a website that provides discounts where the more people that commit to buy, the lower the prices are. It was a little confusing at first that I was actually buying vouchers to use in the store, and not the products themselves, But eventually I got my lunch boxes and we have been using them for a while now.

Usually we stick with the PB&J sandwiches, string cheese, a fruit or veggie, and a couple of cookies as the standard menu. Above is a day that I was feeling adventurous and used pita pocket bread and gave them all cheese and either pepperoni or roast beef to go inside. It wasn’t a huge hit with the kids, but I tried.

So here’s a breakdown of my experience going to the container lunchboxes:

PROS:

• Not so many baggies and paper bags
• It’s faster to line up the trays and just drop things in
• Sandwiches, strawberries etc. don’t end up squished
• The kids bring them home so I know what they did and didn’t eat
• They stack nicely, so they take up less space in the fridge
• Everyone has their own color lid so we can tell which belongs to each picky eater
• The cooler bags are big enough to add in extras that don’t fit in the tray
• The lids are easier for kids to open and close than plastic baggies.

CONS:

• The bags are bigger than a standard lunch bag and are awkward to fit inside a backpack
• Washing the trays and lids (although they do great in the dishwasher)
• If we put things like cookies or crackers in the trays and overnight in the fridge, they end up soft the next day. So we still use some baggies.
• It’s a big initial investment. I wouldn’t have done it without the great deal I got.
• The trays are just barely the wrong size to be able to put a fruit cup in and close the lid tight. Since you can’t put canned food in a compartment without making a sticky mess that would be handy.

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Seal Beach

Seal Beach– a beach where the seals like to hang out in the sun.

You can get pretty close to the seals. Just behind us was a rope that separates the people from the seals.

The views are gorgeous! The ocean has an aqua color that you tend to see in more tropical locations. You can also walk out on a concrete wall and be right next to the large waves crashing on the rocks.

There is a path along the coast line and a grassy park where we saw lots of runners, dog walkers, and couples enjoying the views. There are several of these “little houses” (as dubbed by our girls) where you can sit to look out on the ocean. A great day-trip for the family. And it was free!

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