My Righteous Baby

Ever since Elder Bednar's talk in Conference in April, Greg and I have been reading scriptures and saying family prayers with Rex. I hadn't thought he was old enough, but Elder Bednar reassured me. So we have been practicing folding arms with Rex and then clapping and saying "Amen" when the prayer is over so that Rex knows when he can stop folding his arms (I also think it will be quite cute when he gets to Primary).

Today we ate dinner at our neighbor's house and the wife prayed, but she didn't know that Rex can only stand "Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for this food. Amen" prayers and went on for a bit longer than that. So Rex started clapping. I found it assuming.

Tonight Rex was walking around drinking his bottle before bedtime when Greg called him into his room to say family prayer. Greg said, "Rex, put your bottle down, it's time to say prayers." And low and behold, Rex did it. He put the bottle down and folded his arms. Greg said the pray and we both peaked through half shut eyes as Rex also closed his eyes and bowed his head, and then opened his eyes and saw the bottle again. So he picked up the bottle. At least he started the prayer off with his arms folded.

In conclusion, Rex is in line to be the next prophet--he's that righteous.

Farmers' Market

May 15: it finally arrived. We have been waiting since it closed down last October for the return of the Farmers' Market. We've been plotting and planning what we would buy, which vendors we would see, in which order we would go. My parents brought my wagon all the way from Seattle so that we could look extra cool. I made a new skirt. Rex and I have been practicing staying seated in the wagon. Yes, we are that intense. Greg even got up early on Saturday. We were at the park 45 minutes after the market opened. And, nobody was there. Yeah, I know, lame. I mean some people were there, but not nearly as many vendors as last year. We did get the herbs that I wanted (mint, rosemary, and cilantro) to plant in my herb garden/pot on the front porch, and some farm fresh eggs, and a pair of earrings, and some empanadas, and some honey sticks, but still, there were not nearly as many vendors as we had hoped. Andrea and Emma went later in the day and said a lot more vendors were there then. Maybe next Saturday, Greg will sleep in and we'll go a little bit later.

First Haircut

I've known for a long time that Rex was becoming quite the hippie and was starting to get offended that ignorant people were calling my handsome little boy a girl, but until this week I haven't been able to bring myself to do it. The first haircut. That means my baby isn't a baby anymore. He's a real boy now. And without the wispy baby hair, he really looks like. Though I must say he is quite handsome still.

Before: Baby Rex

During: He loved the car. It even had a little horn he figured out how to honk. He was the perfect little model until they lady got the clippers out. He was not a fan. I had to hold him for that. And yes, I took him somewhere to get it cut. Have you seen the babies whose mommies cut their hair? Not my kid.

After: Toddler Rex

And yes, I have a little bag of his hair in his baby box (in case it's needed for DNA evidence later, not for any sentimental reason.)

Chickens

Above: Gertie (the black one) and Henryetta (the ugly one)

It's been about a month, but we finally got some chickens. And, now I'm not too sure about our decision. As it turns out, chickens are so dumb they can't even be herded, which means that at some point I may have to actually touch them to get them back into their coup.

I know it sounds silly, but I realized while I was in the shower this morning that the reason that I don't like animals is because I'm afraid of them. I've been having daymares (flashes of dreams while awake that are rather terrifying) of the chickens attacking me. Sometimes I sitting in the backyard watching them cluck around and then they give me the distinct chicken stink eye and there go my eyes, Birds style. And sometimes they attack Rex, which is even worse.

Of course nothing close to this has even come close to happening. Greg is in love with chickens and has, so far, corraled and chased and captured the chickens to get them back in their coup at night and the chickens are afraid of Rex so far. Besides, Rex hasn't shown much interest in them. He did spend a while trying to get into the coup, but failed so satisfied himself with pulling the pine shavings out and throwing them on the grass. Then Greg got his wagon out and he got over the chickens really fast.

But we had a nice day with the chickens. We let them out of the coup when we got home from church and they bobbed around the yard for a while, went back to the coup for a while, and then bobbed around the yard some more. We just sat on a blanket enjoying the finally nice weather. Greg got burnt, and I got some new Utah-style tan lines. Every time the chickens came close enough to threaten my blanket I gave them the stink eye first and they backed off. It worked quite well.

But still no eggs.

Greg and I did install a nicer nest for them today so hopefully by tomorrow we'll have some to share with the neighbors who are bringing us chicken food in exchange for eggs.

Above: Rex helping pick out the chickens.

New Addition

I finally convinced Greg that it was time to add a little someone to our family, actually two little someones. They will be here in just a few weeks, and then backyard fresh, guilt-free eggs, everyday. That's right. We're getting chickens.

After watching a few too many documentaries on how our food is made, I started feeling really guilty eating meat and other dairy products. And while I haven't gone vegan or even vegetarian, I have cut our meat consumption in half and decided to get chickens.

Greg, however, was less sure. And then we talked to our neighbors who raised chickens last year and Greg saw the light.

So yesterday we spent all day working on a coop for our three little chickens we will purchase after the coop is complete.

I'm exciting but a little anxious...

Greg cutting out the floor of the coop.

Smart Boy

This is Rex. This is Rex wearing a tiger costume. This is Rex holding his beaver. This is Rex holding a hanger. This is Rex looking for his daddy.

Rex is a smart boy.

He knows were everything in the house is kept and will knock on the door or drawer or cupboard until he gets what he wants. This explains his outfit.

A few Sundays ago, Rex and I were playing in his room before church when Rex looked up in his closet and saw the tiger suit my mom bought him. He pointed until I got it down for him, and then he held his arms out for me to put it on him. And then he took the pants off the hanger so he could carry it around. And then he went over to his crib and pointed at Beaver until I gave him that too. And then he walked down the hall to show his dad how pretty he was. Here he is banging on the door because he knows his daddy is in there. Smart kid.

He also growled at me when I put the tiger suit on him.

Today, we were reading scriptures and when we were done, he folded his arms and bowed his head and closed his eyes all by himself. I didn't even have to ask him once. And he stayed that way the whole prayer. Ok, in truth he unfolded his arms once and looked at his dad, but Dad still had his arms folded so Rex re-folded him.

Rex is going to be prophet one day.

Summer and Shoes

Greg thinks I'm mildly ridiculous for spending $30 on a pair of baby shoes, but Rex just had to have these. All normal children have salt water sandles growing up, and just because Greg didn't have any doesn't mean Rex should be an outcast too.

It took me weeks to pick these out. I didn't want to buy them online because I wanted to make sure they fit, but there are only 2 stores in Utah that sell them and neither one was close enough that I wanted to drive to get them, so, instead, I took Rex to several other shoe stores and tried on shoes there to get the average size shoe he fit and then ordered them online. They came two days later and he wore them the rest of that day. I even let him wear them to church that Sunday. I'm not so sure how Rex feels about them, but he knows he has to have them on to go to the park, so he hands them to me when he's ready to play.

But now it is raining and yesterday I woke up to snow. One of these days, we'll break the salt waters back out. I am looking forward to thoroughly wearing this little do-dads out this summer.