Twelve

 I can't believe that today Darby is twelve years old. It seems like just yesterday that she was a tiny baby with crazy hair. Let me tell you about Darby at age twelve. She is very tall with light brown wavy hair like a mermaid. She has a soft heart and loves babies often choosing to play with them rather than her peers. In fact, she says she wants to be a preschool teacher. She is seriously witty and funny and loves puns and dry humor. She is quiet in public but super silly at home. She has discovered a love of singing and has an amazing memory for songs. She loves to read and create and is a major crafter. She gets along with everyone and plays with all three of her siblings well. She likes fashion and art and has a good eye for style. She is currently writing a chapter book. She's very adventurous and likes to try new things. She eats more than a teenage boy and is growing like a weed (she's as tall as Eva). She is tenacious, loyal, and imaginative. We love her to pieces!

She opened her presents in the morning. Jason and I gave her an octopus Squishmallow. Stella did not appreciate it as a hat. 

Her sisters gave her gifts as well, a book, some baking supplies, and a Barbie accessories. 

She loved the funny cards. Grandma gave her money that she is saving. 

Daddy took her and Paige to the park in their pajamas.  They had fun as no one else was there.

We had a lazy day doing things she liked. She spent some time playing with her new toys and some video games. Most of the day was spent in pajamas just as she wanted. 

We had dinner at Zino's, her favorite Greek place. She loves their lamb burgers. She picked the movie we watched at home before bed as well. Next weekend is GirlDay where we really celebrate all these great daughters we have. 

Sewing Projects for School

As an extra credit assignment for chemistry there was a crafting assignments. It didn't really have to do with chemistry and was silly in my opinoin but Brendan felt he needed the extra points. He does nto like his chemistry teacher AT ALL and finds her mean and unfair. Anyway, the students were to make a mole (because mole is a chemistry term and also a little animal). They wre to use the pattern provided, sew it up, stuff it and make it clever and creative. After wanting to make a skeleton but running tinto issues with that, he decided to make Jacob "Mole"-ly (like Jacob Marley from A Christmas Carol.) He has a vest, top hat and chains. He turned out pretty cute. I helped with the sewing and some design aspects. 

As part of their art classes (taught by the same teacher but different periods) Darby adn Eva had to sew as well. They both made Snoopy. Given that this was their first foray into sewing I think they turned out pretty well. 

 

Boxing

Jason just bought a punching bag for his garage gym. He had also been working on bobbing and weaving and other boxing skills with the two youngest when we were back in NC. When he got the bag he decided that he should get Paige some gloves too. She's got a mean right cross. Seeing as how she is already constantly on her toes, bobbing and weaving is easy for her too. Maybe we should look into kid boxing lessons.

 

Cattlemens

There is a place near El Paso that everyone says you need to visit. It is called Cattlemens Steakhouse. You drive east past El Paso over 20 miles and it look like you are headed to the middle of nowhere. You travel along a small country road for a few miles. All of a sudden, there is this big building and grounds and parking lot. It is an odd place that is hard to describe. 

There are teepees and cabins outside. There are wagons around. You could see different kinds of animals all around the grounds. There is a museum and a huge restaurant. 

We were told that we needed to tour the grounds but we didn't have time to explore as much as we wanted to before it got dark. Someone told Jason that there was even a snake pit. 

Apparently the history of Cattlemens Steakhouse at Indian Cliffs Ranch is that it was once a horse ranch owned by a German born soldier who had ties to Fort Bliss. The horse rental business grew and it became obvious that they needed a small place for the customers to be able to eat. So the owner built a restaurant in 1973. It started off as a dining hall that seated 50 people. It became popular and waiting lines were just too long. The owner decided to add on. Now there are several dining rooms and it can seat over 200 people, has lodging and a museum.

There was a horse outside in a corral that seemed very interested us. I couldn't help but feel sad for him because the corral was not very big. 

 Inside the steakhouse was all this Navajo and  Wild West decor in glass display cases.

 Along one of the hallways are movie posters of all the movies that have filmed there. It was also voted the Manliest Steakhouse in the country. I am sure you can see why. It is kind of over the top. 

The portions were humungous and the food was pretty good (not as amazing as I was hoping for) but the steaks they serve come from the ranch on the property. The sides were pineapple coleslaw, beans and corn on the cob. They had a dessert called Queen of Sheba that Paige and I split. It was a short of ice cream on chocolate wafer cake with cherries. Eating there was definitely an experience. 

Dates with Dad

 We are still doing parent-child dates every week and since we are in a new area, it is fun to explore and see what we can do for those dates. We have found a great Greek place called Zinos and that is one of Darby's favorites. She especially loves the Greek lamb burger. 

We found a thrift store we like too. Paige has come home with many good finds, especially in the toy department. She likes trying on the funny stuff too. 

Eva likes going to a bookstore or secondhand store to pick out new books. Brendan prefers coming home and playing Rocket League on the Nintendo with Dad or watching Monk with me.

Back in the Swing of Things

The kids went back to school on January 4. We spent our last days of Christmas BReak just relaxing. I like these quiet moments when everyone is cuddling on the couch and reading when it is cold outside. 

In fact, it was so cold this week that we had some snow. Nothing major but enough to have some fun. It snows enough here that it doesn't shut everything down like it did in NC.

With the house all back to myself I was able to get some deep cleaning done. I even sealed the granite counters and got a shelf for my Echo Show.

I got a phone call that someone in one of Darby's classes tested positive for Covid so she had to be tested and get a negative result to come back to school. She was able to take the test at school in a few days and everything was fine. A few days later I got the same sort of call for Eva. She tested negative as well but the whole thing is a hassle. If they had tested positive they were to quarantine for ten days. 

Brendan was invited to a Dungeons and Dragons session at a boy in our ward's home. He had the most fun time and we are hoping this turns into a regular thing. There is a group of guys in our ward that are very into D&D. They always meet at the Ross' house who happens to be Brendan's seminary teacher as well. She is really great and Brendan gets along well with her son, Will.

There was a youth service project today since there wasn't any school for MLK Day. The youth helped out at a local food bank and then gathered back at the church for pizza. So much pizza was ordered but my kids said that the pizza was gone in an instant.