200th post! (or some lessons learned)

R.I.P Fishy. You will be missed (by Brynn). We came home from our Spring Break vacation to find a very very dead, stinky fishy. Marty told Brynn Fishy died, then she asked when he was going to come back, then Marty told her about Fishy Heaven and then she said, "Are you gonna die, Dad?" And we explained that, no, Daddy wasn't going to die. Then she contemplated it more and said, "And Jesus died, and he came back?" So we had a bit longer three-year-old discussion on the Resurrection, but I thought it was cute that she connected those two things in that little mind of hers.

And the lesson learned? Stop buying fishes. Oh, and teaching the gospel now comes in handy later.

On Friday I started my first real fast I've had in about 20 months (because of the pregnancy and nursing), although I've done sugar fasts. We wanted to break the fast with something good Saturday, but all we wanted was breakfast food, probably because we lounged around all morning until lunch. What?! We've been jet-lagged! And sick! Anyway, we had a crepe feast and I ditched the bad recipe I've used the last couple of times and found a better recipe and had the best crepes ever! Here's the recipe:

1-1/2 C all purpose flour

1 T sugar

1/2 t baking powder

1.2 t salt

2 C milk

2 T butter or margarine, melted

1/2 t vanilla

2 large eggs

1. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir in milk, butter, vanilla, and eggs. Beat with hand beater until smooth

2. Lightly butter a skillet. Heat over medium heat until bubbly.

3. For each crepe, pour 1/4 C batter into skillet. Rotate skillet until thin layer of batter covers bottom. Cook until light brown. Turn and cook other side until light brown.

We filled ours with fresh berries & sugar, and eggs. And we each drizzled a little chocolate over one or two of our berry crepes. Ahhhh......

Lesson learned: Betty Crocker always wins.

Almost a month ago Brynn woke up in the morning whimpering, which is rare for her. I went in and asked her what was the matter. She held up her hand and said, "I did this!" Around her wrist was the elastic band her hair was in the night before. It was so extremely tight, I guess she hadn't been able to get it off. But judging by how grotesquely purple and swollen her hand was, I'm pretty positive she'd slept with it like that. I figured it would go down quickly enough, and it did some, but in the late afternoon it was still this swollen:

I wonder if I should have called the Dr., because here we are a month later and she's STILL got a big red mark around her wrist.

Lesson learned: I will take her hair-bands out before I put her to bed from now on.

I'm am learning how to play guitar! I'm ashamed that it's taken me so long, given how amazing my dad and brothers at guitar, and that we always had Heaven knows how many guitars laying around (don't deny it, Dad) and that I now have a guitar of my own just sitting in my closet, and it wouldn't be that hard since I already play a stringed instrument and know a lot about chord structure/progressions. I've been saying that in the fall I was going to take guitar lessons, but one of the main reasons I've wanted to learn was so that I could play around a campfire. And Marty and I are taking a CES Church History tour workshop thing (pioneer trails) where the campfires will be plentiful, and dang it! I want to play and sing with Marty there! So on Friday I went and bought a chord book and I have been working so hard! I can already play a bunch of my "goal songs" and I am not letting up! Although, my heavens, why didn't anyone tell me it hurt so much to build up calluses on your fingers? It's way worse than violin! Meh, no pain, no gain.

Lesson learned: Marty says he will never under-estimate me again.

Brynn was in her first Primary program today!!!! She was sooooo cute. She walked up confidently, smiled at the congregation, sang the words, then came back to the bench and said, "I sing good, huh?"

Lesson: I guess Brynn got the performance gene.

Or: My mom wasn't kidding when she said our little girl personalities are similar.