Chinese New Year and Gymnastics Performance

Happy Year of the Rat! First off, who got to choose the animals in the Chinese zodiac? Why a rat? Oh well, it is officially the year of the rat...and as you all know, I love any opportunity to take a mundane day and find a reason to make it fun, especially with holidays! Other than the traditional American holidays, I like to recognize Chinese New Year and Cinco de Mayo. Don't ask me why. I like to celebrate different cultures, but I also know my limits. I can't celebrate every country's holidays all the time so I guess I just zeroed in on those two. Today, we started our morning with a couple little games and crafts; plus, I got the boys a "rat" gift (socks and stuffed animal) and their lucky red envelopes with chocolate gold coins. I was actually a little surprised to see how engaged Daniel was with the little lantern craft, but I was happy that he was willing to participate in my silly little activities.

After breakfast and Saturday chores, we headed to Provo Towne Center for Jonas's gymnastics performance. He was so nervous! All week long, Jonas had said that he was too nervous to participate. He was soothed by knowing that it wasn't a competition, but he was still nervous. When we got to the mall, I let him play at the play area before grabbing some lunch. Danny and I (of course) chose Panda Express to keep our Chinese New Year theme going, but Jonas opted for mac and cheese. However, he did want to experiment with chopsticks.

Finally, I took Jonas to the location of the performance. I showed him the stage and even a couple YouTube videos of what he could accomplish in gymnastics if he continued. He got pretty excited after that. I think the nerves had more to do with the unknown than worry about his skill level. He did a great job! I was so proud of him for working through his anxieties.

Afterward, we went out to get a treat of his choosing. Of course, he chose a donut so we went to Krispy Kreme. (Daniel's friend, Noah, joined us for this part of our day.)

We wrapped up our day with some yummy beef and broccoli and homemade fortune cookies. It may not be much, but it made the day fun as we read about the Chinese traditions and experienced a little of their food.

1956 Bel Air

A couple weeks after Jonas was born, Jeff finally purchased his dream car - a 1956 Chevy Bel Air. For whatever reason, Jeff has always loved this classic car. He appreciates all classic cars, but he has gravitated towards the Bel Air ever since he discovered the gas tank was hidden in the tail light. Plus, it is a family cruising car rather than just a sports car. The original idea was to purchase this car as a project car that Jeff could do with the boys. I don't think anyone realized how much that would entail. Finally, Jeff decided to get some professional help to fix the engine and ultimately fix the rust damage and paint. The car has been in the shop since last fall, and today Jeff got to drive it home. He has admitted that this has been the worst financial decision of his life (and I secretly hope he is done!) but seeing his smile made it all worth it. (Here are a TON of pictures of the restoration process. Some of the first ones were when we put in a new engine and painted the engine compartment. The rest of the pictures are from the Original Garage who did all the major body work, rust removal, and paint. The final picture is the finished product!)