DVD Pick: Dan in Real Life

(Jenn)

It's saying something when I stay awake through an entire movie these days. It's really saying something when I choose to keep a movie for an extra couple of days just so I can watch it again. I think it's been a LONG time since I've done this! That's why I feel it's worth mentioning Dan in Real Life. I'd call it a romantic comedy, and the best one I've seen in a long time. A beautiful, funny, artistically done, and refreshingly clean film (although not spotless -- it is PG-13, albeit a mild one). The soundtrack is also amazing. Many thanks to Melanie for the recommendation. I'm just passing the word along!

In other news, I finally have Henry calling our baby "Frankie" about 50% of the time. It was the only boy name he agreed to try (the name of our neighbor's dog). And he'll only do it if he can point out that the baby in his own belly is Nina and the baby in Mommy's belly is Frankie. The other half of the time, it's back to Nina for both of our babies. With Ben and I pretty much in agreement on all of our baby names, I never really thought I would run into arguments on this topic! Who would have thought Henry would have such an opinion?

Nina is a . . .

BOY!

It turns out that everyone was wrong in their guesses, and Henry's going to have a brother! We're excited for Henry to have a little buddy, and we're also excited about not having to buy a bunch of new pink stuff (not that it wouldn't be fun, but we don't have all sorts of money floating around right now, so it's more practical). And best of all, we won't have to worry about this child being traumatized by always being forced to play with cars and trucks. Henry has already made a habit of remembering to give "Nina" a car to play with (he just sets the cars on my belly).

Our current dilemma: how to get Henry to stop calling this boy Nina! He refuses to use any masculine names -- not even Nino. Lately, he has really taken to adding Nina to every part of our family life and regular conversation ("Nina wants a fruit snack?" "Nina's hungry?" "Here's one for Mommy, one for Daddy, and one for Nina"). Just on the way home from the ultrasound appointment -- in the last 40 minutes -- he has talked about Nina at least 8 times! Should we let him continue until the baby is born? Any thoughts?

Potty, etc.

(Jenn)
Ben says it's too cruel to post this video, but I can't help it! This is what happened the first day I tried implementing a sticker chart to help motivate Henry to go potty. The idea was that if he filled up the chart with stickers, we would get to visit the Children's Museum in New York City (he absolutely LOVED the Children's Museum in Boston and has been talking about it nonstop since we went). The museum was a good motivation for Henry, although at first it was a little too good. He got so frustrated every time nothing would come out because he NEEDED those stickers! You really should watch this:


Sad Potty Day from Ben and Jenn on Vimeo.

That was about a month ago. After the initial anxiety wore off, I think Henry's potty skills improved quite a bit. He finished the chart on Monday, so yesterday he and I headed off to the Children's Museum!

We had a fun day together. We rode the train into the city (this was half the fun), and then had a great time at the museum. Henry especially enjoyed driving all sorts of different cars, trucks, and busses! He also spend a good long time playing in the "market" where he got to buy and prepare all sorts of food. After the museum, we had a picnic lunch in Central Park and then got to visit Daddy at work before heading home. It was a fun and exhausting day -- we both fell asleep on the train ride home!

So today we are diving into full-fledged potty training! Henry has been talking about wanting to wear underwear like some of his friends, so we went out last week and picked out a few pairs. He has been anxious for Potty Day ever since! I really had to block out a whole day on the calendar where we wouldn't go ANYWHERE, because I feel like I'm probably the one holding Henry back the most on potty training because I'm always rushing him everywhere. So today we're home all day -- reading books, playing with Play-Doh (for Henry's first time because I am such a lazy mom), and mostly going potty (he wants to go about every ten minutes). So far, it's going okay. We've been through 4 pairs of underwear in a little over 4 hours. Apparently I should have bought more than 6 pairs! Still, we've had several successful moments this morning, and I'm still hopeful. I'm optimistic because I'm thinking of how nice it would be to have Henry all trained before our big move and new baby. I won't be surprised if something backfires either. We'll see! Wish us luck -- we need it!

Harvard it shall be

(Jenn)

We made the final decision about Harvard over a week and a half ago. It has felt so good to finally know where we're going to be living for the next 5 years! It was such a dramatic decision at the time we made it, but still we have hardly done anything about it. Ben finally made his official acceptance last night (after a severe scolding from me: "You haven't accepted yet? What were you thinking?"). As he was licking the envelope to seal the deal last night, he commented that Harvard's envelopes even taste better than the other schools' envelopes! He wasn't kidding in the least about the envelopes, and then proceeded to tell me all of the reasons why Harvard is superior: they printed their admit letter on thick bond paper; they included a self-addressed STAMPED envelope for his response; and don't forget how many fireplaces grace the business school's campus (perfect for cozying up with a good econometrics book). Clearly folks, we have made the right decision!

Seriously though, I don't know which of the three of us is most excited. Boston is definitely my dream! I have spent way too many hours of the last week surfing around housing sites. I'm determined to find the perfect place, preferably with a guest room of sorts so you can all start planning your trips to visit us! Henry and I have been reading a bunch of Boston books, and he definitely has Boston on his mind. You'll have to watch these two clips (the first one for sure) to see why Henry is so excited about our next adventure:

Talking about Boston from Ben and Jenn on Vimeo.

Playing with cars from Ben and Jenn on Vimeo.

Evan Whitesides 1923-2008

(Ben) Many of you already know that my grandfather, Evan Whitesides, passed away a week ago Tuesday, on March 25th. His health had been deteriorating for several years as he battled Parkinson's disease, and in many ways his passing was a blessing and we are glad that he is finally resting.

I was able to fly home to attend his funeral last Saturday, and I really don't think I've been to a funeral as inspiring as his was, except maybe President Hinckley's. Grandpa was an incredible man with so many qualities that I admire, and I think that all of us who attended were left feeling like we have a long way to go.

There were two things in particular that I've really been thinking about since his passing. First, I can think of no better example than Grandpa. None of my siblings can really remember him ever giving a lecture or even verbally teaching a lesson. What we can remember is that Grandpa was always in the right place at the right time, doing the right thing. When he was needed at a church meeting, he was there. When we needed him to harvest the raspberries or weed the corn, he was there. Not only that, but he was there on time, and with a smile on his face. Grandpa reached out to people unlike anyone else I know. I've been told that he (and Grandma) knew the names of all the primary kids in their home ward. I can't even name all the primary kids in our little branch! Grandpa cared about people enough to be there for them.

The second lesson that I learned from Grandpa is to "hoe to the end of the row." Thanks to my mom I'll never forget that phrase, but whenever I think of it I'll always think of my grandfather. Grandpa always finished the jobs that he started, and the job wasn't done until it was done well. What's more, Grandpa loved to do the work. Once I was out with him in the garden in the spring, and we were just planting seeds for a new season. I asked him what he enjoyed the most in gardening: planting, growing, or harvesting. Now, my answer to that question would definitely be harvesting because it means that the job is done and you get to literally enjoy the fruits of your labors. Not Grandpa. His favorite part was the planting, the anticipation of a summer of hard work. I think that's very characteristic of Grandpa. And you can be sure that once he planted the seeds, he would be there (at 6:00am!) to plow, weed, irrigate, prune, and pick until the job was done.

Needless to say, we all loved grandpa, and we will miss him dearly. My faith in the resurrection, however, has tempered my sadness and helped me to be able to celebrate a life well lived.