Enough gifts

B: Here are your birthday presents.
E: What else?

# Girls at the Temple

Evan: How many girls are coming to the temple tonight?

Me: 12. (I have no idea).

Evan: Oh, that's too many.

Me: Ok, then 11.

Evan: That's good.

No longer strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints

Our Elders Quorum President announced that the next two Sundays would be a combined service with the other two wards. He said, we will have strangers in our meetings. Evan speaks up, No, not strangers. Mormons.

Evan's Lists

Evan is a list-maker. He has his Christmas lists, his birthday lists, and now his blessing lists.

In the same conversation where he mentioned what he wants for Christmas he mentioned the things he wants for his New Years Father's Blessing.

Christmas Gifts

E: Who has me for Christmas?
B: I do
E: How many things did you get me?
B: One
E: I need four
B: I got you one
E: I need more than that
B: Maybe Santa will give you more

Christmas Gifts

Me: What should I get you from Christmas?

Evan: 22 movies.

Me: 22!?!?!

Evan: Oh, ok. Just 10.

Me: What 10?

Evan: Let me see... Let me see... Night at the Museum one. Madagascar three. Phineas and Ferb. Ant man.

Me: Ok. Just five.

Evan: I talk with mom and get more videos for my birthday.

No more test me

My dad likes to be inclusive by including Evan on family group texts. When it is to say, "I love you", "Happy Thanksgiving!", or "Missing you at Priesthood Session" then Evan seems to be okay with it.

This morning, we started a discussion about what food we'd like to eat over the holidays and asked for requests. It quickly turned from food to a dog for Christmas. But after 9 texts, Evan sent me the following:

"No more test me"

Now, as you may remember from an earlier post, I don't like calling Evan after he texts me, because then he does the same when I text him. But what on earth was I testing?!?

I called him. He asked us to stop texting him because he was working.

New Albums

Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez each released new albums.

Yay.

Me: What's your favorite Bieber track?

Evan: 1...2...3...4...5...

Temple Recommend Renewal

Evan's temple recommend was about to expire, so I set up an appointment to get it renewed at the Stake Center. Evan called me one hour before the time we agreed to meet telling me he was ready, waiting for me at the T stop, and where was I? I told him I was still in my meeting, would be ready at our agreed-upon time, and perhaps he could wait at the library?

When we did meet up with just enough time to get to the church five minutes early, I was wearing chinos, brown dress boots, and a button up shirt. Evan was wearing flip flops, shorts, and our pink family reunion shirt.

So we went.

Arriving at the church, we swapped wardrobes. Wearing my pants and shirt with the legs and sleeves rolled up, Evan looked presentable as he walked into the Stake Presidency's office. Wearing his shorts but my socks and t-shirt, I did not look presentable as I hid in a classroom.

Revolutionary Connections

Evan and I went to Concord for some Revolutionary War experiences. As I tried to explain the North Bridge and which country was on which side, Evan started asking me questions:

• Did Captain American fight in the War of Independence?
• Are X-men soldiers buried here?
• Americans fought the British, like Pirates of the Caribbean?
• England came on boats across the Atlantic. Oh, we saw that [i.e. the Atlantic Ocean] on Thursday in Rhode Island.

Later, when we stopped by Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, he asked,

• Is this Sleeping Beauty?
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows?