Gingerlylizzy

2012-01-28T07:46:00.004-07:00

From this site: http://thefamily.com/2012/01/27/microsoft-founder-nfl-owner-paul-allen-speaks-out-on-mormons/

PAUL ALLEN, SPEAKS OUT ON MORMONS (co-founder to Microsoft)

This is Paul’s story and what he said is true. Sorry I didn’t get it changed until just now! I was surprised by some of the comments. I erased several of them but left some that were pertinent to this article. Alan Osmond
Paul wrote:
I have heard and seen enough! I have lived in the West all my life. I have worked around them. They have worked for me and I for them. When I was young, I dated their daughters. When I got married they came to my wedding. Now that I have daughters of my own, some of their boys have dated my daughters. I would be privileged if one of them were to be my son-in-law.
I’m talking about the Mormons. They are some of the most honest, hardworking people I have ever known. They are spiritual, probably more than most other so-called religious people I have encountered. They study the Bible and teach from it as much as any Christian church ever has. They serve their religion without pay in every conceivable capacity. Not one of their leaders, teachers, counselors, Bishops or music directors receive one dime for the hours of labour they put in.
The Mormons have a non-paid ministry – a fact that is not generally known. I have heard many times from the pulpits of others how evil and non-Christian they are and that they will not go to heaven. I decided recently to attend one of their services near my home to see for myself.
What a surprise!
What I heard and saw was just the opposite from what the religious ministers of the day were telling me. I found a very simple service with no fanfare. I found a people with a great sense of humour and a well-balanced spiritual side. There was no loud music. Just a simple service, with the members themselves giving the several short sermons.
They urge their youth to be morally clean and live a good life. They teach the gospel of Christ, as they understand it. The name of their church is “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints. Does that sound like a non-Christian church to you? I asked them many questions about what they teach and why. I got answers that in most cases were from the New Testament. Their ideas and doctrines did not seem too far fetched for my understanding. When I read their “Book of Mormon” I was also very surprised to find just the opposite from what I had been told I would find.
Then I went to another church’s pastor to ask him some of the same questions about doctrine. To my surprise, when he found out that I was in some way investigating the Mormons, he became hostile. He referred to them as a non-Christian cult. I received what sounded to me like evil propaganda against those people. He stated bluntly that they were not Christian and that they did not fit into the Christian mold. He also told me that they don’t really believe the Bible. He gave me a pile of anti-Mormon literature. He began to rant that the Mormons were not telling me the truth about what they stand for. He didn’t want to hear anything good about them. At first I was surprised and then again, I wasn’t. I began to wonder.
I have never known of a cult that supports the Boy Scouts of America. According to the Boy Scouts, over a third of all the Boy Scout troops in the United States are Mormon.
What cult do you know of that has a welfare system second to none in this country? They have farms, canneries and cattle ranches to help take care of the unfortunate ones who might be down and out and in need of a little help. The Mormon Church has donated millions to welfare causes around the world without a word of credit. They have donated thousands to help rebuild Baptist churches that were burned a few years ago. They have donated tons of medical supplies to countries ravaged by earthquakes.
You never see them on TV begging for money.. What cult do you know that instills in its members to obey the law, pay their taxes, serve in the military if asked and be a good Christian by living high moral standards? Did you know that hundreds of thousands of Mormon youth get up before high school starts in the morning to attend a religious training class? They have basketball and softball leagues and supervised youth dances every month.
They are recruited by the FBI, the State Department and every police department in the country, because they are Trustworthy. They are taught not to drink nor take drugs. They are in the Secret Service – those who protect the President. They serve in high leadership positions from both parties in Congress and in the US Senate, and have been governors of several states other than Utah. They serve with distinction and honour. If you have
Mormons living near, you will probably find them to be your best friends and neighbours. They are Christians who try to live what they preach. They are not perfect and they are the first to admit this. I have known some of them who could not live their religion, just like many of us. The rhetoric which is spread around against them is nothing more than evil propaganda founded in untruths. (Others) had successfully demonized them to the point that the general public has no idea what they actually believe and teach. If you really want to know the truth, go see for yourself. You also will be surprised.
When I first moved here some 25 years ago there were five Mormon wards in Santa Clarita, Calif. Now there are 15. They must be doing something right.
“The happiest people don’t necessarily have the best of everything. …. They just make the best of everything.”
Lisa Ehlers
For The Family

Finally. Someone gets it right.

2012-01-25T08:31:00.003-07:00

Evangelist: True Christians don’t demonize Mormons, Obama

" 'It is impossible to abide by Paul’s admonition to regard others as more important than yourself, DeMoss said Tuesday during a Brigham Young University devotional, "and also stand outside [LDS] General Conference hurling insults as [Mormons] walk by to worship with [their] fellow Latter-day Saints."

Just because the First Amendment gives everyone the right to "demonize" others with their speech, he said, "doesn’t make it right.'"

2011 Lesson #2 : Don’t Carpe Diem

2012-01-10T12:33:00.000-07:00

Such a great blog post for a overwhelmed Mummy. Needed to hear this today...

2011 Lesson #2 : Don’t Carpe Diem

A Lemon and a Posicle

2012-01-05T22:46:00.004-07:00

An update is coming but until then, here is some Grant and Gray cuteness to entertain.

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

Ho Ho Ho

2011-12-12T16:35:00.000-07:00

Because every kid needs funny pics with Santa.

The Coat: A Story of Charity

2011-12-11T13:12:00.000-07:00

Such a wonderful message. Just in time for Christmas!

Goings On

2011-12-09T14:59:00.011-07:00

Sooo much has been going on. And I am way behind (so what else is new?). So lots of pictures it is! We had a wonderful Thanksgiving up in Portage UT (smallest town ever), at Dave's Aunt and Uncles house. The biggest Thanksgiving FEAST (and I don't use that term lightly) you have EVER seen. It was a wonderful celebration with family and we have SO much to be thankful for!

Heather (Dave's sister), Chris, Oliva and Weston came for a visit. Since we won't be together at Christmas this year, we took our yearly cousins picture of our three boys who were all born within a couple months of each other. How much difference a year makes! Poor Tate wasn't feeling very well, as is evident from his sad little face!

We celebrated a lot of birthdays this fall. Grant turned 3 in October, Gray turned 1, Dave turned 33 and Syd turned 7 all in November. I will have to find the pics we took at Grant and Gray's birthday (bad Mom!), but I did find the whole two pics we took of Syd blowing out the candles on her Sweet Tooth Fairy cupcake! She was thrilled with a Calico Critters Townhouse and an American Girl doll, plus other fun presents from aunts and uncles.

I have been on a pretty strict diet and excersize plan to shed my baby weight with the help of Lindsey. So far I am 18 lbs down (although I think I put on a couple at my friend Staci's cookie exchange last night!). This means a lot of protein shakes but I have figured out how to make them super yummy. This one that Grant is sporting is made of strawberries and cream protein, stevia, half a banana, spinach and a handful of blueberries blended with no sugar added almond milk. It is REALLY good despite how it sounds.

We started a new Christmas tradition this year with the "Elf on a Shelf". The kids named our little elf Hugo and he sits on the mantle watching the kids to make sure they behave. He flies back to the North Pole every night to report to Santa. And he also makes a little mischief when he gets back. The kids ADORE this. Blake talked of nothing else for two days straight and you should hear the letters they write to him. So far he has been enjoying himself as you can see.

The kids woke up to find him still posed from his Drive-in-movie date with Barbie. He even has a little bucket of popcorn on his lap. They were enjoying "Frosty's Wonderland".

This morning the kids found he had made a little mess on the dining room table with fake snow. Missing play time at the North Pole maybe?

Building little snowmen out of marshmallows from the pantry for the kids.

We have also found him hiding in the fridge, ziplining across the dining room after hanging candy canes on the chandelier and hiding all over the house. Including tacking pink and red streamers all across the doorway with a string leading to a box in the closet where he was hiding with a birthday treat for Syd and the boys.

Here is one from our Gingerbread house decorating. A really fun yearly tradition. Blake and Syd did such a great job this year! And Grant did a really great job eating all of his candy!

Grant has been "playing" Mario brothers on Blakes DS lately. He really has no idea what he is doing but I think he likes pressing the buttons and seeing the screen change. It is pretty hilarious because he concentrates so hard. The other day I couldn't find him - but then heard some familiar music coming from the coat closet. It turns out that Grant has figured out he can see the screen much better in the dark so he climbs in the closet and shuts the door to "play".

Our baby is growing up! He has started walking. Funny how it never gets old to see your child take their first steps, even if it is the fourth time around. He is a fiesty little guy who takes major tantrums. I am really hoping it is just out of frustration due to lack of communicating skills. I think I am going to need to teach him some signing to help. Grayson loves to give open mouth kisses, laugh at his Sister Sydney (she always gets him to laugh the hardest) and play in the toilet. And he is clinging to nursing for all it is worth. He does NOT want to wean so it is going to be a long process. We love our little blue eyed boy!

We are all ready for Christmas. The tree has been up since right before Thanksiving, and the house is decorated. We are enjoying fires in the fireplace and Christmas cookies (well, the kids and Dave more so!). We love our many traditions and look forward to visiting Temple Square up in Salt Lake City to see the lights and visit the amazing nativity, going to see the Nutcracker ballet, and especially looking forward to Christmas in Canada with my family this year. It will be the first time I have been home for Christmas in 10 years and I am so excited (as are the kids) I could cry. We are listening to Christmas music, shopping for our friends and family and thinking about our Savior's birth and life, feeling his spirit all around us. THAT is why Christmas means so much to us!

Blake, soaking in some Christmas magic.

TODAY...

2011-11-30T14:17:00.008-07:00

My sissy turns 7. I told her not to grow up. She didn't listen, and just keeps on going! *sob*

She had two longer patches of hair... just perfect for "cricket tails" as I used to call them. LOVED THEM!

Sydney Alice with Grandma Alice. Her first (and so far ONLY great grandaughter!). So glad they were able to meet before Grandma dazzled Heaven.

Sis-boo and my Mum.

My little (big!) chunky monkey isn't so chunkey anymore!

Best. Puppy. Dog. Eyes. Ever.

Sis-boo, we love you more than you can ever know. Thanks for being such a funny, sweet, helpful and loving girl! We know there are wonderful things in store for you and we feel blessed to be able to help you along your journey! LOVE YOU SOOOOO!

xoxo

Mama.

Newest Addition.

2011-11-15T22:21:00.005-07:00

We have a couple new nephews. My brother Isaac and his wife Katie had little Charlie. I haven't met him in person yet but looking forward to it at Christmas!

And just a day before Gray's 1st birthday, Little Beckham joined the Weekley side of the family, making Adam and Lauren parents! I got to take his pics and loved all of that new baby handling!

I don't think I will ever get tired of a newborn baby! They are pure Heaven!

What is this book of Mormon???

2011-11-05T17:07:00.000-06:00

C'est L'Halloween!

2011-10-31T12:10:00.000-06:00

And one more...

2011-10-12T09:56:00.002-06:00

Go here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-faith/post/why-evangelicals-must-stand-up-to-anti-mormon-bigotry/2011/10/10/gIQA06PqZL_blog.html

Are Mormons Christians?

2011-10-12T08:15:00.001-06:00

Oh yes. I am a Christian. I do not need a politician or pastor from another religion to validate that for it to be fact.

Blog? What Blog?

2011-08-15T08:57:00.007-06:00

That pretty much sums up my blogging habits lately. It may be because there was quite a lot going on like say... Blake's baptism, or Gray being a fuss fart non-stop and never wanting me to put him down. Or perhaps our move across the valley...

In an event, I am way behind. So let's start at the leave off point (well approximately).

Blake's baptism.

What a special day. It made this mama cry to think that her little boy was so grown up. And because it was such a wonderful, meaningful event.

Blake all in white and ready for the big moment with his dad!

Afterwards. On the steps of the church. Finally a decent family picture. And in the words of the famous rap song, Blake "So fresh and so clean, clean".

Our wonderful family who was here to share the day. Notice my Mum,Dad,sister Katie and nephew Jack! They came all the way from Canuckville to be here. It was awesome.

Learn more about our Baptismal beliefs HERE.

Where I am from.

2011-06-22T16:35:00.000-06:00

This made me homesick.

Multiple Personalities.

2011-06-22T14:04:00.005-06:00

The many faces of Gray. I never want to forget these faces! These were all captured within a minute or two. He has been sticking his tongue out all the time lately. This little tongue poking out from between these big, chubby cheeks!

All that expression just tired him out!

8 and Grrrrrrrrreat!

2011-06-17T20:49:00.010-06:00

I can't believe that my little Blake is now 8 years old. In honor of his birth day I am re-posting his birth story. I posted it on an old Diaryland blog I had before this one. I have been blogging for 10 years now! Pics and birthday news to follow:

THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE

2003-06-29 - 7:05 p.m.

Finally - a birth story!

Monday June 16th. Dave and I went for a walk the night before around 11pm. I started to feel a little crampy halfway into it so we didn't go too far. The neighbor yelled "you are going to go into labor doing that" and I yelled back "that is the point!"... Little did I know!

Around 4:30 a.m., and I woke up having cramps. At first I thought I was really constipated or something or had eaten something bad. That is what it felt like!!! I kept trying to go to the bathroom with no luck - 5:30 came and went, pains were getting worse, I was wracking my brain to think what I had eaten that was bad, wondering if I had salmonella!

6:30 - pains are getting worse, I am wondering if maybe these are contractions? But still telling myself I just have really bad gas or something and there is no way this could be labor.

7:30 - okay, these have been going on for way too long now, I am in tears it hurts so badly and I ask Dave to start timing the pains just in case (I still think it isn't that, it couldn't be - a week early? ME?)

8:00 - Dave comes in, telling me to look at the paper that he has been recording times on. They are every five minutes - oh my gosh, I think this might be it!

8:10- I am in SO much pain, I decide to take a hot shower and then Dave and I plan to head to my Dr.'s office to get checked to make SURE before we go to the hospital. The hot water really helps, but it hurts so badly! Like the worst menstrual cramps I have ever had x 100!

8:45 - I have been trying to call the Dr.'s office, I don't think they will be open until 9:00. I decide that I am hurting too badly, this HAS to be it, we are going to the hospital, I get my bag ready.

9:00 - We pack up the car, my mother in law has tears in her eyes and is really excited. I just keep trying to breath and not kill anyone.

9:15 - We get to the hospital. We parked in the wrong spot and I have to walk like a mile to the women's center. I refuse a wheelchair from the lady at the info counter who can tell I am in great pain. I kick myself five minutes later while we are still walking and fight the urge to kick Dave as he asks if I can move any faster.

9:30 - The nurse has just left the admitting room after telling me I am 3 cm dilated and about 90% effaced. She says they will monitor me over the next hour and if I have made progress, I get to stay, if not, they will send me home (BETTER NOT!) with drugs for the pain.

10:15 - Nurse is back in to check me. I am 100% effaced and am making progress. They admit me (thank heavens!). I spend the next hour and a half (what seems like forever) gritting my teeth and clutching the bed rails (I know they told us not to do that in my prenatal classes but it is either that, or I strangle Dave for putting me in this position in the first place!). I don't want Dave to touch me or anyone else for that matter. I cry for my mom, I tell Dave I can't do this and want to go home, I take it back... too late!

Shortly after, the nurse comes back in, asking me if I want an epidural. HECK YES! GET HIM IN HERE!!! The saint of an anesthesiologist (boy, I can't spell that!) comes in and gives me the wonder drug. I don't feel another painful contraction and I bless the person that invented that!

I made regular progress, the doctor came in and broke my water when I was around 8cm at about 4:30, 5:00 or so. The nurse informed a shocked Dave and I that I was complete at about 6pm and could start pushing soon!

My sister and Dave and his family were all there. Dave and my sister stayed for the labor, and labor I did! I pushed for two and a half hours, all while looking at the clock, praying that I would have enough strength to keep it up so that I wouldn't have to have a c-section. I couldn't seem to get the baby's head under the pelvic bone and part of the reason was that my contractions never came any more close than five minutes apart. The nurses were amazed I had made such good progress in that state!

The baby's heart rate dipped a few times during labor, so they had put an internal monitor on him earlier. That was a bit scary - they were worried that the cord might be wrapped around his neck.

Katie and Dave sat at the foot of the bed like spectators the whole time! So much for my coach and cool washcloths on my forehead. Can you believe they had SNACKS? YEAH, SNACKS! THE NERVE! I didn't want the mirror, I think it would have freaked me out even more, but Katies face said it all several times, and she even mouthed at one point "I am never having children" - I was thinking, it is THAT bad?

Finally the dr. came in, and after a little while, decided that he would have to use forceps. I didn't even have an ounce of strength left so it was a good thing. The pressure was so intense! It felt like my pelvic bones were being yanked out of my body. My epidural had been turned down, so I could feel a little bit, but it wasn't bad at all.

Everything happened so fast, and then someone said the baby's head is out, give a small push, and I started bawling instantly and gave a small push and there he was - screaming his little head off!

Because of the forceps delivery, they rushed him to the warmer to check and make sure everything was okay. Dave didn't even get to cut the cord, he was disappointed about that.

I was literally sobbing. I was so happy he was finally here! And I was a mom! His cry was the most welcome sound and it seemed to take forever for them to finish with him. I kept commenting on how it was taking so long, telling them to hurry up and give me my baby! (half joking but mostly seriously of course!).

Katie had started bawling as soon as they pulled him out and Dave was teary eyed. I remember seeing Katie's face change and it made me cry even harder. I wish I would have looked at Dave better but so much was happening so fast!

When they put him into my arms, he seemed to quiet down almost immediately. He knew his mommy! I was crying so hard, and just in awe! I felt an instant connection to him, and such a great love right away. It was surreal and overwhelming and seemed to be a dream!

The dr. worked on my episiotomy and I just marvelled at this tiny person in my arms, and bawled - of course! I think I cried more than he did!

The rest of that night is a bit of a blur, Dave's family came in to see him, I didn't sleep a wink because of the excitement and the nursery natzi (another story) - and spent a lot of time just staring at little Blake, listening to him breath, (who at the time didn't have a name) and feeling pride over what I had accomplished, as well as the most amazing love and awe...

I couldn't believe that it was over, and that he was here...

There are days when I still can't believe it. Looking back - the 16 hours went by so fast (at least once I got that epidural), it seemed like a couple hours. I wish I could have taken more of it in, but I guess that is just how it happens, everything overwhelming and fast.

What an amazing miracle life is! I will never get over it or used to it.

What a blessing this little person is, and how much love he brings into our family!

I feel blessed to be a woman, and have such an important role - my greatest ever, that of mother!

Wow - things I would have told my 23 almost 24 yr old self: "You think that was pain? Just wait until your FOURTH!!!", "This is only one of the best days of your life...", "Enjoy the ease of one because you have nooo idea how busy life will get!".

But seriously? What an amazing day that was. And now this little guy:

Looks like this:

My sweet, thoughtful, caring, sensitive, athletic, creative, energetic and life loving baby is not a baby anymore... It makes me both sad, and excited for all the wonderful things to come.

We had a small family party yesterday. Kind of low key since his big 'friend' party will be at Classic Skating (his choice). But it was fun. And he got some really cool stuff. From Mom and Dad he got a sea monkey kit, a live Butterfly Garden kit and a book about butterflies, a pillow pet (Those darn infomercials!) and a karate kid movie. He will also get a moon globe in a few weeks (the company was bought out and so behind on orders). From the rest of our family he got a pottery wheel kit (can't wait to try that out!), a real rocket that he and dad can build, a basketball (which he has been asking for forever), and a pogo stick. Lots of super fun stuff to keep him busy this summer! I love that most of the things that he asks for are educational and creative!

Some fun pics to capture all the fun toothy awkwardness of 8 years of age!

A snapshot of Blake at 8 years old: Always wanting to give to others and help them feel better (Daddy says his eyes are as big as his heart!). Loves: soccer (and most sports), globes, flags and learning about different countries and cultures, bugs, writing stories, anything outdoors, water, challenges. Has a crazy amount of enthusiasm for everything. Such a good big brother, especially to the baby boys. Still loves snuggles and kisses from Mom and Dad and will still hold my hand in public (Although I have a feeling it won't be for much longer!). Favorite foods are pizza, ice cream and of course anything sweet. Adores his family: aunts, uncles, grandparents, nieces and nephews. A leader. A boy who we have realized the little girls love to chase!!!

How did I get so blessed? Happy birthday my sweetest baby boy!

Today was also Blakes last day of the Challenger soccer camp. I was impressed with the program and how organized and fun the coaches were. Next year we will definitely do it again and host a coach in our home. This years coaches included two from England, one from Brazil and one from Ireland.

Their mini world cup games were fun to watch today. Blake has been on the Brazil team all week and so this morning I used some felt to whip up a Brazil flag which he wore on his Payson city Jersey. He got good reviews from his coach and it was fun to hear "good job Blake" in so many different accents during the game. Who doesn't love a good accent!

They even had the "Queen, Prince Charles and a trophy cup" during the closing ceremonies (the orange cones served as Prince Charles ears. It was pretty funny.

I love that Blake is such an active little guy! He definitely doesn't the athleticism from his MOTHER!

A Night At the Grand.

2011-06-14T21:17:00.025-06:00

So my super awesome sister-in-law Jenny:

(ok so Tate is really the farthest thing from a little devil but we are hoping... just so he makes my kids look a little better behaved! HAH!)

Is a super awesome event planner for a little company that sells a certain kind of weird tasting miracle fruit juice that makes you be able to leap over tall buildings, overcome male pattern baldness, defeat cancer and become generally better looking. It is well known in Utah and rhymes with "phony" (I am avoiding any google searches here). Anyway, this company throws awesome events that take our lovely Jenny all over the world and to some pretty snazzy hotels. This girl has been spoiled. I mean it. Unless there is a chocolate piano that plays a different selection from Chopin every night left on her pillow, or a soft fuzzy robe that magically blow dries and styles her hair, it only gets four stars in her book. Ok, so I am exaggerating just a tad.

But really, it has been a dream job for her with some fun perks for us. Like when she called us on Friday night and wanted to know if we wanted her room up at the Grand America hotel on Saturday night. Ummm, all marble bathrooms (no really,even the BASEBOARDS are marble!) and a view to DIE for from the 16th floor? YES PLEASE!

She had a big event going on and had the room for three nights but was all five star-hotel-ed out. Yey for us!

We were planning on taking the kids to Lagoon on Saturday so we thought we would give them the option. Of course our children think hotels are better than Disneyland (only because they don't know better Holly). So hotel it was. We headed up there in the early evening on Saturday and it was an awesome suite.

Eastern facing views of S.L.C.

The amazing inner garden court.

Grant checking out our "suite" view.

Of course the kids wanted to be in the pool 24/7. I didn't mind except for the fact that there were a couple lounging women who would have looked more comfortable amid the pages of a naughty magazine in those swimsuits (I even gave Dave that sign where you point your first two fingers to your eyes and then in his direction that means - EYES ON ME!) J/K... sort of.

We ordered two big greasy pizzas from THE PIE, a Salt Lake City favorite. The kids got to warm their freezing bodies (from the not so warm pool) in the deep deep tub with a bubble bath, indulge in two pounds of Salt Lake City Saltwater Taffy and sleep in front of the floor to ceiling windows with this as their view once the sun went down.

Then there was a bad attempt at sleep, on my part. Dave seemed to do a good job snoring away. It was partly due to a lack of white noise; there was an alarm clock that had nature sounds but really, garden chimes and chirping birds are NOT the easiest thing to sleep to. The waves sounds were great but who was the brainiac that thought to put the FOG HORN in there? Since when are FOG HORNS going to lull anyone into deep relaxation??? Partly due to: my still waking to nurse every three hours baby, the aforementioned snoring, to Grant waking up and crying which ended with him sandwiched between Dave and I in the King sized bed which doesn't feel very king sized with a two year old glued to your side (and Dave thinks he is a Daddy's boy!).

At one point after several trips to and from the living room couch, I called down to the front desk from the toilet room (yes there was a room for the toilet and a PHONE IN THE ROOM FOR THE TOILET), to ask if they had a fan, but alas, the housekeeping staff was unable to track one down for me. I thought at a five star hotel they had to like, run out and buy one if a guest needed one and they didn't have it. Who cares that it was 2 a.m.? That must only be in the 6 star hotels. Or for the president (who did stay in the Grand America I might add). Finally I fell asleep around 4:30 or so. Of course the baby woke up to eat at 5:30 so it was a short lived slumber.

But it was worth my night of no sleep.

Especially so Gray could play like this:

I think he liked it.

ALOT.

(k, Dave thinks this is a homely picture of Gray but I love it. The look on his face just makes me LAUGH OUT LOUD!!!) And who doesn't love brand new bibi chicklet teeth.

And two more of "the babies". Because they are funny. And always make me laugh.

I have no idea why they made these faces. But they did it at the same time and it makes me laugh even more.

I love this little family of mine. Thanks for the memories Jen!

Oh my goodness...

2011-06-10T09:21:00.016-06:00

Could it be? I am actually blogging? STOP THE PRESS! And I have no idea what I want to blog about because I am that behind. How about a few catch-up photos. Our kiddos Easter pic. Yup, it really has been that long.

With cousin Tate who matched us. And it wasn't even planned!

Our attempt at a family pic. Dave's dad took this. Not so easy if your eyes don't focus together!

Syd's kindergarten graduation picture. Full time school for two kids next year... CRAZY!!!

At Hires Big H after we took the kids to the zoo. We had a blast and Grant can't stop talking about the "Elpint" "muckey" and "Jaff" he saw there.

A few of baby Gray in his excersaucer.

Grants first split lip. And it was a doozy. Apparently he tripped in the garage and ripped it open on some kind of plastic lid or something. I was taking a nap and heard the screaming. And I didn't panic at all that blood or the fact that his lip was almost split all the way through and looked like ground hamburger. I am getting better! Shortly after this was followed by a few really good bumps to the head, a finger shut in the door (my fault) and the automatic closing van door shutting on his little thumb and nearly breaking it (yesterday). I am amazed there hasn't been an er visit with this kid yet.

This really deserves its own post so just pretend this is a new one.

And now for one of the THE MOST FUN NIGHTS OF MY LIFE - U2 360 TOUR!!! Those of you who know me well, know that I have been in love with U2 since... well forever. Ok, maybe not forever but I bought Achtung baby with my paper route money when it came out on TAPE in 1991, which made me 12 years old. I have been a loyal fan ever since and have had attending one of their concerts on my "Things to do before I die" list for a long time. I was thrilled when I found out they were coming to Salt Lake in 2010, and totally disappointed when I learned Bono had hurt his back and the show was cancelled right before they were scheduled to come. But alas! There was hope and soon news that they would continue their tour in 2011 and S.L.C. was 2nd on their list. There was NO WAY I was going to cash in those tickets. I had been patient for a year and the anticipation and excitement was at an all time high the day of the concert. And man... it was MORE than I could have ever dreamed.

According to the press: "The concert featured The Claw, a structure that allows 360-degree viewing of the concert. The 400-ton structure is the largest stage ever constructed. And according to Dave McKay, vice president for United Concerts, U2's 360 Tour is one of the largest shows to tour, ever." From The Daily Herald

It was honestly the most amazing show I have ever seen and was completely surreal. I had one of the most fun nights of my life and it was a blast sharing my enthusiasm with Dave. Who is now a MUCH bigger U2 fan after seeing them live.

To get a good idea of what this stage looked like:

A couple favorite moments of the night:

One of my favorite songs

Another great moment

And to give you another example of how crazy this stage was. You can't see it but at the top of the tower there was a giant disco ball shooting rays all over the audience. You can see the lights if you look closely. It was NUTS! Like a giant alien spaceship had touched down. I literally felt like I was in a movie set a couple times.

And how crazy I was

You can totally see how excited I was and I pretty much danced like that the ENTIRE time. And if you notice no one else is (WHO GOES TO U2 AND DOESN'T DANCE???? Apparently too many people). The other "dancer" was this big guy on the other side of Dave so he got bumped around by the two of us pretty much the entire time. He said he didn't mind and that it made it more fun.

Now the only problem is I want to see them AGAIN so badly. Hopefully they don't retire anytime soon.

Happy Birthday to the BEST Grandma!

2011-05-12T10:22:00.000-06:00

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My Two Babies.

2011-05-04T09:20:00.002-06:00

Sometimes I get the best pics by just sitting and watching. These guys look so different it is hard to believe they are both mine! They sure are fun to see together (at least when Grant isn't trying to kill Grayson). I hope they grow into the best of friends.

His Sacred Name - An Easter Declaration

2011-04-24T13:38:00.000-06:00

Happy Easter!

True Woman | Grieving June Cleaver

2011-04-22T09:07:00.001-06:00

Not meant to offend any of my working Mommy friends out there! Each family has to decide what is best for them. This is a wonderful article that I greatly agree with!

True Woman | Grieving June Cleaver

Ohhh Baby!

2011-04-18T15:39:00.006-06:00

I have been wanting to do this for awhile - post pics of the kids as babies, side by side for comparison. And then of Dave and I.

These are all the kids between the age of 4-6 months. Click on it to see a larger version.

I couldn't find a better pic of Blake at this age. I am not sure if I have anything digital of him at all but if I do, it is currently all in storage.

Now here is one of both Dave and I (except Dave is around 1 years old here) - so who looks like who?

A couple more of us a little older.

Vintage Baby.

2011-04-14T15:35:00.004-06:00

I found this adorable vintage style romper on Zulily for a STEAL. I knew it would be perfect for Gray's Easter/Mother's Day pics. Well, today I took literally 10 min to pull out the camera to snap a few pics of Gray in it before his nap. I am glad I am did, it is already snug since I washed it and accidentally put it in the dryer!

Here is a sneak peek!

He looks so different when laying flat on his back! It accentuates all of the delicious baby chubs!

Dang it... of course the best one of him smiling is blurry. That may because I was playing "peekaboo" to try and get a smile out of him and moving too fast while trying to catch those quick smiles!!! Oh well... love it anyway! Pictures don't have to be perfect to be much loved and capture the feelings :)

Spring break so far has been pretty good. With the exception of this morning at Wal Mart where I had the wrong insurance info (Dave's co. just switched plans on us) and I was trying to pick up a prescription which is why I took all four kids with me in the first place.

So while I was on the phone trying to figure out what was going on, Grant is trying to climb out of the cart and screaming when I buckle him in (and hitting me), Blake is running around and Sydney was... "SYDNEY, WHERE ARE YOU?". The I ran into a friend from church and Grant RAN SMACK DAB - FACE FIRST into her shopping cart knocking himself flat on the floor where he banged his head a second time (he also ran into a wall last night - might need to get his eyes checked soon!). She felt so bad because she thought she hit him with her cart, I reassured her that no, she was standing perfectly still; that was just Grant.

*sigh*

Baby was an angel :)

It just reminded me why I loathe taking all four kids to the grocery store at once. I become one of "THOSE" women who I know I had probably passed judgement on before I had children!

Lesson learned. Once again.

Yesterday I took the kids to the BYU Museum of Art. I had wanted to take them through the Carl Bloch exhibit, which I was fortunate to go see the first time sans kids with my good friend Amy. I hoped their little spirits would be touched by all of the amazingly beautiful paintings of Christ, but alas, the crowds were enormous and I knew it would be a feat to get standby tickets. Perhaps we will try again soon.

We headed downstairs to this really cool interactive digital exhibit that the kids would love but of course, the bulb was burned out and it wouldn't be fixed until the next day. We walked around looking at some of the other art until they got bored (like 15 minutes later) and then headed to the BYU creamery for lunch and some of the best ice cream in the valley. The kids were so good. I thought we would be totally out of place and it would be filled with students but to my surprise (ok, not total surprise) there were like 5 other Mothers there all with 4 or more young children. Only at BYU right?

Then it was off to the park. On the way home, Blake said "Mom, I really want to do something for you since you gave us such a fun day today".

Sweet right? Of course, my response was "You could clean your room? That would be nice..."

The inevitable eye roll followed. Sweet moment over.

(And it is still far from clean).

Dave has been in Texas all week and gets home tomorrow afternoon. I am now officially counting down the hours.

Whooweeee.

2011-04-12T11:09:00.004-06:00

Grayson is sitting on my lap, farting up a storm and HOLY COW! I never knew an exclusively breastfed baby's little flarties could be so very lethal! Perhaps it was all the grapefruit gummies I ate last night?

"Wow, even I thought that was a bad one Mom!"

2011-04-06T09:50:00.009-06:00

Could it be? Could I possibly be updating my blog? One day, I vow to be a regular blogger again. Lately, I just seem to lack time and motivation. Or I am just plain old "too tired".

It is most definitely due to these two little critters:

If only you could hear the diabolical laughter!

One of them is super sweet as long as he is being held in MY arms. Or eating at all hours of the night. The other is hilarious but talk about a hand-full.

The combination of my third baby to have colic, two (I can tell that number will soon be 3) of the busiest boys known to man, and my physical tendency to carry around enormously uncomfortable baby bellies that prevent me from doing much of anything for months, have pretty much ensured that this particular branch of the Weekley line stops here :)

In The News:

Grayson's 4 month appointment showed that he was 17.4 lbs and in the 91% for height and weight. He is now 5 months old and still waking up every 3 hours at night to eat. I am planning on starting him on rice cereal soon and then we are going to see what we can do about weaning at least one of those night feedings.

He is very much a "Mummy's Boy" all of the sudden and doesn't seem to want anyone else... yikes. I am flattered but also worried. I do need some kid free time once and awhile for sanity's sake so this may present a challenge. Especially since we have our big U2 concert coming up soon (the one that was postponed from last year!). I will have to figure something out!

He is a very smiley, happy baby when he is with me. He is also very sqawky (we call it his strangled bird noises) and loves to use his abs and legs to rock back and forth when in a sitting position. Oh, and I mustn't forget how much he loves to shove nearly his entire fist into his mouth almost constantly. Or chew on his little thumb.

I can't get enough of his soft, squishy white thighs either. The are chubbalicious!

As for Grant, we are preparing to start speech therapy with him in a few weeks. He is right on target with all of his developmental milestones but his expressive speech (speaking) is under the 7% for his age. His SLP thinks it is just delay due to his chronic ear infections and what we think was a major lack of hearing in his first year. He loves the ladies that are going to be coming to work with him (as do I) and I am super excited to get past some of the frustration that comes from not being able to figure out what he wants half the time.

In the last three weeks Grant has sustained the following:

GIANT bruise on the forehead and scrape on the nose from running in new shoes down the drive way and face planting. Not joke, it was a CARTOON SIZED bump on the poor kids head!

Bruise on the cheek from falling on the corner of our big Curious George book while the kids were wrestling with Daddy.

BLACK EYE. This one from tipping over my tall laundry basket while he was inside it. It fell against a closed door banging the back of his head on the door and the front of the basket came up and wacked him in the eye good.

RE-BRUISED the exact same spot on his forehead. This time he wasn't watching where he was going and walked into the corner of the molding on the door frame.

Every time I take him out into public I am waiting for someone to call social services. It looks like I beat him in the face!!!

I am thinking of investing in a helmet for him to wear. Like the football kind with the face mask?

I don't have a pic of the black eye but you can see it in this video! (You can totally hear Gray's squawking noises in the background!)

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Blake and Syd are both doing so well in school. I am a proud mama.

Blake is such a tenderheart who is forever thinking of others. There was the time we were leaving Wal-Mart and saw a homeless vet with a sign asking for contributions. Blake read his sign, I had no cash on me (I never carry any!), but after we had been home for a couple hours, Blake had taken $5 + of his own hard earned money and wanted me to take him back to Wal-Mart to give it to this man. I was so surprised and touched that he had been thinking about it all that time so we went back (Syd not to be oudone wrangled $1.95 from her own piggy bank) to see if he was still there but he had left. Blake cried all the way home, heartbroken.

He also picked out bubbles after a visit to the dentist to give to Grant because he knows how much Grant loves them. When Grant left them in Wal-Mart and was crying "Bubbos - oh no - bubbos", Blake got all teary eyed and begged me to go look for them (back into Wal-Mart I went to find the teeny bottle of bubbles). He can't stand to see his little brother so sad.

And when we were watching news coverage of the Tsunami in Japan, Blake eyes welled up with tears and he said he loves "all the people of the world" and doesn't like to see them hurting.

Sydney told me she wanted me to change the channel back to her cartoons (so like her Dad!!!).

I truly hope I can help to foster this charitable, empathetic heart. He melts my own constantly. (I wish I had a current pic of him to share but the kid is never around! He LIVES outside!)

Sydney is the BEST little helper with Gray. She can get him to laugh like no other and her "baby talk" is hilarious because it is an exact version of mine - on steroids.

She hates to hear him cry and never seems to tire of taking care of him. She is forever annoyed with Grant however, who wants to do everything she does and play with everything she plays with.

Syd has also taken off with her reading. She is also quite conscientious about her school work and picks things up quickly. My bright little mini-Mama!

Dave is enjoying his new job. He travels to Texas once or twice a month, and I am starting to get the hang of having four kids to myself 24/7. We are hoping to move closer to his work this summer since his commute can sometimes take an hour and a half with traffic. It really cuts into our family time.

I am adapting. And soon I am going to need to stop eating a lb of chocolate covered raisins every night and EXERCISING so I can lose this baby weight! And I really need to find a double jogging stroller - any suggestions? I have a single... anyone want to trade?

I am going to start planning for Blake's baptism, summer vacation and activities and hopefully moving. Between that, swimming lessons, Grants therapy and the cooking blog - life is keeping me BUSY!

I will be looking forward to summer, that is FOR SURE!

A Day in the life...

2011-03-10T16:45:00.003-07:00

Baby is trying (miserably) to entertain himself for 5 minutes so I can catch up on a bit o' blogging. Scratch that. Baby is now in my arms perched precariously while I try to type. He is also making funny high-pitched complaints that I am not interacting with him. Which he expects 95% of the day.

Today was kind of busy. This is what it consisted of:

6:00 am - wake up, put Gray's soother back in, check to make sure the kids haven't gotten out of bed to watch t.v., get back in bed and fall asleep just in time to be woken up by the sound of Dave getting into the shower.

...

wait... baby is crying.

THAT ABOUT SUMS IT UP!

Sleep is for wuses.

2011-02-10T17:09:00.002-07:00

Grayson doesn't sleep. Let me rephrase that: Grayson doesn't sleep during the day. He is doing ok at night, goes to bed at between 8-10 pm depending on his mood and wakes at around 3 or 4 am to nurse and then back to sleep until 6:30 am or so when I throw his soother back in or take him into bed with me until 7:30 or 8 am. Not great, but improved.

It is during the day that he becomes a 3 month old zombie baby and refuses to nap for any period longer than 20 minutes.

Which is really infuriating. Mainly because when he is awake, he doesn’t ever want to be put down. Since day one, this guy wants to be held 24/7. Originally, I had picked up a moby wrap and intended to wear him regularly. Have YOU ever had a 16 lb baby strapped to your chest for longer than an hour? Ok, well what if said giant baby just exited your body leaving you with absolutely no abdominal muscles (due to being stretched to the max to provide an ample uterine McMansion for the little prince). Let’s just say my back can’t handle that kind of jelly.

Even if I did believe in letting him “cry it out” at this age (for the record, I don’t), I can’t put him down for any length of time or else “El Diablo” will surely attack with either teeth, claws, or tough love which has included trying to pick up sweet little Grayson by his belly button. So for his safety, he is held for most of the day.

Here is where the lack of sleep is really taking its toll. I CAN’T GET A THING DONE. I nurse him mid-morning, his little eyes get heavy and he falls asleep. I carefully swaddle him and place him in his crib or sometimes on my pillow on the bed (so he can at least have my scent) and he falls asleep…

I tiptoe out of the room and begin to tackle some chore that is long overdue – laundry, bathroom, say… cleaning in general, or perhaps trying to spend a minute with Grant. Maybe even eat breakfast without a baby in my arms. No more than 15 – 20 minutes into any task and “WAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHCOMEANDGETMERIGHTTHISMINUTEORIMIGHTDIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE” crying begins.

You know, normally, I really love holding a baby for long periods of time. I did it with Grant happily. But that was also because Sydney was 4 at the time. And because Grant took a nice long nap in the morning and afternoon. Now that I have the worlds hardest toddler, and three other children creating a lot of work for me, I really need this baby to take at least one substantial nap during the day so I can feel like a productive member of society.

I think maybe I figured something out. Grayson will take an afternoon nap on one condition – that I am laying next to him.
OK. So it works out kind-of-sort-of. Grant takes his nap in the afternoon after lunch. It usually takes him awhile to fall asleep. Goes something like this:

12:10 pm – gets “su su” and blanky and heads to bed

12:10-12:35 – Jumps from the footboard of the big bed onto the mattress about twenty-one-hundred times.

12:35 – 12:50 – lies on the floor in front of the door and kicks the door.

12:50-12:51 – Gets a stern talking to from Mummy about kicking the door.

12:51-12:53 – Poops his pants

1pm – Kicks the door again until Mum comes and changes him.

1pm – 1:02 pm – takes pants off. Second time.

1:02 pm-1:15 pm – falls asleep in front of door with forehead smashed into the carpet. Then wakes up an hour and a half later with “rug print” on his face.
Yes, it is a bit of a circus but I am hanging onto that afternoon peace for dear life. Either that or take up drinking.

So during this time, It would make sense for Grayson to take a nap as well. Except we are talking about the baby who will only sleep if he is superglued to my person.

ALAS! I have figured out that 7 out of 10 times, if I lay down with him, he will actually fall asleep for a little longer than a cat-nap. Conditions have to be perfect. He has to be perfectly swaddled with hands at his side and unable to get out. He has to be completely satiated with mothers milk. The radio has to be on to static and turned up pretty loud. And I have to be lying face to face with him, occasionally nuzzling his darling little nose.

If he starts smiling at me (which he often does), I know it is going to take a bit of magic. But if conditions are JUST RIGHT, he will doze off into that much coveted baby slumber.

So here is the hard part. In the process of creating this ultra soothing sleep cocoon for my little one, I usually fall asleep too. But of course, I have a million and five hundred things to do so at some point, I will drag myself out of the bed and… onto the couch. Where I sit there, so tired I can barely open my eyes (this is my sleepy time of day you see) . ZERO ENERGY. Due to that teasing little nap, I just lost all of the fire I had to put things into some sort of order other than ORDERED CHAOS. I sit there like a lump of mud (or fall asleep again). And I get 2 whole things done before Grant wakes up and starts banging on his door. One of those might be a shower.

In conclusion, if you “drop-by unexpectedly” (which you just shouldn’t do), and my house is a mess, and I am in my pajamas with yesterday’s mascara smudged under my eyes accentuating the dark circles, wearing “l’eau du baby puke” parfum – don’t judge. Just hand me some chocolate and a sympathetic look and come away feeling grateful that using the bathroom, for you, is an individual act.

Grayson's Blessing Day

2011-02-09T14:10:00.007-07:00

We had the opportunity to bless our baby in church at the end of January. It was a wonderful day that we shared with our family (except for my far away family in Canada :( *sniff*). We had a brunch after our sacrament meeting with quiche, egg puff, muffins, fresh fruit, cinnamon rolls and various juices. And my baby (most likely last) received a wonderful blessing by his Daddy. In our church, we don't christen our babies as we believe they are born perfect (without sin - they acquire that as they get older and gain knowedge to make choices). Instead, we have a member of the priesthood (usually the father) bless the baby and give them a name (which is recorded in the church records). It is a very special occasion.

Of course, with all the excitement of the day, I do what I usually do and drop the ball on taking photos. Last year, I didn't get ONE picture of Grant in his blessing outfit. TSK TSK. This year, I made sure not to make that mistake. We had Lauren take a family picture of us at the church before we left and then I had a little mini photo session with Gray in his outfit today before he outgrows it. I LOVE how the pictures turned out - I feel like they do a good job capturing what my little muffin looks like at this time.

The family picture didn't turn out so well. I have plans to remedy that this spring with a REAL family photo shoot (it will be our first!).

(Wow, looking at this photo makes me feel disbelief that I carried and gave birth to most of those people!)

How blessed I feel to have these sweet little people in our family.

Stuff I Love

2011-02-07T12:55:00.011-07:00

What a bad blogger/journaler I have been. What can I say? Hands are full at the moment, and our internet has been moving at a snails pace thanks to Qwest and their lovely issues which we were informed they have been having after we called them. You think they would automatically take a deduction from people's bills and send out notice after 2 weeks of HORRIBLE service (remember the dial up days? This is worse). So no, Qwest internet is NOT on my list.

Here are some of the things that I am loving these days:

CANDY - Yeah, I know it isn't good for me or my teeth but it is just so YUMMY! These are my favorites:

Grapefruit Jelly's. I found them at a candy cart in the mall at Christmas, but then they disappeared with the season. ALAS - this weekend I discovered they sell them at WINCO!!! YEY! You can also add WinCo's bulk section to this list ;)

Sweet's Soft Sour Balls - the Valentines mix. I get mine at Payson Market but I know Macey's carries them as well.

And the chocolate covered raisins from the bulk section at WinCo. I thought I would never find chocolate covered raisins that I like as much as the ones I could get at the bulk barn in Canada... well, problem solved!

The Book. So enlightening. Loved it.

This TV series from BBC. Lark Rise to Candleford. Heard of it on a blog I frequent and have been getting them from Netflix. LOVE LOVE LOVE!

Oh, and Netflix. Because it is awesome. And the customer service is amazing. And it carries all my favorite Masterpiece Theatre and BBC favorites.

These. Chunky drumsticks. Because I can't help but want to sqeeze them all day long.

And one more view. Because you can't get enough.

This paper art. I think this would make a great present for my dad who loves the great lakes.

These Mrs. Meyers cleaning products. Because they are all natural. And they make me feel like I am at a spa while I am cleaning my toilet. And they make my whole house smell good.

There are also about a million new fabric lines I love right now. Wanted to share a few but remember the internet thing? Yeah... I can't even upload pics.

Answers...

2011-01-31T11:39:00.001-07:00

LOVED THIS post: a response to the "Mormon Mommy Blogger" article linked in the post below by one of my daily blog reads, C. Jane.

Check out THESE cupcakes!

2011-01-19T13:36:00.010-07:00

As humans, I think one of the worst things about our "natural" nature is to judge others. We are all guilty of it (yes, even I, cause I am sooooo perfect (hope you catch the dripping sarcasm here)). But of course, we all love to hear good things being said about ourselves - which is why THIS article about Mormon mommy bloggers is one of the rare articles about Mormons from a non-Mormon that I actually enjoyed. Sure, some managed to pick it apart to death and find some of the subliminal insults, but I thought it was positive and mostly true.

And then of course, the nutcases and people who should have "hateful" as their middle names come out of the woodworks and turn the comments into a train wreck - Don't read them by the way, most likely they will just offend you and you will spend the day wanting to kick someone in the face - not worth it because they really don't know what they are talking about.

I kind of wrote about this a little while ago in THIS post, where I talk about always wanting to be real so that I can relate with others and be a good friend.

BUT

I do have a problem with all of the finger pointing that is going on all of the sudden in the direction of the Mommy bloggers who only want to write about the good things in their lives (which I really believe are in the minority). That is just absurd to assume that the only reason they do so is to "out-do" all of the other Mom's. I am sure for some, that crosses their minds as they post perfect pictures and happy posts only - but I also have friends who only blog about the good stuff - and I know for a fact it isn't because they are trying to "out-do" everyone else. It is because it is the good stuff they want to focus on and remember. And because they really do enjoy their roles as mothers/wives/crafters/women.

I got a message from a friend on facebook talking about how it annoyed this person that these Mommy bloggers are always trying to prove they are the "best". Here was my response to this person:

(Edited for typos)

I see your point... but I only agree to a point. I do think there are bloggers that are out there who are like that. BUT, I also have some very close, dear friends who only blog happy things in their lives, and take lots of pictures of their cupcakes, and parties but I can honestly say, that many of them are very humble, sweet women who aren't doing it to "outdo" everyone else - they just really enjoy the art of homemaking and with the invention of the internet and technology, they like to share their ideas with others. I personally am grateful for that sharing because I am NOT the craftiest person in the world but I enjoy doing those things - so I like the ideas.

I think to really understand, you have to be a stay at home mom. And see what it is like to be surrounded by tiny people who can't carry on a conversation about anything other than Elmo all day long. I think when you get into the really wealthy set, maybe that changes because many of those moms really are trying to out-do the Johnsons. But none of my friends are really wealthy. And they know that their friends and family reading their blogs know their issues with marital problems, mental illness and their bills not getting paid, etc. etc. and I can't blame them for only wanting to journal the happy times. I know that for me, my blog is a journal which I am actually going to begin putting into books this year, and I want it to be real. I blog about my husbands layoff, I blog about my house being a mess, my kids driving me crazy, physical ailments (I put a picture up on my blog of me, 9 months pregnant with my lovely belly hoist for crying out loud!) but I also take a million pictures of my kids because they are my kids. I would take a million pics of them anyways and it is a great way for my friends and family back home to stay in touch.

Anyway, I think it is absurd that so many people want to point the finger at these mostly well meaning moms. Why do people buy designer jeans? Nice cars? Why do they get expensive haircuts? I know hundreds of people who wouldn't be caught dead wearing something from walmart. Let's be honest, that kind of "out-doing" exists in every corner of our culture. I think people need to lay off the moms who are devoting most of their time, talents and physical bodies to giving life to, and raising good children, because they are giving their all to everyone else and certainly don't need people judging them.

And I mean every word. There are SO many reasons why no one should be expected to air ANY dirty laundry online:

1. Why can't our negative business be OUR own business?
2. People get tired of hearing other people whine.
3. There is nothing wrong with focusing on the positive, especially when it can be therapeutic for the person reflecting on their own lives.
4. It is their journal. Who wants to look back on all of the CRAPPY times in their lives?
5. Why SHOULDN'T we post a million pictures of our kids/cupcakes/homes/parties? It is a JOURNAL, we would take them anyway (especially since photography is a growing hobby with anyone since the invention of affordable SLR's).
6. Do YOU want your family and friends to meet all the skeletons in your closet?
7. If they don't like it, they don't have to read it.
8. I LIKE seeing women who are achieving a lot - often times it INSPIRES me to do better.
... the list could go on and on.

I just wish that women were much more supportive of each other instead of always trying to knock each other down. I think in the Mommy blogging community, we do a lot more of that. I wish that the general public were more supportive of stay-at-home-moms and would cut them a break. And I wish that people were more positive ALL the time (I totally include myself in that category).

And GO MORMON MOMMY BLOGGERS, for showing that being a wife, mother and homemaker can indeed be a wonderful, fulfilling JOB. One that we are often times, paid much too little credit for.

*steps off the soapbox*

Gray's Coos. at OneTrueMedia.com

2011-01-14T16:03:00.001-07:00

Gray is by far my most talkative baby. When he isn't sleeping (or fussing), he is cooing up at me endlessly. It is adorable. We tried to capture it on camera but it seems like as soon as we pull it out, he stops. This is the tail end of our little conversation.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Picture Catch Up

2010-12-23T11:42:00.004-07:00

Blogging has been a hard thing to keep up with. The problem is that Grayson doesn't like to be happy for most of the day :( And he doesn't sleep during the day. He takes teeny tiny little cat naps... just enough for me to get into something - I haven't been finishing many tasks lately. But I have managed to get some cute pictures in the last couple weeks.

I caught some pretty sweet moments between these two brothers one afternoon. I didn't even have to direct!

Going's On

2010-12-10T08:24:00.006-07:00

Well, the kids are sick and home for day 3 of being pent up and driving me crazy (please get better sooooon so you can go back to SCHOOL!). I was up until 3 am coughing, then feeding the baby until 4:30 am and then Grant came into my room at 6:30 am so I am wiped out today. I am trying to decide if I am going to be ambitious and try and get a picture of the kids for a Christmas card (am I sending out Christmas cards? Still not sure...). If I do, they will be in their pj's. Appropriate for how life has been lately.

Four has definitely thrown me for a loop. As I type this, Grant is sitting on my desk blowing "spittle laden" raspberries in my face and doing his crazy man yell in between. I think the 4th has thrown him too.

Grayson has terrible "colic". I suspect it is related to reflux, but everything I am reading says you really shouldn't medicate for that unless they aren't thriving. And he is sure thriving. If I had to guess I would say he is close to 13-14 lbs - at not even 6 weeks old! He is still waking up a couple times a night to nurse, which is much better than the every hour and a half a few weeks ago. In the few moments that he isn't fussing during the day, he gives me big huge smiles and even coo's at me a bit.

I have to admit, I have felt pretty overwhelmed and in over my head since he joined our family. Grant is just still so needy and into everything (his biting habit has also returned with a vengeance. I am sure in response to the decline in attention from Mommy) and Gray just requires so much attention and doesn't sleep very well during the day. The house is usually a mess, I am usually not showered or dressed until after noon and my "breaks" pretty much consist of taking only Grant to the grocery store in the evenings.

Those of you with four already or more than, probably think I am a big wuss but this is how it is at the moment. And perhaps you haven't met Grant. Or had a baby who cries and fusses most of the day to boot.

who me? But look how sweet I am!

I know that eventually we will get to a "new normal" and things won't feel so crazy and until then, I am getting by.

We celebrated Sydney's 6th birthday with some of her friends at Jumpin' Jacks in Springville (at Sydney's request). I am telling you, that is the way to do a birthday party. No mess, little stress, and the kids have a blast and get all of their energy out.

Afterwards we had ice cream cake at home with just the family so we could do the candle thing.

I can't believe my baby girl is already 6 years old. Sydney has always been the easiest child. She was a happy, easy baby who was always content. As a toddler, although she gave Blake some grief and bossed him around (she had him wrapped around her finger from day 1!), she loved to entertain herself and was a little cuddle-bug. As a child, she is pretty obedient, can still entertain herself for hours (just like her mama at that age), and can hold her own with the boys both at home and on the playground. She is a bit of a cheeky monkey. She has always known what she wants and has no problems expressing that. I hope she keeps that confidence as she grows.

She adores Grayson and treats him like a doll (literally carting him around sometimes like one when Mommy's back is turned!). She is a great big sister to Gray and is pretty good and playing with Grant too. How I love this little girl!

Well, baby calls so I have to cut this one short. C'est la vie!

Should be.

2010-12-01T13:37:00.002-07:00

I should be cleaning my house. In all the business of preparing for Sydney's 6th birthday, It has fallen WAY behind. It looks like a hurricane came through... literally.

I should be picking up the thousands of toys off of the floor, dirty clothes from the kids room, doing laundry and scrubbing the toilet. But instead, I am going to go lay down with this little guy and breathe in the smell of him and maybe fall asleep.

Tis' The Season

2010-12-01T13:36:00.001-07:00

Funny Face

2010-11-29T21:30:00.003-07:00

I set out to capture some of the many faces of Grant today. I took a ton of photos... I don't think I can take enough. He is starting to turn into a big boy.

HECTIC!

2010-11-24T13:33:00.010-07:00

So life has not been easy with 4 kids so far. Grant is just SO busy and always into everything and has definitely been struggling with the huge decline in attention from Mama. Ok, so he pretty much gets VERY little one-on-one playtime (like maybe right before he goes to bed) with Mama, mainly due to the fact that the littlest guy has the biggest appetite known to man (4-6 oz. per feeding in the 2nd week!!!), eats every hour and as of this week, has developed the WORST case of colic. Yes, this would be my 3rd baby boy to have colic. Blake's was mild, Grant's was nasty and Gray's seems to be following Grant's - just with a better pair of lungs.

Dave's co-workers gave him these necklaces that they got from some Canadians at a conference - Grant wore his for 3 days straight (he must have some Canadian blood or something ;) He even had to put it on right after his bath!

And then there is all the lovely post-partum afflictions I have been dealing with. First it was Mastitis (awful) on top of the regular nursing pain, then it was thrush, now it is a lovely UTI on top of the thrush. Too much information? Tough. It is what it is. And that is just the short list.

Thank goodness my Mum was able to come for a week after I came home from the hospital. She was literally a saving Angel. I tell everyone that NO ONE does a better job of taking care of us after a new baby. She cooks, bakes, she cleans, she does laundry... she plays with the kids and spoils them with new toys, she revels in the new baby and is always eager to hold/change him. And best of all, she is so caring and kind and the best company. I loved, loved, loved and cherished our time together. She helped keep me sane through all the raging hormones. But then she had to go home... and I cried.

(Sometimes I wish I was that little again so I could fit in her arms like that!)

The second week, Dave left for Chicago for work. The children managed to stay alive, clean and fed until he got back. That was a miracle. I don't think my emotional state fared as well!

At his 2 week visit Grayson weighed 10lbs 2 oz. (up from 8lbs 11oz when we left the hospital) which put him in the 95% for weight. I think he looks most like Dave's side of the family of all my kids, but we shall see. He is definitely looks nothing like my other three when they were babies. Funny how all four of them look so different!

I can't say that I am even CLOSE to having a handle on life with four yet. I don't think that will come until colic decides to end it's visit. But we are hanging in there... perhaps by a thread but still HERE!

The Birth Story

2010-11-09T12:59:00.007-07:00

I decided since I have a few minutes to spare with both babies sleeping and both kids in school, that instead of cleaning my house or taking a nap (which is much needed), I would blog my birth story before I forgot the horror of it all. (joking, kind of, sort of, ok, not really).

(pre-labor Liz, ignorant of what is to come - wipe that smile off your face lady!)

I had decided quite some time ago that I was going to go all natural with this birth. I believe in it. I wanted to experience it all. I didn't want to be induced, but go into the hospital the old fashioned way, panting and clinging to the hallway rails while someone found me a wheelchair. However, as my due date got closer, I started realizing that this baby wasn't planning on making an appearance and for the sake of my sanity and health of my back, he needed to come out before he got to the 11 lb mark. So pitocin it was.

On November 2nd (my actual due date), at 7am, Dave and I arrived at the hospital for pitocin induction attempt #2. The nurse started the pitocin around 8 am and the contractions started and went to work. They were pretty regular, and of course, as pitocin contractions are - painful, but I was definitely on top of things. I found some rituals that worked for me to help me get through them: tapping, controlled moaning, relaxing to classical music with sounds of nature, walking with pauses for me to bury my head in the wallpaper and try to breathe. Then, as they really picked up, I hit the tub which was AWESOME, although it would have been a lot better had my belly been covered by water. It was mostly poking up like this giant mountain but even so, the hot water and jets helped for awhile.

I am not going to lie, it was super painful. The baby was posterior which meant I was having some serious back labor. Eventually it got to the point where I just wanted to lie on my side in bed. So much for my plans to use the birth ball or hands and knees. Those positions were just too uncomfortable for me. I had imagined using my midwife to help me focus or for pressure point massage but I found that I didn't want to be touched at all.

Things were getting pretty tough. My midwife turned off the pitocin when I was 6 cm dilated, but then I seemed to stall at a 6 and I was pretty worn out after 6 hours at that point so she decided it would be a good idea to turn it back on... maybe not.

As soon as the pitocin was back on, all H-E-double hockey sticks broke loose. That is the ONLY way I can describe what I experienced next. The pain was incredible? Unbearable? Unreal? other-worldly (thanks for that word Beth). There are literally no words to describe how bad it was but I will try. The contractions were one on top of the other, literally, with no break in the pain. It was like one giant long contraction. I couldn't catch my breath and had a couple of panic attacks (that is what my midwife calls them, to me, I literally could not breathe), almost passed out a couple times and I yelled - a lot. I even remember swearing a couple times, telling Dave this was "all his fault"; sounding like the girl from the movie the exorcist... etc. I really don't think ANY woman could have stayed on top of that pain no matter HOW much she self-hypnotized, or what kind of voodoo rituals she practiced. This was NOT natural. This was pitocin induced torture.

Probably 15 minutes or so had passed at this point. My midwife checked me, I was still a 6. I told her I wanted the epidural, that I couldn't do it anymore. I just wasn't strong enough. I was SERIOUS but she stalled and told me ok, but then wouldn't order it and just kept trying to help me have the natural experience that I had wanted.

I felt like I needed to go to the bathroom (this should have been a more obvious sign). I sat on the toilet and then proceeded to start hollering at the top of my lungs. I couldn't control it, it was too much and I felt completely terrified. I begged for the epidural between yelling and then the pain and pressure suddenly increased ten fold and the hollering turned to near screaming (only a deeper more primal (if you will), screaming. I screamed at Dave to "SHUT UP, SHUT UP!" when I screamed for the epidural and he kept repeating that I was "ok", I did NOT feel ok. In fact, I felt like I was dying. The only way I could possibly be feeling like I was could only be attributed to actual DYING right? Nope, the midwife checked me again (all while I was yelling at her to "STOP!" and suddenly informed me that I was a 10 and this baby was coming NOW. Keep in mind, this was all in the space of like 5 minutes from the time I left the bed.

In my head I was thinking "What? NO WAY! I was just a 6! I don't want to do this, I CAN'T DO THIS, GET THE EPIDURALLLLLLLLL NOWWWWWWWWW!!!!". And then they told me that I needed to get back into bed.

I was thinking there is NO WAY I can make it from this toilet to that bed. That was like 25 miles worth of movement in this kind of pain. Toilet works for me. But the midwife didn't think having a baby on the toilet was a good idea so they braced me and somehow I made it to the bed.

And then the baby began to start trying to get out. Really, it was all him. I can say this because I wasn't even aware that I was having a baby (I was dying, remember?). I was aware that a freight train was attempting to make its way out of the bottom half of my body, but I wasn't pushing it out because darn it, that was going to hurt EVEN MORE. But my body didn't agree with my brain and it was pushing that freight train regardless of what I wanted. So my body was pushing, I was panicking and screaming at the top of my lungs with my eyes popping out of my head, David was wondering what in the world was going on, my midwife was going deaf and simultaneously helping the freight train, and some nurse was in my face yelling "LIZ, LOOK AT ME IN THE EYES, YOU ARE PANICKING, HOLD YOUR BREATH, NOW BREATHE OUT SLOW, NOW PUSH!"

No way, I wasn't pushing (are you nuts) but the body sure was. Then she told me to stop pushing, but that is kind of hard to do when you are NOT CONSCIOUSLY PUSHING, so she told me to pant. Which I did. And Dave says at that point he laughed because he said I looked like the crazy women in the movies panting out of control, really fast "HEE-AH HEE-AH HEE-AH HEE-AH HEE-AH".

And then, I experienced that lovely thing they call the ring of fire. Which is a total lie. More like a ring of BONFIRES lit directly under my... well you get the idea.

And here came the freight train. Holy Moly. Never in my life. And yes, I was REALLY screaming now.But like how a cave woman might scream. Not a dainty victorian.

And then his head was out (I still didn't realize that there was a baby involved, just that it hurt a lot). So that was a split second of relief.

But wait... what was this new awful pain. SHOULDERS! OH MY WORD!!!

And then it was slippity fishy and baby is out and on my chest crying his head off (No wonder, I scared him to death with all that screaming). Then I had some crazy relief, but not enough to make me happy yet.

Then I was thinking wait, there is a baby? Whose baby is this? I still hurt. Gimme some drugs and make this baby stop crying. (No really, that is how connected I was to the fact that this was a birth and not a torture meant to drag crucial top secret information out of me).

Dave cut the cord, they took the baby and now I had to deal with pushing out the placenta. Too bad I had the energy of a wet sock and my legs were shaking insanely. Everything hurt. I was so tired. I just wanted the pain to stop and a lonnnng nap.

Then the baby was back in my arms and I slowly came to the realization that yes, I had a baby, and here he was. This was the most disconnected I have felt from my baby at birth. The pain just made everything else so secondary. It was the opposite of what I expected to feel.

(Me holding a very upset Grayson - no wonder with all the screaming he endured and the quick exit! You can SEE the pain on my face in this photo. I was not yet in the "so in love with my baby that everything else fades away" phase yet).

Eventually all of the commotion died down, and it was just Dave, Grayson and I in the room. That is when it all really hit and I really started crying. Not out of happiness but more from relief and a bit of post traumatic stress I think. What had just happened to me? And I was still alive and I have a new baby and I don't feel much... and... and... *SOB*.

It took a bit but soon I was totally in love with my newborn babe. I remember in all my previous births, as soon as they put the baby into my arms, I would just cry out of sheer happiness. This was so different. I didn't even have enough presence of mind at the end to even remember I was having a baby.

I don't by any means think this was a "typical" natural birth experience. My midwife said as much. There are very few women who manage to continue with their natural birth experience on pitocin. Especially not pitocin and back labor. She said the combination of the pitocin, back labor, the fact that I went from a 6-10 and delivered the baby within 20-25 minutes, and the fact that he was 9lbs 6 oz. (ouch), was a lot to handle.

I can honestly say that I am glad that I did it. I am proud of myself for doing it and getting as far as I did without caving in. I am a lot stronger than I thought I was and I learned a lot about myself.

A lot of people have been asking if I would do it again. The honest answer is that I don't think I COULD do it again. That is, I don't think I could work up the courage to attempt to face that kind of pain again. Perhaps if I went into labor on my own without pitocin, I would see how things went, but in the end, I don't think I could do it. There would be too much fear of having the same experience. It was traumatic for me. Every night when I go to bed, I think about it. Although it sounds strange, the memories kind of haunt me a bit.

That being said, I still believe in it. I have heard too many stories from people I know that tell of wonderful natural birth experiences. And the recovery was awesome. I could get up and use the bathroom. I had energy even after all that insane physically draining experience (must be the adrenaline everyone talks about). I felt better afterwards than in any of my previous birth experiences. And the best part, because of the midwife's patience (and the nurse who was screaming in my face to pant and not push), I had NO stitches. A first for me. And a bit of a miracle in my opinion considering this was my fourth birth with a big baby.

But I also think I know why some call having a baby the worst pain of all. I wouldn't argue with them.

I would just strongly advise any woman considering natural labor NOT to get induced with pitocin. And then I would say go for it. With a big disclaimer that I do not take responsibility for any excruciating experience they may have. Hahaha. Kind of.

Baby #4 Is Here!

2010-11-05T21:21:00.004-06:00

Grayson Michael was born at 3:07 pm on Tuesday, November 2nd. He weighed a whopping 9lbs, 6 oz, and was 20 inches and 4 cm long.

I did it without any pain medication at all. And I can't say it was a great experience. In fact, it was a bit on the traumatic side. But I will write about that later. For now, I am enjoying my sweet, new little baby. And am totally in love for the 4th time.

Baby Day?

2010-11-01T14:48:00.005-06:00

Well, I spent most of yesterday in panic mode (being over tired didn't help matters) thinking there was no way this baby was going to drop with the ample amount of room that he has, and sure I would end up having a c-section (which I guess could still happen). I spent the day uncomfortably bound up (even more so then in the photo below), hoping to encourage him to move... and it seems to have worked. At my midwife appointment she said he was engaged enough that if I was in the hospital, she would break my water. Induction attempt #2 is therefore scheduled for tomorrow morning. Let's hope this little wiggly worm doesn't move until then. And let's hope the pitocin works.

He is also face up. Let's hope I can get him to turn or my natural labor might be a bit longer and more painful than I bargained for.

Halloween on Saturday night was fun. It started out with a lovely little thunderstorm and some pretty panicked kids. Luckily it passed and they got to go out after all. I got very few pictures, next year I will make up for it. Daddy took the kids out, and dropped Grant back home to me after a block or so. I was hoping all the getting up and walking to the door would put me into labor but it pretty much just killed my back.

We had a fairy princess (who didn't want to wear her crown), a policeman (who wouldn't put on a mustache this year because he said it looked dorky), and a little lion (who gave me a really hard time when I tried to take his picture - ok, the princess did too. The policeman was the only cooperative one).

All of these pictures are horrible. It was too dark before I actually decided to take them. Oh well...

No Shame.

2010-10-30T15:58:00.003-06:00

So, the midwife wanted me to rig up a sort of "hoist" (as I call it) contraption with an ace bandage so that the belly didn't hang quite as much and hopefully this would encourage the baby to move down into the pelvis... not sure it is working but it sure looks funny.

Feels good on the ligaments but has been torture on my back and shoulders.

I had Dave document it with a photo for future posterity. And I am going to be (very) brave and share. Now tell me this belly isn't a tad bigger than the last one... (scroll down for that lovely bit of photographic evidence).

Did I mention in my last post that my nurse told me all the other nurses were asking her if I was having twins!

Well...

2010-10-29T18:32:00.003-06:00

It didn't work. After a hospital stay from 10 am until around 3:00 pm, and plenty of pitocin, the baby actually pushed himself up further which means no breaking of waters, and no birthday today.

I am disappointed to say the least. I was really looking forward to having him on the outside but it seems he is bracing himself against the walls of him home saying "NO WAY! I AM NOT COMING OUT!".

So, from here the game-plan is to wait. Monday I will go in and we will see if he is "engaged" any more. If so, perhaps we will try round 2. If not, we will probably wait some more.

Let's just hope he decides to "get his head in the game" soon!

Tomorrow is the day!

2010-10-28T16:40:00.002-06:00

Well, I am caving and getting induced. I really, really wanted to go into labor naturally but I just don't have enough faith that it will happen any time soon and I really can't deal with the constant pain anymore so after a lot of time struggling with the decision, I have decided to let pitocin kick off my labor.

The hip and ligament pain has just become excruciating at night. I literally probably only get between 1-2 hours of sleep a night, leaving me an emotional, physical wreck. During the day it is a battle of fatigue and back and ligament pain. At this rate, there is no way I will be in any shape for a natural delivery so after a reassuring visit with the midwife today, I have decided to get a little help.

I will hopefully get called in tomorrow morning where I will be started on pitocin. I am dilated to a 3 so once things progress enough for her to break my water, we will turn off the pit and let nature do the rest.

This does change my birth plan in that I will now be hooked up to an IV, and won't be allowed in the tub, but I will be able to move around and get out of bed and plan to still forgo the epidural. I am nervous about the intensity of the contractions with pitocin, but I have had it twice before so it shouldn't be too much of a surprise. I just hope things progress quickly so I won't have too long of a labor. With Grant it was about 8 hours with pitocin and an epidural (Syd was 9 with both), so I am hoping without the epidural, that might even cut that time down. We shall see!

Dave, the kids and I are all excited to meet the newest little member of our family. Although I am looking at Grant a little wistfully today. And it stinks that I will miss Halloween with the kids, but the idea of being free of this enormous belly and constant pain outweighs all of that.

Wish me luck!

It's Good to be TWO!

2010-10-10T10:51:00.010-06:00

Dear Grant,

Yesterday you turned 2 years old. Dad and I had no problem paying extra attention to you all day. This has been an especially fun stage/age for us. Everything you do is funny. Even your little temper tantrums (we try really hard not to let you see us laughing when you are taking them).

(Grant with the best bedhead yet!)

You are all boy, through and through. You love to be outside and have started climbing the rock retaining wall in the back of Grandma's yard (scary). You love to be out there kicking a ball around with your brother or dad or just by yourself. You still throw most of your food off of your highchair, you still bite but are getting better, you still put everything into your mouth; especially coins. You like to play this little game with me or Papa where you say "Hi Papa" (or Mama), in every tone and voice imaginable waiting for us to copy you. You say hi to everyone but you also make a really good "stinkface" at strangers who often talk to you first. And of course at us all the time.

You love "Memo" (Elmo), and "Daba Dabee" (Yo Gaba Gaba). You love to read and would bring me books for hours if I let you. Your favorites are Caillouxs Bathtime and Goodnight Gorilla (you love to find the pink balloon in each picture. You also love any book featuring photos of real babies.

Pretty soon you will be a big brother. You point at my enormous belly and say baby; always trying to get me to lift my shirt up to show you (even in public which isn't so fun). When I do, you will give my belly a kiss or lay your head down on it. I am glad that you have stopped hitting it! You also love to play with a small mole that I have on it and try to scratch it off EVERY TIME! It gets much more attention than the baby!

You are a picky eater and don't care for vegetables anymore. You love banana's, toast with Nutella or jam, grapes, spaghetti, cheese sticks, french fries, and your favorite thing of all - cereal. You sometimes have four bowls in the morning (you take after your (Grandpa O). I can't even buy shredded mini wheats because you love them so much and they tend to give you the runs. And of course any kind of pop or treats which your Dad is always getting scolded for giving you (and aunts and uncles alike!).

At bedtime, you love your routine. We get your pj's on and you always remind me to brush your "teef". We sing songs as I rock you and you lay your head on my shoulder. Lately your favorite request is "I Am a Child of God" and you sometimes have me sing it four or five times in a row. Then we say prayer. Well, I say prayers while you fold your little arms and bow your head with your eyes wide open and the cutest little smile on your face. You let Mama say the words but always end with an enthusiastic "AH-MEEN!". I tuck you in with your favorite knit blanket (which you promptly stick all your fingers through the crocheted holes), and give you a kiss. Lately you lick me as I do so, thinking it is hilarious when I grimace and exaggerate a "YUCK!" and wipe my mouth. As soon as I leave the room and shut the door, you head for the door, laying down right by it and talking up a storm through the crack at the bottom until you finally get tired enough to crawl back in bed and go to sleep. Dad and I often listen and laugh at you calling us or the little noises you make, obviously aware that we can hear you.

You are turning into a bit more of a Mama's boy. Before Daddy was your favorite but that is starting to even out. You still get super excited every time Daddy comes home from work.

You are sensitive to anything that is hot (or warm) and do this cute thing where you draw in your breath when you touch it. You LOVE your baths. You love to wave to your brother and sister when they leave for school on the bus. You are starting to want to do everything the way that they do it and they both adore you and play with you all the time.

Everyone adores you. It isn't hard to do. These are all things I hope I never forget about you.

Yesterday we celebrated your 2nd birthday at Grandma and Grandpas. Aunt Jen and Uncle Larry were there and Aunt Krissy brought some presents over for you even though she couldn't stay for our little party. We had cupcakes and you blew out your candle like a champ. You didn't eat much of your cupcake (you were more interested in eating the big #2 candle), but you sure enjoyed the 3 balloons I brought out for you and even appreciated the Elmo tablecloth (that was totally worth the $1.64!). You got a Fisher Price cash register and a little Elmo doll that talks when you shake it. A couple of Elmo DVD's and a Dr. Seuss book from Jenny, Larry and cousin Tate. Krissy gave you a golf set and a couple fun cars to play with. You had a lot of fun and it was just the right amount of excitement for you. Blake and Sydney even made you the cutest poster for your birthday.

You are such a little ray of sunshine in our lives. We are so blessed to have you. I am especially lucky to be your Mother and will cherish you forever.

Happy Birthday Granty!

Love,

Mama

So Me.

2010-09-15T20:40:00.006-06:00

There is a photographer that I just adore. In fact, she would probably be my #1 choice if I were to have enough money to hire anyone I wanted to take our family pictures. She just has such a raw, real style. No formality, no fake. Just capturing the pure essence of people, in natural family situations. Her name is Tara Whitney.

I hadn't been to her blog for awhile and tonight I stopped by to catch up. This post caught me. I feel like she was describing me in a few paragraphs of her writing and it really hit home.

The first was where she talks about being an open book, not a private person. That is me to a T. Anyone who knows me knows that I don't hold anything back. I don't keep secrets (unless someone else wants me to keep theirs), I share everything, sometimes I feel like I share TOO much (Dave definitely thinks so). I wear my heart on my sleeve.

A while ago I was thinking about this personality trait of mine. Sometimes it drives me crazy. I will leave a place or a person wishing I had kept my mouth shut or that I hadn't said quite SO much. I think Dave wishes I had a bit more pride. He isn't a fan of me sharing some of the difficulties that go on our lives. While sometimes I wish I was that kind of person; secretive, mysterious... I have finally figured out why that doesn't work for me, why I am so very glad that I am NOT someone who puts on a facade for others. A secret keeper.

I loved this part of Tara's post: "I really want to know the people that come into my life. I want to be a safe place for them, so that they allow me in. And I am a lot of the time. And they do a lot of the time." The she later goes on to talk about her blog saying: "I do not want this blog to be a place where people come and then leave, feeling depressed over my 'fantastic life'. Possibly thinking that I have no suffering. That I make no mistakes. That I have no bad days. That I don't fail. That I'm not a jerk sometimes. That I look cute everyday. That my family is perfect."(Just in case Tara ever reads this - which she wouldn't - I have always loved the reality that is your blog.)

Wow.

That is me. I don't want people to meet me, and walk away thinking I am perfect. That my life is perfect. That I don't have struggles. I want them to know ME - imperfections and all. Because I want to know ALL of them. I want our hearts to knit together. Those are the best kinds of friendships. Friendships that outlast any amount of time, distance, hardship. And I have been SO blessed in my life to have formed so many of these with so many people over my entire life who I consider close enough to be family. Those who put up those facades... well, those people and I have just never seemed to mesh well. Which is ok. But it isn't how I want MY life to be.

I know that my friends turn to me when they are struggling with something. I get a lot of teary phone calls, late phone calls, wet shoulders from tears of friends... and I cherish the blessing it is to be able to be that kind of friend. One that can be turned to when no one else feels safe enough.

And I know it is because I am so open about my life. I have trusted my whole self to these people that I love, and they in turn, entrust their most delicate feelings to me. And because there are no walls up, there is a closeness that grows, and I feel safe with these people too. And that is incredible.

So I am going to embrace this side of me.
My life is so much richer for it.

Thanks to Tara for her beautiful post and for helping me put my feelings into words.

SCARY!

2010-09-14T12:46:00.008-06:00

I am thinking of taking the picture below down... because seriously? Every time I look at it do you know what runs through my mind?

I AM PLANNING ON HAVING A NATURAL BIRTH WITH THIS THING? WHAT AM I, A SUPER-NUTSO???!!!!

Man... that is going to have to come out. Not sure I want to be "present" for that.

(in all seriousness, I am going to do it!)

If you are a handsome male person, skip this post.

2010-09-13T12:51:00.004-06:00

Ok, so I debated whether to share this picture or not, because seriously... I am not sure I am even glad it is in existence, but it is proof. Proof to all of those who don't see me on a regular basis that when it comes to pregnancy, I am a bit of a freak of nature.

You see, I have this belly. It isn't any ordinary pregnant belly. It is the belly of a woman who is carrying twins. Except, that I'm not. And before you go leaving messages in my inbox telling me that I look great, yada yada... talk to my midwife. Because she has seen many a pregnant belly and she admits that mine is a super sized pregnant belly for how big the rest of me is. I am not kidding. She swore I must have diabetes (NOPE, MY BLOOD SUGAR WAS PERFECT!). I was measuring way ahead (I always do). And yup, another HUGE baby (as usual).

And it sticks out to -------------------) here. But all straight in front. So from the back, you can't tell I am pregnant (except for the extra junk in my trunk but hey, something has to help balance it out otherwise I would be continually toppling forward). So yeah, it looks a little weird. It looks like I should be wheeling around some sort of cart in front of me to carry it.

Every now and then I catch a glimpse of myself in a store window or mirror and am shocked (like this morning while at Wal-Mart). I mean, I would stare at me too... and little do people know I have 7 WEEKS LEFT UNTIL MY DUE DATE!

So here is me the morning of the day I gave birth to Grant. A week early. Keep in mind, this was the only shirt that would fully cover the torpedo at this point and even it was subjected to constant yanking down. And it is like 4:30 am and I have no makeup on. So don't judge. I am going to give birth, not to a beauty pageant.

If you have to click to enlarge to fully appreciate the girth I am sporting, feel free. Now just imagine what this does to my ligaments and back. Low you say? Well, that is how it has been for months - no the baby hasn't "dropped".

The scariest thing about this is, I think I might be close to this size already with this #4... and you remember the part where I said I had 7 weeks left? Whoa. That makes me beyond nervous because already I am having trouble picking up anything off the ground, getting up, rolling over, eating without a plate directly under my chin, sleeping, sitting straight up, walking, pretty much any activity that helps me to feel... well... human.

So I am pretty %110 sure this will be it for us (at least as far as biological children go). I think if I were to do this again, at my rate of increased growth with each pregnancy, my ligaments would pop like a broken violin strings and I would have to be on bed rest for half of my pregnancy. Not to mention I would probably start having uncomfortable contractions at 14 weeks instead of 18 and I might never be able to straighten my back again.

And to all the people out there (strangers) who feel the need to point out to me just how big I am, ask if I am having twins, tell me I must be miserable, let their eyes pop out of their heads when I tell them my due date - I say what your Mom probably said when you were a little kid - if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all. Because no woman, pregnant or not, likes to be told they are huge. Social skills people, social skills. And yeah, my face is up here (now I have a bit of an idea what big busted women must go through).

So enjoy this lovely picture of me. And perhaps, if I have enough courage, I will share one of me at the end of this pregnancy when the time comes. And if you are pregnant, please don't tell me you feel huge (unless you are having twins) because really??? You are welcome to share that with anyone else but me. Because I just might belly bump you into your next trimester.

My Baby.

2010-09-09T21:17:00.002-06:00

You have been my hardest baby by far. You cried non-stop all day for the first 4-5 months. You were always sick. You are into everything, climbing everything, hitting and biting everyone. And so crabby for so long everyday after your nap. But I have never been in love with a baby or toddler like I am with you. Everyday I think to myself how lucky I am to have you... how much fun you are at this age while still so little but with so much personality.

I am not sure if it is because I am more seasoned as a mother. More relaxed. More able to let the unimportant go and appreciate every moment because I know how fast those chubby, dimpled baby hands and feet will disappear. Maybe part of it is that when I look at you, it is fun to see my own brown eyes and pug nose staring back up at me. Maybe it is because you did have such a rough start. And some pretty scary moments.

I am not sure...

But I do know that you will be my baby for another couple months. Then another, tiny little one will come home with me. And you will seem HUGE. You will seem like a different child and all the sudden, you won't seem to be my baby anymore. And I am pretty sure that I will mourn that loss... just as I did when I brought Sydney home from the hospital and all of the sudden Blake seemed like a completely different child to me.

And although I am looking forward to having this baby out, and meeting him... I am also dreading it at the same time. I am just not ready to give you up as my baby yet.

So until then, I will cherish every day that we have left together, just the two of us while the kids are in school. And I will hope that through my more experienced mothers eyes, that when I come home with a tinier bundle in my arms, I will still be able to see everything that is still so tiny about you.

And just so you know, even though you won't be the baby anymore... you will always be MY baby.

At the Cottage

2010-08-29T13:50:00.010-06:00

My parents have a cottage on Lake Erie. They have wanted one forever so this is a bit of a dream come true for them. The kids adore it as well, but unfortunately, between the wedding and the weather, we only got to spend one night out there and a couple days. I took these pics on the morning of our overnight. It had rained and stormed all night so the beach was full of (sea?)weed, and it was a little too cold for swimming but the kids managed to have some fun before we left anyway.

(I know there is a million of Grant but he is the only one who would stay on the beach long enough for me to take pics!).

The cottage. It is just as cute on the inside.

Cold and crabby and handsome daddy.

Our favorite treat. Granty kisses.

Grant got lots of snuggles. So did Dave.

Something so awesome about sandy little baby feet.

Look Mummy! A birdy!

Who knows what Sydney is imagining up...

Picture Catch Up

2010-08-27T15:30:00.017-06:00

Ok, so where was I? Went to Canada, came back to Utah, celebrated the 4th of July, went back to Canada.

That about sums it up.

Oh sure, there are a lot of details I am leaving out. How I had a good time seeing my family except for the last week or so when I got so super sick that I didn't want to leave my bed and wrote down a list of hospitals that my insurance somewhat covered in Michigan because I thought I could be going in labor.

Or how on the 4th of July, we made our usual trek to attempt to watch the Grand Parade in Provo and a really mean old lady made me CRY because she was so super territorial about a free spot of pavement (that wasn't ANYWHERE NEAR HER CHAIRS). That ruined the whole experience and scared the kids since she decided to grab her chair and plant it violently RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEIR LITTLE NOSES. No really, she almost slammed it down on their feet.

Needless to say, this will be the last year we do the Provo parade. I am so tired of people cording off entire city blocks the night before. That would never happen in another city with that kind of population... only %10 of the people who want to get to see the actual parade! And forget that all the young families with small children are left with no spots - who is the parade for anyway?

(Did I mention that I saw that same mean lady while getting my 3 hours glucose test done to see if I had gestational diabetes? She sat right in front of me. I wanted to throw my shoe at her head, so I guess that means I haven't forgiven that one yet. I moved chairs because the sight of her stressed me out so much and I am NOT supposed to be stressed out for that test. Yes I know, I am way too sensitive. I don't like mean people.)

Being back with my family again and Dave was a lot of fun. The plane ride there with Grant... not so much. I realized I was overly ambitious thinking I could fly home with the three kids alone, Grant on my lap and this HUGE belly. I realized about five minutes into our flight there WITH Dave that it wasn't a good idea... at all.

After some phone calls and some generous friends, we decided to send Grant back with Dave early. Best idea EVER. I was looking forward to Dave getting a taste of what it was like to fly with a child on an airplane by himself. Wouldn't you know it was the one time in his entire life that Grant *aka* El Diablo, was a complete angel and actually SLEPT half the flight. Go figure.

While in Canada the second time, we got to see my second youngest sister Emily be married to Mark. It was awesome. I took their pics which was a bit stressful but I am glad I could help. And I love the way they turned out. I will post a few here soon.

We also got to see a lot of friends and eat a LOT of good food. I really miss all the ethnic food choices that Windsor has. I had the BEST schwarma (sp?) from a great little Lebanese place, Amazing Greek, the best fish and chips, and the list goes on. I think I gained like 10 lbs on that trip.

Anyway, it was a fun trip minus the times Grant got bit by the dog (he totally deserved it for seriously harassing my parents poor little dachshund Ginger - stepping on her, pulling her tail, BITING HER!!!), and when he burned his little hand pretty badly on the fireplace glass the morning of my 31st b-day. That was great too. Oh and the heat and humidity. Could have done without the sauna-like conditions. Oh and the tornado/hurricane that we drove into in Iowa that made me think we were experiencing our last few minutes on earth and caused me to tearily plead with the kids to "say prayers that we will be ok".

Anyway, here are more pics. Some from the trip, most from the 4th of July at our bbq with Jenny, Larry, Krissy and Grandpa (before the fireworks - that is an entirely separate post). And then of course a random one of Grant thrown in. Because he is growing and I can't stand it!

Grant trying on uncle Adam's GINORMOUS shoes. It looked a lot funnier than even this picture conveys.

Cousin Jack and Grant "playing". Which mostly consisted of them stealing toys from each other. Yes, Jack is nearly a full year younger than Grant, but he isn't much smaller! SOOO CUTE!

Let the 4th of July pics begin! Jenny and Tate (still in utero).

All the girls. This is probably the ONLY picture you will get of me pregnant on this blog. Just think HUGE.

And the randoms. My grandma Alice made this blanket for Blake and then it was passed on to Syd but none of them really took to it as babies. Grant LOVES it on the other hand. It is HIS blanket of choice. And every night, he hooks his little fingers into the crochet and falls asleep with them poking out. I. LOVE. IT.
(ignore the strange smoke monster in the corner. Not sure where that came from).

And Grant. Sleeping. Because nobody looks cuter while doing it.

*Sidenote, the abrasion on his eye is from a stool tipping over and hitting him in the face. Just part of the ongoing Grant Olympics.

Overwhelmed.

2010-08-09T15:06:00.008-06:00

That is how I am feeling lately. Especially pertaining to how much blogging I have to catch up on! So... I guess I will start where I left off; the insane decision I made to drive to Ontario with 3 kids in tow all by myself.

I just needed to get home. I wanted to spend more than a couple weeks with my family and I am glad I did it.

It definitely wasn't as painful as I thought it would be. The kids were SO excited to go visit Grandma and Grandpa O that they were actually really well behaved on the drive there. Only a few minor meltdowns from Grant which were easily solved with help from the dum-dum sucker makers. Lots of DVD's, music, treats and Ninetendo DS kept them entertained.

I think the hardest parts were taking them all to eat by myself (Grant is a monster in restaurants), the millions stops to use the restroom and getting us settled into the hotel with all the STUFF every night. Oh, and the awful amounts of construction on I-80 weren't helpful either.

Oh, and there was the time that I locked the keys in the car. We get to the hotel on the first night, and it was probably around 10 or so (wayyy past kiddos bedtime). Sydney was saying she was sick and threw up in the grass next to the hotel, Grant was trying to escape and crying because he was so tired and my hands were full of bags and what-not. So I pushed the lock button on the door with my free finger and shut it.

We headed into the hotel, and as I went to look for my phone to call Dave, I couldn't find it. I thought maybe I had left it in the van so I looked for my car keys when I realized with horror I had locked THOSE in the van.

Oh, and when I went out to check, the interior trunk light was on. Great. I asked the front desk guy for a butter knife and a coat hanger so I could try to Jimmy it but they don't make car doors as flimsy as they used to (like when I had my old Sundance and could get my doors unlocked in under a minute with those helpful tools - I had lots of practice).

It was late, I was tired and nervous about leaving the kids in he hotel room alone. And, a car full of drunk, cursing men drove by and tried to help out while simultaneously making fun of the young mom from Utah. That was a nice touch.

So I went back into the hotel to ask the front desk guy to call a locksmith. He said he knew a guy in town who would do it for $20. Well since I was an out-of-towner, I guess he decided to scalp me because it cost $50 and only took him five minutes to get there and another five to unlock the door. My AAA didn't kick in until another day.

Did I mention that this lock-smith also made me drag my three crying, tired children out into the night (not to mention this big pregnant belly), to an ATM because he wouldn't accept $40? Thanks for the hospitality Sydney Nebraska.

Other than that little fiasco, it went really well and it was kind of *gasp* fun!

When we got over the bridge and into Windsor, we were all giddy with excitement that we had made it! We were singing and laughing and I was proud that I managed it without any nervous breakdowns occurring.

We had fun with my family, even though they still had school and work and so we didn't get to see as much of them as we would have liked.

We also got to celebrate Blake's 7th birthday while there with my family which was a lot of fun. Especially when Grandma and Grandpa took Blake and Sydney to the family fun center and one of the machines broke and spit out a million extra tickets!

Blake chose to have cupcakes. And he and Syd had a lot of fun decorating them.

This one was just funny. A little something stuck to your head there, Grant?

More to come...

Looks like Syd and I are outnumbered...

2010-07-10T13:29:00.004-06:00

And looks like I won't get to use all of those adorable girls clothes after all... That is ok, I happen to think we make very cute boys!

I know this post is MUCH overdue. I really need to get back on the blogging horse. That might have to wait until after our next trip to Canada and seeing my little sister get hitched!

Houston, we have a problem.

2010-07-06T15:22:00.001-06:00

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Motherhood: An Eternal Partnership with God

2010-07-01T11:45:00.000-06:00

I needed this today.

Did I Mention...

2010-06-07T07:42:00.001-06:00

That I was going to attempt the 27 hour drive home to Canada with the three kids? Just me? Yeah... crazy. But it worked. I am here and it was actually kind of fun! Details to come.

Shhtuff.

2010-05-25T15:38:00.008-06:00

Well, I can't believe it has been 20 days since I last updated this blog. That has to be some kind of record. I need to do better, especially since I know that my Mummy checks this every day to get updates on her grandchildren. This time I don't have any excuse except maybe I just haven't been in the mood?

I feel like I am in the "waiting" stage. Waiting to move, waiting to visit home and for my baby sister's wedding, waiting for Jenny's baby to come (and Heather's too but you are TOO FAR AWAY!!!), and waiting to be done being pregnant. I am there already. I know it isn't a great place to be in because then I look too much forward and don't enjoy the present enough.

I am already popping out already, true to Liz W. style - looking 7 months pregnant already when I am only 17 weeks (ug). Guess this one is going to be another 9+ pounder. Lets just hope no more than that because large babies + natural childbirth = a lot of extra pain.

This week I started having mid back pain, which I had with Sydney pretty bad. I think I will need to pay a visit to the chiropractor again in the near future. I am hoping it is a sign that I am having another girl. I do feel like I may be carrying higher this time but it could also just be wishful thinking.

The carpal tunnel is annoying but so far still manageable. Ligament pain is back but hasn't been too bad yet. A new thing that has joined the club is some leg pain, mainly in the right, but it feels like my leg is asleep? There is no tingling or anything, just that dull pain that happens. Has anyone else experienced this? It seems to last for days at a time.

So that is pregnancy in a nutshell so far.

In other news, Blake went on a father & sons camp out with Dave a couple weekends ago. He had a BLAST! They rode on dirt bikes and Dave said that Blake got to be quite a little daredevil and made him nervous! He took to it right away, like he does with anything physical. They rode four wheelers in the sand dunes and did the regular camping thing.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Sydney finished preschool which means kindergarten in the fall! I can't believe it. She also FINALLY let me get her hair cut. Only after I promised her she wouldn't have to wear any more pony's. It looks really cute and I will post a picture soon. She did refer to it as her "ugly short hair" for the rest of the day which was kind of funny.

Grant... well, he keeps us on our toes. And he keeps us laughing. Case in point:

(Couldn't decide which to post... they all make me laugh!)

One day I came upstairs after Grant had wandered up. I couldn't see him at first and then I spotted him when he turned to look my way...

There was a stray cat hanging around the back deck who was totally enamoured with my kids for some reason. It would follow them around the entire time they were outside like it was the best thing ever. It was the sweetest most friendly and docile cat but holy cow... it was ugly. And stinky. The dirtiest cat I have ever seen (cats are usually pretty good at keeping themselves clean but not this one).

I couldn't keep the kids away from the thing and Grant every morning would run upstairs and head straight for the window calling "Keeeedy, keeeedy". It was really cute. One day Grant picked the cat up BY IT'S FACE. No joke. I ran to him expecting the cat to try to bite him or claw him but no, that cat just hung there like she was used to people picking her up that way and when I made him put her down, she even purred and rubbed up against him. After that, grandma stopped trying to throw it off the porch and even suggested we feed it. That cat found a soft spot in a cat hater!

I finally broke down and called animal control this morning after it wiped it's poopy butt all over the rug outside (which I threw in the garbage). That is something a dog does but a cat? It was just too stinky and even the animal control guy admitted that the cat had some "issues" when he saw how little it was cleaning itself. Hopefully they can get it cleaned up and find a good home for it.

It made me kind of sad though when Grant ran to the window looking for it this morning.

Well that is some of the low-down. I promise some more soon!

Grant-ness

2010-05-05T11:03:00.009-06:00

Dear Grant,

I remember holding you just after you were born and thinking you were just the sweetest baby... you seemed so meek and mild tempered.

Boy do things change.

Lately the word I would use to describe you is... well, I am not sure if there is a word. Feisty maybe? Mischievous? Rebellious? Words I hope fall away as you get older (please, please before you are a teenager!). You are earning the title "the menace" after your name for good reason: biting, slapping, hair pulling, pinching, growling, screaming in the car, temper tantrums that make you clench your little fists and tense up while yelling.

You climb, climb, climb everything. You run for the toilet if we leave the bathroom door open (which you have now figured out HOW to open). You throw most of your food off of your highchair tray and love to dump out your milk and splash in the puddle. You get into the garbage, pull everything out of the cupboards you can reach, climb on TOP of your highchair; table; counter, pull bottom drawers out of desks and dressers to climb on top of those (I don't think Blake or his fish appreciated you throwing his Ninetendo DS that he JUST got for Christmas into the fish bowl - along with his wallet and numerous other things that were on top of the dresser). You seem to want us watching when you defy our rules and requests - all with a little devilish smile on your face.

Oh that face... that is what makes it all so... funny. When two older men standing in line at the grocery store commented on how cute you are with those big brown eyes, I agreed, but told them not to let those peepers mislead them.

I am so glad I am in a place as a mother where I can see the humor in it all. When I recognize your frustration at not being able to communicate the way you want to, and trying to learn boundaries and assert yourself where you can.

And despite the fact that my favorite time of day is sometimes your nap time, I am always glad to see your little face and hear your little voice yelling "Hi Mummy" when you wake up.

I love the way we play a game where you say "Hi Mummy" and I respond with "Hi Baby" and this goes on and on, back and forth. I never tire of hearing you call me Mummy.

I love the way you say "Hi!" to EVERYONE we see, and keep saying it until they acknowledge you.

I love the open mouth kisses you give with your tongue sticking out. I will really miss the day my face is coated in slobber after a kiss from you.

I love how excited you get when you hear the smallest door creaking sound when Daddy comes home at the end of the day. It reminds me of a puppy so excited to see his master come through the door!

I love that you want to wear Sydney's red dress-up shoes all around the house, especially upstairs where they "click-clack" on the wooden floors.

I adore the fact that you love to push around your "bibi" in the little pink stroller, that you turn around and back-up when you want to sit in someones lap, that you try and toot to make me laugh, how you ask for "teats" (treats) all day long and never stop wanting to eat. That you would live outside if I let you.

I love your round little teeth, your long eyelashes, your fuzzy blond hair and your sweet smelling neck that I love to kiss.

The happiness you have brought us all is immeasurable. I know I am appreciating each day and moment so much more because I have learned how fast it all goes. Despite all of the craziness you cause, I wouldn't change a thing about you. I love it all because it is all you.

Love Always,

Mummy.

If you click on this one to enlarge it, you can see the end of his crib where his little beaver-like teeth have gnawed all the paint off the wood!

My New Life

2010-05-04T10:22:00.000-06:00

This is the most beautiful message... from one of my most favorite people.

Easter Pics

2010-04-21T12:49:00.006-06:00

Easter was wonderful. The kids had a blast and Mom and Dad enjoyed a wonderful uplifting conference weekend. I will let the pictures speak for themselves when it comes to the festivities.

Thanks to Auntie Jen for helping us dye these!!! (Or more like winessing the chaos!)

New earrings for Sydney! (Note to self: next time you buy the smallest hoops known to man, remember that you do not have elfen size fingers with which to put them on).

You are going to let me eat WHAT for breakfast???

Wait! There is MORE in here!

Too bad this photo is so blown out. Love it anyway.

Too loud in here!!! (Either that or he is having a head rush from all the sugar for breakfast).

Jack Attack

2010-04-13T09:42:00.002-06:00

Ummm... I totally stole this off of my sisters blog. I had to. And you can see why. This is my most adorable nephew Jack (didn't you know we only know how to create adorable babies in my family?) and a demonstration of just how tasty he is finding everything these days. Katie found him like this. And it kills me because I just want to squish him and hug him and kiss him but I can't... because he lives like 3000 miles away (pout inserted here).

But come July... Ohhhhh Jack... you are in for it!

Babies.

2010-04-08T10:32:00.001-06:00

I can't WAIT for this movie. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE babies. This makes my fallopian tubes ache. Ok, not really, because I have one more of my very own tucked away in there but if not, it WOULD!

This is why I have been too tired to blog.

2010-04-06T11:25:00.002-06:00

Coming to the Weekley home around November 2, 2010. And I have decided to do it aux natural *GASP*. Pray for me.

French Toast.

2010-03-25T14:06:00.002-06:00

Sydney to me a minute ago: "Mom, do we have any french toast?"

Me (hesistantly not wanting to make french toast): "Nooooo".

Syd: "Well, we have bread?"

Me: "Yes.

Syd: "You have a toaster?"

Me: "Yes. How do you think I make french toast?"

Sydney: "You get some bread, you put it in the toaster, and you put some French on it."

Me: (thinking), I need to blog about this one.

Kiss me... I'm Irish.

2010-03-17T18:19:00.008-06:00

My great grandparents Elizabeth and John Clark came over to Ellis Island from Ireland when my grandmother Alice (my bestest of friends) was only 3. Their names are written in the book of immigrants on Ellis Island. So yes, I am Irish. Feel free to kiss me (unless you are male... Dave might not appreciate that so much). If you are Tatum Channing reading this, I may make an exception. Let me talk to Dave first...

One day I plan to teach my family more about their Irish heritage. Hopefully even travel to Ireland one day.

Until then, we will celebrate with green food. Those sneaky leprechauns!!!

Poor mans meat and potatoes was on the menu (GREEN potatoes). I think I will try my hand at corned beef and cabbage next week if I can find some good corned beef in good ol' diverse (heh heh) Utah.

And this one because Dave did an excellent job "creeping" in on the picture.

Dinner was fun... until Dave started doing his impersonation of an Irish accent. Sounded like all of his accents do: a cross between Japanese and Russian. It is quite a combination I tell you. He will keep trying, and I will keep wincing.

Updates and Sweet Blakes.

2010-03-15T13:30:00.008-06:00

Grant is sick... again *sigh*. It is as if this child has no immune system. He was quite sick, then had a whole two days off of feeling pretty well before he came down with this nasty, nasty whatever-it-is. The cough is awful. Too wet and heady to be croup but it sounds pretty deep. He can barely breathe, has been running a fever...

I have no idea why he gets sick so often. I heard that children who had RSV at a young age tend to get sick a lot while little but this has been ridiculous. There hasn't been ONE MONTH that has gone by sickness free for him. Poor little thing. And he is so sweet... it just breaks my heart. And just to head off the comments in advance, these sicknesses aren't "milk allergies".

(Lately Grant has taken to sleeping with both his legs sticking out of the crib. So funny)

I have been dealing with some pretty crazy fatigue and so the sleepless nights in combination with fatigue have been taking their toll. I need a vacation! Or a "sleep-cation" would be better.

In other news, Dave's sister Heather and her husband Chris and our darling niece Olivia came and stayed a week. The kids had so much fun playing with Olivia. Blake is especially sweet and tender to little girls just as he was with Sydney when she was younger. I was so touched by the way he included her in everything. And even more so when he sobbed when they left because he was going to miss her so much. She in turn, now definitely has a favorite cousin and spent a lot of the week asking where "Bwake" was when he was at school.

He is my sensitive, soft-hearted boy. The first to comfort someone when they are sad the one who doesn't like to see anyone left out. Before we moved from our old home, his teacher contacted me and told me that there was a boy in the class whose mother wanted our phone number to set up play dates with Blake. Her son was just being diagnosed with Aspergers (a form of autism), and apparently Blake was such a good friend to him; always making sure he was included in games with the other boys, and this boy was so upset the next day when Blake wasn't at school. This melted me.

My Mum always taught us growing up to be friends with the "underdog". To be kind to everyone. I believe I tried to do this most of my life, but for Blake, it seems to always come so naturally. His love for everyone is so Christlike in its nature.

One of the very most important strengths I want my children to develop, above so many others, is to be genuinely kind, empathetic, and loving of others. To have charity - the pure love of Christ.

I have always thought there was something about Blake. There has just always been something special about him. I now believe that he really is full of charity. I pray that he stays this way as he grows into a man. Isn't a man with charity the greatest kind of all?

Dream a Little... Terror

2010-03-02T09:27:00.002-07:00

Good dreams are few and far between for me. I talked a little about it before in this post. For me it is mostly disturbing visions or horrific nightmares. Must be what comes with a VERY active imagination.

Case in point:

Last night I dreamt that some friends and I won a trip to Hawaii! Except when we got there it looked more like Maui but with five huge, mountainous volcanos surrounding a big valley in the middle. And in the middle was Disneyland. How cool would that be!

So as in all of my dreams, it played out like a movie. I get off the plane, feel the warm sun and balmy breeze on my skin. Feel the elation that a tropical vacation brings and incredibly lucky to have won such an amazing trip.

Soon we are standing in line at "Disneyland", waiting to go on a ride when all of the sudden the volcano's start rumbling and spewing threatening black smoke. We start running towards the beach, and luckily reach it in good time because then the entire valley of the island sort of IMPLODES. No really... it kind of looks like a giant funnel as the valley gets sucked down into the vortex of the earths core. Simultaneously, lava begins pouring from each of the volcanos and is getting closer and closer as people scream and run towards the beach grabbing anything they can to use as a raft along the way.

I see Dave's aunt hiding in the back of a moving truck (WEIRD) and tell her to hurry and grab something and run for the water. She doesn't listen.

I am carrying a oddly light log wooden contraption that works fabulously as a raft when I hit the water. Feeling lucky there. There are people all around, bobbing in the water, swimming out deeper into the ocean to avoid the lava that is beginning to creep down the beach. It is our only chance of survival. Surely help will come soon and we will all be saved.

There is a father floating in the water sobbing because he can't find his son. Suddenly he decides he can't live without him, impales himself with a rock which causes him to bleed and you can guess what happens next...

Yeah, sharks.

Suddenly people are screaming and disappearing one by one as sharks pull them under the water.

Then I woke up.

Perfect example of a typical dream of mine. I must have missed my calling as a writer of horror screenplays. And I don't WATCH those kind of movies. Can you imagine what I would dream about if I did?

Way to turn a great trip about winning a trip to Hawaii into something that makes me awake in a cold sweat. This is why I used to pray NOT to have dreams when I was a little girl.

Now if only I could take the volcanos and sharks out and throw in a little Tatum Channing... THAT would be a good dream.

That is what I'm talking about! OH CANADA

2010-02-28T16:45:00.004-07:00

What a game. Boys, you done me proud.

(image from MSNBC)

Fabulous Friday - Modern Prints

2010-02-26T10:53:00.018-07:00

I have decided to dedicate Friday's posts to things that I have found that I LOVE.

I have always loved and appreciated art. From a young age I knew that my Dad had some artistic genes. His father was an excellent cartoonist and his mother, my Nonny loved to paint. Although my father never developed his artistic talents much beyond some photography, he was always the go-to-guy when we needed something drawn. He chose prints carefully and we were always surrounded by beautiful art as children.

I remember looking through the giant coffee table books my Nonny kept that were nearly as big as me... Renoir, Monet... I keep an American Art coffee table book in our home today and hope to add to that so my children can grow with an appreciation for art as well.

There are certain prints that I remember as a child. One was a colored pencil drawing of Jesus with children that hung on my wall. There was the giant Renoir print that hung over my Nonny's piano, and now hangs in my parents living room in a beautiful, heavy gilded frame. I thought that was the most beautiful painting I had ever seen as a young girl, although it baffled me that she was wearing a FISH in her hair - LOL! (Oh through the eyes of a child).

(Renoir's portrait of Mlle Irene Cahen D'Avers)

There are the illustrations my Dad hung in the Hallway from the book "Over and Over" by Charlotte Zolowtow and illustrated by Garth Williams. Each holiday was represented with those beautiful, colorful drawings. Not only did it help our excitement grow for each new upcoming holiday, but it sure cheered up the hallway. I adore the illustrations in this book to this day, and it is one of my children's favorites to read.

I loved art and drawing as a child and young teen (until that time was taken over by my other artistic endeavors). Developing that talent some more is on my list of things to do :)

My taste ranges from the classical, to completely modern. And I LOVE a good modern print for decorating. Especially for the kids rooms. Lots of color, simple lines... and font? Even better.

So today I am presenting a few favorite poster prints that I have been eyeing on Etsy.

The first is from GreenNest. I love the whimsical, vintage feel of this and all the colors. I think as a child I would have loved staring at this on my wall.

This townhouse print by Jen Skelley is so cute. I can just see kids lying in bed looking at this one making up stories of each little townhouse and what might be going on inside.

Or how about the soothing color and pattern of this butterfly print from Michelle Digital for a little girls room?

And let's not forget fonts. Yum.

I ADORE this personalized alphabet from The Paper Tray. Don't you?

What a great idea!

Or this LOVEly alphabet print from Jennifer Ramos?

These alphabet animal prints are my favorites though. I would love to get one of each of my children's first initial. They are all so cute, you should really at least go take a look at Weedoodles shop to see the rest.

THESE I think might be my favorite find of the day (although it is hard to decide). How about a custom silhouette print of your family? TOO CUTE! From Nella Designs (I really want one of these).

And what a great anniversary or wedding gift!

These might not be your cup of tea, but that is the best thing about art. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and it is easy to find something that you will love and will help foster your children's imaginations and creativity. Let's give them something to look at during all those longs time-outs!

Of course, I still appreciate a wonderful painting. Our friend Ryan Brown has some amazing work and teaches classes in Provo. He paints amazing portraits so if you are in the market for a masterpiece...

Now go find some ART to hang up!

Bumps, Bruises and Blankets

2010-02-23T16:02:00.008-07:00

Grant has decided to host his own Olympic games. They are called "See How Many Times I Can Fall On My Face Before Needing The Emergency Room". The events in these Olympics include the following:

Climb up on dining room chair and fall on head.
Scale up to first rung on stool and fall on head.
Try to walk down the stairs like a big boy and fall down them, landing primarily on head.

Oh, and then there is the bonus event: See how many times I can get pinkeye in a year.

There was the ear infection Olympics but he already won the Gold for those and now has a serious handicap to his abilities known as "tubes".

So far, he is in top form, at the head of the competition. Going for gold. His medal count was high to begin with but now he is breaking all previous records.

You can see evidence of his stellar performance below:

(and that is actually sweat from his efforts - not drool)

The big round carpet mark on his head to the left would be from his confrontation with the stairs. As would the mark under his nose.

The healing scab on his head to the right would be from the chair event, and then the stool contributed to it (same exact spot).

The slightly swollen left eye would be from his 100 meter dash with pinkeye.

Dave and I are just praying that there is not a need to head to the ER anytime soon. I think they might arrest us on sight of him!

Lest any of you think I am a neglectful mother, just know that I am CONSTANTLY pulling him off of things. There is no gate that will work with the current stairs... which hadn't been a problem because he learned how to go up and down them expertly at a young age. He has just decided he would prefer to WALK down them. He thinks he is a big boy you see.

He is now 16 months old. In the "bruised" phase of his life. Blake who was also busy - though not to this degree - sported a bruise on each side of his forehead from about a year until 2 1/2. But he was not quite the climbing athlete that Granty is.

And so, he gets the gold.

(Meant to post this one a little while ago. I just love it)

I finally finished a rag quilt that I had been working on FOREVER. It was going to be for my sister Katie if she had a girl... but we got darling Jack instead!

Don't mind the ugly, quickie montage. I made it to show my Mum via email.

I also "ruffled up" some onesie's and made another "Brown Bear" blanket for my Mum who commissioned it for a shower she has coming up.

I really want to take a great intermediate sewing class or a quilting class... anyone know of any great ones locally?

Toothless beauty.

2010-02-18T11:43:00.005-07:00

Well, it appears Sydney is trying to catch up to her brother in the "toothless" race.

And the tooth fairy actually made it to our house the first night and left her a whole dollar! She was pretty happy.

She isn't a very good listener. I told her when she was a baby that I had forbidden growing up. And of course, because of that, she is an entire head taller than all of the kids in her preschool.

A couple more pictures for good measure. Cute hair and the cutest skirt ever. I got it for TEN WHOLE DOLLARS at TJ Maxx of course! This girl would wear a dress or skirt every day if she could...

What's for dinner?

2010-02-16T18:22:00.006-07:00

One of my favorite (and the kids and Dave love these too) and super fast/easy dinners to make for the family are sausage, egg and cheese McMuffins. Now I know they are homemade and therefore the "Mc" part of the title is misleading, but that is exactly what they taste like (with a little more quality and probably a little less fat). I remember my Mum making these once and awhile.

Homemade McMuffins

pck English muffins
kraft singles (this kind of mild cheese works perfectly with these and melts beautifully)
pre-cooked breakfast sausage rounds
scrambled eggs (don't overcook them and try to keep them in larger pieces for easier placement)

Zap the sausage according to microwave directions and in the meantime, scramble your eggs and halve your muffins and very lightly toast them. Unwrap cheese. Lightly butter half of each toasted muffin and place face up on baking sheet. Put the egg down, covering bottom half of muffin, add sausage on top of that and then a slice of cheese on top of the sausage.

Broil just until cheese melts. Put on the tops and ENJOY! You can also wrap leftovers McMuffins in tinfoil and stick them in the oven when you want a quick breakfast/lunch the next day.

Great served with fresh fruit.

I was feeding 4 adults and two kids and used a large pck of english muffins and 8 breakfast sausages. I used 6 eggs with a little buttermilk (because I had it) mixed in. I can only eat one but Dave and his Dad both had 2. Hopefully that gives you an idea of amounts needed.

For family night tonight I also made a quick dessert. Using the Philadelphia brand pre-made cheesecake filling (found mine at Smiths), I added some crushed Oreo cookies and threw it all into a chocolate cookie crust and VOILA! Instant cookies and cream cheesecake!

As much as I LOVE to cook and spend time doing it, with three small children, homework, and the CHAOS that can be dinner time, I love meals like this that I can throw together in no time but still reap lots of thanks from the fam. What are your tried and true quickie recipes?

These are a few of my favorite things.

2010-02-15T14:36:00.011-07:00

Some THINGS I love lately.

Fabric. Ok, I always love fabric. I especially love this fabric from Anna Maria Horner. Love the prints especially the middle one; love, love, love the colors. I think this fabric will inspire a room for me someday. I am currently owner of the top two in soft flannel. Not sure what I will do with them yet.

From Bitty Blossoms.

Fun, modern poster prints.

This one for a kids room (affordable at $15.00):

Want one? I found it HERE

And this one ($16.00) for a common space in our home. (I have one in Tiffany box blue waiting to be matted and framed one day when I have a house to put it in!). I really love this color too... from CutPastePrint

I bought this massage oil as part of Dave's valentine's day present (I promised him a nice long back massage as part of his "Valentine"). If you like lavender, you will love this. It smells SCRUMPTIOUS and the best part is it seemed pretty water soluable because when I rinsed it from my hands in warm water afterwards (no soap), they didn't still feel super greasy, unlike a lot of different oils I have used in the past.

It is "Johnson's SoftOil, Melt Away Stress" and since I got it at Payson market, you can probably find it in your local grocery store or drugstore.

A fun site that Sydney adores. You can create a fairy and fly her around Pixie Hollow to play games and go on quests for free. We got a membership for Sydney for under $6.00 a month. It lets her buy different outfits and home furnishings to decorate her little fairy house. The "stores" introduce new collections every once and awhile which makes it even more fun.

Even though she isn't old enough to know how to chat, it lets her choose "emotes", make "fairy friends" and is extremely safe for older girls as the chats are very censored and do not even allow numbers to be typed in.

I have to admit, I have enjoyed some time on it myself. A lot of the games are fun for adults and Syd and I play together. (Disney should be paying me for this endorsement!).

Check it out: http://pixiehollow.go.com/index.html

In music, I have been rocking out in the car (when by myself so as not to hurt the little ones tender ear drums!) and on the treadmill (not so much lately) to One Republic's new CD: "Waking Up".

A good song from the album (there are a lot of even better ones in my opinion but they don't have videos!)

And finally, the exciting news about the new LDS Temple to be built right here in Payson! And this artists rendering of it:

From Cougarboard.com

Those of you who have been to Payson (or the southern end of the valley) will get this. To the rest of you who aren't fellow Mormons or haven't been out here, notice the mobile home like qualities? That will tell you something about the town in which I currently reside. (Jokes, Jokes. Payson isn't ALL that bad).

Thoughts

2010-02-13T11:14:00.005-07:00

I have had a lot of things running through my mind lately.

I want to write a book. Definitely fiction. Not sure how to begin... guess I need a really good story.

How do I get my kids to clean up their messes? I have "chore charts"; they aren't working. Allowance doesn't work. I don't have any place to put toys if I do the "if it is left out I take it away for the week" thing... any good ideas? Part of it might be the small space and the toys needing to be integrated into our living space. I miss having a basement. Wait... we ARE the basement!

I hate putting away laundry. I have two big baskets of clean, folded, overflowing laundry that need to find their home. They have been staring at me for the past couple days.

Why do passports cost so much?

I need motivation to get back on track with my "healthy eating and exercise". Not having a house messes with that motivation. Chocolate becomes much more enticing.

I miss my friends :(

I really don't understand how people don't want to have a BROOD of children. I look at my kids, their individuality, personality, sweetness, flippin cute faces that make me want to squooosh and kiss them all day long (I often do), the love and awesome dynamic each one brings to our family and I want to have 12. Then I think about painful pregnancies and the mess and want to stop. But mostly I want to see what other little people are supposed to be part of our family. Darn this carpal tunnel. I will definitely suffer it for one more (some day).

I hope that I have another girl. I mean, I love my boys but every girl needs a sister and I love girl stuff.

What city am I going to live in this summer? I love Provo so my vote is for that. But more house for the money in Saratoga Springs/Eagle Mountain (and good friends there) and or Payson (I feel like I am in the boonies out here though?). Spanish Fork is nice... so is Springville. And if we move near American Fork we are closer to Jenny (Dave's sister) and Larry and...

hmmm. I am flexible. Perhaps too flexible.

I love being Canadian. And I miss Canada. Someone find Dave a really great job in Canuck-land for me?

Bored yet? I think I bored myself...

I'm a big girl now...

2010-02-07T11:47:00.007-07:00

Friday was an exciting day for Sydney. Can anyone guess why?

Need a hint?

Just in case you haven't guessed by now...

That is right. Sydney has officially joined the pierced ears club!

She has been asking me if she could get her ears pierced for awhile now. Quite a few of her friends have them pierced and my girly girl has already developed a taste for sparkly jewelery.

I hadn't really thought about when I would let her get her ears pierced. I know that I won't let her wear makeup until 9th grade (except for lip gloss), and forget about dating until 16, and then it is group dating until 18. Shoes with heels, nylons, long nails; they are all a looong ways off. But earrings? I had to think about that one.

My Mum was pretty serious about keeping her girls young while they were young. She didn't want us to grow up too fast. At the time it infuriated me. I remember that she wouldn't buy my 6th grade pictures because I had snuck hot pink lipstick to school and put it on in the bathroom before it was my turn. They were my favorite pictures and I loved the way they turned out. She wasn't so excited. Now I think she would laugh about it but at the time, that just meant no school pictures for me.

We were on vacation in Northern Ontario (or Michigan?) when on a whim while passing a jewelery store either my Mum or Grandma decided it would be fun to get my ears pierced. I was 8 years old and super excited. That is, until those needles shot through my little ear lobes. Then I just remember it hurt more than anything I had yet experienced and I cried for quite awhile. And they got infected shortly after and so it was goodbye to earrings until I was 13 or so, and wanted to be like the rest of my friends.

And I agree with my Mum. Especially these days I think little girls grow up WAYYY too fast. I see 9 and 10 year olds dressed in provocative clothing. 7 year olds sporting acrylic nails and makeup (whaaa???).

I am glad that Mum kept me littler, longer. I was a 12 year old who still loved Barbies and paper dolls. I think you'd be hard pressed to find one of those these days.

So back to the earrings, after some thought, I just didn't feel like a little pair of studs were too grown up. It will be quite a few years before she is allowed to wear anything that dangles but she is ok with that for now. And I think they are pretty and elegant and not too grown up.

I asked her on Friday morning if she wanted to get her ears pierced that afternoon. She was really excited but seemed a little apprehensive too. I told her it was 100% her choice whether she wanted to or not. She asked me how much it hurt and I explained that it hurt a little more than getting a shot at the Dr.'s.

Obviously her desire for a little sparkle overcame her fears. When she got the chance to choose her earrings, of course she went for the BIGGEST crystal studs they had. I suggested smaller earrings for a smaller girl (the salesgirl and I had a laugh about her wanting the big bling).

Luckily there were two girls in the shop so they did both at the same time.

1-2-3 POP! Syd got this shocked look on her face for a second before her face regressed and she cried pretty hard for a minute.

That was soon forgotten a few minutes later, while passing shop windows and seeing her big girl earrings sparkle back at her. She told everyone we came in contact with about her experience and was so excited to show Daddy when he got home from work.

I am excited for the days when I can show her how to wear makeup and pick out a prom dress and talk about her first date.

But at the same time, I am in no hurry for any of those things to happen. Little crystal studs are enough for quite some time. And I will hang on to those little babyish hands and kiss her little cheeks that still hold a hint of baby chub in them and thank goodness that she isn't there yet.

P.S. Oh, and I am enjoying the days that she still lets me do her hair... I know they are numbered. Today for church it was a valentine's inspired hair do.

(idea from Princess Hairstyles)

Make Something

2010-02-04T16:04:00.003-07:00

Today I decided to get out the sewing machine and work on a couple things that I have been wanting/needing to do forever. I haven't done any sewing for awhile, mostly due to the fact that current crafting spaces are limited and I don't want to overrun the dining room table. But I was needing to be creative and it was time.

The first thing I did wasn't so creative, but I really, really needed to hem a pair of jeans I bought not too long ago. I have hemmed jeans before but just don't like how the end hem looks. Then I found THIS tutorial. It is easy peasy and keeps the original hem which I love.

So if you need to hem some jeans, go pay barefootinthekitchen.blogspot a visit.

My next project was kind of a early valentine's day present for my baby. I found this fabric on the web (etsy actually) and just KNEW that it had to be a blanket for Grant. "Brown Bear" is his absolute favorite book. Every time I ask him to go get a "story", he almost always grabs Brown Bear and then does his little trick of backing up from half-way across the room until he falls into your lap, ready to read.

When the fabric came in the mail, I showed it to him and it was so cute how excited he was and carried it around the house tucked next to his cheek for awhile!

So today, I did a simple baby blanket, almost a yard in length with the softest grey minky dot fabric on the back.

I have worked with minky before and HATED it. It is stretchy and anything stretchy is tricky. I was a bit nervous but took the advice of one of my favorite sewing blogs and pinned and pinned and pinned. That helped and it turned out great! YEY! I have conquered my fear of minky!

I love how colorful it is.

First snuggles with a new friend.

I think he likes it.

Had to make sure the pictures were the same! Upside down no less.

And this one is just cute. You can see Blake's giant tooth starting to emerge.

Wha? I am sorry, I wasn't paying attention. I think I fell asleep.

2010-02-02T15:53:00.003-07:00

The title of this post might be something you hear in a phone conversation you may have had with me if I have talked to you at any point over the last three days.

Sleep. It is completely elusive these days. For may reasons. One being that our current living situation requires Grant to be sleeping in our room with us. This means I wake up at least three times a night to make sure he is warm enough (our room favors arctic conditions once the sun goes down), or to pop his soother back in when he fusses, or sometimes just because he decided that 3 a.m. is a great time to practice his communication skills for a couple hours. In the latter instances I head to the couch and Dave to the bedroom upstairs. This is a faulty plan because: a) I sill hear him, and b) the couch makes my lower back feel like it was recently used as a trampoline.

Add to that the fact that It TAKES me an hour or more to fall asleep in the first place, Dave's snores and inability to wake up without my having to beat his arm to a pulp with my elbow before he rolls over, and the fact that my body once woken, doesn't like to go back to sleep.

Now throw in a sick baby who has been sick with fever for the last three nights and a possible ear infection (again) and that brings my total amount of sleep in the last 72 hours to approximately... 6-8.

Yeeeahhh. I am just a tad on the crabby side. So in lieu of more complaining, I will post pictures of the darling little daughter who was graciously watching a movie quietly while Mommy had a failed attempt at trying to nap and who has to put up with her crabby Mommy every day, all day.

Funny Baby at OneTrueMedia.com

2010-01-20T16:27:00.001-07:00

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Nada.

2010-01-13T11:16:00.010-07:00

I have sat down and typed a few words on this post twice this past week in an attempt to get out of my non-blogging rut. Both times I deleted what a wrote, and came away from the computer with a sigh.

Perhaps it is the post-holiday-basement-dwelling blues that I have been experiencing. Perhaps the lack of sleep that is zapping my creative juices (that lack of sleep that is caused by the blues and the baby who is now sick due to the lovely gym daycare and/or my new nursery church duties).

Whatever it is, I got nothing.

No funny. No photos. Nothing even mildly entertaining (if you thought I was mildly entertaining in the first place).

I really honestly write for me but I don't feel like I even have me right now.

I DO however, have the irresistible urge to eat nothing but chocolate all day while snuggled under some blankets with a good book and a heating pad as a foot warmer.

No, I am not doing that, but it sounds great.

P.S. Click HERE to see a great post on ways to help in Haiti. And of course, be sure to send up lots of prayers.

I Just Did It.

2010-01-06T14:21:00.005-07:00

It was back to the gym for me today. Now that we are close(ish) to a beloved Gold's, I decided it was something that was necessary to help me avoid the basement dwelling blues. So Dave picked up memberships (with daycare) for us this week.

With my iPod in hand, but little confidence it would go well (which waned even more when I caught a glimpse of myself in all too-tight workout pants in the windows of the gym), I hit the treadmills. And was pleasantly surprised.

You see, when I started my workout plan with Lindsey last spring, I don't think I could run a few minutes without a cramp in my chest and feeling like I might die. But when all was said and done, I could actually run for an entire 30 minutes - and not feel like I was going to die! MIRACLE I TELL YOU!

It isn't like I have never been in shape; after all, I used dance every day for hours. I just never thought I could be one of those; runners.

*All you marathoners can quit scoffing now*.

So it was a big deal for me that after months of NOT running and weeks of... well... how do I put this delicately? Stuffing my face with all of the bounty of the holidays (like a starving swine I tell you!). I RAN FOR 20 MINUTES WITHOUT FEELING LIKE I MIGHT END UP WITH TREADMILL BURN ON MY FACE AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT! Wooohooo.

I don't think I will ever be one of those runners. You know, the ones that actually PAY money to go run for hours and feel like they might suffer cardiac arrest at any minute, AND CALL IT FUN! *ahem, Marina, Staci*. Oh, the bumper sticker is totally worth it I know (eye rolls here).

No, that is one activity that I don't think will ever bring me the kind of euphoria my friends talk about - I think I would prefer natural childbirth for that. I think a new baby to take home in the car is much more fun than a t-shirt and a bumper sticker.

Although t-shirts don't keep you up all night. But they don't smell as great either.

Anyhoo... coming back from that tangent, I RAN FOR 20 MINUTES! YEY for me!

And because of that, today is a GOOD day!

My favorite running song today?

"Us" a la neige.

2010-01-02T15:08:00.003-07:00

Blake LOVES to be outdoors; rain, shine or especially snow. I love looking outside and seeing his latest snow creation. Today we get to look at this:

He did it all by himself and we thought it too cute not to share. Keep in mind, in real life my head is definitely not that big and Dave doesn't have 2 noses. Notice how Blake spend extra time making his version perfect? And notice how Syd only has half a head?

I must say... I think it needs one more tiny snowman. No announcement... just sayin.

P.S. Sydney just looked at it and said all pouty: "my face looks stupid in this..."

Funny Little Man

2009-12-29T10:54:00.003-07:00

I have been meaning to capture this on my camera for quite some time now.

When you hear Mom's say that it is hard for them to be able to even to go to the bathroom alone... they aren't exaggerating.

But I must admit, this always makes me laugh and I love it. Especially when I see this next...

And then we play a game where I tap his little fingers and toes. And if I peek under the door, I see his little eye looking for me (I wish my lens could capture that).

I will really miss those little fingers and toes keeping me company in the bathroom when they are too big to fit under the door.

Sydney's Doll House

2009-12-28T12:44:00.006-07:00

I have had a lot of requests for pics of the doll house that I overhauled for Sydney. Here they are!

I still have a few things to do on this. I need to replace the bathroom floor. I had originally placed this heavy, metallic scrapbook paper down, but when I "lacquered" it, it turned out all splotchy and shrunk. There is also a dining room table that will be added and what now is a horrible looking garage will probably be a baby nursery or something in the future. The garage is a good indication of the "before" since I don't have a before picture.

I used scrapbook paper for all of the "wallpaper" in the house. I made both beds and all the curtains. The little dresser I found at JoAnne's and painted it white. Sydney had the rest of the furniture in this room.

Sydney was gifted with some of this furniture from Aunt Heather and Uncle Chris for her birthday. The bed is a shoebox lid that I made a cover for to fit it in and give it stability. The headboard is a CD case that I covered in fabric. I also covered the back of the armoire with scapbook paper to make it disappear a little more into the background.

I made a lot of what is in the living room; including the couch. I took two floral Styrofoam blocks and carved them into the couch shape that I wanted. I then glued the two pieces together, covered them with batting and then hot glued fabric to them. This little project took me quite a while and was definitely a "learn as you go" process. I sewed the pillows for it. I covered a lounge that came with the house in matching fabric.

I made the coffee table by gluing a wooden block to a piece of craft wood I got at Michaels. I found the miniature frame at the dollar store,as well as the little Christmas Tree. The mirrored end table is just four little mirrors from JoAnnes glued together.

These little magazines were made with little wood shapes from Michael's. I just found some magazine cover images through google and mod podged them on. The entertainment center came with the house but was ugly and yellow so I spray painted it white.

I added a tap light to the ceiling of the kitchen so that when there isn't a lot of natural light, Syd can turn it on to see all the little kitchen pieces. I think I paid $6.00 for it at Wal-Mart and it came with batteries.

I think I am most proud of the kitchen floor. I found these great craft foam sheets in JoAnn's that were super glittery. I decided they would make a great floor for the kitchen! All I had to do was cut them into 3 inch squares, spray down adhesive and glue them into place! I then sprayed the whole thing with lacquer to help with wear and tear and keep the glitter in place. It looks even better in person! I think I will do this with the bathroom floor as well only in black and white checkerboard.

I know Syd has her eyes closed in this pic but I loved how Blake was jumping up behind the doll house to be in the picture. This gives you a good idea how BIG this thing is! I still have no idea where we are going to keep it but Sydney sure is having fun with it!

It's The Most Wonderful Time of The Year.

2009-12-24T20:16:00.003-07:00

Wishing all of my friends, family, and readers a wonderful Christmas. I am so grateful for the spirit of Christ that fills this season. For the greatest gift that we have all been given; with his birth, example, infinite love and atonement.

Love, us.

Mini Me

2009-12-22T12:24:00.010-07:00

Well, 3 more days and Christmas will be upon us. I feel mostly ready. Christmas shopping is done for the kids. I didn't send out cards or treats this year due to the move and to also help save some $$$.

One big project I have been working on for Christmas is a doll house for Syd. I bought one for $40 on KSL. It is a huge heavy wooden thing, tall and deep. And it needed some TLC. I bought some furniture for it but made a lot of it (again the saving $ thing - plus, mine has more character :), and have added curtains, flooring and wallpaper. It is nearly finished and I have had a lot of fun working on it.

The next major task I needed to tackle I accomplished this morning. I have been dreading it. CUTTING GRANTS HAIR.

I have been debating whether to grow it out a little or cut it short. Growing it out seemed like the easier option considering the alternative which involves tackling a super squirmy one year old's head with a very sharp pair of scissors and in the process of trying not to stab him; coating him, myself and the entire room with hair that is IMPOSSIBLE TO CLEAN AWAY. No really. After doing so, I always feel like I just finished wrestling with a pack of cats who were losing the battle with rogaine.

BUT, alas my son was starting to look like he was being reared with a pack of wolves who managed to comprehend the appeal of a mullet.

So scissors it was. And the result is: I want eat his entire little face off. I can see it again! No longer is it overpowered by what looked like a really bad toupee! Look at his cute eyes! And those lips! And little round teeth! Now get over here so I can snack on you!

It wasn't easy. But definitely worth it.

Look Mum! Mini Me!

And here is the "not so sweet" version. Did I mention he loves to pinch? Especially me. He will grab the skin on my neck and dig his little fingernails in and watch me for the reaction. Little stinker.

The typical view. He is my little eater. If you have food he is at your side begging for it. He LOVES to eat. And drink. You would think he would be a little chubbier!

The typical picture I get out of Grant.

Now I plan to relax a little. Watch some of my favorite movies. Spend time with my family. And reflect on the true meaning of CHRISTmas.

Finally Finished!

2009-12-14T15:47:00.009-07:00

Well, my "little" project is 14 days past my goal deadline but it is finally finished! I think I underestimated the amount of time I would have to work on it between moving, unpacking, Thanksgiving and settling in, but, it is finally finished!

And I love, love, love it.

It isn't perfect but I poured so much love and time into it that I couldn't be happier with the result.

Voila!

This is my favorite (and was the most time consuming) pocket. This one came from Dave's suggestion to do a little town. I wanted to do a little white church, but I hated the first attempt so I started over and decided to create a little town to go with the church.

Out of these rows I particularly love the reindeer. It was one that I came up with on my own and I loved how it turned out!

This is a horrible picture but it gives you a better idea of just how big this tree is! Today the kids got teeny, tiny little glass penguins from the pocket. They can't wait for tomorrow! I know this will be a treasured Christmas addition - and hopefully last through a couple generations!

And a couple of the kids building a snowman with Dave in the backyard!

The Things Kids Say.

2009-12-10T12:57:00.002-07:00

Sydney loves to quote movies. No really, like a teenage boy. This tends to make for some hilarious moments when at the perfect time, she comes out with this quote from a movie.

The past couple of days she has been watching the "Liken" version of the Christmas Story.

Today, I walked into the bathroom while she was playing in the tub. She had two of her Disney princesses laying on a wash cloth on the side of the tub. She informed me that they were Mary and Elizabeth and had just had babies, but now they were sick so their husbands had their babies.

"They are sick?" I asked.

"Yeah" she replied "with flu like syntums".

BWAAAHAHAHAHA!

Blake-ism

2009-12-03T22:35:00.002-07:00

After Dave finishes saying evening prayers with the kids:

Blake: "Why do we have to say 'Amen'? Why can't we say 'A-girl'?"

I tell you - a total politician in the making.

Where am I now?

2009-12-01T11:40:00.002-07:00

Packed.
Moved.
Unpacked .
Cleaned (still have a lot to go).
Organized.
Packed again.
Made a 12 hour drive to northern Idaho.
Had an awesome Thanksgiving dinner in Heather and Chris's beautiful new home.
Dealt with sick children.
Made 12 hor drive home.
Took care of sick baby (still taking care of sick baby).
Celebrated Syd's 5th birthday (more on this later).
Came down with pinkeye along with fever, sore throat, aches/chills.
Hoping this goes away fast. I do NOT have time to be sick right now.

More to come.

2009-11-20T09:56:00.003-07:00

Today is our last day "living" in our home. I drove the kids to school thinking "this is the last day I will make this drive". Walked into Blake's school thinking it was the last time I would do so. Spread peanut butter on my toast thinking it would be the last time I made breakfast in this kitchen.

And it made me sad. I know that wonderful things are yet to come. And so I am grateful for this message that I watched this morning; that helped to lift my spirits.

Bad Blogger

2009-11-13T20:01:00.004-07:00

I really don't like it when blogs I read take ages to update. Yeah. I am that kind of blogger.

But it isn't because I don't have a decent reason. We are moving to Payson on the 21st of this month. It was kind of a last minute decision. And a very, very hard one. I knew this was coming but didn't expect it to be so soon. I was hoping that we would be able to spend at least one last Christmas in this home but alas, it is not to be.

It is for the best, but it has taken me a bit to be able to say that. And to be able to talk about it without crying.

I am going to miss so many things about this awesome place we currently reside in (for 7 more days). Sure I will miss this home, and definitely the space, but I have always been one who has formed really strong attachments with people (ok, ok, perhaps not high school boyfriends, they were easy to kick to the curb *wink*), and I have REALLY formed some serious friendships in this neighborhood.

I will miss Blake's school and his wonderful teacher. I will miss Syd's preschool (that was also Blake's preschool). I will miss my amazing neighbors and the way we watch out for each others children so they can ride their bikes and have some freedom. I will miss the close friends I have made in my church in this area. The treats that are dropped off on a regular basis, the smiles and waves and acts of service that are given.

I will miss the children that Blake and Sydney play with. No really, they are the most innocent, sweet, well-behaved children and it has always been a joy to have them in my home.

We have been through some pretty serious trials in our 8 years together. This year however, has been one of the hardest and having to leave is the icing on that cake. It is a yucky, gross cake. But I know that sometimes we have to eat things we don't like because they are good for us and will make us stronger. And I know this is the case with this particular trial.

To everyone who has shared their friendship and love with us in this unforgettable place, we say thank you. I told Dave when we first moved in that I had a special feeling that told me we were really going to love it here, and that prediction definitely came true.

...

And yes, I am keeping up with my little advent project. Here are the next 6 squares I have completed. You know I had to add a ballerina in there... she was my very own creation :)

And some close-ups to display all of that time consuming stitching work!

Christmas Project

2009-11-04T16:44:00.007-07:00

I saw this adorable advent calender over at one of my favorite "crafty" blogs A Feathered Nest. She saw it in the Pottery Barn catalogue and knew she could make it instead of paying $70.00 for it.

Felt is super cheap and so this might cost $15.00 by the time I am finished.

It seemed a little daunting for my first big Christmas project but I really want to start making things like this that my children can treasure and that can be passed on.

And I am having so much fun doing it. Some of the squares are pretty much copies of hers but some of them will be my ideas from scratch or have changes made. The angel was my idea and I really liked the Santa from the pottery barn one so I copied that one from there. I also decided that my snowman needed a scarf and my mittens needed a string. Here is what I have done so far:

These are the pockets for the treats. They will hang on a big felt Christmas tree.

My favorite one so far:

I hope to be finished by the end of the month which means a lot of work. I have to try and do a little every day so it can be put to use by the 1st!

My kids are so excited and always come to check to see how far along I am. Next project, home made Christmas stockings!!!

It's Pumpkin Time!

2009-10-31T21:02:00.003-06:00

The kids are totally like "MOM! Stop taking pictures so we can go already!"

Mine

Blake's

Dave's

Syd's

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-30T12:11:00.008-06:00

Today I got all the kids dressed up in their costumes, hoping to get a few pics since last year I only got one horrible one a minute before they left to go trick-or-treating (they even had coats on over their costumes! - I was busy with my colicky new baby). Blake and Syd both had Halloween parties at school today so it was a good excuse.

This is usually 90% of the pictures that I get of the three of them together.

First Snow of the Season

2009-10-27T12:30:00.004-06:00

And then Grant decided to show me his new trick.

Tubes.

2009-10-26T15:29:00.003-06:00

We paid a visit to the ENT today to discuss Grant's ear infections. I walked out with an appointment for him to get tubes put in on Thursday! I can't wait for him to not have to suffer with this anymore. Please keep him in your prayers that he will stay healthy and avoid getting this bug that Blake has so we won't have to wait a couple more months, and so everything goes smoothly!

Halloween Fun

2009-10-26T14:57:00.010-06:00

It is hard being a long distance grandparent I am sure. But my parents are great at it.

Blake and Sydney were suprised with a big box from Grandma and Grandpa Osmer this week. Inside were all sorts of halloween goodies: stickers, activity books, window clings, skeletons, silly straws, spider rings, magic sponges, a snow globe to replace the one that Blake got and dropped shortly after, etc. etc.

They had so much fun with all their treats and while talking to "Ahchoo and Grandpa O" to thank them for being such awesome grandparents.

(that is sunlight on Blake's face coming through the blinds)

In other news, Blake came down with a really high fever on Friday night. He was quite a sick little boy on Saturday and Sunday. I was getting nervous that it was the H1N1 bug that has been going around our neighborhood but since he seems to be doing better today (no Tylenol or Motrin since 5 this morning!), I am thinking it was just some nasty bug. When this kid gets sick, he really gets sick! The other kids have avoided it so far as have Dave and I. (Phew!)

On Saturday night, Dave and I got to attend a superhero themed Murder Mystery dinner put on by our friends Tiercy (The hostess) and Celeste. It was so much fun to dress up and enjoy a good dinner and game with some good friends.

I sewed my own costume sans pattern and Dave's cape. I think they turned out pretty well!

I am not sure I will ever look at Dave the same way again though.

Nerdon & Stingmata

(what you can't see is Dave's rolled up shorts and black dress socks pulled up to his mid-calf and his brown dress shoes)

The super "women"

The super "men". (Dave's face is painted white because he ended up dead - and a ghost.)

Sunday, Sydney and I made some jack-o-lantern shaped sugar cookies. This is how Sydney ended up:

"Hold still for 2 second while I take the picture will yah?!" And yeah, she is still in her pajamas, and the shirt is on backwards.

I love these crispy fall days!

Goings On

2009-10-22T10:12:00.011-06:00

Sydney woke up around 5:30 this morning (just as I was falling back asleep after waking around 4:30 and having a hard time getting BACK to sleep). She was crying out. I dashed out of bed to to stop the nightmare and asked her what she was dreaming about. Her response was tearful and something along along the lines of "You were hanging on a farmers thing, and he came out, and you ran, and he got you and you were dead and then there was a Mr. Eyeball...".

My response: "A Mr. Eyeball"?

Sydney at this point realized how funny that sounded and we looked at each other and laughed. The laughter chased the nightmare away and she went back to sleep. As did I for another half an hour until Dave's alarm went off alerting him that it was time to go play basketball.

Life has been busy lately. I am absolutely fed up with trying to keep my house spotless with three kids, for random people walking through for a total of five minutes. It is practically a full time job in and of itself.

Dave has been gone most of the time, studying like mad for the LSAT so we don't see much of him these days.

I have been scheduling a lot of family pictures as everyone prepares for Christmas card season. I am also trying to get our own family pictures sorted out. We haven't had them taken in so long. Pretty sad for a photographer who realizes the value in photo history.

I also had the task of assembling two Halloween costumes for a murder mystery dinner that we were invited to. Dave's was easy as his is a nerd based superhero (we were assigned characters). Mine on the other hand was IMPOSSIBLE. So, I ended up getting some fabric on clearance and sewing it myself. Mind you, the only garment I have ever sewn was a pillowcase dress for Sydney and some shorts once in high school home economics. I didn't use a pattern. It turned out mostly, but the results are hilarious (which makes more sense to you if you know that I didn't mean for it to be hilarious). Perhaps I will post a picture of Dave and I all dressed up.

It always feels like it starts getting so busy around this time of year when all I want to do is stay at home, bake, and be with the kids. I have been trying to keep things minimal but all the "must do's" still seem to have me rushing around.

Grant is on his second ear infection in the last two weeks. Most likely though, it was the first infection that never went away. The one he got on his birthday. This information explains why I hardly took any photos of his 1st birthday celebration. Or why his cake looks awful. Because he was sick and feverish and just plain miserable and I chose to take care of him rather than spend time on a cake. So I got really creative (not), carved out a 1 and iced 3/4 of it five minutes before we ate it.

But he enjoyed it just the same.

"Hunh? It's someones birthday? I don't want cake, I just want some Motrin and a nap in my car seat. Can someone bring me a cool cloth instead?".

"Ooooh, fire. Did I light that on fire with my amazing fever powers?"

"Mmm, I better get some of this icing before they realize that this piece of cake is just sitting here and they take it away..."

"You mean I get to eat it all?"

"Happy Birthday to ME!"

Nothing better than a cake goatee on a baby.

We did it all over again on Sunday with Dave's family. Grant got a pretend lap top from Mom and Dad, clothes from Dave's family and $ from Ahchoo and Grandpa O (that was also used for new clothes for the fall since all Blake's old ones in 12-18 months are summer clothes). Staci and Marina were super sweet and brought over a super fun vtech car transport that makes so many cool sounds and it way fun! Just ask Blake and Sydney, they fought over it the whole day!

We took the kids to the pumpkin patch last Friday evening. The only pictures I took were mental pictures. Sometimes I find that if I bring my camera, I get so caught up in taking pictures that I miss out on the experience. So this time, I was just present and enjoyed the experience. The kids and Dad picked out pumpkins after a trailer ride to the patch while I held our little pumpkin. The it was back to the big red barn for doughnuts and apple cider, our yearly tradition.

We all had so much fun and when we got home, we had some Chili that had been in the slow cooker all day and some bones and blood.

Super fun and easy. The kids loved it. Take a package of bread sticks, separate them, cleave both ends of the sticks and roll down the ends (each end rolled to the outside of the "bone"), follow baking instructions and serve with marinara (blood). I also buttered my bread sticks right out of the oven and sprinkled grated parm over the top.

Halloween costume pics of the kids coming soon!