Tuesday, May 24, 2011

"Here Comes the Ice Cream Man!"

Do you remember those long, hot summer days where there's barely a breeze, you're sticky with sweat, and you can hardly get yourself up to do anything because you just feel so lazy? We've already had a few of those days around here and even this week we're supposed to hit 96 degrees!!

Lucky for us (um, not really though) we have the Ice Cream Man who comes and roams the streets at least once a day now, after the children are off the bus, homework is finished, and kids are running around outside playing with friends.

My kids had never had the opportunity to purchase any such frozen treats as these. And from a truck that comes right to your front yard no less! Each and every time they would hear that musical jingle of the ice cream truck sound, they would race to Andrew or I and ask if they could go and get an ice cream....

Now, let me backtrack a couple decades. I remember using my allowance to buy a treat off of an ice cream truck a couple times a month as a kid. I remember the absolute joy of playing out in those scorching, hot days of summer and hearing the wondrous music of the Ice Cream Man. I would run inside as fast as I could, dig my money out from wherever I'd stashed it and race back outside with record speed to chase down the truck (along with 5-6, even up to 15 or 16 other kids) and buy a wonderfully cold, melt-off-the-stick popsicle treat. It was heaven to my little childhood self. After we licked the last bit off of those sticks, we would carve them by filing them down using the sidewalk and turn the hose on and into the gutter and have popsicle stick races. Ahh, the memories. So wonderful to recall....

Back to present day. I have a very practical husband. He hates to "waste" money (how he and I ended up together is still a mystery) and although he rarely tells the kids what they can spend their pennies on, he absolutely refuses to allow them to spend it on an ice cream treat where the price has been quadrupled as to what you would find it for in the grocery store. They continue to ask even though they know what the answer will be.

Well, the other day I was the only parent home and lo and behold, the jingle of "that" truck came ringing down the street. The kids all ran to me, of course, and asked if they could get an ice cream. I thought about it for a split second and decided, why not? I told them that yes, they could. They had to use their own money, and they all ran to grab a couple of bucks from their piggy banks, the joy and excitement evident on their faces and in their voices. I left Magnus strapped in his highchair where I'd been spooning goop into his ever-ready open mouth, and ran out to document the occasion, as I'm sure it is not likely to happen again anytime soon. I just figured every kid has to have that experience at least once! Making a decision...
Of course, they thought it was amazing and wonderful and grand (except maybe Daphne who took 2 bites of her Dora the Explorer ice cream and decided it was "yuck-o" and promptly threw it in the garbage.)




And when their dad came home that evening from work and they were bursting to tell him the news, he glanced at me and promptly said, "What a waste of money."



Maybe so but, oh well, it was fun! And I'm certain my kids would agree :)


Sunday, May 22, 2011

A Glance at the Previous Week:

Sick kids. 4 of the 5 succumbed to the nastiness and I am still knocking on wood that Laylah doesn't get it just in time for her birthday tomorrow. If there is only 1 thing (okay, 2-the other being potty-training) I despise about mother-hood, it's the pukes.

They stink.... literally.

I'm still catching up on sleep. And now I'm off for a little Sunday nap....

Here's to a better week coming up!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Today

Meet Princess Erica and Prince Stefan (that's pronounced Stef-On, not Stef-Un.... trust me, I checked ;). They are here today for a game of make believe and I am the Mean Old Witch who is trying to capture the Princess. The Prince will come to her speedy rescue and they will live happily ever after. Before that can happen though, a few fairies, bad guys, and animals will be thrown into the mix as well.

Imagination. How come it's so fun?!

Happy Tuesday to you...



Saturday, May 14, 2011

Three Bald Boys

Hi.

So, I just did a bunch of posts and I am still not caught up on all of the things I'd like to post and have record of. I guess I should count myself lucky that Daphne came into my room at 3 AM to inform me that Bear had thrown up on the playroom floor and he was now lying in it, asleep (the 4 kiddos had a movie night in the playroom and they were all in their sleeping bags on the floor). After I gave him a bath and a bowl (and scrubbed the carpet in the playroom, and threw a load of yucky sleeping bags and jammies in the washer) I turned a movie on for him. He continued to throw-up every half hour or so, so I just sat here and blogged, helped him when he needed it, and then came back to blogging. Is this too much information? Yes, I thought so. Sorry. Just wanted to let you know in case you notice tons of typos and/or sentances that make no sense whatsoever. Did that sentance just make sense? I thought not.

Here, I'll leave this image in your head instead of a pukey one:Summer is upon us and my 3 boys are shaved bald as per our summer tradition. So dang cute and so much easier.

Happy Weekend!

A New Beginning

For those of you who may not have heard, my husband was offered a new job a week ago. He started this last Tuesday and he has really enjoyed it and thinks it will be a great company to work for. They are very up and coming and have a great incentives, insurance, and tuition re-imbursement. We are beyond thrilled and it actually doesn't seem very real to me quite yet.

Losing Andy's job was a huge shock to me and we weren't quite sure what to do. It was a long 2 months of confusion, doubt, questioning, and hardships. That being said, we are incredibly blessed and I feel very undeserving of what has been given to us. I had a very bad attitude during Andy's 2 months of unemployment. I was ornery all the time and I picked fights for no reason. I had a hard time having Andy at home and I just wasn't myself. We talked about it often and Andy was so understanding and loving and I am just so grateful for him and his great attitude. He pulled us through even though I'm sure it was difficult for him. He was always positive, which helped me to know that everything would work out okay. It's just so hard to understand that everything will happen on the Lord's timetable, no matter how much we beg for things to be different.

My mom and I had many conversations over the phone and she must have listened to me say the same things over and over at least 20 times. Yet, she was always so understanding and loving anyway. She also sent me a book that I loved called When Your Prayers Seem Unanswered. It was terrific and I highly recommend it.

On top of that, so many friends, ward members, and family gave us so much love and support. Everyone really rallied around us at this challenging time and helped us in more ways than I can describe. Whether it was sympathy, understanding, or a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on, everyone gave us the help we needed.

After it was all said and done, I felt very undeserving because of my bad attitude through the whole thing. I kept wondering what I was supposed to learn from it all and I know I pulled away from my Heavenly Father. And yet, he continues to bless me, His ungrateful daughter. I love Him so much and it helped me realize that, as a parent, no matter how stubborn my kids are and no matter how much they frustrate me, I still want the best for them and I am pleased when they learn and grow. Such is the way I can only imagine my Heavenly Father feels about us while we are upon this earth. I have so much to learn still. I had a lot of repenting to do and I hope for my sake that I learned what I was supposed to learn as well as some patience along the way.

Another thing I am grateful for is the gift of the Holy Ghost. I had a dream a few weeks before the interview process began that we would have a very difficult choice between 2 jobs and I woke up and told Andy about it. He said, "I would be happy to have that problem rather than the problem of being unemployed!" and I agreed. Well, within a few days, 2 companies contacted him and requested interviews. After the first one, they both requested 2nd interviews. Shortly after that, one of the companies offered a job and a starting date, while the other one wanted another interview to be scheduled the day Andy was supposed to start the other job. Long story short, we had to make a very quick decision. Both companies were great, but very different jobs. We had no idea what would be best for our family and we had to make a decision fast. We literally felt the Holy Ghost at work and we felt very good about our decision to go with the company that we did. It is here in VA, only about 1/2 hour away and we will be signing another year lease on our house. We felt like we should stay here even though a lot of people wanted us to go home (to Utah) and wondered why we weren't. It all just worked out perfectly, we feel like we are where we belong right now, and I couldn't feel more blessed.

Life isn't perfect and I hate when people pretend that it is. I am grateful for my trials and how much I learn and grow, and how much closer I draw to my Father in Heaven. I am grateful for another chance and new opportunities. I am grateful I can share my learning experiences with others, and also for the people I have in my life.

Thanks for being some of those people :)

Half A Year Old











My bitty little baby has turned into a big, gigantic tubby. He is my biggest baby at this age to date. I don't want him to get any bigger. I would be completely happy freezing him at this stage and age forever. I am completely and absolutely smitten with my baby boy. He is growing up much too quickly for my liking.












M at 6 months:



-Weighs 22 pounds (off the charts)


-29 1/2 inches long (off the charts)


-Has decided he loves babyfood. He is such a little piglet and it still shocks me how much he eats daily. As soon as he sees me get out the babyfood and a spoon, he wiggles around like crazy and gets so excited until that food is being shoveled into his mouth. If I'm not fast enough, he starts screaming. It's the same thing with nursing-as soon as I sit down with him on my lap, he freaks out until he's actually eating. We moved onto 2nd baby foods and he eats 2 veggies and 2 fruits a day. He also has a big giant bowl of rice cereal in the morning and he continues to nurse about 5 times a day. He still refuses bottles.


-I had to start buying size 4 diapers right before he turned 6 months. The 3's just weren't cutting it anymore.


-He wears 12-18 month clothing


-He is out of his infant seat. We bought him a new carseat this last week.


-He can't sit-up yet, but he rolls all over the place and can scoot to get to something he wants. He loves to be on his tummy and when I lay him down for bed, he immediately rolls over to his stomach.


-He got his first 2 teeth around 5 1/2 months and since then has cut 2 more, which makes me incredibly sad. Babies with their top teeth just don't look much like babies anymore.


-He loves toys and will play contently for long periods of time. He also loves his swing, even though he is out-growing it quickly.


-He takes two 2 hour naps during the day and sleeps a solid 12 hours through the night.


-He still refuses binky's (even though I still try to give them to him, haha) and he sucks his thumb occasionally. He mostly chews on it, along with anything else he touches. Everything always ends up in his mouth.


-He is such a happy, smiley, laughy baby. He used to be very serious, but now he's to the point where, if you even glance at him, his face breaks into a huge grin and he "talks" to everyone. If you say anything to him, he immediately answers back with some sort of noise or grunt or screech. He laughs at everything and has the most hilarious, vibrating laugh. It's really funny.


-Somewhere around 4-5 months all of his hair fell out in patches, so I gave him his first haircut and now it's just really short all over.


-We like to joke that's he's the Michelin Man because of all of his rolls all over his squishable arms and legs.


-He will already watch movies. Jonah was my only other kid who would actually sit and watch tv at this age. I gotta admit, I really like it. I rarely do it, but it's so nice to know he's content and happy when I am in the shower or doing hair, or whatever I need to get done for a few minutes.


-Andy swears he can say "Momma" I don't think so, but Andy says that whenever I'm gone and Magnus gets sad, he'll say it and look around for me. Hmmmm....


-Continues to bring happiness and love into our home. He is such a good baby and we all adore him and none of us can get enough. I could just squeeze him and kiss his big, fat cheeks all day long.



Happy 6 months baby boy. We love you!

Fun in the Sun

Ohhhhh, but I do love spring. I love the mild temperatures, the new beauty all around, and the rain. I love that it is time to get up, and get out. Of the house, that is. And we have been doing just that. Since March when temps began to creep up into the high 60's, 70's, and 80's (we have even been in the 90's a few times!) we have been getting out of the house and having a blast.

A few weeks ago, some good friends invited us for a dinner picnic at the park and to also show us a new pond they had found. It was quite magical crossing the field of wildflowers, hiding in the tall grass, and walking through an enchanted (okay, well, it seemed enchanted ;) forest to get to the beautiful, full-of-life pond that awaited us.Jonah had to bring his boat to try out. It started to run out of batteries and luckily it was close enough to wade in and grab it.

That started a little fiasco of everyone kicking off their shoes and becoming sufficiently soaked by the time we were ready to leave.

I love this photo. A nice reminder of the magical evening. We'll definitely be back to that little piece of heaven in the woods.













Family walks and bike rides have become almost a daily occurence.



Everyone in our neighborhood calls Andy the "cool dad" as he cruises down the street on his longboard. Hey, I'm the one who gave it to him for Christmas several years ago, shouldn't I be the cool one?!



I simply love this pink tree in my front yard. Especially the fragrance wafting through my open windows.






Bear having a lesson in long-boarding


Jonah having a lesson on mowing the lawn


Magnus having a lesson on entertaining himself


One particulary hot day the kids, along with their best buddies next door, whipped out their swimsuits and sprinklers for the first time this year and spent all morning running through the yard, playing with the hose, getting dirty in the mud, and having a picnic lunch on the deck.


Ahhhh, I love spring. That being said-I am already hating the bugs that come with it. How much longer 'til winter??

Hoppy Easter

Well, we had a great Easter, what was it.... 3 weeks ago? The kids had a primary Easter party complete with Easter egg hunt and learning about our Savior's Resurrection. They all had Easter parties in school too and brought home lots of candy. We had a fun night of dying Easter eggs the Saturday night before (after baths.... what was I thinking?!) and it was too much fun. I love holidays and the family fun that accompanies it. I don't think Bear really remembered last year. He was so excited about everything, like he hadn't ever done it before.






I kept trying to take pictures of Andy and this cool star egg he colored, and I said, "Be serious and just smile!" Ummm, yeah right. I don't think it's possible for my husband to do that.






Pretty eggs.... I need to remember to do more next year. I always cook about 12 and then we color them really fast and the kids always want to do more.



Magnus was really interested in coloring eggs too.... oh wait, no he wasn't.




After the kids were snug in their beds, the Easter bunny came!

And then he hid their baskets. It was really funny in the morning because my kids have NEVER forgotten a holiday. They woke up and I heard them go downstairs and turn cartoons on instead of excitedly searching for their Easter baskets. Weird. I finally went down and reminded them that we don't watch TV on Sundays and then it clicked and they all of the sudden remembered it was Easter and started running around searching for the goods.

Bear had a hard time finding his basket and was getting a little upset until I stepped in and gave him a hint and then he found it and got the cutest, biggest grin across that darling little face of his.





The Bunny was nice enough to bring us some movies to share too.

Cute little feetsies in new flip-flops


Yummy Easter brunch. Strawberry and whip cream waffles.



The rest of Easter was wonderful at church. I have never before been a primary teacher and it was great teaching about Jesus Christ and His resurrection to my class. They are so smart and I love seeing their little faces light up and I can see that they are grasping gospel concepts. It is very rewarding. More so is hearing what my own kids learned at church and knowing that their little testimonies are growing. It makes me a proud mom. I sure love all of those little stinkers.




I hope everyone had a Happy Easter. Mine was almost perfect. The one thing I am sad about is that I forgot to take a family picture of us. Boo :( I love looking back at all of my Easter pictures over the years. Oh well.... good thing there is always next year!