Life, Or Something Like It

Dan took off for another trip on Monday morning, and my dad flew in later that day, he had meetings in Colorado Springs all week and spent his spare time with us.  The kids love having him around and I had to have them wait their turns to have time doing what they wanted with Grandpa.

James has been a bit sick this week - and just like Dan, he seems to want to do nothing but sleep when he is sick.  As a result - he has slept the better part of the last week - he is seeming better now - but still not back to 100% - though for all the time he has spent sleeping - you would think he would be.  Because of his sleeping, we haven't left the house much this week.  On Monday - I made the mistake of trying to do the grocery shopping with all 5 kids, who were hungry, tired, and a baby who couldn't quite sit in the cart on his own yet - or at least really didn't want to.... I never want to do that again.... thankfully a sweet lady behind us in checkout was very kind and being in a wheel chair (well you know - one of those fancy electric chair/shopping cart things Walmart has) , provided an opportunity for us to do a bit of service.  The kids forgot their grumpiness and whining while being helpful to this sweet lady.

We also had Morgan's mom text to say they were going to be at the park near our house, so we grabbed some popsicles and headed to the park for a bit.  I surprised the kids - not telling them who was going to be there until we got there - and we set up a sleep over for the girls for next week.

Friday we had Becky and her kids over to play in the morning - as usual we all had a blast - and if I can't get out of the house - this is the next best thing!  The kids had fun running amok and Zoe only left a few toys behind :)

As you can see in this picture, James is getting very close to crawling - he is up on all fours and rocking and he has figured out how to get up on all fours, and then launch himself forward to get to things - it won't be long now.....

Saturday morning - I met my friend Marie early at her house - dropped off the 4 older kids with her husband and we took our babies and hit the Stapleton  Yard Sale - a huge town-wide garage sale - we parked and walked around for a couple hours and had fun - then I dropped her off - picked up the kids - packed up our swim gear and we all (including my dad) headed down to my Grandpa's house to go swimming.  The kids loved it as usual and we got to play with Frankie as well - the kids love playing with him!  After, we had a late lunch/early dinner with Grandpa and then headed back to drop my dad at the airport.

 Today after church, Eileen wanted to help with dinner (actually she woke me up this morning wanting to make these for breakfast, but I convinced her to let me sleep a bit longer and to make them for dinner instead)  she found this recipe for jelly filled muffins and wanted to make them.  So she mixed them up and I thought this picture of her and Anna filling the muffin tins was awfully cute!!  Plus after dinner, Anna was my super duper helper - while I did dishes, she wiped down the table and swept the floor (and did a very good job I might add.)   I am blessed with such good kids - and it is always wonderful to see them come home from church wanting to be good and helpful and nice.  :)

Evie told me this afternoon "My back hurts - I need to go lie down!"  Sigh - apparently I have been a lazy mommy recently....

I kinda use this blog as a journal to record our family history as it's happening - in addition to being a way to keep our far flung family posted on our lives.  We had a wonderful talk in church today about leaving a legacy.  She spoke about how just like our ancestors left a legacy for us, we need to think about the kind of legacy that we want to leave for our posterity and shape our actions accordingly - She also mentioned the need to record these things for posterity - not just our deeds and events in our lives, but out thoughts, feelings and testimonies.  I don't think I am very good at sharing those things - I am just not any good at putting them into words - writing is NOT my strong suit - music and the words of others have always provided my emotional outlet.  There are things that happen from time to time that just leave people staggering and wondering - how did this happen?  9/11, Columbine, Kennedy Assassination, Moon Landing - and many others.  This Friday, I was woken by a phone call from Dan - who had seen on the news that a man had gone into a theater near our house and opened fire killing 12 and injuring 58 people.  There are events in my life that I remember with clarity - despite the passage of time - and this is becoming one of them.  Some people from our old ward were in the theater and were injured.  This is something that shakes the world - but there is something very strange about watching a news report about something like this and seeing streets that you drive all the time in the back ground.  It is strange to drive around your town and pass news vans lined up outside evacuated buildings as the police deactivate a booby-trapped apartment.  It is strange to go to church and listen to our Stake President stand and offer comfort, advice and counseling to any who want it.  And mostly it is strange to figure out what to tell my children.  My heart aches for those who lost loved ones - and yet along with the story of fear and anger and violence - there are stories of bravery, courage, love and miraculous healing.  I know that even in the midst of tragedy, that the Lord is watching over us and caring for the broken hearts - that he has a plan and that he will not leave us alone and comfortless.  Now you see why I'm not any good at writing these things out - I'm sure that what I wrote above was mostly a senseless rambling - but it was my thoughts and feelings as they came.

In a daze...

Well Dan and I aren't really sure where the week went...  the whole week kinda disappeared in a daze.  We have been enjoying being together as a family and gotten a lot done, and been closing our eyes to the disappointment of Dan leaving town again next week.  We really didn't do anything "special" or anything - just played, enjoyed the sun and enjoyed summer break.  Yesterday was our most exciting day.  Dan and I each had a list of things we wanted to get done before he left town - I figured that I might be able to accomplish 1 or 2 things on the list if I was lucky.  Miracle of miracles, the kids were wonderful - helpful, and easy going - James napped well and I managed to get almost everything done that I wanted to.  We built  bookshelves (LOL - yes more bookshelves) and a small writing table for upstairs.  We emptied a bunch more boxes.  The kids got some extra chores done - they have been saving up their money to get some Skylanders (it's part of a game they have been playing)  So after lunch, Dan took all the kids to Walmart to let them spend some of their saved money.  Dan's cousin Deb and her family have moved into the area and are in our stake (but live a ways out in the country) Their two oldest daughters came to the stake center (which is 4 blocks from our house) for a youth conference yesterday, and instead of going all the way back home between the morning part and the fireside/dance in the evening, they hung out with us.  The kids just loved them and they had fun playing Wii Fit together.  We also had friend who was having a birthday party last night, so we went to that for awhile and the kids had fun playing with friends - go figure but that evening we all slept well... well everyone but me - I slept well until James woke up at 4am.... after that i had weird dreams.... But either way - I'm going to bed early tonight - LOL - go figure, but I'm a bit tired.... So tired in fact (or lazy) that I am to lazy to go look upstairs and see if I took any pictures with my phone.... I think I took a couple, but oh well... I'll take more this next week... maybe.  :)

So Evie is in a very cute stage right now where she mis-pronounces words in very cute ways - Dan and I's favorites -  "Dindosours" (dinosaurs) and "Lippy Lops" (Flip Flops)  - and when she sings twinkle twinkle little star - "Up oh- bup oh world so high"

Dan made banana bread with Evie and Aaron yesterday and they had done everything but the final stirring - he let them stir and went to go do something else for a minute - I walked into the kitchen a bit later to find them (not sticking their fingers in the batter like you might expect) stirring in a way that the spoon would touch their fingers so that they would conveniently have to lick their fingers to clean them off!!   Sneaky Kids!!  You gotta admire their tenacity though!

Unpacked!

We spent the first few days of this week settling back in and cleaning out our garage.  We are borrowing Dan's parents car while they are on their mission.  So we finally finished cleaning out our garage to make room for it, and we are now more unpacked than we have have been for a long time - now all that is left in boxes is Christmas decorations, kids clothing, and some books that we need to get another book shelf for.  :)  The kids are having fun playing outside - the weather has been changing between sunny and hot and rainy.  The rain has been good, especially with the fires - and our very dry and dead lawn.  

James has discovered his toes - he puts anything in his mouth that he can find.  He is getting so big and wiggly - he doesn't want to sit still for long and he loves to eat.  

Evie has been struggling a bit with all the changes, but when she is happy, she is adorable - but she is testing limits and finding out what she can't do, and she doesn't like finding out that she can't do something that she wants to do.

I got a new calling at church - I have been called as a Primary Chorister - I am looking forward to this calling - as are my kids, but today after I went in to do singing time with the Nursery, Evie didn't want to let me go back to primary - I said "I need to go Evie" and she replied "But I don't want you to"  :(

For the 4th of July, we went up to play with Newell and Becky and family.  The kids had a blast soaking each other with water balloons, a hose and some water guns.  We didn't watch any fireworks, which really bummed Eileen out - but it was probably a good thing for Evie's sake - she hates loud noises!!  Someday we will go watch some together, but for now, Dan and I are content to put the kids to bed at the normal time and spend our night together relaxing.

I'm finding it increasingly difficult to get a picture of Aaron - I have to catch him unawares - or he hides behind his hand or whatever he is holding in his hand.  So most of the pics I have of him look like this...

But he had a birthday party that he was invited to on Saturday and had a great time splashing around in the back yard and eating cup cakes.  He looks so skinny with his rib cage showing, but he eats like crazy and he's healthy an happy - so i promise mom, I'm not starving him... :P  Now we are counting down the days until the next trip... just one more week, but at least he will only be gone for one week - not a month, and my back, while not totally back to normal, is feeling much better.

Home Again

This week was an eventful one.  We spent some of Tuesday visiting with Lori again - as always, we had a great time with great friends.  My dad has been having fun with his grand kids - playing with them, teaching them and building things with them.  

Wednesday, Dan got back into town just in time for Anna's birthday.  We are always so glad to have him home again.  Anna had her pink cake with pink frosting and wanted Taquitos for dinner.  Sandi and Taz came over to celebrate with us - we had fun eating good food and watching Anna open her presents and hitting a pinata.  Anna got a Lego set from Grandpa and Grandma and a Scooter from Mom and Dad, and Eileen made her a little purse with her knitting machine.  Sandi and Taz got her a cute little stuffed animal!  Aunt Pam sent her a beautiful puzzle and Grandma Penny sent an adorable outfit.  

The pinata was a bit hit (no pun intended) though after letting each of the kids (including Taz and James with some parental help) have multiple hits, it still hadn't broken open - so Dan finished it off.

I've been amazed at how well the kids swim lessons went - Eileen already looks like a swimmer and can stroke and breathe easily.  Anna is starting to stroke also and even Aaron is doing some - but all three can jump into the pool and then swim themselves to the side.  It's so funny to watch Aaron do it - he looks so small, and it worries me every time that he won't make it back to the edge with out help, but he always does.

Evie is getting more comfortable, and likes to put her face in the water and blow bubbles.  Friday we began our drive home and made good time - we got in before 11pm - it helps that we gain an hour with the time zone change, but still - it was a relatively pain-free drive.

Saturday as we were trying to get unpacked - I started carrying a bunch of stuff down the stairs, when i slipped and bumped my way down the stairs on my bum - in the process banging by back pretty hard - hard enough that for a minute or two after, I couldn't move and had a hard time catching my breath - after that (and the fact that some tylenol did no good) we headed to the hospital to make sure there was nothing seriously wrong.  They gave me an anti-inflammatory shot and sent me home with instructions to take it easy, but do some light stretching and walking to help heal.  I hurt, and carrying and picking up James is a bit hard, but I am feeling better today than yesterday and hope to be mostly back to normal before too long - of course I'm comfortably parked in Dan's new recliner - so we will see how I feel when I stand up :P  Newell and Becky came down with their kids to watch ours while Dan took me to the hospital and to celebrate Zoe's birthday - it is always good to see them - and we are so grateful to have good friends nearby to help out on short notice.

Dan left me again this afternoon - but this time not for long - he flew out to Utah to pick up his parent's car - which he will be driving while they are on their mission.  He should be back tomorrow evening.

It's Getting Hot in Here

We had a fun week - with both my dad and my husband gone, my mom and I have been looking for ways to entertain the kids with out exhausting ourselves too much.  The kids would spend all day, every day in the pool if we would let them - but I am not willing to go unless James is napping - at least not with out more adults to help out.  So the kids were determined to practice their swimming lesson stuff.  They are doing really well - they are becoming little fish.  Eileen and Anna are very comfortable and pretty independent now - Aaron and Evie still need close watching, but they are getting more confident - I just worry now about them being too confident.  Eileen can now dive in and swim across my parent's pool (which isn't all that long - but still a decent distance)  And Anna can kick her way across the whole pool in stream line position.  Aaron is great at putting his head in the water and is starting to kick and doggy paddle, and Evie is loving blowing bubbles.  They also all like the one on one time with Grandpa.  

Tuesday we went to Lori's house - It's amazing how with close friends, time and distance apart doesn't create weirdness - it just gives you more to talk about when you get together.  The kids all had a blast too - they all got along well and had fun running amok in the toy room.  :)  

Wednesday Sandi dropped off Taz for us to watch.  He's a sweet happy boy - but he is at that age where he wants to see everything, touch everything, and put everything in his mouth.  He is adorable - but busy!  I think he really liked having the older kids to play with and they liked helping 'take care' of him!  We had fun blowing bubbles and playing together.  

Thursday the kids and I met Sandi and Taz and went to the sprinkler park - i meant to take pictures - but I was too busy trying to keep James from over heating..... the kids had a blast though - when James is just a bit older places like that will be great - but it was too hot to be in the sun and dry - and he was too little to be able to get wet.... :(

My dad got back into town on Friday night, and he had fun looking for projects to do with the kids - he got some wooden toys to build with them (those are still in progress)  They included sanding and painting and gluing (all a bit advanced for Evie and Aaron) - we got through the sanding and some painting

Sunday morning - Dad made a volcano for them - they loved watching it erupt!!  The experiment only ended when my parents ran out of vinegar!

James is now officially rolling over - he has done it plenty of times before - but as of today - he is rolling in both directions and doing so consistently.  We also discovered that he can sit up all by himself - he falls over once in awhile - but he mostly doesn't need support to stay up.  Of course, Evie likes to help him anyway!  

Texas Fun

We've been keeping busy this week - Dan has been around - but ended up having to spend a lot of his time here working.  He realized that another company that they compete against have 8 people doing what he does - and that doesn't include all the travelling!  So he figures he is pretty awesome!  (and he's right)  We got to spend some time out wake boarding and tubing on the boat (and getting sore!!)  and we spent a bunch of time out in the pool - the kids swimming lessons are going really well - now the only problem is that they want to spend all day, every day out in the pool practicing!  

We went to the zoo with Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt Sandi and Taz.  The kids had a blast and tired out the grown ups good!  We started out with the carousel.  Evie was so excited to ride a monkey (really it was a gorilla, but she didn't know the difference) 

Eileen and Anna love feeding the birds - it's one of their favorites and we try to hit it every time we go.  The worst part is trying to get them out when their food is gone.  :)    

It was funny, this little penguin was happy to swim around and pose for us.  

And of course the kids HAD to climb on every statue they saw.  This one was outside the Giants of the Savannah exhibit.  When looking at the elephants (they were a little ways away) we were trying to point them out to Aaron and he kept saying that he couldn't see them - when we finally got him to see them, he said "Oh!  I thought those were rocks!!"  

We had some of our local friends over for grilling and swimming.  The kids had tons of fun with their friends and we had a great time too!  We love our home in Colorado - but we still miss our good friends in Texas!

Dan took off this morning for another trip, but before he left, we did his special Father's Day breakfast.  I had the kids fill out little things with questions about their dad and grandpa.  Aaron claims that Daddy is 1 year old.  Anna said that it makes daddy happy when she does nice things.  Evie had a general theme to her answers - she was quite concerned about Dan going on his trip - because most of her answer were about that.  Eileen said that Grandpa knows a lot because he knows how to swim.  Their answers were pretty amusing.  We will miss him, but at least we have Grandma to help out and a pool to entertain while he's gone.

Texas Here We Come

Ummm - so I lost a week somewhere.... Last week - the kids were off school and so we went up to the cabin for a few days and got to spend time with Frank and Tina and Grandpa and Aunt Joan.  The kids loved playing up there.  They had lots of fun with cousins and Great Grandpa.

Grandpa took us up Mosquito Pass in the truck.  The girls really enjoyed climbing "boulders" and going over the bumpy road.  The weather was beautiful, if a little windy, and the kids would have been great if they had remembered sweaters - I finally went to a small thrift store in Fairplay and found some cheap sweaters for them.

Grandpa brought up a bunch of pictures from when he was young and when my mom was young.  It was a lot of fun looking through them and seeing pictures of relatives that i know and knew and seeing them when they were my age.  My grandparents were good looking people!!  And it's fun to see them as a young married couple.

After the cabin, we went down for my choir stuff and to get ready for Texas.  The older 4 kids spent a couple days with Aunt Tina to help me get stuff ready (it's amazing how much more I can get done with just one kid), then on Friday and Saturday I had my choir concerts.  The kids came with Frank and Tina to the Saturday concert - this is the first time they have been to one of my concerts - I think they enjoyed it - the whole concert was aimed at kids and was full of fun stuff.

On Monday we headed down to Texas, we made good time and were able to make the trip in one day.  The trip was mostly painless - and the kids were really good.  Tuesday we slept in a bit and then spent some time playing in the pool.  The kids had a blast.

James got to try his first solid meal - with both mommy and grandma putting food in his mouth and restraining him he really did well - he even kept most of it down!  

Sandi and Taz came over and played in the pool with us - Taz is at that rough age where he is so excited to be in the pool - and too wiggly to restrain, but is totally fearless - so before long, Sandi decided it was nap time for him. The kids loved having him around (as long as they kept their hair away from his chubby little fists!) and loved playing with Sandi in the pool  

On Friday night my dad got back and on Saturday morning Dan got in.  So we spent the afternoon in the pool again.  My dad is giving swim lessons to the kids - Eileen and Anna are really excited and are learning fast.  Aaron is a bit cautious but enjoys the time.  Evie is really a bit young to do more than try to stick her face in the water - but she scared us all by trying to copy her big sisters!  Thankfully she did nothing worse than scare us and scare herself - we caught her quickly!  Now we are looking forward to some time together and some time with Dan - the kids have really missed him (well, for that matter, so have I!!!!) and they are so glad to have him back!

School's Out For Summer!!

This has been a crazy week. Dan is out of town again and will be gone until he meets us in Texas.  We are missing him, but getting by.

Tuesday was total insanity - we started out the day by taking Eileen to school and keeping Anna home because she had thrown up during the night.  Then we went to my rehearsal for a church musical number.  After that we went to the park to play and eat lunch, then we had to go early to the school for Eileen's awards ceremony.  Then we left from there to go to piano lessons for the girls.  On the way home, Eileen threw up... all over herself and the car.... So we stopped at a gas station to try and clean up as best as I could and drive home with the windows open.  Then we rushed home and sent in Eileen to get dressed and rushed off for Anna's Kindergarten Graduation.  She was so funny to watch - I couldn't get her to smile for anything!

The kids did some very cute song and dancing - Anna also got an attendance award and her cute little "diploma"  It was so funny - about half way through Anna's class's little song, someone walked into the Gym with a bunch of balloons, and Anna got TOTALLY distracted - she stopped singing and dancing entirely and stared at the balloons.  Then we all got a bit of the junk food refreshments after the ceremony and headed home for dinner... 

 

Wednesday was the last day of school and to celebrate, the kids and I got some frozen yogurt and ran into some of Anna's classmates there. 

 
I had my CMC rehearsal that night - Tina came over to watch the kids and I was even able to leave James with her - and he slept well for her!  It was so nice!!  James also had his 4 month check up Wednesday morning. He is over 15 lbs now (which explains why it's such a pain to carry him around in this carrier....)  He is a happy, sweet, healthy boy!  He has the sweetest little dimply smile! 

Thursday Becky and Zoe came over to play - and the kids had a blast together as usual - also it helped keep my sanity in check during the first official day of summer vacation! 

Saturday, we went up to the Bessendorfer's house to have lunch and play. We had a yummy lunch and the kids had a blast running around, playing and getting wet.  They have a couple of scooters (the Razors) and I was amazed to see Evie scooting around on the two wheelers like she owned the place.  It was funny when around 5 I told the kids that it was time to go home - Eileen said "But I thought we were going to stay until it was dinner time" I told her - It is dinner time!!  She was just amazed at how fast the time had passed. 

All of my kids are very smart - I have know this for a long time - but it's fun to get fresh proof of it.  Anna made this on the computer - it's a picture of me in bunny slippers.  She made it in an old ghetto scrapbooking program.  She figured it out all on her own and had me print it for her.  My children aren't just smart - they are geniuses!!!!  (Oh and really sweet too!)  

Now on to the next great adventure! 

Crazy Weeks

It's been a crazy couple of weeks.  My mom spent last week here to help out while Dan was out of town.  Tuesday after piano lessons, we went down to Frank and Tina's to have dinner with them.  Wednesday was choir for me as usual, and Thursday, we met Grandpa and Aunt Joan for lunch.  The kids loved having Grandma here.  They attached to her right away and had her reading stacks of books to them. We rode to the park and Anna proved that she could ride all the way there on the sidewalk.  So when Dan got home on Saturday, she proved it to him and they went and got her new bike and helmet.  She is so excited about it! 

It was so nice to have my mom's help - not only does she do so much to make my life easier, but she provides another adult to talk to and let off steam with.   We were sad to see her leave on Saturday morning - but at least we will get to see her again soon! 

Last Sunday was a wonderful Mother's Day!  My sweet hubby SPOILT me rotten!!!  I woke up to a wonderful breakfast that the kids helped cook and a pile of presents.  I had adorable cards from each of the kids along with some very sweet stuff that the older girls made for me at school.  And to top it all off - Dan got me a new laptop!!!  I am rather excited - my poor old computer (going on 7 years old now) has been trying to die for some time and I am quite excited for a new computer that I can travel with too! 

 

So this is of course Anna showing off her new bike - she is so proud of herself and what she has accomplished and she is so cute riding her bike all over the place!   And speaking of cute - this little guy is already drawing all the attention with his adorable smile!  Pictures just don't seem to do it justice though - as adorable as this pictures is, he's even cuter in person!! 

 

After church on Sunday, we headed up to the cabin - just for one night - but on Monday, Dan helped out with clearing a huge tree that had fallen, and we all enjoyed beautiful weather and the chance to play together and enjoy some nature.  And some s'mores of course.... :P   We had to get back that evening for school, but it's nice to get away for a bit. 

 

This last week has just been insane!!!  Our Stake has been putting together a huge musical fireside.  We have had rehearsals this week and the Firesides were on Saturday and Sunday. 

My dad was in town for business this week also - so we got to have fun playing with him.  He loves building and playing with the Lego's with Aaron - they had a lot of fun building a marble chute together.  Plus he came to my Chorale rehearsal on Wednesday evening.  Plus he had all day Friday to play with us and help me get ready for Dan's birthday on Saturday, namely coming with me to help pick out his present.  My parents chipped in and we got him a recliner for his birthday.  :)  Then of course, I ditched him with the kids for the fireside.... Sigh - it's a good thing I have such a supportive loving husband.  My dad was also kind enough to sit with our 5 sleeping kids Friday night so Dan and I could go out to see the Avengers together - almost the only time we have had to be together just the two of us all week - so it was a much appreciated break. 

My sister-in-law - Candace and her oldest daughter Bianca were in town to see Wicked and stopped by to hang out with us for a bit.  I can't believe how grown up and beautiful Bianca is getting - I still remember her as an adorable little girl from when Dan and I were dating, it's hard to believe that she is now a young woman and Candace has raised her right!  I'm so grateful for the amazing mothers in my life from whom I learn so much - my sister, my mother, my grandmothers, my great-aunt, my aunts, my sister-in-laws my mother in law, my cousins and of course my friends - I am soo blessed! 

When I think of the amazing people I am surrounded by in my life - I KNOW that I am truly a blessed woman. 

Sunday was even crazier - Dan left for San Diego this morning.  So between getting the kids ready and off to church, singing with the choir during church, teaching a lesson during Relief Society and the fireside (and trying to figure out how and when to feed James during all this) we ended this day a bit tired.  I am truly grateful however for the wonderful sweet sister who held James for me when he got cranky during my lesson and got him to sleep, the sweet brother in our ward who passed me a note during Sacrament meeting telling me how well behaved and well groomed my kids were, and the wonderful young women who watched my kids during the fireside so I could sing and be uplifted.  We got home and got the kids to bed and I finally got to eat dinner around 10.... well hopefully the kids will be SO tired that they will sleep in tomorrow, since there is no school.... Now why there is no school on Monday, when school gets out on Wednesday?... I don't know....

Adventures in Mommy-hood

We have had a fun and busy week this week.  Dan came back late on Monday and we began to put the house back in order.  The kid loved having him back and we had lots of fun together.  With the weather being beautiful (and the kids constantly complaining about being hot) we grabbed a sprinkler (since our lawn doesn't have a sprinkler system yet) and let the kids spend their evening running in the sprinklers and cooling off.  We spent Friday evening picnicking at the church and letting the kids ride their bikes around the parking lot, playing bocce ball and frisbee. We enjoyed the time together (I especially enjoyed beating Dan at bocce ball... :P)

Evie and Aaron have been very amusing - they have been playing with baby dolls and copying mommy in caring for their babies the way I care for James - so they have spent most of the week feeding, changing and putting their babies to sleep.  

 

 

We enjoyed spending time playing with friends.  We went to the park on Thursday and enjoyed the sunshine and a picnic lunch and playing with the Young's.  We went and visited my friend Daisy on Saturday who sent us home with some toys for James - the older kids claimed a few of them for themselves, and then loaded the rest onto James. 

 

I spent the week with torn feelings, I was sad knowing that Dan would be leaving on Saturday for another week long trip, but excited for my mom to come out and visit. My mom arrived Sunday morning to help out around the house while Dan is gone and has already been instrumental in preserving my sanity.  :) 

I had fun on Saturday morning - The girls pants have been growing more and more holey (that's hole-y not holy) They hardly have any jeans that have survived the school year.  And since they are now needing shorts to keep cool instead of pants - I have started creating shorts for them out of their pants.  I had fun using the extra pant leg pieces to make them some fun matching purses and headbands too.  Now I just gotta convince them to not put holes in their pants intentionally just to get more fun stuff.....  :)

Double Trouble!

Aaron and Evie started off the week much the same way they ended the last one.  Since I had told them that they couldn't do this to their clothes or the toys, they did it to the books.....  I couldn't even reach the book shelf to put the books back on - I had to start at the perimeter and stack the books up and work my way in!

 

The kids all got together after Dan left and thought up ways that they could be helpful while daddy was out of town, then drew pictures of those things and Eileen helped them write them down.  This is Eileen's - it says "Dear Mom  I will hold James.  I will get James Drest evre moing.  I will chagh James is Dipers"  My kids are so sweet!!!!  Anna's said that she would keep her room clean and Evie said "Princess"  Not sure if that meant her princess panties or that she would be a princess....

Eileen loves to hold James and is so helpful with him while I try and get dinner ready.  She will hold him and read to him and he just loves it.  It's so cute to watch her reading to her little brother.  

 

The weather this week has been mostly beautiful - though we had a couple stormy nights - the days have been sunny and warm.  I took the kids to the park and met with some ladies from our old ward.  The kids had a blast and I really enjoyed getting out and just chatting with friends.  We took a picnic lunch and had a great time! 

This afternoon, after church we went to a park to celebrate my Great Aunt Joan's birthday.  The kids had fun playing with cousins and eating cupcakes.  Plus they always love seeing their aunts and uncles and Grandpa Francone and Great Aunt Joan.  It was a nice little get together and even James behaved himself well - smiling and charming all the ladies there.   The kids loved playing with Grandpa Francone!

While there Anna discovered jumping off the swings (well she may have learned this at school, but this is the first time I've seen her do it.)  I managed to catch this fun in-air shot (while nervously hoping she didn't get hurt!!) 

We are eagerly looking forward to Dan getting home tomorrow - though since he is flying in from Spain, he is probably going to be seriously jet lagged and not much fun.  :)  We all miss him a lot when he is gone!!!

Let the Madness Begin

We've had a rather crazy week!  This handsome boy has been sleeping really well and I'm very much hoping that his sweet temper and his sleeping well will make the next few months bearable - he has been sleeping very well and when he's awake (and not tired) he is just full of these adorable smiles!!!  He has the cutest dimples when he smiles, but for some reason I have had a hard time catching his dimples on the camera - sadly enough, this slightly blurry picture was the best example of his dimple - but if he doesn't smile well for the camera - he bestows these charming smiles on me all the time!  He has also started to get on a bit of a schedule (as much as the craziness of of life with 4 older siblings can allow) which has been nice!

 

We have had the husband of Dan's cousin visiting with us for the past week.  A very nice man - the kids just loved him!  Every night when they knew that Dan would be coming home from work with him they would start asking if he was coming.  Evie asked every night "Where's Mari-ah"  (His name is Marion) and she was so sweet.  They continued to ask about him and miss him until Dan left today and those questions were replaced by the question "where's Daddy?" which has been asked at least 10 times today.  

Thursday was nearly the undoing of Mommy.  I woke up that morning and found that Aaron and Evie had done this to their room.....  If that weren't bad enough, after making them clean it up (and threatening them with punishments should they ever do it again) I went downstairs to find something and discovered that they had done the same thing to their sisters room and the play room.  I was beside myself - I couldn't figure out if I was more angry or more upset.  I tried to make them clean their sisters room and was so upset that I couldn't do it.  I shut them up in their room, curled up on the couch and after venting to Dan, he came home and let me run my errands with out kids that I could scarcely look at with out getting upset all over again.  They completed their day of destruction by creating mud pies and then smearing them all over every toy and chair in the back yard.  Dan and I found ourselves hosing them all down, feeding the kids and putting Aaron and Evie to bed early. 

  

Friday, we went to the library after school with the kids.  It was so cute to watch them pick out their books (one each so we don't lose them all again...) and then sit down in the kids sized chair and read.  They all had fun picking out a book and then chatting with the librarian while I picked out a couple books too.  

That evening Dan and I had a date.  We got one of the Johnson twins to baby sit.  The girls LOVE them and the kids were all VERY excited to have Emma come baby sit for them - so excited that when I returned with her, after picking her up, the kids were all excitedly waiting around the door.  Dan took me to Red Lobster and surprised me when we got there by meeting up with Newell and Becky!  The boys had decided to surprise us!  We had a very fun evening together and enjoyed talking about and planning our anniversary cruise!

Saturday we had a friend of Dan's from work come over with his family for dinner and fun.  We made some home made ice cream and chicken salad sandwiches - it was a wonderful light, spring dinner.  Then Dan blew up a bunch of balloons, and made balloon swords for them and let the kids beat each other up with balloons.  We turned on a movie to distract the kids for us while the adults played Settlers of Catan.  It's been awhile since Dan and I have been able to play and we had a great time.  I was soundly beaten despite having started with great spots, but I seem unable to win that game anymore - maybe I'm just too nice.... that must be it. 

Dan left early this morning for Barcelona, Spain.  Church went well - The older girls sat with the Johnson's most of the time while I spent much of Sacrament meeting in the mothers lounge feeding James with Aaron and Evie bouncing off the walls with me.  We all spent the afternoon playing Skip-Bo together and then went for a walk before having cereal for dinner. I told the kids that if they got things done in time enough, that I would read a couple chapters of a book to them.  The kids got ready for bed, we read scriptures and said prayers, then I sat down with them and we read a couple chapters of one of my mom's old Nancy Drew books.  I think Eileen is enjoying it the most, though the others mostly listened :)  It was fun reading it with her and being able to answer questions she had about words and ideas that she didn't understand. The chapters were numbered with Roman Numerals, and the girls and I had a fun little discussions about how they work - Anna really picked it up right away.

Now we just need to survive the next week.....

Good Times, Good Times....

This has been a fairly normal week. Busy but normal. We had choir, piano lessons, preschool, school, work and play. The weather has been mostly nice, but here and there it has been a bit windy and a bit drizzly - we even had a day with tornado warnings going off all over the place - but we never saw anything of it.

I usually feed the kids lunch, then send them to the backyard or downstairs to play so I can eat in peace and quiet. On Wednesday, while I was eating lunch, Aaron and Evie decided that the nasty dirty water in their old plastic pool in the back yard was a good place to go swimming. After I finished lunch, I found them running around the back yard naked - totally naked. I told them to go put their clothes on and followed them and found this - them trying to put on totally soaking wet clothes - I changed my mind and sent them inside for dry clothes....


Saturday we spent most of the day cleaning up for a guest. Dan's cousin's husband is going to be working with Dan and so their family will be moving out here soon. He came out this week to check out the job and look at houses. It's been fun having him here so far and he will be here all next week too. The kids really like him and he's great with them. The spent half of Sacrament meeting climbing on him and making him draw pictures for them.

James has decided to start sleeping through the night. He will go to sleep around 9 and sleep until 7 or 8 the next morning. It has been wonderful and I really hope this continues through Dan's traveling - it would make my life much easier!

Evie has been wanting to hold and carry James - she saw Eileen doing it and thinks she can too - the only problem is that James is half her size and much more floppy than she thinks. She was trying to pick him up to bring him over to me earlier today and couldn't budge him - Dan who was going to get him helped her and they ended up carrying him to me like this.....


Eileen has been reading a lot of Magic Tree House books. She recently read one about the civil war and how the main characters met one of their ancestors who was in the civil war. She asked Dan if she had any ancestors who had fought in the civil war, so Dan called his mom who told her a bit about one, then set a letter to Eileen with some copies of letters he wrote and his journal along with a pedigree chart so she could see how she was related to him. She has been fascinated by this - she has had a hard time reading the old writing, but she loves looking at them and at the pedigree chart. It is so fun to watch her learn and get excited about history and about her genealogy.

Newell and Becky and family came over for dinner tonight. It was so much fun to have them over. The kids love playing with them and we enjoy their company. It was a fun evening of good food and better company!

Well one more week - then I will be losing my husband for the better part of the next 3 months... sigh... well at least we have some fun things planned too - so hopefully I won't go totally nuts.... :)

Happy Easter

This week has been nice and normal. Not too much stress, not too much going on. The weather has been beautiful so we have been spending as much time as we can out of doors. We have been riding bikes, and playing in the back yard.

Aaron and Evie are doing well with potty training - I actually think it's safe to say that I have only 1 kid in diapers now!!! LOL - that's been a rare thing over the last 7 years. And new baby diapers aren't nearly as bad as 2 and 4 year old diapers are.....

James had his 2 month check up this week - he weighed in at 12 lb 11 oz - which is big for our kids - he was in the 75th percentile! He is generally a healthy and happy baby and we are so glad he is part of our family!!!

We went over to Frank and Tina's for Easter dinner - we had a yummy dinner together with Frank and Tina, Stuart and Rebecca and Grandpa (and of course all the kids that go with them) We all had a blast and I was very proud of the cupcakes that I made.


On this special holiday, I am so thankful for my Savior and what he has done for me. I am grateful that he has provided a way to be with these amazing people that I call family for eternity. I can't even fathom the incredible thing that Christ did for me, but I am grateful for it daily and hope that I can continue to become more like him - more loving, more patient, more giving and more selfless.