What's Up, Doc?

Here are a few pics to update the world on what we've been up to lately...

Spencer recently had his Kindergarten Zoo trip.  Tyler and I went along and had a lot of fun.  Tyler was unsure (or maybe bored) about the day, so he was pretty chill (a nice change).  Spencer was all over da place.  I hardly got any photos of him because he was moving so quickly, at least he had fun.

Kaylee begged me to let her play volleyball.  She often begs me to let her participate in activities like volleyball, softball, or dance.  It's probably because there aren't very many girls her age that live near us and she just wants to have fun, like most girls do.  She mostly wants to be a part of the social aspect.  She was WAY more excited about the cheers they made up than actually playing volleyball.  This was a very time consuming activity as well, their games were most often in North or South Fremont which is like between an hour and two hours away...OY.  I don't know if we will do this one again, but she did have a lot of fun and she's super cute!

 Brad has been busy playing soccer and baseball.  I told him last year that he had to choose between the two because it was too much for me to handle, but he could not decide this year so I caved and let him do both again.  However, I think he has learned a good lesson on his own this year.  By the end of the season he was so sick of practices and games being on top of each other, I am glad that he figured it out on his own without me having to be insistent.

 His soccer team has played up the last few seasons, meaning they are playing in a higher age group, so my 10 year old is playing against 11 and 12 year olds.  So, the above picture is one I took just to show how much bigger the other kids are than his team.  Granted, Brad is one of the littler players and this guy with him is one of the bigger players on the other team, but there is a huge difference.  Brad is blessed with a tremendous amount of speed, he is a fast little bugger.  I LOVE watching him play!!!!

Below is Spencer and Tyler staying warm and playing on Collin's iphone because, according to Spencer, "you just can't see anything in this light."  That light, my child, is called "sunshine" and it doesn't come out to often in these parts, it is not to be feared but enjoyed and soaked up as much as possible before it slips away behind gloomy clouds of despair.  Can you tell I am SICK of the weather!

This is a really cute picture of my foot, actually both my feet look the same way.  I recently had a procedure called a partial fasciotomy done on both my feet because I have been struggling with plantar fasciitis for the past year.  I have been doing okay, but it is dang near impossible to stay off your feet for 6 weeks when you are a mom (especially a mom to a very needy 2 year old).  I really hope it worked, but I have a feeling it will take a while before I feel 100%.  In fact, I have been feeling down low lately.  It is so hard to feel productive when I have to sit around all the time, and I don't have a ton of help.  My husband is so busy and my kids, I think, don't comprehend how things should be done, they don't care if the house is a mess.  I don't want to sound like a baby, but it has been a really hard thing for me, in all reality, I haven't felt really good for a long time.  Even before I had the surgery my feet hurt almost constantly.  I haven't exercised consistently for over a year now and I feel kinda crappy about myself. 

Things will get better, I have to believe that.

Just Chillin'

The 3D glasses from the theater (with lenses popped out) have been quite the accessory at our house lately. Okay, so really just with Spencer, I like to call him Joe Jonas whenever he's wearing them cause that's what he reminds me of. If, in the future, Spencer ever needs glasses I am going to get him black horned-rim ones because I can't picture him in anything else.

So, the glasses have had me thinking about the funny things my kids do. I used to be so good at writing things down in my journal or on the blog, but I have become lazy (gladly accepting advice to conquer this lovely habit). My friend Julie is so good at documenting the funny things her kids say, so I am going to follow her lead and take a stab at it, here it goes:

While in the car driving through Jackson Hole, Collin missed a turn and said, "Oh, I'm gonna have to flip a B."

Brad responds, "I thought it was called a U-turn not a B-turn?"

Kaylee got a beta fish, Stanley, about a year ago that has shockingly ended up living in the kitchen windowsill. I reminded her one day to feed him and she responded, "Mom, I've decided that I am not a very good fish owner so I'm just gonna let him die."

Now, don't go judging Spencer by this next comment because I will frequently say to my kids something like, "Go unload the dishwasher or I'm gonna pinch your nose." It is all in jest, but I should probably stop because recently Collin ate the last of the bacon one morning and Spencer was NOT happy that it was all gone. So, as Collin is leaving to work that day Spencer said, "Dad, you better come home with some bacon or I am going to punch you in the face!" What can I say, the kid loves bacon.

Tyler is just so cute, he is at the cutest age for saying funny things. We recently potty-trained him and when he is done he will look at me and proclaim, "It worked!!!" And if he needs to go number 2 he says, "Mom, I gotta go poop it out."

He has a little bit of a lisp too, which I just want to bottle up and keep so I will remember it 50 years from now.

He says "yerget" for yogurt, he calls his teddy bear "oobear", and he calls his sippy his "hummy". He is just really cute, I love him.

Count on me like 1,2,3

Today I am grateful that Bruno Mars helped my kids get their chores done without any complaints. Isn't it amazing how much easier it is to get things done if you just sing a song! Thanks Bruno!!!!

When was St. Patrick's Day again????

Okay, I know that St. Patrick's Day was nearly a week ago, but I have had this post in my brain ever since then and I need to get it out so I can...well...be done with it.

Kaylee has always been fascinated by the idea of catching a leprechaun so she can be granted a wish and get a free pot of gold. She comes up with all kinds of things that she would wish for...it changes almost every day. Spencer, on the other hand, has never said much about what he would wish for except on the actual Pat's day this year; he, without hesitation, told me that if he caught a leprechaun he would wish for a nicer mom.

This came out of nowhere, I wasn't being "mean" at the time, in fact, we had had a pretty chill morning, I was perplexed, I didn't say anything, I probably gave him one of my signature looks and ignored him. Then, later that day I was thinking about what I would wish for if I caught a leprechaun and I decided that I would wish for a pantry (I know, that is random). Sometimes I think my house is shrinking and there are fewer and fewer places to put stuff. This is my makeshift pantry:



The sweet, old lady that lived here before us had a washer and dryer there cause she couldn't go down the stairs.
I would LOVE for it to be large and hidden and maybe look like this:
Isn't that dreamy!
My sister in law even has a pantry with sensor lights so you don't even have to turn lights on or off...ahh!

So, as I am contemplating how much better my life would be if I had a pantry, I remembered an article I read recently about being content. I have a VERY hard time with this concept in my life. I know it is good to be content and I know I have tremendous blessings, but, I somehow consistently slip back into wishing for things I don't have.

I have always done this. I remember wishing so hard as a pre-teen that we could just move away to a new town, to a new house where everything would be perfect. We just finished the bathroom in our basement and I immediately started to pine for a new upstairs bathroom. I am often discouraged about how my body looks. I wish I could be a better mom, I wish I were a better housekeeper, I wish...I wish...


It breaks my heart to think that I am making my Father feel the same way I feel when Spencer says he wishes for a nicer parent, and hopefully He knows that I just don't always get it, but will more and more as I grow. It's tough knowing that you aren't always the parent that they want because you are trying to be the parent that they need. So, my focus this year is to be more grateful and I might just post about various things I am thankful for (or I might not, I am not exactly consistent at this stuff). I am grateful that I have such a great family, even though they don't always feel the same way.

I really am LUCKY!!!!

Who needs eyebrows?

I have been hesitating to blog about this because I am a little worried that if Kaylee ever reads it she might feel badly, but I just can't not document it...it's too funny.

On Valentine's Day, Kaylee came home and felt embarrassed because she took a chance and let a boy she likes know that she likes him and he told the whole class. She did what any girl would do in the same situation...she cut off her eyebrows! She thought he might like her better without eyebrows and she was so proud of herself for getting those babies cut off without me catching her. When I finally noticed what she did, I could not stop laughing, which, of course, fed her ego until she realized that I wasn't laughing with her (I am a horrible mom). I took pictures too, which also fed her ego until she realized that I took pictures so that I could send them to all our family and wish them a Happy Valentines Day (I am a really horrible mom). Worst of all, the next school day the boy she likes told her that he likes her too, so I'm worried that this whole experience has taught her that if she just changes who she is then the boys will like her, and her mom will just be a jerk and make fun of her.

Her eyebrows have started to fill in again and I offered to take her to get her eyebrows waxed next time she wants to get rid of them...that will teach her!

Happy Valentines Day!!!

Love is all you need!!!!

Our first appendectomy

One appendics down...5 more to go. Since I have taken a substantial break from blogging I thought I should jump right back in by thanking all of our family and friends for being so AWESOME during Kaylee's surgery and by letting everyone know that she is doing amazingly well. I know an appendectomy isn't the most serious thing in the world, but it sure threw us for a loop. If there is anything I learned it's that you should shower first thing in the morning because you never know if your daughter is going to have an emergency surgery later that day. I am so grateful that I followed my instinct to take her in as well, there is a pretty good story to go along with why I took her in if anyone thinks, or cares, to ask me sometime (it's a little bit personal...and definitely a tender mercy). So we went in at about 11 on Monday morning and didn't go home until Tuesday night. She was totally spoiled by so many people and she loved it (the getting presents part, not so much the getting cut open part)!!! The greatest part for me was at about midnight when I was helping her get cleaned up and she looked at me and said, "Thanks for helping me so much, mom. I love you." It's those rare, sincere comments that make it all (and I mean ALL, like since the day she was born) worth while, I almost started to bawl the moment she said it. The whole experience helped me to reprioritize and just be thankful for times of good health and togetherness. I love this little girl of mine and she may never really know how much I love her.

as soon as they rolled her into the operating room she commented in her not-quite-under-anesthesia voice, "Oh, this doesn't look good!"

She had lots of visitors that kept her spirits up


It's challenging to keep a 2 year old entertained in a hospitol

I don't need you anymore...sorry.

So here's the funny story about Spencer's first day of school:

Spencer gets picked up for school by the bus right in front of our house (dreamy) and then after school the bus takes him to the elementary school where the older kids go to school so he can walk home with them. Well, naturally, I wanted to be there the first day he rode the bus so we could figure out the little details, like where the kids will pick him up, and I wanted to hear all about his exciting first day. I had this vision in my head about him running off the bus and into my arms, giving me a big hug and saying, "I had the best day ever!" and then we would all walk home together and I would hear all the details of his awesome day. BUT, here is how it really went down:

I see that Spencer is about to get off the bus and I drop to my knees with my arms outstretched ready for a big hug, he steps off the bus and looks at me perplexed and says, "What are you doing here?!" I said, "Hey, give me hug, how was your day?" He just said it was good and walked away from me, leaving me there on my knees in front of like 10 other moms. I was crushed and a little embarrassed. But, to pour salt on my wound, while we were walking home together he says, "Hey mom, could you please not come get me again?" Yeh, no problem Spencer, uh, let me just wipe this tear from my eye.

Another Year of the First Day of School

Did this summer fly by or what...I am still (two weeks later) in shock that school is already going...WHAT!!!!

Brad started 4th grade this year, which just makes me feel old. I mean, I vividly remember being in 4th grade. My teacher was Mrs. Arbon and she had a bent pointer finger. Funny the things we remember, I always thought she had a bit of a witchy essence about her, even though she was nice, it must have been that bent finger. I digress...

Kaylee started 3rd grade and I CANNOT believe how much she grew up this summer. She is not a little girl anymore, which makes me a little sad. She wants to do her own hair and she informed me recently that her bedroom is "kinda too little girlish." At least now I have a new project, but I know I need to let her be very involved so she likes it. Maybe it's because she is my only girl but I am sort of in mourning that there will be no more magical little girlness hangin around.

Yes, she really is that much taller than him, and he doesn't like it one bit!!

Spencer's first day of Kindergarten

He has been beyond excited to start Kindergarten this year. It didn't help that the older kids started a week before he did, every day he would ask if it was his turn yet.

So the pictures are a funny story:

We were outside waiting for the bus easily 30 minutes before it was suppose to arrive. Once we were outside, we took the typical "first day of school photo" then after about 10 minutes he got BORED, so I channeled my inner Austen Powers and started shooting silly pictures of him. Needless to say, he got into it and had himself a good ole time. He makes me laugh!!!!

...Now it's just me and Ty the Terrible for 3 whole hours a day. I love this little PB&J face, we're going to have a great time!!!

That's better

Okay I like my blog better now but I am still working on it. Just so you know...because I am sure you have all been as bugged about it as me - JK!

annoyed

I am so annoyed with blogger!!! My posts rarely look the way I want them too. UGH!! I may have to do a 10 hour project and change everything so my blog will look better.

Milestones...

Last night was a rough one, but I need to go back a little to help explain why...

...at different times in the past 3 months Spencer and Tyler have respectively reached certain milestones. Spencer had been working for a long time to stay dry at night and has finally graduated out of night time pull ups, yay!!! Tyler moved out of his crib into a big boy bed and also gave up his binky (he was chewing holes in them). It has been an especially difficult transition for Ty, he just seems to enjoy making things harder than they have to be. So, back to last night...

...10:15 pm - Tyler finally goes to sleep after an hour of reading stories, refilling the sippy cup, finding the right music to play, locking him in his room, and finally me laying down in his room with him to get him to stay in his bed.

1:45 am - Ty wakes up screaming, I run in to calm him down before he wakes up Spencer. I refill his sippy cup and change his diaper. Spencer suddenly starts talking in his sleep about how he can't hold it any longer. I wake him up and tell him to go potty, only to realize that he already has. I clean him up and put him in my bed with Collin and I. By the time I go back to bed it is about 2:30.

3:45 am - I hear this awful, finger-nails-down-the-chalkboard sound and CANNOT figure out what it is...five minutes later, again. This time Collin wakes up too, and I realize that Spencer is grinding his teeth! Oy, that is a horrible, horrible sound! I wake him up and help him get more comfortable...it only continues for the next 30 minutes (at least now I know why he has been complaining about his teeth hurting and having a headache - it seems so obvious now).

4:30 - Ty wakes up again, I refill the sippy, but he refuses to sleep in his own bed and keeps running into my room and climbing in mine. Plus, he is not at all happy to see that Spencer is already there...drama, drama, drama. I put him in my spot. Finally he is sleeping again. I move out to the cozy chair to try for some more sleep. It is a cozy chair, but unfortunately for me, it's no bed. I try for the next 30 minutes to sleep, but alas, it's not happening.

So, here is the good news...I made it to the gym this morning, at 5:30. That hasn't happened in a long time. I am, however, so very tired today. It's like having a newborn, and maybe that is why this is all happening - to help me realize that I like getting sleep at night and that I have my hands overflowing just keeping up with the kids I do have...I don't think we'll be adding any more!

I am not sure what to do with Ty-guy. He is HIGH maintenance, and even though Kaylee was a hard toddler as well, I don't remember feeling so hopelessly at a loss at what to do (maybe that's just it - I don't remember). I sort of feel like I need to get on the Super Nanny show, although when my mom said something about that a while ago it made me cry. Being a mom is hard. I'm not really looking for sympathy, I know every mom has difficult nights and/or days. Maybe I just needed to get this out so that in the future when my kids are parents and I feel a prompting to go pick up my grandkids and take them to the park, I'll do it because I'll remember what it's like to be so depended on and therefore, so exhausted.

Peace Out!!!!

Feeling discouraged

I am more than a little miffed about the overturning of Prop 8 in California. At first I was sad that a judge would be so bold as to decide against what the people voted for. Why even vote if the courts are going to decide what is best for our country?

And then I learned that the judge is a homosexual man! What the...he never, ever should have taken on a case that was so personal to him. There is no way that he could have been unbiased in his decision making. I am so angry, I feel like we have a government that has no interest in what the people want. Ugh, I really need to calm down, I'm going for a walk...

Makenli Jo

Okay, so I have been on hiatus from blogging for a while...okay a long time. I just lost the drive.

Anyway, my baby sister had a baby! What?! I know...I am getting old.

I took some pictures for her and my other sister has been bugging me to post them so she can see them, so here they are. NOTE: I am NOT a professional so please be gentle in your comments or thoughts.

Enjoy!!!

I'm Bored!!!!!

Yesterday at church while I was conducting in Relief Society, Spencer came walking in the door to the R.S. room and asks for me. I am standing at the front of the room and I look over at him and ask him to give me one minute. He keeps saying, "mom" and comes over to the front of the room with me. I say, "Okay, bud, stand right here next to me while I finish making announcements." But, before I can actually get that all out he exclaims, "I'm BORED!!!!" in front of the whole room.

Apparantly, he just got up and walked out of his primary class so he could let me know how he felt at the moment. Too bad they don't have religious Wii games that the kids could play during church, then they would never get bored. Hey, I think I am on to something!!!!

Catch up

Kaylee lost a tooth:

This is exciting for her because it is the first tooth that she actually pulled out. Her two bottom teeth were pulled out by the dentist because her permanent teeth were growing in behind her baby teeth. She was very, very excited. Cousins:

Everyday things are so much more exciting when you are playing with your cousins. Who knew a DS could entertain 4 boys all at the same time?

Brad's Birthday:
Brad turned 9 in December. He had a fun day going to the movies with his friends and then, of course, cake and presents later that night. Good times!!!

Christmas:

I didn't take many pictures because I get caught up in the moment, but here are a few fun ones from Christmas Eve:

Day of the "wish I were dead"

This was the best I could do for Tyler, he is a mover!

Brad wanted to be Donkey from Shrek, not too bad, eh!

Just kidding...I didn't wish I was dead, but it was one of the harder days I have had in a long time. In fact, I would say that it was a pretty horrible day...glad it's over.

Friday we did the school thing, the kids had fun. Saturday we did the drive mom crazy thing. For example, Bradley lost his donkey ears, Kaylee fought with me constantly about the silly little details of her costume, Tyler followed me around whining ALL day, Spencer was pretty good except that he wouldn't do anything I asked, he would just look at me and say, "No!"

GOOD TIMES!!!!!

I need to find a better way to experience the JOY!! Any tips would be great! Now that it's November I will try to focus on gratitude and hopefully have some better days.