Heidi's post

We've had a lot to post about (and I took pictures) so I'm going to devote a different post for each of my kids. Heidi doesn't have many pictures since she is in school. She loves school like always. She has been a huge help around the house when she is home and she's even been allowed to pick up Blake and carry him around when I need the help. She is pretty proud of herself about that. We had her open house this week, and she had school pictures. She picked out her own outfit and it is fun to see who she wants to be. I felt bad for her today because she really wanted to hang out with Ben and I but we were both busy getting things cleaned up. She ended up practicing the piano all on her own. I need to make more time to just snuggle with my kids, including Heidi. She also made the following list of stuff to work on during the week (can you tell she is a little mini-me?)

It says:

Monday-find a good friend to play with

tuesday-piano practice 10 times

wednesday-be quiet at school

thursday-allways where ten-ishoos

friday-eat like a normal person

saturday-practice 3rd 100 words list

sunday-be reveret

She cracks me up!

PS-she is the worst eater and gets food all over her face so we always telling her to eat like a normal person.

Blake's Post

Blakers is now 6 months old. He can roll over very efficiently. Tonight I put him in the middle of the floor while I cut Ben's hair. He rolled to one side by the couch and then rolled all the way back to the back door. This is pretty good considering that he is pretty fat and only started rolling like last week. He is so fat that his BYU hat doesn't fit anymore. I tried to take a picture so you can see how it doesn't even get close to his ears anymore.

He is also getting a little happier with time. Now that he is more mobile he's been more pleasant. He still doesn't give smiles easily and I can rarely get him to laugh but he may just be like his dad and not a big talker. I wish he were more talkative because that is the mom's reward for dealing with all the hard stuff during the day but oh well. Maybe as he gets older. (quick note...the glasses are a present for Ben from Heidi for Ben's birthday. They thought the clown glasses and nose were just hilarious. I have some of Ben in them but I've been forbidden to post them!)

But I do have to admit that he is so good looking! Look at him all ready for church and looking cute! I always hoped I would have cute kids but I never dreamed they would be this stinking cute! He is so handsome.

Daisy's post

What is there to say about Daisy except that she USED to be cute. She is still very cute looking, and even cute in her talking, but her attitude is no longer cute. In fact she thinks she is SO cute that she can just walk away while we are talking to her and not be in trouble. She has been the most difficult child lately and is driving me crazy. Thanks to Daisy we have pen/crayon/pencil all over the walls/blinds/couches. Thanks to Daisy I have to fight off the impulse to spank. Thanks to Daisy I grit my teeth in anger about 5 times a day. She is really pushing our buttons!

If she would just obey things would be great! But every issue has become a fight with her. And she turns it all into a joke. She sleeps on the big bed with Heidi so she is able to get out and we often find her walking around in her blanket. It is so funny that they honestly believe we can't see them. She sneaks into the space between the couch and wall and tries to watch whatever movie Kaylee picked for the day.

If I had to pick one thing I wish she would obey on it would be the car though. I just want her to get in the car and climb into her seat. Instead she will get in, run to the back corner where you can't reach, I have to grab her leg and drag her back out, buckle her in and all the while she is screaming. I try to stop it all by just picking her up and putting her in but still she screams and fights and then there are the times when she just gets in while I'm loading Blake. It's the same fight when we get out of the car. She runs to the back or the front and presses on the buttons and switches. Man is she crazy right now.

Kaylee's Post

Kaylee is one of three kids her age at church and so there wasn't a chance for me to do a preschool with anyone like I had done with Heidi. Do big deal, right? Oh no! Kaylee remembered and has been asking about starting preschool for the last month. Luckily I have Micaela around. She is the nice mom that I should be but that I don't put the effort into being. She is doing a small preschool with friends and said that Kaylee could come when the preschool was being held at her house. So this is Kaylee all excited for her first day of preschool.

She had to have a water bottle and snack like Heidi takes to school. The other kids are well over a year younger than her so the material is easy-breezy for Kaylee but she loved going. She loved having something that was her thing. Loved learning about squares and even told me that she had new friends. I was invited to join but for some reason the thought of becoming involved and committed just sounds like one more stress added to my life. But I did start a 'Kaylee's Kitchen' class that we do on fridays. We invited one primary friend and then her preschool friends. Kaylee picks two recipes out this silly snacks cookbook and we make those snacks with the kids. Even though this is more work to do a weekly cooking class it doesn't seem like work. I love doing it for Kaylee and she loves having friends over for the day.

We made mini dizzy dogs (cocktail weenies wrapped in cresent roll strips and then baked) and chocolate banana pops. It was so fun so to cook with the kids. And Kaylee is really happy about it. Her behavior has really improved. She wants to help, cleans her room when asked, gets herself dressed without a problem, and has become buddies with Hadley. We have had a lot of fun with her lately and I'm excited for each cooking class.

Playing Restaurant

One night I didn't have dinner planned and the girls each wanted something different. For some reason my 'creative mom' kicked in and we played restaurant. I made a quick menu from stuff in the house that would be easy to make, took the girls' orders, and made a different dinner for each of them. They loved it! It was pretty fun for me to. They've asked to do it since but really wanted to play restaurant for Ben's birthday because it is just THAT fun. So on Friday we went to the dollar store, got decorations, went to Target and got quick-fix foods and surprised Ben with Restaurant when he got home from work!

Everyone put in their orders. They get to pick a main dish item, a side, a drink and a dessert. Ben is normally the waiter but got to take the night off since it was his birthday dinner. He ordered french toast, hash browns and chocolate milk. Heidi ordered Mac and Cheese, fresh fruit (an orange) and soda. Kaylee ordered a peanut butter and pickle sandwich (yum!), chips and soda. All Daisy cared about was the chocolate milk so she also got mac and cheese. It was a pretty fun dinner.

The girls loved my homemade menus and I love making food for my family.

The only problem with playing restaurant is that I end up using almost every dish I own to make each different order.

Blake in the jumper

Daisy is pretty funny in this video because she repeats every single thing I say. Cute kids.

Finally something he likes!

Blake is almost 6 months, BARELY rolls over yet is very frustrated lying on the ground. But it is impossible for me to sit there all day and hold him sitting up. His bumbo works but he can't reach anything and then looks so fat hunched over with his fat legs sticking out. Then I remember that people use johnny jump ups! Heidi and Kaylee didn't ever like it so we got rid of ours. Luckily our friend is letting us borrow hers for a bit. Turns out he really enjoyed it! He could stand up, jump and even had toys hanging down to play with.

Daisy also thinks it is a great toy and won't leave Blake alone while he's in it.

This week was another busy one but today was the worst. Sundays are just hard for some reason and I think I was getting a little emotional about life as well. I was about to crack. I felt like Blake...a basket case!

You can see that he was licking the basket the whole time. It kept him quiet for a while until Daisy started to bang the basket looking for Blake. (That girl is too attached to him) I really am thankful for my kids. They drove me crazy today but they are fun. Daisy keeps sneaking out of bed with a blanket over her head thinking she is getting away with it. Kaylee is becoming more and more talkative but the problem is that she won't stop and I have to listen to a lengthy dialogue about nothing! And then Heidi had a huge breakdown last night about giving her talk in primary. And all the while there is Blake who is just harder than the rest.

This week I got to attend a leadership training with Sister Barbara Thompson of the Relief Society General Presidency. It was wonderful and uplifting. She told us that while in a meeting with President Monson he was concerned about the sister of the church. He said that they were been attacked by satan on all sides; more so than the men. He said that the women are usually the backbone of the religious strength in the homes and that is why they are being bombarded so strongly by the adversary. I was reflecting on it all and I felt like today I lost that battle against the adversary. He got me with fatigue, impatience, ingratitude and selfishness. I'm going to have to work harder, prepare myself more spiritually and fight to keep satan out of our home. I do feel so blessed and loved though when I consider the love that the church leaders have for all of us. And I feel blessed when I have these bad days and know that Heavenly Father understands and will forgive me for my bad behavior. And I'm so grateful that my kids will forgive me for my behavior as well. And Ben. He can always tell when I'm about to lose it. That's when he suggests I go take a nap. I am blessed!

The lobsterfest

These are the cute pictures of Daisy Bulooga butt in her new jean dress that we both love. However she really does look like my mom since that is all my mom wore for about 8 years of my life.

She still doesn't like smiling for me. She did in the first one because one of the kids got ahold of the camera. It's my new favorite outfit on her.
Ben has wanted to make real lobster for some time now. When we go to the grocery store the lobsters are crawling around in their cage. The girls think they are gross and now that we've made them from scratch (or I guess you could say from a live lobster) we think they are gross as well. After we cooked them and opened them up there was a bunch of green stuff that I'm sure was going to be poop had he lived long enough. It was sick. So we will never make lobster again.

That is about all we've been up to. We watched Julie and Julia this weekend. It was a good show but not one that I would really buy or watch again. I liked learning about Julia Child but I can't stop thinking about how the other person, Julie, used her blog as something to be her own. She set a goal and blogged about it. I finished the movie wishing I had something in that way, too. This blog is mainly just pictures for my mom of things we are doing around the house. Pretty boring, actually. So I am going to start another blog that is just mine and will focus on my goals. I always have goals. Some get completed, some don't. But this will be a place where I can write to myself about it, track my progress, and even encourage others to start and finish their own goals as well. I also like the idea of taking out that time each day just for my own thoughts and reflections to be written out. Anyway, you can feel free to check out my new blog!

Busy but nothing to show for it

We have been so busy lately but when I look back at what we've done there never is anything that we really did. For example today we got ready, walked to school, mopped the kitchen floor, worked out, cut my hair, babysat, picked up the kids, hung out with friends, had dinner, did the nighttime routine, got temple recommends and then made a blog post. It sounds like a lot but then there is not much to show for it all. All I have at the end of the night is an aching back and a brain that won't function right. I can't even talk to Ben while I type because my head can't handle two things at once by now.

And this is about how I feel at the end of every night. I'm exhausted by bedtime but then I look around and realize I have so much still left to do. There is a pile of bills next to the computer, I had to type up stuff for Relief Society, send out emails for Relief Society, re-mop the floor since Heidi spilled cantaloupe on it, move the folded clothes off the bed, and plan something to bring to a lunch date tomorrow. Tomorrow is a packed day as well; running/babysitting, Heidi to school, lunch date starting at 10, get Heidi at 4, babysit from 4:30-8:30 and then home to clean the house up again.

But things have also been great during these busy days. Daisy is going to bed better than before and a big help. She is always willing to roll Blake all over the floor, get his pacifier and take her diapers to the garbage. Her new favorite outfit is a jean jumper that Peggy sent us. It makes her look exactly like my mom. I'll post it soon (too tired to get the camera now).

Kaylee has loved the time with heidi gone. We even worked on her counting and writing yesterday. She keeps her room clean and has enjoyed a new morning routine where she gets to assemble a picture of herself when she completes her morning tasks like getting dressed, brushing teeth, saying prayers, etc. Even though she is a happier child her new favorite phrase is "You're ruining my life!" She told me that today when I gave her cantaloupe instead of cheese and to Daisy when she colored on her picture. It just makes me laugh.

Heidi has had a few morning meltdowns because she stays up too late at night reading. The other night I saw her reading the Book of Mormon in bed and went to see if she was really reading it and even understanding any of it. She was in the Book of Enos and told me she had just finished the Jacob one. Is she really reading it? I don't know. She tries though and I hope this desire will remain with her. We have had to stop her late night reading though. She's gone to school in tears a few times because she was too tired to get up and get ready. She loves school as always but I think she will favor reading and science over the other subjects. She loves science right now and took in a leaf with some sort of eggs hatched on the back to show the class.

So this is how busy we have been. I feel like my 'to do' list is a mile long and that I never quite get things done when they are supposed to be. At the end of each day I go to bed knowing that I have a busy day again. The sad thing is that we just had our vacation week! No more time off until Ben finishes this next extern. OK, time for bed. I feel better just having blogged about it. I guess this is why we are commanded to keep journals-it just makes you feel better to write it all out. Even though I'm exhausted I do love this life I live. It is exactly what I always wanted.