10 Minute Update

I'm lame-o. I can't keep up with this blog thing. You wouldn't think it would be too terribly difficult, but life has a funny way of keeping me far too busy to update this even on a monthly basis. Of course a lot of things have happened since my last post; it has been a whopping 5 months. I'm not even going to try to discuss Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Birthdays, Soccer, Basketball etc. etc. etc. because quite frankly, if I can't type up a quick little update in 10 minutes, it won't get done. So here goes my 10 minute update:

Sadie is 3 now. She's feisty and crazy, but we love her lots and lots. She has been going through binky withdrawals for the last 2 days (yes, I FINALLY took it away), and her behavior is resembling that of a smoker who finally quits. If you EVER give your kids binkies, please save yourself some serious headaches and take them away before they are 1. Nuf said.

Ava is having a blast in Kindergarten, but she refuses to ride the bus to school. Apparently she always has to sit by boys on the bus, and that is not much to her liking. So, I drive her every day before I head off to my own classes. She's a funny, shy gal, but man is she stubborn! She loves her dolls and anything ultra girly. Of course, we love her lots and lots as well.

Ella is doing great in 2nd grade. She will be 8 in April and is super excited to get baptized at the beginning of May. She's still a sassy pants and is quite stubborn as well, but I love how strong willed she is because I'm pretty sure no one will mess with her EVER! She's getting so old, and she's really such a beauty. Her beauty really scares me, as the teenage years are going to be here quicker than I know it. I'll be teaching her to master my "ice princess" skills. Thanks for the title, Mark Williamson.

Noah is in 3rd grade, and pretty much everyone who knows us knows that Noah is a gem of a kid. I love all my kids equally. I hope everyone who may happen upon this post knows that, but I know God gave me Noah because he knew I needed at least one easy one. He does what I ask, doesn't complain much, gets his homework done, is super friendly and sweet, and yeah, he's pretty much awesome! His NBA, particularly Utah Jazz, knowledge is unmatched. Love him!

Andrew is going to be 12 on Saturday. I'm going to cry big old tears. Last night, Brian and I were talking with the Bishop of our ward about Andrew being ordained a Deacon, and I almost lost it right then and there. He's a great kid. He's super intense and knows what he wants and is ultra determined. While sometimes he and I butt heads, he also gives me the VERY BEST hugs and tells me he loves me every day. He LOVES the Utah State Aggies. He's one amazing kid!

There's the 10 minute update. I hope you all liked it because it probably won't happen again for another 5 months.

We Are Family

After over 2 years, we finally decided to have our family pics taken once again. Brian has a good high school friend who is an amazing photographer, so we had him do them for us. I like that his stuff is more artistic and real and not so "posed." The pic at the top of this blog and the pics down the sides are posed, only because I asked him to do a few like that, just to hang on the wall and stuff, but I really like the candid stuff the very best!

Honestly, I know I have crazy, energetic, and sometimes naughty kids, so why not show the world who we really are. We are definitely NOT the family walking down the railroad, holding hands. Not that there's anything wrong with pics like that (although I did ask our photographer not to take that pic, simply because I don't really want a photo of my backside). Anyway, the lovey dovey family photos are great, but I just wanted something much more real; something that captures who we really are. So, here are some of my faves:

Anyone There?

Where have I been you ask?  Actually probably not.  I doubt anyone even reads this little blog any more.  Can't say that I blame them.  The only reason I decided to post today is because I'm trying to get back on the journaling bandwagon so that one day my offspring's offspring don't ask, "What was Grandma doing during that 7 month time frame between March and October, 2012?"  So, here goes...here's what we've been up to.

Last March/April-ish, I decided on a whim to go back to school.  So, I applied to the old UVU, and off I went to school in June.  During the summer, I only took one face-to-face class and two online classes, so it wasn't necessarily that difficult; well, math was.  But I'm happy to report that I aced my math class (only because of my fierce loyalty to my math study time.  Really, I've never studied that hard in my life).  My online classes, Health and Philosophy, well...I'd liken them to high school classes where the teachers give you all the answers and let you use a 3x5 card full of notes on every test.  Yeah, easy peasy.

So upon beginning fall semester at the end of August I thought, "Eh, college is easy.  No big deal."  And then about a week into the semester I suffered a huge reality check.  I'm now taking Math 1050, (the worst class ever!), a British lit. class (which despite being full of what most would call "boring" literature, I love), an advanced writing class (in which I never know what the heck the professor wants from me), and an education class (the easiest of the bunch).  Between taking my kids to school and babysitters, soccer and gymnastics, laundry and cleaning and trying once in a while to have some family time, it's amazing I find any time to do homework at all.  But, I squeeze it in here and there, and I'm figuring out how to be successful as a student; although I fear I'm failing miserably as a mother and housekeeper.

Hopefully I'll figure out how to manage it all gracefully and to actually sneak in some one on one time with the hubby in there too.  As for this moment, I'm off to do my math homework that's due tonight.  I still haven't conquered the procrastination virus, that's for sure!

All About Andrew

Wow. Time flies. Quickly...really quickly. It's bizarre to me that Andrew will be 11 years old tomorrow. I know he's been here for 11 years, and I have an incredible amount of wonderful memories with him to show for it, but it's really just crazy how quickly the time has gone. We're over half-way to a mission and adulthood. Yikes!

When you come to a point that you have a kid this old, you start to wonder if you've done him justice. Have I done everything in my power to prepare him for the world that is to come? Have I given him all the tools he needs to be a successful adult? Probably not. But despite my parenting flaws, I'm happy to say that Andrew is a great kid!

He's a kid that has always gone through phases. For example, there was the Power Rangers phase, the Star Wars phase, the Batman phase, the Indiana Jones phase etc., etc. Now he's in the Utah State Aggies phase. He eats, sleeps and breathes Utah State Aggies sports. He is often annoyed that all of Utah County is in love with BYU (as he puts it) and is constantly telling us why the Aggies are better. Obviously, we agree. It's fitting that his birthday comes during March Madness, because he's super excited about the tournament and gets wrapped up in it. I believe last year his bracket won in our family. Or was that Noah?? I don't remember.

Andrew also loves science. He often says that if he can't be an NBA basketball player (Sorry kid. Your genetic makeup probably won't allow for that.) , he wants to be a scientist. He's also starting to babysit his younger siblings for short amounts of time. I'm pretty sure he probably just sits and watches TV or listens to his IPod whilst the kids run crazy, but whatever. Anyone who knows Andrew knows what a determined child he is. He's very intense and has very strong opinions, and although it's difficult to know what to do with him half the time, I know this trait will serve him well in the future.

We LOVE Andrew like crazy!! If we can get him through this transition between childhood and teenagedom these next few years, we'll be happy campers. I can't help but tear up a little when I think of his start in life and look at what this kid has accomplished and what a real miracle he is. Happy Birthday Drew!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!!

All About Sadie

Being that tomorrow is Miss Sadie's 2nd birthday, I thought I'd do a post documenting our spunky lady at this stage of life. It's hard to believe that it has been 2 years since I held this little joy in my arms. Sadie has been nothing but a bright spot in our home, and we love her so so much.



Sadie is turning into such a feisty little toddler; it's hilarious! Back when Andrew and Noah were little, I'd try to figure out why they were misbehaving, and I'd read every parenting article I could get my hands on. Now I just sit back and watch, and I laugh. I think 2 year olds are super funny. They're totally irrational and their emotions are all over the place, but they don't understand that they're being naughty and crazy. It's like it's just built in to their little bodies.

At this point in time, Sadie has many likes and many dislikes. She LOVES butterflies; it's an obsession really. She also loves The Wiggles (unfortunately), Mickey and Minnie Mouse, painted toenails and food. She eats everything and loves it all, but she especially loves the little Cutie oranges. She walks around saying "Mishka, mooska, Mickey Mouse," from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. She also sings a lot and loves the Butterfly song from Barney. Other favorite songs include the ABC song, Where is Thumbkin?, and Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. She's a little imitator as well. At our Family Home Evening the other night, we were talking about the importance of honoring your Mom and Dad, and I said something like, "It's really important." Sadie then yelled, "I'm important!" She has quite the little vocabulary for someone so small.

Sadie hates anyone to help her up the front steps to our house. She has to do it by herself. Sadie also hates anything loud, so vacuums, hand-mixers, blow dryers are all pretty scary to her. She also hates going to bed lately, and being that she's the youngest and has us pretty well wrapped around her finger, she often sits up late at night with us, watching TV. Yep, we're smitten.
She also HATES the doctor's office, which she had to experience today for her well-check. (A sidenote: We had a funny experience at the doctor today that I don't want to forget. Sadie was screaming hysterically as the doctor was checking her out. I was holding her and comforting her and wasn't really paying attention to Ava. Suddenly, Ava pulls a maxi pad out of my purse, holds it high in the air and exclaims, "This is My Mom's diaper!!" Yeah, the doctor laughed pretty hard.)

Anyway, we just love Sadie. Her spunkiness keeps us all laughing and smiling, and she's just about the cutest thing I ever did see. We love having her as a part of our family. I hate that she's getting so old, but it's fun at the same time. We'll keep her.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

And truly, it is the most wonderful time of the year. The end of 2011 did not disappoint, I must say. Mostly, that's because most of the past month and a half, I've been having a wonderful time enjoying my family. At the very end of November, Shelley and I ventured back East to see Lindsay and her family in Virginia. It was such a fantastic getaway. Lindsay's adorable children were so much fun, and I honestly did not want to put baby Julia down the entire trip. I would have held that child the entire 5 days if I could have. Jeff has also been living out there, so it was really fun to have 4 of the 5 Ricks siblings goofing off in the DC.

We really didn't do much sight-seeing since we have all been there before and really just wanted to hang out with Lin and the kids, but we did venture out to see the National Christmas Tree. Um, what a disappointment that tree was. Funny story: as we were leaving the site, we heard a lady exclaim in her prominent Eastern accent, "National Christmas Tree? More like the national shrub." She was so right.

This baby stole my heart BIG TIME!

The cutest nieces on the planet.

So that's the National Christmas Tree behind us. It was even more pathetic in person. At one point, Paul said, "Hey Lin. Which is more impressive? The National Christmas Tree, or the tree at the Orem City Center?" Orem City Center wins in a landslide.

So glad we got to hang with Jeff a lot too!!

Anyway, we got home from our trip, and I began the preparations for Christmas. This year, I did probably 95% of my shopping online, and I have to say, that is definitely the way to go! No more venturing out to crowded stores for this chick. You can find even better deals online, and who can stand the crowds?

I took Ella to see the Utah Regional Ballet's Nutcracker this year, and that is definitely a first-class production. It's not Ballet West, but it's really quite impressive. Ella and I had a blast on our girl's night out, and she loved the dancing and costumes and even the live orchestra. It was fun to watch her face light up when the Sugar Plum fairy made her debut. I love that she's old enough to do these girly things with me now.

Right before leaving to see The Nutcracker

So we spent Christmas Eve this year with Brian's family in Farmington. It was a nice, relaxed evening, and the kids enjoyed hanging with the Smith cousins. They don't get to see them as much, so it was fun to spend that time with them. Brian's Mom always puts on an impressive spread of delicious food for the holiday, and we all surely appreciate the amount of work she puts in. She's amazing!!

Brian and I haven't had our picture taken together in ages, so I had one of the kids snap a quick photo of us on Christmas Eve. I just love this guy!

Adorable, excited kids posing for the camera on Xmas Eve.

So, Christmas finally came, and the kids' reactions were well worth the wait. I just love having these kids on Christmas and being able to experience the holiday through their eyes. They make the holiday so much fun!! I can't imagine a Christmas without kids; it just wouldn't be Christmas to me. Anyway, the amount of presents was quite incredible, and of course Santa brought most everything the kids wanted (except Noah's laptop. Santa couldn't afford that one, although truly the kid does deserve it.)

Sadie's favorites: A Little People Zoo, her pillow pet, the old-school popper vacuum, and her baby doll and crib.

Noah's favorites: NBA 2k12 for the Wii, a remote-controlled helicopter, walkie-talkies, and 2 Nintendo DS games.

Ava's favorites: Rapunzel doll, her paper dolls, Squinkies and Barbies.

Ella's favorites: Rollerblades. Heaven help us. Her American Girl doll, Barbies and Webkinz.

I don't know where Andrew is in these pictures. He was probably too busy with his new NCAA football video game. His faves were his NCAA video game, remote controlled helicopter, Lego Harry Potter 5-7 for the Wii and his IPOD shuffle.

Yep, these are some spoiled children. They got a few more things, but those were the highlights.

We went on to celebrate Christmas evening with dinner at my Mom's house. I can't believe I forgot my camera that night, but with all the Christmas excitement and the sugar shock, I'm bound to forget something. We had a great time hanging out with the Ricks cousins and enjoying each other's company. We adults were about done at that point, so we just kept telling the kids to go downstairs at my Mom's house, and we adults sat and chatted upstairs.

As 2012 is now upon us, I just hope to have a wonderful, stress-free year. I can't believe how quickly 2011 transpired, and I'm sure 2012 will be the same. I have a few personal resolutions, but mostly I just want to enjoy my family and am excited for a productive, happy year!

Kids Rock!

So being the week of Thanksgiving, I should probably post about what I'm thankful for. Well, I'm thankful for lots of things; lots and lots of things. But I've had one specific thing on my mind for the past month or so, and that thing is my kids. I'm EXTREMELY thankful for my kids.

I've been thinking about this a lot lately, because it seems like these past couple of months, I've been inundated with all sorts of negative messages concerning kids; whether it be the random lady in Wal-Mart who stares me down when my child is throwing a tantrum, or the "joking" passerby who sees me with my 5 kids and exclaims, "You know what causes that don't you?" (Yes, Yes I do. Sex! That's what Brian says I should say, just to make people re-think that comment.) There's also the reactions of people when I tell them I have 5 kids; some people just smile and say something to the effect of "Wow. That's a lot of kids." Other people react with a look of shock and horror. It seems that the current world view of having multiple kids is that it's irresponsible or that you're depriving your children of the things they might have if there were only 2 or 3 of them.

Well, to them I say "Mind your own damn business!" I know, I know; the cuss word may have been unnecessary, but honestly, that's how I feel. There isn't a second of any day that I regret having my 5 kids. Sometimes I might make comments to the effect of, "These kids are driving me insane!" Well, sometimes they do drive me insane. But, I love every single one of them unconditionally and I'm so thankful to my Father in Heaven for sending them to Brian and me. I think I'm the most blessed woman on earth.

Do we have our dream house? No, far from it! Do we have all the newest technological gadgets and the most amazing vehicles? Nope, not even close. But, my Grandpa Bill told me something I'll always remember not long before he died. He told me that the most important thing on this earth is our family and to make our family the primary focus of EVERYTHING we do. When we die, we can't take possessions or money with us; but we do get to be with our families forever if we follow the commandments and live the gospel, and I'm just glad that I'll have this wonderful family and these amazing children forever!

So, although I'm thankful for many, many things this Thanksgiving, I'm most thankful for my 5 kids and my husband, and I certainly can't imagine life without any of them!!