I just posted about Ian's birthday so please scroll down to his pics...I don't want to steal his thunder. I thought I'd take a minute though to write down what today was like. Today wasn't particularly extraordinary, but it is a good example of what it's like to be the mom of little kids. I know most people reading this can relate. It seems hard to believe that at some point I might actually forget what these crazy years were like...and miss them (I know I will). Maybe years from now I will read this and remember the day to day craziness of being a mom right now. Maybe I will be able to share some humor with my daughters-in-law or whoever else I know that's at this point in their lives.
Okay here's a rundown of my day. After getting Luke to the bus stop, I rushed out the door with Seth and Ian to head in for Ian's check-up. Why did I take the 8:45 am appointment you ask? I don't know...because I am an idiot, a glutton for punishment, a slow learner...any of the above. I'm rushing in right about 8:45 when Seth needs to use the bathroom. (I know my stories always go here so I'll spare the details, but this sort of thing occupies a lot of my time right now.)
We got up to the desk but instead made a beeline for the bathroom. Luckily it has not been used yet, and it is only a one-holer. Seth says he needs to pee but while he's doing that begins to do something else. In his defense, his stomach has been a little off. I put Ian down on the bathroom floor, attempted to catch falling debris with toilet paper, and got him on the potty in the correct orientation. I then attempted to clean up (I was actually prepared with a clean pair of undies that have been in the bag for months). This included taking off all of Seth's bottoms, shoes, etc. while Ian is exploring the bathroom floor on his hands and knees. I swear no less than 10 minutes later we are all cleaned, washed, and ready to check in.
The start had been less than smooth, but I was still optimistic. That began fading after Ian took a header off of this carpet platform he climbed onto while I was paying and proceeded to scream. During the screaming, the receptionist handed me a marker and a developmental checklist to read through and fill out. Really? With what appendage would I accomplish that? So when they called his name two kids, clipboard, diaper bag, and I struggled into the office. Lots of waiting, tears, and four shots later we were good to go. I left with a runny-nosed, teary eyed Ian who was quickly tangling his sticky sucker in my hair and a curious Seth who would not leave the building until he had played with the big door opener button for what seemed like forever.
We had to stop and get groceries on the way home which actually went quite smoothly. Except for that part where Seth pushed our cart off by itself into the parking lot while I was putting Ian into the van. When I saw it (fully loaded still) it was picking up a good rate of speed heading for some parked cars. That is when I broke into full sprint and caught it just in the nick of time. When we got home I had Seth "helping" unload the groceries when I noticed he had disappeared for a few minutes. He turned up in the back of the van unwrapping and eating lots of newly purchased saltwater taffies. All I could do was smile when he looked up at me with a big smile and lots of drool running down his chin.
To be honest none of this really fazed me all that much. Life is always a bit chaotic, but at the same time mostly manageable with these munchkins. It's the days when I do let it faze me when things don't go well. I am slowly learning to relax more and react less. I do have great kids, and I love my time with them. We ended the day standing in pouring rain/gale force winds watching Luke's soccer game. That was actually one of those moments that makes all of the sometimes mundane stuff I do worth it. He is like night and day from fall soccer. He is such a hustler now and has scored lots of goals. One in particular was a big breakaway from everyone else and when he turned around and looked at me with that huge smile on his face--that's what it is all about. After we returned home like a bunch of drowned rats the kids had baths and dinner, and we read some books before bed. Seth and I got this dumb book at the library about a llama that is mad at his mama, but at the end he loves her. On that last page Seth put his chunky little arms around me and gave me a big squeeze. I am a truly blessed, and I don't want to ever forget it.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Ian is One!
A week ago today Ian turned one. I can hardly believe it. Since he may very well be my last baby it is hard to see him growing up so fast. It really does seem like just the other day that he was a tiny little bundle. He is the sweetest, best natured baby, and you just can't help but love him. Here are a few things about my baby boy at age one:
**Loves to eat just about anything.
**Sleeps like a champ.
**Already has a big personality and loves to entertain.
**Has a little blond baby mullet that I just can't bring myself to cut yet.
**Has six teeth and loves to smile.
**Best giggle ever.
**Gives great hugs and sloppy kisses.
**Loves hit himself in the head if you are watching him (don't worry I asked his doc--he said no biggie).
**Cruises everywhere and will be walking soon.
**Climbs stairs with the best--not so great at coming back down.
**Waves and says "I."
**Loves his family, and we love him so much.
This is scrunch face. He will usually do it on command along with lots of huffing and puffing to get a laugh. Works every time.
I set up his table for the party only to find him with the table cloth and everything else on the floor a few minutes later. He was enjoying himself though.
We had some family over for dinner, presents, and balloon cupcakes. It was great.
The birthday boys. Ian and my dad share the same birthday.
Ian and his cousins ready to help with his big number one cake. It really is shaped like a one, but you can't tell.
I gave him the whole bottom section, and he was ready to take charge of that cake.
It got messy.
Poor Tucker. I know these two will be best of buddies but on this particular occasion Ian could not resist that beautiful baby hair. Who can really?
All the kids except Seth were running around outside during present, so it was relatively calm.
**Loves to eat just about anything.
**Sleeps like a champ.
**Already has a big personality and loves to entertain.
**Has a little blond baby mullet that I just can't bring myself to cut yet.
**Has six teeth and loves to smile.
**Best giggle ever.
**Gives great hugs and sloppy kisses.
**Loves hit himself in the head if you are watching him (don't worry I asked his doc--he said no biggie).
**Cruises everywhere and will be walking soon.
**Climbs stairs with the best--not so great at coming back down.
**Waves and says "I."
**Loves his family, and we love him so much.
This is scrunch face. He will usually do it on command along with lots of huffing and puffing to get a laugh. Works every time.
I set up his table for the party only to find him with the table cloth and everything else on the floor a few minutes later. He was enjoying himself though.
We had some family over for dinner, presents, and balloon cupcakes. It was great.
The birthday boys. Ian and my dad share the same birthday.
Ian and his cousins ready to help with his big number one cake. It really is shaped like a one, but you can't tell.
I gave him the whole bottom section, and he was ready to take charge of that cake.
It got messy.
Poor Tucker. I know these two will be best of buddies but on this particular occasion Ian could not resist that beautiful baby hair. Who can really?
All the kids except Seth were running around outside during present, so it was relatively calm.
My sweet boy. Happy Birthday Ian. We all love you so much!
(Don't be frightened by the fact that it looks like I'm holding a miniature version of my husband!)
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Spring Break Edition
This is going to be a serious post about our "super deluxe" spring break. I took way too many pictures and didn't post nearly all of them but still had a hard time choosing. We hit the annual Baby Animal Days festival and then headed south for the weekend. The weather was beautiful, and we had so much fun hiking around in the desert with our friends the Snyders. It was so fun to get together with them with all six of our kids. The oldest was barely seven, but they hiked like troopers and we all had such a great time. It was hard to come back home to schedules and piles of laundry.
Baby Animal Days this year included some baby bear cubs from Bear World. They were so cute, and my man cubs are too.
Seth insisted on this train ride, so we stuck it out in a long line to loop around the track twice. Very exciting!
Ian spent most of his trip in this or his car seat, but he was so happy 90% of the time. I didn't realize until we got home how quiet he was all weekend. He was just back there taking it all in.
By Thursday night we had reached our destination at the Thousand Lakes RV Park in scenic Torrey, Utah. It was a great place to stay and considering it was quite cold at night I'm glad we decided on a cabin...a "super deluxe" cabin no less...more on that to come. Luke began asking, "Are we there yet?" about Salt Lake City and did not stop. It is a new and less than desirable phase. That last hour we resorted to every old school tactic: I spy, 20 questions, ABC game to make the time pass.
Friday we drove to Goblin Valley, and the kids had such a blast. It is like a huge, natural playground. They ran and jumped off rocks non stop. Luke would have stayed there all day if we let him. It really was so fun, and we will for sure go back there again.
They're tiny but you can see Luke and Stella on a "goblin." They became best buddies right away.
After lunch we hiked into Little Wild Horse canyon. It is an amazing slot canyon, and it was nice and shady. The kids had tons of fun exploring here too. Seth really got into it here and wanted to climb everywhere the bigger kids went.
Luke, Stella, and Miles in their hole which required quite a bit of climbing to reach.
Heading into the "squeezy part" as Seth called it. He was my hiking buddy, and I managed to not yank his arm out of socket while saving him from about 100 face plants.
It was getting a bit wet and hard for the littlest kids at this point, so we headed back. We will definitely go back when they are all a bit bigger and we can make the whole loop.
Back at the cabins we tortured ourselves with a cold, windy night and extremely smoky fire. Seth and Miles were in it for the long haul with the marshmallow roasting. Jer is a smore maker extraordinaire, so he was teaching Seth the fine art of it.
Luke and Stella were too cool for the fire and too involved in their own silliness to join us. At one point they had blankets over their legs and looked like a couple of little old ladies.
Saturday we went to Capitol Reef to do some hiking around. This was our first stop on the trail to Hickman Bridge. Poor Ian was really tired at this point due to his late nights and lack of naps.
We did let him out of that pack every once in a while.
Stella and Luke with Hickman Bridge above. This was a really cool place, and we hiked down underneath it and took the explorer route back. The kids did their best to catch a lizard but were unsuccessful.
This little hike was 2 miles round trip with some steep parts, and Seth was a trooper. He only refused to go once and I carried him a minute (which is about all I could) and then he was fine. He did great and probably hiked at least 6-7 miles in 2 days...not bad for a 2-year-old!
We enjoyed homemade ice cream and pie after lunch in historic Fruita. We then headed to do the Capitol Gorge hike. Ian finally rebelled at this point as did Brighton, so Kristy and I ended up heading back with them. All the kids were pretty tired by now and they followed shortly and we called it a day. We topped it off with some greasy burgers and fries in Torrey.
Here's the one and only picture of the whole gang. Getting this shot was challenging.
When we rented our cabin we got the one and only "super deluxe." The Snyders were left with only the "deluxe" which gave us all a laugh the whole trip. As far as I can tell the only thing "super" about it was it was a bit bigger and had a separate bedroom. It was on the other hand a trailer while the deluxe was an actual cabin. Either way it was a great place to stay. Luke and Seth loved their little loft.
All the kids right before we parted ways. This was shortly after Seth did a #2 outside our cabin. That's right. I guess he thought it was okay because he had done it outside the day before when there was no other option. This by contrast was right by the steps to the "super deluxe." Not cool. All Jer could say was "that just happened" which I think is from some dumb movie. My wheels were spinning about how I could rock/scissors/paper my way out of cleanup or something, but in the end it was a team effort. Go team--human fecal matter successfully cleaned from the super deluxe steps. I'm praying for no repeats on that one. 
A parting shot at the cabin. It really was a great trip. The desert in the spring is always amazing. Beginning in college and continuing up until the year Luke was born and then restarting again in 2006 (also excluding last year when I was about to pop), we have always ventured south in the spring. Before we had kids they were backpacking trips. Times have changed now, but it is a tradition I'd like to keep going in some fashion until I'm too old. Several of our desert adventures back in the good old days were with the Snyders, so it was really fun to do it again with all of our kids. To many more!
Baby Animal Days this year included some baby bear cubs from Bear World. They were so cute, and my man cubs are too.
Seth insisted on this train ride, so we stuck it out in a long line to loop around the track twice. Very exciting!
Ian spent most of his trip in this or his car seat, but he was so happy 90% of the time. I didn't realize until we got home how quiet he was all weekend. He was just back there taking it all in.
By Thursday night we had reached our destination at the Thousand Lakes RV Park in scenic Torrey, Utah. It was a great place to stay and considering it was quite cold at night I'm glad we decided on a cabin...a "super deluxe" cabin no less...more on that to come. Luke began asking, "Are we there yet?" about Salt Lake City and did not stop. It is a new and less than desirable phase. That last hour we resorted to every old school tactic: I spy, 20 questions, ABC game to make the time pass.
Friday we drove to Goblin Valley, and the kids had such a blast. It is like a huge, natural playground. They ran and jumped off rocks non stop. Luke would have stayed there all day if we let him. It really was so fun, and we will for sure go back there again.
They're tiny but you can see Luke and Stella on a "goblin." They became best buddies right away.
After lunch we hiked into Little Wild Horse canyon. It is an amazing slot canyon, and it was nice and shady. The kids had tons of fun exploring here too. Seth really got into it here and wanted to climb everywhere the bigger kids went.
Luke, Stella, and Miles in their hole which required quite a bit of climbing to reach.
Heading into the "squeezy part" as Seth called it. He was my hiking buddy, and I managed to not yank his arm out of socket while saving him from about 100 face plants.
It was getting a bit wet and hard for the littlest kids at this point, so we headed back. We will definitely go back when they are all a bit bigger and we can make the whole loop.
Back at the cabins we tortured ourselves with a cold, windy night and extremely smoky fire. Seth and Miles were in it for the long haul with the marshmallow roasting. Jer is a smore maker extraordinaire, so he was teaching Seth the fine art of it.
Luke and Stella were too cool for the fire and too involved in their own silliness to join us. At one point they had blankets over their legs and looked like a couple of little old ladies.
Saturday we went to Capitol Reef to do some hiking around. This was our first stop on the trail to Hickman Bridge. Poor Ian was really tired at this point due to his late nights and lack of naps.
We did let him out of that pack every once in a while.
Stella and Luke with Hickman Bridge above. This was a really cool place, and we hiked down underneath it and took the explorer route back. The kids did their best to catch a lizard but were unsuccessful.
This little hike was 2 miles round trip with some steep parts, and Seth was a trooper. He only refused to go once and I carried him a minute (which is about all I could) and then he was fine. He did great and probably hiked at least 6-7 miles in 2 days...not bad for a 2-year-old!
We enjoyed homemade ice cream and pie after lunch in historic Fruita. We then headed to do the Capitol Gorge hike. Ian finally rebelled at this point as did Brighton, so Kristy and I ended up heading back with them. All the kids were pretty tired by now and they followed shortly and we called it a day. We topped it off with some greasy burgers and fries in Torrey.
Here's the one and only picture of the whole gang. Getting this shot was challenging.
When we rented our cabin we got the one and only "super deluxe." The Snyders were left with only the "deluxe" which gave us all a laugh the whole trip. As far as I can tell the only thing "super" about it was it was a bit bigger and had a separate bedroom. It was on the other hand a trailer while the deluxe was an actual cabin. Either way it was a great place to stay. Luke and Seth loved their little loft.
All the kids right before we parted ways. This was shortly after Seth did a #2 outside our cabin. That's right. I guess he thought it was okay because he had done it outside the day before when there was no other option. This by contrast was right by the steps to the "super deluxe." Not cool. All Jer could say was "that just happened" which I think is from some dumb movie. My wheels were spinning about how I could rock/scissors/paper my way out of cleanup or something, but in the end it was a team effort. Go team--human fecal matter successfully cleaned from the super deluxe steps. I'm praying for no repeats on that one.
A parting shot at the cabin. It really was a great trip. The desert in the spring is always amazing. Beginning in college and continuing up until the year Luke was born and then restarting again in 2006 (also excluding last year when I was about to pop), we have always ventured south in the spring. Before we had kids they were backpacking trips. Times have changed now, but it is a tradition I'd like to keep going in some fashion until I'm too old. Several of our desert adventures back in the good old days were with the Snyders, so it was really fun to do it again with all of our kids. To many more!
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Spring
You wouldn't know it was spring from looking outside right now, but we did actually have a few weeks of nice weather. We took advantage and spent tons of time outside in the neighborhood, at parks, riding bikes...the kids were even running around on grass in bare feet and Ian was cruising around outside with his walker. Now we're back under 6 inches of snow, but I'm hoping it won't last long. Here are some pics of the last few weeks.
The kids love Ryan's Place park. It really wasn't warm enough for shorts this day but Seth insisted. He would wear "ba-et-ball" shorts everyday if he could...and he usually does even if he starts out in something else.
You may see a lot of this hat in our summer pics. He won't keep it on without the strap. Ian has white skin and white hair, so it's a necessity.
Ian was totally amazed by the ducks at First Dam.
The Sunday before Easter. Seth was nice enough to share his candy from nursery.
This vest caused major issues before church. Seth did not want to wear it at all. In fact, he refused and threw a huge fit (I'm talking sobbing) and then ripped it off. I did convince him to put it on for one picture after church.
The boys spend lots of time roughhousing with Jer. We have nightly wrestling, basketball, or football games at our house.
Easter was great. We had such a fun day eating, playing, and watching General Conference. Practically every talk was about parental responsibilities and teaching our children. Yikes! They were great talks and definitely gave me a lot to think about and try to implement. It's Spring Break so the boys got to stay over at grandma's house which they love! 
A break in the weather and an Easter egg hunt at grandma's house. My mom had a cute treasure hunt that went along with the Easter egg hunt. Luke could read all the clues himself this year! 
They were quite a bit more successful this time than at our neighborhood hunt. My backyard neighbor puts on this really elaborate Easter egg hunt. She had like 800 eggs, huge prizes, pinatas, eggs to dye, cotton candy, you name it. (We also dyed eggs at home but Seth + cups of colored dye = chaos, so I was too busy to take any pics. Luke became a fan of the hard boiled egg but Seth not so much.) Anyway, the hunt was practically in our backyard so we left Ian napping and walked over. I went back to check on him and in the meantime the hunt started. When I got back Luke and Seth were both kind of wandering around looking lost. When they came over Luke had three eggs and Seth had one, and they were pretty much gone! There were kids with baskets overflowing. I felt bad looking at their pitiful little baskets, but they didn't take it too hard. In fact, Luke gave Seth one of his and they seemed content. On the way out Alisha gave Luke a huge wrapped Easter basket which he was also nice enough to share with Seth. Luke told Jer, "we sure didn't find very many eggs." That was an understatement.
The kids love Ryan's Place park. It really wasn't warm enough for shorts this day but Seth insisted. He would wear "ba-et-ball" shorts everyday if he could...and he usually does even if he starts out in something else.
You may see a lot of this hat in our summer pics. He won't keep it on without the strap. Ian has white skin and white hair, so it's a necessity.
Ian was totally amazed by the ducks at First Dam.
It doesn't take much to entertain boys. These soon became swords to fight each other.
The Sunday before Easter. Seth was nice enough to share his candy from nursery.
This vest caused major issues before church. Seth did not want to wear it at all. In fact, he refused and threw a huge fit (I'm talking sobbing) and then ripped it off. I did convince him to put it on for one picture after church.
The boys spend lots of time roughhousing with Jer. We have nightly wrestling, basketball, or football games at our house.
Easter was great. We had such a fun day eating, playing, and watching General Conference. Practically every talk was about parental responsibilities and teaching our children. Yikes! They were great talks and definitely gave me a lot to think about and try to implement. It's Spring Break so the boys got to stay over at grandma's house which they love!
A break in the weather and an Easter egg hunt at grandma's house. My mom had a cute treasure hunt that went along with the Easter egg hunt. Luke could read all the clues himself this year!
They were quite a bit more successful this time than at our neighborhood hunt. My backyard neighbor puts on this really elaborate Easter egg hunt. She had like 800 eggs, huge prizes, pinatas, eggs to dye, cotton candy, you name it. (We also dyed eggs at home but Seth + cups of colored dye = chaos, so I was too busy to take any pics. Luke became a fan of the hard boiled egg but Seth not so much.) Anyway, the hunt was practically in our backyard so we left Ian napping and walked over. I went back to check on him and in the meantime the hunt started. When I got back Luke and Seth were both kind of wandering around looking lost. When they came over Luke had three eggs and Seth had one, and they were pretty much gone! There were kids with baskets overflowing. I felt bad looking at their pitiful little baskets, but they didn't take it too hard. In fact, Luke gave Seth one of his and they seemed content. On the way out Alisha gave Luke a huge wrapped Easter basket which he was also nice enough to share with Seth. Luke told Jer, "we sure didn't find very many eggs." That was an understatement.
Good times. We're headed off on a little adventure here in a few days, so I figured I better post before I get too behind.
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