Good One

I was a good mom today.

I spend a great deal of my life feeling guilty about one thing or another, but today I am guilt-free. Here's why:

I saved SCM from choking.  This was the second time this week.  I even vacuumed today, but he still found something on the floor to try and eat.

I danced with the kids.  They love Another Postcard by Barenaked Ladies, and Dirty Little Secret by All-American Rejects.

I didn't make the kids eat left-overs for lunch.  I really just wanted them all to myself, but I made it seem like they were getting a treat by having PB and H.

I let Stir Fry listen to the same song over and over.  She can get obsessed with learning the lyrics.  This time it was Wong Fei.

I didn't yell at all.  I even talked Mads out of throwing a fit because he didn't want to get buckled into the car.  I just asked him why not, and told him why it was important.  He was distracted enough to forget he was upset.  Nor did I yell when he smacked SCM.  Or when Dare got out of bed for the blue-gazillionth time.  It seemed so easy.  Yelling sucks.

We went outside to ride bikes.  This was hard for me today because it was cold outside.  Yes, it is still not warm.  Dumb.

I planned out my summer art class for the kids.  Hopefully my enthusiasm holds up for 9 weeks. 

I had a vegetable rich dinner ready by 6:00 sharp.  Okay, maybe 6:15.  Definitely by 6:20.

I gave the kids an extra 10 minutes to play before bedtime.  Tomorrow is the last day of school after all.  I know that is not that generous, but they were pleased.

I gave out about 1000 hugs.  SCM only slightly whined when I squeezed him too hard.

First Grade

I love the end of the school year.  There are always fun activities planned, and there is a certain kind of excitement that only comes with vacation anticipation, changes in schedules, a sense of accomplishment, anxiety over missing friends, warm weather, and uncertainty for the school year to come.   

Bryn had a "Purple Cow Poetry Picnic" a few days ago.  There was a list of poems the first grade learned throughout the year.  This was their chance to recite the poems and perform little skits along with the words.  It was really fun.  The camera I brought is not good for distance shots, so this is the best I could get.  I thought it was funny, because that kid next to her is so much taller than she is.  He is probably about average height.  She did The Purple Cow by Gelett Burgess, Wynken, Blynken, and Nod by Eugene Field, and My Shadow by Robert Louis Stevenson.  After the kids were done, we had purple cow cookies and grape soda floats.

Bryn brought a book home that she made recently.  They have been making and writing books all year, but this one was particularly funny.  It is called The Bryn School.  Here are the words:

If I ruled the school, I would have no books. 

I would make the children have no parties and no field trips (except me and the three best students).

I would have no desserts (except me).

They will give me pictures every day.

They have to be good or else they will get kicked out of the school.

They give me money every day.

They will wear brown.

No pets at school.

Work all the time.

No fun at all.

They make me queen.

They have to give me everything.

No black hair.

The scary thing is, is that I wouldn't put it past her to enforce these rules if she were in charge.  She can be a bit self-centered.  And she really likes money.  But I think she was trying to be funny.  I think the "no black hair" was her way of saying I wasn't allowed there.

Pics

We have had our computer for almost a year, and I didn't know it could do this.  We now have a new, fun family activity that will occupy us for hours and hours.

I thought I would share some of my favorites.  Don't be surprised if you see lots of pictures like these in the future.

                                           

                              

                                                

Brown Eyed Girl

"Rhon, Rhon, Rhon... what would I do without you?"

>>You know in Mary Poppins, when she says she is "almost perfect in every way"?  That is how I would describe this kid.  From the day she was born, she has been an huge blessing in my life.  

>>She is: a mediator, laid back, cool, loving, unselfish, thoughtful, observant, outspoken, beautiful, a peacemaker, kind, funny, and happy.

>>I love her eyes.  I think a lot of times people with brown eyes feel like they have boring eyes. Me, for example.  I hope she never feels like that.   Her eyes are amazing.  I like to tell her they look like chocolate, and I want to eat them up.

>>She tells you exactly what is on her mind.  I've had to tell her on more than one occasion there are some things we can't say out loud.  Just yesterday she told Tom to bring her a present.  Then she said, "I don't like a lot of things, so just buy me a toy."  

>>One of her hidden talents is "monkey toes".  She has the most perfect feet I have ever seen.  But she can make those cute little toes spread out so far, it looks like she could actually grab a tree branch and hang from it.  She can also do cross-eyes, and flip her tongue over.

>>She is left-handed.  This is something she shares with Poppy, Uncle Ry, and her cousin Ryann, who she is alike in many, many ways. 

>>I can always count on her to ask a question I can't answer.  

I'm really happy she got such a nice birthday.  We were able to have a big family party... well, big for us.  She was so excited and she loved it.  She deserved it.  

She is my best friend too.

Laughing All Day Long

By Kid #1:

On Monday, Dad and Mom were playing video games, and Dad was cracking me up like when I said  "Yosh" and he called me Good Buddy.  And he did a lot of other funny things too. I mean it. Nothing could stop me from laughing.  I started to hug his arm.  I was doing most of it.  Because I was saying something, and he said something funny back.

Back to Me:

I just wanted to add that she told me she wanted to post on the blog about how Dad was being so funny.  She had a really good day, and I'm glad she wanted to write it down.  Nate was being pretty funny.  I was cracking up myself.  But something I thought was even funnier was when she (kid #1) said to him, "I love when you make me laugh.  I love hearing my laugh.  It sounds cute."  I would have to agree with her... most of the time. 

Rained In

I've never done a post about Nate.  I think it is because of two reasons:  1) he probably doesn't want me to, and 2) I have this gargantuan fear of sounding cheesy.  But...

I couldn't believe my eyes!  I have to explain.

I absolutely love holidays.  I don't care what the reason.  I especially love when they fall on Monday or Friday so Nate has a long weekend.  You know those wives who hate it when their husbands are home?  They say it confuses their schedule too much, or he annoys her when he is hanging around.  I am definitely NOT one of those wives.  If Nate could quit his job right now, I would die trying to do some gymnastics move that I forgot I couldn't do anymore.  I fantasize about how we would waste the days away playing with the kids, playing video games, shopping, and making good food.  Yes, that would be wonderful.

So this past weekend was great.  We worked all day Saturday on the garden.  Which looks fabulous, by the way.  

Sunday was like any other Sunday.  Except I actually didn't even go into RS.  So, no Sunday School or Relief Society.  Mads will not go to Nursery by himself, and SCM thinks that he owns me.  He does.  But we sang "Battle Hymn of the Republic" in Sacrament Meeting.  It was worth going just for that.  

Now for the good part... Monday.  We slept in.  Nate and I ended up playing Super Smash Bros together for a good part of the morning.  He kept convincing me I needed to play more, even though the house was a disaster, and I wanted to at least straighten it up before lunch.  It was fun.  Except being player 2 is frustrating on story mode.  And of course I am always player 2. When HE decided we were done, the most miraculous thing happened... he helped me clean the house.  Hold on while I get back on my chair I just fell off of.  Now, he is pretty good at keeping things tidy, but this was full on CLEANING.  While I was loading the dishwasher, he folded laundry!  Then he started vacuuming!  This was too good to be true.  On a holiday, no less.  His holidays never include cleaning.  When things started winding down - the house was now cleaner than it has been in weeks - he asked if there was anything else that needed to be done.  Should I push my luck?  Things were going so great, do I want to mess it up by being turned down if I make another request?  I decide to go for gold and say the bathrooms need to be cleaned too.  Without hesitation, he helped me clean the bathrooms.

(moment of silence)

Scrubbing toilets, sinks, floors, the whole bit.  Memorial Day is my new favorite holiday.

Nate is awesome in every aspect of his life.  Cleaning is just not his strong suit.  But I have to say I actually like this about him.  The help is nice, don't get me wrong, but I love that he doesn't make it a priority.  It really helps me feel laid back about the cleanliness of our house, and I am happier because of it. 

Slurp

 

 


I don't really have too much to say.  That happens every now and then. 

These are some pictures I took, when we were outside, on the one day that it has been warm this spring.  The kids thought is was fun to drink from the hose.  If you look closely, you can see my big toe holding SCM up.  Check out his faux hawk!  He finally has some long-ish hair on the very top of his head I can stick up.  He's not completely bald!

Two Wheelin'

Woohoo!  Dare started riding her bike with no training wheels a couple weeks ago. Now she is a pro. She'll even go up and down driveways.  I don't trust her completely yet.  She doesn't look out for cars very well, and she hasn't perfected the brake yet.  

She asks me every hour of every day if she can go outside to ride her bike.  I think the last couple days of rain have been torture for her.  

It is crazy how much faster she learns things just to keep up with her older sisters.  And she certainly does keep up.  Sometimes she meets and exceeds.

Baby Dude

Cheek fat.  Note the drool.  Awesome.

Arm fat.  Note the middle forearm fold.  Awesome.

Back fat.  So awesome.

Hand and wrist fat.  I eat these hands regularly.

Chest fat.  AKA:  Baby cleavage.  

Thigh fat.  

More thigh fat.  More awesomeness.

Back and side fat.  Chew on it.

Neck fat.  My favorite.

Belly and side fat.  Perfect for raspberries.  The other kids agree. 

We have regular slobberfests because of this belly.

The little dude will be 6 months old this week.  I love this age, but I am not loving him becoming a big baby.  He's starting to be mobile, and I know this chubb won't last long.  

Ha Ha Ha

Here are 6 things that have made me laugh recently.  It doesn't matter that I was laughing at myself.  It's still a laugh, and I need it.

1.  When putting the dishes away, I opened and closed the cabinets at least 6 times before I realized it would be easier to leave them open.  So, I left them open... for the rest of the morning.

2.  I'm either dying of heat, or freezing.  There is no middle.

 

3.  I keep a very organized calender of events, so I always remember what is going on.  I write down the date, function, time, etc.  I forget to look at it.

4.  My boobs are hardly ever the same size... as each other... at the same time.

5.  I buy a new package of candles for every birthday.  That is 19 kid birthdays so far.  I literally have about 200 candles.

6.  I get my beginning consonant sounds mixed up a lot.  I once tried to call SCM a finger sucker.  I accidentally said "singer ____".  Yup. Out loud for everyone to hear me.

Crime Scene: Murder of Mr. Pocket

                                           
I'm still in a bad mood.  

I have resisted the urge to write about the stupid neighbor lady who let her kid (3 years, if that) run around in the street, while she sits inside her house and yells through the window, unconvincingly, "look both ways," while the people driving by give me dirty looks because they think she is mine.

 Yes, I resisted.  

Instead, I thought this picture was hilarious.  I did not set this up.  It was the result of strategically placed strawberry juice, that was not cleaned up (I'm a horrible housekeeper, see below), and a careless child, setting her toy down in the right spot.

I come from a long line of OCD women, who can't stand the sight of a mess in their house.  Okay, maybe not a long line, mostly just my mom and sisters. Laurie especially.  I was taught well.  I don't know what's wrong with me.  My goal in housekeeping is to keep it from being disgusting.  And that's even subjective.  Are my standards too low?  I'm hoping in a few years, when I get more help from the older kids, and the younger ones don't require so much time, I will have an impeccable house. 

Probably not.

T-Ball

Brynster and Rhon had their last T-Ball game last night.  I'm not sure how much they learned, but they had a good time.  Brynster tried to get into it.  She fielded it quite a bit.  When it comes to sports, she is not timid.  It really surprises me, since she is any other time.  Check out her ridiculous uniform.  I tried to tie her shirt in a knot in the back, but she didn't want me to.  She said it looked "dorky".

 

She hit it a couple of times when the coach pitched it to her.  He usually screwed up the pitches though.  I love this picture because you can see Nate holding SCM in the background.  Also, Rhon and Dare are staring at that wagon because it was full of candy someone was trying to sell.  I never bought any for them.  I thought it was too weird that random people were selling food.

                          
She is about to knock that big, dumb kid over for standing in the base path.  Just kidding, she would never do that.  Too bad.

                                                               
Rhon didn't get into it quite as much.  This was her while she was in the field.  I didn't blame her... it was BOR-ING!!  Plus her coach didn't teach them anything, so every time a ball was hit, ALL the kids would run up and try to get it.  I thought she was funny because she would start to go, then stop when all the other kids came running up.  She was too cool to get pushed, or rolled on, or slammed into.  So, I don't think she fielded it once.  I didn't blame her for that either.  

                        
                                   

Here she is about to hit.... the tee.  Oh well.

                                       

                                       
Isn't she cute?  She asked me multiple times if I got a picture of her with the helmet on.  I think that was her favorite part.

                      

I know I am being very negative, but I'm in a bad mood and it was pretty dumb.  We are going to find a new league next time.

Mum's the Word

I have very thoughtful kids.  I got my Mother's Day gifts today because the girls couldn't wait.  They were too excited.  

Brynster gave me a card that she made.  Inside it said: 

"Mommy, 

I love you soooooooooooooooooooo much.  As much as all of everything one thousand times.  Love xoxo(heart shape), Bryn."  

Also, when we were eating strawberries she found a heart shaped one and said it was for me.  She washed it and gave it to me.  When I took a bite, she asked, "Does it taste like love?"

Rhon gave me a poem.  It went like this:

M- me marvelous mop muffins

O- oops one 

T- talk terrific tickle

H- help

E- every exercise energy

R- rose rake

I asked her what oops was for, and she told me because I make mistakes.  And the one is because I'm her only mother.  She doesn't have any step mothers.  She also gave me a card that said, "Happy Mother's Day.... I mean very happy."

Dare gave me a present.  It was wrapped in a piece of paper she decorated.  When I unwrapped it, I found 2 pennies.  I loved it.  

Mads drew a picture for me with help from Rhon.  Just keeping his attention on coloring, instead of throwing the crayons across the room, was present enough.

SCM gave me this.........  

Now you know why he is my favorite.  

Just kidding, Nate and all the kids gave it to me.  But really, he is my favorite.  Just kidding, I love them all the same....   seriously though, I love him the most.

Happy Mother's Day!  

This was added later...  Bryn gave me a present on Mother's Day.  It was wrapped in handmade wrapping paper.  Inside there was a piece of paper that said "Gift of being good".  I thought it was very sweet.

Fun Sunday, or Sun Funday... Whichever

We went to the temple yesterday to enjoy the flowers and the nice weather, finally.  Memories:

----  Mads' favorite part was the area under construction.  He would stop every 2 or 3 steps to look at the building materials.

----  There was a missionary from Singapore, who talked to Nate in Chinese.  She also made me cry.  Good tears.

----  There was another missionary who looked stunned at our family.  She asked how many sets of twins I had.  When I said none, she just stared.  Now, I get this quite a bit, but she honestly looked like she was staring at a family of chimpanzees, who just happened to like walking around the temple grounds.  I guess a couple of them, namely Dare and Mads, could have blended in quite well with chimpanzees.  But still, she must see big families all the time.

----  There was any color of tulip you could imagine.  Plus all kinds of other flowers that were amazing.

----  Being at the temple is a good thing, even if you don't go in.

I'm not good at taking pictures.  I never have been.  I'll probably go into that more some other time, but I am proud of this one.  So tell me how good it is.

This is SCM attacking me.  He grabs my tender neck hairs on both sides and pulls them so my head cannot move without pain.  Then he proceeds to suck on my face with such ferociousness that he doesn't leave an unslimed speck. 

Check this out!!!  All of us in one picture.  That doesn't happen very often.

Puke Skysquawker

                                                 
SCM found two new toys that he has been enjoying.  The first one is his tongue.  He razzes and blows spit bubbles.  Quite entertaining for him, and me.  I love the way he contorts his face so that his tongue is sticking out one side of his mouth, and his bottom lip goes the other way.  And if he didn't have enough drool in the first place, he certainly does now.  Drool is cuter when it is all bubbly and foamy looking.  And if we are lucky, it has little chunks of curdled milk in it.  Just kidding..... that's gross. 

                                                 

His other new discovery is underneath his diaper.  Yes, I'm too embarrassed to say what it is.  Every time he gets a diaper change, he immediately reaches down.  I wonder if he is making sure it is still there?  I feel like I have to tell him to go easy on himself.  He is anything but gentle.  The way he yanks and grabs.......... oh man.  I guess those parts are pretty durable.  They have to be.