Nursery!

Yesterday my baby boy started nursery (church class for toddlers 18 months to 3 years old). And I couldn't be happier! He did great too, they never had to come find me and when he did get a little nervous he just hugged his blanket for a minute and calmed himself down and went back to business. Love it! I have never really truly had a break from kids at church because Beth was not quite 18 months old when James was born, so I've always had a kid to watch over during sunday school etc. and it was so weird being without a kid yetserday! I loved it, but almost didn't know what to do with myself. I guess we are going to have to start bringing scriptures and lesson manuals to church. With a toddler to watch over it was pretty pointless before, but now we can be adults for a while. Weird.

In other news, we have decided to start working on our basement! On Saturday Ryan and his dad went and bought all the lumber we will need to frame the basement. Woohoo! Of course this means I will lose my husband on evenings and weekends for a while, but hopefully the end result will be worth it. Check out all those 2x4's!

Sharing

We've been making big strides at our house towards happily sharing our things. I still have two toddlers so it certainly isn't perfect, but James is catching on and really likes to share (most of the time). Here's a for instance...we went to the park to have a pizza picnic with my friend Emily and her kids yesterday. I got several bites of his breadstick, and when it was time for dessert he happily, and amply, shared his Krispy Kreme. Now that is love.

Feelin' Crafty

I've been dying to decorate my house more. There are just a few spots that are too barren and I am not very good at knowing what to put there that would look just right. I always have visions of what I want, but I'm horrible at actually making it look right when I try. But, anyway, a couple weeks ago I went to this big home decor store that is going out of business by my house and got some ideas. Then I went to the craft store, bought some supplies and made a little "HOME" sign and a fall center piece for my table. I still need to do a little more work on the center piece, but I am so happy with the sign! Its exactly what I needed for the top of my entertainment center. I'm so proud when I do something crafty and it actually turns out well...that is not always the case! haha. Anyway, here are some pictures of my handiwork.

Big Girl Beth

I finally sucked it up and did it. Last week Beth's binky said goodbye! I've been so afraid to do it because Beth is such a wonderful sleeper that I didn't want to do anything to mess that up. But, her 3rd birthday is just around the corner, and I knew we had to get rid of it once and for all. She has only had it at night for the last year, and she has slept without it a few times, so I figured she was ready. I made a deal with her that she should give it to a baby that needs it since she is a big girl now, and then she could go to the store and pick out a special toy as her prize for being so big. She decided to give it to my friend's newborn, baby Kyanna. So we drove over, she handed the binky over and off we went to Target to buy her toy. She picked out a little Dora doll, no surprise there. The first nap time was dicey, but since then she's really been doing quite well! I'm really impressed. She's woken up a little earlier than usual a couple of times, but for the most part she is sleeping great and going to bed without much of a fuss. Hallelujah!!

On another note, we are finally having a tiny bit of success on the potty training front as well. After months of dry runs we've finally had 2 successful trips to the potty. Hooray! Let's hope the big girl trends keep up!

The Perils of Older Sisters...

Ryan will probably kill me for posting this, but its too cute. What can you expect when you are growing up with just a girly older sister? Beth was wearing one of her dress-ups and James wanted to play! He climbed up the stairs, dug through the dress up box, picked out a lovely blue number and brought it back down to me and begged "pzzzzzzzzz" (please). I couldn't resist. Could you?

My Brother

Today is the 22nd anniversary of my brother Darryl's death from Leukemia. Obviously I was very young, but I remember it. I remember that day, but mostly I remember days before that of spending time with my oldest brother. He was 20 years my senior, but he always took the chance to play with me and make me feel special. That's just who he was. He was one of the most extraordinary, brilliant, kind and loving people you could know. I often think of him. I often miss him, even still. But, I know without a doubt that he is in Heaven, waiting for all of us. He is being a missionary, something he loved more than anything. And I KNOW that I will see him again. We are an eternal family thanks to my parents temple marriage and we will all be together again. I can never say how grateful I am for that knowledge. So here's to you Darryl. Love you!

Hand-me-downs

I LOVE hand-me-down clothes for my kids. They save me a fortune and the way my kids grow they don't wear anything for very long before its too small, so its SO nice not to have to buy lots of stuff for them. (Not that I completely restrain, sometimes I buy just cause I can't help it). I have lots of sources for clothes and I am SO grateful for all of them. Thank you everyone!

Last week I was cleaning out drawers and pulling out bigger sizes and it just reiterated to me how generous people have been to give us stuff. I completely restocked both of the kids dressers with hand-me-downs. Fabulous. I may have to buy a few things here and there, socks and the like, but mostly I am good to go, including winter coats. LOVE IT!

Here is a picture of just the clothes I pulled out for Beth. All from one neighbor. Amazing.

Joy School

A couple of weeks ago Beth started Joy School! Woohoo! Joy School is like in home preschool but several moms share the duty of teaching. We all take turns teaching in our home and then the off weeks we get off. Its great! I love it so far, of course I haven't had my turn to teach yet, so maybe it won't be quite so wonderful, but so far so good! Beth loves it and is learning a lot. Plus she just loves the social aspect and it teaches her how to play well. She has been doing great! And I can't complain about the 2 hours and 15 minutes I get without her every tuesday and thursday! She's growing up so much, its hard to believe she will be 3 next month! How the time flies!

Where were you?

Its been 7 years since that morning of September 11, 2001. I usually have a horrible memory, but that morning is definitely ingrained in my head.

I was getting ready to go to school at BYU and the phone rang. I walked into the kitchen and answered the phone. It was one of my roommates who was already on campus and all she said was "turn on the TV" and then she hung up. I hurried into the living room and saw what was playing on every channel. The first tower had just fallen. They replayed the planed crashing and the tower falling over and over. Then the second tower fell. The reporter thought we were watching the video of the first tower again and it took a minute to realize what had happened. I was a wreck. I didn't know anyone in the towers or the pentagon, but it hit me like a lead weight. I'm one of those people who needs as much information as I can get to deal with tradgedy so I sat there soaking it all in. I eventually tore myself away to go to class. We didn't get much accomplished in class. Then it was time for devotional. I walked to a daze to the Marriott Center at BYU and found a seat. I was numb. We sang and had a prayer meeting for all the lost and all those still in peril and their families. Then the flood gates open. I cried and cried. President Bateman then gave us permission to miss our classes if we felt we needed to. I walked straight home. I called several of my family members on the way home. I needed to feel okay with the world. I went home and barely moved from the couch for a couple of days. I just watched to footage and heard the interviews over and over. Some of my friends told me I was making it worse by doing that, but I had to. I looked on the internet for more pictures and videos. I just had to take it all in. I was amazed how hard it was for me. I was eventually able to snap out of it, but I will never forget that day.

Thank you to all the soldiers who are fighting terrorism and fighting to keep America safe and free. Thank you to those who lost their lives on Flight 93. God bless the 2751 who were lost in the towers and the 77 in the pentagon and their families. I know I think of my life much differently now and am more grateful for the country we live in and the freedom we love.

I remember 9/11.

Happy Birthday, Mom!!

Today is my mom's 71st birthday. She is not your typical 71 year-old. This is what she was doing on Labor day last week...
Yes, that's her, water skiing. Right now she is working at an incredibly difficult job. She gets up at a ridiculous hour every morning to exercise and is in way better shape than me. Its really quite unbelievable how amazing she is.

When I was growing up she was mostly working, but that took nothing away from what an amazing mom she was. Homemade cinnamon rolls every Sunday morning, with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir blaring in the background. The most amazing Sunday dinners every week. Man, I wish I had the stamina to make that every week...I dream about it sometimes. Homemade Easter dresses every year that appeared out of thin air over night. And these are just a few of the big things. I've really become friends with my mom as I've gotten older and it just makes me admire her more. She quit her job a few years ago to move to Logan and take care of her ailing mother. That was such an inspiration to me. She always acted like it wasn't even a sacrifice and I think that is so amazing.

So, mom, on your birthday I just want you to know how much I love and admire you. I wish every day that I could be more like you. More patient, more kind, more giving, more orderly, more everything. You are all those things and so much more to me and I love you so much!

Happy Birthday!!

Okay, I'm better...

So its now been 60 hours give or take since our last barfing incident (knock on wood), so I hope that means we've officially survived this virus. My kitchen got a good cleaning the other night, so even though there are a few more dishes now and some ramen on the floor, its basically clean. The toys are all sanitized and bedding all clean, again. *sigh* I think we survived. I got a little break from the kids last night, courtesy of my sister-in-law Summer (THANK YOU!!) which helped me re-group a bit, which is definitely what I needed. Now if Ryan and I could just go on a real date I think life would be good.

On another note, I am totally loving this preview of fall weather! I know it won't last and it'll get hot again for a while probably, but I love knowing what's to come. I love cool, clean air. I love going to bed when my room is chilly and wrapping up in warm blankets. I love sweatshirts. I love my long jeans. I love not sweating to death when I take the kids on a walk. Its glorious. I would like it to be officially Fall please. And I would like to actually have a Fall this year, before we skip straight to Winter. Thank you very much. :) Just see how much fun we were having in the cool evening air the other day!

This one is just for kicks, how funny is this kid??

Frazzled

I have been dealing with throw-up from one member of my family or another for over a week now. My house is in complete disarray. I have laundry up to my eyeballs. I've had to keep up with the barf laundry, but the normal laundry is getting out of control. Ryan and I have actually washed a lot of it, but NOTHING has been put away and is just in piles everywhere. The sink is full of dishes, every pot or pan we own is dirty. My carpet desperately needs to be cleaned now, and there is a faint smell in the air that is rather unpleasant. My couch needs to be sanitized (thank goodness for Leather) and I need to re-sanitize all the toys, AGAIN. *sigh* I am frazzled to the bone.

Today was supposed to be Beth's first day of Joy School, she was SO excited. So was I. But she couldn't go because even though we thought she was all better having gone almost 36 hours with no barf, she then she made up for it...ugh. I took her to the pediatrician today and she said everything seems fine and this virus just likes to cause relapses and she should be okay very soon. But, I hope that means she is DONE throwing up, because I'm pretty sure I can't handle any more, none, zero, zilch.

So if anyone tries to find me in the next few days and just finds a huddled mass clutching a bag of cookies or other junk food that will completely destroy my diet, don't be surprised, that's pretty much how I feel. I'm sure I'll survive...right? Somebody remind me that I will survive! Otherwise I might run screaming. *sigh*