Whipple Family Blog

We moved!

2011-09-18T17:37:00.000-07:00

Am I really writing in my blog??? It does feel a little weird. But, I am feeling more and more normal now that I have a baby that is sleeping through the night and has been weaned!! Just this morning actually. It tears me up a little to think that she is my last, but you know it has to happen sometime. Oh, and don't get me wrong, it also makes me smile that I am not attached every minute to my sweet bundle of joy... so it's really not that much of a tear jerker, if I don't think about it too much. (:

So, life is busy, but great! At the end of June we sold our good old town house in Maryland (sob sob) and with tears in our eyes, moved ourselves to Utah... Yes, it's been a little of both just like the baby thing. I cry one day about it, but the next I am ecstatic to be close to my family!!! We've had a bawl. And, catching up with old friends has been great too. I LOVE LOVE LOVE not having it rain every other day and the sunshine is putting lots of great D hormones in my body that is making me and my family happy. I do love those beautiful Utah mountains that I get to see every single day, but I have to say, I miss all those beautiful Maryland green trees. So, there is good and bad to life and you take what you get and live with it right?? That's at least what I am always telling my girls. Maybe we will both get it someday.

Brian's new job in Utah is going so so. On and off every day. We shall see how it pans out. We live in a cute neighborhood in South Jordan while our house is getting built!! We are building a home right under the Oqurrih temple. We can't wait! It will be around February before we actually move in though. We have been really really blessed to find a rental house close to the one we are building and it's been perfect because we can attend the same school that we will be in next year.

Now that things are starting to normalize in our lives finally, Brian and I decided to train for another half-marathon in October. After the last one I really didn't think I would do it again, but peer pressure can do a lot I tell ya..... No really, I am really excited to finally run again and feel good again. I mean, it's not every day that I am not nursing, pregnant, or on bed rest for something or another.... And, it's all down hill. What can be better than that??

Club Feet

2010-11-21T18:43:00.000-08:00

Brynley was born with club feet. She had to have casts on both legs up to her thighs for eight weeks. She had new casts put on every week and a half to two weeks. During this time she had surgery on her tendons so they will grow longer. She finally graduated to braces that she had to wear night and day for six weeks. Now, she is out of her braces during the day and just wears them at night until she is four or five years. Phew! It's been a long process, but we are just grateful that this is the only problem she has had to deal with. So, here are some pictures of her casts and braces, thought you might enjoy!

First Casts

Blessing day!

Braces!

The Birth Story....

2010-07-06T15:03:00.000-07:00

I've been putting writing the birth story off because it's not really something I want to relive, but I decided I need to write it to remember some of my feelings and blessings that I have. And of course, to have those of you who are curious to catch up... so here goes...

On the 24th, the morning of the c-section everything was going just fine. Brian was there early, and even though I was a little nervous, we said prayer and felt everything would be okay. The prep was fine, and the surgery started. Brian came in after the spinal and it quickly proceeded. It seemed like it was taking quite a lot longer to get Brynley out than I expected. I started to get the feeling things weren't going well. When they finally did get her out, she didn't cry for quite a while which was scary, but when she finally did we were so relieved. I got to see her for just a minute and then they whisked her away to the NICU.

Then the placenta, which wasn't coming out. I could tell it was taking longer than usual and my doctor seemed a little panicked. Things got pretty intense fast. The next thing I remember is my doctor yelling for someone to get Dr. Lance (the high risk doctor) and then she leaned over and told me that I would need a hysterectomy. They then put me out.

The next time I was awake was at 4:00 in the afternoon. I woke up in the ICU with a breathing tube down my throat and my hands tied to my side. I couldn't communicate at all, but I was so relieved to see Brian by my side. The breathing tube was torture, not being able to even take a breath for myself. I felt like I was suffocating. Since I couldn't talk and I couldn't use my hands, I had no way of letting anyone know. I finally signed with my hands to Brian and after a while of guessing, he understood. He told my doctors, but they didn't take it off for another hour or so. And then they made me promise that I would breathe on my own. I tell you, that was a scary promise. I hope I'm never asked to promise that again. How would I know if I could breathe on my own? But, anything was better than the breathing tube, so of course I gave them a thumbs up.

After I was feeling a little more coherent, Brian explained to me what happened. Apparently my placenta had grown too far into my uterus, a condition called placenta accreta. When my doctor tried to get it out it wouldn't come so she tried cutting it out. It still wasn't all coming and I was losing a lot of blood. She called in for the high risk doctor, Dr. Lance, and the head of the department of gynecology (Dr. Cox). They all three performed the hysterectomy. After they had gotten my uterus out, they still couldn't stop the bleeding. I was given 9 units of blood transfusions. They realized that they would also have to take out the cervix, which they did, and were finally able to stop the bleeding.

Before the surgery, Brian was told that he needed to leave and being a little stubborn he told them, "no he was staying". He finally was escorted out though and led into the prep room where he stayed for two hours. Of course he was furious. They hadn't told him anything for those few hours that he was in that room and he had no idea what was going on. They finally brought Brynley into him after it was all over and explained the situation.

The next couple of days I stayed in the ICU and Brynley stayed in the NICU. Brynley wasn't breathing as well as they would have liked. She also had some eating problems so she was on feeding tubes and IV's. I wasn't able to see her for about four days after the surgery. But, I was grateful for a little picture that someone had taken for me and taped by my bed. This is what would keep my going many times during those first few days.

I received two more units of blood and some antibiotics to help with infections. I was so grateful after a couple of days to finally get out of ICU and into postpartum. Brian stayed with me every day, always by my side. Except at night of course when he went home to sleep. I don't know what I would have done without him. Especially those days in the ICU, apparently they aren't used to patients that are coherent. They also told me they hardly ever get someone from maternity. So they didn't really know how to handle me.... hmmm... that was fun.

Anyway, things were much better after that. I was pretty sore and really worn out, but every day was a little better. After about three days I was finally able to get up to the bathroom and then one or two days later finally got to go see my baby. It was so great after all that time to see Brynley and to actually hold her. It was hard to see all her IV's, and feeding tubes, but she was also improving every day and doing well. Her jaundice had peaked a little, and her billirubin was up to a thirteen, so they put her under the lights for a couple of days.

After the surgery I had many of my nurses and doctors come and visit me. I was so glad to see them. I have definitely made some good friends in the hospital and it will be a little sad to leave them. One of my doctors (Apgar) came and talked to me after. She told me how close I came to losing my life. She gave me a hug and with tears in her eyes and said she was grateful that I was alive and well. We both were a little emotional. Then she told me that I should consider giving blood because that blood saved my life. I have always been a little squeamish about giving blood, but now I am have made up my mind and I'm definitely going to do it.

After six days, they finally discharged me from the hospital (really, after ten weeks of being there, it felt like leaving home or at least something like that). That was the same day that my mom went back home to Utah, which was so sad but I was happy for her to finally get home too.
I tell you, it was so good to be in my own bed that night.
Brynley got discharged the next day. We finally left the hospital for good and oh were we happy.

Okay, okay, sorry for such a long story. I just can't end this though without saying how grateful I am for my life and my little Brynley's life. I feel like so many things that happened were the Lord helping us through this. I couldn't have been more grateful that I was able to move my surgery up a day to have Dr. Hammond deliver her. She is definitely the most experienced of all my doctors. And, even though it was hard to stay in the hospital for so long, I can't even think about what would have happened if I hadn't. There were just so many blessings in all of this. I can't express enough how grateful I am for a loving Heavenly Father who cares about me and my family. I know now more than ever that he loves and cares about me. I had so many wonderful friends and family members fast and pray for us, and to you all I will be forever grateful. I am so glad to be here with my sweet girls and to be able to raise them.

Brynley Anne Whipple

2010-07-04T08:03:00.000-07:00

Yep, we had our baby and feel so blessed. Sorry it has taken me so long to post, it's been an adventure that we never expected this last week, but now we are all well and happy. She was 6 pounds 9 ounces and is 19 inches long. I'll write the story soon. Here's some pictures ...

Brynley in the NICU....

Going home day!

Father's Day

2010-07-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

This was written a couple weeks ago..... Brian's been a little busy.

First, before I write about Father's Day, I have to tell our good news. I only have three more days left!! My practice of doctors has six or so doctors that I see on a regular basis. I do like all of them, but there is one in particular that I love (doctor Hammond) and when she heard that I was having my c-section on Friday she said, "Are you sure that you aren't 37 weeks on Thursday?" I told her I was pretty sure and she said, "because I am on call on Thursday and I would love to do your c-section." So, I begged her to ask the high risk doctor (who apparently has most of the say here) if there is a chance I could go a day early and he said that was fine. So.... I am now due for the c-section on Thursday instead of Friday and I get my favorite doctor.

I can't tell you how excited I am to be done. I tell you, it's been a long ride, but at least now there is an end in sight. I have to say though, I am a little nervous to have a c-section. I have heard the recovery is not fun, and I just can't wait to be up and around again. I do have another ultrasound on Wednesday (the day before) just to make sure the placenta hasn't moved. I guess the worst case scenario would be that if it has, and I still have a breech baby, then I would go home and then in a couple of weeks have a c-section anyway. Well... that probably won't happen, but we shall see...

Yesterday was Father's day and Brian called me yesterday telling me about his lovely night. I have to admit, I'm a little glad I wasn't there, but I do feel bad that it happened on Father's day. Ashtyn was sick with a stomach bug which kept her by the toilet for a while and then she begged her dad if she could sleep with him. She finally zonked out, but all the commotion had woken Raegan up and now she couldn't get to sleep, so Brian slept on the floor with her for a while. When he thought all was good, he quietly snuck back into his room, but she must not have been quite asleep because the wailing started again. After a couple of hours of this, I think he finally got a few hours of sleep.... Happy father's day Bri.

The afternoon was good though. My mom took care of the dinner and kids while he took a nap and then they came to visit me. We got to go in the wheelchair (outside!) for a half hour, while I just kind of held my breath as my kids ran with me down the sidewalks (how do babies in strollers do it??). Then we had some ice cream and opened a couple of gifts that the girls had made Brian. It was fun, oh how I miss my girls...

Since it is Father's Day, I'm going to brag a little about mine. I know I'm a little biased, but I think I have the best dad and the best husband in the world. I'm not sure why I have been so lucky to have both, but I do. Really, they are both very different from eachother, but two of the best guys have ever known. I was talking to my mom the other day and she agrees with me. It's amazing how different, yet how great they both are and I feel like the luckiest girl in the world to have them both! I sure love you dad and Brian and happy Father's Day.

Two More Weeks....

2010-06-16T18:00:00.000-07:00

Well, I had my ultrasound on Friday (the one I have been waiting for for two weeks) and unfortunately the placenta has NOT moved. So.... I have to stay in the hospital. I know, bummer! I was really looking forward to going home. Oh, and to top it all off, my neighbor friend ( a girl right next door to me that has placenta previa too and I know all about even though we have never met) went into labor (or had an episode) that same night and had her c-section! I couldn't believe she deserted me after all this time together.... I mean, I was a week further along than her, so I was supposed to leave her. Oh the nerve!! Well, I am going to miss her though and now I am all alone in my little hallway with my own nurse who keeps telling me that I am making her life too easy.

I do have some good news though. I have a set date for my c-section. It will be on June 25th. So it's not all bad, at least in two weeks I will have a baby to take home with me. And today I only have twelve more days left. I can do that right? What's two more weeks?

I am getting to the end of my good books and nothing on tv is very interesting to me anymore. So, I'm running out of ideas to keep me busy. If you have any good books that you have read lately, I would love some ideas. I asked my doctor yesterday if I am allowed to take a little stroll in a wheel chair when my kids come to visit and she said yes. I get thirty minutes every three days or so to ride around the hospital. I know that may not sound too exciting to you, but when you have been stuck in one room for eight weeks, it's the best news I can get... well almost the best.

There are a few advantages to being on bed rest. First of all, my veins are so much better. For those of you who don't know, I have terrible vericose veins and with each pregnancy they just get worse and worse and so uncomfortable. But, with this pregnancy they have been awesome and hardly even bother me. The other great thing is I don't have marshmallow feet. Yes, my feet actually look normal and maybe I won't even grow a shoe size this time... wouldn't that be great?

I was talking to a friend the other day that helped me remember the good things in pregnancy and since this will be our last baby (unless divine revealation comes into play) then this will be the last time I will be pregnant. For as much as I complain and would love to have it over, I was glad to be reminded of that. I do love feeling my little baby kicking and moving inside me. It's pretty amazing what our bodies can do, so I'm trying to appreciate these last couple of weeks even though I am getting almost no sleep at night and I could go on and on, but I'll save it for another blog.

Okay, the most exciting thing that has happened in the past week is that my little Raegan is potty trained! Yes, I mean all the way. I actually started training her a few days before I went on bed rest, and then realized that it might be too hard for me, so we put her in pull ups and hoped she would learn slowly. She did really well the first couple of weeks and even though she had accidents every once in a while, she was learning. Then I went into the hospital, so we pretty much gave up encouraging her. But, she just kept getting better and better at going, so just this last week my mom took her pull ups off and left her in panties and she has been amazing! She is done now and hardly ever has an accident and I couldn't be happier.... I am so relieved that I won't have two kids in diapers when I come home. That was the easiest potty training I have ever done... (: Thank you mom and Brian!

Kids Day!

2010-06-08T17:32:00.000-07:00

Okay, even though I didn't get to participate in Kid's Day this year, I still can blog about it right? I just have to after hearing what a good time they had. And, even though I didn't get to participate much (although they did come visit me), grandma and grandpa were there with them, so they had just as much fun. So this is what they did this year:

* Woke up early, did our usual shopping for cold cereal (they all get to pick whatever cold cereal they like) then headed to the park to eat it and played at the playground for a while.

*Next they all visited me in the hospital, which I loved even though they were all pretty much on a sugar high...

* Left grandma to spend the afternoon with me, and they headed out to go ice skating. This was Raegan's first time ice skating. Usually she just sits up at the top with me and envys her sisters. Apparently she had the time of her life and couldn't get enough. Brian or grandpa would take her little hands and pull her around as she would yell at the top of her lungs, "I'm skating, I'm skating!" Just like in What About Bob.... oh, I wish I could have seen it! Every time she got back around for a little break she would beg, "just one more time!" so off they would go again. That night she called me to tell me all about it.

*Chick-Fil-A for lunch. What could be better I tell you....

*Headed on up to the airport to drop grandpa off. Everyone was pretty sad about that, especially grandma. We've had a great time with him.

*Came back to the hospital, picked up grandma and headed on out swimming. They were all pretty exhausted, but managed to have a great time anyway. Raegan discovered the baby pool and couldn't get enough.

*After an hour and a half of swimming, came home for a dinner that grandma had prepared and then ended the day with a little bit of Wii against dad.

So, all in all it was a success even without mom (which is really what I was hoping for). Plus, I'm always interrupting everything with my picture taking, so it was probably much better. Even though I am a little bitter about no pictures... there's always next year I guess....

A little bit of News

2010-06-03T15:59:00.000-07:00

I still can't access my blog from the hospital, but Brian is still willing to post them for me from his email, so if you're wondering why I haven't posted pictures forever this is why. Maybe when I get out, I will get some pictures up. So, in the meantime it will just be my writing.

Well, I have some news this week. It feels good to actually have some progression to say about this pregnancy instead of the same old thing. It's quite a big change or can be at least. I had another ultrasound on Friday (33 weeks) and the placenta has moved! Yes, it actually moved a little. It's still on the verge of the cervix, which means I'm still marginal placenta previa, but my doctors are really hopeful that it will be moved in two weeks. They've each told me that this hardly ever happens with complete previa, so I'm really lucky, or blessed I should say. So now, I have to stay two more weeks and they will do another ultrasound to see if it has moved all the way. If it has, then I will be able to go home and be off bed rest. I guess there is still a chance I may have to have a c-section because she is breech. But, after talking to my nurses about this, they think it's because I have been on bed rest for so long and when I am off, she will probably turn.

Okay, I know all this should be really good news to me, in most ways it is, but I am having a few mixed feelings about a few things. I was getting really excited to be going home with my baby in three weeks. Now, even though it will be great to not have surgery and get to go home, it may be five to seven more weeks of pregnancy. Phew!! I am so ready to be done. I just can't imagine being pregnant for seven more weeks and trying to run my house after being on bed rest for three months! Ugh. I know that it will be good for our baby though to wait for a few more weeks. And, it will be nice for me to have a little time with my girls again without a new baby. So, I'm willing to do it and the more I think about it, the more I know it will be the right thing. I'll keep you posted in two weeks.

In other news, my family is doing great without me. My girls have adjusted well and my mom is still here, thank goodness! She has been such a blessing to us. My dad is still here too, but he leaves tomorrow and I know we are all going to have an adjustment without him. My girls are loving this attention they are getting from their grandparents and since we only get to see them maybe once a year (sometimes every other year) it's been such a good experience for them to get to know their grandparents. They are getting pretty attached.

Thanks to my cute friends out here, my mom really hasn't been lonely. She's been to quilt night, to game parties, to the library reading times, and even strawberry picking (my dad made me strawberry jam, I'm so impressed!). She and my dad also went to DC overnight to a hotel and then to some Smithsonians the next day. Which they loved! So, I'm so grateful for my friends and ward for taking care of her. It's not easy to be so far away from home and have the huge task of taking care of four children. Even though she had six of her own, it's been a while.

Oh, I forgot to say, my friend Lisa Tanner the other day suggested we have a triple date at the hospital. So, she called another couple in our ward (the Murphys) to get a babysitter and they all came up here in my room where we played Apples to Apples and Pit. It was a blast. Thanks Lisa for the date night. (:

Today I am so grateful for the sacrament. The Nuss boys in our ward have been coming every Sunday to administer it to me here in the hospital. For one of the first times in my life it has seemed so personal. I didn't feel like I took it for granted before, but now I do. I am realizing how much the atonement is meant for each individual person. How much the Savior loves each of us that he wants us all to partake of his life and his sacrifice and renew ourselves every week. That those blessings and promises can and are for me even. That I can become a better person even when I am stuck in a hospital with not much interaction with the outside world. It's easy to forget that, but when I see those young men come every week, totally out of their way, and taking up their time, I realize that the Lord cares for and loves me too. I know that he has a plan for our family and I'm trying to trust him and let him lead me.

How can I not believe the Lord loves me? I have seen his hand in everything that has happened through this whole pregnancy. When my doctors told me right from the beginning that I had a 20% chance of this baby surviving. I received a priesthood blessing from my sweet husband shortly after where I was promised that she would make it to full term. Then when I had so much bleeding and thought maybe that was then end, I remembered that blessing and tried my hardest to trust the Lord. With all the wonderful blessings we have had and our good friends and family who have helped us so much, how can I have any doubt? I can't, and that's why I know everything will be okay. I just need to trust in the Lord and have faith in him and I know he will lead me through this.

Still Plugging Along...

2010-05-26T18:00:00.000-07:00

Quite a few things happened this week. One, is that I reached 32 weeks with no major issues. I am quite thrilled that I made it this long and I still feel sane. I don't know, maybe you'll have to ask my husband if I really am.sane.... I had another ultrasound and everything looks pretty much the same, no movement from the placenta, and the baby looks fine. The doctor did say that 32 weeks is a major milestone, so Bri and I are going to celebrate with ice cream of course. Can't wait.

I'm still here in the hospital, and the doctor today told me I will be here until the end. The good news is that she also told me that at 36 weeks, I will have an amnio to see if the baby's lungs are strong enough, and then the c section. So..... only three and a half weeks left!!! I've done five weeks, what's three and half more right?

The happenings with the family-

Ashtyn is riding a bike!! Yes, she does it all alone. About a week before I went on bedrest she was able to do a little with our help, but now she is a full blown bike rider. She has watched her sisters riding around our cul-de-sac and made up her mind that she was going to be that good, and now she is! Good job Ashty!

My sweet little Raegan turned three this week. I just can't believe she is so old. When I see her (which is every few days) she seems so much older and says bigger words. My favorite thing she has said lately is, "mommy are you still in the hosibal?". Oh my Raegy, I love her so much. What joy she brings to my life!

Raegy is in love with a cute little kid in our ward (or they used to be in our ward) named Luke. When I told her a few days before that it was going to be her birthday soon, the first thing she said was, "Is Lukey coming?". So, even though I can't officially give her a birthday party from far away, I had to arrange one last play date with her best friend. He is moving this week back to Utah so it was a perfect goodbye for two good friends. My mom and dad watched them of course and said they had a great time. She took pictures and Lukey even brought her a little present. I talked to her on the phone and she was so happy.

That night Brian brought all the girls and my parents for a little birthday party at the hospital. I couldn't have been happier. It really made my week to see my little girl so happy on her birthday. We had cake which grandma made and Raegy told me all about it. She opened all her gifts and was delighted with each one (good job Bri!). It's amazing what a bubble machine and a stuffed dog will do to a three year old.

Okay, so here are some of my favorite things about my little Raegy:

* She is so cheerful (most of the time that is)

* She babbles and babbles about everything- tells me all the news that is going on at home.

* Tells me every day on the phone she is a big girl because she goes potty, but she hasn't quite mastered it yet.

* Is the best hugger in the world of three year olds

* Would be happy with peanut butter and pretzels every day for lunch

* Loves oatmeal (the old fashioned kind!) and calls it "me meal."

* Loves to read books, but associates them with nap, so many times refuses, but just can't resist in the end.

* Hates bread of any kind and even though she says she loves sandwiches, never eats them

* Has just recently learned to love bagels (there is some hope to sandwiches)

* Refuses just about every vegetable, but can be bribed with treats.

* Can ride a scooter with the best of them.

* Has quite the screech when she gets hurt, the whole neighborhood knows.

* Adores her big sisters.

* Will eat Gogurt (oogurt) every day if I let her.

* And my favorite, says the sweetest prayers, and won't let us go to bed without scripture study.

What would we do without Raegy in our family. She really has brought so much joy, I can't even tell you. I'm so thankful for my little three year old!

31 Weeks and Counting

2010-05-16T17:57:00.000-07:00

In two days, it will officially be four weeks since I have been in the hospital. It's actually gone by faster than I thought it would. Although some days I think I am going crazy and just want to break out and run the halls, most of the time it hasn't been terrible. I've watched way too much tv and movies, read some books and lots of magazines, eaten way too much chocolate, learned how to knit while listening to books on mp3 (thanks Mendy!), and talked my nurses ears off. It seems like the life right? It actually is sometimes. I'll probably miss it when I am back to my normal routine, making meals, doing dishes, laundry, etc. etc., and of course all that with a new baby. So, this is what keeps me feeling sane. I won't get this again for a very long time, might as well enjoy it. Oh, and it has helped so much to have so many of my kind friends and family visit, call and write letters. Thank you, thank you! I can't tell you how much it has meant to me.

Well, to put another drama into my life, (it feels like I have something new every week), there was a blood clot found in my leg. It had been hurting for a few days and I finally decided I should say something about it, so they gave me an ultrasound and found a few. Now, before you fret too much, it wasn't in my deep veins, but in the artificial ones on the top. Therefore, it will probably not be anything to worry about and won't travel to my heart. But, it does mean that my doctors are little more nervous about my veins and my clotting and so they have put me on a blood thinner which is injected twice a day in my stomach. Hmm.... I was not happy about that, and neither is my stomach I tell you. With getting stuck for the heparin twice a day, getting blood drawn every three days and changing my IV every four days, I'm starting to feel like a science experiment. The good news is, I am now officially 31 weeks along, so not too much longer to go. I can do this right?

Mothers Day last Sunday was wonderful. Really it was. I had a great nap in the afternoon and then my cute husband brought all my kids and my mom with roses, cheesecake, gift card from Old Navy (hee hee), and cards my kids had made for me. We had a fun little party in my hospital room. I was also so glad to share it with my sweet mother who is still here helping us. We got to surprise her with her mother's day present too, which was that we arranged for my dad to come and stay with us for a while. Of course she found our surprise a couple days early when she was searching on her bank website. Oh that mom, always finding out her secrets! But, I think she was pretty excited even if she wasn't too surprised.

So my dad came Tuesday and I couldn't be happier, I think they are pretty happy to see each other too. It has now been six weeks since she has left him to help us out! I tell ya, I feel like I can never repay her for all she has done. I knew she was missing my dad more than anything, and he was missing her, so this makes me feel much better. And the best thing is, he is here for three weeks! Yes, three weeks, can you believe it? Those who know my dad probably can't. I mean he even left his cub scout troupe to be here. That's saying something. (:

My kids have been troupers through this whole thing. They of course are loving this time with grandma and grandpa and don't get it a lot, so I am grateful that they have this time to get to know each other better. I know they are in good hands. Brian has been taking them to see me two at a time lately rather than all four at once, and this has helped with the craziness.

Well, here we go off to another week. Every day I make it with this baby is another accomplishment. Can't wait to make it 32 weeks!!

Mothering from afar

2010-05-10T17:06:00.000-07:00

I think the hardest part about being in the hospital for so long, is not being with my girls. I get to spend quite a bit of time with Brian, which is so great. After he gets the girls to bed, he comes up to the hospital to be with me. I love it, and don't know what I would do without him. But, I still have that ache in my heart for my sweet girls. I do get to see them, but it's so different than being with them, loving them, and caring for them, basically being their mom. Somehow, even though I know I'm doing the right thing for our family and our baby, I can't get over the fact that I'm not being a mom to them right now. I almost feel like I've abandoned them. Yes, it's only been a few weeks, but it feels much longer. Are my two little ones old enough to understand that I don't want to be away from them? That I would much rather be there with them during this time? I don't know if they are. Yet, I feel they are safe and happy. I feel they all are. When I talk to them on the phone, and when they come and visit me, they seem happy and content, and that makes me even more grateful for my sweet mother who has sacrificed so much to be here and help my family. What would I do without her at this time? My kids are on their same schedules, they sleep in their own beds, they have their dad and grandma their to love them. The only thing that is different is their mom isn't there. It's such a relief to know that things are fairly normal to them right now. So that's what keeps me going, and someday, not too far away I hope, things will be back to normal and I can be their mom again.

As far as my pregnancy and the baby goes, everything is pretty much the same. Although I am 30 weeks along now, which is a huge feat in my mind. My ultrasound yesterday seemed to make all my doctors happy. I guess they were more worried about the placenta abrupting from the uterus, or the baby in some kind of distress. Although that was great news too, I was hoping to see a migrating placenta which would mean my going home. Well, unfortunately for me it was in the same exact place. No movement, and no hope for an early return. I was even told that at this point it probably won't happen, so they will schedule another ultrasound for four more weeks. That seems like an eternity for me, but I will plug along if it means our baby will be safe. I was surprised by my emotions yesterday. I guess I really did believe the placenta would move up. Or maybe it was joy from being out for the first time in two and a half weeks, even if it was only down a few halls.

So today I just received another IV (which has to be changed every four days). I have to say, that's the second worse part about being here. I'm not a huge fan of needles especially when they can't seem to find my veins. I will have quite a few scars to show for this when I get out. But, despite that, I am doing pretty well. I am a little lonely at times, but thanks to some wonderful friends I feel very loved. I look around at my room and see so many wonderful cards, books, magazines, and treats, that my sweet friends and family have brought me and I can't tell you how grateful I am. I really feel so blessed and know that Heavenly Father is watching over our family right now. I read a touching article yesterday about a family who almost lost their seventeen month old boy whom they found not breathing in the bath tub. It made me realize how good I have it. How quickly life goes, and how precious it is. Whatever trials we have, we need to take them with faith and let our fears wash away. As this mother said, " I have no room in my heart for both fear and faith. One of them has to go, and I choose faith."

One Crazy Summer

2010-05-03T15:24:00.000-07:00

I was hoping to stay up on my blog now that I am in the hospital, but apparently the hospital has blocked any websites for blogging or Facebooking, so I finally decided that I would make the most of it and email Brian my posts and have him blog it for me. So, here goes...

Well, as most of you know, it's been quite a crazy five or so weeks for our family. On my 19th week check up, during the ultrasound, my doctor told me that I have placenta previa. She said that it was marginal and that hopefully it would resolve itself by the end of the pregnancy. I was actually kind of expecting it because of all the low lying problems I have had from the beginning. She didn't give me any instructions of bedrest though and just reassured me that it would be good in a way, because I would get extra ultrasounds. So... I didn't think much about it.

About four weeks later when I was around 24 weeks along, I woke up at two in the morning with pretty heavy bleeding. Since it was so late at night, we decided to wait and see if it went away and went back to sleep. Which it did, thankfully. Then the next morning I went in to get it checked out where I got quite a lashing from my doctor about not calling in the night. Well, what's a tired pregnant girl supposed to do, I mean I need my sleep too right? Anyway, it made us quite a bit more cautious. Still I wasn't put on bedrest, but told I need to take it a little easier.

Two days later I had another bleeding episode. Of course it was a Saturday, (argh!) so I knew I would be submitted to the hospital. Apparently their beepers weren't working that day, but the next day (Sunday) I was able to get through and then sent to the hospital. This time I was submitted over night and thankfully the bleeding had stopped by the time I got there. They gave me steroid shots for the baby's lungs and the next day did another ultrasound where they found that the placenta previa wasn't just marginal, but complete. Meaning completely over the cervix. This time they sent me home on strict bed rest.

Meanwhile, my sweet friend had taken my kids and arranged a whole bunch of meals for us. I really don't know what I would have done without her. It was so nice to know my kids had somewhere to go that week and meals were taken care of! So, I sat on the couch all week hoping it was all just be a temporary fix and my uterus would grow a whole bunch in the next few weeks, migrating the placenta up and that everything would be fine. The next ultrasound was scheduled on my 28th week which was still three and half weeks away, so I knew I would be stuck at least until then.

I called my mom and let her know my situation and the first thing she said was, "do you need me to come out and watch your kids?". Oh man, I couldn't have heard sweeter words than that. So, she scheduled a flight for a few days later and she's been out here ever since. Which has been quite a while I tell you!

Okay so, we spent the next two weeks with my mom. She made our breakfasts, lunches, dinners, took the kids to school and back every day, cleaned my house (I mean thoroughly cleaned it), washed dishes, played with Raegan and put her to naps, etc. etc.. Oh, she is going to be so tired after this whole thing. And, I had to stay on the couch watching her do everything. Oh, and let's not forget, Raegan had just started potty training before this whole thing came to pass, and it was going well, but now has taken a back burner. So, as I have been wearing my mom out, she has watched me sit on the couch with my books. I tell you, it was nice for the first few days, but has gotten quite hard. Since I feel pretty good, it's easy to get up and just do a few things and think nothing about it.

After two weeks of this, one day I had a really hard day and didn't feel right, I went to take a nap for a little while, and woke up with pretty heavy bleeding. We called the doctor, which she sent us right down to the hospital. The bleeding stopped after the first night there and thankfully they didn't have to take our baby yet. I was then 27 weeks along. The next day I had another ultrasound where they found the baby just doing great, but my placenta still completely covering my cervix. So... I was told I would be staying in the hospital, for a least a few weeks.

So now I am 29 weeks along, the baby is doing great, but no real changes with my previa. Apparently, it takes two to four weeks for the placenta to move at all, so I still have another week or so before the next ultrasound. Today is Sunday and on Tuesday I will have been in the hospital for two weeks. Am I going a little crazy? I think I'm starting to get there. Although I can't complain too much because I have had so many wonderful friends visit me and do things for my family and I can't tell you how grateful I am for that. It makes me so emotional as I'm typing this, thinking of all of my wonderful friends and family who have supported us. I really do feel blessed. Our baby has made it much further than we could have hoped, and my kids and family are all happily at home with each other. What more could I ask for I tell you! I can't think of a better situation for us in this crazy time that we are in. And, how can I express my gratitude for my sweet mom, I really don't know, but I hope to find a way that I can someday. She has repeatedly told me that she will stay as long as I need her. It has now been about four weeks that she has been here, and I know it's not easy for her or for my dad at home alone. But, she keeps telling me not to worry, she wants to do this and that when this baby comes out healthy, it will all be worth it. Just to have that security that my kids are feeling right now, while their mom is in the hospital, makes it worth it to me.

Now here's to hoping, and praying, that the placenta will move up and out of the way in the next few weeks. I have been told that it doesn't usually happen, if it does at all, until after 32 weeks. So, I may have a few more weeks in the hospital. Brian comes to visit me every evening ( last night we played Scrabble, one of these days I will beat him I tell you!) and mom and my girls come about every three days. Since there's not too much to do here (expect push buttons) they get a little bored, but it's always great to see them. In the meantime, I am watching too much tv, snacking a little too much (thanks Tracy for telling the ward to bring me chocolate!), gaining more and more weight by the day, catching up on books I have meant to read forever, and doing a lot of email. So, I'm keeping my spirits up. I even get bathroom privileges now, which I am very grateful for. I tell you, those bed pans are no fun.... And next time I will keep you posted before I have to write another essay...

Shaylee's Baptism

2010-03-12T11:44:00.000-08:00

Shaylee has been waiting for her baptism and to turn eight for a long time. It feels like a really long time to her, since she is taller than her older sister and sometimes I think she thinks that she is older. So, to have Teralyn get to go to Activity Days, to get to stay home by herself for a couple of hours while I run an errand, and to not have to sit in a booster, was a huge deal! She just kept saying, it seems like all the good things happen when you turn eight. But, when I questioned her about the "good things" she put baptism on the top of her list, which made me smile.

So, she finally made it to eight and as it turned out, she was baptized on her birthday. She was quite excited. I always stress out a little before a baptism. I'm not sure why. It seems I want everything to go perfect and then distract from the spirit of the ordinance. But for Shaylee's I was determined to not stress out about it, and enjoy the day. A few days before her baptism, the bishopric called me and asked me to speak on the Holy Ghost. That made me stress a little more, but when it came down to it, I was really glad for the opportunity. I mean, who gets to speak in their own daughters baptism? Not many people right? I think it's because usually the parents/kid decides who will speak and they usually don't suggest themselves. So.... at first I thought, "oh no, just one more thing!" But, when it came down to it, I really loved it. I just hope Shay did, she doesn't get to hear me lecture enough at home...

Brian's parents were able to come out for the baptism the day before. Thank you, thank you for coming!! I was so glad to share it with some family. Considering that ALL of our family lives in Utah or Idaho (and we have big families), it was SO nice to have someone come out and share this day with us. And, also for the wonderful friends we have that came or tried to come (I realize things come up!) thank you so much! It really made the day so much better.

As far as the baptism went, it was wonderful. Shay and Tera did a piano/violin duet of "Love One Another". It was very sweet. They even messed up a little, but kept on going... (: Then Shay did the baptism talk. Yes, Shaylee did it! Our ward bishopric asks the child getting baptized to do the talk. It was very, very quiet and fast, but I was so proud of her that she actually did it. I mean, she was terrified, so this was a big feat for her.

All in all it was a great day, and to top it all off, the sun was out!! Yes, the sun actually came out for a day or two in Maryland. (: We had a little family party for Shay and then headed out to Golden Coral (yes, our kids love this place! Not us of course....). Grandma and Grandpa stayed for the next day and then left on Monday. So... here's some pictures of my cute girl and her baptism day....

It's a Girl!!! But, what did you expect?

2010-03-09T11:02:00.000-08:00

Oh man, has it been that long since I have written?? I really have no excuses now, except I love taking an afternoon nap. Thanks Bri for doing the last blog. I guess he was getting tired of waiting around for me to write. And look how good he did! I mean, I should just turn it over to him.... I'm sure he'd love that.

Okay, on to business. So.... most of you know, but we are having our fifth GIRL!! Crazy huh? I think it is, what are the chances? Brian figured it out for me and it's like 3% chance or something. I just think the Lord knows I'm not up for the craziness of boys. I am excited though. I mean, I'll always get my girls home with me for Thanksgiving and Christmas right? And, just think of all the fun girls night outs we will have. That is, if they invite me. I better make sure they know right now that I want to be invited. Oh, I'm sure they will.... but just in case.

Okay, so that is our big news and Bri couldn't be happier, so don't you dare say, "Oh poor Brian!" because he's only wanted girls all along. I'm the one who wanted a boy, but you know, girls are great so I'm not complaining. Please just don't send me to the loony bin though when they are all teenagers. Just send over some advice or take me out away from it all. That's all I'm asking.

Oh, one more thing. A name. Do you realize how hard it is for me to come up with girls names? I mean, I can think of a hundred boys names that I like. But girls names? And to think that all my girls names are meaningful (meaning they are named after someone that I love). I tell ya, it's going to be hard. I am just resigned to come up with a name that I like, and then try to fit it into something meaningful. That will work right? Hmm... we shall see.

Vacation & Snow

2010-02-15T14:24:00.001-08:00

Okay so Brenda is taking entirely too long to blog about the snow and our vacation. I mean we have been back for over a week and still no blog. To make matters worse, we just found out the gender of our next child (no I'm not going to tell you'll just have to wait until Brenda blogs about it) and with Shaylee's baptism this Saturday, those things will take precedent over the vacation and snow and they will just get lost in the background of our busy life. So I guess it is up to me to document these important events in the Whipple families lives.

Part 1: SNOW
This story really goes back to just before Christmas when we got the first big snow storm of the winter season. At the time I was thinking "okay in Maryland we usually get one big storm every three to four years so it looks like this should last us for the winter." This was really frustrating because the storm hit on a Friday afternoon and I didn't get a single snow day out of it!

Quick Aside: For those of you reading this who have never lived in Maryland you must understand that one of the best things about living in Maryland is the snow days. I mean the ice-cream is sub-par at best, the canned chili is horrible, and I have yet to find a place that serves a decent pastrami hamburger! But on those magical days when it snows more than two inches they close down the state and I get an impromptu vacation. It almost makes up for the lack of good Utah ice-cream. (But not the pastrami hamburgers I'll never forgive Maryland for that!)

So when January was coming to a close and everybody started talking about snow, I could hardly believe my luck at a another chance for snow days. I mean two snow storms where we get more than a foot of snow in a single winter? With 8 years as a Marylander I have never seen such a thing. Then it became clear that this storm would hit us on a Friday again I couldn't believe it! I would also like to point out that I was not the only one at work complaining that this was hitting us on a Friday afternoon again! I can't stress how much we look forward to our impromptu vacations out here. As it turns out the snow storm was serious enough that I ended up getting Monday off! Finally a snow day!

The following are pictures from the snow storm. Enjoy (see below for part 2)

View from our front door Saturday morning (it was still snowing at this point)

A view of how deep the snow was when I first started shoveling

Measurement of the snow

Two of my little cuties in the snow

I thought it would be fun to throw Ashtyn into the snow
She didn't agree.

Even though Ashtyn didn't like it I just had to do it again

Part 2a - Vacation plans
This story starts about six years ago when we first heard about this fun place called Great Wolf Lodge. It is this hotel with a indoor water park attached to it. We looked it up and decided that we really wanted to take our family, then we noticed the price and thought better of it. For the past six winters Brenda and I have had the following conversation:

Brian: We should take the kids to great wolf lodge this year
Brenda: That sounds fun lets look into it
Brian (after looking at the prices again): I just don't see how we can afford it
Brenda: Yeah maybe next year

Well this January we were talking with some friends in our ward and they mentioned a sale going on during the month of February. We looked it up and the sale did not apply to weekend dates. We are really loath to take our kids out of school for vacation so at first gave it us as another winter without great wolf lodge. However, Brenda does not give up so easily, she looked at the school calendar for any good times in February that we could do this. She found a couple days just before valentines day where the kids had half days. Taking the kinds out for half days isn't so bad right? Well at least that was our justification and we scheduled our vacation for this time. The price was still a little high but we had enough of our tax return leftover after paying for a deck to cover the costs.

Another quick aside: I love paying too much in taxes throughout the year and then getting a killer return at tax time. It's my way of giving myself a bonus. The financial expert that write articles on the internet, most people that I talk to, and turbo tax all tell me my return is too large and I should have less taken out throughout the year. But I love the sudden influx of money the return provides. For one month a year I feel rich and get to buy things like large televisions, decks, couches, and fun vacations. For those who are screaming "but you are giving the government a interest free loan!" All I can say is I know but I don't care, so there.

Part 2b: Getting out of town.
With our reservation made we spent the next month building up excitement for the vacation. I still felt a little guilty for taking our kids out of school, but if I kept repeating to myself enough times "it's only half days" I could push the guilt far enough to the back of my mind to get excited for the vacation again. Then came the snow, see above, the Friday before the Tuesday that we were planning on leaving. As the snow continued to fall through Saturday we assured each other that our street would be plowed before the Tuesday morning that we were planning on leaving. I don't know if we actually believed it but it felt better to say it and hear someone else say it. Eventually the snow stopped and we continue to convince ourselves that we will be okay to leave on Tuesday, when the weather reports indicated another large snow storm was coming. Sunday we spent looking out our windows at our neighbors frantically digging themselves out so that they could get to their Superbowl parties. A few people were able to dig themselves out to the main street which was plowed, but most had to change their Superbowl plans. With half the day Monday gone and still no plow, I was starting to get nervous so out I headed with my shovel to dig a path for our car to get to the main road. By mid afternoon I had a path just wide enough for our van to pass through when wouldn't you know it the plow came and dug us out. Tuesday morning we were able to get out of town before the next storm hit. The drive south was a bit dicey but we made it to Williamsburg without any incidents.

Part 2c: Vacation

We had been building expectations for so long that I was a little worried that the real deal wouldn't be able to live up to our expectations. However, I was wrong. Great wolf lodge not only met our expectation but it probably beat them. They had a fun lazy river, some really fun slides, a fun playhouse, a wave pool that Raegan and I had fun with and a little child pool. And the best part was that with the snow storm they closed the schools so we didn't actually take our children out of school. Below are some pictures of the play area.

The Lodge

The front lobby they had a story time here each night

The cabin in our room where the kids slept

Raegie looking out the window of her cabin

Fun play area in the middle of the water area

Shaylee and Teralyn at the bottom of two of the slides

Teralyn and Ashtyn in the wave pool

My little Raegie playing in the water

Tera and shay earning a candy bar by going across the padded logs

Part 3: Back to Snow

We were worried about the drive home. After watching CNN in our room we were worried that the roads wouldn't be clear enough for us to make it all the way home. We were thinking of staying in a hotel another night to be sure, but after checking Howard county site we determined that most of the roads were plowed so we decided to try to make it home on Thursday. The drive home was uneventful with no problems getting right up to our house we actually got stuck trying to pull into our parking space, but it wasn't too much of an issue to push the van back into the road and dig out our spot.

Raegie and Dad in our snow cave

Tera and Ash in our snow cave

Tera and Shay in the snow cave

A snow bank in our parking lot

Oh Baby!!

2010-01-21T10:57:00.000-08:00

Now that my nausea is starting to dissipate, I can concentrate enough to write a blog about our baby to be... Yes, #5 is on it's way. Four more weeks and I can give you a gender. I'll try to stay posted.

It's been a crazy four months for us. I had quite a few problems with this pregnancy and was told that I only had a 20% chance of making it. We were even given the option to "get it over with quicker" and take a pill to get my uterus to contract. Thank goodness we didn't do that. A week later, we saw a heartbeat and every week after that the doctors were amazed that this baby was still growing. The problem was, it implanted very very low in my uterus and I had lots of cramping, bleeding, etc. We had actually told all our family that I had miscarried, because we thought I had. We were pretty amazed to find out I hadn't.

I also received a wonderful blessing during this whole time from Brian. Which I believe had quite a lot to do with how blessed we have been. I do feel so blessed. Every day I think how grateful I am to already have four healthy little girls. My heart breaks for those who don't and I thank Heavenly Father daily for this chance I have to be a mom.

Another worry I had, and still do to a small degree, is will our baby be healthy. My hormones when I started my pregnancy were so low that I was put on progesterone pills. I was also told that there is a possibility that something could be wrong with our baby. That wasn't easy to hear, but as time has gone by, I am trying to have faith and relying on the Lord that everything will be fine. And, as much as it bugs me that Brian doesn't worry one bit, it is also a little reassuring. We both know that if something is wrong with our baby, we would still give our all and love and cherish it no matter what.

Phew! So that is what I have been going through for the past four months or so. I am so excited to be finally getting over the nausea (although today made me realize it's not totally gone) and have enough energy to not fall asleep every time I read a book to Raegan, but that hasn't happened either. Oh well, it will someday right?

Family Pictures!

2009-12-07T19:06:00.000-08:00

We finally got it done, here are few of our recent family pictures...

Baltimore Running Festival!!

2009-10-12T11:09:00.000-07:00

Brian and I started running about a year and a half ago. It was right after I turned 30 and started getting a spout of health problems that I realized I want to be moving my whole life so I need to do something about it now. I started running in the afternoons when Brian would get home from work (wasn't much of a morning person). Brian would run at the gym at work in the morning. This worked great for a while and we were feeling much better. Then Brian one day said he wanted to run a marathon. I thought he was crazy. I mean, really we were only running about three miles at the most, and most of his mileage was on the dreadmill, oh I mean treadmill.

One day Brian decided to run outside. He got to the bridge, about a mile away, touched it and hobbled on home. That is when he decided never to run inside again. From then on he was determined and each week he did a mile more. I couldn't believe when he actually hit four miles. I was getting a little jealous. I still had NO plans whatsoever to run a race though.

Then last February while I was running, I tore my achilles tendon. I was upset because I had finally hit the four mile mark and started feeling good about my runs. After taking six weeks off, I bought some new shoes and started again. I still had no intentions of running a race. But, I couldn't let Brian pass me right? So, then I started upping my mileage. I hit four miles and thought I was on top of the world!! By then Brian had hit about nine. So on it went like this until Brian actually DID sign up for the Baltimore Marathon! I couldn't believe it. I still thought he had no idea what he was getting into. And no, I still had no intentions for myself. I was just trying to be healthy here, not to try and run a race.

But Brian talked and talked and slowly I started thinking about it. Then, about three months before the race, I realized I was healthy and feeling good and probably in the best shape I have been in since high school, I decided I better run the half-marathon while I can. On one night when I was feeling a little more brave, I signed up.

So now we are two days past our goal. And yes, Brian finished the marathon and I actually finished the half-marathon. In the middle of it I really wondered why I was doing this to myself and what had made me think I was in shape enough to finish 13 miles, but I kept trudging through and amazingly I did. Thanks to my good running buddies, I probably wouldn't have done it. I needed that extra little motivation to keep me going when those hills seemed to be never ending.

Brian was amazing. He didn't get his goal time, but he finished even when he hit mile 16 and thought he couldn't go a step more. What surprises me the most though is that he is already talking about more.... "what can I do to get in better shape?" etc. etc. I think I've had enough for now. I'm going to hang my medal up somewhere. Tah tah for now running... until Wednesday.

Nauvoo

2009-09-24T11:23:00.000-07:00

This last summer we decided to take our family trip to Nauvoo Illinois to see the church history site. We live about 12 to 14 hours away, so we thought we might as well do this while we have a chance. So, Bri took off a few days of work and we packed up the car and did it. The ride was long, but not too bad. We got a few books on tape, a whole lot of movies, books, and we were set. The only one who really had a hard time was Raegan, since she didn't understand the books on tape and she can only take so many movies...

Nauvoo was great. Being there and seeing it, really put things into perspective for me. The saints had such a beautiful place and had put so much of their lives into building it and making it their home. We were only there for a day and an evening. We got to see the Nauvoo pageant though, and it was amazing. The next morning I took a run around Nauvoo and the mississippi river. Then, we took a wagon ride, a carriage ride and toured a few of the buildings. I was sad when we had to leave because you could definitely stay there a week or so if you had the time (and the reservations! Phew, they go fast!). I can't wait to go back.

On our drive home to MD, we decided to go see Chicago and the Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower). We thought it would be fun to go up to the tallest building in the U.S., so we paid the outlandish fee and did it. We were waiting for about two and a half hours to get to the top. We met a really nice LDS man from Hawaii right behind us though, who made the time go much faster. The top was great and we got to step out in the glass boxes and look all the way down. We stayed there for all of fifteen minutes. Lesson learned, never go to the Willis Tower on Saturday...

Next we went out to a restaurant known for Chicago's famous pizza. We waited for about an hour for the pizza, but it was totally worth it! It has two layers of crusts stuffed on the top, middle, and bottom. Yummy! My kids can't stop talking about it.

The last day we decided to visit Brian's old mission in Detroit. Yes, the most crime ridden city in the U.S. We first went to the temple, which is beautiful and is in a very beautiful neighborhood. Then we decided to drive down to the inner city of Detroit and look around, quickly... And, it was quick. It was getting a little dark and I was getting a little nervous in the inner city with four little girls so we left after a half hour or so, but it was amazing to see what Brian had lived in for two years! We couldn't even find any of his old aparment building because they had been burned down or torn up. It made me realize how lucky I am to have what I have. I feel very blessed to live where I do and have so many things that are so easily taken for granted.

A Little Change....

2009-09-23T10:52:00.000-07:00

Hello fellow bloggers! Wow, has it really been that long since I last posted??? Well, as any mother knows, summer is such a busy time. But, more than that, it was a decision I had to make. Although I LOVE reading blogs and posting my own, I decide it was consuming my life a little too much. So, I gave it a hiatus for a few months where I didn't read blogs or write. Now that those months are over, I also realize how much I miss keeping up with my friends and also posting my own thoughts and experiences. It is a really fun hobby, don't get me wrong, just a little time consuming.

So, I have decided that I will still keep a blog and write whenever I can, but I won't let it consume my time as much. Forgive me friends if I don't check your posts on a regular basis, I still do care so much for you and love to hear how you are doing. And I will read them, but not quite as often and maybe not as many comments. And for those of you who always read mine, thank you! I really do know how much time it can take. Especially my long catch up posts...(:

That's all for today.... (: until next time.

April and May

2009-05-28T18:12:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is a catch up post. Yes, I have been a slacker with my posting lately, but since this blog is mostly a journal for me, I'm going to quickly catch up on the happenings for the past couple months. Feel free to skim... (:

*Bought a new sectional and console for our t.v. room downstairs. Yes, it is officially not our play room (at least in one side of the room). We divided it in half, bought a new console for our tv and a new sectional and moved our toys and bookshelves. Whooo hoo! We love it! Finally, we want to stay in our basement. I will take pictures and post soon.

*Spring break with mom and dad! This was awesome. We had a great time and loved their visit. We're waiting for another soon mom and dad!

*John (my cousin), Ruth, and their little boy Jeffrey came to visit while they were going through chemo with Jeffery in Philadelphia. They spent one day in DC and then we dragged them to Ashtyn's ballet the next evening with us. We had a great time with them and love them so much. We pray for little Jeffrey's eye to heal quickly.

* Ashtyn did a Cinderella ballet recital that she has been practicing for months. This time she didn't get hives!!! Although it was only about five minutes they were on stage, it was very cute and got a whole lot of smiles.

*I had a mommy daughter date with Teralyn to the National zoo. We had a hotdog and icecream for lunch. Yum!

* Raegan turned two. I think I'll do another post about this later... (:

*Michelle (Brian's sister) came to visit for a week. We had a lot of picnics and just hanging out. Loved it.

*NYC trip. This was my first trip to NYC. I have been to the Statue of Liberty before, but never actually in NYC. So, Michelle and I decided to do this two days before we left. Very spontaneous for me... Vanessa watched my girls for me on Friday and Bri watched them on Saturday. We flew up on Friday morning and stayed just until Saturday night. We had a blast! We saw the Empire State Building, Ground Zero, had lunch in Little Italy, walked the Brooklyn Bridge, had a NYC bagel, ran through Central Park, saw Times Square, saw NBC studios, went to Phantom of the Opera, bargained on Canal Street, walked through China town, visited St. Patricks Cathedral, The American Girl Place, got a taxi ride and did a little shopping on Fifth Avenue. Phew! We were so tired, but it was so worth it.
My favorite part?? Definitely Phantom of the Opera oh, and not having to drive in the city!

*Kids Day! This year we did our traditional cold breakfast in the park and then we headed on up to Sandy Point to try and do crab fishing. We got there close to the afternoon though so the crabs weren't biting. It was fun to try though. We gave up finally and went swimming at the beach. Which the girls loved. I'm not so sure if they loved crabbing or not though... We headed home just in time for rain and watched a movie with homemade pizza.

*Said goodbye to Aunt Michelle, our most frequent visitor... ): Come back soon!
I'll post pictures later.

Spring Break

2009-04-15T10:58:00.000-07:00

Okay, I wrote this a long time ago, but never posted so here you go, my post from spring break back in April. (:"

Yesterday my parents left after a ten day visit. Now, I am sitting at the computer pouting a little because it is quite lonely in my house after sending them back home, sending Bri back to work, and sending my older girls back to school.

We were lucky to have a week without sickness while they were here, and luckily Raegan was finished with her antibiotics from having Strep throat, phneumonia, and an ear infection all at the same time last month. We also had some great days with little or no rain.

So, here were our events of spring break...

*Went grocery shopping with my mom- I love to do this, she always has some great ideas and fun recipes to try.

*Watched conference- Yes, I love General Conference time and it was even better sharing it with grandma and grandpa.

*Girls night in- you probably have heard me talk about this before. When the men go to priesthood, we have a girls' night with banana splits (all the works of course) and some kind of chick flick. This year Shay and Tera did it with us and we watched Heidi. Fun.. (:

*Made great food- rolls, greek salads, vegetarian lasagna...

*Drove to Williamsburg and stayed in a hotel for a couple of nights. The best part of this was the hotel and the food. Pretty much our healthy eating ideas went right out the window. We went to a seafood buffet, which was good, but way too expensive... and a really good Mongolian buffet. My girls LOVED the swimming. In the evenings, we went to my parents room (next door) and played games, ate homemade black licorice, and talked.
Williamsburg was fun, but for some reason I talked everyone out of getting the tickets to take the tour of the capitol and the governor's palace and so it was fun to see, but a little uneventful.

*Jamestowne- This was the best part of our Williamsburg trip (besides the hotel and the swimming). It was very hands on and the kids loved it! I really helped them understand how the Colonists and Native Americans lived.

Hmmm... I guess I didn't finish this and I can't remember what else we did. Oh well, it was fun. Come visit again mom and dad!

We did it!

2009-03-26T10:52:00.000-07:00

We finished our bathroom!!!
When we moved into our house hmmm... about two and a half years ago, we had a basement that was half finished. A finished play room or tv room, but an unfinished bathroom (no walls, plumbing, electricity etc.) and an unfinished bedroom. Our plan was to finish them up and then have four bedrooms in our house, and a convenient bathroom downstairs. So, we started on the bathroom first and now finally after two and a half years, it is finished!! I have to say, it really wasn't me too, mostly just Brian. When he told me he wanted to do it, I pretty much just laughed. He had never done electrical work before or plumbing! Yes, it has taken a while, but oh I am so happy and proud of him for doing it and it looks great! The plumbing was definitely the hardest part, but I thought the dry wall and the shower was because, well, that was pretty much the only part that I helped with. He even put in tile! You will now have to come visit me to see!!!! But while I'm waiting for a visit, here are some pictures... enjoy!

BEFORE PICTURES...

Notice the blue painters tape... no, it is not still in our wall...

Look at that beautiful dry wall job... we should go professional.

And the beautiful tile... (:

OKAY OKAY, after pictures.....

Now, doesn't that make you want to come visit me?? We will even let you use it if you like...

Allergic to Running...

2009-03-19T11:44:00.001-07:00

The idea of running a marathon is horrifying to me. Brian got the idea in his head a few months ago that he wanted to run a marathon this year. I thought he was crazy. Slowly, he has been working on me though, and I have finally come to be a little okay with running a half. No, I am still not close at all. Actually, pretty far away from that goal, but at least the idea is starting to sink a little into my head.

Well, just when it started to accept the idea a little I went out and bought some good running shoes. At least so was the claim, and then three days later, I tore my Achilles tendon. After just a couple of days of running, I started to have a pain (which I first thought was an internal blister) and then I just couldn't do it anymore. My ankle hurt so bad. I thought it was related to my sprain last year, so I decided to call the podiatrist. After feeling my tendon crunch back and forth, he concluded that it was torn and put me in a big old boot for four to six weeks!
So here I am, it looks much worse than it is really. It doesn't hurt anymore, but just a little annoying lugging around.

And as for that half-marathon... we shall see. Sorry Bri, you may be on your own.
As my friend Mendy says, "maybe I'm just allergic to running".

2009-03-04T10:58:00.000-08:00

Did I mention the Science Fair is over??? Hmm... Well, if I didn't, here's proof....

Shaylee's: What kinds of foods do Ants Like Best. She compared sugar and cheese and apparently they like cheese better...

Teralyn's: Which Bridge holds the most Weight. She made three bridges with her dad, put lots of weight on them and continued to increase the weight until each broke. She concluded that the Beam bridge held the most weight.

There's the proof, oh, and a happy smile on my face!

Gotta love being a parent...

2009-02-26T17:18:00.001-08:00

Just when I got done telling Brian what a crazy day I have had, we found this....

Yes, she found the lotion and the toilet paper...

Shay's B-day, Maple syrup, and Cryosurgery

2009-02-21T10:34:00.000-08:00

This last week has been a little crazy for our family. Most of us have been sick (except Brian, Shay, and I) so it's been fun battling fevers and antibiotics, but also trying to do field trips, volunteering at school, doctors appointments, science projects, birthdays, basketball, ballet, iceskating etc. Whew!! I'm glad it's over. Although today is a catch up day on Tera and Shay's science projects, so I will let you know if we survive or not.

Okay, a little recap on some of the things we did this last week.

*I went on a really fun field trip with Ashtyn and her preschool. We went to Brookside Nature Center to see the Maple tree farm they have. I have to tell you, it was one of my favorite field trips I have ever been on. We got to see the sap from the Maple trees come out and into the buckets and we got to taste the real maple syrup. It was so yummy. It's going to be hard to go back to the fake stuff... We learned all about photosynthesis and it even stopped raining for us when we went outside. It was great.

*I had cryosurgery on Thursday. This was in response to an abnormal annual exam that I had about two months ago. After the results came back, my doctor did a colposcopy and a biopsy. Apparently the biopsy said I have mild dysplasia, which could lead to cancer if left untreated, so I had to get it frozen off this week. Luckily, it wasn't that bad. It turned out to be two minutes of freezing, one minute of rest and then two more minutes of freezing and it was done. The first two minutes were a little painful, but the last two were fine. Just glad it's over. The rest of the day I spent in bed, but by the morning it felt as if nothing happened.

*Major science project makeup day. I vowed I would not do science projects this year, but of course Brian insisted, so here we are...

*Shay's 7th birthday. Yes, she's seven. She looks older, but she's just very tall. I remind her on a continual basis that it's good to be tall, I all too well remember being taller than everyone in elementary school and of course all the boys too. It can be tough, but she does very well with it.

Shay's cousin shares a birthday with Shay and his mom wrote a few things we may not know about him for his birthday, so I think I will do the same. Thanks for the idea Kelli!

1. Shay sucked her thumb vigilantly until she was six. Despite all the tactics we tried, nothing worked until she finally decided that she wanted to and oh, it was a happy day when it finally came!

2. Shay had kidney reflux when she was five months old. She had a UTI for about three weeks and had to go in the hospital for four days. She then was on antibiotics until she was eighteen months old.

3. Shay is the most daring daughter I have. She climbs trees, puts her face in the swimming pool (that's saying a lot!), pets dogs, picks up bugs, and ice skates until she falls down at least ten times.

4. When Shay was 18 months old, she was twirling around in the living room with her sister, fell on the entertainment center, cut her lip open and had to have stitches. I had to leave the room when they strapped her up in a burrito to get the stitches in.

5. When I was seven months pregnant with Shay, I went into a routine doctor's appointment and found out I was in labor and dialated to a four. The doctor sent me to the hospital (we had barely moved to Maryland and I had NO idea where it was so the assistant drove me over and then picked up Brian and Tera), and I was admitted to the hospital for four days. After that I was on bedrest for the rest of my pregnancy, but still made it to 38 weeks. The doctor saw me after and said, "I can't believe you didn't have that baby that night." We were pretty blessed.

Happy birthday Shay!

Thinking of a wish...

A Little Bit of my Life...

2009-02-12T10:47:00.000-08:00

I just have to blog about how much I have been loving this school year. I was trying to decide what has made it so great for me and here are the reasons:

1. First and foremost, for the first time since Teralyn was eight months old, I have a couple of hours to myself each day!! Yes, this is my favorite part of all. My two oldest girls are in school, my little Ashtyn is at preschool in the afternoon or a friend's house (on Tuesdays and Thursdays we trade off, but when they are here, I don't even see them!), and my little Raegan takes a nap at 12:30 until 3:00. Therefore, I have a couple of hours all to myself for reading, blogging, catching up on bills, whatever. And it is so great!

2. I'm not pregnant. GASP! I know, I know, how could I say such a thing? I have many friends out there who LOVE to be pregnant and say they would do it again, just for the pregnancy part. And, more power to you my friends! But no, I am not one of those people. No matter how hard I try, I really don't love to be pregnant. Sickness, vericose veins, hormone moodiness, getting bigger and bigger, and I could go on, but I won't... There are a few things about it that I like, (being able to feel my sweet baby move!), but for the most part, I'm not going to pretend. I do love being a mommy though!!!

3. Not nursing. Yes, it seems I am constantly pregnant or nursing and therefore not sleeping. I do enjoy nursing, that time with my sweet babies is such a great bonding time, but it feels so good to get a good nights sleep I tell you!

4. Getting up at 6:30 in the morning. This is one of the best things that I have done for myself. I am totally a night owl, just so you know. Ask my family, they will all testify to that. I don't think I have EVER gotten out of bed before my husband in all the 9 1/2 years we have been married. I just really don't do well. But, this year I have made a goal to get up and exercise before my kids are up and then take a shower. I have to say, it has been the best thing for me. It's amazing how different and happier I feel.
Just a side note to that.... In high school my dad made me memorize the scripture "Early to bed, early to rise" you know the one. Yes, he made me MEMORIZE it!

5. My kid's ages. My kids are all in such great stages. Tera and Shay are best friends and get along so well. Ashtyn has mostly outgrown her tantrum phase, although sometimes it still pops up. Raegan is loving learning everything around her. She does get into EVERYTHING and we frequently catch her standing on counters, etc. But, oh she is so fun and usually happy.

6. My scriptures. I have recently made time for "real" scripture study and notes and oh how it has made a difference in my attitude.

7. Oprah. Yes, I love to watch Oprah. Mostly because after I watch it, I want to do so much better.

8. My routines. This year I wrote down all my goals and routines. This has helped me so much to get my things done that I need to. No, it hasn't been perfect, that's for sure, but It's getting better every day and I actually LIKE to clean my house. AMAZING mom, isn't it?

9. And lastly, my eating habits. I am trying really hard to eat better. I am actually eating oatmeal in the morning (which I used to detest!) but it makes me feel so good. Is it mental, I'm not sure, but I love it. I am trying to cook better for my family, more fruits and veggies, less processed foods etc. It has been going pretty good. It helps a whole bunch to have my meals all planned (refer to routines). Usually I just make a list of what sounds good for the next week, shop for that, and then pick one of those meals each day. It works out well because I don't have to make what I'm not in the mood for.
I have to say though, with my healthy eating plan, I still love my chocolate and won't be giving that up any time soon...

The things Bri left me with...

2009-01-28T11:15:00.000-08:00

Bri left on a business trip this week to St. Louis and left me with a few things...

On Monday I was informed that a package is coming and I needed to get it out of the cold AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. No, it wasn't for my birthday... It was a package of live red ants!! Yes, you read it right. He is doing another scientific experiment this time with Shaylee and this time instead of flies, ants... So, they were supposed to come while he was here, but of course they died in the mail so he had to order new ones which came on my watch. And, to make it even better, on the package it says, "CAUTION, DO NOT TOUCH ANTS, THEY WILL STING!!" Then it proceeds to tell you what to do in case you get stung for about a paragraph. In the next paragraph it says, "Transfer the ants out of the shipping tube as soon as possible."

If you know me well, you know how much I hate bugs, insects, mice etc. etc. Anything that crawls. I really hate them. Whenever we have a spider in the house, I try to pretend to be brave in front of my girls, I grab a shoe and hit it as hard as I can. So, I am secretly terrified to put these ants in their new habitat. We decided to put them in the fridge for a few minutes to make them "slow" and then try to put them in. Since it was Shaylee's experiment, she should be the one to do it right? So she did... (: I armed her with gloves of course, and we went onto the sidewalk while they were "slow" and she proceeded to dump them in their new home. Just so you know, the hole to get them in is tiny, so this was quite hard. But, I was so proud of her, I was shaking, but she was fine. Then, she dropped a few on the sidewalk, but she grabbed each one carefully and put them in!!! Yay yay yay for Shaylee!!! Thank goodness she likes bugs.

Okay, the other thing he left me with was a couple of snow days. This whole season we haven't had one and we were so disappointed. Bri usually gets those days off too, so it's always a fun family day for us when there is a snow day. Well, this week while he has been gone we have already had two!! I have to say it hasn't been that bad though. We have actually been having a good time playing games and sledding (in the little snow that we have) and having hot chocolate etc. But, one of those days was my birthday so it was a little sad not to have him here to share it with... My girls were great though. They tried really hard to not fight with each other (I had to remind them a few times) and they even brought me toast and water in bed!! Amazing huh? Ya, it was great. Then they made me pictures, Shay made me a game I can play with (out of paper) and Tera made me a calendar and wrote me a letter that said, "Someday I would like to be you. You are so nice and hot and so I will give you a calendar." What?? That totally made me laugh. I had to make sure that she really meant "hot" and she said she did. Oh geez... I guess they listen to Bri's little remarks more than I thought...

HD... Here we come!!

2009-01-23T11:47:00.000-08:00

So, if you have ever talked to my husband for longer than ten minutes or so, you probably know how much he wants an HDTV. Yes, he wants it that bad. Over the past say, about three years he has wanted one and has given subtle hints on a continual basis (which is actually not like him unless he wants something BAD). At first it totally surprised me. I really thought he was kidding. We really aren't the kind of people who typically get the biggest baddest thing on the market. I don't know, I guess we are too practical and a little cheap. I mean, we just got a cell phone for the first time about two years ago. And yes, I don't buy anything unless it is on sale. It just kills me.

When his little hints first started coming, I thought it was just a phase. But then, he got his friends and the Bishop in on it. Yes Bishop, I remember that night at your house where everyone tried to talk me into it. I thought to myself, "they don't know who they're talking to". I mean, HDTV's were so expensive and totally out of our price range. We really were perfectly happy with our little 29 inch analog tv (at least I was). It fit our needs. And, if we really wanted a great movie night, we have friends (thank you Turpins) with the whole shabang... I mean really???

But, the hints still came and more rapidly and finally he started sinking the idea into my head. I guess you probably know the ending... we did it. We bought a Samsung 50 inch HGTV (on sale by the way!) and we are so excited!!! Yes, I am excited too. Okay, I have to say, I thought we had made a mistake when I saw that HUGE box come out. I mean, it was huge!! It wasn't until we hung it on our wall that I realized we should have gotten the 60 inch tv. Ha ha, just kidding. Anyway, it is great and not as big as I thought when we are watching from all the way across the room.

So there you have it... he is getting to me. Or maybe I am getting a little soft. I mean, you have to enjoy life a little right?

Chitty and the Orchestra...

2009-01-20T11:05:00.000-08:00

You know that old movie, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, with the flying car? Well, my kids love it. Okay, Bri and I do a little too. But my kids absolutely love it!! You know, it seems the really old cheesy movies are the ones that my kids love the best. Hmmm.... go figure. I guess I am a little on the old fashioned side too, in a way.

Anyway, about that movie, we decided to break the bank a little this year and go see the musical at the Hippodrome Theater in Baltimore. We got our tickets about three months ago (before the Christmas crunch) and waited patiently for it to come. Well, we finally got to see it and it was awesome!! I guess I thought we broke the bank a little more than we did though, because I thought I remembered buying pretty good seats, but it turns out we were third from the top! Yes, it was so so crowded for our long legs, but since no one sat in front of us we just stretched out. It was great, and totally worth it. Our favorite part by far was when Chitty sails up in the sky and everyone cheers... Go see it if you ever get the chance, it was so fun!!

Okay the other fun thing we did the last couple of weeks is that we got to see Teralyn's first concert with her orchestra as a violinist. I have to say I wasn't expecting much when I asked Teralyn what they were going to play and she said, "my teacher said not to worry about the songs". I had to chuckle at that one. I really was surprised that they played anything to tell you the truth (since the practices have been a little.... absent), but they did very well on the songs, "The A note" and "The G Note". It was great I tell you, and I got some pictures to go with it!

Teralyn the Speller

2009-01-13T11:18:00.000-08:00

I have some not so great spellers in my family. Yes, It's true. I will admit it. I didn't realize this when I agreed to marry my husband. You would have thought that he would have told me huh? I mean, who knew that all of our little offspring would get this wonderful trait from him. Okay, okay, I shouldn't blame it all on him. I am not a born fantastic speller either. It took some hard work. Although, I have to say I always thought I was. I won two spelling bees in elementary school. I thought I was on top of the world. I mean I thought I was amazing! Who knew that I once had problem with spelling? I sure didn't, at least not until I got married. Then one day my mom mentioned that she couldn't believe that I had won those spelling bees because I was horrific! What!? All this time I had thought I was an amazing speller. You mean all those years of being so confident in my spelling attributes was all a hoax? So, I have finally come to the conclusion that I am just great at memorizing. Yes, this is all it takes for a spelling bee right? It goes to show what a little determination will do...

So, to the point of my story, my Teralyn knows she is not a great speller. She has had many a night with tears while we go over and over her spelling words and then we still see those check marks. She is a wonderful reader, but when it comes to spelling it just isn't there. At least it wasn't until now...

Yesterday was the annual spelling bee in Tera's class. She has been studying for about three weeks on her words. Every night going over and over them. Man, I was so glad that spelling bee was finally coming to and end. Well, out of everyone in her class she came up third!! Unfortunately she didn't get to go on to the grade bee, but it didn't matter. Considering what she has been through as far as spelling it was amazing!!! We were so proud!

Now, on to Shaylee's....

Running

2009-01-09T11:13:00.000-08:00

I am dying to go running again. I know that sounds crazy, but it's amazing how much it helps me to feel good about myself. I started it last March (almost a year ago), took off for a few months for a sprained ankle, but have come back and am finally loving it. Okay, I shouldn't say "loving it". It's hard, and sometimes I want to quit. Some days are harder than others of course, and sometimes I have to take one step at a time to meet my goal, but it always feels so good when I do. The ice and rain are the hardest times for me, and I have to say if it wasn't for my husband who rolls me out of bed every morning it would be much tougher.

My goal is a half marathon. No, I'm not quite halfway there, but almost... I am getting so I can do almost four miles a day. Now, I need to get past that point. One of my biggest problems is time. I go at 6:30 in the morning, but need to be back in enough time for Brian to go to work. I can't go much earlier (it's pretty dark even at 6:30), I am already pushing day light. Hmmm.... maybe treadmill will be in my future.

So, for the past couple of weeks I have had a cold or allergies or something, and I haven't been running. It's amazing the change in my attitude. It seems it affects every part of my life. When I run I feel better about myself, and this helps me treat my family better, then they feel better about themselves, thus being more productive in their work, friends, etc. etc. Who knew that running go do such a thing. I guess there are a lot of people who know that, it just took me a little longer. Well, I guess I'm finally on the band wagon (as soon as I get over this cold!!).

December

2009-01-05T11:21:00.000-08:00

Yes, it has been quite a while since I have written. I have to say now that my older girls are in school again, life is finally coming back to normal so hopefully I will be getting my routines back. I could spend all day blogging about what we've been up to, but don't worry, I won't. I'll just make a quick list of our December and early January events...

*Annual work Christmas party - my kids love this! They get to see Santa (Raegan's favorite part, see below), watch circus shows and reptile shows, eat lots of yummy food, and all the ice cream bars they want. It's great.

*Shay's basketball on Saturdays- Yes, my Shay started basketball. I have been amazed at how aggressive those little girls can get. I think Shay was pretty amazed too. I don't think she realized it was okay to grab the ball when someone else looked like they wanted it... She is getting much better. (:

*Gingerbread house- I know this is a tradition in many families, but this year was so much fun cause we let the kids do what they want (I guess I am getting a little more lax as the years go on). Raegan was a hoot! She basically sat on the table eating the candy as fast as she could. Then the girls decorated her face with frosting and then painted their own face. I can't believe what I let them get away with now....

*Annual Christmas lights at Symphony Woods- We let our kids take turns driving through this, then we quickly pull over and buckle them up asap at the end. They love it!

*Christmas Adam sleepover- Bri sleeps with our girls every year on Christmas Adam. The girls look forward to it all season. What a sweet dad, I tell you!

*Christmas Eve at the Turpins- Every year we go eat fondue on Christmas eve at the Turpins and do a manger scene at the end. Very fun!

*Christmas- Well, we didn't have any family over this year, but it was wonderful anyway. We had our tradition of waking up before the girls and cooking a yummy breakfast over candle light (hot chocolate, quiche, muffins, sausage, egg nog). Then when everyone is done, we go in youngest to oldest. I know, how mean to make them wait huh? They love the anticipation though and so do we.
That night we went to our friends, the Suttons for Christmas dinner, chatting, and some good old karaoke! It made the day so much better to spend it with friends.

*Hair disaster- In all my life I have never seen a hair knot like I saw in my little Ashtyn's hair this last week. I spent hours trying to get it out with conditioner, water, even peanut butter. Who knows how it happened, but it was bad so we finally had to cut it out. Thus resulting in Ashtyn's first real hair cut...

*New Years Eve- We decided to break a tradition for a year and spend this evening at a friends house. We went to the Larkins and had some awesome food, while our kids happily left us to the basement for their own made up carnival. It was great! We then came home around 10:00, decided we were too tired, so spent the midnight hour happily snoring away...

*Two weeks of no school - Okay, I was so happy that this morning came. Although we had a great two weeks, I feel so out of my routines. My girls have been busy doing spelling every day (trying to catch up), piano every day, chores, reading, and play. With all this and meals every few hours, it's been hard to find time for much else. So, it is relieving to be somewhat normal today (although preschool hasn't started yet).

2008-12-04T10:23:00.001-08:00

Wow, the time has flown. Okay, a few updates, very quickly:

Raegan turned 18 months!- Nursery, here we come! Yes, Brian is so excited. I am excited in a way and sad in a way. I still can't believe she is so old. I feel she is still my little baby. These are some fun things she does:

* says hi and waves to just about anyone
* yells mommy at the top her lungs until we give her what she wants.
* jabbers and jabbers, and we have no idea what she is saying most of the time.
* Loves puppies!
* Loves a good walk and will just keep going...
* Favorite foods: string cheese (yes, she still loves it), apples, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese. Pretty much anything dairy.
* Gives awesome hugs.
* Oh how we love her, she has brings so much joy to our family!

Brian's Birthday- Brian turned the big 33 last Sunday. I tried to take him Go Karting the day before, but I couldn't find it, so we went and got his favorite food instead (Ribs). On Sunday we had a little family b-day party, and I TOTALLY surprised him with a Wii. He was so excited and he kept saying he just couldn't believe it. I know that sounds wierd, but a little background... Brian loves to play video games and I am not a huge fan of them. Once I told him, "when our kids are all grown up I will buy you whatever video games you want." So basically, he thought it would be years and years. I guess I had a change of mind and realized that my kids are just not the type to stay in all day playing games. Plus, I know Brian well enough to know he's not going to use all his free time playing games. He just wouldn't do that. So, I decided to go ahead and do it (he totally deserves it!) and that's how we ended up with a Wii in our house. I know family, please don't die of shock... (:

Thanksgiving- It was great. We had some friends (the Browns) come over for it. The one down side was that the night before I got the stomach flu. Luckily, I had all my pies made the day before. So, on Thanksgiving day we called them and asked them if they would be willing to come anyway (I would just stay far away and not do any of the food prep) and they said they would! We were so glad to have friends come, and we got to try out the Wii for the first time with friends. The food was yummy (Brian did a wonderful job!), but I didn't have an appetite, so I missed out. Oh well, the leftovers were great.

Christmas tree- Monday we went and cut down our Christmas tree at a grove called Triadelphia farms. This was the first year that we have actually cut it down ourselves. So, we usually get our tree on the first FHE after Thanksgiving, so we headed out as soon as the girls were out of school because we had a bit of a drive. Well, we got there just before it closed so we ran out as fast as we could to the grove of trees and tried to find a good one, before we couldn't see what we were doing. We finally agreed on a cute one (so we thought, but it was getting dark), but after we finally got it cut, we realized it has a crooked trunk. So, we packed up our car and our tree and trudged home in the mud and put up our crooked little tree. Hmmm...oh well, it will be a tree to remember right?

Twilight, the movie

2008-11-23T17:38:00.000-08:00

Okay.... Twilight.

Well, I went ahead and went to the midnight showing with a bunch of friends (with a little prodding from my cute husband whom I really don't think wanted me to drag him to it the next day). Yes, I'm glad I did. It was very fun hanging out with crazy people, (hee hee), eating Nibs, and listening to all the gasps and laughs throughout the movie. You just don't get that at a 7:00 showing on Saturday night! I felt just like a teenager again. It was great.

As far as the movie goes.... it wasn't my favorite. Actually, I was very disappointed. I knew in my mind that nothing would compare to the book, but did it have to be so cheesy? I felt like they slapped it together as fast as they could, not realizing that if they put a little more into it, it could be a great movie! The characters weren't built up half as much as they should have been, and the music wasn't anything great (the music can make or break a movie). I guess I had too great of expectations.

So, the last couple of days I have been telling Brian about all the funny parts (that weren't really supposed to be funny), and now I can't wait to go see it again!! This time I have less expectations, so maybe I can go laugh at it.... (:

Ashtyn's Nutcracker

2008-11-17T11:40:00.000-08:00

Saturday was the long awaited Nutcracker performance for my Ashtyn and her friend Marielle. Ashtyn started ballet a couple of months ago and has loved it! She begged me for ages to put her in, and I'm so glad I finally did because it has been what she looks forward to all week. It helps that she has her good friend in there with her.

So, every Fall the ballet studio does a performance, the Nutcracker. The girls were so excited to do it and so I couldn't resist, but the down side is that they have to practice on every Friday night for about two months! It's so, so over crowded in the small room with all the families and they only practice for twenty minutes, but it takes so much of your Friday night.

The long awaited recital came on Saturday. Okay, these were the main events:

Ashtyn stepped in doggie doo doo right before the Suttons picked her up. As we tried to clean up, she broke out in hysterics and wouldn't calm down.

Ashtyn waited in the back with friends for their turn in the performance.

Did her part in the first Nutcracker for all of five minutes very well!

Broke out in hives all over body with little red boils.

Had Bennadryl for the first time and was a little hyper.

For second performance (yes, it was a long day for those little kids!) wouldn't let mom out of sight for part of it, and for the other part, I spent chasing her around backstage.

Finally let me out of sight so I could take pictures of performance.

Did great in her performance!!

Ran around again (what does this Bennadryl have in it?) while Brian and I chased her around the theater.

Finally Ashtyn and Marielle dressed and we headed for home.

Much whining and crying on the way home.

Ashtyn finally zonked out on the way home.

Yes, it was a pretty eventful day and so emotionally draining. And I thought it was going to be so nice to sit in the audience and get to watch the performance. Hmm... oh well. The good news is when she finally woke up and felt a little better, she was asking when she gets to do it again. That made me laugh after all the trauma we had.

And in case your wondering, the red, bumpy rash got much worse the next day and looked like little boils all over her body. It didn't hurt her though, but was very itchy. Then Monday morning it disappeared. We are thinking hives, any ideas?

The day before the Nutcracker Vanessa and I had fun taking a few pictures....

Primary Program

2008-11-10T09:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the first time I have ever sat and watched my children during our ward's sacrament meeting program in the congregation. For the past six years I have been in a primary calling so I haven't gotten to just sit back and take it in. Well, not only was it great to be sitting next to my husband during the program (yes, usually we are about five feet apart with four kids in the middle of us), but I just couldn't help the emotions come out when all of those sweet kids were singing their hearts out. Wow, the spirit was so strong as all of those kids bore their testimonies.

Yes, my kids did all their parts just great, and that was awesome, but the best part about it is that they loved it. They practiced for days the songs as we would drive in the car (with no prodding from me) and as I watched them sing yesterday, I knew that they were bearing their testimonies. I knew that they felt the spirit and that they love the Savior. What is more important than that?

So, today I am grateful for the primary program. For those great teachers and leaders who teach my kids and help them feel the spirit on a continual basis. Thank you thank you, for loving them and helping them someday to return to their Heavenly Father.

Halloween

2008-11-07T12:01:00.001-08:00

Okay, it's about time that I write about Halloween since I am starting to hear Christmas music. So here you go... Tera was a tiger, Shay a witch, Ashtyn a fairy princess (just like last year), and Raegan a purple dragon (I used this for Ashty a few years ago).

So, as the Halloween years have passed I notice that I stress less and less about what my kids are going to be. This year I was thrilled when Ashtyn said she wanted to be what she was last year. I was also so excited to find that Raegy fit into our little dragon costume that we had. Shay wanted to be a witch, so I went to Salvation Army, found a black shirt and skirt, did a a little cutting and there you have it! Tera wanted to be a tiger, so I did buy hers. Yes, it kills me to spend a ton of money on costumes and because I'm not quite the sewer that my mom would like me to be (love you mom!) I decided I better start thinking about next year now. I am pretty darn good with a hot glue gun and I'm excellent at finding sales (especially at Salvation Army). So, we will see.

Trick or treating this year was great. Two reasons: 1. We went with some good friends (Suttons and Walburgers) 2. We went to single family houses rather than town houses so our kids got lots of exercise, but not a ton of candy. My favorite part of it this year was watching Ashtyn and Marielle go from house to house. Ashtyn running as fast as she could (there was candy to get!) and Marielle begging Ashtyn to slow down. Then, when they finally got to each door, Ashtyn would ring the doorbell and Marielle would use her little witch stick and give it a few wacks. They had it down. I know I shouldn't have let her wack the doors, but oh it was too funny, I couldn't stop it.

We then stayed at the Suttons house for a while and talked and ate delicious, spooky food while our kids played and ate candy. It was great. Here are some pictures:

Fall Traditions

2008-10-30T10:35:00.000-07:00

Monday was our annual carve pumpkins FHE. I just have to say I was quite proud of myself. I didn't once tell my kids how the pumpkins should look, but we actually let them carve them by themselves!! Yes, it was a little hard for me when I realized Ashtyn was going to carve a tiny teeny face on a huge pumpkin (so I guess I did give a little advice). Anyway, they pretty much did them by themselves and I didn't look until the end, so I wouldn't give my two scents. It was great. The girls were so proud, so there you go!

It's quite hard to have a slow shutter speed with wiggly girls!

Two nights ago we went to Lariland farm to pick apples. I have been promising my kids for ages that we would go, and low and behold this is the last week! So we packed up all the coats and hats (did I have to pick the coldest day we have had yet?) and headed on out. It was quick (we were there for less than an hour), but the rain was coming and we had more apples than I can think to do with, so we headed home. Oh, but before we went, we toured their Boo Barn. Which was kind of cute, but definitely not worth two bucks a kid!! Hmmm... oh well. It's for a good cause right, and my kids liked it. So, even though the whole trip was really quick it was fun and my kids even THANKED us for going!! That made me happy.

Fly Lady, Here I Come!

2008-10-29T11:41:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of you have heard of Fly Lady before. Yes, I have too, many years ago (thanks to my good friend Joni who was crazed about it!). I guess I didn't really understand it in the past. I went on the Fly Lady website and signed up for a few weekly emails, but got really annoyed with them and tried to forget her in my life. Until two weeks ago when she came back... My sister left her Sink Reflections book at my house (on accident, mind you) and I picked it up and can't put it down!! I am finally understanding Fly Lady and her massive organized life. It's really not that massive, but it seems like it if you haven't read the book.

I am kind of a throw a way freak. Yes, I LOVE to throw things away. My kids and my husband just know that if they have something missing, it's probably because I threw it away. But even with my throwing away habit, I didn't realize I have so much clutter still! After reading this, it makes me want to throw away everything. Well, almost everything. The problem is, I haven't cleaned my sink and this is one of the first steps. My favorite thing about her is her need to NOT be perfect. This, I would say, is one of my biggest down falls. Sometimes I just don't do anything because I'm so afraid of it not being perfect. So, her solution is, set the timer for ten minutes and whatever you get done, good. Whatever you don't get done, good too. Yes, I love it! So, here's to putting on my shoes and shining my sink!

Angie comes to visit

2008-10-14T11:42:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my oldest sister came to visit. She lives in Emmett Idaho and has six kids and yes, she left them all. She came on Saturday night so we rented a movie and ate banana splits while all my kiddos were sleeping. This has been a family tradition in my family when all the guys go to the priesthood session of general conference, we have a girls night. We pile on the ice cream over bananas and of course get all the toppings. Then we watch the best chick flick we can find. I Love this time! This has been one of the hardest things for me to miss being away from my sisters and my mom. So, it was so much fun to do it with Ang. And no, I haven't caved in and let my girls in on the fun yet. I haven't even told them yet of my indulgence. I even do it by myself most times. I finally decided this time though, that I will make it a rule that they have to be eight years old to join. So, I guess next conference it will be me and my eight year old.

Too bad I didn't get a picture of our banana splits. You would have been impressed.

Okay, so Sunday was conference and it was awesome. This is definitely one of my favorite times of the year when we get to hear our prophet speak. Before it started, Ang helped me get the backing on a quilt I have been working on for ages, and we quilted together while we watched.

Monday, Brian came home from work early so that we could go out by ourselves exploring. Angie has never seen Mount Vernon and she read the Mount Vernon Love Story a while back, so we did that. I have been to Mount Vernon many many times, but this time it was one of my favorites (oh, except I forgot to get the awesome ice cream that they have in the food court!!). It was great to be able to spend all day without kids to hurry and get fed etc. After it all closed, we even ventured out and went to an Indian restaurant in the area. It was awesome! I am totally converted and can't wait to go again. We couldn't even pronounce the names of our dishes, but oh so enjoyed them! Then we ransacked a bakery next door and didn't realize until after that we had gone in while they were closed! No wonder the girl behind the counter didn't seem so happy to see us. Hmm.... oh well.

Tuesday we went to D.C. and saw the U.S. Treasury. This was my first time going there and it was fun. I would say though that it's just a once in a lifetime thing. Not too exciting, but interesting.

We then headed on down to the Native American Museum and spent the rest of our time there. I haven't ever been in this museum either and it was really interesting. We spent a few hours there and didn't even see everything. After getting pushed out, we decided to go home before the girls go to bed so Ang could spend a little more time with them.

When the kids were all in bed, we got Chinese food and watched Iron Man. Pretty good for a super hero show... The next day we spent the morning with Angie and then I had to take her back to the airport. I think I had more of a break than my sister did. I can't wait to do it again! Love you Ang, come back soon!

Teralyn's Baptism Day

2008-09-25T10:52:00.000-07:00

Teralyn was baptized on Saturday as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Wow, I can't believe we have a daughter that is eight years old! Anyway, it was a great day. Tera's grandpa and grandma Whipple flew in from Utah a couple of days before the baptism to attend. She also got to share it with her good friend Hailey from our ward. We were so thankful for our friends and family who shared this special day with us.

The day and the week leading up to the baptism were a little stressful. I'm not sure why I stressed myself out so much to make it perfect, I mean, the ordinance is the most important part right? The baptism itself though was wonderful. Not everything we had planned came through, but it didn't matter in the long run and everything that was important happened.

The two girls (Tera and Hailey) sang a sweet song together "I'm Trying to be Like Jesus" and the spirit was so strong. Tera's grandma gave a talk on baptism and Hailey's grandma gave one on the Holy Ghost. Then we had the baptisms where Brian was able to baptize his first daughter. What an amazing experience!

It's hard to describe the feelings that I have had. I am so grateful for a daughter who has prepared herself for such an important ordinance. I have seen her testimony of the gospel grow almost every day. I pray she remembers this day and time in her life and strives to keep herself clean. What an awesome experience to know that my daughter made the first step to her eternal salvation. I hope she treasures this day as I know I will.

School

2008-09-05T09:58:00.000-07:00

I am finally getting around to writing about school. Yes, it has been two weeks since they have started, but better late than never right? So, it's been off to a good start. Shaylee got the best teacher in the 1st grade, Mrs. Scruggs (formerly Ms. McHargue). Tera had her for math and we love her! We were so excited. Teralyn's teacher in third grade is Ms. Pietryka. She has only taught for about two years, but she is young and excited, and I think she'll be great.

The first day turned out just fine. I was a little nervous because things were going so well in the morning and then about half hour before we left, Shay started to get a little sick (the nerves hit in). Last year was a huge dilemma and we barely made it to kindergarten. I thought for sure she was over that, but apparently not. Anyway, at least we didn't have crying this year, just a little upset stomach and when we started walking, it went away (there is something about that walking I tell you!).

They both came back happy, tired but happy and content and we considered that a success. The last two weeks have been about the same. No major complaints yet, but also not a huge excitement. Oh well, what do I expect for school right?

So now, Ashtyn is bored out her mind and I think I have had enough with Polly Pockets,
so we are making charts and counting down to preschool. Just seven days left! Woohoo!

Summer Vacation

2008-08-29T10:56:00.001-07:00

Warning: This Is Long! Just skip to the pictures if you like (:

Wow, where has my summer gone. Man, it's been a whirl wind.
Well, I won't kill anyone (or myself) by explaining every detail, but
hopefully I can summarize a lot of it without overwhelming.

It was a rough start to summer for our family. I couple days into it, I was running and had a huge biff on some gravel and sprained my ankle. It looked like a tennis ball and was so painful. I was pretty bummed out since I know how long sprains take to heal, and I had some fun summer plans ahead. Argh! I have sprained my ankle before many times, but I don't remembering going through something like this before. Could it be that I am just getting older? Hmm... I don't know, but my leg ached (especially at night for weeks.) After about six weeks it finally stopped making my leg ache, and now after nine weeks, I feel much much better, although it's still a little sore.

Well, then we had our water pipe break. Luckily, we didn't have water damage, but it cost us a pretty penny to get fixed. Then two days before we left to Utah, our red Mitsubishi broke down. We had to get it towed to a near by auto shop and prayed it wasn't the transmission.

Despite all of our set backs, we hopped on a plane to Utah. Brian with Tera, Shay and Ashtyn on one plane and Raegan and I on another plane (we only had four sky mile tickets, so Raeg and I bought the cheapest we could). The plane was great. Raegan was an angel and despite all our many delays (huge storms in the regions), we all made it safe and sound and crashed at 3:00 a.m.

Utah was awesome. I have forgotten how much I love it. It always makes me a little homesick to think of those big beautiful mountains, but I had also forgotten how dry it is everywhere. Was it really this yellow and dry before? I guess I've gotten used to the green. But, oh it felt good to be back. I have to say my heart is torn in two places now. Utah and Maryland will always be home to me.

First we stayed a few days with Brian's parents. Then we headed on up to Idaho to have a family reunion with my family in Emmett. It was themed the "Incredibles" and we even had matching shirts. Talk about a reunion though, it was amazing! We went white water rafting (where I flew off the raft into the rapids and literally thought I was going to die), some of us went on a three day hike, we went wave running at a nearby reservoir, had an awesome girls night out at a Thai restaurant, had some trivia games, guess who the person is games, and even did a fun craft where we sewed hand towels. It couldn't have been more fun and my kids were so excited to sleep in a tent with their cousins. We were all exhausted by the end.

All the Ashby cousins, don't they look Incredible??

So the next two weeks we spent at Brian's family's house. We had a great time. We hiked to Ensign peak one night, roasted smores, went the temple square to show our kids and just enjoyed talking and reacquainting with cousins.

Ensign Peak

Raegan was miserable though. She spent all of these two weeks getting over a nasty virus that she had caught. The last three days that we were there, she threw up for three days straight! We couldn't keep anything down her. When we finally were able to get some Pediatlite in her, she started to improve.

Brian had to go back to Maryland to work for a couple of weeks. We stayed with the Whipples for a couple more days and then headed down to my parent's house in Tooele. The girls were in heaven with their own bunk beds and room. They made us feel so welcome. We had a lot of fun. Hmmm.... let me think, this is what we did...

Played games. Yes, we played a lot of games, and my girls were loving that their grandma and grandpa would play with them.
Went fishing- Grandpa and Brian (when he returned) took the girls fishing one morning. Shay caught three fish, Tera one, and Ashtyn had a few nibbles.
Swimming- we went one afternoon swimming with my sister Erin and her cute kids. It was a blast and I was shocked that my girls went down the slide on their own!!!
Canyon- One evening we went and roasted hot dogs for dinner in the canyon. The kids weren't thrilled about all the bees around though.
Ammon and Liz's house- We went up to Ammon and Liz's new town house in Spanish Fork
Dawn and Ray's house- We also went to South Jordan to see my sister and her fiance's new house.
Thanksgiving Point- My parent's have a pass at the dinosaur museum. We had a great time trying to find our kids in the millions of other kids that were there that day (:
The Sandy Aquarium- where we saw an octopus, sea horses, lots of snakes, etc. etc..
Hale Theatre- We went with all my siblings and their spouses to the Curious Savage. This was where we first met Ray (my new bro. in law), then we went to Leatherbys afterward.

The day before my sister's wedding I took my girls to Tamara and Steve's (Brian's sister) house in Salt Lake so they could watch our kids while we went to the wedding for my sister the next day. I was supposed to pick Brian up at 10:30 that night, but it turned out his flight was delayed and he didn't get in until 3:30 the next morning. Ahh!! We were so tired, but so relieved that he made it since he had both of our temple recommends in his back pocket.

The next day we all (except the kids) headed up to the Manti temple and watched my sweet sister and her husband get sealed. It was very sweet and the spirit was strong. It was so wonderful to see all us (six kids) together with our spouses in the temple. Never before had this happened. I was so glad to be there.

My cute sisters, sister in laws, and mom

OH, I forgot to say, we even got to eat at Fat Jacks before the wedding. Fat Jacks is an awesome pizza place in Ephraim. We grew to love it when Bri and I went to Snow College years ago. Then, after all the pictures and the wedding luncheon, we headed on over to Snow college to take a look around. We had a good time reminiscing. Yes, this is where we first met (not first started dating mind you).

The reception was the next day and it was beautiful! It was held in a reception center in South Jordan. We spent the first part of the afternoon getting family pictures, and then changed and got wedding pictures. It was so good to be with my family again! It's been two years since we have been home and oh have I felt it!! The wedding and reception was perfect and I am so happy for my cute sister!!

Oh, and one of my favorite things that we got to do in Utah was when we got to see our good friends the Joni and Jeff and your cute kids, Julie and your family, and Lani and your family. We just wished we had more time (and better transportation) to see more people. Thanks guys for coming to see us, we sure miss you!

Okay, this is longer than I meant it to be. Well, we are now home and after a red eye flight for Bri and my girls. It's amazing how quickly we all recovered (oh except Brian has a major ear infection that just won't go away). We are slowly getting back into our routine and although I was happy to return to my home and things, I miss my family already. I guess that's when you know you had a good time...

Our Lovely Green Grass

2008-06-26T18:11:00.000-07:00

We have a swamp in our front yard. Yes, there is a leak in the main water pipe leading to our house. We noticed a little puddle about two weeks ago and thought it was just from the rain, but it spread and spread and pretty soon our grass was green and growing like crazy, I had to weed every few days, and our neighbors grass kept getting yellower and yellower. It didn't even occur to me that it could be a pipe leak. I guess with homeownership you should just assume the worst right? Well, I was finally mentioning it to our neighbor and she brought it up and said she had to have hers replaced two years ago.

So.... we have called a very popular plumber (I'm assuming he's popular since we have only seen about five minutes of him so far) and are just waiting for the day where we get our nice green grass dug up and our dead bushes taken out (at least we have an excuse to get new bushes though!). For now, we are living off our neighbors water supply (our hose in the back connects to their hose outlet. Thank goodness we have nice neighbors!) and we are crossing our fingers that it gets done quickly and easily.

The good thing is that the previous owners did a double sealant to protect the house from things like floods, or pipe leaks. Our plumber was actually wondering why we didn't have basement flooding. Whew! Thank you home owners!!! We will forever be grateful!

On to Summer...

2008-06-22T19:08:00.000-07:00

Okay, where has the time gone? Has it really been that long since I have posted? And I thought the summer would give me more time... So, instead of giving a huge summary of my last two and a half weeks, I am going to quickly recap what we have been up to:

End of school activities: kindergarten luau, volunteer appreciation assembly, kindergarten picnic, last day of school parties.

Savage Fest- This is a little festival by the Savage Mill that we go to every year. We did this quickly (it was a really hot day!), but the girls had fun on the pony and horse rides and the moon bounces.

Father's Day- Good day. We had stuffed shells, Bri got a digital picture frame for his office, lots of home made cards and we made calls to our dads. Brian even got breakfast in bed this year (my kids couldn't believe he slept in longer than mommy!)

Play Dates- a necessity in the summer I've decided.

New camera for me!- I have been wanting this for a very long time. Sorry Bri, I know you wanted that HGTV. Anyway, I finally got a digital SLR and I am so excited!!

Swimming lessons- yes, the swimming is coming along, slowly but surely.

New swamp in our front yard- Hmmm... could it be a broken water pipe.....

Ashtyn's four year princess birthday party- I had to do the princess theme I don't know if I would have been able to get away with anything else. It seems that's all she can think about lately. To give you some idea, the other day she threw a penny into a fountain and made a wish. I asked her what she wished for and she said to be a princess. Then, Dora (the Explorer) asked her the other day what she was going to be when she grew up and of course, a fairy princess. She doesn't even want me to do her hair anymore for fear that it won't look like Sleeping Beauty..... I am starting to get a little panicked. We will ever get away from the princesses???

The princess party turned out fun, a little crazy at times, but fun. I made a castle cake, we read Princess and the Pea, we played princess pop the pea (where they sit and try to pop green balloons), we played princess find the pea (sit on pillows trying to figure out which pillow has a green golf ball under it) London Bridges (the hit of the party), princess coloring, making crowns and wands, played pin the crown on the princess, and of course cake and ice cream. The little princesses especially liked walking on our pink rug (tablecloth) up to the door. So, I would have to say it was our most successful in house birthday party ever (usually we run out of activities).

So all in all, our summer is coming along. The girls are a little bored at times and I'm a little crazy at times, but I think we will make it. Now for the count down to see our cousins!

Eye Doctor, First Step and Swivel Swiffer...

2008-06-04T11:14:00.000-07:00

When Ashtyn was in preschool they had an eye exam for all the little preschoolers. I thought for sure that she would pass. Well, we got a letter a couple weeks back saying she didn't pass and that she has an astigmatism. Ugh! I was really sad about that one because I have an astigmatism and can't wear contacts because of it, and therefore have been cursed with glasses since I was in kindergarten (I'm still holding off until lasik is 100% guaranteed.)

Anyway, today we went in to check out the verdict for her eyes. We went to a great pediatric opthamologist in Clarksville (I hear the best in Maryland) and low and behold, she has great vision! I was so happy. She even saw things better than I did with my glasses on. The doctor said she did have a slight astigmatism, but nothing to worry about yet, and a little far sightedness (I guess it's common in children), but a 20/25 record. Horray! So no glasses for my little one quite yet.

Raegan took her first step a couple of days ago. We missed it on camera, but it was so fun to see. She is now way past the time that my other girls walked (except Tera, she walked at 13 months), so I was starting to get a little nervous. She doesn't even want to try. She is slowly getting there, but would much rather crawl. She uses her knees like no other, and even has some callouses. We are thinking it's her fear of falling since she has had many of those from some mysterious little girl who likes to push her around. Well, we were so happy to see her take a first step and she had a huge cheering session from all her sisters and even clapped herself. Hopefully this will be the start to something. We shall see...

The other day Shaylee was watching something on tv and an infomercial came on. It was for a swivel swiffer (or something like that). I didn't pay much attention and neither did Brian, but Shay sure did. In the middle of it she came running up to Brian and said, "We NEED to buy a Swivel Swiffer dad! It goes on carpet, on stairs, on hardwood, and even swivels around!" After about two minutes of talking up all the features as fast as she could, she turned back to the infomercial that said, "Now you can have two for the price of one." She turned back to Brian and said, "DAD, DAD! Oh my goodness, now we can have TWO!!". She couldn't believe her eyes. I guess it's a good thing Shay doesn't control the money around here....

Enrichment Fair and Kids Day!

2008-05-29T07:19:00.000-07:00

During our sick time, I missed a few things, so hopefully I can make this a quick catch up post...

Last Tuesday we went to Enrichment night at school (yes, I drugged everyone up, we just couldn't miss this!). The Enrichment fair is basically a time where the kids and the teachers, can show off what they have been doing all year. We were so excited to go because Teralyn was in a play and she was also doing a transportation presentation and a power point presentation. We just couldn't miss it. Well, the Motrin worked wonders for Tera. The play was so cute. Tera was the April page in the play and had about two or three lines, but did them very well. Well, Shay was barely making it, so after the play we quickly went to see Shaylee's classroom and all her art, and Ashtyn, Shay, and I decided we should go quarantine ourselves again.

Bri got a video of Teralyn's transportation presentation and said she did an awesome job in front of a whole room full of people. She said she wasn't a tinge nervous. It's amazing how far she has come!! Man, just a couple years ago, there is no way she would have done that. I was so sad to miss out, but at least I have a video.

Memorial day was our Kids Day. This was our tradition in my family growing up, on Memorial and we LOVED it, so we do the same for our kids. We woke up early and went to the store to pick out favorite cereal (this is one of their favorite parts, because they usually don't get sugar cereal so they pick the most unhealthy cereal they can find and I just close my eyes...). Then, we headed on over to the park to have a picnic breakfast (we used to do it in the canyon, but since we don't have a lot of those out here, the park is our best bet). The girls played on the jungle gym for a while and then we headed home to get ready for our trip.

We decided this year to go to a place called Calvert Cliffs. It's a beach on the Chesapeake Bay that has some awesome scenery. You park your car at the Calvert Park and the have some great picnic places and a tire park, and then you hike on into the beach. The walk is about two miles. So, it was beautiful and a perfect day. The walk was really long though for kids and I was surprised there wasn't more complaining than there was. When we finally got to the beach, it was beautiful, but really crowded and we only found one tiny little shark tooth (supposedly Calvert Cliffs are known for good shark teeth hunting and shell hunting). Raegan crawled in the sand and loved it, but hated when she tried to stick it in her mouth. Ashtyn got in the water up to her waist in her clothes. Shaylee had a great time though and found some shells and clay that she insisted on keeping. Well, we were only there for probably forty five minutes and decided to go back.

Overall, I'm not sure if the drive to it (about an hour and a half) was worth the beach. I have to say the walk/hike was the best part about it. The scenery was great and the rivers etc. We even saw a huge snake in the path!

When it rains, it pours...

2008-05-25T18:41:00.000-07:00

When it rains it pours. At least when it comes to sicknesses in our family lately. It all started about two weeks ago when Raegan got Roseola. Just a day or so after she recovered Ashtyn came down with a fever. At first I thought maybe Roseola, but it seemed a little different, her fever wasn't as high. Well, her fever broke and then she started complaining of a sore throat. So we checked and yes, she had blisters covering her mouth and her tonsils. Pour girl! I knew right away it was Hand Foot and Mouth disease. So, we sent her to bed and I started thinking and wondering about this weird rash that had just appeared on my leg. I had been having hip and leg pain for a couple of days (just on my left side) and now I had this rash. Could it be Hand Foot and Mouth? Well, I looked it up and realized that it was probably Shingles!! Could I actually have Shingles at my age? I didn't even consider it until then because I thought I was too young. I quickly called my mom and she suggested to call the doctor that night and see if I could get in for the Viral shot that is supposed to stop your shingles from spreading. The problem is, it doesn't work unless you get it in the first 48 hours. I counted the hours in my head, and it had been almost 48.

The doctor wanted me to wait until morning, so I got in as early as I could and sure enough, Shingles...and I was too late for the medication. My doctor wouldn't even consider giving it to me though because I'm a nursing mother. You just have to wait it out, was all she said... Hmm.... Well, I went home a little frustrated and a little worried (since I had heard of long term effects from shingles) and couldn't keep back the tears. Bri gave me a great blessing that night and my spirits were so much better the next day. Although my leg hurts and still does, I feel like I am going to get through it just fine.

The next few days I had my older two girls catch the dreaded Hand Foot and Mouth disease. So, we took a doctor trip just to make sure because Shay's tonsils were closing up (they were SO swollen). Then I had a wierd UTI infection that popped up (could that be what caused the Shingles... hmm...), and just when I thought Tera was all better, I sent her to school and had to go pick her up early for a weird rash that had appeared all over arms!! What is going on?

Okay, my other big worry is that I will give my sweet baby chicken pox, since I am currently a carrier, and she hasn't been immunized for them yet. Well, so far no chicken pox, but she did bless us, and herself, with a cold which she is currently fighting. I ask you, what else can our family have at one point in time? I am just waiting for Job to come down and tell me that I am going to make it through. I definitely have a new appreciation for him....

Raegan turns One!

2008-05-20T10:54:00.000-07:00

Raegan turned one on Sunday. We made her a small cake, set it on a plate in the middle of a sheet and let her go at it. Out of all our kids, she is the first one to actually get in and get messy with it. We were quite impressed. As you can tell with the video, she quite enjoyed it herself.

We had a fun birthday party for Raegy with just our family. The girls gave her a little swimming pool and Bri and I gave her a dump truck that she can sit on and push herself around. She loved it, or at least the box.

We had her favorite dinner, mashed potatoes (we also had roast beef, but didn't think she would appreciate that yet). When she saw those potatoes she threw a fit waiting for them to cool off. Who knew you could love potatoes so much. She also likes broccoli, so we threw that in and just for fun some watermelon. Well, basically she ate the potatoes and searched around on her plate until she found every last little crumb. Everything else ended up on the floor. She was in heaven...

It seems so unreal that it has actually been a year since we have had our little Raegan. We are so glad she has joined our family.
So, here is our tribute to our little Raegan for her first birthday and some things that I love about her and hope to never forget...

When she eats something she likes, she says, "mmmm.... " through the whole thing.
She loves loves loves string cheese and will jump on her knees for it.
She gives awesome hugs, especially in the morning and after nap.
She can say "Hi!" and will to just about anyone.
She waves bye bye at bed time.
Loves her bink and will steal if she has to, so watch out...
Favorite foods are mashed potatoes, string cheese, strawberries, and crackers.
Picky eater unless she is really really in a good mood.
Will eat anything on the floor though....
Loves loves loves to play with her sisters.
Says, "mamma, dadda, bye, hi, doggie, uh oh (when something falls), and num num (when she's thirsty).
Crawls everywhere (has no qualms about mud, grass, concrete, etc. etc.)
Knee walks with the best of 'em.
Favorite thing to do is climb on Ashtyn's bed and jump up and down.
Favorite place is on the arm of the couch hanging on to the railing and yes, tackles all the pillows to get there.
Loves outside and will do just about anything to get there.
Pretty amazing stair climber.
Every time we laugh, she does too.
Starts to blow while she's waiting for her food to be ready.
Dances to music and tries to sing along.

We sure love ya Raeg!

The knee walk....

2008-05-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

Raegan hasn't quite learned to walk on her feet yet, but she has pretty much mastered the knee walk! When she gets really excited for something, she will even give some jumps....

(There is a video in this blank space above, just click on the play button in the lower left).

This past week has been a sick week for my little babe. After five days of really high fever, I finally took her in to the doc. and insisted that we have a catheter done to see if she had a UTI (we have a history of UTI's in our girls). Well, it was no fun for anyone and resulted in Raegan screaming and me trying to comfort her and then of course, her peeing all over me!! I guess that's what I get for insisting on a catheter. Right when we got home she broke out in a huge rash and it ended up being Roseola.

So, things are better, Raegan's fever is down and her rash is going away. Now to work on those walking skills....

Mother's Day

2008-05-12T07:29:00.000-07:00

The day before Mother's day, Brian and my girls gave me just about the best gift I could have asked for. They cleaned the house! Yes, they cleaned the bathrooms, the basement, the kitchen, vacuumed, and even mopped the floor (my least favorite job). I was quite impressed. Brian mentioned that he knew I wouldn't have a good mother's day if I know my house is a mess... hmmm... I guess he is starting to catch on.

So, Mother's Day morning Brian didn't have early church meetings so he took the girls and got them all ready for church before I woke up!!! I have never been much of a morning person, so it's really hard for me to get up early and get all the girls out to church by myself on time every Sunday. It was so so so nice to have a break from this. The girls and Bri brought me breakfast in bed (Sweedish pancakes with powder sugar...mmmm!!) and then I quickly got in the shower and we headed to church.

Raegan got a fever while we were in church and so Brian had quite a fun time trying to calm down a tired, sick babe. I had a nice and relaxing time though and even got a huge sugar cookie from Shaylee (thanks Sandi, it's was great!), three mother's day cards, and chocolates.

We came home, put our sick baby to sleep and spent a couple of hours playing Monopoly Jr. with our girls. Bri was planning on giving me a nap, but since I had such a good night sleep, I spent the rest of the afternoon reading. We then had a little party where my girls gave me shake maker (yes, they picked it out and used their own money), and Bri gave me the Anne of Green Gables DVD's. I am so excited!! I have been wanting them for years! I have some great memories of watching them with my sisters and mom and can't wait for my girls to watch them with me.

Julia Anderson (our friend in the ward) came for dinner. While Brian was finishing up dinner, we played Mouse Trap (my kid's favorite game). The girls were loving having some fresh blood to play with. I'm not sure if Julia enjoyed this too much... hmmm...

Bri made my favorite home made rolls, Chicken mushroom bake, baked potatoes, Julia's green salad, and yummy chocolate cake from Costco.... yummy! It was awesome and we were so stuffed. We chatted for a while, the girls went to bed, Julia went home, and Brian did the dishes.

All except my sweet baby's fever, it was one of my favorite mother's day ever!

And as a tribute to my sweet mom on Mother's Day, these are my some fun things that I sure love about her:

She gets so excited over the smallest things.
She stresses about the smallest things
She loves the Lord more than anything
she gave birth to and raised six kids!
She has a wonderful sense of humor and keeps us laughing
All six of her kids have gone through the temple.
She is beautiful
She served a mission and can 't wait to serve another one with my dad
She sings beautifully
She keeps her house spotless (expect when grandkids come of course)
She is very organized.
She will do service to anyone in need
She loves to read and is very intellectual
She has such a green thumb
She can bottle fruit with the best of 'em...
She can sew with the best of 'em and even made my wedding dress!
She magnifies her callings and is a great leader.
She cooks better than almost anyone I know
She had awesome cook books that she has made.
She is very thrifty and is awesome with her budget!
She's loves her family more than anything
She's a wonderful friend, mom, wife, and example to me

Love you mom!

Sleeping Through the Night?

2008-05-07T12:03:00.000-07:00

For the last three days Raegan has slept through the night. Yes, that is what I said. For the first time in her life, she has slept a full eleven hours without waking up to eat. I consider this her biggest and greatest milestone. Finally, finally, just before her year birthday (on the 18th) I am not waking up to nurse her in the night.

I am so excited about this. This is the milestone that all mothers wait for. The day that they will finally be getting sleep again. My sweet husband has tried and tried to get me to not feed her in the night, but when you are so so tired, and you know that if you just nurse her, she will go back to sleep, then it's so much easier. So after months and months of this nursing session, it starts to weigh on you and drag you down and that is when you just have to say, "I've had enough". So, the other night I told myself I was going to do it. I got my earplugs ready, shut my door and slept (well, kind of). I was so worried about her all night that I didn't really sleep, but when she cried in the night, Brian went right in, put a binkie in, and left. She cried for all of two minutes and didn't make another peep until 7:30! Who would have thought that it would be that easy? Granted, we have tried this before (a few months ago) and it didn't work, but I had no idea that it would have EVER worked. I was preparing myself for some major battles.

So, now I am actually getting a full night sleep for the first time in....well, before I was pregnant and it feels so so so good. (:

Mommy Daughter Date and an ER Visit

2008-05-04T07:05:00.000-07:00

Okay so, Brian and I have struggled on how to teach our kids the value of money and chores. When we first got married, I was all about our kids having chores and earning an allowance each week. Bri argued that this way isn't teaching them that being part of a family is helping each other, and that there should just be things that they do every day just because they are in our family. I have to say, he has changed my mind. So, over the past seven or so years, we have tried to teach our kids to help out by doing the dishes and cleaning their rooms etc. with no monetary rewards.

So, now that our kids are a little older, they really don't understand the value of money. In the past when they needed something, we would get it for them. When they wanted something, they would have to put it on their wish list for Christmas or their birthday. It has worked out just fine, but now they are old enough that they should be working for and saving their money so our plans need to change.

This is our plan that we have been doing the past couple of weeks. Hopefully it can teach them to both help around just because, but also to learn how to work and save money...

I think I have talked about our bean jars before. We fill these jars up with beans depending on if they get their things done during the day without a lot of asking or complaining. They have to clean their rooms, make their beds, get dressed and ready for the day, help with dishes, do piano, etc. They then get a handful of beans. So far this has worked great. The kids are so motivated because when their jar is full, they get a mommy daughter date or a daddy daughter date. Now our plan is that when it is all the way full, they also get ten dollars. They have to give some to tithing and some to savings, and the rest they get to spend or save for something they want. They also have to use their own money from now on for presents for their sisters on birthdays and Christmas..

We have been doing this for two weeks now. The kids are more motivated and Tera is saving up for a new backpack, since hers has ripped. I think their first motivation though is still those dates with mom and dad. Last week they all three got to the top finally, and the only thing they seemed to care about was the date. Hmmm.... I guess it's a good thing that they still consider time with mom or dad more important than money. Or, maybe it's that we usually end up getting ice cream at the end of the date...

Anyway, Ashtyn was the first to get to the top so we went on a mommy daughter date on Thursday evening. She was so excited and it was so fun to spend some alone time with her. First we went to Wendy's and got ourselves a picnic. We took a blanket and went to Lake Elkhorn and ate our picnic. Then we played on the jungle gym and I even went down the slide with her (I don't think those things are made for six foot tall adults). We walked around the lake for a little bit and watched the ducks and then headed on over to McDonald's to get an ice cream. We sat on a hill overlooking the lake and ate it and laughed and laughed at our faces with chocolate all over them. We both had a blast and we both can't wait until next time.

My ER visit

When I got home the girls went to bed, I fed Raegan and then headed on over to my book club. We had a good time discussing our book, The Book Thief, and stayed until about 11:00. My throat started hurting really bad and I noticed it was swelling a little. I took a couple of ibuprofen and went to sleep. About 3:00 in the morning I woke up with my throat killing me and very swollen. I looked in the mirror and my uvula was huge! I was getting a little nervous since I felt it was starting to block my breathing. I woke up Brian and talked to him a bit and we decided to wait until morning. At 6:00, I woke up and could barely talk, my throat was so swollen. I was beginning to panic and had to tilt my head forward to breath clearly. Bri called my doctor and she said to go into the ER.

We got the girls ready for school, sent them over to our neighbors, and headed on to the ER. I got in quickly, but of course it took forever in the ER. They gave me a steroid shot in my arm to stop the swelling and then took a strep culture. At one point my blood pressure dropped really low and I was beginning to pass out. They took my blood sugar and it was 70, so they have me orange juice and crackers. I was much better after that.

Four hours later, my swelling was going down and my strep throat culture was positive. I was so relieved to go home, with just a strep infection because in my mind I thought it was an allergy of some sort. Bri stayed home all day and helped me out and I went through a while of fever and tiredness, but after a few doses of antibiotics, I am feeling much better.

So now that you have heard my whole crazy day of mommy daughter dates, book groups, and an ER visit, I am curious about how you veteran moms and dads out there, and even the not so veteran handle the chore, money situation. Do you give them allowance or are they just expected to help?

A Weekend With the Ashbys...

2008-04-24T11:41:00.000-07:00

My little bro. (although he's taller than me) and his cute wife came to visit us this last weekend. Next to my sister in law (Michelle), they are our most frequent visitors
(hint, hint, family...).

Ammon and Liz arrived on Thursday night. Our girls were so excited and talked about it all week. They practically smothered them and just couldn't get enough. I mean, who wouldn't love a fun loving uncle (who doesn't have kids yet, so has the energy to indulge) and a cute aunt (who takes time to do puzzles and hold hands etc.).

So Friday morning, we sent the older girls to school and my friend Nicole took my little Ashtyn with her and we left to Mount Vernon to explore George Washington. It was fun. The weather was beautiful and Raegan did awesome. We have been before, but this time without kids, we got much more out of it. We even got a great picture of George Washington's teeth (and no, they aren't made of wood).

After exploring for a while, we ate at the cafe on the grounds and then had an awesome ice cream cone. Which I have to insist, will be a tradition for next time we go! It had a green apple twist inside it and oh was it good! Can't wait for next time.

Raegan also got a taste of her first ice cream... there is no turning back now!

The ride home was long! We were caught between two accidents. One on I495 and one on I95. Thank goodness for my friends Laurrel and Nicole who took my kids for me for two hours past when I expected to be home!!! Argh! Anyway, it all worked out okay and next time I will have to account for traffic jams.

That night we watched movies and chatted. Oh how much I miss having family around!

Saturday we still had great weather so we decided to be a little more adventurous and
go to Philadelphia. It was a good decision. The ride wasn't too bad with some great DVD's, book for me, and Ipod for Brian. We arrived there at 1:00, but still had plenty of time to see everything we wanted and even had a picnic in the car.

We waited in a long line to see the Liberty Bell which was pretty interesting, but my favorite part was Independence Hall where the founding fathers met often to discuss affairs. We missed the chance to get tickets to get in, but luckily we got there fifteen minutes before they had a free admission for the day.. so we got to see it anyway!

All our feet where Abraham Lincoln stood...

Well, the girls were tired, but we pushed them a little more and tried to go to the Mint (which was closed) so we headed back as to not get home too late. On the way back to our car, we saw Benjamin Franklin's grave and got some questions from Shaylee as to why people threw coins on it. None of us so called adults knew what to say. I guess it will always be a mystery... hmm...

We got home around nine, put the kids to bed and stayed it to talk again. We were all pretty exhausted, but how can you pass up a good chat?

Sunday it rained all day. We went to church, took naps, played games and played more games and ate cookies...

Monday was their last day with us. Bri had to go to work and we didn't have much time before their flight so we went shopping for books and Maryland shirts. It was another rainy day, but Ammon found his book and Liz resorted to finding her Maryland shirt at the airport. We said our goodbyes and I dropped them off around 3:30.

We already miss them... come back soon Ammon and Liz!!

Put on Your Dancing Shoes!!

2008-04-16T18:07:00.000-07:00

Okay, so it's been quite a while since I have posted. Well, I have a few excuses. One is that the mouse on our computer broke, another is that I've been crazy busy lately, and last of all, well... I just haven't had a good reason to. But now I do. It actually happened last Friday, so it's a little bit of a catch up, but it's worth mentioning.

Last Friday we had our first annual High School Reunion Dance in our ward. It was sooo much fun! We all dressed up as we would have going to a dance in high school and then danced to all of the good old songs that we loved. We had such a fun time and even Brian danced (fast) with me!! Can you believe it? I guess the Napoleon Dynamite dance has brought him out...

The DJ did a great job of picking out some fast and slow songs from the past and we munched on goodies over a chocolate fountain.
At the end of the night we voted on the "prom king" and the "prom queen". Brian was voted as second attendant with his Letterman's jacket... hee heee! It was funny.

So, if any of you are over activities in your ward, I would suggest doing this one! It was such a good time and we were exhausted from all the dancing we did. Overall I would say the best ward activity that I have been to!

General Conference

2008-04-06T17:51:00.000-07:00

There's nothing that brightens up a gloomy weekend better than General Conference! And that is how I felt. Yes, it is spring in Maryland and that means cloudy, rainy days for a couple of months and just ask my husband, I feel it! He thinks that I am powered by solar energy. I am beginning to believe it too...

Anyway, this weekend was General Conference for our church and it was so uplifting. It was also a very memorable one where we had a Solemn Assembly and sustained our new prophet President Thomas S. Monson and his counselors, President Uchtdorf and President Eyring. The spirit was strong and sweet and I am now renewed to be a better person and better mom. Oh, and a renewed faith that these cloudy days will let up soon... (:

This year we really tried to get our kids to listen to conference. Teralyn is now seven and getting excited to be baptized later this year. She is trying really hard to understand the gospel. So, we gave them a great general conference packet that my friend emailed to me. They were so motivated by it and of course, I had a treat as an incentive, so that helped too. Anyway, I was so proud of my girls (at least my two older girls) who actually listened to conference and I even got a comment from Teralyn that it was short this year! That's what happens when you are enjoying it I guess....

Superhero???

2008-04-02T10:52:00.000-07:00

On Sunday I was doing my usual morning routine, trying to get all four of my girls to church on time while their dad is at morning meetings. Every Sunday I barely make it right before church starts, well most Sundays. Sometimes I just slip in the back too embarrassed to take my whole crew in front of everyone to the seat Brian saves for us.

Well, Sunday was no exception. I was barely going to be on time, so I was pretty much stepping on the gas. After a while my Ashtyn noticed and said, "Mom, your not a superhero, you are driving too fast!". I just laughed and said, "I'm not huh?". She said, "no, daddy is the superhero, he drives really fast!".

Yes, it's true... he does. It cracks me up that my three year old noticed though. So, after a few more minutes of superhero status Ashtyn said, "mom, you are a superhero now, you are zooming!".
Well, I guess I have made it... at least according to a three year old. (:

Wedding dress shopping....

2008-03-28T17:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my three older sisters, my mom, my two sister in laws and my little neice went shopping for my sister's wedding dress. Yes, I was doing a little pouting since I was the only one who couldn't make it. I guess that's what you get when you live clear across the country. Anyway, she found one and I hear it is beautiful. I am so pleased for her.

My cute sister Dawn is one of the best people I know. She is continually trying to do what is right and I seriously don't know anyone who does a better job at it. But, at the same time, she enjoys life and has an awesome sense of humor! She definitely inspires me to be a better person.

Dawn has watched each one of her five siblings get married, and have families and it has been her greatest desire. I am so happy for her and can't wait for her wedding in
August. I also can't wait to be back with my cute siblings, and siblings in-laws.
Love you guys!

My sisters: Erin (19 months older than me), Angie (5 years older than me), and Dawn (3 years older).

Easter

2008-03-26T12:00:00.001-07:00

Now that I am back home, there isn't as much time to blog. Oh, it seems like just the other day that I thought having just one child was hard (not that I still don't think it is) now I am just amazed at all I am able to do when I just have one with me.

Well, we had a pretty relaxed Easter day with just our family this year. We played a few games, took an Easter stroll, had a fun Easter egg hunt around the house, watched The Lamb of God video, and had a great ham and potato dinner. It was my mom's birthday too, so we had a fun chat with her on the phone. Happy Birthday mom!!

This year I didn't get Easter dresses, but my friend Mendy gave me a ton of hand-me-downs so my girls feel like it is Christmas, as far as dresses goes. I am so grateful since I am finding it harder and harder to find modest, cute dresses. The girls spent all of one afternoon trying dresses on and modeling them to me. My favorite was when Teralyn came running into the kitchen to Brian and I and in a frilly dress and said, "we've got Annie!". Bri and I cracked up. They had recently watched Annie and I guess that little part stuck out in her mind.

Two Saturdays ago we were able to go to the Ringling Brother's Circus in Baltimore. We got tickets quite a long time ago and were so excited (I think Bri and I were more excited than our kids). We had a good time. We saw acrobats, elephants, a tiger show, a dog show, horses and zebras, and lots of lights and noise. The older girls really enjoyed it although Ashtyn would have probably rather been at a friend's birthday party that she was missing. Oh well, we endured the crankiness and she actually made it to the last half hour of the party, so we were all happy. Raegan also wasn't so thrilled about the noise and by the end, she was done. All in all we were happy we went.

Pictures

2008-03-24T07:21:00.001-07:00

So, I finally got pictures in of our trip if you are interested. They are distributed throughout the posts... (:

Last day in San Diego...

2008-03-22T18:59:00.000-07:00

On to the last day of vacation...

In the morning we packed all up and Bri left for his class. I let Raegan sleep for a while and then Reagan and I headed onto San Diego zoo. I debated whether or not to go because, well, it's not so fun when you are by yourself with just a baby who could care less about the animals. But, I had to check it out so I decided to do it.

Well, I'm glad we went. It was such fun to see, and such a cool zoo! With my ticket, we were able to ride on the bus tour that takes you all around the zoo from the bus. Basically, it takes out the walking. Raegan loved this part of it. She just stuck her head out the window and enjoyed the breeze. I liked it too, it gave me an idea of what I wanted to walk around and see.

So, after the bus tour we walked around for a few hours. It felt a little weird to be with just a baby who could care less, but it was such a fun zoo, that I had a great time anyway. We, (or I guess I should say I) especially liked the polar bear (who dove for a bone in the freezing water), the gigantic ant eaters, and the koala bears. Raegy liked.... the kids on the bus tour. Anyway, we had a great time. I parked really far away though, so we did a ton of walking and we were pretty dang tired at the end.

The pink flamingos were pretty cool too...

We then went and picked up Bri from his class and I just had to show him La Jolla, so we headed on out to the beach. It was beautiful again and one of the best parts of our whole trip. He got to see the seals and then we watched the sun set over the ocean. We stopped in at a little Thai food restaurant and ate outside on their deck while we watched the sun go down. Oh the Thai food... it was amazing! This was actually my first time trying it and I am determined to find a good Thai restaurant in Maryland now. I ordered a dish called Drenched Noodles. It had chicken, sprouts, onions, a few peppers, cilantro, and yummy noodles. I couldn't stop myself from saying "mmmm.. this is so good" through the whole thing (I guess I did because apparently that is what Bri told my kids that I said). I must have sounded like Bob in What About Bob.... hmm.. how funny. Anyway, it was wonderful.

Our hotel...

We then left to wait for our plane which was leaving at 10:30. Yes, that is 10:30 at night. We were doing a red eye. I know, call me crazy a red eye with a baby, but that was how it worked out with Brian's work, so I had to do mine the same. The flight was long, and very tiring with a baby on your legs for five hours, but at least Raegan slept and we got a few minutes. We changed planes for the last hour and a half and actually slept quite a bit on that one. Brian didn't even realize that we were in the air. That's how out of it we were at the end.

We were glad to be home and to see our little girls. Apparently all had gone really well and my girls and my mother in law all seemed quite happy (I'm not sure if that is because she knew she was leaving in a few hours or what), but we were glad to see smiles on their faces. The one major disaster they had though was the stomach flu. Yes, Ashtyn and Teralyn were both throwing up and my poor mother in law had a few nights of changing the sheets multiple times. How did we get so lucky to miss that I ask you? Anyway, thank you Marilyn for a wonderful time. She also was able to read to them The Little Princess. What a great memory they will have!

So here are the things that I love love love about San Diego:

* The sun! It was really hard to come home to a cloudy day!
* The weather. I could totally live in 70 degree weather all year long and be perfectly happy.
* The people. Yes, the people are totally friendly and kind and I had so many people help me in so many ways! Raegan also had a million people talk to her and she made quite a few buddies.
* The beautiful scenery. Oh, to have beautiful palm trees growing everywhere and bright purple wildflowers on the side of the road! Not to mention the many green rolling hills covered in perfect grass everywhere and the beautiful beaches!
* The kids. People have children and embrace them!!

The things that I could live without:

* The expense. Yes, it is even more expensive to live in San Diego than it is to live in Maryland.
* The clothing. Where is it??? I mean, they have a million clothing stores, you think people would wear more of it.... hmmmm.
* The feelings like, "I would be totally out of place in my minivan here."

Overall, it was great and I can't wait to someday go back, next time with my kids. For now, I am going to catch up on sleep...

Seals, In-n-Out, and Mission Bay

2008-03-21T09:57:00.000-07:00

La Jolla was awesome! It was one of my favorite places that I have seen out here. Raeg and I got there around 12:00 noon and even the drive alone would have been worth it. It was actually only about fifteen minutes from our hotel. La Jolla is a suburb off of San Diego right off the coast line. To get to there, you drive through a beautiful canyon (of course not the huge mountain canyons they have in Utah, but pretty good for Marylanders at least), and then you go into the city of La Jolla which is gorgeous and very clean.

Well, we headed on down to the coast and found a great parking spot right in front of the coast line. Little did I know how great it was until we got out and right in front of us was the Children's Pool Beach which was covered with seals and sea lions!! The Children's Pool Beach is a little area right off the ocean that has a man made stone wall built in a half circle. It was originally made so children could come down and play in the ocean, but they could be kept from the dangers of the big waves. Soon after they built it, they seals and sea lions took it over and now it is their home. It was amazing to sea seals in the wild! I could have watched them sun bathe forever, but Raegy was just interested in the little doggie right next to us. Hmmm... oh well. Anyway, I got some great pictures that I will post later.

Next we strolled up and down the coast line and just took in the scenery. After a while I decided I better find my girls the souvenir that I have been looking for (hooded sweatshirts), so we went shopping again. Just a couple of blocks up from the coast line are dozens of fun shops. You could spend a ton of money here if you wanted. We strolled up and down and I finally found what I wanted. We then stopped at a sandwich shop for a turkey sandwich (I was going safe this time) and a smoothie and went back to a grassy area over the shore to eat. Oh, it was beautiful and the weather was perfect. I'm hoping to show Bri La Jolla before we leave today.

We left around three so Raeg could take a nap, but she fell asleep on the way back and then woke up right when we got in our hotel. Oh, the joy... So, I spent the next couple of hours trying to get her back to sleep with no avail. When I finally gave up, we spent the rest of our afternoon with me trying to read and Raeg trying to destroy my book. So, I finally gave up that idea too, and we just took a stroll around the hotel waking up all the nap takers with Raegy's babbling. It was very exciting....ha ha.

Bri finally got back and we headed to In-n-Out Burger. Yes, the famous California burger joint that I have been hearing about for years!! I was very excited, but also trying not to get my hopes up too much because, well, I didn't want to be let down. I guess I kind of just expected it to be a like a fast food burger, just a little fresher (since everything they do is fresh, no freezing and they even peal and cute the potatoes right in front of you for the french fries). Well, let me just say, it was not a let down. It was fantastic! I loved the burger and it even compared to my Royal Red Robin Burger. Well, almost. It was probably the best fast food burger that I have ever had! Yummy, yummy! Oh, and the fries and shake were great too! Now they just need to get one in Maryland, right?

Okay so after our little burger quest, our baby was tired and cranky, but we had to go see Mission Bay, so we headed on out again. It was late when we got there, so there wasn't a ton to see, but it was fun. We parked in a fair ground parking lot and strolled up and down the beach for a while. The beach on Mission Bay is right by the board walk (unlike La Jolla where you have to go down the cliffs to get in the water). There were beach houses and shops everywhere! I'm sure it is a very popular place for kids to hang out. It was different from the other beaches in that it was mostly a party beach, not so much families. It was fun to see though.

Well, we headed on back to our hotel, put our sleepy baby back to bed and now we are on to our last day of vacation...

Fashion Valley Mall and the Boat House

2008-03-20T09:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my shopping day. Raeg and I headed down to Fashion Valley Mall in downtown. The mall looks and feels exactly like a regular mall, except it is outside and maybe a little bigger. Sometimes I even forgot we were outside until I would see a palm tree here and there or one time we ran into a swarm of bees (Ahh!).

We had a great time. I especially liked the huge Old Navy store (the biggest one I have ever been to) and I spent a little more money than I probably should have, but we sure enjoyed it. Even Raegan enjoyed it. For a little while at least. She was happily sitting in her stroller babbling to everyone who walked by. So many people stopped to talk to us. She made quite a few friends at the mall. One lady even tried speaking Spanish to us. Luckily, I remembered a little bit from high school. I recognized caliente (hot) when she touched Raegan's bare feet. I was in line buying her new socks (we keep loosing her socks due to her kicking them off). She was saying that her feet are hot even though she doesn't have socks on. I thought it was so funny that she was speaking in Spanish to me, and when she saw the confused look on my face she quickly changed to English. I've decided you pretty much need to be bilingual out here, or at least pretend you are.

So, we shopped for a few hours and then Raegy and I both got really tired, so we decided to come back to the hotel for a little siesta. It was awesome! I can't tell you how long it has been since I have had nap during the day (except on Sunday afternoons when Bri takes the kids for me of course!).

After our little nap, Bri came back and we headed out to the Boat House. Okay, so the Boat House is another tradition of Brian's that he has been dying to take me to. If we didn't get to do anything else but this, he would have been happy. It's a little restaurant that is located close to the airport, that looks out over all the hundreds of boats docked on the shore. It's a beautiful scene, but the best part about it is that it has Lobster Wednesday. Lobster Wednesday is a huge lobster that you can have for dinner for just 11 bucks, on Wednesdays that is. I have actually never ordered Lobster, so he was ecstatic about me trying it. He obviously loves it.

This picture is taken in our car of all the over passes that were stacked on top of eachother. We counted about six in one area!

When we got to the Boat House they said the wait would be about twenty minutes. Well, it ended up being about forty minutes (which was okay). When we finally got seated it took another fifteen minutes to order and then we had to wait again. By this time Raegan was getting grumpier and grumpier. I knew she wouldn't be able to last much longer. About half an hour later, we watched our order come out and being served to the table next to us. Apparently, we had ordered the same thing and so it mistakenly been given to them. I would have blown it off, but Raegan was not going to last much longer so I went and talked to our server and he was very apologetic and quickly come out with our lobsters. Raegan now had had enough and put her head down on the table to fall asleep. So basically, I had to stand and hold her while Bri ate his, and then we switched while I ate mine. We found out that they had run out of lobster (just after our order) and that was only the second time ever that that had happened. Phew!!

Anyway, despite all the trouble, it was so yummy and we were so glad that it all worked out in the end. We were planning on going to the Gas Lamp after our meal, but by then it was too late so we headed on back to the hotel.

Today I am going to explore La Jolla while Brian is at class, and then when he meets up with us, we will head to In and Out for dinner (I will be sure to mention you Joni!) and then to Mission Bay. So, on to another day...

Balboa Park, Coronado Island, Lost, and Dawnie's Engaged!

2008-03-19T09:41:00.000-07:00

Day #3 of San Diego started with our usual morning routine. We wake up, get ready, go eat, Brian walks to class, Raegan goes down for a nap, I read, blog, do email, and then Raegan and I go off to play.

Yesterday our adventure was to go to Balboa park in downtown San Diego. Balboa park is the nations largest urban culture park and probably the largest tourist attraction in San Diego. It's a huge area with multiple museums, gardens, playgrounds, and even hiking paths to go on. The San Diego zoo is also just north of the park, so there are many things to do there.

Well, Raegan and I basically walked up one side of the park and down the other. We did go into a couple of museums (the Mingei museum and Botanical gardens), but most were quite expensive so we decided to opt-out. We were happy just looking though. Everything was so beautiful and green. The weather was perfect (about 68 degrees) and the sun was shining. The museums were all built with old style architecture and there were water fountains wherever we turned around! Kids were everywhere, playing around the fountains and in the gardens, it made me miss mine.

Raegan refused to crawl around on the grass. She would just whine and pick up one arm until I finally picked her up...

We stopped for lunch at a Japanese cafe. I got a California style sandwich which had crab, avocado and cucumber. Yes, it sounded good at the time, but we ended up throwing half of it away. I thought Raegan would enjoy eating the bread, but she didn't, and I only enjoyed the avocado part. I have been missing good old peanut butter and honey...

After walking around for about four hours, I debated whether or not we should keep going up to the zoo. But, when Raegan had a crying fit and I realized I hadn't nursed her for a few hours, or changed her diaper all day, I decided against it. I guess that will be another day's adventure.

So, we came home and gave Reag another quick nap, I read, and when Reagan woke up I called my cute sister Dawn who has been trying to get ahold of me for days. She gave me some great news. She is engaged! She is getting married on August 15th in the Manti temple, and thanks to Brian changing flights the other day, I already have a ticket!! Can't wait Dawnie!!!

After the great news, Bri came back from his class and we headed out to Coronado Island. He has stayed there multiple times on previous business trips, so this was the place that he most wanted me to see. So, Coronado Island is a little island right off of San Diego. To get there, you have to take a huge bridge over the bay. Since it is an island, you can see the sun set over the ocean on one side, and then on the other side, you can see the spectacular view of down town San Diego. Every time Bri comes to San Diego he tells me all about it and says, "someday I am going to take you with me Brenda so you can see how beautiful this is" and now I am here. (:

So, we went to the west side of the island first to see the sunset and the beach. We walked up and down the beach for a while. Then, we drove over to the east side of the island and walked up and down the board walk and looked out to San Diego. It was like we were looking at a picture. So beautiful!! I can see how he didn't enjoy sharing this with co-workers in the past. It's just too romantic. He needed me there with him. (:

We stopped at a little Gyro shop (it has become Brian's tradition) and had some really yummy Gyros with salad and fries. We ate this outside on their deck over looking the bay. We then went shopping a little to find some souveniers for our girls.

By this time, Raegan was pretty much conked out, so we decided it was time to head back. We put her to sleep in her play pen and then watched an episode of Lost on the internet with our headsets. We conked out at 10:30. I know, I know, we are such party animals..

Day #2 of San Diego...

2008-03-18T10:04:00.000-07:00

So here I am again in my hotel room with my sleeping baby. Perfect time to recap my day yesterday..

Okay, let me just say that I love love love Gus. He is our GPS system. I actually thought it was not a real necessity when we first got him, but I am beginning to see the light. I spent most of my day yesterday going from store to store around San Diego trying to find a new stroller and I wasn't worried at all thanks to the little guy. I finally did find one after going to about seven different places. It wasn't exactly what I wanted, but what can you expect in a crunch. I was hoping to get a sit and stand stroller, but I guess I will have to wait until we have another disaster with our double stroller this time.... hmmm...

By the time we had found a new stroller (after four hours of shopping), Raegan had about had it so we came back to the hotel to give her another quick nap and then I put in our destinations into Gus. Bri came back from his class an hour later, and we headed out to Old Town San Diego. Old Town, is basically a little step through time of, well, basically the old history and culture of San Diego. Since it was first occupied by the Hispanics, it has many Mexican shops and restaurants up and down the street. It was so beautiful! I got a few pictures (which I will upload later, I forgot my cable).

So, Joni recommended going to a Mexican restaurant in Old Town and that was just what we did. We were serenaded by some men playing banjos, and we ate outside under a canopy. It was beautiful and so much fun! Oh, and let me just say the food was delicioso! (Is that how you spell it?) We then walked up and down the streets, and felt a little out of place pushing our baby and watching all of the St. Patrick Day parties going on, but we had a great time.

Old Town Plaza

Then we got in our car and headed up to see the San Diego temple. It was beautiful!! And like Tracy said, it looks just like a castle. I'm sure my little Ashtyn would have loved it! We didn't get to go in to the grounds (it was fenced up because it was so late, but I got some awesome pictures that I will put up later. We also tried to drive up to Mount Soledad (which I hear has a great view of the city), but for some reason it was blocked off. We were a little disappointed about that. Oh well, we have so many other things we want to see so it won't be too much of a disappointment.

Cactus tree I just had to get a picture of.

Beautiful San Diego temple.

This morning I couldn't find my other tennis shoe. I mean, is there really that many places that you can loose a shoe in a hotel room? I searched and searched. Finally, we went up to the front desk and she basically laughed at me. But, just a few minutes ago, I was brought my lone shoe! I guess it had gotten all wrapped up in the laundry. I am quite glad to be reunited...

On to another day....

San Diego, here we come!!

2008-03-14T08:16:00.000-07:00

Right now I am in a hotel room in San Diego waiting for my little Raegan to wake up from her nap. Brian had a class his work was paying for in San Diego so I said, "why don't I go with you?". We asked my sweet mother in law if we could fly her out to Maryland to watch our other kids while Brian, Raegan, and I went to have some fun. Well, she said yes and she arrived on Saturday night and Bri, Raegan and I left yesterday afternoon!

So, I know this sounds crazy, but we have never left our kids over night except once when we had just Teralyn and Shaylee and left them for just two days. I have left them with Brian once when I went to England, but Bri and I together have never left them for longer than two days!! Mostly it is because we don't have family around close enough. So, we are totally excited to have a "kid free vacation" (except our little Raegan of course) and also we think it will be so good for our kids at home to have some one on one time with their grandma. She is even going to read them the Little Princess! What a great mother in law I have!

Yesterday when we left our kids, they basically kicked us out of the house. I bought them a bag of new puzzels, games, etc. that they could play with their grandma while she was here. I made the mistake of telling them beforehand, so they were totally excited for us to leave so they could get out the goods.

Well, the flight was amazingly long, but we had a few good things happen in our favor. Our original connector flights (to North Carolina) were going to be separate and an hour and a half apart. So, I came early with Brian and was just going to wait around for a while for mine and Raegan's flight. Athe last minute they announced that they had overbooked the flight and if anyone would give up their seat they would get a free round ticket! Bri ran up there, and was able to change flights to my flight (yahoo!!!) and got the free ticket. We were quite happy about that.

Then, when we finally got to San Diego, we found a huge break in our stroller! So we went to talk to the airline and they will reimburse us for a new one. Our stroller is actually seven years old and has been used through all of our kids, so you can imagine how glad I am to replace it.

Anyway, it felt like the longest flight I have been on. Raegan was exhausted and not sleeping much, but did pretty well for a nine month old, and we finally got into our hotel at 2:00 a.m. (Maryland time). Exhausted, we went straight to bed.

Our hotel room (Oh, how I will miss the king size bed!)

So Now, Brian is at his class and I am sitting in a dark hotel room waiting for my sweet baby to take a nap, so we can go out and play! I have some great ideas from my good friend Joni (who grew up in San Diego) and now I just have to get my guts up to go adventure on my own. My first task will be to buy a new stroller. Then I think I will go shopping! I know, crazy for me to come all the way to San Diego to just go shopping, but yes, this is a vacation for me not to shop with four kids! I am so excited!

So, off to a much needed vacation from my crazy busy life at home! I will keep you posted of our San Diego adventures... (:

The Adventures of Raegan

2008-03-13T07:25:00.000-07:00

So, on Tuesday I was eating my usual oatmeal breakfast and Raegan was eating her usual Cheerios when, out of nowhere, she grabs my bowl and my oatmeal and starts shoveling it in. It surprised me so much that I gave her my bowl for her to eat the rest. She enjoyed it for quite a while, but when it got to the end, she raised it above her head and threw it, shattering the bowl into a million tiny pieces.

Later that same day I put Raegan down to crawl around a bit and hurried and checked my email. A minute later I hear her screaming at the top of her lungs. I ran into the kitchen and she had gotten into the cupboard under the sink. She found our dishwasher soap cubes and I guess she thought they looked tasty because she ate one! She had soap all over, coming out of her mouth and all over the floor. I grabbed a cup of water and basically threw it in her mouth to wash it out. She wasn't happy about that one, but what do you do? I spent the rest of my morning with a wet soapy baby and other floor to scrub.

Then, after the girls got home from school that day, Raegan was crawling around the kitchen and stood up with the back of the chair. She must have pulled thinking it would hold her, and it came crashing down on top of her. She conked her head on the hardwood floor and the front of her head with the chair. Her two little teeth had knocked her top gums and she was bleeding all over the place. It took a while for her to calm down, but she eventually did, and seems fine besides a sore mouth and a huge bump on her head from the chair.

Well, I guess she didn't learn her lesson because that night during dinner she did the same exact thing with the chair. This time she landed a little better though. Brian held her after her fall to eat her dinner and her little hands were just shaking. It took about fifteen minutes before she stopped.

I have had some crazy things happen with my kids (broken legs, stitches, black eyes etc...) but I don't think I have ever had so many accidents with a baby in one day! Looks like we are in for some fun adventures. (:

There Goes the Hair...

2008-03-09T18:34:00.000-07:00

Shaylee has been begging to get her hair cut for, hmmm... a year or so. We have cut it many times before, but never short, and boy can she grow it back fast. Most of the time I give her the hair cut (I'm a little too cheap to go to the salon) and most of the time I cut off at least three inches. It is amazing how much hair this girl has though! It is so thick and grows so fast.

Well, after months of hearing how hot her hair was making her neck, Brian reluctantly gave in (yes, he is the one who had the hardest time letting it go) and decided she could cut it in the summer when it gets hot. Well, that didn't stop the complaints. I don't know if he got tired of hearing it, or if he got tired of combing her hair after baths, but he surprised us all and on her birthday gave her a coupon that said she could get it cut whenever she wants, no waiting until summer. Shay was ecstatic.

I told her we could even go to Cartoon Cuts to get it done (I know, I know, don't brake the bank!). Anyway, we finally did it yesterday and it was the best thing we have done for her and for us in a long time. I have to say, I was a little more emotional than I thought I would be. I mean, seven inches of beautiful thick hair!!! The hair stylist had no idea how big of deal this was. She just casually chopped it off and didn't even flinch. I was dying! But, I had no need to fear because it looks great. It fits her personality so well and the best part about it is that Shay loves it!

So, here's to no more snarls, no more blow drying for fifteen minutes, no more syrupy, sticky hair, no more globs and globs of conditioner, no more people getting her mixed up with her older sister, and no more complaints!

Tooth Fairy Blunders....

2008-03-03T18:30:00.000-08:00

When Teralyn was in kindergarten she had a lovely friend in her class who once put her little tooth under her pillow and guess what she got? No, not just money, but fairy dust too! Wow, amazing huh? We were pretty amazed until our little Teralyn then lost her tooth and put it under her pillow that night all excited about the... fairy dust (not the money)! We just prayed that night that our little tooth fairy would leave fairy dust and luckily she did.

Apparently, the tooth fairy has become a little senile. Yes, she forgets to come to our house sometimes. I don't remember the tooth fairy missing any teeth of mine, so she must just be getting old. We have had about four missing teeth in the last month between Teralyn and Shaylee and we still have about four loose ones to come very soon. I mean, who can keep up?

So, the first night Shay put her tooth under her pillow, the toothfairy didn't come. Yes, major dissapointment! Her explanation was that she was probably hybernating for the winter. We thought that was a perfect explanation. I mean, who would want to come out and go searching for teeth in twenty degree weather?

We also think that she is probably very very busy, and must be santa's helper (because she forgot to come on Christmas eve too). Hmm...well, Teralyn then put her tooth under her pillow and guess what? She forgot to come again. Teralyn's explanation was that the tooth fairy must be a boy (I thought that was a good explanation). Brian didn't think that was too funny.

Well, on the second night the tooth fairy remembered to come, and guess what? She brought fair dust too. Pink for Shay, and blue for Tera. (:

2008-02-24T18:46:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday night was a mommy daughter culture night at the school. Tera, Shay and I headed over and learned about Europe, South America, and Egypt. We did hieroglyphics, watched a movie about castle life in mid evil times, looked for puzzle pieces in sand, did rope swings, hula hoops, scooters, and balance beams. The girls and I had a great time, especially trying to do hula hoops together (I guess I don't have the hips I used to have!). Anyway, it was a very fun night and we can't wait to do it again next year!

Friday was another snow day, but it wasn't snow, it was freezing rain! I think this was the worst ice storm that I have seen since we moved to Maryland. It was amazing at how much ice was on our sidewalk. It was another perfect day to finish the science project board.

Saturday... oh what a crazy day! In the morning we finished up Teralyn's science project board, helped her get talk ready for Sunday, went out and bought a cake and candles, got the kids in the bath and then headed on over to the bowling alley for Shay's birthday party all by 12:00.

The party was fun, but a little crazy. We were promised that it was our day to relax and enjoy our daughter's party. Hmmm.... we were quite busy the whole time trying to get 13 little kids happily bowling while we managed a tired baby and sick three year old. It was quite the sight. Thank goodness my neighbor was there and offered to help with Raegan (and thank you parents for helping too). Everything went a little smoother after that. Although, if you talk to Bri he would beg to differ (he was a little worn out). Anyway, the kids had a great time and Shay had a great time, so we were happy.

When we got home it was around 3:30, I fed Raegan and put her to bed and then we finished opening Shay's gifts from her friends (didn't have time at the alley). Then, we quickly went over the dance that we promised our friend Cami that we would do for the ward talent show that night, and piled our kids back in the car, woke up our sleepy baby, grabbed our cd player, and piano books and headed to the stake center.

Teralyn and Shaylee have been asking me for three years if they could sing a song in the ward talent show. Every year I say yes and every year, when it gets closer, they change their minds. This year we decided to ask our little friends if they would help us out. Hailey and Jensen Terry did a song in the ward talent show last year that was awesome so we thought it would be a good idea to get them involved too. It was, the girls did a great job and actually followed through with it. I was very proud! Tamela (Hailey and Jensen's mom) did all the work though. She spent quite a bit of time practicing with them right before while I was out having fun (oh, I mean practicing our Love Me Tender music video.)

The whole talent show was very fun. The girls did great with their song, Teralyn did great with her piano pieces, and Bri and I had a fun time with 5 other people in our ward who performed the "worst music video ever" (check it out on you tube). Oh, and let's not forget Brian's Napoleon Dynamite dance. Yes, he danced the dance of Napoleon for the third consecutive year in our ward talent show! It was so funny and he did a great job. I have pictures from previous years, but this year I had a babe in my arms, so you get the picture... anyway, it was hillarious!

I was a little upset at Bri who put my name in for a Dance Dance Revolution contest and because of time they only ended up doing one (of which I was a part of!). Oh well, I guess I deserved it since I put his name in last year when he had to impersonate the bishop ice skating! It was pretty funny. Anyway, all in all it was a great night! We came home exhausted.

In the night Shay woke up with a fever. I stayed home with her and Raegan from church and now Raegan has come down with it. So now, we are back to hanging out on the couch with multiple movies and chicken noodle soup....

Shaylee Turns 6

2008-02-21T06:39:00.000-08:00

Shaylee turned 6 yesterday. She was so excited all week. It was all she could talk about. So, this is how our day went:

I thought it would be fun to have lunch with my Shay at school, so I dropped my kids off at Nicole's, grabbed a happy meal from Wendy's, and headed on over. We had a great time, Shay was excited I came. It was good to see how she fits in with her class. I had forgotten how much energy kindergarteners can have. Shay is pretty mellow, so it fun to see how she handled it. She seemed very content, I was proud of her.

On the way to her class her music teacher stopped me and we talked about Shay for a few minutes. She mentioned how much she loves her and how sweet and quiet she is in class. Then she said, "you are expecting a baby aren't you?". I was a little shocked, but just smiled and said no. She was embarrassed, so I tried to change the subject. I am just trying to justify it to myself that it's because I had my huge coat on...right? Either that or I really need to get my crunches going!

Anyway, it was a great time at school and a fun break to my day. That night we had Shay's favorite meal (homemade lasagna) and some bread that Teralyn had made at school (yummy Tera!) and then we had a little family party.

This is what Shay got for her birthday:

Grandma and grandpa Ashby gave her warm pink pj's and pink slippers! I think this was her favorite gift. She has been begging me for slippers for so long.

Grandma and grandpa Whipple gave her a cute locket necklace and ring, and an Amelia Bedillia book.

Tera and Ashty gave her a Polly Pocket horse kit.

Mom and dad gave her a music box (which she has also been begging for ever since we saw some at the National Cathedral in the gift shop.)

We then had cupcakes (saving the cake for her friend b-day party on Saturday) and talked about the things we love about Shay.

So, as a tribute to my Shay on her birthday, here are some of my favorite things about her:

She is a great friend (most of the time).
Very persistent. Once she decides she wants to do something, she does it!
Thinks that time is always on her side. Yes, she likes to smell the roses and she does it quite often.
Some of her good friends right now are Hannah, April, and Max.
Favorite food is....carrots! Oh, and lasagna.
Favorite color is pink (at the moment).
Loves to ride bikes and pretty much taught herself (with a little help from dad).
Loves to rollerskate and iceskate and is trying really hard to get better.
Says the best prayers in the world, she is very sincere.
Gets quite attached to people and has a really really hard time when we have visitors and then they have to go home... (crying for three or four days).
Loves computer games (especially Webkins) and would spend all day playing them if I let her.
Loves to play outside with her friends.
falls and skins her knees almost every day.
has a testimony and loves the Lord.
wants to be a mom and a doctor someday.
Is a great sister to Raegan and is always helping her smile.
has a great laugh and makes playing board games a lot of fun!
loves horses.

I sure love you Shay!

Bag Tagged

2008-02-19T06:46:00.000-08:00

I have been bagged tagged by Jenni, so here goes...
Here is my purse that I bought last year. It is so much bigger than my old one. I'm not sure how I carried around anything before. Now, I can carry around just about everything.

Anyway, here are the things I found in my bag...

lotion
3 diapers
bib
baby spoons (2 of them. I was wondering where they all ended up)
baby change of clothes. (this is a necessity!)
wallet
cell phone
3 binkies (another necessity)
2 chapsticks
pen
1 lone baby sock
tissues
hair elastic (you never know with four girls!)
baby toy
sunglasses
Aleve (just in case)
and lots of receipts (I left those out of the picture).

Yes, my purse has become a diaper bag with a few extras.....
Okay, I tag Liz, Elizabeth, and Dawn.

National Cathedral with Michelle

2008-02-13T18:43:00.000-08:00

This last weekend we spent a little more time with my sweet sister in law, Michelle. She is a dietitian in Utah and every year gets to come to DC to go to a conference. So, we are lucky enough to get to have her stay with us for the weekend before and the weekend after and we always love it so much.

Since Michelle has been out many times before, she has probably seen more sights out here than we have. This time we thought we would mostly just talk and let our girls have a little visit with their aunt (it has been since summer that we have had family out!! boo hoo!) Anyway, we had a great time with her and she got to go ice skating and bowling. I know, she comes all the way out for that???

To give us a little credit, we also took her to the National Cathedral (which she was hoping to see last time, but we didn't get around to it). Bri took off last Friday from work and since the girls didn't have school we decided to do that.

Well, the cathedral is beautiful. It totally reminded me of my England trip and made me want to go back! It was actually a lot of fun. The best part was the elevator (according to my kids) from the parking garage. It was glass and it was outside so we got to "ride up" to the beautiful sun! My favorite part was actually the bishop's garden outside. It had so many cute paths and it was green and well taken care of. We had a good time playing hide and seek. Hee hee! We laughed so hard at Ashtyn one time when she ran on the path of two tiny dogs and screamed her lungs out and took off the other direction (what funny girls I have!).

Anyway, I forgot my camera, Argh!! But, if you ever get a chance to go see the cathedral, do it! It was a very fun trip.

Here is a cute picture of Michelle and the girls. Oh, by the way, she is very single!!

Birthday celebration and 1500 flies!!!

2008-02-13T18:02:00.000-08:00

Birthday Party

Okay, so I haven't written about my birthday celebration yet. I know, I know, get on with it, it was last Saturday night. Well, I have just had a couple of other posts that I wanted to get out and then didn't get around to it.

Anyway, last Saturday night some friends had a birthday celebration for Nicole Jensen and I at La Madeline's in Columbia. It was a lot of fun. I felt bad that I didn't bring a camera, but we had about 15 or so friends meet us there and my sweet friend Jenni even bought me cheesecake and hot chocolate! It was yummy!

We had a lot of fun just talking and laughing. Especially when the subject got changed to Twilight. It always does doesn't it?

Thank you my friends for the fun celebration! I had a great time. (:

The Fly project

So, yesterday we had an ice day (where school was canceled) and thank goodness we did! Shaylee hadn't finished her valentines yet and it took at least two, maybe three hours to get them done. Phew!!! Also, Teralyn was trying to finish her Science project report that was due today and so Bri spent about two hours helping her with that. We were so so so glad that we had that time. Was this intervention??? I will have to ask my kids what they said in their prayers last night....

For those of you who don't know, Teralyn has been working on a science project about flies. Yes, it was her dad's idea (I detest the things!). His idea was to test if flies like vinegar or honey better. I thought for sure that I had convinced Tera that it was a bad idea, when out of nowhere, she wrote it as her top choice! Ahhh! So, for the past few weeks we have bought fly larva, put it in a huge container with a screen (I made sure they taped up multiple times), watched the larva turn to cocoons, watch the cocoons hatch and then watch as about 1500 flies flew around trying to decide which trap to go in.

I have to say it's been an interesting experience, but I am so glad it's over! What surprised me the most is not what happened to the flies, but that my little Teralyn warmed up to the flies and actually wanted to count every single one of them (who knew coming from a girl who is terrified of dogs?)

Anyway, the fly science project is finally finished!!! Hooray! Oh, except for the presentation that we still need to put together. I feel a huge relief and I think Brian does too. I don't know if Tera was as stressed about it as Brian and I were. Hmmmm...... Did I ever tell you thank you mom and dad? Well if I didn't, I am now!

I've Been Tagged

2008-02-11T06:52:00.000-08:00

Okay, Liz has tagged me and I finally did it (yes, this is my first time actually following through with a tag). So, I tag Julia (both of you), Joni, Tracy, and Angie!

What time did you get up this morning?

*7:20 I usually wake up to my little Ashtyn coming in to tell me "It's morning time mommy!"

Diamonds or pearls?

* Diamonds

What was the last film you saw at the cinema?

*hmmm.... I think it was Alvin and the Chipmunks.

What is your favorite TV show?

*Dora. It gives me a few minutes to myself.

What do you usually have for breakfast?

*Oatmeal (can you believe it? I used to detest the stuff!)

What is your middle name?

*I don't have one.

What food do you dislike?

*cooked peas, but don't tell my kids!

What is your favorite CD at the moment?

*Brite music!! (I don't remember when the last time was that I put in a cd for me and not my kids!)

What kind of car do you drive?

*Toyota Sienna, I sure love my minivan!

Favorite Sandwich

* Chicken Cordon Blue from La Beau's in Logan Utah.

Favorite item of clothing?

* shoes.

If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?

* A Disney Cruise. (:

Favorite Brand of clothing

* Old Navy

Where would you retire to?

* Anywhere close to my family (if it's warm of course).

What is your most recent memorable birthday?

* This last one. I turned 30. Did you say it had to be a good birthday?? (:

Favorite sport to watch

* basketball.

When is your birthday?

* January 27th

Are you a morning person or a night person?

* I have always been a night person until I had babies. Now I am neither.

What is your shoe size?

* 10. Sadly, my foot has grown a full inch after four pregnancies. ):

Pets?

* Maybe someday. But never a cat, gerbel, hampster, rat, reptile. Okay, so maybe someday we will get a dog.... maybe.

Any new and exciting news you'd like to share?

* I get to take a trip with Bri and Raegan to San Diego during spring break while my mother in law watches my other three girls!!! Yay! I can't wait!!!

What did you want to be when your were little?

* A mom.

How are you today?

* Wonderful! It's great times right after getting over the flu!!

What is your favorite candy?

* I'm not a huge candy person, but I will take whatever chocolate I can find!

What is your favorite flower?

* Tulips

What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to?

* March 16th (our San Diego trip) and July 9th (our Utah trip).

What are you listening to right now?

* Dora.

What is the last thing you ate?

* Granola cereal.

Do you wish on stars?

* Yes!

If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

* Lavendar.

How is the weather right now?

* cold, but sunny.

Last person you spoke to on the phone.

* My mom.

Favorite Soft Drink

* I don't care for soda much, but if I do have it, I like Sprite or Rootbeer.

Favorite Resturant

* RED ROBIN - Royal Red Robin Burger (yummy!!!)

Hair Color

* Brown with blond highlights

What was your favorite toy as a child?

* Strawberry Shortcake

Summer or winter

* Summer!

Hugs or kisses

* Hugs

Chocolate or vanilla

* Hmmm.... both.

When was the last time you cried?

* Saturday during the Worldwide Leadership Broadcast.

What is under your bed?

* A bag of clothes for the Salvation Army.

What did you do last night?

* Helped Teralyn get her spotlight ready for school, looked through school papers, and did the dishes.

What are you a afraid of?

* Pedophiles, mice and spiders.

Salty or sweet

* Sweet.

Favorite day of the week?

* Friday

How many towns have you lived in?

* Tooele, Ephraim, Logan, Jessup and Laurel (five)

Do you make friends easily?

* Sometimes.

A Few Milestones....

2008-02-06T07:45:00.000-08:00

Phew! After a week of fever and the flu, I am finally feeling better and up again. Brian has been great though and even stayed home for a few days to help me out. Anyway, it's been a crazy, busy week. We have had company from my cute sister in law, Michelle and the girls have really been enjoying her and so have we (especially during scripture study where they all sit on her lap and not mine!! Hee hee).

Also, this last week Raegan broke two teeth (finally!) and she learned to use the push toy to walk around a little. She also learned the joys of crawling on the dishwasher. Argh!

If you look closely, you can see that cute little tooth...

Okay, the other thing that happened is that we took our girls bowling! We had a blast. The girls were loving it and we got some cute pictures. The best part about it was watching Ashtyn. She would take her big old bowling ball, put it on the ground and give it a swift kick! We laughed so hard every time. I tried and tried to get a picture of that kick, but she just did it too fast. Sometimes the ball wouldn't make it all the way to the pins, so Bri would roll another ball to hit hers. (:

Shaylee would put her hand on her hips after each roll...

Two Sad Events....

2008-01-29T07:48:00.000-08:00

On Sunday two sad things happened. Our beloved prophet and president of the LDS church, Gordon B. Hinckley, passed away. The other sad thing that happened is that I turned 30. Both events gave me mixed feelings. Our prophet has been such a wonderful influence to so many people and such a great leader for so long. I can't imagine not hearing his sweet voice in General Conference. He will be greatly missed. On the other hand, I know that he is in a far better place and reunited with his wife and those he loves. We had a sweet family home evening last night where we talked to our girls about our dear prophet and each one of us had tears in our eyes remembering him.

As far as my birthday goes, yes it is a sad event. I guess I didn't expect to be so emotional about turning 30. I remember laughing at Brian when he was so sad about his 30th birthday two years ago. Now I understand. Doesn't getting older mean more maturity and the older you get the wiser you get right? Well, I don't feel any of that. All I can think of is that I am not in the coveted 20's anymore (boo hoo!).

Ok, so I don't mean to sound so glum. I mean, I'm not the only one getting older in this world and eventually we will have a perfect body right? Don't they say now that 30 is the new 20 (or is that 50?). It seems we are always wanting to get older until we hit 25 or so and then we just want to stop for five years, and now we are all trying to get younger. Hmmm.... oh well, I guess it's all in the attitude, so here's to hoping...

Despite my sad events, (and that I spent the evening in bed with a fever! Welcome to the 30's huh?), it turned out to be a pretty good day. The night before Bri took me out to dinner at PF Changs, oh I mean Applebees (huge line at PF Changs), and then we went to a symphony. There is a cute girl in our ward, Ashley Gartside (Brian home teaches her family) who plays viola in the Maryland Youth Symphony. We loved going! It was such a fun birthday date. Raegan came with us (yes, we were the only ones in the theater with a baby) and she did a great job. Oh, except one time when it was so so quiet and Raegan starting babbling and got a huge laugh from the audience. Ashley did wonderful and we were so glad we went.

Sunday we had a birthday party, (where I finally got an electric fondue pot!!! Yay!) and my kids made me some fun games, and a great birthday crown. Then that night we went to a baptism preview for Teralyn (do a really have a girl old enough to get baptized????) and then I zonked out at 9:00.

So, on to a great year as a 30 year old right as soon as I get rid of this darn fever!!! (:

Kids say the darndest things....

2008-01-23T10:55:00.000-08:00

Monday when my girls were home from school for the holiday, I was watching some news on tv. They had the presidential nominees up and were talking about a few of them. When Mitt Romney came up I said to my girls, "this guy is running for president girls, and he is Mormon like us". My girls were quite impressed and then Shaylee blurted out, "he is so handsome!" Teralyn and I laughed and laughed and then a minute later she said, "he is almost as handsome as Wyatt in my primary class!". Tera and I had another good laugh. Hmmm.... no wonder she has enjoyed primary so much lately. (:

So, Brian and I have been trying a different form of discipline for the past week. We are hoping it will help with the kids' motivation to get their things done without us constantly nagging them. We found a few mason jars in our basement and I bought a whole bunch of stickers. They each got their own jar to decorate and put their name on. Then, we said that when they do their jobs without us asking and they do it happily, then they get some beans in their jar. Once their jar is full, then they get to go on a daddy daughter date (or a mommy daughter date, whichever one they choose).

So, last night Tera, Ashtyn, and I were on our way home from piano lessons. Ashtyn noticed the full moon in the sky and started commenting on how big and beautiful the moon was. After a minute it hid behind some clouds and Ashtyn said, "get back here moon!". It didn't come back. She continued yelling at the moon to come back and when it finally did she yelled "that's a good moon, now you can get beans in your jar and go on a daddy daughter date!" Tera and I had another good laugh...

Bowling With a Baby

2008-01-19T07:52:00.000-08:00

Three Fridays of every month our family has a babysitting swap with two other families in our ward. It works out great for everyone. The kids have a blast and look forward to it every time, and we really enjoy our date nights. So, Brian and I haven't been too creative in the past. Usually we end up just going out to eat or going to a movie. We always try to do something creative, but we also have a babe in tow, so we end up not doing the usual creative things (sky diving, bungee cord jumping, parachuting, etc. you know the like...). (:

Anyway, last night we did something a little crazy for us and went bowling! We have tried this before but it was when I was about eight months pregnant and we went to the Columbia bowling alley. We were actually a little relieved when they said Friday nights were reserved for bowling leagues because it smelled of smoke and I felt a little out of place with my huge belly. So this time, we thought we would try the Laurel bowling alley, and we had a blast! It was clean (no smoky smell), it was friendly, we quickly got a lane, the scoring was electronic (yes, it has been that long for us), and we didn't even feel out of place with our little babe. There was actually a little family right next to us with two little kids.

So I have to say that the three times that I have been bowling with Brian, I always think I am going to beat him, but I never do! I don't know if it is my ego or what, but I guess I just need to admit to myself that he is better than me and then maybe next time I will beat him. We had two games and both times he wiped me out. Okay, so the first time the score was 126 to 85, and the second time the score was 125 to 108. As you can see, I'm getting better, watch out for next time Brian!

One of our favorite parts of the night though was that the little family right next to us kept cheering us on! They were so friendly and Raegan even let the mom hold her! I was shocked! After our little games, we went outside to a little sandwich shop called, "Shane's". We shared a super steak submarine and some fries and it was so yummy! We then got our girls, put them to bed, and had our movie night.

So, if you have any more good date ideas that we can do with a baby in tow, pass it on!

Goodbye PT Cruiser!!!

2008-01-15T07:15:00.000-08:00

So the past few weeks while our car has been getting fixed, we have been using a PT Cruiser for our rental car. When we first got it, we kind of cringed (we have always made comments about how much we don't like their looks...), and when Brian first drove it to work and I asked him how he liked it, he wasn't too happy about it. Well, as the time went on so did our opinion of the little car. Although I never did figure out how to manually turn on the dome light, there were some really cool features, for example, it tells you how many miles until you are out of gas (which is a huge benefit for me!). I actually learned to really like riding it. For some reason it felt like I was driving a little sports car. Although it looks pretty big, it felt really small. So, right when we were really getting used to the little thing, we get a call from the auto body shop saying our car is fixed.

You know, I should be really excited about this, our car is finally fixed and looks as good as new, but I am actually pretty sad. Now I don't get to drive a little sports car anymore (or at least in my mind a sports car), my kids aren't excited as much about my little shopping trips and now I can never make fun of the PT Cruiser again, because I actually liked it! Oh, another thing, I don't get to smell that new car smell.

When we turned it in yesterday and got our Mitsubishi Gallant back, I laughed so hard (to myself that is) when Brian said, "I wonder how much PT Cruisers cost?".

Pump it Up

2008-01-10T11:03:00.001-08:00

Yesterday Nicole Jensen and I and our four kids, went to Pump it Up in Columbia. We went to an open play time and for just fourteen bucks (you don't have to pay for adults or babes), we were able to get all of us in! We had a great time. I have never been there before, so I didn't really know what to expect, but I was impressed. There was hardly anyone there and there were so many fun moon bounces for our kids to play on. We had a blast.

For Christmas from my cute younger bro. and his wife, we got some really cool water bottles. We have already used them many times and we each got our own size and color. Even little Raegy got one. We put water in it for her and she sipped it and loved it! Yes, it was her first time using a cup or sippy so I had to get some pictures. Hope you enjoy.

What older sibling doesn't LOVE to dress up the younger ones? Ashtyn and Teralyn were enjoying torturing Raegan with the sunglasses. She actually didn't mind it at first..

Preschool blunders, and a great book...

2008-01-09T10:09:00.000-08:00

So, last night I finished a great book. It's called, The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale. I loved it! Cami actually loaned it to me quite a while ago, and I just didn't get around to reading it until now. (I'm sorry Cami, I will finally return your book!) Anyway, I am so glad that she recommended it me. It was very light reading, but so much fun. Check it out if you get a chance.

Yesterday Ashtyn refused to go to preschool. She told me when she woke up that she didn't want to go, and I just crossed my fingers that she would. When we got in, I tried to be excited, hoping it would rub off on her, but no go. She basically clung to my leg like it was the end of the world or something. her teachers tried their darndest to get her off my legs and into class, but she threatened a huge tantrum, so they gave up. After about fifteen minutes of this, I decided to not push it. I told her that we could go home, but when she got home, she needed to go take a nap on her bed. She said "no" of course, but I guess that she knew I meant business because she went straight up to her bed and laid down, pouting to herself. Well, after about an hour of not sleeping and pouting she asked me if she could go to preschool. It was too late by then so we just had a little chat about the reasons she doesn't like preschool. The only thing that I can think is the problem is that she doesn't have a lot of friends at school. She complains that the kids don't play with her (I'm sure she is not doing much to help). I am just a little frustrated and don't really know what to do.... Any advice will help.

Ice, here we come!!

2008-01-09T09:45:00.000-08:00

Okay, a little catch up....
Ever since Bri got in-line skates for Christmas, my whole family has been obsessed with roller skating and ice skating. Except me that is, I am terrified of it. It has to do with breaking my arm once on ice, and once on roller skates. I know, I know, get over it right? Anyway, we actually went one time during Christmas break to practice our basketball skills at the church and Bri brought all the roller skates too, so we had a little practice in there (don't worry, we aren't quite good enough to scuff up the gym, it was mostly a little scuffle here and a little scuffle there. (:

So, Brian gets this idea that my girls would love ice skating lessons. Shaylee immediately said yes, and Teralyn and Ashtyn immediately said no. Since we quit horse riding lessons for the winter (it was getting a little chilly), we decided to do it. After telling Teralyn that she didn't have to do it, and Brian threatening her that she did, :) she decided last minute that she would be brave and try. So, now they
are onto the adventure of the ice rink. So far, so good. We have only had one lesson, but they are actually enjoying it and are excited about it. Who would have thought that I would have girls who actually liked to get on ice skates???

Okay, I admit, it has looked like so much fun watching them, that I am considering trying again. I will have to ask my girls a little technique on falling though so I don't break another arm.

New Years Eve Bash

2008-01-02T18:09:00.000-08:00

Okay, so we had our second annual New Years Eve bash for our kids. It started two years ago (last year it fell on a Sunday so we didn't do it) when our kids asked us why we got to go to parties during the holidays and they didn't. We thought about it and said, "well, why don't we throw you a New Years Eve party and you can invite your friends over?". So, that year we had a total of eighteen kids in our house (while their parents went out) and we all had a blast.

We had so much fun last time that we decided to do it again. Brian and I are not quite to the superhero status (although we are pretty close), nor do we have the house space that we would like, so we didn't invite ALL their friends like they wanted, but we did invite quite a few and we totalled nineteen kids in our house for three hours.

Luckily, we had Dance Dance Revolution, so for the first hour Brian was able to do tournaments with the kids downstairs. I was just about ready to get the goody table set up, when I was bombarded with hungry kids. Turns out that I never did get the treat table set up, it was pretty much me handing out treats as fast as I could while the kids ran from DDR to the treats as fast as they could (to those whose kids came over, I'm sorry about the sugar high).

After an hour, we turned on Meet the Robinsons and the kids calmed down for a little while to watch a movie. We grabbed our new game of Sorry, and set it up in the living room for those who got a little bored of the movie. It turned out great, the stragglers came up with Bri and I and we directed a fun little game and enjoyed ourselves immensely! We laughed at little Ethan Turpin because he definitely kept the game animated, especially when he drew an eleven (his favorite, so he says).

The game and the movie ended simultaneously (I'm not sure how that worked out) and we loaded the kids up with hats, pots and pans, shoes and socks, coats, and of course noise makers (I know, you parents were happy about that one). We then ran down to our backyard and woke up all the neighbors.

So, it was successful and we can't wait until next year!

Teralyn's first piano recital

2007-12-31T13:43:00.001-08:00

Teralyn had her first piano recital yesterday! Nicole Jensen (her piano teacher), Holly King, and Heather Connor all combined their students for a recital at the Connor's house. Well, it was great fun! All the kids did so well. I was really impressed. I have to say though that I think I was more nervous than Tera. She was so calm through the whole thing while I was just shaking in the chair. Yes, she did mess up on one of her songs, but she calmly started again and kept going.

So, on the way to the recital I remembered my camera, but by then it was too late! I was pretty upset, but luckily my good friend Jenni was there to save the day! Here are some pictures that she took for us....

Christmas

2007-12-27T17:10:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve day was actually really relaxing this year. We had everything ready, so we got to relax a little as a family. Then, that night we headed on over to our friends house, the Turpins, for a little fondue. We had cheese fondue for dinner and then chocolate for dessert. We loved it! We have done this a few years now because we are both family less during this time and every year we just have such a great time and eat so much! Our kids had a blast playing video games downstairs and so we had a great evening. We then acted out the Nativity (so sad that I forgot my camera!) and all the kids were so cute! We headed on home and our girls all climbed into bed with Tera (all on the top bunk) and excitedly went to sleep (at least I think they did).

Bri and I watched Elf and laughed all evening while we prepared. The next morning we woke up before our girls (around 5:30), made some breakfast, put it in the oven, and then I went back to sleep (: . Bri finally woke the girls (and their mom) around 7:00 and we had our annual candlelight breakfast before the Christmas rush. We had a great breakfast and then lined up youngest to oldest to go in to Christmas.

This year was one of my favorites so far. The girls didn't rush through things too much, but actually took time to wait for each other a little. They each get three presents from us and then a stocking from Santa. We asked them to wait for their sisters to open their gifts, so they would all do it at the same time, and they did a great job. It was a very fun morning.

These were the gifts the girls got this year:

Tera- American Girl Doll (I know, we splurged a little), world
globe, and Barbie head (you can do her hair).
Shaylee- Barbie laptop, karaoke machine (maybe they actually will have the guts to
sing in the talent show this year. Cross your fingers!), and remote control
dog.
Ashtyn- Littlest Pet Shop, Leapster, and a new baby stroller.
Raegan- blocks, more blocks, and turtle push toy

Every year Brian tries to surprise me with a gift. He is convinced that I am psychic or something because I always know my gifts! I actually really try not to know. One year I found the receipt lying in the floor. Well, this year he actually surprised me! he gave me Photoshop Elements from Adobe. It's a program that helps you fix your pictures. I am really excited about it, now I just need a new camera (: ....
But the best part about it was that I had no idea! I even suggested this to him a while ago, but when it came down to it, I had totally forgotten about the suggestion.

As for Bri, he pretty much knew that he was going to get roller blades. He loves them though! He went out on Christmas day and tried them out. He has never had in line skates before and he is determined to learn how to use them. I am quite proud of him because he got my girls to go out on their roller blades too. Maybe they will actually learn how to use them after all.

So, Christmas night we had the Jensen family and Bro. Sethi in our ward for Christmas dinner. We had ham, yummy potatoes (Nicole's), salad, rolls and then caramel holiday popcorn. We just talked and enjoyed Bro. Sethi's stories and then the kids did a little karaoke.

Yesterday, Bri still had time off (he got senior staff the other day at work and therefore has five extra days of vacation a year!!!!). So, we played games all day and then in the evening went ice skating. Ashtyn was begging to go all day, but when she actually got the skates on and realized what she was getting herself into, I think she changed her mind. After a few falls, she did go out again though! Tera and Shay stayed pretty close to then edge for the first hour, but by the second they were actually letting go of the side a little! Raegan and I enjoyed watching from the side and laughing at Brian skating from girl to girl. I think that was his crash course for ice skating. He did pretty darn good though...

Teralyn lost her tooth on Christmas Eve!!

Christmas Traditions

2007-12-23T19:12:00.001-08:00

Some of our Christmas traditions...

We love to go to the Symphony of Lights down by the hospital. Every year we pay the twenty bucks and let our kids get out of their seat belts and the have free rein in the car while we all enjoy the lights. Bri even lets them drive. Yes I know, crazy! But the kids love it and we really enjoy it too!

Gingerbread houses. I know this is pretty much everyone's family tradition, but we started doing this about four years ago and have pictures from every year. One year my bro. who was on his mission here got to do it with us. Way fun! Anyway, we finally finished this tradition this morning. So, we all had quite the sugar high right before church.

Christmas lights at the temple. I love this! Every year it is just the same, but the spirit is so strong and I love that my kids can also feel it. This year was really special to us. The live nativity scene was excellent and even brought tears to our eyes. I really wanted my little girls to understand the true meaning of Christmas and after watching it twice, Ashtyn was begging to go back. I love to take my girls to the temple and just feel the spirit that presides there.

Advent Calendar. Okay so, this is our first year doing this since I just made it this year, but I think it will stick because my kids loved it! We did a scripture advent calendar where every night we would turn over a star and read a scripture about the Saviour. It was a great way to keep the true meaning of Christmas and also a fun way to count down....

And this is one of my kids' favorite tradition. On Christmas Adam (the night before Christmas Eve) Brian sleeps with the girls in their room. He makes a bed for himself on the floor and usually they all end up right next to him. Yes, everyone is tired in the morning, but it is so worth it! My kids love this. Then on Christmas Eve night, the girls get to sleep in each other's beds. It usually ends up with us moving them in the night....

Although this tradition hasn't happened yet, this is definitely my favorite, so I have to tell. Every Christmas morning, Brian and I wake up before the girls and make them a yummy breakfast. We go all out, muffins, fruit cocktail, sausage, quiche, hot chocolate etc. We put up a blanket so they can't see the Christmas room and then we all have a candlelight breakfast before the Christmas rush. When everyone is sufficiently excited, we get in line youngest to oldest and go in.