Catching Up

Well, last night we lived through our first real tornado warning, with an actual tornado touching down just east of town. We got to hunker in the basement, the lights went out, and the rain was coming down sideways. The tornado actually touched down in the town where we go to church, but from what I've heard, no one from our branch was hurt who lived there. We had some friends who are living in an RV come and stay with us through the storm, and they brought their dogs, who had 2 week old puppies. They were adorable and that helped the kids have something else to think about besides the storm. They also brought cookies, which were delicious and made it seem like picnicing in the basement instead of hoping our house didn't get blown away.

We also signed up for the family pool pass, and went to the pool for the first time today. I must be crazy to take 4 non swimmers with no one but me to stop them from drowning, but it worked for the hour or so we were there. Kaitlin took Josh and Luke around and showed them the water slides and places where they could touch, and I kept Tanner and Parker and tried to keep Tanner from going where he couldn't touch, and keep Parker from falling over into the water. I had to chase Tanner 3 times as he got halfway up the stairs to the waterslides. He has no fear and wants to do everything he sees everyone else do. We all survived, and Mom even said that maybe we'll go back tomorrow.

Parker has learned how to climb up on chairs, and spends his time trying to play with the computer from the computer chair, or climb up onto the table from a kitchen chair. He can also climb up into the rocking chair, and he tries to rock himself. The other day I pushed the table chairs under the table so he couldn't climb up on the table. He climbed on a chair underneath the table, and was then stuck. I tried to get a video, but the battery was dead. It was so funny to hear him hollering, and see him try to figure out how to get out of his situation.

Kaitlin is babysitting for my biking friend, who has three children. She babysits for an hour 3 times a week while my friend gets her bike ride in. She is enjoying the feeling of being in charge, and loves the money coming in. She has grown up quite a bit in the last little while, and I can't believe that she will be 12 soon.

Josh and Luke are just trying to finagle more computer time from Mom, as she has sets more limits for the summer on how much tv and computer they can watch. We buzzed the oldest three boys' hair for the summer, and they look nice and cool now. Luke loved that it took less time to cut his hair than normal.

Well, I think that catches us up. Shane is still working 13-14 hour days, and will be until planting is over. If it would quit raining, he could get it done, but no luck yet. I was just made Young Women's president in our branch, so I will be busy getting to know all 2 of our girls. It should be a fun calling, and a new challenge as well.

The Goat Story

Sorry that is has been a while since we blogged. Time is going very fast, and yet super slowly, now that school is out. I will try to blog soon and catch up on what has been happening.

Anyway, I had to write about what happened last night. Shane and I take turns tucking the kids into bed. Last night was Shane's turn to tuck Josh and Luke, and he was telling them a story. When I tuck them in, they have me read them a book. When Dad tucks them in, they ask him to tell them stories of when he was growing up. I don't remember very many things that happened to me as a child, and Shane's stories are better anyway.

So, I go downstairs and hear tons of laughter coming from the boys room, and the sound of a goat, "maaaaa, maaaaa". Turns out Shane was telling the boys about when he had to milk the goat they had when he was a kid. One day, the goat was on the barn roof, and Shane was trying to get it to come down. Apparently he tried all kinds of things, from coaxing to throwing rocks, but to no avail. Anyway, I hear Shane making the goat noise, mimicking the goat that wouldn't come down, and the boys are just rolling with laughter. You know how it is when babies get laughing, and they can't stop, and is just the cutest thing ever? Well, imagine that coming from a 6 and 7 year old. It was so funny! All day today, they kept reminding each other of the goat noise and laughing to themselves. When it was my turn to tuck them tonight, they didn't even ask if I could remember any stories. They just know that I can't compete with that story of Shane's.

Tanner Tales

I realize that a lot of my blogging has to do with my two youngest children, especially Tanner. With the older 3 kids at school all day, and Parker being so sweet and mild (and having 2 naps a day), I have come to understand that a big bulk of my day involves Tanner. From feeding him, to playing with him, to hoping I don't kill him before the day is out, I spend a lot of my time and energy trying to keep up with him, and most of the time trying to stay ahead of his mischeiviousness.

Tanner has learned to use certain toys in his room to climb on so that he can reach the top of his or Parker's dresser. He wants to reach on top of Parker's dresser so that he can swipe his binkies. Many nights I come in to check on them, only to find that Tanner has either stolen the binky from Parker, and is sound asleep with it in his mouth, or has taken the extras from the dresser top. Well, last night about 9:00, I hear Parker just a cryin'. I head upstairs and open the door to their bedroom, and get hit with a heat wave that almost melts me. Tanner has turned on the heater on top of his dresser to HI, and the room has to be hotter than 90 degrees. I am ready to yell at Tanner, when I happen to glance and see this in Parker's crib.




Tanner has put his two blankets from his bed, a car ramp, a helicopter, and stuffed bear, a lego box, and several books and puzzles into Parker's crib. So not only is it hotter than Hades in there, but Parker has no where to lay down. I'd be crying to. So I started to laugh, had Kaitlin bring the camera, and had to get drinks for two boys who were starting to dehydrate from the heat. You may be thinking, "Why did she have the heater in there in the first place?" Well, until 2 days ago, nights were still very chilly here - 30's and low 40's - and Parker kicks his blankets off. So instead of running in to him all through the night, I turn on the heater. Well, needless to say after last night, the heater is now inoperable to Tanner. I keep telling Shane that Tanner will be the death of one of us. Either I'll kill him, or he'll kill me with his tactics. Last night was a close one.

On the other hand, the other person that takes up the 2nd most time in my day is Parker. He has such a sweet temperment, and rarely gets angry. He plays very well by himself most of the time. He was taking toys out of the toy box yesterday, and was reaching over to grab another, when he got high-centered and fell in.




He had a great time sitting in the middle of the toys that were still in the box and playing. He probably stayed there for 20-30 minutes before signaling his desire to escape the box.

This next picture took place this morning. Last night I took the 3 youngest kids and went to Walmart to find some toys to use outside. We got some squirt guns, among other things, and had to use them when we got home. Tanner was so excited about them that he wanted to use them again first thing this morning. He kept shooting Kaitlin, who retaliated by pouring a cup of ice on his head while he was jumping on the tramp. His pants were a little big around the waist, so he had jumped out of them by now, and this picture shows him jumping in his diaper, trying to eat the ice off the tramp. It's moments like this that remind me that regardless of his shenanigans, I still love the little beast.

I Love This Time of Year

Spring is here, finally, and the flowering trees look so pretty. I had to take a picture to show you what they look like, and they are all over town. As I ride my bike, I can smell them in the air. It's so nice. I also have three bushes in my backyard that didn't start blooming until very late (I thought). We wondered if they were dead. But now they have leafed out and it turns out that one is a lilac bush. I am so excited. I have always wanted lilacs in my yard. It's not very big, but I'm going to pick as many of the flowers as I can as it blooms to have on my table. How thankful I am for a Heavenly Father who put such beautiful creations on this earth for us to enjoy.

And the award for dumb mom goes to....

Well, as you can tell from the pictures, some mother, who shall remain nameless, forgot to remove the black permanent marker from the bedside table in her room before she put the 2 year old down for a nap in her room. Needless to say, he found it before his nap and tried to dress up like Hitler. He came walking down the stairs, not quite awake yet, saying, "I awake!!" Yeah, I got that. Now if we can get it to wash off....

The award for good grandma goes to Suzy today for the cute bib that she made for Parker. He wouldn't let me take it off for quite a while.

p

Happy Mother's Day

What a great day I had. I hardly had to lift a finger. Shane and the boys cooked breakfast, which was delivered in bed at 8:00. Yes, I actually got to sleep in. That rarely happens, and it was very enjoyed. After church, Kaitlin fixed dinner with some help from Shane, and a very yummy dessert, which I loved. I got to take a nap, and not put kids to bed. It was a wonderful day. As I celebrated this Mother's Day, I also got thinking about the two other mothers in my life.

First, my wonderful mother. I wouldn't be the mom I am today without her influence. I can't count the number of times she stayed up late, fixing treats for classes, sewing outfits for different groups (choir or dance), watching ball games or concerts. The list could go on and on. She taught me how to cook, sew, clean, take care of children, be patient (even when you knew she wanted to pull her hair out), serve my family, serve in the church or community. She almost always put her husband and children and their needs first. I love my mom!! She is one of the neatest women I know, and I only hope that I can be more like her each day. I hope to the be grandma she is, too. She wasn't thrilled about being a grandma at first, (she still had 6 kids at home and wasn't old enough to be a grandma =>), but she loves it now and is so good with her grandchildren. They look forward to the time that they get to be at grandma's house. Mom is willing to put up with mess, dirt, and noise because she knows that they are having fun, and all the mess, dirt, and noise can be taken care of later. She has helped teach me to live in the moment, and not worry about those things that can be fixed later. Thank you, Mom, for all that you have done for me, and for your grandchildren. I love and miss you very much!

And now my second mom, Shane's mother Suzy. What a neat lady! I'm not sure she was thrilled at first with the wife her first born had chosen, but she welcomed me into the family and has treated me like her own daughter ever since. She was always willing to let us come and visit, bringing our mess and noise to clutter her home. She always had a treat for the grandkids, and treats for her daughter in law, too. She helped to raise Tanner when I had to work, and I was so relieved that she wanted to take him instead of having to put him in daycare. What a relief to know that while I had to be away, Tanner was with his grandma, who loved him so much. She has been involved in our children's lives, supporting them in ballgames, concerts, plays, etc.... We always knew that we were welcome to come and crash at her place when we came to town, even though we came with loud children.=> I think that the best thing that she has done for me is to raise they man I married to be such a good man. I know that he would not have ended up as the man he is today with his mother's influence for good in his life. Thank you, Suzy, for raising Shane to be the good husband, father, and friend that he is to me and my children. I love and miss you very much!

Sisters

I read my sisters blog this morning, and realized that I wanted to pay tribute to my sisters so that they know how much I love them!! Growing up, there were 5 years between Bobbi and I, and 11 years between Devan and I. Needless to say, I felt more like a mom or babysitter to them sometimes than a sister. As we have grown up, I have really come to count my sisters as some of my best friends. We have a night one time a week where we IM and talk to each other. I really look forward to the time I get to "be" with my sisters. Living in Nebraska I won't get to see them as often as I'd like, but I still can talk with them every week, and I love it!! Here is their picture, Dev on the left and Bobbi on the right. Sorry Dev, I swiped your picture.



First Devan - What can I say about a little girl who shared my bed when I was younger and would sleep sideways, kicking me through the night? I don't know if I was always the most patient with her, but I loved it when my name was her first word. I'm sure I coached her a lot, and hopefully my mom forgives me for that one. Now that she is grown, there is so much about her that I admire. She is so unafraid to speak her mind. She has no fear when it comes to expressing her opinions. That is something that I really struggle with. She is so talented athletically. I wish that I was half the softball player that she is. She is such a beautiful woman. She has come a long way since the chubby baby in the red swimsuit. (If I had that picture, I'd post it as retribution for the camping picture, Dev. =>) I wish that I had her beautiful curly hair. She curses it on occasion, but I think it's wonderful. She is truly fun to be around and I wish that I could be around her more often. She reminds me to loosen up and have fun, to be a giggly girl that I don't get to be often enough. One day when she is a mother, her children will be so lucky. She loves to have fun and is so free spirited. Her kids will love her. I am so glad that as we have gotten older, we have gotten closer. I love you Dev!

And Bobbi, who is a mother that I truly admire. She has 4 children, and one on the way, and she is a great mom. I could not have handled a one year old and baby twins and lived. I know it was rough for her, but she made it and is stronger for the experience. A lot of mothers would have given in to despair, and I'm sure she had her moments, but she always kept going, giving those kids all the love she had. She is also extremely talented at decorating a house. I love going to her home and seeing what she's done since I was there last. I wish I had just a pinkie full of her ideas on how to decorate. She also paints, pictures and walls, which makes me jealous. I don't know how she does it with 4 kids running around. She is so organized, we call her the perfectionist. I am amazed every time I am with her what she gets done with children. It motivates me to try harder to do those things that she does with such ease. I love visiting with her every week because she helps me to see that I am not alone in this thing called "motherhood." Bobbi - You are amazing and I love you.

I Want a Blue Balloon!!

This is all that we have heard from Tanner since he saw this last Friday.



We had a very windy day Friday and someone's balloons escaped, only to end up stuck in the top of the 50 foot tree across the street in our neighbors yard. He had to tell everyone to "Follow me, come look, I show you the buhyoons." Everyone had their turn following Tanner to the window to see.



The kids have been entertaining themselves pretty well with the warmer days that we have had lately. Today was a water fight with cups, which lasted until Luke threw a cupful through the screen door where Parker was watching. Yes, it hit his poor little face and almost drowned him. He cried and cried as Luke went to get ready for bed, early.




Tanner and Parker have been entertaining themselves, too. Parker just likes to carry things around. When it's not my broom, which he trips over constantly, it's usually his little rake.



Tanner has been dressing up in his backpack and saying in the cutest voice, "I'm ready to go!!"



It's time like this that help me to remember how much I love him, and helps me to forgive the times he hits, kicks, runs away, or just looks at me and keeps doing something I've asked him nicely not to do. He tries my patience, but I love him.