A Whole New World

A lot has happened since I last got onto this blog.

We moved!  Derrell started a new job!  The kids grew and grew and grew!

It's Mother's Day tomorrow.  I'm grateful to be a mother.  I'm grateful my children have a wonderful dad.

Valentine's Day 2012

Ethan high up in our white pine tree, March 2012

Anna after just getting her ears pierced on her 12th birthday, 2012

Fun at the Beach

Recently, we went to the Outer Banks, North Carolina with friends.  We had fun at both the beaches we visited!  Naomi's most memorable event was being knocked off her feet by a wave.  She hadn't planned on getting in the water at the time, but the ocean had other thoughts.

Soundside

Oceanside

Fun with Bubbles

The girls decided to "grow" facial hair.  Or something like that.

Oatmeal

Four of the five children like oatmeal.  And the other one tolerates it most of the time.  Especially when there's a good deal of sweetener added!  It's a quick, wholesome, and filling go-to breakfast around here.  I throw in a variety of goodies to keep it interesting.  In the past we've seen:

• chocolate protein powder & peanut butter--they say it's like eating a candy bar
• frozen fruit & honey or agave syrup
• maple syrup & chopped nuts
• vanilla protein powder, almond butter and strawberries--my favorite

You get the idea.   Just about anything is fair game.  Or so I thought...

Today a new ingredient was requested.

Marshmallows!

I had to think about that one.  Sorta makes it into a dessert instead of breakfast, in my mind.  In the end I conceded just so the oatmeal would get consumed.  Granted, since I didn't stipulate a maximum number, the bowls ended up looking like marshmallows with a touch of oatmeal instead of the other way around.

Oh, well.  Once in a while dessert for breakfast makes for a fun childhood memory, I suppose.  :)

Snow Fun

Five hours.

That's how long the kids stayed outside playing with the neighbors instead of going to school.

Snowball fights!  Guess who usually had the upper hand?

Just happy to be included.

Showing off his ammunition.

Her Indian name is Runs In Snow With Apple.

Playing Fox & Geese

I think this one should say, "And here we have a nice red minivan driving by for your viewing pleasure."

And what was Abigail doing this whole time?  Reading books, playing with lacing cards, and prancing around like all good three-year-old girls...

...in her swimsuit.

Three-Year-Old Speak, Part Two

You're tickling me in my heart.--used when she's really laughing hard

I love you a lot of times.--instead of just "I love you a lot." Daddy has responded with, "So, there are some times that you don't love me?" :)

beLAY--ballet

And even more comically:

I'm going to do beLAY at the temple. (We're not sure what she thinks goes on in a temple. I'VE never "done ballet" at the temple! :) )

Recently she asked ten yr old sister, AM, for a piggy back ride. AM said, "I'm not a piggy. I'm a human." So, without missing a beat, the three yr old asked, "Can I have a human back ride, then?"

Check Your Books at the Door

My friend has her children hand over their books as they walk in the door from school every day. WHAT!? you ask? Yes, it's true. The children are not allowed to read until their jobs, homework, and even sometimes playing with friends is done. She doesn't have to kick her kids off the TV or the Wii; she has to limit their reading time. I use to say that if you have to have a problem, then that's the one to have!

Until I entered her world.

Staying up two hours past bedtime...
Using the bathroom for 30+ minutes...
Setting up a camp chair in the sun because mom said "Go outside"...
Fibbing about how much homework is in the backpack...
Missing dinner and asking, "Why didn't you wait for me?"...

TO READ!

It's still not the worst problem in the world, but it can get annoying at times.

But here's the rub: I know how they feel. I would rather read than do the laundry or the dishes, too. And I stayed up until 3am one night last week to finish our bookclub book. Obviously, I'm being punished by having children take on my bad habits! :-)

Moderation in all things, right? I guess I need to adopt that as my motto.

MARCH

March started off with three commemorations: my birthday, AM's birthday, and our house's birthday! Four years ago we moved to the east coast. We still aren't quite used to the climate. I wonder if this will be the year I figure out how to garden.

The birthday girls:On my birthday nine years ago, I was doing all I could to relax and keep that baby in, so she could have her own birthday. (Of course, at that time we thought she was a he. We never did get a Caleb--unless you count our little nephew.) She cooperated, and was born at one in the morning!

This year, our birthdays fell on a Friday and Saturday: perfect! My honey pampered me on Friday (even took the day off work!!), and we pampered AM on Saturday. We went to the National Aquarium in Baltimore in the morning. It was really fun. Then we came home and rested a bit before partying some more in the evening. (We had gotten up early and the birthday girl got car sick.) She requested lasagna, garlic bread and root beer for her birthday dinner. Quote from our nine-year-old: I really liked the presents. I loved my dinner. I especially liked the root beer. It was sooo good! I also went to the aquarium which I saw many animals, and I also got sick which that wasn't good."

Here are some photos of her day:




The professional photo at the top of this post was taken a week before her birthday. It is very appropriate--she's an avid reader!

Secret Admirer

We just got a delivery. Love notes! Derrell's reads like this:
"Love Has spred to you! from your, Secret Aidmarer"

And mine:
"Love is nere when you are Here. Love, Your Secret Aidmierer"

I remember being eight, and leaving little notes for my parents. It's so fun to get them!

Her prayers are equally as encouraging. She often prays for us: that I will know that how I am is good enough; that Dad will remember that the Spirit will help him with his tests; that we all will be grateful for the vegetables from our garden...

Sometimes I wonder if what she is saying is a direct message from heaven. She is just like any other eight-year-old girls with siblings to tease, of course, but her prayers and notes can be so thought-provoking and gentle that I am often caught off guard. I sure am glad she is my daughter!

Leading Music

AM is really doing quite well for an eight-year-old. Sometimes the movements are backwards, but I bet half the population doesn't do any better! We've been working on it every so often.

The little sisters wanted to help out. LL is obviously trying to steal the show... silly girl!

This is a clip from family home evening. I tried to catch everyone who was "helping" with the conducting, but the men and baby stopped when the camera panned their way.





On another note, AE stands up in the middle of the room and takes a few steps every day. One of these days she'll actually believe she can keep going, and we won't be able to stop her. She is in a really fun stage: mimics everything and tries everything. She blows kisses and "talks" all the time. Answers, "ya" to almost every question. She hasn't ventured into the world of "No!', yet. My little brother, Matthew, called a bit ago. AE called him "ga-gu". Pretty dang good for 14 months! If memory serves, she speaks more clearly at this age than any of her older siblings. She still signs a few words (more, please, thank you, eat), but prefers to speak her form of our language now. The trick is interpretation.

Summer Swim League

ED and AM are now swimming every day. The YMCA started a new swim team just for the summer. There are about twenty kids ranging in age from 5 to 13, and only two have ever been on a swim team before. It's a great set-up for those of us who don't feel the need to push our children to win the Olympics. I'm really pleased.

They practice at the Y where there are kids' classes and nurseries for the three younger girls, and workout equipment for me. They practice for an hour a day getting instruction from one of the best coaches in the area and a bunch of teenagers from the year-round team.

There will be six meets against other "young" teams, (so there might actually be a chance of winning). It only costs $35 dollars. I can't believe it! I'll say it again, I'm really pleased! I think we'll plan to do this every summer. LL will get to be on it next year, and she can't wait.

Spring Soccer

ED and AM just finished their soccer season. They had a lot of fun! ED ended up playing goalie most of the time. He was quite good, making saves in the midst of kicking feet. It made me nervous to watch. The last playoff game was in the rain at 9am--very windy and cold. ED had extra layers since he was in the goal, but poor AM was freezing. She had a smile on her face, though! So, here are some "after-game" photos. Be glad you can't touch or smell them... I'm sure you can imagine the sweat and dirt well enough. :-) I've decided to throw in a picture of ED grabbing a ball. You can barely see it through all the other players, but look closely. (You can click on the photo to enlarge it.)

Haircut Pictures

So, here are the pictures I promised to post. N.E.'s hair looked so long when it was combed straight!

Haircuts

While the boys were gone on a father/son outing last Saturday, the girls and I had one of our own. NE got her first haircut! Can you believe an almost-three-year-old has never even gotten a trim? What's more amazing is that this almost-three-year-old has never taken scissors to her own hair! I haven't wanted to cut off all those curls just in case they never came back, but the beautician showed me how to tell that it's coming out curly at the roots. (In my defense, the hair isn't that curly. I'm sure I could tell all by myself that she still has natural curl if the curls were like a perm instead of big and soft and flowy...)

The hair salon has a little animal seat that reminds me of those old rides outside of grocery & department stores: straddle it, put a quarter in, and it goes back and forth. This one doesn't move, of course, but my girls were thrilled. Much more fun to ride a panda than sit in a chair that is too big. LL hopped right up. NE took her turn next after she saw that it was safe for LL. AM wasn't too sure if she was too grown up for the kiddy chair, and tried to stifle a smile. I was going to post pictures here, too, but can't seem to locate the cord to hook up the camera to the computer. Might just be that the almost-three-year-old has walked away with it...

Here's Sally Ride (and her toady). For a school project, A.M. was part of a living wax museum. When someone came up to her, she came alive and told about herself. I didn't know that Sally Ride was a nationally-ranked tennis player at one time, did you? For being the first woman in space, I did expect the PhD in physics, though. We have a friend who works at NASA in Washington, D.C. He was kind enough to pick us up this costume.

Baptism

A.M. is eight! I can hardly believe it. I am grateful to be married to a worthy priesthood holder who has now had the opportunity of baptizing two of our children. A.M. was very excited and happy. It was a good day. Derrell's parents and my mom flew out to be with us. Aside from being scrunched into our cozy home, I think they enjoyed their visit almost as much as we enjoyed them being here!