"I used everything sticky, but not honey."

1/25/12
While Tyler and I napped (Oh how I love to nap), Isaac was busy wrapping what he hoped to be his own present.  We bought Dylan a Spiderman web shooter for his birthday (which is the day after Valentine's day.)  I told Isaac it was a present for somebody but not for him and that it WAS a good idea to get one for Dylan, so maybe we should.  I told him that he shouldn't get his own presents, so it probably wasn't for him. 

He came up and told me that he was wrapping the present.  I asked if he found wrapping paper.  He did.  He said he found "Easter wrapping paper."  It does look like Easter wrapping paper, now that he mentions it.  He said the wrapping paper wasn't working though b/c the glue sticks weren't sticking.  I asked if he tried tape.  He said that it ran out then he added, yes, "I used everything sticky, but not honey."  This, I had to see.  Sure enough, on the carpet, I found a sticky mess.  He had used kid siscors, that's good.  And although he had put away the "sticky" things, I found evidences of not only a glue stick, but regular glue, clay, and even Dr. Pepper flavored red chap stick and tape.  He brought me the Tide To Go pen and asked me to open it because he needed help.  I told him what it was and he put it back.  I told him to bring back tape, not believing that it was all gone since I had just bought a 3 pack.  Well, he found a roll w/ tape still on it.  He taped a little more, then said the tapes WERE all gone.  I agreed, even though he had just pulled at an odd angle or something and the ends were lost on the roll - you know how that happens w/ packing tape.  So I got out a Spiderman gift bag and put the whole mess in there.  He's happy.  Except he must have overheard me "reading" The Secret in the car and is staying really positive about it being for HIS birthday.  We'll see . . .

Dear Tyler, you're 5 months old

Dear Tyler,
You're 5 months old now!
You are ticklish, so I can get smiles out of you! 

 You're really getting chunky thighs.  They're smushy and I love them.  You've been wearing pants a lot, but whenever you're in a onesie, I can't keep my hands off of them, and neither can anybody else:)

 You have beautiful eye lashes and skin still. 

 You rolled over!  You first did it on my bed when you were starving (or you thought you were.)  You rolled your face towards me, and since our bed rolls towards the heaviest thing (me in this case), you were determined.  You smushed your face down into the sheets and I found myself starting to cheer you on, then you did it!  The rest of your body followed 'til your arm was stuck under your tummy. 

 You can grab things and can actually bring them to your mouth!  That seems like such a huge accomplishment. 

Happy pose

 Now a gangsta pose. 

I have so many pictures I could share, but I'll break it up into another post I think. 
You're sweet, but you're what I call my sweet inconvenience in the evenings.  You need me.  I've tried to not nurse you to sleep, but you don't cry yourself to sleep yet.  You just cry and cry and cry.  It's not usualy that loud, but still, it doesn't stop.  If we pick you up, that'll usually do it, but even when you fall asleep, you wake up when we put you in your bed until you've worn yourself out. You will fall asleep next to me for naps, but I can only nap like once/week. 
You ate some of my baked potato this evening.  I mushed tiny thin layers between my fingers and put them in your mouth.  That was your first real food besides rice and oatmeal cereals.  Then I gave your prunes this evening.  I gave you a bottle of formula this week before bed. 
You keep bonking into my cheek bones.  I try to kiss you or hold you and somehow even though I know that has happened, it still keeps happening!  It doesn't seem to phase you. 
You like to be upright but will still lay on your back just fine.  You have sometimes done little sit ups, but not too much. 
I keep trying to give you pacifiers and your thumb, but it doesn't really work.  Sometimes you gnaw on them but that's about it.  Rarely you'll suck on one right after eating when you're sleeping. 
I usually stay up late until you wake up between midnight and 3am.  I only do that a couple of nights a week though.  And sometimes you win and I just put you in bed with me initially. 
I love you. 

...And he ate it. Gross!

Isaac can make his own sandwiches.
He has always loved dips and condiments.
So he decided to add them to his bread-palate and sandwich them for the travel into his mouth's palate. 

 Commonly, he paints the bread with globs of jelly, honey, ketchup, honey mustard, regular mustard, and peanut butter. 

Dylan told him that it would probably taste like a bug. 
Isaac said "It does - it tastes like a bug.  And I like bugs!"
. . . And he ate it.  Gross.

December To Do: Gingerbread houses

12/10/11
We made gingerbread houses out of graham crackers and left over Halloween candy (and candy canes from a package from Lacey.)

 Did you know that if you take a picture, you can eat your cake house and have it too?!

 I like the posts and lintel and door and door knob:)

December To Do: Roller Skating

12/10/11
I got excited for December and made a to do list of Christmassy things. 
I had Ice Skating on there.  Steven pointed out that we should probably start with roller skating.  Then he pointed out that one of us would be stuck holding the baby so we should only pay for one adult.  And he further pointed out that the designated baby carrier should stay at home since he didn't like to skate even though I thought the baby carrier could double as a tripod. 
So I took the kids to a local roller rink.  They weren't that bad! 

 I took each of them around once while the other took pictures. 

 Then we stayed on the carpet. 

 and lived happily ever after. 

The end. 
P.S. Santa got Isaac roller blades for Christmas!

8 kids here = no hands for taking pictures = a picture-free ramble post

Me: (to Steven) The problem with having so many kids here today, is that I don't have an extra hand to take pictures of our fun.

Steven: (sarcastically) Really?  That's the problem?

Me: (smile)

Anyway, I had all 6 kids here and my friend Rachael came with her 18 month old twins. Our messy playroom made her daughter cry b/c it was way too over stimulating.  The living room almost made me cry because while I made brownies before Rachael came over, the kids dumped out the Gunny bag and started coloring!  It had been clean 5 minutes before!  Embarrasing. 

Then, picture this, 8 legs hanging down from our orange tree.  Picture perfect, but I didn't have hands to find and assemble the small camera and didn't risk the bigger one.  Then, Rachael put one of her kids down to run for the tree because a voice from the tree was crying wolf that he/she (I don't remember which) couldn't get down.  They can all jump from that high and didn't look entangled so I wasn't worried.  Maybe she has more of a mom instinct than I do.  She also scooped out a mouth full of dirt from Ivy for me.  AND she brought hot dog buns and cheeze puffs since I didn't buy buns to go along with our hot dogs.  She also cut the oranges for us.  I love somebody who will see what needs to be done and will do it and doesn't make me feel like a total crazy lady.  I felt like one all on my own today - limping, grilling while holding a baby, nursing right out in the open (back yard) while squeezing honey mustard and ketchup on 4 buns with my freshly washed and dried hair tied back out of my face.  (Yea, I showered this morning and am proud of it - that should add to the crazy lady list because normal people do that every day.)  I don't think she's ready for more kids yet after seeing me today.  Hers are pretty close to being perfect, except they're normal.  Perfect kids wouldn't be normal, but hers seem wonderfully happy and sweet.  We talked a little about parenting and I caught myself doing things I know not to do - like saying "don't climb that fence."  I think I could fill out a paper parenting test and could get an "A."  But talking the talk (or writing) and walking the walk are totally different.  Rachael makes me a better person.  Her blog got me to actually really commit to doing FHE (Family Home Evening) every week.  And I did that Jinglebell Run with her too.  I don't think I blogged that yet.  It was Dylan's first 1 mile fun run!  She got me to join her book club too.  She EVEN brought me the book on tape today!  She's an enabler for good.  I should be like that.  Instead, I'm a crazy lady w/ too many kids.  (And I want one more. - Told you I'm crazy.)

After she left, it actually got a little more normal and I almost wished she had stayed so she could see.  The kids went to the bathroom (including washing hands with soap) and got pillows and blankets for story time.  Dylan took the short couch, Isaac took the floor, Noah was already asleep in Dylan's bed by the time the first story was over, and Malia took the treadmill.  (I pick my battles - it was unplugged.)  Again, a camera would have been useful b/c maybe you had to be there to be able to picture this.  I held Tyler while Ivy slept in the pack 'n play.  We read 3 books and sang all the verses to "I Am A Child Of God."  I went up to try to take a nap with Tyler.  He fell asleep on me.  Then I remembered that I may not have turned off the grill.  Dang.  I had to get up.  Success!  Tyler stayed asleep on his side! Ivy was sleeping, Noah was sleeping, but I had to put Malia in Dylan's bed and had to confiscate her toys then she sept a long time.  I threatened spanking Isaac - I don't remember why but it worked and he was still and slept.  I whispered to Dylan that he could color.  The grill WAS off.  That's good.  I tried again to take a nap since we're all sicky with runny noses.  Tyler woke up a little after that and just wanted to smile and jump. 

Yady yady ya, I took a Valentine's Day picture of Olivia while Vicki held Ivy, I tried to nap on the couch next to Tyler sleeping in the swing, we made pizzas with left over hot dogs for the pepperoni's, we ate spaghetti, we had a good family night lesson with an activity and craft, Tyler cried with rice cereal, and all 4 of my boys are asleep now!  I finally have time to take a picture, but all that's left is a sink full of dirty dishes from the day.  Speaking of which, gotta go.

P.S. It's 11pm now:
I decided that I should link to Rachael's blog, b/c if you really want to know her, who am I to hold you back?  (My sister asked.  They may have met at church??)  Rachael brought over home made brownies and onesies - perfect for a summer baby, right after Tyler was born.  I had recently read that she was expecting her 3rd baby and told her that congratulations were in order.  Sadly, she told me that she had actually miscarried.  I was at a loss for words.  Why was she bringing ME gifts when I should be comforting HER?  Especially bringing me BABY gifts!  She's the kind of person who notices where she could be of help and then she does it.  And she stays perfectly happy and healthy and organized and can think clearly.  She gave me a Christmas gift, and that's after she held a white elephant gift party w/ real girly gifts.  I haven't given gifts to people at church (that I remember) because if I give a gift, I have to give one to this person, and that person, and where do I stop?  And I might not have it as together next year, so maybe I shouldn't start something that I can't keep up.  I don't think she has those useless thoughts.  She wants to do something and does it.  End of story.  I won't care if I never get a gift from her, or if somebody else got something and I didn't - and she knows that.  She has a solid testimony of our Savior too.  I asked something about one of her babies who are in heaven now, and she said, like I could tell she had said lots before, that she knew she would get to raise him later and she is excited to do so and mentioned something about Christ, I think.  All while I'm nursing a baby and putting a kid in time out and she's cleaning up water cups or something.  I know she must always have a prayer in her heart and has the Holy Ghost as her guide at all times and in all things and in all places. 

Also, instead of doing the dishes, I just caught up on this blog.  Shawni's another person who I'd like to be.  Her kids are a little older, so that's good.  I mean, if my kids were older, I'd hate to read back what I should have done, you know?  Anyway, she has a lot of people who realize that she has a good head on her shoulders and they ask her questions.  My question, is where she gets the book that she compiles all of her Christmas cards in?!  I want double sided 4x6, 4x8 and 8x10 slots!  I don't get that many Christmas cards, but maybe in 10 years I will.  she's almost 10 years older than I am. Her parents started Joy School and wrote "The Entitlement Trap."  Her parents taught like my wonderful parents taught.

I work out

Or at least my kids do.
They were anticipating out new treadmill, you know, to go along with the traditional new year's resolutions.
Push ups,

 sit ups,

 jumping jacks,

 and, of course, running! 

 and laughing,

 and climbing?? 
and then running on the new treadmill!

 So I have run on it once.  The day we got it, last Saturday, I ran 2 miles.  That was right after I ate, so I couldn't do more.  Since then, I have put on running shorts and a sports bra 3x, but took off the sports bra to feed my baby before running.  Then 2 nights ago I did lunges up next to his crib because I was tired of holding/bouncing/nursing him and decided to just shower w/o running. 
I woke up with a stiff knee - like having stiff neck after sleeping on it incorrectly.  It was sore all day and I limped a tiny but that night I stretched it a lot to work out the soreness.  It hurt to do dorsiflexion with my foot, to bend a lot, or to streighten it all the way.  So I did that while nursing Tyler to sleep.  Then, in the middle of the night, it hurt when I turned over to nurse Tyler.  And in the morning, I had another reason to not want to get up to turn off the alarm.  It hurt to put weight on it, but not as much as a sprained ankle.  I could put weight on it if I had it a little bent and stepped on the ball of my foot. 
As a side note, Isaac was caughing as he woke up.  So I called and let his Joy School teachers know he wouldn't be going today.  And I called Corrie to see if she could watch both boys for me and thought I texted Tyler's babysitter to cancel her.  (She later asked where the heck I was and I felt sooo sorry that the text was still lingering in my draft box from the stress of the morning.) 
 

 Back to me. So I drove Dylan to school. He wanted us to walk him in, so I put Isaac and Tyler in the sit 'n stand stroller (because Isaac hadn't worn shoes and just had his size 2T Superman PJs on.) I didn't really think I was limping that much 'til Steven's cousin asked what was wrong w/ my foot. I explained that I had slept wrong on my knee 2 nights in a row. (Denial.) So, limping back to the car, I have 2nd thoughts about the newborn session I was supposed to shoot in an hour or so. I got home, found and took expired Ibuprofen, and tried to kneel down like I would have to do at the session. I found myself looking for something with which to brace myself. I realized that this was rediculous and I couldn't be handling a newborn with a bumb knee. I called the client and rescheduled. Then I iced my throbbing knee while reading a book to Isaac. Then we all 3 took a 2-1/2 hour nap - it was awesome.
So, the kids wiggle wiggle wiggle and work out. I will some day.

What the heck did I do to my knee?  Lunges?  Am I that old? 
Oh, and Isaac turned the treadmill up to 10mph and started crying and his leggs couldn't run that fast.  He tried stepping up on the grey part up front b/c his legs can't really reach the sides in a split second and even when he pushed the stop button, it took a while to go back down to normal speed.  Lesson learned - the hard way, poor baby.  Dylan laughed and said "that was awesome" and had to go to time out while I hugged scared little Isaac.  The end.

Dylan's spelling

elfit
maws
soc
box
octpus
eg
rak
reng
rod
rokit
Ilikespitrmand!
I seeyou.
It is fune.
Icand Bhtwen the wos
I ayn wIdidmyscudo.

answer:
elephant, mouse, sock, box, octopus, egg, rake, ring, road, rocket
I like Spiderman!
I see you.
It is funny.
(either I can between the walls, or I climb between the walls)
I can with/we/ride/did?? my scooter - he doesn't remember these last two



Here's a detail portion of a huge composite drawing he loves.  He had his parents, grandparents, aunt, and uncles help him with it.  The guy on the left is Venum, I'm not sure who the green monster is.

 Left side of the page

 right side of the page

 then he gave it to his Uncle Matt for his big birthday card! 

 He was featured in his school art show (along w/ all of the other students at the school.)

 Here it is!  We didn't buy it, but then it came home unframed a week later anyway!!

 Here's Dylan's outside time.  Yea, instead of playing, he now colors.  It's an addiction!

hi

sorry to Tyler's babysitters, and sorry to Tyler, and goodbye to late night hanging out w/ friends

I need help on how to train my baby to take a bottle and go to sleep with a babysitter. (at night)
Or I can take the hints and just stay home and nurse him.
Here's how I found him this evening after being called to come home.

He was in just his diaper because he was red hot crying.  Martin was sweating bouncing with him when my mom saved him on New Year's Eve.  I got called back early then too, and he was sleeping on my mom sorta like this. 
Herre's a photo of after we took him on a group date with us to Ceviche.  He went in asleep, then woke up before he was ready.  I took him to the car to feed him and brought him back.  Then I came back and he started crying.  He didn't stop for over an hour with me holding him out in the car, then on the way home.  It wasn't 'til I laid him down on his Uncle Andre's bed here and nursed him that way that he calmed down and finally slept.  That was the first of the big tantrums I think.  That was 12/30/11.  (And I know the socks don't match.) 

Poor baby boy.

I love my baby bear

In the past, I have gotten sick over Christmas break.  Even if I wasn't really sick, I was stressed out and on the verge of being sick. 
This year, I prepared myself and said no in advance and gave up things and stayed home in the evenings and pretty much changed.  I'm usually the one who wants to do everything, go everywhere, and volunteer at every opportunity.  I'm more of a homebody now. I sorta don't like that I have changed.  But I'm not sick and had a wonderful Christmas. 

I'm stressed now though. 
Partly because of that low after the high of Christmas.
Partly because I am not as close to my siblings as when we were growing up crowded in this same house.  And they were here, but we all had our own families and didn't get to stay up late getting silly and talking.  Why do we have to grow up? 

Also, I took tons of pictures, but there's just not enough time to go through them.  And my family is asking for them.  I did informal sessoins, but feel the need to go through each picture before sharing them.  It's dificult doing things for friends and family because they assume that I can just email a whole folder of photos right over that night.  Even if I didn't edit anything, I have a family of my own.  I have a to do list of my own.  I have a waiting list of paying clients who are ready to book.  And I have a cute baby who gets overlooked.  I want to be creative with pictures of my own baby, but I make my own priorities the last ones. 

Anyway,
Partly because I want to highlight my hair, paint my nails, and take naps - but I can't seem to make those priorities.  I know we all make time for true priorities.
Partly because Tyler decided that he doesn't need an early bed time.  And that he wants to cuddle for hours before he sleeps soundly enough to be put down - so I fall asleep nursing him and wake up cold and on the couch in the middle of the night.  So my office hours are not when I think they should be. 
So I'm stressed. 

What are your regrets from the holidays? 
I now wish I had actually printed something as a momento for Tyler's baby blessing on Christmas.  It's already Valentine's season.  Most people have put their Christmas boxes back up in the attic but part of me wants to print cards that could be ornaments to remember Tyler's 1st Christmas and the time he met most of my family. 

I wish that my neck would just heal all of the way so that my arm wouldn't tingle when I type at 2am.

On lighter notes,
I took a 4 month old, 6 month old, 3 yr old, 4 yr old, and 6 yr old to [what I call] Orange Blossom Groves for messy drippy ice cream before picking up my 5 yr old. 
I had intended on taking a picture of our field trip but there was no way that was going to happen since I was holding two babies and eating my own cone once we went outside to the picnic tables.  I love warm winter days.  LOVE! 
I had a real family night last night and the kids were so excited when I got home from the gym and asked if it was time for family night yet - they had rememered from that morning - we even had Bluebell for the treat and I was able to scoop the solid mass with one hand thanks to the Cutco ice cream scoop from my mom because I was holding Tyler and this is the worst run on sentence but that's ok because we even had Dylan play the piano for the music part of the evening and he knew the scripture he wanted to do and we used Isaac's Sunbeam hand out puzzle for his lesson plus I had cooked honey lime enchelada caserole for dinner with brown rice that day.

What were you doing New Year's Eve?

Dear Tyler, you're 4 months old

Dear Tyler Baby,
I love you.  You're still sweet.  You're such a baby - a real baby now.  You're the right amount of cuddliness, sleepiness, smiles, ticklishness, and pure deliciousness.  You have tight skin that I love to kiss.  You haven't discovered stranger danger yet, so you let anybody hold you.  You did just start to look back and up to see who is holding you, so you're memorizing faces or something now. 

You're finally getting some chunk on your thighs. 

 You like to suck on your fists, usually your left one.  You can gnaw on your thumb or a pacifier, but don't suck on either.  For your thumb, you still have a tight fist shoved tightly into your mouth, so your thumb doesn't really fit in your mouth.

So now you pull things into your mouth.  It's cold so I put blankets on you and find them up around and on your face.  You still can not control your hands enough to go fishing and catch something, but if you feel something, you pull it in.  Your little mouth wants what your eyes see so you have a big mouth snaping turtle reflex.  It's the wettest softest sweetest silliest big mouth bass kiss - so fun. 

 I wanted to take a picture of you in your new penguin hat from Ivy (by my friend Rachael), but you snapping-turtle-grabbed and nuzzled in and didn't care about me or my goofiness above you. 

 When I took the distraction away, you weren't happy. 

You only like tummy time when it's on MY tummy I think - when we first wake up. 

 You also don't like your car seat.  You have done better lately - possibly because I didn't have to go in the car line and I could take my time to go places to get your comfortable. 

 You got to meet your Grandpa Gille! 

He came in town for your blessing. 

He even sang in the choir for your blessing and sacrament service. 

You go to bed in your bed, but always end up here.

I think the Christmas vacation got everybody off schedules

- as if I do schedules, I know. 

But you go to bed so late and want to nurse to sleep. 

You sleep best when you're snuggled by my side. 

 You're happy for me, but you do get sad and fussy at bed time now. 
You're not loud, but it's sad. 
You wake up happy and kicky.  You kick like your heels are on springs.  You alternate kicking your heels out then retract them back into place.  You scoot back off of blankets that way too.  You're not interrested in rolling over yet or in sitting up.  I like that you're still a relexed baby. 

 Ivy, on the other hand, has been sitting up and crawling and stealing toys! 

We celebrated bringing in the new year byyou going to Grandma's house. 

More on that later. 

I love having a new year's baby:) 

 This will be a fun year of firsts for you.  You're almost half way through your first year though, that's crazy.  Stay my baby please! 

Oh, tonight (10 days after you turned 4 months old) I fed you a couple of spoonfuls of rice cereal while you cried.  You wanted to nurse I think but I'm pretty sure I was out of milk and you should have been sleeping.  I'm in no rush to feed you, but I figured why not. 

I love you my little baby boy,

Love, Mommy