Fall Fun

 There's no better way to get in the mood for Halloween than to take a trip to Gardner Village! Every year we make it a point to stop by and enjoy the festivities. There are always the cutest displays of pumpkins, hay, and of course, the witches!  The boys always love to go see the witches and try to find ones we've seen before and look for new ones.  This year their favorites included one in an outhouse and one that had crashed into a tree...neither of which I snapped a picture of.  The boys are already asking me when we can go back.

Bring on Halloween.

Goals

We went to Idaho a few weeks ago.  Everytime I go home, I am greeted by this list of goals that I created my Junior year of high school. This list was made as part of an assignment from my Reading teacher.  She wanted us to make a list of "Lifetime Goals", with number one being a mandatory "Graduate from high school". We were then supposed to hang the list where we would see it everyday. And so this list has made its home on my closet door for the past 11 years. Its fun to look over the list and see that I have accomplished quite a few of the goals. In fact I could cross most of them off the list.



I can definitely cross 1-7 off the list.  Number 10 is never going to happen.  Jeff is excited to help me accomplish numbers 11, 21, and 22.  Maybe its time to make a new list, this time my Lifetime Goals for the next 10 years...

Remember September

September 11, 2001. I was just beginning my Senior year of High School.  The day started out normal as I arrived at my AP Calculus class (which started before school did) at 7:30 in the morning. Then, in walks a fellow student who says we need to turn the TV on right away because an airplane has hit one of the World Trade Centers.  We turn it on and watch, wondering if this was some sort of mistake. Then the footage comes of the second plane hitting.  It isn't an accident. We watch in disbelief for about 10 minutes until our teacher, Coach Hill, turns the TV off and tries to get us to focus on Calculus.  A few minutes later Coach Portela runs into the room and says, "The Pentagon just blew up." Coach Hill's jaw drops and he says, "This means war."  The TV goes back on and Calculus is forgotten for the day.

During my first hour class we are in the computer lab trying to do work, but all of our attention is on the big screen TV at the front of the room, airing live coverage of what is happening back East.  As we watch, it happens.  The first tower falls.  Then the second.  I turn to my friend, Molli, and say, "Our children and grandchildren are going to watch this in their history classes, and we just saw it live!"

 In every classroom the TV is on.  You just couldn't NOT watch what was happening. So many questions floated through the air. Was this the beginning of the end? When would we retaliate? The name Osama bin Laden began to be tossed around by the news anchors.

Fast forward almost ten years.  In the busyness of after school, my son comes running up to me and says, "Mom, did you know that there used to be these two tall towers, but airplanes crashed into them and they fell down?  The firefighters and police went to help but a lot of them died."  And just like that, the whole conversation seemed so unreal.  Was my son really coming home to tell me he'd learned about 9/11 in school?  Had it really been that long ago?  Because for me it was a moment frozen in time, like it had just happened.  And now my child gets it.  We've tried to explain it to him before, but something finally clicked in his six year old head and he is beginning to understand how terrible it was.  A day no one, who was alive, will ever forget.  Where were you when you heard the news?

Four of a Kind

On the 22nd we found out that we are expecting another little boy!

The most common question I've been asked over the last week is if I am okay with having another boy.  I am thankful that our child is healthy and developing right on schedule.  I am thankful that we will have another precious baby in our house. I am excited to meet this new little guy and to see how he fits in our family.  After three boys, I think everyone was really hoping for a girl and maybe one day we'll finally get one.  But we will love this sweet little man just the same!

We've been in our house two years now, and I've never done anything to decorate the nursery because I was really hoping to be able to make it a girl's room.  Since that won't be happening in the near future ( it'll be at least a few more years before we try again for a girl!), I am moving forward with decorating.  This pile of fabric is currently being transformed into a quilt and is the basic color palette for the nursery.

The nursery walls are now sporting seven different paint color samples in various aquas, greens, and gray.  I am having a hard time deciding what color to paint.  I lean more towards painting in neutrals and accenting with color, but Jeff really wants to do green. Eventually it will all work out, but in the mean time its exciting to make preparations for our new baby.

Mumblings

I feel like this past month has just flown by for our family!  I've been such a slacker on updating our blog, so today "update blog" was on my to-do list...and look, I'm finally getting around to doing it at 11:15 tonight! Although by the time I post this, it will probably show up as being done on Wednesday. Really though, its not all my fault that I haven't been blogging, my computer is partially to blame.  It has something wrong with it where it is running super slow, so for me to do a post, I seriously have to devote an hour or more to it. Normally I just don't have that much free time during the day, and then if I want to edit a picture, I could be sitting here for two hours.  I need to get it fixed, if I could only find the time...

So now an update (mainly for my own journaling purposes) on what we've been doing.  Sorry, its going to be all text, I don't have the patience to edit photos tonight.

Before school started, Carson took a session of swimming lessons.  The Friday before he was supposed to start he was out riding his bike (fast, of course) and hit some dirt on the sidewalk and had a big crash.  He scraped up his forearm pretty badly and was a bit shaken by it.  When I got down to where he crashed, the first thing out of his mouth was, "I'm sure glad I had my helmet on!  I hit my head on the ground."  He was okay, but we had to bandage and then tape his arm up really well every morning before we headed to the pool.  Carson absolutely loved swimming lessons.  He's a lot like me and loves the water.  He was so sad when the session was over and begged me to let him take lessons again soon.

After swimming lessons, we were busy getting ready for school.  It was a bit crazy to take three little boys shopping, but we found some really good deals, and a new store (Crazy 8) that we really like.  While Carson was excited for school to start, I've been reluctant about the whole thing. As I said before, I'm really wishing that we would have chosen to hold him back. I feel like all day school is a bit much for him emotionally.  He comes home from school burned out and sad. Today he came home crying because it was "green day" and all the boys had worn camoflauge clothing and he had just worn a green t-shirt.  He was so upset that he was different. Intellectually, he does great at school, but I'm not sure if he's emotionally ready for it...does that make sense? I mean, he's still practically a 5-year old in that sense, not much has changed that way since his birthday a month ago.

While Carson is away at school, its been nice to focus more time on Jonas and Mason.  I try to plan activities throughout our day to keep them entertained.  When Mason goes down for his nap after lunch, Jonas and I have some special time together.  He's always been my momma's-boy and loves that we get to spent time together without any distractions.  I've been doing a "letter of the day" with him where we usually sing a song, do a worksheet, and then have some sort of activity or art project that involves the letter.   Today we did the letter "C" and then "cooked cookies" for a treat. I've got some cute pictures of him from when we were painting rocks the other day, and if I have some time I'll have to upload them...later.

Mason has been busy being a toddler.  He is constantly into things and making a mess.  I would have to say that out of all of my boys, he has been the best talker.  He isn't even two and speaks in whole sentences most of the time.  He is very good at being able to communicate what he wants or needs. He is asserting himself more and more, and will often times try to pick a fight with one of the older boys.  He is still sleeping in the crib, which is amazing to me because both Carson and Jonas were in toddler beds at 16 months because I couldn't keep them in the crib.  Mason is going to have a hard time when I transition him to a bed in the next few months because he just loves his crib.  He also has a fleece blanket, "blanky", and two stuffed animals, "babies",  that he is very attached to and has to have them to go to sleep.

Jeff has still been working crazy, crazy hours.  He is burned out.  I am burned out.  But after going through what we did (financially) a year ago, I promised myself I would never complain about over-time again.  It really is a blessing for us to have the extra money coming in, especially with a baby on the way.  I am thankful that we never faultered in paying our tithing because now I feel like there isn't room enough to recieve all that we've been given.  And I don't take it lightly.

Well, so much for a quick update!

First Grade

Tuesday was Carson's first day of school.  We are fortunate enough to have him going to a brand new school this year..brand new, as in construction workers were still there putting the finishing touches on things when we went to tour it last Friday.

I took Carson over to the school his first day just to make sure he remembered where his classroom was and to help him find where he was supposed to line up. Then I met him after school and helped him find his bus.  He was so excited to ride the bus, but I was very nervous about it.  I am thankful we have some older neighbor kids that get off at the same stop and are willing to help keep track of Carson. 

I can hardly believe I have a first grader!  A part of me is wishing that we would have red-shirted him so he would have just been starting Kindergarten.  He is one of the youngest in his grade and I know there are several kids he goes to school with that will be turning 7 soon.  I kind of feel like that's a big age difference because my little guy just barely turned 6! But he's a smart boy so I don't think I could justify pulling him back a grade now.

Out of Order

What's a little boy to do when he plugs the toilet?  Why leave behind a sign to let his little brother know not to use it, of course.

It would have worked out well if Jonas knew how to read.  But since he doesn't read, we ended up with an even bigger mess. I'll spare you the details.  Although I appreciated Carson's problem solving skills, I explained to him the importance of letting me know when he needs help.  Since he created the problem, he got the opportunity to learn what a plunger does. Oh, and a big thanks to my husband for cleaning up the mess...because this pregnant lady just didn't have the stomach to do it.

Repentance

Tonight was one of those busy nights of motherhood...husband worked late, kids were rambunctious, and the laundry was in sore need of some attention. In the shuffle of things, I hadn't paid too much attention to what Mason was doing.  I emerged from the kitchen to see him vigorously rubbing a dry dish cloth on my couch cushions.  Then I noticed the open pen on the floor next to him.  My suspicions were confirmed as I moved closer to see pen marks all over the cushions.  My first reaction was to be upset, but almost as quickly as I felt angry, my heart melted at the sight of him trying so hard to fix what he had done wrong.  Not only had he realized he had done something wrong, but he had taken the initiative to go find a dish cloth to try to fix it.  His little one year old hands were working so hard to try to erase those marks!  But both his dad and I knew that no matter how hard he rubbed that dish cloth against the couch, it was going to take more to get those cushions clean. So we got out some cleaner and went to work. Mason insisted on staying to help us as we worked for quite some time to remove those marks.

As I pondered on this situation tonight, I couldn't help but think of how my Heavenly Father was using this experience to teach me a lesson about repentance.  I think our Father in Heaven's heart is softened towards us when we are repentant and are trying to do what we need to to make things better.  Hard as we try, we are all just like Mason rubbing a dry dish cloth on a soiled couch...we can never fix what we have done wrong by our own efforts.  We need the Savior to step in and help us...because he has the power to fix what we can't. 

I am a Child of God

Last week was spent in busy anticipation of our nephew's baptism.  He is the first cousin on either side of the family to be baptized, so it was a wonderful opportunity for us to teach our children about baptism.  In preparation for a musical number the boys were to sing at the baptism, we spent all week practicing  "I am a Child of God".  One day about mid-week, we were singing the song as I got lunch ready for them.  My ears were opened, and it was like I was hearing my children tell me for the first time:

"lead me, guide me, walk beside me,

help me find the way,

teach me all that I must do,

to live with Him someday."

I wonder if I am doing enough leading, guiding, and teaching. Am I walking beside my children through this life and guiding them back to their Father in Heaven, or am I just there to take care of their physical needs? Are the things I am doing now going to be enough to help them find their way through life?  For me, this song was a great reminder of the importance of the work I have before me...and a call to try harder in all I do to show my children the right way.

Hidden Message

While cleaning up after Carson's birthday party, I found a hidden message for me.  It was tucked away in a corner that usually holds an end table and lamp.  The person who had written the message had crawled under the table and carefully scrawled it so it was almost behind the couch.  Here's what it said:

It melted my heart.  And yes, it is staying there on my baseboard forever. As much as I love a clean house, I could never have the heart to erase it!  I love you too, little man!