Flirt!

Okay so my baby, you know the one with the worst Stranger Anxiety you've ever seen? Yeah well apparently he gets over it really quick when a pretty girl is flirting with him! My friend Katie came over last night to hang out and watch a movie. Mattie was shy at first but it didn’t take long before he became a TOTAL ham! He was showing off his verbal skills and his ‘more’ and ‘please’ signs to get some of her popcorn and even climbed up on the couch to hand her handfuls of it while jabbering on and on and making faces for us just for the attention. He jumped and threw his head back in an enormous fake laugh over and over again just for her benefit. Then he made us laugh so hard because he slid himself into the crook of her arm and laid his head on her. I was in shock watching him. There he was snuggling with someone who an hour before was a total stranger, when usually if anyone not living in our house even talks to him he hides his face and says “no-oo” He was SO cute Katie was eating it up. Katie had my laptop on her lap and Mattie, there in the crook of her arm, pointed to the screen asked “giggles?” How could anyone resist that? So Although Katie was in the middle of something she pulled up Wiggles on You Tube just for him.
When it was time to take him to bed, he gave her a hug goodnight.
My Boy the little flirt! He was so cute.

Matt

Matt is getting so big. Last night he opened the fridge all by himself. He brought me the bag of ham cubes and said "moyyy" then signed please excitedly while bouncing on his feet... the day before that he opened the freezer and asked for a "pomuble" (aka popsicle)


I’ve loved watching him play outside this past week. He’s so content to just wander around the yard kicking balls, and playing with his trucks. He doesn’t even care if I’m there, which is NOT the case when we’re inside. He looks so little to me waddling around all layered up to keep warm. Yet he’s so big entertaining himself and picking himself back up when he trips on a stick. I stand there ready but barely have to move because he’s got everything he needs. A bit of Sunshine the whole backyard..

He’s expanding his vocabulary by the minute these days too. Repeating everything we say and “talking” non-stop about the world around him. He understands and follows commands like “go get your blankie” or “pick up your shoe”, and he answers simple questions knowingly.

“do you want a cracker?”

“No”

"Are you ready for Nigh-Night?”

“No!”

or if he IS ready for bed, He’ll deliberately go and find his blanket and pacifier and come back to me to be carried upstairs.

I LOVE it when he’s looking for something because he sing-songs whatever it is “whey ah youuuu” when he hears a noise outside he will make an O with his mouth and excitedly says “oh!, Whats dat?” he still thinks he’s really funny and has now began fake laughing while putting his hand over his mouth. What a Ham!!

Memories

Last night I helped the girls clean their room. I wanted to do some ‘mother daughter bonding’ so I told them that I was going to ask them a question and they each had to give me their answers no other talking allowed.
I threw out things like
“What’s your favorite color”
and “if you had 5$ what would you buy your sister?”
I got some pretty typical answers, but then I got some pretty sweet ones too. It isn’t often that my girls show love towards each other, so when I hear the occasional proof it makes me very happy.
This is what I learned
Ali’s favorite color is still yellow. (It has been for about 4 years)
Her favorite food is still mashed potatoes, and spaghetti.
If she had 5$ to spend on one person she would buy
Megan “things to color with”
Mattie “a toy”
Me a “fairy or a frog or a Make over” (should I take that personally?)
Ex (her Daddy) “climbing stuff”
Taylor (daddy too) “a new hat or something like that….”
I learned that if she could go anywhere she’d go to Hawaii, or California,
And If she could spend time with anyone in the world, it would be her family.
She also wants to have a slumber party for her birthday.

Megan When asked about the 5$
Turned and asked Ali “what would you like Ali?” which I thought was very cute. Ali said she’d like “a book”. (ahh, a girl after my own heart).
She’d buy Mattie “a toy”
Her Daddy (Ex) “climbing or camping stuff”
Daddy Taylor she wasn’t sure of….”what does Daddy like?” she asked
And we didn’t even get to me, because there was too much squirming and talking about Birthday parties that I had to move to the next question..
So I learned that if she could go anywhere right at that moment, she’d go “swimming”. After hearing Ali’s answer, she changed hers to Disneyland.
She’d spend time with her family, and
She WANTED to have a Ballerina Birthday party… including Jack! “do boys do ballet Mom?” but after hearing that Ali wanted a slumber party, she’s decided that she is going to have one too.. With Michie, Emmy, and Mia.

To keep the mood going I started telling them stories. Now for those of you who know me, I love to get lively when I tell the kids stories.. I use motions, gestures, and different voices with facial expressions.. I love to see the sparkle in their eyes when they hear stories and they love it even more when I get animated.
I began with stories of myself when I was a child. I told them of the time we stepped out of our cabin in Yellowstone to find a Buffalo right outside our door.
I told them about how when Pushing kids on the tire swing in third grade I ran into the pole and got a concussion. I dramatically re-enacted the entire scene for them, including my Teachers reaction to the giant welt on my forehead. . I told them how I was the ‘best tire swing pusher in third grade” to which Ali responded “That comes from you then, mom, cuz, I’m the best tire swing pusher too, I get that from you! It must run in the family”.
I told them about the time I broke my pinky playing kick ball, and thought my pinky was my thumb.
I described to them the temperature of the water as we jumped into the pool for the first time every spring. (I definitely burned calories re-enacting that one!)
I ran out of my own stories so I went on to tell them stories about when they were tiny.
I told about Ali’s pacifier addiction and how no matter how hard I tried to get rid of them she would always magically find one hiding somewhere, and when she did, she’d pop it in her mouth happily and suck away. She LOVED the binky!
I told of Megan when she was about barely crawling and would climb into the baby bouncer and bounce so hard she’d catch air.
The girls were giggling and begging for more. I remembered that I had Megan’s bouncer jumping on video so we went in search of the old home movies. As it was getting late, we spent just 20 minutes playing the tapes and forwarding through to the fun parts. I couldn’t believe how little they both were. Listening to Ali’s little gruff voice telling me things was just darling. She was such a little busy body. She was jumping around, climbing on things and talking non-stop just like she does today. Megan was a super chunk and she loved seeing herself crawl around ‘growling’ and being charming. I could have watched them all night. I really enjoyed it. And I think the girls did too.
I was especially grateful when they climbed into their beds and went to sleep without any protesting. It always feels good when you can tuck them in and leave with a good feeling.
When I went in to check on them a few hours later Megan was yet again curled up on the end of Ali’s bed, squished into the 2-foot space she had.
I picked her up and put her back in her own bed. I’m glad I did, because unfortunately she had an accident last night… I probably should have woken her up to go to the bathroom, but that’s okay, we’ll keep trying.. First thing she said when she woke up was “will I have to wear a pull-up tonight?”

Oh and cute Mattie had been hanging with us the entire time. He LOVES playing with the little trinkets and things that the girls have on their shelves.
He was particularly intent on getting something on the top shelf of Ali’s and kept saying "dat, pees, Dat, pees" so I picked him up and let him point it out to me. When I handed it to him he took it out of my hand, immediately stuck his hand up under his chin and said “dant-do” (aka Thank you). He’s such a smart boy. We only showed him once and he does it all the time now.

Spoke too soon.. but a Great day none the less

Saturday was supposed to bring us up into the 60's.... That's not what we got however.
Instead we got SNOW!
I had such a great day yesterday..
I went up to Kaysville for Jacob's Baptism.. He was very cute, and it was fun to see all of Megan's family. Meg and I have been best Friends since we were 12 (roughly 18 years believe it or not) and I felt more comfortable with all of her family than I imagined. Mia had attached herself to my hip through most of it She's so cute.. I wish the girls could have come.
It was fabulous having a vehicle all day too.. I'm so used to Taylor having it and being stuck at home that I seriously felt like I'd been given parole! I could go ANYWHERE I wanted,and with the girls at Ex's, I only had Mattie to strap in too! YEAH!
After hanging out in Kaysville, I drove through the nasty snow home, and decided that Mattie And I would go grocery shopping. I haven't done that in ages, because usually Taylor just stops on his way home late at night. I was glad to go, because Taylor is notorious for getting JUNK!.
I filled the cart with fruits and veggies, and wholesome ingredients to make some yummy meals this week. I really want to get everyone eating healthier in our house.
When we got home Mattie and I cleaned the kitchen. He helped by smacking everything with the broom handle as he swept the floor, and by climbing into the fridge, freezer, and pantry as I cleaned them. He's so helpful. really.
Earlier in the day before the storm came in and we'd gone up to Kaysville, Mattie had begged to go out in the backyard to play.. It was So windy I was afraid he was going to blow away, but he was so happy that I let him play out there for a good 30 minutes. He seriously had a grin on his face the entire time. He was begging to go out again so I finally brought in his 'Flinstone' car so that he could push it around the kitchen and living room. he loved that, and has mastered going forward in it as long as there are no walls to stop him..
I had so much fun with him all day.. he was being so silly, making up his own jokes, and giggling as I reacted to them. He's such a little snuggle boy too.
He kept scaring me to death by shutting the door to the family room stairs all while standing as close to the edge as he could get without falling off on the other side. I jumped onto the stairs so that I was behind him, and the little joker turned around, ran and slammed the door shut on me laughing so hard he almost fell over. I knocked on the door and he would open it and shut it really fast then run away laughing. I could see his little feet backing away from the door. I stuck my hands under the door, and he'd run up touch them and run away giggling.
We went down to the playroom and he thought he'd be funny by pretending to fall off the couch. He'd climb up and in slow motion would let himself fall onto the floor. (thank goodness for the splurge on thick padding) He LOVED my reaction and was giggling so hard he'd have to wait a minute to climb back up again. We played for quite a while down there, watching Elmo's world, and reading books. He's getting to that age where he's testing things to see what kind of reaction he gets, like wacking me on the head with his plastic hammer (OUCH!). We have to be careful how we react to those things so that he doesnt think they're funny. I love that he gets that things are so funny though.. He totally knows when he's teasing. He's such a clown sometimes.
One of his favorite things is when Taylor and I pretend to fight over holding him.. I'll hold onto his legs and Taylor will hold onto his body and we'll pretend to pull saying "my baby, No, My baby!".. he thinks that's hilarious.
When Taylor got home, I kissed him hello. Mattie took my head and Taylor's head and pushed us back together to kiss again.. Then I kissed Taylor on the cheek hoping Mattie would imitate and he did, it was the cutest little pucker kiss we'd ever seen and I got one on my cheek too. we were both melting. We thought that was it, but then he grabbed my face in his chubby little hands and as I turned to get another kiss on the cheek, he surprised us both by deliberately turning my head and giving me a great big wet one right on the lips. He's so stinking cute, that boy of ours!
before I went to sleep, I snuck in and watched him sleep for awhile. Its so hard for me to not pick him up and snuggle him..
I was telling Taylor that It makes me think about the girls when they were Matties age. I remember them being little, I remember them being so adorable that I felt the same with every little cute thing they did just like we do with Mattie, but those in the moment feelings are not there, I can't remember them exactly its just the stories, and pictures...... it makes me sad to think that next week, that precious little moment will be forgotten and before we know it he'll be 5 and we'll have forgotten what he was like when he was 18 months.
oh sure, we'll write things down, and we'll have pictures, and I do think that there are fun things about every age, but it reminds me that they're growing up really really fast, and I want to hold on to these very moments where its all about playing, and giggling, and sleeping with their butt in the air .... Puberty, and homework, just isn't as fun......

Mathew is killing me with his cuteness

I mean seriously, how cute can one 17 month old be?
His latest obsession is flipping through board books over and over and over again.
The other night we spent a good part of an hour doing this. He calls them “cooks” and hands them to you then stands there expectantly, or climbs in your lap while you open it up to the pages inside. He points and comments about the pictures on each page. His two favorites are a great big heavy Animal board book, and Brown Bear Brown Bear. I love getting him to make the animal sounds as I point to the animals. My personal favorite is the horse because he shakes his whole face to make the sound. He thinks he’s pretty funny too, and looks at my like I’m crazy when I do the rooster call. I’m trying to teach him his colors using Brown Bear. So far he’s got green and blue. After about 45 minutes of looking through books I tried to distract him by walking upstairs. I was waiting in the kitchen for him to come up and I had to laugh because there he was climbing up the stairs bringing with him the great big animal book. He was working so hard to get it up there pushing it ahead of him before each step. Its about 1/3 his size! Of course we read for another 15 minutes before I put him to bed. I couldn’t let him go through all that effort for nothing.
The other thing he’s been doing regularly is dancing. It’s the cutest little shimmy I’ve ever seen. The girls always had the little hip shake going on, but Mattie does a whole body shimmy back and forth. The girls and I were cleaning their room the other night and Mattie was helping by being DJ. He put High school musical in the CD player and as soon as it started he did his little shimmy. He’s so serious about it too. He’d push pause and totally stop straight faced then start it up and start shaking again. The girls and I were laughing so hard we couldn’t clean and he loved the attention, even if he didn’t’ get why we were laughing so hard.
I put on Wiggles for him the other night and he was mesmerized. I don’t know if that was so smart on my part.. I DID suffer through years of the Wiggles with Megan, and I think I might have set myself up for a few more years of them. Oh well, Watching him watch them takes me back to those days when Meg would watch in awe and shake her little booty.. Seriously, Who needs TV when you can watch a toddler?

Romantic?

Ali walked in from school yesterday with a twitterpated look in her eyes. I gave her my usual welcome home hug and kiss, and she immediately took my hand, leading me to the couch as if we were in for a very important discussion. We sat down and I looked at her encouragingly. Ali Giddily; “Guess what Porter said today mom” (Pausing while Megan came in the room, Because she was NOT going to have this kind of grown up discussion with a 5 year old in the room! And then Meg left). I leaned in to hear the news as she proceeded to describe to me the entire affair.
He’d followed her into school as she walked Megan to her classroom (an entirely different route than most 3rd graders take). He’d made silly comments about being “big kid, third graders”, and “ liking her hat” and Then… Then he said something VERY Notable. Breathlessly Ali repeated word for word their conversation.
“ He said {“Ali, I like you… And Rachel”} It was a little less romantic that he said Rachel too, but he said he liked me!” Then she giggled and squirmed excitedly.
I had to stifle my laugh. Did she actually just say Romantic? My 8 year old?
She was completely and utterly serious though, so I congratulated her then worried a little bit more that my baby girl is getting older by the minute and boy crazy too!
She’s going to make him a special poem for Valentines Day. She also informed me that they chase each other at recess (a group of girls and boys) and who ever catches each other has to ‘get married’ Porter has captured her of course, and in all her 8-year-old maturity that is the best thing next to watching Goosebumps on Saturday night!

On another note, Mattie has Finally learned to crawl down the stairs backwards. YEAH! I’ve been trying to get him to do it for a few months now, but all he would do is laugh at me like I was being silly and turn back around. Then he’d stand at the top of the stairs and grunt or say “peas” while pointing down. So yesterday I demonstrated it for him a number of times, and he did it too. After a few practice runs he was up and down all by himself for the rest of the day. (minus one minor mishap when he forgot about that last stair. Thank goodness for soft carpet)
I moved all of his toys from the living room to the family room downstairs. It will be nice to have an actual grown up room now.
Mattie will hopefully be more independent now that he can go down to the playroom with the rest of the kids.
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More Mattie Milestones……… For my own records.
"wus-AT?" said quickly with enthusiasm= What’s that? Usually before looking out the window for a guck aka Truck.
He is saying "yuh-you"=I love you, all the time now. and "bye bye"
putting "more" and "peas"(please) together more often. Two word combo's starting up...
“Hair”, (he still loves rubbing his hair especially with food) “head”, “fee” (feet) “um” (tummy)
cootee=cookie (thanks to Daddy!)
drink is still kind of mix between 'gunk and gek' no matter how hard we try for "cup, or Drink" but at least we understand what it means. and if we don't he just signs the 'more' sign, points at his cup and says "peas"
He is blowing kisses with the real smacked lips sound, which is enough to melt your heart and soul into a million pieces. Especially when its followed by a “yuh you”
He thinks its really funny to head butt, or hit so we're trying really hard not to give ANY kind of reaction to either one. (he learned the head butting part from Oli-Oli)
He loves to throw his own diaper or any other trash for that matter away all by himself. And to help sweep. (which usually consists of everyone else in the room running for their lives or risk getting smacked by the metal broom handle)
He likes music... his dancing consists of bobbing his head dramatically. (sometimes throwing a leg maneuver in here and there)
Loves to give 5 and to play patty cake
likes to climb up the couch to look out the window or torture Weston. ( I just worry about his getting down off the couch)
Likes to rock in his toddler size rocking chair. sits and does it very deliberately
Can spin himself on his sit and spin. pretty talented if you ask me.
Loves to ‘kick’ at things, or push things with his foot. (esp Weston)

Mattie

This boy of mine.. how fast he's growing up.. I can sit and watch him for hours and not get bored. This age of exploration. New words everyday. New talents, and milestones.

Dawn reminded me that I started this blog for a very specific reason, and that was to document and remember all those little things about the kids and our lives. I should be writing the little things down more often, and taking more pictures..

Mathew
My little baby boy.
He is my little chub. he spends 80% of his time running around in feety jammies, 10% naked, and the other 10% in actual clothes.. we like it that way.
He says a new word everyday.
here's a list of the ones he says regularly
Up
moy=More emphasis on 'oy'
dink=drink
peez=please
dain-do=thank you
nigh-nigh=night night
hooooooot(emphasis on t) =hot.. always said in a hushed whisper and drawn out
hat= much like hot but with a perfect a sound
binty=binky
baynty=blanket
doggy
guck!=truck Always said excitedly with any loud noise outside
out
HI!
bye bye
yuh you= love you
a-duh (with arms up in the air) = all done
a-goh(with arms up in the air= all gone
nishe=nice (said when torturing the dog, which he does often)
nose
eyes
brrrrrr -cold
cucu=something gross, or unappealing
okay more randomness....
he loves to play with his hot wheel trucks, loves chasing the dog and playing with the bicycle pump.
He is still a blanky boy.. when he's tired he will pick up his blanket and say "nigh-nigh".
Loves his binky , still takes two naps a day. goes to sleep around 7:30-8 and will sleep until 7-7:30 next morning.. ( I LOVE to sneak in before I go to bed and snuggle and rock him for a few minutes at night while he's sleeping.. I won't get to do that much longer)
He drinks mostly water, not much of a milk drinker. Loves eating but is a picky eater. doesn't like crackers, and other regular toddler favorites. Does like tomatoes, oranges, noodles, bowls of cereal (eaten all by himself with a spoon), and misc things depending on his mood. usually if I'm eating it, he'll want it... (THAT is typical toddler).
Has his 1 year old molars top and bottom. His top front teeth came in discolored (just the tips). We took him to the dentist and the dentist said it has to do with the enamel.. unfortunately that makes him more susceptible for decay so we get to be really careful with his teeth.. poor guy The dentist said it won't effect his adult teeth..
still chases the dirty pile when you try to sweep, and climbs in the dishwasher when I'm doing dishes.
Loves his hair.. is constantly rubbing things into it and rubbing it back and forth... brings me the mousse and says "uh" wich means "can I please have a handful of it to giggle and smoosh in my hair?"
loves wearing his boots and other shoes.. esp megan and Ali's
Loves wrestling, and has started incorporating some Karate like maneuvers into the mix. (mainly leaning back against something and pushing his leg out at whatever he's trying to conquer)
LOOOVES the kitchen sink... aka jacuzzi if he's upset, fussy, tired, cranky (you get the drift) all I have to do is put him in the sink add a little warm water and he's happy as a clam. (AND I can get the kitchen cleaned!)
can point out his body parts -eyes, hair, tummy, mouth, nose, feet, knees especially loves poking peoples eyes out while he pronounces "EYESH" very distinctly
There's sooo much more.. I suppose I'll have to add it when it comes up..
It makes me a little sad. He will be the last baby I have. Love this boy..it goes too fast I tell you.

Catching up.

I haven’t felt much like blogging lately.. Not for a lack of topics.. We’ve been quite busy around here.. Its more a Laziness issue… When I do get a minute to sit down, I have been catching up on my Magazine reading, or just sitting alone enjoying the small windows of silence.
So lets catch up shall we?
Craig is still here. And yes, we are still enjoying his company.
Last week we watched Michie, Emmie, and Olivia while Ang had Orientation. It was pretty crazy at first, but by mid week, we’d gotten everyone into a routine. Things went quite smoothly from there. I have to give Taylor credit for most of that.. He was seriously super dad, keeping the house clean, and taking care of 6 kids! His laid back personality can really be a blessing sometimes.
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Angie Home schools her two older girls, so I picked that up for her the days I was home.. Ali was a fantastic little tutor; I think Michie felt quite privileged to be her little pupil.
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Thursday I took them ALL to the dentist for Ali and Megan’s 6 month check up.. I was quite amazed at how smoothly it went. The girls behaved beautifully, and hooray, No cavities.
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Week in review via picture........................................…. CHAOS!!!!!!!

Friday evening, The North’s (sans Michael) came to town for a visit and for MJ’s 5-month pictures. Coryne and Ali tore the place up and were literally jumping off the furniture until we had to separate them for bed. Megan and Shane weren’t far behind.
Saturday we had a great photo shoot, then ran errands with them before they left for home. Let me just say…. 6 kids running errands… Not so fun. But we made it.
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Sunday........ Ahhhhhhhh quite! LOVED it!

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Monday we started over again with the Cason girls
More ‘home schooling’ and lots of play-doh..

Taylor started his NEW JOB at UPS (YEAH!!!) His last day at Primary Children’s is the 27th. He’s sad to leave After 5 years, but it’s a really good move for our family. I’m really proud of him, and super excited for great benefits. You’d think we had great benefits working for IHC, but they really suck.

Tuesday I had a really nice visit from my visiting teacher (her partner had sick kids). It was really nice to sit and chat and get to know her. Even though I have been in the ward for 5 years, I’m still socially hopeless and don’t know people very well.
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TodayI worked again.. a VERY busy day and finally an early bedtime for the kids which means blogging time for me!
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And just a little something to end with

Matties boots finally fit..........................

Manic Monday

Craig and Merry are back in town..We love getting to know Merry. The girls were so excited to get home and meet her. So excited in fact that after all the jumping, giggling, and talking, they didn't fall asleep until after ten o'clock last night!

this morning they were equally excited and Its been really fun having them both here.
We've had a great Morning chatting and playing with the kids.
Ang Jumped back into the workforce and has Orientation all week. Taylor and I agreed to watch the girls for her. Including this one..

Ms Distructo (aka Olivia) has already broken one of my planters.... but all she has to do is look at me with those brown eyes and I have to forgive her...
The house is a mess, but we aren't cleaning it till Saturday ..

so the other great thing is Merry does hair! Yeah for me because we are ALL in desperate need of some help in that area!
She so Generously gave Mattie and Me haircuts this morning and is going to hit the girls up tonight...
just look how grown up my baby boy looks!

Mine looks and feels great but its a little harder to get a picture of........

Happy New year!

I’ve totally dropped the ball on this whole blogging thing. I blame Craig Entirely for hording my computer and causing me to forget that I actually have a blog!
It has been pretty chaotic around our house the last few days.
Monday Morning we dragged the poor kids out of bed to take Craig to the Airport at 6:30 am. The kids were sad to see him go, but felt better knowing that he’d be back in less than a week.

When we got home

First we shoveled the grass....That's very important you know..then we ate snow........But not the yellow kind

Ewwwwwwww

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Ang came over with her girls and their New edition.
Meet Ruthie..

The cutest little puppy I’ve seen since Weston!
Mattie was in love with her (as were all the children)

He’d pet her repeating “nishe” over, and over again.

She still has baby sharp puppy teeth, and Mattie got a little overwhelmed when she tried to use his chubby little limbs as a teether.

But just look how cute his chub is! I want to nibble it too!

They stayed for most of the day which is usually how it goes.
Over 8 hours of kids running around screaming, playing, giggling and demanding food, watching movies like this one (without the Children of course), and at least half a dozen games of Zilch for Ang and I. It was Fabulous!
Taylor was going to take the girls with him to his Aunts house for their Annual New Years eve party, but got home too late after taking Trax home.

I’ve never been one to celebrate New Years, so I was happily asleep by 10:30. Ahhhh sleep!

Yesterday Taylor got called off from work so we spent the day running around with the kids. First, a little 75% off ‘After Christmas’ shopping at Target.

Its very unusual for Taylor and I to have a day off together. It only happens once or twice a month on a good month.. So it was really nice to run around with an extra set of hands.

(well until I had to DRAG him kicking and screaming out of the toy isle........ Yes, I'm serious)

Ali wanted to go Ice-skating so I dropped Taylor and the girls off at the Rec center while Mattie and I went grocery shopping. I came back an hour later to find them sitting in the doorway of the rec center eating a pile of treats from the vending machine. They had gone in and rented their skates only to find that Megan had not worn socks under her snow boots. Ali was thoughtful enough not to leave Meg on the sidelines and opted to go another time. (Occasionally they look after one another… In between the hours, days, and months of constant bickering), I felt bad that they didn’t get to go, but grateful that they seemed to have a good time munching on their junk food and bonding with Taylor for awhile.

In other news............
Mattie has taken over my MP3 Shuffle.

Every time I try to put it on, he comes running. He actually listens to it too. I stick the earplugs in his tiny little ears, and clip it to his jammies and off he runs. When an earplug falls out he hands it to me and leans his empty ear towards me. He's done this 3 times in the last two days! I think he’s going to be a rock star like his big sister.
(PS, don't mind the messy jammies.. I really do bathe him)

Today, I’m at work. The start of my Five in a row 12 hour shifts. Ugh… Craig will be here again this weekend, so I’ll try and blog a few more times while I’m here at work (shhh, don’t tell) because I am sure he’ll be hording my laptop.

Merry Christmas

My brother Craig and his beautiful wife Merry gave Mattie a sit and spin.

Taylor's been waiting MONTHS to give him this big Tonka truck.

And Mattie also got this great Car rug to play with his "Gucks" on.

The girls get home in approximately 60 minutes, and I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!

Hope you're having a very Merry Christmas!

Baking

Did I forget to mention that Mattie likes to help me bake?

Bullies! and Snow hats!

I was babysitting today.. I think We need a lesson on Sharing............
I'm just teasing.. She's really a darling litle girl. Just Two years old and thats all the explanation she needs!

This is the darling Snow hat that Jeane made for Mattie.

She made one for him last year too.

when she brought it over we tried it on right away.

when I took it off him, he picked it up and tried to put it back on himself.

My little Linus

Mattie Loves his blanket.
Especially when he is tired. He'll drag it across the room and put his arms up letting us know that he's ready for bed. I’ve made him three of these Fleece tied blankets so that he can tag the knots, but this red ‘cowboy’ one is his favorite.

Snow

I went on about how depressed I was yesterday with the Muck outside.
Then it began to snow.
I typically loathe it come winter. Its cold, its wet, its not fun to drive in, and unless I can afford to go Snowboarding, I find it a nuisance and nothing more.
But then Comes Mattie. Just like the dog, he has taught me to appreciate something that I once found annoying.
The girls were with their dad last night so Taylor and I decided to do a little Christmas shopping. I opened the van door to unbuckle Mattie, his eyes lit up and he pointed at the falling snow asking us “what the heck is that?” with a simple “huh?”. Taylor picked him up in his arms and as we tried to cover him with his blanket he deliberately pushed it off, tipped his face upward, opened his mouth and squealed! He giggled and blinked the flakes from his eyelids leaving Taylor and I no other choice but to join in. It was one of those moments in time that just holds its breath a second or two.. He was so much fun to watch. It made every flake worth it.
My spirits are lifted now and I think I can appreciate the beautiful blanket of white that covers the valley for a while. (at least until the muck makes it turn black and slushy).

Four A.M.

Its 4 o'clock in the morning. We're up with a sick baby. I hate the indecisiveness that takes place when your child is sick To take them to the Dr or Not .. Do you wait? Do you go? will they think you're over reacting? Can they even do anything for him? ugh.... All I know is that I want someone to fix him and fast..... poor little guy.. He's 14 months yet we have him here in our bedroom in the baby swing so that we can be right next to him..

Sick Baby

We got a sick baby.......

I just hate it when they're sick, and helpless.

Pumpkin Patch

We took a little trip to the Pumpkin patch because you know...

Its tradition!

Mattie thougt it was funny to peek through the pumpkin

Megan wanted a "Tiny baby one"

Ali picked a perfectly shaped medium sized pumpkin that was only 5 Dollars!!!!

(When I was 8 that pumpkin would have cost a quarter!)

(I used a little "old school" finish on this picture.. I like how it looks)

Typical morning… and the rest of my Friday.

My Morning
We started off with our regular morning routine where I drag the girls out of their beds kicking and screaming. (They don’t realize I feel the same way most mornings). Then I spend the next 20 minutes debating Megan on her attire. “No Megan, You can NOT wear Alex’s size 10 skirt, because you thinks it’s beautiful.” “Yes, you HAVE to wear underwear”, “Megan quick wigging out and just put your stinking socks on!!!!!” “oh, Megan PuhLEASE just put your boots on”
And in between all of that I’m re-directing Ali from the many million distractions that she finds every morning. “Ali, get your Shoes on”, “Ali, put your stuff away, and get your shoes on”, “Ali, get your shoes on, come eat breakfast” “ALI, IF YOU DON’T PUT YOUR STINKING SHOES ON, YOU’RE NOT GOING TO HAVE TIME TO EAT!!”… And then as we’re walking out the door, “ALI! Where are your shoes?” Ugghhh!. Its a lot of work getting those two off in the morning.
As I walk back in the house after dropping them off at school, I see Ali’s backpack sitting by the door.
Pretty typical.
Its my morning verbal calisthenics..
This morning
I put Matt down for his a.m. nap and set out to make the crucial choice between taking a shower (which I hadn’t had the opportunity to do in two days), taking a quick nap (which I hadn’t gotten to do for weeks), or cleaning.
Nap won… but no sooner had I laid my head down than my doorbell rang.
Like I said. Pretty typical morning.

The Rest of my day……….
We had Kate over to play after school, I like play dates because the kids are less likely to complain that they’re bored, which in turn gives me time to get something done. Kate and Megan play really well together, and Megan told me just today that she [Megan] is a nice girl now because she wants to get the principal pride at her school. (I’ll take whatever incentive that works).. .
When Ali got home, I sat out in the front yard and played games with the girls while Mattie walked around the yard using the baby carriage as a walker. (Shhhh, don’t tell Daddy.. We’ll just pretend it was a big monster truck). The Weather was good and my kids love the outdoors. They get that from me.
Around 4:30 Mattie pointed up the stairs and babbled something very persistently. I walked him up to his bedroom and he practically threw himself into his crib.
He slept until 6:30!
I’ve been in a mood lately to cook things that I’ve never tried before. I made porcupine meatballs the other night, homemade butter flake rolls and cinnamon rolls the day after that and so last night, I decided to try my hand at Chicken noodle soup. From scratch! Stock from the bones, home made noodles, the whole bit! It took HOURS! And only 4 calls to my neighbor Jeanne for instruction. I had no idea what I was doing, and no recipe. It actually turned out really yummy. I was quite proud of myself.
When Matt woke up he was in a great mood. He was giggly and playful, finding great Joy in pulling the clothes out of my organized laundry piles. He’d pick up an article of clothing and before he could even do anything with it, he was giggling and rolling around, climbing into my lap and falling all over himself.. I LOVED every second of it.
Good Day I’d say.
Hope yours was too.

Not needed, but needing more.

I may not be a food source any more, but I'm still the Mama.

My Baby decided to ween himself two days ago. Its been a hard break for me. I thought that I would be the one weening him. He's just over a year, and That is longer than I nursed either of the girls. I didn't mind. It was that one thing I could do for him that no one else could. I know he's the last baby I will have, and I haven't wanted to give that bonding up. Is it funny that I miss it? It breaks my heart a little that he won't come to me and want to nurse every time he's hungry hurt or tired. He still needs me right? I don't want my kids to grow up so fast. It hurts a little more than I thought it would.

I did have a few things to distract me from my sadness though.

Megan came down to drop something important off.......Angie had to make an emergency trip to Salt lake for her pet turtle who was ill. And Lucky me, They stayed to play!.

we had 9 kids running around this house for over 5 hours! I LOVED it! We took the opportunity to take some more pictures of the littles. (because come on, whats a trip to Jessica's house without a little photo shoot?), and While conference was on in the background we made cookies and watched them disappear into the Little hands that reached over the counter.

I LOVE having Friends over. I love filling my house with people I love. I thrive on positive, uplifting, Non Judgemental, Unconditional friendships. (by the way.. I missed ya Ang,Mich,Emmee,and Oly Wish you guys could have come over too) I'm so lucky to have such great friends.