Snow Fun

It is probably obvious that I have more time on my hands now that the kids are out of school by how frequent my posts are becoming!
So today it snowed and Emily and I were outside shoveling the driveway. After we were done we made snowballs and threw them at Tyler who was in the house and standing at the window. After we'd thrown a few I walked to the mailbox and got the mail. When I was walking up to Emmy she said, "throw the mail at Tyler!" Isn't that hilarious?

The Ins and Outs of Emily

3 things that scare me:
- dogs
- Santa
- dance recitals

3 people that make me laugh:
- Tyler
- Dad
- Bailey

3 things I love:
- pull toys (anything I can drag around the house - I put a leash on all my toys)
- sippy cups
- Dora

3 things I hate:
- getting my hair done
- Dad leaving
- quiet time

3 things I don't understand:
- why we can't play games ALL of the time
- why I can't wear shorts in December
- why my pants keep falling down

3 things on my floor:
- toys from my kitchen
- toy fishing pole
- dolls

3 things I'm doing right now:
- playing with Tyler
- talking
- pulling up my pants!

3 ways to describe my personality:
- happy
- spunky
- persistent

3 things you should listen to:
- tales from preschool
- me sing
- my make believe stories

3 things I love to eat:
- macaroni
- pizza
- sprinkles off of anything

3 things I'd like to learn:
- to use the phone
- to open doors with child locks
- get my own drinks

Our first ballet

My friend is a big ballet fan and she had planned on taking her daughter (Emily's age) to the Nutcracker this month. When she tried to get tickets they were already sold out so she found another ballet being performed this month. It was Charlotte's Web. She invited a few friends to come and bring their daughters. I thought it sounded perfect - Emily has seen the movie a few thousand times - and it was the day after her dance recital. So 3 of us agree to go and take our daughters. We all piled in my minivan and the girls had the best time chatting on the way. We get there and get good seats and the ballet starts. Then it hits me - there are no words in the ballet - not one. Not a narrator, not a song with words - nothing but a lot of dancing! So I get worried that Emily's going to get lost or at least lose interest. So I'm explaining things throughout the ballet - and for almost 2 hours that little girl sat on my lap and didn't move a muscle! She ever whispered when she wanted to say something and would clap whe everyone else would! During intermission she kept asking when the curtain would go up! It was the most amazing thing - she loved it and follwed the story great. All three girls loved it and as soon as it ended her friend said to her mom, "when can we go to the Nutcracker?" The whole night was so fun - I was shocked she loved it so much but she did. Emily and her friend didn't even make it to the freeway before they were both asleep - the ballet took a lot out of them!

Dance Recital

Thursday night was Emily's first dance recital. We were so excited - all day we talked about Emmy's special day. Our expecations for the actual performance were low - I thought she'd just stand on the stage and stare at us, and I was all ready to just have that be fine. We got her all ready and I took her there early so she could watch some of the other classes perform. I thought a little preparedness would help. My parents came, Derek and our other kids came and we were ready to start. Her teacher called up her class and she was the first one on the stage. The music started and Emily was doing the dance! I was shocked! About ten seconds in she stopped dancing and just stood there, staring. This was what I expected. Then came the welling tears - not expected - and then the free flow of tears and the running off the stage into Derek's arms! She cried so loud everyone was watching her and not their own cute little dancers! Finally we got her calmed down enough to sit and watch the rest of her class dance and then they ended and she was happy as a clam. It was the weirdest thing - Derek said it was just like she short-circuited! Afterwards we took pictures of her with her friends and her teacher and she was just all smiles. It was such a funny night - despite the tears - which we caught on camera!

Then Can We Cry?

Derek and I took the kids out to dinner a few weeks ago. On the way to the restaurant Derek was giving the kids the 'good behavior' talk. He was telling the kids how they should act and how their shouldn't be any crying. Emily piped up and asked, 'what if a stranger comes to our table and hits all of us? Then can we cry?'. Derek said crying was allowed in that situation. Funny eh?

I figured out the pictures! Yeah!

My Thankful List

Ok, so I'm not above copying other people's good ideas - here's my own thankful list. Thanks for the great idea!
1. Derek
2. my kids
3. my family
4. in-laws
5. the gospel
6. my house
7. my friends
8. my mini-van
9. baby gates
10. Tyler's teacher
11. phones (cordless, cell, I like them all)
12. online banking
13. mail (the good kind, not the junk)
14. baby announcements
15. waffles
16. busing to school
17. Derek coming home from a business trip
18. The Office
19. weekends
20. internet
21. printers
22. debit cards
23. the holiday season
24. playing piano in primary
25. books
26. paint with water books
27. my kids' cousins
28. ponytails
29. naps
30. primary music
31. education week
32. big garbage cans
33. healthy kids
34. dance recitals
35. Halloween
36. magna doodles
37. dinner co-ops
38. online shopping
39. leisure suits
40. parks
41. bike rides
42. birthdays
43. cake decorating
44. fieldtrips
45. happy kids
46. brownies
47. clean kids
48. blogging (writing and reading)
49. kids books
50. date night
51. restaurants
52. living by family
53. washer and dryer
54. dishwasher
55. country music
56. disposable diapers
57. preschool
58. kids sports
59. parent teacher conferences
60. kids snow boots
61. seasons
62. games
63. email
64. library
65. naptime
66. carpooling
67. my parent's cabin
68. temple
69. car washes
70. the Today show
71. vacations
72. vacuums
73. computers
74. PBS
75. digital cameras
76. pianos
77. clean house
78. jeans
79. swimming pools
80. Costco
81. sweet and sour chicken
82. new clothes
83. seeing people's cute Christmas decor
84. craft fairs
85. book clubs
86. Dr. Phil and Oprah
87. dentist appointments
88. Dr. Seuss
89. steak french fries and fry sauce
90. gloves
91. copiers
92. FHE
93. blizzards (the ones that come from Dairy Queen)
94. Super Saturdays
95. phone calls
96. sisters and sisters-in-law
97. slippers
98. matching clothes for my girls
99. doctor's hours that start at 8:00
100. walks on the greenbelt
There's a lot more to be thankful for, and certainly things of more substance, but it's great to look at all the wonderful things we enjoy every day!

My 911 baby

Monday night Bailey was playing with the phone while I was putting the other two kids to bed. I didn't think anything of it until the phone rang, I went to get it, and Bailey had already answered it - to my "hello" I heard, "this is 911, is there an emergency?". I'm totally confused and say no, and she says that someone had called from this number, I tell her it must have been my baby, and she says, "ok, I'll cancel the officer". So I'm dying as I tell Derek that Bay had called 911.
Then today I'm telling my friend that she called 911 and she says, "oh, last time Bailey was at my house she called 911" - same repeat as what happened to me, 911 called back, what's your emergency, blah, blah, blah - isn't that crazy that she could call 911, not only once, but twice?! I'm learning my lesson though to be more careful with her and the phone!

Halloween Fun

Halloween was a totally fun and crazy day. I had to make the dinners for the co-op and get them delivered, and then O came over to make frosting flowers for our class on Thursday. It was way fun to get together to make them and she brought over her 2 little boys and they played great with my kids. We fed the kids lunch and got the boys on the bus (with not a minute to spare - we didn't even make down the driveway before the bus was there). Then I headed to the school to do Tyler's Halloween party - and, I hate to brag, but I successfully orchestrated complete chaos. The hour was nothing but chaos - I'm sure I gave his poor teacher an ulcer at watching me run this party. But I guess the bright side is I'll probably get fired from this job! I got the kids all dressed, Tyler was a cowboy - the easiest costume I've come by, Emily was a skeleton (I wanted a girly thing, a princess or a fairy, and she wanted a skeleton, so we compromised on a skeleton with pink bones, and Bay was a Piglet hand-me-down). Then we ran to the church for the trunk or treat and started the candy collection of the night.
Derek took the 2 big kids trick or treating - and this was the first year that we took the kids from house to house, not just specific houses. Tyler was hooked - the kid loves Halloween now. Derek asked if they were cold and wanted to go home, and Tyler just said, "but if we go to that house over there, we'll get more candy" - nothing seemed clearer to that little boy. And then when Derek finally said enough trick or treating, Tyler asked if he could go again in the morning. When Derek explained that this was a one night deal, Tyler asked if Derek could go for him. The kid loved it. Emily didn't last as long because it was so cold, but Tyler could have gone all night. All in all, the kids loved it and I'm loving that it's over!

The Night that wasn't Supposed to be

Last night was not in the stars for me to be a good night. It started a week ago and I should have just given up then. Tyler comes home from school with a flyer that says that there will be a kindergarten parent/child pumpkin carving night on Tuesday. We think it's such a fun idea and totally get Tyler excited to go with Derek. Then a few days later our friends invite us to go to a corn maze with them - a couples only evening that would be lots of fun. So I tell her that it sounds great, we're in, and then I remember that we've got the pumpkin carving that night. She has a kindergartener too so I tell her that's the same night and she says she'll think about moving the date of the corn maze. Later I hear that she'd already invited too many people to change the date. So Derek and I are left with this decision of what to do. So we feel Tyler out to see how badly he wants to go and he's not budging on how great this is going to be so we're kind of stuck. Then I talk to my friend Kim who has a first grader and she's telling me how great the pumpkin carving is and how she's really surprised that we'd skip it to go to a corn maze for ourselves. Then she says, "well I don't want to tell you what to do, but at our house, our kids come first." - someone remove the knife from heart please! I'm just dying and right then and there I'm comitted to the pumkin carving and hope that everyone knows I'm all about my kids too!
So then Derek and I go into Plan B operation - how can we do BOTH? We think about maybe we could do the maze fast and get to the carving a little late - and then we think about doing the carving and then meeting up with them for dessert . . . so we're trying to get a plan. We get a babysitter but that's as far as we can get the plan. In the middle of our dillema we realize that Derek also has Pack Night that night and he really needs to be there. So put that on the list of places we need/want to be at last night.
By Monday morning we agree that will skip the maze, get out of Pack Night, and go to carving like responsible parents. And then comes the bombshell - Derek gets off the phone with his manager and says, "I have to be on the next flight to California and I'll be back Thursday." Is that night cursed or what? So I tell my friend that we're out and she says, "oh yeah, we cancelled it because everyone wanted to go to the carving" (aka - no one else was throwing their kids under the bus but us!)
So I make a plan - I'm going to keep my babysitter for the girls, and I'm going to take Tyler to the carving. So that afternoon we cleaned out our pumpkin, talked about how he wanted to carve it, looked at jack-o-laterns on on the internet to get ideas and we're both pumped. Then my friend calls that night and says, "hey I know Derek's out of town - would you like my husband to take Tyler with him?" "no, I say, thanks but I'm taking him and we've got it all worked out". So I get off the phone and tell Tyler that he'd been invited, and wasn't that nice, thinking it would just make him feel good - no, now he has a fit because I'd said 'no'! He loves boys, doesn't want to go with girls (ME), never gets to go in anyone else's car - the whole nine yards on how this is the worst case of injustice ever inflicted! Cursed, I know. So I just have to say, "we're getting the babysitter in 20 minutes, I am taking to the carving and we're going to have fun dang it!".
So we get the babysitter, leave the girls, and off we go. There weren't many moms there but that didn't stop us - we carved our pumpkin and just had a great time adding more things to our already lame pumpkin (i.e. mustache, ears, and eyebrows!). All the dad there had pumpkin carving tools and patterns and Tyler and show up with a pumpkin and a knife! Then they had the kids put the pumpkins on a table and we walked around the table to see everyone's. The kids sang three songs and the night was over.
On the way out I tell Tyler I'll take him to get an ice cream and he said he'll go if it's a doughnut - so off we went to Krispy Kreme. They were just making them so we got them for free (which I didn't know happened because it was the first time I'd ever been inside a Krispy Kreme!). So the night ended ok, despite the forces of nature that had other ideas.

Grandma's 90th

Last weekend Derek and I took the kids to Utah to celebrate my Grandma's 90th birthday. Due to other conditions, we couldn't leave until Saturday morning and had to be at the party at 1:00 so we left bright and early at 5:30. We thought if we just moved the kids from their beds to the car they'd go back to sleep and we could get down the road a ways. No such luck though - they all stayed up for more than an hour before Bailey crashed, followed by Emily and Tyler. We didn't stop once (nothing short of a miracle for our family) and made great time. We did have to stop right before we saw everyone to get kids dressed and looking respectable. We went to the party and had a great time. Twelve out of her 16 grandkids were there and all totaled she had 59 people there. It was so fun to see her and spend such a big day with her. I love it when my kids get to see their great grandparents and hope they can get a sense of what wonderful people they are. We spent the night at my Grandma's house, had her traditional enormous breakfast and had to get back in the car to come home. We'd gone 20 miles before Tyler started asking if we were there yet! It was really fun, but also really important.

A Student of the Week lives here

A few weeks ago Tyler comes home with a coupon from McDonald's for a free hamburger, drink and fries. He doesn't know why he got it, but he's pretty sure that no one else had a coupon in their cubby (I know, I'm encouraging cubby peeking!). I ask lots of questions and get nothing as to why we're getting this coupon. So I just think it's some freebie from McDonald's and not much more. Derek however is not so convinced - for days he asked me to call his teacher and ask why he got it. I refused saying that if everyone got one we'd solidify our position of really high maintence parents!
So the next week I go in to volunteer (where I found out that I'd been assigned as Room Mom even though I totally did not volunteer!) and I ask her about it. She says, "Oh, Tyler was student of the week." She goes on to tell me that each month has a different theme and then she picks two students that month that are examples of that theme - October's was Personal Responsibility - and she picked Tyler! She doesn't know how Tyler couldn't know that - she said she explained everything and made a big fuss - Tyler even got an ovation - but he was clueless as to why he got the coupon. There's going to be an assembly next month recognizing all of the students of the week this month - Derek and I will be their in the front row!
So I take Tyler to McDonald's and am so excited to get his coupon worth of food for his big achievement - but wait, he doesn't want a hamburger - he wants nuggets, and wait, where's the toy? So I ended up getting the kid a dang happy meal and I got my lunch from his coupon! Not a great deal, but a good deal none the less!

Feel Good Story

Ok, here's your feel good story for the day. Last week I was in Tyler's classroom volunteering. The kids were gone to the library so it was just me and his teacher. She told me that she'd be back in a few minutes and explained where she was going. Her son is in third grade at the same school and while her students were at the library she was going in to his classroom to volunteer! Isn't that the nicest thing?! I know how busy teachers are - and they work like crazy while those kids are gone - it's the equivalent of getting one 1/2 hour nap a day with your kids! - and she was spending it helping another teacher in her son's classroom. I just loved it! It just made me love his teacher so much more!

I'll give you my 2-cents worth if you'll give me yours!

First, here's my two-cents worth - my book club just read a book that I thought I'd pass on - it's a really quick, light story called Letters for Emily by Cameron Wright. It's a cute story that I really liked. It's not deep or thought inspiring but if you're looking for a quick feel-good book this is a good one. The author is a graduate from BYU if that helps entice you!
Now I want yours! I'm looking for new ideas on how to make flashcards fun. Tyler has these flashcards with sight words that we're supposed to do every night. But I need new ideas to keep it interesting - any advice?

Signs Your child is listening to Conference

So Saturday and Sunday were all Conference all the time at our house. We tried to make it good for the kids to help them listen and they did great with Conference Bingo. They also did great with every time they hear a song they got a treat - never once did they miss a song! Between that and the M&M's used for markers in Bingo I'm sure their teeth are going to fall out!
During the weekend I was giving Tyler a big hug and he said, "How long are you going to hug me?" and I answered, "all day" (his nightmare!) and he instantly went into a prayer saying, "Heavenly Father, please help Mama not hug me all day" - isn't that so funny? And so then I didn't have much choice but to let go!
Then on Sunday Bailey had a blowout - I mean, up to her shoulders blowout - and Tyler looks at her diaper and says "Holy Ghost!" - Derek and I both burst out laughing and embarrassed, he says, "I meant, 'Holy Smokes!'" - hilarious isn't it? Now he's started saying it to get attention but the first time was dang funny.
So I guess our Conference-filled weekend did have an impact on our family - at least Tyler!

My New Friend

So a week into the school year Tyler comes home with an invitation to a birthday party for a kid I've never even heard of. I asked around to different friends who have kids in Tyler's class and figured out that all of the boys in his class got invited. When I asked Tyler if he wanted to go all he said was, "Who's Gavin?". I thought we could dismiss the idea of going since Tyler couldn't pick out the birthday boy. No luck though - Tyler kept talking about this Spongebob party that he was going to go to. So I went through the motions - bought him a present - and told Tyler if he wanted to go, he could go. But of course, we don't know these people at all, so if Tyler goes - I go. And I didn't want to go! Sitting for 2 hours at some stranger's house didn't sound like my ideal Saturday afternoon. But Tyler was insistent - and ultimately it came down to the fact that for Tyler to go is pushing him out of his comfort zone and that was good for him. I'm surprised he wanted to go at all and I thought I should encourage it. And I thought, maybe this will help him make some friends in his class. And maybe I'll get to meet some other kindergarten moms too. So off we went to the spongebob party.
The party consisted of a bounce house and a ton of kids. The kids were all ages - from 2 to 10 years old I bet. The mom told me that she'd invited all the boys from his class and also lots of neighborhood kids. Only 2 other kindergarteners were there and only one of those moms stayed too. So there we are at the party and it was complete chaos with that many kids. Tyler wouldn't go near the bounce house because of the chaos so he and I sat there and watched. Sounds like a good time doesn't it? I kept asking him if he wanted to go home but he said he wanted to stay for the Spongebob cake we saw as we came in. Try as I might I couldn't get him to leave - even though we weren't having any fun!
Well I got talking to this other mom who'd stayed (which is really what this blog is about) and she was really friendly and we talked for an hour or so. The conversation came to this Spongebob cake (which was dictating my afternoon) and she said that she'd like to take a class or something in cake decorating. So I say that Michael's craft store teaches classes and I've heard they are good . . . and she says 'let's take it together!' 'sure' I say, never really expecting to see her again. But then on Monday when I volunteered at the school, there she was dropping something off - 'hi's' were exchanged and then she brings up this class and we should do it and she's totally on board. So she gives me her phone number and tells me to get the details and then call her and we'll start these classes. So yesterday I called Michael's and got the details - classes start in 2 weeks - and then I call her to give her the scoop and see if she's in. I tell her you have to go in to the store to register and she says she'll go in on Monday and I say 'ok, that'll be great' and then she says, "let's just go in on Monday together after we get the boys on the bus' - isn't that so funny? So on Monday we're going to go in and get all ready for cake decorating. I'm really excited to take the class - I've wanted to take it for a long time but haven't gotten around to it - and now I have this new friend to take it with me. It's only 4 classes so it should be great. I'm so excited to have a new friend through school - and this may sound dumb, but I'm excited to have a non-member friend - I don't have any!
Ok, the funniest part of this whole saga is her name - she told me what it was and it's some long unusual name so she says, 'everyone just calls me O'. 'O' - that's her name - she wrote it down with her number and there it was - just O - so when I called her I said, "Hi, is O there?" Isn't that funny? Me and O, off to cake decorating!

Volunteer Day

Yesterday I got to volunteer in Tyler's classroom for the first time. I looked forward to it for a whole week - I just couldn't wait. I've got a great system worked out with my friend Becca who's little girl is in Tyler's class. We each go in every other week and then we tend the other one's kids on our off weeks.
So I dropped off the girls and went to school - and couldn't have been more excited. I got there right when his class was leaving to go to the library. I walked with them and then stayed at the library a few minutes before I went to the classroom to be put to work. I cut lots of blue paper in half for a project they're doing next week and couldn't have loved it more. I just loved being in the classroom and taking it all in. After they came back from the library I called each kid back and had them write their name 3 times (the state IRI is this week and writing their names is part of the state test). It was so fun to put a name to these kids that I hear about at home. Tyler seemed to love having me there (and I think I better take advantage while he still likes it!), he kept waving at me and coming up to give me a hug. It was great to also talk to his teacher and get know her better. I left right as school got out so Tyler came home with me and we talked all the way home about school. I loved being at the school.

Best time in Boston

Derek and I just got back from the greatest trip. We went to Boston - kid free - for 5 days! It all started when Derek said he wanted to go to the Boston College/BYU game. In Boston? Now there's a game I'm willing to go to! We went through BYU travel and went with his two sisters and their husbands.
None of this would have happened if it hadn't been for Derek's parents and my parents being willing to tend the kids while we went. The kids had the best time. They got to show their grandparents all of the fun things they do in a day - dance and preschool for Emily and kindergarten for Tyler. They were completely spoiled the whole time - proof: I came home to 3 boxes of Reeses' Puffs cereal, Tyler's favorite. We are so lucky to have parents who are willing to tend and love our kids so much. The kids did great too. I heard lots of times how they never once asked when we were coming home! I do believe that they were happy to see us though! But maybe not as glad as we were to see them!
We flew to Boston on Wednesday and hooked up with the BYU tour in Boston. We rode the BYU bus to our hotel - everyone on the bus competely decked out in BYU gear from head to toe! Now there are some diehard fans. I tend to think that Derek is extreme but this weekend showed me he's got company! The tour took care of all our transportation (which we were really glad about once we found out what the Big Dig project was doing to downtown Boston), meals, and our hotel room. It was so great to have nothing to plan or worry about - all the details were taken care of. Now of course, the six of us totally changed the average age of the tour participant - by quite a ways I'm sure - but by the end of the trip, we just all felt like friends.
On Thursday we had a tour of Fenway park and then went on a Duck tour of downtown. That was so fun! We got to see lots of sights from the land and then took our tour into the Charles river and see more sights from the water. It was so great to see so many things - the only downside was having to go so fast! Every sight that was pointed out I wanted to go and learn all about it. That was a whirlwind tour - and nothing more than whetting my appetite to go back and spend more time in the city. Then we had lunch and the No Name restaurant - there was some authentic seafood for you! After that we got dropped off at Faneuil Hall and did the tourist shopping there. Then back to the hotel for another wonderful dinner.
On Friday we got to go to Sharon, Vermont to see the birthplace of Joseph Smith. This was amaing. Just driving through New Hampshire and Vermont was amazing - it is so pretty there! The trees are so dense you can't see anything on either side of the freeway. The leaves were just starting to turn and I can totally understand why people would make a vacation of going to see the leaves change. It made me realize what a desert I live in! Derek and I were ready to pack our bags and move there it was so pretty. Then we got to Sharon and it was unbelievable. It was amazing to be where Joseph Smith was born. The grounds were beautiful and the spirit was awesome. I've never been to any of the church sites in the East but I certainly want to more now. On our bus we had a BYU church history professor who taught us so much about the Smith and Mack families. Friday was a wonderful day.
On Saturday the football craziness came out. We went to Pigskin breakfast at an LDS church put on by the local BYU alumni chapter and then on to BC campus. The campus was so beautiful - it's amazing how you could just feel so much history there. The game was fun (it was my price to go on this trip) but the loss in double overtime was a hard pill to swallow for the diehards. Lots of consoling went on that night at our hotel.
That afternoon the 6 of us went kayaking in the Charles River - it was really fun and the only thing that we did outside of the tour.
Sunday morning Derek and I checked out at 4:30 a.m. to catch our 7:00 flight. We were home by 1:00 and thrilled to see the kids. All in all, it was the best trip. It was all of these wonderful adjectives but the one that always comes to mind is how relaxing it was. I only had me to worry about, me to dress, me to feed, me to be on time, me to put to bed! We had great meals, and I didn't cook one thing or wash one dish - and my favorite - coming back at night and having my bed made so perfectly and clean towels hanging (that I didn't have to wash!). It was the most relaxing trip - I can honestly say I came home so rejuvinated and ready to tackle all of the mom things. Unfortunately, this relaxed high only lasted until Thursday, but it was great while I had it!
I also came home so thankful for Derek's family. Not everyone would be thrilled to go on a vacation with their in-laws, but I was! We just get along so well and I never feel like an in-law around them, I just feel like one of them. People would ask us who were the siblings and I loved the fact that they couldnt' tell - we just get along that well.
It was such a great trip - everything about it was perfect.

Tyler says the darndest things!

Tyler was in the front yard of my parents house. He saw Peanut - the cat who lives across the street. There were two other cats lying by Peanut. Tyler told my mom that Peanut must be having a cat meeting. She asked how he knew it was a cat meeting and he said "because they're all sitting down and being quiet." Later, he told me he thought the cats were talking about Jesus. Quite a cat meeting!
Then later at the same visit, he and Emily were helping my mom make play dough. She let them each pick two colors they wanted for their play dough. Emily picked red and purple - easy enough - and then Tyler said he wanted green, and he couldn't remember the name of the other color he wanted. My mom gave him lots of suggestions but none were the one he wanted. He told her it was green and yellow. Light green, dark yellow, green yellow, yellow green - no, no, no. That wasn't' what he wanted. "chartreuse?" Yep, that was it - he wanted chartreuse! So my mom made a great chartreuse play dough - we can thank Steve from Blue's Clues for teaching us that!

Dinner Co-op

So my friend Angela asked me if I wanted to be in a dinner co-op with her. "What is that?" is all I could say. She went on to explain that we would get 4 people, including the two of us, to be in it and then we would each have a day, Monday through Thursday, that we would cook for the 4 families. Then on the three days it isn't ours to cook - dinner is brought to us! I was on board before she even finished describing it. This could be so great for me - I could eliminate so many 5 o'clock panics! She said that she had done it before and had loved it. There wasn't much to it - on your night to cook, you cook a main dish and one side (and easy sides too - a loaf of French bread, or bagged salad) and you have to have it delivered by 5:00. You deliver everything ready to cook with cooking directions. I was in for sure.
So she got the four families selected (she picked families roughly of the same age and number of kids) and then the four moms all got together and shared with everyone our family's regular meals. People would ask what was in it and say if they thought their family would eat it. A few meals got black-balled - no meatloaf, stroganoff, or sloppy joes in our group! Then we picked what days we would cook - Tuesday is me. That was all there was to it. Angela made us a 2 month menu - so we know what's coming every day and what we're cooking. And we only cook our own recipes so it's totally easy.
And then the first Monday rolled around - that afternoon, brought to my doorstep -spinach manicotti and a cesar salad kit. All I did was heat it through in the oven. It was totally delicious! The kids liked it - Derek and I loved it. It was the greatest!
Tuesday I cooked Swiss Chicken and baked potatoes. The chicken was totally easy to make and I just washed and wrapped the potatoes. I gave the families sour cream and chives too. The response was good too - everyone emails their reviews so we know if we should cook it again or not.
I told my sister about this and she said that there was no way this was going to happen without some kookiness and I'm sure she's right. There's bound to be a lot of dinners that we don't like and some mix-ups along the way - but I think it might work out.
Tonight Tex-Mex pork wraps were delivered and tomorrow I'm making a lot of lasagna. I think this could be really good to get my kids to try things I don't ever make and hopefully we'll be a little less picky!
As for the kookiness - when it happens, it'll make a fun blog!

Preschool Shoe Mix-up

Emily started preschool on Tuesday. She was so excited to go and I was so excited for her to start because I knew what a great year she was going to have. It really is helpful to have already been through this with Tyler - it gives me hope that when Emily starts kindergarten it won't rip my heart out again. Anyways . . . she's so excited. We both go and have a little orientation for the parents and then I left and she stayed for preschool. I picked her up and she was all smiles. She had a great time.
After we got home, we had lunch, and then walked Tyler to the bus stop. On the way home I noticed that she had her shoes on the wrong feet - which is unusual for Emily - she's really good about putting them on the right feet. So we get home and I go to switch them and I realize that she has 2 right shoes. Exact same shoe, just two rights. So I look at the sizes and one is hers and one is a half size bigger. So I ask her if anyone at preschool had the same shoes as her. "Aubrie does" she says, luckily for me Aubrie is her friend (and in our carpool) and not some girl I don't know yet from our first day of preschool. So I call my friend Kim to see if Aubrie by chance is wearing two left shoes - while I'm leaving her a message, Kim pulls up at my house with the missing left shoe. It was so funny - neither girl even seemed to notice one of their shoes was on the wrong food - and the wrong size! I did notice today that when I dropped the girls off at preschool both Emily and Aubrie were wearing a different pair of shoes than the ones they had worn on Tuesday - apperantly Kim and I don't trust them!
Preschool is going great - she was so happy today because she was calendar helper and popcorn was the snack. It doesn't get better does it?
Tyler is doing better in kindergarten. I think this is going to be a big week of transition but he's doing great. The last two days he's ridden the bus both ways so that's all of the scary stuff out of the way. He went to Music on Tuesday and liked it, and went to PE yesterday and really liked that so we're thrilled. My tears are slowing - I haven't cried today, but I better sign off or I for sure will.

First Day of Kindergarten

Today's the day . . . the first day of kindergarten. Last night the gravity hit me and the tears started flowing. Every time I would see Tyler I would start to cry, and then try to stop them as quickly as they came so he wouldn't know how hard this is on me. I cried most of the night and started again this morning. I did however pull myself together when it came time to get serious and go to school.
I dropped the girls off at Jen's house and hurried home to get Tyler. There he was in his new school clothes all ready for his first day of kindergarten. Derek and I both went with him to school. The parents were invited to stay for the whole time (it was early release day so kindergarten was only 2 hours today) and so the three of us headed off to school. We got there and went to his class and met his teacher. We knew five other kids there so that really helped. The kids sat on the carpet with the parents sitting around the room. We hung up his Spiderman backpack and got his papers out of his cubby. We went over a few things and then she did roll call. She called Tyler's name and he just raised his hand like he knew what he was doing. I got myself signed up to head up the class parties (with my friend Becca) so that should be really fun. Then the parents left the classroom to fill out paperwork in the library while the kids stayed in the classroom with the teacher. The paperwork was insane - so many forms to fill out to get him on the right bus! After we filled out everything we went back to the classroom. The kids had been going to different stations: coloring, blocks and other things. As soon as Tyler saw Derek and I his countenance changed from everything's fine to being upset. I think he was fine while we were gone, but as soon as he saw us it was upsetting. Why is it that kids are fine for babysitters but the second you walk through the door they start crying? It was exactly like that. After that he couldn't finish his paper and he just wanted to go home. We said our goodbye's to the teacher and we left. It took him a while to adjust back to himself after we got home too. I think kindergarten is going to be a big transition for him. He's such a home-body that this is really going to stretch him.
All in all, our first day was great. I loved that parents were invited to stay the whole day - that was so great to have a little baby step for both Tyler and me. Everything seems really great - the day I'd dreaded for 3 months wasn't so bad.
Now tomorrow is a different story - he's riding the bus. To and from school! I think we better just get everything scary out of the way so I'm jumping right in. I'm really worried about the bus - it seems the most scary to me out of all the kindergarten worries. The ride there will be fine because it's just kindergarteners, it's that ride home - with 5th graders! I've found out that they put the kindergarteners on the bus first - and that they sit at the front with assigned seats - so all of that really helps to alleve my fear. Tomorrow's a big day - riding the bus and being at school alone. And I don't even want to think about the fact that Emily starts preschool tomorrow too . . .

Last Week of Summer fun

This is our last week of summer - next week school sets in for both Tyler and Emily. The kids have had their paper chains in the rooms for a few weeks now. I'm trying to think of some things to do to make this week different and get the kids excited for school. The best idea I had was to take the kids to 5 parks in 5 days - and hopefully throw in some we've never been to (I got a new city map that had all of these parks that we'd never been to). So yesterday we start with gusto. I tell the kids we're going to this great new park we haven't been to yet and get them all excited. After getting hopelessly lost we find it - a big dirt pile with a sign that says 'Future home of park' - explain that to your kids. So I take them to a good-enough standby and the kids have fun. Today - exact rerun of yesterday - today's park isn't done yet either! I drove my kids all over the valley for nothing! Can you believe our luck?! Another stand-by parked filled in great though. I came home and checked the website to see what parks are actually done, so tomorrow we should fare better.
My next idea for our fun week is to check out all the First Day of School books I could from the library. Apparently I'm the last to have the idea because they were really picked over - but we got several and all of our story times this week are school books.
Hopefully my kids are having fun - I just hope this week feels special to them. It also helps me keep busy and not thinking about Tyler going to kindergarten. It's starting to set in though - I've been sick to my stomach all week with this feeling of dread. His teacher and principal did come by our house on Friday and that was really nice. They only stayed a few minutes but his teacher gave him a big hug and that made me feel better about sending him. It also helped to give a face to a name for him. On Monday parents go and stay the whole 2 hours (it's a half day for the whole school) so our big day will really be Tuesday.

My Musical Book Club

Last night I hosted book club at my house. I was moving the kitchen chairs from the table into the family room so I could sweep and mop before everyone arrived. Tyler asked me why I was moving the chairs and I told him so I could mop - he said, "Oh, I thought you were going to play musical chairs for your book club". Isn't that hilarious?! Let me tell you though - this isn't the musical chair kind of group!

Kindergarten is Official!

Today is the day that kindergarten became official. We went to Tyler's school this morning to see the class lists taped to the door. There was his name - it must be official. I really struck out with my wishes though. I really wanted Tyler in morning - and we got afternoon. I really wanted one teacher - and we got another. I really wanted this one friend of his in our class - and he's not. I really didn't get anything I wanted, it's almost humorous how much I struck out. We did get 3 kids that he knows really well in his class so that's great. Also, in talking to my friend today lamenting over afternoon kindergarten - she pointed out that at least it will be warmer for the kids at the bus stop - so there's my looking for bright side.
Now I have to think about logistics of what this means for my daily schedule. Tyler goes in the afternoon, and Emily goes to preschool 2 days a week in the morning, and has dance class once a week in the morning (yes, I'll always have 2 kids at home with me, when I had dreams of doing all errands with just one!). Also, it makes me sad that on Tuesdays and Thursdays Emily and Tyler will simply pass each other.
It's funny how one list hanging on a school door has changed so many things for me today.
I'm trying to think of fun things to do with Tyler next week to make his last week of summer fun - the best I've got is taking him to a different park every day of the week - any suggestions?
Forecast calls for rain - good thing I've got you reading and commenting or this would be one lonely blog!

Everything there is to know about Bailey:

3 things that scare me:
- knowing a diaper change is coming
- babysitters putting me to bed
- Emily getting in the tub with me

3 people that make me laugh:
- Dad
- Tyler and Emily
- Grandma

3 things I love:
- Keys
- Phone
- Swimming

3 things I hate:
- Church (sorry to say, but it's true)
- Nose wipes
- Face washes

3 things I don't understand:
- Why I can't play with little things
- Where my pacifiers went
- Why someone can't hold me all the time

3 things on my floor:
- toy piano
- books
- dinosaurs - not so much because I like them but because Tyler keeps them everywhere!

3 things I'm doing right now:
- Babbling
- Put toys in a container and then taking them out again
- Eating the toys

3 ways to describe my personality:
- Easy
- Adorable
- Pleasant

3 things you should listen to:
- My laugh
- Emily's silly voice
- Tyler's endless stories

3 things I want to do before I die (in other words three things my mom wishes for me):
- get married in the temple
- be a mom
- gain a testimony

3 things I love to eat:
- pancakes
- ice cream
- macaroni

3 things I'd like to learn:
- how to drink from a sippy cup
- how to walk so I can keep up with everyone else
- how to eat with a fork

Bailey's One!

My little Bailey turned Wednesday. The first thing Tyler said on Wednesday was, "Mom, she's one, why isn't she walking?". The day was complete with presents, merry-go-round cake, and ice cream - her new favorite treat! All of the toys she got quickly got taken by her older siblings - and she hasn't even seen them yet. She did get her first pillow - we put her to bed on it but she never stays there long.
The big day does come with some milestones - the pacifiers have all been thrown away, we're done with nursing, and we're trying to phase out the bottles - but she hasn't mastered the art of the sippy cup yet! Any suggestions on Sippy Cup 101? My Bay is growing up.

The Summer of Swimming lessons!

This has certainly been the summer of swimming lessons for my kids. Last year Tyler, who was 4, had swimming lessons. I had him in 2 sessions - for a full 20 lessons and I'm not sure we had a day without tears. Every lesson began with bribery and every lesson ended in saying, "maybe tomorrow you'll get the M&M's (our family's favorite bribe). So this year I went to the pool dragging my feet, three kids, a stroller and an overstuffed beach bag. I signed Tyler, now 5, and Emily, who's 3, up for the same class. I felt that Tyler couldn't hurt from being in the beginning class again and maybe there's strength in numbers for my kids. This year has been such a wonderful surprise - no one cried for the whole month's worth of lessons! Tyler and Emmy both did great - Emily could just jump off the side and Tyler could do it with only holding one of his teacher's fingers. It was so fun to have them in the same class and see them be such great friends. Today was our last day, and though I'm thrilled Bailey and I don't have to sit on the side and cook to death anymore, I'm sad to see such a good thing end. On the way of the pool today Tyler asked me when he'll do swimming lessons again - next year almost seemed too far away for him.

Adventures in Blogging

I've decided to join the 21st century and start my own blog. Why? Honestly, because my sister-in-law talked me into it. She has one and I love reading hers. It's a great way to keep up on things in her family - so maybe someone will feel the same way about mine. If nothing else, it gives me a place to write down all of those things that you think, "I've got to write that down!" and then never do. This could be the closest thing to journaling I've done in a while - so with that said, let the adventures in blogging begin!