Cars and the blues

Well, I was going to put a picture on of what K does with his cars everyday, but again, it won't upload it. He loves to build traffic jams. We line up some of his cars mess them up, move to a new location and build another traffic jam. The other day while I was helping him line up the 105 cars it took to go from M's bed, out her room, around the corner into K's room and to his bed, I asked him why he likes to  build traffic jams. he told he me just does. He likes to line all of them up. He loves when Lightning McQueen is in front of Chick Hicks because Chick wants to beat Lightning, but he can't because he's stuck in the back of the traffic jam. I'm always amazed that we use so many of his cars for these traffic jams and yet he still has boxes with cars left that didn't make it into the final cut for the traffic jam that day. One morning we lined them up along the banister at the top of the stairs, turned, went in front of the laundry room, around the corner into the master bedroom. Along the wall to the bathroom and almost to the nightstand that sits on the other side of the bathroom doorway. When we didn't quite make it to the nightstand he said,"Oh dear, I wish I had more cars so we could make it all the way there. Maybe I can get more for my birthday." The kid just loves cars. He never tires of playing with them.

Now, onto the blues... I just finished the last half of the package of chocolate chips that were in the cupboard. Bummer! I hate when I eat the last of them! Mostly because that means they're gone and I don't get any more. Want to know the worst part? I had lined them up in the groups of two's that they have to be in before I can eat them.(My OCD kicking in right there!) Anyway, they were lined up so nicely in their groups. I thought to myself, "Self, that's a whole lot of groups right there. You'll be totally satisfied all night with that many!" Then to my total horror, I went to grab another set of two and...(pause for dramatic effect) they were already all gone! Not great! Thankfully I hadn't counted how many groups of two I had, but I know that it was more than a few. And they were already gone! Ya know how you feel like the trial you're going through is worse than what ever anyone else is going through? That's how I'm feeling tonight! A half bag of chocolate chips set up in beautiful groups of two and their already gone! Woe is me! 

First day of school!

The kiddos went back to school. It was a dark day in my life. The morning of was actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. The night before was a whole 'nother story! I hear a lot of parents say they can't wait for their kids to go back to school. But as for me and my house, I don't like it. I know that they fight and they drive each other crazy a lot, thus causing me to go a little crazy. But truth be told, I love having them around. I love the rare moments when they play good together and when I ask them to do something they say OK. The night before school B asked me to say the family prayer. I made it through being thankful for the day, then the flood gates broke. I cried through the rest of the prayer. By the time I got to the part of blessing M and K with a good day, school year and being able to make new friends I was a total mess. We're talking snot running down my face so I was wiping with my hand. Disgusting I know! After family prayercame the start of school father's blessing. To say that I was a wreck through those would be a gross understatement. I was so sad that when he finished giving them their blessings he looked at me and said,"Um, I think it should be your turn." I thought the tears would never stop. I truly cried most of the night. When I woke up in the morning I thought it would start all over. Thankfully it didn't! K was so excited that rather than walking to get dressed, make his bed, brush his teeth etc, he ran/jumped. He talked even louder than normal and carried his backpack and lunch around. M was excited too, but didn't want anyone to know. K started to calm down about ten minutes before we had to leave. As we got in the car he was pretty quiet. As we drove down the street, in a very quiet voice he said,"Mommy, I'm a little bit tiny nervous." I told him as I blinked back tears that he was going to have so much fun and that he was totally going to love it. Things are done a little differently 'round these parts. All the kids go into the gym. Their teacher's name is on a piece of paper on the floor. They find their teacher's name and get in line. Then the full time assistants take the kids to their classes. So, I waved as M left the gym. Thankfully there was a really nice little girl in front of her named Kaylee that looked at her and said,"We're friends!" That made M really happy! K was more than a "little bit tiny nervous!" He wouldn't look at anyone, he just stared ahead. They did let me walk him to his classroom. When we got there he wanted me to come in with him. I gave him a hug, told him that I couldn't go with him but that I loved him and would see him after school. I walked away and didn't even cry until I was back at the car. And even then it was only a couple tears. I took a picture of them before school, but blogger is being a bum and won't upload it. After school they both said that they had a really good day. M thinks her teacher is beautiful and wears really cute dresses. So, that makes everything ok in her book. K likes that he has two teachers. The one that teaches and the one,"in the blue shirt." I'm pretty sure the one in the blue shirt is the full time assistant, but I could be wrong. We don't know her name or what she did all day we only know that she wore a blue shirt. I'm glad that the first day is over and that they didn't have as hard of a time at I did!

Rainy day

The last few days have been pretty rainy round these parts. We (meaning me and B) have actually really liked it because the rain has made it even less humid! It's already significantly less humid here than in south Florida. So even less humid is like less humid squared! It has been awesome! Anyway, there are two small children that live in this house that don't totally love the lack of clear skies. When it was still rainy yesterday they were more than a little done with it. The arguing started early. We're talking like sun up and they were already at it. I was trying to think of something we could do to help them get along more. Then it came to me! There are two steps down into our living room. We could take pictures of them jumping off the steps! Holy cow, they totally loved it!

 They were able to work out who went first. K was to go first and set the bar. He set it pretty high! I think because he's a boy, he has a better natural jump than M is. We didn't have to tell him to pull his legs up.

M on the other hand needed a little coaching. We had to not only tell her what to do, but show her too. Once she got that she was supposed to keep her legs bent and held high, she was in jumping heaven! We jumped for a really long time. That lead to a rousing game of hide and seek. By the time the game was over, lunch was ingested and we had watched Tangled, did an exercise video and went running, the rain had finally stopped and we were able to go ride bikes!

This wasn't taken the same day as the other ones. He's just too cute to not put a picture of him on here. He rolls and talks and loves to blow bubbles, especially when he has carrots or sweet potato in his mouth. We love him so much and are so thankful that he's part of our family!

Utah part II

Just because you didn't get enough from the last post, here's another one! This is a three generation picture. Not as cool as a four generation picture, but it's still pretty awesome!

 We were able to spend one blessed morning with the Tuckett's. Oh how we love this family and are so happy that we were able to see them. M loved having E to play with. Once they saw each other, they were inseparable.

 The same went for these two. We played and played and then we ate and played for a little while longer. When it was time to go, K cried and wanted to know when he was going to be able to play with C again. I know it's good for life to change, but it's so hard to make such great friends and then have to live so far away from them. Being able to spend time with them was really great!

 Yellowstone! We did a family reunion up at Island Park, Id. We were only about 20 minutes away from west Yellowstone. That just happens to be where Old Faithful is. We were able to go see it! We got there right after it had gone off. So we waited around for an hour and a half until it went off again. It was so awesome! We were right in the front and so B was able to get this awesome picture! The only bummer was that M and K were sick of sitting there waiting for it to go off. So, in the video we took of it you hear me saying things like, "knock it off! stop arguing! leave each other alone! turn around and watch it!" At least this picture turned out! Hopefully in the future we can all laugh about the screaming, fighting children and the frustrated mom that you hear on the video!

 This was at the huge craters that are in Yellowstone. The waterfall is boiling hot water and the river is cold. I wanted to touch the water a little ways away from the waterfall, but it was all fenced off, so I couldn't. I wonder if it would be warm or hot or if the water in the river is cold enough that it would just be cold. I'll add that to my list of questions I want to ask when I get to heaven.

 Boating at Island park was fun except there were green floaties in the water. It looked like lawn clippings. When you were launched into the water at high speeds from a tube behind a boat, the green stuff got all over you and had to be scrubbed off in the shower at home. It turned the inside of swimsuits green. It was pretty gross. Not gross enough to not get on the tube of course, but gross nonetheless! Little B didn't love being squished into a life jacket but was ok as long as the boat was moving.

 B was able to waterski! He hasn't done it in a really long time, so he was sore for three or four days, but loved it anyway. I guess it's like riding a bike and you don't forget how to do it. I think this picture is pretty sweet!

 M learned how to ride a four wheeler alone. She was really scared at first, but then she loved it and that's all she wanted to do.

 She even let K get on the back and get a ride. Now before you go call DCFS on us, this four wheeler has a governor on it that won't let it go above a certain speed. I totally love this picture!

 When we got home back from Island park, we went on a group date with some of my siblings and thier spouses. Clearly we went shooting. Shooting a gun is not fun for me. It actually scares me a lot. I don't like that a gun has so much power and that they're so loud. We had ear plugs and I still had to put my fingers in my ears. I will say that I love this picture. B loves to go shooting so he was like a fat kid in a candy store!

 This is the girls that went. From left to right it's, my youngest sister G, then my younger sister, S. I think her shooting with a pregnant belly is so cute! Anyway, I'm next, then my sister-in-law, J and then my older sister,S.

This is the boys. We didn't even plan to have them stand so when the pictures are under each other, they are lined up with their spouse. Left to right, my brother-in-law, J, my other brother-in-law, J, B is next. Then my younger brother, B and then my brother-in-law, J. If you go left to right the boy goes with the girl right above him. That's cool right? Anyway, our trip to Utah was fun. it was totally exhausting because we just went and went and went, but it was a lot of fun! We loved being with family and making so many good memories!

Utah part I

Now, I know that it's been a long while since I posted anything. But, we were on vacation and so being a vigilant blogger wasn't a huge priority. Actually, it wasn't a priority at all! Anyway, we went to Utah, were there for a while and then came back to normal life. I shouldn't say normal life. It doesn't feel normal at all to be here. Normal would be going back to Florida, suffocating in the humidity as we walked to Tuckett's and bumming at their house whilst B was at school or studying for a test or writing a paper etc. It feels really weird to be here, not know anyone and see B and not have him be doing school, talking about school or looking on Gasworks for a job that catches his eye. Anyway, I digress, going back to Utah was a fun filled adventure! We were able to see all of my siblings at my youngest sister's wedding. Well, not all of them. I had one sister that didn't come, but that was to be expected. The wedding was real swell! I got to see my three older brothers that I haven't seen in years. That was awesome except for when I saw R for the first time and he said,"You look the same except you're older and fatter!" Rude! Why I ask are brothers rude no matter how old they are?! I would have punched him in the face except he's like two feet taller than me... We were also able to see all of B's siblings. That was awesome too! I feel so far behind in the blogging area of my life. So, I'll spare myself the ache that comes with typing a ton and just put tons of pictures on instead. I know you've all been waiting with bated breath to see our vacation pictures,so here's just a small taste! 

Here are the girls from my family at G's wedding. My oldest sister wasn't at the reception. She's really sick with Lupus, so she was at the temple, but couldn't come that night. My second oldest sister wasn't there either, but her not coming is for another Opera. Not to mention it's Sunday today and so I'll try really hard to only say nice things, so we'll just say she didn't come. ;)

We were able to bless this dude while we were there. I'm so glad we waited to do it until we got there. That way so many of our brother's were able to stand in the circle. B said when he finished the blessing and opened his eyes, little B was laying there with a huge smile on his face. The bishop stood up and said that during the blessing he had opened one eye and little B was just laying there being very attentive to what was being said. It was really awesome!

Here we have a four generation picture. We have been able to get one of these pictures with all three of our kids. I think they're so cool. I just love the people in this picture!

Stadium of Fire! If I knew how to spell the sound a firework makes, I would have done it. If you know the song then you know that after the word fire there should be a firework sound. Anyway, I love that we were able to go this year. Kelly Clarkson and Carly Rae Jepson were there. Needless to say, I was able to sing my little heart out. It. Was. AWESOME!! Now you might be looking at this picture and thinking,"Why, K?! Whatever did you do to your spectacles?!" Just in case there are other five year olds reading this and they happen to have spectacles... glasses don't bend in half. Now that you know that, you won't have to try it out for yourselves.

This little dude slept through the entire Stadium of Fire, including the fireworks. He woke up as we got to the car. He was so happy from his three hour nap that he was smiley the whole ride home!

We went to a farm for my nieces first birthday party. M got brave enough to feed a horse. K was brave enough to keep putting hay up this poor horses nose. B and I kept asking him to stop, but he thought it was hysterical to hear the horse try and blow the tickley feeling out of it's nose. One time the horse had had enough! B was standing on the other side of the horses head, K inserted a piece of hay, the horse moved it's head really fast. My younger brother ducked out of the way, but B didn't move, the horse's head stopped right in front of B. The horse stomped it's foot, showed it's clenched teeth and spit/blew it's nose all over B! I know I shouldn't laugh but every time I think about it, I crack up! I see B in my minds eye getting horse spit and snot all over the front of him, standing there and saying,"Sick! That's disgusting!" Oh my word, it was so funny! Even now as I write it I'm weeping from laughing so hard! 

One night we went camping. We picked the only night of our entire trip that it rained. It started to rain as we pulled up to our campsite. I'm pretty sure it stopped raining as we drove out of the campground the next morning. Even though it was raining we still had so much fun! The mountains are beautiful! My older brother that lived in the checz republic said that when he told people there that he was from Utah they would tell him they'd been saving money their whole lives to go to the mountains in Utah. He also said that the mountains in Utah look just like the swiss alps. We miss the mountains so much and totally love that we were able to go camping even though it rained the whole time.

I don't know how the boys made a fire stay through the rain, but I'm glad they were. I had forgotten that in Utah when it rains, it's cold rain. I hooked B on to the front of me and wrapped him in a blanket. That was on top of his long pants and jacket. When I took him off of me to put him in bed, his hands and feet were still cold even though he had been wrapped up so much.

I don't know why these pictures are not in a neat orderly line. It really bugs me but I can't figure out how to fix it. Anyway, our best friends in the whole world were able to come up to the canyon for dinner and to just hang out. They couldn't stay the night because it was a weekday, but we still loved to hang out and spend time with them. M and K loved having R and R there to play with. We love this family so much and we are so happy that we were able to hang out with them a few times while we were in Utah.

We had to hike to Stewart Falls while we were there. It was so awesome to be able to be outside in the middle of the day and not die of the heat. M and K said more than once that they loved that it wasn't so hot there like it had been in Florida. The falls were more beautiful than I remember them being. It was an awesome hike!

We floated down the river too. The water is still freezing cold! It didn't take too long before my bum was numb. K refused to sit in the little raft we had for them. I secretly wanted to push him into the water and if it hadn't been so cold, I would have! Now, that's good parenting right there!

Graduation!

First of all I can't believe that it's been a month since I did anything on this here blog. In my defense, B did graduate!!!! We moved, unpacked at our new place and then flew to Utah four days later. So, we've had things to do. Anyway, as mentioned before, B graduated!!! I can't believe that it's actually over. He has been in school full time since we got married. He has worked so hard to get where he's at. I'm not gonna lie, graduation was a little anti-climatic because he still has to study for the national boards. So, although graduation day was so exciting, I knew we weren't out of the woods yet. I tried to prepare myself for the kiss goodbye and the dreaded sentence, "I'm going to study." But when it happened I hadn't prepared enough. I was instantly irritated. Why oh why can't the national boards be part of the last semester? Why can't he graduate already knowing that he had passed his boards? Clearly the idea of graduating and still needing to study for a test was thought up by a man; just sayin'. Anywho, graduation was wonderful and glorious. My only job was to take pictures. Not one of the one's I took turned out. Thankfully B's mom was there with her fancy phone and she got some really awesome pictures.

 Here he is being hooded or receiving his hood or whatever it's called. I didn't even know that they did this so I was totally unprepared to take his picture. I tried to figure out how to zoom in, but clearly I wasn't able to figure it out. When they called his name and he walked across the stage, my eyes filled with tears. I am so proud of him! Truly he has worked so hard. He has sacrificed so much time and energy and sleep. But, he's done! Holy cow are we ever excited 'round these parts!

 

I feel like I should say that we all made it! I know that B was the one in the program and that he had to deal with the mean Dr that said,"You need to be able to multi-task in this job and you can't even single task!" (That has now turned into a joke at our house and we laugh about it a lot. But it for sure wasn't funny when it happened.) Or the crazy Dr that flipped him off while yelling swear words at him , or the Dr that he accidentally poked with a needle, thankfully it was clean. The crazy Dr that throws things across the room and the patients that don't want anything to do with a student. Not to mention the awful nurses that treated him like he didn't know the difference between Tylenol and Ibuprofen. I get that he had to deal with a lot of things that weren't great. But, so did the other four people in this picture. There were many a nights when daddy just wasn't around. The weeks when he was gone doing a clinical rotation hours away. The weekends that went by when we didn't see him because he was taking tests and then working. There were missed birthdays and major holidays. But, we did it! We know that he wouldn't chose to be away from us and we're so excited that he's done with school! We know that he'll still be busy and probably have to miss things, but I would venture to say that it's more tolerable if one is getting paid for such things. 

They are so excited to have their daddy back! 'Nuff said about that!

This lovely couple is what made living in Florida tolerable. We hung out a whole lot. We did Sunday walks together. We went swimming together. Our children played together almost every day. We laughed and cried together on more than one occasion. (Not the boys of course, at least not in front of each other!) Looking at this picture and knowing that we won't live around the corner from them, makes my heart feel really sad. She is the amazing woman that put up with me as I tried to lead the music in primary. I can't lead music to save my life. She is an amazing piano player and knows to just keep playing as I am waving my hands around like a crazy women. When we think of living in Florida, they are what we are going to miss. We totally love you guys and miss you bad enough that tears have been shed.

Now when I say that we were good friends, I meant we were really good friends! These fellas liked each other so much, they had matching backpacks! They loved taking a football to the park and playing catch. It didn't even have to be at the park. On Sunday evenings as we would walk around the circle, on occasion they would try and throw it back and forth. If my memory serves me well, I think they even requested to go to Port St. Joe together. That's the clinical rotation that's about ten hours away from home. They couldn't stand the thought of being apart for three whole weeks, so they tried to go together. When it didn't happen, I'm pretty sure they cried. This picture feels me with so much happiness! All joking aside, they are really good friends and not having them as part of our daily lives is going to take some time to get used to.

All that's left to do is for B to pass his boards. Then I feel like we can really say that he's done and we can click our heels together, do more than one cartwheel and maybe even throw in a somersault! Yay for graduations!

 

  

Thank you!

Now, I know that this is an old picture. Well, as old as you can get when one of them has only been outside the womb for ten weeks. Anyway, These fellas are pretty awesome for a lot of reasons. But, one HUGE reason is because they are under the age of six. We actually checked the mail one day. That's something that we don't do very often. We always forget. Anyway, we checked it and there it was, the dreaded call to jury duty. That's the problem with becoming a registered voter. They, have your information and you get called for jury duty. I know it's my civic duty. That I should feel honored that they picked me. Blah blah blah. Honestly, I don't want to do jury duty. B said that it would be awesome to do if it was a cool case. I asked what a cool case would be and he said,"I don't know something like a cool murder or something." Boys are so weird! No matter what the age. I don't think there is such a thing as a cool murder. Anyway, jury selection starts the day before B graduates. So I was hoping that that would get me out of it. But, then upon closer examination, I saw that if a legal parent is unemployed and has full custody of a child six years of age or younger, they might be able to be excused from jury duty! I clicked my heels together. I have TWO children under the age of six! If they weren't already in bed, I would have hugged and kissed them. Instead I waited until the morning. When I squeezed K so tight he started to grunt he said, "Why did you squeeze me tight?" I told him that I love him and I was so happy that he wasn't six. He just stared at me weird, but that's a look he gives me a lot. Yipee for little boys that get me out of my civic duty!