The Monday Family Blog

Good Guys, Bad Guys, and Buckeyes

2011-05-15T21:49:00.000-04:00

So Jacob is so darn cute right now. I love this stage where he is constantly saying and doing and learning new things everyday. One of his recent distinctions is between good guys, bad guys, and buckeyes, as shown in the following video. I need to keep on my blog because I could write something adorable and new that he says every day.

Hyrum-isms

2011-04-17T18:19:00.001-04:00

So Hyrum has really started to turn a new page. With the exception of last week (I'm not sure what has gone on), I think he is finally potty trained and is far more obedient than he's ever been before. Hyrum has decided that he's 4 years old rather than 3 (even though he's been 4 since November) and actually tries to do what I ask him to do rather than trying to do the opposite.

Hyrum has been especially funny though. We never know exactly what he might say, which always makes me laugh. For example, I have habit of calling my kids silly names. I'm always calling the kids Sugar, Pumpkin Eater, Sweety Peety, Booga (that's Jacob's nickname), and who knows what. Whenever I call Hyrum, Sugar, for example, he looks at me with a rather concerned eye, and says, "I'm not Sugar, Mom. I'm Hyrum. I'm a boy, REMEMBER!!!!" as though I had forgotten.

For the last 15 years or so, my favorite color has been blue. However, Hyrum is very gender specific, and blue, according to Hyrum, cannot be a girl's favorite color. So whenever he asks what my favorite color is, and I say blue, he gets very annoyed. "No, Mom, your favorite colors are pink and purple, remember? What is your favorite color, Mom?" If I'm dumb enough to say that it is blue again, he gets very annoyed (sometimes he even tells me that I'm annoying him). "No, Mom, your favorite color is pink and purple. Blue is not a girl's color" (how he knows this I don't know). Then he asks me even more insistently, "WHAT is your favorite color?" When I finally tell him that my favorite colors are pink and purple, he exclaims excitedly, "Yes, Mom, that is CORRECT!"

He also is very insistent when we are riding in the car, listening to music, that if a boy is singing that I can't sing too because I am a girl and "that song is just for boys. Don't sing, MOM!!!"

He has really enjoyed going to his new school. He calls it his orange school because it is in fact orange. He really misses his brown school though. Just the other day, he realized he wasn't going back to his brown school. This realization made him very sad. We went and visited his old teachers, and I hope that helped. His transition was very sudden, which I think was a little hard him. He's done great though in his new school. He now writes his name, is constantly pointing out letters, and is extremely technically savvy. He can figure out how things like computers and my new cell phone work as well or better than I can. It's a little scary how he can figure this all out.

Hyrum is very observant. Michael was seeing how a football game on the internet looked on our TV since we just cancelled our satellite. As it inevitably happens in a football game, a ref threw a flag. "Ooops," yelled Hyrum, "a banana peel!!!" He's so funny and crazy.

Invoking a Higher Power

2011-04-17T17:46:00.001-04:00

So the other day, Thobe and I went on a rather long drive to take a treat to his Primary teacher for his birthday. The boundaries for our ward at church are very broad. I would say that members from our ward may live up to an hour and half away from each other. We are fortunate in that we only live 12 minutes from our driveway to the church parking lot and are centrally located in our ward boundaries for the most part. Anyway, when I entered the address to Thobe's teacher's house into our GPS, I was surprised to see that the drive was 20 minutes longer than the 25 minutes that I already anticipated. "Oh well," I thought, "Thobe and I will enjoy some mommy Thobe time. So we started out.

Thobe and I had a very pleasant conversation as we drove. He told me a lot about his made up superheros, U.S.A. Face, Al Qida Face, and U.S.A. Face's pet, Baldy (Baldy is a Bald Eagle, Thobe's favorite animal). I heard lots of interesting situations where U.S.A. Face beat Al Qida Face and learned all about U.S.A Faces favorite colors (red, white and blue) and U.S.A. Face's birthday (the fourth of July, ironically the same birthday as our nation and Thobe's Grandpa Monday). As we were driving, Thobe noticed that our GPS's speedometer was turning red (this is our GPS's handy feature to remind me that I'm speeding).

"Mom, you are speeding. You need to slow down," Thobe insisted.

"It's okay, Thobe. I'm just going 59 mph rather than 55; I don't think we'll get a ticket going a little over."

"But Mom, if we speed we could get in a wreck and die. You NEED to stop speeding! We don't want to die!" he demanded.

Feeling frustrating that we would never get there and being the fabulous mother that I am, I told him that we were really going to be fine.

"I'm going to say a prayer. Heavenly Father, We thank Thee for this day. We thank thee for our family. Please protect us. Please bless that we'll stop speeding." And then he ended his prayer.

I didn't speed for the rest of the trip.

God Bless The U.S.A

2011-03-27T17:38:00.000-04:00

Alden has recently become very interested in listening to music. His favorite song is "Dynamite," which has been a huge tool for me in helping us get our basement clean. I simply hook up my MP3 player to our computer's speakers, crank it up as loud as it will go, and the boys and I start cleaning. By the time Taio Cruz sings "Dynamite" four times, our basement is spick and span. I love it! Usually when we finish, Alden wants to listen to Weird Al songs, especially those that have to do with Star Wars and superheros.

Yesterday was a "Dynamite" cleaning day as I've described. When we finished, Alden once again, asked to listen to Weird Al songs. Thobe asked me if we could listen to a song about the U.S.A. (He is really into the U.S.A. and army men. He's made up a super hero named U.S.A. Face, who has a pet eagle named Baldy, and who has an enemy named Al Qaida Face--I'll have to write a post about his later). I thought it would be fun to listen to "God Bless the U.S.A." and turned that on.

We began listening to this song, and Thobe was really happy. Alden asked me if this was a sad song. I told him that it usually makes me cry, but it's not a sad song. We continued to listen, and when it said, "And I won't forget the men who died who gave that right to me," Alden said, "Mom, is this talking about our soldiers?" I told him that it was, and that included two of his great grandparents who fought in World War II. At this point, my sweet Alden said, "Mom, I don't know why, but I think I'm going to cry."

I love that even at such a young age, that Alden has a love for his country, a respect for those who laid down their lives to make us free, and an understanding that God has given us all these blessings. I also love that he is so devoted to his family, even to his ancestors that have gone on before him. What a great blessing it is to be Americans and to be able to use our God-given freedom! I too love my country and my family and am so proud of my son who respects all this too.

A Surprise Visitor

2011-03-27T16:27:00.006-04:00

A few days ago, we FINALLY had a small spot of nice weather....FINALLY. This has been a very cold and dreary winter, so when we had a day in the 60s, we were very excited (I'm hoping for another day like that someday). Anyway, the boys were especially happy about playing outside and did so as long as we let them. On their way back in to the house, they let in what they thought was our cat Priscilla.

So the boys came in and got their pajamas on, and then we read Scriptures and said prayers as a family. Thobe has a had a rough time falling to sleep at night, so Michael was gently tickling his face while I hugged Hyrum. The house was just starting to quiet down when we heard a lot of meowing. Our kitty does not make a lot of noise unless something is wrong, so Michael ran downstairs as quickly as he could. A few minutes later he called, "Melissa, there is a little kitten in our house! You have to come and see it." I told him I did not want to see it because then I might like it, and we did not need more than one cat. Being the coaxing husband that he is, I went down in the basement and looked at it.

The poor little thing was scared out of its whits and was very cute. We tried to talk it out of the closet where it was hiding, but it didn't want to come. We just sat and watched the basketball game that we were watching, and eventually, it came out of hiding. After that, the little guy wouldn't leave us alone. All he wanted to do was to snuggle with us, which was a bad thing for me because I was allergic to him. He was very, very affectionate and happy, and we knew that unless he belonged to someone else that he would be a good cat for Michael's parents.

It was especially interesting the next morning when we introduced him to the kids. Hyrum kept saying, "Oh Priscilla really likes me," as it nestled itself against him. Priscilla usually hides (and for good reason) when she sees Hyrum and Jacob. Alden and Thobe loved the new kitty. He would snuggle and play with them as long as they were willing. However, the most entertaining duo was Jacob and the kitten. The kitten loved attention, and Jacob had no problem giving him far more attention than he wanted. The kitten would snuggle next to Jacob and then he would put his arms around the kitty and give him a very tight hug. Eventually the hug would get even tighter, and Jacob and the kitten would roll across the floor. Surprisingly the first 10 times of this seemed to be fine with the kitty, but after awhile the kitty didn't love it and ran away. This was also exciting to Jacob. Giggling, he would chase the kitty around the house and try to grab it. Eventually the kitty would give up, and complacently sit next to Jacob. Jake would get so excited that he would start flailing his arms and hit the poor animal. At this point, Michael and I would intercede and the kitty would escape. Each day, the kitty seemed to like Jacob a little less, and Jacob loved the kitty even more.

My favorite Jacob and Kitty moment happened a couple days ago. Jacob fell to sleep on the way home from picking up Hyrum from preschool. If I move him, he wakes up, so I just kept the van and garage doors open and worked in the kitchen and laundry room, checking on him regularly. When Alden and Thobe got home from school, I asked Alden to check on Jacob. He came running in the house, yelling, "Mom, Mom, you've got to come see this. It's so cute!!!" I asked him, while I ran down the stairs, what was going on. He said that when he peeked into the van, the kitty was contently sitting on Jacob's lap, and Jacob was petting the kitty with a big smile on his face. He really loves that cat.

The best news about this story is that the kitty now belongs to Michael's parents. We kept putting the kitty outside and leaving the garage door open so it could go back home, but he kept coming back. Michael's parents have been wanting a cat, so we took him up to them. I have to admit that life with the kitty wasn't blissful. Since he did like to snuggle so much, I would often find myself petting him and then would touch my eyes. This would make my eyes so itchy and me so sneezy. I didn't love that. Also unlike our kitty Priscilla, this cat was not house trained and left more than one "treasure" for us to clean up. The amount of human discretion that I have had to deal with has dramatically decreased in the last few months, so I wasn't at all interested in having cat pooh and pee replace that void.

We can go to Toledo when Jacob needs his kitty fix, and I imagine that Michael's parents will be far better at house training a cat that I am--I am convinced that I am the worst potty trainer in the world.

Jumpin' Up & Down With All His Might

2011-03-11T13:28:00.000-05:00

I find personality tests fascinating. I have talked at length with my sister-in-law about the color personality test that classifies people into blue, white, red, and yellow categories. At this point in their lives, I would say that each of my children falls into each category.

For example, Alden is undoubtedly blue. He is extremely loyal and true to his friends, his family, and the Gospel. He is driven by doing something simply because it is the right thing to do. He is extremely compassionate and forgiving and caring about other people.

Thobe is white. He is extremely laid back and not easily upset by little things. He takes life as it comes to him and rarely complains. He wants things to be fair and peaceful. I always have to be aware of Thobe's requests. If he asks me to do something, and I forget, he never badgers me like his brothers do. He just contently waits, sometimes for hours.

Hyrum is red. He loves to be in charge. He is always bossing all of us around. He tells us what to say when we talk to him and doesn't like us to tell him what to do. Potty training has been an adventure with Hyrum simply because if it's not his idea to use the bathroom, he doesn't want to do it. He's made a lot of progress though, and is now 90% potty trainied--we just have to get him to stop doing what he's doing and go to the bathroom when he needs to go.

Jacob is undoubtedly yellow. I've never seen a one year old who is more motivated by just having fun. He loves to laugh and giggle and just have a good time. When we are in church he loves to just play, especially because he's in such close proximity to his brothers. He is constantly trying to tickle them or do something silly to make them laugh. If we are in a restaurant (and he's not eating--he loves to eat too), he likes to be silly there and again play with his brothers (it has gotten so bad that Michael has told me he never wants to take the kids to a restaurant again). Jake loves to be "the baby battering ram." This is something that Michael came up with where he chases the other boys around the house with Jacob as his weapon and runs into them with Jacob's head. Jacob LOVES this. He'll tug on Michael and say, "Ram, Ram?" He loves to play with toys and will play for hours on end with toy cars. He hates being tied down, which makes diaper changing next to impossible. Whenever Michael changes his diaper, he always asks me, "How do you do this? He's moving around like crazy!" Jacob dislikes bedtime very much because he knows it's the end of his playing for the day. Last night, Michael was watching basketball and just let Jacob play nearby. Jacob decided he wanted to play in the Jumperoo (I still haven't put it away), and climbed on in. Michael heard continuous jumping for a long time, and then noticed that it stopped. He looked over at Jacob and found him in this situation below (one leg in the jumper and one leg out). He'd been jumping on 1 leg for who knows how long having the time of his life. Apparently, he eventually just ran out of gas. I love that little guy.

Notice his legs--one leg out, one leg in.

The Preschool Passoff

2011-03-11T11:29:00.000-05:00

Starting Monday, Hyrum will go to a new preschool. Since September he has been attending Marimor preschool as a typically developing student (Marimor is a wonderful institution in our area that services children with special needs--they have a great preschool where they invite typical students to be apart of their classroom). Anyway, Hyrum has done well there. He knows all of his alphabet (with minimal help from me unfortunately), he loves talking about the days of the week ("What's today, Mom?" he always asks--although if it's evening and you say it's Friday, he'll say, "No, today is tonight; it's not Friday), and he loves writing the letter H. He would also love to write the rest of his name, but unfortunately, his hand shakes. He has been diagnosed as having familial tremors. We have been told not to make an issue of it so that he won't become self-conscious, but it does affect how he is able to write and do fine motor tasks. So, on his teacher's recommendation, we had Hyrum tested and got him qualified for some occupational therapy (I think both of my older boys would have benefited from this, and they don't have any tremors). The bad thing is that because he will receive services, he no longer qualifies as a typical student and will now have to attend a different school. The new place that he will go to is just around the corner and is a very good program, so we're excited, but it is a little sad to move on so suddenly.

Because of this change, I have to write my favorite memory of Hyrum being at Marimor. One day I went to pick Hyrum up from school, and his teacher said, "Hyrum really loves you." I was happy that she felt that way and asked why she said that. She said that day he was just sitting at the table waiting for me to come and pick him up and said, "I love my mom. My mom is my girl."

I love being my Hyrum's girl.

She Loves Me, I Love Her Not

2011-03-11T10:21:00.001-05:00

We've had some really interesting conversations at meal time lately. Michael, of course, has all sorts of silly questions for the boys, which lead to lots of silly what ifs? "What would you do Alden starting roaring like a lion?" "What would you do if Thobe started growing leaves on his head?" "What would you do if Hyrum grew fins on his hands?" The boys, because they are Michael's sons, always come up with some silly answers and additional questions, which usually raises the volume about 36 notches, and we have mass pandemonium for the rest of dinner. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but our family keeps the din in dinner almost without exception.

Last night our conversation was one unlike we've ever had. Michael started asking Alden if he thought any of the girls in his class at church or at school were pretty. Alden of course gave his diplomatic answer that he always gives about girls, "None of them are pretty; none of them are ugly," and then blushed and tried to change the subject.

But Michael being Michael couldn't leave it at that. He then said, "Alden, do you think any of the girls that you know like you?"

"No," Alden said in a disgusted tone.

"What would you do if they did like you?"

"I'd throw up."

Thobe was listening to all this with peaked interested. I noticed and asked, "Thobe, do you think the girls in your class like you?" To which, he confidently responded, "Yes, I know they do." We asked him if he knew who liked him, and he told us that he knows one person for sure. "Who is it?" we asked.

"I can't tell you. It's a secret, but her first name starts with a 'C' and her last name starts with a 'B.'"

"How do you know she likes you?"

"Well," he smiled, "she always helps me finish my work, if my shoe comes untied, she ties it for me, she sits by me in class, and she always says nice things to me, but .....I don't play with her at recess because I don't have time for her."

"Do you think she is pretty, Thobe?"

"Yes, she is very pretty," he said matter of factly.

"Well," concluded Alden while rolling his eyes, "she's probably just being nice to you."

I have to say though that if I were in kindergarten, I would be in love with Thobe and those dark eyes. He's pretty handsome if you ask me.

Alden's Baptism

2011-03-07T06:47:00.001-05:00

Yes...I'm way behind on my blogging. I've had a very busy summer, which I will write a post about here shortly...hopefully. But in the mean time, I want to make sure I blog about a very significant event that happened on July 3, 2010, in the life of our family--Alden was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (By the way, I wrote some of this back in August).

About a year prior to Alden's baptism, we discussed with him where we might do his baptism. Knowing that most of our family that are members of the church live in Utah, we thought it might be nice to have his baptism in Utah. When we asked him about it and told him that we didn't know if all our family would be able to be there if we had it in Ohio, he said, "I think I'd like to do it Ohio because if my friends see me get baptized, maybe they'll want to get baptized too." So, Michael, Alden, and I began planning his baptism for Ohio, and all our family out in Utah began planning their trip to Ohio to see him get baptized.

From a mom's perspective, I have to say that Alden is undoubtedly one of the most incredible kids I've ever met. I don't know of a boy that is more eager to please than he is. He loves to please Michael and me and he loves to please God. I really felt like his decision to be baptized was his decision was one that he took very seriously. I am so amazed with Alden and feel so thankful that he's my son. I really wanted it to be special day for him, and I really felt like it was.

All my family was there. All of Michael's family was there, including one of his uncles and several of Michael's cousins. We also had a lot of close friends who came as well. When Alden's baptism started, I sat up by Michael and Alden and looked out at the crowd of people who were in attendance. I thought, "Wow, this is what heaven must be like." It was so wonderful to be surrounded by so many people that have had a significant influence in our lives. I hope that all of us can be together in heaven someday.

Alden's baptism program went without a hitch. My mom spoke on baptism, and Michael's mom spoke on the Holy Ghost. Both talks were touching and poignant. My mom shared the story of breaking her leg a few weeks before Alden's baptism. She was so worried that she wouldn't be able to come out for his baptism because the doctor said that she might have to have surgery. At the beginning of June, Alden fasted and prayed that his Grandma's leg would heal so that she could come to his baptism. The Tuesday after his fast, my mom went in to the doctor, and he said that her leg had healed enough that she would not need surgery. What a miracle!

Alden was then baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was given the gift of the Holy Ghost following the baptism.

I'm so grateful that Alden is my son and that he made this choice to be baptized. What a blessing it is to our family.

I am posting the video that we showed at Alden's baptism. It was a letter that I wrote to Alden that summarized the first eight years of his life and explains why we get baptized in our church.

You can see this video by clicking on the following link:
Alden's Baptism Video

Wow!

2011-03-05T21:26:00.000-05:00

So here I am posting. I really, really, REALLY want to do a better job with this. My sisters, Mom, and I started a weight loss challenge over a year ago and used a blog to keep track of how we were doing and where we were. It was great for me. I lost all my baby weight and a little more (unfortunately, I've gained a good 10 pounds back, but I'm working on that), but whenever I had a minute to blog, I would usually blog there instead of here. When we wrapped all that up, I thought, "Oh...I need to write about Alden's baptism, our trip to Utah, how Jacob has grown, the crazy things that Hyrum has done, how smart Thobe is, that I just felt overwhelmed. I also am still adjusting to that 4th child, was recently called as our ward's Primary president, and am trying to keep up with all the new things my kids are doing, so I just haven't blogged. Every Sunday I think I'll do it, and I just don't (a three hour nap is much more appealing). Anyway, I should be cleaning my kitchen now, but I just wanted to promise myself that I'm going to do better. I hope that I'll be able to catch up, but if I can't, I'll start from today. My kids are growing before my eyes, they are saying and doing amazing things, and I'm frustrated with myself that these moments will be forgotten if I don't write them down. So I'm going to do better. Hopefully new posts will once again freckle my blog.

I just found DELICIOUS!

2010-06-06T20:20:00.001-04:00

So the other day, Hyrum was eating breakfast, a second breakfast actually. He found a box of strawberry mini wheats and asked me to help him put some in a bowl with milk (I've learned if I don't help him right away, that he will in fact do it himself, sometimes successfully, sometimes not). Anyway, he sat down and started eating. After a few bites he exuded,

"Mmmmm, I just found delicious, Mommy."

Jacob

2010-05-31T13:05:00.000-04:00

Last week, Jacob turned 11 months old!!! I can't believe that he's that old now. He is sooooo cute and so much fun right now. Everyone always comments to us about his blond, blond hair and is deep blue eyes. Those features make his so adorable. He is really curious about so many things and loves getting into stuff. His favorite place is the dishwasher. He loves pulling things out of the dishwasher and finding scraps of food that he can eat (isn't that utterly disgusting?). The other day, I made Thobe's birthday cupcakes and put the beaters in the dishwasher. I didn't even think about Jacob getting a hold of them until I was putting a few things in the dishwasher and tidying the kitchen and looked down to find Jacob covered in green frosting. I often remind myself that knifes are not safe in the silverware area any more.

Jacob LOVES his brothers. When he sees them, he starts giggling (he does this with me and Michael too). He loves playing with them and hugging them. All of his brothers try to make sure he's safe and they love to make him laugh and smile. It's so much fun to see them all play together. He also loves our cat Pricilla. When he sees her he says, "Cilla. Cilla. Cilla!" and wiggles out of our arms so he can crawl after her. She tolerates him for a few seconds and then runs away and hides.

Jacob is very mobile. He is always standing and trying to walk along things. He is also a very fast crawler. He hates grass and cries if we sit him down in it outside. The other day we were all outside and Jacob insisted on staying on the cement. The next day I looked at his feet and he had scratches all over them.

Jacob is a real blabber mouth. He is always ranting and raving about something. He wants so much to talk. He says mama and dad and hola. The other night we went over to a friend's house who had a dog named Blizzard. I seriously think he said Blizzard several times. Our friends thought so too.

Jacob LOVES food. I really don't think there is a food he doesn't like, except Cheerios, because we give those to him so much. If we're eating and he's not, he yells and yells at us to share. He gets so excited about food that he shakes sometimes.

Jacob also loves music. Whenever he hears Alden play his recital pieces on the piano, he starts dancing. He also tries to sing along with the music. Yesterday when I was leading the music in Primary, he was singing right along with us. He also loves his grandparents and is always so happy to see them. He really is a sweet baby. We're so lucky to have him in our family.

Happy Birthday, Thobe!!!

2010-05-31T00:39:00.001-04:00

Thobe is so amazing to me!!! He really has got to be one of the smartest kids I've ever met. He is constantly saying things and doing things that amaze me. Last Sunday, he turned six years old. I can't believe that he's six now. The Friday before his birthday, we took ice cream sandwiches to everyone in his class and they sang "Happy Birthday" to him. On his birthday, we got up and had breakfast together and gave him his new suit. He looked so sharp and grown up in it! Then we went to church where the Primary sang, "Happy Birthday" to him. After church we had some friends over who ate dinner with us and ate his Mario birthday cake with him. Then we drove up to Toledo so that Thobe could open his presents with Grandpa and Abuelita, and Michael and I could go to seminary graduation. We didn't mean to make him wait all day to open his gifts, but it was just one of those days. I think he had a great day, regardless of all our running around. Yesterday (Saturday) we rented a gymnastics gym and invited a bunch of his friends to come and play with him for a birthday party. He got a lot of great gifts and was so happy to have so many of his friends there to play with him. I was so bummed that I forgot my camera. Oh well.

I have to say that I'm so happy with the boy Thobe is and all that he is doing. He loves telling stories about Mario and Luigi and is always talking about them. He also loves going outside and playing any kind of sport. He has really improved in his running. He is getting to be a fast runner and loves to play giant tag with his friends at school. He also loves eating new things. He ate frog legs at a Chinese buffet the other day and will always try things. He doesn't like spaghetti or lasagna or tasagna (Michael always says that Thobe likes tasagna, and Thobe gets irritated and says" Tasagna doesn't make any sense"). He is a very messy eater though, as evidenced by the picture from Alden's birthday party and the picture below.

He also says and does the funniest things. We've been seeing a urologist with Thobe who has had us do different things with him to get all his "pipes" working properly. As I explained what would happen with the enema, I told him that it would kind of make it so that we'd just start all over again. He looked at me with a bit of concern on his face and asked, "Am I going to be a baby again?" I assured him that he we wouldn't go that far back and that he would be fine. A few weeks ago, we were going to the temple. Thobe had been talking a lot about relay racing. He said to me, "Mom, girls' relay racing is a little bit weird, isn't it?" Trying to suppress the male chauvinism that I assume comes from being in a family of all boys, I of course told Thobe that I didn't think it was weird and asked him why he thought it was weird. He then corrected himself by saying, "Well, girls' relay racing is a little bit weird and a little bit gorgeous." That really made me laugh.

Several days later, he was talking to me about racing again and telling me how he and his classmates were going to race. He yelled out, "And here come the 5 year olds." Then he announced that the seven year olds were coming out onto the field too. Then quizzically, he asked, "Mom, how old are you?" After I told him, he announced, "Here come the 35 year olds!" I couldn't help but laugh and I thought about a bunch of 35 year old women running onto a field to run a race.

Thobe loves his brothers so much and is especially close to Alden. I really think that Alden is Thobe's best friend in the whole world and that the feeling is mutual. He also loves Hyrum and Jacob too. The other morning, I was listening to Thobe and Hyrum talk. Hyrum gave Thobe a big hug and said, "I love you too, Thobe." Thobe hugged Hyrum back and said, "Thanks, Hyrum. I love you!" Thobe is soooo good with Jacob. He really tries to keep him safe and happy.

He also says things that amaze me. Back in March (yes, it's been that long since I've blogged) we went to a Utah Jazz vs. Indiana Pacers basketball game. When we were driving home, Thobe said, "Hey, there's a German flag!" Neither Michael nor I saw the flag, so Michael asked him what colors the were on the German flag. Thobe said, "Black, Red, Yellow." Several weeks later, we were at Michael's parents' house. Warren gave the boys a dime for helping him pick up sticks, and Chris reminded them, "Don't forget to pay your tithing. Thobe responded, "I can't pay my tithing cause I only have one coin--oh wait, if I had 10 pennies, I could pay one of them for my tithing." I don't know when he learned to do percentages, but somewhere he did. He is such a good reader. He can read verses in the Book of Mormon with little to no help. The other day, he brought home a Froggy book and read almost the entire book to us without help as well. I'm constantly amazed at the things he can do.

He is so tender hearted. He hates to upset me or Michael and tries so hard to do what is right. The other day, Michael was telling him that Nicaragua is a country. In school they had been talking about the country and cities. In his mind, Nicaragua had more cities than countries and when Michael told him Nicaragua was a country, he got really upset and said, "Are you kidding me??? Are you kidding me????" He worries a lot about robbers, but I remember that I did too. I hope that he can always feel safe and happy here at home. I love him so much and am so glad that he's my son.

Hyrum The Photographer

2010-05-30T23:37:00.000-04:00

I forgot to add on my last post that Hyrum loves to get he camera and take pictures. He'll often go outside and just shoot away. I always get such a laugh at looking at all the pictures he's taken. It really gives me a glimpse into his mind. Here are a few of my favorites that he's taken:

These are the water bottles that he dumped not too long after this picture was taken--I wonder if that act was premeditated.

These are the cars he lined up so neatly and then wanted to capture his work in a picture, I guess.

Doesn't this look like a picture from those "Guess the what this is" books?

I have a bunch of these shots, which by the way, are perhaps my favorite.

This one I'm thinking of entering in a photo contest.

Hmmmm... how does this thing work?

Another photo contest contestant.

We've got lots of pictures like this of Jacob. Jacob poses for Hyrum more than anyone else.

Thobe's tonsils.

Here's our phographer now.

An action shot of Alden playing the Wii.

He was even able to capture a bit of Michael's crazy side...

And my beauty.

What a sneaky guy!

Oh Hyrum

2010-05-30T23:13:00.000-04:00

Where do I start with all that Hyrum has done recently? He is so, so so cute and so, so, so mischievous. I can't tell you how many times he each day he elates me and makes me want to cry. Nonetheless, I have to say that he is a sweetheart, and I love him so much!!!

I have a ton of stories to tell about Hyrum. I'm disappointed that I haven't written more of these stories. I really want to get caught up here so that I can sit down whenever he does something cute and type it up. I am going to try and do better. One of the fun things about Hyrum is that he has the cutest little voice. He talks so clearly and has a ton to say. He recently started saying, "What's the big idea?" when we do something he doesn't like, and if he can't see something he says, "I can't see a thing in this place." Just right now, while I'm typing, I hear him singing, "Scooby Dooby Doo, I see you, We got some things to do now."

We never know what Hyrum will say or do. The other day we were helping Michael's grandparents move out of their house in Cleveland. Michael took Hyrum out to the car for some reason. When they got out there, Hyrum exclaimed, "I want my topter tockter." Michael being the smart parent that he is quickly realized that he wanted his toy helicopter. Also Hyrum loves watching TV and movies. Whenever you put in a video, Hyrum says, "Da Da Da, Coming soon, On DVD." He is very dramatic. When he cries he cries with his whole body. His shoulders slump in, his chin drops to his chest, and he hunches over. When he's happy, he's happy with his whole body too. He often adds a skip in his step and has a smile that lights up the room. He also now sees the cougars as being something bad rather than something good like the rest of the family. For about six months now, whenever you ask Hyrum a why question, he says, "Because the cougars." Well for awhile, whenever he'd say that, I'd say, "Darn those cougars," which I guess led Hyrum to believe they were bad guys. Hyrum has also started hitting himself in the head when things don't go well and says, "Dang it! Daddy says, 'Cheese pas,' Mommy." He's quite the character.

As I stated, Hyrum is very mischievous. Within 24 hours, Hyrum dumped nearly an entire bathtub full of water down on the floor that seeped through the floor and down onto the kitchen ceiling, which is now in desperate need of repair. He also took all the water 2 liter water bottles we have down in the basement and dumped those on to the floor. Fortunately there is a drain down there, but I still wasn't too happy about that.

Nonetheless, Hyrum loves his brothers. He loves trying to make Jacob laugh. Those two will often just get in each other's face and giggle and giggle and giggle. He also loves Alden and Thobe. He always wants to do what they are doing. It's so much fun to watch them all play together. He and Thobe sometimes butt heads, but for the most part, they get along well. The other day, Thobe was lying down, and Hyrum bit Thobe's hair and said, "Mmm delicious! I love hair."

Hyrum is most definitely a love hate kind of guy. The other day he said the prayer and in the middle of it, he said, "Thank you for the blueberries--I hate blueberries. Thank you for my Daddy--I love my daddy. Thank you for Jacob--I love Jacob...." It was very cute. Also right after he dumped the water out of the bathtub, we were sitting in the kitchen. Hyrum and I had the following conversation:

Hyrum: Mom, I hate our house.

Me: Why do you hate our house, Hy? I love our house.

Hyrum (pointing to the ceiling): I hate our house because it' s broken.

Me: Why is our house broken? Who broke it?

Hyrum: Hyrum.....it needs two batteries, Mom. Then we can fix it.

If only it were that easy.

Despite Hyrum's mischievousness and running away from me (the other day I chased him all around a gigantic home improvement store--I finally had to leave Jacob in a shopping cart in a corner and chase down Hyrum) and his at times bossy temperament (he often tells me "Leave me alone, Mom" or "Get out of here!"), he is incredibly sweet and very hard to stay mad at. After dumping all those two liter bottles, he came up to me, wrapped his little arms around my neck, and said, "I love you too, Mom. Are you still angry with me?"

Needless to say, I didn't stay too mad too long.

Alden's Piano Recital & Birthday

2010-05-16T22:14:00.004-04:00

I no longer know how to post video on my blog anymore, so I uploaded Alden's piano recital performance onto YouTube. I'll post the link here. I do have to say that it was awesome. Alden has been taking piano lessons for 8 months. At the end of March his piano teacher gave him this piece an another piece to learn for this recital today (May 16). The song that he played today had 2 flats and some tricky rhythms. When I saw the piece, I honestly thought it was a bit unreasonable. However, Alden practiced both pieces really hard and was able to memorize them. He played "Private Eyes" today for his recital (this was the harder of the two pieces) and will play "Little Cub's Dance" at his school talent show where he was chosen to be one of 15 performers. I'm so proud of him right now.

Here is the link to his piano recital.

By the way, he had a great birthday yesterday. He woke up in Columbus (Michael and I did an early morning temple session with the stake), and then came back to Lima, and met a few of his friends at Chuck E. Cheese. Michael's parents also met us there, and we all had a great time. After the party, we came back to the house where Alden finished opening the rest of his presents. Grandpa and Abuelita went back to Toledo, and we went to Alden's favorite Mexican restaurant, La Charriada. They sang Happy Birthday to him in Spanish and let him wear a big sombraro. The only downside to Alden was that there was a drunk guy there making a fool out of himself. Alden found that very disturbing. When we got home, I pulled out his scrapbook and told him about the day he was born and when he was little. It was so special. I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who gave me Alden as a son. He is an amazing boy. I am sad that he's growing up so quickly, but I'm also so pleased to see the boy he's becoming. He's going to do great things!!! He gets baptized on July3. We're very excited!

Silly Brothers

Alden's Light Saber Cake (A Melissa Masterpiece)--Chris started laughing when she saw it, but I was proud of it.

Happy 8th Birthday, Alden!!! I'm so proud of you!!!!

Alden

2010-05-11T21:49:00.005-04:00

Alden continues to be a pleasure to be
around. I hope that his whole life he will be this way. He's just such a pleasant, happy, good-natured kid. He is so helpful with his brothers and is always willing to help me with them, especially with Jacob. Alden is also just losing his teeth. It's fun to hear his perspectives about the tooth fairy. It seems that our tooth fairy has much of the forgetfulness that his mom and dad have. We recently learned that even the tooth fairy keeps the Sabbath Day holy. She doesn't collect her teeth on Sunday. Unfortunately on that go round she didn't collect the tooth the following Monday or Tuesday either. Fortunately, on Wednesday, she stopped by and paid Alden for his tooth. What a forgetful tooth fairy!!! I don't remember her being so forgetful when I was younger.

Alden continues to impress me. A while back, his teacher told him that he could do a report on a famous person. He decided that he wanted to do his report on Joseph Smith. He worked really hard on it and did a phenomenal job. He got 57 out of 50.

Alden has also done really well with music. He had a music performance with the second graders and was chosen as a dancer. This was something Alden was not thrilled about, however. I kept prodding him about what he was going to do, and he kept dodging the question. Finally on the day before the performance he told me that he would have to dance with a girl. I told him that I didn't think that was so bad. Then he said in an embarrassed and quiet voice, "But Mom.... (extended studder and pause)...I (insert painful sigh) have (insert another painful pause) to hold (insert a paralyzing grimace and sigh) her haaaaand." He told Michael on their way there that he was really hoping that he'd be sick the day of the performance.

The thing I'm most pleased about with Alden musically is all that he's done on the piano as of late. He started lessons in September, but his piano teacher moved in November. He was really getting into it, so I was really hopeful that I would be able to find someone quickly. I talked to his school teacher, Mrs. Hempleman, who recommended a couple people that she had heard of. I called one and she said she'd take him that week. She is incredible! In March, she told us that she was going to do a piano recital in May and gave Alden two difficult pieces for a beginning pianist. She said that she wanted to push him a little. With some dedicated practice, Alden has memorized both pieces and plays them beautifully. He auditioned for his school talent show with one of the pieces about two weeks ago (he'd only had the pieces for three weeks at that point). I meant to send the music with him to school, but being the forgetful mom that I am, I totally spaced it. I didn't realize it until he got home, and I felt terrible. I really wanted him to audition and figured that he wouldn't be able to without the music. He told me that it wasn't a big deal and that he still auditioned. I asked him what he played, and he told me that he played his piece that he'd been practicing. I was really puzzled and told him that he didn't have the music. He said, "I know, Mom. I played it from memory." I was shocked and a little embarrassed. I figured it must have been pretty bad and asked him to play it for me. That crazy kid sat down and played the song from start to finish without hardly a mistake. I couldn't believe it. When he has his recital, I'll post a video of it here--I'm going to be a better blogger.

Anyway, Alden is in a good groove right now. I'm really proud of who he is. He's smart, he's funny, and he tries so hard to do what is right. I couldn't be more blessed to have him as my oldest son.

Feeling Happy

2010-03-10T21:12:00.000-05:00

Although I should be doing 100 other things, I just want to write and say how happy I am and how blessed I feel. I think I have the greatest kids in the whole wide world. They are really great! They try so hard to be good. Thobe had an assignment the other day to fill out a star that said,, "I am special because..." and Thobe wrote, "I am special because I am good." I hung that next to my phone. Whenever I see it I think, "He is good. All my boys are just so good." I love them so much.

I also feel so grateful for Michael. He's so good to me and patient with me. I can't say how grateful I am for all he does. I love to be with him. He's my very best friend. I'm so grateful that God blessed me with him.

Maybe it's because we've had a few warm days after an extremely hard winter, but I just feel so blessed and so happy. I know that God lives and that he loves me and my family. I'm so grateful that he blessed me with Michael and my boys and also incredible parents, siblings, in-laws and friends. I love this beautiful Earth and am so grateful that I know where all these blessings originate. I truly am grateful for all God does for me.

Family Recharge

2010-03-05T15:16:00.002-05:00

I want to preface this post by saying that I love Ohio. I loving living here and being close to Michael's parents. I also love the friends we have made here and the experiences we're having here. That being said, I also miss my family. It's hard being so far away and not being part of those day to day experiences that I miss out on constantly. I miss being at those family events and am sad that every time I see my nieces and nephews they've grown significantly and don't know me as well as they know their other aunts and uncles. But the thing I miss the very most is having my mom and dad nearby. I miss seeing them and being with them and so much want my boys to have a close relationship with their grandpa and grandma. I am so grateful that my mom and dad try so hard to foster and build those relationships despite the miles that separate us.

At the end of the January, I was feeling especially home sick though and so much wanted my parents to see how big Jacob was getting. I talked to my parents about having them take a trip out here. I called and talked to my dad who has been extremely busy with work because they not only have a huge farm that they are running, but his boss has also started building a dairy that is also requiring a lot of my dad. He told me when I talked to him that with a weekend exception of Alden's baptism, that he wouldn't be able to come out for at least a year. When he told me this, my heart dropped into my stomach, and I felt very sad. My mom, being the peacemaker that she is, assured me that she would come out regularly and that it would be okay. I was thrilled that she would come, but sad that my dad couldn't.

However, several days later, my parents called me and told me that my dad needed to go to Illinois for a training, and that my mom was invited to come too. I eagerly asked if I could meet them. We made plans and arrangements to meet in Nauvoo and then follow my dad wherever he needed to go and just spend time together. I was so excited!!!!

The boys and I left Saturday morning. Michael decided not to go to save his vacation days. I was bummed that I wouldn't get to spend Valentine's day with my Valentine, and I was especially worried because Alden had a fever, Hyrum had bronchitis, an ear infection, and a sinus infection, and the medicine that they put him on made him throw up and have HORRID diarrhea, and Jacob was really stuffy. Thobe was just getting over something, so he was having a ton of accidents--ugggh. I REALLY, REALLY wanted to see my parents though, so I loaded up the van with my sicklies and drove 8 hours to Keokuk, Iowa.

We had such a great time!!! All the hotels that we stayed in had a swimming pool, so the boys got to go swimming almost every night. We spent time in Nauvoo, at a fun John Deere Tractor Museum in East Moline, IL, and in Peoria, IL. My dad had a rental car that fit all of us in it, so we got to ride with Grandma and Grandpa wherever we went. The first night, Alden's fever went away, and once I stopped giving Hyrum the medicine, he got a lot better too. Poor Jacob got sicker though, which made a lot of sleepless nights for me in the hotel, but I got to see my mom and dad, the kids got to see Grandpa and Grandma, so we were all really happy about that and enjoyed and treasured every minute we had.

On Wednesday morning, the boys and I headed back to Ohio. We were all really sad to say goodbye, but we were grateful that we were able to spend time together. On our way home, we stopped in Toledo and celebrated Michael's grandpa's 90th birthday with his grandparents, parents, and aunt and uncle. I am so grateful that my kids get to have two of their great grandparents in their lives. What a wonderful blessing!!!!

Priscilla

2010-03-05T11:27:00.000-05:00

From the time that Michael and I first got married, Michael has wanted a cat. However, when we'd visit his parents' house who had a cat at the time, I would become almost incapacitated with my allergies. I was so allergic to their cat that I would wake Michael up in the night hyperventilating, insisting that we go for a ride in the car so that I could breathe. When I went to an allergist, Michael begged me to ask if I could get a weekly shot so that we could have a cat at our house. My allergist was disgusted, but I don't think she or I for that matter realized how important a cat was to Michael.

We always said that when we got a house that we would think about getting an outdoor cat, but since the first eight years of our married life was spent in an apartment, it didn't become an issue. When we moved here to Lima, we decided that it was time to look into getting our outdoor cat. Unfortunately, the local animal pound said they wouldn't adopt a cat to a family who was going to keep the cat outside. Michael began looking at which cats were more hypoallergenic than others. We visited at Siberian cat farm (apparently allergic people have more tolerance to Siberian cats); however, trying to convince someone who wasn't all that thrilled about having a cat anyway to spend $300 on a discount cat didn't go over that well. Michael told me that he was done trying to get a cat and sadly conceded that our family would always be cat free. I felt really bad that I had shattered his cat dreams, but he decided that it was over and insisted that we not talk about it anymore. We both assumed that we would enjoy our neighbor's cat Jake (no, we didn't name Jacob after our neighbor's cat) and have him be our adopted cat, even though he had scratched or bit both Alden and Hyrum because he hates kids.

However, around Thanksgiving life as we knew it changed a bit. The Tuesday before Thanskgiving a very cute little kitten with black and white and orange stripes made her way into our garage. Hyrum was ecstatic! He ran over to her and began petting her. She playfully rubbed against his leg and didn't do anything when he picked her up. Alden and Thobe also played with her and gave her something to eat. Michael told the boys not to give her any food so that she would go back home. That crazy kitty didn't leave though. We intentionally didn't feed her for two days thinking she'd go back home. She looked forward to us coming out to the garage and would always meow happily when she'd see us.

We knew if she was still around when Michael's dad came that we'd have ourselves a cat. He has such a soft spot for animals, and sure enough on Thanksgiving day, he asked me if I had an old towel and bowl. I found him giving the kitty water and made her a soft warm bed in the garage. I was surprised that as the boys let her in the house from time to time and as I'd pet her that she didn't make me sneeze, and soon I too became quite fond of her. I loved how good she was with my kids. I also loved that whenever I'd say, "Hi Kitty." She'd say, "Meow." I think Michael is in seventh heaven having a cat around. He loves that little thing so much!

We also decided that we should name our little cat. We had several ideas. Thobe especially liked calling her Cheerio. We also thought that maybe we could call her Tickle--Jacob's girl name that the boys gave him before he was born, but those names didn't work so well. I suggested that we call her Priscilla since she came to us at Thanksgiving, and it stuck. She gets called Cilla a lot, but it's a good name for her. She's a perfect cat. She uses her litter box perfectly. If she's in the house and needs to go to her litter box, she meows to let us know. She takes medicine well, she has never scratched any of the kids, even if they are rough with her. She is playful and fun, but not too playful, and Michael tells me that she'll be a great mouser (we've never had a mouse, but it is one of my worst fears). She loves it when the kids go to bed and she has Michael and me all to herself. She especially is fascinated with the toilet. No matter what, she runs to the bathroom if she ever hears any of us going, even if she was in a deep sleep.

Recently she got fixed so we won't have to worry about little kittens in the Spring. This was very troubling to Alden. He didn't like us messing with things like that. He very seriously told me that Heavenly Father has a plan that we all need to do, and then said, "Mom, have your prayed about Priscilla having that operation? I really think you should pray about that." He's such a good boy.

We decided to go through with the surgery, despite Alden's concern. She's been such a good little kitty. You could tell that she didn't feel well, but she still took care of all her business and was so gentle, even with Hyrum.

It's funny how she just came into our lives. I keep telling Michael that I think he must have prayed her here. I really can't imagine a better cat for our family. She's just about purrrfect.

By way of pets, I should also mention that our two crawdads that we have in our fish tank are now the proud parents of at least 20 new baby crawdads. For having no pets when we moved to Lima, we've sure acquired a lot in the last three years.

Playing catchup

2010-02-06T14:31:00.000-05:00

I am so disappointed that I have been so bad about blogging. We have been so blessed and have had such a great last couple months. The boys are doing so many adorable things that I forget because I don't write them down. I really want to do better. My family and I have been doing a weight loss challenge where we report into a blog daily. I have to admit that more of my time has been spent there than here, but I hope that I can change that. Anyway, I hope to give a brief summary of life for the Mondays over the past few months.

Christmas this year was great for us. It was our first Christmas that we spent in with just our family. Normally, we go to Utah or at least to Toledo for Christmas. We did spend Christmas Eve and Christmas afternoon in Toledo, but ended up coming back home for Santa to visit our boys here in Lima. Although I love spending Christmas in Utah and as the old song goes, "There's no place like home for the holidays," I really enjoyed spending Christmas with Michael and my boys. It was really special.

Santa was really generous to us this year. We got so many fun things. The boys were especially excited about Mario Kart for their Wii and for their Star Wars toys. Their favorite present for the most part, was their BYU Cougar uniforms, complete with their first initial and last name and birthday for their number on the back. They all opened this gift at the same time and insisted on putting their uniforms on. As soon as they got "dressed" they told us that it was time for them to go down in the basement and play a football game, despite having a tree full of presents that still needed to be unwrapped. All three boys sprinted downstairs to verse their imaginary Ute opponents. Alden laid out the rules and told the boys that the first team to 14 won, and guess what? The BYU cougars saved the day! and won! Hooray for the cougars!!! The fun thing about doing Christmas at our house was that we were able to do that with every present. We enjoyed not being worried about holding someone up, and the boys enjoyed being able to play with their presents as we opened them.

After we spent the morning opening presents and eating a nice breakfast, we loaded up the boys and a few of their favorite presents and went to Toledo. Michael's Aunt Leslie and Uncle Jay were visiting from Utah, and Michael's grandparents were there from Toledo. It was so much fun to see them and spend time with them over the holidays. Michael's grandparents also made the decision to move to Toledo while we were there, so Michael and much of his family went to Cleveland the next day to get some of GG and Geful's essentials. We were also able to see Michael's best friend from high school, Tim, and his wife and new baby boy, Teddy. It was so much fun to get to know is wife Jin and their cute little boy that is only a couple months older than Jacob. We went to a Rockets game and spent a significant amount of time with them. It was very fun.

Another fun thing about Christmas is that our little Jacob turned 6 months old. It's so hard to believe that he's 6 months now. He is such a good baby. He'll certainly let us know we're not paying him enough attention, but he'll still sit for hours in his swing and can easily be entertained with a few toys. We got him a toy that plays music and has little blocks that bob up and down for Christmas. It seems that that was all he needed to start sitting up. He sits up really well now and rolls all over the place. He loves chewing on everything, and even though he's 7 months now, he still hasn't cut any teeth. He especially loves pulling his socks off and sucking on his toes. For awhile he got really frustrated wtih us always trying to give him his pacifier, but since we eased off a bit, he likes it now. When he's tired, he loves for us to take him in his room, give him his pacifier and a blanket, turn on his mobile nad let him go to sleep. All my other boys insisted that I nurse them to sleep, but not Jacob. He's really a good baby. He loves his brothers so much. He gets so excited when he sees them. Without fail, Alden yelling, "Hi Jacob" over and over and over again always gets him to smile. He loves Hyrum and Thobe too, and adores me and Michael. He loves to screech really loudly and has the cutest little giggle. He loves eating. If we're eating and not sharing, he screams (sometimes that'a little annoying), but it's also very cute. I really couldn't ask for a better baby. He's just so incredible!

Hyrum continues to be his mischievous adorable self. He's really a lot of fun. He is constantly saying the funniest things and is just a happy boy. He tells me, "I love you too, Mom" at least 20 times a day. I love it when he says that. He is really aware of other people's emotions. If I get sad, he gets very concerned. I love how he does that. He does not like to be told no and is very determined. If he asks us to do something and we tell him just a minute, he'll often not wait for us. I can't tell you how many times I've found him on top of the counter top trying to reach something changing is own diaper (potty training is still a problem because I am potty training stupid), pouring his own water or milk, or getting his own snack. He is a tornado in action. He's constantly dumping and spilling and making a disaster. The picture here is the result of him getting a bottle of blue food coloring and shaking it all over himself, his brothers and the kitchen. He is so good with Jacob. If Jacob's crying, he always tries to get him something to play with and has started getting him things to eat--this scares me. Jacob didn't like the soap that Hyrum gave him and loved the peanut butter--I wasn't excited about him eating either of those things. Hyrum is very charismatic. Everyone who meets him, loves him!

Thobe continues to be our sports fan. He loves sports and has recently become obsessed with Mario Kart. He could sit for hours watching Alden play it. When he's not watching Alden play he is constantly talking about the characters of the game. Did you know that Bowser's birthday is March 22--the same day as Michael's, and Mario's birthday is March 8? I don't know where he gets this stuff, but it's pretty funny. He's really excelled in school thsi year. He sturggles with writing--fine motor skills aren't a strength of the Mondays, but that boy can read and he is just like a sponge. I'm constantly amazed at the things that he picks up on. It's also been fun to watch him and Hyrum become closer friends. He has always gotten along with Alden, but recently, he and Hyrum have started playing together more. They fight more than Alden and Thobe ever did, but they still love each other and are playing together well. Thobe loves wearing his BYU cougar uniform. I think he would wear that thing every single day if we'd let him. He got mad at me today when I madde him change his shirt when it was so dirty. That uniform was definitely worth it for Thobe.

Alden has grown up so much this year. He is so smart and cute. He loves to please his dad and has recently become farily good freinds with a boy at his school that speaks Spanish. We're really excited about that; Alden has a lot of friends at school, and his best friend remains to be Jack. He is really excelling on the piano and is such a good boy! He is really obedient and tries so hard to do what is right. He is also really good at outsmarting me. The other day he told me he wanted to eat school lunch if they had hot dogs. I won't go into it too much here, but I hate school lunch. I think that it is nothing but garbage. The problem is Thobe loves it, so I let them eat up to 2 school lunches a week. Alden told me one day that he wanted to have a hot dog at school. I told him I did not want to pay $2 for a gross hotdog and that if he wanted one, he could buy it with his money. He told me that he did not want to spend his money on that and I told him that I didn't want to spend my money on it either. "Well," Alden said, "I only have a little bit of money, but if I had as much money as you have, I wouldn't mind spending $2 on a hot dog." He is right, $2 to me is a lot less than $2 to him. He also continue to be a Star Wars fanatic. When I asked im why he likes Star Wars so much, he said, "Well, (he always says well), I guess that's what the laser does to people." That really threw me, so I asked him to explain. He reminded me that when he was born, the doctor cut him out of my tummy with a laser, and he concluded that the laser must have made him like Star Wars. He's really fun and a bit crazy. I love him and all my boys so much though.

Our Annual Christmas Greeting

2009-12-21T08:05:00.000-05:00

I don't know what happened this year, but for whatever reason, I had such a difficult time with our Christmas video. I worked everyday for at least 5 hours a day since my birthday trying to get this crazy thing done (in the past I've spent 5 to 10 hours on it and had it done). I don't know if I'm just getting dumber or if the new software that I was using just had more kinks (it appeared that it would be easier). Anyway, without further complaint, here is our year end video summary and Christmas greeing. I hope that you'll enjoy watching it, and more importantly, that you have a very Merry Christmas.

2009 Monday Family Christmas Greeting

Facebook Link (this resolution is a higher quality)

The Greatest Kid in the Nation!

2009-11-30T10:37:00.001-05:00

I have to tell you, Thobe is so much fun right now. He is so sweet and smart and just amazing. I love all the progress that he's made at school. He struggles a little with fine motor stuff, but he has no idea that he does. He loves to draw and write and color. Thobe's doing a great job with reading, and he LOVES math!!! The most amazing thing about Thobe is his ability to make connections that most kids his age don't make. When we were out in Utah and went to buy a birthday present for his cousin, he saw a magazine that talked about The Biggest Loser. He said, "Oh look, Mom, the Biggest Loser" (can you tell what I do on Tuesday night?). He then said, "Hey, Mom. Have you ever heard of the Smallest Winner," and then he chuckled softly to himself. Also while we were at the store and were looking for cards, I asked if he'd like to give James a card that said "For the greatest kid in the nation." He said he'd like to get that for him. I put the card in the cart, and Thobe asked, "Uh, Mom? Am I the second greatest kid in the nation?" I assured him that he was actually the greatest kid in the nation, so the Thobe said, "Oh, so it's from the greatest kid in the nation, right, Mom?"

He was really silly when my mom and dad were here. He often spent time quizzing my grandpa on which letter different words started with and gave him simple addition problems. One time, he said softly, "Grandpa, what does is start with?" My dad didn't hear what he said or thought he said something else, so he answered that it started with an s. Thobe promptly corrected him and responded, "Uh no, Grandpa, it starts with I." Thobe has some pretty strong gender stereotypes. One night we went out to dinner and Michael and my dad rode in Michael's car. Last minute, Alden jumped in with them, they drove away. Thobe was the most out of control I've ever seen him. "I don't want ride with the women," he hollered. "I want to ride with the MEN!!!!" He also teased my mom a lot by telling her that he only loved her a little bit but that he loved my dad a lot. I think my mom saw really how much he loved her when they were getting ready to go into the airport, and Thobe said in a sad, quiet voice, "Grandma it's sad when family you love has to leave, huh?" It still breaks my heart when I think about him saying that.

Thobe's had so much fun in school preparing for Thanks- giving. He talks incessantly about the Thanksgiving feast that his class had. He also tells us a lot about the Pilgrims. The day before Thanksgiving, Alden said, "Thobe what do you want to be when you grow up. I want to be a lawyer." Thobe thought for a minute and then said, "I want to be a Pilgrim." I hope that Thobe has the same courage and righteous faith that the Pilgrims had. What a great kid!

Happy Birthday to Hyrum & All Sorts of Fun

2009-11-30T09:36:00.003-05:00

Good Gravy Cakes!!!! I am so behind!!! We have had a very eventful last couple months. We celebrated my nephew Davin's 8th Birthday and Halloween in Utah where we got to see Davin baptized. The day after we got home, we celebrated Hyrum's third birthday (I can't believe he's three). The next day, my mom and dad came and stayed with us for a very fast and wonderful week. Then before I could even blink my eyes we celebrated Thanksgiving with Michael's mom, dad, grandpa and grandma, and Bob and Kathy Deck, and Seana Beavers. It's been crazy!!!

Our trip to Utah was great! We flew out Wednesday night and flew a red eye back Saturday night, but in that short time, we were able to do a ton of things! We got in to Enterprise at 4:00 a.m. our time, so we spent much of Thursday catching up on our sleep and just spending time with my mom and dad. Diane threw a birthday party for Davin and James on Friday that my boys got to go to. It was such a special treat for them to actually get to go to their cousins' birthday party. Diane put together a carnival for the boys that was really something else. Later that night we had a family birthday party for Davin, which again, was a very special treat because we usually don't get to go to those types of things. The greatest part of our trip was seeing Davin get baptized. It was really wonderful to be a part of that special time for him. He's such a great boy. We all love him so much. Alden thinks Davin is the greatest thing in the whole world!!! Michael and I were able to run to the temple with John and Lindsay after the luncheon and get home in time to get the boys ready for trick or treating. By the way, Alden is Buba Fett, Thobe is Jengo Fett, Hyrum is Spiderman, and Jacob is the pumpkin in the picture. Michael went out with them, while I stayed behind and got us packed, and then we left for the Las Vegas airport. Thobe ate his Halloween chocolate the two hour trip there and filthy when we arrived. It was an eventful day with an very easy red eye flight home. The boys were terrific!

After going to church in Toledo, we went home and got ready for Hyrum's birthday. On Monday, November 2, 2009, our little Hyrum turned 3. It isn't quite as much as he says that he is (if you ask Hyrum how old he is he'll usually tell you 5). It's hard to believe that he's three years old already. He's certainly been our most mischievous boy, but he's also so much fun. Hyrum is so charismatic. He really knows how to wrap himself around anyone's heart. I love how loving and sweet and funny he is. He especially loves each one of his brothers and is a big help to me with Jacob. I really am so thankful to have Hyrum and am really grateful that he survived to be three years old. There have seriously been days that I have wondered if he would make it. The night of Hyrum's birthday, we met the Burke's at Hyrum's Chuck E. Cheese. Hyrum loves that place!!! We had a wonderful time where we had a birthday cake and opened presents. It was terrific!

The next day Michael's dad generously drove to Detroit to pick up my mom and dad. Then they stopped in Toledo and picked up Chris, and the four of them came down to celebrate Hyrum's birthday. We had a nice time. Then, my mom and dad stayed the next week with us, and I loved every minute of it. The only people that I think might have loved it more than I did was Hyrum and Jacob. My dad and Jacob were best pals. Jacob loved the constant attention and cuddling. My dad was constantly playing with little Jake and cuddling him in his arms. Hyrum was my mom's shadow. They were constantly laughing and playing together. Hyrum kept a constant tab on his Grandma. If he didn't see her, he'd say, "Grandma, where are you?" He also kept my dad busy too. He asked my dad to turn on a movie or something, and my dad didn't know how to do it. Hyrum said to him, "Yes, you can, Grandpa. Yes you can!!!" We were able to go to Alden and Thobe's school and have lunch with them and we just really had a great time. I always feel bad when I don't take my parents anywhere fun when they come to visit me, but I think they had a nice time anyway. My dad did a lot of projects around my house, like he always does, and my mom made some yummy things to eat, like she always does. We just had a great time! I was so sad when they had to go, but Hyrum was even sadder. He cried and cried and cried when they got out of the van to leave. It nearly broke my heart in two. When we started to drive away, Jacob said, "Uh oh." I think he anticipated not having Grandpa's constant attention.

Last Thursday we celebrated Thanks-giving. We had such a wonderful day! It really made me reflect on all that I'm thankful for. There are really so many things, but I want to highlight a few of them here. I'm so thankful for my wonderful and loving family and that I have four wonderful boys and an incredible husband. I love them all so much. I'm thankful for my warm home, for plenty of food, for so many modern conveniences in life. I'm thankful for good friends, for this beautiful Earth, and that I live in the United States of America. I'm especially thankful for my Savior Jesus Christ that made it possible for me to be forgiven of my sins that I can someday inherit eternal life. I'm grateful that he restored his Gospel to the Earth and that I have knowledge of this. I'm so thankful that through Christ I can be with my family forever. What a wonderful, peaceful truth! I really have so much for which I am grateful.

Monday Madness

2009-10-28T13:49:00.000-04:00

I wonder if life will ever slow down? I love life the way it is, but I feel like we're constantly running. I feel like I try to get to everywhere I need to go on time, but that I'm constantly late. I just need to plan better. I think I'm still trying to balance a fourth baby--at least that's my current excuse. I hate that I'm chronically late--I don't remember what my excuse was before I had kids, but I'm sure I had one. It was probably just me trying to cram too much into my day. I wonder if I'll ever get that and be able to master everything. I've heard it gets worse as your kids get older. Yikes is all that I have to say about that!

In all seriousness though, we've really been blessed over the past few months. Michael recently started a chapter of the J. Reuban Clark Society here in Ohio. He's worked very hard on it and has done a phenomenal job with it. Conference weekend, he was invited to go out to a J. Reuban Clark Society conference, which he loved every minute of. He got to see old friends, including one of his old seminary students, spend time with his sister and her family, go to a BYU game, and attend a session of General Conference. It was really fun for him. I knew that being home with four kids by myself for five days wasn't go to be great, so I finally got Amy (my youngest sister) her graduation present and flew her out to spend time with me (I'm still wondering how much of a present it was if I was the one who benefited the most from it). Anyway, we had a great time together. People have often asked me if we are twins, which I find very flattering considering I'm 12 years older than she is. This time, when we were playing racquetball, the lady at the YMCA asked me if she was my sister or daughter--I didn't find the daughter comment to be quite so flattering. Oh well. She's a great person and example to me. I really love her so much!

We have also been busy trying to figure out how to raise four boys and with diapers and soccer practice and piano lessons and homework and PTS and college football and learning Primary program songs and seminary. Michael is such an incredible seminary teacher. I can't believe what a great job he does. He has really had a lot of compliments this year. He even had the Lima News Paper come and do a story on his class this week. I will post the link here when the story is published. I'm so very lucky to be married to the coolest guy in the world. I love him so much!

Flying Hyrum

2009-10-28T13:34:00.001-04:00

About a month ago, Michael and I took the boys to the high school track to pursue our running program. Normally this worked out well for Michael and me and the boys. The track, like many tracks, circles the high school football field, so the boys played football while Michael and I ran around the track. Unfortunately, since it is a stadium, the track also had a set of very dangerous bleachers with no backs that were especially intriguing to our curious, adventure-seeking climber Hyrum. Anyway, to make a long scary story short, Michael and I watched Hyrum fall a good 10 to 15 feet onto a bed of sharp gravel underneath. At first, I thought Hyrum was dead. I was completely out of control. I started screaming and crying and couldn't believe that I hadn't kept a better eye on him. Michael got to him first, just after he started screaming after he caught his breath. We quickly discovered that Hyrum couldn't put any weight on his legs, so we took him to the emergency room. I want to testify that our family experienced a series of miracles that testified to me that God is real and that he loves my family. From having our pediatrician working in the emergency room that night to having a friend give us a bag full of snacks earlier that day that were still in our car that the boys could eat while we waited to allowing Hyrum walk away from a horrible fall with only a bruised ankle, there is no doubt in my mind that God's protective hand was watching over us that day. I'm so grateful for this.

This experience has really made me much more grateful for Hyrum. This precious boy of mine is more mischievous and more disobedient (for lack of a better phrase) than any other of my kids. He is a stinker. He loves to get into things and do things the way he wants to do them. Just the other day, he poured a box of cereal all over Thobe's bed, seasoned our entire house with Italian seasoning, and told me "no" more than 50 times in that day. Every time I made him do anything he'd throw a major fit. But you know, I'll take it. It's funny how having a situation like we experienced with Hyrum reminds you that those little things really don't matter at all. They aren't important. I can clean up cereal and Italian seasoning. I can pick up Hyrum up and make him do what I want him to do, and you know, I can hear his sweet little independence voice ring in my ears. I'm so grateful that he's okay. Not only do I appreciate him, even in his disobedience, I'm enamored with my little two year old. He is so, so funny and charming. He really knows how to ring himself around anyone's heart.

He really does say some crazy things. Whenever you ask Hyrum, "Why?" He'll say, "Because the cougars." It really makes no sense to me, but that's what he says. If I say, "Because the cougars" when he asks me a why question, he laughs and laughs and laughs. He's such a goof. He really likes the cougars though. Every night when we say family prayer, we ask the boys to think of something that they're grateful for. Hyrum always says that he's grateful for the cougars. He's so silly. His new thing is to tell me that he's hiding in the bushes, especially when he's hiding under a blanket. He also is constantly telling me things that he's afraid of. He'll often say, "Mom, I'm scared of the dinosaurs." Yesterday he was scared of the the grumpy old troll from Dora. And on Sunday, when we went to pick up Alden, he was scared of a Halloween cat decoration. It's really hard to tell if he's actually scared of if he is just being silly.

Hyrum is a huge keeper of his toys. The other night, Michael was downstairs getting ready for seminary. Hyrum had taken a nap that day, so we thought he was still running on full. Michael said that Hyrum started very methodically carrying toys from where they go to the chair near where Michael was sitting. After he had collected all his favorite toys (some of Thobe's baseballistas, a bunch of legos and cars, and a Star Wars clone), Hyrum deliberately laid down on the ground, made himself comfortable and went to sleep. He had to put his toys in a place where he could stand guard over them, and then he went to sleep.

Hyrum still loves singing. It's really amazing to listen to all the songs he knows. I love to hear him sing. He also loves to make people laugh. He knows he's funny too. The other day when we had some friends over for dinner, Hyrum asked for some butter. After arguing for awhile, I finally put a small pat of butter on his plate. "Thanks, Mom," he said. "I like butter. Butter is good. You like butter, Mom? Mmmm, I like butter." He had all of us laughing really hard.

It's funny, but ever since Hyrum's accident, he seems more snugglely and loving than before. He'll often say, "Hug you, Mom?" For a few days after his accident, he couldn't walk. If I'd leave the room to go and get something, he'd pathetically cry, "Mom, wait for me!" When he did start crawling and eventually walking, he'd say and sweet and quiet yet very determined voice, "I'm coming, Mom. Wait for me!" It was very cute. I'm so glad that I can wait for him and that he can still come. I can't tell you how grateful I am for the blessings that God gives so freely to my family.

Alden's Funny Comments

2009-10-28T12:13:00.000-04:00

It's so weird watching my 7 year old son grow up before my eyes. He's really becoming a regular independent person. In so many ways, it makes me so sad. My first baby boy is growing up. He doesn't need me for everything that he does. In a lot of ways, the whole idea of him and all my boys for that matter growing up makes me feel sad. However, I'm also loving this too. I love that he has independent thoughts and, as annoying as it sometimes is, he often questions my ideas or my way of doing things. The best part of watching this transformation is that I have a few glimpses as to what Alden might be as an adult. I know he has a long road ahead of him that is filled with potholes and detours that could lead him down a different path, but I have to say that I am very pleased with the person that my little boy is becoming. He tries to be honest and kind and obedient. Granted, the obedience thing will get a lot better if he can ever learn to listen well, but I keep reminding myself that listening is a skill that is developed over time and that you can't change someone's heart, and Alden has a very good heart. I love his sweet prayers and his undaunted faith. He is an amazing kid.

School is going so well for Alden. I can't believe the dramatic difference from last year to this year. He is like a different person. I LOVE his teacher this year. She recognizes Alden's strengths and is working patiently with him on his weaknesses. I feel so incredibly blessed to have Mrs. Hempleman as Alden's second grade teacher. She is amazing. You can tell that she loves teaching, that she loves her students, and that she wants to see them be successful. Teaching is literally her mission in life. I think she's incredible. She has really instilled in Alden the importance of doing his best. Alden started taking piano lessons this year (this is something I'm so excited about--I love sitting down with him while he practices and playing duets with him--it's one of my favorite times of day). The other day he was practicing, and I said, "Alden you need to try to do your best on this--blah blah, blah blah blah blah." Alden replied in a very sweet manner, "Mom, I always try to do be my best. I'm just not very good at this, but even on things I'm not very good at, I always try to do my best."

He is incredible with his brothers. He and Thobe are the best of friends, and even though, Alden can be a bit bossy with him, he is also very good to him too. He's kind and patient with Hyrum, and he dotes over Jacob like crazy. As soon as Jacob sees Alden his face lights up, and he starts smiling and kicking and moving around. Alden is also very close to Michael. He loves his dad more than just about anything in the world (except maybe for Star Wars--Alden is always talking about some fact from the Star Wars saga and often drives me crazy with all his shooting noises--yesterday when the bus dropped the boys off, I opened the door to find Alden lying on the ground. Concerned I asked him what was wrong, and he told me that he was pretending that he'd just been shot by a battle droid). I know I've mentioned this before, but Michael has seminary in our basement on Friday. Alden and Thobe love joining Michael's class. One morning the boys didn't have school on Friday, so Michael gave a half hearted effort to wake the boys up. When they didn't respond, he went downstairs and had seminary. Shortly after everyone went home, Alden woke up. Michael told him that he tried to wake him up, but when he didn't wake up he decided to just let him sleep. Alden was very disappointed and said, "Dad next time, if I don't wake up, just kick me, okay?" Michael told him that he wouldn't kick him.

Alden also played soccer this fall. I couldn't believe how well he played. On his last game, he was incredible. It's fun to watch him improve athletically too. I don't think he'll ever be a star athlete, but I do think that he'll be able to hold his own.

Tickle Me Thobe

2009-10-27T14:19:00.001-04:00

Thobe is such a pleasure to be around. He is so quiet, yet so smart. I can't believe all the things that he knows. He is like an absorbent sponge that when you think is just sitting but is actually just absorbing everything around him. I can't believe all he's learning and how smart he is. When he started school, his teacher told me that he was worried that Thobe would have to repeat kindergarten. This upset me; not because I don't want him to repeat (if it's what he needs, then I'm fine with that), but because I was worried that his teacher wouldn't be able to recognize Thobe's potential and felt that his teacher hadn't had time to get to know Thobe. While I'm still a little concerned, I've been so pleased with how well Thobe has done in school, and I think his teacher is starting to recognize what a special boy he has in his class. His fine motor skills aren't quite where they need to be, but he's made huge strides in his writing since the beginning of school. He's also more confident at home and even a better listener. He loves school!!! Every day when he comes home and I ask him how is day was, he says that it was great! I love how much he loves it. A couple weeks ago he was sick, so he got his class picture and went through his class over and over and over naming every person in his class. It was very, very cute. He also loves writing and coloring. Often writing is the first thing that he wants to do when he gets up and the last thing he wants to do when he goes to bed. Although he's not super proficient at it yet, he loves it so much, and I'm certain that the more he does it, the better he'll become.

Thobe loves playing games. He often walks around the house boxing or running or pretending he's playing some type of sport. He'll often ask me if I want to play a game with him. Almost always, the game is something that he's made up that usually involves numbers. He'll say, "Mom, what's 11 plus 2?" or some other number combination. I'll turn the question back to him, and he usually knows the answers. He really loves math. I'm always so surprised to hear him do math facts. It's pretty amazing. He also loves playing Uno and board games. My favorite is when he wins. He shakes his fists in the year and hips and hollers with all his might. I have to get Thobe winning on video. When I do, I'll post it. We had some new people in the ward on Sunday and invited them over (Michael called them guinea pig friends). They were very amused and surprised by Thobe's excitement for winning. As always, Thobe continues to be a gigantic sports fan. Warren bought tickets for Michael and the boys to go see Toledo play Ohio State. The anticipation of it was almost more than Thobe could take. He couldn't bear to think of his two favorite teams playing each other and would usually cry whenever we'd talk about it. He ended up going to the game dressed as a Toledo fan with a Buckeye shirt underneath. Shortly after the game started and Ohio State had scored their second touchdown, Thobe quickly took off his Rocket attire and cheered for his Buckeyes, so apparently he's not the loyal fan that his Grandpa Monday is.

Thobe also has such a tender heart. He is always telling me that he's sorry if he's done anything remotely wrong. He loves his cousin James, mostly because they are so close to the same age. I told him the other morning that I needed to have him call James to wish him a Happy Birthday because James just turned six. Thobe was standing in front of the mirror, and when I told him that James was now six, he got a very troubled look on his face. Soon, the trouble turned to horror. When I asked him what was wrong, Thobe, in a faint and very distressed little voice, replied, "Mom, will James still be my friend?" As soon as I reassured him that they would still be friends even though James is not five anymore, Thobe got very happy. He's such a sweet little boy. I love him so much!

Jacob is Four Months Old!!!

2009-10-27T11:53:00.002-04:00

I can't believe that my Jacob is 4 months old. He turned four months on Sunday. I also can't believe what a bad blogger I've been too. Oh well. Jacob is an incredible baby. He is so happy and pleasant. He loves to just sit in his swing for hours and hours and hours. He also loves the mobile that hangs in his crib. He loves warm baths, cuddling, and his pacifier too. He absolutely LOVES his daddy and his brothers. It's so much fun to watch his face light up when he sees them. It's really hard to imagine what our lives were like before he was born. He's just so sweet.

One of my favorite things about Jacob is how happy and excited he gets when he sees one of us or when he's about to eat. He starts kicking his legs and waving his arms in the air. Just this week he started giggling. Yesterday when I walked in the room he just started smiling and laughing and flailing his body every which way. It was very, very cute!

He also is very verbal. He jabbers more than most of our kids did when the were his age. He seriously sounds like he can say, "Mom" and "Hola." I know that sounds ridiculous, but it really sounds like can do that. He loves for us to make sounds that he can copy, and he loves us to stick our tongues out at him so that he can copy that too. As many of you know, when I'm concentrating, I stick my tongue out. Often when I'm concentrating and holding Jacob, I'll look down, and he'll have his tongue out too, trying to get my attention. It's very, very cute!

My Stay-At-Home Pals

2009-09-06T19:29:00.000-04:00

Hyrum has done really well with the boys being at school. He is such a stinker and so cute!!! I told Michael the other day that I don't know if any of our boys can make me laugh as much as Hyrum does (they all make me laugh and bring an equal amount of joy to my life--but Hyrum is hilarious). That being said, I don't know if any of our boys can frustrate me as much as he does too. He really knows how to push my buttons. He loves getting in to things and is very, very strong willed. He knows exactly what he wants, and if he doesn't get it, well, you'd better watch out. Today he had to sit in time out during Sacrament meeting on two different occasions. He is still learning not to hit me and Thobe and the meaning of the word "No, Hyrum." He is also very polite. After he hits someone, he'll often go up to them and kiss them where he hit them and say, "I'm sorry, (insert the person's name)." He is very good at saying, "Thank you" and "Your Welcome." We have a lot of people comment on how polite he is. I guess it's his way of masking his mischievousness. The other thing that always, well almost always, gets him out of trouble is when he says, "Mom, I lub you," in his most matter of fact voice. That is almost always followed by a very sweet, slobbery kiss.

He always wants to know how thing work and is constantly studying things. He asks, "Why?" constantly and is always trying to take things apart. We always have pieces of flashlights, pens, and our laundry hamper scattered throughout our house. Hyrum recognizes most numbers up to 10, although all colors are blue and all letters are E. He absolutely adores Jacob. He always wants to know where Jacob is if he's not with me. When Michael holds Jacob, Hyrum tells Michael, "No, it's Mommy's." When I hold Jacob though, Hyrum tells me that Jacob is his Jacob and then he says, "I kiss it? I kiss the baby Jacob?" He is very, very protective of his baby brother and is constantly making sure that he his bottle (his pacifier).

My two favorite things about Hyrum are his sense of humor and his love for music. Hyrum says the funniest things. One night when Eric and Michelle were in town, we left the three older boys with Michelle and Eric's kids. Hyrum and Elijah are best pals (they look a lot alike too). Anyway, Elijah and Charity were asking Hyrum what his name is, and Hyrum told them that his name is Hamburger, Grandpa Hamburger to be exact. I have no idea where he got that from, but now, whenever you ask Hyrum what his name is, he'll tell you it's Hamburger. He even tells complete strangers that his name is Grandpa Hamburger. He loves to put his clothes on in silly ways and make up silly names for things. He talks really, really well and knows how to manipulate his words to make things even more funny. He loves it when I tickle his back or rub lotion on his arms and legs. Whenever I do any one of those things, he says, "Oooo, I like it." He'll often tickle my arm and say, "Ahhh, you like it, the tickles, Mom? You like the tickles?" He makes me laugh.

As I mentioned he also loves to sing. I'll often hear him working on something singing, "I Am a Child of God," "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," "C is for Cookie" or any number of songs. I sing songs with the kids in the nursery, and Hyrum gets so happy to sing when I come in. He is constantly telling us which songs we should sing next. I love that he'll just walk around the house singing his little heart out.

Jacob, my other little stay-at-home buddy, is such a terrific baby. Michael and I were talking today how he has never been inconsolable. It seems like every time he sees me, his eyes light up and he gets a huge smile on his face. Often when we're staring at him, he'll stick his tongue out at me because he wants to play our tongue game where I stick out my tongue and then he sticks his out. He loves to coo at me and Michael. He loves to copy the sounds we make. He even will try to copy the sounds of "Hola." He smiles so much and often lets out one little giggle. He's just so amazing. I do think that he's also our biggest baby that we've had. When I took him to his two month appointment he weighed a whopping 13 pounds 8 oz and was 24 inches long. That put him in the 95th percentile for his weight and the 85th percentile for his length. He sleeps well, he eats well, and he poops well. He's snuggly and cute and so much fun. I'm a rested, happy Momma. I feel so bless to have a baby as good as Jacob is. I actually just feel so blessed to have all four of my boys. They're really amazing.

I just wanted to also include a picture of Jacob each month to chart his growth. It's pretty amazing to see how much he's grown.

Wee Little Jacob at 1 Week

Bigger Jacob at 1 Month

Momma's Big Two Month Old

The Start of School

2009-09-06T16:16:00.000-04:00

Summer went by too quickly for me. It's amazing how having a baby and a couple road trips can really zap a summer. All in all, I felt like this was a really great break and am sad to see it end. I really love having the boys home with me, and although I probably get after them more than I should, I love those boys to pieces and hate to have them away from home. Nonetheless, I also feel that they need socialization and an education, so for our family, I feel like the local public school meets those needs right now for them, at least for the most part. So on August 31, 2009, I got Alden & Thobe up to get ready for school. Alden was actually getting on the bus, and Thobe practiced for Wednesday (he had to wait a couple days--Kindergarten started a couple days later).

Alden started second grade this year. I'm so excited about his teacher, Mrs. Hempleman. She has been teaching for a long time and has all sorts of innovative ideas that she tries. I'm really, really impressed with her, and Alden thinks she's great! I like that she does a lot of projects as well as expects her students to improve daily. Alden is also thrilled that his best friend Jack is in his class and sits right in front of him. I think this will be a great motivator for Alden. I'm really excited about this. It's hard to believe that my little Alden is a second grader now. It's so weird when your child is doing the things that you remember doing yourself. I'm so proud of Alden and really appreciate the good boy that he tries to be. He's a great big brother and a really, really good kid. I'm so excited for him this year.

Incredibly, my little Thobe starts Kindergarten this year. It's so hard to believe that he's old enough to go. Thobe is incredibly smart. He knows things that amaze me that I have no idea how he knows them. He's a good reader when he wants to be and loves doing math. We have had some potty training issues with Thobe, and frustratingly, a few days before school started, he started having accidents again. I figured it was probably anxiety issues, but I didn't know. I called his teacher who indicated that they would just work with us and figure something out. I was very worried about it, so worried that I didn't even think that my little Thobe was starting kindergarten. It was funny, the night before I put him on the bus, Michael and I were reading Scriptures, and it hit me, "Thobe starts school tomorrow." My heart suddenly broke in two. I thought about all the things that I wished I had done better with him. I wished that I wouldn't have to send him because I knew that although a new and exciting chapter was beginning in his life, that another chapter was closing--the chapter that had me as the center of his universe. I mourned the fact that I had spent so much time worrying about his bathroom issues that I didn't savor those last moments of him just being a little boy. Fortunately, that next morning we were in such a rush---we were running behind anyway and then the bus came early, that I didn't have time to cry before he left. I watched him get on that big yellow bus with his brother, who was very excited to show his little brother the ropes, and then went in the house. I was feeling a sad but knew that things would be okay. Then Michael said, "Wow. I can't believe Thobe's in Kindergarten. I remember holding that little guy in my arms when he was brand new..." I lost it at that point. I think part of the reason it's hard is because he didn't get Mrs. Curl, Alden's Kindergarten teacher. I don't know how things will be with Mr. Hillery, Thobe's kindergarten teacher, but I hope that it will be fine. Mr. Hillery has expressed some frustration to me about Thobe, which concerns me somewhat, but I am going to work really hard to make Thobe's kindergarten experience as good as Alden's was. I hope it will be!!!

Anyway, school is back in session. I pray that God will bless my boys with what they need as they continue their quest to manhood.

Our Summer in a Nutshell

2009-09-04T17:14:00.005-04:00

We have had an incredible summer!!! I am so sad that it is almost over and even sadder that I have not written down all the exciting things that have happened since the birth of Jacob. I am still trying to figure out the balance of having four kids. It seems like I'm later than usual to everything that I go to, and it seems like I lose it more often than I care to admit; however, I'm starting to get it--obviously, I'm able to blog for a minute or two right now--right?

Anyway, our summer has been great. After Jacob was born, my mom stayed with us for three wonderful, yet very short, weeks. She was amazing. I had no idea how much she did, until she left. Not only did she keep my house spick and span, made gormet meals for us, and stayed on top of my laundry mountain, but she also played with the kids, prevented melt downs (the kids' meltdowns and my own), and most importantly, kept Hyrum out of trouble. When she left, I was quickly reminded that I am not half the mom that she is. I have the most amazing mom in the whole world, and even though she lives far away from me, I don't know what in the world I would ever do without her. I love her so much and am convinced that those three weeks are the reason that I'm feeling as well as I am today. Whenever I start feeling overwhelmed, all I need to do is call her or think of the advise she gave me just before she left. She told me that now that she is older (she is only 54 so I'd hardly call her older) she has realized that most things that get us frustrated or overwhelmed really don't matter that much. I know that, but for some reason, when she said it, it stuck with me. Whenever I find the brand new foundation that I just bought smeared all over my walls and mirror or realize that I only got 1 of the 1000 things that I wanted to get done in a day done, I have really been trying to step back and think, "It doesn't really matter. The most important thing that I can do is be the kind of mom that my mom is to me." I hope that someday I can.

After my mom left, life got really crazy. It seems like we were always going somewhere. The week after she left, the boys had Safety City, a fun week of learning about how to protect themselves. Little did I know the night before Safety City, Thobe asked Michael if bad guys were real. To him, bad guys were make believe until the day before Safety City. Imagine how traumatizing it must have been for the poor boy when he went to a day camp where the focus of the camp was to teach them how to fight off bad guys--needless to say, Alden had a great week learning how to fight bad guys and Thobe stayed home with me and the two younger boys. He did learn how to buckle his seat belt that week, which made our summer travels a lot easier.

On July 26, Michael's Grandma, Virginia Wooster (we call her GG), turned 90 years old. We had her birthday celebration on July 25. Michael's grandma is very special to us. You would never guess that she's 90 with all her energy. We really loved being able to spend time with her and Michael's grandpa and family. Michael's sister, Michelle, and her family came out for the celebration. It was really wonderful to spend time with them. The boys feel like they're in heaven when they get to spend time with their cousins. We spent most of the following week with them and even took a trip down to Kentucky for Michael's cousin's son's wedding.

The following Thursday, August 6, right after I taught my class, we loaded in our van and headed out to Utah. We had a wonderful trip! I can't believe what good travelers my boys are. Michael and I feel really blessed. My dad often called to see where we were and kept telling me that he couldn't imagine being in the car that long. In all honesty, I think we all kind of enjoy it. The boys can eat whatever they want and watch movies all day (although we had a rule that before they could watch movies that Alden had to do a math worksheet and Thobe had to review sight words). Michael and I enjoy just talking in the car, and this time, he was able to use his Blackberry so that we could listen to Pandora (an on-line radio station) and play on Facebook. My favorite thing about road trips is that it reminds me of when Michael and I were dating and took several cross country trips. We still have to pay each other a toll when we cross into a new state.

We had a wonderful time out in Utah. I was able to meet my two newest twin nieces. It was so fun to be able to hold them and play with them. They are beautiful babies!!! I love them so much! It was also fun seeing all nieces and nephews and my sisters, brother, their spouses. We did a lot of fun things while we were in Enterprise. Michael and I celebrated our 10th Wedding Anniversary on the 10th of August. We went to Wingers, one of Michael's favorite restaurants with Doug, Diane, Emily, and Laura, and then to the Shakespearean Festival with Doug and Diane and saw "As You Like It." I love seeing plays in the outdoor Shakespearean theater that they have there in Cedar City, and it was a lot of fun walking around the campus where I spent my freshman year of college. Later in the week, Michael and I went to the temple in St. George where we were married too. I love going back there and remembering where Michael and I gave ourselves to each other for eternity. I loved that. We also got our family pictures taken and had a picnic at Pine Valley, a beautiful mountain community where we went camping a time or two when I was little. When we got to the little town, there was a deer running through town and my mom said, "Oh there's Bambi." Thobe thought for a minute and then said to my mom, "How did Bambi get out if his movie?"

On August 16, Michael gave Jacob a name and a blessing at my parents' house. Michael's sister and brother-in-law came down from Pleasant Grove with their 7 kids, my Uncle Kendall and Aunt Marlene drove down from Northern Utah too. We also had my uncles and aunts and cousins who live in or near Enterprise, my friend Catherine, and of course all my siblings were there with their families. Overall, we had over 70 people attend. It was really a wonderful feeling to be with all these people who love us that we don't get to see nearly as often as we would like.

That day, Michael went back up to Northern Utah with Michelle's family to attend Education Week at BYU and the boys and I stayed in Enterprise. Michael loved Education Week, and the boys and I loved being able to spend a little more time at Grandma's. On Monday we went and visited my grandparents' graves, stopped and took pictures of the house I lived in until I was three, and then went and rode horses at my Uncle Ronald's house. The boys loved that!!! Thobe told my Uncle Ronald, "This is so fun it TICKLES!" The next day, we headed over to Hurricane and spent the evening and the next day with Diane and her family. The main thing Alden wanted to do when we went to Utah was to see Davin's room, so he was really happy when we went there. From there we went up to Northern Utah, spent a couple days at Michelle's and then headed back home. We feel like God watched over and protected us and feel so blessed with the family that he's given us. What a great trip we had!

Between all our travels we stayed busy with learning time each day, chores, and lots of playing. Alden and Thobe got to go to basketball camp at University of Toledo with Toledo Rockets basketball players. They even got to see an old jeep like their Great Grandpa Wooster (Geful) had. The boys also finished up baseball and t-ball, and Alden started soccer. I also taught my class at Rhodes State College. I really like that I can teach it on-line because I can still have some outside enrichment and stay home with the kids. I really love being a mom and am so grateful for the wonderful kids that I have.

Announcing JACOB LINN MONDAY

2009-06-29T10:42:00.008-04:00

On Thursday, June 25, 2009, Michael and I checked into the hospital in Bluffton, Ohio, to bring our new baby into the world. We were very excited. As mentioned before, the boys were convinced they were having a sister named Tickle, and although they hadn't convinced us of the name, Michael and I were more sure it was a girl than a boy. We were very excited about my doctor and about delivering a baby in a small hospital like Bluffton. Margie Woodruff, a close friend of ours from church and a nurse there, and our friend Laura Talbot had told us how friendly, caring, and wonderful Bluffton is, so we were excited. Within a couple hours, I was prepped for the c-section and ready to deliver my new baby, or nude baby, as Thobe calls him.

When we got in the operating room, the nurses and anesthesiologist got me ready for the cutting. It was fun having Margie Woodruff there, who I knew would be very thorough and caring. When the surgery began, Michael watched eagerly, and my doctor, Dr. Robert Schutz, soon invited Michael to step on the other side of the curtain to watch the surgery head on. No other doctor ever gave Michael that opportunity, so he was thrilled. Dr. Schutz explained everything that he was doing, and Michael kept saying, "That's so cool! Wow! That's amazing!"

Soon I heard Michael say, "Oh, there's the head!" and then I heard a little cry. I don't know what it is about giving birth that feels my soul with wonder, peace, and a great deal of love. It is perhaps the most spiritual experience I've ever felt. I am convinced that spirits on the other side of the veil are there in that small room to witness that sacred event. I felt an outpouring of God's love for me and for that baby as soon as I heard him cry. Of course my first question was, "Is it a boy or a girl?" When they announced that it was a boy, I was so happy. I worried before Jacob was born that if I found it that it was a boy that I might be disappointed, but I can honestly say that I was just so happy and couldn't wait to see him. Dr. Schutz raised him above the curtain for me to see, and my heart ached to touch him and hug him. The love I felt for him was overwhelming as I shed tears of pure joy.
Soon the nurses took the baby and began weighing him, getting his Apgar scores, and cleaning him up while Dr. Schutz began putting me back together. Jacob weighed 8 lbs. 3 oz. and is 21 inches long. He's got a lot of dark hair and is so incredibly cute. Shortly after Jacob's birth, my entire body began to ache and hurt terribly. The doctor thought that I must have got some air stuck in my back that made my entire body hurt, but it was miserable! The anesthesiologist suggested that he sedate me, but I insisted that he wait until I was able to see the baby.
Despite being in a lot of pain, I was so excited to see my baby. Michael and I decided a few weeks before the baby was born that if the baby was a girl we would name her Joanna Linn (Joanna after my great, great grandmother who walked across the United States sharing a pair of shoes with her sister and then displayed an amazing amount of faith and courage throughout her life, and Linn, which is Michael's great grandmother's maiden name from his Grandma Monday). We were very unsure about a boy's name though. On our way to the hospital, we decided that if the baby was a boy that we would likely name him Jacob Linn (Jacob Micah Truman is my great, great, great pioneer grandfather who was the first resident of Enterprise--the town where I grew up and Linn was explained previously). We figured we'd wait until we saw the baby to make the final decision. It was really neat when we saw him. He looked like a Jacob, and we knew that should be his name. I still can't quite figure out who he looks like. I see some of each of the boys in him, so maybe he's just a cross between the three of them to make him our little Jacob.
So after I saw the baby, the anesthesiologist sedated me, and I woke up just as my kids were arriving in my room. Because of the sedation, I was really, really tired for the next day or two, but I was still so excited to have all my family there and to have each of the kids see their new little brother.
Alden was ecstatic to see Jacob. He wanted to hold him and cuddle him and love him as much as we'd let him. He kept saying, "He's so cute, Mom. I love him so much." Anything that anyone does with the baby, he wants to be a part of. He loves doing whatever he can to help and has been especially curious about the whole operation of getting him out of me. He asked if he could see the cuts. When I told him that they look gross, he said, "I'll just plug my nose when I look at them." What a silly goose!
Thobe has also been very sweet with his "nude baby." He really loves to hold him and has been very interested in giving him kisses. He is the least involved of the kids, but he still loves Jacob very much. He often asks where Jacob is and is also very helpful. He tells me over and over that he loves his dad, mom and brothers very much.
I must admit that I was nervous about Hyrum and the baby, but he has been incredible. Michael is really good about going the extra mile with the boys when a new baby is born, which I think has been a huge thing for Hyrum. He is enanamored with Jacob. He always wants to hold him and kiss him and love him. Today he even helped me change his diaper. I pulled the swing out of the storage room today, and Hyrum immediately wanted to put Jacob in it. It has an ocean sound, and he kept saying to Jacob, "You like it? You like the ocean? You like the swing?" He's so sweet, and I'm so happy that he loves his new brother so much.
My mom and sister Emily came out the day before Jacob was born, and I honestly don't know what we'd do without them. My mom got an inner ear infection just before she came, so she hasn't felt terrific, but just like my mom always does, she has done probably more than she should. The boys have loved having their grandma and aunt here. Hyrum was so happy when he saw my mom. He immediately ran to her and gave her a big hug and said, "I love Grandma." The only thing he hasn't been able to figure out is where his grandpa is. They have done so much to help, probably more than I even know about. I really am thankful for their sacrifice to come here and all their service to me and my family. Emily has cooked a gormet meal every time she goes into the kitchen. She unfortunately leaves tomorrow--we're really, really going to miss her. Mom is staying for another couple weeks, which I'm extremely thankful for!!!!

Michael and I feel so fortunate to be parents. What an incredible blessing it is to have a baby in our home that has so recently been in our Heavenly Father's presence. I often wonder what mission God has in store for our little Jacob and sometimes feel overwhelmed at the task of raising him. I'm so grateful for the knowledge I have that God has a plan for each of us and that if Michael and I work to raise our children with God's guidance and help that He will help us help Jacob reach his potential and that we can be together throughout this life and into the eternities if we live as God wants us to do. I'm so grateful for the knowledge that I have that families can be together forever.

I stayed in the hospital until Sunday. Each day I anxiously awaited the arrival of my family. I loved getting a big hug from each of my boys and seeing the boys interact with their little brother. I also looked forward to a big hug from Michael and visiting with him and my mom and sister. While I was there the nurses and doctors took such good care of me and Jacob. After Friday, Jacob and I were the only patients in the entire maternity ward, so any request that we had was immediately granted. The nurses took time to visit with me, and they even made me a delicious milk shake every night. The hospital food was made to order and was also very good (I've never said that about hospital food). In addition to having Dr. Schutz who is the most personable and kind doctor I've ever had visit me daily, I had a great lactation consultant, and Jacob's on-call doctor was our Bishop from church. It was fun seeing him each day. Hyrum was especially excited the first day that he came in. When he walked in the door, Hyrum ran up to him and said, "Ship-ec," which sounded like "Ship Wreck." Bishop Woodruff, or Dr. Woodruff, got such a kick out of that and told Hyrum, "You have no idea how closely that describes how my day has been." We all got a good laugh out of that. I was excited about having the baby in Bluffton, but I really had no idea how wonderful it would be. The facility was exceptionally nice, and the staff was even nicer. If we do decide to do this again, I'll definitely do it in Bluffton and would encourage anyone else having a baby to do the same. Michael said that even if we move to Alaska, that if we decide to have another baby that we'll come back to Bluffton to do it. It was an incredible experience (my only complaint is that we couldn't get Michael's computer to work, so I couldn't update my blog until today).
While we were in the hospital, we also had a few visitors. We had the Alemans come and see us as well as some of the Woodruff family. We also had Michael's parents come and visit us. It was so fun to have them there. They enjoyed meeting Jacob, and the boys especially enjoyed when they took them to McDonald's playland for a midafternoon dinner and playing. Michael, my mom, and I got a nap while Emily read. It was a good thing for everyone, as Michael said. Michael's mom, Grandma, and Kathy Beavers-Deck also got us a very, very nice new car seat for Jacob. My other baby car seat expired--urggg.
The best part of the last few days is having our new little Jacob. He is such an alert, pleasant, and sweet baby. It's amazing to me that at four days old that the sound of my voice can settle him down. When he wakes up, he looks around for me. I feel like he's been part of our family forever. I love him so much and am so grateful for him. He loves to snuggle and be wrapped up tight in a blanket. He hates dirty pants and is an incredible nurser. I hope that I will take the time to treasure every day because babies get big so fast! I love my new little Jacob and am so incrediblely grateful that God sent him to our family. On my last doctor's appointment before Jacob was born, I was talking to Dr. Schutz's nurse and sister, Patty, who had four boys and then two girls. She told me that when she was expecting her 4th baby that she took her three little boys to Meijer, and the cashier said, "Well, I sure hope you've got a little girl in there." Patty told me that she agreed with the cashier, but she then said, "But in retrospect, I'm so glad that God chooses, and that he chose that boy to come to my family. I probably would have chosen a girl, but my fourth son is such a blessing in my life." I feel the exact same way. I would have likely chosen a girl, if I had had the choice, but I'm so glad that I didn't. I know that Jacob is supposed to be a part of our family, and I'm so grateful for that. I love him so much and am so grateful that God picked him to come to us. I hope I can teach him all he needs to know to grow to be the man that God wants him to be. This pregnancy was not easy, but as I look as my new little baby boy, every ache, every pain, every emotionally tramatic moment was so, so worth it. It strengthens my testimony that God lives and loves us more than we'll ever know.

Our Fun Father's Day

2009-06-22T15:18:00.005-04:00

My friend, Laura Talbot, gave me this idea. She put the pictures in a three framed picture frame and had her girls hold the letters D A D. Since we have one on the way, I decided to have my boys spell Papi and put them in a four framed picture frame. It was really fun to give these pictures to Michael.

Anyway, our family had a fun day celebrating Father's Day. We went to church and then came home and gave Michael this picture frame, a BYU flag, and a Brita water filter. We also gave him a hook to hang a bird feeder on (he loves watching birds in the morning when he's eating his breakfast). We then took a quick nap, and then went to Toledo to celebrate Father's Day with Michael's dad. Chris is out of town, so we took a roast, potatoes, and corn, and stuff to make a cherry pie, which I made when we got up there. While we were there, we called my dad and wished him a Happy Father's Day. Hyrum insistently told Grandpa that he is 5. It was fun.

I am so thankful for days like Father's Day that allow me to reflect on the blessings of Fathers. I think of my grandfathers--my Grandpa Thomas and Grandpa Humphries. I think of their lives and all they did for me. It's really interesting that since they've passed away, I feel them close to me. I'm so grateful for the knowledge that I have that this life isn't the end, and that because of Jesus Christ that I can be with them forever. I know that they live and that someday, I will see them again.

Also on Father's Day, I think of my Dad. He's such a good man. I love him so much. I'm so thankful for all the things that he taught me when I was growing up and that he still continues to teach me. I love that I can call him for advice and chat with him for hours. I'm so lucky to be his daughter. I also think of Michael's dad who has become a second father to me. I really am thankful for him and all he does for me and my family.

Over the past seven years, fatherhood has taken on a new meaning for me as I've watched Michael assume the role as the father of our children. He is so amazing. I often wish that I could be the kind of parent that he is. He's so patient, consistent, loving, playful and incredible with our boys. There is no doubt in my mind that our kids are as amazing as they are because of Michael. The kids go crazy the moment that Michael walks in the door and yells, "Amigos!" I think so often parents are either their children's friend or parent and have a hard time finding the happy medium. Michael doesn't. He really knows where the line is and never crosses it. I really can't say eniough about what a terrific dad Michael is and how grateful I am that I get to be his wife. I really love him!!!

Doing Those Things They Do

2009-06-14T17:45:00.008-04:00

This summer Alden, Thobe, Hyrum, and I have had a lot of fun. We've been working hard to establish a summer routine. The kids have done a nice job with it for the most part. They get up and get dressed and clean their rooms. Then we eat breakfast. Alden then clears off the table and puts everything in the dishwasher, and Thobe wipes off the table. Then they help me with my weekly household chore, and then we do learning time. Alden's teacher sent home a packet of worksheets that he does on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, while Thobe reads to me. On Tuesday and Thursday, we read, write stories, or plan some type of creative project. I've also tried to plan trips to the park or library or the free movie. On days that it doesn't rain, we practice basketball or baseball in the yard, pick strawberries from our strawberry patch, or just play outside. Last week in church, Michael found a yucky, obtrusive, gigantic tick on Thobe's head to prove that he's done his fair share of playing outside. Despite the tick, I love Ohio this time of year. Everything is so green and beautiful, and the weather has been fantastic!!!! We haven't had too many mosquitos yet, which has also been nice.

Alden has been been my right hand man. I really do love having him home everyday. I probably ask too much of him, but almost everytime I ask him to help me, he says, "But, of course," and then runs and does the thing that I ask him. Our extremely intelligent friend Becca Renfroe told us about making video games a bi-weekly event. This has been an incredible thing for Alden. His favorite thing in the world is to play Lego Star Wars on our Wii, but he never asks to play on any day but Wednesday and Saturday. He also knows that in order to play, he needs to have his chores done and the basement clean. He's been so good with not pestering us about playing and being content to only play twice a week, although he talks a ton about Star Wars. The other day he had a friend over, and I heard them talking. Alden told his friend he had a secret that he would tell his friend as long as he didn't tell anyone else. Very interested, his friend leaned in to hear the secret. Alden whispered intently into his friend's ear, "I have the Force." It made me laugh. He's also enjoys playing baseball. He's got an incredible coach named Sunny. She does such a great job with Alden, and we've seen some definite improvements. I think I mentioned before that Alden's favorite part about baseball is running. When Sunny wants to punish the team for not trying, she makes them run. That is Alden's favorite part. He's very fast and always finishes in the top three of his team. At his last game, he did a great job in the outfield with backing up the basemen that he was behind and batting as well. We were really happy for him. We always tell him that we don't care if he's good or bad at something but that we do care that he tries and puts forth his best effort. I must admit that I was so happy with his efforts at his last game.

Thobe is also having a nice summer. I think he especially enjoys playing with Alden. They are such good friends! He misses school. Everyday for the first week after school was over, he'd say, "I have school today, right Mom?" He was often disappointed when I'd say no. He is doing a great job with reading and learning and loves to write stories, all of which are about the Wolverines playing one of his favorite teams. The story line is always very similar, but it's fun to hear him tell the story of how the Wolverines were winning, but then the [insert Buckeyes, Cougars, or Rockets] started scoring a lot of touchdowns and came back to win the trophy. He's such a tender boy that he often tells that his team will share the trophy with the Wolverines. He also enjoys playing with all his fake friends. His favorite fake friends are named Alden and Melissa (Alden has green hair by the way). This morning before church he told us he was feeling a little sick and that his fake friend named Alden was a little sick too. Alden just heard his name and adamently told him that he was not sick. "I know," Thobe answered, "My fake friend named Alden is a little sick." You never know what those fake friends are up to. We also recently signed Thobe up for t-ball. He loves it! He is very proud to tell people that he plays for the Rangers and that their color is blue. He certainly is one of the most distracted Rangers, but he's still very cute. He also has a great coach that is very patient with him.

Hyrum has loved every minute of having his brothers home. He loves to do whatever it is that they do. Hyrum is definitely an A personality. He knows what he wants and works very hard to get it. He is especially bad at taking things away from Thobe. Michael and I have been working with Thobe to take things back from Hyrum (I never thought I would try to teach my son to steal something back from his brother, but Hyrum is very assertive and Thobe is not). Hyrum still likes to climb. When my dad was here he put up some fiberglass or plastic stuff in front of our banister, so that Hyrum wouldn't be able to squeeze is small body through the pillars and fall to his death. This worked really well, although the other day, the little monkey climbed up the plastic and looked way over the top of our banister down onto the hard wood floor beneath calling for Alden. Despite this scary experience, I do feel more confident every day that he might just survive to age 3. He now comes and gets me when his ball rolls into the street, whereas before he'd go get it himself and then spend time dribbling the ball there. He also is more sure footed as well, which makes me less worried when I find that he's climbed onto something high. My favorite thing about Hyrum right now is that he talks like crazy. He says the cutest, funniest things. He knows he's funny too, which makes it even more cute. He loves getting hugs, and whenever we hug him, he says, "I love you." He's saying a ton of things in English and Spanish. Like Alden and Thobe he often mixes the two. The other day when we were furniture shopping, Hyrum found the bunk beds and was very angry when we wouldn't let him climb all over them. He demanded to Michael, "I want bunk cama!" He also loves animals. Yesterday we took him to the pet store. When it was time to go, I told him to say goodbye to all the animals. He went around to every tank and every animal and said goodbye. My favorite was when he got to the cockateal and said, "Goodbye, Chicken." He also loves our neighbor's cat named Jake. Jake scratched or bit Hyrum the other day and left quite a mark, but it doesn't matter to Hyrum. He still chases the poor cat all around. Hyrum will often look at his scratch and say, "I bite Jake. Ouch Jake." He's so much fun.

Anyway, I've had a lot of fun so far with the kids. I hope that when the baby is born, we can continue to do all we've done so far this summer. We're all very excited for the arrival of Baby Tickle.

Only 10 Days Until Baby

2009-06-14T16:55:00.009-04:00

So life has been crazy here around the Monday house. I have only 10 more days until my c-section is scheduled. Last night I was having regular, painful, but non-debilitating contractions every 5 1/2 minutes (yes, I did finally time them, Mom and Dad) from about 8:30 until I went to bed at 11:30. I hoped that maybe I was going into labor and that I would be able to forgo the c-section all together (I was in labor on petocin for a lot of hours with Alden and a couple days with Thobe and just never dilated, so I scheduled a c-section with Hyrum and have done the same with this baby). Anyway, I ended up sleeping fairly well last night, despite the contractions and heart burn, and when I woke up, my contractions were over. I guess the good thing is that I saved my mom $110 from having to change her plane ticket. I am more ready for this pregancy to be over than any other pregnancy. Part of it is that I'm very excited to see what kind of baby is growing inside of me. I am very excited. It's so much fun to hear the boys talk about and ask questions about Baby Tickle. Alden tells everyone that he's sure this baby is a girl because he knew Hyrum was a boy, and he was right (what he doesn't tell them is that we found out at the ultrasound that he was a boy and that before that he was sure he was a girl). Michael and I have discussed names. We have a long list of girls' names that we love (FINALLY), and a much shorter list of boys' names that we like. If the baby is a girl we will likely name her Joanna (we're unsure of her middle name), and if it's a boy, well, we're leaning toward Jacob but that might be too common for us Mondays. Both of these names have family significance which I will discuss in further detail if we decide to go with either name. I'm even more excited for this pregnancy to be over because it's been a difficult pregnancy. I seriously still get very nausiated and weak for at least an hour every day--STILL. If I get hot, eat too much salt or sugar, or sit or stand for an extended period of time my fingers look like hot dogs and my toes like Vienna sausages. My ankles are always fat, and all my shoes hurt my feet because they have become too small. As a matter of fact, today when we were on our way to church, we had to turn around because I forgot my shoes simply because it's always the last thing I do before leaving the house. My emotions have also been very mercurial. I feel like I lose my temper way too easily. I must admit that my first week of summer with trying to establish a few routines before the baby is born consisted of me just yelling at the kids. I don't know how those sweet boys remain so sweet. Things have gotten a lot better, but I really want to be a patient, kind and loving mom and often fail miserably. Whenever I start feeling overwhelmed, I don't have to look very far to realize how blessed I am to be able to have four children, especially if the fourth baby is as incredible as my first three boys. Despite the challenges of being pregnant, I wouldn't trade this great gift of motherhood for anything. I love being a mom. I love my kids. They teach me, they encourage me, and they love me. Motherhood does not come without sacrifice, but it's so worth it. I thank my Heavenly Father every day for my children and the opportunity that our family has to have another spirit in our lives. What a great blessing! I truly am very excited!

Lindsay, my sister-in-law told me that I need to post a picture of myself pregnant before my pregnancy is over--so here you go, Linds (Alden took the first picture and Thobe took the next picture). When I tried on my shirt today, Michael told me that he really liked it. I said, "Thanks, but don't you think it makes me look fat from the side." Before he could answer, I said, "Oh yeah, wait a second, I am fat right now." We both laughed. That's the other thing that I love about pregnancy--it's the only time since I was a young girl that I don't stress about looking fat. Do I really want this to be over?????

The Last Day of School

2009-05-31T17:34:00.006-04:00

Thursday, May 28, 2009, was a very eventful day in the Monday house. It was both Alden and Thobe's last day of school. Both boys were excited about wrapping up their year, although we still haven't convinced Thobe that he's done with preschool, despite having a preschool graduation. Michael had a few things come up, so he was unable to attend the Thobe's graduation. Hyrum and I arrived at the school shortly before the graduation began. When I got there, I saw Thobe standing in the hall with his best friend Travis Ebbescotte in a cap and gown. I must admit that for whatever reason this really caught me off guard. I felt a big lump form in my throat as I saw my handsome newly five year old all decked out in graduation attire. Time passes so quickly!

Trying to take video of the "ceremony" was next to impossible with Hyrum. He kept running up and down the aisles and found the plastic stars that were placed on the floor to show the kids which way to go. He picked all of them up and brought them to me. "Stars" he said, and then began chewing on them--I'm not sure how he stays healthy. When Thobe's teacher gave him a special award, I wanted to record that too. Unfortunately, Hyrum in his running around caught his fingers in the door, so I missed Thobe's special award too. All in all, it was a great experience though. I really can't say enough good about Thobe's preschool experience. Thobe loved his teachers, Miss Laura and Miss Barb. Hyrum loved Miss Barb and was so excited to see her everytime we dropped Thobe off at school. Often when he's sad, Hyrum will say, "I want Barb!"

After the graduation, we ran over to Alden's school to speak to his teacher, Mrs. Erickson, about next year. She showed me Alden's Dibel's reading scores. I must admit that I was really impressed with his improvements (he was doing well at the beginning of the year and is doing even better now). I am also thankful for the things that she has done this year too.

When the kids got home from school, I just felt a happy euphoria. I am certainly the kind of mom that loves having her kids at home. I love spending time with them and find such pleasure in watching them learn and grow. I'm really excited about this summer. I'm looking forward to doing things with the kids and just having them home. Don't get me wrong. I'm especially excited about not having to get up at 6:00 a.m. to get Alden on the bus, but I'm just looking forward to summer. I must admit that I think I might be more excited about the break than the kids are. We'll see.

That night, we quickly fed the missionaries, and then, we rushed off to Alden's first baseball game. He did really well. He is the youngest kid on his team and all his teammates played last year while he did not, but considering this, he is really doing well. I love watching his excitement.

After that, we went over to the Burke's house to watch the Cavs' game. Alden loves Adam and Alyse, the Burke's eight and seven year olds. He and Alyse were almost inseparable. We were there pretty late, and I realized when we left that Alyse had her jammies on. I asked Alden if he left the room when she changed. He said, "No, but I turned my head like this and closed my eyes, Mom." I began telling him the importance of boys not being in the same room with girls when they change their clothes. I said, "Alden, until you're married, you need to make sure that you always leave the room when a girl changes her clothes."

"Oh," he said. Then he added, "But Mom, I might marry Alyse, so it's okay, right?"

We explained that he just needs to make sure that until he's married that he needs to leave the room when a girl is changing. I love my Alden and all his innocence. I am so blessed to have three incredible boys. We're excited to see what the next baby is and what his or her personality is like. I only have 25 more days until he or she makes his or her debut. We're getting excited!!!!

Happy 5th Birthday, Thobe!!!

2009-05-26T23:58:00.010-04:00

It is so amazing to watch my kids grow up before my eyes. It seems like just yesterday that Thobe was this sweet, happy little baby. I can't believe that he is now five, although the anticipation of his fifth birthday has gone on for quite sometime.

For the past six or seven months, Thobe has been asking us when is May 23rd? Is May 23rd sometime soon? He has been very anxious for his birthday. In thinking back, I suppose I really, really looked forward to my birthday too. Most kids do. Thobe enjoyed Alden's birthday and patiently waited for his own. He was thrilled when a package from Grandma and Grandpa Humphries arrived on Wednesday that contained his birthday presents. Thobe carried this package everywhere and slept with it every night before his birthday. On Thursday, May 21 (the last day of preschool for the week), Hyrum and I went to preschool with Thobe and brought cupcakes. Thobe was thrilled that we were bringing cupcakes but told me that we could only stay for a few minutes. Hyrum and I ended up staying the entire time and enjoyed watching Thobe interact with his friends at school. It's amazing how much his classmates love him. I'm really pleased with his preschool experience and feel happy that he was able to have such a wonderful experience.

Anyway, Friday morning I woke up Alden and told him that it was May 22, Aunt Emily's birthday, and the day before Thobe's birthday. Upon hearing this news, Thobe sat straight up and bed and exclaimed, "Is today my birthday?"

"No," I explained, "Tomorrow is your birthday."

Thobe got a big smile on his face and laid back down on his bed. Thobe has the world's most heart melting smile. He really can light up a room with his happy smile.

As you might imagine, the next day when it really was his birthday he was so, so happy. All week Hyrum had been asking to sing and singing, "Happy Day" as he called it, so he was thrilled to sing it all day to Thobe (although it took us most of the day to teach Hyrum to sing "Happy Birthday Dear Thobe" rather than "Happy Birthday, Dear Alden." Thobe was able to open his package and was not disappointed. Grandma had sent him a new basketball shirt and shorts, a tiger, and a whole bunch of balls (a container of tennis balls was from Aunt Diane and Uncle Doug). From Alden, Thobe got a Webkins Cat that Thobe named Bluish Greenish, Hyrum gave him some bath tub markers, and we gave him play dough, which he was so excited about, a bike and a helmet and pads. He was really excited about his presents. Shortly after we ate breakfast and opened his presents we went to his friend, Alex Place's birthday party at McDonald's and then went back a couple hours later for Thobe's birthday party. Thobe had 7 of his friends meet him at McDonalds and even had Hamburgler come and lead them in a few games. All in all, he had a great time.

When we got back to our house, Abuelita and Grandpa Monday were there to wish Thobe a happy birthday. They got him a fun ball gun that he and Alden have had a blast with. In thinking about it, it's really hard to believe that Thobe is five. He is one of the sweetest boys I've ever met. I feel so blessed to have him as my son. Happy Birthday, Thobs!!!

Happy 7th Birthday, Alden!

2009-05-16T18:55:00.009-04:00

Yesterday (May 15), Alden turned 7. I can't believe that my baby is seven. Michael would tell you that he's a third of the way to being home from his mission. Yikes! That thought makes me shiver. I hope so much that I'm teaching him well and helping him learn everything he needs to be happy and to be a good person. As I've mentioned here before, I'm so pleased with what a good boy he is. I love that he tries to help other people and make them happy. He really tries to be a friend to everyone. That makes me happy.

Recently I've been watching a lot of our home movies of when Alden was a baby (I'm trying to convert all of our tapes to DVD). Anyway, it's been so much fun. Alden was such a cute little boy. I love remembering all the special little things that he did and seeing his personality develop, even before he was a year old. It's really amazing. It makes me so glad that we purchased a new video camera so that I can preserve the memories of all my boys throughout their growing up years.

Anyway, I think he had a really great birthday. Michael got him up at 5:30 yesterday morning to take him to breakfast with his seminary students. Usually on Friday, Michael has seminary in our basement. Alden always enjoys coming down and being part of the class before he has to run off to catch his bus. Since yesterday was Michael's last day of teaching seminary for the school year, he took all the kids out to breakfast at Bob Evans. I think Alden felt pretty special that he was able to go. Later, I took cupcakes into his class at school, and then his class had a special "Donuts for Dads" that Michael went to. It was a ton of fun for Alden. When he got home, he played with his brothers while I made him a light saber cake and his favorite dinner, chicken soup. When Michael got home, he opened his presents. He got a lot of Star Wars stuff, a cool puzzle from Aunt Diane & Uncle Doug's family, and a few chapter books and Star Wars stuff from Grandma & Grandpa Humphries. He was so excited to open all his gifts. After we ate, we ran to the YMCA for his and Thobe's last day of Hit and Scoop (a pre-baseball class that teaches some baseball fundamentals). He then came home and played the Wii with Dad and Thobe and played with his toys. All in all, you'd think that would have been plenty.

However, today he had even more fun. He had a Star Wars birthday party where 10 of his friends came over to our house for a chaotic adventure. We had each kid make lightsabers with a swimming noodle and a pvc pipe. They then went downstairs where Michael had created an awesome Jedi training obstacle course complete with Yoda feet, pylon cones to zig zag through, tubes to climb through, caves to crawl under, Tauntauns to ride, circles to spin, and Darth Vader to defeat at the end. I think the kids LOVED it! We then had them go outside and draw Death Stars on the side walk. Originally we planned on throwing water balloons at the Death Stars to bomb them, but the rain took care of that. We then took the kids back in the house, gave them each a paper clone mask that I found on ebay, and then had them play a fun game of Captain Rex May I with our birthday boy being Captain Rex. We then passed around a thermal detonator (Scattergories timer). When the timer ran out, the person holding the timer was "blown up." The worst part about that is that Thobe cried when Alden got destroyed. We then gave each kid a balloon and told them that they had to keep it off the floor with the lightsaber. It's amazing how quiet 13 kids can get when they're concentrating. I liked that game the best. Finally, we had them hit a Darth Vader pinata with their light sabers and then went upstairs for cake and ice cream and presents. It was really fun.

When we asked Alden what he liked best, he said it was having all his friends over and the obstacle course. When he asked me what I liked best, I told him that it was when most of the kids went home. He didn't like my answer so much. I'm glad that they all came, but three boys as opposed to thirteen is much quieter and a lot less work for that matter.

All in all it was a great day. Tomorrow after church we're going to Toledo to celebrate Alden and Abuelita's birthday with Grandpa and Abuelita. It should be a lot of fun.

ABCs and Temple

2009-05-08T12:46:00.005-04:00

Hyrum loves to sing. He loves to sit next to me while I play the piano and he sings. I'll often hear him singing as he plays with his toys, and anything that has music is his thing. He'll often say, "I'm dancing, Mom," while he dances his little jig. It's so much fun to hear him singing a song. Recently we bought a camera so I can finally show you what a little singer he is. I have included a video of him trying to sing the ABCs, even with Thobe's cute distractions.

He also loves building things with Legos. I guess I should say one thing rather than things. Whenever he puts Legos together, he says, "Look, temple, Mom. Temple." Then he breaks into singing the Primary song, "I Love to See the Temple." Although this video doesn't have one of his multicolored Lego temples, it does have him singing this song.

Alden's Accomplishments

2009-05-07T21:48:00.005-04:00

Alden is such a great kid. He is incredibly happy and such a good boy. He is so good to his brothers. Hyrum gets so excited for him to come home from school and often asks during the day if we can go and get Alden. He is thrilled when Alden comes home from school and will often watch for his bus. There are many days that Hyrum gives Alden a big hug when he walks through the door. The love Thobe has for Alden is no different. He too adores his older brother and considers him his best friend. Everything that Alden does, Thobe tries to do too. I'm so grateful that Alden is so patient and good to his brothers.

Alden is also a good kid at school. He is always trying to make other kids happy and do nice things for them. He really tries to be a friend to everyone. Recently he has been very interested in telling people about our church. Alden is the only member of our church in his entire school district. He is fine with this and is not ashamed at all to tell people that he is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He has really been a wonderful example to me and really wants to share his testimony with others. I think he's pretty incredible.

He also has started playing baseball. I don't know that sports are his forte, but he really improved in basketball, and I'm seeing even more dramatic improvements in baseball. I can't believe the improvement I've seen in him in throwing and hitting the ball. He's good at stopping ground balls, and he'd be really good at catching if he wasn't afraid of the ball. We'll continue to work on it, but it's fun watching him improve and excel.

The Egg Beater

2009-05-07T16:25:00.007-04:00

Recently, Thobe found a hand operated beater in our kitchen utinsil drawer. Being the smart boy that he is, he immediately figured out how to operate the device and was very curious about what it's used for. I explained that one can beat many things with it, including eggs. Since that time, there have been few days that have gone by that Thobe hasn't asked me if he can make eggs. The worst thing about Thobe being so laid back is that it's easy for me to forget his queries because he usually only asks me only once. I know for those of you who have very persistant children that you are asking why this is a bad thing. Well, the worst thing about it is that I often feel that I have neglected my little sweetheart. I can't tell you how many times I go to bed with a sad and guilty heart because I realize I haven't done what I said I would with Thobe--I've got to do better with that. The second to the worst thing about Thobe only asking for things once is that he'll often try to take things into his own hands, which leads me to my story.

Yesterday was a tough day for me. I was not feeling great. I suppose that it had to do with me being 8 months pregnant. I also felt somewhat homesick. I recently realized that it will be 8 months before I see most of my family, and it seems like my efforts to get different family members out here have been for naught. Anyway, I suppose that is for another post. Nonetheless, despite making eggs for breakfast that he didn't eat, Thobe wanted to make more eggs when he got home from preschool. I told him that I needed to hurry and check my email and then we would see about making eggs. I went downstairs, and Thobe and Hyrum stayed upstairs. Everything got pretty quiet, and within five minutes or so, I heard Thobe say, "No, Hyrum, don't make a mess." Normally when I feel better, I go upstairs and stop the mess making immediately, but due to my state yesterday, I just silently prayed that the mess wouldn't be too bad.

After about 10 minutes, I heard Hyrum fall and cry his hurt cry. I went up to find a disaster in the kitchen. I know that I had approximately 2 dozen eggs in my fridge when I went downstairs. When I went upstairs, several eggs were cracked in a bowl and beaten. One or two broken eggs were glopped on the table, and the rest of the eggs had been thrown on the floor and stomped on. Six or seven containers of yogurt had been thrown out of the fridge and who knows what else was on the floor. When I saw the mess, I lost it and screamed. Thobe immediately ran upstairs, and then turned back around crying, "I'm so sorry, Mommy. I tried to clean it up, but I couldn't." Bless his heart, several eggy towels proved that he had in fact tried to clean up the mess, but as you can imagine cleaning up 2 dozen slimy eggs off the ground with a dish towel isn't an easy task for a four year old. I just started crying. I cried about thinking about bending over with my big pregnant belly to clean up the mess and cried for yelling at my little tender Thobe. I must admit that now that this horrible mess is a funny situation, but at the time I didn't see the humor in it and consequently have no pictures of the disaster.

On a brighter note, last night we had breakfast for dinner. We had pancakes, eggs with shells, and bacon--I actually got all the shells out of the eggs after cyphoning the shells out of the eggs. Thobe's efforts turned out to be actually a pretty good dinner. He asked me if we could have breakfast for dinner again tonight, but fortunately for me and unfortunately for him, we're all out of eggs.

An Update on Hyrum's Amazingness

2009-04-07T16:12:00.004-04:00

About a week ago I wrote a post about Hyrum using the potty (I just posted it today, however). I am happy to report that despite a very bad virus that knocked me off my feet and has affected my children in one form or another that Hyrum continues to impress us with using the bathroom. Since Sunday, he's spent most of the day with dry underwear or a dry diaper (he only likes to wear underwear on the days that Michael is home). He comes to us and tells us that he needs to pee or poop and then begins to strip. Oddly, he now will only use the potty if he's as naked as a jay bird, but hey, whatever works for him works for me. Not having to change a dirty diaper or even a wet one for that matter is like manna from heaven for me. I'm hoping for continued success.

Ground Breaking News!!!!

2009-04-01T14:09:00.002-04:00

So if you have read my blog even a couple times, you'll understand that potty training makes me shake and tremble and feel sick inside. At the age of 3 years and 3 months, Alden finally got it, but it wasn't an easy process. Thobe, who will be 5 in May, still struggles with potty proficiency. I have been dreading the potty training process with Hyrum and my unborn child; however, on Michael's birthday, Hyrum told us he wanted to pee in the potty, and guess what? He did it!!! I couldn't believe it. Hyrum isn't even 2 1/2 yet, and he's already successfully peed in the potty on many occasions, and he's pooped in the potty without me doing a single thing. I guess I sit him on the toilet when he says he needs to go, but I nor Michael has done much of anything else. I almost hate to write this because I'm worried I'll jinx myself, but I am thinking that it's possible that if I put forth a tiny bit of effort, that Hyrum, my maniac child, may possibly be completely potty trained before the new baby is born. I ask all of you to please keep your fingers crossed for me.

Speaking of Hyrum, he has recently started saying, "I don't think so" when someone asks him a question. I'm so sad that my video camera is broken because I desperately want to record him saying this. I first realized that he said this yesterday when we were watching Mickey Mouse Club House. When Mickey comes on and says, "Would you like to come inside my club house?" Hyrum usually says no because that's what Alden always says. Yesterday though he said, "No, I don't think so." I laughed and laughed and laughed. The best was later that day though when we had the missionaries over for dinner. Hyrum's favorite plate is his Wall-E plate that we got him for Christmas. Elder Sanchez, one of the Elder's serving here in Lima, said, "Oh Wall-E! Hyrum can I eat on your Wall-E plate?" Hyrum looked up at him in all seriousness, shook his head, and said, "I don't think so." What a nut!

Happy Birthday, Michael

2009-03-27T14:34:00.010-04:00

Over the weekend, we celebrated Michael's birthday. His birthday was Sunday, so on Saturday we went to the Shiner's Circus (this is starting to become a tradition for our family). When I asked Michael what he wanted for his birthday, this is what he requested (isn't it funny how when you become a parent that you really get the most joy from the happiness of your children?). Anyway, we had a fun time, at least Michael and I did. Michael's mom gave the kids each five dollars to buy circus junk (I say junk because the things that our kids bought are broken now). Alden and Thobe both got a lightsaber, which Alden agreed to share with Hyrum, who was asleep when we arrived. It's hard to be sure if Alden even watched the circus because was playing with his light saber so much and nearly hitting all the people around us. Thobe was really tired when we arrived and slept through the second half of the show. Hyrum was equally taken with the light sabers and enjoyed walking up and down the aisles pushing the chairs back and forth (again, I'm not sure how much of the circus he watched either). So, I guess I should say that Michael and I enjoyed the scaled down version of the circus (I guess the slump in the economy sadly has even affected the circus). When we got back to Grandpa and Abuelita's we ate birthday brownies and cookies and had a nice visit with them.

The next day was really fun. The boys gave the few presents (a whole bunch of Cousin Willie's Microwave popcorn, a pair of pants, and an alarm clock) that I bought for Michael throughout the day, and then we had a bunch of friends come over for a surprise birthday get together. I made a few roasts, mashed a bunch of potatoes, made a few boxes of jello, microwaved some of our frozen corn, cooked some Rhodes rolls, and Michael's favorite part, made an apple, blueberry, and cherry pie. We had our friends, The Richters from Bowling Green come, The Burkes, The Floyds, and the Talbots come. It was really fun. I don't know who had more fun, the adults or the kids, but I think we all enjoyed it. I'm really grateful for good friends and even more grateful for Michael. He's such an amazing man. I'm really lucky to be married to him. At the risk of making a very long post (and to copy my good friend, Becca Renfroe) I'm going to make a list of my 20 favorite things about my crazy husband--please note that these are not in any particular order and are only a few of the things in a long list that I love about my sweetheart.

1. I love Michael's sense of humor. Michael makes me laugh everyday. I think he's so funny! He often tells people that the reason he married me is because I laugh at all his jokes. Even after almost 10 years of marriage, his sense of humor continues to surprise and "tickle" me.

2. I love the way Michael plays with our children. Michael works crazy hours--he's up at 5:00 every weekday morning and usually doesn't get home until 6:00 at night (tonight it's even later than that). Despite these crazy hours, he makes sure that he plays with the kids. Whether it's chasing them around the house yelling and screaming, playing a video or board game with them, reading them a story, playing outside with them, or whatever else you can imagine, he does it. As much as he makes me laugh, he makes the kids laugh even more. It's no wonder that they all scream with glee when he walks in the door and that our house is in constant cachophony until the go to bed. When he calls them upstairs, he says, "Amigos!" I really think that all three of them consider their dad to be his best friend.

3. Almost in opposition to #2, I love the way Michael disciplines our boys. Our kids are the amazing kids that they are because of him. They know their limits with Michael. They know exactly what they can and can't do because of him. He is incredibly consistent and an incredible example to me. Whenever he gets after them, he always makes sure that he hugs them afterwards so they know he still loves them.

4. I love Michael's dedication to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He loves God and wants nothing more than to just serve him.

5. I love that Michael will make sacrifices to do what is right. I can't tell you how many "important" sporting events Michael misses to spend time with his family, to go to a church meeting, or simply because it's Sunday. Before we were married he decided that he wanted to show his dedication to God and stopped watching TV on Sunday. We watch a lot of sports other days, but I know that sports are not the most important thing in his life. This is only one example of his many sacrifices that he makes for the Gospel and for our family.

6. I love how smart Michael is. I can't believe all the little tidbits of information he knows. I think he could carry on an intelligent conversation with anyone from any background. Sometimes when we're talking to people, I think, "How does he know that?"

7. I love that when he hugs me that all my worries seem to float away. Although I haven't ever been in therapy, I dare say that a good long hug from Michael is better than an hour of therapy for me.

8. I love how Michael encourages me to take time out for me. Whether it's exercising, volunteering at Alden's school, hanging out with the friends, teaching my adjunct courses, or just giving me a couple hours by myself, he's always willing to watch the kids for me to have some Melissa time.

9. I love how he praises me and never says a negative word to anyone about me.

10. I love that Michael likes to buy me nice gifts but that he is also very money-conscious. I love that we've never had a fight about money (I wish we could say that we've never had a disagreement about anything, but I can say that it's never been about money because he's so supportive and aware of what he spends).

11. I love that even when things are hard that Michael finds a way to stay optimistic. He is so good at helping me focus on things that are really important rather than the things that I often put too much weight on that really do not matter. I'll always remember when we were between jobs and were living in Las Vegas that Michael found such pleasure in eating our food storage and coming up with creative ways to cook it. He often reminds me that if we ever have to live off our food storage again that he'll do a lot better than I will--he's right!

12. I love that Michael loves people and wants to help others. It is very important to him that he serves his fellowman. I love that about him. Whether it's getting up at 5:00 in the morning to just being a friend to all who know him, I am constantly impressed with his ability to make everyone who knows him feel loved and important.

13. I love that Michael loves my family as his own family and does what ever he can to make sure that our children are close to all their extended family.

14. I love that Michael speaks Spanish to our children and that he seeks opportunities for them to build their Spanish skills.

15. I love that Michael meets individually with our kids when they get a report card or have something that they need to work on. It is very important to him to be involved in their lives.

16. I love that Michael is a worthy Priesthood holder and temple recommend holder. I love that he makes it a priority to go to the temple every month to strengthen our family.

17. I love that Michael is so flexible. Even when he comes home after a long day and I've just been playing Spider Solitaire all afternoon he doesn't complain. He's always willing to pick something up from the grocery store or at a restaurant on the way home from work.

18. I love Michael's creative parenting. He comes up with such good ideas to help our kids. Our classic example of this is when we were struggling to teach Alden how to use the potty when he was three, Michael got Alden's favorite Yoda toy and Luke Skywalker toy and took them in the bathroom where Alden had been sitting on the potty for at least an hour. Michael had Yoda tell Luke that in order to be a Jedi that he had to learn to use the potty. I had been struggling for months to teach the lad how to use the potty and that did the trick. Alden was completely potty trained after that because wanted to be a "Jerdi" as he would say.

19. I love the way he looks, especially just before he tells a joke. His head starts to shake just a little and he gets this little twinkle in his eye. Even when he decides not to tell the joke he had in mind, I can always tell when he's thinking of one. I love the way he does that.

20. I love that I get to spend this life and all of eternity with such an incredible man. Happy Belated Birthday, Michael. I love you!!!!

Announcing my Two New Nieces (I'm only a month late)

2009-03-27T14:19:00.003-04:00

On March 2, 2009, my sister Kristi gave birth to her two newest daughters, Elizabeth Ann and Mary June. Poor Kristi was nearly 39 weeks when her babies were born and was measuring over 50 centimeters--needless to say, she was very, very uncomfortable. Nonetheless, early Monday morning, her body coudn't take any more and her water broke. By 1:00 in the afternoon, her two newest daughters were born naturally weighing in at 7 lbs 7 oz. and 7 lbs. 2 oz. The nurses said that they've never seen two more healthy twins.

From what I've heard, life with twins has been an adjustment, but they are all doing well. Michael often wishes that we were having twins (he even went so far to tell me that he married the wrong Humphries girl), but after hearing all of Kristi's stories, I'm glad that we're just expecting one little Tickle. I'm really proud of Kristi for all she's doing and miss her and her family terribly! Ryan is blessing the twins this weekend, and I'm so, so, so bummed that I'm not going to be there. I love Ohio, but man, it's times like these that I wish we were closer. Congratulations, Kristi and Ryan. I hope you know that you're in my thoughts and prayers and heart. I love and miss you!

Logic, Reason, and Treason

2009-03-15T21:14:00.005-04:00

Like all you moms out there, I really think my kids are incredibly cute and intelligent. I am constantly amazed at how smart they are. Hyrum is always trying to put things together and figure out how things work. Whenever I vacuum he tries to take the blasted thing apart to figure out what makes it make all that noise. He has figured out how to feed the fish, and even though today he fed our three fish two big containers full of food, he knows how it works--well sort of. He has figured out how to obtain things from the highest shelf in our cupboards and can dress and undress himself at will. Last week in Sacrament meeting during the Sacrament, he decided that his church clothes were too constricting, so he pulled down his pants when I wasn't looking and undid one of the strips of his diaper. That all too familiar ripping sound of Hyrum taking off his diaper got my attention right away, and I was able to refasten his diaper strap and quickly pull up his pants before our Sacrament meeting became R rated. He is smart...or a future streaker--I'm going with smart though.

Thobe is equally amazing. The other day he came up to me and said with a small coin in his hand and said, "Mom, this is a nickel. How many cents are in a nickel?" I asked him to tell me, and he said, "There are 5 cents in a nickel. There is one cent in a penny, and 100 cents in a dollar." I was shocked. I remember talking about money to Alden last year, and he had such a hard time understanding that. A few days later, Thobe said, "Mommy, President Jefferson is on a nickel, and so is Montecello. Did you know that President Abraham Lincoln is on a penny? He is." To admit my ignorance, I actually didn't know that Montecello was on a nickel, but when I told Michael what Thobe had told me, he was blown away (I doubt that few of you are as money illiterate as I am, but Montecello is the home of Thomas Jefferson--another little tidbit that Thobe knew that I did not). Thobe has also started reading--as I've mentioned earlier. I am serious when I say this that he is an amazing reader. I think he must have a photographic memory or something because if you tell him something, he doesn't forget it. We spend 20 minutes everyday doing this reading program, and I just can't believe how well he's doing. He's a smarty.

Alden is constantly impressing people with his smarts. All our boys speak Spanish, but since Alden is older, he's the most proficient at it. He also has a memory like a steal trap and does extremely well in school. He always loves to tell jokes and lately has come up with some really good ones that he's set up himself. For example, we've been reading a lot of Shel Silverstein poems. One of his favorites is "Peanut Butter Sandwich," which ends with the king saying, "How 'bout a peanut butter sandwich?" The other day Alden asked me why I always make him peanut butter and jam sandwiches for lunch. He told me he likes other kinds of sandwiches too. I asked him what other kinds he'd like me to make him, and he got a little twinkle in his eye and said in a silly voice, "How 'bout a peanut butter sandwich?"

I also want to mention that from December to the middle of February, Alden played basketball. He made huge strides over the course of his game. He worked very hard and his coach outside of the his basketball team (A.K.A. Grandpa Monday) did so much to help him be successful. It was a lot of fun watching Alden improve. He is a very good shooter.

Up until Friday, I've been very happy that my kids are intelligent. I have enjoyed watching them grow and develop reasoning skills; however, the other day, my sweet little Alden's reasoning skills turned to treasoning skills. What do you do when your child makes a logical connection that proves that you are indeed an idiot? The past few months, Michael has been working really hard to establish the Ohio Chapter of the J. Reuben Clark Society (a society primarily for LDS attorneys) and met with a bunch of people in Toledo for dinner and then a fireside (I should write a post about how exciting this has been and all the miracles that we've experienced through this). Anyway, Michael's parents generously offered to meet us at the restaurant and pick up the kids and watch them for the evening but got stuck in traffic on the way there. Consequently, I waited in the car for them, and Michael went inside the restaurant where there were people waiting for him. I had a bunch of forms on the floor of the van and told the kids that they could run all over the back of the van, but they needed to stay away from my papers. Of course our van doesn't provide a lot of space for running, and the boys kept stepping on my papers. After about seven scoldings from me, Alden intelligently asked, "Mom, why don't you just put those papers up on the dashboard?"

I responded in my oh so wise motherly voice, "Because."

"Because why?" Alden asked.

"Just because," I answered fairly annoyed.

"Mom," the litte traitor responded, "You have to have a reason for things. You just can't say 'because.'"

Maybe having smart kids is more of a curse than a blessing.

The Overstatement, Understatement, and Sweetest thing of the Year

2009-02-20T16:08:00.003-05:00

OVERSTATEMENT:
The other day, I didn't feel like cooking dinner (this happens far more often than it should--in my defense, on this particular day, both Hyrum and Thobe had throwing up most of the day). Anyway, rather than suggesting that we go out for dinner, I boiled some water, threw a box of whole wheat spaghetti in the boiling water, and brought up a big container of Prego from the basement. I also believe I toasted some whole wheat bread for a full carbohydrate dinner (the Prego does say that a 1/2 a cup of spaghetti is the equivilent of a full serving a veggies--it doesn't mention in the healthy box that it also exceeds the recommended daily allowance of sodium, but I will just tell you about how healthful my meal was instead).

Anyway, Alden loves this meal--it's one of his favorite. After I scooped a generous portion of spaghetti noodles onto his plate, he eargerly grabbed the gigantic bottle of Prego and attempted to pour some onto his spaghetti. The sauce came out much more quickly than he anticipated, and before he knew it, he had approximately 10 servings of pureed veggies on his plate. He sheepishly looked at Michael and me with a worried look on his face. Michael's response was perfect. He said, "Ya got enough there, or do you need a little more?"

UNDERSTATEMENT:
As I mentioned above, Thobe and Hyrum got the flu (actually everyone but me has had it in one form or another). Sunday night was the worst for poor little Thobe. Michael and I had just settled down for the night and heard Thobe let out a pitiful wail. Michael ran in the bedroom and rushed him in the bathroom when he could see that Thobe was ready to give the old heave ho. After he finished throwing up, Thobe began to cry, sat down on the floor and yelled, "I did NOT want to do that!"

SWEETEST THING:
Hyrum got the flu first in our family. I guess that's why when Thobe got it, Hyrum was especially symphathic. On the day that Thobe was the sickest, Michael called me in the bathroom while Thobe was puking. Hyrum was in there rubbing poor sick Thobe's back. It was so, so cute.

Woopsie

2009-02-13T14:13:00.006-05:00

Hyrum's new word is 'Woopsie.' This is a very appropriate word for him since he has "Woopsies" all the time. He is constantly climbing and often falling. The other day I caught him standing on the one inch ledge of our fish tank stand playing with the fish (it makes me laugh that our angel fish, Fisher--yes, our children come up with creative names,-- hides behind our fake plants when he sees Hyrum in the vincinity). Later that day, I heard him calling, "Momma, Momma, Momma." I went and found him climbing up the outside of our stairs, half way to the top. As far as I know, he hasn't fallen from these dangerous predicaments (yet), but he is always running and falling and, well, woopsie.

In addition to his climbing and falling, he also spills everything. If he's mad, he spills things on purpose, but most of the time, it's an accident or a lot of fun, sometimes both. Yesterday, I helped Alden in the office with his homework and making valentines for his friends. I heard Thobe say, "No Hyrum, you're making a mess! No, Hyrum! No!" Not wanting to see the mess, I waited to go into the kitchen, secretly hoping that perhaps it magically would clean itself up or that it wouldn't be that bad. After a few minutes, I went in the kitchen to see the damage. It was worse than I imagined. Hyrum took a thing of yogurt and dumped it all over the floor. He then opened the refrigerator (the fridge remained open all that time until I went into the kitchen) and gotten into my precious blueberries. I need to add here that blueberries are my favorite fruit to eat. I found them at Walmart the day before and splurged (they were $3 for a pint, which is a little pricey, but worth every delicious burst of blueberry goodness, that is if the bursting occurs in my mouth or someone else's mouth who loves them almost as much as I do). Hyrum, however, hates blueberries, which may or may not explain why he decided to dump the entire pint of berries onto the floor and stomp on them (my guess is just that it was a whole lot of fun). Needless to say, when I went in the kitchen, saw the open fridge and the disaster that was spread across the floor, my pregnancy hormones got the best of me--don't worry the kids received no bodily harm; I was just very, very sad.

Today the messes have resumed. I had an issue with my insurance company to resolve, so while I was working on that, Hyrum found a container of frosting and frosted himself and much of our hard wood floor in the entry way (thank goodness it wasn't on the carpet). Our picture is somewhat framed (he didn't eat the frosting at the table), but the mess on his face is not.

He is quite the little handful, but usually, all he has to say is "Woopsie" and things don't seem quite so bad.

Potty Help

2009-02-12T09:37:00.003-05:00

I made a vow to myself the other day that I was going to stop talking about my frustration with Thobe using the potty; however, something happened the other night that I couldn't resist writing here.

Tuesday, Thobe had a very bad day with using the bathroom. I won't bore you or gross you out with all the details, but let's just say that after the fourth accident at 3:00, I was beside myself and made him go up to his room, put on pull-ups and jammies, and sit in his room his room for the rest of the night. He broke my heart when he told me how sorry he was, so I would periodically go and spend time reading with him and talking with him, so he wouldn't have to be all alone all that time.

Anyway, I'm digressing. When Michael got home, Thobe came down and ate dinner with us and then he and I went back up stairs and read some books. Then it was time for Thobe to go to sleep. He thought of everything he could to stall bedtime. His last resort was his best tatic.

"Mom," he said softly, "Can we say a prayer?"

"Sure, Thobe. Why don't you say it?"

He began his prayer and thanked God for each member of his family and then started to end his prayer. I thought that this would be a good opportunity for him to pray for help with all his bathroom woes, so I reminded him to ask for help by saying, "Please help me that I can go to the potty."

Thobe paused for a few minutes (I know now that the pause was because he was confused). He then said, "Please help Mommy that she can go to the potty."

I guess it's nice that I can have a little extra help too.

Who's the boss?

2009-02-09T15:36:00.003-05:00

When Alden was three years old, he and I had a very serious discussion. He insisted at the time that he didn't have to do what he said because I wasn't his boss. Curious I asked him who was his boss, to which he told me that his dad is his boss. Girls, he told me, cannot be bosses. This, of course, did not set well with me, and I argued with him for an hour, and Michael set him straight when he arrived home from work that night. We discovered that Michael had not given Alden intentional male chauvinistic tendencies but that when referring to himself as the boss in Spanish, he used the male form jeffe rather than jeffa. We assumed that Alden assumed that there was no female form of boss and consequently that women couldn't be the boss. Both Michael and I assumed that we made it clear that both he and I are Alden's boss and that girls can in fact be the boss.

Fast forward three years later to today.....

Alden has been sick the past two days. He has a fever and a sore throat and seriously does not feel well, poor boy. He also has recently acquired a terrible obsession for our Wii. I've been trying to limit his playing time, but it is seriously all he wants to do. Yesterday he prayed that he could be sick today so that he could stay home and play the Wii. I decided at that point that Alden would not be able to play the Wii on the days that he stayed home from school. I don't want to punish him for being sick, but I also don't want to encourage him to be sick either. Alden has been slightly put off with me for the entire day. When Michael came home for lunch, we talked about my decision. Michael said, "Alden when you are a dad, will you let your kids play the Wii?"

"Yes, I definitely will," Alden responded.

Then I asked, "What if your wife tells your kids that they can't play the Wii?"

"I'll tell her, 'I believe I'm the boss around here,'" he stated resoundly.

Michael told me that he thinks Alden is going to have a tough first year of marriage.

I'm thinking that the lesson that we taught him when he was three needs to be reemphasized.

Thobe's Recent Strides

2009-02-06T17:15:00.003-05:00

Thobe is so amazing to me. I really love everything about this boy. He is often very quiet but can be a big blabbermouth when he wants to be, especially when Alden's not around. He will just blurt things out that I had no idea that he knew. He is a Spanish explosion right now. He is constantly saying new words in Spanish that Michael doesn't remember teaching him. His mind is literally like a steel trap. He remembers things that surprise me. For example, when we were leaving Southern Utah he said, "Mom, we didn't go to Uncle Ronald's" (my Uncle Ronald has a bunch of animals that the kids love to go and see). Thobe then proceeded to tell me, "Remember when we went and saw the little chicks at Uncle Ronald's house?" We saw these chicks that he referred to two years ago when Thobe was only 2 years old. I couldn't believe he remembered it.

Recently I started doing Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons with Thobe. I just felt like being the middle child and being as undemanding as he is that it would be really good for the two of us to spend some one-on-one time with each other every day. It has been a huge success. I can't believe how well he has caught on to reading and what a great job he is doing. He is putting words together and making sense of things like crazy. I really can't think of many things more exciting that teaching your child to read. It's like opening a new world to them. It's very exciting (I highly recommend this book. We did this with Alden too--it is a very effective reading program if you're consistent, and you can get it on ebay or half.com for under $10--no, I don't get any loyalties for that little plug).

Thobe is also making huge strides on using the potty. I've mentioned here before that I often laugh at how much I talk about, think about, and deal with poop and pee, but I have to brag about Thobe's recent strides. He really wants to make Michael and me happy and really wants to be successful at using the bathroom. I think sometimes he just gets distracted and doesn't want to stop playing. We've recently come up with the idea of putting his playing on pause so that he can come back to it. I don't know if this is what has been a factor or if he's just decided that it's time, but whatever the reason, I'm grateful!!! Hooray for Thobe!!! Some day, if he ever reads this, he'll probably hate me for announcing his potty strides. Oh well...it's life for me right now.

I wish that I could some how capture the essense of Thobe. He's such a good boy and just so cute. He is always saying the most creative cute things. I need to do a better job of writing them down because moments like these are too easily forgotten.

Grandpa Hyrum

2009-02-06T16:18:00.007-05:00

Recently, our little Hyrum has changed his name. Admittedly, he's never really said his name very clearly. Few people can understand his answer to "What's your name?" In recent weeks, this has all changed. Now when anyone asks Hyrum, "What's your name?" he immediately responds in a clear, happy voice, "Grandpa!" Imagine that, a grandpa at the ripe old age of 2. He of course does it because he gets a reaction, but it's hard not to react to a very small two year old boy telling you that his name is Grandpa.

Hyrum has recently had a language explosion. He pointed out a chimney on the top of a building to me yesterday and is often asking, "What's that?" He is constantly telling us things that he's going to do or that we should do. Some of it is still kind of hard to understand, but some of it is very clear as well. He loves making people laugh and will often say or do things that he knows will get a reaction, especially from his two older brothers. He is also our best jumper that we've had. He loves to jump around the house, and especially loves to jump off things. He prefers us to catch him, but if we're busy, he'll often leap off things that he knows he shouldn't. He's a regular monkey.

Recently anytime he gets hurt in order for even the most minor boo boos to be made well, he must have them kissed. Keep in mind that Hyrum jumps off furniture for fun and is somewhat accident proned. He is constantly coming up to me saying, "Ouch, Ouch." All he needs is one little kiss, and he's fine. Perhaps the most comical was the other day when he had a sore throat and wanted me to kiss his tongue.

He's also become quite the packrat. He lugs big armfuls of stuff all over the house and often falls to sleep next to it (as evidenced by the picture). You'll often see him trying to carry 8 to 10 cars up the stairs and often into his bed. He loves to line the cars up in a straight line. He loves letters right now and loves singing the ABCs. We have a Leap Frog Word Whammer on our fridge. He loves taking all the letters off the fridge and carrying them around for awhile. I swear he'd play with that for hours if Thobe didn't distract him. He'll sing the ABC song while he carries around and plays with his letters. His favorite thing to lug around the house are his stuffed animals. He has a Mickey Mouse that he calls "E. I.," a Curious George monkey that he calls "Gunkey," a frog that he calls "That," a bear that surprisingly he calls "Bear," and a Woody doll from Toy Story that he calls "Oody." He often carries around his "Hello" or telephone with this group too. He carries these things everywhere along with a blanket. If he wakes up in the night and we pick him up, we have to pick up Hyrum and all his gang in order to leave the room where he is. Watching him carry five, fairly large stuffed animals and a blanket up the stairs is somewhat comical, and seeing him get excited to fall to sleep with all his "friends" close to him is very sweet.

I'm happy to have Grandpa Hyrum around to keep us smiling.

An Answer to a Prayer

2009-02-01T11:15:00.004-05:00

As I've mentioned in a previous post, Alden has struggled this year focusing on his work. I would dare say that he's one of the smartest kids in his class. He's a great reader, loves math, is fluent in Spanish, and has an incredible memory. However, when he got an Unsatisfactory grade on his first report card, Michael and I were very concerned. We have met a lot with his teacher, talked to the principal, had a the school counselor come in and observe him, and even came up with a reward/consequence system that gave us immediate feedback every day. I think there are several things going on that are not Alden's fault, but the bottom line is that Alden needs to learn to work around distractions and focus on the task at hand.

One day Alden came home from school and told me that he again had not finished his work at school. I was very, very disappointed, especially since this was the third or fourth day in a row that Alden not only missed recess but failed to do his work during recess as well. I had him call and tell his dad (perhaps his worst punishment of all--he hates disappointing Michael), and then said a quiet prayer, pleading with the Lord to know what I could do to help my son be successful in school. As I finished my prayer, the thought occurred to me, "He needs to ask for my help."

I took Alden in my room and asked him if he wanted to have good work habits. He said he did but that the room had too many distractions for him to focus and that he needed Michael or me to go in and watch him work every day. I told him that we couldn't always go to school with him to watch him do his work but that there is someone else who is always there to help him. He knew immediately who I was talking about. I told him that if he wanted to that he could go in his room and pray and ask Heavenly Father to help him focus at school and to remind him to stay on task. He thought about it for a minute and then said he'd like to do that. He went in his room and started playing. I reminded him that he was going to say a prayer. "Oh yeah," he said.

A little while later, he came downstairs. I asked him how it went. He said, "It was really good, Mom. I asked Heavenly Father to help me. I told him that I knew that he would be able to feel Jesus close to him at school because he prayed for his help. The next day I went to Alden's school to volunteer. When I walked in, Mrs. Erickson, Alden's teacher, said to me, "Alden has all of his work done today! He's worked really hard!" I nearly did a cartwheel in front of all his classmates, and he nearly jumped out of his chair he was so happy.

Since that day, he's had good days and bad days. Interestingly on the bad days he's said, "Mom, I know why I got an N or an U today--I forgot to ask Heavenly Father to help me!"

I am so very, very grateful for the way that God does answer our prayers. I'm grateful that he answered mine and even more grateful that he answered the prayer of a young 6 year old boy. I know that God is real and that he loves me and my family. He truly does answer a prayer of faith, sometimes not in the way that we want but in ways that are best for us to grow and learn.

Happy Cacophony

2009-01-26T08:05:00.003-05:00

The other day Thobe woke up at the break of dawn with Alden. While I tried to get Alden ready for school, they were running all over the house talking loudly about the Buckeyes and Star Wars and who knows what else. When Hyrum wakes up early like that, he is a bear to be reckoned with. He's horrible, so of course, I wanted to keep my loud yappers quiet. It didn't happen, but fortunately, Hyrum slept through the chaos. That night, we ran a few errands. When we got in the car, the incessant chattering began. Michael turned on some music hoping to quiet the noise, but unfortunately, it only worsened things. All the boys, including Hyrum, started singing in their loudest voices making silly variations to the songs. Despite the ringing in my ears that was caused by all the noise, I couldn't help but laugh at their crazy variations to "It Ain't Gonna Rain No More," "Old MacDonald," and "Three Blind Mice." I must admit that I was somewhat relieved to step into the cold Ohio weather to run one of my errands. When I got back out to the car, Thobe and Hyrum were sleeping soundly, and Alden was quietly working on something that Michael gave him.

We ran the rest of our errands in peaceful quietness and softly talked about our lives and our crazy little boys. Despite the cacophony that our boys make, Michael and I both appreciate the happiness that accompanies it. What a wonderful thing it is to see children who are truly happy! I love how they happily play together (for the most part) and how even when they get in trouble that they still are happy. God really does want us to be happy. When he says that he wants us to be as little children, he means it. Not only are they loving, teachable, and forgiving, they also find joy in life, even when things are hard. I'm so grateful for my little ones who remind me to be happy and to enjoy life. I'm so grateful that God has blessed me with happy cacophony.

Life after a our Christmas Adventure

2009-01-16T16:10:00.002-05:00

As much as I loved our Christmas vacation, I must admit that getting home was nice too. I especially enjoyed sleeping in my own bed. However, our transition back into normal life has had a few minor challenges. Since we returned to Ohio we've gotten nearly a foot of snow and it has been terribly cold (at 8:00 this morning it was 17 below zero). This type of weather leaves me shivering in my boots. The weather hasn't been a big deal, but we've had a few issues with the kids that have caused us some minor concern. For example, Alden has struggled with doing is work at school. He's a very smart boy, but for whatever reason, he often has to stay in for recess to finish his worksheets. While I think there may be some underlying problems beyond Alden himself, I also feel strongly that we need to teach Alden that despite the challenges or difficulties that he needs to "take the bull by the horns" (for lack of a better phrase) and focus on doing his work. We've come up with a rewards system that is we think is motivating to him, but so far, well, he has room for a whole lot of improvement. Despite this frustration, I love this little guy so much. He really does want to please Michael and me and has such a creative imagination. It's so fun to watch all the new things he can do and all the new responsibilities that he's beginning to take on.

Since returning from Utah, Thobe, for some unknown reason, has decided that he doesn't need to use the toilet any more. I have bemoaned on this blog numerous times about our potty training woes with Thobe. Just before we left on our trip, I thought that we had made it over that horrible potty hill and were seeing new horizons. Little did I know that we would somehow get turned around and head down that path all over again. I must admit that this causes me more consternation than most things in my life right now, but that's the way it goes. If there is anyone out there who has any advice for why this might be happening and what I can do, I'm certainly open to suggestions. I am also willing pay big bucks to send him to a potty training boot camp, if such a thing exists. I will also send Hyrum too. I am a complete failure at potty training children (just for the record, Alden is potty trained, but I credit that completely to Michael, Luke Skywalker, and Yoda).

That being said, I must also say that Thobe can make me smile quicker than almost anyone. He loves giving hugs and kisses and says the funniest things. He loves being like Alden and tries for a little while to be really patient with Hurricane Hyrum. He is also very serious and loves going to his preschool. I am constantly amazed with all the things he says and does and have been especially impressed with how well he is speaking Spanish these days.

Hyrum has been a bit more clingly since we returned. I don't know if he's worried I'll leave or what, but he always has to have a tab on where I am. He also has really gotten into his tempertantrums lately, which are so much fun. For whatever reason, he often takes his aggression out on Thobe. When Hyrum wants to steal Thobe's toys, Thobe will often take the toys that he's playing with and run away from Hyrum. Hyrum takes off after him, and when he catches him, he wraps his arms around Thobe's waist, literally picks him up, and throws him to the ground. I didn't know I was raising a WWF wrestler, but I am disappointedly impressed with all of Hyrum's strength. He's a crazy cat. As I often say though, he is so, so sweet. I love how he can light up a room with his smile. He has the funniest sense of humor and is really loving, even to Thobe (at least when they're not fighting over the same toys). He is saying so many new words now and always has us laughing. The other night Michael asked the boys what would happen if Hyrum turned into an alligator. As soon as he asked the question, Hyrum shot out his hand, clapped his thumb to his fingers and yelled, "Snap, Snap, Snap" over and over again. We all laughed. I love the close relationship the two of us share and am so grateful for him, even when he's clinging. I just keep reminding myself that this doesn't last forever and that I need to enjoy it while I can.

Life for us really is good. It's easy to look at my minor problems worries and think that my life is really challenging. It doesn't take long though to look around me and see that there are a lot of people who have much worse challenges than I do. When I think about it, I become very grateful for the challenges that I have and realize that my ]life is really wonderful. I have a knowledge that God lives and is aware of me and loves m\e, a really wonderful husband, incredible children, a supportive and loving extended family, and a lot of really great friends, some of which I recently came into contact with after a long time. I'm so thankful for all my blessings and hope that I can show my gratitude, not by complaining, as I've done in this post, but by helping and serving others as so many have done and continually do for me. Life after my Christmas adventure is still a great adventure, not without its challenges, but rich and full and splendid.

Our Adventurous Christmas Spontaneity

2009-01-13T16:51:00.007-05:00

I should have known when I married Michael that life would never be dull or predictable. After all, it was only four weeks before he asked me to marry him that he told me he thought we should date other people. Little did I know that only two weeks after he told me that, that he would be on the telephone telling me how much he missed me and couldn't wait to see me again. Don't get me wrong; I still get butterflies in my stomach when I think of the excitement I felt when he told me this, but like I said, it should have been a clear sign to me that life would be somewhat, well, unpredictable.

So as I stated in my last post, we planned to spend Christmas in Ohio. Originally, we planned to spend it with Michael's parents, but they had an opportunity to go to Utah to spend it with Michelle (Michael's sister), and so they did it. I was really happy that they went because it's been a long time since they went there for Christmas, but I must admit that I was a little bummed because I've never spent Christmas without extended family. We did a lot of things to compensate though. We flew my parents out to spend eight wonderful days with us prior to Christmas, we planned parties that were going to be held at our house with a lot of friends, we bought Christmas cards that were ready to be addressed and written on, and we planned to make goodies and treats and start our own Christmas traditions. With many of our plans underway and many of the supplies purchased, Michael called me the Friday before Christmas and said, "What do you think of driving to Utah for Christmas. I have a few days off that if I don't use I will burn."

I wondered if he was crazy. We had made a lot of plans, and I knew that a lot of storms were brewing around the country, but the thought of going to Utah for Christmas, I must admit, made me really excited. We decided that we wouldn't tell anyone, not even the kids, and if the weather looked okay, then we would go. So on Friday, we cancelled our parties, made our family video Christmas greeting, and wrote a few Christmas cards. On Saturday, we finished our Christmas greeting, ran errands, wrote more Christmas cards, and tried to tiddy the house (an impossible feat with Hyrum around). On Sunday after church, we made Christmas treats and took them around to neighbors and friends and that night looked at the weather report. It was so bad that on Monday, I woke up sure that we were not going to go. I got out of bed and prayed that if we were supposed to go or if we would be safe that things could fall into place and that Michael and I could both feel good about going. Michael got up and got the car in for a quick oil change, and I got the house cleaned. Michael called me and asked what the weather looked like. Everything actually looked surprisingly clear, especially if we timed everything right. It looked like if we made it through Missouri the first day and to Denver the second day, that the weather was going to cooperate. I quickly got things packed, Michael grabbed a lot of snacks for the road, and we were on our way around 2:00.

The boys had no idea where we were going. We told them that we were going to a hotel, which always makes them very excited. We put up our portable dvd player, and when Hyrum saw the screen turn on, he exclaimed "TV!" He loves watching the TV. They were entertained, and Michael drove like a mad man, obeying the speed limit the entire way of course (seriously). At 2:00 a.m. (Eastern time) we arrived in Topeka, Kansas, where we stopped for the night. The next morning we were on the road again around 10:00 a.m. (Central time). Prior to leaving, we prayed that God would protect us and allow the weather to cooperate, and then I began driving. Michael was asleep and the kids were watching a show and a very peaceful feeling came over me. I looked up in the sky, and it looked as though five big fingers were pushing the clouds away and clearing the way for us to travel in safety. I know that God heard our prayer and protected us. We did meet a little snow just before we got to Denver, and the mountain pass between Denver and Grand Junction had a lot of snow on the road, but we were safe.

The next morning, Christmas Eve, we got up and ate breakfast in Grand Junction where a girl dressed as an elf served us. The boys had all kinds of questions for her about Santa Claus. After eating breakfast, we drove the rest of the way to Utah. Alden asked several times, "Where are we going?" We told him that he would soon find out. When we were driving through the beautiful desert mountains of Eastern Utah, Thobe exclaimed, "We're in the Mountain West!" Can you tell that Michael watches a lot of football? We also stopped in Cedar City to return our Red Box movies and take the the kids to the bathroom. Alden was aghast with all the Utah license plates that he was seeing. I was shocked that it didn't dawn on him that we were in Utah. When we finally arrived at my parents' house, Alden exclaimed, "We're at Grandpa and Grandma's house? WE'RE AT GRANDPA AND GRANDMA'S HOUSE! I DIDN'T KNOW THAT WE COULD DRIVE HERE!!!!" (He's only driven cross country at least 5 times). My sister Laura, who told Santa the previous Saturday that all she wanted for Christmas was for us to be there, saw us out the back door. She ran outside crying because she was so happy to see us. We then went to the door step and started caroling. I told my sister Diane previouslly that we were coming in case we had any problems, so she got my parents to answer the door. My mom opened it and feel against the door with a shocked look on her face. She then also started crying. All my nieces and nephews started hugging us and screaming with delight. My dad just stared at us unbelievingly. My other sisters were shocked and gave us big hugs. My mom immediately called my brother, who wasn't planning on coming until the next day. He and his wife canceled their plans and came right away. It was really wonderful to meet my newest nephew Joseph (or Joviss as Diane's little boy Bridger calls him). It was a Christmas I don't think I'll ever forget. It really is wonderful to be so loved by so many people.

That night Emily and I made Nativitiy costumes, and we read the Christmas story from the Bible. My mom gave us each a book that she made, complete with pictures, that told the story of her and my dad and how much they love each of their kids and grandkids. It was beautiful and must have been so much work for her! She also gave the kids a picture of her and my dad to hang on their wall. Then we got the kids to bed and after such a long day, I felt sick and was exhausted. My sisters were so good to wrap all of Michael's presents from me and all of the kids' presents while I laid on the couch and moaned. I'm so grateful for them!

The next morning was so much fun. As it always is in my mom's house, Christmas was magical. The kids had so much fun opening their presents, and with twelve little kids in the house, after all the presents were opened, my mom and dad's big family room looked like a toy store. Hyrum was having a hay day! With ten of the twelve grandkids being boys, there was a lot of light saber fighting, gun shooting, and yelling, but a whole lot of fun too. I'm so happy that my boys love their cousins so much. Alden, Davin, and Noah were inseparable as were James and Thobe. What a great blessing family is!

While I was there I was able to see my thoughtful friend, Lisa Alger. She is one of the most amazing people I've ever met. She also brought me a very cool gift that must have taken here hours to make. I really appreciate her friendship. I also got to spend a lot of time with my family, and even though I felt sick for much of the time I was there (unfortunately), I loved every minute of it.

On Sunday after church, we loaded up the van and headed up to Michael's sister's house. They didn't know that we were coming either, so we decided that for them, we would put Alden in a box and address it to his cousins. Michael rang the door bell, and we hid in some bushes. Our oldest nephew, Ethan, answered the door. He saw that the box was coming open, so he pushed it shut. He was very surprised when the present said, "Ouch!" Ethan immediately, opened the box and was reprimanded by Alden. Ethan then went and got the whole family, and they were completely startled to see Alden and the rest of us. They too were so excited and happy.

We had such a nice time with them too. We were able to go to a Jazz game and a BYU basketball game. We also had a lot of fun going out to dinner, watching movies, playing video games, watching Utah win their bowl game (Michelle, Eric, and I were cheering for Utah while Michael cheered against them), and just sitting around talking. The boys loved playing with their cousins and were enamored with Elijah. Thobe even let him do his hair, just like Elijah's. We really had such a wonderful trip. I was able to see Shirley and Lora Monson and her family and our family went and had dinner with the family of an old roommate of Michael's, Andy Hill. There were a lot more people I would have liked to see, but we did what we could. It was really a great trip!

Our trip home went without a hitch as well. I'm so grateful for God's protective care and the family that he's blessed me with. I truly am very blessed!

My Very Happy Birthday

2009-01-13T16:01:00.007-05:00

The following week on December 8, my parents flew into Detroit from Utah. I can't tell you how much I loved every single minute of their visit. In October, we decided that we would spend Christmas in Ohio, so we decided to fly my parents out to Utah a few weeks before Christmas to spend my mom's and my birthday together. Despite me being pretty sick for the first days that they were here and having a mound of papers to grade, we really had a nice time. My parents did so much around the house. My dad changed light bulbs, fixed cabinets and drawers, hung our Christmas lights, drove Thobe to school, and even mopped my floor (don't tell my sisters that, they'll be jealous). My mom cooked all the meals on the days that I was sick and most of the days that I wasn't sick, went grocery shopping, did my laundry, and did homework with Alden every night, even on the days that I wasn't sick. As much as I appreciated all this, I was even more grateful for all they did with my kids. Sometimes I worry that because I live so far away, that my kids won't have the kind of relationship that my sisters and brother's kids have with them. This trip really disspelled many of those fears. Hyrum saw my parents and lit up like a light bulb. The first night that they were there, I put Hyrum to bed. Immediately, he started wailing and crying, "Oh Grandpa! Oh Grandpa!" My dad sang him to sleep that night. He was inseparable from both of my parents the entire time they were here. He loved to tease my mom. She would say, "Hyrum, say, 'I love.." and Hyrum would quickly say, "Grandpa!" Then he would laugh and laugh because she was trying to get him to say Grandma. It was so fun to see them have so much fun together. We also all went to the Old Barn Out Back and saw Santa Claus. The kids were so excited, and I think my parents enjoyed watching them with Santa. I will give them a hard time though. I had to run up to the college to mail all my papers out and left the kids with my parents. While I was gone, Hyrum and Thobe were spinning in a chair that tipped over. Hyrum rammed his eye right into a table. He got a huge black eye. My parents felt terrible! He looked pretty cute, though.

For my mom's and my birthday, we went to Cleveland and stayed in a hotel on Friday night. Michael's parents and uncle and aunt stayed at the same hotel and visited his grandparents. It was fun to spend time with them. On Saturday morning, we got up and went to Kirtland, OH. The last time I went to Kirtland was at least six or seven years ago when they were in the middle of remodeling. I would highly recommend a trip here, even if you aren't a member of the LDS faith. They have done such a nice job of preserving the history of Kirtland. There is certainly a special spirit there. I really enjoyed it. We stopped in Cleveland for dinner with Michael's parents, and then headed back to Lima. The next day was actually mine and my mom's birthday. It was so, so nice.

I love sharing a birthday with my mom, especially when we get to spend it together. She always tells me that she loves it too because it means that she will forever be 20, but I'm sure that having me on her birthday (not that she had a ton of choice in the matter) has required her to sacrifice a lot for me. Words can't express how much I love her and am grateful that she is my mom. She is such an incredible, beautiful, and giving person. Perhaps the quality I love most about her is her ability to make everyone who knows her feel like they are her favorite person. I especially admire that after having seven kids, each one of us feel like we are her favorite. I don't know how she does it, but I can say that I am thankful and love her with all my heart.

For my birthday, my parents gave me a bunch of neat scrapbooking stuff, and Michael gave me a Vitamix blender. Michelle, Michael's sister, has one and makes delicious, healthy smoothies for us. I insisted on making one for my parents. When I put an entire orange, peel and everything in, my dad was very skeptical and worried that I might do the same with a banana, which I didn't. I told him that it would be very delicious and not to worry. I was a little disheartened by all of the "zest" in our smoothie and discovered in my instructions that peeling an orange was highly recommended. My dad did think the smoothie was good, despite all the peeling.

My parents left on Tuesday night. We were all sad to see them go, but are so thankful that they came. We hope that they will come back, and I think I improved my chances when I told my dad that if he came back, I wouldn't make him drink a bunch of orange peelings. Anyway, I took them to Toledo, and Michael's dad generously offered to drive them the rest of the way to Detroit so that I could make it back for Thobe's preschool Christmas concert. The roads were really treacherous, so I feel even more grateful to Warren for doing that for us. I'm happy that my family and Michael's family get along so well.

Thanksgiving

2009-01-09T16:22:00.015-05:00

We planned to have Thanksgiving at our house with Michael's parents and grandparents. Michael's mom, being the the thoughtful, adroit person that she is, recognized that I might not be up to hosting Thanksgiving and called and offered to host it herself. I hadn't thought about the challenge of such an undertaking before, but when she brought it up and made her generous offer, I felt very grateful and even more thankful on Thanksgiving day when I felt miserable most of the day. It was very fun to spend Thanksgiving with Michael's parents and grandparents as well as our good friends, Bob and Kathy Deck and Seana Beavers. The next day, Michael and the boys went with Michael's dad to the Toledo Rockets game to watch the Rockets play my Falcolns. They had a great time, despite Toledo's poor performance.

Perhaps my favorite part about our Thanksgiving was watching the boys interact with the grandparents. As usual, they had a wonderful time with their Grandpa and Abuelita, but they also were able to play with their great grandparents. We loved hearing their stories and songs and building memories that will last for generations. Families really are wonderful. I'm so grateful for both my family and Michael's family.

Perhaps our most exciting news about our Thanks giving, however, is that Alden lost his first tooth. He was pretty excited about it and was especially thrilled about his tooth fairy visit. He's quite the silly boy. We sure do love him.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-22T09:11:00.006-05:00

I really love this time of year! I love all the excitement of Christmas--the decorations, the treats, Christmas songs, Santa, and presents. My favorite thing about Christmas though is that it gives me a chance, when I really try, to think about my relationship with my Savior. Yesterday in church, our stake president, who is a member of our ward, talked about one of my favorite verses of song--the third verse of "O Little Town of Bethlehem."

The song says:

How silently, how silently, the wonderous gift is given
While God imparts to human hearts the blessings of his Heaven.
No ear may hear his coming, but in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him still, the dear Christ enters in.

I love this verse because it causes me to think about how meek my soul is and whether or not I'm ready to receive Christ. It also reminds me, in the clamour and hustle and bustle of this holiday season, to slow down a bit because this gift comes silently. Yesterday, when President Smith was talking about this very thing, he talked about how all the inns in Bethlehem were full. I thought about how often my mind and life are full of so many things that I often do not let the Christ child into my life either. It is my prayer that in this week that I can be meek and open my heart and mind to receive this precious gift--the life and sacrifice of my Savior Jesus Christ. I don't think I have any idea of all that he's done for me. I do know that his life has eternal consequences on mine and hope that I can not only open my heart to receive him but teach my children to do the same.

I hope that you'll have a very Merry Christmas and will feel of the peace that comes when we truly let Christ into our lives.

To view our Christmas greeting, click here:

Our 2008 Monday Family Christmas Greeting

Introducing TICKLE MONDAY!!!

2008-12-19T15:54:00.003-05:00

I have been meaning to write on my blog for quite sometime now, but unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, I've had a rough couple of months. As of today, I'm 12 weeks and 2 days pregnant and can say at this point that this is by far the sickest I've been. With all three boys, I felt pretty horrible from 8 weeks along to about 16 weeks. With this pregnancy, I've been sick, really sick, since I was only 5 weeks. I don't remember being this sick with the boys, although my memory may be selective. Surprisingly though, at this point, I am feeling functional on most days (I only have one or two dibilitated days a week at this point), so maybe I'll be feeling back to normal soon--hopefully. By the way, a vitamin B6 and a Pepcid AC two times a day along with a Unisom at night is a great help for morning sickness!

The boys are thrilled about the news. They are sure that it will be a sister for them because as Thobe often says, "I have zero sisters." They are so sure that it will be a girl that they've even gone as far to name the little darling. Both Alden and Thobe call her (assuming it is a her) Tickle, Tickle Monday. I'm sure as most of you can guess, that if I could choose, I would probably ask Heavenly Father to send me a girl. I turned 34 years old a couple days ago and judging from this pregnancy, I'm not so sure how many pregnancies I have left, so I would really love to have a girl; however, you can safely bet if this baby is in fact a girl that her given name will not be Tickle (I do worry that it might be a nickname though--both Michael and I refer to the baby as Tickle now thanks to the boys). I also want to mention that if there is a little boy growing inside of me that we will gladly take him. We are learning boys and are comfortable with them--girls seem pretty foreign to us at this point.

Anyway, I just wanted to share our family's good news. I'm hoping that I will also make a post soon about my parents' recent visit and our Thanksgiving. The boys have also been incredibly cute. I need to keep up on my blog better!!! Oh well, now that I'm functional, for the most part, maybe I can get to important things such as this.

Announcing Joseph Allen Humphries

2008-12-03T10:56:00.003-05:00

On November 25, 2008, my newest nephew was born. My little brother, John, and his amazing wife, Lindsay, had their first baby. Poor Lindsay was in labor for over 12 hours (I'm sure she can give you the exact number of hours and minutes) and did it all naturally without any drugs. I think she's awesome! The coolest thing is that she and my brother now have a beautiful baby boy that I can't wait to hug and hold and see. My brother vowed he would never change a diaper, but if your read Lindsay's blog, he's already changed many. I talked to John (my brother) the day his new little guy was born. It was such an emotional experience. I am so happy for him and Lindsay and love their entire little family so much. Not being able to be part of these special moments is most definitely the worst part about living so far away.

Trash Talk

2008-11-17T16:54:00.004-05:00

I don't know how many times I've mentioned this, but we love the people here in Ohio, especially the people in our ward. Several months ago, a new family, Josh & Kristi Burke and their three kids, moved into our ward from Utah. When they spoke in church and Josh said that he didn't prepare his talk until the wee hours of morning because he stayed up late watching the Jazz game, Michael knew we would be friends. He has been right. Our families have gotten along splendidly, and we are so glad that they moved here. There is one minor problem with our friendship that will meet its climax this weekend--the Burkes are University of Utah Ute fans. This has been especially troubling for our children who as most of you know are avid BYU fans (yes, they like to Buckeyes and Rockets very much too). Thobe will often mention with uneasiness the Josh that is a Burke who is a Ute fan, and Alden has done more trash talking with Josh than I ever thought he was capable of. Don't get me wrong, Josh encourages this more than you can imagine, but Alden plays right into it. They often argue about which team is better and which team will beat the other team when they play. Alden gets really fired up. Josh is always trying to convince Alden that he should be a Utah fan by bribing him, and Alden adamently stands his ground. It's actually pretty hilarious to listen to the two of them.

Anyway, yesterday we had our Primary program in Sacrament meeting. I'm the chorister for the Primary, so I've been pretty involved in making sure the kids know the songs. Alden and Thobe wrote their own parts for the program and both sang solos as well (our Primary is small enough that everyone who wanted to sing a solo was able to). Anyway, I was so happy with how everything played out and how all the kids did. Thobe is a really quiet kid at church. He has a reputation of not saying much and having his pants at his ankles (I finally found some suspenders that he will wear every week from now on). Anyway, he really stole the show with his part. So many people said afterwards, "I didn't know that Thobe could talk that well." We just smiled (I'm going to attach the video of them saying their parts to this post. I was really happy with how they did).

So after we finished, several people stopped us and talked to us, including Josh that is a Burke and a Ute fan. Josh started talking to Alden about the big game on Saturday and caught my attention when he asked Alden what sign he was flashing him all throughout church. He questioned, "Alden, were you telling me to hang loose?"

Alden said, "No, I was showing you the Y in sign language. Go Cougars."

So even though I thought we were having this very spiritual, uplifting meeting, and my six year old son was silently trash talking his rival. Certainly his love of sports comes from Michael, but I don't think even Michael would trash talk someone during church. I guess we'll have to work on that one.

Anyway, as promised, here are the videos of my kids saying their parts. Alden is sick today, so he might sound muffled. It probably didn't help that Thobe was pounding something in the background. I have both the part that they said and the song they sang. I think it's adorable.

Happy Second Birthday, Hyrum

2008-11-12T14:07:00.004-05:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Yes, I know, it's been over a week since Hyrum's birthday, but I wanted to take a few minutes to write about his birthday and how much I love him. As I've said 100 times, Hyrum is a wild kid. He gets into everything and is constantly climbing and grabbing and throwing. Today I cringed as I heard many, many, many different objects being thrown down the stairs. When I asked Thobe what was going on, he started giggling and said, "Mom, Hyrum's throwing everything downstairs!" Everything may have been an exaggeration, but if he could get it into his hand, it was being chucked down the stairs. Despite all my frustration over some of the things he does, Hyrum and I get to spend a lot of time together with the Alden in school all day now, and Thobe in preschool in the morning Monday through Thursday. He also has somehow worked it out that he gets to stay up later than his brothers too, which also means more one-on-one time with me and Michael. Admittedly, I love this time that we have together. We often play and giggle, and he'll turn to me with a very serious look on his face and say, "Blah blah blah blah, bla bla bla bla bla." I'm certain he knows what he's saying, but I don't yet. Nonetheless, I love that he wants to talk to me. I don't want to communicate here that he doesn't say words. He does. Everyday he says something that I didn't know he could say. His most recent, "I know," when I tell him to do something that he doesn't want to do. He very clearly tells us what he wants too. "I want this" or I want that" (usually the this or that is actually what he wants). I love that he loves music. He is always singing a song and especially loves singing the ABC song. The other night, I tried rocking him to sleep. As I sang, he sang along with me. I loved that time! He loves giving kisses and hugs and will wave at everyone in the world whenever we go anywhere. He is such a doll.

He had a really great second birthday. Michael's parents came down to celebrate with us. We had some of Hyrum's favorite food for dinner--mashed potatoes, jello, and meat, and then he opened his presents. His two favorite presents were a keyboard from Grandpa and Abuelita and a horse that he can ride on. I'll attach a video to this post to show his reaction to his horsey. We had a very fun time, and I think I can say this for our whole family when I say that we're so grateful that Hyrum is part of our family.