Happy Birthday Lane!!!

Today my baby boy turned 2 years old! We played a little yesterday, flew kites, and all took a trip to Target to pick out birthday presents. Today we had blueberry muffins and went to Stake Conference. The older kids really loved making a big deal about Lane's birthday to him. They sang "Happy Birthday" about a zillion times and Cade called him "Birthday Boy" all day long. This evening we ate lasagna for dinner, had cake & ice cream, and played outside for a while. Here is Lane licking frosting off of one of his candles:

And here he is blowing his candles out - he loved it!

As per LeCheminant family tradition, we all said nice things about Lane while we ate our cake & ice cream. Here are some of the responses:

Cade - "Lane is a fun birthday boy."

Maddie - "Lane is cute and he makes me laugh."
Dad - "Lane gives the best hugs & kisses."
Cole - "Lane is fun and he takes care of us if we get hurt."
Mom - "Lane is the best snuggler and he makes me laugh every day."

We all really love Lane and are so happy & grateful to have him in our family happy & healthy. We were reminded of our scary pregnancy with him and are so grateful he is here with us. Here are some of Lane's favorites these days:

Blue's Clues
blocks
balls
helping in the kitchen
reading books
singing songs
mowing the lawn with Daddy (seriously...he could do this all day)

We love Lane & had a fun birthday with him today - can't believe he is 2 already!

Pregnancy Update

We are slowly making our way to the end of this pregnancy - this Wednesday marks 35 weeks - yay! I had a rough few weeks but this past week was pretty good. I am still pretty tired and have to take things pretty easy but I am feeling like I can make it to the end! I had Cole take some pictures of me this evening so here I am!

These are some other lovely shots that Jeff took 3 weeks ago. I didn't think I had gotten much bigger since then but I guess I have a little.

This Wednesday I get to go down to Temple for another ultrasound/growth check. I am excited to see how much the babies have grown. 6 weeks ago, they measured 3 lbs. 1 oz. and 3 lbs. 7 oz. I'm guessing they'll be somewhere between 5 and 6 lbs. this time - at least I feel like I've got 10-12 lbs. of baby in there!

We are still working on names for these little ones - it is much harder than I thought it would be. I don't want them to be matchy matchy names but I want them to be the same type of names, ie. old-fashioned & old-fashioned together, not old-fashioned & trendy...does that make sense? Our top choices are: Sarah & Eliza, and Kimber & Jolee. We plan on using our moms' names for their middle names so that part is easy. I would like to have another set to choose from before they are born but we'll see.

So...the countdown begins - 5 weeks!!!!

First Day of Preschool 2010

In September, Cadeson started a little preschool that we do with some other friends of ours. He goes every Tuesday for 2 hours and he is really loving it. On the first day of preschool, he took his dinosaur for show 'n' tell and this is him modeling it:)

We had to get a shot of Lane - doesn't he look so grown-up?

These two boys have gotten to be pretty good friends since they get to hang out together all day every day. I love watching them together!

And here's the big preschool boy posing for the camera!

Cade is doing such a good job with preschool. He is very intellectual and interested in academics, which is somewhat surprising since he is also so athletic and physical. He is constantly practicing his writing. He is extremely good at writing his numbers and is working on his alphabet. He really likes to count things and is often lining things up according to size and shape. He likes to ask me questions and teach me what he knows, it's hilarious! Cade is such a sweet boy and I love watching him learn & grow!

First Day of School 2010

Do parents ever think that their children aren't growing up quickly enough? I know I don't. I really can not believe that my little man is already 5 and off to his first day of Kindergarten today. And it is all-day K too - from 8am to 3:20pm - what a long day! He was pretty excited about going, even though his excitement is not evident from this shot:) Isn't he so handsome though? Reminds me a little of someone else I know!

Cole is in Mrs. Brewer's class and she seems very nice so we're glad about that. When I went to drop him off this morning, there were a bunch of parents & children all hovering around her classroom door and Cole told me, "Mom...I changed my mind. I don't want to go." He literally dug in his heels and would not go in the classroom. So we opted to take Maddie upstairs to her class first. By the time we got back to Cole's room, kids were sitting in their seats and all the parents were gone so it must not have been so intimidating to him because he just walked right in. I sure hope he is having a fun day!!

These two are best friends and play so well together - I love watching them! Madlyn has been such a mentor to Cole and has been teaching him all about what he can expect at school. I hope they get to see each other at some point during the day.

And of course, Madlyn had to do a cute pose for her picture! Madlyn is in Mrs. Posey's 2nd grade class and is a professional student at this point. When we dropped her off, her room was empty and the teacher wasn't there yet so Madlyn was going to wait outside with one other girl who was already there. When I asked her if she wanted me to wait with her, she seemed almost disgusted that I would even ask:) Before we found out which class she would be in, Madlyn was a little worried because "sometimes the 2nd grade teachers yell at their classes". I am already very impressed with Mrs. Posey though and I don't think Madlyn will have any problems at all:)

The two little guys & I have enjoyed our day so far. We have done a little laundry, taken an elderly lady in our ward shopping, played with some trucks & tools, eaten some Cheetos (our special lunch snack), and now Cade is sitting next to me watching some Diego while Lane rests. Now if only I had a little more energy...

Speaking of my lack of energy, here is the reason why:

Yep, those little girls just keep growing and growing! I am now 3 months from my due date (and trust me, I will probably go that long). I almost felt like announcing that I was pregnant with TWINS in Relief Society yesterday because apparently there are many people who do not know and I have to constantly explain why I am so big with my due date not being until the end of November. Here's just a sampling of the comments I got yesterday:

(whispered to her seat neighbor) "She looks like she's 9 months pregnant"

"So WHEN are you due?"

"Do you always get this big with your pregnancies?"

"Wow, you are PREGNANT!"

"Hey, you could at least try sucking it in!"

Oh, and just so you know...the last two comments were from some jokesters in our ward and of course, they were being funny. The others though...completely innocent!!

My favorite is the look I get when I tell people my due date (without mentioning the twins thing). It really is hilarious! It's like you can see the wheels in their heads turning and then they try to be polite and not make any rude comments. Of course, I tell them after that.

Well, that is what is happening here. I will post some pictures from Cole's birthday and our AZ trip (I only have a few that I stole from my sisters-in-law) soon. I'm hoping to do a better job in the blog department. Maybe just having two kids at home will help that!

Healthy & Happy

Jeff, Madlyn, & I headed down to Temple today to see a specialist for our 18-wk. ultrasound for the babies. We were so happy & relieved to see that both babies' growth is right on track and that they are healthy. I didn't know what they were looking at most of the time but the doctor said that he didn't see anything abnormal or out-of-the-ordinary so we are extremely grateful.

To Madlyn's excitement, we found out that we are having two little girls! We can't believe our family numbers are evening up after so long but we couldn't be more excited for our little "wiggly" girls!

Father's Day

We had a fun day today celebrating our dad - I hope that he felt loved and pampered! Unfortunately, he woke up to a crying wife due to some printer malfunctioning that I had been working on for 2 hours (since 5:45 am) that I really needed to figure out for church. But he saved the day and got his yogurt w/blueberries and homemade granola & toast for breakfast. And no early-morning church meetings meant Jeff got to ride with us to church:) After church, we had a quick lunch and then Jeff was sent to his bed for some R&R. I accidentally fell asleep next to him for a while so our dinner/dessert wasn't done quite as early as I had planned but it was still yummy! We had chicken cordon bleu w/baked potatoes & corn, with Oreo truffle balls for dessert. Yumm-o! Jeff spent the afternoon working on YM stuff and relaxing. We gave him a new book by Mark Levine called "Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto" so he spent a few minutes getting into that. Madlyn & Cole both made him some cards and loved trying to spoil him:) I really hope that he felt the love that we all have for him. Speaking of love, there is no doubt how his youngest son feels about him - he can not get enough of his daddy - it is so adorable! We love Jeff so much and the kids are glad that I picked him to be their daddy!

Jeff & I both have great fathers and we love them! We got to talk to them a little bit tonight and hope they had a great day as well! We are especially excited because we get to see both of them within the next week and can't wait! Just a few of my favorites about my father-in-law and dad!

Dad L:
1) can always make me laugh
2) is so dedicated in his church service and righteous living
3) is a good grandpa
4) is so organized and self-motivated
5) has always made me feel welcome in his family

Dad D:
1) is my namesake and looksake (don't think that's a word)
2) has one of the best hearts of anyone I know
3) is very righteous and service-oriented
4) is a good grandpa
5) has some of the best original sayings
6) and for good measure, he taught me by word & deed how to be honest and fair

We love you, Dads!!!

OK, so I've been getting some requests for some belly shots and a pregnancy update. This first shot is at 14 weeks 1 day, which was just a little over 3 weeks ago. I know it doesn't look like much but it is definitely bigger than this same point in my other pregnancies.

This picture is from tonight, at 17 weeks 4 days. I think it's safe to say I'm growing, don't you?

Funny thing is that we were looking at some old pictures and found some of when I was just a little over 6 months along with Cole. My belly in those pictures is pretty comparable to what it looks like now. Scary:) I have been feeling the babies move quite a bit lately, although every time I put mine or Jeff's hand on my belly, they stop. I think it's funny - it's like 'Uh-oh. Dad's here. We better stop moving!' The movements are still pretty timid and I can't distinguish between Baby A and Baby B but I'm sure that will change soon enough. We have our 18-week ultrasound down in Temple with a specialist on Wednesday so if all legs stay uncrossed:) we should have a gender announcement soon! We are very excited but also very anxious to know how they are developing and hope that they both look good and healthy. We are so appreciative of all of your prayers and expressions of love & concern for us - we have felt them all! And thankfully, I have been feeling much better these days, if only I could avoid the nonstop heartburn:( We love you all & can't wait to see some of our AZ (& UT & VA) folks soon!

Time to get the tacky cut-off graphic off the top of my blog:)

So so it's been a while. I know, the blog just gets neglected sometimes. Not that it isn't important to me but I've got at least 5 other things (people) that come first. And that doesn't include the two that are beginning to take up large amounts of space inside of me:)

I've been wanting to post the latest ultrasound picture of our little babies but sweet Maddie stashed it in her room somewhere and for the life of us, we can't find it. I have another appointment on Friday though, so we will get another shot and I vow not to let her get at it before I can post it:)

With Cole out of school since the 20th of May and Madlyn getting out last Thursday, summer is officially here! We are loving the lack of schedules and rushing to get anywhere. Once I go out and purchase a maternity swimming suit though, we will be hitting up the pool at the Y at least a couple of times a week - we're so excited!

After months of being a horrible, no-good mother/wife/housekeeper, I am starting to feel better and get back into my groove. Today was wonderful! We had planned to go to the park for the library's summer reading kick-off but it poured rain for most of the day. We opted to stay inside instead. We did chores, read books, worked on schoolwork, played Scripture Charades, worked on being more consistent with discipline, watched some shows, washed/folded/put away about 8 loads of laundry, played a little Super Mario Bros. (the original - awesome), some of us got to take naps, and I even got to sneak in some phone time with my SIL. I am so happy. Thankfully for me, when my dear husband came home starving from work and I was still on the phone with his sister and there was no sign of dinner, he didn't complain but just grabbed something quick and easy to go. He really is the coooolest.

Life is good. Jeff is busy at work, with his calling (speaking of - will he EVER get home from mutual?) and being the best dad & husband in the world! I am getting bigger every day and have finally overcome my aversion to the best chocolate chip cookies in the world (my own). Madlyn keeps busy helping me, playing with her brothers, and basically being the best big sister in the world. Cole is learning to read (he surprised me today with how well he did) and is learning to be more responsible & do chores, and is about the best little Wii player in the world! Cade likes to pretend to be Pablo, Tyrone, or Austin from "The Backyardigans", is learning to do chores, and is about the best little ball player in the world! Lane is learning how to talk a ton, keeps getting ear infections (poor guy), and in spite of it all, is about the cutest and happiest little boy in the world!

That's about it - Happy June y'all!!

Happy Mothers' Day!!!

How grateful I am for the wonderful mothers in my life. There are many women who have influenced me for good, and I love you all! In particular, here's some of my favorites things about the mother of my husband, and my very own mother:

Top 5 about Mom L.:

1. she is always supportive of me as a wife and mother; she is never critical
2. she helps me make things pretty
3. she is a good grandma and loves my children
4. she is a good example of righteous living
5. she raised a wonderful man just for me:)

Top 5 about Mom D.:

1. she taught me how to be a homemaker
2. she taught me how to serve and love without judgment
3. she is the most unselfish wife and mother
4. she is a good grandma and loves my children
5. she taught me that the Gospel and family are the most important things in life

Jeff & I are so grateful for our mothers - we love you! Also, I am very humbled and grateful to be a mother. I was spoiled today and loved it! Jeff got me a corsage to wear to church and then he stayed home with Lane who was sick (which made things a little easier to handle at church). I got to sleep for a couple of hours this afternoon and woke up for a delicious dinner of lasagna and corn on the cob and a yummy cookies 'n' cream pie for dessert. I hardly lifted a finger all day and I really appreciate his sacrifice. I was thinking that for me to get spoiled on Mother's Day, Jeff has to take over all of my usual roles in the home, such as preparing meals, cleaning, taking care of children, etc. For me to spoil him, I just have to do my jobs just a little better:) I think he makes a bigger sacrifice and I love him for it!

On a final note, I wanted to post something that Maddie did at school:

The Top 10 things I Love About My Mom by Madlyn

1. You cook the best pie.
2. You make me happy.
3. You let me help cook.
4. You read to me.
5. You are the first mom I ever saw.
6. You make sure I'm loved.
7. You are good at reading.
8. You are good at teatching.
9. You help me clean my room.
10. Mom I love you so much.

Hope y'all had a great Mothers' Day!!

All about Maddie

Oh, my dear sweet Maddie, who is so like her mother in many ways but so different at the same time. I'm chuckling inside as I write this because I have so many flashblacks of my early childhood as I am raising Mads. For instance, every time I brush Madlyn's hair (it's better now that it's short), I can't help but think back to my own wails as my mother brushed my hair. And every time I ask Maddie to use the bathroom, or remind her that the house isn't a jungle gym, I hear my mom's words echoing in my ears. Madlyn is a bouncer. She doesn't walk from place to place, she jumps. It doesn't help that she recently learned to jump rope and even if she doesn't have her rope handy, she practices the jumping almost constantly. I'm reminded of a time a few years ago when I was serving in the Young Women organization and we were doing a "get-to-know-you" activity. We asked all the girls' mothers to give us one word to describe their daughter and we as leaders were to ask our own moms or think of one ourselves. I called my mom and she chuckled a bit as she told me that the one word she immediately thought of to describe me was, "Tigger". Oh, how that describes my Mads. And I tell you what, I have definitely mellowed out as I have grown up. Too much, I think.

Madlyn is a little pack-rat. As a person who likes to streamline everything and hates clutter, it drives me crazy. It is difficult for me to go into her room and see all her piles of stuff everywhere, even though they are neatly organized. I can't even begin to describe the things she collects but it would make you laugh. Every once in a while, I have to have an intervention and I "help" her clean her room and throw things out. I often tell her that if it doesn't fit on a bookshelf, in a drawer, or in a cubby, she doesn't need it:) Last night, Jeff sat down to watch his lecture for his class. Exasperated when he couldn't find his headphones (again), he made his way to his daughter's room where he said she quickly pulled them out of a little stash of junk she had stowed away and handed them to him. We've learned that if we can't find something, we often just need to ask Madlyn and she will have it stashed away somewhere, either being used in one of her homemade contraptions, or by itself just in case she needs it sometime. And about the headphones, this is about the 5th time in the past week that Madlyn has taken off with them. She did come in a few minutes later and promise that next time she would ask before she takes them;)

Madlyn is quite the fashionista. She is always putting different outfits together, sometimes using items from my own closet to supplement her own clothes. The other night for bed, she came out dressed in some leggings with a cute sleeveless top covered by a button-up shirt. That's what she wore to bed, folks. The next morning as we left to take her to school, I noticed she was wearing the exact same outfit.While it was too late for her to change, I did tell her I didn't want her wearing the same thing to school that she wore to bed the night before, hehe. She reluctantly agreed. Hey, but maybe there is something to it. Get all ready the night before and then there isn't much to do in the mornings:)

In so many ways Madlyn is already light-years ahead of me. She is so thoughtful and giving, always helping me and taking care of her brothers. She is a natural-born nurturer. She is very wise and mature and I learn so much from her perspective on life. I am so lucky to get to be her mom and I love her.

I'm in the mood to talk...

I'm just wondering why it is so difficult to go use the bathroom if you feel the urge? I thought we might have lucked out this time but nope, we have 3 children who refuse to take the 30 seconds to use the bathroom. Instead of this difficult chore, they choose to dance, run, jump, anything that will keep them moving. When I remind them to go, they deny the urge altogether. The other night, Madlyn was moving and grooving and I told her to use the bathroom. "But I don't neeeeeed to!" Literally 5 seconds later, she beelines it to the bathroom, calling behind her, "Now I need to go!"

Lane is so funny. He has started to make these funny faces and he is hilarious. His most-used expression is one where he raises his eyebrows and puts his mouth into an "o" shape, almost like he's surprised or something. But he does it all the time:) And he has started running away from me when it is time to change his diaper. If I ask him to go get the diaper (he used to quickly oblige), he vigorously shakes his head no! He still doesn't say much that you can understand but his vocabulary is slowly growing. He says "thank you", "dad", "pizza", "mama", and that's about it. When I go to get him out of his carseat, he turns his head to the side and pretends he's sleeping...so funny! Oh, and when he goes to bed or down for a nap, he likes me to turn music on. He listens to the music from my old music class that I used to teach or my favorite, "Beethoven's Wig" - a collection of classical music that has had lyrics added to each song.

I pretty much have the best husband ever. The past few weeks have been a little rough for me and Jeff has really taken over many of the mundane household tasks and I am so appreciative. I do feel just a little bit guilty every time he makes a meal, or picks up the family room, or washes the dishes, or sorts the laundry, but I am thankful that he is so helpful. I especially like it when he cooks because his meals almost always include red meat (what? did I just say that?)! On top of being Mr. Mom these days, he is still the best dad to our kids and the best husband for me. Man, I love him.

When we told Cade that I have "two babies in my tummy" he got a real worried look on his face and tearfully said, "I don't want to get babies in my tummy." Don't worry honey, you won't:) Maddie & Cole have been very excited and say almost daily, "I can't wait for the babies to be born." Maddie refers to me as "you three" and when she is home will hardly let me do anything without her help. It's too bad she isn't here all day:) Maddie & Cole have been pretending to be twins lately, naming themselves "Twin Max" and "Twin Ruby" after Cole's favorite TV show "Max & Ruby" (which, by the way, is the most annoying show EVER!).

I love the weather here. I love the rain, I love the light breezes, I love the sunshine, I even love the smell of moisture in the air (didn't think I'd ever say that). And the green - I love it!

I made chocolate chip cookies the other day (for the first time in a couple of months) and I still have not eaten one. I have leftover dough in the fridge and have no desires to bake it up. It's weird. They must have been good though because Jeff had a few young men over the other night for a planning meeting and they ate 4 dozen of them!! 4 dozen!! It made me feel good though:)

I guess that's it for now. Life is good and we are happy....

So I think I devised a way to get more company out our way:

HAVE A BABY!

Yep - we are expecting! I am about 9 weeks along and due November 24th.

Are you a bit skeptical that I'll get many visitors with that news? Well, I've got a foolproof plan that will be hard to resist:








HAVE TWO BABIES!

That's right, folks - we are expecting not only #5, but #6 as well:) Here's the proof:

A little shocked? That's all right - so was Jeff, hehe.

Stay tuned for more of my thoughts and rundowns of all my symptoms!



*I'm just kidding, I really won't give you a rundown of all my symptoms:)

Look Who's 7!!!

Our sweet Madlyn turned 7 on Saturday, April 10. Of course Jeff & I have mentioned several times in the past few days that "we can't believe it's already been 7 years" and that "she is growing up so quickly". Just a few facts about Madlyn's birth:

• her due date was April 4, I was induced 5 days later on April 9
• she was born at 4:34 am on Thursday, April 10
• she is our lightest baby so far at 8 lbs. 8 oz.
• she had a little bit of brownish/reddish hair in the back
• she looked like her Grandpa Jim (she was even called a "Jimlet" by one family friend)
• since I had been awake for a couple of days straight and Madlyn wasn't sleeping, I asked the nurse to take her to the nursery for a few hours our first night. They were begging me to take her back because she pretty much didn't sleep all night for them and hated the swing. I'm grateful I got the sleep I did though because our first year together lacked greatly in the sleep department:)

Mads got her ears pierced on Saturday - whoo hoo! She was very excited but got quite nervous when it was time. She was glad to have her cousin Taylor there with her for moral support:)

Funny thing, Madlyn keeps asking me if she looks like she's 8. I tell her that "no, you look like you're 7". She likes Cole's answer better than mine because he told her that she looks like she's 11. It's so funny to me how badly she wants to grow up...reminds me of someone else!

Oh, can you see her two missing front teeth? She was very happy to lose her 2nd front tooth and hopes she can sing "All I Want for Christmas is my 2 Front Teeth" when it's Christmas-time! At the rate her teeth grow in, she just might be able to:)

Mads and the birthday cake

Silly girl!

Always the poser:)

So Maddie's cousin Taylor surprised her by coming down from Dallas on Friday afternoon and was here when she got home from school. She was actually hiding in a big box on our front porch and I told Madlyn to go open it...out popped Taylor! It scared Madlyn but then she was ecstatic! It was so thoughtful of them to come down and we had a great time!

Friday night, we pulled out the camp stove and roasted marshmallows and ate S'mores, played the Wii (Madlyn got a cooking game - I don't think she loves it too much), and stayed up late - much, much too late for the kids:(

Saturday we ate oatmeal for breakfast (Madlyn's request) and then the girls went to Claire's to get ears pierced! In the early afternoon, we went to Subway and then to the park for a picnic and to play. Jeff took Mads & Cole to see the movie "Tooth Fairy" at the dollar theater and then we ate pizza and had birthday cake before rushing off to bed!

At dinner we talked about what we love about Madlyn- Jeff & I said that she is a great big sister, smart, loving, thoughtful, athletic, etc. The boys said that she is nice and lets them sleep in her bed sometimes. I truly think she is about the best big sister that ever was.

Madlyn loved the weekend and all the attention and it was so fun to spoil her! We are so blessed to have her as a daughter and love her dearly. How grateful we are that Heavenly Father decided to send us a girl first, even when we (I) weren't sure what to do with girls:)

Happy Birthday, Madlyn!

aka Mads
Maddie
Madazoa
Hadley Design Group


Oh, so Madlyn had originally requested my "famous peanut butter sandwiches" for her lunch on Saturday and homemade fried rice and orange chicken for dinner. She then changed her mind and wanted chicken pot pie but since we didn't have time on Saturday, I made the pies on Sunday. She is so funny about food and is such a great eater and will eat almost anything! I think I will have to make her some orange chicken soon though - that sounds yummy!

We're Still Kickin'...Barely

So I really have been wanting to put some pictures up but I'm just too tired tonight. I think we keep getting busier every day. Here's a little glimpse of what we've been up to lately:

• potty training Cadeson - the first couple of days were a little rough but since then he's been a champ! As long as his toilet is in the living room and not the bathroom, he does great! He has gone at restaurants, church, stores, museum, etc. without any problems - yay! It is so nice to only have one in diapers these days!
• school, school, and more school - Jeff started his MBA program this semester and I am slowly plugging away at my undergrad. This semester I've been taking a History course about Africa, which is really interesting. Everything is winding down in the next week or two; BUT since I'm a HUGE procrastinator, that means everything starts spinning faster and faster:) I have to read a couple of books, research & write a 10-page research paper, take several quizzes, and take midterm & final exams - all before April 6. Jeff has managed to be much more successful in keeping on top of his classes...I love that quality about him.
• church stuff - our church callings are keeping us quite busy but we are loving what we do. This week I am picking up an order at the home storage center for my ward and then helping everyone get it canned throughout the next week or two. It is fun being involved with the ward's food storage efforts and my kids really like it too. When we canned dry milk a couple of months ago, my boys especially loved it. They wanted to smell it, they wanted me to mix some up for them, they wanted to drink it warm - yuck!

OK, so I know there's more that we've been doing because I feel like I have been pulled in about a million directions for the past couple of months, but for right now I can't think of anything else. We are happy and LOVING each other and I feel so blessed:)

An Introduction

Almost 3 years ago, this blog was created. One of my main reasons for starting a blog in the first place was to give me an outlet to write. It quickly turned into a diary of our family life, which sometimes and sometimes does not includes pictures:) I love that I have such a way to share our daily lives with our loved ones but it is not very often that I feel like I have done 'good writing' in the process.

My heart yearns to write. I want to write about what's in my mind, and in my heart. What I'm working toward and how I'm hopefully getting better every day. But I don't necessarily want this writing to share the same pages as pictures of my lovelies and stories of their funny-isms. So for those of you who might be interested, I have started a new blog dedicated to me...and whatever it is I feel like saying. I can't promise you'll love it or even like it, but I know I'll be having fun!

So come on over to Blondie and say hi! I'll be happy to have you!

Brigham's Graduation Weekend

For Valentine's Day, I was the happy recipient of a plane ticket to Iowa so that I could visit my sister & attend her husband's graduation from Chiropractic School. Jeff & his sister Lyssa (who watched our kids for a day & hosted them all for another day) so sweetly provided the opportunity for me to go sans kids and it was a pretty monumental event for me. I was super-duper excited to see my sister and her family, and I was so happy that it worked out for me to be there to support Brig on his big day.

Brigham's parents & siblings & a niece & nephew made the trip from AZ and so we all hung out together for the weekend. Aside from the graduation, we played a little Rock Band and Settlers, watched some Olympics, ate some of Milla's yummy sweet pork burritos, did YogaX (from P90X), visited the campus, hung out at the mall, shared one bathroom, watched late movies, slept in, and overall enjoyed a very relaxing and fun weekend.

Here are just a few pictures that turned out halfway decent from my camera. Note to self: it might be time to invest in a new camera.

this is where graduation was held - it was a really awesome old building and on the floor to the left was an organ and an organist played all the prelude & processional music - kind of eerie (or maybe it was just the choice of music)

all over the buildings were different quotes - it was so fun to read them all as we walked around. this one by Thoreau is one of my favorites - it reminded me of a few conversations I've had with Milla about making 'conscious decisions'. Milla is one wise woman:)

Here is the graduate - man, we are so proud of Brigham, I mean Dr. Adams. He graduated with his Bachelor's Degree and his Doctor of Chiropractic at the same time so he has been going to school for about 10 years and this is his first graduation ceremony. He has worked so hard and will be a great chiropractor! (Oh wait, he already is!)

another quote that I liked. B.J. is the founder of the school - B.J. Palmer. I didn't get any pictures of it but there was a huge collection of skulls, spines, and other such skeletal pieces that B.J. had acquired. It was very interesting to see but just a little bit morbid for my taste.

And here's the proud family (minus Parks who stayed with a neighbor for graduation). Camilla, Layton, & Parks have also worked so hard to make this day possible - I'm so excited for them all! Oh, and if it looks a tad chilly outside...that's because it was...I had to pull out my good ol' Ricks College coat to keep from freezing my hiney off!

Some fun/funny memories from the weekend:

hanging out with my sister & chatting
getting to see Brigham's graduation
getting a massage from my massage therapist sister
getting an adjustment from my chiropractor brother-in-law
playing Rock Band and rockin' it on the drums
asking Brig's friend who is from Canada if it is "super cold there" and him answering, "super-duper cold" (I think I left half of my brain at home with my family)
playing with Parks & hearing Layt read to us
eating my sister's yummy french toast
planning outfits with the girls
sleeping in as late as I wanted
hearing the girl at Subway tell a customer that "we don't have 4 inch subs...we just take a footlong and cut it into three pieces" (I haven't laughed so hard in a long time)
eating Ben & Jerry's at the airport
Whitey's ice cream in Davenport

It was such a great weekend and I'm so glad I could go - thanks Adams' for the fun time!

Cutest Kids Ever

Last night our company left - we were lucky enough to have Jeff's mom & his sister Noelle and her sweet baby Sabrina come visit for a couple of days - and we were a little bit sad. So we did what any good parents would do and set up the tent for an indoor campout! That got the kids' minds off of our lonely house and onto something fun & exciting. We got them all snuggled up with their sleeping bags inside the tent and we left to start getting ready for bed. Funny thing happened though; when I checked on them later, Madlyn was nice & cozy...in her bed. Cade was curled up tight...in his bed. Cole was the only one left in the tent and he slept there all night. I guess Mads & Cade aren't too big on camping:) They were so cute about it though and I just had to take some pictures!

Don't you just love the kids' jammie shirts? Mesa Bank was good for something, right?! j/k

I just thought this was a cute picture of Cade - he is pretty funny. Oh, I took him for his 3-yr. checkup on Friday and he weighed 31 pounds. I got to thinking about it and realized that he has only gained about 12 pounds since he was 4 months old. So either he is just small or else he was really huge when he was 4 months. I'm guessing it was the latter!

This boy just makes me smile! He has the funniest facial expressions and vocals! He just loves being a part of the action and thinks he is just as old as the rest of us! Tonight he came up to me and was telling me something and pointing. So I followed him to our front entryway to a closet. He had pulled the vacuum out and started jabbering...I guessed that he wanted me to vacuum. Well, it needed done so I plugged it in and started vacuuming. He lit up and did what he always does - he ran to the vacuum, stood right in front of it and laughed. He's been watching the boys who like me to chase them with the vacuum and I guess this is his little variation on that same concept:)

Seriously, don't you want to just eat him up?

OK so the tent thing was really not a good idea. We left it up today and let them try sleeping there again. Jeff & I have been in our room for over an hour and I just went to check on them because they started being noisy. The light was on and they had a whole party goin' on in there. Toys, cookies from FHE, all kinds of fun stuff! And Cade is seriously so funny. Whenever you ask him to get in bed, he will stand there (or walk super slowly) and say, "I'm gooooo-ing. I'm goooooo-ing." It is so funny. As I type, he is trying to sneak into our room like a puma:) He thinks that if he is on his hands & knees, I won't see him. Speaking of pumas, the other day Cade was looking at a BYU Cougars hat that we have. He observed, "Look Mom! It's a white puma!" "Cade, do you know what a white puma is called? (really it was tan but he doesn't know the difference) It is called a cougar." "No, Mom. Santa is a cougar. The puma is not a cougar." It took me a minute to figure out what in the world he was talking about but then I remembered one of his favorite Christmas movies is "Mr. Krueger's Christmas". Santa Claus, cougars, pumas....they're all connected!

Well that's it for now! I guess it's time for me to work on some other things - I've been procrastinating long enough!

"Since it's My Birthday"

Yesterday we celebrated my sweet Cadeson Glen's 3rd birthday. Wow! It feels like yesterday I was walking around my neighborhood trying to go into labor with him. And jumping on the Slaters' trampoline, and bouncing on my exercise ball, and all the other things I did to try to induce labor, hehe.

Yesterday morning when Cade woke up (as usual, he was the first one), we presented him with his first present: a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch:) He was pretty excited and proceeded to eat several bowls for his breakfast. I had to teach Cole's preschool from 9-12 so poor Cade didn't get much birthday attention for those hours. He did join in the preschool fun a little...and distracted us all a lot. At a couple of points, he tackled Cole and they wrestled on the floor for a bit. I think he just wanted Mom to remember whose birthday it was:) He liked the soft pretzels we made into the letter "x" for snacktime and then when preschool was over we had Ramen noodles for lunch.

After lunch, I pulled out some cakes I had made & frozen last week and proceeded to make a very amateur-looking race track cake. The perfectionist in me lasted about a second, especially when I was halfway through frosting and decided my frosting was too thick (too late now) and when I couldn't find the tip I wanted to use for piping the stripes and when I chose not to use the blender for the Oreo race track (never wake a sleeping child) and couldn't figure out another good way to crush them. Oh well. Cade was very excited for his cake and that is definitely all that matters to me.

When Jeff got home, we ate homemade mac & cheese and edamame for dinner (this kid is pretty easy to please) and talked about the reasons why we all love Cade. Maddie said that she loves him because he is a good brother and because he makes her laugh. Cole said that he is a good brother and he plays with him...sometimes. Lane plead the fifth. I said that Cade is a good basketball player, is smart, and gives the best hugs around. Jeff said "That's what I was going to say." He said other things too but I can't remember what they were - sorry honey. We also talked about the day Cade was born - how we had to drive to Grandma's house kind of early in the morning and how Mom was "squealing" in the front seat (quote from Maddie - I promise you, I did not squeal. I barely made a sound. Even when we made it to the hospital & it was discovered that I was VERY far progressed, nobody could have guessed it). How Maddie came up with the name Cade (in her mind, yes...in reality, no:) ) and how we didn't know he was a boy or a girl until he was born, and how he was a big baby, 9 lbs. 4 oz. How much we loved him and were so excited to have him in our family, and how good of a baby he was.

Cade then opened his presents and when he got a plastic bowling set, his eyes got wide and he exclaimed in his cute high-pitched voice, "Oh! I love this!" He said the same thing when he saw the picture my mom had drawn of him playing basketball. "Oh! I love it!" It was the darlingest thing. I know that's not a word but I'm a mom here, not the grammar police.

Cade spent some of the evening watching part of the movie "Cars". "Mom, I told you that we had it!" - again in his cute high-pitched voice. (Ours got lost and we just recorded it on TV the other night and surprised him with getting to watch it for his birthday).

Cade's 3rd birthday ended with him watching country music videos on the computer with his daddy (one of which I heard him singing this morning - "blow, blow, Seminole wind") and then lying down next to him and getting tickles to lull him into dreamland. What a lucky boy. And what a special dad.

I love my Cade boy. He is so smart, funny, sweet, creative, cuddly, athletic, and good-hearted. With just a dash of mischievous and feisty thrown in for good measure. I'm so happy he decided to join our family 3 years ago; he was definitely worth the wait*.



*For those who don't know, my labor with Cade is the only one for me that was not induced...but it was 9 days past his due date. Those were some of the most agonizing & excruciating days of my life. But I think his labor story is my favorite because it was so super exciting to finally be experiencing labor on my own. And the sweet baby I got at the end of it all was the icing on the cake.

Once there was a Snowman...Texas Style

Thursday night, Jeff's sister Lyssa & her children stopped at our house on their way home from San Antonio for a little sleepover. It was such a fun way to break up our week just a little bit and relax from daily pressures. While they were here, they found out that their school was cancelled for Friday because of all the snow the Dallas area was getting; that meant they didn't have to rush home early the next morning to make it back for school - yay! We were all a little bummed though because the snowfall hadn't been too impressive here in Hewitt so we knew school would be in session for Mads.

Jeff went out to start his car Friday morning before work and came back in & said that it was being announced on the radio that some schools were being delayed 2 hours and that we better check on ours. So we checked the website and sure enough - 2 hour delay!! I thought, "Wow. We must have gotten a lot of snow last night to warrant a snow delay." I looked out the window and the ground was basically sprinkled with snow - I laughed because "There isn't even any snow out there!" But I didn't complain because it meant that we got to take our time eating yummy french toast, playing with our best TX cousins, and making a snowman. OK, it was really just Maddie & Jake who made the snowman, which stood about a foot & a half tall - hehe. Everyone else wimped out and didn't last very long outside. I don't blame them though because we desert Arizonans are not prepared for snow and the kids were using socks to protect their hands from the cold. Maddie said "It was sooooo cold. Me & Jake had to share socks:)" Cute kids.

I love the Dallas Cowboys hat the snowman is sporting - that doesn't mean we're fans or anything (it's Jake's hat) - but I thought it very fitting for our "Texas snowman". (Not that I have anything against the Cowboys either...I'm just an AZ girl:) )

Oh, and when I went to get the newspaper out in the front yard, the headline read, "A SNOWY MESS". Haha. Tell that to all the folks in northern AZ and Washington, D.C. and all the other places where they've been getting snowed in all winter:)

It was such a fun morning - thanks McAleavys for coming to play with us!

Update

I just can't seem to get myself updating regularly these days. There are so many things I want to talk about and so few pictures that I have taken. I am sooo bad at taking pictures - I guess I am just having too much fun doing the activities & projects that I don't want to take the time to snap a pic! And while I don't mind posting without pictures (I am a writer, ya know)...I'm pretty sure I know a few people who get bugged by it:) so that's why I haven't posted in a while. But tonight I don't care - so here's your update...without any pictures.

Mads lost her first top front tooth (I know - I really should have a picture of this one). She came home from school one day with her tooth super duper loose. So she wiggled and wriggled and jiggled it until it was barely hanging on. Jeff tied some dental floss around it and attached it to one of our GeoTrax trains. He put Mads in charge of the remote and so she started it and sent it wildly careening down a steep slope...er, she sent it haltingly down the slight incline. It didn't work. She tried one more time...no luck. She decided she'd had enough of the train idea and so we cut the floss off (some was still wrapped around her tooth) and she hung out like that for a while. Finally...after lots of drama & complaining & threatening by Mom to just pull it out, Dad helped her hold her mouth in warm water to soften the gums and she pulled it out, all by herself. Of course, the tooth fairy didn't show up the first night, or the second night. I'm pretty sure it will not be long before the jig is up with Maddie. Not because she's not innocent and trusting and believing but because seriously, how long can you really believe that the tooth fairy is that forgetful?

Cade is stinkin' funny. The other day we were looking at a shape book together and he asked me what a star says. "Stars don't say anything," said I. "Yes they do, Ma. They say...Twinkle, twinkle little star. How I wonder what you are...." Cade is definitely a challenge for me as a mother (not because he isn't smart, funny, or cute but because...well, you know). But I feel like we are making progress in our communications together and he seems to be more happy & well-adjusted these days. It is wonderful!

Cole is also hilarious. I work really hard to give him choices & options because he does NOT like to be told what to do. The boy cannot be rushed either. I can often be heard saying some of the following,

"Cole, if you don't do your chore then Mommy will do it because I need a clean house. But if Mommy does your chore then you will have to do one of mine in exchange."

"Cole, it is your responsibility to take care of this because it is yours and you got it out. If you don't take care of it, then it might get lost or taken away."

So in theory, this works. And it actually does much of the time. But lately, this is what I've been hearing from Cole.

"Mom. You need to do this job because you have to do jobs for me."

"Who got my pajamas out for me? You. So that means you are responsible for putting them away."

Do you see how things have gotten a little distorted? I haven't quite figured out the best way to handle this one:)

Lane is a little blabbermouth. He talks a lot and it is really cute. The only problem being that you can't understand anything he says. He still hasn't said Mom or Dad where I know that's actually who he is referring to. The other night I was making pizza and he was "helping" me and I asked him to say 'pizza'. He did. It was soooo cute! So I kept making him say it over and over again so Jeff & the other kids could hear it. I think now he knows that he's performing and every once in a while, he'll say pizza just to see our reaction! Since then, he has imitated a couple of other words but I can say without a doubt that pizza was his very first word! Oh, Lane had a well check-up last week and he is in the 35th percentile for his height & weight. Can you believe that my 10 lb. 4 oz. baby is only in the 35th percentile? Crazy...

In other news, Maddie tried to watch TV this morning before church (we have 9am meetings). I had to ask her several times to turn it off. So...I decided that we need to take a little hiatus from the television and told them that we would not be watching at all this week (even Mom). They played so well all afternoon and didn't even ask to watch but this evening, Mads kept saying, "Mom...I really NEED TV." Um, do you think maybe she watches too much? I usually keep their TV time pretty regulated but the past couple of weeks I've been pretty lenient and obviously it is no good. Haha. Although, I probably should have thought before I gave my verdict because Jeff's out of town all week and I have a hard time going to sleep with him gone and I usually watch television until I can't stay awake any longer. Oh well, I'm sure this purging will be good for me too - it's not like I don't have plenty of other things to keep me busy. Like homework, right Mom??

Well...that's it for now. Maybe I'll update a little sooner this time...and with pictures!

Round 10

We're sick at our house...AGAIN. I swear, I think someone in the family has been sick every day since before Thanksgiving. Of course, we've had short breaks where's everyone has felt good but even then, Lane's had a constant runny nose. Which doesn't help his ears one bit. Ugh!

Cole has been throwing up tonight. When stomach stuff comes around, I just dread Cole getting it because it always seems to hit him the hardest. Or maybe it just manifests itself in different ways with him. With the little guys, I get to change a few extra fun diapers. With Cole, he pukes. A lot. When he was about 15 months, he got the stomach flu and threw up for 11 days. It was terrible. We had just moved into our house and I remember sacrificing myself many times just so he wouldn't get it on the carpet. Those were days of many showers and many many loads of laundry.

So tonight Cole gets to sleep with us (trust me, it's a rare treat) so he doesn't have to climb all the way down from his bunk bed to make it to the bathroom. When I gave him the news, he smiled his sweet smile and said "Thanks Mom." I told him he just couldn't throw up on me:) He agreed.

Here's hoping that the rest of us stay healthy this weekend!

Two Funny Stories For Today

We were out until bedtime last night so I had Maddie wake up early to take her shower this morning. She came out of the bathroom protesting, saying that "someone else is in the other shower and I don't want the water to be cold". I assured her that Dad would only be a few minutes and that the water wouldn't be cold. We checked it just to make sure and so she climbed in. As she was finishing, I went to check on her and she was not happy with me. Apparently, I was wrong and her water was COLD. She wrapped up in her towel and refused to get dressed because she was too cold:) Anyways, just a little bit later, Jeff came out and asked Mads how her shower was, if it was cold or warm. She gave him that look you saw in the picture (yes, she's good at it) to let him know that she was not happy to report that it was cold. I sheepishly asked Jeff how his shower was and he informed me that it was FREEZING and that hot water can't be used in two different places at the same time or it will just be cold for both. Sorry guys:)

This afternoon I opened the garage to go get Maddie from school and two dogs that were just roaming around the neighborhood decided to grace us with their presence. They ran into the garage, jumped up on me, and then proceeded to climb in my van! So if you know me at all, you know that I am not a dog person...AT ALL. I was totally chicken! I started yelling at them to get out and was so afraid to touch them lest they turn on me or one of the boys. They made themselves at home, one climbed up in an empty carseat and another walked all the way to the back seat (and they were not small dogs). I could NOT get them out. I was desperate. We were trying for several minutes and I was late to get Maddie and I didn't want her to be standing outside in the cold for too long...I wasn't sure what to do. But then I remembered the leftover ham I had in the fridge - I was saved! I ran inside, grabbed the meat, tempted the doggies with a couple of pieces and then threw it away from the driveway. They ran out and got their meat, we closed the doors as fast as we could, and we high-tailed it out of there. Of course this would happen to me.

Anyways, hope we gave you a little chuckle!

Christmas 2009

We had such a lovely, relaxed Christmas. Jeff had to work on Christmas Eve so that kind of stunk but it gave the kids & I the chance to do some cooking & sewing together. I had decided to make stockings for the kids this year but procrastinated and ended up starting & finishing all 4 of them on Christmas Eve. They liked helping me, especially Maddie. We also made a chocolate cheesecake, cheesy potato casserole, and bundt rolls together. Mads & Cole kept saying, "This is the best Christmas Eve ever." It was so perfect. We were all working together and enjoying each other's company and I was keeping my patience and everything:) Cade came walking into the kitchen, "Mom...it's snowing!" So we looked out the window and sure enough, there it was! It didn't snow for too long and it didn't really stick but it was so magical. We haven't really had snow on Christmas so it was exciting for the little ones. Later in the evening, we had dinner with our friends, the Stirlands. It was freezing cold outside with the wind howling and I just kept thinking how peaceful & calm it felt in their home that evening. While we were there, we looked out the window and saw that the lawn was covered with white. Again, magical!

Before we went to bed, we gave the kids one present to open and they were surprised to find....a pair of new jammies! I know, we're so original. But they were excited and they all put them on and posed for some pictures...except Cade. He had even picked out his new Lightning McQueen jammies by himself and he absolutely refused to put them on. Funny kid.

Christmas morning dawned (way too early since I had stayed up until 3:00 am finishing the stockings, cleaning the house, & playing Santa), and Cade was the first one up! So we chilled for a little while, Jeff built a fire (the coolest thing to have a fireplace), and then we woke Mads & Cole up. We let Lane sleep for the main event and then he had his own private gift-opening party. Santa brought Razor scooters for the oldest 3 and they were pretty happy about that. We were all pretty spoiled and spent a fun day playing with our new toys.

In the afternoon, our friend Erin & her son Dillan came over to hang out & eat some Mexican haystacks. The kids had fun playing with Dillan and I loved chatting with Erin. I think Jeff enjoyed just relaxing and letting someone else listen to my chatter:) We finished up the evening by watching the last half of Home Alone...classic.

It was such a wonderful holiday. I absolutely loved just being with my family and enjoying the spirit of Christmas. We've also had such a fantastic Christmas break and I am super sad to see it come to an end.

Here are a few pictures to document our day:

I'm not sure what Mads is doing here but I just thought it was a funny shot of her...and so typical. I think she might have been trying to convince me that it was time to eat a snack:)

Here is a close-up of Cole & Maddie's stocking...Mads' is the one on the left. I made all of the boys' ruffles out of the same fabric and then Maddie's stocking was made with that fabric.

Here are all of them in order of age, with Mads' being on the left. I know, I'm a terrible picture-taker.

Here's Cole enjoying his new ride.

Cade playing with the GeoTrax they got...and he's pajama-less. That's right, he didn't wear any jammies that night. He definitely marches to the beat of his own drummer, that's for sure.

My sweet Lane baby smiling for the camera. He loved everything about Christmas!

Mads & Cole eating their breakfast Santa left them in their stockings. Surprisingly, they weren't very impatient to open presents...they were just content to enjoy their stockings. I loved it!

Cade checking out the stockings before anyone else was up. Funny thing about his new jammies...every night since Christmas, I have given him the option of wearing his new ones and he has refused to. Last night, he reluctantly decided to wear them but took them off several times before finally getting into bed (they're the cozy feet kind and he can unzip them). And he ended up taking them off sometime in the night (the boy gets hot). But then tonight he asked to wear them again...so maybe we have a new favorite!

One quick story about Cole: for a few weeks now, he has been begging me for exercise pants. Cade & Lane both have some and for some reason, he decided that he needed some. So like everyday he would ask me if I had found any yet...so funny. Well, I bought him some for Christmas and it was the present he opened last. He just looked at them for a few seconds without saying a word, and then he quickly came over to me and gave me the biggest hug ever. "Mom, I love you." It was really so sweet. I loved how out of everything that he got, that small gift of the exercise pants seemed to touch him the most. Cute kid.

Well, that's about it. We hope you all had as wonderful a Christmas as we did!