bouquets of freshly sharpened pencils

Ahhh, back to school. I must admit I was kind of dreading this day because of all that is going on in our lives right now but as I logged into my Bio 100 class tonight (that's right, I have never taken Biology on a college level), I felt a little shiver of excitement run through me. I know it will be hard work (not the actual class, just the time spent doing it) but I am glad that I decided to go for it. It may be slow progress, but I am thrilled that I get to be working towards my goal of getting my college degree, even if it is only 1 or 2 classes at a time. And then when my kids are older, who knows? maybe a law degree is in my future :)

I've Been Thinking

A dangerous pasttime, I know. But it's one of the things I do best. So here are some of the things that have been going through my mind lately:

1. I love watching my children learn. It is so rewarding for me to watch Madlyn's manuscript improving every day as she practices writing more and more, and to listen to her read, and all the other fun stuff she's been learning. We have been practicing the letter sounds with Cole lately, especially the letter 'l' because he substitutes it with the letter 'w' sound, and he is finally getting it. Now he comes up to us and proudly says, 'Lincoln', or 'love', or anything that will show off his new skill. Cade is really learning to talk and it is absolutely amazing to me to hear him say new words every day. These young minds are so sharp and soak up learning like a sponge. Now if I were only a better mom and worked with them more...
2. I'm finally coming to the realization that there will be a baby at the end of this pregnancy and I'm excited. These past 8 months have been such a blur, I feel like it hasn't sunk in that we will actually be welcoming a new little guy into our family, but here he comes. I am feeling the usual discomfort that occurs at the end of a pregnancy but I do not feel rushed for him to come. (I think I've learned that they are more work once they come out...and I know that he won't stay in there forever, so what's the rush?) My only feelings of anxiousness stem from the fact that I am sick of worrying about him and not knowing for sure that he is healthy and sound. It will be good when he is born and we can see him and know. All of us are getting super excited to meet this little guy and put a name to his face!
3. Life is unpredictable and scary at times. As much as I would like to plan everything out, Plan A hardly ever happens. I'm learning to be flexible, prepare for the worst, and pray for the best. Through it all, I feel extremely blessed and lucky to have the husband and family that I have. I am often amazed at how much fun it is to plan and dream with my best friend and the one I love. So, even though it can be unpredictable and scary, life for me is happy and good.
   
4. It is very hard to be a perfect wife, mom, and homemaker. OK, so I am not professing in any way to be perfect but I must think that it is attainable because I keep trying to get there. And it's just not happening. I'm pretty sure I could spend my whole life taking care of the logistics of running my household (food, laundry, cleaning, bills, etc.) and never have any time for playing with the kids, working on church callings, having a hobby, exercising, spending time with Jeff, serving those around me, etc. Sometimes I feel like a hamster on his wheel, running and running but never getting anywhere. I'm trying to figure out some kind of balance before #4 comes and throws it all out of whack again. :)
5. I love being a domestic diva. Again, I'm not really proclaiming that I am one, but I sure like to try. It really makes me happy when I spend a day baking, cleaning, and doing other domestic duties. I know, I'm weird. Maybe someday I'll actually be good at it.

Happy Birthday to my Better Half!

To the best husband, dad, and kid-at-heart ever, I love you and hope your birthday is wonderful!

Overheard....

I've been having some interesting conversations with my kids since Maddie started school and has been exposed to a whole new world and Cole has a little more one-on-one time with Mommy. Indulge me while I share a few.

Madlyn: Mom, we have to cut out box tops (while frantically looking on a graham cracker box) and take them to school.
Me: OK. I'm pretty sure we have some we can cut out.
M: Mom, we really have to cut some out. If we don't give the school box tops, then our school won't get any money.
Me: All right. Let's have lunch and we can cut some out later.
M: No, let's find some right now. Raelyn brought box tops and Merrek brought box tops so we have to bring some box tops.
OK, so then she proceeded to look on every granola bar and cereal box (thank goodness I just got about 20 boxes of granola bars for free) and cut out every single box top. It was very exciting for her.
M(with a sigh of satisfaction when she was all finished): box tops are sooo cool.


Cole: Mom, I was snoring while I was resting.
Me: Oh, yeah?
C: Yeah, but I'm OK. It didn't hurt.


Me: Mads, you have some beautiful curls.
M: Thanks, Mom. I like them too.
(pause)
M: Mom, I like the way He made me.


Cole: Mommy?
Me: Yes, Cole?
C: I wuve you.
Me: I wuve you too, son.
C: Mom, you're silly. You say 'wuve'.

Country to the Core

One of the things that first attracted me to Jeff when I met him was the fact that he was a John Denver fan. I had never before met someone (outside of my family) who appreciated the same kind of music that I did and I was so excited. OK, I'm pretty sure I would have liked him even if he didn't like John Denver but it was definitely cool. We even had my parents sing their classic JD duet at our wedding reception...very fitting.


One of my favorite things now is listening to Jeff sing to the kids before they go to bed. While my songs of choice are usually Primary songs (or if we're having a rough time winding down, "I've Been Working on the Railroad"), Jeff opts for the sweet soothing tones of "Country Roads" or "Annie's Song". One night last month, while we were staying at my in-laws' while family was in town, we were both singing "Country Roads" to help the kids go to sleep. Pretty soon I noticed that Cole was quietly singing along and that Madlyn was mouthing the words and playing a little air guitar. :) Very funny, by the way. I was surprised that they both seemed to know all the words.


Since then, we have discovered that indeed, Madlyn & Cole both know all the words to "Country Roads" (at least the ones we taught them - we forgot some of them ourselves) and that they love to perform it. I don't have a digital video camera so you can't all see how stinkin' cute it is but if you want to come over, I'm sure they'd sing it for you.


P.S. I'm a little more proud of this accomplishment than the fact that they both can sing most of the words to Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire".

I Like to Look at Rainbows

Tonight during scripture study we were reading the end of Alma 5 and Alma's invitation to "Come and be baptized unto repentance, that ye also may be partakers of the fruit of the tree of life" sparked a discussion about baptism. Among other things, we talked about how old a child has to be before they can get baptized and we named some cousins and friends who have recently been baptized or will be soon. As I began telling the kids a little about my own baptism, it clicked: today is the 19th anniversary of my baptism into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Memories flooded back as we talked about who baptized me (my dad) and what it was like for me on my special day.

August 12, 1989: almost 3 weeks after my 8th birthday...I thought I would die having to wait so long. Back then, it was not uncommon for a child to get to be baptized on her exact birthday, but to have to wait 3 weeks was almost unheard of. Another unique thing about my baptism was that I was not the only one to get baptized that day in my ward (back then almost everyone got their own special baptism date). Austin Perkins (who had celebrated his bday back in June) and Mindy Jackson (who was a couple of weeks younger than me) were baptized that same night.

We were baptized in order of our age, so I was right in the middle. I got to wear a white baptism dress instead of the usual jumpsuit (I felt pretty lucky) and then I changed into a beautiful dress that my mom had made. I am not really good in the water and I was pretty scared about the whole situation but I remember thinking that it hadn't been that bad after all.

It was a special day for me and one I will never forget. The blessings that have stemmed from that decision to get baptized are more than I can even possibly try to enumerate or describe. I am so grateful for the Gospel in my life and for the strength and sustaining power that I receive from my testimony of Jesus Christ and the Plan of Salvation.

My Baby Is Growing Up!

So I sent Madlyn to Kindergarten this week - cry, cry. Actually, I pulled off the almost impossible feat (for a pregnant me at least) and didn't shed a single tear. She was super excited and couldn't go to sleep the night before and has been waking up bright & early every morning so that she can get ready to go. Unfortunately, it's been a little bit harder for Mom to get used to our new bedtime & wake-up time :) I still think I need to go to bed at 10:30 or later and then I can't hardly roll out of bed in the mornings. But so far we haven't been late (we were so close today though).

I am sooo upset because I took the cutest pictures of Madlyn on her first day before we left home and then with her friends Raelyn & Merrek who are in her class (yay!) and when I uploaded them onto my computer this morning, somehow it didn't work and they were deleted from my camera and I can't find them anywhere on the computer. Thanks to Cindy I have one so that you can all see how cute she looks with her backpack and new school clothes!

I can't believe my little baby is already in school - I have been having all kinds of emotions running through me. I think the biggest feeling - beyond being super excited for her - is that I haven't done enough to prepare her for the craziness of the world out there. I realize that I won't ever stop teaching her but I am a little paranoid I guess. She is a great girl though and I know she will do so well. Congratulations, Mads!