Baptism Invitation

Quincy is really excited for her baptism on Sarurday. We made these invitations for her to pass out to her friends and neighbors. She is such a special girl, it will be a wonderful day!  

There were 5 in the Bed and the Little One Said, "Roll Over!"

I love having a big family. Look at this wake up crew. No shortage of bodies or giggles today! 

Giving Thanks at Ft Willy

2014 has been very good to us in the way of visitors, this year. I think we've had more company in the past 9 months than we've had in several previous years combined. It's been wonderful. 

Scott (my brother), Kristie, and Benjamin rolled in on Saturday afternoon and we've spent the week playing together. Here are some highlights: 

Reese and Quincy are kind of obsessed with Uncle Scott. I warned them ahead of time that 90% of everything that comes out of his mouth us total malarkey, but they still fell for every joke he cracked and followed him around all week.

Here they are braiding his bed hair into tiny ponies. 

A lot of ping pong was played this week. Aaron was grateful to have an actual challenge (I am terrible) around to play with. 

One night, Soren grew tired of waiting for the pong pong tournament to end so he could go to bed (his room is right next door), so he grabbed his blankets and set up camp on the stairs. 

We spent a day at Crystal Bridges because A) it's amazing and B) my brother is an artist and an architect, so naturally he was stoked for a tour. We were part of an installation that sampled and compared water from local sources (beaver lake, river water, and spring water). 

I feel very fortunate that my children have the opportunity to be exposed to such a collection of amazing art, as well as an incredible space. We love the art museum. 

Reese has recently shown interest in drawing and had a lot of questions for Scott. He pointed out some cool things to her at the museum, and later when we were home, gave her an art lesson and a lot of tips for drawing people.

I love this photo of Scott's hands for a number of reasons, but mostly because Corbin took it and I think he framed a great shot. 

Reese is obsessed with penguins lately. 

We stopped at the park on the way home from the museum because somehow, after a trip to Freddy's and hours at the museum, they still had energy to burn. 

The fun never stops around here. 

I had fun teaching Kristie how to make artisan bread. Her loaves turned out perfectly and were yummy with dinner that night.  

SInce it's a vacation week, the girls got to stay up late one night with me and I finally did their nails. Quincy chose a blue tiny bumblebee print and honeycombs. Reese chose plaid and tiny Scotty dogs. I was too tired to do my own by the time I finished theirs, but considering my current state of sudden onset constant discomfort (read: excruciating back pain), I see a massage and possie pedicure in my future. I will happily go sit in a massage chair somewhere and pay someone else to make my toes pretty and my feet non cracked. Wanna come with me? Excellent. 

Scott had a meeting with Marlon Blackwell at U of A one day, so Kristie and I took the kids to CEC and lucked out, since the place was empty when we got there. 

After, Kristie mentioned wishing she could see what Fatetteville is like, so we took a spontaneous drive down there and I showed her the school, town square, lake, mall, and the glorious Rick's Bakery. 

My nephew Ben us so cute. I can't believe how well he and Soren played together? Especially for two two year olds who do not share. They did great together! 

Ben loved petting, feeding, and chasing the chickens all over the backyard. 

We were appropriately lazy on thanksgiving day. Scott and Kristie aren't huge turkey fans anyway and my back has been messed up and giving me trouble for days, so we simplified the menu and called it good. We had turkey breasts, potatoes and gravy, green beans, homemade rolls,  pumpkin gooey butter cake, and apple pie. Everything turned out yummy.

Aaron took our antsy boys on a daddy date, and the girls worked on rainbow loom crafts and recruited Scott to help them with the complicated YouTube instructions. He was super patient with them and even made a pig charm for them. 

I wish I'd had the physical capacity to cook more, play more, and sit less. Even though my body kind of crapped out on us for a couple days, it was still a real treat to have family here for thanksgiving, and they were totally understanding. 

I wish my kids could have more opportunities to play with cousins here. They loved every minute of having Ben here and bonded well with him. They loved showing him their room, toys, yard, and community.  I really hope the future eventually brings Scott and Kristie to Fayetteville eventually so we can see them much more often. 

Thanks for coming to see us, Scott and Kristie! We love you! 

Apple Box Surprise

Quilting Day 3

It's done! 

Eunice came over after diner tonight and taught me the last step to quilting: binding. 

Oh wow did it take forever. But the final result is worth it.  It's finally finished! 

Now I just need to finish making a bumper, changing pad covers, crib sheets, a crib skirt... and a baby. :) 

If feels wonderful to have this project (or any project, really) complete! 

Eunice is the best teacher. If you are interested in sewing lessons, I highly recommend commissioning her. She is a very good teacher. 

My good luck charms tonight were these obnoxious and horrendously creepy cat socks my friend, Sarah, gave me to labor in.  

Aren't they terrifying? 

My feet were cold and I figured quilting is a labor of love, so it was appropriate to test them out. They're magic and I channeled some inner crazy cat lady sewing powers tonight and finished sewing minutes before midnight. Sooo ready for bed, but feeling very accomplished and satisfied with the finished product. 

Thanksgiving Feasts x 3

I only snapped one pic, but I just got home from 3 hours of back to back Thanksgiving feasts with my school kids. I need a post Thanksgiving day nap! 

 

Corbin made a cute feathered Indian headband for his, with his "Indian Name", Running Stripe written on it. I don't know enough about Native American history or enough native Americans to know if this kind of stuff is offensive to them or not, but he sure looked cute. 

I hit the book fair with each child after their meal and gave them a $5 budget to make a purchase. Corbin took a looong time to choose a paperback Christmas book, Quincy already knew exactly what she wanted (and so did everyone else in our family as we've heard about it from her all week) and went straight for a pen with a dog on it that sticks it's tongue out when you squeeze it's cheeks. Reese really impressed me. Not finding anything in her budget that she just had to have, she selected a pointer stick and proudly took it to her classroom to donate for the "new teacher shower" gift basket that her class is filling with school supplies to give to the intern they've had helping in the class the last 6 weeks. I love how she chose to use her spending money on someone else instead of herself. What a thoughtful girl. 

Soren did as well as any 2 year old would fare for 3 hours in the lunch room and "no touching" book fair. He had chicken nuggets at one feast and I kept him happy enough with a lot of cafeteria chocolate milks, Popsicles (what happened to the pumpkin pudding stuff they used to serve?) and rolls. He's currently in a turkey day coma. 

I checked the kids out of school 45 minutes early because...well because I'm their mom and I can. We are ready for a week of eating and playing! 

4th Grade Musical

Cooper always puts on an adorable show.

Can you spy Reese? I always think she's growing so fast and catching up to her peers, and then I see her with them and she is still a head shorter than everyone. Sorry about the small girl genes, Reese, but you look pretty perfect to me! 

Can you spot her? She wearing a white shirt and is down below in the front, third girl to the left of Mr L (aka Tobias Funke in disguise). She is sitting next to one of her best friends, Finley (glasses), and behind another friend Hayley (pigtails). 

Third from left on the bottom.

The kids performed some songs about American heroes (they also performed on Veterans Day at the memorial wall by the lake), being grateful, and being an American. At the end, the performed Home by Phillip Phillips with sign language.  Cute cute and more cute. 

Reese, I love watching you sing!

Head Spinning?

My doctor just called. My iron level was 9, even with taking iron supplements. I'm basically very anemic, which is no surprise. My iron level was 7 when I was pregnant with Corbin. My Hematocrit (some other type of iron?) level was 30, which is apparently also crazy low, and platelets count went way down, not up. 

Time to prepare for a natural childbirth, just in case it drops as much again in the next few weeks. 

I've upped my iron intake and my nap-taking is on the rise as well. I've also decreased my stair climbing, Soren carrying, hair doing, and and dressed-getting. That should help a little. 

No wonder I'm so tired!  Zero. Energy. 

This last month is going to fly by. Scott, Kristie and Ben will be here for a week starting Saturday, and grandparents will all be coming and going December 1-9 for Quincy's baptism on the 6th. Q turns 8 on the 4th, It's my turn to teach preschool on the 10th, and I'm in charge of enrichment on the 11th. Reese turns 10 on the 14th, I'm planning on two birthday parties in there somewhere, plus the ward party on the 13th, a zillion class parties on the 19th that I'm supposed to help with, then the kids are out of school, and of course Christmas on the 25th. 

So many great things to look forward to.  I need to hire someone to come deep clean. 

But maybe also I could crawl under a warm blanket and y'all could just wake me up when it's over? ;) 

Way to go out with a bang, 2014! 

34 weeks

34 weeks. 

At my appointment yesterday, my doctor said that if I go into labor at any point after this week, they won't stop it, because the baby will be just fine. He was "impressed with my weight gain in just 3 weeks", and I of course called him a jerk ;)  34 weeks and 35 lbs. It doesn't show signs of stoppin' so I hope you've brought some corn for poppin' because the show is about to get real. 

Actually, aside from the discomfort and constant back pain, I really love my great big baby belly. Quincy says the stretch marks across my abdomen look like a tree. How fitting for our growing family tree. I have several new branches across my belly button, this time. Like my girls, I have been carrying very high, but have started to drop between this appointment and the last. Baby girl has finally settled into a good position, which also explains my significant change in belly shape this month. I'm measuring significantly larger in a short amount of time and we suspect the baby's growth is progressing as rapidly. Yay! 

I passed out on Sunday morning while getting ready for church. Luckily, I totally knew it was coming. I suddenly felt super light headed and got dizzy, so I sat down on my bed. 

And then I guess I just slumped over onto  my pillows because that's where I woke up! Anyway, Aaron had ready left for meetings, and I tried to call a few friends to give the kids a ride to church, but everyone was already in Bentonville. It started snowing, and I actually started to feel just fine, but the weather made me uneasy, so we stayed home. Aaron came home after sacrament meeting to pick us up and only took the big kids, sending Soren and I to bed. 

Later, some sweet young men from our ward brought the sacrament to me after church, which I found really thoughtful.  They mentioned this was a new experience for them. I was surprised, in Bella Vista ward we usually have 4-5 elderly people every week who need the sacrament delivered to their homes. I realized how lucky we are to have such a healthy and able bodied ward. I think it was a good opportunity for them, and I was grateful for their gesture. 

Sunday was a really difficult day for me, physically and emotionally. I haven't yet figured out the logistics of how I am going to manage kids on Sundays for the next few weeks or after the baby comes, but I do know it will work out.  

My doctor was going to wait until my next appointment to do blood tests again, but decided to go ahead and order a CBC yesterday to see if we can spot an obvious reason for the dizziness. I hope everything comes back normal, but a problem with a simple solution might be even better so we can prevent this from happening again.  I'm interested to see the results. He did comment that I walk too fast, stand up too fast, and do too much. 

He offered to induce the week of Christmas, but he already has 10 inductions scheduled between the 23-25. I think if I take it easy, I'll make it to the 28th no problem. He thinks she will come on her own around the 21 or 22. 

Not knowing if I will qualify for an epidural this time, I'd like to see if I go I to labor naturally and avoid pitocin if possible. I scheduled to be induced Dec 30, but y'all can plan on hearing my cries if I make it that long. My friend is currently a week overdue and I feel awful for her. once she has her baby, I'm the last one in our gaggle of pregnant ladies who will still be pregnant. Currently accepting back massages and desserts. 

You know, for the baby. 

Giddeyup Daddy!

Teacher Gifts

Inspired by the hot cocoa stands at Silver Dollar City, I made the kids' teacher gifts early this year.  

I had a ton of tiny cute jars that my mom brought for crafting and filled them with crushed candy canes, mini chocolate chips, and mini-mini dehydrated marshmallows. Attach to a tub of Stephens hot cocoa and ta-da! A countertop hot cocoa mini bar. 

Soren Hosts Mommy School

Today was our turn to host Soren's mommy school playgroup. These boys have a lot of fun together and they are a very loud and exhausting bunch!  Soren is finally catching on that this is a weekly thing and the arrival of his friends was greatly anticipated. 

Our theme was thanksgiving and sadly, none of the boys wanted to dress up like pilgrims or Indians. Sad! I look forward to seeing kids wear those costumes every year, but they wouldn't have it. Kellan and Soren humored me and sported headwear for awhile. 

We played with the pilgrim and Indian play set, listed to a turkey call, did a gratitude cornucopia craft, read 3 books about Thanksgiving, had a thanksgiving "feast" with the play food, assembled turkeys on the felt board, and of course, played with cars, balls, trains, and blocks. The boys are learning so much about cooperation from these play dates.  There was so much less hitting and a lot more sharing this month than last. They also did remarkably well with story time and staying at the table during snack. They get along well and I think it's fun to watch their friendships develop. 

Joy and Gratitude Relief Society Meeting

I have two new church callings. I teach Relief Society once a month, and I am the Relief Society monthly additional meeting (enrichment) committee chairperson. 

I taught adults for the first time ever on Sunday. I was nervous, but I think it went well. Hopefully, everyone had the opportunity to feel the Spirit and no one felt bored ;) 

Last night we had the first RS meeting that I had the opportunity to plan. I already have a solid testimony that Relief Society is an inspired organization that is capable of doing really wonderful things to build up the members. Given about 8 days to organize a meeting, I prayed for help knowing what direction to take to uplift the sisters in my ward and inspiration came flooding in. Finding Joy in Gratitude. Perfect for November!  

I pondered who to ask to teach mini classes and got to work the next morning. Within an hour of making phone calls, three wonderful classes were planned with speakers who are just perfect for the topics! The activity came together beautifully.  Dessert, set up/clean up, and the beautiful flier were delegated to friends, and I did dinner, program, decorations, and gatherd supplies to do a gratitude journal table craft. 

I haven't used rubber stamps or done much paper crafting in years. I forgot how fun it is! I need to make some cards or something. 

The journals people made were all different and all really cute. 

A friend of mine has written a fantastic scripture study series called Joy and Thanksgiving. It's 14 days and has great verses, connections, questions, and topics to consider every day starting today and leading up to Thanksgiving Day.  All of the sisters were emailed the study so they can do the study and write about it in the journal if they want. More gratitude = more joy. 

I borrowed some awesome giant wood cookie slices and added burlap fun autumn stuff for center pieces and wish I had taken pictures. They turned out pretty cute. 

Dinner was good. I made chicken salad croissants (actually, I cheated and just added goodies like green apples and pomegranates to the pre made chicken salad mix from sams club) and served a giant spinach salad. Here's the recipe for the salad. (Thanks, Michelle Z! New fave!) 

I also cheated here and bought the pecans already glazed. 

Strawberry Pecan Spinach Salad 

Strawberry Dressing:
1/2 c. canola oil
1/4 c. sugar
1/3 c. strawberry or raspberry jam
1/4 c. apple cider vinegar
1 dash salt

- blend all ingredients in a blender.

Candied Pecans: (for 1lb of nuts, which I usually half this recipe)
1 tsp cold water
1 egg white
- wisk in bowl, add nuts and coat in the mixture.

1 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 dash salt
 - mix together. Add the soaked nuts until coated. Place on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper in an even, single layer. Bake at 225 degrees for 45minutes. Stir occasionally. Then increase to 275 degrees, bake for 15 more minutes. Cool.

LAST STEP:
Add Baby Spinach, sliced fresh strawberries or dried cranberries, pecans and dressing. Toss to coat. ENJOY!

I added spinach, strawberries, pomegranates, and blackberries, and had red onion and pecans on the side. 

I also made a Dijon vinaigrette (Britney's recipe) to go with so the sisters could choose. Both dressings were yummy! 

Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette

1 TBS dijon mustard

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar

1/4 cup oil

Whisk first 5 ingredients and slowly emulsify oil, or double recipe and mix everything at once in a blender. 

The classes were incredible. Chris pointed out that the Savior is our example, so we must look to him when searching for help raising our children. How did he teach them? One by one. Sometimes, they needed words, sometimes He healed with touch, sometimes a test or challenge of faith, sometimes instruction, sometimes He made things happen. It was a different approach for each and we must look at what our children need as individuals to love them the best way. 

She also really touched me when she talked about perspective. The way I see the world is not the same way Reese or Quincy, or Corbin, or Soren see the world. Why do I try to fix problems based on what I see? Or why do I not always see the "problem"?  Because of the great Atonement, the Savior knows and understands all things that God's children experience. Next time I hear "you don't understand, Mom!" I need to change and put on my Reese or Quincy or Corbin glasses and gain understanding by looking at things as they see them so I can help them with an issue, not just fix it my way.  I can change my perspective and gain understanding, and through understanding, I will have empathy, insight, and the right faculties to teach with love. I did not know when I asked her to teach what a powerful and gifted public speaker Chris is. Wow. I wish I had taken a video and could put it on YouTube for everyone to watch. She inspired me to improve my mothering and enjoy it more.

Sarah's class was just what I hoped it would be. She radiates joy wherever she is. She is funny, sincere, and very good with words. She told stories from her childhood and used stories from the scriptures to help us understand the importance of gratitude in our lives. 

We've all had the experienve of taking our kid to the fair, splurging on rides, buying them cotton candy and funnel cake and going all out to make a perfect day. 

And then they ask for a stupid inflatable bat, and we draw the line and say now. 

And they fall apart. Totally unglued by this horrible trip that wasn't any fun at all because they didn't get the bat, so forget it. All of the other great things are unappreciated and tainted by the one thing they don't have. 

We do the same thing as adults. We are showered with blessings all day, every day. There is SO much in life to be enjoyed, but sometimes, we have one trial that we let take over and spoil the trip. We need not be blined by our lack of a stupid inflatable bat, or we will forget how good the cotton candy and funnel cake taste. 

This reminded me of one of our family scriptures this year, "Thou shalt thank The Lord thy God in all things" that includes trial and shortcomings, too. 

Sarah shared a beautiful example of being grateful not just for what do have but also for what we don't have. When she was 8, her dad left for work one day and didn't ever come back. He died at work, and that was it. 

She lives her life with thrill and love and joy in all things, because the tragic experience she had at just 8 years old taught her that life is short and every day is an important one. She understands the  need for joy in all things and finding the goodness in every day. She has gratitude for the gift of being able to learn this lesson at such a young age, and now she gives this gift to others in reminders to lighten up and just enjoy the day at the fair.  

Michelle. I love Michelle because she is such a good example of bravery in her mothering. She is not afraid to try new approach when something isn't working. And when she tries something new, she goes all in, with dedication, commitment, and determination. Her class was about improving family scripture study snd making it a happier and more joyful time. She had idea after idea and shared that it is a trial and error. Do not expect perfection. Shoot for consistency. Sge referred to a conference talk by Elder Bednar and showed an intricate painting or a field of wheat. Looked at separately, each individual stroke is nothing soectacular. Just a tiny insignificant line on a large canvas. It is the effect of stroke after stroke after stroke that creates the art and builds a masterpiece. We must not focus on the imperfection of one day, but instead on the consistency of reading the scriptures together day after day, brush stoke by brush stroke to get that bigger picture. She shared testimony of the power of daily family scripture study and how it can fortify our homes against deception of a confusing world and being greater peace and happiness into our lives. I loved that she had so many ideas that she has done to keep it fun and fresh, from dressing up, memorizing verses, drawing pictures, family incentives, changing up time and location of family study, and always adapting for different ages and personalities and interest of family members. Michelle said that some ideas worked better than others. Seeing how many approaches she has taken gave me a fresh hope and acceptance that imperfection is not a problem, but inconsistency is. Sometimes our family scripture time is a couple of verses and Soren is standing on the coffee table and Quincy is upside down and Aaron or I are frustrated or distracted or exhausted and Reese is falling asleep, while Corbin is concerned about Soren, etc. Usually not all of those imperfections are happening at the same time or on the same night. And sometimes they do and we power through anyway. It's a brush stroke, and it will be ok. I feel inspired to mix it up a little and try something new on those crazy nights to make sure the children will always remember family scripture study as a joyful time.

Perhaps the RS meeting was just for me, this month. I think, I hope everyone left with some fresh perspective or was able to participate in a way that let them feel enriched. 

Balanced

They say necessity is the mother of invention. I'd throw boredom somewhere into that sentence as well. Rather than walk "all the way" outside to find something to do, he just sat on the floor and grabbed everything within reach and spent 20 minutes carefully stacking and balancing it all into a tower. I love how easily entertained this guy is. What's even funnier is how entertained I am just sitting here watching him stack crap from my living room floor. 

It's Christmas Time in the City...Silver Dollar City!

On Saturday, I woke up feeling fifty shades of grouchy after being sick all night and not sleeping.  Aaron suggested that he get the kids to do chores for an hour while I go back to bed, and then we all head to Branson, Mo and check out the holiday display at Silver Dollar City. 

This day was just what our family needed. It was slow paced and relaxing. 

With a baby coming around or shortly after Christmas, we decided we need to get the holiday season stated early this year. Aaron never, and I mean NEVER supports Christmas decor up before thanksgiving day...or even before Dec 1st really. One year, I put up a bunch of decorations after he went to bed on Nov 29, and he woke up early on the 30th and took them all down while I was sleeping before he left for work. Hahaha. Usually now, we compromise somewhere between thanksgiving and Dec 1 when decor goes up, with me always pushing to enjoy them earlier. But he has experienced a change of heart, this year, and even suggested we put the tree up a week ago. Nov 1! Who is this guy?! Anyway, we decided to wait a couple more weeks on the tree and devorations,  but we busted out the carols and listened to the Chrismas station on the radio on the way to SDC. All of the lights and decorations and nativity helped us get into the Christmas spirit. 

The weather was perfect. Just crisp enough for sweaters, but warm enough to comfortable and enjoy. We did rides, but not as many as we usually do, and instead saw a few shows. 

This was Aaron's first time to ride the flooded mine (the kid's new favorite ride). I scored a laughable 7,000 the first time, but I must have had a lucky gun the 2nd go around because I schooled everybody that time. 

We cruised around at a leisurely pace and stopped wherever the kids asked. We filled our SDC mugs with red cream soda floats and made new friends in a retired couple we shared a table with at lunch. Later, we downed a ridiculous amount of hot cocoa. 

The live nativity musical was a little cheesy/Vegas but it was good for the kids to have some balance to Frosty and the Cajun Christmas bayou shows. 

We had early Sunday meetings and lesson preparations to finish up, so we decided not to stay around the extra 2 hours for the Rudolph parade, but we caught the light show on the big tree on the way out. 

Such a good time together, and a good cure for the achey-crabby mood I started the day with. It was like all of the good parts of a Christmas vacation (missing family of course) all poured into one peppermint cocoa mug of a day.