Comic Relief (Courtesy of Rachel)

So, Cade's out of town which usually means I have two options: 1. I can be freakishly productive (cleaning, organizing...you know the drill) OR 2. I can be mind-numbingly lazy, stay in my P.J.s all day and blog to my little heart's content. You'll never guess which one I picked after careful consideration. Yep! Maybe tomorrow I'll make a better choice (after suffering the inevitable consequences of option #2!) We'll see! One of my ambitiously lazy goals for today is to capture the essence of Rachel's new ridiculous expression on camera for your viewing pleasure. It's the silliest face and I laugh every time she does it, which only encourages her, which makes me laugh even more (it's a twisted cycle!) She squints her little eyes, scrunches up her little nose, bares all eight teeth and breathes quickly and noisily through her nose (imagine a dog "panting" through it's nose...it's kinda like that!) I've probably taken about 50 pictures of her today, trying to get the perfect shot (thank goodness for digital cameras). Anyway, that's what I've been up to today, pretty much. So without further ado, her are the closest "essences" of Rachel's new expression I could get (and they still don't do it justice!)

Breakfast:

Lunch:Here's her "normal" expression, so you don't confuse the two:

Picnic at the Playground Day

Friday was Picnic at the Playground Day at the kid's school. I brought them their favorite...McDonalds (bleh), and we enjoyed spending lunchtime together. 2 more weeks of school left and the kids are pretty excited about it. I have mixed emotions (as always) about seeing my kids grow up! I'm so proud of them and all of their accomplishments, but on days like this a part of me wishes I could just push "pause" and enjoy them longer the way they are right now!

Better when we're together!

Suzanne and I took the day off from our troubles and countless responsibilities and spent it together having fun and goofing off (we're very good at that). Our little kids are the same ages and love being together. First we went to Costa Vida - Cade met us there for lunch, so that was nice! Suzanne and I then took the kids to the cutest little shop called Hip & Humble - full of fun, over-priced home accessories and an adorable little play-room for the kids! Then we walked over to Parson's Bakery for some yummy dessert (I had a German Chocolate cookie...jealous?) Then it was off to the park. What a fun day!

Here are the kids humoring their camera-happy mom/auntie.

Carly and Hannah are very affectionate when they both feel like it! They're either hugging or gouging each other's eyes out...there's no "happy medium" for them! This was a good day.

Cute girls!!

It was just a tad bit chilly that day for my taste (Arizona has made me very wimpy about the cold), so this is how Suz and I spent the afternoon at the park...in the car with baby Rachel, watching the kids play!! We're pathetic, I know, but everyone was happy so that's all that matters, right?Here's to many warm and carefree summer days ahead of us!

Go Figure!

So, I haven't been sleeping well at night lately. I'm up several times during the night. Now, you may be thinking that it is because of this'n:

You're wrong.

The problem, unfortunately...is this'n:
Question? How do you keep a 3 year-old in her bed at night? Keep in mind that I can't lock her in her room, because she will scream a lot and insist she has to go potty (if you don't believe me, last night's proof is double-bagged in the garbage can!) Seriously, I've tried everything (I say "I've" tried everything, because Cade sleeps through all of our little encounters during the night.) I've tried "good cop", lovingly explaining that "we" need to stay in "our" beds until it's light outside. I've tried "bad cop", complete with raised voice and empty threats, to no avail! In Hannah's undeserved defense, she's barely coherent when she wanders into our room the 5 or 6 times each night. All she wants is for me to tuck her back into her bed, which seemed pretty harmless to me several months ago when this all started. Now it's just a bad habit and rather annoying, especially when my 9 month old has no problem sleeping 10-11 hours at night without a peep. Tyler was the only other child of mine that did anything like this, but he just got out of bed a lot at bedtime, not throughout the entire night. Anyway, I'm out of ideas, so if you have any suggestions, bring 'em on!

*FYI: The bruise on Hannah's cheek was self-inflicted at the grocery store last week...I promise even "bad cop" wouldn't do that!

My Mom

Top 10 reasons why my mom was BORN to be a grandma
(& why she's still the best mom ever!)

10. She calls regularly to ask if she can tend her grandkids (& I don't think I've ever turned her down!)
9. She actually PLAYS with them (toys, puzzles, games or whatever) and I think she actually ENJOYS it!
8. She always compliments my children on their cuteness, smartness, funniness, etc. and attributes all of it to me and my superior mothering!
7. When she babysits she plays "restaurant" with them to their complete and utter delight! She's ever the happy hostess, waitress, and bussgirl.
6. She has mad skills when it comes to diaper changing & she never shies away from the worst case "scenarios".
5. She never seems flustered, annoyed, or fed up with their constant requests for marshmallows, drinks, crackers, hard-boiled eggs (which she always has on-hand), oranges, ice cream and of course, CANDY.
4. She feels nothing but pride and honor at being labeled "the CANDY Grandma" by her adoring grandchildren and still pretends that her candy stash is very well "hidden" on the middle shelf of her closet (where it's been "hidden" for as long as I can remember!)
3. She doesn't seem to mind any of the other alias's given to her: "The Ninja Turtle Grandma", "The Nachos Grandma", and most recently the "Wii Grandma" to name just a few.
2. She's been practicing and has now fully mastered her "grandma driving", always staying 10-20 miles below the speed limit "just to be safe!"
1. She has somehow managed to make her family her number 1 priority...ALWAYS!
She is one of the most selfless, compassionate, kind-hearted, giving people I know. She has set that example for me and continues to set that example for my children to learn from...Thank You!

Happy Mother's Day, Mom. You are a living legacy of
love and service to our family. We love you!

Twilight...the MOVIE!

Here's a link to the Twilight movie trailer...only 7 months and 5 days to go!

Food, Folks & Fun

I had the BEST weekend ever! My wonderful amazing sister in-law Lorena (Cade's brother's wife) flew up from Arizona on Thursday morning. It was so fun seeing her and catching up on everything. I miss living close to Lorena and being her BFF (thanks a lot for replacing me CINDY!) We talked and ate and ate and talked (my two favorite things!) If that wasn't awesome enough...



I reunited with two of my very best non-family friends, Shawna and Tiffany, to attend Women's Conference and party all weekend (in a righteous way, of course!) We laughed so much that my abs still hurt (no need for crunches here!) We have been friends for over eight years, and although geographically we have spread out a lot from our humble beginnings in Gilbert, AZ, we've never been closer!!


It was definitely a weekend full of the ladies in my life, because on top of reuniting with my gals, my sweet Hannah celebrated her 3rd birthday. I just love her happy exuberant little spirit...it's so addictive. That little girl has more personality in her pinky finger than I have in my whole hand!





I must note that, being the birthday hater, I mean "forgetter" that I am, I planned my whole fun-filled weekend with my friends in total ignorance of my daughter's birthday ( I have a lot of birthdays to remember, okay?) So I left my dear husband with the challenge of making Hannah's birthday perfect and special...without me. He didn't disappoint! He took all 5 kids to the zoo and out to lunch - what a man! He didn't even make me feel guilty about it, either, which is the real kicker. I am married to the most loving, least selfish guy I know and for that I'll be forever grateful and completely unworthy! Okay, I'll stop being cheesy now. Here's a zoo pic with my niece Jessica's kids...did I not mention that Jessica's family was in Utah visiting from Spokane last weekend as well? Well, they were, and I really wish they lived here because her kids are practically the same ages as mine and they have the best time together!

It's now Tuesday and we're back to our regular, crazy lives---I suppose all good things must come to an end, right?

13 Years!

Yesterday Cade and I celebrated our 13 year Anniversary. We spent the afternoon and evening in Salt Lake City, kid-less and carefree (thanks to Auntie Dorrie and Grandma Seeley!) and we had so much fun. We started at the Rio Grande Cafe in downtown where we had a delicious lunch (I'm sorry Arizonans, but their salsa surpasses Rosa's by a mile!) Next, we walked over to the Gateway and did a little window shopping. The weather was great and it felt so nice to be out walking around. We then took Trax over to Temple Square where we sat in front of the Salt Lake Temple remembering our Wedding Day and talking to a few of the million Temple Square missionaries (mostly "old duffers" as Cade lovingly refers to them as). After that we Trax-ed our way back to the Gateway where we took in a movie that wasn't rated "G" for the first time in a long time (don't worry, it wasn't "R" either!) called 21 (with Kevin Spacey and Kate Bosworth - very good). Finally, we headed back to Temple Square and ate dinner at The Garden Restaurant on the tenth floor of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building, including fried dill pickles as an appetizer (yum-yum). Once we were back home, we were greeted by 5 happy little reminders of what we've "accomplished" in the past 13 years...PLENTY! Happy Anniversary!

Beginning of the End...of the[Not So] Terrible Twos

I'm so grateful that my two year-old, despite her best efforts to convince me that she's actually a tween, still has moments of weakness when her true age shines through! Cases in point:

• The above picture (not many tweens I know would be as perfectly comfortable walking around with a face covered in spaghetti sauce.)
• Singing loudly in the car "I looked out the window and what did I see...Popcorn popping in the acre-pot tree." (I didn't know they came in pots)
• Again, singing loudly in the car (with full purpose of heart and verbratto, I might add) "The bus on the wheels go round and round..."
• I asked her if she wanted to go to Wendy's to get some chicken nuggets, she replied "No, I want some from Old MacDonald's."
• (I was going to mention a little something about the temper tantrums, but I have a sinking suspicion they're not just a "two year-old thing", so I won't.)
• The adorable speech impediment she's developing (sorry Lisa Haws, but it is cute) wherein she substitutes the "ar" sound as in "car" for a long "i" sound. For example "Mom," she says "can I watch Dancing With the Sties with you?" (Love it.)
  

Hannah will be 3 next week...wah.

Lions and Tigers and Bears ... Oh, My! - by Cade

I was just reading my sister-in-law, Lorena's, blog post about LIONS from April 22 and it inspired me. I immediately remembered this lovely place pictured below and just had to do a post of my own.

I had tried to find these pictures on my computer a few months ago, but was unsuccessful. With new-found determination I was successful in locating them exactly where they should be - in the My Pictures folder from May 2007. These four pictures are from a trailer "house" (I hesitate to even use the word house to describe this place) in an unincorporated county island part of Mesa, Arizona.

I first noticed this "house" when my sister, Marcie, was down for a visit in early 2007. We had just been to the QuikTrip on the corner Val Vista and Broadway in Mesa. (Man, I LOVE QuikTrip, or QT as it also called. I could do an entire post on the benefits of QT that would be 5,000 words long. I should get paid for all of the customers I've sent to QT with my heart-felt testimonials.) Anyway, we drove home the "long way", as Stacy would call it, and boy were we glad. On Broadway Road, east of Ellsworth Road (I think), we drove by this place. I immediately stopped the car and flipped a U-turn and we feasted our eyes on this lovely piece of real estate. I didn't have my camera, but Marcie did and she had me take a few pictures for her. I swore then and there that I would return to this amazing place with my own camera and take some pictures for myself. When I found out that we would be moving back to Utah, I made a pilgrimage to this lovely property on a sunny Saturday morning to get these photos. Here they are - and I promise that these pictures don't do the place justice.

























































I think that the sign covered up with a piece of carpet in the last photo says "Yard Sale". I guess the carpet over the sign means "closed". I wonder if all the stuff in the yard is for sale of if they bring the really good stuff out of a shed or something. One thought that keeps coming to mind is how lovely this place must smell on a hot, sunny July afternoon after a monsoon rainstorm. As you can see, there are a lot of stuffed animals on the property. I can only imagine how many pictures have been taken of this place. I know that my niece, Sydnie, had a few pictures taken of herself in front of this "estate" when she was on her mission in the Mesa area. So, Lorena, I would imagine that your neighbors' lions don't look so bad in comparison. I would encourage anyone in the Mesa area to stop by and see for themselves.

J-dog's Blog

I must do a quick post about my sweet 5 year-old Jason. Isn't he adorable? He's my 3rd child...my third boy and I relate to him very well. You see , I am a 3rd child too, only I'm a third daughter. I had a happy, wonderful childhood with my two older sisters, and eventually a younger sister and three younger brothers. I didn't realize, however, that I was unloved, unnoticed and all but forgotten until I began looking through the family photo albums. The first album was completely dedicated to my oldest sister, Julie. There were seemingly thousands of photos of Julie eating, Julie sleeping, Julie smiling, Julie crying, Julie crawling, and my personal favorite...Julie doing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! The second album was more of the same, only now Julie's a little older. Still, every moment of her existence is well documented! 3rd album...more Julie...only wait...is that a SIBLING I see in the background? It is - it's Lisa! Now we see a few pictures of Julie AND Lisa towards the end of album 3...on to album 4! Here's where I start getting excited because Lisa and I are only 13 months apart so I should be making my photographic debut very soon! I flip anxiously through album 4 - Julie, Julie, Lisa, Lisa, Julie & Lisa, Lisa & Julie, more Julie...AHA...there I am!! Wait, that's my aunt's wedding and I'm the white speck on my mom's lap among the 3 dozen other prominently displayed people in the photo, and I'm not even brand new! What the heck? Where were the labor & delivery pictures? How 'bout my homecoming from the hospital? A close-up of my hand? First bath? Anything? Nope...nothing. I vowed then and there that my 3rd child would not be forgotten. My 3rd child would get all the love and attention of my first two, and maybe a little more! I would go out of my way to ensure that my 3rd child received equal photo opportunities and albums of photographs dedicated to their every move! But alas, I have failed miserably despite my best intentions! I did exactly what I said I wouldn't do. I took a ridiculously exorbitant amount of pictures of Tyler as a baby and also spent a ridiculously exorbitant amount of money on "professional" photos. Adam came a long, and my picture-taking waned a bit. By the time Jason came along, I had simply run out of stamina, plain and simple. I DID take pictures, don't get me wrong, but I'm certain that there are at least a 5:1 ratio of Tyler baby pictures to Jason's. He doesn't know what I've done yet...he's only in Kindergarten. But the day WILL come when he discovers he's been cheated, photographically speaking! And so, I dedicate this post to Jason, my sweet, kind, wonderful, forgiving 3rd child. I suppose it's not to late to compensate for past failures, right? If I blog about him now it's gotta count for something, right? RIGHT??? You may expect continued posts honoring my poor 3rd child, just don't expect many baby pictures!

She Loves Me Ya,Ya..........yah.

Just so you all know, there are consequences for abandoning your infant for 3 days...other than engorgement. Let's just say that the "Trust vs. Mistrust" developmental theory...TRUE...and my baby is sorely mistrusting me these days due to my little selfish escapade to St. George! Rachel is very squeamish about going to anyone but me now, and she cries if I try to put her down - even her walker and high chair are not adequate replacements for my arms. To really put me in my place, Rachel has also sworn off baby food and rice cereal altogether...yes, she's boycotting solids. When I hold her now, which is all day, she has to face me so she can gaze into my eyes and lay her head on me, in alternating succession. Cute, huh? It was for the first day. I thought to myself, "She loves me SOO much...I might as well enjoy it...it won't last forever." It gave me warm fuzzies as I thought about the cheesy "...babies don't keep..." poem old people love to quote, and I held her even tighter...aaahhh! Well, we're now on day 10 of "Lovefest/08", and the fuzzies aren't as warm and they're starting to hurt! Fortunately she's a tiny little gal (15 pounds), which makes lugging her around not as difficult as my friend Dawn's baby Rigdon, would be...
Rigdon and Rachel are two weeks apart, if you can believe it! I'm guessing HE hasn't boycotted a meal...ever! At least if I had to hold Rigdon all day, my upper arms would not be flabby. Eat, Rachel, eat!

On the plus side, I have gotten better at blogging one-handed (I definitely read more than I write!), and so I cling to the only available hobby for a woman with one arm and a love-struck baby. Holding her all day wouldn't be a bad life really, if I didn't have about a half-dozen other family members who also need me. Question: Is modern science any closer to cloning humans these days, cause I could sure use another me or two around here - to do the cooking and cleaning of course, so I can hold Rachel. Babies don't keep, you know...

"Baptism Boy"

Saturday was Adam's baptism. It was such a beautiful day in every way. I am so proud of Adam - he is a great kid and has been looking forward to the day when he could follow in his brother Tyler's footsteps and become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! Here's Adam and Cade in their "whites" (So Adam's whites are a little short & he's wearing flip-flops...what's it to ya!)



I am so blessed to have a husband worthy to hold the priesthood and bless and baptize our children. He is a great example to them and I know they look up to him. Here is Adam actually "looking up" to Cade...cute. (Fortunately, there were no flood jumpsuits left in Cade's size so he had to wear pants and shirt...shucks!)





Adam's eyes are ridiculously sensitive to sunlight, hence the funny faces. I feel so blessed to be Adam's mom. He is bright and energetic and he makes me smile! His enthusiasm for life makes other's want to be around him too. He is a kind and loving son and brother and adds a special spirit to our family.




Cade and I are grateful for all of our children (even Rachel) who isn't shown in this picture). They bring us mostly joy and happiness. They make us want to try harder and live better. Heavenly Father has truly blessed our family!







After the baptism, we had our amazing extended family over for dinner in Adam's honor. There were kids running all around, but no Adam. We spotted him sitting outside all by himself (which is odd, because Adam is NEVER alone, the social butterfly that he is). When the other siblings and cousins finally trickled outside, Adam exclaimed "Who wants to sit by the Baptism Boy?!" Membership must have its privileges.

All's Well!

We survived!! As my sister Suz and I were driving south to St. George on Friday, questions like "What the heck am I doing driving AWAY from my baby when she's very possibly starving to death!" were running rampant through my brain. So to appease my overactive mind, I proceeded to call home every half-hour or so to make sure Rachel wasn't starving (or choking or bleeding). After about the tenth call home in a four hour span, Cade politely (well, sort of) asked me to please stop calling, so I did (at least for a few hours!) Once we were at Steph's gorgeous house in St. George (thanks Steph), I finally began to relax, especially after using my breast pump! Then it was "Go Time!" The Colbie Caillat concert was SOO fun, and the secluded, picturesque Tuacahn Ampitheater was awesome - I'm so glad I went! Here we are at the Gun Barrel restaurant in St. George before the concert (me, Steph, Suz)...YUMMY!

Here we are at the concert. Suz and I LOVED Tim Fagan,
the opening (one-man) band for Colbie Caillat:

Besides "rocking out", we managed to fit in a bunch of shopping, lounging and of course, eating, which quite frankly, is my idea of a good time. By Sunday I was missing my guys and gals and was ready to get back to them. On the home front, Rachel had put up a valiant fight against formula..and lost! She was a regular "bottle baby" by the time I got back, thanks to Cade. So the big question...is she weaned? The answer...no. I nursed her as soon as I got home and every four hours since. I'm weak, what can I say? I wasn't buying into all that "She's your last baby..." hype before my trip, but maybe it's all true! Let's face it, it's hard to let go (or be let go of, in my case).

Off she goes!!

Okay, so I'm just a little stressed out right now. It's the eve of what should be a super-duper fun weekend--I'm going on a roadtrip with my sister, Suzanne to St. George to see Colbie Caillat in concert...so fun! My amazingly sweet husband is even taking off work to play Mr. Mom to ALL 5 kids - yes, you heard right. Even THIS one...
Therein lies my problem. You see, I've never been away from Rachel longer than 3 or 4 hours...ever...so this is big. Oh yeah, and she's never had a bottle before, either...ever...so this is really big. I committed to this super-duper fun road-trip months ago when I thought weaning my daughter would be a cinch, but apparently she's very attached (no pun intended) and I'm abandoning this poor child and forcing her to wean cold turkey, which doesn't sound fun for either one of us. Besides being in pain physically and tormenting myself emotionally for leaving my infant daughter, I'm going to miss my little constant companion - I love her. I'll miss Cade and the other kids, too, don't get me wrong. But this is unchartered territory with this'n. It's one of those things where I'll look back and laugh at how ridiculous and sentimental and worried I was for no reason, but for right now I'm sad...really sad...but not sad enough to cancel my plans, of course. Wish me luck. I just need a "Got Milk?" t-shirt and I'll be set! Speaking of which, Cade informed me that having "let-down" at the concert would probably be a bad thing, so now I'm certain I will--thanks, Cade!! I'll let you know how it all turns out, and you'll be dying to know, I'm sure.
(Cade's going to be very disturbed by this post, I have to say).