Calling in sick

Can you call in sick when you are a mother? Well I found out yesterday that I am oh so lucky enough to be able to do just that. On Monday I went to Urgent care to get an infection looked at that I thought might be MRSA (a nasty strain of infection.) Sure enough it was so they put me on two pretty strong antibiotics. On Tuesday I was feeling achy, but figured the medicine had not had enough time to kick in. By Tuesday night I was chilling, very achy and very nauseous. By Wednesday morning I as a mess. I did not even think I was going to be able to get the kids ready for school. I called my mom first thing in the morning and within minutes she was by my side and ready to take Caleb to school. We packed the rest of us up and spent the day at her house so I could rest, and she could take care of the kids and me. What a great mom huh! She ran me a warm bath and got me a soda and made toast for me...she even gave me one slice with Cinnamon sugar on it (does she remember how much I loved that as a kid.) Unfortunately my stomach was not feeling good and I could not even get the whole piece of plain toast down. She made me chicken noodle soup for lunch. Wow, it was like being a kid again, being babied and waited on hand and foot...only now I have four babies she was caring for as well. She is so good to us. Once a mom always a mom. I had planned to go eat lunch with Jamison, but there was no way I was going to be able to. I got on the phone and Chelsey was more than willing to take my place, and James was probably more excited to have her aunt than her mom. What an awesome sister I have. She also made dinner for us along with my good friend Britney. It is so nice to have such good family and such good friends there for me and taking care of our family. I am truly blessed beyond what I deserve. Thanks to all who help, I love you all! P.S. I think this is a beautiful picture of my Mom!

A Conversation with a Five Year Old

The other day I picked Jamison up from school. The conversation went something like this:

James: So Mom, what did you do today while I was at school?
Me: Well I picked up the house and talked to a lot of people on the phone.
James: Who did you talk to?
Me: I talked to aunt Amy for awhile.
James: Okay what did she say? And who else?
Me: I also talked to aunt Kimberly.
James: Did you talk to anyone else?
Me: I talked to aunt Chanel today too.
James: Oh, what else did you do?

I could not help but chuckle at how grown up she sounded. It really hit me hard that she has been paying attention to how I talk to her and was emulating that. A gentle reminder that I am teaching my kids by example (whether good or bad) and need to keep myself in check so the conversations we have are ones of which I can be proud. And by the way, James...slow down, you do not need to grow up so fast!

Back to Normal

Well, Chelsey and Scott are back so Harley and Noah have left us...life back to normal I suppose. The kids were great, it was a good week. I have learned a few things this week while taking care of Chelsey's kids:

1. I could do six kids. I took them all to the mall one day and I managed. I got many a strange looks and even had one man brave enough to ask if they were all mine. I could do it...but I still only picture our family with five...sorry Sue.
2. It is amazing how quickly six kids can make a huge mess...but it is no big deal when they clean it up themselves.
3. With that many kids little entertainment is requested from me.
4. Jamison and lack of sleep=getting in major trouble at school.
5. Noah can live perfectly fine without his DS.
6. At age nine, family is still preferred over friends.
7. The food is always better somewhere else.
8. Favorite moments are found in unexpected laughs (like a spider that Noah though he killed, but started crawling towards him. I hadn't laughed that hard with Har and Noah ever!)
9. How much we need family! It was great to be able to do something for Chels after she has done so much for me! It was great to have Perry and Christi there to help as well. There is no way we could do as much as we can without family, and those moments and memories are everything!

So I guess back to normal now, with a new knowledge, appreciation and understanding!

What Farm?

So the other day Asher came running in to the room, and doing something that made me laugh. I do not even remember what it was, but I do remember the conversation that followed.

Me: Asher did I get you from the funny farm?
Asher : Nooooo
Caleb: Mom what farm did you get me from?
Me: I got you from the sporty farm.
Caleb: Oh Yeah...I like that.
Jamison: Mom what farm did you get me from?
Me: I think Igot you from the pretty farm.
Jamison: No, you got me from the princess farm.

Without their funny little inflections, it does not do it justice, but I got a kick out of it. So from what farm do you come?

Last night was a momentous night for our little family. We finished reading the book of Mormon for the first time as a family. It took us 2 3/4 years to do, but we did it! I am so proud of us! At Stake Conference, that long ago, an area authority gave a talk in leadership meetings that really hit Grant. I do not remember all the details, but the gist of it was that it is easy to put off reading as a family, but if we do not start now, than when? Needless to say we started that following week. With the exception of very very few nights we read every day. I am pretty sure the kids did not get much of anything out of the words, but they have gotten something from it. If nothing else they have learned the habit of daily scripture study. They know the routine and let us know that after brushing teeth it is time for scriptures. They are becoming familiar with the terminology. They love to see the pictures of Christ. We bought the above Book of Mormon not far into our adventure, and it was the best investment for our family scripture study. I would highly recommend it to all families. It breaks each chapter up into subject sections, and makes it a manageable read for the kids. It has wonderful pictures throughout the book of the subject matters. Our kids love this Book of Mormon (it is evidenced by the wear and tear and broken binding.) I hope our kids grow to love to read it over the years and discover their own testimony. We are trying to help, but this has been just as good if not better for me. I am proud to say that our five year old and three year old have finished the Book of Mormon and that our two year old and 2 month old have heard it every day of their lives. We are starting over again today with the testimonies and a renewed effort (for me) to get more out of it this time. It is a great thing for our family, and I hope our kids grow to understand the importance. But for today, I am just plain proud of them!

The Rocker and the Cheerleader...the perfect combo!

My friend (the other Britney) has a son just weeks older than Jamison. We have often commented that we would be way okay if someday Jamison and Andrew got married. How fun would that be. For awhile only Andrew and Caleb would play together, but now that Andrew and Jamison are in the same kindergarten class together...things have changed. Jamison and Andrew are now swinging buddies. They love to swing together on recess and at the park. Andrew thinks of the silliest things to say to make Jamison laugh, and Jamison will laugh at whatever Andrew says. When I ask Jamison who her best friend is, without hesitation she says Andrew. He takes good care of her. I am not saying they have to date when they get older, but I do hope that they stay good friends. Britney was telling me the other day at lunch Jamison sat down, unzipped her lunch box, got out her two tootsie rolls and handed one to Andrew. Andrew unzipped his lunch box, got out his Kit Kat, broke it in half and handed it to James. You cannot get much sweeter than that. Thanks Andrew, I owe you!

Canning Maniac

Maniac is about the best term to describe what we did! Since Grant and I are on a big food storage kick this year I asked Chelsey to teach me how to can her famous apples. So she jumped on board and we talked Christi and Mom into it too. We really got started at about 9 am and went basically straight to 6 pm. We got yummy yummy apples from Kirby's orchard locally and went to town. All growing up my mom would tell us about how she hated canning when we were younger, so i just assumed I hated it too. I was so wrong. I really enjoyed it. Although my feet and legs were aching by the end of the day and I was all sticky and gross, it was more than worth all of it. I had a blast being with fam and chatting. I loved the finished product and the feeling of actually doing it myself. I am not ashamed to say I am proud of what we did. We canned 112 jars, and I am so excited how it looks in our storage. I am even more excited to consume it. I am even planning on doing it again next year, and possible expanding our inventory to pears and peaches...we will see.

Halloween Fun

I failed miserably at trying to get them all happy at the same time, so this is my best effort!

Lil cheerleader...isn't she a cutie!

Beesball payer..as Asher would pronounce it.

Go Packers! Their biggest little fan.

The cheerleader for the football player...as Caleb informed me.

This was the first year Jamison loved trick or treating, but it did not take Caleb long to have all the candy he wanted. Asher just trailed along and Miquelyn slept through the whole thing (Grant wishes he could have done the same.) As always the evening seemed rushed, but it was good!