Good-bye, Little Brother

A lot has happened since Spring Break. For starters, we received news that my brother, Jacob and his family were making a move.  A very far move to UT. *sob* I think that all of my family has thought about moving out of state at one time or another, but as circumstances would have it, we've all been in the Phoenix area together. It's been so nice to have my childhood family so close.  I will really really miss Jacob and Joni even though I know that the move will be good for their little family. Hopefully the future will allow our little family to visit them often. They are moving this weekend, so we had a family picnic last weekend to say good-bye and celebrate Jacob's birthday which is coming up. It was a lot of fun. We had good food, lot's of playground time, a friendly "Beach against in-law" basketball game, and even croquet. The only thing missing was Allen, who couldn't make it. The weather was beautiful and it was a nice way to spend some time together. Good-bye, little brother.

 

A Little Exhausted

Day 4 (Thursday) - 

Today was another awesome day. For starters, we all wore green. In true, thrifty-mom fashion, I made some cut-off jean shorts for Braden out of one of the many pairs of holey jeans he has. He loves them! So, I'm going to make a bunch of pairs for him to run around and play in. He'll use them all summer. I also made a green flowered pin for Jade to wear since she didn't have a green shirt. Then we went to my mom and dads new house and met up with Chelsea and Shea for some fun at the park over there. My mom made the food and we had a good time. Then we headed to the theater and finally got to watch Tangled! Before it started, we hung out a little with the Chic-fil-a cow and shared a shake between the three of us. Yay. Both kids really liked the movie and so did I. I'm always a sucker for a musical. After we got home, Spencer came home from work and got the kids into gear cleaning the upstairs. It's amazing how much more cooperative they are when he comes up with the idea. He makes everything sound fun somehow, an art I should learn. It's been another fun day, but I have to admit, Spring Break is making me a little exhausted. 

Spoiling the Kids

Day 3 (Wednesday) -
Today was Justin's birthday, so we started the day celebrating over crepes, fresh fruit, and whipped cream. Yum. Straight from there, Spencer went to work and I took the kids to the park for a Judy Cousin Playday. It was awesome to see Spencer's cousins. I haven't seen them in a long time. We chatted away while the kids had a blast getting as dirty as possible. We got home in the afternoon and we had "make a craft" on the agenda. Well, we decided on a craft, but with all the fun we've been having the kids rooms looked horrible. So, I told them we could do the craft when they were done cleaning those up. Then I took a nap. The rooms never got cleaned and then we ran a few errands and got Happy Meals. Yes, I do realize that I am spoiling the kids. 

Better Than Monday

Day 2 (Tuesday) -
Today we planned to see Tangled at the dollar theater. This was a privilege that both kids earned for completing all their chores and it was also a good fun thing to do for Spring Break. So off we went to the mall. I should have thought about this, but there was a huge line and by the time we reached the window, we were informed that there were 3 seats left in the entire theater. Knowing that we would have to be separated, we handled our disappointment and left. Thinking on the fly, I took the kids to Target to use a gift card they had from Christmas where they each got to choose whatever they wanted for 9 dollars. Braden chose some Hotwheels and a large plastic ball. Jade got a set to go with her Littlest Pet Shop animals. Then we went to Walgreens and Redboxed a different kids movie and went home where we had popcorn and candy and a ton of fun!

After that we were off to the park to celebrate Grandpa Lilly's birthday with a delicious barbecue and homemade ice-cream. It was really cool for the kids to help roll the cans back and forth on the sheets to make the ice-cream. At the end of the day, Braden said, I think Tuesday was better than Monday.

Very Cool Kiddos

This week is Spring Break. I thought I'd write a little blurb each day and that way I can remember all the fun as it happens.

Day 1 (Monday) -

Last night the kids and I made an "agenda" for our spring break so we'd make sure to fit in everything we wanted to do. Today's agenda wasn't the most exciting, but it was a good way to start out this week. The first thing on the list was to clean the house. Every weekend, our house tends to get very cluttered, and I have always felt like I don't want to use my Sunday to clean it, so it waits until Monday. Someday I'd like to be able to have it clean for Sunday, but for now Monday is cleaning day. So, the kids helped me put away all the clean clothes and they brought down dirty clothes from upstairs. I cleaned the bathrooms and did two loads of dishes. All the while, the kids had fun playing loudly and fighting with each other. It's so ridiculous, but lately there has been a ton of competition between them lately. This coupled with Braden being pesky and Jade displaying a horribly out-of-control temper makes for some fun times. So while I tried to work, I had to keep reminding them that they are friends and should treat each other with respect. I still have some more house cleaning to do, but we decided to take a break and do #2 on the list; plant sunflowers.  In my head, I imagined a lovely time planting with the kids. I bought some little sized garden gloves for them so they could get in there and work without hurting their hands. Braden was pretty helpful preparing a spot for the seeds. He brought bricks from across our yard to make a border and helped loosen the soil. Then he just started acting pesky again. He "accidentally" turned on the hose full blast when I asked him to turn it off...  two times. Yeah. That wasn't an accident.  He also acted helpless when he was trying to make a little hole for the seeds and instead just spread the mud around like frosting.  I know I should be more patient, but when I'm tired it is so very hard for me to just go with it. So Jade got the seeds in the ground and then I made an executive decision that we were done and going inside. Now we are headed to get some produce and hopefully I get a little more cooperation with that errand. I keep reminding myself that tomorrow the "chores" will be done and I can just focus on having a good time with my very cool kiddos.

Tiny One

Every day this little girl growing inside of me becomes more real. One thing that I wish I could do better is somehow share this bond that I'm already forming with her and give a portion of it to Spencer and the kids. Spencer has tried to feel her kick so many times, but I think she likes the feeling of his strong hands as much as I do, because she always stops kicking and just holds still. Jadelynn is the only other person besides myself who has been able to feel her acrobatics so far.  She told me, "I think that was her toe. Or maybe it was her foot because it's probably really tiny."  She doesn't even know how very tiny a newborn is.  I think that when they finally meet, Jade will be amazed. Many people have asked us what her name will be. I wish I knew. I know this little girl is special and will hold a very special place in our family. Despite a lot of looking and discussing, we haven't come up with the perfect name... that one that is hers.
I've been feeling pretty good lately. I'm still really tired and wish I could take a nap every day, but it doesn't usually happen. I also found out that I have a hernia behind my belly button which is not a very big deal, but I've been being more careful about lifting things lately. To be honest, I really don't enjoy being pregnant, but it is worth it to be able to be a mother to such amazing little people. I just hope that as I venture into the world of three children that they will each be able to feel of my love and that I will be a good mother for them. I'm grateful for my mother and all the mother figures I've been blessed with in my life. They have helped me be prepared for this special tiny one.

February

Well, clearly nothing happened during the entirety of February. Ok, that's not completely accurate. I have just been blog lazy. Actually I wanted to write about the awesome trip we took to CO in January. We have been blessed to be able to visit Aaron and Diana at least once a year. It's been really great. They are wonderful people and it is so enjoyable to be around them. This January we went and stayed for about 4 days. We enjoyed the winter weather and actually stayed pretty warm. We mostly just took it easy and relaxed, but some of the things we did included: taking a walk, buying German pastries, eating Thai food, bowling, getting pedicures (for the girls), going to a hockey game (for the men), hanging out with Aaron's family, and having a cookie baking party with Judy (Aaron's mother).  It was very awesome. I was still feeling a bit sick on that trip, but getting plenty of sleep and being able to relax helped me a lot. When I returned home, I felt very renewed and much better. I've been feeling pretty good since then, just tired still.
The month of February brought many fun and wonderful things. To start, we found out we are having a girl! I immediately got to work dreaming of the things I would want for her. I've got the nesting itch so bad I decided to start another blog called Lilly Baby Wishlist. It's been fun to put together. We're really excited, although a name for this little baby has proven to be elusive.
February also brought my Grandma (my Dad's mother). She has been staying with my parents for the last month and it's been so awesome to see her. We've made Valentines together, watched The Scarlet Pimpernel, had lots of dinners together, gone to the Mesa Temple Visitor's Center, and even got to celebrate her birthday. It's been great having my grandma here. I love that my children are probably old enough that they'll remember her visit. Also, with my grandma here, others came to visit. I had an uncle and an aunt from San Diego come and also and uncle and an aunt from Nevada. A great aunt from Michigan came and a second cousin all the way from Tempe :) It's been really really awesome to see so many relatives that I haven't seen for a long time.
Another fun thing that February brought us was parent teacher conference at Braden's school. He's doing very well scholastically and socially and pretty well behaviorally. He talks too much during class, though, something we're all trying to help him work on. Hopefully with our prodding he will begin to be more diligent at obeying the classroom rules.
Jade also started "preschool" this month. Three times a week, her and I work together on teaching her some things she will need to know for Kindergarten. She is getting much better a writing her name, although she does prefer to just write "Jade" instead of "Jadelynn" and sometimes she still writes "Jabe". She'll get it right. She is suuuuch a smart girl. I hope that she will realize this. She is constantly comparing herself with Braden and sometimes is very hard on herself. This is in spite of the fact that she can already read the books he brought home at the beginning of the school year. She really is very smart and ready for school.
So it's been a great month and a half. I'll have to take a picture of my "bump" one of these days. It popped out suddenly during the middle of February. In the meantime, I hope that March is also awesome and that we can welcome warm weather again. Thanks for reading! Hope you had a great February.