First for everything...

I just have to thank my kids for being patient with me. My little Rae is now in Kindergarten, has now made a ton of friends and been to a ton of birthday parties, and now understands....what a 'real' party means. So, needless to say, she had to wait till 6 to get a real party. Meaning, I actually had invitations, and I even had little treat bags! I know, Im so proud of me too:) Raegan hates princesses, but loves tangeled. So that was the 'theme'...

*

does there always have to be a theme?!

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And here they are, opening gifts. The kids progressively got closer and closer to Rae as each gift was given....practically sufficating her. But she loved it.

This is how it began...with some order to the madness:) All the kids sitting. Patiently. Not for long as the above pictures prove!
Cake time....and yes....I even had the right amount of candles. In fact, enough for 6 on both cakes. And yes, you read that right. I made 2 cakes, AND cupcakes....that I let Rae and Evan decorate. I know, Im proud of me too:)

its a start, right?!

**Where's Waldo?? The girl picking her nose? Can you spot her? HA! Love it.**

Rae's requested games: Duck Duck Goose. And Red Rover.

striking...isnt she.

All in all, it was a birthday bash, and Rae was out of her mind excited. Finally. She got the real deal. It was perfect....well almost perfect....up until I thought we had lost someone. Her dad came to pick her up. We swept through the house calling her name, checked 2-3 times outside. She was nowhere. And I was hyperventilating. Parents worst nightmare was unfolding. Right before I approached her dad to ask him if its normal for her to wander off...UGH!...I thought of sweeping through one more time....thoroughly....myself. So, upstairs, Im going into each room, and as Im walking into one, I see the closet rumble a little and hear what sounds like velcro behind the closed closet door. So...she was hiding in the closet, and when I finally got to her...I almost spanked her (not really)! What the heck?! HEART ATTACK. Thats what she just gave me, and little did she know. She just strolled out the door hand in hand with her dad as I honestly thought my heart was gonna jump from my chest.

So, aside from that incident....it was amazing. Thank you everyone! Thank you for making this such a special day for my special girl. It was memorable.

are they really mine?

wow.

priceless.

Happy Birthday Rae!!!!

As many of you know, yesterday was our little Raegan's birthday. We will be celebrating with family and friends on Saturday but we wanted to do a few things on "her" day. Shawn teaches an Urban Fishing Class every Thursday night from 6-8p.m. Raegan is in the class as well as 5 other kids in his group. Essentially he spends the whole time baiting hooks and trying to convince the kids to leave the bait in the water since they instantly want to start reeling in the line. Anyways...we asked Rae if she wanted to go to a restaurant of her choice (Dad would have found a sub) or did she want to go fishing with Dad. What a proud Papa!!!! No choice at all. Rae wanted to fish!!! She had her best day fishing ever. Caught 6 fish...6 fish for a new 6 year old. (Shawn is certain she caught 5 but does admit he probably lost count since he is such a great mathematician. So 6 rainbow trout for little Raegan on her bday.) She loves her fishing class and got home telling Mom..."maybe we should just have everyone meet here for my birthday and we can just go fishing instead of a party." True story. We love you Rae!!!! You are a sweet, beautiful little girl who lights up our life.

Well, its really sad that this is the only new picture I have on my camera since my last post...but it tells one story of the past few weeks. It tells the horror story of last week:)...but let me start with the good stuff...

So, two weeks ago, we had a great spring break. Not that its much different for us cause Raegan is only in school for 2 hours each morning, but I made it a goal to do something with the kids, outside the normal routine, every day of spring break...to make it a different week...and that goal was MET! YA!

Monday: Park with cousins...it was a beautiful day. So beautiful that Mayci got FRIED! Love the spingtime sunburns...always catches me off guard.

Tuesday: Lehi Pool. Blast for the kids...not so awesome for me:) Its just not the same with no sun...I seemed to focus on what could possibly be floating in that water, and just how much chlorine my kids ingest:) Im a bit more distracted with the sun beating on me...and maybe think the rays are zapping all the lovely germs swimming with us!

Wednesday and Thursday: Jump on it...and SLEEP OVER (for Rae atleast) at Aunt Laci's. Thank you Laci and Company for making Rae feel so loved and special. It means so much to me to have you guys take her in the way you do. Truly a blessing!

Friday and Saturday: Park in Alpine with my family. It was so beautiful...we even enjoyed some soccer free play. It was so great.

The week flew, and it was so so so fun to be with cousins and family ALL WEEK LONG. I didnt want to part from it. Im so blessed to be so close to Shawns family as well as my own. It made for a great break...in our everyday schedule:)

Then, I guess with every flower...there is a weed. Sunday, after playing hard all week, Rae threw up all night. Stayed home from school Monday. Tuesday, I got home from the gym that night and immediately felt sick. Sure enough, I started to barf. Then I heard Evan get out of his bed about an hour after I got sick, and he was sick. Barfing. And then...through the night, as I was barfing with Evan by my side feeling HORRIBLE...my sweet sweet little mayci started coughing. Just coughing. So I sent Shawn in there, and sure enough, she barfed. Long gross story short... Evan, Mayci, and I all came down with the flu and felt terrible Tues night and Wednesday. Shawn was a ticking time bomb, and just when we thought he was safe...outta the woods, he got it. Thursday night.

Needless to say, when it rains it pours, and last week was awful! BUT... we all recovered and had a wonderful weekend filled with family and Easter. Saturday, my mom had everyone over for food, hunts, and goodie baskets (she ceases to amaze me)! Saturday night we met family at the BYU mens volleyball game. Sunday, we FINALLY made our way up to Gingers for Easter, and it was fantastic. Good food. Good company. What more can you ask for?! Thank you Ginger and Ryan and everyone else who brought us all together! It was so nice.

As I stated at the beginning, the only day I captured in the last few weeks is that one of Evan. Sick. Asleep on the couch. Sad. But, amidst that one awful gross and stinky week, we had some really nice days with family and friends, and I couldn't be more blessed to have the family I was born into, and the family I married into, surround me. I love you all so much and I thank you for making my life happy.

I thank my Heavens above every single night for what I have. I find my quiet moments every now and then (usually when I peek in at each one of my kids sleeping before I head off to bed) and marvel at how blessed I have been, beginning with my kids and my other half.. How did I get so lucky, so blessed? I dont know. But I am. I love my life and I should never ever ever...complain. Ever.

so, when this light goes out (and its not just the bulbs) in my kitchen...

this is what i resort to... :)

pretty clever...I'll have to admit - light like its right from the ceiling. ha!

i think this is the hip modern look right now....right?!

help.

i still love you shawn. even if your not so handy:) and ill admit, when there is something i think i can tackle, i wont pay someone to do it. my bad too.

My first...

Since 'time-out' cant always take place in her bedroom (usually while Mayci is sleeping because of the screaming and yelling that occurs) the laundry room is usually the grounds for minor crimes. Small minutes. Like whining and whining and whining after being told...'this is your warning and if you whine a.n.y.m.o.r.e. its time-out in the laundry room. Well, out came another whine...and DONE. Off to the laundry room she went. If there is kicking and screaming...time is added:)

Man, writing this out is weird. Feels mean:)

Anyway, no kicking and screaming, just a few whimpers, and then.....silence. For 10 minutes. Silence. Then...this pile here, of folded sheets and towels, was quickly thrown out of the laundry room. Door shut again.

More silence...

then, when her time was up, and I went in to get her,

I looked at the shoe shelf and it was organized like so:

Then, moments after she was let free, she handed me this all folded up with a little treat wrapped inside: What can I say, I may need to use every room in my house for time out:) I had to squeeze her so tight after that dose of time out and tell her over and over again how much I love her. I do. So so much. Every day she grows, I feel like I grow with her. I get to know her. And all her 'different' characteristics that you dont always expect a young 5 year old to have. She loves to be 'grown up'. Anything to be like Alix. Her 14 year old aunt whom she literally, I mean literally, worships. "Mom, would Alix eat this?" "Drink this?" "Wear this?" "Watch This?" "Listen to this?" "Buy this?" And on and on and on. Which, upon getting to know this about her, pieces of some of my puzzle are coming together when it comes to 'understanding' her. She has been difficult to 'understand' at times. As early as I can remember, nursery for example, she would never...NEVER...participate. Only watch. In tumbling...with smaller kids Evan's size...you could see embarrassment wash over her as I would watch her do what the teacher was asking the 'kids' to do. A lot of times she would tell me not to watch. In soccer, when the coach would do silly things, anything other than soccer skills, she would watch...never do. She was much too mature for that. So interesting. So naturally, her favorite thing to do is 'babysit'. Helpful at times. Not helpful at other times. But here she is in her 'grown up' realm. It makes my eyes sting when I look over at this sight. Something I didnt ask for. Something that was prompted totally and completely by her. Raegan. With Mayci in her lap. Fixing up her hair. Also. Honestly. From the time Raegan was born to now, the girl CANNOT and WILL NOT watch TV. No movies, shows. Nothin. And as a first time ma, I couldn't understand it. Don't all kids at SOME point like TV. And Ill admit...it drove.me.nuts at times. Not in the car, not at home. NOWHERE! But, I must say, without this little girl, I might never leave the house. It is now a HABIT to go. Anywhere. Somewhere. Just for my little Rae. She struggles when it comes to entertaining herself... but she is NOT lazy. SHE . MUST . BE . ENTERTAINED Its always always always been this way. In fact, I remember calling Laci while living in Logan in desperation... "What the heck do you do all day?" "Where should I take this child?" "She hates our house!" And she said go walk around Target (love it!) HA! But, its still that way. Totally and Completely. The second that child walks in from a mere 2 1/2 hours of kindergarten the very first thing she asks is: "Where are we going today?" Then she follows me through the house, goes where I go, and pesters . pesters . pesters, till I finally come up with SOMETHING! I love this about her. Love. Love. Love. Irritating at times? Yes. But I have noticed that when Rae is not here, gone for a night, Im bored. And I miss her. So, here she is, after school, all on her own. In the snow. Cause who could resist fresh snow. Not my angel. Not my little Rae. I love you Rae. Dont ever change. Please.

Binki anyone?!

So, I tried and tried and tried with all my might to get Mayci to take the binki when she was just a new babe. To no avail! SHE COMPLETELY REFUSED! So much so that she literally would have a real temper about it. The second it was put in her mouth...one suck and it was over. So so angry that mom would dare stick just a stupid rubbery foreign object in her mouth that produced....NOTHING! So, eventually, I admit, after buying every brand, flavor, size, and color...I gave up.

Well, had I known that the right binki was right under my nose. I should have tried the lid to our play tea pot. DUH. What was I thinking. She has discovered it and is finally happy with a binki. HA! Pretty hilarious. She really does suck on it, and not only that, she carries 2 other lids around...one for each hand. Couldn't pass up on THAT ONE!

A little dose of the cabin!

Well folks, we finally made it back up to the cabin over the weekend. It was a fabulously relaxing little jaunt from the same pace of life.

THANK YOU CABIN!

the first morning we woke up, we headed outside and the snow was perfect for sledding! and thats just we did:) it was so nice.

The snow was really hard and frozen. Mayci loved walking on it.

this is me, yes me, in all my cabin glory. sweats, mullet, the whole bit. oh, and the shoes was the reason this picture was taken by rachel. they were my dads. i didnt bring any snow gear and i was anxious to get out there on that sled:)

we love it when dad's can join us...

yes, it was warm enough to wear shorts. serious.

rae and ev in heaven. together.

thanks cami cuz...

...for my beautiful dress.

when my mom puts it on me

i walk around the house feeling so beautiful.

i run and point to my dress

and make sure everyone sees me.

so thank you cami.

for my beautiful dress.

maybe i should be worried?!

this is what happens when the sun starts to visit us. yikes.

HELP!

as im cleaning Evans bumb, he is adamant that i not flush the toilet yet! then, when he is all cleaned up and buttoned up, he looks in the toilet and says:

"I cant see how long my poop is...because the wipes is blocking me."

for real?! did he just say that?! so thats why he didnt want me to flush yet!

i know everyone checks out the toilet after use (c'mon people, lets get real here), but really, does it start at 3. guess so when he is half Shawn!

HAHAHA!

i laughed at that one...and he was really adamant that i not flush the toilet...yet!

wow.

help.

just messin around

So, because I dont EVER put on a huge production for my kids for anything, really...why start now?! HA. Well, I thought I would maybe do something fun today, since it is Valentines Day, and my little Rae knows now what and when all these holidays are. And I wanted to take the opportunity today to really make SURE I tell them how much I love them:)

So, after a little treasure hunt using little heart shaped cases filled with candy and a drawing of where to look...they came to the end and found on their pillows a little heart shaped note with....dun da da duuuuun....a coloring book! A really cool one, I reassured them, because it has activities inside too, not just pictures to color...ha. So they shoved the notes aside, but I gathered them, and sat each one on my lap, and read them outloud to each of them.

Raegan-

I want to tell you how much I love you today. I want you to know you are so so special to me. I love all of you and more. I love your big girl personality, that you like to do everything all.by.yourself. And that you always give it your very best job. I love that you love your brother and sister, and still give them a chance to play with you even when its frustrating because they are so much 'smaller' than you. I love your sweet and soft spot. Your sensitive. And your caring. I love that you are friends with kids in your class that need friends. I love that your favorite thing in this whole wide world is your daddy. That you would give ANYTHING to just curl up with him and stay there for the rest of your life. I love that your spicy at home and sweet everywhere else. I love that you challenge mom and dad in every way to be better parents, and people. I love you when you laugh. When you cry. When you are clean. Or dirty. When you are awake and when you fall asleep. I love you in your struggles, and I love you in your triumphs. I love you when your 5. When you are 15. When you are 25. And forever and ever. I love you my precious little girl. Happy Valentines day.

Evan-

I love you Evan. I love your sweet and tender heart and soul. I love your remarkable, incredible, entertaining immagination. I love your soft shy smile and your precious bright blue eyes. I love your voice and when you say, 'you are my best mommy' after I tell you that you are my best buddy. I love your guilty conscious and your unnessesary apologies. I love your ability to quickly forgive and forget. I love you....two infinite and BEYOND. Happy Valentines Day my best best buddy forever.

Mayci-

Where do I begin. I love you beyond words. I love that when you first arrived you scared me out of having more kids, then surprised me into wanting a thousand more! I love watching you, holding you, comforting you, getting you out of bed, listening to your own language, laughing at you, admiring you, and most of all...LOVING YOU....cause its SO SO easy. You are pure joy, and I love you a million. Happy Valentines Day...baby Jo Jo.

Happy Valentines to all. I love you!

Priceless.

Here is what I saw as I peered out my window to see what the kids were up to...when they said they wanted to go outside:

All you need are a blanket, a couch, a table with 3 chairs

a coat, some gloves, a few stuffed animals, and....

a best friend:)

I love to see this. Makes me so so so happy.

Uuummmmmm....

Please tell me you love that face. I do! So funny! She is getting SO old...she now cuddles and cares for all the babies lying around the house. I walked in to this sight, except she was just sitting by the baby on the dora couch and when I went to grab my camera, this is what I shot. I cannot believe that she is old enough to be taking care of babies!!! STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mountains and Bugs

Evan: "Mom. Where are the mountains? I cant see the mountains."

Mom: (laugh...) "I know you cant see them because of the snow...huh."

Evan: "Ya. I cant see them cause the snow blowed them away."

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Evan: (falls to the floor and grabs his foot, and in frustration says...) "UGH. Why are you on me bugs?!"

Mom: "Whats wrong Ev?"

Evan: "The bugs are on my foot mom, and theyre hurting me....ugh"

(his foot fell asleep)

_______________________________________________

These little brains cease to amaze me.

The art of eating olives

Mayci has discovered the correct way of eating olives. How? It continues to boggle my mind the way these little tiny people figure these things out! From sitting up, to crawling...I mean really...its not like we crawl around for them to mimic. To walking, running, and even down to the way you are supposed to eat olives.

I just sat in amazement. Is that pathetic? I watched her pick it up, check it out, notice the hole, and then attempt and succeed at poking her little fat finger in the hole and eat it off her finger.

I love her. So much.

Cabin Fever!

I wonder how many days or weeks it would take for me to come down with 'cabin fever' here! We literally sat...and sat....and SAT. But it was blissful...truly. No TV. No everyday stress and schedule. Just family. Games. Snow fun. And sitting. A lot of sitting:) So happy to be putting this cabin to good use...couldnt have had a better time...sitting:)