Parenting Pyramid

I had to share an article that my friend, Marie, posted on her blog. (Just click the link below)

The Parenting Pyramid

This parenting article is from the Arbinger Institute about the foundation of effective parenting and how to use this pyramid to increase the effectiveness of our own parenting.

It's an easy read - about 7 1/2 pages - and worth every minute of your time!

I'm tempted to make more commentary on this article now, but it's so well written, that I don't any of my commentary to be a "spoiler:"  I hope you enjoy this as much as I did, and I'd love to "discuss" the article more fully through comments. What are YOUR THOUGHTS about this article?

She's Here!!!

We welcomed our sweet baby girl at 7:30 this morning!

Alicia Jane Wright

Alicia ~ meaning "Noble & kind; exalted"

Jane ~ meaning "God is Gracious"

She weighs 8 lbs. 15 oz. and is 21 inches long

She has lots of dark hair, and is just a sweetheart who looks like she came from our family mold! ;D

Everything with the c-section went well.

And I just wanted to share some pictures of the delivery and the baby.

We feel so blessed!

Scripture Study Guide: 1st Article of Faith

This week, our family finished reading the Book of Mormon for the second time. We've also read the Gospels in the New Testament, the Pearl of Great Price, and about 70% of the Doctrine and Covenants. When reading like this we always start at the beginning and stop for plenty of explanation and discussion, but we have NEVER attempted to study by topic with the family.  Matt and I have been discussing this for months as we neared the end of the Book of Mormon. We realized that we wanted to help our kids memorize the Articles of Faith and REALLY understand them.

Can I just say that studying by topic is a WHOLE different ballgame! Especially with young kids. I realized that they won't have the attention span to hunt down scriptures through the topical guide in the hopes that it MIGHT apply to what we're discussing, so I needed a good plan.

It took me two hours today to prepare this study guide for the 1st Article of Faith, and we'll begin our study when the kids return and I'm out of the hospital later this week. But I wanted to share what I put together...

Introduction to Studying the Articles of Faith

Have you ever wondered what you would say if someone asked you what you believed as a member of the Church? The scriptures tell us about the beliefs of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Articles of Faith are part of the scriptures. They are found in the Pearl of Great Price. Our prophets have told us how important it is that we read the scriptures and that we understand what they say.President Thomas S. Monson told a story about a man from the east who was traveling by bus to San Francisco. In Salt Lake City a Primary girl got on the bus and sat next to the man. As they started talking, he asked her if she was a Mormon. She answered yes. He asked her what Mormons believe. It was a big question for such a young girl. What would you have said? Imagine the look on the man’s face as she recited and explained the Articles of Faith. He couldn’t believe it!After she got off the bus, the man thought about her courage and knowledge. As soon as he arrived in San Francisco, he looked in the telephone directory for the Church’s phone number, then called the local mission president and asked questions about the Church. The mission president sent missionaries to see him, and later the man’s entire family was baptized—all because a Primary girl knew and understood the Articles of Faith and had the courage to share them. (See Ensign, April 1994, pages 67–68.)Where did the Articles of Faith come from? In March 1842 the Prophet Joseph Smith received a letter from Mr. Wentworth, a newspaper publisher in Chicago, Illinois, asking questions about the Church. As Joseph answered the letter, he was inspired to write thirteen statements that contain many of the beliefs of the Church. These statements became our Articles of Faith.Later, in 1880, members at the October general conference of the Church voted to accept the Articles of Faith as scripture.

Study Guide 1st Article of Faith

 1 We ^abelieve in ^bGod, the Eternal Father, and in His ^cSon, Jesus Christ, and in the ^dHoly Ghost.

1. Who is God the Eternal Father? 
1. Alma 30:44 
2. D&C 130:22
3. D&C 20:17-19 
4. We are His Children:  “God is not only our Ruler and Creator; He is also our Heavenly Father. All men and women are literally the sons and daughters of God. ‘Man, as a spirit, was begotten and born of heavenly parents, and reared to maturity in the eternal mansions of the Father, prior to coming upon this earth in a temporal (physical) body’” (Joseph F. Smith)
5. D&C 88:41-42 
6. Psalm 24:1 
7. Alma 7:20-22 
8. Alma 5:40 
9. Mormon 9:15-17 
10. Amos 3:7 
11. John 3:16 
12. Moses 1:39 
13. Mosiah 4:9-10

1. Who is Jesus Christ?
1. Joseph Smith-History 1:17 
2. John 14:6-9 
3. Acts 7:55-56 
4. Abraham 3:22-28 

1. Who is the Holy Ghost?
1. 1 John 5:7, D&C 20:28
2. D&C 130:22 
3. “Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost are called the Godhead. They are unified in purpose. Each has an important assignment in the plan of salvation. Our Heavenly Father is our Father and ruler. Jesus Christ is our Savior. The Holy Ghost is the revealer and testifier of all truth. The Holy Ghost is our Heavenly Father’s messenger and is a special gift to us.” (Gospel Principles Manual)
4. “When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force. A manifestation of an angel, or even of the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into the soul and are more difficult to erase.” (Joseph Fielding Smith Jr.) 
5. 3 Nephi 28:11 
6. Romans 8:16-17 
7. Moroni 10:5 
8. John 14:26 
9. 2 Nephi 32:5 
10. D&C 8:2-3 
11. D&C 11:12-13

*The Plan is to give each child a copy of this study guide and practice reciting the Article of Faith and/or singing the Primary Song that goes with the article. Then we'll spend as much time needed each evening to look up scriptures and discuss them. (It could take a few nights or over a week to get through this list.) But the purpose of each child having their own copy is to eliminate the kids asking for the reference 10 times, but mostly so that after reading the scripture we'll take a minute to discuss what we learned from it, and have the kids write down what the scripture taught.  For instance, after John 3:16 they might write "God loves us very much." It will be their introduction to a scripture study journal.

I'm nervous, but hopeful about studying with the kids like this. I want to keep posting the study guides I create and the things that we'll learn about topical study with the kids. I hope we can make it a good experience for our family. : )

Chickens: All Grown Up!

The Hen Pen

The chickens have grown big, fluffy and spoiled! 

We had them running all over the yard at the old house, which was fine most of the time, but shortly before moving they started spending more time on the patio and leaving little "gifts." So, I told Matt that I'd like to create a large pen for them at the new house. I started looking at dog-run fencing to create a pen that would hold them well, but give them plenty of space to wander. We found a good fencing place, and Matt did a great job creating this pen on the side of the house.

I told the kids that they were welcome to go in the pen or let the chickens out any time they wanted to hold them or play with them. I just asked that they pen the hens up when they were done.  These spoiled hens had their own ideas! Their flight feathers had grown in, and they liked to fly over the chain fence and wander the back yard. Again, sprinkling "gifts" on the patio. The good news was that they were smart enough to always fly over the fencing in OUR yard, so we never had a hen try to leave us. I think that means their happy here. ;D

Huddled together after Matt & I clipped their wings.

However, something had to been done. I read up on wing clipping and found some good instructional videos and Matt and I took a few minutes today to clip their wings. I wanted to film Matt doing it, but it turned into a two-person job, with Matt holding the hen and me clipping the wings. Clipping was REALLY easy!  You only have to clip 8-10 long flight feathers on the front of each wing and their shorter feathers act as a perfect guide so that you don't cut to deeply. The hens aren't hurt a bit - it's like cutting hair or clipping nails. They were just feeling a little shy afterwards. 

They weren't shy for long...

Matt still has them eating out of the palm of his hand. ;D

We're enjoying the hens a lot. Matt starting calling Lauren the "Chicken Whisperer," because she's been working to train the hens to jump on her lap or sit. She's still working on it, but I had to laugh when she had a chicken sitting perfectly still next to her until she called, "Release!"

In July, we started getting our first eggs. The hens didn't start laying all at once, just one at a time over the course of the month. The black hens lay a brown egg, where the buff eggs are tan. I wouldn't describe the flavor as different, they're just a little more flavorful, and the cooked egg is a darker yellow. Our friend described them as "just farm fresh eggs!" The family is enjoying eating them, and the kids act like it's Easter every day as they head to the yard each morning on an egg hunt. Max especially LOVES it!

In the beginning the eggs were very small and sometimes the shell was too soft and would crack. This is a photo of three eggs we got in one day. You can see a big difference from the newest to the oldest layers.

This is a large grocery store egg vs. the eggs we got during the first fews weeks.

This is the comparison now. :D

We've been told that after the hens molt, their eggs will be even larger and better.

With the kids leaving the house early on Friday morning, no one checked for eggs until this afternoon, when Matt came in with ELEVEN eggs! This how many are in the fridge now. 

Matt said "We definitely need to eat eggs for breakfast tomorrow." 

Yum! ;D

Baby Name Game... Wanna Play?

Matt and I usually keep the baby name discussion on the down-low, but I'm breaking with tradition and discussing baby names openly because I've spent an obscene amount of time looking at them today.

I've created a couple of baby name polls, so check it out...


Which name best fits the sibling set?


Which name combination do you like best? 


*However, we reserve the right to break from this list entirely
and go with anything from the Ultra-popular Abigail to the Under-rated Zuniqua. ;D

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly of the Last 3 weeks

Not necessarily in that order ;D

The Bad & Ugly

The night of my last post, the swamp cooler at our new house died, but I didn't fully comprehend it until the next morning as the temperature kept rising. Can I just say that 8 months of pregnancy and a 92 degree house are NOT compatible! I contacted the owner of the house and he said, he could fix it around 6 pm. I decided it was a good day to run every errand we could think of, so we went birthday shopping for Max at Toys R Us, bought odds and ends at Ikea and Home Depot, and made a grocery run to Walmart. We arrived back at our new house at 5:45, just after the owner, Steve, had come with a new pump and float for the swamp cooler. 

What you need understand is that it was raining cats and dogs, and Steve was already on the roof when we came home. The boys had been pointing out every streak of lightning as we drove home, and I was convinced that Steve wouldn't and shouldn't try to fix the cooler until after the storm. But apparently we have one of the nicest landlords on the planet, and he wouldn't hear of postponing the repair any longer.

He needed me to turn off the cooler motor inside the house and the water hose to the cooler in the back yard. I told him, that I was seriously worried about him working on the roof in this weather, but he insisted.

The kids were unloading groceries and I ran around flipping switches and turning knobs, and the rain kept POURING down. As we were putting groceries in the fridge, there was a flash of lightning and one of the biggest booms of thunder that I've ever heard. They were simultaneous! 

I went running into the front yard yelling, "Steve! Steve!!! Steve, are you okay?" I couldn't see him - I was panicked. I thought he'd been struck by the lightning and fallen into the back yard, but he finally appeared by crawling out of the AC box.  He said he thought that he'd be fine because there were all of these tall pine trees around the house and then he went back to work. More crashes of lightning struck near the house... VERY near the house! Zach or Gabe would come running to me with a report on whether Steve was okay. The pump on the cooler was completely burned out and the unit was flooded. Steve replaced the pump and the float with much higher quality ones and finally climbed down from the roof SOAKING wet! He then proceeded to fix the sprinkler-head that wasn't working in the front yard. Wow - talk about going the extra mile - I don't even know what else to say.

After Steve left, the kids and I went to a party in our old neighborhood. It was heavenly. Great people... good conversation... air-conditioning... it was a fabulous evening. When the kids and I arrived home after the party, I realized that the City Utility Truck had come by... 

but they didn't bring the two recycling cans I requested last week... 

the took the only garbage can we had. 

Yep, I definitely needed to go back to the city office.

Now, going without garbage cans during any week is difficult, but in the middle of a move, it's down right ugly. I headed to the utility offices first thing on Tuesday morning and met my new BFF,  Lindsay. She got our utility mix up straightened out and even took the time to call the garbage delivery guy so we could get our garbage cans quickly instead of waiting the standard 3 to 5 business days. 

On Wednesday the AC broke down again! At 89 degrees, the kids & I then headed to the old house to do more cleaning inside, and weed the  window wells and pour gravel in them to keep the weeds out. Much to my surprise, my friend Heather saw my boys and offered to let them play at her house during the day. This turned out to be a huge help because my next surprise was a parade of contractors through the house and I ended up spending much of the afternoon talking remodeling with them.  The good news was that the garbage cans arrived that evening. Thank you, Lindsay!

By Thursday afternoon the house was in the 90's, and I headed back to our old house to finish the rest of the projects that I mentioned before and met another contractor. Matt arrived home from his latest trip and that evening, he and Steve climbed onto the roof where Matt took "Swamp Coolers 101" and came down with the cooler repaired and enough knowledge to manage any future problems. This time the new float had become stuck, but it was a simple fix and we haven't had any problems since.

By the following week, we received the estimate for the remodeling and it came in at a whopping 25% more than we originally thought. 25% is a LOT when we're talking thousands of dollars, but as Matt and I went over the list, there just wasn't anything we felt good about cutting, so we gave the "go ahead" to the general contractor and work began last week.

To be totally honest, I think the ugliest part of this week was me acting like fire-breathing-dragon-Mommy.  I was "losing it" with the kids much too often as they wouldn't stay on task or kept putting things in random or wrong places after I asked them to move something. I filled an empty garbage can with boxes of new lightbulbs and asked a child to take the can to the back of the van, but they'd dump them in the trash can outside and broke the lightbulbs. I kept asking kids to haul things to the shed or van and they'd dump them in the stairwell and disappear. I'm sighting only two of these incidents but they were EPIDEMIC! By the end of the week I was worn out, infuriated with my kids and even more so with myself.

The Good

Though the week I just described was extremely difficult, I'm happy to report that the last two weeks have been a huge improvement. We've finally reached a point where all the rooms in the house are unpacked and functioning beautifully, with the exception of Matt's office.  Our old TV broke shortly before we moved, and we threw it in the trash. We only had one TV so the kids have been without the Wii or Netflix for a month. To motivate their help in settling into our new home, we said we'd buy a new TV once the house was unpacked. Last week, we fulfilled the promise and bought a monster 55" LCD LED flatscreen - it's Matt's new baby and the kids think they've gone to heaven.

Matt had a beautiful built-in desk at our old home, but when we moved, we repurposed my old craft desk and a folding table to create on office for him. I have to laugh a little when I describe the problems with this arrangement - the laminate on the ancient desk is peeling and sticky to the touch, so on one surface it's pulling the hair on his arms and on the folding table, the arm hair is building up static and shocking him as he works. (hee-hee) I've hunted for a new desk system for him, and with his 'okay' I picked it up from IKEA this week. One of our weekend projects is to get the desk built and his office in order. :D

We celebrated Max's 6th Birthday with a family party to Seven Peaks and then lunch at our house. It was so nice to stop the endless unpacking and have some family fun.

Surprise!

Max with his new clothes, golf clubs,
and pokemon game and organizer.

The Poke-ball Cake

The Party

Matt's brother Joe & his beautiful wife Naomi had their third baby, Logan. He looks adorable and it makes me wish we lived closer to the cute nieces and nephews that are joining our family. In fact, I have two other sisters-in-law who are pregnant right now and we'll have a bumper crop of babies on Matt's side of the family this year.

My new nephew, Logan

We've enjoyed a visit from my sister and her family, who spent last weekend in town. We've attended church and neighborhood parties for the 24th of July, been invited to new friends homes for dinner or dessert, and realized that our new bishop was not exaggerating when he said that the there are NUMEROUS opportunities to meet people and make friends in this area - people have been GREAT!

We started our calling in the nursery and we're already enjoying the kids. One little girl named, Liberty is smitten with Matt. She talks to him about every little thing she's doing - so cute! And Lauren just returned this morning from her second round of girl's camp and she loved being able to go with the old ward and now the new.

The construction on the house is going beautifully. We've walked through the place a couple of times - right after the "demolition" and then a week later.  It's becoming the house I always wanted it to be and I found myself almost envying the next family who will live there until I thought about how well things are going in our new place. :D

The boys and I started taking a morning walk to their school each day. (YES!!! We are within walking distance to the school! It's glorious!) As the boys play on the playground, I walk the school track and then we head home. All told, I've been able to get in three miles a day - a very slow 3 miles and my waddling pace - but I'm feeling good and feeling better about life in general. My doctor has scheduled my c-section at the hospital on August 15th, so we'll be arriving for the delivery at 5 am.  The light at the end of this moving tunnel is shining brighter each day, and I'm reaching a point where my focus is moving from an overwhelming "to do" list to the arrival of a sweet new baby. The whole family is getting really excited and Jared keeps saying, "Is there a baby in your tummy? ... It's getting SOOOO BIG!" :D

Change is HARD!

Please forgive the following novel, but I desperately need to vent!

The Move

Matt and I and the older three kids spent the 4th of July weekend packing and packing and packing... while Jared and Max were in St. George with Grandma & Grandpa. We couldn't have accomplished half as much without that help so I offer a BIG thank you to Gma & Gpa!  The boys even behaved themselves really well, so that's another thing for which I'm grateful.

We had a hard time finding movers who weren't already booked for that weekend, so we went with a company that had an early afternoon opening on Tuesday,  July 5th. They were supposed to be finished with their morning move and ready to transport us by 12:30, but 12:30 came and went without any movers.

They didn't arrive until 4 pm (already tired from a long and hot day of work.) Their boss told them to do one load and unload of the truck and come back on the next day to finish. Even with one load, it was a loooooooooong evening, with lots of scrapes and scratched to my furniture.

Wednesday was seriously problematic.  Matt was left to direct the movers while I drove the kids North for their Grandparents weekend on Matt's side of family.  Their trip was really important! This was the carrot that we'd dangled in front of Lauren, Zach & Gabe during the 4 days of endless packing (with NO 4th of July fireworks or fun.) Matt was still trying to field phone calls for work as he directed the movers, and it wasn't pretty. Boxes and furniture ended up in the wrong rooms or worse - left behind at our old house with no means of transportation. I came home to chaos... well... mass chaos on top of the normal moving chaos.

I then I spent Thursday morning completing my last Webelos activity and packing so I could leave that afternoon for a trip with my mom and sisters that's been planned for months. To say that I was tempted to cancel the trip is an understatement. Matt insisted I go, in spite of the week's difficulties and the fact that I was leaving him and Jared with an utterly dysfunctional house.  I'm glad I went. My body was so worn down, I had developed a nasty cold, was having painful Braxton Hicks, and spent one night of the trip with the stomach flu, so I don't know that I would've been much good at the house any way. I LOVED every minute with my Mom and Sisters, and I realize now how desperately I NEEDED those three days of rest.

I came home with a renewed determination to make this house a home before the baby arrives in mid-August, but moving is just hard work! It's the little things that get you. I woke up Monday morning and spent to first half of the day just trying to eradicate "The SMELL," which turned out to be three SMELLS... the garbage cans, the molding laundry, and the pile of dishes in the sink. In a functioning house, such problems would be easily handled, but when you've just moved, you have to FIND the dish soap, FIND the laundry soap, and FIND the garbage bags... oh, and you have GET THE APPLIANCES HOOKED UP AND WORKING - the washing machine faucet had a leak, which Matt was finally able to fix. Matt had packed up the kitchen and labeled things differently than I would have, so it's taken me FOUR DAYS to find a single kitchen knife! I've been working from sun-up to sun-down and I still feel like this move will never end!

Throw in the fact that Jared has had a fever for 3 days and is terribly clingy and miserable, we've been making trips back and forth between the old and new houses to transport all those things that were left behind, we've been cleaning the old house, and scheduling a General Contractor for the repairs on old house and the stress level around here is rivaling Mount Everest. Changing the utilities deserves it's own segment because of one problem... my expired driver's license.

Driver's License Drama

Who seriously looks at their driver's license and counts the days until it expires?!  I didn't. I learned that mine had expired in mid-May when handing it over to the TSA agent in the airport and he said, "You know your license has expired don't you."  I was filled with indescribable panic as I thought he was telling me I couldn't board the plane. Because it had expired only two days before this incident, he said I could travel, but I needed to renew the license ASAP.

After our trip, I knew we were determined to move soon, so I thought I should wait to renew the license until I had my new address. I took the kids to the water park the first week in June and was driving down Center Street of the neighboring town without realizing it was a mere 15 miles per hour. I was going 25 mph.  The Police Officer who pulled me over also noticed that my vehicle registration had expired 4 days ago, and then I showed him my expired driver's license. I shudder to think of the cost of that ticket for all three infractions!!!  But either the panic on my face, my pregnant belly or the 5 children clamoring in the back seat filled him with compassion and he only gave me a WARNING! May God bless Officer Friendly #1.

The next day I had the van lubed, oiled, inspected and registered! I got myself all gussied up for that dreaded driver's license photo and marched myself down to the DMV.  How could I not realize that the DMV is only open Monday through Thursday, and I had the nerve to show up on a Friday morning. Curse the DMV! I went back to my original plan of waiting for my new address before renewing the license.

So now we've moved I began the process of changing the service address for all of our utilities. I thought I could call all the utilities as my sister and I drove out of town for our trip, so I started with the city (that's water, sewer and garbage service.)  I was told that I needed to complete the online forms and then bring in a VALID driver's license to complete the service changes. Almost all services were like this, so everything was put on hold for the weekend because there was nothing I could do. On Monday morning, I intermittently eradicated "The SMELLS" and spent the day contacting all the utilities, most of which require that you to complete online forms on websites that crash or give weird error messages so that you have do everything twice or spend hours "on hold" on the customer service lines, waiting to talk with a human being.

So I come back to the Driver's License Dilemma. I made my second trip to the DMV late Monday afternoon with only my expired license and debit card in hand. I SHOULD HAVE CHECKED THE REQUIREMENTS!  Apparently I needed the following: two forms of identification - birth certificate and social security card along with two utility bills with my new address on them. Now, I've had a driver's license in this state for 20 years, and my birth certificate and social security number haven't changed in all that time, so why they need to see them again for a renewal is beyond my comprehension! And I certainly didn't have utility bills with my new address, because I'd spent the morning updating them and in the case of the city utilities... I can't update those without a license and the DMV instructions say they won't give me a license without my utility bill!!! Now we meet officer friendly #2. He works at the DMV (no doubt as a bouncer for disgruntled "customers") and after I explain my dilemma to him, he informs me that I can simply send myself two pieces of mail and bring those in as proof of my new address. Well, why didn't the DMV instructions SAY that I only needed two pieces of mail instead of saying I needed utility bills?!?!  I HATE the DMV.

So I filled out two empty envelopes to myself, stamped them and dropped them at the city post office. I then waited two days for them to show up in my mailbox. I went to our safe, in which I keep sensitive documents like birth certificates and social security cards to find that Jared had been playing with the buttons again and had locked the key portion of the safe, so I couldn't open it by simply typing in my code.  Did I mention how long it took to find the knives? Well, it took two days to find the key to the safe.

I woke up early the next day to get presentable for the third time to take that blasted driver's license picture. I wanted to arrive at the DMV first thing in the morning to avoid long lines, and this time I was armed with my two letters, two identification documents, and my old license. I stood in line for approximately 90 seconds. I plunked my papers down on the counter where the attendant took 10 seconds to look at them, I sat in a chair with a stupid grin on my face for that photo, and then I was sent to the "seating area" to wait for my number to be called. I'm thinking, "Well, the third times the charm! This is going well." My number gets called, my documents get reviewed for another 10 seconds and I realize I left the house without one crucial piece of this maddening puzzle.... MONEY.

Aaaaaaaaarrrgggggh!!!!!

I was cursing myself at this point and pleading with the attendant to let me run home to get my debit card and not have to do the WHOLE process over again. He takes pity on me as well, finishes scanning my documents and tells me to come right back to his desk when I arrive with the money.  FOURTH TRIP to the DMV...  I wait for the blessed attendant to finish helping the military man wearing fatigues, and then I paid my $25 and was handed a print out of my temporary license.

I drove straight to the city offices to get those utilities in order, and of course, their whole computer system is down. Sigh... The nice lady copied my shiny new driver's license printout and wrote some notes about what we needed changed with our service and said that she'd take care of it when the computers were back online.  I think I need to go back to the city office because we still don't have the garbage cans we ordered. Bigger SIGH.

The Calling

This morning we had a visit from a counselor in our new bishopric. Jared's second dose of fever medication hadn't kicked in yet so he was crying and miserable as we tried to make conversation. The counselor came to say "Welcome to the ward" and extend a calling to Matt and I...

Nursery Workers.

Now, I love the gospel of Jesus Christ and I believe in serving where I'm asked to serve, so our answer was "yes."  But my second thought was, "Making friends in this new area just got TEN TIMES harder!" And to a woman whose husband travels so often and is about to have her 6th c-section, that's a tough pill to swallow.  I had to stay home from church with poor Jared, and I found myself stewing about this new calling. My thoughts bounced around something like this...

Pros	Cons
I get to work with Matt - love it!	It will be so tough to get to know people and for them to get to know us.
A Sunday calling works really will with Matt's schedule.	I will seriously miss the spiritual nourishment from  Sunday School and Relief Society.
This is an easy calling to  work with a new baby.	Oh, Horror! I'll be taking a newborn to the most germ-infested calling in the church!
I’m sure the Lord knows what he’s doing by giving us this calling.	I just plain feel like I’m being shipped to Siberia without a second thought!

Matt was 45 minutes late in coming home from church because the Bishop had flagged him down and they had a lengthy chat. The Bishop said that he's had numerous women in the ward express serious concerns about assigning us, a new couple, in the ward to the nursery. Bless their hearts! I'm almost moved to tears that these strangers would think of us and be concerned for our needs to make friends in the ward. The Bishop then explained that the ward has had a very difficult time running the nursery. They're in need of leadership, and they've have had a hard time finding nursery workers who will show up, be prepared and generally fulfill the calling. So, I'm not being shipped to Siberia without a thought, the Bishop knows what he's asking of us and still feels like we're the right couple to fulfill this assignment. I can live with that.  In fact, as Matt related this conversation the Spirit testified that this assignment was inspired and not haphazard. The Bishop also indicated that the ward does a lot of activities and service projects that offer opportunities to meet people and socialize.  I think we'll just have to put forth extra effort to invite people to our new home for dinner, games, etc. That's something I've been worried we've neglected far to long, so the Lord is probably telling us to step up in that area too.

CHANGE IS JUST PLAIN HARD!

I keep looking ahead to envision some point when I'll feel settled and "normal" again, but I just keep seeing more changes and the need for more work. I know that's not a bad thing. It's usually great in the long run, it's just exhausting in the present.  I have A LOT to be thankful for. Even in my trials, I've been blessed by compassionate cops and clerks and family members and new neighbors who bring treats and offer to watch kids. I'm so grateful for a new Bishop who felt inspired to talk with Matt today about our new calling. Did I mention that the kids are making great friends here already - I'm THRILLED about that! Some of the kids in the ward even go to their charter school.  I think I just needed a place to mentally unload the trials that have been weighing me down, and remind myself that you can only climb a mountain one step at a time.

Thank you to those of you who bothered to read this 'til the end. I really appreciate it. And tomorrow I'll lace up those proverbial climbing boots and tackle the next few steps on my never-ending "To Do" list. Maybe I should start chanting like with the little engine who could...

"I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...." ;D

One Fun(ny) Week

Funny Features

Gabe snuggled up with me on Sunday morning to warm up his frozen toes. 

I said, "You only love me for my warmth," 

and the charmer replied, "No, I love you for your beauty."

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Gabe was assigned to be the lesson helper for Family Home Evening and 

he announced to Matt and I that he had a great idea...

Us: "What's your idea, buddy?"

Gabe: "Let's have a fire drill for when Jesus come again!"

Us: (trying NOT to laugh) "It won't work quite like that, buddy."

*Now, before you think we're preaching fire and brimstone at our house, you should know that the day before this conversation, Matt had caught Gabe and Max jumping out of their bedroom window and into the yard. He informed them that this activity was only acceptable during a fire drill, so Gabe was trying to come up with a way to jump out his window again!

He must have thought we couldn't say "no" if there was a good spiritual reason to go with it.

I told this story to our stake president and his wife, who are friends of ours, and Pres. H laughed and said, "You need to teach him that we want to be the ones whose houses DON'T burn!"

AMEN. ;D

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I've been wanting to show the movie Forever Strong to my family for quite a while,
and we found some time to do it last night. There are several heart-wrenching & heart-warming moments in there and my tenderhearted lambs were teary-eyed.
Gabe said to me afterward, "Mom, I had three waterfalls!"
Zach said it's one of his new favorite movies.
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I was in the checkout line of the grocery store, loading bags of groceries into the cart, when Jared picks up my wallet, pulls out my debit card and leans over to hand it to the cashier.

    

     Me: (Laughing) "What does that mean when your two-year-old 

knows which card in your wallet to use?"

     Cashier: "It means you spend too much money."

    

Ouch!
*I think it means he's one VERY clever toddler who doesn't miss a thing!!!

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Theater Camp

Last year, Lauren participated in a summer theater camp called "Up With Kids!" and in a week's time, these kids auditioned for the play (condensed version of Beauty & the Beast,) were assigned parts, learned their lines, choreography and songs and put on a performance of the play on Friday night.
It was a GREAT experience for her, and has really sparked her interest in theater.

This year, "Up With Kids!" was preparing the play... The Little Mermaid

Lauren, Gabe & Max all wanted to take part so they've spent M-F 9am to 3pm at theater camp 

(with the last hour of each day being a swimming party.) 

They've been making friends, learning songs, lines and dances, and having a GREAT time - so fun!

Lauren's Part: Queen Triton 
(they transferred King Triton's role to a girl. Lauren is THRILLED.)

Gabe's Parts: Grimsby (Prince Eric's Advisor,) Gnarly (merman surfer dude,) 

and one of Ursula's Sea Creatures

Max's Parts: Jetsam (Ursula's eel,) Radical (merman surfer dude,) and a Sailor.

This has been such a great learning experience for the kids. Performing really takes a lot of COURAGE. And the kids have learned a lot about creating distinct characters and having a dramatic 'range.' The boys play villains one minute, silly surfers the next and Gabe also plays stuffy, proper Grimsby as well. Gabe was really nervous about some of his lines (especially the silly surfer-dude ones.) But by Wednesday, he announced that he LOVED all of his parts. I've loved watching them make new friends, and grow throughout this week. The play is tonight and I hope to post some video highlights tomorrow.

Break a leg, guys!
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Zach

Zach wasn't interested in theater camp, but this week has been a great experience with my boys who were still at home. Zach and I have been working in the yard for a couple of hours each morning, which is a cruel irony in our family, because he and I suffer from seasonal allergies to weeds and grass seed, etc. But the great part was how much we talked. Zach is growing up SO much. I just loved listening to his thoughts, jokes, stories of books he's read and more. He's been helping me plan meals and learning to make a shopping list. He's learned to make popcorn on the stove. He's been looking at house listings with me and learning about how to shop within a budget and look for things we need in a home. After the yard work misery, Zach, Jared & I would head to the pool for an hour or two to cool off and just play. This has been a great week!

The Rumors Are True...

The word is out, and I need to just post something about it!
I think I'll just repost a recent email exchange to clear the air...

From my friend Marie:

"Brent told me today that Zach said you guys are moving....tell me he is wrong!!!"

From Me to Marie (and now everyone):

Oh Marie, I hate to say it, but Brent is right. Brace yourself...   You're about to get an ear-full.

We are seriously trying to find a home near the kids' school.  Because all of our kids are now at the charter school, I've been commuting for an hour and a half each day to make the three round trips to the school. Though next year would only mean one hour of planned commuting, there are other problems.

I've had to tell the kids all year that they couldn't participate in the school band, choir or after-school art classes, etc. because of the extra 30 minute round trip. Lauren couldn't audition for the school musical because she wasn't in the choir, and she ended up being a stage manager just so she could be involved. (Still more driving for me.)

The kids would make a new friend at school and be invited to play, and I'd groan inside because I either had to tell them "no" or spend another HOUR driving. Then you throw in the time I've spent traveling to the school to do volunteer work or go to PTO board meetings, plus shuttling kids to piano lessons and three boys to three different soccer teams, school programs, and I realized that I've spent as much time traveling this year as Matt - who flies across the country nearly every week! 

I hit my breaking point in mid-May when I realized that the fall soccer season would start the same week I had the baby, and school starts the week after the baby is born. I'm not even supposed to be driving for weeks after the c-section, let alone running a full-time shuttle. I thought, "Something has got to give!"

A new baby is really exciting for our family, but I had to face facts that they take up a lot of TIME. So I started looking for ways to make our life and this new child more compatible. I told the boys that they'd have to give up soccer for a year. I told Matt that I think we need to move closer to the school, so I could regain much of that driving time and devote it to the care of this new baby. Living near the school will also let the kids develop better friendships, and let them take advantage of great after-school programs.

The other catch is this... Matt REALLY wants to keep our current home as a rental property. We've debated this at length. If we keep the house, we can't get any of our equity out of it to buy a new house, and I can't keep living this way for years while we save up another down payment. So I proposed that we find a place to rent. We can see what it's like to be landlords and still save up the money for a new home. Matt was okay with that, so I've been searching for a place to rent that's near the school. 

The options are limited to say the least. We're so specific about the location, the number of bedrooms, and the price range we need to make this work, that it narrows the field quickly. There are two reasonable places that are in the cue right now. They will both be ready near July 1st, but one owner has been VERY slow to schedule an appointment to view the property, and the other home is being renovated (we'll see it on June 20th.)

We've involved the kids in the decision and the house hunt, and they recognize the advantages of moving so they're excited and telling everyone about it. Sorry to write a novel in answer to your question - this has been the ongoing family drama for 4 weeks - but the short answers is, "Yes, if there is any way we can move closer to the kids school this summer, then we'll do it."  Oh how I wish that staying here would work! Moving certainly isn't my idea of fun, but I've given everything my best shot this year, and I just don't know what else to do to make our life work in the coming school year.

If you're wondering about scouts, I'm committed to working with the boys through the summer in hopes that it will keep the Webelos on track and the ward will have time to find a good replacement.

Again, I'm sorry to talk your ear off,

Candace

I Surrender!

Okay, I need to face reality. I don't see how I can blog every day during the summer. It's just NOT happening.

The kids are home! They are my number one priority, so I think I need to let go of the guilt of not blogging and just embrace the joy of summer with my lambs.

My new goal is the Family Friday recap and the occasional post when I make a great "idea" find. Hopefully, I can return to the full blogging schedule in the fall when the kids return to school, but then again... I'm having a baby in August.  C'est la vie! ;D

Gabe's Baptism

centerpieces

Last Saturday was Gabe's Baptism and it was a sweet, beautiful day. We really appreciated all those who were able to join us.

Gabe was involved in all of the planning for his special day. He chose the food,
colors for decorations, the speakers, etc. He did a beautiful job, and it was fun to have him so involved in the process.

Here are a few pictures of the day, along with the video I put together for the interlude after the baptism while Gabe and Matt were changing clothes.

 

May Madness Remembered

For our family, April & May are the two busiest months of the year. 

I realized that I missed most of my Family Friday posts in May so here's the Reader's Digest version...

• The kids had two rounds of strep throat and Max had an ear infection after his cold, so they spent most of the month on antibiotics in addition to everything else. 
• Zach, Gabe and Max finished their last soccer games and received their medals - Way to go, guys! 
• I was busy with Webelos this month too. We packed in the requirements for the Communicator pin, including a tour of new BYU Broadcasting Building - which was AMAZING - we had so much fun! The boys also finished their Geologist and Outdoorsman Awards.



Greek Olympics

• May was also filled with all those end-of-the-school-year events where I was volunteering, including hosting the Elementary Birthday Club, Zach's Mountain Man Rendezvous & Gabe's Greek Olympics.

Mountain Man Rendezvous

Zach & Gabe's Piano Recital 

This was Gabe's first recital and we need to thank Grandma Hunny & Grandpa for the film footage, because Matt and I were in Hawaii during this event.

Hope of America Pageant. 

Zach & Gabe performed at the Marriott Center for the Hope of America pageant, which is broadcast to all the armed forces. BYU Broadcasting recorded it too and will hopefully air it during the 4th of July on one of their channels. Zach was in the Scottish Group (he's third from the left,) and though he was VERY stressed at the prospect of wearing a kilt, he performed with flying colors and he doesn't think he's been scarred for life. Gabe was VERY excited to perform in the Orient Group. He was even practicing his part at home.  He's behind the girls in yellow and blue. Great job boys!

Mother's Day

 Matt and kids treated me to a relaxing Mother's Day. Zach broke out the foot spa and generally tried to find acts of service all day, Lauren wrote a mother's day song to the tune of "I love to see the temple" and sang it to me (So sweet!) Gabe made a card & gift for me at school, and Max made my bed. I just loved that each child found something thoughtful to do on their own. That really means a lot to me.

Birthdays...
Yes, I had one too, but I'm not telling you how old I am ;D
We normally make a cake for each child, but this year, we all wanted the same thing 
- A died-and-gone-to-chocolate-heaven-cake from Costco. YUM! -

My Mom took me shopping for some desperately needed maternity clothes. They're REALLY cute, and I picked up a few things for myself, so I finally have enough clothes to get me through the next 2 months of pregnancy. Whew! My sister, Kim, treated me to lunch. Her timing was perfect too, because I'd spent the morning fasting and having having two blood draws for the gestational diabetes test.  I really hate that test! But I kept telling myself, "I going out for lunch today... I get to have lunch with Kim." Thanks Kimmer, it was great! (And the test results came back - no diabetes here - yah!)

Lauren turned 12 Years Old!

Lauren chose to celebrate her birthday with a family dinner at Kyoto. We invited my parents to join us and celebrate all of the week's birthdays while we were together. Lauren said goodbye to the Activity Day's girls and HELLO to Young Women's! She's been counting down the days. They've had lots of activities to prepare for Girl's Camp this summer, but we just learned their camp site is still under 5 feet of snow - Yikes! Church leaders are scrambling to put together a Plan B, but Lauren is still SO excited to go to camp no matter where it is.

Matt and I gave her a "beauty kit" for her birthday with her own hair dryer, hair straightener / curler, and an introduction to make-up. (A very small intro - just mascara and chapstick) She's pretty excited about it all.

Lauren had her last time with the ward Activity Days Girls.

They have been such a great group.

Lauren's bunny sculpture.
Poor rabbit lost his ear :-(

Gabe turned 8 Years Old!

We celebrated Gabe's birthday at Chuck E. Cheese - just Matt & I and the kids running amuck. It was lots of fun, and the birthday boy had a great time.

Max lost his first TWO teeth!
These teeth were LOOOONG overdue for coming out, in fact his permanent teeth were growing in behind them. Finally, he was so fed up with the discomfort of these wobbly teeth that he consented to let us yank them out. I pulled one, Matt pulled the either, and Max got double bucks from the Tooth Fairy (which he promptly spent on Pokemon cards... yes, the obsession continues)

Max was SO excited to celebrate his birthday
during the last week of school!
Because he has a summer birthday, he was worried & feeling
cheated until he had a special day to bring treats to his class.
Thank Heaven!

  

Max made this painting while Matt & I were on
our trip. This is his vision of Kauai - complete
with palm trees, sharks and sea turtles.
Pretty smart boy!

May also had the Hawaii Trip that I already posted about. I have no idea how we packed all of this in!

The kids have been out of school for a 2 weeks now and they've had a ton of friends come to the house. We've been playing at the Fitness Center and Seven Peaks a lot, along with dejunking rooms and other projects.

Mom time is going well so far. Lauren has a plan for her Young Women's projects this summer and the kids and I went through each child's copy of "The Plan" to set some goals for the summer. Good stuff - now we just need to follow through.