I love this picture. It absolutely captures my little girl - messy hair and big, brown eyes.

When Ana was a baby and I was in college, Dave used to wait for me outside one of my classes so we could "swap." Every time that teacher saw Ana he said she had "academic eyes." If by that he meant the type that pays attention to and takes in everything going on around her, he was right on.

We've had some happy times the last little while.

Yesterday morning she asked me to snuggle with her on the couch. After first exclaiming that I "smell funny" and "need to take a shower" she looked right in my eyes and said, "Oh, Mom, you have beautiful green eyes."

And then on the way to dance she sang in the car all the way there including, "roll, roll, roll your tractor gently down the road." And the ever popular (made-up) song: "its important to read the scriptures."

What's not to Love about that?

Suddenly one day last month she started going to bed and staying there. After a year and a half of struggles - it was a miracle. (Really, I thought she was sick.) But it stuck and now most nights she just goes to bed and is asleep in just a few minutes. (Occasionally she comes out, or bothers Jack too much, or whatever, but most nights it's good.) One night this week she found some colored pencils and paper in her bed (??) and colored me and Dave a picture when we thought she was sleeping.



So amidst the stream of melt-downs, endless negotiations, and the million "why" questions - is an adorable, smart, loving little girl.

Her Spirit is just too big for her little body.

chatter box

Today Jack and I were doing puzzles.

While doing so, we had a little chat.

"ooooo... pink"

"yeah, that one is pink."

"pig says oi-oink"

"that's right. where does the pig go?"

"oh, there it is! ... puppy."

"that's a horse."

"horse says nay."

"where does the horse go?"

"look, there it is. ... house."

"yeah - that's a barn."

"no, house."

"its the cow's house. its a barn."

"oh. barn. look, mama, Goat."

"Yeah, that is a goat. what does a goat say."

(pause) "aaaa."

"Good job, buddy."

etc. etc. I love our little conversations. This morning while watching "Little Einsteins" he asked to me, "what happen, mama?" Also yesterday while riding in the car, a song came on that Ana always declares is her favorite, but Jack beat her to the punch this time. "oh, favorite song, Mama."

I live for little moments like that.

words and motherhood

Today I was sitting at the breakfast table eating "mush" (cream of wheat) with the kids. They were talking and laughing and again I had one of those "is this really my life?" moments.

"Holy cow, I am a mom to these little kids," I said to myself. I still feel like the same flirty, airhead-ed, dramatic 17-year-old.

The last few months have stretched me as a mother. Ana has been challenging - testing her boundaries and what not. Most days bedtime cannot come soon enough.

But then a few weeks ago a friend of me told me something that I haven't been able to forget. She told me that she was told by someone in our ward (I don't know who) that Dave and I are good examples of being patient parents.

I was floored. Me, patient. Yeah, right. Dave, totally is, but most days I feel anything but patient.

But its funny - after hearing that simple comment, suddenly it is so much easier to be patient.

Like yesterday, I was trying to get Ana to clean her room. (Usually quite the battle...) When I started feeling impatient with her lack of obedience, I remembered to be what other people already think I am. So I took a deep breath and remained calm. After a few more minutes, she was being much more cooperative.

Provers 15:1 says "a soft answer turneth away wrath." One thing my sister told me once is that more often than not, answering in a soft manner doesn't make her children any less upset, but it keeps her calm. I've thought about that a lot.

A mom that I really look up to - someone who is gracious and soft spoken and kind - once said that she was a yell-er when her older children were young.

I think there is hope for me yet.

this one goes out to all you love birds out there...

Happy V-day.

Dave and I have never made a big deal of V-day. We go out to get a blizzard some years, write cheesy love notes some years, have an "in house" date some years. I like it that way.

I did a party for Ana with some of her friends on Thursday. It was a good time. We made these sugar cookies. Candace - your mom's recipe is the best.

mmmm...

I wish they weren't all gone. ..sigh..

yellow umbrella

So, I have a friend named Shaela who is awesome and talented and nice and genuine.

She does some amazing work with paper.

She has a craft blog.

I am always amazed at what she can do. She has been on design teams and has even been published in a scrapbooking magazine.

She is doing a giveaway.

Check it out!

techie in the making

Today we made a quick trip down to Provo for Dave to shadow a radiologist we have connections to. I went along and visited a childhood friend that I haven't seen in about 17 years. (That makes me feel old somehow...)

Anyway, while at Annie's we were discussing the inherent technological know-how of this new generation we are raising.

I think Ana somehow knew she needed to prove the point.

After we got home, Dave sat down at the computer to check emails and whatnot. Ana came over to him with her red crayon in hand.

"Daddy, will you print a picture of Wonder Red for me to color?"

"What?" Dave said.

{For those of you not down with the PBSkids lingo, Wonder Red is a character on a show.}

Ana continued, "Go to pbskids.org..." [Dave clicked the button, which is easily accessed because it is on our favorites menu] "Now go to Super Why..." [I had to show him which picture "Super Why" was.] " ... Now go to Wonder Red ..." [Again, we had to show him which character that was.] "Now press the print button."

Sure enough, following Ana steps took us right to the printable coloring pages, where she picked out what picture she wanted and the took it off to the table to color.

(Although she did have to keep checking back to find out what color Wonder Red's skin was... and her hair... and her roller skate wheels.)

She must get it from her Dad.

another first

I gave Jack his first official haircut on Saturday night. I had trimmed the edges before with scissors, but it was starting to look a bit "mullet-ish." So, I spread out a blanket, sat him on a chair and turned on "Little Einsteins" and he did great!





The finished product:

"we read to know we're not alone"- cs lewis

I like books.

I am so grateful for parents who read to me, with me, and encouraged me to read on my own. I remember my mom reading "The Wheels on the School" to me before bed when I was little. Books were always available in our house. We had big bookshelves overflowing with books (and I'm sure more boxes of them somewhere else) We were always given books for Christmas. One Christmas season (when we were all teenagers and young adults) we spent an afternoon reading "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever" and when the power went out half way through we finished it by candle light. I'm sure we were all in tears at the end. Whenever we were bored, my mom always said, "go read a book." So now when I'm bored, I want to read a book, and I always have a book that I am reading.

Some of my favorite times with my kids are when they are up on my lap and I'm reading to them. (As long as its not "Dora and the Crystal Kingdom" that we got from the library because that book is dumb.) Or when Ana "reads" a book to Jack when they are going to sleep. So precious.

Its even more wonderful to get to share a good book with other people.

Tonight I went to a book club with a bunch of church ladies. I love it! We laugh, we cry (a little), we discuss things of great importance and no importance at all. We share ideas and feelings and stories and memories. What better way to get to know people than through a book.

So tell me, what is your favorite book? What is your favorite child's book?

my lot in life...

I think its my lot in life to not have a dishwasher. We had one for the first year of marriage, then we didn't have one for about 2 years, then we had one while we lived with Dave's parents and in the apartment with is brother (about a year) and now we don't have one again. And prospective apartments we've looked at for our next stop in life don't have dishwashers either.

...sigh...

I guess I'll chalk it up to bonding time with the kiddos.

(Even though I usually do dishes after the kids go to bed, but I think I'm going to stop that and just have them do it with me.)

Doing dishes with Ana - February 2008

Doing dishes with Jack - January 2010

(In these two pictures my kids are almost the exact same age.)

owie

The other day Jack fell down in the kitchen. I don't know exactly what happened, but he cried for a few minutes and then went on his way. Later that day, I noticed a goose-egg right above his eye. "Oh, Jack" I said, "Did you get an owie on your eye?"

"No," he replied, "eyebrow."

Well, sorry mister smarty pants.

The next day his eye was black. Our first black eye in the family. (Well, I guess Dave had a couple when he was younger, but whatever.)


Have I mentioned that Jack talks a lot. He doesn't stop. Newest additions:

"I like ... (insert noun, usually food such as peaches)"

"No, thanks."

and

"Dora book." Ana found a Dora book at the library and Jack attached himself to it. He wanted to bring it home (and Ana picked out a tractor book - is that backwards to anyone else?). He's been carrying it around everywhere for the last 3 days, gets mad if Ana touches it, and asks anyone and everyone: "read it."