Temple Square

Saturday we made the annual trek to Temple Square. The kids were pretty good and interested until they got too cold. In their defense it was very cold that night. All the lights were just as beautiful as always.

Christmas Day

Christmas morning I remember just waiting until the clock turned to 6 am and running in to wake up Mom and Dad to go and see our loot. I thought my kids would do the same thing, but when they woke up they just stayed and played in their room until we went in and got them about 6 am. What crazy kids! When we went in and told them it was ok to go downstairs the kids were excited to see what Santa had brought. I made them wait at the top of the stairs for a picture, but this is not what they wanted to do. Matthew got his much loved Camp Rock CD as well as a few other things. Josh got his aquarium with three fish along with other stuff. Santa was a little worried that Josh's fish wouldn't make it because they had to sit in their bag of water from the store for about 10 hours before they were freed into the aquarium. The next obstacle was he didn't have time to let the aquarium acclimate for 24 hours beforehand to have it ready for fish so the fish had to take quite a bit, but luckily they were all still alive the next morning or else we would have had a very sad Josh. I am also happy to say they are all still alive today, too. Daniel got his Skechers and "something that could fly" among other things. Sarah was just happy to be there. She got a few books and a cell phone, but just preferred her old monkey instead of anything else. We all had a pretty good Christmas. When all the presents were opened we had a yummy baked french toast breakfast thanks to Grandma T. Later that afternoon after all the excitement had worn off and G&G T had left the kids were hungry. In the previous two years we had gone to Burger King for a no fuss easy Christmas dinner and this year wasn't any different. This let the kids get some energy out while Aaron and I could have some peace and quiet for ourselves. All in all it was a good day. Hopefully the kids got enough toys to keep them busy until school starts again in a very long week and a half...:) Our family room after Santa had come and before the kids got to it.

The kids excitedly waiting to come downstairs to see what Santa had left for them.

Let the present opening fury begin:

I think the kids were and still are excited about what they got. My family room still looks like a big mess, but the kids are loving it.

Christmas Eve Dinner and Activities

Christmas Eve stayed pretty busy for us this year. We hosted the big dinner at our house. We had two yummy hams, funeral potatoes, rolls, veggie and fruit trays as well as some apple pies (the first pies I have ever made.) Thanks everyone for your help! We had an early dinner with G&G T, my brother Bryan's family (we did miss you Michonne, Miles, Jennifer, Tom and family) and my sister Johanna and her family. After dinner we sat around and talked for awhile then everyone was off to their own family's Christmas Eve activities. Our family decided to head over to the Ogden Downtown Christmas Village. It is a big city park that is lit up with all sorts of decorations and lights. After we were so cold we couldn't take much more we came home and had some hot chocolate (or cider in Daniel and Grandma's case) to warm up. Then we let the kids open their token present of pajamas. After that Matthew and Aaron took turns reading the nativity story from the scriptures. Then we tried to send the boys to bed, but they just went up to their bedroom and played since all the boys were sharing a bedroom for the night. Santa had to wait a while before coming to our house because they just wanted to play--not that I minded because they were all getting along together which doesn't always happen. Josh also sat and read Matthew and Daniel a few books and that kept everyone happy until they finally fell asleep.

Our Christmas Letter or Year in Review

I never got around to sending out Christmas cards this year so you will all have to settle with our year in review.

This year seems to have flown by really fast. I just got used to writing 2009 and now I will have another whole year to get 2010 in my head. To catch everyone up on our family's doings we will start with Matthew.

Matthew turned eight this year and was really excited to get baptized by Aaron in August. He is in third grade and loves it. He loves riding the bus every day and seeing his friends at school. He stays busy with piano lessons and even had his first piano recital a few weeks ago. We had a small scare with him back in April when he had an asthma exacerbation and had to be taken by ambulance from the pediatrician's office to the hospital. Thankfully, we have had no other problems like that since. He always keeps things interesting at our house.

Josh is in first grade and loves it. He loves having lunch at school every day. He also is keeping busy with piano lessons and had his first recital a couple weeks ago with Matthew. He did try out karate for a bit, but it just wasn't a good fit. He did get up to a yellow belt before he decided he'd had enough. He loves playing with friends and continues to be very thoughtful and helpful to me and his brothers. He's a sweet guy.

Daniel is my buddy throughout the day. He is patiently waiting until it is his turn to start school which won't happen until the fall. In the fall he will start with preschool because he missed the cutoff of for kindergarten since he has such a late birthday. He keeps me company throughout the day and chatters to me about anything and everything all day long. He loves playing with friends and stays busy with karate. Daniel likes karate and is all the way up to an orange belt. He loves playing with and making Sarah laugh. He is our comic relief. He keeps things exciting.

Sarah has had lots of firsts this year. She took her first step and she said her first word "Uh-Oh". She doesn't have much else to say at the moment, but she is definitely strong willed. She loves to climb. She has had a few falls because of the climbing, but even if she falls she climbs right back up again. She loves taking showers, being part of the action and playing with Daniel during the day.

As for Aaron he still continues working up on base as an Electrical Engineer. He really enjoys working on an Amphibious Assault Vehicle for the Marines. He believes he has the best calling at church as the Membership Clerk. He loves spending time together as a family and between work and family he stays pretty busy.

As for me we are expecting baby #5 around the end of April or beginning of May. I still can't believe it, but my tummy is getting bigger to let me know it is happening sooner than later. I still am a stay-at-home mom and things stay pretty busy for me at home with four and a half children. I continue to be the nursery leader at church and am one of those weird people that actually enjoy that calling. I have been able to take a few classes to get out of the house throughout the year including and interesting Belly Dancing class. I was able to update my house with the help of my sister-in-law Jill during the summer. It was a big project, but I am glad it finally got done.

One of the big highlights of our year was our trip to Disneyland and the beach earlier in the summer. It was a very fun family vacation and hopefully gave our kids some fun and lasting memories. We hope 2010 will be as good as 2009. We wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

All I Want For Christmas Is...a Black Eye

This morning I was getting ready to get in the shower. I had turned on the shower and was waiting for it to warm up while I was looking for clothes. Sarah heard the shower and came running. She wouldn't take no for an answer so I undressed her and put her in while I was looking for some clothes for her, too. That's when I heard her start screaming and crying. I thought she was just mad because she was in there alone so I finished finding clothes and then I got in. Afterwards Aaron was getting her dressed when she looked at me and I saw some blood on her eyelid. I looked closer and she has a nice cut on the top of her eye that was starting to swell. It has gotten progressively worse as the day has gone on. It looks like Sarah will have a nice black eye for Christmas--poor thing. She must have slipped and fallen in the shower. If she would only sit in the shower instead of insisting on standing she probably wouldn't have fallen and cut her eye, but try telling that to a stubborn 16 month old!

Things You Don't Quite Want to Hear

Well I just got back from the doctor's office and baby #5 is officially a boy. You can see everything boy partish between his legs on the ultrasound picture so my holding out for a girl hopes are now dashed. That's ok I have been warming up to the idea since the last visit. Now we just have to start coming up with boy's names from the bible to keep our biblical name theme going. He is growing great and is even measuring about a week bigger than normal. I am also starting to feel him move more and more. What is even more crazy that in a few days I will be over half way done with this pregnancy since they will be inducing me a few weeks early. That is a scary thought!! We still haven't figured out sleeping arrangements yet. Oh what to do? If only we had one more bedroom!

Anyway, yesterday I got to hear a few things I would have preferred not to have heard. First off it was the boys' bedtime and Josh and Daniel ran downstairs to jump in bed. They left the basement door open and Sarah ever being the opportunist went downstairs. It wasn't until a few minutes later I heard Daniel yell, "Mom. Mom!! MOM! Sarah is playing in the water in the toilet while I am going potty!" YUCK!! She had her hands scrubbed with antibacterial anything I could find, but that is still disgusting.

Later on I also got to hear this whisper, "Mom. Mom. Mom. Mom." When I finally came to consciousness I happened to glance at the clock and see it was 1:30 am and Daniel couldn't sleep again. He came upstairs to wake me up so we could watch TV together like we did the other night. Too bad I was TIRED and not in the mood to have bonding time at 1:30 am. I sent an unhappy Daniel back downstairs to, hopefully, go back to sleep. Too bad I was awake and couldn't go back to sleep. Grrrr.

Another thing I got to hear but preferred not to was Daniel was using the bathroom upstairs. I failed to hear the toilet flush or the sink turn on showing me he was washing his hands. I sent him back to flush, but he refused to wash his hands saying he had already done it. After a few minutes of arguing I gave up and sent him over to get some hanitizer instead. He cried and told me if he used that he can't suck his thumb because it tastes hanitizer tastes yucky. He ended up using the hanitizer anyway because he refused to go back upstairs and rewash his hands. He is pretty stubborn. This, however, has given me an idea to help him stop sucking his thumb (evil laugh hahahahaha).

Mother and Son Bonding Time at 3 am

Last night I couldn't sleep. I was laying awake in bed about 2:30 am deciding whether to get up or not when I heard the pitter patter of little feet up the stairs. I got up to check things out and found Daniel just sitting on Matthew's bottom bunk. I guess he couldn't sleep either. He kept saying his bed downstairs was uncomfortable. That is something I have never heard before nor do I believe it since he is sleeping in mine and Aaron's old bed which is way comfortable. Anyway with both of us wide awake we headed downstairs and turned on the TV. Luckily we have a DVR so we didn't have to suffer through any infomercials. We watched a few shows and finally about 4:30 am I was starting to get tired so I sent a very unhappy Daniel back downstairs to try and get some sleep. The next morning at 6:30 am, only a few hours later than the last show we had watched, he was wide eyed, bushy tailed and eating his breakfast. I don't know if he ever got back to sleep, but did I know this Happy Daniel wouldn't last on no sleep. I just waited until Chuckles (aka ornery) Daniel appeared which was this afternoon. After Daniel got home from karate everything turned into a tragedy and was tantrum worthy in Daniel's eyes. After dinner Aaron and I had both had enough and ended up sending him to bed early. This was after multiple attempts on his part not to be whiny and not to cry which proved to be too difficult on that much lack of sleep. I am crossing my fingers for a better night for both of us so we can have better days tomorrow. Here is a picture of the Chuckles Daniel:

The Big Piano Recital

Tonight was Josh and Matthew's piano recital. They have been taking lessons for a few months and they got to perform for the first time tonight. It went exceptionally well which was a relief. I know I always have stress getting up in front of people, but they had no problems whatsoever. Matthew was excitedly waiting his turn. When it was his turn he bounded up to the front introduced himself in one breath as, "MynameisMatthewI'mgoingtoplayUpOnTheHousetop." and ran over to the piano in about 5 seconds so he was done by the time we got the camera on. He was so excited to play his part. We did get his song recorded, though.

Josh was excited to play his part to. He got up and introduced himself and played his song. Afterward he finished and we thought he would go and sit right back down, but he turned into a big ham and bowed then took a few steps and bowed about 10 more times before sitting down. The bowing part got cut off because it went on for so long afterward. Josh played Jolly Old St. Nicholas.

Afterward we went and got Pace Bars (Daniel friendly popsicles) at the local fast food joint. Aaron tries to see how fast he can get the kids to eat their popsicles under the guise of a contest. In all reality he just likes to see them get brain freezes--such a mean Dad! Here's Daniel's brain freeze. Daniel gets quite angry when it happens. I have to admit it is funny to watch. Does that make me a mean Mom?

Girl with an Attitude Who's not Afraid to Show it!

Don't let this picture fool you! It was taken this morning with her baby she has attached herself to. Sarah was completely awful today at church. We had a couple strikes against us one being she never got in a nap today. It started out in nursery--I take her with me even though she isn't quite 18 months old yet, but it's one of the perks of being Nursery Leader. Anyway I bought her a Christmas dress, but I got it a little big so she could wear it for a while because it isn't that Christmassy. Since it is bigger she ends up stepping on it which makes it so she can't keep walking. That gets her a little upset every time. Then when I picked up another child in nursery and Sarah saw she came unglued. She had to be held immediately. I didn't pick her up since I had someone else so she went to the other leader and she picked her up. She kept reaching her hands out to me, but I had someone else and she wasn't happy. When we started the lesson she kept standing on her chair or wandering around. I finally picked her up while trying to do music time and she just wanted to waller me and cry, but if I put her down she would scream to get picked back up. Finally, Aaron peeked in the nursery window and saw her being a stinker and took her out. Then when we got into sacrament meeting she did not want to be held so I put her down and she insisted on wandering out into the aisle. I decided just to take her out and she did not want this. She threw herself down in the middle of the aisle and screamed. We didn't even make it to the opening prayer of sacrament meeting until I had to take her out that's never a good sign. Out in the foyer she never stopped screaming. I kept trying to rock her to sleep and she would have none of it. I was wondering how I could get Aaron's attention to tell him that it just wasn't going to work today, but he got that newsflash loud and clear. During the sacrament I guess everyone could hear her just screaming so Aaron didn't need me to tell him I had had enough. On the way out of sacrament meeting the family behind us asked Aaron if it was Sarah that was screaming so loudly--um I am just a little embarrassed. She did stop screaming long enough to eat the bread and drink the water, but started right back up when she was done eating/drinking. We came home right after the sacrament. I am tired of being wallered and just plain tired. I guess Sarah was tired too since it took her all of 1 minute to fall asleep after she was laid down in her crib even with her dress still on. It was a rough day today to say the least. Times like this make me wonder how am I going to handle 5 when I can't hardly handle Sarah when she decides to be a stinkerpants. Hey if you want a sacrament meeting side show just sit behind us and you will be entertained the whole meeting guaranteed!

Losing Even More Brain Cells

Matthew had a big economics fair today. This is something the whole third grade has been preparing for for about two months so it was a big deal. Matthew and I had to come up with an idea of a product to sell and the rules were it couldn't be food unless you had a current Food Handlers Permit. It also couldn't be a straight store bought product you had to change it in some way to make it your own. These rules made things pretty difficult to think of things. Luckily, I had a friend (thanks April) suggest making home made slime. That turned out to be pretty easy to make. This last week in preparation we had to make a marketing sign with a slogan and Monday we had to make the actual slime. It is a solution of Borax Mule Team laundry detergent and glue with food coloring. I thought I had thought of everything. They had even invited families to come and check things out this afternoon. I wanted to go to see how Matthew was fairing, but was planning on going in the afternoon. Since it wasn't until the afternoon I went ahead and scheduled an IEP (individual education plan) for Josh this morning. At this IEP meeting his speech teacher, regular education teacher, principal and us were all there to discuss Josh's speech goals for the next year. This meeting went pretty smoothly and it was good to see the progress Josh has made in the last year. After the meeting I came home and walked through the door to be met with the phone ringing. I answered it and it was Matthew's teacher. She proceeded to ask me whether I wanted Matthew to have any spending money for the economics fair. In all my other preparations between the economics fair preparation and the IEP meeting, I forgot to send Matthew with any money to buy things with. I felt horrible. I picked the keys and the kids back up and headed straight down to Matthew's school to get him some spending money. When I got there Matthew was excited to be selling his slime which went pretty fast. It was pretty loud in the gym, but once Matthew got some ear plugs in he did a lot better. After I was there a few minutes the teacher then asked me to take Matthew around to the other booths to see what he wanted to buy. Sarah had other plans. She refused to be held and insisted on wandering around. Matthew insisted on wandering around in the opposite direction. The teacher saw what was happening and offered to watch Sarah for a minute. Having my hands full I accepted graciously. It seems the teacher had a hard time keeping an eye on her as well. The teacher lost track of her in the five seconds she wasn't paying attention to her. Luckily Sarah was wearing a bright pink shirt and was easy to find even though she was hiding in a corner under a table. At least I am not the only one that has problems keeping track of my children. That made me feel better. Well good news is Matthew's slime sold out and he came home a happy camper and even happier since he was able to purchase some things of his own since he finally got some money from a forgetful Mom...

Sometimes I Wonder About Myself...

In the last three days I have had a few experiences where I am wondering about my mental status. I am blaming it on the pregnancy secretly hoping it really isn't me that is doing these things. First off Monday evening I went to the gym to exercise. I am not an exercise enthusiast so when I go I usually just do the stationary bike because it is non jarring on my body. When I showed up Monday the gym was super busy. All the bikes were taken and there was only one treadmill open. Seeing as my options were either the treadmill or lifting weights with a whole bunch of musclemen I decided I had better take the last open treadmill. I headed over to the treadmill, hopped on and pushed the Quickstart button to get going--only nothing happened. I started pushing all the different buttons hoping to get the machine started somehow, but nothing was working. Feeling rather stupid because I couldn't get the machine working I tried to quietly get off and walk into the corner hoping no one noticed my feeble attempt to get a stupid treadmill to go. I was meeting a friend there so I couldn't just leave and come back later. As I was trying to decide what to do I heard a voice yell my name. A Mr. Muscles neighbor of mine had watched the whole failed attempt of me trying to start the treadmill and called me over. He was working on some machines behind the treadmill so he tried to give me instructions, but the gym was so loud he had to yell them at me so everyone in the immediate area could see my ineptitude at working exercise equipment. I found out the only thing wrong with the treadmill was me. The power button on the front of the machine was just turned off and that was the only thing wrong with it so now everyone knew how exercise inept I was--I can't even figure out how to turn on a treadmill. I was feeling pretty awesome about myself.

Another episode happened yesterday. Unfortunately I have not kept up on laundry and all of us have hit the bare bones clothes you only wear when there it nothing else. I found pants for Josh in the bottom of the drawer yesterday, but they were just a little short. To try and make them long enough since there were no others to wear I undid the adjustable waist straps to see if it would go to the tops of his shoes. With a sigh of relief they did so I finished getting the kids ready and sent them to school without another thought about it. When Josh got home from school as soon as he walked in the door his pants fell down to his knees. He kept pulling them up and I thought he was just kidding around. I had him find some other pants and went about the rest of our day. It wasn't until tonight at dinner I found out what happened at school yesterday. Josh told me some girls were going to tell on him yesterday. Trying to find out why, Josh wouldn't tell me. I finally coaxed it out from him that they were going to tell on him because his pants kept falling down. I felt awful after that. I kept apologizing over and over, but Josh seemed to take it in stride. I will find those pants and put them out of circulation to prevent this from happening again. I can't believe I sent my kid to school in pants that won't stay up. Too bad he wasn't wearing huge boxer shorts because then he could have been in style with his pants around his knees. I still feel awful, though.

The last episode happened this afternoon. Daniel's hands are so dry and chapped that they finally started cracking and bleeding today. I went and found some really good lotion and slathered it all over his hands and arms to help. About ten minutes later Daniel came back over to me showing me his hands and arms covered all over in hives. I haven't seen hives like that for a really long time so I really started freaking out. I went and found the lotion I put on him and on the front of the bottle in bold letters it was Coconut Lime Verbena body lotion. Hmmm--If I would have looked closer I guess the coconut part should have given it away, but of course I didn't check. I just knew it was good lotion so I put it on him. I had to go and scrub the lotion off his hands and arms, medicate him with Benadryl and find some good Daniel friendly lotion without any tree nuts in the ingredients. I guess he's still allergic to coconuts is the message I got loud and clear today.

Really the last three days have had me questioning my capability as a person and a mom!! That's why I will just blame it on the pregnancy and hope it will all go away after this new baby gets here ;).

Sarah and the Shower and Daniel the Butcher Manicurist

Sarah LOVES the shower. Every time she hears to water turn on she stops what she is doing and comes running. This was her this morning as soon as I had turned on the water:


Don't try and give her a bath because she will scream and try to get out the whole time--even though while in the shower she will sit on the drain and plug it up to create a mini bath while the water is on she still refuses to take a bath. She is just happy and content in the shower even with all the water pouring down in her face as you can see in the picture.

Another one of her loves she has newly discovered is climbing. She tries to climb anything and everything. She has figured out how to get on top of the recliner and I saved her yesterday in the nick of time from going head first right over the top of it. She has also discovered Matthew's ladder to his bunk beds. This morning just after getting out of the shower I went to grab her a diaper and in the minute I was gone she headed straight for Matthew's ladder naked and everything and was couple rungs up before I got her down. I have a feeling she is one I will really have to keep my eye on.

While I was taking care of Sarah in the shower Daniel decided it was a great time to clip his own fingernails. I had no idea what he was doing until he came running into the bathroom screaming that is thumb was "bleed". I told him to get some toilet paper on it until I had time to take care of him. When I got a chance to see the damage I saw he had clipped a pretty big chunk of nail off his thumb and it really was bleeding.

Now he wearing his band aid as his badge of courage--good thing it isn't his thumb sucking thumb. Hopefully he won't try clipping his own nails again anytime soon. At least he is milking it for all he can telling me he can't possibly grab or pick anything up--basically telling me he is too wounded to help clean up. I just have to roll my eyes and try not to laugh. He is our dramatic child if you couldn't tell. We'll see about that cleaning up thing later on...

I would really love to see what goes through kids' minds. What really made Daniel think clipping his own fingernails would be a good idea or that climbing over the top of the recliner and landing on your head would end well? I guess they just like to keep things exciting.

Want Some Nog?

Aaron was at the store last night and came across this nifty thing:

It is a soy version of Egg Nog that contains no eggs or dairy products of any kind. It is aptly called Nog instead of Egg Nog since there are no eggs in it. Aaron picked some up so Daniel could try some form of Egg Nog since he has never been able to have any. I always felt guilty drinking the real stuff in front of him so this relieves some of my feelings of guiltiness. I had to try it to see how it measured up to the real stuff since I am an Egg Nog-oholic. It isn't that bad. Of course it isn't as good as the real stuff, but if you have never had the real stuff then you would think it's great. Daniel tried it out this morning and loved it. That lets me know that Daniel is truly part of our family. If he didn't like it I would start to wonder if my baby got switched at the hospital because the rest of us love Egg Nog. Now if I could find a great substitute cookie with no eggs, nuts or dairy that still tasted good all would be even better...

The Co-op

From the urging of my sister I joined a food co-op two weeks ago. It's a great way to save money on produce and a good way to get fresh produce even in the winter. This morning was the second food pick-up and I am quite impressed with the variety of fruits and veggies they include. You don't get to pick what you get so it's different every time, but I guess that keeps things exciting. Here is the picture of this mornings harvest minus a few strawberries since Daniel got to them before I did: We had a breakfast of strawberries, oranges and watermelon. It was delicious! They also offer 9-grain bread that is Daniel friendly which is very hard to find so I placed an order this round just to try it. It's good. It was so cold this morning I am still trying to warm up. It is my own fault because I didn't wear my coat and it was 17 degrees this morning--brrrrr.

In other things I am not used to having someone with long enough hair for some serious bed head in the morning. Here's this mornings exceptionally frightening hair-do on Sarah:

I can tell it took all night to get it just right. As my Dad would say it is scary enough to haunt a 5 room house.

Quiet Time or Strep Time?

Today as soon as Josh walked in through the door after school he asked me if he could have quiet time. I should have known right then there was a problem, but I didn't worry about it. He dropped his backpack on the ground, walked straight over to the couch, laid down right next to Aaron and was asleep within seconds. When he woke up about an hour later he was burning up with a fever of 102.2. He had no other symptoms like a runny nose or cough so I decided to take a look in his throat. He did tell he it didn't hurt so I didn't think I would find too much. I took a look and couldn't even get past his tonsils they were so huge. I decided it would be best to take him in to get a strep culture done before the weekend hours started. It was about 3:30 pm on a Friday afternoon and that's about the worst time to try to get in to see the doctor. Luckily our pediatrician has a walk in clinic at that time so Aaron took him in. They did a rapid strep test which came back positive within milliseconds. Next time Josh asks for quiet time I will suspect somethings up. At least he will be starting on antibiotics and feeling better soon--I hope.

Kids can be brutally honest and it usually comes out in regular conversation. I was talking to Daniel and he asked me why I was his mom. I told him I chose him to be my son and he chose me to be his mom up in heaven. He then told me he wanted to choose someone else to be his mom. I asked him why and he said, "Oh just because." Thanks Daniel.

Great News!!

Yesterday was Aaron's follow up appointment for his knee after receiving the MRI. The great news is...no surgery!! YAY!! His knee is still bothering him quite a bit, but there is no permanent damage. The doctor showed Aaron the MRI slides and told him that his inner whole knee is very bruised including the bone as well as a sprained ligament. It was so bruised the doctor was very surprised said Aaron was very lucky he didn't tear anything by looking at all the damage and bruising inside his knee. He just has to let it heal. I am so happy our Flex Spending account won't take such a big hit at the beginning of the year since there will be no surgery. It is all around good news, except for the fact Aaron is still a gimp. That will eventually go away, though. Now I have to worry about what to get Aaron for Christmas instead of surgery because the surgery was going to be his Christmas present ;). However, I must say I am more than alright with getting him something else. I am just glad for the great outcome!

My Bedroom

I still haven't posted pictures of my redone bedroom. I was waiting until I got everything done the way I wanted it, but that hasn't happened yet and probably won't happen for a little while longer. I am a little indecisive and also a procrastinator to boot which doesn't turn out to be a very good combination to say the least. Aaron's sister Jill was out for a visit clear back in October when we got the majority of it completed, but it has been sitting since then until I can make up my mind what else to do with it. We painted the walls, got a new bedding set, new curtains and figured out a few things to put on the walls. It's nice to finally have a grown-up bedroom. The walls are still a little bare, but I don't know quite what else to put on them hence the unfinished status. Anyway, here's the pictures:
Nothing too new has been going on with us. We did have a little bit of a rough night last night, though. Matthew occasionally has bouts of extreme obsessive/compulsiveness and last night it reared it's ugly head. When Matthew got home from school yesterday we completed all of his homework including a moon chart assignment he had been working on for all of the month of November. For some reason at 3 am this morning he woke up just sobbing because he didn't know what his next assignment would be since his month long moon chart was now complete seeing as November is now over. We tried to reason with him and telling him he would find out the next day and for him not to worry about it, but he still ended up just sobbing until it was time to get up in the morning--about 6am. That made for one long night. I think all of us are going to have a little of a rough day today for lack of sleep. Hopefully, Matthew will get his next assignment today and be a happy camper again. The extreme stresses of school shouldn't be starting in the 3rd grade--poor kid!

Things I am Thankful For

Occasionally I have been known to have a pessimistic attitude about life. This is not always the happiest way to look at things so I am trying to better. I have many things to be thankful for, but sometimes my hardships or problems seem so big I can't see the forest for the trees. To help remind myself of my many blessings I will list a few things I am thankful for.

1. Our Wednesday at the Zoo and Tracy Aviary. Now as a family we try to get out and do things together. This is not always easy for Matthew since he does not enjoy crowds or anything that is not in his regular routine. It is rare we can do any of these activities without a meltdown or screaming of some sort. I must say Wednesday he did terrific. We had no meltdowns and not very much screaming which made the day even better. I can mostly handle the bad days if there are a few days of exceptional goodness sprinkled in between. The hard days really make me appreciate the really good days that much more.

2. I am thankful for the funny things my kids say at times. We have been trying to teach our heathen kids manners especially around the table for dinner. It sometimes hard to say we don't burp or toot at the table and maintain a straight face. Last Wednesday over lunch we had a good discussion on proper table manners in preparation for Thanksgiving dinner as so we would not offend anyone with out bad manners. One of the key points was we don't burp at the table. Well during Thanksgiving dinner the next day Josh was eating and then burped very loudly. He thought by just saying excuse me it would make it ok. After he said excuse me I reminded him about our discussion the day before trying not to mention any specifics. Daniel thought he would help things out by yelling to Josh with a very full mouthful of chewed up turkey where bits of it fell out while he was speaking, "REMEMBER, WE DON'T BURP AT THE TABLE, JOSH!" Good thing Daniel is there to remind us all of our manners even though he is one of the worst offenders.

Daniel can be a little forgetful at times. He has been known to forget to wipe after using the bathroom. Sorry if that is a little too much information. He told Aaron and me tonight that when he forgets to wipe it makes his bum sour. Aaron tried to ask/correct him, "It makes your bum sore?" Daniel just said, "Nope, it just makes it sour Dad." It was hard to keep a straight face.

3. I am thankful for Aaron's job and that we have enough money to meet our needs--maybe not all our wants, but at least our needs are met.

4. I am thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who does know me and care about me. Even though I have pity parties for myself occasionally, I know this is just part of life and I need to be learning something. I guess He is trying to teach this old dog some new tricks even though I am pretty determined not to learn anything and think my way is best. I eventually find out I am terribly wrong and then see the light or so to say.

5. I am thankful for a good family who tries to support us through our trials. Even if it is just a word of encouragement it is still appreciated and sometimes just what I need to hear. We are trying our best with the hand we have been dealt, but sometimes things don't work out according to plan.

6. I am thankful for a good husband who is truly my best friend and confidant. He has really been a rock lately since with this pregnancy I seem to fall apart at the drop of a hat. He is getting really good about dealing with a shoulder sopping wet from a very tearful wife. Even a song or a sweet poem can bring tears to my eyes. This is so not like me so he has to just roll his eyes, be ready with a tissue and let me cry. It is going to be a long pregnancy.

7. I am thankful for the chance to have children. They teach me a lot about patience--even more than I care to learn. It makes me even more excited for Aaron's sister Jill who just found out she is pregnant with her first baby after her third round of invitro fertilization. We found out this week and are so excited for her. Children really are a blessing. I do love my children even though sometimes they can push me to my limit.

8. Cheesecake--'nuff said.
9. Bubble baths
10. Good Books

Thanksgiving and Black Friday (The Other Holiday)

For Thanksgiving this year we headed to G&G T's house along with my brother and his family and my own G&G (my mom's parents). G&G T were gracious enough to make a Daniel friendly turkey which was a good thing since he ate a ton of it and not much of anything else. Daniel is definitely a carnivore!! I got to bring the "smashed" potatoes and a dessert for Daniel. Grandma T made a few dishes just for Daniel so he could enjoy Thanksgiving, but they didn't compare to the turkey in Daniel's eyes. Dinner was delicious. Grandma T even set up a craft for the kids to do which kept them busy for a little bit. Then after a few meltdowns and some broken toys that afternoon we decided it was time for us to come home. Before we left we did get a picture with Great G&G Gee. When we got home I got out my Black Friday ads and called my sister when we made up our game plan. I was rather disappointed in what the sales were this year so I just planned to go to be moral support and an extra pair of hands for my sister. Fortunately or unfortunately--depending on how you look at it--I didn't remain empty handed. I came home spending a lot more than I had planned on, but at least Aaron and my Christmas is now done. I guess that's a good thing. I thought everyone else's Christmas was taken care of as well until we went to visit Santa tonight. The kids all had turns on Santa's lap and told him all different things than what they had told us. Seeing as Santa had already gotten what they had originally asked for and had never heard of any of the new stuff, I think I will be planting quiet suggestions of what they really want to help them really make up their minds. We saw Santa at the Christmas Tree Jubilee in Ogden. It is a mini charity like Festival of the Trees benefiting special needs kids in the area. We love going to this every year and this year was no different. Sarah didn't care for Santa, but the rest of the kids loved telling him all the things they wanted and getting their picture taken.

Free Day at the Zoo

Wednesday the zoo had a free day and all the kids were out of school so I thought why not. I was even more excited when Aaron decided to take the day off to go with us. It was nice because I really needed the help. It was a clear day, but very cold when we got there. It warmed up a few degrees, but winter is officially here I am afraid to say. We got to see most of the animals, but since we got there first thing in the morning some of them were still in their enclosures where the public couldn't see them. We got to the monkeys (all different species), elephant including the baby elephant, giraffes, etc. We were a little sad to find out the lion had passed away a few years ago so we didn't get to see any lions. The kids fit right in with all the wild animals since they were pretty crazy, too. After grabbing a quick lunch we then headed over to the Tracy Aviary to check out the different birds. I have had a pass there for awhile and have yet to make it there so we decided to check it out. It was nice because we were the only ones there. Josh and Daniel kept themselves busy by chasing the peacocks all over the place. They never caught up to them, but it got some of their energy out. It was fun day.