Ashleyism

On our way to school this afternoon, Ashley asked: "Mom, how come I never miss kindergarten?" I asked her to explain. She said: "We only get two days off called Saturday and Sunday. I don't want to go on the day that comes before Saturday." (long pause-thinking...) "Do you know that the Principal is the boss of our school? Well, I'm going to his office today so I can ask if he'll give us another day off! What do you think, Mom?"

Granola

I made some granola today--rather than the usual cookies or cinnamon rolls I've been making lately. It's a terrible habit of mine (sweets). I call them daily doses of sanity. At any rate, I couldn't resist the urge to bake-yet again-but chose a healthier option. Well, I over baked and under sweetened the whole batch. Sigh. This considerably lessons my chances of convincing my family that healthy snacks ARE desirable. Perhaps it will taste better after it cools and I've added some dried fruit to the mix. I snuck in brown rice this week--not favored. Even tried to convince the family that whole wheat cinnamon rolls would be just as good as the 'empty calorie' version. No luck. One question, those of you who have gone completely off of sugar--how, exactly does that work? No brown sugar on your oatmeal? No frozen chocolate chips to keep the peace (I mean sanity)? I think I would have to quit eating all together! That's all I have to say about that! HA!

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

I wish I'd thought to take a picture of Gage before removing him from the edge...instead my first instinct (after guilt, of course) was to snatch him up and place him safely someplace else. What happened, you might ask? First, let me confess that I simply cannot respond to every child's request for attention, every tattle, every hunger pain, or whim. I find it emotionally impossible! So, sometimes, when my children 'cry' I don't come running unless there is that urgency (you know what I mean) in their voice. I heard him calling my name, as he does hundreds of times each day. His calls grew a bit louder and I must admit he started crying--but the cries were not particularly urgent. I did not rush to his aide. When there was silence once again, I simply sighed relief and carried on with whatever it is that I do all day! Silence, however, isn't always a good thing when it comes to children. So, I went looking for him. Teetering on the edge of the kitchen counter, belly down-bumm up, sound asleep, was my Gage (18 months). A few deep breaths or another wiggle, he would have fallen off--rude awakening on a hard kitchen floor! It was no surprise-- finding him on the countertop. We remove him from it many times a day. He can open the peanut butter, loves to drink right from the honey bear, and helps himself to cereal and bread often (am I painting a clear picture of what kind of mother I am? Fourth child--what more can I say? Does it help to say that for Gage, I simply sweep the remnants of meals into a pile and leave it there, hoping he'll choose to eat the Cheerios he dropped during breakfast over climbing chairs and scaling countertops to find a snack) Who am I kidding? He's a boy: brave, wild, daring, and hungry! No, it was not a cliff or the roof top, but my parenting is questionable nonetheless. Sometimes I wonder if 'nurturing' is really in my nature.

Ashleyism:

Our Sunday meetings don't begin until one o'clock in the afternoon. Avery, looking for something to do Sunday morning, asked if she could watch a movie. I was about to answer her when Ashley said: "We can't do that on Sunday, but tomorrow is Monday and you can do ANYTHING you want, except steal!"

Happy Birthday Avery!

Four years ago today, our Avery was born. We were thrilled to add another baby girl to our family. She was a delightful baby--our easiest! She was our only binki baby and the only one who had attachments to special things (like her favorite blanket and stuffed Moose) Binki in mouth, moose in arms and blanket by her side--she was good to go! In fact, when we put her to bed she'd give us that look--that 'could you leave please, I've got it under control' look. She still sleeps well (when we actually convince her it REALLY is time for bed!) Avery has a great lower lip pout. (She got it from me.) She is very stubborn and has never believed that rules apply to her. Avery loves cheese pizza, bananas, cottage cheese, and apple skins. Her favorite movie is Barbie's Princess and the Pauper. People say she looks JUST like her dad....no mistakes whose child she belongs to. She adores him! Avery gives great hugs. She can talk your ear off into the wee hours of the night (if you let her). Her prayers are adorable! She still doesn't pronounce her R's--just rolls right past them. She pronounces our friend's name-Roman Yoder, like this: "Yoman Yodee." (I love listening to her talk--I said talk, not scream...she does that well too!) Of course we can't imagine life without Avery. Happy Birthday little one! We love you!

Bear Lake

Not so happy about falling in the lake.
His back side is all wet! I love this kid!




She really does have cute moments! Ha Ha.



Couldn't resist the sugar fest!

Gabriel, Ashley, Steven, Maggie & Avery admiring their masterpiece!

The Daniel kiddos with the Heward ones: Tinsley, Aspen, Riley, and Tagghart.

Slumber party on the Murphy! The kids LOVE this 'secret' bed!

We've been away for over a week! Took Steven and Ash out of school three days prior to the holiday break and made a dash for Bear Lake--a trip we try to make each Thanksgiving. It was a wonderful retreat! Our good (and much missed) friends from Star Valley (Joe and Danice Heward) came to visit. Catching up with them is always a blast! Jeremy and Sarah (and their adorable 3 children) stayed at the Lake with us for three nights! We kept the indoor pool splashing morning and evening, spent afternoons on the tennis court, and skipped rocks on the lake at sunset. The weather couldn't have been better! It was relaxing and memorable! We are very blessed with great family and friends to share our time with.

Are you for real?

I haven't posted for quite awhile. Do you ever feel that daily life is far too mundane to make a fuss about? I think about posting far more often than I actually post--simply because I don't know what to say! Life's details don't flow smoothly from my head to my tongue or my fingertips. I have never been one to think quickly on my feet or develop thoughts and ideas well. It's just one of those quirky things about me. (Oh, that reminds me--I have several TAGS to answer) I guess I'll just keep writing until I think of something significant to say. Do you want to hear about laundry, dishes, homework, sticky fingers and faces, spilled milk, missing shoes, ever growing task lists, unfinished projects--need I continue? We all have those things. I am grateful to have them. Really. I love the cute 'little people' in my life who create the most of it. They're growing up way too fast. I fear that my parenting skills aren't keeping up. Sigh. Sometimes my one year old (Gage) looks up at me with this "are you for real?" kind of look. He's pretty funny. Speaking of Gage, there are a lot of buttons, cupboards, door knobs, and toilets in this house just his height. He goes from one to the next (a transition every 5-10 seconds) It's rather entertaining (as long as I'm not annoyed). I'm learning a lot from him:

• Did you know that tinkertoys, dolls, and legos add quite a bit of color to boring white toilet bowls?
• The dishwasher is a blast to open and close (especially when that white steamy stuff is coming out) The door?.....try jumping on it next time it's open. That's a riot! (Who would've known?)
• Get this--the washing machine makes awesome high-pitch noises when you push and turn its buttons!
• Dishwashing detergent on the kitchen floor is WAY more fun than a sandbox!
• Tomatoes squirt when you squeeze them! You can make a slip and slide in your own kitchen just by pushing those buttons on the refrigerator door! COOL!
• Chocolate chips taste much better after they're nice and warmed by the carpet--furniture works well for this too.
• Hey, get this: you can get from the front door to the middle of the street in 5.3 seconds--if you really hustle!
• Did you know that dining chairs come in handy when you can't reach something? Just push it as close as you can to whatever it is you want and start climbing--eventually you'll get to it.
• OH, OH, I almost forgot--microwaves are totally awesome! There's like 30 buttons on them! If you push the right ones, a light will come on inside of it! WAY!
• This one is important: family members get really fussy when you insistently push buttons on the television or the remote.

I don't know what I would've done without all of this wonderful information! I learn new things every day. Thank you Gage--we're better now for knowing!