Package from Chile

We got a special package in the mail today from Elder Hudkins. 

He sent some awesome belated birthday gifts from Chile. It came in a cereal box with lots of tape and inside the box each package was delicately wrapped in bags with our names taped to the top.

Hyrum opened his first. It was a darling little llama peluche. He loves it!

(I'm pretty sure it's real llama fur too)

Camilla opened hers next and discovered this adorable little bolsa. She was super excited and immediately put it to good use filling it with teddies and things. 

I am pretty sure my little brother is the best souvenir shopper I know. But, with all his previous travel experience, he should be a pro by now! I got a pretty little wallet. It will go awesome with my bag from Costa Rica. Mr. Stannix will open his when he gets home, I can hardly wait.

Big Boy Bed

 On Saturday night we made the switch to a toddler bed. I had Mr. Stannix bring it up stairs for me during one of his study breaks. We ended up vacuuming all the cob webs, bugs and creepy crawlies while we were down there. I am no longer as afraid to do laundry and happy to say that my messy bun won't be taking cob webs off the roof anymore. I washed up the bed and freshened it all up and then we took it upstairs. The room looks so cozy with Camilla's big bed, the toddler bed and our little crib. I'm actually quite happy with how it all turned out, and even more excited to fill that crib with a newborn!  I know it seems like Hyrum is too little for the switch to the big boy bed, but this wasn't a last minute decision. The poor guy was getting too long for our little apartment size crib. It also gives me peace of mind knowing that he will be well adjusted to the big bed before baby arrives (I know, it's a long ways away still). 

I had a Primary meeting that night, so we rushed through baths and prayers in order to leave lots of time to get him to fall asleep in the new bed. After goodnight kisses, he climbed the stairs and made his way to the big green chair for snuggles and his bottle. When he finished I put him down and asked him to go find his bed. He went to the toddler bed, grabbed his favorite blanket and started across the room to his crib. I giggled as I led him to his new big boy bed and tucked him in. I whispered "night night" and gave him one last kiss. He clicked his tongue twice (his way of saying "night night") and pulled his fuzzy blanket close. I sat on Camilla's bed by the door and prepared myself for the worst. I was envisioning having to lug him back to bed 122938 times. After about a minute I moved closer to the door and more out of sight. He made himself comfy as I took one more step onto the landing outside the door. I then waited a few more minutes, peeked in and was pretty sure his eyes were closed. 

I made my way down the stairs dodging as many of the creaky parts as I could and giggled with Mr. Stannix about how adorable our boy is. I had time to tidy the house, snap a picture, and hang out with Camilla before I had to leave to my meeting. It seriously took less than five minutes to wait for him to fall asleep. I was in heaven! Camilla had a harder time with the transition and it took a good week for her to finally fall asleep without us having our fingers visible through the door.

Before bed I snuck in to check on him and he was sleeping soundly. I touched his soft little baby cheeks and chubby little fingers. They are so peaceful when they sleep. I snapped one more picture of him off in dreamland and then pulled Camilla's covers back up on my way out. I smiled as I left the room and felt so blessed!

The first sounds I heard from Hyrum were this morning at his usual 6:00am. Shrieks of joy accompanied by belly laughs. I listened as his feet hit the floor and pitter-pattered across the landing and into our room. He looked so darn cute with his bed head and fuzzy blanket in tow. I got a quick hug and smooch and then he was off. He loves the freedom of being able to get himself out of bed. 

Tonight went much the same as last night. I tucked him in, he gave me his two clicks of the tongue to say "night night", I smooched his cheeks and left the room. It was 7:35pm when I left and by 7:40 I was making my way downstairs! Piece of cake! 

We just won't mention the 3 1/2 hours I spent on Camilla's bed in the heat with one eye open waiting for him to nap this afternoon... At least he knows he has to stay in his bed. When he thought I wasn't looking he would chuck his teddy off the side, jump out to pick him up, and scramble quickly back into bed. After a poopy diaper, some tears from mamma, and 30 more minutes upstairs, I gave up. There's always tomorrow! I am still so proud of him.

A Hat Trick

This week  Mr. Stannix went to his final game of Hockey for the season. It was a play-off game and in his league you only get one shot. If you lose you are out for the rest of the season.   He wasn't sure how his team would do. He came home late after the game pretty excited and let me in on all the details. He said that right off the whistle in the first period his team scored 2 goals!  Both goals were scored when Mike's line was out on the ice so after the first period they were feeling pretty good.  Then the second period hit and the other team scored two goals, tying the game up.  As the game went on each side scored a goal right after the other.  Mike scored one of these goals on a breakaway.  He said he came in really fast at the goalie and cut across the crease beating the goalie bad! 

 Face off

Near the end of the third period the score was tied at 4.  There was three minutes left and a scramble in the other teams end for the puck.  Mike said everyone was throwing the puck on net but nobody could get it in!  Then the puck came loose and Mike picked it up. Just as the goalie located where the puck was he shot it through the defense into the net, scoring his second for the night.  The game was now 5-4 looking pretty good for his team with two minutes left when the other team scored to tie it up at 5.  The officials then blew their whistle, stopped the game and told each team there would be a shoot out with 5 players from each team.  Mike was chosen as one of the 5 players.  The other team started the shoot out scoring with their first player.  Then Mike's team went and the first shooter missed!  Then a few more from each side went and each missed.  Then it was Mike's turn.  He went hard at the goalie and faked to the left then went right faking the goalie out and scoring, his third goal of the night, making it his first hat-trick ever!  Unfortunately the other team scored again and Mike's team was unable tie it up and they lost.  Mike said it was a great way to end the hockey season and is excited for the next season which starts up in 2 more weeks!

Bringing the puck down the ice

The Team

I dare say he looks mighty handsome in all his hockey gear. I'm very proud of him! I'm glad he's back playing something he loves and look forward to next season!

Twenty-Six Weeks

Dear Little One,

I woke up this morning thinking of you. We have officially made it to twenty-six weeks. Time is going by so quickly. Each day it seems my belly gets rounder and rounder as you continue to grow.  You are starting to become a very active baby and I can now feel your sharp elbows and tiny feet stick out as you move around. Your big sister likes to sit beside me at night and put her hands on my tummy while we read stories. She giggles when she feels you kick and roll around. Your big brother will sometimes come up to me and lift up my shirt and put his chubby little hands on my bare tummy and pat it gently as he smiles up at me. I have a feeling the three of you will get along very well. You get the hiccups a lot, but mostly at night when I am trying to fall asleep. Other than that you are a very good baby and I get a full nights rest almost every night. When I snuggle with your brother each morning at the crack of dawn, you are awake too doing somersaults. Sometimes your brother will giggle if he feels your tumbling on his back.

Today while we were out running errands somebody commented on how both of your siblings have blonde hair. It made me wonder if you will have those same fine, whispy blonde locks that your brother and sister have. I also wondered if you'll have the same blue eyes. 

With just fourteen weeks to go until you join our family we are all getting really excited! I am looking forward to seeing Hyrum cover your chubby cheeks with smooches just like he does to every other baby we meet. I am excited to see your big sister cradle you in her arms. I can't wait to count your toes and fingers and touch your soft, sweet baby skin. I am already dreaming of our evenings together on the big green chair. It might be a little tricky sharing a bed room with an older brother and sister, but I promise it will make you closer as time goes on.

Love,
Mum

Best Buds

This morning the children and I went to the park for a while.

I love that Hyrum gets more independent each time we visit the park. 

Camilla and Hyrum were good buds all morning.

(Which made for a happy Mamma)

Siblings are the best!

Craving Autumn

There has been a chill in the air today and I am pretty sure I even saw three yellow leaves beneath my favorite tree in the front yard. I recently caved and joined the world of Pinterest. I stayed away as long as I could because I knew I would spend way too much time on there. While I was browsing I came across some delicious looking apple cider cookies stuffed with caramels, lots of soups, lots of baking ideas with pumpkin, and lots of crafts. It was like I could smell Fall coming and I have been so excited for it ever since. 

This morning while Hyrum was napping I got to spend some special time with my girl on the front steps. We drew chalk together, blew bubbles, and giggled lots. It was so nice to hear her giggle as she ran around the yard trying to pop every single bubble. She would scribble out drawings in chalk and then tell me what they were. I love her imagination.

After lunch Camilla went down for a snooze and I got to spend the afternoon with a very goofy boy. My old 3D lenses from Harry Potter became his favorite toy and we would take turns wearing them and laughing.  My favorite part of our afternoon together was snuggling in front of the living room window. He was wearing only a diaper and his naked shoulders could been seen above the afghan my Grandma crocheted for me years ago.  The yellows and browns and the heaviness of the blanket reminded me of cool Autumn afternoons. As I danced and twirled around the living room floor with his little body nestled into mine, those Autumn afternoons were all I could think about.

Afternoon Naps

Saturday afternoon was crazy. Everyone was exhausted including our kiddos, so some afternoon naps were in order for all! I put Camilla down for her snooze and Daddy wasn't far behind. He had already had a busy day full of CASB, talk writing and playing with the kiddos. While the house was quiet, Hyrum crawled up on my lap and fell asleep right there on my baby bump. It was pretty cute. 

I went upstairs and put him on our bed so I could have a quick snooze. He and Mike were too cute sleeping side by side and I just couldn't resist. 

While I was up I checked on Camilla. She had put on Hyrum's baby house coat after I tucked her in and fell asleep in it. There's something about sleeping children that I just adore. She was so sweet and peaceful. 

Finally it was time for me to snuggle in next to my boy. When Camilla woke up, Mr. Stannix got up with her and they went downstairs. She stood on the landing for quite a while. I opened my eyes when I heard Hyrum full out giggle and thought to myself well that didn't last long. When I lifted my head off the pillow to see his opened eyes, they weren't open at all. He let out another big giggle and smiled as he turned his head to the side. I wished I knew what he was dreaming about, it was the cutest thing.

Eskimos vs. Riders

On Thursday Mr. Stannix came home from work and into the kitchen with one hand behind his back. He greeted me with a hug from behind placing one hand on my baby bump and fanning out four tickets to the Eskimo's game in the other. The lucky guy won them in a draw at work, and they were stinkin' good seats! A date night has definitely been in order for a while and I was looking forward to the evening together. The tickets were for the following night so we rounded up some friends and a baby-sitter last minute. It worked out great!

Our friends came up from Red Deer for the night sans their kiddos. We did a quick BBQ and then took off to the Stadium on the LRT.  It was pretty packed, but we got on early and got seats.  It had been a while since I've been in such a big crowd and it was super hot on the train.

Our tickets were pretty amazing. We were eight rows behind the Esks and just high enough to see everything.  We were surrounded by a lot of season ticket holders who knew each other and felt a little out of place, but it was still fun to be there and cheer!

Mr. Stannix had watched an Eskimo's game just the week before with his Nana on TV. It was pretty cool to see it up close and not just on the big screen. There were some pretty sweet plays and awesome touch downs. I must admit I missed a few of them because I was too busy people watching.

It was awesome being there with our old friends. Steph and I were roommates in college and we both met and married our sweethearts around the same time. I always feel blessed to have such great friends and I'm glad we've been able to keep in touch since we've moved up here. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time!

I also loved snuggling up with Mr. Stannix for the evening. It was nice to get out on a date with him and reconnect. It was a much loved evening out and I was so happy to be there with him.

The game got pretty intense at the end, but the Eskimos came back with an awesome touchdown. We left after the last touchdown when the Eskimos were up 28-19. 

We thought that by leaving early we would have a better chance at a seat on the LRT. So we climbed the stairs to the top and snapped one last picture before speed walking to catch the train. Turns out a lot of others had the same idea and the station was packed anyways. I had to grab onto Mr. Stannix's pants pocket just to keep up with him as he dodged and maneuvered his way through the crowds.  Once in a while I'd look back to make sure our friend's were still with us.

When we got on the LRT it was pretty full. Mr. Stannix had found a place to stand by one of the chairs and I squeezed in by the door we came in. Mr. Stannix joined me a few seconds later and said, "If I'm going to have to stand close to somebody it had better be you!". As the train sped down the tracks, jerking back and forth, Mr. Stannix kept me safe and standing.

We got to Century park and found our car. By the time we got out of the parking lot I was practically peeing my pants because I was laughing so hard. Mr. Stannix was trying to tell everyone infront of him how to drive and push their way in to the line of cars exiting the parking lot. When it was finally his turn to push his way in, there was no body coming. We were all laughing pretty hard about it. We came home to sleeping kids and Mr. Stannix took his cousin home. We then stayed up talking with our friends way too late and got up way too early! Naps are definitely in order for today. What a fun night!

Early Morning Blessings

I woke up shortly after six this morning to a happy little boy. The rooms upstairs were cool and fresh from the rain we received overnight. I pulled back the white bed sheet that was keeping me warm beneath the blowing fan and went across to the children's room. Camilla was still sound asleep. I quietly pulled her covers snug to her chin before scooping up my boy from the crib. I smooched his chubby little cheeks and carried him down the creaky old stairs for his morning bottle. We snuggled on the couch for a few minutes, played a game of peek and exchanged some more smooches. I loved laying beside him on the couch and looking into his blue eyes while he puckered up for another smooch. After each smooch he would let out a grunt of satisfaction, "Mhm!" I love it when he does that. Soon he got wiggly and it was time to let him roam the house. I went into the kitchen to start my day. The cool floor felt good on my bare feet. We had been melting just the day before and it was nice not to wake up sweaty for once. I started on the homemade syrup for breakfast and then whipped up a dozen banana muffins. While they were baking I put the wheat in the wheat grinder for bread. It turned out everyone wanted hot muffins for breakfast so I made up some smoothies to go with them. We devoured seven of the twelve muffins and the rest are still tempting me on the counter. After kissing Mr. Stannix good-bye I got out the bread bowl and made up some bread for the week. I thought I would take advantage of the cool house. When it was finally finished a few hours later and the timer went off a stampede of children, or rather two children stampeding, ran into my kitchen excited for fresh bread and butter for our mid morning snack. The four loaves came out perfect and finally resembled the loaves formed by the hands of my dear mother each week growing up.

I feel so blessed to be a mother. I love being at home with my children and learning more about each of them each day. Lately I've been feeling like every moment I have with them is so precious. I love kneeling at their level and getting hugs, smooches and cuddles. I love looking into their eyes and seeing the love that is there. I love listening to Camilla say morning prayers. I love smooching their soft little cheeks and gently touching their faces. I love feeling baby kick and roll inside of me, reminding me how special these sweet spirits are and that they come from Heavenly Father. I delight so much in the role that I've been given to make our house a home and nurture these little children within the safety of it's walls.

 

 

Hide and Sleep

Saturday was an outside day. The grass needed mowing and trees needed pruning. The mosquitoes were terrible! After dinner we got the kids ready for an earlier bed time. I put Hyrum up to bed and then ran Camilla a quick bath. When I called for her she didn't answer. I figured she was just hiding, but usually she calls me to come find her. I sneakily asked Mr. Stannix where she was and he quietly pointed beside him. I peeked into the little hiding place to find her with her eyes closed. I totally thought she was just pretending to sleep and I told her the bath was ready. She didn't budge. When Mr. Stannix and I realized that she had actually fallen asleep while sitting there we both burst out laughing. She's still adjusting to the time change I guess!