On Our Way

Photo credit goes to Auntie Emma

Camilla has been having so much fun at Gramma and Grampa's the last couple of days. Today Mom told me that she wants to spend all of her time with the baby chicks and doesn't like to leave them. When I phoned today she was out helping Grampa put together a green house. Her job was to pass him the screws. Hyrum has missed her like crazy, but I think the time apart has done them both good. We are heading out soon to meet Daddy at the train station and pick up Camilla. It's been far too quiet around here without her!

Signs of Spring

There are signs of spring all over the city!

The boys and I rode the bus today while the car was getting fixed.

I couldn't help but notice all of the leaves coming on the trees.

That and the blue sky made me super happy.

This chubby cheeked little boy also makes me happy

He's growing too fast!

Little Chicks

Today Camilla took a road trip with Grampa and Auntie Emma to pick up the little chicks. They just hatched yesterday. I am a bit jealous. I can remember as a kid hopping in the back of the old blue Ford truck and driving with my Dad to pick up the chicks in the Spring time. I would spend hours with them after we got home watching them learn to drink and run around. I am so glad Camilla gets a chance to experience it too! She will be spending a few days with Gramma and Grampa at the Acreage. I am going to miss her so much! She helped me pack her bags this morning. As I was buckling her into the car she was talking about leaving and it finally sunk in that she would be away from us for a couple of days. She looked as though she was going to start to cry, so I quickly hugged her. She was brave. She asked me if I was going to miss her and if I was going to cry after she left. She gave me the tightest little hug and a big wet kiss on the cheek. 

It's been a super quiet day with just the boys. Hyrum isn't sure what to do with himself without someone to follow around. At dinner time he helped me set the table as I passed him the forks I said, "one for Mommy, one for Daddy, one for Hyrum...." and he looked up at me and asked, "What about one for Cama?" Then I had to remind him that she was at Grampa's. "Where did my Bampa go?" he would ask in a sad voice. So funny. Then when I came down from the bedroom he asked me if I found her playing "ready or not", which I think meant hide and seek. It's so weird not having her around. When Daddy asked him where Camilla was he said, "Gettin' chickens, Daddy".

She called us tonight from the Acreage to tell us all about the baby chicks and how fuzzy they are and how much fun they are. She talked to Hyrum for a few minutes and asked him things like, "What did you eat for supper Hyrum?" "Did you eat it all gone?" "Did you have dessert?" "Was it good?" She sounded so grown up! I love hearing that little voice of hers on the telephone.

We Skyped before bath time to say goodnight. She was bouncing all over the couch in excitement and just loving life. My Dad and Sister sent me pictures during the day to keep me updated. I can't wait to hold me a fuzzy little chick. I also can't wait to hold and snuggle my little girl again this weekend! 

What's a Girl to do

It's after 11PM on a week night and I'm still awake.

It's been a long day.

When everyone was napping I had big plans to be productive.

Instead I fell asleep in the chair with my feverish 

Babe snuggled on my chest.

Daddy is away at Hockey tonight and it is super windy.

As I type my curtains are blowing frantically around the open window.

I came upstairs early intending on going to bed.

Instead I ended up listening to conference talks while 

Joe slept between my outstretched legs on the bed.

Poor baby has been burning up all day.

I think he's the last member of the household to get it.

Around 11PM Hyrum couldn't stop coughing. 

Camilla got scared that he would puke and kept asking

him to drink some water.

Each time he would shout back, "NO!"

It wasn't long before I heard Camilla's feet on the hardwood floors. 

Now she's nestled in beside me.

Daddy's going to come home to a bed full tonight...

Joe is still warm and snuggly. 

I have a feeling we will spend most of our night together.

Character

Sundays are almost always an adventure, and this morning proved to be true. Mike left to his early morning meeting just as I jumped in the shower. When I was finished I heard Hyrum happily talking about how he got himself a drink.  I rushed to the kitchen (knowing how much fun the water cooler can be to a two year old) leaving Joseph on our bed surrounded by pillows. When I entered the kitchen I saw my blonde boy in his blue footy pyjamas skating around my kitchen like the floor was an ice rink. So many glasses of water had been dumped that the water around the baseboards was at least an inch thick. I put on my best serious voice and called Hyrum by his full name. His fun quickly ended and his smile turned to a pouty lip as he choked back tears. Oh that sensitive boy of mine, how I love him.  We grabbed some old towels and mopped up the floor.

I quickly went back up to finish getting Joe dressed for church. The moment I took his diaper off he peed all over himself and my bed, so it was off to the bath. He giggled as I carried his naked chubby baby body down to the bathroom. This Sunday was not looking so hot already and we hadn't even left the house yet.

Church went relatively well. Daddy had to bless the Sacrament which left me with the three children. As I sat there singing the opening hymn, cuddling Joseph to sleep I felt so blessed. Hyrum and Camilla were sitting relatively quiet on either side of me. I am so glad they are learning to sit through church and feel the Holy Ghost. When Daddy joined us on the bench, Hyrum quickly climbed up on his knee. A few minutes later he was snuggled in fast asleep. With two of the three kids out for the count, the rest of the meeting went amazingly.

Our Relief Society lesson was on character and how we should strive to “establish a character before God that could be relied upon in the hour of trial.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Lorenzo Snow, Chapter 8: “Search Me, O God, and Know My Heart”) It just made me think about how I can grow and develop more character when I am dealing with the children in moments like we had this morning. I want my character to be relied upon, and I never want my children to doubt my love for them. I learn so much from them each day about love and forgiveness.

We spent the afternoon running around outdoors in our bare feet soaking up the sunshine and breathing the fresh air. It was heavenly.



Fancy Feet

Today it was my turn to take Camilla to her Saturday morning dance class. It was so wonderful to see her so excited and independent. She was so comfortable with her teacher and little classmates. I couldn't help but watch her through the glass window from a distance. It was so cute watching her twist and jump and wiggle that petite little body of hers. The very last day they have a little recitle and you bet we'll be there to watch!



We enjoyed having Daddy around for the day and even made a little trip to the park! Camilla was so excited to ride her bike and Hyrum patiently waited until she got off to slide and then continued to ride his bike around the park the entire time. He can put his feet on the peddles, but doesn't quite understand how it works yet.

 If we weren't pushing him he would repeat, "Not workin' Mommy, not workin'!" until one of us helped him along again. Daddy was a real trooper and helped his little man navigate the park the whole time we were there. The fresh air was wonderful!

Camilla is such a big sister!

And these giggles pretty much made my day. You may have to listen very carefully to hear them over Hyrum, who is sad his "byc-ick-l" isn't working...


 

Spring Afternoon

Today the littles spent a lot of time outdoors playing in the yard, laughing together, and kicking a soccerball around with the neighbor girls.  With the gorgeous sunshine I couldn't help but take out the camera to capture their sweet little faces.

 I love looking back on these pictures of all of them together. I'm so glad that they have each other to play and laugh with. It's always fun to see their little personalities shine through and recognize their different developmental stages.

Camilla gets really giggly and goofy whenever I pull out the camera lately. I love her sense of humor. Hyrum just loves life and loves to do whatever his sister does. Joseph was more interested in feeling the grass between his fingers. A whole new world has opened up to him now that the snow is gone!

I let Camilla operate the camera for a few minutes. She loves to snap pictures and I love to see it. She grabbed some shots of Joseph and I and some funny ones of Hyrum.

 Then we set up the camera for a couple self takes of me and the littles. I sure do love them and their big personalities.

 And look who can sit handsomely by himself for a whole five seconds!



Little Gems

Last night felt like another all nighter for this mamma. Hyrum was sick yesterday, slept all afternoon, went to bed without a peep and whined every half hour all night. He was crazy hot and his fever finally broke sometime between 3 and 5 in the AM. I spent half the night scrunched next to the poor little dude in his toddler bed, listening to his shallow breaths. I spent the other half of the night dozing in the big green chair nursing Joe and maybe half an hour in my bed.

Joe snuggled between Daddy and I in the early morning kicking, flailing and screeching in delight. His smiles helped me wake up happy and I loved holding him in the air above me listening to him giggle while I lay in bed. Hyrum soon joined us. He proceeded to name the colors he spotted on my bed. "What's that Mommy?...Red" He nailed every color, no doubt he's learning from his sister. When Daddy pointed to something white and asked Hyrum what color it was he said, "snow". We both got a chuckle out of it. Camilla wasn't far behind and asked if I could make her breakfast because she was so hungry from her long sleep.

Despite being tired I braved the Medicentre with all three children where we waited two hours to see the doc, and got some X-rays done of Hyrum's chest. Thankfully all is well and I was told to wait it out and make sure it didn't get worse. The kids drew on old receipts, played doctor and counted all fingers and toes to pass the time. They were gems.

I spent the afternoon enjoying one on one time with Camilla, doing laundry and finishing up yesterday's dishes. I always feel like I do things backwards. I still don't know why I insist on doing dishes before dinner. I can't wait to have a dishwasher. It was near the top on the list of Must Have's in our new home. I also must have about a million kisses from this little boy each day.

Sun Bathing

Oh how we are looking forward to Summer afternoons in the sun!

Today Joseph enjoyed some tummy time in the afternoon rays that

pour through our living room window.

He played and cooed and twisted and turned while the warm rays kissed his soft baby skin.

I could have watched him play and eat his blanket all afternoon.

When Hyrum and Camilla came down from their naps they quickly put their imaginations to work.

Joseph loved watching them play.

I love quiet afternoons like these.

Two Today

Dear Hyrum,

Today you are two years old! You've grown up so fast! We had a very tiny birthday party on Saturday with some family and cupcakes. Today you opened your little gift from us though. It was a tiny man with magnetic clothes so that you could dress him up as a fire fighter, super hero, police officer and a few other things. The first thing you did was pull out two of the man's boots (which are oddly shaped like hockey sticks) and shoot and pretend puck around the living room. I have no idea where your obsession with hockey came from but it sure is interesting to see what you turn into a hockey stick these days. The other day it was your cracker and you and your sister had a shoot out at the lunch table.

You love to run and skip around the house and have recently fallen in love with jumping. Each time you wash your hands on your stool in the bathroom you ask me to hold you hand so you can jump super high and land on your feet with a giggle. The way you move your little body right now is priceless and I love watching you swing your arms and shake your hips while you dance along side your sister in the living room.

It has been such a joy to have you in our family. I love your sweet little voice, your obedient nature and your love for reading. I adore the way you said "I lub you!" a bunch of times before bed tonight. I love smooching you before bed as you excitedly cling onto your Daddy's back for a piggyback ride up to bed. Thank-you for making me smile each and every day. We sure love you!