One in a Week

My parents were in town today, so we took advantage of it and had a little get together for Joe's first birthday! I was super creative this year and made him an angel food cake with my mamma's traditional icing. The kids licked the beaters while they played outside and Joe licked the spatula in his booster seat. They were all very sticky afterwards. We enjoyed being with family and will be enjoying the "fresh farm eggs" (as Camilla and Hyrum like to call them) and the homemade chocolates they shared from their days work at Gramma's. Big thanks to everyone who came by and spoiled our little man (who isn't a whole year old until next Sunday). More pictures to come once I get them from my sister who always becomes the designated photographer at these kind of things. Thanks sis!

Grampa and Joe showing off their new trick

Thursday Things

Today started out just like almost every other. Joseph woke up first, ready for his morning bottle and some breakfast, shortly followed by Hyrum's footsteps after he hopped out of our bed to join me downstairs.  The brothers always share morning snuggles on the couch in the dim glow of the streetlights, giggling and playing with each other. Joseph gets so excited when Hyrum enters the room in the morning.

After Daddy left for work we went upstairs to get everyone dressed and changed. I love hugging and snuggling my kids right after I put some fresh clothes on them! They always smell so wonderful thanks to the laundry detergent!

 

 After we finished our morning routine, we spent the rest of the morning making snowflakes to replace the leaves under our plastic table cloth. I also let the littles glue some cotton balls onto construction paper and make their own snowmen. Busy kids are happy kids.

I sent the older two outdoors just before lunch to burn some energy and get some fresh air. I love the smell of a crisp Winters day. If it wasn't so chilly, I would almost open my windows! Joe had fun banging on the window and trying to escape out the door while I made lunch. Man that boy is getting tall! Whenever I would try to talk to him he would mumble to himself and shake his head side to side almost as if he was saying, "I dunno 'bout this, Mom..."

 

While Joe napped I whipped up some bread dough. I love the big recipes that make four loaves because I get to freeze some for later. I made a couple loaves of cinnamon bread for breakfasts, over a dozen cinnamon buns and a regular white loaf for lunches. It was nice to get it out of the way when the baby was asleep because when he's awake, he's trouble!

 Camilla has been learning some piano and has Middle C, D and E down! She keeps begging me to let her move on to F, but I'd like her to try and recognize the first three notes on paper before we go on. She loves to practice and constantly wants me by her side teaching her something new. I love her enthusiasm!

When the bread came out of the oven we all had a warm piece with butter. Best thing ever on a chilly afternoon! Joe was in the booster seat and kept protesting until I let him have a piece to nibble too.

Just before Dinner Camilla became a huge helper! She set the table, volunteered to sweep the floor and even got in her Jammies without being asked. I love when she gets in those moods, but it also makes me laugh. After dinner she cleared her plate and cup and even waited politely at the table until we were all finished eating. Later on she says to me, "Do you like when I put Joe's Jammies on the bed so you don't have to walk over to the dresser when Joe's SCREAMIN' and Hyrums CU-Plainin'.....?" At least she understands how hard my job really is. It made me smile.

Cafe Rio

I attempted to make Cafe Rio for the first time today. It turned out super good, but nothing can top the real deal. Mike served his mission in Salt Lake City and Cafe Rio became his favorite place to eat. I will never be able to make the real thing, but at least we can pretend! Sweet Pork, all the fixin's, and the famous creamy ranch tomatillo sauce!

Yum!

Morning Light

This morning the littles and I ventured out into the cold to get groceries. We managed to get our shopping done and arrive home with plenty of time before Joe's morning nap. I finished unpacking the food and zipped the children's coats up on request so that they could play outside. While I helped them slip their little hands into their mittens and placed a hat on each of their heads, Joe quietly drank his bottle. Just as I got the older two out the door Joseph stuck his arms up ready to be picked up. As I held him close, he snuggled into my shoulder and fell asleep almost instantly! The house was quiet except for the distant echos of Camilla giggling out the backdoor. I carried him slowly up the stairs, rubbing his back and touching his soft little face. Before placing him in his crib, I cuddled him tight for some time, soaking in the moment. In just a short time he will be a whole year old and with his new found ability to walk and move these moments happen less and less. His face is growing and changing, his personality is exploding with spunk and goofiness and his little legs are losing the rolls that I once squeezed affectionately whenever I changed his bottom. 

I closed my eyes for a few minutes as flashbacks from his first few months came to mind. How did that teeny tiny baby turn into this big strong boy? A part of me wanted to freeze time and keep him this way for a while. I love the things he is learning each day and the excitement he has for life. He sure loves those older siblings and always reaches out to Daddy when he gets home from work. Though the first few months were the hardest, they have brought us closer than we could have ever been. He has become such a special little boy with such a wonderful personality! And every time I get the chance to snuggle him as he sleeps, you can bet I'll be taking it.

Snow Day

This morning came early! We were all up and at 'em at 6:00am. By 8:00am I had already studied my scriptures, fed everyone breakfast, seen Daddy off to work, dressed and smooched all of the children, cleaned rooms, made beds and said morning prayers. I have a feeling this time change will work in our favor as far as productivity goes. Before the sun was even up, Hyrum was asking to go out and play in the snow. I convinced him to wait until Mr. sun woke up for the day and warmed things up a tad. I also had to find all of our snow gear in the garage and figure out something for Joe. 

As soon as they were out the door they were rolling around in the snow and having a blast together. It's always nice to get out of the house! I pulled out the sled and we walked down the alley to get the mail. I think that may have been Joseph's favorite part of the whole morning.

 

The snow totally seemed interesting and fun, as long as he was on his feet. The poor little guy was so bundled up that he somewhat resembled a marshmallow and had a hard time moving around. 

 

Though it is snow covered, he still made his way over to the garden, his favorite spot in the whole yard. He practised climbing up and down with his limited mobility, and was quite serious about it too!

 

Once he got up he would hang out for a while. It looks like I need to make him a new hat. That hand-me-down of Hyrum's just isn't going to cut it for the winter!

 

He and I went in before the other two because his little cheeks were cold. I think his second favorite part of the morning was eating the snow. He sure is sweet all bundled up!

 

Joe has been a super funny kid lately. I just love his little personality! He will often give me cute looks like this one all throughout the day. That look means trouble I tell ya!

 

I was cleaning out the coat closet this afternoon and came across Hyrum's Halloween costume from last year. He was quite excited to put it on. He became "SUPER HYMUM" and ran around tidying up the main floor. Then Joe woke up from his nap and things weren't so super anymore. Joseph enjoyed being pulled around for the first  few minutes, but it got old fast.

 

This is a good snapshot of how the rest of our afternoon went. When everyone woke up from naps I scrambled to find something to put together for dinner. I've been saving up grocery shopping for 10% day tomorrow, because the sales are awesome and we always end up saving a lot of money when I plan it right! Now I get to prep myself for early morning shopping with these crazies tomorrow! So much work, but seriously, these kids are such a JOY!

Feeling Blessed

It's been a long Saturday indeed. Daddy is away at the University until late tonight, so it's just me and the littles. We had smoothies and banana muffins for dinner (yeah, it's been that kind of a day). Then I decided it was bath time. They love bath time and it's a good time killer. After baths I dried them each with a towel, diapered the boys' bottoms and cozied them up in some warm jammies. As they laughed together, I just felt so blessed. I love their little laughs and comments. I love their glowing faces and rosy little cheeks. I adore their toothy little grins and I am so glad I get to call them mine!

Seriously, feeling so blessed!

Practise Makes Perfect

This little dude has been practicing his walking skills today!

He's getting pretty good!

Trick or Treat

Today was one of those days. I woke up and threw my hair in the same messy bun it was in yesterday morning and put on a pair of mismatched socks because it was the only pair of socks I could find. By the late afternoon I wanted to escape into my own little world. Hyrum was sitting in his shirt and diaper in the middle of the table playing in a tub of Moon Sand (flour and baby oil) and Camilla was insisting on my attention. "Mom!" "Mom watch this" "Moooooommm!" "Hey, Mom come see this!" "Mom! Mom! Mom!"..... It was making me crazy. I took Joe upstairs to change his bum and locked he and I in my bedroom for a few minutes of peace and quiet. After that five minute break, I felt much better.

After Daddy got home we ate dinner and waited for Uncle Arland and Naomi to come by. Camilla handed out handfulls of candy to a few kids, until we reminded her that just a few each is plenty. One kid who came to the door got his candy, looked up and asked, "Is that it?" I felt like saying, "Yeah! I can take back what I already gave you though if you aren't happy...?" Between groups we stepped out on the front step for a quick picture, in my mismatched socks. Then we shut out the lights and took the kids around the block. Just as I was locking up the door Hyrum says, "I need my boots!" Poor kid was still in his socks, that could've been interesting. 

 And then we were off, our whole family, Auntie Emma, Uncle Arland and Naomi.

Shortly after we had begun, Camilla asked if we could go home and eat some candy.

 

 Part way through, we had to empty the buckets into the stroller. They had scored a couple cans of pop and it was getting heavy. Hyrum was hesitant to let anyone take his bucket, but Daddy convinced him. Check out the smile on Daddy's face at the thought of saving some of this for later.

We made our way around the block in pretty good time. Some houses were pretty decked out. The littles didn't want anything to do with anything scary! If they were unsure of anything, they made sure to steer clear around it and not touch it if their lives depended on it. Hyrum also stole Uncle detective Arland's magnifying glass for the evening. He totally cracked me up!

 

 Then we made our way back to our house. It was getting dark and chilly and the kids just wanted to eat what they collected. I only wanted to take them as long as they wanted to go, so when they called it quits, we went home.

All in all a pretty good night! We shut out our lights early, brushed teeth and put the littles down to bed after their mad chocolate eating. Now we get to cozy up and watch a show while we snack on the stuff that the kids can't eat. Muahahaha! Happy Halloween!

Memorable Moments

Life isn't perfect, but it sure is full of perfect moments. I know I've said it before, but I stand by it. Though we have plenty of bad days (like yesterday), I am always glad when I jot down sweet little moments to look back on and smile at later. If I don't jot them down right after they happen, they seem to get forgotten.

I love feeding Joseph. He always growls (yes growls) with excitement and scrunches up his little nose, showing off his three bottom teeth. 

I love our morning routine and the things it teaches our kids. The other day I smiled to myself as I listened to Camilla hum a tune from Peter Pan (tee-dum-tee-dee) as she tidied her room and made her bed.

I laughed when Camilla started wailing because she thought I said "sew" her toe instead of "soak" her toe.  We both had a good laugh about it after.

Another favorite moment was coming downstairs to find Camilla and Hyrum kneeling side by side, arms folded on the couch saying morning prayers. Camilla helped her brother with a repeat after me version and then said her own. Moments like that totally melt my heart and confirm to me that we are indeed doing something right!

I have also loved helping Joseph practise his new found walking skills! He took five steps in a row on Monday morning and is getting better and better at balancing.

Halloween Party

Tonight we attended the Ward Halloween Party at the church. The youth, Primary and leaders did such a great job organizing everything. They even had a little bouncy castle in the corner. Mike put in a lot of prep work for our costumes this year and they turned out pretty awesome if I do say so myself! We had fun painting them together this weekend.

Camilla's came off shortly after we got there so that she could jump in the castle, and decorate cupcakes and stuff. Hyrum was a total die hard and kept his on all night long. He even joined the Halloween parade at the end of the night and walked circles around the gym, always taking a short cut through the center and back to the other side to join in again.  We've got some glueing to do before Thursday.

 

Our family ended up getting awarded the best family costume. It was pretty fun! Sadly being in a box isn't super conducive to a baby who needs carrying all the time, but Joe did great toddling around and holding his own. He walked around most of the night holding my hand. It was some good family fun!