Thankful

 I tried to get everyone together this morning for a picture before church and it turned out quite comical. I am thankful for my family and their crazy personalities. I am grateful that my kids love each other with a fierce love (even though they fight sometimes).

 I am grateful for the friendships found in families. I am grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who is always there when I need Him. I am grateful for a hardworking husband who follows through with things even when the going gets tough. I am grateful for his strength and advice. I am grateful for our financial stability and the blessings we enjoy. 

This black eye was courtesy of Joe. I am grateful it's on the mend! Happy Thanksgiving!

Easy Afternoons

 Most of the house is packed which means that we get to enjoy a lot more of this beautiful weather! This afternoon I took the children out front to ride their bikes and get some fresh air. Finley needs a lot of wiggle room now and seldom sits in one place too long. It's so fun to watch him explore and crunch the colorful leaves in his fists (or mouth).

Finley managed to make his way over to the tricycle when it wasn't being used and tried to climb up. I sat him in the seat and pushed him a couple of meters and then Joe jumped on behind. It was super cute walking along side them as Joe shuffled them up and down the sidewalk.

 

 Joe can't get enough of smooching his little brother. These two are becoming fast friends.

Stop Growing Up

This week I've found myself repeating the words "Please stop growing up!" At breakfast Finley happily shoves little pieces of pancake into his mouth between sips of milk. He now takes a bottle like a champ and feeds himself. While I watch him chug his milk I can't help but think please stop growing up. While I sit on the stairs talking to my mom Finley decides to climb the couple of steps for a hug. Ah! Stop growing! He stands any chance he can get and giggles infectiously with glee. Slow down, baby. Stop growing up. He takes a tumble at the hand of his rambunctious brother and sits right back up like nothing happens. His eyes are starting to twinkle with mischief as he explores the house. No, not yet. It's too soon for that. Throughout the day he oozes with cuteness and laughs infectiously and I can't help but plea, you're so darn cute, stop growing up! At days end he lies his head on my shoulder with an "awww" noise before I place him in his crib to fall asleep. I slip in later to peek at him and my heart is filled with an overwhelming love for this chunky, growing, bundle of boy.

A Walk in the Park

Autumn is such a magical time of year, so when we leave the house and the weather is warm we always stop off at the park for a bit. We are going to soak up all this beauty before the final leaves fall and the snow flies. On this particular day Joseph scrambled up a tall rock without any help or hesitation. Finley was also trying to climb the playground. We all enjoyed the fresh Fall air and amazing smells!

Let the Packing Begin

A Jumble of Thoughts

This weekend we cozied up together as a family and took in all four sessions of General Conference in our basement. The talks were so enriching and I can't wait to go back and listen to a few of them again. The children did really well sitting through each of the sessions and I got to listen to all but the last half of the last session. I had a few coloring pages to keep them busy, which Camilla and Hyrum loved. I adored how realistic Camilla's drawings were and her ability to interpret what they were speaking on.

"We do not have to be perfect. But we need to be good and getting better."
-Kim B. Clark

"Put God first, regardless of the trials you face. Love God. Have faith in Christ, and entrust yourself to Him in all things."
-Koichi Aoyagi

"The kingdom of God is not and cannot be complete without women who make sacred covenants and keep them."
-Russell M. Nelson

October is blowing by quickly. The leaves are almost all on the ground now and our move is fast approaching. Our boxes were delivered today which means I can officially start packing. We have two weeks to go until moving day but the weather has been so great that I'm finding it hard to stay inside.

Over the weekend I spent my evenings working my crochet hook and letting the stress run out my finger tips as I created. I made the older three little animals and it has made me so happy to see how loved they are. While I was making Hyrum's I kept getting frustrated with the nose and tried to change it so it looked better. Hyrum told me to just leave it because he loves it the way it is. All day he told me how much he loved me and thanked me for making him his little rabbit. That poor little rabbit is kind of an eyesore but to hear Hyrum sincerely tell me how pleased he is with it fills my heart to the top. He is willing to overlook the imperfections because his mamma made it for him with love, and that is enough.

 

Camilla is loving school and excited to start her weekly spelling tests. She reads her books without any problem and tells me that they are "easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy". Last week I forgot about early dismissal and was maybe a half an hour late picking her up after I got a call from the school. I felt like the worst mother ever, but when I got there and realized that at least five other mothers had also forgot I didn't feel AS terrible. I made it up today by bringing cookies to after school pick up. Camilla munched away happily in the backseat, talking nonstop between chews and cracking jokes. "Do you know why they call them snicker doodles? Because, they're so good that the kids SNEAK them from their Mom's. Get it...SNEAK-erdoodles?" Her laugh is so awesome! I love that kid.

Finley has gotten pretty quick on his hands and knees now which has kept me on my toes more than usual. The other day I was sweeping the floor quicker than I ever have before. He followed me around the kitchen speed crawling and trying to reach his chubby hands into the dust pile for his next treat. I swept it away over and over again, just in time for his hand to hit the clean floor, but just barely. When he gets hungry he scavenges for food under the kitchen table. He pulls himself up on everything now and even climbed a few stairs today! It's so hard to believe that in just a few short months he will be a whole year old. 

It's too bad that I can't attach a keyboard to my brain because I've composed quite a few blogposts in my head over the last couple of days while doing dishes or laying with Joseph at bed time. It seems that by the time I get around to sitting and composing something it's late into the evening and I can hardly keep my eyes open. Finley has not been sleeping well at all and little Joe has been in our bed almost every night for the past week. I am looking forward to the extra bedrooms so that the boys aren't waking each other up all night long. This mamma is tired!

Enjoying Autumn

This morning we slipped out quickly to Daddy's office to sign some paper work. We officially own a five bedroom home! On our way back the Fall colors kept catching my eye and I knew that we had to take advantage of the warm weather and the beauty. I have probably said this a million times before, but I absolutely love this time of year. The trees are absolutely beautiful, especially against a bright blue sky. We picked up some donuts and headed to a park spontaneously. The minute we arrived a flock of geese flew overhead in their V formation. I immediately wished I hadn't left my camera on the table at home, but I wasn't intending on spending the morning away. 

 The boys were in heaven. They ran right past the slides and platforms and right to the rocks and logs. They pretended to be dino hunters and loved climbing on the ropes and things. 

 The weather was amazing and I couldn't help but pull out my phone and snap a few pictures. Hyrum is such a great big brother and this one totally melts my heart!

 Once the boys had their fill of the park we went on a nature walk across the field and through the forest. Since we had nothing going on today, I threw the "schedule" out the window and enjoyed the time. It was close to lunch, but no body was hungry anyways, so we kept on exploring.

 Hyrum lead the way through the narrow forest trails until we found this pretty little ravine. Our senses were working overtime with the Fall smells, the beauty, and the warm sun on our faces. 

 The boys were having so much fun and I wished we could stay all day. We found a stream and tossed some sticks in. "Look! They float!" exclaimed Hyrum. We learned about buoyancy and hypothesized if other objects would sink or float. I checked science off my mental checklist for the day. 

 There's something about nature that fills me to the brim with joy. As we walked to the car Hyrum said, "This was the best day ever!" I told him how much I loved him and he told me he loved me to the moon. We all went home with smiles on our faces and full hearts.

Super Boys

 Today my backyard was filled with two super boys saving the world and hiding in their glass fortress. It was pretty entertaining. They begged to wear their capes to school pickup and got asked a lot of fun questions from other parents at the school. It's been so fun watching Joseph and Hyrum play together during the day. The games they play are so different and the sound effects are non-stop. Little boys are so fun!

Biking to School

 This afternoon I decided to take the boys on a bike ride for after school pickup. We left with plenty of time to spare since I wasn't sure how long it would actually take. Both of the boys boogied and we ended up biking there in under 15 minutes which left a good half hour to play at the park! I packed Camilla's scooter and helmet so that she could have something to ride on the way home. When she came out to meet us she exclaimed, "Best Mommy EVER!" It was a treat to be out and enjoy the weather! 

On the way home we snacked, explored and climbed a tree. I was glad I remembered to pack something because Camilla is always hungry for a snack after a long day of learning.  

It took us over an hour to get home and near the end Joseph was so tired! I was impressed that he made it as far as he did with his little legs pumping away on his trike. For the home stretch he went in the stroller, his trike rode in the second seat and I propped Finley on my hip. The other two were champs!

We arrived home sweaty and tuckered out. They enjoyed a bit of down time before dinner and bed. I've never seen them so excited to go to sleep before!

Heading South

 Near the end of the Summer Mr. Stannix was presented with a job opportunity that seemed too good to pass up. We quietly discussed the idea of moving and making a career change and counseled with parents and grandparents. It has been quite interesting to notice our prayers being answered and to recognize Heavenly Father's hand in our lives as we have went through this whole decision making process. Mike's move to his new job last February was a leap of faith based on a strong prompting he received. For the longest time we were unsure of the reason behind the transition, but as we prayed for understanding and acted on faith we have seen numerous blessings unfold in our little family. This job opportunity would have never been brought forward had he not acted on that prompting back in February.

We spent the last few days of Summer vacation prepping our house to sell. We rearranged the bedrooms, took out the excess furniture to make things look more spacious, scrubbed walls, touched up the paint, steamed the carpets, and put a fresh vase of flowers on the table. The front of my fridge which was once filled with familiar faces of Christmas cards and baby announcements now glared at me from the corner of my kitchen. The house echoed when we walked in and it had lost is homey, well-lived in atmosphere. The sticky fingerprints on my walls were scrubbed clean and the windows sparkled.

It all hit hard when I waved at my good friend at a church activity and found myself blinking back tears all the way to the car, wishing I could have the same great influence on their kids that they have had on mine. We hadn't yet told anyone our plans and I felt so alone. As we drove home that night I couldn't help but think back with gratitude to all of the times she saved me babysitting kids, treating me for lunch on my birthday, being a shoulder to cry on when we lost our baby, rescuing me when our van died, and swapping babysitting so we could attend the temple each week. She has been a huge example of constant service and endless love.

I've been on an emotional roller coaster ever since. I can still remember nursing Finley to sleep on the floor in the hall the night before we listed our house. I was crying because my rocking chair was in the garage and I could hardly stand the smell of the poopy diaper left by the bathroom door. I was dealing with the anxiety of Camilla switching schools her first year in. I had been washing walls like a mad woman, puttying holes and painting late into the night with Mike.

When the kids would get crazy I would cry and think to myself, who's going to save me now? I was feeling overwhelmed and was beginning to realize just how much I was going to miss my friends here. I convinced myself that I will never be able to find a friend who understands me the way that my best friend here does. Someone who will come and visit on a moments notice and just know to walk in and make herself at home. Someone who won't mind the mess and chaos that comes with four little people and voluntarily fills the sink to wash my dishes while we visit. Someone who understands how shy and quiet I am and makes a point of including me in social situations. I have been blessed to know many lovely women here who have been wonderful examples to me. The whole idea of making new friends terrifies me and I have been preparing myself for the little bit of loneliness that might come with this change. 

All of our hard work payed off  and we ended up getting an offer on our house the same day we listed it. It was so bittersweet to have things move along so quickly. It has been a huge blessing and totally reinforced in my mind that Heavenly Father's hand has been in this decision since the beginning. I can't explain how well everything has fallen into place except to attribute it to divine intervention. Minutes before we put an offer on a new home we received email confirmation that conditions had been removed and our home had officially sold! The timing of everything has been just unreal! I am so glad that I don't have to keep things spotless anymore or worry about wiping away fingerprints on the windows every second of the day. Come mid October we will be packing up our quant home here and moving to the small town of Strathmore. Mike will be commuting to downtown Calgary to his dream job and our children will be enjoying the benefits of a small town community and schools. We are thrilled to have our dreams of raising our family in a small town finally coming true, but sad to be leaving the life we have built here over the last six years. It has been a wonderful adventure and I am excited to see what's in store for us down south!