Emma's running away....or not

Emma and I just had an interesting encounter. She had determined that she is big enough to use "sharp knives" as she dragged a stool over to the cutting board. As we discussed the fact that she needs to be much bigger before she is ready for this particular hazard over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over, AND OVER!!! (Her preschool teacher who has been running a preschool with multiple classes for years described her as the most stubborn child she has ever met.)

As we both became incresingly frustrated, she gave me the classic "If you don't let me ____, then I will (won't) _______. Doesn't every kid pull this out? But, she's not even 4 years old yet! Unfortunately she has very experienced coaches in this reasoning.
Her ultimatum was this: "If you don't let me use sharp knives, I won't live here anymore!" I paused to see her reaction to what she had said and to take a deep breath. I then watched her face as I asked her where she would live. The realization of what she had said was visible on her face. I then reassured her that we would miss her very much and Mommy would probably cry for days and days, maybe even forever, if she chose not to live here and be a part of our family anymore. We then talked about all of the things she can do such as make her bed, get dressed, put away clothes, unload the dishwasher, etc. and how fast she is growing up.

As I finally distracted her with what to have for lunch and the chocolate milk I made, I thought the discussion was ended. Halfway through her lunch, I was sitting here at the computer checking email and she came to me crying. When I asked her what was wrong she said "I don't want to live somewhere else." I held her on my lap and assured her that Daddy and I will always love her and want her with us.

It's nice to know that she will be staying a little longer, at least until the next time she wants something else beyond her abilities or maturity.

Good thought on "Things to Do"

We went to our adult session of Stake conference on Sat. and enjoyed it very much. One thing that struck me was a challenge that our Stake President presented. He said that instead of making lists of "things to do" make it a list of "people to love". Nearly everything we do affects someone. It would be a much better world, a happier family, a happier heart, if those things were done with love for the people they affect. I read a post about a lady who folds laundry this way. As she folds each article of clothing she thinks of something she loves about the person it belongs to.

We talked about it with our children and reminded them that our love is best demonstrated by our actions. How much more love could exist in our homes if all the "to dos" were done with love for members of the family in mind?

Wanda Witch Party

We had a great time last night. Last year I found party plans for a Halloween "amazing race" type party. I wanted to do it last year but had our little Jenna on Oct 9th, so we did it this year. I recruited my friend Dahlene and we began planning, remaining anonymous. Everyone wore costumes to earn extra points. So, there were a whole bunch of crazy costumed adults sprinting through town last night. We started at the church with cauldrons for each team and the clues led them to other locations from there. Each team had to find their colored "brew ingredient" at each location:

• find a hollow pumpkin in a large pumpkin patch, clue inside
• guess the movie the American Film Institute voted the scariest at a local video store to receive a skeleton
• pull Ziplocs containing a toad, glow sticks, and of course a clue, out of a pond
• find spiders hanging from a bridge on a walking trail
• find a tree trunk that looks like an owl to get eyeballs
• follow ribbons in a riverbed to find snakes in the grass

The final clue was a map without street names and only a house number that led to the "Grand Witches Council" at Dahlene's house where we tallied points, ate homemade chili, hot chocolate, cider, and homemade rootbeer around a bonfire. Then we announced ourselves as the witches and awarded the golden broomsticks to the couples of the winning team.

We had so much fun watching our team, and others in passing, deciphering clues, working through frustration, trying to guess the hosts, and really having fun. They have already tried to recruit someone else to plan the party for next year! I loved planning this party and really would recommend it to anyone interested! Here is the link: http://www.meckmom.com/2007/09/06/wanda-witch-the-ultimate-halloween-party/

She also has some other great things on her site, so be sure to browse around. If there is anyone in the Kaysville area who is interested, I would be glad to share our clues and details about what we did.

My only regret is that I forgot my camera, of course!

WFMW - Dry Goods & Emergency Storage

I have discovered that having 5 gallon buckets with screw on lids to store my flour, sugar, and wheat in my pantry is a wonderful time and back saver. Those cannisters that sit on the counter not only, do not hold enough, but they attract dust like nobody's business! I found my buckets at WalMart. They are a little bit of an investment but well worth it.
I recently found brightly colored lids and bought one with a bucket to use for an emergency 72 hour kit. Not only can you pack a lot of stuff in it but it could be used to haul water or even as a potty if needed wherever you end up in your emergency situation. (Obviously not both!!) That's what works for me! Check out what works for other people over on Rocks in my Dryer!http://rocksinmydryer.typepad.com/shannon/2008/10/works-for-me-ch.html

Bryce Canyon 2008 - UEA weekend

The weather couldn't have been more beautiful for our trip. We enjoyed hiking Navajo Loop. Our kids are great hikers. Jenna loved the pack and Christian, Jordan, and Emma hiked it all! We attended a Ranger program about stars and then Paul and Christian were able to go look at Jupiter, Twin Stars, and Andromeda through telescopes. The stars are incredible there without any light pollution. On a moonless night, from dusk to dawn, you could see 14,000 stars. Compared to the city where you might see 300, that's a lot of stars!!
The 3 older kids all earned their Jr. Ranger pins. We were proud of all they learned.
It was a quick trip but we really enjoyed ourselves!

Some key phrases from our trip:
"WOW", "OH, WOW"
"Are we there yet" repeated frequently.
"He's bugging me" (wailing)

"Can I have a snack?"
"I don't want to see Bryce Canyon, I just want to swim in the pool"
"Take a picture, take a picture!"
"Remember, we're making POSITIVE memories" (Paul and I reminding ourselves)
"That was fun!"

Get rid of that extra can!

No, this is not a diet tip, though I do have some of that to get rid of too!
We finally got rid of our extra city garbage can. Our family of six plus a garden can really produce some trash. We were paying extra every month to have an extra can. Unfortunately, unlike other cities, we do not have free recycling (oh, how I wish). Recently, our neighbors started a contract with a local recycling contract and so we decided to look into it too! We are now the proud owners of one garbage can and two recycling cans! We have never filled our one gabage can since we started recycling. I do forsee filling it when we pull the garden. But normally it is only ½ to 2/3 full. On the other hand, our recycling, which is picked up twice a month is always overflowing. So... now we have exchanged the cost of the extra can for the recycling pick up and sleep much better at night knowing that we are contributing much less to our landfill. It works for us. Check out what works for others at http://rocksinmydryer.typepad.com/shannon/2008/10/works-for-me-sc.html

Happy Birthday Jenna!!!

WARNING!! Proud mother alert. I fully intend to brag shamelessly here.

Yesterday Jenna turned 1! I can't believe how the time has flown. So today, I want to record a little about her. She was born on Oct 9, 2008. She was so eager to come into this world, she tried to come 7½ weeks early and put me on bed rest for 2 weeks. What a challenge that was with Paul working 6 days a week and 3 other young children, but we all pitched in and made it work. We were in and out of the hospital until she was born exactly 3 weeks early. It was surprising how big, strong, and healthy she was. She has been early and running ever since. She took her first steps at 10 months, 9 days, and was running two weeks later. She learned to climb over the barrier we had on the stairs before she was 11 months old and so now she is a pro at getting up and down the stairs.

She loves to eat, especially finger foods she can feed herself. Among her favorites are roasted chicken, peaches, apples, corn, and grapes (obviously cut into small pieces). Up until this point she has been too busy to talk to us much. She says Mama, Dada, Bi (binkey) and makes a few other noises that we have figured out the meaning of. We half expect her to break out into complete sentences one of these days since she hasn't done anything else by halves.

She is always watching everything around her intently and taking it all in. She works really hard to try to keep up with her brothers and sister.

Having 4 children is not easy, tests our sanity and patience, and provides more chaos than we imagined but, Jenna is such an important part of our lives. Our relationships are stronger and happier with her a part of our family and we are grateful for her! WE LOVE YOU JENNA!!!

My 6 Quirks

My friend Dahlene posted this on her site and since I don't have to pin down anyone else to ask them questions I thought this is the one for me. So here goes:

1. I am normally a very loving, affectionate mother but I cannot stand to have my children touch me at the dinner table. I know it's strange, but I see those sticky, crumb encrusted little fingers coming at me and...oh the horror! I also hate it when they touch me with their feet under the table. I just need my space when I am eating, is that too much to ask? Unfortunately, my children know of this quirk of mine and use it like anything else they know annoys me... mercilessly.
2. I can't read just one book at a time. I have to have several books from different genres going at the same time. I know I need to cut back when, in my dreams, the vampire starts spouting gospel truths or the pile on my nightstand threatens to bury me alive in bed.
3. I am an incurable pack rat when it comes to school supplies or teaching materials. Even though I don't have any plans to go back to teaching I can't get rid of my teaching materials and in fact continue to collect them. It's a sickness really.
4. If you think I am a pack rat about teaching materials, I am positively obsessed about books! (see #2) Just ask anyone who has ever tried to help us move. "Another box of books!!!"
5. I was a tomboy and proud of it. The only times my mother could wrestle me into a dress was on Sunday and picture day. By 4th grade even picture day required pants. I was a champion tricky bar expert, and won the cartwheel contest in6th grade, hands down. I climbed trees, high walls begged me to walk on them and jump off, puddles had to be jumped in, dirt clods had to be thrown, and the only bike for me was a dirt bike. I still love to hike, rappel, snorkle, ride bikes, dig in the dirt, look for bugs, and like, are you ready... snakes! Jeans and t-shirts are my preferred choice and not just because I am a mom to 4 young children. I am however, somewhat proud to say that if I want to, I can still "clean up" pretty good.
6. And finally, #6, my secret shame, laid bare for all the world to see (at least the 5 people who read this blog) are you ready to be horrified? sick to your stomach?..... Shoe shopping. It's not what you think. I hate it. I would rather scrub toilets and my stove top (both of which are waiting for me right now, but this is more fun) than go shoe shopping! There it is, all my shame laid on the table. Some may wonder if I have some of my wires crossed (definitely), or if I am missing some vital piece of female DNA (see #5). I don't know, but I just don't understand the love affair involved in shoe shopping. In fact, over the years, Paul has bought most of my shoes. Whew, it's out! Judge me as you may, but I'll never take it back!

I am sure Paul would have a completely set of quirks that he would list for me, but this is my list and I have approved it!

Free Handbag?

Okay, who can't use more handbags? I thought I would enter this contest and by putting their site on my blog I get extra chances to win. So here is the address: http://www.handbagplanet.com/ I don't know what the chances are of winning but it is worth a shot. Thanks Cami for posting it. I hope someone we know wins!

Let's Go Out and Play!

Some houses try to hide that fact
That children shelter there.
Ours boasts of it quite openly--
The signs are everywhere.
For smears are on the windows,
Little smudges on the doors.
I should apologize, I guess,
For toys strewn on the floor.
But I sat down with the children
And we played and laughed and read.
And if the bathtub doesn't shine
Their eyes will shine instead.
For when, at times,
I'm forced to choose
The one job or the other,
I want to have a lovely house,
But first I'll be a mother.
--Author Unknown

For Jordan with love

WHAT IS A BOY? by Alan Beck
Boys come in assorted sizes, weights, and colors. They are found everywhere – on top of, underneath, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around or jumping to. Mothers love them, little girls hate them, older brothers and sisters tolerate them, adults ignore them and Heaven protects them. A boy is Truth with dirt on its face, Wisdom with bubble gum in its hair and the Hope of the future with a frog in its pocket.

A boy has the appetite of a horse, the digestion of a sword swallower, the energy of a pocket size atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the lungs of a dictator, the imagination of Paul Bunyan, the shyness of a violet, the audacity of a steel trap, the enthusiasm of a firecracker, and when he makes something he has five thumbs on each hand.

He likes ice cream, knives, saws, Christmas, comic books, the boy across the street, woods, water (in its natural habitat), large animals, Dad, trains, Saturday mornings, and fire engines. He is not much for Sunday school, company, schools, books without pictures, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults, or bedtime.

Nobody else is so early to rise or so late to supper. No one else can cram into one pocket a rusty knife, a half eaten apple, three feet of string, an empty Bull Durham sack, two gumdrops, six cents, a slingshot, a chunk of unknown substance, and a genuine supersonic code ring with a secret compartment.

A boy is a magical creature – you can lock him out of your workshop, but you can’t lock him out of your heart. You can get him out of your study, but you can’t get him out of your mind. Might as well give up- he is your captor, your jailer, your boss and your master – a freckle faced, pint sized bundle of noise. But when you come home at night with only the shattered pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them with two words – “Hi Dad!”