Grand-Mary

Did you know we live 10 minutes from Grandma? We love it so much....

For as much as we miss Nana Cindy and Grampa Greg, we sure do love living by Grandma Mary and Grandpa Larry.

Flowers for mom

For as long as I can remember, I've loved flowers. I'm always astounded at how a simple bouquet of gorgeous flowers can lift my mood, and when they are gifted from a sweet child, they're even better.

I remember bringing flowers to my mother from the time I was small, I always wanted so badly to please her. In my early years I would pick flowers from the yard or wild flowers from the foothills near our house. When I was a bit older,  I took art lessons in a studio that doubled as a floral shop (my idea of heaven, actually) and I would save my babysitting money to be able to bring her home a beautiful bloom when my lessons were finished. I'm sure she cherished the dandelion bouquets just as much as the tissue wrapped roses from the floral shop.  If mom was happy and pleased, so was I- and I knew bringing flowers was a sure way to make her smile. So the other day when Maya made a homemade paper vase with flowers tucked inside, and ran to me with a smile on her face and her arms outstretched for a hug,  I knew just how she felt.... and I love her right back.

Four

It's finally arrived, the day Henry has been dreaming about for the past year..... his birthday. Ever since he turned three, he's wanted to be 4, I'm not sure what's magic about being 4 is, but according to Henry, 4 is grown up. My little boy just wants to be grown up so badly, truthfully he's never been into "baby" things, he just wants to be big. He wants to ride skateboards and bikes without training wheels, he wants to wear "dude shoes" and "skinny jeans" he wants to swear and be rude. He wants to play basketball with Raj (our 15 year old neighbor) and run with the big boys, he has swagger people! My 4 year old has swagger! He wants to be 16 and have a girlfriend, none of this baby stuff! No Buzz Lightyear or Bob the Builder, no training wheels or safety nets. Henry has always been this way, they say kids come with their own personalities, and it's so true. No matter how much I want him to still be my little boy, it feels like he's never been my little boy. He does have a sweet side though, he loves his mom and he is sensitive, even if he'll only let me in on it.  I had an interview with Henry and here are some of his responses, word for word.

Mom- What is the best thing about being 4?
Henry- Um... to be nice for me to grow up.

Mom-What does it mean to grow up?
Henry- It means you're bigger than little babies.

Mom-What do you want to do when you grow up?
Henry- Play baseball when I'm 14.

Mom-What job do you want to have when you're grown up?
Henry- Play football like our dad.

Mom- What is your favorite food?
Henry- Popcorn with M&M's hash browns and good chicken (means nuggets)

Mom- What is your favorite thing about being in our family?
Henry- Being good and playing games

Mom- Who are your best friends?
Henry- Tyler, Harrison, Boston, Paige, Andrew

Mom- What is your favorite thing about going to church?
Henry -FART (see! I told you he wants to be a teenager!)

Mom- What is your favorite thing to do with dad?
Henry- Play duck duck goose on my birthday.

There you have it, straight from the mouth of my big boy. I asked him more questions, but the answers all were something like this:

"Fart"
"Fart from my BUTT"
"Stinky fart"

Oh Henry, how I love you! Happy birthday to the oldest 4 year old out there.

Purging

Since our new table came, I've felt the need to purge - in a big way. We had so much furniture that wasn't being used, so the only reasonable way to get rid of it in a timely manner without too much headache was to have a major garage sale. I've never had a garage sale before, and only been to a handful of them, so this garage sale business was foreign territory for me. Thankfully I enlisted the help of a garage sale pro... my mother in law. She agreed to come help me run the garage sale, and I'm so thankful she did.

Can you believe we sold all this in a day and a half! Only one lonely computer desk was left, and I'm sure I can get rid of it on Craigslist.  I can't believe all this stuff was in the basement of my house! It was so cramped before, but now I can actually walk around without bumping into furniture or climbing over tables and desks.

It feels good to purge!

The tooth fairy

Harrison has had a loose tooth for months, I can remember last fall when it was first "wiggly" I told him "I bet by Christmas that tooth will be out!" I guess I should have said by Easter... Today was finally the day, that darn stubborn tooth was finally plucked from its bed!

Here is the big moment! It's finally out Mom!!

 Is it just me, or does he look older now?

 First things first.. Call dad and tell him the news.

 I love this kid! And notice the new table? Life is happening here, just like I thought it would.

Life happens here....

When Tadd & I were first married, we shared meals around a small bistro table for 2, it was cozy in our tiny kitchen, we didn't need anything larger. Then we had a baby and moved, soon after we had our second baby we upgraded to this lovely table- I loved it and thought it would be our "forever" table. Well, we had 2 more kids and outgrew this gem.... 

I still love the style, and wish we could have kept it forever, but it was just too darn small. So a few months ago I came across a great craftsman that would build me a dream table, and just like that, I ordered a custom table, sight unseen, and to be completely honest? I was terrified.... what if i didn't like the finish? Should I get maple or hickory? Am I going to be stuck with a table for the rest of my days that I just kinda like?! Oh, I laid awake at night thinking of these scenarios! So when my table was delivered last weekend, I held my breath and.....

Fell in love...

This will be the table that hosts dinner parties, breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. This table will see art projects, homework, crafts and reports. This table will be draped with a sheet and become a fort, this table will be the center of countless family discussions, scripture study and prayers. This table will see laughter and maybe some tears from time to time.

Life will happen here.

... and I'm thrilled!

Perks...

Some people have asked how I'm handling 4 kids.... my honest answer is always "it's easier than having two!" How can this possibly be, you ask? Well when I had two, Maya was 22 months and Harrison was a baby (he literally cried for 4 months straight) life for me was HARD. Tadd was doing graduate school thus he was gone most evenings, I was battling postpartum depression, we had recently moved to a new house and I didn't have a support group of friends yet.  I look back to those times and it feels so dark to me. I remember days when I just counted the minutes until I could go to bed. Thankfully, life is quite different for me now,  I have many supportive friends, my kids are in school and preschool and different activites, and I actually have helpers!! When the baby is cranky around dinnertime, I can send my sweet Maya to play with the baby. Maya is always a willing and obedient helper, I never hear so much as a grumble from this sweet girl. It melts my heart to hear them up in Amelia's room, playing together on the floor - Maya laughing and Amelia babbling.  So for me? Four is easier than two!!