The Wheel is Turning and the Hamster is Still Dead

Mt Baker

2011-09-06T00:10:00.004-04:00

We took a drive up to Mt Baker today. We were able to see some beautiful waterfalls, glacier lakes, mountains, and even get far enough up the mountain to play in some snow. On the drive home we took a scenic highway that followed the ocean. So in one day we got to see a 10,000 ft. mountain and the Pacific Ocean! Pretty good!

Things I learned during the drive today....

There are not enough public bathrooms for 4 year old little girls who suddenly tell you "I have to go NOW" in national forests.
There is no such thing as too many flowers or rocks. And flowers do NOT belong in lakes.
Always bring a sled if there is even the possibility of running into snow.

The ocean from Hwy 11.

The Nooksack River.

View of Mt. Shuksan from Picture Lake. (one of the glacier lakes)

New Home

2011-09-01T15:01:00.003-04:00

We have finally arrived in Washington.
The drive across country went well...the kids did an amazing job.
Once we got to Washington we ran into a lot of last minute loopholes with our lender. But 2 weeks later than originally expected we closed on our first home.

I'm going to add pictures to this post later tonight but so far everything is great in the house. It will be a while before everything is how we want it but that is ok. The kids love their rooms and are excited to start school next week. There are still way too many boxes to unpack but progress is being made.The purple room is Kanayla's and Ivie's.
The blue cubby area is in our dining room and the kitchen will be painted the same color soon.
The last picture is of Xavien's room which is a green color with a brown accent wall.

To be continued....

2011-07-09T09:00:00.002-04:00

Matthew has received a promotion at work. We are moving to the Seattle area in about a month. Life is crazy with plans for a cross country move.

This weekend we are house hunting so any prayers or wishes of luck would be appreciated! :)

Zoo

2011-05-14T18:30:00.003-04:00

We recently went to the zoo. We were able to purchase a membership so I am planning many more trips to the zoo during the summer break. These are only a few of the pictures that Matthew took but it was a great trip! The zoo in our area has several interactive exhibits that I can't wait to take part in...like feeding the giraffes or riding a horse(pony) for the kids. This was also the first time Matthew and I had seen a Galapagos turtle live and moving!

I included a picture of Xavien. He is growing so quickly. Loves animals and everything that is related to boys...but Xavien also has a sweet, soft side. He loves to dance, is suprisingly gentle with younger kids, and still loves cuddles. Xavien starts school in the fall and it will be a bittersweet time for both of us. I know that he will have a great time but Ivie and I will miss his antics during the day.

Baby Sea Turtles

2011-05-14T18:20:00.002-04:00

When I was a sophomore in high school I had to make a working model of a sea turtle. Ever since I have a special place in my heart for sea turtles. I find a lot of peace and relaxation watching sea turtles swim. My kids have inherited (or been forced) into a love of sea turtles too. We are planning a beach trip this summer to watch a sea turtle hatching. I can't wait! Each of them have their own stuffed turtle and play countless hours of pretend play with the turtles.
Xavien and Ivie play 'baby sea turtles' everyday. Their turtles have names, personalities, voices and everything you can think of. I love that all my children have such a love for animals. I love the creativity I get to witness when they do not realize I am watching or listening.

The sea turtles in the picture includes Aunt Heidi's turtles as well.

Birthday Girls

2011-05-14T16:42:00.003-04:00

Kanayla and Ivie have their birthdays in April. It makes for a crazy busy month!

Kanayla Stats-
Favorite color purple
Favorite animals cats, lemurs and bats
Favorite series of books Rainbow Fairies
Loves games and crafts

Ivie Stats
Favorite colors pink and red
Favorite animals giraffes and horses
Favorite books Rainbow Fairies
Loves to play 'baby sea turtles' , my little pony and coloring

My Oldest in 8!

2011-05-14T16:27:00.004-04:00

I have no idea where the time has gone but Kanayla is 8!!! She was baptized April 17 at our local ward building. We were blessed to have both set of grandparents as well as her uncle in attendance.

Kanayla is so sweet and earnest. The day after her baptism we went to ChuckECheese with Matthew parents. While there Kanayla picked up a token that belonged to another person. Once she realized what she did she returned the token and then said 2 prayers in order to repent. Kanayla informed me that the first prayer wasn't long enough! :) While I know these sweet innocent moments will go by quickly I am so glad that she has such a strong desire to live the gospel of Jesus Christ.

We love you and are SO proud of you Kanayla!

Canada and Palmyra

2010-08-03T21:51:00.007-04:00

Last week was action packed with a wedding, driving, Niagara Falls, and Palmyra NY. It was alot of fun but I missed my other half and kiddos. Luckily my husband is a more than capable man and was able to keep everything under control while I was gone. In fact I think he did a better job than I do. I'm not sure that is fair but it is the way it goes! :)

I have been incredibly blessed to see the sealing of all of my siblings. They all have managed to find wonderful spouses for themselves! Joe was so happy on his wedding day. I am sure he and his wife will have a wonderful life together.
Niagara Falls was beautiful!

Palmyra was a very spiritual place. I really enjoyed seeing some of the Church's historical sites and hearing the testimonies of the sister missionaries in the area.

I'm a Survivor

2010-08-01T15:15:00.002-04:00

1. 6 days without my wife (at her brother's wedding in Canada)
2. 6 days with just the kids
3. Gave them baths twice this week
4. Took them to work for 3 hours one day
5. Still was able to work from home all week
6. Went to the store twice this week
7. No injuries
8. No sicknesses
9. Fed the kids at least 2 meals everyday (never succumbed to the fast food itch)
10. House is cleaner now than when Kristina left (there's a joke in there somewhere)

Either I'm just completely awesome or my kids are well-behaved.

Things to improve on next time:

1. Take the kids to the pool (I hate swimming)
2. Take the kids to the park
3. Do the laundry (sorry, it slipped my mind)

New News

2010-07-21T12:40:00.002-04:00

Obviously I am not great at keeping up with our blog.

We have had a busy few months. School ended, we moved further south, visits with family...next week I have a wedding to go to in Canada! :) Then school will be starting again.
I will try to post some new pictures soon!

Winter Fun

2010-01-30T19:08:00.004-05:00

We have SNOW! Usually NC gets about one decent snowfall a year...at least according to my childhood memories. Luckily, it is the weekend, so there was plenty of time to prepare and we have no reason to go out on the roads. The kids are loving all the snow. Here are some of our pics from our snowball fight and sledding earlier today. On a side note, I made all the hats and scarves that we are wearing! :)

Pictures

2009-12-14T20:33:00.004-05:00

It has been a few months since we posted anything. One of those reasons has been the absence of a camera that was water-logged by X. during our beach trip. That sure makes for an easy Christmas present. I guess that's still not an excuse for lack of posting on the blog, but pictures always help when posting. We had some family pictures done in October, a birthday present for Kr. The ones we liked turned out great, but there are so many more that were throw aways because I. and later X. decided they didn't want to cooperate. Maybe a few years from now, family pictures won't be such a hassle. Here are some favorites of ours, enjoy.

Beach Trip

2009-08-05T13:44:00.005-04:00

Matthew and I took the kids for a real quick beach trip a couple weekends ago. Matthew isn't the biggest beach person (he loves the mountains) so it was a pretty big deal that he suggested the trip.

The kids loved the ocean! I. ran straight for the water and basically refused to leave for the rest of the day. I ended up sitting with her most of the time so the tide couldn't carry her out to sea. She kept going further and further into the ocean. The girl knows no fear! X. and K. took a little longer to warm up to the water but by the end of the day they loved it. X. would walk up to where the water was coming in, scream and run back for the fort he was building. But X. loved being carried out to deeper water for wave jumping.
Ka. spent most of her time searching for seashells but when it was time to go back she pitched a fit of holy proportions. I think we will have to make more trips out to the beach.

The next day we went to the aquarium! I love watching turtles swim. I think they are so interesting and I can stand and watch freshwater or sea turtles swim for a long time. I also loved the jellyfish exhibit. Jellyfish are so cool! It is amazing how dangerous they are when they look so harmless. (Can you tell I once thought about being a marine biologist?) X. fell in love with sharks while at the aquaruim. Ever since we have been home X. main topic of conversation has been sharks. He found some books on them and is quickly becoming an expert.

Aspen Grove

2009-07-18T14:07:00.008-04:00

The Tice clan had a family reunion in Aspen Grove UT at the end of June. The scenery was gorgeous, the company interesting and the activities plentiful!! We had an amazing time. I can recommend the camp at Aspen Grove to anyone. Of course, we were exhausted when came back home (it has nothing to do with airport delays :) )

This is the reunion shirt one of my sister-in-laws designed. She is SO talented!

The is the view! Beautiful, right?!!This is the river outside of the pottery building. I thought it was so pretty. I never let the kids come down here though because I was afraid one of them would fall in!

There was a picture of people walking on the bridge in our cabin. M. thought it was a great pic and wanted to recreate it. I think he did a great job!

This is K. doing a sack race at the 'Aspen Follies'

You can't have a Tice get together without the guys playing some sort of role-playing game...unfortunately they waited until we were suppose to check out to start playing the game!

X. position of choice at he dining hall. I still do not understand why laying on the floor and drinking his cup is such a comfort to X. but it is!

M. striking a pose on the ropes course!! He was much braver than I, I wouldn't even try the course!

All the Tice siblings.

The camp broke the kids into age groups with counselors. I. was in the 'Romper' group. She had a blast! She didn't care at all that her parents weren't with her!

Weekend Hikers

2009-06-13T09:30:00.003-04:00

We have been trying to do more outdoor walks/hikes with the kids. On Memorial Day we went to Jordan Lake on a hike to a viewing spot for bald eagles. Last weekend we went on another hike in Umstead State Park. So far we haven't seen any animals (sorry no bald eagles!) but we have gotten some good pictures of some bugs. We have also gotten to talk about plenty of plants and trees, how they grow, how to tell how old they are etc etc. Enjoy the pics!

Favorite Activities

2009-06-13T09:25:00.003-04:00

Kids love to play in Mom and Dad's room. I think this is just a basic fact of childhood. In any case it is true of my kids. Anytime the door opens to Mom and Dad's room, there is a mad scamper of feet racing to the room! They climb on top of the bed and play possum. Sometimes it is cute...other times exasperating!

Updates!

2009-06-13T09:12:00.004-04:00

Well...life flies by! School is over for the year! K. and I. are both a year older! M. has been on multiple campouts with the scouts this summer already. X. has been successfully potty trained. I have lost about 20 lbs. It has been busy!

X-- Isn't he proud of himself?

We took the kids to Jordan Lake for Memorial Day for a little hike.

Ivie's Birthday cake!

Quirkiness

2009-03-03T15:11:00.002-05:00

A little while ago one of my sister-in-laws blogged about some of her quirks. I never responded (sorry K) but I thought I'd share one of my kids quirks.

My kids love to drink milk and only milk when they have sore throats! Milk is supposed to make a sore throat worse not better but no matter what Xavien and Ivie will drink cup after cup of the stuff when they aren't feeling well. Seriously one week we went through 5 gallons of milk! Ivie spent most of this morning coughing so after I got her to drink her yogurt smoothie (long story) I gave her a cup of milk. She took a sip, looked right up at me and said "Thank you!" and then proceeded to gulp the cup down.

At least I know they are getting all the calcium they need!

Dr. Seuss and Snow day

2009-03-02T11:10:00.002-05:00

We have snow once again! In March!! I have to say I am pretty disgusted! The weather was in the 70s Friday and Sunday night we are getting snow. I have no problem with snow (except people don't know how to drive in it here....me included) but I would like the weather to pick something and stick with it. Mother Nature is being very fickle! To make matters worse everyone in our household is in varying stages of a cold...going out to play the snow is not such a good idea.

Today is Dr. Seuss's birthday. Kanayla's class at school had a big celebration planned so we have had our own celebration at home today. I discovered we have more than 7 Dr. Seuss books, which we have read each one today. Kanayla even memorized a section of Green Eggs and Ham. Then we watched the movie, "Horton, Hears a Who!" Last I printed out coloring pages and our home is decorated like a Dr.Seuss book. It's been fun!

It has been nice to have Kanayla home from school today. She helped me plan and organize tonights FHE and Xavien loves having his big sister around to tease and torment (in other words play with.) I hope all of the rest of you are having great Monday's too.

Whatcha doin?

2009-02-21T15:34:00.003-05:00

Well, we were hit with a superbug that didn't want to go away. In early January Xavien was diagnosed with a massive sinus infection and it took 3 rounds of antibiotics to get rid of it. Ivie came down with what we thought was a cold but turned out to be a double ear infection. The dr. said that there was so much fluid in her ears that she spent the month of Jan. basically deaf. It took 2 rounds of different antibiotics to get rid of the ear infection. Luckily her hearing is fine now and although she is vulnerable to another bad ear infection for about a month, we are optimistic. My kids fall under the 'show no signs' of ear infections (at least none of the typical ones) but between all three kids we have had a total of 5 ear infections in their lives.

Everyone probably knows I am what you call an obessive reader. It is a bit of a joke in my in-laws family that I will always have a book with me, every picture taken I am reading etc etc. I think you get the point...I love to read! My ereading device broke this week which is incredibly sad. (Yes, I know, I am pathetic! But I used the ereader every day!) SOOOO what free time I have had recently has been spent researching ereading devices and trying to find one that doesn't cost an INSANE amount.

Matthew got to go to the Charlotte Bobcats basketball game. He had a lot of fun and even got to meet the cheerleaders! :)

So now that the kids are healthy, we are a happy family!

Terrific Kid

2009-02-21T15:28:00.002-05:00

Kanayla received a Terrific Kid award in school last month! We are very proud of her and her efforts in school. The pics did not turn out too great...we are in no way professional photographers.

Ivie's Hair

2009-02-21T15:24:00.002-05:00

I promised a pictures so here it is! Seriously, I have braided Ivie's hair at least three times because she has a never-ending ear infection right now.

New hair-do

2009-01-20T16:22:00.002-05:00

Ivie has a cold. Any parent of a toddler girl would tell you that runny noses are awful in little girls! When Ivie wakes up in the morning or at nap, her hair is just nasty. I have tried to put up her hair but it is fine textured and therefore breaks easily. I have tried to french braid it but again that hair falls out of the braid after a couple hours. I am trying to avoid bangs... I don't think that they will look good on Ivie and it is hard on young girls to grow bangs out. So today I started braiding the multiple little braids! She did not have the patience to let me do her whole head but the pertinent part of the head was done. And it works!!! Yipee! Of course, my camera isn't working so I can't show off a picture. Maybe tomorrow!

Tagged

2009-01-20T16:07:00.002-05:00

My sister-in-law tagged me! I am a bit slow answering...sorry. The kids are having round 2 of the cold season.

8 Favorite TV shows
1. NCIS
2. House
3. Jon and Kate Plus 8
4. Food Network Challenges
5. Fringe
6. Bones
7. CSI
8. Law and Order

8 Things I did Yesterday

1. Change Diapers
2. Called the dr. AGAIN
3. Read a book (yes only one...it was a slow day) :)
4. Took a bath
5. Finished a craft
6. Folded laundry
7. Talked on the phone
8. Played with my kids

8 Things I look Forward too

1. All the kids healthy again
2. Buying a house
3. I have 2 books on my 'automatic buy list' being published in the next 2 months!!!
4. the snow melting
5. All my kids potty-trained
6. Vacation
7. Retirement
8. Winning the lottery--- I can dream, right!?

8 Favorite Resturants

1. Moe's Southwest Grill
2. Olive Garden
3. Pizza Hut
4. Chili's
5. Red Robin
6. We don't eat out enough b/c nothing else is coming to mind!!

8 Things on my Wishlist

1. Unlimited books!!
2. A trip to China, Austraila, New Zeland
3. More money
4. Live abroad
5. Free diapers
6. Free chicken nuggets
7. Plasma TV
8. Private swimming pool

I think that does it! I am not tagging anyone else, so if you want to do it you can!

Catchup

2009-01-16T10:52:00.003-05:00

My sister and some friends have been nagging me to get back on my blog, so Tiff this is for you! We had an excellent Christmas! Lots of food, presents and visits from family. Matthew's brother and his family came to see us. They introduced us to a new game called Acquire, lots of fun! If you have never heard of the game look it up! Matthew's sister also came to stay with us during New Years. It was wonderful seeing parts of our extended family!

For Christmas Matthew made the kids a train table. I have been bugging him about a train table for months and Matthew would alway retort that he could make a table better than those in the stores. I asked Matthew to prove it....luckily he did! The table is great! The kids love it and play with it every day.

We made gingerbread cookies for Santa. We had a lot of fun decorating them and I think it will become a tradition for us.

School is once again in full swing. Kanayla started the year out with a loose tooth. She should lose it very soon and I will try to post pics of her missing tooth smile!

Xavien started sunbeams and the adjustment is moving slowly. He is actually handling sunbeams much better than I expected.

Ivie decided to take a header out of her crib. Luckily the first fall was hard enough and scary enough that she hasn't tried to climb out again. We knew she could climb out (Ivie is our child that has climbed the piano, computer desk and counter without any help at all) but now she knows why she shouldn't climb out of her crib especially in the dark!

Creche

2008-12-11T13:27:00.002-05:00

The stake we live in puts on a holiday creche every year. I don't know what 'creche' translates to exactly but basically it is a whole lot of nativity scenes. The activity committee really tries to make this a missionary effort for our community. I didn't go last year but I took Kanayla this year and I was impressed! There was a children's room with nativities that the kids could touch and play with. Another room showed the Church's video of the the nativity. Another room was filled with absolutely gorgeous pictures of Christ. There was a live nativity outside. And lastly the cultural hall was filled with nativity scenes from around the world. I only took a picture of a few but all of the nativities were beautiful. The event really emphasized to me how central Christ is to the holiday season. That is easy to forget sometimes in the rush to buy presents and going to Christmas parties. Kanayla really enjoyed it too and has been asking for much less after being reminded that Christmas is celebrating Christ's birth not Santa Claus coming down the chimney! :)

First Words

2008-11-20T10:10:00.002-05:00

Ivie is beginning to talk to us!! So far she says (on a consistent basis) yea, no, hi and Ivie! If you count WHEE as a word than that too! It is way cute! Even more exciting is that she is starting to speak on time whereas Xavien had a bit of delay in his speech. Here is a pic of the adorable one!

Projects

2008-11-18T12:20:00.003-05:00

One thing that I am great at is starting a project. One that I am NOT so great at is finishing the project. At any given time I probably have at least 3 different projects going....what can I say? I am easily distracted. So when I do finish a project I am pretty excited. Here are a couple that I have finished in the past week (I only have about 10 more to go til Christmas.)

The first picture is of a temple necklace that I made for myself and my sister, Tiffany. Tiffany went to the temple for the first time over the weekend and I wanted to give her something special for the occasion. It is all white which makes it ok for the temple I think. At least no one said anything to us. I am really pleased with how it turned out!

The second picture is a scripture bag for Kanayla. It is a Christmas present so SHHH!! She is at the age that she wants to take scriptures of her own to church and this bag is big enough for scriptures plus colored pencils or whatever. Tiffany did the bag part while I added the ribbon, button and handle. I hope she likes it!

Either way it feels good to finish some of the projects up. If I can finish anymore I will let everyone know!

Birthday Boy

2008-11-13T19:08:00.003-05:00

Xavien's birthday is this week! He is 3 yrs old! My sister's wedding reception and activities are taking place all weekend so we celebrated his birthday today! I didn't plan anything elaborate and I had to hurry the icing job on the cake because of time constraints. (You'll be able to see all the spots I missed on the pictures! :) ) Xavien loved everything though so the mistakes aren't important. He got a stuffed Curious George, some trains, and my grandmother made him a Spiderman quilt. He is already sleeping with the quilt. He is one special little boy! I love him so much!

Discouraged

2008-11-10T11:06:00.003-05:00

Warning: This post contains rambles, venting and complaining.

So I am going through a rough patch. Kanayla loves school which is great except she is going through separation anxiety again. When she comes home from school she is an extremely clingy, emotional, tantrum throwing mess. It is frustrating me to no end. Xavien and Ivie are also going through various stages of the anxiety due to their ages and Kanayla's influence. I had no clue it was separation anxiety until the dr. pointed it out to me this morning. She is feeling overwhelmed which in turn makes me feel overwhelmed and out of sorts. The only problem is that no one can figure out what Kanayla is feeling overwhelmed about. It definitely isn't school, that is the only time she will voluntarily leave my or Matthew's side right now. I am the type of person that I NEED a more than average amount of sleep or I am not a pleasure to be around and I just don't function very well at all. For around 3 weeks now I am woken up at least twice a night by Kanayla or Xavien. Not good for functioning statis and it is showing. For the past few days my fuse has been incredibly short and I am almost more moody than Kanayla. I have been getting upset with everyone and really I want to stick my head in the sand, scream and then chant 'it has to get better soon!'. None of this is going to solve the overall problem though. How do you handle a 5yr old who suddenly wants to cling to you like a barnacle every hour of the day (I do mean EVERY hour....she wants to sleep with us, for me to play every single thing she is doing, to not cook or even go to the bathroom without her attendance). Then add the 3 and 1 yr old who are demanding some one on one time too. Honestly a baby I can handle, they are small enough that most tasks can be completed with the baby on your hip but I can not carry my forty pound daughter around on my hip! I am only 5 ft tall! She is just under 4 ft now. Kanayla would knock me over flat!

So I am feeling like a bad mom. I love my kids, they know that I love them. I just don't know what to do!

Halloween costumes

2008-11-05T09:16:00.003-05:00

These pictures are real lousy. Our excuse is that none of the kids wanted to stand still and then after one pic the camera battery decided to die. Kanayla was a fairy princess and designed her own costume. Xavien was a train driver (engineer) and Ivie was a monkey. I am pretty proud of myself though because for all three costumes I spent a total of $11.50...pretty good I think.

Fun Run

2008-10-24T20:39:00.006-04:00

Kanayla's school had a fundraiser today called "Fun Run." Each class ran on the track for 20 minutes trying to run as many laps as they could. Earlier in the month the kids were supposed to get donations for their run...kinda like a 5k. It really encourages healthy behavior for the kids! Kanayla was very excited for the run. When I arrived to the school to watch Kanayla's class, Xavien wanted to run too. He ran 5 laps with her kindergarten class and would have gone more except time ran out. The pictures are pretty self explanatory. The last picture is Xavien's reaction to be told he couldn't run anymore.

Birthday Bash

2008-10-18T09:49:00.003-04:00

My birthday was earlier this week. I like to make special cakes for birthdays. I planned to make one for myself since Matthew usually teases me a bit about my cakes and I didn't think he would make one. The cakes take some time and time isn't always a luxury around here. So for my birthday, Matthew and the kids sent me out of the house for a couple hours so they could make my cake. (They wanted it to be a surprise!) This jack-o-lantern cake was the result of their efforts! I was so impressed!! It was a great birthday!

Museum Day

2008-10-10T15:04:00.003-04:00

Kanayla had a teacher work day today so we went with the Museum of Life and Science. It is a great museum and that is very interactive for kids so no matter how many times you go there is still plenty to play with and do. A bunch of us from the ward met at the museum so the kids had playmates to see everything with. While it is exhausting to go on these outings....for some odd reason I always end up going at a time that infringes on naptime and that equates Xavien throwing fits and Xavien's temper tantrums not only exhaust me mentally but physically too, the trips are worth it. At least that is what I tell myself.

There was a great playground that the kids had a ball climbing around and playing in the sandbox.

We also went to a butterfly house and saw a bunch of butterflies being released. There were too many people there to see the actual release but I did get a pic of one of the butterflies on a flower.

The coolest thing was a sound room....if you stood on the sound board (which covered about half the room) it made different sounds to go along with your movement! It was incredibly loud but a lot of fun! Kanayla covered her ears the entire time while Xavien and Ivie ran all over the board.

I'm not sure if I could go to the museum every week but every once in a while is a lot of fun! Right now, however, I think that this bear has the right idea... its time for everyone to take a nap!

Boys Caught Napping

2008-10-05T22:33:00.002-04:00

Xavien and Matthew fell asleep on the couch together the other day. This is a very unusual occurrence because Xavien is usually up and running all day long. I thought it was cute though and had to get evidence.

Soccer

2008-10-05T22:26:00.003-04:00

One of the things we started with Kanayla when she started Kindergarten is soccer. I really want my kids to all be involved in a sport and so far soccer is what she has shown the most interest in. Right now Kanayla is in an instructional league....more like lessons where the kids learn basic skills and then scrimmage at the end of the lesson. We want to sign her up for a team in the spring and hopefully this will teach her more control with kicks etc. Kanayla is loving it! She is one of the biggest in her class (which is weird cause she is average size really) and Matthew reports that she is getting alot better.

I'm planning some for Xav and Ivie soon so I'll post some pics of them then....right now they are being neglected in blog world. :)

From the peanut gallery

2008-09-24T19:10:00.005-04:00

I have been having a hard time getting Kanayla to eat any of her lunch at school recently. I've been a bit concerned about it because she wants to eat a cup of applesauce in the morning, a cup of fruit at snack, no lunch and then she eats dinner. I didn't think she was getting enough food. So I've been stressing how important it is that she eats her lunch. A few days ago she came home and said, "At lunch today my brain told me you would be impressed if I ate all my food. Are you impressed?" Not sure how a brain can talk but whatever works!!

Xav is no longer a momma's boy. Sniff Sniff For whatever reason he wakes me up 2-3 times a night for probably the last 4 months. Lately, though, when I put him back to bed he tells me "Not momma. Daddy!! Daddy!" Perfectly fine with me! Let Matthew lose the sleep! :)

I have been trying to talk more with Xavien to improve his speech. He LOVES trains and cars so I figured those would be good ways to get him to talk more. I was trying to get Xavien to tell me why he likes trains so much....fast, wheels, sounds etc. Xavien looks up at me and says "No mom, trains pretty!" I would have never thought about trains being pretty before, it must be a boy thing.

From the doctors office

2008-09-20T18:49:00.003-04:00

As an update....we are still sick! Kanayla's nasty cold turned out to be the croup virus. It seems like whenever one of the kids comes down with something it HAS to make the rounds to everyone else in the family...except Matthew. Not fair at all! He rarely ever gets sick. Seriously, I think I have had 6 sinus infections since I gave birth to Ivie 18 months ago. It is ridiculous! It does not matter how many hand sanitizers we go through...hand soap, Kleenexes, cans of Lysol, vitamins etc, all the kids will get sick and then I will get sick and it ALWAYS turns into a sinus infection. I have to tell you... I HATE being sick. Being sick turns me into the comatose zombie person who then feels guilty because my kids are sick too so I need to take care of them while all I want to do is vegetate and get better. The house becomes a toxic waste dump because no one has the energy to clean up much less cook. It is an all-around bad situation. Not to mention that my kids are cuddlers when they don't feel good, so we all just end of sharing the germs over and over and over again.

This is are first experience with croup. Let me tell you it is a scary virus! Ivie had to receive the steriod shot to help her breathe. Xavien has scared me and Matthew to death the last 2 nights with his fevers and breathing issues. We have tried the humidifiers, humid hot shower mist and the cold air theories. If anyone has any other ideas let me know please!!

School Bugs

2008-09-14T23:10:00.002-04:00

We have officially been in school for 2 weeks now! Kanayla is loving it! I am discovering new friends in the ward with playdates for Xavien and Ivie. Lots of great new things.

Of course a monkey wrench has to occur. Kanayla caught a nasty cold that has you lose your voice too. Not fun :( It has kept us fairly housebound for the past few days. She seems to be over the worst of it but I am still thinking about keeping her home tomorrow.

Kanayla received one of the weekly awards this week as well. The reward was taking a stuffed Curious George home for a weekend sleepover. Xavien has fallen in love with the George! Seriously I have NEVER seen him get so worked up over a toy before and we have had several fits about cars and trains. Matthew and I are considering getting him one for his birthday but is that rewarding bad behavior? Xavien has probably spent more time in time out this weekend than ever too....all because he wants the Curious George. Whoever thought Curious George would be such a hot commodity?

Kindergarten!!!!

2008-08-30T13:12:00.004-04:00

We officially have a Kindergartner!!! Kanayla has survived the testing and has been assigned a teacher. Kanayla loves being a Hawk (the school mascot). She is so happy to go to school and comes home telling me about all the friends she has made. I am adjusting well to her being gone during the day. The house is SO quiet!! Xavien cried when we dropped her off the first day of school. But overa ll everyone is adjusting well!

7 years

2008-08-25T13:18:00.002-04:00

Yep, it is true! Today is Matthew and my 7 year anniversary! It is hard to believe that it has already been 7 years. Time truly does fly by.....

I won't get too sappy or anything but I wanted to share how blessed I am to have married Matthew. I can not imagine anyone more supportive, loving and understanding of me. He is a wonderful provider, an excellent father and an even better husband! I couldn't have gotten a better eternal companion! I love you babe and I know we will have many more wonderful years to come!

Answered Prayers

2008-08-20T19:21:00.002-04:00

Last month the starter in our van died, so, we replaced it and everything was fine until a week ago. Once again the van started having issues 1 out of 3 times we would try to start it. Needless to say the van is once again visiting the shop on Friday. Yesterday I had to run to the grocery store with the kids for dinner stuff. The van had trouble starting.....Kanayla offered to say a prayer. Ta-da! The van starts! Yipee!!!

This may seem silly but Kanayla was so impressed that her prayer was answered right away! All she could talk about for the rest of the day was that Jesus does listen to prayers. Her faith is very inspiring and it is instances like this that makes me think of the scripture about 'becoming as a little child.' It is so true!

Don't Let Your Kids Play With Kanayla

2008-08-18T20:04:00.004-04:00

I really love to play rough with my kids. To be honest, one of the main reasons I wanted kids of my own was so that I could "rough-house" without parents getting angry with me. I love playing with kids, but I like the kids to have a good time, and kids love to wrestle and "play" fight. Growing up I had many-a-stern-look from parents when I got the kids too riled up. Now that I have kids of my own, its open season, I'll do as I please. I guess another title to this entry could be, "Don't Let Matt Play With Your Kids." Whatever, your kids, do as you please; my kids, I'll do as I please.

Somehow I've been able to control the kids to just hit me. They hit each other, but nothing out of the ordinary and they rarely hit their mother. But, you never know when they might snap and break out some Chuck Liddell on someone else. That's where the warning in the title comes from, its just best to be cautious around Kanayla...I've taught her well. Below is a video of a regular, everyday activity of Kanayla beating up her daddy. Normally Xavien gets involved as well, but he was really enjoying his sippy cup. Notice how Kristina tells Kanayla enough, and the girl continues her onslaught, to another degree. I just realized that Kristina didn't really tell her to stop again, she must have enjoyed seeing her husband get beat up.

Recap

2008-08-12T13:50:00.003-04:00

So...it has been a little bit. Sorry about that! Mom-cation was great, need it again and Matthew is a prince among men for letting me get a break. We had a moving scare (it still may happen but not for another month or two). Isn't that sad that the most notice I have had before a move was 1 month?
In recap of the past few weeks.....

Matthew has had a couple business trips down to Atlanta so I have been visiting with my Mom.
Kanayla is getting ready to start school. She has learned to wash her own hair but we are still working out how to use a hairdryer.
Xavien has now learned his ABC's while Ivie has learned the art of climbing on chairs, out of tubs, on couches, on toilets, on beds etc etc. I am going to be in big trouble when she figures out how to climb out of her crib. Xavien also has a tendency to injure himself in some hilarious ways. I am still trying to figure out if it is a boy trait or a Xavien trait!
I have managed to injure myself... I bruised my palms (silly story) and then had to have a toenail removed because whenever I walked I was putting 'trauma' on it. Weird and painful!!!

But I promise to do better at posting! Here is Kanayla with a cousin during a somewhat recent visit.

Mom-cation

2008-07-22T13:45:00.002-04:00

One of the perks about working for the church is that Matthew gets a vacation day on Pioneer Day. This year he decided that I should take a couple days and go somewhere (just me) to get a break from everything and everyone! YEA!!! So now the problem is that I have no problem going down the street holing up in a hotel room and reading for 2 days straight ( I know, I'm pathetic :)) but to justify the expense of a hotel room I feel like I need to do 'something'. Any ideas.....

Interview with a 5 yr old

2008-07-18T20:11:00.006-04:00

For this week's entry we interviewed Kanayla. It was a cool experience with a few expected answers and a few unexpected answers as well.

What is your favorite color? -- Red

What is your favorite thing to do? -- coloring in coloring books

What is your favorite thing to do with Mom? -- getting hugs and kisses

with Dad? -- WRESTLING

with X. and I.? -- I like to help them play cars and trains.

If you could have any animal for a pet what would it be? A cat but if I could turn into an animal I want to be a dog.

If you could live anywhere where would you live? China because I like it.

What is your favorite scripture story? I like reading about Jesus blessing the little kids.

What is your favorite music? Jonas Brothers, my favorite song is "We got the Party." My favorite primary song is "I am a Child of God."

What do you want to be when you grow up? A gardener and shopping at the store

Are you excited to start school? Yes, I want to paint and ride the school bus.

What if Mommy and Daddy won't let you ride the school bus yet? Then I'll cry because the bus drives and is fun.

What is your favorite sport? Soccer

Why is it important to listen to Mom and Dad? Because it is good and because it makes you happy and Mommy and Daddy love me.

Favorite book: Dora and the Mermaid Rescue

Favorite Movie: Meet the Robinson's

TV Show: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

I hope that you guys like the insight into Kanayla's mind!

Explanation of Blog Title

2008-07-12T17:16:00.013-04:00

***This posting is rated PG-13***

Well first of all, you have to get what the title is "saying". It's just another way to say that a person is not so bright. There are many creative ways to say this, I'll list a few:

"A photographic memory but with the lens cover glued on."

"Gates are down, the lights are flashing, but the train isn't coming."

"It's hard to believe that he beat 1,000,000 other sperm to the egg."

"Some drink from the fountain of knowledge;..... he only gargled."

If you don't laugh at these phrases, please, move on to some other postings and stop wasting your time.

Well about 3 or 4 years ago, my family had gotten together in Provo, Utah while a bunch of us were still going to school. When my family gets together we love to have discussions about anything. I believe at this particular time we were having a sort of serious discussion and we were brainstorming ideas and when I brainstorm I say some pretty off the wall things. I don't recall what I said, but I'm sure it was stupid, and in my family you are sure to be reminded by others of your stupidity. My brother Philip has some classic sayings to confirm your stupidity, and at this time he said to me, "the wheel is turning, but the hamster is dead." So I'm just making sure everyone knows the hamster is still dead. To conclude this post I'd like to share a video my oldest brother introduced to us a few years ago. There is no animal cruelty in this video, but make sure you are not eating anything when you watch it, it could come out of your nose.

Hamster on a Wheel

Growing Pains.....

2008-07-11T13:37:00.002-04:00

Ivie has had an interesting couple of weeks. She has managed to grow 2 inches and now bumps into everything because she isn't used to the added height. Ivie is walking into all the tables and desks etc. Her other development is cutting her first molar. This has been a traumatic experience...Ivie is my first child to get the sniffles and mild fever that sometimes comes with a new tooth. She is cranky, tired, and refuses to eat! :( Today I thought a bath would help calm her (she's my waterbaby!) We were running the water, I had just finished taking off her clothes and diaper and had turned around to throw the dirty diaper away. When I spun back around Ivie was looking up at me with huge tears in her eyes and a puddle of pee on the floor! She looked down and the floor and just started screaming. I wish I took a picture because she looked so sad and miserable and cute. Hopefully this growth spurt will end soon....

FHE board

2008-07-04T12:14:00.003-04:00

Granted this is bragging, but I am very pleased and proud of Matthew and my latest project!! We made a Family Home Evening assignment board for our family. It took us a long to make it (we would work a little on it and then get caught up in other things) but the end result is great!!! The kids love it because they each have something special to represent them. I love it because it is definitely 'me' and it helps all of us be more excited for FHE. Tell me what you think!

Soccer Players in the Making

2008-07-01T19:59:00.006-04:00

Matthew enjoyed watching the EuroCup on TV this year (VIVA ESPANA!!! (edit by Matthew))....and Xavien was paying attention! Like all little boys, Xavien enjoys balls but ever since he saw soccer being played on TV it has become one of his favorite activities. Xavien runs around the house kicking the ball and trying to tackle anyone who happens to play soccer with him. Quite cute! To encourage his foray into sports, I took the kids out to a little patch of grass outside the building to kick the soccer ball around in real grass. They LOVED it!! We had to avoid all the dog poopies though! (People should really clean up after their pets. Seriously, I have curious toddlers here! No need to deal with dog poopies too! )

Since the mission was a success my next assignment is to find a soccer field or good substitute within walking distance...or get people to clean up after their pets!

Weekend getaway

2008-06-29T14:24:00.008-04:00

This weekend Matthew and I gave the kids to my parents and we got a night away!! Yippee!! We went out to eat and to a movie Friday night....a real luxury for us! And Saturday we drove to the Hiddenite mine just outside of Statesville. Hiddenite is a gem that is only found in NC---it looks kinda like an emerald. We did not know what to expect from the mine but it was a lot of fun! Matthew and I chose to go creekin and sluicing. The creek was cold and surprisingly there were not any bugs! Matthew thinks we found more interesting rocks during the creekin which consisted of digging in the water and then shaking the pan to get rid of the sand and dirt and see what stones you came up with. The only problem was that we don't know enough about rocks to really recognize what we found:( The sluicing was easier on the body (no achy backs or knees) ....you sat down with a bucket of dirt and do the same thing as creekin in a waterway. We came away content, excited and very dirty!

Here are some pictures from our day away, I don't have any pictures of the kids with my parents because we had the camera! From all Kanayla has to say though, it sounds like the kids had a blast with their grandparents! Thanks again Mom and Dad for giving us a breather! And the next time we go to Hiddenite we are going to know more about rocks!

The grand Indoors!

2008-06-25T19:31:00.007-04:00

So we spend a lot of time indoors....sometimes it is pure laziness but mostly it is because we are still in an apartment and therefore have no access to a convenient yard. I can't say that the kids seem to miss a yard all that much though.....they spend all of their time running around and jumping all over our couches!! Xavien and Kanayla are obessed with music. One of their favorite activities is to turn itunes on and dance around to music....mostly running laps around our kitchen. Ivie has tried to join in the fun but she gets run over by her siblings. Ivie has got to work on her speed and Xavien and Kanaya need to watch where they are going. Still it is hilarious to watch the kids get their groove on! :) The other favorite indoor activity is Couch Gymnastics. I have tried for years to get Kanayla to stop jumping off the arms of the couch but it hasn't worked yet. They do leaps, they do somersaults, they pull and push each other---all while laughing their eyes out. Only rarely do the couch gymnastics end in injury. Well I am glad they can entertain each other!

Paints, Father's Day and Parks

2008-06-16T16:51:00.010-04:00

We have been busy the past few days!! On Saturday our stake had a softball tournament. Matthew was in charge of planning it and playing in it. I took the kids and played at the playground for a while. Ivie got to experience the baby swings and even though the pics do not show it...she was laughing. Xavien kept climbing up the playground and equipment and then refusing to slide down the slide. Silly boy! Still I wish I could find a decent park closer to us....

On Father's Day, Kanayla woke up Matthew with a card that she wrote saying "I love you Daddy!" She made it all by herself and was extremely proud of herself. I have been blessed to have a wonderful Father and husband in my life. I am very appreciative to all that Matthew and Dad do for me and the kids. Thanks you guys!

Today, I found a recipe for some puffy paint. All you do is mix equal parts of flour and salt. Add water and coloring and ta-da you have paint. You put the paint in squeeze bottles and the kids had a ball. Here is some examples of their artwork. Xavien's looks like the Jackson Pollock while Kanayla tried to make images with her paint! They loved the paint so I will have to let them paint with this more often. We will have to see how long the paint in the bottle lasts until it dries out. My kids are little artists!

Children's Museum

2008-06-08T19:30:00.006-04:00

Wow...uhh we haven't added anything in a LONG time. Gotta do better. The new goal is to add something once a week so we will see how it goes.

This past week I took the kids to the Marbles Children's Museum in downtown Raleigh. That was an experience! Their favorite section was the "Around Town" which up about half of one side of the museum. They have gates to keep the children in but it is HUGE! There were speed boats to play on, a fire truck, a bus, a postal car with parcels to load and unload, a barn, a kitchen with a mini grocery center not to mention the wall of trains. Seriously, how do they expect parents with multiply children to keep track of all the kids with that much to see and play with? Kanayla loved the kitchen, Xavien wanted to stay with the trains and Ivie was so excited to see everything that she could actually climb all over that she went everywhere. I am exhausted.....

WV trip

2008-03-03T20:53:00.005-05:00

Last week I was visiting Knoxville, TN and Charleston, WV. I really enjoyed the scenic drive. I'm always amazed at how beautiful West Virginia is, always. When you come up from the south on I77 and drive through the East River tunnel and then, WHAM!!!! WV makes you forget about the beauty you thought you saw in Virginia. When there's snow, there's always twice as much in WV then VA, and it just looks better on the trees. Seriously, a blanket of snow on the leafless trees that cover the rolling hills is amazing, and its not even the best time to visit if you want beauty. Which reminds me, whenever you see photos of fall foliage throughout the US, they almost never show anything from WV...are you kidding me. Yeah the New England region has some great colors, but WV has got those colors, plus an already beautiful landscape of rolling Appalachian hills. C'mon, its West Virginia, almost heaven, what beats that. John Denver wrote a song about it, only Colorado is on the same playing field, but John Denver never wrote anything about it being like heaven...although I have seen it raining fire in the sky over Denver and that is picturesque. Well, here's a picture of a rainbow after the weather cleared up while I was driving.

sickness

2008-03-03T16:28:00.002-05:00

The weather is finally warming up! Thank goodness!!! Maybe now we will no longer have to fight through the rotovirus and monster colds that my kids seem to catch every other week. It seems like every time one child gets sick the other 2 catch it and then finally I succumb too! Xavien is the one getting sick all the time right now....nursery is not a good combination with that boy.

Hair

2008-01-27T18:15:00.003-05:00

Well it was that time again, cut Xavien's hair. Always an adventure because you can't keep him still. Half the time you wonder if its better to leave it alone, but I can't stand long hair on boys. Few boys can pull it off, and my son is not one of them...plus I like to make his "Nana" mad at me for doing it . So I basically had to sit on the poor boy for about 10 minutes and shave his hair off. Kristina pouted that he looked like his daddy, is that a bad thing? I topped off all that torture by giving the kid a bath, he's scared of the water, so that too was a load of fun. Here are some updated pictures of our lovely children. As you can tell, our daughters have been "blessed", or more correctly, "cursed" with their fathers hair.

Hello

2008-01-05T18:02:00.001-05:00

Well here I am too. A little busy right now, the kids are under the weather. Looks like Church tomorrow will be a tag team effort. Matthew says I'm ecstatic to be able to blog, we'll see.

There, I did it

2008-01-04T11:41:00.001-05:00

I love reading blogs by people I know to see how they're doing. I love to read blogs of people I don't know, because their content is hilarious. Therefore, we're starting our blog to fit into both those categories. We may not be as funny, but if you spent any amount of time around us, you'd be laughing...at us.

So here it begins and it's not a New Years resolution. I just think this has been overdue and I'm not that computer illiterate that I can't do a blog. Hopefully Kristina, my wife, will catch the fun of blogging and add her own stories, because she has the good ones from being around the kids all day. Well, I think I'm ready to publish this post, we'll be sure to put some photos in later.