Cute to the power of 3

So what if I'm a little prejudiced being their mother and all. You cannot argue with this picture from last August. The dentist's office took it when they were all cavity free. We got to take the picture home this time...and we're still cavity free! Woohooo!

da baby bruder

My Nash is not a baby. Just ask him. I do.

Me: Nash are you my baby?

Nash: Nooooo. I'm da baby bruder!

(getting tattoed @ his party)

Well, now my not-baby is 4. Four. FOUR!

Don't get me wrong. I am so over (ala Rachel & Ross) diapers, midnight feedings, carrying car seats, and smelling like puke all the time. My neighbor thinks this is the best time in their young lives and I'm starting to agree. No diapers. No school schedule. He can entertain himself, but still likes to snuggle. He can ask for what he wants and I'm strong enough to restrain him when the answer is no (even if there are occassionally black eyes). His curious little mind is focusing more on letters, numbers, books, and he LOVES preschool days. He can go on playdates...to someone else's house.

His birthday party was going to get rained out, so we took it indoors...to the church. Turned out to be a great location. We had a cheetah theme (I'll have to post the story of Nash's fascination with them). Of course, my mom made a fabulous cake....that we still have leftovers of. Come over. I'll fix you a plate.

Heather Kiel took this - my favorite photo of the party. I love all the kids lined up by height in the background waiting for their turn.

...and the madness that ensued.

Thanks to all Nash's good friends for making his party...well, his whole birthday, FANTASTIC!

The Man I Love

For the last 15 years on April 14th, while many people are rushing to file and finish their taxes, I'm celebrating the best decision I ever made: marrying Harland.

I decided to post a little about my handsome man because other than the fact that he does laundry, I don't think I've written too much about him...and I needed a reason to post some old pictures his mom just gave us. *BIG GRIN*

In high school and college I dated football players, plain old players, cowboys & Cali boys (no comments from the ex-roommate peanut gallery), but I fell in love with a band geek...this one to be exact.

A friend recently reminded me how Harland locked himself out of a car he was borrowing on our first date when he walked me to the door. It was late. He decided not to bother his friend and slept on my couch. I should've taken that as an indicator - he's easily distracted....but I like his version of the next morning. Ask him sometime.

When Emma was a newborn Harland made a video that consisted of at least 20 minutes of him filming baby Emma while she lay in his lap making faces in reaction to his baby talk. No one else was in the room, just new Dad and new Emma.

Other men (you know, the kind you meet at church) always, always come up to me after they've played sports with Harland for the first time and tell me how fast he is. Always.

He carries my luggage, empties a car full of groceries in the fewest trips possible, and totes whatever else needs toting. I affectionately call him my "pack horse". He rolls his eyes.

My daughter thinks he looks like Tom Cruise. I used to watch Top Gun...a lot.

He'd snuggle a strange cat over a friend's baby in a heart beat.

When we met we lived just a few minutes away from my BFF, Rachel. She was dating (and later married) JP. Har and JP became instant friends when they didn't have to...well, they kinda did.For our anniversary this year he gave me a card that reads:

Here's to us. To what we've done:

Stayed together.

Supported each other.

Been happy.

Made something of ourselves.

Grew up.

Changed.

Defied the odds.

I'm proud of that.

Proud of us.

In love with you.

Still.

Always.

Best decision I ever made!

The Last Time?

The other day Nash wanted to go outside to ride his trike. As usual, I told him to get his socks & shoes on. Before I could meet him at the stairs (our shoe puttin' on place) he already had one foot taken care of and he was putting the sock on his other! I didn't know if I was more proud or sad.

Immediately, a lady from my exercise class popped into my mind. Just last week she was talking about how we do little things with our kids, like kiss their feet as we're changing a diaper, but eventually we stop doing it. The behavior, the act of love just fades away as they get older. She remarked that the last time you kissed their little feet you probably didn't even realize it was the last time you would. My heart aches as I think of all the "last times" I've had in my mothering years.

A.C.H.E.S.

Thankfully, I still get to help Nash with his stinky feet every once in a while, but I can't stop myself from wondering when it will be the last time. Tonight, I push it out of my mind as I get ready to put candy in Easter eggs and anticipate one of the few innocent Easter mornings I've got left as a Mother.

Damn. I'm crying.

Imported Breakfast

When Harland & I were first married he introduced me to Chocolate Malt-O-Meal. Yum! We'd only been married a few months when he had to leave on a 6 month "float" with the Marines. My newly high school graduate sister, Tressa, came to live with me (to keep me from utter loneliness) and attend school nearby. She likes Chocolate Malt-O-Meal, too. When Harland came home he wanted to know what happened to the box he'd left....14 years later he and Tressa still fight about it. Nowadays, we can get Malt-O-Meal, but not the chocolate variety. It's a problem. When we go to Colorado we stock up buying 6 - 10 boxes. Last week, we ran out. Guess that means we need to make a trip to Har's hometown for Spring Break! We weren't planning on it, but priorities changed...

Not everyone likes the chocolately goodness at our house, but I guess Dedan has his own reasons for wanting to go...like that Grandmother who spoils him.

Award with a Catch

Back at the beginning of the month I got a blog award from one of my Vegas friends/fellow bloggers. I don't take the award lightly since she is the coolest, most fun, nothing like the stereotypical doctor's wife woman & mother you will ever meet...but I wasn't doing much blog reading and missed it! So I'm back tracking, accepting my award - along with its stipulations - and fulfilling my duties as an award winner

First I must share ten things that make me happy (in no particular order):

1. I think this is a fruitless plum tree. All winter it has this dark, almost black, bark. Beautiful. Then suddenly it is full of these lovely, tiny pink blossoms. Every time I walk by the tree I smile...and I don't even like pink that much.




2. Sunday Afternoon Naps.




3. My friends/neighbors...this group in particular. Mike & Dejah organized this evening where we played croquet (a first for most of us) and suddenly we all had to wear funny hats. I'm not sure why. We had a blast...even though it sparked an "anonymous" letter from a neighbor. But that will be a whole other post.



4. Netflix. Movies that come in the mail. Genius.




5. Babies...specifically those belonging to other people that I don't have to wake up in the night to feed. This is Remy. I love him. I wish I lived close enough that I could go over for more baby holding therapy. It's a cure all.



6. My Chicky Babies. Emma and her friends. 12 year old girls are fun and still kinda want to hang out with me.



7. Weekend trips to Vista where my BFF lives, where the beach is a couple minutes away, where we began.




8. Baking. Even when my rainbow cupcakes look more like tye-dyed cupcakes. They still tasted good!





9. When my boys play well together. I would say when my "kids" play well together, but if all 3 of them are playing and happy something usually gets broken.




10. I'm just gonna say what I'm thinking (I know its so unlike me): sex with my husband.

Second, I have to give this award to 10 other bloggers...

• I must recognize the first blog I ever read (written by Remy's mom) Shadowbox. She's funny. She's hip. Now she's a mom.
• My friend, Muria, inspires me. She has adorable children. And she puppysits for me. What mother of 6 doesn't have interesting things to blog about?
• Never A Dull Moment: Another one of my friends with a zillion kids who she shares her musical talents with and houses two zillion pets.
• The Norris Family mostly because it's been a while since she blogged, but also because I love the way she writes about her family...and you gotta love a couple that's been together since forever.
• The Schaefer Family. Jen's my old college roommate. She needs this award so I can hear more about her.
• My friend that started the coop preschool we're doing: ZigBeetle. She's uber creative and super patient...and her last blog tickled my taste buds so much that I had to run to the kitchen and start cooking.
• You know the saying "Keeping up with the Jonses" it was made because people like my friend at Cookies and Crumbs exist.
• My favorite neighbor, visiting teaching partner, up & coming photographer, and instigator of the day of croquet: The Morris Family
• Mamie Jo, as I afectionately call her, has been my friend since before I started dating Har. She needs to update her blog. Figured I'd give her a good reason.
• Another old roommate, The Comeau Family, who has great stories from being an elementary school teacher and because she's pregnant with her unexpected bonus baby.

Thank you to my readers and to my friend, Linda, for awarding me. I look forward to many more reasons to celebrate blogging.

What shall I blog?

I have several ideas that have been tickling the back of my blogging mind, so I'll let you, my readers (there are so so many of you - ha!) decide.

• Breakfast imported from Colorado
• Choir concert video montage
• Anonymous letter from our neighbor
• I missed my first blog award

After you've made your choice I'd like to know what is on your MP3/iPod workout playlist. I'm asking the same question on facebook. Sorry if it's redundant.

Expired

We splurged last year on something I never thought I would own in my life: 5 Disneyland Annual Passes, one for each member of our family. Spending more than $700 when Harland had been laid off 6 weeks earlier, probably not the most sound financial decision, but in the long run...brilliant! He was home all the time. We went with friends who visited from out of town, when we had a day off, for birthdays, when we did not have a day off, with grandparents, with neighbors, for Emma's choir concert! (below at Carnation Plaza)

....basically any time we could get away with it. We went so often that we didn't even take pictures half the time (some might call that blasphemy). The last time we went Dedan rolled his eyes and asked, "Again?"

Last Tuesday afternoon, Harland looked at me and said, "A little piece of me died today."

With great concern I responded, "What happened?!"

"Our Disneyland passes expired today."

*sigh*

A VERY LONG 158 minutes

Have you seen 2012?

Did you know it's a two and a half hour movie?

...Well, unless you are at my house. Then it takes four hours to watch.

Really.

Mater is not a race car

Our ward had their first Pinewood Derby this weekend. Each family got to enter one car. Har was inspired to create our own version of the beloved Mater...you know....from the movie CARS...in case you don't have Disney age kiddos. We worked hard.He looked good.

Even though we were eliminated after losing our first two races, we had a blast...good thing we're not a competitive family!

Puppy Love

I'm not talking about spending the weekend with my sweet Valentine (I think we've graduated past puppy love), but we did have a nice dinner out with Rachel & JP.

Much of the rest of the long weekend we spent like this...

...staring at their 8 Golden Retriever puppies. Each has a different colored ribbon collar and a spice name...not that we remembered. We'd just call them by their collar color (say that 5 times fast).
On rare occassions (like when Nash was napping) we even let the kids hold one on its own...usually the loud ones to calm them down.




Lula hung with the Everitts for the weekend because we figured 10 dogs in one house was plenty. Being with the Knowlton's pups reminded me of the days of little Lula - who turned 3 this month - she was so cute and tiny.......she's still cute, just not as tiny.

uncelebrated anniversary

A year ago today was Harland's last day of work at the Four Seasons. He informed me yesterday that this temporary turned permanent job has gone back to being temporary and this will be his last week. Laid off twice in two years...in the same week no less.

When Har was laid off last year, we weren't too worried. He received a nice severence package, we had a good tax return coming, and in my mom's words, "You have a roof over your heads and plenty of food in the kitchen." (My mom rocks, by the way.) In many ways last year was such a wonderful time for us. While Har looked for jobs we could still take care of our needs, we had him around all the time (have you heard he does laundry?), and we took several fabulous vacations (like this one or this one). Amazing, right?

Honestly, we're not too upset about this lay off. The paycheck just replaced the unemplyment check...did not improve it. No to mention that he'll have more freedom to do some hunting and interviewing for real jobs. This temp gig did get in the way of that.

This time around, we aren't planning vacations and we'll be budgeting tighter, but we're not complaining. We'll be praying for a job again, but a job that he likes going to and one that pays well enough that we can move into our own place. Aren't we supposed to be specific in our prayers?

Here's to another wonderful year...