A Little More Insanity

We went to Temple Square to see the lights last night. We left at 4:00, and arrived at Gateway while it was still light outside. We ate at Rumbi, and then headed over to see the lights. Even though it was only one stop away, we got on Trax at Gateway and rode to Temple Square (I guess we had to enjoy the "whole" experience). We had a lot of fun walking around and seeing the lights. Austin's favorite was a tree that was decked out all in red. It was incredible! There had to be thousands of lights. Every single branch was wrapped. Macy's favorite was going inside the Visitor's Center to see the Christus. There were a ton of people, but it didn't feel overly crowded. We watched the Nativity Scene (this was always my favorite as a kid), and headed home. We actually got the kids to be before 8:30.

On the train:

My mom was so kind to take our picture, but I should have showed her how to use my camera (we're a little blurry). But, the trees in the background are nicely in focus. Oh well...I guess walking around in 29 degree temperatures for half an hour doesn't exactly make us look fabulous (red, snotty noses and all)! Thanks for trying, Mom! This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago, but Paige looked so cute all bundled up that I had to post it. I can't say enough how much I adore her! I was looking at her today, and her eyes are so brown now. I think they are beautiful. My dad said that I had to sing the song. So, I started singing "Brown Eyed Girl."

It was so nice to sit in Sacrament Meeting today. We had a very nice meeting with music and talks from the Bishopric. I sat on the stand because I sang with the choir and helped lead the Primary kids. Thanks to Greg for sitting with the kids the entire meeting (at least Paige slept through most of it)! It really was so nice to sit down, enjoy the music, and really listen to the speakers. Brother Bos told some very touching stories about the Christmas that he was three years old. He talked about his mother baking cookies for the first time ever and delivering them to some elderly people in their neighborhood. He told about visiting an elderly gentlemen that they had never met but only waved to on the way to church. It turns out he was taking care of his wife who had Alzheimer's and hadn't recognized him for years. He was terribly lonely, and this young mother and little boy visited them for Christmas. (By the way, this man had been a baker by trade.) He also told of another neighbor that his mother visited that Christmas. While she was there, the woman offered her a drink. When she went into the kitchen, the boiler had exploded and flooded her kitchen. Since his mother had worked part time for the utility company, she knew who to call on Christmas Eve since the office was closed. She must have taught her young son well because Brother Bos is always willing to serve other people and gets so excited about sharing the gospel. I was very touched by so much of what was said, and greatly enjoyed listening to the traditional Christmas scriptures. As many of you know, I tend to be a little emotional. I had a hard time getting through the closing hymn. I really do love Christmas! It's just so hard to find the appropriate balance.

I ended the day with one of my favorite traditions - watching "It's a Wonderful Life" while wrapping presents. I LOVE this movie - I always have! One of my new favorite Christmas movies is "Family Man" (even though I am absolutely NOT a Nicholas Cage fan). I think I like these movies because I strive every day to find joy and pleasure in the average, simple things of life. I don't do great, fantastic things (even though I dream big). I'm never going to be on Oprah for building orphanages in Africa or feeding entire South American villages. I'm never going to be rich to travel the world building houses for the homeless. I'm just a normal person, trying my best to raise my family with values and faith. I'm just an ordinary wife and mother who tries to live within our means so I can stay at home and not work. I try to fix dinner every night so we can eat around the table and help my kids with their homework. I try to fulfill my calling to the best of my ability and love the kids in our neighborhood. I love these movies because I have to believe that even though I'm just a normal, ordinary person, I can make a difference on a small scale. I can impact my family and friends, and they definitely impact me and make me a better person. The goal is to find happiness with the blessings the Lord has given us and not spend hours wishing it were different. We all make sacrifices for the good of our family members and other people. It may not be grandiose or glamorous, but it's stable and good. At the end of the movie, where everyone is giving Jimmy Stewart money, my wonderful (but slightly pessimistic) husband turns to me and says, "That would never happen today." Maybe I'm naive, but I like to believe that we live in a world where that would happen - where most people are basically good at the core. Anyway...these movies may be a little "cheesy," but they make me happy. Plus, Jimmy Stewart just cracks me up! I love his acting, and I love his voice. Merry Christmas everyone!

Insanity!

So...my kids have yet to see Santa this year. I decided that we should head to the mall to see him today - all by myself! It was insane! Actually, the line for Santa wasn't that bad. We got there at the same time Santa arrived. We waited maybe 15 minutes. It worked out quite well. I got a quick picture with all three kids before Santa chatted with Austin and Macy. Paige didn't cry. None of my kids have ever cried on Santa's lap. They are just very curious. Sometimes I wish there were some level of stranger anxiety within my kid's brains. Anyway...Austin asked Santa to surprise him, and Santa laughed and said, "I think we can find something for you." Macy asked for "New Cinderella." To start with, I have no idea what "New Cinderella" is - do any of you? Secondly, up until a couple of days ago, she was asking for Island Princess Barbie. I'm pretty sure Santa prepared for the barbie thing. I hope she's not disappointed! I heard this story over and over again in the car. Macy used a high-pitched voice to describe what she said, and a low-pitched voice to describe what Santa said. Apparently, Macy thinks that the girl elves select presents for the girls, and the boy elves select present for the boys. Pretty funny reasoning!

The insanity started when we tried to leave the mall. On our way out, a mom with four kids was making her way in. She looked at me and said, "Are you just as crazy as I am?!?" We got in our car at 4:55, and by 5:10, we had moved from Macy's to Dillard's at Fashion Place Mall (they are one store away from each other). There were so many cars, and everyone was trying to merge into the lane to exit. At that point, I flipped around and headed the other way. I was out of the mall parking lot in 5 minutes. But the traffic around the mall was just as crazy! I tried to remain calm because I knew it would be like this, but it was pretty ridiculous. I was just grateful that we weren't at the mall to shop. I got to my parent's house 45 minutes after we got in the car, and they only live a couple miles away.

Oh well...it was worth it to hear the excitement in my kid's voices. Merry Christmas!

Clothes!

I just thought I would take a minute and post some pictures of what Macy looks like at this moment (mid-December with a storm coming). She actually has her swimsuit on, but put her hat, jacket, and snow boots on when she got cold. She and Tanner wanted to go outside and play, but after we got the picture (it took maybe 30 seconds), they decided it was too cold to play outside in swimsuits. See...three-year-olds can make intelligent decisions. These two are hilarious! (She insisted on standing in front of the post for her picture.)

This girl changes her clothes 5-6 times a day. Yesterday, she started out in school clothes. She came home from school and put her pink pajamas on. Then, I gave her "Dorothy shoes" (red sequence) that I bought her to go with her new sparkle, froo-froo dress ($15 bucks from Costco that she absolutely fell in love with - what's $15 when you're in love?!?). So, she immediately changed into her new shoes and new dress. Then, Claire came over. Claire was Dorothy for Halloween this year. So, Macy changed into her Wicked Witch Halloween Costume (with her Dorothy shoes), and they headed to Claire's house to play Wizard of Oz. On the way out of the house, Macy said (under her breath), "I'm so wicked." After play time, she was in her new Christmas jammies from Nana and Papa. All of these wardrobe changes end up in the middle of her bedroom floor. Lovely!

Yea!

As of yesterday, I'm DONE Christmas shopping! Yea! I'm also done with Christmas programs, parties, visiting teaching, etc. so I get to try to just enjoy the week before Christmas!

Exception: Neighbor gifts


By the way...I took some pictures for my cousin, Annie for a Christmas card last week. I am having so much fun with my camera, even though I can't figure out how to do low-light. I can't wait for my new lens for Christmas (hint, hint, honey). The lighting wasn't great on this day either, and Josie didn't exactly want her picture taken (neither did Ed for that matter). We really needed another adult there to help distract Josie. Oh well...I hope we got a shot for you guys. I had fun! Thanks for your patience.



We stole this idea from Jen. Annie had seen some pictures like this on Jen's Photo Blog, so we tried it for a minute (even though there was a foot of snow on the ground).

Pure Joy

Austin has been a pure joy lately! He has been doing so well, and I enjoy every minute that I am around him. The other night, my sister's and I were practicing for our Christmas program and Greg had gone home teaching. I put the girls to bed early, and Austin came in the front room and sat on the couch and listened. Did you hear that??? Austin SAT! He didn't bounce, jump, leap, or fly off the couch, constantly interrupting. I was enjoying him so much that I didn't even want to put him to bed. Then, I got a phone call about "church business" that I had to take in my bedroom, and he snuck in, kissed me goodnight, and put himself to bed around 8:30. Amazing! I wrote him this note and taped it on his door nob (it got ripped coming off the door nob, so we taped it back together the best we could). In response, Austin wanted to draw the same picture for Greg.

My note (as for the drawing, just know that Greg has banned me from drawing pictures in church because it makes him laugh too hard):

Translation: Austin, Thank you for being such an amazing boy! You were so fun to be around tonight. You got in the bathtub, washed, and got pajamas on when I asked. You also did the silverware so quickly. It was amazing! Lisa, Alexie, and I really needed to practice our songs. Thank you for sitting so quietly on the couch and coloring and reading Christmas books so we could practice. It was so fun to have you listen to us. I'm so happy that you're my son and part of our family. I love having you around! I love you! (picture of us swimming in the ocean)

Austin's note:

Translation: I (heart) You Dad, and I (heart) the way your zoo [Greg was playing Zoo Tycoon on the computer at the time]. It is amazing. It is cool. You have lots of ****'s (star's).

He has been so sweet and thoughtful lately as well. Today, while we were in the car, I tried guessing his favorite Christmas song. It turned into a list of his favorite 6 Christmas songs. It was just a nice, pleasant conversation. When I asked him what he was going to ask Santa for, he said, "I'm just going to tell him to surprise me!" I love it that he doesn't have a long, detailed list of all his fondest desires (like his dad and I did at his age). And yesterday, when he said his prayers, he thanked Heavenly Father for his mom and that he got to spend time with me. Do you know what he usually prays for? He usually says, "Please bless my mom to have patience and not yell or scream today." I looked at our newly-ordained deacons that came to their last Primary Activity today, and they are such amazing kids. I am really impressed with their group of friends. I teach most of them piano, and they are really great kids. But, they are growing up. They tell me all about friends, the latest high-tech gadgets that they want, even girls! I don't want my kids to grow up! I'm really trying hard to just relish these years when my son actually shows gratitude that he gets to spend time with his mom, and Macy tells me that besides Tanner and Claire, I'm her best friend!

Family Christmas Party

We had our Christmas Party with Greg's family on Monday night. We met at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building for dinner, a program (my mother-in-law would be lost without her talent show), and cousin present exchange. It was a very pleasant evening. Everyone was there, and Grandma Morgan joined us (42 people in all). As always, Grandma was well-prepared and had coloring books and crayons to help the little kids stay quiet during the program. Brilliant, as always! Austin played his piano solos, and Macy did her dance. Paige just dropped silverware, bread, toys, etc. out of her high chair and said, "Uh-oh!" (This is her new game. Funny, she didn't throw the chocolate mousse overboard! Smart girl!) It was quite enjoyable listening to the older cousins as they performed. They are getting quite good. Then came the presents! Greg's brother commissioned a genealogical chart with pictures of all the couples and grandchildren, complete with birthdays and wedding dates. It was matted and framed beautifully. It really turned out to be gorgeous. And the best part was that we just gave them money and we were done - no shopping for my in-laws! Thanks Mike and Annie! It was a very nice evening!

I tried taking some pictures, but I don't know how to manage my flash very well. Whenever I try to get fun and creative pictures indoors, I just get frustrated because uninvited shadows ended up all over the picture. So, I took a few wide (but kind of boring) shots. But, it kind of gives you an idea of how many people attended. Then, I just got too frustrated and quit. I've got to figure out how to take indoor pictures with poor lighting. Hmmmm...

Macy's First Dance Recital

Macy had her first dance recital last Saturday. Saturday was a crazy day! We woke up to a foot (or more) of extremely wet, heavy snow. I hurried and took 5 minutes to shovel (j/k, j/k, j/k), and we went to the Ward Christmas Breakfast. We left early and Greg took Austin to Tae Kwon Do while I got Macy ready for the performance. Of course I could only find one ballet slipper, so I had Greg meet me in the Target parking lot so I could leave the kids in the car without getting the police called on me (that's happened in the past), and I ran in as fast as I could to purchase yet another pair of dance slippers. We got to the performance, and Macy did a great job. She danced to Barney's classic, "Suzy Snowflake." Her class was very first, and then she got to sit on Santa's lap. Santa gave her a ballet medallion. She got to wear stage makeup, and she was in heaven! This is just a preview for the arguments we are going to have in a few years when she thinks she's ready for makeup, but I will undoubtedly disagree.

The batteries to my camera died, so I didn't get a picture of her on stage (she has another performance this coming Saturday, so I hope to get a picture then). When we got home, I thought it would be a great idea to take her picture with the beautifully new fallen snow as a backdrop. I knew it would be cold, but I tried to talk her into standing there for just one minute. It went well:She wasn't too happy once she got inside either. All the noise of her tantrum woke Paige up from her nap (thank you very much), so we went in Paige's room to get some pictures. We had her dance around, and we just looked at the snow. It went a little better. My sister says that these look like Glamour Shots because it she has all that fur, glitter, and makeup on.

We ended the day with a trip to the Timpanogus Temple with Greg's family while the kids stayed with my parents. Austin also played in his piano recital on Thursday, December 6th. Since I was the teacher, and in charge of the entire recital, I forgot to bring a camera. Sorry, Bud! But, Greg got it on video. He played "Hymn of Praise" (memorized) and "Jingle Bell Boogie." He did a great job!

Elfed

This seems to be "all the rage" this season. I went ahead and "elfed" my kids. You can click on the link if you want to see it. Merry Christmas!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1272586536

My mom liked ours so much that I did one for her:

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1473270906

And this one is just to freak Greg out (he despises it when animal heads are on human bodies):

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1467456289

Kids

AUSTIN:

I have to give him some credit - He is trying so hard lately. When he gets up in the morning, he gets dressed, makes his bed, and does his piano before school. He has been so diligent. At night, when I'm putting him to bed, I say, "Do you remember the three things to do in the morning?" He always says, "Mom...I don't need you to tell me." He's also been trying so hard at school. The other morning, he blessed his breakfast oatmeal, and in his prayer, he said, "Please help me to be good at school so I don't get sent to the office." Everything's not perfect (is it ever with any of us), but I am so proud of him for trying so hard. Great job, Bud!

He is also so thoughtful. He really has a gift for thinking of other people. We went to my grandparent's house for Sunday dinner, and we were celebrating my aunt's birthday. Austin didn't know that it was her birthday until we got there, so he asked for some paper and some markers and escaped into the other room. He created a birthday card for her. He drew a picture of my aunt with a bow in her hair (she turned 56) holding his hand. This was his message:

To Aunt Jeri

Frum Austin

Hapy Brthday

I Luv Yoo

Can I just tell you much I LOVE these phonetically correct notes that he is always writing. His teacher at school doesn't really stress "spelling words." Instead, she teaches "rules" of spelling. For example, this week they are working on "ck" words. She also encourages A LOT of independent writing. She doesn't want them to be stifled in their writing because they don't know how to spell something correctly. I know this goes against some people's fundamental beliefs, but I love it. It is going to be so boring when he can spell all of the words correctly. Again...he tries so hard, and I think it's wonderful!

Here is a book that Austin wrote for my mother for her birthday. He is constantly writing books (staples a bunch of papers together and then writes). It's funny because he chooses how long the book is going to be (10 pages, or 12 pages) before he writes it. He puts a lot of thought into it. (You have to follow the arrows which is why some words are spelled backward. It's kind of hard to read because the pages are back-to-back, and he used marker so it ran through. My scanner also cut off some of the sides of the paper, so all the writing didn't make it on the page. But I think you can get an idea. I've included a "translation" under each page. Enjoy!)

Cover Page: Written & Illustrated by Austin (picture of Nana and Austin - Don't you love my mom's hair!!!)

Once upon a time there lived a dragon. Lived in a cave. The cave was filled with bats. The bats were the dragon's food.

The Mommy dragon had a baby. Yeah, Yeah, Yeah! The next day the baby was one and ready to hunt.

The Mom was not pleased with her baby.

The baby was breathing fire at a horse.

The dragon was eating the horse.

The dragon was having dinner.

The dragon was eating the lizard.

The End!

MACY

This girl is a constant crackup. I have more stories about her because I am with her ALL DAY, and she talks nonstop! Macy is my child with a couple of funny quirks. For example, she has an obsession with magnetic numbers (the colorful plastic ones that you stick on the fridge). She likes the ones with "holes" in them (like 6, 8, 9, even 3). She used to do this more, but we've since lost most of the numbers. At bedtime, she would cry for "her number." We would then search the house for one and she would suck her left thumb and put the "hole" of the number over her left pinkie. That's how she comforted herself. She also had a spoon quirk. She holds spoons under her chin and sucks her thumb. Like I said...a little quirky.

One of her quirks is that she has to touch things. When Paige gets up, Macy says, "I want to touch her." Then, Macy runs her hands over her face or rubs the back of Paige's hand. Once she's "touched her", she's fine and goes about her business. Yesterday, we drove by a house that had a ton of blow up Santa's, elves on a ferris wheel, etc. I pointed it out to her. In a very matter-of-fact voice, Macy said, "I want to touch everything at that house."

So, we started talking about Christmas. I asked her who Jesus's mother was. Without missing a beat, Macy said, "Moses." I started laughing hysterically. Knowing that she made mistake, Macy asked if Moses was a boy or a girl. When I told her that Moses was a boy, she said, "Well then he can't be a mother." We talked about it a little more, and how Mary is the mother. She said, "Why did Mary put baby Jesus on a stage?" I explained that it was a stable. She said, "I know...but why did she put baby Jesus on a stage after he was born?" I couldn't understand what she was talking about. When I got home, and looked at our nativity set, I realized what she meant. Our nativity set is from Jerusalem, and it kind of looks like a stage. Excellent question, Macy! I can see that we need focus on this again at Family Home Evening.

While we were in the car running errands, we drove by a T-Mobile store. There was a man outside dressed in a huge pink phone costume to advertise. Macy said, "Mom! I want to be that pink phone for Halloween next year!" Who knows, maybe she can get paid for advertising!

PAIGE

This girl cracks me up! She's figured out that we talk to her whenever we enter a room, and she starts talking right away. Whenever we get her up or get her out of the car, she lights up and starts "talking." "Da, da, da, da...Na, na, na, na...Ma, ma, ma, ma." She's also become a real Mama's girl the past few weeks. She cries whenever I leave or put her in her crib (this really only lasts a couple of minutes). She also "whines" for me when she sees me (she does this for Greg, Austin, and Macy, too). She also LOVES real food. I opened a banana for Macy today, and Paige came crawling from across the house as fast as she could. Then, she sat at my feet and whined until I fed her.

I took her in for her 9-month check up today. She weighs 15 pounds 2 ounces (2%). Incidentally, this is EXACTLY what Macy weighed at 9 months. Macy was a quarter of an inch taller and had a much bigger head (Paige's head size is 8%, Macy's was 40%). This is so unusual, because Paige eats A LOT more than Macy ever did. Macy refused to take a bottle until 10 months, so she was stuck with my watered down breast milk, whereas I quit nursing Paige at 6 months. Oh well...I guess it just proves that they will grow at their own rate.

I love you three little munchkins. I just know that I am going to desperately miss this stage of life! I sure do relish these great moments! Thank you so much!