Ho-hum...

Today was just an ordinary day. No real highs or lows. Everyone went off to school or work and Lila and I watched Sesame Street and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and ate Captain Crunch. She and I have had such a rough couple of days, all I wanted to do was not be in a fight with her today. So instead of doing all the errands and chores I could have filled my time with, I just spent the morning hanging out with my girl and giving her my undivided attention. (Okay, it was a little divided because I was knitting on a sock... but I only did that when she was wrapped up in her show, if she wanted to talk about something I sat my project down.) It made for a nice change of pace.

Evie came home and I made lunch while she did her homework and colored. She kept yawning and saying how tired she was so after lunch I decided we should all have a nap. Well, I didn't mean to nap, but there is something about snuggling up with a little warm body tucked up next to you and singing softly as their eyes drift shut that is so soothing. Puts me to sleep every time. It probably should be so unexpected by this point...

Jake came home and did his homework, then made himself and his sisters a snack. They went downstairs and played legos and watched Princess and the Frog for the umpteenth time this week. I thought about what to make for dinner and the fact that I should probably do a load of dishes so I had something to cook with. And then I kept knitting on my sock and changed my dinner menu to work with the pan that was still clean. (Am I the only one who does that? Cook according to what dishes are available rather than do the dishes.)

Brian came home, we had dinner, and then went up to his parents for a little bit. They are going into the MTC on Monday and are finishing packing up their house. His mom was going through her pantry and dividing up the food between the families.

And now we are home, the children are in bed and we are ready to settle down and watch a couple of shows before bed. I will probably knit some more on my sock. There you go, a real slice of our everyday life...

That can't be comfortable...

I came in to check on Lila and found her like this.

Sound asleep with her head on the tv tray Brian uses for a night stand.

I can't  figure out how she A) didn't fall out of bed or B) knock anything off the tray.

Silly girl.

Ups and Downs

Today was Evie's real first day of kindergarten. She was a rock star! Not one whimper or tear. She hung up her backpack, found her name tag and mat, gave me a big grin and a thumbs up and we left. I was so proud of her. She had a great first day and couldn't stop her self from telling everyone she met today that she was a kindergartner!

After we picked her up from school we went to buy her some new sneakers. Well, talk about a cup runneth over. Evie is equally excited about her new shoes and if she corners you for more than ten seconds you will be shown them while having all of the amazing features they possess described to you in detail. I love that about my girl, how excited she gets over the smallest things. The world is so magical when seen through her eyes.

Poor Lila had quite a different day. I think she was having a horrible, awful, terrible, no-good day. It started the moment she woke up and realized that everyone was going off to school, except for her. And then, through a misunderstanding, she though her sister called her a grown-up. Oh the humanity! Lila absolutely fell apart, "I not a growing-up! Evie say I a growing-up and I NO-O-O-O-OT!"

She finally calmed down after running a couple of errands with me, including a trip up to the grandparents. But then her world came crashing down again when Evie got new shoes and she didn't. It's so hard to explain to a two year old that life is just plain unfair and that no amount of tantrum throwing can change that. Believe me, I've tried. 

Let's hope for a bit of a smoother ride tomorrow. I am exhausted from the emotional roller-coaster of having daughters...

A Special Sunday

Today we got to go to church with Grandma and Grandpa T. They were speaking in sacrament meeting before leaving to serve a mission in Denmark for the next 18 months.

 Jim and Terrie both gave excellent talks, but my favorite part was in Jim's talk when he addressed his grandchildren by name (the seven that live in the state and were there in the meeting) and explained how the only thing that could make their grandparents leave them for such a long time was the need to share the gospel with people who haven't learned what these children have grown up knowing. Why they are here on this earth, where they came from when they were born, and where they will go when they die.  I don't know how much of that my children absorbed, but it made me realize again how blessed I have been to be raised with this knowledge and faith and how blessed my children are to have this as part of their lives as well. It makes it a little easier to say good-bye knowing that they are going to be bringing that blessing to other children and other families. 

the Utah half of the cousins

We love you Grandma and Grandpa! 

You are going to be amazing missionaries.

The counting thing...

All you mothers know what I'm talking about. "I'm going to count to three... 1... 2... 2 1/2..."  Tonight I realized that there are three types of children, and you can tell what type they are by how they react to this parenting technique.

Type 1:  This is the child that jumps to with a quivering lip by the time you say, "I'm going to count..."  Jake was and still is this type of child, very sensitive to my disapproval and eager to obey and make amends.

Type 2: This is the child that doesn't react until number 1 or 2, but mostly because they aren't paying any attention. This would be Evie, so wrapped up in her own world that she isn't even aware she's getting in trouble half the time.

Type 3: This is the child that waits until you hit 3 because they are checking to see just how serious you are about whatever behavior you are trying to enforce. And then, once they see that you are indeed serious, they stand up and comply, but with a look that might as well say, "I am going to go take my shoes and put them in the closet... but only because I want to. Not because you told me to."

Go ahead, guess which one of my kids is this type.

Look Ma! No hands!

She was just so darn proud of this accomplishment.

Talk about a fancy hair-do...

and a good sport, thanks Aunt Caite!

Back to School Night

Tonight Brian and I got to go to back to school night for Jacob. The heat in the school was brutal! I don't know how the kids and teachers survive it for hours everyday. I am excited for all the fun and interesting work that Jake will get to do. I am even excited to volunteer to help in his classroom and get to be a part of his school year. We both left with big smiles on our faces because we know that sending him to the Spectrum program was the right decision. For all the agonizing and drama that we dealt with as we made that choice, it's so nice to see that it will be a good fit for Jake. He has a really neat teacher, he is going to do great and most of all he is going to love it!

Feel free to laugh, because I sure am...

All day today I made sure that no one turned on the sink in the kitchen. I barely let anyone in the kitchen, just sure that all it would take for the old pipes to burst and completely flood the laundry room below was one crazy child thundering across the floor or slamming the cupboard door too hard. I kept furtively peeking at my sink, still overflowing with dishes, and wondering what I could fix food-wise that wouldn't use water or dishes. Then this afternoon my father-in-law came over to see if he could tell where the leak was and just how big of a headache the repair would be. The retractable nozzle on my faucet was loose. It took him about 45 seconds to find the problem and screw the faucet back on tight. So in other words, this was the plumbing equivalent of calling a computer support tech because you haven't got your computer plugged in.

When I wasn't busy laughing at myself, I also got a couple of good giggles from talking to Jake on the way home from school.

Jake: Hey Mom, you know how the average human head weighs eight pounds?

Me: Mmm-hmm.

Jake: Yeah. I'm pretty sure mine weighs nine.

Oh bother...

I think Pooh Bear had it right. Some days there is just nothing else to be said. I have just felt crummy all day long. Achy and dizzy, and extremely tired. I spent the day pretty much laying on the couch and letting the children destroy the house. Because, frankly, it was already at the point where you couldn't tell where the old mess left off and the new mess began.

I decided tonight to make the extreme effort to do a batch of laundry, mostly because everyone is out of clean underwear. I came downstairs to the laundry room to find water dripping from the ceiling underneath the kitchen sink where Brian was doing the dishes. I would probably be more upset if we weren't gearing up for all these major projects in the house. Now it's just one more thing to add to the list that seems to get longer by the day. We may be eating off paper plates until it gets sorted though. I would probably also be more upset if I didn't feel too crummy to care. Tomorrow I may be freaking out, but for tonight all I can say is, "Oh bother."

Back to School

Jacob is a 3rd grader!

Yikes, when did that happen?

Evie (who has informed me that she wants to be called Genevieve now, because that is what all of her school things are labeled with) is a Kindergartner!

She was, in true Evie-fashion, excited for everything about going to school. But she was especially excited to finally get to use her backpack!  She got this last year for a birthday present, but her preschool didn't let them use backpacks, so she's been just waiting and waiting...

I sure love this bunch!

You can tell it's the first day when they are excited to do their homework.

I have to include this shot because it just makes me giggle. 

We went to the grocery store after we picked up Jake. Lila was so tired and ornery in the store and she crashed hard on the way home. I didn't realize just how completely relaxed she was until I opened the door to get her out of the car....

It's hard to be the littlest sister...

Poor Lila is feeling pretty left out tonight as we've been hyping up the whole back to school thing. "I go to school tomorrow too, Mom?" I told her no, she is still too little for school. She did not like that response. "I not too littler, I am a bigger girl now!" It's hard to convince this two year that she's not bigger enough when she thinks she is. Tomorrow should be interesting...

Yesterday and today, all rolled into one!

So for all my faithful followers, I'm sure you noticed that I didn't post yesterday. (I'm sorry if I kept you up too late waiting for a post Aunt Donna!) This is what I had planned to post before I simply ran out of time, steam and the willpower to schlep downstairs to get the pictures off my camera:

Friday, August 19th, 11:59 pm:

Here we are getting everything organized for the BIG yard sale tomorrow!

There is a lot of neat stuff that has been donated!

If you can't find a treasure or two in all this...

you are too picky.

(It may be for the best that I was too tired to post last night...)

Saturday, August 20th:

By some miracle all of that turned into this.

Jake wanted to do his part to help his daddy.

Caitlin setting up the bake sale. 

So many people brought so many delicious goodies and we were almost completely sold out half way through the day!

Then there was the yard sale side.

Donations just kept coming in all morning.

I was wondering at one point if we were selling anything because the piles never seemed to get any smaller!

There were simply masses and masses of everything, but especially clothes.

A bird's eye view.

(I don't know who took this picture or from where, but if they climbed a tree or the church building for it then I really don't want to know!)

At the end of the day we were exhausted, but still all smiles...

it isn't everyday that you get to see a visual representation of how much you are loved.

We had amazing success today and wish we could personally thank each and every person who helped make this possible. But some of you insist on going around and doing your good works in secret. :)

Please know that every donation and act of service, from the fifty cents you spent at our son's lemonade stand to the generous checks written, from the bags of goods left on our doorstep to the hours spent toiling alongside us in the hot August sun, every single one of them is recognized, felt and cherished by this family. Not just Brian, myself and our children, but our parents, siblings, and extended family as well. We are humbled and more grateful than we can ever express for each and everyone of you and the way you have blessed our lives. 

Now that we have survived this huge undertaking we are relieved and excited to get the next part of this journey underway. The insurance company approved Brian's wheelchair and he should have it in a couple of weeks. We will be working hard to get things ready for the new arrival and I am sure there will be lots of posts about construction, demolition and crazy ramblings about living through a remodeling project. If you have any great tips to help keep sheet rock dust out of your nose or things of that nature please feel free to leave a comment...

We have much to do...

... and less time to do it in. Mountains and mountains of stuff to sort through, things to organize, projects to finish,   stuff to bake, decisions to make and possibly try to fit a cat nap in there somewhere. And no time for a longer post.

S, T & no.3

Today's post is brought to you by the letters S and T and the number 3.

S is for swearing.

T is for tattling.

3 is for either the number of children I have or the number of serious discussions I've had with them in the past hour, take your pick.

I kept thinking, "I don't have time for this today!" But really I don't have time not to deal with this today either, because now is the time their tender little brains are developing and this is the only chance I get to teach and help them develop their personal moral code. Because I'm going to let you in on a little secret, which I may have mentioned here before. Control is an illusion. As a parent I ultimately have absolutely no control over my children and the choices they make. Especially once they get big enough that I can't pick them up and exert my will by force. So I have to teach them while I can the things I want them to learn, and then pray as hard as I can that they will use what I've taught them when they are out of my care.

Some other thoughts I've had today, "Seriously, you need a therapy licence to be a parent..." and, "I'm going to need therapy after this is all over... or they are." I'm wondering if it would be cheaper in the long run to pay for the therapy or go back to school myself and become a therapist, hmmm...

Why, oh why are these life lessons so hard to learn? And to teach! I always thought as a child that being on the receiving end of one of these lessons was hard and painful and I couldn't wait to grow up enough to have learned them all. (That last bit was sarcasm, just so you know.) Now I'm pretty sure that having to be the one teaching it is even worse. So, sorry Mom and Dad. And thank you for every last one of them, even the one where I didn't get to go to my ballet recital because I didn't come home from my friend's house on time, and I spent the next hour throwing a screaming fit in my bed. I'm finding that being the one responsible for teaching the lessons is even scarier than getting caught in a lie by my dad, and that was not something you wanted to have happen, I promise.

So here you go children (or rather your future selves, because that is hopefully when you'll be reading this...) proof positive that you weren't perfect, and neither was I. We all just muddled along together, trying to do our very best. That I loved you enough to teach you the hard lessons even when it would have been easier on all of us, in the moment, not to.

Definitely needs more practice...

Brian just made Lila cry. Lila was pretending to be the prince and Evie was the princess. Lila wanted to escort Evie somewhere, and Brian decided to try out his lines for when someone comes to "escort" his "princess" in real life (many, many years in the future).

Brian: Prince, are you going to be nice to my princess?
Lila: Yes (then she bowed)
Brian: Prince, are you going to have my princess home by ten?
Lila: Yes (while bowing)
Brian: Prince, will you be a perfect gentleman?
Lila: Yes (and bows again)
Brian: Now Prince, this is the most important thing. No kissing!
Lila: (started to bow, then stopped and quirked an eyebrow at Brian) Yes.
Brian: No. You may not kiss my princess.
Lila: Yes I can. See. I kiss her like this...

She leaned in to kiss her sister and Brian pulled Evie away so Lila couldn't reach her. And then Lila started to cry because her mean daddy wouldn't let her give her sister a kiss. The game quickly ended while Brian gathered Lila up into his lap too for hugs and kisses all around. I just laughed and thought that he is probably going to drive his daughters nuts when they turn 16 and the boys come around. "NO kissing my princesses!"

And on a completely unrelated note the only room in my entire house that does not look like a small hurricane passed through it, is the under the porch storage. Which isn't actually a room, so I don't know if that counts. I'd post pictures, but I'm seriously worried that someone might report me to the board of health or that the people from Hoarders will show up at my front door.

Baby steps...

I could so easily be freaking out right now. School starts in a week. We have this huge, massive, gigantic yard sale on Saturday. And after all that the really hard part begins as we have to start making decisions about the house and find out just how much our lives will be changing. I have a strong suspicion that the next few months will be spent in upheaval.

But I'm not. Right now I am concentrating on knitting the last hat and thinking about how cute they turned out. I am feeling incredibly grateful for my sister weaving in the ends on all the dishcloths, some brothers from our ward for taking out the dead pine trees from our yard and the five people who brought items for the yard sale today. I am feeling blessed by how many kind and generous people there are in this world. I have been contemplating the parable of the widow's mite and understanding that story in a wholly new and deeply personal level.

I am taking deep breaths and not wasting any emotional energy on freaking out. I am just going to take this week one day at a time, and have decided that I'll worry about what comes next when what's next comes up. And if you are talking to me and notice a bit of hyperventilating or that I'm looking a bit glassy and wild-eyed, please remind me to breathe and that not all the decisions have to be made in one day.

So tomorrow I'm going to clean out my kid's clothes and see what they need to be ready for school. See? That's totally manageable...

Happy Birthday Mom

Today is my mom's birthday. She would have been 53. I thought about baking a cake and celebrating with my kids. But I would end up eating too much of the cake and I really don't need that kind of temptation around right now. I think my mom understands that. I spent sometime putting together a pinterest board about her instead. It's a fun way to share my memories of her with my kids.

Bubbles, bubbles everywhere...

My girls were invited to be models for an antique clothing fashion show at church today.

Evie's dress is a replica (I believe) of a dress from the early 1900's.

Lila is wearing a Shirley Temple dress from the 1930's, so of course we had to do the curls!

They were a little nervous when they saw how many people were there, but they both did great and looked adorable.

Later this afternoon we attended my cousin Jen's daughter's 1st birthday party. It was a bubble party and it was so much fun. My kids thought it was great, I know because none of them needed anything from me for almost two hours. They were too busy playing in the water and bubbles!

ignore Evie's drugged eyes, she was concentrating so hard to bring this bubble to show me...

Thanks for inviting us Jen. 

I will probably steal this idea for Evie's birthday next year, that's how neat I thought it was. (I would use it for Lila's, but I'm not sure how to make it work indoors/in the cold of November...)

Another long and busy day...

You know you are tired when you fall asleep on the floor.

You know you're exhausted if this is how far you make it in from the front door before you fall asleep on the floor.

Three weddings and a baby...

That's what we've had on my mom's side of the family so far this summer. I've had three cousins get married and one have her first baby. Today in fact, the same day as another cousin's wedding. It's so exciting to get to participate in all these family events!

See. Doesn't Jake just look so excited?

And Evie can barely contain herself!

And Lila, well Lila is probably wondering what the heck she's doing wearing a church dress when we aren't going to church. Things like this tend to confuse her...

Me, I just keep plugging along and knitting every chance I get to sit still for a few minutes.

I really do love my family. Congratulations to Andrew and Stefani on their wedding and to Cecily and Justin on their new baby! I'm super excited for all of you, Brian just didn't take a picture of my excited face.

But here is another one of Lila still looking slightly confused.

Weird Wednesday

Today I spent 45 minutes locked out of my house, with no phone and no shoes. Apparently I now have to put on shoes and grab both my keys and my phone before I go out to the garage to get something out of the freezer. That or just double check that I've actually unlocked the door handle as well as the dead bolt, just in case all three children follow me out and actually remember to shut the door behind themselves. It was a perfect storm I tell you, because my children NEVER shut the door. I ran to a neighbors to borrow a phone and ended up having to call Brian because his is the only number I actually have memorized. I think we'll have to have a family lesson where we all work on memorizing phone numbers we might need in an emergency. Brian called his mom, who came to the rescue. But the wait wasn't too bad, and instead of pizza we just had otter pops for lunch.

We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting my friend Myra and letting the kids have a play date. (Honestly it was more like a knitting date for the moms, but people look at me funny when I say we're going to a knitting date...) Jake was introduced to the game Risk by Myra's son and really enjoyed it. When I called to him that it was time to go he yelled back up the stairs, "Aw Mom, I was just about to conquer Australia!" I never thought when I signed up for this mothering gig I would ever use the phrase, "I'm sorry dear, you'll have to conquer Australia another day..."

Then it was a mad rush to get Jake back in time for Scouts where he got to go bowling. I asked him how he liked it and he said it was fun except for when he dropped the ball on his foot. But it was okay because he got to wear these really neat cushioned shoes. Yup, and they are fashionable too.

I fell asleep on the couch while the kids were watching a movie downstairs, and apparently I was talking in my sleep. Jake came up to ask if he could make a sandwich for him and the girls, I mumbled something that he took as a yes. Then while he was in the kitchen making some food I suddenly growled and yelled, "You kids are being SO naughty today!" and the poor kid thought he was in trouble! I apologized once I was fully awake and realized that I had freaked him out pretty good. And what good is a nap if you are dreaming about parenting the whole time? Not restful at all...

Too much for a Tuesday...

Today was the last of the summer matinee movies. It was Kung Fu Panda which we own and enjoy watching on a regular basis. I thought the novelty of watching it on the great big movie screen would counteract the familiar story line, but I was wrong. Both of the girls spent the majority of the movie asking if it was time to go home yet. At least Jake seemed to enjoy it. And Lila did do karate-esque dance movies all the way out to the car.

Tonight I went to Zumba. It was a fun and kick-butt work out as always, but I was really missing my little Zumba buddy, Caitlin. And it made me realize that now that she is moving way all the way away to Ogden, I won't get to see her as often. That's just sad.

I came home to a very hungry family who hadn't eaten because they were too busy cleaning mud and blood off the baby and the rest of the house after she either a) got her feet run over by her sister's bike or b) tripped on the abc's that Evie was writing on the sidewalk with chalk. (I never did get a straight answer, but apparently it's Evie's fault.) So we got dinner on the table at 9:30 pm. Mother of the year award, right here.

I had to chase my dinner with three ibuprofen because so far the three workouts I've done have involved the abs, shoulders and thighs. So now I can't sit, stand, laugh, cough, or walk without pain. I would kick myself so hard for ever taking a break from working out, only I can't lift my leg in that direction, let alone that high right now...

Long Monday...

Today was day two back at the gym, and we worked our shoulders and upper arms, so this is going to be a short post because my all my arm muscles are spasm-ing as I try to type this. Plus I worked really hard to not take a nap this afternoon so I would go to bed earlier tonight, so I am almost to tired to make sense.

We went swimming at my dad's and then had a little kinnect party afterwards. The kids seemed to enjoy themselves.

I feel like I've spent most of the day on the phone and the computer answering questions about the fundraiser. (That's not a complaint, I am so excited about the amount of interest people are showing...)

I discovered Pinterest today and spent way too much time playing around and pinning things when I should have been knitting.

Now I am going to go try not to fall asleep while I finish knitting at least one hat and watch at least one tv show with Brian. I'm not making any promises though.

Advertising!

This is a flyer my awesome sister helped me make for the fundraiser we are holding in two weeks. Please feel free to print off a copy, email a link or post about it on facebook! Every little bit helps.

We have already been amazed by how generous people have been to us. There just aren't words enough to express how grateful we are to everyone for all they are doing to help our family. Saying thank you seems so little in return for the kindness that has been shown to us, but it is a sincere and heartfelt "Thank You!" all the same.

My MacGyver Moment...

Today I took the girls to get shaved ice.

I really love shaved ice.

I could live off that stuff when it's hot.

My cup cracked!

No worries...

I used masking tape because I wasn't sure where the duct tape was, otherwise I would have gone for the duct tape just to make my dad proud...

Back on the wagon...

The fitness wagon that is. I sort of ended up taking July off from working out. I didn't plan on it. I planned on getting up and taking long walks in the morning and going swimming every day and walking to the park with my kids and having a few treats but in moderation.... Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans and all that. Anyway, after no early morning walks, sporadic swimming (that was really more floating than anything if I'm going to be totally honest) and the only moderation in what I was eating was a fleetingly realization that I hadn't moderated it at all, I wasn't feeling real great about myself. I kept telling myself that I hadn't undone six months of hard work in only one... and that is true. I maybe undid two of those months. But here's the good part. I came to my senses in time to see what I was doing and how much I was sliding back into my old habits, and so today I started back at the gym. I think I've been battling a touch of depression over all the stress and worry of how we are going to deal with all the changes coming our way. And exercising and releasing all those good endorphins will be a much better way of dealing with that than trying to eat an entire carton of "Death by Chocolate" ice cream in one sitting... (By the by, that is really the name of my new favorite ice cream, and it's soooo goooood!) I figure if nothing else I'll be sleeping better again, out of sheer exhaustion. Those workouts are hard!

What I learned today...

The word shark sounds coolest when said with an Australian accent.

Also, I have renewed my belief that swimming where you can't see the bottom is never a good idea.

(In case you can't tell I spent today doing laundry and watching Shark Week on the Discovery channel.)

The final straw...

Tonight at dinner I was pouring some orange juice and managed somehow to miss my glass and dump it instead all over my shirt, my pants, the table, the chair and the floor.  I stood up, walked into my room, changed out of my now orange clothes and got into the shower. I needed to wash the sticky off as well as indulge in a much needed cry. I hate this part of being a girl, you are going along just fine and then wham! Out of nowhere a burst of hormones and you just have to cry over the spilled milk, or orange juice...

After I got cleaned up I felt a little better, but still kind of fragile. And it didn't take very long for someone to break me down again. I think it was one of the children because they didn't listen and jump to the first time I asked them to do something. Can you imagine?

I sat down to post in a decidedly unhappy mood and was sitting here wracking my brain for a way not to just dump emotional garbage all over my blog, when I came across the lyrics to a song that I love but haven't heard for awhile. I love the message of this song and just listening to it has helped me feel much better. Plus this is a much better post than me listing out and dwelling on every little thing that's gone wrong today.

I hope you enjoy it too!

"Keep on the Sunny Side"

There's a dark and; a troubled side of life
There's a bright, there's a sunny side, too
Tho' we meet with the darkness and strife
The sunny side we also may view

Keep on the sunny side, always on the sunny side,
Keep on the sunny side of life
It will help us ev'ry day, it will brighten all the way
If we'll keep on the sunny side of life

The storm and its fury broke today,
Crushing hopes that we cherish so dear;
Clouds and storms will, in time, pass away
The sun again will shine bright and clear.
Let us greet with the song of hope each day
Tho' the moment be cloudy or fair
Let us trust in our Saviour away
Who keepeth everyone in His care.

The celebration continues...

The birthday fun continued on for Evie today. First off she got dragged out of bed and taken to her 5 year well check. Yes, taking a child who isn't sick to the doctor's is always so much fun. Especially when they get to have shots for no good reason (in their mind). But Evie came through with flying colors, is all immunized up and ready to start kindergarten. Oh! And 20/20 vision, which absolutely made my day. She'd still be adorable in glasses, but already having one child with them has made me not to excited to be keeping track of another set of them. (I have a hard enough time keeping track of my own...)

Then Grandma T. whisked her away for an afternoon of lunch and shopping, which is heaven for my girly girl. She came home with the sparkly-ist, blingy-ist, most colorful shoes you've ever seen in your life! And she loves them.We had a quick dinner and then it was off to the theater to watch "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" with Pa Dave, Caite and Patrick. I was smarter this time and watched the movie before hand with my kids so they knew the story line already and weren't leaning over to ask me a question every thirty seconds.

On the way home I asked Evie if she had had a good day with all the extra birthday treats. She smiled sleepily and nodded. Jake piped up and said, "Yeah, and now she is savoring the aftertaste..."

I guess that is the sign of a birthday well spent. A good aftertaste.

A Tangled Birthday

First present of the day, the requested "birthmark"

She loved it and kept running to check in the mirror if it was still there!

We had a bit of a rocky start this morning when we woke up to rain and gray, cloudy gloominess. Well, that's what Evie woke up to, I woke up to her crying her eyes out. The birthmark helped her feel a bit better, and then her brother decided to cheer her up with some fun activities. 

Pop-bottle sword fights:

Sumo wrestling:

And a good old-fashioned pillow fight:

A little later Aunt Caitlin showed up to help whip up a little birthday magic.

(Evie reminded me this morning that she had requested a Tangled birthday, which I had completely forgotten. I called Caite in a panic for some ideas and she came through in a big way! No way today would have happened with out her.)

A braid garland decorated with most of our flower hair bows.

Another garland from the movie, made out of construction paper and scraps of lining fabrics.

Rapunzel's Tower Cake. 

Again, all Caitlin. 

She is amazing...

A minor mishap, we had to hurry and do a little structural repair with extra bamboo skewers.

Obviously they still tasted delicious.

Here is Evie blowing out her candles.

She got some great presents and loves them all.

Can you tell this one is from her brother? 

(She actually did ask for her own Hot Wheels. She asked for pink, but for some reason they don't make a whole lot of pink Hot Wheels... go figure.)

She also got several new shirts, a Fancy Nancy puzzle, a doll and the doll bed. Of course we saved the very best for last...

Best. Birthday. Ever!

5 things that I love about Evie right now:

1. Her expressions. 

Her face is never still and she can pull some of the funniest faces, especially if something grosses her out. Makes me laugh every time.

2. She is brave.

She is working so hard at overcoming the fears and shyness that set in last fall. I am so proud of how she talks through what is worrying her and then faces it head on.

3. Her imagination.

She can play dress ups and make believe for hours on end and loves to act out all kinds of stories, especially scenes from Tangled.

4. She is a good big sister. (Most of the time)

Where ever Evie is, that's where you'll find Lila. Tagging along and playing whatever game Evie has dreamed up. I'm constantly thinking that one of them is calling to me, only to go see what they need and find out that they are playing and really talking to each other. I also often hear cries of, "Eugene! Eugene! Don't leave me!" 

5. She is such an artist.

I love to watch her color and draw. She will spend such a long time selecting the perfect shade and working so hard to stay in the lines. And she just enjoys it so much it is a delight to see.

I am so excited to see what this next year will bring for Evie with such big milestones as starting school and venturing further out into the world. She is so enthusiastic about new experiences I think it will be fun to watch.

Happy Birthday, beautiful girl!

I sure do love you.