Our New Family

Gavin has been so much fun to welcome into our family. The kids are in love with him, they love to hold him, burp him, and get him dressed. Nathan even thinks Gavin is great, which is better then I hoped for. He was quite mad at me, but never at the baby. Here are some of the hopsital photos of welcoming Gavin to the family.

Gavin James

Gavin is here! He was born at 11:23am weighing 7 pounds 7 ounces and is 20 inches long. He is a beautiful baby and very content. Pictures will follow.

I was supposed to be induced on Thursday morning but got a phone call from the hospital at around 4am saying they were too full and probably would not be able to get me in that day. I was so disappointed and could not get back to sleep. Well, around 6:30 I started having contraction that really hurt. They started about 8 minutes apart. They quickly got closer and closer until they were hitting every 4 minutes. They were very painful, but I was hesitant to go to the hospital because they had me scheduled for an induction that couldn't happen and would probably think I was making up the contraction story in hopes to be admitted. I decided to go ahead and go in. Evan had they day off from work and with the call from the hospital, he had hopes of a restful day. I had to coax him out of the bathtub and let him know I would be much more comfortable at the hospital. It was probably nothing, but could we please go soon anyway. He reluctantly got out of his nice warm bath, got dressed and came downstairs and jumped on the computer. My dad had come into town the night before to help with the kids while I was at the hospital. I debated asking my dad to take me since Evan was in no rush. I finally convinced Evan we needed to go NOW and so we went.

I got to the nurses station and you could see the look on their faces as I waddled to the counter. They were busy and here comes another mom that they had no bed to put her in. I told them I was scheduled for an induction but I thought I might be in labor on my own. They nicely smiled at me and asked my name, which baby number this was for me. I told them baby 6 and they got a more serious look on their faces. When I told them the contractions were 4 minutes apart they gave me a little more credibility. And then I had a pretty good contraction right in front of them. They immediately brought out the wheel chair, took me to triage, and admitted me. I was so excited to still be able to have my baby, not to have to be induced, and to get around the cancellation of the induction.

I must say this was my best labor. I had a good friend from church who was a fantastic nurse. I also had a great midwife help deliver. The bad contractions and stuff was really only bad for about 20 minutes. And it was a pretty intense 20 minutes. Gavin came out with two surprise pushes and I have enjoyed watching him ever since. He is so sweet, so beautiful, and I am in love.

Today is the Day

Today is the day I get to open my present, my long awaited gift. I have been looking forward to this day for 9 months now. And it is finally here! More details to follow!

Delayed

I guess my post from yesterday was a little premature. The hospital called this morning and said they were too full for me to come in today. Who knows when I'll have this baby. I had my mind set on today for almost two weeks. And I didn't sleep a wink last night excited with anticipation. Today is going to be a really long day.

Full Term

I'm sure you are done hearing about this 9 month pregnancy. I know I am done feeling this 9 month pregnancy. This is the most pregnant I have ever been. I never thought I would make it this far, I figured I would have had this baby over a week ago. But here I am as big as I have ever been, as pregnant as I have ever been, and as happy as I have ever been that this day may very well be the last day of pregnancy.Here I am 9 months pregnant. I don't think this picture gives me justice as to just how big I am. I have had so many comments like, "are you sure there aren't twins in there?" to "man, you've got have some serious stretch marks!" None of the comments bothered me, I quite agreed with their assessment. I have been fortunate in the stretch mark area, I have one very small one. I should have a million. And as I think about this being the last day of being pregnant, I get a little smile. I don't think I will miss the compression hose. I don't think I will miss the heart burn. Probably won't miss the fatigue, although I will still be tired with a newborn, just in an entirely different way. Definitely won't miss throwing up and too many lazy days on the couch. And I know I won't miss not being able to bend over to pick something up off the floor.

I think the only part that I will miss is feeling life inside me. I love to feel the baby move, even if the kicks wake me up several times in the middle of the night. Even if the movement makes me sprint to the bathroom. I feel very fortunate to have this baby part of me.

But what is even more exciting is when I deliver. When I get to meet this newest member of my family, to see those wide open eyes looking around as he comes into this world. There is nothing that can top the delivery of a baby. And I love that Evan can experience this with me. I am humbled that I am so fortunate to be blessed with amazing children who I love so dearly, and to be blessed with so many. 14 years ago when I married the man of my dreams, I never imagined that he would be the father to all 6 of my children, that we would even have close to that many. We hoped for a few, but never dreamed we would be able to have so many. Our first baby took four years to come to us. The doctors told us we would never be able to have children. I'm so glad they were wrong. And although I am not any good at being pregnant, I know that I have been blessed. I am grateful. And I am excited that today is the last day of my pregnancy.

Privacy

I'm not talking about the loss of privacy when you are having a baby. I'm not talking about private conversations. I'm talking about good 'ol fashioned privacy in the shower. It has been 10 years! And this morning, as I am showering with my gynormous belly, my little 4-yr-old boy who has an amazing memory, stands at the glass shower door with his scriptures in hand and wants me to tell him the story behind the picture he is holding up. I know we are supposed to seize the moments when such learning opportunities are on us, but it was 6:45am, I couldn't hardly understand his specific questions over the hum of the shower, I was completely void of all privacy (and I know Spencer will remember what he saw), I was tired and I just wanted to take a shower by myself, and I had an early doctor's appointment making this shower imperitave! Is five minutes too much to ask? I little privacy? Just while I am showering? Do I really need to seize the teaching opportunity while I am showering? Well, I asked for privacy from him I think a good ten times but to no avail. Usually he will give it to me, but not this morning. And then Danielle joins me in the bathroom. Ahhhhhhhhhhh! Followed by Camie. And then Taneal, who screams and immediately leaves. Nathan was still sleeping or he not only would have been watching me in the shower, but would have joined me in the shower. And in a few short days I will have another beautiful child to add to the mix. It will be at least another five years before I can shower privately. And usually I don't mind, but this morning was one of those mornings, that I wanted to keep the sight of my huge belly to myself and not have that image ingrained on my little boy's mind for the rest of his life. Good times!

Primary Presentation

Sunday was the children's presentation to the congregation at church. And I must say, it was the best presentation ever, almost completely flawless. The children sang beautifully and from their heart, they spoke their parts clearly, and the spirit was so strong. We even ended on time.

Let me back up a little. Last December I was part of the Primary Presidency of a very large ward that was bursting at the seams and needing split. But, I still had the drive of gettiing things done. I was asked to put together a calendar for the upcoming year. One of the items was the scheduling of this children's presentation. It is supposed to be done in the last quarter of the year. I looked and looked at the calendar and just could not get it to work. General Conference the first Sunday in October, Stake Conference the 3rd Sunday in October. Halloween the last Sunday in October. Then Thanksgiving and Christmas. I went ahead and scheduled it for Spetmeber 12th because I felt that was a great day and it fit. Well, then the ward split the first week of January. There went all those plans. And then I was called back into the Primary. So, I pulled out my already done calendar, dusted it off, and it still felt like a great calendar that should be followed. A few weeks later I found out I was expecting. Yah, the due date of Spetember 21, 9 days after the program. That meant I would be having the program and would deliver a baby the following week. Then, in July I lost both of my counselors. I had just finished writing the program because I had this nagging feeling that it needed to be done by June 30th. I was so glad that I had. Fortunately I got two absolutely wonderful counselors who stepped right in and helped so much and took over many of the responsibilities. I was sure that I would not be able to be at the program because I would be home with a new baby. And Sunday I took a seat and enjoyed the program, wanting to hug each child as they performed perfectly.

And what was even better to this whole story is who was in attandance at the program. We had a special sharing time the week before and gave the children each two invitations to hand out to teachers, friends, and neighbors. We roll-played and really talked about how we should invite others to share what we have been doing in Primary. I think many of the invitations were handed out because of the sheer number of people in attendance. We had school teachers there, school staff, so many neighbors, and friends that had not been to church in years. And the spirit was so strong in the meeting. Those children taught the gospel to us through their words and through song and we were spiritually fed.

I love that Heavenly Father has poured His blessing upon the children of the ward. I love that I have been able to be an instrument in His hands. And I loved watching the program on Sunday and knowing that there was no way, with all the complications of me feeling so sick for so long, getting a new presidency, having the program earlier in the year, etc., that any of this could have happened without direct intervention from the Lord. He is real. He is very active in our lives. And he blesses us. Miracles do happen. And he loves me enough to have given me the opportunity to be there and watch all this come to pass.

As I reread this post, I wish I had a better ability to write. I know what I want to say, I just don't know how to say it. Please look past my inability to write.

No Clothes

Why does this little boy refuse to wear clothes? As soon as I get him dressed in the morning, he rips the clothes right off. It doesn't matter how many time I get him dressed, he is almost immediately naked again. He will keep his diaper on, thankfully. There is one exception to the no clothes, and that is his scooby Doo pajamas. He LOVES them. When I am folding laundry, and he sees the pajamas, he grabs them and in a very excited voice lets me know he wants them on right now.


I remember before I had children and I would go to someones house and they would come to the door and a little toddler would also come and wrap their arms around their mom's legs. And they would only be in a diaper! I remember thinking why couldn't that mom take 1 minute and get that toddler dressed? And if the child wouldn't keep the clothes on, well, give them a good spanking and let them know what was what. I was never going to let my kids run around in just their diaper.

Obviously I didn't have children when I thought those thoughts. Now that I am a parent, I really do like to have my children dressed. I do get them dressed every day. And I try to keep them dressed throughout the day. But spanking them? Absolutely not. I can't believe I used to think that was the solution to all children problems. Children always make you eat your words (and thoughts). At least that is the case with me. So I guess I should be grateful, once again, for children like Nathan who humble me and make me eat my words while he prances around the house in his little Tarzan diaper.

Back in School

Taneal asked me yesterday if she could stay home from school today. She had been studying for a science test and there was a lot of new information to learn. The teacher said it should be review. Taneal was feeling quite overwhelmed. I asked her if the reason she wanted to stay home was because she wanted to get out of taking the test. She told me it was not the reason, okay maybe a little part of the reason. I told her I would not let her stay home to get out of taking a test. She was to the begging point. She told me if I let her stay home she would clean the entire house for me. This was getting a little tempting. But, I stood my ground and sent a very emotional Taneal off to school today. I helped her study for the test, she will do fine. She didn't think so. Oh, how I love that girl!

Camie's Sewing Project

I think Camie is the most like me of all my children. She loves crafts. I think she has a natural gift for it, she really is good (I just have the desire to be good, not the natural talent). This summer she decided she wanted to sew some clothes for her 18 inch doll. Of course I knew what that entailed and that meant a lot of work for me to which I wasn't feeling at all up to it. So, I gave her things to do if she wanted to sew, like finding the patterns for the doll and making sure all the pieces had been put away properly. She found the patterns but all the pieces had not been put away properly. So then I told her that if Hobby Lobby was having a sale on patterns, we would immediately go and let her choose out a few. Of course I knew Hobby Lobby doesn't have sales on their patterns very often, so we would not be going. I jumped online to show her that there was not a sale . . . and guess what? Pattens were on sale for $.99. I was stuck. We loaded all the kids up in the car and headed to Hobby Lobby for patterns. It actually made me laugh because here I was trying to get out of sewing lessons and I guess it was meant to be because Hobby Lobby seriously never has pattern sales but maybe twice a year.

Camie picked out several patterns. When we got home I quickly explained how to know which pattern pieces were needed for which outfit. Camie understood and was able to find and cut out the pieces. She then selected the fabric and cut out the pieces on the fabric. I was amazed. That girl has talent! I then got out the sewing machine and Camie did all the sewing. I helped her match up pieces and pin them, but she did all the sewing, and she did really well. When she finished the shrug for the doll, it was too tight around one arm because she messed up a little on the sewing. So, she picked it out and resewed it and and it fixed the problem. I am just amazed at Camie's ability. She made a shirt where she learned how to gather. She made a pair of jeans, and a shrug. And she did a great job and really enjoyed doing it. Way to go, Camie!

My new toy

Is it okay to tell you about something new I got? Something I am so giddy about? Something I have dreamed about getting for years and have just resisted? Something that can take an exhausted pregnancy day that began with tears and frustration and then be suddenly 180 turned around by a UPS delivery? I know when my friends get cool new toys, they keep it to themselves. Maybe I should, BUT I AM SO EXCITED I WANT TO SHOUT IT FROM THE ROOFTOPS!

I got a digital SLR camera.

Do you know what this means? It means I can take very cool pictures. I love to take pictures but get so frustrated at the lag time, the time from when I push the take picture button until the time the camera actually takes the picture. I have missed so many good pictures because of this. So many of my pictures are blurred. And now, those problems are a thing of the past. Now I can get really good pictures, I can even take my kids pictures that can be hung up on the wall. I know a little bit about photo editing software, so I can play around there, too. I started taking some pictures as soon as the battery was charged, and I am so pleased with the beginning results. And I will practice, learn, practice some more, and get really good. I am so excited. I can even take good swim team pictures now. And all those holiday pictures will now be good. Oh, and birthday pictures, too. Yes, the roller skating pictures as well. The posibilities are endless. Can you tell I am excited?

Pregnant and Floating

Today we went swimming. I didn't want to go because I look like a beached whale. I am out growing my maternity clothes. I have 3 weeks or less left. I am tired. My bones ache. The baby kicks hard enough to wake me at night. It LOVES my bladder. I love feeling the baby move inside me, I am excited to greet this little one into my family. But right now I am too tired to do just about anything. Swimming included. Nathan is a crazy, fearless boy at the pool and fast. Evan offered to take all the kiddos swimming and I felt I had to go if Nathan went, Evan isn't used to chasing that little boy at the pool and I feared for the safety of that little guy. So I went. As long as Nathan was in Evan's arms, I felt he was safe. After 20 minutes or so Evan got used to Nathan's sporadic movements and was watching him just fine. So, I decided to float. I was curious how it would feel. Ahhhh! It was so nice. The pressure off my legs. The weight off my back. Floating and feeling free. It was nice. I wondered if I might accidentally fall asleep.

And then we came home. Taneal informed me I looked weird floating. She said she expected to see a little bit of my belly sticking out of the water, but not a HUGE belly that looked like a basketball. She said my belly was the only thing sticking out of the water. I guess I looked quite the sight. But I don't care. The pregnant and floating feeling was wonderful. I want to go and do it again.

*Don't worry, this isn't a picture of me. I still sport full swimming suit coverage.

Is It Soon?

I think I might be nesting. I don't think I have nested before. Most of my projects are done. My shopping lists are complete. I have the car seat cleaned. All the clothes are washed and folded and put in their drawers. I filled the diaper baskets with newborn diapers last night. I bought me new pajamas yesterday. I finally broke down and bought bassinet sheets so I wouldn't have to tuck a blanket around the mattress. I figured I didn't really need to buy anything else for the baby, I could at least get one thing. I also got some of my favorite newborn socks that actually stay on. I have made several meals and put them in the freezer. I made them so that Taneal could take them out of the freezer, put rice in the rice cooker and add a vegetable, all without my help. I cleaned out all the closets, organized all the drawers. Of course nothing stays done in my house for very long with 7 people living here. I even dusted the ceiling fans. All the laundry is folded and put away. Last night I packed my hospital bag. Today on my list is to clean the bathrooms and get the house vacuumed just in case the baby decides to come in the next few days. I think I would wait if I wasn't so pregnant. I am really tired, so tired that I find myself emotional because I just don't have enough energy to do anything. But I wade through the emotions and lack of energy and still get things done, because what if the baby decided to come tonight. I need to be ready. I think it's called nesting. Maybe that means the baby will come soon.

Way too pregnant

Today I was sitting at the computer desk working on a project. Spencer came over to me and asked me to get the markers down for him that were on a shelf he couldn't quite reach. I leaned to reach them and lost my balance in the chair and the chair fell over on it's side with me in it. I am so very pregnant and tried to stop the fall but couldn't. I laid on the floor for a few seconds to see if I was okay or if I had managed to make myself go into labor.  My poor little Spencer, my 4-year-old was staring at me. He asked me if I was okay and I told him I was fine. He then said, "okay, 'cause you really freaked me out there!" 

First Day of School

If you've been reading my blog lately, you know my opinion of sending my kiddos back to school. But, I'm not confident enough that I could offer my children everything they get at school. I couldn't offer them the drugs, the girl drama, etc. Of course I don't want them offered that, I'm kidding. What I don't think I could offer them is the social stuff they get there, being forced to get a long with kids who aren't exactly friendly, and most of all, learning to choose the right. Maybe I could. If I felt like I was supposed to home school, I would in a heart beat. But right now is not the time, so I send my kids to school. I feel like I am feeding them to the wolves, but I pray while they are gone and I know I am doing what I am supposed to. 

It's okay to go off on tangents right? This is my blog and I can say and do whatever I want, right? I need a little empowerment right now because I have absolutely no control of anything and at least I can have control over something by having a blog.

We have been practicing getting up at 6:30am for about 2 weeks. It has been tough and I haven't been able to do it. Once school started, I decided we really needed to step up the pace and do what we are supposed to be doing, like morning family prayer, family scripture study (which I am least tired in the morning so more likely to happen), and morning structure. So we did this. As I was serving up the kids their requested scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, and orange juice to give them the energy they need to last them until lunch, Camie sat down on the bench in the dining room and started crying. I had done her hair, she was all ready to go. I asked her what the problem was, and she told me she was sick and too sick to go to school. Seriously? This is the first day of school and no child wants to miss that day. I figured if she had a temperature, she could definitely stay home, but of course that would not happen. I sure am eating a lot of my words lately. Sure enough, her temp registered 100.1, enough to stay home. She was so sad that she was going to miss the first day. I went ahead and took pictures of all the kiddos, took them to school, and kept Camie home.

Danielle was excited but bugged that she had to have to get up so early. Danielle feels what is in the moment.  After school I asked her how her day was, and she told me it was horrible because the wind was blowing in her face. I asked if the wind had been blowing during recess, and she said that it had not, just while they were walking to the car for me to pick them up. She is so in the moment. She had a great day other then the windy 2 minutes to the car.

Taneal really had a great first day. Her best friend is in her class, her teachers are great, and Josh, one of our good family friends is in the class with her.

Camie stayed home and got sicker and sicker. Her temperature finally peeked at 102 and she cried herself to sleep, which my kiddos NEVER do when they are sick. I took her to the doctor the next day and she tested positive for strep throat. She was one sick little girl until the antibiotics kicked in and she is back to her normal self. She got to miss THREE days of school before she even got to go!

Nathan turns 2!

My baby turned 2! He is not such a baby anymore, although he claims to be. He is one of those rough and tough, stubborn and dependant all at the same time kind of boys.

I made him a Lightening McQueen birthday cake, because I bought the pan when Spencer turned 2. A few days before his birthday, I turned on the movie several time so that he would know who Lightening McQueen was and actually recognize his birthday cake. And it worked. He was pretty excited.

He was so cute with his cake. We lit the 2 candles and then told him to blow them out. So he started to blow - through his nose! He only knows how to blow his nose. After a minute or so of trying to show him to blow through his mouth, he was easily able to blow out the candles. SO CUTE! Then he wanted to taste the cake. I know this isn't' his first birthday, but we let him take a bite right out of the uncut cake. He went right for the black frosting and thought it was so cool that we were actually letting him eat out of the big cake.

Then we had him open his presents. He loves to hook things up to the hook on the back of Mater, a shake-and-go car that Spencer got for his 2nd birthday. So when I saw a bigger tow truck at Costco, I figured it would be a hit. Nathan was pretty excited. I also got him a Buzz from Toy Story 3 and Nathan knew who it was! We did go see the movie at the beginning of the summer, but I didn't think Nathan would remember who it was. Buzz was a hit, too.

And now my wild little boy is 2 and as lovable as ever. He makes me smile, leaves me with bruises, and is so entertaining to watch and play with. He has gone back the his original toys, the Mater with the hook that he uses to attach everything to. And Spencer has had so much fun with Nathan's new presents. It all works out. Happy Birthday, Nathan!

And just a little side comment about the Scooby Doo pajamas. Nathan has a hard time with clothes lately. He pretty much refuses to wear them and takes them off within minutes of me getting him dressed. He is always willing to wear these Scooby Doo pajamas, so I figured it better to have him in pajamas then no clothes at all.

Shopping with 5

Every time I go to the store with all five of my children, I realize why I have a pantry that I like to keep stocked. And when I start to run low in things like milk and produce, I try to rationalize how maybe we really don't need those items. We can survive without them, right? Spencer's love of his life is milk. He can drink milk with so much emotion, so much passion. If he treats his wife half as good as he treats his milk, they will be happy. Going without milk in the house is tough.

My children are still not old enough to leave home by themselves. I have contemplated this many times and actually done it a few, but I try not to. And then I drag them all to the store. They all behave themselves. Individually they are great. But walking down the isle with 6 people in a state other then Utah, is quite the scene.

First we are very wide. As we pass people, my children don't realize, regardless of how many times I have told them, that they need to get in single file behind me so we don't take up the whole isle.

Second we must look out-of-place. I get so many dirty looks, comments about how all those children couldn't possibly be mine, and an occasional smile. Mostly just a dropped jaw as people are counting, a comment about the use of birth control. I really think it is funny.

After about 10 minutes the cart is full and we head for the checkout. I can do some serously quick shopping because I choose times when the store is least crowded. And I won't go at night when Evan is home becuase I am too scared. Too many muggings, murders, and kidnappings for my peace of mind. Evan agrees with me, but probably just so he won't have to stay home and take care of the kids.

Shopping with 5 has it's limitations, but it saves on the pocketbook because I don't go nearly as often. I have started making more homemade foods just to avoid frequent trips to the grocery store. And I have started more internet shopping.

As the kids go back to school, the shopping will get easier, but then I will throw a newborn into the mix and make it exciting again. Fun times.

Under Construction

I am having a lot of fun redesigning my blog which has got me doing a lot of thinking. I think I am going to go private. Not because everyone else is doing it. Not because I am starting to feel reclusive as I am about the size of a beached whale and more then ready to deliver and tired of the comments, "you're still here! I thought you would have had that baby by now!" I don't know who is reading my blog. I don't say last names or locations, but I think if you wanted to know hard enough, you could probably figure it out.

I have been exploring digital scrapbooking and blogging for the last three years and I finally discovered a solution to this whole private thing. I will keep my regular blog, will update it with titles only of all my new posts that will be on my private blog. I will also have a link from this blog to the private blog so that not much work needs to be done on your part. You will still see in your news feed any time I have a new post, and if you forget to change my actual blog address, you can click on the link. I will also have a "want to be invited to my private blog" link so it is easy to ask to be invited.

So please bear with me as I make this transition. My blog is a mess, totally looks under construction. It will clean up as soon as I find the time, which is only bits and pieces here and there. My upcoming activity, such as the Primary Program, PTO Treasurer, having my 6th baby, will take precedence. But blogging is my outlet and also my family's history, and I want to share and record all the happenings in my family that will eventually make it into a book. You'll know when I get my private blog set up and it should be easy to ask for permission. I've learned how to create my own buttons, background, etc. Now I just have to figure how to make it look pretty, not so busy. It will come. But for now, I am under construction and enjoying the learning curve.

TV Time

Back in March I decided we no longer needed to have cable because, quite frankly, we were watching tv too much. I am not a tv kind of girl, so this wasn't a problem with me, I didn't do any tv watching except for American Idol, which wasn't really that good this season anyway. The problem was my husband and children. I view tv as a way to completely waste time. So much more can be accomplished without tv and there is so much to be done, so why waste away the time where we could be accomplishing so much more. So I cancelled our cable subscription (which we had only had for 1 year and the introductory price expired). It was an adjustment. I had used the tv to entertain my little ones as I was going through pregnancy. Now I had to step up, or at least get up, and pay attention to them. That's not a bad thing, either. My older kids took about a month to adjust and then movies were sufficient. Evan still has not adjusted and has figured out Hulu and other Internet based tv sites. But his view on tv is not the same as mine. He thinks reading a book and watching tv are about the same thing - both forms of entertainment. Of course he doesn't read like I do and I don't watch tv like he does, so we agree that we have a difference of opinion.

As summer started, I had to come up with a plan. Although we didn't have tv, we do have movies. And I didn't want my kids to waste away their summer sitting in front of the tv. So I came up with a plan:

If their room was cleaned with their bed made, each day they got an automatic 60 minutes tv time. Anything else had to be earned, minute for minute reading for tv. And, reading the scriptures got them 2 minutes for each 1 minute read.

And you know what? It worked! Taneal read the entire Fablehaven series this summer along with several other books. Camie read so many of the Warrior books that she is begging me to buy her more. I have always paid my kids $.01/page to read. When my kids were coming to me almost daily saying I owed them $3 or something like that, I just grinned. And when we totalled up tv time earned, as shown in the picture, and they had earned well over 17 hours, I was again a very happy mom. They were using some of their tv time, but spending much of their time reading.

I may not have had a lot of successes in parenting over the last 9 month because I have felt so lousy, but this tv time thing this summer made me feel so good. I love to see my children engaged in a good book. And when I see my children sitting in front of a tv, usually guilt creeps through me. But this time there was not guilt because their rooms were cleaned, they had read their scriptures, and they had earned the privilege to be sitting there.

And other things changed. The fighting drastically decreased. Their imaginations opened up and they relearned how to play. They started playing with each other again. They spent hours after hours playing with the doll houses, building with legos, playing games, and playing dress-ups. A lot of the normal complaining about helping out around the house went away. They didn't get bored. And we played this summer. Camie told me the other day, "Mom, this has been the best summer ever!"

I think we will have to continue with earning tv time next summer.

HELP

I have totally messed up my blog and don't know how to fix it. How do you get rid of this white/cream screen so you can see the Cutest Blog On The Block behind it?

So Happy Together

I'm not so sure about this going back to school thing. Everyone around me is so excited for school to start, they can't wait for their kids to go back. I just can't figure it out. I have had so much fun with my children being home this summer. I really don't want them to go back. I think I am a little selfish. When my kids are home, we have fun. We get to go play at the pool, go roller skating, work on projects together, and I get to sit back and really enjoy having a house full of children who are happily playing together. They do have their moments of disagreements, and when they do, my house gets cleaner because they penalty for fighting is extra jobs. On days where my body is screaming at me because of pregnancy anemic induced fatigue, I can ask Taneal to keep an eye on the little boys and go take a nap.

I also have help keeping my house functioning. Taneal's summer job has been the tile floor downstairs. She is incharge of keeping it picked up and swept. I tried to have the mopping as part of her job, but decided I would still do that job after her first attempt that took 2 hours to dry. Camie's job has been the downstairs carpeted areas, vacuuming included, and also all the trashes. Danielle's job has been the dishwasher and tidying up all the bathrooms daily. Not cleaning any of the bathrooms, just making sure the clothes were picked up and the toothbrushes were put away, etc. Spencer's job has been the table, setting and clearing. He has had the hardest time. I wish I could have got a picture of him wiping the table. He would climb up on top of the table to wipe it. He probably didn't improve the cleanliness of the table, but he was putting forth effort and doing a great job. Nathan still does not have a job other then putting his own diaper in the trash.

Who wouldn't love help like that? I know the house gets messier because they are all home, but they all help out to clean up. They are great children and are so easily pleased. Camie has really learned to bake and Taneal has done a fantastic job learning to cook. We have done so many little activities and really enjoyed each other.

And now school is starting. I have to send my 3 big girls back. I was secretly hoping they would get terrible teachers so that I would have to pull them out and home school them. But that didn't work out. They all got great teachers with wonderful kids in the classes with them. And the baby is coming soon, so it will be nice for the girls to be engaged in something while I adjust to have another little one. It is all good. But I still scratch my head and wonder why everyone is so excited to send their kids back to school. Maybe it is because I will still have three kids at home even with my older ones gone so it won't be much of a break? Maybe it is because I am still in a different stage of life and loving it.

Clean Carpets

I love clean floors. The most difficult part about having a baby is I can't sweep, mop, or vacuum my floors for 6 weeks.

I often cheat.

Under normal circumstances, I mop my floors several times a week and sweep at least twice a day. My carpets are vacuumed almost daily. I don't mind so much going to bed with dirty dishes, but the floors need to be clean. If you show up at my house you would find toys that have been played with, often scattered throughout. That doesn't bother me. What gets to me is walking across the tile floor and feeling grit. Wearing a pair of white socks all day and at the end of the day having them not so white on the bottom. I can't stand that. I grew up with a house full of tile and 5 brother and 2 sisters, 10 in all the family. It was near impossible to keep the grit off the floor. We lived on acreage out in the county with cows and pigs and horses and a gravel driveway. Dogs were an always and cats a must. Not inside animals, usually. But with all that working against a clean floor, it was, well, never clean. Okay, maybe for 10 minutes.

And here I am living on a small lot with lots of neighbors and cement streets, grass in the yard, and a lot of rain to wash everything clean, so I can have my clean floors. I do have 5 kids and a husband working against me, but I do my best.

Of course, carpets get dirty no matter how hard you try. I spot clean all the time, and they stay looking somewhat clean, but I know that deep down they really aren't clean. In the beginning of my family when I only had a few children, this was fine. But as my children have multiplied, so has the dirt in my carpet. About a year ago I had had enough and called a professional steam cleaner come out to the house and he parted an hour later with $300. And that didn't clean all the carpeted rooms. A bit frustrating when three months later I felt he needed to come again.

My solution? I went to Costco and bought me my very own carpet cleaner. It's in my house at all times, I can use it whenever I want, and it works really well. My carpets come clean, I hardly have to use any soap, they dry within a few hours, and I can then roll around on the floor and not feel like I need to shower. Happiness!

But then I got pregnant within a few weeks after my purchase of the new cleaner. The vomiting and fatigue hit hard. I laid on the couch for 4 months and didn't do much. At about 20 weeks I mustered up enough energy to pull that blessed machine out of the closet and sure enough, clean carpets. And then yesterday a friend stopped by and I was humiliated by the spots on my carpet. That fatigue just has not left me, even diagnosed anemic, so the tiredness is legitimate. But enough is enough and I could not stand to look at those spots another day. I pulled out the spray bottle and wash rag to start despotting my carpet, put it right back down and walked to the closet where I pulled out my friend, the carpet cleaner. And we spent the next hour scrubbing my living room carpet. And it looks beautiful. I love being able to clean them whenever I want. The baby is coming soon, but with the cleaning I did today, I should be able to wait 6 weeks postpartum before they need cleaned again. The vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping will still be a problem, but I will survive. Last baby I knew the reason I could not mop was because of the motion. So, I got on my hands and knees and mopped, thus bypassing the harmful motion. Right?

Just wanted to share my gratitude for something as simple as a carpet cleaner that brings so much peace into my life. I even caught myself laying on the couch while all the kids were upstairs watching a movie so the house was quiet, and grinning as I looked at my new clean carpet. Silly, I know. But, this is my life. And I love it.

Primary Happenings

When our ward split I was called to be Primary President. Why they called me, I don't know, there are so many other people a lot more qualified and a better people person then me. They insisted I was the one, so I told them I would be willing to do it, just know I would give it my best but that may not be good enough. They were welcome to replace me at any time. No hard feelings.

I prayed and prayed over my counselors. I immediately came up with the secretary and one of the counselors. The other counselor was tricky. I looked and looked over who it should be and I couldn't figure it out. Her name was not on any list I had. I told the Bishop this and he sent me a more complete list. And there she was. I didn't know her, never met her before, didn't know what she looked like, nothing. But I knew she was one of my counselors. They all accepted the assignment to work with me. I don't think they realized what they were getting into, but I was grateful for that because I knew they were who the Lord wanted to serve in the Primary.

And they were amazing. The gal who I didn't know before hand turned out to have a masters in child psychology. Her dad was a pediatrician. She was also expecting her first baby. She was willing to do whatever needed to be done. She was wonderful. And my other counselor was just as willing, always asking what else she could do. And my secretary has been great, on the ball, doing her best to keep up with an ever changing Primary. It isn't easy work and she never complains.

My first counselor had her baby in June. The first week of July my other counselors told me she was moving out-of-state. Oh, no! I was just entering my 3rd trimester! Please don't leave me now! And then a few days later I got a call from the counselor that had just had a baby that she was moving away, to the other side of the state. Both my counselors gone within a week of each other, my baby only two and a half months away. And my chorister was gone for the entire summer. When I found out, I cried a little and went to bed. It was more then I could handle.

And then over the next few days I had the same experience as I had when I was first called as the President. I knew immediately who my 1st counselor was supposed to be. I couldn't figure out the 2nd counselor. I prayed and pondered and then prayed some more. And finally it came to me. My 2nd counselor was supposed to be a gal who had just moved in, who I had not met before. Huh? Thank goodness I still had my secretary. I submitted the names to the Bishop, they were approved, called, and they are wonderful! I couldn't ask for better counselors. They are so willing to help in any way, ready to jump right in and work, and are even doing little extra things that make such a big difference. They have lightened my load and I feel so confident, even only a few weeks later, that if I needed to miss church because of the baby, everything would be just fine. And we even have the Primary Sacrament Meeting Presentation next month. They are so on the ball and everything is going great.

It goes to show me that we do have a Father in Heaven who is very aware of our needs. He knew I needed to begin with the counselors I had. And then he knew what was best for them, yet he didn't leave me all on my own to run this wonderful Primary. I was inspired both times and am so grateful for that, knowing that I am doing the will of the Father. He has strengthened me in my inadequacies, let me love the children in ways I didn't know possible, and allowed the spirit in the Primary to teach and testify of the truthfulness of things to the sweet children. When I rely on myself, I don't get such good results. When I rely on the Lord, everything works out perfect.