A Frictionless Surface

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night (with more than 2 consecutive hours of sleep please)

2012-01-19T19:47:00.000-08:00

Since I'm not really sure how to make a collage and it's now a month (plus or minus, depending on the pic) after the fact...you get a nice long line of pictures. Oh the memories!!!

Cambree's Christmas dance. This was the first public place I ventured with Baby Luke (aside from the Doc but that doesn't count since Grandma was there too.) I think he was maybe 2 weeks old. I was nervous and paranoid as all get-out and I thought I was going to rip my incision open carrying the car seat but it was worth it. She (Cambree) sure knows how to shake her thang...! So sorry the pictures fail to do it justice.

Making cinnamon/applesauce ornaments for teacher gifts....this was so right up my girls' alley, very much like-unto play dough, it just smells a ton better and you don't have to worry about the colors getting mixed up.

Christmas Eve!!!

Grandma Edwards reading Christmas books before bedtime...

Precious Baby...

Hot chocolate and eggnog cake...so hyper I love it! Those goofy faces are priceless. (Well Cambree's goofy face is probably not quite priceless since she's always making them but you know what I mean.)

Ready for church, no presents opened yet...

The only pic we took of opening gifts. No clue why.

New Years Eve with the chocolate fountain....

Nose boogies...

Nap time...only one kid is actually sleeping, can you guess which one?

Freedom!!! Oh, I mean Luke's first bottle!

1 Year!!!

2012-01-15T21:47:00.000-08:00

One year ago today we moved into our home. Our first house. I can't believe it. Really, I can't. But it is.

And so we celebrate.

How?

We put our super grumpy, extra tired girls to bed early (even though there's no school tomorrow.) And BJ and I have been taking turns for the past 4 hours holding a fussy baby who is so tired but refuses to go to sleep. The table is set for celebration. I set up Scrabble a couple hours ago (when I thought we had gotten lucky and Luke was actually asleep), we have some gaming snacks ready and some Martinellis chilling in the fridge. At this point though, we'll probably just have it tomorrow...if we remember.

But we have our house. :)

This picture was taken the first Sunday we were here in our house. Today is Sunday too. Only we didn't go play on our deck. And we don't have nearly as much snow.

BABY UPDATE

2011-12-16T22:00:00.000-08:00

I love the contrast between the peaceful, serene, angelic look on his face in the first picture...as compared to the look of alarm and fear in the second to last picture with his sisters.

Below is LUKE at 3 weeks!

The Master Arrives...

2011-12-09T21:51:00.000-08:00

...the Jedi Master that is. Hold on, seriously? Am I turning this wonderful holiday birth announcement into a lam-o star wars thing???? No. Well, maybe.

Benjamin Luke Edwards entered our world at 9:43am on (Black*) Friday, November 25th.

If you want the gory details, stay tuned till after all the pics.

We are calling him Luke.
(Hence the Jedi Master bit)

He was 7 pounds and 21 inches long. Skinny legs, skinny arms and extra long fingers and toes. Our little guy has BIG eyes when they are actually open. I love that. It reminds me of Haylee a bit when she was a baby. He has a little hair on top (not sure of the color yet) and a little fuzz all over everywhere else. He was/is still but not as much sooooooo soft! So precious and sweet too. In the hospital he hardly cried at all, slept thru his PKU even! He likes to make funny faces which I also love because that reminds me of Cambree (and his Dad).

The girls were so timid at first when they came to see me in the hospital. It didn't take too long, however, for all the kisses and "huggies" and loves and squeezes and prodding and regular questions and uncomfortable questions to come out. They are so good and gentle and sweet with him. They always want to hold him and sing to him and help me.

Gory details anyone? This is for posterity's sake. And me. So I can remember when he asks me later. And for anyone else who cares. Here goes: Luke was a scheduled c-section. I got the choice to do a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) or schedule a c. I chose to do a VBAC until right before my due date when nothing and I mean nothing was progressing. I felt like I would probably end up being induced and I didn't want to be induced. All the risks multiple when you do a VBAC while being induced. So, along with some other reasons, I decided to schedule a c section for Friday, 2 days after my official due date.

Funny enough, I started having contractions Thanksgiving Day. I will always remember it...spreading peanut butter and cheez wiz on a pile of celery with some of my neices and having to pause every so often and watch them stare at me while I cringed. Falling asleep during the football game, curled up on the couch. Being all around anti social (Sorry Edwards family!) Having only 2 bites of everything before feeling stuffed. Not helping with the dishes. Being up all night wondering if I should have made my doc take him out on Thanksgiving Day. Being up all night remembering how painful it really is to give birth. Being up all night, wondering if my nephew in the next room could hear me groaning in agony. (Sorry Cameron if you did!)

Lucky for me, they didn't make me wait it out and give birth the normal way. BJ and I got up around 5 (very easily for the first time in our lives, didn't even need our alarms) and got ready to go. I was prepped and poked and plugged and drugged. Since I had been put all the way out with Cambree it was a very different experience to be awake and to hear and feel (well, sort of feel) the whole thing. Strange. It was. I kept saying "this is so weird, this is so weird..." to the nice anesthesiologist at my head. I will always remember my doc when making sure the drugs were working said, "I'm pinching you really hard now Julie" and laughing about it. Riiiight. So hard I can almost feel it. I will also remember the smell of someone's burning flesh (not mine, that would be sickening) and BJ saying "you don't want to know what they're doing now"

Finally, they pulled our little guy out. We knew right away our son had personality. And a sense of humor. When I heard my doc exclaim something about being peed on. And then her assistant screaming about not aiming him at her. Ha. Ha. And then seeing a tiny gray baby boy being held up for me to see. And then, minutes later, hearing more exclamations and pee related remarks as he was bathed and measured. Ha.

Turns out it was a good thing I planned my c section. Luke came out with the cord wrapped tightly around his neck and several times around his little body. With the stress of labor, he probably would have had a hard time and I would most likely have had another c anyway. If you have a VBAC, they will do a repeat c section if there is even a hint of a problem. So I felt good about my decision. Now, if I choose to have 6 more kids, I will be able to plan what day I choose to have them cut out of me.

Recovery is in progress. I said a tearful farewell to my closest buddy, Mr. Percocet and I'm handling it well on some days and not so well others. It is overwhelming being a mother of 3 for me but I am slowly getting used to it. I have an amazing support system. AMAZING! I feel so lucky and I know how blessed I am to have so many people ready to help me whenever I need it. And I've needed it. Millie. My mom and bestest girl friend. My amazing husband. I know I've used that word a lot be he is the best.

Luke is doing great. He is eating well and gaining weight and usually, sometimes sleeps well. No schedule yet. But we'll get there.

* We inquired if he counted as a door-buster and whether we could get half off our hospital stay since it was the deal day of the year but unfortunately, no one else thought it was as good an idea as we did.

Life Events

2011-11-23T00:11:00.000-08:00

In 2 days (or less, ha ha ha) we will be welcoming our third child into this world. Is that not amazing? I cannot wait to meet him. Guess it's a good thing I don't have to wait much longer. My curiosity is trying to get the better of me, too bad there's no possible way he can win, at least not on his time frame.

As I watch our 2 girls get bigger and taller and smarter and older...I am reminded of how different life is with a baby around. But that's just it. It's been 4 years since we've had a baby around and I know there are millions of things about life with Baby that I'm forgetting. Not to mention the fact that this one will be different. He's a boy, how could he not be? And our lives are so different now. We will have 3. Got that? T H R E E. Wow.

A long time ago, BJ read some article about big life events and we refer to it often, getting a good chuckle each time we think about it. Big life events. Things like relocating, starting a new job, a death in the family, an addition to the family, becoming vegan, painting the living room chartreuse, joining weight watchers, learning Mandarin...you know, big things. So the article said you should really try to space out these big life events. Like, put years in-between them. Don't you think that's funny? I do. We don't work that way as I'm sure most people don't. I mean, you do what you can, right?

This time we decided it would be in our best interest to have a baby on Black Friday, 4 days after BJ starts a new job whilst in the middle of painting our bedroom. Right before the holidays. Right in the middle of undone laundry and untakencareof voles attacking the back yard of the home we have owned for less than a year (another Big Life Event). Right before I had a chance to wash the hubcaps of the minivan we purchased several months ago. Did I mention large purchases were considered big life events too? They are.

Here's to you Mr. Big Life Events Guy (if you're familiar with Budweiser's Real Men of Genius, you'll think that's funny)

We are ready for you.

Cornbellys

2011-11-19T20:28:00.001-08:00

So we have this little tradition in my family, new perhaps but tradition status nonetheless, to get together in the fall and go to some sort of fallish "thing." Last year it was a "Harvest Festival" and this year it was Cornbellys, aka, the Halloween event/thing/festival/? at Thanksgiving Point. So much to see and do and such beautiful weather. I regret to say that I don't have very many pictures of all the cousins because I was mostly stationed with the younger kiddos and the older ones unfortunately were not interested in the bounce houses, princess play land, or climbing apparatuses.

I'm not quite sure how I'd like to record my experience captured below. All I remember is thinking that those funny bouncy horses reminded me of our old Hippity Hop which I loved and why in the world were there no adults bouncing on them? I threw to the wind any and all caution, self-respect and pride. Gosh darn it, I paid for my ticket and I was going to have some fun, never mind the fact that I was 9 months preggo!!!

This is Bree, poor soul couldn't move because her feet didn't touch the ground. Someone charitable had to help her...might as well be her mother. (That was my excuse.)

A note: these pictures are sooooo not flattering but I just had to remember it all (a shout out to the cripple in the wheel chair who was generous enough to snap about 100 pics for me to choose from). One more note: I could barely walk for days and was sore for weeks! This was probably due to the fact that I was indeed, with child, and my body was not up to a round on the giant Hippity Horse.

My cute sisters. How I love my sisters!

I was also fortunate enough to find a balloon twister sympathetic to my situation. After twisting/forming/whatever my kids' balloon creations he said he had one for their mother (who watched in awe while sprawled on the ground, exhausted and embarrassed from the aforementioned excitement). All the moms and kids in line were not impressed. After all, it was their turn and I hadn't technically been in line. I understand. But the dirty looks were worth it. He made me a pregnant dog balloon.

Insert picture.

Ok, so remember I said we haven't figured out how to get pics from my phone onto my computer? Just know that it was awesome. The "baby" was a teeny tiny balloon, not connected to the mom dog balloon but visible through her tummy. HA! Thank you balloon guy. You made my day. If I had the cash, I would have tipped him. Instead I just thanked him awkwardly and limped away.

Cousins!

2011-11-19T20:28:00.000-08:00

And then we have the Annual Edwards Family Halloween Party.

We always plan on having fun at these. You know, the good, not so clean, crazy kind of fun. We always do. Thank goodness for cousins, not to mention a wonderful Grandma for putting the whole thing together!

Haylee was sick this time and only had her costume on for a couple minutes. She wanted so much to be a part of everything but just felt yucky. (Her horrible mother should have sensed something was off...poor kid had strep!)

Grandma helping the little ones...

Ari, annoyed that Cambree's hands were in the way of her cash collecting, and...

Cambree: "What am I supposed to be doing again?" I think she was wondering how long she was supposed to play with the cold noodle brains.

The Butterfly Performs

2011-11-10T17:11:00.000-08:00

Like I said earlier, the girls (well, mainly Cambree) had multiple opportunities to wear their costumes. Cambree to her speech therapy group, preschool and dance class.

These first pics are from her preschool Halloween singing performance. I was so glad to go because she had been singing snippets of all the songs she was learning but it was hard to tell what was really what. It was so fun to watch her perform with her class. My favorite part was during a break in between 2 songs when it was almost quiet, she says

"Hey Mom! Take a picture of me!"

I did. Several.

Next up is dance. This I had been watching a bit the past couple weeks through the "mom window" in the studio and again, I couldn't wait to see it for real. I was not disappointed. I was also lucky that Haylee was home from school sick (did I just say that?) so that she could "make a movie" with my phone while I snapped some pics. Cambree got SO into this dance! I love watching her dance because it is one of the few times she is (almost) 100% focused on what she's doing. I can tell by her face how hard she tries to follow her teacher and mimic her moves. Ah! Another proud parent moment!

And for your viewing pleasure, a movie. Thanks Haylee. (Poor kid. Haylee had to miss her Halloween dance because she was sick. One week of strep doesn't sound too bad. But when you throw in a violent and very scary reaction to the first meds she took, losing about 5 pounds, and an extra emotional mommy....you get my drift. It was rough.)

Riiiiiight. So we can't figure out how to get the movie from my phone to the computer. Hopefully I'll remember to add it to the post as soon as it does get figured out.

Halloween Day

2011-11-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

Reverse order anyone? This year I have even more Halloween pics than usual because the girls got to wear their costumes so many different times before the actual BIG day. But I thought I'd start out with that BIG day first.

I tried to low key it this year. But things didn't really seem low key at all. Why should they? We have too many traditions that we/I weren't/wasn't willing to give up. Costumes were definitely simplified this year but that's ok I think. Know why? Because both kids were thrilled with their costumes. Never mind the imperfections I noticed with what I made. They loved them and were so so so excited

each and every time

they wore them.

For the one who likes to make messes, it took some serious convincing to get her to get her hands in that guck!

At the school parade. Horrible lighting + unready me = not that great a pic.

She was cold. This was before trick-or-treating.

We had a peacock (with floppy, but cool, feathers) and a pink and orange butterfly. Ok, so there's not really any orange anywhere on her costume unless you count her hair but that's what she told everyone she was.

" You want me to punch you with this ring?!?!"

Proud Parents

2011-10-18T22:12:00.000-07:00

I cannot count how many times I tried to work with Cambree on writing her name. Or any letters at all. Nothing. Till now. She brought this paper home the other day and I was floored!

Thank you preschool. Thank you Miss. Emily. Thank you Cambree for trying and learning and succeeding. I cannot imagine feeling more pride in my daughter than I do every time I look at this first specimen of her writing her own name!!! Such a seemingly insignificant accomplishment for some but for us, this was HUGE!

Another thing I want to remember about our little Bree.

Who am I kidding? Our big Bree.

Every night (ok, most nights) when I go in to check on her I'm always very careful not to adjust her covers too much or kiss her or whatever because she seems to wake up easily. But lately, she has been waking up. She opens her eyes, smiles at me, and stretches out her arms.

For a hug.

Then she rolls over and goes back to sleep.

My heart melts.

Seriously??? Who lets their kid sleep with so many "friends?"

I don't. Not on purpose anyway. They all migrate into bed with her sometime after her 13th blow kiss.

7 Years and Counting

2011-10-14T22:10:00.000-07:00

That's right, 7 years.

BJ has run the St. George marathon 7 whole times.

The whole 26.2 miles. Just tell me you're not impressed. Seriously. The kid's got spunk. Or ...something. He's got something.

This year, similar to last year, it was hot. Like 100 degrees hot. Ok, well when he finished it wasn't quite that warm but it was the day before. And it got that hot later in the afternoon as we lounged in a cold pool. Or maybe it was when we enjoyed the ac of our "rented" house as we watched General Conference on the big screen. But I digress...here are some pics from the race. And don't worry, I have yet to get a nice finish line or even somewhat close to the finish line photo. I'm always too worried about missing him.

In between throwing up on the sidelines...poor kid.

He finished with the amazing time of 3 hours and 23 minutes.

And, despite the lack of a smile on anyone's face, we were all very proud of that time, BJ included.

There are few things in this world that I am able to do for 3 hours at a time. In fact, the only thing that comes to mind now is sleep. I can sleep for 3 hours and 23 minutes.

BJ?

He can run.

Then we watched Conference. Well, some of us watched.

We were so lucky, not to mention grateful, to have both BJ's mom and my parents along for moral support. (And to clean up Cambree's puke in the car. Thanks Mom!) (And to squish in the back seat of the bus in-between the 2 girls even though there were empty seats in the front. Thanks to both Grandmas!)

Farewell St. George and all your wonderfully fun marathon weekend hype.

We'll (cross your fingers) see you next year!

Welcome FALL!!!

2011-09-26T16:17:00.000-07:00

Thank you Fall for having a first day!!!

It was a great excuse for us to make

homemade donuts,

apple cider floats and

watch the Charlie Brown pumpkin movie!!!

Cambree put the hole back in her donut...

"Here Mom, you get sprinkles on your nose too!"

First day of...

2011-09-16T09:23:00.000-07:00

...something. Holy cow we've had a lot of first days this year. Lots. Or so it seems. I am slowly being ushered into the Special Soccer Moms Club.

Haylee started 1st grade this year which means a full 7-hour day away from home! This has been an adjustment for the entire family
but we're getting the h
a
n
g of it.

The first day was hilarious. I wanted pics of Haylee at the bus stop and all but I was a little embarrassed to take my camera. Glad I did. 30 parents at the bus stop, all with cameras. 30 parents waving goodbye to a bus full of anxious kids. I'm sure the bus driver got a good laugh.

I loved it.

Guess why this one is BIG?

Then she started a dance class. Another first. She l o v e s it! She is still working on the coordination/step/sequence but she has mastered the poise, grace, and beauty required from a real leotard and real dance shoes.

Cambree is taking dance too. She loves watching herself in the mirror wall in the dance studio. I love watching her watch herself. I also love seeing her little underwear poking out of her leotard, under her little pink tights! There is a picture of me about the same age with the same wardrobe malfunction. Used to be embarrassed. Now I am proud to have set a fashion trend for my own 4 year old.

Both kiddos love to practice dance for their Mom and Daddy audience to any music by "John Smith" (actually it's Josh Groban but I've stopped correcting them.)

Bree also started Talking Time this week. This is her group speech therapy class that we started last spring. We really like Talking Time!!!

And today...I dropped my youngest off for her first day of PRESCHOOL!!! I honestly can't believe that I actually had a harder time of it than her. Seriously!

This was our conversation this morning:

Bree: Mom, I can just go all by myself.
Mom: But I have to drive you.
Bree: Ok, I guess you can drive me. Then I can go all by myself...
Mom? I might miss you a hittle bit. (that's how she says 'little')

Hobblecreek Half

2011-09-15T13:57:00.001-07:00

BJ ran the Hobblecreek Half marathon a couple weekends ago. Perfect training run for the upcoming St. George full marathon!!!

I was so focused on getting a picture of him (and not peeing my pants or losing my children) that I wasn't able to turn and run to catch him at the finish line. But he did great as far as I'm concerned and he felt good about it too so that, I guess is the most important thing.

The girls really like coming to see Daddy's races because they get free food. This time was grapes and chocolate milk.

Ice cream pops

2011-09-15T13:57:00.000-07:00

Looks like a mini ice cream cone but it's really another cake pop. Melts slower than real ice cream but just as sweet.

# 2 is the BIG 4

2011-08-28T20:55:00.000-07:00

Yes, we do often no sometimes--no often, refer to her as # 2. Nothing evil intended. Just our #2. Well, our #2 happened along a pretty significant birthday last week.

Significant to us.

Significant to her.

Probably not so much to you. But that's ok. :)

I hate being cliche about it (although I love using that word even though I can't figure out how to add the accent) but seriously, looking back from her third birthday she has changed so much! I never thought our little Bree would turn out to be the chatterbox that she is. Doesn't stop talking. Did I say talking? Oh, I meant to say moving. She never stops moving. You know what? It's really both. She is always wiggling and chatting away....

...on to the sentimental stuff. Stuff I want to remember about her at this age. So I already mentioned that she's a wiggler and a chatterbox. But here's some more:

I'm sure most mothers/fathers feel like they are constantly being taught by their children (constantly but only realized after the fact, am I right? ) I am no different. If I had to pick the thing Cambree has taught, and is still teaching, us the very most often and with the most emphasis, it would be that there is never ever one correct way to do anything. Ever. And if you think you came across the right way to do the thing that you are doing at the time, think again. You are wrong. Don't get it? I most often don't get it either. That's why I say she is still teaching me this. This rule applies everywhere. And nowhere. It applies in the kitchen, at the table, in the bathroom, outside, at her bedside, in the middle of the street, in the deep end of the pool, in the checkout line at the grocery store...everywhere. And what I am learning is that it is more than ok. In fact, it needs to be this way. Or that way. It all depends.

Wow this is a lot of text. Fortunately, I'm not done. This is a very complex kid I'm talking about here. Moving on...

Cambree is the queen of distraction. She gets distracted so so easily that it drives me bonkers sometimes. But here's the thing: she's so sneaky that she often distracts us (and many other vulnerable victims) from doing or thinking whatever we wanted to be doing or thinking to the point where I don't even realize how much I was distracted until sometime later. I wish I could think of an example...ah, here we go. We were 30 minutes into our bed time routine the other night (probably more like 45) and one of us was getting a bit frustrated (me) so I reminded her to please please please get her jammies on! To her credit, she did pause to think but now I realize she most certainly was not thinking about jammies. After a sufficiently dramatic pause, she tilted her head to the side and said, quite seriously, "how 'bout you turn your head upside down so you can have a happy face"...I was so distracted that I forgot all about whatever punishment I had threatened earlier.

Also, very independent. This is hard for me sometimes because like I explained to you before, there are more ways than one (my way) to complete any given task.

Also, she has spunk. She's a red head, what can you expect?

Also, and this is a big one, Cambree has the best imagination I have ever come across. This is the reason why there were bats with big pink bows flying at our car one night. Also why the collection of stains on my favorite pj shirt became a loving family of 4, complete with names and personalities.

Lastly, but one of my favorites, Cambree is so affectionate! She is constantly giving hugs and kisses and squeeze-till-you-pops. We love it!!! Even if she cannot reach a normal place to kiss, she kisses what she can get. Often this is a thigh or a toe or a knee. Even as a baby she was definitely a cuddle bug Always has responded to touch. Always.

I don't want to say that she is exasperating so I won't. But she keeps us on our toes (or wishing we still were on our toes from whatever the last incident was.)

So the birthday. Ever since she first heard the Backyardigans song about pirates she's been hooked. On Pirates. On "arrrrrr!" So we had a pirate party. We were lucky to have been able to share it with so many family members here at our own home. I love hosting parties.

It was so much fun.

Yes, yes, I forgot to frost the back of the top of the cake...

Pirate cake pops!

My take on the pirate treasure box cake. Can you see the key? I was very proud of that key.

Watermelon pirate ship...complete with cannons.

We had all kinds of pirates at this party. I guess it's our fault, Cambree and Haylee took it upon themselves to take one of the decoration flags that said "Calling all Scallywags " to the curb while waiting for everyone to get here. Many of our pirate guests got into character too.

Grandpa Pirates

Wiener roasting pirates

Good looking pirates

Preggo pirates/Sassy pirates

Cute pirates

BIRTHDAY GIRL pirates

Grandma pirates

Twinkie pirates

showing Uncle Twinkie some gifts... like he cares :)

and pee wee pirates (among others)

"Plunder the Booty!"

Cambree then...

Cambree now!

Summer Trip

2011-08-13T17:15:00.000-07:00

We recently returned from our "Big Summer Trip"

...want details?

Want some pics?

Ok.

We had an extended family reunion at a family cabin in Cedar Breaks but we decided to go a bit early and spend some just-us family time in Bryce National Park. Or Canyon. Whatever. We decided to push the kiddos a bit and do a long (for them) hike the first day. The cool thing about Bryce that you might already know if you've been there is that you can hike down into the canyon so you are in and among all the amazing formations and hoodoos. Formations? Hoodoos? Patience my friend, patience. Pictures follow.

So that's what we did. We hiked steeply down and around and then up but not quite as steeply. It took us 3 hours to do 3.5 miles. We didn't carry the girls once. They performed fantastically. Of course, the ascent to the top at the end was pretty tough and we took lots of breaks/rests (I'm talking every 5 or 6 steps) but they did it. I was proud. They are tough. (I'll prove it. The weekend before this trip we were in Big Cottonwood canyon again and took a slow, meandering stroll around a paved lake trail. Haylee was so bored, she kept asking when we got to go on a real hike. See? Tough.)

Before I hand over the stage to the pictures though, I'd like to take this opportunity to say how wonderful and different and enriching and strengthening it was to be just the 4 of us for a couple days. Separated from everyday life and distractions too. So nice. Ok, so the getting-everyone-to-sleep-in-one-tent part was hard at times but I honestly think we grew closer together as a family unit.

Consider this your warning. There are a lot of pictures of red rock.

Hoodoo: noun, a pillar of rock, usually of fantastic shape, left by erosion.[hoo-doo]

I love the combo of storm clouds with red rock. Love it. Something about it makes me want to find some old Bob Ross reruns and buy some paint.

This is my favorite picture from our trip. That's why it's x-tra large.

The second day we did a shorter hike up to a cave and waterfall. Mossy Cave to be precise. Much less crowded than the first hike. Much less strenuous. And water just waiting for us to enjoy.

Sad to say that all our pics from the reunion are on other people's cameras. They will have to be another post because I'm dying to post pictures from Bree's bday. :)

Deck with a View

2011-08-07T19:42:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this view was out front. But we had it (the view) every day for a couple weeks. Gorgeous lilacs, yellow butterfly friend.

Pit

2011-08-07T00:15:00.000-07:00

We've had some fun times around our little fire pit out back. Fun times indeed.

Having the baby mountain in our backyard makes it really nice to be able to do this:

You know? Gather firewood in your swimsuit. We like convenience around here.

With friends

Throw in some legendary college roommates and you're good to go!

VERNAL!

2011-07-10T17:29:00.000-07:00

Yes, Vernal. See, here's the funny thing about Vernal, Utah. Almost everyone has heard of it but few folks really know where it is, let alone have visited. But we did!

Vernal is home to a good sized collection of one of our favorite things. Cousins! Bet you thought I was going to say dinos, right? Well, they were an added bonus. So too was the Dinosaur Roundup Rodeo! I'm not sure who labeled Vernal as a small town. Small town= sleepy, boring town. Not so. We saw enough cowboy boots, mullets, high kicking bulls and cotton candy to keep us very much entertained.

First up, dino land. Unfortunately a lot of the park/trail/museum was under construction so we didn't get to see the whole shebang but we did see some cool fossils, some extra cool (hot really) sand-- that was Bree's favorite thing, and a few lizards.

Next, the rodeo. This was my first experience, the girls too. Personally, I preferred the events that did not involve any bucking animals. Especially after I learned how they were made to buck.

BJ and I have learned that we simply cannot take any sort of road trip without one or both girls getting carsick. This time it happened in Provo canyon and luckily, we had BJ's little hospital puke tray to minimize the mess. Nevertheless, we decided to stop and get some air at Bridal Veil Falls. It was very crowded but beautiful.

This is on the way to the falls. They were tired. Then Cambree decided to "do some exercise."

New Additions

2011-07-09T17:31:00.000-07:00

By the way, if any of you have missed our news, let me fill you in:

We bought a minivan. Actually, not really a minivan. It's a bus. A VW. A Routan. We really didn't want a minivan so it's just more fun for us to call it something other than what most people think to call it. After all, it is one of a kind in our church parking lot and that says something.

We bought a minivan because we hated our Taurus. And because we couldn't fit 3 car seats in our other car. Get it, 3 car seats? We only have 2 kids.

So things are a little bit tight in our garage. Know what else is a bit tight? My clothes.

We are excited to announce that we will be adding a baby boy to our family.

Well, most of us are excited. Cambree really wanted either a baby sister or a baby monkey. So she's warming up to the whole idea still.

He's due November 23.

I will not be having Thanksgiving dinner at my house this year.

YOU ARE....AN IRONMAN

2011-06-22T19:56:00.001-07:00

I hesitate to include this post. Why? Well because many of you may automatically assume that BJ or perhaps I am the Ironman. But no, at least not this time. This time it was our dear brother-in-law, Mr. David Q. Hatt. We are so proud of him. The full Ironman race is an absoulutely amazing feat. Amazing. 2 1/2 mile swim, 50 mile bike ride and finally a full marathon (26.2 miles). Is that not amazing? All done in about 9-10 hours. Wow. Oh, and did I mention it was in the 90s? It was soooo hot!

BJ caught the fever, the Ironman fever. He wants to do one. I didn't catch that kind of fever, mine was closer to a nice sweaty case of heat stroke. But it was very fun. There were several professional Ironman-ers and Ironwoman-ers and we watch them in transition and finish. Very exciting. And hot.

This was St. George by the way. Early May too. This year. Just a bit behind on my blogging. Just a bit.

A visit to the temple with cousins.

I regret to say that this is the only picture I have of our very own Ironman.

Below are my favorite pictures from the trip. Absolutely nothing to do with the Ironman race. Nope. Just a too big skirt and an infectious little redhead.

Poor Haylee was sick for the first half of our 5 day racecation. But she pushed through it enough to complete her own little race. Bree too. And extra patient Daddy.

6 Years!

2011-06-21T16:03:00.000-07:00

You'll never believe what happened to us in only 6 years...our little baby girl with the gigantic eyes grew up!

We had a friend party with 6 lively girls and it was wonderfully lively and wonderfully exhausting. But hey, it was a great opportunity to meet all our neighbors!

A butterfly craft...

The group. I like the bottom one better. More smiles.

Popping the balloon butterfly to find the secret message...

We learned that butterflies taste with their feet and since I didn't think it would be a good idea to do the same with our own feet, the girls are trying to write their names with their feet instead. This was funny.

Bored little sister wondering when it's her turn...

Butterfly cupcakes!!!

Butterfly cake pops! Did I mention this was a butterfly themed party? As if you couldn't tell...

"Happy Birthday Dear Haylee..."

The cake for the family party...not very exciting because the cupcakes took all my creative energy but at least there were leftover butterflies for the cake!

And another shot of the birthday girl...just for good measure.

Easter Sweets

2011-05-15T16:55:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for the neighborhood egg hunt.

Blurry but wonderful, dancing, after church Easter Sunday pictures. They were so carefree and happy.

Yes, these are my favorite Easter Sweets.

Extra sugary (not to mention cheesy) and a bit sticky but

s w e e t

and 100 % irresistible!

Surgery

2011-05-09T10:46:00.000-07:00

About a month ago, Cambree had surgery.

We were told by 3 doctors that her tonsils were the largest they'd ever seen in a child her age. After the surgery, we learned that her adenoids were too. Just about as big as they get. The combination of the 2 had been restricting air flow between her nose and mouth and into her throat. Plus, she had fluid in her ears for who knows how long causing a minor hearing loss, causing speech delay, mouth breathing, excessive drooling, nasality in her speech, many sleepless nights, extra stinky breath due to bacteria stuck behind her tonsils, increased infection...you get the idea. I'm probably making it sound worse than it was. But she got it all removed and ear tubes put in. So there you go. I've been told it is a miracle surgery and so far, we have seen improvements but I think it will be a long term thing. That's ok, I'm just glad it is all over.

This is her the day after the surgery. Her goofy energy didn't last long. About day 5 is when the real pain kicked in and it was awful. We had long talks coaxing her into taking her pain meds for every single dose. But we made it!

And she's back. We're so glad!

Home Improvement!

2011-05-09T09:55:00.000-07:00

One sure fire way to help make your home your own is to paint it!!! No offense to the previous owners but there were/are some colors that needed/still need to be changed.

To suit us Edwardses.

First up, master bedroom. As you can maybe see, the original color was a very dark green/brown. Just didn't work for us. So as selfish as it may sound to do the master bedroom first, we still chose it as our first project. Love the result. Bluish grayish. Nice and light. Fresh. New. Lovely. Very BJ-and-Julie.

Next up, the girls' room. You can see the dark red bead board on the bottom and the blue and white stripes on top. Patriotic? Yes. Haylee-and-Cambreeish? No. So changes needed to be made. This project was definitely a family project which made it take probably 3 times as long but that's ok right? They learned. We learned. And we were together.

Living Here

2011-03-17T15:14:00.000-07:00

This is our very first house!

We are still so very excited about our new home. In fact, no one really just calls it home, it's always "let's go home to our new home" !!!

Here's the front

Here's our first front door!

Here's where it says the address where WE live

Here's the snow that we play in...and shovel...and enjoy watching...(mind you, this pic was taken a couple weeks ago, much of this snow is gone now, but not completely!)

Here's the view

Oh, I mean this is the view. It is gorgeous any time of day or night. If I was gooder at taking pictures, you could see Utah Lake as well as various other landmarks. You wanna see for yourself? Good thing you happen to be our friend. Friends are allowed to visit any time they want. Family is too...we just prefer that you call first. Old joke, I know. Ha ha ha.

The best part about living here is simply just living here. We love it. We are up sort of in the mountains and enjoy a feeling of separation from the busyness of roads and stores and such yet we are not so far away that a short ramble down the mountain gets us to shopping/etc.

We have a "baby mountain" in our backyard. You can kind of see it in the first pic of the front of the house. We love our baby mountain. So far the only wildlife we have seen are deer (but plenty of them), evidence of voles (yuck), stray cats, and ducks (just yesterday, I think they were building their nest near the pond of melted snow just behind our backyard. I'll let you know when we find a nest.) But we have heard that other, slightly more exotic, no, maybe just more exciting wildlife await us when the weather turns a bit warmer. Wildlife like elk, coyotes, mountain lions, and maybe even neighbors! (Everyone seems to stay inside during the winter up here.) Eeek!

Also, I laugh every time we're driving down (or up) the mountain and seriously every time, at least one of the girls says "MOM, BE CAREFULl! We're going to fall off the mountain!"

It's Snow Wonder...

2011-01-12T21:15:00.000-08:00

Cousins + Snow + The new experience of sledding = Rosy, Happy Cheeks!

Yeah!!! We had some fun times over the break with our cousins but this was our favorite activity, cold as it was. We ALL needed to get out of the house and release some energy and sledding was the perfect way to do all that! Twas a small hill but perfect for the younger kids enjoy without being too scary (or fast) and perfect for the grownups so we didn't have to deal with the whining every time you have to climb back up the hill. (Do you remember that? I do. As a kid I remember that was the worst part of sledding. Carrying the heavy sled all the way up the hill. The hills were a lot bigger in my day. Icier too.)

Oh! The Faces We've Seen!

2011-01-09T16:44:00.000-08:00

By Us.

Some of my most favorite faces from 2010. I know, I know, everybody's doing it but I must jump on the-let's-be-reminiscent-at-the-end-of-an-old/start of a new year.

Following suit, here are some entries from our family calendar from this past year:

BJ- All day scout hike...Playgroup...Storytime at the Library...Julie- Supperclub...BJ- Staff at the hospital...Happy Chinese New Year!...NonSuperbowl Party...Haylee- Tea Party...Swim Classes start...Open Gym at the Y...Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!...Haylee- Tiger Tots Preschool starts...BJ- Fly to Utah for job interview...BJ- work clinical rotation...Babysit friends...Science Center with playgroup...Botanical Garden Visit...YMCA Family Fun Walk...Haylee- 5th Bday party...VA 5k...Happy 7th Anniversary!...Move to Utah!...Cambree 3rd Bday party...BJ - out of town...Julie- Cousins...Quilt Group...Edwards family pool party...BJ- Triathlon...Haylee- first day of...Kindergarten!...library books due!...Family weekend at Freddies! ...Weekend at Edwards...cabin...Julie- volunteer in Haylee's class...St. George Marathon...Pumpkin BBQ and Hayride...Jazz Game!...Saaris here!...school picture day...Edwards Halloween party...Family pics- Lehi...Classic Skate night...Bree- speech evaluation...no school!...Bowling!...BJ- work party...BYU basketball game!...BJ- gone to Chicago...Home inspection...Christmas Eve with Edwards....Christmas Day with Meyers...

Happy Happyween

2010-11-21T20:46:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure I have used that title before. That's what Haylee used to say. In fact, that's what she and her sister are saying in the pic below. I'm pretty sure we have almost the exact same pic from last Halloween too...haha.

Cambree was Tinkerbell, Haylee's costume that I made from last year. Haylee was Sister Bear from the Berenstain Bears which I also made. I had sworn I wasn't going to make her costume again this year but I couldn't seem to find a Sister Bear costume anywhere!

It was cold and raining, not rainy but raining. But the kiddos were troopers, all 7 of them (our Hatt cousins came too!) We went with umbrellas, layers, and an upbeat Grandpa who had the neighborhood mapped out and the trick-or-treating route all planned out.

This was the first year that Haylee has been so outgoing with her candy gathering. We were so proud as parents to see our daughter comfortable begging for candy in the rain from strangers. That a girl, right? Cambree on the other hand, has always been comfortable taking things from other people. She was always the last kid down the steps because she either couldn't make up her mind which candy she wanted when given the choice OR she didn't like what was given to her and traded it in for something else. It's a good thing she's so darn cute, otherwise people might think she was being rude and ungrateful. It was so funny watching Cambree try to keep up with her cousins. I heard her say more "Wait up guys!" than "Trick-or-Treats!"

Also, I think it is funny that the treats in their bags that the girls were most excited for were the pretzels. Go figure.

Carving pumpkins. We were all pretty into it this year, including Gma and Gpa so it was extra fun. Wish I had some pics of the finished ones, they turned out pretty cool.

These pics are from a cool place near us (well, not near really) that does a really fun witch display every year. We've never been but we enjoyed searching for all the crazy witches.

A holiday, I think, would fail to be a holiday for us if we didn't decorate cookies. I have a new fav sugar cookie recipe so I enjoyed the process a little more this year. Also, we did this 3 days after Halloween. Ha.

Crazy kids.

Oh Cabin! My Cabin! Part II

2010-11-21T20:18:00.000-08:00

Ok, well this is embarrassing. This was supposed to be posted months ago but for some reason it never happened. It does seem like it's missing something because we took many more trips to BJ's family's cabin this year and not all trips are represented below. But I feel like I need to post it anyway. So here you go.

BJ's family cabin. Located in Big Cottonwood Canyon. We did some hiking this summer. Our kids, well Haylee really, is such a good hiker! Can't wait to do more next summer.

First up is Donut Falls. A very popular, easy, short hike that we did with a bunch of our cousins and Grandma Edwards one trip. Very fun. Here's the crew.

Below are the falls. Not a very good pic I know but that's it. You have to climb up all those big rocks to get to the actual donut at the top.

Here we are inside the donut. See the water coming through the hole? Can you also see the couple that wouldn't move because they were too busy making soft eyes at each other to realize it was someone else's turn to take a soft-eye-making-couple free picture?

Cambree, trying to kick the head off of a cone flower.

Next up is a hike we took to some lake that I don't remember the name of. This was a bit longer of a hike and it was very hot!!! One of those hikes that was so worth it once we got to the top and saw the view. A lake/pond, a beautiful mountain meadow full of wild flowers, and the peaks of those mountains. I was (am) so proud of my cute little hikers! Haylee led the pack almost the whole way up (and after tripping and hurting her leg, Mommy carried her down the entire way!)

Pre- Halloween Hype

2010-11-09T18:51:00.000-08:00

I love Halloween.

We all love Halloween.

It's an unordinary chance to be with family to do unordinary things and look unordinary while doing them. (And yes. I do realize that "unordinary" is not a word. And that I shouldn't start a sentence with "and" but this is my blog not yours, right?)

Also it's the time of year. Cooler outside. Fresh. Crunchy underfoot, sometimes squishy. :) Pumpkin is my favorite seasonal ingredient. And squash, all varieties. Soup time.

Also it's all the hype that comes before the actual holiday. I guess all holidays are like that. But pre-Halloween hype is extra fun. Decorating, planning costumes, reading Halloween and other fall themed books, baking, sniffing, enjoying it all.

Once again, now that we are in Utah, we get/got to celebrate with both sides of the family.

With the Meyers side, we got to go to 2 pumpkin patches with all the fixin's. Fixin's being hayrides, slides, corn mazes, etc. Haylee actually went to the same farm with her kindergarten class so she got to do it 3 times.

Oh, and just a note about how cool these mazes were!!! Aren't you soooo jealous? Yes, I walked through the "golden" tangles of Edward's hair!!! Ha!

Also with Meyers cousins, we had a Halloween gingerbread house making party! Complete with frosting fight!

A Saari House

A Hatt House

An Edwards House

Being in town (or in state rather), we were able to attend the annual Edwards Family Halloween Party. I regret to say that I could not include all the pictures of everyone bobbing for apples. But it was fun. So fun. All the "traditional" games plus some with a twist or two.

BINGO

Charades

Bobbing for apples

Donut "Bobbing" with a partner

Treasure hunt for spare coins in bloody brains spaghetti

This pic I just had to include because I think it is so funny. Ha.

A Farewell to Summer

2010-10-15T21:23:00.000-07:00

Goodbye hot and lazy days,

Goodbye pool and catchin' rays.

Goodbye bubbles and carefree messes.

Maybe next year, there'll be less(es).

Loved those sweaty morning hugs

and sticky kisses of afternoon.

We'll sure miss you Mr. Summer

but we'll see you again soon!

(I know you're all jealous of my poetry skillz!!!)

Oh Cabin! My Cabin!

2010-10-08T19:38:00.000-07:00

We Edwardses count ourselves very lucky to have 2 family cabins to call ours. (Well ours and a whole bunch of other family members.) We are counting ourselves even luckier that we have had the opportunity to visit both this summer. Yeah! We took so many pictures that I've decided to divide our visits between 2 posts.

My (Julie's) family cabin is right in Cedar Breaks National Park in southern Utah, near the delightful little town (village? settlement?) of Parowan. It was built by my great grandfather and open to all of his descendants...so actually, we share it with a lot of other people. Growing up, when my family would vacation in Utah during the summers, we always spent some time at the cabin. Then, when I was at BYU, I would visit with my sisters. I have countless memories there. But it's been years since I've been back.

You ever notice how memories are so often linked to smells or sounds?

As soon as we got out of the car and I smelled that mountain air, I was overwhelmed with all the memories from various trips to the cabin as well as the people with whom I associate them.

Here it is. Our humble cabin home.

And here's the view. No one else in sight.

It's just one room with a cute little outhouse out back. When I was little, there was no running water and no electricity. We took turns fetching tin bucket-fulls of fresh, ice cold water from the spring. We also wore bonnets to keep the sun off our faces as we churned the butter. Ok, just kidding about that last part. Now, however, it's a bit more modernized with an outdoor pump and electricity. But it is still so very rustic and that's part of what I love about it so much.

We did a couple hikes while we were there. Fun, gorgeous views, but my kids about scared the you-know-what out of me getting so close to the ledge!

Below is a picture of an area right near the cabin where my great grandfather spent his summers as a kid. They called it "Little Ireland" because it was so green. We walked around searching for the remains of their home but unfortunately, all we found was a nice collection of old sheep bones.

I LOVE this pic (above) of Bree! She looks so sweet (and innocent)!

We sure had fun with these crazy folks (below)....

...and my parents! No pic of Grandpa this time. He was hiding behind the camera as always. :)

Below is another shot of Little Ireland and Brian Head (the peak) in the back. I ran to the very top one day. Ok, just kidding. BJ did.

A New Leaf

2010-09-08T16:32:00.000-07:00

Haylee turned over a new leaf last week.

The (dreaded?) kindergarten leaf!!!

I know, I know, so many of you have already sent your kiddos off to school but let me tell you it is soooo different when it's your kid! Yes, I cried, a lot too. But not until I got home. I felt so silly about it. It's not as if I don't want her to experience school and everything. It's just that now I won't be the one teaching her everything and watching her make new discoveries. She'll still have some with me, yes I know. I mean, seriously, she's not even gone for 3 hours a day!

After a little over a week though, I can honestly say that she has entered a whole new world of learning. It's awesome to watch! I do miss her when she's gone! But I love that she is just as excited as I am when I pick her up. That softens the blow a bit. I got to go with her on the first day, meet the teacher, see her cubby, all that jazz. Afterwards, Haylee asked me when she would get to go all by herself! The little independent stinker!

Not sure why I didn't take very many pics. I think I may have been overcome with my conflicting emotions. More likely, we were running late. :)

Hiatus

2010-09-07T18:55:00.000-07:00

Yes, a hiatus...of sorts. We have moved and that in and of itself is quite a life changing, big deal, routine destroying sort of thing. So there's my excuse for not updating my blog. Poor excuse because I'm really kicking myself...it's not as if blog worthy activities and events have stopped happening. Quite the contrary. But I'm also not sure I have it in me to try to catch up therefore overwhelming all my adoring readers. There are some events, however, that are so very blog worthy that I feel I simply must include. For instance...

...this one

turning 3!!!

With multiple birthday celebrations and "cakes"...

Have you ever seen these? They are called cake pops. Mine didn't turn out perfect, especially the faces, but they were fun to make and eat. This was "cake" # 2.

Dayee, his bike, and his # 2 daughter

2010-06-19T06:06:00.000-07:00

"My do it"

Sticky Fingers

2010-05-20T17:50:00.000-07:00

There are not many foods in this world that when eaten will make your fingers stickier than

strawberries

and

ribs.

Ok, so maybe there are. But the taste doesn't compare. We are lucky that not one member of this family is afraid to get their fingers sticky when it involves some amazingly good eats.

For the berries we went back to the same farm where we picked our apples, pumpkins and Christmas tree. We tromped around in the muddy fields for a while before it started to rain again. I have to admit that these berries are not quite as sweet as Carolina berries but still yummy. So far we've had strawberry pie, pancakes and ice cream. Up and coming are strawberry chicken salad and strawberry lemonade bars. No jam this year. I don't feel like packing it up in a cooler again when we move.

Gearing up to throw her partially eaten berry.

For our ribs we went to the "must-go" restaurant in St. Louis for bbq. It's called Pappy's Smokehouse. It's one of those places where the line is often out the door and around the corner, it's that good. We waited for 40 minutes. I can't believe I'm saying this but it was worth it. We'll take anyone who wants to visit us in the next 2 months.

The girls did amazingly well while waiting in line. BJ and I looked on as any proud parents might as our children ate. The good manners we have tried so hard to instill were evident as they stuffed their faces, licked their fingers, sucked on the bones and stole food off of our plates. Like I said, when there's good, messy food to be had, who cares about sticky fingers right?
(And if someone does care later, there's always mom's pants to wipe them on, right?)

Another Graduate

2010-05-15T18:38:00.000-07:00

Unlike her father's 23 year program, Haylee was lucky to receive her Tiger Tots "degree" after only 8 weeks of hard work. Daddy played with drugs, she played with paint.

I feel so unoriginal saying this but I cannot believe how much she has grown up during these 8 weeks. Part of it might be because she spent so much time with 18 year-old high schoolers.

For example, the other day BJ did something funny and she responded "What's up with you?" Other evidence is the regular overuse of the word "like" in her conversation. Also, the phrase "Oh my gosh!" and "Totally" are other new additions to her vocab. Oh, and she's started rolling her pants! "They're too long Mom!" ....oooh, but my feelings on that are pretty extensive so I'll move on. Before I do, let's just say that I was aghast (just slightly over-dramatizing here) at how dress codes (or the lack thereof) have changed since I was in high school. Rolling her pants should be the least of my wardrobe worries for my 5 year old.

Below, Haylee with her favorite teacher Tony and further below, Tony getting denied by Haylee for a hug. Probably a first for him.

Little sister, intrigued with the proceedings.

Landmark Age

2010-05-08T20:05:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's because it's the year she is officially old enough (by who knows whose standards) to attend real school. Or maybe the fact that she is now legally able to ride a school bus with no seat belt! Maybe it's because it's the age when she really learns to read and I can no longer keep her Christmas list on the front of the fridge. Or maybe it's because it is the age when you look at her and for the first time, realize that not only is she not your little baby anymore but that the control you have over her has begun it's own frictionless (ha ha) downhill spiral. Uh oh. I really like having control.

For me it was all of the above.

Also the realization that she really is her own person. For real now. S e p a r a t e from her mom.

Here's our 5 year old.

We had a Magic Rainbow birthday party with 4 friends from church, including one boy...this was/is a big deal for her. Her first boy-friend. Not boyfriend. Friend that is a boy. Anyway, it was magic because we made magic color wheels on paper towels and magic musical xylophones with colored water in glasses (only one broke) and magically colored pins to bowl down (ok, so the bowling wasn't so magical) and magic rainbow flyer thingies, and magic 6 layered rainbow cupcakes and magic rainbow licorice straws. Oh, and we also made a magical mess that took several days to remove. Just took the balloons down today finally. I love balloons though, they're just so....magical, don't you think?

Oh Yeah, Easter

2010-04-25T18:05:00.000-07:00

Easter, yes. Almost forgot to post but not quite. I don't feel like the pics we got really captured this holiday for us. I did capture some choice facial expressions though, eh?

I think egg decorating night is always our favorite Easter tradition. We all get pretty into it. I love how the kids never fail to be fascinated by the simple act of drawing "magic" pictures on their eggs. I also love how we as parents never fail to be fascinated as we watch our kids. Fun stuff.

Pretty Flowers

2010-04-17T21:24:00.000-07:00

On Friday, BJ decided to use one of his vacation days and we all visited the St. Louis Botanical Gardens. We were considerably impressed. The gardens were overflowing with spring blossoms! The gardens also boasted an extra large Japanese and Chinese garden which, of course we both loved.

When BJ was done oohing at all the azaleas (despite his constant sneezing and extra puffy red eyes--allergies you know) and when I was done ahhing all the tulip beds (both of us making mental notes on color combos for our someday-we-hope-in-the-very-near-future yard) we took the girls to a really fun children's garden...where we promptly lost our precious # 2 for about 10 minutes. After the panic wore off, the girls (and their parents) were able to run and get nice and dirty.

It was a long day that made all our legs ache. One of those good aches though, you know? Oh but it was soooo wonderful to have an entire day with all 4 of us!

You'll notice that most of the pictures are of Cambree. Haylee didn't feel very well and was not excited about me taking her picture. I guess I didn't take many pictures of the flowers either but hey, you all know what flowers look like right? My kids are more fun to look at anyway in my perfectly unbiased opinion. :)

A Smile

2010-04-09T12:42:00.000-07:00

I cannot look at this picture without smiling.

I could definitely use one today.

Anyone else?

Smarty Pants

2010-03-26T11:14:00.000-07:00

Many folks put their kids into preschool around age 3. We noticed this especially in NC where kindergarten starts as a full day. Well, situations for us have not been such that it has worked out to get Haylee into preschool. Recently, I heard about a local high school with a parenting class that offers an extremely discounted form of preschool taught by the students. We've just wanted her in some kind of program to get her ready in some way to enter into the world of BIG KIDS this fall.
(Hold on, this fall? As in 5 months away??? )

You know what I mean: backpacks, lunchboxes, school busses, kickball, cubbies, paste, "you're not invited to my birthday party anymore"s, standing in line, raising your hand, trading desserts at lunch time, chasing boys at recess...

According to Haylee though? She's already there.

When I picked her up that first day I told her how much I missed her and casually asked her whether she missed me too. I was full on expecting a big hug and a "Yes MOM!" but do you know what she said?

She said: "Uh...actually Mom, I didn't even think about you. Nope, not once. Can I have a cookie when we get home?"

Stab to the heart. :)

It was a balmy 55 or so when we left. Hence Cambree's backwards winter hat and loner mitten.

"Bye Haya!"

So we're eating breakfast the morning of the first day and Haylee asks me what she's going to do at school. Among other things, I mention that she might talk about letters and I decide that a good mother wouldn't waste this perfect opportunity to review, right?

So I begin: Haylee, what sound does 'p' make?

(long pause, right when it's starting to get a bit uncomfortable I decide to prompt)

Mom: C'mon, you know this one! Pizza, Party, Purple, Panda...

Smarty Pants: Oh, you mean the letter 'p'...it sounds like puh. (DUH)

Ha ha ha. The fact that she wasn't even trying to be funny just makes it funnier. Also the fact that during the "long pause" she was possibly trying to decide how to mimic the sound of pee is funny too. Yes, we have potty (in all its forms) on the brain in our house...24/7. Want another example?

While reading about Eric Carle's extra hungry caterpillar, Cambree refused to let anyone call the cocoon anything other than POOP. Haylee and I were pretty emphatic but she was too. So she threw the book. End of story.

FAT FREE, CALORIE FREE CHOCOLATE!!!

2010-03-15T10:12:00.000-07:00

I found a wonderful recipe for chocolate play dough here and made it for the girls the other day.

(Just a tip: if you try making this, make sure your water is really boiling before you add it so the salt dissolves. Ours was a bit grainy.)

We made cupcakes and cookies and they actually smelled authentic! The dough smelled delicious! So much so that even though I knew there was tons of salt and no sugar in it, I had to try it anyway as did both girls. YUCK!

Sometimes, I'll just crack open the bag and take a sniff.

Just for fun.

When no one's looking.

Sick Days...

2010-03-11T10:00:00.000-08:00

...are blessings in disguise, for me anyway. Today (this was Monday actually) forced me to put my blessings a little bit higher on the priorities list (conveniently knocking "sweep the floor" and "clean the bathrooms" to the very bottom of the list, thank goodness.)

Our little Bree was so sick! Haylee caught her in-between episodes of "spitting up" to read to her. She was such a huge help in other ways too. Cambree didn't have much luck making it to the bathroom so we just held a bowl for her when she needed it and Haylee took over the job if I happened to be away when it was needed.

Which do you prefer?

2010-02-18T21:34:00.000-08:00

So we're at the store today and while I'm debating between Always and Kotex, I hear my 2 year old say very loudly and, surprisingly, very clearly "Mommy Pullups!" over and over and over while my 4 year old corrected her over and over and over "No Cambree, those are NOT Mommy Pullups!"