MommeeeeeEEEE, Jace is awaaaaaAAke!!

Under any other circumstances, hearing Lincoln tell me that Jace is awake would be okay. Maybe a little annoying (like if I'd just barely put him down), but okay. However, this morning at 4:24 a.m. (uh-huh, somehow those blaring alarm clock numbers are seared into my brain at such an obscene hour), it wasn't exactly the wake-up call I was expecting.

You see, Lincoln and Jace don't even sleep in the same room. Jace was initially in our master closet in his pak-n-play, then he moved to the closet in the guest bedroom across the hall from us. We called him 'Harry Potter baby' for sleeping in the closet, but it was the only way not to hear all his cute little noises at night. He has now graduated to the guest bedroom, still in his pak-n-play. Oh, he has a perfectly good crib in his bedroom (which he shares with Linc-a-stink), but we're not ready to surrender him to Lincoln's erratic sleeping patterns.

So Lincoln being in the guest bedroom yelling that Jace is awake at 4:24 a.m. means a few things: 1) The child-proof door knob cover on his door is apparently NOT Lincoln-proof, 2) The duct tape used to keep said door knob cover actually intact on the knob is not helping, and 3) It's still going to be a while before Jace can sleep in his own crib. Poor kid.



After my eyes popped open and Gavin informed me that Lincoln was awake (you think?!?), I walked across the hall into the guest bedroom, turned off the light (sorry your big brother blinded you, baby Jace), and gently took Lincoln by the hand back to his own bed. I grabbed my pillow and an extra blanket, and layed down on his floor. I can only assume Lincoln went to sleep quickly because I sure did--hard floor and all.

In my experience, eliminating napping is definitely the most difficult child-rearing transition. I'd take toilet-training any day over the song and dance I have to do to keep an exhausted child awake in the late afternoon. On occasion, it is simply beyond my capacity as a parent, and it is then that Lincoln sneaks in a little shut-eye (as seen on the side bar). And, oh, do I pay for it at bedtime later!! Otherwise, I'm successful keeping him awake (albeit ornery), and he's asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow--only to wake up at 4 a.m? No thanks. It's a lose-lose situation.

When restful sleep does finally return to my life, I'm not sure my body will know what to do with it.

The Human Race

A little girl asked her mother, 'How did the human race appear?' The mother answered, 'God made Adam and Eve and they had
children and so was all mankind made.'
Two days later the girl asked her father the same question. The father answered, 'Many years ago there were monkeys from which the human race evolved.'
The confused girl returned to her mother and said, 'Mom, how is it possible that you told me the human race was created by God, and Dad said they developed from monkeys?'
The mother answered, 'Well, dear, it is very simple. I told you about my side of the family and your father told you about his.'

Do you know Kijar?

I just rejected my first comment. I feel powerful, for this is the reason I turned on comment moderating in the first place. Somebody named 'Kijar' left a comment that only said, 'please see here' and had a link.
Oh, no you don't, Kijar! Not on my blog!
Does anyone know what these mysterious links lead to? A friend of mine thought it infected her computer with a virus. I don't know, but I'm not taking any chances. HA!

Spring is coming . . . we hope

Okay, so two weeks ago we had a gorgeous record breaking heat wave. The very next Saturday, it SNOWED! That too was a record for late-season snowfall. Umm, YEAH!! Haven't we officially been done with winter for a month or so now?! I guess this is all a precursor to Spring, and hopefully it will be here to stay very soon.
So far the flowers have survived the temperature fluctuations, thankfully.

Cute brothers

I love my boys. Growing up, I always said I wanted boys. I was never much of a girly girl, and I certainly didn't have tolerance for the typical girl drama. I still don't. I'm pretty much a no-nonsense, say-it-like-it-is kind of gal. Sometimes it gets me in trouble, but I'm learning.

So sons are a good fit. Not that I don't love my daughter, of course. She is good for me in other ways, probably to refine me a bit. There is just something fun about boys. I love dressing them alike (and Gav too when I find his size--he's glad that doesn't happen very often), I love how they play, and I LOVE how they make me feel. There is just something special about boys.

(The video is nothing sentimental, just my cute boys playing. Mostly for grandma's benefit. {SMILE} )

Are you a mean mom?

I stumbled on this video (and many others like it) last night on you tube. On days when I feel bad for being a mean mom (you know--requiring that my kids eat something for breakfast, asking them to pick up their toys or else have them thrown away . . . the usual), all I have to do is watch this clip. This parent wins the mean prize for sure.

(Which isn't to say that I haven't thought about playing this trick on Aubrey . . . maybe I'll wait a few years. Hee hee.)

Spring has sprung

At least it sprang on Saturday, then kept on springing away to warmer climates--apparently. (Sorry, dad, if that grammar is wrong--spring/sprang/sprung like sing/sang/sung???) Anyway, a record breaker for the Seattle area as the warmest April 12th EVER. You better believe we got out of the house to enjoy it. 

There is a great little park nearby on the shores of American Lake. The kids love it, and so do I. As is true with almost all parks, the playground equipment is hardly the attraction (my kids would rather find poisonous berries and make potions, or play chase and run laps around said equipment). At this particular park on this particular gorgeous day, the highlight was wading in the lake and building a canal in the dirt. We had fun, and the weather made us even more anxious for Spring to come for good.

My dream boy. I'd have many more if I knew they'd be like him.

Lincoln is thinking, "What am I doing on this slide when I should be over there in the dirt?" It didn't take him long to join his sister.

This pic is proof that she started out clean and dry.

Great canal, huh? Aubrey was pretty much the self-appointed project manager for this one.

This is what happens when Mommy leaves Jace to go take pictures of the big kids. Yes, he really was eating the dirt. No, I don't think he's a Pica kid.

Lincoln was afraid to go near the water at the beginning, but he obviously got over it. And what a great smile!!

She said to me, "Mommy, it feels good to dunk my head under." I'd say she got a little more than just her head.

 

Really, does everything have to go in his mouth? He is probably wishing this were a real popsicle.

My favorite talk from General Conference was by Elder M. Russell Ballard. I knew I needed to listen up when he started out with a mother's hindsight:

"The biggest mistake I made [as a parent] is the one that most of us make .  . . I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of [my three children] sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages six, four, and one. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less."

How true is that? I am thankful that on this stunning, quasi-Spring day, I was able to "treasure the doing."

Like mother . . .

. . . like daughter. In case you can't tell, this is a picture Aubrey took of herself. I found it the other night on the digital camera along with a couple pics of her Hannah Montana balloon. 

My mom has a whole scrapbook page of my self-portraits as a kid. What gives? Of course mine were taken back in the day when you didn't know what was on the roll of film until you developed it. At least now I can delete these right off the camera . . . or maybe I should save them for a scrapbook page just like my mom did for me (maybe not).

Happy Birthday Daddy and Uncle Andy!!

On my first date with Gavin, I learned he shared his birthday with my oldest brother Andy and my grandfather. I guess it was just meant to be . . . 

So Gav turned the big 33 last week, and Andy is 39. Wowzers. Since Aubrey was on Spring break, we all went to Madigan together to decorate Gavin's cubicle. Aubrey even painted a few pictures for him to add to his collection.

Through my pseudo-expert P.I. work the night before, I learned Gavin had 'noon conference' with all the residents. When he left a little before 6 a.m., I went to work baking a bazillion of his favorite cookies. We left the cookies in the conference room for all to enjoy. Gav isn't a big fan of public attention like that, but his wife is a big fan of showing how much I love him! He said he was only slightly embarrassed. Hee hee.

After going out to dinner with the kids, we came home for the usual--singing, presents, and strawberry cheesecake. (And crying for Jace--it's not his party, and he'll cry if he wants to.)

Every party needs a pooper . . . . 

For Andy's birthday, he got a belated surprise when his picture was printed in the Deseret News along with an article about the Special Needs Mutual and their annual production. He is such a happy Andy-bear. We all love him. (He's on the left laughing the hardest--no doubt at his own joke.)

Chomp chomp

Since teeth seem to be a theme in our house (Aubrey is pulling them out, Jace is cutting them in--and they're both crying about it), this cute little video sure put a smile on my face.

At least Aubrey gets a buck or two for her pain--all Jace gets is some anbesol (nasty!), his runny nose wiped (which he hates), and maybe some cheerios to gnaw on. Unless of course Lincoln comes along and sticks his finger in Jace's mouth like Charlie's brother did. Watch out! That chomping sure feels nice on little teethers--ha ha!

(For your optimal viewing pleasure, you might want to scroll all the way down to the bottom and pause the music before playing the video.)

Playdate

Jace and his friend Garrett did great taking turns with Jace's little drum. The days of sharing one toy and being happy with it are surely limited. In fact, we had to battle the older siblings to stay away from the babies and let them play with the baby toy. Who knew a little drum could be so appealing to 6-year-olds? I guess it all evens out in the end--Jace takes whatever he can get his little grubby hands on when Aubrey and Lincoln leave things within reach, so it's only fitting for them to want to take his drum when I'm trying to take a picture. 

An Easter picture slide show

This is for you, Grandma. (And anyone else who just can't get enough of us . . . )

We're obviously still working on our self-timer family pic techniques. Any suggestions? Why is it that the first shot is the best, and even mediocre at that?

Enjoy!