New Year

Well it's a new year so it seems like an appropriate time to get back in the swing of this blog. It combines journaling and pictures and writing which are all things I like.

We tried a new thing and let the kids stay up to ring in the new year! It was all fun, but I was tired. I had a bunch of balloons and inside each balloon was a fun activity for us to do. We made cupcakes, created a time capsule, made snacks, played Mario Kart 8, played Apples to Apples, and had silly string and confetti poppers. Cody stayed awake until 11:40, which was shocking to me! He totally knew it was a party and didn't want to miss a thing. I fell asleep while playing Apples to Apples and the kids had to wake me up to tell me I won. Yeah, fun mom right here. I also nodded off while holding a sleeping Cody, but who wouldn't?  The memory was full on my phone, but I will try to post a few pictures.

Honestly, I always have mixed feelings about the New Year. It's all this pressure to set goals and achieve and sometimes it feels totally overwhelming. Plus, I'm never really ready for Christmas to be over. I read that the Twelve Days of Christmas originally started on Christmas (or was it Christmas Eve?), but as time went on the anticipation of Santa has caused us to start the celebrations and get ready earlier and earlier each year. I don't really have a problem with that, but I decided this year we will leave our Nativity set and tree up for the 12 days of Christmas and I won't feel guilty about it and we can just enjoy this Christmas season a little longer.

Here are some of my favorite things around the house.


The kids art projects. The Christmas ones are always the best.

Goodbye family Christmas tree we made with our handprints that looks nothing like the one on Pinterest. You make me happy and keep it real.

The kids admiring the musical snow globe/box collection. We gave them each their own this year, which increased our collection by 60%.

This shelf in the hallway was one I just kept piling stuff I wasn't sure where to put. I ended up adding some sparkling ribbon and old ornaments and it always brings a smile to my face when I walk past it. Joy sketched that wonderful newborn picture of Cody.

Sweet Cody playing with the Christmas nesting toys we gave Logan on his first Christmas. These toys always make the kids squeal with delight when we dig them out of the box each year. Thankfully, we haven't (permanently) lost any pieces yet!

This tinsel window became one of my favorite spots in the house. Maybe it's the sign I made on a whim or the tinsel the kids talked me into buying, but I'm dreading how lonely this window will look when it's all taken down.

A random thing I made with broken things.

Our advent tree. Each day we would read a story of Jesus' life from the scriptures and make an ornament to reflect what we learned. I looked forward to it each day and is such a gentle, cheery reminder of what the season is all about.

Goodbye little night light we made with our fingerprints. Goodbye beloved Christmas stories. We will miss you. Maybe next time you will rest on lovely shelves, as I have been meaning to paint these for some time.

Goodbye little Pete! Jessie and I had fun naming you and creating your little tinsel nest.

Goodbye Nutcracker from Grandpa and Grandma Chamberlain's collection! We will squeal with excitement when we see you in eleven months.

Well Hello, there. I'm going to ease back into this blogging thing.

I'm pretty sure I have felt ALL the feelings today. Noah's birthday, the Primary program, and some growing pains have left me with an open mind and a full heart. (Mind you, not my own growing pains this time. But you know, being a mother means that their problems will always, ALWAYS be your problems, really.)

From the Primary program. "God gave us families to help us become what He wants us to be. This is how He shares His love, for the family is of God." This is by far my favorite song the kids learned this year, and they sounded like angels today.

From Noah, who says the best prayers. "Please bless Mom betaws I love her... and please bless me be ninja... and thank you for Cody betaws he so tute..." One of his birthday wishes was to have all of his siblings sleep in his room tonight, and they happily obliged. I planned on taking a picture of all of them sleeping but there is no sleep happening yet.

From me. I haven't figured out what to do about the growing pains. I was pretty sure I had a brilliant idea, but I was drifting off to sleep. I thought at the time it was so brilliant there was no way I could forget it, but I did. Now I'm not sure if it really was brilliant or if I was just delirious. And if it was brilliant, why does that happen so often? A great idea just as we fall asleep, or in the middle of the night. Is it our brain playing tricks or is it that we have let down our walls enough to allow inspiration to creep in during those vulnerable sleepy moments?

If you know, let me know. I'll just be over here loving generously and fiercely. Because I know that matters, and I'm not sure all the other stuff does matter.

31 {unexpected} signs of aging...

I have been 31 for a few days. I drank a Dr. Pepper before nodding off. I got a few hours of winks when I heard something outside and now I'm wide awake. Not sure if it was the caffeine or the alarming way I woke up or what, but I found myself wanting to write so here I am. Once upon a time, I thought 31 was "old." Guess what, I don't feel old. What was I expecting? Wrinkles? Check. Weight gain? Sure. The Mom haircut? Yep. A minivan? Probably. What is our culture's problem with aging, anyway? In honor of my birth, I composed a list of 31 random musings of a grown-up. I came up with this on the fly as I was thinking of how much I've changed over the years. I'm probably leaving out some key points, but oh well... I'll just blame my forgetfulness on old age. In no particular order:

1. "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." There's definitely something to that. Thanks, Dad.

2. That body I had in my twenties... the one that was too big here and too small there and always awkward in a bathing suit? Well, I am NOSTALGIC for that body now.

3. If someone annoys or offends me, I no longer have to make them aware of the fact so I can sleep at night.

4. Honestly, I amazed how far technology has gone in my lifetime.

5. I respect myself enough to value my resources. Time. Money. Energy. These are precious gifts.

6. Lice. That $#!% happens even to the most OCD of clean freaks.

7. The dollar amount on night creams and swimming suits does not, in any way, indicate what the product will do for me. The dollar amount on sheets and tires usually does indicate what the product will do for me.

8. I will never be too old for dancing or for Disney.  

9. I no longer appreciate a good tragedy. I used to get lost in stories like "Hamlet" and "A River Runs Through It" and "Farewell to Arms" and (brace yourself) "The Ilead." I loved to analyze these stories, searching for parallels and falling in love with the Tragic Hero. Now these stories just make me sad or worse... mad.

10. Life is too short to worry about things I can't control, like the past or what people think of me or even my own children to some extent. I find peace when I am in control of myself - my attitude, my work ethic, my habits, etc.

11. I am not afraid of red lipstick.

12. I know that we are what we DO. The things we say and think matter, but they don't amount to anything unless we do.

13. Sometimes showing up is the best I can do. And that's okay. 

14. Problems. They usually sneak up on us, and we'll need a good night's rest. Oh, and enough with all the snarky "that's just a first world problem" nonsense I believed in my post-adolescent-idealistic phase. First world problems can still be freaking huge problems. And to get through them we're gonna need a good night's rest.

15. Speaking of problems, quick sand has never once been a problem for me and I don't think it ever will be. As a child I often worried about this.

16. I weep all the time: A child's cry. A baby's smile. A good movie. A great song. An honest book.

17. Speeding. It just isn't worth it.

18. If I have made my point it's okay to stop talking. Repeating myself doesn't make me more correct.

19. With that in mind, there are far worse things than an awkward silence.

20. If I don't make an effort to simplify, I will inevitably complicate.

21. Biggest LIE we tell children: Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me. Words, both said and should-have-said-and-never-heard, can hurt. A lot. For years and years and years.

22. Super-Man syndrome: The person who is always willing to help or give but never willing to be helped or take. A person with this syndrome loves to feel like a hero and believes s/he is being a friend, but isn't really. The problem is, most people don't actually need a hero unless they are playing a game of chicken on a couple of tractors and it involves Kevin Bacon. Most people just want to be accepted, not rescued. (Obviously I am not qualified to coin any kind of syndrome. I made it up). 

23. I'm embarrassed to admit I was flattered in my younger years if someone asked me for advice. Nowadays, I panic. I feel the need to apologize profusely for giving the false impression that I have any idea what I'm doing on anything.

24. Getting a tan isn't fun anymore. Scars that were wallflowers take center stage. And my face gets all blotchy (I swear I didn't look like I had a mustache yesterday). 

25. Camping. I have been trying to talk myself into loving this for YEARS because I seem to remember enjoying it as a child. I don't love it. AT ALL. I love you, Mother Earth, and enjoy being in the outdoors... I just really prefer to end my day eating food at a table without bugs and taking a shower behind a door and sleeping in a bed under a roof that doesn't rustle with the wind.

26. Miracles happen. Revelation happens. Expect it.  

27.  I still, for the life of me, do not understand financial lingo. When we went through the mortgage process I felt my brain get fuzzy, but when I looked over at Jared he was very alert and asking questions that led me to believe he had heard these words before. Can't they put this kind of stuff into some kind of poem? I get poems.

28. ENJOYMENT. The best weapon we have - against any kind of adversary - is to find some enjoyment just for the pure sake of enjoyment in each and every day.

29. "Where The Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak taught me everything I know about boys.

30. Sometimes I lose my dang mind and do/say the stupidest things. I think this happens mostly because a. I think out loud waaay too often, but the thought is often incomplete. b. I am easily distracted. and c. I doubt myself occasionally, which usually leads to poor judgement. On the bright side, I totally get it when I ask one of my kids, "What were you thinking?!" and they reply with "I don't know!"

31. I am unspeakably grateful for every single person in my life, but I am lousy at expressing it. I hope I am way better at this by the next time I make a list of the ways I've grown up. 

5 Things that make me feel like I really have It Together

(Which is the next best thing to actually having it together). One of the other Mom's at basketball said, "How do you do it? You and ALL your kids always look so put together! I wish I had it together like you do." Have It Together? She obviously didn't see Noah, who was dressed in a full-blown Spider-Man costume in 110 degree weather. She obviously didn't know I spent 10 minutes looking for my other shoe (found it in Jessie's room. It was a "boat" for several of her princess dolls). She obviously didn't know I let the kids have ice cream cake for a snack that morning.

All of this got me thinking about how we are all so different, we value different things and have different habits. Unless I am doing mucky work in the yard or garage, I get cleaned up and dressed right away in the morning. It is a habit and I owe that one to my parents. If nothing else, it gives the illusion that this mama Has It Together. :) Thinking about all this, I decided to make a list of the top 5 things that really make me feel like I have it together (which is almost as good as the real thing).

1. Making beds in the morning. I really enjoy making beds. It makes the room look neat and put together even if there are toys on the floor, books piled on the dresser, or a basket full of laundry. As long as the bed is made it looks just fine. And fine is the new good.

2. Driving a clean car. First of all, I, we, my family... we are never as clean as we should be. We don't just exist, we LIVE. Where there is Life, there will also be tidbits of sand and grass and hair and fingerprints. I am okay with that. When our minivan was new, I would deep clean that baby every week. Then we moved and I was overwhelmed. Then we had a baby and I'm doing good just to keep the inside of the house clean every week let alone my van. So now I am deep cleaning it once a month with a vacuum and magic eraser and windex and all that. This is a fairly easy task because we keep it basically clean even with all of our comings and goings each day. The kids are responsible for bringing in their own stuff and we don't usually eat in the car. Once a week a different kid is in charge of making sure there isn't any garbage left in the doorways or under seats and that kid gets to keep whatever change is the coin drawer.

3. Sticking to a budget. Jared will tell you I am terrible at this. Just terrible. But when I am good it really boosts my self-esteem and makes me feel like I can make anything happen. I am a work in progress.

4. Having a time and a place for everything. Bedtimes, mealtimes, family scripture study, toy closets, art drawers, etc. Having set times we do things and a place to put our stuff makes everyday life much easier. It also makes cleaning up easier for the kids because they know every singe thing has a "home."

5. Being On Time. I make our family late for church all the time... because I am putting stuff in the oven or grabbing crayons on the way out the door. I think it will just take one minute, but then I do 10 one-minute tasks and make us 10 minutes late. (Sigh) However, I am not late for other things and it always makes me feel like "Hey, I got this." Plus I sound kinda mean when we are running late. It's my "urgent" voice, but I know it doesn't sound nice. So I just like to avoid all that be on time.

Baby Mine

I haven't watched "Dumbo" since I was a small child, but I remember hating it. I thought it was cruel and terribly sad. I'm sure it ended happily but I honestly don't remember it. For some reason after all these years, I have remembered this scene and how sweet (and sad for Dumbo and his Mother) it is. I recently heard Allison Kraus' version of this song and fell in love with it and I've been singing it to Cody ever since. Anyway, here is the link to the Dumbo clip and it makes me cry every time. Dumbo's little expression reminds me of Cody for some reason and it really pulls on my heartstrings.

Baby Mine


"...you're so precious to me, sweet as can be, baby of mine."

Leading up to summer...

This was Mother's Day. This will forever be known as the photo which forced me to start making holes in the walls. I got to choose the movie, so of course we were watching "Penelope."

 

Jessie had her friend Molly over for the afternoon. Bless Domino for letting those girls pretend he was sick and check his heartbeat and his mouth and wrap a bandanna around his head. They also had tea parties with all these animals who just don't know when to stop.

And then we had Jared's birthday. His "real" present came the next day and it was a trampoline! Wa-hoo! It's been a big hit with all of us. I almost forgot how fun those things are. The really fun part will be digging a hole to stick it in so it is more safe and not such a monstrosity in the backyard.

Oh I love this man. He makes the years better and better. I was thinking the other day how glad I am that he asked me to marry him. He asked me on his birthday ten years ago and here we are five kids and 4 homes later (the first of which we own, however). We were just so drawn to each other, there was no question that he was "the one." We both had a lot of growing up to do and there were some hard times and some sad times, but we put our faith and our works in the Lord and he has made so much more out of our marriage than we ever could have on our own. I love more than I ever thought was possible and I know that is a gift. I am so thankful that Jared is so easy to love and has taught me a lot about what that word means. Happy Birthday to my sweetheart!

These two have been good ole buddies lately and they have both come so far in their swimming lessons! I'm so proud of them!

I asked who in the world Zack is. She told me it's just a boy name she really likes. 

 

This boy. I could not get him to take a nap. He kept begging to swim. I told him we could after we get Porter and Logan from school. THEN he decides to fall asleep instead of coming inside the house. That's just way things go when you're two.

And today we had Logan's Kindergarten graduation. I actually got a sitter for Jessie and Noah, but Logan was just devastated when I told him they wouldn't be here, so I cancelled and we all went to watch him graduate. Here Logan is sitting by Keshawn and Scarlett. Keshawn's mother said she nearly asked me for my autograph because I look like Taylor Swift. I'm pretty sure she's on drugs, but I'm still flattered. Taylor Swift is gorgeous. And Scarlett's dad makes the most amazing cupcakes I have ever had. I'm not even a cupcake person! Her grandma is in my ward and she comes to church with her every once in awhile.

Logan was so surprised he got a diploma! Little things like that are so important to him. He earned a gold star in school once and it is one of his most prized possessions. He was sitting by Ivan, who was his best buddy this year but I forgot to get a picture of them together.

 He had the most wonderful teacher, Mrs. Duffy, who really made school a joy for him. When they sang "You are my Sunshine" I sorta lost it and couldn't stop crying! Right after that she got up and looked at me and then she started crying! Agh! I always sang "You are my Sunshine" to Logan when he was a baby and it's still his favorite bedtime song. He is like the sun. Everything is better with him there. He is so good and kind and that really does shine from him. 

Fat Dog - A post by Jared

This will be remembered as the day I almost killed Fat Dog on the run. Fat Dog wasn't doing so hot so we stopped for a minute (again) and he got pretty wobbly. So he spread out his legs in a really wide stance in an attempt to steady himself. Luckily I was pushing the running stroller. He had a luxurious ride the rest of the way.