Month of pictures

Oh the frustrations. I've been looking forward to sitting down and doing a really good post about what we've been up to. I've even been keeping notes and reminders of things I wanted to make sure I included. I finally have a bit of time and some quiet (I'll be peace) and of course...I can't find my notes. Double frustrating because I've been working really really hard on keeping organized. Dang. So instead of anything logical or progressive, I give you: my month in pictures.

Here's one of Mason's latest creations. He really enjoys getting on the computer and is really proficient for a five year old. We didn't show him how to use the paint program but he's figured it out.

Oh how the boys love their cousins. One of Sam's favorite words is "Avery". Ask Eli what he wants to do for fun and he'll say "oh, play with Eli and Casey and Clain". Mason looks overjoyed to be learning about catapults with Casey at the library. 

Just as overjoyed as I am that Eli has mastered the Foot Flush. It's easier here at the tiny library bathroom, but he uses this technique everywhere we go. Home included.

Sam is clingier (yes, it's a word) than ever. After having 8 teeth his whole life it looks like he's getting a couple more so maybe that is why. I've been trying to spend more quality time with my treadmill.
Sam doesn't want to cooperate. I finally gave him front row seat and a stack of books and he doesn't fuss as much.

The kids are constantly playing with my phone. Here's is Eli's perspective:

Picture tree!

 Picture tree with suspicious face:

 We've had an awfully mild winter. Here we are, January, short sleeves, hanging out at the park. I say "boys smile" they respond with:

 At least Mason will cooperate:

 Sam love love loves his blanket. A lot. It looks like we need to start leaving it in the crib...

 One day Mason got home from school and pulled this notepad out. He tracked how many kids got on at each stop. We are the first stop and only four got on. And then seven. And look how many at Jaxon's stop! I think the bottom numbers were how many Kindergarteners got off the bus per stop.

 We gave Eli his very own Book of Mormon to take to primary now that he's a big kid. He loves his scriptures. We've been walking the (very very) long way to church to get all the extra energy out. Eli thought he'd just read along the way. His favorite part is the picture of Samuel the Lamanite.

 Speaking of scriptures, here's Joe teaching Mason how to read from them. Mason wouldn't have been that patient with his parents but he stuck with it a long time as Joe worked with him. Mason is learning new words each day and we've been reading the Junie B. Jones books which are delightful even if she says bad words like stupid and dumb.

 Sometimes our house gets hectic. Especially between the hours of 7am and 8pm. Sam is a smart little boy and knows how to find some peace and quiet. In the closet. With a bowl of pretzels.

 And then there was that one magical afternoon when I was reading and Sam was cuddling and he fell asleep. This never happens. So I had to take a picture to prove it. Then I ditched the book and basked in the cuddle love.

 Mason goes to Kindergarten. "and you are home schooled" he tells Eli. We love to do our projects and Eli tolerates lessons most days. Sam is always a good sport especially when it involves paintbrushes.

 Mason is getting really responsible and does more chores lately. He enjoys doing dishes if I will get out of his way and let him do it. He is always helpful with his brothers. Last week he woke up early every morning and got all ready for school on his own. With a twinkle in his eye because he is tricking me and doesn't need my help. Sneaky boy.

 The boys all like to help me cook and bake. Call it "making potions" and they love to get in on the action. The hard part is making sure they don't contribute any extra ingredients. We had a salt incident.... :)

 Sam mimics Eli who mimics Mason. Monkey see, monkey do, NO MORE MONKEYS JUMPING ON THE BED!

 We've been struggling with our chickens. They had a really rough molt and then didn't resume laying despite hot breakfasts, sprouted wheat, spa treatments, and timer lights. Then after Christmas I found a huge pile of eggs from Free Bird. With in a week they were all getting back into action. Que the skunk attack, some PTSD, some trapping, a neighbor getting sprayed from one of our new "pets", some visits from Animal Control, and we are now- officially- back on track and enjoying our fresh eggs.

 Sam thinks he's a marsupial. I just learned tonight from Mason's reading books that the Tasmanian Wolf was not a wolf or a dog but a marsupial. And now it's extinct. Good story.

Final two with the boys being the fun brothers that they are.

Here's to fresh starts:

Oh, happy happy New Year. I can fully admit that I’m typically more jaded and cynical about this time of year, but fortunately the fresh start of January perfectly coincided with my own attitudes and ambitions. So far, I’m going to label this year a winner. 

I’ve been so torn about how to write. I have experienced things in the past few years that really changed my mind about blogging. I realized some things can’t be posted. And some things, though they do affect me, aren’t my story to tell. I do want a better record of our delightful lives but I’ve yet to discover the perfect format or the discipline to make it happen. I’m still experimenting with journaling for some of those intimate experiences. I’ve learned I love the look and texture of filled pages. Also learned: I hate my handwriting and I am so frustrated that the pen in my hand can’t keep up with my train of thoughts.  I think slower writing could somehow be a good method for processing feelings and something something….yeah; I can’t even finish that thought. It’s time for my fast typing fingers to move on. 

Going through it, I’d say the holiday break was a little rough. A change in routine, combined with holiday treats and threats of a jolly red intruder seemed to wreak havoc on the boys’ emotional stability. Now that we are at the close of the break, I am sad to see it end. We have had some of the most enjoyable family moments in the past few weeks. 

I hope I always remember the movie nights, the ice skating disaster, the delicious fish fry’s, playing “wing wound da whoasies”, and Mason’s endless questions about Egypt. It took about a week but the boys found a new way to relate and interact with each other. In fact, their closeness is surprising. Yesterday I grabbed Mason for a quick library run. I peaked in the backseat to see him curled towards the door…and sobbing. When he finally found his voice he said “I wanted Eli to come.” That comment almost shocked me off the road. Sure they fight and tease and man do I wish I could just get them to respect personal space, but today Mason and Eli walked to primary hand in hand and I had one of those moments that make the rest of it worth it. 

Speaking of church, here’s Eli on his first day of Sunbeams.

I guess today was full of “those moments”. My friends blessed their baby boy in sacrament meeting. I couldn’t keep my damp eyes off that tiny child. I think perhaps it was the contrast between the little infant and my baby, my big buddy Sam, that made me so emotional. Sam isn’t a baby anymore. He’s 17 months old. I remember with the other boys anxiously waiting for them to reach the 18 month milestone so they could go to the nursery during church. But with Sam… I’ve decided that is too young.  I want to keep him with me. Like, forever. 

Sam the Sweet, we call him. Or Jason calls him Barnacle Boy. He loves his dad, his blankey (also named “dada”), and every now and then he will say my name, the little tease. This week he learned the word NO. At first he said it long and questioning like most of his words. Oooooopen? Mmmmmmmore? Nnnnnnnnno? But tonight I asked him if he wanted to go night night and without looking up he quietly whispered it. no.

 I think we could rename him Sam the Subtle, especially compared the ages and stages of his loud and crazy brothers. You have to work a bit harder to get him out of this shell, but when you do he’ll melt your heart and make you laugh your head off. Sam the Shy. That’ll be the one for this week. When people say hi or remark on his darling smile he gets majorly grumpy. It’s almost a pained expression and it’s hilarious. As if to say “Why why would you think it’s okay to make eye contact with me right now???”

Tonight we measured each child’s height on the pantry door. Another of “those moments”. Then we read “Tigers in the Cellar”, had family prayer, enjoyed a comical session of Ring around the Roses (me, trying to teach the boys that the correct words are “Ashley Ashley we all fall down), and then the usual bedtime routine. 

I’m truly sorry the holiday break has come to a close. 

It’s been so good for me and Jase. Of course we are always shocked to realize the school break doesn’t mean anything for us grownups and our real life demands. Still had jobs to go to. Still had dishes waiting. Still had to parent from time to time. Jason did have a few days off which were quickly filled with snowmobiling, ice fishing, and a visit to Richfield. I enjoyed the feeling of a break though. I especially enjoyed sneaking peaks at him lounging in the living room reading. Jason never lounges and Jason never reads. Sure I had to literally put the book in his hands and command him to read, but he got hooked, like I knew he would.

 I think my favorite holiday memory will be Christmas day. The kids were off destroying the house and my husband and I worked together to turn bags of oranges in to quarts of exquisitely fresh orange juice. It’s always the simple things that make me realize how happy I am. 

I guess that’s what life is about. Trying to balance it all and remember why you are doing it. Half the time I’m mighty stumped about what I should be doing.  And my kids befuddle me constantly. Mason can’t stand the feel of socks but wants to know the difference between petrified and mummified and Eli asks me if I’m so happy or so sad and then tells me I’m so beautiful and Sam cries over breakfast and laughs over hiccups and won’t say my name. But if God really wants us to be happy I’m pretty sure this is it.