Christmas

The kids built several forts.

And brought home fun Christmas crafts from school.

 We made gingerbread houses.

 Ryan mainly ate the candy.

 I loved that they were just tiny little houses and that they were from a kit.  (Less clean up.)

And the magic was still there.

 We had a Decembering for FHE and listened to the Christmas chronicles while we ate popcorn.

 And we enjoyed having Stewart home, and lounged around playing video games.

These kids got creative and built a nativity scene with their pillows and stuffed animals.

Stockings being enjoyed.

 Ryan showing off one of his Star Wars Lego sets.  He was thrilled.  (And yes, I forgot to take off the price tag.  But look at me get a discount.)

 Evie was thrilled to get a sweater with a cat on it.  Oh, how she wishes she could have a real cat.

Our little Storm Troopers.

It was a fun Christmas!

Catch Up Time

I took an unintentional blogging break.  So, I'll just throw down some pictures from the last couple of months and that will be that.  Here we go:

Stew trying on Dad's work hat.

We visited my parents, and Stewart showed off his juggling skills.

We went to the pond by their house and fed the ducks.

I forgot how much fun it is to feed ducks.

The ducks weren't shy.

And then they told their buddies.

Ryan was a bit nervous.

The highly coveted swing at my parents house.

 The kids carved pumpkins.

Little boys put pumpkin stickers on my wall when I wasn't looking.

Stew was an astronaut for Halloween.  And the only kid I took a picture of in his costume.  Sad. I know.

After Halloween counting their loot.

Stewart fixed out our Mac's power cord and I was impressed that he got it to work.

This little dude, is always up to something mischievous.

Stew Turned 6!

 We let him open presents before he went to school.  So of course all three kids were up by 6:30 am, asking if it was time to open presents yet.

 He chose an actual cake.  It doesn't look very good, but it was really tasty.

 He chose cotton candy ice cream to go with the cake.  Great Value ice cream hit the flavor spot on.  You felt like you were eating cold cotton candy.

And Scene.... to birthdays. 

A random sidenote-  Evie always wakes up with crazy bed head.  Her hair was stick straight when she went to bed the night before.

TOP 5

1. Reading several Christmas books this week.  I love a fun story around Christmas.  And yes, I'm fully aware and anticipating when Hallmark starts their Christmas shows in a couple of weeks.
2. Having DVR this time around during the holiday season, so I can record all the Christmas shows to my little heart's content.  :)
3. Walmart putting back the shopping cart return on my favorite row.  Shopping is good again.
4.  Roasted broccoli.
5.  Ryan saying, " Mom, you know monsters are real when they squeeze out poop."  


BOTTOM 5

1. Coming out of the clubhouse from getting the mail and getting super scared by a big black crow perched on the roof.  He was super creepy and kept cawing at me.  Ryan and I picked up our pace only to be followed by the scary crow.  He followed us all the way back to our building and perched on our buildings roof for about an hour.  It really freaked me out.
2. Poor Evie being terrified when a dog started chasing her during soccer practice.  In the dog's defense, he thought she was playing with him.  In Evie's defense, the dog was huge and looked like a wolf.  I was a little frightened myself.
3. Setting my alarm for 4:50 am, so I could see the blood moon.  And then when my alarm went off, telling myself a picture on the internet will be just as good.
4. Getting a notice from the office in our complex that we're not allowed to keep our stroller on our porch or we'll get a fine.  :(  Where are we suppose to put it?  Boo.
5.  Korina on Project Runway.  She is just mean.  I'm glad they sent her home.

Ryan Got a Balloon

It's no secret that I hate balloons and my kids might be a little deprived of them.  So when I was at Smith's and the lady asked me if Ryan could have a balloon....  I really, really wanted to say no.  But you should have seen his little face light up.  So I pushed through my balloon hatred and he got his balloon.  He was one happy little guy.

 ( However, there may have been tears from older siblings when they got home from school and learned there was only one for Ryan.)

TOP 5

1. During parent/teacher conferences, finally telling Stew's teacher that my name is actually Amber and not Amanda.  Whew!  I think it's going to stick this time.
2. Having 14 girls show up for Activity Days.  We normally have about 8 or 9, so it was crazy but fun.
3. Putting up Halloween decorations.
4. Stew made his first goal at his soccer game.
5. General Conference

BOTTOM 5

1. I wasn't at the game when Stew made his goal.  Boo. 
2. Ryan getting run over by the neighbor kid on his bike.  He got hit pretty hard.
3. 99% sure that Evie is going to need braces.  I had high hopes that when she lost the teeth on either side of her front teeth that it would help straighten things out.  It didn't happen.
4. Really wishing we had a Costco or Sam's club close by.
5. Stew saying his first real bad word.  But he clearly had no idea it was a bad word because when I said, "What did you say?"  He had no problem repeating it like it was no big deal.  He knows now.

It was a slow week

Although I made a wreath at a relief society activity.

It's the first wreath I've ever made.
I tried to think about what Patsy would do...
so I added sticks. 
Burlap stinks.
I tucked a fabric softener sheet to the wreath on the back.



TOP 5

1. Survivor, Amazing Race, etc.  TV is good again.
2. Busting out my knitting.  (I knit while I watch my shows, it makes me feel somewhat more productive.)
3. It has yet to rain when Stew has soccer practice or games.
4. Finding out that Ryan responds well to a bed time chart and stickers.  Stewart and I have our sanity back again.
5. We get to move to 1:00 church with Sacrament first this January.  I normally prefer early church, but I'll take anything with Sacrament first.

BOTTOM 5

1.  My contacts are killing me.  My doctor's appointment isn't for another two weeks.  And my glasses prescription is 6 years old. 
2. Stew was invited to a pool birthday part at the Rec. Center.  He can't go because he doesn't swim well enough on his own for my comfort.  We're all pretty bummed.   New Goal: to put Eve and Stew in swim lessons over the winter.
3. Our apartment complex sent around a notice that any kids caught in the rock beds or playing with rocks will get a fine.  Its been tough for Stew and Ryan to remember.  Evie of course is the rock police and is quick to point out offenses.
4. Forgetting to send an anpple to school with Stew for Johnny Appleseed day.  I felt bad for him, but luckily there was one other kid that forgot too.  So Stew didn't care.  Whew! I like that he's easy going.  Evie would have been in tears.
5. A certain kid has had really stinky feet lately.  I think she needs new socks.

The newspaper has been found.

The sweet crosswalk lady for Evie and Stew's school gave me her newspaper that had the picture of Ryan in it.  Hooray! And I love that the photographer mentioned that Ryan wants to be like Jar Jar Binks.  He probably said it at least 10 times when we were looking at the Jar Jar Binks figurine. 

Stewart had a Birthday

 Stewart turned 39 last week.  Yup, he's getting old.  :)  And that's a cheesecake with one sad little dinosaur candle on it.  I can't find where I put the rest of my other candles.  I might be getting old too.

 And when it's your birthday week, you're allowed to eat the last piece of cheesecake directly out of the pan.

And then give it to your daughter who loves the leftover crust.


In other news......

 We found lizards.

Stew learned to finally pump himself on the swing.  Yes, he's way older than he should be learning this skill.  Which is probably why we're extra excited about it.

 The Lego Guy came to our library.  Ryan couldn't stay away from these guys. Which earned him a picture in the newspaper.  (Sadly, I didn't remember to go buy one.)

 After the Lego Guy gave his presentation, the kids got to build their own creations.

Good times.  Good times.


TOP 5

1.  Wild bunnies.  They make me smile every time I see one.
2. Creepy Crawlers and Grand Slam.  Always a crowd favorite.
3. The Ogden Temple re-dedication.  Stewart and I went to the second session and I loved it.
4. Halloween costumes arriving and they all fit.  Whew!
5. Evie joining the choir at school.

BOTTOM 5

1. Changing other kids poopy diapers.  I dry heave every time.
2. Trying to eat within an hour after waking up.  It's really hard.
3. The kid cartoon - "Sheriff Callie".  Their voices when they sing drive me nuts.
4. Walmart recently repaving the parking lot and forgetting to put back a cart return by my favorite spot to park.  Now the closest one is two rows over.  Boo.
5. The RedBox closest to us always has a terrible selection. 

Ryan is 3!

Ryan turned 3 this last week.  He is about to open presents before the other two head off to school.  And I apparently didn't take any other pictures of him opening presents and/or the decorations we put up for him to make it look festive.  (And yes, Lissy. If you're reading this- I used Christmas wrapping paper for his presents. I always seem to have it on stock. :)

 Ryan also wanted doughnuts instead of a cake.   He's very serious about his candle blowing.

After we sang to him, he wanted to do his own rendition.

Happy Birthday Ryan!

TOP 5

1. Getting to volunteer in Stew's Kindergarten class each week.  This last week was the first time and I loved it.

2. Convincing Stew to be an astronaut for Halloween.  I found a fun costume online and I really wanted one of the kids to wear it.

3. Getting packages in the mail.  Even though I know what's in them, it's still special.

4. The cartoon "Clarence".  I think it's clever.  And the kids love it too.

5. Candles with the natural wood wicks.  I like hearing the wood wick crackle every now and then.

BOTTOM 5

1. Getting our true first taste of bitter cold WY wind.  

2. Ryan continually asks for things for his birthday as he watches commercials.  I was hoping that would end on his birthday.

3. Two kids in my primary class getting injured on Sunday during class.  One little boy slammed his forehead on the table when he went to pick something off the floor.  And a little girl had her jaw slammed into by a little boys head that was standing up.  Not my best day.

4. Seeing online that my library had "The Infinite Sea" available, but by the time I got to the library an hour later it was checked out. So close!

5. Having a hard time when the boys broke apart a Lego masterpiece that took awhile for me to put together.  I might relate to Lord Business in the Lego Movie a little bit.

We were at Stew's soccer practice and the sun was out and my phone said it was 65, but with the wind chill it was at 23.

School is Finally Here!

School has finally started in WY.  It started the day after Labor Day and I think we all (including the kids) were ready to go back to school. 

Evie was the most excited to go back to school.  She has a great teacher this year and has a boy from her primary class in with her.  Their elementary is only K-4th grade, so being in 3rd grade now is a big deal.

 Stew was excited to finally start Kindergarten.  He saw kids from the sports camps over the summer in his class, so he said he wasn't nervous. 

 But I think he got a little nervous that first day, while he was waiting for his teacher to come get his class from the lunch room.  I wondered if he would do okay since it's all day Kindergarten.  But when I picked him up at the end of the day, he said, "Best first day of school ever!" 

 Ryan misses Evie and Stew and frequently asks if it's time to get the kids.  So I try to keep him busy on walks or going to the different activities at the library. 

Stew also started soccer this last week and had his first game on Saturday.  His team is pretty good and they won their first game.  Watching him play brings back fond memories of my own soccer days and I had to remind myself multiple times, not to shout tips from the guidelines.



TOP 5

1.  I have enormous amounts of time to get stuff done during the day without being interrupted by kids.  Ryan keeps himself entertained for the most part when the other kids are at school.  It's the best.
2. Getting a Brita water pitcher.  I've always wanted one.  Mmmm, tasty water.
3.  Having my first activity days meeting and the girls being so excited about everything.  They're adorable.
4. Lysol's hydrogen peroxide all purpose cleaner.  Love it!  And it smells good too.
5.  Getting my WY driver's license in the mail and I have the goofiest smile in the picture.  And this is why-  I had to take Ryan with me to the DMV and right before the lady took my picture he yelled, "I want my picture taken too."  And jumped in next to me and grabbed my leg.  Even though he was too short to be in the picture, it still made me laugh.  And the memory is now documented on my license.

BOTTOM 5

1. Little Cannon breaking his leg at a park when they came for Evie's baptism.  Boo. I'm so sorry little buddy.
2. Doorbell ditches. 
3. My right foot hurting really bad halfway on our walk to pick up the kids from school.  I had to limp the rest of the way to school and back.  It was really embarrassing.   And the weird part is, that it hurt for a whole day and then completely stopped the next.  I have know idea what I did to it.
4. Stewart's ear getting snagged on a metal covering when he was helping someone in the ward move. It's pretty gross, so he keeps it covered with a bandage.  But on the bright side, he is now up to date on his Tetanus shot.
5. Ryan stepped in dog poop.