8

Eight years ago, yesterday, I became a mother. I held my tiny precious daughter in my arms and I fell in love immediately.

Earlier that day, when Daniel and i woke up, we lay in bed discussing us and the future and how our life was gonna change completely. I was scheduled to be induced that following day, and so we were gonna spend that day preparing for the next. But as we got up and ready for the day my back felt like it was on fire. I was pretty sure I wasnt contracting cuz it was my back that was killing me, and as far as I knew, contractions were more towards the front. So with each contraction I was doubled over trying to ease some of pain while telling Daniel I wasnt going into labor, and that I was gonna be fine, just give me a few minutes. After the 8th time of the same scene repeating itself Daniel called up my mother, who then told me it sounded like I was in labor and I should go to the hospital-(my mom has been working at an ob/gyn office for years and years and years and in my opinion she is the expert on all things pregnancy related) and since she wouldnt tell me to go if I was just being a wimp about the pain, she was able to convince me that indeed we should go to the hospital. So we, meaning Daniel, packed up a few things into my backpack, grabbed his homework and a book or two to read, grabbed our camera and right before we were off, Daniel gave me a blessing. What peace that sweet prayer brought to me. I was scared about how everything would go and if Kylie was gonna be ok and healthy and was kinda thinking I was gonna die cuz I was in such pain- but with that blessing
I felt a warmth and a calm and knew everything was gonna be ok. So we went to the hospital, and after checking to make sure I was really in labor, they admitted us and soon hooked me up with the happy-dural. Needles freak me out like no other- especially one that size and especially when its going into my vertebrae, but I closed my eyes as tight as I could and tried thinking happy thoughts and then before too long I couldnt really feel the horrid pain I was feeling before. Daniel thought it was funny that I dozed off a time or 2 in the next few hours, mostly because any movie you see with a birth scene  the mother is screaming at the top of her lungs, cussing the father of the baby, sweating and looking like a maniac, but I was just dozing off in between the nurses coming in and out. And then a little bit later my baby girl came into the world.
What a miracle she was. With her ten little fingers, her 10 little toes, her perfect little mouth, her cute little nose, and her eyes- oh heavens her eyes- Kylies eyes were wide open just taking everything in. Granted I know its fuzzy and black and white for babies, but she was so alert and anytime she was awake- her eyes were wide open, and she always had this look like she knew everything that was going on.

So 8 years have flown by and in that time my love for Kylie has continued to grow. I am really so proud of my daughter. She is an amazing 8 year old. Since she is the oldest of our kids, she has had more responsibilities and has had more expected of her than the others and for the most part, she just takes it all in stride. Kylie has been blessed with the gift of learning. She seriously learns so quickly- always has. I wish I was more like that- I think I was more of a daydreamer  when I was her age, but she is focused and attentive and responsible and really loves to learn. Kylie is artistic and creative. she is fun and helpful and quirky in her own ways. She is shy with most everyone but her family, she is sassy at times, a bit spoiled, and goofy, and she has the attitude of a teenager at times and it cracks me up when she rolls her eyes like she is so embarrassed by her parents, as if we do anything remotely embarrassing.  But she has a kind and loving heart. She is an amazing sister to her brothers, an awesome daughter and just a delightful individual.  Oh my heart almost breaks when I think about how much I love this girl!
Yesterday Kylie wanted to bring cupcakes to her class, and not just any cupcakes, but the cupcake pops- you know the kind that bakerella makes. Curse that bakerella for making something look so easy. Holy buckets I was working on those silly things ALL day long- and they still didnt turn out remotely as cute as bakerellas. I am an amateur to the extreme. And another thing- holy freaking mess- my kitchen looked like a war zone!

so I take them over to the school- now Kylie has around 35 kids her in class, so I made 40 just to be sure there were a few extra in case some of them fell from the stick. By the time we got to her class, not only had they started to melt-(blasted freaking desert heat- its September- why cant we cool down yet?) but over half of them fell off their sticks. after all my hard work-- they were dropping like flies. I was irritated. But the kids didnt seem to mind and  thought they were cool and her teacher was acting like she was in heaven while eating one, so either she was a really good actress or they tasted fine just the same. While eating the cupcakes, her class gets to ask her questions. Her teacher asked her if she could have any gift in the world for her birthday, what would she like. Her answer: a baby sister. We are trying Kylie girl. We are trying.
After her little school celebration we came home and I tried to clean the kitchen up, but before I could finish, had to take the birthday girl to gymnastics, after which we had her birthday dinner, and her presents, and finally her cake. Kylie is all into monkeys right now. She has monkey pillows, monkey blankets, monkey pajamas, monkey crafts, monkey backpack, monkey lunchbox. The girl likes monkeys. So she wanted a monkey cake. My kids seem to think I know how to make cakes- ummm- yeah,  I am lousy lousy lousy at decorating anything- cakes, food, houses, anything really--(except my Christmas tree- I take great pride in that sucker! ) But I attempted it anyway. It was kinda funny how cake wrecked it looked, but my Kylie girl loved it and told me it was her most favorite cake ever. She knows how to butter me up I guess.

Anyway I am very grateful that I have been blessed with this beautiful girl of mine. She is a sweetheart and I  couldnt love her more.

Official

Its official! We are done with diapers! For the 1st time in 8 years! I feel the need to celebrate. Only problem is Ben still hates wearing any clothes now. He continues to strip himself as soon as I get him dressed and runs around naked all day long. Its driving me crazy. But on the bright side- its a little less laundry to wash and fold and put away. The missionaries came over for a little missionary correlation meeting and my little Bennie boy was streaking through the house. I felt my face turn red as I apologized for his nudity.  What to do with that kid.

James was asked to give a talk in Primary last week, and I had a short little poem for him to recite, but as soon as it was his turn, he froze. As soon as he was done with church he told me he was so proud of himself. I'm trying to figure that out. Is he proud that he got out of giving his talk cuz he refused to do so? Oh the mind of that child.

So the citys parks and rec have been having registration for soccer and baseball and a bunch of other little kid sports and classes. I thought Toast might actually like to do it this year- but when I asked him he said he has no interest . Daniel was quite happy about that cuz it means we dont have to spend our  Saturdays watching a bunch of kids trying to kick a ball from one end of the field to the other. And I wonder why my boys have no interest in sports. I am finally getting that it stems from their daddy's bad attitude.

Kylie started back up with piano. She stopped playing once her previous teacher moved and we searched high and low and finally found a teacher with an opening. Its all coming back to her rather quickly and that makes me happy. I love watching her develop her talents.

Daniel has been working long hours (12-14 hour days)- which drives me bonkers cuz I dont like doing the single mom thing all day/week long, but his company has been moving into another office and he has had to be there for all the different hookups and setups and all the moving and organizing. He's rather excited about the little move cuz its gonna save them a ton on rent each month. So I guess it will be worth it. Although if I have to deal with the kiddies all by myself for much longer we might all be headed to the asylum for a very long time.

Nudity

*****WARNING-- This post may contain some mild nudity.***********

So we are trying to potty-train the Bennie-boo. I hate potty training. I like the end result, but hate the process of getting to it. So we bought him his underwear and have made the switch. He has yet to make it to the potty. He knows when he has to go- he tells me- and we run to the bathroom- and he sits, for a minute- then tells me he is done and not 3 minutes later I am cleaning up after him- and not in the bathroom.  I think he is afraid to  actually do it where he is suppose to do it. If we are outside playing, then he has no problem peeing on the rocks, but since we cant being outside for longer than 30 minutes without melting, that doesnt really help much.
Yesterday Ben decided he doesnt like his underwear now, and after I put it on him, he takes it right off. Along with his shirt. I try wrestling him back into his underwear and his shirt but it has become exhausting cuz he takes it right off again and again and again and again. So I gave up.  now he has been running around like this:

"He's out there Jerry. And lovin every minute of it!"

Round 2

Last year Daniel and I went to Maui to celebrate our anniversary. It was FABULOUS! While we were there we discussed the future and decided that for our 9 year anniversary we would do something low key cuz we would have our newborn, and then for our 10 year, we would go back to Hawaii.  Obviously my plan hasnt really gone according to plan. So we adjusted. Since we dont have a baby, I figured this year we better take advantage while we can, and hopefully by our 10 year I will have my baby girl.

So we headed off to Maui last week. HEAVEN! We stayed at the same resort we did last year. Its one of my all time favorite places. It is just beautiful and peaceful and the view is AMAZING! I cant get enough of falling asleep to and waking up to the magnificent sound of the ocean. Tranquility- I need more of that in my life I think.

Last year we did several of the "must-do-s" and this time we wanted to get in a few more. So we went para sailing. I admit we were both kinda freaked out beforehand, not knowing what to expect exactly, but it was really fun. I was expecting to be whipped about to get up in the air, but the launch is really smooth and then the whole ride is so calm and breathtaking. They take you up 800 ft, so you get to see miles and miles and miles around. Then they bring you back in just as smoothly as they launched off. They dont let you bring cameras with you unless they are waterproof-which mine is not, and we didnt want to pay the 40 bucks to have the guy take a picture for us, so the only pictures we have are the ones that are sure to fade in our aging brains. But it was awesome.

We also went on a dinner cruise and that was cool. We met a couple from Oahu that were island hopping for the weekend and they gave us all sorts of good info. The wife has raised 4 sons, so it was fun to get her take on surviving the wildness of it all. Perhaps I wont completely loose my mind with my 3 boys after all. And if we ever go to Oahu and get into trouble, we now have a friend in the police department.

We went to a luau and the hostess for the evening taught us how to flirt in Hawaiian. Daniel and I will never say "Aloha" quite the same way again. And apparently the bigger the flower you wear in your hair, the more desperate you are for a guy- i thought that was funny, and spent the rest of our time noticing the size of flowers people had in their hair.

We did the road to Hana again, but according to some of the locals, there hasnt been much of a rainy season this past winter and spring, so the waterfalls werent quite as spectacular as before. I thought it was still beautiful and enjoyed it.

We tried some new places to eat, and that proved interesting. We also went back to some favorites from last time. And we thoroughly enjoyed the Hawaiian shaved ice almost daily. We got in some shopping for little gifts for the kiddies, and Daniel got offered some "Maui wowie" at least 5 or 6 times. I didnt realize what Maui wowie was- honestly thought it was just an expression cuz Maui is just so wonderful and who can help but say "Maui wowie!"- but apparently my little innocent mind was wrong- its what the hippies call their weed, herb, drug, marijuana. Or so Daniel says. Maybe he is pulling my leg, sometimes I cant tell if he is kidding or not.

Ultimately as wonderful as Maui is, the best thing about it was getting to spend that time with Daniel. We usually get to hang out in the evenings after he is done with work and the kids are in bed, but by then we are mentally and physically exhausted; comes with the territory of parenthood. But to get a little break without work and kids- just that time to be us- well it was wonderful.

Daniels mom watched the kids for us. I felt horrible leaving her here in 115+ degrees with our 4 wild rascals, but they had a good time with grandma and spent lots of time creating and crafting and getting spoiled. How does one thank someone for taking on that burden of taking care of your most priceless gifts? I dont know, but the gratitude we feel is tremendous. They were loved in our absence, and we werent worried about them at all.

So we had a marvelous time, and cant wait to go back. If I still dont have my baby girl by next year then I think we might try Kauai. But if next year we take it low key cuz I have another sweet baby girl to call my daughter, I certainly wont be complaining. So we are looking forward to the future- whatever is in store for us, we are excited. 

"Did I hear a niner?"

On this day 9 years ago, it was the most wonderful day of my life up to that point. I was slightly sleep deprived-(OK really sleep deprived) excited, nervous, giddy, twidderpated, in love, and very happy. My mom drove me to the Timpanogos temple, where we met up with my dearest darling Daniel, filled out some paperwork, got the low down on where to go and what to do, then my mother and I went into the brides room in the temple, where she helped me get into my dress, gave me a teary hug before we again met up with my Daniel. She was taken into the sealing room, and Daniel and I were taken to the celestial room.

We sat there all excited and slightly anxious, talking quietly and holding hands. (we actually got to sit for quite a while as Daniels sister, her husband, and Daniels brother had gone through to do a session in the temple earlier- and weren't quite finished by the time we were ready to go) Then the sweet temple matron came and escorted us into the sealing room which was filled with several of the people we love most.

A friend of my parents was officiating, and he started out by telling a story of a young couple that had come in to be married, but for some reason the bride ended up rushing out of the room before she and her not-to-be husband were to be married. I think he must have been telling us this story to make sure we werent planning on a similar scenario. But I knew without a doubt Daniel was the man I wanted to be with forever.

I hadnt known Daniel for very long, but I had observed him in several situations and got a glimpse of his heart. I had fasted, prayed, pondered, meditated, and counseled with my parents and with my Father in Heaven before this day and knew with all my heart Daniel was the one for me. So after I told the officiator that I wasnt gonna go running out of the room, Daniel and I knelt across the alter and were married for eternity.

After hugs from family and friends, and after changing from our temple clothes, we had lots of squinty eye pictures -gotta love the August noon-day sunlight.

Then we headed over to the church for a little luncheon. Since I am the 6th of 7 kids in my family, I had been to a lot of wedding receptions in my youth. I decided I didnt want to spend my wedding night standing in a line.(not that there is anything wrong with that; I love being able to visit with relatives, and friends and neighbors- but I just didnt want to do so on the night of my wedding.) And Daniel didnt care about that either, so we invited several of our closest friends and loved ones to a luncheon instead.

 

Then we went back to my parents house, changed out of our wedding clothes, finished packing up the rest of my belongings, and drove to the airport with my mom and dad. This was a month before 9/11 so my parents were able to walk with us to the gate. Then I hugged my parents goodbye. It was kind of a symbolic moment- even though I will always be their daughter I was now my own family with my husband, and that hug goodbye was like the end of that life- my childhood, the teenage years and the claim of being their dependant. I was now an adult- even though I didnt feel like one- and this was a new beginning in my life.

Daniel and I were flying southwest airlines, so we didnt have assigned seats. And since we were the last ones on the flight, we didnt get to sit together. I was really bummed as all I wanted to do was hold onto my husband as my heart was aching from the sudden unexpected feeling of loss from saying goodbye to my parents. Thankfully it was a short flight from SLC to Las Vegas.

We loaded up in Daniels old 4-runner (to this day he still misses that car of his) and headed to the Venetian.(significant to us as that is where Daniel officially proposed) We somehow got lucky and they upgraded us to a sweet suite. We oooohhhhhed and aaaahhhhed over the luxury of the room, and then we knelt down together and said our first official family prayer, thanking our Father in Heaven for the incredible blessing of being sealed to each other for eternity.

9 years later- I look back to the day we became husband and wife with deepest gratitude. I am thankful I get to spend my life with my Daniel. In the 9 years we have shared, we have seen lots of good, some bad, and Daniel wakes up looking at the ugly!  :)  

I really dont know how I got so lucky to have Daniel. He is amazing. He is an incredible father to our children, he is a man of faith, of integrity, he is kind, and patient and quick to forgive, He is loving, and supportive, helpful and understanding. He is a great listener. He is dedicated, he works hard, and he can always be counted on. He is an awesome friend, and just a super awesome all around nice guy. Add to that his sense of humor, and his cooking skillz- well I am a lucky girl indeed.

SO to you my dearest darling Daniel- thank you for making these past 9 years what they were. Thank you for loving me so unconditionally- especially when you know my shortcomings better than anyone. Thanks for being the greatest friend I've ever had, and for being the incredible husband that you are. Oh how I love you with all my heart!

And they're off..

These 2 were so excited, they were up and ready at 5:30 am. (School starts at 8:50.) And while I was happy that they were so excited to go, my heart kinda aches. Mostly cuz I'm worried about Toast. He is such a good kid, but he has a hard time socially. I'm anxiously looking at the clock hoping the time goes by fast so I can hear how his first day went. (please be ok, please be ok, please be ok)

Nose Trick

This is it. The final weekend before the kids head back to school. Sad to say gooodbye to summer vacation especially when we'll still be way above 100 degrees for at least another month and a half.

We've been trying to survive the heat for the length of the summer. Our city built a new pool last year, and luckily for us its just a hop skip and jump away, not to mention totally cool for the kiddies, and major good people watching for me. When we dont do pool days we've been doing the rain-o-leen. This is where my kids take out the hose and go crazy on the trampoline. Kinda dangerous, but oh so fun. My Bennie-boo loves water balloons, which he calls "pop-ay-boons" and we have now added that to the rainoleen of fun.

And when the kids are worn out from that, they are crazy for crafts. Kylie loves beads. She makes bracelets, necklaces and a bunch of other little projects with her collection of beads. Her little brothers love to get into her beads and our 2 year old loves sticking beads up his nose. When Kylie was 3 she also liked to stick beads up her nose. One night as she was lying in bed she stuck one way up there and couldnt get it out.  Daniel and I both tried to get it, but we were only pushing it further up her nasal cavity. So Daniel took her to the urgent care before we did some major damage. The dr described to Daniel a little object out of the nose trick and walah- the bead came out. I have used this trick a few more times in our years of toddlers discovering those holes in  their noses. All one has to do is hold the opposite nostril closed with one finger and blow as hard as you can into their mouth with your own and walah- you get the object and a few boogers flying your way.

How does a mother survive the grossness factor of it all?