gingerbread

I think probably the tradition my kids look forward to the most is gingerbread houses.  Yeah, it's pretty obvious it's their favorite.  Here are some pictures from the fun night!

Layla's:

  

McKay's:

Ellery's:

festival of trees 2013

We had fun going to the Festival of Trees with the Allreds and Roylances.  My kids look forward to this tradition every year.  We tried to re-explain that the reason for the event- fundraising for the hospital- and re-emphasize that it's not just to gawk at sad stories.  They're getting it.

McKay's favorite- Real Salt Lake.  He's a bit of a fan. 

The girls and I heard princesses singing Christmas songs and so we ditched a few aisles of trees and watched grown women dressed up as princesses dance to princess Christmas music.  Could there be anything better up on that stage?  No.  It was captivating and they loved it.

Layla had a soft spot for the little trees and asked me to photograph her in front of several.  

Also, this is what she looked like before we left the house.  Mascara, applied by three year old.  

thoughts on a sunday

• Ahh- I am trying to go through my pictures from the last couple months and I feel like it would take me about 5 hours to upload, organize, edit and then put on this blog.  I can't handle it.  Why do I take so many pictures?  It's so hard to delete them, but a lot of them aren't good.  Actually, I don't take very many pictures with my camera anymore- although I am trying to do that more, but I take about a million with my phone.  So...

• So right now I am just going to write some things, and then just worry about pictures when I have five hours to spare.  Which is never...

• We had a great Christmas and I am planning on doing a Christmas post, you know, with all that time I'm gonna find.  But for now I will say that I really enjoyed having a Christmas where all my kids got/wanted were toys.  I know that soon it will be clothes and electronics, so I reminded myself to be happy about a Christmas filled with only toys.  

• I did tell Brian that I think I want to get a Wii next year for Christmas.  We have said that we'd wait as long as we could before getting one, if we ever even did get one.  And this year I looked at my son and I thought, "why?"  He lives in a time where video games are so normal that we are super weird for not having one.  That doesn't bother me at all.  What I realized, though, is why should I try to keep it away from our home, why not just teach him the appropriate way to live with video games?  Right?  I don't know what I'm talking about, obviously I don't have much experience in this area.  

• Maybe I'm saying this because its winter and I hate winter and I've had McKay in my house for two weeks straight now in winter and I don't know how we are going to survive.  That might have something to do with it.

• McKay got pinkeye the week before Christmas break.  He missed three days of school.  Then he had a week off for Christmas, now we are looking at another week off until school starts again.  I love my son so much- like just a ton- but oh my gosh he is exhausting!  He is constantly asking what the plan is, what are we doing, can we do this, can we call them, can we invite them to dinner, can't we go here- all. the. time.  This, combined with the fact that since he was an infant he has not been able to entertain himself very well, has been quite the combination for his mother.  Thank goodness he can read.  

• He does love to play with friends and cousins and watch movies and play nerf stuff and kinda likes legos and of course i-pad and computer time.  We have been working on using his brain to figure things out and be creative and to think up interesting things to do, instead of just having something right there in front of him like a friend or a screen.  This is really hard for him and sometimes I feel like I could have been helping him work on this skill a lot more than I have.  It's really hard for him.  

• This also makes me feel bad that he doesn't have a brother right under him to be his buddy all the time.  If ever there was a boy who needed a brother- older or younger- he might be it.  Gotta trust in the plan for our family though, and be grateful that McKay recognizes that he has a cool dad who is his buddy.

• Okay, enough about that.  We saw Frozen in the movie theatre...twice.  We are all pretty much totally in love and obsessed with it.  We have watched the music videos online a million times and sing the songs constantly.  My girls have been freezing everything and everyone in sight and McKay may or may not have a crush on one of the princesses.  I'm not telling, because he would kill me.  We love it.  

• At Walmart last night I saw some blue velvet dresses on clearance and they reminded me of the princess in Frozen.  I bought my girls one and they wore them to bed that night.  I had to do some serious convincing to have Layla not wear it to church.  They are cute girls.
• Brian has had a crummy work schedule since Christmas.  He's been working long and hard and I miss him being around.  He had the week before Christmas off, which was nice.  But then on the 26th it was back to it.  

• When I say crummy I feel like my mom.  If I said, "Oh crumb!" then I would really feel like her.

• When I was little I do not remember knowing much about New Years Eve.  I don't think I got to celebrate it at the actual time until I was in late elementary school.  So how is it that as soon as Christmas ends, my kids start planning and getting excited to stay up until midnight?  How did this happen to us?  I don't even know what to say.

• I have a new favorite song.  It's one that I heard years ago for the first time- sung in our Orem ward by Brother Manookin- and then more recently at a relief society activity in this ward.  I will try to link it...here.  Did it work?  I am super in love with it.  This is the best version I found online.  I wish very much that I could sing this beautifully to myself.

• I don't really know when it's a good time to bring up Ellery's corn.  I wouldn't ever, except that Brian had a dream, which I interpreted to be exclusively about Ellery's corn, so then it made me think it's worth recording if it's worth having a dream about.  Or nightmare?  He said he was so relieved to wake up and find out that Ellery did not have three eyes (aka, a corn) and it was the most realistic dream he can remember.  

• So a few months ago a plantars wart showed up on the bottom of Elle's foot.  I took her right in to the doctor as soon as I noticed it because I did not want to mess around with warts.  The dr. told me he would be aggressive with it and scrape it out.  So he did and this was pretty traumatizing for Ellery.  But it was done and he told us that should take care of it and we were happy.  Well, I don't know what I'd rather deal with- that wart, or what came next.  A few weeks after the wart came off, we noticed a really round, hard spot where the wart had been.  I thought it came back, so back we went to the doctor.  He was a bit mystified, as it had no wart tissue in it- and called it a corn (or callous if we don't want to sound 80 years old.  But somehow the name corn stuck and that's what we call it.)  He was kind of vague about this corn and said file it down occasionally and it would just be there...I guess.  Well, the corn got bigger and taller and I have not shown my disgust in front of my daughter- she's actually quite okay with her corn, proud even?- but it got even more disgusting than ever.  And that is where this story ends.  

• We are going back to a dermatologist or foot doctor soon- this corn is too major for that little pediatrician.  We gotta get someone who knows exactly how to handle corns.  I will keep you updated...

• The corn has not stopped Ellery from using her favorite Christmas gift- the Skip-It.  She loves it and skip-jumps all around the wood floor.  I didn't even know Santa was going to bring it to her- must have been a last minute decision- but a good one!

• She also got a dream lite which is a stuffed animal that shines colored star lights on the ceiling and walls in a dark room.  How did she not have one of these already.  Right up her alley- she loves it, and so does Layla.  They put the little ladybug in the middle of their room and agree on a color for the night and fall asleep to the stars.  It's pretty sweet.

• Layla has developed the sweetest new form of affection.  When close to her, she absentmindedly tickles/strokes the underside of my chin.  She does it to Brian too, and I'd imagine anyone else she loves who is holding her.  She started doing this a month or so ago, but now she does it almost all the time that I'm holding her.  I love this so much I can't even explain it.

• Okay, I think that's all for now- I'm gonna go work on some pictures.  

Happy Sunday

ollie

The first week of December Grammy and Poppy went on vacation and so we got to dog sit Ollie for a week.  The kids, especially Ellery, had been looking forward to it for a long time.  

We were lucky enough that it was warm enough for a couple days that we could walk him to school.  I have come to learn that pretty much the most important thing about having a pet is showing them off.  So this walking thing worked out nicely for my kids.  Ellery brought him to her line.  Those kindergartners went crazy.

Ollie and Zeek hit it off right away.  

The kids had fun playing with Ollie...but honestly lost interest after a couple days.  I felt bad for him a lot of the time, like I had to entertain him or he would be too bored.  I remembered that was a feeling I didn't like when we first got him.  It's just...they are always there.  Like all the time.  And he followed me around everywhere- which I kind of loved, and then it also kind of tired me out.  I never got tired of him following me down to the basement though- I love having a buddy for that.  

I found myself outside at night playing with him because he had been cooped up for hours at a time when we'd been out.  Again, liked playing with him because he's such a spazz, but hated having to worry about him getting out and running around.  

He was really good though- such a sweet dog- and except for the chewing, he was easy enough to have around.  We lost a few figurines- Ursula, Randall from Monsters Inc, and a wiseman from our fisher price nativity.  He's sneaky and all the sudden there would be little plastic bits all over the place and Ursula would be gone.  

It makes complete sense to me now when people say that the mother needs to want to the dog more than anybody else.  That is true.  I was happy to have a week with him, but happy to bring him home to his old parents who really, really love him.  

We'll dog sit any time though- that I can handle.

love, change, etc...

This whole family-history-keeping thing is funny.  For some time now recording our life has seemed like a chore and something that nags at me a little bit.  I have been good to myself though, and not allowed much guilt to come from not doing my chores.  But then every so often, when I haven't done it in awhile, I get a different feeling about it.  A heavy, almost pressurized feeling that if I don't write and record some things, I might just explode.

That's how I feeling right now.  I guess its great that happens to me.

I sit here writing, not knowing exactly what will come of this post.  I do know that a post about my children- each of them individually- is long overdue and if I don't write those thoughts down about them, I will not feel release.  But not tonight.

Tonight I might want to write about how much I love my husband.  That's one of a few subjects that I don't usually write about very much.  I have been thinking about how young we were when we got married.  We were.  And thinking about how when I was that young, I thought I would for sure have everything all figured out by the time I was in my thirties.  Thirties seemed SO old.  Now here we are.  And we definitely don't have it all figured out.  But I think back to ten years ago...even six years ago...and realize that there is a whole lot that we have learned.

It's interesting to me though, how you can still learn things about each other that you never knew.  And you can learn things about yourself that you never, ever saw before.  I think I am doing a lot of that lately.  Learning things about myself.  Some of them are good, some are not very favorable to me, but exposing those things and learning from the things you learned about yourself is a good thing.

A lot of times when I am driving in the car these realizations will hit me.  Often times they are in regards to prayers I have been praying and I know they are my answers.  Learning things you need to change.  Most are too personal for me to be comfortable sharing, but one I have been learning continually lately (so thankful that Heavenly Father is patient with me when I can be so slow in changing myself) is that I have a problem with being judgmental.  I know I am not the only person to struggle with this, yet I also have been able to see the ugliness in myself in a new way- making me realize I need to change.  I am learning over and over again that everyone has struggles.  I pass judgments sometimes that are rude and terrible, and then find out a key fact or piece of information that changes my heart to the situation completely.  I am trying to tell myself to not judge because there will always be information that I don't know.  I cannot judge fairly, so I should not judge at all.

Sometimes I get these huge epiphany's though and then it's hard to actually put change into action.  It's hard to change.

Now I haven't even written about how much I love Brian, which was my original intent.  I guess why I got from Brian to change to ugliness to being judgmental is because there are things I am realizing in regards to me being a wife that need to change.

I have a friend who had a personal motto in her marriage of saving their best for when he got home from work.  It's a great motto, isn't it?  She refused to have her or her husband treat everyone they were around all day better than they treated each other when the day was winding down.  Save your best self for your family.  I like this.  I would like to do better at this.  Sometimes when you are so comfortable with someone, it is hard to give them your best.

*wrote this without finishing it completely, and decided to publish it anyway.

merry christmas

Our 2013 Christmas Card.  

laysie daisy sweet and crazy - pics of layla late 2013

there's a girl I know and love

always up for lots of hugs

playing gives her so much joy

plays a lot with neighbor boys

snuggles sweet with crazy hair

but a smile is always there

loves to learn and help mom out

can be funny and silly and shout

"zumba" at the church a lot

momma's shower buddy tot

a tough time we've seen with three

but sisters can play happily

this girl is my sweet lil' baby

though sometimes the sweet is maybe

layla is a joy in life

worth the crying and the strife

love this little laysie girl

she's a treasure, she's a pearl.

ellie bellie sweet as jellie - pics of ellery late 2013

the best snuggler of the bunch
likes to eat "tias" for lunch

dance, gym, choreograph

always one up for a laugh

if you need her, she will go

happy playing in the snow

always perched here- it's her spot

loving babies- holding rock

stuffed friends are her favorite toy

skiing with dad brought lots of joy

she's our little ellie girl
sweetest sister, what a pearl

mack jack is a cool cat - pics from late 2013

Soccer fan

Scooter man

talent in those finger tips

cutie boy with sweetie lips

sports obsessed, just a tad

always wants to watch with dad

green dragon playing hard

good at spelling and flash cards

little mack is always busy

sometimes makes his parents dizzy

but life wouldn't be complete

with out this kid, he's pretty neat.

thoughts on a sunday

• Today McKay fasted for the first time.  Brian and I wanted to do a family home evening lesson on fasting before we encouraged him to fast, and somehow that took us three months to do.  We would forget and then fast Sunday would come and we just didn't feel like he could fast without a purposeful discussion with us about it.  So last week we finally did it.  I used an object lesson that the kids loved and I hope they always remember.  I gave them a spoonful of peanut butter and talked about how that represented fasting.  It tasted good and it was a nice thing to have.  Then I gave them a chocolate chip and told them it represented prayer.  They ate the chocolate chips and thought it was delicious.  I talked about how fasting, or going without eating, is  not a bad thing- it's good to learn self control and to give up food, and that it's following a commandment.  And prayer is good on its own too- just like chocolate.  Chocolate/prayer can be used with many other things to make it even better.  Just like putting peanut butter and chocolate together is even more delicious than the two of them on their own, adding prayer to fasting makes it that much better.  They were totally into it and I love when that happens in a FHE lesson, because it usually doesn't.

• I did not come up with that idea.  I wish I had.  Being creative is so easy thanks to the internet.  Sometimes that can be a bad thing.  Moving on... 

• So back to McKay.  Today was the day he fasted!  Ellery insisted on joining it too- and decided to fast for Brian's cousin Jeni, who is dying of cancer.  Sweetest little thing, that girl.  We told McKay that we were fasting for uncle Trevor to find a job, and asked him what he'd like to fast for.  He first said Baby Rock, then finding out that Rock was doing great, he said Aunt Jaynie.  Since Jaynie is doing better too, we told him to think some more.  Finally, after a few other inapplicable suggestions, he decided to fast for Jeni.  

• It was sweet, as he was saying his personal prayers that night, he prayed for a miracle for Jeni and that she would get better and feel good.  I had to explain to him that she didn't want us to pray for a miracle- that she knew she was going to die- and that she wanted us to pray for strength, peace and comfort for her and her family during this terrible time.  It was hard for him to understand this, and hard for me to explain to my faith-filled son why he didn't need to pray for a miracle.  I hope I did a good enough explanation and that he will still believe in miracles and pray for them.  

• He is such a sweet boy.  I am feeling his goodness a lot lately.  He mentions his morning prayers and has started reading the scripture readers at night for his personal study.  Reading scriptures has never come easy for me- it takes great effort from me to make this a habit and routine in my life.  I wish it was easier.  But that makes me have more resolve to teach my children the importance of it and help them incorporate it into their routines when they are little.  And hopefully, most of the time I can also be a good example to them too.  So that's why when I see my little son get excited about reading the scriptures I am happy.  And he is excited.

• So this morning two things happened.  Ellery caved as soon as Layla's oatmeal came out of the  microwave and decided that she will postpone her fast until she is eight.  And McKay had a hint of panic in his eyes as the girls were eating.  Brian told him it was easier to not be around the food, and to go upstairs.  He did.  During sacrament meeting he was savoring each little drop of the water.  At one point he went out to go to the bathroom and before leaving asked if he could get a drink.  I left it up to him.  When he came back, he reported that he just stuck his tongue in the drinking fountain water, but did not drink it.  I can relate to that. 

• We have church at nine a.m.  What is this child going to do when it's at one?

• I'm proud of him and it was fun to teach such a basic but important Gospel principle to our boy.  

• Ellery had quite a traumatic day at church today.  All the women were in relief society today, so the men were subbing all over the place, including Ellery's primary class.  Soon after the third hour meeting started I got called into the hallway.  There stood my little Elle, in her purple dress, with tears streaming down her terrified face.  Brother Anderson stood beside her and told me that she was having a hard time without her teacher, Sister Riss.  I sat down with her and asked her why she was so scared and upset.  "I was afraid they were going to steal me." was her reply.  Hmmm.  We talked it over and decided that they definitely were not going to steal her and I sent her back into her class.  She survived.

• Brian got to sub in nursery today and hang out with Laysie Lou.  

• A couple days ago Layla was running around topless.  Upon feeling her chest, she ran up to me and said, "Mom!  My nibble- it's ruined!"  I covered those nibbles right up with a shirt.  

• There is a popular song that we like called Royal.  There is a line that says, "You can call me queen bee."  McKay has been singing it, "You can call me green bean," and was mystified upon hearing the real lyrics.  This made me laugh very hard.

• During family home evening the other night during family business, McKay raised his hand and as serious as can be said, "So my new goal is to be a BYU football player, and then play for REAL Salt Lake."  I'm glad he informed the family.

• Our manner of the week the last couple weeks has been to look people in the eye when talking to them.  Ellery has taken this completely to heart.  She is looking all sorts of people in the eye, and reminds me when I'm not looking at her.  

• We picked out a Christmas tree yesterday.  It was quite an affair.  We were this close to getting a flocked tree, but Brian wouldn't' stop going on about 1992, and so I decided it wasn't worth hearing him whine.  I did pick a sparse, layered tree that I wanted though- after some mild convincing of the kids to vote with me.  I really love the look of these trees, which I learned are called Alpine Firs, but it might not be the best tree for our ornaments.  There is a lot less room to hang things, and the branches are not as sturdy as other trees, so it was tricky to get it all to fit and to not drag it all down.  That's okay though- I still like it.  But next year we might go back to our Noble Firs.

• We are dogsitting for my parents this week.  So far, Ollie has been great, and I haven't stepped in any pee yet- so we're already doing better than the last time he was here.  Having him here brings up some emotions for me.  First, I'm remembering how confusing, embarrassing and troubling those first few days with him were.  Second, I am sad to see Ollie and McKay together because I realize that I took away something that would have been great for him.  And third, I am realizing that I think my parents love their dogs more than me.  They have called to check on him twice now, and he's only been here just over 24 hours.  

• He's a cute pup though, and they've trained him nicely.  He's very obedient and they kids are having a lot of fun with him here.  This might be the best way to have a dog- a week here and there!  I can do that!

• No pictures in this post because that takes so much time.  I just can't.

• Thanksgiving was this week.  We had a nice meal at Lisa's house.  I made green bean casserole, which I have never made before, and a pecan pie.  I enjoy making pecan pie on Thanksgiving because I really like it.  So I have made it the last three years.  I think that a lot of people are scared of pecan pie and think that they don't like it.  I used to be.  But it's good, so I will continue to make it on Thanksgiving.

• My sisters and I went shopping on Black Friday.  With many die-hard shoppers going out on Brown Thursday, Friday is quite relaxing.  Sure, we were at Smith's Marketplace at 5:30 in the morning, but there weren't crazy crowds, we didn't get trampled and we got a huge chunk of our Christmas shopping done.  I love this tradition with my sisters.  

• McKay went to the dentist this week because a filling had fallen out.  There was decay and so he had to get another silver tooth.  I feel so guilty.  Brian and Elle have been high-fiving about their "strong" teeth and I've resorted to talking about the joys of laughing gas and high-fiving over soft teeth.  We brush and floss- it's all about genetics people.  

• McKay was really funny on laughing gas.  It was a little disturbing to see him like that.  He said he was flying around the room.

• Today Brian signed up for the 50 mile trail run.  He was super excited about truly committing himself to this race.  I am nervous for the training and I think he's nuts.  I am happy that he's happy about it though.

• Brian went to South Bend, Indiana to see BYU play Notre Dame last week.  I think it was last week.  Ken, his dad, and Aunt Shauna went too.  Brian loved it- even though it was super cold- and is already planning a trip back with little Mack someday.  I was happy that he got to go do something fun with people he loves. 

I did it!  Happy Sunday.