We Are Family....

my brothers and my sisters and me!

(I don't know if those are the words, but that's how I sing it)

Phew! This week went MUCH better than the last 2 and I'm feeling very happy about that. I think it helps to get out of the house sometimes. We made it to both the zoo and Jumpin' Jack's. The boys got their energy out and were nice and tired those afternoons. They've been sleeping past 6 am, too. My flowers look like they might make it and I haven't had to clean up pee off the floor. I'm so grateful my heavenly father is helping me be more patient and loving with my boys. Yay for answered prayers!

Aren't my 3 little ones just adorable?!!

Ruby's first illness

This is my sick baby with watery eyes, a deep cough, and losing her voice. Despite the sickness she's remained a happy girl. Ruby is ALWAYS happy and smiley and adds so much to our home already.

Saturday she had a cough, then had a hard time sleeping that night from about 1 am on. So after such a rough week I threw in the towel and called for reinforcements. My dad quickly came over and took the boys for the day - even to church with them - and they stayed through the night and the next day, too.

I'm so grateful for family who are willing to help me in a time of need! Getting that little break gave me time to figure out what to do with the discipline problems here at home. We made some plans and things have been a lot better this week. Having had a classroom of 6 year olds to discipline, I know things will get easier, but it's hard to see it with my own kids! I have faith that one day I won't have to watch their every move - it's so exhausting!!!

a lack of attention

I guess Sam's finally had it with the lack of attention around here (as if he doesn't get any). All week he's been difficult and today was no exception. I didn't even want to get up this morning...at 5 am with both boys. So when they went outside with Elton to do chores I had a special prayer and scripture session because I KNEW I wouldn't make it through the day without some extra help.

Then I remembered the scripture in Doctrine and Covenants about reproving with sharpness. You know - the one that says to reprove "betimes" with sharpness if you follow it up with extra love. I opened my scriptures, not knowing where it was and after a couple random page turns I got right to it! D&C 121: 43 (but 41-42 work here, too) spoke right to my heart. I didn't want to get mad any more. And I definitely didn't want to hurt my kids. But this reiterated to me that it's okay to get mad, when needed, if I show an increase of love afterwards.

So, my day went better. I was more positive. I loved my kids all morning. I loved my kids all through lunch time. I layed down with my kids for naptime and 45 minutes later they were still bouncing off the walls.

This is where it REALLY got hard. One flat of flowers was removed from the beds twice, my couch peed on twice (that must be his magic number :), plus other various acts that caused me to cry. I went downstairs and got Elton because I was afraid I wouldn't show much love with my reproving of this behavior. He came and got him, with Sam smiling that his dad was not working, but giving him some attention. I wish I could say that helped and the day got better, but this is real life here and there's no happy ending, yet....

I'm so grateful for the guidance I received this morning! I just wish I could have followed it all day. Any ideas? What's worked for you? What do you think might work with 3 kids under 3?!!

Wednesday, June 23

Ruby's almost 2 months old now and the boys are officially 3 and 1 1/2. It was such a fun day, I thought I needed to record some of the highlights.

Wake up call at 5:30
Flowers and vegies removed from their respective gardens. All dirt dumped from pots
3 eggs found under a nesting chicken and 2 of those eggs tossed on porch by Sam
Porcelain star broken from slammed door
More flowers removed in front
Bites taken out of multiple plums, then stuck back in fruit basket by John
Bananas ransacked and smashed throughout the kitchen and all over both boys
Nap interrupted. Lasted less than an hour
Bath water spilled and covered entire floor during an afternoon bath
Fridge and kitchen floor peed on by Sam
Poop found in toilet by John
1 ibuprofen found randomly placed on a high shelf in the kitchen, then sucked on and spit out by Sam
Bites into arms, hands, and finers of a certain little brother for the first time

Then there's the daily stuff, like all the toys dumped on the floor and left out, couch cushions and pillows pulled off MANY times, the decor pulled off the walls and piano, the "no's" from a defiant 3 year old, the teasing and hitting that precursed the crying, and all the chair-pushing to investigate the counter.

I was ready to throw in the towel, but then we got to go witness a young boy be sealed to his parents for time and all eternity in the Oquirrh Mountain temple. That experience gave me back the right perspective. Sure, kids can give me a run for my money and make me want to pull every hair out of my head. But in the long run I'm sure I'll miss these days and laugh at what they did. After all, we're a family forever. Nothing's going to stop us from being apart. And while I wish I had a few moments to myself sometimes, I'm so darn glad I will get these guys with me for eternity!

100th post and {not so} grand opening!

With how often I DON'T write, I can hardly believe I've made it to the 100th post. I'm not the best writer, but it's been fun posting about our daily activities and accomplishments. To celebrate this wondrous occasion, I'm announcing the opening of my own little Etsy shop, "pocket full of daisies".

It's nothing grand, but has given me a chance to do what I love during those few precious moments when children are sleeping. I hope it will pay for many more crafting opportunities :)

Here it is, (drumroll, please)....

http://www.maisiedaisy.etsy.com/

selling little boy stuff, plus other goodies.

Stay tuned, I'll be doing an apron giveaway soon for apronfest to get the word out about my new shop. If you get a chance to look at my shop and have any suggestions, let me know your feedback. I need all the help I can get!

the sweet life

So, not too long ago I posted about my 30 day no-sugar challenge. When I was single I often pushed myself to go a week or two without sugar. Why is it that now that I have kids I have no willpower for this stuff??? I did it for 4 days, then went camping with the Swanson's and sat around looking at all kinds of sweets and caved in. I came back and started up again, but realized I need to do more than go 30 days with no sugar. That's not really a lifestyle change. I know I can't give up sugar for the rest of my life. What I need is to eat less sugar every day from here on out. So that's why I've started little changes. Like keeping lots of fruit around for some of those sweet cravings. And cutting the sugar in half for some of my everyday recipes. (Guess what? They're actually still good with less sugar!)

I'm a bum. I couldn't finish the challenge. Am I rationalizing things by taking this new twist? Yes, but for me I think it's a better change. One that will last.

what I've been up to lately

These past few months I have tried to squeeze in time for one of the things I love - crafting - and this is what I came up with. It happens to all be sewing, but one of these days I'll get to the scrapbooks, too! My super mom made us travel bags when we were kids, so I knew Sam needed one, too, for our long drive to California. Then I thought he ought to have a smaller version for waiting rooms, church, and such.

A little girl's apron.

I know I don't have one to wear it, but I thought it'd be fun to make. See the coordinating mom's apron.

Coordinating mother's apron. I love the colors and the flower. Sorry the lighting is so bad in these photos!

Little boy's pirate apron. I've looked and looked for cute, boyish things, and finally decided that I need to make them myself. This is one of the ideas I've been excited about. Do you think it needs a pirate guy or treasure chest???

Sam's bed quilt. It was my first try at machine quilting. I learned a couple things: use the spray adhesive for quilting and start in the middle. I messed it all up and just don't have the heart to start over after how many days this took. The next one will be better :)

Sam moved from the crib to a toddler bed and didn't have blankets large enough for the bed, so I made this. Now he's in a regular twin and this doesn't fit. I guess I just can't win!

Big view of our growth chart. I wanted it out of fabric so it could easily go from place to place and be taken down when they're older (but still could be pulled out to update it and see how they've grown).

Close-up view of our growth chart. I love the bright colors and lettering.

{no} sugar, anyone?

I was recently inspired by a friend. She went 100 DAYS without sugar! Now, I know I could do 100 seconds. Probably could go 100 minutes. Maybe I could push myself to go 100 hours. Most likely NEVER 100 days!!! Nevertheless, it was inspiring. So, I thought I'd try to go 30 days without sugar. Does anyone else want to start this journey with me? I thought I'd start Monday the 20th and go until August 18.

The rules would be not to eat anything with sugar among the top ingredients; no baked goodies, treats, and such. Fruits would be fine, 'cause they have natural sugars. I've actually done this a week or two at a time before and really felt good physically and mentally. We eat so much sugar in this country, it's a wonder we don't ALL have twitchy limbs. I know this is just what I need. And, as a side note, maybe I'll lose some of this old baby weight at the same time :)

my favorite place

This is my favorite place. Well, not this exact one (it's the Oquirrh Mountain Temple, to open this summer), but spending time in temples is my favorite thing to do. I love the feeling I have while I'm there.
So peaceful and happy.
Like I can do anything.
And I know I'm a daughter of God.

My recommend expired recently, so I had my interview to get it renewed. But shortly thereafter I had John and completely forgot to get the second interview. I just remembered and went this week and noticed that 3 months had passed! That's at least 3 months since I last went to my favorite place. So I've decided I have to make more effort to get a babysitter and go. With all the stress and hurry in our lives, I know we're blessed with so much when we do.

I've heard things lately on the news about controversy over a show about the temple. I don't know the details, but I know God has a plan and nothing can thwart it. His house will continue to be His house and I will continue to feel good when I go. And I will continue to be blessed when I do.

things that make me happy

(OR, what I'm grateful for)

a clean house

playing with Sam

feeling John move

chocolate

tacos

coconut shrimp

a smile

hanging with Elton

nature

peaceful walks

camping

fresh homemade bread

old movies

being with family

the gospel of Jesus Christ

(great Plan of Happiness)

eternal families

going to the temple

scriptures

I could go on and on! But it's late and I need some sleep :) It makes me happy just to list them! What makes you happy?

I was tagged

The directions were to take pictures of things as they are at the moment, without cleaning up.1. my kitchen sink
2. me, first thing in the morning :)
3. my closet. uh, were the doors supposed to be open? that would be too scary to share!
4. my favorite pair of shoes. again, were there supposed to be shoes? 'cause i don't like shoes - barefoot is my favorite!
5. my bed, somewhat made
6. my fridge (have you noticed Sam popping in my pictures? "Where's Waldo?" in pic #4)

7. and Sam looking at his daddy, working with the cheese

scrapbook crazy!

For those of you who scrapbook, you know how easy it is to go crazy at a sale. For other people it's clothes. Lucky for me that all 14 of these items cost $50 instead of double that. Elton took Sam and I ran off to Centerville this morning to collect my stash.

Included in my loot:

*halloween scrapbook page kit (222 pcs)

*halloween line art stickers (81 stickers)

*holiday magnetic stamp sayings (42 rubber stamps)

*holiday paint set (3 paints)

*childhood shimmer kit (6 bottles glitter)

*black & white jigsaw shapes (52 pcs)

*animal crackers 8x8 album kit (122 pcs)

*animal crackers epoxy shapes (30 pcs)

*animal crackers felt shapes (30 pcs)

*animal crackers velvet brads (20 pcs)

*5th avenue blossoms & buttons (160 pcs)

*vellum star tags (12 tags)

*journaling stamps (7 stamps)

*classic mixed alpha stamps (69 stamps)

Not too bad, huh? I'm so excited to get to work now! Thanks for listening to me ramble with the details :) Now I'm just waiting for their new Slice cutter to come out and hoping it won't be as much as the Cricut! Check out whyslice.com to see what I'm talking about.

here we are, in NYC

Although you can't see it, the Empire State Building is behind us. We got here VERY late last night after a crazy taxi ride to our hotel. I was about half a second from throwing up in the cab when I looked up and saw the familiar Hilton sign. So I put my head between my legs and took some deep breaths while Elton paid. Thank goodness that passed! I thought I was going to be sick for our entire vacation.

Today we walked all over, saw protesters outside the UN building and lots of shiny, black vehicles with dark tinted windows and flags from around the world in their windows. We went to Grand Central Station, used the subway, went to Rockefeller Center, got manicures & pedicures, and ate authentic Korean food. Then we got frozen yogurt with mangoes at NYC's popular Pink Berry. Yum!

So, that's what we're up to and where we're at this week. Thanks to my mom, Mel, and Laur, we were able to leave Sam at home and while Elton works, I go out and play with his boss's wife :) We're having fun!

the harvest

Yay! This summer I've had the wonderful pleasure of canning 53 jars of yummy stuff! (Okay, I'm being a bit sarcastic here) We planted a small garden which grew many pounds of tomatoes, plus we have some fruit trees and grape vines that have been very abundant. Needless to say, in order to not waste what we have, I have had to do some canning. I've never done it alone before, and only seen it done a couple times, so this has been a big task. So far this is what's been collected:

22 jars of tomatoes
14 jars of grape juice (with Grandma Jo's help)
4 plum jam
4 "blue straw boys" jam (blueberry-strawberry-boysenberry)
3 blueberry syrup
3 peaches
3 pears, with many more awaiting the canning process

So that's what I've been up to lately. Anyone jealous?

pondering with the vacuum

Have you ever done something because you thought it was what you were supposed to do and not because it was what you would typically do? Many times throughout my life I have faced this situation and it's been good for me. But as I was vacuuming today, I was thinking that maybe since I married I've done a lot of things just because I thought I was supposed to do them. I often do what I do because I think that's how a wife and, now, mother should act.

I'm now realizing that sometimes doing this detracts from my own unique self. It hides who I really am. Take this blog, for example, it's green and brown because I thought a gal with a family of 3 guys should display her family with some masculinity. But after my thoughts today, I think I'm going to change the style to exactly what I want it to be (as much as I can with the computer skills I have :)

And as far as other things go in my home, I'm going to lighten up and try to be the self I spent 29 years finding. Who makes the rules for what a wife and mother is supposed to do, anyway?

50 random things about me

Okay, so everyone else is doing it, so I ought to, too. Right? Here we go!

1. I don't like attention
2. I can't go out of town and leave a messy house behind
3. but I don't mind leaving dishes undone if I'm at home
4. I use soap or conditioner when I shave
5. I've organized my craft room several times, but only have actually made a few crafts in it
6. I usually worry about dinner all day - what I'll cook, when to start....
7. I enjoy cooking (most of the time :)
8. I work with the Miamaids in my ward
9. I have to get 8 hours of sleep, minimum, even when I'm not pregnant
10. I don't exercise any more and I'm realizing that I actually miss it!
11. I like to craft, but I'm not good at coming up with my own ideas
12. I have a horrible memory - but it always comes back to me sometime later (terrible for tests!)
13. I hardly use any toothpaste when I brush
14. When I make oatmeal cookie dough, it never makes it to the oven
15. I like to organize things
16. Elton is my best friend
17. One of my friends and I have known each other for 21 years!
18. I hate to dance
19. but I've danced in 3 musicals
20. I taught myself how to sing through great ward choir directors
21. I hate the phone and don't like to make phone calls - I even have a hard time calling family, although I think of them often
22. I have the 5 greatest siblings ever!
23. and hope to have my kids close in age, just like we are
24. As much as I enjoyed first grade, I love being a homemaker
25. Once I start a book, I can't put it down until it's finished
26. I don't like to do the "in" thing - like see or read what everyone else is
27. I love "Ever After" and have watched it dozens of times
28. I like to read juvenile fiction, books by the prophets, and children's books
29. I own hundreds of children's books and still could buy more
30. I don't pay the bills or even know how much money is coming in or out - I just know my own budget for the month and generally where other money is going (I could look if I wanted to)
31. When I got married, it was hard for me to give up that "chore" of bookkeeping
32. I'm VERY conservative
33. I have a membership to the Thanksgiving Point Gardens - they're gorgeous!
34. The temple is my very favorite place
35. I've traveled out of the country 3 times - twice to El Salvador and once to Italy
36. I tried milking our cow once, but Elton felt bad for the cow and stopped me
37. I don't mind that Elton butchers my little rabbits unless he tells me before he does it. Weird, huh?!
38. I've eaten rattlesnake and crocodile (or was it alligator?)
39. I'm excited to learn how to can my own produce
40. I don't know how to pick gifts for people and it TOTALLY stresses me out
41. I love to say "I love you" (although I'm embarassed to tell a lot of people)
42. I hope to move to Idaho some day
43. I love fruit
44. Tacos are my favorite dinner and I always request it for my birthday (even though Sarah says she started requesting it first!)
45. I love the outdoors
46. I don't like to spend money
47. I played the violin for 10 years
48. I love feeling the baby move inside me when I'm pregnant - unless it's my ribs
49. I'd like to be good at making bread
50. I don't like to be better at something than anyone else

I can't believe I thought of 50 things! Hope they were an interesting read :)

Does anyone know who this is?

We have received 3 letters addressed to "Jennifer Crime" in the past couple of weeks.

With my maiden name I rarely had misprononciations or weird spellings. But the last 4 years I've heard many renditions of my last name. This is a new one and quite funny!

Trek

Whew! We made it safely through the 35+ miles through the rugged terrain of eastern Utah! We were only supposed to go 29, but our leaders failed to recognize that GPS miles don't include the ups and downs, twists, and turns of the trails we were following. Despite the extra footwork, it was a great experience and I think the youth really got something out of it - evenif all they learned was to pull over because their "ma" was sick of running after them with quarter-size blisters on her feet (I feel bad I had to get on them about that. After half our group went the wrong way, they ran back to pass everyone and get to the front. I caught up to them and stopped them 1 handcart short of their goal :)

I'm still a bit nauseous, so I assume baby is fine. My feet are healing. I'm catching up on my sleep. And I feel closer to my Heavenly Father and his Son for having gone. What more can I ask for?!!

Getting busy

Well I'm finally feeling better after I asked Elton for a priesthood blessing and my sweet brother, Dave, helped him. Lately it feels like all I've done is sit and be nauseous! So now I really have to get in gear. I signed up for an apron swap before I knew I was pregnant and the deadline was yesterday, so I worked on the apron and notebook this weekend.

Now I'm just swamped getting ready for our Pioneer Trek at the end of the week. I'm really excited, but nervous. We're meeting at 5:15 am, driving an hour and a half, then getting out and hiking until after dark. At that point we'll have to use our flashlights to put up our tarp "tents", look for our sleeping bags that will be thrown in with the entire stake, make a fire and cook dinner. Oh, then we will have a devotional. I'm imagining we won't even get to bed until close to midnight. I sure hope my pregnant body can handle that! But I guess I really shouldn't worry. Heavenly Father will step in if I have the right attitude :) And for any of you who are worried for me, I'm not going to pull the handcart, so I just have to worry about walking 29 miles in 3 days (a snap after all the strenuous hikes I've been on!....except now it's 3 years and 3 kids later....) It's all good! I'll tell all about it next week :)

How many of YOU are there?

This was on a friend's blog and I thought I'd pass it on. Interesting, huh!?!

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 14 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?