March
It has been madness, with the COVID-19 pandemic, stores shelves have been empty, J ran a fever so Daddy has been working from home, homeschooling, social distancing, and all the changes to life we have made to help slow the spread of the virus, sure has made me grateful for what I did have. I struggle the most with staying home all day, and go stir crazy at least once a day. J is a champ and so self motivated that I don’t have a hard time with homeschooling to much (that is after I finally got emails from his teacher telling me what to do). However, L wants to do school too and has been a pill about doing her chores, trying to manage both, is when I start to want to pull out my hair. I think part of it is she misses her mom time when J would be at school. LL is pretty good, still not sleeping through the night and has 6 teeth. We wen to the aquarium with my sisters family before the madness ensued and had a great time. L was enchanted by the mermaid they had and J actually wanted to touch the animals this time
February
What a fun month! We started off with a group date with my near-by siblings at an escape room and even though we didn’t make it out is was sure fun to hang out with that crew and have a night just adults. We then had a second date when we dropped the kids off at my parents so we could go look at an open house for a owner builder program we have been considering to help us get into a house. Afterwards we went to Morty’s my favorite hamburger place. With so many dates we didn’t up doing anything for Valentines Day but J and Dad made his first box, he wanted a robot at first but changed his mind when he say the shark. He did his first book report on hammer head sharks and they have been a favorite ever since. We also went to the Ice Castles in Midway, something I have wanted to do forever! It was so warm I would have thought is was spring, we went up for most of the day and picnicked, it was so warm. We loved the cool ice structure. It was a lot of money and was pretty crowded but I enjoyed it and so did my family, now I don’t need to envy others going any more. Later we went to Antelope island with my brother and J learned his cousins “I did it” pose. It was good to get out and do a little hiking.
January
I love this little one. She loves animal crackers, her siblings, BOOKs, taking baths, being outside, playing hide and seek, has a mind of her own to her siblings dismay, and is a cuddler. Others tell me how easy going she is, and she is, it sometimes takes a minute but if you have a book she will just about go to anyone.She is up and walking and points at anything. My only complaint with this kid is she still won’t sleep through the night! She still wakes up 2-3 times a night and I am sure tired of it, but she usually wins us over in the morning with those grins of hers.
Happy New year! because everyone was still sick we celebrated at home and didn’t get too exciting. I did have these left over pops and the kids thought that was fun. With the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints having a new children and youth program we did goals and will hopefully do better and be more Christ like. Everyone was finally done being sick and the kids have been waiting to play in the snow for a while. J requested for weeks to go sledding and build a snowman and have a snowball fight.
December
Christmas was filled with blessings we went to see the Christmas village downtown Ogden. Being part of the Primary Presidency I was in charge of helping putting on the wards Christmas party. It was a new experience for me and I was glad I got the job of poinsettias because I am not as type A as I thought because my talented primary pres and counselors showed me how to take it to the next level. We didn’t get to go to anything beyond that because J got sick followed by Jami who developed into a sinus infection and we missed out on ARWs Christmas party (I had even bought a new dress for it)
I love this little girl of mine. She completed my desire for frills and ruffle bums. LJ is a sweat heart to boot, she is willing to share and give up a toy if it will make you happy. She loves sleeping in, and is a major cuddlier, she loves pink and purple, mac and cheese, and she used to be very easily manipulated by candy. She is clever and often knows just how to hit moms buttons (we have a electrical outlet with a reset button on the counter and I had told her not to play with it, the whole rest of the month I heard “I’m pushing the button you told me not to”). Jameson is her favorite play mate and she usually wants to do anything he does. She loves Umizoomi and wearing princess dresses (usually her non Sunday dresses). I was shocked when her nursery leader told me she hardly talks because I can never get her to stop. I was trying one time, so I could concentrate, so I “SSSHHH”ed her, all it would do is make her whisper at me.
November
November slowed I bit or maybe it just looks like it because I took less photos, maybe because I had three, yes three callings. Which I was grateful for. I have been struggling with being a stay at home mom, feeling like I could do more, be more. Especially in church, so when they called me as a primary teacher and asked if I would still do scouts I said yes and then a few weeks later they asked if I would be in the primary presidency, I said yes, then I told them I would keep doing scouts (because it ends in January and it takes I a lot of training) and I would still teach my class until they could get someone new called (it took them a while…). Anyways I loved being busy, so much so that I signed up for school and will get my second BS in nursing. I loved going to the aquarium I went with just me and the kids and it was refreshing to just be us, I could take the time I wanted and enjoy it without the stress of other people. LL is so funny in the pic below, I walk J to school and put this suit on her, its a little small and the first time I put it on I thought “oh dear, she can’t move. lol just like in the A Christmas Movie”
October
Busy Busy bees. I canned peaches and LL loved the fresh peaches. I also am scouts and it was Pinewood derby time, Jami wanted to do it with the kids as the scout program was ending with the church so he did one with the kids. I hosted the Robertson family Halloween party and stressed about it, but really like my witches brew table. I let the kids help me make spider bowls and they loved it. I also made the Bat garland and tried but failed a pom-pom garland (pinterest you lair!) we also did the pumpkin walk with Grandma up in Logan, craved pumpkins at LeeAnn’s, went to a recreational farm with Beth and did our first corn maze, and that doesn’t include all the trick-or-treat activities with the wards and neighbors.
I have been wanting to take more photos of my family, I want to take better pictures of my family, I want my blog to look like my sisters and sister-in-laws, I want a lot. So I took a photography class and I asked if I could borrow my father-in-laws camera. Because just because I want it doesn’t mean it was meant to be and 500 dollars for a camera I may or may not ever use was a hard want. SO here is me trying to make my wants a reality
Jameson has this half smile he has been working on that reminds me of my dad and I am ever so grateful for my mother-in-law to come help me and loaning us Doug’s camera
MY PUMPKIN BABY!!!! I love these photos so much all my kids have a pic in a pumpkin, but poor LL was probably the one who has had it the coldest. None the less I love them
September
My parents spoiled my kids and me and took us out to lunch and took my kids to the tree house museum. We got to go tour the fire station open house and the kids got to pretend being a firefighter and ride in the trucks. Fun memory, J had just had a field trip to the fire station and was so upset that other mothers were going and that I was not there to go with him. He cried so much they called me and left a message stating that I could meet him there. When I got the message I panicked thinking that I had signed up to go and had forgotten (but I hadn’t). I got there just in time to walk him home. He was so upset that I have to prep him that I am not coming on the field trip but told him I would help with some parties.
Jami and Tawnya 