16 Month Photos

I've been going to hire a professional photographer to take Greta's pictures for quite some time, but I'm just too cheap. {I know. I know! I'm bad.} So when Emily suggested our paint-peeling fence would make a good photo background I decided to take some myself. I'm not as happy as I would be with them if I paid someone to do it, but I guess they aren't too bad for free and a 10 minuteish shoot. (Greta wasn't super cooperative, neither was Tessa so we had to make use of the you-get-what-you-get-and-don't-throw-a-fit motto.) Here are a few of this cute little girlie. (Should have gotten the non-glare lenses, huh?)

Just a note about this outfit. . . .I bought all the components (they weren't coordinating) at Kid to Kid. The shirt was a 6-9 month. Fits fine. The skirt is a 12 month. Too big around the middle. The sweater is 12 month. However, I realized after I got it home that it is wool and had been washed and severely shrunk and thus not stretchy at. all. It was a killer to get it on and off. I'll have to be very brave to put it on her again. But it is so dang cute I'm sure I'll be tempted. I made the little flowers. I only had one for her hair but Chandler suggested one for the sweater. Perfect touch!

{{Love this little sweetie!}}

Greta's First ER Visit

We had a bad mommy moment at our house yesterday.

The kids were all busy playing hard outside so I was enjoying the quiet of just me and Greta. It was so nice. And peaceful. And relaxing. Soon Greta ventured off down the hall. She was checked on a couple of times and was found in perfectly safe and content situations. So I occupied myself with dinner making. I got a little carried away. Suddenly I remembered my stewardship and I ran down the hall to check on Greta. She had gotten into Tessa's room, which we work very hard to keep baby proof, but somehow the geomags had been left in her room. Greta thought she was in heaven! I found one of the little balls in her mouth and swiped it out. Then she shoved a little bar piece in her mouth. I immediately tried to fish it out. . . but nothing was there. I saw her put it in and I couldn't find it. How could she have swallowed a piece that size without some effort and me not notice? Yet, I saw her put it in and it was not in her mouth. I called the Dr. and he said that if we were comfortable that the brand she put in would not separate in her body (so there would not be two separate magnets inside of her that could find each other and clamp tissue together) we were okay. But if we were nervous at all, we needed to head to Primary Children's ER. OH! As that info was relayed to me, the thought came "You don't know whether she swallowed more than one." So what does one do in that situation? Err on the side of caution.

I left dinner preps in the hands of my big boys and instructed them to have FHE without us and dashed out the door and picked up Tom on the way to the hospital. Poor little Greta did not like the hospital at all. She cried at everyone. She cried with every little temperature taking and ear peeking etc. She even cried whenever the door was closed. So by the time we made it to the xray room, she was not in a happy state. Poor dear! But she made it through. And all was clear, not a single magnet in her little system. As we sighed relief, we tried to ignore the thought of the amount this adventure was going to cost! Bad mommy moment indeed! We did learn that children/babies swallow things all of the time and none of them are really a concern, even sharp objects and broken glass, except two or more magnets. We were glad to pass that scenario by and to know with confidence that we did. Still can't figure out how she maneuvered putting the piece in her mouth and it not being there, but oh well!

Just as we were about to be released Tom gave Greta his phone with a video on it and she cheered right up. Should have discovered this little trick sooner! (Or maybe it was because she could sense her mommy's nerves relaxed completely!) (This little girl is following her big sister's growing curve to a T. At almost 16 months she weighed in at a whopping 16 1/2 lbs.)

There's Something Wrong With This Picture!

Tessa came out in this little polka dot item this morning. . . had to laugh! It was a little dress Greta wore at 2 months old! She's quite a girl! (who needs to grow!)

Greta at the Reunion

I didn't get too many pictures of Greta. {I'm so sad!} The ones I do have are with me and Tom in swim wear that I don't really want to post. I borrowed one of these pictures from my sister's blog and got a couple from my mom. Little Greta didn't love the water--but it was quite cold in the big pool and too hot for her in the hot tub--but I think she still had a good time.

Tessa at the Reunion

Tessa loved, loved, loved our time in St. George. She ran from one activity to another mixing and mingling with everyone and having a great time.

Chan at the Reunion

Chandler had his birthday while in St. George. He chose to eat at the Painted Pony for lunch. (Yum!!! I would definitely recommend it!) He loved his (used) PSP games and art supplies. He watched a lot of movies, played too much PSP, swam and snorkeled.

Caleb at the Reunion

Caleb spent most of his time with Brandon, but for some reason I didn't get many pictures of them together. He loved mountain biking, swimming, snorkeling, Guitar Hero and watching movies. (Brandon has lots of pictures on his blog.)

Cache at the Reunion

Cache said he'd always wanted to dive into a pool with his clothes on. . .he opted to try a little floaty-surf to dive in. He also read a lot, played a little Guitar Hero, mountain biked @ Gooseberry Mesa and took the ACT (at Dixie College).

Picnic

Went on a little picnic today with the girls and Chan. It was a nice way to channel a little energy and I enjoyed chatting with these cute kids over lunch.

Aren't they getting big??

Enjoying the weeds!

Chandler and I had everything weed free the day before we left for a little get away, but the weed fairy must have paid us a lengthy visit while we were gone. The garden was plastered with weeds. This morning we were out there again tackling them. Tess came out and climbed on my back while I worked. Honestly, it's not the most comfortable thing to weed with a child on your back, especially a very wiggly one. But I decided to enjoy it instead of focusing on the discomfort. How lucky I am that she loves me! And her zest for life is delightful. And so is her chatter. I'm lucky to be her mom. I was also thankful for the ability to work and to have a garden to weed. We are not very good gardeners, but it does provide meaningful work for us and we do enjoy the little produce we get from it. And I'm thankful for a good little weeder (Chandler) who works along side of me. I enjoy his company. The two other boys take care of the other yard work on Wednesdays. Love that too!

PS. . .we are in the process of painting our fence. There will be a number of post about that project in the future.

Joy Again!

Although little Miss Greta isn't walking yet she sure can climb! Despite this frustrating stage, oh, how much joy I have that she can see well enough to climb!! And that her little mellow spirit does have some spunk! She waited and waited for me to leave the computer so she could sneak up. She got her chance when we had someone at the front door. I let myself feel joy when I discovered her like this instead of panic. It was so much better!

And then tonight the whole family took a quick trip to pick up a few gifts and to stop at Krispie Kreme to get donuts for the kids' good grades. Even though the trip wasn't free from little pecks at each other, I still let myself enjoy it. . . how blessed I am to have big boys who will help with little girls at the mall (personally, I think that is unusual) and that they all had straight A's so they could all come out of Krispie Kreme with a half dozen donuts each. I also enjoyed the boys' amiable talk as they discussed KK's ugliest tie contest. Lots of joy!

Finding Joy in the Journey

Too often I get bogged down by all I have to do that I forget to find joy in the journey. So I'm going to blog a few snippets here and there of things that I've found joy in. Hopefully by committing to this documentation I'll remember to enjoy life more and I'll also have recorded memories for me to recall later. Today's installment:

A messy kitchen. In no particular order, I counted the following blessings as I cleaned up this mess (which really isn't that big):

~I have children surrounding me to make messes. They give me limitless opportunities for service. But they also bring lots of laughs, good times and cheer.

~I have food to feed the kids. There have been times in my life when this was not so.

~I have kids big enough to prepare food (part of this mess is from Cache making Chex Mix for everyone).

~The kids are also big enough to help clean up messes and do so when I ask.

~Tom encourages and makes it possible for me to stay home.

~I have modern conveniences to make cooking/cleaning much easier than in the past.

~I have the physical ability to work.

~I have been taught how to clean and cook and care for a family.

~The food eaten to dirty up these dishes was very enjoyable.

There was a lot of joy in that little mess--and thinking of all of these things made the cleaning much more enjoyable!

Granola Bars

I have made these yummy things just a few too many times since finding this recipe a couple of months ago. I got the recipe here, and you can change them up any way that suits your fancy. But I have come upon the way that I love them best. After they are made, I put them individually in a fold-top bag and then put all my baggies in a larger ziplock bag and put them in the freezer. I'm planning to make these throughout the summer to have in the freezer for lunches for the school year. I haven't priced it out, but I'm sure they're cheaper than buying them and no doubt they are yummier and healthier. My version is doubled so it makes an entire cookie sheet of good sized bars. The original recipe says to toast the dry ingredients in the oven, but with the exception of coconut, I couldn't really tell a difference from a toasted/non-toasted version. (However, I do use nuts that are already roasted.)

Mix together in a large bowl:

2 cups oatmeal

2 cups Rice Krispie cereal

1 cup wheat germ

1/2 cup flax seed; ground (I use the blender)

1 1/2 cups sunflower seeds

2 cups coarsely chopped nuts

2 cups dried fruit

Mix together in a sauce pan and cook until it's bubbly on the sides of the pan (near boiling):

1 1/3 cups brown sugar

1/2 honey

1/2 corn syrup (you can do all honey, but I don't like them that sweet)

1/2 cup butter

4 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. salt

Pour over dry ingredients and mix well. Pour onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. When set, take out of pan with parchment paper and flip over back into the pan. Remove the paper and cut into bars.

My tips:

This mixture of nuts from Costco make amazing bars. This container will make about 3 batches of granola bars. They are roasted and salted. The first time I made them with this mix, I cut back on the salt. I regretted that. I love the salty/sweet mix in this recipe.

I chop them very coarsely. About this much is perfect for my liking.

I love, love, love these cherries in them. Craisins are also good. So are blueberries. So is a mix. Okay, so I love the dried fruit just as much as the nuts. (but I highly recommend the cherries!)

Enjoy! Don't blame me if you become addicted!

Scrapbook

A little over a week ago lady in my ward called and asked if I would help her with a scrapbook for her son. He has a brain tumor that has robbed him of much enjoyment from life. Last fall he got to go to Austin, Texas to meet his favorite team, the Longhorn's, and ever since he has wanted the pictures in a scrapbook. With 60 some pictures and no idea as to how to put it together Linda has been quite intimidated by the request. So she called me in hopes that maybe I could help. How could I say no? (Besides, a few years ago I set a little lifetime challenge for myself to see how many lives I could bless with handmade items, be it meals, crafts or otherwise and this would be one more opportunity.) However, there was one complication: she wanted to give it to him for his birthday on June 1st. If anyone knows me and how I scrapbook, assembling a single page can easily take 1-2 days and I had just over a week to pull 26 pages together. I enlisted my family's help and it became all of our service project. That helped with some of the cooking and household duties, but that didn't take much pressure off my end of things. As I worked and struggled on the first few pages, I remembered the many prayers I had said for that family and requests to know how I could help them. I realized that having this assignment was an answer to my prayers and with that I could solicit Heaven's help in completing it. It may sound funny, but before I started most layouts I knelt down beside my scrapbook table and prayed for help. Sometimes a little picture came into my mind as to how to arrange the pictures and other elements on the page but sometimes not. However, each layout that I prayed over came together very quickly--in just a couple of hours or less. For me that is nothing short of miraculous. I'm so grateful for the times that I remember to call on Heaven's help for any of my assignments. Help is ever present and given liberally even on seemingly unimportant things like scrapbook pages. Putting it together turned out to be a very spiritual experience and brought many blessings to our home. Here are a few pages from the book: (click on any to enlarge as desired)