The Business of Busy-ness

Okay, I am procrastinating for 2 minutes and ignoring the boxes laying around the house. Our family has been so ridiculously busy the last few weeks, and it is only going to get worse! Jared's in the middle of a very difficult class right now; the kids are finishing off their last rec center classes; I am working on transitioning primary responsibilities since my release last week; I am also finally submitting the last part of my masters portfolio in a measely two weeks; and of course, we are trying to pack everything in an exceptionally organized fashion.

Maybe the hardest thing of all is making sure life is still normal for the kids amidst all of that busy-ness. I try to talk to them everyday about moving details so they are fully informed and not surprised when we make the transition in 3 weeks. I do my best to let them pack and help clean without losing my patience :) I barely even let Jared help with the packing-I need to know exactly what goes in each box! Maybe I need to let that go? I'll think about it.

I'm also trying really hard to stick with our normal routine, which includes a lot of kid-parent time. That one has been hard and being the Rachel that I am, I go to bed feeling guilty about the time we didn't spend together. Argh. Maybe I should have just hired professional movers to do all the work without judging me for what might be under the couch cushions or stuck to the carpet.

I am counting my blessings though from the standpoint that staying active and busy all day keeps the nausea away...wow, I think I just came up with a new motto? Wonder if I could stencil it on a wall in the new house just so I can make it through pregnancy in general?

I am also excessively thankful for a husband who understands that I need some alone time when he gets home. Thats the time when, regardless how busy I try to stay, nausea and exhaustion just overwhelm. Jared has been so good about making dinner, putting kids to bed, I don't know what I would do if I couldn't count on my snicker time each evening (you know, "Wanna get away?"). A few days ago I was having a massive bout of anxiety over moving to a house with a pool. I couldn't get the terrifying images out of my head-all dealing with the kids of course. Jared gave me a wonderful blessing that helped me refocus my faith. I really appreciated that from him and I am so grateful to have a worthy husband.

And finally, though maintaining patience is a daily battle, I am grateful for my kiddos and how well they are handling things thus far. They are wonderful and they make me smile everyday-that just helps tons! So on that note, I have to share just one anecdote that was the shining moment from yesterday.

A huge part of yesterday's job was gutting out the master bedroom-tossing what we don't need, boxing what can go to Goodwill, and packing what I consder to be nonessential for the next 3 weeks. In other words, tons of cleaning. Jordan watched me clean for a few minutes and I was tickled when he started picking up garbage and exhuberantly shoving it in the garbage bag. With my little helper fully engaged, I got busy discarding hole-y socks. When I had a good pile of socks ready for the garbage bag, I realized that Jordan had overdone his cleaning job. In the garbage bag I found: 3 shirts, 4 unused diapers, 1 hanger, 2 books, a stuffed elephant, and about 7 pairs of socks-good ones. No way in the world could I get frustrated at him, it was just so adorable. So thanks for the help Jordan and thanks for making me smile!

Allrighty, procrastination time is done-back to the business of busy-ness.

How To Clean Your Bathroom

Jared and I are pretty good about having Karianna be responsible for keeping her room and her bathroom clean. She's pretty good about it, sometimes to the point of being downright obsessive compulsive. The following conversation ensued after naptime today. I don't have too many lines because I was laughing so hard.

Karianna: Guess what I did during naptime?

Rachel: What?

Karianna: I cleaned my whole bathroom!

Jared: Wow, all by yourself?

Karianna: Yup!

Jared: Did you use soap?

Karianna: Yup!

Jared: What did you use to wipe it with?

Karianna: I used a toothbrush!

Jared: Did you clean the toilet???

Karinna: Nope, I just used the toothbrush to clean the sink and the counters and the mirror and the floor.

Jared: Where did you put the toothbrush when you were done?

Karianna: Back in the toothbrush cup with JD's.

Jared: But Karianna, your toothbrush has germs on it now.

Karianna: DAD! I don't even know what germs look like, and I didn't see any, so its okay for it to go back in the toothbrush cup.

I could be wrong, but I think Jared and I were not clear enough about the art of cleaning a bathroom.

Just for Grandma!

Karianna decided to spend the rest of her money jar funds at the Disney Store today. After much contemplation, she settled on this nightgown, which incidently matched some snow white shoes she already had. The belt was just a purely Karianna touch. She wouldn't be my daughter if that belt was missing, to be honest. Grandma Erickson asked us to take a picture, so here it is!

Bring On Reality TV

Jordan loves to dance. He has his staple move of pointing with both index fingers and just shaking his arms up and down. He has recently added a squat mid-point. Its funny because its not a quick up and down motion like you might imagine, its a slow squat. At times, he'll pause in the middle of a squat for, like, 10 seconds while still shaking his hands. It's pretty hilarious-the kid is going to have quads of steel!

In order to get him to dance today, Karianna started singing the Barney theme song, which eventually morphed into Bingo (don't know how). Well, that version of Bingo turned interesting very quickly:

"...And Bingo was his name-o: B-I-embryo! B-I-embryo! B-I-embryo..."

And I suppose Bingo was still his name-o, because I don't know how to pronounce "Biembryo".
All I can say is I've got two reality show stars on my hands: the judges of American Idol would be impressed with Karianna because she is making a traditional song her own. Don't think anyone could deny that. The judges of So You Think You Can Dance would be impressed with Jordan simply because of his stellar dance moves-the sqaut is seriously cool. Anybody got any ideas for reality shows that JD could go on? I wouldn't want him to feel left out.

Who Can Take a Rainbow....

Karianna did an Easter Egg hunt today at preschool and was very excited about the goodies inside. However, that initial excitement paled in comparison to the unspeakable joy she felt when she discovered she had gotten a Willy Wonka Chocolate Golden Egg!They do exist! This was the exact face she gave us when we read the label to her.Karianna loves Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, both versions. The other day during Show and Tell time, she chose to explain to her preschool friends who Slugworth is and why he really was not a bad guy. So yeah to Miss Holly, she hit the nail on the head when she put chocolate from Wonka's factory in the plastic eggs!

The First Swim of the Season

What I learned from taking the kids swimming in April: it's too cold to go swimming in April, even if it is 92 degrees.

Nonetheless, the kids had a blast; I'll let the pics do the talking!

We were sad to see the baby pool out of commission.

Nonetheless, the kids ventured into the big pool; this was all they were willing to do at first.

Starting to get a little bit braver and take it down a step. This was more than I managed.

Karianna started playing a game where she would inch down to the third step, start screaming "It's cold! It's cold!" and then leap back up the stairs only to break into raucous laughter.

A good amount of splashing ensued from the deck.

And of course, they had to check out the collection of dead crickets in the drain.

It was bound to happen-Karianna was the first to slip off the step and submerge herself into the pool! She kicked her way back to the step and JD, being the loving guy he is, offered a hand of help while asking her, "Are you all right, Nana?"

Undeterred, Karianna started up a game of "chase" with JD on the ledge that wraps around the pool. And of course, JD was the next to slip off the ledge and find himself flailing in the water. Karianna pulled him back to the ledge. What nice kiddos I have! After that, JD "fell in" everytime he hit this point in the chase circuit. He was cracking up each time, so funny!

All in all-we will probably not go swimming again until May-ish. But the first experience was fun, certainly well worth the pics!

Stop It!

By which I mean, stop growing up!!!! Why does that have to happen so darn fast?!?! I have a constant goal of enjoying my kids more every day while they are still kids. Today is no exception to that general rule! Karianna's charter school for next year requires uniforms (which I am toally okay with). They wear red or white tops with navy blue on the bottom. I never realized how difficult it can be to find stuff that works! We finally struck gold at Burlington Coat Factory today for cheapo prices; Karianna put on a brief fashion show for me and I wanted to share those pics because darnit, she is growing up so fast and I thought the blogging world could share in my "Stop It!" attitude! Here's a few shots of her-no red stuff yet, which is unfortunate becuase I won't buy more than 2 white shirts to go under her jumpers-what's the point of having white as one of the colors? It's going to get dirty in seconds anyway. Sorry, I digress. Here's the pics!

Blog Worthy

Although JD's hair really is not that long, Karianna decided today that it was too long for a boy and proceeded to make the following comment:

"JD, your hair is too long-you are turning into a GIRL!"

It was followed by peals of laughter from the adults. That's been the running joke for the day.

Random Reflections

1. I am not doing a very good job of instilling good cleaning habits in my kids. I am so pooped out all the time that the house has gotten very messy; the kids seem to be picking up on that and that just can't be good. I've got to figure out how to find enough energy to keep things picked up so it doesn't marr my kids forever!
2. I don't want JD to change. He has been such a loving little guy for the last month or so! The first thing he does in the morning is crawl into bed with me, snuggle up in the crook of my arm, and refuse to leave. He'll come up to me at random, put his hands on my cheeks and say "I love you mom". Most recently he locates me wherever I am and tells me that he is "sickie", which I gather to mean he just needs a big hug, which I gladly give. I love his cuddles and snuggles, especially on days when I need them. So maybe if I wish for it hard enough he'll never change!
3. Poor Karianna. She has had a tough week. She has several canker sores in her mouth, and as a result, she hasn't eaten much more than applesauce and slim fast for 4 days. If she talks, she does so without moving her bottom lip. Try reading this sentence out loud without moving your bottom lip-funny, right? Poor girl. As if things weren't bad enough, she tried to climb on the treadmill with Jared two nights ago. He was in a full out run. We were lucky, and Jared got the treadmill off fast. Her shoulder had gotten stuck underneath it and now has an awful rug-ish burn on it. She says it doesn't hurt at all, but man. Talk about a yucky week. I feel so bad for her everytime she looks longingly into the fridge or tries to talk!
4. Despite number 3, I think I can now call Karianna a beginning reader! Woohoo! She is finally getting the concept of sounding out words. It has to be short vowel CVC words (consonant, vowel, consonant), but she is getting it without any help now! I'm just so proud of her and her progress. I gave her a challenge word today-"shot". She needed a little help chunking that one, but she was so proud of herself once she got it. She then excitedly drew a picture of a girl getting a shot with a HUGE needle. I am not sure if her glee about the picture was something to be concerned about... :)
5. Jordan, as cute as he is, is hitting a stage. I would like to call it an irksome stage, but lets be positive. It's the stage where he likes to do things simply because I've told him no. Once he has defied me, he runs away smiling from ear to ear. Sigh. Cute at first, but now entering the stage of wanting to introduce time out. Good thing he still enjoys a good cuddle like JD-takes the irksome out of it. I love the word irksome.
6. Jared is a saint of course. I don't think I have been that easty to live with lately. Jared comes home from a long day at work only to encounter a wife who is done with kids. Period. He hasn't complained once! He even goes the extra mile to make dinner for us while I escape to non-kid land. He gets the kids in bed, even sending them into my room to say good night and I love you. That's gotta be in the realm of sainthood. In my book anyway!
7. Tomorrow is General Conference, and I am very excited. I think I need some spiritual uplift. We are in the middle of so many decisions and changes that remaining close to the spirit is just essential. It seems that whenever we make big changes, the adversary kind of attacks in multiple ways. Some of those ways leave me very sleepless. So hearing the prophet and other general authorities speak tomorrow will be a welcome event. Channel 6 or 61, 9 AM!
8. That's it for my list. Blogging is good therapy. If I had a piano, that would work too. Or a heated pool. That would be lovely!

Sneaky Kids!

When did my kids get so sneaky?!? One of our Easter traditions is to put a book or two in the kids' Easter baskets. So in order to get them books I know they will like, I usually let them mill around the book section at Walmart while very carefully observing which books they attach themselves to. While they are so engrossed, I covertly sneak another copy into the cart, hide it with random food items, and giggle as they sadly put their books back on the shelf, convinced they will never see them again.

Yea, so much for my undercover ops. Not five minutes after I "hid" this year's book choices in the cart, Karianna had put her hands on her hips and exclaimed, "Mom, did you put a book surprise for me in the cart?" JD was on the other side of the cart throwing aside a box of Eggos and string cheese to uncover his book. Man! I need to figure out a better time to shop sans kids so my surprises can actually remain surprises! At least Jordan's book will still be a surprise-he was so engrossed in pasty animal cracker residue that he didn't notice anything at all.

Mainly For Jared

I spent about an hour today creating a not-to-scale map of the house we are moving to in May. It's about 450 square feet smaller than our house now and only one story, so I've been racking my brain on how to arrange furtniture, kids, and toys. All of our toys now are contained in the loft or in a walk in toy closet, neither of which come with the new house; time to get creative, eh? Anyhow, figured Jared might want to look at this and since I can't wait until he gets home, it gets to appear on the blog. Jared, click the picture so it will enlarge for you and tell me what you think. And seriously, this is not drawn to scale...though not too bad either.