The Saturday Story: The Park

***Pictures got added at the bottom! :)
You really don't want to do much the day after you are diagnosed with a blader infection.  In my case, the cramps had just died down and I was completely pooped out. But we had a ton of stuff to do.  Thankfully, Jared could take care of most of it, it just meant I would need to watch the kids. Watching four kids + trying to rest = success?  Yeah right!!!!!  We decided that me sitting at the park watching the kids play was probably less of a workout than keeping 4 kids cooped up in a house whiel I laid on the couch to rest.  I'm sorry, but that just never EVER works.  So Jared dropped me and the kids off at the park on Saturday morning to play for 30 minutes while he went and detailed the car. 

Sure enough, I was completely able to rest on my bench while the kids played.  They are so independent on the playground, the only time I have to worry is when Sara wanders over to the swings-she does NOT watch out for flying feet.  Luckily, she was so intrigued with the other kids playing on the climber/slide, it wa not an issue.  So I lounged, and felt glad that we were able to get some stuff done while I was recovering.

We hit an issue after about 10 minutes:  heat.  It didn't matter that it was cloudy, it got super hot, super fast.  My makeshift fan, my trip to the swings-didn't work to relieve the heat. I was about to consider walking to the stake center for some AC when I realized the sprinklers in the park were on.  Jared was supposed to be back relatively soon, but could my pregnant, bladder infection body handle it until then?  It was really very simple-a matter of survival.  We had to run through the sprinklers.

The kids ran-I just stood while the sprinklers soaked me.  At one point I just sat down on the grass and let the sprinklers do their thing.  I realized in a very short period of time that the sprinklers were a stroke of genius from some annonymous city of Mesa employee-the kids had a blast!  Probably the best they've had at a partk for a long time!  I loved watching them carelessly frolick in the water-no one shied away from it, even Sara!  JD and Jordan got into a great sprinkler wrestling/diving match and Karianna buddied up with another girl at the park to play "Under the Rainbow".  Sara would go stand under a sprinkler just to shriek and run when she felt the water-then she'd do it again!  It was just awesome to see the kids so joyful and to forget my own issues for a moment.

It ended up taking Jared about an hour to finish the car, so my statement about survival really was no lie.  The kids were soaked, covered in grass, and coated in sand by the time we left, so they had to hop in a bath real quick once we got home.  All in all-great time, and completely unexpected on my part!  I certainly ended the day more tired than I anticipated, but still feeling rested.  See ya soon sprinklers!

The Friday Story: Bladder Issues

Friday was a sad day for me.  Sad and painful-but could be worse in the long run!  I woke up with pretty severe/annoying cramps.  I don't like to overreact in general during pregnancy and its not like cramps are unheard of (given how big my belly is-my muscles have to get tired at some point!).  I prepped for work anyway and left without taking any medicine, just in case it was a sign of something else being wrong-didn't want to mask the pain and miss a real problem.  About an hour into my day, they were worse and not going away, which is not normal for me.  They hit a point where I actually had to breathe through them or clench a fist so my 3rd graders wouldn't notice.  I was contemplating calling in a sub for a half day to just go home and rest, but something told me perhaps I should go see a doctor.  These symtpoms were reminding me of a day back when I was pregnant with Karianna.  Let's reminisce for a moment....

I was super worried about miscarriage when I was pregnant with Karianna, having had one for my very first, unsuccessful pregnancy  So when I woke up with bad cramping one day, right around 28 weeks, I was extremely worried.  Of course, for obvious reasons, but also because it was the day of Becca and Eric's wedding.  I did not want to miss that, so I gathered myself together, got dressed and headed to the temple with Jard.  While we were waiting to go into the sealing room, I just couldn't get over the cramping-which was getting worse-and just started to cry.  I was so worried about miscarriage, and didn't know what was going to happen!  Jared and my Dad offered to give me a blessing, and I had the very special opportunity to have a blessing in the temple-in the temple president's office-with the temple president there.  It was a very unique spirit, and upon conclusion of the blessing, my cramps went away.  I was able to attend Becca and Eric's sealing and felt the spirit very strongly.  As soon as the sealing was over, my cramps returned-a sign that we were to take a few group shots and then we needed to head to the doctor.  The doctor confirmed that I had a really bad bladder infection, nearly to my kidneys already, which could cause preterm labor.  The baby was just fine, and I was too, especially after a good strong dose of antibiotics.  However, my doctor commented that it was super important I come in, because again, a bladder/kidney infection left untreated in pregnancy can turn very bad very fast.

Okay, back to the present day:  I thought I was reading the symptoms right-bladder infection.  So during morning recess, I decided the pain was bad enough that I needed to call a sub, call a doctor, and call Jared  The first two calls were easy; the third call left me crying, as I knew it would.  :)  I made some quick contingency plans, left the sub with scanty lesson plans, and took off for the hospital.  Jared was awesome and actually managed to get a babysitter so he could pick me up and take me to the doctor's office.  Once we were there, she did indeed confirm what I already suspected:  bladder infection.  Not as bad as with Karianna, but definitely needed to come in, especially before the weekend hit.  She loaded me down with presriptions, and I spent the rest of the day in bed, hoping the cramping would finally die down and my uterus could just relax.  I had to be careful that night to see if the antibiotics were working; if not, I would have to go to the hospital for IV fluids/antibiotics. 

All in all, it was a sad and painful day.  I have pretty darn healthy pregnancies, but if something seems off (and it has to be pretty off for me to worry), it really does a number on my psyche and my whole being.  I'm glad, in the long run though, that I will be just fine, and James probably never knew anything was wrong!  Thank you antibiotics that turn your pee green-hoping your next visit is not too soon!

Anxiety

Well, the anxiety is starting.  Anxiety about impending birth, preparing lessons plans, being away from the kids in the meantime, and getting everything ready overall.  I still have 13 weeks, but its holiday season-that's going to pass awfully fast.  I am also hitting  a point where it is becoming very difficult for me to balance everything right now-mostly working full time when I feel like I am missing out on the kids at home.  I have to monitor anxiety anyway because I have dealt with it in the past, but it becomes harder with pregnancy horomones.

So with that being said, I am happy to say I think I found my long term sub today, all through the power of facebook networking!  By happenstance, I connected with a teacher I worked with back at Webster-she taught 3rd for several years and had just left teaching to pursue another field, but has decided it was the wrong path and is getting back into subbing for MPS for the rest of the year. So she made a comment about that on FB and I just jumped in, asking her if she would consider long term subbing.  She said she would!  Since I know her and her style, it will be an easy transition-she's exactly the type I was looking for, strict, knows the curriculum, knows how to prep for AIMS, and knows how to incorporate fun, active learning into a hefty schedule.  Best of all, I also confirmed with my school that my sub does not have to worry about anything TAP related.  That could have been a major deterrant for any sub!  It was a big stress reliever to some degree to finally have a lead in this area-in that sense, staying home today was completely worth it because otherwise, I probably would not have been tooling around on FB.  :) 

So for now I am just going to get productive-lots of lists, lots of "protecting my me-time", and lots of "protecting my kid time".  And deep breathing, because we all know that helps in any situation!

By the by, Jared has been a great support today-I couldn't ask for a better partner in situations like this, and if I have to be gone all day from the kids, I am so glad a number one concern is NOT "are my kids safe, happy, and healthy?"  He's got that covered.  :)  Kind of like Super Dad.  :)

Karianna's Birthday Party

Karianna's birthday extravaganza was somewhat "packaged" more than normal.  We usually spread out the parties-our family party, a cousins party, and Grandparents' party (with Jared's side).  Since we scheduled her cousins party so close to her actual birthday, we decided to do family presents/cake with the cousins presents/cake.  On Karianna's actual birthday, I sent her a cake in her lunchbox with a bow and a card.  It was actually a ding dong, but she loved it!  We went to the park with the Mantanona's later that evening, which was a fun way to spend her evening! 

On Saturday we spent the day wrapping presents, making cinnamin rolls (Karianna does not like cake), and blowing up balloons.  Jared managed to get the blasted shark working so the pool was clean enough for swimmers-yea!  Once everyone arrived, we started opening presents.  We got through 2 when my camera battery died!  Its unfortuneate because Karianna's reactions were so wonderful-she was utterly delighted with every single gift she got, it was amazing. Its not pictured below because its on her bed, but we gave Karianna a new blanket for her bed, something she has been desparately needing, and the one I wanted finally went on clearance at Walmart.  She was so happy with it!  She said her favorite gift was the bookbag that she could color on.  She had it completely colored that night (as you can see below) and resolved to take it to school and church.  Her comment about the presents was:  "I thought I was only going to get 7 presents because I am 7 years old-this is much more than that!"  Ah, so easy to please!

After presents we lit up the cinnamin rolls and sang happy birthday to our birthday girl! The candles ended up being magic ones and to be perfectly honest-I did not know that!!!  It took multiple mouths and several "Don't spit!" warnings to get them to finally go out!  After eating for a few minutes, the kids ran outside to jump in the pool and we spent the rest of the evening enjoying the cooler water.  It was a wonderful evening to celebrate Karianna and I was deadbeat tired afterwards!

So happy birthday once again Karianna-until next year, enjoy your presents and stay as sweet as possible!  Here's a photobomb, so to speak, taken the day after with a fully charged battery!

Celebrating Karianna Faith!

Karianna is 7!  I cannot believe I have a 7 year old, or what's more-that next year I'll have a child who is baptized!  I just can't believe time has really moved that fast.  In true Rachel form, I find myself wondering if Karianna's first 7 years of life have been all they should be and more.  I hope she has good memories that fill these first 7 years, that she remembers good lessons, good family activities, and good accomplishments.  She has grown up into such a beautiful, loving, and kind young lady, I am so proud of her and all that she is! 

Although there are TONS of things I love about Karianna, I'll just name off a couple of things.  I love her developing sense of perseverance  I love that she is trying things out-and continuing to try until she gets it.  It can be hard for Karianna to try things that are immediately hard for her-like monkey bars, jumping rope, and Suduko.  She has grown up a LOT in terms of not giving up, and I love that growing quality about her.  I love how good of a friend she is. She really goes out of her way at school and at church to say hi to her friends, to try and spread her time between multiple friends, and to say kind things to them  Her teachers always award her a "Good Friend" award at the end of school, even across different schools.  I can definitely see the reasoning for that!  I love that Karianna has a goofy side.  I have always worried that as the first child, I was too strict with her.  I love when I see her goofy side come out-when she's playing with her cousins, her brothers, her dad, her friends-it is wonderful to see!  On the other hand, I love how sensitive Karianna can be, even when I see that it can make things difficult.  You can tell her heart is on her sleeve most of the time, and I hope that becomes a strength for her.  Most of all, I love my open and honest conversations with Karianna.  We have always had that relationship and I have made it a point to encourage it; I love that she can ask me questions across all subjects without feeling embarrased or unsure.  I truly hope this continues as she grows older.  So many things that make Karianna KARIANNA! 

I am sure I have recorded Karianna's birth story in past blogs, but I can't pass up the opportunity to record my thoughts, as I am sure they will disappear over the years!  I remember that I hit my 40 week mark with no Karianna.  I was dying as a new mother to be!  Jared and I went to Tempe Town Lake, rented a paddleboat, and paddled for an hour trying to induce labor.  It didn't happen.  :)  We walked around the 9/11 memoriam as well, hoping that would help-I wore a blue stretch t-shirt that I loved, but I remember feeling like my stomach was going to burst!  I went to my doctor's appointment 2 days later on the 16th feeling very aggrevated and determined to have Dr. Holmes stretch me until I just went into labor.  I had Jared bring the hospital bag because I wasn't leaving until I was told to go to the hospital!  Karianna must have known how impatient I was getting because as Dr. Holmes stretched me, my water broke :)  Good thing we had that bag because the good Doc diapered me up (literally!) and sent us over to L&D. If I remember correctly, this was around noon on the 16th.

I don't remember too many details while in the hospital.  I remember getting an epidural that eliminated ALL feeling from upper waist down.  At the time, that was heaven.  I remember having a very hard time staying still during the epidural insertion process.  That was a new experience!  I remember that my parents and Jared's parents came to visit before I delivered and although I was glad to see them, I was nervous because I absolutely did not want anyone but Jared in for Karianna's delivery.  I had a talk with my nurse before they walked in.  She told me if I ever hit a point where I wanted them out, I just needed to cough.  That would be her sign to usher the parents out with some excuse.  I love that nurse!!!!  Sure enough, at some point I did in fact cough and the nurse told the parents they needed to check my progress and out they went.  It was at that point that she told me I was at an 8 and it wouldn't be much longer! 

I had Jared call the parents back in to give me a blessing.  I asked Jared to annoint, and I asked my Dad to give the actual blessing.  To me, it felt like this was my Dad's last chance to do something as my provider.  Jared had been that person for a while, but it felt to me that having a baby with my husband officialy sent me out of daughter land-at least the type of daughter who relied on her Dad.  Those are jumbled up feelings, but it was how the Lord was directing me at the time.  I don't remember the actual blessing too much, but the spirit was very comforting since I was entering a total land of the unknown.  I think the blessing was as much for Jared as for me, being the new dad that he was.

After the blessing, the nurse shooed the parents out again and checked me-full 10.  Didn't take long!  I remember being told exactly how to push, and it was only the imagery that helped me do it-I couldn't feel a single thing!  It took Karianna about 15 minutes to fully deliver, and when she was placed on my chest, perfectly healthy, perfectly beautiful-I was at a complete loss for words.  I couldn't focus on anything else except her.  It was a wonderful feeling.  The nurse who was with me attached a little purple bow to her full head of hair.  Everyone commented that she looked asian with her eye shape, darker skin, and jet black hair.  She was wide eyed from the start and nursed like a pro (even while dealing with a newbie mom!).  My parents came back in to hold her, as well as Jared's parents, and Becca and Eric....more people might have been there, but I don't remember.  I remember Becca in particular seeming in awe with Karianna, as Becca didn't have any kids yet (I think she might have been just barely pregnant with Elizabeth).  I remember my mom wore a white shirt which stood out starkly against Karianna's dark features, and my Dad was wearing a blue button down striped shirt.  He looked so proud to be a grandpa. I remember just a few weeks before Karianna was born, my Dad called me over and asked me if I minded that he and my mom went to visit Suzanne out of state to meet her firstborn, Makayla.  I thought it was so sweet that he would ask me that-he was afraid I would go early and they would then miss Karianna's birth. 

Karianna was ready to go home after a 2 day hospital stay (I was group B positive)-all except for a potential case of jaundice.  The docs wanted to watch her for another day, and I was devastated at the thought that we would have to leave since I was being discharged.  Luckily, Banner Desert had "nesting rooms"-Jared and I could stay, but would not have any nurses checking up on us, etc.  Just a room to sleep in.  That was fine by us-we slept and woke every 3 hours to feed Karianna, who was kept in the nursery.  After another day, she was released and came home with us to our little apartment on Dobson and Baseline.  We were then a family of 3, and I have loved every minutes of it.

As old as Karianna gets, she will still be my little girl-my first little girl who changed my life so very much.  Her spirit is so special, and I feel that about her every day.  Happy birthday Karianna!!!!!!!  We love you!!!!!!

Monkey Bars

Karianna's big claim to fame this year has been to master the monkey bars.  She is very proud of herself for doing so and has given up swinging at recess to get even better at monkey bars!  It comes with a price though:  she has gotten blisters, blisters, and blisters from her favorite pasttime!  One blister was so big on her hand that had to bandage it up with medical tape and I called her teacher to let her know Karianna would probably be writing funny for a few days until the blister cleared up.  I thought the blisters might deter Karianna from monkey bar-ing for a while, but I was wrong-as soon as those suckers cleared up, she was right back to being a monkey.  This was a great confidence booster for her, especially compared to where she was at a month ago with the monkey bars!

JD also informed me the other day that he does the monkey bars every day at recess!  I didn't even konw he had mastered swinging by himself, much less monkey bars!  I was excited to see him try the bars out at the park the other day and sure enough, he got through 3-4 bars before giving out.  JD is super excited to get good enough to go backwards-apparently some kids in his grade like to do the monkey bars backwards and thus, he needs to get to the same milestone.  Great job guys!

Loving her Sibling!

The kids were all watching Toy Story 3 today and Sara kept leaning into Karianna for a random hug.  It would last all of 10 seconds and then Sara would go back to her own bubble.  It was so sweet, I tried to sneak in a picture, but they both noticed and wouldn't go back to the original hug position!  Oh well-they are sweet and such good buddies!  I still think Sara misses Karianna at nights and during the days, but she seems to be making up for it during the afternoons/evenings!

The Reward

Today we had stake conference.  I do not usually look forward to stake conference.  No, I am not on the verge of inactivity, I just loathe the prospect of keeping 4 kids quiet and reverent, in uncomfortable chairs, for 2 hours.  Six months ago, I think I posted that I had to take the kids out 8-9 times for bathroom breaks, fits, time outs, etc.  So no, I was not really looking forward to stake conference today.

HOWEVER!  Even though we were in the uncomfortable chairs, I am so amazed to say we did not have to walk a child out once.  In fact, we had zero fits and no fights.  And most unbelievablely, the kids were actually reverent enough for me to actually HEAR parts of every talk!  I was shocked!  The kids did fantastic reading and coloring, Karianna occasionally listening, especially during a Titanic metaphor (she thinks the Titanic is amazing).  They sang during the songs (a children's choir was singing, so that makes sense), and even JD sang "We Thank Thee Oh God for a Prophet" as the closing song.  I was very proud of all the kids, they did great.

As a reward, we gave the kids an oreo cookie when they got home.  This is such a rarity, and here's the main reason why:

Even after brushing their teeth, that was the result!  Karianna just kept scrubbing with her toothbrush without freaking out, but both JD and Jordan immediately decided those black spots were true blue cavities. They disappeared with some good old Jared-elbow-grease, but it was funny to see how big their eyes got when they saw their "cavities"! 

Wall Climbing

Jared spent a fair amount of time teaching the kids how to climb walls.  Seriously.  Apparently Jared did this all the time as a kid, using the baseboards as leverage.  Both JD and Karianna caught on fairly quickly, but I couldn't get a shot of Karianna because her monkey bar blisters started hurting and she was sure she was getting splinters.  JOrdan couldn't try because he was wearing his winter-footie-pajamas....in the middle of excessive heat warning weather.  How that one works, I don't know.

What a Spot for Reading!

JD decided to read this clifford book at the table.  Jordan and Sara wanted to see as well, so I got them settled at the table and ran to change some laundry.  When I returned, I found all three of them still reading the book, but in a much more comfortable position apparently!  As long as they are still reading, guess I can't complain too much!

Lessons Learned

The boys learned some very important lessons today, and I thought it super important to enlighten the world at large. 

Jordan's Lesson:  Don't Stick Sticky Suckers In Your Hair

Jordan was covetting JD's sucker today and in an attempt to hoodwink Jared, he grabbed it and escaped to his room.  At some point in his room, something awful happened, but let's back up.  When Jared noticed the sucker was gone, he went to interrogate Jordan.  When he asked Jordan where the sucker was, Jordan said, "Its stuck."  He looked miserable.  Jared asked, "Where did the sucker get stuck?"  Jordan admitted, "On my head."  Sure enough, the sucker was the centerpiece of a sticky mat of hair, also known as Jordan's head.  No punishment for Jordan though-except for the fact that Jared had to yank the sucker out, along with several hair follicles.  I am guessing Jordan has learned his lesson:  don't stick sticky suckers in your hair, even in the name of stealing a sucker.  Its not worth it.

JD's Lesson:  Don't Cut Your Tongue With Scissors

I asked JD how his day went, and he said, "Fine, but Kellian cut his tongue off with scissors!"  I apropriately reacted in a very shocked manner and asked for more details....."Well, his tongue didn't actually fall off, but a ton of blood as falling out of his tongue and he had to go to the nurse to rest or somethin'."  I had to ask it-"Are you serious JD?"  He assured that he was indeed very serious.  Thankfully, he also assured me that he would never do that.  I believe statements like that from JD, he tends to be pretty practical.  Besides, what else can you expect from a kid who's parents opted to name him Kellian?  So JD learned a lesson  that I think every person would be prudent to learn:  don't cut your tongue ith scissors.  Doesn't that sentence just make you cringe and close your mouth tighter?

Now, with all that being said, JD just told me he licked Sara's diaper.  I'm thinking the lessons are not done yet.

Kid Update: Sara

Sara is proud of herself today because this is not a baby picture!  To ANY degree!  Usually I don't start viewing my youngest child as a big kid until the next baby gets here, but James still has 14 weeks to "cook" and this is not a baby picture of Sara!  I can't believe how big and old she looks, with her beautiful fairy hair and her big blue eyes!  Crazy!

Sara is just growing up so quickly.  She is a rough and tumble girl, and what else would you expect with 2 brothers to hang out with.  Spending her days with Jared and Jordan haver made her much more capable with balls, climbing, and getting her way.  :) Sara has morphed in terms of her fits.  She doesn't throw huge crying fits anymore, she now just sits on the ground and gives the silent treatment (which really doesn't affect any of us, since we prefer that over crying, but whatever).  she has gotten very outspoken about what she doesn't want to do with her emphatic "no's" and her defiant head shakes!  At the same time, she is very loving and will rush to give kissies and gets very concerned anytime she sees or hears a crying infant.  Sara loves her baby cousins so much, even the ones she hasn't officially met yet! 

Sara has gotten very capable at many things:  using a spoon, climbing in and out of the van/her chair/couches/play structures-basically anything.  She loves to brush her own hair, put on her own shoes, donn clothes in the wrong places, and brush her own teeth.  She has more interest in the potty right now, I think I might start letting her sit on the potty seat more often just to see what she does with it.  She really is ready for a big girl bed, we are just working on getting a mattress and then she will be set-the potty will shortly follow!

Growing up too fast Gracie-slow down!

Kid Update: Jordan

Jordan is proud of himself and his ability to pick amazing pajamas.  I mean, what could be better than this ensemble? 

Jordan went to a speech pathologist a few weeks ago to do some speech screening.  Jordan talks a mile a minute, but it can be difficult to understand.  I have pinpointed a few things-there's about 6 phonemes he can't say, which is not so much concerning, but the concerning part is he can't/won't say any blends, like "st" or "br".  He only does one of the two sounds, even if you slow it down and show him how to form the sound.  If its a phoneme he can't say, he'll substitute a single sound for the whole blend.  He's also started to stutter a bit lately.  He is moving on to a second screening later this month, after which I am hoping they will tell us he qualifies for some speech therapy in a preschool type setting.  I don't mind him doing speech once he hits kinder, but if we can take care of it now, why not?  The only problem is that during the screening, Jared got the impression that most kids who qualify have other issues across the board-motor, IQ, fine motor, etc.  Jordan has no issues there obviously, and even with speech, its not like he missed the babbling stages or just refuses to talk in general.  IF you've ever met Jordan, you KNOW he talks...and talks....and talks!  I am hoping the speech pathologist agrees that his sound formation is serious enough to get him services now, it would be great to give Jordan the resources necessary to make himself more understandable more frequently.

Jordan remains the super happy child he has always been, with his ear to ear grins and his insatiable energy levels.  He can be a handful at night time, when he refuses to stop talking to JD, and he loves to race around the house throwing balls, and "play" fighting with JD.  He loves to count and do homework with the other kids and he LOVES to swim when we actually go!  I've lost a lot of energy for taking the kids out to the pool after school, but when I do, Jordan just eats it up! 

Jordan is also super excited about baby James and will tell you all about my due date and what will soon follow-his birthday, going to primary, sitting in the back of the car with the big kids, Christmas..... I think he can't wait!

The Twins!

My sister had her twin babies last week!  I had planned to go visit the Hammerquists over Labor Day weekend anyway, but we were super excited to go at a time where the twins would only be about a week old-there is nothing like holding a brand new, newborn baby, especially ones that are so little!  Karianna and JD got to go with me, and Jared stayed home with the two little ones (I didn't want to overwhelm the Hammerquists' too much).  Grandma Erickson came with us as well, and we managed to hang out in Sahuarita for the whole day.

Brenna and Shanna are just adorable.  They look so unbelievablely different-I thought it would be difficult to tell them apart, but it really wasn't tricky at all.  Shanna is definitely bigger and had a traditional gerber baby look to her.  Brenna definitely looks smaller, and her look is more unique, with a crease right on the bridge of her nose!  Regardless, they were both dolls that loved to snuggle with each other and were so fun to snuggle period!  I could have held those little girls all day (I tried!) and it felt so wonderful to have a little baby in my arms.  Definitely makes me anxious for December to roll around!

Karianna and JD were no different-they loved holding the little girls, and even though they were also involved with their cousin friends, they kept coming back for more turns with the babies.  JD was utterly delighted with TWO babies in his arms and Karianna was just like a little mommy-a precurser to their own little brother, I am sure!

All in all, it was a great day of holding babies and chatting with the Hammerquists.  It was great to see Suzanne doing well, along with the rest of the family, and it was amazing to see how it can work with two babies rather than one!  Welcome Shanna and Brenna!

Random Kid Update: JD

JD is proud of himself today because he konws how to brush his hair perfectly-and he is very intent on keeping it this way all the time, night and day.  I love that I can send him into the bathroom with instructions to brush his hair for school or church and he will get it done to my expectations.  :) 

In other JD news, JD loves kindergartne.  He LOVES it!  He comes home every day regaling us with stories from the kindergarten carpet.  He tells us what they did, what number the number bug is on, what letter they learned, including the letter mascot, and what papers they completed.  He always gives us his own behavior update, as well as that of a chap named Christopher, who apparently does not behave so well.  JD came home last week with a certificate from the principal for being a good team player, which was awesome!  JD also loves homework-it is the most exciting time of the day for him and he loves getting it done every day.  He is so easy going, it is easy to push him a bit to do more, even after a long day at school.  I love his attitude and his overall demeanor!

JD is definitely hitting a very active stage (not that he wasn't in that already), in that  he loves to wrestle and fight with Jordan.  Playfully, of course, but it occasionally leads to a very loud and active home environment, especially when Sara gets into the mix.  I tend to monitor this by separating the boys when appropriate and giving them jobs, everything from homework, color a picture, or read a book, to clean the toyroom, clean under your bed, or sweep the floor.  Whatever it takes to keep them occupied and separated.  On that topic, JD loves to sweep the floor.  I can ask him to do that job, and he will move the kitchen chairs to the family room, sweep the floor, and then dust bust the pile up before moving the chairs back on his own.  Its way cute to watch!

JD is super excited about baby James joining the family and I love that reaction from him! 

Random Kid Update.....

Karianna is proud of herself today that she can waste her dad in a race across the pool.  This girlie is seriously fast when she puts her mind to it, and its the only time she really excels at freestyle-when she's racing.  I really wish I had put her on a swim team this past summer, but we will definitely do it next summer.  Karianna is still loving 2nd grade and her class.  She met her AR goal this week and read/tested on 20 books-one of them being Diary of the Wimpy Kid, which was a 5.2 level, but she still passed it just fine.  She also passed her math facts  up to 20 off and is going to test for the 2nd grade math blaster this next week.  Her teacher is very gung ho about moving kids up regardless of where they are at, so I am excited to see where that will take Karianna.  I think the area she is always working on is writing.  She has always loved to write, but she dedicates less energy to it than other areas.  I'm hoping we'll see a lot of inspiration in that area this year! 

Karianna got to ride the bus for the first time this past week-well, on a non-field trip venture.  She rode the bus home with a friend from our ward so she could play at her friend's house after school. She loved it, but I am still not convinced I will ever want my kids to ride the bus full time.  Karianna still loves everything art/coloring/drawing related and she is revelling in her own room....which is constantly a pack rat's nest.  I need to get the ball rolling on finally organizing and gutting her room so I can make her responsible for it; I figure I need to remove the rest of the "office" stuff before I can really expect for her to maintain it!  I do love how capable Karianna is with helping out with chores around the house.  Today she scrubbed several walls with a magic eraser for me to eradicate Sara's crayon/pen marks.  Very helpful and left me free to do some other jobs around the house! 

Karianna turns 7 in one week, which is crazy, but I'm excited to celebrate her and the wonderful young lady she is!

LOST TOOTH!

For months and months and MONTHS Karianna has lamented the fact that her teeth were not falling out.  Her cousins had lost teeth, her friends lost teeth-she could not figure out why her teeth were so determined to stay put in her mouth!  It didn't surprise me so much because Jared was a late bloomer in everything related to teeth.  Regardless, I was hopeful that something would happen soon so my little girl wouldn't feel so left out. 

Yes, indeed:  it happened!

She looks so adorable with her missing tooth and her gappy grin!  She put her tooth under her pillor that night with a note, asking the tooth fairy if she could keep the tooth.  The tooth fairy was super nice and in the morning, Karianna discovered not only a tooth gram, but her tooth as well!  Karianna now has her first lost tooth in a safe place, to hang on to until she loses another to add to her collection.  The tooth gram, as I am now calling it, contains 3 quarters, a necklace pen, and 2 joly ranchers-it was an awesome congratulatory message for a little girl who has waited for so long!

Now, with all that being said, Karianna's actual tooth story is a bit controversial.  Her tooth had been lose for 3 or 4 days.  She was wiggling it all the time, which was great.  She came home from school one day and told us her teacher asked her if she wanted help pulling it out.  Karianna declined, and I didn't think much of it-I figured her teacher was just joking.  Well the next day, Karianna came home with her tooth in a little treasure box and the story came out:  she accepted her teacher's offer.  In Karianna's words, her teacher washed her hands with anti bac soap, donned some gloves, and gave the tooth a few twists.  Karianna said it hurt a little bit and that her eyese  were "watery" a little bit.  The tooth did indeed pop out, but I wasn't so sure I agreed with a teacher (given that I am one) pulling a kid's tooth out.  I would never offer to do that.  If Karianna's teacher was a newbie, I probably would have called her on it.....but she's been teaching for nearly 20 years.  Shifty.

Regardless, Karianna is estatic that she has passed this milestone in life and you can see her permanant tooth budding up from her gums.  Congratulations Karianna-I'm sure the second one is not far behind!

I Wish I Had Pictures!

Well, they did it!  Karianna went off the high dive at Shepherd multiple times with zero hesitation-and they didn't say anything to her, even though the sign said you had to be 8 to go on the high dive!  She did awesome and I was so proud of her spunk!  She really was sad that she didn't get a chance to do it at Stapely a few weeks ago, so when Jared's parent invited us to their ward pool party, I was all over it, just so Karianna could conquer the high dive!

Did you notice I said "they" in my initial exclamation?  That's because JD ALSO went off the high dive at Shepherd!  If Karianna did it multiple times than JD did it a bazillion times-he spent most of his time there!  Every time JD got to the end of the high dive, he would squat down a bit, stare down the water below and jump right in.  He looked so tiny up there, but also so confident! 

AND there's one more person included in the "they".  Jordan ALSO went off the high dive!  Okay, just kidding, but he did go off the regular diving boards many times-he had this stutter step thing going on, where he would run to the end of the board, stutter step a few times, then leap off.  He actually managed to dive in 3 different times, but they were pretty chaotic looking dives.  Jordan also went down the slide!  In his own words, he "drowned" once he got to the bottom....he kept trying to swim back towards the slide, which meant he was fighting the current the whole way.  The lifeguard had to go up and meet him.  No big deal honestly, but that was it for Jordan-he was content with the diving boards for the rest of the time.

And Saree had a blast in the mushrooms and the beach entry.  I was able to dive for a while, which I loved, and even went on the high dive, though I refrained from diving off of that, or from doing a flips in general.  All in all, it was a great swim at Shepherd and I'm so glad the kids had a chance to progress even further in their pool skills before summer winds down!

Just FYI

Sara finally stopped using her binky during naptimes and bedtimes!  She has been binky-less during the day time for a seval months, but I never really care about sleeping time until they start to approach 2.  Sara's got about 2 months until that point, but I wasn't really pressing it yet.  Jordan apparently thought differently.  He hid her binky somewhere last week and wasn't telling where it was (whether he forgot or what).  So Sara took a nap with no binky and did just fine.  Nighttime?  Still just fine.  Easy as that, and Sara was transitioned.

A few days ago, Karianna was helping Sara clean her room and the binky popped up in her "friend basket".  Sara walked out into the family room with it in her mouth and I called her on it immediately:  "Uh uh, no binky Saree!"  She didn't care when I took it from her, but that binky revisit did a number on her.  That night when I laid her down she immediately started calling, "Binky! Binky!"  That night didn't go so well, but she got it after 30 minutes or so and has been fine ever since.

So see ya later binky!  For 16 more weeks anyway.

Sara is Not Shy

Out of all our babies, Sara is the least shy one, especially with strangers (we are not sure if this is a good thing).  During sacrament meeting today, the choir had an impromptu choir number.  My mom got up to sing, and apparently Sara decided it was time for her to exit the pew as well.  She took off with a book to the end of the pew and out into the aisle. But instead of following my mom, she headed to the pew straight across from us and into the arms of....I don't know who.  I didn't recognize the lady toward whom Sara made a beeline. The lady picked Sara up and started reading the book to Sara.  While the choir was singing, the lady helped Sara direct.  When both of those activities expired, the lady rocked Sara for the duration of a 10 minute talk and Sara didn't move a muscle.  When it came time for prayer, Sara folded her arms in the lady's lap.  I caught her eye at one point and Sara raised her folded arms so she could wave at me (never once breaking the fold mind you).  It wasn't until the organ began playing the postlude music and Jared walked over to chat with the lady that Sara consented to return to her family. 

Jared did end recognize the lady as he helped her move into our ward a few weeks ago, and after talking to her, he said it made her day to have Sara wander so freely to her and sit with her for the last 15 minutes of church.  I gotta tell ya, from my side of things-I had forgotten how much easier it is to manage 3 kids at church as opposed to 4!  It was a rather nice break ( I actually heard the second talk!) and another reminder that Sara Grace is simply not shy.