A Good Start to the New Year

This is a brag post-just being upfront with you...if you don't like these types of posts, feel free to move on.  I am posting this though because I love what I do and I take great pride in being good at it-its a huge confidence booster for me and makes me feel like I am magnifying the gifts the Lord has given me.  Thus, onto the post...

I got confirmed to teach this morning at 9am; I verified I was teaching at 8:51am.  I honestly had not thought that session would confirm, and was surprised it had.  Unfortunately the baby was awake, and I had no time to feed him-he was due to eat at 10:30.  If I was lucky, he would stay happy until then....Thankfully, the other kids were still in bed, having had a very busy and late New Year's Day; given that some of them are still coughing up a storm, I knew I could have them stay put until I was done teaching.

So I crossed my fingers and logged into the classroom.  I had 3 students, which is the max, and 2 of them logged in right away, the 3rd logging in about 20 minutes late.  I was off-teaching online with three kids, which requires a lot of dexterity and multi-tasking, while managing a baby in my lap.

Okay, the baby wasn't really in my lap, he was wrapped up in a blanket on the pillow next to me.  In any case, he was well within earshot of my microphone, which is never a good thing, but I had no other choice. The first 15 minutes were touch and go honestly, as the baby was already getting fidgety, which tends to be his pre cursor to fussy. He still supplements 3-4 times a week, so I whipped out his bottle while asking my 12th grader to describe the steps necessary for dividing two fractions. Jackson gulped that down, and thankfully went into his post-eating drunk phase, just in time for my 3rd student to log in...has he remained fidgety/fussy, I think I would have been done for.  

And that's how the last 40 minutes of the session went:  James was zoning in and out of sleep right next to me while I managed 3 students, one of which ended up with audio issues, ranging 4th grade through 12th grade.  It was not easy, if I do say so myself, and after I was done, I thought I had still run a really good session despite the baby next to me. 

The icing on the cake came about an hour later when I checked my email to find an observation/evaluation my team lead had done on that very session.  When I saw that email, I immediatley started to prepare myself for a lower score than I am used to.  However, when I opened it, I realized I had gotten a perfect 3.0.  That's my 6th perfect score in a row 

That made my day.  

Thanks for letting me "brag" for a moment.  Its funny, I don't even feel like I am "bragging" when I type that, I just feel blessed that the Lord watched out for me in that silly moment and still let me do my best despite the challenges.  I feel grateful.  So for many reasons, it has been a good start to the New Year.

New Year's Eve 2013

I have to admit...we are boring.  

We pretty much did nothing for New Year's Eve....everyone had been someone sick over winter break, and by the time New Year's Eve rolled around, I didn't want to go all out and make everyone sick again.  So we laid low and just hung out as a family.

The extent of our excitement:  we took the kids and their bikes to Shepherd so they could ride around the track.  They actually love this, and it is safer tha riding up and down our busy street.  

Can you spy Jordan?

  Half the kids actually went to bed for a few hours, and then I got them up at 11:20ish to make bds in the front room and watch a movie until midnght.

 We went out at midnight to set off some firecrackers-it was SO loud in our neighborhood, I have never heard that much commotion on New Year's Eve before!

 We also toasted with ginger ale, and I had all the kids say something they wanted to do or get better at in 2014.  I wish I could remember what was said, but even I was tired....

 James loved his ginger ale, which I was surprised at!

 And his hair is crazy.

That's about it!  We went to bed quickly, and thoroughly enjoyed the first day of 2014 with the Lautenschlager's the following afternoon-I forgot how fun playing Clue can be!

Happy New Year!

Our Top Ten!

Happy New Year's Eve!  In thinking about this past year, there are lots and lots of things that made it memorable, for good or for bad.  It was a positive year though and brought our family lots of growth and happy times.  Here's our top 10 for the year 2013, in no particular order of importance:

1. Jared:  Going camping with the family over summer break and seeing the kids flourish in their comfort level outdoors-hearing the boys asking to learn how to fish, whittle a stick, use a knife, shoot a gun are all things Jared relishes, and he loves that our kids want to do those things too.
2. Rachel:  Being hired as a faculty member with Western Governor's University, working in the teacher education department as an evaluator.  Not only was this a personal high for Rachel, but a great blessing to the family.  
3. Karianna:  Two fold-participating in swim team over summer and winning lots of ribbons, but also starting to play the violin!  Both are great ways to help Karianna develop her talents.
4. JD:  Not one thing in particular, but flourishing at everything he does:  reading like a crazed maniac; playing soccer everyday during recess; swimming/diving/flipping in the pool; writing in his journal every day; mad skills as an artist, especialy with drawing "Diary of the Wimpy Kid" characters; and the list could go on and on.
5. Jordan:  Graduating preschool and starting kindergarten!  He was so excited to join the big kids at Bush, and he is doing fantastic in the process!
6. Sara:  First year in primary as a Sunbeam! She loved her teacher, her super good sunbeam friends, Sam and Kenzie, and participating in the primary program.  One of my favorite Sara moments of 2013 is seeing her belt out "I Hope They Call Me On A Mission" from the pulpit!  
7. James:  Growing up in every single way, and transitioning from a baby to an actual person!  I realize that sounds funny, but James right now is night and day compared to James last year.  He is walking, talking, running, jumping, climbing, drawing, singing, laughing, manipulating, sneaking, and learning in ways that just indicate he is long past baby and toddler hood.  He's a KID!  
8. Jackson: He figured out how to be born! Jackson joining our family is probably the biggest 2013 event and one we are obviously so grateful for!
9. A fun family memory this year was going to California in February.  We were there for a wedding, but we built such great memories throughout the entire trip, especially at the beach.
10. A necessary family memory this year was transitioning from an acceptable-sized van to a mammoth sized van. We purchased our huge 15-seater at the end of May, and 4 tire changes, 1 maintenance check up/oil change, 1 registration, and multiple gas tank fill ups later, we are still overwhelmed with the changes that a car this size brings.  We are making it work though!

The year has definitely been busy, that's for sure!  I am certain 2014 will be just as busy, and we have some good goals for this year, including getting the 4 oldest kids involved in a summer/fall sport, and taking a vacation over fall break; we also want to use our Saturdays more wisely to build family memories and get our kids out of the house to see and do things.  I personally am working on the goal of being a "yes mom".  I let work and general weariness get in the way of saying "yes" as often as I should, and I want to change that.  It will be a work in progress, but that's my goal!  I sure do love my family, and my husband is the superman in my world.  We are very blessed, and we hope to do a lot of good this year!  Happy New Year's Eve!

Just James

 A changing smile-James likes to scrunch up his eyes these days.

 James is going to be going through a lot of changes once the holidays settle down!  Now that he seems pretty acclimated to Jackson being here, I'm ready to get this little boy into a more grown-up mode.  His binky is going to disappear in the next few weeks-that one won't be bad, and I'm not going to bother cutting it--it's just going to disappear, and he'll be sad for a few days, but then he'll forget about it.  He completely doesn't need it, and he knows it, I just haven't bothered taking it away at nights yet.

I'm also switching him to his big boy bed, which is in his room, and which he has slept in-I just haven't wanted to deal with the mess that will surely happen once I switch him.  I need to remove the buckets of school stuff that are on his desk, rearrange the closet a bit so he can't climb on his clothes drawers, and bolster the changing table to the wall.  Once those things are done, he'll be in a big boy bed, ie, a twin bed.  He'll do fine at nights, its naptime that will take longer. :)  He'll have a gate up in front of his door though, and that will help.  It's just necessary because of this:

 And last but not least, I'm going to potty train this brother.  It's not going to be easy.  He loves to say no and do exactly what you say not to do. But I'm tired of changing double diapers.  I'll probably take a few weeks to really talk up the potty and let him experiment with it, but then it will be time for the underwear.  This will be last in the transitions, so it might not happen until March or April, but it's nice to have a timeline.

He loves his brother, that's for sure!

Jackson: 1 Month!

Wow, I can't believe I am already writing a monthly update for Jackson!  So crazy, seriously.

Jackson has changed so much this month, I feel like he is HUGE!  I realized last night as I was chatting with Jared, I probably view him as being so big because at this age, James was still so very small.  I also am constantly dealing with the idea that this is my last little baby, so having the "little" part disappear is sad to me, and I miss it all the time.  Earlier this week, I was repacking my diaper bag and realized the spare outfit I had in there for Jackson was the same one I had in there at the hospital...he had only worn it once in the hospital while I was playing dress up and I packed it back in the diaper bag and didn't think about it again.  Anyhow, I put it on Jackson the other day since it's a newborn size and quickly getting too small to use much longer.  I realized very quickly that he smelled like a newborn baby again!!!!  I am sure some of that smell lingered on that outfit, and all of the sudden it was lingering on Jackson as well!  I was in heaven all day.  I always talk about getting that smell in a candle just to savor it longer than normal....maybe we should be trapping it in fabric instead!

Okay, that's my Jackson anecdote for the month.  Here are the few things to note developmentally speaking:

• Weight:  I'm honestly not sure!  He didn't have a 1 month check up, but if I remember correctly, he was about 8 pounds 4 ounces at his 2 week check up, so I would be willing to bet he's over 9 now; he was at 50%.  
• Length:  Again, not sure, but he was 23 inches at his 2 week check up, and that 95%.  I'll get updates on both of these at 2 months.

• First Smile:  Of course Jackson has been smiling since he was born in his sleep and at drowsy moments before sleep overcomes. He had his first real smile in reaction to something on 12/28, I was saying hi to him right in his face, and he broke out in the biggest smile!!!!  I freaked out and he got very concerned, lol!  I kept talking to him and he just kept breaking out the smile for about 5 minutes straight.  It was an amazing moment!
• Talking:  Jackson is starting to coo and grunt more.  He doesn't have that high pitched squeal of a cry he had when he was an infant, but it's still pretty loud!  

• Sleep:  Jackson has his good nights and his not good nights. He can generally be relied on to sleep well until 4ish every night (sounds great unless you don't go to bed until 12 or 1).  From that point on though, it's touch and go. Sometimes he'll nurse and zonk back out, other times he'll want to cluster feed and just nurse on and off until 7am-ish, at which point he'll zonk back out (coincidental, as that's usually when I need to be up).  I've only had to get Jared up to help a few times this month, which is good I guess in terms of a track record.  I still set my alarm for every 2 hours just to check him, and if he doesn't want to go back to sleep in his bed, he will sleep in his swing as well.  

• Clothes:  Jackson is still wearing his newborn clothes, although I started putting him in 3 month clothese moreso than not this past week.  The newborn pants are definitely too short for him since he's so long, but the onesies still fit great.  He is just about done with his last pack of newborn diapers, so we'll switch to 1's thereafter.  I have been loving the baby leggings I got for free for Jackson!  So funny, I thought they looked so silly on the website, but they were free, and on Jackson, I think they are stinkin' cute! 

• Development:  Jackson is doing tummy time every day now and working on holding his head up for longer periods of time, and turning it from left to right.  He has good focus in his eyes, and likes starting at people and at the mobiles above his swing and bed.  He likes being swaddled from the waist up, but likes his legs free-and manages to get out of his swaddle most nights.  He has several awake periods each day, which are getting longer.  He tries to fight sleep, but I am fairly adept at getting him to zonk out when needed.  He does not like being in his carseat honestly, and he does like his binky, though he is fairly content without it as well.  

• Eating:  Jackson is a champion nurser!  He eats every 2-3 hours, and will go 4 if he's asleep (including at night, he's even gotten up to 5 hours a few times overnight).  He likes to stretch out his body when he eats, so it's a little harder to snuggle him close to me.  He likes eating in the laying down position, thank goodness!  He supplements maybe 2 ounces 3-4 times a week, just when he seems really discontent-this has been a bit of a relief for me honestly, especially if I am working or need him to calm down without stopping what I'm doing to nurse.  I love being more relaxed in this sense.  

• The Moby:  Both Jackson and I officially love the moby! I have gotten a lot better at wrapping Jackson, and he has been so content in it every single time.  It's definitely been a huge blessing.
• Tidbits:  Jackson's eyes are definitely going blue (though I can't claim it for certain, they could always change still).  His little swirl-cowlick is still there, but he's losing some hair, and I'm curious to see if it stays.  He hasn't had a true blue bath yet-just sponge baths and wipe-downs.  He loves looking at Christmas lights, and deals with the kids wanting to hold him fairly well.  Karianna has gotten very good at taking care of Jackson if I need her to, which is great!

That's it for 1 month-passed so quickly!  

The Day After

Jared has today off, and we were planning on driving up North....however, 2 of us had fevers yesterday, 1 of us threw up last night, and 1 more of us has a fever today....and 3 of those said sickies are coughing.  So no going out for us, instead, we need a day in....easily rationalized given that we have lots of toys to unwrap and play with! 

So we had a game day today and played most of the games we got for Christmas.  I did take some time out to go do returns at Walmart and Target.....wow.  Never done that before on the day after Christmas, and probably never will again.  I'd rather go to Walmart the day before Christmas than the day after.  Anyhow, we had a blast playing games as a family!  Karianna got the most points at the end of all things, and won two pieces of candy while all the other kids won one piece of candy, mostly for having good attitudes throughout.  Jared beat me after a long game of toss across, and James made a fantastic target for the dart game we made up!  

Here's my FB status summarizing today:

A true Day after Christmas: Everyone stayed in pajamas for most of the day. Every single new item got opened, and a few of them got instantly broken. We just played every single new game we got as a family: Headbanz (LOVE, and it will become a singing time activity the first Sunday in January), Toss Across, Operation, Darts, and Bop It. Jared and the boys built their huge hot wheels track. I currently hold the family record for JD's handheld version of Yahtzee: 420 points ( I wasted Jared's score of 207, ha ha ha!). Jordan has already gone through 4 batteries playing new leapster games. Karianna has made 12 rainbow loom bracelets/necklaces. James didn't mind being a Nerf gun target while wearing a superman shirt..go figure. Sara has already colored multiple Dora pictures. I actually managed to unpack and put away all Christmas gifts and get all the garbage sorted into the right garbage cans. Sara, James, and Jared have had fevers in the last 24 hours and Jordan threw up last night. I braved Walmart and Target today to do returns. And now we shall take a break from watching episodes of Saved By the Bell (Karianna's gift) and watch Turbo while eating leftovers in the glow of Christmas lights. Oh, and Jackson is officially transitioning to size 1 diapers, but that has nothing to do with Christmas, so ignore that. It's been a good day.

And here's the stream of games:

Game 1:  Shoot darts at the TV, or at James-whichever is the easier target.

 Game 2:  Bop-it, where you have to shout it loud enough for it to register....everyone inevitably laughs at the players attempts to yell at a game, and then you can't hear the next command, so then you lose.  It's a vicious cycle.

 Game 3: Toss Across.  While smaller than I thought, this was probably the family favorite!

 Game 4:  Headbanz.  I have been covetting this for a long time and love it!

 This was the best round.  JD blurted out one clue before Jordan could ask any questions. The clue he gave Jordan: "its dead".  Jordan immediately asked, "Am I a dinosaur?"  Right on buddy boy!

 The winners, all displaying their candy!

 Game 5:  This huge hot wheels track, and this is actually not so much a game, but the boys love it and they all sat around playing with it for a long time!

Merry Christmas!

It's Christmas Day!  Woohoo!  I love Christmas Day and it always goes by so fast!  I always end up looking at Jared late afternoon and saying something like, "wow, it's almost over already".  Such are the good things in life-they go by so fast!  We had a fantastic Christmas Day overall, and certainly enjoyed our time together with each other as a family.  There are a ton of pictures in this post, it's the only way to do the day justice.  I'll add some commentary here and there, otherwise I'll let the pics do the talking!

We started out as we always do, with a huge breakfast spread.  The boys don't seem too excited--or perhaps it's too early?  Silly boys!

 Once everyone is dressed and things are generally clean (yes, that's how we do it), we gathered for the main event.  I LOVE how excited James' eyes look!

  This year we actually watched each person open their gifts in rounds-and we made it until maybe the last two rounds.  It was SUCH an ideal way to ramp up the excitement, I loved hearing every kid yell out, "wow! cool!  oh my gosh, that's awesome!" when another kid opened a gift.  It made the focus kid feel cool, and it just made everyone smile!

 This is a family favorite right now, and I hold the high score of 420, hee hee hee!

 Yes, this is a toothbrush!  James loves to steal the other kids' spinbrushes, and thus, he got his own.

 The best reaction of the day:  Rainbow Loom.

 That's just how this kid rolls-he loves kix!

 2nd best reaction of the day, though it's not pictured-you should have heard the very loud, high-pitched, girly scream that came from JD when he saw this!  Sorry JD, but it's true!

 And this was Jackson the entire time, with his hand like this, the entire time.  Probably thinking, what the flip out are they all doing????

 Mom and Dad gifts--JD made a beautiful calendar of his own artwork, Karianna made a clay pot perfectly sized to fit my wedding ring, and Jordan made a Christmas ornament and a handprint reindeer.

 Jared looks good, I look weird....

 I look good, Jared looks weird!

 I love James' expression as Jared loads up this huge nerf gun!

 Stockings are always last for us!  Everyone had a movie shoved in there this year.

 For memory sake, Jackson had a single gift this year in his stocking:  a package of disposable diaper baggies.

We got done with our presents around 1, at which point we quickly cleaned (and actually got it all cleaned!) and headed to my mom's house for round 2.  We gave my mom a new shoe for display, which she hasn't gotten in a while, and she went above and beyond giving the kids gifts.  As we were heading out of my mom's house, I thought I felt James coming down with a slight fever.  We came home to sleep for an hour and upon getting up, I verified that James did, in fact, have a fever.  The Lautenschlagers insisted we still come over and just keep James sequestered.  So we went for round 3 of more gifts, and the kids did great maintaining their awesome reactions even though I could tell they were getting burned out!  Once again, the Lautens went above and beyond and they gave James my personal favorite gift this year-how adorable is this???

 We had an amazing dinner with the Lautens-prime roast...melt in your mouth yum!  James didn't eat anything on his plate, and I knew he was probably getting hotter.  Sure enough, he slept on my lap for about an hour while the kids played with their toys and watched Jack the Giant Slayer.  He woke up revitalized, but within 20 minutes was in breakdown mode because I got up to get a drink and left him on the couch alone.  Time to go, silly boy!

And with that, our Christmas dwindled to a close.  We trekked the piles of gifts into our house and put the kids to bed rather quickly.  Jared discovered that the achey feeling he had all day had morphed into a fever, and he started getting chills/body aches to boot.  Jordan woke up in the middle of the night to throw up as well, while James' fever finally broke around 2 in the morning.  So while it was a sick way to end Christmas Day, it was still a magical day, and I thoroughly enjoyed my wonderful family.

Merry Christmas 2013!