fingernail polish

One day when I was trying to get my work done, I'd left Holden to play quietly, by himself. Now I know any of you with 2 year old boys are just shaking your heads about now. Well, he got way too quiet, so I went to investigate. This is what I found:



He did fairly well at getting his fingernails (and a little of the skin around it.) He got a little on his shirt, but other than that, he was very quiet and I didn't have a mess to clean up.

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

I was able to go to this temple open house with my family. This temple was beautifully constructed. I think it is my favorite temple! My kids enjoyed being in there. Now every time we pass a temple, Holden gets excited and shouts, "pemple, pemple.)

Haircuts

So today, I was finally so sick of how long Holden's hair was and how knotted Clara's hair was, so after their bath, I got out the scissors. I started with Clara. She did pretty well at sitting still and watching the Backyardigans while I cut it. Hers is pretty easy because it is curly and if it isn't exactly straight, you can't tell (I hope). Holden was next. He wasn't too thrilled about getting his hair cut and he especially didn't like it when I was cutting by his neck or ears. All, in all, it wasn't too bad. I'm pretty proud of myself. While I was cutting Holden, Makayla decided she wanted hers cut too. Hers was by far the hardest to cut because it is stacked in the back and it is A line. I think I did pretty good, but we'll see for sure once it dries. It took my whole morning, but it was worth it, and now I know I can do it!

This is the best picture of Makayla, but Holden wasn't looking at the camera. You can't see Makayla's hair cut very well since we put a braid in it to keep it out of her face for gymnastics.

This is a good picture of Holden, but Makayla's braid got twisted and looks like it is sticking up.

What to do with $700?

2 months ago, I started a "biggest loser" style contest with some neighbors. Austin saw I was having a hard time, so he asked if he could join, to support me. He started 10 days later than the rest of us and he didn't have that much to lose. He researched an exercise and eating plan for me to follow.

In 11 weeks, I lost 26 lbs and 6.2% body fat. Austin lost 15 lbs and 8.8% body fat. Since our contest was about losing body fat, Austin was the big winner!!!! (but he did say I could use some of the money for new clothes - since nothing I have fits me anymore.)

Congratulations, Austin!!!

Makayla's 1st grade program

Last month, Makayla's school had their 1st grade program. Each class represented a country and they learned a song and dance from that country. Makayla's class represented Mexico and learned a hat dance. I'm not including that song on here as Makayla's back was to me the entire song.

Makayla's class

Close up of Makayla

Makayla and her friend Brynne

Makayla with her Grandpa Craig and Grandma Leslie

Fishing Day at Salem Pond

Every year we get to go to Salem Pond with Clara's school. The DNR sets up to help the kids catch fish and they will clean them also. Albertson's caters lunch and it is a wonderful activity. This year I took Clara and Holden with me. Makayla was sad that she couldn't go because she had school.

When we got there, Holden saw the playground. He was mad because I wouldn't let him play. He wanted nothing to do with fishing. Clara and her intervener Maury went right to work fishing. She picked up a pole (that already had a fish on it) and together they reeled it in. She had fun holding the pole, but could have cared less about the fish. We got it cleaned anyway - Austin would clean it for dinner. After all the kids in her class got their fish, we had lunch and visited. The day was perfect!

After lunch, Clara's class had to get back to school. Since we drove separately we stayed a bit longer. I let Holden play on the playground. He was so cute running around and down the slide and all over.

When Holden was done playing on the playground, we walked around the lake. He picked up a fishing pole and held it for a little while, but didn't want to catch a fish.

A little further down the lake, we saw a couple DNR guys asked us if we were ready to get some fish. I told them we already had a fish. They said they had a couple fish on the poles that needed to be reeled in. One helped Clara and the other helped Holden. Clara just wanted the pole to swing around. After the guy got her fish off, he took the hook off so she could play with the pole. Holden didn't want to see or hold his fish. He wanted them to put it in the bucket.

We then took the fish up to be cleaned. Holden was very interested in what they were doing. He kept looking under the table to watch the guy gut the fish.

When we got home, we gave the fish to Austin to finish cleaning. Holden watched him take off the head and skin. He even ate the fish for dinner that night.

Thanks Clara for the fun day!

flood waters are receeding

The Red River is slowly going down. The danger isn't gone, but they are heading in the right direction. As long as the thaw is slow, they will all be OK. Thanks for all the well wishes.

Please say a prayer!

I've been watching the flood in the Fargo, ND/Moorhead, MN area of the country because I have family there. The water in the Red River has bypassed the record high set back in 1897 of 40 feet above flood stage. They have been sandbagging trying to prepare for the force of the water that is coming. So far, by dad and brother are safe and dry, but they are on Red Alert (be ready to evacuate at a moments notice.

Every Boy's Dream

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They are building a house down the street from ours. Holden spends hours every day watching the trucks work. He gets so excited when they are moving dirt across the street. He also likes to stand at the window on Friday mornings when the garbage men pick up the garbage. Since there is a cul-de-sac across the street from us, it takes them a while to get them all. Holden is in heaven watching them.

Holden's Birthday

Holden really got into the gift opening this year. He didn't want any help opening his gifts! He got some good things from his family - he will stay busy for a while now.

Clara gave him diggers for the dirt.

Makayla gave him a puzzle, book, and stickers.

Mom and Dad gave him toy tools.

Grandpa Tom and Grandma Carol gave him a big firetruck. He played with this for hours, raising and lower the ladder, making the sounds and playing with the firefighter.

Grandpa Craig and Grandma Leslie gave him a bubble mower. He pushed it around for hours mowing the carpet.

Holden is 2

Holden's 2nd birthday was last Monday. On Tuesday, I took him to JCPenney for his birthday pictures. He was such a stinker, he wouldn't stay on the backdrop. He wanted to keep running off. The first picture was the only one I really liked of him. There were some cute ones of me holding him, though.

Things I love about Holden:
1. He is always happy, has a contagious laugh, and a mischievous smile.
2. He keeps me company during the day when everyone else is gone. He makes sure I don't get bored here at home.

Failure

I've been reading this little thought book on raising a child with a disability. Here is one excerpt that I found useful in everyday life.

In baseball, the very bet hitters only get three hits every ten times at bat. And guess who has the all-time strike-out record? Babe Ruth -- Melba Colgrove, Harold Bloomfield, and Peter McWilliams

...We accept the first-ever invitation to a classmate's hose for our kindergartner, and she is brought home early because she messed her pants. We enroll our son in a summer school art class but the teacher says we can't stay in the class after he paints another kid's shirt. We take our daughter, who wears a protective helmet, out to dinner and are seated at a table in the back next to the kitchen...

There's a lot of failure to be experienced as we work to find and make places for our children in the everyday world. And it hurts. It's frustrating, maddening, painful. The bad feelings are powerful enough to make us uestion our belief that our child can attend a certain function or handle a new responsibility, or our expectations that others can accept and accommodate him. These failures are painful enough to make us say: Forget that. No way. Too hard. Hurts too much.

The negative experiences are not definitive. They are not proof that we should not bat. Each one is just a swing and a miss. Even if it's a strike-out, it's not the whole story. It is true that we must experience some successes if we are going to keep on trying things for our children. Sooner or later we have got to get a hit or, yes, we will quit bating. But we might not get one right away. We might not get one for quite a while. We are going to miss. We are going to strike out. We are going to have slumps, but we will never get a hit if we don't get up to bat.

Even in the face of early failure, let me have the faith to keep swinging.
---Barbara Gill, Changed by a Child

Today, this is what I needed to hear. It applies to so many areas in life. There are many things that I've never done before, or that I may have done and failed at. If I don't get up and try again, I will never be able to succeed at it.

50's day at school

Clara's school had 50's day last week. I dug out the poodle skirt I made for Makayla a few years ago, pinned the back of it and Viola! Clara looks cute as can be in her dress.

Don't cry over spilt milk!

This morning, I was trying to get some work done on the computer, when Austin starts yelling for me to come quick. Holden had found his bowl of left over dry cereal from breakfast and the gallon of milk sitting on the table and decided he was hungry. He thought it would be easiest to not bother me, but help himself. He didn't start crying until Austin came in alarmed. And to think, I just mopped yesterday. I should have waited a day!
He did get a bowl full of milk. He just didn't know when to stop pouring!


But wait, there's more! I was once again trying to get some work done on the computer (are you seeing the pattern here...), and I can hear water splashing. That is never a good sign! Holden had pushed his stool up to the fridge and was helping himself to the water there. He wasn't drinking it though, he was pouring it directly onto the floor. Boy, I love to mop the floor!
The culprit - I told Austin he would be lucky if he still had a son when he came home tonight.

Family Birthday Party

Last Saturday, we got together with Austin's extended family for birthday celebration. This time we celebrated Makayla and Holden and the rest of the January and February birthdays.
Holden got to help me with the cupcakes. He loved licking out the bowl. (Is that not the cutest chocolate face ever!)

Makayla and Holden each got a cupcake with a candle in it as we sang. I told Craig not to light Holden's candle because I wanted to get pictures and I wasn't standing right beside him to make sure the house didn't burn down. He wasn't having any of that. When he noticed that Craig passed him by, he pushed his plate in the direction Craig was going and whined until he lit it. After it was lit and we sang, Craig kept telling him to blow it out. He wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do. He kept giving it dirty looks. He wasn't shy at all about eating it though. Surprisingly, though, he didn't make that big of a mess.

Draper Temple Open House

We had the opportunity to take our family through the Draper Temple open house this week. It is a beautiful building, with nothing spared! It was neat to take Makayla there and explain the significance of temples. We are now looking forward to going to the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple that will be having their open house this summer.

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Holden's hair was getting long and wild, so we finally decided it was time to cut it. It was always sticking up, no matter how much gel I would put on it. I didn't think I liked it, so Austin got out the clippers and shaved it pretty short. He was not happy about the whole thing. Now I think it is too short and I want that long, unruly hair back. If I'd have known Cami was coming to visit, I would have waited and had her cut Holden's hair for me. Next time...

Birthday Pictures

I love to take my kids to get their pictures taken for their birthday. I love to see them grow and change. These are the latest I got taken of Clara and Makayla. Holden's will be up later this month.

Wii Fit is kicking my butt!

We got Wii Fit for Christmas and I've been working out on it 3-5 days/week. Today, I can feel every muscle in my body hurting. Did I say I really enjoy it? I like the workout I get. I also like the fact that my wii fit age was 20 today!

Colors

I got a call today from Clara's vision therapist. She told me that in today's class, Clara was able to identify her basic primary colors - red, blue, green, and yellow - 9 out of 10 times. They laid blocks of different size and shape down on the table and asked her for a color. I had no idea that Clara was even close to this milestone. She is constantly amazing me, and it is wonderful!!!

Pictures from our trip

Before church on Sunday, I tried to get a picture of my kids together. That was an impossible task. This is the closest I got only because they are all looking at the camera. Clara and Holden aren't smiling and Makayla had a strand of hair down the middle of her face. Oh Well - they're darn cute anyway!!Austin took Makayla sledding with the other cousins. It was way too cold out for Makayla and she spent most of her time in the warming house.

Holden loved wearing Makayla's Home Depot apron and Clara's hat. He is such a cutie!!

This is how Holden looked after I caught him drinking out of Grandpa Tom's great big mug.

Makayla's Birthday Parties

Makayla did a lot of celebrating this year. We went out for dinner the Saturday before her birthdya, so we told the staff that we were celebrating and they brought her a brownie sundae and a song.The next day, on Sunday, we had cake and ice cream after dinner. She also got presents from her cousins and Grandparents. She got a Hannah Montana play set (like Barbies) from Grandma and Grandpa, a Junie B. Jones book from mom and dad, and a Littlest Pet Shop and another Webkinz from her cousins.
The next day (her actual birthday), we went to Scheels, a sporting goods store there, to ride the ferris wheel. They have a full sized ferris wheel in the store, so I took Clara and Makayla on a ride. Holden is too little to ride, so Austin and him stayed down and took pictures.

Home Depot Kids Club

Grandpa Tom found out that Home Depot was doing their kids club the weekend we were going to be there, so on Saturday morning, we loaded up the kids and all made the trip down there. They all got their own orange apron and a craft to assemble. They seemed to have a good time making them and it got them out of the house for a little bit!

Grandpa and Makayla did a good job on her pencil box/flower holder.

Hanna and Kaitie worked hard with very little help.

Judd helped Brigit - I love that little tongue!

Danika was excited to wear her saftey goggles - even though there wasn't much of a hazard with the screws.

Here is Makayla's project.

Here is the whole group of kids. Most of them made book ends, but Brigit and Makayla made the flower/pencil box.

Now that we've been to one of these, we might have to find out more information and take our kids. It was a lot of fun working with tools and creating something!