Six Kids Later

I just don't know what to say. I read blogs and really enjoy them, everyone has such interesting and witty things to say! My life, while rich and full, is pretty much the same day in and day out.


Get up, gym, kids up and ready for school, off to school, chores, pick up kid, lunch, chores, don't sit down in the afternoon or I will fall asleep, kids home from school, "can I call so-and-so to play," "is your homework done?", "Do your homework." "What's for dinner?" "I don't know." dinner, karate/young women's/ Relief Society etc., pajamas, family prayer, kids to bed, chores, bed.

I spice things up with things like friends, preschool, volunteering at school, extra classes at the gym, choir, a little shopping every now and again, facebook... you know...fun stuff.


I love my life and am happy that it is mine, but I worry that people really won't want to read about the everyday things. Then I think of my husband who is often gone and really would like to see what we do everyday, I think of my mother-in-law who loves reading about her grandkids and seeing them grow up, even if it is just in pictures, and then I feel bad that I am not finding and sharing the joy that I could be in the small everyday things like a) happy, healthy, hilarious (although sometimes a little bit naughty) kids, b) a routine c) a truly blessed life.


So I apologize for my slacking. I will be better, even if it is just for me. I can use this blog to my advantage if I want to.

Among other things, I can:

* Journal funny things. A friend of mine told me once that if you will be able to laugh about it later, you might as well now. I need to be better about that.

* I can pat myself on the back for my own little successes and triumphs.

* I can vent to an understanding group of fellow mothers of young children, and reap wisdom from mothers who have more experience than I do.

* express my thoughts and random musings on things. I do think about things, I am just not very good at expressing them (obviously...). It just comes out boring. I think I need to read more. I see other people do it on their blogs and I am usually highly entertained by those posts, so maybe it won't be so bad.


So here you go. I am turning over a new leaf. I will be posting a lot more regularly, even the mundane. You may see pictures of my laundry and dirty dishes. You will definitely see my kids without their hair brushed, probably dirty, etc. But that is us.


If you have read this far, I applaud you. And now, without further ado, I present our life the last two months.....


Ok...I am just going to start uploading pictures. I don't know if they will be in forward or reverse order, so we'll see!

The kids were off track the whole month of February. Last year, the weather was absolutely beautiful the whole month. We go to enjoy it from the couch, as I had just had a baby. This year, it rained the entire month. I am grateful for the rain, we live in a big agricultural area, and it is a blessing, but it did get really old.

Jessica and her friend Jessica out playing in the rain.


Ben got a new toy. He told me we were going to Costco to pick up his contacts. The truck seemed to magically make its way to all the motorcycle shops in Modesto, finally deciding that the Yamaha Dealership was the place to be. Happy Valentines Day, Ben! This is a happy guy! He works hard all week and really looks forward to some manly time.


On Presidents Day, Ben went out for his first ride. He hit a sweet jump wrong and had a little bit of a crash. His ankle is still swollen. He didn't seem to mind too much, and has gotten back on the bike, so it must not have phased him too badly.


Anna turned 8!!! We had a little party with a few or her friends and went to go see the Jonas Brothers' tour movie.

We followed the movie with pizza, cake and ice cream. She is such a beautiful girl! I am more and more impressed with her everyday! She loves to learn and can be the sweetest thing ever!! I can't seem to find her baptism pictures right now, so I will post them a little later. We had a great time and are so glad to have this little angel in our family!

After quite a dry spell in the visitor department, we had our first set of guests in March! Josie and Blake brought their kids to visit on their way to Disneyland. We had a wonderful time with them and took them to one of our favorite places, Monterey. We went to the aquarium and spent about 10 freezing cold minutes on the beach...plenty of time for all the kids to play in the water and get drenched! They are crazy! The kids had a great time with their cousins and I was happy as can be to have them all here!


The next set of guests came about a week later, and I had no idea they were coming at all!!! My sweet sisters knew how much I miss my family, and surprised me with a visit!!! I am going to just send you on over to Libbie's post on the surprise, I loved it so much and am looking forward to seeing what they have up their sleeves next!!! I love you guys!

http://localib.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html

Next on the list of activities was my birthday! Yay for me!! I am 33! My sweet friends surprised me with a beautifully decorated bike at spinning! I usually am one of the first people there, but that day I accidentally overslept until 5:14 and was a little late. It was so pretty, complete with a flag, streamers, and a pretty little basket filled with some of my favorite things!

Sorry about the sideways video, I don't know how to fix that. Lucky for me, my kids messed up the resolution on the monitor, so while every other picture makes me look especially wide and squatty, this video makes me look so long and lean. So humor me and mess yours up too!

My friends Deanna and Sally also had birthdays within a few days of mine, so we gathered up a group of all the coolest ladies and headed out for a night on the town. Dinner consisted of a whole smorgasbord of appetizers. We thought it was such a fun idea, til we were all so sickened by all the fattiness, we had all wished we had ordered a salad. The company was great!

I went ahead and told my kids it was my birthday, even if it meant that I might possibly have to make myself a cake, but I didn't have to! Good friends brought me some delicious cheesecake to share with the kids! They know I am not such a fan of cake, especially when I have to make it myself! I am really glad I have such wonderful friends who know how to treat a girl right on her birthday because my husband forgot all about it. Dang guy. He's lucky I love him. He was feeling really bad about it and is going to be treating me soon to a weekend in SF where we will stay in a nice hotel...no kids!!!!!.... and hopefully see Wicked. I am really looking forward to it!

Last but not least, we had a beautiful and quiet little Easter at home. Ben and I made Leg of Lamb, roasted new potatoes, grilled asparagus with Hollandaise (homemade...thank you Martha Stewart!), Fresh Lemonade, and Chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. It was delicious!!! We enjoyed eating outside in the yard that we have been working so hard in and are really starting to love!!!

The kids are all getting so big! I love this picture, and with a little photoshop, I think we can get them all looking at the camera!!! Aren't they such cuties? I love them all so much!

Thanks for being patient with me. Hope it wasn't to long and boring! Now, the time is 1:23am, and I am bushed. I have to wake up in about 3.5 hours so this is going to have to do!