Swim Fans

We had a really good weekend. We try to make the most of them since Dan works in Boise during the week. Friday night Sarah and Wendy (highschool friends) and their families came over for pizza, Jones Soda and ice cream. We're really lame for not getting together more often.
Saturday we took the kids swimming. They all love the water. (This pool is really warm.) Dan is getting a head-start on mustache May:

Saturday night we went to the Stanley residence to celebrate Jared's bday with a bbq and cake. Chia was there and so was TKL.
Sunday was stake conference and finally warm. I'm ready for it to stay that way.

I'm good enough, I'm smart enough and doggone it, people like me!

Dan had to wear pretty thick glasses at a young age. Knowing that my son could inherit this bad eyesight, I still named him Fred. Then I go and knock his teeth out. Does anyone have any tips on how to raise a confident child?
That is my attempt at making light of the situation. When I was at the dentist office I was in one of those moods where you might break into tears if someone asks about your feelings. I was strong though. When the dentist asked, “And how is mom?” I was able to get out, “Not good.” without breaking down. The nurse could tell I was feeling pretty down and offered up the ol’ “look back and laugh about it” comment. I appreciated her efforts but thought it was the dumbest thing I had ever heard. “Remember the time Fred crushed his mouth on the wooden stairs? FUH-NNY! And how he was gushing blood and his little teeth were in a puddle on the floor? Oh, I can’t stop laughing! “ I’m pretty sure there will be lots of laughing at but not laughing about. The more I think about the toothless years ahead the more I think I’ll want to put some fake ones in as soon as we can. The dentist said around age three. That is Stella’s age. Three years seems like forever. Eight years is nearly unfathomable.

CUTE:

GOOFY:

These are the only pictures I have of Fred's teeth. I'm puting them here for quick reference when I'm longing for happier times:

Maybe if, when he's old enough to want $ from the tooth fairy, we give him the added interest from all the years he went without teeth he'll forgive us. (Does that sentence make sense? I can't think with Stella crying and yelling, "I want ice cream!" over and over. But she's not going to get any because she didn't eat her dinner and she bit Chloe.)

The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Actually, it was just a quick moment, that I wish I could undo, that made the rest of the day terrible…This is a post I would rather not write. I feel really, really, really, REALLY awful and guilty and like the worst mother ever. I wish I could just hide all the evidence and make it all better. But I can’t, so I’ll just face up to it and explain why, when you meet my son anytime during the next 8 or so years, he looks like a hillbilly. It’s because he has an inattentive mother.
He fell down our four wooden stairs. We live in a multi-level house and these four stairs are right in the middle. You can’t block them off with a gate because there aren’t walls—just banisters that are not parallel. So I blocked them off with a barstool then got distracted. It's a horrible feeling hearing your kid cry out and knowing immediately what happened and that you should have prevented it.
He must have hit his mouth right on the edge of a stair because there were no bumps anywhere else. He was gushing blood. I dropped the girls off at a neighbor’s and took Fred to the pediatric dentist. They took an x-ray that revealed that he had lost 3 teeth. Chloe had found two on the floor but I didn’t know about the top tooth (he may have swallowed it). He just cut a fourth tooth last week and that one is fine. There is nothing they can do. When he is older we can get a retainer for cosmetic purposes if we feel the need. Dan’s dad is a dentist and called me. He tried to make me feel better by telling me that it doesn’t take much force to knock out baby teeth because there are no roots. It didn’t work because I can see his fat lip and the dark, bloody, jagged holes where his cute little teeth used to be. And in case you are wondering, he will still be able to say ‘Sister Susie sitting on a thistle’. Since he hasn’t learned to speak with teeth he will be able to learn to speak correctly without. I’m just hoping he’ll continue to nurse.

I’m including a video so you can see that he is still alive and well. He continues to put everything in his mouth and to pull himself up on things. I'm so worried that he'll bump his mouth.

p.s. I’m not fishing for ‘good mother’ compliments or ‘it could have happened to anyone.’
p.p.s. Don’t call me. Call Dan’s cell if you have questions. I really don’t feel like talking about it. I already dread the millions of times I’m going to have to explain it in the next 8 years.

Sorry Fred!

Spring Skiing

Dan had a week off between jobs. Most of that time was spent working on the house but we were able to take the girls up skiing. Chloe has been a bunch of times but this was Stella's first. I had to borrow some skis so I could help Chloe while Dan helped Stella. This was my first time off the lift: I took out those cones. No, I am not that uncoordinated. (Just a little bit. Sometimes.) It has been at least 5 years since I was on skis and lifting Chloe off the lift was akward for me. I'm used to managing one board-- not 4 and a kid. I did get better.

Here are some short video clips.

The first one is of Stella & Chloe skiing. There was a lot of screaming and giggling. They love it.

The second one is of Stella on Dan's shoulders. She got tired on the last run.

The third one is of Chloe and Dan in the terrain park.

Spring Break 2008

Get naked!

One of the first warm days in Lehi was spent packing for our week-long trip and getting the house spic and span in case anyone (turns out only one) wanted to look at the house while we were gone. The girls played outside all day without sunscreen. I was way to busy to prevent skin cancer. It was actually an experiment to see which girl burns easier. Stella won. I guess she inherited her dad's pale skin. He hates his skin tone but I think it is pretty on Stella. When she's not fried and puffy.

We spent most of our time in Logandale. With my brother Nate's family. (Thanks Cyndi!)

Sara, Stella, Ella, Chloe:

Fred came too.

While in Santa Clara I took my bro-in-law's place in the SHAC triathlon. I took second in the 35 year-old men's division. Here is how I prepared:

Last time I ran (or even exercised) was the Canyonland's half marathon.
Last time I swam and biked was August 2006.
And I got a REALLY bad night's sleep.

I don't mean to brag but I didn't even try. I guess I'm just that good. It was only a beginner course. 4 laps. 5 mile bike. 1.5 mile run. It was fun. I don't know what my time was but either the other men were really, really out of shape or there were only 2 (including me) in the beginner division.

Wha'd she say?

Our flowers are having a tough time this year. It has snowed multiple times since they first started to bloom. Those that have survived the weather have no chance against Stella. I keep lecturing her about it. She just can't help herself.

Also, Chloe called Stella a private part. She didn't say, "Stella, you're a stinky bum." She said, "Stella, you're a private part." I told her it wasn't nice. But it could have been worse.

Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite

Up until very recently, Stella could not go to sleep if someone was in the same room as her. Then she developed a fear of monsters and dinosaurs and bears and closets and dark windows... So we've been letting her sleep with Chloe. They actually do well. Until Stella wakes up and Chloe brings her to us and then we all end up crammed in our bed.

I took this picture the first time they shared a bed.

Dan saw the same scene and thought it was picture-worthy, too.

And one of Fred. How cute is his bum up in the air?

Today in the Store

Chloe was being her wild and goofy self (as opposed to the grumpy and whiney one). We were just finishing up our pizza at Costco and out of the blue she says--practically yells,

"What the hell!"

"What did you say?"

Again, loudly and joyfully, "What the hell!"

"Where did you hear that?"

I tried not to laugh but I couldn't help it. Will she believe me when I tell her we shouldn't say that if I'm laughing when I tell her?

While You Were Out

Fred came up with another trick today: He was enjoying himself when I went and did something horribly cruel:
I made him sit down.
He has little tolerance for sitting while not having food spooned into his mouth. What is the point?

Also, I found a small, pink, rubbery thing in his poopy diaper. I believe it was of the Polly Pocket genus.

And, Stella fell down the stairs to the basement. We think she was trying to carry too many things and misjudged the top step. (There were stuffed animals scattered all over.)

Overall, no serious damage has been done.

Fred's New Trick

Dan started his job in Boise yesterday. I'm going to try to post pictures more often so he can see what we are doing.

Fred pulls himself up on everything. Whenever we set him on the floor he cruises over to the stairs. Today I looked up from mopping and found him like this:

Immediately after the click of the camera (i guess that's why it's blurry) he fell back and hit his head on the rail then fell forward, headfirst, onto the wood floor. The camera is very distracting.

Twin Falls Beauty Contest

Most people post cute pictures of their families. I thought I'd do the opposite this time. On our way home from Idaho last month we stopped by the falls on a whim. We're embracing the state.

Blue-eyed boy.

The mist was freezing on the trees. Very pretty. I'm scared of heights when my kids are around.

(Sigh)

I think I'm recovered enough to post. It was a whirlwind week. Have you ever had to get your house ready to sell? Did you have to do it in a week? With a baby that is teething and not sleeping through the night and a toddler that is afraid of monsters and wakes up from bad dreams? A queen bed is not big enough for a family of 5.

It sucked!

All those little things that we meant to repair turned out to be a LOT! Thank you Jordan for the yard work. Thank you Sarah for the cleaning. Thank you mom and dad for sacrificing your Easter weekend to slave away at our house. Thank you friends and neighbors for watching the girls. We may just stay in Boise for the rest of our lives to avoid going through this again.

Dan starts his job on the 7th. We won't buy a home until ours sells. Dan will come home on weekends. I don't know how I will manage being a single mom in a house that has to stay spotless. I may spend lots of time in Santa Clara. (This is where we are currently.) Dan stayed in Lehi to continue working on the house.

We went to a birthday party for my Grammy (84 yrs.) on Saturday. This is a picture of all her great-grandkids:

WWJD

We have a BAZILLION things to get done. We're puting our house on the market next friday. So I shouldn't be blogging but I wanted to write this down before I forget.

Chloe loves long hair. She really wants long hair like Rapunzel or her cousin Sara. I've blown it out a few times in the past couple of months and she thinks it's beautiful. I tried to take some pictures of it. I wish she would let me cut it so it would curl, that's a lot easier. I like the black and white one, even though her hair is in her face (we were doing Salon Selectives) because her smile is natural.

Chloe is in a doll club with four other girls. Each month one of the mothers hosts it (not my idea). Tuesday was our turn. Chloe kept telling her other friends about it and asking them to come. The night before she asked me again if they could come. I told her I didn't have enough supplies for more. She said, "Mom, what's the right choice? What would Jesus do?" I told her Jesus would invite everyone to doll club. "Then why aren't you making the right choice?"

A few weeks ago Dan was asking Chloe if she wanted more kids in the family. She told him, "Maybe just one more boy so we could each have a prince." (She and Stella.)

Boise Pros & Cons

#1 pro: Dan will like his job better. He'll have to explain the new jobby-job.

#1 con: Leaving family. Even in Lehi we were the farthest away from my family but we got an occasional, "hey, we're coming up for....can we stay at your house?" We won't get that in Boise. Chloe LOVES playing with her cousins. Now we'll be the novelty cousins. The ones that only come around a couple times a year and miss out on everything else.

And I'm sad to leave my little brothers. Up until I graduated from highschool I spent a lot of time with Jordan & Zach. But then I went on a mission, away to college and then got married and haven't returned to Santa Clara. I wasn't around for their highschool years. I didn't know their friends or see them go to prom. I felt like I was missing out. But since Jordan has been living in Provo we see him frequently. He'll stop by and bring a friend over occasionally. And I'm sure if he got a girlfriend I would meet her. He could get married while we are still living in Idaho. And Zach will be home from his mission this summer and we won't get to see him much.

I'm usually the last to find out about things related to my family. I'm sure it will only get worse with fewer visits. Even if I could manage the kids alone on a 9 hour drive, I don't think I want to spend that much in gas very frequently.

Also, we get to see Dan's sister everytime they come to SLC to visit her in-laws. We'll miss that.

more pros and cons to come.

BFF's

Fred and Sid were both born on the 15th---three months apart. Sid is younger but a bit bigger I think. Sid is chubby and squishy. Just like a baby should be. I hope they will be best friends (even though Sid dresses a little different sometimes). We really enjoyed their visit. Wish we could see them more. Instead we're putting even more distance between us. More photos from their visit here.

Fred is 7 months now. He's crawling and trying to go up the stairs. And finally tolerating my diet better.

We're Going For It

While we were in Boise a voice came to me saying, "This is the place." So we're moving.

Or else we're just willing to risk it for the adventure.

--Let me interrupt this post to inform you that I haven't thought this through and it will most likely be filled will ramblings. Continue if you so desire.--

We spent our weekend driving around Boise trying to figure out where we would want to buy a house. In all our driving we only saw 3 LDS chapels. I can see more than that from our house here. I thought that since they are neighbors to Utah and they have a BYU that there would be lots of Mormons. Not so. I'm not sure if anyone at Dan's work is a member. Most of them have one or two kids and will have no more.

Next thought: Chloe is five. This will be the 3rd state she's lived in. And it's likely we'll move again. Is it bad parenting to move your kids around?

Those of you that are into mountain biking, kayaking, climbing--outdoorsy stuff--know that Boise is a cool place to live. We are excited about this. As you know, Dan is into biking. This was the tipping point:

I'm going to stop here and make individual posts for each of my thoughts.

Vote for Torah

Because she is totally the rippingest. Rowe asked me to pass this along. So head over and vote.

We're Moving!

What!? Yep. It's not for sure-for sure but pretty for sure.
So, any guesses?
Don't feel bad if you had no idea. It all happened really fast. And I wanted it to be a surprise.
Surprise!
A couple of weeks ago Dan decided he was ready to move on. Put out his resume. Had some interviews and offers. And now we're moving. Probably. We still have to sell our house and stuff. Which brings me to....anyone want to come visit? By visit I mean help watch the kids, pack up the house and get it ready to sell--you know, fun stuff. Please. Anyone.

More on this topic to come.

Over With

(Chloe's hair is Dan's fault)

Well, I did it. My goal was to run 8 miles but I was able to run the whole thing. Slowly. My time was 2:21. I know what you're thinking--you didn't know it was possible to run that slow. Well, it was more like stomping. I leaned forward, picked up a foot and let it flop to the ground with a 'thud'. stomp. stomp. stomp. For 13 miles. My lungs and muscles were fine but my 31 year old tendons and joints struggled. I wouldn't have made it without ibuprofen (thanks Dalls).

It didn't work out for Dan to mtn. bike or climb. He just watched the kids. He didn't enjoy it and said he'll make a bigger effort to make sure I get to do fun things on trips. (I'm writing that here so he'll remember.)

Tubing

Every year Dan's company takes the families tubing.

This is what Fred did:
while we did this: