My Boy Got Baptized!

So a couple of Fridays ago I woke up to a sweet little face about 3 inches from mine asking, "Can you believe your baby boy is getting baptized tomorrow?!" It was my cute Thomas and he was beside himself with excitement over the fact that he would be baptized the next day. I had teased him a few weeks before, when he had turned 8, that I couldn't believe that my baby boy was growing up. It was too funny that he had actually remembered that!

The next day he literally jumped out of bed when I woke him up and said it was time to get ready. We ran around the house like crazy people (as usual) trying to get everyone ready on time. I made him pose for a few pics before we left.

We actually arrived at the Stake Center on time and Matt and T went to change into their very stylish jumpsuits. We had a lot of really wonderful family and friends who showed up to support T and it meant so much to us. Especially because my brother is living in India right now and my sister just moved so we were short by two families. It was really fun too to have so many of Thomas's good friends from our cul-de-sac there for him. We really are so blessed to have such a fabulous group of families with young kids around us! Even Nikki came from Idaho! T's best friend/cousin Jordan was brave enough to give a talk on Baptism and his Grandma Elaine was kind enough to give a talk on the Holy Ghost having been asked to do so by T a few weeks ago. Matt's talented sister Tara played the piano for us and my mom and I gave the opening and closing prayers at T's request.

One of the best parts of the event outside of the baptism itself was when Madison played a piano solo of "When I Am Baptized". She did so good! She has always hated performing and would have anxiety attacks when she was put on the spot. Now that she has gotten more confident in her piano playing it has given her more confidence all around and she was able to get up at that piano and play beautifully....I WAS SO PROUD!

Seeing T get baptized was so great! I always feel the spirit so strongly when I watch one of my kids willingly make the decision to do something they know is right. The Grandpas acted as witnesses to make sure all ten toes and every strawberry-blonde strand of hair stayed under the water. Matt confirmed him, giving him a beautiful blessing, and he was OFFICIAL!

After the baptism we went to Olive Garden with our families (except for Jordan's family because he had a big football game he had to play in...and he WON!!! Go Jordan!!!!). Thomas had been looking forward to lunch almost as much as the baptism itself! He loves their breadsticks and he is obsessed with their fries! That's right. French fries. At Olive Garden...don't ask. When we sat down at our table I put Emilia in the high chair which highly offended her! She spent the next 15 minutes looking down at her lap with a fat pouty lip but her pride wouldn't let her cry in front of all of those people...hilarious!

The day turned out really great and at the end of it all I was a little sad that it was all over. I missed our family members and friends who couldn't be with us but I was so thankful for those who could.

Well, another milestone's passed and before I know it my baby boy will be going on a mission. First we gotta get him to eat something other than chicken fingers and fries though or he's never gonna survive! One milestone at a time...

Wheelchairs and Room Service...

The past two weeks have been full of viruses for our poor kids. Last week Thomas had the flu. It started two Sundays ago and went until the next Friday. It was strange. He would throw up at night along with having other...ahem...issues...and then the next day be fine. It went on like that until Thursday when I really started to worry that something more may be wrong when his stomach got very bloated looking and he was complaining that it was painful to stand or even sit up and the vomiting worsened. I could literally see in his face how much pain he was in and he fell asleep and was really hard to wake up. I had to carry him down the stairs and into the car which was no easy feat! Luckily Matt got home just as we were leaving and T and I headed to the pediatrician. He was miserable on the way there, getting sick twice, and couldn't even walk into the office on his own. The doctor poked and prodded and asked questions and told me that she suspected appendicitis or a bowel blockage and wanted me to take him to the ER at the Children's Hospital for x-rays and fluids as he was also somewhat dehydrated. So we made the almost 30 minute drive with poor T getting sick again in the backseat and I got him a wheelchair when we got to the ER entrance (by that point my back just could not carry him anymore!).

All of the pics were taken on my phone...not the best. Sorry!

Well let me tell you, the minute his backside hit that wheelchair he perked up almost instantly. We checked in and were told to wait and wait we did. Eventually we were put in an exam room....to wait some more. By this time Matt had arrived thanks to our amazing neighbors that came to hang out with the girls. The worst part about it was that we had had the carpets and couches cleaned that day so there was ONE couch they could sit on while they were there! Luckily Em was in bed by this time and Madison went to bed shortly after...but still!

Anyway, back at the hospital we waited....and waited...and waited. Finally the doctor came in and there was Thomas attempting wheelies in his new toy and scooting around the room. He had also made himself at home on the bed while watching a movie on the bed. The doctors poked around his stomach, asked us questions and declared that they suspected that it was a bad case of the flu...UM WHAT?! They let him have some water and crackers and an orange Popsicle and told us to walk around and see if it would induce pain at all. We walked laps and nothing happened. When we returned they had him pee in a cup and then we waited...and waited...and waited for those results which turned out to show that he was a little dehydrated (seriously? SERIOUSLY?!) but they didn't give him fluids and there was no infection. So we spent 5 hours (we got there at 8:30pm and got home around 1:30am) at the hospital all to find out that Thomas had the flu and there was nothing they could do! Oy vey! Not that I wanted him to have something seriously wrong like appendicitis but how frustrating! As we were walking out of the hospital he said to me, "Mom, that was the best day of my life!" He was asleep not even 5 minutes into the drive home. The next day he bragged to everybody about having his own wheelchair and being brought any kind of snack he wanted while watching a movie in bed!

Well, now Thomas has made a full recovery and misses his beloved wheelchair tremendously. He's asked if we can get him one for his birthday....ummmm no. Now that he is well of course someone else has to get sick and it happens to be Em with chronic diarrhea (for about a month now...I know, I know. I was waiting for her two yr. check up next week and trying to cure it myself!) and a yeast rash on her girlie parts (that only started a couple of days ago...) I know, too much information. 

Kids! Guess if it's not one of em' it's the other!  

       

Pickin' Feathers Outta My Teeth...

So remember how my son got a teacher that nobody seems to say anything good about? Well yesterday the school called and said that Thomas could finally change teachers. Even  though things had been going well I decided to still take them up on the offer. When Thomas got home I told him and he kinda freaked out. He told me that he really liked his teacher and didn't want to change. I thought about it all night and really just kept going back to the thought that really I just want him to be happy. I also thought about how I can't always rescue him from different personalities in life. In the end I decided that he should just stay where he is if it's really where he wants to be. The hard part though was that now I had to go back to Marilyn (one of the office ladies) and inform her that although I had caused a mini ruckus about him being in that class and called to check on how far he had to go on the waiting list just a few days ago, now I wanted him to stay. So I drove the kids to school today, threw Em in the stroller and marched in to eat a little crow. Marilyn was coming out the front doors when we walked up to the front doors and I explained what had happened and told her that we would be staying with T's teacher after all. She was happy that all was well and told us that she had already told both teachers about the change and his stuff had been moved to the new class. She told me that I would need to go inform his teacher that he would be staying after all so they could get his things back. Oh, I'm sorry, did I just say I would eat a little crow? I meant a GIANT one! Now I had to go face his teacher who now knew that I didn't want him in her class and apologize for thinking badly of her...GULP!

Through the halls we walked with me praying inside for courage to apologize. I HATE confrontation of any kind and I especially hate hurting others' feelings and I felt awful that I had listened to gossip. Really though, for all I know she's still going to turn into a wicked witch after a few months of this and I was just trying to protect my little duckling from having his enthusiasm for school crushed...but, I digress. So, through the halls we went on our way to my feathered snack. When we walked in she greeted us with a smile and I told her that Thomas has loved her so far and would really like to stay in her class. I told her that I had listened to gossip and had worried when I heard that her personality and Thomas' personality together would be well, somewhat explosive and not a good combination. I apologized for judging her without really getting to know her and thanked her for the effort she has put in as a teacher to make her classroom a fun place for kids. She thanked me and told me that she knew about the things people were saying about her (ouch!) and that she has really tried to make the necessary changes to make her classroom a pleasant place and explained that when she had first started teaching 2nd grade three years ago, her family had been going through some significant trials and were also in the process of moving while she was trying to adjust to teaching a new grade. She was under a lot of stress and admits that it was not a good year. She said last year was great and hopes this one will be even better. She's sad that some people still judge her from that first year. Honestly, I don't know what to think but I feel bad that I judged her. I feel bad that I didn't just give her a chance in spite of the gossip. Oh well, I guess the mama bear in me was just trying to protect her cub. It's hard to just chalk it up to experience for him when you know it may not be a good one. I guess if nothing else it was a good opportunity for my kids to see that I can admit when I'm wrong and I can apologize to someone when I have misjudged them.

Well, there you have it. He's staying. I've learned a valuable lesson and maybe, so have my kids. So next time you see me and wonder what those black things are in between my teeth you'll know that they're bits of crow feathers, and although that bird didn't feel good goin' down, I'm still alive and a better person for it. Now, I'm gonna go find me a toothpick...bye!

Updates...

Ok so, school started and everything is good with Thomas' teacher so far. Thomas seems to like her and although she is a little on the quirky side, she doesn't seem to bad. I still worry what she will be like after having kids all day everyday for a few months but I guess we'll just take it as it comes. He is next in line to be moved to the other class but I don't think they will  move him after the first week of school unless there is a concrete problem. To tell you the truth I feel kind of bad for her. She knows she is the least preferred teacher. It can't be fun knowing that you are the one that nobody likes/wants. We went to Back to School Night last night  and she was explaining that she knows that when the other teachers walk by her classroom they think she is yelling at her class and that she isn't very nice but that she has nerve deafness in her ears which makes it hard to know how loud she is talking if there is a lot of other noise going on around her. She said that she has asked the kids to give her a certain signal if she starts shouting. I don't know what to think. Honestly, I figure if Thomas is happy, I am happy. We'll see how it goes...

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For those of you who are interested in the ongoing Maya saga, well, she's gone now. She left us this past Sunday and the family that came and picked her up was really great! They are the kind of people that we would totally be friends with if they lived closer. Since they drove away with her they have let me know that she is doing well and they love her already. I have to say, as much as I don't miss the barking or the other little annoyances that come with a dog, I do miss her very much. I miss her "hugging" my leg and letting we scratch behind her ears when I would come home. I miss seeing her cuddled up on my down comforter at night. I miss walking up the stairs and seeing her lying there with her head on her paws. I miss her cuddling up to me when I would go to bed before Matt, with her furry body stretched against my belly and her eyebrows under my nose. For those of you who really don't love animals this all probably sounds pretty silly and while even I will admit that she isn't on the same level as one of my children she was still one of my babies and I miss her...

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Well, I think that's it! Exciting, I know...

For your viewing pleasure...

Madison and Thomas made
a little video to make you smile today!

(It's a little dark...sorry! Don't forget to pause the music on the left before clicking play on the video.)

P.S. Mason got his new heart!!!! In Sept. his family was told there was no hope, that a transplant would not be an option, and they would have a few months left with him. Go read about the miraculous journey that took him from that day....to Stanford....to a heart transplant on Easter. 

T time...

The Princess went with my mom today for a Grandma and Me day so it was just me, The Pea and The Pirate around here. While The Pea was napping, the time when I usually try to pull a somewhat interesting post out of my frazzled brain, do some laundry and any other chores that having a toddler around makes hard, I played the Wii with my boy. It was so much fun---even if he did whoop me on both rounds of Mario Party 8! Man, I really like that kid.

P.S. Note to Dear Hubster: Due to above excuse the dishes aren't done and the laundry's not folded....Oh, I forgot, that really isn't that unusual around here so forget I mentioned it!

P.P.S. Note to Dear Hubster: Thanks for stickin' around...

Forced Humility...

So the other day at Parent Teacher Conference The Pirate brought home his school journal for the last few months. I was looking through it and came across his...

 

Translation: "Santa is coming! I want him to bring me a Bakugan, a scooter, and a better Mom."

Yep. Nothin' like a 7-year old to remind you (most likely after a rushed, grumpy morning or an argument the night before) that you're human. Don't worry though, I asked him if it was alright that he is still stuck with me and he assured me it was.

A Cold, Dreams and Kids say the darndest things...

**Edit 2/09: Our cute neighbor girl came over yesterday after school and had her first "lesson"!**

So I already mentioned I have a cold. For some reason it was a real doozy this time! It started way back like a month ago when The Pea went to nursery (Sunday School for toddlers) for the first time. Within 3 days of that she came down with a cold....which lasted two weeks...which turned into a sinus infection! Poor baby. She was so miserable. So then The Pirate got it, but it only lasted a couple of days and it wasn't too bad. Then I got a scratchy throat. I fought it. I fought it hard. I took all kinds of boost-your-immune-system stuff. But it hit me anyway. With a vengeance! Holy Cow!!! I lost my voice, my sinuses backed up like the Hoover Dam, (and yet my nose ran like crazy-go figure) my throat hurt, I couldn't breathe through my nose, I coughed, and coughed, and coughed....you know the drill. Usually I kinda just push through a cold, Moms don't get sick days you know. But this time I caved. My kids were late for school like every day last week. I think we went through the drive-through or ordered in 4 out of 5 nights. The laundry and dishes stacked up until Friday when The Hubster swooped in and saved the day (he works Mon.-Thurs.) There's still a pile of both for today but it's manageable.

So while I was sick I took LOTS of Advil Cold & Sinus. I'm not sure what's in that stuff but oh the dreams I had! I had a dream where The Hubster told me he wanted a divorce. I begged and pleaded. I told him I would lose weight and keep the house clean(can you tell how I feel about myself and my homemaking skills?), but he wouldn't budge. Then I had a dream, hours later, that I owned my own motorcycle. I decided to leave my family and go on a road trip. I found myself in Nevada, which I had deduced from the numerous cacti around me. Technically, in my dream, I had no idea where I was or how long I had been gone. I decided I needed to turn around when I spotted a tattoo parlor. Oh yes. I found myself asking for a tattoo of a 50's pinup girl....!? Somewhere I could hide it if I wanted to. However, in my dream, I found myself wrestling with the fact that The Prophet had told the members of our church not to get tattoos! I was going back and forth trying to figure out how many points against me, heaven wise, I would get if I got the tattoo! WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME!!! Do I have a subconscious desire to rebel or something?  I woke up before making the choice. Then this morning I woke up after having a dream that The Pirate was missing and I had picture clues to figure out in order to find him.  Usually dreams like that really freak me out but this one seemed really low key, like it wasn't that urgent that I find him. Weird. So there you go. If anybody knows anything about analyzing dreams feel free to have a field day with this post!

Now that I am feeling 85% or so I figured I'd take a minute to write down some funny things my boy said this past week. You can tune this part out if its boring...you know, family journal stuff.

Story-#1
The Pirate came home from school last week and told me that one of the neighbor girls would be coming over for drum lessons. He proceeded to tell me in a very business like tone that she was impressed with his mad drumming skills and he offered to teach her how to jam like he does. Now, you need to know that he has never touched a real set of drums in his life. His passion for drumming first came about when he started school, learned the age old "We Will Rock You" chant on the bus, and decided to beat it out on the couch cushions with a pair of mini pool sticks we had. As you can imagine, I was not so passionate about his new passion. I asked him to do it elsewhere so he went up to his room. He pounded out that same rhythm and sang that same chant, at the top of his lungs for about 45 minutes straight. When that got tiresome he moved his one man band to the garage. He would sit backwards on the 4-wheeler and pound to his little hearts content and sing, REALLY LOUD, day after day. Christmas came around and Santa brought him a drum pad  with real drumsticks. Now that he had "real" drums he started forming bands whenever friends came. Which brings us back to drum lessons. One of those bands included his new drum student. He informed me that the lessons would take "about six days because that's about all I know". Sadly, his pupil never showed. Her loss...

Story-#2
For the past 3 days or so The Pirate (and occasionally The Princess or random friends) have been digging a hole. This is actually pretty common around here. See, our backyard is surrounded on 3 sides by hills of garden beds (I'll take a picture). Every few months or so the kids around here decide to start digging a hole, solely for the purpose of seeing how deep they can get it. Before long they lose interest and move on. This current hole is the biggest yet. In fact according to The Pirate, "It's the biggest hole I ever dug!" The best thing about this excavation is that he is taking it SO seriously. I asked him how it was coming yesterday and he said,"It's amazing! I'm going to keep digging every day. I mean, I wanna make history with this one!" complete with hand gestures and wide eyes. They find all kinds of great things in these holes to. Saturday they found a brick. Not just any brick but, "One of the old bricks! The kind without 3 holes in the side!" Yesterday he found a millipede at least 4 inches long and as fat as my thumb (he showed us the measurements with his hands-as in,"I caught a fish THIS BIG"). Really though, I'm just so glad that I have a boy with such a delightful imagination! He really is one cool kid. Oh, and guess what his current favorite movie is? Yep. Disney's Holes. Hmmm...if he's out there diggin', I better not be The Warden in his mind....


Well, that's it. Have a lovely day. Oh, and call us if you need any drum lessons or holes dug!

Oh the carnage! (Warning:Too much information)

So the whole "I need to attend my church meetings" resolution got off to a bad start. Saturday night The Hubster took The Pirate to a snowmobile motocross exhibition at the Rio Tinto stadium. The Pirate apparently consumed 2 hot dogs while there and had the time of his life! He actually informed me that it was the "best day of his life!" They got home about 10:45 that night and The Pirate woke me up about 6:00 the next morning saying he had thrown up in the bathroom. "Yeah" I thought, "At least he got to the bathroom instead of all over his bed." I get up and realize he should have said he threw up all over the bathroom! (I know-TMI) Good Morning to me!!!! So I wiped it all up got him situated down stairs with a bowl then sat, half asleep on the couch with his head on my lap (as he insisted it needed to be for optimal comfort). He threw up once more then decided to go lay by himself thereby freeing me to go back to bed. I remember The Hubster leaving for church (he looked really good that day) and then The Princess waking me up around 9:00 to ask if she could get the baby out of her crib. I think I mumbled, "Sure, if you want to take care of her." (Woohoo! And the 'Stellar Mom Award' goes to.....Your's Truly!) I finally got out of bed and went down stairs around 10:30 and The Princess had fed The Pea and everyone was happy. There is definitely something to be said for having kids so far apart! What a sweetheart The Princess was! She is such a great big sister and a pretty darn good babysitter too! Well, this long story is just to say...I didn't make it to church.

Oh and FYI-I'm pretty sure The Pirate had a bit of food poisoning from his nutritious dinner of animal byproducts slathered with ketchup in a bun. He ate normally for the rest of the day and went to school today. Which means....yeah me! Since it doesn't appear to be the flu, I won't have to expect a week or two of cleaning up any more vomitrocious messes. I know- again- TOO MUCH INFORMATION!