I'm Back!

I realized today...yes, it's the end of April...that I have not blogged yet this year!!  How is it possible that I have let my blog go.  This was once a place where I shared all my creative energy as well as the life of my little famiy.  I loved it and cherished it.  And now it has been forgotten and left to sit here doing nothing.  The stories are untold and will be forgotten since I clearly am not recording them anywhere.

Sooo...to get back at it I'm going to share 10 things I don't want to forget right now.

1. A couple of weeks ago we splurged and bought the boys a trampoline.  I had been against getting one for quite awhile cause I honestly didn't want it taking up our backyard, didn't want to spend the money, and was a little bit afraid of someone getting hurt.  BUT...I will admit that it has been the BEST purchase!!  The boys love it and jump on it any chance they get (one boy more than others).  The very best moment that I never want to forget is Ryker's excitement towards it.  I send him out almost every morning to jump before school.  We are talking 7 a.m. jump sessions!!  He waits patiently until I tell him he can go jump and he knows the rule that he has to be super quiet!  There was even a morning it was cold and rainy and he begged to go out and jump.  Having my window open listening to them laugh and play on the trampoline is the absolute best!!!

2.  We've been working really hard the past 4 months to figure out Maguire's food allergies or sensitivities.  His preschool suggested we go see a naturopath because of the bags Maguire always has under his eyes.  I was a little hesitant as I had never been to one before and wasn't sure what it would be like, but this journey has been full of learning and growing.  We went off Dairy, gluten and corn over the course of 4 months...one at a time...and it was really interesting to watch how we reacted to the changes.  I made the commitment to do it for the whole family which I thought was going to be really hard, but it was amazing.  The kids were great at staying away from the foods we weren't supposed to be eating.  And...the results...dairy has been a culprit.  Whenever the kids eat it they complain of stomach aches...and I actually feel the same.  I used to always have stomach aches after supper especially and now it is rare if I have one!  Good news!  We are on a break right now from trying anything new, but we continue to eat dairy free and gluten free any meal that I make for the whole family for Cody.

3.  My little necklace business has been great!  I love having a way to be creative!  And I am so greatful for the support of my family and friends who love my necklaces just as much as me!

4.  My hubby's grandma passed away this past week so he is away for the weekend at her funeral and visiting the place he grew up.  I wish I was able to be with him, but with so much going on at home it just wasn't possible.  It was fun chatting with him yesterday though and hearing that so many of his cousins and siblings were able to be there.  I had mentioned to my hairdresser that she had wanted to die for over 20 years...her daughter and husband had both died within a few months of each other and she had lost another daughter a few years ago) and she looked at me like that was the weirdest thing she had ever heard.  But having the knowledge of the plan of salvation and knowing we can be together forever as families brings comfort and peace.  I am truly thankful for the knowledge I have of this life, that we can return to live with our Father in Heaven again when we leave this earth and be reunited with those we love who have passed on before us.

5.  My favorite snack at this moment is Hummus and Mary's Organic Crackers.  Someone needs to stop me.  I can't get enough.

6.  I have been trying really hard to completely de-junk my house!  I have gathered countless bags of stuff to get rid of, and the kids have managed to unload everything behind me.  Everytime I open a drawer or sort through something I ask myself "Do I need this?"  and "When did I use this last?"  When you've lived somewhere for over 12 years it's hard to believe all the stuff you've collected.

7.  I set a goal for myself to read a book each month.  I have been doing a great job so far and have enjoyed getting back at it.  Some books take over my life, and some seem to last most of the month.  The best book I read was "The Spark"...check it out cause this mother is AMAZING!!!

8.  Can't wait for the nice weather so I can get back outside and take pictures!!!  This year I am offering a couple of days of mini sessions.  I usually only book a handful of shoots since being a momma is my #1 priority.  I seriously can't wait to get back out there though.  I love it!

9.  This week is our 14 year anniversary!  Hard to believe it's been 14 years!!  And sadly with Cody away this weekend and the kids schedules this week we won't really get to celebrate....

10.  Setting a goal for myself to get back to blogging.  It's time.

K :)

Time To Get Back At It.

I've really been missing this little blog of mine.  It's been way too long since I've posted and I almost feel like I'm missing out on recording special little thoughts and memories that have been happening in my little families lives.

Instead of trying to "catch up" on all the things that have been happening here I'll just move forward and do my best at starting again.  Life is busy and never seems to slow down, so why spend time stressing over past events, but look ahead and capture the moments right now.

The boys are growing so quickly and life is never boring with them around.  Last month we did our yearly family photos with Talia Audenart Photography and I sadly have to admit that I still haven't been able to sit down and look through them all.  Every single photo I've seen though has been amazing and I am always so very very thankful that we take the time to do this.  This one is probably one of my very favorites so far as it completely captures our life at this stage.  With the boys constantly going and moving and just being boys...just being able to step back and watch as they interact with each other is priceless.  For me a perfect picture doesn't have to be the sit...look at the camera picture that we so often expect, but it's the real moments where we don't even notice the camera there that speak to me.  Those are the ones that I want to have big in my home to look at everyday.  Those are the ones I cherish.

This year, now that Ryker is almost 7....seriously...7!!!....how did that happen???!!!....he is becoming more independent and wanted to do his own hair for pictures.  I am learning to let go of control, which can be so hard to do sometimes and allowed this to happen since fighting over hair for pictures was not a battle I wanted to fight.  hehe.  I will forever look at these pictures and his hair and remember that moment in the bathroom watching him make his hair perfect and exactly how he wanted it.  Hair is such a big deal in this family with these two little boys...they are sooooo particular, that I have learned to let them decide when they are ready to make changes...at such a young age!!  Oh boy.

Ok...I'm really not trying to look back and talk about pictures...but I was trying to say that I am hoping to get going on our Christmas cards soon.  Because before we know it Christmas will be here and I'll be wanting to mail cards.  See how when I haven't been blogging for such a long time I become random with so many thoughts??!!

I am also very thankful for November.  It's National Adoption Awareness Month!!!  I love reflecting back on our journey to becoming a family and I love seeing the posters displayed around my city.  You may have never noticed them, but it was one of the things that brought us to our decision to adopt.  After praying to know what we should do and if adoption was right for us we saw a giant poster for National Adoption Month hanging from an overpass.  It was one of those moments where I was filled with the knowledge that we were supposed to move forward in that direction.  And now every year after, I smile whenever I see these signs.  We also LOVE our birth mom so very much and even though I think about her daily, in November I especially am reminded of what an amazing women she is.  As I think of all the blessings I've been given by the sacrifice this beautiful girl made so many years ago, I always feel like I need to express my love for her at this time of year.  7 years ago I was frantically getting ready for the birth of Ryker.  We knew we had been chosen as the adoptive family, we had met our birth mom, and we knew Ryker's due date was December.  I wanted everything to be ready when we brought him home...to have his room all finished...to have a car seat and all those other important things that we were doing secretly.  hehe.  I was also trying to finish all my Christmas shopping so that I didn't have to even think about it in December...all I wanted to focus on was Ryker.  This is such a special month.

Hopefully I will be back more often.  These gaps in posts are unacceptable!  haha!!  There is so much to share so hopefully I can get back on track.


K :)

It's been a crazy few days!

(photo by Talia Audenart Photography)

It has been a crazy week...filled with all kinds of crazy!  hehe!

It actually started the middle of the week with a huge dump of snow and icy roads.  Yuck!  I seriously hate the winter driving season more than the snow and cold itself.  The roads are just horrible which makes it not fun.  Thankfully I had no where to go Wednesday so I stayed inside and cleaned the house since my hubby's family was coming for the weekend for his nephew's wedding.  Ryker didn't even have school Wednesday because of early dismissal, so I took the kids outside to play while I shovelled the sidewalks.  The snow was so wet and heavy that it took me over an hour to get it all done.  That night my sweet hubby took my car in to his friends shop to get my winter tires put on, and WOW have they ever made a difference driving on these roads.  I am loving it!

Cody's out of town family decided not to come up and travel through the snow storm...which was so smart since I would have been so worried if they were driving on the roads.  Buses were cancelled the next day, but Ryker still wanted to go to school so I braved the roads and drove him.  There were only 10 kids in his class because of the weather, but he was happy to be there.  Thursdays are also music days...one of our favourite parts of the week!  I decided not to send Maguire to school that morning which made my crazy Thursdays just a little more manageable.

Friday was wedding day!!!  Cody quickly ran into work to get the guys going and then we rushed off to the wedding...and picked up Cody's sister and kids who were catching a ride with us to the temple.  All the cousins played at the church while the parents were at the wedding.  It was short and sweet!  The Bride looked beautiful and they both looked super happy!!  Sitting in the sealing room brought back so many memories of my own wedding...and how young I was.  I'm thankful that we have wedding pictures to look back on...because I still feel THAT young...but somehow almost 13 years have passed!!!  Sitting in that room though also brought back other memories of the day we were sealed to Ryker.  What a special memory that is for me.  It was just over a year after his adoption, and it was also a cold, snowy day.  He looked so cute with his little bow tie....  Oh man...he was so adorable!!!  I am so extremely thankful for eternal families.  I'm thankful for those precious memories and for the examples of others.  When I put Ryker to bed Friday night he told me he wanted to be like his cousin James and get married in the temple!!  :)

After the wedding we rushed back to the church to get ready for lunch.  There was a bit of miscommunication between the Bride and her family about lunch...and pictures...so the happy couple showed up to eat and the Bride's family were no where to be found.  Oops!!  The afternoon was filled with lots of last minute prep for the family dinner and reception that night.  Poor Cody ended up taking care of all the kids so the women could get stuff done.  And somewhere in between we managed to rush home and pick up presents, run to the store and buy presents, and get all that fun stuff done!  The night turned out great and we are so excited to have Emily in our family!  She seems super sweet and perfect for James!!

Saturday I woke up not feeling so great and spent a good part of the day in bed....  The boys and I all seem to be getting sick!  I seriously hate colds!!  They seem to last forever.

I know it probably doesn't sound all that crazy, but it just felt like we were running around and here or there everyday.  It was nice to finally be able to just relax and take it easy Sunday.  Even the boys have been in bed early almost every night.  

And now a week off of school starts!!!

K :)

the temple

Photos taken by Talia Audenart Photography at the Edmonton, Alberta Temple | 2012

Friday night we drove to Calgary to see the new temple!  The kids were beyond excited all week to make the special trip...and I must say I was just as excited.  It was a little rushed when we arrived and the boys had been sitting a long time, so the picture moments were brief.  We arrived just in time to start our tour with my parents, niece, aunts and some friends.  It was a very busy time for tours, so we had the 'walking' tour which meant we got to walk through the temple without really stopping.  It was probably perfect for our kids since they just wanted to go go go.  

As we walked through the doors of the temple my heart fluttered when Ryker whispered to me "It's beautiful!" or when he said "It smells like liquorice...can we come back again?" or when I walked into the sealing room holding Ryker's hand and whispered our story to him of the day we were sealed in the temple and how special it was.  or when I held Ryker as we looked in the mirror and caught a glimpse of what eternity might be like or when I told the boys to quietly feel Heavenly Father's love for them and Ryker whispered back "I feel it!" or when Maguire asked if he could bring a little piece of the temple home with him.

My heart recorded those moments.  It was special.

They may be too young to remember all those sweet moments we shared, but as a mother I hope that I can teach them about the blessings that come from the temple.  I know the peace that comes from being in the house of the Lord.  It is the closest we can be to Heaven here on earth.

K 

 xo

the simple things

One of our favorite things to do as a family is go swimming.  Honestly it's more of the thing my hubby does with the boys, but it's always appreciated when I join in too!  When we were at the cabin last I actually brought my camera down to the pool with us to snap a few quick pictures of something we love to do together.  These moments often get left out since I ruined my camera once by taking it near the water...I just don't ever think about bringing it with me now.  But oh how I would have missed out capturing this cute boy sitting near the edge of the pool waiting patiently for us to jump in.  He LOVES swimming and I love capturing these special family moments!

K :)

thoughts for today

Has it really been that long since I posted??!!.....Wow!  I guess I really needed a break.  hehe!

Since there is so much catching up to do I'll just list a bunch of thoughts I'm having or things we're doing. Play a little catch up :)

1.  We just got back from the cabin this past weekend and with that comes unpacking and cleaning up, but I just can't seem to get myself with it on this rainy day.  I would rather play on the computer, do puzzles with the kids, shop at the mall (yes...even the little one here that doesn't really have many stores), drink smoothies, watch t.v., did I say play on the computer?? and make cookies.  I think I summed up our day!

2.  The spring season always always makes me want to purge and clean up my house.  I honestly feel like this happens all year long, but the past month I've really been on a throw it out...get rid of it...kick.  It doesn't mean that it's actually been getting done, but I've been trying to get rid or things and organize things everyday.  I'm working towards accomplishing something like this...or this.  Does anyone actually have a schedule they follow?  I think life could be much better if I followed something like that.

3.  We have one more month of school and I'm starting to stress...like majorly stress over it.  This has been an amazing year for Ryker and it's honestly going to be hard to fill the shoes of this preschool program.  We have loved his teachers so much and they have been perfect for Ryker.  I'm just praying that next year will be a positive experience for him.  I'm waiting to hear what they're going to do with his very large kindergarten class and hoping that it will be split.  In April there was 30 kids...and still more that could possibly register!

4.  BMX is in full swing and the boys are loving it!!  Ryker just loves being out on the track and does not care one bit if he comes in first.  haha!!  In practice he does amazing, but as soon as it's race day he just takes his time.  When I gave him a little pep talk about racing fast his response was "But mom...if it's done with fun I've already won!"  I think someone watches a little too much wubbzy!  haha!!  

5.  I recently got a new camera and I've been having so much fun with it!  There is definitely a learning curve that comes with it, but all my controls are still in the same place so it hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be.  I love taking pictures of my cute little family...but getting these boys to smile, look at me and just sit still is nearly impossible!!

I should end here...and get something done!?!  I actually have lots of painting to do and am dreaming of another furniture sale soon!!

K :)

Happiness Is

My dad gave me a gift card he had for shutterfly that needed to be used up within a couple of weeks.  I thought it would be a fun way to make a quick little album about my family.  I chose a 12x12 album and I actually love that I got it this big!  There are sooooo many different albums to chose from...you can go the simple path where you just choose your pictures and they are automatically put into an album.  Or you can choose the custom path where you have more creative control.  I chose the custom path and obviously chose the 'happiness is' album.

The Front Cover

(I kept it very simple)

The Cutie Back Cover

(I love this picture...those little faces just make me smile!)

The first page (don't worry I'm not sharing all the pages....)

The layouts are so simple...you literally just drag your photo and drop!  They're already this cute!  And then of course you just add a little saying.  You can change the colors of the pages, the number of photos on the page, add embellishments...endless options!

This album uses a bunch of family pictures, and then there's also a bunch of different pictures of the boys.  I wanted to use some of our favorite pictures...more recent ones.

And I only paid around $30!!  Seriously...that's soooo cheap for a cute scrapbook album.  It was so worth it.  And I've noticed they're always having sales too...so watch for those!

If you like to compare products...then check out this post.  She compares different photobook printers.

K :)

catching up on our week

This is how we've been feeling lately....haha!!  The kids have been so sick this past week which means we've been spending a lot of time at home.  I wouldn't normally complain about that, I just hate that it's because the kids are sick.  I hate seeing them not themselves.  Not fun.

Thanks for all the movie suggestions from my last post!  There were some that I had totally forgotten about...and some that were new to me that I've never seen.  So thank you :)

Last night I met my two besties for dinner to celebrate Christmas!  I know it seems early, but December is always crazy with so many things going on that we always try to celebrate in November.  I love any chance to get together with these girls, it's just so fun chatting and hanging out...usually laughing and remembering some funny old times.  haha.  They completely spoiled me with some really fun stuff...I love those girls!!

And Thursday night my sister had an epicure...scentsy party so we decided to do some stuff of our own to sell.  It was a really great night!  Thanks to everyone who came!!  My aunt had made some really neat things to sell too!  I can't wait to try my dryer ball!!  (If anyone is interested I still have some items left...so let me know.  And if I can find some time I'll maybe try posting a couple of pictures of the items.).

P.S.  Can I just mention how cute Maguire looks in this picture??!!  His blond hair was so straight!!  I can hardly remember him without curls.....

K :)

Wishing to be back here.

 Almost every summer since I was a little girl (I think I was 3 years old the first summer we came) my family has spent time at Shuswap.  I love it there.  Love the beach...the sun...the weather...the memories...the traditions.  Every year we have a fabulous time.  This year my family wasn't able to go, but Cody and I still wanted to make the trip so his two sisters and their families joined us for a couple of days.


Maguire is our difficult traveller...he cries and complains the whole time, but he actually did really good driving the 8 hours.  Of course we were always happy when he did this...

haha!!  And then Ryker is always great!  He can easily entertain himself and loves to just watch out the window.  

The first night we stayed in a hotel.  We didn't actually get our cabin until Saturday afternoon, but Cody has been working on a cabin on Shuswap so we went early so he could work.  The boys always love staying in hotels!

We spent Saturday morning at the public beach watching the ducks...

 and throwing rocks...

playing at the playground...

and getting all the grocery shopping done for the week.  I think we were all just so happy to be away and spending time together.  With Cody so busy at work we don't always get the chance to get away like this...so we really enjoyed it.

The cabin we stayed in!

We love this community.  This was our third summer here and it was perfect.  All the cabins are privately owned, but some people rent theirs out.  We had stayed in this cabin 2 years ago, so we knew what to expect.  We even had an extra bedroom!  Ryker was excited to sleep in the top bunk and Maguire thought he was such a big boy sleeping in a bed.  It was pretty cute!

I love this view!

(this is looking out at the lake from just above the beach)

The boys loved playing with their cousins!  They had a great time playing in the sand and swimming together.  They spent hours just playing on this mound of sand that had been dumped to fill the beach.  Ryker cried when it was time to spread the sand out.

Maguire loved the water guns...even though he couldn't spray them.

We had great weather for the most part.  Some days were a little cloudy, but still nice.  The one day that was a little rainy we decided to go into Salmon Arm and have a picnic at the park.  On our way home we stopped at the go-karts.  It started raining right before our group went and everyone got soaked!  Ryker loved it though and didn't mind one bit that he was all wet.  

Everyone left by Thursday so we had 3 more days to spend as a little family.  Family friends own one of the lakeside townhomes, so we got to go out in their boat with them.  I even wake surfed and got up on my first try!  I haven't down anything like that in over 13 years.  Cody had never seen me wakeboard or ski!  The boys of course cried when I jumped off the boat and didn't want me doing it.  haha!!

We rented a pontoon boat and sea doo with Cody's everyone while they were hear.  I think that was a favorite day for everyone!  The kids all took turns tubing (Ryker was nearly impossible to get off the tube he just loved it!).  One of our stops was Margret Falls!  It's such a tropical hike...everyone loved it! 

 We had such a great time!  These two little guys absolutely loved it and did not want to come home.  We ended up staying as long as we could and travelled all night home.  It was definitely another great holiday!

xox

Sweet Post

I just wanted to share this sweet post I came across...


She shares many great posts on her personal blog and it makes me emotional reading it.


Reminds me sometimes of my own personal feelings:)


Happy Mother's Day Weekend!!


K :)

11 years....

I can't believe it's been 11 years!!!  Seriously...am I old enough to have been married that long???!!!  haha!  Since I'm thinking about this special guy today I thought I'd share a couple of recent layouts of us...and list 11 things about us or our relationship!  (I know he NEVER reads my blog so I can gush all I want!  hehe!)  

We'll count down... :)

11.  We are both the youngest in our families...which everyone says the youngest should never marry the youngest, but it works for us!  I don't think I was spoiled as the youngest (maybe my sisters and brother would say differently...haha!), but Cody was definitely a Momma's boy.  He had such a special relationship with his Mom and it's one of the things I love about him.  I never got to meet her since she passed away when he was only 12, but he can hardly talk about her without getting a little bit emotional :)  It's really sweet.

10.  He is one of the hardest working people I know.  He just can't handle laying around and doing nothing.  Now...I wouldn't say he loves working...more like he wants to be out having fun!  haha!!  When we were first married I remember he would get up super early to do side jobs...and when he first started out on his own (he has his own plumbing company) he would often be out of the house at like 4 in the morning!  It was a little crazy, but like I said he works hard.

9.  We are complete opposites.  Seriously.  I can be super shy and quiet and he is a total people person.  I love being at home and he wants to be out playing.  I love pasta and he will hardly eat it.  I don't like taking risks and he loves it!  I could go on and on...but that would get boring.

8.  He lives for biking and sledding.  The poor guy though really didn't get to do much biking last summer, so he's looking forward to the season this year.  He just has to hope for some sunshine and warmer weather!!  And as the nice wife I am I always try to go watch at least once ;)

7.  He loves eating out...and I don't tend to enjoy it as much as I used to, but some of our favorite places near and far include Ric's Grill, Yardhouse, Earls, Sicilian Pasta Kitchen (even though he can't eat there anymore), The Keg, Cactus Club and probabably a million other places...haha!

6.  He loves movies and watches almost anything!  This is good for me since I don't get to movies very often so he'll usually see whatever I want to see.  He's really good that way :)

5.  We went to San Diego for our honeymoon...don't ask why we picked there cause I can't remember at all how it was chosen.  But we had so much fun hanging out on the beach and shopping!  We've only gone on a couple other vacations just the 2 of us...before we had kids we were always trying to save for a house and then once we had kids it just always seems impossible to get away.  And now we always seem to bring the kids cause it's way more fun!

4.  Cody loves to laugh!  He loves joking around and hardly takes life seriously.  Sometimes it's something that drives me crazy...I tend to be waayyy too serious...but it's also such a blessing to have someone around who can laugh at anything and make you laugh right along with them.  It's a really good thing.

3.  When we were first married Cody had major surgery...like we had barely been married 3 weeks...and even though it was a huge trial for us it was a blessing too.  I had never had to deal with life like that and it helped me to be more thankful for my health and learn to serve someone else...like truly serve and think of someone else.  I was still in College and I can still remember hurrying to the hospital after classes to go see him.  I'd stay there until it was almost getting dark and then I'd head back to our apartment to sleep.  The hospital was downtown and I didn't want to have to walk to my car in the dark. And I couldn't sleep at the hospital since I was in school.  Sometimes I don't know how we survived that summer on nothing, but we managed.  It's amazing what you can live without...and what really matters.  We had nothing.  We were staying in someone else's apartment and were using their furniture...while they were away working for 4 months.  Oh...that seems like a long time ago.

2.  I love watching Cody with our kids!  They absolutely LOVE him and get so excited when he comes home from work.  And he loves them!!  He loves to play with them and make them laugh.  And every Tuesday he takes the boys swimming to give me time to myself.  It's really cute watching them together. He tickles and wrestles with them....and they just can't get enough.  All day long Maguire asks about daddy and Ryker insists on calling daddy over everything.  Ryker asks all the time if he can go to work with his dad!!  I love it!  He's always been so good with kids...love it!!

And my last point....

1.  He is the sweetest hubby!!  I am the luckiest girl!!  He takes care of me and is always so thoughtful.  I love hanging out with him...chatting at night in bed or going on little drives together.  When I'm away from him I feel 'home sick'...he's my comfort.  I believe he can do anything.  He makes it possible for me to be home with our cutie kids.  We had both decided that it was important and I'm so thankful that he has made it possible.  I remember when he called me at work and told me he had quit his job (this was years ago...I was working in a scrapbook store.  I wasn't making big bucks...I was completely working to support my hobby!) but I wasn't worried.  I knew we would be okay.  And we were.  He makes me want to be a better person and helps to stengthen my testimony.  He's a good example to our kids.  He's the best.  I love him so much and I'm so lucky to have him as my husband!!  I can still remember the permanent smile on my face as we went to the temple and were sealed for time and all eternity!!  I love you!

It was Easter

A couple more layouts to share :)

It's been a busy weekend around here with family, but it has been so much fun!  My kids love being with their cousins and playing outside...it just couldn't get any better for them!  I love long weekends and holidays mainly because of the traditions that we have.  Friday morning was breakfast with my family, an easter egg hunt and dying easter eggs.  The kids loved it!!  Then it was home to relax for a bit before more cousins came to play.  My brother-in-law and his family came up to spend a couple of days with us and it was good times :)  We had a bar-b-que and hung out Friday night and then Saturday was full of playing, games, swimming, eating, and hanging out.  With 4 families and almost 15 kids there is never a dull moment.  Sunday was dinner with my sister-in-law and it was sooooo yummy!!  My sister-in-law is THE BEST pie maker ever.  Seriously...she really is.  I remember one fall years and years ago I went to visit my two sister-in-laws while they made pies.  I think they made over 80 pies that day and they had people already lined up asking to buy them.  They are that good.  So maybe I like the food more than anything on holidays...haha!!

The best part of the weekend had to be Ryker...(a little bit of sarcasm here).  Friday night getting ready for bed I told him to go to the bathroom and then we'd get his jammies on.  He quickly ran off and then came back to me and says in a sing song voice "I peed in the garbage!" with a little haha after.  I looked at him and said "excuse me?  You better not have."  He quickly responded with "I didn't say anything!!"  Sure enough he had.  Boys.  Don't ask me what he was thinking, but now everytime he goes to the bathroom he makes sure to tell me he went in the potty NOT the garbage.  He keeps life very lively :)

And today I am tackling the closets.  That's right...I am going to accomplish something around here.  Our long weekend is over since Cody had to work today, but I'm hoping my sister is coming up this week.  We really want to spend some time with them.  She has the most beautiful girls!  I just love them :)

K :)

Have a great Valentine's Day!  I'll be spending mine with these cuties...showering them with lots and lots of love!

I'll share some fun things we did and made and decorated later :)

K

Enjoy this holiday season :)

Kim

A Child's Persepective...

(photo taken in Phoenix November 2010 by Ryker)


We sat waiting one day for the elevator in the parkade.  And it was taking forever.  Of course you can't just press the 'up' button once when you've been waiting soooo long, but still nothing happened.  Ryker being a sweet little 3 year old quickly chirps up and says..."We need to say a prayer!"  My first thought was "Right here?  right now?"  And so Cody being the better parent in the situation responded by saying "Sure!"  Ryker gave a sweet little prayer asking for the elevator to open while Cody and I are praying to ourselves that his prayer be answered.  And nothing.  It wasn't the perfect answer to his little prayer...and we both quickly tried to make it okay...while we walked back into the mall and took the escalator back up stairs to another door leading to the parkade level where we actually parked.


I have thought about that moment everyday since it happened.  Really more times in a day than I can count.  Thinking about how we could have handled the situation better...to teach Ryker about answers to prayer.  He's 3.  It really didn't matter to him that the elevator door didn't open...he was thrilled to ride the escalator again.  But what I've thought about is the responsibility we have as parents to teach our children what is right...how to respond and act...about instilling values and standards in them...making sure that they are learning all these things in the home.


One day in the future when we are in a similar situation I hope and pray that our children will remember once again to turn to the Lord.  And be okay with whatever the answer may be.  That they may know He is always listening.

I still can't believe it....

I think I'm finally recovering from last week....


But this little guy was soooooo worth my scariest moment ever...ever...ever....







isn't he soooo sweet??!!



Here's the short version of a very eventful day:

"Wednesday my sister went into labor.  I had told her that her 2 year old could come play with us so they could leave for the hospital whenever she needed to.  And we had been talking back and forth, but her daughter was napping and she felt there was no rush for me to come.  She called me back a couple of minutes later and told me to come right now.  So we left immediately.  My brother-in-law called me just as I was pulling up to their house and my poor sister's water had broken on her way out to the car and she was ready to have the baby right then.  She managed to get into the house and in less then 10 minutes my sweet little nephew was born.  With the help of 911, my brother-in-law and I delivered the baby!!!  I remember thinking "we're really doing this??!!"  It was scary...and crazy...and something I NEVER want to do again.  It was too scary.  I was very calm which was such a blessing, but I was super scared too.  My sister was amazing!  She was soooo calm and was just amazing through the whole thing.  We managed to tie the umbilical cord with a shoelace and shortly after the Firetruck and Ambulance arrived.  I was so happy to let them take over.  And then I remembered that my kids were sitting in the car.  haha!!  I had completely forgotten about them in all the craziness.  But they were fine...just watching a movie and Ryker was so excited because one of the firemen talked to him and gave him a coloring book.  He thought it was great!  haha!!  And my little niece slept through the whole thing and didn't wake up until we started cleaning up the house.  And now everyone is home and doing good."



It's amazing how all the events of that day just seemed to work out perfectly.  Don't get me wrong...it was the scariest thing I've done, but just that I know I was put in the right place at the right time.  I know that we were watched over.  I know it.  I'm so thankful to my Heavenly Father for bringing sweet little Ronan into our lives.  I love him soooo much already.  And for keeping my sister safe.  I've been at her house almost everyday....I just can't get enough of that baby.



I love him.
xox