day two

Hmmmm. . .day two.  My initial plan was to write down a little bit at the end of each day (and have the girls do this, too), but boy!  At the end of the day we were all so stinkin' tired there was no energy left for writing.  Off to bed, we were!  So now I'm just looking at the pictures and hoping to remember the best of the best.

I would say the thing the girls remember most about our last trip to Disneyland (five years ago) is the tea cup ride.  This is because they and their Dad made me sick, sick, sick on the ride.  So you can bet that's the one thing they were all looking forward to doing again.  However, I refused to take even a step onto that ride this trip as I am doing a pretty good job at feeling sick all by myself these days.  Instead, I volunteered to take pictures, which was a little bit tricky because I was on the wrong side and they were spinning, of course!  However these were a few of my favorites.  It was the first ride of the morning and Courtney was a little hesitant to spin too much so early in the day. 

Pansy.

The other funny thing that happened each day was that whenever Claire would be on any rides that went into a dark tunnel (which is most of them!), she would immediately cover her eyes.  This would make us all laugh, especially when she rode on the Matterhorn and then forever after regaled us with her stories of a "scary  monster so I covered my eyes like this".  This is because she makes the funniest faces when she tells this story.  And probably also because she makes us all laugh no matter what she does.

Claire is a definite Daddy's girl, and always has been.  So being with her Daddy for five days straight was just her cup of tea.  At one point, Courtney or I said something to the affect of "What's Claire going to do when Daddy has to go back to work?"  Upon hearing this, she immediately perked up and with an alarmed look on her face asked, "WHAT?"  As in, "You mean this isn't going to last forever?"  I agreed wholeheartedly.  Sometimes real life is a bummer.



This is how we spent a little bit of each day, patiently (or somewhat impatiently) waiting for the bus.  We would usually eat breakfast each morning at the hotel, pack our sandwiches, and head out mid morning.  After eating our lunch at the park, Claire would fall asleep in the stroller- which made a perfect time for big kid/daddy rides.  I was happy to stroller/people watch while she snoozed.  Mid-afternoon, we would head back to the hotel for some swimming or naps and dinner, then back to the park for the evening.  All in all, the girls became pros at public transportation, and I was taken back a bit to my BYU-H days and all the bus waiting/cussing we did.  Our favorite bus story was the night we had waited at the stop for quite a while (it seemed the "every 20 minute schedule" didn't really mean every twenty minutes.  Of course we were thrilled when we saw our route #1 bus headed our way.  We all jumped up and got ready to load when the bus driver (we'll call him "grumpy") stepped off the bus, shut the door in our faces and said (in an I-hate-my-job-voice), "Ten-minute break" as he walked away.  Turns out Grumpy just needed a Dr. Pepper and after securing one, he came out of the motel, opened the door to the bus while we jumped off and got ready to board, and then once again shut it in our face while he nursed his soda.  Just happy to serve, he was. This gave us a good laugh for days. 

That night we were at California Adventure and watched the back side of "World of Color", the super cool water show that just opened.  We didn't have tickets for that night so we kind of watched it in reverse from the other side of the park.  Great view, but we found it much cooler the next night when we watched it from the front! 

the happiest place on earth

day one

Last week, we ventured off to the land of Mickey and Minnie for a little family getaway.

Family time is a little rare in our house, with Daddy gone so much- so the chance to be just the six of us for five whole days?  It was good for the soul, I tell ya.  All of our souls!

This trip was a little bit impromptu, just having decided to take this little getaway a few weeks earlier.  In fact, we only told the girls a week before we were leaving.  I had been telling Courtney for about a month that I kept having this recurring feeling that we needed to take a little family vacation.  Finally, we bit the bullet and decided to getaway together for a few days.  We had taken the girls to Disneyland before (with the exception of Claire), five years before, when Ryenne was in kindergarten and Emmy was only 18 months old.  That trip was so much fun, but this one was fun in such a different way.  We loved having going on rides with our bigger girls and having a kind of grown-up fun with them.  We laughed and joked and did things we couldn't  have done five years ago. 

 

I remember planning one of our first little family vacations to Moab when Emmy was a newborn.  Ryenne would have been just four years old, and everyone kept telling us to leave the girls home (because they wouldn't remember it anyway) and then Courtney and I could enjoy  ourselves.  Then an older, wiser friend (whose children were teens at the time) told she disagreed- we should take them.  She told me that like us, they had many opportunities to go with extended family on reunions and such, but had made a special point to take a trip with just their family each year.  She said that while the kids may have been to young to remember all of them, and that they still had disagreements and their trips were never perfect-  their kids had learned how to be together as a family in a unique way.  Now that they were older, she said their kids looked forward to family vacations, and knew how to have fun together in a 24/7 kind of way, while their friends who "waited 'til the kids were a little older" now had teenagers who would rather die than spend a week with their family.  Her point was that learning to take happy vacations and make special memories is something you have to teach your kids.  While we followed her advice, I don't know if I quite understood what she was saying.  Each year, we've tried to make opportunities to get away with just our little family, even if it's for just a few days.  It hasn't always been easy with so many young children, and sometimes I admit I've questioned the wisdom in not waiting until they were all a little bit older!  This trip, however, I began to see the light!  It felt like it was beginning to pay off a little.  We started to work together better, and everyone seemed to be able to give and take a little better, seeing what needed to be done to make things work.  Not that we didn't have our fair share of little quibbles, but overall, I felt  a sense of teamwork and camaraderie that we hadn't had before.  It sound crazy, but it was such a fun experience!

Tuesday afternoon, we arrived at Disneyland, ready to "Let The Memories Begin!", after what had already been a looong day.  We had taken a 6:30 am flight, so you can imagine how early our day had started.  To shorten our morning commute to the airport, we stayed the previous night in a hotel in Salt Lake, crammed into one room!  The three oldest slept in one bed, choosing to sleep across the bed so they had more room.  You can bet they were all thrilled to be so close to each other.  The first hour of "bedtime" consisted of Claire climbing all over everyone and being crazy while the other three filled the air with sweet nothings such as "Stop touching me!"  and "Get your feet away from me!"  Finally, out of desperation, I told them a pioneer story I had recently heard about a family and their trek to the west.  Of course, I had to go pretty heavy on the freezing nights out in the cold, without tents and blankets. . . hardly any food.  And I just may have mentioned how happy I bet those pioneers would have been to have two whole warm beds for just six people, complete with cozy blankets and a heater.  Let's just say the guilt trip worked perfectly and all were sleeping quietly soon after I ended my diatribe.  As my brothers used to say, "Pack your bags, Mom's taking us on a guilt trip".  Like mother, like daughter I suppose. 

The next morning the girls were troopers as we made our way to the airport and through all the long lines.  It was sure nice to have a few older helpers this time!

Before we left, the girls decided we'd better paint their nails.  Obviously, we had no other choice than to do red with white polka dots.  Why?  For Minnie Mouse, of course!  They were a definite hit, both with the girls and everyone else.  My favorite part was when Emmy told me the next day how when she gets her nails painted (it's not a regular thing at our house- eighty fingers and toes take a long time!), she is much more dainty in the way she holds her food and uses her hands.  We laughed when she sighed and said, "I don't know what it is, it's just that when I get my nails done, I feel like a new woman!"

Ryenne obviously felt like a new woman with her fancy nails, too.

After getting settled in our new home-away-from-home (two rooms and a kitchen this time: the only way to go with a bunch of little rascals, in my opinion!), we took naps and then headed for the Disneyland.  Lots of smiles, excitement, and adventures for the rest of the evening.

And who did we see?  Mickey!

And Minnie!

Fun day?  Yes-sirree!

random us

A certain daughter of mine has a tendency to be a bit right-brained. As in 99.8%. I'm not completely sure, but I'm thinking she got a leeeetle bit of that from me. Anyway, this translates into a few challenges at school. For instance, remembering to follow through on assignments (or even remembering that an assignment was made) is sometimes difficult.

"What report??"

Another thing that gets lost in translation are notes. In fact, just a few weeks ago Emmy came home from kindergarten and announced that the afore-mentioned sister had gone on a field trip that day. Hmmmmm. . . Really? I had no idea what she was talking about, which worried me. I hadn't sent a lunch, and had never signed a note. There was nothing to do but wait and see how it had all played out.

Turns out, it never played out at all. As in said daughter had to sit in an empty classroom (except for a teacher and a few other boys) doing homework while her class went on a little outing. No note= no field trip. When asked about her day, she admitted that she had first felt kind of bad, but then got over it after everyone said it was "so boring" anyway.

I felt like mother of the year.

Later, I spoke with the teacher who told me that she could have called me, but felt like it would be a good lesson. I agree, except I'm never sure if it will be a lesson learned. Lessons happen often, learning is another story! We'll see. The funny thing about this whole episode is that the girls have a job chart which lists their tasks to be done each night.  To be perfectly honest, we usually only get around to using the list about twice a week (if we're lucky).  However, this particular week I had tried to bribe the girls by telling them that I would take them swimming on Saturday if they could get everything on their lists done, every day.  Well.  It was working like a charm, or so I thought.  One of their tasks is to give Mom or Dad all the papers/notes from their backpacks.  Interestingly enough, when I checked the job chart, this little deed had been "done" every night!  That's why I found the stack of twenty + notes! (no, I'm not kidding!) in her backpack a little alarming.  Turns out, we'd missed more than a field trip.  Little sisters backpack looked suspiciously similar- little stinkers.  (Needless to say, we didn't go swimming.)

Anyway, all that evening daughter relayed to me snippets of the many conversations she had while supposedly "working on her homework" in her little detention setting. When she is in the right mood, this gal is a waking stream of consciousness, and I could tell what had happened that day. I'm pretty sure everyone was treated to her running commentary on life (which can actually be quite charming, if I must say so myself). She went on and on.  Then, in the midst of her conversation,she told me how at some point one of the boys had looked at her and said, "You are kind of random".

Of course, she then immediately asked me, "Mom, am I random?"

I smiled as I told her something like this, "I think you are fun and creative in a random, unique way that makes people like you."

She laughed a little bit as she retorted, "Ummmm. . .Yeah.  I don't know if he meant it in a good sort of way."

I've thought about that conversation so many times in the past week. If she is random, I like random a lot.

I received an email from the same teacher today, stating that daughter is missing lots of math assignments and she'd be sending it home with her today. (This teacher is awesome at helping me stay in the loop). When I saw the list of about ten assignments, I put her to work.  You can bet that's what daughter has been doing all. night. long.

However, right now I'm choosing to look at the bright side. Last year, it was twenty assignments.  Last year, there were tears. This year, she knew what she needed to do, and she's been hard at work (as hard as a 99.8% right brained person can be with a stack of math assignments) most of the night without hardly a complaint.

Things are looking up.

And the brightest part of all? When I checked her list to see what she'd gotten done, I saw some words written at the bottom of the page that made me laugh. I know her well enough to know that it was written in a moment of distraction after she had focused for as long as she could possibly muster.  (As a side note, this girl is a master at the art of doodling.)  This is what she had written:

Teacher: "What's the definition of infinity?"

Johnny: "Tonight's homework assignment."

I love this girl.  While extremely dramatic in some situations, she has a charming (if sometimes a little frustrating) knack at refusing to take some parts of life seriously.  That is really good for a mom who sometimes takes everything too seriously. 

I often come face to face with my shortcomings as a mother and household manager. I have never, ever, ever mastered the skill of a carefully crafted after-school routine. I have tried, oh!  I have tried!  It is just so hard for me to stick with a routine anyway, and then extra, super-duper hard when I see the kids come home tired and ready to be kids.  I guess I'm an old fashioned believer in the "kids should be kids" philosophy.  Alas, we are not 100% homeworkers. We read everyday for enjoyment, but rarely record it in our "reading folders". And at piano?  We show the poorest practice record every week.  Every week!

But. I think my kids will rise above me. I'm confident that they will succeed in life despite my negligence with their reading folder. I'm banking on them being kind, thoughtful, and honest. Fulbright scholars and concert pianists? Well, I hate to be a dream killer, but. . .

On paper, our bunch is perfectly capable at being exceptionally mediocre.

A few weeks ago, I told Courtney (perhaps in a fit of exasperation) that I felt like I was supposed to be raising robots. Wake up everyday, on time! Clean rooms, teeth brushed, healthy breakfast delivered into their eager little tummies. Homework done, notes signed, folders checked, instruments perfected. They should excel in athletics, joyfully finish their homework (without being asked!). . .the list goes on and on.  Once they enter kindergarten, any good, self-respecting mother feels as though she should have her kids proficient at checking off lists, lists, lists. 

I've never been good at being a robot. (It's that darn right-brainedness, I suppose).

So. Life will go on and so will we. Undoubtedly, there will be more notes I will not see. Homework that will never be finished. Piano practicing that will never see the light of day. Untidy rooms, somewhat unhealthy after school meals, and a generally messy home.

Maybe it's an excuse (I've always been good at those), but it's a mode of survival.  In order to maintain my sanity, I've had to give up caring so much. I've lowered the bar.

I don't worry so much about the one hundred percents. I just want my girls to laugh everyday. To do something creative. Say a kind word, and notice someone who needs a bit of cheering up.  Listen to the song of a bird and feel the sunshine on their faces.  I want them to learn for the fun of learning, and read for the sheer joy of a good book. 

Am I selling us all short if I admit that I'm not terribly worried about my children being super accomplished and highly efficient?  After all, there is only so much time in a day, and I'm afraid efficiency isn't really our cup of tea.






I guess we're all working too hard at being random.

i laughed today

Sometimes my kids are really funny.  I love when I'm going about the routine of a normal day and one of them does some quirky little thing that makes me laugh.  This made me laugh today.

When I saw these little sticky notes hanging on the outside of Kate's door, I laughed right out loud.  Some people hang out a welcome mat.  Never ones to be conventional, we hang out an "unwelcome" mat.  I'm just letting you know- you gotta tread lightly around these parts.  And should you dare invite yourself beyond the unwelcome greeting, don't forget to wait 'til she sees fit to greet you. 

Oh, and you may want to make yourself comfortable (or is that uncomfortable).  This is Kate, and she tends to work on her own timetable. No fuss, no muss.

But don't worry, she'll get to you.






When she's darn good and ready, that is.

"the best valentines day ever"

Happy Heart Day!

Last night we held our little family Valentine dinner.  Candles, rose petals, and pretty decorations make the girls happy.  Happy girls make me happy.  Happy me makes Courtney happy.

So you see?  Happy family!

Thanks to daddy, we ate the most scrump-deliumptious dinner.  Steak, potatoes, rolls, asparagus. . .he went all out (I've been a little under the weather).  I managed to overcook a cake for the occasion, so I guess I wasn't completely worthless. 

Anyway, it was a hit.  All the girls were so happy, and Kate kept looking at us with the sweetest little face and gushing, "I feel so special".  There's just some things money can't buy.  

After dinner, we played a little Valentine game.  The girls had to each find four of the pink hearts that were scattered all over the house.  Each had a number, so after everyone found all of their hearts (mom and dad had to find one too), everyone had to work together to put them in order.  Once the hearts were all counted, the girls found that one was missing.  After looking all over the house, they all laughed when someone spied the missing heart, safely taped to Daddy's behind!

Now that everything was in order, it was time to read the poem written on the back of the hearts.  We each took turns reading one heart aloud. . .

Roses are red, violets are blue
We're here to tell you a Valentine story
of a love that's so true (you might call it a fairy tale!)

Once upon a time in a kingdom not very far away,
A young boy and girl met and were soon friends to stay.

The young lady thought that boy was quite cute, and better yet?  He was nice to boot!
The boy fell in love with the girl and her smile. . .
before long all could see this pair would last quite a while!

Quite a while is right!  The years quickly passed. . .
through high school, then college, this friendship was meant to last!

For two whole years, while he was off on a mission
They wrote letters each week.  (Wow!  Two years without kissin!)

She went to school to learn all that she could,
She met lots of friends, but not one boy as good.

As soon as they were home you can bet it wasn't long
before he gave her a ring and her heart sang a song!  "Yes," she said!

It was April 3rd, 1998, a day filled with family and fun.
But the best part of all?  This forever family had begun!

Now they were married the two were happy as can be,
 and soon it would get even better!  The family was growing to three!

Ryenne Ashleigh arrived, Mom and Dad fell in love.
Their own little girl sent from heaven above!

Soon three became four when baby Kate melted their hearts.
She was the sweetest little baby- they loved her right from the start.

The four settled in, they thought life was great!
Then surprise!  Along came Miss Emmy- (she just couldn't wait!)

Wow!  Three little girls was so busy and fun-
It was quite a few years before they'd have another one!

After four years of waiting, it was girl number four!
Miss Claire's so full of life- what did we ever do before?

Now Claire's getting bigger, I'll bet you can guess-
Next Valentines Day will be even better than the rest!

For this coming August our family will be growing.
A boy?  A girl?  There's no way of knowing!

Whatever Heaven sends us- we know one thing for sure.
Our family's love is forever- and it grows bigger every year!

Happy Valentines Day girls!

We love you forever and always!

So. there you have it!  Baby number five is officially on its way, set to arrive the middle of August (which makes our 5th August birthday. . . whew!)  We are thrilled with the news, although I can't help but laugh when I see the look on Courtney's face in this last picture!  I think it fits how we both feel- excitement mixed in with a little bit of "oh my heck!"

The girls were beyond excited about the news, and are still telling us "This is the best Valentines Day ever!"   

So happy. . . so in love!  Happy Valentine's Day!

island park number two

Instead of exchanging gifts for Christmas this year, my family decided to continue the tradition Grandma and Bop started last year- a winter family reunion in Island Park.  Amazingly enough, they found a cabin that sleeps our entire family!  Complete with a hot tub, a game room, and triple decker bunk beds for the kids- it's a perfect place for our bunch to spend a few winter days. 

This year was great for relaxing.  With the kids entertained by their cousins, we adults pretty much spent the three days vegged out on the couch.  In fact, I'm not sure I moved the entire weekend.  Quite a feat, eh?  We were so relaxed, in fact, that each time we saw the kids running by on the deck in their swimming suits, the most we could muster up is reaching for our cameras to snap a picture.  We're really good parents like that.

There was quite a bit of card playing had by all, with SCUM being the game of the hour.  Even Miss Daisy and Claire had themselves some fun. 

There were crafts by Aunt Andrea, of course.

And some funny one-minute-games. . .

 . . .cousins to play with. . .and plenty of snow to play in!



Until next year, Island Park.  We can't wait to see you again!

island park number one

Thanks to the hospitality of our good friends, the Hurd family, a favorite New Year tradition is going to Island Park.  A few days before the big day, we loaded up some happy but tired girls and headed north. 

The girls love going to Island Park to celebrate the New Years.  And I have to say, I can't blame them.  After all, what is there not to love?  A gazillion girls to play with, a beautiful cabin to play in, and all the snow a kid could want!  The girls (and me, I'll admit) stay in their pj's all day long, throwing on their snow clothes over their jammies when it's time to go outside. 

 And when they come back in?  Snacks and hot chocolate all around.  I tell you- it just doesn't get better!

 As you can see, there is no shortage of girls.  Our four girls, plus three Hurd girls (poor Aiden doesn't stand a chance), and the three Bingham girls (although we missed Emily this year) make for a lot of girl power!  The funniest thing happened when we went to church on Sunday  morning.  Courtney and I headed into the cultural hall first, followed by all nine girls.  I don't know where the other parents were, but Courtney and I had to laugh as we saw a congregation full of heads bobbing as they counted all of "our" children.  I heard one boy tell his mom, "Mom!  That's a lot of girls!"

Now, lest this next picture arouse any suspicions, I have to explain that the boys are celebrating the New Year with sparkling APPLE cider!  With the whole crew of us having gone to high school together, you can bet there are a lot of stories from the "good ol' days".  Us old folks even made it up past midnight this year.  Barely, but we made it.

What a fun weekend!  Thanks to the Hurd family for letting us celebrate New Years in style!