Plum Tuckered Out!

So I am not a fan of 1:00 church at all!  We have had that time all year, and it feels like you sit home the whole morning, then right at nap and lunch time you pack everyone up and drag them in the car for church.  Plus, if you get ready at 9:00 in the morning, your kids are dirty by 1:00.  But if you wait until 11:00, somehow you are always late!  I am glad this year is coming to an end, and I am facing 11:00 church for next year!  So excited!  The other day though we came home and Jackson had been horrible the entire time!  He was so tired.  We sat down to eat and by the time I got his plate ready, this is what he looked like!

Brayden decided it was kind of smart to fake asleep.  You get out of eating your vegitables, which I always make my kids eat before I put out dinner.

And here was Katelyn.  That girl is like her mom and is willing to stay awake for food no matter how tired she is!

We're Walking!

Katelyn has been 1 year old for a month and a half now.  She could take a few steps on her birthday, but she didn't seem to like it and she would sit down and crawl where she needed to go.  This last Tuesday, out of no where, she up and walked around the house!  That was it!  She walks everywhere now.  She follows me around like a little puppy.  I LOVE IT!  I think I have been a mother of infants for too long.  I couldn't wait for her to his this stage.  She is still very needy, but she is also way more capable of doing things herself and entertaining herself for just a little longer.  Here are some pictures of her birthday and some recent ones of her and the boys.

Dinosaur Train

So PBS has a new show on called Dinosaur Train.  This is Brayden's new favorite show, and I have loved it too!  He will run in and tell me what dinosaurs he learned about and if they were carnivores, herbivores or omnivores, what time period they lived in,  and many other things they went over that day.  Yesterday, I sat down to watch it with him.  Jackson was sick, so I held him while we watched.  The subject for the day was-POO!  I'm not even kidding!  One of the main dinosaurs was having trouble going potty.  She was embarassed by it.  So they talked about what poo is and why we poo.  They even had a part where they were playing hide and seek and found out they weren't hiding behind rocks, they were actually giant dinosaur stools, feces, or poo. (whatever you want to call it.  Now Brayden knows all three names and is using them in turn when he goes #2)  Then to finish it, they showed the bottom part of a giant dinosaur dropping poo, and as a grand finale they had a poo song!  I about died laughing!  Brayden walked around after singing, "All kinds of species have to make their own feces, the more you eat the more you poop!"  I had to think about the show for a while.  I wasn't sure I liked them teaching my son about poop.  At the end of the show, a paleontologist came on and told the kids how they use fossilized dino poop to determine what the dinos ate and what kind of surroundings they were in.  All in all, I decided I liked it.  It was an educational light hearted way of teaching the kids that pooping is normal.  Maybe my son, being a boy, won't have to go through that phase where poop is funny and they use it as a bad word.  Maybe he will understand it in a different way now and won't think it is that funny.  He did laugh in some spots, but mostly he thought the new words he had learned were cool and he thought it was awesome that they can use poo to discover things about dinosaurs.  So thank you PBS for teaching my son about POO!

Halloween!

I love Halloween!  I think that holidays just get better as your kids get older and enjoy them more!  This year was a blast!  Jackson was so excited that when he knowcked on doors and smiled at people, they gave him candy!  He would look at us and yell, "I got a nodder cannie!" and "Dis Awesom!".  Brayden was a hoot too!  MY favorite though, Kirt!  My dad, Kirt, and I took the kids out this year and half way around the block Brayden told us his feet were exhausted and he needed to go home!  Well Kirt figures that half that candy is his and there was no way he was letting Brayden go home with half a block of candy!  So He pumped up Brayden and would yell with him about every piece.  He would race him to the doors and freak out over every candy he got.  Brayden was so excited and finished the rest of the block!  Last year Kirt convinced Brayden that the orange candy, (recess peanut butter cups) were the best thing to choose.  (they also happen to be Kirt's favorite!)  Brayden came home with 50 recess cups!  Kirt was thrilled!  Also, half way around Kirt started with his mathematics.  He figured that candy probably costs $4.50 a pound.  He figured that after 2 hours, each kid would probably have 2 pounds of candy.  With 5 kids that totaled $40 in candy.  We were making $20 bucks an hour!  He is so funny!  Here are some pics of my kids in costume!

kozy contest

So Kosy 106.5 is doing a contest, well I'm not sure if they are doing it anymore; but You submit a picture of your "prince" or "princess" and people vote on the cutest pictures.  The prizes were tickets to the disney on ice tickets, and the grand prize winner was a free trip to Disneyland!  I haven't been on a vacation in more than 2 years, so I was so excited to win this contest!  I dressed up Jackson and Katelyn, and sat them down to take pictures to enter.  They were so cute.  Jackson wrapped his arms around Katelyn and she smiled, they were adorable.  I took them upstairs to submit them, but our computer wouldn't pull up the link to do it.  We have tried 4 other computers and can't enter our picture!  So my photos were never entered =( but I couldn't let them go to waste, so I am putting them on here so that someone can see how cute my kids look!

The Zoo

Last week my mom and I took our kids to the zoo.  It was perfect weather for it!  I actually liked going in the colder weather than in the middle of the summer!  The animals were all out and put on some pretty good shows!

They had a lot of babies there!  A new elephant, giraffe, tiger cubs, & monkeys.  The baby elephant was way cute.  She would stand under her mom, but then when she got in her mom's way, the mom would kick her out from underneath her.  We saw her get kicked out three times!

  I love this picture because once when I was there with Kirt he stood next to the picture of the Male Gorilla and his arms were just as long as the picture!  The sign next to it said that there are few humans with an arm spand as long as a gorilla's.  A couple of Chinese people even walked up and asked if they could take his picture!  Got to love Chinese photographers!Interesting fact about camels!  See how the one camel's hump is hanging over?  Guess why?  During mating season, camels burn a excess amount of calories!  Their humps are full of fat and druing this particular time of fun, they lose a lot of the fat!  Funny!Katelyn was so funny!  I didn't think she would really enjoy the trip at all, on the contrary she loved the animals!  She would make monkey gestures and hit the windows!  She loved the zoo!  When we got home and told Kirt about our trip she started making her monkey gestures again!  I have never had a baby who even cared we were at the zoo.This monkey was so funny!  When we first walked over to them ,this one was holding a baby!  Another monkey ran up to it and grabbed the baby!  It took off with it, but the baby was upside down!  The grown monkey started spakning the monkey on the butt!  This monkey got mad and tried to take the monkey back, but the other one took off up the tree with it.  The poor baby would look between the legs of the older one and had this look of, "what's going on!" on its face!  This one sat in the corner and sulked after that!

The tigers were gorgeous. The mom was just laying there asleep. A lot of people were trying to make her move, but she wouldn't budge. Then Jackson walked up to the fence and said hi to the tiger. It lifted it's head up and looked straight at him! Not kidding! I took this picture of the tiger stareing at him. I wish I could have got Jackson in it too, they stared eachother down for a couple of seconds then the tiger laid back down and went back to sleep!

Potty Training

Well I wrote this once, but it didn't work, so I will try again.  This last week we have started potty training Jackson.  It is my first time potty training anyone, because Brayden was taught by Kirt's mom.  I went into labor with Jackson, sent Brayden to Denise's house for three days, and he came home in red underwear!  I loved it!  This time Denise is in Jerusalem so I am doing in on my own. 
The first day went really well.  He went peepee toilet all day with no accidents, but he couldn't get down the poop thing.  So I cleaned out two pair of underwear (This thanksgiving I am going to be thankful that I didn't live in the clothe diaper era!) and we tried again the next day.  Same story, could do the #1 but not #2.  Well I gave up for a couple of days because I wasn't going to be at home to take him potty every 30 minutes.  Well when we tried again I watched him better.  I saw him in the corner making that "face", you know the concentrating hard face!  I ran him into the bathroom where he proceeded to poop!  I was so excited! (This was one of those moments where I realized you absolutely had to be a mom to be cheering on poop!)  I pointed into the toilet and said, "Look Jackson you did it!"  He looked at me and looked down in the toilet and got really excited!  He then turned to me and pointed at the poop and said, "Look Mom, a fish!"  I about died laughing because he pushed out another piece and said, "Look Mom, another fish!"  After we wiped and washed his hands, Jackson ran out to tell everyone what he had just done.  He ran into the front room and yelled, "I pooped a fish!" 
That was two days ago and now everytime he needs to go #2 he tells me he needs to poop a fish! 

Potty Training

First Day of School!

Isn't it funny how you wait and wait for things to happen, then when they do you sit there and wonder, where in the world did time go? That happened to me today. I woke my baby up this morning, watched him get himself ready, fed him breakfast, handed him his brand new backpack, and watched as he jumped into the car and started bouncing up and down. I drove to West Jordan high school, the location of Brayden's first ever preschool. I waited for him to get nervous and cry for mom, but of course he did not. As soon as the high school boy opened the door, Brayden jumped out yelled by and slammed the door. He practically pulled the boy into the preschool room! I laughed when Kirt said I would cry at this, but of course as soon as he went inside and I turned the car, the tears came a rolling. My baby is 5! I am definitly not old enough to have a 5 year old. I couldn't wait for this day to come. Kirt and I considered putting Brayden in kindergarten early, he only missed the deadline by three days. He can read, write, add, subtract, count to 219 (we aren't sure yet why he can't get passed that number), but he will be so tall and I wanted to send him to school with the most self confidence he could acquire by then. But keeping him home meant I had three babies at home for another year, and I have to say it is like running a marathon from sun up to sun down. I couldn't wait for these five hours a week when I would only have 2 kids. What is funny is I spent the whole time wondering what Brayden could be doing. Of course he had a blast and is asking why preschool can't be "More days a month", but it was still hard for me to send my baby. I am glad I didn't send him to school, I definitly could not have handled that quit yet.

Kids kids kids

These are my babies! Recently I have had a hard time remembering why I wanted to be a mom my entire life. Kids are hard! They cry, they poop, they scream, they hit, they bite, they throw up, they make huge messes, they whine, and many many more pleasant things. But in the end, I wouldn't trade these smiles for the world!

Frustrated!

I don't usually like to complain on my blog, I don't usually want to remember the things that anger me, but today the pain hit too deep and I just need to get it out. There is a man that Kirt has looked up to his entire life. I met Kirt when we were 15 years old, and he loved this man even then. He was one of Kirt's church leaders and was one of the people Kirt looked up to most in this world. I think this man was like a father when Kirt didn't feel like he could talk to his. I have only met this man a couple of times, but I have always loved and appreciated him for the things he taught Kirt. Yesterday, Kirt's mom called and informed Kirt that this man he so dearly loved had left his wife and their 4 kids and had run off with his secretary!!! As you can imagine, this act hurt Kirt more deeply than I think any other thing could have. Kirt's very first memory is chasing down the street after his biological father at just 3 years old. Kirt has been greatly affected by this same thing. I can't even begin to explain the deep pain in my husbands eyes as he told me this. I wish I knew where this man lived as I would have beat him with a stick. He will never know the anguish and hurt Kirt felt. I think Kirt only has a few people he truly looks up to and to have one of them commit the biggest sin in Kirt's eyes was truly hurtful to him. This thing just frustrates me. Why must there be sin in this world? Why do some people have to be hit so hard with opposition. I can't believe the things that have been thrown at Kirt in his life. Don't people realize the pain they inflict? All I can say is this, BRING ON THE DAY WHEN SIN WILL BE NO MORE!!! I used to be frightened by it, but it is a now a thing I pray for everyday.

Boys say the funniest things~

Tonight me and my little family were driving in the car together. I had stopped to get a free Jamba Juice I had won recently, and of course, Kirt was drinking it! He asked me if it had bananas and I smiled and told him no. (It did, but I like to make him think he is wrong sometimes, just to keep him humble.) Well he looked and me and tried to decide whether or not I was lying, I must have kept an ok face because the next thing I know, he spits this thing out of his mouth and says, "Then what the crap is this?" On his finger lay what looked like a giant bugar! It was so so so gross! I almost died laughing at the look on my germaphobic husbands face as he thought about the fact that maybe someone had hawked a loogie in the drink he was guzzling down! Priceless face right there! I finally let him have the relief he was looking for and told him that the drink did have bananas in it. Then Brayden chimed in with this..."My cousin Jayden eats bugars. He blows um out of his nose and sticks um in his mouth and eats them." Then Silence!!! Kirt and I burst into laughter. He said it just as a simple fact. Sometimes that boy just cracks me up!

Just things

I am going to write just a couple of small things just for the purpose of having them, and updating Melyn.
Today I took the kids to the park. Brayden has enjoyed swinging since the day he was born. He could "pump" all by himself when he was only 2. Well today I was swinging next to him with Jackson on my lap, when he started to complain about the swing being "twisty". I told him that maybe the wind was just making his swing twist a little, and he thought about that. I looked closely at the top of his swing and noticed that a bolt was just a little loose and could slide around, thus making one side a little longer than the other, and I went to tell him, but he cut me off saying, "Mom, I figured it out! It isn't the wind that is pushing me it is the Holy Ghost. And he just can't push right." Me and the lady pushing her son next to us about died laughing!

My little Jackson could not say one understandable word as of 4 months ago. I distinctly remember because I took him into the Doctor with Katelyn for her 6 week check-up, Brayden's flue shot, and Jackson's 18 month check up at the same time. (very dumb, do not take 3 kids to the doctor all by yourself, at the same time. Especially if they are getting shots. By the time we left, I was the one bawling out of frustration!) The doctor looked at Jackson and told me just how cute he was, but then asked me how many words Jackson knew. I said, "2." She looked at me and asked, "Can he put them together?" I just kind of sat there thinking, I don't think he even knows what those two words really mean. When we left, I was extremely worried about my son, but she told me not to be too concerned just yet. She said, "When he starts talking, it will come out in sentences!" 3 months later, Bam! Entire sentences! And they are adorable. He is the most polite kid I know. He says please-Peas Thank you-shank shoo mom! and your welcome-wor welcome mom! Thank you Barney the dinosaur! Well today at the gym, I left the kids to go work out and when I came back, six employees were gathered around Katelyn and Jackson in the back. They were all just a giggling at Jackson making Katelyn laugh by hitting himself in the face, then he would say, "Good job princess!" He calls her princess all the time. I don't think he knows her real name. I will record him saying it and put it on here, as soon as I figure out how.

Last is my Katerbug! (that is the nickname Brayden has given her.) She is giggling, smiling, and wrapping everyone she knows around those cute little fingers, that have now found her mouth and she is refusing to take the binki anymore! (I really really tried this time!!!) She loves her brothers more than anyone else, and just loves to lay on the floor and watch them! She even has a special scream that means, Mom... Jackson is sitting on my head! Her eyes just glow the second Brayden walks into the room! She has been here for nearly 5 months, and we don't know what we would do without her!

Oh Boy

My little Brayden is so smart. He amazes us with all the things he can do. He picks things up faster than any little kid I know. I am not sure this is always a good thing. As a parent, you have to be smart enough to keep up with all the questions you are asked. These are some of the whoppers we have been asked lately.
(At Maverick)
Brayden: Mom, why do people throw their garbage on the ground?
Mom: Because some people don't show enough respect to our Earth to throw their garbage away. It looks terrible huh.
Brayden: Yeah....That isn't fair that they have the power to make the Earth dirty.
Mom: (jaw starting to drop) It's true.
Brayden: Will the Earth be ressurected too? I think it deserves to be all the way clean.
Mom: (jaw dropped, hoping Kirt will hurry up!) Yes Brayden. The Earth will be ressurected too.
Brayden: How will Heavenly Father make the Earth Clean?
Mom: (Trying not to scare Brayden) Well we are told that Heavenly Father will use Fire to clean the Earth.
Brayden:.......Thinking.... That is a good idea. Will Heavenly Father have to burn my toys?
Mom: Brayden, the people who choose the right will be lifted up and protected. I am sure we will be able to build you some new toys if yours are burned in the fire.
Brayden: Heavenly Father is so smart.
Mom: Yes he is. Where the heck is Daddy?

Here is another one

Brayden: (sitting on couch thinking) Mom, why do girls kiss girls?
Mom:(AAHHH!) Where did you see that?
Brayden: It is on that song, I kissed a girl and I liked it. Why was she kissing a girl and she liked it?
Mom: (knowing that we would have to address this someday, but hoping it was not until he was 13!!!) Brayden, Heavenly Father made boys and girls. It takes a mommy and a daddy together to have make a family. That is how Heavenly Father planned it. Some people got mixed up and decided not to obey Heavenly Father. A mommy and a mommy together can't make a family, and a Daddy and a Daddy together can't make a family. What do you think Brayden? Do you think it is right?
Brayden: Then we wouldn't have anymore kids.
Mom: That's right.
Brayden: When I think about it, my tummy gets all yucky. I don't think Heavenly Father likes it that way.
Mom: I don't think he does either.
Brayden: That's a dumb song.
Mom: I think so too!

Sometimes I wake up and kneel on my knees just to ask for help with the questions Brayden asks. Some other questions this last week have been:
What color is the Holy Ghost?
Why did some people follow Satan's plan instead of Jesus'?
Why do people smoke if they know it makes them die?
When Jesus comes back and my Aunt Hannah gets to come live with Mom Mom, will all the bad things go away?
Can we get cealed again? I want to make sure that none of us can get lost.

We have conversations like this everyday in the car! I promise I don't go around telling Brayden about the second coming, I would think it would be scary for a 4 year old. It scared me to death. But the idea sounds great to Brayden. He wants to know all about it. The boy is going to be smarter than me by 10!

Baby Blessing

We blessed Katelyn last Sunday. She looked absolutely beautiful!

Lucky!

I want to stop and take a second to thank Kirt! He works his little tail end off so that I can be home with my kids. I think staying home is a privilage. I know the world doesn't think of it that way, but how lucky am I that I get to be the major influence in my children's lives for the first 5 years! Staying home was not what I wanted to do with my life, but I am so grateful the Lord put me on this path. Joseph B Wirthlin said last Conference, "Come what may, and love it!" Three kids was not what we were planning to be doing right now in our lives, but they also taught in this last conference to Enjoy the Moment! I love my kids, I love Kirt! He gave the most beautiful blessing this last Sunday to Katelyn. He blessed her to love everyone around her, he blessed her with a love of music, and he blessed her with Peace. I am so glad he lives his life so that he can bless my children! I am so Lucky!

Connie

Tommorow my aunt turns another year older,
I love that dear lady and don't know if I've told her.
So I'm taking this moment to look back and see,
Just why my aunt Connie means so much to me!
Pink and White wallpaper stands out in my head,
painting and cleaning and moving a bed.
All to get ready for her to come back,
From South Carolina, with Honor entact!
Later came sleepovers with me and my sis,
she spoiled us rotten, they were complete bliss!
when birthdays came round the fun wouldn't end,
Connie took us to a movie, just me and a friend.
The best was when Connie moved into my house,
her room was not fit for even a mouse.
So we hung up blankets all over the walls,
She lived with the screaming and bouncing of balls.
Mario party kept us up late,
Connie saying swear words when losing was GREAT!
We'd stay up late talking and laughing too,
til my mom would come down and make faces at you!
One day when I brought home my first boyfriend, Kirt,
When he wanted to leave you dropped his keys down your shirt!
My favorite was when we went cruising together,
Remember the rocking from that horrible weather?
We knew the location of every bathroom on ship,
you puked in the water on our snorkeling trip!
Just $17 and take your shirt off for me,
I will forever be fond of that memory!
When life got tough I went down for a while,
you were always right there with a hug and a smile.
When everyone else was turning away,
You let me cry and knew just what to say.
Connie that's one of the things I love most about you,
You love every person despite what they do.
You were there at the hospital when Brayden popped out,
And helped me get back to that good upward route.
You smiled and came through the Temple with me,
And were there when we were cealed for all Eternity!
God then sent me a daughter so sweet and so new,
with her very first smile I knew just what to do.
I would give her a name that to me meant a lot,
Someone honest and caring, of goodness I sought.
And then that sweet baby she looked right at me,
and in that sweet second I thought of Connie.
You were always there and right by my side,
through the ups and the downs, no matter how bumpy the ride.
I love you my Connie, I hope you know that!
So be glad about 40! Be proud of that hat!
For no one has touched everyone person the same as you!
I love you my Connie, I love you, I DO!

Check out this Princess!

I am going to take this opportunity to brag about how absolutely beautiful my daughter is! There is not one person that she doesn't have wrapped around her finger around here! She is starting to smile, laugh, and coo! She knows her family, and will stare at her brothers now! My all-time favorite though, she loves her mom! You should see that smile light up her entire face! And check out those cheeks! Those are my double stuffed oreos in full bloom!

My Jackson!

I just have to put these pictures on of my little Jackson! He brings such joy to us! He has decided that he is old enough to feed himself! He won't let us touch his food. So this is the result of spaghetti! We are taking baths a lot after meals around our house lately! Isn't it amazing how different each child is! Jackson is so indepentdent and wants to do everything himself. I thin khe sees his older brother do it and he thinks he should too! The stool he is sitting on is a little taller than the others, but once he saw brother sitting on the smaller stool, he decided he needs to sit on one of those too. He can barely reach the counter! What a sweetheart! The second is a recent one of Katelyn. Check out those cheeks!

Family

I just want to give a shout out to all of my family! I have the best family in the entire world! I have over 50 cousins and like 25 aunts and uncles and I get to see most of them every couple of weeks! But I especially want to tell my mom's sisters how very much I love them! You guys mean the world to me. You are more like my own sisters than aunts. Susan and I are closer in age than her and my mom! I love going out with you guys and I am so glad you let me just be myself and love me for it! I think I have a little bit of each of you in me! I look up to all of you so very much! I don't know what I would do without you guys!

Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas this year! We decided to stay at home since the first time since we got married. We decided to start some of our own traditions and I bought some cinnamon roll dough from a bakery to make for breakfast. We spent the night driving from one parents house to the other and Santa visited and brought the kids a remote control car that can ride on the walls! We went home, read the kids "The Night Before Chrismas" and put them to bed. Kirt and I set out to wrap presents and create a fantasy morning for our kids. Over the summer we had purchased an outdoor slide and jungle gym to put downstairs, since we have no backyard. We brought it up and realized it had not been washed before we bought it and we spent two hours cleaning it up and steralizing it for the kids. We went to bed at 1:30 in the morning! I woke up with Katelyn and looked to see what time it was, but the power had gone out! I had to wake up Kirt to hold a flashlight while I changed her diaper. She woke up again, the princess, at 6:30 and the power was still off. Brayden woke us up around 8:45 and the power was still not on. It was FREEZING! We had put the brand new dvd recorder we bought for Christmas next to the wall so we could record them opening their presents, but we did not charge it the night before! So the Dvd recorder lasted long enough for them to walk down the stairs and see everything. We couldn't make any cinnamon rolls, for lack of an oven. We couldn't see anything because the lights wouldn't work, and there was 15 new inches of snow out front and it was still snowing! So we wrapped up in our blankets and Kirt packed up every toy into the car, most still unopened! Just as I went to shut the door to leave, the power flashed back on. Of course! We drove through the blizzard to my mom's house and had to let the kids open their presents there. The kids didn't even get to climb the slide we had spent and hour cleaning! It was not the Christmas we had imagined, but we got to spend it with family, which is what we wanted anyway.