Motherhood!

My Babies!

I didn't know it would be this hard or this rewarding!
I remember people telling me, (or warning me rather) about how hard motherhood would be. And truthfully, I usually dismissed their comment, thinking to myself, well they must have done something wrong, because I'm going to be the best mother ever AND it's not going to be hard! Well, guess what Gail? It's really hard! In case you're wondering what I'm talking about:

1. The Messes!
2. The Noise - My kids have a way of piercing ear drums, it's a talent they all have.
3. Diapers! And then as a goodbye bonus to no more diapers, Potty Training!
4. The FIGHTING! The TEASING! The Whining! All The DRAMA. Give me a break!
5. When they wake up the baby.
6. Stepping on toys (with barefeet mind you)...OUCH!
7. Stepping on toys - this time with shoes on, so no sore feet, but now I've broken another toy.
8. When they embarass me in public.
9. Stained clothing! Broken dishes! Spit-Up & Sticky handprints - on everything, including me.
10. This deserves mentioning again - ALL the messes! I really hate messes. But I also hate cleaning the house All day long so I've learned to live with it.

But I also remember people telling me how wonderful it would be. This is what I choose to focus on. It helps me remember why I became a mom!

These 20 things make the other 10 worth totally worth it!

1. Those Tight Hugs & Little Kisses!
2. Teaching moments - the ones where you actually see them learning!
3. Watching them play pretend.
4. Watching them take their first steps.
5. Listening to them explain their feelings, good or bad.
6. Teaching them the Gospel! And hearing their testimonies at home or at church.
7. When they fall asleep on me.
8. The first day of school.
9. Taking them shopping. For clothes - NOT toys. (See previous post for my reason why!)
10. Family road trips, vacations, and swimming together.
11. Snuggling.
12. Holding their little hand in mine.
13. Going to Grandma's house.
14. Making a treat together.
15. Pushing the stroller, (when they're not crying in it).
16. Driving carpools.
17. Watching them get really good at something - Practice, Practice, Practice.
18. Introducing them to a new sibling!
19. Cooking together. But this has to be done with one child at a time OR it gets too crazy.
And finally...
20. Looking into their little faces and seeing part of Mike and part of me smiling back!

Tantrum? Meltdown? NO. Try DIASTER!

Today I experienced one of the worst moments in my entire time as a Mother! Aaron got invited to a birthday party, yay! We love birthday parties! So we went to pick out a gift, no big deal right? Wrong! It turned into the biggest childhood tantrum this poor Wal-mart has ever seen. I explained to Aaron he could pick out a gift in the $5 range. He wanted to buy a transformer, but he didn't care for the $5 ones. No, those just wouldn't do. He wanted to buy the $16 set that came with two transformers! As we walked toward the cashiers he followed me, clutching the $16 toys while big tears streamed down his little cheeks. Now at this point I'm frustrated, but it also broke my heart because he wanted to buy his friend "The Better" toy and he really didn't understand why we couldn't do that.

Well, it gets worse, a lot worse!

I paid for the smaller, $7, (but still really cool) toy. And then I pryed the $16 dollar toy from his tightly gripped fingers and handed it back to the cashier. That's when he took off, running mind you, back to the toy section. So I followed him, with Rebekah and Moriah still in the shopping cart (thankfully). He had collected another $16 toy which I grabbed from him and threw on the floor. Then I picked him up and sat him on Bekah's lap, (she was in the seat of the shopping cart). As I tried to manuver my way out of the store - half pushing a cart, half holding a squirming 5 year old I wondered how I was going to make it to the van, locate my keys and then get home.

Well, it gets worse again, a lot worse!

At this point a helpful Wal-Mart employee, (she looked like a grandmother who had seen this type of tantrum before) helped me by pushing my cart while I carried him all the way to the van! As soon as I put him down he ran away! I ran after him. I put him in the van, tried to get the girls in and while I was doing that he ran away again! This time the helpful employee ran after him and yelled to a passing customer, "Stop THAT Boy!" This time I turned off the sliding van door openers and she attempted to stand guard at his door, but he was too quick and he ran to the other side of the van and escaped...Again!

I'm in tears, I had kept it together to this point, but now all bets were off! My mascara was running, I was bawling! How was I going to get home? The employee put Rebekah and Moriah in the van while I got him in the van. As I tried to strap him in I told him to forget about the birthday party! AND that we would be calling Dad as soon as we got home. As huge sobs errupted from my chest the employee reassured me I was doing a good job...and reminded me to breathe! (This sweet lady will be getting a HUGE thank you card from me and I'll make sure the manager knows about her good deed.) Well, in order to get out of that parking lot without another escape she had to stand guard as I backed up. Aaron refused to sit down and strap in, (which wasn't a huge deal since we live right around the corner) but when I pushed on the gas, he fell back - right on the $7 transformer and new crayons I had purchased. Now he's crying even harder (if that was possible), he crushed the new toy's packaging and there were crayons everywhere!

Here's where it gets better.

After getting the kids inside I promptly dialed Mike's work number, ring, ring...voicemale! Ugggghhhh! I left a somewhat frantic message then sent Aaron to his room. Time to get Moriah out of her car seat. Ring Ring! Hopefully that's Mike! It was, and I recited the events of the last 20 minutes. Aaron got on the phone and explained to his Dad what he did. Then I got on the phone. A few minutes later I heard some bustling in Aaron's room. I went to check on him expecting to see a bigger mess, (he tears his room apart when he's upset). Well, instead of a mess, I caught him cleaning up his room! I was already crying, but now I burst into a totally different kind of tears as he said in his little voice, "I'm cleaning up my room because I want to make you happy." I passed the phone to Aaron so he could tell his Dad about his sudden change in attitude while I composed myself.

He really is a good kid! And I made sure he heard me tell Mike that on the phone and then I made sure to tell him that like 8 more times! He's a very sweet boy who wanted to buy the best toy for his friend. It's hard to understand why us parents say "NO" so much, but sometimes we have to. We had a good talk and came to an agreement. If he could remain on his BEST behavior all day, then he could go to the party. BUT he was definitely grounded from the store again. This time for 2 months. This wasn't his first tantrum in Wal-Mart.

(He did this once before when I was 7 months pregnant with Mo.) Guess What? It's hard to run when you're pregnant!

Beware of the Flat Rate Box

I learned a tasty little morsel I thought I'd pass along. You've likely heard about the USPS flat rate boxes. You buy the box and it ships by Priority Mail anywhere in the US regardless of the weight. The slogan is "If it fits, it ships". Sounds great. I was waiting for something like this so I can have a more economical method of shipping bricks to random people.

Today I learned that the USPS flat rate boxes aren't all they're cracked up to be. I sold an item on eBay and needed to ship to sunny California. I found a box in the storage room and packed the item. The box was approximately the same size as the medium flat rate box. I figured I'd find out how much it would be to ship using my box and if the flat rate box was cheaper I'd repack the item.

Lo and behold, my packaging shipped for less than half the flat rate cost. Granted, the item only weighed about a pound, but it was sure nice to see that for lighter items you're better off just boxing it yourself than to buy into the flat rate program.

The Best Birthday Ever!

"This was the BEST Birthday EVER!"

Well, the kids say that every time they have a birthday, no matter what we do. I think they just like having birthdays. When you're a kid, it really is one of the highlights of each year though isn't it? Here's Emma and Mommy on the Birthday Rock, one of our Family's Traditions.

Pet Shops = Big Yay!!!

Happy Birthday to You!

Blow Out the Candles!

I can't believe she's 7!
That hardly seems possible...

When this seems like yesterday!

BABY Emma...so CUTE!

Blessing Day...2003!

You made us parents! You made us a family!

A Forever Family.

7 Things I love about my daughter:

1. Her intensity...sometimes we call that DRAMA around here.

2. Her toothless grin.

3. Her artistic talent!

4. Her beautiful thick hair, (even if you never want any barrets or bows)

5. Her original style.

6. Her leadership, thanks for all your help - even when I tell you, "You're NOT the mother!"

7. Her simple and pure Faith in the Lord.

Your incredible spirit shines through every day! We love you so much Emma,

Happy Birthday!!!

This Little Piggy...Went Bye-Bye!

This little piggy looks like just a stuffed animal, but he's actually a bank as well. Form following function - as it relates to pigs at least. He's cutie.

I received this pig from my Mother in Law. It used to belong to my husband's Grandmother & I love the ornate decoration. Don't worry Mom, This one was a keeper. And if I ever change my mind I'll return him to you.

This was Emma's pick.

If you know me well, (or knew me when - take your pick), then you'll know I had this pretty amazing pig collection. It started when I was in high school. I was out on a date with my boyfriend and we were killing some time before a movie. We were downtown and we stopped in this little Japanese antique's shop. It was there that I found this cute little piggy bank, (no picture sorry). After that I was kind of hooked. It started with just piggy banks and then evolved into anything pigs: pens, salt & pepper shakers, notepads, toys and of course stuffed animals. I got very good at knowing where to find them, it was as if I had a sixth sense. Thanks to family and friends who supported my habit the collection eventually totalled over 200! And at the time I thought that was a pretty cool.

Well - flash forward a few years and I became a mom. When my second was born, we boxed up the pigs so he could have a room. (Yes they took up their own room, well at least an entire wall in a room on 4 book shelves - ridiculous!) Flash forward 5 years and I'm sooo over the pig collection. I donated them to D.I. the other day. With exception to a few that meant something special to me and a few I saved to give to friends and family.

As I opened the first box I have to admit I was physically ill! Why did I collect all of these?! I could have spent that money on something much more worthwhile. Live and Learn, right? I had a mini freak-out, called Mike for support and then rolled up my sleeves! The kids were a great help, mainly because tearing the carefully wrapped bubble wrap off each pig reminded them of Christmas! They were so cute, they lovingly created a family of piggies on my family room floor, while I tried not to vomit in disgust at myself! They wanted to keep all of them...NO WAY was that happening, I allowed them to pick out one stuffed pig and one piggy bank. Did Emma have to pick the biggest stuffed pig I owned?! We did a little research to see if there was a market for these, but not really. Next time I'm collecting something that increases in value!

So, here's to de-junking and growing up! Every now and then I do both of those.