Our newest puppy

Not a lot has been happening, just everyday life stuff for the most part.  Things are slow so I have been working less, and seem to be getting less done at home, too.  But I have noticed that with the extra time I’ve been able to feel more connected to my kids and I’ve loved it.  Montana has kept me marveling and laughing the last couple of weeks.  Here’s a picture to illustrate her best entertainment contribution for today:

Why keep those clean underwear and socks in the drawer when they can be used as such apt costumery?  She continued being our little puppy for the afternoon and we even got to play pet shop this evening to finish off a day of fictional animal husbandry.  Asher’s entertainment contribution was when he was the role of the pet shop store clerk, ringing us up, taking and scanning our card, returning our card and item and with a friendly wave and smile saying, ‘Bah’ as a his farewell and invitation to leave the ’store’.  What a wonder.

Earlier in the week she really let her opinions known about skipping over Thanksgiving.  We were driving through town and she saw an inflatable Santa (it was at the door of some holiday boutique).  Here was her rant from the backseat: “Did you see that Santa?!  What in the world are they thinking for heaven’s sake?  It’s not Christmas!  It’s Thanksgiving!  They should have a turkey or something.  Maybe they forgot and they think it is Christmas now and then Thanksgiving after.  Crazy.”  Eric and I echoed the car with spirited “Bravo, bravo!”   I can sometimes share in her outrage of ‘holiday creep’.  I love the Christmas season, but don’t rush me, please.  I love fall and I wait all year for it to come.  I’ve already gone on in previous posts about how this season affects me and Thanksgiving is the capstone of this time of year.  The spirit of gratitude that dwells in my heart throughout the year is heightened and it holds the fondest childhood memories of food, family and gathering.  Each year these are fading more and more so I hold on to what I can and I’ll stand with Montana and say, “Wait, it’s not Christmas quite yet!”  And although the reason for the season of Christmas is a cherished blessing, there are so many things to enjoy before the red and green and white fill our days and nights.  Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday!

Near disaster

Take a closer look at those tile pictures below.  Now image that tile floor covered in water; all but the row closest to the carpet on each side.  That’s what we experienced yesterday afternoon about an hour before a showing for a prospective buyer.  Crazy.  I’m already so glad we have tile because if this accident happened a month ago, we would have some serious carpet damage.  Here’s how the story goes:

Trevor didn’t go in to work yesterday, but rather did a lot of packing.  He started a bit methodically, and then as the day progressed I heard a couple comments like, “Wait.  No.  I was doing…” and “Man, I need to finish one thing before I start another because I forget to go back to the first.”  A little before 4:00 p.m. we got a phone call to inform us of a showing at 6:00 p.m.  We really hadn’t kept the house tidy for a showing while packing so Trevor planned to get to a stopping point and then we’d clean.  One of his objectives was to clear some of our closet by removing luggage.  I was feeding Sidney when Trevor finished and asked if I would go and see what I could downsize of my side of the closet after Sidney was done eating.  Marsha was vacuuming the house and there were enough active kids around that it wasn’t until I neared the bathroom on the way to the closet that I heard running, dripping, and splashing water.  Trevor’s sink was plugged and the faucet was running at full pressure.  We quickly threw down some towels and tried to contain what we could as we remembered people would be looking at our house within the hour.

I was really concerned about all that was in the drawer under the counter and hoped the water had just run over the edge and missed the drawer completely.  Not a chance.  When we opened it everything in it was floating as the drawer appeared to be water tight.  There was so much water that it looked as if the drawer had not filled up, the water would have reached the carpet in both the bedroom and the closet.  Despite the setback in our cleaning before the showing, we were very grateful to have tile as we thought about the effects of this event had carpet still been in place.  Near disaster, I’m sure .  Okay, not tragedy, but the tiling project would have been a lot more messy and a lot more rushed, because of necessity.

Trevor’s explanation, or as best as he could remember, was that after carrying out the luggage he was going to clean the sink and decided to let it fill as he walked to the truck and back.  However, he must have started another task and forgot to go back to the first.

Whew.  The action around here never stops, or so it seems.

Last minute home improvement

After learning about the uncertainty of Trevor’s job, we decided to sell the house.  We met with a realtor who suggested we tile the master bathroom.  Trevor and I have never liked the carpet in there anyway, but I didn’t like the idea to upgrade just to sell.  Oh well.  If it helps it sell I won’t be too sad.  Trevor and Kevin tackled the project and finished in just two or three days.  I had to take some pics though.  I think this in my favorite:

Since Kevin had tiled before, he gave the “newbie” the dirty job of cutting the tile to the measurements Kevin gave him. Trevor was certain he ingested plenty of tile.

Look at that! Kevin even got Eliot to work for him. What a foreman he is. Really, he was doing us a favor to allow Eliot to help. Sometimes her desire to help is overbearing, but we try no to deter her.

 

 

The finished work! Now I can’t complain that Trevor gets the carpet all wet when he has to retrieve his forgotten towel after a shower.

I’m quite proud of the job they did.  I think Trevor enjoyed the learning experience and satisfaction of completion.  It’s fun to have done, even if we don’t get to enjoy it for very long.

Li’l Pumpkin

This is an outfit a friend gave us at the surprise shower.  I’ve been so excited for Sidney to wear it.  The little bear was a gift from another friend.  Sidney was asleep for the most part and we had a great time posing him and snapping LOTS of pictures.  I’ll just post a few though .

Unfinished patio *sigh*

Since Spring, Trevor has been wanting to enclose our back patio.  Our friends have theirs enclosed and after spending a few evenings enjoying the air without bugs, Trevor anxiously went about making plans for ours.  However, I think this is the first project he hasn’t hit running until it was finished.  It was somewhat of an unpleasant learning experience in patience as Trevor had to make slower progress due to tight project finances.  Now, as we anticipate leaving this area, he is very sad to leave this project undone.  When he started there were only the two posts, one on each corner.  Now there are six (this is not a current picture).

Almost…

We are so close to finalizing a headstone for Morgen’s grave.    Here’s the last rendition from the makers:

 

We asked for a few small changes, and this line art doesn’t easily show the blasting style or shape carving we’ve chosen, but we’re so excited and anxious to have it completed.  I wanted to show you how close we are.  We should have it placed within the next two weeks, as long as the weather is right for it.  Yea!  I’ll be sure to post pictures when it’s done.

Daddy/Daughter camping

This past Friday night our ward organized a daddy/daughter campout.  Trevor spoke with Eliot earlier in the week and they made plans to go.  By the time Friday came around Eliot had made her own song about it and had a dance to go along, although the only words were “daddy daughter campout” and the dance consisted of violent hip movements.  It was still an enjoyable performance, aside from its frequency.  When Trevor got home from work on Friday night they gathered their things and headed to the lakeside just twenty minutes from here.  As they were leaving I asked Trevor if he wanted the camera (because I wanted pictures).  He smiled and refused knowing he wouldn’t use it anyway.  I teased that there would be no record of the ward’s event because I didn’t know many fathers who would use a camera.

Saturday morning I was feeding Sidney when they got home before 9:00 a.m. and walked in full of smiles.  Eliot told me how they cooked their hot dogs on the fire for dinner and ate a lot of marshmallows too; and how she even slept in the back of the truck with Dad, all night!  They unloaded the truck while I ate breakfast, and then we were all back in bed before 10:30 a.m. to nap.  I can’t think of much more that stood out to me, until Sunday morning.  I counted more than ten mosquito bites on Eliot’s face and neck, one right on the tip of her nose.  Trevor said he offered her bug spray but she said “No thanks because I don’t feel them on me.”  I was kind of embarrassed when I thought she’d be a sad display at church as a victim of the outing, but then consoled myself by thinking I’d see a few others with the same outcome.  However, I was wrong.  I didn’t see any others that seemed to be suffering so badly.

I’m glad they went and had a good time.  Eliot has concluded that she REALLY likes to go camping.

Just like Mom, and pumping

When Morgen was born I anticipated I’d have a daughter that wanted to help more than I wanted her to, so I tried to plan ahead.  I made a small blanket and burp cloths for a baby doll and offered them to Eliot.  I thought it would be a good way for her to have her baby and me to take care of mine.  Things went relatively smooth and it wasn’t as irritating as I thought.

This time around with Sidney is different.  With this being our third child I thought I could try to avoid some of the mistakes I made previously.  Neither of our other two were very tolerant of being covered with a blanket while nursing.  I have since heard of some nice baby items called Udder Covers or Hooter Hiders and thought it may work better than a blanket, but that I should start using it from the beginning.  So, early in Sid’s life I sat down to nurse and before long Eliot came to join me.  She had gone to retrieve her apron to use as a nursing cover and sat down with her baby doll.

I think she had great intentions to be “just like Mom” but I was just fine that she missed the mark and allowed her baby to stay on top of the apron/cover.

 

However, today things changed.  Brinley was over and after having lunch and playing house, the girls sat down to watch a movie.  I stopped what I was doing to check on them, and found them side-by-side on the couch with blankets up to their armpits and something quite lumpy underneath.  As Eliot and I made eye contact she got a huge smile on her face and said, “We’re nursing our babies, and we’re using a cover to stay modest.”

I guess it’s bound to happen, right?  I sat down and watched the movie with them for a bit, and to see what other things they may share of their nursing experience.  A few minutes later Eliot reached down the neck of her shirt to adjust while saying, “my baby’s crazy” and scoffed a couple times.  [I think that's what I may do when latching on doesn't go as smooth as I want ]  Things seemed to calm down and then Eliot noticed that Brinley was no longer “nursing” and her baby was just laying on the couch.  Eliot said, “Brinley, your baby’s crying and you need to feed her on your nursing thing.”  So, obediently Brinley reached for her doll and shoved her back up her shirt and pulled the blanket up to her chin.  They both caught me watching and smiled in response when Eliot added, “We’re staying modest, Mom.  I think you should do that when Sidney is eating.  I think you should use your cover and stay modest.”  My reply was, “Thanks for being a good example.”

Yes, I’ve gotten lax about using my cover at home .  I sure hope Eliot doesn’t embarrass me by talking to others about my nursing habits.  Oh… wait, she already has; but, it was just to a bunch of strangers at the park.

She really likes to swing and I’ve been trying to help her learn to swing independently.  This day, the park was full as was every swing around us, with an adult pusher behind it.  As I was trying to explain leg extension while traveling forward, and to bend them while retracting I defined the action as pumping.  She immediately yelled, “You mean like you do when you put that machine to your chest to get the milk out to feed Sidney?”  Well… yes, but not quite .  Sometimes my best response is just to smile and nod.

The Year of the Pumpkins

We let our garden be taken over by pumpkins and all the jungle that comes with it.  It was fun seeing blossoms turn into little pumpkins, which turned into bigger and bigger pumpkins and then turned from green to orange.  We considered it a bounteous harvest.  We got to take these…

…add some elbow grease and rubber gloves…

It's disgusting even with rubber gloves on!

 

You want me to put you hand in there?!

 And the results were wonderfully frightening!

The kids, I mean, SuPER GiRL and Sock Monkey BOY had fun trick or treating, and enjoying the spoils afterward.

We hope you all had a happy Halloween!

Already a Winner

Tonight Montana had a fortune cookie tell her “You have a the makings of a winner”.  Of course, I already thought that, but this week especially I’ve been thinking of my sweet, darling daughter and how much joy she brings to my life.  Asher being Asher gets a lot of attention and we talk a lot about Asher.  But there’s a lot of Asher that wouldn’t be if he didn’t have Montana as his sister.  So this posting is all to celebrate her.

It can be a little bit hard for Montana to let go of, well, little bits of junk. I have a whole string of photos of items that she worked herself up to part with – but wanted to preserve an image of. We started this when she wouldn’t through things out because she was “afraid I would forget it.” A picture worked for most things but at one point it was because she was afraid she would “forget what it felt and smelt like.” I resorted to a video capturing her descriptions of beloved items. And now we are a few grocery bags lighter in her room.

As a sister, she is the most doting, supportive, nurturing soul to her little brother, sometimes smothering him (no brother was harmed while taking this photo). She one day mentioned she was like another mother to Asher and she certainly is. I’m touched that she would compare her kindness, patience and playfulness to mine.

Another tender moment with my kids. Asher adores her as much as she does him. Nearly every morning neither one of them come alive until they are together. We often wake to Montana in Asher’s crib snuggling and playing together. They nearly always have a hug and smile for each other – in the morning, greetings coming home from school, after dinner, whenever.

She loves animals, although it took her a little time to get over her love/hate relationship with them being close to her. We’re sad we no longer have a dog, but Montana has not gone without pets. She has captured and kept lady bugs – fed them aphids and gave them water, and then let them go before they could die. She really loves taking care of animals – even if they are only stuffed and fluffy ones sometimes.

Pink, pink and more girly pink. As most all of you know, this was certainly a case of nature vs. nurture. She has taught me to enjoy pink (most shades anyway, but still not in combination with purple). She loves being able to have color on her nails and can’t wait for color to be able to on her face!

She loves to laugh and seems to sense when her body/mind is need of a good hearty belly laugh. She’ll asked to be tickled until she’s got her fill, taking breaks for breathing of course. But she is so quick to laugh in life and at herself and I love her sense of humor.

Montana is free with her friendship and has a high social need. She loves playing with her cousins and friends and there isn’t a day that goes by that she doesn’t mention one of them by name . She wonders what they are doing and when she’ll be able to play with them again. However, for being so social-needy, she does a good job independently playing and can entertain herself with a wonderful imagination.

Conquering mountains – she is very driven to get to the top of any inclined rock surface. She can scamper well – fast and with agile feet and works hard to reach her goal. We see this trait come out in other things she sets her mind to.

She’s a good judge of true beauty. She longs to be outside, especially in fantastic scenery – desert, mountains, beaches and is always asking when we can go back. This picture captures so much about her: wading right into the adventure (and she can’t stand wearing shoes and socks! The transition from summer to fall has been torture. We finally had to throw away her flip flops so she would stop coming down for school in them.), she takes it all in before jumping right in, and then is up for the fun the opportunity has to offer. Moments after this picture she had her hands full of rocks to ‘skip’ and then spent time chasing a frog.

Her birthday is coming and it is hard to believe that yet another year has flown by.  She is learning and growing, sometimes at such an alarming rate that we are floored.  We had parent-teacher conferences this week and her teacher let us know that Montana reaches out and makes friends easily. And that she helps keep some roudy boys at her table in check.  And scholastically she’s doing great.  We’re amazed at how quickly she has picked up reading and getting better each day.  We’ve been really suprised how quickly she matured in class – sitting and paying attention.  She is such a focused watcher of people that she can sometimes forget that she should be listening or working, but she’s done a good job of tuning it down during class.

Along with Eric and I, Asher’s uniquenesses are shaping who she is.  She’s starting to understand more and more that Asher is not like a lot of other little brothers.  There are a lot of challenges she faces (and we face as her parents) to try and balance out the attention, recognition, flat-out gushing that Asher receives while she is standing there seemingly invisible (picture Halloween night at nearly every door where they are standing side by side and he almost always got an extra candy “for being soo cute”) I really can’t describe the rushing, gushing people approaching Asher while we are in the grocery store, at the mall, at Church, park, anywhere.  It’s a lot for a sibling to handle and I admire her strength of character to not break down and throw a fit to get attention or show any resentment towards him.  There is no doubt she is an angel’s sister, and an undoubtedly an angel herself.