Scripture Study for Sleepy-heads

In the interest of family history recording I decided to document a small portion of our daily schedule – morning scripture study.  They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I will let them do most of the talking with small explanations from myself.  Our bishop challenged our ward to read the entire Book of Mormon this year.  We thought mornings would work best.  Here’s the drill: Sean wakes us all up bright and early (I will not specify the time as it makes some people roll their eyes that we find that particular hour so early), and we all eventually gather around the table.  Sean usually carries Anna down, sometimes wrapped in a blanket.  Lu has already been up for a half-an-hour, and the boys are still rubbing sleep from their eyes.

On this particular morning, Djeryd got downstairs early enough to sneak in a little Calvin and Hobbes before the scriptures were opened.  Lu gratefully found a half-dressed playmate to amuse herself with for the fifteen to twenty minutes we spend on this (I love the train of ribbons cascading down her dolls back – please note: Alyx dressed her little brunette friend all by herself).

I got Sean a Book of Mormon for the Latter-day Saint Family that has some good explanations, vocabulary words, and thought questions as a birthday gift.  We have picked up many new things reading it in conjunction with our regular scriptures.

We each take turns reading a verse and usually get through one chapter a morning.  To keep our kids focused Sean came home from church one day with the idea to color each reference to Christ in the scriptures. We are 53 pages into the book and have yet to find a page that does not speak about Christ. It is amazing to see and physically mark how this book is truly another testament of Jesus Christ. 

(I love Lu’s face in this picture.  Man, that girl cracks me up!)

Breaking the Rules

I’m pretty big on rules (probably bigger than I should be), but every once in a while there comes a time to throw them out the window.

I have to be very careful about my timing because I have a certain little someone in my house who really struggles with knowing where the lines are and when enough is enough. Flexibility in regular rules can screw up his little brain for weeks, if not months.

 

So when the girls started diving off the couch Friday after Kindergarten I let things slide because it was just us girls (*furniture jumping is strictly forbidden*).

 

They were hilarious!  They assembled a diving board by stringing the couch, the table and the ottoman all together.  They would run off the “diving board” and . . .

. . . SPLASH into the water.

 

Over and over and over again, for over an hour, one after the other, only stopping for a quick cuddle.

And only pausing for a picture.

Sleeping Babe

I don’t know what it is, but there is something that absolutely breaks my heart about my children falling asleep in random places.  Probably because it usually indicates they are sick, or they were so tired they didn’t even have the energy to let me know they wanted a snuggle or a story.  I found Lu on the couch this morning (she usually naps after lunch).

Anna had covered her with a blanket (the best big sister ever).

  

I want to climb on the couch with her and just snuggle up to her baby softness, but that would wake her up.  And right now I think she just needs sleep, wherever she can find it.

Sea World

I should probably break this collage down into more chunks, but as fascinating as the two-hundred-some pictures I took of killer whales and dolphins were two months ago, they just don’t seem as amazing anymore.  Shame on me for not blogging while it was fresh, I guess.  At this point I’m ready to capsulize the memory and move on.  I will proceed clockwise around the Christmas tree, starting in the top left-hand corner.

:: The dolphin show was fantastic and very beautiful, don’t miss this one if you get a chance to visit Sea World.
:: Anna and her cousin with Shamu.
:: All of us freezing wet people standing in a giant human dryer.  We went on one too many water rides in the morning and boy did we pay for it (all day long! – the day was not as warm as it looked).
:: Anna trying to get Alyx to shake Shamu’s fin.
:: The killer whale show was amazing.  I seriously could not get over how well those creatures performed (or how much fish they ate after practically every single jump).
:: Our posse in a virtually deserted parking lot, and consequently, a virtually deserted park.
:: Sean, my love.
:: As I watched these magnificent animals I could not help but wonder at the majesty of God’s creations.  It was truly take-your-breath-away amazing.
:: The only picture of all twelve of us taken the entire six days we were together.
:: Setting up for a family picture.  I love Erik holding his imaginary reigns, Alyx longing to be down with her sister, Anna checking with me for directions, and Djeryd looking oh, so cool.

Big Brother

 

I love this boy!

Can you see why?

Daddy’s Girls

I snapped all these lovely little photos after dinner tonight.  We were lolling about the table, not really ready for the meal to be over.

The girls climbed onto Sean’s lap and the three of them became our after-dinner entertainment.

Sean and Anna both tried to get a kiss out of Lu (who was not cooperating).  I love Anna’s eyes in this picture, “Are you getting this, Mommy?”

I recently read a quote: “The only shots you regret are the ones you didn’t take.”  Tonight I am twenty-eight after-dinner-pictures closer to no regrets.  ;>

Loving Lu

There is just something about this girl lately.  I don’t know what it is, but I simply cannot get enough of her.  She is changing so fast with something new to show me every day.  I am astounded at the things she is picking up, how she folds her arms for prayers without ever being really physically taught that – she just noticed that’s what we all do so she does it too.  She jumps and spins just like her big sister.  She pushes the nose on her singing pig so she can dance to the music and move her mouth like she’s singing along.  She has lately taken up perusing books in her crib when I lay her down or occasionally insisting on a short reading before bedtime snuggles (we read to Anna every night, but Alyx is usually nursing or in the crib during that part of the evening so her observation of reading at bedtime is peripheral).  She plays with Legos alongside her brothers with remarkable dexterity for a little person who has not yet reached the ripe old age of two.

 

She pops her newborn binkie in her mouth only while she is trying to feed her dolls a bottle (I have no idea where she got that one from, but it makes me laugh).  She has one dolly that cries when you squeeze its tummy.  This is Lu’s favorite.  She gives it a good squeeze, snuggles it till it stops crying, hands the baby off to me, then takes it back, squeezes the tummy, and we start all over again.  After receiving a nightgown for Christmas she refuses to wear pajamas with feet anymore, and tries to wear a skirt or dress nearly everyday.  I feel a sly little sense of humor with this one, too – she has a terrific poker-face.

For the past twenty-one months Alyx has summarily dismissed Sean on all but the rarest occasions.  This week, however, they had a breakthrough.  Something clicked (I think it had a lot to do with Jelly Bellies and Hot Tamales) and she finally said Da-Da and ran to the man.  It was as if the world stopped.  The entire family was in the hall at the time and we all just stopped and stared and kept quiet for Daddy to finally to have his moment with his baby girl.  A few tears could be spotted on cheeks here and there.  I think Sean almost burst with joy.

Now they are buddies. 

Like I said, she surprises me everyday.

Something Sweet

As cool as Djeryd’s birthday cake turned out is was a bit of a baking fiasco, leaving the cake less than desirable.  It left me feeling like a baker that wasn’t worth my frosting (although the volcano frosting was so, so good – chocolate truffle!).  Thankfully I had a bunch of bananas slowly turning to mush on my kitchen counter offering me a chance to restore my good baking name.

I sliced that sweet thing across the middle, filled it with banana pudding and smothered it with some yummy, sweet cream.

Sean declared it amazing.  I felt redeemed.  Mission accomplished.

Polka Dot Posy Blouse

Alyx got a new top and graciously did some posing for me.  It was pretty cold outside so I did not take off her jacket, but if you want to see the sleeves, the top is identical to the one I did here.  The pattern is McCall’s 6269 and I applied the same modifications as I explained for the green flowered top (although I made the skirt one inch longer than last time – she’s a growing girl).

The lovely little posy was a bit of serendipity.  I had to piece the skirt and, due to lack of intelligent thinking, wound up with a big, ugly seam smack down the middle of the blouse.  Sean insisted no one would notice, but I knew it was there and I couldn’t stand looking at it. After a bit of grumping and seriously wanting to bang my head against a wall for piecing it that way in the first place, a marvelous thought occurred to me and a flower was born.  I think it makes the shirt . . .

 

. . . or maybe it’s the sweet little girl that’s wearing the shirt.

Sunset

Lately Anna and I have been having lots of little chats about sunsets and how it is God painting the sky for us because He loves us and wants to give us beautiful things to see and feel. Something I am working on is seeing beauty, really seeing it – stopping and looking at it and capturing it and sharing it with someone. This one was just too pretty to keep to myself.

The Boy is Twelve!

My sweet boy is twelve.  Oh, my!  He wanted a Roman birthday party, which I did not dive into decoration-wise.  But we had Roman food: Ceasar salad, olives, focaccia bread, grapes, pizza and Skittles. 

 

They played lots of Roman-ish war games: sword fighting, catapults, spear-throwing and Mafia.

Djeryd informed me he would like a replica of the city of Pompeii for his birthday cake this year. I laughed. How about Mt. Vesuvius instead?

It was a pretty long and tiring night.  I love this picture because it captures how Djeryd looked almost the whole evening.

My niece has such a way with food.  This is how she looked at Djeryd’s party last year.

Sunday morning was decidedly more somber.  Djeryd is pretty serious by nature and this was a serious day as he was ordained a Deacon in our church.

I love seeing him with his dad, an image of what he will become.

 

My mom gave him a beautiful picture with his priesthood line of authority, tracing it all the way back to Jesus Christ.

I love how my dad takes his pie.

And the best birthday picture of all – elation upon finally having tabs in his scriptures.

Happy birthday, Djeryd.  I love you, and everything you are becoming.

Tears

Do your kids ever cry so hard it makes you laugh (just a teeny bit)?

2012

I have decided I do not like “resolutions” this year.  I feel like a resolution is a promise, a binding contract.  If I don’t fulfill it then I feel like I have lied to myself or broken a promise.  I’ve had that happen way too much over the past several years and I always feel so crummy inside.  So this year I have simply compiled a list of things I am looking forward to accomplishing.  If they don’t happen it will be okay because it will simply mean I accomplished other things that were not part of my consciousness in January.  So here’s my list of future happy things:

:: filling my empty flowers beds with luscious plantings

:: learning to play a song on my guitar

:: attending the temple once a month

:: making my first quiet book ever

:: paying off our van

:: making birthday dresses for my two girls

:: studying scriptures as a family every morning

:: entering some lovely items in the county fair

:: walking 500 200 miles (When my husband informed me that 500 miles comes out to about 10 miles a week, I laughed (it actually came out as more of a snort, unfortunately), and I reconsidered this “future happy thing” for the new year.)

:: learning some of the wonderful things I can do with my new camera

What kinds of things are you looking forward to this year?

A Buddy

Guess what this little lady got for Christmas. She wrote a letter to Santa Clause in September asking for her own sewing machine. It was the one and only thing she asked for (over and over again) for four months. How can a parent (er, I mean Santa) refuse? So I worked out a little exchange with my sister and viola: Anna is a beginning seamstress at age five.

I sure love the company.  Right now she is still just getting used to the machine while I work on sheets for her doll bed, but her plans are big.  Already her sewing list includes an apron and a fancy dress for her doll, and a dress, shirt and endless skirts for herself.  She sounds a little too much like her mama whose to-do list includes marble bags for an upcoming birthday party, satin Sunday dresses, a birthday dress for Lu and a quiet book with “paper” dolls. 

Sometimes I worry about the time and money that is spent in that studio.  Sometimes I feel like I am being selfish by working in there, even when I’m making things for my family.  The housework lags, dinner is late, laundry piles up, bathrooms remain unsanitary.  It is a hard balance for me.  I try to sew during nap times or with children crawling around me, sometimes working on their own projects, sometimes just talking about their day.  But when the kids are in the studio it seems virtually impossible to make progress on any of my own projects; they need help, they need attention, they need Mom.  Often I become frustrated. 

So I have to focus on the good that happens in that room.  Sometimes it is the happiest and most crowded room in the house.  The memories made, the skills honed, the experiences shared.  It is a good place to be, most of the time.  And I’m grateful for my new little sewing buddy even though I feel pretty sure it means, at least for a while, I won’t be getting much crossed off my to-do list.  I feel so blessed to have this amazing little girl in my life and to share a little bit of who I am with her, while soaking up every sweet bit of her I can.  I love that we can share this.  I can’t help but smile when I think of all the wonderful fabric-filled projects in our future.  Love that girl.

Christmas 2011

If you have read my Christmas posts in the past you know that we celebrate Christmas three times each year.  We have a big party at my brother’s house on Christmas Eve, presents around the tree on Christmas morning with just our little family, and then one more party at my in-law’s on Christmas day.  As you can imagine that generates a lot of photographs.  In order to get the gist of it all I employ collages.  Here is a little piece of our world just for you.

Christmas Eve Favorites

everyone showing up early so we had extra time to talk and talk and talk

peppermint-Oreo Cold Stone ‘scream

a new baby to hold (bliss)

all those cutie-patootie kids – I love them all so much!

the Emperor and Darth Vader for innkeepers

Shonee, the sheep, carrying all the shepherds

laughing and talking and laughing some more

seeing our family get better with age

 

Christmas Morning Gifts

We all made presents for each other this year.  The kids spent hours and hours on each other.  It was amazing to see the energy and focus.  Man, I love these kids.  Although not every gift is pictured above, I have included a list of what they made.  It’s a little treasure hunt: see how many you can find in the collage.

Djeryd: for Daddy – a guys-night-at-the-movies kit complete with A&W, lots of candy and popcorn; for Erik – a wooden Roman sword, shield and sheath; for Anna – a doll bed; for Alyx – a little pink purse

Erik: for Daddy – a library card (I realize this one was not made, but Sean had been complaining about his worn out library card so Erik secretly bought him a new one with his own money – I thought it was very thoughtful); for Djeryd – a wooden rifle; for Anna – a quilt for the doll bed Djeryd and Sean made; for Alyx – a quilt for her dolls

Anna: for Daddy – a “Hawk-n-Daughts” shirt (think Haagen-Daaz – if you remember for Father’s Day the boys gave Sean a “Hawk-n-Sons” t-shirt, and Anna thought it was high time for Daddy to have a shirt about his girls); Djeryd and Erik - “checkmarks” (i.e. bookmarks); for Alyx – “a strawberry skirt like mine so we can be twinners”

I made all the kids jammies and gave Sean a picture of the temple I took last summer and had blown-up and put on canvas, and a new family portrait I blew-up and framed.

Sean got me, well, let’s just say it wasn’t homemade and you can see its bright light being held in my hands.  He made Anna’s bed with Djeryd and a portable soccer net for Erik.  For Djeryd he built and painted a green screen.  Huh?  You know, when you see the “making of” segment of CGI movies where all the actors are in costume prancing around in front of green screen pretending there’s something there, when there really isn’t, but when you see it in the actual movies they are trotting around in a spaceship and being attacked by aliens – you know that?  That’s what a green screen is.  It makes it possible to add virtually any background or surrounding into your film.  Djeryd really likes to make movies (mostly about Legos).  Can you tell?  My goodness, Sean was busy this year!

 

Christmas Day Highlights

Erik donning his sword and shield before church

Sean and the boys fighting to see what new wii game Aunt Heather gave them

my nephew proving that it is not only babies who enjoy playing in boxes

Lilly loving that Minnie Mouse purse

James jamming out Christmas-style on his groovy strings

missing Heather and Rachel – oh, how I wanted to see their faces when presents were opened

watching everybody visit and enjoy each other

observing the sweet relationships among us, like Erik loving his great-grandma the way he does

Alyx’s pink sparkle slippers

swapping crafty plans with my brother-in-law – the guy made everyone soap this year – like really cool soap

feeling like I could soak it all in this year – no stress, no anxiety, just beloved calm