Lego city

Sure they hurt like crazy when you step on them barefoot, sure they are a constant presence all over the toy room floor, sure I've vacuumed up atleast $100 worth of legos, sure we have spent a small fortune on kits that get built once then are mixed into bottomless pit of legos, sure I have a whole stack of instructions for those kits that will never be assembled again...BUT I still love legos. I have yet to find another (non techno) toy that will keep Jayden's attention the way that legos do.  I love the creative outlet they provide and am constantly amazed at the intricate details of his creations.  My new favorite is his "lego city", he is always creating new additions and has a whole story line to go along with every creation.  I think any mom of boys will agree, so let's raise our Capri Suns and give a toast to those little plastic bricks!

Boys boarding trip
Once again I've got the pictures, but not a whole lot of dialogue to go along with it. Jason went to Utah with some AZ friends and then a few weeks later went with his Vegas buddies, it was good for Jason to get a break from work, he's had a pretty stressful past few weeks. It sounds and looks like they had a great time!

We all love the Vegas boys, Kylie was so excited when "uncle" Shawn stayed the night and I had a hard time convincing her to go to bed after their late night Heelys party.

A LOVEly love day

Traditional valentine's gifts on their plates....

 Traditional valentine's breakfast with THE best pink hot chocolate (I can't find what blog I got this off of to give credit, but here's the recipe: 1 C white chocolate chips, 1 C heavy cream, 4 C half&half, vanilla, red food coloring, whipped cream- melt chocolate chips in saucepan with cream, stir until smooth. Add the half&half, vanilla and food coloring, about 7 drops. Heat through and serve with whipped cream)

 New tradition-heart attacking their bedroom doors and packing a v-day lunch with everything red (red juice, strawberries, doritos in a red bag, little Debbie heart cupcakes, red jello and a heart strawberry jelly sandwich)....

Then jetting off to what I would love to be our annual tradition...Valentine's in Vegas.

I was feeling sorry for myself after we had our fabulous Vegas v-day last year while my dad watched the kids and this year my valentine would be there without me.  Jason kept trying to convince me to find somebody to watch the kids so I could go with him, but please, who would want to watch 3 extra kids on valentines day??  This is where my friend Melissa swoops in to save the day and insists on watching them (I didn't ask, but I didn't put up a fight either), so I booked a last minute flight (thanks to the free flight with the companion pass) and we were off at 7am that morning (which made for a hectic morning with the kids, hence the staged day after pics, but I'm glad we got to spend some time with the kids before we left so that they know how much we love them too!) Jason had to work and I spent the morning meandering around the outdoor mall, cozying up on the couch at Borders with a stack of magazines and doing whatever my little heart desired. Jason was worried I was going to be bored. Pssshhh, as if. I met up with my cute sister-in-laws for lunch, got caught up on the latest gossip and loved on my new little nephew.

Then I was faced with the impossible decision...more shopping or napping. Life is so rough. The nap won out and I awoke from my blissful slumber right before Jason got off.  We wanted to fit in as much as we could that night and had a huge agenda, but as the night got progressively later and we got progressively more tired, the list got progressively smaller.  We did enjoy a quiet and delicious dinner where I think I ate myself into my third trimester (if I get stretch marks during this pregnancy, I'm blaming it on the food). We even considered the hour and a half wait a priviledge, because when was the last time we got to wait for that long without kids? Parenting gives you a whole new perspective on life. After that we walked around Aria and City Center where I was wishing I was Showntell on the Bachelor with her limitless shopping spree.  We finally ended the night with a dip in the rooftop hot tub at our hotel.  I ignored Jason's concerns that I was boiling the baby in-utero and instead just basked in the romance of it all...a hot tub. on the rooftop. at night. in Vegas. on Valentines day. with my man. I could almost hear the echo of the tolling bells from Elvis' Wedding Chapel of Love.  And then the security came two minutes later and killed the moment when they told us the pool was closed. It was short, but atleast I had my moment where I realized life is good.  Life is really good.  We called it a night after that since we had to wake up at 4:30 am to catch a flight back, it was a harsh reality check, but we soaked up every minute of our quick romantic getaway. Happy Valentine's day to all my loves....

A not so secret secret admirer

So Kylie got her first Valentine and I know I should probably be worried, but I think it's the cutest thing ever.  One of the early morning teachers came up to Kylie and gave her a gift bag with a card that said "to Kylie, from your secret admirer, Brycen" and inside was this little bear filled with chocolate hearts. Oh my cuteness.  She was so emberassed and tried to give it away to her friend (which I can not understand why, if I was her I would have been so giddy and on cloud nine. Of course I think I was boy crazy from the minute I emerged from the womb).  This little boy has had a crush on her ever since kindergarten and she has always blown him off.  She may flirt with the best of them, but she really isn't into boys and I'm glad.  She said it did make her feel good that he gave her the present, but that she only liked him as a friend.  It was sweet and innocent which is a far cry from the drama with another boy, Zach. He is every parents worst nightmare for their daughter.  He kept telling Kylie she was "sexy and hot", invited her to his house for a hot tub party, told her that she needed to wear a sexy bikini to the hot tub party and said he would buy her one of she didn't have one (her response: "I don't own a bikini and I never will!" Go Kylie, I must have done something right.), and chasing her around the playground every recess to show her his boxers. I wanted to smack the kid for bursting her little bubble of innocence, but instead of resorting to violence I talked to her teacher who talked to the principal who immediately took him into the office for a chat and called Kylie up to the office to tell her how proud she was that she stood up for herself and told someone what he was doing (a shout out to her amazing principal).  Then a few days later her friend overheard a conversation he had with his friends involving Kylie and the "F" word. Kylie immediately told her teacher who didn't do anything about it (no shout out to her not so amazing teacher), so instead Kylie marched her little legs straight to the prinicpal's office where she immediately called him in and he had to sit there the rest of the day and was also suspended from recess for the entire month (another shout out to the amazing principal). Hopefully that's the end of that. I was so proud of Kylie for the way she handled the situation and I was glad that we were able to have some good conversations about what kind of boys she would want to date and what boys to stay away from when she's older.  I honestly was so surprised to hear that kind of stuff coming from a little 8 year old boys mouth and it makes me wonder if I need to give her "THE" talk. I never thought we would be dealing with so much boy drama in the third grade and it scares me to think of what is yet to come. 

Choo-choo

 Jason was snowboarding in Utah (again) this past weekend and I knew I needed to plan some fun outings for the kids so that we didn't drive each other crazy.  Friday Jayden had a birthday party, so I took Maddox and Kylie to Marley Farms for their V-day event.  I purposely didn't bring my camera because I feel like so many times I miss out on the "moment" because I am spending more time behind the camera than I am actually enjoying the event.  Of course I ended up regretting not bringing it because we had so much fun and I wish I had the pictures to remember it by (not to mention that the zonkey, camel, kangaroos and the genetically mutated giant cow and pig were definately picture worthy). The next day Kylie went to the movies with her friends so I took the boys to the AZ Railway Museum and it was the perfect fit.  We spent all morning exploring every nook and cranny of all these old trains, it was every little boys dream and this time I have more than enough pictures to remember it by!  I really enjoyed spending some one on one (plus Maddox) time with the kids.



That's what I get

I admit it.  I was a bit cocky when it came to potty training.  Kylie and Jayden were both so easy and of course I gave myself all the credit.  A couple months after they turned two, I took them to the store to pick out their favorite princess and Thomas undies, picked up a bag of their favorite candy and plenty of juice to keep their bladders nice and full. For about three days I would let them down a whole sippy cup of juice then put them on the toilet a half hour later, read them stories give them treats and wah-lah--potty training for dummies.  I just read back in my blog book about Jayden, I started on a Tuesday and by Friday he was completely out of diapers and had only had one accident.  I always assumed it was the parents who were failing if their child refused to potty train.  And of course it's only natural to assume that my potty training prowess would transfer onto my third child, but that is definately not the case.  The last couple of days I've had him parked in front of the tv on his little potty (thanks for the idea, Nicole :) loaded with snacks, his snuggles and Little Einsteins.  No matter how long he sits on that potty without any success, the second I put that diaper on him he pees in it.  My ego has been bruised and I am ready to hang up his undies and call it quits for atleast the next 6 months.

Twins, or not

I realized that in the past 2 years, 3 months and 18 days that I've had two boys, I have never dressed them in matching clothes.  Two weeks ago I finally got them matching church clothes, for two weeks I've attempted to dress them like twins and for two weeks we've failed. The first week Maddox spilled chocolate milk all over his white shirt so the next week I waited to put his shirt on until right before it was time to go, but somehow within those 5 minutes he managed to find a tube of blue paint that he used to paint not only his shirt, but the bathroom too.  I have yet to see them wearing their matching clothes to church, and this picture may be the closest I'll ever get.  Thank goodness for bleach.

Guilt and inspiration

"Parents, remember that now is your opportunity.  You may feel yourself harassed as you struggle through the days with children, but you are living the happiest and the most golden years of your life. As you tuck them into their beds at night, please be kind to them.  Let them hear a calm voice amid all the angry, vile voices they will hear throughout life.  Let there be an anchor to which these little ones can turn when all else fails.  The Lord help you so to do...."

-Harold B. Lee

I can't count how many times I've gone into their rooms to tuck them in after they've fallen asleep and then immediately went into my room with a guilty conscience and prayed for forgiveness for screaming at them all day long. I came across this quote a couple of days ago and it has been on my mind ever since.  I thought tonight was an appropriate time to post it, considering I lost it (again) with my kids at bedtime.A while ago I remember reading a talk that was geared towards mothers.  It gave the suggestion that instead of feeling overwhelmed and helpless, that you start by focusing on one part of the day that you struggle the most with.  The lady giving the talk said her hard time was buckling the young kids in the car, when they arch their backs and cry.  She focused on just that one aspect and made a conscious effort to stay calm and turn it into a positive experience.  I thought that was so simple, yet such a great idea.  There are so many times throughout the day that I snap, but I narrowed it down to the top three: the morning rush, homework time and bedtime and I've really been trying to be more patient during those times. It takes alot of work, but I want them to always feel like our home is a safe haven from the outside world and I know that yelling at them is not the way to create that kind of an environment. With bedtime I've been reading with each of them then we alternate every other night with "talk times" where we just chat for a little bit about whatever is on their mind.  After the whole half hour routine you would think they would feel sufficiently loved, but they keep coming out of their rooms and that's when I lose it. I know losing my temper will always be a constant struggle, so I'm grateful for reminders like these.

The flexibility report

Kylie has always been interested in gymnastics, but between dance and soccer we haven't found the time for her to take classes.  She decided to skip dance this time around and has been so excited about her new tumbling class.  She's only been twice, but if practice really does make perfect then she'll be a pro in no time at all.  I have a real concern that the ceiling is going to crack from all the handsprings she does up in her rooom when she's supposed to be going to bed, even during our cold spell she has been out on the trampoline and lawn perfecting her round-offs and she doesn't hesitate to show anyone and everyone her splits.  She's built like a natural gymnast and has got an enthusiasm that will take her far!  Go Ky!!

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