School...

So, I guess I was wrong about Grace loving preschool. She has had so many back and forths since starting Prekindergarten. One minute she loves, it...the next she's in tears, begging to stay home with me. I have been struggling with what to do. Chris and I talked (I'm so thankful for his approach sometimes) and he said "She's only 4 years old. Who really cares if she's in preschool? She'll be grown before you know it. Just let her stay home." That was all I needed. My mom gave me the same advice. Ever since I made up my mind, I have been so happy with my decision.

I bought some work books to keep Grace entertained and so we are doing a little bit of "home" preschool. We do this while Scarlett naps and it's giving me the chance to just be with my Grace. I'm going to enjoy this time, because Chris is right...she'll be grown before I know it.

So many things to be thankful for...

We had such a great time with family over Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is one of my most favorite Holiday's because it feels like Christmas too! We listened to Christmas music on our long drive down, as it rained like crazy.

The weather actually warmed up to 60 degree's the rest of the time. We took the kids to Wildlife safari....a little tradition. The festival of light's...Christmas lights galore. The big mall....okay...tiniest mall ever. But it was still so much fun.

I love my family. They really do remind me how blessed I am to have them in my life. I am so grateful to my parents for all they have taught us. My kids love and adore them. This warms my spirit like no other. And I am thankful for my siblings for just being wonderful. I wish my youngest and oldest sisters could have been with us!

I'm so thankful for my husband. He and my children bring me so much joy it's almost too much to take in.

I'm thankful for my Savior. I couldn't do this life thing, without him by my side.

When we got home last night, and I was putting Scarlett to bed, the last thing she said was "Can we go back to sleep at Grandma's?" I'm so thankful for family.

Running alone...

So, I have now been running solo for the past 7 to 8 weeks, and I must say...it is getting rather lonely. I ran across this picture and it made me miss running with my BFF more than ever. My friend has worked her little tail off these last several weeks to build her little muscles in or around her IT band, so she can be strong enough to run again. We are hoping maybe another couple of weeks?? Until then, it's just me and my trusty garmin. Get better Tammy...I am desperate! :)

P.S I am the slower runner in the photo.

They make it worth it...

My two sweet girls. They take care of our kittens like I take care of a newborn baby. It makes my heart smile. They want to be in their footsie jammies 24/7. There's even holes in the bottoms of the feet. They don't care, so neither do I.

Handy toes...

I know you must be wondering why you are looking at a photo of my toes holding a small toy, right? You are looking at what a mother of 6 has to do in order to accomplish big things, like keeping her house clean.

Chris found me limping through the kitchen. Arms completely full with coats, trash, toys, etc. He said "Can you help me too?" I replied "I don't have a hand to spare...heck, I don't even have a toe to spare." That's when he saw my toe holding onto a small truck. He said that it was the funniest thing he'd seen in a long time, and that it really summed up what being a parent entails at times. And people wonder why I went to Mexico for a week???

Halee and Connor...

I finished Halee and Connor's pictures today on a whim. It was getting dark around 4:30 when I did them, so we had to hurry our little tails off.

As I went to edit them, I couldn't believe how much they have grown. Halee is now getting close to 14. I remember the day I turned 14. All I can remember thinking is "Yay! church dances!" Seeing her, is often times like reliving my own teenage years. So stinking weird. Luckily my Connor is still a young boy. I am not ready for any of them to grow up, just yet.

Too pretty...

I tried this today and it didn't work. Guess I better try to be prettier tomorrow.

Little acts...

As a mom I have noticed that I love my kids so much, that it's almost too much to handle. As a result I want to tell them all the time that I love them (okay maybe not all the time) but pretty close. Saying it doesn't seem to be enough, and so as moms, I think we find little ways to say it, without actually saying it. Today I said it to Christian, by removing his shoes and dirty socks after being at school for eight hours. I didn't even realize I was saying it, until he looked at me removing them and I could swear his eyes were saying "I love you too." It meant so much to me, and really hit home to me of how awesome love really is. It doesn't have to be said all the time. It can be demonstrated, illustrated, spoken, and most of all given. I need to remember to show it as often as possible and in as many ways as possible.

Gosh, I think Mothers everywhere are such awesome creatures. I think of my own mom and all the little things she did to say I love you. She wasn't ever late to pick me up from an event. I knew no matter what, that I could count on her. She always laid our church clothes out the night before church...once again reminded us with out saying it, that she loved us. She did little things like this all the time. And I believe Mothers everywhere do it all the time too...every single day...without even knowing it.

Being a mom is the greatest gift...

When my kids grow up I think one thing I will the most, is giving them a bath. Getting them in their jammies (or jam jams, as we like to call it) and reading to them. I absolutely love being a mother. Of all things I do in my life, nothing will ever mean as much to me as having the opportunity to raise six children. What a blessing they are to my heart. I cherish every bit, of every one of them.

Austin...

When Austin was four months old, I took him to Sears to get a professional photo done. It took like two shots, and he was grinning from ear to ear. He was the easiest baby ever to photograph. He hasn't changed much. I got this shot of my growing up boy, in just a few short minutes. I love this kid.

Sinister baby...

Why is it that for every child, a sinister, evil baby will not cease to exist? I remember my sister Aprils evil doll, named Yellowdee. She had yellow hair made of yarn, and we convinced ourselves that she was indeed a killer doll. We would lock her away in our closet at night and pray she wouldn't sneak out and follow through with her evil plan to kill all of us in our beds.

Then there was red headed Becky doll. She had red freckles all over her face. The weird part about Becky is that she was once a beloved doll in our lives. But then one day, we came to the conclusion (not sure why) that she was just as evil, if not more evil, then Yellowdee. I think this may have had something to do with her being put into the bath and coming out with a rats nest for hair.

These evil doll memories flooded back yesterday when Scarlett, at the tender age of two, ran into my room with the above doll, and exclaimed in a very worried voice "Mom! This is a mean baby!" And when I looked really deeply into this babies eyes...I had to agree.

Halloween is fun with kids...

I have always loved Halloween but for some reason I looked forward to it this year more than usual. Maybe it's because I don't have a teeny baby. Scarlett is almost 2 1/2 and she seemed to understand and be excited about what was going on. Plus, I love chocolate, so robbing their candy bags is always a plus. I probably only burned a quarter of the calories off on my run this morning

After trick or treating we put the sugar loaded kids to bed and let the oldest two stay up and watch the creepy movie The Others. I made Chris sit right beside me so I didn't jump out of the chair. It was a blast!!

Two down, four to go...

I finished Grace's pictures, and am relieved to have the youngest ones done. I am sure the older four will be super easy and fun.

Grace was a paratrooper while I took her photo's because she was super cold and made sure I knew it. But we got one and I am happy with it. It reminds me of Grace and her upbeat, cute personality.