my thoughts for today

isn't this a cute little boy?? today, however as much as i love him...if he asks me for food, a snack, a sandwich, or tells me he is hungry, one more time (which he most undoubtedly will) i will have a hard time keeping my composure.
this morning he woke up at about 6:30 walks into my room..."mom, I'm hungry"....and then we go from there. He is CONSTANTLY ASKING ME FOR FOOD or telling me HE IS HUNGRY.!
i get it!!! he can't really be that hungry, can he? he is a meaty little boy (meaning, on the "plus" side just a little) so he is obviously getting enough food. i change a poopy diaper about twice a day. so, what is going on? when i drop him off at my mom's house and then return, i ask my mom how he was. she says, she just kept feeding him, and he was perfectly fine.
do i just need to have a constant stream of food for my son in order for him to maintain a pleasant demeanor? i don't know....i do know that his catch phrase is "mom, I'm hungry".
it is just funny to me today, and i just laugh at how PERSISTANT it is.
this is sadie's new favorite thing...to chew on her fingers, hand, shirt. she is a slobber-puss and always wet!

so, i let my kids play in the dirt...audrey has always been into getting messing and i figure i will always be able to wash them off. they like to make "stew". they find rocks, flowers, dirt, bugs, grass, sticks...and put it in a pot with a little water and stir it up. (please do not look at this area of our backyard. It is going to turn into a lush beautiful flower garden. it is pretty hideous right now tho).

my sadie's new trick...

Sadie's new trick....grabbing her feet. Sorry, I know that this isn't very exciting, however...i just think it is cute. And I know that her grandparents are interested in any and all photos!

my "class"

I taught Audrey's "pre-school" for the last 2 weeks. Here are the girls in her "class".

It stared with 2 other kids, but they both have moved out. It was pretty funny to watch the girls interact. They all get along great, but usually during the course of the 2 hour "class" someone is saying..."she isn't sharing/being nice/doing it right...etc." At first I was so bothered by it, but then I realized these girls are so fickle, that their mood changes in an instant. One minute they are squabbling, the next, they are best friends. I like trade-teaching b/c I like to know what is going on with Audrey. They are all pretty cute and fun friends for Audrey. She enjoys going to "school" at the other girls' houses.

The mom in my ward who set it up used to be a teacher, so it is actually pretty structured and educational. We use all of her resources and tools. I feel like it has helped Audrey learn.

my Easter dilemma

okay, so I was talking to Jen yesterday and we were talking about the "Easter bunny". I am not into telling my kids that this bunny will come and leave them treats/toys in a basket. I guess I just don't understand the concept. But most people (I think) do that for their kids. Am I a bad mom b/c I don't teach my kids about the "Easter bunny"? I would rather just leave them treats in baskets and take all the credit for myself. We definitely do egg hunts and egg dying, but that is about it I guess. I am wondering if whoever reads this blog, can let me know their Easter traditions. I guess I am looking for some ideas. And I am also wondering if I am the only one out there that doesn't tell their kids about the "Easter bunny". Should I?

my day in the sun

Oh, YEAH!
Spring is here! We have thoroughly enjoyed this beautiful warm weather! It came right as we are getting over our sicknesses, so it feels like such a rebirth!
LOVE IT!

Audrey was in heaven, finally...the fight is over...she is allowed to wear sandals and no pants! (oh, and in case you were wondering, she has a tennis hat around her neck and under her shoulder...she added that little flare to complete her "look".)

Reese even took his shoes off and rode the skateboard w/dad!

Sadie enjoyed feeling the sun on her face....i feel like she has never felt natural light on her, since she was born in the winter and has subsequently been covered up every time we have left the house...until now!

we even went to the park.

my sickies...

I have been out of touch with the world, I feel b/c all 3 of my children have been sick (my husband as well, and he never really gets sick). There was the flu and a type of a cold, which is lingering.

I have had strong feelings towards vomit for as long as I can remember. I am afraid of it...yes, I know that I have many fears, as I have just described another one of them in a recent blog. My feelings towards vomit are similar to the feeling of having found mice droppings in my home (we have been mouse free for about 6 months!!) That feeling of a black cloud lingering over your home, that disease has infiltrated every nook and cranny, that the very air you breathe is filled with millions of germs. Mice are 100 times worse than vomit, but it starts out the same for me, with that same feeling in the pit of your gut...that, can it get any worse? Is my home going to be overrun by mice (or vomit)? Is my home going to be covered in vomit FOREVER??

You hear your child start to cough, you run to them with the "spit up" bowl, they start hacking, you reach for a towel, then it comes...all of the grapes or dry toast you fed them...it comes in slightly chewed chunks in full force. Do they get it into the bowl or toilet? Sometimes, sometimes not...sometimes they get it on your floor, or on your hair, or on your face (initiating your gag reflex). Sometimes they throw up while they are sound asleep and it gets on their hair, face and all over their freshly washed beds.

During these periods of sickness, I cannot rest my mind...I am forever ready with the bowl, I am constantly doing laundry and I am bleaching everything that I am allowed too. I jump, ready, at the slightest moan or cough. I am constantly asking how their tummies are feeling. It becomes tiring. And just when you think, you will never leave the house again, or that you cannot handle another chunky bed sheet, the clouds part and the sun comes thru. They are on the mend...

Well, in the grand scheme of life, I realize that these matters are purely momentary and trivial. I have overcome MOST of my fears of the dreaded vomit otherwise known as emetophobia (this is an actual phobia) having dealt with it now on several occasions with myself and 3 small children.

Now, the fear of mice....that's another story.

(audrey is wearing her dance leotard)

my night walkers

Has anyone been completely frightened by sleep walking children in the middle of the night? I will be the first to admit that I am almost sometimes scared of the dark....when Michael goes out of town, I will usually run to my mom's with the kids to sleep over. I have many irrational fears, and one of them happens to be a fear of burglars (or worse). I, for some reason, am afraid that some man or men will break into my home while we all lay peaceful in our beds.
But, many a night, I am deep in my slumber and roll over to see a ghostly figure walking towards we in the distance. Or, I will "sense" something and open my eyes and be 2 inches away from a white face.
Yes, these are my sweet children that startle me in the dead of night....not ghosts, goblins, or robbers, tender little people that need help going to the bathroom or that might have had a bad dream. Nevertheless, my heart usually skips a beat (or two) as I open my eyes and see something vaguely moving in the dark, and I will usually let out a little gasp (or something a bit louder).
The other disturbing aspect of this night walking, is when their eyes are open, but they are still asleep. This also leaves me feeling uneasy. When I think they are actually alert and awake, I try to make conversation with them, but then they just grin at me wildly or walk into walls that they believe are doors or just stare, blankly, with their eyes as wide as they can be....perhaps, maybe, just a little zombie-like.
I think that I have seen to many scary movies....

my friday photo shoot (reese)