Super Powers

So recently Ethan received some clothes from my Aunt which included some super hero pajamas: Buzz Lightyear, Superman, and Batman. Ethan's been wearing them around jumping off of things, fighting evil and lifting "heavy" stuff.

Early this morning I'm lying, asleep, in bed. Batman taps me...

Batman: Where are all the shirts and shorts your aunt gave me?
Me: In the dryer, I washed them.
Batman: Could you go get them for me?
Me: All you have to do is open the dryer and get them for yourself, I'm sleeping.
Batman: But I'm scared.
Me: Just turn on all the lights as you go, there is even one inside the dryer. You shouldn't be scared, You're BATMAN!
Ethan: Mom, I'm not really Batman, I'm just a little boy....
I hugged my sweet little boy and helped him get the clothes.

Awww, so sweet, right. Right? You see, super heroes have super powers. Superman can fly and pick up heavy stuff, Batman doesn't mind the dark and has good aim, and Ethan, well Ethan he has manipulation.

Nora goes straight

The other day my neighbors were asking me what Nora's hair looks like straight. I said, "uh, I dunno. I only did it once and it kept curling while I straightened it." So the next day I got out the blow dryer and the curling iron and went to work. Nora loved it and sat very still.

She is adorable (of course!), but I still love her curls more.

She messed with everything on the counter top while I straightened her hair. At least it kept her busy.

I said, "Give me your prettiest smile...."

Preschool

I have FINALLY joined the ranks of mothers who get to send their kids to school. Ok, so I was a bit apprehensive. But excited at the same time.

Ethan woke up this morning and I heard some movement coming from his room. Then I heard, "MOM, moooooommm! mom, mom, come in my room, mom!" So I got my tookus out of bed and went into his room. He was sitting in the middle of his room with his legs crossed and a big grin on his face. He was fully dressed and his bed was "made". Then he said, "first day of school, first day of school!" (a la Finding Nemo)
He didn't even walk, he ran to the building. He was very excited.

Here he is at preschool. I said I'd see him in two hours and he said, "yeah, ok, bye." Well alrighty then.As we walked out the door, Nora made this pitiful face and said, "I miss Ethie"....And then 5 minutes later...

She was running laps of joy around the statues outside the building.

When I picked Ethan up from school he was very happy. He loved it and the teachers loved him. The teacher stopped me to tell me how good he was. (huh?) Guess I need to implement their discipline tactics (they use the green, yellow, red light warning system with the kids names on popsicle sticks). After a run down of what they did, I asked Ethan if he made any friends and he said, "We aren't allowed to make friends or we'll get a red stick!" Hats off to you Legacy Center for scaring Ethan straight, I think I need to take some classes there to learn a few things.

Wacky Crazy Family

Can you tell we are related? Most people can tell because of our eyes...

Hiking

Brian's been home for a week now. Woohoo! And we finally had a whole day where we didn't have to run errands or wake up to Brian already being gone for the day at school. So we went hiking in American Fork Canyon up to Timpanogos Cave. It was a beautiful day and it was a perfect family outing. The kids did great hiking. It was over 3 miles total. Nora walked almost the whole way up and over half of the way down (she was getting sleepy), and Ethan walked the entire time. The hike rises over 1,065 feet and at the cave enterance we were at 6,730 feet above sea level. Cool!

The kids were awesome. This was our first strenous hike with them, and I was impressed with how little they complained. As long as we stopped occasionally and gave them food, they were pretty happy.

This is me and the kids holding up the mountain. Ethan picked up every acorn, pinecone and cool stick he saw. We kept having to remind him to leave nature where it belongs. At home we found some acorns and rocks in his pockets, too cute.

Brian and Ethan were faster on the walk down. It kinda hurt my knees, so I had to go slow. So we got this cool picture because the guys were one zig-zag down from us.

Little Truths

When we first moved into our house Ethan noticed all the little things about the style, fixtures, and architecture of the house. One night as I was putting him to bed we had an interesting conversation that went like this:

Ethan: Mom?
Me: Yeah?
Ethan: Do our lights look like nipples?
Me: Who told you that?
Ethan: I'm right, huh?
Me: Yeah, you're right. Goodnight honey.
Ethan: Goodnight.



About a week after Brian went back to Dallas, Nora was sitting in her room playing with one of the little girls from her little people collection. I was watching her, thinking how cute she was when she turned to me and said, "Her sad, her cryin', because her miss her daddy."
It about broke my heart.
Luckily her daddy is coming home to Utah this Saturday. Whoopee!

Baby stories Part II

Nora
So Brian and I both felt like we needed to start trying to have another baby... Ethan was only 10 months old. I know this sounds crazy but it took three years to get Ethan (with the help of fertility drugs) we didn't want to waste time. And Ethan was incredibly cute at 10 months old. At first when I told Brian he was very apprehensive, but then he prayed about it and about two weeks later, he just knew we were suppose to start trying to have another child.
Enter 6 months later... I started to see the doc again so I could get on Clomid once more. My progesterone was non existent. But my dang period would just NOT come! So the solution of course would be to put me on some drugs to get it to start (drugs that cause birth defects). Well, I decided to wait to take them so my body could do it's thing on it's own. Finally I decided to just take the pills... Two days later I just get this feeling I should take a pregnancy test and then call the doctor, to tell her, of course, that my period still hadn't come even with the pills and that I wasn't pregnant. Well I did the deed with the test, and then forgot about it. About two hours later I think "oh yeah, better check that test" and there staring up at me were TWO lines. Uhhh. I called Brian and said, "Uh Brian I took that pregnancy test and..." "We're pregnant!!!". Brian said, "Umm, I'm gonna have to call you back." I would have felt offended, but I knew he was just as confused as I was. Just a week early they tested my progesterone and it was literally non-existent! Anyway Brian called back ten minutes later and was extremely happy, still a bit confused.
I had a normal pregnancy for the first couple months. Sleeping lots, nausea, tired all the time, and happiness. Then the contractions started.
For some reason my body starts contracting at about 6 months along. Not just the Braxton-Hicks kind either. So I was put on partial bed rest and given medicine to relax my uterus. Anyone who has taken it will know that this medicine makes your heart race and your body feel so jittery. But it was worth the end result...
Nora Elizabeth joined us in February, the day after our 5th wedding anniversary. I woke up at about 3am (nothing unusual about that) only the contractions were a little stronger than normal. I waited, they got stronger. I did not want to go to the hospital AGAIN and have them send me home with more drugs. No thanks. But about 4am I got up and walked around, and got dressed. I woke up Brian and said, "please call your mom, and then lets go to the hospital, it's time to have this baby."
At 6lb 9oz, she was born at 10:30 am. After 2 pushes. She had the cord around her neck three times just like Ethan. My children are seriously monkeys. She was so beautiful. She didn't even cry at first. I was really worried about her because ALL Ethan did was cry. But she was fine, just taking it all in. She was so good and so quiet. It took us a while to decide on her name. I wanted her to be Margaret Jane so bad (Maggie). But she was just so Nora.
She was so serene. I loved every minute in the hospital with her. It was so relaxing. Brian stayed home with Ethan and they came and visited a couple of times along with a few other visitors. But most of the time it was just us. I loved it. At night while I fed her, we'd watch the reruns of the highlights from the winter Olympics. I have really good memories of those few days in the hospital.
I felt better than after Ethan's birth because I knew what to expect, and I was better at all of it. Also I knew to say 'yes' when the doctor offered pain medicine, thank you very much. I was also better at nursing. That made a huge difference! Then we went home and lets just say Ethan started to watch TV. (We were one of those parents who were adamant about no TV until 2 yrs old, not that there is anything wrong with that). I got the hang of things, and that brings us to now. And I love everything about my crazy, sweet, beautiful, spunky, independent, curly headed daughter.

Good Read

Breaking Dawn was an awesome ending to the Twilight series. Loved it!!!
Non stop fun, excitement and twist and turns.
Read it. Now.

Old Poem

Ok, so I'm a saver (a.k.a. pack rat). I was going through my memory box and found this old poem I saved from when I was just a kid....

Children Learn What They Live

If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight.
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy.
Id a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty.
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient.
If a child lives with encouragement, he learns to confide.
If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate.
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice.
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith.
If a child lives with approval, he learns to like himself.
If a child lives with acceptance and friendship,
he learns to find love in the world.

The poem is pretty straightforward. Not too deep. But there are two things I really like about it. First, I like that even as a young child it rang true to me, it meant something. Second, I like how it makes me think, now that I'm an adult and on the other side of things. As a child I felt it was important because it was a declaration of how I wanted to be treated so I could be and become a good person while showing what would also make me less of a person. As an adult I see how I should behave so that each of my children can grow into their best self. Just a thought.

Pioneer Day!!!

We seriously just had the funnest day EVER! From the minute we woke up this morning until our heads hit our pillows we were having non-stop fun.
Agenda:
6am wake up get ready
7am head out to SLC
8am scope out place to watch parade
9am Pioneer (Friends of 47) Parade!
11 am Planetarium
12pm Olympic Fountain at Gateway Plaza
1pm Wendy's, Head home
2pm NAP!
4:30pm BBQ
5pm Eat
6pm pool and slip-n-slide
7pm Popsicle and trampoline, backyard games
9pm fireworks all over the valley!!!
10:30pm Sleep........... (except me of course, I have to blog)

Ethan got a whistle from the Sonic people (thanks a lot.) I asked Ethan what his favorite thing about the parade was and he said, "when the horse went poo."

I asked Nora what her favorite thing at the parade was and she said, "the music" Above you will see a picture of her enjoying the music.

Fun at the Clark Planetarium

Fun at the Fountain

Swim time! It was hot today so swimming felt really good.

Yup that's me on the slip-n-slide, it was soooooooo fun. If you look closely you'll see Nora on my back.

Sand box, in the coolest back yard. ever.


My only lame picture of the most awesome firework show ever. We seriously thought it was the finale like 5 times.

What an awesome day!

(PS the only thing that would have made it even more awsome is if Brian were here to enjoy it with us, we miss you!)

Pictures

Here are some pictures, not of the house yet. My camera's batteries died on the day after we got there, and I just got some new ones today. I'll put some pictures of the house up tomorrow. I only got pictures of the kitchen before the batteries died.

This was my view all the way to Utah.

Nora thinks she is so grown up in those pants.


We ate at McDonalds for every meal thanks to an awesome gift card from our neighbor Tammi! Thanks Tammi for feeding us the whole way!

We had FHE in Colorado Springs, the game was Hungry Hungry Hippo. Ethan was a maniac, it was like he was in fast motion.


Ethan taking his turn riding in the car with mama. This is when we were stuck in Spanish Fork Canyon. I know there are no moutains in the background. We happened to be stuck in a clearing, the sun was very hot. There was shade about 100 feet in front of us.


Improvised bar stools. I know, I know they look very safe. I just had them sitting on the boxes, but Ethan didn't think that was satisfactory so he added the booster seats.

I'm so tired.

Sorry, no pictures.
This week has been a crazy whirlwind of activity. Starting at 5am Monday (July 14th) when we headed out from Plano with our Penske truck packed full of all our earthly belongings. We had a great first day driving and made great time getting to Colorado Springs before 7pm. My brother and his family live there on Peterson AFB. We ate yummy tacos, had Family Home Evening, and went to bed about midnight (the kids were VERY excited to see their cousins). We left after 8am the next morning, very exhausted. We had multiply stops just trying to find diesel fuel for the truck, and then for lunch, then for gas for my car, then for a rest stop, and then another rest stop (I could barely keep my eyes open!). Finally we made a energy drink stop for me and I was fine for the rest of the drive.... Not to mention Ethan and Nora switched cars. Ethan had been driving the whole time with daddy in the Penske, and Nora was stuck with me in our stinky Altima. So Ethan pretty much screamed for two hours straight about the injustices of life. That kept my eyes wide open and my heart rate well above the healthy level. So half way through Spanish Fork Canyon we came to a dead stop. An hour later traffic gets going again and we see why we were stopped. They were cleaning up some wreckage and a car that was barely recognizable... Sad. Then we finally rolled into our new home about 9:15pm. We found a place to park our truck (It wasn't easy!), checked the place out (it was my first time seeing the house), and headed to my mom's house for some grub and sleep. The next morning my borthers, sisters and a friend helped Brian and I unload the truck (Thanks guys). My fam stuck around for a while and helped unpack. We got the kids rooms finished and our bed ready. We ate at mom's and then crashed in our new house for the first time. Next day...Unpacking ALL day. I had to get as much done as possible because Brian was leaving for Texas in a few short days. Friday more of the same, almost done. Saturday we got up and got ready to take Brian to the airport. Then the kids and I went to IKEA to look for bar stools. No luck. I forgot I didn't have any food so the kids and I went to the store at 10pm. Have you ever been to a grocery store Saturday night in Utah? My sister calls it the Mormon Marathon. That brings us to today, Sunday. Two tired kids and one tired mom. Church went fine. The kids are in bed. Thank goodness.

Some funny things that happened along the way:

In the car Nora made up a song that goes like this:
I"m riding in a bus, I'm riding in a bus,
Clap your hands, clap your hands (think of the cutest hand motions to go with it and you wouldn't even be close to knowing how cute it was)

We saw a train and I said, "look Nora a train." She said, "a train. I'm excited."

We stopped at the Colorado river to get our feet wet, but it was muddy and stinky. Ethan looked at the people next to us and said, "you smell like elephant poo." We left in a hurry.

Ethan made friends with every person at every rest stop or restaurant (except the elephant poo people) and told them every detail of our lives including brithdays.

Every half hour Nora would yell from the back seat, "More candy!" I would hand her a stick of licorice. I found out later she was just shredding it into little pieces and throwing it on the floor. At least it kept her busy for a half hour.

Everytime Ethan would talk to me on the radio he would start by saying, "push to talk."

Nora spotted every balloon at every car dealership along the way.

And so many more fun things. The weather is amazing here in Utah and it has been so fun to be with my family. I miss my family I left in Texas so much. I especially miss my husband. I love our new house and the ward seems nice. I still have a little unpacking to do, my mom is coming over to help me tomorrow (you rock mom!). Sorry this post was so long and had no pictures, but I just had to get it all out before I forgot. Tired brains forget.

The Little Things

I read this on my friend Nancy's blog:

Little Camille is a sweet, 1-year-old baby that I've never met. She is the niece of a dear friend of mine and she died 2 1/2 weeks ago in a drowning accident. I've been reading her mother's blog (who uses blogging to help cope with her loss) and it has touched me so profoundly that I wanted to respond to one of her blog posts:

Take a minute for me tonight and record the little things your kids do right
now. They don't even need to be cute things. Someday when your baby is grown you may even miss the food thrown on the ground or the face wiped on the sleeve.
Cherish the little things. For the little things are the spice in life.

(So here are a few things I've noticed about my little ones)

Nora:

* She is the weirdest eater. She eats apples like oranges (eats out the middle). She eats the crusts off of her sandwich and leaves the rest. She loves broccoli and hates peas. She loves cheese, hands down her favorite food.

* She can cry for an hour straight because I took off my glasses and put in my contacts

* She is very particular. At night she can not sleep until everything in her room is just so. Once I ran to her room because she was crying hysterically. When I opened the door she was standing there holding a toy up and saying, "Put it away!! Put it away!!"

* She likes to look pretty.

* She hates to get her poopy diapers changed.

* She is very independent and wants to do everything herself.

Ethan:

* Ethan is very smart. He likes to use big words even if he doesn't know the definition. I did something he didn't like the other day and he said, "Mom, I'm concerned and disappointed at you."

* He is a perfectionist. It's kinda of sad, but he won't do things unless he is sure he won't mess up.

* He hates dirty hands. He is constantly washing his hands or asking for a wet paper towel.

* He is very conscientious of laws and rules, especially in how they apply to others. You will never catch him in the car without his seat belt on. And he knows how to read the speed limit signs and tell you if you are exceeding the speed limit.

* He likes to negotiate. Anything and EVERYTHING is up for negotiations. Just ask the babysitters.

MIA

Ok. Here it goes....
So this whole renting our house thing is the bane of my existence. So without further ado, we are going to head out early. We have the moving truck rented for Saturday the 12th.
Sunday is my nephew Graydon's blessing, so I guess this last Sunday was our last Sunday in Frisco 4th ward.
Um..Goodbye?
It seems kinda weird. Time just snuck up on us.
Brian will be back for another month living at his parents house. We'll need the income. Our realtor told us that empty houses rent really fast. And since we will have NO income come September, we need to get our house rented out ASAP!
So if I don't have any entries for the next month you'll know why. I'll be missing in action.
PS If any of you want to say goodbye in person, we'll be packing our truck Saturday July 12th starting at 9:30 am and could use some help.
PPS We are very organized movers, this is our 10th move, so it should be very easy.
PPPS Donuts and Juice will be provided.

K is for Krazy

SCATTERGORIES...it's harder than it looks! Erase my answers, enter yours, and post it. *Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following...*They have to be real places, names, things...nothing made up! Try to use different answers if the person in front of you had the same 1st initial. You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question.
WHAT IS YOUR NAME: Kendra
4 LETTER WORD: King
VEHICLE: Kia
CITY: Kingston
BOY NAME: Kent
GIRL NAME: Kristy
OCCUPATION: Knight
SOMETHING YOU WEAR: Knit
FOOD: Kiwi
SOMETHING FOUND IN A BATHROOM: K-Y
REASON FOR BEING LATE: Kicked the bucket
SOMETHING YOU SHOUT: Knock it off!

Hair Stuff

Nora has incredible hair. Let me show you:
Crazy, huh?

My hair was not so incredible....

So I got it cut.
Thanks Maryanne.

Favorite Picture

Brian's work has an annual family picnic that is always fun. The kids have an absolute blast. There was face painting, crafts, a dunk tank, pinatas, a caricature sketch artist, yummy food, door prizes and other stuff...
My favorite was the face painter. She was awesome. We all got our arms painted instead of our faces (it was very hot and muggy), and here are the results:

Madam Butterfly
Too Cool For School

And my new favorite picture of Brian and I...