Springtime and Easter Fun

We have been enjoying some great weather! Until this week where all we're going to have is rain and wind. But for a couple weeks before we had the perfect springtime weather! And we enjoyed it to the fullest! One of our friends from the married student ward moved to Rupert, and whenever she comes into town to visit her brother in Sugar City she tries to stop by. I love it. Her little boy is just younger than Addy and their second little boy is about 7 months old. They are so sweet and our girls love them! Addy particularly enjoyed playing with the baby this time, which I was happy about because she'll have one soon! Scott took the kids outside so that Kels and I could visit. It was wonderful! And they had a lot of fun too :) 

For FHE when it's warm outside, what do you do?! Make ice cream, of course! I'm not sure that Addy has made it with us that she can remember. It's been a long time. She got to help crush cookies and mix ingredients. I thought she would be more fascinated by the maker spinning, but when it has to go for an hour or more, she quits being interested lol. Ellie has never eaten her own ice cream cone before so I had to snap a few pictures. The ginormous line on her face is from Addy giving her a hug with a jacket on and Ellie fell, sliding her face down Addy's zipper. It was gone the next day, luckily.

Even Addy dug in and got messy, just because Ellie was. She loves ice cream cones and has mastered eating them fairly cleanly. But since they were headed for the bath, we welcomed the fun of watching her purposely destroy it!

I think she enjoyed it!

Oh, I know she enjoyed it!

Saturday before Easter we headed out to our dearest friends' house for an Easter egg hunt. Scott grew up with Justin and Joe, and now they, along with Justin's parents, all live here in the area. It's such a small world! I am so thankful to live so close to such amazing friends. And having Brenda as a close momma and grandma for my kids is really fun. Here's the crew, ready to hunt! (Yeah, they all have 5 year olds...Scott was really old when we got married :P)

I didn't even get Ellie a basket because I didn't think she would get it. But thirty seconds in she had the idea down better than Addy! Luckily Brenda had an extra basket. She absolutely had a blast! Addy was also very excited, so much so that I do not have a picture of her because she wouldn't sit still long enough!

This egg was my favorite. She could have reached it from the ground, but instead chose to get up on the step with it :)

This is now the smile I get when I ask for one...the psychotic child smile. We are working on our "nice smile." Still haven't quite mastered it...

Justin bought a new toy and brought it along so we could all enjoy it :) Scott took me on a little ride. It was really fun. The kids pretty much just sat in it all day. Addy loved pretending to drive it. I love how much my kids love these guys. It's so fun to watch them play :)

Joe (I didn't get a picture of Joe, this is Justin) pulled the kids around the yard on a plastic sled with Dee's (Justin's dad) 4-wheeler for a better part of two hours probably! The kids had a blast and did really well taking turns. Ellie sat on there with him for forever and then when Justin got on, she demanded that she get on too! It was really funny. The other baby is Carter, Justin and Courtney's little boy, who is a week and a day older than Ellie. They are so fun!

Roz with my girls. Addy loves Roz. She is teeny tiny, she's 9 months older than Addy. I told Courtney that I had a positive pregnancy test the day I went to visit her in the hospital :)

We all got sunburned! Momma forgot sunscreen and Court had some but we didn't use it in time. This is the best picture I got of the girls in their Easter dresses. It was a grouchy morning. Oh well. Captures their personalities I guess?

Saturday they were so worn out that we saved dying eggs until Sunday. Addy was so blown away by the fact that we could color on eggs and now wants to do it every time I get eggs out...oops...

Ellie wanted to join the fun too. I love this girl's smile. She is so sweet and it's just contagious.

Look at her suck that belly in! Addy couldn't ever do that because she was too chubby! Ellie is my tall skinny minnie.

Kissing her egg...

Right before tearing it to pieces while I was getting ready to help her dye it. lol. Her face was so funny!

So here are our eggs. :)

And then Scott starts doing his and I look over and he has a whole contraption set up to only dye half of his egg. I draw polka dots and a sun and he goes all out. Story of my life.

Addy carried his egg around for about an hour before she dropped it and I had to explain to her that the whole point of this was eating the eggs...she was NOT a happy camper and still asks me where daddy's minion egg is lol.

I didn't have potatoes (pregnant brain while shopping I guess) and so we decided to do something different for Easter dinner. I was glad because it was dang good! I made Scooter's Spaghetti (the best recipe ever and you can find it here), asparagus, homemade garlic french bread, and jello. It was delicious and the whole family loved it.

Anyway, we had a great Easter and are loving Springtime in Rexburg. Yesterday in the windy cold we planted raspberry starts that my awesome friend brought me! I am so excited to have raspberries next year! And maybe just a few to sample this year. I hope they survive :)

I am so grateful for my Savior and that he lived and died for us. In Addy's words, when the women went to "help his body, his body was missin! Because He took His body back!" And I am so grateful that He did. He conquered death and lives today. He did it so that we, too, can take our bodies back and live with Him and Heavenly Father again if we prove worthy and utilize His atonement. I love him with all that I am and am so grateful for His sacrifice for my little family and every family and person living now, living then, and living in the future. He is risen!

I'll Never Grow Up

"Well, when you're the mom you can do it however you want."

Said my mom a million times while I was growing up. And in my heart I secretly swore that I would. I would never fix my husband hot chocolate and let him drink it in front of the 6 year old when it was the last cup. I would never force my 10 year old to wear red jeans (at a time when they were NOT the style) and tell her that just because they say "chic" on the butt pocket means they're in style. I would never make my 12 year old go to bed at the same time as her younger siblings, even if I did let her read for an hour before lights out, just so I could spend time with my husband after he pulls into the driveway at 9 or later. I would never read my 16 year old's emails from her high school crush. I would never forbid my kids to have a Facebook until they graduate high school. Oh no, those are all things I would never do. Because when I grew up I was going to be a better and upgraded version of my mom.

But now I'm learning. I'll never grow up. I'll never be a better mom than mine. And those of you who know my mom know it's true. What was I doing those 18 years while I was supposed to be learning how to parent? I was too busy not growing up. Sure, I was getting older, but I wasn't paying attention like I should have. I should have been watching what my mom did when my two year old sister decided that the proper response to any parental request was "no!" I should have been watching what she did when my 1 year old sibling wouldn't sleep and spent an hour or more straight crying. I should have been watching how she cooked dinner every.single.night. instead of defaulting to frozen pizza just because she was tired. I should have been watching how she managed to do the dishes and laundry despite having 5 kids under 6. I should have been learning. I should have been growing up. Instead, I was growing older. Breezing through life thinking that my mom's job was easy. Being ungrateful because she didn't get my dress hemmed by Sunday tomorrow instead of Sunday next week.

I knew that being a mom wasn't easy. I probably knew it better than most new moms simply from being the oldest of 12 kids and nannying my way through school. But I had. no. clue. Like really. None. I think a part of my brain just thought that intuition all the sudden showed up as soon as you held your baby for the first time. I thought that I would know how best to discipline my child, when to take them to the doctor, how to tell what was bothering them when they were too young to tell me. I thought that I could deal with sleepless nights and still be fine the next day. I thought that I would always have time to look nice for my husband and that finding time separate from the kids to spend with him would be easy. I thought that once I was a mom, I would automatically know stuff. I thought I would all the sudden hit that "maturity."

I was wrong. I was still just a twenty year old girl with no clue. I mean, sure. I learned to nurse my baby and meet her needs. I felt a kind of love that I never thought possible and felt a bond so strong with my child that it blew my mind. But the first time she projectile vomited, I was at a loss. Was something wrong? Was this something to worry about? And it just kept turning into more questions. How do I teach her that she can't bite? How do I soothe her ear infection? What do I do when she breaks her femur? How do I tell when she's ready to potty train or ride a bike or start using crayons? I mean seriously. Everything became a question. I am on the phone with my mom twenty times a day asking her what the heck I'm supposed to do!?

And then it occurred to me: being mature isn't knowing everything. Being grown up isn't about being all-knowing. It's about knowing what you don't know and being humble enough to admit it and teach yourself about it. It's about using resources and relying on the Lord. It's about realizing that you can't do it all by yourself. It's about admitting your mistakes and working not to replicate them.

So maybe I am growing up a little. Maybe I'm getting slowly more mature. Maybe tomorrow instead of goldfish and canned pears I'll feed my kids something nutritious for dinner (although it could have been worse...maybe...). Maybe I'll change some little thing about myself. Maybe I'll try harder to listen to the Spirit. And maybe I'll grow up a little more.

And I must be growing up a little because I can tell you right now that I don't know everything but that I will be reading my kids' emails periodically and I will make Scott hot chocolate when my kids have to drink water and I will make them all go to bed so that I can spend time with him and they won't have facebooks until they graduate. However, I will never make my child wear red jeans. That's just cruel. But hey, my mom isn't perfect either :P

Just More About Our Life

Well, it's been a busy week or two here at our house! We will go person by person :)
Scott has been working on getting BYU-Idaho's tour group ready to go (ordering speakers, demoing them, ordering cases, labeling and stenciling them, taking inventory, etc) and finishing installs in the BYU Idaho Center. I am realizing more and more how much of an audio engineer's wife I am. I can tell you all about that building. I could give one heck of a tour. And when Scott comes home and tells me that the delay timing on the center arrays and caliper speakers may by off a little once the left and right arrays are dead hung because they may have to adjust angles one more time, I know exactly what he's talking about. :) I can also tell you when the low end is too loud and identify feedback that is nigh untraceable to the human ear :) He's gearing up for next semester when it's his turn to be the monitor engineer and getting things ready and covered for when we welcome our baby girl.
Mommy has been a busy bee! My laundry room is gutted, cleaned, and organized, the storage room much neater now that I've replaced garbage bags with totes for storage, and the fan above the stairs is cleaned. I know the fan sounds like a minor thing, but without a ladder and with no way to actually reach the blades it was quite the task. I'm also growing a baby, which seems like it would just come naturally, but I'm exhausted by about 4 every day. So I know it's hard work :P
Addy is learning, learning, learning. It amazes me how fast she picks up on songs! She has quite the list of favorites. We sing one about the monkeys swinging in the tree and the alligator snapping them out one by one. Yesterday morning, in the middle of me singing it, she grabbed my arm with a serious look on her face. I was about to get after her about pinching mom but when I saw her face I asked what was wrong. She said, "Do NOT sing that song to Ellie Belly Baby momma." I said, "Why?" And she replied, "It is way too scary for her!" I got a good laugh out of that. She is also becoming quite the artist. She can draw circles and can write a few letters. She draws faces as well, and then adds legs to make people. She has also learned to draw a snail (a pretty convincing one too) and does it often. Addy loves her sidewalk chalk and finger paint. She is continuing to grow her vocabulary at alarming speeds. When she's being naughty I have to remind myself that even though she talks like a 4 year old she's only 2. :)
Ellie has gotten her top molars pretty much through and I can feel a bottom one about to break skin. It's been...rough. She's also converted to walking 100% of the time. She loves to let you know what she wants by pointing and saying, "That!" She also says "yeah" and shakes her head no when asked a question. She has become a little dramatic and when told no she usually flops down on the floor and cries or covers her eyes with both hands and cries. We're in for it with this one. She is so dang cute.
Baby Carter #3 is growing, growing, growing. Doc said today that everything looks great. Measuring right on schedule. Sticking way out in front because my placenta is anterior. Lovely. Only gained 12 pounds so far and she's kicking all the time. Can't wait! 7 weeks left!

Here are a few pictures. I have the kids' shoes and dress up clothes in their closet in diaper boxes and one night they decided that the boxes had a better use than storage...Ellie was especially proud of herself. Addy was a little nervous when I opened the door but admitted she was the mastermind when I brought the camera...punk.

 We went to the park again and Addy got to use the big girl swing. I kept asking if she was ready to play on the slides yet and she said, "Nope. Not yet! I'm too busy swinging, so I can't try the slides." So funny how much she loves it!

 Ellie is our little fearless girl. She will climb anything and slide down any slide. It will be a miracle if she never breaks her femur...

 I was going to let Ellie paint but she was still really into her pizza, so I figured I'd just wait until another time lol. :)