Hyrum Lost His First Tooth

After waiting patiently for about a month, Hyrum's loose tooth finally came out (with a little help from Daddy).  Hyrum was so brave to let Dave try all sorts of things to get it out.  Pliers, tweezers, floss, string, a balloon and washcloth were all unsuccessful; however, they loosened the tooth enough so that Dave could yank it out with his bare fingers.  The tooth went flying once it came out and landed right down the drain.  Luckily Dave was able to recover it and Hyrum placed it under his pillow with a note which read, "Dear Toothfairy, I want to show my class, for show and tell, my tooth.  Can you please not take my tooth.  From, Hyrum."  He was surprised to wake up this morning and find 4 quarters wrapped up in a paper tooth.  Hyrum has had fun putting his tongue through the new whole in his mouth.  Maybe by Christmas he will be saying, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!"

Donuts and pizza and cake...oh my!

Donuts, pizza and chocolate cake have brought me such happiness lately.  I know it sounds crazy, especially coming from me, but let me tell you why.  About a month and a half ago I took Hyrum to see an allergist that a friend of mine recommended to us.  He did a skin prick test in his office and then sent us to have blood work done.  A few days later he called to let us know that Hryum's allergy levels for milk and eggs had decreased to the point where he wanted us to start slowly introducing them to him in baked goods.  It has been so fun to watch Hyrum try new foods.  At first he was a bit hesitant and afraid to eat things he has been told his whole life he can't have, but now that he knows how good "real food" tastes he's pretty willing to try anything.  A few weeks ago we went to a community service project that served Crispy Creme donuts afterwards.  I told Hyrum he could try one if he wanted to and he eagerly accepted the offer.  I looked over at him after he'd been eating for a few minutes and he was just standing there all alone with a huge smile on his face.  I asked him how the donut was to which he replied, "soooo good!"  That was the first time it really hit me that this was real...Hyrum was eating his first donut and savoring every bite.  He has been a real trooper over the past six years to graciously say, "I can't eat that".  What a blessing this is for our family.  I think it will be awhile still before Hyrum can tolerate straight eggs, milk or milk products that have not been cooked, but we are definitely moving in the right direction.



Hyrum eating his first "real" pizza, cheese and all

 

The newest member of our family....



Bella the parakeet! 

Dave surprised us friday when he came home early from work with this little bird.  The boys were so excited and have hovered over her cage non-stop.  Since she has the look of the Brazillian flag, we decided to name her Bella, which means beautiful in Portuguese.  Having Bella in our home has brought Dave back to his childhood days.  It's fun to hear him tell stories to the boys of all of his bird adventures growing up.  Now our boys can make memories of their own to share with their children someday. 

One Sweet Girl

Gotta love this face...

Fire, Fire, Fire

 Yesterday we had our first encounter with fire.  Nothing real serious, but enough to make my heart pound and my legs go weak in the knees.  I was upstairs helping Hyrum clean the bathroom when I heard William start crying downstairs.  I thought Thomas had probably just hurt him and kept on doing what I was doing.  A moment later William was upstairs screaming/crying, "FIRE, there's a fire downstairs!"  My heart immediately started pounding and I took off down the stairs.  On the way William, still terrified, cries that the fire is in the microwave.  I ran into the kitchen and saw that the inside of the microwave was filled with orange  flames.  I stopped the microwave, unplugged it and opened the microwave door.  Black smoke poured out.  I ran to open windows so the fire alarm would not go off and then ran back to the microwave and blew out the fire (thank goodness that's all it took to put it out).  It was then that I saw the culprit of the fire; a set of play keys.  Apparently Thomas had put them in the microwave and started it.  Now that I look back it doesn't seem like such a big deal, but in the moment I was really scared.  I was shaking for a while after it happened.  I don't know if the microwave could have exploded or if the fire would have just gone out once the microwave turned off, I'm just grateful that Thomas was not hurt.  I'm also grateful that William knew exactly what to do.  He ran right to me and told me what was wrong and exactly where the fire was. He's our little hero.  Hopefully now the boys will never play with the microwave again.  :) 

After the fire the, boys got all the rescue heros and lined them up on the ledge to keep us safe.

Preparing For Conference

Last night for family home evening we had a lesson to help us get ready for the upcoming General Conference.  I set up a play tent in the living room with the door opening towards a picture of the temple.  We sat (quite snugly) in the tent and read from the Book of Mormon the account of King Benjamin gathering his people together at the temple to hear his words (Mosiah 2:1-8).  I asked the boys why it was important for the prophet to speak to us and they replied, "to teach us, it's kind of like going to school," "to tell us things."  It was fun to hear their simple yet truthful answers.  We then talked about things we could do to help us listen to the propthet during conference.  We set a goal for each of us to listen for one thing during conference that will help us be like Jesus.  I then had the boys draw pictures of our prophet today, President Thomas S. Monson.  Here are their masterpieces.  It's fun to see the difference in details from the youngest to the oldest.

This was one of the first times Thomas has drawn a recognizable person.  Notice his circle head, two eyes, mouth, arms, legs and the line below the mouth is his tie, according to Thomas.

William's prophet with a super-human arm.

Hryum's very detailed picture including, stand, microphone, flowers, audience and a message from the prophet telling us, "do not smoke."

Oh, how I love it when family night is a success, ending with priceless memories instead of contention and  frustration.

Six Months Old

Our little Emily is growing up so fast.  It's still hard for me to believe that she is our little girl.  I find myself at times just staring into her blue eyes, trying to take in all the goodness that she radiates and thanking Heavenly Father for sending this angel into our family.  I'm not sure I can find words to say how much we love Emily and the joy she has brought into our family.

Here are some things about her at this stage:

• she loves to snuggle her blanket (or anything soft) by her face
• she tries to such her thumb (I quickly remove the thumb and insert a binki)
• she sits up
• she likes rice cereal
• she does not like to be wrapped in a blanket to sleep (she likes to kick her legs and move them around)
• she has a very serious face that almost looks like a scowl
• she smiles with her eyes
• she is a peacemaker in our home
• everything she gets her hands on goes straight to her mouth
• 13 pounds 10 ounces, 26 inches

Happy Birthday Thomas

Today we celebrated Thomas' 3rd birthday.  He woke up early (I'm sure his big brothers had something to do with that) and ran downstairs .  A huge smile came over his face when he saw the happy birthday sign and balloons Dave and I had hung up last night.  One of the things I love most about Thomas is how easy he is to please.  He truly delights in the "small and simple things."  With the help of his brothers, he opened his presents and then we headed off to spend the day at an indoor inflatable jumping place.  It was fun seeing him play with Hyrum, William and other kids, as if he were a big boy like them.  Later in the evening we ate hot dogs (his choice), cake and ice cream and watched his birthday video.  As I put him to bed  I held him in my arms and told him all about his birth and how special he was to me.  Oh how we love our little Thomas.  Even though the years will continue to pass and Thomas will keep growing, he will always be our "little guy."

Here are some things about Thomas at this stage:
- He is learning his ABC's, numbers and colors
- He loves to snuggle 4 blankets at night and knows if one is missing
- He is very articulate in his speech
- He adores "baby Emily"
- He is a little stinker at bedtime, insiting that he needs drink, after drink, after drink
- He is very determined
- He loves to check out "Go Go Diego" videos from the library
- He makes people smile wherever we go
- He is full of love

Here are some pictures of the fun we had today, followed by his birthday video....

4 Months Old

Today Emily turned 4 months old.  She continues to capture our hearts more and more as she grows and develops.  Her chubby cheeks and legs, round face, big blue eyes and sweet smile are just a few of the things we love most about her.  She loves to laugh and smile, bringing such joy into our home.  Here are some things about her at this stage:

• smiles and laughs often
• grabs at toys
• loves to hold her burp rag close to her face
• will go right to sleep when she is snuggled in a blanket and put in her crib
• tolerates tummy time for longer periods of time
• still spits up a lot
• loves her bath time
• responds to her name
• very sensitive to loud noises
• stares at faces so sweetly

We LOVE this little girl.

Mother's Day

Today my heart has been full of gratitude for the opportunity of being a mother.  As a young girl I looked to my mother's example and wanted to be like her.  When asked what I wanted to be when I grew up I'd reply, "I want to be a mom."  It's amazing to look at my life now, the mother of 4 children.  My dream has come true and only continues to get better as I experience the joys of life with my family. 



This morning I awoke to the kids coming into my room yelling, "Happy Mother's Day!"  I looked up to see their faces full of smiles and Dave carrying a tray with the yummiest breakfast (including pancakes that were perfectly round and fluffy...he continues to amaze me).  The note attached to the tray had the three things the boys love most about me.  Here is what they said:

1.  Does things for us (makes yummy food)

2.  Takes us to fun places

3.  Sits and reads us fun books

Dave knows me well and also brought me my scriptures so that I could read them while I ate my breakfast.  It was lonely eating all alone; however, I did enjoy being able to read my scriptures in peace and quiet before I started my day.  I also took the time to reflect on the things I love most about being a mother.  Here are just a few of the things I thought about:

1.  Seeing smiles on my children's faces (including little Emily's)

2.  Reading books to my children while they snuggle on my lap and shoulders

3.  Spending time together as a family (going on day trips, playing at the park, playing games)

4.  Hearing Thomas say, "I want you hold me mommy"

5.  Watching my children play and laugh together

I could go on and on.  Motherhood is one of my greatest blessings.  Today I feel inspired to be a better mommy and to love my children a little more (even when they're not so loveable).  It certainly is not easy, in fact it's at times down right hard, but the return is oh so worth it.

The Big Race

Today Hyrum and William ran in their very first race. It was a kids 1k (about a half mile). We've been training on Saturday mornings for the big day. The boys were so excited to wear their new
t-shirts and a race bib with a number 1 on it. It was fun for me to run along with them. They did great and even had energy to sprint to the finish. After the race was over I asked Hyrum how is was and he replied, "That was so much fun!" I'm glad they had a positive experience.

Emily's Blessing Day

Yesterday was Emily's special blessing day. I'm grateful that Dave was able to exercise the Priesthood authority which he holds, to give Emily a name and a blessing. It was a tender moment for me, as a mother, to watch as Dave held Emily in him arms so lovingly. He adores her just as much as she adores him. Our Bishop told us afterwards that Emily just stared right at Dave and smiled through the whole blessing. Their daddy/daughter relationship has already begun.

Here is the story behind Emily's blessing dress. My mother was a seamstress and made beautiful blessing dresses for both of my nieces. I always knew that when I had a daughter my mother would also make her a special dress. When my mother passed away one of the things that brought me great sorrow was thinking that my daughters (if I had any) would not have a special blessing dress made by grandma. I don't know how to sew very well and so I told myself that if I ever got married and had a daughter I would learn to sew her a dress. Well, I got married and had 3 boys so I didn't have to worry about it. Then Emily came along and I knew I wanted to keep my goal of making her dress. A sweet friend walked me through each step and though not perfect, this was the final product. I love it and hope that one day Emily will love and cherish it as well.

Such a sweet and innocent face

smiling for daddy

It's a nightmare trying to get these 3 boys to look at the camera and smile at the same time

smiling for daddy once again

and just for fun...

a picture of me in my blessing dress

Beautiful Angel

I'm a bit late in posting these pictures, but they are just too precious to keep to myself. My good friend took them when Emily was only 4 days old. They really capture the sweet innocence of our little angel daughter.