Things I don't want to forget

Saturday morning, I got out of bed to the sounds of my children awake and active.  They burst into my room full of excitement.  They had a plan for the day and wanted my motherly approval.  Saturday in our house is chore day...and the boys know it.  But before I could dish out the assignments, the boys showed me their own freshly written lists.  Surprisingly, each child had a complete list of chores I normally give them on a Saturday morning.  They wanted to get them accomplished fast so they could watch Harry Potter movies ALL DAY.  I deemed their lists as acceptable and they had their chores completed by...get this...8:30 am.  This included toilets being cleaned, baseboards wiped down and furniture dusted.  

I love my boys. 

My favorite list was the one they wrote for me:  

(spelling and grammar will not be corrected so I can remember it for all time.) 

Mom chor list

vacum

and the other normal things you do.

Love you mom

My kids are adorable.  

I'm letting my head swirl, meditate if you will, around what my kids really believe is "the other normal things you do." 

I hope one day they truly understand. 

***************

Sacrament meeting today was awesome.  We are sitting near the front of the chapel now due to the gluten free thing.  It's easier for the deacons passing the sacrament to get me my covered cup of non-gluten bread brought from home if I'm near the front...I don't want to be a spectacle and this seems like the easiest way.  Astonishingly, I'm liking the front even though every fiber of my being wants to run chicken-like to hide in the back.  I'm finding the kids are better behaved when sitting spitting distance from the bishop and speakers.  A little fear of authority goes a long way.   

Today Bishop Coleman spoke on gratitude.  It was an amazing talk that inspired me to do better, be better,  and to teach my children better.   I love talks like this.   I nudged Steve a few minutes into the talk and asked him to take notes.  Here are some of them that I want to marinate myself in. 

"Starve the problems, feed the opportunities"

"Less gratitude = more disappointment"

"Gratitude is a character trait that can be cultivated"

"Because we have so much, we want so much"

"Remember God in all things and gratitude will fill you"

When we got home from church, I asked the older two boys to write down a list of ten things they were grateful for.   I don't want to forget them.  (Once again, I refuse to correct spelling or grammar- it would ruin the cuteness of it all.)

Andrew Dixon age 11:

house

family

all seorses of intertanment

FOOD and water

the ablilty to sleep

a bed to sleep in

to have a temple in twin falls

hevenly father

Jesus Crist

are bodies and the ability to see, feel, smell and taste.

Carter Dixon age 8:

faimly

house

food

eath (earth)

legos

music

Jesus

god

medsin (medicine...me too Carter)

me

love you

It would be silly of me to end this journal entry without writing down what I am most grateful for.   I think it is pretty obvious.  I am most grateful for my family.  They make my life worth living.  

I am grateful for Steve.

He is loving, selfless, hardworking, handsome and my best friend. 

I am grateful for Andrew.

He is honest, stalwart, compassionate and wants so much to do what is right for the right reasons.

I couldn't ask for a better oldest son.  I think this boy is going to be an awesome teenager!

I am grateful for Carter.

He is happy, lovable, exciting, brave and his smile can light up and entire room!  He is the perfect of example of shining through adversity.  I want to be as good as him one day.

I am grateful for Colby.

He is bold, daring, dramatic, bigger than life and has more potential in his little finger than I could ever imagine.  Colby is a leader and will never let anyone get in his way of greatness.

I am grateful for Saylor.

  She is sweet yet determined, shy yet mischievous, reserved yet playful.

She is my princess.

I am indeed blessed.

Spoiled...but grateful.

(Was this a shameless plug to post family pictures?  Um...of course it was.  Will there be more shameless plugs?  Um...of course there will.)  

Family Pictures...just the beginning.

Can I just say...how much I love family pictures.

Thanksgiving

We celebrated Thanksgiving at my parents yesterday.  My mom knows how to go gluten free and she made concessions for me.  Everything was delicious and the company was wonderful.  The kids had a marvelous time with their cousins and there were minimal disputes.  Here are a few (not so few) pics of our holiday.  I apologize now to any family members who have closed eyes or chewing mouths...its hard to take flattering pictures of people while they are eating.

Saylor Girl.  

The fabulous four and five year olds.  

(W missed our nephew Dean, he would have made this crew even!)

The- too old to eat at the kids table but stuck there anyways-boys.

The beautiful Holly.

Seven and Eight are great!

 The Three Amigos.

(Let's just stay that Meg on the left is my older brother in pigtails.  Love love love her!)

The adult table. 

My darling parents.

After dinner, we had a show.

The fiddling crew.

...and Colby. 

 Not sure what show he was giving.

It was a wonderful Thanksgiving and the perfect beginning to the holiday season.

I am excited for December to be here with all the fun, excitment, and calories it brings.  

We're ready...almost.

As part of their Christmas this year, Steve took the boys to the Twin Falls ski swap at CSI and purchased each of them their very own pair of skis...for practically nothing.  They also each got a new helmet, because if they ski anything like their father, they will have way too much fun and need helmets.

 We spent some of the afternoon going through coats, gloves and ski pants to make sure each child was outfitted for the winter.  Having three boys in a row comes in handy as Carter and Colby were mostly handed down ski clothes from older brothers.  (wonderful)  Even Saylor got a red coat and bib set that Colby wore when we has two.  It was a Virginia outlet store purchase from many years ago and it still looks new.  

The boys are dying at the prospect of skiing this next weekend as Pomerelle opens on Wednesday.

We are unfortunately short just a few items of being slope ready.  Each of the boys need better socks, Andrew and Carter need boots (Steve is working EBay), and Andrew needs different goggles that he can wear with his helmet.  

However, I am far from being ready to ski this year.  Because of birthing, nursing and taking care of very small children, I have not skied in years...years.  My boots and skis are from high school and my coat and pants aren't much newer.  Granted, I'm not wearing anything neon like Steve did twenty years ago, but what I have is pretty bad.

So...Steve took me to the ski swap too and picked out some sweet boots.  We then looked at the womens skis and asked the advice of one of the salesmen.   He asked what type of skier I was and I replied honestly...groomed runs, no jumping or moguls.   He recommend a pair of skis and I was suckered in by the ridiculously low price.  Almost criminal for new skis.  We bought them and then looked them up on the internet to see what we really purchased. 

Um...we bought me junior skis.  I should have known because they are named...

Andrew has been teasing me because I'm going to be skiing on little girl skis.   

Whatever, they are still WAY nicer than anything I have ever owned.  If you see me on the slopes, please don't make fun of my preteen skis.  They were cheap.

And I'll probably hand them down to this little chick.  Here she is bouncing and doing her best moves on my skis.  She acts like she is one of the boys and has wanted to try on boots and skis all weekend.  Steve wants to buy her little skis that strap onto her snow boots and take her up a few afternoons this year, just to get her started.  I think she would love it.

Long story short?  If you can't get ahold of us on a weekend this winter, we're not home...were on the slopes!

Guess Who Turned Two!

Saylor did yesterday!

"WHO ME?" 

"I can't even comprehend the enormity!"

I took Saylor outside yesterday afternoon in attempt to snap a few birthday shots.  The majority of them were her pulling crusty faces or staring into oblivion as demonstrated in the two previous shots.  

She cracks me up.

It got cold too fast so we came inside and got more staring pictures...

and just a few of her looking at the camera.

She's hilarious and has her own agenda that neither me or anyone else stands a chance of changing.

Later that night we had my parents over to help party Her Highness.

We had two cakes for this two year old, mostly because I was experimenting with gluten free cakes.  One was pumpkin and other was chocolate.  All afternoon she would point to them with her chubby fingers and say "Two cakes, Two cakes."

We sang the birthday song, totally off key mind you, and then lit her candles.  She was not impressed or excited.

But she was all over the presents.

Grandma Walker got her a baby carrier and brought over my old doll highchair.  Both were huge hits!

From her parents and brothers, Saylor got a new baby doll complete with magnetic binkie, a doll feeding set and new girly sheets and pillow cases.  (She has been sleeping on star wars pillow cases- it was about time she had a set of her own.)  She wanted nothing to do with dessert, and went straight to feeding her new baby.  

Fun things about Saylor at age two:

Loves her baby dolls and carries them around the house, in the car, and anywhere we go.  She also thinks she needs every doll she sees in stores.   She pushes them in strollers, gives them binkies and bottles and loves to wipe their bums with real wipes.

Loves reading books in the rocking chair.

Loves Dora the Explorer in an obsessive all consuming way that gives me anxiety.

Has become a super picky eater and would rather drink chocolate milk and juice over eating anything else.

Still crosses her ankles when she is comfy.

Says anything and everything she wants to.  My favorite thing she says is "No thanks Mom" and "Please Mom".  Least favorite thing she says is "Mine!"  Her verbal skills have exploded in the last two months and she has no problem telling us exactly what she wants and thinks.  

Rules her brothers with an iron fist.  She can do almost no wrong in their eyes.

Will no longer sit in booster seats or her high chair.  Consequently, she has fallen on her face many times in the last month.

Loves to sing songs with actions.  Favorite song- "Grandma's in the Cellar"  (sorry mom)

Still loves rides in the bumpy truck and in Daddy's car.   My car isn't cool enough for her. 

Loves her grandmas and grandmas.

Loves clothes and shoes and will often complain if I don't get out what she thinks she should wear.  I have to be sneaky and not let her see her snow boots or she would wear them day or night.

Confessions

Things I may have done in the past few days that warrant confessions:

Forgot to change Saylors diaper before a presidency meeting.  She soaked through that diaper on the way home.  Now washing the car seat and praying it is dry in the next hour so I can pick up the boys from school.

Achieved being three presents shy of finishing Christmas.  If Carter changes his list one more time, he is just going to have to live with it.  I'm done.  

Cleaned my house wearing my nicest jeans to loosen them up so I could wear them to a dental dinner with Steve later that night.  I find breathing not optional.

Vowed to not eat sugar for a solid two weeks to rid myself of my addiction.  Ate Hot Tamales 8 hours later when the kids got home.  I was stressed and needed a fix.

Was pulled over by a kindly police officer for going 28 in a school zone.  Handed him my licence and registration with a smile and told him I new I was speeding.   He gave me warning.  I'm considering not having to pay the $150 ticket an early Christmas present. 

Put up one of my Christmas trees.  Letting things go by not fretting over the massive overload of ornaments in the front bottom third of the tree.  I'm learning a new skill..allowing the kids to actually enjoy putting up the tree.  I feel my OCD senses alarming every time I walk past the dang thing.

Craving licorice everyday.

Figured out how to make Thanksgiving stuffing with brown rice.  It's definitely not the same, but its a great substitute. 

Dams in Oregon Can Only Get You in Trouble

On the way home Monday afternoon, the Seattle visiting crew made a pit stop at the McNary Dam in Oregon.  We had high hopes that we could see fish traveling through the dam.  The fish were non-existent and the boys were a little disappointed.  We were only four months too late in the season.

But the stop wasn't a total loss.  The grounds were beautiful, the boys posed for pictures...and the dam had the best cleanest bathrooms I had seen in a long time.  

Grandpa and his boys.

Running down the stairs.

Handsome Carter

HOWEVER...visiting a dam often times does crazy things to normally clean-mouthed citizens.

The word "dam" rolled off our tongues as if we were raised on an eastern Idaho dairy farm.  (sorry Mom)

My innocent Carter took to the word like a non diabetic in a frosting factory.

Because it's ok to say "dam" when you are at one, and...if you clearly state that the word you are saying is not spelled with an "n" at the end.

Quotes that might have been said by me, my father and my son (I'm going to hell.  ...but not the "hell"  used in an expletive per say, but more as in "hell" that you find in the scriptures.  It's ok to say it if it is in the scriptures.  Rationalize Rationalize Rationalize):

"Look Mom, there are the dam stairs!"

"I see a dam leaf on the ground!"

"Lets go use the dam bathroom"

"That's where the dam fish swim upstream"

"If you look down there, you can see the dam workers."

"Get in the car, its in the dam parking lot."

"Open the dam door!"

"I love this dam vacation!"

And there were many many others.

My only regret?  That there wasn't a dam gift shop so I could buy Carter a dam shirt that read, "My parents went to Oregon on vacation, and I all I got was this dam shirt!"

(we're classy people)

seattle getaway

My brother Jon and his beautiful wife Caprice had their third baby boy on October 12th...Steve's birthday.   Bentley Cole's blessing was this last Sunday.  My parents were of course planning to go, so my sister JaNae and I decided to mooch a ride to Seattle.

It was a fast trip-two days of driving and only two days of playing, but we made the best of it.  We packed our eight and seven year olds along with and had a wonderful weekend.  Here are a few of the pictures from our trip to downtown Seattle on Saturday.  We went to the Seattle Aquarium and then Red Robin for a late lunch.  

Jon, Caprice, Dean, Dawson and Bently

Making crazy faces while waiting for our table.

Dean, Carter and Wyatt.  (I added the names because they are so hideous I didn't think anyone would recognize them.)

It's fun to see your name in print even if it means you gamble with the Devil.

Uh...scratch that last part.

Surfing on a whale with a most favorite cousin.

Cool fountain outside the aquarium.

Looking off the boardwalk.

Lining up up to attack the innocent pigeon minding his own business on a nearby table.

Grandpa Walker has the best games.

Being attacked by a killer octopus.

I'm guessing the octopus and pigeon were friends.  Paybacks boys, paybacks.

Doing my best skeleton impression.

Feeling silly because skeletons don't have cheeks to suck in.

Grandma Walker and adorable Dawson.

The sisty uglers.

(family joke)

Despite their bored to tears faces, they really did have fun!

Taking unflattering pictures of ourselves.  It's what we do best.

Thanks mom and dad for driving us to Seattle and spoiling us as if we were 11 and in your care again.

And, thanks Jon and Caprice for letting us invade your home and dance in your driveway. We had a wonderful weekend.  We didn't sleep much, but it was worth it!