I Love to See the Temple

"I love to see the temple. I'm going there someday To feel the Holy Spirit, To Listen & to pray.

For the temple is a house of God, a place of love & beauty. I'll prepare myself while I am young; This is my sacred duty."

"I love to see the temple. I'll go inside someday. I'll cov'nant with my Father; I'll promise to obey. For the temple is a holy place Where we are sealed together. As a child of God, I've learned this truth: A family is forever."

I went to the temple to the sealing of my cousin, Kurt. I love sealings. I love seeing the love of the couple getting married and remembering my own sealing almost 5 years ago to the day. I also love to hear what each sealer says to the couple. That little nugget of wisdom to take with you to aply to your own marriage. One of the stand out thing for me was the 4 C's of David O McKay: Constant Courting, Constant Communication, Constant Compassion & Constant Compromise. It was another first to have the power go out while in the temple. It was a great day and wonderful to see family. The day was beautiful and Aley was a dream the entire day. I couldn't asked for better.

Swimming

We love going to the pool. Bubba was terrified at first and refused to get in the water. At first he would only dip his fingers and throw things into the water. Each time he slowly got a little more brave. Stepping into the water and letting someone hold him and carry him around in the water. Avez jumps in full force and Aley just relaxes and takes it all in. Funny how each personality come out.
Avez has always been a water girl. She has to put her life jacket on because she has no fear and loves to jump in the deep end. It keeps my stress level down to know that whatever she decides to try she will be safe.
Now he jumps from the side and swims on his own. He sticks his face in the water. (Which is crazy because he freaks out in the tub when any water get on his face!)A regular little fish.

Free At Last!

The moment I have been waiting for and yet dreading has finally arrived. Bubba has finally discovered the ability to climb out of his crib and not be terrified of the fall. I knew this was coming and honestly perplexed it was still pending. Avez developed this talent at about 17 months and he is pushing 21 months.

So begins the long bedtime rituals of putting him down, only to have him climb out excited about his new found talent. Then placing him back in bed screaming. (There is no happy medium with this boy.) Last night this took place for just over an hour until he finally relaxed. My hand had to be stroking his hair for him to calm down. I escaped and thought about what the nights ahead are going to be like.

Transitions are never easy. After family comes it's time for the big boy bed. Wonder how that will go?

Avez Eyes

I wish I could see the world through a child's eyes. They don't have the build up of taint and distain that has clouded our eyes as we age. When we see people we don't know and haven't met, we see strangers, unfamiliar and unapproachable. When Avez sees a person on the side of the road as we drive by she says, "Look Mama, friends!" As we walk down the isles in the store she stops to greet everyone saying, "Hi, I'm Ava. What's your name?" Everyone is just a friend she hasn't met yet not a stranger to be afraid of. Maybe if we all look at the world like Avez there wouldn't be as much misunderstanding and fear, just friends who are waiting to say "hi".

The Princess & the iPod

Avez is always wanting to play a game on the iPod. She is great at solving puzzles, matching games, counting games and alphabet games. I have to fight to use my own iPod because whenever I pull it out to use Avez comes around and wants to use it for herself. Not that I have much down time to use it during the day. But for space sake it's become my scriptures at church and seems to end up keeping someone else busy instead. I've downloaded a ton of games just for her because she wants to use it all the time. She is great at switching to whatever it is she wants to do. She can watch her movies, play her games. One of her favorite things to do is watch princess movies, especially Cinderella. My little techno wiz.

I took this picture the other day and thought it was priceless. There isn't even one bit of cropping or editing!

I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home

Every day when Daddy walks in the door from work, everything that was going on stops. All eyes turn to the sound of the front door beginning to open. Avez and Bubba look with anticipation and joy. I look with a mix of relief and gladness. Aley just senses the electric charge in the room and begins to kick her legs.

The first thing you hear is little feet running and "Daddy" being shouted with exuberance. Daddy's daily reply is, "Hi guys!" I love to see how happy it makes everybody to have the whole family together again after several hours without Daddy.

Car Wash

Who needs a fancy car wash with professionals detailing and polishing your ride? Just send Dad out with some pool toys and a kiddie pool and let the fun take off. Then again it might not end up getting the car as clean as the kids or as wet for that matter. And Dad may have to rewash portions to undo the job that the kids did. But all in all it sure makes for a fun filled afternoon in the hot sun!

Humidity Hair

This is why I have to blow dry my hair straight, especially in all this East coast humidity. Due to the aforementioned Bubba situation I was unable to dry my hair after taking a shower. The curls you see are the untamed result of nature taking its course.

EEEEWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!

I know these pictures seem graffic. But believe me it was worse it person. The smell alone was enough to kill you. But I digress, let me go back and explain how this happened.

Yesterday, I heard Bubba stirring from his nap and Avez went up to get him. Next thing I heard was, "EEEWWWW!!!!! GROSS! MOM, Bubba POOPED!!!" That sent me running. I got to the room in time to see Bubba with his diaper on the ground next to his pants and blanket. He was trying to climb out and there was poop all over him, the crib, and the bed.


I carried him to the shower, stripped off his shirt and hosed him down. He was not happy about it, but neither was I about any of it. After getting Bubba clean and in a new diaper I began working on the hazard zone. I took a sand shovel and scooped up what I could in a ziplock. Then I gathered up the sheets and bumper and threw them in the wash. The next part took the longest. I removed the mattress and scrubbed the plastic coating (thank goodness for that) then began meticulously washing every inch of the crib surface.

Now to figure out how to keep his diaper on!

Fly on the Wall

Lately, when I have been putting Avez down for a nap or for bed at night, she hasn't been going right to sleep. I can hear all kinds of noises drifting up the stairs. They range from toys banging and clanging, singing and high pitched squeaking, to conversations with who knows whom.

I wish I could sneak down and watch but that would abruptly end the show if an audience appeared. So I stay upstairs wondering. She always falls asleep eventually and never comes up until after her nap or in the morning. But oh to be a fly on the wall to see her imagination in full swing!

Future Plumber

I swear Bubba is going to be a plumber. He always has he hands down his pants and is pushing them down. You shouldn't see a crack on a diaper. And it shouldn't ride low. The worst is when he pulls out his hand and there is a brown treat on it. Yeah, not good.

My Angel Baby

Don't get me wrong, I love ALL my kids. But there is something about Aley. She is such an amazing little girl and always makes me smile and be happy. Avez was good, but as soon as she got mobile she was into everything. To curious for her own good. Bubba had colic and cried all the time. He still is polarizing. Either laughing and happy or sad/mad and crying and screaming.













Aley is just content. That is the best way to describe her. She wakes up and plays till you get her. She loves it when you look at her over the crib. A huge smile comes over her face. She also can play happily while I deal with her brother and sister.






Don't think she doesn't have her moments. She can fuss and cry. But it's usually about food or an injury or tired. There is some reason.
















I love the way her eyes light up. I couldn't ask for better. She will sleep whenever and where ever. I was blessed by my beautiful girl. I love her so much and I am sad she can't stay this age forever!

Zooventure

We became members at the Philadelphia Zoo. It was cheaper overall and lets us not feel like we have to stay all day to get our money's worth. Parking alone is $12 and getting our whole family in the gate is over $50. The best part is the free add ons.

By far, the favorite thing at the zoo is the carousel. If they could ride it all day they would!

Avez on her butterfly

Even Aley got in on the carousel action.The train was really small. We barely fit. Don't think we will ride it again.

Who took a picture of my butt?

The swan boat. Bubba tried to jump out and swim.

Are these monkeys real? No they are Lego.

There is an helium balloon that you can ride that takes you up 400 feet over the zoo and you can see the entire downtown area. It is beautiful and included in the pass. Avez loves the carousel and thinks the butterfly is her personal ride. She actually got upset when she was someone else was riding on it.



The giraffe is stick his tongue out at us! Shade under an umbrella.


Water is a huge hit at the zoo. If they could they would play in the fountains all day long.

Eating Out

After the Zoo we stopped at Olive Garden to avoid Friday rush hour traffic in the city. This was a huge gamble because this would be the first time we have ventured to a sit-down restaurant with the whole family. Avez was great and Bubba was good as long as he had food or drink to keep shoving in his mouth. Overeall a successful venture. Not sure when we will attempt again though. The stress over what could happen was almost more than I could take.

DVD Coma

In our van is a DVD player. Which is great for keeping the kids from going crazy in the car. But sometimes I look back and see glazed over faces. What happened to the days of playing the alphabet game and the cow game while driving? Need to teach the kids these great nostalgic car ride games.

First Fruits!!!

Avez picked the reddest tomatoes from our plants yesterday. Kellen had one on his sandwich and loved it.
I don't know what I'm going to do if they only are ready a few at a time. My whole goal was to have enough to can and make my Grandma's chili sauce for canning! I can't just sit down and eat them like an apple.

Panda Noodles

The most requested food in our house is "panda noodles". For most people there are called ramen noodles. But ever since Kung Fu Panda, they have been dubbed "panda noodles". And nothing is better than slurping them while watching Kung Fu Panda.

Part of the appeal is the long strands of noodles dangling out of their mouths.