Sleepy Heads

These two were out & I'm not sure how with all of the other kids up & running around. I guess  some people really can sleep through anything.

But tonight, Lucy was way too enthralled by the lights in the house & stayed wide awake. So cute!

"A SunBEAM"

The last few days have been SUPER busy. There seems to always be something going on which is a great thing! But, we weren't able to get our Family Home Evening fully in on Monday night. We had spent the weekend talking about things we'd learned in General Conference so it wasn't as though we didn't try to discuss things & have fun together during meals & such. We just had a lot going on & didn't get a formal one in on Monday night. But we finally got it in this morning. And it was a blast! One of the funniest parts was Andrew chose "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam" for our opening song & he and Joseph decided to jump & hit their chests together on the word 'beam'. Generally we just jump or Rick or I will throw one of the kids in the air, so this was a new one & we have no idea where they got it from.

But it gave us a good laugh. I tried to capture it just right but the first time was always the best & of course I didn't capture that one. Andrew really goes low & Joseph jumps more high. Not always a great combination.

But this one cracks me up. I love these boys & love that they have so much fun together. They really are fun brothers & I hope they stay great friends like this forever.

Regular Sight

Almost every morning when Lexie is practicing the piano, Eliza jumps up right there with her to practice. I love it, it totally makes me laugh. Most of the time Lexie loves it, but not always. Eliza tends to get in the way.

But it's been impressive to see Lexie's patience with her & gently moving the bench & Eliza down so she's not in the way anymore & going on with her lesson. Lexie is such a great big sister & an awesome example to her siblings of how to show patience & love. I'm so grateful for her.

Meeting Aunt Megan

Aunt Megan had a layover here on her way home from Utah. It wasn't very long but long enough for us to head over & let Lucy meet her. Lucy spent a lot of time getting ready. Okay, not really. But she did have a nice shower & then some super crazy hair.

And we love her crazy hair which is even better after it gets washed. She's waiting patiently as we decide what she should wear today.

But she got bored with that question rather quickly.

We decided on one. She looked cute. And  about an hour later she decided to dirty it all up. So, back to square one...

Finally we made it to the airport. She was so excited to meet Aunt Megan. She slept the whole time for her.

Such a good baby. And cute Megan, too.

I had to take a picture of this (too bad I waited until tonight). This was the first time I tried to braid Eliza's hair & it actually worked! Hooray. She looked very cute with it, too.

Tonight we asked Lucy what she thought about going to the airport today, she thought for a second, 

then decided she really enjoyed it & was so glad she got to meet Aunt Megan. Thanks for stopping by!

And I LOVE how smiley this little bean is lately. I should really keep the camera closer by. She smiles all of the time & is so happy (most of the time).

Building Day

After a few years of Andrew's dresser being broken & not having a proper dresser for Eliza & now Lucy, we finally bought some. Last week, Rick put Andrew's together & today he got Liza's & Lucy's done. Hooray! Andrew was a great helper building away & he loved every minute of it.

Eliza got in the way a lot & decided to go play with Lucy. It was really cute hearing her talk with Lucy & showing her all of the different toys. Lucy sure loves her big sister!

And she has also started to notice herself in the mirror. So much fun!

Baby Bug

After a long morning of holding this little one, (& Rick held her for awhile, too because she wouldn't sleep unless she was held so she got to enjoy Sunday's Football game this morning with him), I was so sad to actually have to put her down. (Gratefully she slept for about 30 minutes once I put her down.) Sometimes it would be nice to have days where I'm only busy holding this little one. Maybe next week...

I'm Not Tired

The moment when Lucy (& all babies have this moment) is starting to fall asleep

& then suddenly she realizes she doesn't want to sleep. She looks up bright eyed, "No, I'm awake!"

Yep, this happens a lot around here.

General Conference

Lexie built the tent this morning for General Conference. She did a great job! It was very exciting to hear the new age standards for missionaries. It was really cute to hear the kids get excited about it. With the new age standards for missionaries, I said, "Wow, Lexie & Joseph, you guys could really overlap on your missions a lot or not much at all." Joseph quickly added, "I bet a lot & I hope we get to be companions." Not quite. But Andrew was quick to add how neat it would be to go at 18. Glad my kids are excited about serving missions. I guess we now may possibly have less time for them & us to save for their missions. Time for another money/savings FHE lesson.It was a touching moment & a few tears were shed as they talked & I thought about these little ones being great missionaries & servants of the Lord. Lexie asked, "Is that scary to you or a sad thing that we're closer  now to the age that we could serve missions?" I said, "Nope, it's a really happy thing." (But I will miss them like crazy!)

First Snow (this winter)

We woke up surprised to see some snow. We knew it would be cold today, but we thought there would only be snow in the mountains. Gratefully, running club was cancelled so I didn't have to go searching for boots. I'm glad the kids knew where their coats were because I sure didn't. Ahhh, winter is coming...where's my Fall?

The Debate

The kids were really excited about watching the first presidential debate tonight. They got nice & cozy & were ready for it to start. We had to pause a few times & explain what "deficit" meant and just other things about debt & money & why we have so much, but they enjoyed it. It's been fun to ask the kids what they think about different issues & hear what they've discussed in their school classes about different things (not too much).

I laughed the other day on the play ground after school, I heard a few kids talking & one said, "I hope Mitt Romney wins." The rest of the kids said, "Eww, no you don't. You want Obama. He's the cool one! That's who we want to win. Mitt is not cool." The other parent I was standing by & I got a good chuckle. It's funny how kids think about things & the issues that are important to them. It gave us a good laugh.
Joseph was really bummed when we told him it was bedtime. He asked if we were recording it & if he could finish watching it tomorrow. I told him yes & probably. Then he went up to bed.
**Update: Fist thing the next  morning Joseph asked was, "Who won the debate?" and "Can I finish watching it before school?" I didn't let him but I did let him watch a bit of the commentators so they could tell him who won-by their analysis, I didn't want to sway him. :) Poor kid, I still haven't let him finish, maybe tomorrow between Conference sessions.

Clean Up! Clean Up!

Rick's parents left Monday morning & once Rick got back from taking them to the airport and the older kids were at school, Rick & I got to work on clearing out the house. (We did have the kids' dressers moved already out to the garage. They had a funny time trying to find where their clothes all went & didn't really love getting dressed out there for the weekend...) We got our carpet stretched Monday & we're getting our carpets cleaned today.
Andrew & Eliza loved hopping from cushion to cushion.

Andrew put one of the cushions down to be his slide.

I love the distinct difference of where the rug was on the carpet & the rest of the room. Hmmm, I guess vacuuming doesn't always clean enough at my house.

What a mess, glad this is going to get cleaned up.

All of this moving is really tiresome. Eliza just fell asleep right where our bed used to be. She cracks me up.

Dinner was a picnic on the floor since we managed to move everything but a dresser/shelf in our room, the piano, & filing cabinet from the carpet & into the basement, garage, or kitchen, there wasn't much room to eat or move around in the kitchen-so floor it was is. And bonus-2 free pizzas from Papa Johns. They charged us the wrong amount & so the deliverer called it in to change it & they said since it was their mistake they'd just cancel the transaction. Happy Free Pizza Night to us. I should have ordered  more. :) Just kidding.

The next morning before carpets got cleaned, Joseph & Lexie danced & ran around like it was Christmas morning. They loved being goofy.

Eliza chillin' in the kitchen.

Lexie & Joseph admiring their artwork from when they were little little kids.

And finally, all clean! Hooray!

I know, not the most exciting blog post, but when you haven't ever gotten your carpets cleaned in this house (& it's been almost 7 years), it's a pretty exciting thing.
Now to get the house put back together again & move some children around...

Do You See What I See?

Grandma made Lucy a new blanket & brought her some outfits to match.

If you stare at this long enough, you can see Lucy.

I cannot believe that the clips would fit in Lucy's hair without a headband. She & her hair are growing much too quickly! Babies certainly don't stay small for too long.

This one makes me laugh, she looks like a lion saying grrrrr. As Eliza says, "So cute, Baby!"

 

And here are all of the kids with Grandma & Grandpa before they headed home this morning. Thanks for a fun visit.