Deep Thoughts

So, I have some deep thoughts (well, as deep as my feeble mind will allow) that I would like to blog, but I'm still mulling them over in my mind. Nothing that's going to change the world. Nothing that's going to make anyone say "Wow!". It's really just for me, but first I need to formulate them a little better. Make them more cohesive. Try to make sense out of them so I don't sound ridiculous. (I mean, more ridiculous than usual.) It's going to take some time to write them all out. Time that I don't have right at the moment because I'm preparing to do my favorite activity next week. Girls Camp, here I come! Yay! (Please remember that statement is dripping with sarcasm. Oh, and please remember girls of my ward, my distaste has nothing to do with you. It's me. And the campfire part. And the dirt part. And all the laundry I'll have to deal with when I get home part. ☺ I'm looking forward to spending a few days with all of you.) Perhaps, I'll use any down time I may have at camp to gather all my silly thoughts together and get them blogged later in the week. Perhaps.

I Don't Know How He Does It

Peyton's breakfast, for weeks & weeks now, has been 2 hot dogs (no bun), cut into slices, served with ketchup for dipping. It's the first thing he asks for when he wakes up and I very rarely can convince him to have something else. Toast? NO! Cereal? NO! Eggs? NO! Fruit? NO! He only wants hot dogs. It's kind of weird. I especially don't get the ketchup thing. I think ketchup is absolutely vile. I didn't even like it when I was a kid and that's when you're supposed to like the stuff. I've always been more of a mustard kind of person. I tasted a tiny bit a couple of weeks ago to see if my aversion still stood. And, yep! It sure does. I had barely touched it to my tongue, when it caused my stomach to turn, my jaw to clench up and then I gagged. Ketchup is nasty stuff.

In other food news, did you feel the world shift dramatically about a week ago? Like it was being turned upside down. Did you hear a gut-wrenching, horrible scream? The sound of ulitmate suffering. Well, that was me on the day that Avery told me she, in fact, does NOT like melted cheese on food. WHAAAAAAT!? How can a child who came from my womb (which is most likely lined with cheese because I love it so much) not like the gooey, comforting, wonderful goodness that is melted cheese!? It makes no sense to me. At all.

Things I Learned While Watching My Wedding Movie With My Kids

Last night, Avery was looking at the wedding pictures of Ryan and myself that are hanging on our living room wall. She asked things like: what it was like that day? Did I have fun? Am I happy that I'm still married to her dad? (Of course!) She asked several times if I knew I was going to have a little girl like her. (No, but I told her I hoped that I would. She ate that right up, of course. ☺) She said she couldn't wait until she got married. (Please! Not for a very loooooong time.) Finally, she asked if we could watch the actual movie so she could see it all in action. I learned a few things watching with her.

1. She thinks it's very gross to see Ryan & I kiss. (Strange coming from a girl who says she can't wait to get married and kiss her husband. ☺)
2. She thinks Ryan and I don't look anything like we did when we got married. We look waaaaay older.
3. She thought it was totally weird that two of her dad's sisters were so young when we got married. I think she actually said it was "creepy".
4. She thought it was sooooo sweet when Ryan touched my face to brush something away. She asked me, "did you just loooove that he did that!?".

Other observations I made:

1. "Jumper" style dresses were extremely popular in 1998. I think I counted at least 6 women wearing one at our luncheon. Me included.
2. Ryan and I do look different. Although, I wouldn't say that we look waaaaaaay older.
3. Now, I did say that Ryan does look different, but only because he has a goatee now. Other than that fact, he pretty much looks the same. Well, he's maybe gained 5-10 pounds since that day. Me on the other hand....
4. The only thing that looks the same about me is my haircolor.
5. I've come to the conclusion that I don't ever want to have my hair as short as it was then, ever again.
6. I would marry him all over again. ♥

Oh, the memories! It was fun to relive that day.

Growing

I'm on another "I'm growing my hair out" kick. The urge to do it hits me just about every 2 years. I get this idea that it will be so fun to have longer hair I can "style". Like, ummm...I don't know. I guess wear up in a bun, or a ponytail. Or....in some other style that looks cute? Beyond that, I really don't know what to do with it when it's longer and so, I end up doing nothing. I am not, however going to let that deter me this time. I'm not going to cave and cut it short again because when I decide to cut it short, I cut it short. I'm going to grow it long and I'm going to style it, darn it!

I really like the free-flowing, wavy, bohemian, long hair look. My hair is naturally curly and wavy and so, I'm assuming it would be an easy look to accomplish. (I probably won't ever try to do it (because I'm lazy and it would most likely look ridiculous on me), but I do like the look.) It's just brushing my shoulders now. I'm well on my way. I have abnormally fast growing hair and if I can remain strong and resist the temptation to cut it, it can be to the middle of my back by the end of the summer. I CAN and I WILL be strong and leave it alone. I WILL NOT CUT MY HAIR!

A Day Late

I love this man and our 4 wonderful kids. He's a loving, kind, active and fun father. He's a spiritual, faithful and honorable man. He teaches our children by example and hands on instruction. He giving of his time, talents and energy. Our kids see that on a daily basis. I know they're going to turn out to be pretty wonderful people themselves because of him.

Happy Father's Day, Ryan! We all love you so very much!

Two Birds with One Post

(If I could, I would upload some pictures to go along with this post. Blogger, unfortunately, is being a piece of poop and keeps freezing when I try to do it. You can see the pictures that apply to this on facebook. Blogger also won't allow me to do a spellcheck, or publish by clicking on the "publish post" button and a few other things I can't remember right this moment. Has anyone else been having crazy issues with it, or am I the only one?)

It's now been 10 days since Peyton smacked his mouth on Cameron's forehead while they were jumping together on the trampoline. Peyton lost 2 teeth instantly. Ryan found one of them sitting in the middle of the trampoline, but couldn't find the other. We think it was most likely swallowed. I never did check his ummm...poop to make sure that it came out. I'm just going to assume that it did. ☺ The one that we did find, came out root and all. It was the same as if a dentist had extracted it.

Ryan heard the immediate screams when it happened. Cameron came inside right away and had blood running down his forehead. I took him into the bathroom while Ryan ran outside to check on Peyton. He carried him in the house and said, "he's missing teeth!". I immediately swore and then started to cry. (Cameron had to have a tooth pulled when he was 3 because he broke it and it then abscessed. He was toothless for about 3 years. I was crying over history repeating itself. Cameron remarked that at least it wasn't a broken arm or leg. I told him I would rather it was something like that because a broken bone can be fixed in about a month. I had to remind him what it was like when his tooth was gone and how long it took for it to come back. Oh, yeah.) Peyton cried for about 1 minute, maybe 2 at the most and then started to push me away and tell me he was just fine. He told me he wanted to go back out to play and was actually more upset when I told him he was done playing.

Peyton's gums are healing up nicely and Cameron's forehead is, too. Cameron's going to have 3, small, tooth shaped scars that will most likely fade to almost nothing. Peyton is going to be toothless for at least 2-3 years. My dentist told me that his baby teeth being gone might possibly speed up the arrival of his permanent teeth. Instead of having to wait until he's 6 or 7 to lose the baby teeth and have the permanent teeth come in, he may only have to wait until he's 5 or 6. He'll be 4 in September, so....guess we'll wait and see.

Now on to part two of this post: we are now a dog owning family. Our neighbors gave us their one year old male Pug. They first offered him to us a little more than a month ago. I said yes immediately because I had been thinking for some time that a pet would be just the thing to teach the kids some responsibility. It took some convincing to get Ryan on board.

He's a really good dog who is house (kennel) trained and will sleep in his kennel all night, not aggressive and good with kids. (He is a shedding fool, but it's nothing that brushing him and a daily vacuum of the house can't control. I'm a vacuuming fool and do it daily, anyway. So, it's not a big deal.) The kids love him and Ryan is tolerating him very well. The only fault he has.....he will only listen to me. He follows me everywhere. Wherever I go, there will be Rigby also. My idea that a dog would teach the kids responsibility has kind of backfired. They do try to make him obey, but he just sits and stares at them. Or, calmly walks away and comes to find me. We're working on it. In the meantime, I now have another individual who sits outside the bathroom, waiting for me to come out. Great.

Teenage Wasteland

Tyler is only 11 and so, I guess he's technically considered a "tween", but he's already displaying teenage behaviors. Actually, he's thought of himself as one for years. ☺ He first asked me if he could drive the car when he was 4 and in preschool. When I told him he had to be 16 to drive, he thought that was extremely rude and unfair. He tried to reason with me/talk me into it/whined about it for days.

He's a very cerebral kid and never been much of a dreamer. He has an imagination, but pretend games have never really been his thing. He's more of a surf the Internet, play video games, hang out with teenagers or adults, type of kid. Don't get me wrong, he has plenty of friends his own age and does hang out with them, he just can't wait until he's "older" and can participate in the magical activites of teenagers.

He's getting more and more sassy. Like, sassy in the way that you feel like knocking his block off because he's being such a punk. He's becoming more and more moody. Hormonal moods are NO fun. He's thinking I'm less cool. Sad. Oh, and that I'm not very smart. He's always been kind of a know it all because he's so darn smart, but he's now a moody, almost teenager know it all. He wants lots of independence. He's starting to decide that hanging out with his family isn't such a cool thing. Double sad. And the biggest thing that makes him seem like a teenager: he's been sleeping in on Saturdays and everyday since summer break started. Like, until 9:30, or later. He didn't get up until 10:00 today. The poor little dear is just so tired all the time. ☺ He used to be an up at the crack of dawn kind of kid. Now, all he wants to do is sleep. (I remember being that way and if I'm going to be really honest, I still pretty much am. If I could be left alone and undisturbed in my bed, I know I could easily sleep in until at least 9:30. Probably later. Ryan is an early bird and so this sleeping in thing doesn't fly with him. If we sleep in past 8:00, he feels like half the day is already gone and wasted.) Oh, and eat. My goodness, can the boy eat. He's constantly rifling through the cupboards or refrigerator, looking for something to snack on. He's going to eat us out of house and home. He really will be taller than me before too much longer. I'm not sure if I'm ready to have a son tall enough to look down at me. In fact, it kind of scares me. Unfortunately, ready or not, it's happening. AAAAAAAAA!!!!!!

P.S. I know he'll read this. So, message to Tyler: no more lazy bones. Your sleeping in until 10:00 days are over. So says your dad, and I guess me.

Reminded

I've been reminded what true, Christ-like friendship, charity, service and love are over these last couple of weeks. I've seen amazing examples of all of those things and just been blown away by them. I've been reminded that Christ-like friendship, charity, service and love should be given freely and without thought of the attention or acclaim we might receive because, after all, it's not about us. So, I've been reminded that humility is a huge part of all of it. In fact, it might be the most essential element. I've seen wonderful examples of service given quietly, lovingly and selflessly and it's brought me to tears many times. I've been reminded that we need to do things for others simply because we should. We have to. And that we should do things without being asked and we shouldn't do it grudgingly, or complain while doing it. Even if what we're doing might be difficult, not our idea of a good time, or take time. So what! Losing ourselves in those things is what Jesus Christ would have us do and if we really want to be more like him, we should. And when we finally figure it out and really do it, things that we thought were difficult will be easy, time we didn't think we had will be there and our love, understanding, empathy and appreciation for others will grow to unimaginable heights. I'm so glad I was reminded of these simple truths.

Sometimes...

• Sometimes, Peyton doesn't wake up before his brothers and sister go to school. It doesn't happen very often, just once in a while. On the days when he stays asleep, I'll steal quietly back to my bed, get comfy and cover my head with a pillow. I love completely shutting out the world and creating a quite little cocoon. It usually doesn't last long, 20-30 minutes max, but those few minutes of quiet thinking are so nice.
• Sometimes, I don't feel especially cute.
• Sometimes, I think I look okay.
• Sometimes, I really think I'm failing at the "mother" thing and worry I'm warping my kids horribly and irreversibly.
• Sometimes, I feel like I'm doing a pretty darn good job being a mom. I feel like I'm hitting all the right notes and that everything will be just fine.
• Sometimes, I want to ignore dusting the furniture and so...
• Sometimes, I do. ☺ (Usually, it's not for very long. Like, a week and a half. Tops!)
• Sometimes, I really love cooking.
• Sometimes, I can't stand it and couldn't care less if we ate cereal, or crackers for dinner. Just as long as I don't have to cook it.
• Sometimes, I want my kids to stay young forever.
• Sometimes, I can't wait until they grow up.
• Sometimes, I wish I could be a little more outgoing.
• Sometimes, I can be and that...
• Sometimes, makes me think that I can be fun. I hope so. ☺

The Calm Before the Storm

Friday is the last day of school for my kids. Yay! No, I really do like summer break for at least the first 2-3 weeks, 4 tops. It's at that point that we all start getting sick of seeing each other all.day.long. I'm trying to gear up for it by enjoying the quiet while I can, getting in some shopping and errands that need to be done, cleaning a few things so they can be messed up once everyone is home and then cleaned up by them (yeah, I'll show them) and preparing myself mentally by praying constantly that I can be patient. Ha! We'll see how that one goes.

I've enrolled Avery in a summer program at her dance school called "Princess Dance Camp". They're going to learn poise, etiquette, grace and anything else that seems princessy and applies. She's beyond excited about it. In fact, when the owner of the school came in to class to talk to the parents about it, Avery said, "Oh! This is the best thing in the whole world!" They're going to have a snack each day and are also going to make a craft like a crown, wand, etc. Yep, sounds like Avery's idea of heaven.

I'm going to enroll everyone in swimming lessons. Tyler & Cameron have each done it for the past 6 years. Consequently, they're pretty good swimmers by now and don't really need the lessons, but they're my saving grace. I'll do anything to break up monotony and save my sanity. This will be the first year Peyton will be able to take them. So, that's something that will make them even more fun and exciting.

I have to go to Girls Camp at the end of June. This is something I'm really not super excited about. It will be fun to spend time with the girls of the ward, but that's not the part I'm worried about. Camping really isn't my idea of a good time. Like, really not. I just don't get the appeal of packing up your whole house so you can go out into the wilderness and then sit and stare at a fire. Then, when you come home, everything stinks like a fire and you have to spend days washing all the stuff you took. It just seems like the exact opposite of relaxing to me. ☺ In fact, when I was extended the calling of 1st counselor in the presidency, my first thought and statement was, "Crap! This means I'll have to go to camp". I turned to my husband and asked him if he wanted to have a baby so I could get out of going. He wasn't willing to go along. Guess I'll be going.

That takes care of the first 4 weeks that I can handle. I don't know what I'll do the rest of the time. I need to start thinking of diversionary tactics now. I need to be prepared!