"I like my birthdays"

"I like my birthdays every one. Each brings a greater joy to me. But I can' wait until I'm 8 for then I'll be baptized you see..."
For those of you who don't know this song, it's a song the kids sing in primary about baptism. Kai turned 8 in November and will be able to be baptized this year. We are waiting until we go to Oregon so my family can all be a part of this very special occasion. We live so far away and have not lived close to my family since the kids were born, so it's rare they get to share in these moments with us. My sisters, Jaime and Jan, were able to be here with us when Kaden was blessed which was cool.
Kai started scouts in November which he has been looking forward to for a long time. We are proud of him and how well he is doing in school this year. He tries hard to do his best. Kai is very social, he makes friends easily. He is a smart boy and likes to spend his time building legos, playing his Dsi or reading his Diary of a Wimpy Kid books.
I actually let him have his first friend party at the house this year (I know, brave of me). He had a few close friends spend the night. I don't even have proof of this event because all my pictures from this fall (Halloween, fall festivals, Kai's b.day and the first field trip I chaperoned) were all erased.

My little turkeys

I have been buying holiday pajamas for the kids since before they were born and I have NEVER seen Thanksgiving pajamas before this year. I happened to walk into gymboree one morning and found the last two pair (maybe the only two pair) in the right sizes so I snatched them up for the boys. Matt informed me Kai is getting a little too old for the "cute" pajamas, but how could I resist when this could be a once in a lifetime thing? AND you were waiting for this.... yes, they were on SALE, only $10 a pair. I admit that's a little steep for what I'd normally pay for their pajamas but dang, they are gymboree and brand new (not from a thrift store or garage sale). I think they look cute!

Curious George

Kai's teacher asked me to decorate a pumpkin for their class for the school's literacy night last night. I am always willing to help with whatever the kids' teachers need so I quickly agreed to do it. Like I have a creative/artistic bone in my body! Just a quick bit of history, never was able to draw a straight line with a ruler in elementary school, and the art class I took in college, NOT my idea of a good time. Talk about torture. SO thankfully I have a creative/artistic husband (although he won't admit it) who happily took on the task. I think he did a pretty good job! He did "Curious George takes a job". Our kids love Curious George and we have had our collection of Curious George stories since before they were born.

Freedom

This school year marks a new chapter in my life. Both boys went to school this fall. Kaden went to Pre K and Kai's in second grade. Kaden goes for 3 hours every morning. We have to rush out of the house every morning and I spend a lot of time on the road transporting them to and from school (they go to different schools), but it's so worth it. I can finally go to the grocery store alone, have a thought to myself, come home to QUIET house, clean something and have it stay clean temporarily. A lot of times I don't even come home though until after I pick up Kaden. It's just so nice to go shopping without needing to take someone to the bathroom, leave because someone is bored, entertain someone in the cart... Don't get me wrong, I love my kids. Eight years ago I quit a wonderful job with the State of Utah and moved from a place loved dearly so I could stay home when Kai was born, but DANG it's nice to have some time for myself again. I got my first massage this fall. It has totally helped with my back pain (I wasn't so sure at first but I've had a relatively pain free month). Both kids are happy and doing well in school. I signed up to help with the PTA this year and offered to help in Kai's class. I don't want to schedule up too much of my free time though. :) The first day of school was fun, Matt took Kaden, I took Kai and then we met for breakfast. This might have to become a yearly tradition on the first day of school.

"Faith is like a little seed..."

Matt has been begging me to post this for a couple months now. I don't know what my problem is, I think I ran out of steam for keeping the blog up. The summer came and went and I was exhausted from trying to keep the kids busy and entertained. Then school started and I got a sweet taste of freedom, something I haven't experienced in 8 years.
Anyway, in primary (church) the chorister taught the kids a song called "Faith" and one of the lines says, "faith is like a little seed, if planted it will grow". She brought a seed she had planted in a cup that had sprouted to show the kids. Kaden was intrigued by this, and "Faith" quickly became his favorite song (which he often sings at the top of his lungs). We went to a ward social this summer and someone brought watermelon that had ginormous seeds. Kaden carefully dug his out and placed them in a cup. His intent was to bring them home to plant. He had the faith they would grow. Matt looked up the growing season for watermelon on the internet and it certainly wasn't the middle of summer in Florida, but to appease Kaden he helped him plant them anyway. It wasn't long before we saw the watermelon sprouting!! We were shocked to tell you the truth. Now his watermelon plant is flowering and several feet long. I am thankful for the faith of my little 4 year old and I am thankful for a primary leader who shared her testimony with my kids.

Matt's latest project

I bought Matt this little TV for Christmas and fourth of July weekend he decided he needed a project. So he climbed up into our thousand degree attic to wire the TV (anyone who lives in FL KNOWS how hot the attics get in the middle of summer). Example, I went to put something away up there and the plastic lid of the container was HOT to the touch. You can't store candles up there, they melt. Anyway, he spent an entire evening running wires, cutting holes and voila! Now we have the luxury of watching TV while sitting on the crapper (I have yet to turn it on but I know Matt enjoys the morning news). :)

Swim Trunks and Silly Bandz

Seems these days this is all I see my kids in, swim trunks and silly bandz. We have managed to keep very busy with summer (beach, movies, swimming, bowling, library and more swimming). I haven't been the best at carrying a camera around with me however. Silly bandz are "all that" with the kids here this summer. It started just before the school year ended. Basically, jelly bracelets reinvented but in different shapes (animals, planets, letters, movie characters, etc). They are actually cool and girls AND boys wear them. They were banned from bringing them to school because the kids wouldn't stop playing with them, and I see the kids at church trading between classes and before and after primary. It has been fun for my kids, except when Kai secretly tries to add to his collection from Kaden's stash.