My daughter-the photographer

My daughter has been playing with my camera lately. I can see the artisic talent bubbling forth, can't you?

A portrait of one of her mother's very common looks.

This one is entitled "The Blue Chair."

Very strong teeth, no?

This is a study on drool. Seth is the reigning champion and A.J. is taking the victory photo.

Look Who Got a New Bed

Logan's bed was too big for the room he is sharing with his cousin and brother, so he has been camping out and sleeping with Kevin and I for a couple weeks. I knew this situation had to be remedied after talking to him one day. He said he wanted to go back to our other house, and I could tell he was feeling like he didn't know where to go part of the day. So we got this little bed for our Thomas fan and he was so excited. He cuddled down into it and said, "Now, I have my very own spot." He later told his brother that Christmas was all done, because he already got his bed present. And then he said, "So I'm four now." Hmmm.

Thanksgiving Firsts

I had two firsts this Thanksgiving and both left my body very sore. First, my oldest son and I, along with my sister-in-law and her son and some other friends ran the 10k turkey trot. I was rather proud that Kamron kept going and going. He was funny though, because he has no middle. He either walked really slow or ran fast. We kept trying to show him how to do a slow jog and it was not working. In the end we bribed him with a new small lego set to keep his motivation up. When he got the set he declared that the run was totally worth it. We made it in 1 hour and 24 minutes. My older kids are doing a fun run marathon where they have to run 27 miles in 6 weeks-and this one knocked out 6.5 of those, so that was pretty awesome.


Before the run

And after

My other first was that after dinner with my husbands family we played football, and I scored a touch down. Okay most of the players were less than three-and-a-half feet tall, but I did actually catch the ball while running (which is probably a first in and of itself) and then I ran with through the correct tree and pole thingy.
At one point in this game I was talking to my toddler when I turned around and saw my husband chasing my brother-in-law who had the ball, I realized that if I ran I could tag my bil, so I did and I tagged him, unfortunately so did my husband and then we collided---hard. We hit the ground hard and my ribs are still bruised, along with my hip and my knee and ... I think I'll just let the guys play next year because I have this sneaking suspicion that I don't really know what I'm doing.

What I am Thankful for

So I thought I would start a list of the things that happen that I am in thankful for in honor of Thanksgiving. Here is my list from yesterday and today:


The silliness that comes when we have stayed up too late
A little niece that sneaks into our room before bed and cries when she has to leave "Aunt Sissa"
A princess who prays with me and then wants hugs
Laughter
Kind friends who take my children on wonderful, worthy adventures
That wonderful age when you have no idea what the next statement your child is going to make, “Well, I need a security belt too, then I will stick my head in the ice chest.”
Having to flex my creativity muscles so that I am able to reply to such statements
A mother-in-law who comes over “for just a few minutes,” and then leaves hours later with several kids in her car
Vacation days, when I hunker down and read …a novel
The accomplishment when my son plays the piano and the toddler walks in and says, “that song is from rocket when he was flying allegro” rocket is Little Einstein’s for those who are currently not hanging out with the toddler set
Fairies, and the little girls who love them
Books on tapes
Kids who love books on tape
Pretty music
The less than pretty music my children make…
The feeling that you know something is going right when your kindergartener jumps up and down, because Mom promises him and his cousin a piano lesson this very afternoon
Family who is welcoming and willing to sacrifice just to help
Cozy quilts on cold nights
Laptops
Library internet connections
Buying Christmas presents for children and the anticipation of when they will open them
Knowing what I am going to get my husband… I think
All-inclusive science kits and a daughter who loves them
Motherhood
Family game night
Chocolate chips in my morning oatmeal
That my children are all safe and well
That my baby, and toddler cry when I leave and they all run and hug me and then cling for at least two minutes after I get back
That yoga doesn’t stop with the gentle level
That the gym provides daycare
A really neat old gnarly oak tree at the park
Baby kisses
Irish pennywhistles
That I don't have to look very far for examples of awesome people that I want to be like
That I currently do not have a dog
The creative choices my son uses when he selects words in essays and that he is progressing rapidly in the writing department
Garages
That craigslist had a toddler bed that included Thomas Bedding on the day I was looking for both—and noone had snagged it first
Naps
Winter
That the principal from the Montessori school finally said I could come observe in her school
That bears have very long tongues and I got to watch a delighted five-year-old discover this
That people are ticklish
The knowledge that God is in charge and all will work out in wonderful ways in the
end

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Update and A.J.

We are settling in again at my sister-in-laws house. I have been so blessed with such a giving family. My sister-in-law is one of those people that loves people around and most of her kids have taken on this trait. Kamron and Brennen are sharing a room with their cousin Justin. They are thrilled about it and are absolutely inseperable-to the point that Kamron has even gone to Justin's soccer games, piano lessons and scouts. They are also very pragmatic and Kamron told me the other day "we just agreed that we would be perfectly equal and agree on everything." And amazingly they do. Kamron has always been easy going and Justin is slightly mature in his understanding of relationships so it has worked really well. They are both doing their homework on my bed right now. They are both in 5th grade but working through different math programs so sometimes one will know something before the other and they will teach each other. Justin goes to public school and is gone most of the day, but since Kamron starts math at 7 a.m. he gets to help him before he goes every day.
My daughter Aubrey Jewel is not fairing quite as well with her cousin who is two years younger. They love each other and play a lot together, but they also both have daily emotional roller coasters going on. Girls. We went to the new ward at church the last two Sundays, and then I took Aubrey to Achievement Days. When I picked her up one of the girls asked me who I was and I said I was Aubrey's mom. She goes we don't have an Aubrey here. When we left all of the little girls go, "Good-bye A.J." Then I get stopped in the hall and am asked when is A.J.'s birthday for the records. A.J.? Yes, my daughter has introduced herself as A.J. to the entire ward. Yesterday, she also informed us that her name will now be A.J. even to the family and she will no longer respond to Aubrey. We are trying to accomodate her wishes, mostly because it is so amusing. At least she is not introducing herself as Kim, which is what she used to tell strangers at the park.