So big

I keep forgetting to post that Eli is "so big" as you can see from the picture pose. He is now taking a few steps here and there. Can stand on his own. And can even stand up from sitting. He can also climb up on the couch on his own.

Soon he'll be running this house.

Keep moving forward

So I always have this debate on the blog.  I wish I was someone who always stayed caught up and got everything blogged when it happened.  But I know that will never be.  I have started a little side project to have photo books printed, so that I have books that the kids and I can flip through to see old photos.  I like to scrapbook, but honestly don’t make the time for it.  I realized when I was looking for “naughty” kid photos that it is hard to go through and scan all my photos on the computer.  And more than that the kids have no way of looking at photos.  So with that in mind, I’ve decided on the blog to mostly keep moving forward.  If I want to go back and post an irresistibly cute photo then no biggie, but I’m not going to stress if every life event does not end up on the blog.  I’m happy to still be blogging.  I was slow to start compared to many of my friends, but most of my friends are not still doing it.  Which makes me a little sad.  I guess Instagram and Facebook are easier.  But I loved blog stalking and miss it a little.   

Friends over

I did it. This week I managed to have friends over a few times. And it just completely lifted my spirits. It is so nice to be social. I just need to get control over my initial introvertedness and be more outgoing.

I also got an email today requesting for a photographer. It is a friend of someone I shot their wedding. And they want me for their wedding. I am so mixed emotion. It has been a long time since I've done anything professionally. I always become a complete ball of nerves. But part of me really misses it. So I will probably say yes and then stress until June about it. :)

And tonight for some reason my kids won't go to bed. Could be all the dessert they ate. But mommy and daddy are both running low on patience. So off to put another kid back in their bed.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Relaxing

Sundays are often not relaxing. Many times I go to bed wishing for another weekend rather than Monday to come.

Today started a bit rough. We had stake conference which meant 2 hours of sermon. Yeah that is about 2 hours too much for Ben. He really struggles to sit through church. Speaking of is anyone has great wisdom on how to get him to go to class please share. So needless to say we spent a lot of time in the hall.

But last night I was able to go alone and actually listen to the adult session which was marvelous. It filled my heart again and put some oil back in my lamp. I also got a sweet package from someone in my ward to "brighten my day". And honestly I'm not sure she will fully know how much it meant to me.

But today we actually did get some rest. I took a sweet nap with Ben. And then we spent time with family.

I had a thought at the meeting today. Just as the Lord's peace doesn't mean life without trials. The Lord's rest on Sunday doesn't mean a day of no work. Something I need to keep in mind when it feels like a day of a lot of work. :).




- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Connection

We've had a lot of snow in KC. I mean a lot. And I don't have school aged kids so having school out only mildly effected us (Sariah missed 2 days of preschool). But I have the worst case of cabin fever. With 3 littles it is hard to talk myself into bundling everyone up to brave the cold. Also it is the end of the month so I'm on the end of my budget rope. So I didn't want to add temptation to just spend more money.

But man I've been lonely. And it isn't just the snow. I went to a little meet and great baby shower for a new girl in my ward. It was awesome and sad all in one. It was so nice to see and talk to adults. But also made me still feel distanced from everyone. I went into Primary a few weeks after moving into the ward. It is has been rough. I love the kids I teach, but my natural inclination is to be much more shy and introverted. So having that extra distance of not being with the other adults on Sunday is making it so hard for me to make any real friendships.

So while it was awesome to be around adults. I could also see that some of the people who are newer than me have already made better connections than me.

And I'm just in a bit of a lonely funk right now. Honestly not sure quite what to do to change it. Life is so busy that I almost don't have time to do anything about it. I am barely and many days not even able to keep up. But yet my soul is lonely.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

The whole story

So after briefly talking about Ben’s nighttime adventures in the other post, I decided it was worth telling the whole story as its own post.

Ben has never been a good sleeper, but lately what he does when he gets up has been……interesting??

So a few backup examples:

A long time ago, probably while he was still 2.  I woke up to “Go Diego Go” theme song.  I came out to find him watching Diego on the iPad at the kitchen table at about 3 am.

A few weeks ago, I heard rustling downstairs.  I came down to find him pushing the barstool up to the cabinet and trying to stand on it to get the cereal from the top shelf.  (Yes if a robber came in the middle of the night, I would probably assume it was Ben and some downstairs in less than appropriate nightwear. :))

So then this week- he’s had two exciting nights.

The first night, I decided I needed a relaxing bath as I’ve been, well, a bit high strung lately.  So I spent a long time with the jets on after “putting the kids to bed.”  I came out to hear rustling downstairs again, and at first thought it was just James.  So I go down the hall to find that Eli’s door is open, light on, and he’s fast asleep in his crib.  (This was when I knew it was Ben not James.)  So I pulled Eli’s covers on him, turned out the light,and took a deep breath as I headed downstairs. 

Ben was sitting at the kitchen table (at least that part he is pretty good at.)  I walk over to find scissors clutched in his hand, a shredded label on the donut package, a shredded cookie wrapper, and a half eaten cookie in his other hand.  Oh yes.  He has tried to cut into the donut package (the plastic kind from the bakery).  I guess when that failed, he remembered that dad had brought home cookies from work.  So he had all three of them over with him.  But had managed to cut only one open when I came down. 

So I’ve been working on my anger management- especially when it comes to Ben.  So I calmly told him that he couldn’t have the rest of the cookie until tomorrow and to get back into bed.  He cried a little, but obliged and went upstairs.  I was actually pretty surprised at how easy he went to bed.  I cleaned up the mess and then heard rustling upstairs.

Somehow he snuck a bag of pineapple chips upstairs with him and was trying to eat those.  I PROMISE we feed him.  He had eggs, grits, and toast for dinner.  He even got a donut for FHE dessert.  The kid wasn’t starving or anything! 

So needless to say that when I found him last night at 1am in Eli’s room.  I wasn’t surprised.  I was surprised that he was asleep in the rocking chair and Eli was up having a party in his crib.

 

Not sure I’ll ever get a good night’s sleep. 

Naughty Naughty

So a friend from the ward is putting together a slide show of “naughty” kid pictures.  Looking through I guess my kids aren’t as naughty as I thought!  Or at least they know to avoid the camera when doing naughty things.  Hehehe 

 

Here is what I found.