Putting 2014 to bed

Before I wake up to 2015, I am going to take a look at how I did in 2014... waaayyy back when... 355 days ago...I put my goals out there for you all to see.  In the spirit of accountability, it's time for the BIG Reveal, how did I do?

Drumroll please...

Reb's 2014 Goals:

*blog at least once a week 
Let's do some math: there are 52 weeks in the year, and according to my Blog Archive I have 34 (counting this one, 35) posts for the year. Ack...things started going downhill in July...

*workout 3x a week
This all went really well until November when I let my membership lapse at my favorite workout studio.  It's amazing how much easier it is to get moving when working out with others! However, since I usually worked out, on average, 4 times a week, that's an extra 52ish workouts, so I totally think that covered me for the last 8 weeks of the year. ;)  Details, details...

*get new family pictures taken
Yes!!! Done! Thanks to my awesome baby sister, we had some pics taken on our family trip in Utah...

*go camping with friends at least once this year 
Well, the schedule didn't work out to go with friends, but we did go camping. The kids have already asked if we are going to go again next summer.  Absolutely!

*Simon potty-trained by Summer
Done and done!! I have to say not having to change diapers is one of the most wonderful things in the world!!

*clean out computer files 
Thanks to a new computer, got this out of the way in the Spring.

*get Simon's first year pictures in some sort of scrapbook 
Nope, didn't happen. Gonna push this on 2015's goals.  Our church has an annual 24 hour Craft Extravaganza in January so I think I am going to knock this out then.  24 hours of scrap-booking? That may be interesting...

So what did I think about 2014?  Because of different circumstances, this was a year that Dan and I won't forget.  From the outside looking in, it was a pretty normal year. But God brought challenges into our little corner of the world that made us and our marriage stronger.  We came through the year refined and better equipped for the road ahead.  Who knows what 2015 will hold? Who knows what I will be writing about in 365 days from now? Where will God lead our family? What great things will be around the next corner? What trials will we have to overcome?

I think 2014 was a great year. Thanks for coming along with me.

See you in 2015!!

Merry Christmas!

Phew! Barely made my Thanksgiving post in time for Christmas!  Well, I hope you all had a very Merry Little Christmas!  Ours was quiet, relaxing and, well, just plain nice.  We opted to stay put for the holiday. In the end, it was probably a very wise decision since my Dear Hubby came down with "it." Not sure what the actual medical term for "it" is, but I am pretty sure "it" was the same "it" that Landon and Simon had last week.  "It" comes with a fever, stuffiness, lethargy, aches, and moaning (oh, so much moaning!).  Hopefully. "it" stays away from the other half of us.  I did mention to the girls that we are the only ones that haven't been sick yet, since you know "our bodies are so much stronger than theirs." To that comment I got a hearty "Oh, yeah, that's right boys!!"  We gotta work on our trash talk.

However, even though the head coach was down, we were still able to get in some, as a dear friend would call it, "Forced Family Fun." 

On Wednesday night, we went to the Christmas Eve Service at our church. I told a friend whose kiddos are a few seasons beyond mine, as long as we make it through the congregational candle lighting at the end without lighting anything on fire, I will consider it a success.  Success!! Simon was touch and go there for a bit, but when I reminded him to hold his little candle straight up, we were good. The only slightly disruptive part of the service was when Simon loudly whined that I had a snack and he didn't..."No fair Mommy! I want a snack too!" Um, we were having communion. Very spiritual. 

Then we came home and, as Executive Chef for our little family, I made an Executive Decision...we would eat our "Big Christmas Dinner" at dinner time (suppertime for you Midwestern readers) on Christmas Eve not on Christmas Day (gasp!).  We went to the 4 p.m. Christmas Eve service which made the timing perfect. We ate in our church clothes, in the dining room and with the fine china (Dan was very skeptical about this decision!).  I even tried my hand at prime rib...yummo! Kids had their apple juice in wine glasses and I had my "mommy juice" in my wine glass. It all went off very well without any broken dishes. After dinner, we opened new p.j.'s from Grandma E and called it a night.

Christmas morning...we did a little program before we opened Christmas gifts.  Annika put it together and it brought back many many memories of doing this when I was a kid.  I remember how insistent my parents were that we remembered what Christmas was about, I also remember how much it prolonged the time between "time to open presents" and the actual act of present opening. I am glad my kiddos will also have this tradition (whether they like it or not). :)

Annika came up with the program

And, yes, after the program was done, we said what my dad would say... "Well, our program is done. Now what? Guess we can go get something to eat." And my kids did exactly what my siblings and I would do "No! It's time for presents!!" Har, har, so tricky.

So we opened presents, and I think the kiddos were all pretty happy. Yes, Taryn got presents, just forgot to take a picture (add that to the therapy bill)!

However, even as old as they are, I think I could have still gotten away with just getting them boxes since this was probably the most fun they had  all day! Perhaps staying inside all day wasn't the best idea.

Later in the afternoon we decorated Christmas cookies and went on our 2nd Annual Christmas Lights Scavenger hunt.

All in all, a great and very Merry Christmas (and, I may have stayed in my p.j.s all.day.long).  

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Yeah, so Christmas is in three days. Yeah, so I haven't said anything about Thanksgiving.  This is such a shame because it was just about the. best. Thanksgiving. EVER (other than the first Thanksgiving, of course)!!!

This was the 7th Thanksgiving Dan's family has come down from I-o-way to celebrate with us.  They make the drive down, we eat way too much, there are kids and adults everywhere, and it is just fantastic. For real, I look forward to it every year!

This year was even more spectacular because Dan's brother, Mike, Mike's wife, and all four kiddos walked in the door on Wednesday night and totally surprised the socks off of all of us!! I should note that they flew in from Washington State.  Only my father-in-law knew about it.  They have been planning it since September.  It was so extra special!! Here's a few pictures of the surprise...

Apparently, Annika is welcoming them as the natives welcomed the Pilgrims

We were able to be on the other end of the surprise when Dan's sister Sara came in on Thursday...

Again, it was such a great weekend.  Now for the photo dump:

Thankfully, Anisa rolled with the punches and didn't think our crazy crew was too crazy!

Had to add a few extra chairs to our table...love it!

The whole crazy crew!! (and, yes, they all stay with us...wouldn't have it any other way!)

Sibling Love

Don't ask

The poor guy working at OrangeLeaf that night didn't know what hit him!!

Puzzle Done!

Gramps and the grandkids!

His poor wife

I am glad that you all enjoyed the part in my last post about our Landon.  It's funny when I write these things I rarely think about which part will get the most attention. Sometimes it's the stuff that I least expect.  I guess I should have expected that Landon showing his bottom in the bathroom at school would get some attention.

Got a few more for ya... this is actually for me to just write down so someday I can show his fiancee for fair warning...hopefully, we will have about 20 years to work on this...

A bit ago, a conversation we were having in the van took a strange turn and the kids were asking me if it hurt when I gave birth to them.  Um, awkward? I tried to deflect it and said that I had medicine to help me so it wasn't so painful. Even talked about the needle in my back hopefully scaring them enough to stop talking about it. Like I said, it took a strange turn.  But, this is what I heard Landon say to Taryn in the back seat: "Taryn, I am SO glad that I am a boy and not a girl. I don't have to get my ears pierced, and I don't have to have babies."

Then another time, during dinner, we were talking about how I had to cut off a tree branch since it had started to break off. Here's how the conversation went:

Taryn: Mom, you cut off the broken branch?!
Mom: Yes, I cut off the branch. I even used daddy's saw.
Dad (with sarcasm): Wow! Mommy you used a saw?! You must be strong.
Landon: Yeah, mom, show us your muscles. We promise we won't laugh!!

Finally, this happened just tonight.  The whole fam was snuggled up on the couch downstairs watching a home improvement show.  We were all into it wondering which house the couple would choose, and, then, waiting anxiously for the big renovation reveal... this is how a conversation with Landon went:

Landon: Mom! It's 5:50!
Me: Yes, it is.
Landon: Go upstairs and start working on dinner. We eat at 6:00 so you only have 10 minutes.
Dan just looked at me, shocked, and started laughing.

Thanks, Landon for your support and empathy. You make my mothering, um, interesting.

This kid.

Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?!

Do you remember that show? I LOVED that show! I can still sing the theme song sung by Rockapella for you if you would like. If you don't remember, this may refresh your memory (thanks YouTube!):




Just got caught up in a youtube spiral of old game show videos. Good times. I remember those kids were so smart!!

Sooo, what does Carmen San Diego have to do with me? Well, perhaps you have wondered where in the world I have been for the last 2 months since my last post. Or, more likely, you haven't wondered where I have been. But, now I have you wondering, don't I? O.k. still no? Just humor me.

I have been on a diet, so to speak. A social media diet.  I know that this blog isn't necessarily social media, but I needed a break and this fell right into it.  I had to take a step back and just "be off." Only Dan knows my facebook password, so if I NEED to login, he's the only one that can do it for me.  It's a bit humbling to come up with a reason to NEED to login to a mindless time sucker, so I rarely ask him for the password. It's been a good diet.

So where in the world have we been?

In September, I started working part-time at our school's preschool. Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings are spent hanging out with 14 endearing little 3 year old preschoolers.  Trust me, friends, they are not the only ones getting an education!! This could be another reason why I have been off social media, I am t-i-r-e-d! Seriously, you teachers out there don't get paid enough!!

Picture from my first day of Preschool :)

Annika has been enjoying being a part of a little Engineering Club this fall. She loves it!! I think we have found her calling. From the outside she looks like a mini-me, but on the inside that brain is all Dan.  I can't take credit for one bit of it. She also got her ears pierced. Yeah, it totally makes her look older (EEK!).

Taryn has been our soccer star this fall. That girl has a drive which, you guessed it, also comes from her father. Competitive much? She's also lost her front two teeth (not while playing soccer).  She looks more like a hockey player than a soccer player. :)

Landon has been Landon.  We are doing a parenting study this fall with our small group and I think that Landon is the one that we have used the most for application and examples.  That kid... some times there aren't any words. I will also blame this on Dan. :) The sheet below was from the end of a very long three days at school.  I kept it in his "memory box"... it may come in handy some day when he has children of his own.

Green days are good.  Yellow days..not so much. At least we didn't get to red!

Then there's Simon.  Sweet little Simon.  He's in my class at school.  I wasn't sure how it would go but it hasn't been too bad.  Once a week he goes to speech therapy to help him with some of his articulation.  He knows what he wants to say just needs some help in saying it.  This doesn't stop him from working on his musical skills. American Idol here we come! Move over Mr. Cowell, there's a new Simon in town! :)

This is kinda turning into a Christmas newsletter so I will just stop now. All this to say, we are here. We are living Our Plain Life. We have the theme song to "Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?" stuck in our head. We are good.

And it begins again!

School has started and we are trying to get used to the routine again.  The first few days went great. We were all up on time, the backpacks and lunches were where they are supposed to be, and hair and teeth brushed 20 minutes before "go-time." This lasted for two days. Now, we are back into rousing and turning on lights, and practically pulling out of bed. We are on day eight of the school year. Oye.  Remember that bed that George Jetson had? The one that would pull him out of bed and throw him into the shower? I think it would even brush his teeth for him. Surely, some mom could come up with a similar invention. They would make millions!!

Here are the obligatory first day pics...

Annika starting 4th grade:

Taryn starting 2nd grade:

Landon starting Full-day Kindergarten (yes, our summer birthday boy is hanging out in Kinder for one more "growing year"):

The whole crew:

I have to note that the camera time stamp on this pic is 7:38 a.m.!!
Proof that we were on time for at least one day this year.

Simon and I start school next week.  Yep, I am going "back to work." I will be the Assistant Teacher in Simon's K3 Preschool class. I am actually looking forward to getting out of the house a few mornings of the week. It will be good for all of us.  Mommy needs to be forced to get out.  I have found the less time I spend at home the more I get done during the time I am at home. Does that make sense?

Well, speaking of getting stuff done, I have a long to-do list that needs attending to.

Have a great school year everyone!!

14 years later

August 5, 2000

August 5, 2014

Oh, yeah, it still fits!!  I surprised the kiddos (especially the girls) by putting on my wedding dress in honor of our anniversary this past Tuesday. No, my dress isn't "heir-loomed." Yes, my dress is hanging in Taryn's closet on wire-hangers covered with a plastic "Sophisticated Lady" (a little shout out to the North County Fair in Esco!) dress bag. Hey, it's better than where my mom kept her wedding dress (my sisters know what I am talking about it :)).

Simon walked into the room, saw me, and asked "Were you pretty mom?"  Ha, I translated that as "Did you think you were pretty mom?" I am sure that is what he meant, right? :)

Oh, honey, every woman feels pretty on their wedding day.  They see the smiles and hear the sweet "oohs and ahhs" as they walk down the aisle toward the man they love. Yes, every woman does (or should) feel beautiful on their wedding day. I wasn't any different.

Even though, thanks to the roller coaster of prenatal and postpartum weight gain and loss, my wedding dress is a little more snug than it was fourteen years ago, I still feel beautiful. Confession: I had to have Annika yank up the zipper in the back (don't think I had to deal with a "muffin top" on my wedding day). Actually, if you give me permission to say it, I feel more beautiful. It's not because I sashay around in my wedding dress.  Usually, I am walking through the house unshowered and still in my workout clothes so there are other reasons why I feel beautiful.

I have a handsome husband who tells me how much he loves me every. single. day. And as we sit together and just watch t.v. in our p.j.s, I know that I am the love of his life, and he is mine. We have inside jokes that make the outside world roll their eyes (and maybe the eyes of our children). We have experienced the "for better" and the "for worse." We fight and make up. Even though he has seen me at my less than stellar moments, I feel his love for me and that makes me feel beautiful.

I have four crazy, silly, goofy, adorable children who make my life so good. So very, very good. Even in the times when I am ready to put them up for sale to the highest bidder (or even, depending on the day, the lowest) they remind me of the gifts of grace and mercy. They rarely listen the first time, take forrrevveerr to do their chores, find amazing amounts of fun in making a mess, and the not so much fun in cleaning them up. Yet, they can also make me laugh to the point of tears, their imagination knows no bounds, and they truly do love being with each other. Even at the end of "the worst day ever," their squishy hugs and toothpaste kisses make me feel beautiful.

My poor wedding dress has been stuffed in and out of boxes and moved a couple of times. It's current residence is hanging in the back of a closet full of kids clothes and shoes. So fourteen years ago did it make me feel pretty? Yes, it made me feel beautiful. But, today, my sweet little Simon, I don't need a fancy white dress to let me know what it means to be beautiful.

Making Memories

Mommy needed a blogging sabbatical...so I took one.  I hope my dear reader(s) didn't miss me too much. Apparently, I was exhausted from all the potty-training. :) Which, by the way, I didn't realize having all my kids potty-trained would be so. freaking. awesome.  Just relishing in the fact that I haven't cleaned a dirty diaper in over 5 weeks!! Yippee!! O.k. better calm down before I need to take another sabbatical.

So, what have we been doing this summer?

Dan's garden has been overflowing with goodness. I have lost count of the number of bushels of green beans that have been picked.

We've been crossing stuff of our bucket list:

Moon Marble:

Liberty Memorial:

Federal Reserve:

Going to the Drive-In (so far one of our favorite things we have done this summer!):

We drove to Heber City, Utah and back with a little family reunion in between (this deserves it's own blog post so it's in the queue):

We had family come down and visit us for the weekend:

We went school supply shopping (so far one of the least favorite things we have done this summer):

And we have been spending A LOT of time at the pool! Thankfully, my kiddos still think this fun! Especially when you have a daddy that does this!

Hope you are having a great summer! Off to make more memories!