Mission Completed!

In my last post I couldn't wait for school to end. You see I fell into the trap of thinking that somehow, magically I would have more time to do things in the summer. I wrote a long list of projects I was going to accomplish. My theory was that once I wasn't chauffering kids to and from school, I would have more time than I knew what to do with. {Insert hysterical laughter here} Yeah, right! How could I possibly have thought that having 3 boys home all day long would mean I would have any free time?! I was so naïve.

This is why I have to write a catch-up post now. So, here it is.

RJ's uniform shoes lasted. Barely. We had our shoe-throwing away party. Okay, it wasn't a party, but we did eat popsicles after, so that's something.

Bye bye shoes! (By the way, RJ lost that front tooth later that same day!)

Somewhere around this time I had a birthday. It was no ordinary birthday because I turned the big 3-0!! I kept trying to think up a midlife crisis to have, but I couldn't think of anything to be stressed about. Maybe by 40 I'll be able to think of something (it seems wrong to never have a midlife crisis, right?). Besides I really felt like I became part of the 30 club a few years ago when Rubin turned 30.

But I didn't want to turn 30 quietly. Our first idea was to get a babysitter for our kids and go to the airport and hop on the first (cheap) flight we could get to anywhere. How exciting would that have been?! But then we talked to a pilot friend and he said those are always the most expensive tickets. He also told us about a minor issue in which getting tickets like that apparently puts you on some sort of terrorist watch list.

Anyway, on my birthday Rubin surprised me with an adventure: a zip line in the mountains!

It was a blast! And the whole zip line group sang happy birthday to me as I was speeding wildly toward them!

After zip lining we took the kids to the zoo.

Uriah looks nervous in this picture, but trust me, after he rode once, we couldn't pull him away!

RJ found his true roots!

We ended the day at Leatherby's with my family. What a great birthday!!

Hanging in There

I still can't wait for school to end! But in the meantime I've been distracting myself with some crafts. (I know, that's how cool I am!)

Here is our Family Home Evening train chart. This was fun to make because everyone picked their own colors and wheels for their car. It still needs to be bolted onto a board, but you get the idea.

As the room parent for RJ's class, I was in charge of decorating his teacher's door for teacher appreciation week . Here's what I came up with.



Those circles hanging down are bubbles in case you can't tell.
 

Finally, I finished my Christmas wall hanging. This project was fun because my sister did the same design and we worked on them together. I must say quilting is really fun with a buddy! And in case you're wondering, this project is not 5 months late, it is 7 months early!

On Saturday we went into the canyon with Rubin's parents and his sister's family. We had tin foil dinners and smores for dessert. It was so much fun! I love little trips like this because they're pretty simple and yet they are the things our kids remember for a long time.



Grandpa with 5 of the grandkids. It was a true miracle no one fell in the water!
 

I love this picture.



Uriah found the cutest little hiding spot away from the group!

He decided let me join him for a picture.

Finally an update on our Operation: Make Uniform Shoes Last (see previous post).

RJ's shoes are holding up, barely. I have colored the toes in with a black Sharpie three times, Rubin has super glued the front of one shoe twice, and I've started putting a long spoon in one shoe to prop up the back during the night! There are only 14 days of school left. RJ has started wearing his brown church shoes once a week (even though last week he told me those are getting too small) and I think there are a couple of free dress days left. That means they only have to last about 9 more days! That's not too long, right? Right?!

RJ asked what we were going to do with the shoes after the last day of school. I told him we would gaze at them lovingly for three seconds, audibly sigh, and then throw them unceremoniously in the big trash can outside!

Mission: Make Uniform Shoes Last

Last week was Spring Break for my kids. It was such a fun, carefree week. Here's a couple of things we did:

We took the kids to see the Manti Temple, where we were married almost 8 years ago!

We had a cousin sleepover. Uriah's face says it all!

While some parents may dread days off of school, I usually enjoy them. Last week I didn't have to drag children out of bed in the morning. I didn't have to shuttle kids to and home from school three to four times a day. I didn't have to wake Uriah up from his nap to pick up RJ from school (just to give you an idea of how grumpy Uriah is when he is awakened and then put in the car, imagine yourself trying to buckle a raccoon into a car seat).

Of course, the noise volume was higher last week, going anywhere had more whining (I usually run my errands while 2 kids are at school), and there were a few "I'm bored" declarations. But, overall, I enjoyed the break from school. I am so ready for summer.

Over spring break I went through the kids' clothes to see what didn't fit anymore. I was looking at their shoes and I noticed how beat up RJ's school shoes look. RJ's school has a dress code, so he has to have a particular color and style of shoe. The toes are very worn and I have already had to color them in with a black marker. One of the shoes is also bent in the back because RJ doesn't always make sure his heel is firmly in the bottom of the shoe before he's off and running. 

It may seem like buying a new pair of shoes is no big deal. Maybe they are only $10 at Payless. Maybe I could get them during a buy one, get one 1/2 off deal. But can one put a price on dignity? Isn't there some value in enduring to the end?! For some reason I must make these shoes last. I tell myself, "There's not that many days left of school! If I buy new shoes, they won't fit him after the summer and then I'll just have to buy more for the next school year!"

That's when it hit me: I am like this worn out pair of shoes! I am so done with monitoring homework, driving to and from schools, planning school parties (as RJ's room parent), and all that jazz. I need a break and next year I promise I will take it a little more easy. If this pair of beat up black shoes can make it...so can I! Mission: Make Uniform Shoes Last is in effect!

Now don't get me wrong, it has been a great school year. I've had fun being so involved. RJ has really learned a lot. He is a great speller, reads at a 4th grade level, and seems to pick up math concepts easily. And Graham has learned a lot at preschool. He has studied the letters, worked on his temper (he can get a little frustrated when things don't go his way), and made new friends. It's not really about school, it's just nice to not have a schedule sometimes.

RJ and I at the 1st grade Valentine's Dance. I love his huge smile, because we really did have a blast!

So, there are now only 31 days of school left. Several of these days will be free dress days where RJ can wear non-uniform shoes. Armed with a Sharpie (and Dr. Pepper), we will see if these shoes (and I) can last.

Because I have big plans for the summer...

Rye Guy Birthday

This little guy had a birthday!

 

Yes folks, Uriah is 2 years old now. That means he can officially start the terrible twos. Of course, he’s so advanced that he started the terrible two phase 9 months ago.

Usually we don’t open presents until after dinner, but RJ had a soccer practice and we were going to the mall later, so we did it in the morning. It was actually more fun this way because he got to play with his presents all day on his birthday. Usually we open presents and then it’s time for bed, so the kids don’t get a lot of time to play with them.

 

 

 

My favorite birthday present for Uriah! I finally finished it, so I can check that one off of the New Year's Resolutions!

 

Instead of overscheduling the day, I decided to just stay home all morning and play. We hit balloons to each other, read books, and“built” things with toy tools. Uriah also took a bath (which he loves) and vacuumed as much as he wanted to (which he LOVES)!

Working hard with his new tool set.

 

 

Look at his face! This kid sure loves vacuums!

 

We played at the park during RJ’s soccer practice, ate Uriah’s favorite food, chicken and fries (which he pronounces as one word) at Chick-fil-a, then played at the mall play place.

It was a fun, relaxing day and I certainly enjoyed every minute.

Happy Birthday Rye Guy!

Uriah enjoys shutting himself in rooms. Back in October he had a traumatic door-related event. At the time he was only 18 months old, and could not open the door to let himself out. Well, on this particular Saturday while I was at a church activity, he went into our small laundry room and shut the door. Everything would have been fine if he had not then opened the drawer that is located inside the laundry room adjacent to the door. Once this drawer is open, you cannot open the door from the outside of the room. I took a picture from inside the laundry room to show what it looks like with the drawer open.

Uriah soon started crying because he wanted to come out. Rubin went to open the door and quickly saw the severity of the situation. He started calling to Uriah through the door, telling him to close the drawer.  Uriah would not close the drawer. He just cried and cried but did not see the simple solution!

When I got home from my activity, Uriah had been trapped for nearly one hour. Once he heard my voice, he started crying harder. It broke my heart! I put my fingers under the door and touched his fingers briefly. But when Uriah realized I was not rescuing him, he retreated to the far end of the laundry room and resumed crying. It was hard for me because I wanted at least to be able to touch him and give him some comfort, but he wouldn't come near me.

Rubin was doing everything he could to get Uriah out. Unfortunately the screws on the doorknob were on the same side as Uriah, so Rubin couldn't remove the doorknob. The hinges were inside the laudry room, so removing those pins was impossible. My husband was desperately pushing against the open drawer with a hanger that he snaked through the tiny crack in the slightly ajar door, but as he pushed the drawer closed, it simlutaneously closed the door. Finally Rubin got the idea to borrow a golf club from the neighbors. He slid the handle under the door, while holding onto the foot of the club (sorry to all the golfers out there if I am using the wrong golf club terminology!) and used the handle to hit the drawer. It took a long time to finally get the drawer all the way closed so we could open the door. But it worked and Uriah was saved!

Later I thought about the spiritual parallels of this experience. Sometimes we wonder why Heavenly Father does not just take our problems away and rescue us from difficult situations. We fail to see that we either created those situations, or that there are things we could do to ease our burdens, like closing a drawer. Also, God is always there to give us comfort during our trials. We should not withdraw from Him just because our trial is not being taken away. He is there to help us, if we will let Him.  And while it might not always be apparent, He is always helping us. More than we could ever know.

Anyway, I thought I should document this story before I forgot the details. It was funny because for weeks afterward Uriah was terrified of going into the laundry room! Lesson learned.