Let's kick it off with Mother's Day. My facebook status for the day read: "Jessica " My younger sister questioned, "why?" and I'll fill you in on a little secret -- zero expectations. Hahahaha. No seriously. When you expect nothing you can only be pleasantly surprised when the following sweet and adorable little things happen:
Mother's Day Tea
Grace's class put on a "Mother's Day Tea" for all the moms in the class. Grace had been telling me about it for weeks to make sure that I could attend and also to make sure that I found a baby-sitter for Jane and Sophie since I couldn't have them with me for it. This happened to be during a week that Scott was out of town and even though I was totally overwhelmed and burned out from taking care of the kids by myself that week, I laughed my head off when I saw what Grace wore to bed the night before the big day:
Hahahahahahaha. The whole evening before she kept telling me that her outfit for the Tea was supposed to be a surprise and she didn't want me to see what she was wearing. Apparently she was so concerned the surprise would be ruined that she dressed in her party dress for bed and then covered it up with a (fleece-lined) raincoat on top and a blanket tied around the bottom so I wouldn't be able to see it at all. When I checked on her before going to bed myself that night I found her lying in a pool of sweat soundly asleep in the above get-up. After laughing and calling Scott to try and explain what the nutcase had done, I gingerly tried to peel off the raincoat so she wouldn't die from overheating during the night. She woke up in the process, wanted some water, and then laid back down before she realized that her coat was off and that I had seen her party dress. After a brief freak out (which I worried would last MUCH longer than it did) she fell back asleep and was perfectly fine in the morning. She almost forgot all about it but then remembered at the last minute and started freaking out again. Luckily she bought my story that I can't really see when I have my glasses on at night (which is partially true) and that I didn't get a good look at her outfit then.
Getting our pink lemonade in her Fancy clothes.The Tea was adorable. Every single kid had dressed up in "fancy clothes" -- even the boys were wearing shirts and ties or polo shirts -- and there was pink lemonade and cookies to enjoy. The kids helped to make all these watercolor flowers for the centerpieces and wrote a story about their mom to present to us along with a poster with a poem and their handprints. All so cute!
Unfortunately, I have no idea what Grace has done with my story and I didn't get pictures of it before it was lost. I do remember thinking it was really funny when I read it to see the things that Grace thinks about her mom. Such as the fact that I'm sweet! (Who knew?) And that my favorite thing is: babies! Hahahaha. Hopefully I'll be able to find it so I can put it in her box of memorabilia.
Mother's Day
In another lovely Mother's Day surprise, the kids and Scott let me sleep in and Ethan and Sophie brought me breakfast in bed -- orange juice and oatmeal that Ethan had made (that was quite heavy on the cinnamon) -- and after a little hinting from me (or a lot as the case may be), Scott called his mom to get her recipe for blueberry muffins to make for me for Mother's Day. They are SO good, and Scott surprised himself I think with how adept he was at making them. If I had the recipe handy I'd post it, but I'm too lazy to go track it down right now. Sorry!
(the lighting in our house is terrible -- so excuse the poor quality of the picture)
And that my friends is what contributed to the best Mother's Day ever!
A Quilting Bee (or two)
Another festivity occupying the month of May was the excitement of receiving a bunch of blocks in the mail from the new Quilting Bee I started a couple of months ago! I decided to make a quilt with variations of "flying geese" on it to make for Ethan's baptism next month. I am so excited with how it is turning out and now all I have left to do is quilt it before the end of next month. So, I guess I know how I'll be spending every spare moment of my life for the next little while...
Here are the blocks for the quilt top on my awesome new design wall that I made following this tutorial.
And all ready to quilt!Also this past month I made a baby quilt for a friend who is having a little girl next month. I'm hosting her shower this week, and I managed to get the quilt finished just in time. I really love the way it turned out and it's going to be a little hard to part with it!
Field Day
The end of the school year rapidly approached us and during the last week of school the kids had their Field Day. Luckily the weather cooperated (just the day before were massive thunderstorms and the day after had several tornado warnings) and the kids had a BLAST -- even though I'm sure the teachers and parent volunteers were dying in the heat.
A little water relay going on...
And apparently we need to work with Grace on her catching skills before next year's balloon toss.
This was some type of relay to pick up circles on the ground that had money amounts on the back. Whichever team collected the most "money" at the end was the winner. I'm pretty sure Ethan was a huge fan of this kind of game. Hahahaha.Last Day of School
I never know what to get teachers for an end of the year gift, but this year I found a fun idea online to have the kids paint a pot and put some flowers in it. Grace especially was super excited for this plan and Sophie wanted to get in on the fun. Ethan was not so happy and kept saying what a terrible artist he was, but in the end I think he was pleased with his final product. I also included a gift card to The Cheesecake Factory in their thank you card and hopefully that is enough to let them know how much we LOVED them this year. Ethan and Grace seriously had the best teachers I could have asked for. I was so worried about Grace starting school this year with the various behavior issues I know she is capable of. Thank goodness she ADORED her teacher and would have done just about anything for her. Ethan's teacher was also fantastic and really helped him to grow this year as well. All in all, I have been so pleased with the school the kids go to.
I love Grace's looks of utter concentration.
Sophie was super into it as well.
The finished products.
Excited for the last day of school.
Ethan and Miss Marshall
Grace and Mrs. SolovicAlso making the last week of school memorable was the arrival of my sister Amy and my brother Freddie (who the kids call Uncle DoDo). Freddie just graduated from BYU and was driving back home to New Orleans and decided to make a little pit stop and visit us. My mom surprised Amy with a ticket out here so she could hang out, have fun with us, and help Freddie drive the last leg of the journey home. The kids were in heaven having them here to play with and I ALWAYS love company. Especially when it's my little brothers and sisters. Unfortunately, the week passed by WAY too quickly and before we knew it, it was time for them to leave on Saturday. :(
Superfluous shot of the Sugar Pop.
And that pretty much brings us to now. Today was Memorial Day and sadly I have no pictures to show for it. We had a jam-packed morning crashing another ward's Fun Run, (thanks Natalie for inviting us!) and then heading back home to clean up the basement (which was a disaster area) in order to be able to go to our friend's house for a barbecue this evening.
The Fun Run was fun, and even though there were a few tears -- Grace was upset she didn't win a ribbon like Ethan and Sophie (who both won 2nd place in their age groups for the 1 mile and 1/2 mile respectively) -- it was still an altogether enjoyable experience and we just might crash it next year as well!
For a general run-down on the family this month here is a brief recap:
Ethan
* Started piano lessons! (He's happy, and I'm happy because I found him a teacher who lives across the street and since she's only a teenager I'm getting the lessons for super cheap! Her mom used to teach piano so I'm assuming she's getting a little mentoring from her).
* Was invited to audition for a local Children's Chorale! Hahahaha. I guess all his singing at the top of his lungs at bedtime is paying off because he made it in and now we just need to decide if it is worth spending a whole bunch of money for him to have this "opportunity."
* Is experiencing quite a few growing pains. Mostly at my expense. Let's just say we're having problems once again due to his "spiritedness." I'm really hoping this is just a phase and soon enough he will snap out of this super argumentative, disrespectful, and frustrating stage of his life!
Grace
* Needed not 1, not 2, not even 3, but FOUR teeth crowned this past month! Apparently she has really weak teeth. Either that or she's not really brushing or flossing as well as she should. I've begun to threaten her that she'll have to pay for her own dental bills if she doesn't start doing a better job.
* Has lost yet another front tooth! Although not in the most ideal way. While "doing gymnastics" on the furniture in the living room -- which they're NOT supposed to be doing -- she fell FLAT on her face knocking out her tooth and giving herself a HUGE goose egg on her forehead just in time for the last days of school. The tooth fairy took pity on her sad situation and left her 2 whole dollars.
* Has learned a new vocabulary word as evidenced in the following conversation:
Grace: Mom! Sophie's gloating! She's going like this. [bobbing her head around with a smirky smile on her face]
Sophie [with tears in her voice]: I'm not gloating I'm just happy!
Sophie
* Has definitively qualified for speech therapy for next year through the school district. I can't say I'm surprised seeing as to how she has many a speech impediment.
* Is already worrying about starting Kindergarten because she's afraid she won't know how to read and write everything. I think I managed to assure her that it's not necessary to know how to do all those things yet, but we'll see. There's still plenty of time left before she starts school for her to worry about something else.
* Has become quite freaked out about death. On a regular basis she informs us with panic in her voice that she doesn't want to die. Hmmmm. I'm not quite sure why this is such a big worry for her, but it's kind of hilarious how often she brings it up in a completely non-sequitur kind of way. On a semi-related note Sophie and Grace have the most interesting conversations. Here is another one from a few months ago, when Sophie first started freaking out about dying.
Sophie [kind of out of nowhere]: I don't want to die!!!
Grace [trying to console her]: Well, after you die you get to be resurrected and then you'll never have to die again.
Sophie [in even more panic]: I don't want to die!!!
Grace: Don't worry. You'll get used to it when you're older.
Jane
* Has become a little runaway. Any opening she sees and she is GONE. This girl is crazy! And hilarious. And adorable. All wrapped into one. She is eerily following Grace's personality trajectory.
* Is still a Danger Girl. She is a little too fearless when it comes to things like slides and playground equipment in general. Luckily her favorite thing to do at the park is swing and swing and swing which rarely has the potential to get her hurt.
* Still does not talk very much at all. She HAS figured out the difference between nodding her head yes and shaking it no -- so that has helped tremendously in our communication efforts. But other than that, it's a lot of guess work to understand what she's trying to tell us. She's really good at "b" sounds and "s" sounds and she can even throw in a "d" or "g" sound but other than that she can't really say much. It's such a difference from the the chatterboxes that were Sophie and Grace, but I just keep telling myself that Ethan was the same way. I don't think he spoke in real sentences until he was almost 3.
Scott
* Just about killed himself running the 5K at the Fun Run this morning. Apparently running 3.1 miles when you haven't legitimately run in a couple of years in not a very good idea. Who knew that peer pressure from Ethan could have such an effect? Hahahahahaha.
And then there's ME
* I'm trying my hardest to survive the last 3 months of this pregnancy and even harder to have a positive attitude about the summer vacation that is now upon us. I'm mostly just hoping that I can handle having all four kids home all day long for the next 12 weeks. And yes, I just might have a countdown going until school starts again. Hahahaha.
And that's all folks. It is way too late, and tomorrow starts day 1 of my new reality -- Summer, summer, summer...
The Fun Run was fun, and even though there were a few tears -- Grace was upset she didn't win a ribbon like Ethan and Sophie (who both won 2nd place in their age groups for the 1 mile and 1/2 mile respectively) -- it was still an altogether enjoyable experience and we just might crash it next year as well!
For a general run-down on the family this month here is a brief recap:
Ethan
* Started piano lessons! (He's happy, and I'm happy because I found him a teacher who lives across the street and since she's only a teenager I'm getting the lessons for super cheap! Her mom used to teach piano so I'm assuming she's getting a little mentoring from her).
* Was invited to audition for a local Children's Chorale! Hahahaha. I guess all his singing at the top of his lungs at bedtime is paying off because he made it in and now we just need to decide if it is worth spending a whole bunch of money for him to have this "opportunity."
* Is experiencing quite a few growing pains. Mostly at my expense. Let's just say we're having problems once again due to his "spiritedness." I'm really hoping this is just a phase and soon enough he will snap out of this super argumentative, disrespectful, and frustrating stage of his life!
Grace
* Needed not 1, not 2, not even 3, but FOUR teeth crowned this past month! Apparently she has really weak teeth. Either that or she's not really brushing or flossing as well as she should. I've begun to threaten her that she'll have to pay for her own dental bills if she doesn't start doing a better job.
* Has lost yet another front tooth! Although not in the most ideal way. While "doing gymnastics" on the furniture in the living room -- which they're NOT supposed to be doing -- she fell FLAT on her face knocking out her tooth and giving herself a HUGE goose egg on her forehead just in time for the last days of school. The tooth fairy took pity on her sad situation and left her 2 whole dollars.
* Has learned a new vocabulary word as evidenced in the following conversation:
Grace: Mom! Sophie's gloating! She's going like this. [bobbing her head around with a smirky smile on her face]
Sophie [with tears in her voice]: I'm not gloating I'm just happy!
Sophie
* Has definitively qualified for speech therapy for next year through the school district. I can't say I'm surprised seeing as to how she has many a speech impediment.
* Is already worrying about starting Kindergarten because she's afraid she won't know how to read and write everything. I think I managed to assure her that it's not necessary to know how to do all those things yet, but we'll see. There's still plenty of time left before she starts school for her to worry about something else.
* Has become quite freaked out about death. On a regular basis she informs us with panic in her voice that she doesn't want to die. Hmmmm. I'm not quite sure why this is such a big worry for her, but it's kind of hilarious how often she brings it up in a completely non-sequitur kind of way. On a semi-related note Sophie and Grace have the most interesting conversations. Here is another one from a few months ago, when Sophie first started freaking out about dying.
Sophie [kind of out of nowhere]: I don't want to die!!!
Grace [trying to console her]: Well, after you die you get to be resurrected and then you'll never have to die again.
Sophie [in even more panic]: I don't want to die!!!
Grace: Don't worry. You'll get used to it when you're older.
Jane
* Has become a little runaway. Any opening she sees and she is GONE. This girl is crazy! And hilarious. And adorable. All wrapped into one. She is eerily following Grace's personality trajectory.
* Is still a Danger Girl. She is a little too fearless when it comes to things like slides and playground equipment in general. Luckily her favorite thing to do at the park is swing and swing and swing which rarely has the potential to get her hurt.
* Still does not talk very much at all. She HAS figured out the difference between nodding her head yes and shaking it no -- so that has helped tremendously in our communication efforts. But other than that, it's a lot of guess work to understand what she's trying to tell us. She's really good at "b" sounds and "s" sounds and she can even throw in a "d" or "g" sound but other than that she can't really say much. It's such a difference from the the chatterboxes that were Sophie and Grace, but I just keep telling myself that Ethan was the same way. I don't think he spoke in real sentences until he was almost 3.
Scott
* Just about killed himself running the 5K at the Fun Run this morning. Apparently running 3.1 miles when you haven't legitimately run in a couple of years in not a very good idea. Who knew that peer pressure from Ethan could have such an effect? Hahahahahaha.
And then there's ME
* I'm trying my hardest to survive the last 3 months of this pregnancy and even harder to have a positive attitude about the summer vacation that is now upon us. I'm mostly just hoping that I can handle having all four kids home all day long for the next 12 weeks. And yes, I just might have a countdown going until school starts again. Hahahaha.
And that's all folks. It is way too late, and tomorrow starts day 1 of my new reality -- Summer, summer, summer...
