Little children are so sweet and innocent!

Today I called Claire and Lahela into the kitchen to finish their lunches. Lahela came walking in, wearing a little purple dress, pink snow boots, and her underwear around her ankles. I told her to pull them up. She looked down, laughed, and said, "Oh, I forgot!" It's funny that it didn't even dawn on her that anything was amiss. I have to admit, there are many things I will miss when my kids aren't little anymore. They are so sweet and innocent.

Valentine's Cards Creations

I know Valentine's day was a while ago, but I wanted to post this anyway. Better late than never.

'Twas the night before Valentine's, when all through the house,
All the children were stirring, working hard like a mouse.
Mom squeezed the hot glue gun and cut out the hearts.
The children used glue sticks to create Valentine art.

We stamped and stuck hearts to the cards we did fix,
Then we glued and tied ribbons to the sucker sticks.
When late in the night, Mom heard little ones chatter
'Bout the kids in their classes they wanted to flatter.

Then out came the camera to record all the fun,
And off to their beds the children did run.
Mom cleaned up the mess, then collapsed on the couch,
And was glad it was over before she turned into the grouch.

Next day kids came home, carrying bags full of love,
But the candy was best; 'twas all they spoke of.
So another Valentine's day has come and gone,
But I'm sure the memories will always live on.


These were Hazel's most favorite Valentines that she made. She worked very hard and didn't quit until she was done.


Nathan got progressively more creative as the night wore on. He was very proud of his creations.

Great time-saver

Claire and Lahela helped me discover a really quick way to dry kids. You just put them in the dryer for a few minutes and they're good to go.

HOORAY FOR A WARM DAY!

We finally had our first warm day after the long, cold winter. The kids and I totally took advantage and went to the park. They rode their bikes, ran around the playground, went down slides, played on swings, walked the puppy, Rosie, found their neighbor friend Emily and her dog Chipper, and basked in the sun. It was GREAT to finally get out of the house and actually enjoy being outside!

Our great friends from AK!

In December our friends, Joe and Rachael Sanger, moved to Utah from Anchorage. They have two adorable little girls and are getting ready to have a baby boy. I was so excited to hear that they are living in North Orem, and we recently had them over for a fun late night and dinner. They were like family to us in Alaska when we didn't have any nearby. I hope we can get together again soon!

Just my luck!

Yesterday as I was preparing to take a shower, I decided to spray the bathroom walls first with a Glade (like Febreeze) spray. The walls still have a faint cigarette smell that I'm trying to get rid of. I didn't close the cupboard door because I was trying to hurry, and I kicked the corner of it on the top of my right foot really hard by accident. It was one of those kinds of pains that leave you breathless and you think you're going to throw up. Well, my foot hurt pretty bad for the rest of the day.

This is not the end of my sob story, though. Lately Lahela has been coming into my bedroom in the middle of the night and climbing into bed with me. She tosses and turns sideways and kicks until I get so sick of it that I take her back to her bed. Last night was no different. I got up at around 3:30 a.m., carried her upstairs, and put her in bed without turning on any lights. On my way back downstairs, in the dark, as I neared the bottom, I thought I had one more step down when I actually had two. I fell forward, twisting my ankle. It was on the same side as the foot I kicked on the cupboard. I can't even describe that pain. It was horrific. I crawled back to my bed, shamelessly crying like a baby, where I felt myself going into shock from the extreme pain. I was shaking and shivering uncontrollably.

Today my ankle is a tiny bit swollen and it hurts to walk on it. Actually, it hurts when I'm not walking on it too. Pretty pathetic, huh?

I am such a good mother!

Here are some pictures of what Lahela did while I was playing Scramble on Facebook. She was being super wiggly in my lap, so I put her down. After I had done a few rounds, I looked down by my feet to see her fast asleep. She probably just wanted me to hold her all cuddly, but I was too busy. Boy don't I feel like Mother of the Year.