The Wise Family

S.S.R.

2011-08-28T22:22:00.000-07:00

S.S.R.
In our home, that stands for Sunday Sacrament Review.
This has probably become one of my most favorite times of the week.
It all started because of a few reasons:
1) I felt like my children would just sit through sacrament meeting without listening to anyone that was speaking. Half the time they would either be searching in my purse for some gum, asking to get a drink, or asking to go to the bathroom. Since we had already eliminated toys from the mix, this ONE HOUR of my week was getting to be my least favorite. (Sad, I know!!)
2) As my children have gotten older, I feel that the talks given during Sacrament meeting are so very beneficial for them. I love when a youth speaker gets up to speak because (especially for my girls who will be in Young Womens in a couple years) these youth speak right to them!
3) I wanted my children to be involved in the dinner conversations after church. Yes, we ask them what they learned in their classes, but Sacrament is the ONE part of church that the entire family is together. I think it is so important to be able to discuss those talks as a family. :)

So... what we decided to do was have a Sunday Sacrament Review during dinner on Sunday!
Basically, we go around the table and everyone (including mommy and daddy) shares three things that they learned during the talks that were given that Sunday. I love it! The children have learned so much about the people that are speaking (including their names, how many children they might have, where they are from...etc, etc.). I also love how eager my children are to share what they have learned that day... it makes me smile to know that they are paying attention during Sacrament!

S.S.R.'s are quickly becoming one of my most favorite times! :)

I miss my babies...

2011-08-22T17:52:00.000-07:00

Time passes way too quickly. Tonight I'm missing my kids "baby" phases.
I miss the double chins with all the drool, I miss the newborn smells, I miss the way an infant will fall asleep on your chest.
I wished that I could go back and hold Brynn's hand when she was 3 (knuckle dimples and all!).
I wish I would have waited just a little longer to cut Weston's hair.
I wish I would have laughed more when Caden threw a fit.
I wish I would have bought more princess dresses for Lexie to wear as regular clothes.

As much as I miss these phases and times in their lives, I AM excited for the future. I'm also grateful that I miss these phases because it helps me to keep things in perspective but,....

I just wish time would slow down... just a bit. ;)

Summer fun while the girls were gone.

2011-07-25T22:16:00.000-07:00

The older girls went camping with their grandparents this past week and the little ones got some great one on one time with Mommy and Daddy... We love our little guys and gals!

My kids can't get enough of play dough! :)

I LOVE Camille's faces in these pictures!

Moving forward.

2011-07-23T17:31:00.000-07:00

Camille enjoying her ice cream

Ellie enjoying her ice cream too! :)

This post has been sitting in my head for the past two hours and I know if I don't get it out now, then it will be lost forever! (My mind isn't too sharp these days ;))

Let me preface, Mike has "day dates" with our children. A special time where they go and do something by themselves with him or in two's. Yesterday was the boys turn and they went to go see Captain America. They had a BLAST with their daddy and while they were watching their movie at the theatre, the 2 little girls and I were able to do some shopping at Ross and then stop for some ice cream. It was a great day all around.
On the way home, Michael and I were talking about how we wished we could be able to remember days like this with our older girls. I told him that I was so sad that my memory was fading a bit and that I can't readily recall how my girls sounded (although I do remember some phrases here and there), or how they walked or how they smelled as babies... I wish my mind was more of a video so that I could still be IN that moment again. (For the record, my husband has a great memory and can remember and recall WAY more than I can at the drop of a hat. :))
Then I told him how I thought it was interesting that I can recall more of what has happened in the last 5 years than at any other point in my life. I can distinctly remember how Ellie was as a baby, yet I can barely remember Weston as a baby, even though it was only a year and a half before that. I always attributed it to the fact that it was because everything in the last five years has happened relatively recently.

Michael has a different take on it, because he feels the same way about our lives "before". As we were talking, he said that he felt it was because of being able to have the Priesthood in the home.
He described it in this way:
"Before, I became a member of the church, we were just floating through life. We weren't bad people. We did good things and tried to help others, but we weren't moving forward. We were just there. Our spirits can't recall as easily because they were stuck in a state of limbo."
I can't begin to tell you how much I agree with this statement. I can testify that this statement is so true. It's amazing how much I can recall and how many memories are emblazoned upon my heart. It's amazing to me how much MORE I can comprehend, and how much more I can FEEL now that we are blessed with the Priesthood in our home. Everything makes sense now. I can more easily taste and remember the sweet moments of life and in some instances, I can almost feel those ties that bind us with our pre-existent selves. It's hard to explain, but someday I want our children to look back upon this and understand how important the Priesthood is and HOW exactly it can affect our lives.

I look forward to so many things with JOY, because I know that we ARE progressing. We are working and (hopefully) little by little, are gaining the knowledge that we need to someday be able to reunite again beyond the veil.
Until then, I am savoring all these moments with my babies and eternal companion. I can feel my spirit rejoice in the Lord's work.

We are so blessed.

Brynn the babysitter

2011-07-20T10:13:00.000-07:00

Brynn had her very first babysitting job this summer. She was so excited. Before the designated babysitting time, she picked up everything around the house that could be a chokable for the sweet 16 month old that was entrusted to her care.
She was so loving and kind the entire time that she babysat. Even though she babysat here in our home, while I was home, she did a wonderful job. I didn't do a thing! She fed him, changed him and played with him.
This picture shows just how happy she was that hard work pays off!!
Even though she babysits for me all the time (and is fabulous!), I'm glad that she was able to babysit some one else's child and do a TERRIFIC job!
Way to go sweetheart, we are so proud of you. :)

Summer.

2011-07-19T11:33:00.000-07:00

Wow! I can't believe that summer is almost gone... (not the heat, but our non existent schedule and such! ;)) This has been such a wonderful summer for us. Not because we have gone anywhere extravagant. We haven't. Nor is it because we have really done any special activities.
This summer, Mike and I really looked at our family and our family dynamics and we have assessed problem areas and areas where we would like to improve.
In doing this, we made some BIG changes.

One of the first areas we looked at was, where our older children were in terms of preparing for their teenage years. While we realized that our oldest is only 10, we know that if we don't start preparing them now, we may run out of time.
We decided that with this, priority number one would be for all our children to learn their Articles of Faith. You can read about that post here. I think the reason that this was given so much priority is that the Articles of Faith really are WHAT we believe. I'm grateful that my older daughters know almost all of them and that at the dinner table, I ask them a number and they can rattle off whichever AoF corresponds to that number. It's been a wonderful learning experience for all of us.

The second area that we have looked at is how we can be better missionaries as a family. I have been reading this wonderful blog from a family that we love dearly from our old ward, and it really hit me how many times he says, "just invite someone over to the house"... "the worst they could say is no". What a WISE missionary!! It is true.
So... once a month we will be inviting someone over for dinner. We don't know who yet, but we will pray as a family to receive that revelation. It will be a neat experience.
And.... since we don't really know how to keep things simple around here, we have also decided to have the missionaries in our home once a month again. When Mike was ward mission leader, we loved having the missionaries over. They have a special spirit that they bring with them, and if you are reading this, I encourage you to have them around. The messages they share are so wonderful and uplifting!
We will be inviting them over... but with a twist! We will be having missionary meal night. On this night, we will be eating foods from different missions around the world. Our children will also be missionaries as well. They will have to dress up in Sunday clothes, eat everything on their plate and share a message. I am gearing up for our very first one at the beginning of next month. I'll post and let everyone know how it goes! We are excited!

The last one has been the one that has most greatly impacted our children... in my opinion.
No T.V.
We have almost completely eliminated the T.V. from our home entirely.
This was a HUGE sacrifice.
As Mike and I sat back and evaluated what we wanted our children to be surrounded with, we realized that even the most "child friendly" shows on T.V. weren't allowing our children the opportunity to feel the spirit. Most of it was mindless chatter and the other portions of the shows were inappropriate.
So.... Our children now have about 5 shows that are on the "approved" list of television they can watch and their television time has been limited to about 30 minutes a day. That is IF they have gotten an hour of independent reading in, 30 minutes of music practice time and all of their chores done.
It's been about a month since our new "rules" have been in place and I am happy to report that as I am sitting here right now, I can hear the hum of the dishwasher, the turning of the dryer, my boys upstairs playing with Legos and the girls playing a board game. IT HAS BEEN HEAVEN!!!
If only we would have done it sooner.... :)

I'm so grateful to be able to have the spirit to be able to guide us in raising our family. I know that none of these things are easy, but they have all been worth it to create our own heaven on earth, right here in our own home. :)

My baby turned 2.... Warning tons of pics.

2011-06-25T14:47:00.000-07:00

Camille turned 2 on Thursday.

We invited a few family members and my friend and her children.

I didn't want poor Cami June getting too overwhelmed with too many people around.

It turned out perfectly!!

Happy Birthday my sweet princess!

You turning 2 years old was bittersweet for this momma bear. I want you so badly to stay little and snuggle me forever, but that is not what is happening.

You are growing (quite beautifully, may I add) and are starting to hit these milestones at an outrageous speed.

On your birthday you even went on the potty ALL by yourself and without us asking you!

You can put together sentences, like:

Mommy, I eat.

This is heavy

Caden be mean

I no like

Read me please

You also say; please, thank you and bless you.

I love you baby girl!!!

Cami with Grandma Wise

We did face painting with Nana

Some of the decorations

Ellie being a ~~not so~~ happy camper

Handsome Daddy and Caden

More face painting

Getting shy during the singing of Happy Birthday

Time to blow out the candles!

Presents anyone?

Giving Thank you hugs

The kiddos playing wrap the mummy...

Caden being a T-Rex

Evidently it was a hit... they played it MANY times.

Brynn with the birthday girl!!

Cheese!

Articles of Faith

2011-06-24T23:34:00.000-07:00

I know you are all SUPER jealous of my fancy shmancy poster.... ;)

This summer my kids have a goal.

To learn ALL 13 articles of Faith by the time school starts. It's a big goal, I know.

SO...

to compensate for this enormous task that we have put in front of them, if they learn all 13 by the end of the summer,

we get to go to sunsplash.

Woo Hoo.

Needless to say,

they are working their patooties off.

I love it.

All in all, I think summer time is a great time to be able to complete goals like these. We don't have to worry about school work or book reports or poems so we have time to focus a bit more on our spiritual goals! ;) My girls have also been steadily working on their Faith in God goals and hopefully will be able to pass some of those off to their leaders once school starts back up.

(P.S. Ellie really doesn't know THAT many Articles of Faith. She copied what Brynn had checked off.)

Missions

2011-06-14T17:33:00.000-07:00

The 6 Temples my children chose

We have been talking a lot about missions in our house lately. (If you would like to know more about missionaries and WHY it is so important for LDS youth to serve missions, please feel free to go here.)

I guess the desire for them to serve came when we decided to place a framed picture of the Temple in each of their rooms. We looked online at LDS.org and looked at all the temples. I told the children to pick a Temple that they would someday love to visit/get married in/serve a mission around.

Brynn chose the Salt Lake Temple.
Lexie chose the St. George Temple.
Caden chose the Netherlands Temple.
Weston chose the Hong Kong Temple.
Ellie chose the Orlando Temple.
and we chose the Guayaquil Ecuador Temple for Camille (that is where my family is from).

One night when we were discussing these Temples, the discussion spurred from Temples to marriage to missions. All four of my oldest children WANT to serve missions. Brynn and Lexie said that all the money in their savings accounts will go toward their missions and Caden and Weston have already been saving for theirs.

I don't know that a mother could be more proud. Then Brynn found this video and got so excited.
I know my children are young and that my girls could end up getting married instead of serving, but I am excited and happy for this goal that they have in their lives.

So... Sunday night, the subject of missions came up again. Knowing that we have 6 children very close in age, we knew there would be some children who would overlap missions (should all of them go). When we finally broke it all down (with approximate dates, mind you).... it was almost bittersweet. To see ON PAPER how long some of my children will go without seeing each other pained my heart a little. BUT... I KNOW the blessings of what they will be doing will FAR out way any brief heartache we will feel.

Here is the break down:

Brynn will leave on her mission April 2022
   comes back Oct/Nov 2023
* she won't see Lexie for 2 years
* she won't see Caden for 2 years and 8 months

Lexie will leave on her mission June 2023
   comes back December 2024
*she won't see Brynn for 2 years
*she won't see Caden for 2 years 6 months
*she won't see Weston for 3 years

Caden will leave on his mission Jan 2023
   comes back Jan 2025
*he won't see Brynn for 2 years 8 months
*he won't see Lexie for 2 years 6 months
*he won't see Weston for 3 years 6 months

Weston will leave on his mission June 2024
   comes back June 2026
*he won't see Lexie for 3 years
*he won't see Caden for 3 years 6 months

Can I just say that seeing Mike's face as all 4 older children and myself were bawling our eyes out was HILARIOUS! My cute boys even said, "Mommy, we are going to spend as much time together as we can before we leave."
So cute.

I've got awesome kids.

Hmmmm...

2011-06-09T21:17:00.000-07:00

Such a weird day today. I feel so tired from being busy but I don't really know exactly what we did today.

My house is a mess, but I know I cleaned.
My closet is still unorganized, but I spent 4 hours organizing it.
I have been scrubbing the grout in the kitchen for days, yet the tile is now sticky.
I'm pretty sure I got caught up on laundry a couple weeks ago, but all of a sudden there are about 10 loads in there.
The little girls room was clean this morning, but it's a mess now.

Oh well... there is always tomorrow. I have 6 happy and healthy children downstairs. I have a wonderful hubby who only has 21 more days working 2nd shift (yay!) and I have the Gospel. what more do I need, right?

Maybe tomorrow I will actually be able to post pics.
Oh yeah... my camera battery needs to get charged. ;)

Children learn what they live...

2011-06-07T01:11:00.000-07:00

I remember this poem that hung in the hallway of my grandmothers home. It was called; Children learn what they live. I remember passing it each day as I got ready for school. I loved reading it. I distinctly remember as a young girl thinking, "Someday... when I'M a mom... I will make sure my children have all of these good qualities."

I had already had a vision for how I wanted my children's childhood to be.
I KNEW I wanted different for them than what I had.

I still continue envisioning my children's futures. Now the thoughts that go through my head are...
"When Brynn is a mommy... "
"Will Caden get homesick on his mission?"
" I wonder if Weston will marry a brunette..."

All of these things cross my mind... ALL day.
But, I especially love when I get a little peek into their future. every once in a while, I catch glimpses of them and I SWEAR I can see them as adults.
One of these moments happened tonight.

I was busy cleaning and scrubbing, Mike was outside grilling on his precious day off and my two baby girls were on the couch together watching Caillou (a Camille favorite). After a while I noticed how quiet they were so I checked on them thinking that they MUST be getting into trouble together, but instead this is what I found....

Camille had fallen asleep on Ellie.

I know it may sound totally crazy but all of a sudden I saw two adult sisters, one leaning on the other for comfort. I saw an elder sister BEING there for a younger one. I saw unconditional love. I saw trust. I saw beauty.
At that point I could totally see Ellie being there when Cami has her babies. Or giggling and/or crying when the other gets married. I saw the future.
And for that I am SO thankful.

I will always continue to envision my children's lives, as long as they are with me. I think without vision of what we want, we are lost.
Will it turn out exactly as I see in my head? Most likely not. Does it warm my heart to see these little snippets of the love my children have for each other? Most definitely.

So, I will leave you with one of my most favorite poems....

Children Learn What They LiveBy Dorothy Law Nolte, Ph.D.

If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight.
If children live with fear, they learn to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, they learn patience.
If children live with praise, they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, they learn to love.
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect.
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those about them.
If children live with friendliness, they learn the world is a nice place in which to live.

Our 2011 Graduate is....

2011-05-26T14:12:00.000-07:00

Weston!! He had a wonderful year in Kindergarten!!

Before school on his big day...

All the kindergartners singing...

Waiting to get his diploma...

What a big boy...

Shaking hands...

Shaking hands with the Principal

Shaking hands with his teacher...

A proud daddy and big brother...

His BIGGEST fan club.... all his sissies (plus momma)...

With Mommy and Daddy...

Brynn took this one and it turned out blurry but I HAD to post it. I love it!!...

Weston with Mrs. Armendariez (his teacher)...

All of our ward kindergartners... so cute!!...

A happy graduate!

I don't know why my kids insist on getting SO big! Don't they know it's breaking my heart?... (tear, tear, sniff, sniff)

Here are Weston's favorite things this school year:

The building blocks in Math
Counting money
Recess
The 100th day of school
His favorite friends: Camden and Chloe
Music class
P.E.
Painting
his desk
snack time
Mrs. Armendariez

Congrats buddy!! We love you and are so proud of you and the person you are growing up to be!!

Tuesday Night.

2011-05-25T23:44:00.000-07:00

We had a band concert on Tuesday evening...
I have loved watching my child discover music. (I played the clarinet up until my senior year in high school and I loved every minute of it!)
I'm glad Brynn is enjoying the flute... she is pretty dang good at it!! :)
We are so proud of her....

1 down... 4 to go.

2011-05-24T14:46:00.000-07:00

Look at those tears in her eyes on the first day of school... :(

Today was the last day of pre-school for my Elle Belle... hasn't she grown SO MUCH?!! Crazy.

I am so looking forward to school being out and for my kids to be done with school.

No more carpools
No more phonograms
No more poem recitations
No more book reports
No more science projects
No more ALARM CLOCKS
No more band
No more tutoring
No more lunches to be packed
No more classroom parties to plan

Whew! I am tired of just thinking of all the things we had to do this year!

However, with all that work that needed to be done and no matter how I don't want to do it right NOW, I am thankful for my children's school. I don't think that we could have picked a better school to place them in. I love that my children are so far ahead in their schooling (Caden is doing DIVISION!!... FYI, he is in first grade :)) and don't even realize the amount of work that they do because they enjoy it so much.
My children have felt so at home and so happy at their new school, but most of all, they feel safe. To me, that is the only thing that I could have asked for this year.

So.... I am going to enjoy the summer and will do a whole breakdown of the kids school year in another post, once they are all out of school! :)

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Speak softer and listen longer...

2011-05-19T22:24:00.000-07:00

Today.
Was.
A.
Day.

One of those days in which I was looking at the clock and hoping upon all hopes that it was 7:30.

Nope.

4:45.

Ugh.... I don't know if it's just my kids but I feel as summer draws closer, the house is getting louder. My last two posts have been such happy posts and my children seriously have been ANGELS!!
Most of them were also not feeling well... go figure.

Now, they are all pretty much feeling like themselves again and the decibels in our home have been kicked up by about 10 notches. With summer almost here, I am scared.
Actually, I take that back. I'm not scared. I'm determined.
I have been repeating over and over to myself, to speak softer and listen longer.

...Speak softer and listen longer, speak softer and listen longer, speak softer and listen longer...

Today when I finally was fed up with kids tattling, I simply responded with "speak softer and listen longer". I don't think my kids quite knew how to react to my response.
"What? No time out?"
"Are you going to get them in trouble?"
(For the record, Caden spent way too much time in time out today before my method change)
After, I kept repeating my new little motto, things started calming down. Hopefully it stays this way.
I think I am just going to try to incorporate this into our family motto. It's simple, but I love it.
I think most differences between people happen because one or both parties are trying so hard to be "right", that we forget to speak kindly (softer) and to listen to the other person involved.
I want my children to be slow to anger, to speak softly to people they meet and to take time to listen to others. Sometimes other people have really great points of view! :)

Anyway, I suppose I will hop off my soapbox now.... here are a couple of pictures that made me smile today...

I was trying to capture a picture of Brynn with all the "fun" homework that she brought home for Weston to work on during the summer (Weston WASN'T pleased), but instead caught that little rascal in the back.

This one is a heart melter, for SURE!

Our evening...

2011-05-18T22:42:00.000-07:00

Tonight was such a good evening.
It's been an adjustment having Mike work nights. My kids are so used to having him home for dinner, evening down time and scripture study. We (and I mean ME! Lol) fell off the wagon for a while and the kids would just have mac and cheese or beef ravioli for dinner and we wouldn't have scripture study and if we did it was quick and rushed. I knew that something had been lacking and I could see it in the way my kids were acting and the way I was acting towards them.
SO....
I have gotten my tush in gear and have set up routines again for us. My kids have seen all my efforts and have helped out willingly wherever they see I need help. (clearly, I am not superwoman. ;))

Love this girl!

And this one! Sweet sisters working together.

Even little sister helped!

I have been on a strict no fat diet for about a month. Well, tonight I decided to have some delicious Taco soup and unfortunately, it didn't quite agree with me.... :(
So while I was nursing my hurting tummy, my kids went ahead and started scripture study and were in a serious discussion about obeying your parents (they were talking about Lamen and Lemuel).
I HAD to catch the faces and discussion that was taking place....

Love, love, LOVE Weston's face in this one.

Upside down scriptures. At least she is trying!

After scripture study, my kids peacefully went to sleep. HEAVEN!!! Let's have more of these nights, ok kids?? ;)

I've realized that THESE are the moments that need to be documented for their family history.
I also realize that this may be boring to some. Sorry!! :)

What a GREAT night!

Sisters...

2011-05-17T18:49:00.000-07:00

Can I just say how much I LOVE these girls?? They are already SO close. They love each other and have so much patience for each other. It amazes me and makes my heart swell every time I see them together. Today, I was so sick (actually 4 of us were) and I walked into the "little" girls room and this was the sight I caught. I had to capture it so that I can remember this tender moment that I walked into.

Brynn reading fairytales out loud.

I love Ellie's face in this one.

I think it is so important to really nurture these relationships between siblings. This summer, that will be my goal. To cut down on the yelling, to take more time and to teach them to take time for each other, and to do fun bonding things together. I am SUCH a blessed mother and I KNOW that they had already formed a bond in heaven. Now it is my job to keep it that way!

California Vacation * picture overload*

2011-04-29T15:05:00.000-07:00

I loved our California vacation!! After we came home from Florida (see post below) we took about a days rest and drove the kids to Disneyland in California!! They were SO excited. None of them had ever been, so this was a long awaited and long overdue trip. We took my littlest sister Laurel with us which was SUCH a great help! We stayed at the Disneyland Hotel (which all the rooms are almost done being renovated), in a 2 bedroom suite, and it was BEAUTIFUL, we couldn't have been more pleased!!! We ended up only staying for 3 days but we loved it SO much that we are already planning our next Disney trip in January. We are just undecided about taking them to Disneyland or Disney World. We aren't quite sure if they are old enough for D-World yet. :)
WARNING: there a TON of pics! ;)

Right when we got to the hotel, Goofy was there to meet us!

Weston on the GIANT Mickey carousel

Caden

Ok... I love these next series of photos...

Happy to be on the carousel ride...

"Wait, why is it moving like this?"

"Ok... I'm not sure if I like this anymore..."

"Ok, now I'm TERRIFIED!!"

Camille loved EVERY ride she went on. We had to pry her off of every ride! LOL!

Nice view!

Ellie at the World of Color show

Lexie and Tia Laurel at the World of Color show

Caden and Camille

Waiting for the show to start

Mickey!

The World of Color show was SO beautiful

Lexie and Cami

Lexie

My sweet Brynn

Daddy and Camille

My four princesses!!! LOVE THEM!!!

So funny... Cami tried to open this door for at least a half hour. (It doesn't open)

knocking.... anyone home?

Sweet little girl...

Say CHEESE!!

So cute... waiting for the teacups

Ellie waiting for the teacups

Her "new" smile

On the teacup ride

WOO!!!

We LOVE Disneyland

With the fairy godmother

Trapped.

Caden and Lexie

Caden

Ellie

Mike being silly

Camille looking tired

My Brynnie winnie

Watching the firework show from our hotel room

Finding all the fairies while waiting to meet Tinkerbell

Waiting

With the boy fairy (can't remember his name).. Cami's face cracks me up.

The kids shrunk!

With Tinkerbell!!

Cheese!

3 of my Princesses with Cinderella

With Peter Pan... we don't ever want to grow up either!

In front of the sleeping beauty statue

Tia Laurel...

Sleeping beauty's castle

Our FAVORITE Disney Princess... Sleeping beauty

My kids are cute!

with Ariel

Awww... MY Prince Charming!

Smooches!

On the Jungle ride. Can't remember the name.

She is always posing. :)

Zoolander face

Rock it out Weston

Camille and Mommy (bad pic of me, but Camille is just too cute in it!)

All the gang

All the kiddos

Camille in the middle of saying "Mouse!"

My sweet boys

Can't wait to come back SOON!!!

Florida Vacation 2011

2011-04-29T13:34:00.000-07:00

I know, I know... I am SO behind in my blogging. I haven't really had the motivation to get back to "real life".... but, it's been over a month now so I guess I had better share our WONDERFUL vacations!! I'm just so glad that we get to go back in January! YAY!! :)

So, to start, Michael and I went to Florida for our anniversary. We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Resort in the Jambo House.

It was BEAUTIFUL. We will FOR SURE be staying there again. I wish I would have gotten better pictures of our hotel room, but we did get video so maybe I will post that. ;)
Here is us at the Animal Kingdom, the Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. I love anything Disney and I could go there 5 times a year. It really is the happiest place on earth!! :)

Me at the animal Kingdom

Mike in front of the tree of life

We did this a lot! Haha

Giant Dinosaur.

Waiting in line for the Himilayan Adventure ride (I think that's what it's called)

Mike pretending he is a Jedi

Us in front of the Star Wars thingy

Tower of Terror!!!

One of my favorite rides EVER.

I look swollen and tired. Yuck.

Our african safari.

The animals were so close!

White Rhino

We could have reached out and touched it, that's how close we were!

This one makes me LOL

BIG gorilla

This is my "take the picture already!" face

Aerosmith ride, also a favorite

Mike @ Hollywood studios

Me @ Hollywood studios

We were so sad to be going home!! :( We LOVE Florida!!

It truly was THE BEST anniversary to date. 12 years together and still going strong. I couldn't imagine my life with anyone else and I KNOW how lucky I am!!
Oh and Mike also spoiled me and bought me my first Louis Vuitton handbag and luggage. They are beautiful!!

Galliera GM (didn't get a pic of my keepall 55, but you get the picture :))

(I truly am so spoiled...) :)

So much to do... so little time.

2011-02-27T13:40:00.000-08:00

Our anniversary is coming up.... I CAN NOT WAIT to stay here.

In our one bedroom suite....

And THEN we will spend 3 days here. Disney world!!! :) This will be our first vacation WITHOUT kids and I have a "to do" list a mile long and the anxiety is slowly creeping in....

BUT... because my husband is amazing AND a sucker for his kiddos... we will be coming home and turning around and going here for 4 days:

It's gonna be a FUN week. :)

Some days I wish I could be Michelle Duggar...

2011-01-21T21:34:00.000-08:00

*DISCLAIMER: This may or may not be a self pity post.*

There are some things in life that are just very sad to me.
One of these things is seeing how quickly my children are growing. I never in a million years thought that I would regret starting a family so young and so fast.
Now I kind of do.

I've been in a funk lately. More like the past couple of months. Things just aren't getting done around here to the "Jessie" standard. The laundry is backed up, there are cupboards and drawers that are disorganized, my closet is A MESS! My purse is even cluttered!! The only thing that I have managed to do is keep up with my coupons (which I attribute to the fact that I am a couponsense member AND can do it comfortably from my favorite spot on my couch - until I have to go to the store, that is).

Lately I have felt an absence of something in my life. Yesterday I realized that usually by the time my babies are Camille's age, I am pregnant.
I am not.

Then I realized that Camille is most likely my last baby and that I will NEVER again be pregnant. I will never again feel a tiny life inside my stomach. I will never again feel morning sickness (maybe that's a good thing! ;)), I will never buy sweet little baby clothes or nurse a baby and watch them fall asleep on my chest. I will never again be able to smooch on sweet baby breath and give those baby baths that are just so precious.
I had 6 children so close together and so early on, that I am done having children by the time many people my age are just beginning their families.

I think I'm grieving.

On a happier note, isn't my "baby" so cute?!! I wonder what this new season in my life will be like....

This brought me comfort tonight:
Through prayerful communication, each woman has the responsibility to find and follow her personal timetable. She sets priorities and follows gospel principles in different ways through the varying seasons of her life. A faithful woman knows that the Lord’s hand will guide her: “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Prov. 3:6.)

I know HE will.

** Post Edit*** I don't EVER rule out having more children... these were just my feelings tonight...

This is what sisters are for...

2011-01-18T20:39:00.001-08:00

I love that my girls play so nicely. Please forgive my (annoying) voice in the background. :)

Procrastination

2011-01-18T01:01:00.000-08:00

I am writing this as a reminder to myself to STOP PROCRASTINATING.

I am so out of shape.... I literally get winded going up and down the stairs sometimes. It's pitiful.
I have been delaying getting back into running for a number of reasons:

1) I have severe knee problems. About a month ago, My knee would start to swell for no apparent reason. It would HURT too. It hasn't done it for a while so I am hoping with some good stretching, I can take advantage of this beautiful weather and get back into a good running routine again. I felt SO GOOD when I was exercising daily. I also want to do Zumba. It's on amazon and ordered. Hopefully it will be the cardio "break" I need on the days that I'm not running.

2) I wanted to have another baby. That doesn't look like it's happening (for whatever reason). It's not my plan. It's His. So....... I don't know why I'm waiting to get in shape "just in case" I get preggo.

SO..... here is my reminder to myself to do a few things.
a)get in shape (with it: drink more water and get more sleep)
b) clean my room (it's been a dumping ground for weeks)
c) finish up my laundry

I better get to bed. 6AM comes awfully early. :)

A New Year... new goals.

2011-01-03T21:45:00.000-08:00

I hate making New Years resolutions. I never stick to them and I probably choose ones that are too obscure and unattainable that the goal then becomes easy to forget or not care about achieving.
THIS year, I only want to accomplish ONE thing....

I want to BE the mother I have always envisioned in my head.

I want to be the June Cleaver type of mother with a modern twist. The one that bakes in the afternoons and has all the chores for the day completed instead of napping on the couch. The mother that has time to listen to ALL her children and doesn't rush them to eat so that we can get on to the next thing in life. I want to REALLY savor every smile, wink, nod, cute saying and funny face that each of my children make. I want to be the mother that always has fun things planned on our days off and the mother that pushes the world aside in order to make that happen. I want to make a HUGE celebration of EVERY birthday (theme included), I want to make EVERY holiday memorable this year. Complete with accompanying meals and treats. I want my children to KNOW with every fiber of their being that I was HERE and aware of every need/want/desire/pain that was in their hearts.

Maybe I am taking on too much. Maybe all my mommy blogging friends are already like this and you are thinking "uh...duh, why aren't you doing all these things already?" (I probably do most, but it doesn't hurt to resolve to do better ;)) and.... Maybe I won't succeed like I want to, but I'm GOING to try.

Here is to 2011 and new goals (and achievements)

Merry Christmas...

2010-12-24T19:21:00.000-08:00

From our family to yours on this VERY SPECIAL eve...

Sweet girl.

2010-12-08T09:32:00.000-08:00

Ellie on her way to pre-school.

Are there any other moms out there see their kids and want to bite their cheeks and just squish them with love??? Yeah.... I'm that mom.
I LOVE this picture AND this girl. I could squish her right now. :)

Just precious

2010-11-18T20:46:00.000-08:00

I walked into my boys room to clean it today and this is what I found:

These are the moments that I live for!!

An afternoon at the Wise home...

2010-11-18T16:37:00.000-08:00

Lexie... busy with her make-up work from being sick...

Caden... with his new favorite love..... READING!!!

Brynn- practicing her heart out

Ellie with her turkey she made at preschool
(and she is already in her jammies!! LOL)

Weston- went right from walking in the door after picking up the big kids from school...
to this... and hasn't moved!
School must be hard stuff! ;)

Bedroom update

2010-10-17T23:39:00.000-07:00

Going shopping this week for new comforters, curtains and accessories! Woo Hoo. :)

The start of B&L's room transformation

2010-10-15T13:02:00.000-07:00

I am currently in the process of redecorating my older girls room. They have had a light pink theme in there and now they are ready for a more "sophisticated" style (oh brother....).... SO, this is the pallet that I am working with:

Greys/blues/whites/silvers/crystals

So.... Today, I started with this old rickety dresser. I really liked the shape and size of the dresser and it was proportionate to their room.

Before

This is what I did with it. The girls LOVE it, I LOVE it and the hubby LOVES it!! Score.

Now I just need to get painting (the walls) and shopping for new bed sets and accessories and I need to add the crystal drawer pulls to it. :)

After

Oi!

2010-10-11T00:50:00.000-07:00

Have I told ya'll how much I LOVE my husband? (Don't quite know why I'm using my southern accent tonight-but I'll go with it. ;))

My sweet husband preparing for my birthday party this past year

Well, I do.... like, A LOT.

Funny story:
SO.... our 6 year old son has been trying SO hard for weeks to get 100% on his spelling test. It just hasn't happened yet. He has studied, gone to tutoring, studied some more and it's been frustrating for him.... and that's OK. I'm actually glad that he is working so hard for something because WHEN he does get it, he will appreciate it. He will also be so proud of his hard work.

So... here is my son, sitting in the middle of class as the teacher is announcing the students who got 100%. As she is announcing, she is writing them down on the whiteboard. Finally, she announces the last name and Caden's name is NOT on it.
All of a sudden while her back is turned, she hears "DAM$%T!!!" very loud throughout the class. She turns and says, "Who said that?".... all fingers get pointed at Caden.
Ugh. *facepalm*
OF COURSE, I get the phone call.

Now, I know that may not seem like a very funny story to most people. In all honesty, I was HORRIFIED that he had done that! I very rarely even think swear words, much less say them.

BUT, my hubby is a bit different. He grew up with those words being used on a regular basis. He has curbed them dramatically, but every once in a while, it slips out. He knows this, and has vowed to be better for the sake of our children and to set a better example to them.

Here is the funny part: My sweet husband decides to let the ENTIRE elders quorum in on our little story. (I guess they had a lesson on repentance or something. Idk.)

I swear that man has no shame. At least you know with us, what you see IS what you get. ;)

I love this man.
Did you know that he...

throws me a birthday party EVERY year
calls his girls princesses every day
lets me sleep 4 hours at a time on Sundays
will randomly stop at Dillards or Nordstroms and buy me a new coach purse/wallet/sunglasses... you name it.
sends me text pictures of what he is doing randomly during the day
stays up talking to me every night about anything and everything. (yes, I get tired but it's well worth it.)
Calls me beautiful every day. :)

I really and truly am grateful that the Lord sent me my perfect match.

I love you babe...

Thoughts on the General Relief Society Meeting

2010-09-26T14:16:00.000-07:00

WOW... last night was an uplifting and inspiring night! I am so grateful for graceful and virtuous women of the church who lead and direct us.
I LOVED President Monson and his sweet, kind (and a bit funny) spirit. How lucky are we???
I want to jot down my thoughts on the evening. Forgive me if this is jumbled. I'm re-reading my notes and trying to remember as best I can. :)

Here are my thoughts on the evening:

Julie B. Beck
I almost burst into tears when I started listening to her. I think in the first 5 minutes of listening to her speak she said "There are signs of great struggle everywhere".... I almost lost it when she said that. I think I needed to hear that. I have been feeling the weight of the world lately, it seems. From, my family to my husbands family and their constant criticizing of our Faith.... to the struggles that I see good families going through, to the filth that is constantly surrounding my children and Satan's thirst for good souls to turn away from righteousness.... I have felt the burden lately.
In her talk she spoke about women of the church needing to keep their identities and to do this there were things that we needed to do:

Increase Faith
Strengthen Family
Seek counsel to avoid personal conflicts
Understand the history of RS
we need to serve others - personal service builds the identity of each sister.
We need to take care of the essential things and that which will strengthen us.

HOLY SMOKES!! It is humbling when you hear something that you KNOW to be true, and yet you just haven't quite put into action. That last line really sank in with me: "We need to take care of the essential things and that which will strengthen us".

How true this statement is for me. I have now set NEW goals (feels like I'm ALWAYS setting goals! Haha!). Keep the essential... cut everything else out.

I loved one of the last quotes that she said... "We study history because it helps us change."

I decided that my daughters and I will start learning more about the early women of the church. If anyone has any good books or articles, please let me know!

Silvia H. Allred

Um hello Sister Allred, thank you for making me cry. (In a good way. ;))

Did everyone else turn into bawl babies when she told that story of the sweet family who traveled 27 hours to the nearest Temple... to have their children sealed to them, only to have their children die on the way back home? NEVER AGAIN will I complain that the Temple is "too far".

Sister Allred spoke about 4 things that we can do as women to strengthen our homes and be better mothers.

Prayer - the act of Communicating with our Heavenly Father
Scripture Study - this gives us knowledge and understanding of Heavenly Fathers plan and let's us know who we are and where we are going.
Obedience - Faithful obedience will help us develop Godly attributes and help us become like God.
Service - The Lord expects those who are strong to strengthen the weak and through this, the strong AND weak will be strengthened.

Sister Thompson

Sister Thompson spoke about Visiting Teaching. This is something that is dear to me. I never had a real testimony of visiting teaching until I became a VT supervisor. I have slowly built my testimony line upon line, and boy has it grown!! I love the sisters I visit and I love my companion. Visiting teaching is an inspired work!!

Sister Thompson said that we needed to have compassion for those we teach, that we needed to have love and mercy and kindness and tenderness towards one another.

I love that she said that we need to LOVE, KNOW, SERVE, UNDERSTAND, and TEACH in His behalf. How true this statement was to me. We are our brothers (or in this case Sisters) keeper. We need to always keep this in the back of our minds when we make our visits. It's not just about "getting the numbers in"... it's about administering on behalf of our Heavenly Father.

President Monson

Oh how I love the prophet!!! I distinctly remember as a youth feeling SO lost, SO many times.

I had a book written by President Monson that was full of stories and anecdotes. I would often turn to this book for comfort, solace and a lift me up, whenever I was feeling low. I TRULY feel like President Monson helped to get me through my teen years. My love for him has increased as I have sustained him as our living Prophet on this earth.

His topic was: "What do we see when we look at others?" ~ I LOVED the story of the woman who criticized her neighbors "dirty" laundry that hung out on the line, only to find out that she was looking out of dirty windows the entire time.

It really made me evaluate the way I look at others. Am I always seeing the best? Am I judging before I know all the facts? Am I choosing to get offended easily?

I am really taking a harder look at myself from now on.

I loved this quote from him. "True charity is LOVE in ACTION".

I will be washing my windows very thoroughly from now on. ;)

With all this being said, I for one, am looking forward to General Conference next week!

There is beauty all around....

2010-09-25T12:10:00.000-07:00

I am so thankful for the simple lessons that Heavenly Father teaches us throughout the day. I pray every morning that my heart and mind will be open and ready to hear these lessons as they are taught.

I had one of these lessons today...
We (my husband and I) got up early this morning to do some much needed yard work. It's not always bad or hard work... Most of the time I actually LIKE it! I even sacrifice limbs to get it done! ;)
There is just one part of yard work that I CAN'T STAND.

The weeds.

I sat there today, cursing them (in my head) to crawl back into the hole they came in.
I thought about the easy ones to pull (I kind of like those ones), they are big weeds but yank out pretty easily. I thought about the small pesky ones and how their roots spring up in many, many different places and how they work together to create one LARGE weed that is a pain in my side to pull out.

So as I was sitting there pulling the weeds to get them out so we can spray and be rid of them, and grumbling and wishing how there was never such a thing... I looked up and saw my husband and daughter working together putting the clippings into the trash.
THAT RIGHT THERE made me smile.
For all the ugly (the weeds) there most certainly was beauty.
Not only was our yard now beautiful, but the sight of my daughter coming out to willingly help her parents and the sight of my husband teaching his daughter how to maintain and care for something, was beautiful in my mind.

With all things there must be an opposition. Had Eve not partaken of the fruit, we may always be single minded.... but because Adam fell, we may now have JOY.
With the trials and ugly that can sometimes surround us and for the weeds that may grow in our lives, there is beauty that GREATLY surpasses it!

Have a BEAUTIFUL and GLORIOUS Saturday, my friends!!

Growing up is hard stuff...

2010-09-17T12:39:00.000-07:00

Today was such a hard day and it's not even half over!!!

Brynn had student council elections today. Seriously, this is tough stuff for a momma bear. Brynn woke up this morning and was so excited. I asked her if she was nervous and she said "No".... SHE WAS AS COOL AS A CUCUMBER!
Me, on the other hand... not so much.

So... the little ones and I, went to her school for flag ceremony. She did GREAT on her speech. I wish I would have been a better mom and recorded it. It was SO cute! :)

We left after her speech. I was way too nervous and I wanted her to have a good day, despite the results. (There were a ton of kids running for office!)

We sat and agonized until 11:30... then it was time to pick her up.
I pulled up to get her and I saw that her face was SO SAD.... ugh. My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach. WHY DO WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH THIS???

Caden's teacher opened the car door and patted Brynn on the back and said, "Well Brynn, you did a good job."

In my head I thought.. oh, poor girl she really didn't get it...

THEN she said, "Congratulations!" and shut the car door.

I looked at Brynn and she got the BIGGEST smile on her face!!! little stinker.
Me: Did you win? Brynn: YES!

-------> insert screaming throughout the entire car here <-------

Thoughts:
I am so proud of my baby girl. She worked hard for this. She thought about and carefully planned out her campaign. She stayed up late at night for many nights practicing her speech and getting the timing/voice intonation/hand gestures JUST right.
Her hard work payed off and I, sure am one proud and HAPPY momma. :)

The new Legacy Traditional School k-6 TREASURER

Congrats sweetheart!

Cluttered corners

2010-09-03T11:28:00.000-07:00

the "clutter corner" of my kitchen

I was in the shower the other night (I often do my best thinking in the shower... and YES, it was at night. Somedays I just don't have time in the morning.. ;))
I started thinking about my day and about the spots in the house left to clean and organize..
these were my thoughts:
"the corner of the kitchen is ALWAYS unorganized... maybe I can find an organizer at Target.. hmm maybe hobby lobby will have them cheaper, maybe Mike will take a day off work and go with me?
Ugh.. my closet is a mess. I need to run down to Ikea one of these days and price out closet organizers. I need a craft room. Maybe we can take everything out of the loft and I can put all my stuff in there.... yeah, NO WAY. Cami is into EVERYTHING. The laundry is a mess. I wonder where all the game stuff can go that is in there. I need to reorganize the linen closet. Maybe the games will fit up there?...."

Then, I realized that there are just spots in my home that are ALWAYS unorganized or not as neat as I like them.

I shared my thoughts with my husband one night while laying in bed, and we started talking about this subject in terms of spirituality.
Spiritually speaking, we have spots in our lives that are just not as neat and organized as we would like them. Some things we do REALLY, REALLY well... and others, not so much.
It was really nice to sit and identify those parts of our lives that we need to tidy up. I always feel like our lives are ever changing and we need to keep growing and improving... maybe that is all this is. I don't know, but we have challenged each other to do better.... maybe if we succeed in this, I can work on my home and kick this clutter too!!!

(Sorry, I understand if these are boring posts to some, but I need to write this down for myself sometimes. :))

First Day of Pre-school

2010-08-23T20:58:00.000-07:00

I know, I know... I'm a week late. I'm a bad mom....

BUT, here is Ellie's first day of pre-school!!! She was SO excited!!

All ready to go!!!

Shy girl.... hiding in the safest spot.. Daddy's heart. (awww)

After a few tears, here is the "after school" photo.
TWO THUMBS UP FOR SCHOOL!!! :)

Brynn and Lexie

2010-08-23T20:50:00.000-07:00

Lexie (L) and Brynn (R) - 2005 (ish)

Lexie (L) and Brynn (R) - 2010

My baby boy

2010-08-09T12:22:00.000-07:00

I don't know why... but I'm on a sentimental streak.... bare with me.

Baby Weston - roughly 2 years old

Kindergartner Weston - 5 years old

My Lexie Girl

2010-08-08T19:57:00.000-07:00

Where did the time go?!!! This is Lexie when she was about 2.

This is Lexie about a couple of months ago.

Time flies....

Look what we learned to do!!!

2010-08-07T13:05:00.000-07:00

*Disclaimer* - Please excuse the messy stove/floor/baby.... it was in the process of being cleaned. ;)

Time for a new post

2010-08-07T00:28:00.001-07:00

Yeah, it's BEEN time for a new post.
We have been so busy with getting everything ready for the new school year to start, I have slacked on my blog promise.
So......

Here I sit at 12:41 in the morning with a GIANT "to-do" list tomorrow starting at 6:30 in the morning.

With that in mind, I will just do a quick re-cap of the past weeks activities:

I colored my hair..... again. This time, I took it back to the original. It feels good to be a (dark) brunette again. :)

Weston had 4 teeth pulled.... we have really bad genetics (teeth wise) and are EXTREMELY prone to cavities... poor guy, he happened to suffer from it the worst. BUT... it's all done and he looks GREAT!

My sister Bianca's birthday.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY B!!! (P.S. Check out that cake! My step-mom and sisters are amazing cake decorators - if you need their number, just ask!)

Oh yeah, and last but not least, it rained. Who knew we had moisture in AZ?! It was incredible. :)

2010-08-01T23:44:00.000-07:00

It's GREAT to be EIGHT!!!

2010-06-21T10:56:00.000-07:00

This Saturday, my sweet Lexie made the very wonderful decision to be baptized and become a member of the church!!
I am SO VERY proud of my sweet girl and her decision. What a wonderful day it was for our family!!

A sweet girl dressed in white...

The 3 little beauties that were baptized on Saturday...

In the bunny suit! Gotta love it!

Fresh out of the waters of baptism!!!

Words CANNOT express how I feel when my children make such wonderful decisions. My heart swells with pride!!

Lexie,

Someday, you will read this.... I want you to KNOW that as long as you are following our Heavenly Fathers direction, listening to the Holy Ghost, and trying to be like our Lord and Savior ~ Jesus Christ.... you will NEVER be led astray.

I know that sometimes you will be faced with hard decisions in your life and that sometimes the adversary will try to make bad things seem good and good things seem bad. I hope and pray that you keep the same spirit that you have with you right now, so that you may be able to recognize the difference from things that are of the Saviors plan and things that are not.

You are TRULY a daughter of a Heavenly King!!! His divine heritage radiates from within you... you glow.

I love you my little Lexie Paige. You bless my life everyday...

Love always,

Mommy

I am a baby.

2010-05-27T18:57:00.000-07:00

I sat today. A lot actually.
It was just one of those days. Brynn has been sick all day today and right now she is my right hand (well, actually my left hand. - eh' tomato, tamato).
So... a majority of today has been spent observing (and watching) Camille.
And i understand her MUCH better now.
See... she falls on her face. A bunch.
I can't imagine how aggravating that might be.
Her Day: She gets out of her jumpy and sees a piece of toast that was left on the ground from an earlier child eating breakfast (not gonna name any names... *clears throat* ahem, LEXIE!!) and goes for it. With all her little body's might, she charges forward, but her hand catches on the edge of the carpet and she face plants into the tile.
Don't worry, no blood, no broken nose, but a hurt ego...
I pick up the toast before she can get to it and the opportunity has passed.

Later that day, she catches a glimpse of my soda sitting at my feet. This time she has carefully braced herself on the handle of her bouncy swing (AND might I add, being SUCH a cute big girl) But yet again, she drops what she is doing and with the determination of a bull, she lunges for it but falls from the bouncy handle that she is bracing herself on. That leaves me just enough time to reach down and grab my soda out of a chubby baby's way.

I could go on and on... but needless to say, she has had a frustrating day. and by the end of the day, she is done.

Funny thing is that, as i am observing her, I TOTALLY GOT HER!! (ding! lighbulb.)

My life is filled with so many of these "fall on my face moments".
Times in which I want something SO BAD and with all my might, go for it, and the opportunity passes, and I face plant.
OR, times in which I am doing something so well and I think i am finally getting the hang of it (like Camille's standing), and I fall. For no reason. I just fall/fail. It can be SO frustrating and EASY to lose faith in yourself or The Man upstairs.

BUT, what I learned from my sweet Cami, is that we get right back up...
yeah...we may have days in which by the time we lay our head on our pillows and say that last prayer for the day, we are DONE.

And that's ok.
Because tomorrow is a new day.... and EVENTUALLY Camille WILL stand and then she WILL walk.
And I have FAITH that I will too.
Wow. I'm such a baby.

P.S. I love summer... and my kids.

Hi... Where did my baby go???

2010-05-24T21:55:00.000-07:00

I think Camille is sensing my weakness in my hurt finger...
Our baby has gone from a sweet cuddly thing to this...

She is overthrowing the rulers with tantrums and escape missions (AKA- going up the stairs when we aren't looking)
Ahhh....
I'm tired.
But LOVE HER to pieces... :)

Some cute pics... (cause I'm too lazy to blog right now)

2010-05-23T20:10:00.000-07:00

My finger hurts... so instead of blogging, I'm gonna upload some pics that I think are cute. :)

Some Halloween pictures... Halloween 2009

What Camille has been doing a LOT of lately... May 2010
Me... big and preggo with Cami-girl. :) (May 2009- 8 months pregnant)
Baby Camille... July 2009
Smiley girl... August 2009
Halloween 2007...
Ellie in her baby blessing outfit... June 2007
Brynn studying... it's a weird feeling when you have a child old enough to do "research"...

April 2010
Aunt Vicki with Ellie! May 2010
Baby Ellie (6 months old- September 2007)
Big Ellie girl!! 3 years old. (May 2010)
Handsome Weston (February 2010)

What happens when you lose a finger.

2010-05-21T21:41:00.000-07:00

#1) You're kitchen gets trashed... (shame) ~ Oh well, just keepin it real. (my kids were scavengers today)

#2) You sit like a bum on the couch, watch tv, surf the web and read gossip mags.

For real though, the vicodin is kickin' my can...

P.S. I didn't really lose my finger. It just hurts a WHOLE LOT.

Side effects of not listening to your husband (and his priesthood)

2010-05-20T22:19:00.000-07:00

So, today I decided to try to "help" by going out front and trimming the hedges and bushes and trees in our front yard. Mike told me to wait, but (as usual), I got impatient.
And THIS is what happened....

I was using our electric hedge trimmer and reached down to move the cord out of the way and sliced my finger. OUCH!

I will lose the tip of my finger and a portion of my nail (it will grow back)... I guess my acrylic nail saved my finger from being cut through to the bone!
See... fake nails can be a safety tool. Ha ha. :)

My kids immediately called this woman, my mama in law, and she rushed on over to take me to the doctor..

AND LUCKILY, this young woman (my sissy) was at my house and immediately dropped all her plans to watch my kids while I went to urgent care..

And where in the world would I be without the love of my life to take care of me... He met me at the urgent care and held my hand while I was poked and prodded.... I LOVE HIM!!!

Soooo.... for the next few days, these will be my best friends...

Good thing I was almost finished with the front yard... I won't have to do it for a while!
Just kidding.

Dear ... ,

2010-05-19T21:45:00.001-07:00

Dear Phoenix Suns,
Please stop giving my husband a heart attack.
I would also greatly appreciate you not giving him a reason to yell at the T.V.
Okay? - Here... here is a demonstration on how to master the jump shot. You can give thanks to my nephew Brennan. ;)
Thank you in advance,
Jess

Dear Ellie,
I think it's time to pass these shorts down to Camille....
I do love the bootylicious-ness, but it's time.
Love,
Mommy

Our Graduate... :)

2010-05-18T20:13:00.000-07:00

CONGRATULATIONS to our newest pre-school graduate!!! I LOVE this boy...

He is the kindest, most loving, giving and honest boy any mother could have and I am SO proud he is mine...

I can't believe he will be in kindergarten next year. It's amazing how time flies...

Thanks Stacie for an awesome pre-school experience! Can't wait for Ellie to go next year!!!

(See below for a cute graduation video.. :))

In our ongoing health update... Lexie is now down for the count. Fever, stomach ache and headache... poor girl... (she is gonna kill me when she sees this photo. Hee, hee. ;))

LAST MONDAY OF THE SCHOOL YEAR!!!

2010-05-17T17:44:00.000-07:00

Today started off by having this little girl (and Ellie) sick as can be... Mommy only got 1 hour of sleep (LITERALLY!!! from 5-6AM ~ darn alarm)

THEN... it was off to go pick up my sisters laptop at the Apple store at San Tan Mall (excuse the white-trashedness of my childs outfit... don't worry, we didn't go in, we waited in the car ;))

self portrait with sunglasses that are #1) cheap (my expensive ones were left at Kohls the other day... ARG!)

and #2) don't fit me (hence the poking out ear)

WOO HOO - a working lappy again!

We spent most of the day TRYING to sleep.. until the kids came home... Brynn ALWAYS makes Camille happy ...

Being entertained by the piano...

Caden waiting (not so) patiently for daddy to get home...

FINALLY... she felt better... after a massive blow up or ..err, rather blow OUT....

and off to bed we go!.... Good night folks!

Good. Better. Best.

2010-05-16T22:34:00.000-07:00

I haven't been very good at keeping up with my blog.... I keep saying I need to be better, but I never do.

I want to use this blog as documentation of our life and the memories (regardless of how mundane they may seem to others ;)) we create.

SO.... here is my go at an everyday post... with picture... wish me luck! I'll try my BEST to be BETTER... (I know, I'm nuts and will probably fail~ Lol)

Friday...
Ellie trying on Mommy's broken glasses... this girl lights up my life. I thought this picture was too cute NOT to post.

We also had Caden's kindergarten graduation/end of year performance... We had to go to the one during the day because we couldn't go to the evening performance. It was TOO CUTE! We love our Caden boy! :)

Saturday..
Camille with my Dad ( I LOVE this picture..)

before the ceremony started
the processional
BIANCA!!!

We had Bianca's (my sister) graduation... WAY TO GO B!!! It was awesome and I am glad I got to go. On the other side of town, Michael had his brother Daniel's graduation that he went to. We split the kids and went to each separately. GO DANIEL!!! We are so proud of these two graduates. :D

Sunday...

I came down with a HUGE migraine Saturday night (I still have it) and so we have just layed around all day today. It feels good to be able to actually sleep a migraine off. I hate them and if someone finds a cure, PLEASE let me be the first to know...
So, after baths tonight, I decided to take a picture of my sweet girl with her new ear piercings. :) (She got them done on Saturday night)
I LOVE Camille... she's getting so big... it hurts my heart, just a bit. ;)

8 years and the time has FLOWN!!

2010-04-24T00:27:00.000-07:00

8 years ago on April 23rd 2002.... Lexus Paige Wise was born into this world and laid into our arms...

and our world has never been the same since.

Thank you Lexie...

For teaching us patience
For showing us how to smile during the hard times
For LOVING life
For being fun and cheerful
For being kind...and showing mommy how to be kinder..
For being a flirt
For knowing how to dress and how NOT to dress
For having an honest opinion when it comes to the "Parental" wardrobe
For being honest. Period.
For being goofy
For being smart
For being our daughter... BOTH here and for Eternity...

We couldn't have asked for a better more beautiful daughter.... WE LOVE YOU LEXIE!!!!

Update....

2010-04-21T22:03:00.001-07:00

Have you met the COOLEST little chick in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD?!!??? ~ Well, if not, you are missing out...

Actually, I have 3 other SUPER cool chicks that live with me (and that I happened to co-create), but this is the 10 month old (almost) version. ;)

I cannot believe how big she has gotten and how FAST it has gone!!! Mothers and soon to be mamas, PLEASE hold, snuggle and smell that little infant as long as you can... it all passes WAY too quickly. I am so grateful for this little girl in my life. My girls are all so different... I have a serious scholar, a spastic extrovert, a cunning and super scrumptious manipulator (TRY to get that girl to do her chores- I dare ya!), and then I have my sweet, sweet Camille....

I just LOVE HER!!! I am so blessed to be her mom. I love her sweet baby smell, I love how she crawls on mainly one leg, I love how she wiggles her eyebrows at me when she wants something, I love how she KNOWS when I have a soda and wants a sip, I love how she will leave bows in her hair, I love how I want to eat (LITERALLY) her fat chunky thighs.... I love... well, you get the picture.... ;)
I am especially grateful for all these precious girls when I am in a funk... I wrote a silly, self indulgent (feeling down about certain relationships with people and feeling "not good enough" blah, blah, blah...) post that I scrapped. I feel dumb posting about my "trials" when I feel I have people around me who have endured much harder trials than I have... and these women seem so much more put together than me!!!.... SO.... I will just leave you with this picture of me with NO make-up and in my lazy lounge clothes... when I get into a funk, this is exactly how I feel. At least I have cute little girls that like to distract me with playing on photo booth. :)

Here is to a NEW tomorrow and for a night of counting ALL my blessing (I have many)....

Oh.... and I love this man.... A LOT!!! :)

Nobody ever died of a broken heart...but it still hurts.

2010-02-16T17:39:00.001-08:00

Tonight I am comforting a very broken hearted little 3rd grader...

Her best friend at school today told her that she didn't think it was a good idea that they were friends anymore. Brynn has no idea why and doesn't understand it at all....

Really, neither do I. I know that all kids make mistakes... but Brynn is so sweet, I can't imagine what happened. I guess Brynn tried to talk to her about it but there was no answer.

I guess I am at a loss for how to deal with this at this age. She has no other girl friends in the class and as she put it to me, "But mommy, this is my VERY BEST friend." ~ Oh how my heart is breaking for her....

I know that this experience will make her stronger, I know that this is probably just the beginning of much heartache for her, but WOW, who knew I would hurt so much over it!!!

This really makes me think of our Heavenly Father... how it must be the same for Him, with even the slightest heartbreak that we must endure. I have always known that He hurts during my greatest trials and during my greatest losses. Now I KNOW how he hurts even with the smallest pain.... He must want to scoop me up in His arms and rock me to sleep, like I will do with Brynn tonight (yes, she is 8 BUT still MY baby girl).

Tonight will be a night full of lessons. Brynn will have to rely on her faith in prayer, she will have to be strong going into school knowing that, most likely, she will be playing alone...she will have to have the knowledge that this pain will only be temporary and that a brand new beginning awaits her at a new school next year...

I am so thankful for all of these life lessons that I get to see through the eyes of my children. I only HOPE that I can be as strong as them... to rely on Faith, to be strong to endure MY trials and to have the knowledge that this life is but a moment in my Eternity.

Post Edit: Brynn is VERY, VERY sad...

Post post edit: (for any of you hanging on to the edge of your seats, wondering what was going on with this 3rd grade soap opera) Brynn resolved her first conflict today. Evidently, her best friend was just having a bad day and decided to take it out on Brynn... all is well, all is well.

WOO HOO!!!!!

2010-02-12T13:05:00.000-08:00

I OFFICIALLY only have 1 child in diapers right now (I haven't had only one child in diapers for 8 YEARS!!)....What an amazing feeling. HOORAY for potty training!!!

Loan.

2010-02-10T23:33:00.000-08:00

loan [lohn]
–noun
1. the act of lending; a grant of the temporary use of something.
2. something lent or furnished on condition of being returned.
3. borrowed for temporary use.
4. temporarily provided or released by one's regular employer, superior, or owner for use by another.

I have 6 loans out right now.

My sweet little sister had gallbladder surgery tonight. I hate when someone you loves goes under the knife. Even though technology and medicine have come so far... you just never know when something could go wrong...

As I visited with people in the room after the surgery, someone asked me: "Are you tired with 6 kids?"

My answer: "No, not really. I look at it differently, They aren't my kids, they are on a loan from the Lord. They are HIS kids."

I came home tonight and checked in on my sleeping, peaceful babies. 6 beautiful, fun, spunky, energetic, thoughtful, exuberant, honest, celestial beings. ALL sent to me to be their mother while on our earthly voyage. I am truly humbled by them tonight.

How did I get to this place? What did I do to deserve even the smallest joy that comes from them? Why does HE trust me so much with HIS children? Am I doing enough? Are they learning enough? Do I handle punishments properly? Should I be better/faster/more attentive?

All of these questions are running through my head at the moment. Maybe it's just part of my OCD, but I am always reevaluating my job as a mother. It's my career for this season in life and I LOVE IT!

I do this because I know at some point, Heavenly Father is going to ask for HIS loan back. He will want these children back, hopefully, better than when he lent them to me. I am hoping that I am meeting and exceeding HIS standards.

Tonight, I will pray. Pray in thanks... that I GET to wake up at 6AM and see their smiling faces before they go to school.... in need... to help me to better understand each and every one of them..... and in humility... for lending me such wonderful gifts.

What a priceless loan.

Why I love these...

2010-01-12T21:29:00.000-08:00

P.S. I loathe photobucket sometimes.

New Hair!

2010-01-01T20:32:00.001-08:00

Before

After

I did it, I finally did it and I will be going blonder...soon! :)

P.S. Don't look too closely at my messy bedroom!

Christmas... AND I have been slackin'

2009-12-28T20:56:00.001-08:00

Holy moly! It's been 2 months since my last post! I do, however, have a (somewhat) reasonable explanation.... my flash on my "good" camera is broken. So.. for the meantime, you all will have to see Nikon D40less pictures....

Well, here is a picture that my Lexie managed to get of everything that Santa left. There were more things on the side of the tree but those didn't make it into the photo. I think that my kids were EXTRA good this year because MAN did they get a ton of stuff!!!

Christmas Eve was spent with my mom and little sister, Laurel. (Pictured: Lexie and Laurel) My mom and sister were too good to my kids... can we say that they are just a little bit spoiled???

Brynn even got a puppy!!! We are totally and completely in love with him! I think Mike and I may like him more than Brynn does. Ha, ha! (Never thought I would hear myself say that!)

Then on Christmas day, we spent the day with visitors in and out of our home... first our old missionaries (they were transferred out of our area), then Mike's mom, step-dad, brother and sister-in law. Then, his dad and step-mom followed by an unexpected but totally pleasant surprise visit by my mom.

All in all SUCH a great day!!! (I didn't take any pictures of Christmas day, but maybe I can convince my mother-in law to share the ones she took! :))

Since then... we have been enjoying our little Max...

And watching Camille grow like a weed...

Isn't she a cutie patootie???

And now I am ready for LOTS and LOTS of this during winter break...

A new do...

2009-10-22T21:40:00.000-07:00

BEFORE

AFTER

I think she's cute either way.... but, she looks much older now. That's a little bittersweet for a mama...

Either way.... She's a keeper!

And again.

2009-10-19T17:12:00.001-07:00

Yes, here I sit... sick...again.

It is a super vicious cycle that happens just about every six months (sometimes less). With 6 children and 2 adults in the house, it's bound to happen. We all share our germs and it rotates and festers and eventually all of us get it. Luckily I think it may be towards the tail end. My husband has had it, my baby has had it and Lexie and Brynn have had it. Now it is just the boys.

It came on strong and sudden and it hasn't been pretty. But.... we are managing. It's actually been nice to kind of put the brakes on some activities and just hunker down at home.

As mundane as it may sound.... it's not. And I love it. Especially when I get to wake up to these sweet faces every single morning.

Over the last few weeks, I have thought more and more about my life and my role as a mother. I have purposely taken time out of my day to acknowledge and really "see" my children. I think that with everything that we as mothers are given (in terms of responsibilities), it's easy to tell our children to "go play" or "I'm busy. I will do it later".

Life is precious, and we don't always know what our paths hold for us.

I want to "see" my children as Christ sees them. I want to watch them play and ENJOY it. What a beautiful and bounteous BLESSING I have been given... SIX TIMES!!!

Anyway, I want to start posting more and more, hopefully everyday, as this blog serves as a journal in a lot of ways for me and my family. So if it becomes mundane in your eyes, forgive me.

We have truly enjoyed today. Even if I am sick. :)

Why my kids are "special"

2009-10-15T13:09:00.001-07:00

Wow...

2009-10-13T13:14:00.000-07:00

It's been a while!!!
Lot's has gone on and I don't really even know where to begin.
My mother in law finally got married... we are so happy for her.

Here is my sweet hubby and I. (The flash was bugging his eyes) We were SO TIRED at the end of the night. Can you tell???

Then we were able to spend some time with my mom, sister and nephew Brennan.

We had movie night at our house. SO FUN. I love spending time with family...

Cousins!!! Ellie (jelly bean) and Brennan (Beans) are only 6 months apart. So CUTE!

Finally, my poor Camille got sick. :(
I hate it when my little ones get sick, I get SO PARANOID!!!

I haven't had much motivation to blog lately but hopefully with the holidays coming up I will post more... Hope everyone is well!!!

Bridal Shower...

2009-09-14T16:58:00.001-07:00

So... on Saturday, we (Vicki, Kendra and I) held a bridal shower for my mother in law. It turned out SO good and I am happy that everyone got along so well and had so much fun! Here are a few highlights...
Julie with her "soon to be" sister in law Melinda...

Julie with me... betcha didn't know you wanted to see up my nose, did ya? lol.

Julie with my seester-in-law (her daughter in law), Vicki. LOVE this girl.

Brynn as one of the models for the game we played...

Colleen, Another good sport...

AND, my favy fav.... NINJA BRIDE!!!!~ I guess you had to be there... haha.

Can't wait for the wedding..... :)

I feel the same way today, Cami....

2009-09-14T16:55:00.000-07:00

Ellie and her Camille

2009-09-13T17:12:00.000-07:00

She gets lots of practice doing this...

For lots and lots of this...

Why my kids are cute.

2009-09-03T13:26:00.000-07:00

Lexie felt bad for Brynn because of this...

I guess amongst all the fighting, they really DO love each other after all....

So proud...

2009-08-31T16:05:00.000-07:00

Little Miss Lexie came home today soooo proud of herself, that I had to document her progress. She is now reading at a 4th grade level (she just started 2nd grade). WoooHooo!!! Way to go LEXIE!!!

A Smily Milestone

2009-08-28T16:25:00.001-07:00

My Junebug actually reached this milestone a while ago, but I had to document her smiling. She just lights up my world with that smile.

Dear Tooth Fairy...

2009-08-28T12:29:00.001-07:00

I found this while making Brynn's bed this morning... doesn't it just break your heart?

We have been looking for her tooth for the past 3 days. I think someone may have thrown it away...... but, I'm sure the tooth fairy can make some exceptions. :)

Time is flyin'...

2009-08-28T10:16:00.000-07:00

Wow! I can't believe how long it has been since my last post! Time has really been going so fast and I can't seem to keep up with it. Well.... I know that we have been busy, but when I sit down to think of what we have been up to, I just can't name anything. It must be the newborn cacoon... :)
Okay, well.... I have done a little retail therapy because of this mess....
My son decided that it would be REALLY FUN to play in mommy's make up and ruin ALL her brushes. I was sick to my stomach when I saw this. There were just no words.... I sent him to his room and didn't even look at him. I was THAT angry....

Then, I decided that I was sick of looking at all the handprints and smudges on the white walls....

I like it MUCH better now. I still have half the playroom (loft) and the stairs to do, but I'm satisfied... for now.

But MOST OF ALL, I have been getting to know this cute little gal more and more! She is SO SWEET and such a great addition to our family. I love her. She recently decided that she no longer likes laying down all day (who would?), so we invested in this little jumperoo. She is still getting used to it but she likes being able to sit up on her own. :)

Look at her eyes! You can just see her brain taking it all in!

I love, love, love her. :)

We made it!!

2009-08-07T10:19:00.000-07:00

First week of school is DONE-ZO!!! Yay!!

Although I miss my kids INCREDIBLY, it has been nice to have 2 hours all to myself (when my other kids nap) to get things done. It makes life tons smoother around here when all my kids have to do when they come home is homework, eat and go to bed.

Speaking of bed, my kids hit THE WALL on Wednesday. Looks like all that staying up late caught up with them. Anyone else have this problem?!

(Oh and no - Brynn's shirt isn't stained, she had wet hands and used it as a towel. Crazy kids.)

Here we go again!!

2009-08-04T08:27:00.000-07:00

First day of school - Lexie

First day of school - Brynn

First day of school - Caden

It's that time again... time for early mornings, packing lunches, doing homework, studying, projects, busy schedules, friends, birthday parties, school events, Activity days, busy, busy and more busy.....

Ahhh. It came all TOO FAST!!! - every year goes by quicker and quicker and it makes me so sad.

I am such a momma bear, and to send my kids off to school and for them to have to be without me all day, KILLS ME!!!! I wish that somedays time would just stand still and let me have more time with them at THIS age. Before the kids started school, we took out our old home videos and were watching them with the kids. It was really eye opening to see how fast they grow in just a short amount of time.

So.... to cherish the time that we have together NOW, I decided that we will be doing a few things differently this year.

- NO t.v. after school. - which means my school aged kids will have no T.V. during the week at all. And only 1 hour a day total for my little ones. INSTEAD - we will be doing more scripture study, more reading together as a family and more crafts/activities.

- More goals. For instance, we have set a goal to read half the BOM before Christmas together and to get perfect attendance for this quarter. We took this idea from the scripture - D&C 88:118 - I want my kids to know that knowledge is important (both spiritual and secular).

- More time serving others AS A FAMILY. We aren't quite sure HOW we are going to do this yet, but this idea came from Brynn. She suggested that we make baby blankets for the hospital that Cami was born in ,not sure if we can even do that yet, but we all thought it would be good to spend more of our free time serving others as a family. Yes, me and Michael serve others on our own, but how do we teach our kids if they do not get to do it too? So, if you have any ideas - please shoot them our way. :)

I guess mostly this year, I want to ENJOY. I want to enjoy my children while they are small and make as many memories as I can. After watching their home videos from when they were younger, I realized EVEN more that my children will NEVER be this age again. I want to ENJOY the life that we have and the time that we have.

Well, here goes another school year!!!.... :)

3 weeks old

2009-07-15T15:21:00.001-07:00

Sorry for all the pictures of her. I can't help myself... :)

2 weeks tomorrow.

2009-07-06T15:54:00.000-07:00

Where does the time go? I can't believe that my baby is already 2 weeks old!
It makes me sad that they grow so fast. Everyday goes by quicker and quicker.
We have been doing lots and lots of snuggling and lounging and relaxing. It's been fun! I also got to have my sweet husband home with me for TWO whole weeks! (He got paternity leave) What a HUGE blessing that was. I was able to relax and recover rather quickly with him being home. I feel almost 100%. The Sunday after I had Cami, I was able to go to Sacrament and then this week we made it through Sacrament and Gospel Principles. I was quite proud of myself! :)
I hope that everyone had a wonderful Fourth of July. We took it really easy and just drove across the street to Schnepf and parked and watched the Schnepf Farms fireworks. I didn't get any pictures of my kids huddled in the back of our Suburban, but they were sure cute. Ellie especially loved seeing all the pretty colors.
It's time to start getting the kiddos ready for school again! (summer is going by WAY too fast!)
I bought some workbooks for all of the kids to work out of and we will be doing that until school starts, for at least an hour a day. It's good for them to get a refresher and it will be good for me to start a routine again. While I was sick and pregnant, we had NO routine.
It's also time to hit those back to school shopping deals. If anyone knows of any good buys, feel free to pass me the info! :)
Hope everyone is having a GREAT summer so far!

I love her.

2009-06-29T23:11:00.001-07:00

Already a week old tomorrow. It goes by too fast...

Camille's Birth Story

2009-06-26T10:58:00.000-07:00

Wow. What a crazy, draining, exciting, and nerve wracking couple of days. I need to write down my little girls birth story, even if it is for my sake only. I realize as every day goes by my memory gets foggier and foggier so I need to get it out before I forget the details.

Monday 6/22
12:30 am
- Started having EXTREMELY painful contractions. They were coming at every 3-5 minutes apart. I decided to wait it out until my water broke. Figured it couldn't be long if my contractions were coming this close.

10:30 am
- Contractions abrubtly stop. I was SO discouraged!!

1:00 pm
- I was sitting on the couch watching who-knows-what on tv. All of a sudden I felt the worst pain I could EVER feel. My lower back was throbbing and there was pain spreading throughout my entire body. At the same time that I felt this pain in my back, my chest started tightening and I couldn't breath. I stood up thinking the back pain would subside... bad idea.

As soon as I stood up, I started blacking out. I yelled for my daughter,Brynn, to grab my phone. She couldn't find it, so I reached over and grabbed it off the couch, dialed 911 and managed to walk into my living room. At this point, I couldn't even talk. I think that I yelled into the phone "I'm in labor, can't breath, HELP!"

I threw the phone down because at this pint the pain was SO BAD.

Decided to pick up the phone and tell the operator my address and then I threw the phone back down.

At this point, all my kids were crying and Brynn was frantically calling my mother in law. Luckily, she was already on her way over to have lunch with us.

Julie (my MIL) arrived. She called Mike (my hubby) and told him to meet me at the hospital.

Paramedics arrived and I was taken to the hospital.

1:50 - I got to the hopsital. Now by this time, the pain had completely subsided. I was dialated to about 4cm but it didn't seem that the nurses were all too concerned. I was contracting every 2-3 minutes but they weren't really strong contractions. They decided to go ahead and wait and see what progress my body made.

3:50- By this time, my body had made little to no progress. The nurses told me that most likely the doctor would send me home. I was so dissapointed.
So, the nurses called my doctor. They came back in and told me that the doctor wanted to deliver me as soon as possible and run a string of tests on me. She said she had a bad feeling.

6:00p.m. - By this time I had had a number of tests run. I had an EKG, X-Rays, and blood tests run. I was finally admitted into a L&D room. The doctor came in and told me that the baby seemed fine but that they had found something in my heart that didn't look right. She wanted to deliver the baby right away. They started me on Pitocin. She said that if the pitocin didn't work then we would have to look into getting a c-section.

10:00p.m. - I was making a little progress and the doctor decided to break my water. It was at this time that things got a little scary. When they broke my water, it came out all bloody. The doctor then realized that something may have been wrong with my placenta and that she needed to watch the baby even closer.

11:30 ish - (my mind is getting a little foggy on times.) I finally had enough fluid to get an epidural. Ahhhh. Sweet, sweet epidural. :)

Tue 6/23
2:00 a.m. - FINALLY fully dialated and ready to deliver.

2:15a.m. - Camille June Wise is born.

As it turned out, the excruciating pain that I felt was from my placenta tearing away from my uterus. The doctor said that had I not come in when I did, it could have turned out to be a very bad situation for me and for baby.
Moral to the story: NEVER doubt your motherly intuition!

She's here!!!!

2009-06-26T10:37:00.001-07:00

Camille June Wise

Born: June 23, 2009

at 2:15 am

7lbs 4oz

20 inches long

Oh my, my.

2009-06-03T13:24:00.000-07:00

You have to laugh when you ask your son to go get dressed, and he comes down looking like this....

At least he accessorized! :)
Lightsabers are SO in this season,

and the DC hat with the two types of plaid....

it's just awesome.

Pregnancy Update...

2009-05-26T14:01:00.000-07:00

Well, it has now gotten to the point where I have shooting pains going down my legs. Sleeping is rare and I can barely walk. FUN TIMES!! :) Anyway, I have an appointment this Thursday so hopefully I will see what is going on.

Today I am going to pack my bag (just in case) and finish trying to get ready for this little girl.

(I had fallen asleep watching the kids play Wii, and I guess Caden had gotten worried about me. I love my sweet boy!)

Memorial Day

2009-05-26T13:57:00.001-07:00

We had our family over for a Memorial Day barbecue. Good food, good family, good times....

The guys playing Wii....

Our new friend...

2009-05-26T13:50:00.000-07:00

Somehow, this little fella managed to escape my pest control company. My hubby and kids were working in the yard on Saturday, pulling weeds, mowing the yard, trimming trees when they happened to stumble upon this little guy. My boys were ecstatic and my girls wanted to keep him as a pet. I quickly told them no....because lets face it, there is a REASON we don't have pets. I can only manage to keep children alive, not pets. (That's a good thing, I suppose) :) Anyway, now every morning, my children go looking for him. Too bad one of these days, he won't be there. :( That will be a sad day.

2008/2009

2009-05-22T09:17:00.000-07:00

Brynn

First Day of Second Grade

Last day of Second Grade...

Lexie

First Day of First Grade...

Last Day of First Grade...

Honor Roll

2009-05-22T08:47:00.000-07:00

I am so proud of my girls!!!!! They both made honor roll EVERY quarter this year. What an accomplishment for them! :)

Brynn has always naturally had the ability to get good grades. She has great memorization skills and can easily pick up on things. I almost think that it is comical sometimes because I really haven't had to work/study with her in the past three years.

Lexie on the other hand had struggled in kindergarten. Learning and being in a "conformed" environment was SO hard for her last year. She didn't make honor roll once. I felt so bad for her and each time that Brynn would get an award, I would tell her, "just keep trying, you will get it."

Well this year, she became DE-TER-MINED!!! She had me study with her and help her to read and figure things out. She worked so hard this year and made Honor Roll EVERY quarter. I was so impressed. Then she really surprised me. At the last parent teacher conference, she asked her teacher what she could do to make PRINCIPALS Honor Roll. And guess what? She worked hard and she DID IT! We couldn't have ended the year any better. My girls had the most fantastic teachers and I will miss them very much!! (Brynn's teacher is retiring and Lexie's teacher is expecting - neither will be back next year) I am just so thankful for my girls and how wonderful they are!!! Okay, I will stop bragging now. :)