Is it Friday yet?

One day last week I took the boys out to the country to get out of the house and take a couple pictures.  This is what I got.  Pretty cute, huh?  Well let me tell you, it was no an easy shot to get.  Every 2 seconds one of them was trying to throw dirt, rocks, and run in the corn.  They were not interested in taking pictures after their mom just took them to a farm.  

It's not been easy having Kyle gone all the time.  I am not cut out for having a husband away from us.  I like to have him here in the mornings with us for breakfast, I like to see him for an occasional lunch break, and I really like having him home at night.  This summer with him working in Wenatchee a few days a week, Sunnyside the rest of the week, and then sometimes Spokane, we hardly see each other. My boys need their dad home too.  They miss him so much.  We just need Dad around to help love, entertain, discipline and help put the boys to bed at night.  I know it could be worst, much worst.  On the bright side, we will all be together again in a month.  In the meantime, I'll just keep looking forward to Friday nights when we have him home for two days in a row!

Brooks is still not sleeping through the night.  My goal in the next two weeks is to get him to do that by letting him cry it out.  In a month and half I'm done nursing him and trust me, it can't come soon enough.  Nursing a 10 month old every 2.5 to 3 hours with two other toddlers in the house is not ideal.  I haven't slept through the night in years!

I'm not trying to complain...just document real life.  Things really are going well for us.  The family who is buying our home, sold their house, and we had an offer accepted on a lot in Wenatchee so we will be building.  We just secured a rental, and get to move in right before our house closes here in Pasco.  Now we just need to find a floor plan and get busy.   Kyle likes his new job, and we feel like we've been blessed for making the decision to take the job and move.  We also just got back from a great vacation to Utah to visit family and friends.  It was too quick, but great to see friends we haven't seen for a long time.  Plus we got to see our new twin nephews who were blessed.

*Thank you everyone for your love and concern for my niece Clara.  She is in the loving arms of her family, and they feel your prayers and support.  Her battle has been hard, and I don't know if we'll ever understand why it's been so hard, but we do know that God lives and has a plan for each of us. I'm grateful for my sister Natasha and her husband and their strengh.  It takes a special family to deal with the trial that they've been handed.

Slipping Away

Life has been too stressful and too busy lately. (Clara's cancer that is ravaging her frail body, moving, Kyle out of town every week for work, double ear infections for Brooks, RS President responsibilities, 3 wild little boys, nursing, Brooks' allergies, a sinus infection for me)   I feel like so many things are slipping away.   Luckily there have been bright moments with family and friends.  I'm not ready to say goodbye to some of things that are to come in the near future.  I want to hold on just a little bit longer.  I have to have faith in God, and know that He has a plan for me and my family.

 These pictures were taken in July.  I really am so blessed to have three healthy little boys.

Man Wipes

Preston just came up to me with messy hands after eating fruit and said, MOM, where's the man wipe?  I asked him what's a man wipe and he explained to me what it was, and it sounded like a baby wet wipe, but he insisted that's not what he wanted.  He directed me over to the paper towels and said, this is a man wipe.  I love kids.  

Out of Luck

Michael: "Mom, Brooks is so lucky."
Me: "Why?"
Michael: "Because he doesn't have any teeth, so he doesn't have to brush."
Michael: "Preston and I are not lucky because we have teeth and we have to brush."

For the record Brooks is getting his two bottom teeth.

CRAVINGS

I've just got to say it.  Right now I want some ice cream, a bowl of frosted mini wheat cereal, homemade whole wheat bread with a slice of butter melting on top of it, corn on the cob, french toast, broccoli cheese soup, homemade macaroni and cheese, gourmet thin crust pizza, lasagna, mud pie, cheese of any kind, fettuccine alfredo, sticky white rice, pad thai, a homemade juicy cheeseburger, chips and salsa, and MANY, MANY more things.

I'm going on 4 months with my allergen free diet, and I must say today is one of those days that I'm CRAVING all day long.  I'll just have to satisfy those cravings by eating a vegetable or fruit or a spoonful of honey (that's my guilty pleasure, a spoonful of honey, ha!).  NOT the same.   

I already feel better by venting to the internet.  The good news is, if I ever feel like eating one of those things, the thought of Brooks' having symptoms for days on end reminds me why I'm doing this!!!

Nanny Manawhanui

We found out a few months ago that Kyle's 83 year old Nanny (term in New Zealand for grandmother) would be making a trip to the US to visit her whanau (Maori name for extended family).  We prayed every day that she would be able to make the trip with good health.  Well the time finally came for her to come, so Kyle took a week off of work and we went to Vancouver for 8 days.  The entire trip was wonderful.  We had a Pacific Northwest miracle, and had amazing weather the entire 8 days.  Not one drop of rain!!!  Nanny Mana is the sweetest lady and I could sit and listen to her tell stories for days with her thick New Zealand accent.  Kyle's Uncle Sam also made the treck from Washington DC where he lives to see his mum and spend time with his whanau.  The boys played outside all day everyday with their cousins, and had the greatest time.  There are 7 boy cousins born all in a row ages 6 and under so things got a little wild!  There will soon be 9 boy cousins 6 and under when Bryce and Alysia have their twin boys. The highlight of the trip for all the boys was going to the zoo together.  It was a reduced price day at the zoo, so it was packed and crazy.  We had one scare where we lost Preston for 5 minutes while we were eating lunch.  There were hundreds and hundreds of people around and we couldn't find him.  I was getting very nervous.  Luckily some guy found him in some bushes and stayed with him until we came looking for him.     

As I said, Nanny is awesome.  I will have to get a video up of her sometime on here telling one of her stories.  The highlight of the trip for her was when we all went to the temple together and did a session.  The first time I met Nanny was in the Portland temple after I received my Endowment, so it was wonderful to go there again with her.  A week after Kyle and I got married Nanny came to stay with us in our apartment for a whole week.  We LOVED it, and tried to talk her into coming to extend her trip and stay with us again, but unfortunately there were too many logistics to figure out.  We are hoping it's not another 6 years before we see her again!  

I love this first picture.  Nanny was on the phone and Preston wanted to kick back just like her.  Some of the picture were taken at the cemetary where Kyle's dad is buried as well as our nephew.  

We went to the cemetery to visit Kyle's dad's grave and our nephew's.  

 All of these were taken with my phone at the zoo.  We'll definitely be going back!

 Knocked out after a LONG day at the zoo.   

The weather was so nice and we all went to the park to play on the playground and some soccer.  

We love the beautiful Portland Temple.  Married there 6 years ago!

Everyone was in town except for Kyle's younger brother Bryce.  

These next pictures crack me up.  Nanny knew that Brooks' couldn't eat anything because of his allergies, so when someone gave her a piece of cake she explained to Brooks' in the cutest accent voice that he couldn't have any cake.  It was hilarious!

Slip 'n slide withe the cousins.  

The boys with their Grammy.

These two spell TROUBLE.

Kyle's two grandmothers.

Nanny teasing Kyle, so cute.

Brooks' was short on naps this week.  

Mother's Day photo shoots.  Love this picture of my boys laughing with their great Nanny.  

The boy cousins did a skit.  They thought it was pretty funny.  

10 plus years with no practice and they still got it :)