Turning Two . . .

You know who is turning two today!  It would be hard to believe if I didn't have so much evidence . . .

Happy Birthday my little monkey!  Life without you would be a little more quiet, a lot more calm, a little less hectic, but a lot less wonderful!  We love you baby girl!!

All About Claire

Claire is my little diva queen. She has more personality than all three of the other kids combined. She always keeps me guessing. She is into everything these days and is definitely keeping me on my toes.  The first thing that you notice about her is that she is adorable!!!  (I may be a bit partial on this first one).

She absolutely LOVES to be outside.  She literally bolts out the door any time that it is opened and we have to run down the driveway and sometimes down the street to catch up with her. 

She doesn't mind getting dirty or being barefoot.  She is a pretty tough cookie.

She is known for her big eyes!  Her Grandad calls her "sauce" because he thinks her eyes are like saucers.  Everyone comments about how big and beautiful her eyes are. 

She is talking up a storm.  She can say almost anything and does a great job of playing "mommy" when she yells at the other kids to "stop!" or "Come here right now!"  She calls them to dinner and tells them when it is time to leave to put on their shoes because we are "ready to go." 

She enjoys playing with toys more than any of the other kids did at this age and she is very possessive about it!  She is usually carrying at least two or three items at a time.  He favorites are her dollies and her dolly stroller and her little stuffed kitty.

She is also known for her big belly!  The kid is a bottomless pit!  She also has amazing talents and is one of those people who can roll their stomach.  She can poke out her stomach extremely far and then suck it in really tight.  It is kind of amazing to see!

Last but CERTAINLY not least, she is a screamer!!!!!!!!  She screams ALL. OF. THE. TIME. and about EVERYTHING!  This is a talent that she has displayed since the literal day she was born.  She has really never cried as she goes straight into a tearless scream when she wants something.  James says that she is going to be a singer.  American Idol better watch out for this girl!  She can be in a dead sleep and let out the most blood curdling scream you have ever heard.  This sends me into a panic as I am ripped from my sleep and I fly up the staircase to find her fast asleep in her crib. 

 It is creepy!

My Texas Family

This post is an ode to Brittany and Garrett.  Not too long ago, they were thinking of leaving us.  We are SO glad you stayed!!!  Texas would not be the same without the two of you.  Brittany and Garret are the peanut butter to our jelly, the bread to our butter, the spaghetti to our meatballs . . .  you get the idea.  Brittany and Garrett just simply add to any event or even just an ordinary night at the house.  They blend.  They just make things easy and fun.  My kids absolutely adore them, my husband loves them like the little brother and sister he never had, and I am kind of fond of them as well.  Never in a million years would I have guessed that I would have a sister out here with me!  I thought that I was destined to be the lone Texan in a sea of Utahns.  I'm so lucky!  Mitmee and Gawett - you're the best!!!  

My Buddies

Of all of the many things that you cannot count on from day to day as a Mother, the one thing that you can know for sure is that your kids will make you laugh!!  My kids are so funny.  I get used to them being funny and forget just how funny they really are.

Here are a few recent ones . . .

The other day Adam came up to James and said, "Dad, we are boys!" and then proceeded to pull down his pants and point to the family jewels and say, "We have these!!"

A couple of days later, while I was recounting this story to Brittany and Garrett, Adam scrunched up his face and with a bashful grin and a giggle said, "Mom, you a girl . . . you have buddies!"




 Rachel is the most "eccentric" of all of my kiddos.  I NEVER know what I'm going to get from her.  (I think that she gets this from her Daddy if you want to know the truth.  I've been married to the man for 10 years and I still have no idea what he will do next).  The other morning she did this with her cereal bowel. 

I thought this note from her was priceless!!!

In the meantime, Claire does things like this . . .

and this . . .

Goofballs all!!

Baxter the 1st

If you saw our video from Christmas morning, you may be wondering where we got a magic dog that can change color from white to tan.  I can assure you that there is no such thing.

I have been saying since I can remember that I would NEVER get a dog!!!  I am not an animal person and I just couldn't imagine dealing with the smells and the poop and the feeding and the licking etc. etc. etc.

A few months ago while I was being nagged and begged about this issue for the umpteenth time, James informed me that we would, in fact, get a dog and that it was only a matter of timing.  I thought that was a pretty bold thing for him to say but he later explained, "I loved my dogs growing up and I don't want your bad experiences with animals to rob our children of the joy of having a dog."  I let that one sink in.  There are plenty of good "dog loving" people out there.  Until now I have always had a kind of "us and them" attitude about "those kinds of people."  (I am married to one)  After chewing on this for a few months I was really considering it.  What?!  I was considering this madness!!  Obviously the perfect timing would be Christmas morning.  Santa Clause could deliver the surprise much better than I.

I began looking into it but I noticed that a funny thing began to happen.  The more I talked about getting a dog, the less James talked about it!  I let it be and he dropped it entirely!  I thought I had gotten off scott free!  So, I put the whole idea out of my mind.  As Christmas was approaching I was busy trying to decide what else Santa could possibly give my children that would be equally as exciting.  All was well until the day before Christmas eve.  That's when it happened.  James saw the cutest puppies in the parking lot at Walmart and the whole thing came back and slapped me right in the face!  Bam!  I went to see them and was almost convinced to put one under our tree myself.  However, my better judgment kicked in and I remembered that while I was "looking into" this whole business I had decided on a breed.  It had to be small and hypoallergenic and non - shedding and of course cute.  That left me with one choice.  A Maltipoo!  The dog would have to be inside because I didn't want it to stink.  If I had a dog it would have to be cute and clean.  So, we put in a last minute request to Santa Clause to please find us a Maltipoo puppy and quick!!

Of course Santa was able to deliver and did not disappoint.  There were shrieks and shrills and the excitement was palpable.  We spent the weekend LOVING (and fighting over) this little Baxter.  Weighing in at a whopping 1 lb he was pretty fragile.  Santa was only able to find us one puppy so late in the game.  The vet later informed us that he was very underdeveloped and most likely the runt.  Our family of four energetic children was probably going to be a bit much for this little guy.  After lots of tears, a very sad day at the vet and a near death experience (poor little guy got hypoglycemia) we had to say goodbye to Baxter the 1st.    He went to live with a nice man, who happened to be a breeder, that  Santa had made arrangements with to take care of Baxter and nurse him back to health. (Away from well meaning children who might traumatize the poor baby). 

About a week later Santa found us a new puppy that was a lot healthier (and cuter) and was ready to join our little family.  We are sooooooo happy about the way that this all worked out.  It just goes to show you that sometimes blessings come in disguise.  We LOVE our new puppy Jeffrey Winston Baxter the 2nd!  Better known as Bax!

Here are some pictures of Baxter the 1st . . .

Baxter the 2nd!  We tried to come up with a different name for him but after almost an entire week, and a lot of input from the family we came up with Jeffrey Winston Baxter the 2nd  - Baxter or Bax!  He is also a maltipoo puppy.

Snow Day - Minus the Snow

In the early hours of the morning, I lay sleeping on my couch upstairs with the sounds of "little bear" playing lightly in the background.  Claire is at my side and I am enjoying a few extra moments of sleep as my three older children file out of the girls' bedroom.  "Did it snow?!" Rachel exclaims as she runs toward the window.  "Audrey, Adam, come and look!  The forecast said that it was going to snow!"  As they all run toward the window I can see the confusion written all over their faces.  School was cancelled, after all, for snow. Kid are so trusting.  They fully expected to see snow this morning.  Rachel had anticipated that it would be up to her knee.  I can just hear the tall tales at school that evolved into this false expectation.

 "Why didn't it snow Mom?" Audrey asked, directing her question toward a lump under the blanket on the couch and fully expecting an answer.  "I don't know," I muttered.  "Why did everyone get up so early?" was the only question on my mind and I did not expect an answer.  We let the kids stay up late last night  to watch a movie as a family.  We felt it some kind of obligation to do something fun to celebrate this unwelcomed unexpected holiday. It was a fun night but I thought that the late night would ensure a late morning but not so.

There is no snow but there is cold!  Lots and lots of cold!  It feels like 17 degrees outside according to weather.com. I'm so glad that we have heat!  I'm donning James' fleece pants.  There is something about them being over sized that make them even warmer.  I have spent the entire morning making waffles and cleaning up breakfast.  It seems impossible to take three hours doing only that but somehow that is exactly what has happened.  The three older kids have been playing school together all morning.  Thankfully, Adam goes along with the girls and succumbs to their every whim.  The two girls "take turns" being "in charge," an activity that must be carried out with the precision of a person disarming a bomb.   For the most part, they have been enjoying the free space. 

Claire is on one.  She has been so grouchy lately.  I am not sure what is to blame.  I am navigating my expectations, they're up, they're down, they're up, they're down.  I think that is one of the trickiest things to manage as a Mother, my own expectations of myself.  I am not completely in control of what happens during the course of my day.  For example, I may plan to spend time working on mopping floors and then instead spend the day at the doctors office and the pharmacy.  Theoretically I should get used to the ebb and flow of expectations and roll with it but I haven't figured out how to temper my disappointment at not completing even a fraction of my to do list. 
Let me just say, however, that there are a lot of people around me going through an awful lot of awful.  I am so grateful for my life right now.  I feel it a privilege to be able to focus on the typical everyday expectations of a Mother.  So I guess if a "snow day" for the kids equals "no day" for me, that is okay too.  It has been fun to listen to their creative fantasy dialogue going on in the background.