Kyson's Turn!

oops! I send my post through before I added any text.
So a quick run down and then some of my favorite pictures of Kyson.
Tonight we had a sitter for the first time. I was a little nervous even though I knew the kids were in quite capable hands. The Dad of the sitter's comments about her playing with matches didn't ease my mind. (okay, really I laughed and told Farren all about it at dinner, and he thought it was hilarious!!)
Anyways, we are OLD boring nerds. 730 pm and we are at Olive Garden, both falling asleep at teh table. After that we went and played a few rounds of pool, where of course, my husband killed me! MARY, we need to go more often so I can practice!
So, we get home and the cute sitter was worried because she hadn't had a chance to vacuum up the popcorn yet from my den floor. The movie was still on. No big deal to me, I'd rather know my kids were played with (and they were) than worry about small messes that will take 20 seconds to clean up! :) She told me on the way home that my lovely stinker of a son tried to convince her that he is allowed to watch rated R movies. Ummm... NO, he isn't. Remember those capable hands I mentioned? Yes, teh sitter has them. She knew Kyson was trying to trick her and she didnt give in.
The night went well and we are all exhausted. I am heading to bed. I will leave you with some pictures of my handsome boy.

My kids are the GREATEST!

First, let me remind you that Sage is 4, Aspen is 6, and Kyson is 7.

Tonight were SEPs at the school (like parent teacher confrences) I watch 2 extra kids during the days, so I was pretty busy anyways. Because I am on the executive board of the PTA, I had to help with the SEP dinner. We feed the teachers since they don't get to go home til 8 pm.

So my day went like this.

815 am Take kids to school and pick up two daycare kids. A 4yr old and a baby. (their Moms work at teh school so its just easier if I grab them)

Run to Walmart to get bananas and a few other things (and I slipped a CD in my cart)

Race back to get Sage and Jesse to preschool. Oh no, we forgot Sage's bag and don't have time to go get it.

Take baby home, change him, play with him, make some very needed phone calls, try and feed baby lunch since it was almost his nap time.

Run get big girls. Come home put down baby for nap and feed girls.

Make a huge batch of spaghetti sauce.

Try and feed baby again.

Farren is home, baby likes him better so I run try and do a quick pick up. I wouldn't worry, but we have our first ever babysitter coming tomorrow so I can go out on a date with my husband!

310 start loading car with kids, food, diaper bags, backpacks ect.

I got to the school, helped set up for the dinner and the bell rang, grabbed my kids, sent them home with a neighbor and started doing PTA business. We have a contest going and teh class with the most memberships gets Beanie Babies. I didnt get home til after 8 pm.

My kids go to bed at 730, so when I walked in and saw Sage in her jeans and shirt I was a bit annoyed and said WHY arent you guys in bed. You dont even have jammies on. I walk upstairs and my kitchen is spotless. I turn around and the living room is spotless. Kyson and Aspen come in saying LOOK what we did Mom, and they were both showered and in jammies. I was only 1/2 listening to them (bad mom I know) and I said WOW Daddy cleaned the kitchen AND you guys got showers? (Dont get me wrong, he is an AMAZING father, but considering he works two fulltime jobs he would rather play with teh kids than clean the house, and Id rather it that way. Kids always come first here!) Anyways, Aspen says NO, WE cleaned the kitchen, living room and den and our rooms. And we were dirty so we each went in and had our showers.

Holy COW. While I was out voluntering at their school, my kids cleaned 95% of the house, did their homework, and bathed themselves without being asked or told. I am beyond impressed! Later I asked my husband if he had suggested they pick up, bathe ect. He sid nope, they wanted to surprise you.

Well, surprise me they did.

Dang they are great kids. I am so lucky.

Raindrops on Roses and Whiskars on Kittens...... These are a few of my favorite pics!

So, last night I was helping my Mother situate her blog. We were putting pics of each of the grandkids down the side. Being the one who always takes the pictures, I looked through all my files. These are a few of my many favorite ones of Sage. (the girl can NOT take a bad pic, even her X ray is cute. That is a metal ball in her tummy) Anyways, some are new, some are old, but I love them all for various reasons.

Top to bottom (though as I type I am sure they will move)

Sage swinging at a park in June of 2006. I took her to Denver to see a doctor who knows all about mastocytosis.

Sage's X Ray. Kyson told me she had eaten a bouncy ball. Turns out it was a metal ball for magnetix.

Sage in the tub. About 6 months old. How cute is that? Please ignore the naked bum you see in the corner!







Sage sleeping on the potty. We were obviously having issues.

Sage playing in the snow. Dec 2007

Sage's birthday party at MY GYM. I made her that cake so it was egg free, then she picked out a store cake for her friends.



Sage doing family pictures. Summer 2008

Sage at Yellowstone, waiting for Old Faithful.


Sage dancing after we decorated Savannah's headstone for July 4th 2007

Sage loves her Daddy.



Dance like No one is watching!

And getting ready for church.

So, everytime I label the pictures, they move, but I am sure you are all smart enough to figure it out!

Craigslist, KSL, and Child Care

(If you read this before and are reading it again, Yes, it is changed a bit, my wording wasnt sitting well with me)

Today I had a comment added to yesterday's post. I clicked to their blog, and read about how thankful this woman is for her son. How lucky she is to get to hold him each and everyday. How important it is to not take your children for granted. This woman has struggled with fertility and had multiple losses. Her post was partly inspired by Savannah, it brought back so many memories for her. There my girl goes again, making her impact. If the day comes when someone hears our story and isn't compelled to go hug their child, or if it doesn't leave them a little more grateful than they were when their day started, then any good that came from her passing goes out the window.

With that in mind, I have a rant. Maybe I am more paranoid than the average joe, or maybe I am right and these people are nuts :) I read the childcare ads on Craigslist and KSL (a local news site) I see all the time ads stating "I need some money, what easier way to get money than to watch your kids?" Of course everyone needs money, and people don't work for free, but if you are posting an ad seeking families to trust you with these precious little souls, at least act like you enjoy children. I guess kudos for the honesty, but that screams pay me to push the buttons on the remote control. Hopefully people generally go meet, interview, and observe these people, but really, that makes me nuts. (and before you all flog me, I have NOTHING against childcare at all, there are many many amazing providers who love the children they care for)

What is worse are the ads that say HELP I need a sitter TONIGHT, I have a wedding, party, night out ect that I want to go too. My house or yours, my kids are 3 months old and 2 years old, they will just sleep the whole time. HELP I am desperate.

Do you really have that much disreguard for your children? You are going to let someone you have never even laid eyes on have complete, unsupervised access to your children? You dont have info on this person, you could come home to an empty house and never see those kids again. You don't know if they will sit there and do drugs while your child watches. So much worse could happen. How can you not value that little life more than going out? So sad.

Value your children. Love your children. Hug Your Children. Appreciate your children. Respect your children enough to not ditch them with the first person who says okay in order to make a quick buck. They are worth more than that.

Sad News, a school update, and a HUGE favor!

When I was in elementary, 6th grade to be specific, I became great friends with a guy named Aaron. These past few months I have been thinking about him, along with other friends, so I decided to look him up. I couldn't find him on facebook or Myspace. Last night I tried Google, and came across his obituary. It is so sad, and it seems so unreal, even though we haven't seen each other in abot 10 years.

On a lighter note, Sage had school again today. The color was yellow, so they painted busses. Way cute!!!!! This afternoon will be spent at the school, running off and distributing September's newsletter. I spend lots of time at the school. My poor husband is so sick pf the PTA he could scream, but we both agree it is important to be actively involved with our children's schooling.

Now onto my favor. Well, not so much a favor as a request :) I have a friend named Jill. I have known her for a few years. Jill has a 3 year old daughter named Alexis. Alexis has Leukemia. Alexis has a website to keep people updated with her progress. I will also put her website under the People We Love section. Alexis loves to hear the messages people send her, and I know they really help Jill's spirits. Please go to Lexi's website and sign her guestbook, and link to her blog from yours and pass it on. This little gal needs prayers and good thoughts, so what better way to pass the word around?

Cooking Dinner and Beauty Queens

So, what is for dinner? It is 6:13 and I have NO idea. I have been so busy lately with PTA, kids, and just life in general that most days I forget to plan ahead. If you have any super yummy and super easy meals please, I beg of you, put them in the comments section!

Yesterday we took the kids for a drive through Guardsman's Pass. It is such a beautiful drive, we go at least once a summer. Usually we go up Big Cottonwood Canyon, through the pass, and into Park City. We end up on Main Street. This time we took the long way (I'm a spoiled wife) We did the pass then took a long dirt road. Twice I had Farren pull over to get some leaves that are changing so the kids can take them to school for show and teach. Once he had to climb. I am so glad he has good balance! We ended up in Midway. Oh my goodness! I had never been through there. What a cute, fun town. I LOVE it! As we drove I even noticed a covered bridge that is perfect for a good family photo shoot. It looks like it belongs in The Bridges Of Madison County, with the changing leaves behind it. I told Farren that we need to get some fleece pullovers and do family pictures. Of course this was met by a huge groan :) He always had negative (in his mind anyways) experiance with family pictures, so he dreads them. Our last family picture was done when Aspen was 2 months old. She is 6 and 1/2 now!

We stopped at a park and played with teh kids in Heber. It was an awesome park. had all the "dangerous" things that "Today's Kids" don't get to enjoy. Like REALLY high twisty slides and those metal domes that you can hang upside down from. That was a blast!!!!! I regret not grabbing my camera. I always have it with me, but I need to send it in to get cleaned so I didnt grab it. The BEST thing was that even though she felt sick, we made it both up and down the canyon without Aspen puking. Yep, NO PUKE! Woohoooo!!!!!!!

Last night I couldn't sleep. It was after 4 am before I managed to get a short snooze in. Anyhow, I watched 2 documentaries on TLC about beauty pageants and toddlers. It made me want to puke. Fake teeth, tans, fake hair, and dresses that cost more than my car. No thank you. Not my kids. One Mom wouldn't let her preschooler compete in the swimsuit competition because she was too "chubby" and then spoke about how her daughter, who is maybe 4, needs to diet. Sick Sick Sick.

Today I happened to stumble on an old friend's blog. I read through and it low and behold she had an old friend's blog linked from hers. This gal was my best friend in Kindergarten for many years. I haven't seen her since her wedding, when Sage was an infant. I left her a message on the comments section, so hopefully she will get back to me.

Well, Aspen is in here asking that I charge her MP3 player, Kyson is in here saying his neck hurts, and Sage is crying because she stepped on a stick. Ahhh Just another day in paradise.

Holy Slacker!!!!

WOW! It has been since last November since I have last posted. I guess life caught up with me!

Let's see. December was Christmas. That was fun for the kids. We did our best to remember Savannah while decorating the tree. Both ornaments are from Lillian Vernon

In February I was asked to hold a position on the executive board of our school PTA. I accepted that and have been busy ever since. I am the President Elect, which means next year I will be President. It has been an awesome experiance. I have made some wonderful friends through the board, and that has been the biggest "bonus" of teh whole thing.

April was Savannah's first birthday, or "Angel Day" I had worked myself up so much thinking it was going to be awful, but it wasn't so bad. We went out to teh cemetary and brought pinwheels, stuffed animals, ect. (see above my pics are having issues)

May was Aspen and Kyson's birthdays. Aspen had a party at teh park, and well, we never got around to doing Kyson's party. Guess next year will have to be huge. LOL.

Over the summer we didn't do much. The only big things were my sister Codi moved to Texas :( and my sister Kristine had a baby boy named Zane.

School has started for Aspen and Kyson. They are in 1st grade and 2nd Grade, but are in teh same class this year. Its the "access" class. It is the same teacher as Kyson had last year, and I really like her. They both love it, though Kyson seems to think that admitting that you like school is uncool, so he claims he hates it. Sage starts preschool this Thursday. She will be going with Jesse and Lola, both good friends of hers. Once again we will be attending Miss Nicoles Preschool. We feel so blessed to have found her. Sage was able to experiance so many things last year and she learned so much. I have no doubt that Nicole's is where she should be. She has excelled in every aspect.

Farren of course works way more than anyone should ever have to. Hopefully that will slow down soon! I somehow went from not being a daycare provider to having 3 kids all in one week. I adore all these kids, so I am very excited about it! Time to baby proof again!

That is the quick update! I will try and keep this updated more.