Taking a Short Nesting Break

Well, I decided that with all of the cleaning, a.k.a. nesting, I have been doing today, that I deserved a short break. I have washed clothes, dried clothes, folded clothes, put away clothes, cleaned furniture, cleaned the couch and love seat cushion covers, washed dishes, and cleaned the microwave. Rich has cleaned the bathrooms from top to bottom, has cleaned little Colton's car seat in anticipation of his arrival, has cleaned and vacuumed the van, and attacking the garage is next on his agenda. We are attempting to do as much as we can today, just in case. Of course, I don't think everything I would love to get done will get done, but the most important things on our list will; I wish we could also clean the baseboards, organize our closet, power wash the house, scrub down the insides of the bathroom cabinets, clean the oven, and wipe down the inside of the refrigerator. I know I am a woman possessed with the need to clean and organize! The need to have every other area and nook and cranny in my house anally organized is my driving force right now; I don't know how chaotic my life is getting ready to become. My theory is that if everything is already in order, it will be easier to maintain rather than having the let's just wait and see attitude; we'll have to see how this theory holds up in practice. Either way, we are all thrilled for sweet Colton to make his grand arrival; I can't wait to hold him in my arms and gaze down at his innocent, adorable face!

The Highlight of my Day

After my Calgon TAKE ME AWAY post, I felt that it would be only right to mention my one bright spot, my highlight of my day. Rich and I got to go to lunch today, without any children! I can't think of the last time we got to do that, during a work week, and we owe it all to this lovely lady,

Lorinda,

who not only came over and watched the girls for me, she also mopped my kitchen floor; you gotta love it when a good friend will not only watch your cuties but also help with your recent nesting fixation.

Calgon TAKE ME AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have you ever had one of THOSE days?!? You know one of those days that you can feel insanity slowly slipping in and your sanity quickly exiting, one of those days you feel at your wit's end, one of those days that if you do have a good nerve left someone is sure to stomp all over it, and one of those days you begin to understand why some wild animals eat their young. Well for me, today was one of THOSE days! In fact, as I type this, Emma is whining; don't even get me started on all of the NOISE I have had to endure today, and the day is not even over! Okay, I guess I don't need much motivation to get started. Between Emma's whining, Brooke's seven tantrums (that is NOT an exaggeration, I counted every single ear shrieking one), and Braden's
whining, the idea of running and screaming from my house like a wild banshee is sounding really good to me right now! When you add to that Braden trying to spit on his little sister's head (luckily I caught him in the attempt), the tattling, Brooke acting like her life is going to come to a bitter end if she is required to do anything that remotely looks like, smells like, or feels like work, and having to deal with children turning up their noses at what I cooked, I am ready to throw in the towel for the day! Where is my time card; I am ready to clock out! Oh yeah, I can't clock out; a mother's job is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and no paid vacation! I think, no I know, that motherhood is the hardest job I have ever or will ever have, but luckily it does have its rewards; those rewards are what keep me going, and make me return to the house after my wild banshee run around the block!

Any Day Now

Well, my bag is almost packed, Colton's clothes are in his drawers, three freezer meals are prepared, my house is on the way to being spotless (my kids are not helping), and I am now 37 weeks; it could be any day now! :)

Brooke's Family Birthday Party

Well, as you know, my little princess is now officially four. We usually have an annual hoopla for her, where she invites friends, plays games, and has fun opening presents. This year however, we convinced her that a family party would be just as fun (especially for her very pregnant mama)! We let her pick the menu: homemade pizza, chips, soda, ice cream, and cake; we let her pick the game, Musical Chairs followed by a lot of dancing, and we let her pick her cake, a Castle Cake (which was a labor of love, and for that reason I posted a picture; it didn't turn out to be a pretty labor of love). Brooke also got to eat on a special tray, a.k.a. special plate, which is a lunch tray; we have four, and the cuties get to eat on it for their birthday or for any other special occasion. Recently Braden got to eat on the special tray, because he did so well on his report card. Anyway, back to the party; we also made sure to decorate for the occasion. I wanted her to still feel special, I just didn't want to throw a big shin ding to celebrate.

First, I completed the Castle Cake (the aforementioned labor of love).

Next, Rich decorated with streamers and balloons.

Then we sat down to eat Brooke's dinner of choice.

(Notice Braden in the background taking pictures; it must be in the blood!)

We then gave Brooke the choice of eating cake first or opening presents, and you guessed it, she chose opening presents first; I really don't blame her. Braden got her a golf glove and tees, Emma got her some golf balls, Rich got her a golf club and hat, I got her some furniture for her dollhouse, and my mama got her a tiara, jewelry, and a flapper dress (plus another cute outfit she had opened earlier).

Here is a picture of Emma helping herself to Brooke's presents.

We of course had to take a little intermission, so Rich could take his little prissy golfer outside to practice her swing; it is safe to say Rich was very happy, when he saw how hard Brooke hit the ball.

Once I convinced Rich to come in from the cold, and he had securely stored all of Brooke's new golf paraphernalia with Braden's golf clubs, we finally ate cake.

(Oh, did I mention that Brooke insisted in changing into her flapper dress and tiara before we ate cake?)

Well, after devouring the cake,

and discovering that the cake was not very stable,

we played Musical Chairs,

and then turned the music up and let the cuties dance away.

I think it was safe to say it was a success; Brooke had a great time, and Braden wants to know if he can have a family party when he turns six, sounds good to me!

Is it just me?

Is it just me, or does it seem wrong that on a night that is supposed to be your night (a night promised to you), you know a night to relax, read, blog, or whatever, you end up cooking supper, cleaning up after supper, and then end up listening to a 5 year old crying in his room when you are trying to relax? (a 5 year old who needs to be in his room by the way, he slapped Brooke) Oh, did I also mention that this so called night also didn't start to a few minutes ago? I think it would be more appropriate to say my couple of hours rather than my night. I mean, how many pregnant women can really stay up past 10? Okay, I can make it to 11, but that is about it. Either way, I was dreaming about a night that would start about 7, one that didn't include cleaning up after a meal I had slaved over, one that didn't start until 8, and one that didn't include listening to a 5 year old cry as if his life was coming to an end! Did I mention that Rich is upstairs right now with the girls, safely out of earshot of the crier, and probably on our computer upstairs. Is it just me, or does that seem wrong? I thought it was supposed to be my night! Okay, I have vented; I feel better, well, a little better.



*Okay here is an afterthought, (time 10:45 p.m.), how are you supposed to stay mad a.k.a. perturbed at someone who looks so cute sleeping?! Darn that Rich. :)

My Four Year Old Princess

Well, today my little sassy princess turned four; I begin to wonder, as I am sure most mothers do, where the time went! It seems that it was yesterday that Rich and I were headed to the hospital; I still remember looking down at her sweet face for the first time, amazed that I had a little girl, and now that little baby has turned four. I love you my sweet, sassy princess; here is a photo tribute just for you baby!

Our Little Bruiser

Well, it seems that Colton may turn out to be the biggest baby I have had so far. I went into the doctor today for my last ultrasound, and I as you may know I am 36 weeks today. Of course, all of Colton's measurements were 39 and 40 weeks, putting him at the 86 percentile. I knew something was up when she started asking me how big my other babies had been; after answering her question, she showed me his measurements. They estimate (I am trying to remember that it is an estimate) that right now he weighs about 7lbs. 6oz.; if he does gain a pound a week, which is typical, I might be in trouble. I guess Colton is a Crolley baby all the way! Rich wants to call Colton Colt, hoping he will get a little football player. I told him that if he wanted a football player, Colton would need to take after my family; as you can tell from Rich's build, he is made for basketball, tennis, baseball, and golf. In my family, we know how to make football players, and we make them right!

Case in point, here is one of the 1964 Camden Bulldogs, also known as one of the State Champions that year, but I simply call him Daddy.

(I guess I should also mention that this Camden Bulldog weighed in at a whopping 10lbs. when he was born)

and here are all of the 1964 Camden Bulldogs.

Well, if Colton does prove to be my little bruiser, I am sure he will be a cute little bruiser; in the meantime, pray for my sake, that he comes early!

SURPRISE!!!!!

Well, I guess turnabout is fair play; I found out last night, that I am not the only one with something up their sleeve. At about 7 last night, Pamelia, LaNae, Kim, and Liz picked me up for what I thought was a girls' night out. The plan was to gather at Baibry's for conversation, delicious food, a lot of laughter, and a little sinful dessert to top it off, or so I thought. As I walked into Baibry's last night, I was greeted by a resounding SURPRISE!!!! It actually took me a moment to realize that the surprise was for me. It turns out that Sophia had been scheming and had in fact threatened Rich at church on Wednesday night, to insure that I was indeed going to be there on Saturday night and be none the wiser. I must say Rich did a great job; I had NO idea! I can't tell you how much I loved everything! Sophia treated me to supper and dessert, and I got soooooo many cute things for Colton! Of course, we made sure that we still kept to some of the game plan: conversation, delicious food, a lot of laughter, and a little sinful dessert to top it off. I have to officially say that I have the BEST friends; last night meant more to me than I can say. Sophia even took the time to write me this sweet and touching poem.

A Poem for Colton

Baby Colton, oh so sweet,

How soon your parents will get to meet,

Their third brave son, valiant and strong,

They'll want to hold you all day long.

Brooke and Emma are waiting here,

To help and hold you, oh so dear,

Braden is excited to show you his love,

Spencer will watch you from above.

From the heavens we know you come,

We hope your life will be full of fun,

Your parents will teach and watch you grow,

Sweet baby Colton, we love you so!

How could I not cry after reading that poem?! Sophia, you are awesome (even if you did make me cry)!

Thanks ladies for everything; last night meant more to me than you know! I couldn't ask for better friends!

Proof Positive

You are positive you are pregnant when you begin to cry at things that normally would not elicit that response, or any response. I have found that especially true this pregnancy; I'm not sure why it is so different this time. You would think this would have happened when I was pregnant with my girls, but no; I just had more attitude and mood. This time it seems everything seems to touch me a little deeper. This time the source of my tears was this.



Why did I cry? Ariel and her other animated, fictional (yes I realize how ridiculous this sounds) sisters lose their mother. This leaves them to be raised by their father, only having small memories of their mother. Of course I should also let you know that in the beginning of the movie, you see Ariel, her father, her mother, and all of her sisters spending time together as a family. You see them having fun, enjoying music, and loving life. You also see how much King Tritan loves and adores his wife, and then she is killed; his heart is broken, and the sadness engulfs him. Make more sense now? Yeah, I was embarrassed I cried. My only defense, I'm pregnant!

Murphy's Law Says...

Murphy's Law says that if you stay up late trying to wash and dry all of your son's uniforms, there will be a chocolate Christmas Santa in one of his pockets; the Santa will get chocolate over all of the clothes you wash and dry, therefore requiring a repeat performance, beginning with a LOT of shouting!

I really should buy stock in this stuff!

I LOVE Surprises!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This past weekend Christina and Casey

(http://masedamayhem.blogspot.com/2008/08/hear-ye-hear-ye-guess-who-is-pregnant.html)

came to visit for what they thought was going to be a relaxed weekend of hanging out, but I had other things in mind. Little did they know, but I had planned a surprise baby shower for Christina, which I could not have pulled off without the help of some very dear friends from church. Sophia made two trifles, Liz made a trifle, LaNae and Kim loaded us up with croissants, Pamelia made chicken salad, Beverly made a cheese ball, Sheri made punch, and Lorinda rounded out all of the delicious goodies with some of her infamous candy. To say that we had a delicious feast would be an understatement. I took care of sending out the invites, providing the home, the decorations, the plates, cups, utensils, and games; I think it turned out great, and I think fun was had by all! I know I loved watching Christina get so excited about opening all of her baby gifts; she has waited a long time for her sweet miracle, and I am glad we were able to help her celebrate! I also loved picking out outfits for little Stella; I wanted to make sure she will be decked out in style once she makes her grand appearance in April. As part of Christina's present, I also took maternity pictures of her, something I had never done before. Here are the results; I must warn you first, be prepared to once again see my backyard fence. Yes, I realize I use it as a background quite a bit; hey, I have to use what I have! We also didn't have time to go to another location, not if we were going to take full advantage of the remaining light we had. You know you love seeing my fence; everyone should have one just like it! :)

It has to be a good day...

It has to be a good day when it starts out with finding a sweet letter from your husband. When I got up this morning and walked into the kitchen, this is what I was greeted with; how can I not be patient with all of his work and Bishop craziness when he takes the time to make sure I still feel loved?!!!!!

Proving to be a hard decision

Deciding whether to homeschool this little sweetheart

is proving to be a lot harder than I would have imagined. The only thing I do know for sure is that if I indeed decide to homeschool Braden, it will begin in first grade. At this point, I am just concerned about what is best for Braden and our family. I wonder if I can give him socially what he needs, but then I question if he really needs all of the social experiences you receive at school. Rich even commented to me that he could think of some social situations he experienced in school that he could have done without. I also question what is holding me back, is it the social stigma that surrounds homeschooling? Is it my concern that some people are under the false impression that homeschooling your child means keeping them in a bubble? I wonder if everyone will understand that keeping Braden at home would be all about giving him the best education possible and not because I am trying to shelter him from the world? I have read the articles, searched the Internet, and mulled continuously over this difficult decision, and I have received a lot of wonderful words of encouragement, wisdom, and advice from friends and family; thank you girls! I have also begun to study the various curriculum available to homeschooling families, and I have talked to Braden about the possibility of staying with me for school; he is all for it by the way, but I wonder if he truly understands. The idea that I should homeschool continues to nag at me, and has been since Braden began kindergarten this year. The idea of getting to be Braden's teacher is an exciting thought for me, and so is the possibility of getting to teach again! I can't even begin to explain how excited I got looking at all the education websites yesterday: studying various state standards, reviewing curriculum, and looking at lesson plan ideas; teaching and learning are things I always have been passionate about, and I would love to share that passion with Braden and all of my children! I think I already know what is best, but I want to pray about everything; I want Heavenly Father to confirm to me what is best for Braden. I know if I make the commitment to homeschool, I need to go into it with total confidence and assurance that it is what is best!

What is that saying,

GO BIG OR GO HOME!

If I do this, I want to do it with all of my heart and soul and not look back!

To homeschool or not to homeschool, that is the question

Okay, I would like to officially say that the public school system is NOT my favorite institution today, which is sad, considering I went to college to teach; I in fact taught for three plus years and loved it! I however do not in fact love the public school system today! When you have a son driven to tears with the mere thought of having to do more work, after having been at school all day, you start to seriously reconsider the benefits of the public school system. It seems every year, they are pushing children to grow up faster and to bombard them with more information and knowledge at a younger and younger age. The world has become so competitive and so has education! What happened to going on field trips? What happened to doing fun theme activities and hands on activities more than worksheets? What happened to playing in the dirt: building mud pies, watching bugs, and just having fun getting filthy from head to toe. What happened to letting a child just be a child?! Braden is in kindergarten this year, and he is expected to do more and learn more than I ever dreamed of being expected to learn as a five year old. Case in point: this week he has two new sight words to learn in addition to the 45+ he has already had to try to learn, 10 spelling words, and in addition he needs to practice counting, number recognition, money, and his handwriting, and this is after he has already spent a full day at school. I feel like all of the fun is being sapped out of learning; it is more of a drudgery than a pleasure. I feel Braden should have minimal homework, so he can have time to be a kid. It pained me tonight to watch Rich outside playing with the girls, while my poor overstressed, overworked son had to sit at the dining room table with me to work on his spelling words. I think part of the problem is that in the public school system, there is one teacher that is expected to meet the needs of all of her students in her or his classroom, which is just not feasible. There is no way that Braden or any other student can get the individualized attention they may need, and the teacher's job just becomes harder and harder every year as they add more to the curriculum. It has become where the parent, in order for their child to stay on target, must review and sometimes reteach at home, leaving you to wonder why you send your child to school in the first place. It makes you begin to wonder why you just don't keep your child at home, where you can spend that one on one time with them and give them the individualized attention that they need. These are things that I have began to ponder. What truly is best for Braden? Where will his needs be better met? To homeschool or to not homeschool, that is the question; it is the question that I have struggled with since he began school. What would in the long run be the most beneficial for Braden? The only things holding me back right now are 1) I am getting ready to have a baby, and 2) Braden's socialization, providing adequate enough social situations allowing him to grow and thrive. I don't know the perfect answer, but I am on a quest for that answer. I feel as a mother, it is my job to look out for the best interest of my child; I want education to be a positive experience for Braden, and I don't want his love of learning to perish sitting at the dining room table mulling over sight words, spelling words, and the monotony of practicing writing letters. Could I do a better job at home? Would he still have the opportunities he would at school to interact with others and grow socially?

To homeschool, or not to homeschool, that is the question I wrestle with today.

5 weeks to go BABY!!!!

Well, here I am in all my pregnant glory; you know, the glory that includes feet that resemble and rival the Michelin man's, cankles, constant trips to the restroom, maternity clothes that won't even fit right anymore, and a general uncomfortableness, and how could I forget how beautiful you feel (note the sarcasm). Many probably wonder why women put themselves through this, especially time and time again. It is true, not all of pregnancy is fun, but it is worth the sacrifice! With every pregnancy also comes the excitement of bringing another sweet spirit into the world, and this time is proving to be no different. I look at Colton's little crib and dream about what he will look like, what he will be like, and how wonderful it is going to be able to hold him in a few weeks. I'm not going to lie, motherhood is tough, and there are days I feel overwhelmed; when it is all said and done though, I don't regret the sacrifices I have to make everyday to be the best mother I can be. Since I was a young child I dreamed about being a mother, and though motherhood is the hardest job I have ever had, it is also the most rewarding! I can't imagine a better way I could spend my life!

Daddy Sunday

Ever since Rich and I came across this short article

http://lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=2354fccf2b7db010VgnVCM1000004d82620aRCRD&locale=0&sourceId=12b77e6832ce8110VgnVCM100000176f620a____&hideNav=1

early last year, Rich has been having Daddy Sunday the first Sunday of every month.

Today this little cuteness got to go first.

Rich said they mainly played, which is all Emma ever wants; she was very pleased with her interview.

Next, Rich interviewed this handsome devil.

When Rich was later reviewing the interviews with me, he explained that he had asked Braden what he liked about Mommy and what he didn't like about Mommy. My immediate thought was, 'Oh, great what did he say?! Do I really want to know the answer? Did he say he doesn't like me because I make him eat food he doesn't like? Did he say he doesn't like me when I lose my patience? Is Rich getting pleasure out of sharing this?' Finally, after running through my mind the list of grievances I would have with myself, I said, "Okay, tell me, what did he say?" Rich said (or at least the gist of it, not verbatim of course), "Braden looked at me like I was crazy, and said, There isn't anything I don't like about Mama; I like EVERYTHING about Mama!" In that moment, I was thinking (though not very Christlike), 'In YOUR FACE, asking my son what he doesn't like about his mama; he likes everything about me, that will teach you to ask my boy such a question!' Of course, my next thought was, 'he likes everything, I can think of some times I am not very likeable; that little boy of mine must really love me!'

Of course when that same question was posed to this little sassy princess,

she quickly replied, "I don't like it when you and Mommy put me in time out."

Daddy Sundays are always very entertaining and enlightening; today I learned that my son has a forgiving heart and an unconditional love for me, and I learned that Brooke will rat you out in a second!

Another Reason I Love my Husband

When you see the man you love painting your little girl's toenails, you can't help but love him just a little bit more (especially when he makes this face while he is doing it).

You have to be pretty secure in your masculinity to agree to this (and to not kill your wife when she snaps a picture of the moment), and you have to really love your little princess; that is why I love him so much! He understands that making his little girl feel loved and special is more important than always looking cool or walking around beating his chest and grunting. Then when you see that same little girl run to put on her princess dress, you know that it is worth it; it is obvious that Rich helped his little girl feel loved, special, and beautiful. I sure love that man of mine!

I think we may finally have it, I pray!

Helping my children develop a good work ethic has been the most fantastic and awarding undertaking of motherhood thus far. Okay, I am not usually sarcastic, but that last statement was oozing and dripping with sarcasm. Having my children do chores in an effort to learn how to work, to feel an effective part of our family, and to help them learn confidence has been the bane of my existence! In fact, whenever it is time to clean, I have to brace myself for the groaning, the whining, and the complaining. I feel like I am going into a war zone, and

these are my enemies!

I find myself saying things like, "It's not gonna kill you!" "No, you are not done." "I don't want to hear the whining, I am not in the mood for that today." (actually I am never in the mood for whining) "The sooner you get busy, the sooner we can be done." "You know, if Mama (yes reverting to referring to myself in the third person) was lazy, than you could be too. I however (switching back to first person, no wonder they are confused) am not lazy, so as long as I am working I expect you to; now get off of your little hineys and get to work."

I do have to point out though that this little banter usually begins after I have attempted my upbeat cheerleader routine, and they continue to complain or dawdle. During these daily brushes with frustration, I have also realized why so many parents say forget it and just do the work themselves. Knowing that it is up to me to instill values in my children, and not being a quitter, I trudge on, trying to find what will work. A few months ago, I really started thinking about what I could possibly do to:

1) Motivate the children to want to do their work (is that even possible I wondered)

2) Get the work accomplished, so we could all be happy

3) Help their self confidence grow in themselves as they see that they are contributing to the family and really making a difference

4) Come up with an reward system that would help with the motivation but not negate the self motivation and drive I was hoping to develop

5) Make it fun for everyone

After racking my brain and trying to remember various ideas I had read about in the past, this is what I have come up with. Braden and Brooke both have a chore chart with pictures of the jobs they are required to do, nothing hard, things like: make your bed, put your dirty clothes in hamper, put your shoes away, pick up your toys, put your clothes away, put your books away, set the table, etc.; you get the idea. Well, every time they do a chore, they earn a point, with the exception of their rooms; they get 3 points for doing their room if they need help and 5 points if they do it all by themselves. Each point equates to a poker chip, and these poker chips are placed in a jar; as they collect points and chips, we count them and put the total on the top of the jar with a wipe marker; initially we started with M&Ms, but I didn't want to have to continue to buy them. Braden and Brooke then have the opportunity to visit the chore store where they can trade in their chips for things such as: a movie and popcorn, 30 minutes of computer time, baking cookies, bike riding, a bubble bath in the big bath tub, etc.; after they purchase the activity or activities of their choice, we subtract those chips and write a new total on top. So far it seems to really be working; Braden and Brooke are both more motivated, they are seeing the result of their work, they feel good as they realize they are contributing to the running of the family, and the whining has reduced expeditiously (if only I knew how to make it completely disappear; it would be heavenly).

The Jars

(If you are wondering why Brooke has a lot less, it is because she used most of her chips to purchase a movie and popcorn.)

Here are the chore charts (not as full as usual, I guess we have been taking it a little easy due to the holidays) and the chore store list of goods (it is a work in progress; I still have more activities and rewards I want to add to the store)

I'm sure as time goes on, I will tweak it here and there, but I think we may finally have it! At least, I pray we have it, oh do I pray we have it! So far, so good; keep your fingers crossed!