Month: October 2018

We had a laid back Halloween morning. I made meat loaf, read a bunch to the kids, and took a nap. Also, Chelsea visited! It is so fun whenever she stops by to chat. I just love her.

Then I got the babies in their costumes, picked up the girls early from school and took everyone to downtown Provo to trick or treat the Center Street stores.

Trick or treating the businesses was really fun. The weather was beautiful, and I just enjoy seeing my kids have fun. Ammon wanted to hold my hand a lot, which made me really happy. I love how he always points exciting things out to me. It makes me feel special.

Anyway, after we finished trick or treating down town, I had the kids all buckled into their seats when Mary announced she needed to pee. I could have unbuckled everyone, hunted down a bathroom, and somehow helped Mary out of her costume to pee while still keeping track of Ammon and managing Clarissa…but that sounded crazy. So I ordered Mary to hold it until home. She didn’t make it, at which point I got really frustrated and angry with her for not being potty trained yet. Then she cried and said I was the meanest parent ever who loved everyone but her. It was a sad situation. Luckily Abe was home when we pulled in and he immediately took care of Mary and made it all better. Thank you, Abe.

I also have this picture of the kids with Eliza and Lucy, who trick or treated with the kids after dinner. They asked a week ago if they could take our kids trick or treating because they feel too old to go by themselves. Of course we said yes, and, as the picture shows, our kids were thrilled:

And now Abe and I are on the couch waiting for their return. We thought we would rather miss taking the kids around ourselves…but this is awesome. We’re warm and about to watch a movie. Thank you, Eliza and Lucy!! We LOVE you!!!

Also, looking at that picture made me remember a cute anecdote from today. I pointed out to Mary that her headband looks like a button you press for a gum ball. As soon as I said that, she took her head band, turned the button upside down and said, “out of order!” Lydia commented wistfully that Mary got a lot of compliments on her costume at school. It’s so ironic because compliments about how cute Mary is embarrass Mary and make her uncomfortable, whereas if anyone compliments Lydia she savors it like a treasure. In light of this ongoing irony, I made sure to give Lydia lots of (very sincere) compliments this evening.

This morning we had a play date with Blair, James, and Hannah. Blair and I enjoy commiserating over our husbands’ struggles at Qualtrics and just talking in general. Blair is a nutritionist and gave me great advice for Clarissa’s constipation. Apparently, Clarissa is drinking way too much whole milk. We need to cut it back and or change over to two percent. That was so good to learn.

Ammon and I have been watching art history documentaries during Clarissa’s naps lately. Ammon fell asleep in the middle of learning about John James Audubon, and I fell asleep sometime in the middle of a Whistler documentary. When I woke up, I had no idea how to extricate myself from this comfy, warm situation without waking up Ammon. If there was a solution, I couldn’t find it. When I got up, Ammon woke up. On the upside, he was in a terrific mood for the rest of the day.

Then we got Clarissa and picked up Mary and Lydia from school. For the past little bit I have been developing a new technique to be efficient with our post-school afternoons. On the way home from school  I drill the girls over and over on what they will do upon entering the house. I ask them if they have any questions approximately two million times, and then I answer whatever questions they have. I lay out the rewards and consequences for following or not following our afternoon routine, and then for good measure I have them recite their routines one more time each.

Then we come home, I run inside to get everything ready for them (e.g., I tune the harp, set up a show for Ammon, bring in stuff from the car, etc.), and then the minute they come in I set a timer for their reading. When that dings, I set a timer for their music. When that dings, they know they have until 5:30 (when Abe gets home) to finish their homework, pack their backpacks for the next day, and clean up any messes they made while doing homework.  While they work, I clean the house, cook dinner, yell out practicing instructions, and answer homework questions. It’s actually really fun! Today I managed to make fettuccine alfredo with mushrooms, roasted broccoli, and an apple pie during this time. My goal is to be more available for practice, though, so in the future I want to somehow get dinner done either more quickly or ahead of time.

Honestly, I feel so slow. This routine feels so easy and insanely OBVIOUS. As in, I am sure every other mom on the planet has this figured out. Just tell the kids what they are doing before they enter the door!! But it’s taken me years to get to this place of an effective routine. YEARS.

I guess instead of beating myself up about that, I should just be grateful I figured it out at all.

 

Abe told me he wanted to carve pumpkins on Monday because he had to help organize tithing settlements on Tuesday. So after school on Monday we picked pumpkins up from a local farm stand and the girls got all of their homework and practice done while I put a dinner of chili, kale salad, tomato soup, and gorgonzola croutons on the table.

After dinner we all had the greatest time listening to Halloween music and carving pumpkins. I  also baked a pumpkin pie and roasted the pumpkin seeds after I helped Ammon carve his pumpkin into a sad face, per his specific request.

Mary drew an incredible witch silhouette onto her pumpkin which Abe somehow turned into an even better work of art. Lydia was so proud because she designed and carved her pumpkin all by herself.

After everything was carved and cleaned up, we put the pumpkins outside, lit them, and watched the kids go crazy with joy. Ammon and Mary raced around the yard holding hands as they pretended to run away from her witch pumpkin. Lydia pretended to be the witch they were running away from, and somehow everyone ended up on the porch eating pumpkin seeds and pumpkin pie. The kids ended by spontaneously singing “Silent Night.” I don’t know how they made that particular song selection, but everyone was so happy and the night was so beautiful that it felt completely appropriate, even if it was, er, unseasonal.

I should have taken more pictures because everyone was SO HAPPY this afternoon and evening. It was one of those cup-runneth-over events. We all felt so, so cozy, familial, joyful, and, above all, grateful.

On Sunday we had Abe’s team member, Paul, and Paul’s girlfriend, Kiva, over for dinner. I was on my period and really struggling to get everything cleaned and cooked on time, and I told Abe we can’t do anymore of these dinners.

But when Paul and Kiva arrived, I forgot all of my aches and pains. They were so delightful and interesting. We couldn’t stop asking them questions about their amazing childhoods. Paul shared a lot of his homeschooling experience, and Kiva grew up on a mountain ranch in rural Idaho.

When they left, we had an FHE that my mom and the girls had worked very hard on. I should have taken pictures of Mary, who wrote and drew an entire book about the plan of salvation. Each stage of the plan had a full page picture of a wrapped gift preceding it–to show that each part of God’s plan is a gift. She also conducted the opening song. We love seeing her in her element, which appears to be teaching.

Abe and I used to go to Moab and Arches National Park all the time because of his old job. But we realized recently that it’s been FOUR YEARS since we last visited! The last time we went, Lydia was just three years old, Mary was two, and Ammon and Clarissa weren’t even born.

Moab and Arches have such a warm spot in our hearts. On Saturday we finally visited them again. The drive there was beautiful, our hikes in Arches were peacefully nostalgic, and our dinner at our favorite Moab restaurant, Pasta Jay’s, was delicious–although it was, er, more expensive than I remembered. We used to go when Abe’s company paid for his part of the meal and all we had to pay for was mine, which I shared with the girls. Turns out it’s a lot different when we’re paying for two adults and three of our four kids!

Anyway, here are the pictures:

 

We went to see delicate arch next. The kids were all so tired that they initially didn’t want to get out of the car and see the arch, but when we told them it was their school logo, they got out of the car and walked the short walk to see it.

We finished by hiking to double arch. These short hikes took us a looooonng time because Clarissa wanted to walk and the kids stopped a lot. Either they wanted to play in the sand or they asked me to take their picture. All of the pictures below were per their requests:

 

 

Then I gave the camera to Abe so he could take some photos of double arch while I stayed behind with Clarissa, who was so hungry she was stuffing pebbles into her mouth. I couldn’t photograph her and keep her mouth rock-free at the same time.

Abe took this great photo of double arch.

 

After our hike to double arch, we headed to Moab so the kids could get their their ranger badges because the visitor’s center was closed.

We also wanted to eat at our favorite Moab restaurant, Pasta Jay’s. I did take a minute to wonder what it would be like to just go to dinner here with Abe and without having to deal with the chaos children generate, but then I realized my kids were actually behaving really well. I’ll keep them.

On Friday my mom, the kids and Abe all went to the ward Halloween party. I skipped it to go to yoga. Just as I was about to leave, I got a text from Jessi, who was skipping her ward Halloween party to go to an oboe and bassoon concert. She invited me along, so I did the math and realized that if I RACED after yoga, I could do yoga and still make it to the concert.

It ended up being a most wonderful concert. The bassoon is such a comical, delightful instrument. Jessi is a professional bassoonist and worked for a while as an adjunct bassoon professor at BYU-Idaho, so she knew everyone performing and, it seemed, half of the audience too. I loved the people I met and asked Jessi if she could give me the music to the Poulenc trio so we can play it together (with an oboe player) sometime.

When we went in for the trio, we started talking, and we didn’t stop talking for the next several hours. We talked about faith and marriage. There were a lot of tears and it was one of those conversations that I will probably never forget. I love Jessi and admire her so much.

Here are the pictures from the party that Abe managed to take. He didn’t take a lot because he had his hands full. Ammon was, in the words of my mom, on a very long leash. At one point, Abe decided he should actually try to locate Ammon, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time. He discovered Ammon pushing through the second set of doors to leave the church building. It was a good thing he checked!

On Thursday I took Ammon and Clarissa on the Cascade Springs hike. I pulled over en route to take a picture. My camera card was full, so I tried to practice the composition techniques I’ve been reading about using just my iPhone.

This next picture I took when we were close to Cascade Springs. I stepped out of the car and for the first time in forever heard nothing but beautiful, sweet silence. There was no one around for miles. It was sort of ominous at first, but after I gave myself a pep talk (“No one is going to jump out of the bushes and murder you and your children”, etc.) I was able to sink into the gorgeous aural sensation of SILENCE.

Also, in the morning I studied a photo of sunflowers in front of Mt. Fuji, and when I was trying to figure out how to capture the beautiful vista in front of me, I used it as a reference.  It’s amazing what reading and studying do!! I am seriously kicking myself for not doing this years ago.

I was a little nervous to hike Cascade Springs because, as I said before, not a soul was in sight. But it turned out to be the most glorious, sweet experience. I loved every minute of this time in nature with my kids. I kept feeling overwhelmed with wonder that this is my life. It was so beautiful.

It was an absolutely amazing morning and afternoon, and I felt so grateful to be alive and in my own life.

With all of that beauty and goodness from the morning, you would think I would have stored up some sort of emotional reserve so that I could behave well when I thought I saw a mouse in the basement. But, sigh, no. I am not at that point yet. I was a totally crazy b*&$! for the next three hours after that–all the way until Abe ascertained that there was no mouse. It must have been my imagination.

Then I felt really bad and guilty for the rest of the evening. I did go to yoga and got back to a good place, but I am hoping that I can figure out how to BE NICE EVEN WHEN I AM STRESSED OUT. This is a very difficult project for me. I hope I can figure this out before my kids all grow up.

 

Today Abe and I were up by 5am and then went running. I have been sooooo good about exercise and–this is how bad my eating is–I have ZERO to show for it. Well, I guess I’m healthier, so there’s that. But I am no skinnier! Sigh.

Despite the fact that I still tote an extra fifty pounds around, I had a terrific day. I kept the house pretty tidy, did a bunch of laundry, made a huge batch of the healthy kind of broccoli soup, got caught up on the blog, took Ammon and Clarissa to the library, and made sure the kids got their homework, practice, and dance in.

Abe had a kind of tricky conflict at work with one of his team members. That took the emotional wind out of his sails, a bit. But he’s still cheerful and fun. When we drove up to the house from dance, Lydia said, “Why do we never do any Halloween decorations?! We are going to be the most boring family on the block!!”

…So Abe dug in the garage and found some orange lights, a giant spider, and some of my La Befanas I picked up when I lived in Italy. The kids are playing happily with them and think they are Halloween witches.

I also got a Baskin Robbins ice cream cone today. That’s depressing in retrospect, but I have been thinking about Baskin Robbins for at least a month. We almost never go there, but for whatever reason it’s been on the mind.

On our way home, Abe saw this cherry orchard turning colors. He did a u-turn so that he could snap these pictures:

Right now everything feels chaotic because it is 7:39 and the kids aren’t even in pj’s. Everyone is playing, eating and doing homework:

 

On Tuesday the babies and I stayed home in the morning to read and play while the girls went on a field trip to the pumpkin patch.

Then after school I picked them up and took everyone up to the Timpanogos trail head. We spent at least an hour there, but a lot of that was actually spent getting jackets and shoes on everyone and overseeing potty runs to the outhouse. During the actual hike, we went very, very slowly because Clarissa wanted to walk.

When the trail got too muddy, I put her in the carrier. She screamed at the top of her lungs in protest…and she didn’t stop screaming until we turned around fifteen minutes later and went all the way back to the car. That was so unfortunate because the trail was beautiful and the other kids were doing so great on it. We might try again later in the week.

When we got home, everyone did homework and practiced. I stayed up reading my how-to photography books. I am kicking myself for not reading these YEARS earlier. Anyhoo, they are wonderfully inspiring and instructional. I hope to become a better photographer with their help!

On Monday the kids had their last day of Fall Break, so I packed them all up, including our little neighbor, Eli, and took everyone to the Dinosaur Park in Ogden.

Before I continue this story, let me just preface it by saying that Monday was one of the BEST DAYS EVER!!! It was one of those days I felt happy from start to finish. Every activity was a delight. The only thing that would have made it better is if Abe could have been able to come too. I just needed to record that in case I look back and think I’ve wasted these little-kid years complaining and feeling ungrateful. Honestly, I felt active gratitude in my heart practically every minute of this glorious day. It was so fun.

Okay, so we drove to Ogden because I have not explored it much at all since moving here to Utah, and I have been wanting to for some time. I debated between Ogden, southern Utah, or Salt Lake stuff, and I am so glad Ogden won! It was beautiful with the fall colors. (Apparently, it is on the top ten places to visit for fall colors in the U.S. After Monday, I believe it!)

Oh! Before we left for Ogden, the girls each practiced their instruments without complaining and were soooo good. That was awesome.

Then we drove to the dinosaur park in Ogden. It was incredible. The kids spent hours exploring and playing. I loved it because of both how much the kids loved it AND how beautiful a day and place it was. It was a gorgeous day and we were right at the mouth of Ogden Canyon. So pretty.

After the museum, we went to Prairie Schooner, a theme restaurant I read about a couple years ago. It was so cool and the pictures do not capture a smidgen of it. The food was so-so, but nobody really cared because everyone was so busy having fun in our wagon and exploring the “prairies” in the restaurant.

Then we drove home, and just when I thought the day couldn’t get any better, Abe gave me a massage. It really was the perfect day.

I am so grateful to God, nature and all of the wonderful people in my life for my life. Thank you, thank you, thank you.