Where Do They Come Up With This Stuff?

My kids are my life!  The only reason I even go to work is to support my family!  Even though life can be stressful with three kids, three and under, we have a lot of fun times around here!

Yesterday I came downstairs after getting the baby down for a nap.  I could hear the older kiddos giggling and it made me smile just thinking of them playing together with their toys.  Then I saw what was so funny!  They were both stark naked!!!  In the time I went upstairs, put the baby down, then came back down, they had taken everything off!  Shoes, socks, pants, shirts, and DIAPERS!!!  I had to burst out laughing because they thought they were so sneaky!  Then I chased them around for five minutes after that putting everything back on!

Then tonight, after I got home from my parents' house, the dog was so excited to see us, she peed all over her kennel.  Now if she was a mini-anything, this wouldn't be a big deal!  But she is a 75 lb Golden which means there was A LOT to clean up!  So I left everything I brought home from my parents, including three leftover cupcakes, on the counter and started cleaning up.  Jack kept asking me for the cupcakes and I kept saying no more.  I threw the dog in the bathtub and told her to stay!  She loves water and will usually just lay in the bathtub until I rinse her off!  I had to run all the garbage out so I left the kiddos and dog inside and ran quickly out to the garbage.  I saw a neighbor and stopped for literally 30 seconds then ran back in.  It was completely silent!  That is NEVER a good sign.  I came around the corner into the kitchen.  The cupcake container was on the ground with no cupcakes in it, both kids were covered in frosting, and Jack was drinking the cinnamon honey butter from the fridge!  I started laughing and got all of that cleaned up then went to check on the dog.  She was NOT in the bathtub!  My soaking wet dog was laying on my bed!!! I had reached that point where if you don't laugh, you just start crying!  I don't know why all this happens when my hubbie is gone!?  He never gets in on the fun!  So now everyone is quiet and in bed and I can go to sleep with a smile on my face!

Here's to more laughing and more adventures!

Unanswerable Questions

I took Jack to his speech evaluation today and although I knew almost positively what the outcome was going to be, I was way bummed.  It was just an affirmation of my worries and fears.  More therapy, more money, more people staring at us when we are out in public.  I usually try to put such a happy face on the whole thing, but today it all kind of came to the surface for a while and it was rough!  I am a Special Ed Consultant so I have seen so many kiddos with disabilities, but none of them were ever my kid!  So many questions came to mind, most of which I could not answer (and neither can anyone else).

• When will Jack look "normal"?
• Will Jack ever look "normal"?
• How is Kindergarten going to go?
• Is he going to struggle with talking and language his whole life?
• Am I worrying too much?
• Are the tantrums going to get better or worse?
• Why can't he poop like other kids can?
• Where is the money going to come from for this extra therapy that he has to have?
• Will I ever know what caused all of this?
• Will I ever find a doctor who takes me seriously and not just say he must have Autism, because everybody has Autism?
• Will he ever go on a mission?
• Will he ever get married?
• Will I ever stop worrying about him?

I know that no one has the answers, at least not right now, but some days are better than others with how I handle everything that is going on.  I just want what is best for him and I really want him to have every opportunity out there!

Sisters

I was looking through old pictures and came across some of Audrey as a baby.  Now they aren't exactly the same but it is fun to see how she and Kate look alike!  Now a fun note, Kate is almost a month younger than Audrey was when these pictures were taken.  Kate is just a bigger girl!



My Big Boy Jack!

Jack really has come so so far in that past few months!  I was worried about him for a while there, but since he has been in preschool and getting some speech and now OT, he is progressing so well!

Recently he has wanted to start saying the prayers at bed time and meal time.  He can say the meal time one all by himself now and always has to scream amen!  The bed time one I help him with still, but he adds in what he wants to bless.  We always bless our family members, but lately he has added in his favorite friends, McQueen and Mater.  He waits until we are almost done with the prayer and then whispers, "Bless McQueen. Bless Mater. Etc."  He usually names ten or so Car's characters and then his train track, his toys, and his movies.  It just makes me so happy he wants to say them that I don't care if he blesses them and I know Heavenly Father probably smiles when he hears Jack's prayers!

Jack's main love in life is Cars.  He likes the non namebrand ones, but he lives for McQueen and Mater.  He can name all the characters in both movies and is now starting to recite the lines from the movies when he plays.  We have a myriad of Cars toys, books, bedding, his bed, shirts, jammies, socks, shoes, a coat, a jacket, underwear, silverware, plates, cups, fruit snacks, cereal, and the list goes on and on.  He idolizes them and worships them as if they were Gods!!!

Recently I was able to go on a field trip with Jack to the Natural History Museum at the University of Utah.  He had so much fun and his teachers were able to see a different side of him since he was so comfortable with me!  We stayed for an hour and only got to see a part of the museum, but it is way cool for all ages and I would recommend it to everyone!

I wore my University of Utah sweatshirt which made one little boy on the bus mad!

One of the mom's cancelled on the last minute so I was able to take her spot on the bus and ride with Jack!  He thought it was so cool and we even got to see an ambulance go past us!  Stimulus overload!

You could put the insides of an animal cell together and once all the pieces were in place, the outside would light up!

Jack thought it was hilarious to poke their eyes!

 Various displays

Jack LOVES Miss Shelley, but hated the feel of this horrible grainy sand!



They had a fun little kids play area and we ended the day here.

It was so fun to spend time with my little guy!  We got to ride the bus home and then get pizza with Audrey.  I am so proud of my big guy and how he has grown!

Oh Audrey Mae!

Audrey's current loves:

• PINK! Anything that has pink on it automatically belongs to her and is called princess ______. So if it is a shirt it is a princess shirt, if it is a book it is a princess book, even if it is a pink paper cup, it is a princess cup.
• Taking care of Kate.  Audrey is the second mommy around here.  She loves to hold Kate, try and feed Kate, wrap Kate up in "bankies."
• "Killies".  Audrey cannot prounce kitties, but she is obsessed with them.  If she saw a pink kitty I am afraid it would blow her mind!  She loves Secret of Nimh which she calls the "Scary Killy Movie."
• Eating.  Audrey loves food and loves to eat (unless it is her daddy trying to give her something)!  She always tells Grandma Stayner she's "hug-wee."
• A-ma (Grandma Stayner).  Whenever she gets in trouble at home, she informs me she is going "home" to see A-ma.
• Hassa.  She is connected at the hip to her Aunt Lisa.  The only way Lisa ever can escape her is going to the bathroom.
• Playing scary.  My dad chases her around the house and then hides.  She wanders around to find him, then he jumps out and "scares" her, prompting more running and screaming!
• Anything belonging to Jack.  Audrey had middle child syndrome for a while and really struggled with it.  She has gotten better with that but still hasn't given up sleeping in his bed, sitting in his chair, eating off his plate, etc.  Luckily Jack doesn't mind using all the pretty pink princess stuff.
• Being held.  Loves it!
• Giving hugs and kisses.  Anytime anyone is sad, even in a book or a movie, Audrey gives them a hug and a kiss.  If she can't actually get to them, like on the tv, she pretends.  She will even hug and kiss people over the phone!
• Santa house.  Santa brought her a kitchen this year and she loves to use it to make food.
• Talking on the phone (or any electronic device that looks like a phone).  Audrey will have whole coversations on the tv remote!  Quite entertaining.
• Preschool.  She doesn't actually get to go yet, but she loves when she gets to go and drop Jack off in his class.  You usually have to peel her out of the chair to go home!
• Gigi and Papa's house.  Good company, good food, good movies.  Need I say more?
• Leaving the house.  The whole process of putting on shoes, socks, coat, etc.  She just loves going somewhere.
• Shopping.  Audrey is GREAT at putting things in the cart.  Including all the stuff you don't want and/or need.
• Her daddy.  Every morning he is gone, she asks where he is.
• Singing.  Favorite songs: Popcorn Popping, I Am A Child of God, and Itsy Bitsy Spider.  She loves singing anytime, but these are her favorites.
• "Pay Wii"  she loves to play the Wii.  All she does is wave the controller around or stand on the board and flap, but she loves being there with everyone.
• Hannah.  She adores her cousin Hannah and will go anywhere if we tell her Hannah is going to be there.  Once she gets there they don't do a lot together, but that will come in time.
• Accessories.  Audrey loves to be pretty.  She wears multiple necklaces, tried to put on mommy's mascara, and has even been known to put on mommy's deoderant.
• Her family.  Audrey loves being with all her family so much!

Audrey has so many loves I needed to stop here because it was getting late!  Even though some days can be a challenge with a two year old girl, she is a light in my life and I love her so so so much!

Poor tough Kate!

Poor Kate for a few reasons, we are not taking nearly as many pictures of her that we did of the others because we are managing life!  It seems like by the time we get to an event with everyone fed and dressed, no one remembered the camera!  So I am trying to make myself remember to take more of her because she is changing everyday!

Another reason, it has taken a little while for her sister to completely warm up to her!  Most days are great, but then we will have one where Audrey does not want me to hold the baby, touch the baby, or even look at the baby!  One of these days I wanted to dress the girls the same.  Audrey was so mad that I wouldn't take off the baby's clothes so they weren't matchy!  She threw the biggest fit (as you can see) but I made her stay in her clothes and by golly she survived!



The last reason is the older two kids want to hold her all the time!  Now if they were older it would be great, I could use the extra hands, but since their hands are so little, it always takes my hands under theirs to hold Kate.  It is a sweet thing that they love it so much, but I worry a little when they get so casual while holding her!

First it was Audrey's turn:

Then it was Jack's:

So if she survives them, I think she will become one of their best buddies!  By the way, don't you just love the matching jammies?!

Kate's Blessing Day

Our little Katharine Sophia was blessed today!  I so love days like today!  We were surrounded by family and friends who all love us and her!  My mother-in-law made a spectacular dress for her with an heirloom earring as a necklace for the baby.  This earring came from my mother-in-law's grandma which makes it my daughter's great-great-grandmother!  Pretty amazing!

The blessing was beautiful and we are going to get pictures of her in the gown!  She was blessed with wisdom and that in a world of chaos she would be someone others could look to for guidance.  She was also blessed with happiness and an unwavering natural faith in Jesus Christ!  She was told to seek out a worthy priesthood holder for a husband that they could raise their children together.  Kate was perfect during the blessing and then promptly fell asleep in my arms.  The other two also did very well!

We then went to my mom and dad's house for a luncheon.  I really can't think of anything that could have gone better!  It was a perfect day!