IKEA

I knew it was going to be fun and I'm so glad I wasn't disappointed. I've been wanting to go to IKEA for so long. Since Talmage has had the week off school we decided we would go. We chose to go on Tuesday because I also thought it would be fun to go to the Galt flea market. I hadn't been there in years so it seemed like a fun thing to do. Of course that was the day it POURED so we didn't stop. I wasn't a very good navigator so I led us a few miles out of the way, but we finally made it. But even with the minor difficulties in getting there it lived up to the expectation I had.

It was a bit overwhelming and a little difficult with two kids. I know I could have spent a lot longer there and we were even there for almost 4 hours. Talmage was such a good sport. I actually think he enjoyed it. I'm sure he could have spent a little less time there but he was good to let me enjoy it.

Kenzie liked trying things out. It's just too bad she was about 2 inches too short to go to the little play area. She was more than mildly disappointed about that. Talmage pushed her around in the cart and they made that more fun than most. Those wheels just slide over that slick floor! Too bad Tyler wanted to be held the whole time. I saw so many fun cute things, though. I realized that was a store where I could spend A LOT of money. We got a few things that are fun and useful. My favorite purchase of the day was the laundry drying rack. Talmage put it up on Wednesday and I used it for the first time today. It's on a great little pulley system so I can put things on it then get it out of the way.

I had such a fun time. I can't wait to go back. It's probably a good thing it's an hour and a half away...

Bedtime stories

Grant missed his second day of school. I know it's just kindergarten...maybe it's because I hated missing school. He's actually feeling much better today but not well enough to go to school or have Kenzie's play group here today. Grant is such a good kid. I've been thinking for a while how good he is to put up with sharing rooms. He used to be in the same room with Tyler, but since we've been trying to let Tyler sleep through the night his crying wakes Grant up. So over Christmas break we moved Grant's mattress into Kenzie's room. They loved it but when school started again I thought it best for him to go back to his room. He's back in Kenzie's room again...Tyler still wakes up at least once. This time Grant just has a little bed made of Kenzie's pink blankets in her PINK room. He doesn't complain. In fact I think he enjoys sleeping in the same room with her. The other night they were telling each other their "dreams" for SO long. Their "dreams" are just little stories from their imaginations. I know they can't recall their real dreams THAT well. It's really cute listening to them talk.

I remember when I was little there was something almost magical about going to bed. Jenn and I used to play "dates." Thinking back it doesn't seem like it could be as much fun as it really was. Our little imaginations would take us on weird little advendtures. We had made up names. We created cool inventions to help us get ready for our "dates." We even pretended to be different animals. I don't remember how old we were or how long it continued but it's something I don't think I'll ever forget. It was so much fun sharing a room. Of course times we were supposed to be sleeping and got caught because we were talking too loud are times I won't forget either. I remember one time we were supposed to be taking a nap before our aunt's wedding reception. I can so vividly picture laying on my bed and looking up at my dress hanging from the curtain rod. I LOVED that dress. It was purple with pink and white little flowers on it and had a lace slip that hung down lower than the dress. It also had pink pearls that went with it. I remember Jenn and I were talking or playing or jumping on our beds instead of sleeping and my dad came in and scolded us. I think to scare us into sleep he opened the door with a little more force than intended and sent the door knob into the wall. I remember thinking how mad he was but now that I have kids... I understand. I sometimes try to put more of a serious tone to things and it comes out a little more harsh than expected. Of course I'm not strong enough to send a doorknob through a wall but I now understand the intention behind the force. I also remember a time Jenn and I were in trouble because we hadn't cleaned our room but it was time to go to bed so we would have to do it tomorrow. Sneaky us cleaned our room using a flashlight. I remember feeling so excited for our parents to see how clean our room was in the morning. I'm so glad I got to share a room with Jenn. I don't think we had much of a choice but I'm glad I have such good memories.

Of course Grant and Kenzie can't share a room forever, or even too much longer, but I'm glad they have a special little bond as siblings and as friends.

Was it worth it?

Maybe we're crazy but it was fun. I love eating out for breakfast but it is very rare that we actually go out to eat. So when we heard about this free breakfast we thought it would be fun.

Talmage and Grant got there at 6:00 this morning and said they were #2 on the waiting list. I didn't want to wake Kenzie and Tyler up or we would have joined them. Talmage said there were a lot of people so he was lucky to have been there so early. Tim, Ryan, and Scott came to eat but the wait was too long. Tim ended up sitting down with Talmage and Grant while Ryan and Scott went next door to Burger King. Talmage and Grant got home around 7:30. Just enough time to get a lunch and snack together before leaving for school.

My mom, Kenzie, and I decided to go a little later in the morning. I think I was hopeful there wouldn't be many people there...wrong! I think we ended up waiting a little over an hour before we were seated. Watching the time I knew I had to get Grant from school so while my mom and Kenzie waited for them to call our name, Tyler and I went to get Grant from school. Grant got a second dose of Denny's today. Although I think waking up an hour early started to catch up with him because he was a little on the grumpy side.

We had a great breakfast though. It was fun to get the bill and only pay for the orange juice.

Kids...

So I know everyone is different and is unique in their own way. I think that's one of the fun things about being a mom...you never know what you're going to "get" from a child. Grant is our serious and sensitive child but he has the BEST laugh and loves to tell stories and jokes. He has quite the imagination. He loves Star Wars and just the other night told us the plot for Star Wars #8. I can't really remember what it was about but there is a "turkey man" who plays an important role.




Mackenzie is a sweet and sour little thing. She can be in the best mood but quickly make a turn for the worse. She can play for hours alone with her toys. I thought it was just a phase but it has yet to end...Kenzie loves to clean between her toes. I can't remember how old she was when she first started this but it seems like she wasn't much older than 1. The other night I found her cleaning Grant's toes. FUN! She loves to clean under her fingernails now too.

And then there's sweet little Tyler. He LOVES his mommy and LOVES to be held. He tried that sleeping through the night thing for a week then decided it wasn't much fun and is back to waking up mostly only once in the night. He is great at going down for bed and takes pretty good naps so I have yet to figure out how to help him understand it's OKAY to sleep all night long.

Thank goodness life isn't dull!!

Peas?!

I don't know what I was thinking! Peas?!


(Darling little face isn't it!?)

Tyler has been eating baby cereal with applesauce on occassion without any problems. He would take a bottle with formula without worrying too much about it. But then I had to go and throw things off by feeding him peas! His face was priceless! Why didn't I have the camera ready? Because he's the third child! Been there done that. Not that we don't care about the third child, I mean Tyler, but just that we're busy trying to get our other two kids to eat that we don't think about getting out a video camera. I do feel bad that I don't have any videos of Tyler. Our video camera is 10 years old and doesn't do so well but I'm also out of 8mm tapes for it. Talmage and I have talked about getting a new one but it's just another expensive thing that we want but really don't NEED.

Back to the peas... I know I should have started off with something tasty and sweet like bananas or peaches or sweet potatoes or even green beans! I just was trying to introduce the healthy green vegetable... Now Tyler makes quite the face anytime I try to give him cereal or any kind of baby food and now even bottles. I really messed up! Poor kid even makes a face with a clean spoon. This will take some time for him to forgive me and forget that awful taste but I'll be persisitent. As for now and for entertainment purposes...here is a little video of his refusal for a clean spoon.

Back to school...or not

Grant asked me almost every day last week if it was Monday yet. He's been anxious to go back to school, which I'm glad about. I don't remember ever being excited to go back to school after Christmas...but maybe I was. However, there's no back to school for Grant this morning. He came into our room around 1:00 this morning with a fever. I made him a little bed at the foot of our bed and gave him some tylenol. He's been asleep ever since. Then Kenzie came in around 4:00 and had a fever also. How disappointing to miss school on the first day back...and it's the first day of kindergarten he has missed.

I was one who never liked missing school. I remember feeling sick when I was in the third grade but I didn't want to go to the nurse and have to go home. I finally went home when I got sick after lunch. Then again in the 7th grade I remember feeling terrible all day. I never went home.

So when it comes to Grant, there's part of me that thinks I should wake him up and see how he feels and maybe he can go to school a little late, but then I remind myself that he needs the sleep and it will be just fine for him to miss one day of school. I worried Grant would have a hard time waking up in the morning for school so we made sure to get them to bed earlier on Saturday and Sunday night. My kids rarely slept in past 8:00 during Christmas break so for them to still be asleep now gives me this opportunity for a few minutes of quiet time. I should enjoy the silence and get as much done as I can.

Do you like white diamonds?

I haven't quite found a routine yet for keeping up with this thing. There's just been too much excitement in my life lately? Either that or too much chaos. I would vote for the chaos. Some days I really wonder if I can keep my sanity past these child rearing days. I LOVE my kids...but some days are those kind of days. I cannot count the number of times I played "Mom" as a child. I was a fantastic mom. My kids loved me ALL the time. They were happy ALL the time. We played together ALL the time, except for the times I had to go to the "grocery store." They took naps and woke up happy. I never lost my temper. I never got upset. I never wondered when they would out grow certain stages. I never had bad days. Why did no one tell me it wouldn't be that easy?! Real kids are a lot different than my dolls. Hard to believe...I know. It's sad when I realize I'm not the mom I thought I was going to be. Being a mom is really hard sometimes...no, a lot of the time. My kids are not happy ALL the time. I get busy and have things to do and don't get to play with the kids ALL the time. They don't wake up happy ALL the time. I lose my temper more often than I wish. I get upset more often than I would like. I often times hope these are just stages that they will grow out of. Tonight, however, was one of those moments that I felt the joy and sweetness that I wish would last forever. I wrapped Christmas presents this afternoon. Once it was wrapped I would put it outside the bedroom door and Grant would write the name on it then he or Kenzie would put it under the tree. When we were all done he asked where my presents were. I did buy a few things for me but didn't wrap them. At dinner this evening Grant told Talmage that he needed to take them (he and Kenzie) shopping for me. Talmage (jokingly) said I spent all of his money so he couldn't. Grant quickly spoke up saying he had money in his piggy bank. Kenzie then chimed in that she had money in her piggy bank too. All moms feel the same way, I'm sure. We don't need or want anything. But the fact that they thought of spending their own little pennies on me made me feel so special. The past couple weeks we've been watching a few of the Christmas specials on TV on our bed. During one of the commerical breaks of A Charlie Brown Christmas I went to lay Tyler down in his bed. When I came back Grant looked at me and asked, "Mom, do you like white diamonds? Is that what you want for Christmas?" What a sweet and thoughtful boy. He was especially helpful tonight before the show started. He helped Kenzie brush her teeth and get the step stool up to the toilet for her. He got her blanket and pillow even when she was being a little difficult.

These are the things I couldn't have pretended better. These are the moments I didn't plan for and no one could have prepared me for. These are the sweet little memories that forgive the frustrations. Being a mom is very HARD sometimes but just as every mom can say, it's ALL worth it.