October Fun

Not only is October over, but we're almost half way through November now, and I'm just barely grasping that it's actually November. And it's not that we're so busy, (although October did find us with lots to do)... it's just that I really think time is moving faster. No, really. That's my reasoning, and I'm sticking to it. Regardless, between company, school, soccer, and just boring old "stuff,", October pretty much flew by. But at least we have something to show for it...

My dad and his family finally came out to see us, after not visiting for over a year. I hope they're as embarrassed as I am for them, to see that in print. His own daughter! To prove to them just how fun we really are and how much they've been missing out on, I basically did nothing with them, while they were here. My hostess skills are unmatched. OK, so we did head out to Lake Las Vegas one day and had a fun time wandering around. We managed to pick a day when they had dragon boat races for a breast cancer fundraiser and it was really fun to see the cool boats and watch the teams row by, rowing to the beat of the giant drums on their boats. The weather was gorgeous and the day included gelato, so it was a pretty perfect day. Other than that, we just hung around and the boys entertained themselves with Rachel (read: I didn't have to entertain them). Despite how boring I really am, we had a lot of fun and hopefully Dad and Karen won't wait another entire year to visit again. Especially since they're the only family we didn't force to help us out in the backyard... or should I say the only family who "chose" not to help us with our backyard work...?



Next up was the boys' primary program and it was the first primary program I have ever seen my kids take part in. I think Jaxon has only been in 1 before, since we've always managed to be out of town on the week they do it. And the one he did (last year), Jared and I still managed to ditch out on. But I was finally a good little mommy and beamed with pride as my little Gavin got up and recited his scripture from memory. He was so pleased that he was able to learn it all by himself (yeah.. it was only 1 sentence...). Jaxon's class did a song by themselves and I think he sang... I couldn't really see him over the pulpit. Poor kid is such a shrimp. It's never more obvious than when he stands with a group of peers.

Next, I was supposed to have a house full of family for a week... it was supposed to start with my baby sister coming for some sister time and soon morphed into a siblings reunion. That is, until one of them came down with the flu, and put everyone else in contact with it. At which point I out-vited them. All of them. Turns out none of the others came down with it, but I wanted to play it safe.

But we managed to get my brother and his kids out a week later, after I had been reassured that noone was coming down with any version of the flu. Jaxon had school all day, so Gavin was in hog heaven having his cousin Anya to himself all day long. And she was a complete sweetheart to play with him. Plus, Caden had his favorite buddy and playmate Aaron to play and fight with all day long. They all played in our amazing backyard... of dirt and blocks, and still managed to entertain themselves for hours out there. But best of all... my brother finished our second retaining wall! Jared was home for one day and they got it started, but once he had to go back to work, Alan was out there every day, almost all day long, finishing up the blocks and moving dirt. He seriously got so much done for us and I think we may finally be ready to entertain the thought of sprinkler lines and plants. But that may just have to wait until our next unwitting family comes to visit...



We also managed to fit in a very quick visit with my aunt and cousin for a day. She even treated us to an AARP sponsored Faith Hill concert. Only concert I've ever been to that had subtitles on the big screen. Made me and Jared snicker and enjoy our lone date for the month even more.

Along with the company, we threw in a couple Halloween crafts. I saw these lanterns on another blog and had to try them with all the canning jars I'm supposed to return to my mom. But look how cute they turned out! She can't possibly fault me... especially if I share with her, right? (Too bad she hates Halloween...) I'm seriously in love with them and wanted to make a dozen more. The great thing about them is they're so easy, I was actually able to finish a project and Jaxon was able to make his own with very little guidance. I love that one of my kids is finally old enough to actually do something where I don't have to hover and worry about the mess every second. (My poor kids never really get to bake with me because I'm so paranoid about the stupid flour getting dumped everywhere and my cookies not ending up perfectly spaced on the cookie sheet...)

And of course, we got our Halloween cooking on. We made our favorite creepy crawly cupcakes with some friends from the neighborhood who came over for a little Halloween get together. And then I attempted some Halloween cake pops, that were sadly less than impressive. I was going for Frankenstein and instead, I got "Mr. Johnson" from Sesame Street. Oh well. The pumpkins at least resembled actual pumpkins. And we still had lots of fun making them, although I don't know where Bakerella finds all her fancy candies to make hers so cute. I had to visit 4 grocery stores, just to fink Good&Plenty's and bright green Tic Tac's.



Finally, we managed a couple trips to the local Casino parking lot pumpkin patch. As basic as it is, the boys look forward to it every year and Jaxon was majorly disappointed he couldn't come this year (hee hee... he's in school all day long...) Gavin loved going and even Caden got into the rides this year, running around with a big silly grin on his face.

And finally (really this time), we made our 2nd annual pilgrimage (can you call it annual if you've only done it once before? Is there some rule about how many years in a row you have to do something before you can call it annual? Is buying boots now an annual tradition because I've done it two years in a row? Because, then Jared needs to understand that this is more than shopping... it's a tradition.) to Jaxon's school Harvest festival. It's basically comprised of a bunch of lame carnival games with even lamer prizes, but Jaxon loves going and surprisingly, I love taking him and the boys. And this year it wasn't completely for naught... we satisfied our decennial (that should kick the reading level of my blog up a couple levels, right?) winning quota when Caden won the cake walk. So, obviously we had fun, despite it being unseasonably cold. Like, really cold. We were in coats and freaking mittens. (I used a lot of parentheses on that paragraph... were you able to follow?)

Mix in a bunch of soccer games, and a trip to Utah that will get its own post, and we were honestly busy in October. I believe this is the first time since I've had kids where I can legitimately say we were busy and not simply be using "busy" as a euphemism for "too lazy to actually get up and do anything and really whiling all my time away doing nothing and finding that I've wasted so much time doing nothing, that I don't actually have time to do anything."

And that's definitely progress for me.

And it made for a super fun and fast month.

Moving On Up the Food Chain

Jaxon must have read my latest post on favorites, because he has been making a determined effort these last couple of weeks to move to the top of the "favorite kid" list.

A couple weeks ago, while Jared and Caden were out of town, Jaxon planned an elaborate surprise for us. As we were leaving for church on Sunday morning, I noticed a plate with bread on the middle of the table and plates set out. I started to question Jaxon, who interrupted me and told me to hurry on by and not peek... it was a surprise. So, I hurried on my way, but not without pointing out that the bread would be dried out and icky by the time we returned home... so he quickly bagged it and we headed off to church. I was intrigued and maybe a little worried, to say the least.

Once we got home, Jaxon told me and Gavin to wait outside until he told us to come in. So, Gavin and me sat in the car, until we were at last permitted entrance into the house.

He ushered us inside the house and proceeded to "seat" us at the kitchen table, where there were 2 "menuoes" (he has this thing lately, where instead of spelling things the way they sound, he tries to use all the spelling rules he's learned... he makes things way more complicated than they need to be) waiting. It offered such delicacies as the "lunch speshel-- solsu and chips" and my personal favorite, "gwocumole and chips." He had also included some dinner options, such as "chicin leftoverse and schring cheese." And finally, "desrt's-- 2 puding."

There was also bread on the table, complete with jam to dip it in... just like our favorite Italian appetizer... luckily he didn't' try to make his own oil and vinegar combo. After Gavin and I had ordered, he made us a plate of nachos, and even served us. He swore up and down he would take care of the clean-up, too, but at 8 PM that night, I finally stopped waiting and did it myself. He told me it was just "too much work... more than he expected." I wasn't really going to complain because his idea was so sweet and thoughtful. He figured that since we don't go out to fancy dinners on Sundays, he wanted to bring a fancy dinner to us. I love that kid.

Cute as that was, he completely outdid himself two days later. After I had dropped him off at school for the morning, I went in and plopped myself in front of my computer, like normal. I noticed a post-it stuck to my monitor that said:" Hi Mom, I "heart" U Mommy. Soory I come home so late at 8:30. I hope U have a very good day today and there will be no fitse. Love, Jaxon." How cute is that!? He loves his weekly lunch box notes and it was his way of leaving me a lunch box note. He can seriously be such a great and thoughtful kid.

Finally, just a couple days ago, he came in with a handful of folded up papers. They were "notes" he had written. He had some for a couple different classmates and one for his teacher.

The one to his classmate was pretty priceless. They have a student of the week each week and he wants to be chosen SOOOO bad, it's almost embarrassing. His friend was chosen this last week and he had a little note for him: "Dear Aidan, What's it like being student of the week? Circle one: A. Awsum, B. OK, C. Boring. Please retern to Jaxon."

But, my favorite was the one for his teacher: "Dear Ms. Mata, I'm sorry you sometimes have bad days. I hope you don't have any more bad days. Love, Jaxon."

I spend a lot of time complaining about my kids and whining about how selfish and thoughtless they are. And in my defense, sometimes they are. But every once in awhile, I have to step back and recognize how hard they try. Jaxon is far from perfect (much like his impatient mother), but he sure does try to be "awsum." The trick is for me to notice and remember. Every once in awhile I'm lucky enough to catch a glimmer of who they really are and am reminded that I'm only a steward over them... that in fact, Heavenly Father has entrusted me with HIS children to raise. What was He thinking? And why am I not more grateful and careful in my efforts?

I'm thankful that despite my best efforts, I haven't managed to completely screw them up... yet. I'm completely surprised and thrilled with how sweet and thoughtful they can be at times. I'm comforted by that fact that their Heavenly Father is perfect, and that His mercy can more than make up for the many imperfections and mistakes I make as their mom. Plus, with such a noble birthright, how can they not be awesome?

I need to remember that the next time I catch Jaxon pinning Gavin's head to the ground...

Getting Bigger

Well, not really. We're talking emotional development here. Physically... Caden doesn't seem to have added a single pound since May. So, he's definitely not physically getting bigger. But... drum roll please... we are *shhhh* toilet trained. (I don't dare say it too loud, for fear that I'll jinx it... be sure to whisper it and find some wood to knock when you read it). And when I say "we," I do mean "we"... potty training is indeed, a family accomplishment. Mom's been well trained to clap, dance, and spit nickels everytime Caden presents me with his latest "offering." Surprisingly, it's been fairly low-key and easy. Just a few accidents here and there, and the kid seems to have moved on to the toilet. Jared's been pushing me to be more pro-active for months but I couldn't figure out what his hurry was... the other boys were much older by the time they were using the toilet. Plus, I don't care what anyone says... toilet training does not make life easier. Caden can barely pull his pants up on his own and insists on using a little toilet that has to be cleaned regularly. (Imagine that! Having to clean a toilet regularly...) He can't wash his hands well enough on his own and we get to make hourly pee runs. And if I'm really lucky, I get to run to the bathroom at Wal-Mart twice... once for Gavin, and once for Caden. Never mind that they don't make underwear small enough for my shrimp... his underwear are huge on that little bottom. Toilet training does not simplify life. And adding one more boy to the mix who consistently misses the toilet does not my heart aflutter make.

But after Disneyland a couple weeks ago, I realized he was just too big and his poops too stinky to change in the regular changing rooms. So I was ready to give it a go. We purchased a new motorcycle toy to act as an incentive and promised him a small treat for every pee, and a motorcycle ride with Dad for every #2. And let me tell you... those motorcycle rides are like magic. We put him in some huge underwear and told him not to pee in them, and he didn't. Just like that. It was awesome. There were a few afternoons of naked little butts on my couch, but I think I've finally taught him how to put the pants back on when he's finished. I hated seeing his little naked bum all over my couch and chairs... my favorite was when I found him fast asleep on the couch one afternoon, naked bum on display for everyone.

So, now he's managed to "one up" his brothers (everything's a competition, you know), has an awesome new motorcycle toy to play with, and gets to go on a motorcycle ride almost daily.Once I can teach him to let me wipe that little bum, (instead of attempting to do it himself.... ick!) and put his pants back on both right side out and forwards facing, we'll really be rolling.

Sometimes, I have a slightly surreal moment, where I realize I've just written over 3 paragraphs on the bowel movements of my child and used the words pee and poop multiple times. And then I want to hang my head in shame. It's nice to see my graduate degree paying off. *Long sigh....*

Ushering in Halloween

I suppose you could argue that Halloween actually arrived a couple weeks ago when it was suddenly OK to have spiderwebs and fake spiders covering my walls. Seriously, everytime I see that, I question what sort of sick and twisted holiday Halloween is... giant fake, furry spiders? Skeletons and gravestones in our front yards? And don't forget the headless soldier adorning my neighbor's front balcony... probably my most favorite holiday decoration ever.

Regardless, Halloween was officially ushered in with the arrival of our traditional Halloween package from Aunt Dacia. The boys were over the moon to open it and discover hand-made Halloween pajama pants (that don't seem to get longer with each new year... my boys are seriously shrimps!), googly eyes glasses (or "doo doo eyes," as Caden adorably calls them) that have provided hours of entertainment (for the boys, too), enough chocolate treats to give my kids sugar shock and provide at least a week's half a day of treats. They even got their own box of fruit snacks. I think I'll send Dacia the dental bill... seems only fair since she doesn't actually have to deal with the sugar shock and increased hyperactivity (because let's face it, it doesn't take sugar to get my kids to bounce off the walls... sugar just makes them bounce higher).



We just wanted to send out a Big Fat Thank You to our favorite Aunt Dacia (see how carefully I worded that?) and post some more gratuitous shots of my studly boys' six packs ribs. I think you can actually count every one of Jaxon's ribs, which probably just lends credence to the argument that I don't actually feed my kids. But with the new stash of candy and fruit snacks, they don't really need to be fed, do they?

Plus, any chance I get to post a picture of Jared wearing googly eye glasses with his regular glasses is simply an opportunity not to be missed. I need some sort of proof that he has personality occasionally...

The "Polite" One

We went to Disneyland last weekend. To deal with wimpy boys and cranky kids, we always bring the double stroller with us. Caden is always guaranteed a spot and Jaxon and Gavin have to fight for the other. Usually it's to the death.

Last weekend, we had stopped for a moment at one of the rides and Gavin sat down in the stroller. Then Jaxon sat himself in the other spot, at which point Caden came on the scene. His response:

"Get out of my broller!" (that's "stroller")

Being the good mommy that I am, I immediately reprimanded him and asked him to say it nicely.

Caden gave it a second's pause (probably thinking about how to best put it kindly) and said, "GET OUT OF MY SPOT, STINKYHEAD!"

And that, is one of the many things that older brothers are good for. Expanding the vocabulary of their little brothers...

Woe is the life of the middle child.

On the heels of my last post and continuing in my quest to become mother of the year, I've decided to wait over a whole month to post about Gavin's first day of preschool. I whine quite a bit about Gavin's "middle child syndrome" and cannot for the life of me figure out what has created it...

But I am finally posting about it. And I assuage my guilt by knowing that I've scrapped 3 Gavin pages in the last month and not one Jaxon page. It's all about equality around here. Just ask the boys. If one kid gets 7 1/2 jellybeans, you better believe everyone gets 7 1/2 jellybeans.

Gavin simply loves pre-school. I enrolled him in a friend's pre-school class, just around the corner from us. His teacher also happens to be his Primary president, so he was already comfortable with her. Also, she has a really small group, with only 9 kids, and they will all be entering kindergarten next year. I knew it was the perfect class for him.

I already detailed our first day... or I should say "fake" first day, when I got him all ready for school and psyched him out, only to find out that it wouldn't start for another week. But his first official day was just as exciting. He brought his Buzz Lightyear for show and tell (they have show and tell every day!), he wore his brand new awesome Superman shirt to help him feel extra powerful, and wore his new Spiderman backpack that is probably big enough to hide little brothers for show and tell. It was a great first day... he came home all smiles and giggles and couldn't wait to go back.

Since then, school has not disappointed. His favorite part is snack time (you always get the sense that my kids are hungry, huh?), he loves show and tell, loves to show me his crafts, and loves Miss Courtney, his teacher. It's close enough, that we've taken to walking every morning, with him riding his bike. I love those 10 minutes every morning walking to school with him. He's always so happy and excited for the day, and he seems so grown up riding his little bike.

He got to bring snacks a couple weeks ago, and in trying to match the letter of the day to our snacks, we wound up bringing Honeydew melon, ham and cheese Hot Pockets, hard boiled eggs, and E.L. Fudge cookies. E and H are hard letters! His favorite snack so far has been the ice cream that was brought for the letter I. How awesome is ice cream for snack?

I am so grateful for the opportunity he has to do this. Pre-school has never been a really big deal to me but it's been amazing for Gavin. He really needed the opportunity to interact with other kids, and learn to sit quietly for longer than 10 minutes. In fact, he's only been sent to the "uh-oh" chair once, on account of being too loud. Frankly, I'm only surprised that he hasn't spent more time, there... being quiet is not one of his fortes... Plus, he's finally learning his letters and numbers. Because in true middle child fashion, I've never bothered to teach him. Never mind that I spent hours every day with Jaxon practicing and playing word games. The second kid gets squat. And so I'm grateful to have pre-school, to relieve my guilt and teach him all the things that I should have been teaching him.

Seriously, though, we are totally loving on pre-school around here. It is the highlight of Gavin's day.

And in other Gavin, news, he had a new little friend move in around the corner. I am so excited that he has a friend, his age, in walking distance. We've had a vacant house next door for over a year (except for the short period that it was inhabited by polygamists...), and I have been praying and praying that a friend for Gavin would move in. It finally sold and a young couple moved in. And I was grumpy. Because that wasn't what I had in mind. But his little friend moved in right around the corner from us... and I realized they were the answer to my prayer. I had simply prayed for a friend for Gavin... and that's just we what we got. (Plus the new couple next door are super nice... way more friendly than the polygamists.) I'm so excited for this coming year for him... new friends, school, no need for stitches... it's going to be a great year.

I love my little Gavin, middle child syndrome and all.

Playing Favorites

Ask any mom and she'll tell you she doesn't have a favorite child. In fact, she'll probably drone on and on about how she loves each of her children equally and that they are all unique. I use it all the time, when Jaxon asks. "You are my favorite Jaxon", I tactfully declare. (Quite frequently, too, which leads me to wonder if my children question their status...) And I suppose their uneasiness isn't completely unjustified. Because that line, about not having a favorite...?

Not entirely true.

Yes, we do indeed have favorites. I can say this for two reasons. One, because I held favorite status for many, many years growing up. (It's OK... my siblings know.) I may have even maintained my favorite status long into adulthood, except for a little sister that is "brilliant" (her mom's words, of course...), and we all know Dad only loves the smart ones. Sadly, I've lost too much brain matter with each child and am no longer smart. Plus, I never repay my loans. Oh, and my mom's grown democratic in her later years. It's all about being fair now...

The other reason I can say this... because I have more than one child. But it's OK. Mainly, because it doesn't affect how much they're loved. They're always loved. All the time. They may just not be liked as much sometimes. Also, favorite status is a changing status. As long as each child gets a chance to be the favorite, it's OK. It seems that when one child is having a particularly good period, the other kids always act out. It happened all the time growing up. I was always an angel, except for that one time. And that was of course the one time that my brother decided to fake being an angel. And then he was favorite. For a couple days.

My kids are the same way. Whenever Jaxon's having a really good couple of weeks, the other two boys make up for it by playing with Mommy's make-up, tearing stuffing out of pillows, and rearranging my linen closet. But then when Gavin's having a really good hour, Jaxon and Caden will make up for it by being particularly hyper and obnoxious, or making a date with the time-out corner.

Well, Caden has been having a very good couple of months. His dad whisked him off for the week to Utah with him and I miss him like crazy. He's my little ray of sunshine right now. It's hard not to make him a favorite when every other line out of his mouth right now is "Mommy, I love you. You peety." Or "You a good mommy. I have a good mommy!" He's hardly going to rank the same as the kid who constantly says, "you're lazy mommy. All you do is sit at the computer all day long." Or the other kid who doesn't say anything... just burps the ABC's in your face and then dumps your full shampoo bottle all over the shower floor.

And so I just needed a cute picture of my little Caden up here right now because I'm missing him like crazy. Luckily, with him gone, the other boys have gotten lots of Mommy time, complete with trampoline jumping in the evenings and shoe shopping. They're so spoiled.

And it's also given them a chance to muscle Caden out of favorite status. They've been putting in some of their best work, between extra hugs and kisses, to playing with Mommy's hair, to not fighting with eachother. That last one may just give them edge. No fighting? It's like my own personal heaven. And I've also noticed a particular absence of toys all over my stairs and family room floor. And I've only had to sweep under the kitchen table once. I guess the boys were right... it really is all Caden's fault.

Caden better watch out. I think Jaxon and Gavin may just get the edge this week. If I can keep from missing him too badly.