E 10 Months

Ladies and Gentlemen....

We have some changes here.

Crawling! On Thanksgiving day- and of course it was at Nana and Papa's! (Big milestones for the kids are always reached there for some reason as we visit).

Binky throwing champion! She grabs it and flings it angrily across the room thinking that means she doesn't have to sleep. I'm not going to fumble through the dark to go get it- guess that means no binky but sleep is still part of the program missy. I'm such a mean mom sometimes.

Biting! Yikes- Grant takes a toy and watch out! Attack mode happens quickly along with a screech of anger in a split second with Grant around.

Laughing- there is always plenty of that too- they do play well together a lot of the time. And it's the cutest darn thing. It's music to my ears.

Screaming...okay so after the laughter inevitably comes the warrior cries. Now that we have a mover, I've come to terms that I do actually have to teach my children to share and play nice. Grant just has to learn now- I guess that's where I come in the picture. Wish me luck. It really is a battlefield. 

Nursing- wars are over though! She finally loves nursing- still on her time table of course- but she actually enjoys cuddles with mommy now! I'm so glad!

Favorites?
Frozen peas of course. Great for those tender gums as the teeth come through.
Baths!
Going anywhere outside and different people and places. She gets bored at home.
People- but favorite is mom at the moment.
BOOKS!!! Oh my she can't get enough of them. She'll be dead tired and scream if I close the book and have the lights off so she can sleep. But then she'll zonk out- oh man but wow- very expressive about her love of books.



How would you describe your little E?

"Whipper snapper"-Jay
"Feisty"-Grant
"Strong-willed"- Aubrey
"FUN!"- both parents
"Inquisitive"
"Special"- friends

I don't know what it is about this little girl but she does have a special spirit. There is something important on this earth that she is meant to do here and she has an effect on others. I've had a few people say that they feel they know her or have known her before. Well, it doesn't surprise me I guess that people would know her because I totally know we existed before this earth life- but that they will tell me that and know it themselves.  This girl has the personality to be strong. I can only imagine what she will need to face going into this crazy world we live in nowadays.

I kind of question sometimes if I can be a mother to one so strong. She makes me want to do better and be better and learn more about our Heavenly Father and our purpose here with our family. We are so very blessed to have her influence and light in our lives. Oh and how we love her.

She enjoys eating! All by herself. 

Pointing and "talking" She babbles about EVERYTHING!

after bathtime she has the SWEETEST blonde little curls! 

Homemade Yogurt

I just made homemade yogurt for 1/3 of the cost, without the fillers and thickening junk they add in the store bought stuff and to top it all off, it was probably the easiest thing I've ever done in my life.

I googled a recipe, check it out: Here

I probably spent 5 minutes (maybe a little more because it was my first time) total actually touching the concoction. 

It was sooooooo easy!!!

Now to flavor it: I've tried strawberry jam, stevia powder, maple syrup and honey.

It is delish.

Step one was cook the milk to 180 degrees so it kills any bacteria- you want a clean slate (takes about 3-4 hours)
Then after it gets to that point, let it come back down to 110 degrees (took about 3 hours)- then add the 2 TBS of plain yogurt start. Let it sit overnight in the crock in the oven (turned off) to keep it warm 12 hours.

Strain it- I just used a dish towel and a big bowl.

It was thick! But runny- so I did want to separate some of the whey.

There's the whey! 

There was a lot of whey (and that goop at the bottom is yogurt that fell in because I was clumsy and dropped some as I was trying to get the thickened yogurt in a container. I don't know much about it or how to use it so I tossed it but maybe there is something people do with it? I'll look it up next time.

2 jars!!! I estimate that would have made at least 2- probably 3 bigger containers of yogurt (if I hadn't dropped some in the whey) from the store.

My next adventure I would love to make kefir.....if I can make yogurt, I bet I could make kefir!!! 

Can you believe how easy it can be to make something like yogurt? 

I love that it's that good bacteria for our guts and and free from nasty ingredients and fillers!!! And did I say it was cheap? Like less than a dollar per container? So awesome. 

It's weird too the kind beautiful happiness you get from knowing you made something like this. 

Like I feel like I can do ANYTHING!!! 

Thanksgiving

You guys! I forgot my camera.
I know.
So so sad.

So I stole a couple photos from family posts- so thanks because it's hard for me to post sometimes without at least one of the kids!

But Grant finally got to play with his Montana cousins which was soooooo cute. It's fun watching how kids can just pick up and be friends together and laugh (and fight) so easily.

Pretty sure Grant just stayed in his jammies every day.

Mandi's pumpkin pie was G's favorite.

Don't Eat Pete- Grant won this game both times he played it. Like how does that happen? Seriously, he got to eat all the chocolate from off the board (without CHEATING PATRICK!!!- the kids learned that you just pick the whole paper up and bend it down the middle and dump all the chocolate in your mouth)

Favorites:
1. Esther learned to CRAWL on Thanksgiving Day!
2. Grant learned how to do walk up legs while holding hands to do a backflip from his cousin Quincy.
3. Mandi's play: The Grouch Who Stole Christmas- oh that was sooooo fun. Nana and Papa watched the kids and Jay and I had an actual DATE. And so neat to see your sister-in-law and enjoy her wonderful talents- her solo was BEAutiful! I felt the message of the words so clearly- that Christ is the reason for Christmas.
4. We got to see everybody! (except my siblings on missions)
5. Amazing bowling games celebrating birthdays- I think I got like 75 or 80 on one game- it was cute watching the kids push the ball. Jay got like 108! (He says put that he got like 170--- ha ha) nope.
6. I have the most amazing family. Ever. I got the CUTEST outfit for my birthday and some cute cute headbands for my short hair. Oh I am so in love. Like my in-laws know how to make a girl feel good and loved. THANK YOU!!!
7. Pie- so I was determined not to eat ANY sugar because Jay and I had this cold for a couple weeks and we were really trying to get better. But, guess what? A couple slices of pie made with love actually healed our illness. No really. Like we got better a few days after eating pie. And a lot of pie. And ice cream. I am now a believer of sugar made with love as being a GOOD healthy thing.
8. We watched The Giver which was very good.
9. My mom made the most delicious stew out of FOOD STORAGE in a pumpkin. It was really good.
10. I loved just being around all those good people we call family. We are so lucky.

Pear and Pumpkin Picking

G's favorite book for the passed 2 months has been "Picking Apples and Pumpkins".

After reading it night after night we decided we better finally just live it! So we did. Sort of. We got pears instead of apples....and we couldn't find a local ACTUAL pumpkin patch so we ended up picking some that had already been picked but it was fun nonetheless.

We actually "planted" pears where G could reach since all the low ones had been picked. He loved it.

We picked the small one for Esther but when we got home Grant wanted the small one for himself.

Happy Halloween

This year I knew what we had to be for Halloween and had all these ideas on how to accomplish our final "look" as a family.

Since becoming "crunchy" I've had to figure out how to still have fun because a lot of "fun" involves SUGAR! And Halloween is the biggest SUGAR (but not like good sugar- like homemade pies and ice cream- a lot of it is these junky little sugary hard candies that I still find myself eating even when I know it's not even that good).

So, I felt a little stuck in the fact that Grant is only 2 and 1/2. Not old enough to really understand what is going on but old enough to trick-or-treat. I knew though, being the parents of a child who doesn't really get it yet that I would be tempted to eat his treats- but I would know that it was not only because I would want some for my own taste buds, but that I would be "saving" my son from all the sugar too. Such a good mom- eating her child's Halloween candy to save him. Well, as I'm typing I'm scarfing nerds and a cookie. Jay got the Reese's- I'm expecting one for my upcoming birthday to make up for that one- he didn't even split it! See look at me with my child's stash of candy! This is terrible. I become a little bit of a monster with all this candy!

So finally the day came and I had talked to a friend who told me she was going to make caramel popcorn and watch a fun movie with her kids and I thought, "Now there is a fun little tradition that doesn't have to be filling our bodies with junk for the next month because we know we shouldn't be eating all the candy but not having the will-power to give it away or throw it away." That sounded fun and we still get a treat!

I ran into a neighbor talking about this carnival and ran into another friend telling me about our local grocery store and how they give out other things other than candy so I caved. We would be going trick-or-treating after all, which you already know from reading about me eating nerds huh? Anyway....

I whipped out the scissors and began snipping and hot-gluing like a maniac.
Threw the kids into the appropriate attire to match the idea and jumped in the car.

Our local market was wonderful and it IS so fun seeing all the costumes. And the store was great- we got a toothbrush, cheese stick, eye-ball ring- and they had a haunted house.

Well, I know you are dying to know what we dressed up as so dun da da DUN!:

And in case you are like everyone else who said, "Oh how fun, a monkey, bear and girl in a dress?" Read Jay's name tag....We are Goldilocks and the 3 bears :)

Of course Jay's original ears did look like this:

Now you know why people were confused originally. HA!

G also tried on my wig from another year as we were looking through out Halloween Stuff:

He even did cutsie smiles for me- ha ha. Wow. Oh I love that kid.

What I Know

I want to tell you something. 

I was raised in an LDS home. With a loving mother and father who taught me beautiful things. The taught be about Jesus and love and principles of the gospel. I was baptized as a member of this church when I was 8 years old. I was taught that God is my Heavenly Father who knows me and loves me. Who will answer my prayers. Who speaks to me through scripture and that I can ask and receive inspiration and answers from Him. That Jesus Christ died for me; that through His atonement I can become whole and repent of any wrong-doings. That I can have peace in my life because of Him and though Him. My whole life I have sat in sacrament meeting wanting so badly to boldly declare to the world that I KNOW this gospel is true. I watched so many people go to that pulpit and say it like they really knew. How could they know? How could they say they knew it? I mean, maybe you feel good about it, which I did, and believed it, which I did, but to say you KNOW it? Come on. I didn't think they were lying- I believed that they knew, but I also couldn't fathom actually feeling that way myself. I did bear my testimony a few times using that word "know" and I didn't know. I was hoping I would feel something and know that I know, you know? ha ha.

Well, I can't believe I'm going to use that word- "know". But I have to say it because I am SOOO excited about this!

That I existed before this life.

That I will exist after.

I know it.

That while I'm here breathing and living in this body, that there is something else to me. 

I am a spirit. I am a spirit that has a physical body. Here and now. And after this body dies, I will still exist!

It's just so cool to feel that. To know it and feel it. 

I'm so grateful to know this. It's funny to have something you believed in and "knew" actually FEEL like truth. To feel the truthfulness of this knowledge is amazing. I love it. And I love that I've been taught that my whole life and here I am actually being able to say that I KNOW it! 

Also, I now know the most life changing thing:
I know Jesus Christ is real.

He is REAL. So real.
I have always asked and wanted to know that and to be here today just knowing it is so wonderfully exhilarating because that means the atonement is real. That means I can use this power in my life to change. I've always believed other people when they have told me they know He is real but for me to feel that is life changing. I don't understand how everything works but I am beginning to see that He has suffered for me and I can give my pain to Him. That He can heal me. I can become whole. I wish everyone could feel what I feel about this in my life.


Where once I looked and followed light
blind and dark but yearning
Now I have a candle within
and know that I am learning
That Christ is REAL!
He died for me.
I feel it in my heart.
So all my soul may now be free
to be who I was meant to be.

E 7 Months

Happy 7 Months baby girl!

Favorites:
Clawing your eyeballs out when she's happy that is. I mean she is excited and happy she goes for the eyeballs- so cute and painful.


Sitting up. She will not do tummy time anymore. She doesn't like feeling like a helpless little blob on the floor! Come on! I can sit up mom and be big and important and look around and be busy with more important matters with my toys.


New Stuff:

She is cutting 4 teeth. Did you get that? Not 1, not 2 but 4 teeth! And guess what? The amber teething necklaces REALLy do work. Like she isn't screaming in pain from FOUR teeth coming in. I mean WOW. I am a believer.

Rolling over!!! From tummy to back! She gets so happy and proud of herself.

Grant always says "Both fit!" I think when we bought this we weren't planning on fitting all the children on here but it helps G sleep even if E is fighting sleep off.

Mom's tip: bath the baby in the sink while you do dishes....uh....good idea but with little miss here that ain't going to happen! I spent all my time trying to contain all the water from being splashed EVERYWHERE! She is crazy in water!

Love those rolls.

"Selfie"

We got to watch a friend's baby! It was kind of fun pretending I had twins for a couple hours....as long as Jay was there. They were fun watching them interact and "talk" to each other.

Those beautiful blues. I adore having a blue-eyed baby.

So much personality! She is not content just being a baby. She is ready to be a big kid and run around- I can see her frustration at not being able to do things that she is seeing Grant do.