Dress Code

During General Conference we have a very strict dress code. Michael was a little above the curve. He wanted both of the ties. It was a wonderful conference, even if I am a little late in posting about it.

Lately, I feel like Heavenly Father has really been listening to me. I am so grateful. I feel like he is aware of me. Last week I went to the temple. I have been worried about Michael lately. I kept obsessing about why his fontanels have not closed. They usually have by his age. So, naturally I am afraid he has a brain tumor that is growing (one of the reasons fontanels do not close on time), this is something that sometimes happens with people with Neurofibromatosis. I know that is not natural, I know that I am a worrier, it will most likely close in time. But, this scenario (the brain tumor - not the fontanels) is the one I have been afraid of since his initial diagnosis. I have been afraid I will lose him. That he will not survive. I was fasting about him and praying in the temple. I had the thought (one that I have heard and should know by now) that I needed to have faith, that faith is the absence of fear. And that Michael has a journey he needs to take, the reason he was sent to earth. And that whatever happens will be what Heavenly Father has planned for my Michael. And that I am blessed to be a part of this journey and that it will be filled with joy. I literally felt my fear be replaced with faith and joy. It was like a little ball of happiness inside me. So, who knows what is to come - I still have no idea if he has a long full life ahead of him or just another year. By the way, he seems to be really healthy right now. But, I know that Heavenly Father knows and is in charge and wants us to be happy.

The Diary of Anne Frank, the play that Jeremy directed at the University of Arizona closes this weekend. I went to see it with Lynne and we both thought it turned out really well. I was so proud of him and to see his name and picture next to the title of Director. It was a crazy time, but I think it was really good for him. Hopefully, another directing opportunity will come again. But I am grateful for now to be seeing more of him and for some of the stress to be relieved.

A Day in the Life

Woke up
Got a child out of bed
changed a diaper
get him dressed
Got a different child dressed
Woke up third child
Got dressed myself
made lunches
gathered books
made breakfast
fed a child
made sure other children were eating
cleaned up
made sure all three children had shoes and backpacks
drove one child to school
went to therapy - remembered backpack and ball to use for therapy
drove another child to school
dropped off remaining child at friends
drove to 1st child's school
volunteered in classroom
picked up child from friends house
drove home
cleaned up boys room
did laundry
folded laundry
put away laundry
picked up toys
watered plants
swept the floor
mopped the floor
made lunch
fed a child lunch
cleaned up lunch
picked up child from school
went to park for playdate
picked up another child from school
had friends over after school
made snack for friends
went on bike ride with kids and friends
dealt with tantrums
got everything ready for dinner
picked up husband
fed children dinner
cleaned up
put one child in bed
put another child in bed
helped with homework
read stories
cleaned up toys
help get child ready for bed
read scriptures
child headed up for bed
deep breath

and my house is still messy!

The backyard

Just one of the reasons I love our backyard and my husband.

coveting

I have a dream stroller. I know that it is silly to have a dream stroller. But ever since I first saw this stroller I have wanted one. It is a Phil & Ted's Stroller and it is crazy expensive. But twice in a week and a half I found one on Craigslist and someone got to it faster than me. So disappointing and again silly to get so excited about just the possibility of one. Even used, people are still asking more than I want to pay, but I would love to have one. And then if we have another baby, you just put on the doubles attachment in the back and it is a double stroller and it is a jogging stroller, too! You can lock the swivel wheel. It is really compact and folds up small. Ah. Oh well.

http://www.shopphilandteds.com/strollers.cp

Boys with backpacks

Jacob has started preschool! He wasn't too keen on posing with his backpack, but I got a couple random pics. Jacob was accepted into a program as a model peer. There are 8 kids with speech delays and 8 kids that are model peers. There are 5 teachers/helpers in there. He seems to really like it. I like that he is busy making things and playing with other kids. I like that he is learning schedules and how to listen to a teacher, etc. I love listening to him tell me about the things they did. It is five days a week and I am a little sad about that. I wanted it to be 3 days a week but I feel like this worked out for a reason. It is a hard program to get into since there are so few spots. The program for the model peers was supposed to start on Sept 8, but the head teacher wanted all the kids to start together. So, when I called on Monday, she told me he had a spot, but that I needed to come tomorrow. I was not quite prepared to lose Jacob yet, so I was a little sad to leave him there. But, I feel good about the program and that this is really good for him. And he will be prepared for school next year. And I really like that our cost is a huge $8/month. Isn't that amazing? If we qualified for free lunches, we wouldn't have to pay at all. I really feel like it is a blessing. Some of the preschools I looked into were from $220 for just two days a week all the way to $600 for 5 days.
I am excited for the one on one time with Michael. I can now schedule Michael's speech therapy and physical therapy and drs appts while Jacob is in school. This way Jacob doesn't just have to sit back and watch. Michael's physical therapist suggested for PT one day that Michael wear his little backpack with a couple small books in it for some strength training. He was excited to have a backpack like his brothers. :)
You know, I like change in small amounts, but this week has been too many changes for me. Jeremy started back to work on Monday after being off for most of the summer. And of course, auditions were that same night, then call backs and last night rehearsals started. But, he is excited that he is directing this year. And he is learning a lot about the concept of academic casting and all the details that the director is responsible for. He is directing The Diary of Anne Frank. It is going to be a busy semester for him. We will miss him, we are hoping to see him for dinner every night before he rushes back at 5:30.
Andrew started school last week and this week had his first afterschool art class. They offer it right after school on Wednesdays and they are making insects and reptiles, right up Andrew's alley. It is only $10 a month. We will see how this month goes. He liked making stink bugs and a dragonfly puppet.
And Michael has decided he is too big for his crib and is now sleeping in a big boy bed. I will post a picture later, he is so cute. I sang him to sleep last night and after I finished each song, he would sign more(or it could be that he just wanted the itsy bitsy spider again) until I watched his eyes close and he drifted off to sleep. It was so sweet to watch. It also saves my back from holding/rocking him right before I put him into his crib. :)
So, Jeremy went back to work and right into a play, Andrew is back at school and a new class, Jacob is in preschool, and Michael is sleeping in a big boy bed. And I am left jugglng everything making sure everyone is where they need to be at the right time and picked up at the right time, etc. (Jeremy is riding his bike to the bus stop to get to work, so I have helped him a couple times with drop offs and pick ups too. :) )I will get the hang of the schedule, but it so much all at once. Our summer was so laid back, but I am glad to be back to a schedule again. :)

1st day of school and haircuts

New haircut!

Needs a trim

Crazy hair!

Look at all those curls!

First day of school and new haircut

New haircut and snapper pants

On Monday, Andrew started first grade. He was ready for the summer to be over and ready to tell everyone that his is six (apparently a requirement for 1st grade) and that Mrs. Nelson is going to be his teacher. He seems to be doing well. He told me that on the first day he only made a couple bad choices. :) They have a color card system for discipline and he says he has always stayed green. So, good news there. The bad news is no more dinosaur toys, but at least they have a whole box of dinosaur books. :) I miss him while he is gone.
Jeremy took the boys out on some errands with him and while out, a nice woman told Jeremy what a cute little girl he had. So, according to Dad that means haircut time. No little girls in this house. And since school was starting we trimmed everybody up. The before and after photos did not load in quite the right order. Oh, well.

Jacob has always been strong willed. He knows what he wants. And what he wanted for the past two weeks are his snapper pants. And Jacob loves them. Some people might call them overalls. I guess I am a little slow, because he became quite frustrated when I did not know where or even what snapper pants could be. His snapper pants were his wardrobe choice every day for the last two weeks. He didn't get to wear them everyday, there were two Sundays in there. :)

I am a little behind posting about our trip to Texas. Right before we left we met up with Lynne, Emily, Armando & Fam, Taylor, Justina and kiddos and celebrated Michael's birthday. So, the picture is of Michael with his birthday cupcake. We had a fun day and it was so nice to have everyone come to party with us. Taylor and his family came home with us that night and we hung out and had such a fun time.

We took our time driving to Texas, it felt like forever, but we finally made it and the kids were so happy to be out of the car. We were to happy to not have to hear are we in that part of Texas yet?

We had a great time. Michael had a hard time adjusting to all the new beds and different places and all of the family at different times. So, I didn't get very many pictures taken. Sad. But here are a few of them. We met the Lowe's at Rudy's, we had to have our Texas BBQ, one day right after we met Gideon for the first time. We all thought he was so adorable. It made me a little baby hungry - the feeling has since worn off :). The boys loved playing with Nathan and Mandy and all over Grandma's house. We met Bella and hung out with the Turpins - sadly I didn't have my camera, but I think Asia took one for me? We had a very fun time at the beach. The boys went to an Astro's game - Andrew didn't love the noise. We loved spending time with aunt Kathie. I am so glad we made it to Texas, but we are glad to be back home and settling back into real life.