Keeping Busy

The last couple of weeks have been pretty busy for us, so I am going to make a journal entry about everything we have been up to for now and then I will try to get to pictures later, but at least I have it written down.

Last weekend we went home to Oregon for a quick visit. Peter had a class on Thursday night and test Saturday morning so we just made a long weekend of it and went along. It didn't really feel like enough time to see everyone we wanted so we didn't make it too complicated. It was so fun to hang out with the Dickinson's as always. On Saturday we decided to throw a big birthday barbecue for Carter's first birthday. We invited our families over to Grandpa D's house and I think everyone had a great time eating good food, riding on the boat, and fishing. Carter went to town on his cake as the tradition goes. I pretty much let my kids have at it as long as they want. I am definitely not a mother that freaks out at the sight of a messy baby. He ate a lot and played a lot and I guessed he was done when he started pushing the big blob remnants onto the floor. It was quite a cute thing. I always look forward to this tradition.

The other highlight of the trip for me was watching Dallin interact with everyone. We always get comments about his progress since people at home only see him every few months. Michelle invited us over for a visit on friday and the kids love visiting there so it was really fun. Usually Dallin will go into the boys room and play with their toys the whole time. He and Derek haven't really been able to interact a whole lot. Dallin really likes Derek though and his love for Star Wars is fueled by that common interest. This time was so different. Dallin and Derek were together the whole time, and they even played Derek's Star Wars game. At lunch time Dallin wanted to sit by Derek and watched what he was eating and copied what he was doing. It was so cute and so great to see Dallin interacting and having conversations with someone his age. He is definitely blooming in his social life. I couldn't stop smiling and talking about it all day.

We also took the kids swimming and they had so much fun, they all love the water. Carter enjoyed his first time in a pool very much too. Can't wait to get the older ones in swim lessons this summer again.

I can't believe my baby is 1! He sure is a sweet little guy. Whenever I see those chubby little legs I just have to squeeze him and kiss those big cheeks. When I go to get him out of his crib in the morning sometimes I feel like I have been missing him, even though it has only been 10 hours. He is trying hard to learn how to talk. He can't articulate too much but he will always make an attempt anyway. He is very active now since he has been walking for a while and has begun to enjoy such toddler things as pulling books from bookcases and climbing onto the table. He loves eating food. I think he knew he wanted big people food before he had ever even tried it. The kids still dote over him a lot. Eden is a little mother and everyone thinks he is their "Cart Cart". Carter is pretty happy most of the time and will smile and wave at people. A couple of weeks ago in church he started copying the music conductor and waving his arm around. He is also my first child ever that does not mind getting his face washed after a meal. I always use warm washcloths and it seems like it is relaxing for him. Don't mix that up with wiping buggery noses though, he is like everyone else with that one. He brings a lot of joy to our life and fits right in with our family. Love that boy!

This week has been the busiest one I have had in a long time. It was full of tending to sick children and doctor visits which is always the pits. I was in charge of our ward Super Saturday today as well, so I was so busy getting everything ready for that that I didn't even know which way was up anymore. Peter was out of town for a couple of days which is always a little hard on me as I hold the fort down. then one night I was making dinner I flipped a big spoon full of boiling water down the front of my shirt. that was not fun and I have the blisters still to show for it. I also had to finish up my photoshop class, which required a portfolio of my work. I am actually very glad that the semester is over even though it was fun. I am ready for a break. Now that the weekend is here and it is all over, I have my neglected house to tend to, but at least I can take a breath and get back to normal. Maybe even pick up my camera here and there and get back to blogging.

I had been planning Super Saturday for a few months now, and it turned out great. I am so relieved and happy and glad it is over. It really was a fun time. We had a special speaker to start us off with our theme "Home Can Be a Heaven on Earth". Then we had classes on Make a Mix cookery and Using Coupons. The crafts were FHE boards, a couple of quiet books and FHE binders that coordinate with all of the church programs for the youth. We enjoyed a nice lunch and that was it. I think it was a success. I think a lot of people would have stayed longer and worked if they could have. I am so glad that it went well and that I don't have worry about how it will go anymore. This was my first big enrichment since I was called.

Amidst all of this business and sickness, Tanner has pretty much forced potty training upon me. He was very excited ever since I bought him Thomas underpants a couple of months ago and special Thomas stickers for a potty chart. With morning sickness and lack of motivation though, it all went on the back burner for me. I planned to get to it soon because he really seems eager about it excited every time we talk about it. I definitely didn't want to do the start and stop pattern with him so I was avoiding it altogether. Finally this week Tanner just told me that he doesn't want to wear a diaper any more, just underwear! He was just fine with trying to use his little potty and was elated when I finally made the sticker chart for him. I was so busy, but he was so eager I couldn't say no. He has been watching a lot of videos the last couple of days while sitting on his little potty and trying so hard to get a sticker. Finally today he got his first one. I went into the room to check on him and thought he had messed his undies, but they were clean. I could definitely smell something though so I looked in the potty and sure enough, his first success! He was so proud of himself and we all cheered and clapped and sang the potty song for him. I think this will be the easiest potty training ever. I am so glad that I haven't worried about it sooner, I just didn't want to stress over it too much. It seems that not pressuring him is paying off. Hey, if this goes well I will only have one in diapers for a few months!

Dallin made a play house in our yard out of junk wood, mostly the old broken crib that we were going to throw away. Peter even went out and screwed all the walls together for him one day and he loved it. When his friend Jack came over, it was a huge it. I however, was not too thrilled with our white trash playhouse. After expressing that to Peter, he decided that it would be fun to go buy some real wood and have a father/son project. Dallin was beside himself with glee at the prospect of it. So one night last week the boys went to Home Depot and got the necessary materials. They have been working on it every night this week. It has been great motivation for Dallin because we told him that every day he gets a stamp at school(which means that he had a good day) he can build that night. He got his stamp every day. Dallin has told me before that he wants to be a builder when he grows up so this is really his thing. The kids are out there all the time now and the house is really coming along. It is going to be so cute.

We also decided to finally plant a garden a couple of weeks ago. It is really just a small one, but it was a really fun family project to go buy the plants, dig the dirt, etc. Now it is fun to watch it grow. We are also growing a chia herb garden that we got for Christmas and the kids really learned a lot from planting seeds and seeing what happens next. Having a garden growing up, I have really wanted to have one, but have always been so overwhelmed with life the last 8 years, that we haven't gotten to it. Its kind of like my feeling on having pets, I have too many other living things that depend on me. I am glad we finally went for it though. Now I can't wait to eat fresh tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. Maybe we will even get pumpkins this fall! I just hope it isn't way to late in the season to get a good result.

Eden will be preschool age in the fall so I have been worrying about what to do about that. I am shocked at how much it costs, it really is a lot for us. I was hoping to get a group of mothers to do Joy School with but haven't had much interest. When we were in Oregon, I was talking with Michelle about it and she told me about this curriculum that you can purchase that has all the lesson plans and materials you need for a year of preschool. I checked it out and after discussing our options with Peter, we decided that I will homeschool and do the Mother Goose preschool program. That way we can also do it for Tanner, he is such a smartie pants. I am so excited, I think it is going to be so much fun. This really follows some of the stuff I did for my major and I remember trying in my big sister way to teach my little sister "preschool" when we were little. I was made for this kind of stuff.