2009 Blog Year In Review- Fun Exercise!

Take the first entry for each month. (If you like, you can skip over memes and fluff to get to a real entry about what's going on, but don't just cherry-pick the coolest ones. Unless you want to.

Post the first line or two from that entry.

January:
Back to Life: My darling husband is leaving me for work tommorrow. He made it to work during the "Artic Blast" almost every day, but last week the company was shut down, but he was required to work on Friday, which he did from home.

February:
Feels like Spring To Me! According to the official national groundhog: Punxsutawney Phil, we are in for another 6 weeks of winter. Today did not feel like winter- it was a beautiful, sunny, warmish day.


March:
Tired: Sums up my life. I took a little break from blogging-- all I can say is tired is the one constant thing right now.


April:
Boys at Play & Ice Skating for Tots: With our tax refund we indulged and put the kids in a few classes thru the Parks and Recreation.


May:
Life is but a Scream- really. I have so much on my mind. Life is really crazy.


June:
Packing is a Funny Thing: Against my druthers, Jeremy is heading out to the wilderness with the two big kids for two nights of wilderness fun.


July:
Quiet: I haven't posted in a while-- well a while for me. Life has been busy. Good Busy. Sad Busy. Emotionally Busy.

August:
Quick Update: So, Little Miss Kathryn came down with *ANOTHER* UTI this past weekend


September:
Happy Birthday Angel Girl: Can you believe this beautiful little girl is my baby?


October:
School Lunch: I think she gets a lunch tomorrow for sure from all the thought process she used to make us that nifty chart.


November:
The Pumpkin Part: Really- is all the extra hub-bub really needed when you get smiles like this?


December:
He is still a miracle I look at this sweet boy I am so honored to care for and raise and I am still amazed at the miracle he is.

Best Friends Forever

I wonder about connections. In my 30's, I have memories well over 25 years old. I have friendships that have been around that long too. Some began in the time frame of very uncertain, painful, geeky, funny, carefree, learning years of teenagedom.

April was one of these friends I made a deep connection with almost immediately. I wanted to be with her all of the time. She was funny, witty, complimentary, very funny, thoughtful, intelligent. Our friendship lasted years, we took a break, met back up, took another break, and now we are back together again. Hopefully this time for a long time.

There is comfort in a friend who remembers me from these awkward years and to hear her memory a much more positive one that my own. I am not sure why we connected so strongly, but every time we have been apart, we are able to pick right back up where we belong.

April is strong. She knows how special she is. She is currently going thru very hard times and the make-up of her family is changing. This is very hard on her, but she is holding her head high and proceeding forward. Her two beautiful daughters have her example that will guide them and let them know that they are loved.

I love you April- we are friends forever.

Christmas Morning Moments

I have everything I want and need. I have a amzing friends I got to "see" in letters and cards. I have my loving family-extended and immediate. I have my healthy children. I have so much. I love you guys more than I can ever express.

I Love Leila and how she completely adopted her new doll and now they are twins, except Leila did put her in time out once for falling on/hitting Kathryn. They are like sisters, except Leila has a bit of authority over her. She was also quite proud of actually sitting on Santa's lap this year(Her first year).


I love Nathan. He was so excited with his gifts, except he still had to ask when the "Devastator" was going to get here. It was so innocent- it was on his list after all. When was he getting it?


Kathryn got a baby doll. When I asked Kathryn what her baby's name was she patted her head. So we call her Patti. :o) She kisses her and loves her- how cute. And don't forget the zhou zhou that both Kathryn and Alli Cat chase.


I love my husband. We both gave each other gifts of needs, or wishful needs since life wouldn't stop if we didn't get them. I love that we are both OK with that right now.


We spent Christmas Eve with a little Christmas Program for just our family that included a viewing of Mr. Kruegers Christmas. We had our usual Beef Stew and enjoyed our time together. Christmas Day was spent with the Frederick's. We had a blast and a cookie exchange. Can you say No to Weigh-In on Monday? Boxing Day will be spent with the Conser's at our home to enjoy more family togetherness.


I have so much. I am overwhelmed with the love in my life.

Collections

A few Christmases ago I was unpacking all of my decorations and reflected on the fun times I had collecting these items. My Santa Collection was one I started in HS and a fun one to track down. My Snowman Collection was also a fun and joyous. I realized I had very few items about the true meaning of Christmas- this year I was excited to see my little collection grow- all of which were given to me by my dear friends.

Merry Christmas Baby Jesus!

Priorities

I hope my previous post didn't alarm too many of you. I used to write a lot more personal posts like this before, but for lack of time among other things I have turned my blog into more of an update blog and less of an outlet blog(for which I felt was very helpful to me personally)-- I have been trying, in vain, to work with someone and I guess on some level trying to prove to her that I was capable of being her friend- trying to prove those she had wronged that on some level she was OK because I could still put up with her. Why I thought I was anyone special I do not know- certain people just can't be helped.

A weight has been lifted. My shoulders feel light and I feel good about the limits I have set. Life is good.

My family is my priority. My beautiful children. My sweet Husband. My friends(and I use that term with all the sacredness in the world) are priceless. My Father in Heaven, my Brother Jesus Christ, my Faith- I am blessed with that knowledge and am so grateful I have this support. I have so much. I am grateful to reflect on all that I have.

Merry Christmas Eve! May the love in your life surround you and lift you.

Let it go

I find it odd many people who say they can't stand someone who judges are usually the most judgemental.

I find it funny those who start out a sentence with: I am a very caring person... really have no idea what it means to be caring.

You know the person who is just a train wreck waiting to happen? Someone who can cut so deep and hot that it literally shakes you to the core. This person isn't worth it. This person isn't even a friend. No matter how hard you try. No matter how much you invest, or how much you refrain from your own judgements, no matter how many times you are the bigger person, it wouldn't make a difference. This person is not a friend. This person is incapable of being a friend. This person doesn't have a clue.

Time to let it go. Let go of dead weight.

O' Christmas Tree...

Baby's first Christmas- magical.

Peek-A-Boo

I can't get over how much this sweet little baby brings to my life.

She is only 10 months old and I feel like she has brought more happiness to my life than I could have ever asked for or imagined.

Her personality is sweet, determined, excited, fascinated, and fun, fun, fun.

She has her eyes on the big kids like a hawk and tries to join in on their play and simply be near them as much as she can.

Now that she is learning the word "No" she is trying her ways of coping by getting us to smile next and will scrunch up her face and sniffle.

Curiosity is definitely a journey she is on, and I have to say I am enjoying it. I love watching her look at things, figure them out, loose interest only to have it captivate her again.

She is still a Mama's girl- I have left her a few times this past month and the reunion is always very sweet.

Here she is playing peek-a-boo on her 10 month birthday:

He is still a miracle

I look at this sweet boy I am so honored to care for and raise and I am still amazed at the miracle he is.

My little man is 5 years old today!
I look at his hands, his curls, and his sweet little smile and I am in awe. I feel his sweet tender spirit and his sharing attitude and I am warmed. He has potential that goes above and beyond what I can imagine for him. His world is completely open to him. What a sweet opportunity I have to go with him on his journey.

I love you little man- more than I can ever express.

We had quite the weekend- Friday night we went to the Beaverton City Park for the lighting of the tree. Saturday Nathan had his birthday party. We do family parties on the odd years, friend parties on the even. This was a family party- so we invited all the cousin and his very best buddy and it was as big as his friend party last year! Sunday we played, opened more presents, had cake after Nathan's choice of Taco's for dinner. All in all, I think it was a good weekend.

Hey Baby, its cold outside

Just Call Me....

TROUBLE!

The fun has just begun....

9 Months

Kathryn turned 9 months old!

A trip to the doctor proved she is growing well, and right on track with our others. She weighed in at a perfect turkey weight of 22 lbs, and is 30 inches long. That would be 92 and 99 percentile- which is what our Conser Babies do. She didn't even need any shots at this trip! WOOT!


She started crawling last Thursday and has probably crawled a total of a mile by now. We went thru the toys and pulled out everything choke-able- we hope- we set up the baby gates at the top and bottom of the stairs. She did find the one outlet without a safety plug in it- but we took care of that. She isn't opening drawers or cabinets yet- maybe another a few days?

We love you Baby K!

Only one trick per day...

I can sniffle- mom calls that a trick. I can growl too, but I won't show off that one. Just one trick per day....

Daddy Makes Me Laugh!

This laughevent took place on 10/25/09. Daddy thinks he is just so funny. I go along with it to make him feel better.

Halloween Candy- bad bad bad

Every year my kids lovingly count down to Halloween starting in April or May I think. We have seemed to make it a tradition to go to my sisters wards "Trunk-Or-Treat" on Weds. They do a bang-up job with the party and my kids LOVE to be with their cousins. We had a Powerful Spider Sorceress, a Brave Iron Man, and a cute little Tinkerbell. Cousins were a Sweet Snow White and a Monkey Gorilla Boy!

This year we got together with my BFF, April and her mom and two girls. We went up to PIR to see Uncle Chris in the Chump Races. Her kids were a devil and a china doll. Cousin Carina joined us and she was Cinderella, with both shoes. This was a fun experience-- too bad their car broke down in the first few hours and they weren't able to race it. We had fun trick-or-treating in the pit.

We still did some more trick-or-treating when we got home(well, Jeremy and the kids did). Too much candy if you ask me. Not enough if you ask a couple of other members of this family.

The Pumpkin Part

We were visiting my BFF from JHS a few weeks ago and stopped at a teeny tiny family farm that had a pumpkin patch in Washougal, WA. They had a little $ ride that gave our kids tons of excitement. Really- is all the extra hub-bub really needed when you get smiles like this?

Peanut Butter Cookies

Nothing is better than a fresh baked cookie right out of the oven.
Growing up we loved to bake. I did not meet my Grandpa who was a baker, but enjoyed hearing the stories of living and growing up in the bakery from my mom. Every Sunday afternoon we would figure out something sweet to make. My mom still had several pans and instruments from Grandpa's bakery. I asked mom if I could borrow her PB Cookie press from Grandpa's bakery. Knowing I am such a sentimental sap, my mom told me I could keep the cookie press-- and I am so excited to have it in my collection now.

One day this past summer, Jeremy brought home a few PB Cookies his boss had brought in. They were amazing, chewy, nutty goodness. Since Jeremy's company decided raises were not an option that year, I asked him to beg and plead for the recipe in lieu of $.

Peanut Butter Cookies- Amazing recipe given to my husband in lieu of a raise

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1 t. salt
• 16 T. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup extra crunchy peanut butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 t. vanilla extract
• 1 cup dry roasted peanuts, ground to resemble bread crumbs

1. Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together and set aside.
2. Beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugars; beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes with an electric mixer stopping to scrape down the bowl as necessary. Beat in the peanut butter until fully incorporated, then the eggs (1 at a time), then the vanilla. Gently stir the dry ingredients into the peanut butter mixture. Add the ground peanuts and stir gently until just incorporated.
3. Working with a generous 2 tablespoons each time, roll the dough into 2-inch balls. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2.5 inches apart. Press each dough ball twice with a dinner fork dipped in cold water to make a criss-cross design.
4. Bake until cookies are puffed and slightly brown around the edges, but not on top, 10-12 minutes, rotating the baking sheets front to back on top to bottom halfway through the baking time. cook the cookies on the backing sheets until set, about 4 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Creeping - 8 Month Update

My adorable little muffin of love is on the move. I can't beleive she is now 8 months old! How did time go so fast? How did she figure out how to grow so fast? How did we ever have a life without her?

What is Kathryn up to? Well, she is very busy. She is loving feeding herself. Especially paper products. When it comes to food however, she prefers non-baby food over baby food. She loves reading at eating books. She loves playing with and eating toys that are above her age group. She does not like sleeping in her own bed. She does not like bottles. She does not like to be left home without mommy, but is getting better. She loves the kitty(And I think she wants to eat her). She adores her older brother and sister. She often feels left out if she is taken upstairs before they are. She loves bath especially with brother and sissy. She is rolling around and likes making snow angles in the blankets(blanket angels). She likes to growl like a dinosaur. She can sniffle with her nose and just look plain cute. Just this morning she pulled herself up on her knees and was trying to shuffle forward. What was she after? A bit of cracker she had been previously eating. But so far she only knows reverse, but she will pick it up- right?

I love this baby! I LOVE HER!

School lunch

Leila has been asking if she can take a school lunch. I have to admit, I am enjoying making her lunch every day, and then seeing what she ate of it when she gets home. I even decided a few weeks ago to try to make a big batch of cookies or something so she can have something homemade in her bag. She has had a steady supply of juice boxes(something that is a very rare treat in our home). She got a Tinkerbell lunch bag for her birthday, and she was so excited. The excitement must have worn off with her new request.

Apparently, she has really been thinking about lunch. Last night she came in several times with different ideas and requests for several things school related. She was up until almost 10(bedtime being around 7:30)- this 6 year old girl really has a lot on her mind! I think Jeremy was asleep before she was. On her last trip in to see us, she supplied us with a school lunch chart. I wish I had a scanner to scan it in to show you. She has the lunch lady and the register, the different parts of the lunch line, different kids choosing their items(you can tell they love lunch because they all have smiles on their faces), and different options for lunch. I told her if she has school lunches she won't get any more homemade goodies. She said to me: That is OK Mommy. School lunches are much better than homemade. So, time will tell what we decide, but I think she gets a lunch tomorrow for sure from all the thought process she used to make us that nifty chart.

Bathing Babies

I blogged earlier about bathing and feeding and kissing boo-boos as my favorite activities with my babies. I need to qualify the bathing part. I love bathing my BABIES. My toddlers/ preschoolers- not my favorite job. Those who have ventured upstairs in my home can attest to our third bathroom at being teeny tiny. The architect who came up with our house plan did a great job at giving us four bedrooms upstairs with a result of a very small bathroom for the kids. All I can say is I am glad I was not a teenager in this house- and I hope we move before our children are teens because sharing this bathroom will totally suck.

So, one reason I don't like to bathe my older kids is I tend to yell a bit much, and my kids tend not to listen a bit too often, which results in my yelling more and them not listening even more. When the two big kids enjoy tub time it can get quite loud and this kind of noise in a small room is a bit difficult for me to handle on most days. So, bath time after my babies are not babies any longer is turned over to Dad. And Dad does a great job with it.

Since Leila quit soccer early, we had a fun evening of us girls together. Leila and Kathryn took a bath together.

I think Kathryn felt like she was the luckiest baby alive to be in the big tub with her big sister. Honestly, the relationship between my children is amazing. I love that they have each other to love and play with. I can't imagine their lives without each other. I am so happy to have the family I have.

Just Kick It

We are having a fun year for soccer. Leila decided it wasn't her cup of tea, so her soccer season ended early, but Nathan is enjoying it. For both of the kids the best thing about soccer was playing with their cousins. Annalina and Joseph are rock-stars in our house. I can get my kids to do just about anything if they think A & J will be there, or have done it before, or worn it... very fun to have cousins so close in age. I hope they will always have life-long friends.

The coaches do feel the need to split up our boys. They are just too excited to play with each other, and despite our telling them you do not "tackle" in soccer, they just don't seem to care.

The girls on the first day wouldn't stop holding hands. When playing the game where the team tries to get the ball from one of the other kids, Leila and Annalina teamed up and hugged each other with the ball between their legs and kept the ball safe.

Cousin Cuddles

The other day we were at Mom and Dad's when Zach came home from the baby sitter. He was so excited to see Kathryn. He wanted to hold her and waas quite insistant that he do so. Kathryn was thrilled that Zach would pay attention to her. Look at these cute little redheads!

Tadpole Larvae

I was so excited for a fun home grown science experiment. Leila saw some little thing swimming around in a garbage can full of water at my Mom's. She asked Grandma if she could take some home thinking they were tadpoles. We had a cute little jar with holes punched in the lid. Leila was fascinated and Nathan was too. She named four of them: Zippy, Wiggly, Mark and Nathan(she originally named Nathan Kathryn, but thought it looked more like a Nathan.). We fed them some baby cereal. Some of them stopped moving and laid on the bottom of the jar(but not the four she named.). She loved these little tadpoles. She spent hours talking to them, showing them around the house. She even introduced them to her teacher who stopped by for a home visit. Leila was probably fantasizing about bringing them to school for show and tell. And in her heart, they were like a new pet.

Funny, we noticed a mosquito laying on top of the water. I thought that was strange since I hadn't seen it before, but maybe I just missed it. I left it in there- I hate mosquitos with a passion. Recalling nights when one would buzz in my ear and feast on my arms. And the grossness of they way they leave big bloody marks after I would squish one that was likely my own blood.

Beth called me the next day with some very bad news. Her boys had taken some home to watch the transformation of tadpole to frog. She reported that these were not tadpoles. These were mosquito larvae. EEEW! I get the creepy crawlings even now writing about it. I thought my drama queen would fall to pieces as certain death was now in Zippy's, Wiggly's, Marks and Nathans future, but we told her what they were, and what mosquitos eat and she didn't bat an eye about getting rid of them.

Jeremy threw them in the neighbors yard. I hope they died and won't come to pay us a visit. Mom ended her mosquito breeding complex by dumping out that water too. Beth's boys were grossed out and disappointed too, but we are all much smarter in terms of larvae.