First day of school....again!

Well today was Caroline's first day of Kindergarten and she was so excited! But first of all, I got this idea from a friend of mine. Each year she does a new goal to focus on and has a special dinner the night before school starts. I thought it was a great idea so I decided to try it this year. I talked with Brian about it and we came up with the word "Respect". That was what we decided to focus on. So I got the dinner all ready and tried to make it seem nicer. I don't have any great stuff like China or even a table cloth, but for us, nice was putting the food in dishes, not just leaving it in pots. Then we displayed the picture at the table and briefly talked about it.

Since it was also Monday night, we elaborated on it for FHE and talked mainly with just Caroline and Elizabeth to make sure they understood what it was and what our goal was. To help them be more aware of how to respect others, I made a jar and each time any of us notice someone showing respect, we write down their name and how they did it and put it in the jar. Then in 2 weeks we're going to go over them and have a movie party. I think within the next 10 minutes we had over 10, so I told them that was good for today but to keep showing ways. The next hour and a half before bed were so pleasant and they seemed really excited about it.

Now you can see the picture right when you walk in the front door to hopefully remind all of us to show more respect. I had them sign a paper as a sort of commitment that we'll put on the back of the picture. They were excited about that too.

After our lesson Brian gave the girls a blessing and then Cooper jumped up on the stool and then after him, Bella did. I thought it was so cute. She was sitting there so still, holding her care bear and receiving her blessing. It was so sweet.

So Caroline woke up today and just couldn't wait. I signed her up for afternoon kindergarten figuring that it'd be easier when the baby comes. She just could barely stand it. We got her all dolled up for her first day and put her backpack on and took a few pictures before we left. I picked the girls up after school and they were outside holding hands waiting for me. It was so sweet and a perfect end to Caroline's first day of school.

Big Girl Bed

About 4 days ago I started putting Isabelle in the "big girl bed". I was hoping to have her room all painted and her new sheets and quilt on there, but no such luck. She didn't seem to care. She was all smiles as I put her in the bed. She has been FABULOUS so far. The first night she got out a few times and we had to put her back in the bed, but 2 of the other nights I stood outside her door and if I heard her move like she was getting out I'd open the door and say, "Bella, lay back down", and she would and that happened maybe 3 or 4 times in less than 5 minutes and then she'd stay and 1 night she never even tried to get up. This has been amazing compared to our other kids who took MONTHS to get them to stay in their bed! Of course, now that I've said it out loud, she might turn into a monster just like the others. Let's hope not!

Up until now...

Well we just got back from our trip out to PA, so here's the update since the last post. For Father's Day Elizabeth gave Brian a coupon for a date and they went to a movie. It's been a while since we've done dates, so I told Caroline I'd take her on one when they got back because she was pretty upset she didn't get to go. We decided to go bowling and it was a lot of fun. It's amazing to me how much more I enjoy my kids when they are alone then all together. It's some weird crazy dynamic when they're together, but separately it's like, okay, I really do love being with you. Brian told me that when he was out with Elizabeth, they were going to get a treat at the store and she grabbed his hand and said, "we need to hold hands 'cause we're on a date." Isn't that so cute? Caroline was so happy and fun and kept thanking me for taking her. It was a good time.

After we did our bowling we went and got a doughnut and called it a night. It was fun and I loved being with her, just the 2 of us.

We got tickets out to PA last minute and kept it a surprise. Brian was really pushing for driving, but I just knew that was going to be a bad idea. Luckily we got some tickets, not a great deal though, and were able to fly out but it was still a really really long day. We started at 6:45 AM and flew out to JFK. The nice thing about our flight was that it was direct. Then we had to take the train and changed trains 4 times. We met up with Julia 3 hours later in New Jersey and drove another 2 hours to the farm. We got there at just about 10:30, so it took nearly 14 hours. The kids were actually really great. Only towards the end of the train ride did they get antsy. They were loud, but not crying or fussing. Bella had about 10 minutes of crying in the car before she fell asleep.

The next day we surprised some of the family and then just had a great time with everyone. Within the first few days Caroline lost another tooth. It was her second tooth. She lost her first one about a week prior and was so excited. She came running into me and telling me that Bri had pulled it out. She was so so excited. She's been wiggling her teeth for months trying to get them out. Her second one came out and then the next day her third came out. It was crazy.

Even crazier than losing them so fast was how fast one of them grew in. It was like over night it was popping up and she was NOT happy. She cried and cried about how she wanted a hole there for a long time. I mean, she waited so long for it, and already it was closing in.

We had lots of good times. Tons of game playing, swimming, talking, breaking up Cooper and Jacob (cousin) from fighting. Lots of sleep overs, good food and a very thought out fashion show by the girlies. Suzanne helped them pick out their outfits and all accessories and then they got the music and walk down and Ali wrote the whole commentary for the show. It was really cute. Elizabeth didn't crack a smile. I couldn't tell if she was nervous or focused.

Caroline rocked it! She had the hip pop down and did her walk like she was born to do it. They covered all four seasons and it was really fun.

There were a few quick runs on the horses. They aren't really ridden anymore, but the kids got a lap or two in and they were happy. Isn't Brian such a handsome guy?! So rugged and studly in this picture. I love that guy.

                                                                      A cute picture of the boys.

Our trip back was less than fun by far! Bri's parents drove us to the airport and that actually wasn't too bad. A few irritations from the kids, but the drive wasn't bad at all. We left around 1:00 and got to the airport at just before 5:00. Our plane wasn't scheduled to leave until just after 7:00, so we got some food while the kids were running around and fighting. That was the start of it. Then we didn't have our seating assignment, so we tried to get it and they told Brian to step aside while they finished the other flight and then they started loading our plane and we still didn't have seats. Finally they worked with us and our seats were in 6 different rows, so they had to shove us aside again and try and fix it. Turns out 3 were together and the other 3 in different rows, so to start out we had Caroline, Cooper and Bella in a row and then Bri was going to be in the row behind on the aisle, but they said they couldn't sit by themselves (duh!) and I was like, well we have 4 kids 7 and under so what do you want us to do? He was like, "

uh, that is a problem." One guy gave up a seat so there were 2 next to each other on the aisle, but the other one was still behind. Brian ended up with the 2 little ones, Caroline and Liz were by strangers on the aisle which I was NOT happy about and neither were they and then I was behind them watching these people making sure they didn't try anything fishy with my girls. All the while I'm wondering why the idiots next to me didn't offer up their seats to trade when clearly my kids were in front of me. I finally asked them and they were more than willing which almost bugged me more because I was like you idiots, why didn't you just offer. Oh well, so it worked out fine and the kids slept most the ride back, but then we had to drive back to Logan and I totally struggled. I got to a point where I couldn't even keep my eyes focused. It was probably the most tired I've been driving 'cause usually I'll pull over and switch Brian but we had both cars, so there was no out. We pulled into our driveway around 1:20, so another 14 hour day. Blah! Won't do that again, but we were glad we made it out there to see the family. We've missed them.

Not much happened the next day because my brain was in a fog, but I tried to get the girls a back to school outfit since it started today, but we went to 5 stores and they were so picked over and we didn't find anything for them to wear now. A few things when it cools down, but no first day outfit. They didn't seem to really care though. They had fun trying on the clothes. Liz kept saying she was nervous for her first day, but when I picked her up she was all smiles and said she really liked her teacher and it was a good day, so no tears here. Caroline starts next Tuesday and she cannot wait!

We haven't done a whole lot with the house lately. Well, mainly I haven't 'cause I just couldn't handle it and I've been so tired and blah blah blah, but here's kind of where we are at now with the kitchen. Still have to paint all the drawers, but we're functioning and it looks a lot better than when we started. The blue is a little darker than it shows in the pictures, but you get the idea. Still need to replace lighting fixtures, but we'll get there.... in 10 years or so. Ha! So that's where we are up to date.

Here's a long one...

I have a little catching up to do, so here we go.....

Brian's birthday was celebrated in the mountains for the Porter "reunion". Just my sisters (their families too) and parents, so not the big one. We headed up there right after he got off work and got everything set up just as it was getting dark. Brian is amazingly quick and had everything set up and in there in like maybe 40 minutes... by himself. Then we had a quick cake, singing and present opening moment. He's the big 32 now but definately not any slower yet!

I was in charge of making the breakfasts. We had sausage and eggs both day and one day we had pancakes with that and the other hashbrowns. It was yummy. Here's Coop and Will enjoying their breakfast in the morning.

I thought these were cute of Bri and Caroline. Bri looks hot even in the morning after camping!

After breakfast we got ready and headed out to Deer Creek for some water fun. It was a great day. The kids had a blast, as did the adults of course. If the kids are happy, then I'm happy. We took turns on Jill and Paul's jet ski, which everyone loved, as well as the fun on Mel and Greg's boat. Our kids were loving it!

Cooper had a midday nap, which was kind of amazing to me and Brian rocked his sunglasses don't ya think?! Ow baby!

That night we hung out and talked and laughed and just enjoyed each other, especially because we didn't light the fire this night. It was too stressful keeping the kids away from it the night before! The next morning we woke up and went fishing for a few hours. As is tradition, Brian, or those fishing with him, caught nothing. We were so close so many times. I think we lost all of our worms because those fish were so dang smart! They nibbled and ate them and we watched that dang bobble thing go under, but no fish ever came up with it. Oh well. The surrounds were beautiful!

That Sunday after all the camping, I had to have my Dad remind me it was Bella's bday. I would have remembered eventually, but how sad is that. I had her presents at home and we headed back up to Logan and had her very little party there. She started falling asleep during dinner so I hurried and wrapped her 2 gifts and made her open them so her bday didn't go by completely uneventful. She has been liking mermaids lately so we got her an Ariel doll and a Barbie mermaid movie. She seemed pleased enough.

I seem to be getting progressively worse at my cakes. That or just less time available to make them. Maybe both. Either way, she's been loving Max and Ruby (blah) and so I drew a Max on her cake. I asked her what it was and she said, "Mac", so I figured good enough if she can recognize it! Brian told me to take a picture of it but it was so..... unpicture worthy! Next year. :)

I think this was the next day eating some bday cake for breakfast. It was so funny all the faces she was making. I was glad I had my camera close and snapped them so fast. I rarely get her personality in her pictures.

The house is coming along. After my breakdown Brian took a step back and slowed down a little which has been nice for me. I need him to help keep me sane, so he's done good with that. I did face painting with the kids one day and they enjoyed it so much we did round 2 the next day. Cooper remained Batman, but you couldn't call him that, he'd get mad 'cause he's Cooper.

Saturday morning we got out earlier in the day to pick all the raspberries and red currants we could before it got too hot. The kids lasted about 20 minutes, maybe a little longer. I tried to get them to pick the berries on the outsides and let Bri go in the bushes, but they wanted to be in there with him. We got at least 5 pounds of raspberries on our first run and there are plenty more to pick. I'm going to make some red currant jam so we can decide if we want to pick more 'cause there are plenty more of those too!

I'm now down to just about 10 weeks to go, assuming they'll induce me again because of the Strep B stuff. I'm not too uncomfortable yet although sitting in church for 3 hours starts getting me there. That and without fail I'm falling asleep during Sunday School each week. Either need some sugar or the AC turned on. Other than that, all is well. We're moving forward with all our house stuff and the summer is almost over for the kids. School starts August 18th this year which is so early, but  I think it'll be good for all of us!

Sunshine after the rain

I'm not sure what's gotten into me. I'd like to blame it on the pregnancy, but I think if I really look at it, I've had enough going on to make my two melt downs in a week understandable. I know right now my sisters and Mom are probably like, "you're lame. I asked and you said you were fine.". Well, that's how I roll. I'll tell you things are crazy or I'm losing my mind, but I won't tear up infront of you. That's how I work. I bet Brian could count on 2 hands the number of times he's seen me cry, and half of them have been this pregnancy. Ok, not really, just 2. That way, when I do let them fall, he knows I'm for real! Last night was one of those nights. I don't know what all it was but I just couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to run away, at least for a few hours. I feel like such a lame Mom. I can't find fun things to do with all four kids so I try to do one at a time and then I have 3 others at my knees needing a drink, or food or changing the movie or whatever it is and then my times is yet divided again. I try to do fun things and then ended up getting made or frustrated with behavior or lack of appreciation and I know, they're so little, what do they know, but to me, they should! That is my problem, not theirs and obviously I know how little Mom's get appreciated. I now realize how little I'm sure my Mom felt she was appreciated, although, I do like to think we did a good job. Brian asked me why I was in such a foul mood all day yesterday and I'm sure he wished he hadn't 'cause I let it out. And then..... he went downstairs to watch tv. I have to laugh about it. I think he was like, "who are you and what have you done with my emotion-less wife. Maybe she'll be back after Matlock." Just kidding. He did try to make me feel better, but it just wasn't going to happen. He said, "Monday I'll watch the kids and you do whatever you want." My response... " I don't want to do anything. I just want to lay there and do absolutely nothing. I don't want someone bugging me to get this or that or have to get up to do this and that, I just want to do nothing!". Mind you, all this was done calmly even though it may not sound like it. I mean really. It's not like I have all these great things I want to do, I'm just tired and worn out and I still have just under 3 months left of this pregnancy. Yikes! I ended up going on a walk. I love summer nights and this year so far I haven't really had the chance to enjoy them. There's always dinner to clean up or laundry to do or another box to unpack or a wall to paint. BLAH! But last night, I went out for a lovely stroll and came back and just sat on my sidewalk. I had a neighbor drive by and ask me if I was locked out. "I wish I was", I said. I'm sure he thought, "shut up and drive off NOW!". But he made sure I knew we could call him if we needed anything. Another neighbor walked by and asked me if I was okay. Luckily she was across the road and couldn't see my puffy red eyes and I maintained a fairly stable voice to say I was fine. I'm sure it looked kind of funny to see me sitting out on my sidewalk just looking at the ground with no kids outside. Oh well. She told me my neighbor had passed away that day, so I figured it was time to suck it up because my situation could be a lot worse. To make it better, I made myself some cookies. Yep.... I eat my sorrows, and they were good.
 Today was a great day. The kids were fabulous in church and after. Brian made dinner and he let me nap when I dozed off on the couch. He even offered to skip his song practice tonight, which, if you know Brian, that's a big deal. Of course I said he could go and the night has been just fine. Oh the dramas right?! I've had so many thoughts go through my head today. The lesson in church was one for me. The lady started it out by saying, " I have a hypothetical situation. There's a mother of 4 who's pregnant with her fifth. Her oldest is 8....." and I was like, "are you for real?!!!". She was trying to see what advice everyone would have to this lady because she was overwhelmed. I felt like yelling out, "yes, what advice do you have because I'm certainly out of ideas." Of course, these sweet old ladies (like 80% of our ward is) were saying things like, " I'd tell her to enjoy the journey", or, "enjoy it while she can 'cause they grow up too fast" and I wanted to say, " that's not advice and it's certainly not going to help. She needs some serious hard core advice, not sugar sweet thoughts." But of course I didn't. I still felt like it was a good lesson though and my own thoughts were good to ponder. I know I'm not over my drama in my head, but at least I know I can still have a good day after one that seems all hope is lost!
 On a happier note, Caroline was so excited today because she finally lost her tooth. I even had to take her to a neighbors house, she didn't care which one, and show them too. She's been anxiously awaiting it's departure for the last 2 months or so, well, ever since it got wiggly.

Elizabeth then said she wanted to take one of the two of them to show all their lost teeth.

And I just thought this was a cute picture of Isabelle. I can't ever really get her smile. She has the cutest full on grin. I do have a few pics from her birthday which I still need to get up on here. Next post, but until then, there's this one. And yes, that is another gash on her face. Not quite sure how that one got there.

And this picture just makes me laugh. He said I could only take one picture, but this was like #6. Tonight when I put him to bed, he curled up right next to me, put his head in my lap and wrapped his arm around my waste. That's the part of being a Mom I love. I do have some sweet kiddos.

New do's

The girls have been begging me for a while to cut their hair but I just haven't wanted to because I love their hair long, but Caroline's has been in a pony for like 4 days straight, and often times is because the curls just get in so many knots that I can't brush it, so I finally gave into her. I figured if I was going to get hers cut, I better let Elizabeth do hers too, so I did. We got it cut on Saturday and they are loving it, so here are a few pics of their new cuts.

I loved this one of Elizabeth. Totally shows her funny personality.

A little story to share, this morning the girls told Brian that they climbed out of their window last night and went outside for a little bit. I didn't believe them so I had them show me and sure enough, they had figured out how to get out. That made me nervous. I thought there were locks on all the windows so I'll have to double check. For some reason their screen was off, but it's on now, so hopefully our sneaking out days are still a few years off!