Grandmas are Great!

Aren't Grandparents great. They get to spoil their grandchildren and the grandchildren love it. They can buy them candy and gifts for no reason at all. They don't have nearly as many excuses as moms and dads do for not being able to play "right now". Three of these pictures are pictures of the kids enjoying some cool candy from Grandma after dinner. Walter loves that Grandma Wallingford loves to play computer and Nintendo games, too. Jem loves that she plays dinosaurs and I Spy on the computer with him. Daddies are cool, too. The kids sure love their daddy. Rilla is definately a Daddy's girl right now. I know if Shirley could talk he would say Mommies are the best:)

Our Weekend!

     Friday my mom came to visit.  She brought her new puppy and Jem loves it.  He carries her around and plays with her a lot.  On Saturday that is practically all he did.  The puppy is very tolerant and doesn't seem to mind.  I always new that Jem is an animal person.  Walter is more like me.  He likes animals and thinks the puppy is cute but doesn't really want to play with her. Rilla also really likes Shilo, the puppy, but doesn't like her jumping on her and stuff.  

      We had a girl's night Friday at Suzanne's house.  I love girl's nights.  We watched "No Reservations".  It was a little slow at first but I enjoyed it.  The kids all had a blast.  Rilla just loved it there.  My boys are her boys' age so they are friends and get a long great.  The next time we get together we are going to play games instead.  That will be lots of fun.

      Saturday was pretty uneventful.  Mike still had night shift so he worked till noon and then slept during the afternoon.  I did get my library books returned to the library (they were overdue).  Saturday evening Rilla started to not feel well again.  She cried quite a bit and was running a fever.  She woke up quite a bit during the night.

      Sunday I missed church again.  Rilla still had a fever and was starting to tug on her ear.  I was pretty sure it was probably just an ear infection from the RSV, but I couldn't take her to nursery, which I am one of the teachers.  I sure do hate missing church.  I love going and being spiritually edified.  It helps my week go better, too.  Rilla felt better in the afternoon, but by evening time she started crying again, tugging at her ear, and her fever came back.

     Today I called this morning and got Rilla an appointment and Gilbert took her in.  He has today off because yesterday was his last 12 hour shift for this 10 day cycle (they have one each month).  She had two ear infections.  She came home from the doctor's and slept for three hours.  Mondays are my cleaning days.  I always feel like cleaning on Mondays.  I got he floors swept and mopped and am catching up on the laundry.  Not very exciting but it feels good to have a clean house.

Over Protective?

In our neighborhood, there are quite a few 1st-3rd graders that wander the neighborhood every day playing at different houses, etc.  Is it just me or doesn't that seem a little too young to be letting your children go play and not know where they are?  I think so.  We made the mistake of letting a few of them come in and play one day when Walter had a classmate (which was prearranged with his mom and I) over.  When I answered the door I was surprised to see four kids I didn't know, though I did recognize then from the bus stop, standing there.  They asked if they could come in to play.  They new Walter's friend and that must be why they came.  I couldn't think of a reason on the spot why they couldn't so I let them.  I of course assumed that Walter knew them.  No, he didn't.  Boy was that a mistake.  Now they come all the time and ask to play with Walter.  Now correct me if I am wrong, but isn't it not appropriate to invite yourself to play at someone's house?  At least that was what I was taught growing up.  Luckily, lately I have had lots of great excuses why they can't come in to play, such as "Sunday is family day", "Walter's daddy is sleeping right now since he worked all night", and "Walter' baby brother and sister are sick right now".   What I really want to say is, "you know it isn't appropriate for you to be inviting yourself to play."  And what about their parents?  Why don't they want their children to spend time at home after being gone all day at school?  I know I want Walter home after school.  I miss him when he is at school and so does Jem and Rilla.  I realize I may be a little over protective but I would rather be over protective than live with the regret if something happens to my children.  Plus, I want to prevent them from getting hurt or getting into trouble if I can.

Grateful!

What I am most grateful for is my family.  I love my husband and my children.  My children bring me so much joy.  I love watching them learn and grow.  Shirley laughed for the first time a few days ago and it filled me with such delight. Here is a list of other things I am grateful to have or really enjoy:

*Taking a nice hot bath

*disposable diapers and wipes

*modern washers and dryers

*modern medication

*sitting in the sunshine and feeling a nice breeze

*snuggling under a warm soft blanket when I am cold

*having heat to warm my house when it is cold

*having air conditioning when it is hot

*for my friends Teah, Suzanne, Lisa, Christina, Colleen, Giuliana, and Amy

*Taking a nice hot shower in the morning (becomes a luxury once you have kids)

*reading a good book

*having girl's nights

*going on a date with my husband

*being spiritually edified at church

*watching a GOOD movie (they get harder and harder to come by)

*CHOCOLATE

*family outings (it doesn't matter where)

*seeing my children smile up at me for the first time 

*having my children tell me they love me

*my husband's massages (I owe him so many)

*climbing into my really comfortable bed at night after a long day

*hearing my children laugh

*dishwashers

*listening to good music

*epidurals (I had Rilla without one so I can really appreciate them)

      

More Snow and Sunshine!

  Can you believe it?  we had 70 degree weather the first half of last week and on Friday we got snow again.  It snowed more Friday night.  We ended up driving in it when we took Shirley to the hospital.  At a little before 1 AM he started coughing really bad.  It was pretty scary.  After an hour of the coughing not getting any better we took him in.  He was given Albuterol and a long lasting liquid steroid at the ER and we brought him home.  He didn't get better right away, but after a few hours he stopped coughing and wheezing almost completely.  The whole day Saturday and most of the night he hardly coughed at all. I was relieved.  Plus I was able to get caught up on missed sleep.  Since Sunday morning, he does occasionally have some coughing spells and a little wheezing, but thankfully he is doing so much better.  I am so glad.  I think Rilla has RSV as well.  She has had a runny nose for a few days and is now starting to cough. Hopefully she will not get as bad as Shirley did since she is older.

The weather started warming up again on Saturday and today it was in the upper 60's.  Crazy weather.  I do wish it would make up its mind.  The drastic changes are playing havoc on my allergies/sinuses.

Today was fun.  I always enjoy holidays because Gil doesn't have to work.  The kids love it when he is home all day.  He sure is a great dad.  My three oldest love when he chases them. Today we went to Wal Mart and got a few things,  I got wall appliques to decorate the kids' rooms.  My boys picked Transformers and I got Disney Princesses for Rilla's room.  They match her princess bedding.  Gil bought Rockets for him and the boys to make and then set off.  Jem is so excited.  After Wal Mart we went to KFC for lunch.  They have a buffet there that we all like. It was fun to eat out, as we don't do it all that often.  The rest of the day was a fun and lazy day.

      

      I forgot to write about our trip to the Tucson Zoo and Chuck E Cheese Saturday the 9th.  It was such a beautiful day.  The Tucson Zoo is a fairly small zoo, but we really enjoyed it.  It had lots of trees and foliage so it helped keep us cool since it was pretty warm.  Rilla really enjoyed getting to run around.  It was the first outing we have been on since she started walking really well.  Afterwards we went to Chuck E Cheese.  Jem got a gift certificate for his birthday.  The $20 on it lasted way too long.  We, Gil and I, started using the tokens in certain quick games just to get tickets so we wouldn't be there all night.  As Walter put it, the Zoo and Chuck E Cheese were "Awesome!"

Girl's Night!

For Valentine's Day two of my friends and I got together for a girl's night since their husbands were deployed and TDY and mine is working the night shift.  We gathered at my friends house and watched "Becoming Jane" while the kids watched a movie of their own.  I should say we tried to watch the movie.  Our kids were so excited to be together that they were quite loud and ran around a lot.  Thank goodness for captions or I would have missed the whole movie.  The kids finally quieted and settled down, but by then our movie was over.  At least they had fun and we had fun, too.  How often do we get to have girl's nights anyways?  They looked really cute in their jammies.  I am so thankful for my friends.

New Year's Resolutions!

Every year I am sure everyone makes New Year's resolutions.  I had three this year. The first is to study scriptures every day.  I used to be very good at this until I had kids.  Then I would be diligent for awhile and then not so good for a while.  The second is to exercise Monday through Saturday, doing aerobics at least three times a week.  The third is to  write in a journal more often.  To help myself do these I printed three yearly calendars (each fit on one page) and put them up on my wall in my kitchen so I can look at them daily.  When I accomplish the task for that day I highlight it on the calendar.  This helps me because if I miss a day, I will notice it for the rest of the year.  That day will not be highlighted.  I am doing really well at studying scriptures.  I have only missed 5 days.  My journal writing has greatly improved due  to starting this Blog.  I have journals for each of my children and if I write in them that counts, too.   In regards to working out, I didn't do much until the end of January, but now I work out every day except Sunday.  My friend, Teah, and I get together (she lives four houses down) Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and work out to exercise to workout videos.  The other days I sometimes do workouts to videos or just do exercises on my own.  I am enjoying doing all three and they are really helping me out spiritually, physically, and mentally.

Shirley!

I ended up taking Shirley to the health clinic today because he started coughing and wheezing yesterday.  I was pretty sure it was bronchiolitis because Jem had it a few times as a baby and it sounded the same from what I remember.  The doctor discovered, by a lab test, that he has RSV which has caused the bronchiolitis.  RSV is a respiratory virus.  He is now on a nebulizer that I administer to him twice a day.  I sure do hate to see him cough and wheeze.  He is such a sweet baby.  I hope the nebulizer helps quickly to relieve his coughing and wheezing symptoms.  He was weighed at the clinic.  He is now 13 lbs 14 oz.  He is so cute.  I am so glad that he doesn't have acid reflux like Rilla had because I love chubby babies.   I couldn't ask for a more sweet, easygoing baby.   I feel so blessed to have all four of my children.

Snow and Sunshine!

What a beautiful day we had today.  It was 72 degrees and the sun was shining.  Who would have guessed that on Tuesday it actually snowed here.  The snow didn't stick, but it did snow.  The weather is supposed to stay in the low 70's all next week.  How nice!  It is hard to be sad or down when the sun is shining outside and it is so warm.  My friend and I took our kids for a walk to Walter's school and walked around the track during his recess (it is called the Walking Club and happens every Friday).  This was my first time back since I had Shirley.  12 laps around equals one mile.  Walter usually runs and gets quite a few laps in.  The most laps he has done is 28.  He usually does between 18 and 26 laps.  I'm lucky if I get 12 done because I am pushing a stroller and run out of time to do more.  I only did 9 laps today, but walked to and from school (it is about one mile each way). It was great exercise.

I've Been Tagged!

I have been tagged.  I am not exactly sure what all that entails, but I know I am supposed to tell seven things about myself that people may not know and then tag 7 people.  So here are six things about me that some of you may not know:

1.  I have a twin sister.  She is also married to a military man.  She is four minutes younger than I am.  We look identical (at least we did growing up) but we are actually fraternal.  We were great friends growing up.  I have always felt blessed to have her as my twin.  She has three kids and her husband is currently stationed in Iraq.

2.  I love playing sports.  Of course, I don't play much now, but I loved playing in school.  My favorite was basketball.

3.  I did Drill Team and Colorguard in high school.  I love dancing.  I took ballet and other dance classes in college.  I loved church dances and danced most if not all of the slow dances.  Of course I had to ask the guys since very few guys ever asked girls to dance.

4.  I took three years of Japanese in high school and one year in college.  I also went to Japan as an exchange student for six weeks, the summer before my senior year of high school.  I spent a week in Tokyo and five weeks in a small town outside of Sapporo, in Hokkaido (the northern island of Japan).  We would love to get stationed in Japan.

5.  I was one of 11 Valedictorians for my graduating class.  I had a 4.0 GPA.  I loved school.  I took AP and Honors classes and even a few college classes at the local community college my senior year.

6. I absolutely love to read.  It is so easy to get caught up in a book, so I try not to read all of the time.  I have four kids to take care of and have to exercise some self contol.  Here are some of my favorite books and authors:

 *The Anne of Green Gable books

*Ella Enchanted

*The False Betrothal

*The Harry Potter Books

* Author Janette Oke- she is a Christian author and I have really enjoyed her books,       epecially her Love Comes Softly series and women of the west books.

7. My major in College was Marriage and Family Therapy.  I attended Brigham Young University.  I loved going there.  I especially loved the religion classes.  I only attended three years before we got stationed in germany so I still have a year to complete to get my Bachelors degree.  Someday I will finish.

I hope you enjoyed learning more about me.  The picture at the top is of my sister and me with our cousin when we were little.

Anxiety!

OK!  I will admit that I do struggle a little with anxiety post partum.  The last few weeks have been really good and I haven't had much anxiety.  The last few days, however, have been a different story.  It can be something small that sets it off, or my planned routine getting changed or my plans not going like I thought.  At least I am aware of when I am anxious, and I can usually calm myself down, but it is frustrating.  I hate getting anxious.  I also hate being so forgetful.  It also leads to anxiety.  I want to be flexible and not have silly little things bother me.  I know it will pass, I just have to be patient and do my best to not let changes and things that happen bother me.

Time and Money!

I have been having two recurring thoughts lately, time and money.  Since I had Shirley, I find myself with not enough time.  There aren't enough hours in the day to get done all that I need and want to do.  My laundry is piled up (they are clean just not folded) my desk is very unorganized, my dresser has clothes piled so high I can barely see in the mirror, the boys bathroom needed to be cleaned days ago (I swear they must aim everywhere other than the toilet)...the list could go on.  I am very diligent at running the dishwasher every night, otherwise I would get so far behind on dishes as well.  I am very lucky to have my husbands help around the house or I probably would go crazy.  I know it will get easier as Shirley gets older but for now I will have to accept the fact that I am not Super Mom.

The second has been about money.  I can proudly say we have no debt and have money invested and in savings.  What frustrates me is that I need surgery to fix a receding gum line on one of my bottom teeth and it is going to cost $1,600 to fix it.  That is just ridiculous.  That is just my portion, my insurance pays for the rest of the cost.  I can think of so many other ways that I would rather spend $1600.  Unfortunately, the tooth that is exposed really hurts, so not having the surgery is not an option.

On a more positive note, even with not enough hours in the day, I have lots of fun with my kids and still have time to myself after they are in bed (OK- sometimes I do stay up later than I should).  My kids sleep well through the night.  Even Shirley sleeps well between his nighttime feedings.  Plus I have a really comfortable bed and sleep great.

President Hinckley and Birthday Party!

President Gordon B. Hinckley's funeral was today.  He passed away Sunday night at the age of almost 97.  I watched the funeral service on television.  It is sad for me to think of him gone because he has been the prophet for almost all of my years since I was baptized.  He did so much good in our world and was such an inspiration.  He was a very humble man.  He encouraged everyone to be better.  It is so exciting to think of him being reunited with his beloved wife who passed away four years ago.

This afternoon we had Jem's fourth birthday party.  It was a lot of fun.  We ended up having cake and ice cream first since Jem wouldn't leave the table, where he was guarding his cake and his seat.  It was the cutest thing.  Once cake and icecream were over he went and played with his friends.  It is so fun watching my children grow up..

I love Fridays!!!

I love Fridays.  It is the end of the work and school week.  I love that Walter gets to go to school during the week, because he loves school and learns more there than he would at home, but I enjoy the weekends because I can spend more time with him.  It is also great to have my hubby home for the weekend. Friday nights are our fun family nights.  We usually make home made pizza (tonight we had tacos instead because they sounded good) and have a movie night.  We eat dinner, get our pajamas on, and make the living room nice and cozy with blankets and pillows.  We get Netflix and I love it.  Whenever we rent movies they never get returned on time.  With Netflix I haven't had to worry about that.  I make sure to get a kids movie for the kids and a movie for Gil and me (or a tv show- like Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman).  Then we have popcorn and lots of goodies.  We try and have dinner fairly early so the kids aren't up too late.  Sometimes we have friends over.  Teah and her two kids come over a lot (she lives four houses down).  I love not having to get up quite so early on Saturday.  My kids usually sleep in until at least 7:30.  During the week I almost always have to wake Walter up to get ready for school.  I don't like having to wake my kids up.