Soccer

Damon and Allie just finished soccer for the fall. This is Damon's third year playing. He is getting better and really seems to enjoy it. Soccer may just be the sport he sticks with. Allie...well, Allie had fun dressing up in shin guards and cleats and jogging after the ball. But at least she didn't fight me about going. 

Between the two of them, we went to 3-4 soccer games a week. It took up a lot of time, and sometimes I did NOT look forward to going. Only because Jeff couldn't make it to some of them and it was hard by myself. Especially if I tried to do something daring, like take a few pictures.

I love this shot of Damon. You can imagine he is the star of the team when you see an action shot like this. I hope he feels that way (although he told me he likes playing defense and is not good at offense).

Allie liked playing goalie. Once I had to untangle her from the net when the rest of the kids were at the other end of the field. That pretty much says it all.

This is the best action shot I could get of her going after the ball. Amazingly, she scored a goal this season. I didn't see it (I wasn't there), but Jeff said she was in the right place at the right time. 

What do the rest of us do at the games? Here's a little taste. Kyla looks fabulous. She may have been going clubbing later, I'm not really sure.

Carter wandered around watching all the other kids, usually throwing things in the air to impress them all.

And McKay sucked his thumb. He was usually tired and not especially fond of soccer. But he's a good baby and he puts up with a lot. Just as #5 should. 

Six big months

Wow, is McKayters really six months old? (Insert cliche here about how time is flying and I'm getting old).

He's starting to make that moose look small.

Probably the biggest development in McKay's young life is that he has now been introduced to the world of solid food. The first time or two didn't go over so well. He gagged like a bulimic before finally swallowing his rice cereal. Since then, however, he has done much better (maybe he likes oatmeal better?), and he would like to taste anything I put in his mouth. I think he's ready to start on sweet potatoes and squash this week. If I can make it to the grocery store.

He is also sitting up really well, and doesn't usually fall over unless he is pushed. I'm not sure whether he is teething or if he just found his tongue, but he has been making this face all the time.

Carter has been opened to the world of "older sibling," and is always trying to make McKay laugh. It's one of my favorite things right now. I'm so glad these two have each other. They're going to need it if they're going to survive Mommy Kyla...

(A quick Kyla story from today to illustrate the above point. I was mopping the kitchen floor, when I heard Kyla ask Carter, "do you want to play type rope?" I looked up to see the broom balanced between the counter and the island. Carter gave his standard "no," which sounds like "mo," and another catastrophe was avoided.)

This is probably my favorite picture from this month. It was at Damon's soccer game. I love that Jeff and McKay are so engaged. And I love that Carter is watching the soccer game with feigned interest. And I love his blond hair that I buzzed off. Dang me!

Perspective

Reliving 9/11 over the weekend with my family was a good experience. Damon wasn't born when we were attacked 10 years ago, but he couldn't get enough of the coverage. He watched the towers get hit, and then collapse, dozens of times. And watching all the footage brought back a lot of memories for me as well, especially once we turned on "Where Were You (when the world stopped turning)?" by Alan Jackson and danced in our living room. Ten years ago, we all reexamined our priorities and put those things that were most important first in our lives. And this week, I was reminded again that my perspective on life can sometimes get a little skewed.

I focus too much on all the hard things, the bad things, and not enough of how blessed that I am. And so I have been mentally composing a list of all the things I would typically complain about, realizing that all these things are really blessings.

The fact that we go through so much toilet paper means that 5 of the 7 of us are potty-trained.

My flabby stomach and chunky thighs mean that I have been able to carry 5 babies inside of me.

All the rooms in my house that I am constantly having to clean mean that we have plenty of space to live and grow.

The food I scrub off the table and chairs means we have enough to eat.

The constant chaos I am surrounded by means I am never lonely.

The grass that needs to be mowed every week means that it's not winter and the ground isn't covered in snow.

The fact that McKay had a fever of 101.2 last night doesn't worry me, because he isn't tiny enough for that to be a concern.

All the clothes I own that don't fit (either too big or too small) mean that the baby weight from the last two years is coming off (and that I need to keep working on it).

The fact that I have to make lunch for Jeff, as well as the kids, means that he wants to come home for lunch instead of spending it with someone else.

The fact that the girls are still giggling and laughing in their rooms at 10:00 pm means that they love each other and like being together.

All the homework I have to nag the kids about means that they are back in school.

The fact that I have to carry two heavy boys around most everywhere means that they are close enough to one day be best of friends.


What kinds of things are you thankful for, that you might not have realized were blessings before?

Sticks out like a...

...sore thumb? Where did that saying come from, anyway? Because as I sit here thinking about things that "stick out," a sore thumb is probably one of the very LAST things that would come to mind. A broken thumb, perhaps. But not a sore thumb. Sorry. For the purpose of this post, I'm going with "sticks out like a black eye." Something that actually seems to make a little bit of sense. And is relevant to my children, who are not currently experiencing thumb pain.

The story I'm about to relate happened two weeks ago, before Jeff was fulfilling his John Wesley Powell fantasies and rafting down the Colorado River, aka the Grand Canyon. I am just now able to talk about it. One morning, McKay had just awoken from his nap and Kyla asked if she could go in and talk to him. I told her yes, even though I knew that "talk to him" really meant "crawl in his crib with him," because I was doing something else and needed to buy a few minutes before I went to get him out of bed. It wasn't long before I heard a gigantic THUD followed by a very hurt little baby cry. My first thought was that Kyla had dropped him on the floor (unfortunately, it wouldn't be the first time). I yelled upstairs and asked her what was going on, and she brought him out to me. He clearly had a circular carpet burn about the size of a silver dollar above his eye and he was a little pale. He was also whimpering and just laid on my shoulder when I took him from Kyla. I began questioning her, asking what had happened. At first, she tried to tell me that she didn't know. Finally, though, she confessed.

"I tried to frow him on the bed." WHAT?! Suddenly my heart started beating faster, as I realized what had happened. She had climbed into his crib, as I expected, picked him up, and thought that she would be able to throw him from the crib onto the bed. Obviously he didn't make it. My mind ran through worst case scenarios, such as he fell straight down onto his head, not even grazing the bed, and I began checking for serious injury. Kyla was hysterical. McKay, who was no longer crying, but still a little pale, seemed unaffected. But still, I made him sit up and perform his usual "tricks," such as reaching for things with both hands. He seemed okay. But I was still worried and so scared.

After a while, the carpet burn faded and normal coloring returned to his face. He was acting normally, eating and sleeping, and I finally breathed a sigh of relief when it seemed he was going to be just fine. I asked Kyla to reenact the event for me, so I could try to determine EXACTLY what had happened. She demonstrated how he hit the edge of the bed and slid to the floor. I hoped with all my might that that was actually what happened. She told me, "I'm not a good frower." No, I think not.

The next day, his left eye looked a little swollen, and he eventually developed some light green bruises newt to his eye, but mostly escaped the situation unscathed. And believe me, I know how lucky we are about that.

 The REAL black eye story happened while we were in St. George. Carter, yet again, let his cousin, Jayda pick on him. She pinched his cheek, and must have really had a hold on him, because it turned black and blue underneath the eye the next day. Then, to add injury to injury, when we got home, Kyla thought it would be funny to scare him while he was in the bathtub. However, this caused him to bump the top of his eye on the faucet. I have had a hard time getting a good picture of it, but you can see it a little bit here.

Yesterday, it had really turned some pretty colors. I needed Damon's help to get a good picture. I'm sure the girls are jealous of that natural eye shadow! And believe me, it sticks out much more than a sore thumb would have.

So...I guess you could say that preschool couldn't have come at a better time for Kyla. Or her black-eyed brothers. She started on Tuesday and had to have some pictures of her own. Nice pose here.

After changing her mind repeatedly about what she wanted to wear, she finally decided on this little dress. Definitely fitting, seeing how she loves wearing skirts and dresses so much.

 Here she is hanging up her backpack and saying good-bye to me. Clearly, she isn't nervous at all. So it's surprising that she burst into tears only moments later when I had to leave. It actually is a little surprising. Kyla usually doesn't have separation anxiety. Well, unless she is separating from Grandma Karen. Then it's quite bad. But she doesn't usually have a problem separating from me. It did break my heart a little to have to leave her there when she was upset. Fortunately, she had a fantastic day and has been so excited to go back every day since.

It's good to have talented friends

At our ward play group a few weeks ago, Lori Harris took some pictures of all the kids. We should have paid her for her services, they turned out so good. So, thank you Lori! Now I only have to worry about getting a family picture before Christmas. :)

Kyla, age 4

Carter, 18 months

Have I mentioned that I am totally in love with this kid? I just think he is the cutest thing in my closet (literally). :)

 Damon, age 9

 McKay, 5 months

Allie, age 6

Love this one of Damon!

Lately

Damon's corn plant produced three, delicious ears of corn. Seriously, it was the best corn I had all summer. We are seriously thinking about planting some more next year because it was so yummy. 

 The only problem was the earwigs thought it was tasty too. Disgusting little creatures liked making their home in the husks and we would find them crawling out the top of the corn. I would kill 10-15 a day and they just kept coming back. Luckily, they didn't eat much of the corn, but still...the thought gives me alternating sweats and chills. Bleh!

Carter has become a little obsessed with guns. Mostly Damon's Nerf gun, but another toy gun is fun for him, too. He will hunt for the darts, carefully insert them into the gun, and then find someone who can help him cock and fire. Then happily, he will chase the dart and start again. He will be highly entertained for quite some time doing this, until he can't stand it any longer and chews on the darts, thus rendering them incapable of being fired. I'm not sure how much longer this game can continue, as he is quickly running out of darts.

Fortunately, he also has taken a liking to other toys as well. Most notably, babies. He wants to take one to bed with him (as well as a book and a ball and sometimes a toy car) and when he can find a bottle, he likes to pretend to feed them. I'm training him early so maybe he'll like real babies a little better than his daddy...

Another thing Carter is really good at is making a mess. He didn't want to eat in his high chair anymore, so he now joins us at the big table, where he prefers to feed himself. This is what his area looks like on any given morning after breakfast.

In case you were wondering if I still lived here, or if the kids were basically running the show alone (as the pictures may lead you to believe), here's a self-portrait of me and my favorite little man. Lots of people say he looks like me. I still don't know where he came from.

Busy First Day

Yesterday was a busy, busy day. It was the first day of school. Monday night, Jeff gave all the kids a blessing for the new year (including Kyla, who will be starting preschool in two weeks) and I put a drop of lavender oil on their pillows to help them fall asleep (they wanted it, not that I thought it would really make much of a difference). Because they had gotten to bed later than I wanted, Allie hadn't had time to wash her hair, so I told her she needed to be up by 7:30 so that she had time to shower before school.

When I went in to wake her up in the morning, she was not well rested. She started crying, "the lavender didn't work!" I could tell it was going to be a tough morning and that first day excitement wasn't going to be enough to carry her through. She promptly got back in bed and I went downstairs to start breakfast. A few minutes later, I came back and told her she needed to get into the shower. Her response? "This is not what I expected!!" I tried to stifle a laugh long enough so that I could explain that a warm shower would wake up her body and she'd feel better. I guess she decided to believe me and we got her washed and clean and ready for school.

After breakfast, Damon helped her make her lunch (by "help" I mean "told her exactly what she could and couldn't take for lunch") and we sat on the front porch waiting for the neighbor who was taking them to school. We had enough time to take the obligatory first day of school photos next to the front door. Allie was first. She was in love with this zebra shirt so that is what she chose to wear. She has only earned a few of her school clothes (in fact, if she wants something new to wear tomorrow, she's going to have to do some work for me today), but at least she got her favorites. Her attitude was suddenly much better and she had no problem heading off to her first day of 1st grade (which is in the Dual Language--Spanish and English--classroom).

Next, I had Damon pose for his picture, but Carter couldn't let him have his moment alone. He stood there saying "cheese" before I even had the camera ready, so how could I exclude him?

Then I got all the kids in a shot. What a group!


After school, the real fun began. Allie had her first soccer game at 4:30 (I picked up the kids just after 3:30), so I tried to rush them through an afternoon snack and changing so that we could go. Of course, McKay used that opportunity to have a huge blowout that required me stripping him naked and furiously wiping him down with baby wipes. I also had to tell Allie, who appeared to be in no hurry at all, that there was no time to listen to her playlist on the computer. Finally we were ready to go at 4:25. Jeff called from the soccer field to ask where we were and I told him we were on our way. Her game was all the way across Provo, and we were 10 minutes late (which Damon kept reminding me at every stoplight). I dropped Allie and Carter off with Jeff and then took Damon all the way back across Provo to his soccer practice, which was starting at 5:00.

Kyla, who had been sleeping in the car, woke up when we pulled into the other soccer field and asked, "where's Allie?" We waited in the parking lot until 5:20 for his coach to show up and then I had to drop him off so that I could take Kyla to a meeting/training for the UPSTART program (a computer based preschool program she is doing this year). We got there at 5:30 for her testing/training and I took McKay in with me (he had also been napping in the car). After Allie's game, Jeff went to pick Damon up from soccer and we all met back at home around 6:45. Damon had pack meeting at 7:00, so he and Jeff headed up to the church when I got back. Allie, Kyla, Carter and I ate leftovers for dinner and then I took the boys up for a bath (remember McKay's blowout? He needed one.).

I got both boys in bed by 8:00 and got most of the kitchen mess cleaned up before Jeff and Damon got home. Damon then had to do some math homework and the girls got ready for bed, we prayed, and sent the kids to their rooms. Sheesh! What a crazy day! Luckily Jeff was able to help, otherwise there is no way I could have done all that by myself.

In other news, McKay is now five months old. He's getting bigger, more active and happier every single day.

He now spends quite a bit of time in his saucer, playing with toys. That is, when Kyla isn't taking him out and carrying him around the house (which happens to be nearly every time I put him down).
He is also starting to sit up for a few seconds at a time. It goes like this:

Sitting and happy

Not so happy

Tipping over

Repeat

No solid food yet. Maybe next month (unless he starts acting like he's starving). Carter still loves his Bubba more than just about anyone, even though he tries to sit on him in the bathtub. McKay has yet to roll from his back to his tummy, but can get on his side, so it's probably close. He drinks 5 bottles a day (usually) and ends up about 30-32 oz a day. I think that's just about right. We are still working on a consistent nap schedule during the day, as I would like to have him take a morning nap from 9:30-11:00 or so and then go down with Carter at 12:45 (after we drop Kyla off at preschool). I have two weeks to get that in place. Wish me luck.

And please wish for no more days like yesterday. Busy is one thing. Crazy busy is another.

What should I call him, Trappy?

(Forgive my laziness. I just scanned a page out of my ever-so-amazing wedding album instead of digging through photos to find originals).

When I first broke the news that I had met an RM, and I really quite liked him, to my mom, she didn't seem very excited. I was 19, in my second year at BYU, and was really planning on going on a mission. But instead of voicing any of those concerns, she just made fun of his last name. "What are we going to call him," she asked, "Trappy?"

In the 11 years we have been married, I don't think she has ever once called him "Trappy." Because once I decided that I wanted to marry him more than I wanted anything else, she was on board. And she loved him, too. Even when he took me FAR away from Utah for six years while he was going to school. AND, even though Tara said she wouldn't come to my wedding if I married him (give her a break--she was 16 and thought I should wait for my missionary to come home--), I think she loves him, too. Because Jeff is easy to love.

He's a hard worker, he's a great provider, he is happy and fun. He loves history and sports and laughs at my jokes. He is thoughtful and adventurous and wants nothing more than to travel the world together. And he loves me. What more could a girl ask for?

The last 11 years have been very good to us, and we are so blessed to have a beautiful family. But I think we are the most blessed because we have each other. Happy anniversary Jeff!

A few things...

My cousin, Monique, was in another pageant this month (she was second attendant in the Miss Orem pageant in May) and she asked Allie if she would be her Little Miss again. Allie was only too happy to be a part of it. She got to wear mascara and got a tiara. I think it was literally her dream come true.

Our garden is doing awesome. I love gardening. And by "gardening," I mean "planting the plants, doing nothing to them at all, and harvesting them three months later." Our cherry tomato plant is going crazy and our other two tomato plants have a bunch of green tomatoes on them, too. Carter loves cherry tomatoes, and I'm sure he's trying to find some in this pic.

To the left, we planted onions, corn (Damon planted those from a seed at scouts and we transported), strawberries (which have been a huge waste of space, as we have gotten 3 strawberries from two plants), and squash, which gives us WAY too much squash. The small box ended up being the pepper box. There are two jalepeno plants (and those are spicy little devils!), chile pepper, two bell peppers, and sweet banana peppers. They are just starting to do really well and hopefully soon I'll be able to make salsa with (nearly) everything from my garden!

To answer the question about the rubber mulch: the only place we put it was around the trampoline, and we already had the curbing done. We got it mainly so it would be softer for the kids to land on when/if they fell off the tramp. Also it should last forever, as it doesn't get bugs like some other mulch does. I was worried it would get too hot during the day, but when it's REALLY hot, no one wants to jump anyway. It hasn't been a problem. Carter was happy to pose for this picture, too.

Finally, Heather posted a picture of her baby, Ella, doing this new trick and so I had to see if McKay could keep up with her. I think it's fun (sorry Facebook friends, it's a repeat!).

The Rest of July

A few events to document from July:

1. I took the 3 older kidlets to see Camp Rock at the Scera (two of my cousins were in it). Kyla was a little bored and kept asking to play my phone (I said no), but the other two were mesmerized. I still feel like Damon will end up in musical theater. We'll see...

2. Jeff and Damon went to SLC one day and came back with 2,000 lbs of rubber playground mulch to go around the trampoline. That was fun. Damon wasted no time introducing Tara's kids to the joys of burying each other in it.

3. Damon finished playing baseball. He's a good little hitter and a terrible little fielder. Cute in those baseball pants, though.

4. Jeff, Damon and Kyla went fishing one morning (Allie was too tired to get up. Obviously a teenager at 6 years old), and came home with this whopper. We estimated it weighed 8 lbs! Allie and Kyla (who looks like she has been fishing all morning) kept daring each other to touch the eyeballs. It was quite comical. And we commented that the fish was nearly the size of McKay!