Things I Learned or Reconfirmed This Week Part 1

This week we went up to Snowbird to spend some time together as a family. My friend has a timeshare up there that he couldn't use, so we rented it from him. The weather was cold, rainy and snowy, but we had a great time. We went up as a family from Sunday until Tuesday afternoon. We celebrated Jane's birthday and slept in our own beds for two nights. Wednesday Mark received his Webelo's badge and his Arrow of Light with Scouts. Thursday morning the boys and I went back up to the lodge, well rested and ready for more fun. Daniel and Jane stayed at home. That was our plan all along and it worked out marvelously!

Here is a list of things that I learned or reconfirmed this week:

Packing for a trip is exhausting work. I spent all day Saturday and Sunday preparing to leave.

Children will wait until the worst possible time to throw up. Jane projectile vomited all over while we were driving on a winding mountain road, in a pouring rainstorm that rivals a Georgia rainstorm, with no place to stop. I was feeling queasy already, so there was no way that I could turn around to clean up. I threw some tissues back to Mark and he cleaned up what he could. We cracked open some windows (not too far because of the rain) and had to wait at least 5 minutes before we got to a safe stopping place. Poor Jane was crying and upset, but I couldn't help her until we could stop the van.

Spending time together is a great thing to do

Having time alone is therapeutic for everyone. We all searched out our own corner of the hotel room to 'be alone' a few times each day.

Hotels are magical places for kids

Mark and Paul can climb 11 flights of stairs and come back down in 4 minutes. The boys actually preferred to take the stairs over the elevator because it was faster. We were on the 4th floor, but I'm not sure that being on the 10th floor would have changed their minds!

Swimming in a heated pool surrounded by an 8-10 foot wall of snow during a snowstorm is surreal. It just defies logic that you can be outside in a swimsuit and be warm. It was fun and relaxing- until you have to get out.

Sleeping in a full size bed with Daniel isn't as comfortable as a king size bed, but not as bad as I thought it would be. Our king-size Select Comfort bed has spoiled me. We took the full size bed over the queen sofa bed because the mattress was more comfortable.

Wildlife is fun to observe. I never tire of watching chipmunks running around. I don't enjoy seeing them as road kill, though.

I packed more food than we could eat because I didn't want to ration the food.

Swimming makes us hungry. We were constantly eating so I am glad that I had plenty of food (however most of it really wasn't healthy)

My children are noisy sleepers- Jane is the biggest offender.

I like being at home.

Vacations exhaust me

Being sick on vacation sucks. Sunday I had a headache that was promising to get bigger, but I was able to nap while Jane napped and it settled it down. I don't know what I ate that didn't agree with me (I'm guessing the cinnamon pop-overs that I made- I ate too many) but I bloated big time (I looked 4-5 months pregnant) and I was miserable. Then the severe gas and diarrhea set in. I had medication to help me, but it was not comfortable to say the least. After that I got really tired. I wasn't fun company to play with and I felt terrible because I didn't have the energy I wanted to play with the kids.

Sometimes I have to save a memory in my heart because I don't want to ruin the moment by pulling out the camera.

Going a few days without reading the news is refreshing. I'm going to do that more often.

Having a portable game system for the kids (a Nintendo DS) helped keep them from being too bored.

Body wash doesn't make the best hair conditioner. Just saying.

Ski resort food is expensive. Really expensive. We were going to go out for dinner to celebrate Jane's birthday, so we looked online to find menus to make sure that there was something that I could eat. The prices were outrageous! Kids meals were more than double what they were at home. A steak dinner was $35. Ouch. We decided to go home early and eat in the valley.

Having food restrictions like me is a pain. Sometimes I really hate having to plan my food out like I have to. I have the limited choices and I hate having to single myself out when I'm in a group.

Olive Garden has a gluten-free dish that is delicious. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that. Daniel was elated because we were able to go to his favorite restaurant together!

Vacationing with a baby is tough. Planning events around nap times is frustrating. Daniel and I took turns taking the boys out of the room while Jane took her naps. We spent a lot of time in the lobby playing card games, putting together puzzles and climbing the stairs. Having a happy, well rested baby was worth it!

Hotel rooms are not baby proof.

Walking into the house with all of the things still out from me packing is discouraging. I firmly believe that it would be worth hiring a crew to come in and clean the house and change the sheets while I am gone. It would be so awesome to walk into a sparkling clean house instead of random dishes, papers, clothes and toys strewn about. Of course, the bags full of dirty laundry that we bring home would ruin it right away, but still, it would be lovely.

Double Birthday Month

May brings us two birthdays in my house.  Mark was born on the 21st and Jane was born on the 24th.  Since we have been out of town, I am just now getting around to posting about the birthdays. 

Mark knew exactly what he wanted for his birthday party.  He wanted to invite a few friends to go swimming and then come back home to eat sloppy joes, Funyuns and rootbeer.  He wanted a cinnamon pizza with cream cheese frosting drizzle.  Daniel took the boys swimming while Jane and I stayed home to get the dinner ready.  I think that it would have been fun to go swimming, but we only have 7 seats in our van, so it works out best for someone to stay behind if the kids invite friends.

The boys played around in the backyard with a football.  I don't know that I will ever understand 'boy play' because it is so rough. 

It seems as though Mark is growing more and more each week.  He is up to my chin now, and I dare say that he won't be my 'chin rest' for much longer.  I am anxious for the warm weather to come along so that he can wear shorts because his pants are all getting too short on him. He is eating a lot more than he use to, but he is still rather picky about what he eats. 

Mitchel, Mark, Max, Austin

We used trick candles that relight and it was fun to see all of the boys react to them!

Max and Austin

Jane was really interested in the candles.

I love to watch Mark interact with his classmates.  He feels really comfortable in his class and he is quite the ham.  It took me by surprise the first time I saw him give an oral report because he was so energetic and funny.  He is a smart kid and I am pleased that he is able to present himself without being shy. 

Mark hasn't been shy when a camera is pulled out lately.  He loves to strike a pose for the camera!

Happy 11th Birthday Mark!

We went up to Snowbird on Sunday morning and we came home Tuesday afternoon.  It snowed the morning that Jane was born and we woke up to a snowstorm this year too! 

It's not the best picture, but it was cold and I had a difficult time finding a willing photographer to come out on the balcony.

We kept things really simple for Jane's birthday, and I like it that way.  When we got home from Snowbird, we went to Olive Garden for dinner.  We had a raspberry Boston Cream cake and Jane loved eating it!

Jane is such a delightful little girl!  I love watching her discover things and play with her toys.  She loves to go shopping and I am glad to have a companion to shop with!  She usually only cries when I put her in the car seat to go home!

She has 7 teeth now and has been very easy to deal with despite being in pain from teething.  I love that she is a cuddly baby.  I am having a difficult time acknowledging the fact that she is nearly a toddler.  How did this past year go so quickly?  I get sad sometimes when I realize that she isn't a tiny baby anymore.  Pretty soon she will be walking and talking and I'm not ready for that yet, but it will come! 

Happy 1st Birthday Baby Jane!

Jane Plays Outside

The other day the weather was gorgous, so I took Jane outside to play on the grass while we waited for Mark and Paul to come home from school.  I took my camera outside with us and I just followed her around while she explored.  We had a lot of fun!  I think that I caught a few good shots too!

What is this?  An acorn!

She played with the acorn and flower for a long time before the flower got the chance to explore the inside of Jane's mouth.

Feeding the Baby

Mark (age 2) feeding Paul

 Paul (age 3.5) Mark (age 5) feeding Seth

Seth(age 6.5) Paul (age 9.5) Mark (age 10.95) feeding Jane  Look at how all of the boys have thier mouths open!  They all 'help' her eat by showing her what to do, it is hilarious! 

I'm Not Sure How To Say This

This week I had to share some sad news with my boys.  My sister-in-law's (Jenny) husband, Josh, died on Thursday morning due to a severe asthma attack.  I have never been particularly close to Josh, in fact we have had some rather negative interactions with him over the past 10 years.  Regardless of how our relationship was, it is still very sad that someone so young died.  Regardless of how well I knew him, or liked him, his wife is now a widow at age 30 and his nearly 10 year old daughter is without a dad.  

I knew that the boys needed tobe told that their Uncle Josh was dead, but I just didn't know how to say it.  They have never really known anyone who has died and I was not sure how they would handle the news.  I sat them down and told them that I had something serious to talk about.  It wasn't until I had their attention that I got really emotional and cried.  They were very sweet and had a few questions.  They took then news well.  They were really concerned about their cousin Talia. 

The thing that I was struggling with is that I wasn't sad about the loss of my relationship with Josh, because it was rather non-existent (the last time I saw him was about 2 years ago).  I didn't know him well at all, but I know that Jenny and Talia knew him very well and that his absence is felt very strongly by them.  My heart aches for Jenny.  She is so young.  She has a lot to deal with and I don't envy her position right now. 

My heart feels empty, yet full of grief and I'm not sure what to make of it. 

Jenny and Talia, I hope that you are able to find peace through this trying time.  And Josh, may you rest in peace.