Loving IT!!

I have loved being outside the last couple of days with the kids. The weather is finally warming up and we have had cabin fever for way too long. I think my "nesting" phase has started early and has expanded to the yard, much to mark's dismay. I have big plans for taming the wild that grows all around my little world. For now, we planted a garden and picked all the weeds around the house. It felt good to be outside and working, and the best part is how fun it is to be outside with my kids. We discovered worms, jumped in mud puddles, chased butterflies, had a picnic and are wearing out our little buckets and plastic shovels. There is something so satisfying about spending a down and dirty day outside and then coming in and getting in the bath and smelling their sweet clean hair and cuddling in a chair with a book before bed. Summer is magical and I am so glad it is finally here! I can't wait to get out the little pool and smell sunscreen on their bathing suits. And hopefully, we can pick tomatoes, squash and a few other things from our garden. If Tyce hasn't dug them all up by then!! I will take pictures of our outdoor adventures...i just need to get new camera batteries!

It finally happened! And then some

I woke up from a nap the other day to a very strange soft noise. I peeked out my door to find madisen cutting her hair with little kid scissors! She hardly has hair to begin with!!! Ahhhhh!! She cut a chunk out of her bangs, off the top and side of her head and who knows where else!!! The worst part is that I can't fix it! I can't cut the rest of her hair to match what she has done. Her only saving grace is that she has curly hair so I can kind of hide it....kind of. I will post pictures later but I am too heartbroken to document this, she seems unaffected however! And then today we had another first. We were on our way out to the park and she was complaining about her nose. So I told her to get a tissue and blow her nose. She said it hurt and was whining about it. I wish I could say that I had been more patient about it but I wasn't. So in the car she said this " we don't put apples in our nose...do we mom??" I said "madisen....did you put a piece of apple up your nose????"

she said "yeah, I did!" So, it took a little while to solve that problem but I laughed so hard and then felt bad that I hadn't given her more credit when she was complaining about her nose. But honestly....she has never put anything up there...how was I supposed to know?!!!! I think I have been initiated into a new phase of life this week.

when dady's away the children will play!

Madisen loves to dress up! She is changing clothes all day long! And now, she is not only changing her clothes, she is changing tyce's clothes as well. Mark would be horrified if he saw his little guy in this purple tutu, but doesn't he look like he would be a great sugar plum fairy?! I also love that this is how madi chose to pose for her photo shoot!

Funny madi quotes: This is for you Nicole!

madi was talking to grandma christensen yesterday and I couldn't hear what they were saying when all of a sudden madi put her head in her hands like she was very frustrated and said
" My life's a joke!"

Mark was putting madisen to slep last night and was laying next to her when she got up all of a sudden and said
"good night kiddo!" and walked out of the room. I guess she was pretending to put mark to sleep instead of the other way around.

I think I mentioned that madi loves to quote movies ( I wonder where she gets that from?) anyway, it's really funny when she messes up the quote. For instance, on aladin, jasmine says " standing around deciding my future? I am not a prize to be won!" This is what I caught madi saying
"standing around deciding my future? I am not surprised!"

Random Photos

My sister asked me to make a cake for the 100 yr. birthday party of scouting for the blue and gold banquet. The theme was "the best things of scouting" , so after talking it over with mark he said the best thing was campfire food. So here is my version of a campfire cake!

We were watching the winter olympics and madi jumps up and wants to be properly dressed for such an occasion. Look out Lindsay vaughn!

Why is it impossible to get both kids looking at the camera at the same time?

Tyce, being the goof-ball that he is. He cracks me up!

Sleep Success

I have started reinforcing a new bed time/ sleep plan for Madisen in an attempt to break some bad habits and be more consistent myself. The last two nights have gone amazing and I was giving myself a pat on the back until I realized a few factors that may have contributed to my success that have not at all been my doing.

1. she played outside at a friends house for over and hour and got really tired

2. She hasn't taken a good nap, or even one at all in 2 days

3. (and this one is the kicker) she has been sick and the dr. recommended giving her benadryl at night.

So, maybe I shouldn't pat myself on the back just yet. But I will say, when starting a new sleep training program with kids, benadryl is proving very helpful. Don't judge me...the doctor told me too, however, if I knew it would help this much I may have considered.......

Can you guess?

Madisen has an infatuation with disney movies. In fact, she has her favorite ones memorized and can quote certain lines that apply to everyday situations. Here are some of her lines, can you guess what movies they are from?

Movie #1

Me: madisen, you need to go and get your jacket on.

Madi: no, that is not the path my heart chooses

Movie #2

Me: Okay madi, you need to pick up your books and then you need to put all your dress-ups in the dress-up chest

madi: and then what step mother?

madisen in the bathtub with a wash rag: Sing sweet nightengale, siiiiiiiing sweet nightengale sing!

Movie #3 (this is a hard one)

me: madisen, you need to share your toys with tyce

madisen: Oh, for goodness sakes!

Movie#4

Madi: mom, hand me that dinglehopper!

Things to remember

A the beginning of this year I wanted to write down the things about my kids I want to remember at this age, so at the end of the year I could see the changes. I'ts not exactly the beginning of the year but close enough.

Madi: started sunbeams this year, is mostly potty-trained, loves to change clothes all day long and wears her swimsuit to bed, loves to wear her dress ups, loves dancing to music and still walks mostly on her tippy-toes, she still has a hard time staying in bed at night, still drags her ratty blanket all over with her, thinks her blanket is an actual person and calls it "she", is super active and busy, I have a hard time getting her to sit through primary, her favorite movie changes every week, most recently it has been pocahontas or the backyardigans, her favorite books are The Princess and the pea, Where the Wild things Are and If you give Pig a Pancake, her favorite food is a pancake, her favorite color is purple, she still throws a fit when we have to leave any grandma's house, she can buckle herself in her booster seat, has curly hair that just won't grow, she loves to help me in the kitchen, she is stubborn and sweet and brave all at the same time, she will only let me put her down at night and cries for her dad every morning when he leaves for work, still takes a nap almost everyday. She is a fireball and I love her so much!

Tyce: Goes to nursery (he is a little young but grandma and grandpa are the nursery leaders, lucky us!), Loves to eat, thinks madi is a great playmate, hates to get his diaper changed, loves his orange and white polka-dotted blanket almost as much as madi loves her blanket, is trying to wink with both eyes, makes me laugh everyday, like to pretend he is shooting a gun with anything he can get his hands on, makes car noises with his little cars, loves being outside and throws a fit when we bring him in, likes to dance with madi, is actually letting us read him a book without throwing a fit, can say quite a few words like: ball, more, mom, dad, blankie, I want that, thank you, papa, guys, bye, and a handful of other phrases, loves spaghetti and pancakes, has to do everything himself, must have his own fork at dinner, wants to drink from a regular cup and spills every time, loves the bath and practices swimming, loves his dad and checks out the window all day for him, loves cell phones and pretends to talk to his dad all day, is such a little entertainer and has started rolling in a circle around the living room. I just love him and can't get enough!

mark: is general contractor to his first house, a house he also drew the plans for so that is exciting to be apart of a house from the beginning, says he is going to do a triathalon this fall, hasn't started training yet, plays church basketball, is the blazer leader, dreams of owning a boat this summer, keep dreaming mark!! we love you and appreciate all your hard work!

For myself: I want to remember what it feels like to fit into my favorite jeans and how great it is to sleep through the night and be able to have a day to myself every now and then because come august, all those things will be a distant memory. You guessed it, I' pregnant! About 14 weeks and looking forward to feeling better!