Happy Anniversary!

So this morning, at 12:15 a.m. Joe came in our bedroom (he had been on the computer and i had been reading in our room) and did a rousing rendition of "The Happy Anniversary Song" complete with dance. It was spectacular! So here we are, 6 years, 3 babies and one 1,110 mile move later. Let's touch on the highlights, shall we?


In 2006 the long awaited Liam arrived. His birth took the better part of two days and we were awfully glad when he made his appearance!

In 2004, our little "Blue Light Special" Isaac was born. Him and his Daddy have always had a special relationship.
9 months after we got married, in 2003, we had an Issy and got to try our hand at parenting.
My hubby where he belongs: on top of a mountain.


And some pictures from the Honeymoon that started it all. Such younguns!

I am grateful that these six years have brought us to where we are now. Our love has only grown and gotten stronger over the last few years. What a blessing! Happy Anniversary, babe.

Trying to be patient

Of all virtues that come easily to me, patience isn't one of them.

The two things that i struggle with the most are laziness and lack of patience. Truth be told, i am terrible at self- discipline. I want what i want when i want it. There have been times when i have been nursing Liam to sleep in a dark room, knowing that if i try to leave too soon that he'll cry and we'll have to start over again but about to crawl out of my skin because i am so impatient with the whole process. It is a near constant internal struggle to do what i know needs to be done instead of just throwing in the towel.

I know that God has a great plan in store for our family. And i am really trying to be patient. I remember reading once that sometimes God's way of answering your prayers for patience is to give you more opportunities to exercise patience. Well, He has been working on refining me the last 6 years. And it is growing with increasing intensity. So He must think i am up to the challenge. And so i go on, knowing that the only thing that will bring peace to my heart is simply.... patience.

And we have a verdict...

So we finally decided that Issy is going to be homeschooled this fall. I am feeling good and nervous about this venture in our life, but it seems to make most sense. Joe and i decided we liked the curricula by Mother of Divine Grace School It is very structured, which i think will be good for both Issy and i as we get into this. Our life is lacking in any sort of order currently and it is driving me crazy. I am hoping the structure will cultivate good habits.

This is our test year. We shall see how we like the program and supplement/substitute as we see fit. The kind of beautiful thing about home education is that you can taylor it to suit your child's needs, which is ideal. I told her we would get her special notebooks and pencils just for "school" and this really excited her :) I feel very at peace with our decision.

On a side note: Prayers would be deeply appreciated. Joe has an interview for a graphic design position with a company in Jackson on Monday at 1 MST. Hopefully, this will be the one!

Bonus pics!

These are cute ones from a couple of weeks ago... don't know how they didn't make it in!

Isaac was holding my hand as we took a walk one afternoon. Liam saw him holding my hand and decided that he needed to hold Isaac's hand.
The little crazy daredevil

Mommy and kids time

So, Joe has been out of town the last few days, and the kids and i have had a lot of quality time together. On Friday, we went out to eat, because Mommy was feeling a little stir crazy. We were on our way there and we had a good Issyism...

Issy: Mommy, does anyone know where we are going?
Me: Well, yes, i do. Which is good, because i am driving the car.
Issy: Mama, you know everything. Well, not quite as much as Jesus and Santa.

Yesterday, we went to the canyon for a picnic (ham and cheese sandwiches always taste better at a picnic). Here are some photos:

Ok, it isn't a great picture, but i just have a question. I understand that my outfit isn't the height of coolness, but it is a good hiking outfit. As i was getting out of the car, a little girl in a car next to us (about 9 or 10) looked over at me and said, "You look like you are going to go scuba diving!" I was deeply perplexed. Is this a good scuba diving outfit? Am i missing something?

Ok, these last two make me smile! Look at Isaac's expression in each of them. He is such a crackup! And i love it when they hold hands.

This and that

Belated, i know! For Mother's Day, my littles got me some hiking shoes (on sale, for 40% off, which makes it better!) and a hoodie and took me out to dinner the night before. The real present was that during dinner, that were relatively well behaved and i didn't have to take anyone to the bathroom during the meal. Now that is a good evening!

Joe got me The Business of Being Born because, well, he knows me. Check out the trailer, good movie!

Well, as of last night, everyone in the house has had the stomach flu except for me. Riiiight. And Joe leaves tomorrow until Sunday. I am really really hoping that i don't get it with the three children in my care. We shall see, i suppose.

Ooooo, our most recent adventure. Earlier this week, i was walking to our back deck and heard a hissing sound. I didn't think much of it. Sunday night, Joe was outside and he noticed what sounded like dripping. He went to investigate the crawl space under the house and, sure enough, the pump that controls our well had sprung a leak. So we didn't have running water from Sunday night until today at about noon. And Issy and Isaac had the stomach flu all night. I'll let you use your imagination at how unpleasant that was. Thankfully, it is all fixed now, we all had long showers this afternoon, and the laundry doing has commenced.

It has been pretty cloudy/rainy/cool the last week, so not a lot of naturey things. It usually starts out nice in the morning and rains in the afternoon, so i have been taking a morning walk around our neighborhood and it has been awesome. Just me and my thoughts in the beautiful mountain air for half an hour. Nothing could be sweeter at this point.

So there is our update!

The hike, the random and kitchen dancing

The hike

So, the littles and i took a hike the other day. The first half was great... the second half, notsomuch. Liam wanted out of the carrier but wanted to wander off, Isaac tripped in the dirt and it put him in a bad mood. And Liam was very very angry when i put him the car and screamed at the top of his lungs most of the way home. Good times.

Thought that this one was adorable. I turned around and the three of them were following me in a line. I felt a bit like a mama duck.

Trying to get a picture of the three of them: the Drama Queen is posing, the middle child is disgruntled and the little one is distracted. Isaac also had whacked his head on the ladder of Issy's loft a few hours earlier, so he had a big goose egg on his forehead between his eyes.

We can finally reach the river! So gorgeous with all the melt we have been having lately.

Running ahead.

Oh, gracious, i love this picture so much. He is so ridiculously adorable! I need to look at this picture every time i feel like i am at my wit's end with him (which is at least five times a day).

The Random

Issy and Isaac took a rest in me and Joe's bedroom this afternoon and i told them they could play with the Potato Head Family. When i came into my room later, i found Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head enjoying looking out the window at the rainy weather.

They were playing "Joe and Erin"

So this is what the "whacking the head on the ladder" incident has become... two large black eyes. Poor kid. These two pictures are funny... he was in a bad mood because he hit his elbow and i told him i wanted him to give me his best sad faces for my picture. I think the top one might be more "pensive" than sad, and the bottom one is just scary. He ended up laughing by the time i was done taking the pictures.

Kitchen Dancing

And what says "It is almost dinnertime" like some jamming to 80's music in the kitchen.

My kids favorite

My babes love to sing and dance with Laurie Berkner. Warning though if you haven't heard her, the songs are super catchy (but some of the least offensive kids songs out there) and might be singing them for days :)

My amazing cuties

And with the head tilt. Silly gal
Too sleepy at the table. Lunch still all over his face.
Pretending to be Mr. Potato Head
A boy and his dog.

Well, a partial update

Well, guys, i was going to do a more comprehensive update, but it is taking forever and ever to upload pictures to blogger tonight, so we'll just take it easy. I promise i'll finish updating soon. I am purposely being vague when i say soon ;)

Here are some pics from the end of April. The snow had mostly melted and we were raking all the leaves from the fall. It is so good to see grass again!

My dedicated husband.

And the three little helpers

That night, after our hard work, we treated ourselves to our first campfire of spring. Roasted hot dogs and s'mores.

In the next edition: We have been spending a ton of time outside and really relishing the return of warm weather! If you are dying to see more pics right now, check out Joe's blog, it is in my links list on the right of this page!

Sorry my readers!

I have been catching some flack for not blogging in over two weeks, and i send my apologies into cyberspace. I will try to blog sometime later today/tomorrow, and it'll be a good update, for being so patient with me :)

Liam and i just got back from an amazing morning walk. Just thought i would share :)

And the random ones that didn't fit anywhere else

This was Liam nearing the end of the second day of our drive from Idaho to Kansas. He was less than appreciative to be in the car for hour upon hour. Actually, he cried inconsolably from Park City to Grammie's house. But all in all, the kids did really well with how long the trip was.

Chef Issy on Easter at Aunt Mooza's

A get-together for Issy's birthday. It wasn't so much a birthday party as a playdate with friends and cake. After her godmother made her a cake last year, she has been talking about the cake she wanted this year, and this was our excuse.

My little Liam with my friend Bianca. We met online with a common passion for birthwork and a friendship blossomed. The day we met was the day i found out i was pregnant with Liam and she was Joe's over-the-phone doula during Liam's birth, so Li is kind of her little buddy.

Silly Annika in a hat and not-so-matching shirt :)

Some random Easter pics

Trip to Grammie's

I always tell myself that i am going to take more pictures, but i am usually so preoccupied with chasing Liam that i forgot to snap them. Here are a couple from our trip though. I love this one... it is so sweet. Issy was chilly, and i think her sweater was in the wash, so she wore someone's jacket. They love swinging and Liam even said swing.
Issy found a ladybug and was very excited about it and so i took her picture :)

Confirmation and First Communion

Our trip to Wichita included two important events: my nephew Robert's Confirmation and my goddaughter/niece Teresa's First Communion. I am so glad that we were able to be there for them! I feel a little sappy, but i remember the first time i held Robert... i was 10 years old and he was my first nephew. I can't believe he is 16 now and has just taken the step into his adult faith.
My little Re. I was so excited to be chosen as her godmother when i was a Senior in high school. She was my practice baby before having my own kids. And she has turned out great ;)

My husband is the best Daddy ever

Seriously. He has always been good with the kids. Never balked at holding a baby (even when he was a teenager). He has been my source of sanity in our 5 years of parenting together. In those first few exhausting weeks with Issy, he would make her do this little dance and it would calm her down and make me laugh. He spent a good amount of time in the armchair in Isaac's room, rocking him, in that first year. His relationship with Liam, who has always been a Mama's boy, has really been blossoming lately. Liam will nap on him and snuggle with him at night. I don't know what i would do without him, he is truly awesome.

Easter

Our Easter pic.
Sisters
Liam wants in on some of Joshua's toy action.
Issy, Gracie and Isaac playing in Grammie's closet. What could be better?

The New Puppy

We arrived safely home this afternoon from our trip to Kansas. That journey is a blog post all to itself, so i'll spare you the details right now. Instead of overwhelming with a bunch of updates from the last month all at once, i'll be splitting it up, soon stay tuned the next few days. Update #1 Clementine!

My dog lover of a husband thought it would be a good idea to add a puppy to the family. So here she is... Clementine. She is a lab/border collie mix and as sweet as can be. And really laid back as far as puppies go. I was dubious, but she seems to have taken to me (and Issy) so i guess she can stay. Issy giving her love.
She likes to sleep by the stove while i make dinner. Which makes it difficult not to trip on her, but the sentiment is there.
Kolbe and Clementine.
Enjoying a Hard Lemonade (not really, she just want to chew on the bottle, but i thought it was an amusing picture)
She wouldn't sleep in the little bed we made with the luggage on the trip. She slept by my feet most of the way.
Except when she slept on a proud Issy's lap. I think Issy might be working on her "Serious Camera Face"