Wanted

Okay this is my new favorite song!!!  I love the melody for starters, but I also love what he says in it.  After recently reaching 12 years of marriage I can honestly say that this is one of the things I love most about my husband. I have always felt wanted.  There has never been a time when I've doubted his love for me or when I haven't felt that he wants me as much as he did 12 years ago. We truly are each others best friends and we prefer each others' company above anyone else. (My mom was teasing me that I chose to go on a girl's overnighter on our anniversary. That was an exception:)  We love being together, even if we're not doing anything but watching our kids. I love that we can lay in bed at night and talk for hours. I love that laughter between us comes easy.

The first few years of our marriage when Tanner would get home from work I'd pass the kids off to him and go make dinner and then finish tidying up the house and clean the kitchen, etc. He would always get so mad that I didn't want to just sit down and watch TV with him. It took me a while to realize that he didn't really want me to watch sports with him, he wanted me to be with him, to sit next to him on the couch and snuggle him.  I think that may have been a turning point in our relationship. As we've had more and more kids he understands that I spend half my day on the couch nursing so when he gets home I've got things to do. Instead of turning on the TV and relaxing he comes into the kitchen and either helps me make dinner or stands there with the baby while we visit. I love it. I don't have to ask to him to help, he just does. He wants to be with me and he knows that I want to be with him, but we've got a bunch of little people that need to be fed (constantly) and that means teamwork!

I hear other women complain quite a lot about their husbands and I've had conversations with others about how much they fight in their marriage. I can honestly say we don't fight. Ask my kids, they are brutally honest. They'll probably tell you how mean and horrible I am and they'll probably say I spank them "all the time!" but I doubt they'll ever say we fight. We just don't. It wasn't always that way, but after almost half our lives spent together we think alike, we reason the same, and we want the same thing. I really feel like we don't relate to other couples sometimes. And it goes both ways. Tanner will often come home from work or something where he's heard men talking about how their wives rag on them and complain about them and all he says is "Thank you for being awesome!"  He does a wonderful job of making sure I not only feel wanted, but appreciated. I hope my future daughters-in-law appreciate what a wonderful man Tanner is because my boys will grow up knowing how to treat a woman like a Queen. I hope Brynn will have the highest of expectations for everyone she dates and that she'll be able to find someone as amazing as her dad.

When I was a young mom I worried that losing one of my children would be a trial I couldn't endure. Even though I still can't imagine how painful it would be I've realized that I really couldn't bear to lose my husband.  Not only could I not handle being a single mom--and all the trials that kids have to endure when they lose a parent--I couldn't handle losing my best friend. Tanner's the one person I share everything with and the one who knows me as well as I know myself. He's the one I look forward to seeing at the end of the day and my favorite person to chat with. We've had a wonderful 12 years of marriage and I look forward to the rest of my life with him. When we're old and grey we'll be the couple that dies within days of each other because we can't live apart:)

JJ 3 months

My little Angel Babe is actually almost 4 months already. I finally get around to these pictures a couple weeks late, again, but I least I remembered. Jameson is so fun. He's so happy all the time and he's really starting to engage. He recognizes people and when he does he gives a big smile and gasp and wiggles his chubby little self. He's cooing and almost laughing. He had a double ear infection and I didn't even know it. I just thought he wasn't sleeping cuz he was stuffy from his cold. He's so sweet even when he's miserable. 

He still eats like crazy all the time. I nurse him every 2-3 hours but around dinner time I have to give him a 4 ounce bottle of formula. He is always soooo sad when he finishes it, so I usually let him nurse for a few minutes and then he's sad when that's gone too:) I think he was born without a shut-off valve. When I took him in for his ear infection he'd gained almost 2 pounds in 3 weeks!!! At 3 months he weighed 14.4 lbs. He's a heiffer! 

He loves to relax on anyone's lap and will usually be quite content there for up to an hour. He totally loves the kids even though they toss him all over the place. It doesn't bother him a bit. He loves to lay on the ground and watch football on TV. He's finally getting better about car rides and is learning to just give up and go to sleep instead of scream the whole time.

One of these days I'll get some pictures of the other kids at this age because I see a little of each of them in him. He's mostly a mini Sketty, but there are certain looks that are full of the other kids too. He's such a dream baby and we are so blessed to have him.

 this is his silly face when he's really squirmy and giddy

 JJ smiles all the time and is super happy

 he's beginning to kick like crazy anytime he's on his back

 Brynn took these last few and I love them. This is Jaymo all day

 This is my happy place. I love this guy like crazy!!! I love his big squishy cheeks and his burly arms. I love his silly smile and those big ole hands that are constantly grabbing my hair now. I love it all.

Drooling. All the time.

Avila Valley Barn

A few weeks ago Tanner had to work down in San Luis Obispo for a few days. We had told the kids we would be taking them out of school for trips during the school year since we didn't get to do much this summer. They were happy to oblige. We drove down after school on Wednesday and stayed for a couple days. Our kids absolutely love staying at hotels. Even if they aren't the most comfortable (or clean), as long as there's a pool and free breakfast they are happy as clams. 

Normally I don't mind too much but having a sick baby and not getting much sleep I was not super happy to be stuck in a hotel room with 5 children.  We can no longer fit in Tanner's work truck since there are 7 of us so we usually take 2 cars when we go places. The 5 hour drive down was MUCH nicer because of this. Tanner woke up early on Thursday and went to work and I took all the kids to the breakfast room by myself. I have to admit I haven't done a lot with all 5 kids on my own since JJ was born. When I walked into the lobby I felt like everyone stopped and stared at me. The whole time I was getting my kids food I could feel their stares. Annnnd, I heard all the comments. A bunch of old people who think they're whispering but the whole room can hear what they're saying. "Look at all those kids! She's gotta be Mormon. Nobody has that many kids at her age unless they're Mormon. At least her kids are well behaved. Mormons usually have pretty good kids...." That was just the first morning.

On the second day we stroll into the breakfast room and about a half hour later, after practically cleaning out all the food, I sat down to eat. A lady and her two teenage daughters got up to leave and she came up and said "Oh, I'm so glad to see you finally sitting down to eat. I was one of 10 kids and I swear my mother never got to eat a meal with us because she was always getting everyone whatever they needed. When you walked in I said to myself 'I want to see how long it takes her to sit down and eat her own breakfast'." Fortunately my kids were behaving well at breakfast (because they sure weren't the rest of the day) so the comments were more positive than negative. 

Let me just explain a little of the food consumption. This is mostly for my benefit because it feels like a tremendous amount these days, but I'm sure in 10 years when I have 4 BIG boys this will be practically nothing. Bryson had: a giant plate of waffles, a cup of yogurt, a cup of apple juice and hot chocolate, an apple and a muffin. The other kids ate (collectively): another waffle, two bowls of cereal, 3 muffins, 3 cups of apple juice, 3 cups of hot chocolate, 4 pieces of toast, 3 yogurts, and a bagel.  They were all STARVING an hour later. And two hours after that. I felt like all I did the whole weekend was feed a bunch of pigs!

Bryson has to do a California Mission project this year so after breakfast the first day we went in to town to visit a 250 year old mission. Then we walked around downtown and went back to the hotel to swim. I've been waiting for SLO's farmer's market since we were here over Spring Break. I absolutely love it. Its huge. Its crowded. Its crazy! But I love it.

My family lasted 10 minutes.

I was super bugged.

So the next day we went to Avila Valley Barn and they redeemed themselves. It is this darling little barn/orchard/pumpkin patch/country store/petting zoo. Its exactly what I want to have when I grow up. Super family friendly and cheap. Free hay ride out to the orchard to pick your own apples. Eat whatever apples you want when you're there. Pay 99 cents a pound for whatever you pick. So fun.

The kids had a blast and Tanner and I had a nice relaxing day with them. On the hay ride a little boy behind us said "Mommy! She grew LOTS of babies in her tummy!" Apparently we cause quite a stir wherever we go. 

 The most delicious thing in all of Avila Barn!!!

 this was super tempting but I was actually able to resist.

I regretted it on my long boring ride home though...

Sweet baby J

     My sweet little guy is almost 3 months old already and I haven't posted anything about him:( I guess I am a little busy these days.  Jameson is the Sun, Moon and Stars for us right now. He is a very sweet baby just like Sketty was and it has made all the difference. I've decided I just really love having happy babies, as opposed to ones that scream all the time:-) He loves to sleep and often prefers to be put in his bassinet rather than being rocked to sleep. LOVE that!!!  He has great naps during the day and sleeps mostly through the night. Jameson has a very relaxed personality and I'm hoping it stays. We lucked out with Sketty and I see a lot of similar behavior in JJ.
    The big kids are at that age where they feel it a burden to have to help with the baby and often they'll make a big deal when I ask them to hold him. Hudson, on the other hand, is uber eager to get his hands dirty. He's always holding him, kissing him, asking where he is, getting him out of bed when he's supposed to be napping, etc.  He loves his baby brothers sooooo much. The second he thinks he hears one of the little boys he jets off to get them out of their cribs. A little too helpful maybe. But the little guys totally love him and it really is nice to have him help.
     Stetson loves him too. About every 5 minutes or so he'll say "Mom? Where JJ?" He always has to know where JJ is. When we changed his name we starting calling him Baby J and Sketty came up with JJ. He does call him Baby J too and the other kids call him JJ or Jaymo. I read an article about kids nicknames and how important they are to a child's sense of identity. I think our kids all have great nicknames that aren't weird or silly, or ones that they'll hate when they get older.
    Jameson is such a happy little guy who is so loved in this family. He has a perfectly round, bald head and fat cheeks with a double chin. He is all soft and squishy now and so delicious. I could literally eat him up! To echo Hudson, "I. Just. Can't. Stop. Kissing. Him!!!"


These pictures were taken right at 2 months. I wish I would have figured out how to make the onesies about a month earlier. Maybe I can still make a 1 month onesie and tweak the picture in photoshop:)  If not he'll just have months 2-12. That will be kinda weird though...

Just a random picture of him. J fell asleep while I was busy doing something.

These next pictures were all taken at 2 1/2 months. Its amazing how different he looks just in two weeks

Jameson at 6 weeks:
     11.5 lbs
     napping 3-4 hours at a time
     sleeping from 10 or 11 pm-3 or 4 am
     started smiling
     holding his head up
     not taking a pacifier anymore:-(

Baby J at 2 months:
     12.8 lbs and 24 in. long
     sleeping roughly 8 hours at night
     one long 4 hour nap in the afternoon
     rolling over front to back
     rolling back to front almost all the way
     cooing and smiling all the time
     starting to giggle/chuckle

Big Sketty-2 years old

I can't believe my Little Big Man is 2 already!!!  Even though he's a GIANT (33 lbs. size 8 shoes) he still kinda seems like my little baby. Maybe its the lack of verbal communication:-)  Stetson is by far the easiest two-year old we've had yet. Don't get me wrong, he has his days, but overall he's super chill and hasn't gotten overly destructive or terrible. He has recently discovered the large deck box outside full of old dirty trucks and 4 wheelers. He loves to bring them all in the house.... at the same time..... all day long.  Like a typical boy he loves horses, tractors and anything on wheels.  He especially loves motorcycles. Tanner is borrowing a little dirtbike from someone at work and Sketty constantly asks to ride it. He'll hear the garage door when Tanner comes home and run out screaming! He can't actually say that he wants to ride the motorcycle but he makes a vroom vroom noise while twisting his hands (like on the handlebars).  And he does that to everyone we see, no matter where we are. I get lots of questioning looks:-)  When we're driving and we pass a motorcycle or tractor he'll get all excited and then when its gone he says "Aw, Dang it!"

Sketty has the funniest personality right now.  He pretty much runs the family because he has all of us wrapped around his little bear paw.  We are constantly in stitches at all the funny things he does.  During church after a prayer or special musical number or whatever he'll usually yell out (super loud) at the end "All done! All done!" over and over again. Or he'll spot his cousins (whom he adores) and yell "Hey Jill! Hey Hai! (for Hailey)" from across the chapel. When he wakes up he has to ask where everyone is-"Daddy? B? Shish? Hud? JJ?" We go through this about 8 times a day. When I'm done telling him where they all are he says "Ohhh." He chatters on all day long and although he doesn't say many words I usually know what he's saying because he gets the inflection right. Then its just a matter of repeating it to him and he'll say Yeah if I get it right.

Some of his funniest funnies:

Someone taught him to do an air guitar. But really he looks like he's an ape scratching himself while bouncing up and down and swinging his head around. One of these days I'll video tape him because its pretty comical.

(showing off his new hand-me-down shoes)

He is super intrigued by gross stuff - dirty diapers, sweaty feet, mud, etc. When he takes his shoes off he wants everyone to smell his feet and then say "Ewwww!"

Someone tooted one time and it sounded (and smelled) disgusting. He ran over and tried to pull their pants down to check their bum. He kept doing this over and over and we just about peed our pants. He was bound and determined to see if the said person messed their pants. Then he ran and got a diaper and wipes and started yelling at this person to lay down on the ground. He was certain they needed their pants changed and he was yelling Ewww! the whole time.

We got to sing Happy Birthday to a lot of people this past month and now its Sketty's favorite song.  He sings "Ha birdayyyyy, Hi Yah!" (the big kids always add on "cha cha cha Hi-Yah!" Thats where he gets it)

Stetson is very sweet about everyone's feelings. If someone is sad or mad he'll stand right in front of them, tilt his head to the side, do his crazy eyes, and open his arms for a hug. This brings laughter out of the grumpiest person. And he's the best cheerleader - for himself and everyone else.

If any of you have ever played Bingo in the car you know how obnoxious it can be. It usually causes big arguments because someone always claims to have seen the yellow car first.  Stetson LOVES to yell out "Bee-YO! Bee-Yo!  Mom, I Bee-Yo." Because he's so cute we let him win at Bingo all the time. Anytime someone calls out Bingo he yells "No, I Bee-Yo!" Like I said, he runs the family:-)

He's totally irritated by the neighborhood dogs that bark constantly. Sometimes he'll just go out back and start yelling "Bad Dog!" And then when they don't stop he comes in and says "Mom, UGHHHH!"  He gets super frustrated when they don't listen to him.

Stetson loves Baby Einstein movies. His favorite is the Old MacDonald one. He comes up to me all day long asking for "Yi-Yo" because they sing E-I-E-I-O. He's also VERY particular about his music. If he doesn't like a song on the radio he'll yell at me until I change it. He LOVES Adele and Jason Aldean. He'll bust-a-move right out of his car seat any time those songs come on:)

His favorite books right now are Brown Bear Brown Bear and Polar Bear, Polar Bear. Who is the genius that thought up those ridiculously simple books? I've never met a child who didn't know it by heart and completely love the book. 

Baby J was just too tired to enjoy the party. Got a quick little nap at Grandma's blazing hot house.

Back to School

Obviously these pictures weren't taken on the first day of school. I'm just not that

on top of things these days. Or like, ever. 

But I did manage to take them within a week of the first day so that's not too bad. 

The kids are loving being back at school and so is their mother. I love my kids but they just get bored when they stay home with me all day. I don't recommend having a baby right smack in the middle of summer. It jacks up the summer. Before baby Big Mama is too tired and big to do anything fun and its too close to the due date to go anywhere. After baby Big Mama is recovering and then when recovery is over its too stinkin' hot to take a newborn outside anywhere. So that leaves you with a house full of energy ready to explode. 

For the first time ever I was really looking forward to school starting. 

All the kids love their teachers so far and the two older kids got their best friends in the same class. Hudson doesn't have any friends in his class yet but he really likes his teacher. He feels like Kindergarten is just for him and I love that his teacher makes him feel so special. 

I've already gotten Sketty and Jaymo on a decent schedule. We drop off Huddy and then come home to play and have lunch and then we all go down for a nap. Its pretty fantastic!!! The big kids wait for Hudson to get out of school and then they all walk home together. That means I get about 3 1/2 hrs with just the two little ones and they sleep most of that time. I'm loving my schedule right now:-)

 This crazy kid has a serious shoe fetish. He'll get anyone's shoes and wear them wherever he can.

Also, he really needs to grow into that massive head. Its huge:-)

 Brynn's all about pictures and usually does a good job. Occasionally she'll pop a funny face or weird smile but for the most part she's my best model right now.

 And then we have Gomer. He was being a total Tard about taking pictures, like always. I happened to click the shutter right when he was doing this face and he just about peed his pants when I showed it to him.

 I had said "Just hold the sign in front of you Please!" So he shoves it in my face...

 So fun having a 9-yr old boy who thinks he's like 20.

 Apparently he was watching his brother take pictures.

 Can you hear it? "Uggghhhh, why do I have to take pictures?!?!"

 Look at me Hud.  "NO! I'm not taking pictures. I HATE taking pictures!"

Finally!!!


Did I mention I like having them in school all day???