On most nights, after we put the kids we hear incessant giggling and loud thuds. After a sneak peak, this is what we found:
It certainly makes a mother happy when she see's her kids playing together and playing nicely!
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Friday, January 28, 2011
Happy Mom and Dad Bay.....
This cute muffin made me breakfast in bed.
How can your day go bad, when you are greeted by this...
Thanks for being great Carter!
How can your day go bad, when you are greeted by this...
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Being Fancy...
Sometimes I get the "Mom, I just want to be fancy" from my girls. Too bad they got me as a mom...cause I ain't fancy!
But I do know how to sew and have some really wonderful patterns and fabric. Hopefully putting those two together can make "fancy"! Last night, I decided to make some new shirts for my beauties! I didn't finish the skirts, but I can get them done by Sunday so they can wear them to church.
Here is to my beautiful daughters (who love to pose and have fashion shows):
But I do know how to sew and have some really wonderful patterns and fabric. Hopefully putting those two together can make "fancy"! Last night, I decided to make some new shirts for my beauties! I didn't finish the skirts, but I can get them done by Sunday so they can wear them to church.
Here is to my beautiful daughters (who love to pose and have fashion shows):
 |
| I love the missing teeth, "sucking thumb" teeth...Tim you will be spending a lot of money at the orthodontist on this one! |
 |
| Carter couldn't stand the thought of not being in a picture...we were in a hurry to get to school, so we had to make it quick! |
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| My beauties! |
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Finally...
I sometimes feel like as a parent I am constantly messing up. Saying or doing the wrong thing, too many sweets, too much TV, or not enough whatever!
Tonight on the way home from the library (right before dinner), it dawned on me it was Monday night and I needed to prepare a Family Home Evening lesson. (Had I been a really good mom, I would have one already prepared). FHE can sometimes be really effective and sometimes NOT (fighting, kicking, speaking out of turn). Depends on the day!
I quickly remembered a story the kids were looking at in a kid's church magazine. I cut the pictures from the magazine and told everyone to get their scriptures (we need to have them use their scriptures more regularly during FHE).
We talked about the story of Lehi's dream, the tree of life and the iron rod. The kids loved looking at the cut out pictures and the ones in their scriptures. We talked about how we as a family can stay on the straight and narrow path. It was so so simple, but so effective!
Our treats tonight consisted of "mystery bag #1" and "mystery bag #2". I told them it could be a real treat or an onion, pickles or something un-treat like. They were so thrilled about this treat craziness! (It ended up being Oreo's and a Baby Ruth candy bar - really original!)
We ended the night by tying string around the yard, putting a blindfold on each kid and told them to hold onto the "rod" until they got to the tree in the front yard.
Finally...a fun effective night together as a family (no fighting or other craziness). We need more of these!
Tonight on the way home from the library (right before dinner), it dawned on me it was Monday night and I needed to prepare a Family Home Evening lesson. (Had I been a really good mom, I would have one already prepared). FHE can sometimes be really effective and sometimes NOT (fighting, kicking, speaking out of turn). Depends on the day!
I quickly remembered a story the kids were looking at in a kid's church magazine. I cut the pictures from the magazine and told everyone to get their scriptures (we need to have them use their scriptures more regularly during FHE).
We talked about the story of Lehi's dream, the tree of life and the iron rod. The kids loved looking at the cut out pictures and the ones in their scriptures. We talked about how we as a family can stay on the straight and narrow path. It was so so simple, but so effective!
Our treats tonight consisted of "mystery bag #1" and "mystery bag #2". I told them it could be a real treat or an onion, pickles or something un-treat like. They were so thrilled about this treat craziness! (It ended up being Oreo's and a Baby Ruth candy bar - really original!)
We ended the night by tying string around the yard, putting a blindfold on each kid and told them to hold onto the "rod" until they got to the tree in the front yard.
Finally...a fun effective night together as a family (no fighting or other craziness). We need more of these!
Monday, January 24, 2011
The need for speed....
I got to attend my very first PINEWOOD DERBY! Yep, that is the advantage I get in life by being the Cub Scout Committee Chair.
Never having been to a Pinewood Derby before, I wasn't sure how to plan for the big event. I even got to make a car! Thankfully, there was lots of other leaders who knew what they were doing!
Thankfully, we DIDN'T race our car because it......stunk! I need to do some internet research on how to make them fly and zoom and be cool...cause ours wasn't. Next year for sure!
This past Monday, we headed to up to Mutual Dell for some hard core sledding with our good friends/neighbors. The weather was warmer and the snow was perfect. Everyone did great on the sleds, no crashes and no whining.
Perfect in my book!
Never having been to a Pinewood Derby before, I wasn't sure how to plan for the big event. I even got to make a car! Thankfully, there was lots of other leaders who knew what they were doing!
Thankfully, we DIDN'T race our car because it......stunk! I need to do some internet research on how to make them fly and zoom and be cool...cause ours wasn't. Next year for sure!
This past Monday, we headed to up to Mutual Dell for some hard core sledding with our good friends/neighbors. The weather was warmer and the snow was perfect. Everyone did great on the sleds, no crashes and no whining.
Perfect in my book!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Sewing, Sprucing Up and Stuff
So my kidlets are constantly asking me to put up various holiday decorations.
Pleading and begging.
I put up stuff for Halloween and Christmas and that is as far as my decoration stash goes.
But I'm trying to be better.
It could be fun pulling out boxes of stuff and creating a mess to decorate for holidays right?
Thanks to the "queen of homemaking", Martha Stewart, I swiped a few ideas off her website.
"Love Trees" (this isn't a Martha though..a Toby original)
Tissue Paper Pom Poms...lots of those!
One of my best gal pals just had a baby...well babies need quilts and I jumped at the chance (who doesn't like to make blankets for new babies).
I swiped another idea off a neighbor blog.....LOVE the Black Apple Dolls. I'm making lots more of these (family members...if you are reading this....close your eyes!!!). My big girls couldn't believe I knew how to make dolls. If they only knew how easy!
A few new curtains....I hope I have enough left over fabric to make a purse. Excuse the messy floor...this is a sewing room and I am sewing up a storm for Pink Fig Patterns. I'm in heaven! (Those pictures will be up when I finish her samples).
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Today
I've been thinking for awhile that I need to better job at recording our family history. The word history doesn't seem to fit what I want to write about (amongst the homework, dance and swimming lessons, coaxing to do chores), but someday it will be a history and I don't want to forget it.
Yesterday morning, I got upset with Abby before school. She had been climbing on the counter (which has been a big issue at our house lately and has put a bee in my bonnet) and knocked over a chair. The chairs at the bar are on the verge of biting the dust, so we are trying to preserve them for as long as possible.
There could have been a much better way to take care of the situation, but I got upset with her. Which made her start to cry and NOT want to go to school. She cried and held onto my leg while we walked over to the neighbors to catch the carpool. Urhhh....I was so frustrated with that little spirit...just go to school because it will be much better for both of us! Plus, my neighbor has to put up with another sad Barlow kid. Why couldn't have I spoken to her kindly and asked her to just get off the counter and pick up the chair? It would've made her day better and my day better.
After that incident, I was late dropping Peach off at preschool. One of my errands to run during that free time was to go to Desert Industries (like a Savers or Goodwill) to pick up some clothes for our 72 hour kits. I found some great things and of course, everything was super cheap. On my way out the door, I got a phone call from Georgia's preschool teacher.
They were learning about the letter P and a classmate had brought peppermints to share. Georgia decided to swallow the thing WHOLE! It got stuck in her throat. The teacher gave her some water and she was able to swallow. But the peppermint was burning in her mouth.
So, we made a quick trip to the doctors office to make sure it all was well. We are in the clear!
We had swim lessons last night (Carter and Georgia), Abby had dance (which conveniently takes place upstairs at the rec center), Carter and Annie had tutoring, and Tim had Young Mens. Wednesdays are always busy nights.
I was talking with a friend the other night at a baby shower about school. She was saying how much time she spends with her daughter on homework. She asked how do we get all the homework done.
It is one of those areas in life that I really worry about. But if I think about it too much, I know I will never get it done like I want too. I have 3 kids that I need to spend a lot of time with doing regular homework, speech therapy homework, tutoring homework, and reading. It is that prayer as a mother that I hope Heavenly Father makes up for where I lack!
Yesterday morning, I got upset with Abby before school. She had been climbing on the counter (which has been a big issue at our house lately and has put a bee in my bonnet) and knocked over a chair. The chairs at the bar are on the verge of biting the dust, so we are trying to preserve them for as long as possible.
There could have been a much better way to take care of the situation, but I got upset with her. Which made her start to cry and NOT want to go to school. She cried and held onto my leg while we walked over to the neighbors to catch the carpool. Urhhh....I was so frustrated with that little spirit...just go to school because it will be much better for both of us! Plus, my neighbor has to put up with another sad Barlow kid. Why couldn't have I spoken to her kindly and asked her to just get off the counter and pick up the chair? It would've made her day better and my day better.
After that incident, I was late dropping Peach off at preschool. One of my errands to run during that free time was to go to Desert Industries (like a Savers or Goodwill) to pick up some clothes for our 72 hour kits. I found some great things and of course, everything was super cheap. On my way out the door, I got a phone call from Georgia's preschool teacher.
They were learning about the letter P and a classmate had brought peppermints to share. Georgia decided to swallow the thing WHOLE! It got stuck in her throat. The teacher gave her some water and she was able to swallow. But the peppermint was burning in her mouth.
So, we made a quick trip to the doctors office to make sure it all was well. We are in the clear!
We had swim lessons last night (Carter and Georgia), Abby had dance (which conveniently takes place upstairs at the rec center), Carter and Annie had tutoring, and Tim had Young Mens. Wednesdays are always busy nights.
I was talking with a friend the other night at a baby shower about school. She was saying how much time she spends with her daughter on homework. She asked how do we get all the homework done.
It is one of those areas in life that I really worry about. But if I think about it too much, I know I will never get it done like I want too. I have 3 kids that I need to spend a lot of time with doing regular homework, speech therapy homework, tutoring homework, and reading. It is that prayer as a mother that I hope Heavenly Father makes up for where I lack!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Little Miss....
After being lugged around to all her siblings activities, Peachy finally has a few fun things of her own. She just started taking gymnastics or 'nastics as she calls it! She and our neighbor friend go together and boy howdy, are those two little peas in a pod. They run and fly and twirl and wear themselves out!
One of her favorite saying lately has been "I can't know" when she doesn't know something. She also hates to clean up her room right now and it is MESSY!
Someone has really gotten into "posing" for pictures....funny her big sisters love to pose too!
She also started taking swimming lessons. It was so convenient since Carter is taking them! BUT it is the middle of winter (lately the temperature has been in the low 20's) and someone doesn't want to wear a coat or pants into the indoor pool. But she will wear her boots. Love the fashion statement Peach!
Christmas Festivities
We had lots going on over the Christmas season. Here are a few of our favorites:
Making gingerbread houses (this is a kid favorite, not always a mom favorite):
Elementary school Christmas sing:
Family Christmas party (the kids were singing "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" and the 3 year old in our house knew all the words and sang loudly!!):
An awesome visit from family and a quick trip to Temple Square to see the lights:
Whew...it all went by too fast!
Making gingerbread houses (this is a kid favorite, not always a mom favorite):
Elementary school Christmas sing:
Family Christmas party (the kids were singing "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" and the 3 year old in our house knew all the words and sang loudly!!):
An awesome visit from family and a quick trip to Temple Square to see the lights:
Whew...it all went by too fast!
Christmas...yep it is the middle of January
So I am bit behind in life right now! I'm not so sure how that happened, but I am trying to catch up.
We had such a wonderful Christmas season. There was a talk given at church (back in December) about remember the true meaning of Christmas. It was hard for me to remember amongst the neighbor gifts, Christmas cards, school programs, cooking, cleaning, and life. It made me really sad that Sunday as I sat and listened that I wasn't feeling that true spirit. From then on, I tried to soak in all the moments with my kids. Live and learn!
We had Christmas Eve at our house. We started the day by going swimming. We needed to relieve a serious case of the 6-year old wiggles and swimming did the trick! All the local family came and ate lots of yummy treats.
The kids did a great job going to bed despite the anticipation of Santa. Their prayers on Christmas Eve night were as follows:
Abby: Please bless Santa in the fog that he can bring toys.
Carter: Please bless us that we can sit on the top of the stairs so Mom can take a picture.
Whew...we made the picture!
Christmas morning is truly magical with children. The excitement..the anticipation...the discovery! We spent the morning and early afternoon at home with Grandma Jenny and then headed over to Grandpa and Grandma Barlow's for more Christmas celebration!
A few of our favorite Christmas gifts were:
Annie: A Blizzard Maker
Abby: Go Go Walkin' Pup
Carter: A Double Light Sabar and a BYU sweat shirt (he wears it night and day)
Georgia: Several new Dora dolls.
What a wonderful day!
We had such a wonderful Christmas season. There was a talk given at church (back in December) about remember the true meaning of Christmas. It was hard for me to remember amongst the neighbor gifts, Christmas cards, school programs, cooking, cleaning, and life. It made me really sad that Sunday as I sat and listened that I wasn't feeling that true spirit. From then on, I tried to soak in all the moments with my kids. Live and learn!
We had Christmas Eve at our house. We started the day by going swimming. We needed to relieve a serious case of the 6-year old wiggles and swimming did the trick! All the local family came and ate lots of yummy treats.
The kids did a great job going to bed despite the anticipation of Santa. Their prayers on Christmas Eve night were as follows:
Abby: Please bless Santa in the fog that he can bring toys.
Carter: Please bless us that we can sit on the top of the stairs so Mom can take a picture.
Whew...we made the picture!
Christmas morning is truly magical with children. The excitement..the anticipation...the discovery! We spent the morning and early afternoon at home with Grandma Jenny and then headed over to Grandpa and Grandma Barlow's for more Christmas celebration!
A few of our favorite Christmas gifts were:
Annie: A Blizzard Maker
Abby: Go Go Walkin' Pup
Carter: A Double Light Sabar and a BYU sweat shirt (he wears it night and day)
Georgia: Several new Dora dolls.
What a wonderful day!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Holes in our Head
We have had quite of few "holes in our head" lately!
The first hole goes to:
ABBY (she lost her first tooth and was tickled pink to have her hole and get some cash from the tooth fairy):
The second hole goes to:
CARTER (he lost his first tooth too and was very excited to get a dollar from the tooth fairy!!):
Then, we had three girls get their ears pierced. The big girls concocted the plan by themselves and then asked me.
They wanted to do their Super Saturday together (this never happens...they always want their special day alone). When I asked why, they said they wanted to get their ears pierced. I think they were expecting me to say no, so sounds of joy were heard through the neighborhood when I said yes!
I told the girls, the piercing would feel like a shot from the doctor and we were only allowed to wear small earring (nothing dangling). They said they still wanted to do it!
Before:
Georgia (hooray for the double piercing guns):
Annie (we told Annie if she counted to 60, the stinging would go away...as soon as she was done, I could hear her counting):
Abby...oh our sweet Abby! She got a little nervous when it was her turn. So she took a potty break, got a piece of gum and ended up sitting on dad's lap:
The first hole goes to:
ABBY (she lost her first tooth and was tickled pink to have her hole and get some cash from the tooth fairy):
The second hole goes to:
CARTER (he lost his first tooth too and was very excited to get a dollar from the tooth fairy!!):
Then, we had three girls get their ears pierced. The big girls concocted the plan by themselves and then asked me.
They wanted to do their Super Saturday together (this never happens...they always want their special day alone). When I asked why, they said they wanted to get their ears pierced. I think they were expecting me to say no, so sounds of joy were heard through the neighborhood when I said yes!
I told the girls, the piercing would feel like a shot from the doctor and we were only allowed to wear small earring (nothing dangling). They said they still wanted to do it!
Before:
Georgia (hooray for the double piercing guns):
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| Sorry for the blurry picture...Dad was a bit nervous! |
Abby...oh our sweet Abby! She got a little nervous when it was her turn. So she took a potty break, got a piece of gum and ended up sitting on dad's lap:
Everyone was very pleased with the sparkling bling in their ears:
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