Zane is all ready for Kindergarten!

Last week I took Zane to his Kindergarten doctor visit. I didn't tell him about it until about an hour before we went so he wouldn't be freaking out about all day. When I told him, I thought he'd ask if he needed shots. But instead he asked if they were going to swab his throat! He ahtes when they have to that! Thankfully, I didn't have to lie and told him no. He was so excited to have a little date with me. It was kinda breaking my heart though because he didn't know about the shots and I didn't want to tell him until we were there. They checked his weight and height, 42 inches tall, 42 pounds. Perfect. Eyes, good. He cried when they had to poke his finger to check his iron. The Doctor came in and did the physical exam. Great. Then I had to break the news to Zane that he needed to get 4 shots. He started bawling. I tried to get his mind off of it, but it didn't work. When the nurse came in and we tried to get his pants off, he freaked out. Then he said, right before she was about to do the first shot, "wait a minute! Wait a minute! I have to tell you something! I need to go to the bathroom!" He was trying to get out of it, but he'd just gone to the bathroom. Poor kid. So she hurried and did all 4 in less than 10 seconds and he was done! He got a bag full of goodies then I took him to get an ice cream cone. I was so glad to have that done. Phew!

Then yesterday we got him registered at the school. It's so weird to think that in September, we'll have a 1st grader, Kindergartener, Preschooler and a new baby! What an exciting year!!!!

6th Picture Tag

I suck at following through with tags, but this one was easy. I had to go to my 6th folder and pick the 6th picture. Here it is. Me and Gavin at Laguna Beach. This is when he had his curls before we shaved them off. Cute little stink! Feel free to do this tag if you'd like!

My week in review

Last Monday Dan headed off to Colorado for work. No big deal, except the morning he left I woke up with a burning in my chest like I was getting sick. Dan had a cold and cough the week before and Lindsay had gotten it too, so I was guess it was my turn. On Tuesday, I woke up to go teach dance and I didn't have a voice. I went anyway and after dance I started getting achy and cold. By Tuesday night, my nose was stuffy and I was coughing. I didn't sleep well that night and when I woke up Wednesday, still very achy and cold. I decided to drink some apple juice, then drank a cup a of water with some medicine to take the aches. Within one minute I was in the bathroom throwing up (the first time in this pregnancy). I felt like crap and was supposed to go teach dance again. I just couldn't do it. My mother-in-law came and got all 3 of my kids (Lindsay was staying home from school all week because she was still coughing) and took them to her house all day! Thanks Ma! It helped a ton so I could just rest. I was starting to feel better on Thursday and Dan got home that night. What a relief to have him home.

On Friday, my cute cousin, Katie, married Robby in the Salt Lake temple. They are such a cute, crazy couple. The day was really nice. I was feeling a lot better too. They had their reception at in a little building at the Gallivan Center. It was beautiful.

My other cousin, Emily (Katie's sister) caught the bouquet and her boyfriend, Randy, caught the garter. They were so excited!

This was taken outside the temple. Here's 6 of the 7 girls in my family (Amy will be home from her mission in April!). Jenny and Missy are on the end pretending to be sad they are not pregnant. Us 4 in the middle are the preggers. We are in order of when we're due. Laurel is due April 2nd, Heidi is due April 12th, Karen is due April 23rd and I'm due June 5th. April is going to be a CRAZY month for our family.

My sister Jenny, her hubby Ben and their son, Carter came from Arizona for the wedding so on Saturday, me, Karen, Jenny, Beans (aka Melissa Smith) and her sissy, Shauna, went to breakfast and to see the movie "He's Just Not That Into You". We loved the movie. It was very entertaining and true to life. We laughed a lot when they talked about drive-by's past guys houses that we liked, etc...

Karen

Melissa

Jenny

The kids with Carter

When I woke up on Saturday before going to the movie, my cough had gotten worse and it hurt really bad when I coughed. It also tasted a little like blood when I coughed (I know, gross!). After the movie, we hung out at my mom's to spend time with Jenny and Ben before they went back to AZ. I started getting really achy and cold. I got a sudden fever and noticed I was having a hard time breathing. After a couple of hours, Dan took me to Instacare where they said I had Pneumonia. What the heck! So I've been on an antibiotic all week and I'm feeling so much better! I rested for 2 days and my mom brought dinner on Monday for us. Thanks Mom! I'm just glad I'm feeling better.

Love is in the air

Last week Zane came home from Preschool and he kept walking around sighing really loudly and rolling his eyes around. I finally asked him why he was doing that and here's what he said:
Z-"I'm in love"
M-"You are? With who?"
Z-"Annie, at school."
M-"You are huh?"
Z-"Yes and there's something I have to tell you that's kinda weird." He got all shy.
M-"What?"
Z-"I told her I loved her and she said she loved me too." He had the cutest smile on his face.
Z-"Then there's something else that's kinda weird but I don't want to tell you."
M-"Just tell me in my ear then."
Z-"She kissed me!" He whispered it.
M-"She did!!!! Where?"
Z-"At school!"
M-"No, where? On the lips or cheek?"
Z-"Right here." He pointed to his cheek.
PHEW! It was very cute the way he told me. Then we got in the car and Lindsay was in the back seat with 50 questions like "Did she kiss you during playtime?" "Did she do it then so no one would hear?" "What's her last name?" It was hilarious! So our 4 year old is in love. He picked her Valentine out special and even wrote her name on it. I'm not worried he's growing up too fast. I think it's pretty dang sweet!

Gavin-ism

Last night after we had put Gavin to bed, we were reading scriptures with Lindsay and Zane. Gavin kept calling me back into his room for any reason he could think of. Finally I told him I was not coming back in anymore and to go to sleep. Within a couple of minutes, he was calling me again. I just ignored him at first, then I yelled, "What do you need?" Then he said, "open my door," which it was already open a little. He kept telling for me to open his door and I just kept ignoring him, then he got mad and started yelling, "Mom! Open my DANG door!" We almost died from laughter. Then after a few times of yelling that, he heard us laughing and kept doing it to be funny. This kid sure knows how to keep us in stitches!

Hide, Seek and Eat

Last week Dan was playing Hide and Seek with the kids. He was looking for Gavin and this is where he found him. Funny kid. I think it was pretty creative.

Something that Gavin has been saying a lot lately is "what the...". For example, last night I told him we were going to Grandma Tracey's for dinner on Sunday and he gasped liked he was shocked and said, "what the...". No he doesn't finish the sentence. He just says "what the". It's hilarious!

20 Weeks ~ Half way there!

Here's my belly at 20 weeks. Don't ask why I'm posing this way. This picture took 8 tries and this was the best. I'm not digging the pictures of myself lately. We had our ultrasound today and no we did NOT find out the sex. We haven't found out with any of our kids and that's the way we like to do it. The due date is still June 5th and it couldn't come fast enough. The morning/afternoon/evening/night sickness is pretty much gone now but I still get it every once in a while. This time it lasted until almost 18 weeks! I've got a lot more energy now and even feel like I'm nesting at times. We've been cleaning and dejunking the house the past 2 weekends. Bless Dan's little heart for helping me.

I have back problems when I'm not prego but it is so much worse when I'm prego and this time it's the worst it's been. Thank goodness for my chiropractor who also happens to be my bishop. The only awkward thing about that is that I don't know whether to call him Dr. Miller or Bishop Miller. I usually say Bishop at church, Dr. at his chiro office and Jared when I panic and don't rememeber which to call him. My back and neck are doing a little better.

So people always tell me they need to be prepared when they have their baby so that's why they find out the sex. Well, let me tell you, I'm always prepared, right down to the a boy and girl name picked out including middle name. So with this baby we have a girls name, but are struggling with a boy name, so I'm up for suggestions because I want it picked before hand. We're leaning towards Isaac Bentley, but I'm not set on it yet. Any other thoughts?

I felt the baby move for the first time on Christmas Day and I was only 17 weeks. That is pretty early to feel a baby and the earliest I've felt mine. And it's been jumping all over the place since. At the ultrasound today, they told me my placenta was behind the baby so that is why I can feel it so easily. They couldn't get a very good view of the placenta so I have to go back for another ultrasound so they can check. Also, the baby was facing towards my back with it's belly right up against the placenta so they couldn't get a very good shot of the face, so they will be checking the mouth then as well. But everything else looks great! We got some cool shots of the baby.


This is the baby's leg and foot.
Baby's hand on the right and spine at the top.

This was the best shot of the face they could get. Face is on the upper right side with it's little hand by the face. Belly is towards the left side.

Christmas 2008

Christmas was so good. Our kids kept telling us all day long, "this is the best Christmas ever." We went to my parent's on Christmas Eve for German food, gifts and to watch all of our Christmas videos that we all made (you can see ours a few posts down). We got a lot of fun things. Lindsay got a Cinderella doll that crawls from Granny and Grandpa. Zane got a race track and Gavin got a Spiderman Dry erase board for the car from Granny and Grandpa.

My parents gave a safe to put copies of all of our home videos and pictures in.

Christmas morning, before going downstairs to see the tree.


Gavin hugging his Indiana Jones.



Lindsay has been obsessed with playing Clue lately. Funny thing is, it always ends up scaring her. So we got her Clur Jr., the Case of the missing cake. No one dies in this game.

Santa also brought the kids their own scooter. He sent them on a Treasure Hunt around the house to find them .

Santa totally surprised us with a Wii, and I mean totally surprised. I knew nothings about it. Zane got the Lego Indiana Jones Wii game

After we were all done opening gifts, Gavin took his mints he got in his stocking and lay on the couch eating them. I was making breakfast and didn't know where he was. I came around the corner and there he was. I said, "what are doing?" He said, "just eating my mints."



Christmas Day we went to Dan's parent's for turkey dinner and presents. We got some nice things. His parents made a wood puzzle and puppets for the kids. They also gave them a ton of books with a cd of all of us reading the books that we had prerecorded. So when the kids are reading the stories they can listen to the cd's with their aunts, uncles and Grandma and Grandpa reading the story to them. It is really cute.

Dan and his brother's playing Gavin's fishing game.

Dan's parents gave a wheat grinder and wheat. I'm anxious to try it.

Ma Doney made this for us.

Lindsay

Zane

Gavin

The day after Christmas we went up to see Grandma Skousen and spend some time with her.

Service

One thing Lindsay is always thinking about is ways to serve others. Whenever Dan is baking a dessert (I say Dan because he's the baker at our house), she always wants to take some to the neighbors. Or wants to take dinner to people. The week before Christmas during one of our many snow storms, she begged me to let her go out and shovel our neighbors driveways. I finally gave in, even though the snow was still coming down like crazy, but I told her to do the sidewalks because our driveways are very long. So out she went. I felt bad because by the time she was done, the sidewalks were all covered in snow again. I guess it is the thought that counts. So Zane saw that she was doing that and said, "mom, I want to do something nice." Then he told me not to come in my room. A few minutes later he and Gavin told me to close my eyes and they led me into my bedroom where they had made my bed for me! I was shocked because they even alternated the pillows like I do. I just love these kids!

Lindsay shoveling the Dean's sidewalk.

And then the Lambson's.

My bed after the boys made it.

Testimonies

Yesterday at church, Lindsay and Zane decided they wanted to bare their testimonies. They had never done it before. Lindsay tried a few months ago but got scared when she got up there and just sat back down. So before church, we talked to them about some of the things they could say and what exactly a testimony is. Zane asked me if he was supposed to close his eyes and fold his arms like a prayer. I thought that was cute. During the sacrament, they were both a little antsy. Finally after the bishop was finished with his testimony, I sent them up together. I think they were a lot more comfortable because there were about 6 other kids up there waiting to bare their testimonies. They both did it! All by themselves and they didn't say anything we were embarrassed by. They were short and sweet. When Zane first got up there, he forgot how to start so he just took a deep sigh. Then he said, "I'd like to share my testimony" which I thought was cute. He also said he knew Jesus was really real. It warmed my little heart to see them up there doing that and brought tears to my eyes. Then I was ashamed that my 5 and 4 year olds had more courage to get up there than I did. I guess they are the example I should be trying to follow.

Our Annual Christmas Video

Here's our annual Christmas video that we do every year as a tradition in my familiy. We all do a video (my parents included) then we watch them all on Christmas Eve. It's fun to see what everyone comes up with each year. Click here to see last years video. Hope you all had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! P.S. Pause the music at the bottom of our blog first.

Lindsay's Christmas Dance Recital

Lindsay had her Christmas dance recital the same night as Zane's Preschool program, so we had to split up to see both. Luckily we were able to borrow my sister's video camera so I could record Lindsay and Dan recorded Zane. Grandma Tracey, Granny Annie and Uncle Mike were able to come see her. Thanks Granny for recording Lindsay while I was back stage. Lindsay is a natural. She is in the very middle (7th from the left). She's the one smiling the whole time and is pretty much on beat the whole time. We're very proud of her.

Zane's Preschool Christmas Program

Dan, Gavin and both Grandpa Harry and Grandpa Kevin got to see Zane perform at his Preschool Christmas Program, while I was with Lindsay at her dance recital. He practiced his part a ton and I told him to say it slowly and loudly so everyone could hear him. I also told him to sing the songs good. He sang so well you can hear him the most. I love the video of him saying his part. Watch how after his friend Eli says his part and walks away (he wasn't supposed to) and the look on Zane's face, and then he mouths something to himself. It's hilarious!

St. Nicholaus came

As a German tradition, we set our boots out on December 5th and during the night, St. Nicholaus visits, leaving a present and a treat. He usually leaves us movies. This is what we got this year.

I eat a chocolate!

Every year my mom buys our kids the little chocolate advent calendars. This is the first year Gavin has really understood them. And boy, does he love his daily chocolate after breakfast. I had them taped to their bedroom doors, but the tape didn't stick very long, so I set Gavin's on his dresser as far back as I could. The other day he came into the kitchen with his hands over his eyes.
I said, "what are you doing, silly boy?"
G "I eat a chocolate!" throwing his hands off his eyes like it was a surprise!
Me "where did you get the chocolate?"
G "From mommy."
Me "no you didn't. Show mommy where you got it." He took my hand and led me to his room, where his advent calendar was still on the dresser but knocked over. I picked it up and one of the little doors was slightly opened. I opened it and this is what I saw.
At least he put it back in the same spot. He just needed a little chocolate fix, I guess. Needless to say, the calendar is now on top of the computer armoire.

Festival of Trees

Last week we went to the Festival of Trees. The kids were very good, so good that we took them out to dinner afterwards. The highlight was seeing Santa. While we were waiting in line, Zane asked if it was the real Santa or just his helper. I told him he should ask him when we got up to see him. I thought Gavin might be afraid of him like last year, when he ran the other way, but he walked right up to him and sat on his lap. They all asked for Scooters. Zane and Gavin specifically asked for Spiderman scooters, Zane wants one with 3 wheels. Zane was too shy to ask, so Lindsay asked him if he was the real Santa. He got close to her face and said, "what do you think?" She said she didn't know, then he said, "I am." Their faces lit up! They couldn't believe it! It was so cute. Then they had to run and tell my family that it was the real Santa. I will always remember how cute they were about it.

I love this picture. Gavin is telling Santa he wants a Scooter.

Happy 11th Anniversary Princeton Princesses/Croft Cove Chicks!

11 years ago, on December 1st, my sister, Karen and I met Melissa. We were good friends with her cousin Heather A O (that's what we call her to distinguish between 2 Heather's), then Melissa moved here from AZ. We were all the best of friends. We lived on Princeton Avenue in a little apartment, then moved into a townhouse on Croft Cove Circle (hence the names in my title). Heather A O moved to San Diego a few months after living on Princeton. Oh, the memories we have. So last Monday night (December 1st) we went out to dinner to Red Robin to celebrate. Heather is now living in San Fransisco, so she wasn't here. We had fun chatting and talking about old times. We are so getting old though. Afterwards we went back to my parent's house, ate dessert and sat around chatting more; so different than what we were doing 11 years ago (coning, cramming, drive-by's, "iceburg! right ahead!", "a month?!?!?!","I got my girls", stupid guys, many times of peeing our pants, "you want to go to da mountains?", "those 2 hours will save you life!", "we are so young!", our journals, the good old singles ward, our awesome Roadshow's we wrote,) I could go on and on. So here's to 11 years girl's and many more to come! Love ya!

Do you like how we're making 11 with our fingers.

Our true selves. There's a story behind this picture but it's not appropriate for my blog, Christian!

Dear Santa, I'm not being nice

The other night, Gavin was being naughty during dinner. He kept smashing his spaghetti and playing with it, then dropping it on the floor. I told him I'd call Santa and tell him that Gavin wasn't being nice. Then Gavin started spitting at me. I was so enraged! So I scooted his chair that he was sitting in his booster seat in over to the back door for time-out. As I was doing the dishes I looked over and he had his hand up to his ear (like he was on the phone) then he said, "Hi Santa Clauses. (yes, he made it plural) You bring me presents? I not being nice. Ok, Bye!" I was trying so hard not to laugh while he was still in timeout. After the timer beeped and I made him apologize for being naughty, I pulled out the video camera and asked him to pretend to call Santa again. He wouldn't do it like the first time, so I gave him the phone and this is what I got.....

I'm back......

So I know it's not that hard to put an occasional post on here, but seriously I've had no motivation in my life at all. I'm so, so, so happy to be out of the 1st trimester of pregnancy and that I'm not constantly feeling ill-stricken all day. It just comes and goes now. I'm also happy that I'm getting some energy. To be honest, I don't enjoy being pregnant. I actually have had great deliveries, so I don't mind that part, but I don't really care for feeling like crap, busting out of my clothes, grumpiness, being emotional, wanting to lay in bed all day, not being able to take ibuprofen and major back problems. I do enjoy the fact that I'm carrying a sweet little baby, that my nails get strong, my face doesn't breakout and my hair stops shedding. I guess I just like the end result the best, holding my little one in my arms. So with all of that being said, I've been a slacker on many things and my blog is one of them. I was feeling some motivation tonight and I decided to catch up on October and November.

Thanksgiving 2008

Early in November, my brother and his little family came to visit, so we did a "Fakesgiving" with my family. If you want to see pictures you can check out Karen's blog. It was fun to have them here for a week. So for Thanksgiving, we got to spend it with Dan's family. We went to Dan's parent's and had a yummy dinner, games and relaxation. The kids especially had a fun time playing with Brie and Mike. We missed having Sis, Zach and their boys and Chris and Char. Travis came, but I missed getting a picture of him and Cassie before they left. It was a very fun day!

Zane and Gavin relaxed while Grandpa read them a story.

Gavin insisted on being in this picture with us.

Pa and Ma



Brie and Mike (Lindsay acting like her mother)

Josh thinking really hard while eating his pie.

Trevor enjoying his pie.

Zane, ready to eat

Gavin couldn't wait for the prayer.

Lindsay asked for a Turkey leg, so that's what we gave her. She only ate about half of it.

Grandpa Ted and Grandma Della were able to join us.