so embarrassing...

About 9-10 years ago at the Annual Ward 4th of July breakfast, I was carrying Ciel with both her plate and mine into the multi-purpose room from outside, tripped and did sort of a loud stumbling fall to the ground, right in front of a guy I really liked. Not just a small stumble, but a loud THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! CRASH!!! kind of a running forward, tripping, thumping, stumbling, completely flailing, ugly fall. I’m just that graceful. Any hopes of chatting with him are gone, I mean what’s he going to say “Wow, you really bit it back there. How was you breakfast after you picked it up off of the floor?”  I have no problem laughing about it now, it’s pretty funny, but at the time I was mortified. And no, this isn’t my only embarrassing moment, I have LOTS more, this is just one of the many. Ah well, life goes on.

Sharlick?!?

A few nights ago Haven and Noah were playing with some little animal figurines, and Haven kept calling out “Sharlick! Sharlick! Sharlick!” at different times during their little scenarios. Who in the heck is Sharlick? Then I hear Noah say “No Haven, it’s not Sharlick, it’s Charlotte!” I realized they were playing Charlottes Web with their barn yard animals, and Haven heard it as Sharlick’s Web instead. Well at least Noah heard it correctly. Hmmmmmm, might be time to make her an appointment with Pappy.

Such a Feisty Punk In A Tiny Little Body

Who knew that my tiny little Gracen would turn out to be such a tough little girl. I am sure that being the 6th child and a smurf as well gave her good reason to be a fighter, yet I still can’t help but laugh as she barrels past me in their lastest favorite game of “chase” with Gracen being the “chaser”. The kids call her name telling her to come and get them, and then run while she is in hot pursuit right behind them laughing hysterically the enitre time. There is a lot of squealing, shrieking, and giggling, and they all think it’s the funniest game to play right now. Gracen of course thinks it’s hilarious, and loves that she gets to chase them all too and be a part of the “big kid” fun.

She loves sitting up to the table in one of the big chairs like everyone else, and if we make the “horrific mistake” of putting her in the highchair instead, the waterworks commence and she acts like her little world has crumbled down around her. She can turn the tears on and off, and it’s pretty funny to see her start with the dramatic cry face when she is told “no” or doesn’t get her way. She looks so cute when she scrunches up her face as the tears roll down her cheeks. I never thought I would get such a little actress, and no, I don’t give in to any of her drama, I know better than to cave to those kind of antics.

Gracen is quite the little love though, and any chance she gets will throw her arms around your neck and give you big hugs and kisses. She will snuggle for a few minutes at time, just to let you know she still loves you, then she hops down and is off to rejoin the other kids playing. Another favorite of hers is to hold your face with her two little hands on either side and turn it one way or the other and plant as many kisses on your cheeks as she can, then wait for you to do the same to her. I must admit, the pure joy on her face anytime I return from an outing or even when I greet her in the morning is priceless, she throws her little arms into the air, yells “Mama!” and and looks so happy, it’s as if we had been separated for ages. She is so thrilled to be reunited again and doesn’t hold back on the hugs and kisses.

She is definitely showing her independence, and will happily do “chores” right along side her older siblings, and refuses to accept their help, insisting upon doing the job all by herself. She’s a wonderful little helper with putting dirty clothes in the hamper, putting toys away, putting books back on the shelf, and she loves to help set and clear the table. Her size may be tiny, but she has such a mighty spirit, heaven help any that get in her way since she is determined to stay the course and make it to the finish line without anyone elses help. I love her feisty little ways and happy little personality, it’s no wonder she is such a favorite with all of her brothers and sisters.

Oh, For The Love...

This morning Gracen decided to pour pancake syrup onto the table, then get up onto the table and dance in it as well as smear it all over herself. I had only turned my back for a second to do some dishes, and she was sitting at her place at the table right behind me finishing her breakfast. The other kids were done and had gone to get dressed and she’s usually the last one at the table most mornings. Thankfully I was able to get it out of her hair and stuff, but I had to laugh at how funny she looked as she gleefully danced in the syrup in her bare feet, clapping her little hands with such joy on her naughty little face. I couldn’t even muster a firm scolding , I was laughing too hard at her little wickiness as well as her funny little syrup dance. How could I be mad when dancing in pancake syrup gives her that much happiness?

Out of the Mouths of Babes...

On the way to the Family Christmas Dinner tonight we saw three or four police cars parked at a house with all of their lights flashing, and we all wondered aloud what must be going on. Noah had it all figured out because he piped up from the back and said “Maybe they’re having a Disco Dance in the back of their police cars.” Ok, where in the heck did he pick up the phrase “disco dance” and how does he know it involves lots of flashing lights? And when Dylan was saying something about “mice carrying lots of diseases”, Noah agreed with him by saying “Yeah, they carry lots of cheese. They eat a lot!” And Mathes was very vocal the whole way there and kept saying “Mom” to try and get my attention so he could tell me about all of the Christmas lights he was seeing. Just as we were driving past the clinic, he began calling me again.
 Mathes-”mom…..mom….Mom….MOM!”
Me- “Yes Mathes, what?
“Mathes- “Chicken Butt!” and then began to giggle.
Sadly in our family it’s actually kind of another way (albeit a wierd one) of saying “I love you” but I’m not quite sure how it started. Yeah, I know, we’re so classy it’s probably killing you, right? We’re so refined.

A Night At The Symphony

I took Dylan and Ciel with me to see the USU Symphony Orchestra last night when they played at the Ellen Eccles Theater. We left a little early so we could stop off and visit with Mark, Mel and Welly who ended up going to Heidi and Gary’s, where Mammy and Pappy showed up later as well, so we got to see almost everyone. Wellington is still as cute as ever, and still looks just like Mel when you see him in real life, but just like Mark when you see him in pictures, he is such an adorable little guy. And Gray is all smiles, and loves to see EVERYTHING that is going on around him, and it won’t be long until he is running right behind the other kids. We also got to see Livy’s new room all carpeted and just about finished, which Livy was all smiles about. The two new rooms are so nice, Gary did a great job.
We got changed into our nice Sunday clothes for the concert, and left about 15 minutes before it was supposed to start. I had already bought our tickets onlince so all I had to do was pick them at at the box office as we walked in, and we were set. It was general seating so we were able to pick our own seats, and the theater was only about 3/4 full, so it wasn’t hard to find a great spot to sit. The music was beautiful, and I enjoyed it all quite a bit, but all three of us agreed our absolute favorite was the guest cellist Ann Francis. She was spectacular! It was such a treat to be able to see and hear her play. The guest violinist was pretty good, but Ann Francis blew him out of the water the first minute into her first piece, it was incredible. Afterwards we went back to Heidi’s to change back into comfier clothes, and a little bit more visiting, and then headed for home.

And Our Baby Is A...

 So I went yesterday for my regular OB appointment and to see if we could determine the gender of our little baby with an ultrasound. I am 16 weeks along, and the Dr. assured me that we would have a 99% chance of seeing everything. So after a few minutes of measurements he took a look……and we still have no idea what we’re having. The baby refused to cooperate, was apparently in the middle of a complicated tap dance routine, and also thought it would be funny to tangle the umbilical cord and have it in just the right spot so that no matter what resolution or method the Dr. used, we couldn’t tell if it’s a boy or a girl. Maybe it’s because Craig and I decided not to find out our babies gender with three of my pregnancies, but I am not disapointed at all. I was so excited to see our little one moving and dancing around in there, I really don’t care that we didn’t get a definitive answer on gender. I’m supposed to return in another couple of weeks for a complete diagnostic ultrasound, but I may have to make some changes instead.
   While I really think my Dr. is fantastic, I am having a hard time with the long drive and then the long wait to see him. I know my Dr. is busy because he’s in high demand, it’s just not working out for me with all of the driving and waiting. I hate that I have to drive 50 minutes to his office, wait for 45 minutes or more to be seen, and then drive the whole long way back. I think once my appointments become more frequent and are every two weeks, and then weekly, it will be even worse. And I am becoming more and more unhappy with the idea of not delivering in my local hospital. I love the hospital here, it’s very patient oriented, and I get the most personalized and friendly care. I really loathe the thought of changing Dr.’s, but I think I need to do what’s best for my family as well as myself, and a change seems to be the right answer for all of those reasons. First I need to make some calls to some of my friends and get some recommendations, and then figure out if I want to do this or not.