DASHING through the month

Something about the holidays means everything seems to go at lightning speed! I have plenty I need to update on, and am just not feeling up to a big long post. Maybe I can keep up with the theme of the season and do a lighting post....

...we'll see how successful I am.

We MUST start with Kenna's birthday! My little lady is SIX years old. SIX! And boy was she ever excited for her big day. She'd been counting down since Allie's birthday. She decided that she wanted to decorate her cake this year. So here she is (with her lovely assistant, of course) designing the perfect six-year-old chocolate birthday cake:


And of course when it's your special day, mom tries really really hard to just smile and say "Oh my- a gallon of pink and multi-colored sprinkles looks absolutely delicious! It's a masterpiece!"
And PLEASE take note of the missing tooth. She lost her very first tooth over Thanksgiving weekend and it was quite an accomplishment for Miss Kenna. She had been waiting and waiting to lose her first tooth. When it finally got wiggly enough, she dug her fingers right in there and yanked that sucker right out! The look of accomplishment on her face was priceless. The first visit from the Tooth Fairy was a huge success. She was a little concerned the Tooth Fairy wouldn't know where she was- so being the incredibly intelligent mom that I am- I simply sent the Tooth Fairy (aka Dad) a text. A TEXT! Can you believe that? When I was a kid that would have been science fiction. The Tooth Fairy sent a text back that she knew just where to go. Kenna was beyond excited. Thankfully her 4 quarters were found safe and sound under her pillow at Grandma's the following morning. Kenna was beyond thrilled! And I must say playing Tooth Fairy for the first time had a bit of a thrill for mom and dad, too.

The first weekend of December, Jacob and I took a little overnighter with some friends down to Vegas for the National Finals Rodeo. It has kind of become a tradition. It was a lot of fun. Well, minus the part of Jacob dealing with Vegas traffic. Next time I'll be sure to pop him a sedative. But, despite the navigation woes, we had a great time. None of the pics are really worth posting, so you can just imagine us in Vegas, having fun.

The girls have been enjoying the snow. Really enjoying the snow. There was a day I enjoyed snow this much:

...But for now I'll just be perfectly content taking the pictures!

Then we hooked up the sleds to the Ranger and pulled them around the field. Ty got in on the action too. This little guy is just so lovably contagious! In my mind I'm thinking of Randy in A Christmas Story: "I can't put my arms down!"

And last but not least: Our ward did an activity called "Holywood Squares" patterned after the game show "Hollywood Squares." There was quite the assortment of "stars" who all had a Gospel-centered theme. Jacob and I were Sonny and Cher D Gospel. It really was hilarious and ended up being a really fun activity. They did it first as a YM/YW activity, then we were able to do it again as an adult activity. The best part was our hideous costumes. Much to Jacob's dismay (he LOVES dressing up and acting), I am posting this picture on the blog. So for your viewing pleasure:
And just for the record, we blew the real Sonny and Cher out of the water!

FOUR!

The last time this was my blog title it was for Allie's fourth birthday, and I got a few comments of people thinking it was a pregnancy announcement. I got a good chuckle out of that because I had never even thought of that.

Well, Allie isn't turning four again....

....so.....

....I guess that means that NOW we are announcing our FOURTH baby will join our family the end of May! Hooray! It will definitely be a memorial weekend.

I'm already exhausted. What were we thinking?

Needless to say we are excited. Even more so now that the nausea has run it's course. We are fourteen weeks along, so hopefully within another 6 weeksish we will find out if we'll even out the score with boys or if we'll add another little princess to the gang. I personally think it's a girl. We'll keep you posted!

Now I'm going to go have a nap. Oh wait, I have a toddler. Nevermind.

Update on Mom

After a nearly week-long stay, my mom is home from the hospital. Happy to be back in her own bed, I dare say!

She did very well during the surgery, and also did great during her hospital stay. The only bump in the road was trying to find the right combination of meds to keep her pain under control after all the tubes, wires, and IV's came out. But, I think they've got it figured out. She seems to feel a bit better every day, now just has to go through the process of healing.

As for a diagnosis, we are still waiting. It looks like a cancer, but no definitive word on what type. Hopefully today we will know, then we can move on to treatment.

As usual, mom is staying chipper. She is very much looking forward to having her whole family together for Thanksgiving. I agree- I am so excited to be with my family soon. It's not too often we all get together. We definitely have many things to be thankful for this year!

Prayer for Mom

Tomorrow my Mom goes in for a major surgery to get a biopsy of some questionable tissue in her lungs. The first biopsy was inconclusive, so now they have to dig in deeper and get a better sample to find out if it's entirely inflammatory tissue or if her lymphoma has returned. Her type of cancer is not curable so we knew it would be something we'd probably encounter again. She'll be in the ICU for a few days for recovery.

The thing about my Mom is she is one of the most positive, optimistic people I know. Even her nurse this evening commented on how nice it was to have an upbeat, positive patient. Kudos to my Mom that despite her many bumps in the road with her health, she is always marching along with a great attitude. As she constantly reminds us, everything is in the Lord's hands- and that is all that really matters.

So, my dear Mom, I send a special prayer out for you that all will go well tomorrow and throughout your recovery this week. I pray the doctor will be guided and use his expertise for your very best care, and the nurses who watch over you will feel what a special, amazing person you are, and that there are many out there who love you so very much.

Love you!

Word to the Wise....

...If you're going to be naughty and color on places you shouldn't, then it's probably not a good idea to sign your name. Just sayin'.

Halloween Happenings 2011

Many thanks to a talented Grandma, the girls were able to be angels for Halloween. They got their first chance to don their angel apparel for the Primary Halloween carnival. Loads of fun, plenty of treats, and of course, paint. Yes, they painted a pumpkin. In their white angel costumes. Needless to say, I had to pull out the bleach. I didn't get the paint entirely out, but fortunately the worst was taken care of.

Here we are all dressed up and ready to par-tay. Lovely little angels, I must say. Not an ounce of devil in them. *sarcasm*



You never know when you'll pass by an angel on the street:


And, of course, here's the paint. Allie decided she wanted an all-black pumpkin. Naturally when you're a 4 year-old wearing all white you want to use black paint:


And here is the Ty Man with our next door neighbor who is just 4 weeks younger than him:


This made me think of a picture we took of them when they were babies. She was so petite! But, she did beat him walking. I love this picture. Not much has changed, he bit her the other day (where is his mother?):


Instead of dressing up as a free-for-all at Kenna's school, they celebrated International Children's Day the Friday before Halloween where all of the kiddos were invited to dress up as someone from history, or someone in their family, etc. The day before, Kenna kept saying she didn't want to dress up and be in the parade. So, I didn't worry about finding her something to wear. Of course the next morning she really wanted to dress up, so I threw together a random, 10-minute costume. Here is my little sheep herder! (I know, I know, my artistic abilities astound you. Ha!):


Speaking of sheep, we ventured into town last Saturday for the annual Sheep Festival Parade. There's nothing like watching 1000 head of sheep journey down mainstreet. Still undecided if it was worth it. But, if anything we have fun together:


Let's hear a big round of applause for my little Ty who is finally walking! He is so very proud of himself and loves to practice his new found skill.


And, last but not least, my little angels are geared up to go fill their buckets with candy on Halloween. One of the most beautiful, pleasant Halloween evenings I have ever seen, I must add. I should have dressed Ty up as a devil. But really, someone that cute just doesn't need a costume.


Another Halloween down for the record books. Now on to November! I am going to try my best to enjoy the month of November, even if WalMart was playing Christmas music today. On November 2nd. Love me some Christmas, just not 2 months of it. I'll start with Thanksgiving, thank you.

GIRLS

I'm certain there are plenty of men out there who, upon finding out their wife is pregnant with a little girl, wrinkles up their nose and says, "A girl? What will I do with a girl?"

Well, have no fear. Here is what you do with a little girl. Two girls in fact.

First of all, you cut and stack wood. One little girl gets to push the lever on the wood splitter (isn't it every girls dream to help operate heavy machinery?):


While the other stacks:


Then, SWITCH! Give each little girl a rich learning opportunity:



And of course, every little girls dream is to set gopher traps with her dad. But the real excitement comes when dad lets them take the dead, smashed gopher home and squeal with delight when they shout out to show mom their treasure, "MOM! Look what we caught! And look at those HUGE teeth! WOW!"


And that, my dear fathers out there, is what you do with a little girl.

*Just to make myself, the mother, feel better, I MUST add that they do like to play with dolls and paint their nails. Whew.

Just Another Sunday

It's been a little over 3 months since I've joined the Sunday Single Mom Club. The kiddos and I enjoy trying to catch daddy's eye and give him smiles during Sacrament Meeting while he tries to stay awake up on the stand. Really, it's only been 3 months? I could very easily have a few more years of this. Ay.

Yesterday as I was driving to church, I thought to myself that I was finally starting to get a bit of a handle on being alone with the three amigos during Sacrament. It has definitely taken some getting used to. The girls- well, they really are great. They color quietly, read a little book, and sometimes even try to listen to the speakers. Ty- now he is another story. This little cherub does not like to sit still nor be confined. Hence, one hour of trying to be reverent, quiet, and somewhat still are a big challenge. Big. After a few weeks of trial-and-error, we have found the very best place for us to sit is in the back overflow area in the gym. This way Ty has a bit of an area to move around, and I don't distract the entire audience repeatedly during the most sacred hour of the block as I chase him up the aisles.

Yesterday was business as usual. We found a nice spot in the back and got settled in for a nice meeting. I had to pull Ty down from a chair occasionally, but for the most part it was going alright. The bread had been passed and the water was on its way back to us. That's when my little Ty man got my attention as he made it audibly known that he had just filled his shorts while standing next to the chair in front of us. I tried to casually look around to see if he had gotten anyone else's attention, then just giggled to myself that no one else had heard. I figured I could take the water, then head out to change the diaper. That was until Allie looked down at Ty, nudged me and said,"Mom, what is Ty standing in?"

I looked down and saw that Ty was in fact standing in what looked to be a little puddle of something. Almost immediately I was horrified to realize the contents of Ty's diaper were dripping down his leg and spreading out on the floor. Not to mention it was SO. SMELLY.

Someone pinch me and let me wake up!

I grabbed a diaper and the wipes, threw some wipes down at Allie and said, "Clean this up!" (Seriously, what was I thinking? She's 4!) Then I scooped up Ty so he was horizontal to avoid any more drippage and hurried out of the gym to the Mother's Lounge. The whole time wondering if this was for real!

I laid him down on the changing table to assess the damage. His shoes had poop on them. His socks had poop on them. His pants were soaked. His onesie was covered. And finally, the last article of clothing my son had on- his shirt- had poop on the back of it. Watery, slimy, yellowish, diarrhea. So what does a single church mom do?

SHE LAUGHS!

Yes, I stood there laughing at the irony of the whole situation. Just as I was thinking that I was starting to get used to being alone.....I spoke out loud to Ty and said, "If ever I need your dad, it's right NOW!" And then I laughed some more.

Thank heavens there is a little basket of extra's in the Mother's Lounge that includes some little bags that can be used to put dirty diapers in so they don't smell up the whole area. So, I had one bag for poopy socks and shoes, one bag for his pants and onesie, and one bag extra to take with me to put the wipes I would use to finish cleaning up the mess left on the floor.

Next dilemma: do I take a diaper-only baby back into Sacrament Meeting? That would be really....odd. But I most definitely couldn't put his pants back on. So, I did the best I could and put his little button-up shirt back on and tried not to put my hand on the part in the back that was soiled.

If ever I was grateful that I was in the back part of the gym, NOW was that time. I was able to sneak in the back with my partly-dressed baby where the majority of people in the ward didn't see me. And of course I just HAD to sneak a peak up in the front of the chapel to see Jacob with a bit of a puzzled look on his face.

When I came back, someone had gotten some more paper towels there for me. So as reverently as I could, and without trying to draw extra attention to myself, I pulled out a bunch of wet wipes, kneeled down on the gym floor (in my dress, mind you) and proceeded to wipe up the puddle of poop. One of my visiting teachers offered to hold Ty- I tried to whisper a sort of thanks-but-I-could-never-do-that-to-you. FINALLY I got it all cleaned up, grabbed my car keys, and headed off with my three little bags of goodies to take home and wash or throw away. My two little angel girls were brave enough to stay in Sacrament and wait for my return. Many thanks to fellow ward members who were more than happy to help keep an eye on them.

I was able to change Ty and make it back to sit in the foyer for the last little bit of the meeting.

I tell you what, that was an experience I will NEVER forget! The funniest part was that people sitting near us thought it may have been throw up! Haha haah haaa haha ha! How disgusting is that?

And in all honestly, it's probably best Jacob wasn't there. Because then there would have been throw up.

Sunday, a day of rest? Mmm, not yesterday.

Another Vacation

Jacob and all the Israelsen fellas had been wanting to do a boys trip for quite a while, so a few months ago they finally decided on booking a trip back to Madison, Wisconsin to go see the WORLD DAIRY EXPO.

Yeehaw!

They headed out the first week of October and were gone from early early Monday morning until late late Thursday night. From what I can gather they had a great time together and got to see some great things.

One of the highlights of the trip was watching Daniel's heifer in one of the shows where she took 3RD PLACE! Quite a prestigious honor for Sir Daniel, we were very proud of him. Here she is strutting her stuff:




And of course what else is there than checking out larger-than-life machinery? This little gadget is probably worth at least twice what our mortgage is:


Kinda makes you think of when you were a little kid on the playground. Can't you just hear some little farmboy saying, "Oh yeah? Well my dad's tractor is bigger than your dad's!" And, well, he'd probably be right.

When it was all said and done, I think they had a great trip together. They were bummed a few of the brothers couldn't make it due to other obligations, but I guess that means they'll just have to start planning another one.

I, on the other hand, took a little vacation of my own. Since I didn't want to spend nearly a whole week home alone being a single mom, we followed Jacob up to Cache Valley and stayed there for the first part of the week.

We had a nice Sunday evening out at the Israelsen's before the boys flew out the next morning. Uncle Benson, Uncle Ross, and Ty guy:


And of course Ty giving dad one last good love before he leaves. Must be a boy thing:


And while I'm sifting through my pictures here, I forgot to post some pictures from the weekend before when we were up for Grandpa's funeral. These are from out at the Israelsen's also. The girls and Ty were having an absolute blast playing out on the grass with their Uncles. Here they are trying to see if they can tackle Uncle Daniel:


Daniel would spin around with Ty and then put him down on the ground. We just laughed and laughed watching him while he was dizzy. As I write this, I sound like the meanest mom in the world to find humor at my son's expense! But really, Ty LOVED it. Then he would try to spin himself on the ground, it was absolutely hilarious:

Whilst Jacob watched cow shows, I thoroughly enjoyed a few days with my mom. She took a day off from being librarian to spend with me- what a treat! My sister was even able to come up for a night to hang out with the girls. We did lunch and just loved chatting with each other. My sister had to head back home for a shift at work, so we decided to keep Claire with us for the next few days at Grandma's. The the girls loved playing with each other, it was so fun they had some time together. It certainly doesn't happen often enough. I must have been on vacation from taking pictures, because I didn't end up with any of the girls.

The girls decided they wanted to be angels for Halloween. I wasn't sure how I was going to pull this one off, but many thanks to my talented mom, the girls now have some darling angel costumes to wear for Halloween. Here she is sewing away. I have to be perfectly honest here- my contribution was cutting strings. I am not a master sewer.


And here is Grandpa Kerry having some manly bonding with Ty:


"Ty, can you give Grandpa kisses?"
Aaah, so sweet!

We headed home so I could make it back to spend the day with a family in our ward who was going through the temple for the first time. It was such an AMAZING day. I was so glad I didn't miss it. I was able to join them when they were all sealed together as a family. Words don't describe the feeling in the room. Watching their three young children walk in the sealing room all dressed in white was a scene I will likely never forget. They truly looked like little angels. How amazing it is to be able to participate in ordinances that bind us together forever. The promises and blessings in the temple never cease to absolutely astound and amaze me. Thank goodness for opportunities to return and remember all the incredible things the Lord has in store for us. It reminds me of the picture of the Savior knocking at the door that has no handle. He has so much to offer, all we have to do is open the door.

The only down side of the day was Jacob wasn't by my side. He was pretty bummed he was out of town and missed it. Needless to say, we were all VERY glad when daddy came home.

Grandpa Floyd

Still trying to catch up.....

I can't miss out on dedicating a post to Jacob's Grandpa Floyd Israelsen who passed away last month.

Jacob grew up working daily on the farm with his Grandpa. Those are some of Jacob's most treasured memories. He had such a great love and respect for Grandpa, and it wasn't too long after joining the family that I too developed a soft spot for Grandpa. He was always so kind and loving to me and made me feel like I had been in the family forever. You always felt special around Grandpa and he always seemed to slip in a compliment that made you smile.

Saying goodbye to Grandpa was an especially tough one for my Jacob. We knew when the day came it would be difficult. However, when we think of the reunion Grandpa had when he reached the other side, the tears of sadness turned to tears of absolute amazement and joy. During his lifetime, Grandpa buried two wives and 5 babies- the thought of which absolutely breaks my heart. He was never a man of great material goods, but I have no doubt he has built an incredible reserve of "treasures in heaven." Now it's our job to live up to the great heritage left behind and be ready to meet him again when our turn comes to see what treasures we've stored up for ourselves on the other side. Thank you Grandpa for all you've done and the thousands of lives you have touched.

Here is Grandpa with Kenna as a baby:


And with Allie:


And a four generation picture when we blessed Ty:


It couldn't have been a more beautiful day for the funeral. The sun was shining and it was the perfect temperature. The graveside service was done at the Logan Cemetery.



Many thanks to my mom, Ty man got to stay at Grandma and Grandpa Otte's house and have a great nap and play his little heart out. That meant the rest of us could enjoy the day and time with family without chasing a very active little one-year-old. It ended up being a fairly long day and Ty would have never lasted. The girls, however, were super. Many thanks to a very special friend of Uncle Karl's (who we finally got to meet and just thoroughly enjoy) the girls got some paper airplanes to throw around:



Speaking of Karl and his "friend," here they are. I can't get over how much they look alike. She looks like a sister!


We love Grandma and Grandpa Israelsen!


The girls LOVED playing with cousin Olivia:



The ever-handsome Uncle Ross with cousin Olivia:


And the dashing Uncle Benson with cousin Kylie. I have to throw in a word for sweet little Kylie girl. This lady just celebrated her first birthday. She is a beautiful, healthy, happy little girl. You would never know that just one year ago she was born at 28 weeks gestation and was weighed pretty much in ounces. We can't get over what an amazing year she's had and the progress she's made. She will probably actually beat Ty when it comes to walking. Way to go Kylie!


The much-loved Aunt Marlene:
And I of course have to put a good word in for all our other Aunts and Uncles who, for who-knows-what-reason, didn't make it in my pictures.

My joy, happiness, and my whole world (minus Ty guy, of course):


The entire Clark Israelsen Clan (with honorable mention to Hermana Maria who is serving so dutifully in Argentina, and Ty once again). We hate to brag, but, well, we are one good-lookin' bunch!


Here is Grandpa Clark in the middle surrounded by his siblings who all, in one way or another, contributed to a beautiful funeral:


It's an honor to have married into such a wonderful family. Thanks to you all! Especially thanks to Grandpa Floyd for setting the bar high, and giving us the love to let us know we can definitely make it.

So. Far. Behind.

Is this California trip ever going to end?! I had a ton of fun, but blogging about it sure takes a lot of work. I know, I know, I will be so grateful I wrote it all down to remember it all.

But in the meantime we have all sorts of great things I need to catch up on. Like:

Allie's first day of preschool! She was so excited for her big day. The excitement hasn't ended- she loves going to preschool.


The ensemble is complete with a Tinkerbell backpack:


While we're on the subject of Allie, how about a big round of applause for Allie's exceptional bike skills! Miss Allie decided to have Dad take off her training wheels. This little lady doesn't waste any time. It took her maybe 15-20 minutes and she was up and running... er- peddling. Way to go Allie Rae! I would have a cute little picture of her first ride to add, but it got erased. Bummer.

Okay, okay, now for our LAST day of vacation.

DISNEY'S CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE PARK:

I'm not gonna lie. By the time our last day of vacation rolled around I was pooped. I think all of us were getting vacationed out. We all were feeling the tired. But, we still made our way around the park for one last day and had lots of fun.

We started off the morning with Ariel's Undersea Adventure ride. It was sooooo nice to walk right up and get right on. Even Ty got to come. Here is another AWESOME picture of Jacob (poor guy, since I do the posts he just has to endure me). This picture is perfect for another great thought bubble moment. It's like he's clenching his teeth saying, "Can we please just throw the camera out the window and get on with this?!" Of course he wasn't thinking that, but it seriously goes great with the picture!


A fun ride:




We loved the Soarin' Over California ride. It's as though your actually flying above the different landscapes of California, complete with smells that spray out.


We attempted the Monster's Inc. ride but just as we were walking in they had some "technical issues."


Fortunately later in the day we did make it on the ride:


And just as we came in to finish the ride they once again had to shut it down for "technical issues." So here we sit for about 5-10 minutes until we can get off the ride. At least we managed to get through the whole ride before it quit. I'm afraid some people were stuck in Monstropolis for a while.


The whole Monster Clan:


Next we hit A Bug's Land where we rode Tuck -n- Roll's little bumper car things:


And rode on Heimlich's Chew Chew Train:


Ty and Mommy!


Over at the Paradise Pier we rode on King Triton's Carousel. Fortunately I wasn't sick today so I could try to enjoy it:


Smile Allie! (Kenna was a bit on the grumpy side so didn't make it in this pic)


In our meanderings, we also got to watch a little Monster's, Inc. sidewalk show. The girls didn't necessarily appreciate the large, bright, fuzzy monsters. Allie tried to stay as far away as possible:



The day most definitely would not be complete without the Mickey ice cream bars!


We decided to get in line to watch the Aladdin Musical. I was a bit worried how Ty would do. He was pretty squirmy but did so-so. Fortunately it was only about 45 minutes. We at least made it through the whole show without having to leave, that's a plus! I was excited for the girls to see a little musical on stage. The actors did a pretty good job, it was cute. It was just the condensed version of the movie. They even had a great fly system and the magic carpet flew above us.

Here we are waiting for it to start. Can you tell Kenna is a bit on the tired side? At least Allie is happy to be there!




The afternoon demanded we go back to the hotel for a nap. It's just how it had to be. And really, of all the things to do at Disneyland, all Ty really needs is a balloon. Go figure.


Before we left on our trip, I tried to prepare against the girls wanting absolutely everything they saw and begging to no end for it. So, in the weeks leading up to Disneyland, the girls each worked hard to try and earn some money they could spend at the parks. Kenna was just dying to get a princess dress, but at $65 bucks a shot (yes, ludicrous) that was a pill I just couldn't swallow. So, they finally decided they would each get a new princess doll. They were SO excited to pick out their dolls. Kenna opted for Rapunzel and Allie got Sleeping Beauty. These two were in heaven, it was darling. Here they are showing off the new goods:
We just won't talk about all the long, scraggly Rapunzel hair we keep finding all over the house.

The day ended with an eternal wait for the "World of Color" show they put on above the water at Paradise Pier. It has really cool special effects and got really good reviews, so I figured we didn't want to miss it. Well, to sum it all up- despite going early in the morning to get a pass for a good seating area, and despite going early to find a good place in said seating area, I think we ended up with the worst spot. Ever. Needless to say we didn't get to see a whole lot and no one really enjoyed it. Not to mention it was a hassle trying to keep Ty entertained. I really wish we would have just done more rides. Once again, OH WELL! Lesson learned!

Jacob trying to keep Ty entertained:


The girls trying to keep each other entertained:


And of course one last shot before we call it a night and head back to the hotel for our last night of vacation:


THE END.

All in all it was SUCH a wonderful trip. Another great set of memories. Now on to real life again!