Big Helpers

What do you do when Leah, Baby Stella, and Lamby all want to help Mom vacuum? Bring them along for the ride!

Where Am I?

Have I ever told you about my family? I love my family. We are a tight-knit bunch of crazies that are all just perfect for each other. I have a mom and a dad (as so many of us do), two sisters and two brothers, a sister-in-law, a brother-in-law, one handsome little nephew and three beautiful little nieces. We have been though everything together. Many, many moves as we were growing up in the Army, many awesome vacations, and lots of great memories in between.

I love my family because we do things like tea parties at the Grand America, horseback riding at Bear Lake, girls trips, guys trips, theater events, wilderness hikes and treasure hunts, Christmas nativities,

and singing around the piano.

But we're also there for each other when it matters the most- like at births,

weddings, birthdays, holidays, graduations,

and all the days that get us from one adventure to the next... we love each other, we're here for each other, we're the Henscheids! No goombas!

Easter Sunday II

Sunday afternoon was the best part of all- the Easter Egg Hunt! We had been practicing all week, and it paid off! Leah did a great job finding lots of eggs, and was even able to keep up with her cousins! We flew kites, played on the swings, and had a great dinner. What more can I say? Grandma's house is the best!

Easter Sunday

Sunday was even better. The Easter bunny visited our home, and Leah loved checking out all of her loot- and eating LOTS of candy!

Easter Saturday!

What a great weekend! Easter was so much fun- we celebrated all day Saturday- making cookies, dyeing eggs, and participating in the Downtown Provo Shop Hop.
We even visited the Easter Bunny, and I'm pretty sure Leah has been scarred for life. Like Jason said, though, at least we didn't pay $15 for a picture that turned out like this-

We Did It!!!

Today was the last day of Leah's swim class. It was an 8-class course, and I thought we would never make it to the end. Leah is fairly brave and confident, so I was surprised to see how timid and uncomfortable she was in swim class. But each week she screamed less and kick-kick-kicked a little more. Those of you who listened to my lamentations about the whole experience know how proud I am that we finished the class!

Here's Leah with our Certificate of Achievement. She's enjoying her twice-weekly bribe to get through the class- Baby Einstein- and couldn't be bothered with posing for pictures.

Now we're off to make dinner- look out!

St. Paddy's Day

We started this great holiday (okay, I actually don't know anything about it past wearing green or getting pinched really hard) off with a bang- green clover-shaped pancakes! I guess they really just looked like green blobs, but they were yummy! Then we rocked out to Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance, pretending to know the Irish Jig and all dressed up in our green- no pinching here! Aren't holidays much more fun when you've got kids to celebrate with?

A new friend

Leah loves monkeys- she loves to scratch herself and say "Ooh-ooh, aah-aah" whenever she sees one. Yesterday she picked this one out as a new friend to bring home. It's a backpack/harness, and she's so cute with it on! His "tail" is actually a leash to keep her close by when needed, but I'm not sure how often we'll use the feature. I'm a little torn over the idea of using a leash to keep Leah out of harm's way... I guess in certain situations it could be handy. Either way, they are a pretty cute team!

And another cute picture of Leah enjoying her favorite pasttime.

If I were a rich girl...

It seems highly unfair to my hardworking husband that I'm posting this right after he gave me the best birthday present ever, but I've seen a few posts on my friends blogs (Bea and Christa, I'm looking at you) that have given me reason for some introspection into what I would spend money on if money were no issue. So, just for fun and not at all because I'm feeling spendy (even though our tax refund did just make it's appearance in our bank account) here are a few...
First up, a bed skirt. That's right. We have a queen-sized flat sheet on our box spring instead of bed skirt. It just found it's home there one day after we got married and hasn't moved yet.

Next up, garbage bags. We use old Wal-Mart bags in our trash cans instead of buying trash bags, and I know it drives my mom batty... Some day, Mom!
Next, and a little more dreamy- a backyard. I would give anything for a fence, my own grass, a swing set and the ability to send my little lady out to play without worrying about what kind of big dog or bully might knock her over. Some day, I just know it!

Even a little more dreamy- a piano. I love to play, but let's be honest. Pounding the keys after church while someone is trying to conduct a meeting in the next room over isn't exactly inspirational. I was raised on a Kawai, and I will raise my children on one, too. (Five year anniversary, right, hubby?;)

And finally, a Disney Cruise! I don't think college students are supposed to go on cruises, but if money were no issue, I can promise you that I'd be on this one!

And as a little editor's note, I have to say that I'm pretty grateful that these are the best things that I can come up with. I have shoes on my feet and food in my belly and a roof over my head... isn't that a song I've heard somewhere? Anyway, I love my life and can't complain much with a list like this!

And the winner is...

A Kitchen Aid! I was so shocked- Jason had convinced me there was no way I was getting one anytime in this decade. But with a little help from his sisters (thanks again, girls!), a lot of patience and a great deal on amazon.com, I am the proud owner of a new Kitchen Aid! As a full-fledged housewife, I hereby pledge to do my duty, to my husband and my daughter, to make the most delicious, never-before-attempted recipes and amazing concoctions that could previously only be dreamt of... uncharted territory that can finally be conquered with 325 watts of pure mixing power. Look out, Martha!



Can you tell Jason was proud of his surprise? And the Kitchen Aid was just the beginning! We spent the afternoon in Salt Lake. We had a picnic- it was just cold enough out that we only stayed long enough to scarf down our lunch and take a few pictures. Then we headed over to the children's museum at the Gateway. There wasn't a ton of stuff that Leah could do- mostly just avoid getting knocked down by bigger kids- but we had fun playing dress-ups, riding a horse and painting with watercolors.

Back at home, we made cupcakes (de-lish, thanks to the Kitchen Aid) and tried to frost them faster than Leah could eat them. Jason was on double duty for taking the picture and delivering the birthday cupcake. Then, after Leah was in bed for the night, Jason and I headed over to Magleby's Grill and Oyster Bar for a tasty dinner and some great conversation. Thanks so much to everyone who thought of me on my birthday- it was a great one!

Happy Birthday Melanie!

Hi everyone, this is Jason. Today I'm making a rare guest appearance on the blog because it's Melanie's Birthday! It's been a great year and I'm so grateful for everything that Melanie does for our family. She's great and I hope she has a fantastic birthday today. Here are some pics of previous birthdays for you to enjoy.

Celebrate Melanie Week

My birthday is this Saturday, and it is tradition in our family to have "Celebrate Melanie Week". Basically this means that I can ask for things that I wouldn't otherwise get away with and Jason will say yes in light of the season. A few examples thus far...

"What? That's Leah's 4th poopy diaper today? Will you change this one, too?"

"Can I go to lunch at the Cheesecake Factory in Salt Lake without you? I'll bring you a slice of cheesecake?"

"Will you do all of the dishes today? And take out the trash? And put Leah to bed?"

I don't think I've abused the holiday too much, yet. We've still got two days to go, though!

And the big question is, Jason has told me that I am getting one present for my birthday. ONE! Not that our gift limit is astronomical, but this must be one heck of a present for him to put all of his (my!) gifts in one basket! I love being surprised so I don't really want to figure it out, but I thought I'd root around for some ideas (see the poll to your right). If you have other ideas, feel free to comment here. I'm so excited to find out what it is! Stay tuned to find out!

Editors note: Jason has already assured me that the BIG ONE is none of the presents that I had listed on the poll before- mainly because the birthday budget isn't that big and Jason says I'm smoking something if I think he can get a KitchenAid for any less than $100. (shoot) So, I visited redenvelope.com for some lovely suggestions that are more reasonable (although less practical), and adjusted the poll accordingly. Thanks to those that voted already!

And in case you can't figure out why Leah is such a midget in this picture, it's my birthday last year. She was sick and didn't really give a hoot that it was my birthday, so I got a great introduction into birthday-as-a-mom... I still loved it, though!

The Big "N"- Addendum

With a little help from Jason, we got a video of Leah saying "no". You can totally tell it was staged, and you can see what a proud parent I am. I just love how sweet and softly the "no" comes out- for now anyway!

The Big "N"

In an attempt to alleviate the silence that tends to penetrate moments of our days, I have always carried on one-sided conversations with Leah. I'm sure all of you moms know what I'm talking about- "Let's go read some books." "It's time for a nap." "Let's put your shoes on." Since Leah has started talking, it's been much more interesting getting things done around here.

Me: "How about string cheese for a snack?"

Leah: (after a moment of contemplation) "...No..."

Me: ??? "Okay, how about some grapes?"

Leah: (another moment of contemplation) "...No..."

Me: "Ummm, how about pretzel sticks?"

Leah: (A brief pause)...

Me: "Okay! Pretzel sticks it is!"

I wasn't really asking for her opinion in the first place, but now that she can respond, I guess I'll have to be more careful about what I'm saying!

I'm grateful for every new word she says- it brings me that much closer to understanding what is going on in her little head!

Jason's Man Blog

Even though we started this blog as a family blog- and it still is, mostly- Jason has decided to start his own blog. One that provides a little more testosterone than this one. So check it out, or just tell your husband about it. Chances are, he needs a little testosterone, too.

http://www.jasonsmanblog.blogspot.com/

Friday Night Entertainment

Leah provided our Friday night entertainment with two of her favorite pasttimes- putting on "necklaces" and pretending to sneeze.