Deep Thinker

Adam constantly comes to me with ideas that he's clearly been mulling around in his head for a while.

What if we only saw the color of our eyes? Everything I see would be hazel, but everything you see would be blue!

What if my whole life is a dream?

What if no more babies came to the earth?

I think I know where heaven is.  It's out of our galaxy.

There is so much about him that proves that he is very much my son.

Mom, I think we should dust these lights.  They're looking kind of hairy!

And he's always aware of others- Mom, you're so busy.  You always have some kind of work to do for everyone.  

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Knowing that we would only have a few weeks of Christmas celebration in our home before we start traveling for the holidays, we started hauling out the holly the day after we returned from our trip.

The kids were especially thrilled to pull out all of their favorite ornaments and decorate the tree.

 Miraculously, we've only had one broken so far this year.  That is a new record.  (I originally wrote that two weeks ago- we're up to our traditional three broken ornaments now.)

I officially (and temporarily) suspended the traditional cocoa-in-front-of-the-newly-decorated-tree photo this year.  It's one of my most favorite traditions, but also one of the silliest feats you could try to accomplish with 8 errant elbows and knees knocking the mugs of hot cocoa around.  So this year we went with cocoa at the table, then a picture at the tree.  And it was probably our best picture yet.

The little details of Christmas are just as magical as ever.

Try as I might to stay out of the stores, I feel like the last two weeks have been a mad dash to mail packages, wrap gifts, get class party supplies, and prepare for our upcoming trip (and the trips within the trip!), as well as go caroling with the youth at our church and try to spread a bit of holiday cheer here and there through gifts and goodies delivered, toys and clothes donated.  I'm so thankful that Jason was such a good sport about staying with the kids each night while I dashed around.  I got to squeeze in a bit of one-on-one time here and there, as well!

Emma and I got to attend Adam's preschool Christmas program.  He did great!  He sang all of the songs and did all of the motions with gusto- a great improvement from last year, when he was clearly so bored with the very somber program that he decided to liven things up by pretending to fall off the risers- repeatedly- much to the amusement of his classmates and the irritation of his teachers.  Switching to a different preschool in January was one of the best things we've done this year.  He absolutely loves preschool now. 

When I worked at W.W. Clyde a huge and beautiful poinsettia (along with a frozen turkey!) was delivered to every employee each Christmas.  I miss that.  I love the bright red leaves, and decided we needed one in our home this season.

 This little guy is enchanted by the Christmas tree.  This is one of those years when our tree is only decorated the top two-thirds of the way up.

My favorite Christmas moment this year came early in the morning.  I took a bright-eyed Noah downstairs, turned on the Christmas tree lights and the fire, and snuggled up with him on the couch.  One by one, each of the other kids staggered downstairs and found a place on or around the couch with us, where we all sat, mesmerized by the fire, and tried to stay warm for just a bit longer.  Everyone was still half-asleep and far more still than they are during the day, and I loved watching the room change from dark navy to light blue to a hint of orange and pink as the sun crept up for the day.  

 So much Christmas magic happens around the fire, the tree, and the stories.  

Adam can read the stories to himself this year, which has opened up a whole new world of delight.

One night we read "The Polar Express" in our jammies, then piled into our own train and drove around to look at the Christmas lights.  We handed out candy cane awards to our favorite displays on our street.  Each kid got to select their own favorite and deliver it to it's recipient.

Another night we sipped eggnog and mint chocolate milk in front of the tree while Leah read us a captivating rendition of "How The Grinch Stole Christmas", complete with a hilarious Grinchy voice.

There is something so magical about the Christmas season.  The carols and the lights and all of the symbols that are the constant reminders of our Savior truly do make it the most wonderful time of the year. 

Thanksgiving In Nauvoo

For Thanksgiving this year we we met up with two of our dearest graduate school family friends from Indiana in Nauvoo.  Miraculously none of us had plans to travel for the holiday, so we decided to rent a big house and spend the weekend together.  And it was fabulous!  We did a ton of planning and preparing ahead of time, so Thanksgiving Day was actually quite restful, food-wise.  And there was always plenty of food to choose from.  We had two turkeys, 8 or 9 dozen rolls, 7 pies, and as many variations on fruit, veggie and green salads you could think of, and the leftovers were awesome.

We shared our chocolate Thanksgiving turkey tradition with everyone, which kicked the day of feasting off right.  

Later in the morning the Davis's shared one of their Thanksgiving Day traditions with everyone- making turkey cookies!  The dads enjoyed that just as much as the kids.

There were plenty of games and crafts and friends to go around for the whole weekend, and I honestly don't think I heard a complaint from any one of my kids while we were there.

Rachael summed up our Friday (and the whole trip!) perfectly on her blog.  This is what she said-

On Friday we were pretty low-key. The girls went to the temple together in the morning and the guys went to the temple together in the evening. This was one of my very favorite parts--we sat together in the Celestial Room for about an hour after our session and just had this wonderful heart-to-heart together. It was a really precious time for me and I am so grateful for the opportunity to have had it!

Later that evening we took the kiddos on a walk/snow adventure; they all came back in totally soaked and we made dinner and then thought hmm, we need to occupy them for another hour or so until the daddies are back to help get these 14 kids into pajamas! So when the guys came back we were all in the middle of this very exciting obstacle course that we'd made up on the spot (after a rousing game of animal charades; I think I was a frog at one point) that had elaborate things like, "run across the basement with a pumpkin between your knees." Totally cheesy but the kids LOVED it; we finished up the night with a rhyming-clue scavenger hunt for popcorn and Rolos (thanks to Melanie's quick thinking on writing clues!)

Noah got his own mini-suite in our closet and slept like a pro the entire weekend.  He ate more than his fair share of chocolate and only sobbed the first time a stranger picked him up.  He had a fun time crawling around and eating all of the crumbs the bigger kids left behind.  He didn't mind the chocolate, either.

Emma was her usual charming self and found a happy friend in Kate, a mature but not too cool to play with a three-year-old sweetie that loved being the big sister instead of the usual third.  They are both middle kids and loved having each other to giggle and play with when they couldn't quite keep up with the bigger girls. 

They didn't realize it, but Adam and Isaac picked up right where they left off 18 months ago when we moved from Indiana.  Those boys are two peas in the cutest pod there ever was.  They spent the weekend playing K'nex, Sorry and flying paper airplanes down from the second story landing.  

Leah was really nervous about spending the holiday with virtual strangers (it's so sad that kids forget good friends and memories so quickly!) and she spent most of the trip there worrying about whether the house might be too big or too loud.  She even scouted out an "alone place" that she could retreat to when she wanted to get away from everyone.  That apprehension disappeared early on Thanksgiving morning, and she spent the rest of the weekend having a wonderful time with her two "new" best friends Eva and Juliet.  As soon as we got home she sat down and penned a letter to each of them (which I didn't get the chance to read before she sealed the envelopes) in hopes of maintaining a "long distance" friendship.

The husbands spent most of their time looking like this- 

holding a child and waiting for the wives to wrap up our latest conversation.  Oh, the conversations were so fun.  The men were such sports- all fantastic fun with the kids and so willing to help with the endless supply of dirty dishes and abandoned crafting projects strewn all over the house.  Jason commented to me at one point that he was amazed at just how much cooking and cleaning and cooking and cleaning we were doing.  It just felt like everyday life to me, only far, far better because it was timed shared with other adults.  No text or email or even phone call can replace the joy that comes from face-to-face conversations with dear friends.

We put all 14 of the kids to bed promptly by 8:00 each night, then spent the rest of the evening and into the early hours of the morning talking and laughing, playing games, sipping on mulled cider and eating so much delicious food.  The entire weekend was like a slumber party for the kids and the adults.

After we cleaned up (again!) and packed up on Saturday, we headed down to Old Nauvoo.  It was the first time our family has been there, and it was great to be there with knowledgeable experts.  They led us right to the highlights of the city- the Family Living Center, the bakery, the blacksmith, and the schoolhouse (which we unknowingly broke into, much to the surprise of the sweet elderly volunteers).

And got to take a wagon ride!  

After that we headed back to the temple for some pictures and good-byes.  It was nice to say "see you soon" and know that we really meant it.  Good-byes aren't forever with friends like these!

Our family wanted to go down to the shore of the Mississippi River before we left, and we got there at just the right time.  It was a perfect end to our visit, and very sobering to think of the many hardships that our ancestors faced as pioneers being driven from the beautiful city of Nauvoo into the wild frontier.

But the Lord had very amazing things in store for them, just like He does for all of us.  Moving to Indiana was a very hard thing for our little family to do, and I never would have guessed how blessed our lives would be as a result of it.  One great blessing of it was the friendships we gained while we were there.  Jason and Tyler used to be early-morning racquetball buddies, and he and Neil have a history of pelting small woodland creatures with rocks.  Andrea and I worked together in the Relief Society presidency, and she was my first jogging partner, then later my walking partner when we were both too pregnant to run anymore.  Andrea  and Rachael taught me to not be afraid of yeast.  I still use Andrea's whole wheat bread recipe to this day.  And Rachael has been my go-to inspiration for finding ways to create meaningful relationships with other women.  She and Andrea have blessed my life in so many ways, and we couldn't have asked for a better way to celebrate the holiday of giving thanks than with such great families.

Happy Birthday Jason!

 The kids were in charge of Jason's birthday presents this year.  Emma wanted to give Daddy a bag of peanut M&Ms.  She hinted at them at dinner the night before.

"It's something you love that you eat and it has letters on it."  She was so excited about it.

Leah and Adam designed and created a special birthday t-shirt.  The front says "Dade is 34 thumbs up!"  The back says "You are #1"

I love Jason because he wore it to work... or at least out the door.

I sent him to get a massage at 2:00 in the afternoon.

We ate Cheesecake Factory birthday cheesecake.  It was a delicious choice.

We listed off things that we love about Jason.  I jotted down a few of them.  He isn't afraid to do hard things.  He is funny.  He wrestles with me (Adam said this at least three times).  He gives me kisses.  He has handsome salt and pepper-ish hair.  He changes poopy diapers.  He is nice.  He gives good surprises.  I like the way he looks.  He helps Noah when it's time to go to sleep.  He loves me.

We had the traditional hidden birthday presents scavenger hunt, complete with clues.

We went on a date to a delicious upscale Mexican restaurant in Des Moines.  I love that little city.

I've never met a man who works so hard, but the party starts when Daddy gets home every night.  He puts his work aside, plays with the kids, helps with the house, and loves us all.  He makes it awfully easy for us to love him.

Excuses

I have four kids now.

It's the holidays.

And we're traveling for the holidays.  And Leah's getting baptized.  And we're going on a vacation.

I am busy with church callings and school volunteer work.

I don't sit down at my computer as much as I used to, now that I have an iPhone.

Whatever the excuse, blogging has dropped lower on my to-do list than it's been for a long time.  I used to make more time for blogging.  I used to compose posts in my head, let the ideas formulate for a few days or weeks or even months before I would hit publish.  I used to feel a bit panicky when I would let too many sweet moments or big milestones or thought provoking ideas pass without recording them on the blog.  I still feel that way sometimes, but mostly I'm just spending more time living those moments and milestones and less time recording them.

But blogging is like paying it forward to my future self.  If I take the time to record the memories now, I can enjoy them for years into the future.  And I already know I'll need all the help I can get because I have a horrible memory.

So for tonight, I'll start with tonight.  With the little things that I don't want to forget.  Like listening to The Trans Siberian's Carol of the Bells or Leroy Anderson's Sleigh Ride and giggling over the fact that a trumpet could sound like so much like a horse.  And trying to dance like Lord of the Dance and wondering just how to make a broom sound as neat as it does in Stomp.  And the way Adam looked at me with wide eyes after listening to the story told in "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" and asking me if that really ever happened.

And laughing and laughing at these two, who happily re-enacted a game they played in the store this morning.

And there are just a few other little things that I don't want to forget.  Like this sweet little sugar and the way his hair always floofs up.

And the day that Leah, Emma and I went shopping in Des Moines.  Emma was convinced that we were at the Mall of America again, and all her dreams came true as we rode up and down the escalator.  She was overcome with happiness and passed out on the way home.  Leah acted as a kind shoulder to rest on.

 Jason gave Adam the ultimate Sunday style- a faux-hawk that didn't lay down for three days!

I couldn't find Noah's coat all week so he got to wear one of Emma's.

 The day we built a Little People Universe.

This scowl.  I don't have any idea where she gets it.

 This delicious afternoon snack.

 The day Adam and I sat in front of the fire and pored over Lego Jr. magazines.

Or all the many, many moments that not pictured.  Like the way that Jason and I always kneel down to pray at the end of the day and wind up talking and laughing and musing about the happenings of our days for way too long, all the while telling each other that we really should just go to bed.

It's all about the little things.  And I don't want to forget.