Happy Day to Me!

Holy helpful husband batman! My Marky took over last night around 11 pm and stayed up/tended Adi until 7 AM this morning. The sleep was woooonderful despite my nightmares! Am I the luckiest girl in the world or what?!

Milestones!

Tuesday was a big day! Adi lost her little umbilical cord. The Doc said around day 10 she should lose it so Dayton has been counting down and sure enough the Doc nailed it on the nose! Day 10 hit and off came the cord! Thank goodness for Dayton's sake and no, we're not saving it! :)

Tuesday was an even bigger day for Dayton as he had his frist day of first grade! He woke up at 7 am, got showered, dressed, ate breakfast and took pics. We hopped in the car by 7:55 and arrived at school by 8:15 AM. On the way he asked me not to get out of the car with him; however, once we arrived it was sheer chaos and he changed his mind! There were a bazillion kids with the tearful Moms accompanying them and no, I was not one of them but I was the only Mom in her pajamas!

D was brave and was filled with excitement. It was a little strange for me simple because he it was first grade but I am proud of him and so pleased that he handled it all so well! He's such a good kid (most of the time!) and it's crazy to see my baby grow up so fast!
Ellie was a little distraught but made sure she wished him "gratulations, Dayton" and told him she loved him before he left! Now she's home with me and Adi Cakes until I go back to work.

On the B Side: I absolutely love being a Mom! There are some crazy proud moments as well as those heart aching cry my guts out ones. Somehow things always work out and we all move forward together and I can't help but feel so blessed!

Birthday Boys

Roses are Red

Violets are Blue

I know you think you're strong Nordic stock

But I don't believe you! Happy Birthday, Popsicle! We sure do love you! Thanks for sticking around ;)

and for my Jazzy...

Roses are Red

Violets are Neat

No matter how cute your wife is

You still have rubber feet!

Happy Birthday, little brother! You are officially older than dirt!

On the B Side: I am incredibly blessed to have both my Dad (who has been my best friend for forever and a day!) and my Brother (who has continually been my hero and saved the day on far too many occasions). Happy Birthday to two of my favorite Leos!

Manic Monday

I had a great life growing up in the-middle-of-no-where-rural Pennsylvania. One of my favorite things were the summer rain storms. The humidity was always significant but we didn't mind simply because we didn't know any different.

The summer rain storms often were accompanied by lightening and thunder and brought a feeling of excitement to our little lives. We loved being in the house and would travel window to window under our favorite blankies (Jazzy butt do you remember this?). When we would get really brave we would race out the back door, down the stone path on the North side of our home in between the tall Birch trees and across the once stone filled alley to my Grandparents home. Mommom would always give us the dickens for venturing outside in the storm but again there was something so exciting and refreshing about it

After the storm our driveway which was always seemingly flat contained a series of familiar small warm puddles. They were always good for stomping or riding our bikes through (Huffies with big 'ol banana seats...I KNOW you remember these Jazzy!)

I loved the smell of the storm as it moved in and with my bedroom windows next to the greenhouse I could always hear the rhythm of the rain as it fell. I loved to leave the window open for this reason. We could always tell how hard it was raining by watching the drops fall into the pool.

We don't have many storms like this in the dry Utah heat. Even if we did I doubt it would elicit the same warm feelings and I doubt that I would take the opportunity to enjoy it as I once did. Forget about stopping to smell the roses. I think we all need to take time to enjoy the storm!

On the B Side: Heaven knows that there are many "storms" that wage in our grown up lives. These storms seem far less enjoyable and often feel like they may never pass. Despite the turbulance created there is always some good to be had even when it feels like the rainbow may never come. The concept of this kind of storm reminds me of a passage that I hang onto and remind myself of often, "When dark clouds of trouble hang o'er thee there is hope shining brightly".

Rodney Copperbottom Style

"Robots" is one of my all time favorite children's movies. I love that Rodney's chief aspiration is to make the world a better place. The theme expressed in this movie over and over again is "See a Need, Fill a Need"

See a need, fill a need. It's such a simple concept and I can't tell you how many countless times I have witnessed this is action over this past week. While I am not comfortable asking for help (who is?) and even more than that I'm fairly certain that I couldn't even tell you what our needs are/were. A big warm slice of humble pie has been served to me.

At the risk of not mentioning all of the kindness that we have experienced and all of the needs that were seen and filled I will share the following in no particular order;

Our Ward has been awesome and I feel so undeserving given that we do not know these people. I have repeatedly told the Ward Missionaries, RS and Primary that all is well but they have insisted upon caring for us and it's made me realize these things;

A) just how valuable service is
B) it's okay to need help
C) it's okay to accept help
D) people help because they want to
E) you don't have to know people to help them
F) Rodney was definitely on to something

There's my darling SIL, Micci. She and Jazz have been awesome and I'm trying not to feel bad about it. Micci is an amazing cook and without any prompting she has put together not one but now two tasty meals to feed my little family. Again, if someone asked or if someone was waiting on me to ask for help the result would have been the same. My thoughts were that we're really just fine. While 'just fine' is functional I've come to realize that sometimes more really is more so thank you Mic and Jazz for your kindness because it has taken a huge burden off of me.

My Mom is yet another testament of this principle. Several days this week she proactively made arrangements to take the kids and then called again this morning to make plans. In my mind I didn't think it was necessary and hated the idea of putting her out; however, she wants to help and has helped tremendously. I can't begin to tell you what a blessing this has been and I would have had no idea how much I really needed that if she didn't perceive and fill that need. The kids always enjoy their time with her and it gave me a break and just made me even more thankful.

The phone calls, emails and messages from friends has been a crazy source of supoort that I didn't realize would mean so much. It's odd to me that we now have 4 kids and to be honest I thought I could handle it. While I have held my own I definitely underestimated that which was to come. I've had a fair amount of emotional struggles this week some of each I anticipated and some of which have caught me unaware. The outpouring of love has made me feel more capable and definitely provided the comfort and encouragement I didn't know I needed.

On the B Side: This week has made me realize the importance of seeing the needs of others and offering quiet service to help fill those needs. It's so easy to get caught up in our own lives and overlook what small acts of service could really go a long way in the life of another. I've also realized all over again that I just can't do everything.

The quesiton that keeps ruminating in my mind is this, who leaves their family, drives many hours in the middle of the night to help a friend at the drop of a hat? Her name is Clancy and she is wonderful! Thanks to all (and there are many) who have seen my needs and quietly stepped in this week! More than the service you have provided comes a renewed understanding and deeper compassion within myself. Thank you for this invaluable gift.