It's The Little Things

Just a little list of things I am so grateful for today...

1. This awesome lady (my MIL) who is so willing to share her amazing talents.

2. Friends who will listen to even your dumbest problems without judgment, and who love you in spite of your many flaws.

3. Gorgeous weather!

4. A Savior who paid the ultimate sacrifice, and who taught us how to truly forgive. Who helped me to be able to use that forgiveness in my life.

5. The blessing of comfort.

6. This amazing man who gives and gives, never expecting anything in return.

7. The gift of being a mother to these sweet two little girls.

A Post About Nothing

My husband told me that I should take a picture of my kitchen and put it at the top of this post, just to show you what kind of week we've had. I thought about it for about a millisecond then decided that it would be way too humiliating. :) It just was one of those weeks where the mess piled up little by little and before I knew it, it had taken over. It was so bad that I didn't even know where to start. So I just kept putting it off... This week felt like it would never end, but it all just runs together in one big blur. Luckily the girls were pretty well behaved so I didn't lose it completely! Running Man has been crazy busy with school/clinic/more school/more clinic/stupid paperwork/his calling...and so on. I'm lucky to have a husband that is so hands on with the parenting, and with helping around the house. So it a HUGE change when he isn't around as much. The weather was pretty gorgeous so we got to spend a lot of time outside which was another lifesaver.
To add to the mayhem I just had the constant feeling that I needed to be in Utah. Not such a huge change, but this week it was especially hard to ignore that feeling. And then my parents basement flooded. Not just a little, but a ton of flooding. It completely ruined the family room they had redone only a few years ago. My mom's dream room. She had turned it into her own little movie theater. I wish I had some pics to show you how cute it was. It was so hard to listen to the stress in her voice and know that I couldn't do a stinking thing to help her. And to show you how amazing she really is, she was more concerned with the things I have been going through lately in my life, and trying to find ways to help me. It was a true testament of how unselfish a mother's love can be, and how it never goes away. Does that make sense?

Running Man gets to take Banana to school with him sometimes, and it is the highlight of her week! He informed me that it's the highlight for a lot of his friends as well! He said they have started bringing little snacks and treats for her every day in hopes that she is coming. How cute is that?! I finally remembered to send the camera with him so here are some shots from Banana's days at Palmer.

Cheap Entertainment

That's right...we're all about pestering defenseless little animals around here. I'm just waiting for the day when they wisen up and and start chasing her...Is it so wrong of me to think that it would be slightly hilarious to see Banana chased by ducks?

So Much Fun!

We had such a fantastic time with my family this last weekend. I could go on forever about all of the fun things we had, and how much the girls loved having everyone around. We will never grow tired of having people come and visit us.

Nobody's recent post about her mom 's visit says it so well. She gave a pretty good list about why it's so great to have your mom around. I usually handle good-byes pretty well, but this time was not the easiest. Banana had a heart breaking meltdown as we were waving good-bye. Running Man was holding her and she just kept lunging for the car as it was pulling away, and crying hysterically for them to come back. It broke my heart.

Our Easter was so nice and relaxing. We held all of our Easter Bunny festivities on Saturday so we could spend Sunday focusing on the real reason for Easter. Banana got to have her first easter egg hunt and she LOVED it. We went to Devil's Glen Park which is where Running Man had his egg hunts when he was little. We followed it up with a delicious dinner at the Machine Shed. Fun was had by all and now we're counting down the days until we go home in June!

Swim time at the hotel! Em loved this floaty thing...I have no idea what it's called. She just floated all over the pool happy as could be.

The Family Museum has this slide set up and Em was intent on climbing up it. After many failed attempts with her shoes and socks on, we took them off and she made it to the top!

Decorating her princess easter eggs.

Banana and her loot. I can't believe the Easter Bunny stashed a five dollar bill in one of those eggs...



On the hay ride at the Machine Shed.

Showing Uncle Fanny her beautiful picture. She had him wrapped around her finger.


She was so excited when the "Easter Funny" came to visit!
Isn't she gorgeous in her Easter Dress?!

Finally... no visit would be complete with out Banana getting to make her "special treats" with Grandma. The sugar high lasted all night...

We're Still Here

Not having the internet in my house puts a damper on the whole blogging thing, but I really get a lot more done around the house. It has been good to take a step back and realize how much time I was spending on the computer. I get a lot more accomplished during nap time now. Good for my house...not so fun for me :)

This weather is driving us all crazy!! We have had a lot of sunny days, but the sun has been worth nothing because it has still been freezing. And then we had some sort of weird snow/freezing rain thing this weekend. Have I mentioned before how much I love the weather in the midwest?
We are super excited at our house because my parents and some of my siblings are coming to see us this week!! I get to see my little brother who just got home from his mission and I can't wait. Banana is bouncing off the walls and only driving me a little crazy by asking every five minutes how many more sleeps until they get here? Her excitement is very contagious.
Running Man starts at the student clinic next week! I think I might be more excited than he is. It's awesome to be at this point and to great for him to start doing what he loves.
Have a fabulous Easter weekend!

This is the beautiful pic she drew of me for the "arc" show.
Her awesome shades she has to wear while we do our "epercises."
Em's version of peek-a-boo

Perks

It seems like it has been a crazy week but now that I sit down to write about it nothing comes to mind...maybe that's a blessing :) I really can't think of a single thing to blog about. The girls and I have been having a blast hanging out while Running Man is at school, and are so anxious for the weather to turn nice again. It's not freezing, but not warm enough to take the girls outside for very long.
Oh yeah. I remembered something! We were watching a show about Einstein the other night and there were several interviews with some so called experts on his life. At one point they were talking about his wife, and how she had great plans of being I think a physicist, but that changed when she had their first baby. The commentator made some statement about how she "settled" and to be a mom. That really struck me. There hasn't been one single moment since my children were born that I thought that I had just "settled." Being a mom is the most challenging, and the most rewarding job I could ever think of having. It made me so sad to think that this kind of attitude still exists. I'm not saying that I don't have my days that I long for a small little break, or to just be able to go to the bathroom in peace...But in all seriousness I wouldn't trade this job for anything in the world. And to show you some of the amazing perks, here are so adorable pics of the girls. I asked Banana the other day if I was her best friend and she looked at me and replied in all seriousness that I wasn't. Em was. It doesn't get better than that!

Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood!

I love this weather! It has been so nice to get out of the house and enjoy the fresh air. We are living at the park, and going for walks all of the time. I know that it won't be long before I am cursing the heat and humidity, but I'll enjoy this while I can.
Last weekend we took the girls back to the Children's Museum in Iowa City. We went for the first time about six months ago and Banana hasn't stopped talking about going back to "New Ninos." We upgraded our pass to the museum here to include that one and we already have several more trips planned. I was worried about keeping Em entertained all day but she had so much fun. She was content for most of the time to be pushed around in the stroller. But when we got her out she was all over the place. She is too fast for me!! We spent a REALLY long time there and Banana was still upset we had to leave. The museum is in the mall, and there is also a cute merry go round there as well. We let the girls ride this time and it started out fabulous until Em tried launching herself off of her horse. I about had a heart attack. I shoud note that it is 100% my fault that she almost cracked her head open. I was watching from the sidelines and couldn't get a good shot so I asked Running Man to take one. (He was holding tight to Em to make sure she DIDN'T fall off). He gave in to my nice "request" and not even five seconds later she fell. Her seat belt saved her by stopping her halfway down and just letting her hang there in the air. I wish I would have gotten a picture of that but I was too freaked out to think straight at the time...Luckily no one turned me into DCFS.
Here are some fun pics of our outing to the museum.


I tried all day to get a good shot of Em, but every time we put her on the floor she would take off. If you can't tell she's laughing hysterically at my attempt to get her to stay put for two seconds.

The merry-go-round. Known now as the death machine.

One of our many outings to the park.
This was Banana's first time being brave enough to go down a big slide alone. She needed the support of her fearless little sis!

At the creek. We went to the duck pond to feed the ducks, but a not so subtle sign informed us that we weren't allowed. In order to appease Banana we walked over to the creek and skipped rocks.




Our most recent outing to the park with Banana's best buddies. I also win mother of the year for forgetting to put block on my kiddos...Banana woke up with a little sunburn. I felt awful! But luckily she comforted me by saying, "It's ok mommy. It doesn't hurt that bad." :(
On a parting note, Banana hs taken to singing the same song in Spanish over and over and over...I can't get it out of my head even though I don't know what half of the words mean. Feel free to call me up and sing up any song to me. PLEASE! I need this song out of my head. Now.