Another Day, Another....Surgery?

Before, a bump...a ganglion cyst. And after, stitched up and flat! The girls had an awesome night at the circus with grandma and grandpa while Mom and Dad and Brother were at the surgical center. They woke up this morning very excited about the elephants! They love their swords and Alona told us about the dogs on scooters, the clowns, tigers and lions. Hopefully Paul will be feeling better soon.

Longest Birthday EVER!

Alona opened presents at Andy's reception from Grandma Ruthie and Grandpa. She is so great at sharing! She let Abbi help open! I'll post more about the reception later!

And Today was her party!! With her friends all here, it was great. She had an awesome time, we played two games, pin the patch on the pirate and marooned! Marooned was silly, we had kids ages barely four to six years old and the six year old was really into it, one that just turned four was up on the hill in her own little world, so she won! Then we decorated our own treasure buckets with glitter glue and jewels. We read Pirate Pete and had a treasure hunt with riddles telling us where to go. The story was fun, the kids enjoyed saying "where there's Gold,"I'm a Goin!"" Many of the parents stayed and so I got much appreciated help. Doing ten kids is quite easy, but handling a baby too requires a whole new set of arms! One of her little friends was so cute, "look in the bag, you've gotta read the card first!" It was a home made card from a little six year old. She got don't break the ice, what a fun game that will be! The kids were so happy to have the treasure hunt over, desserted island was no longer occupied, so they could swing!













And now I can breathe a sigh of relief, I don't need to run to the store every five minutes thinking that I have forgotten something for the party. Kacen is next! I'm not doing something more like this for a while! Maybe an open house at Grandma's?! What is with me and my crazy thinking?

My baby is 5!!

My oldest is growing up! 5 years old yesterday! The morning started off with opening birthday cards from Grandma's (my mom and grandma) then we headed off to story time at the Provo Library. Alona is a big girl, she now goes to story time all by herself. They did the letter O and focused on things from the Ocean and she got Super Reader stickers! Super Readers is a new cartoon out on kbyu/pbs. It is a really awesome for her age group, learning to read and having a super fun time doing it.

Abbi enjoyed her story time that they had at the same time too. She did the camp fire hokey pokey and learned about the letter C. They sang the wheels on the bus, the bus took all of the kids to the camp site! They did a puppet show and sang other songs and gave them a picture of a tent to color.
Then Grandma came brought the younger kids prizes and brought Alona birthday presents. A digital camera and a little people pet salon. She says " I have soo many presents!" Abbi still has a hard time even though she got a prize. She needed to have a camera to play with, and she was real cute, I gave her a camera I used a while ago and Paul put batteries in it and it kept flashing..."I took a picture!"
And then Grandma treated her to McDonalds. Her favorite part of McDonalds, the toy in the Happy Meal. I guess thats why its a Happy Meal. We came home and made her birthday cake and Dad and Alona made the pirate map for her birthday party. The girls helped with the frosting, a lot!
We went to the Brick Oven for dinner, we had promised pizza and I really wanted to try this place! Alona got free dessert! They offered her an ice cream sundae with a lollipop stuck in it. Alona had her lollipop on the side. Their bread sticks were good. Abbi was more excited about the bathroom, wouldn't eat much pizza or ice cream. When they delivered her dessert they sang happy birthday to her!

We came home and sang happy birthday to Alona and had some cake, they liked the orange frosting that we made.Red and yellow food coloring, the girls had fun mixing that together. Then she opened our present, a Dora Movie, I know small but we also are giving her a birthday party with kids her age on Saturday morning, that is going to be great fun! We have at least six kids coming, It will be a pirate themed party, seems this is so popular lately. Macey's had a kids treasure hunt last Saturday and our playgroup is having a treasure hunt today!
Alona said our family prayers last night, she volunteered and she had a great day and was thankful for all of her presents and grandma and going out. It was great to hear how much she enjoyed it!

Go Sailing By

We were at the Library today about to checkout and go home, passing this bronzed statue of a child reading, Abbi walks right up to and puts her eyes right up to the child's face as if to say, "What are you looking at?" So cute, I wasn't as quick with the lens as I would have liked and of course my asking of her to look at the boy once more didn't equivocate the same response.
They really enjoyed the story time. The Story tellers sang,"Do your ears hang low", and "The Hokey Pokey!" Kacen loved that he got to participate in the Hokey Pokey too. Abbi sat on the little blanket and paid attention to what was going on! It was great, we had picked books before storytime and I had started reading them and Abbi wouldn't come over and sit by us to read them, so to hear music start and see that they were doing story time while we there made me so happy for her. They also had hand puppets that played out going to the doctor for a checkup, and the dentist and eye doctor. It was great fun!
Paul and the girls added to the pirate ship today! Before it had a bow and also Christmas tree box attire. Now there is brown paper over the Christmas tree attire and a cannon that their daddy added on. The girls were kept busy and colored with crayon all over, its beautiful! And in the back window is a pirate, a table, candle, many other things!
Alona got on the inside of the box to add some special touches!

Join the Celebration

Kacen got his first taste of jam yesterday and he loved it! Not much of a crumb left in his high chair.
Saturday night I made sweet and sour chicken stir fry, you bake this in the oven. It was Awesome! I think that next time I will try parsley instead of cilantro. It is great, homemade sweet and sour sauce, who knew it could be so great.
Also Saturday we went to the "Join the Celebration" that the Boys and Girls club had at Pioneer Park. To Celebrate kids! We have wonderful kids and let them know that we were going there to celebrate them. It was great, Alona really enjoyed the games, she enjoyed getting her eyes checked! And the mirror that they gave her. Many snacks, McDonalds had a booth giving out apples. Abbi was heart broken there was a game where they had to throw rings over bottles and you had to get the ring on the bottle to win the drink. She waited in line, she threw the rings, and they wouldn't indulge a little two year old with a bottle of sunkist, I was so sad for her. She didn't understand! Alona loved the plate painting that they had. She took a styrofoam plate and made a design in it, rolled over it with paint, turned it over and pressed down onto paper. She did a great job. Abbi of course did a "How I Wonder" as she calls stars.
Cotton Candy, snow cones and hot dogs for lunch, talk about healthy!! The big blowup toys were fun. Alona enjoyed it the most, jumping around and going down the inflated slides.
This a cute picture of Kacen. He is growing up. Every time that the back door is open he goes to play. This week we have been planning and preparing for the biggest birthday party that we have ever done. Paul started to make a pirate ship out of our christmas tree box that him and the girls get to finish tomorrow. We made fish that will hang from a tree as part of our treasure hunt. Wednesday we bought some of the treats for her party. She will also get to have a deserted island, we bought little debbie snack cakes for that. There will be a pin the patch on the pirate game and they will get to decorate treasure buckets. Buckets just worked better than chests (less expensive) and they came with shovels that they can dig up the treasure with.

Healthy

Healthiest dinner I have ever made, and the least appealing to children! Acorn squash filled with rice, meat, celery, onion, sage, milk and flour covered with cheese. I sent them to the couch since they wouldn't eat, they were crawling under the table and hitting each other. So Abbi decides to be daredevil and is jumping all over the ledge of the couch. And I thought that I would ignore her disturbances so that I could eat, not give her attention for misbehaving. Not so with her being so outgoing. Now they are picking out their clothes to take baths before enrichment! Baths in a half an hour and if they don't have help with kids I will be home shortly. So Great one of the ladies was able to watch my three children, she stayed with them a whole hour. Totally changed my mood, I am so grateful!

Precious Smiles

Last Wednesday we learned about ears. They played quietly while I fed Kacen and looked up the info and learned! I am learning at the same rate as my children. They listened while mom told them the different parts of the ear and what they do and Alona remembers! Then the fun part, they made puppy ears! Pretending to be an animal is just the greatest! And to learn that dogs have the same type of ears as us, they were thoroughly amused.
Kacen's first candy bar, I was holding a snickers and he grabbed it out of my hands. As if to say, "Mom, I call dibbs on this one!" Good thing it was a Monster snickers bar. He enjoyed every last bite that he sucked and chomped on.
Friday the kids and I stayed at Marta's house. How sweet it was to have help with baths. Scrubbing the shampoo into a little head which screams "don't, stop!", of course I tell her shampoo will make your hair clean, I'm not stopping until that happens.the baby is climbing my legs and screaming, throwing himself backwards he does not want to stand. I am just made well aware that he needs to be fed and put to bed, NOW! Usually at home he just gets to be more irate, though Friday night we were rescued. Kacen got to be fed while Alona finished in the tub. Thank you, Marta.
We went to her stake "fair" hot dogs and a zillion pies to choose from. Marta chose to get cooled off in the dunking booth...We get there
Are you hungry , do you want a hot dog?
Child 1:NO
Child 2: YES
I get one child a hot dog and the other just sat there.
Then of course papa comes up with watermelon and both children devour this and then those who have finished their hot dog get pie and others want and get some too. Why, to avoid hysterics and arguing. Child 1 consumes entire piece of pie, and were they hungry, NO of course not.Though I should give her kudos at least it was a cherry pie, got some nutrition.
Kacen started saying Ought-oh on Friday. And he knows what it means too! he drops something over and over and just keeps saying, ought-oh!

Yesterday we went and took the girls swimming at the grandparent's pool. Alona rode the 4-wheeler over with Grandpa "Honey". Older and younger people driving vehicles with my children scares me to death. I indulged Honey and he did great, very cautious. The pool was short lived, but very much enjoyed. They got to use a noodle and an alligator floatie. Almost every time that we have one this year we have forgotten our ONE floatie that we have and who brings one floatie any way when you have three children?! And so it was wonderful Caren having a noodle! Our choices for dinner weren't very appealing, hamburger helper or this new casserole that I looked up with kidney beans, broccoli,rice tomato sauce, cheese and spices, ingredients which can all be found in my kitchen as we speak. This recipe does not seem very appealing to many in my family. We have tons of kidney beans and lets say we are verry close to pay day. Paul isn't shy when calling his family, he very openly says what are you doing for dinner? She made a wonderful dinner, delicious!

Kacen likes to crawl around when he is tired just lay down wherever make the cutest faces and then get back up seconds later. His favorite is laying in the laundry, he will lay down there even when he is not tired. Paul and I were up last night attempting to fold towels and socks. He crawled right over after each time that me and Paul folded a towel and excitedly unfolded it. After putting all the socks on the floor to sort out and match up he came over layed down,crawled and rolled on top of them, sat up and threw a few here and there. We have a LAUNDRY BABY!!
I didn't post this picture earlier so I thought I would do it now. Paul's uncle, Paul and his cousin Kateri came to visit in the middle of August. Abbi really took to him, she takes to everyone.we went out to an Italian restaurant, Carrino's, I give it 5 stars! Family Meals to share, great dessert, it was great!