Cabo

This week our family went to Cabo San Lucas on vacation. It was AWESOME! The wonderful thing about Cabo is that there is NO PRESSURE to do anything because there isn't much to do except soak up the sun and relax. This is the first time that Josh and I have traveled with our kids and it was great. They loved every moment and made the trip much more enjoyable for us. (Of course it was more work, but they were wonderful entertainment.) They were so good and willing to be obedient. They LOVED the beach and ocean and they spent countless hours in the pool.



This trip was the first trip in over ten years for my family, and we were all able to make it. My parents now have seven grandchildren. (Cathie, Keith and their three kids came from Alaska.) My parents are so fantastic with the kids.



The kids followed my mom around like a magnet. She had fun activities planned for them, and of course she had a candy drawer in her condo. Dad spent hours holding and taking care of the baby's.



Dad was willing to "sacrifice" and stay back in the shade and nap with the babies. I think he may have slept like a baby too.


The cousins had a wonderful time together. There is something really special about cousins!


Colter, Corbin, (Cathie's boy's) and Caleb (You may notice the C pattern, but is is not intentional. It does make things a little confusing.


Cara and Emi (Cathie's girl) couldn't get enough of each other. Emi is 15 months older than Cara, but when they are together they are best friends.


Andy and Daniel (Cody's boy. They are only four months apart in age. They will have fun growing up together.)

We adults had a fantastic time together too.

Cody (my only brother) and his wife Stephanie, Connie (the baby), Christie (who hooked us up with her condo's) and her boyfriend Jeff, Cathie and Keith, and Me and Josh. (Not pictured my parents and Aunt Merle who is also a part of our family.) It was amazing how well we all got along. It was wonderful!

Following are a few of my favorite pictures from the trip that show just a few of the things that we did. They are in no particular order so enjoy the randomness.

Andy was so good even though it was sometimes hot. He must like the taste of sand because he ate it every time we were on the beach.


We played cards at the condos, which by the way overlooked the pool and beach. This was an intense game of Old Maid.


We took a glass bottom boat to the famous Cabo Arch (notice over our shoulders).


This is the whole gang on the boat. In order to get onto the beach we had to bail off the front of the boat into the strong waves. I thought Merle and Stef were going to to be sick they were so nervous about it.


Josh took up rock balancing, and actually was quite good at it.


This was a tight van ride from the airport to the condo. We mostly took public transportation which was quite a scene with 19 gringos getting on the bus.


We went surfing and boogie boarding. The waves chewed up us amatures, but Keith and Jeff held their own. I would have ended up at the emergency room if we didn't have our own private RN with supplies to treat a foot full of rocks (sand).


We flew kites on the beach.


We searched for crabs.


We tried not to cook in the desert while we waited for the bus.


The kids waited for the waves to push them on their kick boards.


Cody barried the kids in the sand.


Connie served as "the other mother" and helped a ton with the kids. Sometimes she thinks she is their mother and I don't mind a bit.


Cody and the kids worked very hard at building a sand castle with sand that didn't really want to stick together.


We went to church. It reminded me of the first few months of my mission because I didn't understand much of it. I think that the Lord really blesses me with spiritual experiences when I go to church while on vacation. I highly recommend it. My most memorable church experiences have been from vacation.


The guys went deep sea fishing and caught us a mahi mahi dinner.


We took family pictures.


Thanks for all of the wonderful memories!

Caleb is Growing Up

We have struggled with Caleb's stage fright. It is hard for Josh and I to comprehend and frustrating when we want him to perform and he will not. Last week we had two great experiences that are giving me hope that he may be overcoming his fear of performing. First, last week was the Joy School Graduation program. The kids sang five songs, performed with bells, and recited a poem. We were so proud of Caleb, although he was resistant at first, he jumped in and did a great job. We had a crowd of about 30 people with parents, siblings and grandparents. Caleb did an excellent job. I can't believe that my little boy will be in Kindergarden next fall.



I have to put a plug in for Joy School. This was our second year for having a neighborhood coop preschool and I LOVE IT. Of course working with fantastic moms makes it a good experience for me, but I also really enjoy having the children in my home and teaching them. This year I taught the units of Joy of the Body and Joy of Family. I taught the first three weeks of the year, before I had Andy and the last three weeks of the year now that he is 6-7 months old. The kids are so cute and it was amazing to see how much they had learned this year. I believe that the preschoolers who will be going to kindergarden are really ready. It is such a privilege to watch children learn and grow.

The second impressive thing that Caleb did this week was to give his first primary talk. Our primary is so big that they meet in the chapel for opening exercises, so he spoke from the sacrament pulpit. He had his talk memorized, but he had asked me if I would come up by him and help with his pictures. Just before primary started he told me he wanted to do it all by himself. I let him and he did an awesome job. He spoke loud and clear and did it just as we had practiced.

I can't blog about Caleb without mentioning that he is playing soccer this Spring, and he lives and dies for it. Thank goodness for the neighborhood kids who have coached him. He is really pretty good too. He has played three games and scored four goals. I have also been impressed with his sportsmanship. Unfortunately the weather has caused three of the games to be canceled. We will be missing three games while we are in Mexico next week and so he only gets to play one more game. It has been a fun experience for the whole family though. I really like cheering for him and his team, and it is a good thing because I think I may be going to games of my children for the next couple of decades.

Mile Stones

Andy is so much fun! He has hit some milestones that I must mention if for no other reason than because I have mommy brain and I will have forgotten by next week. Two weeks ago, at six and a half months he got his first two teeth. They broke through two days apart. He has not been fussy about teething except the day that they came in. He started screaming at 11:30 PM (luckily I was still up.) I went and got him from his bed and felt in his gums. I could feel the little corner of one tooth. Since he was screaming anyway I used my finger to brake the tooth the rest of the way through. (I have always wanted to do that.) When the second tooth broke through he was lethargic and sad. Weird, I know, I have never known when my kids teeth have come in, but with Andy there was no mistaking the moment.

He is now officially out of his baby car seat. I hate giving up the portable bed, but he is over twenty pounds and breaking my back.



He is getting really good at eating solids and this week he began eating foods that are not pureed. He loves fishy crackers, but insists that someone besides himself put them in his mouth.

This weekend he also had his first hair cut. I like my little boys to have missionary cuts and his hair was growing over his ears. He didn't love the experience, but he sure is cute.



You may be wondering about the huge scab on his nose. Josh took the kids to the park this week and he learned why strollers have safety straps. Andy slipped right out of the stroller while going down a steep hill. It took the skin right off of his nose.

Baby Animal Days

I have never taken my kids to Baby Animal Days because I was afraid of the crowds, but this year we decided to brave it. It was AWESOME! Thankfully my sister Connie came and helped with the kids. We were there from 10 to 3:30 and without her help I may have only made it for an hour. She carried Andy on her back the entire time. He was quite content chewing on his back pack and even anchored his head with his jaws to take a nap.



There were so many awesome things to do, hold, and see. It was tough for me to narrow the pictures down to just these. I was totally impressed. I was grateful for the advice to start with the pony rides before the line got too long, and other than that the crowd wasn't a problem. We didn't even have to wait to see the Easter Bunny. (Getting there at 10:00 is the only way to do it.)



Of course it was fun for the kids to see, hold, and pet ducks,



chicks, bunnies,



calves, colts, donkeys,



piglets, kids, lambs,



puppies, and even snakes and turtles.



They participated in the little rodeo that was held each hour. Caleb and Cara both did the Goat Chase. They had to run across the arina and pull the ribbon off of the goats tail. It was fun to watch. Caleb didn't hesatate one bit which I was glad to see because he can be really shy about performing like that. The Goat quit running after the first few kids, but it would switch its tail really fast.



Notice the clown showing that Cara was almost through the gate.



The kids got to practice their roping skills,



and even throw a tomahawk. It made me nervous to watch, but the kids enjoyed it. (You can see Caleb's flying through the air.)



There were a couple of things that really impressed me. First, they had a running Model-T car that they let the kids get in and explore. It is not everyday that people get to "touch" history.



The other thing that blew me away is the size of Oxen. I always thought of them as being "really strong cows" I had no idea how HUGE they are. The picture doesn't do justice to their size, but it was fun for me to see the oxen sense they are so much a part of our pioneer history.



All in all, I think I will join the throngs of people who have the annual tradition of going to Baby Animal Days. I was totally impressed!

More Parenting Thoughts

Apparently what I included in my last post wasn’t controversial enough to spark comments so what do you think about this – no second chance consequences. I have been contemplating the way that Heavenly Father parents. (His children are not perfect, but he is.) One pattern in his parenting is that he clearly states the rule/commandment/expectation and gives a consequence that is naturally tied to the rule. When one of his children brake the rule he goes through with the consequence even if it will cause the child (or him) discomfort. He didn’t say, “Eve, you shouldn’t have eaten that fruit, next time you do you will be cast out of the garden. I mean it this time.” I think there is a really delicate balance we must find as parents. I don’t want to be too easy on my kids, but equally damaging is being too controlling. As a mom I don’t want to watch my children feel uncomfortable, guilty or upset. (Not to mention that enforcing consequences usually punishes me too.) I think that a pattern with my generation of parents is that we are too easy on our kids. Either we are training them or they are training us.

Let me throw another analogy out there. What if police officers ALWAYS gave a second chance? What if every time we were pulled over they said, “You didn’t make a complete stop at that stop sign. If you brake another law while I am watching you, you will get a ticket.” If they always gave a second chance there wouldn’t be incentive to keep the rule in the first place. What do you think?

A couple of nights ago I started rereading the book “Christlike Parenting” by Glenn Latham. I must have been inspired to pick it off the shelf where it has been gathering dust with our many other parenting books for the past couple of years because it is giving me really good ideas right along the lines of what I have been thinking. I want to share one of them that I am going to try. He recommends making a list of the virtues you want your child to develop. (I am going to take my list from D&C section 4.) Post the list where you see it often. Then make a point to recognize when your child is exhibiting one of those virtues. Point out the specific virtue and praise the child. Instead of just teaching your child compliance this strategy should help to reinforce the development of admirable virtues. I am excited to try it.

Finally, if you haven’t read the article in the March Ensign that gives ideas for watching conference with little children you may want to. I am excited about giving some of the ideas a try. I will let you know how it goes.

Parenting

For the past few weeks I have been preoccupied with thoughts about our huge responsibility to teach our children. I have been wanting to blog about some of these thoughts in hope of further discussion and to pass on some of the ideas that have come to my mind. I also want to organize my thoughts and goals in writing so I just as well share them on my blog.

We often discuss the topic of parenting with our dear friends the Lows. A few weeks ago Dave brought up something that I have really been thinking about. I think it would be worthwhile for us all to think about. Many of the following thoughts and ideas are his, but I think they are worth sharing and pondering.

As Latter Day Saints many of us have goals for our children, for example, we want our sons to serve missions and we want our children to be married in the temple. These might seem like fantastic goals, but when you really take a look at them they are the bare minimum. I don’t just want my boys to serve missions. I want them to be powerful missionaries, and to always be honorable priesthood holders and leaders. I don’t just want my children to be married in the temple (plenty of people get married in the temple, but go on to get divorced or to have unhappy marriages.) I want my children to have Celestial Marriages. I don’t just want my daughters to be mothers. I want them to find joy in motherhood and consider it their greatest blessings and responsibility. So what is my role as their parent to see that these goals become a reality?

President David O. McKay taught:
“The home is the first and most effective place for children to learn the lessons of life: truth, honor, virtue, self-control; the value of education, honest work, and the purpose and privilege of life. Nothing can take the place of home in rearing and teaching children, and no other success can compensate for failure in the home.” (Family Home Evening Manual 1968–69, p. iii.)

In an awesome talk titled “Parental Leadership in the Family” Elder Oaks taught the following:

“There is no human relationship more suited to such teachings than a family where parents truly love and give their lives in service to their children. Parents should teach the principles of the restored gospel, including particularly the atoning sacrifice of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Parents should also teach the smaller-scale sacrifices they are making for their own families. If done in the right spirit by example as well as by precept—this teaching should help children be more loving and honoring of their parents. It should also help prepare children to be parents themselves.
“Parents teach and families learn by doing things together.
“Families should pray together, kneeling night and morning to offer thanks for blessings and prayers for common concerns.
“Families should worship together, participating in church services and family devotionals.
“Families should study and learn together. This should include group reading and discussion of the scriptures, and group consideration of other valuable subjects, such as the practical knowledge necessary to function in a modern world.
“Families should work together, as suggested earlier. Families should also play together, so that happy recreational experiences are associated with the activities of the family.
“Families should counsel together, treating all matters of concern to the family and its members.
“Families should eat together. Mealtime is a natural time for the family to assemble and communicate: It is a shame for such an opportunity to be lost in family bickering or to be fragmented by family members seizing food and scattering to the four corners as if the family kitchen were a fast food outlet.
“Families should join in recording family traditions and sacred experiences. They should also come together to share such records to strengthen the family and its individual members. As President Kimball reminded us, “Stories of inspiration from our own lives and those of our forebears … are powerful teaching tools,” a source of inspiration for us and our posterity. (Ensign, Jan. 1982, p. 4.)
“It is a striking fact that the family home evening is the ideal time to accomplish almost every type of family togetherness. It is the ideal place for the family to pray together, learn together, counsel together, play together, and even work together. Most of us recognize this, but I wonder how many of us are really using the family home evening to its full potential.”

I will spare you more quotes, but the prophets and apostles have gone on and on about our responsibilities as parents. Our responsibility is not to be taken lightly. I really like this talk because Elder Oaks so plainly outlines what we should be doing to teach our children. I believe if I can dedicate myself as a mother to make sure that those things that he outlines are taking place in my home that my sons will be powerful missionaries, that my children will have celestial marriages, and that my daughters will be joyful mothers. It is going to take more than me living my temple covenants for my children to be exulted. I must be actively engaged in teaching them and directing them.

Another thing I have been thinking about concerning parenting is that of our priorities. What do I want most for my children? Is the way I am spending my time reflect what I want most? I have been taking a look at how I spend my time. For example, Caleb practices the piano at least 20 minutes every day. I sit by his side the entire time. We also work on reading most days. I have to ask myself, “am I as dedicated to teaching him the gospel as I am to teaching him piano.” (Sure the piano will teach him many skills and will be a service to others as he grows.) I guess my point is that if I am dedicated enough to practice the piano every day I should be dedicated enough to be sure that gospel learning is happening too.

Our 5th Sunday combined lesson yesterday was on the topic of parenting. The focus was on checking up on our teenagers, building strong relationships with them, having one-on-one time, being their parent not just their friend, and creating a balance between too strict and too easy. As an ER doctor and a Police Detective from the ward spoke my thought was, “isn’t prevention the best place to start.” Even with all of the prevention in the world I anticipate following up with my kids as teens, knowing their friends, checking their Face Book and text messages, and controlling the hours that they use their cell phones, etc. Even thought I will do that the time to start teaching The Book of Mormon, The Strength of Youth Handbook and Preach My Gospel is RIGHT NOW at ages 5, 3 and six months.

The church has awesome resources on building a strong family. There are all kinds of FHE ideas and ideas on teaching your children. I would start at http://www.lds.org/hf/display/0,16783,4209-1,00.html.

I know that this is a really long and wordy blog entry, but it is fun for me to think about and to talk about. I hope that I can also apply the principles that I believe so strongly. I think it would be fun to have a discussion on the things that are working as we teach our children the gospel.

Cara's Birthday

Cara turned 3 on Sunday. She was so excited for her birthday. In her very primitive English she has been telling me "my birthday is coming up" for weeks. We gave her a "big girl" bed. (We got it on Craigs list for $20) and a barbie with a car. She also scored some great Tinker Bell stuff from my mom. The Kirks gave her a darling dress and a stuffed bear. She couldn't have been more happy even though to me it seemed like quite an uneventful birthday.



Blowing out the candles on her "cake" was a problem. She kept blowing her bangs up. Finally the candles went out one at a time.



In preparation for her new bed I took her out of her night time pull-ups a few weeks ago. She was totally potty trained by 18 months, but sense she was in a crib I didn't want to deal with the night time wets. I figured she would have an accident or two with the change. The one accident she had illustrates perfectly the independent child that she is. She didn't even wake me. She got up, changed her cloths, and put a burp cloth over the wet spot in her bed and went back to sleep. She is an amazing little girl.

Now that she is three she will no longer be going to the Up to 3 speech therapy program. She will miss it, and especially her speech therapist Jen. When she began at about 18 months she was not even speaking at all. She is now attempting 3-4 word phrases. She has been tested by the school district and is still considered to have a severe phonological delay. Thankfully she will began the school district program this week. I am grateful for the early intervention programs, and for the service Up to 3 has provided.

Star War’s Party

Caleb turned 5 on Saturday, and he had his very first friend birthday party. The age of the internet has made planning parties so easy. I googled “boys birthday party” and had hundreds of ideas at my fingertips. Caleb wasn’t interested in any theme until we got to the “S’s” and found Star Wars. That was the perfect theme for him, and Josh and I had a blast planning it.

First came the pool noodle light sabers. The awesome thing about these is that you can hit as hard as you want and it doesn’t hurt. They were cheep and easy to make, and they were a fun favor.





The only thing that we put a lot of effort into was the cake. I had planned on making a “Death Star” cake by slapping some gray frosting onto a ball shaped cake and surrounding it with the star fleet stuck into cupcakes. When Josh’s sister April got wind of the idea she stepped in and turned the cake into a masterpiece. I learned so much from working with her on a cake. It turned out really cute and surprisingly delicious. (I am not a cake lover, but it was really good.









Caleb had seven boys from the ward come to the party. They were so cute and we had a great time with them. Following are some of the game ideas that we used. This is defiantly a party theme worth stealing. (We played the Star Wars Sound Track throughout the party, which really added.)

1. Asteroid Hunt: While children arrive decorate a bag with their name and a selection of space stickers. “The basement has been struck by asteroids and we need your help to find them.” Wrap little favors (piece of candy, bouncy ball, and balloon) with tin foil and color code. Each child can have one of each color of asteroid. Set aside in bags as favors.
2. Clone Wars: Skill games for young Padawans and relay races for two teams (The Droids and The Clones) Three Legged Race and Ball and Bucket Toss
3. Jedi Training Course: Obstacle course using ropes, 2X4 boards, etc.
4. Light Saber Training: Using Homemade Light Sabers try to keep balloons in the air. May play in teams, pairs, or as individuals.
5. Thermal Detonator present opening: Pass around the Thermal Detonator (aluminum foil covered ball) while music is playing. When the music stops open the present of whoever was holding the detonator.

I couldn’t resist posting a picture of the invitation. That was Josh’s job, and he is so awesome at details.



I can’t believe that we have a five year old. It was fun to celebrate his birthday in style. His friends gave him awesome gifts, and we got him a “big bike”. His knees almost touch his chest on the bike he has been riding the last couple of years. He is scared of the thought of riding without training wheels so that will take some work, but he was excited about the bike. (I was excited too because we got on Black Friday for only $35.)