Budding Writer

Emily is a fanatic about writing. 90% of the time Emily is carrying around a pen and paper scribbling little notes. My floors are covered in paper and you'll find notes taped to about every door with scribbles which Emily has informed me are "instructions about what I need to do before I can enter." She seeks out pens, crayons or pencils won't due, and blank sheets of paper and if she can't find them she'll improvise with any thing that looks similar. One day she taped a bunch of wet wipes to the wall and found her dad's stash of permanent markers and went to town not realizing that they were bleeding like crazy on the wall. Just for your info "Off "insect repellent melts permanent marker from walls. Although the paper mess and pen marks drive me crazy I try not to let it bother me so I can keep encouraging her.
She is becoming so proficient with writing her letters and can write all of our names without any help.

Here's a letter she independently wrote to her Aunt Ally.

Until next Year

Sundance is over and I have husband again. Well sort of, Bart contracted the nasty disease that has made Emily's and Jane's life miserable for a few days. He's resting and recovering but at least he's home. Since many of you have asked about Sundance, I'll pass along the full report Bart gave me. "It's been OK, nobody too special, just a bunch of scrubs." As you can tell Bart is not one for lengthy discourses, Sundance included. He did come home Thursday night excited that he got a picture with Elton John. Knowing Bart the way I do it must mean Elton probably doesn't sign a lot or take many pictures. The thrill of the chase I guess. I forced him to allow me to share the picture on my blog so here it is.

Low Expectations

When I was a teenager I once had a Youth Leader who had this quote "Expect nothing be not disappointed." I'm the type of person who needs this advice. I often have huge expectations and then when it doesn't turn our just right I get really disappointed. My Birthday is one of those days. This year I set my standards extremely low for my Birthday. As mentioned before, Sundance sucks Bart away and I usually end up feeling really bad. This year I did some mental rehearsing to remind myself to help me not be disappointed. The plan was to basically go to work come home and get in my most comfortable pajamas and find some sort of cake to eat while watching the Biggest Loser with Emily.
In reality I actually had a great Birthday. I enjoyed a lot of Happy Birthday wishes on Facebook that day. I had a couple of presents to open from my sisters. Allyson gave me this fabulous pan that make these cute mini cakes and Sarah gave me a cute polka dot bag.
The ladies that I work with in the Preschool classroom took me to lunch and gave me these flowers with a nice card. Then they made me a Birthday Crown, just like the ones the kids get on there Birthdays to wear, and brought me in a Happy Birthday cupcake.
My mother in law invited me to dinner that night and made me a yummy lemon cake. I don't know who enjoyed it more me or Emily. My practical husband Bart, at the last minute I'm sure, had arranged for my mother in law to buy and wrap up a shoe brush and polish. He told me that was the only thing he knew I needed. Of course he is right, but I told him he subconsciously gave me the polish because he knew I want new boots to polish right?
As planned we came home, got in our P.J.'s and watched the Biggest Loser while eating more cake. *As a side note I was defiantly not the Biggest Loser this week. Too much cake I suppose. While watching the show out of nowhere Emily burst into singing the Birthday song to me. That made me feel good. The best part was Bart called to wish me a Happy Birthday and told me he was coming home early to spend some time with me. I know that was a huge sacrifice, especially when he found out he missed Elton John that night. I really appreciated his thoughtfulness.
So the moral in all of this is if you expect nothing and your husband gives you shoe polish for your Birthday it's kind of nice.

Sundance=The love hate relationship

Basically Bart loves Sundance and I hate it. Bart loves that so many celebrities are in our back yard. A few friends from his LA days are around and he is back in business for a few days. It's pretty amazing how hard Bart works on such little sleep during Sundance. I do respect him for that.

I hate Sundance because #1 it falls on my birthday. My birthday is the one day I can't help my middle child syndrome from coming out and it doesn't help that my husband is nowhere to be found. Which brings me to the other reason I hate Sundance. I call it my week of widowhood. Last year was especially rough with a newborn and this year has been better but it's been snowing for the past few days, today I'm stuck at home due to childhood illness and cabin fever is setting in fast. I can't wait until it's over!

Thanks blog for allowing me to vent a little. Maybe I'll sneak some pictures from Bart's camera of his happenings and post them later.

90 Years Young

This past Saturday we spent the day celebrating Gramps' 90th Birthday. My sister Allyson, the appointed family historian, put together a really cool movie of his life. It was touching to watch what a person can accomplish in 90 years. He had some really cool World War II pictures. I liked this one of soldiers playing Baseball.
Gramps wearing his Letterman's jacket from Utah State is dear to me of course. My dad would proudly tell us as kids how Gramps went to school at Utah State and wanted to play Football. Coming from Wayne High, a school without a Football team, he had little exposure to the game. He showed up to tryouts worked his tail off and the Coach kept him on the team, even though he had never played the game, because he was the last man standing after a grueling workout. I asked my dad whatever happened to the jacket with the "A" and he said when he got big enough to wear his dad's Letterman jacket he wore it everywhere until he completely wore it out.
Here's another picture I like. You know how you have a picture in your head of how someone looks. This is the one for me. It shows his charismatic personality and reminds me of a phrase he sometimes says. "You're only as big as the world you live in."

Happy Birthday Gramps!

Opened a can of Worms

Emily was in a particular talkative mood last night, I think she was trying to side track her dad from tucking her in bed. Here is the conversation
Emily: Why do you and mommy have two closet in your bedroom and I only have one?
Bart: Because you and Jane's clothes are small and can fit in one closet.
Emily: Will I ever get my own closet
Bart: Maybe someday
Emily: When tomorrow?
Emily: But where will it go?
(This is when Bart really should have said we will find a place now lets go tuck you in bed)
Bart: Well someday Ethan and his family won't live in our basement and you and Jane can have your own closets downstairs.
Emily : (extremely worried) But who will live with us downstairs?
Bart: You and Jane will sleep down there.
Emily: But we will be all alone. I don't want to be all alone.
Bart: attempting to console Emily then after a few moments
Emily: I guess I can marry Max and he can live with me downstairs. We can cook in the kitchen down there and play play play.

In the process of a few minutes. Emily has gone from thinking downstairs is Ethan's house to being afraid of living alone to solving the problem by marrying her cousin Max and having her own house to cook and play in. Now that is all she wants to talk about. Thanks Bart for opening THAT can of worms!

Genetics part II

In a previous post I pointed out a Genetic disorder that Bart and Emily share. I've since realized one that comes from my side of the family. A healthy attachment to a blanket. That's right! We love our blankets or as Emily coined "nigh-nigh" which has now become a familiar vocabulary word to mean blanket and has spread to some extended family members and friends. Emily at about 3-4 months of age became very particular to a certain pink silky blanket. This graduated into a need for the nigh-nigh to help with soothing when she bonked her head and of course to aid in sucking her fingers. Now it's almost like an appendage. At least it would be if I let her take it out in public.
I originally thought Emily's love of her nigh-nigh was due to Emily being an amazing self soother. When Jane's attachment, who is not a natural self soother, developed I began to wonder. Jane's attachment has been slow coming but sure enough it exists. Until recently she could go to bed with just about any blanket and be happy. Now I find her in the mornings putting her nigh nigh over her head or rolling around on it. When I take her out of the crib she grabs it to take it with her. When she finds it on the floor she'll bring it up to her cheek and say "nigh-nigh" in the sweetest voice ever. One Laundry day I rounded up all the nigh-nighs to wash and was surprised at Jane's protest. I've come to expect it from Emily but now it's from Jane as well. I had to take this picture of both of my girls screaming as there blankets swished around in the washing machine.

I really can't blame them to much for there love of blankets. I for one loved my silky blanket my Grandma Pace made for me. No other blanket compared. I took it to every sleep over until it's unfortunate disappearance at 4-H camp. To this day I get a sick feeling in my stomach and know it's got to be in that sheep camp I slept in.
There are other family members with this same genetic disorder I realized one this past Christmas at my parents. Joe or maybe Allyson took my sister Raquel's blanket to use. Raquel jumped from the couch squealing in protest, very similar to Emily and Jane on Laundry day, and retrieved her precious blanket.