Today in the young women's lesson, we had a lesson on journal keeping. I realized how bad I have gotten about documenting anything about my family. An example that was shared was that if you do not write down your kids first words then you probably will not remember them. I hope to be a little better about recording what is going on with us as a family.

Mitch has always been a talker even when he couldn't form the words. His first words were Mommy, and Dada as a very close second. He next words yeah and soon after he said no, no. Right around his birthday he was saying baba, for bottle, mine, mo, mo for more of something. A favorite of some he would say was "Seriously" he learned to say at 18 months.

Monte still does not say as much but his first word was Mama. Which he cried out whenever I put him down. He next said Dada. He learned to say "No,No" to Mitch farely soon. He said "outtle" for bottle and his other favorite was "Choo,Choo". He started saying "Mi" for Mitch. He could say Papa, Mimi and "hanpa" and "hanma" (grandpa and grandma). Poor little guy would rely on his brother to speak for him most of the time.

Little annabel's first words have been, Mama first, Daddy, a close second. Then she says "Bye,Bye" pretty clearly. She says "Buh" as she reaches for her brothers and "me,me,me" and "hum,hum" when she sees something she wants to eat. Some feel they have heard her repeat other things clearly that I have not heard. We will hear a lot more from her soon I am sure.

David has some X, he is not all Y.

We had a beautiful tiny baby on March 11, 2011, and to our surprise (actually I suspected and David was quite sure) we had a girl. Some thought a girl was not possible for David but, here she is. She is a doll but she has proven already that girls are more expensive then boys. The boy love her to pieces (literially). hopefully i will give more info soon on her eventful beginnings.

The big 4 year old

The much anticipated day finally arrived. Mitch turned 4! He had been saying he was almost four for a long time. As other family members had their birthdays he would ask each time, "When is my birthday? Am I going to be four yet?" I think to him, four is a big step. In his mind it is moving up to the bigger kid category. I hope and I think he had a great birthday. He did have to sit around a little in the morning while I finished preparations for the party but, he enjoyed decoration cupcakes. He explained to me very clearly what he wanted his birthday to be like. He wanted to play at the park with his friends (including cousins), eat dinner, play T-ball with Daddy, play soccer, hit the pinata, then go back to our house for cupcakes and ice cream. He then wanted everyone to go swimming like we did at Monte's party. Well, I explained to him the difference in weather in July and October but, thanks to continued warm in the valley he did get to swim (it was too cold for most). Another cute thing Mitch did was he insisted to me that he was not four yet when people would mention it. When I asked him why he was not four even though it was his birthday he said it was because everyone had not sung the song and he had not blown out the candle. Once he blew out his candle he could then declare he was four. Oh, and a few mentioned that it was too bad that we requested no gifts at the party and some feared that he would be very sad. He was a little sad at first when we explained that we were not opening gifts at the party but, as you can see and I promise he was still as happy as can be with each gift he received. He still got more then he needed but, the funny thing is that at first he was most excited about his new power tooth brush. What a good kid. We feel so lucky.

 

 

Monte is Two!!

Monte was into the party more than last year. He definitly liked the cupcake more. We appreciated everyone that came to help us party hardy and we missed those that couldn't make it. Although there was a no gift rule, Monte was very grateful for his big trucks which between him and Mitch the trucks have gotten their fair share of use. Thanks to Sheri for jumping in fully clothed to save Monte from death (to make sure no one worries Monte was showing off his swimming talent but she got a little frightened). Thank you to Charlie for help with blowing out the candle, you were so fast I couldn't catch it on a still shot. I'm glad everyone seemed to enjoy the cupcakes but I do believe Alea wins the prize for enjoying the cupcakes the most. We have been so blessed to have Monte in our lives. We feel so blessed that he is healthy and strong and always ready to give a hug and kiss. Happy Birthday Monte!

Funny kids

I wanted to record a few things the kids did the last two mornings to make me laugh. Yesterday Mitch got up before Monte and I. I guess after he had been up for a little while he came in and woke me up. I noticed a crusty part in his hair. I asked him about it and he told me he put gel in his hair. "Oh great" I thought. Well, it could have been worse until he told me that he did Monte's hair too. Remember, Monte was still asleep in his bed. So, when Monte woke up almost an hour later he came out with half his hair standing straight up. When I went into the room I found gel, a spray bottle, a mirror and two combs by Monte's pillow. I guess Monte had slept through his hair styling. I had to laugh.
This morning at breakfast I told Mitch, "Bud, I have bad news. Yesterday you and Monte played with your cars by the piano and one fell behind it. The piano is very hard to move so I don't know how we will get it, so don't play by the piano with your small toys."Mitch replied,"Oh no. Well, Mom, do you have any good news for me?" I had to laugh a little and I said, "Well, it is a sunny day and we will get to swim." He replied, "Alright!". Then he turned to Monte and said, "Monte, the bad news is our car fell behind the piano but, the good news is we will get to go swimming today." Monte's response,"Oh tay, Yeah!"
These little guys make me smile everyday.

Oh and thank you very much Mimi for the piano, other then a lost car it has been great to have in the home.

A moment from General Conference

For those who don't know twice a year in April and October our Church holds a conference that is broadcast all around the world. Luckily BJ, Dave's brother with his computer smarts wired it so that we could watch the conference on our TV(most people with cable can do this but, cable is still not in the budget). The conference consists of the leaders of the Church giving talks and the Mormon tabernacle choir singing for four two hour sessions in two days(actually the guys have an extra two hours totalling ten hours for them).
I love conference. It is the spiritual feast I need. The problem is that the feasting is not as easy with two active little boys who don't see the joy in sitting and listening to the pearls of wisdom the leaders have to share.
This last conference Dave and I had a little moment of parental joy. As the Tabernacle choir began to sing Mitch recognized that it was a song he knew. He sat down and started to sweetly sing along, "What does the Father ask of us, what do the scriptures say? Have faith have hope, live like His Son, help others on their way." As I listened to his little angelic voice sing these words I looked at David and teared up a little. Then at the moment the last words were sung, he jumped out of his seat grabbed a toy baseball bat near him and shouted, "Monte, lets hit Uncle BJ!" and Monte happily agreed. The moment was gone and I was reminded that he was not an angel but a true boy but,a sweet boy though.

Motherhood: An Eternal Partnership with God

I know I am so far behind on the post I would like to make I watched this just know and it made me feel so good I had to share it. Especially after Mitch had a two hour tantrum and both boys almost drew blood because they bit each other, it was a message I needed. I hope you enjoy. I will get to more of the family updates soon. Hillari
Motherhood: An Eternal Partnership with God