Spring (or Not) Break

There was no "Spring" in our Spring break this year. It was cold, wet and snowy! Who would have thought? A few weeks ago we were loving the warm weather. Currently we are back in our winter coats...this is nuts. So in order to escape the gloom of Portland we headed up to sunny tri-cities for a few days. It was great except there was no sun and lots more rain and snow. Boo! But there were cousin to play with, a brother-in-law to demolish at cards, a hotel pool to take full advantage of, a birthday to celebrate, and a baby blessing to attend. So we were busy having a great time despite this insane weather we are having in the Northwest.
Ansen found a bike helmet that was twice his size but according to him necessary to ride his tricycle. I've seen him ride his tricycle and as his mother I would agree, the more protection the better for this little daredevil! Does his head look too big?
Question: What does Mexican food and a map of Hawaii have in common? I have no idea but there was a ginormous map of Hawaii (birthplace of Miss Kahaulani) hanging on the Mexican restaurant wall. Jayden was thrilled to point out "her" island.
It was dress like your cousin day for Braley and Angie. Funny thing is, I picked out both their outfits and didn't even realize that I choose yellow and pink for these two ladies. Don't they look cute together? While out and about a lady told how much my girls look alike. It took me a minute to realize that she was talking about these two and not Jayden and Braley.
I was thinking about trading in the minivan for one of these fierce machines. If I can fit 8 kids (no offence Junie and Jordan)in this why not?(Bottom row: Braley, M.J., Stephanie and Ansen Top Row:Jayden, Angela, Jordan-Stephanie's "friend"-and Emily)
We all went to a Motorcycle jumping show thing-a-mabober. It was fun and super loud. My heart about stopped when these guys would fly through the air with their legs flailing all over. It is so unsafe and just plain crazy. It was insane. The kids loved it and I have to admit I was impressed with how daring these guys were.
To end Spring Break on the right note we attend our friends the Fairchild's new baby's blessing. She was so small and such a good girl--not a peep from her....or her cousins...she had two cousins blessed with her. It was great to see the Fairchilds, Beauchamps and Reil clans.
So while the weather was rotten we had a great Spring Break. If you haven't had yours yet here to hoping you get a little more Sping in your Spring break.

Who's Enchaned?

Went to see Horton Hears A Who for fhe on Monday night and we all loved it. Even Ansen. This was the first movie that Ansen actually sat through. I am sure it is because he is obsessed with elephants right now. The whole theater was laughing out loud during the entire movie! Anywho, it was very funny and clever. Go see it!





Grandma and Grandpa Forsberg sent the ladies Enchanted for Easter. They absolutley love it. It is very rare that Jayden and Braley can agree on movies. Jayden is into Mulan, Jane from Tarzan, and "Princesses" that are tough and keep up with the boys. Braley is into Cinderella, Ariel, Sleeping beauty. Princess that sing ballads and wear big puffy dresses. But I am happy to say I think this one will become a favorite of both. It may also become a favorite of mine because today the ladies actually cleaned their room while singing the Happy Helping Song.

Ka*Nee*Tah

A weekend away! Yippee! We went with Grandma and Grandpa Widing over to Kaneetah Indian Reservation to get some R&R. The drive was long but the kids were great...mostly because I insisted on bring our traveling dvd player!

Did I mention that Kaneetah is also a Casino? Jason and his mom had a little fun at the penny slots. I can't believe he went out like this:Next time we are going to stay in a Tepee with the kids. It looks like so much fun. They also have kayaking, horseback riding, golf and a spa--so much to do. But the best "thing" to do is jump on the bed with daddy!

The second best thing to do is swim in the awesome pool. It was 40 degrees out but the pool, which is heated by a natural hot spring, was warm, fun and huge! The kids must have gone down the children's slide 100 times! And, of course, we all spent some quality time in the hot tub.

On the way home we went over Mt. Hood and hit a snow storm. It was beautiful. Jason made sure to entertain the kids and do a couple of "donuts" in the car.We had a fun few days and enjoyed seeing another side of Oregon. We had a great weekend and we hope you did too. Oh! And Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Yippee!

I was one of "those" mom's today. You know, the mom that everyone else gets mad at because her kids are being good and listening. I took Ansen to get his pictures taken and HE behaved perfectly. He cooperated. He smiled. Laughed. Stood, sat, put his hand in/out of his pockets--whatever they told him to do. The pictures came out darling. Jayden and Braley just hung out and told Little Man how great he was doing. They clapped for him and cheered fer him. They did not argue at all and viola! we were done and out of there in less than an hour.
While we were waiting for the pictures to print I watched three mom's wrestle with their little ones. The crying and mayhem was exhausting from a distance. Oh how happy I was that MY kids were behaving. I did get a few "oh you suck" glares from the other mommy's but who cares? My kids were being perfect. Yippee!

2:47 p.m.

It's been a long day. This NEVER happens. I'm kind of liking it. I hope he wakes up in a good mood. But for now, isn't he cute?

"Jesus Pushed The Mommy"

At church yesterday I had to take Ansen out of Sacrament meeting for a potty break. Upon coming out of the bathroom he noticed the picture of Christ and Mary at the Tomb. The picture, which I am sure you all know, is the one of Mary on the ground gazing up at Christ as he stands at the entrance of the tomb by the large stone that covered the entrance. This was our conversation:

A: Mommy, there's Jesus and a mommy.
Me: Yes, that's Jesus and Mary.
A: The mommy is on the ground.
Me: Yes, that's right.
A: Mommy, Jesus pushed the mommy and she fell on the ground?
Me: No, Jesus is talking to the mommy and she is sitting and listening.
A: No! Jesus pushed her. She fell down and she is sad and Jesus has to say sorry.
Me: Jesus doesn't push sweetie. Jesus is nice and he wouldn't hit or push.
A: Jesus pushed the Mommy and Jesus needs to say sorry.

...and our conversation went on and on. Good heavens! This kid is so stinking funny. How many of you have seen that picture with your child(ren) or have shown that picture to a Primary class and have heard, "Did Jesus push her?" I think for Family Home Evening we will have to emphasize that Jesus wasn't a bully.

Jump For Joy

Hooray! It looks like Spring might be here. Each day there is no rain the kids and I head outside for a nice long walk in the woods near our house. They are loving being outside and so am I. Jason has been able to get out with us a few days too. Barney, the fattest Wiener dog ever, even loves getting out and stretching those short legs of his after a long wet winter. It is great! Here are a few pictures of our three stooges releasing some of that bottled up winter energy!

Just Made Me Think

A neighbor came over and knocked on my door today. I love this lady, she's so funny and just always interesting to talk to. I haven't seen her around much lately and so I invited her in to have lunch with me and the boys. She came in--who could pass up pb&j?
I could tell something was on her mind. We are more "talk on the lawn" friends and not really "lunch buddies." I asked what was up and this is how our conversation went:

Her: I just have to ask something that I have always wondered about you.
Me: Okay, but just so you know, don't ask unless you want an honest answer. I tend to be blunt and opinionated.
Her: Why are you always so happy?
Me: Huh?
Her: I have only seen you cry once the day your grandpa died. Other than that you are always smiling.
Me: (trying to be funny) I save my smiles for when I am outside. Inside, its all angry eyes and mad voice.
Her: I mean it. What makes you so happy.

Well if that didn't stop me in my tracks. So we talked. We talked about marriage, kids, work, school and then finally a little about the gospel. This neighbor has had a tough year personally and within her family and I can see her struggling to keep things "normal." She talked about life being dark and hard. Instead of saying "are you kidding? Its great! Sunshine and rainbows everywhere....", I just agreed. I haven't had the same things happen to me and so therefore I can only try and understand her pain but I realized that I don't have to understand it to help her bear it.

We talked a lot about how to find happiness and how to stay positive. I am by no means any good at this. I am a self-declared cry baby but at least I know the steps to take and the road to follow. How grateful I am for parents and the gospel. Each taught me that I deserve to be happy. I tried to make my neighbor see that she deserves to be happy. I want her to be happy and find joy in her life. I can't imagine simply not knowing my Savior and His need for me to have joy.

So I guess the point of this post is simply that I am grateful that people recognize that the way I live my life makes me happy. Even on those days that I am not feeling overly joyful, I am still happy. Happy, isn't about time :) ?

1st Time Offender

Today I got a traffic ticket. First one ever. I am so upset. I was pulled over in the minivan. The officer said I "rolled" through a four way stop. I swear to you I didn't. But that is not even the point. He was so rude. He was extremely loud and very condescending. Poor Braley got all freaked out when he told me that I had to go to court. In her head she equates court with going to jail. I have explained that I won't go to jail but she is still bringing it up every 30 mins. She is saying things like, "when you have to go to court only daddy will be here to take care of us." Jayden is just plain mad. From the back seat she kept saying, "tell the police man that we were following the law." When I said now was not the time she told me that he would understand because we just have to tell him we were following the law. I said I didn't think he would be understanding she got really upset and said she wasn't going to ask a cop for help ever if this man would listen to us. What do you say to that? Ansen on the other hand just sat there silently. I don't think this has ever happened. Ever.
Anyway, I got my first ticket. It stinks. Jason, after some inital "ha ha's" told me I should file a complaint with the Police Department on behalf of the rude officer. Maybe I will. I go court on March 19th. I'm sure I will have to pay a fine because how do I fight that? Honestly though-what happened to getting off with a warning? He didn't ask if I'd been pulled over before or if I wanted to explained what happened. He just was cranky and rude. I will let someone know that this officer could brush up on his bedside manner when there are children in the car. Would it have hurt him to at least use a pleasant tone? I'll keep you updated.