Abundant Recompense Copy

On Sunday we went to visit a friend from the ward. Nate and I were chatting with him while Addison and Bryn fought over his exercise machine and Leah slept. The fighting became impossible to ignore, so Nate sent them to the backyard to run around with the promise that we'd be out soon to help them get on the trampoline. About five minutes later Nate went to check on them and found Addison completely soaked from the neck down. He'd gone swimming in the koi pond. Classic. Our friend, Brother Grove laughed like I'd never seen him laugh before, and we put Addison in time out. It was especially effective because Addison was outside and we were inside. (That is a joke.) We finally went outside and plopped the kids on the tramp to play. They were having a good old time when all of a sudden Bryn came up screaming. Nate went and grabbed her and there was blood pouring at the rate of a gallon every five seconds out of her mouth and nose. She'd landed face first on the bar on the ...

It is taxing to have three little ones at home all the time. Sometimes I long for the days when Addison is big enough to do his own laundry or empty the entire dishwasher by himself. But as I see him growing up it makes me a little sad too. Because, let's face it, he'll always be my baby - they all will. (Don't tell them I said that. They would not appreciate it.) For our daily mommy-Addison preschool time we've been working on reading. He is doing amazingly well! Today he read this story to me: "This little cat can run in sand. That little cat can sit on sand. See the feet." I can also have a normal and somewhat deep conversation with him, like this one from lunch today. Addison: Mom, are you happy we have a baby sister? Me: Yeah, are you? Addison: Yeah. But sometimes I don't like her. Just when she yells and screams I don't like her. Me: You yell and scream too sometimes. Like this morning you were yelling and screaming when Bryn took your toy. And r...

Leah is six weeks old today! It's amazing how the time has flown and how much she has changed already. We've packed away most of the newborn clothes already and moved up to the next size. She continues to be a great eater and a good night time sleeper. She'll usually go right back to sleep in the night after eating. I love getting to hold her and snuggle with her and watch her grow. Here are some pictures of our sweet little baby. I love it when she sleeps with her legs bunched up and her bum in the air. Loving the attention. Her very favorite place to sleep Loving her first bath   Sweet little smile

Memorial Day weekend found us in St. George with Nate's family. It was a good trip with lots of time to hang out and do fun things with them. We visited the carousel, the park and the splash pad, and Grandma and Grandpa were kind enough to let Nate and I sneak out several times for little dates like running and the bookstore. I didn't get many pictures of the day to day fun, but here are a few from some outings we went on. It was a great trip. I told Nate while we were planning the trip that I really wanted to go up Pine Valley Mountain and see some woods. He made it happen and on Sunday we headed up with the fam. It was beautiful. And here's Leah during the weekend. She gave me her first smile while we were there! Chillin' with Aunt Lindsey and Uncle Micah. On Memorial Day proper, we went and visited a ghost town called Shunesburg right by Zion. It's privately owned and the owners are very picky about who they let in and when. Visitors are only allowed for about fi...

Hi. This is Addison. This is a picture I colored during quiet time. The Ninja Turtles are at the beach and they're stacked on top of each other like a sand castle. The leader, Leonardo is at the very very bottom on the sand. Michelangelo is on his hand. Daddy's favorite, Donatello is on his head, and Raphael is on his head. On the very very top is their monster truck. It's blue with brown wheels. I really like the sand castle of it. It looks so beautiful.

Having three kids is definitely an adjustment. There are good days and not-so-good ones. Yesterday, for example, I called my mom in tears twice before 9:00 a.m. (one of those times I hadn't even gotten out of bed). Today, thus far, I've been able to sneak in some quality one-on-one time with each of the kids, I wiped off the breakfast table, and my kids were dressed and ready (including a clean room) before the tv ever came on. As seasoned parents of three, here is a random sampling of lessons learned and behaviors observed this time around. According to Michelle: 1. The baby is the easy part. It's everything else that's hard. 2. Somebody needs to invent a baby lawn chair to make getting things done outside easier. 3. The diaper is always full. Count on it. According to Nate: 1. A baby's cry is an evolutionary wonder. Just try to ignore it. 2. I'm in love with our baby. 3. Babies smell like sunshine. And along with that random sampling of wisdom, a random sampli...