Trading Spaces

This post is a few months over due (the room swap actually took place in July), but better late than never...

Do you remember this cute room??







Well, EmmaLee graciously gave up her room to her baby brother. We moved her toddler bed downstairs into Maddi's "Big-Girl" room, and with a little presto-chango (and a ton of painter's tape!) her pink and white candy stripe room became:





Nick did such a good job with the painting, and the bed linens don't look too bad either, if I don't say so myself. I'm actually supposed to be retired from all major sewing projects, but I made an exception (again!) to save us some money. With this bedding complete (the bumpers, dust ruffle, and curtain--the cute train quilt is pottery barn kids), every room in our house now has homemade bedding. Crazy!

4:36 a.m.

With four children five and under, there is no such thing as sleeping through the night at our house. It's always something--a cold, teething, a bad dream--and then it's up to mom and dad's bedroom for some reassurance. Then back down to their bedrooms to be tucked back in, patted on the back, and laid by for a few minutes. (Unless of course they simply make a bed on our floor and decide not to bother waking us up. Or if you're Emma you can just climb up on Dad's side of the bed and he never even notices!) And that's just the three big kids. The baby is a whole other story. He always starts the night out in his bed, but after waking up a few times, the fatigue catches up with us and we break. Yep, back into our bed too. Sometimes it's like a circus in there. And it's only a queen size bed for heaven's sake! Sometimes it's extra sweet though to have those little bodies curled up next to yours, feeling so safe and secure by your side. I just keep reminding myself that I have the rest of my life to sleep through the night, but I don't have the rest of my life to cuddle with these babies. That the day is going to come all too fast when the last thing in the world they want, or will admit to wanting, is to cuddle up in mommy's arms. And so, yes I'll admit it, I'm a bedtime pushover. Having all these little ones in my bed reminds me of the olden days where multiple people shared a bed. They kept each other warm and hardly even noticed the leg draped over theirs, or the arm stretched out across their face. Well, I can't say Nick and I don't notice, but our children seem pretty immune to it. Whenever they end up in our bed, they lay all over each other and sleep right through it. Which actually is what prompted this post. I woke up early this morning--4:36 a.m.--and there were my two littlest loves, cute as ever.



Emmie must have pulled the usual crawl in on Dad's side and then roll over him stunt, and I brought Mason in an hour earlier. At some point he must have deserted nursing and decided to cuddle up with his big sister. She didn't even notice, either that, or she just didn't mind. After capturing the moment on camera, I laid awake for a while just looking at them. Oh how I wish they would stay little forever. But then these circles under my eyes won't ever go away. Oh well.

Good Luck Grandpa!

Our Grandpa McArthur recently applied for a new job as a single hospital CEO in the town of Show Low, Arizona. He has been working for the past 23 years as a multi-facility manager in Edmond, Oklahoma; however, he has been wanting to get back to single hospital administration for quite some time. He has also been looking to make a move back west to be closer to friends and family. The job in Show Low provided the perfect opportunity for both--not to mention being a hunting and fishing wonderland! So, when the time came for his Show Low interview, we knew we needed to do something special to let Grandpa know that we had been praying and fasting for him and that we would be thinking of him on his big day. After talking it over with the kids, we decided we would make Grandpa some homemade cards. With a little help from mom and dad, the cards turned out quite beautiful.

From left to right--Emma's card, Spencer's card, Maddi's card. And a little bag of pink mints of course, to remind Grandpa of his Grandma Graff.



Inside the cards the kids wrote down things for grandpa to tell his interviewers and qualities they thought Grandpa had that would make him a great candidate for the job.





We were so proud of our little four and five year old children for taking the time to write Grandpa such lovely notes! And for Emma of course, who drew him such a nice picture. After getting the package together, we overnighted it to the hotel Grandma and Grandpa were staying at in Show Low for a last minute surprise and ego-booster. Grandpa liked them so much, he brought them up in his interview and presto--all of our praying and fasting and thinking of Grandpa paid off. A week later he was offered the job and is moving to Show Low ASAP. Grandma will join him when their home in Oklahoma sells. We will miss our visits to Oklahoma, but we are excited for this new chapter in our extended families life.

A New Family Record!

When Madison started walking at nine months and one week, I thought I would fall right over. She was such a tiny little thing. It was incredible to see her walking about. After Mason was born; however, it wasn't long before I knew she was going to have some competition for the family record books. I thought for sure he would take her on with crawling; however, he dragged his feet (literally) in getting in on the crawling action. He didn't let me down in the walking department though. Two nights ago, on Sunday, August 8th, Mason surprised us all by taking a few steps. We were all sitting on the living room floor practicing songs off of the kids Primary Music CD and all of a sudden Madison starts screaming. "Look at Mason!" she shouted. And sure enough, he had let go of the rocking chair and was slowing making his way out into the middle of the floor. Nick grabbed the camera and got this quick video.



Way to go Mase! Eight and a half months. Now that's impressive!

The Zucchini Houdini

Was I really just telling Nick that our beautiful garden wasn't producing very big zucchinis? It must have heard me.



And now we are being over-run with ginormous produce. After baking, grilling, frying, and steaming the veggie on it's own, not too mention putting it in breads, spaghetti sauces, quiches, and a number of other meals, I'm just about ready to pull the plant out. After all, we don't waste food at our house, and with a zucchini take over in our area, it's pretty hard to give the stuff away these days. I might give it one more chance though. Especially since I saw an ad in a recent Deseret Book catalog for The Zucchini Houdini. It reads: Zucchini doesn't get the respect it deserves. But this book will change that! Filled with tasty recipes, trivia, and tips that will change your attitude, this book will have you using zucchini in everything from main dishes to desserts." How could I resist!

Our Testimony Meeting

Have I ever mentioned how genuinely good my little Madison is? Well, just in case I haven't, let me just take a minute to tell you. Aside from being the most wonderful helper a mother could ask for--both with doing jobs and helping with the younger kids--Maddi also has such a strong love for her Father in Heaven and for her Savior Jesus Christ. She wants to do what is right so much. She told me recently, "You know Mom, I don't just want to do what is right to make you happy. I really want to make Heavenly Father happy and to be a heavenly mother myself some day." That's pretty profound for a five year old.

Anyway, I could go on and on about how sweet she is, but there was a specific reason I got on to write this post. Recently, Maddi has become taken with being big enough to fast on fast Sunday, as well as wanting to bear her testimony as part of her "fast and testimony" experience. A few days ago, I found her busily writing on a sheet of scratch paper. I asked her if I could read what she was writing. When I did, I was impressed by the fact that she was writing down all the things she knew to be true. When I talked to her about it, she told that me she was writing down her testimony so she could practice it before the next fast Sunday. It was very sweet. That night she had the whole family practice with her before our nightly family scripture study and prayer. It was a special experience, and the first time I have heard little Spencer bear his testimony. The spirit was so strong.

I thought the whole testimony thing would probably end there; however, a few days later I came down to find this on my couch:



I was a little annoyed by the mess, and almost scolded the kids for getting into the bathroom tissues, but then, Maddi came out and stood in front of the couch to "bear her testimony". It was then that I realized that she had constructed her own little podium on our couch, complete with tissues on the side. I was so impressed. (Not to mention struck by how observant children are!) After she was done, Spencer also came and stood in front of the couch. He too had been "writing" his testimony down and was determined to bear it with his big sister. And that's a pretty big deal for him since he's so shy! The whole experience made me step back and really appreciate the joy children can be. Here I am thinking I am the teacher and the example. Perhaps it is more often the other way around.