Hoppily Ever After

6 months overdue

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 18:47:00 +0000

I have been postponing posting this birth story for long enough. I have debated editing this, and making it "nicer" for the online community, especially for those who know me in real life. But I finally decided that I should just leave the honesty from the first draft. For those who know me as a natural-birth advocate... By comparison, on the pain scale, my first two births were heaven, and my third birth was uncomfortable, and the fourth (the twins) was difficult. This one was HELL. I still totally endorse natural birth, and will most likely continue to plan homebirths assuming we have more children... but I totally understand if you decide to go the hospital/epidural route.

As an intro, this is the birth story that was typed the day Marie was born. She was due on October 3rd, a Monday, which is exactly when she ended up coming.

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I had hoped that she would make her appearance a few days early, so I was pretty disappointed when I was still pregnant over the weekend. While sitting at home on Sunday afternoon I started feeling some light crampy contractions around 3:15pm. They came about every 10 minutes or so, but not very strong. Around 6:15pm I went to move laundry and got into a deep squat so I could reach to move everything from the washer to dryer (front-loaders), and I had a GOOD contraction. But then I didn't feel any more after that, so that was kind of discouraging.

6:45pm - I was sitting at the kitchen table for dinner when I felt another contraction coming. Remembering the good one I felt while moving laundry, I got down in a deep squat again, and sure enough I had a GOOD contraction. After that, they were still coming every 10 minutes or so, but much stronger. But then nothing changed. I was up and moving around a lot, helping get the kids ready for bed, and they didn't seem to get any closer together, or any stronger. Between contractions I kept second guessing myself. It just took SO long for the next contraction to show up, and I didn't feel anything in between. But during each contraction, I KNEW this was it. I just didn't think I could be feeling something so strong that wouldn't actually do anything. Just after 8pm I had DH move our bedroom around and inflate the birth tub. Around 8:45 I called my midwife and let her know what I was feeling. I really wanted her to come tell me I was actually dilating. While I waited for her and her apprentice to arrive, I lay down to see if the contractions would keep coming. I did have two more while lying down, but they were 20 minutes apart.

10pm - Midwife & apprentice showed up. I asked for an internal. 4cm, 25% effaced. Baby sounded great, and I was doing fine. I also had called my mom to come help with the kids since they didn't seem to be falling asleep. (I think they could sense that something was happening.) Around 10:30pm Midwives suggested that I lie down and try to get some sleep between contractions. They figured I was in early labor, which, given my history, could pick up at any time, and they wanted me well-rested. I tried to sleep for about an hour. Contractions kept coming around 10 minutes apart.

11:30pm - I got up to go to the bathroom soon after a contraction, and had another one on the toilet. That seemed a bit faster than before. I went out to see the midwives, and found that my mom had gone back home. The kids were asleep, and she only lives 3 minutes away. She figured that if it was early labor, she should get some sleep too. Anyway, while I was out talking with the midwives I had two more contractions only 5 minutes apart. Since things seemed to be picking up if I was up moving around, they gave me two options. I could go try to sleep more and stay rested, but let things move slower. Or we could go for a walk and try to get them to pick up more. I was really feeling like I just wanted baby out sooner, so I chose the walk.

12:30am - by the time we got back from our walk, contractions had gone from 8-10 minutes apart to only 3-4 minutes apart. I asked to be checked again to make sure these were doing something before I committed to having the tub filled. Still 4cm, and now 50% effaced. I was pretty bummed, but two contractions later I decided I really wanted to get in the tub anyway. While waiting for the tub to fill, I went to the bathroom a couple of times and let my body clean itself out. This was another sign to me that this was really *real.* I also started feeling a bit dizzy, lightheaded, and kind of flu-like, and I started shaking a bit between contractions. I honestly believe I was starting transition at this point.

1:15am - I got in the tub which was WONDERFUL, and tried to get some more rest. Contractions spaced out to 6-8 minutes or so for a while, with a couple gaps of 10-12 minutes, but they got much longer and much stronger, so I didn't worry too much about them. I started dozing on the edge of the pool between contractions, but they were getting super strong and honestly quite painful. I kept thinking that I probably couldn't take much more of this.

2:19am - I asked for another internal and was now 6cm and 75% effaced. But, my midwife said I was super soft and stretchy, and since I was starting to grunt and groan during contractions and she suspected I was feeling pushy, she told me to just go with it. The contractions by this point were TERRIBLE! I felt like they were at least 2 minutes long, but they had a horrible peak that lasted at least 30 seconds and felt pushy, but a painful pushy. Now I think this is because my body wanted to push before it was really ready to. After a few more of these contractions I started trying to guess how far I was. I guessed/hoped that 3 of these nasty contractions = 1cm dilated. I decided to wait for three more contractions and then ask to be checked again. During the next contraction, I completely forgot about that decision as my mind was totally occupied with just surviving the contraction. I was moaning, groaning, grunting, almost screaming, and clinging to Dave. I was holding his hands and pulling back away from him so I could recline a bit in the pool. I hoped this position would help my cervix line up with the birth canal a bit better and allow baby to help dilate things faster.

After this contraction, I tried to remember what I had been thinking about before it, but couldn't... instead, I started thinking about my mom and figured someone should call her so she could come. I had decided earlier that if she wasn't busy with the kids, I wanted her to come witness the birth. I felt it was probably close to time to call her. But the next contraction started before I thought this through enough to say anything. I was practically writhing in pain for this one, and started sobbing, and it seemed to never end. Then I felt quite a bit of movement, almost a pop, and lots of pressure. When the contraction ended, I reached down to see if I could feel anything, and found a bulging bag of waters blocking the birth canal. I exclaimed that she was crowning, Dave said "Oh good! I should probably turn on the video camera now." My midwife took the hand that Dave had been holding so he could go deal with the camera, and when he finished that I told him to call my mom. He picked up my phone and started to walk out of the room to call her, when I felt the next contraction coming. I told him to stop and come back NOW. I knew she would be born with this contraction and I didn't want him to miss it. Sure enough, as the contraction started, I felt a huge urge to push and pushed as hard as I could. Her head slowly emerged and finally cleared the birth canal with a small pop, as the amniotic sac finally broke. My big surprise came next, when I actually had to wait for the next contraction for the rest of her (my last four babies practically shot out after their head was born). When I found I couldn't push her out on my own, I waited for the next contraction, which came quickly, and then pushed to clear her shoulders, and then the rest of her slowly slid out.

She was born at 2:53am, only 35 minutes after I was checked at 6cm. At 8lbs1oz, she's our biggest baby by far. Our previous biggest was 7lbs4oz, and the others were all under 7lbs. She was also 20 1/4inches, not quite our longest, but close. And yes, she was born ON her due date... which I did not expect.

We drained some of the water in the tub so that I could sit and nurse a bit, and we waited for the placenta. My mom arrived shortly after 3am (Dave called her about 2 minutes after the birth), and got to see her. Also, Dave woke up each of the girls, one at a time, and brought them in to see their new baby sister. They were all pretty groggy, though happy to see a new baby, and then happy to go right back to bed. After the placenta, Dave cut the cord, and I got up to shower while the midwives did the newborn exam. I got cleaned up and in bed by around 4:30am, and the midwives got everything cleaned up & packed up and left around 5am.

I've spent most of the day resting, napping, checking out facebook & such, and just enjoying baby. She's beautiful and we're SO in LOVE! She nurses nearly constantly anytime she's awake, and part of the time she's asleep also. The kids all adore her and we've had to figure out a holding rotation so that everyone gets a turn with her. I didn't have my camera nearby when the girls had their turns today, but I did get some cute pics of the boys and their turns.
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So... there's our story. Though now M is 6 months old, sitting up, beginning to crawl, and a super happy, though sometimes clingy baby.

Since everyone loves pictures, and I haven't posted any in this post yet... here's a few of our newest from the past few months:

Watching TV with K

Falling asleep in C's arms

Santa!

Enjoying a late-night snack with Daddy

3 months!

Napping with C

Playing in the car

6 months!

K's silliness & M's adorable cheeks

Lunch: Fail

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:25:00 +0000

I have learned several things today:

1. Lunch time is not negotiable for my children.

2. My children are very good problem solvers.

3. Apparently I need a more "open concept" kitchen.

4. It IS physically possible for my boys to be quiet... but only when they choose to be.

5. Sometimes having a clean kitchen requires several deep breaths (mine) and the consumption (by me) of a few handfuls of chocolate chips and/or mini-marshmallows.

6. My husband has a sense of humor, one that frequently presents itself just when I need it most.

Soaps & Bonbons

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 23:21:00 +0000

Several times in my childhood I remember my dad coming home from work to find the house a mess and dinner not even started. My parents would joke that my mom must have been sitting on the couch all day watching soap operas & eating bonbons.

That's pretty much how I feel right now. I haven't posted in over 3 months, and I pretty much have nothing to show for it. I've been sitting here all morning wondering what we've done since I last posted... and I can't think of much. I mean, I definitely watched too much HGTV, and too much Disney Jr., and I definitely ate way too much chocolate & sugar... but what else?

(What else is there?)

I guess the most important thing that happened in the last three months was that we went from this:

to this:

As many of you heard, Marie Frogley joined our family on 3 October 2011 at 2:53am. Yes, that was her due date (little stinker). She was 8 lbs 1 oz (by far our biggest baby) and 20 1/4" long. She was born into a birth tub in our bedroom at home, after about 8 hours of labor.

We all ADORE our newest addition. She is incredibly sweet, and very quiet compared to the rest of our brood. She can be VERY loud when she needs something, but most of the time she is content to sit and observe the chaos around her... as long as she can see what's going on.

Just because I know you all love baby photos as much as I do, here's a couple more of her:

5 Oct 2011 (2 days old) - J1 & M

6 Oct 2011 (3 days old)

9 Oct 2011 (6 days old) - First day at church, wearing a dress that used to be mine.

13 Oct 2011 (10 days old) - Skinny jeans

14 Oct 2011 (11 days old)

15 Oct 2011 (12 days old) - Daddy cuddles

23 Oct 2011 (nearly 3 weeks) - Blessing day

23 Oct 2011 - J2 & M

23 Oct 2011 - Dave, C & M

And from her photo shoot @ 3 weeks (26 Oct):

J2 & M

J1 & M

C & M

D & M

K & M

Dave & M (one of my favorites!)

We have done a few other things, but that's about all I have time to post right now. Hopefully it won't be another 3 months before I post again. :) I think I'll leave you with my favorite picture of my new beautiful daughter.

In the Zone

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 17:02:00 +0000

No, I haven't had the baby yet.

Since I am still pregnant, I guess it's time for me to update the blog.

In all of my previous pregnancies, I have had babies between 8 days and 1 day before the due date I came up with (not always the same as the OB's date). My "official" date this time is October third. By our calculations, our "birth Zone" started on Sunday, and stretches to this next Sunday. If baby waits until after Conference weekend, she'll simply create a larger Zone (though, my last two births were 2 days before, and 1 day before, so she could follow that pattern and just go longer than the previous one, and be on her due date, or just after). So, I'm currently sitting around waiting to go into labor at any time, which is incredibly annoying, and frustrating. I'm at that point where I just want to have baby out. I'm tired, sore, and totally cranky.

I did have some maternity pictures taken just over a week ago, but I'm combining that session with a newborn session, and I won't get any of the pics until we're done taking all of them, so I don't have any good belly pictures to show.

So, here's a bad belly picture from this morning. Bad lighting, bad hair, no make-up, weird face... but at least you can see the 39 week belly.

So as not to end this post quite so depressing... we do have good news. We moved into our new house about a month ago now, last night we committed to buying a new (to us) van, and we received the official letter from BYU stating that Dave finished all master's & thesis requirements and will receive his diploma when they are mailed out after December graduations!

The only "new" thing for this year that we're still waiting on is baby...

A Light at the End of the Tunnel

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 19:28:00 +0000

A lot of things have happened since I last blogged. Thankfully, they all tie into nearing the end of our time in Limbo.

Dave ended up getting job offers from three different positions within Intel, one in Chandler, and two in Hillsboro. After flying to Arizona for an interview, Dave decided Arizona was way too hot and dry for us. We love the green of the north-west and the cooler temps, and even the rain. But he also learned that the Chandler group had people working in Oregon also, so that was still an option. Dave selected one of the positions and started working a permanent job with Intel, in Hillsboro, about a month ago now.

The last week in July Dave flew back to Utah to defend his thesis. The defense went well and he is now officially done with his Master's degree. We'll be getting the diploma shortly after Christmas, but he's DONE!

The next big thing to deal with is our housing arrangements. We are currently still staying with my parents, but we have plans to move in just over two weeks... into our own house!

We found an adorable, affordable, super-tiny, 4 bedroom, 2 bath house with a great yard, only a 10 minute walk from Intel. We're nearly done with the mortgage/inspection/appraisal/repair process and we're completely on track to close August 30th. We're planning to move over Labor Day weekend. :)

Limbo: How long can you go? AKA: Chronicles of a Ping Pong ball

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 13:44:00 +0000

So, the first 4 years of our marriage were fairly uneventful. We were both students when we got married, we lived in student housing for the first year and a half, then moved to an awesome basement apartment where we stayed for 2 1/2 years. During our time in the basement, I graduated from BYU, we had two beautiful daughters, and Dave got his bachelor's degree as well.

Then the adventures began.

We both decided we wanted to move to Oregon, so as Dave's first graduation drew closer, we packed everything up, rented a truck, and said goodbye to our lovely basement. Approximately 48 hours before rolling out of Utah, Dave got a job offer for a 6 month internship with Intel. During that time, we lived with my parents to save money, and dreamed of what it would be like when Dave finished the internship, got a "real" job, and life could really start. We also had our third beautiful daughter. :)

Unfortunately, 2 months after the internship ended and C was born, we realized there were no "real" jobs for Dave in Oregon at that time. Somehow, there were jobs in Utah. After an interview-packed few days in Utah, Dave accepted a position with a company in Lehi, and we moved back to Provo. Once back in Provo, Dave realized the real reason we needed to be in Utah was for him to go back to school and get his Master's.

Yuck... more school.

We moved from our adorable little twin-home, to a cheaper town-home closer to campus (and somehow back in our old ward), and began the student life again. About a week into Dave's first semester in grad school, we found out we were pregnant again. When our first ultrasound a few months later told us we were expecting twins, we decided to move yet again, to save more money on rent... and ended up back in the same basement apartment we had left 2 years before.

One year in the basement apartment and Dave was making great progress on grad school. All course-work was nearly complete and he just had the dang thesis left to wade through. Learning that doing the thesis remotely was an option, we decided to move back to Oregon, with another Intel internship. Unfortunately, that internship came to a close with ZERO progress made on the thesis, and Dave decided it would be best to be back in Utah where he could be on campus with his professors all day while working on thesis.

Thankfully, our awesome relocation package from the Intel internship had left us with no consumer debt, and a healthy savings account. Also, some very dear friends of ours agreed to let us live in their fully furnished basement, rent free, for one semester so we could live off of our savings so Dave wouldn't have to hold a job AND work on the thesis. And my parents agreed to store all of our belongings in their dining room until further notice. (Actually, my mom claims she's holding it all hostage until we move her grandchildren closer to her.)

Our time in our friends' basement ended the first week of May, and we decided to head back to Oregon... again... (third time's a charm, right?)

This time, Dave had been applying for lots more "permanent" jobs with Intel, and we were praying that an offer would come quickly so that we could really start to settle down somewhere and our days as Ping-Pong balls would be over. Unfortunately, we apparently have to endure Limbo for a bit longer.

Dave's thesis is coming along, and he's currently on track to defend exactly one month from today, though he's terrified that something horrible with happen and he'll have to start all over. Assuming all goes as planned (and I'm confident it will all be fine), he will be walking at August graduation (one more trip to Utah...), though his diploma will officially say "December 2011."

On the job front though... Dave has had several 4-hour technical interviews, with no offers... until yesterday.

Finally, after years of back & forth, and after months of uncertainty, and weeks of nothing... Dave got an offer for a permanent position with Intel here in Hillsboro, OR.

But, our Limbo days are not quite over yet. Dave's job search has been going so well the past couple weeks, that he actually has two more on-site interviews with Intel this week, both of which could result in more offers. One of those interviews is actually in Chandler, AZ. We don't expect to hear anything from those interviews until at least the middle of next week, simply because both Monday and Tuesday are holidays for Intel... but hopefully, we'll hear back on Wednesday and then we'll be making our final decisions.

At this point, it's nice to know that our worst-case scenario still includes a permanent job with Intel. :) But the question now is will that job be in Hillsboro or Chandler? We're on track to move and settle somewhere before this next baby makes her appearance (have I mentioned on the blog that it's a girl?), but where will it be?

Hopefully, I'll be able to let you know in a little over a week. :)

16 Weeks

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 19:17:00 +0000

This is my least favorite part of the belly pic stages. I feel more fat than pregnant... not enough belly to be obviously pregnant, but enough that I don't have a true waist. At least I can fit into some of my maternity pants... so much more comfortable!

And please excuse the wild hair... I have no idea what my hair is doing this morning.

Accountable Kids - Our Chore System

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 16:11:00 +0000

Just so everyone knows... I totally cheated on the chore system. I did NOT come up with it on my own. :)

I have thought through many different chore systems over the years. One included paying my children approximately $.10 per chore, per age, per day... so a 6 year old would make $.60 for doing chore x, on Tuesday... looking back now, that one was WAY too complicated, and would have been nearly impossible to keep track of with so many kids. Others were much simpler... do your chores, or else. You can guess how well that one worked.

I have finally found a chore system that I really love and that I believe will really work for our family for a LONG time. At this point, it works amazingly well, when *I* am consistent. The good thing about this is that when it doesn't work, I have no one to blame but myself (maybe that's not a good thing).

Anyway, last year, while living in Oregon, a friend of mine tried to explain what she was doing for her chore system with her barely 5 year old (right in between K & D), and her 3 1/2 year old (right between D & C). She was raving over this system and how amazing it was. I was totally skeptical. She only had two kids, I had 5 already. She could focus on her two and help them through their chores, while I was constantly distracted by infant twins among other things. But, this system was not hers either... she had implemented someone else's system also. And the best part... the system had a book that explained it. It also had chore boards and chore cards available for purchase.

So, I borrowed the book, and fell in love. It was so much like many of the systems I had tried to implement in the past (or just design, before I had kids old enough), but it was also super flexible, adaptable for different ages, and much more child driven.

The system is called "Accountable Kids." You can immediately go to their website if you like: http://accountablekids.com/ They've got a quickstart video in two parts at http://accountablekids.com/quickstart.aspx It's about 12 minutes total, and explains the program much better than I can.

When I first fell in love with this program, I decided that I didn't want to spend the money for chore kits for each of my girls, so I tried making our own. It worked all right... but not great, so eventually I caved and bought three chore kits. I even had their names engraved on the boards. I can't even explain why the "real" chore boards and cards worked so much better, but they did! My girls LOVED the boards, and occasionally I would wake up with one of them asking to be inspected for their morning cards so they could get their first ticket of the day.

We've now been using the program for about 5 months, and we've had the "real" boards for about 3 months. The novelty of the system has worn off a bit, but as long as I am consistent about requiring tickets for different activities, it still works! When I am totally lax, and allow things without tickets, then yes, they resist doing their chores. But even when I am consistent, I don't have to nag! If they want to color, but don't have a ticket to pay for the crayons (coloring is definitely a privilege in our house), I just remind them that they don't have a ticket (usually something like, "I'm sorry, you don't have a ticket for that"). Then they figure out what needs to be done to earn a ticket. The power of natural consequences!

Adventures in Sleep Training

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 18:45:00 +0000

So, my last blog post sparked quite a few comments and questions about how I run my household, and how in the world I stay sane trying to keep up with so many things and so many children. First, let me assure you that I am NOT superwoman. There is a superwoman though... her blog is linked under "fun blogs" below as "how to be superwoman." Our days do not always run this smoothly (this particular day was as close to ideal as I ever get), and I'm convinced that a portion of the reason it went so well is because I knew I'd be taking pictures of it. :)

Anyway, I have several future blog posts coming that I hope will answer some of your questions, but for now, I felt that the sleep training questions should be addressed sooner rather than later. :)

So, the original question was: So, expert on managing small ones (many simultaneously), at what age do you start training your kids to fall asleep on their own? I never have had any success with that...not that I've tried too hard. Do you end up having to have them cry it out or something for a while as they adjust? With Leif, especially, I wish he would go down for a nap by himself. Assuming I have another kid, I want to know what might work better and help save my sanity.

The short answer to this question is: when they are ready.

The long answer could get really long, but lets just say... a long time. I was NEVER able to get K or D to take naps without me laying down with them. They didn't start falling asleep without Dave or me in the room for bedtime until about a year or so ago. C has shared a room with K & D since we moved her out of our room at 15 months, and we still had to lay down with her until she fell asleep until nearly 2 1/2. Even now... the only way we've been able to get them to fall asleep without us, is to have them cuddle with each other.

Recently, C has tried to give up her naps altogether, but I KNOW she still needs them. If she doesn't nap, she has a melt-down around 4pm and then often crashes around 6 only to wake up rested around 9... which I don't like for obvious reasons. I have discovered that if she simply holds still, with few distractions, she'll often fall asleep on her own. So, now I read her a short story on her bed, then have her lie down with her book and her blanket and make sure that the older girls are quiet. Usually she'll fall asleep fairly quickly. Occasionally she'll sit and read to herself and we can hear her talking to herself. Either way, I usually make her stay in her room for an hour or two while the boys sleep and we get other school-work done.

As for the boys... up until about 2-3 months ago they nearly always fell asleep while nursing. About that time, the boys stopped falling asleep when nursing at night. They would just unlatch themselves and start to play on the bed. One night I got really tired of it, so when they unlatched, I declared it was bedtime, and just put them in the pack & play. They happily played together for a few minutes and then lay down and fell asleep. I was still in the room at the time, but absolutely amazed that they would do that. After that, I started putting them in the pack & play as soon as they unlatched. I was also working towards night weaning them and that's when we introduced their sippy cups with water. Some nights they would fall asleep quickly, other nights they would play for a bit first, and other times they would scream at me and get very upset. As long as they were happy, I just left them alone, and let them figure out how to lay down on their own. When they were upset, I stood over the pack & play and rubbed their backs, tummies & heads, and helped them lie down over and over until they calmed down and fell asleep (a couple of nights this lasted about 45 minutes), but they very quickly learned that when they went IN the pack & play, they were NOT getting out again until they'd fallen asleep.

Once this started working at bedtime (with me ALWAYS in the room, but not always standing right next to them... sometimes I was on the other side of the room folding laundry or something, and sometimes I was in bed trying to sleep myself), then I started trying it for naps. This just required me to unlatch them before they actually fell asleep, and then wrap them in their blankets the same way I did for bedtimes. But this time, I started leaving the room. There was a bit of cry-it-out for this phase of "sleep training." The boys were often upset at me for ending their nursing session, and they were tired, but the room wasn't dark, and I wasn't in the room with them. I would listen outside the door and if their cries were partly upset, but mostly tired cries... I just left them. If they were hysterical screams, I would go back, help them lie down again, and stay with them until they fell asleep... but I did NOT pick them up. They also tried throwing their sippy cups & stuffed frogs & blankets out of the pack & play... but I decided that if I kept giving those back, they would continue throwing them... so I didn't.

It took several weeks of this before they accepted naptime and bedtime happily, and we learned a couple things together. The boys do NOT like sleeping in total dark... so I leave a desk lamp on at night when I put them down. They also wanted a full sippy cup of water, and they wanted their stuffed frogs, and to be wrapped completely in their special blankets. These blankets have been used for them and been their special blankets since they were born, and the stuffed frogs were birthday presents for them, and to help the boys attach to them I had them hold them while nursing as much as possible. We also learned that we must hit naptime & bedtimes as close to normal as possible, or it doesn't work so well. Too early, and the boys just don't sleep... too late, and they get more upset that I'm not with them.

The other key thing for me in this, and the main reason I believe the sleep training has worked for them, when it didn't with my other girls... there are two of them. NONE of my kids like sleeping alone. K prefers to have her own bed now that she is almost 6... but she still climbs into bed occasionally with D & C. In our current living arrangement, D & C are actually sharing one twin bed. They're small enough that they could each take one end of the bed and be just fine, but they prefer to cuddle with each other every night. And I honestly believe that the main reason my boys will consent to falling asleep without me in the room is because they have each other.

There have been occasions where one boy is exhausted and the other is not, but if I only put one of them in the pack & play... they cry. If I put both of them in... even if one is not tired at all, the sleepy one will usually still fall asleep, and often the not tired one will also. :)

I honestly don't believe my children will ever be truly happy sleeping alone, and that's okay. Maybe that's an extra benefit of having children close together... they can help each other. :)

What do you do all day?

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:36:00 +0000

Not that you asked for it... but on a forum I am part of, we were sharing "a day in the life" through pictures. I thought I'd share our submission here as well. This was our day yesterday. Warning... very long, lots of pictures. :)

Okay, we are back from our vacation and ready to play!

We tried to empty our fridge before we left, and we just got back last night and unpacked... so we haven't gone shopping yet, so our fridge is empty. Thankfully, Tuesday is errand day anyway, so we'll be shopping in a bit.

8:15am - Because we have no milk or eggs, we had cinnamon toast for breakfast. I put jam on my toast, but my kids hate jam for some reason (weirdos), so they stuck with the cinnamon & sugar (the boys just had a tiny bit of butter on theirs). J2 (in the blue) was mad because he'd already finished one slice and wanted more.

While I was in the kitchen, I also pulled some meat & beans out of the freezer to thaw for our "Taco Tuesday" dinner tonight. We'll pick up the rest of the food for that at the store today.

After breakfast I jumped in the shower and told the girls to start their morning cards. They pretty much did nothing while I was in the shower, but at least they didn't make a mess. After I got out I was able to direct a bit more. Here's C brushing her teeth. 9:10am

While I was encouraging the girls to get ready, I got the boys dressed, and sat down to read scriptures. I have the scriptures on my iPod.

The girls finally finished their morning cards, and passed morning inspection. Here's D moving the last of her morning cards from her "start" peg to her "finished" peg.

9:45am - C finished her morning cards first, and earned the privilege of leading us in Circle Time. We said a prayer, then C lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance (with the wrong hand over her heart...but oh well).

She also got to put our calendar number up for today (we're apparently missing the "4").

We also discussed the weather for today, and what outer clothing we'll need to wear when we go shopping later today. Then we worked on our memory work. These cards are part of our history memorization, a "History in Action" timeline packet from Timelinesetc.com. Each one has a short catch phrase & action and they rhyme. We have done the first 16 events for "Modern History" so far this year. We're a bit behind, but we're doing 2 per week instead of only 1 now, so we should catch up soon. We recite what we have learned during Circle Time so that they continue to remember it.

We also work on a new scripture. Here's what the kids are usually doing during Circle Time. :)

10:00am - After Circle Time is Family Work Time! We start by unloading the dishwasher. Dave does the dishes after dinner... but he won't do them if the dishwasher is full... and this is the best time to get it unloaded. And I know there's a ton of pictures of this, but it was so cute to see the boys helping with this (which they do about half the time now), so I just had a ton of cute ones to share.

After unloading the dishwasher, we usually pack lunches for the day... assembly line style. But, since we used all our bread for breakfast, we don't have any left for sandwiches, so our lunch doesn't really require much prep... we'll mostly be eating leftover road-trip snacks. More on that later.

So, we skip lunch prep, and go straight to kitchen clean-up. I wipe the counters, and the kids move the stools out of the kitchen so I can sweep.

After kitchen clean-up, we have a Zone Task. This week, our zone is the kitchen/dining & entry areas. We choose to mop the kitchen floor for our task this morning. While I grab a wet rag, the kids grab wipees and start scrubbing sticky spots they can find.

The main reason we have Family Work Time as part of our School Day is so that I can teach the kids the proper way to clean things, and what I expect in terms of quality. So, here I show D how to scrub a particularly stubborn spot, while I'm also showing them how to work one section of the floor at a time, and work our way out of the kitchen.

The boys have lost interest in helping at this point... and have raided the shoe & coat cupboard. Here's J2, with his favorite pair of shoes (mine), and DH's favorite winter hat.

10:30 - After Family Work Time is our official School Time. We have our history lesson first, where we learn the 17th event for our History in Action. We have discovered that the timeline packet's description of the events is usually a bit dry for little ones, so we are supplementing with the Kingfisher History Encyclopedia.

Then we are doing our etiquette lesson with The Etiquette Factory. This involves watching a 5-10 minute DVD clip each day and discussing the stories & songs presented. Here's all of the kids watching the clip for today.

Next is literature. We are reading Little House on the Prairie. I sit on the couch & read a chapter or two (depending on how much time we have), while the kids mostly sit still and listen. We usually stop when the boys get mad and beg for lunch. Today they were begging for food earlier, so I sat them at the table with a couple crackers while we read.

11:15 - Then it's lunch time! Today we're having leftovers from the road trip. The boys don't generally eat meat (unless it's ground beef with taco seasoning, and with lots of beans in it), so they just get cheese, crackers & a carrot. The girls also get pepperoni, but two of them didn't want the cheese. I also cut up an apple for them after they started eating.

11:45am - After lunch is my favorite part of the day... NAP TIME!!! (The girls were finishing lunch while I put the boys down.) I usually wrap the boys one at a time, but they were holding so still I just got them ready at the same time and snapped a quick picture. This is just after I nursed them on the bed. They each have their special stuffed frog, and their sippy cups of water.

Then I wrap them in their blankets and put them in the pack & play. They LOVE nu-night time!

After I put the boys down, I got K & D started on individual school-work, then read a story to C and left her for naptime. D started with her reading lesson (on the computer), and K started with spelling.

12:30pm - I took a quick break after they finished these lessons to check on the nappers. Everyone sleeping soundly!

Next for individual lessons. D does math (she's learning about the value of money right now), and K does her reading.

When D finishes her math, she's done for the day and she grabbed the crayons and started coloring. K finished her reading, then did her math lesson with me, then started coloring with D. We finished all lessons about 1:15, and had free time until the nappers woke up. So, I jumped on the computer to upload our first half of the day! C woke up about 1:45 and came out to color with her sisters. The boys just barely woke up about 2:10, so it's time for me to get off the computer and start our busy afternoon!

Part 2 - If you follow the timeline on this, you'll notice how blessed we are to live so close to all our shopping & such. :) We like to run errands in a single path, so we don't have to back-track a whole lot. Luckily, our grocery store is usually the closest errand to our house, so it's easy to make it the last stop so I don't have to worry about perishables.

2:50pm - We're all settled in the car, K is standing in front of C to help her get her buckles on. We usually have a snack around 3pm, so today we just brought a box of Cheez-its.

3:00pm - Errand 1. Had to drop something off at my sister's. Here's her yappy little dog, Jasper.

3:10 - Errand 2: craft store. Here we are holding hands in the parking lot. J1 insists on being carried, so he was in my arms.

Why are craft store shopping carts always so small?

3:30 - Errand 3: health food store (nearly across the street from the craft store). I had to return some kids vitamins I got, because I had accidentally bought the wrong ones. Then we bought the right ones, and a treat for the kids because they'd been super good to this point.

J1 was super mad because he wanted his fruit leather NOW, and did not want to wait to pay for it and get back in the car.

4:00pm - Errand 4: groceries (final stop). Quick story: our grocery store has the best shopping carts EVER for a family with lots of little ones. However, they have a very limited number of them, and they're a pain for the cart boys to bring back to the store, so they're almost never actually in the store. Also, there are lots of young families that tend to take these carts even though they have only one or two children... sometimes I honestly think they should have a special check-out procedure for these, so that those who NEED these carts can actually get them.

I have discovered that the best way for me to get one is to drive around the parking lot until I find one that hasn't been taken back to the store yet. Then I have K jump out and stand by it to "claim" it for us, and then I park as close to it as possible... regardless of how close it is to the store.

And here's why I love it. There's a little "car" for two children in the front. They used to have buckles, but most of the carts are so old that all the buckles are broken now.

But the BEST part of these carts... there are ALSO TWO child seats up by the handle!!! I always put my boys closest to me (I don't think they've seen the car part yet), and the girls rotate who is in/by the cart, and who gets to ride in the car. Usually C will ride in the cart while we shop the outside of the store. She especially likes to help me bag the produce, which we put in a separate hand-held basket on top of the car part, so it doesn't take up too much room, or get squished. Then D rides in the cart while we shop the aisles. She's really good at stacking cans & boxes neatly, so that we can fit lots in, and good at keeping it away from the boys, since they like to try to turn around and grab the food. And finally, K stands next to the cart when we get to the register. By then the cart is usually too full for anyone to ride in, and K is good at unloading the cart onto the belt, and is most likely to stay close when we go back through the parking lot.

4:45pm - Success. Grocery shopping done. We actually didn't buy that much today. We have quite a bit of canned goods & such, we mostly just needed to restock the fridge.

5:00pm - One final stop before going home. We get to pick up Dave from school. Normally he leaves about 5pm, then catches a bus home, and arrives around 5:45. But since we're out running errands on Tuesdays, we get to pick him up, save him some bus time, and get some help unloading groceries.

5:15pm - Home and unloading the car.

5:30pm - Dave and I get the groceries put away while the girls do a "clean-up basket" in the family room. It's nice to have a better-stocked fridge again. :)

The girls didn't completely finish their job... but close enough for now. And J1 is in the background pulling out all of our homeschool materials.

5:45pm - I prep our taco meat for dinner, while Dave chops veggies. I also work with the kids to try to get the family room picked up a bit more.

6:10pm - Dinner, but we didn't get any pics of that.

By 6:45pm we are done eating and have the kitchen mostly picked up. We're exhausted (Dave & me) and wired (the kids) from our long day. The kids run (literally) back & forth in the family room while I briefly check-in on facebook, email, blogs & forums.

7:15pm - Back to the grind for the night routine. Bath time for the boys to get the rest of the taco meat off of them. The girls are supposed to be working on their night cards at this point... but they pretty much don't do anything.

7:30pm - Dave gets the boys jammied, I lay out the kids vitamins for when they finish their night cards (ironically, the kids think their vitamins taste like candy, and it has become a great incentive for them to actually get stuff done... unfortunately, not tonight).

8:00pm - C has finished her night cards (first one again), but the other two have barely started. K has gotten side-tracked making sure that every blanket on her bed & her sisters' bed is perfectly straight. Sometimes I wish her perfectionism could be harnessed into things that actually NEEDED to be done... instead of making things take much longer than they need to.

Anyway... the boys are super excited to be going to bed. Here they are waiting on my bed for their nursing session just before being wrapped & put in the pack & play again. They're in the pack & play and I've left the room by 8:20.

9:00pm - The girls have FINALLY finished their night cards, and I pulled Dave off his computer long enough to have scripture reading & prayer with the girls. This is supposed to be done before the boys go to sleep, but the girls were taking WAY too long, and I was too tired to nag so much tonight. Instead, they have now missed all their reading time, and go to bed with lights out immediately after scriptures, prayer, hugs & kisses.

After the girls were sent to bed, Dave and I watched a show online together, and had a special treat. Dave had a mini-sorbet, and I got a purple cow (grape juice & vanilla ice cream). Dave is trying to lose weight, and while he doesn't really like the flavor of ice-cream anyway, he is also pushing for sorbet more because it's much less fat. I on the other hand, am trying to *gain* weight. I always have a hard time gaining during pregnancy, so I'm eating a purple cow almost every night before bed. :)

Our show ended about 10pm, and now Dave and I are just sitting on the couch together, each with our laptops. :) Dave is reading jokes online, and sharing some with me as he finds funny, appropriate ones. It's already 11pm, but I don't know if we'll be heading to bed soon or not. I think this is the last thing I'll be doing online tonight, but Dave may want to watch another show. We usually try to be in bed sometime between 11pm-1am... horrible, I know... but we're both night owls, and it's great to have so much quiet time with all the kids asleep.

13 Weeks

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 16:29:00 +0000

Coming Early October 2011

7 Months on Camera

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 18:55:00 +0000

It's been a while since I did a post with a ton of pictures, and I've been leaving out some really good ones. :) So, here we go. (I apologize ahead of time, I am NOT a photographer, and don't pretend to be... and some of these pictures were taken by my 5 year old.)

July - nap time

August - moving to Oregon. The Penske truck was parked behind us in the driveway, just waiting for my Dad to arrive so he could drive it back to Oregon for us. :)

A typical morning in our house. This is C, J1 & J2.

The new couch we bought at Fred Meyer.

Sunday afternoon naps.

September - Boating with my Aunt, Uncle & cousins (& the kids' second cousins). Here's C & D.

Uncle Mike, K, D, my cousin-in-law Joel, two of Joel's boys, & half of my brother Steven.

J1, just after he woke up after sleeping most of the boat ride.

K, after being buried in pea gravel by her uncle (my brother Steven), and her second cousins.

J2, J1 & K at Costco. This was the longest the boys' hair ever got. We cut it a few days later.

September 14th - Twins are 1! Time for cupcakes. J1 with frosting on his face.

And J2 with frosting everywhere.

Clean-up time, J2 & me.

J1 & me... somehow he didn't get as covered as his brother. He's always been our "cleaner" eater.

The boys playing in the waffle blocks they got for their birthday.

October - Another typical morning. This time, C, J1 & J2 are all in the crib together. Why do we even bother getting separate beds?

Going out for ice cream with Grandma & Mom for a "girls night."

We had a cookie bake-off which my dad took very seriously. Here he is making notes after tasting each type of cookie. (I won by the way... I had the best chocolate chip cookies ever.)

J2 & J1 wanting to go outside... even though it was very late and cold.

J1, K & J2 walking around the parking lot of our apartment complex to get to the car. I just thought this was such a sweet picture. :)

C being silly. The girls used the waffle blocks to make a "booth" at a restaurant, and C was sitting in a "high chair" at the table. Their play kitchen was the restaurant.

In late October, the boys, my mom and I all flew to Arizona to surprise my sister for her baby shower. Here's the boys in the airport just before getting on the plane. This was the easiest way to contain them while we waited at the gate. They were surprisingly happy for so early in the morning.

The flight was mostly empty, so my mom and I each got our own row, and were able to bring the carseats on the plane. Here we are, just before take-off... and J1 is already asleep.

And so is J2. (They both ended up sleeping the entire flight... the flight home was a different story, but still not terrible.)

Me, my mom (in the middle), and all my sisters (Lindsay, Stacey & Julie)... look at all those pregnant bellies! (And I'm not one of them!)

I don't know why, but J1 & J2 LOVE climbing in baskets & boxes & things... and they don't seem to mind squishing together for it.

J1's "one year" portrait. (Taken one month late)

And from J2's photo shoot... also one month late.

November - Again... why do we bother getting them separate beds? Here's D, C & K, all piled in C's bed.

D, C, K & J2 eating popcorn & watching movies.

Thanksgiving "feast." Since we did Thanksgiving on our own this year, this was the smallest "feast" I've ever seen... but it was yummy, and we still had leftovers.

C reading stories, while D sleeps in weird positions in the background. Somehow I always remember to grab my camera while my children are sleeping. :)
December - I kind of chronicled most of our December adventures in previous holiday posts...

Januray - J2... a musician in training. :)

Moving back to Utah (again). Here you can see our totally crammed minivan, K, D sleeping, J1, and part of J2... hidden behind our new DVD player (which is AWESOME).

Another view: part of K, C, sleeping D again, and part of J2.

And J2, watching the movie... this time not cut out of the picture. :)

Our new place, the boys like to snuggle together. I think J2 brought his blanket & frog and climbed up to snuggle with J1 who was already sitting on the rocking chair.

I don't know why my kids like tiny spaces... but here's D, C & K, all sitting in a corner cabinet.

Jason Thomson (Dave's sister's husband), came to visit for an evening while he was in town (they're living in Texas right now). The kids enjoyed jumping all over Dave & Jason for most of the evening.

They both helped the girls learn to balance while they lifted them into the air. Here's K standing on Dave's hands. (While J1 is sitting on his stomach... of course.)

And, of course, Dave had to see if he could lift Jason the same way.

Haircuts again. I think this was the third time I cut the boys' hair. Dave likes to have his hair cut about once every 4-5 weeks (though I'm probably closer to 6-7 weeks), and I'm trying to do the boys every other time. J1 was not really happy about this process, but he stayed still for it.

J2 was MAD about the clippers... but at least he didn't jump off the stool.

Rewards for newly cut hair: Jamba Juice! (or a homemade smoothie at least). The boys LOVE fruit smoothies, and drink it as fast as they can, and then get mad when it's gone, and they're shivering because they're so cold. :)

February - Random moment I happened to catch on camera. 4 of my kids just made a bed on the floor of our family room and all cuddled up together.

One evening I suddenly remembered that C had turned 3 and we forgot to have her birthday portraits taken. (And apparently, I also forgot to take pictures of her birthday... I think we have videos though... I hope.) K jumped up right then and started cleaning the room and setting up for her photo shoot. K also made sure C's hair was done too.

This turned out so well (and there are better pictures too), that I'm probably going to have to use one of these pictures for C's 3 year portrait. Even though she was in pjs.

So, the boys got sick (flu), and spent a few days without any solid foods. They just nursed practically non-stop. Then of course, their poop reverted to newborn, breastmilk poop, and we suddenly had tons of blowouts... like this one. This was just after they started eating solids again. I had just grabbed some wipees to wash J2's hands because I figured he'd have peanut butter on them from his sandwich. Instead, I had to just carry him to the tub and hose him down.

C's bruise. An older woman at church accidently bumped into C (she's really tiny and sometimes hard to see). C ended up getting bumped into a pew, which hit her squarely on the cheek. Her cheek swelled up and bruised pretty fast. We went to the kitchen to get some ice to put on it, but it was still pretty nasty. A few days later it spread into her eye. I promise, we did not beat our child!

J1 & J2 have finally started going to sleep on their own, and they LOVE nu-night time. They're currently sharing a pack & play... and with the confined space, we frequently find them in positions like this one.

K has decided that she likes to "cook" for us. This is the lunch she made for us a few days ago. She rolled the ham & cut the cheese sticks herself. The melon had been cut by Dave that morning. The veggies were in separate containers in the fridge, but K combined them to make a salad. She also prepared the quesadilla (we already had shredded cheese, but she put it on the tortilla and nuked it), and washed the grapes. Now I just need to teach her to make bread! :)

And there you have it. If this page was able to load for you, and you read through the whole thing... I am now caught up... mostly... enough at least. :)

Minimizing

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 23:29:00 +0000

As many of you know (especially if you read our last update post), we are now living temporarily with some wonderful friends. They have allowed us to take over their basement, and given us free reign of the most of the furnishings that were already here. They also have a separate fully stocked kitchen in the basement (as in pots/pans & dishes, not food).

Thanks to their amazing generosity, while we were preparing for the move here, we knew we wouldn't need most of our possesions, including our awesome new couch we just bought in October. We didn't even need to bring beds. So, we decided to see what else we could live without. We decided we did not want to pay to put a hitch on our mini-van and haul a trailer with us to Utah. Instead, we bought a small roofbag and limited ourselves to everything that would fit in or on the van. Now, minivans have quite a bit of space in them... but remember, we also had to fit 5 carseats & 7 people. Thankfully, several of those people require zero legroom, which we exploited to cram everything in.

It was pretty interesting packing for this move. We decided that I obviously wouldn't have room for my sewing machine, or any of my sewing/crafting supplies. (I didn't even bring a glue stick.) At one point I tried to make a flow chart that would help me decide if something needed to be stored, brought to Utah, or just discarded altogether. I had random questions like: Do I actually use this? Will I need it in Utah? Can I buy another one in Utah? Will it spoil or expire if I store it for the next 4 months?

But eventually, I found a simpler method for selecting the few things to fit in our "covered wagon." I wrote a list of five areas we wanted to focus on while we were in Utah. Obviously, Dave would be focusing on his thesis, and that's pretty much it... so that made his list of things to bring extremely short (basically just clothes, his toothbrush and his laptop). But while Dave is off at school everyday, my plan was/is to focus on these five things:

1. Eating healthy within budget

2. Chore routines

3. Homeschool

4. Digital scrapbooking

5. Family & personal scripture study

I have to say, I think I did a pretty good job of limiting our stuff to things which would help us in our focus, and if you think about it... most of those areas of focus don't require much "stuff" anyway... but I'm not so sure I'm doing so well accomplishing those things yet.

I recently finished reading Simplicity Parenting which Dave gave me for Christmas. It really opened my eyes to how damaging and stressful having STUFF can be, especially for little kids. Today I was sitting on the couch here, wasting time on the computer thinking about how nice it has been to live with a bit less than we were used to. I started googling things like simplify, minimize, downsize, etc. After reading various blogs like this one for an hour or so, I want to drive back to Oregon and go through my parents' dining room (where all our stuff is currently stored) and get rid of so much more.

So, for now, I'm a bit excited for May to come. Mostly because Dave will finally be done with his thesis (yay!!!), but also partly so I can go dejunk our stuff a bit more. :) For now, I'll have to be content with going through the few things we brought with us, and spending more time on our areas of focus.

The Frogleys in 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 20:07:00 +0000

Happy Holidays all!

We have chosen to post our Christmas update on our blog this year. Obviously, if you're reading this, you found it okay. :) And yes, Christmas is over, so is New Year's... just be glad I got to this before Valentine's day.

This year has been busy, and full of surprises. Our first surprise came in February, when my brother David received his mission call. He told us that he had planned to drive back to Oregon to surprise our parents, and thus, I would miss watching him open the call. At the last minute we decided to drive to Oregon and join in on the surprise. Of course, this involved our first road trip with all 5 kids. It was a lot of driving for a short visit, but we had a lot of fun.

David left for El Salvador, San Salvador West mission in June (and we got to drop him off at the MTC!).

Our next surprise came when we discovered that Dave didn't actually have to be IN UTAH to finish his thesis. He could (potentially) finish that portion of his degree while working out of state. After applying to numerous internship opportunities, Dave received another internship with Intel (with the same group as before), and we prepared to move to Oregon in August (even though the internship officially began in July).

One of our favorite surprises came in October with Intel's relocation package... it turns out the amount we were expecting for our relocation assistance was PER PERSON! And it turns out that 7 is an excellent multiplier. :) With this new windfall we were able to pay all our moving expenses, pay off our car, and our credit cards, buy a new couch & several housewares for our new apartment, and splurge on two new iPod Touches... one for Dave and one for me. Also, thanks to a pot-luck park event with some old friends, Dave was able to find a loop-hole in the Master's program that allowed him to do an "industry-oriented" thesis, instead of a research based one, so he was finally able to settle on a project and feel confident about it.

Then came the not-so-good-surprises. Turns out that while working on a thesis remotely is possible, it's not really recommended, and it's very difficult to do from home, where there are countless distractions from a loving wife and 5 adoring children. Dave made virtually no progress on his thesis during his internship.

But, not all was lost. Thanks to our awesome relocation package, we now had no consumer debt and our savings account was building faster than we previously thought possible. Dave decided it was time to return to Utah and finish the thesis once and for all. So, when the internship officially ended in January, we stored most of our belongings with my parents, packed up our little mini-van, loaded up a car-top carrier, and drove back to the desert. We are now staying with some wonderful friends, living off our savings account, and Dave's meager "research assistant" income until Dave finishes this thesis. (BTW, the "research assistant" job is through his professor and his official job responsibilities include: finish your thesis. We feel extremely blessed with even this small stipend because we fully expected an income of $0 for these few months.) Also, I have given Dave a deadline of our anniversary (May 9th) to defend his thesis. He's on track so far, but it's a long road, so we'll see what happens.

As for the rest of the family. I have stayed very busy (too busy) with La Leche League, and with my many sewing projects, and with homeschooling.

Kathryn (5), officially started homeschooling kindergarten this year, though she's doing all first grade work. She is an excellent reader, and loves speaking in public. She has already given several talks in primary, and loves practicing them at home. Ryn is also an avid artist and budding writer. She loves drawing pictures for family members, and writing long descriptions of her art. Kathryn also started piano lessons this past fall.

Danielle (4), is also learning to read, and really enjoys math as well. But her real passion is watching movies and acting them out. Her all-time favorite movie is Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, and she loves her play barn and animals.

Christine just turned 3 on New Year's Eve. She loves following her sisters around and joining in their play. She is already begging to read and has desperately tried to give up her naps, even though many days prove that she still needs them.

Jacob & Joseph turned 1 in September and are the highlight and torment of everyones' days. They love to laugh, run, climb, destroy, and babble. We are just now hearing a few distinguishable words from them... the most consistent of which is "uh-oh." Their older sisters have also taught them to be "doggies" and we love laughing with them while they crawl around the floor with their tongues hanging out.

Jacob (Jack-Jack) is very relaxed and content most of the time. He loves mom, but doesn't mind when she's gone. He can usually be found with two fingers in his mouth, unless he's trying to make animal sounds, which nearly all sound like growling. Jack also LOVES electronics and is constantly stealing our phones and ipods. He's also pretty good with a touch screen.

Joseph (Joss) is a little more high-strung. He is a bit more clingy than his brother, and doesn't like strangers, but once he gets to know someone, they are his best friend. He quickly attached himself to my mother while we were in Oregon and would seek her out to get grandma-hugs whenever he could. Joss is also a bit more vocal. Some of our favorite words in his vocabulary include "froggy," "doggy," "ti-u" (thank you), and "DAD!" (which is always yelled and very staccato).

We hope this update finds you well, and wish you a happy new year. We're excited for all the surprises and changes this new year will bring, and wonder where and how the holidays will find us in 2011!

We Know a Guy

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Sat, 01 Jan 2011 18:33:00 +0000

Just in case you didn't know. Santa is a super-hero. His super powers include super-speed, the ability to eat a million cookies in one night and not gain an ounce (though he can't quite shake those freshman 15 from several thousand years ago), and of course, the ability to make preschoolers run up to him while jumping for joy, and make toddlers scream their heads off.

Also, like any super-hero, Santa has a secret identity.

And I know who he is.

Don't worry, Santa, your secret is safe with me. But let me just tell you, Santa lives in my parents' neighborhood.

And he's friends with my dad.

Because of the above facts, we get a little special treatment when we visit my parents' house on Christmas Eve.

Sorry this video is so long. We apparently had 4 cameras going all at the same time, but no stills. :) And I'm too lazy to cut the video down. :)

First Recital

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 14:34:00 +0000

Kathryn got to play in her very first Piano Recital on Monday! She did awesome!

Also, Dave performed "We Three Kings" for the Ward Christmas Party, along with my father & brother. They did a great job too!

I'm happy to have such a talented family. :)

Naptime... or Not

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 02:23:00 +0000

Today, J1 went down for his nap like an angel. He started whining around the usual time. I asked him if he was tired, and he said something that sounded an awful lot like "nu-night", then ran to climb up on my bed. I nursed him down in about 2 minutes.

Then I tried to put J2 down. He usually likes to stay up a bit later than J1... but today was a bit ridiculous. After an hour of cuddling/nursing/wrestling with him, I gave up and just set him in the crib, hoping he'd go to sleep on his own.

It didn't work.

Because he screamed when I left the room, I decided to get some present wrapping done on the floor while I ignored him and let him try to fall asleep on his own.

So... this is what I ended up with:

It's really surprising what J1 can sleep through. But don't worry. J2 got what was coming to him later (when J1 woke up about an hour later). And no, my first instinct was not to grab the ipod and start filming. My first instinct was to sit and watch the fun... so I ended up missing the best parts of this fight. But thankfully, filming was my second reaction... breaking it up and getting them both out of the crib came a little later (possibly after I left the room to eat some chocolate).

Would this qualify as a cage match?

5 More Days 'til Christmas!!

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 18:21:00 +0000

then 4... then 3... then 2... then 1... then 0!!!

Thanks to these countdown blocks, this is what I've heard every morning since two days after Thanksgiving. I'm happy that my kids can count down from 30-something, but it's gotten old... thankfully, it has also gotten shorter each day. :)

Also, I think the top of the TV stand turned out to be the perfect place for our little nativity set. :) Out of reach of little hands. And speaking of baby/toddler-proofing. Here's our little Christmas tree. Jammed in the corner behind the couch and the "gate" we made out of the waffle blocks.

Our little improv fence has done a fairly decent job keeping the boys out of the tree. They still climb on the couch and pull ornaments off (which is why we didn't get out any breakable ones this year), and J1 did manage to move the gate and unwrap a present a couple days ago. Thankfully, it was one for the kids, and I found it before anyone else did, so I just taped it back up. Only 5 days left until I won't stress about the presents anymore!

And since it's been a while since I posted. Here's a few recent pictures to give you an idea of what we've been up to. :)

Apparently we have our own private, indoor playground. If you can tell in the first couple pictures, I moved the bench under the table so they couldn't climb on it... didn't stop them.

This stuffed dog lives at my parents' house. Sometimes I think J1 thinks it's real.

He's my little animal lover. He LOVES all animals, and has no fear what-so-ever.

I just hope he doesn't try this with a real dog. Like Aunt Stacey's Beanie.

Back to Christmas.

We got to see Santa at my parents' neighborhood Christmas party. Even C ran up to him with no fear. Such an improvement from a couple years ago!!

The boys weren't quite so thrilled. They didn't mind standing close to Santa, but they did not want to turn their backs on him. And there was no way they were going to let him pick them up. J2 did happily accept a candy cane from Santa, but J1 had to be strongly encouraged for even that.

Apparently K is a pretty good story teller. But she couldn't remember what she was going to tell Santa that she wanted, so he said he'd surprise them.

New Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 20:48:00 +0000

A few weeks ago we went to a park to take some family pictures. Unfortunately, portraits with a ton of little kids don't often go as planned. We got home, sorted through the pictures and decided we'd have to schedule another photo-shoot.

Fast forward a few weeks... there is NO WAY I'm dressing everyone up AGAIN, and doing everyone's hair, and trying to find a time when it's not raining to get out and do pictures AGAIN.

So, we went back through our first photo shoot, and found the best picture we could. You can see this portrait as our new header for this blog. I kind of like it now, because it's the epitome of our life right now. :)

Good enough. :)

As a bonus, here's one picture we got from the photo shoot where everyone was doing what they were supposed to be doing. I did crop my mom out when I had this one printed up... but I didn't want to for this online version.

Thanks to my Mom for trying to help entertain the kids, and thanks to my Dad for handling the camera for us. :)

PS. Check the sidebar for new pics of J1 & J2... they're now 1 year old!

One Year Later

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 20:18:00 +0000

26 September 2009

21 September 2010

So, we moved to Oregon... but other than that, not much has changed in the past year. :)

*(Yes, I know it's been several months since I updated, and I have TONS I would love to post on here, just no time to do it. I guess that's what happens when you have 5 kids 5 and under including 13 month old twins. :) )

Good Morning Sunshine...

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 14:31:00 +0000

The Earth says, "Hello."

This is what my house looks like right now, which is why I am on my computer... I do have two little boys crawling around me, but they're staying busy pulling fabric out of my sewing drawers.

Apparently I'm not very good at this blogging thing... or at least not great. :) I figured since I haven't updated in a while that I'd just post a few of the pictures that I've taken since I last posted... apparently, I've taken over 300 pictures in the two months since I wrote anything of value on here. :) Since I'm sure you don't want to see all 300 of those pictures, I've narrowed it down to 25 for you (including the pic above)... here are the highlights:

Park Day:

Dave wants to let everyone know that he does not endorse this picture, and never wants his boys dressed like little girls again... but the girls had so much fun putting headbands on them, I just had to share.

My kids are weird... And yes, C is asleep behind D... inside the couch.

Boys
Our Kohl's shopping trip. This is why it's always important to carry your camera in your purse.

Um... seriously? Our little drama queen.

Boys doing what boys are supposed to do.. playing with trucks and eating dirt.

(Insert trip to Oregon... those pics will be coming in a separate post)

Rub-a-dub-dub... 5 kids in a tub

This is what happens when K insists on staying up late with us.

Grocery shopping with 5 kids is always fun... especially when there's a sale on tortilla chips.
(Insert portrait session... K is 5 years! D is 4 years! C is 2 1/2! J1 & J2 are 9 months!... again, those pics will be in a different post)

C & D waiting for Elder "Uncle David" to arrive at the airport.

Elder Arrington (Uncle David) and D waiting for luggage.

Saying goodbye for 2 years! We got to take my brother to the MTC! Of course my kids were SOOO cooperative. (Hence the tongues sticking out & the hair covered faces.) :)

J1 didn't much like swimming at the neighbors... he wanted to stay close to mom.

J2 wanted to jump right in... which is eventually what he did. This pic was about 30 seconds before he toppled over the edge. He was just fine... a little cold, but he apparently held his breath because he didn't choke or cough at all when we pulled him out (he was only in the pool for about 10 seconds).

Jam session. Dave on the piano surrounded by his older sister and younger brothers. Jami, we miss you!!

There's just something super special about sleeping kids... especially when they fall asleep cuddling with each other.

And now we end... all my kids have awakened, and Dave even crawled out of bed and into the shower while I typed this... time to start the day. :)

Let's Play I Spy

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Tue, 11 May 2010 23:50:00 +0000

We've been pretty busy and crazy recently. I promise to update soon, but for now, here's a fun picture from today.

Ready for the Craft Fair!!

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Fri, 16 Apr 2010 15:15:00 +0000

We did it! All sewing for the Craft Fair tomorrow is complete! I'll be spending today working on packaging & presentation for my display tomorrow.

Check out the blog store at babyfrogboutique.blogspot.com for more info on the Craft Fair and the items for sale. As mentioned previously, everything purchased AT the Craft Fair will be 25% off!

Crafting it Up

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 01:43:00 +0000

All right. Enough of you have pushed for it in the past. I'm finally doing it. I'm finally making things specifically to sell.

I now have a blog/store at http://babyfrogboutique.blogspot.com/. Feel free to stop on by and take a look around.

I am also participating in a Craft Fair!! The fair is Saturday, April 17th from 1-6pm at the Provo Library. Please check out our facebook event at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=307833964612 and invite all your friends!

*Just a heads up for those of you who are paying attention. At the fair, I will be offering everything 25% off! (I love sales!)

Dang it, I'm a horrible mother...

noreply@blogger.com (Emily) — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 19:16:00 +0000

And I just can't resist sharing pictures of my kids when they're sleeping... that's when they're most adorable anyway.

So, the boys fell asleep right next to the front door... without me... and yes, they were crying at the time.

What was I doing, you ask? I was chatting online with my sisters...

Oh... and I was also nursing C down for a nap. Here's the proof of that...

Go ahead and judge me.

--------------------

On another note, I've been forgetting to put fun pictures up. So here's a fun collection of recent pics of each of the kids.

Our girls LOVE to play dress-up and pretend. Here, C created her own outfit from everything pink she could find.

K LOVES this Native American costume. I have no idea why, but it's always the first one she puts on.

Sisters (and J2 in the corner).

D, being a dog. K took this picture.

Me & my boys. This picture was actually taken a month or so ago. I just barely figured out how to sling them both... but it's pretty tough, and I don't really have hands free, and there's no way I would attempt to do this outdoors by myself, or leave the house like this. Thank goodness for my giant double stroller, and for Dave.