Ariana in her own bed

Well, I got tough yesterday. I found a solution to Ariana's sleeping arrangement that I can live with. I did not like leaving her in her bed to cry it out. I know some people do this method and that is great, but I can't handle it. Plus Ariana can cry it out for over an hour. Yes, I tried it. So, yesterday I allowed her to fall sleep in my bed and then I moved her to her own bed in her room. She woke up every time. However, rather than picking her up I rubbed her back or tummy and had her lay down. I guess it is a mixture of crying it out. I don't want to pick her up, but I won't leave her there to scream either. It is time consuming and hard. However, I know I need to be consistent and it will work. Because I am not willing to shut her door and leaver her, I have to be willing to be in her room to calm her. It is going to take awhile to break her habit of sleeping in my bed. However, that habit has been 9.5 months in the making. I believe that this new habit will take a long time to replace the old. I'm hopping not 9 months, but I will have to wait and see.

Top Teeth

Babies have it hard. I cannot imagine how difficult it is to get shots, be in messy diapers, have your nose bulbed out, and then get teeth. My kids struggle with the teeth. It seems their gums swell a long time before their teeth finally make an appearance. Ariana finally had one of her top teeth poke through the gums. The other tooth is not far behind. In addition to this misery, she has yet another cold. The poor girl ought to have a good immune system before the winter ends. I am glad she did not have to get 9 month shots. We had a break from those. So, I am grateful for that. Having children makes me understand my faith better. I can catch a tiny glimpse of how the Savior loved me enough to die for me. I would do anything for my children. I know the Savior's love is magnified multiple times over, but being a mother has helped me understand his love even more. I can never fully understand my Savior's love, and really I don't need to. I simply know it is there and through my life experiences I am gaining more insight. I am grateful for "line upon line".

The Mature Person That I Am

My husband decided that he would like to join facebook. He thought it looked like fun. So I helped him sign up. That boy now has more friends than I do in 2 days. He has been invited to join a mob and lots of people comment on his status. Granted, my husband has always been more social than I have, but give me a break. So I did the only thing I could do. I stuck my tongue out at him and declared that the gloves were off and I was going to kick his behind in our little contest. I know, I need to grow up. Honestly, I don't mind. I do find it interesting to see how many friends he has. Since we have been married, life has not slowed down for us to make a lot of friends. This chance to socialize is good for him. He needs all the support he can get. Besides, he told me that as long as I was his friend, that is all that matters. Awww...what a guy.

Outsmarting A 3 Year Old

I have a confession to make. I lied to McKayla. She had this horrible habit of picking her nose and eating the boogers. I tired to redirect her to get a tissue. It didn't work. i tried to tell her that a princess does not pick her nose, it didn't work. So I told her that if she picked her boogers, they would turn into spiders. I know, this is a bad lie. However, it did work...well, kind of. She has stopped eating her boogers, but now she picks her nose and wipes it on whatever is available. I promise I try to watch her, so please don't be afraid to come yo mt house. Anyway, last night she was taking a bath and yelled, "There is a booger in the tub!" I asked her how it got there. She explained that she got it out of her nose and then put it in the water. She confidently told me that boogers in water won't turn into spiders. Hoe come she can make up the rules in my lie? I don't think it's fair. Anyway, I am a bad mom for lying to my child, and I didn't stop the problem. Sigh.

His Head Fell Off

My brother Jayme took McKayla to Cabella's to look at the fish there. Being the observant girl she is, she wanted know why there were animal heads on the walls. She came to the conclusion that their heads fell off and the people put them up on the wall. Since that trip, she has been obsessed with heads falling off. (Thanks Uncle Jayme). I am not sure how to really approach this subject, so I do what any good mother does, I am ignoring it and hoping she grows out of this facination. However, an intresting thing happened. The head fell off our snowman due to melting. Of course she noticed. Her statement was "Poor snowman".
Even his face fell off.

Frosty

We finally made our snowman yesterday. The snow was just perfect for making snowballs. We also made snow angles and had a snowball fight. Ariana tolerated it well. I wouldn't say she was enthused, but she allowed the rest of us to have a little fun. Her Chad let her eat the snow. He made sure it was clean snow! It did not feel too cold outside due to bundling up and the temperature being a little above freezing. After I went in with Ariana, McKayla stayed outside to play for awhile longer. She went down her slide and played on her swings. I can tell she is restless for nice weather. Me Too!

McKayla named his Frosty.

Snow angel.

Sneak attack.
Yum.

Snow

It snowed a lot last night. I am debating wither or not to take the girls out to play in the snow. Of course McKayla is all for it, but Ariana is not so sure. Maybe I will wait for Ariana to go down for a nap and then take McKayla out to play. Speaking of Ariana, she simply refuses to sleep in her own room. I feel like she has regressed because now she won't even sleep in the cradle by my bed. She has to sleep in my bed. I don't like it. Do I allow her to scream until she falls asleep? Do I Just keep trying, but pick her up when she starts to cry? I want to create a balance of loving, but firm. Any ideas? Did anyone have a child that just wanted to stay with mom and dad? How do you ignore the screams? At what point did you get tough and put them in their own bed and leave them? It breaks my heart to hear her scream, but I don't want to do her a dis-service. Maybe because I know this is my last one, I am being too lenient for her own good. I would love any ideas or suggestions. Oh yea, this post was suppose to be about snow. At least i don't have to worry about my grass getting to dry!

Contest

My husband and I have a contest going between us. We both love to exercise but we both need to lose some weight. Somehow we just don't get enough exercise, but we love to dream of adding new exercise equipment. I know this sounds so weird. Anyway, we both want to add something to our exercise excrement. However, they are both very expensive. So, we decided that we would hold a contest. We both set an amount of weight to lose. Whoever hits their goal first gets to buy their new toy. The concept is to use what we have before buying more stuff, yet having a goal. I think this is great. Even though we are competing, we are still encouraging each other and trying to make time for the other to exercise. I am winning thus far. Okay, it is only 2 pounds, but hey, I'm still winning! So you can cheer for both of us, but really cheer for me because I am the one writing this. Besides, Chad is a guy, and if he would put his mind to it, he could lose weight so much faster than I can. I love him so much, but I really want to win! Chad if you are reading this, game on!

Chad With a Camera

Normally I have the camera at all times. It's not that I think I take the best pictures, but I have issues with being in the pictures. However, when Chad gets the camera he just keeps taking pictures. Luckily we have a digital, so I can erase the ones that didn't turn out. However, by his being click happy, we end up with some very good shots. I was taking a nap, so I won't show the one of me sleeping. However, I want to some daddy and Ariana playing. I love how he can make the girls smile. It doesn't matter the amount of time he spends with them;, when he is with them, he gives them 110%. The bottom picture Chad took while I was awake and playing with Ariana. Those are okay, kind of.

Look Out World

I was holding Ariana yesterday. Then, I went to put her down and she would not sit, she wanted to stay standing. I let go of her and she stood all by herself, holding onto nothing. In the end she gently eased her self down. She never even fell. She is 9 months old. I wonder how long before she walks? She walks along furniture all of the time, but I didn't think she could stand on her own. Looking at her being so big made me realize something. It does not matter how loud she screams, it is time for her to move into her very own room!

Dora Dance

I am doing the Dora dance of "we did it". I did my first enrichment night and it was pretty good. I learned a lot of information and nothing flopped. Yea! I wasn't overly stressed either. It was simple and easy. It feels good to know that I didn't cause people to run away screaming my first time out!

Enrichment Night

In my church, we as members, are asked to fill different roles and volunteer our time and talents. This may seem strange to some, but it really gets you involved in your faith. Awhile ago I was asked to lead the music during our sacrament meeting. I know nothing about music. It took a lot of time to learn how to lead. I messed up often, but people were kind. I got released from leading music and asked to help do Enrichment night. Once every three months, roughly, the ladies of our church get together to learn about something, and visit. Tonight is that night. I am blessed that this time I really didn't have to do much, but next time, I will seriously need to step it up and do so much more. I am grateful for the growth that I get from trying new things. It is interesting the things I learn. So, for those of you that are LDS, do you have any ideas for Enrichment night? For those of you that are not LDS do you have any ideas that you would like, we want anyone to come and I always like to get a wide variety of opinions. Thanks!

Crazy Genetics

Background: I have brown eyes and brown hair. My hair has just enough curl to to have it lay down straight, but not curly enough to look like I have curls. My husband has green eyes and straight, brown hair. My oldest daughter has blue eyes and curly blond hair. How she came to get these attributes, I don't know. Ariana, the baby has blue eyes. Her hair is darker than McKayla's, but it is starting to curl in the back. How funny. I am blessed with two great girls.
Look at those curly locks!

Weight

I wonder why some people are more prone to be over weight than others. It seems so unfair to see those people who can eat whatever they want and still stay slender. My body composition is in the middle. I gain weight when I don't eat right, but I also eat a lot. So instead of focusing on a magic number that will make me happy, I am going to focus on being active and trying to keep up with my kids. I feel better about this approach. Not only will it encourage good health for my kids, but good health for me as well. I want to live a long and healthy life because I owe it my my children to be as fit as I can be. They deserve a mom that can play with them and be alive when they need me.

As a side note: McKayla is at this stage where she tries to smile too hard. Her pictures never look natural. I wish she would let her beautiful smile shine through, but I don't want her to feel bad, so I tell her she always looks beautiful.

Just Because

My husband bought me flowers yesterday "just because". I am glad I married a romantic. I must admit that in some things we are more different than similar. I am very routine oriented. I like things done a certain way and in a certain time frame. Chad on the other hand is way more relaxed. He is a more gentle spirit than I am. He has less of a temper. I have noticed through out our marriage, we seem to compliment each other most of the time. It has not always been easy, but marriage is hard work. I am grateful that we are committed to each other in this life and the life to come. We recommit everyday of our lives. I am grateful that through our learning and growing, we have chosen to grow together. I realize that a marriage is such a frail thing. It can be ripped apart by the smallest of choices leading to great pain. My prayer is that more husbands bring their wives flowers and more wives loves their husbands and give them words of encouragement and love. Chad, if you are reading this, I love you!

Why We Blog

Why do we blog? Why do I take the time everyday to write about what is going on with my family? I often wonder what is the point. However, I will continue to blog. I'm addicted and I know it! At least I can justify it by saying it is a type of journal of our life that includes pictures. The only problem is that I need to find a way to get the information from here to somewhere else to be accessed. My sister-in-law said there is a company that will make your blogs into a book thing. (I hope I understood that right). Perhaps I should do that. Here is a picture of Ariana snuggling her daddy. Oh, what a little ham!

Grumpy

This is as close as I have gotten to her grumpy face. It cracks me up. I will keep pursuing the true grumpy face, but for now I wanted to share her joy of mango. She seems to like the veggies better than the fruit. Maybe it is because she knows that veggies aren't suppose to taste good, so she will eat the baby food, but fruit is suppose to be fresh, juicy, and simply great! Baby food ruins that aspect. (Yes, I love fruit.)

It's Hard to Be the Princess

McKayla has refused to take a nap ever since she was about 3. It was a 2 hour period of tears and torture for both of us. Because she doesn't take a nap during the day she is very tired at night. Last night she fell asleep at the dinner table. It was pretty funny. I allowed her to have a 1/2 nap and then I woke her up. This would normally charge her for hours, but she must have been more tired last night. She was still asleep by 8:30. Wow. Normally she is asleep by 8:00, so considering her late nap, it really didn't change her schedule. What an funny girl!

Ariana

I love my little baby. She has a very funny grumpy face. I can't get it on camera, but when I do I will post it. She is really getting a personality now. She is still my snugly girl, but I starting to see more and more determination and stubbornness in her. She must get it from her father.
I love this picture because she is looking so big and you can see her personality shining through her eyes.

Change

It seems very interesting the changes that have come with the start of 2009. I took a moment to notice how big both of my girls are. Ariana is growing up so fast. She is almost 9 months old. It is hard to believe that she is that old, yet she fits our family so perfectly. McKayla is getting to be more mature and older as well. I am amazed at how well she does sometimes. No, she is not perfect, but she is a great kid. She can make her own bed, feed the cat, brush the cat, and clean her room. She still needs help cleaning her room and brushing the cat, but she is eager to learn. A very big change in our lives is that my in-laws are gone for 18 months to serve a mission for our church. In our church young, unmarried men (19 years old) and young unmarried women (21 years old) serve missions all over the world. Older couples can do this as well. The process is similar in the fact that the missionary doesn't choose their mission location. Also, the missionaries pay for this experience or their families pay for the mission. The price varies, but many member choose to do this. You don't have to go on a mission to be a good member of our church. A person is not seen as less or as not being as faithful. (At least they shouldn't). It simply is an opportunity many are encouraged to take. My in-laws are going to northern Canada. Burr! McKayla does not understand how long they will be gone, but she did understand that there was no Sunday dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Porter's house yesterday. She really missed seeing her cousins and grandparents. In fact she argued with us for about an hour that we were wrong, and that Sunday dinner was happening without us! Change is hard, but good. I am excited to see what 2009 brings to our family.

Sunbeam

In our church, the January after a child turns three, they get to go to a new program called primary. Primary last until age 12. In Primary the kids spend an hour with kids their own age in individual classrooms learning lessons. After that, all the kids in primary get together in a big room and sing songs and learn scriptures. There are also three kids asked to say the prayer, give a short talk, and give a scripture. This is a neat program because it teaches kids responsibility in small steps. It also helps kids learn how to sit and be reverent by the example of other kids. Today was McKayla's first day of primary. She is a sunbeam. She was very excited. It was a challenge for her to try and sit for that long, but she did okay. We are so proud of our little girl. Yea McKayla!

Uncle Jayme

Today is my brother's birthday. Out of all of my brother's this one relishes in teaching McKayla crazy things. And she remembers them! I have been working on her reading skills for months, but she can remember about Jayme taking her to see "guns and fish" after only 1 weekend. So I had her sing to him for his birthday. Turn the volume up loud.

They say that a baby's smile makes a mothers brain produce happy chemicals. I think it's true. Look at that cutie!

1 Step Forward, 5 Steps Back

First, I would like to start with some background information on McKayla. She was always more independent. She went to daycare and she went to work with me and was pretty taken everywhere. When it was time to move her into her own room, it was a piece of cake. Now Ariana is a different girl altogether. She is my snuggle girl. She has not gone to daycare. She goes where I go. My attempts to leave her in the care of family has been met with loud protest. Even her dad can't clam her once she figures out I am gone. When she was a new born, I would nestle her between Chad and I in the bed and coo at her until she fell asleep. She still loves being in bed with me and Chad. If she is upset all I need to do is lay her in our bed and snuggle her. It doesn't take long before she is all grins and smiles. Well, she is 8 1/2 months old and we decided that she needed to start to sleep in her own bed. Not happening. We will get her to sleep and lay her in her bed. She will stay there for a little while. It's usually not too long before she is screaming at the top of her lungs, wanting to be snuggled. Then when we place her between us, she will grab a hold of Chad and myself for dear life. Sigh. We do have a cradle that my dad built by the side of our bed. She is okay laying in that because she can see us. Last night was a different story. Every time I moved her out of our bed she freaked out! I don't think she slept for more than an hour without waking up very angry. I hope that I can switch her into her own bed before she out grows the cradle.