Everyone should be with a 3 year old on Christmas morning

For one thing, the three-year-olds can be the difference between this


And this


Honestly, Christmas just gets better and better having Ryann around. She was mostly fun on Christmas Eve enjoying her fancy place setting (although we all held our breath every time she took a drink) and then dressing up as Mary for our nativity.





On Christmas morning, she called out to tell us she was awake and then waited until we got the camera ready! She saw her brand new fish first, laid down next to it and watched it swim for several minutes. (I on the other hand started tearing apart wrapping paper and dumping out my stocking.) She was excited over every gift, even the toothbrush! It was so much fun I think we'll probably buy presents for her again next year.

4 Years Ago Today

December 22nd was an inconvenient day for you that year, but it's inconvenient for us EVERY year. (I know. It was our choice. But, how could I have known we would ever care about BYU football or that the Cougars would always go to the Las Vegas bowl?) This year we've decided to post pone celebrating our anniversary until January 15th. (Randy still won't get to watch the game though because he has bishopric responsibilities. I might have to watch it without him. Now that's funny! Headline: Wife Stays Home On Wedding Anniversary To Watch BYU Bowl Game, Husband Peeved.) Anyway, I hope Randy doesn't think it's breaking the rules for me to share the memories today with the blog.

This is what Randy's family looked like



This is what my family looked like


I only had this many nephews to make me laugh.


It was windy and cold which was ideal since I had rented a cape.


This is what we looked like.



We are still so grateful for everyone who helped us have such a wonderful wedding celebration. We were overwhelmed by the generous gifts and by all the time our family members and friends gave so that we would have a perfect day to remember. Thanks to all of you who have helped us have a wonderful 4 years of marriage!

My Birthday

2009 was a good year for having a birthday. Among other fantastic gifts I received, my mother-in-law and sister-in-law surprised me with some very nice bread pans. They were perfect for me because I wanted them but could never seem to remember until after I had already mixed zucchini bread. (I had been using a square Pyrex pan which changes it from bread to cake and is obviously less healthy.) My sisters and my mom gave me the perfect lunch party. They brought Cafe Rio to my house where I could enjoy the delicious lunch but not worry about what the kids were doing AND I got to stay in my sweats!

Randy was home all evening. He let me go running and to Walmart by myself. I got to make my own cake (by request because I think that's fun) He did the dishes and after Ryann went to bed, we watched Whose Line is it Anyway. I love Birthdays!

Snow White

We invited a 4-year-old friend named Paige to play today. It was so interesting to watch Ryann be the younger child. She was absolutely obedient and even let Paige do her hair! She stayed pretty quiet and a couple of times I thought she was on the verge of tears for feeling left out. (Paige wanted to be the mom and drop off her daughter (Ry Ry) at the Gramma's (my) house while she went to a long meeting that was going to last for 5 sleep-overs.) Everything Paige said was funny because it was coming from such a little girl but it sounded so grown up. I LOVE 4 year olds!

One highlight of the play-date was when we played Snow White. Paige knows how so she told us what to do. Ryann was wearing the Snow White dress-ups, so naturally that was her part. I got to be Dopey because I have short hair. Paige was the bad lady because she can do the evil laugh. I was very good at repeating the lines given to me by Paige, but when it got to the part when the bad lady was knocking on the door and Snow White was supposed to answer and let her in, Ryann hid her face in a pillow and giggled. She wasn't going to let in the stranger. Exasperated, Paige let herself in and handed Ryann a poisoned apple. Ry Ry took it and washed it off before she took a bite. That way she wasn't poisoned. Paige's plot was foiled and she tried to convince Ryann that the apple still tasted like poison so she should die. In order to smooth things over with our new friend, I suggested that Paige be Snow White and I'd be the bad lady. We started the show over and tried to stick to the storyline. Ryann left for work with the other dwarfs, I knocked on the door, handed Paige an apple, and told her to take a bite. And she

Washed it.

Family Photos

Last night we set up a "studio" in our home using the projector screen and a couple old lamps from the garage. My mom came over to snap the group photo.

(I don't think we'll frame this one. It's a little too authentic.)


How did we get everyone to smile you ask? Gimp! (And actually, Lucy's making a crying face but Randy edited the tears.)


This one was for reals though. Lucy was all smiles until Gramma made some crack about Santa giving her stinky socks for Christmas.

Santa Baby

I'm off and on with the Santa thing. I think Randy and I decided that we'll believe in Santa as a symbol of kindness and generosity. Hopefully that way we won't ruin the fun of Christmas for our kids and we also won't deceive them or confuse their faith. I like it when people act like Santa and disguise themselves to give presents to children. I believe that lots of people have gotten gifts from that kind of Santa on Christmas morning. So if she asks me, I'll do my best to explain that to Ryann and see what happens.

(I also believe that Santa hats are really cute.)


Even though we weren't trying to make Ryann believe that it was the REAL Santa and Mrs. Santa, she didn't seem to recognize her own Grandma and Grandpa! Classic for a group shot with all 6 grandkids don't you think?

The Birthday Party

I learned today that 2 hours is too long for a 3-year-old birthday party. I think that next time I'll plan it for an hour and a half. Thanks to both grandmas for helping out!

Here are some photos and a run down of what we did.

Decorations: I drew these and three other Care Bears one day and it filled my bucket to practice a new skill. Randy came home from work and I was in the kitchen in my pj's cutting out giant Care Bears. No one in the family had eaten anything healthy all day, but I was still so proud of myself it was funny.


I also drew these masks then photocopied them to colored card stock and glued popsicle sticks to the side. Randy and I screen printed the t-shirts together (They're belly badges. Care Bear Stare!) He did all the hard stuff for the shirts.


Presents: Okay, we love presents, but that was hard. Ryann didn't want to share and her friends wanted to play with/open her new toys. There were tears and yells and probably even hits. We ended up hiding them up high so no one could play with them. (*sigh. Back to the parenting books.)


Activities: We made rainbow bracelets with pipe cleaners and fruit loops. We colored paper belly badges and then used the masks for blind folds to play "Pin the Belly Badge on the Care Bear" (the masks worked really well and helped the kids not be afraid to play.) We played "Don't Eat Pete" which is really a fun game with older kids but was kind of confusing for this group. We had a cloud fight with cotton balls. We played "Care Care Bear" (aka duck duck goose) We also read a Care Bear story and played a Care Bear movie in the background while the kids were coloring or making bracelets.


I made another cake but this time it was cup cakes. We also had 7-up with purple and pink ice cubes (made from pink lemonade and food coloring). The ice cubes were more exciting than the cake so I will definitely do that again. Hurray for food coloring!


After we were out of ideas, the girls sneaked off to Ryann's room and found her new dress ups.


They also enjoyed playing on Ryann's new bunk bed.


Happy Birthday Ryann.

Santa and Mrs. Santa

Santa AND the balloon man came to our ward Christmas party last night. It was a hit. As you can tell from the photo, Ryann put some serious thought toward Santa's big question. As far as I know, she never reached a conclusion.


Since we have special connections, Mrs. Santa came to our house even though we missed her at the library! Thanks Mrs. Santa!

Gingerbread Houses

I bought Gingerbread House kits on sale after Christmas last year AND remembered this year that I had them. Wow the kit was easier than actually making the gingerbread and frosting. Start to finish, it took only one FHE.

I like frosting, but this is going a little too far.

Unbirthday

Ryann was up in the night with a fever but I still made a birthday cake hoping that she had something not-contagious and would feel better in time for her friend b-day party. I was wrong. She got worse and is still not better.


Poor Ryann's been a sweetheart about it, but it's so sad to see her sick like this. Since this is day 3 and she's had fevers, chills, vomiting, and diarrhea, I kind of think it's H1N1 but she hasn't been diagnosed.

We're going to reschedule her party so hopefully my next post will have happy children and lots of Care Bear fun.

P is for Potty

Unfortunately, p is also for pants, pajamas, pink princess underwear (I know, panties. But no one likes that word.) purple princess underwear, projectile puke, carPet, (and shoes) power struggles, and paradoxical psychology.

Last night we ran out of diapers and since this week Randy will be home more than usual it seemed like the right time to take the plunge with potty training. Ryann and I were both in tears by 9am. She let me know that she wanted diapers and binkies in the bed and never to grow up ever. I had no diapers so she had to grow up NOW. there were a few more hours of clenching fists and crying. Then I got this email from love and logic:

Don't Sit on the Potty

Dear Katy,

Okay, I guess the title of this week's tip is a bit perplexing. So is the whole subject of potty training little tykes who've developed "throne aversion syndrome." Once this sad condition takes hold, the resulting power-struggles can be enough to bring even the strongest adult to their knees.

If you're beginning to fight with your little one over using the potty, stop right away. That's right! The more you battle, the longer it will take-and the more tears of frustration will be shed by both you and your child.

In our book, Love and Logic Magic for Early Childhood, we teach the single most powerful technique for teaching young children anything:

Model the behavior with great joy and excitement.

Sure, it may feel a bit embarrassing to some folks, but it goes a long way toward teaching the skills you want and replacing anger and frustration with smiles and giggles.

Another powerful strategy involves using a little paradoxical or "reverse" psychology. The only thing that would get our youngest to start sitting on the potty was looking at him with a faux-stern look and saying:

"Whatever you do, don't go into that bathroom and sit on the potty."

Being just like his father, he couldn't resist the challenge! Over the years, we've met many parents who were desperate enough to give this strange approach a shot. Time after time we hear them say, "It was the strangest thing. As soon as we backed off trying to make her, she began wanting to do it on her own."

Wishing you and your family a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Dr. Charles Fay

So after that, Lucy (bless her li'l heart) challenged Ry Ry to go in the potty. i.e. "Nuh uh! You're a little baby like me, you can't do it!" Ry Ry proved herself to Lucy but then we had lunch and I could tell even through her subtlety that she needed to go back to the potty. It was then that she puked on both of us and I surrendered. I put a left over too-small diaper on her and stuck her in bed for a nap.

Don't You Sass Me!

Jen Ford used to roll out of bed and say, "Don't You Sass Me!" before I ever had opened my mouth. It was as if she'd been practicing her stern voice in her sleep. She was a master.

I never told her but somehow she must have known that my toddlerhood nick name was "sassy boodles." (earned one day while Spencer and Sarah were shooting rubber bands at my diaper-clad boodles.)

I remember practicing the phrase sporadically with Jen during my USU days, but I regretfully didn't give it serious study. And today it showed. (I definitely need to brush up on my stance and intonation.) It's important to get it right because even the slightest error will lead to mimicking with hands on hips and tongue half way out of the mouth. I've read enough parenting books to know that when a child does that, the parent has lost all control and will never regain it. Dun dun dun.

So you can see that it's risky business. On the one hand, if you master the phrase, you will never be sassed. On the other hand, if you try and fail, you will never NOT be sassed. It's already too late for Ryann, but if I practice hard, there may be hope for Lucy.

Kindness

Yesterday I found the lost (wink wink) CD with the Chipmunk Christmas song. AND I played it for Ryann knowing full well that this means another year of her asking for the chipmunk song (on repeat) EVERY time we get in the car.

Sometimes I amaze even myself.

Birthday Parties

Randy might wonder why there's nothing for dinner tonight but I'm sure he'll understand when I tell him I've been spending time planning for Ryann's birthday party. He may or may not have said, "bigger and better" when I may or may not have asked him what he wanted for Ry Ry's b-day.

As any football coach will tell you, an important part of improving is reviewing your previous performance. So, I've spent my time today viewing footage from last year.

This was Ryann's birthday last year: A Mary Poppins theme party with ideas from birthdaypartyideas.com


This invitation was sent via email to our family members.

p.s. on the video, she's saying supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

I decided to schedule the cultural hall at our church so there would be enough room for stations which included:

Sidewalk Chalk Drawing with Bert






Penguin Bowling






Cooking station with play dough


Kite flying (sorry about the blurr, they were just running too fast)


And the cake was the carousel.

Stubborn

Ryann is eating Ramen Noodles with a plastic baby spoon because it was her idea. I offered her a fork (using my kindest voice) voice when I noticed her scooping at noodles that slid off and then drinking 1/8 tsp of broth that was left in the spoon.

"No," She said, "This works just fine."

Tis the Season

I remember 4 long years ago...

I ruined Thanksgiving. I often ruin Thanksgiving but this was the first time I ruined it for Randy. He's a good sport so I don't think "ruined" is the word he'd use...maybe "demolished" or "mutilated."

The thing about holidays when you're married is that no matter how fun the party you choose to attend may be, it's hard not to think about the party that you're missing. (For this reason, single readers, I think you'd be wise to marry an orphan. On the other hand, there's nothin' better than Two Gramma Tuesday* so please reconsider.)

The ruining didn't happen just because we were with my (extended) side of the family. It happened because I felt so bad for taking Randy away from his family on one of his favorite holidays that, logically, I pouted. Nothin' like eating turkey with a pouty face on right?

Drawing from my vast experience, and in the spirit of giving, I will now provide you with tips to prevent spoiling holidays.

Number 1: Decide last year where you will be for each holiday. (And if it's not where you'd prefer, see the following suggestions)

Number 2: Lower your expectations. I think it's reasonable to plan on at least one grouchy family member not to smile for your photos. Also, you will probably have to pretend to like a present or two all the way to the DI drop off. If you find your expectations are just too high and need drastic measures, you may find that chanting "bah humbug" and tripping cheerful people in stores every other year will ensure that 50% of your Christmases will seem joyful by contrast.

Number 3: If you're female, make a "caution mood swings" sign to cover your pretty face when emotions distort that charming smile. If you're male, please don't speak to anyone hiding behind the "caution mood swings" sign. Even if you do happen to think they look skinnier that way.

Number 4: It could always be worse. Sometimes it's best to slip away and just imagine the many ways you could make things worse.

Number 5: If "The Holiday Season" was a bust, take comfort in knowing that no one's going to bother you on National Pancake Day.

I hope this helps! Enjoy.


*Two Gramma Tuesday is when both of Ryann's grandmas are working downstairs at the library and she gets to go play with the toys.

My Oldest Child

I'm sorry if some of you readers also happen to have oldest child syndrome. Please feel free to tell me off about it next time we meet. I am a middle child and will do my best to peaceably resolve the problem. If it will make you feel better, I could also describe youngest child syndrome. (We all know that's the reason the idea of infinite posterity is so appealing--no youngest. Kidding. I'm only kidding.)

Anyway, today I picked up Ryann's apple to take a bite (where she hadn't bitten yet) and she told me "NO! Mom! That has my germs on it. Get your own one. It's right there." And she pointed to the fridge. Then since I had already taken a bite, she told me, "Say sorry." I went along with it, apologized and got my own apple. Then she found me sitting at the computer eating an apple, assumed it was hers and said, "Mom! Remember what I said?"

It's unnerving to hear your toddler say things like this. But let's forget what that conversation means about me and the way I talk to my daughter and think instead what it means about Ryann.

Besides, I have further evidence. When her younger cousins are around I hear a lot of "NO LOGAN!" and "NO OLIVIA!" and "NO ANDER!" To Lucy I hear a lot of, "You can't. You're too little." And, on Sunday, she told her older cousin Ty-Guy, "I"ll help you say the prayer. Heavenly Father..."

Tell me experts, is this behavior unique to oldest children, a personality characteristic, an age three phase?

Swashbuckling

Halloween

Although I don't agree with Halloween when I stop to think about it, it sure is fun to celebrate. We tried to be oober festive and have theme costumes. Reagan got the real store-bought Disney Captain Hook Costume. Randy got a homemade version of Peter Pan (I searched long and hard for some green sweats but alas brown was the best I could do.) Tinkerbell and the Mermaid were awesome thanks to Wendy. And I was Sme. I think if there were prizes, I would have won "Most obscure character."

We went to our first ever trunk-or-treat with our car decorated as a crocodile (white paper teeth and eyes) playing the Never Smile at a Crocodile theme song. Turns out that trunk-or-treats are not as fun as trick-or-treats. Do you agree?

Randy and Reagan



Amy and Samm



Ander


Rob and Amy


Amber, Olivia, Amy


Lucy


The Peter Pan (and pirates) theme costumes on Grandma and Grandpa's pirate ship playground

As you can see, Randy's family is good at costumes.

Lucy

I think Randy might have told me not to post this photo so don't tell him okay? I just think Lucy's expression is so precious.


She's three months old now and yesterday she rolled over. It's funny to watch a baby look so surprised when they flop. I forgot to take pictures of Lucy on her real blessing day but I realized my mistake yesterday and snapped a couple in her dress.


She really smiles easily but Ryann was being a pill and kept getting in Lucy's face and trying to tie the ribbons. Plus, Ryann had an eye virus (which today turned into pink eye) so I was trying to keep her out of the way...arrgh. Speaking of arrgh, she's climbing on me right now. Time out!