8 is Great! (Preview)

Miley is getting baptized next month!  She and her cousin, Brayden, are getting dunked on the same day.  My sweet sister-sister-in-law took these of Miley-Cakes.  There are about 200 gorgeous photos and I'm having a difficult time choosing which I like best. Which one should I frame? ...I don't know.  (help!)

My Little Angel

 

My Little Rebel

Blessing dress and Baptism dress at the Newel K. Whitney Store

At the Kirtland Temple--a wonderful piece of LDS history.

I don't think a pair of  8-year-olds can be any cuter!  Milas and Brayden are great buds.  Their favorite game to play is Zarahemla board game, and Brayden likes to coach Miley in basketball.  Can't wait for the Baptism Day, and I can't wait to post the rest of the pictures (all 200!).

Movin' On Up

Is it time for my yearly blog post? Yikes, I am such a slacker!  My excuse?  Moving is hard.  And it is tiring.   Exhausting, actually.  BUT(!) we are in our new house.  The house is sufficiently cleaned with a toothbrush.    Internet is working.  Still no cable.  I don't think a lot of people knew we were moving because we just moved across town.  We were renting a house in Perry, and we loved it so much we decided to buy in Perry!   We're in a 4 bed/3 bath home with a big yard and huge deck overlooking a pond. The lady who lived here had a PhD in gardening and her Mr. was a professional handy man (as evidenced by the garden, the tool shed, and all the supplies they left behind).  The sellers warned us they might leave a bunch of tools. ;)  It was so cool to find all the extra bonuses when we moved in.  A lot of it has already come in handy.  There was everything that we needed for painting, tiling, even recarpeting the stairs.  You can tell that they loved this house and put in a lot of love and extra doo-hickies.  Pictures (and more details) are forthcoming. Probably in my next yearly post--hah!

Kid updates:

Miley is now the big "Ocho." Such a big girl and such a beauty.  Don and I are going to let her continue to be beautiful for 3 more years then we're going to put a stop to it.  I'm thinking a 7 year stint of head gear, home-made clothes, and Flowbee haircuts.  ;P  Miley is so excited to have her own room.  She has always had trouble sleeping with her sister because Ava needs a nightlight and Miley likes it pitch black--and I thought Miley only liked her sleep mask for beauty rest purposes.

          Miley's favorites:

• TV show: Twilight Zone
• Food:  Chili
• Activity:  Read in the serenity of her own room

Isaac lost his first tooth.  We dental flossed him to the front door and he slammed it with flourish!  The Tooth Fairy left him 3 Sacagawea dollars and a mini Venom figurine.  He was a little embarrassed to be singled out by a magical nymph like that, so later that day he took his 3 dollars and bought candy for his sisters.  Such a sweety.

          Ike's favorites:

• TV show: The Amazing Spiderman
• Food:  Peanutbutter banana sandwiches
• Activity:  Dress up and play Indiana Jones during every--waking--minute of the day

Ava is such a daddy's girl, and I don't blame her.  Don is such a good dad.  Their favorite thing to do on these cold winter mornings is snuggle on the couch and watch cartoons.  Ava and her C.C. Seahorse are still inseparable.

          Ava's favorites:

• TV show: any cartoon
• Food:  spicy nachos
• Activity:  snuggle

Track & Field

Track Week at Perry!  We've had a super fun week of track camp and track meets. Since Uncle Layne is the head track coach at Perry High, we were enlisted to help coach at the Perry Track Camp!  Don and I both had a blast. It is so awesome to see kids get excited about running.  I think out of all 75 kids at Track Camp, my Miley was the most determined to improve.  Every night when we'd come home from the track, Miley would ask if she (or we) could do more running exercises, races, push-ups, sit-ups, wall-sits, or anything that would make her a faster runner.  One time we had to pull over to the side of the road because she INSISTED on running home.  All her efforts paid off. She ran the 400m in 1 min,  37 sec.  Very impressive to a proud momma!  As some of you know, the 400m is a race that is near and dear to my heart. As she was running down the home stretch, my heart tightened and my eyes welled up.  The look on her face was one of shear exhaustion, desperation, and determination. I knew exactly what she was experiencing--the conflict between physical pain and the desire to win was written all over her beautiful face.

The next day, Miley ran the 200m. It was a photo finish... Of course, I didn't get a photo of it. I was too busy cheering!  Miley caught Carly, who beat her in the 400m, right at the finish line. It was so exciting!  Look at this picture--these two girls were so fast, they blew away the competition!

200m

Long Jump

Miley also won ribbons for the 100m, 50m, and long jump.

Here is Miley with her cute friend, Caitlyn.

 Since Miley did so well, she's now qualified for the Lake County Jr. Olympic Track Meet!

{yay!}

This video is Miley's 100m. She was 0.1 seconds behind Carly.

This is cousin, Brayden. Another awesomely close race!

This is not good quality, but it still makes me happy to watch her win the 200m with a strong kick!

Easter Astray

I knew I'd miss my family terribly during Christmastime, but this Easter season is bringing a terrible heartache that I wasn't expecting!  We've spent every Easter with my parents (and sisters) since Miley was one year old.
Everything Easter reminds me of my mother; bright sunshine, cool breezes, flower blossoms, and calming pastels.  Being outside makes me think of her, and I wonder if she is weeding her flowerbed too.

Then Don starts a fire in the pit and that reminds me of my dad.  My dad with a hotdog on a stick with a bag of marshmallows in his lap.  Classic.  I love my dad for so many reasons, but being the greatest grandpa is the best thing that he has ever done for me.  Grandpa loves to play with the kids, and the kids are always greedy for his attention.

I've never had to put too much effort into Easter because Grandma S. has always made it perfect!  Nice decorations, wonderful food, a craft or a game for the kids-- it all equaled out to an excellent holiday with me doing nothing!  (I've been so spoiled.)  It's almost like this Easter is a little crooked, or has gone astray or something.  It's not quite right.

So this Easter, I've got to do something that might make up for the fact that Easter is Grandparent-less.  :(   And Aunt-less.  :(

So far, none of my ideas are good enough.  However, a bonfire and ice cream party fits with tradition, and you don't mess with tradition!

Since I'm reminiscing, I thought I'd throw in a few old Easter pics.

I miss the fam-damly.  So dern much!

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Failed Promises

I made promises to myself and many family members that I would update my blog more often now that I live 1,753 miles away...

...Bah! Look, if  you don't forgive me, then I can't forgive me, then I'll never be able to blog again.  So let's just make peace and blog on.  Deal?

Okay, quick update:

Things in Ohio are great.  I still feel like I'm drowning in all this water, but I'm grateful that I can see green grass at all times; even though it clashes against the naked trees and grey sky.

The kids love school; first grade, pre-school, day-care.  We are down to once a week day-care for the kids, which is nice.

Don is doing well in school. I am constantly amazed at how he finds time to study, take care of the kids and myself, go running, not to mention wash the dishes that have been piling up for Heaven knows how long  --Bah! We need a dishwasher!  Quick rant:  I've decided that the first thing we are buying after we close on our house is a dishwasher!  So dern tired of washing dishes....!

I am now a nurse at Geauga Medical Center.  It's a small community hospital in Amish country. I absolutely love being a nurse!   Helping people is so rewarding (that sounds so cliche, but it is so true). I love that I can relieve pain, comfort the weary, and befriend the cantankerous.  I recently moved to the night shift; a change I was very wary about, but have quickly decided that it is perfect for me.  After the lights go off at 10:00 and all the friends, family, and doctors have gone home, it is just me and my patients.  Night shift is so calm compared to the crazy-hectic-nonstop-never-rest day shift.  My props go out to those day-shift chicas (and the occasional chico).

 I want the people that I love to see how we live in Ohio. So random and crazy.

Starting with Christmas pictures that I never got around to sharing:

(I like the different levels of outfits here: Ava in pj's, McKoy in his Sunday best, Ike in his summer clothes...)

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Miley's 7th Birthday with Aunt B!

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C.C. Seahorse, of course!

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This was taken awhile ago, but I just found it and had to share it because it's my favorite gymnastics picture of Milas. She moves so beautifully.

Thanksgiving Eve

A few days ago, I found out that I would be hosting Thanksgiving dinner at my home to a bunch of Don's classmates, their spouse if they had one, and kids if they had 'em.  Initially, I was mortified at the thought of entertaining during a major holiday, but that feeling soon gave way to an attitude of, well, denial. But deep down inside, I knew I had face it some time.

......

Up until today I've been making lists, running errands, rewriting lists, and dilly-dallying.

......

But! Today was THE day.  The day to do EVERYTHING on my "Kelly-Do" List!

I reupholstered chairs (6 of 'em)

There is no need to judge me on a count of the condition of these chairs. 

They came like this straight from Craigslist. Dirt. Cheap.

Reupholstered MORE...

(before)

 (afta')

Spruced up the ho-hum couch.

I stitched some slip covers for the pillows and used a blanket that my G-ma Darley made me --and voila! (have you ever gone crazy with color? I think I have)
Oh, so you noticed that lovely green door behind the couch?  Nice, right?  Yah, I did that today too.

I found this poor guy out in the barn.  I had to save him!

Just took some sanding...

and 2 coats of paint.

And it's like he was meant to be here.  

I can't believe I did everything on my list and lived to blog about it.  And, hey, blogging wasn't even on my list. This is just a bonus! ...or maybe  I'm stalling instead of baking a pecan pie.  Oh, well. Happy Thanksgiving!

Dad's 21 questions

1. What is something Daddy alwas says to you?
Miley:  I love you.
Isaac:  Eat your dinner.
Ava:  I love you.

2.  What makes Daddy happy?
Miley:  Cleaning up the dinner plates.
Isaac:  Hugging him.
Ava:  Eat food.

3.  What makes Daddy sad?
Miley:  Saying No.
Ike:  Not hugging him.
Ava:  Not going potty.

4.  How does Daddy make you laugh?
Miley:  He tickles us.
Isaac:  He tickles me.  That's the only thing he can do to make me laugh.
Ava:  Says funny words.

5.  What was Daddy like as a child?
Miley:  His dad.
Isaac:  Me!
Ava:  Um, a teacher.

6.  How old is Daddy?
Miley:  32!
Isaac:  55!  54.  Is he 54?
Ava:  21.

7.  How tall is Daddy?
Miley:  32 inches.
Isaac:  He's tall like mom.
Ava:  31.

8.  What is Daddy's favorite thing to do?
Miley:  Go to the Halloween store.
Isaac:  Play.
Ava:  Go to Chuck E. Cheese.

9.  What does Daddy do when you're not around?
Miley:  Study.
Isaac:  When he's gone getting drinks and studies, I play by myself in my room.
Ava:  Not to run around.

10.  If Daddy becomes famous, what will it be for?
Miley:  Don't write this down, Eating!
Isaac: Going to work.
Ava:  Going to Chuck E. Cheese.

11.  What is Daddy's favorite food?
Miley:  French toast.
Isaac:  Cheerios.  (pronounced Cheerioles)
Ava:  I think noodles.

12.  What is Daddy really good at?
Miley:  Helping me play computer games.
Isaac:  Running
Ava: School.

13.  What is Daddy not very good at?
Miley:  Telling time, because sometimes he says, "What time is it?"
Isaac:  Not very good at watching TV.
Ava:  Not to sit.

14.  What does Daddy do for his job?
Miley:  Take shots for other people.  (true.  Don sold his plasma for money)
Isaac:  Do chores.
Ava:  Get new cookies. 

15. What makes you proud of Daddy?
Miley:  Making hot fudge sundaes.
Isaac:  Giving me cookies.
Ava:  Go to WalMart.

16.    If Daddy were a cartoon character, who would he be?
Miley:  Mr. Incredible 
Isaac:  Probably Spider Man.
Ava:   ....... (this is where Ava loses interest)

17.  What do you and Daddy do together?
Miley:  Snuggle.
Isaac:  Play on the rope swing.
Ava:

18.  How are you and Daddy the same?
Miley:  We both don't have glasses.
Isaac:  We both look at stuff at stores.
Ava:

19.  How are you and Daddy different?
Miley:  Different clothes.
Isaac:  I am a different guy because I was your baby.
Ava:

20.  How do you know Daddy loves you?
Miley:  He watches Wipe Out with me.
Isaac:  Um, he toots on me.
Ava:

21. Where is Daddy's favorite place to go?
Miley:  To bed.
Isaac:  To nap.
Ava:
 


It's interesting to hear what your kids think of you, and what they do or don't know.