Two things real quick.

Okay, doesn't this look so cozy?  Gentry took a nap today and sweet Penny wanted to join.  

  Somehow our heater was OFF last night and we were freezing but now we are warm again.  But really this little cold stint needs to be over because we live in Cali for the warmth and not for the freezing cold.  

And I love technology!  We facetimed with Than last night and it was really funny how excited Gentry was when she got to talk to him.  She said, "Daddy!  You need to come home!"  And then showed him the little santa project she did yesterday and a bunch of toys like he had been gone for a month.  

Thats all.  I hear Maren waking up.  She's been sick today.  And very clingy.  Poor baby. 

going ons.

So Maren is the belle of the ball at church.  I  love sitting in the front because I feel like I listen and participate more but with her, that's impossible!  She is crawling everywhere and waving at people and just being a super cute baby.  So I've made a little corner with toys for us but that still didn't stop her from mingling with the crowd.  

I made chicken and dumplings the other night for dinner to take me back to my childhood.  And of course, my kids loved it.  They were like....There is bread IN the soup!  What is better than more bread products, right?  This was one of my favorite childhood meals and it's like I was transported back to our little house on Oro Avenue.  

I'm trying to do something Chrismas-y with the kids everyday.  We have an advent calendar and they pull out a little activity and we mostly get to them.  They are pretty simple but the kids really like it.  

Sundays was "Watch the First Presidency Christmas Devotional".  And so we did.  Pacen was bugged because he really wanted to watch the whole 49er game that he had recorded.  He loves watching football and I kind of like that he likes the 49ers because my grandma Helen loved the 49ers and Joe Montana.  We were able to do both and all was right in the world.  

 Everyone has commented on how old Gentry looks in these pictures and it's true.  Our little baby is growing up!  And her hair has been down and that makes any three year old look old. 

She really wanted to do the dishes all by herself yesterday and so I let her.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well she did.  NOthing was broken and she really washed everything.  It was so cute.  Our water bill may not be so cute but she had a good time.  

 Then I stole Erica Pratt's idea to make Grinches out of food. The kids loved it!  How can you not love making a grinch and be able to eat him?!?!  

 Camry couldn't handle that he didn't have a body and went above and beyond....

 Gentry almost got him built. :)

 More complete Grinch from the Pacen boy too.  

I hope that my kids remember doing all of these Christmas-y things when they get old.  Claira can't wait....like really can't wait for Christmas.  Only 15 days!!!!!!! she said today.  

Than and I went out Saturday night and busted out almost all of our remaining shopping.  We have been so on top of it this year and only have a few odds and ends to do.  I can't wait!  

Thoughts.

Today was one of those days where I woke up and really didn't want to do anything productive.  I was tired.  Than had jumped on a flight earlier that morning to Florida.  The kids were just being kids and a little loud and crazy.  I told Than it was one of those days where if I didn't have a strong testimony of the church I'd probably just stay home because it would have been much easier.  But, I put on my big girl pants and got everyone ready to go to church and went.  And we were late and that made me mad.  There is a light that I swear that I always hit and it takes FOREVER to go green again and I thought I had accounted for enough time but then I forgot Maren's bottle and you know how it is.  Late again.  To 1:00 church.  Ridiculous.  Anyway....we got there and I'm always happy that I make the decision to go.  And most of the time it's not a decision but today I had the thought that I wished one of my kids were sick so I wouldn't have to go.  Hardly anyone reads what I write anymore and I'm always real here.   I think it's funny now that I thought that.  Going to church is always the right thing to do.  And of course today was the same as every Sunday....all of my kids want to be sitting on top of me the whole time.  Like ALL of my kids.  Even Pacen.  He wants to be leaning on my side, and I have to wrestle with Maren while she's wanting to wave at every person behind us, and Claira and Camry are upset because someone else is on my side and I'm usually holding Gentry off and on the whole hour.  I'm sure it's a pretty funny sight.  But I love that they want to be by me.  I really do.  Sacrament meeting is a good place to play with Camry's hair, or scratch Pacen's back, or draw Gentry's hand over and over again. And our meeting was really good and I got to thinking about how great a ward we live in.  It has taken me a long time to get used to our ward.  I think it's a combination of our stage of live moving forward and the differnt, more busy lifestyle in the Bay Area, but it really is a great ward.  And there are so many really hard working people in it.  The guy that gave a talk in Sacrament meeting was assisting the Sunday school teacher (who is amazing) by dressing up and singing the song as if he were Satan--it was pretty hilarious--with his son playing the piano.  It was so funny.  And the lesson was really inspiring about the armor of God.  And then I went into primary to talk to a friend and all of the junior primary just had their eyes fixed on their music leader who is just able to teach and be in control and have fun all at the same time.  A few people even came in from the hallway and as soon as they came in they had big smiles on their faces watching these kids learn a new song.  And then our Relief Society lesson was so great and had good discussion about the restoration and Joseph Smith.  I had to fill a bottle for Maren and as I went into the kitchen, a couple was working on dividing up food (and I mean like lots and lots of food!) for our ward Christmas party on Friday.  When I went to pick up Claira from class, they were making these necklaces and building with playdoh they made in class.  These things take time to prepare!  I know how hard it is and people just serve and serve and serve and I thought...how selfish of me to have the attitude of not wanting to go to church today. There are scores of people working hard and giving of their precious time to make our ward wonderful and it is wonderful and our kids are learning and gaining testimonies of Jesus Christ.

Then this was the email I got from Camry's primary teacher tonight.

My Dear Parents:

How I wish you could have all been in a secret room watching your children today in Primary.  They were AWESOME.  I started the lesson and ended it but everything in between was all your kids......I said nothing.  The lesson was about  “I Can Be a Good Example For My Family by Being.....” and then they all had a topic to discuss which completed the sentence.  Each “good example” was illustrated by a ray (sun ray) which they added to the circle (sun) after they completed their part of the lesson. (They all took home a copy of the completed sun with its rays).

 When they all entered the Primary room for Sharing time right after Sacrament meeting, it was interesting to watch them as they all had their papers and were huddled in a group talking in a very animated way. I don’t know what they were saying, but it was obvious their lesson topics were part of the conversation.  It was delightful to observe and I knew they were excited for what was to come.

 First up was Eli and his topic was “Obedient.” He started with telling the story of Lehi’s family leaving Jerusalem and how Lehi’s sons reacted when he asked them to return to Jerusalem for the brass plates.  He asked the class multiple questions  during his presentation and in a sweet masterful way, made it very clear that he expected them to respond with answers – which they did.  It set the tone for the others to follow.

 Echo followed with the topic of being Helpful, Clare with being Kind and Loving, Logan with being a Peacemaker, Camry with being Forgiving and Anthony with being Truthful.  Ben and Mya were not there and so Camry volunteered to do Mya’s part (being Understanding) and Echo volunteered to do Ben’s (being Unselfish).  There was no hesitation to volunteer and they did a fantastic job without any preparation.

 The respect for each other in that classroom was AMAZING.  Logan led the way with volunteering answers to every question that was asked and opened the door for the others to follow.  They were all sincere in their responses and every one of them presented their part of the lesson with confidence and obvious preparation.

 I know this is a very busy time of year but THANK YOU so much for helping your children prepare.  I know from a couple of stories I heard, the preparation part was not easy but every single one of them came through beautifully.   It was very hard for me to keep my tears from flowing.....I was so proud of them....and I really believe that they were all proud of themselves.

 I love you and your children and I hope you have a very Merry Christmas.

Ann

We really are blessed to live in our ward.  We are blessed to be members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  I am glad for moments like today when I am reminded about that.  This Christmas season can get busy and we are all worried about presents and shopping and whatever else that it's great to slow down and think about the Savior and how blessed our lives are because He lived and because we strive to live His gospel.  The gospel message is one of hope and good tidings of great joy and it makes us happy.  And that's why we get out of bed and do what we do.  And we are lucky to do it.  

Remember November...

Oh yeah, I do.  It was that entire month that just flashed by in the wink of an eye.  It's crazy how life is doing that so often lately.  I'm going to try to make a list of all the things that we did (this is impossible...that's why I love to blog all the time and it sucks when I get busy)....

**I potty trained Gentry...she was amazing.
**Camry was in her play and sang a solo and had two other parts.....she was amazing too.
**We went to a BYU basketball game and a BYU football game.  All in one month.  It's a good month I dare say.
**Soccer ended....had two End of the year soccer parties.  Than nailed being a little girls soccer coach.  He was amazing.  And Claira is going to be quite the athlete despite earlier thoughts of her being a one dimensional prima-donna.  :) (in the best way possible, obviously) She was pretty amazing out there.
**Football ended....had on End of the year football party.  Pacen was amazing. :)  For Christmas he asked for a mouth guard and receiver gloves.
**Basketball started....In one game, Pacen scored 5 of their 6 points and in the other he scored 4 out of 8 and had two assists.  He's pretty much the MVP.
**We got our family pictures taken.  They are so pretty.  I love our family.
**Big news....Gentry no longer has a sassy!  Hilarious story.  A must blog about event.  She's doing amazing by they way.
**Than and I finished our 60 Body, Mind, and Spirit challenge.  I'm pretty much down to my pre-pregnancy size and Than is more fit than he's ever been so it was a huge success even if we didn't win any prize money.
**Pacen earned his Bear in cub scouts.  He's worked super hard on it and we are proud of him.
**Claira had a Thanksgiving feast at her school and sung three songs and was amazing.  I love seeing her at school and so happy.
**Maren has mastered the wave and waves and everyone and anyone.  It will brighten everyone's day.
**Maren's first tooth popped through!
**At a highschool football game, Maren popped out Camry's top front tooth!  It was hilarious!  And a sister effort because Claira (accidentally) kicked Cam in the face and made it super loose and then Maren finished the job.
**We had all the kids parent/teacher conferences and they all were really great.  All things that we can work on with all the kids...mainly consistency in reading but we are getting better all the time.  I love to see that the kids are working hard.
**Maren had a terrible earache and rash that are finally going away.  Thank you antibiotics!
**I used the first lemons off of our tree!  And Than ate the first mandarins!  I love California!
**Our Christmas tree was put up!  Since Thanksgiving was late, I set up our tree early.  I love our fake tree!  It makes life so much easier.
**Kaylee's family came to visit!
**Emily came to visit!  We only saw them one day but it was great.
**Thanksgiving...we went up to Oroville.  It was a quick trip but it was fun to see everyone.  Then we were off to Reno for the game with Herm and Carolyn.  We'll get to spend more time at Christmas.
**Than and I got to act like real adults twice in one week.  Chegg had their IPO party in San Jose.  WE got all fancied up to celebrate with all the work peeps.  Some band was there....why can't I think of their name...Gym Class heroes was there and that was pretty cool.  Then two days later we went into the city for a birthday party of a coworker's wife.  It was at a little club/bar/ place....somewhere I've obviously never been before but it was great to get to know them better.
**We invited some friends of ours to church and they came which is always pretty awesome.  We got to answer a lot of their questions and hopefully they'll want to come back again.  I love sharing our beliefs with people.
**We watched Frozen and the girls have been singing it NON STOP.  I may regret buying that soundtrack later. :)  Actually, I won't because it's just too cute to watch them.
**Than and Pacen had a trip to Wisconsin for they BYU game.  They had an absolute blast.
**While they were gone, I threw a kindergarten party for Claira.  I actually didn't do a lot.  It was her party and she was in charge.  She has been begging me for months and finally we did it. She planned what movie to watch, what games to play,  and what crafts to do.  She came home from school Friday afternoon and had gotten a little craft from treasure box and even made a game to play.  It was a hit!
**And through all of these activities...still have time to cook and clean and go into the kids' classrooms and play with the kids....We're busy!

 But that's always been the case and we love it!  Wouldn't change a thing....except more time to document it all!

More random life moments.

The other day I had the privilege of having both my little babies asleep on my lap.  Gentry was just having one of 'those' days and Maren was fighting the rash from heck and was super mad at me for putting medicine on it.  It's a great problem to have two babies on you.

Last Monday night, we made pizza for dinner and it was one of those impromptu everyone-in-the-kitchen-to-help-mom nights. 

It was a huge mess but everyone was happy.  It was also the same night as trying to carve pumpkins but Than only had like 20 minutes to fit it in and it didn't really happen.  I think they did get two or three done.  Very simple, but completed! 

I got crafty and made a banner of our past Halloweens!  It was so fun to have those pictures up for awhile.  And it was fun to actually make something!  That doesn't happen very often anymore. 

 I'm trying to get Gentry to be better about her colors.  It's coming but not as quickly as I'd like. 

Claira created a book a few weeks ago.  It was more like an illustrated poem.  This girl loves to create!  

 She took it in to share with her class.  I just love her little creative mind. 

 Camry was working on her sun flare selfies. :)

And one night we worked on ours together.  Really not flattering! 

And this was us demolishing the best tamales ever at a farmers market in town.  I wasn't sure if my kids would like them but they did!  They loved them and have asked to get them again.  I love all of our farmers markets out here. 

Friday.

Friday turned out to be a pretty exhausting, but super fun day.  Thursday we went up to Oroville to support Kaylee with her court hearing about Olive.  Pacen was already gone with Than on their boys trip to Wisconsin and so I thought..what the heck?  It was a great day and we had fun seeing everybody.  I thought it best to drive home and let the kids go to school for Friday.  But I did know that it was twin day on Friday (where kids dress the same) and my kids had been talking about it but that they hadn't worked anything out with anyone.  

The debate was....do I talk with them about it now and try to figure something out, or do I send them to school not dressed as a twin and have them remember when they were already there and risk tears at school?  I decided to talk with them about it on the way home, and I did figure out a friend that Claira could dress the same as but I could not find someone for Camry.  I called two people and it just wasn't working out  All the while, Camry was crying in the car, so upset over this stupid day.  She kept saying, "But everyone will make fun of me!"   I suggested being twins with Claira but she wanted to be twins with someone in class and her good friend in class was in Hawaii so that was out.  Basically just  a crying mess for like 45 minutes and so finally I was like...We are done.  You are not going to school!  This is ridiculous.  She was against that, too, but we worked it out.  

I ended up getting a babysitter for Gentry and Maren so that I could have a few hours with just her.  She had mentioned being a little upset that Pacen got to go on another cool trip with dad....not in like a bratty kind of way, but a way that seemed sincere and I kind of agree.  He does get a lot of fun things with Than because of BYU sports.  It's the 3rd trip this year with the fathers and sons camp, the Utah game, and now the Wisconsin game.  I can see how it might seem unfair.  So I took her to get pedicures and shopping.  Just us.    It was a lot of fun to just have some time with her.  Sometimes I think that because she is so helpful and good and easy it's easy to look her over.  What they say is true....the squeaky wheel gets the grease.  And she's just not most of the time.  She is so wonderful and I want to make sure that she feels the love too.  

 And I seriously HATE twin day.  I'm going to write a letter I think suggesting that the school do a different thing for a spirit day.  It has never been easy to do lame twin day anyway.  There is always stress figuring out what to wear and then you feel bad for the ones that don't have anyone to be twins with.  I totally know what she was feeling when she was upset.  We've all felt like that at one time or another.  And it was funny because while we were out playing hooky, I ran into two moms and we chatted about it and they both said that they hated twin day too, and all of my friends who I talked to getting a babysitter hated it too!  So why do we have it?!?!  Seriously it's time for some change.  

Or maybe we'll have to go shopping every twin day just to boycott! :) 

Friday was also Claira's friend movie party!  She has been asking me for a movie night with school friend since school started and so I finally caved since I knew Than and Pacen would be gone.  She was so excited.  Like beyond excited.  She even brought home this bracelet making kit from treasure box and had created a game for all the kids to play.  It was her night.  And all her friends were just as excited.  I love making kids happy. 

The pictures aren't in order but I'm being lazy.  

 The game.  Just like charades but Claira was in charge. :)

She actually drew out specific charades for each person and when she drew their name out of the bowl she gave them their charade to act out.  It was pretty cute. 

  

 Movie party joy. 

 I did let them decorate cupcakes and that was the biggest mess ever.  Sprinkles galore!  

So basically I win mom of the year with my friday activities.  Just sayin.  :)