Gymnastics Class

Madi started taking gymnastics a couple of weeks ago. I think she likes it. When we first get to class she tells me that she wants me to stay with her. It's the same thing she was doing at her tumbling class. I think it's just an act because she is anything but shy. It's a lot of fun watching Madi do all of her moves at gymnastics class. There are a few moves that we need to work on but she did pretty well at the low balance beam. When it was time to walk on the low balance beam she didn't hesitate at all she just jumped right on. I took this video at her very first class. I really think that this kind of class is more her thing since she likes to jump around. It's also really good for her because she has so much energy and hopefully this class will help her use up some of that energy. I think it will also help her learn how to follow instructions a little better.

Madi already knows a couple of the girls in the class. Claire (who we met at tumbling) is in the class and Kylie (who we met at tumbling) is also in this class. I'm really glad that we get to watch the girls practice it helps when I want to be able to practice with Madi cause I know what they do in class. This dance school has been a lot different from the last school that Madi went to. I think she really likes her teachers, they make class a lot of fun which helps Madi want to go to class.

Slacker...

I have so much catching up to do on the blog. There are things that I haven't written about that happened months ago.. What's my deal! I guess I have been a bit busy lately. Anyway, as soon as I get my butt in gear I'll be posting some stuff.. Like what you ask? Well, Madi started ballet and gymnastics a couple of weeks ago. Oh and some other stuff. If I keep talking now I might as well just tell the whole story and I have to do some things before I go to bed so it will have to wait until later. This is mostly just to give my blog a little love. I think it's lonely when I don't write on it. Just kidding!

Duane Wall

died 2009-08-23

Duane A. Wall, age 82 of Vernal, surrounded by his wife and family, passed away Aug. 23, 2009 after a recent injury.
He was born July 24, 1927 in Maeser, to Henry Wilford Wall and Alice Adams, the oldest of seven children, four of whom precede him in death.
He was raised in Avalon, Utah, graduating from Alterra High School where he played basketball. He attempted to enlist in the U.S. Army during World War II, but was rejected as being too tall. He married Valenna Rae Gardiner on June 21, 1950 and was then drafted for the Korean Conflict where he served as a Motor Pool Sergeant from May of 1952 to Feb. 1954.
A daughter, Anita, joined the family in May of 1962. Duane worked in the building trades for many years, receiving diplomas from the State Board of Vocational Education as Carpenter and Carpenter Foreman, and certified in Civil Defense. He worked on construction of the Flaming Gorge Dam as well as numerous other projects. He also worked most every job in the oilfield, retiring from Dresser Magcobar in 1983, then working for Turner Lumber for many years.
He married Vadrus Joyce Bodily on Nov. 6, 1973 after the death of his wife Valenna. He often stated he always wanted a big family, and was immediately joined by six more children.
A faithful member of the LDS Church, Duane served as President of the Gusher Branch in 1961, and later as Sunday School President and greeter. He served two Stake Missions to the Uintah Basin Indian Mission as well as ward missions. Later, at the age of 73, he was called with his wife Vadrus to serve a C.E.S. Mission to the Vladivostok, Russia Mission, where a doubtful Mission President was impressed by his vigor and impact, particularly with the many young people who were baptized.
He is widely known in the Basin for his work ethic, friendly demeanor, and never-ending willingness to help anyone. Many times after working all day, he spent all night repairing a vehicle broken down along the road. Trips to the city after a snowstorm could be painfully long, as he always stopped to pull every car that had slid off back on the highway.
In his retirement years he built quilt-stands for dozens of people and gave away scores of handcrafted stools. His grandsons and other boys were built scout footlockers, and children were made blocks. He liked carpentry projects for the joy of giving them away. He is loved as a gentle, friendly man with a steady temperament and faith. Greatly loved by his family, and many others in the Basin.
Duane is survived by his loving wife Vadrus; children, Ann Reynolds (Kenneth), Lisa Watkins (Greg), Lydia Anders (Gary), Edward Burghardt, Anita Ashmead (Lon), Laurie McDowell (James), Barbara Madsen (Robert); brothers Don of Casper, Wyo. and Ted of Powell, Wyo.; 27 grandchildren and 51 great-grandchildren.
Preceding him in death are his parents; brothers, Laverne “Poncho”, Neldon “Blondie”, Wilford “Doc” and sister Veda; his first wife Valenna Gardiner; as well as grandchildren, Kevin Reynolds and Sheridan Madsen; and great-granddaughters Hunter Watkins and Izzi Howcroft.
Services will be held Aug. 28 at 11 a.m. at the Naples 1st Ward Chapel (2313 South 1500 East) in Vernal. Friends and family may call Thursday from 6-8 at the Mortuary. Military honors will be by the American Legion Post 124 and 11 and the Utah National Guard.
Interment will be in the Maeser-Fairview Cemetery under the direction of the Blackburn Vernal Mortuary.

Uncle Duane

I found out today that my Uncle Duane passed away. A few days ago he fell walking up some stairs and broke his leg. He hasn't been really well for a while so it was hard on his body. Right now I'm just glad that he isn't in pain anymore. It's sad to know that we won't see him at any of the family reunions or get togethers but it makes me glad to know that we will see him again someday in Heaven if we live worthily.
Uncle Duane was this very tall man, he was like this giant teddy bear that wouldn't hurt a fly. Whenever he was around he would stand next to you and give you a side hug and tell you how glad he was to see you. He was always very complimentary. He would tell me how pretty I was and how I looked like my Mom. He was such a sweet man and I'm so glad that I could call him my Uncle. He will be dearly missed.
My Mom told me that yesterday Duane was talking about how he had seen some of our family members that have passed away already. I like to think they were near to him at the end to help him find the way back to our Father in Heaven. I am so grateful to know that we are a Forever Family and we will be together again with all of our loved ones that have passed on before.

A moment of duh!

So the last few days I noticed that I was the only visitor to my blog. Being silly me I wondered if I had done something offensive to keep people from looking at my blog. Then it just occurred to me that a few days ago I turned my private blog setting back on so that I could get a few e-mail addresses from it. Silly me.. I turned it back off now.

All about Kimber

Kimber has started to talk a lot more lately. She says, "HI!" and "Bye!" She also says, "Pleeease!" which when she says it sounds like she's saying cheeese. It's so darn cute! She also says, "Thank you!" and then possibly my favorite, "Okay!" She kind of says it like Little John (is that the name of that rapper guy?) It's too cute for words but don't worry I have it on video.

We're starting to see that Kimber is probably going to be left handed. Her uncle Russ will be so happy to hear that since he is a lefty too. Anytime I hand her a crayon or a spoon she takes it with her left so I'm thinking that's a pretty good sign but we'll see maybe it will change and maybe she'll use both her left and right like my older brother John does.

She absolutely loves shoes. She is so totally a girl. The other day Brett took her shoes off because we came in from outside and she had the biggest fit. If we leave her bedroom door open she will go in there and find shoes to put on herself. Usually that means that she pulled every other shoe at of the drawer too so now there is a fun shoe mess to clean up. We leave our flip flops by the back door so they are ready to be slipped on as we go outside and Kimber usually sits down and puts them on and walks around the house. I don't know why it is but girls love shoes and this is proof that it starts at a very young age.

Whenever I am in the kitchen Kimber comes in to mooch a cracker or anything else that is tasty to eat. When I pull out the crackers she just plops down wherever she is standing so that she can completely concentrate on her treat. I sometimes sit down on the floor too to feed her some dinner since that's where she puts herself. I do that instead of picking her up and moving her which would end up with her being mad at me.

Speaking of being a mooch... Brett usually eats his food in the family room in front of the TV. Kimber is always right there with him asking for a bite or a sip of his soda. Brett doesn't mind though. I think he really likes the attention from her.

Kimber just loves to be with her sister. Anywhere that Madi is Kimber is sure to be close behind. They love to dance with each other which really is Madi pulling Kimber by the arm and Kimber trying so hard to stay on her feet. They have so much fun together I just love to watch them play.

We are so blessed to have these sweet little girls in our home. I thank Heavenly Father for them everyday and I pray that I can do my best to teach them to do what is right and follow the teachings of the gospel.

New Background

Hey do you like my new background? It's a barn get it? The Barnes'.... Ha ha ha! Just kidding it's really not that funny but I do have to buy a calendar of barn's every year and once I even had checks with barn's on them. I'm silly I know.. When you grew up with the last name Fairey you have to have a good sense of humor about your name and Barnes is really pretty normal.

Jumping Bean

These girls love to dance!

The Turn Around

On Saturday I took Madi to the open house at a dance studio here in town called The Turn Around. From the moment we walked in I got a completely different vibe when compared to the other dance school I had Madi enrolled in. Madi was really excited about the girls that were there practicing their gymnastics. I enrolled Madi in the Pre-Gymnastics class and the Pre-Ballet class. While we were there we picked up Madi's dance shoes and a new leotard. I'm thinking that since Madi will have Payton and Claire in the same ballet class that it should go a lot better oh and the fact that her teacher wont be the Ballet Nazi should help too. Her first class is on the 25th so we'll see how it goes.

Girls Night!

It is so necessary to have time away to hang out with the girls. I have always felt guilty about not taking every possible moment of free time that Brett had off from work to hang out with him and the girls. I never and I mean hardly ever leave my girls with anyone. If you ask Tifany she'll tell you that she would always offer to take Madi but I would never take her up on it. I rarely left the girls with Brett and head out on my own. He would offer to take the girls but I would take them with me. I just don't want to inconvenience anybody but come on myself I need to accept help. It's not that I don't trust Brett or Tifany with the girls I know that they are both very capable I'm just silly. Since moving to Iowa I have started changing my ways. I have come to realize how nice it is to go to the doctor by myself and not have to juggle the girls while trying to talk to the doctor. Tifany has been my life saver many times.
Tifany has also tried to get me to go out on a girls night without kids but since I'm such a silly I wouldn't ever go unless I took the girls. Brett was so glad when I asked him if it would be ok if he took care of the girls so I could go out on a girls night. I didn't even finish what I was saying and he already knew where I was going with it and he said, "Definitely!" So once a month we (the girls) get together and go to a movie or whatever without kids or husbands. It's such great fun! Last night Tifany and I had already been planning on going to see The Time Travelers Wife (which neither of our husbands wanted to see) and go eat at Hu Hot (which isn't Brett's favorite). We met Shelby Ropte at Hu Hot and she then came with us to the mall. At the mall we decided to take Brett's advice and try out this new massage parlor. I'm a little sore today from the chair massage that I got but it was so worth it. It just hurt so good!! After we all had our pampering we did a little window shopping until the mall closed at 9:PM so we went to Target because we still had 50 minutes until the movie started. While we were shopping I heard back from our friend Amber (that we met at the girls tumbling class) and she decided to come meet us at the movie.
The movie was really sad and I knew it would be. It was sad and happy all in one. I liked the story line. I like sad movies but I guess I'm weird that way.
The night was a lot of fun and I'm so glad that I've finally decided to go out and take a little Mommy break. It's also so fun to come home and have the girls so excited to see me.. I mean they love me I know they do but since they are always with me it's no big deal when they see me except when I've been away. It's cool to see how fun it is for Brett when he comes home and the girls are so excited to see him.
We (the girls) have decided that we are going to do a girls night at least once a month. It's so nice to have the time away and it's fun to get to know the girls better.

Facing Her Fears

Madi isn't what you would call the bravest of kids. She doesn't like to be tossed up in the air or swung around. Brett took her on a carousel ride and she screamed and cried the entire time. What's scary about a carousel? It's not like it was even going up and down or anything. She doesn't really even like to swing in a swing either. If you push her very high at all she completely freaks out. She is just a ground loving little girl. She doesn't usually like to climb the stairs and go down the slide at the park. Well, Friday we finally went to the pool at the YMCA. They have a zero entry pool that is kind of like the splash parks. They also have a long winding water slide. I didn't think that there would be anyway that Madi would want to go down the slide. I watched her face when she saw Payton and Kutter going down with their Dad. She thought it was pretty cool. I asked her if she wanted to go down if Ryan took her and at first she said yes and then immediately said, "NO!" Then Tifany turns to me and says, "I bet I can get her to go down." I knew that if Tifany talked to her about it she would probably go for it. I watched in disbelief as Madi took Tifany's hand and walked with her over to the stairs of the slide. I did notice a little of hesitation from Madi. You know how you know what your kids do when they don't want to do something well I could see in Madi's body language that she really wasn't wanting to go up there but she went ahead anyway. I thought for sure that they would get to the top of the slide and Madi would start screaming. I was so excited when I saw that she climbed onto Tifany's lap and rode down the slide. Then when she reached the bottom she was smiling from ear to ear. It was awesome! What was even better is that she wanted to do it over and over. Then I tried to take her down and I didn't know the trick to keep her head above water at the bottom so we both went for a swim and she didn't like having her head go under water. After that she was starting to change her mind about the slide but Tifany was right there and immediately took her up and down the slide again. I was so proud of Madi for facing her fear and then stomping on it.
I had another eye doctor appointment so I left Madi with Tifany and Ryan at the pool and Kimber and I went to the doctor appointment. When I got back to the pool I sat down by Ryan and asked him how Madi was when I was gone and he said that she was just fine. Then about a second later he shot up from the chair and through the wading pool. My eyes were dilated so it was hard for me to see anything in the day light but Ryan was running to save Madi. She had been standing playing with the rope that separates the deep pool from the wading pool. She lost her footing and went under water. She was still in water that she could have stood up in but she was panicking so she went under water. Ryan brought her out of the water and she was just fine. I think she swallowed a little bit of water but other than that she was ok. I told her that she needs to be more careful about going by the deep water. I told her that she better tell Ryan thank you for saving her life. Tifany came over to see how Madi was and then almost immediately said to Madi that they were going to go down the slide again. Madi hesitated but with a little coaxing she went right along. I was so proud because Madi having just going under water and being scared was brave enough to face her fear and go back in the water. Of course I have to give all the credit to Tifany and Ryan, I don't think she would ever do it for me. Now I just can't wait to put Madi in swimming lessons.

My poor little Baby Boo

Poor little Kimber has had a rough week. I think it was Wednesday morning that she woke up with a temperature of 102.3. All day I was giving her Tylenol to get her temperature to go down. She played outside a little but just wasn't completely herself. She wasn't really interested in eating. I really started to worry about how high her temperature was that night when she just felt so hot and she wasn't sleeping very well. I consulted one of the nurses in the family about when I should get worried and take her to see the doctor. Megan (the nurse) told me to alternate between Tylenol and Motrin every three hours and give Kimber a few luke warm baths. She said that if the temperature was still above 101 that I should take her in. So that night I started Motrin then Tylenol three hours later. I also gave Kimber a luke warm bath which didn't go over too well. She was just sitting in the tub shivering, it was a pretty sad sight. The next morning her temperature was back up to 102.3 so I called the doctors office to get her in.
At the doctors office they weighed Kimber and she was exactly 20 lbs. she's a growing girl. When the doctor came in the room she looked Kimber over and was concerned that the palms of her hands and her knees seemed to be yellow. She told me that she was just about to just send me over to the ER. She then went out and brought in another doctor to get his opinion. He was also concerned about how yellow Kimber seemed to be. I asked if it could just be the olive tone in her skin and he said that her little hands should be pink. I honestly couldn't recall if her hands were always that color or not. Then the doctor said to run a CBC and some other blood test and to check liver function. That right there freaked me out. When the walked out of the room I had to have a little pep talk with myself so that I didn't break down and start crying. While I was waiting for the doctor and nurses to come back in the room I took a second to send a text message to Megan to ask her what it all meant. She responded saying that the CBC test is what they do just to check everything to see what's wrong. That made me feel a little bit better but my imagination was just running wild with all the what if's.
The poor nurses that had to take Kimber's blood weren't happy about having to do it and Kimber wasn't happy about being laid out on the bed to have her arm tortured either. They had me lean over Kimber to hold her still because they had to take the blood from her arm. Neither of my girls have ever had to do this so it was traumatic for us all. I tell you what Kimber might be a tiny little bean but she sure can put up a good fight. I really had to hold her tight to keep her arm from moving around and of course they had to use a tiny needle for her tiny little arm so it took longer to get the amount of blood they needed. Not a fun experience that I ever want to have to put my baby through again.
It probably took 30 minutes to get all the results from the blood tests back so I had a good little while to ponder about all of what could be. I was so worried that something serious could be going on with my poor little Baby Boo but I tried really hard to be tough for both of us. Kimber fell asleep a little while after her ordeal with the needle so she got some much needed rest. When the doctor came back in the room she said that everything looked really good and that her liver function was normal. WHEW!!! A huge sigh of relief from me. She told me that sometimes kids just get an unknown virus that makes them have a temperature. She also told me that if Kimber still had a temperature by Friday night that I should just get her in to be seen again on Saturday.
I kind of thought that this could all be because of teeth in the beginning but because of the scare of the Swine Flu I was being very cautious. By Friday evening Kimber was cooling off she was still not in the best mood but she at least wasn't burning up. When Saturday morning rolled around she seemed much more like her usual self. We are pretty sure that the whole thing was because of all the darn teeth that are trying to come in at one time. She is still pretty ornery but she doesn't have a temperature anymore thank goodness.
I am so thankful that our girls are blessed with healthy bodies. It breaks my heart to see the sick children in the hospital. A few weeks ago I saw "My Sister's Keeper" and it broke my heart. I can only start to imagine how hard it would be to loose a child and then to have to watch them be sick would just kill you everyday. I am just very very VERY grateful to Heavenly Father that our girls have been blessed with good health. Actually they have great health because other than these little sicknesses they both have been very healthy.

2 boxes in 1 day...

What I said when I first saw this, "Ahhhh!! Kimber! Where's my camera?"

What I said when I first saw this, "Oh Kimber really? Two in one day!" What can I say she loves cereal and she knows where to go to get it. Oh and what's with the way she is sitting? Sheesh bendy girl!

Eye doctor

Two weeks ago I went to the eye doctor for my yearly eye check up. While I was waiting for the doctor I looked at all the fun frames. I tried on some really fun Tiffany and Co. glasses but decided that they were just a little too fancy for me. I just couldn't make my mind up about what frame to go with so I planned on taking Brett in with me to help me make my mind up. When the doctor was ready for me she checked my eyes but didn't dilate them because I had asked her about lasik. I guess for lasik they have to do another type of dilation to make sure your eyes are really healthy. She also told me about these extended wear contacts that I could wear for 30 days straight so sleeping, showering, everything in them. She then went and got me a pair of the contacts to try out for a week. I guess sometimes your eyes don't accept them that well so she was going to have me wear them for a week and then have me come back at the end of the week and see how I did.

I felt like I had brand new eyeballs. It was awesome! I didn't have to think about putting my glasses on in the morning or even messing with contacts cause they were already in my eyes. If you have ever worn regular contacts you probably know that if you accidentally sleep with them in your eyes you wake up feeling like you have sandpaper in your eyes or if you shower with them in they totally suction to your eyes.. It doesn't feel nice. These contacts on the other hand were wonderful! I was totally in love with how cool they were. I kept on telling Brett how much I loved them.

At the end of the week I went to the eye doctor appointment and again while I was waiting decided that I would look at some of their sunglasses because I needed a new pair to wear with my new contacts. I ended up with some super cute red ones. After goofing around with that I got in with the doctor. When I first sat down in the chair she asked me how the contacts felt. I told her that they were so great and it was like I had new eyes. After that she looked at my eyes with the contacts in and then moved one of the contacts around a little and then said that she needed to take it out because it had a film on it. She had also said that I had a bit of an astigmatism now which I didn't have before. After she took the contact out and looked in my eye again she said, "Oh dang it! These aren't going to work." She said, "You have a corneal edema." To what I said, "What does that mean?" She said that it's like I have little blisters all over my eye. I just said, "Oh dang it!" I wasn't too worried about it she said that I would need to put eye drops in my eyes for a week and then we could try these other contacts. I kept joking about my new eye problem and the doctor said at least I have a sense of humor about it. She felt bad that they seemed to be so great when they were actually causing my eyes to get sick. I figure that we were just trying something out and there was no way of knowing how well my eyes were going to accept the new contacts. So basically my eyes have an infection because they were starved for oxygen so the drops I have are a steroid with an antibiotic in it. The doctor said that I had Hypoxia from extended wear contacts and it is causing microcystic corneal adema. Awesome!

So I put on my new glasses that came in that day and drove home.I was a little bummed about the contacts but I was more bummed that I couldn't wear my new sunglasses home. Boo Hoo!

I do have to say that my new eye doctor is wonderful! She has a great staff that are very helpful and very willing to help you find just the right frames. I most definitely will be going back there for my next eye exam... Well besides the visit this Friday. Ha ha ha!

A very scary story (dun dun dunnnnn)

Early this afternoon while Madi was taking a nap and Kimber was playing happily I went to take a shower. I left Kimber in the living room playing and turned the TV to the baby channel so that she would be entertained for the time I was in the shower. I left the door slightly ajar so that if Kimber needed me she could easily come in. I think it was around the time I had suds in my hair I heard this CLUNK..... CLUNK..... CLUNK.... I was terrified! What could it possibly be and it was coming closer and closer and CLOSER! CLUNK..... CLUNK..... CLUNK..... Then the door swung open and it was Kimber wearing one of my clunky sandals. It was so cute. She had her foot slipped into the shoe and was walking around.
(By the way in case you didn't catch it I wasn't really terrified I just said that for affect.)

Two very different little girls

Everyday Brett and I see the differences between Madilynn and Kimber. For instance Madi does not like to be tossed up in the air or spun around by her arms. Now Kimber on the other hand loves to do those things. Madi wasn't into climbing up things and getting into scary places but Kimber is. Madi has always used her right hand and Kimber is looking like she is going to be a lefty. At the same time they have a lot of similarities too. They both love shoes and dolls. They both love to wear jewelery. Getting into Mom's purse and taking everything out is also a favorite of both. We are so blessed to have them in our family. They keep life interesting and we learn new things about them everyday.

Thanks for reminding me!

I asked Madi to put her shoes away in her room and when she came to pick them up in the kitchen she said, "Thanks for reminding me Mom!" She is so considerate for a 3 1/2 year old. Brett and I always tell her how impressed we are with her. It's funny to hear her use the things that we have said to her back to us. She tells me all the time, "Mom I'm so impressed with you!" That's my little sweetie.

My baby ate it!

You know how in school the oldest excuse for no homework was that your dog ate it? Well, we don't have a dog so explain this.

If Kimber finds a piece of paper, or a piece of mail in this case, within her reach she usually puts it in her mouth. This actually happened a few months ago but I just found the photo in my computer file.

You Are My Sunshine...

Madi loves for me to sing to her when she is going to bed. She asks for the Sunshine song and Twinkle Twinkle song. If at all possible I need to get her on film singing You Are My Sunshine because what she thinks the lyrics are crack me up. This is what I hear her singing.
"You are my sunshine my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are GRAAAVY!"

Tumbling For Tots

For the past six weeks Madi has been taking a tumbling class at the YMCA. I think she had a lot of fun doing it especially since her good friend Payton was in the class too. After the classes Madi would talk about the parachute and she would twirl around and kick her leg up high in the air. They learned how to do somersaults (even though Madi already could) and walk on a balance beam. Madi has hardly been shy a day in her life but for some reason she started this little act when I went to drop her off at the class. She would turn to me and say, "I want to stay with you Mom." or today was, "Where's Pay Pay (Payton)? I kind of think that she started doing this because she saw some of the other kids crying when they were being dropped off. Last week Madi's friend Claire was crying and didn't want to go into the class so Madi gave her the sticker that she got in the ER and Claire then was brave enough to go into the class. Then today when Claire got there she didn't cry at all she just went right into the class it was great but then there was Madi being silly. Soon enough though Payton arrived and Madi felt a little better. Today was the last class and before they all escaped I took a quick picture of the kids with the teachers. I don't know who all of the other kids are but Payton is the fourth from the left (in pink) then Claire and Madi. Before we left to go home Madi gave her teacher a hug and her teacher said to Madi, "Did you tell your Mom what we did with the shoes?" Then Madi jumped up and down and said, "We put them in the parachute!" Then they both giggled. It was cute! I guess they put all the shoes in the middle of this parachute and all the kids held an edge and then popped the shoes up and down. I'm guessing that it was great fun! I'm just glad that Madi had fun and she and I even made some new friends. It will be interesting to see if Madi wants to take tumbling again when there is another class in September. It was just fun to see Madi making new friends and having fun.

Madilynn quotes

The other day Madi was sitting at the counter eating a sandwich and I was standing on the other side gobbling up my food and root beer as quick as I could before Kimber woke up. I accidentally let a little root beer burp slip. Madi giggled and I made a frowny face then she says, "It's ok. I burp sometimes too." She didn't want me to feel bad for making a mistake. She is such a sweetie!
~~~~~~~~
One day after Madi's tumbling class we went to Subway and picked up some sandwiches. Before Brett gave Madi her "Roast Beast" sandwich he took a bite to what Madi said, "YOU'RE WELCOME!" With so much attitude I can't do it justice in writing. Sometimes they say stuff that just knocks you right off your feet and that did. She is so funny!

Ouch x's 2

Our regular daily schedule is to have lunch around noon and then off to bed for a nap right around 1:PM. Today that is what we did. I put Madi down for bed but Kimber wasn't quite ready to go for a nap yet so she was playing in the living room. While Kimber was playing I thought I would take the full recycle bin out and empty it in the garage. When I got back to the kitchen door Kimber was standing right in the way so I couldn't get in and she was close to the top of the stairs. I picked her up by her left arm and right away she started crying. At first I thought she was just mad that I moved her out of the way but when my attempts to get her to calm down weren't working I knew that there was a little more to it. I went and woke Brett up to tell him that Kimber's arm was hurt and I thought I should take her to the doctor. I wanted to brush my teeth before I left so I had Brett hold Kimber while I went into the bathroom. Just after I put the tooth brush in my mouth I heard Madi scream and cry out really loud so I ran into her room. She was laying on the bed and I noticed that her pillow was missing it's pillow case. I asked her what was wrong and she said, "I hit my head!" When I looked closer I saw that she had a huge bump on her forehead that had a red line down the middle. It looked like it was about to split open. The pillow case that was missing was on the floor, I found out later what that had to do with Madi's accident. I picked Madi up and ran her to Brett then ran back to the bathroom to wash my mouth out. Brett was getting up and putting some clothes on so that he could help me. He at first just wanted to keep Madi home and put ice on her head which is all they ended up doing in the ER. The bump on her head had me so worried I told Brett that I just felt better about taking her in to have it looked at. Haven't I said before that I have learned my lesson about taking kids to the ER when it's not completely necessary. I guess I'll never learn but I'd rather be safe than sorry. Head bonks scare me since they can be serious without you even knowing it.
So back to Kimber, we all l0aded in the car which ended up being very painful for poor Kimber. I felt so bad that I had caused her to be in pain and I didn't know what to do to help her. When we arrived at the ER Madi wanted me to hold her while we were being checked in at the desk. She went about charming the ladies behind the counter she was completely herself so I wasn't too worried about how she was just the sight of the huge bump on her head made me nervous. They got us in the room pretty quickly. The nurse took the girls vitals and then left us with the remote so we could watch TV. Brett was sitting in a chair holding Kimber and I was sitting on the bed with Madi leaning on me so she could watch TV. Kimber just laid in Brett's arms very still. She usually sucks her left thumb but since it was hurt she had her fingers on her right hand in her mouth. She wasn't talking or smiling she just stared straight ahead. I got her to look at me and I almost had her laugh but she just really wasn't in the mood. When Dr. Holcomb came in the room she looked Madi over and asked us a few questions like has she thrown up or did she loose consciousness. She asked Madi what happened and Madi said, "Well, I had the sheet (pillow case) on my head and I couldn't see and I bonked my head on the bed." So that's why the pillow didn't have the case and the case was on the floor. Then Dr. Holcomb went over to Kimber and immediately knew what was wrong. She tried to put me a ease by saying it happens all the time and very easily. She said that it's called Nursemaid's Elbow or Radial Head Dislocation. She then put her thumb in the bend of Kimber's arm and closed Kimber's arm up towards her shoulder. I thought that she was still accessing the injury but she was putting Kimber's arm back into place. Kimber screamed and cried for a minute then the Dr wanted Kimber to use the arm. I kept digging into my purse for things that I knew Kimber would go for. First I handed her my phone which Kimber took with her right hand. Then I handed her my keys. The Dr had to step out of the room for a minute so while she was gone Brett and I kept working with Kimber to get her to use her arm and she finally did. It was so amazing! Instantly Kimber was back to her old cheerful self it was like night and day. She started waving her hands and laughing it was so cool. The nurse that had helped us before came in and told me that the dislocation like that happens a lot. I mentioned to her about how Kimber was now just acting like normal and she agreed that before Kimber was way subdued.
When the doctor came back in the room she told us to just keep an eye on Madi and that if she throws up once that's ok but if she does it twice to bring her back immediately. She said with Kimber that we should just follow up as needed but she should be completely fine. Madi's tumbling class was in a couple of hours so I asked the doctor if we should just skip it and she said that Madi should be fine. So Madi went to tumbling class with a huge bump on her head but she was just fine.
After we left the ER we took Brett home so that he could go back to sleep since he had to wake up and go to work in a couple of hours. I'm just so glad that he went with me. I would have been a complete wreck if he hadn't been there to help me.
I always try not to lift Kimber by just her arm but after this happened I noticed how many times I end up holding her by one arm. If we are walking together and she falls I end up holding her by one arm. I am so paranoid about pulling her arm out of socket again. I'm just glad that her arm was fixed so easily. The doctor said that it doesn't even show up on an X-ray.
Having to take one child to the ER is scary enough but having both of my kids get hurt within minutes of each other was something else all together. I just feel so blessed that Kimber's arm or Madi's head bump weren't more serious. I was sitting there in the ER thinking that we were going to take Kimber home with a cast on her arm or that I had broken the growth plate in her arm like had happened to a friend of mine when she was young. I was also sitting there thinking, "What is going to be the third thing that happens?" It seems like bad things always happen in threes. I guess the third thing would be my glasses falling apart that night and I had to drive home in my sunglasses when it was getting dark. Whew!! I really don't want something else to happen to us.
When I took this photo the swelling on Madi's bonk had gone down a lot. I think that it even looks worse now (a few days later). Poor little one.

My Favorite Recipes

I've been thinking for awhile that I should make a blog of all of my favorite recipes. Mostly so I can have them all in the same place and get them ready to be in a book. Well, today I finally did it. I thought that it would be fun to share my favorites and if anyone else would like to share a recipe it could kind of become a recipe trading blog or something. I am definitely not the best cook but when I find a yummy recipe that we all like I hold onto it. So I figure if I find something that works maybe someone else would like it too or not. Anyway, if you wanna check it out let me know if you like what you see and if you make one let me know how it turned out. The blog address is http://nummyyummyfood.blogspot.com/

She's a walker!

Kimber has been tempting to walk for probably a little over a month or maybe even more. Well, let me get a little more technical about it. She has been holding onto furniture for a really long time. She started walking behind her little walker stroller just after her birthday (March 24th). She started taking steps on her own around Brett's birthday (June 24th) and she finally started walking all by herself June 29th right after her doctors appointment which is funny. At the doctors appointment he was a little concerned that she wasn't walking yet. Well, I guess she heard that and jumped right into action. Here are some pictures of her progress. She sure loves to walk.

The Snakey Woods

A couple of weeks ago we (Brett, Madi, Kimber and I) were all sitting on the front porch when we heard something moving in the bushes next to us. Brett looked a little closer and saw a snake! Ahhh!! The girls are always playing right by there! Brett took the snake out so we wouldn't worry about it. A few days ago Madi and I were outside and I heard her call the bushes the Snakey Woods. If you have ever seen this show you probably know what she is talking about.

She is so smart it totally is the Snakey Woods!

McGaha visit

My little sister Beth and her family stopped to see us this last week. The McGaha's RJ, Beth, Kyle (8) and Bryen (4) oh and the puppy Jax (7 months). They just sold there house in Missouri and are on there way to Montana then Utah then California which is where they will live. My brother in law RJ is in the Navy so they have moved around just a little bit the last few years. I think they lived in Missouri for two or three years but before that they lived in Iceland. My nephew Bryen was even born there. What a cool story that will be when he gets older. Then before Iceland they were in California so now they get to go back.

It was so fun to see them the last time I saw them was at my niece Tiffany's wedding which was June of 2007 so it's been a little while. They had their dog Jax with them who is a very well behaved yellow lab. The first night they were here Beth and I took Jax for a walk after we got the kids in bed of course. It was so nice to go on a walk just Beth and I, we left RJ home with the kids. I can't remember the last time that Beth and I just hung out like that. I'm sure most of the time when we were little I was usually torturing her I'm sure she's forgiven me for that... Right! She always talks about the time when I got the canning handle's (I'm not sure what they are really called) out and I rolled them up her nose. Ewww!! I was such a meanie! It was nice to just walk and talk with Beth. I don't know that we really even talked about anything important just being silly.

After dinner the first night we went to get ice cream at the Blue Bunny Ice Cream Parlor. It's really fun and set up like and old time ice cream parlor. Madi and Bryen shared the Super Hero sundae, Kyle got a hot fudge sundae. The Super Hero sundae had pop rocks on top and they even gave the kids what was left in the package. They had a lot of fun with that. We even let Kimber try some pop rocks. She didn't really give us any reaction like we thought she would but I think she liked them. If you can't tell in these photo's the Super Hero ice cream is bright blue.

(Please excuse the quality of these camera phone photo's)

The next day we took the kids and Jax to the Ice Cream park that is just down the street from us. The boys thought it was very cool. They played for a while and then it was time for lunch. After lunch Brett was up from bed, he had to work while they were here so we had a few hours with him in the afternoon and then it was time for him to work again. Of course we had to pull out Guitar Hero and let Beth try it out. I think RJ had played it before but didn't know if he liked it. I think he got pretty good at it while we were playing. Kyle played the drums and he did really good. The drums are probably the hardest part so we were all impressed. Beth sang and Bryen helped. It was great fun. I think we must have played too hard because poor RJ got a migraine and had to go to bed. We all just hung out and watched Bolt with the kids then Brett had to go to work.

That night after we had eaten dinner we went outside to play. The fireflies come out around 9:00PM so we were having fun watching them and catching them. Kyle at first was just catching them in his had then I got him a jar and I think he ended up having twenty something in there.

Beth just kept telling me that Le Mars is like Leave it to Beaver or Pleasantville. It really is a nice little town. It's really quiet and people are really nice here. Beth even said that if they could pick anywhere to live they would probably live here. What a sweetie!

The McGaha's were all packed up (in their two vehicles) and ready to go by 7:00AM the next morning. They wanted to get to RJ's parent's house in Montana that night so they could spend July 4th with them. It was a lot of fun to have them come stay with us. I'm so glad to get time to spend with my nephews to get to know them better since we've lived so far apart for so long.

Kimber @ 15 months old

Height: 29 1/4 inches
Weight: 19 lbs 4 oz.

At Kimber's doctors appointment today she had to get one shot in the leg and get her foot poked again to check her hemoglobin. I haven't heard the results yet from the hemoglobin poke so hopefully she isn't iron deficient anymore. Kimber's regular doctor was a little backed up with patients so they asked me if I would mind seeing the other Dr. Meis (Kimber's doctor's husband). Brett and I have been to see him before so I said yes that would be fine. His nurses just loved Kimber. It took three of them to poke her little heel and give her a shot. They were really just having fun talking to Kimber.
For the nurse to take the little bit of blood that she needs she just keeps milking Kimber's poor little foot. You would have thought that Kimber would have jerked her foot away but she didn't. She sat there very still but made sure that we all knew how unhappy she was about having her foot tortured.
I just held Kimber in my lap for the one shot she had to get. She wasn't at all happy to have that needle get her. It's so sad how she doesn't understand why these ladies are doing this to her. She only cries for a few minutes and then it's all over with.
When we got home Brett gave Kimber some good cuddle time to help her recover after her ordeal. She had a cotton ball with a band aid on her heel where she got poked. Brett put her down for a nap and I didn't even think about the band aid until I went to get her when she woke up. She didn't have the band aid on anymore and I couldn't find it anywhere. I was so worried that she had taken it off and eaten it so I called Brett to see if he had taken it off. He hadn't and assured me that it would turn up. I checked her next couple of diapers to see if she maybe did eat it. The next day Madi says, "Mom! What's this?" And she was holding up the band aid and cotton ball. It was stuck on the fringe of a blanket. Whew!! I really didn't want it stuck in her tummy somewhere.

YMCA Pool

The other day as we were driving home from the store we passed the pool at the YMCA, you can see it from the road. They have a big long curly slide and a splash pad for little kids. Madi watched as we drove by and said, "Look at all the fun they are having without me!" She was almost mad that all of the people were in there having so much fun and she was missing out. Now every time we drive past and people are in there swimming she says the same thing or that she wants to go there. I'm going to put her in swimming lessons soon so hopefully they go well so she can go and have fun in the big pool too.

Dermatologist and Shopping

Yesterday Madilynn, Kimber and I drove to Sioux Falls, South Dakota to see the Dermatologist. It took us about an hour and forty minutes to get there. The drive was pretty easy the girls slept almost the entire way there and back.
We needed to go see the dermatologist to ask him about the rash that Madi has had on her feet since September. We've tried a few things to get it to go away but nothing has really worked. I needed to see the dermatologist about a questionable mole that I have. It ended up that Madi has Atopic Dermatitis so he prescribed some ointment to put on her rash and gave us some special lotions. He told me that her skin will accept lotions better when her skin is damp. So all this time that we were drying her off after her bath and then lathering on the lotions wasn't really helping at all we were just drying her skin out. He also told me not to use the Johnson's and Johnson's baby wash on her anymore because it was too drying for her skin. Instead he wants me to use Dove on her. So for the mole that I wondered about it for sure needs to come off. It's pretty tiny and on the inside of my left arm but it's really dark and kind of shiny. When I told Brett that it needs to be removed he got very concerned and asked if we need to be worried. The doctor didn't say anything that made me too worried just that it needs to come off. We get to go back again and have a checkup and have my mole removed. So much fun.. When the doctor had given me the samples he told me that one of them was made at the Mayo Clinic and I said, "Oh! I have a friend that is a doctor there!" He asked me who it was and I told him Jerry Brewer. He said, "Oh yes, I know his name." Awesome! It was just cool to me that my childhood friend is known in the dermatology world.
After the appointment I wanted to go to the mall and look at some stuff. We went to a few stores and looked at a bunch of stuff but I spent the most time in the Baby Gap. I found some really cute dresses for Madi and Kimber. After we purchased our things we left the store and walked down to another store. As we were walking in Madi reaches into the stroller and pulls out this little doll! It was a little doll that I remember seeing in the Baby Gap!! Ahhhh!! She had picked it up and put it in the stroller without me knowing.. We turned around immediately and walked back to the Baby Gap. Before we went into the store I stopped and explained to Madi that we don't take things from the store without paying for them. I told her that taking the doll without paying for it was stealing and that Heavenly Father doesn't want us to do that. She took the doll into the store to the lady that had helped us and gave it to her and said sorry. The lady was really sweet she gave Madi a hug and thanked her for bringing it back. I'm glad that I could talk to Madi about the right thing to do. I want her to know right from wrong and to grow up to be an honest person. I hope that she remembers the things that I told her and we don't have to do this again. I felt bad that Madi wanted the doll and we didn't buy it but after she took it from the store without me knowing I couldn't turn around and buy it for her, I didn't think that would send the right message.
So we finished with our shopping and then headed home. The girls slept all the way home which was nice because otherwise they would probably be yelling at me so the drive home in quiet was really nice.
When we arrived back in Le Mars we went to pick up our prescriptions and few other things we needed from the store. Then we went home and played outside with Madi's new bouncy ball it was a lot of fun. The girls just love to be outside. Then it was time for dinner, bath then bed. We used all of Madi's new things on her rash and she went to bed without a peep at least until Brett came home for lunch at 11:00PM but that's another story.

Happy Birthday Brett!

Today is Brett's birthday and even though he thinks that he should just be 29 forever he is 33 years old today. Since Brett had to work on Father's Day and on his Birthday we have been celebrating the last couple of weeks. We went out to dinner at Texas Roadhouse for Brett's early birthday and we went to dinner at Olive Garden for his early Father's Day celebration.
Brett wanted to get Guitar Hero for his birthday so back in April we bought that for him so really he has been celebrating since then. He has been working so hard that he totally deserves to be spoiled.
Happy Birthday babe! I hope that it doesn't hurt too much to be an old man now. Just kidding! Like I can talk, I've been 33 since January. I guess it's about time you caught up. Love you Infinity!

Happy Father's Day

We are so lucky to have so many wonderful Dad's in our family. I am thankful for all of them and the things that they have done for me and taught me. Happy Father's Day Dad, Bud and Brett!

Brett is such a great Dad. I love to watch him with our girls. He just has so much love for them and there isn't anything he wouldn't do for them. I feel so blessed to have him in my life. I probably have said this before but it's true, I don't know how I got so lucky.

Brett bought a little used car a few weeks ago that he has been working on and making his own. I thought it would be fun for Madi to get to go for rides in Brett's car with him so we bought her a booster seat for use in his car. She loves to go tag along when Brett goes to the hardware store or on quick errands. They have such a fun little bond. Since Brett has such a weird schedule he is up all night the night before he goes back to work. I don't think there is one time that Madi hasn't gotten up and watched movies with him at 3:00AM. She loves to be with her Daddy she says that he is, "Fully Awesome!" A line from their favorite movie Bolt.

Kimber absolutely loves her Daddy. She lights up whenever she sees him. She recently started giving kisses. She will give Brett a kiss and he claps and cheers and so she'll give him another kiss and it repeats over and over. It's so funny to watch, they both get a kick out of it.

I am so thankful for Brett for all that he does for us and the love that he shows us. Brett has been an amazing father from the very first moment we had Madilynn. I knew that he was going to be a great Dad from watching him teach our Sunbeam class and seeing him with my nieces and nephews. He has a great sense of humor and is a very caring loving person. I know and I hope my girls know too that Brett will always be there to back us up when we need him. Thank you Brett for being such a wonderful husband and father. We love you Infinity!

Catching up

In an effort to catch up on posts that I didn't write as they happened I'm just now getting caught up. I posted them with the date that they actually happened. If you want to look back at some of what we've done check these out.
Daddy Daughter Date
Move from Arizona to Iowa (continuation)

"Hello Officer!"

Today we went to the DMV to get new plates for the used car we bought for Brett. As we were walking towards the building there was a police officer walking a little ways in front of us. Madi says loud enough for him to hear, "Hello Officer!" It was so adorable! He had a huge grin on his face and said hello back. He then helped us with the door and told us where to go to find the DMV.
Madi and the lady behind the counter at the DMV had a conversation about Madi's bracelet and what Madi's name was. The lady behind the counter asked Madi what her name was to which she replied, "Madilynn." Then the lady said, "Oh cause I was going to say you looked like a George." Madi just got the funniest look on her face like, "No you weirdo!" As we were walking away the lady said to have a good day and she said, "Goodbye George!" Madi just said, "I'm not George!" It was funny.
Then back outside we were just about to get into the car and the police officer stopped in his car and said, "Goodbye Girlfriend!" Our Madi she sure is a little charmer and has no fear. I thought it was so cute that she knew he was a policeman and that she was so formal and called him an officer. I guess it helps that she has an Uncle that is an officer.

Some dialogue with little Miss Moo

The other day we went for a walk as a family. Just as we were crossing the street we heard sirens coming our way. Madi yells out, "INCOMING!!" We all just busted out laughing after that. Brett just says, "Where does she come up with this stuff?" It was just too perfect she timed it perfect and everything.

Same day earlier in the day Brett asks Madi what she wants to be when she grows up. Madi says, "I want to be um... a barbie!"

Madi is very thoughtful. She is always telling me that she loves me so much and that I'm the best Mom. She usually says, "Mom you're the best Mom in the whole single DAY!" I think that's just cute but this time she says, "Mom you're the best Mom in the whole house!" Awesome!

Same day again we were almost home from our walk and Brett and I were talking about something (I don't remember what) and Madi is repeating word for word what Brett is saying and thinking she is very funny. Then I tell Brett he should say "I'm a goofball." So he does and Madi says, "You're silly Daddy!" She didn't even miss a beat. She's very clever.

The, "Ewe that's stinky!" face

I was looking at some photo's of Madi when she was a baby and came across this one. We could get her to do this face on demand. She's always been a little character. She was seven months old here.

Simply Sassy

A friend of mine just started a jewelry business. She makes super cute things! You should go check out her stuff it's so cute! http://simplysassynthings.blogspot.com/

Sometimes they can be so sweet

Madi really is such a sweetie. There are times that I don't know why but she just acts so naughty and I want to pull my hair out. Then there are times that she is just so sweet and says and does the sweetest things. The other day I think we were all loading in the car after eating dinner at Carlos O'Kelly's and Madi says to me, "Mom! You're in my heart! And Daddy and Kimber are in my heart too!" Then she gave me a big tight squeeze and a kiss. These are the moments I forget all about the naughtiness during the day. Love my little munchkin!

Night Terrors

I hadn't heard of night terrors until our old neighbor Kelly Wallin (who is going to medical school) mentioned to me that he thought what I was describing about Madi sounded like what happened with their daughter Brinna. It's scary in the middle of the night to hear your child scream out as if they are in so much pain. The times I've been awake and heard Madi going into hysterics in her room I've gone in to try to comfort her or to find out what's wrong. She doesn't respond or if she does she can't tell you what's wrong. It's very nerve racking trying to figure out if she is bleeding somewhere or what to do for her. Brett told me that he had this when he was little and it freaked his parents out. I would have to agree 100% with that. We haven't talked to the doctor about it because I didn't think it was something that could be helped or was even that big of a deal. I mean people have nightmares and she doesn't do it all the time.
Last night just after Brett came home for lunch (at 10:30PM) Madi started screaming. She just kept saying ouchie but wouldn't tell me where. We ended up putting some of her medicated skin lotion on her and giving her a benadryl. We thought maybe her skin was itchy. You kind of just pull out all the stops and try to assess the problem. She then let me rock her for about an hour.
I just looked night terrors up on WebMd and this is how they describe it. I just think it's good information to have and I am going to bring it up at Madi's next doctor visit.

Night Terrors:
The sleep disorder of night terrors typically occurs in children aged 3-12 years, with a peak onset in children aged 3½ years.
Sleep is divided into 2 categories: rapid eye movement (REM) and nonrapid eye movement (non-REM). Non-REM sleep is further divided into 4 stages, progressing from stages 1-4. Night terrors occur during the transition from stage 3 non-REM sleep to stage 4 non-REM sleep, beginning approximately 90 minutes after the child falls asleep.
Night terrors are distinctly different from the much more common nightmares, which occur during REM sleep. Night terrors are characterized by frequent recurrent episodes of intense crying and fear during sleep, with difficulty arousing the child. Night terrors are frightening episodes that disrupt family life.
An estimated 1-6% of children experience night terrors. Boys and girls are equally affected. Children of all races also seem to be affected equally. The disorder usually resolves during adolescence.
Night Terrors Causes
Night terrors may be caused by the following:
Stressful life events
Fever
Sleep deprivation
Medications that affect the central nervous system (the brain)
Night Terrors Symptoms
In addition to frequent recurrent episodes of intense crying and fear during sleep, with difficulty arousing the child, children with night terrors may also experience the following:
Tachycardia (increased heart rate)
Tachypnea (increased breathing rate)
Sweating during episodes
Unlike nightmares, most children do not recall a dream after a night terror episode, and they usually do not remember the episode the next morning.
The typical night terror episode usually begins approximately 90 minutes after falling asleep. The child sits up in bed and screams, appearing awake but is confused, disoriented, and unresponsive to stimuli. Although the child seems to be awake, the child does not seem to be aware of the parents’ presence and usually does not talk. The child may thrash around in bed and does not respond to comforting by the parents.
Most episodes last 1-2 minutes, but they may last up to 30 minutes before the child relaxes and returns to normal sleep.
If the child does awake during a night terror, only small pieces of the episode may be recalled. Usually, the child does not remember the episode upon waking in the morning.
When to Seek Medical Care
Sleep disruption is parents’ most frequent concern during the first years of a child’s life. Half of all children develop a disrupted sleep pattern serious enough to warrant physician assistance.
In children younger than 3½ years, peak frequency of night terrors is at least 1 episode per week.
Among older children, peak frequency of night terrors is 1-2 episodes per month.
If your child seems to be experiencing night terrors, an evaluation by the child’s pediatrician may be useful. During this evaluation, the pediatrician may also be able to exclude other possible disorders that might cause night terrors.

Dinner time with Kimber

Dinner time with Kimber usually ends with a lot of screaming. It's not that she doesn't like food it's that the meal ends before she is ready I guess. At the end of the meal when I'm ready to clean her face off she realizes that there isn't any more food and she starts screaming. I always try to clap and say YEAH before she gets mad but it hardly ever works. She usually gets mad. Tonight as I gave her the last bite I debated what I should do to try to keep her from screaming and then all of the sudden she puts her hands up in the air and says, "YEAH!!!" It was so cute! It felt like a huge thing because it's usually a lot of drama after eating and this was just so nice. Hooray for Kimber!

Kimber movie

Kimber started saying "What?" probably around the time we went to Utah for the funeral. We think it's pretty cute. The other day she was looking out the window and she pointed and said, "What's that?" It was so cute! She's just growing up so fast. I love to hear her gibberish talk. I know she just has so many things to say but can't quite get the words out but they're coming.
I hope you enjoy this little movie of Kimber showing off a few of her newest tricks. Just ignore my voice on the video I sound like a goofball. Oh and if you're wondering why I'm telling her no at the end it's because she shakes her head really cute but of course she wouldn't do it on camera.

The littlest critic

My little critic Madi. About a month ago we went to eat at Olive Garden and they sat us in a different part of the restaurant that we had never sat in before. Pretty much all Olive Garden's are the same so you will probably know what I'm talking about. In this part of the restaurant that we were sitting there is an entire wall of rock. After we had been sitting for a few minutes Madi looks over at the wall and says, "Why do they have rock in here? It makes me upset." She is too funny! I guess maybe that rock just wasn't up to her standards. She even mentioned to our waitress that she didn't like it. That's my girl! She keeps us laughing.

Cute little models

A couple of months ago I made this cute dress and skirt that the girls absolutely love. I've been meaning to take photo's of them but just didn't ever get it done. Today when Payton was over I decided that it was time. The dress just looks so darn cute on her. Madi is wearing the skirt and I just love how it turned out too.

In honor of Mother's Day...

In honor of Mother's Day I wanted to post of few of my favorite memories of my Mom.

My Mom has always been a really light sleeper. When I was young if I needed her in the middle of the night and I went into her room all I had to do was whisper "Mom" and she would be awake asking me what was wrong.

For some reason my brother John started having my Mom try to jump. It kind of became this thing that we had our Mom do when we had friends over and we all laughed really hard. What mean kids we were poor Mom. She was such a good sport. She would go stand in the middle of the room and just start laughing so hard and then muster all of the might that she could and jump. She couldn't really jump it was more like a spasm. We all got a real good laugh out of it. Sorry for putting you through that Mom. It was pretty funny though.

If my Mom ever had to bring something to school that I had forgotten she would write me a cute little note to go along with it. I still have a note that she wrote to me and left with my lunch money in the school office.

I remember one time this horrible teacher made fun of my last name (Fairey) and my Mom totally went to bat for me. She marched right down to the school and talked to the principal and got me out of that class. I wasn't in her class at the time she made her rude comment but the next semester I was going to be. Ok I better explain. I was paying for my yearbook and she (this teacher) asked what my name was. I told her that my name is Heather Fairey and she says, "FAIREY! FAIREY! The next time you choose your parent's you better find out what the name is first." She didn't know me and I thought that was totally rude. Anyway, my Mom thought the same thing so she took care of it. My Mom rocks!

Anytime I went driving with my Mom she would nearly give me a heart attack. If someone got too close to us or she thought that we were in any danger she would gasp very loudly causing my heart to jump almost out of my chest. I remember one time my brother John was crossing the school parking lot and my Mom saw a bus pulling in and she thought that it was going to run him over (it was totally far away from him it just looked close from her perspective) and she screamed in this blood curdling scream, "JJJOOONNNHHH!!!!!!" She always has been a little on the jumpy side.

When I was really little (probably four years old) my Mom and I were visiting her parents at their house in Vernal. My Mom put me to sleep in my own little bed and went about getting herself ready for bed. When she came later that night to check on me I was nowhere to be found. She woke up my Grandpa and Grandma and they were all searching for me all over the place. My Grandpa went searching outside in the dark trying to find me. I'm not sure how long they had been searching when my Mom finally heard me make a noise. I had rolled off of the bed between the wall and the bed and then rolled underneath the bed. There were suitcases and things under the bed so I couldn't be seen from the front. My poor Mom and Grandparent's were searching thinking that I had been lost somewhere. Sheesh the heck we put our parent's through.

My Mom always remembers such funny things. She always used to tell me about this time we were at Great America in Santa Clara and I wanted to ride the Tidal wave (this really fun roller coaster) but my brother Boyd didn't want to ride it but I couldn't ride by myself. The people behind us in line said that I could ride with them so I did. I must have had a blast because when I got off my Mom asked me how it was and I said, "My head went baloooop blooop bloop" When she would tell me the story she would shake her head all over just as I had done when I was telling her after the ride.

Mom we sure have put you through the ringer and you've always been there for us. I'm so lucky to have you for my Mom. Thanks for always loving me and listening and being there when I needed you. I love you Mom! Happy Mother's Day!

Grocery store nightmare!

It's 4:30PM and I decided since Brett was up and Madi was still taking a nap I would take Kimber and go do some grocery shopping. I still had a few things to get together before I was ready to walk out the door so as I was doing these things I heard Madi open her door. I quietly said, "Oh there's Madi." and then Brett says loudly, "Hey Madi!" Then we hear the door shut and then open again and then shut again. I knew that wasn't a good sign. I walked over to see what was going on. She had her normal three hour nap so she should have been in a good mood when she woke up but for some reason that wasn't the case. When I opened her door she was standing right next to it and almost in front of it. She was leaning into the wall with her head down. I asked her what was wrong and she just mumbled something I couldn't make out. I picked her up and asked her again and she just mumbled something again. I decided that we just needed to have some Mommy Madi time so I slipped into Kimber's room to sit with Madi in the rocking chair. We sat and rocked for a few minutes and then Kimber found us. Kimber gave Madi a pat on the back trying to make her feel better. She is so kind that way. Such a sweet heart! Madi was still kind of in a crumby mood so she tried to push Kimber's hand off. I finally got Madi to laugh by tickling her. I told her that I needed to go to the store and she could come if she wanted or she could stay at home with her Dad. She decided that she would stay at home with her Dad. Then as I was getting Kimber's shoes on Madi changed her mind and decided that she wanted to go too. I thought that since she had started to act so nice that a trip to the store would be fun.. Oh boy was I in for it.
By the time we finally were loaded in the car and driving to the store it was 5:30ish so I had an hour to shop and get home and unload the car before Brett needed to leave for work. I thought it might be a little tight to get everything done but it might be possible.
When we arrived at the grocery store I started in the produce section. I usually let Madi walk in the store and if she misbehaves I put her in the cart. So she started out walking and at first things were fine but they slowly started to change. At first she decided that she didn't want to wear the sweatshirt that I had asked her to leave in the car so I had to find somewhere to put it. I put it in the basket seat with Kimber and then she tossed it on the floor so I hid it under my cart cover. Madi is such a chatter box she just talks to anybody. This Grandpa stopped and said hello to the girls as he was passing by so Madi decided that was her cue to go over and talk their ears off. How do you get a chatty kid to understand that they can't talk to strangers? So back to my shopping, I'm trying to find all of the fruits and vegetables on my list all the while letting Madi have some freedom but reminding her to stay by me. As I am picking up my bag of grapefruit I notice that Madi is chewing on something. Umm.. What a you chewing? I remember a time we were at the store and Madi took a bite of a tomato and then spit it out. Ahhh!!! She had taken a bite of an apple and then set the apple down. I had her show me where the apple was so that I could buy it like I did that tomato she had taken a bite out of. So I promptly put her in the cart so that she could be contained. My little wild child. So by this point I'm a bit frazzled and I notice that I'm quickly running out of time. Then Madi thinks it's appropriate to let out this loud squeal and Kimber mimics it. As I'm sitting here writing this I'm thinking this doesn't really sound all that bad but it felt like a nightmare as I was living it. Anyway, I grabbed a few more items and decided it was time to leave. The checker girl commented on how cute Kimber and Madi were and I told her that I needed some hand cuff's for Madi. She laughed and asked how old Madi was. I told her that she is three and that it's the new two.
We made our way home and Brett was there to help us unload the car. We got there just in time for him to give us all a hug and then leave for work. If I can help it I won't be taking both girls to the store again anytime soon.