Happy Birthday to Makenna!!

Makenna turned seven yesterday!  I can't believe that it was seven years ago that I became a mom.  She had the roundest little face and I fell in love with her right from the beginning.  Makenna was the best baby ever, she was a great sleeper and always took long naps and was a happy baby.  She was an easy baby and has always been a great kid.  She is a great helper around the house and a great sister... (most of the time.)  :)
Makenna takes dance and right now she is taking hip hop, jazz and ballet.  She loves to read and do crafts. She is an excellent student and I don't ever have to worry about her being in trouble at school.  She always listens and is a great example to the other kids.  Her teachers always tell us how great she is and that they wish all their students were as good as her.  She is a kind person and always wants to be everyone's friend and make sure that everyone is included.  We love her very much and are so proud of her.  She is a wonderful daughter!!  Happy Birthday to sweet Makenna!!
It was a weekend of festivities...  I officially don't care if I see another piece of birthday cake, cupcake or slice of pizza for a long time.  On Saturday Makenna has her birthday party for her friends.  This is the first friends party that I have done, I know I am terrible...  anyway, about a week before the party Makenna was stressing about if anyone would come to her party.  She even got up out of bed and asked Adam what would happen if no one came.  She must get that worrying gene from her mom.  :)  Anyway, we had eight girls here plus Makenna, that was a lot of girls.  We had lunch, decorated cupcakes, did a pinata, painted fingernails and opened presents.  Makenna got plenty of craft projects and jewelry making stuff so you know what we will be working on for the next several weeks.

Friends party

On Sunday we had the family party and she got a brand new quilt from Grandma and Grandpa Osborn.  I don't know what it is about my kids, but they love their blankets that my mom made when they were babies and drag them around everywhere.  We figured it was time to get Makenna a new one and it turned  out really cute.  I am so grateful for my mom and all the time that she put into the blanket.  Makenna didn't seem too excited about what Adam and I got her.  We got her some new earrings, a new outfit, some makeup and a set of Lego friends.  Makenna really loved her present from Grandma and Grandpa Pace.  They gave her a box of kleenex that had money in it and a note that said "don't blow it all in one place..."  She has already decided that she wants to go to Build a Bear and make another bear.  So, I guess I know what I'll be doing soon! 

 

Snuggling with a new blanket!

Money!!

Pinata!!

No more excuses...

That is my new motto...  I have really been struggling lately with working out.  After I had Ella I worked out six days a week for about a year. I even did P90X!! Then the kids started having school in the morning and I would make an excuse here and there not to work out.  Sadly, there has been weeks where I only work out once or twice, but I have decided that I need to make time for myself.  I feel so much better after I work out.  I hate it while I am doing it, but I know that it helps me release stress.  I love to workout to the FIRM and have a ton of their DVDs.  Today I did this DVD called Calorie Explosion.  It has a dread factor for me.  I hate it while I am doing it, but love the way I feel when I am done.  It has actually gotten easier the last few times that I have done it.  Anyway, at the end of the workout during the cool down, the sweat was running into my eyes and burning and I thought to myself... "now that was a good workout!" 
I have also come to the realization that I eat horrible food around the house when the kids are stressing me out or when I am bored.  So, I am really going to try to not reach for the chips or candy.  I bought a bunch of fruit and vegetables at the store so I am hoping that I will reach for those.  I know that I am not overweight, but there is definitely some toning that needs to be done and since I workout almost every day with weights, the food is the thing that needs to change. :)  Anyway, I know that this post doesn't have anything to do with the kids or Adam, but I am hoping this will motivate me to be better so that I can be a better mom. 
I think that sometimes as moms we put our needs last above everyone else.  We make sure the house is clean, we make sure the laundry is done, that dinner is made, that the kids are happy, and the list goes on and on.  I am trying to take a little time out for me each day and this is one thing that helps me.  Anyway, that's my thought for the day!! 

Thought of the day...

The last couple of days have been rough. I go through phases where I don't know how I am going to get through the day. Adam works a lot, which I am extremely grateful for because it allows me to stay home, but the days get long and the kids can be hard, especially Ella. :) She is still super hard and I keep hoping that the terrible twos will end, but I know that they just go right into the threes. Anyway, we had to go to the store this morning to buy a few things and get a birthday present for a party for Cole. Cole decided that he wanted to hold the wrapping paper and continued to use it as a walking stick. Repeatedly, I had to ask him to stop and explain to him that if he did that, the one end would be all ruined. After trying to wrangle the two kids in the store, find a present, tell Cole not to ruin the wrapping paper, and make sure that I got everything I needed so we don't have to go back again I had had enough by the time we got to the check-out. Sure enough, Cole had torn open the wrapping paper with all his "walking." I know, I should have just taken it away, but sometimes you do what you have to do to get through the store without being labeled as "one of those moms..."
Anyway, we get in the car and I turn around and ask Cole when is he going to start to listen since he is almost six years old. His response... "I don't know, maybe tomorrow." Yep, that made my day and made me laugh. Thanks Cole!!

New motivation...

Today in church they talked about how important it is to keep a journal and I said to Adam, it's only been about six months since I updated our blog. Maybe I needed to hear that. I always find excuses not to update it and justify that no one reads it, so I might as well not do it, but it's important for me to update it so that I can remember the things about my kids. My new goal is to do a blog post once a week, so we'll see if I can do that. :)
I have been a little sad lately. My kids are growing up too fast. Makenna turns seven in a week and is almost done with first grade. She is not the same little girl that headed off to school at the beginning of the year. Cole is almost done with preschool and getting ready for Kindergarten and I know that soon he will be moving into that independent little boy phase. I have enjoyed this last year with Cole so much. I was nervous at first about being home with him pretty much all day without Makenna. He is such a sweet boy and always tells me how much he loves me and still loves to give me kisses and snuggle. I don't want to think about the day that he is grossed out by giving his mom a kiss. Ella is almost three and she starts preschool in the fall. I can't believe how fast the past three years have gone and yet it seems like forever ago that I had her. I can barely remember being pregnant with her. She is no longer a baby, but a stubborn little girl that is more independent than I like, she reminds me everyday of patience and how I need to work more on that.
I love my kids so much and I hope that they know that they are the world to me. I am thankful every day that I have been able to be a stay at home mom and that I get to enjoy this time. My parents are always telling me to enjoy this time, and I am really trying even though at times I want to cry because it is hard. I am trying to enjoy more time outside with them and doing things I know that they would love to do.

Halloween!!

Ready and waiting!!

Trick or Treat!

This year for Halloween Ella was a cow, Cole was Optimus Prime and Makenna was Rapunzel. The kids were so excited to go out trick or treating. They were all waiting with buckets in hand at about 5:15. I told them we had to wait until at least 6:00. We actually left at about 6:15 and I took the kids around the neighborhood for about 45 minutes. I definitely wasn't doing a good enough job because then Adam took them out and stayed out until about 8:40 and the haul they brought home was crazy. Adam had those kids running from house to house while he ran with the stroller. He would run up to the door ring the doorbell and put Ella on the front porch and by then the older kids would be up to the door. He ran them until they were exhausted., laying on people's grass trying to rest. I started to get a little worried, but Adam wants them trained well for years to come. In all the haste, Makenna's jacket fell out of the stroller along the way, a minor casualty in the collection of candy. Luckily, I found it this morning laying on the side of someone's yard. The kids were exhausted and I thought that maybe they would sleep in today, but no such luck. Ella was still up at 6:08am. Maybe she will have a good nap today. Here's hoping...

"Please Daddy, no more. Our feet are tired." Out in front of someone's house.

The total haul. Not including the candy they received at the ward trunk or treat. Ridiculous.

My favorite picture of the night!!

Leaves!!

We went up to my parents house last Saturday to help them rake up the enormous amount of leaves they get in their yard every year. The kids love to play in them and even help put the leaves in the bags. They actually ended up helping more than I thought they would. Makenna was a real trooper and helped to the end. We lost Ella after about 45 minutes. I guess Mickey Mouse Clubhouse sounded more fun than working... It took us about 2 hours to rake up the backyard and we got about 10 trash bags full of leaves.

Carving The Pumpkin

As I previously wrote, we decided to let the kids paint their pumpkins this year. Adam had one pumpkin that he carved and let the kids help. This was the first year that they were actually interested in it. Every other year, they lose interest in the pumpkin after about 3 minutes. The older kids loved playing in the pumpkin guts.

Ella digging in the pumpkin.


All three of them, no matter how hard we try they all won't look at the camera at the same time.


The finished product. Love Cole's freaky eyes...