December Busy-ness

 We kicked off the holiday season by taking the kids to City Creek with my parents. Eve loved the water fountain show.

 Lights at Temple Square. So beautiful. The kids loved guessing where all the nativities were from. Kate saw one and guessed (correctly) New Zealand. When I asked how she knew, she pointed to a little kiwi bird and said she saw that on our Children's Map of the World hanging in the loft. Which is funny because that things been hanging there for months and I never noticed the kiwi bird, but Kate really does study it a lot. So I guess I'm glad I bought it at that yard sale over the summer since it's expanding my children's mind powers. :)

 Decorating the tree was lots of fun, even though we did break some ornaments this year. It's just that they looked so much like balls that Max had to throw them.... sigh.

First time Evie got to be the one to put the star on top. She was thrilled. And for the next couple days, any time anybody came to the door, she made them come inside to see our tree. All season long she said that was her favorite part of Christmas.

For some crazy reason, our family was asked to sing a song (When Joseph Went to Bethlehem) for the ward Christmas party this year. In case you didn't know, we are not qualified to do that kind of thing. But we practiced as best we could and it went fine. I loved that singing the words together as a family everywhere we went really helped to bring Christmas into our lives. I would even overhear Eve "reading" to Max saying "Now this is when Joseph urged the donkey forward with Mary on its back." Music is a powerful thing, even for those of us who lack in that arena.

 I had a birthday. Hooray! Trav took me to dinner at Tucano's (the best!) and then ice skating at the Gallivan Center. That was on my bucket list so I was so grateful that he thought of it. We had a great time, and it turns out ice skating is much easier when you're not doing it with your little kids!

 Sure do love this guy!

Eve had a birthday too! Since her favorite thing in the world is swimming, we took the family swimming at the Lehi Legacy Center and she had the best time! She is still asking every day if we can go back!We had to do cupcakes in the car afterward but she didn't mind!

 and Max thought it was a great system!

We also got together with Trav's friends from high school. The children now outnumber the parents and it was a bit chaotic, but so fun to be around these great people that we don't see very often. Wish I had taken a picture that included grown-ups!

 I was fortunate to have a girl's night with my two best friends from high school (Kristi and Stefanie) as well. it was the funnest time ever! I love that there are some people in the world that know all about you and when you are with them you can just completely be yourself-- or maybe even act like the self you were 15 years ago as a sophomore. It was a blast!

 We drove down to Meadow to visit Trav's dad and grandma. The kids love to walk out by the farms and see the animals.

 Max was intrigued by the horses. He sure wished they would get a little closer so he could pet them, but they kept a distance.

Fun, fun season! We also had a bunch of snow and built a snow slide in the front yard which was super fun to go down. But Max kind of hates being cold so I haven't been out as much as normal, I better work on that for next month.

Because You Never Know

I am dying inside over what happened in Connecticut on Friday. Because those twenty precious first graders, they all belonged to someone like me. They all had families that love them, Christmas presents hiding in closets, probably some even had sisters who need them for games of school, restaurant, house, etc. I cannot imagine the pain that those families are facing right now. My prayers are with them.
A couple weeks ago we had a hard morning. It's always tough to get the kids motivated to get dressed, brush their teeth, get their shoes on and everything else required for getting ready for school, but this morning was particularly awful. And particularly Kate. She's just never in a hurry about anything. I found myself yelling at her to get it together, and then yelling again two minutes later because she was still dawdling. Finally, all the kids were in the car, but I was yelling again because they had neglected to wear coats. (Honestly, if the weather would just make up its mind!) Anna ran in to grab the coats, and Kate stayed in the backseat, tears pooling in her sapphire eyes.
I knew I'd gone too far. I apologized to my girls, but I could tell Kate was still feeling bad. When I dropped her off at school, she jumped out of the car without giving me a goodbye kiss. I was stung. And as I watched  her walk into the building, my own tears started to flow. Because how could I do this to my sweet little girl? How could I start her day off in such an angry, caustic way? School can be a nightmare sometimes, but home should not be. When she leaves my presence, she should leave knowing that she is loved, knowing that she can come to me with problems, knowing that she is valued and safe in our family. And I had taken that away.
The good news for me is that Kate forgave me (become as a little child....). And I have redoubled my efforts to be patient, kind, and .... well, mostly patient. Because you never know. You never know what they may face at school that day, and it may be something more horrific than you could imagine. Let her leave my side protected with the armor of a mother's love.