Comparing myself

So who doesn't love chocolate? There is a new exhibit at the Museum of the Rockies all about chocolate and how it's made. It just makes me hungry thinking about it. Kandie has to have some fun while Myra is in school, right? But then I get the other side of how Myra wants to come too. It can be hard. But most days Kandie and I keep secrets of all the fun things we do, because we both know it will upset Myra. I don't know it how it will work out when Velma starts talking...but I still have some time to think through that. We also LOVE to go to Myra's little kindergarten event. She has art gallery's , concerts, and I also get to volunteer and help whenever I want. Our soon to happen adventure will be to go to a one of her classmates farm. We were supposed to go a while back, but it was raining so they cancelled it. Hopefully though we will get to go on Thursday :) I'll come and take lots of pics, with of course Kandie, and Velma. Can't leave those two behind. So fun to watch her progress in school and see her read as well. It just shocks me how much Myra has learned this school year. She went from only writing her name and of course all of our names, to reading in a couple months!!! Pretty amazing stuff. It feels like it hasn't been easy getting her to do these things , but I just have to remember to take a step back and look at how much she has progressed. Velma is a handful sometimes. ok most of the time :) She has a very interesting personality, wants her own way, gets her own way and cries even when she gets her own way. I read somewhere that if you have a tough baby then they are a good toddler...if that is true please become a toddler soon. She wants to grow up fast, doesn't care for crawling much, but she'll do it if she has to. She mainly gets around by walking! Never in my life did I expect a 9 month old to walk. Being a mom with three kids isn't as bad as everyone keeps telling me. Its just a way of life and you get used to it and don't think much of it until people ask how I do it. At Myra's school, a couple of the moms complain about having to take their kids shopping and that they can get shopping done in 20 minutes without them...I don't know if I'm really good at shopping or if I am better at life ;)--haha but I can shop with 3 kids and be out of there in 20 tops. But then I look back and see that you just adapt to what you have, whether it be 1 kid, 3 or even 6 kids, you adapt and become pro at your circumstances. Also everyone is good at different things. I can't sew very well... I still do it but I'm not a pro. I've seen mothers of 5 make beautiful quilts, dresses and stuffed animals. And it makes me think holy cow I suck. But then I have to take a step back and see how far I've come and the things I can do.

I guess what I am trying to say is be happy with who you are, what you have, and the things you can do.

So I'm settling in

So we moved again, and as we have moved into a 'swap' area, we have found that both our girls are allergic to something. We have no idea what it is yet, but I don't let the kids go outside without bug spray. Kandie's face obviously swelled up, and Myra got bit on the anckle. I did not get a picture of that, but it was just as swollen as Kandie's face. We have discovered that we have friendly neighbors as well. They invited us to bbq with them the day we moved in, so that was fun! It is great to be next to young, friendly families. Needless to say, we are super excited to be in a cheaper and bigger place as we get ready to start another phase in our lives. With Myra getting ready for kindergarten and Kandie ready for preschool, we are pretty stoked around this house.

Confidence and Excitement

Here is a little picture update since I know I am a slacker. I don't know what it is. I used to be so excited about keeping a blog and having it updated for everyone, but I just am not as excited as I used to be. I don't know if it's because I know I have things I need to do now or if I was just lazy when I started our blog up, but whatever it was, I hope that the motivation comes back. Lately I have been procrastinating a lot. This last week was Spring Break, and I seriously did nothing. I just felt tired,watched movies, and slept. Now I feel a little guilty for taking the week off from everything. Oh well right? things will come picking back up next week when I am forced to do work. I have also been getting excited as I have been getting letters inviting me to graduate and stuff of that nature. It is fun to hear that you are going to graduate soon. This Spring I will finally graduate--May 4th. Yahoo!!! One more fun story that has boosted my confidence. Today as I was grocery shopping, the cashier asked how old I was. I was a little nervous when I answered and thought that maybe I picked up something with alcohol in it and was ready to have her take it out of my purchases whatever it was. But instead, she just commented on how I look like I am still in High School. She was wondering how my age worked out with a older girl with me (I had Myra shopping with me). I have never been told that I look like I am in high school. NEVER!!! I usually get the comment that I look like someone's professor in college. So that boosted my confidence a little bit. It makes me feel young again. I just wish my body felt and looked the way I did in High School.

Watch out world here I come

What more to say...Since July of 2012 we have: Finished updating our yard Finished up 2 more semesters of school- I took summer classes Myra started preschool and loves it tremendously Started updating the inside of the house Started my LAST semester of school--this semester I received a letter from the President of MSU to congratulate me on my 4.0 GPA.Yes it made me feel smart. It is good to get that sometimes, when the person holding me back from my smartness is ME...:) The ward boundaries were changed so we are in a different ward now--I however received the same calling--ward pianist- It helps force me into learning new pieces and better my understanding and appreciation for music School seems to be a big part of my life right now. I have even considered getting a Masters program...I think I am a little crazy, but the research and projects I have been working on have helped me gain an appreciation for studying what I want to study. The project I am working on this semester would work great for a thesis! I would post some recent pictures but we lost our camera. When I realized that it was gone, I backtracked to a museum, and a restaurant, but neither of them had any good news for me. I feel like we have a bunch of memories erased. Another great achievement I have accomplished is the feeling that I don't have to weigh myself anymore. I have come to the idea that I am dissatisfied and hard on myself when I weigh myself, partly because I compare my weight to other women. After the 3 moves in one year, I got tired of pulling everything out, and I haven't pulled out the scale. I have found that it is nice to not know how much I weigh. I know I have lost weight by comparing past pictures to present pictures, but I do not care how much I have lost. It is nice to just see and feel the difference in weight loss. To become more comfortable with my body size and shape is more appreciable, for me, when I don't have know how much I am 'supposed' to weigh. I also lost interest in comparing myself to other women, especially on campus. As I realize that not every woman on campus has had 3 children. So when people are comparing each others weight and they ask how much I weigh I can honestly say I have no clue. Last time I weighed myself was after I had Kandie and I was about 200 lbs. If that is what I weigh now, then it is my muscle baby!!! Between working on the yard during the summer and now the house, I can say that when I flex I can actually see some of the muscle instead of just flab. It is such a wonderful feeling to not care about my weight, and yet I feel comfortable with it as well. As you can see, life is great. I have become more confident in my abilities, even if I was kicked in the head by a horse in my youth...I feel strong and not afraid to express my opinion and feelings on things. AND boy do I love it. I think this is what it feels to be an adult. Finally after getting married, having 2 kids, and almost graduating college, I have my own opinion and confidence to express them. Watch out world here I come...

Family Pictures

We are still alive!!! Things have been busy but who isn't busy right? These last of couple of weeks we have had some fun with Mason's family coming down to visit. For the fourth of July uncle Monte, uncle Michael, and cousin Zackary and Nikolas,came down. We watched fireworks, went swimming, and finished some more of our fence. We just had Aunt Karey, uncle Lindsay, and cousins, Neisha and Dylan down this weekend. We went through Yellowstone and took some fabulous photos. As Myra called it, "lets go to the park and see the animals". Lindsay is an amazing photographer its great to see his perception of things through the lens. This morning Myra woke up and asked who was coming to visit today. It was great to see some family and do things we normally wouldn't do. Lindsay also took some family photos of us before we headed off to church. I have been able to do things with the girls this month which has been fun, most days! The mornings usually start with Myra asking me, "so where are we going today?" I then reply "I don't know, what do you want to do today?" Myra: "Hmmm...Lets go see the dinosaurs (Museum of the Rockies) then go shopping, and swimming". Okay maybe we repeat ourselves often at this house, but it is still fun. I went through Yellowstone park for the first time. And I think I will go again since Myra loved it so much! She keeps asking me if we could go to the park with the animals. Kandie, I have noticed, gets car sick along the way. she cries for a while and then whamoooh stinky mess to clean up. I need to remember to carry a bowl with us or something to catch the puke in because I hate watching helplessly. I did get some advice from my sister Lindi, who has a car sick boy of her own, she said that she has him hum a song until he doesn't feel queezy anymore. We will definitely try that too.

May already?

Okay so what its May...we hear everyone say that life is busy. We'll I can now testify that that is true :). I finished up spring semester the beginning of May, and luckily passed everything with A's and B's. Now I have started with some online summer classes. It is a very new thing to me this is my first time taking online classes so we will see how it ends up. Myra has been talking up a storm lately. I had to start writing down all of the funny things she says lately. It is unbelievable what that girl remembers. Yesterday at church she saw that bishop and said, "Hey I give that guy the mail" referring to our tithing envelope. Everyone time we pass certain restaurants she says, "that is where we eat with Paka and Gramma". And the last time we ate there was like 6 months ago. She is getting so excited to go to school. Kandie discovered her own language. She makes sure that you know that too in her own way. Kandie has even started pretending that she is a puppy. I was a little impressed the first time I noticed her crawling around and barking like a dog. Its a sight to see. We planted our garden recently. Myra had a ball doing that. She even goes out there and eats the stems from onions.

Kandie also has a new trick of jumping in the dryer.

Kandie's big Honker teethe. She loves to smile all the time

What can I say...WOW life is really busy right now. School has started up for me in the beginning of January. Mason has been home watching the kiddos while I try learn. The girls are growing like all kids do. Kandie is a busy body. She is constantly getting into things and able to stand up on her own. I am afraid she will be walking soon. Myra is getting better at communicating and going on the potty. I will have to update pics later, But I thought that I would give a little update.