Birthday week: Parts 1-4

Part 1 -

Birthday week started the Friday before Megan's birthday. She invited 9 friends to come for an afternoon of puppy fun (8 came). That morning we were finishing last minute preparations and she kept saying, "This is going to be the best party ever!" That is when all of the work doesn't matter, because I know she is just so happy. Here's the cake. It wasn't too hard, and I think it turned out OK.

Megan with her puppy ears by the bean bag toss game. This was another big hit with her.

Here is the whole group after our "Pin the tag on the collar" game. They were so cute to watch and loved all of the funny places that the tags ended up.

Megan opened many wonderful presents and oohed and aahed with each one. It was so fun to watch the kids get so excited about giving a present and Megan was very specific about what she loved about each gift. When the bubble container was green she said, "Did you know green is my favorite color?" For a coloring book, "It's Rapunzel! I saw the movie Tangled and I love it." When she opened a t-shirt with a horse on it she squealed and said, "I love horses so much!" [Incidentally, the little girl who brought her the shirt was at the store when I bought the present from Mom and Dad for Megan (a horse) and we talked for a bit. I think it is neat she remembered.] It was just so cute. All of it.

Here's Meg when we sang to her. She was thrilled. And she did a great job blowing out the candles.

Part 2 -

Megan's actual birthday began with sharing cookies at preschool, and a doughnut at the Cougareat with Mom before riding the bus home. Megan also chose hot dogs for dinner. We added olives and green punch because she loves those things too.

Part 3 -

Liz had a great birthday. She woke up to find the book "Happy Birthday Molly" on her dresser. I wanted her to have a surprise on her actual birthday. She chose mozzarella cheese sticks for her birthday. We made them and they were so good! We had them with pizza and they were a hit. Thanks for the great request Liz!

Part 4 -

Our annual Chantry March birthday party was a hit. Jen's Grandma and Grandpa Call, and Grandma Houghton, Brian's parents and two of his brothers (with their wives and one little one each) were all there. It was fun to see everyone and the girls were so excited for everything.

Megan was up first and started with opening cards.

Then a bag full of goodies from Grandma and Grandpa Chantry.

Inside was a cute bag full of art supplies. Markers, crayons, paper, stencils, stickers . . .

Putting it all to good use right away.

Now presents from Mom and Dad. First a cute pillow and window valence for her room.

And a CD player (so Liz can have hers back.)

Here she is with her fun stuff for her room (and horse wall stickers from Chantrys. Those are a hit too!)

Then it was Liz's turn and she was more than ready.

She was also thrilled with the bag of art supplies from Grandma and Grandpa Chantry. This girl cannot get enough paper.

She was also very surprised with a new comforter and sheets from Mom and Dad.

Here she is showing off her new bedding. So cute. She is also wearing the pants and jacket set that mom saw and couldn't leave at the store. They will be for Halloween this year too when she wears mom's first leotard from when she was 10.Liz also loved her Molly sleeping bag that mom made. And Molly slept so well.

Cake time: Liz wanted a fairy cake. This is what mom came up with.

Liz waiting while we sang.

Blowing out the candles: This is getting harder and harder.

Lest you think that Brian and I forgot about our birthdays, we didn't. Brian surprised me with some knitting supplies (I have been wanting to learn) and this

I am so excited. I can't believe how he spoiled me.

I surprised his with a new Britta pitcher so our water can taste nice and fresh.

And we chose Cafe Rio for our birthday dinner. :-) (Thanks for te gift card Don and Sue!)

We also received a new game from Jen's mom and dad. It came today, just in time for their trip to visit (and play with) us. We love games.

Part 5 comes later tonight when we celebrate with Jen's parents. The girls can't wait. They have seen the wrapped boxes for days and the cupcakes are ready.

Thank you all for the many birthday wishes sent out way!

Being a mom makes me happy

A friend of mine linked to this article on facebook.

http://segullah.org/daily-special/parenting-and-happiness/

As I read I wondered how I really feel about being a parent. I decided that parenting makes me happy.

Yes, parenting is hard. There are sleepless nights with infants and tantrums with toddlers. There is juggling the schedules and activities of school-aged kids, along with caring for our home. And I am only entering the tween years. I am sure there is more hard stuff to come.

Yes, being a mom has brought worries. Is this cough something serious? Are my children eating enough? What if Michael has an allergic reaction at school and I am not there to help and comfort? Will my kids do what they have been taught? Will they be safe?

Yes, being a mom sometimes is stressful. This week, in addition to the usual homework and piano, we have activity days for Liz, Pack meeting for Nathan, 3 trips to Provo to get Megan at school and two birthday parties with two different cakes. (I admit a lot of the stress I feel throughout the year is brought on by myself. I want to make birthdays and holidays special, even if that means extra stress-adding work like cake decorating and sewing projects that I really don't know how to do as well as I would like.)

But despite all of this, some of my greatest joys have come from being a mother. I wish I was more gifted with words so I could describe it better, but there is nothing like hearing your baby say, "Mama." There is nothing like watching your child learn something new and show it off with a huge grin. There is nothing like watching your child work hard and then succeed, and to see the joy and pride they feel in their accomplishment. There is nothing like watching your child have fun and find joy in the little things they experience in life. There is nothing like getting hugs and kisses.

There is nothing like seeing your child make good decisions like choosing to be baptized, or hearing them share a scripture story. There is nothing like watching their happiness as they serve others, at home or abroad. And there is nothing like hearing them bear their testimony and feeling the powerful Spirit that comes from them knowing and believing what they are saying is true.

In short, all of the good definitely outweighs the bad.

In the Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi chapter 2 specifically, we learn about the necessity of opposition. We cannot understand the good unless we have experienced the bad. We cannot understand joy if we have not had sadness.

So, while the article above quotes studies that say that people with children feel more negative emotions like worry or sadness, I know that for me these times have better helped me to recognize and feel the joy that comes from being a mom. I am grateful for the role of mothers in our Heavenly Father's plan for his children* and I am thankful for my part in that plan. It was ten years ago this week that I became a mother, and I am grateful that I can be one for the rest of this life and the rest of eternity.

*http://lds.org/family/proclamation?lang=eng

Above: April 2006

Below: September 2010

I love these kids!

Cranford

This is a movie we saw for the first time in the last week. We got the first of two discs from Netflix last week and watched the first three episodes. We enjoyed it an looked forward to the last two episodes on disc 2. So it came Tuesday, we settled down with our Cadbury mini eggs and most of the way through episode 4 it started skipping. We tried not to care about the little bits we missed and picked up where the disc would play OK. But then during the last episode, right when there has been an explosion and the doctors need to perform an amputation and another character is fighting for life, the disc skips to the very last scene. So we turned it off and requested a new disc.

We were able to watch it on Thursday. Everything made more sense when we saw all of the little parts we missed. We really enjoyed the movie, though it is probably not one we would watch very often (like Pride and Prejudice).

This image is from a part in the fourth episode. This is the young doctor who has fallen in love with a young lady in Cranford, he has spoken with her father about Courting her and someday marrying her. But for funny and random reasons there are two older ladies who think they have earned his affections and have formed imaginary engagements in their heads. It all comes out at a picnic and this is his expression when these ladies come forward. It made me laugh so hard. He really was innocent and so confused about what was going on.
I don't want to give away the end too much, but I was pleased with how everything turned out.

Family History is Yummy

Last summer at a family reunion, Brian's great aunt Wanda told us a story about her mom. Brian's great grandma worked at a factory canning fruits and vegetables. Apparently there was an off season, and at this time she tried to find a way to provide for her family. Long story short, she started making doughnuts and Brian's grandpa and aunts and uncles would deliver them and sell them. It was so fun to hear this story and Wanda said that she found the original hand written recipe that Grandma Byer used. And she had made doughnuts for us to enjoy. They were delicious.

Brian's great uncle Richard, our family historian scanned the recipe and sent it to all of us. We finally got around to making a batch last night.

I don't think Grandma had a mixer like this to make her doughnuts, and she made a lot more than one batch at a time.

Brian did a great job cooking them in the oil, and testing them to make sure they were OK.

Once we had a plate full the kids were more than ready to taste them.

They are delicious, even with nothing on them. I can't wait to try them again!

I can't believe it is March

January and February have passed so quickly. We didn't have many BIG things going on, but plenty of normal, every day things that kept the time passing nicely.

It has been fun to watch the kids. They are growing up so fast and learning so many new things and they are just FUN! I love spending time with them and i love just hearing them play with each other and laugh.

Yesterday Megan was doing her chore (wiping down the drawer and cabinet fronts in the kitchen). I was reading in the living room. I heard her singing "Scrub scrub scrub, scrub dee dub, scrub scrub scrub, scrub dee dub." It was too cute.

Brian built some garden boxes so we can really try our hand at gardening this year. There are two boxes, 4 by 6 feet each. We filled them with a special soil mixture and divded them into square foot sections. Now we just need to wait until St. Pattie's Day to start planting some peas. I am really excited.

Here are a few pictures fo things that we have done over the last ocuple of months.

MEgan and I made pumpkin bread on a day she didn't have school but the other kids did. She learned about kitchen tools (and garden tools and plumbing tools and fix it tools) at preschool and she loves being a tool helper).

Michael is LOVING his puzzle from Aunt Michelle that he got for Christmas. He needed help once, but now puts it together all by himself.

The fourth grade had a program about Utah's history. Liz was so excited to dress up.

Nathan's Pack went to a basketball game at UVU. The boys had a lot of fun with the mascot, but Nathan was most interested in teh basketball. What a fun kid!

Another Christmas present. Mike liked helping dad put together this dragon.

Nathan earned his Religious Knot at Blue and Gold in February.

We had Megan's pictures taken in preparation for her birthday.

I am making a photo book for Liz that goes along with a song I used to sing as a young women. It talks about finding peace through Jesus Christ, especially as we follow his example. This is a picture I love. I love it so much because, even though it is posed, it is true to life. Liz is such a wonderful influence on our home. She has great love for her sisters and brothers and is so helpful and so willing to show that love. What a wonderful young lady she is growing into.

Anyway, March is a big month at our house. Along with all of our normal crazy busy stuff, Liz and Nathan have piano festival this weekend, then we have a week of birthdays and visitors (wonderful visitors) coming at the end of the month. I can hardly wait!