What's in a name...

If anyone has an idea of what I should title my blog...please share...I suppose I could try a photo...

Preschool...

We had preschool at our home for a few days...This is such a great group of kiddos! I really enjoyed sitting with them, singing, playing games...reading and teaching...I waffle all the time between doing this "full-time" (which is actually part part time...) or just the co-op. You know how things are, when you're being depended on or payed it becomes more of an unwanted chore...compared to something that happens every once in a while...Anyhow. We talked about being healthy and eating right and exercising.

Tarina told me today how, Megan went to the fridge, pulled out an apple and asked to eat it (which Tarina said that Megan never asks for apples). Megan then proclaimed, "Apples are healthy for me!"

We sat down to eat our snacks during preschool, I asked if they wanted carrots or cookies. Reese looked at me and said, "Cookies!!" then the grin on his face went away and he said to me, in a slightly sad voice, "But, I should have carrots because they won't give me a tummy ache."

Tonight at dinner, we had tacos. I asked Mikenna if it was a yummy dinner. She was slowly eating her taco, so I figured she liked it. She looked at me and shook her head, pulled a frown and said, "I don't like it. But it's healthy for me."

What a bunch of silly billies!! It is rewarding to see/hear that things "sink" in though :)

Mikenna...

Mikenna has begun to take an interest in writing her name...and she does it so cute! She has known how to spell her name forever, but really hasn't been able to identify the letters, except for M...
"M"...line with a dot...line and line and line...swirly...frowny face...frowny face...circle with a tail.

This is what she says while writing her name...obviously it's how I prompt her to write the letters...we'll work on the proper letter names later...

Farkle...

...is the name of the "Dice Game" that we've played forever. I learned this at Ted & Stacy's New Year Eve night.

Well, for Grandma Gale's birthday, Mikenna had amazing luck! I don't know if it was her delicate way of dropping the dice, or just her cute little smile that charmed the dice, but she rolled her way to a quick win...with plenty of big numbers!

What do 3 yr olds listen to on an MP3?

Mikenna loves listening to her little MP3 player...and when I asked her what she was listening to she replied, "Sleeping Beauty." Michael filled her player up with all sorts of Disney and Primary songs...with a few pop songs that she jams out to with her sisters...Now if we can only find some headphones that fit her!

Memory problems...

New Year's Day, Kaylee broke a string on her violin. It was only Mike, David and Kaylee home when it happened, I would have been all over it instantly had I been there. What made me really upset, was that she didn't tell me about it. Instead, when we got home that same evening, she proceeded to "investigate" her sisters' violins, "Let's see who's violin is in tune!" So, her sisters gathered around...Kaylee let Kassi open up the violin with the broken string, which, then Kassi proclaims, "Mom!! A string is broken!!" I scold her for plucking the strings (she is notorious for doing this in an attempt to tune her violin)...which she replies, "But mom! I didn't do it!!" (I hate this excuse!!) I then yell for everyone to put the violins away and get upstairs for bed!!

A few minutes later, as I'm looking at the broken string, Michael informs me that it most likely was Kaylee. When they were home that afternoon, he heard Kaylee playing her violin, she asks him to help her tune it, he says he didn't know how...she's plucking away, and then he heard a "POP"...he thinks it's just the bridge popping off, he tells Kaylee to put the violin away....

So, I gather my thoughts and calmly call Kaylee down to ask her what happened...conveniently she has no recollection of anything happening. No amount of threatening or yelling brought about a confession. Just total denial that she wasn't responsible. I wrapped up our discussion with, "Please let me know right away if something happens to your violin. Do not let your sisters take the blame for something you did or didn't do!"

Then tonight, Kaylee & Kiera are reading with Kassi. They both sign her homework slip and proceed with getting ready for bed. Kiera comes in crying, "Kaylee says she hates me and wrote it on her leg."

We call Kaylee in ask her what happened, "I don't know what happened. We were just sitting there and I was just talking and then she started crying." We ask her what she was writing on her leg, "Nothing! I wasn't writing anything!" (But you can see she'd written something.) We ask what she thinks she said to make Kiera cry, "I didn't say anything! I didn't say 'I hate Kiera!" Again, all the threats of life and liberty brought nothing. She claims she can't remember what she did write on her leg or even what she'd been talking about. I did get her to finally apologize to Kiera...because whatever was said, Kiera thought it was "I hate Kiera"...

My gut tells me she knows she did wrong, but won't admit it. I can see it in her face, hear it in her voice...what am I going to do next time?

I know...

I'm lazy and haven't taken the time to post...I will try and rectify the situation soon!!

Anyone know how to copy widgets over...or do I need to retype all of my links again?

Sad Tanner...

It is somewhat comforting to see and know that they will band together and console each other after mom "takes [you] downtown!"

I love how Kassi is just giving Tanner reassuring pats and pets after an "episode".

I've seen how the girls are just so much nicer to each other after an "episode" with me.

Once, I came downstairs, after getting after Kassidy, and Kaylee & Kiera were patiently practicing the violin together.

Happy New Year!!

Thought I would start a new blog...Welcome Welcome!!

Why? (Terilyn asked why...)...Well...here are a few reasons....My sister starts a new blog each year, so I figured I would too...wanted to try some different backgrounds and not "mess up" my old blog...especially with the "cutest blog" that everyone uses...but you have to have the minima settings...um...since my plan is to publish, wanted to keep my years seperated...and...those who know me the best, can probably figure out really WHY...

4 x 4

What new year would be complete without the guys heading out to play in the mud. The best pictures will be when I unload the pics from the girls camera...once I figure out how to do it...but for now...This last set of pics is actually from the 10th. The snow melted making for a lot of mud...even Mikenna went off riding...Mike said that the first time they hit the water...creating a huge splash...Mikenna immediately cried to go home. She eventually got used to it and quite crying...but now when I ask if she wants to go ride in daddy's truck, she says, "No, it's too scary."

Goals...2009

Isn't it said somewhere that you should write down your goals? Here are some of mine for this year...

Be fit...exercise, eat right
Read Book of Mormon as a family before Kiera's baptism
Have fun with my kids
Publish 2006
Scrap girls' 2 year books

What did we do???

We cut some hair!!

Ug!!

Their hair was so pretty and long!!

Mikenna wanted me to cut her hair as short as Katie Gutke, a neighbor friend (Molly's little girl) but I wasn't for that. Too short for my Mikenna...I loved her long long hair. I wanted to just trim it, but Michael said to make it worth my while...

She was fine, until my dad did this....When she saw him with her hair on his head, she turned into a grump...I couldn't even to get her to look up so I could try and even out her hair...She looks so much older with her hair trimmed now.

Kassi wanted her hair below her chin...

Kiera just wanted a trim tp below her shoulders...

Kaylee requested to have it just above her shoulders...

Who are these little girls with cute short hair???

Ummm...Tanya, you'll have to help me even things out...I wonder if I can bring scissors on the plane now....