tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22478364049840369152024-03-13T05:31:01.673-07:00CLAIRE & CREWbruce * claire * sunshine * beebs * man cub * shark bait * jellybeanClairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.comBlogger229125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-66694833600181153922020-04-21T23:24:00.000-07:002020-04-21T23:24:37.008-07:00COVID and QuarantineI probably should've written this post a few weeks ago, but life has been a little turned upside down lately!<br />
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I'm not even sure where to start or how to talk about this, but basically, we are in the midst of a pandemic. A new virus originated in China and has quickly spread throughout the world. There's no vaccination, there's no cure. With time, most recover, but the number of people not recovering is scary. It's hard to find exact, accurate statistics, but as far as I can tell, the virus was discovered in December of 2019 and has spread across the globe, shutting down country after country as the world tries to slow the spread. Personal protection equipment for doctors, nurses and first responders are all but impossible to find. Toilet paper has been cleared off of every store shelf in the entire US. Grocery stores are so picked over that many aisles are all but empty.<br />
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Social distancing has been put into practice. It's the idea of staying 6 feet or more away from people you don't share a home with. The schools are closed for the rest of the year throughout most of the country, including here in Arizona. Most schools are attempting to do distance learning through various online avenues. Our school is actually doing a great job of implementing a system to continue learning, but it still requires a lot of time and effort on my part. It can't even be called home school since we are confined to our homes. I call it crisis or Covid schooling.<br />
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My kiddos aren't allowed to see their friends. We hold church in our homes, we are living off our food storage as much as possible. At the beginning of April, our governor signed a Stay at Home order, mandating that social distancing be in effect. Non-essential businesses are no longer functioning. Many stores are closed, small businesses are suffering and something like 10 million Americans lost their jobs over a two week window. My dad included.<br />
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And it feels like this came out of nowhere. At least for me. I don't watch the news. My social media feeds are full of photography related info. I tend to snooze or delete people who go on about politics and world happenings. Due to Bruce's job, I try to shield myself from those things. I stick my head in the sand and pretend life is butterflies and rainbows as a coping mechanism. It serves me well for the most part, but I feel pretty darn blindsided by this whole Coronavirus/Covid-19 thing.<br />
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The first few days, as I started to grasp what exactly was going on were very scary. I spent a LOT of time crying and I went through all the emotions. I was so mad at myself for being lax with our food storage throughout my pregnancy with Jellybean. I was mad at myself for being lazy with my gospel study. I was scared of what this would mean for my family. I grieved the loss of the life I had envisioned at this point in time. I threw myself a two week pity party where I experienced a constant headache brought on by crying, stress and anxiety. I felt like I was on the verge of a panic attack at any given moment. My chest felt tight all the time and oh, the exhaustion. I was so tired I could hardly function because I was mentally and emotionally spent.<br />
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We are now on week 5 of living a quarantine life. I'm feeling much better about life and the current state of our existence, but things are strange... I went to Costco a few weeks ago for one last stock up trip before the Stay at Home order that I knew was coming. Everyone in the store was so lifeless. No one seemed to have a smile in them. We were all on a mission. I left with the most full cart I have ever had and didn't even manage to find toilet paper or flour. Good news- the produce section is basically the Garden of Eden. Apparently no one thinks to buy veggies during a pandemic. Which just means more for me!<br />
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Our routine has changed significantly. We get out and hike or go for walks when we can, steering clear of other people of course. Not necessarily because we are paranoid (I mean I am, but Bruce is not at all) but because people are literally scared to be close to one another right now. But other than that, we are at home. Our 1800 square feet seems awfully small these days with all 7 of us here most of the time. The kiddos haven't been to a store or seen a friend in 39 days. And it doesn't look like that will be changing any time soon.<br />
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But it's not all bad. There have been silver linings. I've seen lots of my prayers answered. We've participated in not one, but two world wide fasts led by the prophet and we've felt peace and power through those fasts. Our home church has meant the chance to worship with my family via FaceTime. We've gotten a few house projects done and played more games and read more books.<br />
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It's been a roller coaster of emotions thus far, but we are surviving. And hopefully we'll even find chance to thrive through this. We've made it through 5 weeks of a really difficult time and I know we'll come out stronger on the other side. But until then, we stay home. We try to do something fun every day. And we cling to our faith and our family, because that's what's getting us through.Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-37716727545346062592020-03-18T23:14:00.002-07:002020-03-18T23:24:28.715-07:00Let's Dust This Thing Off, Shall WeWell hello there. It's been a hot minute since I've posted over here, but given the circumstances of the world right now, I have some free time on my hands. And with that free time, I am feeling a great need to document our family history.<br />
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First, how about a quick update on each of us?<br />
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Bruce is still going strong with the police department. He's held many positions and been on countless committees and participated in all kinds of trainings and extra activities. He is currently a patrol lieutenant and runs the department field training program and is part of the department's partnership with Special Olympics. He plays basketball several times a week with some buddies from church and he takes Kevin on several runs a week. She loves it, Bruce tolerates it :) He's a good dog dad.<br />
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Sunshine is almost 13. Let's pause for a moment and let that sink in. I am about to have a teenager. One week from today actually. I started our first family blog when I first found out I was pregnant with her, and it really does feel like it was just yesterday. Sunshine is in 7th grade and she is rocking it. She is so dedicated to her school work, she is a loyal friend and she adores her teacher. She is a competitive swimmer and just finished participating in her school's production of Seussical Jr. She was stage crew for two of the shows and played Horton the Elephant in one show. She did fantastic! She played flute for several years in school, only stopping at the beginning of this school year, and has been playing piano since she was six or seven. I love hearing her practice either instrument. She is taller than me, a fact that we noticed on Christmas day. Merry Christmas to me! And we can share shoes and she loves to borrow from my wardrobe. Most of my clothes are too big, but she's snagged a few things from my drawers that are too small on me and I just can't believe this is the point we are at in life!<br />
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Beebs is still our little fireball. She's short and petite and full of spunk and attitude. She's a natural comedian and loves to perform. She was also in Seussical Jr, playing Young Kangaroo and she just beamed from the stage. She was absolutely in her element. She has been taking ballet for several years and the novelty is wearing off. I'm grieving the fact that she is no longer wanting to dance as she is a beautiful ballerina. She wants to continue just long enough to dance in a performance of The Nutcracker, then give up dance to pursue something else. Who knows what at this point, the options are endless! Beebs is in 4th grade and has a great teacher. Sometimes the social part of school is tricky for her, but she loves going and she is learning and growing so much. She is an excellent writer and is always working on some fun story. She is also a very talented artist and takes lessons from a lady we know from church. I'll have to scan some of her paintings to share on here. They are amazing. Beebs also takes piano and loves it. She also sort of plays cello in the school orchestra... there has been quite a bit of turnover with music teachers at school, which is why I say sort of! She knows some of the basics but due to all the teacher movement, I don't think she has been able to embrace the cello as much as she and I both hoped she would.<br />
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Man Cub, oh Man Cub! He has grown up so much since I last blogged. He is in 1st grade, and I have to be honest. I worried about him going to school. But, he is THRIVING! He loves school so much. He loves his teacher, he loves his friends, he loves to learn. He is an excellent reader and he is obsessed with the "Who Will Win" book series. He has even written and illustrated several of his own versions of "Who Will Win". He is very creative and artistic, always creating or drawing something. We go through a lot of paper at our house these days between him and Beebs. I try to limit them but then I also don't want to stifle their creativity! Man Cub is a super social boy. He love to make friends and will talk to anyone. ANYONE. We participated in a hike with a group from my gym last weekend and Man Cub decided one of the gym owners was his new best friend. He talked the owner's ear off throughout most of the hike- Star Wars, Legos, school. He chatted about anything and everything. He is also eating me out of house and home right now. He is definitely a growing boy and I'm not sure I can keep up with how much food it takes to keep him going! He is also really enjoying sports. After several seasons of soccer, he switched to flag football at school this past quarter and loved it. Right now the highlight of his day is playing football in the backyard with Bruce. Man Cub is quite the stylish little guy... every Sunday he insists on wearing Hawaiian print shirts and boat shoes to church. I'm going to be a little bit sad when he switches to white shirts and ties after his baptism this fall!<br />
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Shark Bait is my little lovey mamas boy. For the moment! He loves to snuggle and he is such a big helper. After six years of teaching preschool, and teaching three of my own children, I closed up shop, so Shark Bait attends preschool at the home of a friend of mine. She is a fantastic teacher and Shark Bait just adores her. His best friend Ben goes to the same school and they love being in the same class. Just like all my kiddos, Shark Bait is super social. He loves to spend time with friends. Between school, soccer, gymnastics and Primary, he gets plenty of time with friends and he loves it. Each morning he asks me "Do I have anything going on today?" Cracks me up each time he asks. He is very much into super heroes. Spiderman is his favorite. He also loves Star Wars and he will spend hours playing by himself while the others are at school. He loves to be outside and will often grab the shed key and head out back, all by himself even, to dig in the sand and play elaborate dinosaur games. He is absolutely fearless which is terrifying and exciting all at once. Man Cub has to be coaxed to try new things but Shark Bait jumps right in, sometimes without thinking things through all the way. He is also quite opinionated, especially about what he wears. No long sleeves or pants for this boy! Basketball shorts, t shirts and a pair of flip-flops are his full time uniform.<br />
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And then there's Jellybean! She's new around here, and I hope to share the full story of how she came to be soon. But for the moment, just know that she is the missing piece to our family, a long awaited arrival and the answer to many many pleading prayers. She is such a joy to our family and we all adore her so much! She was born on October 14, 2019 after the hardest pregnancy of my five. I was sick from basically the day I found out I was pregnant until the day she was born. I had lots of issues throughout the pregnancy and her birth was such a relief on so many levels. She cried for the first hour of her life and I was so scared that she would be as much of a stinker on the outside as she had been on the inside, but it has actually been the opposite. Jellybean is the happiest, most easy going baby I have ever had. She loves to sleep (but not to nap), averaging 6 hour stretches most nights, but sleeping as much as 7-12 hours at a time. She is super smiley and chatty. She thinks her siblings are the greatest thing in the entire world and already wants to be just like them. She is growing up way too fast for my liking in an effort to catch up to all of them. I never really wanted this large of a gap (4+ years) between kiddos, but oh my goodness, I am loving it. Each of the kiddos has such a special relationship with her and they are all so helpful and loving. I was nervous about throwing a newborn into our crazy, chaotic lifestyle but she has been a champ about it and the older kiddos are so great with her. It has really been a breeze.<br />
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As for me, I keep busy with driving the bus (aka our 2001 9 passenger Yukon) to and from school and the kiddos various activities, trying to keep the house from imploding and occasionally cooking meals that we can all sit together at the table and eat. I've been running my photography business as an LLC since mid-2017, though I have a feeling that with the current state of the world, that might be changing. Bruce and I serve together at church, heading up Activity Days for the boys turning 10 and 11 this year. We love serving together so much and our group of boys are so much fun... high energy and exhausting, but fun!<br />
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So there you have it. An update on us. I make no promises as to what will come of my desire to blog again. I do plan to add Sunshine as a contributor so she can help me keep things up to date, but we shall see! I don't want to make any promises I can't keep, but the desire to write our story is strong so I hope that will keep me coming back.Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-71059482519386594892018-01-21T22:20:00.000-08:002020-03-18T23:16:04.769-07:00This Is UsI don't really know where to start, other than to say, I sure miss this place! Sunshine was working on a school project the other day- she was writing an autobiography piece for English and needed information about her birth and childhood. It brought me so much joy to pull out the printed version of our blog from when she was a baby and let her look through it. She poured over it for the rest of the day, laughing at things she read, oohing and ahhing over photos and asking questions about things I had written. I loved it!<br />
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And at the same time, it broke my heart.<br />
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She has the story of her life recorded through word and photo. What about the rest of my kiddos? I've done them such a huge disservice by not keeping our blog up. I don't really have the time. A lot of the time I don't even have the desire. But seeing her enjoy the fruits of my labour made me want to really try harder, to be better at recording our family history.<br />
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So here I am.<br />
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I make no promises.<br />
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I will absolutely not be going back to fill in blanks. I can't put that kind of pressure on myself.<br />
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But I'm going to try to be here more. To put in the effort of recording our history and our stories.<br />
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So here's a little update.<br />
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Here we are. This is from last June, but we haven't changed much. The kiddos are all a little taller, but that's about the only difference. I might be slightly skinner! At least I hope :) </div>
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Bruce: Bruce is in his second year of teaching seminary. He still enjoys it, but the early mornings are killer. Especially when followed by 10 hour days at work. By Friday afternoon, he is in need of a nap! Which he usually takes once he is home from Seminary and some time at the driving range. After writing up our family Christmas card last year, and realizing that he didn't have anything exciting to include as his "highlight" for the year, Bruce has decided to run a marathon this year. I'm excited for him. It will be a good challenge, but still encompass something he enjoys doing. He is getting ready to test for a promotion at work. It's a scary promotion in that it will mean a significant pay cut. Kind of backwards, but it is a necessary step to reaching his career goals. We are equal parts excited and nervous. </div>
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Claire: I'm still teaching preschool and plan to teach for one more year before giving it up for good. Photography has taken off in a big way and I am loving it and want to be able to put all my extra energy into that. But I also want one year of teaching Shark Bait. One more year seems like a good compromise. I am starting to see some changes in my health after a long, seemingly treacherous route and it feels so good to be feeling "normal" again. Or at least more normal than I have in a long time. Hormone issues are no joke and mine have been taking a toll for the past two and a half years. It is nice to be feeling more like my old self again. </div>
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Sunshine: Sunshine is in 5th grade and can I just say, 5th grade is hard! There have been some friend issues, so struggles with learning, some difficulties finding where she fits, but she is rocking it! She is such a strong, sweet girl and she makes the best of pretty much every situation. She is super social and loves planning activities for her and her friends. She is currently in the school play which means swimming has taken a back seat, but just last Saturday, she started doing some private coaching with a guy from our stake who is coaching before he leaves on his mission, as a way of making a little more money to go towards his mission. She loved being back in the water and is looking forward to a few more coaching sessions with him before he leaves. Then when the play is over, she'll go back to piano lessons and swim team. She is doing the Mozart program at school which means four days a week, she is getting music education in school. She is playing the flute in the band, taking piano at school and doing choir. I love hearing the sound of music fill our home when she practices. </div>
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Beebs: Beebs is in 2nd grade and she loves it. She has an amazing teacher whom she absolutely adores and she is learning and growing so much. She is also in the school play so swim and piano have been on hold while we pursue that, but this past weekend, she took her first ballet class and oh. my. goodness. I've always known she is built like a dancer, but I had no interest in putting my girls into dance. This past Christmas, for our traditional mother-daughter Christmas show, I took the girls to see one of my Young Women dance in The Nutcracker. Beebs couldn't see from her seat, so she hopped onto my lap and as soon as the first dancer came on stage, I felt her entire body lighten with excitement. She hardly moved through the entire performance and I sat there with a knot in my stomach, knowing exactly what was coming. When the performance ended, Beebs turned to me and said "I want to be a ballerina!". It took me a few weeks to get on board, but we signed her up at a studio and she had her first class yesterday. And hasn't stopped dancing since. She was laying in my room tonight to fall asleep and when I walked past my door, I saw her in the dark, standing in front of my full length mirror, practicing ballet positions. It melted my heart. I think she has found her true love and I am excited to see where it takes her. </div>
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Man Cub: Man Cub is as rambunctious as ever. He and his best friend, Ike, spend every spare minute possible together. They play almost daily and they are so fun together. When Ike is not around, Man Cub doesn't really know what to do with himself and just wants to play video games ;) He's a big fan of the Lego Jurassic Park game he got for Christmas. Once I can convince him to go outside and play, he loves to dig in the sand and play fetch with Kevin. He is a total homebody and is super sweet, when he wants to be. He is doing well in preschool, but thinks he owns the place, since it is at our house. It causes us to butt heads sometimes, but overall I'm grateful I get to be his teacher. He loves to write his name and do puzzles. He starts soccer with Ike in a few weeks and I'm so excited to see him play. We played kickball tonight at a picnic with friends and he did a great job participating. I think soccer will be a good experience for him. Man Cub is currently doing speech therapy to help get him ready for school in the fall. He is missing several sounds which makes it difficult for those outside our family to understand him. I adore the way he talks and it is sad to think that it will be changing soon. But I know it's the best route for him and I am grateful we have resources to help us. </div>
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Shark Bait: Oh what to say about Shark Bait! He is full of life and always into something and keeps life interesting. He has no fear and regularly injures himself, but jumps right up and says "I'm ok, I'm ok!" He has an extensive vocabulary and uses it regularly. He is way ahead of the curve when it comes to speech and that scares me! He's too smart for his own good! He attends preschool with us most days and can say the Pledge of Allegiance. Mostly. Ü He love Rescue Bots and can identify all his colours, based on the Bot they correspond to. His favourite colour is Bumblebee. Yellow, for those who don't speak Rescue Bot. Shark Bait is currently not a part of any extra curricular activities but he loves to run around and chase his brother and sisters. He loves to play with his best friend, Benny Boo Boo and he thinks his dad is the greatest person in the world. He asks daily to go to the beach and I so wish I could indulge him! But Bruce has 8 more years until he can retire, so we won't be moving to the beach anytime soon! </div>
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I think that about sums up where we all stand right now! I make no promises, but hope to be back soon with more pictures and more stories. </div>
<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-35022433093429321602018-01-03T07:30:00.000-08:002018-01-06T00:19:51.661-08:00Happy 8th Birthday, Beebs!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Sweet Beebs,<br />
<br />
Your 8th birthday has finally arrived! You've been talking about this day for months... well, really you've been talking about what will happen in just a few days, on January 6th, when you are baptized! You had your interview with the Bishop on Sunday and it went so good. You came out of his office so bubbly and excited, clutching a beautiful little card with a picture of Christ that the Bishop gave you. And a package of fruit snacks. You enjoyed those fruit snacks, but I loved watching you hold and stare at the picture he gave you. You love Jesus Christ so much and are so excited for your baptism day.<br />
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You are absolutely loving school this year. Your teacher is so kind and loving and you particularly enjoy the stories she tells you about her daughter Winnie, and that she sings songs to you throughout the day. You are quiet and a bit reserved at school, or so I've been told, and I have a hard time imagining that! At home, you are the life and energy of the party. You are a straight A student this year and working really hard to keep it that way. You have become really self motivated with your school work, most recently demonstrating this when you had Sunshine quiz you on spelling words on the way to school each morning so you could get 100% on your pre-test and not have to take the spelling test on Friday. I love watching your love of learning grow. You particularly love math and science, but your reading skills are incredible too. Its so fun to hear you read to us from The Book of Mormon during family scripture time. I am always impressed with the big words you are able to sound out effortlessly.<br />
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Like I said, you are the life of the party here at home. You love to goof around and dance silly and talk in funny voices or snort to make us all laugh. This is great, until bedtime rolls around and you are still putting on a show for us all. You are getting better about bedtime though. You aim to be in bed asleep before 8pm, and sometimes you are even successful. It's a work in progress Ü<br />
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You are still as social as ever, though you are already finding out that sometimes little girls can be difficult to be friends with. Luckily, you have a wonderful best friend, Dailyn, who you enjoy playing with every chance you get. The two of you love to wear each other's clothes and paint nails and play with your American Girl dolls.<br />
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Along with lots of fire and spunk, you are very tender hearted and sweet. Seeing people in need breaks your heart, and you inspired your 2nd grade class to put together blessing bags for homeless people for your class Christmas party. Watching you give away your bag brought me to tears. You were so brave and walked right up to the homeless man you had chosen to help, handed him the bag and wished him a merry Christmas. It was beautiful to watch. You are also extra kind and selfless. My favourite example of this is that you are currently practicing to be an Ompah Loompah in your school's production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. You had NO desire to be in the school play, but tried out anyway because I had said that it was all or nothing... either both you and Sunshine were in it, or neither of you were. Sunshine really wanted to participate so you put on your brave face, tried out and got a part. You have such a good attitude about it, even though you've confided in me several times that it's not what you really wanted to do.<br />
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You and Shark Bait are still very close. He adores you and you him. You also have an extra special bond with your Aunt Tressie. She may or may not spoil you rotten, but that's ok! You deserve it. You rarely ask for anything and for Christmas this year, you wanted pajamas. And for your birthday, pajamas and a colouring book.<br />
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We love you so much, Sweet Beebs, and are so excited that you are getting baptized. You have some fun adventures ahead in your year of being 8, and I can't wait to experience them along side you. Have a wonderful birthday and enjoy this fun time in life!<br />
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We love you so very, very much!<br />
<br />
Love always,<br />
Mommy & DaddyClairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-42294815754139453552017-09-25T22:47:00.000-07:002017-09-26T22:48:23.486-07:00Happy 5th Birthday, Man Cub!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Oh, Sweet Man Cub!<br />
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Somehow, you are 5. I keep asking you not to get older, but you insist that you have to grow up. You have big plans! You want to be a dad and a construction site worker. You have to get older to do those things, so I gave in and you turned 5.<br />
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You are as spunky as ever. You are a little comedian and love to make us all laugh, especially Shark Bait. He looks up to you and you absolutely love it. Sure, you can be a real stinker to him, but more often than not, you are sweet and adoring and you cater to him. You often ask me for another sibling, so Shark Bait can have a baby, like you have him. It melts my heart every time you say it.<br />
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You love Hawaiian shirts and boat shoes, unless your Transformers or shark shirts are clean. You are obsessed with your toys- right now Star Wars, Transformers, dinosaurs and Disney Cars rank highest on your list. You also love to read books. You have lots of favourites that we rotate through and my favourite moments are when you bring me a stack of books and ask to sit in my lap while we read.<br />
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You love Primary and Nephi is your favourite Scripture Hero. You once told me that you like that he is strong and kind and serves people. You want to be like him and I support that 100%! Your primary teachers adore you... really, most people do! You have quite the fan club and have stolen many hearts. You are sweet and polite and have no fear when it comes to talking with adults. You save your rebellious moments for me and Dad, but for the most part, we don't mind. We know it means that we are your safe place and we appreciate your determination and spunk.<br />
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You are quite the negotiator and have a bit of a stubborn streak. While it can be challenging at times, we recognize that these characteristics have the potential to make you a strong leader in the future. We just hope and pray that we can help you to grow that potential and become the wonderful father and construction site worker that you want to be Ü<br />
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Kevin the Bird is still one of your best friends, along with Isaac, from church. You and Isaac are practically inseparable and play together at least 2-3 times a week. Isaac has become an important member of our family and the bond you two have is so much fun. You are so creative when you are together and you keep each other in check. You love Isaac's family and often tell me that his mom is your favourite! But it's ok, because you still tell me almost daily that I am the prettiest mom you've ever seen, and now days, you tell your sisters that they are the prettiest girls you've ever seen as well. Your future wife is a lucky woman. You are learning early on how to treat the women in your life with love and respect and I know that will bless you later on.<br />
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We love you so much little man! We are so blessed to have you in our family!<br />
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Love Always,<br />
Mom & DadClairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-29837997565679632542017-07-14T23:17:00.001-07:002017-07-14T23:17:46.950-07:00The End of an EraMonday morning I leave for Girls Camp. I'll be gone for 4 days, during which time, Shark Bait will not get to nurse. By the time I get home, he will be weaned and my 8 years of nursing will officially come to their final end.<br />
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The thought is pretty devastating to me. I love nursing my babies. I remember being pregnant with Sunshine and dreaming, very vividly, about holding a sweet baby in my arms and nursing. It was then that I knew without a doubt that I planned to nurse my babies.<br />
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It hasn't always been easy, or fun. Middle of the night wake up calls for nursing, especially past the age of one are tiring. While it is so convenient to not carry bottles and formula, there are plenty of times when it is inconvenient, like you are teaching Primary or Preschool and the baby just can't wait another second. But for the most part, it was magical for me and it is killing me to think of being done.<br />
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I decided I needed to commemorate the end of this beautiful time in my life with pictures. I actually had a hard time finding someone to do the photos at first, but an opportunity to trade with a photographer from one of my classes fell into my lap. Then more stars aligned and we were able to rent a beautiful studio near my home for the session. It all worked out wonderfully and the results are incredible. I have about a hundred amazing photos I could share, but decided to narrow it down to just a few. After we finished with the nursing portion of the session, Shark Bait and I just enjoyed playing together... we did "This Little Piggy" and "Round and Round the Garden". We tickled toes and did airplane and played with a few of the "bo-bots" he got for his birthday. It was so amazing to focus on just him and I and to enjoy each other for a little bit. I really wish I had thought to do this with each of my kiddos... But without further adieu, here are the results of our magical afternoon.<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-39944192767739984552017-07-13T19:17:00.000-07:002017-07-16T19:17:35.638-07:00Happy 2nd Birthday Shark Bait!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy birthday sweet Shark Bait!<br />
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I hate that this day has arrived. I've been emotional and had bittersweet feelings on each of my kiddos birthdays, but yours are always the most difficult. Each milestone you hit, I think "this is the last". This is the last time I'll do a "my favourite things" two year old birthday. This is the last time I'll wean a baby. This is the last time I'll have a two year old. It's killing me. I hate how fast you are growing up, so if you could just stop it, that would be great!<br />
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But no matter how much I begged and bribed you, you went and turned 2. You are still one of the happiest children I know. Your smile is infectious and lights up the room. But, you are also developing a bit of an attitude at times. It's hard to blame you though- as the baby of four, you have to learn to stick up for yourself! You are learning not to let your siblings push you around and you have no problem giving Man Cub a run for his money. I'm equal parts proud and concerned when I witness this behaviour.<br />
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You love to cheese for the camera and you are a bit of a clown. If you know it will make people laugh, you will do something over and over again, grinning the entire time. You are obsessed with "bo-bots" (rescue bots), in particular- Bumblebee and Optimus Prime. You also love Star Wars (Darth Vader is your favourite), Mickey and friends and playing with cars. You also love to be outside where you play with Kevin, dig in the dirt and chase the chickens.<br />
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You love animals. Puppies are your current favourite, though you also have fallen in love with ocean animals like orcas and dolphins. We took you to SeaWorld and the beach at the beginning of June and you were a big fan of both! You definitely have my love of all things ocean. And dad's love of doing things to freak mom out! You love to be thrown "in the sky" by dad, and your new favourite trick has been to climb into the bathroom sink, fully clothed, and turn on the water to bathe yourself.<br />
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You are such a smiley, happy guy and you are well known and loved for your white blonde hair and crystal clear blue eyes. We love you little Shark Bait and are so glad you are ours. Even though I'm not happy to think you are my last, I couldn't have asked for a better caboose!<br />
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Here's to a wonderful year of the terrific two's! Happy birthday sweet boy. We love you so much and are so grateful to have you in our family!<br />
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Love Always,<br />
Mommy & DaddyClairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-32398511722239379572017-04-20T00:01:00.003-07:002017-04-20T00:01:43.572-07:00Catching Up With UsI'm terrible at blogging. I don't even know what to say other than that. I want to be good at it, but with four little kiddos, a busy husband, serving at church and two businesses on the side, blogging often gets tossed to the side. So I pop in when I can, and try to give myself a little grace when I can't. I have tons of things I could catch up on, pictures to share, stories to tell, but I really just want to give a little written snapshot of how we are doing, so at the very least, I have that recorded!<br />
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Bruce- Bruce is busy with work and his church calling. He is an early morning seminary teacher so he gets up at 5 each morning, gets ready for the day then heads over to the church to teach 18ish teenagers about the Bible. This year they are studying the New Testament. I know we aren't suppose to aspire to callings, but this truly is his dream calling... he debated heavily between becoming a paid CES teacher and a police officer. This calling is wonderful because he gets to have his cake and eat it too Ü The calling has been a challenge at times, but overall he loves it.<br />
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Work is going well. He is the PIO for his department, so he has a nice cushy day time schedule with the fun of every day being new and different. Sometimes he is in city meetings, another day he is touring news stations and meeting celebrities and other days he makes videos to post on social media. There are plenty of other responsibilities as well, but each day brings variety and he loves that.<br />
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Sunshine- Sunshine just finished being part of her school production of Annie Kids. She played the part of July, an orphan with a few speaking parts and solos in songs. She put in so many hours of hard work and it completely paid off. The play was adorable and she loved being a part of it. The commitment level was difficult on my end, but somehow we made it through and in the end, I am glad she participated.<br />
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Now, Sunshine is back to swimming several times a week, she is taking piano and plays the flute in the school band and she enjoys Activity Days at church. She is a busy girl! On top of all her activities, she is excelling in school and has made the Principal Pride list for straight A's the past two grading periods. The switch to the new school has been a challenge at times, but overall, she is excelling and really does love her new school.<br />
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Beebs- Beebs also made the switch to the new school and is thriving there. She is learning so much and is already becoming quite the avid reader. Her favourite books are Elephant and Piggie and I could listen to her read for days. She has such fun intonation when she reads, I just adore hearing her! She still loves to play and sometimes it can be a bit of a struggle to get her to do things like homework or practice piano because she really just wants to get out all her toys and escape into her imaginary worlds.<br />
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Like Sunshine, Beebs swims multiple times a week and she is getting so good at it! She also plays piano and is picking that up very quickly. It is such a joy to have our home filled with the sounds of the girls practicing.<br />
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Man Cub- Man Cub keeps me busy! He is such an active child. He has preschool (taught by me!) three days a week and he does gymnastics on Mondays. He LOVES gymnastics and I just love watching his new tricks each week. He loves Primary and always comes home with stories about the things he learned. He is so good at telling us about his lessons each week. He is super social and always wants to go to a friend's house or have a friend over to our house. He would rather watch TV and eat than anything else, but once he gets to playing, he is a lot like Beebs. He comes up with elaborate games and can play for hours. He recently started taking swim lessons with the girls coach and he counts down the days each week. He tells everyone about swim lessons and invites them all to come watch him. He is so eager to be like his big sisters!<br />
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Man Cub has a little bit of a speech issue that is absolutely adorable. I wish I could adequately describe the way he talks, but I just don't do it justice. It may be something he needs help with down the line, but for now, I just enjoy the adorable way he talks. He also has such a sweet side! He brings me flowers, tells me I'm "the prettiest mom he's ever seen" (I taught him that, but he'll just say it randomly and it melts my heart every single time) and says things like "I want us to have another baby so Shark Bait has a baby to play with". He adores Shark Bait and looks up to both of his sisters.<br />
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Shark Bait- Shark Bait is growing like a weed. We took away his pacifier, I gave him a haircut and he started talking up a storm, all at once. He runs everywhere, he climbs everything. The boy has no fear at all. Not even one little bit. He talks all the time and is very good at telling you exactly what he wants. He thinks he is a big boy and opts to sit on a barstool at the kitchen island instead of in his high chair. He loves food, but not typical kid food. He turns his nose up at macaroni and cheese! He really loves fish and avocados and greek yogurt and beans and veggies. He is such a great eater... though sometimes too good because he eats all his food and then moves in on mine. Ü He also loves to read and play with toys. He makes all kinds of sounds, like he is trying to read, or acting out something elaborate with his toys. It's adorable to watch. And speaking of watching... another big screen fan in this guy! His favourites are Mickey's Monster Musical, Baymax, and Frozen.<br />
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Shark Bait does not love nursery. He's been attending nursery since he was born and did great in there, but they released me a month before he started attending on his own and that month ruined him! He does not like nursery very much anymore. He is still my best sleeper in that he'll go down quickly and without a fight, but he does not sleep through the night most nights. He likes to nurse once or twice during the night, if I'll let him. Which I usually do, because he's my last one and that breaks my heart a little bit.<br />
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Me- Oh there is so much I could say... I'm busy with preschool and my photography business. I've taken several amazing photo classes lately that just have me chomping at the bit to go completely full time with photography, but I know I'm not ready for that at this point in my kiddos lives. I am so enjoying all the education though! I look forward to sitting down at my computer each evening to do a little more of my classwork and I'm seeing my photography improve by leaps and bounds. It's amazing.<br />
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I've been dealing with some health issues lately that have been stressful and frustrating and annoying. I think I am finally getting a handle on things and maybe I'll devote a post to explaining it all later. I just feel like such a Debbie Downer when I talk about it all! But it makes me feel like a Debbie Downer to be experiencing it all too, so it's just been hard. Things are improving though and just this week I have taken a huge turn for the better! Here's to hoping things continue on this positive path.<br />
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So there you have it... updates on us, in a nutshell. Just know we are here, we are alive and well, we are just busy and I don't see that slowing down anytime soon. But we are also loving life and working hard on house project, planning some fun vacations and just enjoying each other. I'd love to say I'll be back soon with more posts, but I don't want to set anyone (including myself!) up for disappointment. I have more I want to post and hopefully I can find/make time to do it soon!Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-38634530366914410692017-03-25T20:57:00.003-07:002017-03-25T20:57:41.125-07:00Happy 10th Birthday, Sunshine!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Happy, happy birthday sweet Sunshine!</div>
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Today is a big day for you... double digits! You've been simultaneously excited beyond belief and hesitant and nervous for today to arrive. You weren't sure what to expect when moving to the double digits, but hopefully it has been a wonderful day! We started with your traditional birthday breakfast of beniets and ended the day with tacos and angel food cake... all your favourite things. You were showered with wonderful gifts, perfect for the grown up girl that you are- new clothes, some fun art projects, lots of new books to read and Harry Potter Wizards Chess. You've already played it a handful of times, and I'm sure it won't be long before you are beating your dad every once in awhile. </div>
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This past year has been a challenging one for you. At the end of the summer, we made the very difficult decision to pull you from the school you had attended since Kindergarten and all the wonderful friends you had made there, and move you to a new school. It was such a scary decision that we all prayed about for months on end before making. It was a hard transition at first, but you were so brave and full of faith. You knew it was the right choice and even when it was most difficult, you have always had a great attitude and found the good amidst the trials. You've made new friends, discovered new interests like band and drama, you've excelled in your studies and been on the principals pride list two of the three quarters this school year. You are such a great example of thriving during difficult times. We know this change has disrupted your life more than ours, but you have grown so much and it brings us so much joy to watch you bloom.</div>
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You love church and are such a great example of Christlike love. You are kind to all you meet (except maybe your siblings!) and you often ask your church teachers some hard questions that they cannot always answer. Your desire to learn and grow is strong and we love when you bring us your challenging questions and let us help your testimony grow. You have a wonderful understanding of the scriptures and enjoy reading them alone and as a family. We hope your love of the words of the prophets never dwindles!</div>
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You are just as creative and artsy as always. You are doing a wonderful job learning to play piano, trying your hand at the flute in the school band and playing the role of July, an orphan, in your school's production of Annie Kids. The school play has been a huge time commitment but you are handling it with grace. Even the weeks when you have multiple days of practice, plus swim team, plus piano, plus before school commitments, you are smiling and happy and never say a word about quitting. You work hard and give all your extracurricular activities your best effort. Unless that extracurricular activity is cleaning your room... Ü We are working on that hurdle still. </div>
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We are so blessed to be your parents and find so much joy in watching you learn and grow. We love you so very much and are excited to see what your second decade of life brings! But just remember, no matter how old you get, you will always be our baby... the sweet baby girl who entered our lives following a magnificent Arizona sunrise all those years ago, our own little bundle of Sunshine.</div>
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Love always, </div>
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Mom & Dad </div>
<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-48879099394981005612017-01-29T22:25:00.000-08:002017-01-29T22:25:42.671-08:00Merry Christmas to All!Designing our family Christmas card is always one of my favourite parts of the holiday season and this year I was excited to take advantage of my lab offering foil cards for the first time ever! The finished product turned out amazing with a beautiful rose gold foil spelling out "Noel" along the bottom of our cards. Unfortunately, this Photoshop image of the design just doesn't do it justice! <br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-27121246801884834362017-01-29T22:09:00.001-08:002017-01-29T22:09:19.012-08:00Itchies for Man CubSomehow, Man Cub managed to make it to 4 years and 3 months of life before his first ER visit. To be completely honest, we are all shocked he lasted that long! But his streak came to an end on December 14th when I was at Mutual and got a call from Bruce telling me to get home immediately because we needed to take Man Cub to the hospital. He didn't really give me details, but I quickly handed off my responsibilities at the activity, got in the car and calmly headed home. I had gathered that Man Cub would need stitches so I called around, let the Young Women's president know I would miss our meeting that night, found someone to sit with the girls and got home to pick up Man Cub and Bruce so we could head to the hospital. And because Shark Bait was pretty hysterical, we took him along too.<br />
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As we drove to our favourite children's ER, I finally got all the details. The kiddos and Bruce had been playing their favourite game, the blah blah game, which is basically just a lot of running around and chasing each other while yelling "blah blah". Never been one of my favourites, mainly because they play it right around bedtime when I'd really prefer the kiddos to be calming down, not getting riled up. On this particular night, as they played, Sunshine tripped and fell and Man Cub fell over the top of her and his chin had an unfortunate meeting with the edge of a door resulting in a pretty deep cut. Sunshine and Beebs freaked out and started screaming and crying, Man Cub doesn't deal well with blood anyway and his sisters freaking out scared him even more so he was hysterical and all three of them crying put Shark Bait over the edge as well. It wasn't a pretty sight when I got home! But the girls calmed down and by the time we got Man Cub to the hospital, he was relatively calm as well, he just really did not want "itchies" as the girls had told him he would need.<br />
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We got checked into the ER and shown to our room. The doctor quickly came in and confirmed what we already knew- that Man Cub would need to be fixed up. We told her not to say stitches and instead they told him that he would be getting a special bandaid and then they would fix him up. They dressed the cut with a Lidocaine soaked gauze pad and let the medicine go to work while Man Cub watched Zootopia on the hospital TV. After about 45 minutes, once the cut was nice and numb, the doctor and a nurse came in to stitch him up. By this point, Man Cub was nice and relaxed and didn't care at all what they did, so long as he could keep watching his movie. When Beebs got her stitches, they rolled her up in a sheet so her arms were pinned to the side, but with Man Cub, they just had Bruce and I hold his hands. He hardly even flinched while the doctor gave him four stitches to close up the 1 centimeter cut.<br />
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Once all was said and done, Man Cub got the world's most expensive popsicle and toy cement mixer ever (yay ER copays :P) and we were on our way. He handled it like a champ and was excited to show his sisters his blue whiskers. He was even more excited that he had a great "i" show and share at preschool the next day... an injury!<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-85741395816011035092017-01-29T21:36:00.000-08:002017-01-29T21:36:01.356-08:00The Polar ExpressMany moons ago, or 4 years ago to be exact, Bruce and I took the kiddos to Williams to ride the Polar Express. Man Cub was only 2.5 months old at the time, but the girls loved it and ever since we have talked about doing it again. Especially since Man Cub is a big fan of trains.<br />
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This year, all our talking finally turned into something more. In September Bruce told me that he was completely serious about doing the Polar Express this year and asked me to make arrangements. I booked the train, found a hotel and made plans for Bruce's dad to join us on the adventure. Then we kept our mouths shut. We didn't say a word to the kiddos! Even when we surprised the girls by pulling them out of school early, we didn't say a thing. We were a good 30+ minutes into our drive north before we finally told them where we were headed and they were so excited!<br />
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Unfortunately, there wasn't really any snow in the Flagstaff/Williams area while we were there, but we still had such a good time and enjoyed the chance to do something extra Christmasy. We drove up and got ourselves checked into the hotel. Then the kiddos opened their Christmas pjs and we grabbed some dinner. We made the quick drive from Flagstaff to Williams and boarded the Polar Express. The train ride was a lot of fun, though Shark Bait was over it by the very end. The hot chocolate and cookies that were served were delicious and we especially enjoyed singing Christmas carols and welcoming Santa aboard our train car where he presented each of us with a silver sleigh bell. After the train ride, we visited with Santa for a few minutes back at the train depot before heading back to our hotel.<br />
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Saturday morning we slept in, then ate breakfast and took the kiddos swimming at the hotel pool. After we checked out, we went to Walnut Canyon to do a little hiking. Bruce and his dad assured me it was a flat hike... um. No. It was a steep hike, straight down a deep canyon. Yes, it was amazing to see the Native American ruins and watch the kiddos amazement as they learned about the way the Native Americans had lived right in the side of the mountain, but I'm pretty sure we took several years off my life in the process. I am deathly afraid of heights and my legs were legitimately shaking in fear the entire time we hiked. In fact, Sunday morning I woke up with some intense leg pain from how severely they had been shaking for the several hours we spent in Walnut Canyon. It was beautiful, but I still cannot say it was worth the toll it took on my anxiety to do the hike.<br />
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After Walnut Canyon, we ate lunch and headed to the Lowell Observatory in hopes of taking a look through one of the huge telescopes. The Observatory was incredible. I was a huge astronomy nerd back in middle school and high school. At one point, I even attended a weekend long AstroCamp in Idyllwild, California. The Observatory was definitely my favourite part of the weekend. We spent a lot of time in a cool room where the kiddos got to be space cadets and learn about astronomy in ways that total appealed to them like video games and trivia questions. Then we headed up to the telescope and wouldn't you know it, while we were inside the Observatory, a bunch of clouds had rolled in which meant they didn't open up the large telescope. There was a smaller one we got to look through, but only Man Cub and Beebs got to actually see the moon. The rest of us just used the telescope to look at street signs and cars in the city below. But we still really enjoyed it and Man Cub especially thought the telescope was the greatest thing ever.<br />
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Our drive home was uneventful. We were all exhausted after our jam packed, whirlwind of a trip. We had such a great time and hope to be able to go back again soon... we've gotta give the Observatory another try! Hopefully without clouds next time.Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-83098189477793899712017-01-29T21:31:00.001-08:002017-01-29T21:31:26.620-08:00A New Plan For A New YearInsert deep sigh here. I was recently called as the secretary of the Young Womens organization in our ward. It's exciting to serve in Young Womens but a little overwhelming as well! We have a lot of girls in our ward and there is a lot going on, all the time. But I serve with incredible women and I am really excited about it.<br />
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This morning as part of our ward conference, I attended a secretary's meeting. We talked about the importance of record keeping, during which my mind kept wandering back to this blog. I started this blog (at a different domain) many moons ago, when I was pregnant with Sunshine. I wrote 800 posts on that original domain before switching over here, where I have an additional 200 posts. This is our family's record. Originally, I planned to print this record using Blurb, but after years of planning to "get around to it", I finally did and after my first book was complete, Blurb stopped offering an easy blog to book option. That started me questioning whether this was really worth it anymore. Then I got super far behind on blogging. Then I caught up. Then I got behind again and here I am, sort of caught up with several blog posts written but not published and an internal debate over whether or not it is even worth doing this anymore. And then I sat in that meeting...<br />
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It is worth it to keep a record. It might be more difficult to print this out now than it was before, but that too is worth it. It's worth having the stories of my family saved for future generations and I cannot even count how many times a week I refer to my blog to find a certain photo or share a story with my kiddos. This record keeping is important. But it's also daunting. I struggle to keep up because I have this need to share every. single. story. With every. single. photo. And that can't keep happening.<br />
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I've decided to try something new. It may or may not work... but I truly hope it will! I'm going to add photos and publish the posts that are in my que and then I'm going to try setting aside 30 minutes each Sunday after my kiddos are in bed to jot down some stories and thoughts from the week. There might be photos... there might not. I might share a ton or it might just be a little bit. But somehow, I have to keep this record going. I've put too much into my record keeping to just quit now. I hope this ends up being a happy middle ground, and I hope it is something I can stick to!<br />
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So there you have it. A new plan for the new year. We shall see how it goes!Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-3274429580954706492017-01-03T22:51:00.002-08:002017-01-03T22:51:40.938-08:00Happy 7th Birthday, Beebs!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My sweet Beebs,<br />
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Happy, happy birthday! 7 years old! You know, I've been fine all day as we have celebrated, but as I sit down to write your birthday letter, I find myself on the verge of tears. How is my littlest girl getting so big, so incredibly fast!?<br />
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There is so much I want to say to you, I just don't even know where to begin! I am so proud of how far you have come this past year. You are so brave and so full of faith. Dad and I asked you to do a very hard thing when we pulled you out of your old school and enrolled you somewhere new. It was one of the hardest decisions we have ever made, and even though I know it wasn't what you wanted, you put on a smile, told us you were excited and it has been a great change. You are learning and growing so much, and even though you miss your friends, you have such a positive attitude about it all and it has made the transition easier on all of us.<br />
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You are so friendly and social. You always want to be playing with someone and you are never afraid to make a new friend. This is something I really admire in you. You have a way of making everyone feel loved and they are excited to be around you. Anytime I visit you at school, you are greeted by name by pretty much everyone we encounter. You have a bright, bubbly personality that people just love. Sometimes it is hard to keep up with your social life as you always want to have someone over or go to a friend's house, but I love that you know the importance of friendship and work hard to be friends with everyone.<br />
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You still have such a playful heart and you can spend hours and hours with your toys. You are very creative and come up with elaborate games and storylines. You don't always like it when someone else (mainly your sister!) has different ideas but you are catching on to the idea of compromise.<br />
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You and Shark Bait continue to have a very special relationship. He just adores you and often wants you over me. He loves to follow you around and play with you and your toys. He learned to say your name and it is one of his favourite words. You are so kind and loving towards him. I love watching the two of you interact. I hope this special relationship lasts forever.<br />
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We are finding that you are a natural athlete. You are such a fast runner and last summer you started swimming competitively. You made so much progress over the course of the summer and have continued to swim twice a week since. You work hard and your efforts have been rewarded. You have turned into quite a little fish, or a graceful mermaid, depending on the day. Ü It is so fun to watch you try new things and succeed.<br />
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You are such a special little girl, and when I think back on the scary circumstances that brought you into the world, I know you are truly a miracle in every way. You have a very special purpose on earth and I am excited to see it play out. We love you so much, we are so grateful for you and feel so blessed to be trusted to raise you.<br />
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Have a wonderful year of being 7! We love you so much.<br />
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Love always,<br />
Mommy & Daddy<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-32127097602184432282017-01-01T23:28:00.002-08:002017-01-01T23:28:40.090-08:00When Papa Came To TownI know this may come as a surprise, but I have actually kept up on my blogging! I have all of December documented in words... I just need to add the photos and post! I know, I know. I am shocked too!<br />
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The beginning of December didn't start off quite as planned... in mid-November, Bruce Wayne was invited to be a last minute attendant at a special PIO training at the Emergency Management Headquarters in Emmitsburg, Maryland. We had two weeks to make arrangements and Bruce Wayne flew out the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Two days later, my dad flew in to keep me company and help out with the kiddos during what ended up being an eventful week. Clogged toilet, sick boys, and a week of teaching seminary made me really grateful to have someone else around while Bruce Wayne was gone!<br />
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For the most part, the week was filled with everyday events like getting the girls to and from school, swim team practice, seminary and preschool, but we fit in a few fun events too. The night he arrived, we picked Papa up from the airport and went to the Mesa temple to look at the Christmas lights. We definitely picked the right time to go! There were only a handful of people on the temple grounds and we didn't have to wait in line at all to see the nativity display. It was awesome! The kiddos had a little more freedom than normal in regards to being allowed to walk around on their own and the weather hadn't gotten too chilly yet. It was practically perfect.<br />
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We also visited the girls at school on different days and ate lunch with them. Sunshine wanted us to join her for taco salad bowls and Beebs decided pizza day was a good day to have company for lunch. It was fun to show Papa their school and spend a little extra time with the girls.<br />
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The Friday Papa was here, we found a really fun way to pass some time. Beebs' teacher at school shared the details of a local train park that puts on a Christmas event each year. Beebs begged to go and it sounded like it could be fun, so we invited some friends to join us and we bundled up in our warm clothes and headed out. It was better than we could have imagined! We took a 20 minute train ride out in the desert and saw lots of Christmas lights and blow up characters along the way. We met Santa. We had hot chocolate and cookies. Then we spent the rest of the evening in the train house, watching tons and tons of model trains make their way around an elaborate track. Man Cub was in absolute heaven. The men running the event gave him a little step stool and told him to carry it around the room with him. He would run from spot to spot, set his stool down, climb up and watch the trains go by. Then he'd pick up the stool and do it again. I loved watching his face as each train went by.<br />
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It was so much fun having my dad here to spend time with us. The kiddos loved having him all to themselves and I slept better knowing I wasn't alone all week. I just hope he had as much fun as we did Ü<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-24423461976027097022016-12-06T22:16:00.002-08:002016-12-06T22:16:45.002-08:00The State of This Blog AddressMy blog is suffering... that much is obvious. I am about 11 months behind on posting and as much as I like to hope that life will calm down and I will have the time to devote to catching up, the truth is I have less time than ever, with each passing day. I have debated heavily how I want to continue. Sometimes I contemplate throwing in the towel all together. Turning blogs into books has become really difficult and that is discouraging as my ultimate goal has always been to turn this blog into a printed history of our family.<br />
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But when it comes down to it, I can't let go. Between this and the private blog I wrote on from 2006 until 2013, I have over 1000 posts, countless number of photos, and so many recorded memories. I hate the thought of not continuing on. But something has to change. I cannot keep dreading logging in because I know I am so far behind. So, I'm letting myself off the hook. It pains me to not have the past 11 months recorded in great detail, but I want to be able to move forward and blog in the present. Perhaps a day will come when I can go back and fill in the holes. But, if not, I need to be ok with that as well, and I think I am!<br />
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So here goes, a brief recap of the past 11 months, in words only, no photos, and from here on out, I am blogging in real time. Hopefully this space can once again be a place I enjoy spending time, rather than one more thing on my to do list that stresses me out.<br />
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<b>February</b>- The main highlight of February was our trip to Disneyland. We surprised the kiddos with the trip at Christmas and then anxiously counted down the days until our trip. It was magical. We had a few days to ourselves and a few days with Bruce's brother's family, his dad and aunt. The girls dreams came true when Grandpa gifted them an afternoon at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, where Sunshine was transformed into Jasmine and Beebs was transformed into Anna. The girls also became Jedis and fought Darth Vader and The Seventh Sister. Shark Bait wore a different Disney onesie each day and got stopped everywhere we went so people could oh and ah over him. And Man Cub was just in heaven overall, especially when the night parade opened with his favourite character, Mack from Cars, leading the way.<br />
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After Disney, we headed down to San Diego for a few days with our friends from Bruce's academy days. It was wonderful to spend time with them. And after we returned home, the rest of February seemed pretty low key. We did take the kiddos to a Coyotes hockey game which was so much fun. I forgot how much I enjoy watching hockey! And then I turned 31, which was pretty dull... turns out, after all the hoopla of turning 30, it all goes downhill. Ü Especially when you spend your 31st birthday speaking in church. Not cool!<br />
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<b>March</b>- In March, we started attending a lot of mission paper parties. Many of the youth we have grown close to through Trek and teaching Sunday School and Bruce's years in Young Mens left on missions this year. We got to attend a lot of gatherings where the boys opened their calls and later in the year, we were able to go through the temple with many of the boys and hear their farewell talks. It was an exciting time! In March, we found out that the trek son we are very close to would be serving in the England Leeds Mission, speaking Slovak. I totally called it... the England part. Not the Slovak part!<br />
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Mid-March, we bid farewell to our trusty Blazer. She was 20 years old, we had driven her for 10.5 of those years and she was on the way out. She is the car we brought Sunshine home from the hospital in and it was really sad to say goodbye... but our new fancy pants minivan helped ease the pain. Well, other than the part where we took on a car payment for the first time in our marriage. Luckily, we've almost got that sucker paid off already. We could actually pay it off right now, but were told that it was better for our credit to pay on it for a year? I hope that's actually true or I'll be mad that we keep holding off on making the full and final payment!<br />
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<b>April</b>- April was pretty low key... Sunshine took a sewing class and learned to make pillowcases. She's been her own little pillowcase sweat shop ever since. Pretty much everyone who is near and dear to her has a Sunshine-made pillowcase. And if they don't, they are probably getting one for Christmas! My best friend KJ was in town from Hawaii for her brother's wedding. Unfortunately, we didn't get much time together at all and it broke my heart to know she was just an hour away but not able to spend time with me. But she did bring me some POG (passion fruit-orange-guava juice) that eased my pains marginally.<br />
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<b>May</b>- May brought the end of a great school year. Sunshine and Beebs both loved their teachers and their classes. Man Cub rocked his first year of preschool, which was technically a one day a week tot class. Kindergarten graduation made me cry and we held our second annual Memorial Day BBQ with our favourite friends from the girls school.<br />
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<b>June</b>- This is when life started to get crazy! June was the month of swimming for us. Both girls were heavily involved in competitive swimming, with an hour long practice for each of them 4-5 mornings a week and swim meets two nights a week. We eventually got into a good routine with it, but it was a hard month! Especially since right after we signed the girls up, Bruce got a promotion at work that changed his schedule, making him unavailable to help with getting the girls to practice and meets. I'm not sure I would've committed to swimming had we known about the job change any sooner, so it is probably good that it worked out as it did. I am glad both girls got to compete all summer, even though it was difficult to spend that much time at the pool with four kiddos. It was amazing to watch them both progress and grow so much in their sport.<br />
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We also got ourselves a family pass to our community pool for the summer, so most nights of the week, we would eat dinner, then head over to the pool and swim for a few hours more. There were days when I spent 5-6 hours sitting in or at a pool. But it helped us to stay busy and mostly beat the heat during the first part of the summer.<br />
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July- Things really picked up in July. Along with the end of the swim season, we also had Shark Bait's first birthday and our two week road trip to Utah. It was a crazy, hectic month, but oh so fun. We had a blast in Utah. We touched lots of temples, ate lots of donuts, and spent as much time as possible outside enjoying the beautiful cool evenings. We fell in love with Swig cookies and sodas, ran a temple to temple 5k and celebrated Pioneer Day, Utah style. We ended the visit with a day in the mountains with all of my family before heading home to Arizona where Bruce and I had to decide which school our girls would attend... the one they had gone to since Sunshine was in Kindergarten, or a new school that opened in our area that I felt really strongly about...<br />
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August- In August, we headed back home to the sweltering heat. Bruce turned 33 and the girls got ready to start school. We debated heavily until the very last moment, at which point it became clear to us that they were suppose to attend the new school in our area. It was scary beyond belief to make the change, but it has been a wonderful experience. We are so happy with their new school. The curriculum is wonderful, the campus is beautiful and both girls are absolutely thriving there. We just really miss our friends from the old school and wish they would have all moved with us Ü Bruce and I hit a relationship high when together, we won the jackpot playing the basketball game at Chuck E Cheese, and we took a quick day trip up to Prescott to visit with some friends and enjoy the cooler mountain air.<br />
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September- Always a big month, September brought the beginning of my fourth year of teaching preschool. Bruce and I were given some amazing tickets to a Cardinals pre-season game and took Shark Bait with us. We were also invited to join some friends for a day at Wet N Wild water park. We celebrated Man Cub's 4th birthday by projecting a movie onto the side of our house and inviting all his friends and their families to join us in watching and we did all these things without spending an extra penny outside our regularly scheduled bills and food budget! No Spend September for the win! We saved a bucket load of money by really watching our spending, and were able to pay off a huge chunk of the new car as well as gear up for the expensive and fast approaching holiday season.<br />
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October- In October we added a new member to our family- Harvey Bones, the 5 foot tall plastic skeleton. He mostly hung out on our piano bench, but occasionally he could be found in miscellaneous places around the house. He was fun and we look forward to his return next October. The girls got their official Hogwarts acceptance letters and donned their wizard robes to attend Halloween at Hogwarts, presented by the Phoenix Symphony. Bruce and I hosted our first annual adult Halloween Party and it was amazing. Can't wait to do it again next year and we celebrated my nephew's birthday at Touch a Truck... aka, little boy heaven. Though Man Cub did not like all the honking horns at the event, he did love getting to touch and sit in the excavator. We finished off October with family photos at the Phoenix Temple, and for the first time in years someone other than myself took our pictures! It was fun to have someone else be in control and get the kiddos to all look at the camera and we ended up with some beautiful photos where everyone is looking and smiling!<br />
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November- November brought about our 5th annual Planksgiving celebration. Crab legs and melt-in-your-mouth ribeye, desserts galore and a trip to the movie theatre to see Moana. It was a spectacular day. I even started the day out by running a 5k with some friends at church. I did the race at a 10:25 mile pace which is huge for me, especially considering I hadn't been running regularly. My typical pace is 11:30-12:00 a mile, and that was when I was running 3 times a week and training for half marathons. It was exciting to see that I am not completely weak and useless when it comes to physical activity. Hopefully soon I can get back into a good running and exercise routine... as soon as I get my health back on track. Post with more info on that, coming soon! November ended with Bruce flying out to Maryland for a week long training at the Emergency Management Institution headquarters. My dad flew out to stay with us and that was such a blessing since it was one of those weeks where lots of little things happened that could have made for a difficult week had I not had some help... everything from Sunshine sewing through her finger while making pillowcases to a backed up toilet and two sick boys. It was nice to have my dad's company and help while Bruce was away.<br />
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And that leads us to December... the here and now! Blogging in the present for the first time since Shark Bait was born! Woohoo!<br />
<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-64340572139757525532016-11-06T20:56:00.000-08:002016-11-06T20:56:59.933-08:00California 2016 | Family PhotosFor Christmas last year, we surprised our kiddos with one really big gift- a trip to California! Our trip ended up being broken into three parts- a few days at Disneyland by ourselves, a few days at Disneyland with Bruce's family, then a few days in San Diego with our wonderful friends from Bruce's police academy days. We had such a great time... the only problem with that is I am just dying to go back!<br />
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Bruce, the kiddos and I left for California Sunday after church. We drove straight to our hotel room, where we got ready for family photos. Surprisingly, it was Bruce's suggestion that we start our trip off this way. It was time to update our family picture and Bruce wanted to recreate our beach portrait from before Shark Bait was born. We decided that if we tried to take the photo the first day, then we wouldn't have to stress about it through the rest of the trip. Plus, if for some reason the weather was bad or the kiddos didn't cooperate, we'd have chance to try again the next weekend while in San Diego.<br />
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After scouting out locations online, we settled on Crystal Cove in Laguna Beach. It was a beautiful spot. The only downside was that we had to park quite far from the beach, so we had very little time with good lighting to get the photo. And the beach closed at sunset (it's a state park) so we had to hustle out of there once the photos were taken, so there wasn't much time to actually enjoy being there.<br />
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But! We were successful! We got a fantastic family photo that hangs as a 20x30 on the living room wall. And then we had dinner at Slaters, so it was pretty much an awesome way to start out the vacation.<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-73773582671093941892016-11-02T19:02:00.001-07:002016-11-02T19:02:20.749-07:00Odds & Ends: Wrapping Up January... FinallyThe beginning of the end... of January posts anyway. I know half my problem is that I want to record and capture every single moment of life. I promise that I am getting better at taking less pictures and only sharing the most meaningful ones. Now I just need to work on not feeling a need to post all the old photos from when I took hundreds each month. Baby steps!<div>
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This photo has no story attached... so logically I shouldn't post it, especially in my efforts to post less photos. But those eyes! And the cheeks! And the fact that he's my last baby... I want to post all the Shark Bait photos!<br /><div>
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2016 started out rough with a lot of sickness going around school. In an effort to keep the sickies at bay, I have the kiddos take liquid garlic and vitamin C. Man Cub can be super stubborn and with the yucky taste of the garlic, I figured I would never be able to get him to take it. But he takes it, and does it pretty happily. </div>
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Our kitchen chairs kicked the bucket hard core at Christmas, so when Beebs and I got back from our trip to Utah, we ran into IKEA and picked up these beauties. Probably not the sturdiest or most long lasting chairs, but we love the look of them and for the moment, they are holding up just fine!</div>
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Beebs went on a birthday date with Aunt Amy. Starbucks, lunch and some ceramics painting. She loves her pegasus piggy bank and is really hoping that these Aunt Amy birthday dates will become an annual tradition. </div>
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Sink bath! These do not happen nearly enough, especially considering that we've had our awesome new sink for over two years now. </div>
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Beebs had to decorate a shirt with 100 items for 100 day at school. Beebs loves bows, so I tied and sewed 100 bows to a hot pink shirt. The things I do for my kiddos. In hindsight, we probably could have (should have) done something more simple, but she was so excited about her shirt and it was so her! Also, 100 day glasses are my favourite!</div>
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Few things make my heart swell as much as seeing my kiddos love for each other in action. Shark Bait was having a rough time with teething and Sunshine held him and rocked him for me so I could get some things done around the house. He fell asleep in her arms and my heart melted! Sunshine is such a great big sister. </div>
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Tulips! Always my favourite part of spring, which happens in January in Phoenix. And anytime I can get them in orange, I am a happy girl!</div>
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Beebs made me this necklace on 100 day at school. I love it. So colourful and fun. </div>
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The kiddos and I hosted a Jellycat picnic using American Girl doll food. It was awesome. </div>
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And we will end the month with this adorable grin... Now on to February!</div>
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Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-49137128536610671752016-10-30T15:36:00.003-07:002016-10-30T15:36:54.651-07:00Odds & Ends: The First Half of JanuaryMan, I would sure love to be caught up on blogging by the end of this year. What are the chances!? (Slim to none, I know! But I'll try!) Let's finish up the first half of January first and then we will just see what happens!<br />
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In January we enjoyed some post-bath Yoda baby.<br />
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At church, Man Cub moved from Nursery to Sunbeams.</div>
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The boys played some dinosaurs and Man Cub started a gymnastics class with the same teacher that both the girls have gone to.</div>
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Shark Bait reached the oh-so exciting milestone of being able to sit up in the shopping cart. I feel like running errands is so much less hassle when babes can finally sit up in the cart. But after sitting up all through Sprouts, Shark Bait crashed and ended up sleeping through Costco. Luckily, those carts are big enough that he could stretch out in the front and sleep, while Man Cub sat in the back. </div>
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Some rainy days made for awesome running weather. </div>
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The boys enjoyed being able to sit at the counter together. Shark Bait enjoyed some real food (mandarin oranges) while Man Cub downed some chocolate milk. Notice Man Cub rubbing Shark Bait's ears? Man Cub went through a phase where to comfort himself, he would tug on his own ears or the ears of anyone sitting nearby. He seems to have stopped this habit for the most part, but every so often I'll catch him rubbing ears when he's really tired or really upset. </div>
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Dad made Man Cub the coolest toy- a battle spear like the one Reptilius Maximus uses in Toy Story That Time Forgot. </div>
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We did some Tim Tam Slams for Family Night. Always a fun treat. </div>
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Man Cub enjoyed some tubby time with his dinos and zoo animals.</div>
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I tried to get into a good habit of exercising, with Shark Bait as my audience. He laughed at me every time I did a lateral step up. Can't really blame him... I hate those things and I'm sure I look ridiculous doing them!</div>
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Bruce had another celebrity sighting at work... He worked an Eric Church concert and got to chat with Eric for a few moments and take a picture. </div>
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When Shark Bait wasn't sleeping, he worked on perfecting the art of sitting up. </div>
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And to wrap up the first half of January, we enjoyed a picnic at the park with cousin Asa. </div>
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-14032000214299214642016-09-25T21:37:00.001-07:002016-09-25T21:39:14.810-07:00Happy 4th Birthday, Man Cub!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Dear Sweet Man Cub,<br />
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Today you are 4. Yesterday I begged you to stay 3 forever, but you told me that you couldn't. You had to turn 4! You've been looking forward to your birthday for months. Literally, every time we would go to the store, you would find something that you just had to have for your birthday. Your wish list got pretty long as the months went by. Luckily, you are one of the easiest to please children ever, so even though you didn't get everything on your wish list, you were happy as could be about all the sweet gifts and notes and birthday wishes you received today.<br />
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We had a birthday party for you yesterday. We kept it simple and just invited a bunch of your friends and their families over for popcorn, birthday cake and a movie, which we projected onto the side of the house and watched under the stars. It was so much fun. Because we weren't sure how many people would be attending, we bought a Costco sheet cake and you picked the dinosaur design. You were absolutely giddy with excitement when we picked it up. As I pulled it out of the big fridge at Costco, I looked over at you and you were covering your eyes saying "I won't peek! I won't peek! Tell me when it's ready." You opened your eyes to see it and squealed with delight. It was exactly what you wanted. Your excitement for life is not just limited to all things birthday related. I love that you get excited about almost everything you do, except for cleaning your room, of course.<br />
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You love your siblings so, so much. Almost every day when we drop the girls off at school, you shout "Bye Beebs! Bye YaYa!" as we drive away, then you quietly tell me "I'm going to miss my girls while they are at school." And you do miss them. You often count down the hours until they will be home. Luckily, you still have Shark Bait around to play with and boy oh boy do you adore him. You recently insisted that he needed to move into your bedroom with you. I was scared as could be about how the transition would go. You have a tendency to turn your light on and play at night, until you are ready to go to sleep. Shark Bait really values his sleep and likes to go to bed early so I was worried that your night owl ways would interfere with his good sleep habits. This has not been the case at all. You are so incredibly considerate of him. You lay quietly in bed with the lights off and let him go to sleep. Once, I heard you softly whispering my name. I went to your room to check on you and you whispered that you had to go potty. I helped you to the bathroom where you continued to whisper and remind me to be quiet, so Shark Bait wouldn't wake up. You didn't even want to flush the toilet! I was blown away with how considerate you were of your sweet little brother. He is so lucky to have you to be an example to him and to be his buddy.<br />
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You are doing great in preschool this year, even though your three best friends forever are in our class. I was a little worried about how it would go over, but for the most part, you are doing great. You are an eager learner and with a few small exceptions, you stay on task and participate in our lessons. You are learning so much and really blossoming in school. You are getting good at tracing your letters, so I know it will be just a matter of time before you are writing your own name. You've learned all your colours and can say the Pledge of Allegiance. You are great at counting and saying the days of the week. And books... oh how you love to read! It is not uncommon for me to go into your room during quiet time and find you reading a stack of books. Once, you were sent to your room to go to bed after a small tantrum and I turned off the light and told you to go to sleep. The light stayed off so I thought you had actually done just that. I went in to check on you and you were sitting by your bedroom window with the curtains pulled back, reading books by the little bit of light that was coming in. It melted my heart. I love that you love books! We have read Winnie the Witch so many times that you know most of the story by heart and will sit and read it to yourself. It's just about the cutest thing ever.<br />
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You are still all boy. You love all things dirt. You love cars and trains and anything that moves. You love dinosaurs and you love, love, love animals. Kevin the Bird is your best buddy and the two of you are your own little pack. You love to wrestle each other and snuggle on the couch and watch TV. Once, you told our friend Amy that you thought she needed "a little boy and his dog" so you were going to go live at her house. She'd take you in a heartbeat. You are her most favourite little boy ever!<br />
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You love going to Primary and you think your Primary teacher is the greatest guy in the world, next to your dad. And he is! You give him a run for his money but he is so patient and kind to you. You learn a lot from Brother Ban Wee, as you call him, and he is helping you continue to grow in the gospel. You look forward to Primary each week since it means you get to see Brother Ban Wee and two of your three best friends.<br />
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You tell me that you want to be a dad and a dog doctor when you grow up. It warms my heart that you know you want to be a dad. You'll be such a good one. You are strong and brave, but also kind and tender hearted. I hope you never lose those qualities. You often climb up in my lap and tell me "I forgot to hug you, mom!" You then give me a hug and a kiss and go along on your way. I have been teaching you to randomly tell me "You're the prettiest mom I've ever seen". I know it's totally self serving, but every time you do it, it makes my day. Just the little boost I need!<br />
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One thing is for sure, our lives were blessed when you were born 4 years ago. You are the baby I dreamed about the night before your dad and I were married and I am so grateful that you joined our family. You keep us on our toes and make life interesting. You give the best hugs and kisses and keep us laughing.<br />
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We love you so much, Man Cub. You are the best Dirt Boy a mom could ask for.<br />
Love Always,<br />
<br />
Mom & Dad<br />
<br />
<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-22377451238355708042016-09-11T21:16:00.000-07:002016-09-11T21:16:50.378-07:00The Bike RodeoAt the very end of January, we were able to attend a bike rodeo at our neighborhood park. We've attended bike rodeos in the past, but they've always been large scale events at one of the huge parks and the entire city was invited to attend at once. This year, the city held smaller bike rodeos at the various parks throughout the city and invited the surrounding neighborhoods to attend. <div>
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We love the bike rodeos. Free food, live band and the local PD fitting the kiddos for helmets and teaching them bike safety. And at the end, they do a drawing for some free bikes. In the past, the events have been so large that we didn't really have a chance at winning a free bike. This time around, I felt like our chances were a little bit better with the smaller crowd, so we stuck around for the whole event, just in case one of our tickets was a lucky one. </div>
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We enjoyed some free hot dogs, sodas, chips and ice cream for lunch. The kiddos each took a turn doing the bike course with the PD and the girls got new helmets. We walked through the sponsor tents and played on the blow up slide and bounce houses. Then it was time for the bike raffle. We gathered round, tickets in hand and the first number drawn was Man Cub's. He was so excited and ran right up and hopped on the brightest coloured bike up there. It was a little big for him, but I couldn't convince him to take the smaller one and the police officer running the raffle just shrugged and laughed. </div>
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Ticket number two was drawn... and matched the numbers on Beebs' ticket. She picked a pink and purple bike. Sunshine mentioned how funny it would be if she won a bike, but as she had gotten her dream bike just a year ago, she knew she didn't need a new one. We stuck around for the end of the drawing so the kiddos could be in a group photo with the other winners, and wouldn't you know it, Sunshine's ticket number was the last one drawn. We won bikes 1, 2, and 6. Sunshine thanked the man drawing tickets, but told him she had a great bike and asked him to pick a new ticket so another child would have a chance at winning. That girl... she is one of the sweetest children I know. She was just excited that her ticket was drawn, even if she didn't go home with a new bike. </div>
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The walk home was an adventure. We only live 3/4 miles from the park, but with the stroller and two bikes more than we walked there with, it was tricky! But we made it home and we were all grins for the rest of the day at having won three bikes. Unfortunately it was too late to buy a Powerball ticket... I was feeling pretty lucky! </div>
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Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-24718376836086766402016-09-06T14:10:00.000-07:002016-09-06T14:10:02.282-07:00Puddle PlayWe had a nice rainy day in January that made for some good puddles under the play structure. It seemed a shame to waste the puddles, especially since they were sure to be dried up before the girls got home from school, so Man Cub and I headed outside. I took my camera, he took his dinosaurs and we played. Man Cub splashed and jumped and helped his dinos go for a swim. I snapped away, getting all kinds of fun photos of my boy in his element. I really should get out my big camera more often...<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-41852922207619071352016-08-25T10:27:00.000-07:002016-08-25T10:27:08.827-07:00Beebs' Birthday Getaway | 2016 Edition<br />
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<span id="goog_413852458"></span><span id="goog_413852459"></span>Last year, Beebs decided to forego a birthday party for a <a href="http://claireandcrew.blogspot.com/2015/05/beebs-birthday-getaway.html">weekend getaway to visit my parents in Utah</a>. The trip had some struggles, but we ended up having a great time (once we got there!) and Beebs decided she wanted this to be her birthday tradition. Throughout the year she did waver a bit, sometimes wondering if maybe she wanted a big party with friends instead, but as the time drew nearer, she decided that she really did want another trip to Nana & Papa's to celebrate turning 6. And this time, Shark Bait came along.<br />
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I got Shark Bait a new mode of transportation for the trip. Typically I use an Ergo carrier for him, but Ergos are such a pain to take on and off multiple times as is necessary when traveling. He seemed to really like his new ride and I'm kicking myself for not having gotten a ring sling 4 children ago.<br />
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After last year's debacle, Allegiant wised up and changed their flight times from Mesa to Provo, allowing the fog to clear before trying to send their planes to land in Utah. This meant that Beebs was able to attend most of her day of school before we left. I picked her up a little bit before the end of her school day and we made the drive across town. We grabbed something to eat at the airport while we waited, with Beebs decked out in pretty much head to toe jaguar print. It's her signature look. </div>
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The plane ride was uneventful, THANK GOODNESS, and both Beebs and Shark Bait did great. I love that I have such great little travelers. I don't love that Beebs does "duck face" in pictures... I did not teach her that!</div>
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Once our plane landed, we hurried to my parents house where we changed into church clothes then headed to the Provo City Center Temple open house. It worked out perfectly that the open house started the weekend we were in Utah, and we were able to get tickets for the first day. I love any chance to take my children to see the outside of a temple... it is so so wonderful when I can take them to tour the inside! It is a beautiful temple and I am so grateful that we were able to tour (and touch!) it. </div>
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Saturday we drove up to Salt Lake to spend the day at the zoo and eat at Red Iguana. It was cold, but so much fun. Beebs wore two coats... one the right way, and one the wrong way, with her new jaguar backpack in between the layers. She managed to stay warm enough and had so much fun visiting all her favourite Hogle Zoo animals. </div>
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After visiting Uncle Matt-Stache at his work, Aunt T took us to visit her library. She introduced Beebs to all of her coworkers and then taught Beebs how to work Hans Gruber, the huge book sorting machine. Beebs thought that was the best thing ever. It ended up being a highlight of the trip for her. She also loved seeing the Star Wars and Mr. Potato Head displays in the childrens department. Aunt T and Uncle Matt-Stache have some of the coolest jobs around. </div>
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We ended Saturday with a trip to the cupcake store, relaxing at my parents house and playing in the snow. </div>
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Sunday was for church, lounging, cards and playing with Uncle Cooper's snake.</div>
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Monday it was time to fly home. Beebs was worn out from celebrating all weekend long. She slept in nice and late while Shark Bait and I attempted to pack all our stuff into a bag that would fit under the seat. That didn't work out so well, so we ended up borrowing a duffle bag from my mum and checking a bag to bring home all our Utah goodies. We said goodbye to the mountains, then to my family and with that, we were headed back to Arizona. After a stop at Ikea to buy new dining room chairs, we made the drive home, back to Bruce, Sunshine and Man Cub who were excited to see us. </div>
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-50999910400943695152016-08-23T12:11:00.001-07:002016-08-24T12:55:14.610-07:00When Beebs Turned Six<br />
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As always, our New Year started off with a bang as we celebrated the birthday of one very special little girl. Just like last year, Beebs asked if she could forego a birthday party and instead celebrate with a weekend in Utah, visiting my parents. So that was the big part of her birthday celebration, and we kept things simple on her actual birthday.<br />
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This year, Beebs' birthday fell on a Sunday. And a day that Bruce worked. I still did my best to make it special. We woke up super early thanks to our new schedule of 8am church in order to open presents and have breakfast together. We kept it easy- frozen waffles, but topped them with whipped cream and candles for the birthday girl. Then Beebs got all decked out in her beautiful birthday dress from our friend Amanda. She looked like a little fairy princess in it!<br />
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After church, we had Bruce's family over for dinner. Beebs had requested salmon with blueberry sauce for dinner and I was happy to fulfill her wish. The only problem- I've never used a grill before. Bruce taught me how to turn it on and gave me instructions for how to grill the salmon. I thought it had gone well until we cut into the thickest part of the salmon to find that it hadn't cooked all the way through. My father in law got the grill going again and made sure it was good and cooked. So the meal was a little bit of a disaster but Beebs didn't seem to care. She loved having everyone over and she especially enjoyed her traditional Nothing Bundt birthday cake.<br />
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A Christmas break birthday meant that Beebs celebrated with her classmates once school was back in session. She wanted mini cupcakes and juice boxes and the boys and I got to go to class to celebrate with her. It happened to be a special day at school when they got to wear any blue clothes instead of uniforms which Beebs thought was great. She wore a blue party dress and her teacher gave her a fun crown to colour and all her friends did a special birthday cheer for her. She didn't mind the attention at all!<br />
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2247836404984036915.post-69983398674509727302016-08-23T12:00:00.000-07:002016-08-23T12:35:19.047-07:00Family Pictures 2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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For our 2015 Christmas card photos, we drove to a nearby lake hoping to catch some magical sunset lighting off the water. Unfortunately, we were running a little short on time and we weren't able to get as close to the water as I had hoped. But the lighting was magical and we managed to get a few good shots. </div>
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<br />Clairehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07931417521117305936noreply@blogger.com0