march 31

Continuing Potty Training (for Kendall for the most part) - Cade did have a small bubbles accident; that will happen. I am trying to figure out what would motivate Kendall to go to the potty on his own. He just can hold it for a long time and I have to make him go potty every 4 hours or so. Candy is not a motivator. He woke up dry again from the night time and again with his nap. Cade woke up dry from his nap.

Kendall loves Cars (the movie) and Dora. I took Julia to her eye appointment this afternoon and brought Kendall with (in his undies!). We went to the baby/toddler section and picked out some more undies for him. Cars and Dora. Cars underwear and yes, Dora panties. This just might be the motivator...

I found my leapster game (Letter Factory) with our Leapster for Kaylee to use. Kerst had just turned 4 and received this for his birthday. He had all of his letters and sounds down in a matter of 2 weeks (I had been working with him, but this put him over and he learned it quickly!) She has enjoyed "playing" it. I had to put the harder games up high as they are too frustrating for her.

Conner is chugging 6 oz now! He is back! The size 5 diaper at night isn't holding everything either ... He is still enjoying Baby Einstein while I work on different tasks (potty training, etc...). Kendall loved these shows; still loves them.

More forts on the landing. Tons of playing with the motorcycles. Cade broke his beloved motorcycle yesterday, we can't live without them! I picked up a 5 pack at Wal-mart. Kaylee LOVES stuffed animals. She usually clings to Kendall's monkey he had in the NICU.

Kaylee snuck downstairs (unlocked the childproof lock) - she had to sit on time out. She is doing much better at not going in to places where she shouldn't go. She is learning all about consequences. She knows the routine of getting off of time out. I will go up to her and ask her why she is sitting there. In the beginning she would say, "I don't know." I would then tell her that she needs to think about it and I will be back to talk again in a couple of minutes. She will then tell me why she is there and what will happen if she does it again. We hug and give loves. When I put her on time out now she immeditely says "I'm ready to talk." She's a smart one! I'm working with Kaylee about being honest with her as well. She has hit the sneaky stage. She will sneak something from the kitchen (food), from a room, from the boys and I will find her hiding it on her person. She does NOT have a good poker face. We are talking about choosing the right. It is an important time for her to learn this. I had the same problem with Jenna (even more sneaky - she had a poker face) and also with Kerst. It is amazing to see the different learning stages in all of the kids - I have them in all stages in the house at the moment! Our house would be a great place for a Child Development Student to come and visit and get ALL of their observations done in one shot. I have all ages and all developmental stages! Kaylee is learning honesty and consequences (good and bad), Cade is learning all about bribes and I am able to reason with him. Kendall mimicks - and likes some competition (My Conner, My potty - love that one, and My Cade). Conner just lights up whenever someone walks in to the room. He is starting to show preferences to certain individuals as well - mainly when he is tired or hungry.

I had swim team carpool tonight. John worked on putting the kids down and also ran virus checks on all of the computers for the upcoming possible April 1st virus outbreak. Why do people start these computer viruses? Do they not have anything to do? If not, they can come help me finish potty training Kendall. That should be punishment enough for being bored and starting such things!

march 30

Up bright and early. Well, not really bright. It is still dark at 6:00.The kids are back to the same 'ole routine. School. Julia couldn't wait to go back. Guess we are too boring around here. I thought we stayed extremely busy last week during Spring Break. Well, maybe. Conner was recovering from RSV. Potty training Cade and Kendall. I wasn't about to leave the house! Jaley spent a day with her good friend, Grace. Grace came over and hung out for 2 days as well. Jenna's friend Becca was here for most of the break as well. They are both great girls and it was fun having them around.

I'd have to say I'd consider Cade pretty much potty trained. He tells ME when he has to go, I don't have to ask him at all! He even runs to the potty when he has to go poopies without needing to tell me. I am now working on having him pull up his underwear before leaving the bathroom and washing his hands. Baby steps. Next, He needs to increase the time between bathroom visits. I started out with 20 yellow candies (Skittles) in the dish this morning. They were gone by 12:30. Kendall had one - he usually runs off after going to the bathroom and forgets to ask for the candy. Kendall has a bladder of steel. He can hold it at least 8 hours. I don't like it when he waits that long because he has had a couple of accidents ... We are still working on the poopies for him. Bribes don't quite work with him either. He doesn't understand completely - 8 months difference in age sure makes a difference! I have to admit, I don't miss changing Cade's diaper. He's a fighter during diaper changes.

Now to get Kendall completely potty trained. I left Jenna and Julia with the kids while I ran around the corner to get Jaley from piano lessons. I came back and Kendall had an accident. At least the puddle was in front of the toilet! That is progress!!!

Conner is back to himself! My pediatrician was right. He would be better (and mostly over his cough) in 10 days. He is eating about 18 ounces at night. 6 ounces at 10:00 when I go to bed. 6 more at 2 and then another 6 at about 5. Sorry Shannon... I know when you sent him to me he was sleeping through the night (or almost). I don't know how to get him to not eat at night. He is STARVING! He eats plenty during the day too.

Kaylee had fun building forts, jumping off the steps into a pile of pillows blankets and stuffed animals, singing and chatting with her mom and dad on the web camera. It is fun to hear her sing. I can pick out a variety of songs (tunes). I know she is learning her Primary Songs I have been teaching her since she has been here because I can hear the tune ... but with different words. She is a walking musical. She prayed to be dry tonight so she could play with her princesses. I hope she is!!! Go Kaylee!

on the move with conner

conner scoots...he scores

he swings...and a miss.

march 29

What? Cade asked for something different for breakfast? I can't believe it! Guess what he asked for

....SNOWMEN!

He wanted a snowcone for breakfast. John stayed home from church with the boys. They are feeling much better, but I didn't want to risk throwing them into a bunch of germs so soon after being so sick.

I caught Conner scooting on video (finally ...). He is super fast on carpet.

Kaylee and Kendall had fun playing with some Dora figurines and then dancing around the pole in our formal living room/dining room. It is so cute to see Kendall interact with her. He is in the mimicking stage. He repeats her phrases and her dancing moves.

Potty training is going well. Cade did poopies twice in the potty today (to make up for yesterday). He came running in to me holding his hind end saying "potty potty potty" - we ran and made it just in time. He knows! Kendall is still holding out with poopies for today. Both boys have been dry all day today. I am trying to get Cade to go to the bathroom without an audience. He just wants to make sure someone knows he gets a piece of candy. Kendall doesn't have that love for candy, yet. I will miss Kerst when he goes back to school. He is very good at rewarding the boys their candy (and then rewarding himself).

Cade has wardrobe issues. I am trying to make him self sufficient. He has been working on pulling his undies back on after going potty. Sometimes he has them rotated a tad too much and parts of him are hanging out through the leg hole. It is quite a sight ... silly boy.

Tonight Kendall went after Cade with his sippy cup and gave him a pretty good wallop on the head. I scooped Kendall up and put him on time out and went to Cade to make sure he was ok. He was in tears. I kissed his head and asked him if he was ok. I was expecting him to say "He hit me, my head hurts" instead it was "My shirt wet." I took off his shirt with the couple of drops of water on it and he immediately stopped crying. He has a hard head!

Kaylee enjoyed her time with her Princesses during Sacrament Meeting. She was not happy with me when I told her the Princesses couldn't go to Primary. Kendall woke up dry this morning; I thought for a moment to offer the princess play date to him, but resisted. Kendall would be happy; Kaylee wouldn't.

march 28

Kaylee was sad ... she wasn't dry. She wanted to know if she could go to church today. One more day and it will be Sunday! She always says she is so sorry and that she can do it tonight.

Back to potty training basic training! Cade is doing amazing! He had one accident with bubbles in the morning. I put a diaper on for nap time and his underwear on over and pinned his shirt to lock him in. He woke up wet ... it will come with time. I have been pumping him full of fluids. He is a much better drinker than Kendall. Cade comes running to me every 30 minutes needing to go potty! Way to go Buddy!

Kendall woke up dry from his nap. He is still refusing to go potty. I ran out to pick up Kaylee's extra pair of glasses. She looks so cute in them! They stay on so much better as well.

While shopping I picked up some snow cone flavoring. We have plenty of snow!

Kendall and Cade LOVED eating snowmen.

They had at least 4 cups of snowmen.

And boy did they ever go potty!

videos from davids visit

enjoy these cute videos that David took while in Colorado last week. Thanks for taking them honey!

conner...

cute boy!

hi Kaylee!

kick

kaylee reading to her daddy

silly girl!

I love you too Cade!

da da....cough....da da

march 27

Kids up at 6:03. Kaylee states her normal happy, "I am dry!" salutation. Sadly I usually have to pop her bubble ... but not today! Kaylee spent the entire day with her princess collection!!! It was a happy day for all of us! It was fun to eaves drop. She knows her princess movies! She now has one prince (from Cinderella). He is enjoying dating each princess. Kaylee even found a couple of more figurines for the princesses to date (although Captain Hook is not highly desired to be friends with).

Kendall and Cade continued with their potty training. I swear I spent most of the day in the bathroom ... but it is worth every minute! Cade comes running to me every 30 minutes or so "I go potty!" We head to the bathroom where he produces a trickle. At least he is the one telling me he needs to go potty rather than me constantly asking him. That is a major step! Cade appeared mid-morning telling me he did poopies in the potty. Sure enough! Another break through!Kendall and Cade went down for their naps in a diaper. They woke up dry! Kendall didn't go to the potty until 8:00 p.m.; he held it for 8 hours. I kept pumping "peeing juice" (aka lemonade) down him. We tried several times to have him go potty but he refused.

I was daring and put the boys in the van to pick the older kids up from swimming at a local recreation center. Cade had just recently gone to the potty so I wasn't worried. I was concerned about Kendall. I put a diaper under him for emergency. We made it!

I think Conner is going to be an Electrical Engineer like his Uncle John; he loves cords. I took the lamp and the phone charger off of the end table in the Family Room. He has also enjoyed Baby Einstein movies ... I will have it playing in the room where he is doing his laps. He has been pretty patient while I am tending to the high maintenance potty trainers!

march 26

Blizzard Warning in effect. There was a light dusting of snow on the ground when we woke up. Kaylee got up a bit too early considering she went down a little later last night. She was up at 5:55. I have a feeling this afternoon will be a bit rough for her (and all of the rest of the kids; they are at school when she gets to her whiney stage in the aftenoon and then pops out of it).

French Toast this morning. I have to admit, I am not a fan of pancakes. I usually opt for oatmeal. French Toast sounded good this morning.

Conner had a MUCH better night! I think the nebulizer and the humidifier are making a difference. His cough doesn't seem so dramatic. I thought a moment yesterday of possibly taking him in for his cough, but his breathing was fine. I opted to watch him closely - glad I did. It just has to run its course and keep a close eye on that babe. Rest was another key to his recovery.

Kaylee was wet. So sad. Her princess friends are still waiting patiently. I can't say the same for her ;o)

Kendall and Cade are in undies again!!! They both had bubbles accidents this morning. After lunch Cade disappeared and then came running in to me yelling Poopies, Candy! He did it! All on his own!!! He realized he had to go, took off his undies and climbed on the potty and did his business. I grabbed the camera and the phone. In the middle of telling his mom about what he did, he realized he had more so he hopped back up on the toilet and finished his business! I think we have a break through! After he was done, he reminded me that he also got to play with his my-ca-doo's (motorcycles).

I was going to take the older kids swimming, but the weather has been getting worse. We opted to stay home (against their desires) - John is leaving work early.

Kaylee was super grumpy this afternoon. I put her in the tubby after dinner and then tucked her in bed at 6:15. She was sleep by 6:45. Clearly she needed to go to bed!While she was down early it was fun to be with the boys. Cade would say, "Go potty!", grab his undies and run to bathroom. Kendall would follow. They had a couple of accidents today. Tomorrow will be better. I'm proud of their progress ... especially for boys.

march 25

I was up late getting Julia from the airport last night. Conner is still suffering with his cough every couple of hours. The nebulizer seems to help. I also have the humidifier plugged in right next to his bed. It is running 24x7. I hope he gets over this cough sooner than later! Poor little tike.

John got up with the kids. Somehow he held them off until the oven pancakes were finished - that can take 40 minutes or more.

I set up the 2 shelves on one wall in my family room with my bribes. At first the Dora dance was good enough. Kendall was better at doing bowel movements in the potty than Cade. I picked up 2 trucks to reward them with going poopies.

It is amazing what 6 months age difference makes (actually 8 if you count the 2 months Kendall should have been cooking longer) when it comes to reasoning with Kendall and Cade. Cade understood the requirements of "earning the truck". Kendall didn't.

I decided to take them both back to square one with the potty training.They are in "big boy" underwear. I gave them quite a bit to drink this morning before naps. When they produced something in the potty, they got their truck. When they produced something in their underwear, the truck went back up on the shelf. This happened to Cade once with bubbles. He had to produce something in the toilet in order to get it off the shelf. I even resorted to giving them a skittle when they do anything (even sit) on the potty. When one does it, the other one wants to do it first.

I'm working with Kaylee on keeping her pants and undies on while going potty. This is a struggle for her. She says she can't go if she can't straddle the toilet like she is riding a horse. I told her we need to do this because there isn't enough time during the Kindergarten day to do her bathroom potty ritual.

Kaylee's new additions to her princesses are on the top top shelf (she is very clever and would find anything to stack and climb to reach them). When she realized that she couldn't have them today due to her extremely wet diaper she begged to go to church (John caved and gave her sippy while I was gone to get Julia). She has been asking even more often today if it is dark yet. I hope this will be even more incentive. I am going to have her look at the collection before heading to bed so she knows what she is working towards. I catch her glancing at the shelf throughout the day. It is sweet. It breaks my heart to tell her no, I hope it helps her and doesn't frustrate her. At least she has Sunday Sacrament Meeting to look forward to!!!

Conner is scooting all over again! He's back! He just needs to get rid of the cough and work his appetite back up to 6 oz for each feeding. We are almost at 4 oz now!

Julia's first comment when she saw Kendall was that he was talking so much more. I don't know if this was her observation after being in UT for 4 days or finally being around long enough to see the development since she was "gone" for almost 2 months due to AIDA practices. Julia also brought home Kelly's Senior Year prom dress. She tried it on and it is STUNNING. Whoa. She is on a hunt for some kind of shrug, etc... Thanks Kelly for sharing that amazing dress! I like it even more than that hot pink one. It is so much more sophisticated in color and style. Julia is the sophisticated type...

John took the girls out shopping today - they had a fun time with him. I went out tonight to pick up some groceries; we are expecting some major snowfall tomorrow... Weird because last week was in the upper 70's.

Happy Birthday David!!! It was cute to see Kaylee's eyes light up this morning when I mentioned it was his birthday. Cade asked if he could have some birthday cake when he talked to his Dad on the phone tonight. That Cade! I hope you had a great day David! Wish I could have given you the gift of a potty trained boy ... we are working on it!

march 24

John was great and took the two early risers while I rested a little longer. Conner is still struggling at night with a cough. He does have 2 hour stretches of no coughing, but then wakes up and would have a 1 minute coughing fit. Poor little guy. He's taking it like a champ. The cough is important to keep everything out of his lungs.I called and check in the with pediatrician again as she requested yesterday. She is great. She said that it sounds like he is doing as expected but to call if things change.Conner is acting more like himself today. Scooting on the ground. Smiling. The appetite is coming back slowly. He is still only doing 2 ounces (sometimes 4) at a time, but more frequently.
Kaylee's 2nd pair of glasses arrived today. We went in to have them fitted. The nose bridge piece was skewed a bit so she ordered some new frames. They should be here in 2 to 3 days. I had her current glasses worked on again. They fit her cute little face so much better!
Jaley came along for the trip to Walmart. We hit Kohls to check out their skirts. Slim pickings. I have discovered that Cade is a tactile shopper. He loves to TOUCH everything! While walking down an aisle he sticks out his hand and feels the fabrics. I made sure I steered clear of the glass section.Cade went down for a nap. Conner followed shortly after.
I took Jenna to her eye appointment for contacts. When we got back the boys were waking up. It was pretty quiet in the house. That makes you wonder what is going on, especially since Kaylee can now open our lever door locks. I found them on the top bunk in Kerst's room with Jenna's special box that is filled with her goodies. Those sneaky little guys. I know who the ring leader is...
Conner sat on his perch tonight while I made dinner. He just grinned from ear to ear watching the commotion. It is so nice to see him be his normal self again.We had Cheese Ravioli. Cade and Kaylee loved it! Kaylee ate all of her broccoli and carrots. Cade ate all of his carrots! Cade saw my baked zucchini and wanted it. He took a bite and thought about it. He smiled and handed it back to me. He swallowed his bite thankfully! They have come a long way with veggies.
I headed out with Jenna for swim team practice - leaving John with the gang. I hit Big Lots and found some fun items. Foam Blocks for Shannon (not for her, but her kids - she wants them because they are safe and won't do much damage if our athletic Cade decides to see if it travels like a football). Easter Goodies (baby blocks for Conner, Disney Princess Polly Pocket style Sleeping Beauty with the prince, potty training bribes (Matchbox hauling truck), and staying dry at night reward (14 more princesses). I had Shannon on the phone while shopping. It was fun!Gosh, each day I wonder what happened that would be interesting or noteworthy, yet still I seem to find enough stuff to ramble on about...Heading out soon to pick up Daeia...

march 23

I called our pediatrician this morning. She is an older grandma age doctor. She has always taken great care of us and fit us in quickly. She heard Conner's cough over the phone and said she would say he has RSV. It is very prevalent right now in the young children. It usually peaks at about 4 days and then starts to get better. Low grade fever, cough, loss of appetite (exactly what he has been doing), breathing/wheezing. She said the antibiotics won't hurt him, so keep him on them (although she said she would have picked a different antibiotic to use). She said that as of January, the urgent care center in her building sent their pediatric team away. She told me of another pediatric ONLY urgent care center close to us.

He is doing better today. His cough is very productive sounding, which is good. We don't want that sitting around in his lungs. She said his cough could last 10 days at least. He is eating a little more too.

Jenna and Kerst had a field trip to Wal-greens while the rest of us stayed home. The boys were ready for naps.Kaylee hauled in a dining room chair to try to reach her backpack in the laundry room. She wanted her princesses (she was wet :o( so no princesses today). She started asking if it was getting dark at 1:00 this afternoon. Jewlz/Daeia/Julia tried calling me at 13:23 today to inform me she was 16!!! (I was most likely putting Conner back down…) Sorry I missed her call. She finally reached me at 1:46 instead. She is headed out shopping with Jadey and Kelly.The phone rang this afternoon. It was quiet. No Kaylee - hmmm. I headed to get the phone and I heard the pitter patter of her feet running from the kitchen. The fridge door was closing on its own as I entered. I saw her scurry up the stairs with her arms filled with clementines. She’s sneaky. I had her put them back and let her have one, not 5. It was time for a light snack anyway. Kaylee has also figured out how to open our child-proof locks for the lever handled door knobs. That girl. We had a talk about not unlocking them because they are locked for a reason.

If candy was considered a drug, Kaylee and Cade would be great canidates for police dogs. They can sniff out anything in the house that has any kind of sugar. I don't have goodies around, but my girls enjoying have a small stash in their room (they love going to Walgreens).


The boys have enjoyed dusting anything and everything. They had fun working together "cleaning". Alfredo for dinner. Kaylee managed to eat some. Cade didn't eat much. He's going to be starving for breakfast tomorrow.

march 22

Kaylee came in to our room this morning saying "I stopped my pee! I'm dry!"Sure enough, she was dry!!! We did our Dora Dance for her. She was able to play with her princesses all day!Pancakes and eggs for breakfast. Cade only wanted pancakes. He still had to eat eggs though. It was really nice to have David around to help.Conner had a rough night. David took Conner for the night so John and I were able to get a decent night's sleep. Kendall woke up around 4 a.m. still feeling miserable ... poor baby. We threw him in bed with us so he wouldn't wake Cade and Kaylee up prematurely.Church today. David stayed home with Cade and Conner. Conner has had a hard time keeping anything down. Shortly after he eats he will have a coughing fit and throw everything up. He did that last night after we gave him his antibiotic. We had to dose him up again and keep him inclined. Today he has kept at least 10 ounces down!!! The cough is still nasty. So is Cade and Kendall's cough.

Cade will sneeze in doubles. This evening he had a major MAJOR sneeze and you wouldn't believe the snot bubble he produced. It would have broken the Guiness Book of World Record record if we had a camera handy (I know, gross...). Hopefully he kicks this cold soon. Later that evening Kaylee let a big toot. It was pretty funny. We had company over for both bloopers.

Fajittas for dinner. Kaylee loves guacamole and sour cream. Cade just wants the tortilla.Kendall had a 6 hour nap today! He NEEDED it!

It has been sweet to see David with Conner. He is great with Cade and Kaylee too. Cade loved to play cars with him.

I dropped David off at the airport this evening. I was tempted to take the kids with me, but after mentioning to Kaylee that David had to go back home she was sad. I decided to leave them at home. It was sad to see him go. It was such a treat to have him here and to get to know him better. Next time hopefully everyone will be healthy.

march 21

If the kids knew what was in the room down the hall, I'm sure they'd be up before the crack of dawn.

When David got in last night, John gave him the honors of moving Cade down to the bottom bunk to make room for Kerst on the top. David mentioned that Cade looked up at him with a dazed look. David quickly moved his head into his shoulders and placed him on the bottom bunk.

The kids woke up just before 7:00. We heard them stirring. I sent John out to grab them while I grabbed my camera.

We took Cade and Kaylee into David's room ... John took a video of their cute reunion. Cade was dazed. Kaylee was so excited!We did pancakes for breakfast ... surprise surprise.

The kids played trains and cars with David while we waited for it to warm up outside. It was a chilly 40 degrees when we first checked. We held them at bay with Pinocchio while we waited for it to warm up. Once it was warm enough, David headed off to the "pool park" with Kaylee, Cade and Kerst. It was actually VERY warm in the sun. While they were gone I over seeded our lawn and then put down fertilizer.

John turned on the sprinklers - the kids stayed out of them surprisingly. Our neighbors saw us turn on our sprinklers and soon 3 of our neighbors had activated their system as well. I don't think they realize that I have a handyman in my home. John is going to blow the system out in a couple of days when it is to gets below freezing. The yard looks better already with some water on it!

David and I took Conner into the Urgent Care Center after we put Cade down for his nap. Conner was wheezing and coughing. The triage took his vitals. 99 degree temp - low grade. The doctor listened. No croup. Lungs sounded clear. Moving phlem. Ears looked great.

He suggested David think about antibiotics. He also mentioned an X-ray. David and I thought we should take advantage of the X-ray since the insurance will cover it. It showed that Conner had signs of possibly developing pneumonia. Antibiotics to ward that off.

The weather was BEAUTIFUL this afternoon. Played in the backyard.

David hooked up a web cam for the kids to talk to Shannon. It was fun to see Cade move around trying to figure out what was watching him and showing him on the computer. I had to leave the room due to a phone call ... the kids were happy to see their mommy.

John headed off with David to pick up the medicine and then to hit Sams. We are doing FHE tonight since David has to leave tomorrow. We just made homemade ice cream. Cade wants some NOW.

Cade did poopies on the potty after dinner! He FINALLY got to get his my-ca-doos!

march 18

Today started early.

Conner was slightly warm around 2:00 a.m. I dosed him up with some Tylenol. It seemed to work. He has a hearty cough. I'm keeping an eye on it. I tried having him "cry it out" in the night for a time, but I gave in. He's too cute ... plus he guzzles down a bottle. He eats and then immediately loves to be back in his port-a-crib.

Kaylee was up at 5:40 crying. She was complaining about her ear. No fever. It didn't make sense to me. I snuggled her on the overstuffed living room chair. She dozed off - sniffling. I carried her back to her bed and told her that the princess needs to sleep until the sun is up.

Cade was up at 6:25. Hungry. Surprised? Not me. "Cancakes with Durrup"

Kaylee slept until 8:30 - she would have slept even longer but Cade was in the room bugging her. I snuggled with her and asked her questions about where she hurt. I didn't think it was an ear infection, but then Shannon would know best - her kids win the most ear infection in the first year of life award earning tubes in the ears. It didn't show the classic signs I would look for. She isn't coming down with the cold/cough that Cade and Conner have yet (looks like Kendall might be coming down with something too). No fever. No runny nose. No cough. I was wondering if her ear was hurting because of the eyeglass adjustment. No sore skin. She didn't want to move her head. Ah hah. Stiff neck. That makes sense with the "sore ear" - sometimes the pain does radiate from the ear...I rubbed her neck gently. I helped her turn it from side to side. It is harder for her to turn it to the right. I made her a rice sock and heated it up in the microwave. I'm calling today a pajama day for her. She is sporting her pj's and a rice sock around her neck. She's even happily wearing her glasses. (If anyone has a stiff neck, I say Conner...he's in the port-a-crib).

More trains for awhile. I then had the boys help me load the track in the basket and haul it to the "formal" dining room. We will set the track there on the wood floor. I wanted to clear out the family room so that Conner could roam wild and not get in trouble - "Time out Conner" is the upset plea I hear from the boys when he "barges in" and ruins their play.Lego's galore. The kids enjoyed building a house with their little pile of Lego's. We put those away and then had lunch. They didn't seem all that excited to eat... oh well.

Cade went down for a nap like a champ. He likes to have 2 (blue) pillows to lie down on with the blanket pulled up to his neck (he is on his tummy) and his sippy right next to him. No extra questions today. I tucked him in bed, went to the door and exchanged "I love yous"

...He had a shorter nap; Kendall woke him up protesting when I put him down. I swear they have a pact with each other. When one does something well, the other will cause grief! At least Cade got in at least an hour or so

...Kaylee sported the rice sock all day. I would rub and stretch her neck every few hours. She's a good sport. Hopefully tomorrow will be a little better for her ... although with my previous sore necks, it usually last several days.

Conner's cough is becoming more like a bark. He had a slight temperature this afternoon as well. Rosy red cheeks...

We had pizza today for dinner. I'm glad I had 2 large pizzas. Cade and Kaylee went crazy! Maybe they will sleep longer tonight with a full stomach; maybe not.

I did a quick errand tonight with Julia and her friend. I brought Conner and Cade. Cade pointed out all of the bright colored bras ... right in front of some teenage boys passing by. "Blue, Green" - yes he knows his bra colors. We were in the swimsuit section. In less than 10 seconds flat he had an entire rack of swim suits on the floor. That kid is fast! He even picked out a shirt in the women's section and walked himself right into the dressing room in search of an empty room. At least he walked into the open door stalls rather than try to open the closed doors; there weren't any locks on them! Just imagine the shrieks that would have come from that area of the store! He made shopping an experience. Yet again, another amazing story from my kids! Corin, you've gotta be enjoying all this! what a Riot!

Kids are in bed.

I'm going to enjoy a show with John...

march 18

Are they ever going to get tired of pancakes? NO! They are amazing (the kids, not the pancakes); I can't believe how they can pack so many away! Kendall had some pancakes and then requested "red oh-mel" (red oatmeal, aka Maple and Brown Sugar oatmeal packets which the packets are brown in color).

Today was a good day. No, a great day.

We had fun building and playing with this track...they played with it all morning and then again at night before bed.

Kendall and Cade played the ENTIRE morning with the train set. No arguments. In fact, it was hard to put Cade down for a nap because they were having such a wonderful morning together. Getting along. What's next? Getting into trouble together? Oh my... That news makes me so happy. It only took like what, a month to do this? ha ha

They took a break and decided to dump all of the pillows and blankets from their room onto the landing of the stairs. They took turns hiding in the blankets, reading books and giggling. Kaylee came along and taught them to jump from a step into the blankets. I was able to convince her to jump from one or two steps up rather than 4 or 5. We worked together to haul all of the stuffed animals, books, pillows and blankets back into the room so we could eat lunch. That reminds me of growing up in Kansas when we would take our sleeping bags and slide down our stairs. fun memories.

They were having so much fun playing that it was hard for them to focus on eating lunch.

Cade fell asleep fairly quickly for his nap. He was up kind of late last night. When John went into his room around 9:45 last night to move him to the bottom bunk so Kerst could sleep on the top, his cute little head popped up. "Hi" he said with his sheepish grin ... eyes that followed suit. John still moved him down. He stayed in bed! Cade would do the same thing when he was still in his crib months ago...his head would pop up and he'd say a sweet 'hi'. I love thinking of his smile...his eyes smile along with his mouth.

I kept Conner in his jammies today. He woke up with congestion and a slight cough that is moving phlem. No teeth still. His bum was looking sore again so I am back to putting cream on it again. He went crazy over the vanilla yogurt during lunch (thanks to Cade for introducing it to him yesterday!). It was cute to hear him swallow his bites. You'd think he was drinking from a "Big Gulp" the way he sounded! You've gotta get that on camera! I need to hear this!

ready to jump out and ruin the peaceful play

ready to pounce: Here is Conner ready to destroy the tracks.

Conner was told to "stay away" while Cade was playing with Kendall and the train set. Poor Conner. Everyone wants him and then suddenly he is rejected and banned. Yesterday he did a pretty good job getting into their play area and messing things up. go conner! thats being a great little brother!watching from a distance....locked up: Conner couldn't reach the boys from here. They were happy. Conner wanted to join. cute little guy: conner watching the boys

conner's perch: Conner on the observation deck.

Kaylee was tired and hungry late this afternoon. I held her back from eating as it seems to ruin her appetite for dinner. It worked! She cleared her plate of the Sweet and Sour Chicken, Chicken Rice-a-Roni, carrots and broccoli...with some tomatoes as well. Corin, I'm amazed at what you've been able to get the kids to eat!

Kaylee wanted to jump in and control the train play with Cade and Kendall this aftenoon. They weren't going to budge. They had been playing so well for so long. She wanted in on the action. Neither boys were willing to give up their trains. Kendall's favorite color is red and he was playing with that engine. Cade was fine with that. Kaylee told me her favorite color was red and that she needed THAT engine. I told her she could have it when Kendall was done.

Kaylee motioned for Cade to come over. Cade complied. Whisper whisper whisper. Cade comes back, swipes the red engine and runs over to Kaylee. Kendall is NOT happy. Kaylee thought she should be the one with the engine... I have a request into Shannon to pick up another IKEA red train engine set (2 sets actually). Cade more times than I'd like to say has been Kaylee's 'hit man'. Getting her lil brother to do the dirty work. David is off to Ikea today getting the train sets.

I chatted with Shannon tonight. She heard our crazy bedtime ritual - or at least parts of it. Shannon is missing her kiddos...my heart breaks for her. Thanks for sharing them with me Shannon-bow... It's been a tough week. I'm glad at least one of us will see the kids this weekend. I am giving David the camera with all possible memory cards that go with it. I expect great things!

conner; chubba the hut 2

I thought these photos of conner deserved their VERY OWN post! I can't believe how much he has changed, both physically and in ability. In terms of ability, when he left Arizona, he was only able to roll from one side to another. Now he is scooting everywhere, on all fours rocking, ready to take off crawling and sitting up. I've missed too much in only over a month. STOP growing for a moment Conner! Let me enjoy some of this.
Physically he has quite taken off in the chubby department. My nephew was quite the porker when he was only 5 months...he was nicknamed Chubba the Hut. Conner apparently has been named Chubba the Hut 2. I love his rolls of skin pouring over his onesie that was pulled down over his arms and chest to reveal a soft squishy mid-section. What I wouldn't do to pinch that sweet tummy. ooh Conner! (Corin, love the angle! cute cute shots!)

Oh I wish I could just hold and kiss you all day Conner. I miss you too much. I love you much more! this is just unfair. I wouldn't be a good mommy if I didn't cry at least once a day for my chids.

I love and miss you more than anything.

march 17

Bummer...the kids and some green in their pajamas. No pinching them this morning. I believe the rule is you must be wearing green and over 5. They could have been pinched. Those younger than 5 MUST be pinched.

During breakfast Kaylee had her glasses on and was looking at me. She would look at me over the top of her glasses like a Grannie and then through the lens. She did this several times. She then said, "You're big (over the top of the frame), now you're small (through the lens). You're big, you're small." I think I'd prefer for her to view me through the lens! Funny how they discover new things on their own without much prodding. Kaylee is such a little scientist.

She is doing her own science experiments already!I came into the kitchen late this morning and found Kendall sporting Kaylee's glasses. She was standing next to him with a sheepish grin... "See, I can share, huh?!" I had to explain to her that these were her special glasses for her own beautiful eyes. We don't want our princes to break the princess glasses.At 1:00 in the afternoon and Kaylee asks, "It's getting dark?" "No," I answer. "Awe," is her reply. She does this several times in the afternoon...I think it is so cute. I think it is a small hint that she is tired, but she is also excited to try to be dry so she can play with the princesses.

Both boys failed at earning the motorcycle for pooping in the potty.Cade complained for only a minute when I put him down for his nap today. I didn't let him play his stalling game today... (c'mon boys! you can do it!)

it's masquerade time

I decided to go full force with the glasses - the doctor didn't say to do anything different. I also figured that with how Kaylee thinks and processes information (very clever girl) that if I allow her to break into the routine of wearing glasses by starting only a couple of hours a day, she will think that is how she is to wear her glasses. By mid afternoon her glasses were sitting a little crooked on her face. By the end of the day, her glasses looked like something you would wear to a mascaraed ball. One ear piece was bent completely down. Don't ask me how. I read the warranty and return policy. I'm so glad we got the warranty. After one day I don't know how it will last through a week. I called Shannon. I told her that I thought we should get the titanium pair of glasses. It should survive Kaylee longer than a day!
kaylee's glasses that have been ordered...titanium...ultra flexible for my beast of a daughter.

We had green eggs and ham, green french toast, green pancakes, hash browns (brown ;o) ), and green water (compliments of Kerst) for dinner tonight. After dinner I ended up taking Kaylee to the eye-glass place to have them fix her glasses (yes, after one day - sigh, at least they are 5 minutes away without hitting lights) and to order another pair - titanium. I think syrup at night is the wrong condiment to feed Kaylee during dinner. She was dancing, crawling and bouncing off the walls at the eye glass shop. Maybe it was compounded with her being tired; it was 7:30...past her bedtime.

Kaylee didn't mind that the eggs were green.Yes, her hair is crazy. You should see her glasses. You might be able to tell that the glasses aren't sitting just right on her nose...and after 1 day. hmm...I don't think I could stomach that right now. go Kaylee!

The kids have been exploring Jaley and Jenna's room - to their dismay. Tonight when John was putting the kids to bed he discovered that Jaley had sweet revenge and didn't even know it. For Jaley's birthday she received some jelly beans. Delicious flavors with identical looking gross flavors. Jaley weeded out the nasty ones to save for a special occasion. Little did she know that today was the special day. Apparently Kaylee, Cade and Kendall don't care for jelly beans that taste like skunk spray, rotten eggs and vomit (just to name a few). John found the jelly beans bitten into and spit out onto Kerst's floor. When we told Jaley, she had a good chuckle. Yes, sweet revenge...in a not so sweet way. That was such a sweet little story. Made my day start better after missing them so much this morning! Thanks for the smile kiddos!

happy birthday dad

This is the holiday for our family. We're irish. Green through and through. It's only fitting that dad's birthday is on St. Pattys day. He's the best dad in the whole wide world. I'll admit it. He doesn't know a lot about somethings, but he DOES know a little about everything. A Jack of all trades. He's a carpenter, mechanic, mason, welder, teacher, jokester, silly dancer, tickler (ticklebug grandpa), snuggler, patriot, christian, a fierce friend, a true disciple, wonderful husband, great father, awesome grandfather and the list goes on for miles. He's my favorite father I grew up with. The best example of what a man truly is.
I love you dad.


Richard Anderson Price Jr. one handsome hunk!

today is my dad's 65th birthday. He was born on st patricks day. He's irish too. Well fitting.

a candy bouquet of my dads favorite candy for his birthday from all the grandkids.

just wanted to show some favorite shots of my silly dad...and threw one of Kelly and a shot of the both of us in there just for the heck of it. We're all silly too! And, we're irish!

just a few wierdo's!

it's gone

Today I got my PICC line out. I'm still far away from getting my wound vac off. My depth is still about 3 cm deep...not much of a change during the past 3 weeks. grrr

It was a bitter sweet moment. The PICC line is kinda my security blanket. I know if I needed any bloodwork or needed to administer meds I could do it myself or without any pain. Now I'll need a needle stick. not as fun.

green thumb?

David and I went and planted a garden for FHE tonight. Alright...he planted the garden. I held the long stick and punched the holes in the ground.

A member of our stake is a farmer and donated land to the wards so that individual families could plant their own gardens. He irrigates the ground. We are required to weed the gardens and harvest. We had some fun tonight planting and talking to some friends that were there planting their garden as well. We planted into the dark. There were car lights on letting us work in the dark. It was a fun FHE activity.

We got kinda silly and decided to give silly names to the plants on little wooden sticks.

Here is what we planted and the silly names we gave it:

Corn............popcorn

Spinach...........coconut

(eating spinach will make you strong like Popeye, and Popeye has big muscles in the shape of coconuts!) it's a stretch, I know, but having 'coconuts'? cool!

Lettuce.............let us rejoice

Tomatoes..........tow mater

(think of the movie 'cars')

Carrots.............jelly beans

(David's reasoning: jelly beans are given on Easter, bunnies and Easter go together, and bunnies eat carrots)

Arugula.........don't argue with me

(kinda catchy)

Lavender...........popo

(not poo poo...but popo...kid language for purple)

Zucchini.............linguine

(another Davidism)

Peppers...........salt

(silly David!)

Cantaloupe...........antelope

Watermelon.............the last melon

(from the movie "ice age"...think 'do do birds')

This is my first try planting a garden. My fathers mother was a wonderful gardener. She is/was known for the amazing gardens she would grow in their Chicago suburb home. Just amazing. My mom, on the other hand, had quite the opposite effect on gardens. Not quite the green thumb that Grandma Price had. We've made fun of her for that.

We'll have to see how this garden does. Will I follow in my mom's footsteps, or am I destined to be a green thumb?

march 16

Kaylee was up early. She seems to like company so woke up Cade (who was not ready to wake up; the circles under his eyes were clue #1...I'm sure you can figure out the other clues). I talked to Kaylee about the importance of getting enough rest - and when we don't Princesses and Princes start to act like Ogres. She said she would try to remember to let Cade sleep in next time.Even though Kaylee woke Cade up early, he still had a pretty good morning. When we put Kaylee and Cade in the same room when Conner was born, Kaylee would wake Cade up when she would wake up. He would have slept in an extra 2 hours if it wasn't for her waking him up. Because of waking up so early, he would be grouchy. It would make me frustrated when I would hear him awake after Kaylee would get up in the morning.

All of the kids had one time out trip (Kendall had 2). They are playing so much better with each other. "My Conner" territorial war wasn't even brought up this morning!

Our nursery leaders are great...they noticed that Cade was already 3 and how much he enjoyed the Birthday crown of one of the other kids in nursery 3 weeks ago. They made him one last week! He was so proud of it.Unfortunately he picked it apart yesterday...

To encourage Cade to do his business in the potty rather than the diaper, I have a motorcycle (my-ca-doo) on the windowsill in Kerst's bathroom. I told him he could play with it if he went in the potty (poopies that is). He produced nothing all day until right before bedtime. Oh well. Tomorrow is another day. I put him on the potty after diaper changes as well. Lately he has been stalling putting the diaper on. I have to tell him that when he gets off the potty he is done...he thinks it's a game.

I got a call today from the eye glass place that Kaylee's glasses were in! I wasn't expecting that call until Wednesday-Friday. I was planning on picking them up on Friday when John is home from work.

Here is Kaylee waiting for her glasses to come back.
Kaylee checking out the frame display for kids... Hannah Montana? no.She is VERY far sighted. It was cute to see her smile as she turned herself around to see what was behind her. Isn't she cute?! Here is Kaylee checking out the world around her...

Julia came home from school with flu like symptoms this morning. We think it was the banana she ate before Seminary - she is showing food sensitivities to milk, banana, avacado and others... Once the boys were all down for a nap, I left Julia to listen for them while Kaylee and I headed off to pick up the glasses.She was all smiles. The girls at the vision center just love her! They got her glasses and put them on. They asked her to turn around so she could look out into the Wal-Mart store. She had a huge grin on her face as she did so. I wonder what the world looks like to her without glasses. I can only imagine what the world looks like with and without them! While on our way back home I was asking her questions about what she could see. That made me think about Shannon's question to me.

During conversations with Cade on the phone she will hear Cade ask "Why." She was wondering where he picked that up (because it can be a little annoying --- why go to bed?). It dawned on me. I think he picked some of it up from me because I will ask them "Why" so they can explain and describe their problems or even answer their own questions.What did she see? What did she say? My favorite was when she told me that the "Trees are sad." "Why are they sad?" (See, here is the why!)"Because they have nothing on." (Leafless trees...so cute). She continued "Oh, there are some happy ones there!" (Evergreen Trees) my emerging storyteller! She seems to be adjusting to the glasses. One ear piece is bent down a little already. I might have to take them in to have them bend it back up (they have something that will "soften" the metal to allow them to bend it back). I have been working with Kaylee on how to take her glasses off and to be gentle. It is new to her...and she doesn't have the touch of a crystal glass maker either. I can feel her strength in her hands as I have my hands on hers trying to model how to open and close the glasses.Sometimes I will find her with the glasses pushed up to the middle of her forehead. It is a very strong perscription. She has BIG BEAUTIFUL BROWN EYES peeking from behind the lens. I wasn't given any direction of breaking her in to wearing the glasses. Today she had them on for about 4 hours (off and on though). I will have to see how tomorrow goes. Cute cute cute Kaylee! I'm excited to see how Kaylee looks. I was talking to a friend of mine last night. I asked her what her son's glass perscription was. His eyes are pretty magnatized. She said he's about a 4 and 4.5. YIKES! Kaylee is a 4.5 and 5.1. Her eyes will be much 'prettier' than his eyes are 'handsome'.

Conner is hooked...just like his brother and sister. Of course he couldn't suck through the skin but had fun handling the pear.

Conner joined Jaley at her piano lesson. He did well until he decided he was hungry...he was pretty patient though.

I have Cade and Kaylee nibbling at tomatoes. Cade took 2 bites of mine tonight at dinner. We had hamburgers. I had applesauce out for Conner. Conner thought it was too bitter. Cade wanted to eat the applesauce. I told him only after he ate his hamburger (it was only a 1/2). He slowly complied and then inhaled the applesauce. Good job Cade. It's great to hear how well they are eating. In the past when they were home, they wouldn't touch the food we'd give them, and they'd be unable to get their ice cream after dinner and go to bed hungry.

Around 3:30-4:00 in the afternoon, Kaylee starts asking if it is getting dark yet. I think it is a hint that she is tired, but she is also excited to head to bed to see if she can be dry so she can play with the princesses the next day. It helps her go to bed well too... She keeps asking for drinks of water. I will give her micro-ammounts. I keep warning her that if she drinks that she might have an accident. "I know, I know" she would reply with a serious look on her face. (I've really gotta see all this stuff in person. She's gotten so better at verbalizing since coming to CO.) She continued to tell me that water turns into pee. She then asked if she could have juice because it doesn't turn into pee. Silly girl. Very good reasoning Kaylee. I almost bought it! I had to pop her bubble about that one, plus we don't keep juice around; I'd rather the kids eat fruit rather than drink the juice. It's much better for you anyway. (We do have OJ in the freezer for those moments when you think you might be coming down with a cold).

Well, so much for rambling...

march 15

No naps yesterday was hard on the kids.

Kendall had a rough night. So did Cade and Kaylee. John took care of Kendall. Cade and Kaylee woke up at 2:30 thinking it was time to eat. I was able to get them back in bed...

They were up at 6:30 ready for pancakes.

Tubbies before church. We were off schedule this morning...so was everyone else. I usually like to get to church 25 minutes early so can set up. Today we were right on time. We were in charge of nursery snack...we didn't forget it either! The primary wasn't ready to begin on time. Everyone seemed behind today to me; it wasn't just me.

We had the kids spaced out during Sacrament Meeting. Jaley was at the end of the pew next to the wall with Kendall. Cade was in the middle blocked by John on the side by Kendall and Jaley and blocked by me on the otherside with Kaylee near the aisle. I knew Kaylee wouldn't run.

They all had their backpacks with their Sunday Fun Day items. Kaylee played the entire time with the princess dolls. Cade ate goldfish, played with the my-cuh-doo (motorcycle), colored on the magna doodle and aqua doodle and snuggled me (which was really nice).

the original: Cade Monet

Cade drew his first happy face (on the aqua doodle; so it's not permanent)!!! I showed him a circle and then eventually added the dots for the eyes and then the mouth. Thankfully Jenna didn't "obey" and brought her cell phone to church. I had her take a photo of the face before it dried and then had her e-mail it to me. Good job Jenna. Good for disobeying your mom!

Kendall was entertained by Jaley...thankfully. Conner bounced from Jenna to John to Julia - sometimes even me.

Conner is a hot item at church as well. Conner was requested to accompany John today on his Home Teaching visit...so they are off to visit a family that just ADORES him.

Right before the closing song in Sacrament Meeting, I reminded Kaylee that we need to put the princesses back in her backpack for next week or when she is dry at night. She smiled really big and said, "Is it dark yet? I can be dry tonight." She then started in with our Dora song along with the arm swinging motion, singing "I can do it, I can do it, I can do it HORRAY"....just then the organ started and drowned out her singing. A couple of rows got to hear her song...I can't wait to hear and see this for real!

We had salmon, potatoes and salad. Cade mixed up his food...didn't really eat much. Kaylee gleefully ate as Jaley and Jenna encouraged her to eat the food because the potatoes would make her teeth shiny white, the fish (Nemo is what they called it) would make her lips ruby red and make her really pretty. She is so funny!

With a rough night for the kids, early morning and no naps, I am getting them ready for bed...I am wiped out too.

Late night for me with the closing night of AIDA. I was at the school until midnight helping sort costumes and divide them up for laundering.

Next Sunday will be nice...David will be here. Plus it will be Stake Conference and we are going to our building to attend the broadcast AND it will start at 10:00 for 2 hours instead of 12:30 for 3 hours! Naps next week yahoo!!! I'm so jealous! let me say it louder. I'M SO JEALOUS! It will make me so happy to have David with the kids. He misses them so much too.