Finding a Wife and Other Important Things...

I just had such a funny conversation with Jakey in the car. He was asking about marriage and how you get married. Craig told him that when he finds the girl he wants to marry, he should ask her and give her a ring. But then very seriously he told us that everyone in the world is already married so he wouldn't be able to marry anyone! We had to explain to him that there are little girls out there that are 3,4, 5, 6 years old that would be growing up at the same time as him and when he was ready to marry, they would also be grown up and ready to marry as well. So then naturally he wanted to know how old he had to be to get married! Oh my goodness!

Soooo, skirting around the issue that I myself was married at 19, I told him that he should go to college so that he can get really smart and become a Marine Biologist and become a Shamu trainer like he's always wanted. Then at that point he would be about 23 or 24 depending on how much schooling he would have to do and around then would be a good time. His response? That's a LONG time!! 

I then had to talk about how little he is and asked if he liked living with us to which he replied he certainly did and didn't want any of us to grow up! Cute little guy! He then moved on to how he wants 4 kids and what if he can't have 4 kids?? I assured him that if he talks to his wife before he asks her to marry him, and makes sure that's what she wants as well, he should be OK. I told him since I was a little girl of about his age, I knew I always wanted  4 kids. And even if something happens that they can't have kids, he could always adopt. He also wanted to know what to do if his wife was a selfish  person...and didn't want that many kids, "Should I ask her if she's selfish??"

Oh my goodness, this boy is too much!

8

The birthdays just keep rolling in at our house! This past Saturday Zachary turned 8. To celebrate we headed to Sea World for the day. Zachary loves animals and all the kids have grown up at Sea World. It seemed fitting to spend his special day there. As one of his gifts we made reservations for Dine with Shamu (very excited they had a kids eat free promotion!)and he opened that gift in the morning. He was so excited! The day was perfect and very relaxed. We only saw one show all day and wandered about the rest. Zachary really wanted to go on Atlantis which we rarely ever go on so that took awhile for the boys to wait through the line. They also spent a good amount of time in the play area. It was fun watching Alexis play in the little kids area and remember how each of our boys have played in there as babies.

Before Dine with Shamu we spent time in the under water viewing area of the killer whales. Zachary and Tyler especially love this area and trying to get the whales to interact with them. We were all excited when it was finally time to go up and find our table for dinner. They had a good buffet with a lot of different choices. Of all things Zachary was super happy they had hot dogs! There were pastas and fish and lot's of yummy fruit! The waiter's all gathered together and sang to Zachary to which was a really special way to end or time there!

We had told Zachary that he could pick out something for his special day. True to form he just couldn't make up his mind and we had told him no more stuffed friends since there is almost no room left for HIM in his bed! While walking by the guys that draw caricature, Craig suggested getting that done for him. We stopped to check it out and Zachary decided that would be fun. It turned out to be a great idea! It was so fun watching him get drawn and he was the perfect little model staying still and smiling. The results were so awesome and we couldn't have been happier with how good his picture came out! That really added a special element to the day and we headed out afterwards feeling happy!

Over the years Zachary has grown and changed so much. He went through a tough stage of extreme stubborn-ness! Craig and I talk about how it's hard to remember him being that difficult. For the most part he is a sweet, easy going kid. Since he was tiny though I always knew there was a lot going on in that little head of his and it's still the same today. He loves to be right and for that matter, usually is! He is very articulate, artsy, smart, kind, considerate, funny, charming, silly, and still has that stubborn streak! His love of drawing still continues and he can often be found at the craft table putting together his latest book. His books have now grown to include full pages of writing as well. And his reading! He has just taken off as a little avid reader!! We are so proud that while in second grade he is reading books at a 5th-6th grade level! As a lover of reading myself, this makes me so pleased!

We are also so proud of how well he is doing in school! His teacher, Mrs Jones, has really taken the time to single him out, challenge him and really make him feel special. She was telling us last night at their Open House that if they do an assignment where it's pick on yellow and one red, she makes him do 2 of each instead. Or when they did an art project where you have to draw the opposite side of a plate animal, she picked the hardest one for him to do. Or when she could only pick 2 students to try a new computer learning program out at home, she chose him. All of these things just make us proud parents and even more, we are excited to see him doing so well!

I love that he likes to make us all laugh and he can often be found saying, "I was born to be funny!" He likes to talk in silly voices and loves watching and listening to himself. He will record his voice and listen to it over and over or if there is a funny mirror somewhere he can be found dancing in front of that for long periods of time! He is very aware of things going on around him and often figures out "surprises" before he's supposed to! I love how caring and big his heart is. Once when his sister fell down some of our stairs he came running to see how she was and was genuinely sobbing for her. Last night she got away from us for a minute at Disneyland and he was so shook up! After he realized we had her safe and sound Craig saw him nealing beside her and whispering to her not to get lost again because he was so worried about her. Such a sweetie!

I love to see our little Zoo Bear developing and growing into such a caring little man! Thank you God for blessing us with this sweet soul!

6

My Jakey Boy turned 6 years old last Saturday. Every time one of my children has a birthday, it makes me reflect. And as you hear most parents say, I wonder where the time has gone. I wonder how that tiny little baby is just about to finish Kindergarten. How he's learning to read, write, and do so many new things on his own.

I remember cuddling him in the NICU when he was in his first day of life. Hating that week in the hospital and just wishing more then anything, that I could take him home to his brothers. I remember what an amazingly sweet little bundle he was. Calm. Content. Peaceful. He nursed well, slept well and smiled willingly very early on. Now at six years old I wouldn't necessarily describe him that same way but he is funny, smart, strong willed, full of emotion, kind, intense, and has one of the cutest smiles around. He has a difficult personality yet he can charm you just the same. When he loves on you, he really loves on you. He feels everything super intensely...either way. And you always know exactly how he's feeling! And to this day he is still a great sleeper! At six years old Jacob has a strong, strong passion for all things Angry Birds and Scooby Doo. Not a day goes by that he doesn't beg to play Angry Birds on the ipad and to watch Scooby Doo. He loves his snacks and we are working on not asking for one every few minutes (he told me the other day that his stomach is just always hungry!). He still needs to take a nap and does so almost daily. He does OK missing a day but go more then that in a row and it doesn't get pretty. He has had a fantastic year in Kindergarten! We have been amazed at just how well behaved he is at school. He has gone the entire year only moving his clip down once...and that was a traumatic day for him. He prides himself on his good behavior at school. In his class they have the opportunity to move their clip up two times and he has done this almost every day and is still full of pride about it. His printing skills still surprise me, he writes so well for a little guy! And his reading skills are really starting to take off and before I know it, he will be plowing through books with his brothers! I'm thankful to God for each one of my unique children. I'm thankful for their lives and their health. My prayer for Jacob is to grow into a strong, confident man that has a great love for Jesus. I know that if he takes all of the determination he has and uses it in the right way, he will do just fine!

33

Yesterday I turned 33. That just seems unbelievable to me. Strange, like I'm saying someone else's age. I remember thinking that people I knew who were turning 30, seemed so old and so grown up. As much life has passed, and with 4 kids I feel that old...sometimes. But then I look in the mirror and I still feel...younger. And then I look closer and see some of the grey coming through....and feel older. Or the aches and pains in my body. It's such a strange feeling. I always remember people telling me that even though they were 40, 50, 60 etc., they still felt like they were younger. Sometimes I wonder if feeling so young has to do with the fact that I don't get dressed up every day to go off to a fancy job. I run kids all over the place all day long, clean up after a house full of people and pets, take care of finances, do dishes and laundry. Not very glamorous. But at 33, I'm happy with where I'm at in life. I'm grateful to have been married for almost 14 years to a wonderful man. I'm beyond blessed to have 4 healthy, beautiful children. I love my home. I'm thankful for a great church, my faith in Jesus that reminds me that we are only here for a season and then am off to a better place. I'm thankful for my precious friends some new and some life long.

At 33, life isn't perfect, but it's pretty darn as close as it gets in this life!

Bubble Fest 2012

On Sunday we decided to use our Discovery Science Center passes an go to the last day of their Bubble Fest. We had never been to anything like it and it was well worth it!

When we first arrived there was a new Dora and Diego exhibit! Alexis loved posing with the Dora and Boots statues! All of the new activities were super cute and right out of the tv episodes.

After lunch we went outside where the bubble stuff was set up and they also had a big blow up slide. All 4 kids enjoyed the slide while we waited for our 12:30 show to start. We were lucky enough to have Fan Yang, who has been performing for 26 years, do our show (His son had been performing the previous shows this year) and he was fantastic! Loved the lights and lasers and how they made the bubbles look like they had millions of tiny lights inside! Such a fun and amazing talent he has!

They didn't allow photography but it was killing the photographer in me not to get some for memories sake. Since we were in the front row I was able to rest my phone on my lap and actually got some decent pictures!! Tyler even got picked from the crowd to wear a bubble hat!:0)

We had a great time and I can't wait to go again next year!

Potty Time

I do not like potty training. At all. I dreaded training Tyler and turns out for good reason. He took an ENTIRE year to train! He would pee everywhere! His car seat, the shopping cart, on the floor...everywhere but a potty. And somehow wiping bottoms changing a diaper seems so much better then the alternative. But, alas, here we go for round 4 with Alexis. We have put the potty chairs out and talked to her about them. She loves to sit on the potty, she just wouldn't GO on the potty. Until today. We found her running around without a diaper and then found a full potty! Awesome! She went, and even on her own! Very exciting. So we left her diaper off and kept encouraging her to go. And she did....on the floor!:0/

Oh well, we will just try again tomorrow!

Life Bits

Yesterday I was able to get to Glen Ivy with my good friend Crystal. So very needed and with admission already pre paid, and a gift card saved for many years finally used for a massage, it was even better! Crystal and I never run out of things to talk about. One of the things that came up was blogging and how I think she does a terrific job with it and how I wished I had more time to put into it. She talked about a friend that has blogged every day of her child's life, no matter how long or short. It got me thinking that I should try and take that approach, just to get something about the day down, as often as I can. Especially having a phone capable of making that a lot more possible.

So, I am on my phone now while watching American Idol. The day was busy as usual. I was able to do some shopping, hurray for 40% off at Old Navy...that's how I like to shop!

At lunch time Craig, Alexis and I stocked up at SAM's Club and ate lunch there before doing so. Lexy was happy to have her own hot dog and huge lemonade! She's so crazy cute I just want to eat her up!

The school year is winding down and I can't believe that we are almost down to only 5 weeks left!! Those weeks are going to go by in flurry of activity with 3 kids and all the special events that are being planned for each of their grades...kinder performances, field trips, 4th grade Gold Rush Day, visiting 3 rooms for Open House, etc. I'm excited to enjoy those things with the boys and am even more excited about all the things we have planned for this summer. But that...will have to be left for another blog!;0)

On the Run

Over the past few years I have began running. I would get in a pretty good pattern and then we would go on vacation, and I would get out of the routine. Fall off the wagon. When I first starting running, I never thought I would even run one mile. And then I did, on my first run! Then my friend started asking me to do races and I kept thinking how I never wanted to run long distance. And then we did a 5k race together. I couldn't believe I had managed to run 3 miles!

Then there was a long streak where I didn't run at all and wasn't sure I would get myself to start up again. I then decided to use money I had saved from winning two different weight loss competitions, to buy a treadmill. What better way to use that money then to help keep the weight off. During last November I did pretty good staying consistent with using the treadmill....and then the Christmas season hit!

So in January, I picked myself back up again and started running. Inside and outside. My same friend I had run the other race with asked me again to run a race, this time the Brea 8k. FIVE miles. At that point I hadn't run more then 3! I thought, "No way! And then as I kept pushing myself, running every other day I started thinking, "Well, maybe". And then I just decided to go for it! And of course, the week before the race I get super sick. Not letting me prepare the way I had planned the week before. I had also been going back and fourth trying to decide if I should sign Zachary up as well and had just ended up doing it! So even though I had never gotten up to running 5 miles, I was coughing like crazy and had a fever, I showed up for the 8am start time!

I am so thankful that Zachary was with me. He is an unbelievable little machine! I still can't beliebe how well my little guy did! At only 7 years old, this was his first ever official race. He had run with me a few times in preparation and he runs little bits at school every week for 100 Mile Club, but he was amazing. The whole time he stayed ahead of me. Everyone that ran by him smiled, commented and wanted to give him high fives! This race had crazy hills that made it an extra difficult 5 miles but those hills didn't seem to faze him!

We ended up finishing in 1 hour, 3 minutes and 38 seconds (his time was a few seconds faster). I was really excited to know that we had done it! We were able to go into a food area after and get samples from the restaurants there. I didn't feel much like eating afterwards but the oranges, Jamba Juice and especially the bottled water were very nice and much appreciated!

Since that race a week and a half ago, the sickness is finally easing and I have ran a few more times. I'm encouraged by how it's changing my body. Making it stronger. The consistency has really been key so my focus is on that. Making sure I keep it up. We have our Colorado trip coming in a few weeks and I'm already trying to prepare myself for figuring out how to get outside for a few runs while there. I'm sure I'll grab Zachary and take him with me! I love that we have this special thing we can do together and will try and enjoy the time I have with him because I know that very soon, he will be leaving me in the dust! At his school they have track for grades 4-6 and he is already excited to be a part of that in a few years. I know he will be more then ready!

As for me, I just want to keep focusing on building a healthier, stronger body. Two months in and i feel like I can do this (Aside from the neck and knee pain it brings.) I hope to check back in saying that I kept it up through our trip and that I have another race under our belts!;0)