Susie's Leaning Tower of Chocolate for 2012

Yesterday we went to see Puss in Boots in 3D at the (not)Dollar Theater with Jamie and her kids. We had our New Year celebration at Jamie's house, with pizza benders and board games. We stayed much later than anticipated, and got home just before 11. Had a good time, though I didn't get my fill of Boggle. I think Dave has been practicing...

2011 Reading Synopsis: 131 books, 42,616 pages. (plus various unpublished books via Rachel)

And last but not least, more Maggie funnies:
I found my other antenna shoes! (tennis shoes?)
She's insisted on staying 4 forever until just a few days ago. Then she decided her birthday was in 9 days. And yesterday while getting her hair cut, she told the stylist her birthday was in 8 days. I hope she isn't disappointed next week! This might be because she said she can't go to Disneyland when she's four, but we're going next week whether she likes it or not.
While driving by a fancy school (that shall remain nameless), the kind where preschoolers wear uniforms, I asked Maggie if she wanted to go there. She replied very matter-of-factly, "That school not good enough for me."

Speaking of games and Maggie being hilarious, last night at the party she got really into Catch Phrase. After the group finished playing, she stood on the couch with the game in her hand and described various things, mostly animals and dinosaurs, for us to guess. Sometimes she took the first letter of the actual word on the Catch Phrase game to inspire her thinking. It was adorable and very clever.

I guess that's about it!

The doctor said that Dalton had an ear infection and RSV. Luckily his oxygen levels were fine, we just need to watch our for labored breathing. He's just 5 or 6 months older than Maggie was when she was hospitalized with RSV. I guess that "over 2" makes a big difference.

The doctor wrote a prescription for Dalton. Then Maggie threw up on the floor.
"That's why we switched to hardwood floors," the doctor said.
Good idea.

Blocks are a kind of Legos.

I tried to explain some of the puns in When I See an Elephant Fly.
Maggie: My baseball flies. If I hit it very far. Snoopy doesn't fly, but he thinks he can.

The deacons came to collect Fast Offerings after church today. I had just been explaining to the kids that we are taking a long drive in the car to California. Maggie went to get her puzzle map of the US when the doorbell rang. I could hear her in the front room talking to the boys. "This is Utah and we're going all the way to California!" One of the boys asked "what's that one?" and she replied, "I don't know. I think it's Bangkok where we went in India." When I went in, she asked me what it was and after I informed her it was Texas, she proudly announced such to the boys.

This morning, the kids and I checked out all the rides at Disneyland and California Adventure. Maggie is tall enough for nearly all of them, and Dalton can now go on Gadget's Go-Coaster and Matterhorn. Maggie was especially excited about Space Mountain and Splash Mountain, and Big Thunder Mountain (since it has dinosaur bones). She is not planning to go on Tower of Terror, and I'm not planning to take her! However, she says her favorite is the Redwood trails.

We were last at Disneyland (in California) a year and a half ago, so I was impressed when she said things like, "that's right next to Mickey Mouse's house" and "remember the dinosaurs on the train?"

John: Look, there's the geese!
Dalton: Geese! Geese! Geese! Geese!
Maggie: Stop, Dalton!
a few minutes pass.
Dalton: red car!
Maggie: Stop, Dalton!
Dalton: Geese!

I had a miscarriage. There, I said it. (Well, wrote it.) The first time in my life I can recall hearing those words was when I called my doctor with a question the day after we discovered our baby no longer had a heartbeat. The nurse I talked to told me her personal experience. The second time I heard it? From the anesthesiologist prepping me for a D&C. The third time? The nurse in the surgery center. And yet, 15% of documented pregnancies end in miscarriage - that's pregnant women who have already been to the doctor! Here's our story.

My first doctor appointment was at 10 weeks. Everything looked great. At 14 weeks, the nurse was unable to find a heartbeat with the monitor so she tried on the ultrasound, then called in the doctor. Obviously, by then, I suspected something was up. The doctor was able to find the baby's heart - not beating. The measurements indicated the miscarriage happened very shortly after my first appointment. This type of miscarriage - where your body doesn't immediately abort - is called a missed miscarriage. I had no idea that could even happen! Not only that, I spent another FOUR WEEKS waiting to miscarry naturally. I should have known; neither of my other babies came out on their own. During this time I continued to deal with morning sickness and none of my clothes fitting. Eventually I could tell I wasn't growing, and stopped "feeling" pregnant.

Since we are going on vacation this weekend (and I have good health insurance now), I finally scheduled a D&C (a surgical procedure to clean everything out of the uterus). Days before, I finally noticed a little bleeding and cramping, but not much. On Monday, my doctor performed a D&C. I'm still very tired, but I haven't really had any pain. This seems to be the way to go.

On to the emotional aspect of this. Things you shouldn't say to people who are grieving (and I'm not just talking about miscarriage):
You can always try again.
There must be something wrong with it.
It's part of the plan.
Your baby's smiling down on you.
You'll see her again.
Etc.

The only thing worth saying is "I'm sorry." I may think those things. John and I may even say those things to each other. But don't impose beliefs or possibilities or happy thoughts on me. Just say you're sorry. (John talked about this also)

I actually laughed at Leonard when he called. He said he was sorry and then there was silence. I told him it was perfect. There's nothing else to say. We chatted about it a few days later.

Leonard: who thinks saying that kind of thing will make you feel better?
but they keep doing it. when dad died and then again with mom
me: people who haven't experienced loss I guess
Leonard: maybe
people who say what they think they're expected to say

Now, let me clarify that if you have had a miscarriage and are willing to share your experience, feel free to mention that. But don't launch into your horror story without permission.

I'm one of those people who likes to keep pregnancy to myself (and my hubby of course). I waited for 12 weeks, and after my first doctor appointment before I told anyone, other than our family. And it didn't do any good! Sneaky.

Thanks to Tasha for being there when I first found out.
Thanks to Brook and Erin for the late-night Gatorade.
Thanks to Linda for taking me to the hospital.
Thanks to my doctor for being as awesome removing this baby as he was delivering Dalton.
Thanks to Jamie for picking me up, listening to me talk about who-knows-what, and for not throwing up at the blood on the floor.
Thanks to Jodi for watching Dalton, spending the night - and the whole next day - and coming over again the day after that.
Thanks to Sara, Suzanne and Jana for watching Maggie.
Thanks to Jana, Valerie, Sara, Susan and Ginger for bringing us food.
Thanks to John for the Disneyland trip so we can put this behind us. And for being the best husband ever.

And, thanks to Dave for immediately saying, "Yes, I can do that" when he didn't even know it was me asking for help. The world could use more "Yes, I can!"

No rain predicted.
We go outside; it's raining.
See Mickey in Disneyland before it's even open. Dalton runs up and give him a big hug. Maggie runs away. Hmm. That's familiar: that's exactly what happened when we saw Santa.
We buy Dalton a $43 sweater.
M goes on Space Mountain with Mom. She doesn't like it.
M goes on Star Tours with Dad and loves it.
M goes on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad with Dad and loves it.
M sees a pattern. Dalton cries at Woody and Jessie.
M goes on Splash Mountain with Dad and loves it (the pattern continues).
Dalton is persuaded to see Tigger, then Eeyore, then he gives up and runs to Pooh to give him a hug. Maggie, true to her word, is not afraid of Winnie-the-Pooh (and Friends).
Dalton goes on Winnie the Pooh for the third time and signs more (while Maggie gets Splash Mountain turns (and soaking wet)).
Maggie doesn't complain about her wet shoes, socks, and undies at all the rest of the day.
The tippity-top of Dalton's head barely touches the 35" mark (which amazes the cast members), and he gets to ride Gadget's Go-Coaster.
We see Mickey again in California Adventure and Maggie is persuaded to see him.
Maggie goes on Soarin' Over California (with Dad, of course) and loves it.
After Maggie and I go on Soarin' Over California, it is raining again, and John has left the park with the umbrellas and raincoats.
Maggie and I run to meet John and we have a $28 dinner from Wetzel's Pretzels inside the Disney Store.
Our kids do not beg for (or even ask for) toys.
As we walk back to our car in the rain, Dalton asks for his "racing ticket". He's been carrying the Autopia driver's license around all day, and falls asleep in the car holding it in his hand.

I also taught the kids "monorail" instead of just another old train. Dalton calls it a Mama Rail! Soooooooo cute.

We drove straight through on the 101 and it took less than 4 hours to get here from Disneyland. We didn't even turn on the DVD player. The kids loved seeing the ocean; I loved NOT seeing the ocean crashing up onto the freeway like it was last time I made this drive.

Bath with "new" bath toys
Boat-themed playground at the marina
Morro Rock
Montana de Oro
Windy beach
Smooth rocks
Huge seaweeds
Sandy shoes
Nice drive
Beautiful view
Happy day

Leah went running to say hi to Uncle Garry and Aunt Joan when they arrived for dinner and my kids happily followed suit, with hugs even. Never mind that the last time we saw them was in 2007. It was so good to see them again, though. Garry brought two boxes of Dewar's chews. Shannon brought adorable cookies, including a dinosaur one Maggie ate. Peach cobbler was involved. Need I say more?

Pat looks more like Grandma Rosie than ever (except not so old, of course) and it makes me kind of lonely. My kids are having a great time. More beaching will be happening tomorrow, I'm sure.

We had lunch (fish and chips for the kids!) with a view of the harbor seals and the rock. Then we went to the beach at Morro Rock and collected dozens of sand dollars in the low tide. The kids loved it. Maggie washed them all when we got home (Dalton was too grumpy after late nights playing with cousins and took a nap).

We had dinner with Shannon and Shaun at the golf club and the kids practically jumped into bed when we got back. Pictures from our trip to Los Osos.

People keep asking me if my kids slept on the trip. 31 hours of driving later, I think it's safe to say the answer is "no." Dalton took a 1 hour nap on the way down, but that was it.

Seen on storage tanks on the side of the freeway: Gasoline. Diesel. Rocket Fuel.

Best Jungle Cruise joke ever: There's something you don't see every day. But I do. Every seven and a half minutes. Stay in school, kids.

Maggie when the Disneyland railroad pulled into the Toontown station. Right next to the Princess Fantasy Faire. "This is NOT our stop!"

Dalton woke up this morning and regaled me with all the rides we went on. "Dumbo fly! Pirate ship fly! Small world. Racing. Racing. Buzz. Light. Year." Etc. Too cute.

Pictures are up. Enjoy.

Dalton: A food! Food! Hat food.
Me: Oh, that's Pizza Hut.
Dalton: Pizza. Hat.
Me: Yeah, they're asking for that.

Start moving in some direction. Start doing something--take a course, go on a date, choose a major. Start somewhere, in some area about which you at least do not feel negative. If you feel negative about everything, start in the area about which you feel least negative. In other words, do not just sit and wait for a big revelation. Do not wait for a change, or a transfer, or a move, or a different situation. Start where you are, now.

I took this advice literally. I had the vaguest of interests in Psychology (hah!) so I declared that as my major and registered for appropriate classes. Even then, I knew that Psychology wasn't a very good major - you have to go to graduate school to make anything useful of it. However, I was taking a step.

Within a year, because of that step, two things happened that changed my life. First, I volunteered at the Utah State Hospital, and there discovered Recreational Therapy. I graduated with that degree and though I didn't work in the field very long, I loved it. And it's a useful degree.

The second thing was even more important. In a Social Psychology class, a group of students came in and did a brief presentation on the Romanian internship opportunity I ended up doing. Even just applying for that internship changed my life. It was a very volatile time of my life and this opportunity was something to hope for, something I wanted to do. Then, it was in Romania that I grew up, became grounded, developed my testimony, learned who I was, tested myself, and I came home less selfish, happier, and shining. I wouldn't trade that experience for anything.

(As a side note, I took over the housing contract of a fellow intern the next summer, which is where I met John. So, we'll call that a third happy consequence.)

If you "desire to know your mission and calling in life" don't tread water. Don't wait for a change. Start where you are, now.

1/23: You know that sign between Middle-of-Nowhere, CA and Middle of Nowhere, NV that says "Salt Lake City 537"? I hate that sign.

1/25: Dalton learned something from riding Heimlich's Chew Chew Train 5 times in a row. He just burped and said, "Scuse Me!"

1/26: drove 1200 miles this week, only to get a speeding ticket on the way to the zoo.

1/27: spent $70 at Wetzel's Pretzels last week...

1/28: Maggie went on a special field trip to the Planetarium to see a film in its last week showing. Her favorite planet is now Pluto. I think I know why they're discontinuing the film...

The kids love to hide and yell "Surprise!" (Or in Dalton's case, "Dubrise!") Dalton hid himself in the pantry and shut the door. I was focused on something else, but eventually noticed him calling, "Mommy! Oden door!" and came to his rescue. Or tried to. I had to try several closed doors before I found him. When I opened the pantry door, my first thought was that my onions had gone bad. But nope: Dalton had used his time in his hiding spot to make a dirty diaper. In my pantry!

Maggie tucked Dalton into bed last night. I heard a lot of:
"Airplane!" "Yes, Daddy's working."
"Night Night! Say Night Night!" "Night Night!"
"Here's Mickey Mouse so you can't have to be scared."
"Scoot over so you don't fall off."
Etc. The whole process took two reminders that it was her OWN bedtime, and about 15 minutes.

Today we went to the ward playgroup, IKEA for free kids lunch on Tuesdays, storytime at the library, and Jo-Ann (for the first time since we came home). Then, my cousin Jill came over and we made some Valentine's Day projects. She made a cute pillow cover, and I made a couple heart garlands. My project didn't turn out nearly as cute as I envisioned, but that's pretty typical. At least it got me using my sewing machine.

Maggie made an elaborate Valentine gift for me during that time, using, among other things, an entire tube of glitter glue and a Pooh Christmas sticker. I love it.

We watched Kyli today. Maggie was at school and Ky and Dalton played so well together. Kyli says "Dalton" so cute. They both sat down on matching blue chairs watching "Dumbo" while each holding their elephant snugglies.

Also today, Dalton made the smallest mess possible involving a boy and an open container of Vaseline.

Maggie finished writing out her Valentines this morning. She wrote her name on each of them, and all of her classmates' names. We practiced writing lowercase letters, and she did great. Tonight we did another activity where I drew half a heart on folded paper and had her cut it out. I am very impressed by her scissors skills.

Dalton is a fruit & veggie lover. He had black beans, strawberries, and pineapple for lunch! I can't even get Maggie to eat carrots and apples anymore. Dalton also said a cute sentence today. He bumped into Kyli so I told him to say, "sorry." He did, then ran over to me and said, "I said sorry, mommy!"

Today John and I did a little shopping and went out to lunch for Valentine's Day. We went to CPK, and only paid $15 since we had a gift card. Yum! We also popped into a party store that we always just walk by - wow! They had everything from individual colored M&Ms to 48-packs of dinosaurs. They also had tux rentals and a life-size cutout of G.W. Bush. I was looking online for somewhere to buy food coloring for Maggie's birthday and I couldn't find anything, but they had that, too. I'll definitely be going back.

After we picked the kids up from Grandma & Grandpa's, we went to the park. Since it's 60 degrees. I told John, "I think we got more snow last winter before we left for India (on Dec. 4) than we have this whole winter."

I'm not even sure we have any Easter decorations.

We had some good runs, both at the flat and just near our cabin. Dalton was scared and kept saying "no more sledding" but he had fun. We tried to build a snowman. Somehow, John got one ball rolled, but that was all we managed. It was just perfect for some twig arms, pine cone eyes, and baby carrot nose.

I made BBQ pork sandwiches for dinner and John loved it. Every time I eat something with an egg in it he says, "I thought you didn't like eggs." Maybe I should remind him that he doesn't like pork.

All I have left to buy is dino chicken nuggets and day-of balloons for the birthday girl.

2/14: Bye guys! Dinosaur man! Hour! (Maggie got in the habit of saying "bye house see you in half a hour" whenever we leave. And "Dinosaur man" is "We're going to the Dinosaur Museum."

2/14: Mommy, happy face! Which was his way of asking for lip gloss.

The kids have a new game for the car where we each take turns picking a song and then we all sing it. This may or may not have been born out of hearing "Songs! Wiggles!" requested too many times. Dalton invariably chooses "Jingle Bells" or "ABCs". We sang ABCs twice on the way home from preschool today. Except once he said, "Cake." "Cake song?" "Cake." Okaaaay. So I sang "Happy Birthday."

His favorite Wiggles song is "Gulp, Gulp, Drink Some Water." He also really likes "it's a small world" and I've overheard him singing it to himself a few times.

2/21: Dalton burst into tears when he got up and found out Daddy was "on an airplane."

2/22: Every time I notice that Dalton is sitting nicely at the table I realize it's because I buckled him in.

He says "kitty" super cute still. It sounds more like "teeny" or "teengy". Video here.

2/1: When he see his shadow, Pissmas will come.

2/8: Pretending to be a superhero, she called herself "Heroman." Superheros was kind of a theme around here this month.

2/13: Eating hummus: "It tastes kind of yuck but it's good.

2/22 Mommy. When I'm big and married and there's a baby in my tummy, is it a boy or a girl and what name can we call it?

What kind of store is that?
It's a boat store.
Is it for boats that are out of stamina?
... It's to buy a boat.
Why are they out of the water? Why you laughing???

When she pretends to serve me food at a restaurant, or be a librarian, she does voices. She just makes her voice a little deeper.

"Look what's in this book! It's a duck Buddha!"

Dessert = "bessert" - I love it!
Hood = "hoof"

She invented something called a "Gradual Seahorse." It looks a lot like a regular seahorse (and you can call it that, she allows). And it does a lot of the same things a seahorse does according to the 20 minute lecture I received on the topic.

She is still obsessed with her pretend dinosaur, Whatasaurus. He's as tall as six tall, tall, buildings in the whole world each stack on each other (Burj Khalifa). He has "all the things" (spikes, toe claw, hump on his head, etc.)

Two words/concepts Maggie has learned at school are "pattern" and "collection". Except when she says "collection" it sounds like "question."

M: Can you get me more sun seeds?
Me: They're sunflower seeds.
M: Can you get me more flower seeds?

Both of the kids, but especially Maggie loves to "play parade" with Daddy. As far as I can tell, this involves swinging the kids around, turning them upside down, and generally dancing about, with crazy music playing.

2/26: During a video chat with Aunt Rachel, Maggie went to get her US map puzzle. "Where's London on this map?"

2/27: Reading That's Not My Mermaid
M: That's a India one.
Me: Why? (Thinking because she's wearing bangles.)
M: She's brown.
D: Bangles!

Anyway, I fit into some of my regular-sized pants now, so I can do laundry less often. Which means, my fitness program is successful.

5. Disneyland. Like you didn't see that coming. When my baby boy wakes up in the morning and says "Small world today!" I want to be able to say, "ok!"

4. The weather. This winter's been so mild, so this isn't a complaint, but I shoveled 6 inches of snow off my driveway this morning. Nuff said. We love going for walks, and doing things outside, so it's frustrating when several months of the year that's not possible.

3. Downsizing. Since coming home from India, our house has felt too large. We have too much stuff. We're not "herded". We have more money. More money isn't a bad thing, but I look forward to a challenging budget in California, along with other simplifying changes that will come.

2. It's not Utah. Sorry, Utah. You've got some things going for you, but I don't want to raise my kids here. The goal was to be out before Maggie started school. Check.

1. My husband works there. It's a long commute. The good news is, once we move, his commute will be shorter than it would be if he lived and worked in Utah!

3/1: "On my next birthday that's a Lego birthday I'm going to order (invite) James to my party cause he love Legos. After that is my Princess birthday." (Since then, she's decided on a Superhero birthday for her 7th.)

3/1: Maggie thinks she's doing me a "flavor" by getting herself and Dalton a treat...

3/2: "Dalton's birthday is Draper what?"

3/3: Maggie just threatened to clobber me.

3/5: "Your tummy look a little big."

3/6 "Mommy, after lunch I want to play chores."

3/7: (at the bank) Don't forget to tell them two lollipops for your two kids!

3/7: When I get up can I be a mommy just like you?
Yes. When you're a mommy, I'll be a grandma.
I don't think so that's a good idea. How about two mommies?

3/7 M: Oh yeah, yeah yeah, I'm on a diet!
Dad: Do you know what "diet" means?
M: It means you don't eat so much food you're on a diet!

3/9: "Good. But I wonder if there's anymore presents." (There weren't. And she was mad. Sheesh.)

3/10: A girl's heart is pink and a boy's heart is red.

3/10: Grandma: We're going to change time tonight. Did you know that?
Maggie: No, but I know a lot of things. I know a lot about dinosaurs.

3/10: When I'm right I will be really smart.

3/10: Trying to make friends at the park: "Hi, I'm nice! Wait for me, I'm nice!"

3/11: M is trying to hide the fact that she is playing with a Cinderella doll (in her "Barbie Lego" house).

3/15: Our family's not big enough in our house.

3/16: Are you getting all the seaweeds out so the ladybugs will be safe? There won't be any scary spots?

Next we went to Sand Dune Arch and played, and finally hiked 1 mile to Landscape Arch. We decided to go up a bit (hah!) further to Partition Arch. Climbing up the sand fins with the kids was fun. I love that view though, and the kids liked that one, too. Maggie was a great sport and walked the whole way back down to Landscape. Climbing on the "red mountain" was the part she'd been waiting for.

The 1 mile back to the parking lot from Landscape was horribly windy right in our faces. We were carrying the kids (sans packs) and practically running to get out of it.

We hiked about 6 miles today and are definitely feeling it. We wanted to do as much as possible today because it's supposed to rain. Rain + slick rock = scary. Rain + red sand = clay. (Been there, done that.) So we just have a few little hikes and the visitor's center for tomorrow. We're also going to Dead Horse Point State Park. Yay!

We next stopped at the visitors' center where Maggie did the Junior Ranger program. I think this is her third one, and she actually did everything this time, including the writing.

After that, we drove to Dead Horse Point State Park. I'd never heard of this park before, but it's pretty awesome for a State Park. It's a peninsula of a plateau, with a 30 yard wide neck. You can walk all along the rim and look down on nearly 100 miles of scenery and the Colorado River (2000 feet below). Unfortunately, it was cold, which we weren't prepared for. The kids were good sports, though, and no one fell off the cliff. There were some awesome views.

Today we lazed around (We all slept for TWELVE hours last night!) and then headed home. We stopped in Price on our way to visit the Prehistoric Museum of the College of Eastern Utah. Sorry, BYU; CEU's dinosaur museum is much better. They didn't have much by way of mounted skeletons (the main diorama was dismantled) but they had lots of bones, and a really great hands-on area for kids. There were coloring pages, puzzles, stuffed animals, puppets, and two digging areas. They also had phosphorescent rocks, a tipi, and lots of interesting displays on the Fremont Indians. Highly recommended if you're in the area.

Is that the hotel we canceled? But they have grass! Oh wait. That's not a selling point for me anymore.

Also: Of all the trouble my kids could have caused when I fell asleep on Dalton's bed, he decided to poop in the potty for the first time, all by his big boy self. So big!

Afterwards, we realized we had enough time to get breakfast and still go to the Draper City egg hunt. So we did. It was really cold outside and we had to wait half an hour. The kids got to see Elmo, Darth Vadar, the Easter Bunny etc. This egg "hunt" lasted about 2 minutes. Maggie got 8 eggs, Dalton a few more. We went back to our car and sat for 25 minutes waiting for the traffic to die down. And remembered why we decided to do the Smith's event this year.

John joked that the Draper hunt had better candy because Smith's had to buy their own. We were just getting our tax dollars' worth.

We went to lunch at a Mexican place, then used some free ice cream coupons we got at the Draper hunt. Still have at least three more - they were handing them out like crazy! Love free ice cream.

Well, I'm pretty sure I can't run a 5K. And I haven't lost a single pound. And the one time I ran outside on the trail with Dalton, the stroller, and a lollipop, the lollipop stick was in better shape by the time we got home.

BUT: I can "run" for 30 minutes straight on the elliptical. I fit into most of my pre-pregnancy clothes, and I couldn't help but admire my legs in a store window the other day (we don't have a full-length mirror at home).

As I told Rachel, laundry is my motivating factor in working out. I was tired of only having one pair of pants that fit. So I'd call it a success. For me, it's not about the actual 5K. I thought about signing up for one, but changed my mind. I'm happy with the level of physical fitness I achieved in the last 9 weeks. And since I started the program after an unhappy ending to my pregnancy (during which I gained 12 pounds combating morning sickness), all the better.

Also, I watched the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy and a couple other movies while I worked out. I finished The Return of the King tonight along with my last workout. Awesome. And by "last workout" I don't mean I'm stopping.

3/8: 9 kids at birthday party. One drink spilled. One Dalton sitting at the table. Two drinks spilled. This is why we still use sippy cups.

3/8: (re: chocolate cake) Milk! Want milk on it, too. (We know he's in the right family)

3/17: It's sand! It's sand! (In Moab at Sand Dune Arch)

3/17: Hiking to Delicate Arch: Edna Mode. Edna Mode. (Dalton's favorite character in The Incredibles.)

4/20: M, handing out pretend hot dogs: Do you want mustard or ketchup on yours?
D: On yours.

3/18: Wind, go make some arches and leave us alone!

Early March: Me: You're the one who was peeking when I said "no looking."
Maggie: I keep trying to do that but it's hard. I try and it keep not working!

4/20 (reading): Puh... Pop! Like "purple."

I'm so excited to move! We've been getting rid of tons of stuff. We made three trips to the DI containers when they were at our stake last week, and we already piled up more in the garage since. We're downsizing, which basically means cutting out all the space in our house that we currently don't use. And less "herding" needed. Not looking forward to packing, but everything else is going to be great.

But anyway, today I used the reciprocal membership to take the kids to the Discovery Science Center, where I saved $28. Who would pay that? Yikes. The kids are still a little too young to thoroughly enjoy it, but we had fun.

Here's a hilarious anecdote from the day. After house checking out, we grabbed some dinner and went to the beach. We went back to our old haunt, Newport Beach, because we couldn't find anything to eat at Laguna Beach. Dalton played on the playground while Maggie and I went walking down by the water looking at shells.

A wave surprised us and got one of Maggie's feet wet and dirty. Naturally (stupidly) we decided to dip her foot in the water to rinse it off. Next thing you know, a big wave came and stole THREE of our flip flops! I ran up the beach, dumped our stuff and my remaining shoe on the dry sand, then hurried out in the water to try to catch them. Not only did I not catch them, I got wet. Luckily, when I turned around, Maggie was picking up her sandals from the sand where they'd already washed up, and then picked mine up. I called her a hero, which she loved. All flip flops saved! And we made a really fun memory.

Primary Children's didn't end up sedating him anyway. He was so calm they decided to try it with just the shots. They just straight-jacketed him with a pillow case, wrapped him up like a burrito, and had a nurse hold his head while they gave him a couple shots and stitched him up. Oh, and they put on Toy Story and brought someone in to blow bubbles (seriously). He actually almost cried at one point, then I suggested busting out the bubbles and that worked. He kicked at them with his feet while the doctor finished stitching.

The head ER guy kept thanking me for letting them do it without sedation (I guess some moms can't stand to watch their kid be awake while being poked?) and for not making them do a CT scan when he was obviously fine.

Maggie started calling Dalton "Dalt and Tin". Recently, this lead to Daddy being called "Daddy Tin" which is super cute.

Today I took the kids to the farm. Then in the afternoon, we met Erin and Ember at the aquarium. Immediately after that, we got Japanese food with Dave and Jamie, then met most of the other adults at the Draper temple to do sealings. I found a stack of family names in my bag, so we ended up doing those. Embarrassingly, when I picked them up at the office and they asked what name they were under, it was my maiden name! Those cards had been sitting around a long time, but we got them all done.

This was our most successful lake adventure. Kristan and I floated in the water, Maggie played in the mud, Jill took pictures. The water level had risen considerably since our last visit to Saltair 3 years ago, so we did not have to walk a mile to get to the water line. Also, there were very few bugs and the water was very warm. Saltair itself is pretty trashy, but I highly recommend this beach. Also, it's free. Two years ago, we went to Antelope Island with a bunch of my cousins and my aunt Sharon. The water was much colder there, it's a longer drive, and it's $9 to get in. I remember Sharon held Dalton while we swam and he cried the whole time.

4/4: You know you're pregnant when... I watched 10 minutes of Ratatouille with the kids and I cried 3 times. Ratatouille!

4/14: I was so thrilled to hold baby Emmett (Tasha's little boy) today. He's adorable. I'm glad other people's babies don't make me feel bad.

4/11 (nine weeks): Went to the doctor today. He was right: I am definitely more nervous this time. I was a big relief to see baby's little heart fluttering.

4/15: Tacos at 10pm. What can I say? I make really good tacos. I don't feel great, but I am definitely not as sick as with the last two. Does that mean it's a girl? John and I looked up girl names today. Top choices: Esther and Aurora.

4/19: Made it to Logan and back without throwing up. A feat, as Susan and I both remembered, not always accomplished.

4/20: When Sara dropped Maggie off after preschool she yelled out the window, "Are you moving?" This is why Maggie doesn't know about the baby yet.

4/25: I had another doctor's appointment today. Rachel went with me and baby waved to her! The nurse said the heartbeat was surprisingly easy to find for 11 weeks. I think between that and the ultrasound measuring right on my due date last time (which has never happened before!) the baby is trying to be extra normal (which Rachel says is an oxymoron) so I don't worry. Baby measured over 4 centimeters!

4/27: Today John told Jodi and his mom that I wasn't allowed to help flip the mattress. When Jodi later questioned him about it, I typed up a text response, you know, lying about being pregnant. He erased it. "You want me to lie," he said. Instead, he just stretched the truth.

5/3: A true friend doesn't ask if you're pregnant four months after you miscarry, even when you show up at her house at 10:30 am with Del Taco, fat, AND wearing what she knows is a maternity shirt. Apparently. Love you, Tasha!

5/8: I forgot to buy pudding at the store and I'm eating my last Snack Pack. Sad.

5/9: 13 weeks. We popped into the doctor's office today to hear the heartbeat one last time, now that I'm past the high-risk period, and before our trip. Strong and steady. yay!

5/17: 14 weeks - today I'm as far along as I was when we found out about the miscarriage last time. Even better, I've felt the baby moving.

5/28: Finally told John's family, and not a moment too soon. I am totally fat and at least Jamie had noticed. Now I can wear my maternity clothes.

5/31: 16 weeks. I love feeling the baby move all the time! So comforting. Maggie asked me out of nowhere if the baby was still the size of an apple. Well, this week, it's avocado-sized.

3/19: Dalton: Pizza!
Maggie: I smell pizza. Yuck.
Dalton: No, pizza yum. *microwave beeps* Pizza ready! I have some, too.

(Maggie actually does not like pizza. We thought for a long time that she didn't like Swiss cheese, but apparently she doesn't like "squished" (melted) cheese.)

3/19: Maggie: Dalton are stink and cute.

4/23: Maggie, with Rachel in the room: When is she leaving Mommy?
Me: 3 days.
Maggie: I like her!

Rachel is really good at pretending to talk on the phone. The kids thought it was hilarious and kept asking her to do it again. At one point Maggie whispered, "Aunt Rachel, do it funny!"

4/24: Me: I'm not laughing at you; I'm laughing with you!
Rachel: I wasn't laughing!
Me: You are now.

4/26: Maggie: Are we going home or to Daddy's house?

4/26: Maggie: Boys don't get married.

5/4: Maggie, to Dalton: I have an idea! Let's whine about it.

5/9: Maggie, kind of out of nowhere: I understand, but I'm not going to listen to your words.

5/9: Dalton keeps bringing me playdough food and felt food meals, then insisting we pray before we pretend to eat it. He kept snatching the playdough bites away from me and saying "prayer" over and over until I figured out what he was saying.

Dalton loves eating ice cream cones. Not ice cream, ice cream cones. The yucky cake kind. He tries to bite it before eating all the ice cream on top.

Maggie's favorite rides at Disney are Star Tours and Soarin' Over California.

5/26: Dalton, in the car: Whee!
Maggie: No, "Whee" is for going up.
Dalton: no, down whee!
Maggie: No, whee up!

5/26: Me: You need to go to sleep when you go to bed. It's late.
Maggie: But I always stay awake for a little bit. Just for a little bit to talk to myself.

Maggie's pronunciation of the word "quiet" has evolved from "piet" to "pwiet."

5/29: I've been waking Maggie up to go potty before I go to bed. One night she started whispering loudly to me.
Maggie: Mom! What are you doing?!
Me: I'm taking you potty.
Maggie: Mom! Hedo! (Hello)

The kids think the opposite of "Never!" is "Yessir!"

I also got rid of some random home improvement stuff that's been lying around the house since before we moved in. I gave a lot of it to our friend Tyler, who fixed a few things around the house for us. Then today I posted some on KSL. Got rid of a box of carpet tack, three boxes of tile, some beadboard, miles of baseboards, moulding and trim, some padded vinyl, and a big mirror. Goodbye stuff! Jamie will now have twice as much storage in the furnace room than we had.

How far along I was when the last not-baby finally came out.
My due date.
Our move. yay!

Me: Do you like our new house?
Maggie: Yes. But not really. I'm afraid it might fall down because of earth creaks.

Earth creaks. And she knows all about them. And how there are little ones in Utah that you can't feel but the ones in California are bigger.

"Over there!" he said.
"Did you have a scary dream?"
"Yes! By the closet!"

So I pretended to make whatever it was go away (though in the night, in the dark, I was getting scared myself!) He was still scared so we said a prayer. I snuggled him for a minute, then went back to bed. I had to get up a few minutes later and comfort him again, but he was more sleepy that time, and just wanted a hug.

When he woke up in the morning, I asked if he had a scary dream. I couldn't believe he remembered.

"Yes. Alligators."
"What were they doing?"
"They were scary."
"Were they in the closet?"
"Alligators in my clothes!"

It all seemed pretty funny by the light of day - and if I'd known in the night that he was afraid of alligators in his clothes, I might have found it funny then, too. Silly boy.

We got home after 10 with both kids asleep in the car. They woke up at their usual time this morning and played in their room for a few minutes. Then they came into our room, holding hands with one "guy" each (Maggie limited Dalton on how many he could bring). "We came to snuggle!" and they climbed right in. I love having a king-sized bed.

Maggie loves talking to herself. LOVES it. Every since she first admitted a couple months ago that she lies in bed talking to herself, she's started doing it more and more. She used to come home from a busy day and want to play dinosaurs or something. Now she just talks to herself. She also runs around the room. Runs to the stairs and flops on them. Runs back to the couch and flops on it. Runs between the chair in our room and the bean bag in her room, flopping and talking to herself. Sometimes Little Piggy goes with her on these trips. Maybe we need to expend a little more energy at the park?

This week she's been staying up over an hour talking to herself, telling stories or whatever in bed. So the past two nights I gave her the option of watching one Dinosaur Train episode and talking to herself for just a couple minutes, or going to bed when Dalton goes to bed and talking all she wants. Luckily, she picked Dinosaur Train, because I don't like putting the kids to bed together. They share a room and keep each other up.

Maggie's top two favorite rides at Disneyland are Star Tours and Soarin' Over California. She doesn't like the big scary rides, or Pirates, but she likes most everything else. She will even go on Peter Pan now without complaining.

Her favorite colors are pink and purple, and she calls yellow "golden." She doesn't like to wear clothes with buttons on them. She pretends to read certain books that she has memorized (One Hungry Monster, Brown Bear, Mouse Paint). We've started playing "Don't Smile!" a lot because she pretends to be grumpy when she secretly likes something.

We've been going swimming on Sundays after church. She likes to swim around in a floatie and isn't afraid of the water like she used to be. We even got her in the hot tub last week!

M: I know I can do everything by myself. I just know it!

M, after doing zipline: Dad, be brave.

Disneyland isn't just a place to go ride rides. The entire park is an experience. There's always something unexpected or magical that will make the whole day more fun. A marching band being led down Main Street by Mickey Mouse. After tea yoga with the Mad Hatter. Cast members handing out stickers or buttons. "Racing tickets" at Autopia. Hidden Mickeys. Etc. Always something special. I love Disneyland.

After the beach, we went to Target and bought some sand toys. The park near our house also has a small sand area, so they will get a lot of use. Dalton has been carrying his around asking to go back to the beach. Not just any beach. The beach with sand.

The kids started swimming lessons on Monday. Maggie whimpered a bit, but was a really good floater on her back. Dalton will NOT float on his back - it takes several people to hold him down - but he didn't mind getting his face dunked. He didn't like it in his eyes, so we're getting him some goggles. Then he should be good!

I've been trying to take them to Disneyland once a week, plus we've been going on Saturdays with John. The kids are so spoiled; on days we don't go, Dalton talks about it all day. He really loves Pirates of the Caribbean and after dragging her on it, Maggie does, too. She hates it when I'm right!

Maggie: It was an accident!
Me: What happened?
Maggie: I was shaking his head-
Me: This does not sound like an accident.

Maggie: Dad, I have a really fun game for you! It's special just for you. You can clean up all the pieces back in the box.

Maggie: You're bothering me. You know what bother means? Bother means I'm going to get mad at you.

"King Maggie saves the day!" The kids say this while jumping off the bean bag chair.

"Whatasmic!" What Maggie calls the Fantasmic song.

Maggie knew that some popsicle sticks have jokes on them. She held a popsicle up to her ear to listen for the joke. Not sure where that came from.

Speaking of jokes, she also laughs before the joke punchline. Ie. "Why did the chicken cross the road?" "hahahahaha!"

"Pirates is my favorite ride now." Even though we dragged her kicking and screaming.

M: "I want to tell you something. I think I do like the farmer's market now." Then she covered her ears so she couldn't hear me laughing and praising her.

"I know exactly how to stop the car. You take your foot off the pedal."

Dalton woke up in the night talking loudly about a Ferris wheel.

Both of the kids have developed an obsession with the color of cars, stemming from John's fancy blue car. Dalton calls brown cars "chocolate" colored.

Dalton is very interested in Pirates. He loves that ride and he asked to see the movie. We watched an episode of Jake and the Neverland Pirates instead. One of his favorite parts of the ride is the macaw at the front yelling "Yo ho!" Dalton says "no ho!" and he says it loudly, and he says it during Sacrament Meeting.

Here are some older quotes from the kids I found.

6/8: Maggie names her My Little Ponies "My Little Whatever's-on-the-butt" For example, My Little Birthday and My Little Worm.
6/8: I asked Maggie what she learned in Primary and she answered "A Book of Mormon story." When I asked which story she launched into an episode of someone's car breaking down and his phone didn't work and he had to climb the mountain. Finally I said, "did he pray?" "Yes!"
6/10: Maggie calls the bombs in Fruit Ninja "buns."
6/15: Inside the tunnel at Snowbird: "The echo dripped on me!" Also, about the whole day: "It was almost a good idea to go there."

6/11: Dalton, calling out in his sleep: Daddy! I wanna play. (games on the iPhone.
Dalton calls the scroll bar on the computer an "elevator." He's kind of right...

Also today: the kids had swimming lessons. Maggie cried, but floated on her own for 5 seconds. Dalton did wonderful, but had to cut his lesson short because of a potty accident. Luckily he was wearing a swim diaper and plastic pants, even though he's potty trained.

I also did some sewing, finishing up a Hello Kitty messenger bag for Maggie to use in Kindergarten, and a few little mending projects. I need to replace the lightbulb on my sewing machine; I hope that's possible.

We are really enjoying watching the Olympics. The kids like watching "ballyball" after we told them Rachel was at the men's USA vs. Serbia game. They like the beach volleyball, too. They've watched a lot of swimming, which may have inspired Maggie's willingness to put her face in the water, even though she cries about it, and Dalton's interest in jumping straight into the pool and letting us wait a minute to catch him. And they like "bike race" like Daddy does on Wii Sports Resort.

We bought a digital antenna just for watching the Olympics, but it has the added bonus of also allowing us to watch PBS. Whee!

Fantasmic is SO much better than World of Color. World of Color is just showing off technology. Fantasmic is actually a story. Sorry, imagineers: stick to storytelling.

John was able to take work off on Friday, so we all went to California Adventure. John and Franco made great partners for the rides that were too much for me and Jodi. My kids especially enjoyed watching song/animation clips while waiting for Turtle Talk with Crush. We also went to Dancin' with Disney and Dalton and Kyli danced with King Louie, Captain Hook, Cruella, the Big Bad Wolf and more. Maggie scowled.

And, of course, we got some fun pictures of three cute little cousins. More cousin fun to come! Pat, Shannon, Joel and Leah are coming to visit tomorrow.

Dalton still worries about alligators in the closet. When we put him to bed, we tell the alligators to go back to the zoo, then shut the closet door. That seems to work just fine. Last night I went into the kids' room to put some laundry away after they went to bed and I left the closet door open. Maybe that's what spurred my bedmate last night.

Also, Leonard commented previously about an alligator story about Dad, which he later emailed to me.

This was before Dad went into the hospital, but he didn't get out of bed much. One day he and I were the only ones home. He called me in and said "there's an alligator outside. chase it away." I was terrified because either a) Dad had finally gone totally crazy, or b) there was an alligator outside and I had to chase it away.

Well, I went and checked, and surprise, there was no alligator. So I told him this and he kind of nodded and went to sleep.

Miss Maggie skipped level 2 and is now level 3! I've never been so proud of her.

She also enjoyed her first dance class last week. She wanted to go back the next day, but it's only once a week. This class is just three weeks - I wanted to see if she liked it first. I guess she does!

She's also learned how to spell it, which means she's ahead of the game on the ch and ck letter combinations (though she can't say "CH" very well).

Yesterday we were playing with ABC stamps and she stamped out her last name. I quizzed her on her names, then asked Dalton. He knows his last name, but when I asked what his middle name was, he answered "Target!"

We never use Dalton's middle name, and we do go to Target a lot, but I realized much later that he was probably trying to say "Margaret."

Five minutes later I informed Dalton he was going to have a haircut and a bath before bed. He responded, "A haircut and a bath? That's amazing!"

The doctor took one look at it and said, oh that's Lichen Striatus. Rare, harmless, and will go away soon. Also, genetic, and the abnormal skin cells are formed in utero.

In related news, yesterday she was running around and whacked her head on an IKEA toy shelf. We went to the emergency room, which is right down the street, and an hour later we were home. Maggie screamed the whole time, so we opted for the hold-her-down-and-do-it-quick method. She's got three staples in the back of her head! Gross. Once the actual doctor part was over, she was fine. She even asked me which side of the head it was on. She did whine quite a bit about how it's going to hurt when they take the staples out. Hopefully she'll forget about that until we head to the doctor next week.

Also, she has to miss two swimming lessons, which is a bummer. Based on Dalton's lesson today, they'll both be level 3 by the time she gets back.

In "practicing" for her assessment, I made Maggie count to 32. She really gets stuck on 30. The very next day out of nowhere she counted to 132! No idea where she picked that up. Smart girl.

Maggie also had her staples taken out today. She did really well and only screamed for the actual staple removal and a few minutes afterwards. Not that I blame her. I am amazed at how far apart the staple holes are now that her skin has gone back to its correct shape. Yuck. Staple-free Maggie convinced me to go swimming this afternoon. It was significantly less crowded than previous days we've gone in the afternoon. Summer must be ending.

Kitty ride (Alice in Wonderland)
Train ride (Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, which he is too small to go on)
Us-side down ho-coaster (California Screamin')
Magic ho-coaster (Gadget's Go-coaster)
Mamarail (Monorail) Bumpy Tars (Tuck & Roll's bumper cars)
Tires Game (Luigi's Flying Tires, which had giant beach balls as part of it for the first couple weeks)
Racing (Autopia)
Yellow Car (Roger Rabbit)
Ha-pillar (Heimlich's Chew Chew Train)
And a new one: Halloween ride (Haunted Mansion Holiday)

From Maggie:
Doors ride (Monsters, Inc.)
Dumbo that flies (as opposed to the Dumbo train, Casey Jr.)
Time Tunnel (Disneyland Railroad)
Mickey's Fun Wheel (Mickey's Fun Wheel - she picked up on the actual name of the Ferris Wheel while waiting in line)

Somewhat relatedly, today we took the kids on a walk just down the path a bit and under the road to what they call the "Echo Bridge". We stood there yelling (and echoing) for 5 or 10 minutes. They love it.

Why did the Oak Creek letters keep falling off and they put new ones on and they fall off every 6 days? Because they were old.

Why did the boat go on the road and the car went on the water and the airplane went under water? Because they were mixed up.

Also, I think the kids are missing the point of Knock Knock jokes because theirs all start out with "Knot Knot".

One more Maggie funny, while trying to put on her rashguard: It doesn't fit! The neck sleeve is too small!

So Maggie had a turn. "I know a testimony. I know that when you go on a ride at Disneyland and you don't like it, you need to go on it again and you'll like it."

...

I explained that a testimony usually refers to something about the Gospel, and we continued the "game." She threw in one more about Disneyland, but she had some good ones, too. My favorite: "I know the prophet is true."

Oh, Dalton. He loves to copy everything Maggie does, but I've noticed he's not really feeling it. Today she was scared to go to swimming lessons because she didn't want to go to the deep pool. So Dalton starting saying he was scared, too. Lessons came; Maggie talked her teacher into the shallow pool. Dalton's lesson is after hers and he dragged his teacher over to the deep pool, where kids his age don't usually go. He outsmarted himself, I think. (And swam great, by the way.)

I am almost done with his Incredibles Halloween costume. He is going to be so adorable. He's so adorable anyway. At the ward FHE at the park today, he went around handing out pinches of sand to everyone. Dozens of people got a bit of sand, thanks to Dalton. Nice of him to share.

Last night, he climbed into Maggie's bed to listen to Daddy read a story and the kids ended up sleeping in each others' beds. Which they found hilarious. In the morning, they collaborated on a bed with about 15 "guys" (stuffed animals (or cars, as the case may be)) and both of their pillows. Yep - they're sleeping together tonight. Maggie looks a little squished. We might have to move Dalton back to his bed.

Today he cried when we dropped Maggie off at Kindergarten. It might have been because I left him in the car, but when I asked if he was crying because he missed Maggie he said, "yes! I miss her!" We went to Target and he soon forgot all about it. When we left Target, he carefully stood up on the seat of the cart and waited for me to get him down, while yelling, "I'm King Dalton!" After Target we got a car wash. He giggled the whole time.

Me: What's your favorite part? (of the painful elimination round obstacle course.)
Dalton: My favorite part is not going on it.

We also went to Disneyland for our 31st visit (with our current annual passes) but that was more fortuitous than ironic. Or maybe not. The kids melted down on the way back to the car.

John bought me some yummy fall flavors of soap and lotion. He also got some magnetic boards for our kitchen, AND hung them up while I was at art class with Dalton. All in all, a good day that would have been great if John were feeling better. Poor, poor thing.

D N (the end)

A hort, a set, go! Maggie realizes this is wrong and occasionally corrects herself and says "on your bark."

On the bookmark phone: Hello? Once upon a time there was a cow. Hah! I said "a cow!"

I took the sheets off the kids' beds to wash them. Dalton went into his room and said, "which one is my bed??"

Friend at the park: My daughter had music class yesterday and she told me she wants to be a music teacher now.
Me: How sweet! This morning Maggie asked if she could be on Wipeout when she gets big.

Luckily (for future Maggie, not for present-day Dalton) Maggie's moved on from being a contestant to a course designer. I posted some pictures of the DIY Ouchie Show the kids made today.

I spent 45 minutes trying on clothes tonight, and I think John thought I was silly, but apparently you forget that clothes are supposed to cover you completely and stay put!

She has a friend with autism. His mom said he does well when he is told how to play and what to do. Not surprisingly, they make a good pair. After a playdate, his mom told me he talked about Maggie a lot - but was calling her "Naggie." hahaha!

Having asked me a difficult question and listening to my pause, she said, "Because that's the way the world works?" Guess I've said that a few times.

Dalton, finding himself stranded on a large rock at the park called out, "Hey dad, come here! It's me, Dalton."

As we were leaving the grocery store, Dalton asked me, "which one is grandma and grandpa's car?" What? "Your" Grandma and Grandpa?" I asked. "My friend," he replied. Aha. An old man in an electric cart was chatting him up at the grocery store, and apparently left quite an impression.

It was dark so the pictures aren't great, but we had so much fun. The kids loved trick-or-treating at the treat trails around Disneyland. The atmosphere was really fun, and we also saw the Halloween parade and fireworks show. Dalton crashed in the stroller on the way back to the car, but Maggie almost made it until we got home, after 10 pm.

D: I'm not tired anymore.
Me: Well, you can either go in your bed, or go snuggle Daddy.
D: Um... nobody? (he says this for "nothing", or in this case, "Those options suck, Mom.")
Me: It's bedtime. You can go to bed, or you can snuggle Daddy.
D: Um... go to bed?
Me: Ok, let's go.

I sent Dalton to get into his bed and went to get his guys* from our bed. John was still resting there.

Me: Dalton says he's not tired anymore.
John: I know. I told him to go play with Mommy. I can't believe he fell for it!

*Dalton calls his stuffed animals "guys".

Surprisingly enough, Maggie is very bright. She's already met the end-of-year benchmark for recognition and reading. She appears to have outgrown some of the bossiness she showed in preschool, probably because the K class is so much larger. She's a role model of good behavior and she helps others and is friends with everyone.

Also, she's in the Snowy Owl reading group (they call it that so it's harder for the kids to compare themselves) with 4 other girls. The teacher referred to them as "rock stars." She said the reading book she sent home last week was more difficult than the end-of-year benchmark reader. My rock star can read and sound it out great. The goal with the Snowy Owls is to keep them challenged.

Her journals are so cute. She does one at home once a week, but the teacher gave us a bunch that were done in class.
I sumrsalt.
I see a brtheda. (the day of Dalton's party)
snak (snake)
big eartH little teeth
The one she did at home this week was: I see my wit tent.
I'll have to scan some and put them on the picture blog, because her illustrations are just as adorable.

John's comment is that we just need to teach her to be self-motivated and to work hard, so she doesn't get lazy with her smarts. And seriously, she needs to practice speaking louder and fixing that pencil grip!

This week, he's been pretending to be a kitty or a doggie. Kind of cute, seeing him crawling around meowing. Today he set up a pillow store for me to shop at.

The neat thing is that these are all things he's done independent of Maggie, as opposed to serving up the same pretend soup that she does.

I finished off yesterday's To Do list, which included mending Dalton's Halloween costume and vacuuming. We had gymnastics before school. They did [modified] handstands, vaulting, cartwheels, forward rolls, balance beam, and backward rolls in the obstacle course today. The kids just love the class, and they are so adorable doing it. Poor Dalton doesn't understand half the directions, and poor Maggie looks so knobbly-kneed and inflexible. But they love it! They can both do the backward rolls on the ramp alone.

Immediately after dropping Maggie off, Dalton and I went to the Toyota dealership to see what they had to say about the latest recall. Dalton remembered that the Toyota dealership in Utah had free popcorn. This one did not, but they did offer him some cookies, and he was happy to play games on my phone the whole time. I got a free car wash out of the deal, at least.

We had lunch when we got home. That is, I had lunch and Dalton refused to eat. He finally decided to eat his sandwich a couple hours later after I refused to give him any "trick-or-treats" or marshmallows until he did. We picked Maggie up and she had her favorite after school snack of apple slices, peanut butter, and marshmallows, made into a spooky Halloween mouth.

Maggie did homework while Dalton and I did some train activities (this week's home preschool theme). Then we played upstairs in Baby's room. I cleaned some stuff out of the closet, vacuumed out the carseat, let the kids try out the bouncer... *nest*

The baby toys distracted the kids until dinnertime. After dinner, Maggie picked out three books to read so we could fill up her reading log for the month (of course, we have to start a new one for the next 8 days!). After reading, Maggie wanted to play "Easter". She (I mean Rabbit) hid some eggs around the house for Dalton to find. I didn't realize she had filled them with Halloween candy! They played Easter a couple more times, then we cleaned up their room and got jammies on. Then we spent some time drawing jack-o-lantern faces on the balloons from Dalton's birthday. Maggie got the jack-o-lantern felt puzzle and let Dalton design a face that she then drew on the orange balloon, with great pomp, after he went to bed. I told her she couldn't use the permanent marker without me watching and after she drew for a few minutes she said, "Mommy, you're not watching me!" Turns out, she'd just rubbed her hand on the balloon while drawing. She was very concerned because I made a big deal about the marker not coming off (I made her color on the floor, not on the bed) but it mostly washed off her hand.

Now my kids are snug in bed and it's almost my bedtime. Poor John has another late, late night. Luckily, he'll have 2 weeks paternity leave soon. I might have to hide his laptop, though.

Driving around Aunt Pat's neighborhood in the dark a couple weekends ago, Maggie said, "I thought that stop sign was Daddy!" Now they call stop signs "Daddies" everywhere we go. Look, a daddy! There's a daddy over there!

Dalton has started asking why. Five times in a row. I can only boil down 3 or 4 whys. After that, it's too complex.

"Look! I see wum lake!" He says "one" instead of "a".

"A blue pretzel!" (sprinkle) He also says ketchup instead of syrup. You know, for waffles. Yuck.

Maggie and I convinced Dalton that the silver and blue sneakers were Star Tours shoes, so he would get over not getting the shiny silver and neon green light-up shoes with shark teeth (eew). Except now he thinks he is tall enough to go on Star Tours, with his new shoes.

More imaginative Dalton: One day, Winnie-the-Pooh went to school with us to pick up Maggie. He drove a purple car there, and a green car home. He was very careful to hold hands in the parking lot.

A is for America: It's not India. That's all I need to say.

B is for Baby: I love being pregnant! I hope it's not our last one. Once the throwing up is over, and I start feeling little baby kicks, I think it's so awesome to be carrying a little person inside of me. Of course, I also can't wait for him/her to come out and meet us!

C is for California: California is awesome. The weather is great, the atmosphere is great, the diversity is great. We love our house and our area and our ward. I'm so glad we moved back.

D is for Dalton: Oh, how I love that boy. He is the sweetest thing. He is silly and adorable and smart and charming. What more could a mama ask for in a little man?

In the meantime, today was our first day of 1 pm church, and with Daylight Savings, it was a long morning! I made cookies, the kids watched some Duck Tales, and watched Daddy play "silly alligator game" (Where's My Water?). We went for a long walk. The kids had a bubble bath. John practiced the piano.

John was called to be the Primary pianist, which is his dream calling. I don't have a calling yet, which I might blame on impending childbirth if I thought the bishopric capable of remembering when women are expecting babies (nothing personal to this particular bishopric). No worries; they'll find something for me soon enough. The wards were too big and there were not enough callings, hence the reorganization.

The kids really enjoyed Primary. Maggie found that a friend from school is in her new Primary class. Dalton got to go to sharing time for the first time (so BIG!) and they did playdough in senior nursery. Very ambitious.

Seriously, why is it 91 degrees in November?

ETA: At the exact moment I hit "publish" on this post a loud MEOW! came from the other room where Dalton is sleeping.

"I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears.

But I shall not know any better then than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way."

Bruce R. McConkie, The Purifying Power of the Atonement

Maggie's song
Look into your eyes
You'll see something real
It's your cutie self
It's real

Dalton's song
Meow meow meow meow
Meow meow meow meow
Meow meow meow meow

G is for Gymnastics which the kids both love. I'm going to put them in a "real" gymnastics class next year.

H is for Holidays: Can't wait for Thanksgiving and Christmas (not that Thanksgiving is going to be the least bit exciting of itself this year). We'll get to see family and celebrate and eat good food and enjoy the seasonal spirit. Not to mention Halloween, which was fun as always.

I is for in-laws: I'm a pretty lucky girl as far as in-laws are concerned. I got some great sisters-in-law in the bundle, not to mention how good John's parents have been to us. Did I mention Susan is coming to visit? Yay!

I is for imagination: I am loving Dalton's "kitty" phase. He made friends with a mom at the park (he doesn't play with other kids, but will go up to the moms and strike up a conversation). When I went over to collect him, he was answering all her questions with "Meow." Except when she asked his name he said, "Meow, kitty." He's a doggie sometimes, too, so I'm not too worried.

I is for ice cream: Nuf said.

1. He is thoughtful. He brought me donuts last night! You can't go wrong with a guy who brings home donuts.
2. He is a great daddy. Lately, all the kids want to do is play "silly alligator game" with Daddy. Watch him play.
3. He is talented. Right now he is practicing the piano for Primary and I love hearing him play every night!
4. He is a hard worker. Sometimes he works too hard at his job, but he's very good at it.
5. He's hilarious. Seriously. And he's silly.
6. We are on the same page financially. It's nice not to be married to someone who can't control money.
7. We are on the same page politically. At least there was someone I agreed with this week!
8. We like to do the same things. Go for walks, enjoy the outdoors, Disneyland.
9. He bakes good cookies.
10. He makes pretty babies (as my mom would say). Further proof forthcoming.

Also thankful for: job security.

Today I made a double batch of pretzels, lemon bars, and taco soup. I'm glad it's soup season because soup is so easy to make! It only took 10 minutes, then we just reheated after church. I got all of this done this morning before church, since we got up nice and early with daylight savings. I've been meaning to make lemon bars for several days, but by the time I have time, my energy is sapped. So it was nice to get it done first thing in the morning.

I always say that I like to cook but I don't like to have to cook. I much prefer doing it on my own time rather than "what's for dinner?" every.single.night.

Leonard is smart and articulate and kind. He's a really good cook. He likes to play games. He was not the type to beat up/question boyfriends when I was growing up (probably because he moved out before I had any) but I feel he's very thoughtful and protective of his little sisters. Always makes sure we're doing ok!

She's starting to be more independent - a few years behind Dalton. She threw a fit the other day because she couldn't do her own ponytail (something she'd never attempted before). At least she can do her own seatbelt and open the car door and other useful things like that. She's also more useful about doing things like, "run upstairs and get me such-and-such." Maggie is very smart and is getting really good at writing her letters, sounding out words, and reading sight word books. Her drawings are amazing, too, as school encourages lots of different colors and details.

She loves to snuggle ("Is it morning yet?" she asks way too early every morning) but her definition of snuggling is noisy and thrashy and pokey. But I love her anyway.

M is for Modern Day: Our garage door is broken, with our cars trapped inside. Nothing like that to make you appreciate modern day conveniences!

However, unlike toddler Maggie, toddler Dalton will probably actually let ME nap when the baby naps. Bonus nap time!

I'll be taking a Disney break soon, but at the rate this baby is coming out (not) we may squeeze in one more trip.

I am so grateful for all the local parks nearby. There are at least 6 or 7 we could walk to within 20 minutes. How awesome is that? There's one next to the school we hang out at after school sometimes, now that it's not hot. And our ward has a weekly park day. It's especially great that my kids don't require a ton of attention/following around at the park. Soon to change.

P is for Photos: I think Dalton might be one second child who has MORE pictures taken of him than the first. Although we had a digital camera when M was born, we still weren't in the habit of snapping 1,000 pictures and delete 998. I'm not sure if having an iphone has caused me to take more pictures, or fewer, but I hope to keep it up with our third child.

P is for Parents: My parents left me a great legacy. A love of reading, a musical base, an expectation of college education, cooking and other homemaking skills, a sense of humor, and the genes to make cute babies.

The kids put up some foam ABCs on the bathtub door. Dalton was pointing to them and reading, "Don't put lolli pop in blue water." I let him take his lollipop in the bathtub and told him it'd turn the water red if he put it in.

M: "Mary Poppins are a good rhymer." Well, she's right.

M: "Why are there water falling from the sky?" Oh, you mean the rain??

M: Dad, your ideas are rude.

M, in regards to the "missing links" line in The Monkey's Uncle. "What does it mean 'missing legs?'"

Dalton calls helicopter "rawrcopter". One day he insisted he saw a Fleece Rawrcopter and it took me forever to realize he was saying "Police helicopter." He uses F a lot when there are double consonants.

D: Because = "keycause" So cute.

Rachel is a great auntie and sends fun presents for the kids. She drags kitties over to say "hi" on Facetime. Just like a sister, she's great for complaining to. Like Leonard, she lives somewhere cool. The kids love seeing bits of London on Mary Poppins, or on rides at Disneyland (it's a small world, Mr. Toad's Wild Ride etc). If they hear London mentioned in a song they will yell, "they said 'London!'"

When she visits, we give each other pedicures and she's a great feet-rubber. She holds new babies for me so I can take a shower. She finds clearance deals for me at Target. There's nothing like a sister to always be there for you!

R is for Responsibility: There's something to be said for taking care of yourself and your family, paying your own bills, and making your own way. I love that good feeling of accomplishment and self-reliance.

She was 7 lb 14 ounces and has lots of dark hair. Her eyes are medium blue, she has a little Maggie nose and the cutest mouth I've ever seen. She's very sleepy. We haven't seen her eyes open much but are pretty sure she doesn't have the big Richardson eyes Dalton gets comments on all the time. She also definitely does not have my fingers. Her hands look much more like Grandma June's (!) that Grandma Rosie's.

Sweet baby girl is going to fit in great in our family. I think Dalton is going to be a great big brother and Maggie loves babies. I also have a feeling Sienna will be more of a princess and girly girl than Maggie. We shall see!

T is for Travel: I love traveling. We thought we'd be done for a while after all the traveling we did in India. Not so much. Maggie asked a few months ago when we're going on an airplane again. Well, it's going to be a while, but we do have lots of travel plans for the future! With our move this summer, and all the traveling John was doing for work, we sort of missed out. But we love to see new places and new cultures and enjoy the outdoor world. So, more travel, coming up!

T is for Toilet paper: Seriously. And I mean American toilet paper, not wax paper or crepe paper like some places use.

T is for Thanksgiving: Not my favorite holiday and not my favorite food, but it is always good to get together with family and have thankfulness in our hearts.

T is for Temple: I made it to the temple twice in my last couple weeks of pregnancy and it's a good thing because it's even more difficult to go with a newborn. It's always nice to get to the temple, put aside all the every day cares and focus on ehat's really important. Sometimes that may be an every day care we need help with, but I always get a new perspective on it.

W is for Wellness: We brought Sienna home to a houseful of germs but she appears to avoided catching anything - so far. John has been sick with the world's most awful cold, missing out on baby snuggling and wasting his paternity leave being sick. Being sick makes Maggie extra grumpy and ornery, too. Not to mention bossy. I'm thankful I've managed to escape with a little cold.

Extermination... Cause I hate spiders.

Exceeded Expectations of new babiness, big siblings, sleep and more.

The zoos in Orange County are lame, at least they were when Maggie was a baby. In any event, I don't plan to check them out until our Disneyland passes expire. All outings are reserved for Disney right now. But in the meantime I'm grateful for all the fun memories I have of visiting zoos all over the world, and making new memories with my kids.

Other than driving in the car to take Grandma to the airport, her first outing was to the doctor on Saturday. We also made a quick trip to the grocery store after and she slept the whole time. At the doctor, Sienna weighed in at 7 lb 13 oz. almost back up to her birth weight at just five days! They even said I don't need to bring her back until 6 weeks unless we have questions.

The bad thing about this week is that John has been really sick and has not had his fair share of baby snuggles. Plus, with John being home and taking the big kids to do fun things, and their own germs, the kids haven't spent much time with Sienna. Dalton did discover, upon waking up before everyone else one morning, that a breast feeding mommy is a captive audience. And also she has snacks. The kids like to grab their stool from the bathroom and bring it in Sienna's room so they can watch her in the crib or on the changing table. Maggie showed Sienna everything she brought home from school, and read some stories to her.

Sienna's hair is so long and soft. Both of our other babies had hair, much to our surprise, but Sienna has even more. I love feeling it, especially after I wash it.

I seem to be recovering very well from Sienna's birth. I got an epidural before my contractions really started hurting, so labor wasn't very painful. Breastfeeding seems to be easier and hurt less than with the other two. Not that it doesn't hurt, because it does. And that girl sure can sleep! I won't complain about getting up twice in the night, for now at least.

But I will complain about my pained tailbone, my miserably aching back and, now, a cold! Add the exhaustion to that and it's no fun at all. I hope most of that clears up before John goes back to work next week and I have to start functioning again.

Also, I realize she is now nine days old. It took me two nights to tap all this out on my iPhone.

Nice, hot showers. When we came home from India I said I'd never take a nice hot shower for granted again. That actually lasted about 8 months - maybe our shower here isn't as nice as the one in Utah. But I'm back to fully appreciating showers again. I think I actually fell asleep a little bit in the shower last night but that might have been more about forgetting to take a nap.

Tap water. Last night I heard John rinse out a culinary the sink, then fill it with a drink and I thought "Wait! Dry out the yucky India wat... Oh wait...". It's really nice to be able to rinse my mouth out after brushing teeth again. Not to mention the sanitizing power of my dishwasher and washing machine.

My iPhone. I seriously love this thing. I love having everything all in one place - my calendar, notes, email. Plus, it's awesome for being up in the night with Sienna (like right now). I can read scriptures or conference talks, play sudoku, chat with Rachel or blog! I'd rather be sleeping, but it beats sitting here.

My sweet snugly silly kids. I already wrote about them, but they get bonus. Nothing like a little towhead who wants to snuggle and read stories!

I'm feeling more newborn-trapped than newborn-rested staying home at this point. I'm sure after a couple times of dragging all three kids somewhere, I'll be over it. But in the meantime, I'm feeling lonely.

Today is also John's first day back at work (not that he wasn't working at home last week). He got the kids breakfast and settled watching a show before he left this morning, so I was still able to sleep in. Sienna was actually a good sleeper last night, but I was ridiculously unable to go back to sleep after her 4:30 feeding. Ugh.

Anyway. I bought some newborn sized clothes and now she has clothes that fit and I got her dressed. See the latest cuteness on our picture blog.

Maggie and I laughed so hard! Then she said, "remember when we were in Utah and I hit my head and you said "we're going to go to Ember's house" but you said "we're going to go to" and Dalton said, "bum!" really fast?". Yes, I do remember. I said, "I can't believe you remember that" and she said, "I'm so smart!"

Last night was the ward Christmas party, luau themed. Dalton is just thrilled with the plastic lei he brought home.

John is going out of town today, as he likes to do when we have newborn babies at home. The good news is, if I survive being alone with three kid for four days, I will be rewarded with a visit from my sister. Yay for sisters! In the meantime, I hope Sienna keeps sleeping like this because I am already exhausted.

Once the kids got tired, John took them home and Rachel and I stayed with Sienna. We did a few more rides, though it was very crowded at that point, and just hung out. It was kind of amazing to outnumber the kids. We took turns carrying Sienna and complaining about our feet hurting. We were both completely exhausted by the time we got home, before 9.

Most of all, it was great to hang out with my sister. The kids love "Auntie Reechel" and the feeling's mutual. This is a really fun Christmas season, considering we're just hanging out at home!

Also, baby girl smiled at her Daddy this morning!

She told me a while ago that Tuesdays were her favorite day of the week because she had gymnastics, so I told her gymnastics would be on Mondays starting in January. She's got the days of the week down, but not the months. Poor thing. Hopefully when she sees how the quality of her gymnastics experience has improved (I signed the kids up at an actual gymnastics place), she'll forgive me for taking the month of December off. At least she's excited!

Maggie: No matter. I'll do it myself

Dalton: strums piano. begins singing. Rudolph the red nosed reindeer!

Me: Dalton, look at that doggie.
Dalton: I know.

Dalton: Hey mommy. I mean, Hey Aunt Rachel.

Dalton: You're a mean one, Mrs Aunt Rachel

Sienna seemed to enjoy her first trip to the beach, or at least she didn't hate it. She slept, looked around, nursed, slept. The same things she does at home. It was in the low 60s. The kids wore shorts. We all got a little pink (except Sienna who was mostly covered). And we had plenty of time to play at the playground after.

M: That was a really fun lake.
Me and John: ...
Me: Maggie, that was the Pacific Ocean.
John: It's the biggest ocean in the world.

I really liked the movie, even though it's been far too long since I read the book. Some of the songs were really fun and well-performed and I thought the actor who played Bilbo did a great job.

After lunch, we all went to the park and to put our feet in the hot tub. The kids ended up taking their clothes off and swimming in their underwear. It was all fun and games until Dalton fell of a step and John had to get in with his clothes on and rescue him.

Santa came (though it's 5:45 am and the kids don't know it yet). He was smart enough to preassemble gifts before dropping them off at our house, unlike many other parents I see posting on Facebook. Of course, our kids aren't snoopers, so we're allowed to get away with some things other parents may not be.

Looking forward to the bustle of a Christmas morning with two kids who know what's going on. And maybe getting another hour's sleep first.

It took the kids a while to notice their scooters because Santa left them in the entry way and they were busy being amazed at the bulging stockings and the presents that had multiplied under the tree (we had to wrap half the stocking stuffers, as always). Maggie acted embarrassed and shy, I guess that Santa had actually given her what she wanted. After a few rides around the kitchen, the kids got busy with their stockings. They had treats, toothbrushes (and socks and clippies, which Maggie also asked Santa for) but not too much "stuff".

We had a yummy breakfast, premade by Leonard the night before, then dug into the presents. We made the mistake of not labeling some of them, which added to the fun (some of the stocking stuffers were misplaced as well). Rachel brought tons of books for the kids, including some sticker books, dinosaur books, and London taxi and London bus books, and a London underground train for Dalton. Leonard bought both of the kids shirts at the natural history museum. A PINK dinosaur shirt! Dalton's glows in the dark. Very cool. We got the kids Disney prints to hang above their beds. Maggie got Winnie-the-Pooh and Dalton got Dumbo, although Maggie says she likes Dalton's better. They also got Angry Birds shirts, a train tunnel for their train set,and some other miscellany. We tried not to buy them too much, and I think we succeeded, for once.

I got a long-sleeved shirt I love, new socks I needed, a cute little penguin purse, fancy sea salt, lots of candy, Amazon Mom membership, and really, super awesome, big, soft TOWELS. I think John is a bit embarrassed to have gotten me such an unromantic gift as towels, but they are exactly what I wanted and I LOVE them.

Sienna did not get a single Christmas present and she didn't seem to mind one bit.

We went swimming in the afternoon, since our trip to the hot tub yesterday was such a success. The kids played in the kiddie pool for nearly an hour, then we headed to the hot tub until Sienna woke up. I love California.

I think I'm ready to find the new normal with 3 kids. I've hardly done any work this month, and things at home are always slipping (Thanks to John for stepping up and taking care of lots of it). Once I make it to Disneyland by myself with all three, I think we'll be there.

She doesn't have the amazing head support the other two had (especially Maggie) and is pretty wobbly still. Her hair is growing in and is so soft and adorable. She fits in her 0-3 clothes, for the most part (now that we finally bought her some - Auntie Rachel bought everything that said "I love Auntie" at Carter's).

She's not particularly interested in the world, and doesn't nurse well outside of the house. I forget that I may be a breastfeeding expert, but she's only been doing it for a couple weeks. But she's slowly waking up and seeing what's around here. Maggie loves to shower her with attention and Sienna usually loves it. She rewarded Maggie with a smile today, while they were sharing the stroller at Disneyland.

The kids each got a $5 gift card in their stockings, to pick out a treat. Dalton got a Mickey cake pop. I let the kids pay for their treats with their gift cards. He clearly knew it was his, but when we got it out after lunch, he walked around sharing bites with all of us, so generously. It was delicious, too! Maggie got an M&M covered chocolate caramel pretzel rod, which we saved for after dinner.

We went to the Jingle Jangle Jamboree where the kids got reindeer masks to color and we saw Mickey Santa. I'm really pleased with the picture we got of all of us. Mickey made time to get down and say hi to Sienna and got her to smile at him. I love that the characters take time to make your kid's day.

After dinner and baths, John got out a selection of movies we hadn't seen recently (so the adults didn't get bored) and let the kids pick. I made popcorn and got out the sleeping bag. They snuggled and colored their reindeer masks from Disneyland while we watched Ice Age.

After the movie, I sent Maggie upstairs to get her drum to make noise for New Year's. She came down with the drum, the xylophone, and the leis from the ward Christmas party. The kids got ready, we counted down from ten and they made their noise. Then we brushed teeth and went to bed. Yes, it was only 8:20, but they don't know the difference and we did let them stay up quite a bit after bedtime!

Topping the list of good things that happened this year is Sienna. She's awesome, just the perfect little addition to our family. Next come the hilarious things Maggie and Dalton did and said this year. Those kids are so funny! Moving back to California was pretty great. We love our new house, location, ward, school etc. And, you know, Disneyland.

Not as much travelling as 2011 (hah!) but we did some. Two trips to California (Disneyland!), plus the move which included a stay in Las Vegas. We went to Moab - Arches and Dead Horse Point. Los Osos twice. Lots of SLC staycation stuff (CA staycation will begin when our Disney passes expire). And 50 trips to Disneyland. Fifty.

Some favorite memories:
Maggie saving our flip flops from the wrath of the Pacific Ocean.
Space Camp for Maggie and staycation for Dalton
Riding a surrey at Newport Beach
Maggie swimmingunder water for the first time
Dancin' with Disney (and Kyli!)
Olympic rythmic dancing
Mickey's Halloween Party