hmmmm...

Man I love this kid!

Tonight after coming home from a evening of learning to cook Indian food, I stopped by Oscar's room and he was up tinkering with some things. I said hello and said "Hey kiddo thanks for being such a great kid. I sure love you."
To this he responded: "Why did you say that?"
Me- "I dunno because I do?"
O-"Oh, I was just wondering because you usually only say that when you were mad at me."

Me-(Insert all sorts of guilt laden feelings...I'm sure i say it more frequently than that...Don't I????)
"Well, you know I love you all of the time, right?"

O- "Yeah mom"

Me- "I do love you, have a good night, and turn your light off soon."

O-"night mom"

Am I seriously this mom who only tells him I love him after I have been mad at him??? I suppose that isn't the worst thing. I mean, at least after I have been angry with him, I tell him that I still love him. That should mean something Right?

Note to self: shower that boy with hugs and kisses until he can't stand it!!!! No more of giving him his first grader space...He MUST know that I have adored him since he was born! He must know how much I love him! Sometimes I love my kids so much it just hurts!!!
I hope that he knows that I adore the way he takes on this world full of curiosity and kindness, with a soft heart and an eager mind. He should know that I miss him when he is at school and I long for the days when we used to go hiking for hours, just him and me.
Is all of that forgotten? Am I becoming too distracted for him to realize just how much I can't imagine this world without him being a part of it????
Well, at least one day when he is grown and he looks back and remembers his childhood, maybe then he will read this and know that yes, I do love him and that the majority of my days are spent trying to create a place of Love, joy and safety for him. without sheltering him too much.
I'm sure this is just the beginning...but he can expect a lot more hugs in the near future!

Bee Man

The Rickster is lovin his new hobby...

He loves to look at the bees and doesn't even wear gloves. Here he is holding the queen bee's box before she ate her way out. Surprisingly the bees are pretty docile and you can just stand around the hive and they will fly around, sometimes land on you but then go away. We have only had one sting and that was Oscar who started batting at the bees when one landed on him.

Saturday Oscar did his first ever three mile run. He finished in about 37 minutes...we are so proud! Rick ran with him and the girls (it seems funny to type "Girls") and I did the 10K with a couple of other friends.

The best part about this run is the jet-boat ride back to the starting line. Poppy and I sat in the back of the boat with Missy Hazel. It is so nice to be running again, albeit pretty slow! Thanks to Ashley and Linda who convinced me to do the 10k it was nice to feel a little bit back to normal.

Wheels are a turnin'...but not blogging

We are still alive, I have every intention of posting about a million blog posts...yet I seem to never find the time. Very soon you will get an eyeful.
Still to post about...Yesterday's Seaport River run with friends (believe it or not I am beginning to be able to run again!!!).
Bee updates...Ricky's new hobby
Hazel updates...I must cath her smiling!
garden updates...cold stuff is in (minus the peas, note to self...get them in!)
Oscar and Poppy updates...They have been quite the silly kids. Poppy is mildly obsessed with people dying...must update about our conversations and her prayer routine. Oscar is a zip line king!
Ahhhh....I'm sacrificing blog time for real life. Sorry!

Pretty soon I hope to resume normal capacity. Meanwhile the good news is that the #3 transition is going much better than expected but I am having to prioritize my time a lot more.

No comments just pics...sorry

Catching up...part one: Grandma's Funeral

In an attempt to Document some of the important events of our family life, I'm going to play a little bit of catch up.
We recently went to Utah for the funeral of Grandma Kayser.
We had planned to bless Hazel on March 29th and Rick's parents came for the blessing. They cut their trip short on account that Grandma Kayser passed away the 28th. They headed back home that morning and we followed them back to Utah the following week for the funeral.
The funeral conveniently landed during Oscar's spring break which made it quite easy for me in the "planning things to do during spring break" department.
The funeral was very nice and just the way I'm sure grandma would have wanted it. After seeing this above photo, I could just see Grandma commenting on what a handsome group of men they were and how nicely they all looked. She always liked to look nice and I think it was so fitting that this handsome group of men were there to carry her to her resting place.
During the stay we were able to have a lot of cousin time. Poppy on Seeing Willie ran to him and they gave each other this big hug...I had them hold it a little longer for the photo but it was very cute! I'm sad I didn't get one of all of the grand kids together...maybe next time.


Arriving at the cemetery Poppy had fallen asleep...staying up late and all the hustle and bussel tuckered her out. Oh, and she stole grandpa's carnation during the funeral...I think he didn't mind giving it up.

Grandma Edge, despite all of her responsibilities of the funeral, found plenty of time to snuggle the grand kids. Hazel seemed to enjoy it too. On our way home we stopped in Boise and saw my Grandma Dilworth. She has always been a kindred spirit to me and it was so wonderful to see her. She loved seeing Hazel and Hazel loved looking and smiling at her.
I continue to hope that our kids will remember some of their great-grandmothers. I have fond memories of my Great-Grandma Johnson and love that I was able to know her and connect with her. There is something about knowing that grandmother, rather than her just being a picture in a photo album.
Overall the trip was great. Hazel did fabulously int he car and the other two did really well too. We have opted to not take the DVD player the last two times going to Utah and I think it is a good thing. They seem to fight a lot less.
Well her is the first installment of updates...hopefully soon I will catch up on Easter and other happenings.

Totally caved...

Rick made some of his delicious (and I mean soooo yummy and tasty) all whole grain, nutty chocolate chip cookies last night...I covered the cookie jar with a towel to pretend they didn't exist...I ate a million baby carrots...I drank a hundred glasses of water...ate a piece of gum even though it hurts my jaw...and then I caved.
I thought I could just eat one of them...nope!
I ran a couple extra miles this evening to justify it. I don't feel too guilty.

Regular Schedule...

Random picture Parallel Universe...this could be Oscar, Hazel and Poppy...but really it is Ricky, Emily and Meg...see the family resemblance?

Can you remember a time when you hopped on your bike, sunshine in the sky, not time constraints, just you the bike and the open road? Or maybe a time when you were driving with the sunroof open, music playing a song with a great beat, sunglasses on, open road and you felt like you could fly?
Yeah, I taught my first spinning class today since Hazel was born...It felt a bit like that. I actually got goosebumps during some of the songs because it felt so great to be back on the bike. ahhh...the feeling of getting back to normal.
That being said:

This week marks the first week of me resuming our regular schedule activities. Up to now since Hazels birth I have been doing a few of them but not all together. I have discovered that i like the slower pace better. I like not having so many other obligations and responsibilities out side of our house. I want to cut out some things but I'm not quite sure what...I"ll have to keep working on that.
Along with resuming the "regular" schedule, I decided it was about time to track my calories to get rid of this extra baby weight that is hanging around...I made myself a list of rules and have pleasantly been surprised at how great it feels to have a little bit of self control again. Don't get me wrong, going cold turkey on the junk food department has been a bit challenging...but no worries I haven't faltered yet.
I have thought of eating chocolate and jelly beans about a million times, but then I think of the photos of our family that were taken last week and I remember that I want to be back to my normal size!!!
The down side of the cold turkey diet is that I no longer have the sugar rush to pull me through the 3 o' clock hour. Honey toast has been working ok but it still isn't chocolate.
Rick keeps trying to peer pressuring me into indulging but when he mentions it i think it fuels my desire to prove that I can keep it up.

Grandma K

One of the tests before Ricky married me was to meet Grandma K and to see what she thought of me...When we walked into her house she greeted me with a smile and a hug and I knew that I was in. From that moment I was blessed to have known such a fun, interesting, and quirky woman.
I loved to visit with her and see her insight and perspective on things. I loved to see her hold my babies and rock them back and forth and pat their little chins with their blanket. As they got bigger she would wrap little handkerchiefs so that they looked like they were a cradle for a baby and she would show them how to rock it.
I have so many fun memories and am grateful that I had the chance to know her. I'm going to miss her contagious smile and laugh.