Eagle Watching in Cd'A

On Human Rights Day, the Bennetts invited us to go with them to go to Couer d'Alene, ID to go eagle watching.  It was awesome!!

We hiked up to Higgin's Point to get the best view.  

We made it!  It was so pretty!  It was chilly, but worth it!

Lucy stayed nice and cosy, all bundled up in the stroller. 

Cal isn't very fond of the cold and tried to be as happy as he could, despite conditions. 

Emma loved it!  She thought the eagles were so cool, especially since her mascot at school is an eagle!

Our camera doesn't do great pictures, and these definately don't do justice to the beauty we saw, but they'll have to do!  It was so cool to see them swoop around, then nose dive down into the water to catch fish. 

We had a great time together!

 

Cruz and Emma checking the birds out. 

After this, we went to Shakey's Pizza for dinner and then went to play some fun games at the Bennett's house.  It was a great day!

Emma lost her first tooth!

Emma's bottom two teeth have been loose since December, her bottom middle two.  When we were down in Utah for Christmas, Stacy pointed out that her other permanent teeth were growing in behind her loose baby teeth.  I panicked, of course, but when we went to the dentist when we got home, they assured me it was normal, unless the teeth just won't come out after a long period of time.  But they said her teeth were so loose they'd probably just come out when she sneezed!  Emma worked hard to get them out. 

Emma wiggled her tooth with her tongue...

Wiggled her tooth with her fingers....

She tried to get it out with dental floss...

She worked a lot to try to get that darn tooth out!

Em was a little hesitant to have me help her and was super nervous anytime I wanted to "see" the tooth.  One morning, she came down the stairs and while holding her tooth (her bottom left one)  proudly up said, "Mom!  I lost my tooth!"

She was super stoked to be able to tell all of her classmates, friends and family about the good news! 

While Em was at school, I made this tooth fairy pillow for her.  You put the tooth (in a zip lock baggie, of course) in the mouth. 

I put a ribbon on there so we could hang it on her door.  Emma was pretty excited about it!  I thought it turned out cute.  We asked her how much kids in her class were getting from the tooth fairy, and she told us "Five bucks".  Wow!  I didn't know the tooth fairy was that loaded!  Forget robbing the bank, rob the tooth fairy!  For her first tooth, the tooth fairy brought Emma $2.  She was so, so excited!!

Less than two weeks later, Emma lost the other one from the bottom!  The tooth fairy brought $1.50 this time in exchange for her teeth.  Now she's trying to wiggle more teeth to get them loose so she can get more money from the tooth fairy!  Ha ha!  I can't believe I'm old enough to have a kid who's losing teeth! That's wierd to me! But good at the same time.  Another exciting rite of passage!

Now she has a little gap on the bottom of her mouth, but as you can see (sorry if this is a little graphic), her other teeth are growing in nicely. 

Finding JOY in womanhood

I was asked to speak to our ward's young women's today about how I find joy in womanhood at this stage in my life, being a young wife and mother.  I could go on all day about the joy I feel being a woman, particularly a woman, wife and mother who has the light of the Gospel.  (:  I thought I'd share some of my thoughts on the blog... 

I was so excited to go talk to the young women.  It wasn’t too long ago, about ten years ago, that I was there, one of them, getting to graduate and go out into the world!  I would dream about the future and what was in store for me. 

I was asked to discuss how I find joy in womanhood at this stage in my life.   I’ve always loved being a girl and I’m so grateful Heavenly Father assigned our gender before we were born.  Especially now, I’m grateful to be a wife and mother!  It is so rewarding to be a wife and mother, there’s nothing better!  You've probably heard "No success can compensate for failure in the home."  Let me add to that, "No joy can come than that which comes from the home."  There’s truly no greater joy than bringing children into this world.  As I thought about what I should focus on, I kept going back to a little doodled note that was in my journal from when my husband and I were in our dating/engaged stage.  We were discussing happiness and joy and we came up with an acrostic, where each letter in the word joy stood for something. 

J – Jesus

O – Others

Y – Yourself

J – Jesus. 

            
             First and foremost, to find joy in life, we need to follow the Savior.  When we keep his commandments, we are promised his Spirit, which leads to an increase in happiness.  Making the “Seminary answers” a part of our lives – scripture study, earnest prayer, FHE, attending our meetings…etc. will bring joy.  Get in the habit of doing these things now.  I’m a young mother, and am so grateful I have a testimony and knowledge of the Gospel.  I want to instill in my young ones a love for the Gospel and the Savior, and glad I have that to give them. 

President Spencer W. Kimball: "We want our homes to be blessed with sister scriptorians…Become scholars of the scriptures - not to put others down, but to lift them up! After all, who has any greater need to 'treasure up' the truths of the gospel (on which they may call in their moments of need) than do women and mothers who do so much nurturing and teaching?" 

When I was in college, I was a little hesitant about marrying and having kids in this challenging, wicked world.  But I received assurance from Heavenly Father while listening to a conference talk, as long as we cling to the Gospel and make Christ the center of our homes, we have nothing about the future to fear.  We need to put Christ first and make him the center of our lives.  And then we can look to others. 

O – Others. 

            




            Being a wife and a mother is a self-less job.  It is service, sacrifice, around the clock.  Elder Jeffry R. Holland has said: “Mothers go longer on less sleep and give more to others with less personal renewal for themselves than any other group I know at any other time in life.  It is not surprising when the shadows under their eyes sometimes vaguely resemble the state of Rhode Island.”  Later he goes on to say: “You are doing God’s work.  You are doing it wonderfully well.  He is blessing you, and he will bless you, even – no, especially when your days and your nights may be most challenging.” 

It’s challenging, but we will receive his help.  And we know that anything challenging will be worth it in the end.  We have been reminded time and again by the brethren not to put off marriage or having children for selfish reasons.  Don’t be worried about the future of these things, have faith, move forward, and things will work out.  First Presidency once remarked that “Motherhood is the highest, holiest services assumed by mankind.”  It’s by serving others that we are truly happy, and that starts in our homes.  We also need to remember us.

Y – Yourself. 

Don’t lose your own identity when you become married or have children.  You need to take care of yourself.  You need to know of your self-worth and love yourself.  Get an education or some kind of training.  Give a little time to yourself to do what you like to do.  Develop your talents.  Be virtuous.  Always keep good friends around you and keep those relationships going. 

I want to admonish you to not wait for tomorrow to be happy.  I always hear a lot of people (and I have too, on occasion) say “I’ll be happy when I get a car/have a boyfriend/finish school/get married/have a good job/get a house/have kids/the kids are moved away.”  Don’t do that!  President Harold B. Lee said “Happiness does not depend on what happens outside of you, but on what happens inside of you.”  Don’t rely on other people or situations to make you happy.  Choose to be happy now and always!

            With these things in mind, remember that happiness and joy doesn’t equal perfection.  For anyone.  I hear a lot of people say “You have the most perfect family!”  Yeah, right!  There are a lot of challenges in my life, in everyone’s life.  That’s the point of this life.  I always thought mothering young children would be so much fun and effortless.  And it can be fun but it’s definitely not effortless!  There’s cleaning to do, endless laundry pile, casseroles to cook, diapers to change, discipline issues to deal with, relationships to strengthen.  It’s difficult, but anything difficult is worth it.  And, I’m learning to find joy in these things.  I wish I could just play all day with the kiddos and not have to worry about anything else.  We need to learn to balance our time though and find joy doing mundane tasks like the dishes.  I like to ponder during these times, talk with or sing to my kids and include them in household responsibilities.  I love my husband, I love my kids.  It is so worth it to find a little note he's written for me or have my Dave come home at the end of the day and share a kiss, or to have my oldest Emma tell me “You’re doing a good job, Mom!” during a frustrating moment when I got lost and couldn’t find my way in the car, or when my little Cal came up and hugged my leg a few months ago and say “We belong togethers” or to see baby Lucy smile and wave for the first time and babble out my name.  These moments bring joy that make being a woman so worth it!

I could go on all day about what joy being a woman, and particularly the joy motherhood brings.  But I’ll close with my testimony that if you put Jesus first and serve Others, You will be happy!

Happy birthday to me!

Since my birthday was so close while we were still visiting Utah, we decided to celebrate it.  (Well, not “we”, I told everyone I was fine not having a birthday party, that way Kolby and Julie could have their own, since they always have to share with me).  But my Mom and Sue Mom insisted.  So, we went to church with my parents on New Year’s Day.  It was fun seeing people from the ward I grew up in, though it’s changed a lot.  Then we went and hung out that afternoon and helped to get dinner ready.  Then Amy and Kolby came.  It was Kolby's actual birthday, he's a News Years baby.  Right when they showed up, Cal started throwing up, breaking out in hives, his body started swelling, including his lips.  He and Mark and Emma were eating nuts and we think it was the Brazil nut (or possibly the hazel nut).  Now we knew he was allergic to peanuts, but he’s always been fine with walnuts, cashews, and almonds, so we figured the others were fine.  The doctor said just to let him try them in small quantities, and just see.  But he must have an awful allergy to those.  We have an appointment to get him tested.  And, we were going to use the Epi-pen it was so bad, but it was expired (Mom of the Year award right there).  So my Dad and Marko ran to the store to get some Benadryl.  He threw up again and where he threw up, he broke out again, so this allergy is very severe.  We gave him the Benadryl, and Dave and Kolby gave him a blessing.  Then he started feeling much better.  It was super scary though, the worse allergic reaction we’ve seen from him.  So after this fiasco, we had dinner.  We ate yummy island pork loin, with garlic mashed potatoes, Caesar salad, yummy rolls, and cheesecake instead of cake, of course!

Cal getting better.  Nothing a little game won't fix for this boy.  He's a total gamer!  Emma helping him and watching out for him. 

Luce with her Uncle Kolby.  Who doesn't love Uncle Kolby?

Singing "Happy Birthday" and getting ready to blow out the candles.  Lucy was fascinated by the candles, as you can see!

Make a wish!

A picture with all of the girl (and Marko...)  But this picture is so cute.  I love it!

 

I had a birthday party with Julie.  Thanks, Julie, for sharing your party with me!  You’re so cool!  (:  We had dinner, though I can’t say I remember what we ate…  Then we got to blow out the candles together.   There were a ton on there, but luckily all of the kids were there to help!  We had cheesecake and red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting.  Lucy was mesmerized by the candles and we sang our crazy version of happy birthday and then just hung out the rest of the night and talked and said our goodbyes, since we left the next morning bright and early.   

Again, check Lucy's face out.  He he!

Making wishes!

Okay Jerry, you can stop now!  It ain't over until the [Jerry] sings! 

On my real birthday, we celebrated by having a sleepover with the cousins.  All of the kids had fun with that.  We made crepes for breakfast, played, and played some more.  And I was in the mood to clean and organize, so that’s what I did.  I got some phone calls from my Mom and my in-laws, and Amy Lou.  Thanks for calling!  Then, we got ready, and my Aunt Suz watched the kids while Dave and I went to see the new Sherlock Holmes (Mellie gives it 4 stars, I loved it!).  Then we went to dinner at Red Robin.  It’s so nice to get away without the kids.  School has been so busy, we’re lucky if we get a date night once a week!  It was very nice just to talk and just have it be us.  So thanks, Suz, for the babysitting and for always being there!  Then we came home and watched a movie with the kids, Peperli brought some yummy cinnamon rolls over, and the kids and I and read lots of books and snuggled. 

This year, I wanted to make my own cake, since I found this recipe months ago and have been waiting for a particular occasion to use it. I decided my birthday would be a perfect one! Cookie dough? Chocolate? Cheesecake? Yes, please! I made this (http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2010/07/chocolate-chip-cookie-dough-cheesecake.html) chocolate chip cookie dough cheesecake (are you seeing a common thread here? Ha ha! 3 birthday celebrations, 3 cheesecakes. My name is Melanie and I’m a cheesecakeaholic). Happy birthday to me! It turned out well and was one of the best things I’ve tasted! 

I also got lots of sweet cards in the mail! They were all so nice, thank you to all who sent them to me! I love snail mail! I felt loved also when I checked my Facebook account that night. Aw, shucks! Thanks to everyone who sent nice things my way! 

 To top things off, we got snow that evening, after a long dry spell!  I can’t be let down! (; It always snows on my birthday.I think there have only been 2 or 3 birthdays my whole life where there hasn’t been a large snow or small snow storm.It was a nice day! 

New Years, New Goals

Happy New Year!  A lot has happened in the past year.  I gave birth to my third, and adjusted to three, we moved to Washingtno, Dave made it through his first semester of school at Washington State U, Emma finished half of her first year of school, Cal is close to being potty trained, and Lucy is now almost 1!  I can’t believe how fast time flies, and how little time I have to myself when there are three little ones and a husband to care for.  We are down in Utah right now, today is our last day here.  It’s been so great to spend time with family and friends!  I love them all!  As for New Years Resolutions, I’m going to report on my experiences with last years resolution first.  Last year, I tried to make “I’m Trying to Be Like Jesus” my motto.  I tried to think more about him and be more like him.  I did try my best to do that, but I’m no where close to actually being perfect like He is.  That is a lifelong quest, and I’m trying my hardest, but still have a  long way to go.  I like to write my goals down so I'll follow through and check up on myself.  This year, I’m going to focus on a few things:

1)      Focus more on the positives, not the negatives.

2)     Enjoy my children NOW – they’re only little once.

3)     Be more patient - with everyone, including myself.

4)  Give a little time to myself each day to do what I want. 

Those are the things I’ve been thinking that I need to do lately.  I hope this will add to blessing the lives of those around me and myself!  Here's to a happy 2012!

Still more holiday fun...

The week after Christmas was just as fun!  Monday morning, we headed up to Monte Cristo to go snowmobiling, courtesy of Amy and Kolby, with the whole Stoddard family.  We were worried there wouldn’t be any snow, but we had enough, barely.  It was such a fun day!  

We all took turns snowmobiling!  It was fun.  Dave also loved Kolb’s new sled.  It was fast!  Even Grammie got on, which doesn't surprise me.  She's a tough granny ("Don't call me "Grandma".  That sounds too old and wimpy!"). 

We sat around and talked and played games when we weren’t on the snowmobiles.  I don’t know if people had more fun playing or saying “Farkle”!

Lucy slept a lot, and got passed around.  She stayed nice and warm in her snow suit, which is 0-3 months and still fits her.  It was way to big for her when she was born! 

Cal hates the cold and wanted to sit in the back of our car the entire time.  I made him sled down the hill for a minute and go on the snowmobile with Amy once.  He just hates the cold.  But everyone was surprised how well he entertained himself and how happy he stayed.  He colored, stamped, read boks, and played with some cars I brought him.  I thought he’d come play more.  Usually when we go outside to play in the snow, Cal is ready to go in after five minutes or so.  But I thought he’d do better than that.  But at least he was happy.

Emma loves the snow and the cold, on the other hand!  She loved every minute making snowballs, sledding with me, Aunt Amy, and my cousins, and especially Snowmobiling!  She had to wear her pink Fox racing shirt so she’d match Aunt Mamy. 

My parents went snowshoeing, my mom got them matching snowshoes for Christmas.  I thought that was a cool idea since they used to go cross country skiing a lot.   

We had some lunch, we had chili and cowboy soup, crackers and hot chocolate.  We also surprised Kolby with a birthday cake from Costco, his favorite kind. 

Marko and my Mom, awww!  Love them!

And of course, lots and lots of sledding!  So, so much fun!

It was a blast being with everyone! We really have the best family!  Me and my BSE (Best sister ever!), Amy Lou!  I love you!!  Thanks for all of the good times!

I forgot to tell about this time in my previous post.  Monday night after we got to Utah, we went with my parents, Marko, and Amy and Kolby to see the lights at Temple Square.  These pictures were taken on Dave's EVO phone, but they still turned out pretty well.  The lights were so pretty and it was so fun being with my fam.  It was so exciting to see them for the first time!  Amy and Kolby brought 7-11 hot chocolate for everyone.  Helped to warm up our hands and our insides.  Our hands were cold, but not our insides.  They were plenty warm thanks to the warm feelings of love we have in our family.  It's so true that "Distance makes the heart grow fonder."  It does.  Emma was so excited to see Amy (and Kolby, too!). 

Ev

One morning, my Dave and I and my parents went to the Bountiful Temple.  We did a bunch of family names my mom has found.  We did baptisms, that was cool, since it’s been about 5 years since I did that last.  Dave baptized me for the women, just like the good old days, and my dad did the male names!  Then we did the confirmations for those names.  My mom and I and Dave and Dad did initiatories after that.  I always love doing that.  Then we finished things off with an Endowment session.  It was a spiritually uplifting morning serving in the House of the Lord.  I’m grateful for the Spirit there, what I learn, and that I can help others and myself through that great work.  And it was nice being back at the Bountiful temple, which just happens to be my favorite!  (;  Though they’re all great, it was just nice to be at the one you grew up with, helped to bring about and got married in. 

We went to Zoo Lights at Hogle Zoo onee night with the cousins and Grandma Sue.  It was so cool, way better than I even thought!  It was worth going to, if you can!  It was awesome to see some of the more nocturnal animals, like the big Cats that always are sleeping and lounging around during the day, up close and personal.  The tiger came right down to the glass and was roaring at everyone, it was pretty cool!  And the lights they’ve put together are spectacular!  And, it was so warm the kids wanted to all take off their snow stuff.  The kids had a great time, as well as the adults! 

We took Kaison one night and Emma went up and slept over with Tayla.  The boys are just crazy, but fun.  Going to the park to play was probably the highlight.  It was such a beautiful day, it was 60 degrees outside!  We saw two butterflies, heard the birds chirping.  I think the animals, insects, and plants are going to get confused with this weather.  We played on the playground, in the sand, chased each other, and rolled down the hill.  We had a blast!  It was so warm, the boys took their jackets and shoes off.  I was floored that the weather was like that!  But I'll take it!

On New Year’s Eve, I went to hang out at Hlee’s house with my old friends.  We had a girl’s spa day.  We did pedicures and Hlee cut hair.  The best part was just catching up while we snacked on some yummy things.  I love those ladies!  Then we had my Grammie’s side of the family Curran party.  It’s always the Saturday after Christmas and like always, had fun talking to some we don’t get to see at all except for at this party, had a yummy lunch, and played games like basketball, keep away, football and dodge ball in the gym.  Then our family went shopping for the afternoon, went to Chick-fil-A (oh how I’ve missed you!), then to Christie and Rex’s party for a while where we snacked on appetizers, played the Wii, played Scattergories & Slamwich, and played with the kids.  Then back to the Ryerse’s for fireworks.  We went earlier that week to a firework stand out in south Salt Lake, which had a huge selection, and we found a lot of great things.  They even had a train ride for the kids, which was cool.  We got some cake fireworks, our favorite was the Ladybug one, it was awesome!  And after years of searching, this stand had the Friendship Pagoda firework, my favorite one growing up!  We did that, and then just hung out the rest of the night, watched the ball drop and then watched a movie, though I don’t remember which one. 

A picture of Emma and her friends from my phone.  It's so cute when they get together!

A picture Emma took with my phone of Hlee, me, Ashley and Stacie. 

We were able to celebrate Tayla’s 6^th birthday with her.  What a cute girl, Emma just adores her!  Emma and I went up for her friend birthday.  She had a Unicorn party, everything was so cute!  The kids played Pin the Horn on the Unicorn, then we had a Unicorn piñata, had magic rainbow unicorn cake, and then we did some impromptu games.  It was fun to see them all and Tayla and Emma and the rest of their friends had a blast!  Then that night, we went to Chuck E. Cheese for Tayla’s family birthday.  Oh man, do kids (and the big people) all love Chuck E. Cheese!  They played all of the games, went on rides, played on the play place, watched Chuck E. Dance on stage, ate pizza, sang to Tayla and had more rainbow cake!  We got so many tickets, the kids actually were able to get legit prizes. 

We also celebrated my birthday with my families since we were down.  I’ll do a separate post for that, so look for it!  (:

Some of my favorite moments were just hanging out with the grandparents at their houses. Playing, talking, watching movies together, games, and just hanging out. It was so nice to be home with them and see them again! I love them all so much! Thank you, thank you!