the crew

pictures of the kids

2009-09-14T21:36:00.009-06:00

Every Firday we wear red shirts for Red Shirt Friday to support our troopsI love Christopher's face

Landon has the sweetest little chubby cheeks. Today when I saw just a fraction of the mess he made, I thought of those cheeks and how cute I think he is. It helped. Some.

Little blondies

Sweet little Christopher. Today Courtney got hurt and was crying. Chris walked over to her with open arms and gave her a hug. I thought it was so adorable. I didn't get a picture because our camera is broken. :( Maybe next time.

what's the point?

2009-09-13T15:08:00.016-06:00

http://the912project.com/.

united we stand

Are leggings appropriate for church?

2009-09-01T15:38:00.007-06:00

I went to a stake YW activity years ago. They had a sister who apparently went all over to speak to LDS sisters about appropriate dress. Between this sister and Pres. Hinkley this is what is expected for Sunday dress:

no denim
no hoodies
wear nylons
no flip flops
no pictures or words on shirts

This was before leggings became a trend. I occasionally wear leggings to church. Like when I was asked to help in nursery. I knew I'd be down on the ground and I thought leggings would ensure modesty. Also, when I was pregnant with the twins my maternity dresses became very short (I found being tall and carrying two babies makes it difficult to cover up and, being in St.G, my wardrobe choices were limited)-leggings were my fall back. I have seen baby doll style shirts (I assume because it was quite short) worn with leggings; that seemed inappropriate to me. Also, leggings worn with denim skirts make the denim look even more casual. For me, it depends on whether the leggings are dressing an outfit down or if they are for a practical purpose like modesty or warmth. I think leggings or thick tights for little girls are great since they don't always know how to sit and stay covered. But there are outfits that I think are probably not dressy enough for church in the first place that I think leggings could be nixed. Some of you may be thinking: "who cares what you wear as long as you attend church?" I agree that we should be at church to worship, not to have a fashion show. But I would like to dress appropriately as an example to my children and the YW whom I was recently called to teach :)

By the way, I gave up on wearing nylons to church every Sunday after my second baby- too many runs/snags to worry about buying a new pair every week or so. I'll give them another try after my kids are old enough not to have to hold on my lap.

the facebook race

2009-08-22T13:47:00.004-06:00

many of you have seen this picture

because we are friends on FACEBOOK. i started facebook to chat and share pictures with friends and relatives and even find a few friends that i'd lost contact with. i thought i'd just keep it to a few people. then the "friend requests" start coming in. now, i understand that facebook suggests friends that you might possibly know and it's fun to see people and their families and check out what's going on in their world. however, i don't get requesting "friends" who one has never even spoken to and has no connection with. i don't really want to share pictures of my kids with strangers. i've had several requests from people i know i've never seen before because they live in a different country. but the one that tops it off is a request i recently received from a girl i went to high school with who, from all accounts, despised me. i didn't know her, never said anything mean to her, but she found some reason to strongly dislike me and facebook has, i assume, suggested that she befriend me. when i mentioned the girl's name to erin he said something along the lines of "the one who hated you". yep, you're not the only one i've heard that from. for many, facebook seems like a friend race. one of my fb friends (who, by the way, i really like and think is hilarious) recently announced they had reached 1000 friends. 1000 friends? i can't even keep my own kids straight let alone remember 1000 names of people i don't regularly see. i have "ignored" requests from people i don't know and they sent me another. usually after the second request i confirm them IF the look even vaguely familiar. i'm thinking maybe i will start a new fb account and put pictures of my family on that one and then accept every tom dick and harry that requests me as a friend on my current one. then if someone i've never met sends me a friend request i can send them a message back that says: "please send request to other account. i don't accept strangers as friends on this one. :)"

p.s. have you heard about people who have creditors request them as fb friends and then harass them about their over due accounts? that right there tells me to be weary of never-before-seen-friends. you never know what their intent is. they could be predators. and yes, i do admit i'm a bit paranoid.

lincoln's first day at preschool

2009-08-20T14:28:00.006-06:00

Lincoln really wanted to go to school this year. we settled for preschool at the Busy Bee Academy, which I've heard nothing but rave reviews for.

I thought a lot about whether I should put Lincoln in kindergarten this year. I feel he is ready, but thought there would be advantages to having him start next year.

*he would be the oldest instead of the youngest
*there is research showing that it's better for the child if they start kindergarten at age 6 instead of 5

*I assume he will want to date and drive- it would be nice for him to start these things with his classmates

*it seems logical to graduate HS and then leave for a mission, rather than wait a year and have that time to start college or get a job or meet a girl...and then leave

*Lincoln and Landon are just over a year apart in age; it makes sense that they should be a year apart in school

*I'm not ready to let go of my little boy! but don't worry, this last one played very little part in our decision.

a pirates life for me

2009-07-28T09:43:00.021-06:00

lincoln turns 5!

you know how people always tell you that kids grow up so fast? when lincoln was a baby i heard that a lot (too many times, in my opinion) and i always thought "yeah, yeah". well, they were speaking from experience and although i try to hold my tongue and not yell at every mother with a baby, "enjoy it! it'll be over before you know it-they grow up so fast." i think it and hope that i, myself, will enjoy my children as much as possible.

now, on to the party. we had a pirate party and guests were invited to dress up.

we had 10 kids (ages 3-7) + three one yr olds (the twins and my nephew). my sister told me afterwards she thought i was crazy for having that many kids over without their parents, but i thought it was a blast (and i hope the parents had a little break at home). i think i had as much fun as the kids did.

we made eye patches

did the hokey pokey and made pirate jewelry

went on a treasure hunt

and, of coarse, had cake and ice cream.

the kids were so cute and were so much fun. i will definitely do this again.

we love you, lincoln.

i love joe

2009-07-18T13:05:00.002-06:00

my brother joe watched the kids for us so erin and i could go see harry potter. joe is single and really doesn't have a lot of experience tending to children. so i consider him very brave and super nice to take on the task of watching four little ones. he did a great job and even put the twins in bed. he told me that i would be so proud of him because he had to change both of the twins diapers. this is what i found when i checked on them before i went to bed:

their diapers are on backwards. both of them.
i had to smile. diapers aren't fun to change even when you're not making it harder for yourself by trying to put them on backward.
i think you're awesome, joe!

shoes from oz, etc.

2009-07-03T15:32:00.001-06:00

red.

glitter.

i love these shoes. i would love a pair in my size. of coarse, they wouldn't be as cute (as things are cuter when they're smaller) but i would happily wear them anyway. i have small hopes for them fitting her come Halloween, but if they do....

christopher hung up

yes, the sad face. she wanted out of her high chair.

landon rarely has anything but a pair of shorts on. he loves to hang on to my legs and be dragged around.

lincoln

twins giving each other high 5- it's very cute.

lincoln "making my hair pretty".

softball chaos-yelling and tears

2009-06-24T23:40:00.000-06:00

i took the kids to watch erin play softball. i usually don't do that because there are four kids and one of me- the odds aren't in my favor. the team was playing well and winning game after game. then......landon. he ran out on the field during a game. he was smart about it, too. he went to the other side of the field so i couldn't see him go through the fence. this happened twice, so i buckled him in the stroller. then, after his time-out, he did it again. this time the guys took him to the dug out (a lot of kids get to sit in there with their daddys) but one of the umpires kept ranting and got inches from erin's face talking/yelling about landon. erin is pretty easy going, but there are two things you don't do: get in his face and threaten his family. erin (not so nicely) told the umpire to get out of his face and not to threaten him or his kid (i told you, didn't i?) the ump tossed erin out of the game. then a teammate got tossed for sticking up for erin sticking up for his son, then another teammate, then some guy who wasn't even playing or on the field. ok, so the order might be off, but you get the idea. they called the game (just before erin's team won the championship) which caused an uproar. chaos. havoc. everyone was shouting. i wasn't quite sure what had happened (apparently i blinked). i went over to the umpire to apologise (the one who caused the chaos had been escorted away) so i told the remaining umpires sorry that my son ran onto the field, that my husband had been away and every time erin isn't right there landon thinks he's leaving him (this is where the tears came into play) and landon just wants to be with his daddy. obviously they appreciated my apology since everyone else was yelling at them.

now, i have been to my fair share of sporting events. if you go to enough you're sure to see some "excitement" but i had never seen anything quite like this before.

it's amazing how much...

2009-06-05T15:56:00.002-06:00

...little kids love a bat and a ball. even the twins wanted to play "baseball". see? there are more exciting things than the swings. here are some pics from our day at the park (and our backyard).

2009-05-27T14:36:00.001-06:00

vinyl craft

2009-05-26T15:10:00.000-06:00

this is the first craft from the pay it forward post. it went to missy. i thought i would do one for myself and then change out the background paper to match the season or holiday. i got the vinyl from my sister emily. blog:wilcockvinylcreations.blogspot.com she can do anything custom and her prices are amazing.

christopher

2009-04-20T13:27:00.001-06:00

i love love love our little christopher. i think he is so darling and he even has erin wrapped around his finger. he always has such a sweet expression on his face. he is just a nice little boy. by the way, christopher is in the 2% for weight, which is ok: he's a twin, he eats tons (and i'm barely exaggerating), and he's healthy, so it's not a big

deal. the funny part is his head is in the 70%.

outdoor fun

2009-04-16T21:14:00.002-06:00

the boys racing down the driveway

christopher and courtney coloring our back wall with chalk

no make-up

2009-04-16T21:04:00.000-06:00

recently i said my piece about self image. i thought it fair to put up a pic without make-up. like i said in my previous post- i am a fan of make-up.

and i'm sending you....?

2009-04-02T22:50:00.000-06:00

The first 5 people who comment on this post will receive something made by me. It could be cookies, a picture frame, a keychain, whatever it is i come up with it will be made specifically for you. After you comment, put this pay it forward deal on your own blog and do the same for others.

punk rocker

2009-02-03T18:45:00.002-07:00

Lincoln found a pen with red ink. He made a lot of things red, including his sister.
We're thinking about making this a permanent look for her.

farewell, Tad Toothbiter

2009-02-03T18:45:00.001-07:00

our gold fish of several months (that's like 50 in goldfish years) gave me quite a start (i screamed, or maybe yelp is a better word) when i found him floating at the top of his fishbowl.
i had felt pretty pleased, and Erin was very impressed, that i had kept him alive this long, but apperently, Lincoln had taken him out of his water and Tad decided he had had enough of our family.

2009-01-29T21:27:00.000-07:00

double stroller

2009-01-28T15:27:00.000-07:00

this is our double stroller with our four kids in it. :)

mama's got skills!

landon, christopher, lincoln, & courtney

self image: jen ranting and raving

2009-01-27T17:18:00.000-07:00

lately i've found myself thinking a lot about image. women in particular seem to base a good part of their lives around it. don't get me wrong, i think being well groomed is important. i'm a fan of make-up, hair dye, anything non-invasive of a woman's body that makes her feel pretty. i love clothes, and though i don't have the time or the means to shop (i have to laugh instead of cry!) i love well put together outfits and appreciate them even if i am not the one wearing them. however, it makes me very sad when people spend a months salary on a handbag when there are thousands of people in our country who have been laid off from their jobs. it makes me sad that women feel that they have to starve themselves to look good. "food is my friend" i thought to myself at breakfast as i poured syrup on my french toast (which even now brings a smile to my face thinking about it). why do women feel they need to have fake "parts" to be worth something or have their noses done? (btw, i am not anti-surgery; i just don't want people to feel like they have to have it to be beautiful.) cosmetic surgery is just a way to disguise our lack of self esteem, and our self-esteem shouldn't be based on the way we look. why does anyone think they have to treat people badly to make them feel important and better than somebody else? (which is another subject i might rant on later, because in all honesty if we were confident and happy with ourselves we wouldn't act condescendingly to others; we would embrace them.) we don't get to choose the way we look. we have to do the best with what we've got. none of us are perfect, not even the fake ones.
i wish the world in general would realize that people aren't just what they appear to be on the outside (granted, presentation of one's self is pretty telling, but what's underneath the clothes we can only do so much with). looks are not important. people's feelings are important. learning is important. life is about who we are inside and who we're trying to become.

what the heck? (and don't tell lincoln i said that because he thinks it's a bad word!)

2009-01-26T23:40:00.000-07:00

i thought i would use this cute background on my blog. ta-dah! yeah, except for the fact that i can't figure out how to get it to take up the whole page. so, it doesn't look all that great. if anyone knows how to fix this please help!

snow babies

2009-01-26T20:12:00.000-07:00

the twins got new coats for christmas.

courtney

2009-01-26T18:46:00.000-07:00

courtney loves to climb into things- anywhere she can get into.

sunbeam

2009-01-11T18:00:00.000-07:00

Landon is in primary now. He was walking around singing, "Jesus wants me for a Sun-beamp!"

'fnjhjhflaai8ufp[-=

2009-01-09T17:30:00.000-07:00

life is good. busy, although it's amazing how busy one can be when they don't even have to leave the house. a tech came to fix our new dishwasher. of coarse, lincoln and landon wanted to watch (i asked if it were ok) and then i was running up and down the stairs trying to put the twins to sleep (nap time). courtney is teething and she's having a hard time with it. anyway, the boys chatted with the tech as he did his thing and i ran around making sure the boys were behaving and trying to help sooth courtney and put chris back to sleep. Nap time never really happened, but there's always tomorrow, maybe then things will go the way i plan. maybe.

lincoln, the protector

2008-11-21T12:49:00.000-07:00

yesterday lincoln (4 yrs) thought courtney "hit" christopher (both 9 mths). lincoln tried to hit her back. i asked why he was trying to hit courtney and he told me she hit chris. i explained that the babies are too young to try to be mean and if someone hits he should tell mommy instead of hitting back. i asked if he would like to tell courtney sorry to make her feel better. he said "no. i want to talk to courtney." (okay....????) he said: "courtney, don't hit chris or i will tell mommy." he did tell her sorry and then he turned to christopher. "chris, if courtney tries to hit you, you come to me."

twins, or so they say

2008-11-21T11:54:00.000-07:00

i think when the word twins is used people in general think of two boys or girls with matching faces and outfits. i have to say i was relieved to find out that my twins were different sexes, but i didn't expect quite what i got. there is not a similar feature on their faces. beside this, christopher has olive skin, gray eyes and brown hair (like landon) while courtney is very fair with blue eyes and blonde hair (like lincoln). as if this weren't enough to say to the world "we are two seperate and distinct people!" their personalities are on opposite ends of the spectrum as well. christopher is so laid back and calm. he has a light in his eyes that i and, i dare say, others are taken with. we call him our little charmer for he can relate his feelings of joy to us through his eyes. he has a very special and sweet spirit. courtney, on the other hand (or should i say IN my other hand?), is very outgoing. she wants to meet everyone and has a smile ready for them so big and cheesy it takes over her entire face. it's hard to not meet her smile with a laugh. she is so happy and wants to share her enthusiasm with all.
although i am now sure why Heavenly Father usually sends one baby at a time (the pain and risk of pregnancy, the very hard work that seems never ending and the occasional guilt that your baby either has to share attention or wait their turn) i am very grateful that HF blessed us with our twins.

choices

2008-11-09T21:51:00.000-07:00

I often give the kids choices. "You can walk inside like a big boy, or i'll carry you and you can sit in time out. You choose." The other day Lincoln wanted to go outside to play, so he said to me,"You can let me play out side or I will pick my nose. You choose."

TV

2008-10-10T21:50:00.000-06:00

Landon was apparently too close to the TV and Lincoln said, "Landon! Do you want to get radiated?!" (It sounds so cute coming from a 4 year old.)

scripture power

2008-10-09T23:34:00.000-06:00

I was reading in the scriptures from Alma to the kids. I told them that the people got their friends and family back because they did what Heavenly Father told them to. Lincoln's mouth dropped open and he came over to me and gave me hugs and kisses. . .my sweet little guy.

7 years!

2008-10-07T23:41:00.000-06:00

this sunday is our 7th anniversary! that's right, i've lasted through erin's messes and he's lasted through my wit and charm ;)

erin

2008-10-07T21:14:00.000-06:00

erin is working, working, working hard and waiting to hear back from the border patrol. he got clearance for his shoulder and now we're playing the waiting game. pictured: landon & erin

FREE!

2008-10-07T21:00:00.000-06:00

my mom came over the other day. she asked if there was something she could do to help me. i told her to put the kids in a box with a sign that read: "free to a good home"

landon's neighbor

2008-09-17T22:06:00.001-06:00

landon was blessing the food and ended with "neighbor" Jesus Christ amen (instead of "in the name of Jesus Christ")

lincoln's spoon

2008-09-17T22:06:00.000-06:00

i gave linc a bowl for cereal and he asked,"can i get a spoon, by chance?"

13 pound baby

2008-09-06T23:11:00.000-06:00

the twins are 6 months old. christopher weighs 14 1/2 lbs & courtney weighs 13 lbs. a girl in our ward has three boys- her third son was 13 lbs when he was born. imagine carrying that baby around.

motherhood is funny

2008-09-06T22:19:00.000-06:00

i was talking to a friend about taking children to other peoples houses (don't touch that. don't touch that! how are y-stop!) she was laughing hysterically and said i should do stand up[comedy]. i asked her if she was sleep deprived because that always makes everything ten times funnier than it actually is...usually i'm the one who finds myself funny.

landon

2008-09-05T22:03:00.000-06:00

i used to think that you could judge a parent by their child, but i don't remember walking into nursery and announcing my arrival by saying, "guys, give me a break". (they say landon says it every sunday)

funny lincoln moment

2008-09-05T21:52:00.000-06:00

lincoln is "reading" my scriptures then shuts the book and declares: "JESUS IS BACK IN BUSINESS!"