Merry Christmas!

So...you know you're doing your Christmas post a little late when Sunny 106.5 isn't even playing Christmas music anymore. Oh well! The fun started early this year as the empty boxes started piling up in my living room. (Gotta love shopping online!) The kids had a blast playing with this train/car/boat/spaceship/airplane. I don't know why I even bother buying toys in the first place. I should just get in touch with a box manufacturer and save a few $. Just in case you're wondering, Carter's not practicing to be a cheerleader in these pictures, he's just pulling the horn for the train. Ü

We spent Christmas Eve at my Grandpa Jensen's house for the last time, and it was so much fun. Tara borrowed some nativity costumes from her ward primary and they looked awesome. Much better than the towels and baby blankets I would have come up with. I wish I had pictures, but I videotaped it instead. Meleah and Lydia were angels and Carter was a wise man. Of course, Meleah only wore her costume for like .05 seconds but it was kind of an inappropriate costume for her to be wearing in the stage that she's in right now anyway. Ü They all opened up their jammies from Grandma, and were so excited to put them on right away.

We opened presents on Christmas at around 9:00 am. I know the day will come when my kids will wake me up at dawn, but my tired pregnant body was really grateful that they slept in this year. They actually woke up around 8:30, but I held them off reading stories upstairs until Grandpa, Jana, Rachel, Laura, and Dalton could get there. Carter asked Santa for a real motorcycle with hundreds of spots (don't ask me where he got that from) but he was still very happy with the Leapster that Santa actually brought him. I tried to explain that he doesn't have a drivers license yet so he wouldn't be able to drive a real motorcycle, but he just figured Santa would bring him that too. Maybe next year.

Lydia and Meleah also loved their presents from Santa. Lydia got a wooden dollhouse, and Meleah a Dora sofa. Santa must have known that the girls are constantly fighting over the Dora chair that we already have, and hoped that this would help prevent some of the hair pulling and hitting that has been going on. Meleah seemed perfectly content to sit in her Dora sofa and eat Pez all morning. Well, at least until her dispenser ran out, and she had to go on the hunt for someone else's stocking.

We had a nice, relaxed day playing with all our new toys. Thanks go out to Laura, Dad, Jana, and Rachel for making the day more fun, and helping undo all those dang twister ties they put all over the toys!

The Stewart family gathering was put off until the next day due to bad weather, so we got to extend our festivities until Friday. We all had tons of fun, and are a little tired and sad that Christmas is over. Lydia keeps thanking me for bringing Christmas and asking if we can have Christmas again. As tired as I am, I would still be okay with that! Luckily, we have something else to look forward to in the very near future. Now we just have to decide if we should spell the baby's name Cameron, Camoran, Camran...any ideas?

Winter is Here!

Well, I can't let all the Vegas people show me up with all their awesome snow pictures, so here are ours. We've hardly had any snow at all this year (thank goodness), but my kids are SO happy to see it finally coming down. We made snow angels, had a snowball fight, and even made a snowman. I'm sure we could have made a larger snowman, but I am 8 1/2 months pregnant after all. Besides, the kids wanted the snowman to be baby Mikey. Okay, okay...I might have given them that idea, but it's really hard to bend over when you're as large as I am right now! Carter was disappointed when I informed him that we don't have a magic hat to make baby Mikey come alive, but not quite as disappointed as Lydia was when I informed her that it wasn't Christmas yet. Apparently, she thought that if it's snowing, that means it's Christmas Day. We also made Gingerbread cookies and once again...there was disappointment that our cookies did not come alive. They recovered quickly however, and we've had a really fun week fulfilling all the standard winter traditions. Carter and Lydia keep saying, "Winter is our favorite season!." We'll see if they still say that when they have to drive in this mess!

Another Family Update

I know I just did one of these a couple of months ago, but there are a few things that have happened lately that I want to remember.

Elly Jelly

Meleah has been so funny lately. I shouldn't say that, because usually what makes me laugh is the stuff that she's totally not supposed to do...like hitting for example. If I should dare to tell her not to get into something, she'll come from all the way across the room to give me a good whack. This is a new experience for me, because Carter and Lydia have very rarely hit anyone and especially not me. Even when I have witnessed Carter hitting someone, I've noticed that he does it as softly as possible. Not so with Meleah! Don't think I let her get away with it, though. I may smirk when she's not looking, but she gets in big trouble for hitting or pulling hair (her other favorite attack mechanism). Meleah can often be found in the kitchen scooting a chair around so that she can reach all the interesting things that Mommy puts up high to keep away from her. She also still loves baby dolls, and will kiss and hug and put them nigh-night over and over again. Dora is still the ONLY acceptable television programming according to her, much to the dismay of her older brother. She loves to make silly faces, and her signature pony tail on the top of her head (the only hair style she'll allow me the time to do), is usually crooked and fuzzy because she still loves to twirl her hair. Some of her most common sayings are: ut-oh, doooon'T, out, ow, opf (off or on), miiine, and a really grumpy form of uh-uh. That list makes it sound like she's grumpy all the time, which isn't necessarily the case. She's just a lot quieter when she's happy. Ü She does everything full-steam ahead. I can't tell you how many fat lips and bruises I've gotten from her flailing herself around. One minute she'll be sitting on my lap, the next she's up and running. She LOVES her Da-da and is usually the first one to greet him when he gets home. He then has to carry her around for half an hour or so before she'll let him out of her sight.

Lydia DeOn

Lydia was given a baby doll from her aunt Susan a few days ago, and has been obsessed with it ever since. She takes it everywhere with her, and always makes sure she's wrapped in her blanket. She's been doing really well with her walker lately, so we've started taking it with us to some gatherings. She was so funny at my Grandpa's funeral because rather than going around the groups of chatting people, she would plow straight through, knowing full well that they would separate to let her pass. That had the added bonus of everyone looking at her and saying how adorable she is, you see.

Carter Cutie

Carter was student of the month last month (the purpose of blogs is to brag right?). He got this nifty certificate and FOUR free ice cream cones from Arctic Circle. We have yet to use all of them. I felt really bad because he was sick for almost a whole week, so we missed his little assembly ceremony thing, but he was still pretty excited about his free ice cream. He's been really fascinated about my Grandpa's death, and keeps asking me if Grandpa's been resurrected yet (we learned about resurrection in Primary the same week Grandpa died). I know he really loved him and misses him, but sometimes I'm surprised how often he thinks of him. I made home-made bread the other day, and I lifted up the towel to show him how it was rising and he said, "It looks like Grandpa Jensen!" I think he was referring to how his body was white after he passed...??? I don't know. I'm sure Grandpa would have gotten a good laugh out of that. His latest line that he uses when I tell him to finish his dinner or clean up the playroom is, "I'm too shy to." I didn't know shyness affected people's eating and cleaning abilities, but you learn something new every day.

Randall just fininshed his first semester of school yesterday and is looking like he's going to get straight A's (I know...I know...enough with the bragging!). I'm just so proud of him. He's really taken school seriously and spent a lot of time making sure that he does well. I'm sure it hasn't been easy, because the poor guy has 3 kids and a pregnant wife to deal with. I've been known to be a bit on the needy side when I'm pregnant. Ü He puts the kids to bed every night, and they love to have that special time with their Dad. I love you baby!

This is where I'm supposed to put a picture of me, but I haven't taken any since I was like 3 months along, so it wouldn't really be accurate anyway. Just consider yourselves lucky. I'm getting so excited to have my little baby boy that I can hardly stand it. It seems like by the time you're on your FOURTH child that you wouldn't be as excited, but I just ache to hold him in my arms. This has been a pretty good pregnancy so far, and it has gone by so fast. It definitely helps to have the holidays to distract me during the very end. I'm really looking forward to Christmas, and I'm sure that Randall will be very happy to see that I spent my time writing this post today instead of shopping online!

Well, that's the latest on us. Hope I didn't bore you all to death!

Kim's Tag

Where is your cell phone? Either on the bookshelf, my vanity, or in the diaper bag...I think. Luckily I can call it if it's not in those places. I wish I could say the same for my keys.

Where is your significant other? Putting the kids to bed.

Your hair color? Blonde except for my 6 inch roots which are a not quite brown, not quite blonde color. It needs help.

Your mother? An excellent example.

Your father? A fun, laid back guy.

Your favorite thing? My family.

Your dream last night? I have no idea. Whatever it was, it was way too short.

Your dream/goal? To get my degree, and to be much more organized than I am right now.

The room you're in? My bedroom.

Your hobby? I like to cook, read, scrapbook, do variety puzzles, and play games.

Your fear? Any of my family members dying, being seriously injured, or even just being really sad about something. I also hate heights, snakes, spiders...pretty much any kind of bugs or reptiles.

Where do you want to be in six years? I don't really know. I'd probably like to be in a bigger house not far from where I am now.

Where were you last night? At my Grandpa Jensen's house, and grocery shopping with my Mom.

What you're not? Organized!

One of your wish list items? A huge tub and a double headed shower. Oh yeah, and a garage...all new appliances...a dining room set...

Where you grew up? West Jordan and Sandy Utah, and Henderson Nevada

The last thing you did? Played games with my family.

What are you wearing? Pajamas, of course!

Your TV? I'm sort of embarassed to say that we have 3 TV's but none of them are all that impressive.

Your pet? I'm way too lazy to take care of animals along with my five bzillion kids. Alright...I know I don't quite have five bzillion kids, but it sure feels like it sometimes.

Your computer? Ummm, not sure what to say about it. It's an e-machine? Don't really know anything else.

Your mood? Pretty tired, but happy

Missing someone? Grandpa Jensen

Your car? Maverick, a Honda Pilot. I still miss Alice, my Oldsmobile Alero, but Maverick's okay too I guess. I just shouldn't have replaced my girl car with a boy. They don't communicate nearly as well.

Something you're not wearing? Socks? Shoes? Earrings? Does it really matter?

Favorite store? Old Navy when I'm not the size of a whale (my infrequent un-prego years). I also manage to spend a lot of money at Kohl's and Amazon when I'm shopping online.

Your summer? As fun as can be expected since it was my morning sick time.

Love someone? Yep!

Favorite color? I love them all.

What was the last time you laughed? Playing what if/then tonight with my family. We had some pretty funny combinations.

Last time you cried? I've been teary a lot this week, but I full on bawled at Grandpa's funeral on Friday.

I tag anyone that wants to do this!

Grandpa Jensen

Moyle Christian Jensen

November 15, 1932 - November 17, 2008

Carter said it best last night when he said "I want Grandpa Jensen to come back alive again." When I'm thinking selfishly I agree with him, but I know that Grandpa is happy now with Grandma, Jerry, and all his other loved ones that have gone before him. I am so grateful to be a decendant of Moyle and DeOn Jensen, and I will live the rest of my life remembering these famous words from my Grandpa..."Always remember whose you are!" I hope I can live up to his expectations and remember who I'm representing here on earth. You will be missed Grandpa, until we meet again.

Bad Girls, Bad Girls...whatcha gonna do?

Fool me once...shame on you! Fool me twice...shame on me!

Apparently I was supposed to learn something from the first two times...

Happy Halloween!

I have to share these Halloween pictures because Lincoln did SUCH a great job! Don't they look so cute? Of course I was an idiot, and I forgot Meleah's wings, but oh well. We had such a fun Halloween this year...taking pictures with Linc and Bre, the Stewart family party, our ward trunk or treat, and my Mom and Rachel came up to visit us for the rest of the weekend. I also got to see Carter's "Halloween Parade" and help with his class party. I'm kind of sad that it's all over, but at least we have Thanksgiving and Christmas to look forward to!

I had Meleah be the classic Honey pot instead of Tinkerbell for Halloween night because it was warmer, and more low maintenance. Isn't she adorable?

Mom's Tag

My mom made up this tag a long time ago and challenged us all to do it. I'm just now getting around to it, since it actually takes a little bit of thought.

Favorite scripture: I LOVE my Mom and Taryn's favorites (2 Nephi 31:20, Alma 37:6) but here are a couple more favorites of mine - "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another" ( John 13:34–35), and "And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God." (D&C 14:7)

Favorite hymn: Because I Have Been Given Much, The Spirit of God, Praise to the Man, How Great Thou Art, Nearer My God to Thee, Be Still My Soul, I Stand All Amazed, Families Can Be Together Forever, Teach Me to Walk in the Light, Love One Another, and pretty much all the Christmas songs. Sorry, I love Hymns!

Favorite scripture stories: King Benjamin (why can't our leaders in this day and age be more like him?), Christ's birth, and TONS of stories from Christ's life. For example, I love the story about the adulterous woman where Christ says, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."

Favorite Young Women/Men Leaders: Becky Franks, Kathy Nelson, Laura Scoble, Lorna Cavalieri, Brenda Ashby, Shelley Garrett, Rachel Anderson...I'm sure I'm forgetting some because I had SO many great leaders. I've thought about them a lot these last few years. They spent so much time with us, and were really there for us whenever we needed them. I'm so selfish of my time with my family that I know I would not be as available as my leaders always were for me. Maybe that's why they've never called me into young women's! They're such great women, and I appreciate them more now than I even did when they were my leaders.

Favorite calling: I'm teaching Carter's primary class right now, and that's pretty fun. I don't have to wonder if he's driving his teacher crazy every week, because it's me! I also really liked being primary secretary, and activity days leader. I wish that I would have realized how awesome the activity days calling was while I had it. Don't get me wrong...I totally loved the girls, and we had a lot of fun. I just had a hard time remembering it since it was only the second and fourth Tuesday of every month, so I ended up throwing something together last minute more than I like to admit. I think I'm more used to having a schedule now, and would probably do a better job. I also didn't mind being a Relief Society teacher as much as I thought I would. I was only in there for a few months before they called me as primary secretary, and it freaked me out to teach adults, but it was really nice to just sit and enjoy Sunday School and Relief Society every week. I guess I've been pretty lucky with my callings so far! Oh man, I've already blabbered on forever and I just thought of my all time favorite calling! It was teaching Primary with Randall. I've always been a little obsessive about spending time with my hubby, so I loved being able to be with him for all 3 hours of church. I guess I should have thought out the answer before I started typing! Ü

Least favorite calling: Is it possible for your favorite calling to also be your least favorite calling? Seriously, I loved the women I worked with when I was primary secretary, and we had a lot of fun together. However, it was VERY time consuming and stressful. I also was the "Faith in God Supervisor." I was supposed to keep track of the goals that the kids had already completed for their Faith in God, and it was really difficult to do. I made little sticker charts and everything, but there are SO many kids in our ward. I didn't feel like I did a very good job with it, so I guess that's why it's one of my least favorite.

Who made you laugh today?: Carter did after I explained that we only have two yogurts left and we'll have to share. His reply was: "I don't want to share like you, I want to eat mine all by myself like Daddy." Meleah also cracks me up daily because she's constantly going around saying "eat! eat! eat!" and if she's not saying that she's saying "poo-poo" whether she's really stinky or not. You know, being the third, you kind of have to fight for attention. Maybe she just likes when I pay attention to her even if it's just to check and see if she really does need a diaper change. She also cracked me up when I was singing to her before her nap. I always start out singing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" but whenever I try to switch to a different song she interrupts me with "up-a-ba" (up above) to let me know she wants Twinkle Twinkle again.

Who's happier because of you today?: Randall, because I just upgraded our slow high speed internet to not quite as slow high speed internet like he's been asking me to do for MONTHS!

Describe a sweet experience you've had recently: I can't believe I'm saying this, because this has been a very difficult week for me...but there have been some sweet moments. My kids and myself have all had the flu (yeah the yucky stomach, worst kind of sickness for kids to have, flu). Because of that, I've had lots of time holding my poor sick babies. Even Carter took a nap in my lap while he was sick, which hasn't happened in a long time, and Meleah cuddled for hours with me, which has NEVER happened. I spent lots of time babying each one individually since they were all sick on different days. That being said, my house is a total DISASTER right now, but I'm hopefully going to get it back to comfortable chaos at some point today.

What makes you mad?: My kids making huge messes and not cleaning them up, whining, my husband wanting to spend ANY of his scarce free time without me by his side, and people that get into the right lane at a light knowing full well that the lane ends 2 seconds later.

What makes you sad?: This is kind of a funny one, because I always tell Randall I'm sad at him instead of mad at him, (a failing attempt at guilt) so it's kind of similar to the previous question. Honestly though, just thinking about anything bad happening to my family or friends occassionally keeps me up at night, and makes me sad. Even just thinking of my kids being teased at school in the future, or something really minor like that really gets to me.

What do you want to accomplish?: I want to have a healthy baby in January, and POSSIBLY another one a couple years later...finish school...and lately I've been wanting to work for Kids on the Move (Lydia's early intervention program) or maybe a school office or something. I really love kids, but I'm not sure I want to teach 30 of them every day anymore. If I do, I'll probably want to teach older kids like Jr. High or older elementary since that's what my degree will allow.

What makes you want to get up and do something?: Watching Biggest Loser makes me want to exercise, and putting on loud music usually gets me motivated to clean, exercise, or at least dance around and act like an idiot with my kids.

How do you pull yourself out of a bad mood?: I'm a little too scatterbrained to stay in a bad mood for long. Even when I'm trying really hard to stay mad at someone I usually forget, and start being nice to them without thinking. Since my kids are usually the ones distracting me, I guess I can give them the credit for helping my mood.

What talent are you most grateful for?: I guess cooking since it's pretty much my only talent, although I'd probably be a lot skinnier if I couldn't cook. However, I think it's most likely one of the main reasons Randall married me, so I guess it's worth it. Ü

This post has taken me FOREVER, but I recommend it to anyone. I'm really glad that I have all of this information saved for posterity and all that.

Man Tag!

What is your husbands name? Randall Isaac Stewart
How long have you been married? 6 1/2 years
How long did you date? Almost a year including our engagement. That's pretty long for an LDS couple!
How old is he? 29
Who eats more sweets? Randall!
Who is taller? Let's see..I'm 5'4, Randall's 6'3. I guess he's a little taller. Okay, okay, we look like a circus couple! Why do my legs have to be so dang stubby?!
Who said "I love you" first? Randall did. Just an FYI, guys don't like it when you say "What if I love you too?" after they confess their love, even if you tell them you love them later on in that same conversation.
Who can sing the best? Neither of us are all that accomplished vocally. However, Randall can bang out every drum beat to any Metallica song on the radio. (Not on drums, but on the steering wheel, dashboard, rearview mirror, etc.)
Who is smarter? Randall's doing pretty well in his classes, but as far as academics go...ME! When it comes to knowing where your wallet is at all times, discovering that the parking brake is on BEFORE you drive the car for twenty miles, knowing the difference between windshield factor and wind chill factor...that would be Randall.
Who pays the bills? Me. I mean...we mutually discuss and go over our finances together like church leaders and marriage counselors advise. Ü
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I don't get this one. Is it the right side when you're looking at it, or when you're laying on it? I lay on the right side if you're looking at the bed.
Who mows the lawn? Randall. I couldn't start a lawn mower if my life depended on it.
Who cooks dinner? Me! Randall couldn't cook a meal if his life... Alright, that 's not fair. He can make chili mac and peanut butter sandwiches.
Who drives? Randall. I'll admit that I'm not the best/most observant driver out there, and that fact hasn't escaped my husband's notice.
Who kissed who first? Randall kissed me, with the help of Lindsey, Randy, Ryan, and Julia making sure that we were alone for a little while.
Who asked who out first? We were actually set up on sort of a blind date although we had already met each other at a wedding. It was my family that set us up though, so I think I can take credit for it.
Who wears the pants? As far as getting after the kids, I do. When it comes to getting anything you want...that would be Randall.

This was a fun tag to do, and I recommend it to everyone. It made me think about how much I love my hubby, and how grateful I am that we're going to be together forever.

B is for buh-buh Bear Day!

Last week Carter had B is for bear day, and was allowed to bring a teddy bear to school. I just wanted to share with everyone what bear he chose. Keep in mind, we have a plethora of teddy bears, including Care Bears in every color imagineable. In his defense, this is the only one that has red on it, which is his very favorite color at the moment. I gently tried to steer him in the direction of a more gender appropriate bear, but he wasn't interested. When I asked what his friends thought about his bear, he told me that Isabella said "That's a girl bear!" He thought it was funny. Apparently he's very secure in his masculinity. He also informed me that Jackson brought a bunny on bear day, and apparently that is a much more grievous offense than bringing a "girl bear."
He also had crazy hat day, and since I wouldn't consider any of his hats to be "crazy," I had to improvise. I bobby pinned a curly beard that Randall used for Halloween a long time ago to one of Randall's ugliest hats. I thought it turned out pretty well! I'm pretty sure he got more laughs on crazy hat day than he did on bear day. Isn't Kindergarten fun?

Family Update

It's been a while since I wrote about what the kids are doing lately, so I figured I should write a new post.

Meleah

Meleah has probably changed the most since my last post about her. She is saying lots of new words like "moooore psss" (more please). The picture above is me trying to capture the lowered eyebrow look that she gives me every time she's doing something she knows she's not supposed to do. It's not quite the same because usually she's not saying "tees" (cheese) while she's doing it. I'll keep trying, though. She is constantly moving, and loves to play outside. She loves to wrestle and climb around with her brother and sister until someone inevitably gets hurt. She also loves to play with babies, and bring toys to me so that we can play together. Her favorite TV show is "Do, Do, Do" (Dora, Dora, Dora) although most of the time she only watches the opening song before she gets bored. She's also obsessed with my makeup and lotion which is why we have a strict Mommy's door ALWAYS stays closed policy at our house.

LydiaThis is a picture of Lydia with her new "twisters" for those of you that haven't seen them. It's kind of hard to see, but it's a belt that's connected to some glue stick looking things that are twisted and connected to her braces. They help to keep her feet facing forward and I'm finally starting to like them even though I think they should make the glue stick looking things in pink instead of the ugly yellowish brown color. Ü She seemed to be going slower at first, but now she's getting used to them, and I'm hoping they'll help her walk more correctly so she doesn't damage her joints.

Favorite Color: pink and purple
Favorite Food: cereal, "chickens" (which pretty much means any kind of meat), and anything with sugar in it.
Favorite TV Show: Dora the Explorer, hands down.
Favorite Toy: Dora dolls, babies, and Barbies
Favorite Phrase: She got this from Carter but lately she's been asking A LOT of questions like, "Why do we have trees?"
Favorite Movie: Sleeping Beauty, Care Bears, Barbie, and of course Dora movies
Lydia loves to play outside, wear "pretties," lip gloss, and lotion like a princess, dance, be silly, and sing, whether she knows the words to the song or not.

Carter

Favorite Color: "red, vermillium (vermillion), pink, aquamarine" He learned the obscure ones from a Blue's clues episode, and he's constantly asking me questions like, "what does purple and brown mix up to?"
Favorite Food: "cheesy quesadillas, squiggly noodles (Top Ramen), Handy Manny cereal (Kix), Mac 'n Cheesy, marshmallows, strawberries, and apples."
Favorite TV Show: "Blues Clues, Ninja Turtles, and Transformers."
Favorite Toy: "Ninja Turtles"
Favorite Phrase: "That scared my life!"
Favorite Movie: "Barbie Movie and the Diamond Castle, Spiderman, Toy Story, Toy Story II, Transformers."
Carter loves to play with his Ninja Turtles, usually tying them up with something and swinging them around or dangling them from somewhere while they plead for their life. Poor Mikey has a permanent rope tied around his arm because I can't for the life of me get the knot out. He loves Kindergarten and begs me every day to do his homework. Unfortunately, we finish all of his homework assignments for the week in about 30 minutes, so I have to improvise. He loves to draw, paint, play with play doh, and joy of all joys...play X-box with his Dad.

Politics, Anyone?

It has come to my attention that in surrounding myself with people that listen to Rush, Sean, and Glenn all day long while they're at work, I may not be getting a fair assessment of Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Therefore, Obama fans (I know you're out there!), I would truly like to know what you love about him. Right now all I've heard is that he voted repeatedly to allow live-birth abortions, he has several questionable associates (Wright, Pfleger, Ayers, Rezko), that his wife has just recently become proud of her country, and of course that Lindsey Lohan is endorsing him. All but the last one are not things that I really enjoy about him.

Unfortunately for Barack these are my beliefs:

I'm pro-life. I would be totally happy with the overturning of Roe vs. Wade. I think that Roe regretting the results herself should tell us something about that legislation.

I don't want government healthcare, period. I've already spent enough time filling out paperwork, holding to be transferred yet again, and waiting for mail/ phone calls from the government to last me a lifetime.

I would love it if there was some parental choice, and a little healthy competition in our school systems.

I think McCain has more experience and would be more likely to have success with the war in Iraq.

I'm totally down with drilling in the wastelands of Alaska.

I'm Anti-taxes (yes, even for the rich people who would subsequently just raise prices on their products to make their profits.)

I think the welfare system is corrupt.

That being said, there is probably no way that anyone is going to sway me to vote for Obama. And let's face it, I live in Utah, so it doesn't really matter anyway. However, I would really love it if there was SOMETHING that I could agree with Obama on so that if he does win the election, I won't be totally devastated. Is there anything, or am I just too dang conservative?

Carter's Creations

These are a couple of Carter's latest drawings. How could we not name the baby Mikey after this picture? He included a few of his favorite things that he plans to do with his little brother once he is born, such as: play X-box, paint, read books, and play with play-doh (in case you couldn't tell).
This is a current picture of our family. Apparently Meleah is pulling Lydia's hair, and Lydia is crying. I'm afraid to admit that this does happen rather frequently, especially when Meleah is tired. We're all holding hands and having a picnic together outside. Carter, Daddy, and I are all wearing our matching "hole shoes" (crocs), and you can see that he didn't forget to put Mikey in Mommy's tummy. Other than the fact that I'm apparently having a bad hair day, I think he did a great job!

Fish Lake!

Randall's family started doing an annual family reunion to Fish Lake last year, and it has been such a great new tradition. This year Jackie found an adorable old farmhouse in Loa for us to rent, and almost all of Randall's siblings, nieces and nephews were able to come. Greg was unfortunately too sick to make it.

It's kind of deceiving calling it the trip to Fish Lake, because I had the most fun hanging out in Loa with the kids and the ladies while all the men were fishing. We made sack puppets, bean art, fingerpainted, blew bubbles, threw water balloons (I wish I had a picture of Jackie after Casey played a water balloon game with her. She was SOAKED!), and what's become a Stewart reunion family tradition...making jewelry.

We did spend some time out on the lake, however. Meleah wasn't really a fan of her life jacket, but she was all good after I pulled out the Swedish Fish and Sixlets. I'm a little bit paranoid having my babies so close to such a huge body of water, even with the life jackets, but I still enjoyed my ride on the boat. Randall and Carter had a lot less luck on this trip as far as fishing goes, but everyone had a good time cruising around the lake.

I didn't get any pictures, but on Saturday night we met up with Randall's extended family at a bowery by the lake. We had fun chatting, and of course eating a delicious meal. Aunt Pat's chicken wonton salad is AMAZING! Even after 3 days of relaxing, playing games, and staying up late talking, none of us were ready to come home.

It's so hard to say goodbye to summer and all the fun that goes along with it. Especially now that Carter is in school and I can no longer hang out with friends, go shopping, or drive down to Vegas whenever I feel like it. Fortunately Carter is LOVING school, and I'm having fun asking him endless questions about what he does there every day. We have had an excellent summer, and now it's time to start counting down to the Holidays and an exciting new addition to our family!

Kindergarten Blues

Prologue
Well, I have gone back and forth about whether I should write about Carter's first day of school or not, because it's only going to lead to a lot of whining and complaining on my part. However, Rachel specifically asked for it, so you can all blame her for this somewhat negative post. The picture I got is not so great because Carter is super sensitive to sunlight, but I am happy to have captured how he thinks he has to tie his backpack in the front (so cute!). I was planning to take a picture of Randall and Carter together because it was actually both of their first days of school, but I never ended up getting it. Randall just started going to school to be a physical therapist assistant, so 20 months from now I'm going to be a very happy woman.

Justification
I've pretty much been dreading Carter going to school for about the last 3 weeks. I know I'm weird, but I just don't want to miss ANYTHING in his life. I want to be there to cuddle him when he's sad, and I want to hear every single funny thing that he ever says. It's also just a huge reminder that we're all heading into a new phase of life where my babies are all grown up and going to school, and they're never going to be my little babies that stay home with me all day again. I really hate change, so this has been extremely overwhelming for me. I need to work on loving the moment I'm in, instead of reminiscing about the past all the time. We also were just coming home from an amazing 4 day vacation at Fish Lake the day before Carter's first day and I had an intense bout of "morning sickness" (I puked into a Lay's Stacks container). Once we made it home, I slept for about 4 hours, woke up for forty five minutes to help Randall get some stuff together for his first day of school, then went to bed. The next day I was still not feeling so good...

August 25, 2008
Why is it that they just assume Mom's that have never sent their kids to school know all the Registration dates, open houses, and weird schedules? I heard about pre-registration the day after it occurred from one of my neighbors, and was fortunate enough to find out about the open house enough in advance that I could actually attend. I even felt priviliged to know that Monday is Early Out Day so that I would be sure to pick Carter up at 2:30 instead of 3:30 on the first day of school. However, no one informed me that Monday is early IN and OUT day. Therefore, I roll into Eagle Valley Elementary in plenty of time to take a few snapshots and give a tearful goodbye to my child as he walks into the classroom only to discover a locked door and a couple of aids tearing down some posters. Apparently we were fifteen minutes late. It was probably good for me because instead of bawling my eyes out, I just snuck Carter into the room, apologized to his teacher, and bailed.

Wednesday
Wednesday was my first attempt to do anything other than get Carter to and from school. I had an appointment to get some new attachments for Lydia's braces in the morning, so I dropped Carter and Meleah off at my Mother-in-law's and headed into town. As most of you know, I live in the boonies, so it takes me 35 minutes to get pretty much anywhere. We arrive, and he begins to work on her braces. 20 minutes later, he informs me that one of the brackets broke while he was attaching it, and he doesn't have another one. I go back to my Mother-in-laws, feed the kids lunch, then attempt to load Carter and Lydia into the car. I say attempt because Carter, who was wearing his shoes 5 minutes earlier, no longer knew where they were. I go up and down the stairs 2o times checking every room and finally give up. I run to my house and get his shoes from last year that no longer fit if he's wearing socks, and throw them on. He is now late for the second time in three days, and his door is of course locked. I have to walk him around to the main entrance then all the way down to the end of his wing. This wasn't such a big deal the first day, but this day, I was carrying my forty-five pound child and her awkward metal walker. After I walked him to class I continue to walk across the playground to Lydia's portable (she has physical and occupational therapy on Wednesdays) and drop her off LATE on her first day of school. I leave her crying in the portable, suffer from another bout of nausea, then leave the school crying myself. My poor Mother-in-Law had found the shoes while I was gone in the bathtub of all places (why hadn't I thought to look there?) I sobbed out my feelings of failure to her, then went home to dwell in my ineptitude until my husband got home at 9:00.

Thursday
Thursday actually turned out a bit better because I didn't have to get all of us up and going so early. I scheduled the appointment during Carter's school since Lydia doesn't have therapy that day. The only problem I ran into was that it took over an hour to assemble Lydia's braces, and I had to stop at the store to buy a couple of things for a famiy barbecue the next day. I got in and out of the store in 16 minutes (pretty good when you consider that I had to buckle in 2 toddlers). I was able to pick up Carter on time, but I got to the school later than I like to. I like to get there early enough that I can back into a spot that's visible from his door, so that I can just go get him when he comes out, and not back into any kids that are running around. Why have I never heard anyone complaining about how big of a pain in the butt it is to pick up their kids from school? I still have not figured out a perfect solution. I tried walking one day, and was so afraid that Carter was going to get hit by a car when we crossed the roads. Plus, it was hot and I got a blister. Ü But driving is just so chaotic. If anyone has any tips, please let me know.

Light at the End of the Tunnel
To conclude this incredibly lenghthy and somewhat depressing post, I'm going to go ahead and say that I'm doing much better this week. I know this is going to be a hard year, but I am going to get through it. Everyone really likes school, including Randall, which somehow seems to make it all worth it. I miss Randall a lot, but I'm so excited for him to have a regular 9-5 job, and also that he's gaining so much knowledge that he can use to help Lydia. I've now vented all of my frustrations out to you guys, and plan to move on with a more positive attitude. Thanks for listening!

Names...

Here is a tally of your choices. The # of *'s = # of people that liked the name. I didn't include names that less than 2 people suggested (half of Rachel's list). Ü

*****
Cohen, Cole, Gavyn

****
Cameron, Easton

***
Dallen, Jaren

**
Blake, Devyn, Dylan, Ely, Ian

Well, that puts me at a total of 12 instead of 17. I hate to break it to ya, but you guys aren't much more helpful than my husband. However, I have loved hearing all of your suggestions. I'm really liking Cameron lately, even though it's only four stars. It's just so hard to decide! We are also most likely changing the middle name to Michael aka Mikey. Carter just will not let go of it. He wants a little brother named Mikey so bad, that we might just give in. He also has 2 uncles named Mike, so it would still be a family name. If it hadn't been on the top ten list of names for like the last 20 years, I would maybe even consider it for a first name. Anyway, let me know if that changes any of your suggestions, and help me cross off some more names!

Boy Names

A few of you have expressed an interest in what names we are considering and since Randall doesn't particularly like to discuss it for hours with me, I'm going to share them with all of you. Keep in mind that the birth is still months away and this list will probably change dramatically before then. I'd love to hear your input, and promise not to be offended if you don't like my names as long as you aren't offended if I end up using one that you hate. Here they are in no particular order:

1. Alex

2. Baron

3. Blake

4. Cameron

5. Cohen

6. Cole

7. Dallan

8. Damien

9. Devyn

10. Dylan

11. Donovan

12. Easton

13. Ely

14. Gavyn

15. Ian

16. Jaron

17. Zachary

If you think this list is long now, you should have seen it before we narrowed it down. We're also planning on Robert for the middle name, if that helps any of you decide which ones you like best. There is also a picture of his feet for those of you who need to see him before you can choose. Ü Please feel free to tell me what you like AND what you don't like. I need help!

Healthy Baby Boy!

We're so happy to be having another baby boy! Carter is especially excited. Hopefully he'll still be happy when we inform him we're not going to name him Mikey like he wants us to. Who would want to be named after a Ninja Turtle that sounds like a surfer? I'd post more pictures, but we didn't get very many good ones because he's a wiggly little guy. I'm just grateful that this somewhat inappropriate one turned out crystal clear. Ü I'm so relieved that he's healthy, and I hope he has dimples like his Daddy and brother.

Cabin Week!

It's taken me a while to post this, but a couple of weeks ago we were able to take our family up to the cabin for almost an entire week. It is so fun to share a place that I have such fond memories of with my children. They love the cabin every bit as much as I do, and are constantly asking when we can go back.

Most of you have already seen a lot of these pictures because I unashamedly stole them from family blog sites. (Apparently I was a little lazy while up on the mountain, because I have very few pictures that I actually took myself.) Carter caught his first fish last summer at Fish Lake and has been obsessed with fishing ever since. Fortunately, he and Randall were very lucky to catch many fish throughout the week. Enough that Randall even got in trouble with a forest ranger, and had a couple of fish confiscated. I suppose we should have looked up the limit before we went fishing! Fortunately we weren't fined, which is more than I can say for poor Rachel who forgot to take her license that morning and was later charged $200.00. Don't forget to take you fishing licenses with you, people! Those rangers mean business. Carter was really excited to eat his fish the first night, but the next day he got upset with Grandpa for gutting his live fish (GROSS!) because he wanted to keep him as a pet. Fishing is so inhumane!

I also wanted to remark that yes, I put Carter in sweat pants that he wore when he was 2, and no, I don't think boys should wear capris. Due to the fact that Carter was constantly getting muddy in the stream, we ran out of clothes a little early. Since there is no washing machine at the cabin, we had to improvise, and that's that. These are nothing compared to the blue stretch pants of Lydia's that I had him wear the next day. Ü

We had lots of fun playing cards, reading, chatting, sitting around the campfire, and just enjoying each other's company throughout the week. The kids loved learning some new camp songs, making smores, beading, and getting disgustingly dirty in the great outdoors. I love the cabin so much, and feel so blessed to have such a great place to go and create wonderful memories with my family.