First Tooth FINALLY!

My little Meleah finally lost her first tooth.  It was loose for a couple of weeks, which was odd in this house since I don't think Carter or Lydia have ever had a loose tooth for more than a day.  She wiggled it pretty regularly, but she apparently doesn't have a very high tolerance for pain. ;)  Fortunately, with a little help she eventually got it out and received $2 from the toothfairy.  She was THRILLED!

Baptisms, Blessings, and Black Eyes...

We had a very exciting and eventful weekend last week.  After Great-Grandma Stewart's funeral on Friday, Lydia was baptized and Emma was blessed on Saturday.  It was so nice to be able to combine them so I only had to plan one party!

Most of the day I was running around like a chicken with it's head cut off (Why do I always use that gruesome analogy?), but there were a few wonderful, semi-calm moments.  Jackie and Jenny gave excellent talks on Baptism and the Holy Ghost, and Lydia joined Jana, Rachel, and Laura in singing "Lord, I Will Follow Thee."  Lydia was a little freaked out about going all the way under the water, so she held her breath, plugged her nose, and tightly closed her eyes during the entire Baptism prayer.  It was pretty funny.  Emma was a little  fussy during the baptism, but I nursed her for a couple of minutes after I got done changing Lydia and she was great for her blessing.  She actually fell asleep all bundled up in her carseat and slept throughout the entire luncheon.  I'm pretty sure that she was the only one there that was actually warm!  More about that later...

Randall's second cousin's little boy was also baptized that day.  He was going to be baptized in St. George, but they came up for Grandma Stewart's funeral and joined Lydia's baptism instead.  He's an adorable little boy, and it was fun to have extra family there to celebrate with us. 

As I was saying, the weather was a little less than perfect.  It was cloudy all morning, but since it was still nice and warm we decided not to set up the church I had reserved, and went to the park instead.  BAD idea.  As we arrived at the park there were some pretty icy winds that only increased in intensity as the day went on.  By the end of the luncheon we were chasing down flying paper plates and napkins, and all the kids were sitting in the cars to stay warm.  Not ideal, but we still had fun anyway.  At least I THINK we did... 

A few days before the baptism Lydia fell and hit her face on a table.  She was SO sad that she was going to have a black eye at her baptism!  Luckily, it was pretty much gone by Saturday.

Little did we know that less than a week after the baptism she would look like this -

Apparently face-planting it into a table is MUCH better than face-planting it into the sidewalk.  When Lydia saw it, she said "S is for Stewart!"  Let's just hope that she doesn't have a backwards "S for Stewart" forever.  Actually hoping it heals up before dance pictures on Friday...

Huge thanks go out to Taryn and my Mom for taking pictures for me, since I didn't take a single one.  Also thanks to my Mom for sewing sleeves onto the girls' dresses so that I could have them match!

My little red-head!  Don't ask me why she's squinting because there wasn't a single ray of sunshine ALL DAY.  The day before was gorgeous, and the day after as well. Why that makes me even more annoyed, I don't know...but it DOES!

My beautiful girls, freshly blessed and baptised!

Taryn took pictures in December with Lydia, Shelby, and Olivia.  I can't believe our baby girls are EIGHT already!

It seems like just yesterday that they looked like this -



I'm so happy that my sweet Lydia decided to be baptized (despite her fear of going all the way under water!), and I'm so grateful that Randall uses the power of the priesthood to bless my children.  Even though I've been somewhat whiny about the weather/how crazy the week was... I LIVE for these moments.  My family is EVERYTHING to me, and there's nothing better than being together with all of them. We are so blessed to have so much love and support, and I hope they know how much I love and appreciate each and every one of them.    

Grandmother Stewart

Our beautiful Grandma Stewart passed away two weeks ago today. We reminisced and celebrated her life at her funeral last Friday. I feel like I can't adequately honor her with my meager writing ablities, but I'm going to try anyway. Here are mine and Randall's 10 favorite things about Grandma -

1.  Grandma was ALWAYS smiling and frequently laughing.  She would laugh uncontrollably while attempting to share a funny story.  None of us would have a clue what she was saying, but we couldn't help but laugh right along with her. 

2.  Grandma was very frugal and smart with her money.  She grew up during the depression and would always repair, reuse, and make do.  I think of her every time I clean the lint out of my dryer because when I asked her why she hang dries her clothes one time, she told me that to use the dryer was a waste.  Not only because of the energy it takes, but every time you clean out the lint tray you're throwing away part of your clothes!  As a fellow penny-pincher myself, I really appreciated her frugality. 

3.  Grandma was an AMAZING cook.  I'm going to get some flak for this from my family, but Grandma's rolls were THE BEST I'VE EVER HAD!  My Grandma Jensen made delicious rolls as well, but for my particular tastes I prefer Grandma Stewart's chewy, slightly salty rolls over Grandma Jensen's buttery, slightly sweet ones.  However, both are delicious!  Some of our other favorites are her fried chicken, apple pie, and her delicious, fall to pieces HAM.  This isn't really a recipe, but we also LOVED Grandma Stewart's peaches.  She had lemon elberta peach trees, and in the fall she would peel and slice a whole bunch of peaches, add a little sugar, and VOILA!  HEAVEN!  She would never allow anyone to be hungry in her presence, and would always pass out little cupcake liners or baggies filled with a variety of Cheetos, nuts, Reese's Peanut butter cups, crackers...whatever she had on hand at the moment.  They gave out cupcake liners of snacks at the funeral luncheon in memory of her, which I thought was a really cute idea.  My kids loved it!

4.  At the funeral all the grandkids said how much they loved having sleepovers at Grandma Stewarts house.  They would ALL spend the night there together and Grandma would make them a delicious breakfast the next morning.

5.  When we were first married, Randall told me that his Grandma Stewart gave the best back rubs.  She would rub his back all over, then when she was done she would run her fingers up his back 3 times and say "Goodnight Sweetheart."  In the past I've attempted to copy Grandma's end-of-backrub ritual for Randall, but apparently it's "just not the same."  ;) 

6.  Another thing that Grandma and I shared along with penny-pinching, is our occassional absent-mindedness.  For some reason, Grandma frequently confused Candice with Janice.  I would never correct her, but most of the time she would catch herself, and say "Oh, I know your name's not Janice, sis! I don't know why I keep saying that!" 

7.  Grandma would always give sweet little cards and money for Birthdays and Christmas.  My kids LOVED getting their cards from Grandma and their two dollar bills.  Her cards ALWAYS said how special she thinks we are, how blessed she was to have us in her life, and were signed - My Eternal Love, Grandmother Stewart. 

8.  Grandma was a hard-core righter than right wing conservative.  She was very interested in current events and politics and was not afraid to share her opinions. 

9.  Grandma was SO kind-hearted and selfless.  She would spend hours preparing a delicious meal for everyone, and would never eat until everyone else had already dished up.  Even then, she would check and make sure that no one needed anything else before she finally sat down to eat. 

10.  I've never met a greater example of faith than Grandma.  She frequently shared her testimony of the gospel with all of us, and she truly lived a Christ-centered life. 

I know it's kinda weird, but I just couldn't help snapping a picture of Lydia with her.  I was a little bit surprised how difficult it was for my kids to lose Grandma.  She's not been doing very well for a while now, so I guess I thought that they had gotten used to the idea...until we visited her on Easter Sunday.  My four oldest kids were all in tears that night seeing how close she was to passing away.  Every day after that, they kept asking if she was still breathing.  I tried to explain to them that even though it's sad for us, Grandma is happy to go to heaven and return to her husband and other loved ones that have gone before her. 

Lydia definitely had the hardest time at the funeral.  She had a really close relationship with Grandma.  Whenever Grandma was around, she would go straight over, climb up next to her, and sit there the whole time.  All the other kids would eventually run off to play with their cousins, but Lydia LOVED to be with Grandma.  Since we have all seen Grandma struggle these last couple of years, it was a little easier for me to cotrol my emotions at the funeral...until I looked at Lydia.  She kept tearing up, then I would start crying... Eventually cute little Madilynn (who is SO much like her mother) came up and said, "Lydia! If you keep crying, then I'm going to cry, and Brecky's going to cry, and Chaz is going to cry, and Macie's going to cry, and the whole place will flood!"  Of course, Lydia started laughing uncontrollably, and was a lot better for the rest of the day. 

I'm so grateful that I had the opportunity to get to know Grandma Stewart.  She is part of the reason that Randall and I are together.  I sat by her at Katelynn's baby blessing the first time that I met Randall's family.  I had actually planned to break up with him that weekend, because I just couldn't see how our relationship would work with us living in different states and all. However, after I spent some time talking with his sweet Grandma, and the rest of his family, I decided to stick it out a bit longer.  ;)

I don't remember if I've mentioned it on this blog before, but Grandpa Stewart was killed in an accident 62 years ago - leaving Grandma with 3 children to raise alone. He was bishop at the time, and was helping to clear some church property when a tree fell on him.  I can't imagine ever going through something so difficult and not becoming bitter or hardened. Grandma knew that she would be with her sweetheart again, and thinking of their wonderful reunion has made this difficult time easier for all of us.  I know that I will always remember sweet Grandmother Stewart, and I hope that I can someday be even a fraction of the mother/grandmother/great-grandmother that she was. 

I've Never Been Very Good at Math

Apparently

1 40-min. nursing/snuggle session

+

1 "Do-wa Mooo-vie"

+

2 "comfy seats wif bwankies"

+

2 bags of gummy bears
(Yes, GUMMY BEARS!)

 

DOES NOT

=

1 un-interrupted shower

Silly me for thinking that it would.  It's okay though, because someday I'll step out of  a nice long, luxurious shower into a warm steamy room and think:

I wish this was a drafty cold  room, with the door wide open and a toddler saying "I need a go potty weally, weally bad!" and a baby screaming in the background, while I'm trying to remember if I rinsed the conditioner out of my hair... 

Right?

Yes, my living room is a disaster.  I usually try to tidy up the background of the picture at least, but it seemed appropriate to leave it for this post. 

Side Note:  It's only 10:23 and I've already gotten the kids off to school, washed 2 loads of laundry, blogged, AND showered!  It's gonna be a GREAT day!

Update:  1:35 pm

Maybe not a GREAT day...

Yep, she's wearing a different shirt.  She spilled Lydia's entire bottle of earring cleaner on her original outfit.  ;)

 

Silver Lining:  3 more batches of laundry done, Savanna used my old, crappy, dried out - just keep around in case you can't find your good mascara  - mascara (Not the one I just opened last week), AND she now looks like this -

 



*sigh*

Savanna's been keeping herself REALLY busy lately. 

Drinking LOTS of "tea"

If only cameras could capture the never-ending puddle that IS the floor in front of my fridge.

Trying on makeup -

She actually did a great job with the mascara. The lip gloss...not so much.

Joining Cameron in his bath -

Anybody see anything wrong with this picture?

Making sure Emma's eyes are protected from the sun during her nap -

And just being her energetic and adorable self -

Happy Easter!

Savanna couldn't smile because her mouth was immediately filled with candy the moment she got her basket, and pretty much remained that way for the next 2 hours.

We had our Brown Family Easter Hunt a few weeks early when everyone went down for Grayson's blessing -  

On Easter Sunday, we had a delicious dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Stewart's, then took the kids to see Great-Grandma Stewart.  She is not doing very well, and could pass any day.  The kids had a really hard time seeing her that sick, and Lydia was asking a lot of questions.  It was a great opportunity to teach them about the atonement, and how fortunate we are to be sealed to our families for eternity.  Grandma Stewart has been such an excellent example of living a Christ-centered life.  It will be really hard for us to lose her, but she will be so happy to be reunited with her husband, and other loved ones.    

Happy Birthday Baby Girls!

We had a great time celebrating Lydia and Savanna's Birthdays last week.  We had a St. Patrick's/Birthday party with my family, 

I love this picture of them smiling at each other -

 

This "rainbow cake" turned out WAY better on Pinterest!

had a popcorn movie night at home on Savanna's Birthday, ate at Texas Roadhouse,

Gotta love the saddle at Texas Roadhouse!

went bowling,

 Savanna was running all over the place until the last 10 minutes, when she zonked out on Jana's lap. 

had Lydia's ears pierced,

 feeling "a little bit nervous"

No tears, but a lot of squirming and a few high-pitched "OUCH!  That hurt!" comments.  On the way home she said.  "Being 8 has been pretty tough so far, like getting my ears pierced..."  Little did she know that it was going to get even tougher because one of her earrings fell out that night, and Randall pretty much had to re-pierce her ear to get it back in.  We never found the earring back, so she's just using one of mine.  Hopefully it will hold strong for the next 6 weeks! 

and sang Karaoke with Aunt Rachel (the other Birthday girl!) on Lydia's Birthday,

and had cake and ice cream with the Stewarts the next day. 

Jackie made a DELICIOUS cake for Lydia, Savanna, Kyle, and Casey's Birthdays.

So much fun!

Savanna's Dictionary

eh dat - I want that.  Good luck guessing what "that" is.
fre-frast - breakfast
gubbles - bubbles
gobbidge - garbage
yesh - yes
tisses - kisses
e-caaause - because (Always said in a very sweet, high-pitched voice after you ask her why...)
chicken - chin; chicken
Car-der - Carter
Ia - Lydia
Mia - Meleah
Cam-in - Cameron
Samana - Savanna (She can actually say it correctly now, but this is what she used to call herself.)
Em-ma So-phi-a - Emma (Never said separately, it's either Emma Sophia or baby)
poopy tinky - Poopy Stinky/the baby needs her diaper changed/I had an accident
my pot - That's my spot!  You'd better move it, or I'm going to whack you repeatedly!
ta-da - ta-da (She says this totally clear, but I had to include it because I think it's adorable.)
I did it! - Also very clear, but SO cute!

 Music and Dancing

Savanna has always LOVED to sing and dance.  She is constantly singing "No more muh-kees jumpin' on da bed,"  "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Dar," "Round and Round," (Wheels on the Bus) "Appy an you know it," "Itsy Bitsy Pider," "Hi-Yo"(Riggedy Jig), "Do as I'm Doing," "Wok-a-by, don't you cry," and MANY others.  I even heard her singing "Oh, it's what you do to me-e-eee, Ohhh, what you do to me" (Hey There Delilah) the other day.  She loves to dance, and basically dances wherever she goes.  She never just walks anywhere.  She jumps, bounces, and even does this weird crouchy walk on occassion.  I wish I had even half of her energy! 

Bossy

I have to admit that Savanna can be a bit bossy at times.  There's nothing she likes more than to tell the kids what to do.  For a while there, Cameron used to tell me EVERY TIME he needed to go to the bathroom, to which I would ALWAYS respond "Go potty."  Savanna picked up on this, and whenever Cameron would come and make his announcement, she would loudly respond "Go potty Cam-in!"  This annoyed Cameron to no end, and he now just GOES to the bathroom when he feels the need.  (Wahoo!)  She also loves to tell the kids when it's "tine-to-eat!" (time to eat), and yell "No fighting kids!  Aright?!"  when she hears them arguing.  She even bosses me around - "Mom, wook!" (look) or "Watch dis Mom!"

Sweetheart

Savanna can also be SO sweet.  She has always LOVED her baby dolls, and will feed them, wrap them in "bankies," and tuck them in to go "nigh-night" for HOURS.  Whenever someone gets hurt she will give them hugs and say "You urt? Oh! Aw bedder!"  She also says "Sure!" in the sweetest little high-pitched voice when I ask if she wants to do something.  It's so cute! 

Daddy's Girl

All of my kids tend to like their Daddy a little bit more once I stop nursing them for some reason, but this little girl takes it to a whole new level.  She YELLS "Daddy home!" and RUNS to her Dad the minute he steps through the door.  She usually won't let him put her down for at least 30 minutes.  Randall's getting really good at eating while distracted because at meal time Savanna sits at her own seat for about 3 minutes, then moves over to Daddy's lap and says "uh bite!"  (I want a bite!)  Apparently his food tastes better.  She always comes up to me and says "Where's Ran-ull?  (Randall) At work?"  I think I would be offended by how much she loves him if it wasn't so dang adorable. 

Belly Button

Savanna's always been a little obsessed with her belly button.  She HATES it when I put her in a onesie, because then she has no access to her belly button, and she LOVES when Grandma Stewart sings "Belly, belly, full of Jelly" while tickling her tummy.  She also loves to show off Mommy's belly button - even when she's 8 months pregnant and in a room full of people.  ;)

 

Favorites

Color - "uh know" (I don't know)  She hasn't really shown a preference yet.
Food - "um eat"  She eats everything pretty well, but she LOVES tomatoes, strawberries, kiwi, Clementines, cheese, and chocolate.
Movie - "um, upstairs" (They have movie nights in their rooms upstairs sometimes) She loves  "Swa-berry Sho-cake", any "Princesh" movie, or "Bobbie" (Barbie). 
TV Show - "show" (Maybe she's still a little young for theses questions...) She asks for "Do-Do Do-wa" (Dora), "My Big Big Fwend," "goos coos" (Blue's Clues), "Bo on da Go," "Dan-el Tiger," "pat-pat-pat" (Little Einsteins), and "Zoom-iny" (Team Umizoomi)

"Even you know"

There aren't as many mispronunciations when kids get older, but Lydia still has one funny little thing that she says all the time.  (As usual, I don't correct her because I want my kids to stay little forever!)  Instead of saying "Even though,"  she says "Even you know."  For example: "I still like Bubble Guppies, even you know it's a preschool show."  It actually kinda makes sense, so I guess I can see why she's confused...   

Peacemaker

Lydia's my little peacemaker.  Not because she NEVER fights with anyone (although she doesn't seem to be inolved in arguments NEARLY as much as Meleah some of my children...), but because she's always trying to make everyone happy.  She tries to help the kids compromise so that it's fair for everyone, and is quick to comfort anyone that is upset.  She's SO sweet-natured and easy-going...most of the time.  ;)

 

Optimist

This year's been a little bit more difficult for Lydia.  She's been teased a couple of times, and she sometimes gets frustrated when she can't do something that other kids her age, or even younger than her can do.  She wants to run, ride a bike, do the splits, and play soccer like all the other kids, and now that she is doing so well physically (she walks nearly as fast as I do with her canes), it's actually more difficult for her to see that there are still some things that she can't do.  However, she NEVER dwells on it.  She may feel sad for a minute, but then she comes up with something that she CAN do, or some way to adapt an activity so that she can have fun too.  She's really easy to please, and generally just an all-around happy kid.  She rarely feels sorry for herself, and when she does it's really easy to pull her out of it.  Her happy, optimistic attitude has pulled me out of the grumps on many occassions, and I'm so grateful that I get to spend time with her every day. 

Lydia's Birthday present.  Now she CAN ride a bike! 

Favorites

Food:  "uhhhhh, pizza"

Movie:  "Wreck it Ralph, and Princess movies, and Barbie"

TV Show:  "Signing Time"

Toy:  "It's something that ran out of gum,  (Hello Kitty gumball machine) and my tablet"

Book:  "Princess Bedtime Stories"

Color:  "Pink and purple and blue"

School Subject:  "PE and art"