Happy 8th Birthday Abi!

I can't believe that Abi is 8 years old. All of sudden she seems so grown up. Abi was sick with a 102 fever all day Sunday (the day before her birthday). We thought it was the swine flu and she was going to have to stay home from school for a week . But the next morning she came bounding into our room ready to open her presents. She got this adorable dress from Grandma Sharon and a barbie Jeep and doll, among other things. Per Abi's request, we went swimming and had an ice cream cake to celebrate. Abi is a great help to me. She is such a good big sister and helps with Porter and Jack a lot. (she even changes wet diapers) she is very excited to be baptized in a few weeks. I am so proud of the young woman she is becoming.

Halloween

The kids are posing with, believe it or not, our Relief Society President. Her motorcycle completed the costume. She kept having to remind the kids that it was a costume and the piercings and tattoos were not real.

We had a fun and fast Halloween. With all of the play stuff going on, I was really glad we had figured out costumes early in the month. I kept having to remind myself about Halloween. We didn't even get a chance to carve pumpkins this year, much to the disappointment of the kids. Our ward had a trunk or treat (I love those!) And it was warm!! (Even better!) All three wards in our building had a trunk-or-treat so the kids got a lot of candy and we ran out and got out of there pretty fast. (And we bought a lot of candy.) Afterwards we had some friends over for scones and hot chocolate.

Little Cosette Video

I finally had to post the video of Abi on YouTube. It was just too big for blogger to handle. So, click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFaV9zsWCp8 to watch the video, or look up Abi's Little Cosette on youtube.com. I had to make it really short because of the free video editing software I was using.

Abi's Stage Debut

Abigail finished her run as Little Cosette in Les Miserables about a week ago. It was a great experience but a lot of work. Luckily Abi was off track the whole week and a half, there were quite a few late nights. I was relieved when it was over but Abi cried all the way home on the last night. Jesse was especially glad it was over as he got to take care of the rest of the kids while Abi and I were at most of the performances. The students and teachers that she worked with were so supportive and cute with Abi. She also made good friends with the girl that played Little Eponine and they played when they weren't on stage. Abi did a great job. She only acted nervous once, because there was a packed house (about 1000 people). But when she went on stage she was as cool as could be. I know that I was more nervous than she was. Our kids are still singing songs from the show, it was cute at first. It is a great show but I watched it about 8 times and so I am loosing patience with the constant singing. I have a video that I want to post but I have to figure out how to edit it a little bit first. (They didn't take all the questionable words out of the show and I don't want to get in trouble.) Stay Tuned!

Jack's 1st Birthday

Jack had a fun birthday. Present opening was very exciting. He also got free reign over his own cake and with a little help from friends got very messy. We love having Jack Jack in our familty. I can't imagine life with out him.

Washington DC Getaway

Jesse and I had the chance to go to Washington DC in September. Jesse had a business conference he had to be to and I tagged along. It was a lot of fun and a great break. Jesse only had a day and a half of meetings and so we had 4 1/2 days to explore. There is so much to do and see. We had fun figuring out the metro and negotiating the city. I was plagued with a planters wart on my foot that became an infected blister. The one time in my life I really need to be able to walk all day long and I get this problem. It was a challenge and we didn't get to do quite as much as we would have liked, but we made the best of it and had fun anyway. We ended up renting bikes to make our way around the national mall because I just couldn't walk anymore. That was actually one of the highlights of the trip. I think a grandma with a walker could move faster than I was going. This may sound a bit dramatic, but at one point I was positive that the pain in my foot was as bad if not worse than labor. When we got home Jesse was picking at the wart and all this nasty puss came out. It felt better almost immediately. I am sure there is some lesson that I was supposed to learn from this experience and I will be thankful for it some day. The kids had their Grandparents taking care of them and they made it through the week in one piece. (And so did their Grandparents)

We had a fun but busy summer. We did so many fun things that I just didn't have time to blog and it would take too much time to catch up. It was a quick 6 weeks out of school, but we were all ready when it was over. Abi started 2nd grade on Aug 18th. Her teachers name is Mrs. Matsumura and we think this is going to be a great year. She is just growing up so fast. A few weeks ago she auditioned for Taylorsville High Schools production of Le Miserables, the part of Little Cosette. We finally heard last Monday that they picked her for the part. She is really excited for her big debut on stage.

Anna started kindergarten on Aug 25th. We have waited a very long time for this day. She missed the deadline to go to school last year by 2 days. Her teacher's name is Mrs. Hansen. Anna loves every minute of school, like we knew she would. She has learned some really fun songs and made lots of friends. There are 5 kids from our ward in her class (pictured above). The second boy from the left had his birthday on the deadline (Sept 1) and he turned 5. So he and Anna are two days shy of one year apart but they are still in the same class. Weird hugh!

Jack is just a smiley guy, most of the time. He is all done with nursing, which has been really nice. He gets around with the army crawl or walking around furniture, but not on his knees. He is still pretty attached to his mom (he is crying right now because I am doing this and not holding him). His first tooth came in last Sunday (we stopped nursing just in time).

Porter is turning into a little man. We went on a search for little boy church clothes yesterday and this is what we came up with. It only took us 4 stores and 3 hours (they are hard to find). He was especially excited about the belt. He has been my little helper while Anna and Abi are at school. He follows me around and keeps himself pretty entertained. It is like night and day with he and Anna separated for 3 hours. He is a much more pleasant kid. We are all excited to get into our new routine. BYU football has now officially started with the awesome win over Oklahoma last night so Jesse is in seventh heaven. I have been staying busy with relief society and running around with the kids. Jesse and I are looking forward to our trip to D.C. next week. We are going to celebrate our 10th anniversary. We are both excited to have some much needed time alone. (Thanks Mom and Eloise for making that possible.)

Brian is Home!

We had a fun and exhausting week! Brian is officially home from his mission. We spent a few days at a cabin in Oakley as a family and then attended the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house. Brian reported his mission in Taylorsville on Sunday to cap it all off. It was good to all be together!

Abi's New Talent

Abi's Piano Recital

Jesse has been teaching Abi to play the piano from an old book we borrowed from my parents. A neighbor of ours teaches piano and invited Abigail to play in her spring recital. I am really proud of her. I am not biased at all, but I think she is doing very well. (And Jesse hasn't done too bad either!)

Blog Amnesia

Eight months ago today, life got a lot busier. I managed to get a few posts written but then suddenly came down with a case of Blog Amnesia. I believe that it must have been quite a severe case as it has taken so very long to recover. While I am not completely out of the woods, things are looking up and I expect to fully recover. While things have been crazy we have also had some great times in the last eight months. Jack is cute as a button. We found some pictures of Anna at 8 months and it was almost scary how much her and Jack look alike. He is sitting up but not crawling yet (Thank goodness!). He is painfully attached to me and while that is endearing it also make like difficult sometimes. Porter is now 3 and I have decided that the twos are terrible and the threes are more terrible. He is like a grenade with the word NO for a trigger. Anna is finished with preschool and anxiously awaiting kindergarten. She will be starting Aug. 24 in the am class. Abi is growing up fast. She got her ears pierced and dreams of the day she can wear danglers. Jesse was released from the Young Men's and called to be the Ward Mission Leader. I was just put in as the 1st counselor in the Relief Society Presidency after an 8 month break. We are excited for the summer and spending time outside in the warm weather

Happy Halloween!

We had a great Halloween. I got the kids all dressed up and we visited Jesse at work. He loves showing off his cute kids at Halloween. They got lots of candy and I would have been satisfied if we had called it a day. Instead we got dressed up all over again and went to our church sponsored trunk or treat. It was an amazingly nice day. We didn't even need jackets. After about an hour and another large haul we came home and hunkered down in the basement and watched E.T. The kids loved the movie. Porter is still talking about it. The girls decided to have a competition to see who could keep their candy the longest. Anna only has a few pieces left so I think Abi will be the winner this time.

Trip to Manti

The kids and I went to stay with Grandma and Grandpa Liddell while Jesse was in Savannah on business. I was a little nervous taking a trip with Jack being so little but we ended up having a great time. Two days wasn't quite long enough. Grandma had some culinary crafts for the girls to do. They had a blast decorating Frankenstein cookies and donut hole ants in celebration of Halloween. They also spent plenty of time with Grandma's dress ups. We discovered a fun new park in Manti right next to the health clinic on main street. The weather was unseasonably warm and so we stopped at the park and had lunch. It was so fun that we went back the next day. The kids were beyond spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa. I enjoyed the help with diaper changes and having meals prepared for me.

Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Pumpkins!

We got the Halloween season started with pumpkin decorating. I saw these kits to make pumpkins and thought it was a great idea. I was right! This was the easiest least messy way that we have ever decorated pumpkins. The best part was that the kids loved it. We will be able to display our pumpkins all season because they won't shrivel up like the carved variety. The kids have picked out costumes. Porter is going as Batman and would wear out his costume before Halloween if I would let him. Anna will be the cutest witch you have ever seen and Abi is going to be a sorceress (or Abi the black as she calls herself). We did store bought costumes this year as my time is limited and the kids were getting anxious about having a costumes. Happy haunting everyone!

Time to Breathe!

Well, I never imagined that it would take this long to sit down and write a blog about Jack's birth. I underestimated how busy I was going to be after he arrived. I am not complaining. I would much rather have it this way than to still be pregnant. This may seem like old news two weeks later but I would like to record it anyways. After the doctor checked my cervix and determined that we should go ahead and induce labor on the 24th I started to have some contractions. They slowly got closer and harder as the day went on. Right before bed I started to loose my mucus plug and I was just hoping that I could make it through most of the night before heading to the hospital. I was able to sleep (as well as any pregnant lady sleeps) until about 4:00 am when the contractions just got too hard. When I got up and timed them they were 3 min apart and 1 min long. When I called the doctor she said we should head in to the hospital. It was nice because we were all prepared but I didn't have to be induced. My mom had come to stay with the kids and everything was set for Jesse and I to be gone for a few days. It couldn't have worked out more perfect. When we got to the hospital and settled they checked me and I was at 5 cm. I was a little disappointed because I had been at a 4 the day before and the contractions were very painful. I decided to get the epidural at this point. While the anesthesiologist was administering the epidural I was looking over at Jesse as he slept and decided that next time (if there is one) I want to be the Dad, he can be the mom. (Just kidding, I love being the mom. I could go without all the pain though.) Then we just hung out for a while and watched TV. I wasn't progressing real fast but that was OK because my doctor was in a meeting. Once he was available he came in and broke my water and surprise I was already at a 10. We started to work on getting him out but that was tricky because he was posterior. Dr. Porter had some trouble getting him to turn. At this point I was really glad that I couldn't feel what was going on. At the last second the baby turned and after a few more minutes of pushing he was here. (11:21 am, our fastest by far) The umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck twice and so we were relieved that he was here and healthy. We immediately realized that little Jack was the male version of Anna. Even Jesse agreed and he usually claims that he can't tell who they look like. Jack has lots of dark hair and the exact little face that Anna had when she was an infant. He seems so little but at the same time big as he is a whole pound bigger than any of our other kids were. We stayed in the hospital until Friday. Jesse thought I was crazy for staying that long but I knew it would be easier to rest there than at home. The kids were so excited to see Jack and came as soon as they could. It was a little crazy with them in the little hospital room, however. Porter wouldn't leave the buttons on my bed alone. I kept having to explain to the secretary that my little boy pushed the nurse call light. My mom and Dad spent the weekend with us and were a big help. I didn't have to change Porter's diaper or prepare a meal for a whole week and that was great. I also came home to a clean house and that was the best gift ever. We are still adjusting but I am starting to feel under control. Nursing was a struggle at first. Jack was tongue tied. Once we had his tongue clipped nursing became much less painful. He also had an eye infection over the weekend but we got some antibiotic and it has mostly cleared up. We just feel so blessed and thankful to have this new little spirit in our home. Thanks to all those who called, visited, brought in dinners and gifts. We feel so loved.

The End is in Sight!

Well, I am officially the most pregnant that I have ever been. It isn't going to last much longer though. I went to the doctor today and when he checked me I was 4 cm and 90 % effaced. I had protein in my urine and a blood pressure that was normal but a little high for me. In the end Dr Porter decided we should induce labor tomorrow. We are very excited. I have been feeling very good for someone in her last month of pregnancy but I am still anxious to get the whole show on the road. The best part is that I don't have to find a babysitter for my kids twice a week anymore. I have some great friends and sister in law (Cindy) that have been very patient with me pawning my kids off on them for the past two months. I am very grateful for their help. I am sure that Anna and Porter won't know what to do with themselves when they don't get to have play dates all the time though. Hopefully this induction won't take as long as Porter's since I am already starting to dilate. We are thankful for all of your thoughts and prayers this past nine months. I am sure that they helped us get this far.

Porter, Porter Porter!

Porter has been going with Jesse every Sunday morning to set up chairs with the Young Men. He gets very serious about this job. Our folding chairs were out after Anna's birthday party. I was trying to get myself ready for church and when I came out this is what I found. Apparently he thought we needed a living room full of folding chairs set up. It was very cute. He is quickly turning into a little man.

Finially Preschool!

Anna started preschool last week. The deadline for school in Utah is Aug 31st so Anna only misses kindergarten by 3 days. The funny thing is that preschool started Sept. 4 so she was already 5 when she started. She has been looking forward to preschool for a very long time, even praying for it. Abi attended the same school and we just love it! This is a picture of Anna and her teachers, Teacher (Sandra), and Mrs. Jensen. They take pictures of the kids on special days and print them out all cute for the kids. They really go above and beyond. We just hope they will still be teaching when Jack gets old enough. She has two friends from our ward in her class and that is really fun.

Happy Birthday Anna!

Anna turns 5 years old today. I can't believe it! It seems like just yesterday that she surprised us by joining our family 9 weeks early. You would never know by looking at her now that she started out only 3 lb. 7 oz. We love having her as part of our family. Her beautiful smile just brightens up our home. She is such a good helper for her mom and Dad. Anna loves life and learning and it becomes infectious. We are proud of the young woman that she is turning into. She finally got her very own bike for her birthday and is excited to take rides with her big sister. Anna is also having her first friend birthday party on Saturday and can't wait. She has been "helping" me plan it for weeks. We love you Anna!