Lincoln the Photographer + Silly Faces

(Apr. 17, 2013)

When I'm taking pictures, Lincoln and Parker always want to do it, too. I usually let them push the button a few times. This time I actually handed Lincoln the camera and let him take pictures as much as he wanted. One minute and 38 pictures later... and these are his best shots:

Griffin & Mommy

I totally remember taking pictures like this when I was a kid...

Then Parker wanted me to take a picture of him:

Then Lincoln wanted a picture of himself:

Then we took lots of silly face pictures.

Disclaimer: Ignore the fact I have no makeup on and I let my hair air dry. Pinkeye went around my family for about 3 weeks...

All 4 Boys

(Apr. 17, 2013)

I love when I get a "perfect picture." Where all 4 boys are looking at me, no one is crying, and they aren't fighting.

Oliver (left), Parker (top), Griffin (right), & Lincoln (bottom)

But behind every "perfect picture" there's 17 like this, right?

Lincoln Playing with the Babies

(Apr. 16, 2013)

Sometimes Usually when I'm trying to finish something up, one or both babies gets impatient and needs some attention. Lately, they just want to be played with. Half of the time Parker will go over to the fussy babies and try to get them to smile, all without me asking him to. So sweet. For every fiesty kid like Lincoln out there (who happens to be quite particular about any & everything, and acts like he's in his own little world) I hope there's a sweet little Parker to balance him out.

Lincoln has his super sweet moments, too. Here he initiated playing with the babies by himself. He was trying to get them to smile and laugh. When you see your child trying to make the world a better place and showing love and being kind to others, that is truly one of the best rewards of parenting. Moments like this make my mommy heart melt. (Was that too cheesy or what?)

[Look at Griffin's tongue!]

...all in stripes today...

Oliver (L) & Griffin (R)

Parker was feeling a little left out of the picture taking...

The Car is Not a Toy

(Apr. 15, 2013)

Well... I guess it can be until you are able to turn the key and reach the gas pedal.

Massage My Feet

(Apr. 9, 2013)

Lincoln and Parker love to sneak into Mimi's room to try to turn on the TV. Lately, they have been distracted with Papa's new massage machines.

Parker thinks the vibrations are so funny!

Lincoln likes pushing buttons. [Especially my buttons.]

Sneaky Sneaky

(Apr. 8, 2013)

This is what happens when Mommy uses the restroom...

Lincoln has discovered he's no longer a baby. He has figured out how to get past our "baby locks"

on the front door:

...and on the garage door:

...and brings Parker with him.

Thank goodness I have instilled fear into them if they venture past our driveway and into the street. They fear they will have to return inside immediately. Or worse... go in the backyard. (Really... why is the backyard not as fun as the front??)

Some Quotes for the Mothers

I read this today, and it just made me smile (excerpt from HERE):

It’s easy to be a happy, calm mother when my children are behaving perfectly. It’s much harder when they’re falling apart in the grocery store, whining while I try to clean the bathroom, or sobbing irrationally while I try to take a phone call.

And these are a few quotes out of Deseret Book's mailer for Mother's Day, "mom's best advice to moms":

There will be times that you want to throw [your children] out the window. It is normal to have those feelings. What you do when you feel that way is the most important. -Liz

Someday you'll miss all those tiny fingerprints on your windows. -Rebecca

The key is to not beat yourself up about what you didn't do today. Just try to make tomorrow better. And practice forgiving so others will forgive you too. -Rachel

I know Mother's Day isn't for a little while... but I love you, Mom. I'm sorry for all the times you felt like you wanted to throw me out the window. You are always thinking of others, always wanting the best for your family, always remembering important, meaningful dates, working so hard and getting so much done, and selflessly raising 4 children. You are amazing, Mom, and I hope I can become as great a mother as you.

Prediction: Parker will be the Studious One

(Apr. 2, 2013)

That was a joke. This was partially staged. But it is still cute, right?

Finally... Potty Training Time

(Mar. 25, 2013)

I decided it was time to potty train Lincoln. I was tired of changing 4 diapers every day. Think about it... 3 a day for both Lincoln and Parker, plus 4 a day for Griffin and Oliver. That is 14 diapers. Every day. Unless there are multiple dirty diapers... then that number increases upwards toward 20.

I got them both bare from the waist down and we just hung out in the backyard. I had a bowl full of dum dum suckers. I borrowed a little potty from Audrey. We were ready. All morning, they both had tons of accidents. No big deal. No mess to clean up. It was on the grass or rocks and just pee. Easy. Around lunch time, Lincoln said he wanted a picnic on the blanket. So I ran inside to make a couple sandwiches. When I came back out, Lincoln was so excited! "Mommy, Mommy, can I have the big firetruck now? I went poop in the potty!" Sure enough, there it was. So the firetruck I bought last year (literally a year ago) and that sat on top of our kitchen cabinets (to help motivate Lincoln to want to use the potty) was finally taken down and opened and played with! I was so excited!

I thought since I was trying with Lincoln, I might as well try with Parker. Parker was asking for a diaper after not too long and also fighting me, so I decided it's not worth it. If he was my only concern, he probably would be trained by now. I'll try again in a few months or so if he seems ready. It is ridiculous to try to push it if the kid isn't ready!

Parker (left) & Lincoln (right)

Lincoln's First PB&J

(Mar. 23, 2013)

Lincoln insisted on making his own sandwich one day. He's gotta learn eventually, right? He was getting so frustrated it wasn't spreading on smoothly. "It's not perfect!" is a phrase we hear quite often around this house.

Playing Cars & on the Stairs

(Mar. 21, 2013)

Here is an idea of what goes on almost every day after the boys eat breakfast.

(I sneaked downstairs to film this through that open-window-thing-above-the-banister.) (And sneaked is, in fact, a word. Snuck is incorrect. That seems weird.)

And after they caught me...

I laid down on the stairs to hide, but they found me and then wanted a picture.

Amelia's Funeral

(Mar. 23, 2013)

I didn't take any pictures at the funeral. It was not something I thought of to do. Some people took pictures, so thanks to those people, here you are. (I scanned in the program.)

Funeral Program: Back (left) & Front (right)

Funeral Program Inside

All the cousins got a balloon to "send to Amelia in Heaven" at the internment in Pinto, Utah.

It was a really beautiful service. Very peaceful. Some that saw us there might not think we felt that peace since our children were acting like wild monkeys, but we did; it was wonderful to hear everyone speak and feel the spirit so strongly.

Both Ashley and Kurt spoke, something I don't know if I would be put together enough to be able to do. Two things that stuck out to me, were things Kurt said (not word for word). "I feel like I've learned more about the Atonement in the last week and a half than in my whole 30 years of existence on this earth" and "You can't choose what happens to you, what other people say to you, etc., but you can decide your attitude."

Thank you to everyone for your help, your prayers, your friendship. I am so grateful for Jesus Christ and the Atonement, and the peace it has brought to us.

Making Each Other Smile

(Mar. 23, 2013)

Oliver & Griffin are almost 8 months old in these pictures. They will be 9 months on May 3rd. Crazy!

Oliver (left) & Griffin (right)

Oliver (left) & Griffin (right)

I love Oliver's face in this one.

Tummy time.

Costco's New Daycare Center

(Mar. 21, 2013)

I was talking to someone (Camille?) about this and she said there is a Smith's in northern Utah that actually does this - um... AMAZING idea for grocery stores!! But seriously... you would probably get me to go grocery shopping almost daily. And most likely I would spend more. And if it was 30 minutes out of the way? Eh, a minor inconvenience. I would be your loyal customer. How has this idea not spread like wildfire yet? Especially in Utah (where there is an abundance of children)? I will be your first customer!

Future Garbage Man & Grandma Rachel's Push-Car

(Mar. 19, 2013)

For some reason... the boys like to play in the front yard more than the [safe, enclosed] backyard. Maybe because Lincoln's biggest toy, our garbage cans, are really fun to push around and tip over (and climb into, although I don't let him do that). This is usually after the garbage truck has already emptied them. I just need to train him to bring them back from the curb, right?

Lincoln and Parker always ask to go across the street, to "Grandma Rachel's house". It is only when her garage is open and they see this little push-car she has for great grandchildren who visit. If I'm in the mood, I let them. I guess I was in a good mood this day. I let him push around the garbage cans and go across the street.

Cheesy smile, Lincoln...

Motorcycle Races

(Mar. 16, 2013)

A quick movie of what we do when I get the babies to take a nap at the same time.

(These tricycles are "Harley Davidson motorcycles".)

Trip to SLC

(Mar. 16, 2013)

We stayed at the Slemboski's in Alpine when we went to visit Amelia at Primary Children's. It was our first overnight trip with the twins... which turned out well. We forgot our portable crib, but Natalie & Jimmy borrowed a couple from their neighbors. Natalie & Jimmy and Berlyn helped watch the kids so we were able to go to the hospital without dragging the whole crew there. Thank you! (Sorry if we scared you out of having babies, Berlyn!!!)

Ellie & Jet having breakfast

Jet feeding Griffin a bottle

In the hospital waiting room with Simone

Have you noticed my haircut yet? It's hardly done in that last picture... I'll have to get a better one. I cut off more than 12 inches! I was sick of it... and the babies loved to grab it. And I don't miss it. At all.

Stitches... again.

(Mar. 6, 2013)

The babies were sleeping. Rachel (across the street) had her granddaughter over with her kids. They were playing in her front yard. Lincoln & Parker saw them playing and asked me if they could go play. So we all went across to play. After 10-15 minutes I went to check on the babies, leaving Lincoln & Parker there. One of the babies needed a new diaper, and mid-diaper change I heard screaming and crying coming from across the street from Parker. I finish the diaper and run across the street. Parker has blood all over his chin... so we come home to put a band-aid on. I dabbed the wound and I could tell a regular band-aid wouldn't work, so I came up with THIS:

I was hoping the compression would help it stop bleeding.. but later that evening I checked (6-8 hours later...) and it was still actively bleeding. Insta-care. 3 stitches. Parker's stitches count is now 6. He has 2 separate scars on his little chin now. The first one was underneath. This one shows a bit from the front.

4 boys. What do you expect my blog to be about? Princesses and tea parties? (Well, actually... Lincoln does love tea parties at Mimi's house...) I'm sure this is only twice of many to come. Hopefully not.

Matchy Matchy

(Mar. 5, 2013)

Some more pictures of Griffin & Oliver. I find myself dressing them alike more than I thought I would. Most of their clothing is hand-me-down, but I tend to find clothes that are similar and dress them alike (not identical, but matching). Not exactly sure why... I do it with Lincoln and Parker sometimes, too. I guess it makes choosing an outfit easier...?

Can you tell them apart yet?

Griffin (left) & Oliver (right)

Playing Together

(Mar. 4, 2013)

This was the first time they "played" together for longer than a second or two. They were rolling to their sides to look at each other, and then they would smile at each other. It was really cute. They were 7 months old in these pictures.

Griffin & Oliver

big smiles for Mommy