Yearly Kiddo Update

Every year people ask me colors, sizes, and interests of the kids so they can pick appropriate presents for them. Here is this year's list :)

Megan (age 11): favorite color - pink; size 10 (children's); interests - art, clothes design, science, babysitting, writing, makeup; favorite animal - penguin and puppy; favorite food - fettuccine alfredo, panela cheese, quesadillas 

Kylie (age 9): favorite color - blue; size 12-14 (children's); interests - soccer, video games, nerf guns, power rangers, N64 games, build-a-bear, digimon, pokemon; favorite animal - koala and panda; food - spaghetti and meatballs, shrimp

Beth (age 7): favorite color - purple; size 8 (children's); interests - Dora, Hello Kitty, ballet, gymnastics, art, stuffed animals, stars, skirts and dresses; favorite animal - monkey (also butterflies and ponies); food - mac and cheese, pizza

Jack (age 6): favorite color - red; size 5; interests - nerf guns, N64 games, t-rex, the avengers (especially Capt America), power rangers, transformers, digimon, pokemon; favorite animal - lion, t-rex; food - spaghetti and meatballs

Eva (age 3): favorite color - pink; size 3T; interests - poofy skirts (tutus), Dora, Hello Kitty, make up, My Little Ponies, necklaces and bracelets, purses, headbands (only wider ones), backpacks, shoes, electronics; favorite animal - cat; food - chicken nuggets

Laura (age 1): favorite color - I think blue, but it's hard to tell at this point; size - 18m; interests - necklaces and bracelets, electronics, dolls, music, coloring; favorite animal - no idea; food - grapes, ice cream

When I Grow Up

Megan -

When I grow up I want to be a teacher or a clothes designer, or I'd be a teacher and just design clothes for my kids. I am hoping to adopt twins named Candy (real name - Catherine) and Susie. Maybe I will get married if the right guy comes along. I will go to college if I manage to complete school. I will live on the shores of a beach where it's cold in the winter and there's a lot of snow so we can build snowmen. I will have my own pool, so we can go swimming in water that doesn't have crabs in it.

Kylie -

I am going to be a soccer coach. I'm going to buy a mansion on an island in Hawaii. I will have three kids. The first is Jojo (a boy), then Marie (nicknamed Mary), and then Max. I will get married when I am 22. I will go to college at BYU and study science. I'm going to have a family date each month. The first family date I'll do is going to a pool. I'm going to have my wedding on a soccer field. I will live a happy life.

Beth -

I want to be a doctor. I want to have five kids. The first will be named Christy. The second will be named Eliza (pronounced "E - liz - uh"). The third will be named Mary. The fourth will be named Rose. The fifth will be named Beth the Junior (Beth for short). I will live in Texas around here because I like it here. I will get married when I find a boy I like.

Jack -

I am going to be a police because I want to serve our country and I want to be an army man because I want to serve our country. I want to have a family - a good family. And I will take care of my kids. I'm going to have five kids; two girls and three boys. My wife is going to be a doctor. I will live in this house that we live in now.

Eva -

I am going to have a birthday. I am going to have candles at my birthday. I will stop wearing diapers on my birthday. When I am big, I will go to the playground.

Eva's Best Friend

We've gotten to see a lot of Miss Jojo lately. She has gone out of her way to rearrange her schedule so she can spend time with us, which I love :) Eva loves it too. After hanging out with Jojo during Kylie's playdate, Eva announced to me that Jojo is her best friend and that she loves her. I managed to get her to repeat some of it while I taped her :)

This is for you, Jojo :)

http://youtu.be/e-2pCtpEDtk

Mommy Dates

I love kidnapping the kids from school for their lunch dates!

Beth's was October 29th. It was supposed to be the week before, but we had to postpone it due to Eva eating something that strongly disagreed with her tummy the night before. It was a gorgeous day outside, so Eva, Laura, and I picked up Beth from school, stopped by Sonic for kids meals (Beth's choice), and headed to a playground. We met up with Jojo there, ate lunch, and then played for a couple of hours. Beth made friends with several other children, although since it was a school day, most of the kids were much younger than her.

With Jojo there, we even got a picture with me in it!

Kylie's date was this past Tuesday (Tuesdays are the only day where I don't leave for work until 5pm, so I actually have time to hang out and do things). The weather was much colder (yay for weather that feels like autumn should feel!) and it had been raining for several days; a slow, steady rain that reminded me of New England. We opted for an indoor location as everything was so wet. We ended up at a Chick-fil-a. Jojo made time to join us that day too :)

Kylie was the only child in the restaurant over the age of 3 or 4, but she and Eva made lots of friends. One of the moms came over to me and told me that Eva and Kylie had helped her toddler son out when he got stuck on the slide and she was very impressed with how sweet and well-behaved both of them were. She told me I was doing a great job as a mom and asked if she could buy the girls ice cream to thank them for helping out with her son :)

Did you know that chick-fil-a has grilled nuggets? And fresh fruit cups? Eva dipped her grapes in ketchup. 

Laura raided my purse, found a bag of wintergreen lifesavers, and settled herself down next to me on the bench with a handful of candy. She chewed the wrappers off, spit them out, and then contentedly ate the lifesavers. She ate about 8 total. We decided not to get her an ice cream cone. When she finished off the lifesavers, she wandered around the restaurant, stopping at each table and smiling at the people sitting there. 

Lunch dates with my kids was one of my most awesome ideas ever! Megan's will have to be postponed due to her grades, but hopefully she'll pull them up soon so we can do her lunch date too.

Life continues to be super busy. I am getting even more clients, so I now work five days a week, with Tuesday being the one day that I only work in the evening. Rob and Brittney are incredible; I couldn't do this without them. I also couldn't do this without James and Jojo. Working as a therapist is a roller-coaster most of the time and those four hold me together at the lowest points and are there to celebrate at the highest points. I can't thank them enough for everything they do. They are all such amazing people and I am so lucky to have them in my life!

One of the hardest things I've had to deal with lately is the loss of one of my best friends. Leah passed away on October 20th. She died a week before her 36th birthday. She has been one of my best friends for almost a quarter of a century. She was an wonderful person and I am so blessed that I was counted among her best friends. I am so glad she is out of pain and no longer has to deal with any of the challenges she's been facing, but I really miss her. Rest in peace, beautiful lady. Thank you for all you brought to my life.