Daddy, we just wanted you to know we are thinking about you. Bridger was running a fever and sitting on the couch moaning and then I gave him some Tylenol. You can judge for yourself if it worked. ;0) Have fun on your first over night on call at the hospital! Love you!
The kids, my beautiful niece Christie, her absolutely adorable son Xaiden, and I spent the day together in Long Beach having a great time playing. We took the kids to Chuck E Cheese. It was Bridger, Angeli, and Benjamin's first time at Chuck E Cheese and they loved it. They think Chuck E Cheese is pretty great for having such a fun place for them to play at.
Angeli was a little nervous on this ride, our cute cautious girlie
Here they are having movie time after we had dinner. Xaiden is such a cutie pie in this picture.
Once again I know few of you care about these small kid fun filled days but the Daddy sure does so this is for him since it will be at the very least another two weeks before we see him again. :( (See car problems, having to go on a emergency run back to Reno,...) So Daddy this is for you to see what we have been up to. We miss you but we are excited about all the great opportunities you are having in Las Vegas! The kids are loving "Grandma Smith's house" and have to clarify daily about your whereabouts. "Where is daddy?" I reply he is at Grandma Rasmussen's house and that we will go see him as soon as we can." They then try to wrap their heads around the whole thing, "Daddy came out of grandma Rasmussen's tummy? Grandma with the doggy? Oh,...when will daddy come back?" :) We really love you.
We are on vacation and having a really great time. I took these pictures with the Dad in mind and I am posting them for him as well so he can feel apart of all of our happenings in Los Angeles. Yesterday we ventured to Travel Town. The kids had a really fun time playing on the trains and getting to go on their own mini train ride. We miss you. :(
Benjamin's favorite was the indoor play area where he could crawl around on the carpet
Angeli and Eden pretending to be lions "ROAR"!
I have spent the day tying up lose ends here in Reno and packing and packing and PACKING. I feel like we are moving for good. The amount of things we need for our forever long trip is ridiculous. Strollers, high chair, (2) portacribs, all of Stewart's belongings, hair things, bibs, baby food, bottles, diapers, (5) tooth brushes, (3) tubs of tooth paste, (3) packs of wipes, almost all of our clothes,...it adds up! Proof:
Moms and Dads, least you regret your invitations for us to invade your homes here is a little "Benjie Love" to sweeten the deal.
Benjie has gotten some power in his trunky, chunky, cute legs. He is standing with help now so few things are safe: the toilet, trash cans, the kids toys, chairs, beds, book cases, the couch, the computer, the dish washer, the fridge, cupboards, ...are all at his disposal. He is trying so hard to keep up with his siblings. I know he is going to be growing so much faster then Bridge and Angie did because he wants to be side by side with them. He's rather delighted with himself...who wouldn't be. :)
Changes and moving on are going on all around us. Babies are due, dear friends are moving far away, we are soon turning into nomads, and church deadlines have made our last weeks in Reno for the Summer rather fast and sad. When I return Fall will be upon us, friends will be gone, babies will have been born without me, and I will have no husband to literally lean on for a month. So we are trying amidst the stress and long to-do lists to soak up our last days of Summer in Reno. Reno, as much as I make fun of you I really love you.
Classic!
I am burnt out. But I have learned that with three kids three and under you cant really afford to have a day to recoup. So I am trying to not need one. With that intent I am going to "count my many blessings, name them one by one and see what God has done":
- my kids are really so beautiful
- my husband thinks I am wonderful even when I am grumpy
- my house is cute in a small low budget way
- our cars work
- our loan money came in yesterday! big smile here
- I got to go on a real date with my hubby last night and saw Harry Potter. loved it
- I have a business appointment today. yay money!
- we have our pioneer thingy today and I am not in charge of it! HUGE SMILE THERE!
- I am leaving town for a month and will be with loved ones the whole time
- I am finally really reading the Book of Mormon I am doing a 90 day thing. I think I will actually make it! So happy.
- I have sharing time tomorrow and I am sort of excited to do it...I like teaching those kids
- My husband only has to work for half a day today...thank goodness the VA Hospital is so chill or I'd be really burnt out!
- I got to go to Tahoe yesterday...its so pretty there.
- If I can help it I am not going to take a shower all day today! I hate getting ready everyday...plus I had to take two showers yesterday...I think I earned a day off. :)
- Benjamin is in one of my favorite stages ever! LOVE to just sit back and watch him interact with his world. I think I kiss him like 50 times a day at least.
So, feeling a little more blessed I am off to read the Book of Mormon, put on my old clothes from yesterday's date, dress the kids to hit up our pioneer breakfast, do my appointment, go on a run when Stew gets home, go swimming with the family, have some BBQ dinner (stew cooks), plop the kids in bed, prepare for Sunday's lesson, help Stew write his talk for sacrament, and then curl up and read some Harry Potter with the best husband ever. Not too shabby of a day wouldn't you say?
is the BOMB (Yes, I know I am geeky when I use that word)! She cuts and styles my hair for FREE because A.) she is just that kind B.) she knows I am so low budget C.) she knows she is doing the world a service by helping my hair Pro Bono! I really have hair handicaps but then Eden comes along and helps me out. She is a Saint. She always makes time on my short visits to Utah to save me from my constant hair neglect and helps me look somewhat decent. She showers me with compliments, gives an abundance of hair advice, gossips with me as all hair stylist should do, and then sends me on my way looking a million times better then I did when I first sat in her stylin' chair.
Stewart also loves it when she dose my hair. He gets all gitty and blushes when I do my big reveal. It is the cutest thing. This last trip I felt so bad she was going to cut my hair on the 4th of July but she and Stewart talked me into it. I never can do my hair as cute as it is right after she dose it. I have SUPER fine hair and after I have had a baby I lose like half of it so it is in a really sorry state these days. It takes true Eden talent to make look pretty. But I tired to get it cute and I took some pics for Eden's hair portfolio.
Eden THANK YOU!!! I love you and wish we were next door neighbors agian! You are fabulous and I will be doing a special Eden trip one of these days this summer I PROMISE.
PS I took these by myself so they aren't that great... I kept waiting for an opportunity for Stew to take them for me but when your hubby leaves the house around 5:30 am every day and returns late enough in the day that whatever was once cute is no longer cute it dosen't really happen. So here are my best shots. I hope one of them will be usable. :)
The results are in for Stewart's Step 1 Boards. Stew has done good. Good job Honey Love! Phew. Now he can move on from the nearly constant obsession of wondering. I don't know if Stewart felt this way but after all the doctors in his rotation telling how unimportant the scores are all day yesterday it seemed a little anticlimactic. But at least we know that Stewart will be very competitive to get into IR (Interventional Radiology) and hopefully at a residency program of our liking. Residency here we come.
This boy is so grown up. Its fun to see how the kids interact with him more and more as he is able to follow them around the house and steal their toys and such. They are for the most part really sweet and affectionate to him. It s fun to see how they watch out for him and tell me when they think he might be in danger. "Mommy, Mommy the baby is eating paper. Come! Come!" This poor boy has four parents bossing him around, "no, no baby. Don't touch that." Is a common phrase heard around our house. Just yesterday I watched as Angeli played with him. She had him follow her from room to room calling him as they changed their venue, "Benjie, come this way. This way Benjie." I just love watching my kids enjoying each other. Benjamin is such a happy smiley guy. During our vacation we were told so often what a smiley baby he was. I think we had such a sweet baby as our number three to ensure that we would still be willing to have more. :) He really is nothing but a joy and I try to savor every moment we have of his babyhood.
