Kids. They make me giggle all day long

Mom- "Is the cheese yummy?"

Bridger- "No, It's licious Mommy. Mmmmm, licious!"

Bridger talk for delicious. I love it.

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Today at the park Bridger thought he had lost Angeli. He was running around calling out, "Angie where are you? Angie where are you?"
When he found her his furrowed brow relaxed and he ran to her. He exclaimed in glee, "I found you! I found Angie."
He then gave her a big hug and led her to where he wanted to play. "Look, Angie. Come side." (side is Bridger for slide)
Angeli then countered with a big smile, "Okay, Baba. Side!"

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These days Angeli and Bridger are inseparable. They play all day long together. They really are best friends. They copy each other at every thing even in what they fight over. It's always "Mine!".

They will be sitting there playing with Angie's kitchen and Bridger will see me passing by and say, "Hi Mommy. "
Then Angie yells, "My Mommy!"
Bridger retaliates, "No! My Mommy!"...
This continues until they are simply screaming "Mine!" It gets to the point where they have no idea what it all started over so they pick something new. "My spoon!"

While this does drive me a little crazy it makes me laugh! Silly kids and their possessive habits. :)

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Today Angeli insisted on two things before we could leave the house. Putting on her bright red lipstick she got for Christmas and putting her pacifier in her mouth. So grown up but still such a baby. And I can assure you that lipstick and pacifiers are not a great mix. ;)

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Benjamin is learning the joys of Peek- a-Boo. His laugh is adorable!!!

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It is now Angeli's routine to be tucked in at night with Benjie. We have to lay him in her crib next to her and read them both stories and such. He actually really loves it. She puts her arm around him and oogles over him as he squeals to the exciting adventures of Whiney the Pooh. Benjie secretly adores her even though she has been known to wipe diaper cream all over his face.

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When Benjamin cries Angeli gets like an inch away from his face and screams, "It's Okay Baby! IT'S OKAY. BABY!". To my surprise it always works. He actually stops crying. I think his silence is more out of shock then comfort but hey, it works. :)

Man, my kids really are my favorite things ever.

Tie Dyeing our way to Spring

Spring is in the air up here in Reno and we love it! Warmer weather we are ready for you!

Saying "CHEESE" for the camera as loud as he can :)
That handsome boy of ours never stops smiling!

She's really going for the Bohemian look ;)
He's such a chick magnet!

Cutest bunch of tie dye kids I've ever seen!

*Matching tie dye courtesy of their Auntie Anj :)

One of those days?

Have you ever had one of those days when you go outside to find your mail box cracked in half lying on your lawn, when your water heater breaks, when your husband calls to tell you he has to stay late at school working on a school project and he needs food for him and his buddy, when your kids draw on almost every surface possible in your house and you then realize you are out of magic erasers, when you start your period a week too early causing cramps, the need to run to the store, bloating, moodiness and making your varicose veins throb unceasingly, when the pile of laundry you have to fold is higher then you are tall, when your business needs your attention but it so isn't going to happen, when you forget the one thing you went to the store for , when your computer gets some weird virus, and when the library notifies you that the book you thought you returned is not turned in at all and you search your house all morning for it and realize you will have to buy a new one?

Oh, and then when you think things are going to settle down and you are boiling water on the stove so your kids can have warm water to take their much needed bath your stove catches on fire and all the fire alarms go off and your kids are crying because they are so scared, yeah one of those sort of days.

Have you ever had a day like that? Well, if you have just know you are not alone. ;)

"Quotable Quotes"

When I was dating Stewart and we were planning on getting married I found this"Quotable Quote" in the Daily Universe (BYU's news paper). I cut it out of the paper and taped it to my wall in the dorms. When I moved to the next dorm it survived, when we moved to the duplexes it survived, when we moved to Reno it survived. It has been six years since I cut out this quote. Now it is brown and stiff from dried spilt soda but it still has its home right next to my computer. It struck me as I picked it up off the floor, along with all the other pieces of paper my kids threw about, just how long it has survived. Against all odds it still exists and perhaps it has done so for a reason. I read it every couple of months and once again it touches my heart but always with a little more meaning then the last time. I cherish that it still has paint from the walls of the now non-existent U-Hall on its back. It reads,

"A marriage may not always be even and incident-less, but it can be one of great peace. A couple may have poverty, illness, disappointment, failures, and even death in the family, but even these will not rob them of their peace. The marriage can be successful so long as selfishness does not enter in."

Spencer W. Kimball

Peace resonates with me. I am always drawn to people who create peace. That's why I fell in love with Stewart. He gave me peace when I thought I might never find it. Today reading about how I can always have that even if he is far from me for extended periods of time settled my heart and gave me what I needed. Peace.

I think it could also be written,

"Life may not always be even and incident-less, but it can be one of great peace. A person may have poverty, illness, disappointment, failures, and even death in the family, but even these will not rob them of their peace. Life can be successful so long as selfishness does not enter in."

Picture Time

With the kids having their birthdays recently it was time to hit up JC Penney to get their pictures taken. Here are some of my favorite pictures we got. I wish we could have gotten Benjie in them too but the kids were done before we got to him. Next month we'll get his three month pictures taken and maybe we can get all three of them in there.Aren't they so grown up!?!?

Miss Gwen

My Niece, little Miss Gwendolyn, is a total doll. She is the absolute girly girl version of Bridger. One step in her room and it is obvious that she is a princess. :) It never ceases to amaze me how well Bridger clicks with his Smith cousins. There aren't many kids that can match Bridger's fun loving intensity and endless energy but those Smith kids are all just as "Bridgery" as he is. ;) While we were in California last month Bridger and Gwen had a fabulous time playing together. Whenever the kids see her pictures they shout "MY FRIEND! MY FRIEND!". Its really cute. There are few things as sweet as seeing your kids discover that they share kindred spirits with their cousins.


Gwen made this absolutely adorable mermaid while I did a ceramic impression party at her home. I finished it off for her by firing it and glazing it. I tried to make it look like her. :) I had to post it because I was so proud of her 4 year old artistic genius! Watching her love working with the clay and finishing it off for her made me want to start teaching ceramic classes for little kids. When I get a bigger house I'll be all over it! We love you Sweetheart!

Is it just me?

Is it just me or is he way too grow up to be two months old?
He is so sweet. We love this kid like crazy.

Look at how well he holds himself up!
And he is no lightweight 14 + pounds.
This one he is smiling at Angie. He loves that girly.

Anniversary Number Five

On our date to celebrate our anniversary and Valentines day it finally occurred to us that anniversary number five was sort of a significant year....you know, one of those bench mark years. For years I said that for our fifth anniversary we would do something bigger then just a dinner date but it came and went and nothing big happened. :O) We are both way too low maintenance when it comes to our anniversaries to have even noticed. Maybe for our tenth year we'll go all out. ;) But despite its low keyness we had a great anniversary. While we snuggled during our movie I thought it was nice to realize that after five years of endless school, relative poverty and having three kids we are even more in love. We still make each other's hearts skip a beat or two by simply walking in the room. So here's to another great five years!

Mormon Messages

Biggest Loser Comes to Reno!

Stewart and I have decided to get creative with our weight loss. In my desperation to get motivated to lose the many pounds I want to lose I made a biggest loser competition up and thankfully my hubby has agreed to meet my challenge. I think this will be fun and maybe someone else out there might be up to doing it with their spouse too. :) I hope you track us and keep up with our competition so we have the added incentive of peer pressure! May the Biggest Loser Win!!!

Ramussen's Biggest Loser

Phew! ....i think

So Stewart matched in Reno for as much time as possible. We were so relieved. I guess this year it was pretty even and only one person was sent to Las Vegas for the entire year when they didn't want to be. So yay for most everyone. :O)

One of Stew's classmates asked if he'd switch with him so that he'd be in Vegas at different times and have a different layout of rotations. ie. surgery first, then obgyn vs. peds first..... So we tried to look at what would be best for Stew's school and for the family and we finally decided to switch with his classmate. Instead of feeling relieved that we are in Reno so much I feel worried and apprehensive. I now know what we will be facing in detail and I really am not sure how I will cope. Stewart will be gone from July to the end of September. Then he will be home for October and the first of November then he'll be gone until mid December. He will go from taking the first boards right into his surgery rotation up here for three weeks and then be in Vegas for the rest of the summer. The longest I have gone without my husband was a week and that was when I only had two kids, none of which were toddlers plus I had lots of family around. Well, I guess this will be a growing experience!!! Now Stewart has started to talk about the away rotations he'd like to do his fourth year...Maybe Utah, Ohio, and Thailand. Oh, boy!!!

I really want to say that despite the inevitable stress of being separated I am so grateful to Mom and Dad Ras. They have made this so much easier for us. Of course they have opened their arms and home to having Stewart with them but his friends too! And the kids and I are welcome there as much as we'd like!!! How nice are they!?!?!? When I asked Stew if he was sure they were ok with all of this he said they said, "We might pay you to stay here if you bring you wife and kids too. " Oh, I am so happy they are so generous. It is no small thing to have five extra people come live at your house for months!!! But its so nice to know they want us there as much as we want and need. Mom Ras even offered that I send a kid done with Stew when I cant come down myself to lighten my load. So generous! Come November when my business is crazy busy I will surly take her up on that. Thank you Mom and Dad! If I had to worry about where Stewart was and there was no room for me to visit him it would all be that much harder. But he'll be spoiled down there and wont ever need to be lonely at all...he'll be able to do great in his rotations. And knowing that when I need to get away from Reno to advert a breakdown of motherhood overload I am welcomed too. All of that is huge!

We are counting our blessings big time! :O)

Mini-Match Day

This Wednesday is what I have dubbed Mini-Match Day. Normal match day is when you find out which residency program you have matched with. This mini-match day we will find out how long Stewart is sentenced to Las Vegas and at what times. At UNSOM you have to do at least four months of your third year rotations at their campus in Las Vegas. We love Las Vegas and all but it is almost an entire state away from our home! Scary because I cant have Bridger away from his speech and me away from my business for that length of time, thus Stewart will be separated from us for quite a bit. :( That really is my least favorite thing ever! Wednesday we will find out if Stewart gets the four month deal or the worse case scenario - his entire third year spent in Vegas! Thinking about him gone for four moths let alone almost an entire year freaks me out. It is a random lottery so who knows how it will turn out. One girl at the school (who adores our kids) told Stewart she would switch with him if he got all rotations there and she didn't. So that gives us some hope. PLEASE join us in crossing our fingers and saying our prayers that Stewart doesn't get stuck separated from his little family for more then four months!!!!