Crazy Child...

Karah woke up screaming from her nap. That isn't like her, so I rushed in, picked her up, and she bit me! Right on the arm, and yep, there is a tooth just about to break through. She has been a little fussier than normal this week, but I just blamed it on her getting so much attention from everybody at the cabin last week. She was so angry at the world that she pulled her bows out! I sat her down and gave her a tiny Popsicle to help ease the pain in her gums until the Tylenol kicked in. I couldn't resist these pictures!! She looks like a wild thing!!

Princess Pig-tails

Thank you, Aunt Krissa and Aunt Erica for the pretty, pretty bows!! I love these in Karah's hair! This is the first time I've tried two like this, and I think she looks adorable!

**By the way, this is Karah's new thing: sticking her tongue out monkey-lips style for pictures...

Shortest Play Group EVER...

...because my kids were very fussy! And the funny thing is: they weren't the worst ones there!! All 5 babies were crying. Karah started out happy, but the other babies were so tired they didn't want to play. Karah went up to Vanessa, happy and jabbering away. Vanessa started screaming, and Karah looked at me with the saddest face, as if to say, "What did I do to make her sad?" The other babies reacted the same way, so Karah came crying to me, no doubt complaining that no one wanted to play with her. Since the other babies wouldn't stop crying after that, neither did she. The 3 toddlers would not play nice, and were all out grumpy...Jay was fairly good for the most part, but he had an incident towards the end of play group...Mariah brought cupcakes for Vanessa's birthday so the kids could decorate them. Jay WOLFED his down before she could get the rest of the stuff out. He then got mad that he didn't get to decorate a cupcake. I told him that he should have listened to Mommy and not eaten his cupcake right away, but he chose to sneak away and eat it instead. Now he didn't have a cupcake to put frosting on, and it wasn't any one else's fault but his. He ran and threw himself face first on the ground and cried for a while, but got over it by the time we left. These pics are from after play group...The boys had walked down to the church with the girls in the wagon and stroller, but by the time we left they were too tired. We didn't have any room in Mariah's stroller for more kids (Vanessa and the cupcakes were in it..), so we used the ever-useful wagon! We use this thing all the time, so thank you, thank you, thank you Grandma and Grandpa!!!

Double G Songs

I don't know what happened to Karah yesterday, but she was pitching a fit. She was sobbing as she crawled up to me, and she didn't stop after I picked her up. I was walking her around her room trying to calm her down by singing to her, but that didn't work. Double G's poems for the kids caught my eye. I started singing the words to Karah's poem to a tune I made up. She immediately got quiet and snuggled up to listen. Jayden wanted to know the name of the song, so I told him it was Double G's song for Karah. He said, "You sing Jay-Jay's Double G song?" and smiled. I sang it, and now that is one of his favorite songs. It is neat to see that both kids can sense something very special.

Um...Are They Related?

This is Garbage Day at the Richardson House. If you will remember, a few months ago it was just Jayden in a picture similar to this. Now that Karah is older and she's figured out how to climb up onto the couch, this is what it looks like when anything interesting is happening outside. These two are inseparable!

Jayden's a lifesaver

Yesterday both kids were pretty clingy...and I was in the mood to clean, not have whiny, disobedient kids following me around the house. I finally lost it when Karah climbed up on the back of the couch (for the millionth time...) and started playing with the blinds. Instead of the usual "No, no, Karah, do not play with Mommy's blinds!" and time-out in my lap, I took her upstairs (by the way, she was pitching a ROYAL fit that I had disturbed her fun...) and plopped her in her crib. I'm pretty sure the people down the street could hear her fury... I went back downstairs to pick up the toys and clothes that Jayden flung all over the living room when all of a sudden, it got quiet. I peeked in, and this is what I found. Jayden is such a good big brother! Karah was sniffling still, and Jayden was sweetly explaining "time-out" to her... "No touch Mommy's blinds! It's naughty...Mommy put you in time-out...don't do it, okay? Time out not fun. Don't touch blinds, okay?" He then started to show her how to play with the Sesame Street toy. They played in there like that for about an hour! As much as these kids can frustrate me on a bad day, its moments like these that totally turn my mood around and make me appreciate motherhood.

How in the World???

Okay, I'm going to tell on myself...Dan tried to wake me up before he left yesterday, and apparently I was talking to him, said good-bye, then fell back asleep. Do I remember this? No, I do not...anyway, Jay woke me up by getting right into my face, saying, "Mommy, I want breakfast, please". I felt so bad! I had slept for about 45 minutes after Dan left for work!! Fortunately, Jay had just woken up himself, and Karah was in her high chair. Now, with this knowledge, I still can't figure out how she got so dirty!! Dan said he gave her yogurt for breakfast, but that he's cleaned her up and gave her Cheerios while he got ready. Look at that child!! What you can't see is her hair sticking up all over the place like she's got gel in it! There was nothing on her hands and nothing around her high chair that looked suspicious... it's a mystery...

ARRRRGHHHH!!!

Where did she come from?? I am talking about my daughter and her sassy self! We tell her "no", and she smiles at us like we're stupid then does whatever she wants, the whole time shaking her head! She will wait until we are watching her, then do something naughty with a huge smile on her face, as if to say, "Whatcha gonna do about it?" If we move her away from the thing she's not supposed to touch, she will stop at nothing to get back to it, screaming, hollering, and throwing her head back! She has such a scary temper that Jay is afraid when she gets mad! We've started trying the "time-outs" we did for Jay in the beginning, just holding her in our lap with her arms folded, and she looks up at us with a big smile on her face, jabbering away...no doubt telling us that this sort of punishment is a joke and she's just gonna do it again when we put her down. Which, by the way, she does!! I don't remember Jay being this difficult...

Outside Fun!

This morning was so beautiful, I had to take the kids out. That, and they were both used to running around like little savages at the cabin...I had to get their energy to a manageable level or I would pull my hair out!! So, out we went, and oh what fun!! I got lots of pics of the sidewalk chalk action, but we also played in the sprinkler, rode bikes, and chased our friend Isaac. We were outside for about 2 hours!!

Jayden and Karah sharing the chalk
Jayden working on his masterpiece
This was Karah most of the time...she'd put it in her mouth, make a face, take it out and say, "No, no, no...", then do it again...what a nut! She did get the hang of coloring towards the end.
Cheesing for the camera
Hard at work

Personal Hygiene...

The hair cutting scissors are now in a place Jay cannot get to. (hopefully) This is the second time he has cut his own hair this summer, and he has gone to great lengths to find the scissors! (He brought his potty stool on top of the counter and reached up on top of our mirror...) I caught him red-handed. I'm just glad that Karah wasn't in there, because he has been mentioning her hair a lot... The other picture is of Jay getting ready for church. He climbed up and got Dan's deodorant out. The whole time he was letting me know just how good he was going to smell for nursery. Oh, that reminds me!! Our nursery split today, and he is now the oldest by 6 months, and one of 3 boys out of 12 kids! The other boys just barely started nursery this month...I felt so bad for him! All of his friends that he looks forward to seeing are in the older nursery...the all-boy older nursery. Darn January birthday!! I guess the good thing is that he will be smellin' good for all the ladies!!

My New "Kids"

We were almost home from the cabin when we saw a yard sale on the street next to ours. I was curious, so we pulled in. They had 3 cockatiels for sale, with their cages. Thye originally asked for $100 each but had dropped it down to $75 each. Dan had been thinking about getting me one for my birthday the last few years, but cages alone are about $60-$100. The birds are usually $120. Jayden walked up to the youngest of the three, and the bird went nuts, whistling, dancing and totally showing off. The owners were surprised at the bird's positive reaction to him. It was late in the day, and I offered $40 for the one bird if they weren't able to sell him. I assured them that he would have a good home, and that the others were welcome, too, if they absolutely had to sell. The lady said, "How about $50 for all 3?" So, now we have Buddy, Baby, and Tweety! Buddy and Baby are 10 years old, and have been together the whole time. Baby had an accident when she was a year old...she landed on an iron stove top while it was on and damaged her feet. Buddy whistles Jingle Bells, says "Hello", and wolf whistles. They said he knew a few more things, but those are the things he's graced us with so far. Tweety is white and yellow, and he is a hoot!! Buddy and Baby seem to welcome bed time, but he protests it as much as Jayden does when I put the sheet over his cage! He is full of energy, and loves to dance and sing to music. He was found on the side of the road after hitting the previous owner's windshield a year ago, and the vet estimates he's about 4 years old right now. Jayden is so patient and gentle with the birds, but it is no question that Tweety is his favorite. He hand feeds them Cheerios through the bars and sings to them. I think Tweety is partial to Jay, too. He gets close to him when Jay comes to the cage, no doubt hoping for food. Dan's favorite is Buddy. Buddy is a pearl cockatiel. He has yellow, white, and gray feathers that look like marble. Buddy will say "hello" to Dan, too. You can tell that he thinks of himself as the Alpha male. Baby is a sweetheart. She is quiet and and very tame. She will come close to Dan and I, but she is a little apprehensive about Jay. If he has a Cheerio, she will timidly take it, but retreat almost immediately. Karah, honestly, could care less. She tries to mimic the birds, but other than that, she keeps her distance. That was a big surprise to us. Its not that she doesn't like them...She loves to look at them, but she has not tried to touch them at all. We've had to twistie tie the cages shut...the birds don't escape, but we've caught Jay opening the cages, encouraging them to "Come out, Tweety! Come out, Baby! Come out, Buddy!! Let's play!!" Visions of a certain parakeet getting caught in the couch under unfortunate circumstances flashed through my head....

Tweety


Baby is on the right, Buddy is on the left.

The Cabin

This last week Dan had Pioneer Day off, so he took 2 extra days off and we went up to his family's cabin at Bear Lake. There were a ton of people there! Dan's grandparents, parents, aunt, cousins, and brothers and sisters were all there. Needless to say, this vacation was what all of us needed! Jayden and Benji were inseparable!! Jay had a little issue with "Bear" Lake...he was ever cautious about finding bears there, and even refused to come out of the cabin at times...He was fine playing on the beach at the lake, but preferred to stay out of the water unless Dan or I were there. I won't complain about that!! Jay loved the freedom of the cabin. So did we. He never tried to wander away from supervision, so it was easy to keep track of him. (He didn't want a bear to take him...) Karah loved the attention she got from everyone, exploring, and her favorite thing was the water!! These kids crack me up! It was so hard to keep her from crawling straight into the lake! She also discovered a new food...seashells! I found a few in her diaper the next day... Dan had a blast!! It has been a long time since he's been able to just play. I don't put relax in there, because that man played HARD!!! He also got very sunburned. He was having so much fun that he only put it on once in the morning. His feet are swollen from the burn, and the slightest touch on his shoulders almost makes him cry. I feel so bad for him!! I was able to catch up on my reading. I took 2 days and read 4 books!! I finished the latest book in the Great and Terrible series, and started and caught up with the Twilight series. I love books, but hate getting into a series of them, because I can't stop until there isn't anymore to read!! I see it as a blessing and weakness. I made the excuse of not ever having time at home to dive into books the way I was able to this week. It was so much fun to spend time with Dan's family, too. Randy brought Kristi's boyfriend, Jordan, up to surprise her. We would stay up most of the night playing card games. I was also reminded this trip of God's love for this special family. Kelsi has her learner's permit, and she drove me home from the beach. It is hard to believe that almost a year ago she was hooked up to every sort of life support, with the doctors not knowing if she would wake up. They told us that it was nearly impossible to tell what would happen with her type of injury. If you didn't know her before the accident, it would be hard to tell anything happened. She is truly a living a miracle. Jay was not happy we were leaving the cabin, but we promised him we would be back when his Uncle Jordan came back from Ireland. (Dan has a brother Jordan, and his sister is dating a guy named Jordan...) He seemed okay with that, so we are now planning another vacation!!

Anniversary Gift In Action

Karlie got me a pen tablet for my computer last year, I finally played with it again tonight. The BW one is from when I first got it, and the colored is from tonight.

Lost and Found!!

Okay, so my glasses have been MIA for MONTHS now...since getting home from the Blitz on Mom and Dad's house. I have torn my house and cars apart looking for them, and avoided driving as much as possible since I can't see street signs without them. I have been kicking myself, seeing as they were BRAND SPANKIN' NEW!! I got them a day or two before I left from Mom and Dad's house! Well, this morning Dan woke up and made pancakes for us. (I could smell them from Jay's room...the green dragon and scary snake have come back, accompanied by a Woozel. Thank you, Tigger and Pooh...) We had a pleasant morning as a family. Usually Dan is waking my up as he runs out the door for work... Anyway, after he leaves, I went to clean off the ever-cluttered video cabinet. Right there on top of the pile of crap were my glasses!!! I did a double-take and immediately called Dan. He answered the phone laughing. This morning before he woke me up, he had been digging around the wires behind the cabinet. (Something I've done several times lately...even cleaned out from behind there...) That's where he found them!! He told me that it was entirely unintentional, and that I should not expect him to find things on demand in the future...Darn!

Family Pics (from Easter...)

These were taken Easter Sunday (I think...it was a long time ago...) Jay wanted to take the pictures, and Karah wanted to explore...We did manage to get several CUTE pictures...these are just a few...
I LOVED Jay's expression in this picture! This captured his whole personality...cute, quick, and mischievous!!
We asked Jayden to act like Uncle Scott, and this is what he came up with!! I can see the resemblance!!
I can't believe how little she is here!! She was actually happy in this picture, because she wasn't being held! I guess she got enough of that in the 1st 6 months of her life...
I love this man so much!! He is such a wonderful Daddy, and an awesome husband! He does whatever he can to make our family happy. He brings a smile to my face every day. I hope he realizes just how much he means to me!

Surprise Sleepover!

Dan and I were talking on Wednesday about how much we missed our friends Rachel and Bryce (aka Brachel.) We met in Rexburg while Dan was going to school. Rachel was truly an answer to prayers for me. When Dan and I got married, it didn't occur to me that I would be leaving behind all of my friends and family by moving to Idaho. It hit me hard after Dan started school and was gone from 7 in the morning until 11 at night. He had a very hectic schedule, and we never saw each other. The only friends I had were Preston, Jenny, and Sam...Preston and Jenny moved after about a month, and Sam was more of Dan's friend at the time. I struggled with the weather changes, and prayed constantly that Heavenly Father would send me a friend. I had a hard time wanting to go to church, because everyone knew everybody and no one said "hi" to me. One day, Dan made me stay for Relief Society. I was running a little late, and I saw a girl sitting by herself. I went to her and asked if I could sit by her. She told me that she thought I was her visiting teaching companion. We made small talk during the lesson, and decided that we would get together later that week. Since then Rachel and Bryce have become as close as family to us. They brought playing cards and treats while I was in labor with Jayden, and waited outside the door while he was born. I was excited when Dan graduated, but devastated that we would no longer be within walking distance of my close friends. Dan and I were talking the day before yesterday about how much we missed them, and Dan said, "If Rachel were to show up on our doorstep tomorrow, y'all would pick up where you left off and probably stay up all night talking." Well, ladies and gentlemen, my husband unknowingly prophesied!! Last night, Rachel's flight was delayed, and she missed her connecting flight in Salt Lake!! She was stranded with her baby, and needed a place to stay! I was so excited about seeing her again, and couldn't believe my luck! We had JUST been talking about her hypothetically coming to our house, and lo and behold, here she was! We DID stay up all night talking, laughing, and just enjoying the fact that our friendship had not faded by our time away. In fact, we cut it pretty close getting her back to the airport!! I love that crazy girl so much! Hopefully Bryce can be there for the next get-together...Rachel and I are already planning it!!

YIKES!!!

I almost had to explain to my potty-training child why Mommy had an "accident" after what just happened in our house. Jay and I were watching a video on potty training, by the way, he went #2 and #1 in big boy potty in the middle of it. It ended, and it was nap time. I was taking Jay down to his room when we both heard a rustling noise. Now, I love animals, but there is a difference between an animal and a "creature". "Creatures" are creepy, icky, and possible disease carriers. They are not welcome in my house. (This coming from the kid who tried to smuggle all creatures big and small into Mom and Dad's house...Frogs, lizards, snakes, bugs, birds, cats, dogs...am I missing anything?) In this instance, the "creature" turned out to be a bird! Now, last year, we had this problem...a bird kept getting into our house somehow. That bird landed on Jayden's head and now he's TERRIFIED of them. So, naturally, when he sees this bird has invaded HIS room, he freaks. To tell the truth, this is where I almost had my "accident". I had no clue what to do... I didn't want to touch it, but I didn't want it flying around the rest of the house terrorizing my children (and me). It was caught in the blinds, and I was able to get it in a hand towel and set it free. I tried to get Jay to go back down for a nap, but he REFUSES to go downstairs or sleep in my bed by himself. It looks like Dan and I will be having some company until he forgets all about this bird-thing...

Play Time

I have started being a little less anal about Karah and the stairs since she proved she can climb down. She knows where the toys are, and she and Jay like to play upstairs. It gets to be a mess, but I am able to do laundry and other things around the house. They help me pick up, too. This is Karah's favorite place to play...under the shelves in the closet. As you can see, the kids had been having a wonderful time while I was doing dishes. I went to check on them, and saw this sweet little girl playing quietly and snuggling the little bear. She didn't see me, so I ran to grab the camera. So sweet!!

Nutragrain Nuts

This little girl can wolf down a Nutragrain bar faster than Jayden can eat a Hershey's Kiss. That's FAST!!

Brilliant... or Stupid?

For those of you who don't know, I got sick of my house not looking put together. I had an old dresser in the garage that was ugly and broken. Dan fixed the drawers, and I decided that I would paint it to match Jay's room...not an easy feat when Jay decides he's not going to take naps. How to prime and paint a dresser with a 2 year old? Let him help!! I learned quickly that I needed to give him his own space to paint...if you ever turn his dresser around, you'll see his wonderful art work.

Diva

This little princess has her own matching bathrobe and slippers. She was being so cute with it the other day, I had to take a picture.

"Where is your tongue?"

This is Jayden and Karah's favorite game, aside from undoing the folded laundry. Jay will ask Karah where her tongue is, then they race to see who gets it out first. They are getting along so well, and I now believe what Aunt Kari told me about having two kids this close in age. They are best buddies, and Jay sticks up for her when his friends are over. The other night we baby-sat Isaac and Vanessa. While Vanessa screamed her head off, Karah chased the boys around, doing everything they did. Jay was very protective of her any time Isaac tried to tackle or wrestle her. "No, no, Icaas, don't wrestle my sister" (He calls Isaac: Icaas and Vanessa: Nessie.) It is awesome seeing the changes from constantly bickering to actually liking each other.

Whoo-HOOO!!!

This picture is a victory for me! I have been very adamant about Jayden not drinking carbonation. In my years of baby-sitting, working at a day care, and even being a nanny a few times, I had witnessed kids as young as 6 months having carbonated beverages in their sippie cups and being fed all kinds of junk food. I vowed that my children would not get hooked on the bubbly beverages or sugar-filled treats . Juice and Gatorade get diluted like crazy at our house, and are a special drink for dinner only. We get dessert once or twice a week, and candy is limited to special occasions and rewards. Dan made fun of me for these rules until he saw this. This picture is Jayden's FIRST time ever to taste any carbonated drink. It was his daddy's and Grandpa Rick's favorite drink, Root Beer. All of the other kids at Rylee's party had Root Beer, and it was a special day. I decided it would be okay to let him have some and hope that it wouldn't create a soda-monster. This was the face he pulled after taking a sip. He spit it out and said, "Ew, that's yucky! I want water!!" YAY!!!! I couldn't believe it! It made me very happy to know that all the hard work and persecution (yes, I'm going to call it that...) I've gone through trying to teach my kids healthy eating habits is working. I'm going to list a few things that Jay eats now that I never ate as a child (excluding the one forced bite just to "taste and see if we liked it") Peas, broccoli, green beans (he LOVES them) , spinach, salad, tomatoes, cucumbers ( I still don't eat those), celery (again, one I avoid), and cauliflower. He does, however, hate "smashed flowers" (mashed cauliflower) and mashed potatoes.

**Karah's new word- "Bap"= "Bath" She came into the bathroom while I was occupied in there and started singing "Bap bap bap" while trying to get into the tub. I told her that we weren't going to have bathtime until it was almost time to go to bed. She gave me a very serious look and said in a low voice with her leg lifted as high as she could, "BAAAAAP" I finished what I was doing and took both of us out, and she started crying for the "bap".

Chatterbox Protoge

Yesterday at church, a lady came up to me and said, "Your little girl is so smart! I can't believe that she's already talking! She'll be speaking full sentences in no time! She was cracking me up in Sunday School. I could understand most of what she was telling me!" I had been teaching primary, so I didn't know exactly what Karah had been telling this sister. I knew she could say Mama, Daddy, and No, but I was now questioning my knowledge of my daughter's vocabulary. After church, I told Dan about what the sister said and he told me that the night before Karah had said something that sounded like cookie, but he brushed it off. We decided to investigate. Dan held up a cookie, and she got excited and screamed "Coo-coo!!!" I pointed to Jayden, and she said "Day-day!" (We call him Jay-Jay a lot.) He grabbed for the cookie, and she screamed, "NO!!! My!!" and grabbed the cookie. Dan and I were flabbergasted. Along with Mama, Daddy, and No, she also knows Jayden, Mine, and the necessary Cookie. We had never really paid attention to what she was babbling because, well...it was just babbling, right? We now stand corrected, and our ears are listening for what new word will be coming out of her mouth!