General Conference Weekend

I'm not typically one to get excited over General Conference. It's nice to be able to watch it at home, to not have to get dressed up, but it's never really been a time that I especially look forward to. This last Conference I actually felt ready for it, and that made all the difference as I listened to/watched the apostles speak. The weekend was relaxing, and just what I needed to feel rejuvenated.

On Saturday morning I made crepes for the first time since we lived in Rexburg. One of our friends from down the street, Tarah, made us some peach melba jam with peaches from my parents' peach tree. That was the favorite crepe filling.

We are still trying to interest Netty in the potty chair. She goes through days where she's interested and others where she throws fits. On GC Saturday, HoneyGram convinced Netty to sit on the potty chair. And of course anything Netty does, Atti has to do as well.

The kids napped through the Saturday afternoon, making for a peaceful Conference session. Every General Conference over the last couple years my family sends text messages and pictures to each other. It makes it feel more like we're all together, and it has become my favorite Conference tradition. This is our #ConfUssie ("ussie" is the termed dubbed by Ellen deGeneres for a group "selfie").

On Sunday we watched Conference with the kids, my parents, Stephanie, and Nicole (our cousin). It was a little more difficult to focus because the kids were so entertaining, but we still had a good time.

After the final session of Conference on Sunday, my cousins Paul and Becca and Becca's family came over for dinner. Netty was pretty shy, but after a while she finally warmed up. Here is Paul reading to Netty and two of Becca's children.

The Sunday We Almost Went Inactive

The morning started out as an above-average Sunday morning. HoneyGram and Papa were out of town for the weekend (not that that made it above average, it's just a detail). Netty woke up early, climbed into bed with Atticus, the two laughed and played until they got too loud for Jon and I to keep sleeping, and then we made breakfast and got ready for church. Netty let me do her hair, and she actually kept it in. For the first time in weeks, the church bag had toys and books in it that the kids really wanted to play with. We didn't have to run out the door. We weren't sweaty by the time we sat down in a pew--yes, we were early enough on our own to get a pew. The kids played quietly with their toys, and as I sang the opening song, I thought, "Oh yeah, we're good. We got this."

Not so fast, Sister Phelps.

The sacrament concluded and the deacons joined their families. Suddenly, the gates of Hell opened, and an army of minions sneaked up on us from all sides. Atticus messed his diaper, and Jon took him out to change him. Netty, who had been playing so well with a few toys, started asking for more Little People, the ones that I didn't bring. She started whining until I offered her some snacks. Jon and Atticus returned, and I gave both kids fruit snacks. Crisis averted.

Or so I thought. Netty asked for more fruit snacks, but they were all gone. I said, "Do you want some fishy crackers?" When she said she did, I dug in the bag. I dug some more. And then I saw myself pull the bags of crackers and cereal out of my bag and set them on our bed before we left for church. And I saw myself NOT put them back. The whining began again, this time joined by Atticus. I tried to read them a story. They wouldn't listen. Jon leaned over and smelled another messy diaper. He rolled his eyes, asked for the diapers and wipes again, and carried Atticus out. Netty tried to follow, and I grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the aisle. "Netty," I whispered, "you need to stay here."

"No! I go!" she screamed.

"Daddy's just changing Atti's diaper. He's poopy," I whisper while trying to wrangle a crying, flailing Netty.

She wriggled loose and ran into the aisle. I tried to grab her, but before I could, she screamed, "NO! I POOOOOPEEEEEE!"

I grabbed a diaper, picked up Netty, who was still kicking and crying, and carried her out. We met Jon in the hall. He said, "Atticus wasn't even poopy."

"Yeah," I said. "Netty is."

I changed Netty's diaper and with as much dignity as I could muster, we returned to our pew in the chapel. Fast and Testimony meeting was almost over by this time. When it was all over and time to take Netty to Nursery, we met our neighbor in the hall. She smiled and said, "A little harder without Grandma and Grandpa?"

Netty fell asleep in one of her teacher's arms during Nursery. Atticus munched four Ritz crackers and several goldfish in the Relief Society room carpet during Sunday School, but then he decided to go to Priesthood with Jon during the final hour.

As I sat by myself in Relief Society that Sunday, I thought back to other similar Sundays, back before Netty was in nursery and we were trying to juggle two kids and a car seat through all three meetings. I thought about spending all of Sacrament Meeting in the hall with Netty because she wouldn't sit still and be quiet for even a few minutes, and how I went for two months without getting the Sacrament before the bishop announced that the bread and water would be taken out to the foyers. I thought about all of the other times when I decided I never wanted to have another Sunday like this, and how I swore I wouldn't go back, and how there are sure to be many more Sundays like this with our children and any others that we may have in the future.

I let the peace of the still Relief Society room curl around me. I soaked it in and tucked it away deep inside me for Sundays to come.

Spoonfuls of Sugar

The last year has been full of ups and downs, to say the least. Nothing really worked out the way that we wanted or anticipated. It was a year ago this week that we moved from Rexburg, the last place that really felt like home. We moved to Washington and lived with my grandma, and despite our best efforts, Jon was unable to get a job while we were there. While we appreciated my grandma's hospitality, it was a great struggle and test of our patience to live there. In July, we moved to Utah to live with my parents. After a few months, we were finally able to get Jon into the Voc Rehab program here, and it has been a true blessing to us. His disabilities have finally been diagnosed and we can now move forward, knowing that the Lord has a plan for us. Although I wish we did not have to go through so much difficulty to get where we are now, we feel confident that the Lord has been watching out for us and that everything we have dealt with has led us here--and "here" is good.

I am so grateful to have the children that I have. They get into mischief sometimes, but they are mostly obedient, and they play together so well. They make the dark days not as dark, and they give us a reason to keep moving. They are my two spoonfuls of sugar, and I thank my Heavenly Father every day for them.

Here is a sampling of times when my goofies make me laugh....

Netty loves stickers. Fortunately, these stickers were cheap, so they didn't stick very well. I was able to peel them off without leaving any residue for Aunt Stephie's unsuspecting piano students. They were not so lucky when Atticus decided to play the piano with his peanut butter fingers.

Remember a few weeks ago when our family played out in the rainstorm? Well, during the next rain storm Jon and I were folding clothes on our bed when we heard squealing outside. I looked out the window, and this is what I found.

At first I was really scared, then upset that she didn't come ask. And then I saw that face, and instead of letting our frustration show, we supervised her and had a talk about it later. Since our "talk," we've heard Netty tell all kinds of toys and dolls, "If you want to go outside, tell Mom and Dad."

This is a pretty common sight--Netty wearing a hat and pushing the doll stroller, and Atticus following right behind with the toy cleaning cart.

Why yes, that is a backwards fireman's hat. She always wears it this way.

Depending on what we're eating for dinner, we often strip Atticus down to his diaper. I was grateful that we did on this particular night when we had lasagna. He ate two pieces, and then he got a little sleepy. I think we'll call him "Garfield."

One night we gave the kids ice cream after dinner. Atticus's cone got so slobbery that it just kept slipping out of his hands. He finished it this way.

Remember how Netty loves stickers?

A lot?

We bought the kids one of those 9-cube shelves for their clothes. They were so excited to help me put it together. It took a lot longer, but it was a lot more fun.

Nailing the on the back pieces was a little tricky with so many tiny fingers trying to grab the hammer.

Netty climbs out of her crib most nights and often falls asleep right in front of the door and we go in after she's asleep to put her back in her bed. One night when I went in, I found her not in front of the door, but beneath her bed.

Netty was watching a video of "Let It Go" on YouTube. At the end of the video, it had a link for directions on how to draw Elsa. Netty watched it for a minute, and then she asked for paper and a pencil so that she could draw too.

My niece Rochelle was in ballet a few years ago, and this was one of her costumes. Netty found it in a box of hand-me-downs that we got from my sister-in-law, and she insisted on wearing it.

Atticus loves Peek-a-boo, but he hasn't quite figured out how to cover his eyes.

Putting on Mommy's makeup

Lying ON the table to color

Last Glimpses of Summer

Summer has now officially ended, but the munchkins are holding on to all they can of it. They stay busy outside for hours every chance they get. Netty finds straggling berries in my parents' strawberry plants almost every day, and she helps herself and Atticus to them. Any berry ranging from bright red to barely-turning-orange green, is snatched up in little fingers and ends up as a stain on kiddy lips. The porch and patio are filled with bright chalk scribbles. Plastic pails of pebbles line the shed, and the little plastic shovels litter the lawn. And the metal fire engine is in a new spot in the backyard every day. All signs that even though the calendar says that summer is over, the kids are not quite ready to say goodbye to their summer games.

Our Must-Have Book List for Parents of Toddlers

Both of my children love reading stories. Reading has become a nightly ritual, usually with HoneyGram and Papa. Like all toddlers, they want to read the same books over and over. Here are some of the books that my tots can't get enough of and that I don't dread reading over and over:

Whose Nose and Toes? by John Butler

This used to be about the only book the kids wanted to read. It has adorable illustrations of baby animals, and it only shows their nose and toes so you have to guess what animal it is. Then when you turn the page, it shows the whole animal. At the end, it has a page of all the animals on it, and the kids love to point when we tell them to find certain ones. They also make all the sounds.

Little People Let's Go to the Farm by Fisher Price

This book is fun for the kids because every page has several flaps to lift. It teaches baby animals names, animal sounds, colors, shapes, and counting. Both of the kids will sit quietly with this book for several minutes. It's a great one for church.

The Berenstain Bears by Stan and Jan Berenstain

Netty is in a huge Berenstain Bear phase, and I love it. These were always my favorite books when I was growing up, and it's fun to read them with her. She picks one that is her favorite for a few days, and we read it over and over. Luckily, in a few days (when I've had about all I can take of Messy Room or Slumber Party), I know she'll be ready for a different one.

The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss

Or really most Dr. Seuss books. This particular book was the first book that I could read (or perhaps I just had it memorized). Atticus loves it more than any other. The great thing about Dr. Seuss is that there aren't may words on a page, so you can get through them quickly. We also sometimes do funny voices or read them really fast (the faster the better because the kids think it's funny). My personal favorite is Fox in Socks, which was Netty's favorite a while back, because the tongue twisters are fun once you get the hang of them. The best Fox in Socks reader is my brother Justin. Voices and speed--it's incredible.

Bonus: Atticus "reading" The Foot Book. He says, "Feet, feet, feet."

Early Mornings

Problem: Netty is a morning person. I am not. I don't know that Atticus necessarily is either.

Netty's Solution: Escape from her room, jump in bed with Atticus, and wake him up to play.

My Solution: Send them up to HoneyGram, who is also a morning person.

Washing hands

Putting on HoneyGram's makeup

 Who says boys can't wear makeup too?

Making HoneyGram's bed

Netty loves things to be organized in rows, so that is how she put HoneyGram's throw pillows on the bed. Notice the one that she decided needed to go on Papa's side.

Puddle Jumping

I grew up in Washington. Fear of the rain is not tolerated there. I think I've probably used an umbrella three times in my life (that may be a bit of an exaggeration, but hardly). And every time there is a great downpour (Utah has some pretty good ones from time to time), I can't help but run in it. Now Netty has suddenly discovered puddle jumping.

A couple of weeks ago we had one such downpour, and the gutter at the end of the driveway looked like a river. Netty couldn't wait to get out there in it. She was adamant that she didn't want to get her clothes wet, so we put her swim suit on, and of course her red boots. Anything that Netty does Atticus has to do also, and it wasn't long until we were all out there.

Fourth of July Festivities

 After Atticus's birthday party, we went to my sister Sarah's house in Tacoma for another party to celebrate the holiday.

Mount Rainier on the way to Sarah's house--I never get tired of that mountain!

Stephanie and Pa, my mom's dad - The two of them were talking, and I couldn't help but take a picture. It is one of my favorites.

My brother-in-law's aunt brought a bunch of cheap toys to Sarah's house for the kids to play with. The most popular was a set of long balloons that you blow up with a pump and then let them fly off. We didn't have enough pumps, so we started just blowing them up with our mouths. Not easy, my friend.

Blowing her heart out

HoneyGram gathered the kids out in the field with their balloons, and they let them all go at the same time.

Brian and Sarah

I told Justin I wanted a good head shot of him, and this is what he did.

And then I said, "No, seriously." And so he gave me this one.

And then this one.

And finally this one. Gotta love brothers.

HoneyGram brought matching hats for Atticus and Hyrum. Atticus's didn't fit him, but Oliver wore his to the party at Sarah's house. Of course Papa had to try it on too.

Netty had her first experience with sparklers. Last year we didn't do them because I was in the hospital in labor with Atticus, and the year before she was too young. I couldn't decide which picture I liked best, so here's a few:

The black on her face is ash. Shortly after I took this picture, the sparkler went out, and she touched the end of it. She had a lot of tears and a little blister.

HoneyGram and Papa with the three youngest grandbabies

It was such a good day. I am so grateful for my family.