Welcome Home Bobo!

The surprise homecoming greeting that almost wasn't... Yesterday morning, Adam and I woke up and decided on a whim that we could make it up to San Fran to greet my brother during his four hour lay-over there. We pulled things together as quickly as we could and made it to the airport literally a minute before his plane came in. We were in position to greet him, waiting at the door we were instructed would be the ONLY door he could come through. This was imperative to our plan as he was not expecting us and we'd have no other way to reach him and let him know we were there. We waited and waited and got a little concerned and then waited some more. We began to really be worried when we saw all the flight crew exit and then passengers from following flights. I asked another airport attendant what could have happened and was informed, "the only way he would've come through the door we were told to wait at is if he was lost. He should be on the other side of the building." WHAT?! We'd let an hour pass by and he could be anywhere by now. I was in a heartbroken panic and we trecked over to the Delta check-in counter to see if he was there, but he was not. Someone was inspired to suggest we try and page him. Why didn't I think of that? Probably because I didn't actually believe it would work -but it did. He came and found us and we got to spend a wonderful couple of hours together. He enjoyed a hamburger and a root beer and my girls were in heaven to have their Uncle Bobo with them. For Lexi, it was like he'd never left. She was in his arms nearly the entire time he was with us. And you would've thought that Aubrey and Allie knew him just as well; Allie even snuggled right up to him. We are so excited to have him "home." He could hardly wait to continue his journey home to see his mommy, as well as my dad and brother. What a wonderful day! Welcome home!

A bit about mom's

(My mom and me at our "Fancy Nancy" party)

How grateful I am,
How fortunate I've been,
That you are my mother
And also my friend!

I had such a wonderful Mother's Day and I hope you did too. I am so grateful for the sweet little monkeys that call me "mommy!" And I am so grateful for my "mommy" who is a constant teacher, friend, example, and support to me in my life. I love that I can call her to share my concerns and troubles or the mundane details of my day, and she will listen and she can do the same with me. I am also grateful for the many "mother figures" I've had in my life; wonderful neighbors, friends, relatives, teachers and leaders that have influenced my life for good. What a wonderful tribute to women that Mother's Day is!

Today as I was running in circles sorting and then re-sorting my laundry, putting away the belongings of the bathroom drawer and then putting them away again, compiling my coupons and then picking them up off the floor and compiling them again, and ...well, you get the idea; I smiled and had a little giggle inside myself as I thought "I read about it all the time, but really, truly, this is part of the bliss (did I really just call it that?!) of motherhood." This is what gives the experience of mothering character and I love it. I never thought I'd hear myself say that but I do, even all the chaos. I love being a mother and although it is infinitely harder to get my household chores done with little ones literally hanging off my legs and un-doing everything I do so that I have to do it multiple times over, I love it! I know that I will one day miss the face of my little one year old, with her bright excited eyes, grinning up at me with her hair standing on end and a runny nose that could really use a tissue, and the mess at her feet that she has just created as she explored her most recent curiosity. I will one day miss that Lexi likes to be so much "bigger than her britches" and I will miss the way Aubrey loves barbies and that she can never be parted from her blankey. They are the joy of my life!

Anyone needing a little comic relief, must read the book "All Mom's Go to Heaven" by Dean Hughes. It is short and excellent. It is written by a man who played "mom" for an entire summer while his wife was finishing her master's degree. (It's the experience we all dream our husband's could have so they could just understand us and what it's really like to be at home a little more.) It is a must read! Pick up a copy and tell me what you think.

TOMORROW!

(Miles' Farewell -May 2007)

I can't believe it! In just a little over 24 hours, my brother will be arriving home from his mission in France. He served a wonderful two years teaching the people there about the gospel of Jesus Christ. Alexis said to me today, "after tomorrow, 'Bobo' won't be teaching people about Jesus anymore." I reminded her that we can all be "missionaries" and be example even when we aren't formally called to do so. She is quite the little missionary herself as she sings her heart away for all the neighbors to hear, belting out simple truths of the gospel through primary songs. How grateful I am for music and for primary that help us teach our little ones! Alexis and her Uncle Bobo have a special relationship and no one is more excited in our house than she is to see him and give him a great big hug!

(Je t'aime, mon frere, a la lune et retour!)

camera under repair

Last weekend, we went out to the beach with some friends and had a wonderful time. It was crazy windy, but still a lot of fun. During the course of our day, I inadvertantly dropped our camera in the sand! :( So sad! Who knew how much damage a little sand could do? The happy part of this story is that the camera was still under warranty (accidental coverage even)-wahoo! Let us hope I have it fixed before we head home to welcome my brother back from his mission; he returns from france in just 12 more days!!!

Until then, I found this cute little poem that very well sums up our days:

What Did I Do Today?

Today I left some dishes dirty,
The bed got made around 3:30.
The diapers soaked a little longer,
The odor grew a little stronger.
The crumbs I spilled the day before
Are staring at me from the floor.
The fingerprints there on the wall
Will likely be there still next fall.
The dirty streaks on those windowpanes
Will still be there next time it rains.
Shame on you, you sit and say,
Just what did you do today?

I held a baby till she slept,
I held a toddler while she wept.
I played a game of hide and seek,
I squeezed a toy so it would squeak.
I pulled a wagon, sang a song,
Taught a child right from wrong.
What did I do this whole day through?
Not much that shows, I guess that's true.
Unless you think that what I've done,
Might be important to someone
With deep blue eyes and soft blonde hair,
If that is true...I've done my share.


I'm not sure who wrote this poem; I just happened across it online one day. It brought me some consolation from the frustration I sometimes feel as a stay-at-home from some of the "things" that don't get done each day and made me more grateful for the more important stuff we do.

I am going to be an aunt!

Great news! I am going to be an aunt...and I am going to have a nephew! I am so excited; you'd think I was having the baby! (Actually, maybe that I don't have to go through the being pregnant part but can still love the cute little guy, is why I am so excited. See, I already know he's cute and I haven't even seen him -not even an ultrasound!) A big congratulations to Adam's brother Danny and wife Heather who are expecting their baby in early October. Can't wait to spoil him rotten! Best of luck in the months (and years) to come!

compliments of Lexi

I knew with three girls in my house, that this was bound to happen some day...but oh how I wish it hadn't! To my horror, this past Friday, Aubrey and Alexis came to me to show off Aubrey's new "do," compliments of Lexi. I was in a state of shock, wishing that somehow when she turned around that I would see all Aubrey's beautiful hair tucked away in a pigtail somehow, but no, it was gone, all gone. Lucky for Lexi, I was on the phone with my dad so didn't completely flip out. Really though, all I could do was cry. A lot. I wanted so desperately to cut Lexi's hair short too (they both loved their long "princess" hair) but I kept seeing in my mind the saying that my mom had hung on my bathroom wall when I was growing up. It read: "An eye for an eye leaves everyone blind;" or in this case, with bad hair cuts! I cried and cried, and cried even harder when I saw the pile of long beautiful auburn locks of hair in the trash can. I picked out one bunch of it (as if that gave me some comfort to have some to hold on to!) and it measured around 8 inches in length! Oh, wow! What to say! What to do! I sat Aubrey down and evened the ends a bit and now we go on. Many people have complimented Aubrey on her hair cut and Lexi just loves it; since it was her doing! (The nerve!) While I recognize that it could have been FAR worse than it was, it was still a bit tragically devastating to me at the time and will likely be for a while. (Possibly for the two YEARS it will take to grow it back!) Aubrey hasn't been overly upset with it until this morning when she asked for a "long braid." I sadly informed her that she didn't have enough hair for that anymore. She said it was okay and asked for a "back pony". Not enough for that either sweetheart. She said, "could we get some tape?" Oh, Aubs! She knows it will grow back so it will be okay. She just has NO idea how long it will take. When this happens to you at your house, just hope whomever is doing the cutting is also the recipient of the trim so they can face the consequences of their choices. Alexis was reprimanded but it's poor Aubs that lost her hair! Good news for her is that she is still so beautiful and wears a smile anyway!



This is what Aubrey looked like when she first came to me.


This is one to the locks of hair I recovered from the trash can.



And this is the new "do".

Easter Celebrations

It is quite possible that we have landed ourselves smack dab in the middle of the three sweetest neighbors a family with three little girls could have. One helps us with our garden, one brings us all sorts of treats and fresh fruit, and the other just spoils us rotten. The latter is a kindergarten teacher and brings lots of books and worksheets over for Alexis and is just sweet as pie. She loves books and we have benefited from that on many occasions. :) This Easter weekend, she invited us to her home to decorate cookies and eggs with her granddaughters. We had SO much fun! She treated us all with matching Easter aprons, more books and See's chocolates! What a treat! When all the decorating was done, she fed us lunch and let the kids play hide and seek in her house for hours! Thank you to our wonderful neighbor for spoiling us and giving us a place to go for the holidays. This was just like what me Grandma B. used to do for us when my cousins and I were little. I have such great memories of Easter parties when I was little and was glad my kids will have them too.


This is Allie receiving a "Happy Birthday" song while we were at our party. She loved it and was all giggles and smiles!

Easter Sunday

A Birthday with Bronchitis

Allie celebrated her first birthday this week! This past year with her has flown by. She is such a sweet little girl! Allie's favorite foods include: chicken, spaghetti, and oatmeal with applesauce. Allie has learned to point to her nose(and everyone else's), give "Fives" and gives great kisses. She calls "mamama" whenever she's in trouble or needs help and will drop whatever she is doing to run to the door to greet her daddy when he comes home with an enthusiatic "Hi, Da!" She has recently been learning how to slide down the stairs backwards. She loves playing with phones and gets SO excited whenever she sees or hears dogs. Taking our lead from her interest in dogs, we had a canine theme for her birthday and since she loves phones so much, we decided to give her one of her own for her birthday. Her Aunt Lauren and Uncle Nate were right on track with that and sent her a toy phone as well. She loved it so much we had a hard time getting her to open anything else! Allie was thought of by many people this week and we thank you all for your cards, calls, and packages! Her birthday was a really fun day for us. It was nice to have a "pick me up" as Allie had been running a fever for five days prior to her birthday. She ended up coming down with infections in both ears and bronchitis! Poor baby! After a couple days of medication, she is doing much better and is nearly running at full speed again.

Fair

On Saturday, we went to a fair that was representative of things in the era of "Tom Sawyer" in conjunction with the efforts of the city to inspire the community to read the classic tale. We had a great time. The girls learned to play "marbles," raced in three legged races, gunny sacks, balanced eggs on a spoon and did a cake walk, to name a few things. It was so fun to watch the girls get excited about everything. While we were walking back to the car, little Aubs took my hand and said, "Thanks mom, for taking us to this fun fair!" One of those little moments... :)

*P.S. Grandma Quick - did you see the fun old fashioned sewing machine? It looks like the one on display in your sewing room. The girls each got a book mark stitched with the machine at the fair.

More visitors!

We were lucky enough in the past weeks to not only have Adam's sister and spouse stop by, but to have his brother and spouse pay a quick visit as well as they ventured through California. We met Danny and Heather and their friends at the "Elephant Bar" on St. Patrick's Day. It was great to see them. Thanks for stopping by!

more fun with Missy and Rhen !!!

We had so much fun with Aunt Missy and Uncle Rhen last weekend, that we couldn't help but accept their invitation to join them for another fun-filled visit; this time down in San Diego. We had a fantastic time at the beach! The girls played in the ocean until their little lips literally turned blue. We, of course, dined at "Miguels" on Coronado Island and did a little shopping. My many, many thanks again to them for watching our girls while Adam and I snuck away for a trip to the temple. It was beautiful! We miss you guys and can't wait until next time!