HOME DEPOT with the BOYS

I am not sure why I took both of these pictures at such weird angles but aren't these boys the cutest things ever. I love the car carts at the Home Depot. They are perfect. The boys would agree.

Nate called this morning and asked me if I wanted to meet him at the IHOP for breakfast and then head over to Home Depot to pick up paint colors for the exterior of our home. James loved having pancakes with whipped cream on them. He leaned over the back of our restaurant bench and introduced himself to three elderly gentlemen who were having breakfast together. He said, "Hi! I James." The old man smiled and said, "I am James too." They had a great conversation. James introduced them to me, "this my best mom." He said as he gave me a big side squeeze. He was animated and excited. The old men were cute to play along.

Then we went to the Home Depot to pick paint colors. Nate settled on the color. I told him what I wanted but ultimately I settled to let him have his way with the exterior because he let me have my way with the interior. I am not a fan of green houses, but I can live with it especially because it is his favorite color. I did make him promise to put white trim around the windows and door. I love country home that are white with black shutters, but it's okay to have a green house with white shutters too.

James needed to go potty at the Home Depot. He ran into the men's bathroom. I went in to grab him, just as a man was stepping up to the urinal. I backed out and yelled, "James come back." He wouldn't come. Luckily the door was propped open, so I felt a little more in control but still scared. The man exited just as another man walked in and stepped up to the urinal. I couldn't run in and grab him. The man exiting chuckled and said, "I guess he felt the best way to get that done was by stripping down." I panicked, "James, come here." All the while this sweet voice is saying, "I coming momma. I doing it momma. I getting my clothes mommy. I doing it momma." I finally stepped in the door to check on him and told the man at the urinal to ignore me. James was putting on his shoes. I slipped back out. He followed. Oh, my! He neglected to wash his hands. I just threw him in the cart and handed him a wipe and got out of there.  Navigating a boy world!

THE OFFICE

 

Nate asked me to take pictures today of his office. I ran down to his office with James. James kept running in and out of the pictures and all over the office. Nate was very particular about the shots I took. I think he might have a real eye for photography if he ever really wanted to get into it. He is very proud of his office. It has taken two years of hard work, really hard work. He worked about eighty hours a week for two years. He finally hired another dentist full time this last month and cut back his hours to forty hours a week. We love seeing him more and especially seeing him a little less stressed. I love this office of his. I love how Nate comes through in every design element. Take note of all of the art, he picked it all out himself. Take note of the storage he uses for his dental supplies, a tool chests. His accent color is his favorite color, green.

 

I am just so darn proud of him and all his hard work. I am grateful for Heavenly Father and his unending blessings. He is the great creator and we all are just instruments. We have been so blessed this year. We have a beautiful new son, a gorgeous new office and an almost finished house. People often say, "You have worked so hard, you deserve it." I always cringe. I know better people who work harder and who deserve more and have been given less. We certainly don't deserve it, it is a gift or a curse depending on how we use it. I hope we use it well. I am certain Nate will. 

 

Life is good. Heavenly Father is good to those who are faithful to him. 

ASHTON MAXWELL and the HOUSE

He is growing deliciously well. I want to nibble every bulge of skin. This morning I squeezed him so hard he cried. I felt bad. I just love him so much. Then I had to release and kiss all of his squeezed-to-hard parts. He makes little o's with his lips and then noises like a monkey. He rolls and scotches everywhere. He is the smilest kid. (I know smilest is not a word but I had to use it because that is what he is.) On Sunday the young women begged to take him to class, I told them that was fine as long as he didn't disturb the classroom. Several minutes later the young women's president brought him back bursting with squeals and happy noises. She handed him to me sweetly and said, "I am sorry Lisa, he is too big of a distraction, even for me! But, I am afraid that is what he will be his whole life!" I have to agree. He is a heart throb. He smiles at everyone in church. Everyone comments on what a happy child he is. I am so glad we made it to four kids. Each one is such a joy and adds pounds to my joy. He has adds pounds and pounds of joy to my heart.

 

Today, I went to the house. The carpet layers are done. I am going this afternoon to vacuum all the excess carpet fragments and clean the bathroom and rid it of all its food storage. (A totally other story.) I will be cleaning and touching up and arranging all the electrical outlets and smiling so big my cheeks hurt. I can't even begin to convey the level of happiness I have felt these last few days. Sierra said it best when she said, "Poor Ash, he will never know what we have been through with this house. He will never feel this moment of joy because he never saw it all yucky." She is right. I think joy is compensatory to pain. This house has been such a pain in our side since we picked it up a year and half ago, when James was crawling and Ashton wasn't even a thought. To see the end in sight and to know I will soon live inside its perfect crooked walls is pure joy. Earthly tongue can not convey how my heart feels, but it is other-world-happy. 



GRANDPA CAME

 Well, this past weekend my parents came back into town to help us finish the house. They were so sweet and spent hours taping, finishing and painting our house. Saturday we, meaning mostly my parents but some of me ran until every muscle hurt. When we were done the house was a beautiful ultra white. Sunday after church I took the kids over to the house to have a picnic Sierra said, "Our house was like Jesus had died all sad and pathetic, now it is LIKE RESURRECTION MORNING!" I loved her comparison and I am certain the ultra white wall helped with her analogy. I can't even tell you how happy I was. Dad dropped Mom off in Utah and came back on Monday, he was too good to us and spent the next two days fixing the electrical to the bathroom and putting new sub-flooring down for the carpet men that were coming on Tuesday.

Dad was supposed to have a small bit of dental work done. He met with the oral surgeon and got that taken care of. We repaid all of his kindness to us by allowing him to reenact the zombie apocalypse. Let me explain.....

I dropped Dad off at the oral surgeon and was suppose to come back in a few hours to get him. I went to Sam's Club and then headed home. I pulled in the driveway about the time Dad texted and said he needed to be picked up. Ashton was hungry, so I nursed him and then went to head out the door when I realized if I went to pick him up before I picked up my girls I would miss them. I misplaced my phone while nursing Ashton and couldn't find it anywhere. As I rushed out the door, James stole my wallet and launched it out of Ashton's car seat. (Aren't car seats the perfect purses?) As I pulled out of the driveway I realized the tank was on empty. I figured I had enough gas to grab the girls and go get my father I would be fine. I didn't turn back for the phone or the wallet. I got to the school got the girls in the car and headed for the oral surgeons office. I got there dad was gone he started walking. I thought maybe he had walked to Nate's office. He didn't. When I got there they looked at me like I was crazy. I went back to the oral surgeon searching along the road in between. No daddy. I went back to Nate's office and called Mom. She said he was at the overpass. I put the kids back in the car and headed to the second grand junction overpass. Madison was crying she was hungry. James needed to go potty. Ashton was fussy. I got there no Dad. I went all the way up one road, no dad. All the way down another, no dad. Finally I decided if I kept looking the car was going to run out of gas. I went home found my wallet and my phone. Figured out that dad was at the first grand junction overpass. I ran and put gas in the car and headed to the other overpass. Poor dad hadn't eaten much all day, my fault and he had no water. By the time I found him he had been walking the hot Colorado sun for two hours and twenty minutes. He was pale and had blood on his lips. When I saw him he looked like a zombie, literally. All the frustration I felt melted out of me and I just felt stupid. I love him so much and it hurt me to see him like that. He never even asked me, "Where were you?" He just climbed in the car. I was grateful he went and rested the rest of the night only asking for a bowl of cornflakes with a banana.

He came in the next morning, having left before I woke up, after working on my house for several hours with doughnut holes for the kids.He looked and acted like the whole zombie event never happened. My father has always been like that. No ill fated event holds him back, he easily and happily moves on to the next of lives events. He lifts us when we are down. I love him.

My house looks amazing because of him. He has worked miracles with that old run down shack turned mansion. The other day I was walking along one the paths that meanders around our property and James was running ahead of me with all the vigor of the two year old. It was morning and the light was perfect. I wished I had of had my camera. I thought, I love this moment. I love this land and its crooked old house. I love the weeds and the grass and the pond. I had to catch my breath as I thought of the scripture, "In my Father's house there are many mansions..." I thought this is my mansion. I would give up cold marbled halls with turrets any day for this cottage and my weeds and little feet running on crooked paths. I am so happy.

BABY CRAWLING

He is army crawling. I love it. He is adorable. He can get anywhere he wants to! I did a little bit better on my obnoxious baby voice. I was proud. You should be too. He is growing in marvelous ways.

 

My favorite part of the day was when James pointed to his eyelashes and said, "Ashton has eyelashes. Mommy has eyelashes. James have eye...yyy..yyy....lashes." It was a big word and a new discovery. He said it perfectly the first two time but the last time it got caught on his tongue.

 

My other favorite part was doing Algebra on the whiteboard with Sierra. She finally has memorized her three times tables. She was encouraging me to challenge her. I was putting her three times tables in algebraic equations. She was loving every minute of it. I think in a few weeks she is going to start to love math. Last year and the year before she fought me on learning her times tables. I encouraged but didn't fight her. I fought her with reading and she still hates it, so I thought this time I would let her come to it on her own. Earlier this week she had to factor a large number and she broke down in tears because she couldn't do it. The factors weren't in her mind files. I asked her if she was finally ready to memorize them. Through tear stained cheeks she nodded her head. She has worked hard this week to learn her three times tables. She finally passed them off with me. We are starting her four times tables, at this rate she should have them all down in a few weeks.

 

Yes, my children have started school. I know, too soon. They are a week an half into first and fifth grade and Madison comes home every day saying she loved ever minute of the day. Sierra comes home every day not saying it was the worst day of her life, so I think it is going to be a great year.

RANCH 2015

 I think the best part was reconnecting with cousins. I loved talking to my cousin Tiffany and seeing Adam and huge transformation. He was a punk kid and high all the time. He completely turned his life around. He was recently sealed in the temple. I can't believe how beautiful he is. 

RANCH 2015 HORSES

 Horseback riding at the ranch. Sierra's favorite activity.

 

RANCH 2015 SLIP and SLIDE

 The water slide is one of our favorite ranch activities. This year we had an extended family reunion. All my Craven Cousin's came and we got to catch up on so many things. I felt blessed to spend time with them.

RANCH 2015

 The water slide is one of our favorite ranch activities. This year we had an extended family reunion. All my Craven Cousin's came and we got to catch up on so many things. I felt blessed to spend time with them.

SIERRA is TEN!

This is the first year my baby girl hasn't had a summer birthday. She was disappointed. I am glad we had a big water party last year for her birthday. We probably won't be able to do that again.

 

I can't believe my baby is ten and it is her last year in elementary school. Next year she will be in junior high. I am terrified. I don't want to grow up. This year we opted out of having a party. I just let her invite one special friend for a fun evening. We went to Claire's and got her ears pierced and Sierra and Ava picked out mood, best friend, necklaces. They were checking out each other's moods all  evening.

 

Then went to eat at a cheap Chinese place in the mall. Sierra's favorite fast food is Chinese. I was disappointed, but I don't know what I was expecting. We would have gone somewhere else if I didn't have a nursing baby, but we were on a tight timeline. Then we went to Get Air. Sierra, Ava and I jumped for an hour straight. I was begging the girls to leave by the end off it. Sierra was giggling and thought it was cool that I was jumping with them the whole time. I don't typically get to participate when we do things like that because I am too busy tending the baby. It was fun to let my hair down and just play with my girl I know she loved it.

 

She got a Lego set, and smelly pens and a pencil box with a Spiro-graph, and a kick-ball. She was so cute. On the way home from school that day she asked me if her presents were awesome. I downplayed it by saying, they are okay. After opening her presents she said, "Mom, I thought you said my presents were okay they weren't okay, they were terrific." I told her that evening I was sorry her pencil box was pink, I knew her favorite color is blue but I couldn't find one in blue, just in pink. She said, "Mom, I don't care. I love it because you bought it for me. I don't care if it's pink." Then after opening her smelly pens, they came in two sets of each color, she said, "Ava you can have one of my sets. Is that okay mom, if Ava has one of my sets?" I said, "Of course." Then so that Madison wouldn't feel left out she gave her a pack of gum that she received as a gift.

 

Ava gave her ten dollars in cash at Claire's. She threw her arms around Ava and said, "Thank you so much, that is the best present ever!" She used the cash to buy the necklaces. I was just so completely taken by her sweetness all day.  She is growing up so beautifully. I gave her a card to tell her how much I love her and she said it was one of the best parts of the whole day. It was the sweetest card. I realized how little I tell her I love her and how little I play with her. I need to do it more. I love her and I am so proud of her.

 

  



BEAUTIFUL BABY BOY

Ignore my obnoxious voice, Ashton's puke stained shirt, and James's burp at the beginning of the video, that is just how we roll. I just think he is the most beautiful boy ever created. He has brought us so much joy. He has been sick for the last four days. He has had a high fever and then he had a rash. He was fussy and wouldn't eat. I think he wasn't to make up for it now by eating every hour all night long. I am exhausted. I hope tonight goes better. Enjoy Sierra, we miss you!