Butt Scootin' Boogie

Thaddeus has refused to crawl and still despises being on his stomach. I've been worried about it a little but since he can stand on his own pretty well and cruises I haven't been too concerned. I know they need to learn to crawl to get the cross-patterning down but I think he's probably going to start really crawling and walking at the same time. He has finally started getting around using this funny butt scoot. I think its actually pretty cute.

He does the sign for Daddy now too, which is super cute and says "Dada" and "Mama" and definitely seems to know what they mean. He has also done the sign for potty, as it is very easy to tell when he is having a bowel movement so when its convenient I'll take him to sit on the toilet to finish and sign potty. Its never too soon to start teaching them the connection, and as this is most likely my last baby, the concept of being diaper free is exhilarating! Mostly, he is still a super happy kid and claps his hands and says "yea" all the time, like at the end of this video.

On another note...I'm going back to school! Looks like it won't be until January but I'm still really excited. For those of you who don't know, Abe and I both need to finish our bachelor's degrees. Abe is taking his final class this fall to graduate in December and then will be working on classes to get his teaching certificate over the next few years so he can keep teaching at the private school he started for work. I have 3 English classes left and may actually add a German minor if they'll let me. I had been putting it off because with our tight budget we couldn't justify the $400 per class price tag when I wasn't planning on going to work to earn money right away. In helping get all the paperwork in order for Abe to finish his degree, I realized that with our family size we qualify for Pell grants that will actually pay for the cost of tuition. So, its back to school for me!

School is a place where I excel. I enjoy the world of the mind much more than the physical world of laundry and a dirty house, etc. and I also feel that I'm a much better student than I am parent. For me, taking classes will not only be a nice break from the typical routine but will actually remind me that I am good at some things as opposed to feeling like a failure as a parent/housekeeper. If I add the German minor it will probably take me a year to finish but if I only take the 3 English classes I should finish by next summer.

Swimming Anyone?

We went swimming with my sisters in West Valley a few days ago. Here are some pictures of my kids and a few surprise visitors! I never post pictures of myself, typically because I don't have any. Asher wanted to take one. He didn't do too badly for a 3 year old.

Mutton Busting Video

Here's the video I meant to post earlier...I thought it looked so fun!

(Unfortunately, the video quality degraded during the upload, probably due to my crappy internet speed, but oh well.)

Kids' Rodeo

We went to our neighbor's house to ride their pony a few days ago and she told me about the Fairview kids rodeo that they have every year as part of the Pioneer Day celebrations. It was tonight and it was so fun! If you ever want something unique and fun and hands on to do with your kids for pioneer day, come down and visit us! I took a ton of pictures and videos so I hope they don't take too long to load...

First event..."Mutton Busting"...kids sign up ahead of time and then see how long they can stay on the sheep. Salem thinks he might want to try it next year.
The next event was for kids up to 5 years old called the "Money Goat" They had taped 25 one dollar bills to a goat that they then let loose in the arena with all the kids. Whatever you managed to get a hold of you could keep. Here is Simeon with his $2 he was so proud of. Then they had some older kids ride on steers (young cattle) to see how long they could stay on. Then they had the "money calf" for the older kids. Kensi and Salem are in this crowd somewhere. Near the end of the clip you get a good look at the calf with some of the money still attached.
Next was barrel racing, which actually requires some horsmanship skills. Each contestant had to go around 3 different barrels in pretty sharp turns and then back to the finish line as fast as possible. Several of the youth were from our ward so it was fun to cheer for people we knew.

They had a stick horse race for little kids and even a couple of dog races. They had a raffle drawing for some kids bikes. Then, at the end they had a couple of greased pig chases and what they call "farm scramble". All the kids come down to the arena and they let loose 20 or so animals-- chickens, ducks, rabbits, even a lamb-- and whatever you catch you get to keep. Apart from the fact that my kids were disappointed they didn't catch any animals it was a really fun evening.

And amidst all the glut of processed carnival food (cotton candy, soda, fry bread--you know the drill) was this refreshing sight True, it isn't your trendy edamame, just some humble sugar snap peas but just as crisp, refreshing, wholsome, and delicious.

It really was great fun, and I'm realizing that I just might be able to convince my husband to come next year because it really isn't much of a crowd compared to anything you might encounter even in Provo. If you are ever in the neighborhood at this time of year you should seriously check it out, it was well worth the mere $3 entrance fee. But do be prepared for some culture shock. Too many Wranglers, cowboy boots, daisy dukes, and such for me to be really comfortable.

The 4th of July

We Had a fun 4th of July this year. Abe's Aunt Virginia hosts a family get-together every July 4th at their cabin by Park City called Johnson's Mountain. We haven't been for the last several years so it was fun to make it this time. We have a potluck with some really yummy BBQ beef sandwiches and Abe's Uncle Frank has this horrible tradition of bringing orange McDonald's punch and Twinkies. My kids love it, of course. Blech! Some of the older cousins hide tons of painted rocks everywhere and the kids find them (kind of like an Easter egg hunt) and then trade in different colored rocks for little prizes and candies. We play games and there is a giant swing that is really fun. Abe's parents were there--that's a picture of Abe's dad with his 2 brothers. We teased them about their matching hats. The newlyweds were there too, Abe's youngest brother Andrew and his wife CaSaundra. We've been doing a few fireworks at home each night that my dad bought for the kids and then we went to the city fireworks in Mt. Pleasant. There definitely are some advantages to living in a small town. I thought the fireworks show was just as good as any I've been to but we drove up 15 minutes before it started, got a perfect view right in front, and were able to get out quickly when it was over. Abe, of course, stayed home. We now supposedly have this "agreement" (after I dragged him to the Manti Pageant last week) that he is not expected to attend any function that will keep him out past 10:00 or be anywhere there is a crowd (meaning more than 20 people) That means I'm not supposed to hound him or make him feel guilty for not wanting to go, which I will try hard to do but I'm sure I will have plenty of relapses. It really isn't fun to do any of those things if he is grumpy anyway so I'll just leave the baby at home with him and go have a blast with the older kids. To be fair, we have a blast doing things like rock-climbing, which we did this morning for our date (he taught me to lead climb--a bit scary, but cool) and took the kids and some friends last week, but it met his requirement of not being too late at night and being relatively free of other folks. (I've also updated my other blog--link to the right, if interested)

Partners in Crime

So, I will certainly be getting back to my previous topic and in fact, have several posts in the works, but, in the mean time, I thought I would share the events of this morning. It started last night when my 3 older kids asked if they could sleep together in one room. Its so nice when they actually are enjoying each others company so we obliged. Early this morning my husband heard whispered voices coming through the heating vent and asked what they were doing. "Oh, just playing in my bedroom" was the first response. Then after about 15 minutes, the consciousness of their guilt set in and some contrite little confessors revealed their plan. They had gotten a flashlight and a screw driver out of the storage shed and hid them in Salem's bedroom. They wanted to be in the same room so when one of them woke up they were supposed to wake up the others and then they unscrewed the cover to the cold air return and actually climbed through the ductwork to the cold air return in the other bedroom. I think they've watched too many Spy Kids movies! What I thought was the most amusing was that Salem was so disappointed and said it was really boring. He was anticipating some exciting maze or something instead of just the 8 feet or so of tunnel he could actually fit into. Here he is reinstalling the cover after the confession.

Empathy and Action

I've been thinking today. Well, that's nothing really new but I've been thinking again in a way that I haven't for some time. I was driving home this afternoon and listening to NPR and this is the story I heard. A woman in a village in Darfur, under attack. All the women with infants and young children told to line up and show (the gender of) their babies. All male children were shot on the spot and all females were thrown to the ground. If they survived that the mothers were permitted to retrieve them. This particular woman had a girl baby who survived but her grandmother stood next to her with a male child, whom she refused to show the militants. Both grandmother and child were murdered. Another woman, 8 month pregnant. Gang raped by 5 or 6 men. Going through labor and giving birth to a dead child and then disowned by her husband. A 17 year old, raped. Disowned by her family and literally the clothes off her back taken and sold. Seeks refuge in a camp where she is again raped and becomes pregnant. The rain on the windshield mirrored the tears on my cheeks as I wept as I haven't wept for a long time for the suffering and hatred that I feel so helpless to aleviate.

I felt such empathy as I imagined in my mind the experience of watching my infant be murdered or thrown to the ground right before my eyes. I felt such guilt for the life of luxury I live and for ever feeling like my life is hard. I am ashamed that I have ever complained because we can't afford a second car, can't put in the pond and the lawn, and the orchard. Can't afford to pay for music and sports lessons. Ashamed that I had so quickly forgotten the gratitude I felt when I went to India 10 years ago and vowed to live simply and use the excess for the benefit of others. I know why the scriptures remind us so often to remember, remember.

I have always wanted to be a mother and I love my children very much but as a child I also had big dreams. I wanted to be a physicist and understand the mysteries of the universe. I wanted to be the first female President of the United States and create a "more perfect union". I wanted to be a lawyer and defend all those wrongly accused and to seek justice. I wanted to go into medical research and find a cure for cancer and diabetes. In recent years as I speak to others about my desires to make the world a better place, the common refrain is that, "The best thing you can do right now is to raise your children well." And while I don't discredit the importance of motherhood I wonder... First, are we doing a good enough job raising our children today and second, is it enough?

How are our children going to transform this world if we don't show them how to do it?

Well, I must get back to my child rearing. I will post another entry and complete my thoughts soon.