Back to School

Ah, fall. It's my favorite season of the year. I love the cooler weather, and seeing the beautiful mountains change color. There's a certain excitement in the air when the kids head back to school, with their new clothes, and new school teachers. Kate started her first year of preschool. She loves it. I'm so glad I decided to put her in this year. She will have two years of preschool, and I thought that maybe that was over kill, but boy was I wrong. Kate loves going, and I get to give kirk more attention. He is loving it up! He loves to sit on my lap and read stories. I've been trying to help him learn colors. It's been three weeks and he still hasn't gotten it! I'm starting to wonder if he's color blind or something. When Kate's at preschool Kirk is always asking "where's Kate?" I think he misses her when she goes, but a little space has been a good thing. They seem to play better, and not fight as often. Another really fun part about sending Kate to school is that I have a reason to get her all dressed up. I took a picture of her in one of my favorite outfits. Kirk was ready to step right up and get his picture taken as well. Yes I know he has a bottle in this picture! I've got a two and a half year old who still drinks from bottles! But he is so insistent, and I haven't got the heart to take it from him. He is still my youngest, so I indulge him alittle bit. I've been feeling much better lately. I'm past the whole sickness stage. Right now I just get soooo tired every afternoon. Right after lunch time I start to feel the drain. Luckily that's Kirk's nap time, so I get to have some rest. Tonight Dan took Kirk up to the Father's Son's camp out with the ward. Dan's been so excited to take Kirk camping. He said he was going to teach him man stuff up there, (Whatever that means)? I took Kate for a little girls night out. It was fun to be just the two of us. That doesn't happen very often, and I think she enjoyed it. We went and got her pictures taken at the mall since she just turned four. Then I bought her some chich-fil-a, and a hot fudge sundae. While she was eating the ice cream she kept complaining that it was making her head hurt. I told her she's just gotten her first "Brain freeze". She thought that was pretty funny. I had a couple of things to return, and then I bought her some new ballet tights. Then she fell asleep on the way home. I was excited about the way the pictures turned out. She as grown up so much. I was just thinking on the way into the mall about all of the past years we have done this. I've taken her into kiddie Kandids for pictures for the past three years. I felt like she was still two and no time had past at all. I'm so frightened that I will blink and all of a sudden she'll be sixteen. These truly are the moments to cherish. Our kids are our most priceless possessions. I am so grateful to be a mother!

It's Birthday Central!

Okay, I know it's been forever since I've updated this, but if it's any consolation we've been really, really busy. First of all the end of August and the first two weeks of September is Birthday mania at our house. Dan's Birthday is August 22. He's now soooo old 31! Kate's Birthday was last week. She had a crazy, fun, girly party. We had 10 girls over, what were we thinking? But her party really was awesome. Kate Madsen came at the end dressed like Cinderella. She was the highlight of the party! Yesterday was my Birthday. By the time mine comes around Dan will ask "do you want to do a party"? My prompt reply is NO WAY! I celebrated my Birthday by letting Dan do the dishes, and enjoying the news hour without kids to bath and get to bed. I also went to the Girls Camp reunion last night. It was fun to see all of the girls and their leaders again!. Today I canned peaches all day. My sister in-law Shauntel came over this morning to show me how to do it. We have two peach trees that must be on steroids or something. We have masses, and masses of peaches. We've been eating them, but I knew that we couldn't eat them all before they'd go bad. So in spite of my scary preconceptions of canning, I decided to jump in and try it. It actually wasn't to difficult. I was amazed at how rewarding it was. It's nice to work hard and have something to show for your labor. When I spend all day cleaning, the house just gets dirty again the next day. Canning will actually last. I did 24 jars of peaches, and we still have oodles and oodles more on the trees. Hey if anybody out there would like some PLEASE feel free. The kids have been really good. Kate just recently started Preschool. She loves going, and it's been good for Kirk too. I've been able to give him some one on one time. He is so cute, and always excited about life, and has an infectious smile. I guess that is a quick update on how the Mower clan has been doing. I'm now 10 or 11 weeks pregnant. 10 according to my doctor, but I swear I'm further along than he's giving me credit for! We are excited for the fall weather. Fall is my favorite time of year, I just love the changing leaves, and the cooler temperatures. I really can't believe we are wrapping up the year with just a few months left. I don't know were the times has gone.
Kirk found our food coloring and turned himself blue. He looked like a smurf for a day! (luckily it was in the kitchen and wiped right up). Never fret BYU fans his T-shirt washed clean!

I'm Pregnant!

Yes,
The clonmed obviously worked for us! Yea, I am really excited to be pregnant. Dan and the kids are excited as well. I'm only like 7 weeks weeks along. That's a little early for us to be announcing, but I've been acting so strangely because of my symptoms I figure I'd better give the excuse. I feel like all I ever do is eat and sleep. I swear I don't remember being THIS tired all of the time with my other pregnancies. I'm also a little sick. I have to eat every couple of hours to keep from getting nauseated. I guess these are all good signs because I know I'm definitely pregnant. I'll go into the Doctor next week. I can't wait to see the ultra sound. I've heard that when you are pregnant with twins your symptoms are much more pronounced, and also you feel them earlier. I guess we will just have to wait and see if I'm pregnant with multiples. My mom's a twin, so it runs in our family. Just now I put in a Tony's pizza. You know that dollar one's, I know that's totally disgusting. It just sounded really really good to me. Dan has been really supportive and will allow me to rest as much as I want. He doesn't even complain about the house work I've left undone. He's great! Another update, I made it through girls camp last week. That is a huge burden off of my shoulders! With the earlier description of my lack of energy your probably wondering how I survived it! Well I was really worried about being able to keep up with it all. So the day before I asked Dan to give me a priesthood blessing that I could have energy while I was up there. It was a beautiful blessing. He blessed me to not be sick, and that I would have the energy I need to accomplish my responsibilities. That help so much. I was so amazed at how well I felt up at camp. Granted I totally crashed when I got home. But I know that the Lord was there helping me get through it. I know that with the Lords help nothing is impossible. We can ask him for help in any aspect of your life. Whether it be spiritual, or temporal. I know that I've always received answers to every prayer. I'm so grateful for the gospel in my life! I'm so grateful for the new addition we will be receiving into our family. I hope that the earlier statements didn't sound like I was complaining. I think it's fun to just be able to explain about the way I'm feeling during the pregnancy. I'll let you all know how the doctors appointment goes next week.

Kristen comes for a visit!

The past week has been such a blast. My sister Kristen came with her family for a visit to Utah. They live in Sacramento. I've been so excited to see her, and her darling kids. Kate and Kirk have loved playing with their cousins. Kate always asks if she can go to California to see Caroline. We've done so many fun things , I'll try to list them. Kristen, Dain, Caroline, William and Kimball pulled into town on Friday night. So we saw her on Saturday. Saturday evening she blessed her baby. my nephew Kimall is such an adorable little baby. He is actually six months old. He was born while his daddy (Dain) was serving in Afghanistan. The blessing turned out really well, and it was neat to be able to see my nephew's blessing. Sunday we had dinner at my Parent's house. And afterward Dain did a special family home evening on some of the experiences he had over in Afghanistan. It was so humbling to see pictures of the people. The children have so little, and yet they were always smiling in the photos. I'm so grateful for all of those in the armed forces fighting in the war. They are making tremendous sacrifices for our freedom. Then after the presentation Dain gave out little souvenirs for the kids. You can see in the picture, that they were a big hit. Kate loves her Afghanistan scarf, and loves to dress up in it. Then on Monday we went to the fun zone, and the kids had a blast jumping around in the bounce toys. Then afterwards we sent the kids home and my sisters, my mom, and I all went for a girls night out. We went shopping, ate dinner, and saw a movie. I haven't gotten out in a while so it was a real treat Then Tuesday we went to Lagoon. The kids loved it. Kate loved the Ody sea ride. Kirk also loved the rides. I've never seen him laugh so hard. The next night we went out to visit my Grandma Black. She is 97 years old and still going strong. We've nicked named her the energizer bunny. She just keeps going inspite of health complications. Last thanksgiving she broke her hip. She had it replaced went through rehab and is now back at home, getting around well. She is still independent and lives n her own. Her yard is beautiful. It has enourmous trees, which provides plenty of shade. She also has a big grassy hill. We took a slip'n slide out and the kids had fun running through the water. We ate fried chicken and salad. On the 24th of Juyl we went to breakfast at my mom's. It was the best breakfast ever. I'll have to give ya'll the recipe for her famous pecan blueberry french toast. I swear I had like three helpings. The kids played all morning and finally it was time for Kristen and Dain to hit the road. They drove down to Montecello Ut, that's were Dain's family lives. Later that day we all went to a pool party at Dan's parent's house. The kids swam, ate, and made ice cream. It was alot of fun. Well it's been an incredibly busy week, but so much fun. I just wish Kristen lived closer. Ever time she comes out it's bitter sweet. I love being able to see her, but I also miss her so much when she goes. One thing I do know is that your sisters are always there for you, no matter what!

These are the same steps we used to eat on when we were kids. My sweet grandma holding Kimball 6 mo. old. Kate standing next to her 3 yr. old.

Hanging around at gymnastics

I can't believe how fast this week as flown by! I swear it feels like time is in warp speed. This week has been alot of fun. Monday I took the kids to gymnastics. Like always they had a great time. Kirk is starting to catch on to the class. He is doing all of the obstacles very well, and even took his turn on the trampoline. Of course having Alexandra and Justus there makes is 100% more fun. Tuesday I buckled down and did house work. Wednesday we went to the classic fun center. It's perfect for the kids. They get to burn off some energy, and I get to stay where it's air conditioned. Thursday we went to story time at the library. Kirk's attention span has grown immensely. He sat and listened to most of the stories. Even the Librarian noticed the improvement! Friday we went to a swim party at Dan's parents home. The kids had a blast. Kate really loves the water, and even put her face in to blow bubbles, that's huge for her! Today I spent the morning at a girls camp meeting. I'm getting more excited for it, at first I was alittle nervous about being on a stake committee. I felt like I was so young and inexperienced. Now that I know what in the heck I'm doing, I've become more excited for it. I feel like it's going to give me a real spiritual boost as well. I learn so much from the Young Women, they are such amazing girls. I've missed being in young women's so I think it's going to be fun to jump back into it again. I've also been having fun planning Kate's birthday party. Yes I know it's about two months away, but I get so excited for birthdays. I think one of the perks of being a mom is that you can relive your childhood through your kids. I'll admit I have fun buying princess stickers, and pink glitter, and fairy wands! I guess I'm just a kid at heart. But I also love to see how excited Kate gets about birthdays as well. She's been talking about her birthday for about six months, ever since she went to her cousins party in February.

A Fun-filled Fourth!

The past two days have been so much fun. Dan was able to get off work a little early on Thursday. We headed to the Zoo in the afternoon. The kids loved the Zoo. The first thing Kirk said was "I want to see a tiger". He also loved the crocodiles. Kate just announced that her favorite animals were the peacocks. I've got a great picture of Kirk chasing one! We met up with Shaun and Anoel, and their kids. Our double stroller has a broken wheel, so we rented one. It actually turned into a Quadruple stroller! As you can see, I think we got our money's worth out of that rental. We were able to see all of the animals. Then we headed over to a park across the street for a picnic dinner. I guess I'm still a novice when it comes to packing picnics. I forgot a blanket, and plates! We roughed it by sitting on the grass, and eating on our laps. Kirk ruined the bowel of watermelon by sticking his foot into it. After that none of us dared eat anymore of it. We also had sandwiches, cookies, and chips. It turned out really well. Then we headed home supposing we had missed the rush hour traffic, wrong! It took us about an hour and a half to make it home. It gave me a new appreciation for what my Dad's done for all these years. He as commuted to Salt Lake everyday. I now realize how much he has sacrificed for his family. Yesterday was alot of fun to. We started off the day with a delicious breakfast at Mike, and Shauntel's. The kids were so excited to see Alexandra, and Justus. Kirk wore his new croc's and he got a blister. He then cried for twenty min. Poor kid, the only way I could get him to stop crying, was by telling him we'd get candy at the parade. That seemed to cure him of his pain. We ended up going to the Kaysville parade for a change. We found a really great spot, with no crowds in the shade. The catch was that it was at the very end of the parade. It took awhile for it to start, and then about half way through we decided we had seen enough and left early. The kids were good though, they didn't seem to mind the wait. They got a ton of candy since no one else was around to compete for it. Then we went swimming. Kate was more brave than ever. Now that she can touch the bottom of the shallow end she can venture away from the stairs, and sides of the pool. Then after we got the kids showered, and dressed we went to my grandma's annual fourth of July BBQ. It was fun to see all of my Cousins, and Aunts, and Uncles. As we sat under my Grandma's big walnut tree, I reflected on how many Fourth of July's we had celebrated there. It made me so grateful for traditions. It's nice to know that in a world that's constantly changing, some things never change. Traditions are really the bright moments in life. After the BBQ we went home and lit some fireworks I had gotten at Sam's club. The kids enjoyed them. Then I was planning on laying the kids down, but they weren't tired at all. I think Kirk smuggled a few sips of pepsi at my grandma's. So since they were wide awake, and hyper we decided to go to the Layton fireworks show. It was worth the trip. The fireworks were fantastic. I swear they get better each year. It was a fabulous day, and the kids had a blast. I just love the fourth of July! Kate woke up this morning and said "were are we going today Mommy, is there a parade"? I said no it's just back to normal life again, but there's always another holiday to look forward to. I think that's what life is all about. Those special moments we all look forward to year after year.

Right now I'm sitting on top of my kitchen counter, and every square inch of our kitchen is crammed with our sofa's, and mattresses. We also can't park our cars in the garage because the piano, computer desk, beds, and every other piece of furniture is crammed in there. Can you guess, we are getting new carpet! Yea, I've been waiting for this day since Kate decided bright pink nail polish would look pretty on our master bedroom carpet. And since Kirk squirted dish soap all over the living room carpet. Not to mention all of the countless other mishaps with food, Dan's health drinks, and dirt. I can already tell that the house is going to feel like new by the time it's all done. The kids have been really good about being sequestered to the kitchen, and backyard. I have taken some before pictures which I'll include once it's all installed. You can imagine what we did all weekend. It started with a long lunch break Friday. Dan and his amazing Brothers, and Brother in-law came over and moved all our furniture. I can't believe how much stuff we've accumulated over the last five years. We've put off getting new carpet because we knew what a chore it would be to move everything. Thank goodness for Dan's Brothers, or else it would have been impossible! Saturday I spent all morning painting our base boards. I figured it was a good time to paint, since it didn't matter if I got it on the carpet. This was the first time I've ever let Kate paint, I figured I'd let her get the chance since she could drip and it wouldn't matter. The Kate is a really good helper. She is always eager to pitch in and work. She also helped wash down the moldings, and walls. Dan removed all of the doors, and finished moving the remaining stuff out. We've been sleeping on mattresses which didn't go over well with the kids. And since the doors are off of the bedrooms, there was no way of containing the kids to their rooms. Saturday night the kids played in their rooms with each other, then finally fell asleep on Kate's mattress. I also have some more good news. Kirk didn't have to be taken out of Sacrament meeting a single time for being loud, or crying, or running around the chapel. It was so nice to sit through a whole meeting, and he was really good to. Dan is on the high council, so most Sunday's it's just me and the kids. I hope this is a new trend for Kirk, because usually I'm taking him out several times during one hour. As for the update on our attempts to have a third child, I'm not pregnant. We've been trying for like eight months now, and I getting sick of waiting. But I guess it will happen when it is meant to happen. Here are some pictures of the new carpet. I just love it. It feels like we live in a new home. I am so happy with the way it turned out!