I think this is the longest I've gone....

I can't believe it's been almost a year since I've posted. Crazy. Let's see..... I'm still going to school and working at the boys' school. This school year seemed to fly by. I wasn't with a specific teacher this year. I liked only teaching groups, but it was a little lonely to not be with a teacher and part of the grade level team. So for the 2015-16 year I will be back in a classroom! I'm excited to learn from a teacher that I've never worked with and able to interact with the kiddos at recess and lunch again. I discovered one of the coolest things ever, it's called Adult Fitness class at a tumbling gym! I LOVE it! It has brought out my inner dancer/cheerleader and I hope to be able to do a back handspring by my next birthday.... Here's an update on the rest of the fam...

Andy - Still working at the same job, which is good. We are both looking forward to hiking the Narrows in Zion's National Park later this year with most of his siblings. His parents are in their second month of serving their second mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They have a large lawn that needs mowing in their absence, Andy volunteered William. Which is also great....... 

William - He learned how to play the clarinet this year, and the music teacher at our school made them do online theory, from that he taught himself how to play the piano! I hope he continues with music. I love that he loves it! He finished 6th grade on the high honor roll, and taller than his mama!! He has a few really good friends, including a girl that he's been friends with since 4th grade. I asked him if he wanted to get her a different Valentine than the ones that came in the box that he got for everyone, he responded with, "why?" I'll just let that stay that way for as long as possible. He's still so sweet and tender-hearted. I really don't think I could "mother" without his help. He will go to scout camp, for a whole week, in a month. I told him he couldn't go because I don't know how to entertain his brothers without him here to help keep them interested or distracting them. Again, time is flying by, I feel like I blinked and my little boy suddenly disappeared. He will be in 7th grade luckily our school has junior high in the same building so it won't be *too* bad to have a kid in junior high because he'll just be upstairs. He doesn't complain to loudly about chores and mowing his grandparents lawn. He loves reading and playing the xbox and "hanging out" with friends, because you can't ask if friends can "play" anymore.... (insert sigh and eye-roll here)

Matthew - Matty turned 9 in April and had a friend birthday party at an indoor pool. It was a lot of fun. He finished 2nd grade also on the high honor roll, with really shaggy hair, and glasses! He also decided to try baseball this year. He has a tournament next week and then it will be done. He's made a LOT of progress and has had a great coach that has worked with him a lot to help him get hits. He wanted to be on the same team as his friend so we have to travel a bit to practices and games, but it has been GREAT for him! He loves reading, jumping on the trampoline, playing the xbox, and flipping his hair like Justin Bieber when he talks to people. I've tried to talk him into cutting it, he says he wants to have a ponytail and a man-bun. (Insert another sigh and eye-roll here) But they're only little once and this is the first thing he's stuck to his guns and not caved so that's got to count for something, right?

AJ - Oh AJ, he is my wild child through and through. He will be 5 soon and that means Kindergarten!! I'm excited to have him with me at school, but on the flip side it doesn't seem possible that he's going into Kindy!! He is silly and funny and makes life FUN! He tells some really funny stories and has been known to make up stories about his family. He told our neighbors once that his friend couldn't come over because I had let my boobies out and his friend couldn't see that, (no I do NOT run around topless, if you were wondering). He also told them that I was a dragon and then said that William had killed a dragon. He loves to go shirtless and likes to wear the cowboy boots and hat that he got from his babysitter's son with EVERYTHING. He loves to shoot people with water and nerf guns but usually gets upset when the tables turn. Our dentist talks about sugar bugs on your teeth and lately he asks "does this have sugar bugs in it" about anything that he's about to eat. Fruit has good sugar bugs in case you didn't know. If he doesn't want to eat something he says it will make him thirsty. He's a mama's boy. There are days that he is attached to my hip. I try to remember there will be a time that he won't want anything to do with me. Loves anything electronic, loves to color and make sound effects as he's coloring, he loves to play with his cousin Tate aka Take, who is the same grade as Matthew. Wants to go somewhere everyday and hates when I tell him we are just staying home.

I am blessed and also feel like life is a little crazy most days and most of the time I'm trying to just make it through the day. Some days are better than others.

Mother's Day, this was the week that Will suddenly shot up!

We did a lemonade/popcorn/cookie stand. We will do it again.

AJ and his AMAZING babysitter Annie! She's watched him for two years and he absolutely LOVES her, can't say that I blame him!

He had shaggy hair too, but he let me get it cut!

True AJ style.

Matthew after playing catcher.

This just made me laugh! Matty's Doppleganger! Cobra Kai forever! Matthew is too nice to be as mean as Johnny.

A few more things

THIS post is what prompted my first post today. And this song made my day!!

Mom let's go swimming

This simple request has sent me over the self confidence edge far too many times to count. However, this summer I've tried my hardest to get out of my own head and just ENJOY our time. After all they are only little once. So here we are doing some fun things this summer.

On our hike up to Lake Mary, before Matty fell....

AJ showing me his "burned finners" (pruny hands). I had to throw this one in, because he's hilarious.

William and I at Slide the City. 

Going through pictures I realize I'm not in enough pictures. I want my boys to remember that they're mom did things with them, not that I refused because of who could possibly see me in all my glory in a bathing suit. 

When I see other moms with their kids I notice the joy on their faces, not their size. So why do I think I'm any different? Maybe because most of my childhood I remember hearing my mom and grandma saying "make sure you can't see me in the picture" so my challenge to myself and any other mom that feels less than beautiful is to GET IN THE PICTURE!! Get in the water and have a splash war with your kids, play, run and swing with them. My boys LOVE to look at pictures of their parents. How sad will they be if I'm not in any?? They don't see my flabby arms or dimply legs. They just see their mom who they think is the most beautiful person in their world. Why wouldn't I want to savor every minute that they think that? All too soon they will discover girls, and huge sigh, will be marrying one of those said girls. I will still be their beautiful mom but another beautiful woman will have their hearts. Enjoy the journey friends. 

Running, birds, and Matty

Yesterday my ego took a HUGE hit. I'm trying to brush it off but man alive why are teenagers so rude and disrespectful? I wish I could remember if I was ever that way. I want to say there is no way I would have ever called a lady out running a lard-o. But who knows, maybe I did? Yep, that's what happened last night. I needed to get a run in, I left my house at 10:30ish and set out around our neighborhood, because it was dark I wore a headlamp, I hate wearing anything that calls attention to me so I was already feeling uncomfortable, but felt great and was pacing pretty well. I got up on the frontage road and gave it all I had when I got to the end of my kick I saw a group of boys and didn't think much of it, I didn't hear everything they said to me because I had my headphones in, but the phrase, "what a lard-o" made it to my ears. SO I turned up my music and finished strong. It wasn't until I got home and jumped in the shower and the water hit all my chaffing that I just cried. I also cried because I had my tracker set to road cycling and not running and it kept pausing for some reason so I have no idea how far I actually went, I have a pretty good idea, but no idea what my splits were for said run....

Generally other runners and adults are very supportive of runners. No I'm not the fastest person out there, but I get it done, but most importantly I feel awesome after I get a run done. I know I have a LONG way to go with my weight, it's been a huge struggle the last 4ish years, but I realized I've been too focused on the end result which overwhelms me. 75 pounds is a small human, bigger than my 8 year old, and that seems to be all that my brain can focus on, what I have to do to get to the end of my journey, not what I am doing....

On a lighter note, I feel like the birds around my house and neighborhood are plotting to gouge my eyes out and display them as a reminder to the rest of the human race of what they are capable of. We've had a birds nest in the corner of our rain gutter and front door for the past several years and we always plan to take it down after the babies leave the nest, this year on the 4th of July we came home to the empty nest hanging off the edge, so the next day I took it down and put two big rocks on the gutter so they can't build another nest. The mom and dad this summer were really aggressive and would flap their wings right in your face every time you came out the door or looked like you were going to go in the door. My neighbors felt the same way whenever they'd come to borrow a cup of whatever or just to talk. However the birds didn't bother Andy for some reason? Maybe he's the one helping them know whose eyes need gauging, just kidding. Even though my neighbor across the street feared for her life every time she came to my house this didn't stop her from putting a few bird houses in her trees. Yesterday I was doing yard work in our back yard and side yard, our one really great tree is on that side of our yard. I noticed HUGE birds hanging out in the branches, I continued my work and when I came back up by the tree 1358 million birds flew out of the tree and were swooping all around me! All of them were moving together and flying between my tree and my neighbor's.... I felt like Tippi Hedren and wondered if Alfred Hitchcock was filming me. Seriously, what the heck??? 

Wednesday we went on a beautiful hike up Big Cottonwood Canyon, it was a lot of fun and everything was going great until it was time to hike back down from Lake Mary. Matty and I got caught behind a big youth group and I was panicking a little that my sister-in-law had to deal with AJ and her youngest on her own so I was encouraging Matthew to run whenever we were on level, less-rocky ground, I would hold his hand when we ran, I let go to adjust the backpack and he tripped. He skinned his knees really bad and I felt like a horrible mom. We finally caught up with Audrey, AJ and Tate; she came prepared with band-aids and fixed Matty up as well as she could and we started again. He was whining and holding my hand, I let go, again to adjust and he face planted!! I was shocked that it happened again, I couldn't say anything for fear of losing it laughing or hysterically crying for him, neither option would have helped him. Matthew can be the easiest child 99.9% of the time, but if he gets hurt or doesn't feel good, all bets are off. So he got a piggy-back ride the rest of the way down. AJ decided he needed one too so awesome Aunt Audrey gave him one. 

That's been my week thus far. Up for today: more yard work, then Matthew, AJ, Cho and I are heading to grandma's to have a sleep over so I can help with my grandpa's 80th birthday plans and they can watch the boys while I go for a long run on Saturday. Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly. And there won't be any haters out and about.

I can't believe he's 4!!

AJ turned 4 today!! He's a little stinker but I love him to the moon and back!!! He still refuses to potty train, and even said he didn't want to have his birthday because I told him that he was a big boy now, and in his brain being a big boy equals having to go potty. He says some of the funniest things ever! I'm so happy that we have him, even though I cried for literally MONTHS when we found out we were having our third boy. He completes our family and is such a mommas boy! I hope that never changes. He loves animals, especially dogs and horses. I hope to get him on a horse this summer. He loves to go to grandmas house and will cheer when I tell him we are going to either ones house.  4 things I love about Andrew James:
1. His infectious laugh
2. He loves to give me hugs and kisses and loves to sit with me. Everywhere we go.
3. He can play with little toys or even non-toys for HOURS by himself. I love to listen to him play by himself.
4. He can be so stubborn, more than both his brothers combined, but he's is so incredibly sweet.

Some selfies I found on my phone of him.

He loves babies!! 

Pre-school

Paint my beets! Beets=feet

He got new garden gloves and was helping pull weeds

"yook, momma I'm bigger!"

At the zoo for his last pre-school fieldtrip

Playing at the lake!

Cousin Connor was so sweet to play with AJ for hours!

Feeding the goats, he would get close to the goats with the food, then dump it on the ground and laugh about it.

Hailey and AJ!

At the zoo!

He wanted to help by adding sprinkles to the cupcakes.

Happy Birthday AJ!!

I went through old pictures and found the car seat pictures, click HERE  to see them.  

My oldest is amazing!

William turned 11 on the 24th!!!  He's getting taller and taller, and smarter and smarter! He got on the high honor roll and got the highest score possible on his writing assesment at the end of the year, he just makes me SO happy!! He is such an amazingly sweet kid!! I'm so proud to be his mama!!! Eleven things I LOVE about William....

1. He looks exactly like his dad. 

2. His heart is on his sleeve. 

3. He helps his brothers without too much complaining. 

4. He loves to watch Harry Potter with me. 

5. He likes to help and teach those around him. 

6. Cuddle time still happens!!

7. The way he talks about things he loves. Namely Minecraft and experiences he had at scout camp. 

8. Willing to play with almost any kids whenever we go places. 

9. Instead of freaking out about changing schools in 4th grade he stepped up to the plate and ROCKED it!!!!

10. The imaginative play that he seems to of passed on to his brothers. 

11. He loves so deeply and sweetly. 

Hello Summer!

This year we don't have any solid set in stone plans. Except for races I'm signed up for, scout camps and my grandpas 80th birthday celebration. 

I'm trying to be structured and plan things out as we all do better around here if we have those things. Mondays are make it Monday so we try to make something. Tuesday is travel day so we go somewhere (usually grandmas to swim), Wednesday is water day, Thursday is thinking Thursday and Friday is friend day. It's been fun to try to think of things that fit with those. 

William turns ELEVEN on Tuesday. So I'll be posting again about him, he is such a GOOD kid!! He asked for a bow and a quiver of arrows. We got him a bow and some arrows. This week I'm going to be hitting Pinterest and DIY you tube videos to see if I can find directions on how to make your own quiver and William and I will make it so it's more custom to his personality. We're also going to print out some targets. 

William still hasn't found his niche. None of my boys have. We haven't tried anything with AJ but I'm hopeful he'll be our more athletic one. 

I'm tutoring 3 kids this summer and while it's going well I don't make time to work with my children on school stuff. I will try to get better with that!!! 

One of the girls that I'm tutoring was in my class 2 years ago and we built a really good relationship and at our first session she asked me how my summer was going and then asked why I had dyed my hair grey only on the sides. So I went blond. Still getting used to it and still undecided if I like it. 

At the Color Me Rad 5k yesterday. It was so fun!

At the demolition derby AJ just wanted to lay on the bleachers. It was still lots of fun! 

Swimming at grandmas!

At the Railroad Museum!

Kids bowl free program is fun to do with friends so that the moms can chat!! 

Looking forward to more adventures this summer!!