A Moment In Time

My memory has never been great. And that's unfortunate, because there are so many things that I want to remember. I just don't have enough time right now. I need more time to record the memories I want to keep. My children are growing up at a pace that takes my breath away. I was reading some of my past blog posts and realized that if I had not written some of those things down they would have forever been gone - I would never have recalled all the details and the precious feelings that made them so special.

I am therefore creating a snapshot of this moment in time. Of my beautiful children and my beautiful life.

Matty

Matty is currently 9 and in the 3rd grade. She is really something! Her body is growing up - and so is her mind in some ways. In other ways, she is still just a little girl. A beautiful little girl that loves to live in fairy tales and make-believe. With Disney's newest film release, her fairy tale of choice has gone from Tangled to Frozen. Where she once dreamed of having beautiful long hair that had magical powers and sang "When Will My Life Begin" over and over, she now triumphantly informs us every time it snows that she made it happen with her magic. The Elsa dress that Santa brought her just last month is already well-worn and falling apart at the seems. Because she is Elsa - and cannot be Elsa without that dress on! She belts out "Let It Go" at the top of her lungs and watches clips of the movie over and over on YouTube. Imagining herself a beautiful, magical princess makes her happy. :)

She is doing well in school. She is steadily meeting the goals that her Special Ed team sets for her. And we are so proud of her progress. She still loves music and demands that we turn it up every time we get in the car. She sings along with such feeling and gets all the words right in her concerts at school and church. When she is all alone she has conversations with people that she loves - or people she has only met in her movies. Sometimes we catch her on her knees in prayer when no one has suggested it. Reading is difficult for her - but she pretends to read her scriptures. It is adorable. She still gives the best hugs ever. All of her almost 70 pounds crawl right up into your lap and melt into you. I dread the day when it will officially be inappropriate for her to do that anymore.

She loves her sister. They have a very sweet friendship that makes me happy. As for her brother, well, at this point in time I would say that they have a mutual agreement to put up with each other. :) They mostly compete for Mom's or Anastyn's attention and butt heads a lot. They are slowly growing out of this phase though. I am excited to watch their relationship grow.

Matty is becoming increasingly stubborn and strong-willed. And sassy. Oh boy is she sassy. Traits that make her who she is, that make us giggle and fall in love with her; but at times can pose problems both at home and at school. Her classmates accept her for who she is and are so sweet and caring. It warms my heart and comforts me.

Matty is a blessing to our family. She has challenges and gives us challenges. But she makes us who we are. She makes us better.

Anastyn

Beautiful. Those eyes. Deep. Brown. Clear and bright. And there is a light that seeps through them and makes them sparkle. That light is her soul. Anastyn has a beautiful soul. I am proud of her every day. I appreciate the young lady that she is. It isn't easy being a middle child. It isn't easy having an older sister with disabilities. It isn't easy having a younger brother to help with. It isn't easy having so much expected of you. But she handles it all with grace and willingness and love.

Don't get me wrong, Anastyn is a typical 7 year old. She gets herself in trouble. She likes mischief and she talks a lot. A lot. She's smart and spunky and full of life. She bounces around and is so fun and happy. She loves to learn new things and does it with such excitement! She just started piano lessons this month. I think she is going to love it!

It is important to her to show love. She is thoughtful. For Christmas this year she spent time thinking about what she could give me and her Daddy. She thought about what would be useful to us. She spent a lot of time locked in her bedroom with a twinkle in her eye as she used paper and all the ink in her markers to make special and meaningful gifts for us. It brought tears to my eyes.

It is important to her to be shown love. Last night her dad told her to clean up around the house. With some prodding she helped Matty clean their room (which basically means she did it herself). After that she helped Mason clean his room - that was her own idea. Kyle didn't know all of the hard work she had already done, and she made the mistake of pestering him in the kitchen. So he told her to go clean up the toys in the basement. She went downstairs with tears in her eyes at the thought of having to do more work. I explained to Kyle what she had already done, so he sent me downstairs to tell her never mind. I said, "Daddy changed his mind. We can work on the basement tomorrow." She smiled and said, "Mom, did you change his mind?" I replied with a wink, and she said, "I love you, Mom."

Anastyn really is the "older sister" at our house. She takes care of everyone. She plays with everyone. She helps with getting dressed and brushing teeth. She helps with cleaning and chores. She bosses and mothers. She hugs and comforts. She reads to Matty and Mason. She sacrifices. She has always seemed older than her years. Even when she was a baby she seemed older somehow. I admire who she is. She makes me better, too.

Mason

Mmmmmmmm......Mason. Lovable, squishable, cuddly, sweet, Mason. Mason is my baby no matter how often he reminds me that he is not a baby. I think because Mason is my last baby I feel so sad that his baby-ness is dwindling. He became a Sunbeam at church in January. No longer in nursery. My heart broke.The memories of my girls as babies are fading. I need to remember how special this time is. His so-soft skin. His tiny little teeth. His little hands that hold mine. His giggles. The way he just bounds around more like a puppy than a little human. He wants me to hold him and rub his back. He wants me to kiss his cheeks and he wants to kiss mine. Sweet, slobbery kisses. Hugs that mold around my body with no hint of reservation. I love his sweet little voice, especially when he says the word "mommy". He's getting bigger every day and I am so grateful that I can still pick him up and hold him for just a little while longer. This little boy brings me joy. And lots of it.

Kyle

Kyle is amazing. Simply amazing. Seemingly endless energy (or a supernatural ability to hide being tired). Middle age I guess is where we are at. He is still young and strong, but starting to feel the aches and pains a little. Not quite as invincible as before - but still determined to be. He is doing such a great job taking care of our family. He works hard. He provides well. And I know why he does it. It's cause he loves us. We appreciate that. Being a husband and father can be a thankless job - but it still gets done. He spends endless time and energy chopping wood, hauling it, and keeping it burning so we never feel cold. He pitches in with dinner when I'm busy or tired or lazy. And he's still a looker, that man. I'm a lucky gal.

This man knows how to do a lot of things. He is so handy to have around. And Mason will learn so much from him. Kyle is Mason's super hero. He can't wait to grow up to be big and awesome just like his Daddy.

Me

I am busy, but not. It's great. I get to be a mom. There is no better job in the world. There really isn't. There isn't a harder, more challenging, more overwhelming, more frustrating job in the world. But so rewarding. I love it and cherish it and am so grateful that I get to do it. I have other jobs too, though. I sub at the school, which I love. It's a fun change of pace - good to get out there in the world. I work part time with the Kids program for Meeteetse Recreation. It's a blessing. I get to be creative and silly and have fun - and the best part is that all of my own kids get to be there with me. We're together and I'm getting paid for it. What a blessing. And I also do a little bit of bookkeeping on the side. Keeps my brain working a little bit. That's good for me too.

We like Meeteetse. It's a good place to be right now. The school is wonderfully small and the teachers are so great. Our ward at church is small but strong. It's quiet and beautiful here.

Life's good.

The Runner Up

This is the runner up for our Christmas cards this year. Even though it didn't make the cut - I love it!!!! Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!!

Cabin Fever!!

According to Wikipedia (unreliable sometimes, I know - but in this case I believe it is quite correct), Cabin fever is an idiomatic term for a claustrophobic reaction that takes place when a person or group is isolated and/or shut in a small space, with nothing to do, for an extended period (as in a simple country vacation cottage during a long rain or snow). Symptoms include restlessness, irritability, paranoia, irrational frustration with everyday objects, forgetfulness, laughter, excessive sleeping, distrust of anyone they are with, and an urge to go outside even in the rain, snow, dark or hail.

Hmmmmmm. I think we have it. We have cabin fever.

For those of you who aren't familiar with our current situation, we are living in a cabin. You see, the house we were renting sold. This house sat empty for three years on the market, until we begged to rent it. Then we begged to fix the big problems with it. And then it sold. Sarcastic smiley face.

We started panicking when we were unable to find a new place to rent. But of course it all worked out...kind of.  Another sarcastic smiley face.

We found another place to rent. Unfortunately it wouldn't be available soon enough. So we had to find a temporary solution. A place to call home for one month. And so began our Oasis Cabin Retreat!

We are living in a campground! Five of us (three of which are small children that bounce off walls and make lots of noise and go crazy when couped up) are jammed into this one-bedroom joint. And we are having so much fun! At least that's what we are trying to tell ourselves! The kids bounce from bed to bed. We find them under the bed. They watch the same movies over and over. They yell and scream and giggle. When we are all here, I would say it's pretty much pandemonium and we all want out, out, out!!!

There are some strange things about living in this little cabin. For some reason, the part of the night I should be sleeping just drags on for me. I wake up a lot. I wonder if it has anything to do with the four other people sleeping in the same room? And then, I am so tired in the afternoon I end up taking a nap (which isn't something I normally do). And a couple times I have woken up in a panic. One night it was because my entire arm had fallen asleep. I was so out of it I thought I was having a heart attack! I woke Kyle up and got him upset. And I couldn't let myself fall asleep the rest of the night because I thought I would die if I did! It took me clear until late the next morning to snap out of it!

Another night I woke up sure that I could smell a gas leak and that we were all going to die. Anyways...I don't usually act quite so crazy!  One morning I was making our bed and found a huge, nasty spider with a great big egg sac attached to it in our sheets!!!! Freaked out just a little bit.

And then, the other day I was speaking to the man that lived in this cabin just before us. He told me all about the ghost he saw one night at the foot of the bed. The freaking guy says he saw a ghost in this cabin! Holy crap, if I couldn't sleep before.....

Anyways: Claustrophobia, check. Isolated/shut in a small space with nothing to do, check. Restlessness, check. Irritability, check, check, check!  Paranoia, yep. Laughter, check. Excessive sleep, check. It all fits, really. Cabin fever it is.

On the bright side of things, the kids are enjoying it here. They think it is an adventure - and they are right!

We are looking forward to moving on. Soon, Cabin 29 will be just a memory. A good memory, but one we probably wouldn't want to repeat!

All Kinds of Things to Tell You About!...

Roasting S'Mores in our back yard...

 A couple weeks ago I found this nasty critter snackin' on Anastyn! She must have some tasty blood because this is not the first time we have had to pull a tick out of her skin!!! Still makes my stomach churn to look at these pictures! As usual, she was a brave little trooper. I couldn't get the dang thing out so she had to wait for Daddy to get home from work to save the day!!

 This here is what happens when Daddy refuses to let you leave the table before you eat your dinner and Anastyn refuses to eat! There are a few stubborn people in this little family of ours...

 Mason at the Mustang Days Parade rockin' the sweet Beatles t-shirt Aunt Chels gave him for his birthday!

 The girls collecting a ridiculous amount of candy at the parade. Thank goodness for Aunt Kacee, or Matty wouldn't have gotten any. She wasn't quite as fast as the other kids! ;)

 While Chels and KJ were here, we all went up to 5 Springs to kill some time. This is me with anxiety because the creek was running so high and fast. I wasn't about to let these kids out of my sight!!!

 Our little "Rambino"!

 Dad kickin' it on the picnic table!

 Kyle came home from work yesterday with these beautiful wildflower arrangements for his girls! I think he would make a dang good florist!
 

Backyard Friends

We came home from church last Sunday to find 29 deer right in our back yard! They were all settled down for a nap on this cold, foggy day. We enjoyed peeking out the window at them. They didn't seem to mind the attention at all! They didn't even budge when I quietly stepped out onto the back porch to snap some pictures! They were so close I couldn't get them all in one frame.

A little while later, some of the braver ones decided to come peek in on us as we were watching a movie!

We Are "Those" People

I like to think that I keep my family pretty clean. I pride myself on fixing the girls' hair cute every day, making sure their faces are washed and they have clean clothes on. I much prefer myself with my hair fixed and my makeup on. I like to make sure we are all bathed on a regular basis and have brushed teeth. It makes me feel like a good wife and mother. It just does.

But right now...

we are not so lovely. We smell good and look nice about 2 or 3 days out of 7. However - on those days we are in the car and nobody sees us! Another couple days out of the week we are looking just a little "rough around the edges". And then there are the other two days. Oh baby. On those days we are "that family". You know the family I'm talking about. The ones that we are all sure live in a barn. The ones that send their poor little children to school with messy hair and a certain "smell" following them around. The family that I have always tried not to be. That would be us. Right now.

I say all of this with a smile on my face because I know that is not really us. It is...but just for a little bit longer til we have some water at the house. I know I am not the mother of the "stinky family". . . .

But -

do the fine people of Meeteetse, Wyoming know this? :) :) :) Funny. I hope we don't get labled yet. I hope they give us a chance to get our problems straightened out and then we can show them how lovely we really are!!! wink, wink!

When The Dog Bites, When The Bee Stings...

When I'm Feeling Bad
I Simply Remember My Favorite Things
And Then I Don't Feel So Bad!

Loves from my Mr.
Smiles From Mason
Even Better...Giggles from Mason
The twinkle in Anastyn's eye
Matty singing Hannah Montana or Taylor Swift in the back seat of the car
The smell of my children after a bath
A snowy or rainy day when there is nowhere to go
Ice cold Pepsi
Scotch-a-roos
My flannel sheets
The Twilight Saga
Movies on the Big Screen
The smell of rain or freshly cut grass
Sparkles/Glitter/Bling
Spring
Summer
Fall
Christmas decorations
Tai Pan
Visits from sisters
Target
Scrapbook Paper
Shopping trips to Billings
Olive Garden
Reading a good book

These are a few of my favorite things!

**Meeteetse Update** Still getting settled, still waiting for good water, still driving to Cody or Lovell every few days to get cleaned up and do laundry. And Matty is liking her new school so far. :)

Top Ten

My Top Ten List of Things I Have Recently Taken For Granted

10. A nice, long fall
9. Someone to "car pool" kids to school with
8. A good metabolism
7. A really good elementary school with a really good special ed program
6. Not having to pay rent
5. Sleep
4. Living near family and friends and having plenty of babysitters
3. Having a grocery store in town
2. My mom
1. Clean, clear city water

Lesson learned: Be grateful for what you have...things can always get worse!

This move is going to be hard on me. I am losing a lot of helpers, I'm not sure how Matty's education will be affected, I am going to have to think ahead and plan meals and be careful not to forget anything at the grocery store (since the nearest one is 30 miles away). I am going to have to deal with a lot of snow and mud...and worst of all, well water. In. My. Home. Well water that has been sitting in the tank and pipes for years. Brown, stinky well water.

But...it can always be worse. I know someone who will have to move to China soon. China is worse than Meeteetse...right??

P.S. I will be making a list of positive things about my move just as soon as I get settled. And as soon as I think of some. :)

For All Of Our Utah Friends...

This post is for all of our friends that are wondering where in the heck Lovell, Wyoming is and what is it like???

Sorry...the pictures kind of came up in a random order that doesn't make much sense, but here we go:

Coming into Lovell from the east side of town. The big sign that says Hyart is our theater...it is really old and actually really neat inside. It was closed down for a lot of years, but the town has opened it back up. It plays a movie on Fridays and Saturdays!




This is just a cool picture I took while out on a photo shoot with the girls (will post those pics later). I thought it was beautiful. Just in a field outside of town.

Here is the view from my parents' front yard (east of town). This is part of the Big Horn Mountains. So pretty...

And here is a picture of the American Colloid bentonite plant...where Kyle is currently working. This can also be seen from my parents' front yard!!!

Population sign as you come into town...

More Big Horn Mountains behind a corn field on my Grandparents' farm...

Here is our LDS Stake Center. No kidding, I have never seen a bigger one (not even in Utah!) It has two chapels inside and a huge cultural center in the middle. There is also a gym across the street...

Lots and lots of pretty views...

And last, but not least, a picture of the Sugar Factory as seen from the east side....

Well...hope you enjoyed my little tour of Lovell!!! Come visit!!!
P.S...I removed the picture of the bar...sorry! Didn't want you to think that was somewhere we like to hang out!!! ha ha!

It's Been Awhile!!!!

Wow...I apologize!!! It has been about what...eleven months since my one and only post!!! I should be ashamed of myself! However, like I said in the last post...our lives have been pretty much crazy and out of control. Hopefully now things have slowed down a bit and I will be able to take the time to blog a little more. Our lives in a nutshell at the moment: We just left St. George. We loved it there!! We miss it a lot. But business just wasn't happening. Not much demand for custom closets...or anything related to construction for that matter. We held out for as long as we could...but it was time to go somewhere else. So after lots and lots of thought we decided to go HOME. So here we are, back in Lovell, Wyoming!! At the moment we are living with my parents until we find a place we like. We are just trying to set life on cruise control for the moment...and hopefully that will allow us to enjoy the little things for a bit. The girls are so happy to be able to see grandpas and grandmas every day...they are taking a liking to being spoiled. Well, that's all for now. Sorry, no current pics. Will get some up soon!!!