McDonalds

We deprive our kids and don't take them out to eat often. Really, would you want to deal with 3 kids under the age of 4 at a restaurant? Well, Grandma Green was nice enough to give us a gift certificate to McDonald's for Christmas and we decided to take advantage of it last night. The kids loved seeing Ronald McDonald in the flesh, er, I mean plastic sitting right there on the bench. This is the friendliest I've seen Corinne with a stranger!



Then I had some strange lady tell me how there are so many germs on the plastic Ronalds and she had heard it from a friend. But how can there be any more germs on him than there are at a playground? If we kept our kids from playing anywhere public would that keep them from getting sick? In my opinion, a little exposure to germs helps to boost their immune system. That is, after all, how our immune system works--the body is exposed to a pathogen and then develops antibodies to fight it and then remember that pathogen to fight it more quickly the next time. So if my kids are healthy then a few small germs aren't going to kill them--just make them stronger!

First smile

Nora just started smiling this week. She's pretty funny about it and will only smile at me if she's a certain distance away from my face. She probably can only focus on things that far away and not closer. The other day she did a nice big mess in her pants and then gave me a huge open-mouthed grin. That must have felt good!

Merry Christmas

We had a nice simple Christmas at home with just our little family. It ended up raining while Santa was visiting so all our snow melted. I still have yet to have a white Christmas--but you won't hear any complaints from me. I've never been one to enjoy the snow or the cold.

Matthew came downstairs and saw the biggest present and had to open that one first.

Matthew got to open up pretty much all the presents this year--again. We tried to get Corinne to open a present but she would start and then put it down to play with a toy already opened.

Corinne shared some wrapping paper with Daddy while he filmed the event on his new phone. We each had early Christmas phones this year.

And, my favorite present--a new house! We bought this 2006 house in Buckeye, AZ this month. We are totally excited to move into it. It was foreclosed on and the previous owners (we suspect) left with not only their stuff but also the entire kitchen, the air conditioner, water heater, garage door opener, the carpet and a few other items here and there. So, we've got some work to do on it, but for $90,000 for a 3300 sq ft 5 bedroom 3 bathroom house, I think we scored! We also have a year and a half to fix it up until we move there. I just keep looking at the weather in AZ with longing for those warm winters and even warmer summers!

The woes of snow

After Jeremy read the last post, he wanted to make sure that everyone knew that snow is not always fun. He said I needed to post some pictures of him shoveling the snow to remind those who live in Arizona, why they want to live there and why we will be moving there in a year and a half (as if we're not counting down--but I'll post more on that later). Corinne wanted to show off her cute little coat. The kids wanted to be outside with Daddy but then had to come back inside when their hands got cold from getting wet in the silly mittens they have for kids. If anyone knows of a place where I can get waterproof kids gloves let me know.

Just one more winter after this one and then we won't have to shovel snow any more! On a side note, it is currently snowing again so Jeremy may have to get out there and shovel some more.

Playing in the snow

For those of you who live in Arizona, there is some cold white stuff that falls from the sky in the wintertime called snow. It is not a fictional occurence only written about in books but it actually happens in places where it gets cold. The last time it snowed was on a Sunday and I didn't have time to let the kids play in it before it melted. So I decided to make it up to them today and took them outside for a little while. At first Matthew was just excited to make footprints in the snow. Can you tell they're not used to the snow?

Then Matthew remembered that you can eat snow and Corinne caught on as well. So they stuffed their faces with snow for awhile. Then I threw a few snowballs at them but they couldn't get the hang of it. It wasn't very sticky snow and so we couldn't make a good snowman.

I was watching the news later and they were saying that we were having a few spots of "thunder snow." I have never heard of that before but apparently it is when there is lightning and thunder along with the snowstorm.

Visiting the Aquarium Again

Since we have season passes, we go to the aquarium frequently. It has been pretty cold recently and the kids are getting cabin fever from being inside too long. So, to reduce further destruction to the house, we went to the aquarium the other day. Matthew loved watching the penguins swimming.

They always like to pose next to the bronze penguins.

I thought this was a cute shot of Corinne posing next to the shark.

We tried to get a shot with daddy and the kids but no one was really cooperating. And, I wanted a shot of Corinne's awesome boots that keep her feet nice and warm!

One month old!

Nora is officially one month old today. So far she has been such a sweet-tempered baby which is a blessing since Corinne was such a handful. Most of the time I can just set her down in the crib and she may cry for a couple of minutes before finally putting herself to sleep. She also is content just to hang out in the swing much of the time so I can get dinner ready or clean the house or get other things done. And when she starts to get fussy, I only have to pick her up and she calms right down. I just hope I don't neglect her too much since she is so good-natured.

And, as you can see, she is taking after her Grandpa Strong as far as hairdos go. It's looking like the makings of a mullet with nothing on top and about a half inch long in the back!

Christmas List

I was talking to Matthew about Santa Claus and his role in Christmas and then asked Matthew what he wanted for Christmas. The conversation went as follows:
Me: What do you want for Christmas?
Matthew: Food.
Me: What kind of food?
Matthew: Broccoli.
Me: What else?
Matthew: Tomatoes.
It looks like I'll just have to go Christmas shopping at the grocery store this year!

Holiday Traditions

Now that Matthew is old enough to understand what Christmas is about and who Santa Claus is, I was trying to think of some fun Christmas traditions to start with the kids to get them excited about Christmas. I want to do something inexpensive, yet memorable but I also don't want it to be too time-consuming since I do have a newborn to attend to, not to mention the Christmas shopping I didn't get to before Nora was born and all the other church activities we need to fit into our schedule, etc. I was hoping that maybe some of you have some great ideas that you could share, if you don't mind me copying your ideas. I just watched the First Presidency Christmas Devotional and that made me want to start traditions of service and of remembering the Savior. I particularly enjoyed President Eyring's family rendition of a Christmas pageant complete with stone-throwing at Samuel. Feel free to share ideas that you and your children enjoy!

Christmas decorating

Matthew and Corinne had a blast helping me decorate the tree this year. I put a hook on the ornament and gave it to Corinne who gave it to Matthew who put it on the tree. I was able to put 4 or 5 ornaments on the top branches before the kids started helping me. This is what it looked like when we were through

A close up of Matthew's favorite branches

It seems as though no matter how much effort I put into Corinne's hair, she always looks like a little lost orphan girl by the end of the day. I just don't feel like fighting her after naps to redo the hair and make it look nice. What am I going to do with 2 girls' hair to do?

Matthew found the stockings and decided to put them on because, after all, socks go on the feet!

I caught Matthew zoning out while watching Peter Pan so I decided to take advantage of the moment...

They love their sister

Can you tell that they love to hold their sister? I was worried that Corinne might be jealous of Nora since she is a mama's girl big time but that has not been the case. She has become mama's special helper with the baby and wants to hold and touch Nora all the time. That has been a great blessing!

Pizza and Pajamas

Since the temperature outside has dropped into the 20's overnight, I decided it was time to break out the fleece pajamas. Matthew and Corinne love them and Corinne even wants to wear them during the day over her clothes. I helped her put her arms through the sleeves and she was content just to run around the house with the pajamas flowing out behind her like a cape. Here she is posing for the camera (she remembered to stand right there like she did for Halloween pictures).

An action shot of Corinne running through the house with her pajama cape behind her.

Matthew and Corinne helping to make pizza! They usually get their fill by snacking on the toppings while Mommy or Daddy puts them on the pizza. It turned out so yummy--thanks Kim for the recipe!

Baby pictures

I thought it would be an interesting post to look at the 3 kids baby pictures to compare. I think Nora looks a lot like Matthew did as a baby. Corinne definitely had her own look as well as tons of hair. Nora might have to wait a while longer before I can do pigtails or clips with her. Maybe it's for the best--I sometimes struggle with doing Corinne's hair, plus when she was little she almost always had knots in the back of her hair because she squirmed all the time.

All Natural

On November 13 I was sent to the hospital by my doctor to be induced due to an amniotic fluid index of 4. I learned that having low amniotic fluid is bad because it provides for less floating room for the baby and as a result, the baby presses against the umbilical cord and decreases blood flow to the baby. After arriving at the hospital, the doctor gave me some Cervidol which is supposed to soften and dilate the cervix. After about 10 hours the contractions started. It seemed to happen all of the sudden--the contractions were a few minutes apart and pretty strong in intensity. After about 3 hours of it I couldn't even think strait and asked the nurse for some pain medicine/epidural/anything! She called the doctor and I called Jeremy (around 5 am) and the doctor arrived in what seemed like an eternity later. By this time the contractions were pretty much right on top of each other. The doctor left the room to order an epidural and as soon as she left, I had to push. The doctor was summoned back to the room and canceled anesthesia and caught Nora after about 2 pushes. Then came the stitching (yes, I tore) and cleaning the baby and putting the room back together. Just as it was all finished, Jeremy walked into the room nonchalantly--right in time to hold the calm baby. I think he may have wondered what the fuss was all about when I told him that I had the baby without pain relief. I still don't think he reailzes how traumatic it was. I don't recommend it to anyone! Don't be brave! Get the epidural!

Third

Running with Daddy

To give Mommy a break (since I am on bedrest) Daddy decided to take the kids out for a run. Here they are all decked out in their cold weather attire.

Daddy looking like an alien with his new cold weather running attire. The kids love going for rides with Daddy especially when he goes super fast down the hills! They had the cutest pink cheeks and red noses when they came home!

Bedrest!?!

I went to the doctor on Tuesday for the usual amniotic fluid ultrasound and non-stress test. At the end of the visit the doctor told me that once again my fluid level was low. As a result, I would have to be on bedrest for a couple of days and then get checked again. I wanted to say, "bedrest? Are you kidding me? Have you seen my kids?" So, I attempted bedrest for a couple of days but I really didn't take it too seriously. I still went shopping and did stuff with Jeremy and the kids. Well, on my Thursday re-check the fluid level was the same and so I'm still on bedrest. I'm trying to be more serious about it and Jeremy is trying to help me by telling me to stay on the couch when I get up to help him clean up or put the kids to bed. It's just such a drastic change for me after having done everything by myself for 3+ months and then just having to sit back and watch Jeremy do it all or just be content to let my house be a mess. It is very difficult for me to do, but I'm trying. I wish the baby would just come already!

It's always fun when Daddy's home

It was a warmer than normal day so we headed out to the park. Jeremy finally finished his college classes so he had time to play with us and the kids. They loved having Daddy their to play with them instead of Mommy, who is too big to do much of anything right now.

Daddy put them both on the handicapped swing. I thought maybe the kids would be uncomfortable squished onto it but neither of them wanted off. In fact, we got a resounding "no!" from both when we asked if they were done.

A close up of the happy faces.
Matthew having fun down the slide.
Daddy made this slide look like so much fun that all the kids wanted to join in. Daddy tried to take just our kids down but the other kids at the playground jumped on too! Whoa kids, find your own dad!

Carving pumpkins

We carved a pumpkin on Halloween. I had been preparing the kids for weeks for this by reading pumpkin books, Halloween books, and a book where a kid helps his mom carve a pumpkin. Corinne and I had been practicing by pretending to scoop out the seeds by hand and dump them into a bowl. I thought we were ready. So, when Daddy starting carving the pumpkin and took the lid off, I thought the kids would want to shove their hands into the pumpkin and pull out all the guts.

Nope. Instead they just stood there and watched Mommy do all the dirty work. Neither of them even made an attempt to even touch a seed.

At least Matthew participated by telling Daddy what shape to make the eyes, nose and mouth. Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of the finished product. But don't be too disappointed--it really wasn't much to look at. I'll give you a quick description--triangle eyes, a circle nose and a mouth with triangle teeth that looked like a crown. Happy Halloween!

Ward Trunk or Treat

Our ward had a Trunk or Treat tonight that ended up having to move indoors into the church due to inclement weather. It made me kind of sad since I dressed my kids with lots of layers to protect against the cold. So they were plenty warm inside. So here is Corinne as a cheerleader and Matthew as Mr. Incredible.

Matthew saw the other kids laying down to eat the donuts of the string and decided he wanted a try too.
Matthew kind of cheated and used his hands. I guess it's okay since he's only 3 and the other kids finished way before him anyways.

Here's Matthew fishing for toys. He and Corinne both got pinwheels and they loved them! Now we're excited and prepared for Halloween on Friday!