carrot induced smiles

"Hey Mom!  I know how to make Carlee smile."  Conner said from his position on the floor next to the baby bouncer.

"Yeah?  How is that?"  I asked, carefully looking up and putting the sharp knife down on the counter.

"Like this.  Hand me a carrot please?"  I practically threw one in his direction.  Conner begging for carrots?  This I had to see.

"You put a carrot in your mouth and chew like this."  He said in between bites.

"Then you open up wide."  He mumbled out behind the large carrot chunks.




I looked at Carlee.

Could it be?  Could she really enjoy the display of Conner's chewing fiesta?

Wait for it...

Yes!  Yes she loves the open-mouth-carrot-chewing display provided by her big brother Conner.
Conner loves to make his sister smile while I am even more excited about his new found respect for carrots.

sports fan

Little Carlee-Q is quite the sports fan.
Who cares about minuscule details like bedtime and sleep?
BYU is playing and dad's arms are awaiting.

Colton Says....

• Colton has a little crush on a girl named Maggie in his nursery class.  Yesterday, I overhead him singing the words to the song Call Me Maybe by Carly Ray Jepson.  He changed the lyrics to suit his purposes.  In his cute three-year-old voice he sang:  "Hey, I just met you. Here's my number. So call me Maggie."  
• During prayers one night Colton asked Heavenly Father to bless the disciples on the Death Star.
• When I was pregnant with Carlee, Colton was pregnant as well.  Sticking his tummy out, He would show off his "baby" for all to see.  Colton's baby has been born.  His baby's name is Water and his nickname is Ice.
• Water - otherwise known as "Ice" - was baptized this last week.  According to Colton, baby Ice was baptized "in a Banana.

haunting decisions

With a notarized paper in hand, I walked into the elementary school and un-enrolled my kids.
Happy Halloween!

The decision to homeschool my kids has been haunting.  I love the elementary school, the teachers, and the friends.  School itself has provided many opportunities for my children to grow and explore who they are.  But like a coin, there are always two sides to any story.

School life, has made family life very hard.  My kids cry and complain when it is time to leave for school because they want to be home with their brothers and baby sister.  Homework is a nightly challenge.  Bullying behavior and words are sashaying home to be repeated by the three-year-old.

And I get it.
I get that this is part of raising a family.

But... I don't get it.

I don't want to spend these awesome years with my children rushing them away from me and from each other.  Too many people have reminded me that these years with my kids will pass quickly and that I should enjoy them while I can.  Honestly, I don't enjoy my kids when I am too busy rushing them around.

I know that homeschooling isn't the answer for everyone.
Heck, it might not be a long-term answer for me.

But right now, homeschool is the answer for my little family.  And while the decision to homeschool has be incredibly haunting, I am oh-so-excited to stop rushing.  I am thrilled to slow down, read more books to my kids, perform science experiments at the kitchen table, and explore the world with the  little minds I love the most.  

five things...

1.  I thought and thought about homeschooling my kids this week.  I want them home with me.  After much consideration.... I think I am keeping them in school?  If I had my way, I would keep them home to play Candyland and Chutes and Ladders all day.

2.  "Did you know that Anakin's dad is dead, mom?"  Colton said with his eyes growing large.  "Really.  Really.  He is dead, mom."  What would life be like without Star Wars?

3.  "Getting my bum wiped is like playing 'Simon Says',"  Caleb said while leaning over to get his butt wiped.  Yeah, I think it is time for him to learn to wipe himself

4.  Conner is learning to pray in Chinese.  He is very excited that God can understand the language he is learning at school.

5.  Carlee is attentive and excited about the world around her.  The crazy, colicky phase is coming to an end.  Hallelujah!

Halloween

Two FBI agents.

 One spiderman/monkey/pirate.
One adorable lady bug.

  Pumpkin-carob pancakes

Drive around scavenger hunt looking for the trunk-or-treat.
Bean bag toss.

Answering the door.

Scary door steps and dogs.

Cute cards from great-grandma Stewart.

Trick-or-treating....

Halloween this year was a blast.  

Carlee's Baby Blessing