My daughter Ruby LOVES dogs.
Since she loves dogs, her little sister Daisy loves them as well.
You can only imagine the excitement when we found glazed porcelain dogs at the dollar store.
I never imagined that I would have porcelain dog figurines in my house, but they bought them with their own money.
I was genuinely happy for them.
Today after church, I was scrambling to get dinner on so we could eat and get back to the church for the Activity Days Recognition night that I was partially in charge of.
I was feeling a little irritated that my kids weren't helping me. I had made it very clear that I needed their help to get the table set, etc.
They all seemed to be off playing.
When I realized that my older boys were keeping Simon entertained, I decided not to say anything. What about the girls?
Then I heard it.
Two sweet voices coming from the livingroom were singing a Primary song in Unison.
"I am a child of God
And He has Sent me Here."
I peeked in at them and they were sitting on the couch side by side, each holding a miniature Children's Song Book and singing very sweetly. They had their new porcelain dogs sitting at their sides.
My heart melted. I guess getting dinner on the table all by myself isn't so bad when the kids are all so wonderfully occupied.
Then I heard it.
The same song, the same sweet voices, only they were barking. Yes, my daughters had just taught their porcelain dogs a Primary song.
Dog Primary continued until the family was called to dinner.
"All Creatures of Our God and King
Lift up your voice and with us sing."
Alleluia!
...
We've Given Up the Easy Life for the Good Life
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Thinking Inside the Box
March 10, 2010
I was sitting at the computer when this little fella came up to me
Only he was looking more like this:
He came up to ask me a question:
How very sad that the answer was "no".
I was sitting at the computer when this little fella came up to me
Only he was looking more like this:
He came up to ask me a question:
How very sad that the answer was "no".
Sunday Math
1 shower
2 haircuts
3 baths
3 meals
2 cakes
2 diapers
1 pigtail
2 braids
3 hair gels
8 shoes
2 zippers
4 pairs of nylons
1 Dad at meetings
Equals
10 minutes late to church
and
1 VERY messy house!
2 haircuts
3 baths
3 meals
2 cakes
2 diapers
1 pigtail
2 braids
3 hair gels
8 shoes
2 zippers
4 pairs of nylons
1 Dad at meetings
Equals
10 minutes late to church
and
1 VERY messy house!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
If You Give a Mom a Minute...
If you give a mom a minute, she might decide that today is the day to get on the treadmill while she reads her scriptures.
Being on the treadmill will attract her two year old to the area. He decides to get the box of Leap Pads out. This will remind the mom that the reason the Leap Pads are in the box is that he has nearly broken them in the past. She knows he will need some help.
She gets off the treadmill to help him with his leap pad. Then she goes up to eat breakfast.
When she goes to fix her oatmeal, she will realize that there are no nuts chopped. She opens the new bags of nuts she bought yesterday and puts them in containers. Then she chops some pecans. While she is chopping pecans, she remembers that she was going to change her sheets and put her spring bedspread on.
She goes to her room and begins stripping the bed. She finds the proper sheets and bedspread. When she goes to put her clean pillowcase on, she discovers that her down pillow has burst inside its pillowcase and will need to be mended.
She goes downstairs to mend her pillowcase. While she is down there she pauses several times to help the kids with the Leap Pads. When she is finished with the pillowcase, she sees the big mess of feathers that did not make it back into the pillow. It will need to be vacuumed.
She gets the vacuum and remembers that she just bought a new belt for it.
She takes the vacuum apart and with much difficulty puts the new belt on.
Before she gets the vacuum completely put together, the baby starts crying.
She washes the black from her hands and puts the baby to sleep.
While she is laying the baby in her room, she notices that the bed is still not made.
On her way back to get her pillow, she realizes that it is 10:30 and she hasn't eaten breakfast.
She goes to make her dish of oatmeal and realizes that she didn't finish chopping the nuts.
She finishes the pecans, chops the walnuts, skips the almonds cause they are downstairs, warms up her cold lumpy oatmeal and puts the sugar and nuts and flaxseed on her oatmeal.
Her toddler climbs up to the counter and she realizes he hasn't had a diaper change. She takes him to the bathroom and changes his diaper. On her way out of the bathroom, she steps over a Leap Pad.
She pours her milk on her oatmeal and sits down at the table next to a laundry basket full of unfolded diapers. The Ensign is still there, open to the half-finished article from yesterday.
She eats her oatmeal and reads her Ensign.
On her way downstairs to write in her blog, she notices the vacuum on the floor still taken apart, the pile of feathers on the floor, and her daughter asks for help with her math.
What will the mother do next?
Help the daughter with math?
Put the vacuum back together and clean up the feathers?
Make her bed?
Put the new bag of almonds in its container?
Clean up the Leap Pad that is still in the bathroom?
Fold the diapers?
Go get the baby who is already fussing after a very short nap?
Will a shower and fresh clothes be in her future?
Now I know why those Laura Numeroff Children's books have always driven me crazy.
They are way too close to my real life!
...
Being on the treadmill will attract her two year old to the area. He decides to get the box of Leap Pads out. This will remind the mom that the reason the Leap Pads are in the box is that he has nearly broken them in the past. She knows he will need some help.
She gets off the treadmill to help him with his leap pad. Then she goes up to eat breakfast.
When she goes to fix her oatmeal, she will realize that there are no nuts chopped. She opens the new bags of nuts she bought yesterday and puts them in containers. Then she chops some pecans. While she is chopping pecans, she remembers that she was going to change her sheets and put her spring bedspread on.
She goes to her room and begins stripping the bed. She finds the proper sheets and bedspread. When she goes to put her clean pillowcase on, she discovers that her down pillow has burst inside its pillowcase and will need to be mended.
She goes downstairs to mend her pillowcase. While she is down there she pauses several times to help the kids with the Leap Pads. When she is finished with the pillowcase, she sees the big mess of feathers that did not make it back into the pillow. It will need to be vacuumed.
She gets the vacuum and remembers that she just bought a new belt for it.
She takes the vacuum apart and with much difficulty puts the new belt on.
Before she gets the vacuum completely put together, the baby starts crying.
She washes the black from her hands and puts the baby to sleep.
While she is laying the baby in her room, she notices that the bed is still not made.
On her way back to get her pillow, she realizes that it is 10:30 and she hasn't eaten breakfast.
She goes to make her dish of oatmeal and realizes that she didn't finish chopping the nuts.
She finishes the pecans, chops the walnuts, skips the almonds cause they are downstairs, warms up her cold lumpy oatmeal and puts the sugar and nuts and flaxseed on her oatmeal.
Her toddler climbs up to the counter and she realizes he hasn't had a diaper change. She takes him to the bathroom and changes his diaper. On her way out of the bathroom, she steps over a Leap Pad.
She pours her milk on her oatmeal and sits down at the table next to a laundry basket full of unfolded diapers. The Ensign is still there, open to the half-finished article from yesterday.
She eats her oatmeal and reads her Ensign.
On her way downstairs to write in her blog, she notices the vacuum on the floor still taken apart, the pile of feathers on the floor, and her daughter asks for help with her math.
What will the mother do next?
Help the daughter with math?
Put the vacuum back together and clean up the feathers?
Make her bed?
Put the new bag of almonds in its container?
Clean up the Leap Pad that is still in the bathroom?
Fold the diapers?
Go get the baby who is already fussing after a very short nap?
Will a shower and fresh clothes be in her future?
Now I know why those Laura Numeroff Children's books have always driven me crazy.
They are way too close to my real life!
...
Monday, March 22, 2010
I Am a Child of God
Nathan and Ruby had the wonderful opportunity this year to participate in this dance program.
The dances were based on Greg Olsen's book and Marshall Mcdonald's music.
It was a lovely and inspiring program!
Ruby was asked to participate in the dance "Cream and Sugar" as well as dancing with her own class in "Side by Side".
The first thing she did when she saw her flowers from Dad was count them!
Cream and Sugar Side By Side
A dozen roses and a kiss from Daddy!
Nathan was in the boys' dance class and their number was called "Airship Adventure".
It was very cool with planes and a parachute. He was thankful to get a new BYU hat instead of roses.
Nathan was in the boys' dance class and their number was called "Airship Adventure".
It was very cool with planes and a parachute. He was thankful to get a new BYU hat instead of roses.
I thought Daisy was old enough to enjoy the performance. There were parts that she liked, but she spent most of the time being tired and wanting a drink. Here she is after the show grumpily looking at the Greg Olsen book we bought. Poor Girl!
Every year I go a little crazy as my kids get ready for these shows. I wonder why I sign them up for it! But then I see the show and I am always so touched and inspired. I am so glad they got the chance to be in this show. I want my kids to recognize and love beautiful things. This production was purely beautiful.
Using His Gifts
Grandma and Grandpa Porter were here for the weekend. They brought Brandon his birthday present. It included some nice paint brushes and painting paper.
He rushed through his chores and schoolwork today so he could use his gifts.
I think he has a gift beside those he got for his birthday.
.....
.....
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Fourteen Times
The first time was in 1997. I was only 18 years old and so very much in love. He was living alone, so it was only natural that my family would take charge of his birthday celebration.
It was very exciting.
I made him a denim picnic quilt. I decorated a binder for his mission pictures. I bought him some Aspen cologne. We made his favorite dish, tacos. I even hand-fried the corn tortillas. And we had strawberry shortcake. We treated him like one of the family.
I think he was a little overwhelmed.
The most recent time was this weekend. I am only 31 years old and in a much deeper, richer kind of love. Sometimes I think he wishes he lives alone! For the fourteenth time I took charge of his birthday celebration. This year my parents got to help again.
It was very exciting.
I surprised him with a new GPS. His friend Cody is moving away. Dallin will need his own GPS if he wants to go hiking. Without Cody, his hikes won't be the same. Our family can also use the GPS for geocaching. We are all excited to start!
For years, Dallin and I have been watching movies in our room on a little portable TV/VCR. When I found out my friend was getting rid of her 20" TV, I thought that would be a nice gift for Dallin. He loved it!
My Dad took him and our boys to the archery range on Friday afternoon. Then we all went to eat at Chuck-A-Rama.
Saturday, his actual birthday, we went to the Gem and Mineral Show with my parents and the kids. That evening, we attended Ruby and Nathan's dance show. It was very nice. My mom made chocolate pie.
Today after church and after my nap, I made tacos and strawberry shortcake.
Now he is one of the family, and has been for 12+ years.
My parents were gone home, so it was just our family. Just two fun-loving boys who can't seem to hold still or be quiet at the table. Two little girls who like to have their food just-so. An intense, curly haired two year old boy who only wanted strawberries and had to spend some time in time-out before he could be coaxed to try a taco. A sweet, chubby baby girl who tasted bites of strawberry and tortilla, soaked herself with her sippy cup, and threw lots of food on the floor.
I think he was a little overwhelmed.
Thank you, Dallin, for being such a good sport for all of these years. We love you.
Happy Birthday!
...
It was very exciting.
I made him a denim picnic quilt. I decorated a binder for his mission pictures. I bought him some Aspen cologne. We made his favorite dish, tacos. I even hand-fried the corn tortillas. And we had strawberry shortcake. We treated him like one of the family.
I think he was a little overwhelmed.
The most recent time was this weekend. I am only 31 years old and in a much deeper, richer kind of love. Sometimes I think he wishes he lives alone! For the fourteenth time I took charge of his birthday celebration. This year my parents got to help again.
It was very exciting.
I surprised him with a new GPS. His friend Cody is moving away. Dallin will need his own GPS if he wants to go hiking. Without Cody, his hikes won't be the same. Our family can also use the GPS for geocaching. We are all excited to start!
For years, Dallin and I have been watching movies in our room on a little portable TV/VCR. When I found out my friend was getting rid of her 20" TV, I thought that would be a nice gift for Dallin. He loved it!
My Dad took him and our boys to the archery range on Friday afternoon. Then we all went to eat at Chuck-A-Rama.
Saturday, his actual birthday, we went to the Gem and Mineral Show with my parents and the kids. That evening, we attended Ruby and Nathan's dance show. It was very nice. My mom made chocolate pie.
Today after church and after my nap, I made tacos and strawberry shortcake.
Now he is one of the family, and has been for 12+ years.
My parents were gone home, so it was just our family. Just two fun-loving boys who can't seem to hold still or be quiet at the table. Two little girls who like to have their food just-so. An intense, curly haired two year old boy who only wanted strawberries and had to spend some time in time-out before he could be coaxed to try a taco. A sweet, chubby baby girl who tasted bites of strawberry and tortilla, soaked herself with her sippy cup, and threw lots of food on the floor.
I think he was a little overwhelmed.
Thank you, Dallin, for being such a good sport for all of these years. We love you.
Happy Birthday!
...
Monday, March 15, 2010
Big Brother
Brandon and Sarajoy have a special bond. He is often the one to want to come take her and hold her and play with her. He is so excited that she has fallen asleep in his arms a couple of times lately. I think there is nothing quite as wonderful as having a baby drift to sleep on your shoulder.
I think Brandon agrees.
Labor of Library
Back in September I began an overhaul of the Millington family library.
I figured that since I was doing this, I may as well catalog all of our books. I wanted them sorted by year according to what we study for home school. This was a HUGE project. The books and bins sat, half finished, in my livingroom for weeks.
A nice large bookshelf that I snagged at a yardsale for $6 was the inspiration for me to at least get the books on the shelves with nice little dots if they applied to a specific year. As we shelved the books, I wrote them down in a notebook.
The baby quit sleeping through the night soon after that, and the whole project was forgotten for many months. We took many of the books from the shelf to put up Christmas decorations. After Christmas, I found a stash of books that I had forgotten. They came upstairs and lay piled on the bookshelves and in heaps on the living room floor for a couple of months.
I must have had enough sleep one day to actually notice what an eyesore all of those piles of books were. I made sure they were written down and put them nicely on the shelves. It was very theraputic. I love looking at how nice those shelves look. It was bothering me that the project wasn't completely done. I wanted to enjoy those books without that nagging feeling.
So I did it. I put all of our books into a spreadsheet. They can be organized by title, author, or year. I have my own little library! We have 693 books. I LOVE Books!
Now I can take my list to yardsales and thrift stores and not accidentally buy something I already have.
It is nice to produce something like that once in a while.
I figured that since I was doing this, I may as well catalog all of our books. I wanted them sorted by year according to what we study for home school. This was a HUGE project. The books and bins sat, half finished, in my livingroom for weeks.
A nice large bookshelf that I snagged at a yardsale for $6 was the inspiration for me to at least get the books on the shelves with nice little dots if they applied to a specific year. As we shelved the books, I wrote them down in a notebook.
The baby quit sleeping through the night soon after that, and the whole project was forgotten for many months. We took many of the books from the shelf to put up Christmas decorations. After Christmas, I found a stash of books that I had forgotten. They came upstairs and lay piled on the bookshelves and in heaps on the living room floor for a couple of months.
I must have had enough sleep one day to actually notice what an eyesore all of those piles of books were. I made sure they were written down and put them nicely on the shelves. It was very theraputic. I love looking at how nice those shelves look. It was bothering me that the project wasn't completely done. I wanted to enjoy those books without that nagging feeling.
So I did it. I put all of our books into a spreadsheet. They can be organized by title, author, or year. I have my own little library! We have 693 books. I LOVE Books!
Now I can take my list to yardsales and thrift stores and not accidentally buy something I already have.
It is nice to produce something like that once in a while.
Lovely Day for a Picnic
Sometimes Saturdays don't quite feel like the holidays that they should.
Dallin was having one of those Saturdays.
He felt restless and unproductive.
That can be an extra hard feeling to handle with 6 kids who each want your attention.
He and a couple of the kids went outside and kindly left me to my project.
This is how it looked outside on Saturday, exactly one week before the first day of spring:
Awhile later, an excited voice calls, "Mom! Come on! Dad wants everyone to come out to the garage!
I admit I was a little hesitant to leave the project that I was finally making some progress on.
I didn't regret leaving, though.
When I got out to the garage, the air was filled with warmth and excitement. Dallin and the kids had swept and cleaned and set up some chairs and even put some carpet remnants down.
And they had built a fire in the little wood-burning stove.
The kids weren't the only ones caught up in the excitement of it. It was a Laura Ingalls moment for sure! I was half tempted to set out sleeping bags and stay the night. The kids would sleep in the loft (a la Little House on the Prairie), of course! I think I would have done it if the reality of a 2 year old and 8 month old wouldn't have completely diminished the romance of it all.
We did this instead:
And Saturday became a holiday.
Dallin was having one of those Saturdays.
He felt restless and unproductive.
That can be an extra hard feeling to handle with 6 kids who each want your attention.
He and a couple of the kids went outside and kindly left me to my project.
This is how it looked outside on Saturday, exactly one week before the first day of spring:
Awhile later, an excited voice calls, "Mom! Come on! Dad wants everyone to come out to the garage!
I admit I was a little hesitant to leave the project that I was finally making some progress on.
I didn't regret leaving, though.
When I got out to the garage, the air was filled with warmth and excitement. Dallin and the kids had swept and cleaned and set up some chairs and even put some carpet remnants down.
And they had built a fire in the little wood-burning stove.
The kids weren't the only ones caught up in the excitement of it. It was a Laura Ingalls moment for sure! I was half tempted to set out sleeping bags and stay the night. The kids would sleep in the loft (a la Little House on the Prairie), of course! I think I would have done it if the reality of a 2 year old and 8 month old wouldn't have completely diminished the romance of it all.
We did this instead:
And Saturday became a holiday.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
One Decade Ago...
March 8, 2000
We welcomed Brandon John Millington into the world.
At 9lb 3oz, he was such a sweet, chubby baby.
We think Brandon came to our family to remind us to laugh.
The artistic and imaginative lens through which he views life has always brought so much fun and happiness into our home.
Brandon has always been a super brother and friend for Nathan. He is also a wonderful big brother, especially for Sarajoy.
Thanks for a wonderful decade, Brand! We love you!
1 month old
6 months old
1 year old
2 years old
3 years old
4 years old
5 years old
7 years old
8 years old
9 years old
For breakfast, he chose bagels, eggs, and sausage.
Lunch: Lil' smokies in blankets.
Dinner: Baked Potatoes.
Dessert: Donuts
Brand's favorite color is green!
Brandon 10 years old!
This is what I saw when I woke up and walked out into the living room today. Brandon's creation, of course!
The "Eyes" have it!
In my recent reading adventures, I have come across references to people being able to recognize others by their eyes. I wondered if I could recognize my family by their eyes. I've spent some time eye-gazing and noting the differences. It surprised me how little I knew about the details in their eyes. I wondered if I could tell them apart if I took photos of just the eyes.
It was surprisingly difficult for both Dallin and me. Can you tell whose eyes these are?
It was surprisingly difficult for both Dallin and me. Can you tell whose eyes these are?
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