Gross Factor

The other night we were sitting down to dinner for some yummy spaghetti. Hyrum was wiggling in his seat a lot, so he was sent to the bathroom to remedy that. After doing his business he came back to his seat and was chomping on something whitish colored. I watched him for a second and figured out it was a piece of gum. I asked him where he got it from and he casually said "fwom da bafwoom" (that's how cute he says it :). Oo! Gross! I can't help but laugh, which peaks Ben's interest and he wants in on the joke. I tell him Hyrum got gum out of the bathroom and he is grossed out to.
Want in on the joke?
Well, the only place for Hyrum to get gum from the bathroom is the garbage can, which happens to sit right next to the toilet.
On the brightside, it was fresh because Ben had just spit it out when he used the facilities a few minutes before dinner.
More gross... there were splashes of liquid (use your imagination -remember, right next to the toilet) on the other stuff in the garbage can.

Worth 1000

She is going to kill me when she grows up, but this is one of the privileges of being a parent!

She was in the middle of changing into her jammies when nature called. I snuck up on her and was able to get this picture. This is definitely one of those that is worth 1000 words. She can't read them, but she loves to look at them because Papi does it. He actually had left these next to the loo.

Squished Fingers

My little 3 year old is bound and determined to out-do his sister's broken collar bone. So far he has not achieved, thankfully. A little over a year ago he injured his foot jumping off of an ottoman (see here). Today he tried with his finger. Josi was riding her bike in the back yard and her training wheels got high-centered, so she was going nowhere, just riding in place. Hyrum decided it was a good idea to stick his finger in and smashed it between the gear and the chain. Mind you, I didn't see any of this first hand. I went running down the stairs when I heard Hyrum crying his real "I'm hurt" cry.

This is Josi's version of what happened: "I was doing my exercises and I just didn't see him and his finger was in the spiky thing." I figured out the rest when I saw the gouge in his finger that was as wide as the gear that only smashed half of it. It looked like it smashed it all the way to the bone, but there was almost no blood. This is the best picture I could get of it. He held really still for the first picture, but the flash was too bright so it was all washed out. When Josi saw it the first time, she just said "eww" with a sickly look on her face. She felt really bad and just kept saying "I'm so sorry, Hyrum".

I gave him some children's Tylenol, then I got it cleaned as well as he would let me and poured hydrogen peroxide on it a few times. Then bandaged it with gauze and tape. He wouldn't let me put a bandaid on it because we didn't have a Spiderman one. It about broke my heart to hear his cries and not to be able to ease his pain. That is one of the worst parts about being a mom. I am so glad I am able to keep a level head and not get sick when it comes to my family. 'Cause it was disgusting looking. He was trying to be so strong and hold back the sobs, but it was just too much for him.

I sang him about 4 primary songs and rocked him while I held his hand above his head to ease the throbbing and he was out. When he woke up from his nap he was fussy again and he wouldn't move his finger. He said it hurt too much when he tried to bend it. So, I decided to take him to the Urgent Care to make sure it didn't get broken. They did an x-ray and found no breaks. It's a good thing Josi is a timid pedaler.

As we walked out of the x-ray room Hyrum said, "Mommy, my pinger doesn't hurt anymore. Well, it till hurt a little." I think he thought the x-ray was supposed to make it better and he wanted it to have worked. The doctor and nurses were really great with him. The doctor was the same doctor that checked his leg out last time we were there. I don't think he recognized us though.

The dent has mostly filled in with just a little hamburger-ish gash left. He doesn't like to leave bandaids on for long, so he keeps telling me that it is all better so that he can take the bandaid off.

So in the end:

2 children's tylenol, a dab of neosporin +pain relief, a gauze pad and 4" of tape - less than $2

tiny finger x-ray, a spiderman bandaid and a little peace of mind- $35 copay

Being able to sing and rock my generally less than snugly 3 year old baby to sleep again - PRICELESS

Karin, I hope it is out of his system now so you don't have to worry when you watch them next week :)

I am so Grateful...

for a the good moments with my children. Just tonight, after dinner. I let the kids have a cookie for dessert. Hyrum, as always, takes forever to eat his food. So he and I were sitting in the kitchen while he slowly ate his cookie. I wasn't totally paying attention to him, because I was watching a tv show (Castle) on my computer. After a little while a started walking around the table, looking on each chair and asks "Where's my cookie?" I said, I think you ate it all. He replied, "I tink I hide it". I said, "Well, then, maybe you shouldn't hide your cookies because you loose them." He then gets a big, knowing grin on his face and shouts, "Maybe you eat it!", thrusting his little index finger at me. I couldn't help but laugh out loud. I just had to give him a big hug. Rest assured, we found his cookie. I remembered that he had set it on the counter to get a drink.
It's a good thing they are so darn cute from time to time or I simply couldn't handle the times they are such stinkers!

Little Surprises

This is one of the many surprises Hyrum leaves for me to find. I don't know what he was doing with the pumice stone. I am guessing he saw me use it to clean out the ring in the bowl; so he was using it for cleaning purposes of some sort.

I guess I should be glad that he doesn't flush it!

Birthday Boy

Today is Hyrum's 3rd Birthday. I can't believe he is 3 now! Because Ben had to be out of town today, we celebrated on Friday. Hyrum got to chose where we had dinner and he chose McDonald's with a PlayPlace.


I made him cupcakes this year instead of a regular cake. There is always too much cake left over and I figured the extra cupcakes Ben could take to work or something. I just put them in a pan and frosted the tops like I would have a cake.

He got a Spiderman game from Nana. It just plugs into the TV and it has five games on it.

He got Winnie the Pooh books from Grandma and Grandpa Baird.

We gave him a couple of movies.

Here Josi and Hyrum are getting a kick out of Hyrum's mad skills on his new game.

He got a spiderman truck the moves and makes noises, with "web-launchers" which shoot little darts from Grandpa Swensen and Aunt Lisa.

Thank you for the gifts! And Thank You for all of the birthday calls Hyrum got today; he had a great birthday!

Birthday Party

My little Josi is growing up so fast. She got invited to her first non-family birthday party yesterday. It was for a little boy in her primary class. She played at the park and had cupcakes.

They also did a three-legged race. Josi did surprisingly well, considering her lack of coordination. Her team were the slow and steady ones, they didn't fall down.

Readin', Writin' and 'Rithmetic

I have been testing out homeschooling Josi. I have found a couple of websites that have lots of worksheets you can print for math and writing. I have also gotten a few booklets from the dollar store that have different themes like Disney or Carebears.
Here she is working on addition using M&Ms. She loves using M&Ms because she can eat them afterward.
You can see by the look on her face how much she enjoys doing her schoolwork. She really gets into it. She has a backpack she got from Hailey (her cousin) and she keeps all of her books and pencils in it.

She is quite good at math. She really understands it. She is still having a hard time understanding adding and subtracting zero, though. But it is coming to her.

We have also started learning to read. She is mostly just memorizing short words and we work on sounding out the bigger words. We will have to get a video of her reading up soon. I can't believe how big she is getting!

All Aboard

Yesterday, for an hour or so before Ben got home from work, Josi developed a random fascination for train stations. She kept asking Hyrum and I if we wanted to go to the train station. Then she got her little step stool out of the bathroom and sat on it next to a dining room chair with a paper and pen and started asking again if we wanted to go to the train station, with no takers. Finally, Papi got home so she started asking him.
Papi is more fun than mommy, apparently, because he had the great idea to find a train station around us. There was one in downtown Phoenix, but it was no longer functioning and we couldn't go inside. We just drove past it, then found a park and ride for the metro train. Josi got to carry $7 in change in her little purse so we could purchase the tickets and then we waited on the platform for the next westbound train. The first one to come along was so packed, we couldn't even fit inside. We decided to wait for the next one and hope for better luck. It came 15 minutes later and there was at least standing room. We were able to get a seat after a few stops. We rode it to the last stop in North Phoenix, which was about 45 minutes. At the end was the Christown Spectrum Mall, which isn't a typical mall. I don't know why they call it a mall. It has a WalMart in it for heaven's sake! Anyway, we found a Carl's Jr and had some really yummy Oreo and Orange Cream Shakes. Then we got back on the train and rode back to our car. The kids had a blast and it was a first for me too. It was kind of fun to just sit and watch all of the different people that got on and off. On the ride home, Josi said she would rather ride the train everywhere than drive our car. Everyone else prefered the car.

Monkey See Monkey Do

A few weeks ago I (Ben) was making the ball disappear for Hyrum by putting it behind my back and pretending to throw it. Josi caught on, grabbed the ball, went behind the couch and then came back and asked him, where'd it go?

Favorite Inventions

Today they are rubber gloves, Clorox wipes and Febreze Air Effects (although Limited Edition vanilla & baking is not my favorite scent).

Josi, tummy ache, too slow, "Oh great, I pooped on the floor!", cried from the bathroom. Enough said.

Super Hero

This morning Josi has been running around saying "I'm Super Josi!" It all started when Hyrum dropped his fork on the floor at breakfast. They were sitting at the bar eating pancakes and Hyrum can't get up and down himself. Out of nowhere Josi just busted out " Super Josi will get it"
She didn't even remember she was wearing this hand-me-down Superman Underoos t-shirt.

Happy Mother's Day to me

After bringing the furniture home, Ben took the kids out and left me home. He said he wanted to have a little personal time with them. Made sense, summer is coming on fast and won't see them much for a few months. I was happy to have a little time to myself and I took the time to blog and work on my dad's website a little and watch one of my favorite movies, Pride and Prejudice. Not the condensed version with Kiera Knightly, but the A&E version that is 6 VHS tapes long (I am watching tape 6 now). I am going to have to get it on DVD now though, because tape 3 wouldn't play at all and 2 of the others were not working properly either. Kids!
Well, Ben just got home and the kids lugged in a package, grinning ear to ear, exclaiming Happy Mother's Day and Happy dirfday Muders (Hyrum).




Ben had taken the kids shopping for me. He gets sweeter every year. Hyrum picked out the card and Josi picked out the Hannah Montana wrapping paper.
I asked if I was supposed to open it now or wait til tomorrow. He said I might want to open it now, but I could wait til tomorrow if I wanted.







So I opened it now. Inside was ....




the fabric for my curtains in the front room! And a new feather pillow for the bed. (Mine was a hand-me-down from my mom when I was in junior high and barely resembles a pillow anymore, but I totally love.)





I didn't want Ben to feel bad, but it was the wrong color. It was red, instead of the burgandy I had picked out. I finally got brave enough to tell him, and he said that the lady at the store said they had two of them, but one of them was out.
Of course, it was my burgandy one. Ben, typical male that he is, couldn't tell the difference and got me the red.





It is still beautiful and looks great in the room. It matches the few other decorative things I have in there, like the candles on the table. We hung it up on the blinds to see how we liked it. Ben says he likes it better, and it is growing on me.










Here is a close-up of the fabrics.




I guess next week I will be making curtains, festoons and sheers. I can see now that I am going to have to line the fabric. It looks striped where the sun shines through it. I still have to pick out the rods for them though. I am not sure of the style I want yet though.


Hyrum's own personal gift to me, just in time for Mother's Day, is that he is all daytime potty trained. He still has to wear a diaper at night, but he hasn't had an accident during the day for nearly a week. And he goes when he gets up in the morning. I am so happy I don't have to buy diapers any more. At least not for a while. (Nothing implied!) Thanks Mom and Karin for the cold bath trick.

Memory

It's not too bad and even probably common when you go to another part of your house and forget why you went there, but to open a file on your computer and forget why in the same instance is just plain demoralizing.

Interview with my child Josi, age 4

I didn't get tagged and I usually don't do them even when I do, but I really wanted to hear Josi's answers. So, here they are:
1. What is something mom always says to you? Do the truth
2. What makes mom happy? If you give you a hug and give you a kiss
3. What makes mom sad? It makes you be naughty
4. How does your mom make you laugh? If you said a funny word
5. What was your mom like as a child? You were a baby
6. How old is your mom? I don't know (with a duh/confussed look on her face)
7. How tall is your mom? Big
8. What is her favorite thing to do? Clean up my (Josi's) room
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? If your hiding, somewhere else... When...I...I don't know.
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? If your big
11. What is your mom really good at? at playing games
12. What is your mom not good at? At baseball if you falled
13. What does your mom do for a job? to make your bed
14. What is your mom's favorite food? chicken and the corn
15. What makes you proud of your mom? if we love each other
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? A sweetheart (?)
17. What do you and your mom do together? We make our beds together
18. How are you and your mom the same? girls
19. How are you and your mom different? It's a really hard one
20. How do you know your mom loves you? If you tell me I did a good job to clean your room
21. What does your mom like most about your dad? doing his work
22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? maybe if you're a sweetheart to go to the zoo

By the way, I'm not tagging anybody:)
*Can you tell she had to clean her room today?

Big Words

Josi is so slow getting out of the car and she insists on doing it without help, so I let her, but she has to close the car door herself too, which she is happy to do. On Friday, we had gone out to have lunch with Papi and run a few errands. When we got home, I helped Hyrum out and we headed inside while Josi took her time. When she came in I saw that she had left the car door open, so I told her she forgot to close it. She went back out, but Hyrum had to see. He peeked into the garage and got this look on his face (I can't really explain it, but it is so Hyrum) and said, "I can't eleeb it".
I can't believe how much he talks and that he makes sense. He repeats everything and does a pretty good job most of the time. They grow up too fast!

My Little Man

My little boy is growing up so fast. Too fast! You may remember a few months back I kind of started potty training Hyrum. I would put him in training underwear with plastic pants over them (so he didn't ruin my new carpet) but I just ended up washing a lot of underwear and he would end up in a diaper pretty quick because he didn't have anymore clean underwear. Well, he just wasn't ready then, I guess, so I mostly gave up. Occasionally I would ask him if he needed to go and I would put him on the toilet before he got in the bath, but mostly we stopped. I think he is finally ready! Just yesterday he told me before he messed in his diaper that he needed to go potty, and he did go in the toilet. Then today we were shopping and I found these totally cute boxer briefs on clearance in his size so I got them for him. He is so scrawny though, they almost fall off of him.

After we got home he wanted to put them on and I let him, but I told him that if he want potty in them, he couldn't put on the other pair, he would have to put a diaper back on. About an hour later he came upstair naked from the waist down and he told me he peed. So I sent him to get a diaper while I nervously went down to check what he had peed on. To my surprise, I found his dry underwear and pants on the floor. However, in the bathroom I found a puddle on the floor by the toilet and smears on the toilet seat (#2 :). He had gotten on the toilet himself, and gone potty, just overshot the toilet seat. He hasn't learned to wipe himself yet so when he got down he left streaks. Despite the big mess, I was so proud of him. He finally gets it! Let's hope it sticks now.

For My Mom and Rooster

This post is for my mom and little brother, Andy. This is the handywork of my little man Hyrum about 3 weeks ago. He dumped half a can of comet (which was the whole can) all over the bathroom floor. Andy did the same thing when he was about Hyrum's age.
Here are his cute little handprints.

Almost Broken Bones

We have our very own Evil Knievel. This weekend while Ben and I were in Canada, Hyrum decided to jump off of some furniture, which ended in a less than successful landing. Yesterday morning I noticed his foot was pretty swollen and a little bruised above his big toe, so I called his sitter to ask if he had hurt his foot over the weekend. I learned about his little tumble. He seems fine. He has been running around and jumping, but his foot was still pretty swollen this morning and I could tell that he was favoring that foot a little and stepping on the edge of his foot rather than the bottom of it. Ben and I talked it over and we decided that since he wasn't crying about it and acting normal, he was going to be fine. Today after a full day of running, jumping and climbing it seemed to me that his foot was getting worse, not better, so I went ahead and took him into the nearby Urgent Care center. I was the most pleasant urgent care/ER experience I have ever had. We didn't have to wait at all before he was seen. They did an x-ray of his foot and then we waited just a few minutes for the doctor to examine the x-ray before he came to talk to me. He couldn't see any breaks.He said it is really hard to break a foot bone when they are that young because there are only a couple of bones, it is mostly cartilage right now. He wasn't really sure what to do, because it was pretty obvious that he had done something major for it to still be that swollen. He decided that he would have the nurse put on what he called a post-op splint. It is this foam stuff that they got wet and let harden around the back and bottom of his leg and foot. Then she wrapped it in an ace bandage and then put that colorful cast tape on top of it, just to keep Hyrum from taking it off, which he immediately tried to do. The doctor said that hopefully it would be awkward or uncomfortable enough for him to walk on it that he wouldn't; to give his foot at least a few days to heal. So far it is doing it's job. He has tried to stand up a few times and given up and just crawls to get around.
The nurse used bright green tape for him, which is perfect because when asked what color something is, he always says green. The splint isn't intended to have any weight put on it so generally it would break when it was walked on. Because Hyrum is little enough, it should be alright. We are supposed to go to his regular doctor if there isn't significant improvement within the week.
When we left I told Hyrum to tell the doctor "thank you", but the doc had already started walking off, so he didn't hear it. I was just going to leave anyway, but Hyrum got upset and really wanted someone to hear him say thank you and acknowlege it. So, I went back to find the nurse that had wrapped it and let him tell her. He was happy after that. He is such a sweet boy.

Cruisin'

While we were visiting my brother in Idaho Falls he got out my dad's "Trike". It is technically my brother, Andy's now, but it will always be my dad's. He built it from the back half of a VW beetle and Harley forks. He started it when we lived in California and finished it in Utah. So, I was in Kindergarden when he started it. We took a few rides down the street and back.

The kids had a blast. It made me feel like a kid again. Shortly after he finished it, we were in the Burley, Idaho 4th of July parade. The four oldest (me, Danny, Andy and Sarah) all had matching outfits my mom made for us. It was so much fun and probably the most exciting thing we had ever experienced.

In the photos are Danny (driver) his wife Kaelynn and their boys, Kleyn and Kaleb, my sisters Janae, Alysha and Tonya, and me and my kids, and Janae's dog Diogi.