sharing is nice

/ Jo Bird / 3 Comments

We’ve had my niece, Antonia visiting since we came back from Las Vegas.  She is staying with Baca (Grandma) mostly but spends some time around our house as well.  This morning the following episode took place.  I love it because, it is hilarious, and it is such a great example of one frustrating aspect of parenting.  Eli clearly understands the concept intellectually, but fails at the practical application.

Eli: Antonia! You need to share with her. (Miriam.) Remember that Baca said you have to share? Sharing is nice.  Not sharing is bad.  Sharing means give it to her, give it to yourself, give it to her, give it to yourself…  Hey! I was going to have that pig! Give it to me! It’s ours!

More on motherhood

/ Jo Bird / 6 Comments

Before I had four kids I responded to emails. 

Before I had four kids I did projects and put up decorations for the holidays.

Before I had four kids I was on time to appointments.  (Haha, who am I kidding with that one?)

Before I had four kids I returned phone calls. 

Before I had four kids I kept my house clean. 

Before I had four kids I wrote regular blog posts.

I’m feeling a little overwhelmed these days.  I’m accepting a new normal with a house that is only mostly clean and hobbies that must be set aside.  In my selfish moments I resent that I don’t have spare time for my personal interests.   On Sunday Richard and I watched a couple conference talks that we missed from the Saturday afternoon session.  There was a quote in Elder Anderson’s talk that pierced me to the core. 

  “Motherhood… is not something to do if you can squeeze the time in. It is what God gave you time for.”

The quote is from Rachel Jankovic, a Christian blogger.  If that quote pierced me, her entire post shredded me.  She both empathized with me and inspired me.  Her thoughts articulated exactly how I feel but her gentle rebuke exposed and chastened me.  I love this woman, a stranger to me, for being a source of guidance outside my regular, often underappreciated, sources of guidance.  I’m so far from the ideal she sets forth, obviously all the things I listed above rank higher than my calling as a mother.  But she has given me courage that I’m not alone and reminded me of the value of children, even [or perhaps especially] my children. 

Antonia comes to visit

/ Jo Bird / 1 Comment
We brought my niece Antonia back with us.  Miriam is cute, yes, but it’s good she wasn’t old enough to get a complex from all the compliments Antonia received about being adorable.  She is.  I’m not sure why I took this picture but looking at it now I recall having no idea what to do with her hair.  With the help of friends I’ve made a little progress in the hair department.  Girls are so high maintenance. 
She stayed mostly with my mom but hung out with us a few days while Baca was at work.  She came in very handy pushing Simon in the swing outside.
We wanted to give the city mouse a Kuna-country experience so we took her to the pumpkin patch.  All the kids had a great time and the abnormally warm October weather was very accomodating. 
Alright- who wants to take one of my kids for a couple weeks?

travel travel TRAVEL

/ Jo Bird / Leave a comment

The first weekend in October we drove down Utah to see these two darlings get married.  Richard had been in Pocatello for work so we met up with him on Wednesday in Twin Falls.  We had planned to spend a couple days before the wedding having a family vacation of sorts.  Unfortunately a mysterious fever plagued each of the kids and kept us from pursuing the activities we had planned.  Such is life with four little germ-carriers.

It is always a pleasure to be gathered with my family.  Evan is the youngest of the children in my family, and the last to be married.  Jenessa is everything we look for when we choose our siblings partner.  Okay okay, we didn’t get to choose her, but I am confident we would have, given the chance. 

After losing three of my four children in one day, as previously described, we got the heck out of Provo and headed to where the sun always shines in Las Vegas. 
The story about the picture above: The kids were watching a “scary” – not really scary at all Wallace & Grommit- movie and Eli and Thea were not interested.  A while after they left I went upstairs to make sure they weren’t getting into trouble (Eli & Thea? It’s laughable) and this is how I discovered them.  I needn’t have worried.
We had some quality cousin time in Las Vegas, but not-so-quality pictures.  They were taken with my phone.  I forget to take my camera everywhere and think that my phone will suffice but it’s just not so great. 
We drove back from Las Vegas with five children (to be explained in the following post).  Richard had long since flown off to another city so my mom accompanied me. 
For the chance to look back with not-so-fondness; during the two weeks surrounding the wedding Richard slept in five different cities.  Boise, Seattle, Pocatello, Provo and Las Vegas.  This does not include two trips to Atlanta and two trips to New Jersey in the month prior.  Whoa.  I’m out of breath just typing it. 

Kathleen

/ Jo Bird / 1 Comment

Five years ago this month I began employment at Carter Dental, where I continue to work one day a week. For the last five years, nearly every Monday I drive to work, enter through the back door and walk down the hall. Without fail as I flipped on the lightswitch in my operatory I would hear Kathleen’s pleasant greeting to me. “Good morning.” “Hello!”

While I was on maternity leave after Simon was born Kathleen was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and she passed away on Friday, two days before her 35th wedding anniversary. Kathleen was consistant and kind, I appreciated the reliable way I could count on her to be positive and friendly. For some people, unselfishness comes so naturally. In my last few conversations with her she still thought mostly of me, asking all the right questions about myself, work and kids. I have already missed her at work.

She had a very interesting life, you can read about here if you like.

and then there’s HER

/ Jo Bird / 6 Comments
And Miriam? What has she been up to while her brothers are off getting educated?
 Oh she’s keeping busy…
No one else around here gets to eat any strawberries.  If Miriam gets outside she eats any strawberry that looks remotely ripe, and then some that aren’t ripe at all.  Such a sad waste!

What doesn’t this girl eat? Not window markers. She eats those.

And gum.

And one bite of every fruit in the fruit bowl on the kitchen table.  Including avocados.  I finally let her finish a peach in the confinement of her high chair.  Suffice it to say, I don’t keep the fruit on the kitchen table anymore.  Man you should have seen that avocado…

This is lemishine dishwashing detergent.  Not cheap, but keeps the dishes from getting coated in hard water. (Fortunately she wasn’t eating this.)

While I unloaded the shopping cart she helped herself to a loaf of french bread.

Eli the scholar

/ Jo Bird / 3 Comments

Eli started preschool a few weeks ago.  I was a little nervous for him, he is definitely an introvert.  But he’s doing well and really enjoying it.  Eli is small for his age and so I always think of him as my little boy.  Of course he is still a little boy, but I swear each time I turn around he is getting older. 

He is enjoying his new role of “oldest child” while Cameron is at school.  The other day I thought “I need to make Eli have quiet time at some point during the day.”  Then it occurred to me that all-day is quiet time for Eli.  He is so low-maintenance and self-entertaining. 

pacifier warnings

/ Jo Bird / 4 Comments

I bought a couple new “binkies” today.  In three different places on the back of the pacifier packaging are written the following notes.

“Do not leave baby unattended while using a pacifier.”   Really? If that is the case how do you explain the following note:

“May help reduce the risk of SIDS”  It can’t help the baby if it isn’t in his/her mouth, and according to the packaging it shouldn’t be in his/her mouth if the parent isn’t nearby.  But I’m stating the obvious…

The last one is my favorite: (Punctuation and grammatical errors are not mine.)

“In the event the pacifier becomes lodged in the mouth Do not panic.  Ventilation holes in the shield allow breathing. Carefully remove the pacifier from the mouth.”