Cold, cold go away!

Holy freakers why did my beautiful Fall depart so hastily? My love of Michigan quickly changed today! Joel and I went on a date tonight and we had to walk from the parking garage to the restaurant. Ummm, yeah it pretty much brought back some terrible memories of freezing my potato off last year! I'm sad because I refuse to buy myself a winter coat just for a few more weeks of humongoid uteritis (a.k.a big fat prego belly). I'm not sure exactly how I'll get along with a simple jacket for the entire winter - maybe I'll just wrap myself up in a big blanket and call it good. It's probably the only thing that will fit soon enough.

I think the thing that I hate even more than this bone-chilling cold air is the infestation of diseases that run rampant in this jive town complex. I swear as soon as someone is sick around here, it runs like wildfire until it's time for another round of sickness. In fact, Joel and I just got done cleaning up Camryn's vomiting episode. Yipee! I'm just so freak'n grateful that it happened when Joel was home! He's on call tomorrow so pray for me - I don't want this to go through the whole family while I'm alone - gag! It certainly wouldn't be the first time.


The silver lining in this particular situation is what happened once Camryn was clean and snuggling in OUR bed. She whispered in my ear, "Thanks for helping me out Mom." How cute is that? JD said the same thing to me when I cleaned up his barforama episode a few weeks ago. I love grateful kids.

As I'm writing this, I feel the need to write a few happy things to get me through these next few months...

• Joel and I are beside ourselves with glee because we get to look at houses next week!

• Joel keeps wanting to take me out on dates so we can have a conversation w/o any interruptions - no complaints here.

• I love that we have a babysitter that lives a couple of apartments away - hence the opportunity for multiple dates!

• My braces are going to come off in 2 months - as long as my teeth behave.

• Christian and Camryn play beautifully together. This lovely phenomenon allows me to rest my poor worn-out body during the day.

• I love it when I remember to chain my door so that Christian can't escape and neighborhood kids can't sneak in while I'm taking a shower!

• I love that we sold JD's loft bed on craigslist just to replace it with our KING bed! Yep, you read that correctly. JD's tiny little room is now just one ginormous bed - he looks so tiny all wrapped up in the covers!

• I love that we gave JD our old king because we bought ourselves a nice new king. Joel is convinced we're the only people in Northwoodian history to have 2 kings in these tiny apartments!

• And finally, I love that I happened to arrive at Macy's department store today just to discover a freak'n awesome sale. I got some scream'n deals! To top it off, some kind skinny lady felt sorry for me and my heavy load (many bags and 2 kids) so she helped me out to my car! How nice is that?

Well, that was random, but it worked - I'm happier now!

My Little Man Got Baptized!

Yesterday was a great day. JD got baptized and I am a free mother - he is responsible for his own sins now! Ha! I wish it were that simple. I used that card a few months ago when he was being a stinker to some of his friends. I had a long talk (actually, many long talks - he likes to discuss things with me) with him about how he was about to turn 8 which meant he would be responsible for his own sins. I said it in a...well...forceful manner so he would get the point. And that he did. Something clicked inside him that day. I don't think he understood the magnitude of his turning 8 until that moment.

Many conversations and lessons followed in the weeks after that initial conversation. I must say that there is something about this magical age 8. JD has grown in maturity and understanding over the last few months - to the point where I really felt like he was ready to take the the plunge (ha ha pun intended).

Since JD is a very thoughtful, sensitive and introspective kid, I could definitely see his little ticker mulling over the magnitude of his baptism and confirmation. He would ask me things like, "Mom, will you describe what the Holy Spirit feels like?" Or, after getting in trouble, he would come crying to me, "MOM, THE HOLY GHOST DIDN'T TELL ME THE RIGHT THING TO DO!" I would give him the standard gospel answers, but it just always seemed to come back to an issue of faith. "JD, if you have faith that one day you'll feel the Holy Spirit's comfort, then you will - just keep praying," would be my standard answer. I had no doubt that eventually he would feel something that he could identify as the Holy Ghost, I just didn't know when it would come.

It couldn't have come at a more perfect time. I know the Lord was aware of JD's desires and so when Joel placed his hands on his son's head to confirm him a member of the Church and to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, JD felt it for the first time. What a wonderful testimony builder! Yeah!



He shared this little bit of information with his gammy (Joel's mom) immediately following the baptism and confimation program. She asked him if he felt anything special during his confirmation and he was able to identify the warm feeling around his heart as the Holy Ghost. Later that evening when we were home, I was able to hold him in my arms and ask him the same question that his gammy asked. He explained the feeling to me and I was so thankful that he could recognize it with certainty.


The entire evening was very spiritual and I couldn't have asked for better experience for our first child's baptism and confirmation. Baptisms around these parts aren't that common so it was neat to have such a great turn out. JD and his friend Annie had a joint baptism at our chapel. We are friends with Annie's family so it was a warm and inviting little program that took place. The talks were perfect and the spirit was strong - especially during JD's confirmation.

JD and his bud Annie

Camryn and her bud Brigham
(Annie's Brother)

Christian and his bud Lily, or Lolee
as he so affectionately renamed her.
(Annie's sister)

JD received a very nice set of scriptures during a special family dinner out (before the baptisms). He was soooo excited. Not in a yipee kind of way, but in a way that exuded curiosity and validated his maturing age. He and Annie showed off their new scriptures later that night - it was cute. I spent a good part of the morning today walking him through this ins and outs of the scriptures: footnotes, topical guide, glossary, how to find scriptures etc. He spent the entire sacrament meeting perusing the pages of his new precious gift.

Joel and I are aware that JD is a gem and are continually trying our best to be good stewards of his strong little spirit. I feel like I fall short most of the time when it comes to raising him, but that's where the beauty of the atonement comes into play. If we can just try our best, Christ makes up the difference. I love the gospel!



Anyway, JD is on his way towards making a name for himself in this life. I hope that he might read this entry in our family blog book some day and at the very least feel comforted by the feelings he had on the day of his baptism and confirmation.

Chicago part deux...

So Joel's mom, Cristie wanted to go on a vacation a while back. Did we accept? Are you freak'n kidding me - any chance to get away baby. Anyway, at first we were going to have a little adventure at a place called Put-in-Bay, Ohio. After researching a bit, we decided it would be a bit cold for that particular trip. Joel had such a great time in Chicago the first time (like 2 weeks ago!) that he suggested that for our adventure. They accepted and away we went.

Ummm, first of all traveling with little ones is umm a lot harder than just adults. Everything from packing to eating to sleeping is more complicated. Man we most suredly love our little seedlings to put up with all of this craziness! It definitely made a difference to have a couple of extra helping hands - thanks Stan and Cristie!

I think my favorite part of the trip was experiencing Chicago through my kids' eyes. One of the first things we did upon arriving at our hotel was take the kids on a fairly long walk to the famous Frontera Grill. I was so excited to experience this great little iconic restaurant. Luckily we got reservations for brunch (dinner can take up to a month to get a reservation!). Anyway, the trek to the restaurant was so enjoyable for me - my kids were in awe of the towering buildings and the Chicago river. JD received an excellent education as to why some parts of the city smell like urine.

There are tons of bridges over the
river that raise up for big ships to
pass through. We were lucky enough
to come across one. It was
a pretty magnificent sight.

Christian loved staring at the river and
all of the boats passing by. I think
he ended up throwing a bunch of
leaves and garbage into the river.
Oops.

The food in Chicago did not disappoint. Frontera Grill was, according to Stan (lived in Mexico), very authentic to true Mexican cuisine. The food was quite different and interesting. In a good way! After all was said and eaten, Joel and I decided that we are just a couple of boring Americans that prefer the Mexamerican flavors. We had some dahang good deep dish pizza at Giardano's for dinner. Man, they know what good cheese is! I ate the whole inside out of a piece of cheese pizza. I swear it was a 1/2 pound of cheese. Yum-o. It reminded of the days in my youth when I would break off a chunck of cheese, melt in in the microwave and eat it straight. That sounds good, I think I'll have that for lunch. We hit the West Egg once again for breakfast for their, among other things, famous Turkey & Avocado Eggs Benedict.


When traveling with Cristie Gardner, you can bet that you'll be upgrading to a fantabulous suite by bedtime. One time we took a fun trip with them to Niagara Falls. After Cristie worked her magic, we had 2 rooms right smack dab in front of Horseshoe Falls. Saweet! So when the rooms in our downtown Chicago hotel weren't exactly ideal, Cristie worked her magic and we ended up with a suite (humungous) overlooking the Chicago river, Lake Michigan, the Magnificent Mile and the Chicago Tribune building. Saweet part deux!

We had an interesting next morning. After breakfast, we decided to visit the Shedd Aquarium. Little did we know that there was a Chicago Bears football game that morning as well. Umm, traffic kinda sucked! So after driving all the way there, we were told that because of the game, we would have to turn around and drive back to the parking garage (where we started in the first place!) and pay $25 for parking! Gotta love a big city! It was a fun little adventure. We got to drive past all of Barack Obama's huge acceptance party set-up in Grant Park - kind of interesting. We enjoyed the aquarium, but got pooped out enough to call it a day and head back to Michigan.

The shark tank was pretty cool. I was
mad I didn't have my nice camera to
take some decent pics in the dark.

Christian was obsessed with all of the
turtles in the aquarium. He and Camryn
still talk about Nickel, the enormous
sea turtle.

We were tired by the time we got home, but not as tired as Stan & Cristie! They still had 2 hours left to drive back to Cleveland. It was great to see Chicago with loved ones. I'm glad we got to have some one-on-seven time with Joel's parents too!

Our next trip is in a few weeks. I think I'll be able to handle the wait.

Now wintering over in Michigan.....I'm not so sure about :(

A Spooktacular Evening...

Our Michigan Halloween celebrations are a thing of the past now. Am I sad? Not really, but trick-or-treating has definitely been a pretty slick process around these parts. I guess I'll miss the efficiency here. Who am I kidding...get me outta this joint!

JD the martial arts expert, Christian the
doctor (not on call - the best kind!), and
Camryn the cutest Tinkerbell around!

Anyway, the trick-or-treating here in family housing is quite unique. Because of the large population of kidlins, someone somewhere decided to have an annual Halloween Parade through our little campus. The parade starts at one end of our facility and winds its way through to the other end of the facility. I find it amusing each year as we join in the parade: is it really a parade if no one is watching? Hmmm... we're all walking and there ain't a soul looking at the cool costumes. Funny. Anyway, at the conclusion of the parade, the trick-or-treaters are free to roam and claim their loot. We take off to the least saturated parts of Northwood to snatch up what we can before it gets too crazy. Luckily our kids are so young that they're pooped before we can make it around the entire facility. Perfect!

This particular year was probably the most enjoyable of the past 3: the weather was fantabulous, Camryn passed out the candy for Mom and the whole free candy idea finally clicked in Christian's little brain. I think watching Christian catch on to trick-or-treating was my favorite part of Halloween this year. He was a bit hesitant at first to approach strangers, but boy once he saw his brother and sister going to town, he wasn't far behind in the race. He kept shoving candy in his mouth all night long - only to spit it out a minute or two later. I think I had like 5 used suckers in my pocket by the time we were done!

This is a sugar-induced smile...
see how his eyes are glossed over??

Partners in crime: Dr. Christian
with his best friend, Katelyn, the
wicked witch of the Northwood.

JD's job was to pick chocolate whenever it was available - for his fetus brother of course! I don't even know how much junk I shoved into my ever expanding face. I even had chocolate for breakfast a few days later - how sad! I don't generally eat a bunch of junk so it made me totally sick! Time to bag up the loot and hide it until it rots!

Camryn's job was to pass out candy. She was thrilled to manage our stash of suckers. I bought lame candy this year (dum-dum suckers) so that I wouldn't be tempted to eat it all. It worked. We still have a huge bag full of them - excellent for bribery :) Also, Camryn and Christian got to enjoy a fun Halloween party at Camryn's preschool. They enjoyed some yummy treats and a chance to show off their costumes.

Camryn passing out treats

Camryn's preschool party

Mom and Dad's job was to laugh at our kids and enjoy a fun night of sugary bliss.

And that we did!

OK, enough family history...now I must go and do my duty and VOTE - so should you!

Camryn is 5...

I'm doing a quick post about Camryn's fun little birthday parties (yes, partIES). I feel sorry for my Joellie who is on OB call tonight. I know at some point he'll check this blog tonight. I figure the likelihood of his seeing the actual pics are much greater if posted on the blog - I'm right huh Joel??

Anyway, so here they are...

I can't believe it, but my little chaquita banana is 5 already! Joel and I laugh occasionally at how my view on Camryn has changed so dramatically this last year. She used to make me, well....crazy! Now that she's a little older, she is an absolute joy in my life! She is such a great 2nd mother to Christian. She's always so quick to respond to the deeds I ask her to complete. She lets things kind of roll off her shoulder (something I'm not used to with her older brother :) ). Her zest for life is contagious: easily finding joy in the simplest of things. She's very social and has a great sense of herself already. Her favorite things in life are: Apples and milk for breakfast, treats, playing with Brittani and Christian, watching movies (oh so girlie - poor Christian knows all of the Barbie movies by name), singing along to Joyschool music in the car, when Mom assists at her preschool, treats, her cupcake birthday shirt (getting a little small by now!) sleeping in mom and dad's bedroom and birthdays.

Way back in September I remember her being so excited because her birthday was just around the corner. When I explained just how many days away it was, she burst into tears for like 5 minutes because she just, "couldn't wait that long!" Anyway, I think she thoroughly enjoyed her 3 days of birthday bliss...

First, we decided to make it a tradition to carve pumpkins as part of Camryn's birthday (kill 2 birds with 1 stone eh?) We joined with our friends, the other Gardner's for a fun family night activity. We carved some pretty freak'n cool pumpkins if I do say so myself. And yes Tanya, Joel's alien pumpkin totally kicked your witch pumpkin! JK

Camryn was so excited for her "school party" at preschool. She got to help Mom decorate cupcakes, make a birthday crown, and have the whole class sing and chant for her special day. When people would ask her how old she was, she'd answer by saying, "Today I'm 5 and I'll be 6 tomorrow." She said that to everyone! I think she got confused because she was having a family party one night and a friend party the next. I gave up after trying to explain it to her for the 10oth time!

So after much MUCH consideration, Camryn decided to celebrate her "family party" at Chuck-E-Cheese. And yes, we were just here for JD's family party too. She was so excited I thought she was going to burst - so she busted a move with Chuck instead. She opened her presents, but I told her her big surprise was at home waiting for her. When we got home, we presented her with her first fish tank. It's just 1 gallon and purple - perfect! She named her new friend, Abby. JD kept pushing for Ruby (it's a red beta), so she settled on Abby Ruby Gardner. She was quite excited about it. She cried that night because she wanted to kiss Abby goodnight. I told her to hurry and kiss the tank and get in bed - seemed to work.

So today was her "friend princess party." Man o man was she excited for this. We had planned this party together for 2 or more weeks. I convinced her to have a small party (just 5 total) so we could buy more treasures for everyone. She seemed to like that idea. She invited a couple of girls from Northwood and a couple of girls from her preschool. It was the perfect size group (last year she had like 15 or more - crazy!). So they made cute little crafts (crowns and gift bags) to start off the festivities. We played games (with lots of prizes for all - which they LOVED), and decorated cupcakes. The funniest thing was this trick I played on the girls. They totally ate it up.

So while we were downstairs playing a game, my friend Tanya came over and "stole" the cupcake tower and put a wicked witch's hat in its place. The girls came up to decorate cupcakes that had been stolen! I acted the part well and read the clue the witch left. The clues took us around our little neighborhood looking for the missing cupcakes. We knocked on some doors and got prizes along the way. We eventually made it back home to see that the witch had put the cupcakes back where they belonged. The girls loved it. One girl thought that the good witch came and killed the bad witch. Nice. Another girl thought that the wicked witch changed her ways and was really nice after all. Another girl looked at me and said, "I didn't think witches were real, but they totally are! They have to be! She was here!" Wow, my work here is done: I've corrupted many little minds. Nice.




Anyway, the day was fun and the girls were so dang cute: all dressed up like their favorite princess! Camryn was so appreciative. She kept saying thank-you to me and kissing me for the rest of the day.



I love her!

Sweet memories of fall....

About 4 years ago, I got my first taste of how glorious autumn time can be. We finally got to bust out of Arizona (which we were more than happy to do) and move out to the East. Our home in Pennsylvania overlooked Lake Erie and a vast green belt packed with trees - so pretty! I remember driving along winding roads with leaves swirling around thinking I had been transported into a postcard. The leaves, the smells, the crisp air was so welcoming - a nice departure from the desert.

This was in Pennsylvania - our first "real" fall.
I was about 5 months prego with Christian.

When we moved to Michigan, once again I was energized by the crisp air and wonderful colors. The difference with our stay here in Michigan has been my introduction to all of the great fall activities: apple picking, pumpkin picking, raspberry picking, cider mills, homemade pumpkin donuts, leaf collecting and the list goes on.

This post is dedicated to some of our fun autumn time activities this year. I'm aware that Idaho may not be able to match the East in beauty during this great season, but I think I'll manage just fine. I'm sure there are some pumpkin patches and corn mazes around the spud state to give me a taste of my favorite season. If not, we'll just have to make a trip back to Michigan every fall and pack it all in over a long weekend!

So here are some pictures that illustrate a few of the choice activities our family has experienced this year (it's kind of fun to note that again I'm about 5 months prego with baby boy #4 in these pics too)...

Camyrn's preschool took a field trip
to a local apple orchard. We shared
a fun hayride, apple picking and
pumpkin picking with Tanya and
her girls...

JD's great little soccer team closed
out their season this week. The kids &
I really enjoyed playing at the park
during all of his practices.
Good job Vikings!

These kids are absolute best friends!
Camryn and Brittani are like sisters
and Katelyn and Christian act like
an old married couple already!
These pics were taken just outside
my apartment.

These were taken at a local market.
We've enjoyed this particular farm
stand each year here in Michigan
because they have the BEST homemade
pumpking donuts and cider. The kids
also love the fun little corn maze.

Now, can you see why I love the fall so much??

A Fun Escape...

So last Sunday I came home from church and Joel looked at me and said, "I've gotta get out of here! For my birthday, I'm taking you to Chicago for the weekend." Ummm, SAWEET! Doubly saweet - we weren't bringing our kids! Anyway, we only had a week to prepare so Joel ordered tickets to Wicked, made reservations for a hotel in the heart of Chicago (so freak'n awesome!) and rented a little speedy car so we wouldn't have to drive our gas guzzling Burb. I was in charge of getting some great restaurants and the babysitters. Well, Joel was quite successful with his end of the deal: Wicked was crazy awesome, the hotel's location was ideal and our car was pretty darn inexpensive. I rocked on getting some great babysitters (thanks Nate and Missy!), but the restaurant for our big night out was a total flop! Bad, very bad! All in all, the weekend was a complete knockout - we had such a great time!

Now in case you're curious how to do Chicago in a weekend, this worked great for us....

• You must must must get a hotel that is in the city. Joel pricelined one and got a great deal. This way, you can walk the city and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of the city.

• Follow the concierge's advice on local dining! I thought I had picked a great restaurant (A Mano's), but it turned out to be the absolute WORST dining experience Joel and I have had in a very very long time (not counting Big Boy in Ann Arbor of course)! The food was a contemporary take on Italian, but it failed miserably. The bread was the worst I have ever had. I'm not kidding. We were completely ignored by our obnoxious server, but it was a good thing because we would have been charged like $20 just in refills on Coke if she would've done her duty. Yes, they charged for each refill - and the glass was tiny. Joel couldn't even finish his strawberry cake - it was soooo dry! When we told our server, she asked us, "Well, haven't you ever had semolina before (what it was made of)?" We just looked at her thinking, "Listen annoying failure, I don't care what is in the cake, it's just the worst excuse for a cake ever!" Well, we didn't leave a very big tip and were happy to get out of there and into our Wicked seats.

• You must go to some kind of show whilst in Chicago. Oh my holiness, the cast of this particular Wicked production was so fabulous! The two leads were amazing to say the least. Glinda was freak'n hilarious! We bought the cd and listened to it twice on the way home the next day. It was so fun to sing at the top of my lungs (Joel even joined in a few times!) without my kids yelling at me to either stop or put on one of their kid cd's.

• We heard that one of the best ways to see Chicago is on an architectural river cruise. Great idea. We hopped aboard and spent 1 1/2 hours gliding around the city with an unbeatable point of view. Chicago of course is know for its great architecture and we came away with a better appreciation for the beauty in those buildings.

• Joel wanted to see Blue Man Group. Now I couldn't deny my birthday man, so we saw it and had a great time. If you don't know who they are, you should find out - it's a fun show to see in Vegas, New York, LA, Chicago etc. Joel and I agreed that JD would love the production if we ever make it back to one of these cities.

• When in Chicago you must must walk walk - everywhere. For a big city, Chicago does such a great job in keeping the streets beautifully landscaped and clean. I was blown away by the amount of mums everywhere - so inviting. Now, if I were a shopper I'm sure I would have been salivating with all of the great shopping opportunities available on the Magnificent Mile. However, my hugely pregnant uterus couldn't keep up. I was told that I had to stop at the American Girl Doll Store while in Chicago. Joel and I were, well....we laughed pretty hard about the whole thing. Walking into the ginormous store was overwhelming. Imagine 3 or 4 floors of purely doll-obsessed moms and daughters shopping with determination. I felt trapped in this weird beauty contest vortex. I couldn't believe my eyes when Joel and I saw a set on sale for $450. It included a doll in ice skates and little hair accessories. Crazy! Watch, I'll be one of those crazy moms in a couple of years!

• I forgot to mention, we did come away with a great taste of local Chicago cuisine before the trip was over. We were told by one of Joel's attendings to go to the West Egg - a local breakfast joint. It did not disappoint: great atmosphere and more importantly, fabulous food!
  

• Lastly, whenever you're in Chicago (or any big city for that matter), please please stay in the nice areas of town! On the way home, we took the wrong exit and our navigation system had to steer us through a scary part of town. As we were driving down the main road, I saw some little gang of teenagers start a fist fight with some dude walking down the street. One of the kids threw a powerful punch and knocked the guy into oncoming traffic. He didn't get run over - I don't know if that was a good thing or not. Down the block I saw some cop arresting some scary looking dude. Ahhh, it totally reminded me of the time my mom took a wrong exit in LA and ended up in Watts. The mercedes she was driving didn't help our cause.
  

Man, Joel and I had a great time and hope to go back very soon. I love the idea of these weekend getaways! Hopefully we'll be able to hit Boston before we move. That would be heaven!