One special day

I had the opportunity to go up to the stake center today and help out with the Gladys Knight's Saints Unified Voices fireside. It was going to be a long day and I knew I was going to have to find some one who would keep my kids for the day but when the Bishop came in and asked for volunteers I raised my hand. I will be totally honest. My first thought was a day away from my kids, Oh yeah that is what I want. So I asked Casey and Sarah to come watch the kids for me and I went down today and was there for about 8 hours. It was truly amazing. I loved being able to see all the people as they seemed to have a bigger smile on as they walked into the Chapel and so excited to hear this. I truly felt the spirit tonight and in a different way. You would hear others who were consumed by the spirit saying Amen out loud and praise god. And while it is not our norm I was so thrilled that they were there to hear her powerful message and that they felt the spirit to feel so moved to share it. She says that one of the Primary songs was one of the first things she had heard when she first walked into our church and it was so simple. The song was I am a Child of God. She sang it with her choir and to hear her sing the song was so amazing. She sings a version you would never hear the primary kids sing but so powerful. I am so glad I can say I got to see it and offer my help. If it is ever near you YOU SHOULD GO. It is worth it.

Halloween

James pumpkin


Big James creation

Bethannies

Even though it is side ways this was the only pic we took that night. I thought back to how pathetic that was. I spent hours making the girls costumes and then only took one pic. I am such a goof.

Here is the pumpkin that Mackenzie wanted.

Here is Bethannie's

A new day

So since my last blog post was me more complaining then any thing else I thought I would do a better one for today. So I signed all the kids for dance class yes even James. They love it. We run three days a week to the dance place but it is so nice. I have Mackenzie in a Creative dance class. James is also in a creative dance class and then Bethannie is in Jazz and Ballet. They all love it. As soon as the weather wants to cooperate I will be glad to send the kids who are not dancing outside to play on the playground. But it seems to rain every day or be totally freezing so we stay inside and talk to all the other people waiting too. It is sad to think of all my kids getting as big as they are. But yesterday the weather was nice and so after school we went for a bike ride. It was nice to just go. So then I look at how big the kids are and think of all the things I am able to go do by myself with them and not worry to much about it. In a little over a month I am going to test my beliefs of doing anything with the kids by myself when we go to Myrtle beach for a week. I am so ready for that vacation. I literally day dream about it. 2 reasons. One I am ready to get away and just do nothing. not feel like I have to go to the gym and kick my butt for 2 hours. Not feel like I have a ton of running around to do, or church stuff to take care of. But second when we leave for the trip we are half way through this torture time called a deployment. I am so ready to know we are half done and only half more to go. I did not plan it like that but it is the way it worked out. On a totally different note my baby sister had a baby last week. He is one cute boy. I am so glad she is so close that I can go help her when she needs it but I also can go hold the baby and love on him. I miss having a little baby around but not enough to want to have another one. Not like we can any way but you know what I am saying. I will hold any ones baby who needs it and then I am more then glad to give them back and know I can go home and sleep all through the night and I do not have any diapers to change. Ahh bliss...... Any how that is what is really going on here at our home. It is crazy sometimes but it is the way I like it. I just wish some days were less crazy then others.

So long ago

I have not wrote in so long I do not even know where to begin except for right now and if I ever feel like I have the chance go back and do a lot of make up. James is gone again and has actually been gone for about 2 months. I have no idea what it is like to have him home and actually be an active part of our family any more. Nothing mean towards him it has just been what feels like years that he is never around. I know some say it is our choice and we do this to ourselves. But I do not think of it like that. I know he enjoys his job and it makes me want to be able to be strong for him. I want to be able to say good bye to James and know I can handle all that is coming my way. And I have to say for myself I normally do. But this deployment has been a whole new game. I have never in my life cried so much as I have this time. I feel like I am have a break down every other day. This has been the best week so far and the kids listened for the most part and we all got a lot done. I have been told so many times that I am a pillar of strength and that people just assume I can handle it because I always look like it I guess. I do not feel like that pillar. I feel like I have fallen over and am in a thousand little pieces that just do nothing now. It is so crummy to feeling like this. I hate not thinking of myself capable and knowing I can handle everything. It makes me feel weak. It is hard knowing that you have to do so much every day all day by yourself and not really ever get the help that you wish you had or sometimes really need. I am ready for this deployment to be over soon so I can hope that we will not have to be separated for a few more years. I know that our family struggles with this daily but we always handle it when it is over. The kids have their ways of dealing with it just like I do. Some times I just have to cry it out I guess and while it does make me feel weak I know it makes me feel better when I have cried. I guess it lets me know I am human. I am so grateful that heavenly father is here with me and can carry me when I just feel like I can not go any more. I am grateful for friends that step up to help even though I know they are alone with their kids too and having the same struggles I am. Thank you is all I can say.

A painter for hire....

So I have been painting the kids rooms. They are all done but I had to tell this story. I was upstairs painting the girls room and Mackenzie had been coming up and down the stairs watching me paint. Well she had been down stairs for a little while and I thought she was watching TV. Well I came down stairs to wash the stencil I had been using. And I did not notice anything for the first while. Then I went to the table and there it was. A HUGE mess. I do not know still to this day how my 3 year old managed to do this but she opened a paint can that I was going to use for the Bathroom. She found a screw driver, opened the lid and then found a paint brush. She had paint all over the table, the kitchen floor. That is all I thought she had done. So i got to cleaning it all up. I then noticed that she had got a lot of paint on the trash can. Oh well I thought. It is just the trash can. Well then as I turned I saw the BIG ONE. She had painted my wall. Not the wall where the paint was suppose to go. She painted it down the hallway. So here is here painting. It was frustrating at the moment but I had to much of a mess to clean up so I could not really do anything. The rotten thing was there was paint on the carpet. SO I will tell you that if this ever happens. I used oxi clean and made a mound over every spot and used a wet rag and started scrubbing. It all came up. So I was excited about that. Any how well I just wanted to show some of the mess. I had cleaned up a lot of it before I thought to take a pic.

We still have not even painted the wall back to white. So every one who comes in the house sees her masterpiece.

Ike family fun day

The boat had a picnic for the families and so we went and the kids had a lot of fun. It was a great day and though we left a little early to go to Busch gardens it was still a ton of fun. The trampoline was the kids favorite.

Mackenzie in the middle of her flip.


She was doing flips none stop. It made James and I laugh.

Bethannie was like a flipping machine up on this.

James flying high.

James and Mackenzie jumping. Mackenzie was trying to do a flip. She did finally get it and she did a lot of flips up in the air.

Look at that girl fly.

Bethannie riding a mechanical Bull.

James rode it and held on for 10 seconds. the guys told him he would not be able to stay on.

But he did. James was the champ for the moment.

School started?

So I know school started oh a month ago but you would never know this because well I never said a thing about it. But I do have to say that at first I was sad that the kids had gone back to school. They both love it and I would never want them to not go but I missed them.

Mackenzie wanted in the pic even though she was not going to school this day.


Look at this handsome boy. He is such a good kid.

Here is my princess. She has the same teacher this year because she moved up with her class this year and kept most of her kids but had to add a few more. Bethannie is loving it and I liked her teacher so I guess I am thrilled with it too.

Home work is a constant now and so the newness of school has worn off and the kids are just thinking it as if it never ends. We try our hardest to make it easier on them but it is not like you can do your kids home work for them. Although man there are days when I just want to tell Bethannie all the answers so she will quit crying because she does not know how to so this problem or it is to hard according to her. Mackenzie has started a little preschool with her friends from church and so 1 day a week she gets to have school with her friends. She has learned the letter A and B and the numbers 1 and 2. She loves going and ask every day if it is a school day. I love having her at home though again by herself it makes me happy to have some time alone with her because when the other 2 get home it can turn into craziness.