sweet baby evie

i cannot get enough of sweet baby evie lately. she is always up for a snuggle, has no desire whatsoever to sit on her own, and is always smiling and laughing. (unless hungry or tired. and cover your ears if she is both. remember, brewer genes!)

still working on the slow, slow process of scanning, saving, uploading my baby photos. but i have been thinking so much about my love and obsession over miss evalyn jayne while doing this,

i feel like, this baby, she is MINE. my mini-me. she is number three, like i was. she has the dark(er) hair that i did. and she brings peace, which is all i ever want.

the above picture is me, with evie's namesake: my dad's sweet mother Evalyn Bowerman (she passed away 13 years ago when i was just 11). i keep doing a double take looking at it because evie looks so much like i did. this is normal to so many people, but i never, ever thought that i would have a child look like me after having caleb and claire. it sounds so silly, and it is, and i realize that i just shouldnt care, but i have dreamed and dreamed of having MY child. some people say claire looks like me; i can hardly see past the while blonde hair so i dont know.

oh anyways. loving little evie. i am feeling like a failure with her right now; i nursed her for the last time last night. for some reason my milk supply decided to just go away, and it is killing me. long story short, i feel it is best for her, for my sanity, and the sakes of my other children that she get formula. i have enough stored that she will get some pumped milk every day until she is 6 months old (next week!) which makes me feel a little better. i promised myself that in order to be "fair" i would nurse all my babies until at least six months. any longer is lucky for them......

anywho. the last few times she has really struggled with it, but last night i decided it would be the last time, and she was so content the whole time, and drifted off to sleep seeming so happy. (okay i am bawling now, why am i so emotional about this???? ) she seemed to be telling me that it was okay. so here we are, im done nursing. and now, hopefully i can shed a few pounds. ha!

love that girl.

story time.

I was looking back through the blog the other day and noticed how I used to write about really funny things that happened, but since having lots of kids it's been rather dull. So! A story for you.

I was conducting in relief society yesterday, and as our teacher was wrapping up her lesson, Eleanor hall started raising her hand.

Now, let me pause and tell you about Eleanor hall. She is OLD. She wears her frizzy, flyaway hair in a very TALL beehive, and has some of the biggest, thick glasses covering half her face. And her comments are always well-intentioned but  off the wall a bit.

So, the teacher tried to ignore her, she was trying to leave time for testimonies. But as she moved to sit down Eleanor started talking anyways. And she started talking about little Yosh, her 'dear friend,' and how it was her birthday, so we really needed to sing to her. What?!?!  The teacher calmly tried to assuage her by saying no, we'll share testimonies first, and perhaps we could all just go make sure to say happy birthday on own.

Crisis almost averted.

I got up after testimonies and announced the closing hymn, and promptly got interrupted by Eleanor, practically yelling (we have RS in the chapel, by the way) saying no, we will sing 'happy birthday' because it would only take two seconds. Ah!

Fine. We sang the least enthusiastic version I have ever heard, closing hymn, and done.

I cant count the number of people who came up and said, 'you should have seen your face!' Yeah, I'm sure that was hilarious. But they all also said there was nothing else that could have been done.

Oh those old people in our ward. They are one funny bunch. I need to say there are a few who I will dearly, dearly miss. One being Cynthia Scott. She is teeny tiny, wears Fifties cat glasses, and her stark white hair in a bob. She has really horrible memory, it took her maybe three years to finally remember my name.  But she always tries so hard to remember, is really so kind, and has the sweetest testimony that she is so willing to share.

I need to also say, I will miss our ward in general. It's a really, really big ward, but it's also really transient, you can meet someone new every week.

Anyways. This is Claire after her dance class recital this summer. So fun!

He liiiiiikes it

That boy. So big right now. Mom keeps telling me "interesting" when I tell he about how he likes it (the bunk beds), and stays in it during naps and night time. That's because he's awesome. He did fall out last night I believe..... But went right back in and stayed asleep, until the kids came into our room at 7:22. I must say that I much prefer that to his endless screaming in the crib in the morning. I should probably look into putting the rails up. I luf him.

In other news, it's finally dumping snow. Which is great, but it's a bummer we didn't get to all stay in this morning and snuggle and watch the snow fall.

Success

Im not saying transition has happened just yet, but little man slept in his bed last night! Aaaaand both kids slept til almost 8. The mattress was just on the floor because we didn't get to finish setting up the bed, but he only cried for 10 minutes before going to sleep.

Did I mention that the night before he climbed out of his crib in the middle of the night? So, pretty much I know how my kids work and what they're all about.

And ikea is my definition of a love/hate relationship. Ugh, that place is awesome, but really the worst. Trying to buy a lamp is a nightmare. And buying two is like pouring shards of glass in my eyes.

Happy Saturday!

Reverence

Teaching reverence during prayers to younger kids is kinda hard sometimes. But also really funny sometimes. Don't worry, joe already scolded me for taking a picture during a prayer, and I repented.

a santa FAIL

i try so very hard to give my kids all the necessary experiences that i can. start and keep traditions, all those type things. good mom stuff. 

soooooo. at the beginning of december, i grabbed joe and the kids, and we headed to the outdoor mall where "the best santa" was supposed to be. he wasnt there. no signs saying when he would be back, schedule, nada. claire was devastated. i didnt want to go to the regular indoor malls- they all charge for pictures now, and dang it i didnt want to pay to capture my kids screaming with a fat bearded man in a red suit. (they are EXPENSIVE too.) 

perhaps maybe the ward party..... oh wait. no chance there. no santa at our ward ever again..... 

so we waited, figuring maybe we were too early in the season. it was a at least a week after thanksgiving, but whatever. as usual, december was hectic, and we didnt make it back to that outdoor mall until christmas eve. no santa. claire was disappointed again, but at least there were signs saying he would be there at 6:00 THAT NIGHT, along with free carriage rides. (oh carriage rides....another story. another day.) so i convinced lindsay to come with me since joe was working, we were there just after 6, and NO FLIPPING SANTA. nowhere to be found. and no carriage rides. even his chair was gone. we werent the only ones walking around in the freeeeeezing weather, wondering where the heck he was. so lame.

three times we tried to see santa. and three times, we failed. miserably. they didnt even see him, let alone get their pictures with them. no idea if claire would have been happy or sad, if caleb would have sat down, anything.

when its all said and done, the kids enjoyed running around his "house" and i got to enjoy looking at everyone else's screaming kids on facebook and blogs. i think that there was not one picture of kids with santa that didnt have them upset or looking realllllly confused. 

next year kids, we WILL get that screaming picture. hopefully :)

big head

this is katelyn, one of my kids i babysit. shes a cutie for sure. we bonded great at first, went through a rough patch for a while, and now are on great terms again. we have an understanding now. shes close to bubba's height, but very petite, and extremely girly. 

her parents think she has a big head.... and one day they dropped her off wearing this. i didnt think it was that big until that day. 

ipad love

we were very, very generously gifted with an ipad for christmas, and we don't let kids touch it very much.... i really dont think caleb plays on it ever, except he LOVES to look at pictures on it. of baby girls, mostly. or doggies. he fell asleep one morning holding on to it with a death grip.... funny kid. you know it was early because he still had jammies on. oops!

Hungry boy

Loooove the very hungry caterpillar. Bubba-love does too. And the doggies outside playing in two inches of snow.

that's right. Haters complained enough, and got some stinking snow. I was rather enjoying my balmy fifty degrees, no coats, windows down and sunshine,thankyouverymuch. I was starting to think it was April. I'll just keep de-junking anyways I guess. Not that anyone can tell....

Only child

I think bubba monster likes all the attention, with not having his sister around. And getting to play with whatever toy he wants. He's been going from toy to toy, thrilled that mama lets him play and doesn't try and take anything away. And he slept in, waaaaay past his normal wake up. But I think he misses his sister. Sorry for all the one-photo posts. Promise lots of good ones are forth coming. Mi madre has my memory card. I'll snatch it next week! Someone has to pick up Claire....

Missing

this little blondie. I heard she was in texas, with an aunt, grandparents, and two puppies. Anybody seen her?

meet the asian

susan is a roomie from my freshman year in the dorms.

susan is a rock star for so many reasons. 

she is asian. 

she is the only member of our church in her family, and is such a good example.

she finished her nursing degree, after having a baby.

she has the fattest asian baby ever. (it takes everything i have not to eat her)

she has some sweet dance skills.

she likes HP more than i do.

she is kind, sweet, smart, funny, and lets me watch her fat baby.

i love staying connected with this girl. we see each other regularly. i watched her kid while she went to school. but we got the husbands to watch kids, went out to lunch and lost track of time talking. i love having a friend that i can do that with. in fact, i saw her three times that day, and we still had things to talk about. how? and how did we end up living just on other sides of the freeway, and we dont manage to see each other more?

and she is an incredibly good cook. legit asian food- i still drool thinking about her chow mein feasts she cooked up for us. and anything she bakes. i couldnt resist saying yes to some of her cookies last night, after we already went out and had ice cream.

gotta love a good friend. 

real pictures. what?

doing what i can to embrace fall. definitely some slacking, but i'm trying. the last monthish.  

 claire looking cute with her headband. headband lasted 2.9 seconds. we try. 

take that back. i try. she doesn't.

 model man. and screeching katelyn in the background. but cute bubbers.

 i live like 2.9 seconds from here. GORGEOUS this time of year. and this isn't even super pretty yet. (this was a couple weeks ago.)

 stink bug changed her mind about pictures.and headband.

shifting gears.

family time. thats all five sibs together. missed mom and dad! and happy bday sarah bear. FINALLY 18. that took forever. 

 shifting again.

hee haw farms. i gotta know- are all pumpkin patch/hay ride/corn mazes this ghetto? i was expecting a little more..... either way. both kids had a BLAST. like, giggling most of the time.

 as soon as claire saw this dumb animal train she wanted to skip the pony ride (which was LAME.) and hop into the pig asap. silly girl. joe got in on the action though, so that was kinda fun.

 probably her fave thing after the corn box.

 pig touching. can you spot my little blondie? that was fun for her too.

 corn box. i decided this should be what playgrounds have instead of sand or wood chips. i'm sure it was dirty, but way less dirty than sand and no splinters. no sand in the eyes. awesome.

 sweet hair dude. he was unsure at first, but got into it when he saw claire going to town.

we even did this twice the kids loved it so much.

good times for everyone! we even ran into some friends and picked out pumpkins with them. the kids were kinda done by then, and claire kept getting frustrated she couldn't carry any, but so fun anyways. yay for family time! 

and yay for non-phone or ipod pics! thats a miracle, huh?

back to the byu game. i should probably not watch those. they make me physically ill, i get that into them. probably send me into labor. 

something new

for the last, four months or so, the camera has been at my parents house. with my parents moving, the camera did not reappear in my hands until a couple weeks ago. i thought, sweet! i will have all these great new pictures to post! eh, not so much. i had four. and these are all of them.

coincidentally, they are all from the time we went strawberry picking when we were visiting my parents in st. louis. coincidentally, because claire recently started talking about that adventure and riding on the school bus that took us to the fields. at least a couple times every day. and every time we see a school bus. that was one HOT day. 

now that we have a camera back in action, i hope there will be more picture taking. because the whole one picture posts from the phone/ipod is reeeeeally getting old. 

and hopefully i will start feeling better so that i will want to take those pictures. because i have been feeling yucky, pretty much since the day we stepped off the plane back in utah. because, yep, 

BABY #3 is making an appearance in 6 1/2 months! 

quite honestly, it was a bit of a surprise, but one we are totally THRILLED about. can't wait to meet her!

yes i think its a girl. i already know her name. BUT we are not finding out gender, until she is born! we did it twice, we got one of each, and since i've always wanted to, i am doing it this time. my choice, so thats how it is. i can wait that long, right????? 

Anyone out there?

Not sure if anyone reads this anymore?

Here's a quick shot of Claire after her dance recital last night. She was being a stink, but danced her little heart out when it came time. Cute little bug. Thanks for coming to watch linds!

Oh and my younger brother is here. Pretty happy right mow.

time flies

i never seem to get around to posting as much during the summer months. too much fun stuff going on?

head here to see some pictures from the weekend. spent pretty much all of it with the family!

joe has been through the wringer the last couple of weeks. three doctors visits within two weeks. yep, it stinks. (and the computer stays in our room, which i have been avoiding, so maybe thats why i haven't been posting?) annnnnd they still have no for sure diagnosis, so joe is on what, 6 meds right now? lost count. been keeping the kids away and outside, and trying to get him better. i mostly lost my voice, and willed myself to not get whatever it is that he has.... can't have two sick parents, right?

and also on the agenda, every day, is to somehow get plans for girl's camp figured out. it is sneaking up really fast, and i'm starting to get real nervous. speaking of:

FREE CAR WASH THIS SATURDAY! DONATIONS ACCEPTED :) AND THERE WILL BE A LEMONADE STAND AND BAKE SALE! 1600 W. in PROVO. just south of center street, at the church on your left. 9:30 am to 1pm


that was my plug for the girls in our ward. its their fundraiser for camp, and i'm a little bit stressed. so come? and bring friends!

oh, and here's the really awesome part: there will even be some vacuums and they will vacuum your car! sweet huh?

and marshy-marsh gets home in like, forty something days. its flown by, but i can't wait to see my little brother! he's probably got 8 inches on my now, but i will always be the older one :)

and harry potter. was going to go a midnight showing, but i am pretty sure we are too old for that. like i would most likely fall asleep. so next day it is. so excited.

and girl's camp. oy. lots of cute stuff and ideas, just making it all flow and come together. yes i know about sugar doodle. honestly, has not been the greatest resource. i'm kinda picky. to each their own.

 too. much. to do. and bubba is now bubbamonster. officially. he blubs around (thats the sound he makes) and walks in huge, wide-stance steps with his arms out like he's gonna get you. he's so delicious. and goes up AND down stairs on his own. claire loves dance class, but is a serious space cadet. her teacher says she follows along, but i'm just not sure. shes crazy.

oh and my car got rear ended. biggest headache. i HATE state farm (the other guy's insurance) i can never understand anyone i talk to on the phone! and i really don't want a rental car. ANNOYING.

soooo i will get some pictures soon... i have a REALLY funny story with some pictures, when i get around to it!

funnies

i think his first word will be grampa.

seriously, he goes nuts when he sees him on facetime.

its been a funny few days. the kids are all kinds of crazy, the weather can't make up its mind, my mother turned into maria from the sound of music, (seriously. seven kids, severe thunderstorms, all piled together before bed.... what else could that remind you of?) and the house is being completely disassembled and gone through piece by piece as my the fam gets ready to move. all while we try and do some projects and celebrate sarah graduating. and all the "lasts".

the flights here was less than smooth... besides having a lot of rough air i kept getting motion sick, claire did NOT like sitting in her seat, the dvd player died before getting a chance to watch a movie, and icy wings delaying us an hour (on the plane). and claire did not want to behave. of course. i considered shoving her in the overhead bin at the end of our second flight, it would have been safer because i physically could not get her to stay in her seat or my lap, and the poor lady next to us, well we had already bothered her enough. she sat on the floor on the descent.... worse things in life, right?

the best part of the flight? the flight attendant at the beginning of the flight advising us that while pressing the button with a light bulb on it will turn on a light, the button with a flight attendant on it will not turn a flight attendant on, so don't try. gotta love southwest!

gotta keep moving on.... its been an adventure here so far for sure. claire slept through most of church yesterday, loves talking to all the birds outside, and keeping her grammy on her toes. :)mom and i went on a crazy 13 bike ride. mind you, its been quite a while since the last time i rode a bike. so, biking through the mud uphill was interesting! different trail next time for sure.

now off to help plan and execute a couple parties- one tomorrow and one thursday। should be grand. our best bites is of course, the main source for recipes! happy week!

being a mom means

(or being the closest aunt means)

taking your kid to jump in the puddles

yes, claire is 2 1/2 and this would be her first official time bring allowed to jump in the puddles.

not that she hasn't jumped in puddles, but this time she was encouraged. i just hate being wet.

so after driving home from playing with lindsay, i couldn't help but put the bubba down for bed, and put some real boots on claire and let her go to town. go HERE to see the jumping. don't mind the undies.... her pants were already soaking, and i don't know about you but one of the worst feelings in the world is having the bottom of the pants be wet. (after plain being wet, or having wet hair. i can't stand to have wet hair!)

thanks for the fun linds! (and the "eggs" and popcorn)