Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Summer Backpack 2010

Last week was the annual summer backpack trip (AKA or FKA BAJ). It was a 20+ mile, 7 day, 6 night trip near Ouray, CO. This year Chuck, Lily, Emma, Cameron and Hannah went. As well as Jonathan, Darien and Annie. Along with Tim (Chuck's brother) and his son, Preston. (If Tim makes it, this is the only time during the year Chuck and Tim see or talk to each other.) Originally, H was not going to go, but in the last weeks, Chuck decided to take her. She had gone on all the practice trips, and failed miserably, but despite that, Chuck said he just couldn't bare to leave her. I said, yes, she'd be upset, but she'd get over it. And that morning, as I was doing her hair and Chuck was packing, she kept saying. "Don't leave me Daddy." Which further sealed the deal. Understanding he'd have to carry her the whole way (she did walk a bit the first day), he still wanted to take her. And he DID have to carry her the whole way. Other than that, Chuck said she did great. However, my brother tells a different story:) She did get sick the last couple of days and is still sick along with Chuck. Chuck USED TO tell me that you never get sick in the wilderness. He can't say that any longer! Here are a couple stories I heard from the trip:
Chuck, Lily and Emma got sick Monday night (the 2nd night on the trial). The attribute it to food poisoning from tuna. The all threw up all night. They took the next day easy, but couldn't stay at the camp because there was too much puke everywhere....
There was quite a bit of arguing amongst the boys. One argument was about the resurrection. D and C have been taught that everyone will be resurrected. D believes even the dinosaurs, C, says no, not the dinosaurs. Preston has been taught that once you die that's it....
Chuck said the scenery was amazing, the kids played well together, and C walked the whole way.
I'm glad everyone made it home safe and sound!




Preston and Tim (Chuck's bro, if you couldn't tell)

Hannah Grace




love this picture!



C got stung on the lip by a bee




C and D

not sure if this was suppose to be a "silly" picture, but I LOVE Annie's face!

H sitting on a rock by herself



so cute!




As for me, I enjoyed my time with only one child. Baby C was pretty good, so I got a lot done. I cleaned house, worked out (baby C was my little running buddy), shopped, ran errands, got baby C's scrapbook started and up to date, took naps, and even read a book (BTW, I would not recommend Little Bee). I got everything on my list crossed off with the exception of weeding the garden which was more about not wanting to do it versus not having enough time. I do miss my kids when they are away, but LOVE the time without them! It's good for all of us.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Karma

Karma - "act, action, performance", that which causes the entire cycle of cause and effect. OR as it is commonly defined, what goes around comes around.

In the Hindu religion, which believes in reincarnation, karma (our actions or deeds) from previous lives as well as this present life, shapes our future life. If one sow goodness, one reaps goodness. If one sows evil, one reaps evil. With the exception of the reincarnation part, this perspective is not that different from that of Christianity.

In April of 2008, I started a Master level yoga teacher training course. This was an additional 300 hours to my 200 hours already completed. It is now July of 2010, and just tonight I handed in all that was required of me. And that requirement list is long... It included sitting thru many many hours of lectures, participation in numerous workshops, projects, observes, assists, homework, translating yoga sutras... And tonight, I must have done something right, because... I had my yoga sutra translation book and a very large stack of papers to drop off at the studio, which I placed on the top of my car so that I could put Christian in his car seat. And, yep, you guessed it. I forgot about them. As I was waiting to make a left hand term, a guy drove past me really slow, gave me a weird look and pointed to my roof. THANK YOU whoever you were for your good karma. I pulled over to find only my book. Which could have been replaced, but I would have had to do all the work again. I circled back and there in the street close to my house was the rest of my papers, some of which could have been reproduced, some of which could not. Whew... is all I have to say. Oh, and practice good karma.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

6m, 3 and 5

I took all 3 of the kids to the pediatrician last week. It was time for baby C's 6 month check up (I can't believe he is 6 months!) and since we get one well check visit a year for free, I took C and H also. The kids were so good! They did everything the nurses and doctor asked them to do. I was very pleased with them! I did not think H had to get shots, but she did. It upset her for a little while and I felt bad because I had told her she would not be getting any. But she got over it. Here are their stats and a little bit about them at this age.

Christian is weighing in at 20lbs 4ounces. He is the cutest little chunk ever! He is not off the charts though, only the 90th percentile. He is 27 inches tall, which is about the 80th percentile. He loves attention and is very interactive. He seems to understand a lot and likes to play games. He has the most gorgeous smile and giggles to die for! He rolls all over the house, is very grabby, and of course, puts everything into his mouth. He is starting to scoot himself forward but getting on his knees and pushing with his feet. He'll probably be crawling soon enough. He is sleeping thru the night??? Well, he has the last 3 nights, we'll see if it continues.

Hannah is 28lbs (18%) and 35inches tall (5%). She's a petite little thing. What can I say about H other than she is 3? I'm not sure why it's called the terrible twos. I think 3 is worse. Like any 3 year old, she gets what she wants or she throws a fit. And she loves to antagonize C. No, seriously, H is overall a good kid. She is sweet and adorable. She is helpful and for the most part obedient. She loves babies and princesses. And she LOVES watermelon and pizza. She is not shy at all when at home. She is loud! She loves to sing and dance. Her most often performed song is Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. But she also makes up her own, most of which talk about loving her mom (and I'm not making that up). But when at church, friends houses etc., she'll barely says a word. Her speech is a little hard to understand, unless you live with her. She has a hard time with y's (it's lellow, not yellow), s's and d's (hut the boor, shut the door) and g's (bo, not go). It is too cute and I'd wish she'd talk like that forever! H loves her brothers. If C is gone for a long time, she'll ask when he's going to be home. And while I'm taking a shower, she'll play with baby C. The other day she took our comforter, put it over his head and then sat on his head. I'm sure it was all in fun! However, I've very careful about leaving him alone with her. We love H so much!

Cameron weighs 40lbs and is 43inches tall. He is turning into a little man! I look at him sometimes and almost don't recognize him. How'd he get so big?! He is sleeping great (finally after 5 years). He is throwing less fits and he is making progress at entertaining himself. Over the last several weeks, he has spent time playing on his own. Very little time, but nonetheless, time. He still loves firetrucks as well as any other vehicle. He loves to watch movies and TV. His has lots of favs, but among them are Fetch with Ruff Ruffman and the Electric Company. He loves to camp and backpack. In addition to the camping, he has had a busy summer learning to swim and ride a bike as well as spending time with his friends. His best friends still being Carson. And Cameron adores Christian. A little too much at time if you ask me. He, like H, is very helpful with baby C and is looking forward to the day they can play together.

Our kids are so gorgeous and smart! And we love them to pieces (despite the complaining that I do)! We are so thankful to have them as part of our family!

Shopping

I had some time yesterday to go shopping! I don't go shopping much unless I am looking for something specific and it's usually for the kids. I have lost most of my pregnancy weight, it's so hot here, and I hate everything in my closet. So, I decided it was time to go look for some shorts and shirts. I got killer deals on everything I bought, which included more than the kids need. But things were so cheap! My new favorite store is the Eddie Bauer outlet. They have classy, modest clothes. I got several pairs of shorts for $12.50. We went in the store to look for jean shorts for Chuck, which they did not have, but I felt like I'd hit the jackpot for myself. Charity and Christian went with me. Charity has a little bit of a shopping problem, so she was happy to go along. And Christian was great! And I couldn't help but think of my girlfriend from college, Tiffany, who also has a shopping problem. Would have loved for you to be here to go shopping with my Tiff!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Hannah's Haircut!

Hannah got her hair cut! I think I mentioned it, but if not, a couple months ago, I took her to get her hair cut. We talked about it and she was excited. We waited for a while and when it was her turn, she completely rejected it! So, last Saturday, Charity was going to get her hair cut and aske H if she wanted to go and get hers cut too and she said she did. And she actually did it. Maybe me not being there was a good thing!


She braided it after cutting it, so I don't have a really good "after" shot. It is still long, but shorter and very close to being all one length.

Swimming

C has learned to swim! He is so excited about it and I can't believe how fast it came about! Because he is so excited about it, I want to encourage him. So, we are swimming most days of the week. And it is such a hassle! Water, changing clothes, sunscreen, goggles, towels, making sure no one drowns etc. But it is much easier now that C can swim and isn't hanging on my arm. I bought H a little ring and she loves just kicking around in it. Now, I just hold baby C and make sure no one is on the bottom of the pool. I'm sure glad we don't have a pool but thankful we know a lot of people with them.