2018: March 2018

#momlife - Sitting on my bed with four cute little tired intruders - typical Saturday morning.

#momlife - Sitting on the floor helping Crosby eat his cheese & sticks.

Crosby shows his crack and tries to get the ladies by posing in the back door.

Andlie & Crosby take a blanket out to the deck on a chilly day.

Crosby gets caught red-handed pulling wipes out one by one and then act innocent when I asked him what he did and starts wiping the floors.

#momlife - Two babies at school & two babies clinging to Momma!

Crosby learns to hold my hand for real when we're on a walk.

#momlife - All in my bed watching cartoons before bed.

#momlife - Playing with alllllll the toys in Nora's room.

All the kids' cute little feet hang down while they're sitting at the bar. I can't help it. Picture taken.

Daddy reads stories to Crosby.

We have our first outdoor meal of the season (March 3).

We start tearing the wallpaper off all the walls in the downstairs bathroom. Everyone helps!

Crosby sits on the bench with the big kids for the first time at dinner. And loves every second. He even tries to do a peace sign like the others.

The kids have a day off of school (Teacher Development Day) and we bust out Haze's Dr. Dreadful Zombie Lab. The kids eat "zombie skin, zombie barf, and chewy spiders." They are not big fans of the zombie barf.

Andlie chooses to take me on her Special Night! Menchie's & visiting!

[Other Special Nights this month: Haze to Riverwoods with Mom & Nora to "Little Mermaid" with Mom.]

Haze & Nora create an "Allen Bistro" restaurant while we're on Andlie's Special Night.

Nora takes lots of selfies with my phone.

Andlie looks like a teenager in her new pants.

Crosby is cute in his car acting like he likes binks. (He's never taken one in his whole life basically.)

Nora reads Crosby a book with her sparkly clip on earrings & matching necklace. It's her current favorite book: "I Can Read: Spooky Stories." Her favorite story in there is the one where a girl's head is tied on with a ribbon her whole life and then it falls off in the end.

I sell the baby bouncer that all four babies have bounced in. Obviously need to take a picture of each baby in the bouncer.

Andlie & Haze get their report cards - perfect as usual.

I get a new hair cut and color!

While eating breakfast, I mention that I'm cold. Nora goes and gets a blankie for all of us to share.

Crosby gets a new shirt and I try to take a selfie, but he's not interested.

Nora still LOVES doing dishes and begs to help every time she hears the kitchen sink go on.

CrAzY Hair Day! Crosby & Nora want to participate too.

Crosby's pants are soaking wet after he tries to get in the shower with me. He doesn't love me to be in there and him to be out.

I take selfies of me & Cros after he nurses & before I lie him down for the night. (I wish I could nurse him forever.)

Nora finally finishes coloring a witch picture she's been working on for months!

We take our blankies and go to "Reading with the Stars" at the school. It is a flop and we ditch after two stories.

Park day! It's starting to feel like Spring outside!

I take head shots of Bryan since the new Chief Marketing Officer for a brand new company called OrthoClaro. More on this later, but basically it's a company that sells invisible teeth aligners and he is helping build the business from the ground up.

Haze gets a sliver (or sil-ber as Nora calls it) and freaks. I save the day with tweezers and band aids.

We go on a family walk. Bryan ends up with Haze's bike on his back while pushing the stroller and I end up with Nora's bike in my hands while riding Andlie's scooter. #parentlife

Crosby wanders the halls at church. Technically, he could go to Nursery any day now, but germs. So no.

The kids ride home from church in the trunk and we obtain "cool parent" status.

March 11: Crosby Shenanigans

Pulled entire container of floss out

Pulled 4 knives out of dishwasher

Threw rocks indoors

Ran up during Andlie’s Primary talk to point and loudly say hi

Tried to escape Sac mtg

Tried to pull papers out of closets at church

Threw dinner down

Climbed up to top of playground

Got basketball stuck under car

Got a goose egg while playing basketball

Visited strangers at church

Haze lifts Cros to dunk the ball.

Andlie keeps making lists. And I love it.

Crosby turns E I G H T E E N months! He is currently wearing size 18 month - 2T clothes, 4-5 shoes and size 5 diapers. He sleeps a good 10-12 hours per night and still takes a solid 2-3 hour nap during the day. He knows lots of body parts: eyes, nose, ears, hair, teeth, tummy, toes, feet, hands, fingers and lots of animal sounds: cow, doggie, kitty, duck ("cack cack"), chicken ("back back"), lammie, snake, lion/tiger, monkey, fishie, and my favorite - an elephant. When asked what one says, he holds his arm high in the air right by his little body like a trunk and says, "Ooooooo." He loves food - sometimes. Some of his favorites are chicken nuggets, scrambled eggs, vanilla Greek yogurt, fishie crackers, bananas, and pancakes. He'll usually take a bite of whatever I give him (especially if it's coming off of my plate) and then make a decision about it. He can say lots of words including: blankie ("bee"), drink ("deenk"), out, please ("pee"), down, yeah, toes, Mom, Dad, up, bath ("ba"), ball, truck ("tuck"), and lots more that I'm forgetting. His favorite word - by far - is NO! And he says it loudly and often and with authority. He still nurses three times per day - morning, nap, and bed - and I love it. One of my favorite things that he does is when I go in to get him out of bed after a nap or in the morning. I'll walk in and he'll hand me his blankies - both of them - and then reach up to me and smile. He loves trucks and balls and baths and being with the family wherever we are. He is the perfect little addition to our family. Again, the blessing given to him when he was only two day old that he would be a content boy and calming influence on those around him - is absolutely true. He is such a happy boy with such a joyful little personality and we are so blessed to have him in our little family.

Andlie still loves basketball and comes home and goes straight for hers every day after school.

We go on family walks a lot since it's getting warmer. We always have to stop at the stone mailbox on Palisade and climb to the top.

Me & Nora & Cros read books while the big kids go to school.

Crosby sits on the "Target ball" for the first time and loves it.

Andlie gets her expander out after seven months!

Crosby & Nora set up a little bed for themselves and then watch morning cartoons.

I take Nora to the St. Patty's Day activity at the mall. We end up going inside and shopping and buying pretzels instead.

Nora & Cros read books.

Andlie & Haze have picture day!

Nora puts on many "shows" for me in her "gymnastics outfit."

We go to the BYU Men's Volleyball game! I can't believe that we are a family of six! Crosby LOVES the popcorn.

Haze brings home some heart warming schoolwork.

St. Patty's Day! We celebrate with a rainbow treasure hunt in the morning and green food all day!

Haze's Special Night - At Riverwoods with Momma!

Nora sleeps like a maniac. I take pics to prove it.

We "shelf trap" a wandering, sad Crosby at church.

More nursing selfies.

Andlie snaps a candid pic of me and Bryan lounging/messing with each other on a Sunday afternoon.

Crosby tries to eat an Oreo, but it gets too soggy and stuck to the bench. So he eats it off the bench with no hands. Oreo face.

Haze has a friend over to play Legos.

We go to the new park in Orem where Crosby HATES the family swing. But Nora loves it.

Nora's Play Group is at our house and we make bunny masks!

Haze is amazed by the washer.

Crosby gets professional 18 month pics done. And they are A D O R A B L E.

Andlie begs to make a "wearable" (fancy clothespin) using the book she got a library day at school. So we do!

Nora wants in on the fun the next morning. So we do!

Crosby still hates me to shower without him. Makes himself comfy with his blankies on the bathroom mat while I do my thang.

Crosby stands out in the rain for the first time.

Kirsten comes over for makeup fun! She gives me a makeover so I have to model, of course.

The girls all wear matching teal pants! Picture!

Morning selfie time. Mom & Cros.

Homemade play dough day at home!

Crosby is forced to wear blue fairy wings around the house. Gets tricked by Nora in to liking it.

Andlie wears long socks and boots with her soccer shorts and tells me that "she looks like a pioneer girl."

March 21: Once upon a time, I always got woken up in the middle of the night. And it made me sad.

But also I tried to treasure the soft whisper of my favorite name ever - Mom - and the little hands that I held as we walked back to bed. Because I know this stage won’t last forever and someday I’ll think sleep is overrated and I’ll miss my adorable little children who never let me sleep and sometimes just need their Mommy.

Soccer started for Andlie & Haze (March 24). Crosby was much easier to handle last season when he was just barely learning to walk. He peeled one of my oranges just enough to make a hole to stick his finger in. Though he ran on to the fields several times, I was able to keep him from getting ran over. He found Bryan’s coaching whistle from Hazes game and started blowing it during Andlie’s. I only lost him one time by the parking lot.

Andlie went dress shopping with me and we basically laughed for two hours straight. She's a fun (and honest) gal to shop with.

Easter pics! General Conference is on actual Easter so we dressed up on March 25! Crosby wasn't thrilled. He also drew on his pants with marker right before church. Also on this day, I taught my very first ever RS lesson!

Easter egg decorating! Always happens the Monday before Easter in our family. Along with a lesson about the atonement and resurrection.

Crosby spikes a fever and breathes kinda fast in the night. Better with some Motrin. Maybe teething.....

Good friends bring coconut Diet Coke to me since I was up all night with Crosby.

Crosby is sad unless he's outside so we get chicken and go for a walk.

March 26: Uncle Gordon passes away. I'll miss his hugs and his laughter, but mostly I'll just miss him. Love you, Gordo! Merda ferda berp!

March 26

11:00 am
I decided to be productive and gathered every towel from the house and ripped all the sheets off of the one million beds in our house. Sorted that laundry like a boss. Threw in a load of towels. Kept gliding around the house like Giselle from “Enchanted.” Heard the washer stop. When I opened it to check, the water was drained, but the towels still had trace amounts of bubs on them and they were still pretty wet. I started the cycle over in case it just needed to be reminded that it was a washer and it needed to wash my towels. Started filling up again and I was pleased. Walked away. Stopped in my “Happy Working Song” steps when I heard nothing but an “I’m trying but it’s not working” huuuuuuummmm after it filled it. Dammit. I Googled and tried a whole bunch of witchcraft to get it working again. Nothing. I even stuck my hand down to the bottom and tried spinning everything around and then almost shat my pants when i realized that I COULD HAVE gotten it to work that way and then I would have been sucked down by my arm into the bottom of the washer never to be seen again. Got that hand out. Shut the lid, unplugged the machine, and did nothing until after Andlie’s soccer game.

8:30 pm
Bryan Googled and came up with a much.....more intense.....solution than swishing his arm around in the dirty towel water. When he yelled, “Things are getting real,” from the hall, I knew he was bound by Google’s clasp. I quickly found myself gathering spare bowls and helping him catch the water as he unscrewed the drain. Then he unhooked some sort of part with a fan and some tubes and some plastic and some screws and then went and grabbed the giant tweezer tools and started yanking! CROSBY’S LITTLE MAN SOCK WAS STUCK IN THE FAN! The sock came out in a few pieces. And then Bryan put the washer back together.
10:00 pm
You guys, he fixed the washer! Like legit fixed it. Haze was wondering WHAT IN THE WORLD WE WOULD DO ABOUT CROSBY’S BROKEN SOCK, but I’m just happy we have to spend $0.50 instead of $800! I’m thoroughly impressed with the recent discovery of Bryan’s handyman SKILLZ. And so thankful for him! I mean, I really thought this washer was headed to washer heaven.
Now I can go back to gliding around the house in my big white dress while I sing to the birds and finish the sheets.

Nora takes me on her Special Night to "The Little Mermaid" play! We wear matching booties. She is enamored every second and loves it. I love watching her face.

Panaca for Easter/Spring Break! No pictures from the first day there, but the second day is spent hiking, partying, and egg hunting!

Still in Panaca, we go to the city egg hunt with cousins! After lunch, we head to Cedar City.

First day in Cedar starts with a BANG! We add a new family member - Leo the doggie. The kids are immediately in love.