The Grinch

So we chopped down our own tree. Once trimmed it was a good 10 ft tall. It's not really full, but it's TALL. So I had to sit in the back of the truck with it so it didn't blow out, since we are currently having Wind around 45mph. HELLO! And then who forgot to tell me that putting lights on a real tree is POKEY!!! OUCH!! And why do we put up all this stuff only to take it down again! HOLY CRAP, oh yeah I am trying to stop saying that word. HOLY COW! And now I really don't have any room. BAHH Humbug.
On another note David started rolling from his back to his stomach today. Which means life is officially over. Now I have to vacumm for real. Bummer. At least he isn't crawling yet. Remember your first child, when you wanted them to walk before all the other kids, so you could brag to the other mommies. And now, I am so glad he's taking his time. I am not anxious for the chaos that will come with crawling, at least not yet.

It's begining to look a lot like CHRISTMAS

Last night we had our second snow of the season. We had about 3 inches, FUN! This meant a 2 hour school delay while they plowed the roads. Which was fabulous for me cause I got to sleep in. Well, just 20 min. but it makes all the difference. Rachel and I made cookies this morning and rearranged the furniture so we can put up a tree this weekend. We are going to get a live one, so we wanted it to be fresh for Christmas. We buy a $5 permit and go cut our own. FUN FUN FUN. I am so excited to have this be a sister's Christmas. All my sisters should be here for Christmas. We'll have to squeeze to fit everyone in, but it should be lots of fun!

Beautiful To Him

Rachel Thibodeau - Beautiful To Him - Free MP3 Stream on IMEEM Music
Wow. My favorite Krissy shared this song with Kara and I (during one of our Late Late nights up.) I am so grateful for the gospel. I am thankful that it leads me to make good choices and to have an eternal view. And with large pressure from the "world" I feel a strong need for our young women (and more "mature" women too,) to know where true beauty lies.

Burnt Thanksgiving

So, all of my pies turned out and the sweet potatoes were awesome thanks to Kara's great recipie and Winslow's cooking magic. And I had a great time cooking with my kids. They helped wash and prepare potatoes and apples. The girls had a great time playing with the leftover dough. And despite the fact that we had no phone service ALL day, which led our dinner hosts to wonder if we were comming or not, we had a great thansgiving. So we were preparing to leave for the Henrie's home, all the kids were loaded in the van, pies, yams, and green bean casserole ready to go, and all that was left was the hot cranberry cider in the crockpot. I unplugged it from the wall (or so I thought), and moved it to the top of the stove, and that's when I ran out of slack in the cord. The cord jerked back and hot cider sloshed onto my hand. (imagine a really loud scream and then,)"Oh CRAP." I was proud of myself later on that I didn't even think of anything explicitive. Winslow came running in. I tore of my sweater (which protected a large portion of my arm from the cider) and shoved it under cold water. OUCH, ouch, ouch!!!! Thankfully it isn't too bad. A lot of the initial burn faded by the end of the day. I have 1st degree burns along my hand where the forefinger and the thumb connect, and second degree along my wrist. But it doesn't hurt nearly as bad as when i got burnt with hot oil on my foot. Crazy!

Women

I was especially touched by our Relief Society Lesson today. Part of it was taken from Elder Ballard’s talk “Daughters of God.” Being a mother is demanding and rewarding. Sometimes I feel at peace, and other times I feel like pulling my hair out. I often feel guilty for not doing enough or spending enough time with each child. And I know I am not the only one who goes thru this roller coaster of emotions. The lesson was wonderful and I remembered loving the talks as they were given in the April General Conference.
The night before our Opening Day at the Childcare Center I was beginning to feel overwhelmed and lots of anxiety as to how I was going to juggle it all. I actually began to feel almost paralyzed by the stress of having a job and young children and wanting to do my best at everything. As the anxiety mounted and I felt like I was drowning in it, I reached over to my husband a tearfully said, “I know it’s late, but I feel I need a blessing.” I am so grateful for the power of the priesthood in my home. The blessing brought me great peace. I was counseled to find time for myself, to read my scriptures and say my prayers. And today those words were said again in our Relief Society lesson. I have been very grateful for the many years I have been able to be a “full time mom.” And now I am grateful that although our circumstances have changed, my children are surrounded all day by people who love them, whether at school, or home, or the center.
I am striving to love the children I have charge of, knowing that I want the same for my own children. I came across a wonderful quote from Elder Ballard’s talk, it wasn’t actually mentioned as part of our lesson, but it’s what I needed.
“There is no one perfect way to be a good mother. Each situation is unique. Each mother has different challenges, different skills and abilities, and certainly different children. The choice is different and unique for each mother and each family. Many are able to be “full time moms,” at least during the most formative years of their children’s lives, and many others would like to be. Some may have to work part- or full-time; some may work at home; some may divide their lives into periods of home and family and work. What matters is that a mother loves her children deeply and, in keeping with the devotion she has for God and her husband, prioritizes them above all else.”(italics added.)
I have also been listening to the Women of Destiny CD, and this week the song “A Woman’s Heart” touched me strongly. If you have it, listen to it! If you don’t have it, get it!
I am truly grateful for our Prophet and the leaders of the church. I am grateful for the power of prayer and for the Priesthood in my home. I am grateful to be alive in these Latter Days to sees the signs of the times and to prepare for the coming of the Lord. What greater time could there be.

the week in review

okay so it's a little hard to post holding David but here goes
in the past week and a half I have done the following

• worked apx 56 hours, one day I worked 9 hours!!!! remember a normal week for me is supposed to only be 25 hours and thats 5 days(I am a wimp I know, I have great apreciation for all you working mommies!)
• CPR certification
• new hire orientation (ohhh so long)
• managed to clean house, make dinners, pack David & Rachel & myself for each day
• made lunches for Jacob & Abby
• drove to phoenix and back including packing for everyone but Winslow
• blitz shop at Target, have a girl's morning out, & tend kids all while very SICK SICK SICK (it was phoenix, and rare girl's time, I took meds and headed out, I'm a mom, I don't have TIME to be sick.)
• Prepare and execute lesson plans for apx 20 kids ranging in age from 3-10
• Stay up late nights with David who hasn't been feeling well
• Pump lots of bottles
• Attend Jacob's Talent Show at school. (when he asked me last week what talent he could share, I suggested Jump Rope. He's been practicing all week, and I was quite impressed. He jumps so good, even when turning the rope in a backwards direction! I felt such motherly pride!!!)
• Dropped in at both Abby's school and then Jacob's school to make bus changes.
• Ran errands and paid bills (not so easy because our phone and internet kept fritzing out on us)
• Had a RS presidency meeting
• Made 4 dozen Rolls for Church
• Played lots of football, parachute, and other crazy activities
• Kissed and tucked my kids into bed each night
• Scrubbed everything down at home after a long week
• Made cards and handed out chocolate at work...everyone needs chocolate on friday

Things I am thankful for

• I enjoy my job and my coworkers
• the ladies who take care of my David are wonderful
• My husband has the kitchen clean when I come home
• GOOD TENNIS SHOES, holy cow do my feet hurt!
• all my friends who took care of the kids
• my mother in law who made yummy food and cleaned house and watched kids!!THANKYOU
• SLEEP, I finally got a good night's sleep last night for the first time in FOREVER!

Things still left to do

• Take all four kids to church by MYSELF because Winslow is doing Continuing Education for his Liscencing
• vacuum the house
• make lots of yummy deserts for thanksgiving
• Go Grocery shopping
• soak in the TUB!

A change

So I haven't shared this yet, because in many ways, I'm not sure that I'm ready for this change in my life. I'm also not sure I want comments on whether this is a good choice or not. I am so torn. I have been offered many job opportunities over the last year. And even when we needed the money, I just didn't feel that I could leave my children. Well, this comming Wednesday I will join the workforce outside of my home. I've been so blessed to be able to work from home in many different ways in the past. Our cozy house does not accomadate my piano, and I'm not sure I could fit any more kids inside to do babysitting, or preschool. So as of Monday I will be officially an employee of the hospital daycare staff. I will be "teaching" the 3 to 9 year olds. In some ways I am excited to expand my teaching and preschool skills. I really enjoyed teaching preschool last year with our mommy preschool. And Jacob, Abby, and Rachel will be in my class. But my sweet baby David will be in the infant room. They'll spend 2 hours at the center (which is at the hospital Winslow works for.) Then they'll come home with Daddy for 3 hours before I get home. So I get to spend all morning and a short portion of the afternoon at home with David and Rachel before I go to work. And Abby and Jacob come to the center after school. We should have fun making things and using our imagination. Lots of fun toys and books and time together.
Will I like it?
Will I be overwhelmed?
Will I miss my baby terribly?
Will I struggle with critisism over being a working mom?
Will I feel like I can still do my church calling?
With the economic times we live in I feel a great need to reduce the debt we have. I could go on and on, continuing to justify it to myself. The truth is, I simply don't know the answer. I haven't been given a definite answer. I feel like this is one of those times that the Lord says "you make the decision, I have faith in you." I guess the real question I have is...do I have faith in myself? Did I make the right decision? I don't know yet. I pray the Lord will lead me and bring peace.

Flowers and Chocolate

Ahh, the sweet face of innocence, sort of! Abigail got sent home from school today almost as soon as she got there. She had a tummy ache and with a crazy flu season here, the nurse and her teacher decided not to chance it. Well, she was fine! She spent most of the day getting into stuff and making me CRAZY! She and Rachel decided to give the My Little Ponies a HAIR CUT> YIKES! They pulled out all the toys, after we spent most of yesterday deep cleaning their room. AHH! Abby tried to "help" by dusting all her book shelves. OH BOY! What a day I barely survived the craziness of it all. At the end of the day I gave her a hug and said " we had a rough day huh." Then I told her I loved her. I also told her she was definitely going back to school tommorow! David was such a good boy today, I was so glad that he seemed to know Mommy needed a break.
Winslow brought me home flowers! What a husband. There was one point during the day where I laid the baby down and went into my room, intending to scream at the top of my lungs just to get out all the frustration. However, I simply closed the door and knelt by the side of my bed. I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who knows being a mom is sometimes a little more exciting than I care for. I survived the day. I love my flowers, and I don't think I ate All the Chocolate in the house!

Isn't he sweet to bring me such gorgeous flowers.

Rachel is 3

Happy birthday Rachel. I can't believe she is 3! As she opened her presents she said, "it's just my size!" haha

She had a great day making cupcakes with her best friend Gracey. They are so cute together. They painted with water colors and played in the yard. What fun it is to have a best friend.

halloween

So we had fun at our adult halloween party. Lots of yummy food, and fun games. Hilarious! It's one of the only times we get to have fun with the adults.

The kids had fun dressing up and going to the school. Even Rachel got to go and help out with the festivities.

Jacob and Abby were Thing One and Thing Two. Rachel was a Monster and David a Bunny. Good times.

The Epic Journey

I can't believe how well David traveled. Abby and Jacob took turns helping to take care of him and play with him as we drove. What amazing children we have.
Dunford Donuts. OHHHHH Yeah. They were so good. The kids would eat a few bite out of one and leave it, and well I couldn't leave them on the table to dry out, so I would eat them of course. Thankyou Uncle Don and Granpa for the donuts and for Pastrami Burgers.

Hopefully there are some quarters left for the Coke machine.

Rachel demonstrated her trick for opening soda to Ethan. She gets a spoon puts it under the tab and pops the top! She's 2! The kids had fun playing with cousins at Don's.

Abby, Sarah. Rachel, & Allison

Brooke & David

Ethan threw the kids into the love sac, this was the favorite activity at Don's house.

Okay maybe the favorite was getting soda from the Coke machine. Now 50cents a can due to fuel price increases. I'm wondering if after we left it didn't go up to 75cents a can due to popular demand!
We made it! Over 1500 miles of driving with 4 kids. We drove thru 5 states. We watched lots of movies and survived rather well. We started off by leaving Winslow's parent's home @ 3am. It really helps when the kids sleep for the first 5 hours. We stopped at Cabella's and window shopped. We had fun seeing Uncle Don & his family & Uncle Larry and his family. Then to my parents, then Yellowstone, and then back in reverse order. HOLY COW! It was an amazing trip and I am proud of my kids and my husband. We didn't even have to threaten to "pull the car over." A big thanks to my parents who helped ease the chaos by taking kids in their car for the Yellowstone adventure. We are way excited to come next summer when it will hopefully be warm! (They have been known to have snow in July in Afton.)

Shop til you Drop

What's the good of vacation without a shopping trip. The girls went shopping at the Gateway outdoor mall, and the men went to the Priesthood session in the conference center! The fountain is choreographed to shoot water up with different songs. We listened to the national anthem sung by Leann Rimes. I got tingles all over!
The kids wanted to play in the fountain. That would have beenn okay if it wasn't cold and raining!

Hunting

The hunters, beware all varments. Mike and Winslow went out coyote hunting at my parents.

The kill.
Okay so they missed hitting the coyotes. We'll blame that on Winslow's lost glasses. These are just chinchilla hides that belonged to my great grandpa. The boys had fun though.

Wyoming

We made it to Wyoming. We drove thru gorgeous Logan canyon. WOW! I can so see why people live in northern Utah. We were glad to make it to my parents. Michael, Kara, baby John, & Gma & gpa Wehrli came too.

It's always fun at grandma's house I loved spending time with my mom. Next to my husband, she is my best friend. I love spending time with my family. I feel so strongly that the Prophet's decleration to the world that "the family is essential to the Creator's plan," is so TRUE.


Above, Mom and David. He was such a happy boy this trip. I am glad everyone got to enjoy his smiles and laughs!

Below, Kara and Me. We have way too much fun together. I have been blessed with Amazing Sister in laws on both sides. Kara and I can talk for hours...and we do. Many late nights! Michael and Kara taught me how to play Puerto Rico this trip. It is so fun. I actually won! Thanks guys.

Star Valley is gorgeous. The fall colors were amazing. There are creeks running thru and all around town. My parents have one running thru their yard. I am jealous of Mike and Kara's pictures. You two look fabulous.


look an actual picture of me.
any meal at grandma's is great~

Dinner at the Lake

There is a lake about 15 minutes from my parents house. We (my parents, sisters, both sets of grandparents, my brother and his family, and us) went to the lake to bbq steaks and enjoy the beauty of the evening. I had so much fun taking pictures, and you haven't even seen half of them : ).
The food was amazing. My mom always makes every meal so tasty. We did give Grandpa a hard time for using Ketsup instead of A1 on his steak!
David had so many layers on!

Kara, Michael, and John

Fun around the fire. Of course as Minson tradition dictates, we sang songs around the fire and ate peach cobbler, cake style for Stephanie. And ice cream or whip cream topping it off.
Stephanie. How do you get more gorgeous than this! Thanks for letting me shop in your closet! I have amazing sisters and I love spending time with them.


Grandma's Carol and Norma, They were smart to stay in the truck, it was cold outside. How I love all my grandparents. They are such great examples.

John is so cute. When he wants to eat he says "please" in sign language. When he really like something he uses BOTH hands. His smile lights up everyone around him. So like his Daddy.
John and Michael
Grandpa Roland
Mom and Winslow
the creek was beautiful

The gorgeous lake
dad's amazing steaks. YUM
Emily and Abby
Baby John, Mike, and Grandpa Rudy
Emily and Rachel
the kids love Emily and we can't wait to have her spend time at our house again. She was fabulous help while I was on bedrest.