Don't Eat the Daisies!

Fall Art Project - Leaves made during General Conference: Great thing to do, kept River interested and entertained, but didn't take too much thinking to distract from the message.
Coloring Eggs - River enjoyed this activity and was taking pictures of me with her camera while I took pictures of her.

Feet Painting!
Finger Painting!

Jigglers!

Princess - Dress Up!

Sweet, Sweet, Sweet!

Painting pumpkins for Halloween!

Happy Princess.

I used to watch Doris Day movies with my grandma when I was little.

One is called Don't Eat the Daises. One of her little boys ate daises, and he says something like, but Mom, you didn't say to not eat the Daises!

River's latest book from the Library was about naughty little monkeys that go through the house doing things they shouldn't. The book was a great conversation starter about Rules.

The next day while coloring a picture on the table, she said "Mom, it's a rule not to cut our own hair, huh!" We then talked about some of the other rules in our home: Only color on paper, not walls, and When you're finished chewing gum, throw it in the trash. No throwing things inside and Be nice to Each Other.

A short while later, I noticed that our front room blind cords had been cut!! She had sniped the cords on each blind - on all 3 of the front room windows. One of them is so short, the blinds only come down about a foot! River has been so proud of her new found talent of cutting out things - she cuts really well and goes around shapes on her paper.

We set a new rule in our home on the spot: No cutting the blind cords! No cutting anything without Mama's permission. In River's defense, she did ask me, sort of: I was SO tired, I laid down while Silver Finally went down to nap. Silver has had the worst diaper rash ever. She kept me up really late the night before and early the next day, waking up multiple times in the night and had a hard time napping. So, I enjoyed a nap myself while Silver finally slept some. Half asleep, I noticed River walking past me with scissors in her hand. I asked her what she was doing: she said she was cutting the things that were wrapped around her hand. I assumed she meant her necklace she had made out of beads that she had been cutting earlier, cutting the string shorter after each bead. Yikes!

A while later, she was squeezing out milk from Silver's bottle into Silver's hair. 2nd rule of the day: No squeezing milk out of the bottle. And the 3rd rule of the day came after filling Mama's violin case with chalk. The violin case has all sorts of fun compartments to put things! Rule: No playing with Mama's violin case.

Priceless!

We have so many precious memories:


River's story from our trip to California: We were all standing around talking on the beach. Our backs were to the ocean and River was digging in the wet sand. All of a sudden a HUGE wave came up and got her. She went tumbling in the water and got sea water in her mouth. She was being so brave too. Last year she didn't want anything to do with the water. This year we would walk down until the waves splashed on her toes and then we would turn running and screaming :) Last year we found crabs. This year there was an outcrop of rocks that she splashed around behind. It was nice because the waves would make puddles that would come and go, but the waves wouldn't overwhelm her.

Silver loved the sand as much as River did!

Saturday Ventures

River LOVES Fishing

River was sitting with her pole in the water when we saw it start to dance. Dad, I think I have one! Sure enough! This is what she reeled in!Way to go River!

Silver LOVES the water! We would go to the swimming pool often. Whenever she gets in the water (pool or bath) she kicks her legs and squeals and has the greatest time!

Silver takes this position often!
River LOVES cooking, we have fun making all sorts of yummy things for our family!

Some things are big successes, some are not! Cullinary tip: Don't try blueberry waffles, they just stick in the waffle maker and make a big mess, but the purple waffles were deffinitely different!

Pumpkin cookies are our favorite thing to make!Daddy's 30th Birthday!

Colt's Archery

Silver dawn loves exploring her world!

Silver at the Grand Canyon
Silver LOVES to Climb! She climbs on low chairs, River's bed, boxes, the dishwasher, she'll try anything! What an adventurer!

Silver loves to walk with chairs. She took her first steps yesterday, 2 steps by herself. She gets so proud of herself and breaks into a huge smile!

Ahhh, we see the miracles of the Lord Every Day!

Tell Me the Stories of Jesus

River and Daddy looking through the Picture Resource Book

River asked Daddy to tell her the stories of the pictures.They spent quite a bit of time looking at each picture and telling the stories for each one.
Oh, when Dad's are involved, it makes all the difference!
Improv teaching moments - when they're ready! It was a Saturday afternoon with lots of other things to do...but River was interested and Daddy took the time to make a memory!

Desert Blooms as a .......Puncher Burr?

Thick nice grass? Lush Green Garden? Colt's promise to make it green for me for moving down to the desert? This lovely plant goes by several names: Tire Poppers, BullHeads, PuncherBurrs, Stickers, OUCHERS!

My shoes after walking around the yard. You can literally walk on the puncherburrs poking into the soles of your shoes.

We tried SO hard to get rid of them too. Spray seemed to only fertilize them. We were on-top of pulling them during the spring and early summer. We even hired a neighbor kid to help us. There wasn't one single plant in our yard. Then came a hot spell with a lot of rain. We weren't able to get to the yard for around 2 weeks. The result: Top photo.

Each plant makes thousands of seeds that sprout over the course of multiple years.

Poor River, she can't play in the dirt in our yard, there are always stickers poking her!!

But we're enjoying the journey, loving our yard and doing the best we can!!

If you give a pig a pancake: Housework Revisited

Our Beautiful Kitchen - Yup, we took out the cupboards above this countertop between the kitchen and the dining room. It's SO nice, it opens up the countertop and River will sit at the counter and color and I'll do a lot of food prep there. We put in a skylight too - what looks like a light is a skylight.

I've been wanting to put clean house pics on my blog, this is our living/dining/kitchen areas taken today. I LOVE A CLEAN HOUSE!! I've thought a lot about housework, especially because it takes up a large portion of my day to take care of a family. Yes, it is difficult with young children, but I actually think it's easier to take care of a home when it's clean than when it's cluttered.

It makes me feel so good to be in a clean environment and if the dishes are clean every night there's not the big project to clean them always looming overhead. An hour and things are straightened instead of entire Saturday projects.

We borrowed a book recently from the library that sums up me to a T:
If You Give a Pig a Pancake.
To Summarize:
If you give a pig a pancake,
She’ll want some syrup to go with it
The syrup will get her sticky and she’ll want to take a bath
You’ll give her some bubbles and she’ll ask for a rubber ducky
The rubber ducky will remind her of her barnyard and she’ll feel homesick and want to visit her family
She’ll want you to come too and you’ll look for a suitcase
Looking for your suitcase, she’ll find tap shoes
She’ll want to dance and have you take pictures of her to send to all her family and friends
You’ll gather up the stamps and envelopes
On the way to the mailbox she’ll see a tree and want to make a tree house
After the treehouse is built she’ll want to decorate it
Putting up the wallpaper will get her sticky
Being sticky will remind her of maple syrup and she’ll ask for a pancake.

Isn’t that great? That’s how I feel much of the time.
I get going on one project and then get sucked into another and then be pulled in another, and after the days gone I’ll look around at 20 unfinished projects (dishes, laundry, cleaning the fridge, etc) and wonder where my day has gone.

I’ve talked about Flylady before, but it’s helped me so much.
Flylady says you can do anything for 15 minutes. So I set my timer for 15 minutes and say: “I’m gonna wash my dishes for the next 15 minutes” Yes, this is pretty unrealistic with kids, my dishwashing is interrupted 20 times before they’re done, but it focuses me on one thing instead of dishes and then laundry and then…..it helps me get one done before I go to the next.

Now the next is going to seem totally over-the-top, but it’s what I need to do for myself to stay on-top of everything: My Daily routine:

Morning
**Get out of Bed & Hit Ground Flying
**Make bed as soon as get out of it
SMILE: Make up mind to be happy and you will be
*Shower
*Get dressed & shoes
*Fix hair and face
*Prayer
*Scriptures
Morning Meditation
GIFT: God, Imagination, Focus, Thanks
*Swish and Swipe
*Check Washer & Laundry Status
KITCHEN:
Empty Dishwasher and Drainer
Start Breakfast
Clean Dishes as you go
Hot Soapy water in Sink
Eat Breakfast & Vitamins
Breakfast Dishes/Clean Table
Check Calendar for Appointments
Make To Do List
ONE JOB AT A TIME
Thaw Something for Dinner
Laundry Status?
Pick up after yourself, get out: put away!
Don’t get sidetracked by the computer!
Drink Water!
HOT SPOTS!
Lunch!
Lunch Dishes/Clean Table
Keep Sink clean and Shiny
Dinner
Dinner Dishes
Dinner Table

Before Bed Routine:
*Clean up house before bed (20 Min. Tops!)
Living Room: Pick up put away
Kitchen, Clean, Shine Sink,
Lay out Clean Dishcloths, run dishwasher
Hot Spots!
*Think about tomorrow
Check calendar for appts
Start a to do list for tomorrow
What can I do tonight to make tomorrow easier.
Things to not forget where you can see them.
Check Washer
What are you cooking for Breakfast?
Lay out clothes for tomorrow
**Clean Face
**Vitamins?
**Put away clothes from today
**Prayer (& scriptures if not in morning time)
****Get to bed at a good time

My Weekly Routine:
MONDAY: ORDER
Weekly home Blessing Hour
*Chuck out clutter
*Change Sheets
*Empty Trash
*Vacuum
M Bedroom
Kids Bedroom
Front Room
*Sweep
Dining
Kitchen
Entry
M Bath
Kid Bath
*Clean bathroom mirrors
*Dust
*Water Grass
*****FHE*****
TUESDAY: HAPPINESS
*Water Flowerbeds
*Zone Cleaning
*Sweep Porch
*Clean Microwave
*Scrub Bathrooms
*Desk

WEDNESDAY: BEAUTY
Partial Desk Time
*Zone Cleaning
*Clean Fridge
*Menus / Grocery List for next week
*Synchronize schedules to plan meals
*Finances
*Pay Bills
*Taxes
*Water Grass
THURSDAY: ABUNDANCE
*Grocery and Errands Day
*Library
*Grocery
*Water Flowerbeds
*Mop
Kitchen
Dining
M Bath
Kid Bath
Entry
*Desk
FRIDAY: PEACE
**STORY TIME LIBRARY 10:30 AZ
*Paperwork
*File Papers
*Clean out Purse
*Sewing/Mending/Polish Shoes
*Clean out car and check fluids
*Clean Laundry Room
*Water Grass
****DATE NIGHT******
SATURDAY: HEALTH
FAMILY FUN DAY!
SUNDAY: LOVE
Renew Your Spirit

This helps me feel like I’ve accomplished something during the day. I am totally a check-mark person! I love checking things off when they’re done. If I didn’t get to something that day I say I’ll get it later in the week, and it helps me focus on the things I did do rather than what I didn’t. As I look around and think what did I do, it’s right there on my list.

It also helps me have 2 days off. When I do the work in the week, I don't have to spend Saturday and Sunday cleaning.

Another thing that’s helped me is to get River into bed earlier. I have dinner by 6 cleanup is then done by 7 Family time, wind-down time with stories and songs until 8. Having dinner earlier has helped a lot!

I have learned if you pray for specifics, you get answered in specifics, if you pray in generalities, you are answered in generalities. This helps me be specific. Please help me get my list done today, and I seem to be more focused.

The Rest that Follows is out of the Ensign:
Another thing that has helped me a lot is the June 2009 Ensign article Our Refined Heavenly Home by Elder Douglas Callister
Here's an excerpt:
Would this be true of the environment in which you live? Is it a house of order? Need you dust, clean, and rearrange before you invite the Spirit of the Lord into your home? President Lorenzo Snow (1814–1901) said: “The Lord does not intend that the Saints shall live always in dens and caves of the earth, but that they shall build fine houses. When the Lord comes he will not expect to meet a dirty people, but a people of refinement.”
David Starr Jordan, former president of Stanford University, wrote: “To be vulgar is to do that which is not the best of its kind. It is to do poor things in poor ways, and to be satisfied with that. … It is vulgar to wear dirty linen when one is not engaged in dirty work. It is vulgar to like poor music, to read weak books, to feed on sensational newspapers, … to find amusement in trashy novels, to enjoy vulgar theatres, to find pleasure in cheap jokes."
Your Father in Heaven has sent you away from His presence to have experiences you would not have had in your heavenly home—all in preparation for the conferral of a kingdom. He doesn’t want you to lose your vision. You are children of an exalted being. You are foreordained to preside as kings and queens. You will live in a home and environment of infinite refinement and beauty, as reflected in the language, literature, music, art, and order of heaven.
I close with the words of President Young: “Let us … show to the world that we have talent and taste, and prove to the heavens that our minds are set on beauty and true excellence, so that we can become worthy to enjoy the society of angels."
Even more, may we become worthy to enjoy the refined society of heavenly parentage, for we are of the race of the Gods, being “children of the most High” (Psalm 82:6).

Also in the same June 2009 Ensign, in the Question and Answer Section:
As parents, we are responsible for providing our children with proper teachings and guidance beginning in their early years. As we see it, our responsibility is not only to provide the necessities of life but also to prepare them for the necessities of eternity.
One of the ways we try to do this is through consistent family prayer. No matter how late or hurried we are, we have morning and evening family prayer to invite the Spirit into our lives. Then, at bedtime, we help each child with his or her individual prayers. This is often a great opportunity to talk briefly about the gospel. It gives our children a chance to ask questions. In answering them, we sometimes open the scriptures, but most of the time, these shared moments are informal chats.
Our hope is that by helping our children develop righteous patterns in their lives and by helping them understand gospel principles in their youth, we will help them build the foundation they need to navigate successfully through life’s challenges and to ultimately return to live with their Heavenly Father.
When I am feeling overwhelmed with the meals to be cooked and clothes to be washed, I take comfort in knowing that when we do for others what they cannot do for themselves, we become more Christlike. Young children need a great deal of temporal care. When we recognize that nurturing our children is a spiritual endeavor, finding joy in our everyday labors becomes easier.