Gave Brandis a Haircut

Brandis has curly hair so we can't cut it short or else it would stick up in every direction. We keep it a little long so it will lay down but it also grows pretty fast so he often looks like a cute little girl. I don't like taking him to get his haircut because they never get it right, it costs money and he hates it. So I decided to do it at home. Here is the result.


Today I also made a thank you card for my old counselor. Dougan and Brandis wanted to make some too so here's Brandis holding his card that he made for Dad.



We also had Uncle Sam over for dinner last night and Eades took a picture of him holding Taygan for the first time. Koen wanted to get in it too so he jumped up there just in time.

Spoiled

My boys really wish they were spoiled but they're not. On Sat. I went to a woman's dinner and meeting. At the table there were a bunch of mom's. One of them was talking about how much her husband spoils their son and it will probably be worse when the baby girl learns to ask for things too. I was surprised to hear how much of a sucker this dad is. The mom said it was so bad once that he had to say no and tears welled up in his eyes. (Not the boy's eyes, the dad's eyes.) That was the only time he ever said no.
I couldn't even imagine getting my boys everything they asked for. They ask for things all the time but we're all so used to the answer being no that there usually isn't any crying or fits. There are things that they ask for that I really do wish I could get them but sometimes I just can't, things like a trip to Disney World, or a horse lol. There are probably things that they want that they just know they will never get so they don't even bother asking. But I tell you it is the best when they ask for something and you can tell they're ready for a no and I get to say yes. Oh they get so excited. The funny thing is it's usually something small like bananas at the grocery store. Or like this past Saturday when we got to go to a free festival. They thought it was cool that they all got their own little bag of cotton candy and chips and a snow cone. It was fun saying yes that day. Can we stand in line for some popcorn? YES!! ALRIGHT!!! Another great time was last Christmas. My sister sent us a sundae gift basket. It had marshmallows, sprinkles, Magic Shell, syrups, nuts, cherries, etc. The boys loved that they each got to make their own monster sundaes like three night in a row.
So what's my point. I don't get to spoil rotten, but I do get to indulge them sometimes. As a parent I want to spoil them a little. It's like I wish I could spoil them without having them turn out to be spoiled brats. Is that even possible? The way it is now is working for us and I hope that I have happy kids. I also hope that someday I could afford to give them everything they want but I won't. That would be terrific.

oh the drama

Koen made his first batch of brownies without my help yesterday. They turned out really great and we all praised him a lot so ten minutes ago he asked if he could make more. I told him he should try to make a cake today. So he's cracking eggs and measuring things out and Eades catches him. He starts to throw a fit that Koen made something yesterday so he should get to do it all by himself today. So I chatted with him about how Koen is older and had to wait until he was this age to do it all by himself. So Eades is distraught and starts crying and I said maybe you'll have to wait till next year when you're Koen's age. He agrees and cries some more. I am trying hard to hold back the laughter because he's being so dramatic about the whole thing.

Then Koen tells him he can help stir so they got two large spoons out and started stirring and then they each sprayed half of the cake pan. They both helped pour it into the pan and now it's time for me to put it in the oven while they both lick the spoons. So crisis averted. Everyone's happy. The best part of this little story is that I get cake in less than an hour.

The Great Exercise Plan

I did not have an exercise regime whatsoever. I know how good exercise is for your body and spirit. I know that it would be good for my joints which I always seem to have a problem with and I know that it would give me the strength and energy that I need to be a mother of five. Knowing all this I still did not have any exercise routine set up. I mean it wasn't even a sporadic walk outside or anything. It was absolutely nothing. Then at the beginning of this week I saw a commercial. It said that standing is better than sitting and walking is better than standing. I kept thinking of that all day. I decided that I would do my daily routine of housework all in one big shot without sitting down. Usually I would pick up the floor then break. Then soak dishes, then break. Then do some laundry, then break. I wasn't taking long breaks but they were breaks none the less. So on Tuesday I spent three hours straight doing anything and everything that I could think of and even after I was done I did dance party USA with Brandis to burn some more calories. Then the baby woke up and I had to sit down to feed her but I tell you, I was sweating up a storm and I know that I got my heart rate up into the fat-burning zone.
I was so excited. I think I found my perfect exercise. Here I had gold this whole time and I didn't even know it. I can't believe all this time I've wasted breaking up my housework. Before, anytime I started feeling a little hot or tired I took a break. Duh, that's when I should have kept going. So anyway, it only lasted two days because today I had one boy stay home from school and then I had to go pick another one up because they were sick. That really put a halt to everything because I had to keep taking care of them and they kept waking the baby up. I know I have to keep them home tomorrow but on Monday, the plan is on again. I just wish I could weigh myself to know how much I could actually lose without adding anything extra to my day, but just rearranging it a little. By the way if I never mention this again it's because it didn't work out as well as I hope it will, but if I do mention it again that means it was a great success. Just so you know.

A Short Story

I borrowed this from a friend of mine because I found it cute.

One day long long ago there was a girl who did not complain, or whine or yell. That girl was me but it was a long time ago and it was only one day.

Picture of Water

Let me set the stage. Dougan came up to me with a cup and some Crystal light. He asked if I would make him some. I said in a little bit but first I needed a pitcher of water. He walked away. He came back with a glass of water and my camera and asked me to take a picture. I did without realizing he thought I said I needed a picture of water not a pitcher of water. I laughed so hard.

Here are the pictures of water.

Eades' Questions

Today Eades told me about a problem he is having. He says he does like to go to church but it's hard. He says he believes in Jesus but his problem is that he can't see Him. He thinks he should be able to see Jesus at church. He said that this is bothering him so much that it gives him a headache. We talked about it for awhile and he says he knows that he can feel the love of Jesus and that he understands that he just needs to have faith and be good because he believes.
Then he started asking me about how it feels when you die. I told him I've never died before but that it won't hurt after he dies. He also wanted to know if there are toys in Heaven. He actually bombarded me with a whole bunch of questions then. I can tell he's really been thinking about this stuff. All I can do is hope that I answer them well enough. I remember having similar questions and thoughts when I was young. I used to think that Christ walked around the chapel during prayers because we all had our eyes shut.

Self Loathing

I was talking to a friend today who is taking a class where they have to do cognitive thinking as an assignment. She was working it out on me with thoughts that I have. Basically she was telling me that I do way to much self down talking and that I need to stop that way of thinking. I agreed with everything that she said. As we went through some of the things that I might get down on myself about she showed me how to break it down. We went through what my first thought would be and then my next and how I could control what I think to have a different reaction.
Like I said, I know that this is some smart stuff to do. It is supposed to get you to think positively about yourself and to not rip yourself apart all the time. I don't think I am too self loathing, but then I asked what she learned about negative feelings not being ALL bad. I mean, for the most part I think I'm pretty happy with myself. Then something will happen and I'll take an outside look at myself and realize that I'm not doing everything I need to be doing. That is when I will feel like a bit of a failure and a loser. I said I actually like those times because that's when I see that I have so much more to improve on. I almost need those humbling times to become better. Otherwise I would just walk around thinking I'm all that.
It didn't turn into a debate or anything but she did understand what I meant. She agreed that it can be a good thing as long as you don't wallow in self pity because you're not pretty enough or strong enough, or whatever enough. That's true. I think that from time to time I need to evaluate who I am and what I'm doing. If I don't like it, then I need to make a change. I need to make sure that I don't label myself as lazy or ugly or something like that because that would just bring me down. So I'm glad we had that little conversation this morning. I realize that I don't always criticize myself but when I do I need to make sure I make it a positive thing and not something that could spiral into a self loathing depression.
I resolve that I will take the time to consider my feelings and analyze them to make sure I am helping myself. Who knows, maybe this will be the trick to help me be the person that I want to be and perhaps I can finally overcome some of those weaknesses that I have which I feel are holding me back.

Miller Reunion 2009

Here's Koen being a fireman at the kids' museum


Here's Eades being a cowboy.



Here's granddad sleeping at the museum. We wore him out.


Here's Brandis being Austrian.


This is Koen and Eades on a stagecoach.


This is Eades and Aunt Emma.



This is Eades in a coal cart.



This is the family at Lake Tahoe.



Here's Granddad on a train. This was a nice cool for the boys. They like it when the train turned around.

Some pictures

Here's a picture of Taygan just looking innocent.


She really likes her saucer. She plays with toys and just bounces and watches everybody do what they do.


Here's a picture Tony took and then added a border to surprise me when I looked at my pictures on the camera. I didn't even know I could add borders with my camera.


Here's another one. I thought it looked pretty sweet.


Here's Dougan on the bus.

This is Dougan waiting on the bus.


Here's Koen standing next to our neighbors giant mushrooms. Everyday they were bigger than the last. It took about four days for them to get this big. The neighbor mowed his lawn then and now they're gone.


Here's a web that was in our back doorway. Did you know it takes a spider less than an hour to create a web? We watched this spider for 15 min. while it finished this one and then took a picture. The photo doesn't do the web justice. It was beautiful.


This is a picture Koen took. The boys posed themselves and then Koen used his photography skills. If I would have taken the picture I would have made sure Brandis was a little better clothed and that they would have all smiled a little. Oh well, at least he got them all in the shot.

Time on my Hands

Dougan got on the bus for the first time today. After I shut the door I turned to see Brandis just standing there looking so singular. I got out one bowl and one spoon for him to eat breakfast. Taygan is sleeping so its just him and I. I'm realizing as I'm watching him eat that I won't have to mediate for a few hours until Dougan gets home. What will I do with all this extra time and quiet. I already finished my two knitting projects yesterday. Perhaps I should start painting the house. Maybe I can start practicing guitar again. I don't know, I guess I can do whatever I want. I am happy that when I go to the store today I'll only have Brandis and Taygan.
Dougan was so excited for school this morning he didn't mind that I woke him up in the wee hours of the morning to give him a bath because I waited too close to bedtime last night to give baths. No he didn't mind at all. In case you didn't notice I am turning this post into a Dougan's first official day of school post. Him and his brothers all got to wear a brand new pair of spiderman underwear that their grandma gave them. That's a big deal because I buy only plain white to save money. That reminds me of a funny story.
When my boys were first potty training I bought characterized underwear as an incentive. Then suddenly I changed to plain white. My boys were disappointed to say the least. I told them that their artist aunt Rachel could draw them anything they wanted on their underwear. Koen asked if he could have a butt drawn on his. Aunt Rachel said she sure could do that. We ended up not getting customized underwear and just stuck with the plain white but it sure was funny. I couldn't imagine what a teacher would have thought at bathroom time at school seeing a kid with a butt crack drawn on his underwear.
Wow this post keeps changing. Maybe I'm just so crazy because of the house being so different. Anyway. One more change of thought. I get to plan another Amish Dinner for next month. I love organizing these but this will be my shortest notice of one. I had to plan one for October but every weekend has stuff. I found that the 10th is the only night my church isn't doing something. They will be finishing up a camp-out from the night before but that night is open. I'm a little stressed about that. I designed the invite last night but now I have to buy photo paper and envelopes and print them all off and send them all off. I have less than a month!!!! I usually have everything out a month ahead of time. That way I have three weeks to find out who's going and one week to gather money. Oh well it will just have to work. Project runway right? Make It Work.

Another Pleasant Valley Sunday

Sunday has been my favorite day of the week for some time now. I love being around my church family and I love hearing and participating in lessons. I also like when I come home and I just get to relax. Today was another winner. We got to church on time, which we almost always do, and we got our pew. The boys were pretty good. Nobody got kicked out of class or anything. The YW were in good spirits and we had a nice little lesson. I got a new counselor today and she seems really nice.
We came home and ate bologna sandwiches which were quick and simple. Then I got to take a nap. I woke up, did some dishes, and then Eades and I made some cupcake cones. Then I picked up the downstairs while waiting for treats to bake. Tony took the three oldest for a walk so while I'm waiting for the second batch to bake I decided to get on the computer. Now my house is clean and I know I'll soon get to eat some goodies. It can't get any better than this.
Yes this was another pleasant valley Sunday.

School Has Begun

Today was the third day of school. It's really quiet during the day and I can't even imagine how it will be when Dougan starts school next week. Last night I met both teachers and I met Dougan's yesterday afternoon. It was nice to meet them all and I love all of their personalities. I also saw that one of the George boys from Northridge has a boy in Eades' class. I talked to him a little too. Tony volunteered to help out in the classroom which I thought was great. The teachers did too. I think he'll go in maybe once a month or something. I volunteered to do clerical work for Eades' class at home. So I get to cut out lots of things and do stuff like that.
On Tuesday I decided to paint my kitchen finally. It just seemed like the right time with only three little kids at home. It feels good to have finally done it after 2 1/2 years. Now I want to repaint the rest of the house. We'll see how long it takes me to get around to that. I also want to make curtains and do fun stuff like that. I still don't quite have the creative homemaking gift where everything looks cute and great, but I'm trying to.
So my kids were pretty much bored this summer and I didn't have a whole lot of things planned to do. Last week a family moved in behind us with two boys a little girl and a teenage girl. I think it's so funny that now that they finally have neighbor kids to play with they have to go to school all day. So far when they come home all the kids play outside together. It's fun to see them with new friends. They're good kids too so I'm glad that they moved in.
Now I just have four more years until my youngest goes to school. I have some friends and family who have sent there youngest to school this year and I'm glad I'm not there yet. I know I would be very emotional. I wasn't bad with Koen and Eades this week. I was mostly just proud of them. I'm not sure how I'll be with Dougan next week. The school has a first day cry group, but I don't think I'll go because I'll still have Brandis and Taygan. I think I'll be fine. Maybe when Taygan goes I'll need to go to that.

My Family

This is a blog about my kids. See they're sleeping now and I love them most when they're sleeping. They look like little angels. I'm feeling a little sentimental about them probably because school starts this week and I just put their annual marks on the wall to see how much they've grown. So I'll tell you about each of my kids and why I love them.
First there's Koen. He's 7 yrs old. He's shy like I am. He's really smart though and is always thinking about something. My favorite thing to do with Koen is to answer his questions. He has really good thoughts and he just wants to make sense of it all. He blows me away with the things he asks me about. I also love that he trusts me and thinks I have the answers. He's also a natural athlete. It's a joy to watch him pick something up quickly and excel at it. He also gets so proud of himself when he hits the ball into outfield or teaches himself to ride a bike or any physical feat that he can master. He's a really good older brother and he helps me out around the house so much.
Second is Eades. He's 6 yrs old. He is pretty social. He loves to have a good time. If you want to have fun just bring Eades into the picture. He's a real sweetheart too. He loves to give hugs and to put his arm around you when he sits right next to you. He wants to grow up fast. He often tells me about what he's going to be when he grows up and what his life is going to be like. He loves to collect things. Tony and I think it's so funny how he takes his collections so seriously. I think he'll be good with money when he grows up because he is a miser with his stuff. I love just sitting around with Eades and telling him stories. He loves to hear them over and over again.
Third is Dougan. He's 4 yrs old. He loves to talk all the time. He talks to anybody and everybody. He also loves to give compliments. He goes up to strangers all the time and tells them he likes their hair. You can tell they feel special after that. How could you not? He gives me hugs and tells me he loves me all day long. He is super friendly and loves to play with his brothers or anybody for that matter. I love how open he is. He just says whatever he's thinking or feeling. Life for him is simple and fun. I love to watch him just have a good time. He sings all day and tells stories and just loves life. If anybody is feeling sad they just need to spend time with Dougan who just gives and gives and gives love away.
Fourth is Brandis. He's 2 yrs old. He's a little clown. He performs for us all the time. He is the peacemaker in our family. Nobody fights with Brandis. They all just love him. He knows this and does whatever he can to make us all laugh. He'll dance or make faces or just do something funny. We just crack up. Brandis doesn't get in trouble very much mainly because it's just not in his nature but also because he's so dang cute that he just looks at me with those big blue eyes and I forget anything naughty that he could have done. Brandis is a happy kid and likes to play whether it's with his brothers or by himself but his favorite thing to do is to play with his baby sister. I was very surprised to see him absolutely fall in love with her. I was worried that he would be jealous, but no, he adores her. He's such a cutie.
Fifth is Taygan. She's 3 mths old. She is a very calm little baby. She doesn't cry much and when she does she is easily settled. She smiles a lot. She is such a girl and just craves any and all attention. It's fun to talk to her because she just smiles and coos. She's also a little ticklish. It's so much fun to play with her. I think she also likes to get dressed up in the pinkest outfits. Yes I'm pretty sure she does. She likes to watch Jane Austen movies with me in the middle of the night when I'm feeding her. It's just our little thing that we do together.
Okay, I may as well add Tony to this. I mean it wouldn't be right to leave him out. Tony and I love to have long conversations. We usually do this while we go for a drive with the kids and they all fall asleep and we just talk. It is one of my favorite things to do. It always surprises me that I found somebody who thinks so much the same way I do. He is much more of a romantic than I am though and he likes to bring home flowers and chocolates and things like that. I don't mind at all. He is a great dad. I love watching the boys go and do their thing with him. It's good for them. All of them. Tony is a lot more outgoing than I am. He has such an ease with people that I wish I had. It's good for me because it helps bring me out of my shell whenever he introduces me to a new friend that he has. He's also kind, strong, and very loving for all of God's children. I think he's the perfect match for me because where I'm weak he's strong and vice versa.
So that's my family that I love very much. I think it's good to step back sometimes and realize how lucky you are especially when everyone's being loud and you're late for church and you can't find someone's shoe. Yep, that's when you need to realize how blessed you truly are.