The Payneful Truth

So my adorable four year old set out for a new adventure… preschool!

First he had to get a checkup and some immunizations… 5 shots…boy he was mad at me. He only agreed to get a couple, but I decided to just get them all over with so he won’t need any until 7th grade!

So I had to give him something for being so tough…

…ice cream at McD’s and playing in the playplace. It helped him forget the pain for a lil bit.

Then Chuck E. Cheese with Aunt Rissa, and spending the night at Grandpa and Grandma’s helped too!

It’s just for three days a week, three hours a day at the high school.

On the first day, Luke got pretty excited when we got there. However, Natalie was in tears.

She wanted her big brother. She wanted to stay with him. She wanted him to come home with us.

She cried and threw a fit for 25 minutes in the parking lot.

So I’m trying to make mommy & me time fun, but I still don’t compare to her lil idol.

Luke seems to enjoy school, yet everyday he says he is not going back. we’ll give him another week!

Another first… the first snow of 2012! (possibly the only snow, you never know, but hopefully there will be some more!)

They were SOOO excited. They can’t wait for enough snow to build a snowman. We’ll see.

This Christmas was going to be magical. I was gonna be ready.

Decorations were up after Thanksgiving. 98% presents were bought and wrapped by December 1st.

Elf spottings occurred regularly. Christmas treats were made and delivered.

But then something happened. Time flew by. It was two days until Christmas Eve and I hadn’t started treasure hunts, and Christmas cards were coming back in the mail (sorry if you didn’t get our card, we moved and some of you did too!).

(Christmas Eve jammies and hats & gloves and flashlights)

But have no fear, we pulled it all together. Christmas Eve day was spent playing games and eating yummy food. Our plan worked perfectly and the little tikes were exhausted and OUT on the drive home.

So Santa’s elves were able to prep the tree, and I set the table for breakfast…and Santa stopped by!

They even slept in until 7!!! But the excitement on their faces was PRICELESS!

They loved everything they opened. They were having so much fun they helped me and Darin open ours. I enjoyed relaxing and watching the kids become overwhelmed with all their new treasures. Of course we had to scramble to get to church on time! During which Natalie was spinning circles to all the musical numbers. I didn’t know whether to stop her or just laugh!

We headed up to be with family again where we found my Dad ready to play Santa. Luke was the elf for a while but I didn’t get a picture of him. Natalie tried being the elf, but she wouldn’t wear the hat and she quite after Santa found a present for her. The big boys were all excited to get their RC helicopters (especially since I had convinced them they weren’t getting them) and the little boys LOVED their RC monster trucks!

I have to say we were spoiled again this year! We have been blessed with so much. We are grateful for everything. Grateful for family and friends and the strength of the gospel to guide us!

MaGiCaL? I think we are on our way!

p.s. I’ll  have to post Natalie’s treasure hunt later, because it is hilarious!

you know me, I don’t remember to take pictures so this is what you get from the trip…

Nat hiding in the comfy couch, Luke’s black eye, a silly girl hamming it up

cuddles with Grandma, playing with baby Jesus, enticing Diablo to growl

chillin with Madi, playing with Alex, trying to get Ethan’s attention

lovin the girl time, can’t get enough of Diablo, complete exhaustion

So really we had a fabulous trip, the kids were great in the car. There were a few more people around, like Grandpa and Aunt Darci and Uncle Pat, oh and… ELDER LANDON EVANS!!! The kids had such a blast playing with their cousins (Nat still reminds me every night that all her cousins love her). They couldn’t get enough of Grandpa and Grandma (they were quite sad when they woke up on Tuesday and they couldn’t find G & G). Darin and I gained 5 pounds from eating yummy treats all weekend. Poor Diablo and Sydney got more attention than they probably wanted! We are so glad that we could visit with everyone and welcome home such an awesome missionary for serving so faithfully these past two years. Landon we are so proud of you! Did I take a picture of Landon? Nope, but maybe Darin did!?!

Well I finally did it… I’d like to introduce you to our new home, our first house!

It only took me months to just post something… I wanted to finish decorating and have everything clean, but it just was taking too long, so here is a tour of the not completely decorated or furnished, messy house!

Welcome to 75 Wilson Lane…

Luke’s room…                             Natalie’s room…

Our room and bathroom (not finished decorating or furnishing for sure!)…

Living room and kitchen…

Dining room (someday), office now…

The face Nat makes when you say, “Smile and say cheese”

and the handsome lil Luke playing in the bonus room…

and if you want to take the long video tour around the house…

My little mister is 4! Gosh that makes me feel older. He couldn’t be happier! It dawned on me the other day that I have two kids. I’m a mom. I’m probably not cool anymore, like I ever really was. I know I should have realized this sooner. It’s not that I didn’t know, but the other day it just hit me like a earthquake, well maybe a tremor. But I love it. I love them.

So, this little guy had a little party over the weekend. We went with the Spiderman theme, even though he changed his mind a million and one times. He loves Spiderman.

In my effort to coordinate all things in life… we played drop the spider in the jar, musical webs, throw the spiders in the web, and run through the spiderman obstacle course. We made our own pizzas, and drank green goblin punch. The kids didn’t actually wear their masks for more than 2 seconds, but it was something they could take home for dress up later!

I think Darin took pictures of the presents and all the kids playing, but I think everyone had a blast.  He loved every present, but the tractors were the favorites of all the party guests. Thanks Grandpa and Grandma!

Side story: Luke was hanging out with Grandpa a few weeks back and he was inspecting Grandpa’s mower, it’s a Husqavarna. He turns to my dad and says matter-o-factly, “We looked at one of these. But it wasn’t good enough. We got a John Deere.” No offense Grandpa, but his Daddy grew up with  John Deere and he has passed on its superior-ness to his son! Thus Grandpa wanted to get him a John Deere tractor for his birthday and it was a great idea.

Last night, Anatoliy surprised him with a chocolate bear! And today he got to open a few presents from Mom and Dad…a monster truck shirt and a monster truck crash ramp, and a monster truck trailer. Did I mention he loves monster trucks too? I guess we could have done that for the theme of the party. There’s always next year! He opened his birthday cards too, and boy is he rich now! He says he can’t wait to spend his birthday money, but the boy is so indecisive it will probably take until his next birthday to decide what he wants. haha!

He got to go to lunch at McDonald’s and play with his friend Athena, who brought him a birthday surprise… a monster truck!

Luke, we love you. You are are handsome, smart, explorative, creative, sweet, and funny. You recently added some cool glasses to your look, making you look a bit older. Natalie has caught up with you in shoe size, but not quite in height. This morning you looked at your hands and you said they hadn’t grown any bigger, so you weren’t sure you were four, but don’t worry you’ll keep growing, perhaps no as tall as Daddy, but definitely taller than Mommy!

You know letters, and numbers, rhymes, and songs. You solve mysteries and make everything make sense. You love fire, dirt, and water. You give sweet kisses, and hate when the surprise in my hand is just a tickle bug. Your sweet tooth is just as strong as your mom’s, and so is your will!

HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY!