Maybe Next Year

And all I wanted for Mother's Day was a picture of my babies...

Maybe next year?

Forever And Ever

I was originally going to come on here and post some funny pictures of the kids.

But then I got a terrible call from my Mom, telling me that one of our dogs got hit by a car.

I honestly didnt think it would affect me the way it did.

My heart is literally breaking.

Not just for the loss, but for my siblings..

My 10 year old brother who shouldn't have to comprehend death of any kind.

For our other dog, his sister and best friend.

It's just sad.

Dog or not, he was a part of our family.

And you should never have to lose any part of your family.

My little Mazie is so obsessed with puppies, and Duke was the king of dogs...

You could pull his ears, sit on him..

He didn't care. He was just that loveable.

I was so looking forward to having Mazie meet him.

She would've loved him.

And Ian & Avery.. I've been there for every death we've experienced together.

It kills me that I cannot be there with you now.

So consider this my eulogy for Duke.

 A life cut too short.
 

He was the first to cuddle, the first to fart, and most certainly one of the better dogs in doggy school.

This is only the second dog I have ever had die, and even though I remember the events of Shelby's death, I still think I was too young.

Remember the day we got them?

Remember how we got that book on dogs, determined to pick the perfect one that Mom would finally keep around?

We did chores like crazy that one day, with the hope that Mom & Dad would take us to "look at puppies."

We were sure we were going to be getting a Boxer, or something like that and we drove down to Irvine Spectrum, pretty much knowing we were coming home with an animal.

Mom & Dad think they are so clever.

We walked into that pet shop and these little babies were staring at us.

 

You know they are special dogs when even Mom was pretty taken by them.

So instead of just getting one, we came home with two, not wanting to be the family that tore two siblings apart.

Remember how everyone started placing bets on how long it would take Mom to get rid of them?

And then suddenly it was Mom and I at doggy school.

And Mom taking them to doggy daycare since she didn't want them to be home alone.

It was also Mom who showed us the webcam where we could watch them.

We even watched them from Hawaii.

Oh yeah, and then Duke shortly got kicked out of doggy daycare.

He was honestly the world's best dog.

I don't know how anyone is going to live up to the amount of love those big paws of his could give.

You will forever be missed Dukers.

Forever and ever.

Splash Around More Often

 This cute thing had a birthday last week, so I thought it was time I blog something!

So many more pictures that need to be shared, but I'll focus on this crazy one for now.

 Nothing describes her personality more than that one shot.

 And she willingly posed for pictures. She's such a ham. 

With it being so hot out, I wanted to do a party centered around water.

But with our lack of a beach, and a pool, I had to get pretty creative.

Here's some shots from our day.

And then you have the famous cake smashing.

She was so delicate at first, but it didnt take long for her to find her rythum.

Funny thing is, she didn't eat any of it.

The entire time she was eyeing Ross's cupcake, wanting that instead.

So, being the fantastic older brother that he is, he helped the sista out.

 It doesnt help that he really didnt get the whole "birthday" thing anyways.

Everyone was happy in the end though!

All in all, it was a really fun day. 

They splashed, they laughed, Ross screamed like crazy when we finally forced him out of the water after about 3 hours...

It was just a great day with friends. 

We've been so lucky to meet so many wonderful people here in Wickenburg. 

I guess we'll have to splash around more often.

My Children Will Be At Risk

 

I'm trying to like holidays now that I have children.

I don't know why I don't like them, other than the fact that most people go above and beyond and I just don't feel the need to..

That and they just seem to collect oodles of junk.

Those pretty little wreaths require storage, those crafts with hands require storage, lights require storage..

And with how much we move, I can only store so much.

But.

I'm trying to be better now that Ross is getting older.

Soooo in walks Valentine's Day.

He got invited to a cute little party one of his little friends was throwing, and everyone had to bring Valentine things for everyone, and it was at the park..

It was cute.

I walked around the Dollar store, and even at the dollar store, I couldnt bring myself to buy the pre-made Valentines.

I just couldnt.

So I decided to be creative.

Meaning, I decided to start scavenging around Pinterest.

Nothing was really catching my eye, until I was at Walmart and saw those cute heart shaped marshmallows.

So I bought them.

Don't know why, marshmallows are pretty disgusting, but I did.

Got home and thought, wow.. What the heck am I going to do with gigantic pink heart-shaped marshmallows when I have a boy.

If he could communicate better, he wouldve been moaning and groaning because they were so girly.

Sooo...

What does a person do when they have marshmallows they shouldn't have bought, and a whole box of Rice Krispies laying around?

Yes, yes you're right..

You make quite possibly the worst treat in the entire planet.

So bad in fact, that we have now made a family code, and Rice Krispies are not to come within 100 feet of our house.

Ever.

Ever ever.

First came the melting of the marshmellows.

Not too terrible, but prrreettyy annoying.

Especially considering the fact that this was the moment Mazie started crying.

Then came the "pouring of the Rice Krispies," which being the interactive Mom that I am striving to be, required Ross to do the honors.

Terrible idea.

Not only did Rice Krispies not get into the melting pot of mallows, but they proceeded to fall in every crack imaginable in a kitchen.

And trust me, they are the worst to clean.

Especially when you have a toddler following you and seeming to crunch every single one.

Then he started to just eat them.

I am standing, stirring and not stopping because that's what the stupid bag told me to do, asking begging him to pour them in, and he is just laughing at me.. 

Eating the krispies.

So then I stopped stiring.

I poured all the rice krispies in the melted mallow bowl.

Got a little irritated at him.

Gave Mazie some blueberries to shush her.

And then went back to the stiring.

Are you seeing the problem here?

Possibly the worst stiring experience of my life.

But I perservered, and I put some elbow grease into it, and this is when I started to swear on everything in the room that I would never do this again no matter how much pressure I was feeling to be a homemaker.

Needless to say, my next batch..

Because, of course, I had to have one pink batch and another batch red...

Dont ask.

I got the hang of it though, and I let it all sit and set like it was supposed to.

On the directions it said to cut out the hearts immediately, bag them, and just let them set in the fridge, but that just seemed silly.

Wroooong.

Not silly at all Elyse.

I came back to extremely hard krispies, attacking them with a ridiculous heart cookie cutter, without the needed pam mind you, making it nearly impossible to do any sort of cutting.

Probably more annoying that the original stiring, now that I think about it.

And all the while hating Valentines Day more and more.

So then I had my cute hearts, in cute bags, making it seem like I was just cute in general.

Ross loved handing them out to his friends, which sort of made me forget how annoying it all was.

And I was smiling.

Ross was smiling.

There was even enough so that he could put one in his own bag.

How charming.

Wrooonng again.

We get home, he whips out his bag and all his goodies, goes right to the heart because he can say it and for a moment it was extremely cute, and then he proceeds to eat it...

And it goes everywhere..

We are still finding stupid rice krispies and it is now two days later.

Rob even had rice krispies on his sock, which was then inside his shoe, so he was reminded the entire working day yesterday of how much he hated the most annoying treat on the planet.

I don't know how he managed it, because really how does any kid manage to get so messy..

But I'm honestly still questioning how much of that annoying heart got into his cute little mouth.

And it was all in the name of love apparently.

 Remember that little stroll I made around the dollar store?

Those pre-made Valentines that I so disgustingly declined?

Next year, I'm all over that.

I'll be lovin me some pre-mades.

My children will be at risk if I don't.

He Remembered His Trail-Mix

Many of you are worried about me.

I find it funny how quickly those close to me will reach out when I post something a little more personal..

So I thought I should come on here and clarify a few things since my last post seemed more sad.

1. Everything is ok, I promise.

2. No one is dying.

3. I cry often, so a few tears here and there should not be cause for alarm.

And 4. I'm ok.

So here's take number two.

Let's hope this pokes at your heart a little better, instead of making you worry.

(Yes, you... Grandma & Mom)

 

 Everyone says that when you become a parent, it's like your heart starts beating outside of your body in the form of that little child.

Then your heart expands tremendously with the birth of your second, your third...

That one little heart that used to belong to you alone, then belongs to your little family surrounding you.

And there's nothing you can do about it.

I've been in survival mode.

For a couple years now actually.

There has been so much going on, so much to do, that my head has been focused on the ground just making sure my feet keep moving.

Add the little sleep, and there have been way too many moments where I don't even exist.

It wasn't until moving here, to Wickenburg, that I finally began to breath again.

I even had to remember how to make friends.

I was actually nervous to make friends.

Rob and I decided that 2013 would be the year for Christ.

We know we aren't doing any big moves, hopefully no big changes.. 

So this year is for Him.

Its amazing how much can happen with just that simple recognition in the back of your mind.

All the little things in life start to be magnified, and you see His hand in everything.

The problem with your heart being outside of your body is the fact that you cannot control it.

Three people currently hold my heart.

Three beautiful people are walking around, just holding it...

As my Husband walked out the door yesterday morning, it dawned on me the trials he might face that day.

He was leaving the sanctity of our little home, leaving my pep talks and good looks, and walking out into a terrible world.

I sat on the couch and wondered if he prayed before he left, I wondered if he would be safe as he was driving, if he remembered the trail mix I packed him.

And then I got on my knees and sobbed.

Here was my Husband, a grown man, a return missionary man, a career man.. 

And I was sitting and worrying about him like he was a child.

So then I sobbed even more as I thought about my children.

They arent even school aged and yet I worried about sending them out into a terrible world.

Throughout the years I will be sending those precious to me out to face their day, hoping and praying that they are protected..

That they feel loved.

You send your loved ones out the door and all you can do is pray.

 

All you can do is trust.

And that's sometimes the scariest thing I've ever felt.

So that ache that I talked about yesterday...

It was an ache that will never go away.

It was an ache of helplessness.

That thankfully turned into an ache of love and gratitude as the Lord reminded me, in various ways, of how good this scary world can be.

So, in other words, I am just learning how this parenting thing works.

And it's hard.

It is so very hard sometimes.

But this year is the year for Christ.

So let's cross our fingers that He strengthens me, because boy do I need it.

Now, I'm going to go hug my Husband.

 Not because he's cute, though he is that..

But because he remembered his trail-mix.

My Children Are Teaching Me

I have never prayed harder than I did this morning.

And that ache.. That ache people talk about when referencing their wants for their family...

I truly have never felt that before this morning either.

I have never wanted comfort like this.

I wanted so badly for Heavenly Father to come into my room and tell me it will all work out.

I just wanted a hug.

I got up from my knees, walked around the corner, and got exactly what I wanted in the form of two chubby hands.

Ross asked if I had an owie, squeezed my neck, and kissed my face three times. 

Just as he's seen me do for him.

No, I have never felt the literal hug from my Father in Heaven.

But after this morning, I know exactly what it would feel like.

And here I thought I was to be teaching my children.

Clearly my children are teaching me.

The Good, the Bad, and the Cuteness

 

This gorgeous face follows me around all day long.

I guess thats why I haven't been blogging much.

Not only is she super cute to look at, but shes pretty needy too.

 Let's just hope, for future boyfriend's sake, that its only her looks that improve.

So why have I decided to start blogging again?

No, I am not getting any more sleep.. But at this point, who really cares. I think my body is starting to adjust to her, instead of the other way around.

Awesome.

No, I am not showering daily.. But I did decide to shower for Ross's birthday, and all my friends at the park practically applauded.

I wish I was joking.

Probably a sign that I should be working on that one some more.

Truth is, I had an iPhone scare.

Literally, every picture I have ever taken of Mazie was on my iPhone, and in seconds, iTunes was telling me that it was all deleted.

I cried.

Really hard.

Of course, like most of my tears, it was completely unnecessary because I have friends who are geniuses when it comes to Apple products and one of them saved the legacy of Mazie.

But still.

I decided I needed to be better at writing it all down, just like I said I would be some 50 times before this post.

Because the internet wont delete my words (lets hope) and because it forces me to use my good camera...

And just because these two are pretty fun.

Blogging helps me remember that.

Like their latest game.

 

Mazie pulls herself up on everything now, and Ross likes to think shes chasing him.

They laugh so hard together.

And I need to remember things like that.

So instead of perusing Pinterest, creeping on other people's blogs, pretending I have money to shop online...

I'll take a moment to write down my day with these two beautiful faces.

The good, the bad, and the cuteness.