Heaven is Near

Carleton and I took this before celebrating our 8th anniversary. Our other anniversary celebrations have included a weekend trip to an island, kayaking, riding on a float plane, dancing on a yacht etc. Carleton has always planned fun surprises. We laid low this time until we know more. We ate at a delish Argentine restaurant. I thank Heavenly Father every day for him. These eight years have been the best of my life and it unbelievably gets better and better. I think he's so handsome and looks more handsome each year.

Heaven is near. I feel the line is blurred between heaven and earth when Apollo and Annie were born. I have had that same feeling these last two weeks. I don't know if we will have an addition to our family but we feel that God has a plan for our family. We have felt extra thankful for Apollo and Annie. Thank you for your prayers. The first time we did in vitro it didn't work even with 3 fresh, almost perfect embryos with the nurse commenting "I don't see embryos this good." The next time we got Apollo but the 3 embryos they took out survived the initial thaw but never replicated so we had to take out three more, and with those we got one Apollo. This time we just had two left and we didn't know if they would even come out of freezing. Thankfully both came out of freezing and replicated nicely. The doctor rolled in our embryos last Tuesday as we said "Hi kids." It was a beautiful experience to see them through a microscope. It's always nice when your husband can be there at the conception of your kids:)

Good Advice. I was just thinking this week that I've gotten some good advice this week.

-EVERY DAY: Let your child feel welcome and loved from the instant he or she walks into a room. "Smile When You See Them" and leave no doubt that, at that moment, your child is the most important person in your world. -Tom Sturges Raising Amazing Children

-Follow up with logical consequences. Avoid trying to "reason" with your child, such as asking him, "How would you like it if he threw the ball at you?" Toddlers don't possess the cognitive maturity to be able to imagine themselves in another child's place or to change their behavior based on verbal reasoning. But they can understand consequences. -Baby Center

-My mind is always going a million miles a minute. I find it hard to focus even during prayer. My friend Jill said she is the same way and that meditation helps. I can see a change in her-more peaceful. I'm going to one of her meditation classes this week.

-My friend Angela said that she always lets her kids play when they are playing because the bond between her kids is a more important relationship that them with her. They love each other and play well together. I loved hearing this. I am always thinking, have I given them enough athletic time, enough learning time today but when Apollo and Annie are playing together, I will now feel good about giving them the important bonding time together.


-Be present in your life. For the last year, I have been starting a teacher training company. I always think...if moms and teachers had the tools, they and their kids would be so much happier and I'm so excited to share what I've learned. But, after a phone conversation with one of my partners, I said my little lunch time prayer over the food and was reminded of the importance of being present in my own life.


This week.
I was singing in the car... "I love..." and Apollo finished "to snuggle."

Annie is naming body parts on herself and us...nose, mouth, eyes, and ears.

I had a captive audience (Apollo and Annie) giggling at lunch. I thought in that moment-no wonder I love being a mom. My kids think I'm the funniest, prettiest (I asked Apollo if he thought I was pretty and he said yes), and coolest person (until dad gets home).

At dinner yesterday, we all took turns seeing if we could make the others laugh.

Apollo said he was going to work and got on Annie's little bus. He shoved his bear under his shirt and said he was going to have a baby. Afterward, he pulled up his shirt to nurse him. The funniest was his face of almost boredom waiting for his bear to finish. I haven't nursed Annie for months but maybe this comes from one of our library books that talks about a new baby.


When mad, I say to Apollo "don't smile..." and he laughs. Mom did this to me when I was little.