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Boo at the Zoo

I had high hopes for yesterday. I thought it would be really fun to take the kids (Braxton & Izzy) to Boo at the Zoo. All the kids come to the zoo in their Halloween costumes and local businesses hand out candy in between animal exhibits. My mom lovingly rearranged her schedule so that she could help me out. Braxton and I went to pick up Izzy from the daycare and she was super excited when she saw him dressed up like Batman and kept saying, “Let’s go see the animals.” So naturally I assumed this was going to be a fun experience. It wasn’t. To say the least. By the time we got home, Izzy’s mood had done a 180. She refused to put on her costume. When I finally wrestled it on her, she laid on the ground screaming for 10 minutes. I was set on her wearing it and I thought she would calm down but when she didn’t, I conceded defeat and pulled it off. This did nothing. She was still hysterical. Finally, my mom and I loaded her into the car in her ordinary clothes. If we hadn’t already told Braxton what we were doing, we would have scrapped the idea entirely. By the time we got to the zoo, Izzy had (miraculously) calmed down. So we took her in. She was the only child, in any age group, that wasn’t dressed up. My mom had tried to tell me that it was natural for 2 year olds to not want to dress up but after arriving at the zoo, I realized this was a lie. I saw plenty of young kids dressed up and looking adorable. When I pointed this out to my mom, I told her that I should have come with a sign around my neck saying that my kid refused to dress up, it wasn’t that I was too cheap to buy a costume. My mom told me that I should start the sign out with “Don’t judge me!” We had a good laugh but I still felt like a bad mom because Isabelle was in jeans and a sweater. But the story doesn’t end here. For those of you that know that Idaho Falls zoo, you know that the petting zoo is almost as far away from the entrance that you can get. This is the exact place my two year old picked to freak out. She started screaming and crying and running into people in her hysterics. I picked her right up and we left. She and I sat in the car for a half hour while we waited for my mom and Braxton to get done. She cried the entire time. It was horrible. On my way home from work, I realized that I left my camera in my office and I was kicking myself. Now I am almost glad that I don’t have a photo reminder of the affair. So much for planning something fun for a 2 year old. I tried my best!

Family Fun

The Lanier Family Photo

The Sunset the night my Grandpa passed.

Izzy watching Monster House for the first time.

The small redeeming factor in my horrible experience last week was that I got to spend the entire time with my family, which I utterly enjoyed, minus the circumstances. Our nephew, Braxton, is in town and my sister and her family were here for a few days. Overall, we managed to have a nice time together and I wanted to share a few pictures of the week.

Izzy Rides A Horse

Cyndy tried to ride a horse with help from Chuck. I wonder how it feels to have your brother's hands all over your rear end. I hope I never know.
Izzy and Braxton on Spot.

Spot is getting tired of hauling all 33 lbs of Izzy around.

Marley was a little hesitant at first, which I think is a good sign. Izzy, on the other hand, usually refuses to get off and sometimes feels so confidant that she stops holding on.

Izzy practicing her rodeo wave.

My daughter loves horses. While most normal children wouldn't think of riding by themselves, Izzy almost refuses to share the saddle with anyone else. When she and Braxton were sharing, she threw a hissy fit and kept saying,"Izzy can ride alone." At her age, I was petrified of these huge, wild animals. I mean who really has control over a 1300 lbs animal? But she has no fear. To be honest, I'm still scared and it is painful for me to watch her. My dad took her on a ride to the end of my grandparents road and the entire time I felt like she was leaning way too far to the left. But she made it back in one piece. Not only did she not inherit my fear, but she also lucked out and avoided her dad's allergies. Chase can't even get near a horse without sneezing. I just hope she always knows that it is ok to play it safe and get off and walk your horse down hills. My father never used to let me do that and to this day, I have a hard time with going downhill on any mode of transportation (that is not enclosed anyway).

Jade Aaryn

Today little Jade turns 3! It is almost hard to believe because it seems like it was not that long ago that we were at the hospital waiting for her to be born. I remember on her first birthday thinking that I couldn’t believe she has been around for one whole year and now it has been three! But there are a lot of things that I appreciate about little Jade. She has a very sweet heart and is extremely attached to her family (which I think is a great quality). She definitely brings out the soft side in her dad and in her Grandpa Lee because she can be very charming, which is something that comes naturally to her. She has the cutest little laugh because of the way that her smile turns upward and shows off her teeth. She loves to dance, her dogs and Tinkerbell and she is scared of bugs. Typical girl qualities in an extraordinary little child. Happy Birthday Jade!

Mia Love

Chase and I received a new neice today! She was born shortly before 2 pm, weighing 8lbs, 5 oz and is 21 1/2 inches long with a full head of hair. I remember that Jade was 7 lbs, 11 oz, and completely bald so her little sister is already exhibiting some differences. I'm going to head over there right after work to meet little Mia because I am so excited!

Marvin Elliot Thomas

It’s been a long week and I feel as though I have let my avid readers down! I got a surprising number of emails from people that I didn’t even know knew this site existed. So thank you! Unfortunately, last week was probably one of the worst of my entire life. My dear Grandfather passed away and the shock left me completely devastated. I was fortunate to be holding his hand when he passed, which I will always be grateful for. I now know, without any hesitation, that he went peacefully. But watching someone you love so much pass on is not a fun thing to do. Whenever I close my eyes, I still see him taking his last breath and this is a memory that I don’t think I will ever be able to escape or to come to terms with for that matter. When I was a little girl, my Grandpa was so much fun. Whenever I came to visit, one of my favorite things was to go to coffee with him at the coffee shop. I can still see their only waitress in my head and she always gave me extra whip cream on my hot chocolate. On days that I would go, my Grandpa would get a table just for us instead of sitting with his friends and we would talk. After coffee, we would go to his auto shop, where he would always slip me the key to pop vending machine and I would sit on the spin chairs until my Grandma would come to get me. I think another part of this that is so extremely overwhelming is the fact that I won’t be able to add to these memories and that my daughter will never know how much my grandpa loved her. He was so excited the day she was born that he sat in the waiting room all day until he got to hold her. I have no doubt that he loved her as much as Chase and I do. He loved us grandkids dearly and spoiled us freely, yet he provided us with the same sense of responsibility that he had and taught us how to care about other people. When I was a young child, I asked my grandmother why Grandpa didn’t know my name because he always called me “Dollface,” which he called both Heidi and I to the very end. I know that he was looking forward to doing the same for his two great-grand daughters. Being called “Dollface” your entire life can set you up for some disappointment in relationships with teenage boys though ;). I remember once when Chase and I were going through a grey area of our relationship, I went to visit my grandpa. He told me that we had two options; one was “to go get a shotgun and track him down” or “drive down to the river and check the fence.” Luckily for my current day husband, we choose to go check the fence to make sure the horses couldn’t get out, which is one thing that used to infuriate my grandpa. My grandpa was someone who could always put me back together and make me feel whole again, no matter what my heart was hurting about. At his funeral, there were so many people there that wanted to pay tribute to a man who touched thier lives that I was overwhelmed to a certain degree. Of course, the Merrick Family found a way to ruin the experience, but I have no idea why I'm even suprised. I’m going to have to end this because it’s stressing me out too much. There are no words that would justify what he meant to me, so I'm going to stop trying.

Abby Cadabby Appears

Introducing Abby Cadabby! Izzy was so excited to put on her costume that I had to pry it off her at the end of the night. She kept looking her self in the mirror saying, “I’m Abby, I’m Abby Cadabby.” It was really sweet. My camera wasn’t charged the first night I put her in it, so I had to dress her again the next day so that I could take this picture for Chase to see how adorable she is. The ironic part is that she refused to put it on the second night and fought me the entire time. Such is the life of a two year old. Izzy went to my mom’s house for a sleepover last night and it was kind of surprising how lonely I was. Unless I’m traveling for work, that kid has been attached to my hip for the past two years. Don’t get me wrong, a break is always nice (!) but as I went to check on an empty bed last night I had an empty little spot to fill. Good thing The Office was on!

Spring Break!

You learn something new everyday. Last night I was reading What to Expect during the Toddler Years when something hit me. It said, “Do not teach your child something you will want to undo at a later time.” Oops! The book was referencing such things as eating and sleeping habits but I have another thing to add to their list. Do not teach your child to lift her shirt every time she hears someone say “spring break!” I would never admit this to my overly prudish parents or husband, but I think I may have made a mistake. I found it extremely hysterical when she was one but now that she’s a little older, I have the feeling that I creep some people out. It was never intended to do so but now I’m struggling with how to make her unlearn this concept before I get reported to Child Services. I wanted to be a fun mom to Izzy and I try my best! Another habit that I’m trying to break with her is that fact that she calls me “Mom.” I absolutely hate that! Moms are old people and I don’t want her to forget that I’m still young! For the last week, I have been trying to get her to call me “Katie,” but it’s not going very well. I know that someone people have their feelings hurt when their kids call them by their first name, but not me. To me, the word mom is a title that means nothing. Just being a mom doesn’t mean that you are automatically a good mother, it is still something that must be earned through actions. So if it makes me feel better for her to call me “Katie” then I hope she will humor me!

I'll Be Watching You!

This was kind of a crazy weekend for me. Friday, I was out and about in the mall, when I looked up to see Chase and Izzy walking towards me. Yes, my husband who was supposed to be hundreds of miles away was at the Grand Teton Mall. It kind of freaked me out, mainly because I am a control freak and I have to know what is going on. I also hate to be surprised because it brings my anxiety levels way up. I love my husband but I feel very freaked out when he suddenly drops by like this because it makes me feel like I’m being constantly watched. But it was nice to see him. He also picked up our nephew, Braxton, on his way through Salt Lake City. He turns 6 today and is growing very quickly. I feel bad for the little guy because he can’t catch a break. He will always have to miss his mom or his dad because they live so far apart. We only had a couple little meltdowns this weekend because he missed his mom and then his dad (while Cody was at work). But I was able to take a few cute little pictures of him and Izzy. Izzy loves to play with Braxton and I think he tolerates playing with her. The problem is that she doesn’t understand sharing or the importance of never letting Spiderman touch the ground, which makes her difficult for a 6 year old to play with. Because it is Braxton’s birthday, I was going to write some things that I appreciate about him. I love Braxton because he has a sweet attitude. He loves babies and is always telling me how cute Izzy, Jade & Marley are. He puts so much passion into the things that he loves (like Spiderman) and is a very proud big brother of Brooklyn. It makes me think of the very first time I ever saw Braxton when he was only a few months old. He was just as sweet then as he is today.

That Giraffe Is Drooling On Her Head!

This is actually an older picture as most of you can probably see by the weather. But I wanted to put it on the blog because it is a funny story that completely sets the tone for my daughter. Last summer, we took her to the zoo in Springfield, MO and they actually have a platform that raises you to the heights of the giraffes so that you can feed and pet them. It was crazy. Of course my daughter, the animal lover, was all about that! When we were up on the platform, I turned my back for two seconds, only to see other mothers reel back in horror by what they saw. All of a sudden, I heard this little boy say, “That giraffe is drooling on her head!” As you can probably see where this is going, I will get right to the point. The giraffe was completely soaking my kid as she was hysterically laughing. Giraffe drool running down her face didn’t bother her at all!

Megan!

I heard from my friend Megan today! That was super exciting. It sounds like she's having a wonderful time in Alaska being a teacher and molding the minds of the youth. Here is a small exert from her email.

"It is absolutely beautiful here but kind of lonely. There are only about 200 people who live in the village and around 67 students. I teach mostly the high school students and there are only 22 of them. They are mostly good but sometimes they talk too much. Just kidding. I am teaching a math class. It is kind of fun. I teach a journalism class, a middle school reading class, a middle school language arts class, two different high school language arts classes, an algebra class, and creative writing. You can only fly or boat into the village so I don't leave very often but that is okay. School keeps me pretty busy. There are not a lot of people my age and the ones that are my age have at least three or four kids."

Is it just me or is this insane? She teaches every subject! I had no idea people still lived like this! But I do know that if there was one person on this planet who could do it, it would be her. She may be small but she is powerful! I was so glad to hear from her today. I also heard from another old friend today, but that will have to wait for another blog. All I can say about this is that I'm glad that I have old friends!

I had to add some additional pictures after protest from Megan! In her words, I have to remember that she's a professional now not a college freshman...

Missed The Boat Again

It's kind of early in the month for me to start feeling like a bad mom again, but what do you do? Ryan and Nicole were gracious enough to invite me over to dinner on Sunday night and I got to see Jade's Halloween costume. It's adorable! She's going to be Velma from Scooby Doo complete with a red wig and glasses. Nicki also said that Ryan was going to have to suck it up and wear a Shaggy Doo costume that is a little too small. I can't wait to see that! But back to the point, this made me realize that I had no idea what Izzy was going to be. I suggested that she be a chicken again and Chase told me no because that is what she was last year. As almost everyone knows, Izzy loves Elmo. So I thought Elmo would be a good fit for her. But I can't find the costume! I seriously thought I could breeze into Halloween Bootique and pick up Elmo or something equally cute. How naive! This is a competitive business and everything cute it sold out and/or backordered! I turned to the internet and Elmo is completely sold out on every single website I visited. And when I did manage to find one a used one, it was $60 and it got bad reviews because its extremely heavy and scratchy for a two year old. So Izzy is going to have to settle for Addy Cadabby this year. It's fairly cute, but I'm worried that it won't be heavy enough for an Idaho Halloween! Luckily, we will be having Trick-Or-Treating at the mall this year, so we should be good to go for Halloween night. For Boo at the Zoo, I'll just put lots of layers underneath. Wish me luck! Next year, I will either order her costume in January or throw a white sheet over her head the day of...

Ooohh Aahh Aahh Ooohh

On Saturday morning, I opened my eyes to see a pink monkey screaming oohh aaahh aaah oohh in my face. Mind you, it was 3 am. My little Izzy was running through the house at 3 am making monkey sounds. I pulled her into bed with me and luckily, she fell right back asleep. I was not so fortunate. So I took this picture as pay back. She looked so cute sleeping but the flash on the camera woke her up. In retrospect, this was not such a good idea because she was up for the second time during the night and I paid for it all day. I had a lot of my mind this weekend for a lot of different reasons. Most of the time I was too confused to think. But when I went through my camera and saw this picture, everything started making sense again. There is a reason that Chase and I do what we do. We have to keep our little monkey happy.

Here's to Motherhood!

Being sweet in the morning.
Look at her long hair!
Putting her shoes on!
The straps are crisscrossed but they are on the right feet!

I have had a migraine all week. I keep thinking it is going to get better, but it doesn’t. This morning though, Isabelle did take pity on me. She was very good. She willing got in the bath, brushed her teeth and sat down while I brushed out her hair. It was such a nice morning that I was 20 minutes ahead of schedule and that is unheard of. And Izzy put on her own shoes this morning! I was so excited that I took a picture. They aren’t on correctly, but that doesn’t matter, it’s still cute. Special note to those people in my old life; there was a little part of me that felt pathetic for getting worked up over a 2 year putting on shoes, I never thought it would come to this. But anyhow, I was excited and I’m counting down the days until we are done with diapers. I hope it is soon. An old friend told me that she was sad when she stopped by diapers because it was the ending of an era that she would never get back with her kids. This thought process is over my head because I will be thrilled when I can stop dropping $25 a week on something that just gets dirty. Here’s to motherhood!

Tori & Katie: Inn Love/Hate

Somewhere along the line, I have become addicted to Tori Spelling. This is not a proud moment for me. I have hesitated to identify myself as a TSpell fan because it really goes against everything I stand for in this crazy mixed up world. But none the less, I have had a lot of extra time on my hands at night so I have been watching her reality show plus rewatching all 10 (that’s right, all 10) seasons of Beverly Hills, 90210, the wonderful saga of ordinary 30 year olds living extraordinary high school lives. It’s great and I love it. But I have a few thoughts regarding her book:

• Tori’s mother is psycho. The only thing she gives in this planet are things that she can remain in control of. When you are performing this song and dance to the tune of $500 million dollars, it makes you can across as very shallow as it has in this case. It makes me appreciate my own mom even more! I’m so glad that I don’t have to call her assistant in order to schedule a call with my mom. I would think that most mothers would be able to drop most things for a quick chat with their kids.
  
• Tori is very unforgiving of her mother. There were a few passages in the book that I wanted to highlight and send back to her. Being that it was a book on loan from a friend, I refrained. (Thanks Kelly and LeAnna! I really did love the book and I promise that it will be returned in the same condition as I got it). Tori, of course your parents weren’t overjoyed at the news of your latest engagement. They went through the same charade less than 2 years earlier. Get a grip! And there were moments that even in your remembrance of the story the audience could tell that your mom was trying and you weren’t letting her.
  
• Tori complains a lot about her elaborate childhood under the guise of writing a memoir. I’m sorry that you got a Madame Alexander doll every year for Christmas, but unless this was your only gift, I’m still not getting the issue. It must weighing heavy on your mind because you brought it up in nearly every single chapter of your book.
  
• Nothing that I read in the entire book justified what they did to Dean’s son. Do whatever you want to other adults that can defend and take care of themselves, but your main job should be to protect your kids.

These were a few of thoughts that I had while reading the book. Overall, I found it very enjoyable and I LOVED the behind the scenes details of 90210. I’m even more in love with Luke Perry than before! Too bad he’s old enough to be my dad and I’m already married. But I still love Tori Spelling!

What Are You D-D-Doing?

There are two phrases that come of my daughter’s mouth a lot. “Mommy, what are you d-d-d-doing?” or “What d-d-did you d-d-do, Mommy?” It’s so cute that I should get a videotape of it so we can remember or that was what I used to think anyway. The other night we were over at my brother-in-laws for dinner and he was making fun of her by making her repeat her stuttering over and over again. When he realized how cruel he was being, I believe his exact words were, “I better stop doing that or I’ll make her problems worse like yours.” This should have been a red flag to me and it kind of was. I remember thinking, “What is he talking about?” Well this weekend, everything was made very clear to me. My mother-in-law informed me that my husband used to have a very bad stutter. I almost fell out my chair. Oh but it gets better. After a school speech therapist worked on him with the problem, Chase got better. But then it came back a second time! I was shocked! I can’t believe that my husband let Izzy go on with her stutter without telling me that it was some kind of hereditary trait. My kid is going to be made fun of! I have failed her! Ever since that faithful day, I have made Izzy stop mid-sentence and practice saying words like “did” and “do” without stuttering. This is horrible! I’m trying to regain my composure and address this problem like an adult but I think I’m in panic mode. WHAT D-D-DO I D-D-DO?