Late Easter

We had a great Easter! We had a beautiful Sunday service and then went to dinner at Kari's paretnts house where the kids had a ton of fun playing with all the cousins and doing an easter egg hunt. When we said prayer that night Calvin said, "thank you for Easter egg sunday." Alexey was born the next day so I never had time to post the pictures. So, here are our pictures from Easter.

This one cracks me up becuase I can just see Clare trying to eat all her candy so BINGO can't get any!


Calvin has been dressing himself a lot lately. He likes to wear things backwards, inside out, on the wrong feet or however he chooses. I think it's great he'll do more for himself so I don't complain at all about what he's wearing or how he's wearing it!




Isn't this a beautiful one of Clare and Jessica?!


And, here I am the day before I had lexie.

fun with clare and lexie

Alexey is 2 months old and growing like a little moose! She is almost 12 pounds. Clare was 12 pounds at 3 months, I think so she is growing faster. She is almost too big for her size 3 month clothes.



I took Clare to get a haircut at a salon today to straighten out the back where calvin chopped some off. So, now she has a cute summer cut. Dave does not approve (as he does not approve of any hair cutting) but she's still his little darling!


I love Clare's face in the picture. She is all lit up and telling uncle dan about how she put lexie in the baby doll stroller!

self portrait

my favorite preschool craft this year

LEGOLAND

Last weekend we had the opportunity to go to Legoland with Joseph, Tracy and David Larsen. I regret that we didn't take a picture with all of us together! It was a fun day. Legoland is a beautiful park and is a lot cleaner (and newer) than the other amusement parks I've been to. It is perfectly suited for kids ages 2-12, probably ideal for kids 5-8 because then the kids are big enough to do most everything but not bored on the kiddie rides. So, I thought the park was perfect for Calvin. Calvin and Dave went and rode some big kid rides for a couple of hours which was really fun for Calvin. He even went on the fast roller coaster.

Calvin in front of the New York City model made of Legos. Lego miniland was pretty amazing. Super detailed and very interesting. There were models of San Francisco, southern CA, Daytona 500, Washington DC, Las Vegas, New Orleans.

All of us infront of Vegas.

I thought this ride was so cool!

drivers school for 3-5 year olds. when they were done they got a drivers licence for lego cars! Calvin loved it!

calvin and david on the train ride.

happy Calvin.


Memorable Moments:

While I was changing Alexey's diaper (she was laid out on a blanket and I was leaning over her) a bird pooped ALL over us. On my hair, hat, ear. On lexies face, bib, clothes. On our blankets...everywhere. It was DISGUSTING.

We lost Clare for about 10-15 minutes. Dave had a security guard on the radio about to close down the gates of the park. Here's the story: Clare had told me she wanted to stand in line with Calvin on the car ride so I said okay and kind of pushed her into the gates of the line so she could get to calvin. Then I started talking to dave and didn't think to check and make sure she made it to Calvin in line until a few minutes later. She was not with Calvin or us or anywhere to be seen. We frantically ran around looking for her for about 5 minutes and finally I found her holding the hand of a lady. The woman said she had seen clare walking from our direction and held on to her so she wouldn't get too far away and then just watched for the parents to come looking for her. She had no clue she was lost and wasn't the least bit scared. Throughout the day we kept and extra close watch on her and noticed that she is quite a wanderer. Several times she would just leave us and start walking away. (but we'd stop her) She has been super clingy and scared of everything so we were not used to her wandering around like that. Most days, even at home, she won't let go of Dave's leg if he is home.

Memorial Day

What is Memorial Day?

a) a great day for a BBQ
b) the official start of camping season
c) a day set aside to remember and honor the soldiers who have died serving our country.

All of the above!! But of course, answer C is most important!

Memorial Day used to be called Decoration Day and is set aside to commemorate military men and women who died while in military service. It started right after the civil war and used to be on May 30 to remember soldiers of the civil war. It has now been set to the last monday in may and is used to remember soldiers of all wars. I was taught today that Memorial Day is also a time to remember POW's and MIA's who are still unaccounted for.

This morning we went to a memorial day service at a local park. It was a very nice event. There was a choir that sang, a few speakers, a moment of silence, a prayer for fallen soldiers, representatives from each military unit to post a flag from their unit. We also had the chance to sing the national anthem, salute the flag and recite the pledge of allegiance. I love the opportunity to think about our American heritage and reflect on the great blessing it is to be an American. And, on this holiday in particular to think of all the brave soldiers who have fought and currently fight with honor to uphold our freedoms.




watching the retiring of the colors

clare covering ears during (and after) the firing of vollys.


Recently, President Bush honored Frank Buckles, 107 years old, the last known surviving WW1 Veteran in the US.


Let us treat every day as memorial day -- especially now during a time of war when we have soldiers deployed and the number of soldiers lost in battles increases daily. Let us remember, honor and respect our fallen brothers and also reflect on what they have fallen for.

Memorial Day thoughts in the eyes of a 5 year old:
This morning we were telling Calvin how lucky we are to live in America and that there are soldiers who fight the "bad guys" so that we can have a happy life and be free and have food. He said, "I don't live in America. I live in Africa." We told him, "no, you don't. In Africa they don't have food. A lot of kids don't have mommies and daddies either. That is why you are lucky to be in America." He thought about that as did we. (There really is a lot of misery in the world and it is truly a blessing that we live in America and enjoy a life with so many comforts. So many people in the world do not enjoy the safety and peace that we have in our communities).
When we got to the memorial day service and saw many men in uniform he said, "which ones are the bad guys?" we assured him that there were no bad guys there today.

Doctor's Orders

And no, I'm not talking about Dr. Dave.

Calvin has unequal vision in his eyes. He sees practically perfect out of one eye (his left, AKA "good eye") and then out of his other eye he sees 20/80 or so (rt eye, AKA "bad eye"). The problem with a condition like this is that the brain will start to ignore the bad eye and eventually cut off all communication to that eye and as a result the eye will no longer be coordinated with the brain or the good eye, resulting in a lazy eye. Sorry if that's not a great medical explanation. It's what I know! In Calvin's case, right now, even with corrective lenses on he still only sees 20/60 or so because his brain isn't trained to use the bad eye. Anyway, to strengthen the bad eye, Calvin is supposed to wear a patch over his good eye so that the brain has practice using the bad eye. Over time, the vision in the eye will improve and the goal is that eventually he'll see 20/20 with his glasses on out of both eyes.

It is a HUGE struggle to get Calvin to wear his patch, and understandably so. I'm sure I wouldn't like having my good eye covered up all the time with an itchy and annoying patch. So, we struggle. He takes it off several times a day with all kinds of excuses. Often we forget to put it on or he'll wander off without it and we never remember to chase him down and get a new one. some of his excuses: my eyes are tired, the patch is wet (sweat or tears), I don't wear a patch to eat, I am to tired, etc., etc. Another problem is that patches are expensive. About 20 cents each and we often use several a day. This really adds up since we've been patching for years (on and off).

Recently we went to see a new doctor and he gave us a fresh idea about how to keep the patch on. Duct tape. (A familiar old friend to us and fixer of all things broken. Clare often tells us to find the duct tape to fix things!) The doctor said, if he doesn't wear the patch, put socks on his hands and then tape his hands so he can't take it off. He'll learn to wear it. We found that tape on the hands isn't enough because Calvin will use his teeth to pull the tape off. So, we had to tape his hands behind his back. It isn't something we do all the time. In fact we've only done it a few times but it becomes necessary when we cannot get Calvin to wear his patch. A few days ago he went through several patches before breakfast so I taped him up for a little while. This is what the doctor said, "it may sound a little harsh,but what is worse? being blind in one eye or having no hands for a while? The kid is not old enough to decide that he wants to be 1/2 blind later in life or have a lazy eye. You have to choose for him and you have to make him wear the patch. Do not give up. I have never lost a patient and I'M NOT GOING TO LOSE ONE NOW!" The doctor also said that we are actually pretty lucky that Calvin's eyes are still coordinated because his vision is so unequal and he is so old (in terms of the brain development which is considered mature by around age 8). If his eyes cross then we will have to do surgery which is never perfectly successful in this kind of case. So, we've been blessed with a little extra time to work on this and I would cry my heart out if we allowed him to lose vision in his rt eye. It is super hard work but we're trying. I often have to remind myself to do better. I have met a couple of people who patched a little when they were young and then it failed. They said they wish they would have been more diligent but of course it is too late for them now.

He didn't want me to take his picture. But as you can see from the picture above he really wasn't too unhappy.

Comparing Sisters

Alexey


Clare


What do you think?

Alexey

We took Alexey to sears for a photo shoot today. I think I could have done better if I had a good camera. It is fun to see some closeups of her face.

pics of clare's haircut

I think it's kind of hard to tell the damage in a photo and really it could have been much worse, but here are a few pics of clare. Now I need to figure out how to fix it and who should fix it!


Her bangs used to fall in front of her face unless I put her hair up in a pony tail or in a clip or something. Now almost all those bangs are gone. Her pony tail on top is about 1/2 what it used to be because so much of the hair on top of her head is now too short for a pony tail! It seems I can't take a picture in focus.


The places he cut in the back would never show up on camera. He just trimmed it up a bit. So, she'll need a new trim by a professional to make it all even.

cry with me

And Dave. Tonight Calvin cut Clare's hair. He chopped off the bangs and a little in the back too. Maybe tomorrow I'll post some pictures.

I had been rocking Lexie for a minute (one of my favorite indulgences) and noticed it was awfully quiet. I thought to myself, "what good kids to be getting along so well." then I went into the kitchen and Clare said, "I don't want Calvin to cut my hair." She was kind of sad and sitting perfectly still and Calvin was sitting behind her with the scissors and a big grin.

I had been thinking lately that I wanted to trim Clare's hair to make it all one length in the back. Then a week or two ago Dave had a nightmare that I got Clare's hair cut! Recently Dave and Calvin have both gotten hair cuts and Clare asked for one too but Dave told her that she can't get her hair cut because it looks so nice the way it is. Clare started walking around saying "Clare get a hair cut? Daddy says NO!" She knew Dad didn't want her to get a hair cut.

I had scheduled Clare to get her pictures taken this week too. Just a few days too late I guess because I think she'll look a little funny for 6 months 'til it has time to grow out in the front.

A Few Quotes from today

Calvin: When I grow up, I'm going to be a Doctor. Clare is going to be a nurse.

Clare: Mom, I want to paint my toes! (and so we did)

Dave: I hate home call.

Alexey: waaaahhhhh, waaahhhhh (which could be interpreted as, I wish grandma was still here to hold me all day. I don't want to sleep in bed by myself)

Denise: Since Calvin nearly burned the house down during his 4am shenagins I think we should start locking his door at night. (long story short: playing with a lighter and a candle over paper for who knows how long and singed his bangs while we were all sleeping away. NOT GOOD!)

So blessed!

We had a wonderful weekend with lots of family and no time to blog but here are a few pics of Alexey.

Milestones

black eyed susan - my Mom's favorite flower


Today is May 5th. 9 years ago today my Mom died. It was a Wednesday. My Dad called early in the morning to tell me that she had died. I was 19. My brothers were 17, 14 and 7. One of our family friends came over to pick us kids up and drive us to Hospice to meet my Dad and see our Mother (she had been at Hospice since Monday afternoon). My brothers left after an hour or two and I stayed with my Dad. During my mom's illness she had been helped by a group of about 8 friends. They were called "the loop" because when she was first sick she didn't tell anyone except this group of friends who she allowed to be in the loop. Anyway, these friends came down to Hospice together so they could have a chance to say good bye. These ladies were what my Mom considered to be her family as we did not have any family close by. (as a side note, most of them are still around town and are my treasured friends. many of them helped out a lot when I had alexey and check up on me and sit by me in church when Dave isn't there.)

Sunday of that week in 1999 was Mother's Day. We didn't go to church. Monday, May 10th was my Mom's funeral. I have always hated this week (of May 5th and Mother's Day). I especially don't like that May 5th is a holiday - Cinco de Mayo. It is a hard time for me. It has gotten easier over the years. First, it was nice to get married and then have Dave's Mom to remember on Mother's Day as it helped me focus my energy on something productive, specifically, trying to help dave remember to send his Mom a card (and this really does require a lot of energy). Then, it was even better when I became a mother myself and dave is very good at remembering me on Mother's Day. This year on Mother's Day we are blessing Alexey so we will have lots of family in town and enjoy a wonderful day.

Nine years is a long time. It is hard to believe that much time has passed. Time is a great healer but it is also sad to think how much life has been lived without her. In the time since she died I have been married and had my 3 kids. She actually did have the chance to meet Dave before his mission when we were dating our freshman year at BYU. She didn't know we were going to be married but it is nice that she got to meet him. She even wrote him on his mission a few times and sent him some black socks in a package once. She died right about his 1/2 way point on his mission. I guess she may have even met my children before they came to me. I hadn't really thought of that 'til today but maybe Alexey has seen her pretty recently.

Today Alexey is 6 weeks old. You all probably know why that is milestone. Time to take the baby out. Time to start exercising and getting back to full speed. I am pretty sure I have been back to full speed for a while, but now that I've reached that 6 week mark it's official. I always reach this 6 week milestone with half dread because I really enjoy hiding out with the new baby and now I'm expected to be at church, on time, and entirely put together! And, am I put together? Actually, I'm doing great, feeling great and Alexey is great too. She is still super easy. Sleeping most of the time and waking up to eat and look darling for a few minutes before going back to sleep again. It makes for an easy transition to 3 kids.

Fear of Sharks will not keep us away

For Dave's day off we went to the beach. The weather has been glorious and beautiful so we couldn't pass it up. Dave went out surfing (well, actually it's more like floating with a surf board and then getting beat up by the big waves. he his hoping to learn to surf soon). It was too cold for the kids and I to get in the water but we had a lovely walk and enjoyed flying a kite and playing in the sand.