Happy Birthday Baby

All the partying was done leading up to Scarlet's actual birthday.

So when her day arrived, it was quiet.

I took cookies to her class,

and brought home some balloons.

We played some games and I made her favorite dinner.

I can't believe she is 6!!

Scarlet, darling, I love you so much.

I am SO glad I have you.

I'm so grateful to be your mother.

 

 

NICU day 2 of 29

Those were hard days.

But we made it!!



How did I spend the first week of school?

With both girls gone again,

I have uninterrupted time.

I  DEEP cleaned my house.

All summer I mostly just scrape off the top layer and hope for the best.

Trying to keep it in high running order,

with 2 children,

a messy husbands,

2 cats and a dog,

it's challenging to say the least.

I spent the week taking each day to scrub a different room.

I cleaned shower drains. (eww)

Washed windows and mirrors. (My children are attracted to glass like freaking birds.)

Vacuumed the stairs.

And all the other nasty jobs that can't be given justice when school is out.

I practiced teaching my fitness class a couple times and holy crap!!

Talking whilst doing fitness is challenging!!

I'm going sound ridiculous panting into a mic.

And I just don't glisten prettily when I work out.

I sweat like a dude.

I'm hoping that doesn't send women running from my class.

 

 

I also spent a dedicated amount of my day to THIS.

I am trying to do my morning power hour of reading the Ensign and praying and she decided THIS is exactly where she wanted to nap.

Oreo is YOUNG.

I spent my week playing with Oreo.

Leading her to food and water.

She cries relentlessly when she is tired because she won't go to sleep WITH OUT SOMEONE TO LAY BY.

Listen kitty.

I had a hysterectomy and I have come to peace with the fact I am never having anymore children.

Don't bring this new born crap down on me.

Not today!!

And potty training her.

Yes, you heard me.

I potty trained a cat this week.

Oreo is also incredibly needy.

She wails like an air raid siren when she can't find one of us,

and during that day,

that person is ME.

She chases my feet,

and apparently my pant leg has done her a personal wrong,

because she feels like a moment not attacking it,

is a moment wasted.

 

 

This is my life now.

A savage claw attack every minute this little furry devil is awake.

 

LITERALLY 2 minutes later.

 Don't mind my face there kitty.

Just go ahead and lay wherever you want!!

 

 

Kato is extremely jealous.

 If Oreo is snuggled up to me,

he comes over and just stares at me,

with utter betrayal in his eyes.

The MOMENT she moves he is in her place,

demanding I pet him and that he roll around her place.

 

This precious little creature was also demanding many pets. 

 Thursday night I hid in my closet for 45 minutes before they found me.

 

Back to School!!

Back to school for these two girlies!!

They were excited and a little nervous.

But once we found friends and cousins,

they mostly settled down.

Ella did great!!

Scarlet had just a few moments of anxiety until they finally went inside the building.

From there she was over the nerves.

 Ella and I were both disappointed that PE was the first day of school.

Ruins the 1st day outfit!!

She was still pretty cute.

 

Scarlet showing me her nervous face.

 Thankfully it was daddy's regular day off,

so he was bale to help me go between girls.

 

 

 Ella was nervous, but smiley.

She ran out at the end of the day telling me she had the best day ever!!

That's a win!!

Summer

Summer was too short for me.

It was literally 3 weeks shorter than normal so the school district can adjust its schedule.

Next year we will get out of school before Memorial Day,

and that will be GLORIOUS.

But it meant sacrificing a good chunk of our summer this year.

And it was wonderful.

We are so blessed to live in our home that has excellent air conditioning.

No sweating to death.

No low drone of a window unit.

No burning hot west windows.

Plenty of rooms to escape each other when it's too hot to leave the indoors,

but boredom sets in.

 

Me and the girls went swimming 35 times this summer!!

My mom and I like to walk every morning,

but we haven't since I moved.

This summer we both wanted to have some form of fitness that didn't require getting up at 5am before dawn, and still sweat to death.

A lovely, lovely sister in our ward was kind enough to allow us to use her pool to swim laps in every morning.

I can with confidence say it was the best things that as ever happened to me!!

I didn't have to be up at 4am to run!!

No knee pain!!

Swimming is amazing!!

We went 3-5 times a week depending on the weather or if one of us was out of town.

And if you think it was the best thing to happen to me,

it was the GREASTEST. THING. EVER.

for my little girls!!

They had 45 to an hour EVERY morning to swim!!

They love swimming,

it juiced out that extra energy right at the beginning of the day,

they were with me and grandma.

Perfect storm here!!

I felt less guilty about the TV coming on in the afternoon,

cuz hey, we went swimming!!

They looked forward to it every day,

and so did I.

Swimming TORCHES calories,

with out sweating, or getting winded,

or impact!!

My knee and hip have never felt so good!!

 

I still had other fitness to do.

It was nice to be able to do it whenever I wanted,

not around a schedule.

I didn't have to stop for breakfast or to make lunches.

And my chickens always came up to keep me company!!

They usually were good about giving me plenty of space.

I move a lot and they didn't want to get kicked or burpeed into.

But some days I did weights and they would slowly encroach into my space until I had my bench and only my bench.

But as long as everyone is happy and playing,

Mommy does NOT care.

I'll find some space.

It's a big room!!

 

Warm Spring opened again!!

It is so beautiful and I'm excited to be able to go play again.

I was a bitter failure at taking pictures this summer.

So this is the only video I got of anything.

And that is only because Ella asked me to take it to send to Brent.

Molly also joined us upstairs every morning.

As Scarlet says "Molly demands MANY pets."

She would rub all over everyone for a good hour.

Then she cries at the back door where she spends her day happily sleeping in my shady,

moist rose bed.

She is so weird.

Most cats are crying to come INDOORS.

Not go outside to cook.

She's always been weird though. 

 I have a feeling she will be spending more and more time outside.

I sent Brent to the store to get meatballs.

 

 He came home with this.

Meet Oreo.

A tiny little girl kitty.

This was NOT on the list I sent with him!!

 

Ella and I went to Stake Achievement Days together this weekend!!

It was lovely and everyone did a wonderful job putting it together.

I can't believe school is starting tomorrow.

I don't know how this happened!!

I am sending a 4th and 1st grader off to school tomorrow morning!!

I am going to have a lonely, empty day.

Sigh.

I guess it's best I have a tiny kitty to take care of.



Scarlet's Birthday Party

Scarlet's birthday is not for another couple weeks,

but it falls on a Tuesday AFTER school starts.

AND she has been dying a slow painful death waiting for it to come since Ella had hers.

Scarlet has many wonderful traits and virtues,

patience is not one of them.

So we partied early!!

 

It was a very low key celebration.

Half the family was missing.

I sent out the E-vite about 5 days before we decided to have it,

so no surprise everyone had other plans already!!

But it was great anyways!!

Scarlet was perfectly happy to eat, blow out a candle,

and get the important part!!

Presents!!

 

Yes, that is a "9" candle.

MAYBE I looked in the pantry and saw it,

and thought it was a 6

and didn't think to double check until I was sticking it in the cake!!

We went with it!!