These are a Few of my Favorite Things...

Zach has a check up in a little while so this will be a quick post, but I wanted to add a few recent happenings... Last week Zack came down with a stomache virus and was throwing up A LOT! We finally got him to bed one night and were hanging out downstairs when Daniel came down and looked really scared. I thought he wanted me to tuck him back in, so I followed him upstairs and he pulled me over to Zach's bed. Zach was sitting up crying and Daniel was worried about him. I decided to take him downstairs to sleep on the couch so I could keep an eye on him, but Daniel wouldn't leave his side. It turned into a slumber party with Disney movies well into the morning! Mommy was VERY tired the next day!

A few days after we recovered from the stomache thing the boys got a cold. Daniel's cough quickly turned into croup and we spent a few hours Tuesday evening in the E.R. while he got some breathing treatments. The boys were very worried about him and when he finally came home they were inseperable. I went in to their bedroom late that night to find this...
Michael had pulled out his little tent and set it up beside his brother's bed.
Here is the veiw from above... (notice the baby doll...What is that about?)

Things are finally settling down around here so last night I gave Zach a much needed trim. I usually butcher his hair, but after a few YouTube how to videos, I'm almost not embarrassed about the results!!

This is what is keeping the boys occupied while I am typing this...

Playdough monsters.

Nestled All Snug in Their Beds...

Tonight I had one of those rare sacred moments that only a parent can have. The house is quiet because I am the only one awake. Andrew went to bed a while ago because he has early morning meetings tomorrow. I was studying my lesson for Sunday School on the worth of souls, when I heard a little cry at the top of the stairs. Zach was having a hard time sleeping and wanted me to come snuggle with him until he fell back asleep. So I went up and laid there in thier quiet, dark bedroom, listening to them breathe and watching their peaceful faces (why are they always so much cuter when they sleep?) I felt so incredibly blessed! How did I get to be thier mom? I thought about the unique and wonderful things I love about each one of them and I HAD to come and write it down.
Michael, my independent and curious 5 year old, who thinks he will grow up to be a superhero, but still snuggles with me on the couch and holds my hand, tells me he loves me the "mostest."

Zach, who was born a clever little tease, somehow finds humor and mischief in every moment, but melts at the sight of babies or kittys!

And Daniel, my peacemaker, who will share his whole bag of candy, if one of his brothers asked, (without taking any for himself) and never passes up a hug or a chance to help.

I keep thinking about President Monson's talk in conference about finding joy in the journey. I know this time whem my boys are small is so short and soon it will be gone. I hope I can find more of these quiet moments to be grateful and find the joy in the process.

"This is our one and only chance at mortal life—here and now. The longer we live, the greater is our realization that it is brief. Opportunities come, and then they are gone. I believe that among the greatest lessons we are to learn in this short sojourn upon the earth are lessons that help us distinguish between what is important and what is not. I plead with you not to let those most important things pass you by as you plan for that illusive and non-existent future when you will have time to do all that you want to do. Instead, find joy in the journey—now.

...If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will—to your surprise—miss them profoundly."

-Thomas S. Monson Oct. General Conference 2008

The Justice League

Okay, I am finally getting around to posting these pictures!! A few months ago Drew brought home some old videos from the library for the kids to watch. One of them was the Justice League. I don't remember these cartoons, but the boys fell in love. They all HAD to be super heros for Halloween. Michael especially knew exactly what he wanted to be. I had to look up the Flash on the computer because I had no idea what he was talking about!
I took the boys to Gardner Village the day before so they could see all the witches and get an extra chance to "save the world"

For superheros they sure spent a lot of time in the girls section of the toy store! Oh well, thier wives will thank me!

Zach really loved the witches. He had to say hi to all of them.

Michael on the other hand wasn't so sure.

Able to leap small rocks in a single bound...

I told you he liked the witches!!

Shout out to the Bates....

Are you sick of super heros yet? We haven't even reached Halloween night yet!

We started the evening with our ward Trunk or Treat

There were a few candy breaks.

We did go trick-or-treating, but I was too in the moment to snap pics.
Then we headed over to Jim and Jen's. No, Zach didn't grow a foot. That's Spencer as Batman #2.

They had homemade rootbeer and donuts...because is there really such a thing as too much sugar?!?

Daniel spent the next few days crying at the fridge because the candy was safely hidden on top.

Be afraid...be very afraid!

The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (almost)

Holy Cow!!! Today was a kick in the rear end!

Prologue: I started a giant migraine on Thursday that didn't let up until this afternoon, so the day was set for failure from the beginning.

Andrew had called the Bishop and gotten out of all his responsibilities for the day, because I was a mess. So we figured it would be a fairly relaxed Sunday with lots of sleep. And it started out that way. The kids were wired after putting up with a sick mommy for 3 days. I'm sure the overload of Halloween candy didn't help either (pictures to follow in a later post). About lunch time the trouble began.... Zach and Daniel had just gone down for a nap, and Michael was playing quietly in his room (we thought). Andrew came in and laid down on the bed beside me to talk for a few min. Michael came in and told us he had just gone potty and that it wouldn't flush. Now, that statement wasn't exactly correct. It flushed, just all over the floor. I will spare you the details, but I will say that every towel in the house was put to good use along with the plunger, our new friend, a plumber's snake or auger, and the carpet shampooer. The culprit was a nice big wad of baby wipes because my sweet son has issues with toilet paper!!! My headache took a back seat to the problem at hand. I think it will take a few showers before I feel completely clean again.

During the toilet trouble Zach and Daniel woke up and found that Mommy and Daddy were preoccupied. They saw thier oppurtunity! Out came a big box of Rice Crispies that they decided to decorated my bedroom with. This might not have been a big deal, except that there were piles of sorted laundry in the way that were the perfect hiding place for those tiny crunchy crispies! To add insult to injury, the bishop had announced over the puplet in church that Bro Bates was excused from the meeting to take care of his poor, sick, pregnant wife! So while I had my hands deep in sludge, the doorbell rang! I love the compassion in our ward, even when it is embarrassing! It was the Primary Pres. offering to bring over dinner in a few hours. Of course the house smelled like an outhouse and looked almast as bad when she stopped in!
After the bathroom was cleaned, recleaned, and sterilized, we did a quick slick up downstairs before she came back with dinner. This time when the doorbell rang, the house looked and smelled a little better. I can't say the same thing about myself. I had just gotten out of the shower and was dressed in my less than best sweats. So I told Drew he had to answer the door and I rushed for the bathroom to hide. Just as the door opened, Michael (gotta love him) announced "Mommy's hiding in the bathroom! Come and find her!" I buried my head in my hands and gritted my teeth. Drew made great small talk, and they both completely ignored the boys, who were at this point banging on the bathroom door, saying, "Come out Mommy, we found you!" This continued until Sis. Crochett slipped out the door. I think I owe her brownies and a good explanation!

Anyway, dinner was great and just what we needed after such a crazy day. Since I hadn't cooked in the passed 4 days, the boys were starving and ate like pigs. "This is sooo good!" they kept mumbling through stuffed mouths. You would think they had never eaten a home cooked meal! Just as we were feeling like we had reclaimed the day, Zach threw up his peas and rice all over his lap. The day had to get in one last gotcha! Well bed time is right around the corner...What else could possibly go wrong?