That Boy of Mine

I'm realizing maybe one reason I have Will and Ezra in my life is to bring out laughter in my often serious attitude. Last night and this morning were more occasions for me to think, "Goodness, I need to write that down." So here goes:

Reason #1 to laugh last night:

As I walked back into the kitchen to clean Ezra up from dinner, I saw a ball of rice zoom over the table and across the kitchen. (Ezra has a great arm.) I walked over to Ezra and said, "Ezra, no, no!" He looked up at me with those blue, long eyelash rimmed eyes and said, "A snowball fight!" I couldn't help but laugh. I guess he remembered my reaction when he wanted to be funny and turn his blueberry muffin into a ball this morning.

Reason #2 to laugh this morning:

While changing his poopy diaper, Ezra said, "That's awesome!" I asked, "What's awesome, Buddy?" He then replied, "My poop." Awwww yes. . . the joys of being a mother!

Aspen Grove

A big thank you to Lynn and Val for making the Youngberg Family Reunion at Aspen Grove such a success! I had such a great time being with the extended family in such a beautiful setting. (I missed Bri, Mike, Steve-O, and Ananda, though.) We had a blast snowshoeing, sledding, eating, playing games, having a white elephant exchange, staying up late, experimenting with my "nifty fifty" lens, and more eating! (I do have a little regret that Kerri and I changed the clocks forward two hours so the little kids could have a "midnight" toast and go to bed earlier without having the ill effects of staying up late the next day--guilty because we were so sneaky about it!) Abby, Will, and Ezra certainly had a good ole time playing with their cousins and spending quality time with their aunts, uncles, and grandparents. I also need to add that it was wonderful spending time with Nana Beth. I hope I can become like her someday!

P. S. Thank you to Ashleigh who took the fun pictures of the kids and Matt sledding, and thank you to Matt for the silly pics of Eric and others on this slideshow.

Evy's Blessing

Sunday was a happy day as my little angel was able to be blessed by Eric. I'm so thankful Eric was able to give her a baby blessing, and he did a wonderful job! I'm also so thankful to Lynn and Dave who were able to stand in the circle and for the family that came to support us.

It was a special experience for me to dress my perfect and pure little baby in white for her big day and to have her wear the same dress (made by Nana Val) that Abby wore for her blessing. A sweet moment in a very busy morning!

Ezra Speaks His Mind!

Yesterday during lunch Ezra was eating on the bench we have on one side of the table. Will was sitting next to him in a chair with his feet on the bench. Out of nowhere, Ezra commands, "Get your feet off of my ottoman!" Will and I exchanged glances (Did he just really say what I think he said?) before Will decided he better remove his feet. Seriously, I'm pretty sure I didn't know what an ottoman was when I was two years old!

Faux Gingerbread Houses

Our family had a memorable time with the fun and creative Green family making faux gingerbread houses (faux because we use graham crackers--awesome alternative!) Eric whipped up the icing and helped little Ez, Dave helped Kate with her cool house with balcony, Kerri helped Ben with his wee chateau, I attempted to help in between baby feedings, and the big kids went to town on their very creative homes. It was a great night with everyone eating candy and being industrious, listening to Harry Connick, Jr., and enjoying good company over wassail.

Fun(ny) Times

What entertainment was I blessed with this morning? Watching Abby, Will, and Ezra do the "Macarena" at 9:10 in the kitchen = fun times! I especially love watching Will try to get the beat by bouncing his knees (rather awkwardly) and swishing his bum in an exaggerated manner at the end of the routine (as taught by his p.e. teachers). One would have loved to hear me verbally chime in the music for them. Awesome times in Crazy Castle!

My Juvenile Sense of Humor

Ever since I've seen Illinois' governor on tv, I just can't get past his hairdo. What is up with that? So when I saw this SNL skit I was laughing so hard. I guess it just goes to show what a juvenile sense of humor I have! (I also often try to figure out what animal some people resemble. I've decided the governor of Illinois looks like a Chow.) I couldn't figure out how to post this video here, so here is the link to the video. The part about his hair is during the second half of the short video clip.

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/really-gov-blagojevich/881482/

Blake

We love our cousin Blake! He treated our family with a visit on Sunday evening and rescued us from one of those late Sunday afteroon feelings of I-have-serious-cabin-fever-what-are-we-going-to-do-with-the-kids-the-rest-of-the-night? Blake took the children on a nice, frigid walk, put up with a noisy dinner, and read books to Ezra. What a nice guy, huh? He's not only nice but fun and full of facts! Thanks, Blake, for rescuing our family from the Sunday night doldrums!

P. S.

I changed the name of my blog to "Crazy Castle" because as I was telling Abby and Will how they were a prince and princess, Will commented that I would be the queen and our house would be the castle. Then he added, "Evy sure picked a crazy castle to come to!" This Willism has stuck ever since! With four kids under the age of 6 1/2, our home truly is a crazy castle!

Smitten

This picture of Ezra speaks so well the love and joy we all have for little Evy!

Also, she just had her two week check-up and is doing very well. WHAT A BLESSING! She has grown a 1/2 inch so far and almost gained a whole pound. All we can say is. . . thank heaven for little girls!

She's here!

Our little Evelyn Rose made her quick debut on Thursday, November 20th. (Quick because she was born less than an hour after arriving at the hospital!)

She weighed 7 lbs 8 oz and was 21 inches long. She has the longest feet that are reminiscent of a jackrabbit!

This Thanksgiving we truly are so thankful that she is here safe and sound.

FYI--Evelyn comes from my dad's mom and Rose came to us by way of a visiting Wisconsin couple who I met at the Gardens. They were avid gardeners themselves and when they found out we had chosen the name Evelyn, they informed me of the existence of an English rose called "Evelyn." Ever since then the middle name of Rose has stuck!

Today was a good day

because Abby came home relatively happy and did her homework, reading, and piano without complaint.

because Ezra said, "Mommy, me like it!" when he tried caramel on his apples.

because Will and I built a marble tower together that totally rocked!

because Eric came home for lunch and is doing the grocery shopping for me right at this moment.

because Kerri brought an awesome dinner over for our family. Those homemade rolls were "da bomb!"

Will on the way to school

On the way to school this morning, my friend overheard Will explain to her son that a "blooper" is "when gasoline comes out of your bum." All I can say is. . . nice.

I just can't take it!

I just can't take how stinkin' cute my boys are in the snow. (I know, I'm a little biased.) I love how their pale skin and blue eyes pop against their dark snow clothes. I'm so glad that even though I have brown eyes, I was blessed to have these boys with their beautiful blue eyes. Thanks for helping with that, Eric!

I'm also glad Ezra enjoyed the snow today. Last year he did not enjoy the snow one bit. He wouldn't crack a smile for anything. Looks like this snow season will be different. As soon as Eric walked in for lunch today, Ezra said, "Snow fun. Snow fun." He couldn't wait to share the good news with his dad.

Although the boys were so cute, you should have seen me. Wow, what a 9 month pregger sight to see! No snow pants to fit--not to mention no coat in sight that will zip up over my huge belly. Also, I was not wearing gloves or a hat, so I was quite cold and wet within 30 seconds. Oh well. . . not too much longer!

Leaves. . . everywhere!

Living up in Salt Lake in an older home means older trees with more leaves. We are so excited to finally have piles of leaves to rake up and jump in. After the kids' last soccer games, we came home and celebrated by playing in the leaves with neighbors. Will thought it was too hot, so he just had to take his shirt off. Of course, Ezra had to take his shirt off as well. Cute little tummies!

A Terrific and Testing Two-year-old

Yesterday we celebrated Ezra's 2nd birthday with Kerri and kids, Kurt and Ashleigh, and Blake (missed Dave). I'm thankful we have family who were able to support Ezra on a busy weeknight. During the party, Ezra was serenaded over the phone by his Nana and Bapa. When they were done singing, Ezra said, "Bye." This little guy can be sooo cute right now, but I have to admit that the way a 2 year old tries to assert their independence is VERY trying sometimes (okay, a lot of the time!).

Even though he can be a stinker, I just love this age. I love:

*how he says, "Morning," each morning when I get him out of bed
*his buckster teeth
*his tight hugs (at knee or around neck)
*how he says, "Sorry," if he's asserted his independence on one of us (like last night when he threw a truck at Will's face)
*how he calls his blanket his "baby"
*how he is learning so much so fast
*his blonde hair and big blue eyes
*how he giggles when he's tickled
*his love of books
*his silly spirit

I've been truly blessed. Now just help me remember this during one of the many assertive episodes!

P. S. THANK YOU to Eric who designed, assembled, and decorated his very cool train cake after a busy day at work.

I've been tagged. . .

I noticed on Kerri's blog that I have been tagged. So here goes. . .

5 Shows I Love to Watch:

1. The Office
2. Arrested Development
3. Oprah
4. House Hunters
5. Little Einsteins

5 Favorite Restaurants:

1. Goodwood BBQ
2. Mimi's Cafe
3. Johnny Carino's
4. Cafe Rio
5. Citris Grill

5 Things that Happened Yesterday

1. Packed 72-hour kits
2. Got multiple hugs from Ezra
3. Had Ezra meltdown in the Dollar Store
4. Learned more about Matt & Ananda's engagement
5. Paid bills

5 Things I Look Forward to:

1. Date nights with Eric
2. Watching The Office with Eric
3. Dance jams with the family
4. Bedtime
5. Time to scrapbook or read with no one to interrupt me

5 Things I Love About the Fall:

1. Cooler weather
2. Crisp, blue skies
3. Colorful leaves
4. Wassail (totally agree, Kerri)
5. Watching the kids play in a pile of leaves

5 Things On My Wish List:

1. A safe and healthy family--always
2. The Nifty Fifty lens
3. To take a photography class/course
4. To have zero debt
5. A good night's sleep

5 People I Tag: (I'm not sure if 5 people read my blog, but. . .)

1. Janae
2. Eric
3. Sandy
4. April
5. Liz

Crazy Hair

This week is Red Ribbon Week at the kids' school. Today's theme was "Drugs can be hair raising," and so the students could come to school with crazy hair. The picture above is our very quick interpretation of today's theme. I think we did pretty well for the less than 5 minutes we had this morning!

A Busy Saturday

After two soccer games and picking out pumpkins, the kids had a blast dressing up for the "Trunk or Treat" held in our church parking lot. I love how Abby and Will seemed so happy with their costumes. Ezra was tolerant of his monster costume. He'll definitely be nice and warm on Halloween night!

Trunk or Treat led right into an annual party at the Black's house. (The same party where my water broke with Ezra two years ago.) It was a fun night filled with yummy food, friends, pumpkin carving (with lots of help from Eric), and Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas playing in the background.

Double, double, toil and trouble. . .

. . . fire burn, and cauldron bubble. The witches were out in full force at Gardner Village, and so we visited for our FHE activity this week. (All the witchiness made me feel right at home!:-)The big kids loved finding all the witches (especially the one in the row boat on the water), whereas Ezra was a little freaked out! Nothing that a little candy from the quaint candy shop couldn't cure though!

Will Quotable #451

Today Will gave a talk in Primary. He did a wonderful job. Not before I had finished the thought, "Phew, we made it through," Will steps off the podium, pulls off his jacket and loudly and dramatically says, "This jacket is killing me!"

The Fun Continues

Yesterday we made the drive down to Thanksgiving Point for the not-to-be-missed Cornbelly Maze and other Halloween activities. The kids absolutely love this tradition. This year was no exception. We had a blast except for the lovely 15 minutes we couldn't find Will and for my unforgettable experience in the porta-potty. But that's a whole different story. . .

Besides the maze (in the shape of David Archuleta), the kids enjoyed frolicking in a heap of dried corn kernels, zipping down long slides, jumping on the pillow-like trampoline, digging in the dark sand pit, dressing up in the princess area, playing in the water, and much more! At the end of the night, I was glad we all made it home (Will and all) and that we could all have access to a hot shower to decontaminate!

October Rocks!

There are so many fun things to do in October! Our latest adventure with the family was at "Storybook after Dark" at Red Butte Garden. We enjoyed painting our own faces, listening to (and watching) a Navajo tell a story and make a sandpainting, playing games, getting warm by the barrel fires, making seed bags that will grow into "monster" hair, choosing our own oak tree for a prize, being wowed by the cool lighting, and much more. We love the Garden and plan to renew our membership each year!

A Nor Cal Weekend

This past weekend we had the chance to go to Nor Cal for my brother Rob's wedding. He married Jen in an outdoor ceremony with a beautiful woodsy backdrop. So pretty. We are so happy for Rob and Jen and feel like Rob definitely couldn't have found a better girl! Jen is awesome, and we wish the two of them the best!

Even though it was a quick trip, we still had time to enjoy my parents' rural property and play with cousins. It was darling to see Abby and Will be so loving towards their littler cousins. (Abby is the oldest of the six cousins with four of the six age two and under!) They also enjoyed spending time with their two older cousins at the wedding.

It was great to spend time with my family. I appreciate them. I appreciate how my mom tries to make everyone happy. I always look forward to the bag of Lindt candy, home decor magazines, and bottled water she leaves on our nightstands. I love how my mom and dad play with my kids and how my dad stayed up late watching movies with them in the motorhome this trip. I also love how Frank and Rob make me laugh all the time and love me even though I wasn't the best big sister growing up. I'm thankful to Uncle John and Johnnie for their generosity and love. I appreciate Myrissa and the time she spends with Abby and Will. I enjoy Josh's sweet spirit and smile. I definitely miss my family already and am looking forward to seeing them again.