Best Husband

Not too much happened this week, but as I look back and reflect on what I want this week's post to say I really wanted to take the time to tell the world how wonderful my husband is. I am so grateful that Jeremy is so willing to work and go to school. I know how hard it is for him to not have the time to do so many of the things he wants to do. But he is learning so much about balancing what is important. He has been getting pretty frustrated with his whole work situation lately, but he just keeps trying. He keeps applying and doesn't give up. I truly appreciate that. I love seeing how he plays with Clara. He's had a lot more time at home lately and he is always willing to jump in and change a dirty diaper just so that I don't have to. He takes the time to notice when I'm frustrated and find a solution. He truly puts my needs above his. I am so grateful I found someone who treats me better than I thought I could ever be treated. He is so loving. I could go on and on, but I know it would embarrass him too much. Thanks Babe for being who you are, I couldn't ask for anything better than that!
I also had to mention that I received some beautiful flowers this week. It is so rare that I get flowers, and to get 2 sets in one week is amazing! Thanks Mandy and Emily for thinking of me and for decorating my table with such beautiful flowers. I love them!Clara and I also got some Nintendo time in. It's not the best way to have mother/daughter time, but Clara sure loves getting to press all the buttons!

Crazy Week

This has been a roller coaster of a week. But luckily, the ups far outweighed the downs. For starters, Jeremy's sister came to watch Clara for Valentine's Day. Jeremy and I went to the temple and did sealings. It was the best Valentine's date we've had. I love spending time in the temple with my husband. It brings us closer together and is a great way to serve the Lord as well. After the temple we had a small lunch and then were able to help a friend out by running an errand for him. It really was a great date! Thanks Melissa for watching Clara. Melissa left us some chocolate covered pretzels and Clara loved them. Too bad dad forgot to put a bib on.Next came Sunday. I decided to make cookies and Clara got to help me. She loved getting to hold the spatula for me, and loved it even more when she discovered it had something good tasting on it. The weather was so nice yesterday that we were able to take Clara outside. It was great for both me and Clara. It was wonderful to get some fresh air and watch Clara play. She would giggle as she would just walk/run around the yard. I thoroughly enjoyed sitting and watching her enjoy the out doors. Dad even came home from class while we were outside and got to join in the fun as well. I love this picture with Clara looking up so gleefully at her Daddy. Clara loved dinner so much last night that she started singing. When she sings, she forms an "o" with her mouth and usually scrunches her eyes shut. We couldn't get any pictures with her eyes completely shut, so this is the best we could do. Thanks Sherry for that very yummy dinner!Clara also loves to eat her toes. I really don't know why, but she's been doing it a lot lately. Silly girl.

Fun things to do

There are several fun things that Clara loves to do that we finally caught on camera this week. The first is playing with her friends. She has gotten to where she is so excited to have friends to play with. When the little boy shows up, she runs right over to him, gives him a hug, and then helps him take his coat off. When the other girls come, they are still in their car seats, so she runs over to the car seat, lifts up the piece of the car seat that looks like an accordion, and then emphatically waves to them. I'm glad she doesn't mind all the extra kids. After all the kids leave for the day, she does cling to me more than usual. So here is a picture of 2 of the 3 friends that come to play each week. Clara has also discovered the shelf that is part of our computer desk. She'll throw all the magazines we place there off, and then crawl up and sit on it. It really makes me laugh how creative she is getting. Here is a picture of her with a pencil she stole from the computer desk. (Now that she can crawl up on the shelf, she can reach a lot of cool things....) Notice she is trying to screw in some screws with her pencil. I don't do a lot of "fixing" things, so I'm not sure where she got that idea. Clara's other fun thing to do at the computer desk is to twirl the computer chair. Jeremy and I used to twirl her there when she was cranky. Now she has learned to twirl the chair by herself and that is even more fun than getting twirled. Especially when you can twirl friends! This was taken from our camera, which doesn't have sound. But when Clara started getting faster, you can see how happy Taylor gets. Both were giggling so much!
The last fun thing we captured on camera this week is tooth brushing. Clara loves it. When I ask her if she wants to brush her teeth, she runs straight for the bathroom door giggling. She is very good about letting us brush her teeth, but her favorite part is when she gets to brush her own teeth. Here are a few motion shots we got that make me laugh. Sorry if you don't find them as funny as I do.

What is our little monkey up too? Oh, she's trying to get her toothbrush wet. Yum, toothpastey water.I did it!This is Clara's face and growl that she does when she really likes something. I love ya little girl!

To report some good news, Jeremy got a second job. It's part time to go with his other job, but it sounds like it's going to be right up his alley! It's at a scrapbook company called Graphic 45. The website is http://www.g45papers.com, if you want to check it out.

Sesame Street Personality Quiz

Jeremy and I were reading a friend's blog and came across this little quiz. We both took it and here are our results. I think Jeremy's fits him better than mine does, although there are some pretty accurate things to my being Bert!

Jeremy's results:

You Are Elmo

Sweet and innocent, you expect everyone to adore you. And they usually do! You are usually feeling: Talkative. You've got tons of stories to tell. And when you aren't talking, you're laughing. You are famous for: Being popular, though no one knows why. Middle aged women especially like you. How you life your life: With an open heart. "Elmo loves you!"

My results:

You Are Bert

Extremely serious and a little eccentric, people find you lovable - even if you don't love them! You are usually feeling: Logical - you rarely let your emotions rule you You are famous for: Being smart, a total neat freak, and maybe just a little evil How you life your life: With passion, even if your odd passions (like bottle caps and pigeons) are baffling to others

If you would like to take the quiz your self, go here: The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

Worth It

So I am now watching a 3 month old every Tuesday and Thursday. She's a pretty fussy baby, so I got out our swing to see if I could put her down and get some things done. Unfortunately, she didn't like the swing very much. As soon as she was out, Clara swooped in. She figured out how to climb into the swing herself, and even shut the tray by herself. She even figured out how to move her body so that she could swing herself. This new "toy" kept Clara entertained for about an hour! She was so happy in this thing. I tried to get a picture of her huge smile, but I never got one. She is such a silly girl and I love her so much! (Notice she has her legs crossed - something she does a lot now.)Do you ever have one of those weeks where it seems like you get so overwhelmed you can't continue anymore? Although Jeremy's new job is a huge blessing, he's not getting the hours they originally told him he would be able to work. His work will call him about an hour before his shift starts and tell him they don't have enough work for him to do. They then politely tell him not to come in that day. So instead of working 29 hours a week, this week he'll be lucky to work 7!
So I now watch 3 kids plus Clara every week. Luckily, it's worked out that I haven't had all 4 children at the same time. However, I have felt very drained this week. I don't know how mothers of 3 or more children do it. I keep telling myself that they don't have all 3 so close together, but I still can't fathom it. (The ages of kids are 3 months, 8 months, 16 months, and 21 months.) So congrats to all you mothers out there who have a few kids. You are all my heroes!
I haven't even left the house in days. By the time I have some free time, I am so tired that I don't have the energy to run errands. My house isn't nearly as clean as I would like it to be. Just as I find myself having a spare moment to clean, someone else starts crying again.
In addition to the 3 kids, I also am tutoring quite a few people. I put in about 2 hours a day doing that as well. And yes, sometimes I have that plus the kids! AHHH! Jeremy is really good about helping me too. Since he's home so much, he goes above and beyond helping out with the kids. I love him so much! Thanks babe!
OK, so enough of the negative. Even though there have been several times where I've wanted to quit and give up this week, one look at Clara and I realize I would do anything for her. If I don't work this hard, we might not have shelter or food for my little sweetie. (And yes, Jeremy feels horrible about that. He feels like he's letting his family down, even though it's not his fault his work doesn't need him to come in.) All this hard work makes it totally worth it. I know that I can do anything with Clara by my side. I love her and Jeremy so much. I am so grateful I am given this opportunity to show them how much I love them. Of course, knowing that I won't have to do this forever helps a lot as well!