March 2016

I can't believe that its been over a month since my last post!  Seriously where does the time go?  I sit down to update and I find myself shocked that it has been so long…thus is life:)  Here goes yet another post to be recorded in the history of the Summers Family, of Yakima.

Lyv has been taking dance at Comotion Dance Center for 6 months now and is working on her recital piece.  We got a little preview of the first half of the dance this month, and it was ADORABLE!  Thunderbird is the song, and it is too cute for words to watch her shake her little booty!  I'm so happy she loves dance, and glad that we found a company that is mindful of the fact that these girls are still little.

Last month Lyv and Shawn got to go on a date, well this was the month for me and the boys.  They voted to sluff the official Mother/Son Social and go to dinner and a movie with our besties the Lancasters.  We went to Buffalo Wild Wings and then saw "The Finest Hours".  It was a pretty amazing film, and both boys loved it.  It did help Jack eliminate one future occupation of his list: Coast Guard, is something that Jack will never be doing:)

 I got to follow this amazing night with the boys with a girls trip for mom's and "only" daughter girls.  We headed to Seattle to swim, eat, and shop…needless to say it was a success for all females involved.

 This next post had to be added, since so much sweat, blood, and nearly tears went into the making of it.  I was called to be the girls Camp leader for our ward.  I love the calling, but we had a huge task in front of us - being a new ward, we had NO supplies for camp!  I mean zero…so we were tasked with raising money to buy those supplies.  Gratefully and amazingly our amazing ward rose to the challenge and donated generously at our dessert auction that we held as a fundraiser.  This was my contribution - and it sold for $150!  Say what!!!  I think I should start making desserts for a living!

While I was slaving away over desserts and cookies…my sweet Shawn started head first in projects we have for the house.  1st - Porch Swing. It is awesome and we have been enjoying it everyday since!

One of the highlights of my week is volunteering in Jack's class.  I ADORE his teacher, Mrs. Petre.  She is amazing and perfect for Jack.  He and his classmates were given the opportunity to share something in front of each other.  Jack was SOOO excited to be able to teach his class about one of his favorite things: The Solar System.  He researched it, provided a poster illustrating the planets, and described each planet to his class.  It was so great to see him in his element, and still get a few laughs in!

Oh my Max!  He is a builder…he loves to put things together and to create something out of whatever he has.  Dominos are a favorite and I found him independently putting his name together and a tower together.  I just love how quickly he picks up things like this.  He blows me away.

 At LONG LAST!!! Hooray!  Lyv bit the bullet and decided (Thanks to peer pressure) to get her ears pierced.  I told her she needed to be sure, that I wasn't going to go down and then have her change her mind.  She promised that she was ready, and that she wanted to brave.  So Lyv, Jack and I made the trip down to Claire's, (is there any other option) to do the deed.  At this point she had just chose her earrings, and so she was still doing good.  Then the gun came out and out came the tears.  Jack was a sweet bother and encouraged her, telling her - Lyv you can do it. I know you can!  She was practically screaming and I was feeling terrible.  I know that several people must have been thinking what a mean mom to force her daughter into piercing her ears….ha!  Finally with a lot of encouragement and finally some impatience, she went through with the first one.  Once that ear was done, her face completely changed, after she realized it didn't hurt at all.  She is super proud she finally mustered the courage to bedazzle her ears, and so am I.  She looks adorable!

 Easter was pretty chill this year, on purpose.  I'm done with overdoing holidays, especially holidays that aren't a huge deal.  That being said…Easter is a big deal, but I refused to let the entire holiday be about the candy.  So we focused more on the Savior and the Ressurection than on anything else, and it made it an amazing day.  The kids didn't even mind that there wasn't any special treats, boat loads of eggs, or baskets of gifts.  We did have a sweet day talking about the resurrection and what that means for us all.  It was awesome.

 The kids in their Easter best:

 Jack brought this paper home from church, illustrating people he would see again at the resurrection: Grandma Belva, and two of the three babies I miscarried, that he names Tim and Tom.

 Finally…yes Finally….the end of the month brought the Blue and Gold Banquet, parent teacher conferences, lots of sunshine, friends, and more amazing art work from Max.  We love spring and have be so grateful for the chance to be outside and start baseball season.  We are grateful for this beautiful area and the blossoms on trees we get to enjoy daily.  We love our friends and community - such amazing people.  We are blessed to have amazing teachers - who love our kids and can appreciate them for their unique talents and abilities. We are grateful for our children - all four who enrich, bless, and bring JOY every day!  Life is good.

February is the month of the Heart

February has been a wonderful month for many many reasons, but we've had a lot of wonderful moments pull at our heart strings.  February is always bittersweet because its the month that Ryan died.  It has been 5 years this year, and that seems impossible.  But the 12th ended up being a wonderful day filled with reflections of Ryan and being able to quietly think of him and the impact he had on me.  I was able to spend the day at Camp Z with the young women from our ward on a retreat.  We snow shoed and enjoyed the beauties of Washington and I felt a strong sense of peace and love surrounded by snow and forest…two things Ryan loved.

 Uncle Jake came to visit so the rest of the weekend was full of fun and food!  The kids were pleasantly surprised to have such a warm President's Day and we had buddies over to celebrate.  I went out to find the older boys sporting their skins playing a mean game of lightning!  I love this group of boys. We are so blessed to have such good people here in Yakima and I can't wait to watch them grow up together.

 Lyv passed into full on big girl status after loosing her first tooth!  It had been loose for a while, the adult tooth was even starting to come in behind it, and I told her if she didn't get it out the dentist would.  That was all the motivation she needed.  You should have seen her…blood filled mouth, with the biggest grin proudly showing me the tooth she literally ripped out her gums!  This girl!

She got to go to a Father/Daughter Social hosted by the high school with one handsome guy!  It was such a great night for both of them. Shawn even bought her a corsage…she looked darling.

 Jack had a Valentine's Concert for the 1st Graders and was asked to play the part of the Big Bad Wolf!   He looked adorable up there and said his part perfectly.  He is such a smart cookie this one…watch out world, Jack is coming!

 Finally - what is February without our traditional 14 Days of Love via Mail….the kids love this tradition, and day 12 was "Donut" know what we would do without you, so we went in search of a donut after school.  Apparently donuts were on the brain that day because they only had these GIANT Texas sized ones left.  The kids didn't complain!

The Potty Training Miracle

At the beginning of February I decided this would be THE month, to take on the most dreaded of parenting tasks….potty training!  I loath potty training, not only because of the mess, but because of the constant feelings of frustration and at times exasperation over my child's inability to grasp the concept overnight:)  My lack of patience is no help in this area.  I had attempted potty training Max 2 times before Christmas with no luck and no interest.  Honestly, he was perfectly content to wear a diaper for the rest of his life…why not?  He can do whatever he wants…eat, sleep, watch tv, play outside, without interruption…sounds nice right!  So about 2 weeks ago I was determined that today was the day…I took away the diapers, I pulled out the undies and suckers and started the potty training fun!  Fun quickly turned into loads and loads of laundry and a look from Max that basically said….I don't care, peeing my pants is cool!  Ugh!!!  Seriously people, this kid held it for 12 hours one day because he refused to try, even try to pee in the toilet!  Yikes.  After 10 days of this attitude I flew the white flag, I surrendered to my 3 year child…you win!  Then miracles were performed.  He went into the bathroom three days ago, because he wanted a sucker and peed in the toilet (made it yellow in our terms).  I jumped for joy, cheered, high fived, rejoiced so much in this bodily function finally being performed that I think I scared Max a bit.  Day two not a lot of action, but still nothing worse…today is day three, and he has been dry all morning and has peed 4 times on his own, without being asked.  What!!!  I have been a mother for 10.8 years now and I have yet to understand that all four of my children are VERY strong willed, VERY independent and won't be told what to do.  What does this mean for us in the future?  Hopefully I will look back at this potty training experience and remember that ultimately they have to decide… it has to be their decision…I can't force my hand on their free agency, their testimony, their decision to go to college or serve a mission.  It will come from them, in their time, and in their way.  All I can do is be standing by in the next room, hopefully to hear the sound of urine hitting the water, and rejoice that they did it on their own.

Post Christmas Happenings

Here a few more fun things we did during Christmas break….

Mother Daughter Date: We got our nails painted in preparation for Hawaii and went to the Yogurt Shack for a sweet treat!  I love spending time with Lyv.  She is getting so grown up and easy to talk to.  I hope this is something we will continue to do throughout the years.

Oh Jack…..sweet Jack gave us a huge scare during a trip to the Tri-Cities with our friends the Lancasters.  After a session at I-Jump we decided to go to Barnes and Noble and get books for Hawaii. Jack was with the Lancasters and all the boys went running into the store and Jack just kind of disappeared.  This isn't unusual for Jack, so I wasn't alarmed.  I started walking around the store thinking I would find him in a section of books…a minute turned into a few, a few turned into a few more and still no Jack!  Scared! At that point Shawn approached and employee and the loudspeaker clicked on…Code Adam!  They locked down the doors, no one could move or leave until this little boy wearing a Yankees hat and a red shirt was found…within a few minutes I saw Jack walking toward me with an employee.  He looked at me and I looked at him, and we both broke down into sobs.  Thankfully and gratefully it had a happy ending.  I am so grateful that he is back in my presence safe and sound!

What!? Wait! No kids in Nursery!  Say it aint so!  The day has come and instead of being happy I was a little sad….my kids are getting to big too fast!  Max started Primary and is one of three Sunbeams in our ward.  He has an amazing teacher, which I am grateful for.  He took a few weeks to warm up to the idea of not being in nursery anymore, but now handles it like a champ!

Two little cuties in a tub!

Lyv's face killed me…she has inherited Shawn's facial movement and is able to come up with some pretty funny poses, but his "Really, Mom!" face is a new sassy pants favorite!

Our final adventure…Leavenworth!  We took the beautiful drive over to check it out.  It was a beautiful town set in the snow-covered mountains and decorated with lights.  The kids loved the yummy treats and I loved a new adventure.  My hot cocoa was pretty amazing too.

After two wonderful easy-going, laid back weeks, the kids went back to school….boo!  But that gave me and my right hand man some much need bonding time. (or more like him and my hair some much needed bonding time!)

Merry Christmas 2016

Oh Christmas!  I adore Christmas - and this one was especially wonderful celebrating it in our new home.  As we read the Christmas story and discussed the birth of our Savior the nights leading up to Christmas, I was impressed the thought that my kids memories of Christmas and the feelings they have will largely be had here in this house and in this room.  It made it feel very special and wonderful to know that my kids would look back on these times - hopefully with fondness like I do.

I decided in lieu of pjs this year I would do blankets!  It was a success - and hopefully they will keep them warm and cozy for many years to come.  I LOVED our Christmas tree and the way it lit up the room each night…but Max was on a mission to kill me with my own OCD tendencies.  He only liked the colored lights, and I detest colored lights…so any time I had the white lights on - all was well with the world….and then Max the destroyer of my happiness would click a little button and colored lights would appear bring horror to my eyes! Okay it wasn't that dramatic but it drove me nuts and made him happy - what do you do?

Christmas morning arrived and the olders were ready to go at 5:45….and away they went!

The kids received all they asked for and a little more…I told them to take a picture by their favorite gift: Here war go -

Jack - kinexts rollercoaster, given by dad

Lyv - Doc McStuffins Vet Checkup Station, from Santa

Max train track addition, from Santa

Sam - helicopter car, from Santa

Finally the we save the best for last - a trip to Kauai!!! YAY!  The entire Summers Family will be meeting up in Kauai for a week of sun and fun in January 2016.  We can't wait - Aloha~