back to school jiggity, jig!

back to school lesson plans because i am now so old and wise:

 i like uniforms and i like plans. i own a million clothes but i wear the black, white and gray ones the most. cooking is a necessity that i don't dislike but i also don't enjoy enough. it's becomes akin to chinese torture if have to think about a new and creative meal every single night of the week. the same goes for trying to accomplish daily cleaning tasks. i just have a mental deficiency that doesn't allow me to stay on top of these things! it simply isn't my fault! scatterbrained awareness unite! i decided that in order to take the wailing and tears out of many tasks and because the school year is so hectic, i am implementing a week night themed meal plan, daily chore chart and weekly chore chart:

MEALS

 souper monday

taco tuesday(naturally)

wrap/sammich wednesday

crackpot crockpot thursday

pizza friday

enchilada saturday

roast beast sunday

i don't care if we get sick of the same stuff, it's infinitely better than eating fast food garbage or copious amounts of corndogs all the time because i couldn't get my act together. plus, nearly identical shopping lists each week with a few changes here and there depending on type of soup, sammich, enchilada whatnot i feel like. plusplus, i can easily make a pound of garlic roasted vegetables in 20 minutes to accompany any meal. 

CHORES

i'm not in love with the idea of paying children for chores because after childbearing and childbirth and countless diaper changes, i feel like they kinda owe me forever but i'm also not stupid and i realize incentives work. daily chores completed will earn them $2 a week and additional money jobs will earn them 25 cents a pop. i am predicting that the weekly average earned will be less than $3 earned. 

SCHOOL DAZE!

last night before thomas headed out of town, he gave the two big kids and myself a priesthood blessing. i think this is going to be a great year for us. even though i got suckered into being the room mom for scarlett's class because no one else signed up to help AT ALL. i also wanted to be the parent to avoid all class participation responsibility!

the kids were excited for today and nerves appeared to be at a minimum. i was the most excited because my school drop off will only take me 10 minutes instead of an hour!

scarlett styled her own outfit and requested a special high double twisty bun hairstyle for the first day. 

she specially requested a star wars messenger bag that i scoured amazon for and when it finally arrived, it was a messenger BACKPACK. who advertises a messenger bag and it's really a backpack! i was a mom on the edge! poor thing kept trying to wear it one shouldered. i may have to get creative with duct tape and an old seat belt and see what i can construct.

after i dropped off the kids i joined a new gym, worked out, ran a million errands with only two children and then collapsed in my bed for a 20 minute nap after i picked up the big kids. fun times when you are 35. 

big summer blowout!

i suffer from delusions of grandeur. sometimes when i fall asleep at night i think, this is the week that it ALL is going to happen! crafts! blogging! homemade volcanoes and slime! sewing projects because i can't stop attempting to sew even though i hate it! and now it is the night before school starts and instead of doing a summer check in, i'm doing a summer recap. 

herschel is now 6 months old and DARLING. he's sweet as sugar and has such a patient disposition. eats 4-5 times a day and still sleeps 12 hours a night. 

this is our neighbor's princess towel and whenever our neighbor is at the pool too, she is wearing it and eating our snacks. i figure, their kids occasionally annoy me so if she's annoying them, we're even.

more nudity. athena blythe hasn't slept in a crib in almost 9 months. she is going through a really animated, "i'm a puppy dog phase!" that requires a lot of tail wagging and public floor crawling. this puppy also likes to be  in a cage or read about animals in cages. i found "corduroy gets a pet" at the liberry and it's a lift the flap book chock full of animals in cages. i should go ahead and order it from amazon. it's a daily read. 

this 0-3 month outfit finally fits. 

athena blythe has always loved herschel and never suffered from any fits of jealousy but she could NOT stand it that this teddy bear outfit didn't fit her. 

more self-sufficiency:

out with the old and in with the new! we finally replaced our old couches that we've had for many moons that were not designed for children or for sitting on. they are covered in mystery stains, snags and rips so they're perfectly broken in but also a little embarrassing. it's hard to invite people over and ask them to sit down and their seat has a spot on it that looks quite questionable. it could easily be as simple as a water mark, but i'm sure no one ever thinks that when they see them. we pushed the couches together and they have become kid's imagination heaven. they are usually a pirate ship, but they have also been a reading lounging zone, a dog cage, a camp site and a snoring spouse middle of the night refuge(I HAVE ALLERGIES!). i told the kids we could keep them through the summer and that's it because they are located near the front door. it makes our house look like hoarders live here, so their time is coming to a close.

the student becomes the master! athena blythe finally stopped fighting me and throwing her training potty overhead across the room and decided to finally go with the flow. 

i feel i have done at least some parts of summer correctly if we had a few incidences of "summer feet".

and marker faces. i convinced them into thinking this was almost like face painting. i always wanted a star around my eye like the misfits on jem and the holograms(a show that my mom wouldn't let me watch so i naturally tried to watch it without her knowing). 

thomas had his 39th barfday and he surprised us by dropping by the pool in work clothes on his way to a client meeting. being a lawyer is so fun. 

notice the EXACT same rounded cube head shape: 

i have a thing for blocky heads and dominant eyebrows:

my favorite calling

since november of last year and for about a year while we still lived in simpsonville, my calling(or assigned responsibility) at church has been as the 4th sunday teaching for our times teacher. it's been one of my favorite callings ever. if i'm being honest, i'm a bit selfish because it allows me to attend relief society and sunday school and i can volunteer to fill in in primary but i also don't have to worry about most non-sabbath calling requirements besides preparing a lesson each month. the other reason it's my favorite is because i get to really ponder and learn. thinking deeply about spiritual things is a welcome respite from my regularly scheduled program.

The overarching lesson that i have learned is that EACH and EVERY lesson has had some sort of mention about our need to sustain our leaders and  follow the prophet and not have a a limited view of the Gospel. Once we start to think that Church leadership should be infallible, we start to become more critical of them and we start to have a spiritual downfall. the more i have studied the messages of the prophets, the more i have learned that there are many flaws in each of them but that they were always trying their best to please God. i know that there is a place for me in the gospel because i continually and without fail make mistakes but that the Lord still wants me here. His church is truly a place for imperfect people who are striving to do more. 

a short list of favorite talks i've prepared lessons from and a few fantastic quotes:

 "Lord, is it I?" by Dieter F. Utchdorf

(the lesson that has helped me the most) 

"I wonder what each of us would do if we were asked that question by the Savior. Would we look at those around us and say in our hearts, “He’s probably talking about Brother Johnson. I’ve always wondered about him,” or “I’m glad Brother Brown is here. He really needs to hear this message”? Or would we, like those disciples of old, look inward and ask that penetrating question: “Is it I?”

In these simple words, “Lord, is it I?” lies the beginning of wisdom and the pathway to personal conversion and lasting change.”

 "Come Join With Us" by president dieter f. utchdorf

“As an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ and as one who has seen firsthand the councils and workings of this Church, I bear solemn witness that no decision of significance affecting this Church or its members is ever made without earnestly seeking the inspiration, guidance, and approbation of our Eternal Father. This is the Church of Jesus Christ. God will not allow His Church to drift from its appointed course or fail to fulfill its divine destiny.”

Joseph Smith by elder neil andersen

i found this first quote from a friend on facebook and it really inspired me to immerse myself in study of the life of Joseph Smith. i started to read, Rough Stone Rolling, by richard lyman bushman, which i am still wading through, and i even got out my violin and practiced and learned a new arrangement of the song, "Joseph Smith's First Prayer" which i performed in relief society before my lesson. it was actually fun. being a stay at home mom, while infinitely important, sometimes results in my brain feeling less than elastic. reading something that required thought and working on music was a nice mental exercise

"I am suggesting that we can be simultaneously more confident, candid, and studious in our approach to Church history and more faithful, hopeful, and charitable, too. A study of Church history will help us avoid the myth of prophetic infallibility on the one hand and, on the other, help us view past leaders more charitably. Similarly, a careful study of Church history will keep us from portraying this or that question as “settled” when there is not apostolic unity on the particular topic, but we’ll also be better able to see what (or more properly, Who) stands at the center of our faith, this restored Church. And, significantly, we’ll find it difficult to seriously study Church history without a deepened sense of humility"- spencer fluhman

“Each believer needs a spiritual confirmation of the divine mission and character of the Prophet Joseph Smith. This is true for every generation. Spiritual questions deserve spiritual answers from God.” -Elder Andersen

Loving others and living with differences by Dallin H. Oaks

“We are to live in the world but not be of the world. We must live in the world because, as Jesus taught in a parable, His kingdom is “like leaven,” whose function is to raise the whole mass by its influence (see Luke 13:21;Matthew 13:33; see also 1 Corinthians 5:6–8). His followers cannot do that if they associate only with those who share their beliefs and practices. But the Savior also taught that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments.” (see John 14:15).

Marriage: Watch and Learn by L. Whitney Clayton

(probably my 2nd favorite lesson, worth multiple reads and rereads no matter if you're married or not)

 "Successful eternal marriages are built on the foundation of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and adherence to His teachings. I have observed that couples who have made their marriages priceless practice the patterns of faith: they attend sacrament and other meetings every week, hold family home evening, pray and study the scriptures together and as individuals, and pay an honest tithing. Their mutual quest is to be obedient and good. They do not consider the commandments to be a buffet from which they can pick and choose only the most appealing offerings."

"Repentance. I have learned that happy marriages rely on the gift of repentance. It is an essential element in every good marital relationship. Spouses who regularly conduct honest self-examination and promptly take needed steps to repent and improve experience a healing balm in their marriages. Repentance helps restore and maintain harmony and peace."

           (heidi thoughts- Self-examination- does this involve any form of accusation? I’ve said some things that I’ve felt needed to be addressed, but I can say whole heartedly, that without spiritual reflection and honesty and kindness, I’m just nagging or picking fights.)

Stay in the boat and Hold On! by M. Russell Ballard

“President Brigham Young commonly employed “the Old Ship Zion” as a metaphor for The Church of Jesus Christof Latter-day Saints.

He said on one occasion: “We are in the midst of the ocean. A storm comes on, and, as sailors say, she labors very hard. ‘I am not going to stay here,’ says one; ‘I don’t believe this is the “Ship Zion.”’ ‘But we are in the midst of the ocean.’ ‘I don’t care, I am not going to stay here.’ Off goes the coat, and he jumps overboard. Will he not be drowned? Yes. So with those who leave this Church. It is the ‘Old Ship Zion,’ let us stay in it. On another occasion, President Young said that he also worried about people losing their way when they were being blessed—when life was good: “It is in calm weather, when the old ship of Zion is sailing with a gentle breeze, [and] when all is quiet on deck, that some of the brethren want to go out in the whaling boats to have … a swim, and some get drowned, others drifted away, and others again get back to the ship. Let us stick to the old ship and she will carry us [safely] into the harbor; you need not be concerned.”

The Parable of the Sower by Dallin H. Oaks

“Another potential destroyer of spiritual roots—accelerated by current technology but not unique to it—is the keyhole view of the gospel or the Church. This limited view focuses on a particular doctrine or practice or perceived deficiency in a leader and ignores the grand panorama of the gospel plan and the personal and communal fruits of its harvest. President Gordon B. Hinckley gave a vivid description of one aspect of this keyhole view. He told a BYU audience about political commentators “aflame with indignation” at a then-recent news event. “With studied art they poured out the sour vinegar of invective and anger. … Surely,” he concluded, “this is the age and place of the gifted pickle sucker.”1 In contrast, to be securely rooted in the gospel, we must be moderate and measured in criticism and seek always for the broader view of the majestic work of God.”

1 birthday, 1 baptism, 1 baby blessing, 1 bum

the birthday!

scarlett turned 8 and we lived it up for weeks!

scarlett's twin cousin came to visit and we hit up the american girl doll story. i wish i could say the cost was worth the smiles, but i'd really like a child who smiles about cheap stuff too. 

scarlett also gave a talk the week before her birthday, complete with purple hair.

then we went back to the american girl doll story for another go round. scarlett still thinks it okay to match her mom. 

scarlett's butterfly, darth vader, red velvet with brownie layer and fudge frosting birthday cake:

baptism food prep crew:

they were utterly unhelpful, especially the pirate on the end.

first shot of the bum next to our new refrigerator! hurray for being old!

the night of scarlett's baptism was the typical chaos that i've come expect from anything that i've put a lot of time and effort into planning. first, i set up all of the food tables next to the serving area in relief society room. after i was nearly done, the couple that heads up the addiction recovery group said that had just started using the relief society room THAT NIGHT for their group and that i needed to move all my stuff. i had a split second to decide how i wanted to react. the regular heidi wanted to say, "tough tacos, you guys move. there are two other large rooms in this chapel that have outside entrances including the one you used up until this week. i've been signed up for this room for MONTHS." and the heidi that is trying to be a better person all the time even if i am in the right said, "okay, i'll just move all my stuff to the gym. we'll make this work." and in that moment is should have been translated because that's way better than i've ever been before. 

second, grandma and uncle steve's flights were delayed and so instead of having them miss everything we ate all the refreshments first and by then grandma and steve had arrived. 

one of the biggest surprises was the arrival of my dear friend, julie and her family, from simpsonville! it was especially great because julie is a worker and she jumped right in and helped me move all my stuff from the relief society room!

i'm so proud of scarlett and her choice to be baptized. scarlett chooses the right and i'm thankful for that.

the third drama of the night was this little girl that couldn't keep her dress on all night. athena blythe hated the dress choice that i made for her and she spent most of the evening disrobed or trying to disrobe. she did meet a major potty training milestone that night at the church so i guess all the public nudity was worth it.

in other news, we went swimming the next day. 

and that night were fireworks,

finally, the baby blessing on sunday. i couldn't ask for a better weekend.

i was hoping at least one of these pictures would work for a christmas card photo, but we are consistently ridiculous.

 typical athena blythe

finally, my dear sister. she's my wingman. she helped me get everything done.

sisters are great!

more stories about vomit (and poop!)

dear sister heather texted me a few weeks ago on a sunday morning and said, you should drive down to tampa while uncle dan is taking the young men to scout camp next week. and i said, YES! normally, i say no. because i am no fun. i say no because i have too many kids. i say no because we are very busy with mundane tasks here. i say no because thomas has work. i say no because i am terrible at staying awake while riding in the car. those things are all still true, and yet i said yes! i took my balls out of my purse and walked up to the plate and decided i was going to hit a home run! i kissed thomas goodbye and loaded up the kids, snacks and DVD players.

we left on saturday and the kids were remarkably well behaved in the car trip down. i said several prayers concerning gas, tires and bathroom breaks and everything went swimmingly. we stopped at a chik-fil-a in tifton, georgia for lunch and bathrooms and that was our only potty stop, which is great considering how many bladders i was dealing with. 

i was especially proud of myself for driving more than 7 hours solo. that is not my thing. i had a 6 pack of diet dr pepper and a jumbo bag of jumbo sour patch kids and i sang "jesus, take the wheel" a few times in my head. and then i listened to journey's greatest hits on repeat. 

the first night in all our natural beauty:

we laughed until the wee hours and looked at houses we can't afford in cities we didn't live in on zillow.com.

 our sunday evening walk:

since reagan loves to be the keeper of the schedule, he had aunt heather put one together for him. needless to say, by about 2, the schedule was shot.

 monday, we hit the beach. did you know that there are no waves on the western shores of florida?

it was so beautiful and fun. someday i want to go back and just people watch. there was even a mom there wearing thong bikini and playing with her kids. it wasn't me.

blythe wasn't that keen on the ocean at first. but she soon made a BIG splash by wandering off and getting lost more than a few times. at one point she was gone for around 10 minutes and we had to employ help from people around us to find her. a lady found her all the way down the beach trying to climb some rocks. it was a long, frantic 10 minutes. after that, we left the beach because my nerves were shot.

on the way home, we solved all our problems with ice cream.

an unexpected morning visitor:

the next day we went to adventure island water park. we got a baby sitter for the babies and loaded up the big kids. i was REALLLLLY looking forward to this day with no babies under foot. what i learned is that blythe is still a baby. within the first 5 minutes of arriving at the water park, blythe got lost and was NOT wearing her puddle jumper. she was so lost that i had to have security called in to help locate her. i kept thinking over and over, this is how blythe dies, this is how blythe dies. she had been gone about 10 minutes when security located her at the complete opposite side of the water park trying to get in line for the big water slides. having blythe get lost twice in two days meant there were a lot of tersely worded demand prayers being offered. when i finally saw her with secuirty i almost fell down the stairs with relief. i wanted to strangle/hug her for the rest of her life. 

after the blythe's breach of security, heather and i kept our eyes on her like a hawk. we took all the kids to the wave pool and showed them the joys of artificial waves. blythe loved it so much that she drank half the pool and then vomited it back up on my hair and down her suit and inside my suit. i had to rush her to the bathroom to assess the damage where i discovered the world's worst case of swim diaper diarrhea. both our suits were beyond repair and i was in a fighting mood from all the rude comments from passersby in the bathroom. for the LOVE, i'm cleaning up with two worst bodily fluids off my baby and my own person and you think a very loud and distasteful "EWWW" is helping? i'll show you, "EW"! so, after one glorious hour at adventure island, i killed the party and we left. and then blythe threw up some more in the car. back at heather's i took a loooong shower and removed more vomit chunks from inside my suit. i couldn't cry at that point. i was beyond. now all i can do is laugh about it. 

this is the one picture i took from our day at adventure island:

in true beck sister style, the next few days consisted of making fun of ourselves. we took ridiculous pictures of ourselves dancing making fun of each other's terrible dancing and thought up "recipes" that people would never want to recreate. 

behold, day old pancakes with chocolate chips.

it also rained quite a bit one day...

and we were trapped inside so we laughed about that too.

but now i know that the $25 jumbo platter of chik-fil-a nuggest will feed two adults and 6 children and the playplace is just engaging enough, if not sanitary enough.

this is where we're staying next time. there will be a lot less luggage.

i'm so glad that i took the kids on this trip. it was so fun and i feel like i proved to myself that i can do ANYTHING! and by anything, i mean clean up barf in one more state. it wasn't a picture perfect, blogworthy or instagram-worthy trip with posed pictures and perfect outfits. i actually wore the same outfit all 6 days if i wasn't wearing my swimsuit and i only wore makeup once! herschel was the perfect baby, scarlett and reagan were great helpers and loved playing with june(or junior) and baby gwen. blythe wasn't a complete pill, though a pill may have helped her in a few situations. we took the kids to all sorts of places including church, which was no small thing and a specialty boutique called target, so that the kids could pick florida souvenirs. scarlett picked out a couple of strings of lights to decorate her room. we cooked and made desserts and homemade cafe rio and played uno until late at night and swam and got TWO different lectures from perfect strangers who were questioning our parenting abilities. it was the perfect vacation for sisters who just wanted to see each other.