If You're Happy....

This week Ruby figured out how to clap. "If you're happy and you know it" is her favorite song, obviously. She has also mastered going from laying down to sitting. Some times she gets on all fours and starts rocking and a few times she has even crawled a short distance (especially when I give her the incentive of my phone). Food is still something I feel like I haven't figured out with her. She isn't much for anything but the purees and it seems mangos upset her stomach,but she does have this amazing spoon trick she does ;)

Sunday was busy. Mariah's family came over after church for lunch. She brought walking tacos- very delicious. Then her, Jeff and the boys played Dungeons and Dragons while I played outside with her little ones and the girls. When they left it was off to soccer for one of Ben's games. It was chilly but not too awful when the sun came out. They didn't win but it was close- 3 to 4.

This week I tried to be a little less lazy. An instagram post about not being slothful actually inspired me to get back into the swing of life. Ruby waking me up at night has always been my validation for being lazy but I realized I really needed to do better. So I started making an effort to get up when Ruby wakes up- instead of giving her to her siblings to watch. I made more of an effort to make sure my kids are fed for breakfast and lunch and cook for them more during the day. I also started exercising again. It felt good to be more active and I hope I can stick with it.

Tuesday we were going to look at cars- we're wanting to get a third car so Steven had a way to get to his college classes in the fall- but apparently car lots close early most nights so that was a bust. We went instead on Thursday night to two lots and checked out several cars. I mostly just wanted to see some cars we were thinking about in person. We looked at the chevy Trax and chevy equinox which fit the budget. We agreed that either would work but the extra space in the  equinox would be nice. We were not in a rush to buy a car so we were going to leave it to simmer for a bit BUT then I found an equinox online (carfax) for a really, really good deal. It was a 2019 with 28,000 miles with AWD and literally the only one I saw under $19000. I decided to make an offer for $18000 even thinking they wouldn't take it but then Saturday morning they gave us a call and said they'd do it so we drove the hour out to the lot Saturday afternoon.

The place was actually closed on Saturday and the guy drove out- with his family- with the hopes of selling us the car. We figured that would give us some leverage (like he would really want to make that sale) and it did, but I will say it was awkward having his clearly unhappy wife and very active 3 kids there. His kids were very into Ruby who we brought with us and I tried to make conversation with the wife (she was from Sweden). It was a long hour and a half with some negotiating. He told us he wouldn't do such a good deal for everyone but since we were neighbors (he lives near us and commutes an hour to this place) he was going to do it. As if us being neighbors made the difference. But he did take another $500 off the car and we ended up spending $19000 even with taxes, registration, etc. Now we have another loan and higher car insurance with a car that we don't quite need yet but in girl math, we saved a lot ;)

Other things this week... Lucy had her first babysitting gig and made way too much money for an 11 year old. We went to a birthday party for someone from the Ward and had to leave early because Ruby was not being cooperative for Ben and Penny. I guess we might need to start paying a babysitter if we want to go out without her. Steven is still having no luck with finding a job which is a bummer but I also know he is not putting that much effort into it. 

And let's end with cute pics from the week...

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Camp, New Couch, RS Activity

On Sunday my teaching partner taught and we had our lesson outside in the sunshine. It was a perfect day for an outside lesson. After church we broke our fast early and then went to Ben's soccer game. Most of his games are on a Sunday this year so we sort of gave up on being good Sabbath day keepers. We decided that if we all go together as a family, it makes it ok....His team won 6 to 1- it's always more fun to watch when your kid is in the winning team. 

Monday Lucy was up very early because she was super excited about going to Fifth Grade Camp at the Howell Nature Center. Her friend's mom took them and her other friend's mom was there chaperoning. She was there for 2 nights and 3 days with her 2 besties. She said the food was actually good, they went on lots of hikes (so many that she is now tired of hikes), she got to go kayaking and they did an easy rope course.

Since Tyler works from home on Mondays we decided to go out to lunch Monday.  Culver's has been our latest obsession. Afterwards we went to look at a couch at Costco that I had seen because Tyler finally admitted we needed a new one. Unfortunately that couch was not a winner because it was a sectional and the "arm" was on the wrong side for our living room. But Tyler finally being on board with getting a new couch was something I needed to pounce on before he changed his mind. We had got a coupon from the Ashley Store so I looked online and saw the prices weren't too bad so we (Tyler, me and Ruby) went to the store Tuesday night. I was determined that we were only going to look so when someone came up to sell to us, I got awkward. He asked if we had ever been to their showroom before and I said "sure, ages ago" because in my brain I heard 'A' showroom, not 'THEIR' showroom. Seeing how they just opened recently that was a really dumb answer. When he asked if he could see a picture of our living room to get an idea of the layout, I said "not one that I would share with you". Yeah that came off pretty rude but I didn't want to get stuck buying a couch and in my brain equated showing a picture with getting trapped. Yet, despite my awkwardness, we bought a couch. After many that didn't really excite either of us, we sat on this one and we were sold pretty quickly on it. It is leather which just seems more  kid durable to me and it has power recline which is amazing and it is really comfortable and they were willing to flex on the price with us (even added in a 5 year warranty for basically free) so we got it. I had some buyer's remorse the next day thinking that it isn't that pretty of a couch but it really is a nice couch and I am happy we got it. So here is the picture of our old trashed one and then a picture of our new fancy one. Now I just want to buy an area rug that matches better now (looking for one in the blue family) and maybe some pretty throw pillows. Money, money, money.

Wednesday, I picked up Lucy and her friend from camp. Ruby and Penny came with me and Lucy was not very nice to Penny. She said she just wanted to be with her friend on the drive home and didn't want Penny there. That was not very nice to her sister. These two have not been getting along very well lately. The pick up itself was tricky because the lot was full and the lady made me circle back around, only to find that when I made it back there were still no spots. Thankfully the lady helped get me in a spot the second time around. It required reversing in which is not a skill of mine but thankfully I got it.  The drive was long and I really wanted Ruby to take a car nap but of course she didn't this time. 

Thursday I was able to meet Stefanie for lunch at Tropical Smoothie. Ruby was pretty well behaved and we had a nice visit. I just always feel like we really start delving more into things just as it is time for as to part ways. I wish we had more time to hang out. She is one of my more stable friends and I enjoy spending time with her. Later that day I took Steven to fill out an application at an auto part store- it was a stocking position. I thought it would be the perfect job for him but he said the owner was old and seemed annoyed with him and he just wants to work at a place with teenagers because they're nicer. Whatever. I just want him to WORK but it has been a month of him slowly applying to places with no success. That evening the girls had soccer practice and I got to enjoy some quiet time in the car- I am actually quite happy to take them if I can leave Ruby at home. 

Friday night Tyler and I left all the kids (including Ruby) to get to a reception for Ethan Witt (one of Tyler's former young men). I was excited for a night out with no kids and good food but it ended up being a bit of a bust because I forgot how much I hate large group gatherings and that I can't dance (Tyler had to drag me around the dance floor) and the food was really just a cookies, cake and veggies. Ben also is a little too easily stressed out and he freaked out when Ruby didn't go down to sleep right away and instead cried at first (Steven was too busy gaming in the guest room to be of any help). She fell asleep once Ben finally calmed down and just left her alone to fuss for a little bit. 

Saturday morning the girls had a soccer game and it was FREEZING. I brought Ruby and Ben and despite warm jackets and blankets we were all super cold. To make matters worse the girls were playing their old team and they got totally creamed by them. It was 7-1. 

After the game, Lucy and I went to a RS/YW Activity with Mariah (and Maverick). The food was really good and it was nice to spend some time with Lucy, Mariah and Maverick. Mariah seems to know more people than me or maybe her cute baby made her popular ;) We had an awkward moment where we thought someone in the stake must have a twin but then realized it was just the same person without a jacket. Then there was another awkward moment when a young woman from Mariah's ward thought I had something in my teeth but really it's just the small gap I have between my front teeth. But all in all it was nice escape from life. We tried to get  an old lady to take our pics but she did not succeed in pressing the right buttons, lol.

This week Ruby slept better (several nights she went to bed at 8pm and didn't wake up until 6:40pm) and she ate better (back to drinking bottle consistently and trying new foods) and I have no idea why but I am grateful. She also loves it when I sing "If You're Happy and You Know it" and she will flap her hands wildly and even clap them sometimes- it's quite adorable! She has also put way too many gross things in her mouth including flowers, and fuzz from a carpet.

Total Eclipse

Sunday was General Conference. We are not fun parents and don't really have any fun conference traditions. We just bribe them to pay attention by giving them 7-11 trips if they can take notes on the speakers. It works for everyone but Steven. Computer time is the only incentive he responds too...and really only as a punishment. 

Monday Ben was lucky and was able to go see the total solar eclipse in Ohio with his friend Andrea and her scout troop. They left early in the morning and were not back until late at night- traffic was atrocious- but they all agreed it was worth the traffic. He also enjoyed getting to do archery, and getting lost with Andrea in the woods. On their way back, to take a break from traffic, they stopped at a lighthouse. All in all a good time for Ben.

We may not have been able to see a total eclipse here but it was 99% coverage which was still really cool. The girls and I all met some friends at the park to watch it with our special glasses we got from the library. It was neat to watch the sun slowly get covered and for it to get darker and cooler. It honestly felt a little bit eerie because it seemed to get very still. I am glad we took time out of our day to watch it. Ruby was the only one not impressed and was fast asleep when it was at it's peak.

Tuesday I was hosting Bunco so I spent the day running last minute errands, tidying up and cooking. I didn't feel super stressed but was more just ready to have it over with. Tyler was nice and took the kids out to eat and ran an errand with them so the house was nice and quiet for the event. I made a chicken and rice casserole and had bought a salad. Usually I feel like I have way too much food when I try to plan for 12 people so I decided not to worry too much about portions. Unfortunately the salad seemed to run out and I am not sure everyone got enough food so I guess next time I'll go back to having too much food. Also in previous hosting times everyone always compliments my food so of course I am overthinking the fact that nobody complimented it. But even though the food didn't get rave reviews, everyone loved my prizes of LEGO flowers. I thought for sure the 2 gift cards I got would be picked first but the Lego flowers all went first. I'll take that win.

Wednesday I just wanted to relish in the fact that I had nothing to host for a long while. It had just felt like a lot lately between Easter gatherings, Ben's Birthday and Bunco. The weather was nice though so I ended up going on a bike ride with Lucy, Penny and Ben to 7-11 and the library (Steven was home to watch Ruby). That evening Ben had soccer practice and Tyler had a neighborhood meeting that he had spent most of his work day trying to prep for. Since Tyler had one of the cars for the meeting, I just had Steven pick up Ben from practice and they all went late to their church activities. Soccer season is a lot but it was nice having Steven to drive. He never seems to complain about driving when it is church building.

Thursday my friend's came over for lunch. Ruby had a rough nap morning. She fell asleep for like 20 mins while we were driving to school and then when I went to pick up Steven from school (he was done with the psat) she took another cat nap. I was really frustrated because I was hoping she would maybe sleep while my friends were over but no joy. Instead she spent the time rejecting the chickpeas I was trying to feed her and making a mess of me and herself. I got some updates on my friend's lives and at the moment Melissa's niece has decided to keep the baby so she won't be adopting it. I honestly think that'll be fort he better. My friend that is getting the divorce is still getting one but they are moving at a slow rate because neither of them can afford it. I think she is sad that he is not trying harder to stay with her- although she would never say that. I feel super sad for the whole situation. 

After lunch with my friends, I picked up the kids and Ben's friend Aiden. Aiden was spending the night with us so that I could take him and Ben to take the psat at Renaissance the next morning. He needed a ride and I just figured it would be easier than having to pick him up early in the morning. But then Aiden forgot all his sleepover stuff at school and we ended up having to go to Aiden's house so he could get some new stuff. That was a bit obnoxious. That night the girls had soccer practice in the pouring rain. I felt bad for them because I was feeling cold in my car and there they were outside in the cold and rain. I was glad to stay dry in my car and read some books that had gotten from the library about feeding babies. I really don't remember how to do all this stuff and what babies can and can't eat. I am having to do a lot of re-learning. It turns out she can eat a lot more than the mush/purees I have been offering her but later when I tried some new things (banana pancakes, pasta noodles...) she was not interested so then we just stuck with the mush. I still feel like I don't know what I am doing, ha.

Thursday night Ruby and I had a very rough night. The two previous nights had not been great so I thought I would try the Ferber method where you let her cry it out but comfort her every so often (just pat her and let her know you are there)- gradually stretching out the comfort. It did not go well. After an hour I couldn't take her crying anymore and at that point she was really hard to calm down. It took a long while to get her to go back to sleep but then she did sleep for most of the night. However, there wasn't any massive improvement in her sleep the next couple of nights---she was still waking up once. I really miss uninterrupted sleep :/

Saturday the girls had their first soccer game. They did not win- it was 1 to 3. They were actually doing pretty well but they did not have a very good goalie. Ruby and I took them and it was super windy. It would not have been so bad if it hadn't been for that wind. Thankfully Ruby took a bit of a nap in her stroller where she was nice and protected from the wind. The rest of the day just revolved around the kids and their friends. Ben had Andrea over. Lucy had Claire over for a bit and then they went to her house. Penny had Reggie over. I like that they have friends over but I also wish we had more space. When Ruby's napping I have nowhere to go hide and when Ruby is awake she has to find a place to roll that is not in everyone's way. At least now that it's warming up the kids will disappear outside more and that helps.

 

Easter

This Sunday was Easter Sunday. The kids woke up and went hunting for their baskets. Lucy and Penny helped make notes and hide each other's baskets. 

Penny's basket was in the guest room (where she goes to do her homework). She got more things for her fairy garden, a Barbie, a Book of Mormon Aqua Brush book, a Stitch Lego, a Come Follow Me weekly devotional book, a Conference book and a chocolate bunny.

Lucy's basket was by the heater vent in the bathroom (a place she used to hide candy wrappers). She got fiary garden stuff, a Friends Lego set, a temple recommend holder, a pic book of the YW's theme (to read to Ruby) and a chocolate bunny.

Ruby's basket was not hidden because she's still just a baby. She got rubber blocks and an Easter book. 

Ben's basket was where we used to keep the gaming tablet. He got scripture stickers, a Come Follow Me weekly devotional book, Lord of the Rings Lego's, a drawing game and a cactus tie.

Steven's basket was hidden in the locker with his computer (his favorite thing). He got a Minecraft Lego set and a Statue of Liberty Lego set, Mountain Dew, fancy pencils and boring pencils, some Book of Mormon glue-ins, and a chocolate bunny

After baskets it was time to get ready for church. Cherish, Geli and Luna joined us at church which made the girls happy. The sacrament program was really lovely. The music was good and the stake president's wife and Bishop gave some really good remarks. The stake president's wife spoke about an artist who paints "happy Jesus" and I love that she focused on how Christ is happy to help us and love us. The Bishop spoke about a father who helped his son when he suffered an injury in the olympics. He related it to how how Christ is cheering us on and there to help us when we fall. Penny is our only primary kid currently and they sung a really pretty new song called "Risen". Ruby was a little fussy during the meeting but feel asleep easily so I got to sit and enjoy most of it. Here are my cute kids in their new Easter stuff. Penny really wanted to match Ruby so they did. Lucy didn't mind not matching so she went with her usual comfortable romper.

After church we had our friends over (Bloomfields, Eakins, Mays) for an Easter egg hunt. Ben and his friends hid the eggs for those under 12 and then they went a hunting. There was a little snag with everyone trying to find the exact amount of eggs they could get (16) but I think they all found them in the end. Then we taped money eggs on Ben and AJ and let the little kids run after them to get them. That was pretty fun to watch. Ben had no desire to take it easy on the little kids. After that we did a teen Easter Egg Hunt of sorts. I had enough prizes for each teen and then had the word written out in front of each prize (card, cash, candy...). Then we had hidden eggs which each had a letter inside of them. Whoever found the last letter for the word, got the prize. Sounds more complicated than it was and I think it was hit. Ben ended up with the candy, Steven got the the giftcard, David got the cash, Alissa got the unicorn blaster, Etta got the gum and mints, AJ got chocolate and Andrea got the game. Afterwards some of the teens tossed some eggs with flour inside of them which was only somewhat messy, lol.

For Easter dinner, Mariah's family came over. We did our traditional Jerusalem dinner, only I added a couple more grown up dishes since we had company- a meat filling for the pita and a Jerusalem salad. These were good additions and I will probably add them in from now on. We still had our usuals as well- fruit, fig newtons, pita chips and hummus, and fish sticks. When we were done eating the kids hid some eggs for Mariah's kids to find and then we sat outside and enjoyed the semi decent weather. It was all in all a really good Easter.

Monday was April first so we did our traditional April Fool's dinner. I assign a code name to everything- the bowls, spoons, ice cream, ice cream topping, spaghetti, parmesan....they all have code names and no one knows what they stand for except me. Then the kids pick 3 code names at a time and end up with an interesting assortment of stuff. Ben ended up getting the parmesan before getting spaghetti, Penny ended up with ice cream toppings before getting the ice cream, and Tyler got spaghetti without a bowl and fork- they were super happy with their choices, lol. 

Tuesday Ruby fell asleep in the car on the way back from dropping off the other kids at school and basically her schedule was all out of whack...for the rest of the week. I think I might actually be pretty happy when they are done with in person school because I didn't get a whole lot done while they were at school anyways. Naps are a blessing and a curse.

Wednesday was Luna's birthday party. It was 25 minutes away and only 2 hours long so it just felt like it wasn't worth it to drop Lucy and Penny off and come home. Especially since Ruby fell asleep on the way there so she wasn't going to go home and take a nap like I thought she might. I don't love staying at parties but I did because of that. Ruby was definitely the hit of the party. Cherish's mom was nice and set up some toys in a room for Ruby to play with and so I thought we would be out of the way but the kids loved coming to the room to hang with the baby and the other parents ended up coming in too. The parents were nice but I always feel like I talk too much. At the party they turned Penny into a mermaid, dug in sand for mermaids and had pizza and cake. A good time was had.

Steven also had his first job interview on Wednesday at Jersey Mike's (his friend Max works there).We rushed over after the party. We had been training Steven for interview questions but apparently they just asked about his availability and stuff. They still haven't gotten back to him so I am not sure he got the job. Not working Sundays might be a big hit against him in the fast food world.

Thursday the kids had Decades Day at school.I think they dressed 90's? It's really hard to determine the decade because all styles are just on repeat these days.

Thursday evening the girls had their first soccer practice. We had to switch teams because their usual team changed practices to Wednesdays and we just can't make that work. Their new team is less organized and apparently the coach isn't good at discipline. There was a kid that was bit of a trouble maker and bully. I hope the coach figures it out and things get better for the girls. I wish we could have kept them with their old team. While they were at soccer practice (Tyler took them) Ben and I went looking for Crocs- the weather is finally warming up. I ended up getting him some at Marshall's but when we got home we realized they were women's Croc's (they had a thicker/platform sole). I am not sure how I missed that. Needless to say we returned those and decided to stick with our imitation Croc's- known as Sharks- from Walmart. They definitely are a better price.

Friday Lucy got to go to a salon to get her haircut. My friend Grace just started working at this salon and since we trust her with Lucy's hair, it's worth going to the salon to get it done. It is really hard to find people who cut pixie cuts well. I am happy for Grace and this new job- it seems like a really good place for her now that her hand has healed. 

Friday evening Steven took Lucy and Ben to the temple for Youth Baptisms. He didn't even complain about driving for once which was nice.

While they were at the temple, Tyler, Penny, Ruby and I went to Costco to get a few things and then had dinner at Culver's. While at Culver's I had to change Ruby's diaper which is quite a chore in itself these days. All she wants to do is roll over as soon as that diaper is off. I do not remember Penny being this wiggly. When I was done I wanted to wash my hands and this nice mom offered to hold Ruby for me. That was much appreciated. All in all it was a good outing with the little girls and Tyler.

Saturday Steven wanted to go to his friend's house so we told him he could have the car and go over there- I was just planning to watch General Conference so I wasn't going anywhere. You would have thought I was the meanest mom ever from his reaction. He was really upset that I wouldn't drive him because 16 year old drivers have a 10pm curfew and he wanted to stay until 11pm. As if 11:30am-10pm of computer time was not enough time. He can be so aggravating but eventually he submitted and took the car. Poor kid. He is currently failing is Cyber Security class and after he clocked in more hours of screen time than a full time job last week- yesterday might have been his last day of computer time for a bit. I really wish we could get him to care about something other than computer games. I worry so much about him.

I finally got an 8 month picture of Ruby. That was such a challenge to take! She just kept trying to roll onto her tummy so I gave her this goofy pig toy as a distraction. At the rate she is going,I imagine by 9 months she will be crawling. She is into everything and everything ends up in her mouth. It is a miracle she is alive.