Thursday, October 31, 2013
Monday, October 28, 2013
Jack-O'
We carved our jack-o'-lantern tonight for Family Home Evening.
Addie had a great time scooping out the "pumpkin nuts" (I told her to scoop out the pumpkin guts and she called them pumpkin nuts for the rest of the night). She wouldn't use her hands though, that was too gross!
Alisa and Mason played with/gnawed on some big pumpkin nuts while we worked on the pumpkin.
Mason thought WE were nuts when we put him in the pumpkin for a picture, but Alisa thought it was pretty fun!
The 2013 Gonzalez Family jack-o'-lantern. We put the candle in it and turned off the lights so Addie could see it all done. She exclaimed, "Cool jack-o'-lantern!" when she first saw the finished product!
Addie had a great time scooping out the "pumpkin nuts" (I told her to scoop out the pumpkin guts and she called them pumpkin nuts for the rest of the night). She wouldn't use her hands though, that was too gross!
Alisa and Mason played with/gnawed on some big pumpkin nuts while we worked on the pumpkin.
Mason thought WE were nuts when we put him in the pumpkin for a picture, but Alisa thought it was pretty fun!
The 2013 Gonzalez Family jack-o'-lantern. We put the candle in it and turned off the lights so Addie could see it all done. She exclaimed, "Cool jack-o'-lantern!" when she first saw the finished product!
Deep Mysteries of Life
Alisa and Mason have matching pajamas. The only difference is that hers are the pink girl version and his are the blue boy version.
They both have stripes and cute little monkeys on their bums.
Alisa's say Mommy's Silly Monkey and Mason's say Daddy's Silly Monkey.
So explain to me why Alisa's pajamas zip and Mason's snap?!? It just doesn't make any sense!
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Addie's Phone Calls
Trying to explain death to a 2 1/2 year old is not easy. The permanence is a difficult thing for Addie to understand...if GG's not here, where is she? I was young when my mom died, but I was seven, I understood what death meant so my own experience isn't completely applicable in trying to help Addie.
Four or five days after GG died, Addie had a major breakdown. She cried ALL the way home from my sister-in-law's house. A pathetic, sad, awful cry. I called Wil from the car to let him know I needed him to come home from studying. Addie needed a parent...a whole parent...to herself...not one trying to feed two babies and get them ready for bed.
Wil wasn't home yet when we got to the house. She sat on the couch and cried while I brought the babies in...then they cried until Wil got home while I took care of Addie (have I mentioned there is almost ALWAYS someone crying in my house?).
In her most accusing voice she asked me, "Where's Daddy?" It all came flooding back - my seven-year-old fear of someone else dying and leaving me. I remember my grandma telling me how the grief counselor explained it was important to always be on time to pick me up places because I would get scared when she wasn't there that she had died to.
I quickly explained that Daddy was just studying and would be home soon. I told her that it was okay to be sad and it was okay to miss GG...that I miss her a lot, too.
The Hospice social worker told me kids tend to blame themselves when someone dies. I remember that, too, from my seven year old self. I remember thinking if I had been brave enough to go see my mom in the hospital room after she died (I got to the hospital shortly after she died), that she would have come back to life for me; that she would have woken up. I guess more applies than I realize. So I told Addie that it wasn't anything that she did or that I did or that Daddy did. That GG's body was just old and sick and tired and it stopped working. That her spirit went to live with Jesus and Heavenly Father.
Addie was worried that GG was sad and crying. Wil and I explained that she probably misses us, but that she's very happy and that she gets to see my mommy and GG's mommy and that she was so excited to see them again. Addie told me that GG was very mad. No, sweetheart, she's so very happy, I promise!
So now, Addie tells me that GG went to live with Jesus and that she's happy. She asks me to watch GG's pictures (a dvd slideshow of pictures that my aunt made for the funeral) on a regular basis. And she "talks" to GG on the phone...almost every day. I'm not sure if I should be worried about that or not, but I think it's good for her right now. She had her longest "conversation" ever with GG today on the phone. She told her all about going to the fair with my aunt and uncle yesterday. How she saw the animals and the pig and played games and painted. She talked to her about Jesus. Told her she was playing and watching Cinderella. She made plans to go to lunch and then to the store, Addie asked GG to get her hot dogs and spaghetti. She ended with "Love you, too. I wanna go play," put the phone back on the counter in the kitchen and ran off to play.
How I love my daughter and her sweet innocence, and what I wouldn't give to have that phone number!
Four or five days after GG died, Addie had a major breakdown. She cried ALL the way home from my sister-in-law's house. A pathetic, sad, awful cry. I called Wil from the car to let him know I needed him to come home from studying. Addie needed a parent...a whole parent...to herself...not one trying to feed two babies and get them ready for bed.
Wil wasn't home yet when we got to the house. She sat on the couch and cried while I brought the babies in...then they cried until Wil got home while I took care of Addie (have I mentioned there is almost ALWAYS someone crying in my house?).
In her most accusing voice she asked me, "Where's Daddy?" It all came flooding back - my seven-year-old fear of someone else dying and leaving me. I remember my grandma telling me how the grief counselor explained it was important to always be on time to pick me up places because I would get scared when she wasn't there that she had died to.
I quickly explained that Daddy was just studying and would be home soon. I told her that it was okay to be sad and it was okay to miss GG...that I miss her a lot, too.
The Hospice social worker told me kids tend to blame themselves when someone dies. I remember that, too, from my seven year old self. I remember thinking if I had been brave enough to go see my mom in the hospital room after she died (I got to the hospital shortly after she died), that she would have come back to life for me; that she would have woken up. I guess more applies than I realize. So I told Addie that it wasn't anything that she did or that I did or that Daddy did. That GG's body was just old and sick and tired and it stopped working. That her spirit went to live with Jesus and Heavenly Father.
Addie was worried that GG was sad and crying. Wil and I explained that she probably misses us, but that she's very happy and that she gets to see my mommy and GG's mommy and that she was so excited to see them again. Addie told me that GG was very mad. No, sweetheart, she's so very happy, I promise!
So now, Addie tells me that GG went to live with Jesus and that she's happy. She asks me to watch GG's pictures (a dvd slideshow of pictures that my aunt made for the funeral) on a regular basis. And she "talks" to GG on the phone...almost every day. I'm not sure if I should be worried about that or not, but I think it's good for her right now. She had her longest "conversation" ever with GG today on the phone. She told her all about going to the fair with my aunt and uncle yesterday. How she saw the animals and the pig and played games and painted. She talked to her about Jesus. Told her she was playing and watching Cinderella. She made plans to go to lunch and then to the store, Addie asked GG to get her hot dogs and spaghetti. She ended with "Love you, too. I wanna go play," put the phone back on the counter in the kitchen and ran off to play.
How I love my daughter and her sweet innocence, and what I wouldn't give to have that phone number!
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
Mine, Mine, Mine
I think it's A.D.O.R.A.B.L.E! I give it about six months, then I'm sure it won't be nearly so adorable anymore!
Friday, October 11, 2013
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Random Cuties
Alisa is our thumb sucker! Her thumb, other people's thumbs...it doesn't much matter, she just loves thumbs!
Mason on the other hand, likes to suck on his entire fist. The more of his hand he can fit in his mouth the better...sometimes he even tries to fit two fists in his mouth! Lately, he's been gagging himself he sticks his fingers in his mouth so far. It's hilarious.
We got some really cute hand-me-downs from a friend at church. This was Mason's first time wearing a tie. I think he looks ADORABLE! It should be noted, however, that due to his hand sucking and the tie getting caught on his hand on its way up to his mouth, his entire tie was SOAKED by the end of church!
No real story for this next picture. I was trying to take a nap, but this little guy wanted to play. Isn't he the cutest???
Alisa LOVES tummy time. She rolls all over the house and frequently gets stuck places. Mason on the other hand can only roll from his tummy to his back. He gets stuck on his back like a turtle and cries until someone comes to pick him up or roll him back over. Silly boy!
Personalities...my happy girl and my high maintenance rock star. It's not that he's not a happy boy. He's really a happy little guy...he just wants to be held ALL the time. It's difficult to get held ALL the time when you have a twin and a two year old sister!
Addie can't wait until the babies are old enough to play. She tries so hard to roll her ball to them and have picnics with them. This day, she was reading stories to Alisa. This picture fills my whole self with joy. Three of my favorite things...Addie, Alisa and books!
Have you ever seen two cuter babies???
Princess Dress
Addie had the most beautiful blue Easter dress this year. Ever since we've been looking for excuses to wear what she calls her princess dress. She wore it to the babys' blessings, Hazel's quinceanera and to Seussical the Musical. We had to wait a while for GG to catch her breath while we were leaving the Spaghetti Factory, so Addie and I had a little photo shoot.
Friday, October 4, 2013
Seussical the Musical
My grandma and I have been wanting to take Addie to a play that she would enjoy. We saw an ad for Seussical the Musical in the paper and thought it sounded like the perfect opportunity.
Valley Youth Theater did an AMAZING job with the production! It was a cute show - although I think it ended up being just a little over Addie's head. She still had a great time though, and she especially loved the bird.
Afterward we went to an early dinner at the Spaghetti Factory. It was a great afternoon, and the perfect Addie, Mommy, GG date!
Valley Youth Theater did an AMAZING job with the production! It was a cute show - although I think it ended up being just a little over Addie's head. She still had a great time though, and she especially loved the bird.
Afterward we went to an early dinner at the Spaghetti Factory. It was a great afternoon, and the perfect Addie, Mommy, GG date!
Camp Out
Our ward camp out was September 6-7 in Prescott. We were so excited to get out of the heat for a couple days and take the kids camping. People thought we were crazy, but we had so much help taking care of them was actually easier on the camping trip than it is at home!
Addie was excited all morning that we were going to go camping (not sure she really knew what camping was, but she was thrilled!). She asked about it ALL morning long as we packed and went to the store to pick up groceries and drove to the campsite. We finally pulled into the campsite and Addie said, "I want to go camping!" We explained that we were camping and she was practically jumping up and down to get out of the truck!
Can you tell how dirty this little girl's face was???
Addie had the BEST time! It was fun to see how excited she was and how thrilling it was to do simple things like shovel dirt into a bucket. You could see her excitement that night when she realized we weren't going home and we were going to SLEEP in the tent! She was so excited, she jumped around all over inside the tent.
Alisa wasn't as thrilled about camping the first evening we were there, but she was SO happy the next morning!
Addie helped "clean" the tent when it was time to take it down. She is such a great helper!
This pink bucket and shovel were the highlight of Addie's camping trip. She spent all day filling it with dirt. She left it by the group fire to come back to the campsite for a minute. When we headed back, she took a shovel of dirt and carried it with her to put in her bucket. All the dirt shook off her shovel before we made it back to the bucket, so she simply knelt down, got another shovel of dirt and kept walking.
Some girls from our ward took her to play and she came back with beautiful flowers for her bucket!
Oh yeah, Mason went camping, too! We realized toward the end of the trip that he had been sleeping during all of our pictures. So...we took one of him napping just to prove he was there!
We had a blast! I'm so glad we were able to go and that the twins did so well! We're looking forward to many more camping trips in the future!
Swing Me
Addie kept asking me to swing her. I had no idea what she was talking about and couldn't figure out what she wanted me to do.
Then Wil explained. She wanted me to do this...
Then Wil explained. She wanted me to do this...
Yeahhhhh, pretty sure that's going to remain a special daddy daughter activity!
This Is My Temporary Home
Have you heard the song This is My Temporary Home by Carrie Underwood? I've had it stuck in my head for the past six weeks.
Watch the music video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LraOiHUltak.
Wil and I bought our house before we were married. I remember spending a date night deep cleaning the house and dreaming about what life would be like together after we were married.
I wondered aloud what the walls of the home had seen and what the people who lived there before us had been like. Were they happy? Were the walls filled with laughter and love? (I think Wil probably thought I was crazy)
It's just a building - wood, nails and stucco - but home becomes such a part of who you are. A home sees your best and your worst, your happiest and your most heartbroken, your crazy busy weeks when all you do is blow through and your relaxing hang out on the couch moments you wish would last forever.
When we first moved into the three bedroom on Clara, it seemed huge! We rarely used half the house. But we soon filled it with sleepovers and pets and happiness. We worked on home improvement projects, decorated baby rooms with loving care and poured pieces of ourselves into our house. We brought babies home and filled it to the brim with swings, cribs, toys and books.
In August, my grandma's health suddenly got worse. I spoke with her Hospice nurse on Friday, the 16th about how she was doing. The nurse thought she was feeling poorly because she had tried to do too much that week, but mentioned that if this was the new normal, my grandma wouldn't be able to live by herself much longer.
Wil and I discussed the possibility of us moving in with my grandma briefly that evening, thinking it would be months down the road. (Our once too big house was now too small for my grandma to move in with us) Early Saturday morning I headed to youth conference for the day, and Sunday afternoon, we headed to my grandma's house for a going away dinner for Lynda who was headed back to school at the University of Arizona.
It was immediately apparent my grandma was not doing well at all when we got there and we decided we needed to speed up our plans to move in. Monday morning we began clearing space at my grandma's house and moved our beds and a few suitcases full of clothes and toiletries to my grandma's.
We were not physically, mentally or emotionally prepared to move, but you do what you have to do, and with a lot of help from our ward were able to get most of our things packed and moved in the coming weeks. Unpacking is another story...but I'm working on it...some days.
This is My Temporary Home played over and over in my mind as I packed our belongings and worked on making a new home for my little family. Soon, my grandma's house will feel like home. We'll fill it with laughter, love and new memories...and probably a few tears as well. Our old house will find a new family to fill its walls with the joy of daily living -- in fact, we're hoping to rent it out...if you know anyone looking ;-).
The song keeps playing in my mind, and the last verse makes me feel better about my grandma's declining health as well. This is her temporary home. I have faith that when she leaves this life, she will find peace and joy in the next. I have faith that this earth is the temporary home for all of us. That we will see each other again and that our families will be reunited for eternity.
Watch the music video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LraOiHUltak.
Wil and I bought our house before we were married. I remember spending a date night deep cleaning the house and dreaming about what life would be like together after we were married.
I wondered aloud what the walls of the home had seen and what the people who lived there before us had been like. Were they happy? Were the walls filled with laughter and love? (I think Wil probably thought I was crazy)
It's just a building - wood, nails and stucco - but home becomes such a part of who you are. A home sees your best and your worst, your happiest and your most heartbroken, your crazy busy weeks when all you do is blow through and your relaxing hang out on the couch moments you wish would last forever.
When we first moved into the three bedroom on Clara, it seemed huge! We rarely used half the house. But we soon filled it with sleepovers and pets and happiness. We worked on home improvement projects, decorated baby rooms with loving care and poured pieces of ourselves into our house. We brought babies home and filled it to the brim with swings, cribs, toys and books.
In August, my grandma's health suddenly got worse. I spoke with her Hospice nurse on Friday, the 16th about how she was doing. The nurse thought she was feeling poorly because she had tried to do too much that week, but mentioned that if this was the new normal, my grandma wouldn't be able to live by herself much longer.
Wil and I discussed the possibility of us moving in with my grandma briefly that evening, thinking it would be months down the road. (Our once too big house was now too small for my grandma to move in with us) Early Saturday morning I headed to youth conference for the day, and Sunday afternoon, we headed to my grandma's house for a going away dinner for Lynda who was headed back to school at the University of Arizona.
It was immediately apparent my grandma was not doing well at all when we got there and we decided we needed to speed up our plans to move in. Monday morning we began clearing space at my grandma's house and moved our beds and a few suitcases full of clothes and toiletries to my grandma's.
We were not physically, mentally or emotionally prepared to move, but you do what you have to do, and with a lot of help from our ward were able to get most of our things packed and moved in the coming weeks. Unpacking is another story...but I'm working on it...some days.
This is My Temporary Home played over and over in my mind as I packed our belongings and worked on making a new home for my little family. Soon, my grandma's house will feel like home. We'll fill it with laughter, love and new memories...and probably a few tears as well. Our old house will find a new family to fill its walls with the joy of daily living -- in fact, we're hoping to rent it out...if you know anyone looking ;-).
The song keeps playing in my mind, and the last verse makes me feel better about my grandma's declining health as well. This is her temporary home. I have faith that when she leaves this life, she will find peace and joy in the next. I have faith that this earth is the temporary home for all of us. That we will see each other again and that our families will be reunited for eternity.
Smurfette
We had tucked Addie in for a nap during the middle of our projects and were blissfully waiting for her to wake up so we could head home and get ready for the babies blessing day the next day. She'd been asleep for a LONG time, so Wil decided to go check on her. When he opened the door, he found this...
It seems there was a box of paint in the closet that no one knew was there...well, no one besides Addie.
The bedspread managed to escape mostly unscathed. Her dress and the carpet, however, are another story.
I should have been mad...but mostly, it was just funny! It must be something about nap time at GG's house. I remember my cousin Lynda doing something similar with a permanent marker when she was supposed to be napping at my grandma's.
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