St. Patty's Day Week

This week has been unusually busy for me, but it's also been a whole lot of fun!!

We kicked off our week by going to see my friend, Chelsea Bulkley, for haircuts. It's taken me a month, but I finally arranged to have those little interesting haircuts fixed. For Brooke, we just evened everything out and cut her hair to shoulder length. I think she looks cute with whatever haircut, but I really like this one, I think. It's pretty cute on her.

I had Chelsea take a look at Camille's hair, but we decided together that her little bangs were too short to do anything with, and that it'd be a bad idea to try to even them out. She did try to do some side-swipey little things, to blend it up a bit better in the front. And she trimmed a tiny bit off the back. But I think mostly, for Camille, we're just going to have to wait until her hair grows out a little more.

But the next day, I put her hair up in the cutest ever little girl ponytail, and I just couldn't handle how cute she was! It only lasted about half the day until it started falling out and looking funny again. What can you do with a little girl's fine hair?!?

Monday night, we went to Sharky's for dinner. I'm not sure if I've written about this. But there is a family in our ward, the Ellis Family, who have a little baby girl with brain cancer. I have hung out with Brittany several times, mostly in group settings, and I really like her. Her little Elisabeth went to a well-baby visit for her 15 month appointment, and the doctor found something suspicious and sent them to get a scan. They found a tennis-ball sized tumor in her head, partially connected to her brain. They went in to get the tumor out and only succeeded in getting 1/3 of it. She's going through a bunch of rounds of chemo now, and they whole thing is so sad and scary. But the ward and lots of people from the stake have really drawn together as we watch and pray and help this family. It is really the coolest thing to see. As members of the church, we're taught to serve and help each other and those around us. And mostly, we go about things very quietly, as we try to fulfill this mandate. But it's inspiring, really, to watch it work on a much bigger scale, when something like this happens. There've been ward fasts for them; lots of prayers; posting on FB for help and things that are needed; donations of toys, comfort items, money, gift cards, blood, milk, anything needed; dinners made and brought to them; visits to the hospital; service projects and bake sales to raise money. It's really amazing! Well ... so, back to what I was writing before. We went to Sharky's for dinner because they were having a special fundraiser. All day, anyone coming in to eat for Elisabeth, 20% of their profits would go to Elisabeth. We went around 5 or 5:30 and it was a madhouse! There were so many people there, the line went all through the restaurant almost to the back. There were a ton of people from our ward, it just felt like a big ward party! And we ate right next to the Garrisons and Erdmanns. It was pretty fun, actually.

I was teaching joyschool this week ... again. I've definitely done more than my fair share since Christmas. BUT ... I'm going to be bowing out at the end of next month, so I call it all even. ANYWAY, ... we had a fun week for Joyschool. Tuesday, we had a quick lesson at the beginning, some free playtime, and then I dropped Camille off with Hillary and took the boys and Brooke for a visit to the library. It was all about asking questions and discovering and learning new things. They had a good time at the library, and they were all really good! They went to pick out some books to read, I took them over to the section where they keep the nonfiction books, and we read some books, and they got to pick one out to take home with them. I showed them how to check books out, and we watched the cool video screen as we slid some books down the return slide, and then we went and sat on a bench outside for snacks. I took them home after that. I had a pretty good time with them, and I think they enjoyed it as well.

Daniel's been working at the office this whole week (or from home, a couple of days), which means he goes in to work REALLY EARLY with Brandon Hebdon, and then comes home really early, too. It's been kind of nice for the girls and I to get to see him a little bit more than usual. So Tuesday night, when Daniel got home from work, we had dinner and family home evening, altogether!!

Wednesday morning, the girls and I went early to the park for a little Sports Club (Hillary Erdmann has put this together; we meet at the park, she spends about 20 minutes with the kids going over some aspect of a sport, and they practice and play together, and then have playtime at the park). I was watching Lilee Mapp that morning, and we just hung out at the park all morning, doing Sports Club and playing at the park. Funny little Camille didn't do much playing. I swung her on the swings for a little bit, and she went down the slides a few times. But mostly she just hung around me. I'm sorry to say that after a short time, I was a little bugged. When we go to the park, especially if we are going with friends, then I sort of want her to be on her own, playing, exploring and being a kid. She has been going through this phase for a while, where she seems a little shy and clings to me a ton when we are around a lot of people. Even if it's people she knows and has been around a lot. I really shouldn't get irritated. I know there will come a day very soon when she's off playing with friends and completely ignore her mom, and I'll miss the days when she liked hanging around me. And, truth be told, it's pretty sweet that she likes to be with me. I like being with her too. Next time, I'll welcome having her hang around me and always asking me to play. It's so sweet and cute.

Thursday, the day before St. Patrick's Day, I was doing preschool again, and it was a completely epic day of preschool!! Here's what we did:

• a short lesson about questions and learning and discovering
• a magic lesson, put on by the Great Leslini (I practiced a few magic tricks the night before, and it's a good thing little kids are so easily entertained and impressed, because, it wasn't all that good...)
• made biscuits and butter!!
• painted for our art project
• had a sneaky visit from a leprechaun, who left some treasure for the kids after a little scavenger hunt for them

It was really fun to do, I may have even had more fun than the kids!

That evening, I had a babysitter come, so that I could drive down to LA and meet Daniel for our fancy date. He won a gift card to a fancy french restaurant in LA, called La Patina. And we figured we had better go before this baby comes! It was a lot of fun, and definitely not something we'll do again. We chose the 3 course dinners for $85 a person!! The food was really good, and I thoroughly enjoyed what we had (we shared everything, so we could try more stuff). And it was fun having the experience of going to a fancy french restaurant. The servers were very on top of things and vigilant and gracious. I felt very out of place there; like, just walking it, it felt like everyone who worked there could just tell that I never go to expensive restaurants. But we had a good time. It was a once in a lifetime experience for us!!

I was kinda lame for the real St. Patrick's Day. I had necklaces and hats for the girls, and I made a sort of St. Patty's Day dinner (shepherd's pie, steamed broccoli and Irish Soda bread, and green milk for the girls). But that was about it. I had planned to do more. But ... you know. Energy levels are low these days.

I put Camille down in the early evening, and Brooke and I stayed up late to have a movie date night at home. We watched the BFG, since we finished reading the book a week or 2 ago. It was so fun! We popped some movie popcorn, a whole huge bucketful, which we demolished. Brooke really loved the movie, and I had a good time watching with her. It was kind of a fun experience, reading the book together and then watching the movie. We started Fantastic Mr. Fox a few days after finishing BFG, and we've been enjoying reading that one together. It's perfect for little kids, because it's short and fun, and has a lot of pictures. We'll see about watching the movie ... I don't remember much about it.

Saturday morning, I went off to the temple and did sealings and initiatories. It was kind of an odd day in the temple. I spent a lot of time waiting to get in to do some work. But that was okay. Daniel took the girls on a little hike while I was at the temple, and it sounds like they had a lot of fun. They talked about it a lot for the rest of the day, and for days afterwards. The rest of the day was spent cleaning up house, making dinner for the Ellis', and having the Thompsons over for a fire and roasting marshmallows for s'mores. It was a low-key, fun kind of day.

3rd Trimester Fatigue

That title is the perfect in-a-nutshell description of last week. Fatigue set in HARD for me last week. If we did any little thing during the day, I was completely wiped out for the rest of the day. I had a whole list of things I was going to do, and I got a small fraction of them done -- mostly the things that HAD to get done, like laundry and ironing, dishes, ... making food.

Brooke had preschool at Elliot's house on Tuesday and Friday, which she always loves. And Hillary always does such cool things with the kids. I had a doc appointment on Tuesday morning while she was at preschool. I couldn't find anyone to find Camille (not that I looked that hard), and I decided just to take her to my appointment with me. She was such a good little thing at my appointment, and so interested in what was going on. When the doctor came in and started talking to me, and got me ready to listen to the baby's heartbeat, Camille was very attentive and asking questions. When we heard the heartbeat, she asked, "What's that noise??" And we both tried to tell her that it was the baby's heartbeat. The look on her face as all of this was going on was one of deep concern. She just kept looking back and forth between my face and what the doctor was doing to my belly, such a serious look on her face. I smiled at her, trying to let her know I was okay, and she smiled back. So cute! She was very interested.

The girls and I needed to get out of the house this week, so Tuesday afternoon (after a LONG nap for Camille) we went on a nice little bike ride around our neighborhood. The girls had fun time riding, and I enjoyed walking around with them. We went to the park Thursday morning with some of our friends. It was pretty warm last week (and the beginning of this week), so I was a bit hot and sweaty. But it was lovely outside, and the girls always like playing with their friends. And I like visiting with my friends too.

Morgan came over Wednesday morning with her kids to play and to hang out and stay for lunch. It was nice having a visit with her. Things like that, and the times we go outside, help to break up the week for me and the girls. That's one of the reasons I love having a preschool group for Brooke. It helps us all to get out and be with people, and I think we all feel more refreshed when we do those things than the weeks when we mostly stay at home.

Daniel finished the audit he's been working on for months on Thursday, so he actually came home on time (!), and the girls and I got to be with him for a few hours before bedtime. He ate dinner with us, played with the girls, helped me put them to bed, and hung out with me. It was SO GLORIOUS! We all really love having him around.

And because they finished the audit, he had Friday off! ALL DAY LONG! Brooke had preschool in the morning, and Daniel and I split to run some errands. But once Brooke was done, we ate some lunch, packed up a few things, and spent the afternoon at the beach. It was the perfect beach day! It was warm, but not too warm. The breeze was perfect, it was a bit cloudy, so the sun was not overpowering. Brooke and Daniel went off to do a little exploring on the rocks. Daniel said that Brooke was pretty scared, walking over the rocks, and they encountered some crabs and other interesting creatures that scared Brooke as well. I think overall she had fun, though. Camille and I mostly played in the sand and ate snacks.

Saturday was busy. We had the car fixed, and I had my baby shower. Megan Hebdon, Allison Leishman, and Heather Delhoyo threw me a baby shower for my first little boy. We have all we need, except boy clothes. But after the shower (and people are giving us hand-me-downs too) we're pretty close to being set! It made me really excited about having this baby! And it was so nice to have friends come and celebrate this baby with me.

It was a pretty busy week, for me. And it completely wore me out! Haha! We spent a lot of time outside this week, and running to different things. It was really nice, and we loved having a full 3-day weekend with Daniel, too! It's always a breath of fresh air when he can be with us and hang out with us.

This Week -- And a lot About Brooke

...was a more exciting week for us ladies at home. I taught preschool this week, which always adds some interest to our days. Brooke loves preschool. She loves gathering with her little friends, she loves learning the lessons and singing the songs. When I teach it, she's always the one who pays most attention to the lessons, she always tries to learn the songs, and she always loves the craft projects we do. She's really just enthusiastic about any and everything, which I love about her. The other boys in our group are kind of hit and miss with how they listen, sing and participate in the activities. Sometimes, I get it just right and everyone is engaged. But very often, I miss the mark for one or other of the boys, and one of them is just not interested in what we're doing. Usually, it's Jack. Elliot is pretty good when we get around to puppet shows, songs, yoga activities, and crafts. He likes getting in there. But Jack is a lot harder to please. He's also the youngest of the group, and I wonder if that has a lot to do with it. He's 4 months younger than Elliot, and, like, 8 months younger than Brooke.

Well, anyway, I'm enjoying teaching preschool a lot more this term. Ever since we got back from our Christmas break. I don't know if it's because I'm feeling better physically, or that we have fewer kids (I often just teach Brooke and one other, because of sicknesses or kids being away for family things), or maybe that my attitude is just better since the beginning of the year. But whatever it is, I'm grateful and very glad that I am not having so hard a time. I also sort of loosened up a little. I don't try to follow the schedule as much, I don't try to cram so much into the lessons, and if I notice the kids are just starting to get restless, I'm done with the lesson. It's just Joy School; so if they don't want to listen, I'm not gonna be torn up about it.

That being said, I'm so glad when my week is over!! Haha! It's like, "FREEDOM! FREEDOM!" Plus, Brooke loves doing preschool at her friend's houses. And the other girls doing it with me, Hillary Erdmann and Emily Thompson, are pretty awesome and do really fun things. And I like having the extra time with just Camille.

Aside from preschool and our regular shopping trips, Hillary Erdmann has started doing this fun little sports club with a bunch of the moms and kids in our ward. We gather at the park, and Hillary teaches the kids some new kind of sport skill. We have missed the last few. But last week, we got there, and only Brooke, Elliot and Jack were there, so she just had them race each other a bunch, and teach them some of the racing stances. They had a grand old time, and it was fun to watch Brooke participate and have fun. She didn't seem to be faster than the boys at all; they were always ahead of her. But she was pretty good at starting up from a runners stance!

Camille has been super funny lately whenever we go to the park. Her favorite thing is swinging, which we do plenty of. But whenever I'm feeling done or tired and need a little break from standing there pushing her, she doesn't really go play on the playground much. I mean, she will a little bit, for a short time. But mostly, she'll hang around me, and she's always begging me to go play on the playground with her. And I'm always, like, "Millie, I can't! Mamma is just to big and pregnant right now to go down the slides with you." It's a little sad. Because I would like to play with her, but I just don't feel able to right now.

Speaking of being big and pregnant, man! do I feel huge. I definitely feel bigger than with Camille. I don't really know about Brooke, probably about the same. I must really look grotesque, though, because people are saying the most horrific things. Well, ... they're really not that bad, and by now, after 3 huge pregnancies, I'm used to it and just shrug it off. But it is truly amazing the kinds of things people say to pregnant women, who are already feeling self-conscious and vulnerable. I'm sure it doesn't even cross their minds that it's rude; but it should. There was a guy at the goodwill drop off several weeks ago (and I was smaller then) who said that I was so huge, that his daughter was almost due with TWINS and I was bigger than her. I just laughed about it. But. Honestly, who says that to a stranger???

It was kind of funny: last night, the Erdmann's watched the girls for an hour and half so that Daniel and I could have a mini date and get ice cream (they'd given Daniel a gift card for his birthday to this fun ice cream shop at the mall). We had fun, the ice cream was really good, and afterwards, we did a little shopping for Daniel. He bought new jeans and new pj pants. Much needed. But what was funny was ALL OF THE PEOPLE STARING AT ME. And I'm not kidding. I mentioned it to Daniel, and he kind of laughed at me, like, "Yea, right. No one's looking at you." But he was not paying attention. I got so many looks from people, so many people, seriously, straight-up staring at me; likely thinking, "Dang. That girls about to pop." It made me laugh, and also, I couldn't believe it. Do people not see pregnant women ever? It's like I'm some shocking, grotesque creature that they are surprised came out into public.

Anyway, this pregnancy is going well. Despite the fact that I am huge, that I feel uncomfortable 90% of the time (for one reason or another), and that people are shocked by me and/or are rude to me. I'm trying really hard to eat healthy so I don't gain to much weight. And so far, so good. I mean, Christmas season was bad; but since then, it's been really good. Fingers crossed! I have less than 2 months left, which is good. I'm ready for this pregnancy to be over and to meet my little boy! He's been moving a lot more the past month or so. That's my favorite part of being pregnant! (except for the times, like last night, when he kept punching the same spot, over and over and over again, quite rhythmically, driving me completely insane and preventing sleep) I love putting my hand over my belly and feeling some baby part: a knee, a foot, some little bun-cheekies! And then to feel that little baby part moving across my belly, or kick out. It's just so weird and cool.

Brooke really started feeling the baby this week. When we do her bedtime routine, I sit up against her bed, and she sits between my legs with her back up against my belly. In months past, I would occasionally stop reading for a minute and ask her if she felt this or that baby kick. And usually she would just answer, "yes", but without any real enthusiasm or excitement, which made me think maybe she wasn't really feeling it at all. It was the same whenever I put her hand on my belly to feel him kick. I'd ask if she felt it, and she'd respond with "yes", but without any real conviction. But one night last week, she turned to me while I was reading, and said, "Mom, I felt the baby kicking me!" She seemed really excited, and like she knew that it had happened. After that, she's been OBSESSED with feeling the baby. She'll come up to me, push her hand to my belly, and say, "I wanna feel the baby!" And she'd start pushing around on my belly, trying to feel him or make him move. It's so cute and funny. And I think she really feels him now and can tell that what she's feeling is a little baby part. She asks me questions about him, too: what part is that? what's he doing? kicking? I think she's getting more and more excited about him, and it's contagious. I get more excited, too. I think she'll be a good big sister to him.

I've been writing a lot about Brooke tonight. She's just turning into the most delightful little creature. I mean, I've always loved her and appreciated her little personality; and she still does occasionally drive me nuts. But I think in the last few months, we've turned a corner. My friend, Nicole Faucette, once told me that this age is hard; from about 3 years to about 4 and 1/2. My mom always said 4 year olds were her favorite, that that was her favorite age. But I didn't quite believe her, because Brooke and I struggled last year. I think Nicole was right -- 4 and 1/2 is about the age when they start to figure stuff out, when their tantrums become a little less, and their charm comes out. That's how I've been feeling about Brooke. She asks a TON of questions. She's always asking, "Mom, what does                      mean?" And sometimes those questions are kinda hard to answer!

She's also become such a big little helper! I have her do a handful of chores every week: fold the rags and put them away, help me get food on the table/set the table, water the plants, and of course, our ever-present cleaning up of the toys (which I've started helping with, and it's made all the difference -- before, she would whine and complain about having to pick up the loft and her bedroom; I would get mad and frustrated and punish her, a lot of the time. But now that I help, and now that we've started teaching Camille how to help, it's so much smoother! Camille takes great pleasure in helping us clean up, and she's pretty good at it, even better and faster than Brooke! And I end up not having to do that much, between the 2 of them doing it. I think it's more of a matter that I'm there, doing a part of it, that motivates them to work.). And now, she will often just do little things without me asking! If the rags are sitting on the couch, she'll fold them up and put them away. That happened one day a couple of weeks ago: I was cleaning up the kitchen and noticed that the rags were inside the cupboard, but not quite where they go. She had just folded them and put them away before I was even downstairs that morning. Such a good little helper! She gets excited to be able to help, too. If she sees me doing something, she asks to help.

Her newest thing is acting like a doggie, like, all of the time. Especially at night. Also, I love how she mispronounces a lot of things: breakfast = brefkast; octopus = octerpus. I don't want to correct her, I just think it's so cute. We've been liking playing games together, too; our current favorites are Candyland and Go Fish! She's finally learning some of those games, and loving them. And I have fun playing with her, too. She still loves watching tv, and always asking to watch something she's never seen before.

Camille had a bit of an accident earlier this week:

She somehow tripped in the kitchen, fell, and banged her head on the very edge of an open cupboard. It looked so bad that first day, all swollen and bruised and bleeding. She wouldn't let me clean it, touch it, put a bandaid on it. And her hair kept getting dried in her scabs, which was a little problematic. The next day it looked much better, not so dramatic. But the poor thing cried and cried, it was so sad. We sat on the couch and just cuddled together for a while.

And ... that, in not so much a nutshell as a novel, was our week!