The Gift of an Ordinary Day

 “...there is no such thing as a charmed life, not for any of us, no matter where we live or how mindfully we attend to the tasks at hand. But there are charmed moments, all the time, in every life and in every day, if we are only awake enough to experience them when they come and wise enough to appreciate them.” 
― Katrina Kenison, The Gift of an Ordinary Day: A Mother's Memoir

First Day of Kindermusic

New Years Resolution...

keep blogging.

This week was the first day of Kindermusic.

I must admit I was feeling a bit nostalgic.  I was remembering back

to the last two years.  here and here

Boy have things changed.

Today was a little different then our last two years of Kindermusic.

Genevieve would be going it alone this year and Finley tagged along.

He was able to take his very own class.

What a treat to have an entire 45 minutes just me and him.

I think it is safe to say Finn loved it.

He spent the entire class giggling.  

Success. 

the many faces of Evie

G: "hello Ms. Anne? Yes, we are on our way!"

Looking out the window to see popcorn popping

life according to my iphone.

Breeja

Joe's cousin Breeja Larson is headed to the London Summer Olympics

Breeja beat Rebecca Soni, the best breaststroker in the world, 

and world record holder Jessica Hardy, in the 100 meter breaststroke.  

Needless to say we have been cheering her on.  

Watching every moment we could and talking about her constantly. 

 Surprisingly, Genevieve has been just as enthralled.

 Asking if anyone who looked like a swimmer (even michael phelps) was "Brillow".

Now, she wants to be "Brillow" wearing Joe's goggles 

and swimming the breaststroke in the bath tub 

screaming: "I going to the lympics, I going to lympics yaaaay!!!"

Baby, maybe one day you will.

Until then we are so proud of you Breeja.

We are cheering you on!!!

super girl

Genevieve, is an awesome mixture of girly girl and tom boy.  On our street there are at least a dozen little boys around genvieve's age and she doesn't mind one bit.  She is always the first one to dive into the mud, throw balls and capture the "bad guys"(wearing a dress of course). She can keep up with the best of them.  So it is only natural she wants to be "superman".  

Clothes have also become optional this summer.  She doesn't feel it is necessary to wear them.  I try to compromise by making her wear at least underwear.  On this day she decided that she "needed" a pull up (she is potty trained) but even her underwear reflect her eclectic style.  We have a drawer full of fancy princess underwear and thomas the train undies from the little boy section.  

No matter what Genevieve does she always does it with her own flare and lots and lots of energy!

Running away from home.

Two Years + 6 Months

Genevieve my sweet and funny little girl.

My what a large personality you have. Opinionated and wonderful! I marvel at the girl you are becoming. Each day brings something new and I wake up excited to see what you have in store for me. Your heart is tender and you have a deep seeded need to do the right thing, even if it takes a bit of guidance. You are constantly concerned about others feelings and ask frequently if you make me happy. "I make you happy mommy?" I reply "you always make me happy genevieve". Each morning you ask each member of the family if they slept well "you sleep good mommy, finley sleep good, daddy sleep good?" I then ask how you slept and your reply is usually the same "I wake up mommy." Each morning I wonder what you dreamt of the night before and each morning is always the same, "princesses".

You are a very good and dear big sister.  You always try to love on Finley, give him toys, teach him new things.  If he cries you ask "you break sinee's heart?"  and I melt.  

Besides a million and one things you say. You are learning your colors and pretty much have them all down.  You know A B and C and can count to ten, sometimes "1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13, 16".  You know most animals and the sounds they make. You have a few chores you are responsible for each day: clearing the table after each meal, picking up the toys in your playroom and picking up your bedroom.  Your dad and I are happy to say at this point you love to help.  I am sure that will change over time.  

Genevieve you are now officially sleeping in a big girl bed but it is a day bed so I flipped the entrance into it against the wall so you can't get out.  I couldn't handle loosing my freedom.  We have also had to unscrew the light bulbs in your room to keep you from turning on and off the lights.  We threaten you each night if you get out of your covers we will take your babies away.  I have had to take them away once or twice which caused many tears.  Potty training is still in the works and I seriously might loose all my hair over it.  You are pretty much peed trained unless you get busy playing with friends or outside and then accidents usually occur.  We are having much more success in the "number two" area and you have successfully done it almost every day for the past few weeks.  However, you still have accidents in your pull up when we put you down for bed.  There has also been multiply times I have wiped pooh up off the kitchen floor.  Agghhhh!! Really, this has been one of the most frustrating things so far in my parenthood journey.  I don't like it!

Genevieve my girl, each and every day you say something new and always come up with different things to keep dad and I laughing.  You have the strongest personality which is what we love most about you but it also makes our jobs difficult.  You are always pushing boundaries, getting your feelings hurt and asserting your independence.  However, you are always quick to try and do the right thing, make amends, apologize and give kisses.  You have such a good soul and are learning quickly about your Savior.  You are very good at kneeling to pray, folding your little arms and repeating the end of each sentence as we coax you with what to say.  

Genevieve, I am sure you are teaching me as much as I am teaching you.  I learn something new about myself every day I am with you but mostly you show me what unconditional love is.  I love looking at the world through your eyes, it is magical... as are you.  What I did to deserve you I will never know but thank you for choosing us.  

~mom

Z is for Zoo

There is something magical about watching your baby see something for the first time.

Until now lions, elephants, monkeys only existed within the pages of books.

Genevieve delighted in each new animal, 

running to the next exhibit as fast as her feet would carry her.

Her eyes wide with curiosity and wonder.

The pages of Genevieve's books came to life that day...

and it was magical to watch.

First Day of School.

oh remember this first day of school (here)

she was just a wee little gal.

this year, first day of school, well kindermusic.

it's impossible to get a good picture of a smart and sassy two year old

she did wonderfully.  just like I knew she would.

this year genevieve understood more, caught on quicker and made friends fast.

she is one cute cookie and I'm always one proud mama.

life is...

"Life is just like an old time rail journey ... delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride." ~ Gordon B. Hinckley 

splish splash

more babes in the bath

you are.

You are the trip I did not take;

You are the pearls I cannot buy;

You are my blue Italian lake;

You are my piece of foreign sky.

my master piece

I began making a book of Genevieve's journey

 to this earth through her first birthday before she even turned one. 

 I finished the book and it sat on my computer, waiting for printing for another year.  

I just couldn't bring myself to pay all that money on a book that might not turn out.  

I had spent countless hours transferring my blog into a book, recording memories and writing numerous letters to my dear sweet girl. 

 I didn't want to be disappointed.

Christmas came and I was handed a very large and heavy present.

  I opened it to find this beautiful picture looking back at me...

my book...

genevieve's book.

around 260 pages of amazing memories 

I cried as I read through each page.  It was so beautiful.

Better than I could have ever imagined it to be.

thank you mom for giving me the best christmas gift I think I've ever received

not to toot my own horn but I did a good job.