The Latest

It's been forever since I've blogged about the family. There's really nothing newsworthy to report, but I'll let you all in on the goings-on around these parts anyway.

::Jared::
I'm sure Jared is embarrassed and ashamed for me to be admitting this, but.....

We ditched our iPhone and got DROIDS.

I know.

He feels like he cheated on Apple.

But, we now each have a cell phone, the Droid X is freakin' sweet, and the plan for 2 phones is cheaper than our plan for the one iphone.

Sorry iPhone. You're awesome, but money talks.

Besides the whole phone thing, Jared's just been working. He finished coaching soccer. It's his last time coaching Carson's team. While he loved doing it, it just took up so much of his time.

::Lindsay::
Let's see. Nothing much here. You know how I said I wasn't going to do that whole PTO Board thing again? I did it at Carson's last school and I was done. Well, guess what. You are looking at the new co-secretary for next years PTO Board!

You know what that makes me?

A Sucker.

No seriously. It will be a good experience. I'm glad I'll be able to help the kids' school. I love that school and am willing to put time in to make it a great place for my children to be at.

Also, I am currently obsessed with 2 things.

1. My Nook.
2. Words with Friends.

Or better yet, Words with Friends on my Nook.

It's been so fun to read on my Nook. I never thought I wanted and e-reader, but they are the best! I've been reading so much more and they are fantastic for trips! Plus, I don't have to go to the library and I can just get them on my Nook. Awesome, I tell you.

And don't get me start on Words with Friends. Jared always played it on the iPhone, but I never bothered to play it myself until I got my Nook. It's so fun! If you want to play with me, leave a comment with you username!

::Carson:: 
Carson just finished up his soccer team, but is now doing a little bit more competitive soccer. It just started. Also, he is doing the Spring Wax Museum for school. They were supposed to pick someone who was influential in science so of course, Carson picked the mighty scientist.....


Beethoven.

Huh?!

Carson was like, the science of music....duh!

Well, I guess the one he really wanted to do, the person picked right before him, so then he went with Beethoven because he thought no one else would do it. I thought, "Yeah, you're pretty safe with that one, buddy. No one's gonna think of Beethoven for science." 

Anyhoo, we said that he should do like a German accent because Beethoven was born in Germany. He said he might. If so, Wax Museum just got 1000x more entertaining.

The best part was when Carson said, that he LOVED the quote he was going to say for Beethoven. In fact he said it was the best quote ever. 


He then recited it to me.....
  "Nothing is more intolerable than to have to admit to yourself your own errors."

After that, he said, "That is just soooo TRUE!!!"

And that buddy, just summed up your entire personality in a nutshell.

::Kaiya::
It really has been a long time since I've blogged because I haven't even blogged about Kaiya's piano recital! 

Kaiya recently had her piano recital and it was a very special experience for all of us. Needless to say, Kaiya was extremely nervous about her recital. She wanted to participate. She practiced her songs over and over, but the anxious part of her didn't want to get up in front of everyone and do it. 

I was feeling extremely conflicted about the whole situation because on the one hand, I didn't want this to be a traumatic experience for her. In fact, I'd received an opinion in which I was told that I should NOT have her do the recital for that very reason. On the other hand, I thought, "What's the harm in having her try it?" If she doesn't get up there, fine, but still I should proceed ahead and provide the opportunity. And quite frankly, where's the line on that type of stuff? If I didn't make her try school, she'd never have gone. If I didn't make her go to the first ballet class or first recital, she'd never have done it. If I didn't make her learn how to ride her bike, she'd never know how. You get the drift.

As the recital got closer and closer, Kaiya got more and more nervous about it. At the group practice that Tuesday before the recital, she refused to play her songs because the other kids were there. By this point, I was almost ready to say, "You don't have to do it." But, I'd prayed about it several times and really felt like it was all going to work out the way it was supposed to. I had no clue though if that meant she'd do it or not, so I just proceeded ahead.

We went to the church a few times and practiced the song so she could get acclimated to the building and piano. The night of the recital we went again earlier to practice one more time. She said she thought she could do it, but would really like Heather, her piano teacher, to sit up with her. I thought, "Terrific! Whatever gets you up there."

She got more and more nervous as the recital started and kids were playing their pieces. As it got closer to her turn, you could see the physical changes in her. She was teary-eyed, nervous, and fidgety.

I felt like the worst mom ever, not giving in and saying, "You don't have to do it."

Then it was her turn.

Heather got up, sat on the bench and encouraged Kaiya to sit by her.

Kaiya shook her head and stayed in her seat.

After a few seconds, I said, "Are you ready? You're gonna do great!!! Come on."

She still just sat there, eyes downcast.

Then I kneeled by her and said, "How about Heather sits on one side and I sit on the other side of you while you play. I'll even put my arm around you. It's gonna be ok. Come on."

Then I grabbed her hand and she walked up with me, and she DID IT!!!!

It was really a special moment because I know how extremely hard it was for her and I know that it was completely out of her comfort zone, but she did it anyways. It was also amazing to see that Heavenly Father did provide a way for her to be able to accomplish this. I knew it was going to be ok, but earlier in the week I just didn't see how it was going to work itself out at all.

It did work out though. It worked out so well. Kaiya was all smiles and said, "I did it! I'm so proud of myself. I can't believe I did the recital!"

That's the thing about Kaiya. While in some ways I feel like she is just way more burdened then a lot of six year olds, she's also had so many experiences where you can easily see the Lord's hand and how He really does love little children so much. She'll say things like, "I prayed to Heavenly Father so I won't feel so nervous and he helps me." For example, she missed the bus awhile back because Carson forgot to pick her up in her classroom. She had a sub that day so she wandered back to the office unattended. She was scared and she doesn't speak so she sat in the corner in the office. Because the office is so busy after school, no one noticed a scared little Kindergartener in the corner yet. Luckily, it just so happened that Miss Molly was at the school right then and saw Kaiya all teary and scared and called me that Kaiya had missed the bus and she'd be happy to take her home. I mean, really, what are the chances of that?! Things like that happen to her all the time and Kaiya is getting really good at recognizing the blessings that they are.

And can I give a big shout-out to Heather, her piano teacher?! Heather is awesome! Heather and I have been friends for a very long time now so I knew she would be the perfect piano teacher for Kaiya. She is nice and patient, which is exactly what Kaiya needs. I know how much she cares about Kaiya, and wants her to feel successful with what she is doing. I soooo appreciate you Heather and all you do for my girl.

The year is now winding down and coming to a close. Kaiya has LOVED Kindergarten and it is all due to her fabulous Kindergarten teacher, Miss M. We love her. She has totally gone the extra mile for Kaiya in every respect. It's so nice to see teachers who love their job and try their hardest for each kid to succeed, both academically and socially. We've even met with Kaiya's new first grade teacher and are currently trying to prepare her for the next school year. Her teacher, Mrs. S. is fantastic! I already know next year is going to be great too.

Which also brings me to a life lesson that I've learned recently, in respect to Kaiya. The big lesson is this---As parents, it is us who know what is best! No one is going to be an advocate for your child but you. It's important to go with what your feeling, even if logically it seems crazy. People aren't always going to have your child's best interests at heart either. The thing with Kaiya is that she has been blessed to have sooo many wonderful, amazing people in her life who go the extra mile. Therefore it becomes easily transparent to see those who are not. We've had to make some changes on her behalf for her recently. It's been hard because it's one of those situations where I'm like, "Please someone just tell me what to do. I don't know what to do!" Luckily I think it's worked out for the better, but it's been a really good lesson to learn.

::Chloe::
This girl is always full of sunshine and smiles! She literally cracks us up all the time with the funny and cute things that come out of her mouth. Some of the notable things include:

---"You are the best, best, best, best Mommy EVER!!!!!"
---"Be happy!"  And then she will grab your face and push your mouth up in a smile.
---Chloe doing all her different facial expressions for feelings--happy, sad, angry, jealous, surprised, worried,
---Chloe trying to get out of doing a job, or if she thinks she's gonna get in trouble or senses any sort of tension, will sing "We are a Happy Family!"
---If she doesn't want to clean, she says, "I'm soooo tired. I need a nappy."
---How she adds an "ie" to everything. Shoes are shoesies, Milk is milkie, flip flops are flippies, and etc.

Jared and I are also convinced that someday she is going to be on that animal hoarders TV show. She doesn't like to clean to save her life and she is obsessed with animals. She likes real ones and she is always carrying about 10 stuffed animals around the house. Her 2 favorites are Brobee and then "Sarah", the cat we got from FAO SCHWARZ in NYC. She kinda kicked Meow Cat and Pillow Cat to the curb, once the new fancy cat came to town. Sure, they still get a spot on her bed, but that's not that special since she sleeps with like a whole zoo on her bed. Seriously though, we are already afraid of ever having to stay with her when she's older and gets a place of her own. Jared will have to stock up on Zyrtec and we may be afraid to sit down because it's so messy. {As far as that goes, Carson is probably our safest bet to stay with. I mean, sure, he'll be downright anal about his things and we probably can't touch any of his stuff, but you know it will be clean.}

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Well, that's it in our neck of the woods. If you made it to the end of this incredibly long post, you must be a true friend. I'll try to update a little more frequently so I won't be so boring! :)