Does anyone else...

experience pure joy while blowing juicy, wet raspberries at a sparkling, shining, fleshly cleaned mirror?

If so, PLEASE help me understand! I tried it myself. I was left thrill-less, joy-less, and smile-less.

Maybe it's because I can't separate myself from the fact that I'll be the one cleaning it up later...

Then again, this isn't on my top ten, or even top hundred, actually I wouldn't even include it in my list of things I like to do!

Silly kid :)

I've been crying all afternoon...

...ever since the UPS man dropped off this box...... and I opened it and found this...
...Christmas packages for my boys and me, a card for Craig and I, cute little shorts and hat for Mason to grow into, Christmas ornaments with a note that says "It won't hurt if the boys break these. They were cheapies!", cute decorative little Santas, a Christmas dish towel, a darling snowman and bear on sleigh decoration, a jar of Craig's favorite homemade blackberry syrup, and a container full of homemade chocolates.


I can't find the words to express what I feel. This is one of the most thoughtful packages I've ever received. Packaged by one of the sweetest people I know. She's been there for me, supported me and loved me (and my family) when I needed her most. She is kind, thoughtful and unassuming. She's come through the ups and downs of life smiling, not bitter. She loves her family. She's raised seven wonderful children. I married one of them.


Valarie, thank you for everything! I could not ask for a better mother-in-law. I hope you don't mind me posting about you, but I don't know if I'd be able to express my deep gratitude any better than in writing. You are, without a doubt, the BEST! And you are so loved!

Christmas Cards

If any of you blog readers would like a Christmas card, please leave your address in a comment or email it to me at sharellejs@hotmail.com.

Family: I already have most of your addresses, unless you've moved in the past year.

Nat, I need yours, again... I'll try to remember to save it this time!

Dear Dad,

You'll have to forgive us, but your birthday gift will be a 'cyber' gift first, until we get it mailed. We wanted to get you something this year that you couldn't just go pick up yourself. So I thought we'd make you some dark chocolate peppermint fudge (I'm drooling) with all the candy canes that used to hang on our tree until Gavin snapped them all at their crooks. But then I found out you were laying off the sugar... I almost still went with it, telling myself that you could just share it, but... then I put myself in your place and realized how LAME I would think that arrangement was. So we tried to get creative and this is the result:

The card reads:

We're sorry your package will be arriving so late,
Getting it sent in time sure would have been great!
But it wasn't in the cards for us, you see,
The first chain was smashed, unfortunately.

This second we made for this purpose quite clear--
So you can count down the rest of the days in the year
And continue on counting, at the same time we do,
The rest of the days till we get to see YOU!

We are thrilled as can be for the 12th day of next year;
We'll drive to the airport and wait for you to appear.
Your stay will be awesome, we'll do such fun things!
Gavin will show all his tricks--how he reads, how he sings!

We are so very glad you're our dad/"gyandpa"
The fact we can't see you today, well, it's BLAH!
We love you and miss you without any doubt.
Relationships like ours are what life's all about.

Happy 50th Birthday!!!

Love, Craig, Sharelle, Gavin and Mason

P.S. You'll be receiving this in a package sent via USPS hopefully soon!


And for your viewing pleasure:
Here's Gavin's Birthday smile for you!
Dad, I knew I loved you when I was a little girl and you took care of me, wiped away my tears when I was upset, held me close when I was scared, and beamed with joy when I did something you thought was cute. The day I found out that you could be married to only Mom and not me was a sad one indeed!

When I was a teenager, I realized you were an even better man than I had previously thought. I saw there was more to you - weakness as well as strength, heartache as well as joy, worry as well as security. You weren't the fairytale 'Prince Charming' of my childhood, you were better! Because even in the face of opposition, you chose faith and rose above it.

As the years have passed on, you've continued to make that choice. With your grey hairs has come greater wisdom, experience, and a softening of temperament. What a beautiful process! I see you, each day, becoming a more Christ-like person, and it amazes me. I only hope I can follow in your footsteps and continue in the legacy you and Mom have left for your posterity.

I am so eternally grateful to be your daughter! Thank you for loving me and my family. One of the things that brings me so much joy is knowing that some of the fruits of my labor (literally) bring you joy. I'm so grateful my boys have a grandpa as amazing as you!

Not all super-heroes are make believe ;)

Hope you have the best day EVER! If anyone deserves to, you do!

Love,

Sharelle

Christmas Spirit

Everyone's been saying how much fun this Christmas will be with Gavin because he'll be excited about what's going on and the presents and Santa...I realized I hadn't been prepping him very well because, aside from the fact that the Christmas tree is up and he pulls all the ornaments (that he says are "so cute") off, he's been oblivious to anything else. So I talked to him about Santa and how, if he's really good, he'll get presents on Christmas day. He knows what presents are, and he was more than excited about that. So I asked him what he wanted Santa to bring him. He said, "Presents!!!" Hmmm...

"But G, what do you want to be in the presents?"

"Uh...Choo Choo Trains!"

"And what else?"

Pause.

Then excitedly, "A present for Macy-Man!!!"

Without any coaching from me, he'd captured the true spirit of Christmas.

Santa Babies :)

I just couldn't resist taking pictures of my boys in their Santa suits when I realized I had one to fit both of them (well, pretty much...Mason was almost ripping the seams on his and Gavin's was drowning him)! They looked so adorable! We just couldn't quite get one with both of them looking...

Here's Mason's bestAnd here's Gavin's
These are cute too, though!

At this point Gavin was dismissed for his quiet time, and Mason was being so good I thought I'd snap a few of him. He is so jolly!!!

But even he hit his limit!

Calendar Page

Here's how our page for the Rich Family calendar turned out. Getting it to this point was a little frustrating, but I'm pleased with how it turned out. This is my first attempt at digital scrapbooking. Sadly, after begging Craig to buy me scrapbook factory for Christmas last year, I have not used it until now. I think I was feeling a little overwhelmed, and I was waiting until I could sit down and figure it all out, but now I realize that that defeats the point of the software. Hello! That's why I wanted it! It could be called Scrapbooking for dummies. I like it!

I've already posted most of these pictures, but there are a couple gems that were glossed over. Who's the Hottie in the John Deere shirt? :) oh yeah, he's mine...

One of Those Days...

So I feel like lately I haven't been very patient with Gavin. In all honesty, I wonder if I'll make it through his toddler years with my sanity. I have never felt so helpless. He recently weaned himself from naps. I thought a good solution would be 'quiet time,' when the only requirement is that he stay in his room so I can have some time to remember that I'm a calm, sane person. His response to this new set up is to open and close his door constantly, with a slammed door here and there, until I tell him quiet time is over. I'd be fibbing if I said that this doesn't bother me, especially since Mason is napping in the very next room (which happens to be the bathroom - in his carseat, with the fan on). And I'm no push-over, either. Depending on how deeply I'm committed to driving my point home, he'll be in his room for up to a couple of hours. Needless to say, "quiet time" has in NO way replaced "nap time." By the time Craig gets home, and often before, I'm at my wits end.

With all that in mind, yesterday, after a conversation with my sweet sister-in-law Heather who is one of the best moms ever to live, I re-committed myself to treating Gavin with kindness and love and trying harder to focus on all his good qualities. Today would mark a new beginning. I'm pleased to report that I came through with flying colors, and it wasn't easy. No, Gavin didn't just have a remarkably good day. I was the one who made the changes.

That is, until..........

I found him like this.

Covered in Vaseline aka Petroleum Jelly aka absolutely-non-water-soluble aka I had to call Craig immediately to come home from work while I scrubbed Gavin with Baking Soda for an hour then Baby Oil trying to get it off his skin and out of his hair!!!!!!!

Craig cleaned up everything else -- the carpet, the changing table and anything on top of it Gavin touched, Gavin's chair, the tub where I bathed him, and the cleaning bucket he used. What a guy!

Now I know where Dr. Suess got his inspiration for The Cat in the Hat Comes Back...

I'll be back at it again tomorrow. I just might have to watch Gavin while he sleeps for extra long tonight. He looks so angelic when he's sleeping...

A 'Thank'imony

I'm grateful...

1. To have been able to go to the store all by myself this morning. No screams (at least none I had to be responsible for), no rushing, no scolding when a certain toddler starts throwing all the groceries out of the cart, no frantic searching for a binky when the shopping lasts too long, no tears at the checkout, no sweating profusely while carrying two babies and as many of the groceries as I can up two flights of stairs, and no extra trips up the said stairs.
2. For a kitchen with a sink, a dishwasher, and an oven all to myself in which to create "culinary masterpieces, the likes of which [were] only glimpsed" today.
3. To have only had to make a relish tray and a dessert and still have been able to enjoy all components of a Thanksgiving meal.
4. For President and Sister Darrington for inviting us to eat Thanksgiving dinner with them and all the senior missionaries.
5. To Elder Swain for taking Gavin for a walk around the pond outside, giving Craig and I a break from a busy boy and Gavin a chance at some Grandpa Time, even though all his grandpas are still in Utah.
6. For adult conversation.
7. For a husband who changed all the day's dirty diapers, every last one.
8. For a husband who went with me to get Christmas lights at the equivalent of a craft store, only bigger...
9. For a husband who told me to rent whichever movie I wanted and meant it, even after I walked out of Blockbuster with An Ideal Husband.
10. To have our Christmas decorations up.
11. For Craig who put up the tree even after a long day because he knew I really wanted it up. He also strung the lights (not quite the way I wanted them :), admired his work, and exclaimed with absolute self-satisfaction, "Tum-dah!" when he was finished. He may have even done this more than once...
12. That even though we only have like 8 ornaments total Craig still thinks the tree looks good.
13. That our boys sleep well at night, and always have.
14. For "chuggles" as Gavin calls them. I'm grateful that he finally is understanding that they aren't meant to be stifling, but endearing. He even asks to be snuggled these days. Mason has never not liked to be.
15. For the temple. For the power that unites families - old and young, near or FAR, dead or alive - as long as we keep our end of the bargain.
16. For Music. Its uplifting power, even on down days.
17. For my family, the one I was raised in, the one I married into, and the one my sweet husband and I are creating. Never in all my wildest dreams would I have imagined the blood, sweat and tears that goes into family life. Even when I wonder on the surface, though, deep down I know that it's worth it.
18. To know the purpose of life. Without that knowledge, I don't know if I'd put forth the effort. It sure does wear on ya...
19. For the profound lessons taught by children. Anger, frustration, and impatience are met with love, submissiveness, and forgiveness.
20. For unconditional love. For the atonement that gives me the strength and ability to work toward something better. For those who believe that someday I'll have it, and love me even when I don't, unconditionally.

Little Fish

We sure have been enjoying our apartment complex! Just to the West of our building is a pond. Gavin loves it, along with all its inhabitants. Thank goodness we live on the third floor so we can avoid some of them getting inside, ie lizards, snakes, frogs. They're cute enough when we see them in the great outdoors, but I can't say I'd be thrilled having to share my habitation with them.

Gavin also likes the ducks and the fish, but his favorite are the "Tooties." If you've never heard of tooties, let me enlighten you. They're green, they have a hard shell, and they look a lot (in fact, exactly) like this:

For Floridians, these may be commonplace, but to us they are a novelty. And they LIVE in our backyard!

These next few pics are for the Grandmas. I just can't get enough of my little Mason!!! He is so quiet, but he communicates a lot through his adorable expressions.

There is nothing that melts my heart more than a content baby. Especially when that baby is mine.

The real fish of this post, however, is our little G-man. He is loving our pool these days, especially since he can swim all by himself. At least he thinks so...

You decide.

One of the best dollars I've ever spent = Floaties!

The game (a Daddy original):

1. Throw Daddy's sandals in the water

2. Admire work. (oh, and smile for the camera, if needed)

3. Go get the sandals.

4. Repeat, a thousand times if needed.

Halloween

Although Halloween is one of my, hmmm, okay it's my very least favorite holiday, we sure had a great time! It's so much more fun with little kids because they look so stinkin' cute in their costumes. The fun started the weekend before when we went to a party at our friends Geoff and Bonnie's. We played games, ate treats and enjoyed visiting with each other, finding out how small a world it really is. About a thousand connections were made, including the fact that Bonnie actually taught theater in good ol' Morgan! Gavin was an elephant and super cute in spite of the costume issues....more coming on that... Mason was the cutest little giraffe I have ever seen.
Here's a picture of our festive contribution to the snack table. Yeah, you creative people are probably snickering at such shoddy work, but I'm pretty proud of my original creation!

On the Friday before Halloween, we went to two parties. The first was for our apartment complex and we only stayed for a few minutes.

So, about Gavin's costume. I actually bought it last year because I thought it was so cute. I figured since it was size 2-4T, we would be safe. All I can say is that it definitely runs SMALL. Gavin still fit in it, but I don't think he was very comfortable. Here's why:

Let's just say it was a good thing he hadn't been potty trained yet!

Here's our complex director Miritza and her daughter with G. She's awesome! She worked hard and maybe even pulled a few strings to help us get into our apartment, since at the time we were basically unemployed.

Gavin looks so happy to be in his costume...

Of course, Mason really was happy, costume or not!

We took a thousand pictures of the two of them, and these are still the best we got :( Oh well, right?

After our complex party, we headed to our ward one where Gavin found his new friend Liz. She was the cutest little butterfly!

He must've been excited to see her!

Liz's parents Dawn and Chris with...

cute little Paul! He and Mason are 10 days apart in age. They are both the BEST babies!

Mason was very tired.

What a cute little cherub!At the party, Gavin went fishing for a prize

and caught a really cool spider ring!

Then he decorated a bag and went trick or treating to all the classrooms around the church. I'm pretty sure this is when he decided he didn't mind his costume...

He got to choose one to eat that night. I think these mini tootsie pops are a great invention - they're the perfect size and oh so cute!

His spoilsOur ward also had dancing. What a hoot! Everyone, young and older (is that tasteful enough?) participated.

Gavin liked dancing with mommy!

He even got a dance in with Liz!

We had a great holiday. We didn't even have to take Gavin out the next day. I'm afraid next year he'll be too smart to let us pull that stunt again... Instead we ate a festive meal of mummy pizza, corn on the cob, mini caramel apples and wassail at home with Geoff and Bonnie. Can I just add too that it's sooooooooooooooo nice to have my own kitchen again. I've been cooking and baking up a storm! And I love it!!!