Happy 6th Birthday Christopher!!!

We've been celebrating Christopher's 6th for the past couple of days. His actual birthday was yesterday. I always find myself reflecting back on that day they were born on their birthdays. Sometimes I think birthdays affect mommies more than the actual birthday boy/girl. I told Christopher that his birth was so special to me, because he is who made me a mommy.
He got a trampoline from Bret, Xander, Darci, and I. We gave it to him yesterday morning before Bret had to leave for work. It was still in the box. He was so excited I just had to put it together for him. The instructions said it was a 2 person job, but I knew I could do it myself. 4 hours later Christopher and Xander were having a blast.
Christopher had Kindergarten in the afternoon and I got to bring treats for him. All the kids sang to him and enjoyed their cupcakes. I forgot until yesterday morning that the treats needed to be store bought and not home baked. I was lucky to find a large selection of cupcakes with plastic rings on them with Star Wars, Ninja Turtles, and Disney Princesses (for the girls).
This morning I woke up and started working on getting everything ready for Christopher's birthday party. He chose a cowboy theme and Grandpa Pingel ran with it. He brought one of his horses, bales of hay with lassos, and stick horses for racing. There were friends from the neighborhood and cousins and it was lots of fun. Christopher loved ALL of his presents. He's like his mommy and is just excited that his friends would get him ANYTHING.
A little later that evening his Grandpa and Grandma Armstrong came and gave him a gift and watched as he and Xander jump on the trampoline. This trampoline is already used more than I was hoping for and I'm thrilled.
It's been a fun 6 years and I feel so blessed to have a son as amazing as Christopher. Those that know him know how sweet and sensitive and caring he is. He is a very good boy and so very smart. He has a sensitivity to things of a spiritual nature and has started talking a lot lately about serving a mission when he's 19. He also takes his education very seriously and wants to make sure we do lots of reading and writing and numbers (his favorite) this summer. What kid does that!! I'd like to say I'm doing something really right, but a lot of it is just Christopher. He's a special and GREAT kid.

EGD

Esophagogastroduodenoscopy... that's what EGD stands for. I had one done today. They put you under sedation and put a camera down your throat. They look at your espophagus, stomach, and duodenum. I guess during mine they found a lot of inflammation in my stomach. They took a biopsy and I'm waiting for results now. I've been having stomach problems on and off for several years now and in the last month it has gotten pretty bad. I have horrible heartburn and stomach aches. I've taken every medication under the sun. Hopefully the good drs will find something that can be taken care of easily.

Christopher's Field Trip

I had the opportunity to chaperone a field trip with Christopher's class to the BYU Bean Museum. It was fun for both Christopher and I. We've been to this museum lots and he felt like he had a lot to show the kids in his group. They did an animal search and then watched a live animal show. I wasn't able to find a babysitter and so took Xander and Darci, too. Xander just went with the flow and you would have never known he wasn't a part of Christopher's group. Darci was in the stroller and was mad at me because she wasn't running around free and exploring with all the big kids.
Christopher's favorite part of the day was riding in a school bus and petting a real live lizard.

Grady and Rachel visit

Aunt Carrie Pingel came up from Las Vegas to Utah to attend BYU Women's Conference. While she enjoyed classes Bret and I got to look after cousins Grady (1) and Rachel (3). It was so much fun to play with cousins we don't get to see often. Grady was a little nervous around us at first. Then he totally warmed up to Bret. That entire first day Grady became Bret's little shadow. Darci wasn't sure how she felt about that. Rachel loved playing with Christopher and Xander and games on the computer were a favorite.

A day at the zoo

The kids have been on spring break this week and we had lots of fun activities planned, but then we got hit with weather more fitting to early March and not middle of April.

But TODAY we finally had sunny skies and no wind.

It wasn't too warm or too cold. The animals we're active and engaging.

Darci LOVED the penguins and the monkeys. Also, the little playground where she could run around. She cried so hard when we left the playground.

Christopher likes the big cats and the several mother/baby groups we saw. There was a baby giraffe, baby colobus monkey, and teeny tiny baby tamarins. Bret got a picture of the Giraffe mommy and baby and me with my baby all together

Xander was excited to go, but once we got there didn't want us to stop very long or look very much so he had some rough times. Although he really enjoyed the giraffes and a very engaging wolf. He also was fascinated by the white alligator. The picture of Bret with the kids has the alligator in the background.

Hogle Zoo gets nicer every year as they improve the animal enclosures and we enjoy using our annual pass as the weather warms up.

It all falls apart at 30

2008 has been the hardest year physically for me. I turn 30 and my body starts to fall apart. Makes no sense! I've had more illnesses this year. I'm probably eating healthier and exercising more than I ever have in years past and yet I continue to have health and weight problems. Right now I'm struggling with things in the category of "female problems". I've been to 2 different drs now and talked to many other drs and nurses. I have another appointment on the 7th of April and hope to get some answers by that point. In this day and age when people are living longer and longer I'm getting the short end of the stick.

Reflecting on numbers

Today I've been reflecting on numbers. Yesterday Bret turned 37 years old. He says he feels old, but I don't think he looks or acts old. I sometimes forget he's 7 years older than me. For his birthday we had a nice, relaxing day. He says it's exactly how he was hoping for. Just the kids, and he, and I. We watched the movie "Enchanted" and then had cake and ice cream. We "snuggled under the purple blanket". This is a new favorite of the whole family. Watching a movie in our family room and snuggling under an old comforter of mine. All 3 kids look forward to it and love it. So do Bret and I.
3 kids. Another number going through my head. I'd definately like to have another, but when... and is it possible to lose 50-60 lbs (another number) before getting pregnant. I think that weight loss is crucial to me not having so many problems late in my pregnancies. I've been stuck in the same 10lb range since Darci was born. I'll diet and lose 10 lbs and then get sick or just get derailed a little bit and eventually gain most or all of it back. I don't feel like I can even think about planning a pregnancy until I can lose a significant amount of weight and keep it off. That's why I'm looking ahead right now. It could be a good12-24 months before I feel like I can even attempt pregnancy (more numbers).
We measured and weighed our kids today... just for fun. Christopher recently had a growth spurt and all his pants got short. Christopher is 44 inches tall and weighs 41 lbs. I think he'll always be a little on the srawny side, but I think it's possible for him to be pretty tall eventually.
Xander is 40 inches tall and weighs 35 lbs. We get a lot of comments on how big he is. He's the youngest Sunbeam in primary, but he's by far the tallest.
Darci is 30 inches tall and weighs 22 lbs. She's right on track for her weight and a little on the tall side. Kind of funny to me because she does not look tall and skinny. She has quit the appetite on her.
Anyway, thanks for putting up with my wandering thoughts.

What a way to spend a...

This year Easter and my birthday fell on the same day. I recieved an email a couple of weeks ago that said that Easter coming this early is very rare. It hasn't happened in 95 years and isn't supposed to happen again for, like, 220 years. Add on that this was kind of a milestone birthday for me (30 years) and I guess it was supposed to be a pretty special day.
Then, life happens!
I got seriously ill the Friday before. I won't go into the gorey details, but let's just say I lived in the bathroom for the better part of 3 days. My birthday became an afterthought as I tried to figure out how NOT to spoil my children's Easter. Originally we were going to drop the kids off at Grandma and Grandpa Pingel's house on Saturday while we went on a double date with some neighbors to a play at BYU and dinner and then spend the night with the Pingel's and have grand Easter celebrations the next morning. After church Easter day was going to be a scrumptious birthday dinner and cake. We sadly cancelled on our friends. Bret took the kids to the ward Primary Easter egg hunt on Saturday morning and then we loaded up and headed down to Salem. I slept the better part of the day (man that phenergan stays with you). That night as I was starting to feel "on the mend" Bret started to complain that he didn't feel really great. Yep, you guess it! He spent the entire night in and out of the bathroom. As hard as he tried to be a part of things he slept through most of Sunday morning. The kids enjoyed a great egg hunt and looking through their baskets. I did my best to look like I had some energy and also to explain the REAL reason we have Easter. Thankfully Christopher "got" it and retained the story. Xander knew that we had Easter because of Jesus, but didn't really retain the reason. Darci just liked the eggs and treats. We got the kids all dressed up and did Sacrament Meeting in Salem and then went home and slept some more. Bret and I nibbled on birthday dinner and expressed our deepest gratitude to Karen and Jerry for helping the kids have a fun weekend (REALLY, thank you so, so ,SO much Mom and Dad). We looked at my baby book and pictures a little. I had a special moment with my dad feeding the horses some apples. And then we headed home to get the kids to bed and crash into our own.
Thanks to everyone who left birthday wishes on the voice mail and computer. It will definately be one that I'll never forget.

Just some photos...

1 of 3 "Easter" dresses.
She's getting so BIG!

Xander will sleep ANYWHERE!
Walking around
Loves her tutu and purse.

Where is Christopher. He's never in the pics.

World's Greatest Dad!!

There is nothing I enjoy more than seeing Bret enjoy our children. He truly knows how to connect with each one's individual personalities. Our favorite things to do as a family is snuggle on our couch and watch a movie. Believe it or not, only Bret knew I was going to take this picture.

Our kids especially love when Bret can be a part of the nighttime routine. He always blows bubbles for bath time and then it's jammies, brush teeth, story (which he reads), pray, song, and loves good night.