President Hinckley

We just received the news about President Hinckley's passing. It's amazing the range of emotions from sadness to joy for him. He lived such a full, wonderful life dedicated to our Savior Jesus Christ. He was such an example to all of us. I really felt like he truly loved and cared for each of us. Looking at his picture evokes such feeling of love for him, and I will deeply miss him. I told Ryan tonight I wish I had just one more opportunity to listen to him. We will miss him, and find peace knowing he is with his dear wife Marjorie now.

I hoped this day would never come

I really hoped it wouldn't happen. Caden was my climber, not Avery. She's always been so content to play in her bed, never trying to get out. Tonight, that all changed. She has had the worst few weeks - colds, coughs, runny nose, stomach flu, then an earache...she just isn't sleeping well. Tonight I just couldn't keep going in her room to hold her. I know she feels awful, but it was getting so exhausting. Her cry is more of a whine at this piont...it's so sad, and I just decided to let her fuss it out. Well, I only lasted 5-10 minutes and I went back in her room to try again. It was nearing midnight, and we've been doing his for almost 3 hours! Well, I walk in and she's standing next to her bed, on the floor, finger in her mouth, just waiting for someone to come get her. How did she do that? She's not tall enough, I can only figure she stacked enough blankets and toys in her bed to get out. I didn't even know she knew that was an option. Life has changed for all of us now - I can only hope that she'll forget by morning :) I'm off to help her again...it's 12:20 in the morning and she's still fighting it...will she eve go to sleep?!?! Did I mention Ryan stayed home sick today and Caden joined him by throwing up this afternoon?

Does this seem unusual?

Avery had the flu...it's never a convenient time, but at 2 in the morning when I just laid my head down 20 minutes before is really not convenient. She threw up from 2 am until 9 am...every 1/2 hour. No exaggeration - really every half hour. I ended up sleeping on her floor (if you can call lying there with your eyes closed for 10 minutes after taking the time to clean up the previous mess and waiting for the next). I slept on her floor because I figured if I was there, I could hear the cough before the throw up and hope to catch it. Well, like clockwork, every half hour was often enough that we got into a good routine...she'd cough, I'd jump and grab the bucket that I conveniently placed at the end of her bed, I'd sit her up and hold her face over it. She'd tell me no, I'm okay, while trying to push it away, and then she'd throw up. Then I'd hold her in the chair for 15 minutes until she'd ask for her bed, to which I gladly put her in so I could clean out the bowl and lay on the floor once again.

Here's the unusual part. I put Avery to bed last night at 9:30. No complaints from her...she asked. She slept so great! My kids are good sleepers anyway, usually sleeping until anywhere from 9:30 am to 11:00 am. This was different though. I had to check on her several times to make sure she was still alive. I don't know about anyone else, but anytime my kids sleep excessively, my mind races that they might not wake up. What is excessive? How about until 3pm...yup, she slept till 3pm today. I checked on her often from about 11 to 2:30 because nobody can sleep that long, can they? 17 hours!!! Each time I saw her she was in a new place in her bed, eyes closed and sound asleep. That must mean she was still breathing. It was the craziest thing...not only that, about 5:30 she asked to go to bed again. I laid her back down and she was out. I don't understand it, oh well. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Random Pictures

Just some random pictures that don't really relate to any event - just everyday at the Grace house.

Anyone else like to wear goggles around the house...she even wears the blue ones in public...I'm sure people think something is wrong with her eyes.
Caught these two hiding in my storage closet under the stairs watching a movie. Caden made sure they both had water, bunnies and blankets. What a good brother!

I have to capture them reading in case they end up like me and never read when they get older...surely that isn't in the genes.
The Ringling Brothers circus...not exactly sure why it's called the greatest show on earth, but it was a memory.Caden's preschool Thanksgiving feastWard Christmas party pictures with Santa - amazingly no one is crying in this picture.

Andrew and Kelli's Wedding

We took a break from the Utah vacation to go to sunny California. My youngest brother Andrew married Kelli on Dec 28th in the Newport Beach Temple. Wow!!! What a beautiful day. The temple is absolutely stunning. Kelli and Andrew are perfect for each other and I just love Kelli! Welcome to the family. It was fun to see my sister Deb and her family who live down there. All of the family except for 8 grand kids made the trip. We were tired and worn out by the end, but it was well worth it.

Andrew & Kelli Yorgason - isn't she beautiful!!!
My entire family minus 8 grand kids.Avery with my dad
Ryan and I - isn't he so handsome!!!
My parents.
Now you see why Kelli is Matt's favorite sister in law.
The Newport Beach Temple

Christmas

Christmas was totally crazy and totally fun this year. We went to Utah to spend the holidays with Ryan's family. The kids traveled great, the weather was great, and we had such a good vacation.

A little impromptu picture in front of the Christmas Tree. This is as good as it gets when the little one is ready for her nap.
I don't think I've ever seen a happier boy on Christmas. Transformers are his life right now, and the pj's on Christmas Eve and an Optimus Prime and Bumblebee transformer from Santa made his day.
She loves her babies almost as much as Mickey mouse and the candy in her hand.
Just a little stroll for all the babies she could find.
Taking a break from playing in the snow

New Doo

Is it just me or is everyone going dark? I thought I'd try it out. What do you think?

Field trip to the fire station

A friend from the ward planned a trip to the fire station for a bunch of kids. Caden has always loved fire trucks and firemen. However, we've really never talked to him about fire and the dangers of it. I realized this trip could do two things - it could teach him about fire and the dangers, or it could intrigue him and peak his curiosity.

Just a night or two before the field trip, the battery in the smoke alarm in his room was dying, so that annoying beep started. Of course he wanted to know what it was, and when he realized that it wasn't working anymore and dad was going to just take the battery out so it would stop beeping, the questions really started. I didn't realize the connection he would make to the fire alarm not working any more and what would happen if the fire started in his room. This field trip was a great way for the firemen to answer a lot of those questions, what happens, how long it takes for them to come, etc.

This was such a good experience. He had his concerns resolved, and now he is our little fireman at home. He reminds us to turn off he fireplace, blow out candles, and he puts out pretend fires all day. He is always wondering what will cause fires and what things can catch fire, but it is out of concern rather than mischief.

Fireman showing the ins and outs of the truck...have you ever seen so many 3,4 & 5 year olds so attentive?
Explaining the jaws of lifeThe kids helped the firemen dress in their gear. They wanted the m to see and hear what to expect if they came to their house for a fire.After with the token fire hat

Whatever it takes

This is Avery's new habit when trying to sleep. Each night, I find her in her bed looking like this.
Maybe that didn't look unusual, but it isn't so much how she's laying, but what's on her toes. The binkis, every night or nap, usually on two or three. I'm not sure what is so comforting about that, but she loves it, even walks around the house with them there.

We're on a date

Caden and Avery, on many occasions, can be found sitting in the pantry stuffing their faces with cereal. This night, they had the boxes all lined up, chair set up inside, and basically pigging out. Caden informed us they were "on a date".

Grandma and Halloween

Grandma Grace came and visited from Utah for the week. We had a great time. Here are a few pics from the week.
The kids loved trick-or-treating. Caden definitely had things figured out this year. Every house he'd run back saying "I'm getting more candy than I ever thought I would!" He loved the night, except for the houses with dogs. Even the smallest puppies made him jump out of his skin.
Avery wasn't sure why she was dressed up, although I think she was the cutest lady bug I've ever seen. We had to get a sack from one of our friends houses to dump the candy in because her pumpkin just got too heavy. She didn't quite understand, so when we gave her the empty pumpkin back she had a meltdown. By the end of the night, she learned to say "trick-or-treat" and how to chew through wrappers to get a taste of what she wanted.

Rock, Paper, Scissors

Has anyone ever thought of teaching their 4 year old Rock, Paper, Scissors? I hadn't, not sure why, but it is a great tool at restaurants and anywhere you're trying to keep kids entertained. Ryan taught it to Caden sometime ago, and now Caden wants to play it anytime we are out. Even Avery gets in the action. Here he is with his cousin McKenzie in Utah, both apparently thinking scissors. I think Caden's competitive nature wants him to keep winning, and we're trying to teach him it's okay to not win every time. How do you encourage good sportsmanship without stifling the competitive nature?

Pumpkin Patch

Caden had his pre-school pumpkin patch field trip today. It was so much fun. Ryan was going to come with us, but he ended up getting sick so he stayed home with Avery. I loved the one on one time with Caden. When we first got there we went on the hay ride with his buddies Noah and Easton.
After the hay ride they took us to the patch where the kids were all able to pick one pumpkin. The only rule is they had to be able to carry it out on their own. Caden was so indecisive, trying to figure out which was the best. We must have picked up 10 before he decided on the one.

After all was said and done, we pushed our luck a little far with the good weather. We decided to go on one more hay ride with Noah, and part way through it the rain started coming down!!! We raced to our car and after all that fussing about the perfect pumpkin, I dropped it when we got to the car because we were so wet. Caden was a good sport about it and said we could just put the big crack at the back when we set it on the porch. Such a fun day and can't wait till next year!

Cadenism

I'm terrible at journaling, so this is my way of writing down things I don't ever want to forget. Caden has such an imagination, and some of the things he says surprise me. The other day he asked who the person is that lost their voice. I was a little confused but thought he must be talking about Little Mermaid. I'm not sure why I thought that b/c he's only seen it a couple of times, but it's the first thing that popped in my mind. I told him Ariel from Little Mermaid, and he told me, "No mom, it's the Holy Ghost". A little confused I asked what he meant and he started singing "Listen to the STEAL small voice, listen listen" I'm not sure how he put it all together, but he figured the Holy Ghost had his voice stolen.

Everyone needs a Caden

I know, I know - it's been a long time. There is a reason behind that, which I won't go into, but there is a reason. Nonetheless, I want to brag on my little Caden this go around. Everyone needs a Caden in their home. He is the wittiest, spunkies, sweetest, smartest little guy. Here are just a few examples:

Today we were headed out run some errands. Caden said from the back of the car "Mom, will you show dad where my pre-school is?" To which Ryan replied "Caden have you forgotten that I have picked you up before?" Caden just disregarded what his dad had said, and continued to tell us it is where the red finger is.?.?.? I wondered myself what that could mean, thinking of possible Halloween decorations at nearby houses, that's about all the further I could get in trying to figure out what the red finger meant. As he's telling us about the red finger, I look at him and he is pointing to the left with his index finger extending out and back. As we get to the street where we would normally turn, sure enough, a sign right on the corner for a property for sale. A big red hand with a red finger pointing that direction. Oh, the things he notices.

Speaking of pre-school, while we were on our way home from it the other day, Caden pointed out a big American flag next to our church. He said "Hey that's our flag". I thought I would teach him a little something and tell him it is for the United States of America. He then proceeded to recite the entire pledge of allegiance, start to finish, without missing a beat. Who knew he knew that? I sure didn't. I laughed so hard listening to his little voice say big words like allegiance, republic, indivisible. I ask him every day what he learns about pre-school and we only get as far as snack time, washing our hands and playing outside. Glad to know he is actually learning.

Finally, we have a little tradition around here that I hope never goes. Each night at bed time, he asks if I will lay down with him so he can brush my hair! I love that!!! Not only is it a little bit of heaven to have my hair played with so long, but he asks so many questions and it is fun to watch his mind think and absorb so much.