Give Thanks

After returning from Hawaii I decided it was time to get Christmas-y. We got all the boxes down from the attic and stayed up late watching Polar Express, Drinking Hot chocolate, and decorating the tree. Boots wasn't interested in Hot Coco, crazy, so he insisted on his favorite drink, milk. And of course Natalie got two cups of coco!

I am usually kind of obsessed with the Christmas tree branches, evenly distribute all ornaments, but this year I opted to let the kids do it so they wouldn't keep messing with it all day every day. So far it is working. I have 5 ornaments on one branch, 4 on the next one over, but the kids love it and they don't mess with it. I am always trying to be a fun mom, and I think this was a fun mom move! haha soooo lame, but really, the kids like me better when I am fun.

Thanksgiving was Delicious and fun with the Rawlins Family yesterday. I made all my yum pies and everything else was excellent. Then last night Brian and I headed out for our first date night since little ms. Q came into our Family. I left her with grandpa and we went to go see the new Harry Potter. In Hawaii mom Libby and I watched all of the others to get caught up, I am so glad I did because it made this one radical. I have a horrible memory, as I sometimes state, and I had forgotten all about everything. So our rating for Harry Potter was 5 stars. Loved it. And I loved the carton of popcorn and bag of twizzlers I devoured as well.

Thinking of Thanksgiving and things that we are thankful for, Brian and I have decided to make a goal. We will tell each other something we are thankful for everyday for the next year. I want to write it down so we can look back and laugh, I hope. So I will try to blog it. If not, I guess I can be old fashion and use a pen and paper!

Yesterday I was grateful for Healthy Children. You know those St. Judes Children's hospital commercials? They had one at the movie preview and I totally started to cry. I am thankful for my healthy Children. Brian was grateful for Thanksgiving Football. I hope so, since he spent the entire day watching it!

Today I am thankful for my pillow. I woke up soo tired from not going to bed till 2 am. I layed on the couch with my pillow until 10, it was a dream. I am thankful for my pillow. Brian on the other hand stayed in bed until 10, and so he is thankful for DVD's. These are what kept our kids relatively occupied and quiet until then!

Now we are onto do some Christmas shopping for the kids. I found some awesome things at Costco and I don't want to pass them up. No black Friday business this year, just your regular shopping, on the craziest day of the year. Who knows, maybe the stuff I want will be on sale!

Welcome Home

Before I left for Hawaii, Brians brother Garrett came home from his 2 year mission in Chile. It is so nice to have him home. We all love him so much, and I am happy to report he has changed for the better but is still the same ol loving teddy bear Gar!
Everyone was there anticipating him coming through at 6am sharp! If you look at the picture of the kids waiting behind the fence, you can see that boots is making a run for it. I had to jump my fence to get to him because I knew he would run into the closed off incoming international flight area and get us all busted. He is just so fast. Anyway, I caught him just in time.
It was so sweet because he was the first to RUN so fast up to Garrett to give him a hug. Brian claims he had been training boots to do it for a few months to see if telling him that he was going to give him a big "boots hug" would make him do it. He did. Brian thinks he trained him. bahaha

We have really been loving the weather here too. End of November and we are still in shorts and short sleeves. It is about this time of year that I start forcing the long sleeves, long pants, and boots because I am so sick of t shirts and sandals. It hasn't dropped below 75 it seems! So we soak it up and play outside all the time!! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving though and it is supposed to bring a cold front. (cold being 50, which is nothing compared to the -27 in Calgary)

So for Thanksgiving I have been pie making like crazy. I am bringing a fresh pumpkin, pecan, cherry and apple pie tomorrow and I cant wait to eat them. I have been so tempted to just dive in today! This is why I dont bake for myself, I would eat it all!!

I have learned that it is really hard to explain time to a 4 year old. I was trying to tell her that Thanksgiving is tomorrow. She saw me making pies today and didn't get that it was still another day till we went to papas house. Then we put up some Christmas stuff and she is convinced that tomorrow is Christmas, because there is no way we put up all this fun stuff and just let it sit there for a month!

Speaking of Christmas decorating, Brian is a TOTAL humbug. He hates decorating, which is funny since he isn't the one to do any of it. So we have been together for 5 Christmases and each year he rejects my idea for outside Christmas lights. This year I went and bought them and am forcing him into them. He is still saying that I will have to put them up myself if I want them, but lets be honest...1. he bought a nail gun today and 2. is he really gonna watch me way up on a ladder trying to put up lights? If he does he is in BIG trouble! I will break his scroog-i-ness!

Girls trip 2010

Vaca:
We had a mini girls week this last week. I say mini because only half of the miller girls could make it. Libby, my mom and I went to Kauai for the week and it was d.r.e.a.m.y. Courtney came with me and she was perfect. Slept on the beach, took one dip in the pool, slept through the night, she barely peeped, and then on the flights I don't even think she cried once! Angel child.
So Kauai is one of my new favorite places. It is still small enough that it hasn't been taken over by cities or tourists. It is called the garden island and indeed it was! The waterfalls, lush forests and canopies. It was all so beautiful. There were 2 days of rain but the rest was gorgeous. I don't have pictures today because they were all on lib's camera, but hopefully I will get those soon.
I love miller girls trips though. In the past we have done las Vegas, and Dallas and we always end up having so much fun and so many laugh Attacks. This trip was not short on that! Ill just say, unc food, and the tan stache were the biggies! We just have a way of making each other laugh all the time. Robyn and robin were totally missed though. Hopefully next time they can come.

Back at home:
So now that I have been home not even 24 hours we have had quite the run around! Today I brought the girls in for their well checks at the doctor. Courtney is now 12.5 lbs and really tall. I forget the exact length but she is in the 99 %, although I don't really keep track of that stuff! Healthy and happy. So yesterday I notice boots limping a little and today his ankle is swollen and sore. So I asked the doc about it while we were there. She had to take blood as they think it is an infection....results to come. So boots is screaming through that, which was not good for Natalie to see right before her 4 shots. So she is already crying while boots gets pinned down for his blood to be drawn. Then she frantically screams through her 4 shots. I am talking worst temper tantrum ever times 20. It was brutal. Then Courtney got her shots and there goes my last smiling child into tears. They all got over it quickly which was nice! I love my pediatrician though, before any shots were given she sat down and explained what the shots are all for and the risks associated with them as well as the risks if I don't get them. Not that it matters, I would get them anyway, but it was nice to know exactly what they are getting.

Now all 3 are sleeping and it feels like heaven. So pictures to come soon I hope, and results on boots foot.

Life without Mommy

Not only have I been taking care of the kids all week, but now I am Blogging. I am officially Mr. Mom!

With Jeni out of town I have been given the opportunity to see Natalie and Boots up close and personal, and the only time things are not crazy is when they are asleep. Here are a few pictures of the kids that Jeni requested.




















Yes, eggs in the living room.












































In addition to pictures I thought I might tell a few funny stories that happend this week.
Natalie and Boots play very well together, a little too well at times, and the bath is no exception. It seems like after every bath there is more water on the floor than in the tub. They are so silly.

The funniest thing that they have been doing this week in the tub is playing with “magic”. They have these cups, bowls, and bottles that they have collected and filled with “magic”. It is just water. They keep telling me that it is “magic” and I can’t dump it out after their bath. So I obliged, thinking there are worse battles to fight. They like to slowly pour the water over real and make believe injuries. For example, Boots has a hurt ankle so Natalie, like a good big sister, pours the magic on his leg.







During their bath today, I had stepped away for a little bit, I noticed that Natalie was able to fill up an entire Dr. Pepper (Diet) bottle with “magic” in a very shallow tub. Being curious I asked Natalie if she could reenact the filling of her bottle for me. She agreed and began to dip her bottle into the toilet. Long story short, all the “magic” water was from the toilet. Natalie and her sidekick Ponce de Leboots had been bathing their selves in heavy doses of “magic” toilet water. What a classic Dad move.

I can’t stand listening to kid’s music, so I have been probing Nat and Boots all week to find an artist that we can all agree on. I think I found one. Now when we get in the car the first thing they will ask is, “Daddy please can we listen to Chicken please?” They can’t say Dixie Chicks so they have shortened it to Chicken. Needless to say, we have been listening to a lot of Chicken these last few days.

The last story is a classic. Last night around 3:30 am I woke up with some serious thirst. You know when you wake up and you feel like you just ran a marathon in the desert. Anyway, I was thirsty. So I walk towards the kitchen when I see the appearance of the refrigerator light on. I thought to myself, did I leave the door open?

As soon as I turned the corner my question was answered. Boots was sitting there in his “bones” pajamas with his back leaned up against the refrigerator door so it would stay propped open. He not only had a mouth full of pre-cooked bacon but two fists full as well. When he saw me turn the corner he didn’t have the normal response of, oh man dads awake. He just looked at me and said, “BACON”!! I couldn’t be mad at him, so I grabbed a bottled water and we sat down at the table for him to finish the seven pieces of bacon that were in his hands. He finished his bacon, I finished my water, and then we both went to bed. That kid is crazy.



Anyway, it has certainly been an adventure this week and I look forward to the next few days. That said, I am anticipating Jeni’s return like a 10 year old does Christmas. We love you mommy and can’t wait to see you soon.

Spooks

In Texas pumpkins go bad Fast, I am talking within 2 days they are squishy and growing mold. I need to make sure that we only carve a day or 2 before Halloween. So this year I let the kids pick their own pumpkins, and they chose white ones. I like to control them, and so at first I made them put them back and pick orange, then I realized I am crazy and let them pick white. Natalie wanted to carve a hello kitty pumpkin(which I tried) and it turned out horrible. I am lucky she is 4 and she loved it. BOOTS picked his face and loved it. He also LOVED the guts inside, Natalie not so much!

Then we had our church TRUNK OR TREAT and Halloween party. The kids had a ton of fun on the bounce houses, the hayride and or course getting the grub. Boots was so cute going car to car, pushing his way to the front of the kids to say "trick or treat!" I wanted to scold him for being so pushy but he is just so stinking cute, and everyone else thought he was so cute, so I let him keep doing it. After we would finish at one car he would move on and say "Next house mom!" He loved it! Natalie went around with her little friend Molly, the robot, and they held hands the entire time! So sweet. We only did one round of cars but we walked away with TONS of candy.

I make Brian dress up as something every year and he hates it. This year I talked him into a pirate, but he would only dress up his head. What a bum!

On Sunday we had the family over for our monthly family birthday dinner. We decided that instead of trick or treating the houses outside that we would do something inside. So each family was in charge of a door in our house and they brought an activity and some candy. The kids went around first and did the bean bag toss, foggy apple juice, and fishing pond... then they went around a few more times for candy. It was a lot of fun and they thought they were trick or treating! Natalie decided to be a princess for this, and Stephen was a fireman. I was too lazy to dig his pirate costume out of the dirty clothes.

I need to just take a moment and spotlight my family members. First I have an amazing sister. Enough said. Also, I have awesome sister in laws, I have 4 and I love them all. Robin, Robyn, Anna, and Kathleen. They are all radical. But I also have super cool brothers/in laws... Garrett comes home tomorrow morning and we are all so excited. I wont be able to sleep probably! Natalie came into my room this morning and woke me up "Mom! Lets go get Garrett!!" Sadly, I had to inform her of another day's wait! Anyway, all the rest are the best Dan, Sean, Eric, and Chase. But who I really Really want to spotlight here is Brian. He is amazing. Not only does he have 4 kids, he is an ER Doctor, BUT he also is very talented with his hands with other things. He knits and Crochets. He sent Courtney this beautiful blanket and we love it. She sleeps with it every night. Brian, you seriously rock! Basically I have the best siblings ever. I lucked out with ALL of them!

bleach

I have spent the entire day today disinfecting my house, washing clothes, washing sheets, really washing everything. Brian and I both came down with a BRUTAL flu 2 nights ago. I wont share the GOREY details, but we were in the bathroom most of the night. The worst part of it was having Courtney to feed. At one point I was feeding her, and had a bowl under my chin. Sick. Poor girl. Fevers, Chills, and muscle aches followed all day yesterday. Today is a new day though and I woke up STARVING and feeling 100%! I really hate the flu. It is the worst ever. I am just sooo glad that my kids didn't get it!

While I was cleaning the kitchen today I looked up at the little white board on the fridge. I noticed some notes I had written to myself. Let me back up, I have a horrible memory... REALLY HORRIBLE, and so I make notes to myself to help me remember things. My calendar is always WAY too crowded because I write everything down. Lately I have been feeling like there are tons of things that happen in the day that I want to blog about but I forget by the time i sit down. So I decided to write them down. I was reading what it said and I read "talking blanket" I have NO IDEA what that is, or what it means, or what I was gonna say about it. That is sad, when I cant remember why I wanted to remember something.

This is my bed every morning. There isn't much better than waking up to this, except sleeping in!

Disciplining is really hard for me, not because I am a softy but because my kiddos don't really listen to me. I have taken the next step as to threaten and give cold showers instead. Otherwise they just laugh at me when I try to discipline. Regardless, Natalie has hit the stage where she knows what happens when she is bad, trouble. She also knows that she can get boots to do anything she wants. So every so often I hear "BOOTS!! I want to tell you a secret!" She whispers something and then he goes off to do the dirty work. She thinks that he will get in trouble, but I am no dumby... She gets the brunt of the bad.

Lil baby Q has found her smile too... I LOVE the fresh new baby smile!

Here are the straggling pictures from John and Emma's visit. Our kids are all the same ages, and the opposite sex, so we have 3 chances so far to get these kids together...

Stinky

The flu sucks.
The flu with 3 small children at home sucks even more.
The flu sucks when you and your hubby have it together.
The flu sucks when you have a small nursing baby...you learn to multitask.
But worst of all is having the flu and having to take care of boots.

I'm just so hungry.

All I want to do

Boots: The other morning we found Boots in the kitchen sitting with the chocolate frosting just downing it by the fist full. I always want to do this. I wish I didn't have a food conscience. I would eat frosting all the time, and not feel guilty. With all the Halloween candy around I would eat that all day too (well right now I am) but I wouldn't feel bad about that either. The kids just did a trunk or treat this year but still walked away with WAY too much. Too much temptation for me. I wish I didn't like chocolate. But boots ate so much Candy on Halloween that he was up throwing up all night. I hope he learned his lesson, but he is 2 so my guess is he didn't! By the way, how to you stop the nose picking obsession? Natalie never did it so I am guessing it is a boy thing. He picks his nose all the time and eats it. This makes me sick, but he wont stop no matter what we say or do. GROSS.

Baseball: The Rangers Lost the World Series last night to San Fransisco. Brian got to go to the game which was really exciting. He said it was "electric!" who says that?! But I was really jealous that he got to go, not as much as if they would have won though. But sad night for the Rangers and all us fans. We were so proud of them for making it so far. The pitching was just sooo good, we couldn't beat it. We did not bring our A game. I sooo hope we get another World series chance soon.

We had our own ball park fun when John and Emma were here 2 weeks ago. They came specifically for a softball tournament that John was going to play in. They didn't win the tournament but it was a lot of fun! We even got our babysitter over to the games to help watch all the kids. We had 8 kids and all the adults, except me, played... so I needed some big time help!

Natalie: So LAST weekend Natalie had her first primary program at church. The sunbeams are so stinking cute to watch up there. She is kinda shy in public and just chickens out sometimes. So everyone was saying their part and although she had been practicing her part that week and had it down perfect ("Jesus Christ is the son of God") She chickened out and was the only sunbeam who didn't say her part. I actually think another kid said her part. But when they all got up to sing they all crowded around the front and would kinda push each other ever so slightly to fight for front row. Have you ever seen the SNL skit in the club when Will Ferrell and Chris Catan bump that girl around? This was them. Natalie ended up getting bumped back and forth between 2 of the boys and I was cracking up so hard. But I was really proud of her and ever since then everything goes back to Jesus. I am wondering when to tell her it isn't appropriate. For example, She will tell me "Mom, Jesus just said that we cant do that." She says it to everything that we do.

I was getting in the shower and she walked in. She looked at me and said "Mom, Jesus just said that we cant be naked." I tried to explain that that is true, except to shower or have a bath. Sweet girl.

OHHH and the really hilarious this she has been saying lately... So if you know her, she has problems saying certain letters. F is the really hard one for her. When she says "for" she says por, which is a Spanish word. We always joke about her being bilingual since she always says this. "Boots, go get that Barbie Por me." "Mom this is por you." I don't know when the pronunciation should be a problem, but right now I am not worried, I just think it is cute!

Baby Q: I cant believe that it has been 7 weeks since this little angel has entered our home! She is so sweet and such a little darling to have in our home. She is just starting to smile but she is basically a total 3rd child, awesome. She still has a few bouts at night until about 1 or 2 am where she is just fussy, but mainly she is great!

Garrett: Brian's little brother Garrett is awesome. I love him to death. Before he left on his mission for our church he was like our little live in. He was really like one of my kids, and a really good babysitter. He is the funniest coolest kid ever. Well he is returning home from his mission in ONE WEEK. We are counting down the days and cant wait to wake up at 5 am to go greet him at the airport next week. This is gonna be awesome. The boys have planned out all the movies he has missed, music he has missed, and new food we have found for him to check out as soon as he gets home. They have actually postponed seeing certain movies that came out so they could see them FIRST with Gar when he gets home. When we ask boots who is coming home soon he says Garrett's name, then when we ask him what he is going to give him... "A boots hug!" Lucky Garrett, Boots' hugs are THE BEST!