Baptism Pictures 1

This boy...

So handsome. So big. So sweet. So smart. So funny, inventive, mature, and 8.

Joshua, you have chosen to get baptized this weekend. We are so proud of you. September 12th, 2015 will be a momentous day for you. You will take that first step in a line of covenants and promises that will help you return home to Heaven.

This suit that Mommom got you makes you look so grown up. You love this suit. You wear it every Sunday and you like the way it makes you feel. 

Today I had the opportunity to go through a BUNCH of old pictures of you. Many of them I haven't seen in years. Your Grandma Haws is putting together a video for us all to watch at the luncheon after your baptism. I thought her video was PERFECT, and the song is so you! She did a great job making it and it made me cry. I went through some old pictures to see if I had any specific pictures that she thought would be good. I spent her whole visit looking at the pictures, hopefully she had as much fun as I did. 8 years has flown by so fast. 

Your such a good boy. You try hard to do what is right. You look after your siblings with such maturity and love. You know the scriptures far better than I did at your age. You soak up knowledge like a sponge. You love to read. You love learning about history, especially American history. You love playing rough with Dad. I'm glad you have a Dad who loves to play with you, even after long days at work. You have such a great memory. You remember things that happened so long ago, it is pretty amazing. I hope you remember Saturday. I hope it is a good experience for you. Keep loving the Lord and keeping His commandments and you will have a happy life. I know that Heavenly Father has given us commandments because He loves us and wants us to be happy. This becomes more and more clear to me every day as I get older. There is such wisdom in the commandments. Stay close to your Savior, Jesus Christ, and you will always be happy, no matter what this life throws at you. You were saved to live in this time period. You can do so much good in this world. People ask me why I have so many kids, and I say it's because the world needs more kids like mine in it. You are such a good kid. We love you!

Shananigans

That messy-haired cutie is my Banana. She refuses to leave on clothes. She forever is taking off her diaper. She rips rubber bands out of her hair. She gets muddy and rolls in the grass. She loves to laugh and dance. She tells Jazmine that I am her mommy. She sits on her potty chair but doesn't successfully go inside it. She copies everything you say just like a little parrot. 

Caleb Jon can roll forwards and backwards. He spits up a lot. He loves catching my eye from across the room and giving me big smiles so I will come and pick him up. If I can't pick him up, he gets very sad. I is tickilish and fun. He has two teeth poking through and likes to chew on his fingers.

Lukey bear is a sensitive boy. He is always bringing me flowers and drawing me pictures. The other day he told me to stay upstairs because he had a surprise for me. When I came downstairs he had drawn four pictures and taped them up around the house. The other day I got upset with the kids for not picking up their toys. I sat them all down on the couch and said to them that I was going to throw away one of their toys. Joshua got really REALLY sad. Lukey didn't like seeing him so sad. So, he said, "Mommy, you can pick two of my toys to throw away so that Joshua can keep all of his toys. I don't want Joshua to be sad."

Mercedes has been finding her way into my room and sleeping on the floor at some point in the night. She says she is having bad dreams. We let her sleep with the boys on the weekends because Jon Mark and I feel badly that we had to separate them. If we had it our way, they'd all be sharing a room. But, we feel genders should be separated (except on the weekends-or so it seems). She loves her brothers and misses them. The other night, she called me into her room and said that she had a secret for me. I leaned down and she whispered in my ear "I love you, Mom". Then, she said, "Why do we have to eat salad?" 

I don't have a picture for Joshua on this post. I will be posting his baptism pictures soon. Anyway, he is a sweetheart. The other night, as I was tucking him into bed, he said, "You know, it's hard to stay mad at someone when they miss you so much." I asked him who he was talking about, and he said that every morning Hannah climbs up to the top bunk where Joshua is sleeping and wakes him up. She goes to him first, before any one else in the family. I said that I was glad it was him and not me because she wakes up way too early (like 5:45 or 6 am). My alarm is set for 6:45. Joshua then said, "Yeah, it's hard to get mad because she just misses me so much. And, I'm glad it's me that she wakes up because you're still recovering from childbirth." Not sure that 6 months is needed for childbirth recovery, but hey, I'll take it :) The other day we were headed straight to my mom and dad's after school because I was taking Leyla dinner at the hospice center. I told the kids that Grandma would have to help them with their homework. Joshua said, "I don't think that Grandma will know how to help us. I mean, she went to school in the olden days, like a really long time ago." I told him that Grandma was smart and would be able to help him anyway. He said, "Yeah, but, she went to school back when they actually thought that Pluto was a planet!" He said it with such disbelief that I had to chuckle. I thought Papa Mac would get a kick out of that because Jon Mark is always comparing him to dirt and whatnot. I guess the Pluto thing is a whole new generations version of dirt! HAHA!

A random picture of John Frost. Not sure when. Not sure why. But, he is cute!

Here I am trying to get a mom and son picture. I am just showing off his blue eyes. He is just too cute!

2 Milestones

Two milestones have been reached in the McAvoy household. The first one I was hoping would never exist. We had gotten lucky so far with not having to deal with this. Luke came to me with a bloody napkin and he was asking me to "get it out". I didn't know what he was talking about until I looked WAY up his nose. That's when I saw it. It was a bead. He had shoved a green bead up his nose.  I had heard about things like this happening to other families, but never in ours. I would have taken him to the doctor. But Caleb was sleeping so peacefully and I needed to get the kids home from school. Plus, while looking with the flashlight, I saw a slender gap and figured that I could carefully slide something through to get behind the bead and pry it out. I grabbed one of those "unlocker thingys" that you use to unlock household doors (I guess I could use the word "key", but it isn't quite a key). I told him to hold still, and very carefully I got it out of the danger zone. Then, I snapped a picture. I threw the bead away and he cried. 

The second milestone, is this one. My 8 year old son built a series of Lego projects ALL by himself. He read the step by step instructions and figured it all out. I was so proud of him! Way to go, Joshua!

1st Day of School

 The kids were so excited to go to school today. Both of them (along with the others) decided to wake up and get dressed before my alarm clock even had a chance to go off. They were ready in no time at all.

We had french toast and waffles for breakfast (with homemade syrup and whip cream). Then, we had a spiritual thought (something I hope to do every morning--thanks, Vanessa, for your example). I told the kids that I was sending them off to the front lines of a spiritual battle every morning when I send them to school. Perhaps that is a bit dramatic, but I want them to remember who they are and what they are capable of. They are "Saturday Warriors" and I want them to think of themselves as such. Anyway, when I said it, Joshua said, "Yeah, but not so much so at ALA then at other schools because there are more people who keep the commandments at ALA." The school definitely gave me good vibes on Meet the Teacher night, so we are anticipating a great year!

Mercedes looked so cute with her hair done nice, and Joshua looked like a little gentleman with his belt and his shirt tucked in. I got to volunteer in his classroom this morning and I think he enjoyed that. Mercedes had a bit of a rough day, I guess she got homesick and cried. She thinks she will do better tomorrow. She enjoyed the note I put into her lunchbox and Joshua did as well. He said he was glad I wrote a note because every single person at lunch had a note in their lunchbox.

Fun With Headresses

Dresser

Here is the dresser I recently redid. This dresser belonged to my dad as a child. Then, it belonged to my sisters and I. It left me for a decade or two, but now it is back into my possession to be used as a dresser for my daughters. I wonder if the man who made it knew just how much use it would provide. It was white when I received it. I fixed the joints and caulked the cracks. I sanded the beast down and distressed it. Then, I painted it a color that Mercedes selected and toned it down a bit with some stain. It is dramatic and eclectic. It was a lot of fun for me to do. Do you like it? I have been getting mixed responses from hot, cold, to lukewarm.

Tummy Time

I CANNOT even BEGIN to tell you how much I love this little guy. He has got to be the cutest, sweetest, HAPPIEST little 5 month old around. He is adorable! 

He has recently discovered rolling and is always rolling onto his tummy. This tends to make him mad since he hasn't learned how to roll back over. OH! But he is so cute on his belly. My words are lost to his cuteness! 

Those eyes! That smile! The way he sucks his thumb!! He is a heart breaker. My heart is so full it's nearly at bursting capacity.