Weekend Getaway

Jon and I decided that we could use a break from everything, so we took the kids to my mom's and went to San Diego for the weekend. Except for the cold, overcast weather, it was such a fun trip. The perfect getaway.

This picture was taken from inside our hotel room. We literally stayed right on Mission Bay. Friday night we ate at this really nice restaurant on the beach called JRDN. The atmosphere was awesome and the food was delicious. We then walked down the boardwalk, got some frozen yogurt and went back to our room and ate it outside on the patio. We then just laid out there for a while just relaxing and watching all of the people go by.

This is the view from inside the hotel grounds. It was like a mini tropical paradise!

I remember staying at this hotel a couple times with my family when I was growing up. I was worried that it was going to be old and run down now, but was pleasantly surprised.

Saturday morning we slept in until 9:30 and then woke up and ordered room service and ate breakfast in bed. We then went swimming in the heated pool and sat in the jacuzzi while it was sprinkling rain! We rented these beach cruiser bikes and rode around Mission Bay. We made it about an hour until our thighs were burning so bad that we turned them back in!

We decided to walk down the boardwalk (instead of riding the bikes like we were going to do!) and ate lunch at this beat up old Mexican food shack. It was pretty good, not great. Afterwards we went back to the hotel and sat out on the beach in our sweatshirts and read while we sipped hot chocolate! Not exactly what I had planned, but still fun!

Later that evening we drove to downtown San Diego and walked around the shops and restaurants. We stopped in the Brookstone store in a big 4 story outdoor shopping mall called Horton Plaza. We sat in the massage chairs for a while until Jon bought himself an early Father's Day gift. He got the massage pad that you put on your chair and it massages up and down your back. It feels so good. He claims that he is going to leave it at work, but I'm hoping that he'll bring it home every now and then!

We then went to dinner at this Brazilian restaurant where they bring the different meats around until you tell them to stop. It wasn't as good as the ones in Salt Lake, but it was okay. The killer was when we got the bill and realized that it was $48 per person for the meal, not including drinks and dessert. What? We were dying. There was no menu and I guess we just assumed it would be about the same price as the Utah ones. We were wrong. It took us a while to get over how much we just paid for one meal, but we learned our lesson to ALWAYS check the price before eating at a restaurant!

Overall it was such a fun, relaxing trip. It was just what I needed with how stressful life has been lately. The best part was when we got home and Jon had paid for a housecleaner to come while we were gone. The whole house is clean! I really did marry the best guy ever.

Memorial Day 2009

So I haven't run a race since I ran the St. George Marathon before I got pregnant with Max. I thought that it was about time that I get back into training and running races. My good friend, Robyn and I ran the Saddleback Memorial Half Marathon on Monday morning. We were both a little worried about it since there were a lot of hills, but it ended up not being too bad. We ran the whole thing and finished with a pretty good time- exactly the same as my last two half marathons so I was happy with it.

This was the only picture we got of us running. I'm hoping that maybe the professional photographers got some better ones.

The proud duo right after the race. Robyn was a great running partner. She made me talk to her for the first 9 miles which actually made it go by really quicky! We then cranked up our ipods and cruised for the last 4 miles.

The kids were pretty excited to cheer me on when I crossed the finish line. Nathan made me a sign that said "Go Mom" about 15 times! It was pretty cute.

I love the flared nostrils in all of these shots- I think I was still sucking some serious wind!

After every race Jon meets me at the finish line with a bowl of Crunchy Corn Bran! For some reason it helps me not get sick after a long run. It worked! I think it was a combination between Jon giving me a blessing the night before, drinking electrolyte replenishers throughout the race and eating this cereal afterward. I was able to eat whatever I wanted right away and I never felt sick. It was so nice.

Next up on the racing schedule... The Camp Pendleton Mud Run a week from Saturday. Jon is running it with me so it should be lots of fun!

Later in the afternoon our friends from dental school stopped by to hang out and have a BBQ. The Wirig's live in Vegas so we don't get to see them very often. It was so fun to be able to catch up with what's going on in our lives!

The babies, Max and Audrey. Max kept trying to crawl out of the picture so Jon was trying to hold his head so he couldn't move!

Carter, Nathan and Brooklynn all on the teeter-totter.

Janae and I

We had fun visiting with them and hope that they come down to see us again soon. We love visitors!

Hard

So having a child with special needs is really hard. I try to stay positive about it, but sometimes I reach my breaking point and Sunday was one of those days. For those of you who don't know Jake's background, he has Epilepsy and severe developmental delays. He is well behaved at school and church, but he has serious behavior problems at home and around other kids in unstructured situations. The last month seems to be worse than ever before. Jake hits or pushes every time he walks by Nathan or Max or any kid that's near him. He screams all day long even when he is happy playing. He is very destructive and loves to throw toys and anything he can get his hands on. He dumps his food on the ground all of the time making a huge mess. He is a challenge, to say the least.

Every time we go anywhere I am always worried about Jake and whether or not he is going to hurt someone or himself. It gets tiring. He still isn't potty trained and has bowel issues every time we go swimming so while our friends and family spend the summer at the pool, we spend the summer at home. We did buy a new waterslide this year so that Jake can at least have some water fun since this is one of his favorite things to do. All day long I hear Nathan crying and complaining that Jake hit him AGAIN. I can't handle it.

Sunday we were at my mom's house and I went upstairs to check on Jake and found my 7 year old nephew crying hysterically because Jake threw a bowling pin at his head (it was a small one, but still pretty hard so I understand that it really hurt him). My sister made a comment to me about it and I just went upstairs and lost it. It wasn't her fault, she was just concerned about her son, but I was already feeling really frustrated and it was just enough to push me over the edge. I really think I cried uncontrollably for about an hour or so. To make matters worse I could hear everyone singing to the May birthday people downstairs, When they sang to Nathan I cried even harder because I felt so guilty that I wasn't dowstairs getting excited for him, instead I was up there crying about Jake. It's not fair to Nathan and Max that they are always getting beat up and that Jake takes so much of our attention. I really don't know what to do.

We have been to so many doctors and specialists trying to get help for him. We are taking a parenting class right now that we are now 7 weeks into and still haven't noticed any change. Jake doesn't make any connection between discipline and the behavior. He will just turn around and hit or scream 5 minutes later and wonder why he's getting in trouble again. I finally went to a new doctor on Monday and he suggested trying behavior medications that might help Jake be more in control. Up until now I have been somewhat against this idea because unlike some children with ADD/ADHD or Autism, Jake can pull it together at school and in structured situations so in my mind he should be able to behave at home as well. However, I've reached the end of my rope. Something has to change. The doctor thinks the medication will help and won't cause him to be any more delayed. The worry is that it might interfere with his seizure medication causing him to have more seizures, something that we do not want to happen. So I think we are going to try it and see how it goes. I figure that we can always stop if it's not working.

We just had Jake's IEP at school which was a total stressful nightmare, but in the end we got what we wanted. Jake is going to repeat Kindergarten in the same collaborative class that he is in now. He has made so much progress this year, but he still isn't close to being ready for 1st grade and I refuse to put him in a special day class where he is only with other kids with special needs. He needs typical role models to emulate because he is such a follower. He is going to have a one-on-one aide again which eases my worries a little about him having a seizure and falling off of the big toy or hitting his head on something. I hope this is the right choice.

I really have a special place in my heart for Jake and love him so much. He can be so sweet and loving at times, it just seems that those times are getting fewer and farther between. I hope that this helps him be happier and more socially acceptable so that kids will want to be his friend and play with him. It's so hard to watch kids not want to be around him because he is so physical, though I totally understand it. Kids don't want to get hurt. We don't go to parks or playgroups for fear of what Jake might do. I try to do fun things with Nathan while Jake is at school so that Nathan isn't totally deprived. I don't want him to grow up resenting Jake. Jake has been aggresive since he was little and I hoped that he would outgrow it or that it would get better. It hasn't. It's gotten much worse and now that he is bigger it hurts a lot worse.

The bottom line is that I'm tired. This is way harder than I ever imagined.

Happy Birthday, Uncle Nathan!

Nathan turned 4 years old today. He has been looking forward to his birthday for a long time. He woke up this morning and we asked him if he knew what day it was. He got a big smile on his face and asked, "Is it my birthday?" When we told him yes he ran back to his bed so that we could dump his birthday balloons on him! What a funny kid!

Here are 4 things that I love about Nathan:

1- Nathan has a really silly side. He frequently calls Jon and I "Uncle Mom" and "Uncle Dad." We have no idea where this came from, but I always reply with, "Yes, Uncle Nathan?" He then laughs and says, "Uncle Nathan... I'm not an uncle!" He also thinks it is so funny to change the first letter of words. If I ask him if he wants to go outside and play, he will reply with, "Fes, I want to mo boutside to fay!"

2- Nathan is smart and loves to learn. He has been able to spell and write all of our names since he turned 3 and is now learning how to spell words such as cat, hat, love and his friend's and cousin's names. He asks me questions all the time about how things work and what different words mean. He likes to make up his own meaning of words. Yesterday he went on Space Mountain with me and when we got off he told me that it was interesting. He then said that interesting means that it went really fast! I hope he always has this thirst for knowledge.

3- Nathan is ADORABLE! I can't tell you how many times I have been stopped in a store and told that he looks like either the kid from "A Christmas Story" or the kid from "Jerry Maguire" and "Stuart Little." I love his glasses, his chubby little cheeks and his contagious smile.

4- Nathan is very polite. He always remembers to say "Please" and "Thank You" and will remind us if we forget to say "Your Welcome!" He is also a little bit of a kiss up! He will frequently say all one after another, "Mom, I love you... Dad, I love you... Mom, you're beautiful... Dad, you're handsome." It is very heartfelt!

Nathan had his first friend party this year on Saturday. He chose the Mickey Mouse theme and invited 12 of his little friends. He had a great time!

He was a great host- he greeted all of his guests as they arrived.

The kids played for a while and then we played "Pin the Nose on Mickey Mouse." They listened very intently to the directions!

We then played "Freeze Dance" to the tunes from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. It was really funny to watch the kids bust out their best dance moves!

We then decorated candy bags and let the kids take a whack at the pinata. I learned the hard way to let the smaller kids have a turn first. About halfway through I let the oldest kid there have a turn and he busted the whole thing open in 2 hits. Oops!

The mad dash for candy!

I've officially given up on trying to do creative cakes for my kids. I think I might stick to cupcakes from now on. They are so much easier and I think they still turned out cute!

Happy kids eating cupcakes. I love that almost all of them are wearing their party hats!

Nathan ripped through his presents pretty quickly.

He was pretty excited about all of his new toys!

This morning Nathan got the traditional balloons in bed.

He then opened his presents and got this new plasma car that he has been riding all day.

We've never done breakfast in bed for the kid's birthdays, but since Nathan just saw me get it on Mother's Day, he decided that he wanted it for his birthday. He requested scrambled eggs, grapes and milk!

When Jake saw Nathan eating in bed he wanted in on the action as well! (You may notice that I still haven't gotten around to cleaning the crayon off of their walls and blinds. I have bought the Magic Erasers- that's progress, right?)

Nathan brought birthday cupcakes for his preschool class today. When he got home we tried to do fun things all afternoon. We did "Birthday Under-doggies" on the swings, played Follow the Leader and Duck, Duck, Goose, read books, water colored and then headed out to Grandma's for pizza and more cupcakes! I think he had a pretty good birthday this year.

I love this kid so much and am grateful that he is part of our family.

Happy Birthday, Nathan!

Happy Mother's Day!

Today Jake and Nathan held hands as they walked up to the stand at church to sing "Mother Tell Me The Stories." I had one of those moments where I realized just how grateful I am to be their mother. My kids are hard. Sometimes it is really hard to step back and realize how lucky I am to be a mom and to have these crazy boys as my children. I have a lot to learn, but I hope that they realize that I am doing the best I can. I love them a lot.

I am also very grateful for my mom. I love that I get to live down here and see her all of the time. She is a great example to me and and is always so supportive of the kid's activities and willing to help out whenever I need her. I am blessed to have such a wonderful mom. I love her a lot.

Happy Mother's Day to all of you moms out there!

Farewell, Mr. Incredible!

No, Jon and I are not the car naming type.  Mr. Incredible is what the girls at Jon's office called him because he was so big for his little 1998 Honda Civic!

This car has been with us for eleven years and has been good to us.  However, the day came last week that we had to say goodbye.  Jon posted it on Craig's List and sold it within 3 hours.  It was quick and painless.

The replacement...

I'm Losing My Mind...

Seriously. Here is a list of all of the things I have done in the last THREE days to prove my point.

1. Wednesday I got up at 5:45am, got Carli and Justin ready for early morning seminary (we're watching them this week while my parents are out of town), drove to the church at 6:30 and when I saw that there were no cars there it hit me that they had LATE start that day and didn't need to be there until 7:10. That's 40 more minutes of sleep we all could have gotten.

2. After school that day I drove Carli to Christy's house to get her hair done for her choir concert that night and totally forgot the bobby pins. And her hair had to be in a bun.

3. I set my YW binder (I had a board meeting after the concert) and both cameras by my purse that night so that I wouldn't forget them for the concert. I was pulling out when I realized that I had just grabbed my purse and not the YW binder so I honked at Jon and he brought out the binder. I then got to the concert and was on the phone with the Honda dealerships trying to get the best deal on a new Accord for Jon. I sat down at the concert and realized that I didn't have either of the cameras (I left them on the counter) and I forgot to buy Carli flowers on the way in. Thankfully Holly pulled through on this one and had flowers and a video camera with her.

4. After the concert I ran into one of the Laurels in our ward (I'm over the Mia Maids, but still...) and proceeded to ask her who she was here to watch. She told me that she was in the concert at which time I told her that I didn't see her, but that she did a great job. I then asked her if she has another year left and she told me she was a senior. Of course I know this, but was I thinking at that point? Nothing makes a person feel less loved that you not knowing anything about them.

5. Yesterday I went to Target and then to the party store to buy stuff for Nathan's birthday party. When I got to the party store I realized that my wallet wasn't in my purse. The last I remembered seeing it was when Max was playing with it in the shopping cart. I called Target and they hadn't seen it, I went checked all of my bags and it wasn't in there and so I finally went to Target to look around the parking lot. They got the security guy to help me look and to check the security cameras but he didn't see anything. I made sure I gave them my cell phone number because my home phone was off of the hook and I couldn't find the reciever anywhere (still can't find it). About 2 hours and 20 prayers later, the security guy called and said that they found it in a shopping cart in the food cart. I drove straight down there to get it and thankfully everything was still in it. So stressful.

6. Today I got on the 5 South freeway when I wanted to go North. It took a good 5 minutes to get to the next exit and turn around. Not good when you're in a hurry.

7. I went to pick up Jon today and left my cell phone at home so I couldn't call and find out where he was. After driving around for a while I finally found him. When I got home I had about 10 missed calls on my phone.

8. I just went to publish this post and the Internet had disconnected and so I am typing most of it for the second time. Wait. Now the third time.

I either need more sleep or less going on or I don't know what. I'm seriously scared for myself. Please help!