May

Our garden has grown and the kids are enjoying the peas.

                           There has been a lot of fighting.

There has been a lot of outside play. 

                                                                                        Sprinklers

                                                               This 6 year old finished kindergarten. 

Cubs & The Bean

                                                                             Cubs vs. Atlanta Braves

 Paul's semester is over.  We ventured to Chicago for a family fun day.  We went to Wrigley Field and saw the Cubs.  The kids loved their hot dogs and had a blast.  Everyone sitting by us adored Ruthie, which is good for me to remember how cute she can be.  Her terrible two phase...screaming, pinching, throwing, disobeying, kicking and defiant personality has been challenging.  After the game we road the train downtown to The Bean.  The kids loved it.    

 30 + weeks.  Overall I am doing great.  I have the obvious UNCOMFORTABLE complaints: leg cramps, heart burn, trouble breathing, nausea, itching and back pain.  That is all to be expected though.  The boys are growing.  At 27 weeks they were 2 lbs 6 oz & 2 lbs 1 oz.  They are both head down, not many contractions, no swelling in my feet or any other signs of trouble. 

Ty's visit

My brother Tyler came to visit us a few weeks ago.  He was on his way to New Jersey for the summer.  It was a quick overnight stop.  Tyler was our first visitor in our house.  We pulled out the red carpet.  Paul gave him a Purdue t-shirt,  David let him sleep on the bottom bunk and I made Holly's sour cream blueberry pancakes in the morning.  It was great to see him.  Come again soon Ty.

Kindergarten

Eden had her kindergarten musical program today.

This girl and her style. It takes her 5 minutes to get dressed and 20 minutes to accessories herself. Today she took one of my earrings and put it on a silver chain. She also wrapped a stretchy headband to make an anklet. I must say I LOVE school uniforms. It gives Eden a guideline, which she needs.
Eden loves kindergarten. She loves her teacher, Mrs. Koch. After the program I went to her classroom. She showed me around and kept talking and talking. There were about 5 children who didn't have parents come, they were waiting in the classroom. One little girl started crying. Mrs. Koch took them to the garden to distract them. It broke my heart. I was so thankful I was able to be there for Eden. I always want to be there for her. It was a simple little program but I know Eden worked hard and was so excited to say her turkey poem.

LOL

Happy Easter

Wallin/Wilson families had their annual easter egg hunt & lunch

Sunday morning

First tooth

David lost his first tooth!

Then two days later (today) he lost another tooth. His bottom tooth is pushing all the babies one out. Today he got a crown! I thought he was getting a cavity filled. I noticed a huge silver cap on his tooth while we were checking out at the dentist office. Oh goodness.

His left cheek was numb. He kept playing with it. I gave him a banana to eat in the car. A few minutes later he said, "mom, why is there blood on my banana?". I looked over and saw he had bit his lip. The poor kid still has a huge fat lip. The tooth fairy will visit tonight, which means David will want to go to the dollar store and get another airplane tomorrow.

pregnancy journaling

25 weeks

This pregnancy has been different than the rest. In the first trimester I was so tired....so tired. I had terrible dreams. I fought nausea all day, it got worse at night. I had to lay down by 3pm otherwise my world would start spinning. I did not throw up as much compared to the other pregnancies. Usually, I get sick-throw up-get sick-throw up. This time I just felt terrible all day. At my 14 week mark I woke up expecting to feel better but I didn't. At 17 weeks I could tell the first trimester blues were over. I suspected maybe I wasn't as far along as I thought or this was an affect of age and 4th pregnancy.

At 21 weeks I remember sitting on the bleachers at the YMCA watching David's basketball class. It was hard to take a full breath. I was so uncomfortable sitting straight up without a back support. I had to go walk around for a few minutes. I felt bigger than only 21 weeks. Then again, the first trimester I found myself devouring cherry ICEE's and french fries. I stopped at more drive thru's in that first trimester than I had all year long. I bought little Caesar bread sticks once a week ( I have not eaten at Little Caesar's since 3rd grade in Alabama). I had the kid's order memorized at Taco Bell & Burger King. I also found myself eating avocados and cheese like crazy. I'm not a big cheese person but everyday I would have an avocado, cheese and tomato sandwich with salt and pepper.

The next day (at 21 weeks) I found out I was carrying twin boys. The morning of my ultra sound I was saying my prayers. I got up and this thought crossed my mind, "what if I have twins?" I dismissed the thought...because really doesn't every mother think that when she feels big? The reality of the pregnancy doesn't usually kick in until I actually see the baby at the ultra sound.

I walked into the ultra sound room feeling big and left wondering if I was big enough? Once I announced I was having twins my stomach made a big appearance! I actually have felt BETTER since finding out about the twins. It is a combination of Paul being much more nice and giving myself a break. I try not to tackle too many things. Trust me, my house is proof that I have been taking it easy. I look forward to the day when I have my energy back.

As of right now I will work on growing these babies and relying on the Lord. I become stressed when I think about the future. I can barely get Eden to school on time. I don't know how to solve the never ending fighting. Why is Ruthie still pinching? When am I going to potty train her? Why does it seem like Eden has yellow teeth? This weekend was spiritually enlightening for me. The spirit whispered to my heart that I need to rely on the Lord. I need to pray more. I need to put my family first. I need to not worry about myself and trust that my service and sacrifice will bring me happiness and peace.

It is grand being a mother.

7 years

Happy Anniversary! I'm not quite sure how I feel about 7 years of marriage. In a lot of ways I can't believe it's been 7 years. I can remember my single days so well. I have been reflecting on my wedding day...that seems like a blur. I remember bits and pieces. I remember going over to my cousin Kim's house and she did my hair. Then getting into my dress and driving myself to the temple for pictures. Paul met me in the parking lot, he was nervous I won't show up. Then I remember the special feeling of having our whole family in the temple. I was nervous to kiss Paul in front of all that family...I grabbed his face and gave him a kiss. I didn't want a long drawn out slobbery kiss, so I took some initiative. Funny, that Paul was worried about me not showing up and I was worried about kissing him in front of people.

Here we are 7 years later. I have changed (or at least tried to) and Paul has changed. Our kids have changed us. I often think about when Eden was little. I would get on Paul over EVERYTHING...banging the cupboards, slurping his cereal, handling the baby too rough, calling me too many times a day, watching tv, spending money, not listening, taking long showers, staying up late, shopping at Shopko, not paying attention in church, etc. etc. etc.

I was blessed to marry such a wonderful man who is grateful for me. He has always been grateful for me. He wasn't too picky, he was just so thankful to finally be getting married. I recall our first year of marriage I wanted to communicate more. I made a big list of things that bothered me. Things I wanted to discuss because they were important :). After I was done spilling my guts I asked him if there were things about me that I could change. I expected him to have a similar list. He had nothing. He said I was perfect. Now looking back I think he was just trying to end the conversation as soon as possible. Paul is not one for lengthy talks about feelings. He has taught me to look beyond the moment. To not be so serious and intense...especially when it comes to things that bother me. I have watched him grow into fatherhood. He has had to make a lot of adjustments these past 7 years. I love him for it. I will always love him. I choose to marry him. It was a good choice.

More adventures await us. What will 7 more years bring?

Twin boys

We were completely surprised to find out there are twin boys inside my belly!

Here is Paul's version:

Cyndi asked me to go to the ultrasound to find out the sex of the baby. So, Eden, I and Mommy went to the doctor’s office last Wednesday. We checked in and they led us back to the ultrasound room. While Cyndi was getting ready, the secretary came back and asked us if we had brought our insurance card. Cyndi said that she had left it in the car and I volunteered to go get it. While I was gone, the technician put the ultrasound stick on Cyndi’s belly to get an preliminary shot of the baby. Two heads immediately popped on the screen (which Cyndi saw) and the technician immediately said, Umm, “let’s wait for your husband to get back before we start.” When I returned the technician asked us if we had a history of twins in our family? We said “No” and then she said, “well, there’s two of them in there.” I immediately started to unravel internally. Outwardly, I just sat there stunned and speechless, but internally, a feeling of fear and denial started growing uncontrollably. After she informed us of the babies are boys, I started interrogating the technician in an effort to discover some flaw or defect in her diagnosis. Cyndi could tell I was about to lose it so she tried to calm me down. Flatly, I am still shocked! As you can probably figure out, I am already a marginal parent taking care of two girls and boy. But, by adding twin boys to the mix, I have serious reservations to my ability to parent successfully, not to mention my ability to maintain my sanity. To make matters worse, I am not even carrying the babies. That’s Cyndi’s job. Obviously, she has it way worse than I do, so I need to get my act together. Since Wednesday, I have come to terms with the idea of having twins. I would be lying if I were to say I am not excited. I am still worried about the financial challenges twins bring, but wrestling twin boys sounds like a lot of fun. Even today, I spent most of church daydreaming about them, thinking of names and playing the role of “proud papa” to my friends.

Dishwasher

Before we moved to our current house, we lived without a dishwasher for 1 year! It was a pain. There were always dishing drying on the counter. I felt like the kitchen was never clean. Today when I walked into the kitchen and saw this....I wasn't too worried because 10 minutes later I saw this...

Bless you dishwasher.

2 years old

2 year olds are cute. They start talking in sentences. They start disobeying. They think it is funny when you get a stern voice. They cry when you punish them and immediately wrap their arms around you...the person who just punished them. They pretty much refuse anything you suggest. They are demanding. They start forming opinions, strong opinions at that. They get attached to routine, sippy cups and cuddly pink blankets. They hate getting their hair combed. They want what everyone else has. They refused to be left out. They are so adorbale sleeping in their toddler bed. They scream when people try to talk to 'their mommy'. They grab your face when talking to you. They want you to watch and recognize every small or big task they accomplish.

They say: "look at me mommy", "watch this mommy", "my turn", "my mommy", "'that's mine", "I want candy", "chocolate milk in sippy, pretty please ", "no seat belt", " I can't", "no help me", "no nap", "David hit me" - all day long.

When you see their little bodies running around and those chubby baby hands, it melts your heart. When you hear them say, "I love you mommy" as you close the bedroom door for the night. It makes you wish all your kids were 2.

Tramp

Jump for joy

We got a trampoline this week. I have wanted to get one but Paul always said No! Well, it's amazing how your mind changes when a perfectly good trampoline comes your way for free! Paul and the kids were outside in the cold late Monday night putting it together. The kids have been outside every day for hours. We love it!

Pinewood Derby

Paul helped the kids make their own pinewood derby cars last weekend. The Elder's Quorum had a pinewood derby activity and it was a hit. Eden's was the only girl car there. Eden won first place in her heat. David won first place in his heat. When they raced against each other - the third car won.

Pictures are wonderful, they give you so much insight into personalities and environment.

For example, David pants are on backwards. This kid ALWAYS has his pants on backwards, it's just the way he puts them on. He doesn't care enough to switch them around. Ruthie ALWAYS wants to be included. I tried to get her out of the picture because she has chocolate all over her face. She insisted on being in the picture with her simblings. Eden decided she didn't want to smile. She sat on the floor and scowled. Paul was determined to get a smiling pictures. He became a crazy person behind the camera, he did something with his bum...which finally got Eden to smile.

David

David is 5 now. He is a boy. Thank goodness for him. He brings such joy to us. He has his own room now. We separated David and Eden. This is the first time he has slept by himself in a room. He has a night light. He loves having all his toys in his own room. I think boys rooms are easier to keep clean than girls. I can clean David's room in 10 minutes. He just has toys. The girls room takes me hours. They have books, crafts, sticker, papers, clothes (so many clothes on the floor), knick knacks, items from the bathroom, etc. It is a mess in there. David is also much easier to clean. He can be in and out of the bath in minutes (although he prefers to stay in until his hands turn wrinkly). There is no fuss with his hair, clothes, underwear, socks or shoes. He wears whatever I give him.

A few funny things he has said recently:

David:" Mom, I swallowed my lego hat. The little one, to my man. It is stuck in my neck."
Me: "Oh no. Does it hurt? Drink some water. What was the hat doing in your mouth?"
David: "Just cut off my head and get the hat out of my neck."

(On the way to the children's museum, reviewing some safety rules)

Me: "We do not talk to or go anywhere with strangers. David, what do you say if you are in the bathroom and someone asks you to play some video games with them?"
David: " I say YES!"

Me: "Oh boy, you are only allowed to go to the bathroom if Daddy goes with you."