Valentines Day ♥♥♥

Valentines Day was another holiday that had to be postponed this year. It is a good thing that we are a flexible family. On the actual Valentines Day the boys were out of school for the week, but Steve still had class and was gone until midnight. During the day we went to playgroup where the kids exchanged valentines and we had cookies, and made crafts. That was fun. Then we came home and the boys got to open a package from Grandma and Grandpa Allred. The boys LOVE the packages that G & G send. They know that Grandma always likes to celebrate holidays with them through packages.

 

A couple of days after Vday, it was time to celebrate with Steve. I cleaned up our room (which is rare) and brought a picnic table into our room. I made a yummy chicken dinner with salad and bread and juice. Then when Steve got home, I turned a movie on for the boys and escorted him into our room for dinner. Steven volunteered to be our waiter and did a marvelous job. It was so nice to just send him into the kitchen for drink refills, salt, or whatever else we needed. We had a very nice dinner and talked about our summer vacation plans. The only down side was that Alex was not feeling very well (also very rare at our house). He wanted to be held and even needed a diaper change during dinner. Vday is definitely different with five kids, but still wonderful to have such a love for each other.
(Here is the link to the pin I found for this idea http://www.ladybehindthecurtain.com/?p=24 . I used the recipes that she suggested.)

(You can see the heart attack that the boys did for Steve on the real Valentines day. Steve loved to come home at midnight and see all that love. )

 I had to take a picture of myself in the middle of dinner sitting there by myself while Steve was changing a diaper. :-)

I bought the boys their Vday candy after Vday as well which saved me 50%. Yahoo!
And the boys Valentines for their classes this year were so stinkin cute! I didn't get any pictures of the finished product because Steven had my camera on a field trip, but I will put the original pictures up anyway. I poked a hole on either side of the boys fists and inserted a sucker stick. Yes, the exact same thing Laura did! Great pinterest minds think alike. :-) I wish you could see the finished product, but I do what I can.

 Didn't want a post without adorable Alex. He usually does not have the binky in his mouth, but this was right after church and he was very ready for a nap.

The new Dog!

Most of you know that I am a little crazy, or at least we can reason that I like to complicate my life. So, with that being said, let me introduce you to our new dog, Sparky.
 

We were just hanging out in our yard a couple of weeks ago and this miniature doberman pinscher comes over and starts running around with the boys. He is not the first dog that was attracted to our house because of the great fun the boys can provide, so we didn't think anything of it. But, the next morning when we went outside to go to church he came running up to the boys so excited to see them. And when we came home from church, there he was sitting on the front porch. He eventually started coming in the house, and was always on the front porch in the morning. After a couple of days the boys didn't want him to have to sleep outside anymore, so he curled up with them in bed for the night. I checked the paper to see if anyone had listed a lost dog, and I called the animal shelter and reported him, but no one seems to be missing him. I kept saying I was going to make a flyer, but for some reason I was having a hard time getting that done. I think it is because I wanted to put a picture on it and that would require taking a picture, downloading it, printing it and hanging it up. I know, it isn't that big of a deal but it just never got put to the top of my list and it never got done, so now he definitely thinks he is our dog and he adores  the boys. I am really actually OK with him being our dog. He doesn't stink like 90% of dogs do, he does have a smell but you can only smell it if he is right on your lap. He is short haired. And I actually like that he is small and hyper. I hate when a dog decides to lay somewhere right in your way and when you try to get him to move he takes his sweet time. Sparky will jump up and get out of the way in a split second. We assume he was trained by someone because he is very friendly and gentle to people, he doesn't get on the table, he listens when we tell him no, he goes to the bathroom outside most of the time (that one still needs a little work), he doesn't chew on things, and he gets outside when we tell him to get out. I guess if we are going to have a dog, this is the one to have.

The littlest turns ONE

Our littlest one turned ONE last week. I honestly cannot believe it! Has it really been a year? I am a true believer now that the older I get the faster time seems to go.

Anyway, Alexander's birthday brought me a bit of guilt. :-( On his actual birthday Jan. 25th, we were doing a big dinner with the Young Women and many of the Relief Society sisters at church. So, I told the family we were going to ignore Alex's birthday that day and just pretend it was the next day. So...the next morning Alex woke up to streamers on his door which he felt was his responsibility to clean up.

He had a normal day and we looked forward to cake and presents that night. The problem came when we ran out of time. Steve was not able to get home for an early dinner like we had planned. Nathan had a basketball game at 6pm and Alex is completely ready for bed by 6:30 every night. So, when I left to take Nathan we hadn't eaten yet, and Alex was already wanting to go to bed. Steve said he would try to keep him happy, but when I got home at 7pm it was a sad situation. We forced the baby to stay awake so we could sing to him and give him some cake. He lasted for maybe 10 minutes and then was beyond ready, so off to bed he went.

 

 

 On Friday (1/27/12) he got to go to the Dr. for shots and stats. 

Weight: 21lbs.13oz, Height: 30 inches,

He also got to sit in a big boy car seat for the first time! But, he was in a grumpy mood and it didn't hold the excitement that I always expect from this big step in life.  :-)

So, on Saturday I was feeling bad and felt like his birthday had not been given the attention it needed. So, I made some lemon cupcakes, and we ate those and opened presents, and then shuffled him off to bed.

The upside is, I was taught growing up that if  you get a cake and a present in the month of your birthday than you can consider it a Happy Birthday. Thanks Mom. :-)

Alexander is such a treasure in our lives. The boys have been given a great opportunity to help with a baby which is great for them. Jacob is definitely my biggest helper with Alex. He is so willing to come entertain him whenever I need help. Alex has decided at a young age he is determined not to get left behind. He likes to be were the boys are, and now he can even run around with them. When they are on the trampoline he always heads outside and stands next to the trampoline just to be close to them. We love our baby boy and are so happy he is in our family.