More changes....

So, even with the FANTASTIC news that we get to stay in our apartment, I have been a bit crabby lately...Think I need some Vitamin D..(On my shopping list for the next time I am in Williston!)
Anyway..We have changed our mind about Cierra's homeschooling..Not about whether or not we will continue, but about what we are using as a curriculum. At the end of January, when we have a little more money, we are ordering the A Beka book (http://www.abeka.com/ )curriculum. I am excited to try it. I am also greatful to know some people who homeschool, and to have read soo many blogs about homeschooling before I started, otherwise, I might see this change as a failure. Instead, I know that this probably wont be the last time I make huge changes, and that it is a perfectly normal part of being new to homeschooling! Woody and I talked a lot about this change, as it is nearly 400 dollars to get started, and we have to think about the fact that it might not work. We feel strongly that this will be yet another positive change for us.
We have also decided to start a very simple preschool program for Blayke. THIS for sure will try my patience, but he has been asking for us to do "school" with him also. It is going to be a very simple program, but I am excited for it as well. (Here is a link, if you are looking for something to do with your young'uns. http://www.letteroftheweek.com/index.html)
What else?? Hmm..Konnor is pulling himself to a standing position...Which means lots of falling down. How did we get to him being 8 months old already?!
Woody is liking his job still. Mostly. I love having him home at a DECENT hour.
Life is good. I just need to stop being so dang CRABBY!

HERE IT COMES!

2011 is RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER! And the question on MY mind?! **Where the heck did 2010 go?!** This year has been a good year for us here in the Merrell house! Well, mostly good. And I figure if you can say you had a "mostly good" year, life is going pretty well!
This year we: Moved from Fairview, Montana to Watford City, North Dakota. Celebrated Cierras 6th birthday. Welcomed sweet baby Konnor to our family. Decided to homeschool Cierra. Changed jobs. Visited Idaho. (Woody) Changed our minds about homeschool. Met the always awesome Mackenzies! Decided again to homeschool. Switched to cloth diapers. Celebrated Blaykes 3rd birthday. Met the super sweet Ericksons. Visited Idaho again. Got evicted from our apartment. Potty trained Blayke. Had an amazing Christmas. And just today: We found out we are going to be able to stay in our apartment! WAHOO! This year involved a lot of spiritual growth, not only for me, but for our family. We are doing very well, and were truly blessed this year.
We don't necessarily believe in 'resolutions', but since we should be an ever progressing people, we have set some goals for the new year. (I guess that is basically like setting a resolution, right?) Anyway, we are working hard on going to the Temple,and teaching our children the things of the Gospel. My personal goal? To work on my patience. I am often quick tempered, even with my kids, and I don't want to be. We are also working on a more effective form of discipline. I would also love to find the time to learn to sew, and to workout regularly. (Not even necessarily to lose weight, but because I think it would be very therapeutic to have some time away..Even if it is only a half an hour 3 times a week...)
I hope each one of you have a blessed 2011!

Merry Christmas!!

Well friends, it is here..Christmas!! We had a fantastic time this season learning of Christ's birth and ministry. I was wondering if any of it had sunk in to Cierra. Well, that question got answered last night while the Missionaries were here for supper. It was nice to know that all of our efforts to teach her the true meaning and reason for Christmas were in vain!!
Woody and I were up late last night, getting stockings ready and the last few gifts set out! I think I was at least as excited as the kids were and had a terrible time getting anything that resembled sleep last night. When the kids woke up..(With only a little bit of momys assistance!) They came down to their loaded stockings. However, before they were allowed to do anything with THEIR presents, we made them write (Blayke drew) what they were going to give Christ for his birthday this year. Then we tore in. I wont go into every detail, but there were a few funny moments. Blayke asked with every one of his gifts, "Can I open this?!" and then, upon opening it, "OOOOOHHHH NICE!" When Cierra got her Barbie and The Diamond Castle movie, (the ONE thing she REALLY wanted!) She said, "Santa is a good man afterall!" BAHAHA! I wonder what she would have thought had Santa forgot the movie!

Friends, it was so wonderful to start a lot of new, fun traditions with my family this year. It was fun getting the kids gifts that we knew they wanted. But teaching them of our Savior, of his life and eventual sacrifice for us was just so amazing. I learned as much as I taught. We are so blessed. I would like to bear my testimony that I know our Savior lives. That he was born to Mary in a manger, and that he is, without a doubt, our Redeemer. I am thankful for this knowledge, and am so blessed to have my wonderful kids to teach all about it... I hope all of your hearts are full this Christmas day!! We love and miss those that we couldn't see this season.

SLEEP IS FOR THE WEAK!!!...(And the childless!)

I am tired. Constantly. Why? Well, I have an infant who believes that sleep is for the weak! I have done everything I know how, and there is one final drastic measure that I am preparing myself to take. See, we co sleep...As soon as we get a play pen, he is goin' in it! I am tired. I tried eliminating things, to make sure he was not getting a tummy ache, I tried for 2 EXCRUTIATING weeks to eliminate caffeine...Nothing changed. And lets be real, I drank caffeine for most of my pregnancy and since he was born...I doubt the kid has a sensitivity! So, it has come to a time that I will end our bedsharing.....Cross your fingers for me. If you have met my 3 year old, you know, I NEED SLEEP!!!!!!

It is almost Christmas!!

It is truly, The most wonderful time of the year! We are very excited for Christmas this year. Woody gets it off! YAY!! (He missed Christmas last year.) We are having the missionaries for supper Christmas Eve, and when they leave, we are going to haul our TV downstairs, snuggle ourselves up under blankets, and watch "A Christmas Story", eat popcorn, and drink cocoa. Then Daddy will open his present from the children. They got him a beautiful copy of "T'was The Night Before Christmas". We will put out the "reindeer food" (Oatmeal which we will mix with 'magical' glitter) and Santa's cookies. (This year, Santa is getting picky. He requested chocolate white chip cookies and chocolate chip cookies with egg nog!) We want Santa to leave us good stuff, so we will fulfill his wish!! ;)
The only thing leaving me a bit stressed is that we ordered 99 percent of Christmas online, including my brother- and sister-in-laws gift. (We drew them in the family drawing.) They have yet to get theirs, and I haven't gotten 2 of my orders...One of which is REALLY stressing me out, as it is Blaykes Mack truck from the movie Cars. It is so cool, it is a carrier for all of his Cars cars. (Which he is getting for Christmas). I was really excited about finding it, and will be super bummed if, for some reason, we don't get it.
The kids are THRILLED. Cierra is trying to guess what the presents are that are under the tree, Blayke has tried to open a few already, and Konnor loves to rip my decorations off. (Surprisingly enough, they haven't managed to knock the tree over. Yet. **Knocks on wood**) We tried not to go over board. We have tried to make Christmas very Christ centered. But, at the same time, I want my kids to have all of the fun memories that I don't have. We have made construction paper garland, ornaments, sugar cookies and letters to Santa. They have seen Santa twice. We have listened to Christmas music, and watched Christmas movies. We have been working on The Story Of Christmas, which is also our advent calendar. It has been a busy season for us, and I am glad that we are on "Christmas Break" this week.

On another note, here is a slight update: Our housing situation hasn't changed. We will likely end up living with friends for a while, as we have decided that me moving to Idaho without Woody is just not an option. Cierra loves homeschool, and is progressing nicely. Blayke is finally potty trained! Even at night. YAY! Konnor is VERY mobile, and is trying to pull himself up onto things and is into EVERYTHING! Woody loves his new job! (I love that he isn't on the road, and is home by 9 every night. Usually earlier!) And me, I am just chugging along!

Well, Merry Christmas to you and yours!

http://www.danoah.com/2010/12/real-dads-dont-leave.html

I really like this article, and it really hit home for me...I have a father like #2, and so does my daughter...Sad, but if you have a minute, take a look.

Happy 4th Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to my hubby!

You are such an amazing husband,
and wonderful Daddy!
I am so happy to be married to you!
I love you!

On our wedding day

With Cierra. She was a holy terror! LOL!

Right after Blayke was born..(I think Woody is

still wearing his hospital bracelet!)

All of us after Konnor's blessing

Christmas Pictures of the kiddo-s!

Now, again, I don't fancy myself any kind of a photographer. But I love love love taking snap-shots of my kids. And I absolutely love to play around on the very easy, very user-friendly website http://www.picnik.com/ . I just think it's fun. I took some snap-shots of my kids in their Christmas PJ's in front of the tree the other night. Konnor, of course was impossible. He had this little toy that if I dared to take from him, he FREAKED out! So, in his pictures, and the one of all 3 of them, he not only has the toy, but it is in his mouth! LOL! Blayke hates to look at the camera. He will pose, say "cheese", and do all that, but for some reason, the kid refuses to look at the camera. Cierra, as usual, had a fake cheesy smile. By the way, did I mention that this was quite the task?! But I did manage to get a few decent shots of them. And I wanted them all in black and white. I love black and white pictures! Always have! So, here they are! =)

So...here are my thoughts today

1. Why did FB delete one of my pics? Who reported it? And WHY?! Most of my pics are of my kids...I don't understand!!
2. However, on a happy note, Blayke slept in "big boy undies" last night, and woke up dry. Yep, that is right, we finally have success.
3. I really shouldn't have stayed up until 3:45 this morning reading a book...4 hours of sleep is so not enough.
4. I wonder if these contractors know what they are doing. Maybe it is just me, but they don't seem to finish anything. parts of every garage in our complex is sided. Like, one side of every garage....Seems like an odd way to do things to me...Just sayin'.
5. I am excited for Saturday! We have our ward Christmas party. It is a pajama party, and it should be oh so fun!
6. I am also excited for Christmas! But, I can't believe it is NEXT WEEK!!
7. I wonder how long it will take Konnor to crawl up the stairs, he is already trying.

Ok, that is all. I have to say, I am super bent out of shape about the Facebook picture thing...All of my albums are set to "friends only", none contain nudity, drug use or violence...One of my friends would have had to report it. SERIOUSLY! Needless to say, later tonight, my "friends" list is getting some revamping! I am frustrated as heck!

Just when you think...

That you can't possibly handle anymore, that you are, in fact, at your breaking point. That the stress must be at an end, because how could it possibly get any worse?! That it must be time for divine intervention....You will find out that it isn't up to us when He intervenes. He knows better than us exactly what we can handle. And He will show us. He will stand with us, and through the truly unbarable He will be there to carry us, but how do we learn? How do we progress without challenges? We don't. Challenges and trials are what make us greatful. They are what truly tests our faith.
That being said...I am waiting for it to get worse. I am not being pessimsitic, but I know that Woody and I are being tried. Right now, I feel as though it can't get much worse...So, I have a feeling it will. But, I know, after it gets worse, (And it may get much, much worse) It will, eventually, get better. We will look back on this time, and hopefully see God's hand. See the lessons we were supposed to learn, and be that much better for it.
No real point in this post. Just a thought that has been on my mind a lot lately....

10 things I have learned as a parent.

1. That poop can in fact be exciting. (This applies to several different times in parenthood, but specifically when potty training, and they "go" in the potty for the first time.)

2. That I am capable of cleaning up vomit. Seriously, I have always been such a sympathy puker, but for some reason, my kids' vomit don't affect me.

3. That roughly 70% of my conversations would have to deal with something gross. (see #1 and #2!)

4. That toddlers are capable of doing more damage in a shorter time than most natural disasters! (Don't believe me?! Let me send you Blayke for a week. You will see!)

5. To slow down, savor and enjoy things, because in the grand scheme of things, 18 years really isn't that long.

6. To eat fast. I mean, in all honestly, I have always been a fast eater, but I think I could take most fast eating contests. Seriously. And, I would do it one handed. (I don't know how any slow eating mom ever gets a meal.) Funny that this one came after my slow down post...LOL!

7. Fear. All encompassing, overpowering fear. And not just the fear that comes when my daughter says, "guess what Blayke just flushed down the toilet." But real deep fear. It terrifies me that I am responsible for how 3 (And eventually more) people turn out. I feel completely inadequate at times to be a mom. Seriously. It can be very overwhelming!

8. To tune things out. Seriously. I have learned the incredibly awesome skill of making my kids voices invisibe to my ears! (I am pretty sure that at this moment I am "involved" in a conversation about Oliver and Company....)

9. That kids have very selective EVERYTHING. Hearing, memory.....I can tell my daughter to go put her clothes away, and she 'forgets' half way up the stairs. But, do you think she could possibly forget that squirrel I ran over like 3 years ago?! HECK NO!

10. Love. Unconditional, complete and pure love. Not only to give it, but to receive it. How lucky are we as parents?!

This Moment!

Baby Konnor right before his first haircut! Look at that smile! This moment is one I want to savor. To remember. To enjoy. And to share! So here it is!

Not-So-Secret Mom Confession {Part 2}

Ok, so sometimes I have 'days'...Days that I regress. Days that all I want to do is sit on the compurter, eat junk food and drink soda. (Yea, still trying to kick that habit!) I don't want to clean house, I don't want to cook food, I don't want to change diapers. I just want to be a bum. Well...Today is one of those 'days'. Seriously. I got up, got the kids dressed, poured them each a bowl of cereal, and have been messing around on the computer since. My house is trashed. Blayke is no longer wearing socks or pants. We have yet to do school today, and probably wont. It is just a day. I am frustrated about some things in my personal life, I woke up with a pounding headache, and had one heck of a long night. So, it is a 'day'. Tomorrow, I will feel the pain when i am cleaning this messy house. {Maybe I will do it later today...Maybe not...} I sure hope other mom's have days like this, or I have just confessed to being the worst mom EVER!!

{Hey, I just looked, Blayke now has 1 sock on! LOL!}

A little bit of fun

The kids with their friends Jack and Shelby. We think this

girl is supposed to be a "Who" from The Grinch

Where Konnor spent all of HIS time..

If you don't have a wrap, and have or are

expeciting a baby...GET ONE!

Honestly, they are 40 dollars, and they are the

best 40 I have ever spent!!!

Cierra with Santa..Not shy AT ALL!


Blayke with Santa...I was worried he would be shy
but he wasn't!!

Our always CUTE little town hosted a "Wake Up Santa" party today. The kids got to sing to "wake Santa up", they got to do some little crafty things, and they got their picture taken with Santa. It was a cute, fun, simple way to make memories. The kids' friends Jack and Shelby were there, and boy oh boy, Jack and Blayke...They are only about 4 months apart, and are 'personality twins'. Seriously, I have NEVER met a boy more like Blayke than Jack is!! They are so dang cute together, and I am glad Blayke finally had a boy around his age that is his friend! (Which, NANCY, is why you CAN'T move!) Shelby is a couple of years younger than Cierra, but they seem to get along pretty well.

Tonight we are going to rent the Grinch, and make Root Beer floats, (I KNOW! Ice cream when it is cold out?! But, seriously, I am CRAVING them!) Tomorrow for our FHE, we are going to make cinnamon rolls, and eat them ooey, gooey and fresh from the oven while hopefully listening to The First Presidency Christmas Devotional. It should be an awesome weekend....Especially since Woody is home! (He got fired last night, but lets save the details of that for another post..Just know we are ok. He already had another job lined up, and we are thinking he will hopefully just start a week early!)

I hope you are all enjoying this awesome season, your family traditions, and everything else!! (Hopefully nobody is too stressed out!)

Just a little bit more than a little bit frustrated...

So for a few months I have mentioned how we were moving, then we weren't, then we were, then we weren't and so on. MAN OH MAN! This housing situation has me at my wits end!! Our apartments got bought out by a big oil company in town, Power Fuels. Welll...Since they bought it out, they and the old property manager have been giving us quite the run around! So, we decided to start looking. Well, these people that we know (We'll call them J and K) had a house that they were having NO luck selling, so they offered to rent it to us. We agreed. We settled on an amount that worked for both families, and figured that as soon as J and K moved into their new house, we were all set. NOT QUITE!! Rumor has it that all the while that they were telling us that they would rent to us, they had also promised it to another family. GAH! Well, something went on, and that family ended up buying it. (BTW, J and K didn't mention to us that they had a sell pending until probably the day it sold..We were their 'back up plan'!) So, we were biding our time here at the apartment, and still looking when they started renovating the apartment next to us. The day that they started, the guy who was working on it said that he had been told that instead of kicking us all out, they would shuffle us around. Woody decided maybe he would call the property manager about it. He called "Bob" yesterday. "Bob" said that that was in fact their plan for now. WELL..I went to get the mail today, and we had a certified letter. I signed for it, and as soon as I saw 'Power Fuels' as the addresser, my heart sank. I ripped it open, and lo and behold it was an termination of tenancy. We have until December 31, 2010 at midnight to be out. NOW, for those of you in Idaho or Utah, you may be wondering why this is SUCH a huge deal..Just go find another apartment, right? WRONG! Not in Watford City, North Dakota. Not in Williston, North Dakota. Not anywhere within 3 hours of here..Maybe further. You can barely book a hotel room. They have WHOLE families living in hotel rooms and camp trailers. We were so blessed to find this apartment. We are smack dab in the middle of a huge housing shortage!!! And for now, we are homeless come the first day of 2011. Now, if you could, keep us in your prayers. We know that with faith something will work out.....We have an amazing Bishop and Bishopric helping us scour the area for a place to live. (I think I have mentioned before that our Bishop is very adamant that we are meant to be in this area!) I am doing my best not to have hard feelings for any of the parties involved..J and K, the people who bought the house, Power Fuels, (although the weasels won't answer our phone calls, and mailed our termination of tenancy.) Being angry will do nothing more than to add to the stress of it all..Right?! Let me tell you what though, when my Oh so sweet visiting teacher asked if kicking all their bu**s could count for her teaching this month, I only half-heartedly turned her down! (We were JOKING, BTW!)

THIS moment! A picture is worth a thousand words! 12-1-2010

I want to start something that I see on a lot of blogs called, This Moment. A moment in my life that is captured in a picture. Now, I don't fancy myself a photographer, but I love taking quick snapshots of my kids. This weeks This Moment is from our snow day yesterday! No words needed. Just the snap shot!!!