I love to see the temple...

...yet every time I plan to go, someone (who will remain nameless--that evil man!) works hard on me, trying to convince me that I shouldn't go. And shamefully, his plan has sometimes worked. It almost worked again yesterday, but I prevailed this time! I knew I needed to go. I hadn't been since right before Anna was born. And as usual, I am so glad I went.

I love seeing familiar faces in the temple (it was Stake Temple Day, so we saw plenty), I love hearing the talks at the end of the day and I love the peaceful feeling I have while being there. I love the temple cookies, but miss the fresh ones from the cafeteria (the day old ones from the vending machine weren't cutting it). My parents used to bring us back one every time they went to the temple. I love how my mood on the way to the temple and my mood on the way home were completely different. Do you ever leave the temple in a bad mood?? I love that temple work is service and by just being there someone else's life has been blessed. So awesome! I love that everyone is an equal in the temple (even people with purple hair, wink! wink!) with the same common goal. It is so unifying.

I don't only love to see the temple, I love to go to the temple.

P.S. Rob took this beautiful picture of the D.C. Temple at Christmas time in 2003. I absolutely love it!

P.P.S. I just have to add, in case I haven't already told you, that my dad plastered the stairwell fountains in the temple! (insert giggle here)

Just a Little Note to My Stalkers!

Have you noticed that there is one day left to vote for our 1oth year anniversary trip? And can you believe that Rob actually posted something on our blog?? This was originally a family endeavor, but he only likes doing the technical things with blogging.

I've noticed, too, that 22 people have voted! Wowsers! So, show some love! I know that 22 people aren't posting comments ;) !!

P.S. We think we've decided on what we're going to do for our anniversary!!! December/January can't come soon enough! We'll let you know tomorrow to see whose votes won!

Everyone needs that special someone...

You know...that person who makes your heart skip a beat. Who causes your eyes to light up with excitement. Who puts a smile of pure joy on you face. That person for Evan is Ms. Debbie his speech teacher.

Ms. Debbie has been coming to our home once a week for months now and Evan just loves her! Each week she brings activities, movies and games to encourage Evan to say new things. Debbie has learned what things Evan likes and will bring toys related to them. It is so fun to see his reaction to the toys (I swear she must have the largest toy closet in VA). When the door bell rings, he runs to answer the door, "Debbie, Debbie, toys, toys!" For Valentine's Day, she gave him a card with Thomas the Train on it and he carried that sticky, chocolate covered card around with him for five days straight. I wish I had gotten a picture of it before I snuck it in the trash can!

So, to Ms. Debbie, I say thank you for making my childs life even more enjoyable! And I hope that each of you has that "special someone".

What About Me!

So, the past ten days have focused a lot on Tyler...Tyler's birthday, Tyler's party, Tyler's first scout activity, Tyler's pinewood derby car, Tyler's baptism, everyone's here for Tyler,...you get the idea. Jared did not get the idea, though, and we saw him revert back to some sassy, talking back, acting like a baby, doing anything to get some attention behaviors. When it was pointed out to me the possible reason of why he was behaving this way, I felt really bad...lesson learned!

Tyler's Special Day

What a great day! It was so nice to have so many family members and friends present. I know Tyler was overwhelmed by all of the attention--in a good way! After he was baptized I asked how he felt and he said he was cold, but warm. I liked that. It was neat to watch him through out the rest of the day--so peaceful. Instead of running around with his cousins all afternoon, he spent a lot of time reading in his scriptures, looking at his baptism book, etc...He wanted to spend more time being quiet then noisy. It was very different, but I'm not going to complain. We'll see how long this "new Tyler" lasts! Watching Tyler today has increased by own testimony of the gift of the Holy Ghost. I wish I could describe it better, but there is a difference in him. It was a wonderful day for all of us.

Why was I the only one...

who didn't know Daryl Jenkins? Maybe you know who he is. Rob's mom was good friends with him in college. Jeff helped him with some work. Tara worked with him a few years age. Rob knew of him from church service. I was the only one who had no clue who he was. So, when Rob's mom announced that he was coming over to our house, it got all exciting. All the random connections came together. And of course, I made a mad rush to clean up the house because anyone who lives at Pemberly on Pond doesn't want to see food all over the kitchen floor. And anyone who's been on CNN as an aviation expert numerous times doesn't want to see all my dirty dishes piled up.

Turns out Brother Jenkins and his wife were a treat to have in our home last night. He is on the high council in our stake and is in the same ward as the Van Camps (he wants Emily to get rid of Brad and move in as their daughter). It was fun to hear him reminisce about the college days with Susanne and learn of all the crazy connections that the LDS world provides.

So, now I know Daryl Jenkins. And keep an eye out for him in the news, Delta and Northwest will be announcing their merger very soon (was supposed to be yesterday) and then you, too, can also know who Daryl Jenkins is.

Baby Natalie

We were finally able to meet the newest cousin this morning, Natalie. I love new babies and am excited she'll be around for the entire weekend! They're so tiny and precious, innocent and sweet. Sure would be nice if they could stay that way, but I guess we are here to grow and learn and part of that means becoming whiny, cranky, tired, rude, silly, loud, messy, sticky, sneaky, and...you get the idea.

And then all of sudden, seriously like in the blink of an eye, they're eight years old. aaaargh. It's like Tyler just grew up over night.

Well, I'm glad we'll be able to enjoy Natalie (and Jeff and Tara and Ethan and Kira, too) for a few days. They came down from Buffalo for Tyler's baptism. Wasn't that nice?!

Busy as a Bee

If you've ever wondered what it is like to work, work, work all day, everyday, you need to meet Rob's mom. I don't know how she does it...Here is what we got done yesterday...

My valences are DONE. She helped me with the part that had me stuck and now the most annoying things ever are finsihed. I will never do something like them again (that's a lie--I just won't use expensive fabric to try something new like that again).

Susanne hemmed my temple dress and would have hemmed Rob's temple pants, too (if they still fit him)--the ones I got him 4 years ago and never bothered hemming. SLACKER!

ALL of the laundry was done in one day. Washed and folded! Rob's mom worked on it while I fumbled around making the binding for the curtains.

Dinner was made, the house was picked up, we ran to the store, went out for lunch, and the kids were not ignored! And I never once got on the computer (atleast not until 11 pm). I'm tired! I don't know if I could keep up with the pace--everyday!

I don't know how you do it, Susanne, but I've appreciated so much the help (Do you want to move in?).

Tyler's Mad Science Lab

What a fun party! My favorite so far...Paper airplanes, spinning pennies, rocket races, homemade rootbeer, gloop, foaming candy, diet coke/mentos explosions, microscope, and an erupting volcano cake. We were definetly tired by the end! But I'd do it all over again (in a few months)!

Weekend Update

Thinking outloud here...A few things that have crossed my simple mind over the past few days...

• I will never buy my children tub crayons. They are forbidden in our home! If they are given as a gift, I promise I will never regift them. No parent ever deserves to have to scrub that crap out of the grout on a bathtub. Torture!
• Going to the Olive Garden on Valentine's Day is like asking someone to pull your toe nails off. I just wanted to get take-out! Carmellos in Old Town is really good and authentic Portuguese /Italian food. They gave me the wrong order, but it was SOOO good. Heart shaped stuffed ravioli with a lobster bisque. UMM! UMM! GOOD!
• Why don't we go to Old Town more often, without the kids? I could spend hours looking in all the fun shops!
• Eight is great! Tyler and his friends were so fun to have at our home for his party. Smart kids, fun kids, creative kids. This is my new favorite age.
• I actually do like homemade rootbeer (when it is not watered down and flat).
• The game Sorry is awesome. I played this a lot as a kid and now the torch has been passed to our children.
• I hate listening to my voice on videos. It's so annoying.
  
• It's not too hard for me to have "clean hands" but the "pure heart" part is harder. I need to work on that.
• How can I share my testimony with my children on a daily basis?
• Who's following me? Who am I following? And am I bringing others along with me?
• I love the adult session of Stake Conference!
• Sometimes I just want to be left alone. I don't feel like I need to talk to someone all day long.
• I love The Wedding Singer. Rob and I saw it on our first official date. It reminds me of the simple tokens of love that I can do to show my husband that I love him. (The movie itself doesn't remind me of this, our date does.)
• I used to write in my journal almost everyday through high school, a lot of college and on my mission. It's been a long time since I've done it. I've missed doing it. That is why I blog so much.
• I haven't been a very nice person today, especially to the people I care about the most. I'm sorry...(Does that sound better, Troy?)
• Sunday session of Stake Conference isn't as fun. One of the reasons I do enjoy going is to watch my husband have to keep Evan quiet during church. I take such pleasure in that!
• Elder Ballards talk was my favorite and I hope all the husbands were listening (and wives and children).

Just a few simple thoughts clouding up my brain...Pictures from the party will be posted soon. I bet you can't wait!!

Happy Birthday, Tyler!

Every year on my kids birthday, I tell them the story of their birth because it is their BIRTHday.

Here's Tyler's:

I went in for my scheduled Dr. visit on Valentine's Day. My secret hope was that I'd be dialated at least a little bit, but something was telling me that this baby was stubborn. Reality, I knew I'd be scheduling my induction. I was already 10 days overdue and showing NO signs that this baby was going to come on his own.

So, Dr. Gordon said I would need to have an induction the next morning. I was sent to the hospital for an ultrasound to check on everything (fluid levels were fine, baby didn't look too big) and told to go to the hospital that night to prep and that I would stay overnight. "Happy Valentine's Day, hon. I got us a great place to stay for the night!"

We had an early dinner picnic in our apartment for Valentine's Day--that's when our take-out for V-day tradition started. Went to the hospital,, fully expecting our miracle to arrive that night--no such luck. In the morning they started my pit and broke my water and we waited, and waited and waited....It was a very boring day. My sister and Rob's Mom came to visit us. By 6 pm, I was finally ready to push that baby out!

But, he still wasn't ready to come out. After three hours, the words "c-section" and "one more push" were mentioned. I felt like I'd been run over by a truck! It took forceps and the vacuum to get that sucker out (he wasn't born with a pretty head, needless to say). He was born shortly after 9pm! The first thing the Dr. said when he was born--"I think we're going to have to call him Bubba!" The nurse said, "He's looking like a 9 pounder!" The Dr. said, "I think he's closer to 10!" And I'm thinking, "No freakin' wonder!"

10 lbs. 4 oz of pure joy! I saw Tyler Robert Kunz briefly that night and wasn't able to see him again until the next morning because I kept fainting due to loss of blood. The day Tyler was born was one of the few days that I've seen my husband come close to tears (I still have never seen him cry--weird, huh?).

Happy 8th Birthday Bubba!

Company is coming...HURRY! Clean the house...

So, we will be having lots of family visiting us over the next week and a half. Some are arriving tomorrow. They will be staying in our basement. What do you think...should I clean it up before they arrive???

I wish I could be one of those people that didn't care.
The great art in these photos are the works of Evan and his friends, Abigail and Andrew!

What's Your Favorite Storm?

Jared asks Tyler with all sincerity while playing Battleship this morning, "What is your favorite storm?"

Tyler's quick reply, as if he knew the question was coming and couldn't wait to answer, "A tornado!"

"Mine, too,...B7?...You sunk my destroyer."

I love the minds of children. So simple.

What is your favorite storm? After this morning, I'm partial to the ice storm. How pretty was that!?!

A Week of Firsts

• This week is the first week in a looooooong time that everyone has slept through the night. Could we really be over this crazy bout of illness? Let's hope so!
• I went to church on Sunday! I hadn't realized it, but it was the first time I had been in over a month. I knew something was missing in my life!
• Anna climbed up a few stairs. Yikes! Where in the world did we put those baby gates when we moved?
• Evan said a 3 word phrase, "Tyler car thank you"--well, I guess that's 4 words! We'll take any progress that we can get! He should have been talking that way a year ago.
• I actually had a successful evening with Photoshop--no swearing was done in the making of my first digital scrapbook layout!

And the biggest first of them all...

• Anna wore her first hair bow today without a headband! Exciting, I know! I'm sure I'm the only one who really cares about this, but this is truly a great day.

The Land of Happy

This happenend on Saturday:

I had to do some last minute things for YW, so I dragged the 4 kiddos to A.C.Moore.

I told them, "This is one of my favorite stores. And I'm as thrilled about taking all of you here as you are thrilled about being here. So, let's make a deal to be quick and good, okay?" They agreed.

Of course, we had a few detours--check out the ribbon sale! I wonder if they have any kid science stuff? Can we look at the toys? Anything on clearance? We weaved up and down the aisles like a little train. Everyone remaining pleasant. And Mom feeling grateful for her motley crew.

Then came Ms. Mary Sunshine (nothing like Troy, way worse) talking in her sweet voice.

"Oh, look at you! Isn't this precious (or something lame like that)."

Huh...3 sticky, stinky, bored boys and a baby that refused to sit in the cart. Nothing precious about this at all--I can't think of one thing! I thought maybe she was kidding, so I told her what I had told the boys when we got to the store. She wasn't kidding. She thought we were precious and now I think she was thinking I was the mean grumpy Mom, so she started rattling off suggestions and games I can play with the kids while shopping (still in that sickingly sweet voice, barf).

"You should have the kids look for things that start with every letter of the alphabet."

"No I shouldn't! They should just follow me through the store like good little ducklings so we can get out of here quicker. I'm not here to play games." (I didn't really say this, just though it)

Instead, I smiled and walked away, secretly wishing Evan would chuck a spool of ribbon at her. Dang, I wish I hadn't been so determined about making sure my kids behave in public.

Anyways, are people really always that happy and smiley?? You know those people, everyone knows at least one.

Shel Silverstein said it best...

The Land of Happy

Have you been to The Land of Happy,
Where everyone's happy all day,
Where they joke and they sing
Of the happiest things,
And everything's jolly and gay?
There's no one unhappy in Happy,
There's laughter and smiles galore.
I have been to The Land of Happy--
What a bore!

The Seven Dwarfs had it right.

My double edged sword

It's a double edged sword...Rob comes home tonight. Now, don't jump to any conclusions here. I am glad that he is coming home. I've missed the company and companionship, and here it comes...BUT...

• The noise level goes up a few notches when he is home. I've adjusted to a quieter home. Not that Rob is the noisy one--it's all the boys. They live for Dad's attention. Mom is definetly not the fun one. And I know they will be way too excited when he arrives to contain all of their bottled up energy. Am I ready for this?
  
• He's going to leave again next week. How fun is that? And then we'll have company shortly after (not that I mind the company). I just don't like sharing.
• The house does stay cleaner when he is gone. And again, I'm not blaming Rob for this. I turn into some maniac warrior that fights for home cleanliness whenever he leaves. I know me and I will go cookoo if the house gets out of control. Yet, when he's here, I' m more willing to let it slide. I depend on him a lot.

I don't think that side of the sword is very sharp because I am so looking forward to him being home for many more reasons...

• I'm really bad at making pinewood derby cars! I wouldn't know how to make it faster. I can only make it look good.
• I had to call the neighbor to figure out my 2nd graders math homework. We need our resident nerd!
• The boys won't play in the basement because"all the light are burned out". I hate the basement. It's always cold and always messy. I could probably do this one on my own, but I'd much rather have Rob do it.
• I can sleep in. I love sleeping in and I'm feeling deprived of my beauty rest!
• As much as I like blogging, I'd much rather talk to my husband. My mind moves too quick to write it all down--he's my sounding board!
• And I have no one to watch my recorded episode of Psych with cuddled up on the couch.
• I feel like I'm on the verge of illness and I may need someone to take the reigns. I'm tired of depending on others for help. I like to keep it in the family.
• I miss hearing Evan say "Gaggy". Talking to him on the phone isn't the same. And he's been requesting that I change his diapers now...can you believe it??!!
• We can't wait to share with him all the little things he has missed liked Tyler's shark list (he's listed about 70 that he knows of--he wants to get all 400 of them) and report card or Jared's Chinese New Year drum.
• I'm sure he'll be excited to see our $120 worth of medical bills for the week (arg) and he'll want to know that the book shelves won't be here until March (bummer)...

It's all the little things that I take for granted when he is not here. I can't wait for him to get home!

And just for kicks, I leave you with these...

Undeveloped film

I found a few roles of undeveloped film the other day (I didn't even know the stuff still existed)! Let me tell you how much more I appreciate my digital camera. We are so spoiled. I spent $15 to develop the two roles. I could have developed over 100 pictures of my choosing for that price now. Anyways, there were a few fun pictures in the mix. I think these pictures were from 2003-2004.

Tyler at the 3 Bears Graduation and with his scraped up face on Christmas Eve

For those who don't know, Jared was born with a 360 degree cowlick. It suits his personality--CRAZY!

Jared and Tyler hiding (not very well) and Tyler's preschool class (Ty, Joshua, ??, Hannah, Keyshawn and Cinnamon--Tien was missing. Remember all those names, Sarah?!)

JUST SOME FUN THINGS!

I found some really cute things out there in Blog World. Wow, there are some really creative and fun people out there! They sure can think of everything or find anything!

http://www.jordanferney.blogspot.com/ Check out "Little Zoo"(they're just toys, I wish I was good with the camera--I'd do a whole wall upstairs in the hallway) and the cupcakes underneath (yummy, almost too pretty to eat).

http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/2007/10/how-about-beige.html I want some kind of tree in my family room. Maybe something like this one, minus the funny canvases). What do you think, Denise??

http://designmom.com/ I love these blocks. I think Brad and Nastia need these blocks for Alex, but since they don't read this (or they don't leave comments), I'll e-mail them the link. They come in several languages, also.

What is this child thinking?

I don't know if I'm ever going to figure this one out...I just don't get him. Do I really want to know what he is thinking? Not so sure...

For breakfast Jared had 4 strawberries and a piece of toast. That's it, nothing more. He started at 7:15. At 7:25, he hadn't even finished one strawberry! "Jared, what are you doing? Eat your breakfast." 7:45, he's working on the last strawberry. "You're going to have to finish that later, bud. You have to get ready for school." And yes, I did say "bud." This was not a cranky morning--no yelling involved.

Anyways, I'm sure Jared was just "taking his time," trying to avoid the inevitable (school). During those glorious thirty minutes of strawberry eating (and he only ate 4??? Hello! I would have finished off the carton in less than 30!), what was he thinking about? Must of been exciting, if it slowed him down that much! I'll have to ask him...if I decide that I really want to know.

LOOK WHAT JUST ARRIVED!

Xie Xie (oh, wait, that's Mandarin!) Thanks, babe!
(Buffalo wings, too, oh my!)

Count your blessings, name them one by one...

So, today I can make a choice...I can be prideful, annoyed and MAD or I can get over it. I want to get over it.

Today my blessings include...

• Awesome neighbors! At 7 am, I gathered all the kids up so we could pick up some perscriptions (why 7am? Long story) at the pharmacy. When I opened the garage door there was a string of balloons hanging across the driveway. The balloons had messages on them, telling us to look on the front door. Hanging on the front door were more balloons and our perscriptions! Thank you!
• Chocolate! There is nothing like a big bag of chocolate treats being dropped off to cheer me up!
• Urgent Care! Did you know that our co-pay for them is now only $40 and they do stitches!! Best news ever! They don't see babies, though. Sure, there are no participating ones in our town but I don't mind the drive. Beats the $150 ER co-pay.
  
• Elder Uchtdorf! I hate to pick favorites, but I'm so excited we will be able to hear him speak even more now that he is in the First Presidency. I met him (and President Monson) while on my mission and I could not have a stronger testimony of the work that they do.
• My children! Even though they have been sick, they have been SO good and loving. And patient! I dragged them everywhere last night and they were willing to get up this morning for our 7 am drive, all without complaining.
• Robert-o! He has been supportive and has listenend to all my griping over the phone (all while being sick himself). Rob ga daisuki.
• Victor James! Scandelous! Who is that?? He is my pediatritions Admin. Director and I heart him! It is so nice when I don't have to be the one to call up and make a complaint. He called me this morning to clear things up and agologize for how I was treated yesterday. So nice. I have a love hate relationship with this practice. Lately it has been all love, but yesterday it was all hate (or extreme dislike). Today it's back to love (minus one particular Dr. who was having a bad day and took it out on me, but I quickly forgive).
  

P.S. Did you know that this practice has a policy that if a parent is being seen by the Dr and they mention that another child is sick or ask if that child can also be looked at, they are supposed to take a look at that child, too, or at least be helpful in scheduling another appointment the next day if they are too busy at the time. Hmmmmm...interesting.

P.P.S. This is not what happened last night! Oh, yeah, I'm not being bitter today! I have a choice...

DON"T LET THE PICTURE FOOL YOU!

Last night the kids got a bit wound up! Too much ibuprofen?? It was a peaceful day even though they were a bunch of sickies!

Evan and Anna woke up this morning still a bit under the weather. I gave Jared some medicine and sent him off to school since he didn't have a fever. The school called around 10 am. "Oops, maybe I shouldn't have sent him!" Well, it wasn't even about Jared. Tyler was having bad ear pain. The nurse sent him back to class with an ice pack. I called the Drs office but can't schedule an appointment until 3pm. Lame. So, I have Tyler home now and the whole family will make a trip this evening to the Dr. (I think Anna may also have bronchitis). Yahoo!

And poor Rob...He got a fever on his way to Japan. You can't really have a sick day when you're only there a few days. Sucks to be him (kind of)!

On a much happier note...my (Anna's) "I love you to Paris and back" tile came--looks like it would be super easy to duplicate.

My latest Heritage Maker album was just delivered and has motivated me to start on the next one!

And Rob will be home in 5 days...

(Note to Rob...I'm fine. I love you!)

Presenting Dr. Mom and her assistant Tyler!

I already know what kind of day it's going to be!

Rob left this morning at 4:30 (he's on his way to Japan for the week). I've been up since then--it's now 8:30 (incase you care...). After he left, I searched around for the lesson I had been preparing for Young Womens and sent it off to Fiona. I'm such a slacker. Last night I called her back about something and mentioned I wouldn't be at church because of sick Evan. Later she asks, "Who's teaching the combined lesson tomorrow?" Oh, crap! I am! Grrrr...she said she'd take over for me, but I'm feeling really lame because I'd forgotten--I had prepared it, though--I just forgot I was doing it. I would have showed up to church without it!

At 6:30, I laid back down waiting for my kids to start waking up. Jared came in the room first around 7:00--he was burning up (103 temp), I gave him some Tylenol and he crawled into my bed. Then Evan woke up--103 temp, also, so we made room for him in the bed. We all snuggled up as I read to them from Where the Sidewalk Ends. Next came Tyler (he slept in a whole 20 minutes--yahoo!)--no fever (double yahoo!--he did the fever thing the past few days) so he took over on reading duties as I got the coughing Anna up. Took her temp--101! I can tell it's going to be one of those days!

I suggested that his title should be "Nurse Tyler", but he chose "Assistant"--I'll take it, as long as he remains helpful!

P.S. I already miss you, Rob!