Wait... What is his plan?

Might I preface this post by saying that most of the hard questions my kids ask me are answered by "that is Heavenly Father's way of..." And so this was no different...After a hard night of croupy coughs and Cole swearing that he was having a near death experience by the size of the goober in his throat, we drove to Dr. Ciminello's office. After we were all checked in and awaiting to actually be seen, I explained that Cole would not only have to show the Dr. his throat but also show him his arm pits because they had been rashly a few days earlier. Oh... and also the little groin triangle... that was rashly too!

Cole: "um I am NOT (with emphasis!) lifting up my shirt. He will see my bare tummy."

Mom: "what about all the people who see your tummy when you swim?"

Cole:"I wear swim shirts mom... people don't see my bare tummy".

Mom: "well you'll also have to show him your groin".

Cole: "that's fine. but not my tummy."

moment of silence while mom reads on in the National Geographic...

Cole: "what a groin?"

Mom: "That is where your rash was down by the private parts, Cole."

Cole: "Oh geez! I am NOT (with more emphasis and an escape planning) pulling down my pants! You don't me MY privates, right?!"

Mom: "Doctors see these things all day! They have to or they can't diagnose you properly!"

Cole: "well then I'm going to be sick forever! Would you pull down your pants for the Dr?"

And so I gave my answer about 20 seconds of thought and then decided... what the heck! He's 5 he'll never get it!

Mom: "Um yes... I've had 3 babies Cole! Where do you think they come from?"

Cole: "Mom, I said your pants, not your shirt... but I'm not doing that either."

Silence. Never mind that I'm trying not to noticeably laugh over the sincerity and critical nature of these concerns...

Cole: "Where do babies come from?"

Mom: "well, Heavenly Father's plan to get his children from their mom's uterus to daylight isn't out the belly button Cole."

Thinking time.... silence....

Cole: "You're not saying?..." funny face.... "Bailey was right!"

Later on that night when we got home Cole remembered to let the kids in on the little education he had at the dinner table.

Cole: "do you know what Heavenly Father's plan to get the babies out of mom's tummy is?"

McKay... chokes on his food.

Bailey... "Please don't bring it up Cole."

Cole: "So mom, why did he have that plan anyway?"

Don't forget to Pray

Don't forget to include a few extras in your much needed prayers today...

Dear Nie and Mr. Nielson,

My best of wishes to you during the neck reconstruction. My wish is that the pain will be minimal, the results will exceed your expectation and that your recovery will be quick. And may the blessings of heaven be with you and yours through it all.

I promise to drop off Chocolate cup cakes with extra frosting while you are in AZ... don't feel like you must come to the door, just know they're from me... (Because eating chocolate helps everyone recover?!)

xo,

Becky

She woke up a whole year older

It's Bailey's Birthday again!

Why do they keep coming? Her father and I had the most disturbing conversation ever last night...

Bailey is 11... which means that in less than a decade she won't live in my house any more. It means I won't wake up to her sunny, spunky self everyday. It means that when we are sick at the same time I won't have anyone to lie next to me in bed and laugh even though our bellies feel like something out of a horror movie. This makes me not happy... and so I will think of something else.This is one of my favorite pictures of Bailey. One of about 10 trillion favorites!

Today when we awoke to Grandma Chrissy and Grandpa Konks morning "happy birthday" duet I took the phone to a sleeping Birthday girl and nearly fell over when I walked into the room to see such a large child in the bed that I am certain I tucked my little sweet pea into last night. "Oh BOY!" I shouted! "She grew up!" I considered the conversations over the past few months. They've gone from beginning with "mommy" to "mom". They've transformed into actual conversations like I have with friends. The questions have moved from "will you get me a cup of water?" to "so, when can I have a cell phone?" and for Christmas instead of asking for toys we've moved into the lists of clothes, technology, music and stylish boots. Where did the time go? People told me the day she was born, "don't blink! or you'll miss her life." I took that very seriously... but it still has FLOWN by!
When I asked Bailey what she would like for her birthday she started telling me that the girls at school call her "a girly girl". "What does that mean?" I inquired. Then with a sad expression she started in on this crazy story about how if she wears clothes, other than jeans and t-shirts, that the girls classify you as a "girly girl". "Is that bad?" I asked. "After all, you are a girl!" Then she said that her favorite color was 'pink and nobody else likes pink'. It was a concern weighing heavy on her shoulders. What does a mom say to a girly girl who loves pink that is feeling peer pressure to wear jeans and t-shirts in other colors? Trying to think back to those days I realized that I was a TOM BOY! My mother made me wear the girliest Gunny sack lace dresses she could find, curled my hair every Sunday (much to my dismay) and was adamant that I clog because she was so concerned about my dream to be buried in my jeans (with the lions on the pocket) and "E.T. loves River Heights Elementary School" t-shirt and cleats! It bothered her that she found cracked baby bird eggs in my pockets and that all my friends were neighborhood boys who loved playing tackle football and soccer all day and night with me. I hated pink. If it wasn't yellow it wasn't a color. And if the pants weren't made of denim they shouldn't be worn! And t-shirts... bless them! But I couldn't say that to her... And so I told Bailey to tell the girls, "I can't help but to be a girly girl! My mother is one. My aunts are and my Grandma's love fashion! And pink is our signature color! It is the very symbol of girl!" "anyway", I said, "when you go to another school where fashion is allowed people will dress different. and... and when you grow up those mean kids aren't even going to be around. It's going to be you and cousin Ellie (who is a Fashion Goddess) and the two of you are going to shop and hang out so none of this will matter. Just hold on for now!" And that must have sufficed her... because she then said, "okay! then for my birthday I would like perfume and lotion with sparkles in it and a new dress with tights and then maybe you could take me for a facial."

Ummmm.......... What happened to barbies?

HaPpY bIrThDaY bAiLeY!

I love everything about you... except that you keep growing up! But even then I can think of a zillion reasons why its going to be great to have you big as it was to hold you in my arms when you were oh soooo small.

I sure love you lady.

Sit down... its a whole month long!

We do not take the month of December lightly around these parts... It is one celebration after another! And so it went like this:
Dad's birthday... we will start there since I think that was the last time I documented much! It was a delight. He is now older. And wiser! And we ate cake.

Then Ellie Buns had a birthday. I want to dress like Ellie when I grow up. She is the fashion Diva! And Santa came to her birthday princess party! And he brought her every fairy tale barbie his elves ever made. ONE LUCKY DIVA! we ate cake.

Mum had a birthday. We had soup divine to heat our bones before we gathered at the temple lights to a marvelous display of Christmas! WOW! SO fun. Mum got a year older. And wiser! She is my twin (only separated by birth). And to go with the cake that we ate, I got a double chin for this picture!

The kids did a little Christmas choir concert for their parents. It was beautiful other than the fact that people have absolutely NO CONCERT MANNERS anymore. It is one of my soap boxes. You might see me in the news one day for some insane act on stupid people. (New Year's resolution #1: Don't do an insane act on stupid people.) Bailey loves the choir. She will sing her heart out one day! McKay will sing because I told him to. But he isn't in love with it yet! And you may find Cole singing his heart right out next to Bailey's. He loves his kindergarten sing!

We enjoyed the rain so much we played in it all day long! Please send more! It didn't even stop these little monkeys from target shooting the Halloween pumpkin that still isn't rotten.

Here is baby face #1 from Grandma and pa's Christmas spectacular! Is that so cute? I will eat him!
And here is baby face #2 from Grandpa and ma's Christmas spectacular. I will lick him like a peppermint pop since that is what is all over his sweet little face. FYI: This child is an exact re-make of my little (but not so any more) brother. INSIDE AND OUT! love him!!
Mum and pa had the Christmas party ornament exchange! Boy howdy... it was divine. We re-enacted Luke II (which is so fun with little people.) And then the spirit went straight out the door when Santa "ho ho hoed" his Jolly old self right into the middle of our party! He handed out gifts (BEFORE CHRISTMAS! WOW). And then Grandma sat on his beard and it came off! And then she lifted her buttocks cheeks so that Santa could put it back on. I think he must have been a helper. McKay says you can tell if he's a helper by his shoes. Because real Santa wears boots but helpers wear black Sunday shoes and leather looking leg warmers over them. Whatever?!
Then Aunt Tisha took all the boy cousins to Freestone Park to race frogs. They were in Boy heaven... HEAVEN! Playing with frogs and racing them. Good times. We took the frogs back to the pet store when they were done. No where to store them! When we got there we found out that they shouldn't be handled without gloves because they are toxic. WHAT?!
I made Jelly with Leslie. It was one of the funnest things I did this season. It was a gift she really wanted to give to her mother. Jelly, not jam, because her mother can't eat seeds but loves strawberries. And so Leslie saved all year to give such a gift from her heart. And it touched mine.
3 little people ready for slumber in their new Christmas Jammies on the Eve of His birth... And yes, it is a tradition that we share with 10 million other people to get new pjs on Christmas eve.
But slumber was not found before cookies, milk, and a little request was set out for Old St. Nick... Who did (indeed) stop by our house and graciously remembered the Mecham children.
Coley requested a bb gun like McKay's. And though you might think Santa is more responsible than that to give such a young child a gun, you are dead dog wrong! He delivered. (you know you just said, "you'll shoot your eye out kid".) And since everyone that heard of Cole's gift from Santa has said that to him so far, we now tell people that Coley got Legos. Because that is one of his other gifts. McKay got Madden 10. He was in Wii heaven all day! And the next... and still is! HOURS of fun! We haven't used the wii this much since Grandpa-great and Grandma Della delivered it last Christmas!
Bailey got Taylor Swift C.D... much requested... for her to sing along with. She is my favorite girl.

And the month didn't stop with Christmas, as know... Because then we struck up energy celebrate the NEW YEAR! And we rose the roof over there. BOY HOWDY... I haven't laughed so hard in the whole year. Those Lindbloms are fun people!

HaPpY nEw YeAr!