halloween candy

this is more for the books than for anything else, but I wanted to give an update on the NO CANDY contest going on at my house.

For the past 10 months, Ben and Luke have been on a NO CANDY challenge. That's right, they haven't eaten ANY candy since January 1, 2011. The challenge was to go an entire year without candy for $100 each. Because I am such a nice mom and because I love Halloween so much, I stated months ago that Halloween is the only exception. They were able to eat their trick-or-treating candy on Halloween day. They seemed excited about it, but guess what? The each ate a few pieces and then they were done... They wanted to give it to the Great Pumpkin (trade it in for a present) and hardly touched their loot. When they put their buckets by the door on Halloween night, Zack followed suit and didn't want his candy either!!!! What the?? I decided to take Simon's candy too since he's at an out-of-sight-out-of-mind age right now.. So, I have SO MUCH candy stashed in my closet, I am not sure what to do with it. My midwife suggested to save it to decorate Gingerbread houses (or maybe even keep it for stockings at Christmas, too.)

It's mind-boggling how little my kids care about the candy. I thought they were going to PIG OUT on Halloween just because they could, but they were so NOT excited about it.. Aaron doesn't think we should pay them for the challenge because it hasn't been difficult enough for them, but I think they TOTALLY deserve every penny. I am really proud of them and their dedication. Those two boys are such a blessing to our family..

girl club

I am finally in the GIRL CLUB!!!

For the past ten years my sister Debbie and I have never been able to relate when it comes to raising children. She has all girls, I have all boys. Our motherhood experience has been very different and I can't wait to start asking her for advice! It's been ridiculously fun dressing my little baby in all of Debbie's baby girl clothes. She has given me more than I know what to do with.

Debbie and her four girls were in Vegas for almost a week. I am so grateful they were here while my husband was out of town. We had so much fun introducing them to our little Roma. Deb headed back to Utah early this morning and we will miss them dearly!!

Halloween pictures to come...

big bro

Simon and Roma just a few hours after they first met each other...

This boy has been my hardest challenge since his little sister arrived. He has also been the cutest, most attentive, most protective big brother I have ever seen. He LOVES his "baby Woma" but he won't allow me to take care of her on my own, which really can be exhausting. He wants to assist with every feeding, every diaper change, everything she does. He is constantly worried that the baby won't be coming when we leave the house... or the room. If I tell him it's time to eat, he will make sure she's joining us in the kitchen. All day long, I hear the following questions: My baby Woma eat? My baby Woma coming? My baby Woma take a bath? Minutes after she arrived, he realized he couldn't do anything without her. He will gather all her blankets and binkis and toys and will carry them around the house. If someone tries to take them away from him, he will punch them in the face and scream, "these MY baby Woma!" If she cries, he's the first one to rescue her. And he's a little too comfortable carrying her around. Yes, he's picked her up twice and carried her to me. Absolutely dangerous, I know. But absolutely darling too.

One of the sweetest (and most annoying) thing he does, is inch his way around the baby to make it seem like she wants to be next to him. I often catch him sitting next to her on the couch and moving every blanket or pillow behind her head so that she conveniently falls right on his lap. He will lay next to her in the bed and angle his body in the perfect position so it looks like she wanted to lay on his shoulder. Last week, I happened to have the camera nearby...

Something tells me that baby Woma thinks he's more endearing than he is annoying.

so much to post... so little motivation

My camera cord is back and in business. I am currently downloading 1200 pictures to my laptop. wowza. where to begin? Deb is in town with her cute girlies. My husband flies out to San Fran tomorrow on business.... which makes me even more grateful to have my sis here. I have so much to document, but only have a few minutes before the baby will want to eat. So this is all you get tonight....

Roma went to her first Cub Scout pack meeting. She no likey-- especially the loud, obnoxious cheers. It was kind of fun because it was outside and we roasted hot dogs and smores. But it was kind of not fun because I have 5 kids and my sister has 4... We probably should have stayed home and microwaved a package of wieners and called it a night. ANYWAY... Roma got dressed in a warm outfit and looked super cute. (Isn't that what matters most of all??)

Isn't she lovely?

Today I heard Stevie Wonder's song Isn't She Lovely and I cried. Just thinking about her fills my heart with happiness. And LOVELY is such a perfect word to describe little Roma.

My emotional state is very stable these days. I think I've only cried one other time since she was born. I feel extremely happy and incredibly blessed for the five little people that live in my house. Having a baby has definitely made things more complicated, but ever since she was born, I feel like I am moving in slow motion-- just enjoying the moment and soaking in her loveliness.

These pictures were taken when she was four days old. I have two wonderfully talented photographer friends here in Vegas who offered to do photos for a baby gift. I still feel indebted to them. The pictures are truly priceless.

More to come later.

I also have a bazillion pictures to upload from this past weekend. My oldest sister Lori, her husband Phillip and their seven kids came to visit for 5 days. At the same time, my little brother David and his wife were passing through Vegas on their way to Disneyland with their two kids.... so we had a full house! Lori ended up taking the cord to my camera back with her to Utah yesterday, so no pictures yet. But, lucky for us, the camera cord is traveling back to Vegas as I type. My sister Debbie and her four girls will be here in just a few hours. Yes, we have lots of visitors... and that's how we like it! Our kids have been in heaven with their cousins and I have absolutely loved showing off my beautiful baby girl.

I think this is my favorite picture of the bunch. I love the umbilical cord and the cute baby cleavage. I wish they could stay little forever!