Tornado Warning

Aidan wanted to know what to wear to school so I looked online at the weather forecast.  He was looking over my shoulder and saw the Tornado warning and severe weather warning for later that night.  Normally I wouldn't have told my kids anything but he read it on his own.  The storms were suppose to roll through from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m.

Ryan was in St. Louis and he was hit by the storms first.  They had hail there and two tornadoes touch down.  Ryan wasn't affected but the tornado sirens did go off where he was.  Hearing this report from Ryan I knew the storm was potentially dangerous.

Aidan was really concerned when it was time to go to bed.  He started to cry a little and I knew falling asleep would not come easy so I let him sleep in my bed.  I really felt in my heart that we would be fine.  Either the storm wasn't going to be that bad or if it was bad that we would be prepared and taken care of.  I told Aidan to listen to what the Spirit was trying to tell him in his heart.  Listen for the calm feeling.  He started to sob saying he didn't have the Gift of the Holy Ghost yet and that he couldn't feel it.  I explained he could feel the Spirit comforting him even if he didn't have the Gift of the Holy Ghost yet.  I told him to trust me to take care of him. 

The kids were pestering me with questions and wanted to know what we would do if there was a tornado.  I told them I would prepare the bathroom with all the stuff we needed.  They began to list all the stuff they wanted in there.  Aidan wanted all his toys and all his school stuff and his bed.  I told him that stuff was all replaceable and just chose things we couldn't replace.  He grabbed his favorite stuffed animals and his scriptures.  After laying in bed for a few minutes he ran out to tell me we needed money so he needed to put his wallet in the bathroom too.  Lacey of course had to get her wallet too.  After I finally had them settled down they asked what we would do if we were really scared.  I said we could tell funny stories or sing songs that made us feel happy.  I told the kids to try to fall asleep and no more talking.  From the other room a moment later I could hear the two kids humming I am a Child of God.  I just smiled and giggled inside.  What sweet little children trying to calm their hearts.

I prepared the bathroom while the kids were asleep.  I grabbed everything we would need from shoes, coats, snacks and water, to important docs, camera, fire extinguisher, flash lights and our external hard drive.  I was ready for this storm.  I too was a little nervous about the potential of the storm so I stayed up watching the news showing the storm get closer and closer.  Finally the tornado warning was issued for our county, the sirens went off, and I received the emergency alert phone call.  I looked outside and it really didn't look bad to me.  However, the meteorologist kept saying this storm could produce sudden tornadoes that would touch down for a few minutes and then pop back up into the storm. Also that there were hurricane force winds up to 80 miles per hour.  I didn't know if it was worth it to wake my kids or not.  I saw a few of my facebook friends were in their basements so I figured be safe rather than sorry.  I woke up Aidan and Lacey and had them sleep on the bathroom floor where I had blankets and pillow.  I then put Cassidy in there as well but she never woke up.  I turned the tv up load enough for me to hear it and we waited the storm out.

The kids weren't really scared at this point.  I think they thought it was fun to be up in the night laying all together in the bathroom.  They wanted to hear a funny story so I told them about a small earthquake that happened on Halloween morning when I was in third grade.  The funny part was that I was in the bathroom while it happened.  That made them laugh.  They ate a fruit snack and then our county was cleared from the warning.  All the kids went back to bed but in my room.  Before returning to bed though, Aidan examined all the stuff I had brought to the bathroom.  He looked around and said to me, " I rate your preparedness an EXCELLENT. EX-CE-LLENT."  That made me smile.

Flaps 9

We have been waiting for years for the opportunity for Ryan to upgrade to Captain.  The company finally had a massive upgrade in several cities and Ryan was awarded a captain spot but in Milwaukee.  While we have no intentions of moving to Milwaukee we are excited for the upgrade.  With the upgrade though, Ryan has to endure 4 weeks of training and several tests.  He has to pass the tests in order to become a captain. 

Ryan is a very dedicated person.  He started studying 3 weeks before his class started.  I think that is being prepared.  He thinks he procrastinated.  So for the past 2 months Ryan has spent all his time studying.  We have had piles of books, notebooks, notes, flash cards all over our house.  We have "tried" to leave him alone so he could study.  He started two weeks ago and passed his first test which was a written test.  The next step was an oral test which is the most difficult because the officiator can ask as in depth of questions as he wants on a variety of topics.  We can't wait for this test to be done.

The other night Aidan volunteered to help Ryan study his flash cards.  They studied together for an hour.  When they were done Aidan told me that dad passed and he only missed one question.  Aidan was very impressed.

The next day I was tucking Aidan in bed and he said, "Mom, I would really like to learn more about planes."  I said, "That would be great."  Then he said, "So could you tell me about flaps 9?"  I laughed and said, "Aidan you are talking to the wrong parent. Maybe daddy can give you classes on airplanes."  This is when I knew that Ryan's studying was affecting my kids.  When they start busting out lingo like flaps 9.  I didn't know flaps even had numbers.  As I am writing this Aidan is reading it and telling me that their is flaps 0, 9, 45 and blah blah blah number flaps.  Seriously too much studying!!!!!

Three little ladies

We found out today we were having another little girl coming in September.  Ryan and I went to the ultrasound together and I had really high hopes for a boy.  I love my girls and I love all the frill and flowers and bows and dresses but I was ready for airplanes, tonka trucks, and trains again.  I also wanted the balance of 2 and 2.  During the ultrasound they didn't investigate the gender till the end but as she was doing measurements of her stomach, kidneys and legs we could see the little baby had her legs right close together crossed at the ankles.  When I saw this I said, "This is a modest little girl."  Sure enough it was.  I was shocked and my first thoughts were of Aidan.  I was heartbroken for him.  I knew he wouldn't take the news well and was so sad I couldn't do anything about it.

We found a cute little shirt that says Little Sisters Rock as our way of telling the kids.

We decided to have lunch with the kids at school to tell them.  When we walked in both Lacey's and Aidan's teachers were in the hall and knew we were coming with news.  I knew the kids were excited especially if they had told their teachers all about it.  We sat down to lunch with the kids and they were so anxious to hear.  We made them close their eyes while I pulled the little outfit out.  When they opened they saw pink.  Aidan immediately said, "You are joking"  Lacey just seemed stunned and oblivious to what was happening.  I told her what the shirt said and still not much of a reaction.  Aidan then started to go through my purse in hopes to find some little blue outfit that I was hiding.  Instead he found a bag of Reese's cups.  He said what are these for and I said to soften the blow.  He sat for a minute and I really thought he was going to be okay and then I saw his eyes start to tear up.  I hugged him and tried to console him the best I could.  Poor guy, a life with 3 sisters. 

By the time we left he had pulled himself together.  He was happy about it but he has excepted the news.  Now his new mission is to find the girl a name.  His first suggestion was Lilyana, the name of a cute little girl in his class.  Lacey's first suggestions were Ellanora (the name of two of her favorite friends put together) and Alexa.  It is going to be harder to name this baby with 2 more opinions to work with.

So another surprise turn in our lives.  Three girls and one boy.

When I Grow Up...

I have always been envious of ambitious people; people who have known what their dreams have been since they were three. They knew what they wanted to be when they grew up and they went after it. Whether it is some grand occupational plan, to sing, play piano, be a competitive athlete or an artist. I wasn’t given any of those obvious talents and have always wished I had a dream since I was three of becoming something amazing.

One of my most treasured and favorite books as a little girl was a Little Golden Book called Baby Dear by Eloise Wilkin. It was a sweet story of a little girl who has a new baby sister. She was given a baby doll to care for while her mommy cares for the real baby. She would do all the things the mom would do with the new baby with her own little baby doll. They bathed them together, sang to them together, rocked them together, and took them on walks together. Side by side this little girl mimicked everything the mom did. I’m not sure why as a little girl I was so taken with this book. The illustrations are just precious and the story was so adorable. I had a new baby sister and maybe that is why my mom got me that book. My original book lost the front cover and is well worn. I have since bought another copy because it is that dear to me. It is clear to me now why I loved that book so much. It was who I wanted to be. I wanted to be a mom even when I was that little.

Last fall my mom came to visit and brought me a CD of songs that I listened to all the time when I was a kid called Songs for a Mormon Child. One of my favorites was called “I Want to be a Mother”. The lyrics are:

When I grow up, I want to be a mother and have a family

One little, two little, three little babies of my own.

Of all the jobs, for me I’ll choose no other! I’ll have a family

Four little, five little, six little babies in my home.

I put the CD in to listen to it and when that song came on I just started to cry. It dawned on me that from a young age that was all I wanted to do was become a mother. That was my dream and my ambition. And now I was doing it. I'm livin' my dream.

I do love being a mom. It feels like my soul purpose in life. I am not good at every part of being a mom but some parts I am. I look at my house and wonder what happened to the clean organized life I used to have. When it was just Ryan and I, I was clean and organized. I remember being pregnant with Aidan and being so desperately sad when I couldn’t lean over the tub anymore to clean it. Now, cleaning my tub is not at the top of my priority list. I’m just grateful for the days my kids are fed, have clean clothes and, are in bed at a decent time.

It is harder to be a mom than I ever imagined. I would like to say I gave up everything to be a mom but I really didn’t. It is what I always wanted so I don’t think I have sacrificed anything to be a mom. I have sacrificed my figure and my sanity but I had no other dream, no other ambition, no other career path other than this one. So sacrifice isn’t how I would describe being a mom for me. It definitely has shown me my weaknesses and my faults but it has also shown me some strengths and most of all the power and joy of love.

I am so grateful to be a mom. It truly is my dream and ambition. I am so happy I have such wonderful children and that I get to be their mom forever.

General Conference

We love General Conference at our house.  One of the biggest reasons we have satellite is so we can watch Conference on tv.  I always make sure we have good food  and lots of work sheets for the kids to keep them busy.  This year I saw a cute idea on one of the craft blogs I frequent.  They had little buckets full of candy with a key word on it.  Every time you heard that word in a talk you could pick a treat from that bucket.  We decided to make a tally and get the treats at the end of the talk so we wouldn't be disruptive.  It was a great way to get the kids to listen.  However, some talks totally drained out our candy supply.  I think LOVE was the overall winner.  By the end we would say "I'm sick of love, I want a different candy."  Cassidy was cute, each time she heard someone say Latter-Day Saints she would say, "Hey we go to that church." Glad to hear she was listening too.

It was a great weekend of relaxation and edification.