Update

I’ve had such an appreciation for Brennan lately.  He’s the best.  He worries a lot about supporting this motley crew of ours and he worries about how to help me and the kids with all we have going on.  I love watching him enjoy the kids, he’s pretty open about when they’re driving him crazy, but he’s also pretty transparent about when he’s proud of them or when he thinks they’re the smartest, cutest, funniest things on the planet.  I love how tenderhearted he is.  I also love that he’ll talk to me and laugh with me and laugh at himself.  We got laughing so hard the other night, we could not stop for like 20-25 minutes.  It was one of the best things ever.   We love Brennan.

I was finally released as our ward choir director.  My first reaction was complete jubilation.  The next week I led them for the last time and was completely filled with sadness and appreciation for that whole experience.  It was one of those callings that I was honestly incapable of, but through many tender mercies and many talented, patient people it was overall a good experience, and in my humble opinion – we had a great little choir.  Mostly it taught me that we truly can do anything the Lord asks of us.

Anna is just wrapping up her soccer season and starting her indoor soccer season.  It’s been such a beautiful Fall, they never had to cancel or postpone one game due to weather.  That’s kind of amazing.   How great is it to have an excuse to sit in beautiful weather watching your daughter and her friends do something they love and are good at.  She’s on a comp team this year and it’s been a blast.   It always cracks people up watching her be so tough because she’s so delicate looking.  She’s a sweet girl, she loves her siblings and we’re so grateful for all she does to help us with them.  She’s enjoying school right now, even math – yay!  She loves being in Young Women’s and is currently completely consumed with planning a Halloween party with her bff, Chloe.  We love Anna.

Abigail is probably the busiest,  she’s involved in a lot, but it never overwhelms me because she just kind of takes care of everything she needs to take care of.  She and Anna are doing this musical theatre workshop and loving it.  I can’t wait to see their performance in a few weeks.  In my last post I mentioned that Abby gets a little crazy, for example, she has this funny dramatic streak in her that doesn’t always make sense but is always entertaining.  The other day she was playing with Joshy and they were in a little tent thing and as Anna walked up to them she heard Abby say to Josh “Cub Josephina, you have much to learn.”  I know you’re confused, so are we, but it cracks us up anyway.  Abby is often found with Joshy, she takes such good care of him.  We love Abigail.

Nate got a new bike and the two are rarely seen without the other.   When he’s not on his bike he’s telling me how much he needs football receiving gloves.  His cousin, Rex, has some and evidently every football player on tv.  He cracks me up when he gets obsessed about something, he was home sick one day and wanted to talk about those gloves to me all day.  He sometimes gets a little distracted at school so I’m always asking him how he’s doing in school and if he’s getting in trouble.  More often than not his answer is something along these lines: well, so and so said or did something SO funny (usually funny things like burping etc) that I had to laugh and then I got in trouble.  He’s such a cute little guy who loves to laugh, I love that about him – his teachers probably don’t love that about him.  He’s completely devoted to Joshua and the devotion is mutual.  What a cute little pair, Joshy is always asking for Nate.  We love Nate.

The other day we were driving in rush-hour traffic to one of Anna’s games.  Benny spoke up and said, “This sure is traffic, I say!”  He has the cutest little way of saying grown-up things in such a reassuringly 5 year old way.  He loves school.  Actually, I’m not sure if it’s school he loves or just  that he’s reached that very grown-up threshold of big-kidness.  Anyway, he’s always on the hunt for “top box’s” (box tops) and is more than happy to do homework.  He has become a little less patient about running errands and doing anything else of my bidding, I think he finds it a little insulting given his Kindergarten status.  He too got a new bike and he and his best little friend, Will, have worked out a system of one of them watching to see if there are cars coming and sounding the “all clear” so the other one can streak down our very steep driveway, into the cul-de-sac across the street.  We love Benjamin.

(One of our go-to games for FHE is our version of “charades”.  We just basically act like anything we want to and everyone tries to figure it out.  This was a clever little thing Ben came up with to mimic a duck)

Joshua has taken 2 to new heights.  He can be the most adorable little creature you ever did see and then two seconds later a little madman.  He is for the most part, good-natured, but he is also very opinionated.  He also benefits from older siblings and has learned a few opinions and dramatic declarations from some pretty masterful teachers.  Today he was in time-out and when I opened his door so he could come out he yelled “Get out” and slammed his door shut again.  It’s actually kind of sad, but for some reason it struck me so funny that my 2 year old just told me to “get out.”  He is currently obsessed with Mickey Mouse.  It’s his favorite show and the only one he’ll watch.  He loves his grandparents and talks about them all the time.  He loves his siblings and his friend, Daisy.  He repeats EVERYTHING he hears the big kids say.  Ben will say, “Mom is that truck carrying furniture?” and then Joshy having know idea what he’s saying will ask me the exact same thing and demand to be taken seriously.  We love Joshua.

I’m loving this little family of ours.  We have lots of things to work on, but I’m pretty happy to be working on them with these particular people.

One more video, of some of the kids having a good time.