Me and my Insanity!!!

Sometimes I feel like I live at the circus.

Why do you ask-well let me tell you. This is a story much like countless other mothers with small children-or really any children for that matter. To begin all of the kids have been sick for the past two weeks. In and of itself that is enough to make you insane. But oh no it gets much better than that. Inbetween a 104 fever and coughing attacks Parker decides that he is going to cook some eggs for himself. I came downstairs to find a plastic bowl on top of the stove with water and two eggs in it, and the oven turned on. I kindly asked him what he was doing and he explained that he wanted to make some "scrambled eggs" (he really meant hard boiled eggs). I told him that he needed to use a pot and turn on the burner instead of the stove-although thankfully he hadnt known that before or I would have had a nice melted plastic bowl on my stovetop. He insisted that he might perish without eggs so I proceeded to put the eggs and water in a pot and cook them. While the eggs cooked I went upstairs to get dressed for a meeting. The house was quiet until from downstairs I heard a blood curdling scream from Parker. I knew it must be serious because the Halloween goblins will not be around for at least 2 more weeks. I ran downstairs to find Parker howling for all he was worth as he showed me his poor little burnt fingers he acquired when he touched the hot stove. As soon as I got him calmed down and ice on his fingers I heard more crying from the next room and I went to find that Abrianna had peed her pants and was completely soaked. So upstairs she went into the bathtub while I cleaned the carpets. Mind you I still have a baby screaming and a little boy with burnt fingers certain that he will die at any moment.

Then yesterday as I was getting out of the shower someone rang our doorbell. I told the kids not to answer it because I wasnt dressed. I peeked out the window and saw that it was a family friend so I threw on a robe and went to the door. (mind you I am soaking and my wet hair is dripping all over the floor) She comes in and as we are talking Parker runs into the kitchen and smack-- lands face first on the floor. Blood is everywhere and he is screaming in pain. Talk about feel terrible my wet hair caused a mishap for my poor boy who still has burnt fingers and who already smacked his face on the bench at church on sunday from a rousing head, shoulders, knees and toes-led by none else than me, his own mother. I am pretty sure that I am bad luck for him!!! So I had to wake the girls up from their nap and load everyone into the car to go up to the office so Randall could look at his tooth. The x-ray showed that one of his front teeth is jammed sideways up in his gums and the other one is loose. Good thing he already had school pictures. Although in the family christmas picture he may be sporting a toothless smile.

And to top it all off yesterday I noticed that Abrianna had a mysterious tuft on the top of her head. Much like a 3 year old who gave herself a haircut. I didnt think much of it until I was in the shower this morning and I noticed some extremely long hairs on my razor!!! Now I can let my leg hair grow pretty long-but even that was pushing it for me. Ahh, is there no rest for the weary. Oh well-I guess it just comes with being a mother. I really wouldnt trade any of the craziness, because it does keep life interesting, although sometimes Icould stand to run away for a couple of days. So what joys await me in my journey of motherhood tomorrow-not sure- maybe i'll just go join the circus!!

Conference Weekend!!

Well another great General Conference has come and gone, and we thouroughly enjoyed being spiritually fed and uplifted by President Monson and the Apostles. Our entire family looks forward to this time of year with great anticipation and excitement. Even Parker and Abrianna are excited for the opportunity to see President Monson and listen to his words. Randall and I have really tried to make this an extra special time for the kids and it has made all of the difference.

This year we started out with the family night before conference discussing the story of King Benjamin. We talked about how all of the people came and pitched their tents toward the tower so that they could hear the Prophet speak to them. We then discussed how it is just as important for us to gather and listen to our prophet today. Then we played the memory game with our apostle cards and learned the new apostle song (you can find this on youtube-it is awesome. Our kids already know most of the names of the apostles and some fun facts about each of them.) This is sort of one of our new family traditions to better prepare us for conference. It really works!! When the children watched conference they couldnt wait to see who the next speaker was and if it was a familiar face we would quiz them on the facts that they learned during Family Night. We found that a little extra preparation goes a long way.

Listening to conference with the family.

The Conference Wall

This is one of our favorite traditions!! It really helps Randall and I and the kids stay focused during the talks. Each time one of the Apostles or a member of the First Presidency speaks we find our card with a picture of them printed on it then listen for what the topic of their talk is. Once we have determined what their focus will be we tape their picture to a piece of paper and write that topic on it. This helps keep the kids engaged in conference and also reminds us what we learned during the following week.

Parker unloading the loot in his special "Conference Basket."

Each conference I have special baskets that I fill with food and fun for Parker and Abrianna (okay so mom and dad get one too.) They usually consist of some type of "healthy treat" like apples and peanut butter, and trail mix and some not so healthy treats like their favorite candy. I also put in special coloring pages from the Friend and a new box of crayons. We each get our own set of apostle cards and for mom and dad a special pen and notebook. We all look forward to the fun new things in our basket each conference.

Yum, Yum!! Conference Cinnamon Rolls. Okay so I know this isn't the greatest picture I could have taken of them but all I could get was a quick snap before they were quickly devoured.
On Saturday and Sunday morning I plan a huge "Conference Breakfast." This really all stared when I was in college and we needed a good excuse to invite boys over to hang out and watch conference and what better way than with food. I have carried on the tradition with my family and we look forward to a yummy breakfast each conference. This year on saturday morning we had a delicious egg bake with hashbrowns and sausage and pumpkin bread. Sunday was the ever popular cinnamon rolls and sausage.








And of course the weekend wouldnt be complete without our semi-annual preparedness marathon. Each Conference we take inventory of our food and water storage and our 72 hour packs, and of course we check our smoke detectors. Having conference every 6 months really helps keep us on track with our families preparedness goals. Between the sessions on Saturday we empty and refill all of our water jugs and barrels-that way we always know that our water is fresh. Then I make sure that our 72 hour packs are updated with the right size of clothing and that the food is still fresh. If any of it is getting close to the experation date, we eat it for sncaks during the weekend and replenish with new food. The kids actually love helping and we end up having a really great time together.


Randall refilling some of the water jugs. What a great guy!! He is always willing to go along with my crazy plans even though it may mean missing a much needed afternoon nap.

P.S If you think all of this sounds a little crazy and really time consuming- it is, but it works for us. And to be honest I think I actually enjoy a little crazy. Maybe it comes with all of the white hair I am getting after having baby # 3!!!!!!!!!!!

Beautiful Baby

I love sleeping babies! I love their little twitches and noises and watching their little chest rise and fall reassuring me that everything is all right. There is something so magical that begs me to sit and hold them long after they have drifted into sleep. I love to smell their sweet baby scent and to feel their little fingers wrap softly around mine. I am truly blessed and thank Heavenly Father each day for the new addition to our family. I find myself enjoying and savoring each small moment with Autumn much more than I did with my others. Maybe my heart has been changed as I have grown as a mother or maybe I just got a big dose of reality, but either way I am loving it. They grow up much too fast and if you blink you might just miss the most precious moments of all. So here are a few things I have learned as a mother :

1. enjoy the little cry of a newborn because it will only get bigger

2. sleepless nights will pass (although you should never have to enjoy this)
3. those little smiles they give as a newborn-their not gas! I dont care what the doctors say I prefer to think that they are seeing something celestial.

4. take time to just sit and hold them-someday you will be wishing that they would let you

The Greatest Show On Earth!!

...And the magic words are ZING, ZANG, ZOOM!!! We worked our magic and poof we landed at the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Baileys Circus last night. We were prepared for a night of fun and amazement and were not left dissapointed. They really put on a fantastic show-it really may actually be the greatest show on earth. After all where else can you spend $9 for a snow cone and $8 for cotton candy and a wizard hat-it is just too good to be true!!! Parker and Abrianna had a great time and of course so did mom and dad. There's nothing like dancing horses, and parading elephants to make you feel like a kid all over again.

Another magical memory for our family.

A very wise wizard and his parents.

A couple of kids at the Circus!!

The ever amazing elephant act. It never gets old!!

John, Joy and baby Carter before the show. What a cute family!!

Eagle Crest

This past weekennd we went for a much needed fun in the sun vacation to Eagle Crest. Randall's yearly ODA delegate meeting was held there this year so we decided to take the whole fam plus Nana and Papa. We had a great time and the weather was perfect. We rented a house with a hot tub on the deck that overlooked a little pond and creek. The kids loved running and playing and exploring the area. We also went to the High Desert Museum and had a great time exploring all of the sites there. Here are a few pictures of the highlights.

Get it!! The High Desert Museum-bet you cant guess whos idea that was.

Abrianna in a pretend birds nest in the "where do they live" exhibit.

Me and Autumn chillin in the shade.

A screaming eagle or screaming kid?

Randall and Autumn enjoying some sun.

Abrianna at the swimming pool. We spent most of our time at the pool and kiddie spray park. It was awesome. We loved all of the activities that were on site.

Parkers first day of School

What an exciting week it has been at the Glenn house. School time is finally here and not a moment too soon. Parker is so excited to have arrived at the big times-otherwise known as Kindergarten. He has been looking forward to this day all summer long. It was a long wait considering he was ready to start as soon as preschool was over last year. I spent most of the summer counting and recounting the days until school would begin. Thank goodness the big day finally arrived. After a morning of great anticipation the bus finally arrived and he was off for his first day of fun. When the bus pulled up to the house he was so excited he didn't even look back to say goodbye-it was not a great comfort to his mother who had the usual first day of school tears. As he arrived home on the bus he had a smile on his face as he walked to the front door. Then it all fell apart. He started crying and proceeded to tell me how horrible his day was. Not because of bullies, or anxious nerves but because his out of touch mother forgot to pack him a snack on the very first day of school. He was devastated and so was I. I tried to explain that because they have a shorter day on Wednesdays that the teacher had told us not to pack a snack on those days. But to no avail his heart was still broken. Some other kids moms had packed snacks and he had none. He then told me "mom I thought you didn't love me because you didn't pack me a snack." My heart sank and the tears from that morning came flooding back. So next Wednesday I may just pack him a snack and ask forgiveness from the teacher later. I dont know if I can see his little heart broken like that again.

A very jealous sister waits for the bus with her big brother.

Quotable Quote: On the first day of school.

Parker: Nana, I really need to find a girlfriend at school today.

Nana: What! Girls are icky, why do you want a girlfriend.

Parker: Because they are beautiful and I love them.

Nana: (snickering) Well good luck, I hope you find one.

I think I am in trouble!

A Summer full of Autumn

Well the summer is almost here and gone and it has been a great one. I have decided that we should officially call this last season our "Autumn" Summer. Although we did not do much this year by some standards it was none the less one of our best years yet. What a blessing little Autumn has been in our family.
These are some of the beautiful photos that my mom took of Autumn.

Autumn is growing like crazy and changing so much everyday. I love to see her little legs and arms finally chubbing out a little and we are having tons of fun discovering her emerging personality. I have to say she just might be our best baby yet as far as sleeping and her temprement are concerned. She has actually slept through the night several timesl-yes!! I almost felt guilty for not waking up to do the old "is she still breathing routine." Maybe thats how you know you are the mother of 3-you dont wake up to silence. The absence of noise is very much appreciated when sleep is at a premium. Of course I usually pay for it the next day, but anyone with babies knows its still worth it. Parker and Abrianna are loving her up and learning how to take care of and be nice to a new baby. So far I have had to save Autumn from her head being cut off by a rebel pirates sword, a delicious and tempting snack of mixed nuts, runaway baseballs and frisbees, and countless other everyday accidents around our house. She endures it well and is being well prepared for the craziness of life around the Glenn house.

Thankyou Tilly!!'

We loved having you at our home and appreciate all of your help with baby Autumn and especially with Parker and Abrianna.